Action, not Activism

As we enter a new year, it is a good reminder how God makes all things new and provides new opportunities every day to learn, grow, serve, and live life to the full.  The life God has prepared for us is greater in scope and impact than we can imagine.  His plans that will be fulfilled are better than our dreams.

I glanced over an article this morning which touched on a subject to which I have given much thought.  The basic premise of the article was Christians tend toward being politically conservative and give little or no effort to activism because they see it as an activity employed by liberals.  Whilst this may or may not be true, it was a straw-man argument to explain why there are not more Christian political activists.  My take is I am not at all called by God to activism but to be active in loving God and others.  If love for God and people means I am to take practical actions, it is a good thing.  At the same time I realise I cannot of myself accomplish anything without the LORD's wisdom, guidance, and help.

I grew up in an era when the abortion debate reached a fever-pitch in the 80's, when protests, marches, and violence from all sides raged.  Probably since the Vietnam war there had not been such a divisive and emotionally charged issue, and at the core was evidence of completely opposing world views.  "Peaceful" demonstrations didn't stay peaceful.  At the core of the struggle was the value of rights:  the right of a "woman to choose" or the right of a foetus (or an unborn child) to live.  Even the terms used in common speech were polarising.  I watched the tactics employed by groups on the right and left side of the issue which, for a large part, employed intimidation, manipulation, violence, parades, and volume to assert their claims.  If that is activism, I want no part of it.  Activism is as much about what you hate as what you fight for.  I do not see Jesus embracing any of these tactics to achieve political or social change, for He laboured for something far more significant and enduring:  the kingdom of God.

There are evidently many people who have embraced activism for social justice or political change as an outlet for their faith, and I see no reason to speak against this.  Yet it is important to note activism always has an end.  Should you ever achieve your desire, it is on to the next great cause.  As hard as people fought to make a change they must double their efforts to sustain it.  With the stroke of a pen all that people worked for and bled over can be undone.  What Jesus did through His active love, however, no one can take away.  He did not need to make friends of the Jews or Romans to achieve His purposes, for He answered to His Father in heaven.  He did not make any sweeping legislative reforms, end poverty, or homelessness, but He did free people from the curse of the Law, provide true riches of heaven to all, and promised an eternal home to all who would trust in Him.  I am convinced Jesus was no activist following a dream, but He was active in following the Father's plan for His life as He reached out to others individually.

Let's make 2019 a year filled with meaningful and fruitful actions in obedience to God for His glory.  We may not be able to change the hearts or minds of others, but may we embrace the changes God desires to accomplish in our lives.  It is alluring to think our efforts and the greatness of a cause will change the world or make it a better place, but without God that is impossible.  The social justice trap ensnares many who march into it, but those who walk in step with Christ are free indeed.

God's Glory in the Woods

"We - or at least I - shall not be able to adore God on the highest occasions if we have learned no habit of doing so on the lowest.  At best, our faith and reason will tell us that He is adorable, but we shall not have found Him so, nor have "tasted and seen."  Any patch of sunlight in a wood will show you something about the sun which you could never get from reading books on astronomy.  These pure and spontaneous pleasures are "patches of Godlight" in the woods of our experience."

C.S. Lewis (excerpt from The Quotable Lewis page 35)

From the sunlight mountaintop and the low valley, the LORD remains praiseworthy.  His glory is displayed for all to see through His wondrous creation.  Whilst some deify creation as notable in itself, those who know the most high God find reasons to praise Him in all He has made:  from the vastness of space to the intricate designs and behaviour in human, animal, and plant life, God is glorified.

It is not often people in Sydney have the opportunity to sit under the vast black canopy of stars without the sound and light pollution of the city, but I highly encourage it.  This week I had a chance to visit a rustic property (Andy's Flat) near Cooma in New South Wales, a five-hour drive south.  One thing I love about Australia is the abundance of wildlife in the city, suburbs, or country.  We have a resident eastern blue-tongue lizard who lives under our deck, and many varieties of birds.  At the property near Cooma there were wild goats and hogs, kangaroo, wallabies, echidnas, foxes, platypus, and more.  People scan the heavens looking for a sign of life, and this earth is crammed with it.

Check out some picture from the trip below, enjoy the sights of Andy's flat, and praise God who created such beauty!

Forget "What If"

Every day brings with it countless possibilities.  When facing decisions, it is easy to be confounded by many "what ifs" and be paralysed with uncertainty.  What we do not know or cannot predict can hinder us from doing what we know is right.

In the book of Ecclesiastes, Solomon addressed this issue.  There are many things which are completely out of our control.  Some things will happen without our permission, like trees which fall in a storm.  What's done is done, but God graciously grants us the power to make good and profitable decisions moving forward.  Though we cannot determine everything which could happen, we should not be hindered in doing what is right.  The king of Israel wrote in Ecclesiastes 11:4-6:  "He who observes the wind will not sow, and he who regards the clouds will not reap. ⁵ As you do not know what is the way of the wind, or how the bones grow in the womb of her who is with child, so you do not know the works of God who makes everything. ⁶ In the morning sow your seed, and in the evening do not withhold your hand; for you do not know which will prosper, either this or that, or whether both alike will be good."

Solomon makes the point the farmer sows even if a blowing wind makes an even spread of seed more difficult, and he will not allow the threat of rain to leave good crops unharvested.  There are a lot of things we don't understand or comprehend, like how wind is generated or how a baby develops in the womb of the mother.  We don't understand how God accomplishes many such wonders:  should our lack of understanding hinder us from trusting God in areas of our lives we mistakenly believe we have control?  When we make our ability to understand the barometer for making decisions, we lean on our own understanding and fall short of God's grace.

I like the exhortation Solomon gives here:  the farmer may not be able to explain how a baby is formed in the womb of its mother, but there is a time and season for doing things he knows is right.  In the morning he should sow his seed, and in the evening he should do work, eat food, and take rest as is appropriate for the season.  No farmer can predict if a crop will be lean or bountiful, but if he does not sow he will not have a crop at all!  A farmer may not be able to explain how oats germinate or what causes deciduous trees to drop their leaves, but he is to make the most of every season.  Never allow the "what ifs" to paralyse us from doing the good works God has called us to do.

Unto You Is Born

This morning at the Calvary Chapel Sydney Christmas service we read through portions of the Gospel of Luke.  A part of the talk which spoke to me is when the angel delivered the good news of the birth of Jesus Christ to shepherds in the fields as they watched their flocks by night.

Surrounded with the glory of God, the angel proclaimed in Luke 2:10-11, "Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people. ¹¹ For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord."  If I put myself in those shepherd's sandals, it was a very curious thing which the angel said.  I don't know about you, but when someone else has a baby (even a couple I know very well), the child is their baby.  I have great joy a child has been born, but the child is born to his parents - not to me.  The child is their responsibility, not mine.

Maybe the shepherds mistakenly thought to themselves, "Wait a second.  I'm not expecting a baby to be born in Bethlehem.  I have no love interest there."  But those shepherds, Mary and Joseph, all in the region, and all the people of the world were the love interest of that Child who was Jesus Christ the LORD.  God demonstrated His love by coming to earth as a baby who grew to be a man who laid down His life on Calvary as a sacrifice for sinners.  Every person alive when Jesus was born until today is responsible in the sense of our belief, for He has been born unto us.  Jesus was not only born as Saviour of the Jews but has been given to all as Jesus Himself proclaimed in John 3:16:  "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life."

Let us rejoice, all redeemed of the LORD, for today is a day to celebrate and remember with joy the Saviour Jesus who has been born unto us.  Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men!