Under Attack!

The timing, the coincidence, enraged them!
How could those Jesus-people go ahead
and wreck the crucial hours with song?
How could it wreak such havoc
when they repeat that dread Name,
over and over in prayer and testimonies,
dancing in the dust with “Alleluias”?

Their rites were rendered useless, impotent,
there in the Sacred Forest where they pursued
their connection with their sponsor, the Dark One.
Easter vigil or whatever, those villagers would pay
for all their disrespect of the Ancient Ways.
And so the beating and the burning began.

Once again, these power-seekers could not accept
the sovereign power of Jesus’ name,
the name that called out Light and Hope,
drove darkness into hiding.
No, they claimed their rights to slavery,
rushed to crush those Christians’ freedom.
Blinders on, their anger ruled the day.

But Jesus won in the long run.
It had seemed impossible to make peace,
the politics and ruses insurmountable.
Then prayer and Family kindness rose,
poured Truth into the tangled web
woven by the Enemy, and shattered it.
Easter praise is now rising again!

That burnt church was in Pisankaha, attacked in 2015. Glenn recently returned from a work visit to the area and took a photo of the beautiful new church building. What had been deemed destroyed has been replaced by something that shows how the Lord can make things new and even better!

Pisankaha is the village where the very first Nyarafolos came to believe in Jesus, back in the early 1960’s. From the beginning they were viewed as a threat by the Sacred Forest, the secret society that oversees the initiation of young men into traditional customs that included occult rituals. The youth who were believers were no longer joining the initiation process.

The Sacred Forest members exert their authority in other events, too. Whenever there are funerals or other occasions when the Sacred Forest’s masked and costumed representatives of certain gods come out into a village, all women and children are obliged to hide. Uninitiated men must hide too, because anyone not in the cohort risks severe beating if they come into the presence of a “mask”. Whenever their power is threatened, there are repercussions.

Through the years the growing group of believers in Pisankaha has suffered multiple times for their faith. Young men were beaten. Threats were thrown at them. But the most violent attack came on Easter in 2015. The Sacred Forest had previously made it clear to the church that whenever the Sacred Forest was having a special gathering, there was to be no church gathering. Singing and prayer messed up their rites.

However they had not realized that they had scheduled one of their night-time meetings on the same calendar day that was the Saturday night before Easter that year. So they had not alerted the church.

They were furious at the disruption the church’s Easter vigil made in the spiritual world, and attacked the Christians twice. They chased believers to beat them. When women and children hid behind closed doors in their huts. they broke down the doors. Many believers ran into the sugar cane fields next to the village to hide. The attackers stole animals from villagers’ pens, burned the pastor’s house and some others. They then bashed in the doors and windows of the church and burned whatever was burnable. A young girl was at a well to draw water when a mask attacked her; a young man intervened and pushed the mask away. That was considered a major insult and for years afterwards the Sacred Forest demanded reparation in the form of an animal to sacrifice; the Christians would not participate in that.

The believers were left scared and destitute. Other churches in the area and missionaries (including us) contributed sacks of rice and other basics to them so that they would at least have food. Negotiations with the police and political authorities, the Sacred Forest leaders and the village chiefs, began. But arriving at enough reconciliation to permit the Christians to rebuild their church took about five years. Peacemaking was indeed a sensitive, difficult task.

Nevertheless after things seemed calmer, months after the attack, the believers began meeting under the trees in a leader’s courtyard. It was like going back to the church’s early years. They knew that they had been persecuted because of their faith in Jesus, not because of anything they had done to try to instigate hurt. It was true that they did not participate in occult practices, so their young men could not be initiated. And just worshiping in the name of Jesus was itself powerful enough to disrupt those practices!

I knew of another proof of that power of Jesus’ name. There was a young woman who lived in the town of Ferke, in the neighborhood behind our house, who had come to faith in Christ. She was married and had several children. Her husband was deeply involved in occult practices and had many idols and other objects linked to spiritual powers hanging around the house. This bothered her, but she tried to be submissive. But whenever she was praying, and he was at the same time trying to get some help from these gods and other powers, nothing would work for him. He threw her out, and she was left trying to find a home and take care of her kids. Believers gathered around to support her.

That is definitely persecution because of faith in Jesus. True followers of Jesus will imitate him, obey his teaching and become increasingly like him. They are then “righteous,” and this is counter cultural. They do not participate in practices of their community that go against Jesus’ teaching and the rest of the Word of God. That is threatening to those around them, who feel judged or who fear that their rights are being endangered. The repercussions, like those in Nyarafololand, here in the United States, and all around the world, can take many forms:

“Jesus’s words show that persecution is typically either verbal or violent. Verbal forms include insult and slander. The word persecute includes acts of physical violence like the slap of Mt 5:39. Jesus promised that the cost of discipleship will be offset by the enormity of the reward the disciple enjoys in heaven. Jewish leaders rejected and vehemently persecuted the OT prophets, and Jesus repeatedly denounced this persecution (21:34–36; 23:29–37). By treating Jesus’s followers in the same way they had treated the prophets, Jewish persecutors unwittingly bestowed on them a prophet’s honor.”[1]

So when a believer gets either verbal or violent persecution it is an honor! That is actually a hard one to swallow. It does not feel like a good thing when you are beaten, or your husband throws you out, or a brother insults you because of your belief. Why, then, is it a blessing?

Let’s look at this last beatitude closely. It not only follows the pattern of the preceding ones, but in verse 10 it has that “bookend” of repeating the reward that is in the first one – “theirs is the kingdom of heaven”:

Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 11 “Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. 12 Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you. (Matt. 5:10-12 NIV)

The kingdom of heaven is ours now because it is the realm of Jesus, and he is with us. But someday we will know it and be citizens in it in its ultimate, complete form, when all will be made new. What a day that will be!

This beatitude is actually made more personal and explained in greater detail than the others – maybe because it is so shocking. At first the blessing is general, on those who are persecuted because they do what is right according to God’s Word. They are not self-promoting or in any way falling into the trap of self-pity or self-glorification; their eyes are on the gracious gift waiting for them when they meet their Master and are applauded for living out their faith in obedience. Then (see verse 11) Jesus used the pronoun “you” to let listeners know that this applies to them, not just to martyrs they’ve heard about –even to you and me when hurtful words are hurled at us, or about us, because we are Jesus-followers.

Next comes that jolt in verse 12. We are to be happy to suffer for this reason, being mistreated just like the prophets were: maligned, ostracized, rebuked for doing what the Lord told them to do or say. How can we be glad when this happens? I confess that joy is not at all my normal reaction. Luke’s version of this blessing is in some ways even more shocking:

Blessed are you when people hate you, when they exclude you and insult you and reject your name as evil, because of the Son of Man. 23 “Rejoice in that day and leap for joy, because great is your reward in heaven. For that is how their ancestors treated the prophets. (Lk. 6:22-23 NIV)

I love the following explanation of the deep meaning of this exultation:

“In the corresponding passage of Luke (Lu 6:22, 23), where every indignity trying to flesh and blood is held forth as the probable lot of such as were faithful to Him, the word is even stronger than here: ‘leap,’ as if He would have their inward transport to overpower and absorb the sense of all these affronts and sufferings; nor will anything else do it.[2]

To “overpower and absorb the sense of all these affronts and sufferings,” we need to see them all as natural reactions of a broken world to its shock at belief and action that contradict what it holds as precious. We can inwardly “leap” over them, relying on inner strength from the One who holds us.

All of the characteristics of the “blessed” ones in these beatitudes run counter to worldly values. John Stott does a meaningful summary of them all:

The beatitudes paint a comprehensive portrait of a Christian disciple. We see him first alone on his knees before God, acknowledging his spiritual poverty and mourning over it. This makes him meek or gentle in all his relationships, since honesty compels him to allow others to think of him what before God he confesses himself to be. Yet he is far from acquiescing in his sinfulness, for he hungers and thirsts after righteousness, longing to grow in grace and in goodness. We see him next with others, out in the human community. His relationship with God does not cause him to withdraw from society, nor is he insulated from the world’s pain. On the contrary, he is in the thick of it, showing mercy to those battered by adversity and sin. He is transparently sincere in all his dealings and seeks to play a constructive role as a peacemaker. Yet he is not thanked for his efforts, but rather opposed, slandered, insulted and persecuted on account of the righteousness for which he stands and the Christ with whom he is identified.[3]

It is a high calling to live in the thick of the world’s pain, not cowering but actively showing compassion and working for peace and reconciliation. By identifying with Jesus Christ, we can expect pushback. It might be like the violent battery and burning that was experienced in Pisankaha. Or it could just be dismissal or slander. Whatever it is, if it comes from being like Jesus — gentle but truthful and merciful and always doing what is right — then we can urge our hearts to leap for joy.

Here in the United States we may sometimes feel we are being persecuted, but it is rarely the violent kind that is going on in many parts of the world. We need to pray for those who even face torture or death because they love Jesus, and be grateful for the freedom that we do enjoy. When some kind of opposition hurts, we must check ourselves to be sure we are responding with the strong gentleness that our Lord desires, always looking for ways to be peacemakers in the true sense of that word, even when it also leads to a “slap” or insult.

We have a different perspective than the world does. We journey on, “fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.” (Heb. 12:2 NIV) Someday we will be in there in pure joy!

[1] Robert H. Stein, “Differences in the Gospels,” in CSB Study Bible: Notes, ed. Edwin A. Blum and Trevin Wax (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2017), 1506.

[2] Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset, and David Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible, vol. 2 (Oak Harbor, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc., 1997), 19.

[3] John R. W. Stott and John R. W. Stott, The Message of the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7): Christian Counter-Culture, The Bible Speaks Today (Leicester; Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1985), 54.

The Peacemaker Challenge

When you’re insulted
respond with compassion,
listening first,
speaking with insight
into the roots 
of that person’s distress.
Not that it’s easy.
Not that it’s normal.

Take self off-center,
then humbly reach out
to crush the hard walls
that maintain division.
Be like your Savior, 
the great Prince of Peace:
who purchased our peace 
by giving himself on the cross!


 
Peacemaking is the last of the characteristics of a blessed follower of Christ to be listed in the beatitudes. That makes sense, because all the others build up to it. If the Jesus-follower has recognized their need for rescue, their imperfections and sins, and has hungered and thirsted for righteousness, then that person can mature to the point of being merciful, of having an undivided and pure heart, and of becoming increasingly like their Lord, the Prince of Peace. Now the focus is on finding a way to promote peace – not being an appeaser, but a peacemaker.

Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God. (Matt. 5:9 NIV)

This not a picture of someone who is passive, reluctant to make any waves, just ready to do whatever it takes to live in a calm space.  That would be someone “milquetoast,” not someone who is gently self-controlled but strong (that was what we discovered is true about being “meek”). The hunger for what is right means that the peacemaker desires to see justice in a situation as well as accomplished in himself. To be like Jesus means to be a reconciler, willing to pay the cost of pursuing righteous peace. Because it does come with a price. Jesus “paid it all” to make it possible for us to be reconciled with God, in conformity with his plan:

. . . through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross. (Col. 1:20 NIV)

As we take up our cross, to follow him, we need to consider how what we do is our honoring to our Father, living life as much as possible like our “Older Brother,” the Lord Jesus. He desires to bring people into harmony with God, but also with each other.

Let’s consider the flow of teaching in these verses:

Turn from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it. (Ps. 34:14 NIV)
Flee the evil desires of youth and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, along with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart. (2 Tim. 2:22 NIV)

Righteousness, faith, love and peace are to be what we pursue. Finding the way to apply this in a real-life situation requires prayer, listening to the Guide, and courage.

There were several times when we had to figure out how to do this in a different culture, in northern Côte d’Ivoire. Their way of bringing about reconciliation taught us a lot. 

One time, when Glenn was a field leader, a missionary woman heard that a rumor was circulating that she was secretly practicing occult arts! As the story was traced to its source, Glenn applied what we had learned from trusted local sources about how to proceed. He brought the accusers together with the missionary, in the same room but on opposite sides of his chair. He asked the missionary to share her astonishment at the accusation, then asked the nationals to explain their point of view. They said that she was single, and spent too much time alone in her home; a solitary lifestyle like that pointed to sorcery. She explained her fatigue after the long hours she put into her professional work, always interacting with many people, and how much she then needed rest and time for refreshment. As each side talked, they looked at Glenn, answered his question and spoke to him. He encouraged more sharing from each side, and once things were clearer the emotional heat cooled down and they began to talk to each other directly. Reconciliation happened.

This is even harder to do when a person is your personal adversary, maybe even someone you have been close to, and you need to do what is possible to achieve peace with them. I confess that this takes much courage for me, my natural tendency being hyper-sensitivity. But as I’ve learned to reach out and ask for the opportunity to talk in a safe environment, I’ve seen the Lord work to bring harmony with deeper understanding of each other. Sometimes that safe environment includes other people we both trust. Sometimes it is just one-on-one. 

When it’s been attempted again and again but without progress, then we need to learn to look for ways to build mutual respect in other dimensions. When the adversary is a brother or sister in the believing community this is particularly necessary. Compare these two reports of Jesus’ teaching on being the “salt of the earth”:

"You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot. (Matt. 5:13 NIV)
   (The  NET note on “thrown away” says that it is a warning about a disciple who ceased to follow him!)
"Salt is good, but if it loses its saltiness, how can you make it salty again? Have salt among yourselves, and be at peace with each other." (Mk. 9:50 NIV)

Building peace with each other in the Beloved Community is one of the key challenges in this era of intensely emotional divisions here in the United States. Different interpretations of political and social justice issues are literally tearing church communities and even families apart. How can we obey our Lord and keep our “salty” flavor healthy, being at peace with each other?

We must be humble, and search our own hearts and minds for ways in which we are judging others without listening to them, and understanding what has brought them to this point. We also need to respond to criticism or insult as Jesus did, not responding with insult but with peaceful explanation. This is not appeasement, but “bearing with one another” with love while being truthful.

Jesus knew that his responses would not always be accepted. Instead, in his last months of ministry they resulted in the adversaries beginning to conspire to arrest him. But in spite of their hostility he answered honestly, using questions (Mat 21.24-27) or stories (Mat 21.28-41) to express his answer more powerfully. And in that same exchange, he finished by being very clear about the point he was making, using the Scriptures (Mat 21.42-45).

Speaking to Jews who wanted to kill him but were trying to hide their scheme and trip him up by asking him questions, Jesus answered truthfully, referring to the Scriptures and to his own determination to glorify God and not lie { John 8.46-58}. This confirms that when what the adversary is saying is against the truth and not in line with God’s teaching, it is right to state the truth and clarify one’s position. Nevertheless, Jesus did not hurl insults at them; he kept trying to help them understand who he was, and why he held the position that they resented.

Being a peacemaker requires being filled with the Spirit, letting him guide and produce his fruit in us. Because yes: peace is something that comes from the transformation that the Spirit accomplishes. Paul makes this clear:

The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; 20 idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions 21 and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. (Gal. 5:19 NIV)

If we demonstrate those first acts that stem from broken humanity – yes, things like fomenting discord through anger and selfish ambition, etc. – we are not acting like citizens of the kingdom of God. The warning is severe for those whose behavior is like that: they will not inherit the kingdom of God.
 
When the Spirit is the one acting in and through us, the atmosphere is entirely different. With gentle kindness, demonstrating love and putting up with each other, we are actually showing that we are children of God, practicing what pleases our Older Brother and Master, the Prince of Peace. Let us each take note and pursue peace!

Crystal Clean

Sweeping and dusting will never be enough.
Redecorating schemes are all disasters:
mock renewals, clever coverups.
I need an undivided heart:
no padlocked chambers set aside
for resident anger,
no halls of hard-core selfishness,
no darkened corners for illicit pleasures.

Instead, give me one room, 
wide and filled with light,
walls scrubbed crystal clean,
wholly devoted to harboring love
and nurturing goodness,
teeming with reminders
of key events and precious people,
places we have been and revelations of truth.

Then, dear heart, open the sunroof 
and let the light pour in
to grow luxuriant hanging gardens.
Let the music of singing stars 
and healed cripples 
ripple the atmosphere as they dance 
with strong straight limbs
around the gifts of grace
and souvenirs of rescue.
Feel health pulse through the breeze 
the breath of God renewing my true self.
Smell the fragrant winsomeness
of fresh-baked bread:
bread of the Presence, sustenance.


Unlock the doors and let the music out,
share thick slices of warm bread
with every hungry passerby.
Leave tantalizing traces — 
the aroma of delights —
along each path I take.
Let love-lights leap from windows
into the shadowed world,
clear evidence of the radical new me.

Let’s dive into the beatitudes again. We are now on the sixth one, in verse 8:

Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God. (Matt. 5:8 NET)

Having a pure heart is a prerequisite for seeing God! That makes it a key goal!

One of the challenges of being involved in Bible translation in a previously unwritten language was searching for words or expressions that would adequately communicate key Biblical terms. I remember when “hypocrisy” was the one in focus. After testing various suggestions, the true match (agreed on by all the Nyarafolo team) was an expression that would be, in literal English: “two stomachs.”  Startling? Well, “stomach” has a second meaning in this context, “interior,” and is actually the expression that means the same thing as “heart” in our English Bible translations. I began to understand both these symbolic organs as expressing a person’s true interior character. Each one is the seat of emotions, motivation, and conscience. And if you have two in your own inner space, you are only showing one to those around you, hiding the other one. Someone who is sincere has a “clear interior” in Nyarafolo. It is full of light. I found that translatable in my own understanding to the difference between having a divided heart, with hidden “rooms” or “closets,” versus having one perfectly clean and light-filled heart. It changes everything to be able to live out sincere moral purity and grace with the rest of that space swept clean and renewed.

The divided heart, with hidden closets, is what is exposed when Christian leaders are shown up to be involved in sexual sin, kept secret for years. Every time I see one of those headlines I mourn. If only each one had let Christ’s light shine into every space! And it reminds me to search my own heart. What am I hiding?

“I need an undivided heart . . . give me just one room . . .”  There comes a time in true spiritual growth when one can see more clearly than ever their own desperate need for complete renovation. Yes, they’ve been forgiven, given a new start. They have repented and turned from old ways, but as time goes on they find that there is lingering filth inside, or new slime that has crept in. As Paul said:

For I want to do the good, but I cannot do it. 19 For I do not do the good I want, but I do the very evil I do not want!  (Rom. 7:18b-19 NET)

The yearning for clear, pure inner space is another facet of that hunger and thirst for righteousness that is the quality in the fourth beatitude. And it is also fueled by that mourning over inner brokenness, that second step after recognizing one’s inner poverty. The beatitudes are building from our awareness of our great need, the focus of the first four, to the qualities that develop as a believer matures: mercy, inner purity, peacemaking, and the kind of righteousness that incites pushback/persecution.

Another way of describing this clear interior is “single-mindedness” (cf. Jas 4:8, where it is the “double-minded” who are exhorted to “purify [their] hearts”)[1]:

Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. (Jas. 4:8 NIV)

Isn’t it interesting how “double-mindedness” parallels the Nyarafolo understanding of a double interior/stomach in a person?

When we approach God with sincerity, he welcomes us and comes even closer to us. He forgives and renews us. Then it is up to us to purify our hearts! I see this as our devoted participation in the process, living out what God has done for us by carefully following his commands. The disciple Peter had learned this by recognizing his own failings when he denied his Lord, then had that intimate conversation with him after the resurrection and was reminded to love his Lord and to show that love to others in the community, the Lord’s “sheep” (John 21:15-17). Later, he wrote to the diaspora of believers:

You have purified your souls by obeying the truth in order to show sincere mutual love.So love one another earnestly from a pure heart. (1 Pet. 1:22 NET)

We become purified through the process of active obedience to the true teaching of the Lord. And how does this show up? In being able to love one another, sincerely.

We all know how hard that commandment is, the one the Lord underlined so dramatically in his last words to his disciples before he was crucified:

“I give you a new commandment – to love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. (Jn. 13:34 NET)

In other words, pure hearts show up in radical obedience. Mercy, grace and love are extended to brothers and sisters, in spite of differences. There will always be differences. Not only are we still imperfect, we come from different backgrounds, cultures and circumstances; we have different personalities. But we can decide to:

"Unlock the doors and let the music out,
share thick slices of warm bread
to every hungry passerby.
Leave tantalizing traces —
the aroma of delights —
along each path I take.
Let love-lights leap from windows
into the shadowed world,
clear evidence of the radical new me."

And with purified hearts, we know that we will see God. Yes, that mostly refers to that day we look forward to with such anticipation, when we will see Jesus, when we will be in Glory with God himself. But just as many Old Testament people “saw” the Lord in some manifestation, we too can see his fingerprints on our lives, and in circumstances that we know cannot be mere coincidence. His Presence is real now, though we still see him with blurred vision:

For now we see in a mirror indirectly,but then we will see face to face. Now I know in part, but then I will know fully, just as I have been fully known. (1 Cor. 13:12 NET)

So let us practice what Jesus lived out: a life lived for God and overflowing with love for others. No hidden closets in our hearts, no double-mindedness! That is what it means to be pure in heart. And it comes with the promise of great blessing.

[1]  Donald A. Hagner, Matthew 1–13, vol. 33A, Word Biblical Commentary (Dallas: Word, Incorporated, 1993), 94.

Worldwide Easter

Today they sing in Singapore
and raise their arms
to praise the Lord
in Tokyo and Mexico
and many many many more –

in Ethiopia they shout
and ululate in South Sudan;
in Michigan the lights come out
and colors play across the scene
to show what we’re so glad about –

the Nyarafolo celebrate
in rhythmic circles, clapping hands;
it’s quieter in dry Kuwait
and Syria and Timbuktu,
but all the saved participate – 
 
because we know that He’s not dead,
our Master, Brother, Rescuer!
The grave was empty, and instead
He met the women, then the men
and told them He must go ahead

to send His Spirit, help us through,
and He’d be with us every day,
then gave us all this work to do:
tell everyone about our King!
So sing in Paris and Peru!

What a massive celebration took place yesterday! There was an earth-shattering event long ago that changed the rules and opened the door to Life to all humans who choose to step through it, no matter their ethnic identity or geographic roots. God so loves the world that he came to earth in human form, Jesus, who made atonement for our sins through his death on the cross — but rose to life and is our Rescuer and Sovereign!

This Life-giver was the Creator of our universe, an amazing tribute to his ingenuity. Just think about the all the proofs that our Lord loves diversity. Think about the approximately 10,000 species of birds that have been identified so far here on earth! Scientist say that there are about 369,000 flowering plants, and roughly 73,300 tree species. Maybe you dog-lovers know that there are about 450 species of dogs known to exist. What an imagination our God has, and what artistry!

Then we come to human beings. I stand in a grocery store and watch the people bustling down the aisles, not a one of them exactly like another, even those who seem to have the same skin color. Noticing the shoes or clothing they are wearing gives a clue to their personal priorities and physical needs, their love of color or style preferences. God made us diverse and gave us creativity and imagination.

When we take time to think about all the different cultures in the world, we don’t come close to counting them all. Even within a North American neighborhood there may be families from Asian, Hispanic, Indigenous, Black or White cultures. And some of them may be mixed, like I am, having been raised as a missionary kid in Africa who had to learn what it meant to be an American in the United States. And those things morph as the decades pass.

God loves all this variety in people groups and cultures. Even music is radically different, as well as worship styles in churches. From classical or traditional hymns, to gospel, to popular contemporary Christian, to rap, to country style, there are so many ways to express praise and truth right here in the U.S. As different generations and communities bring in their preferences, things change.

Even in just one country, an ethnic group can be identified by their style of worship music. Take the percussive drums and balaphones in the video above, and the response of the women, men and children in the Easter service in this small group in northern Cote d’Iviore, the Nyarafolo. When they discovered that they could praise the Lord in their own rhythms with whole-body praise, the celebrations came alive.

I like to picture the way yesterday, Easter Sunday, there was so much exultation rising in song all around the world. The Lord has been accomplishing his purpose, calling all peoples to come into his welcoming arms to find rescue, hope and true life. Paul explained this to people in Athens, underlining the way the Creator, the Lord of heaven and earth, planned this diversity as part of his purpose for each people group to come to know him:

From one man he made all the nations, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he marked out their appointed times in history and the boundaries of their lands. 27 God did this so that they would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from any one of us. (Acts 17:26-27 NIV)

He is not far from anyone, no matter where they are! When he finds a hungry heart, he knows just the right way to pull that unsuspecting person to himself. Christianity Today recently published the moving testimony of an Irish Protestant who went to prison because of his political violence, and to his own surprise was drawn to the Bible (which he had not ever read) and not only believed, but has done amazing evangelistic and pastoral work upon being released: https://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2022/january-february/david-hamilton-protestant-catholic-northern-ireland-prison.html . 

And I cannot help but think of how Jesus appeared one night to Lacina, a young man in Tiepogovogo, several years before we arrived in his village to learn Nyarafolo. Jesus told him that if he would follow him, many others there would follow him too. Lacina protested that he had no idea how to “know” him; he couldn’t read, for one thing. But the next day he told his best friend Sikatchi about the vision, and they began to search. It was hard to figure out what people were saying in other languages in area churches in the towns. Then we arrived, and the two young men waited for the right time to approach us and ask us to teach them. The Lord knew who to prompt, how to prepare the way for these Nyarafolo to find him!

What Jesus did for us at the cross, his perfect once-for-all sacrifice that opened the way for us to become part of his family, and his miraculous resurrection, this is what makes it possible for anyone to come to him for rescue. Probably everyone reading this belongs to one of those other nations or people groups that inhabit this huge earth, rather than to the Jews that were his chosen people. Through what he did in his historical work in and through them, we now are a part of his Kingdom. What grace!

He still has work for us to do; there are still peoples who do not know about him. As we go and share the Good News, that diversity in his Family increases yet more. It is just what he wants! I like to imagine the beautiful colors of people and the joyous sounds of different choirs or musical instruments that might be surrounding the Throne, thanking him for all he has done and who he is!

Praise the LORD.1 Praise God in his sanctuary; praise him in his mighty heavens.

 2 Praise him for his acts of power; praise him for his surpassing greatness.

3 Praise him with the sounding of the trumpet, praise him with the harp and lyre, 4 praise him with timbrel and dancing, praise him with the strings and pipe, 5 praise him with the clash of cymbals, praise him with resounding cymbals.

 6 Let everything that has breath praise the LORD. Praise the LORD. (Ps. 150 NIV)

Now Psalm 150 in Nyarafolo: Ŋúnugo 150

1 Ye‑ Yewe gbùʔɔrɔ wè !

Yeri Kulocɛliɛ gbùʔɔrɔ́ wi saawalidɛngɛgɛ nī gè !

Yeri wi gbùʔɔrɔ́ nyìʔɛnɛ nī lè, bàa wi ŋɔri ti tìi tìí dè.

2 Yeri wi gbùʔɔrɔ́ wi kakpoliyo kɛnmɛ nɛ̄ bè !

Yeri wi gbùʔɔrɔ́ wi kpuɔmɔ kɛnmɛ nɛ̄ bè bàa pi ‘kpúʔɔ nɛ̀ tóri bè !

3 Yeri wi gbùʔɔrɔ́ yeri sìnbanyɛgɛ wíi gè !

Yeri wi gbùʔɔrɔ́ nɛ́ màʔagɛlɛ bɔ̀licɛrigɛ ní gè, nɛ́ gɔri ní wè !

4 Yeri wi gbùʔɔrɔ́ nɛ́ pìnbile ní lè, nɛ́ yuɔrɔ ní dè !

Yeri wi gbùʔɔrɔ́ nɛ́ màʔagɛlɛ yakpuɔnrɔ ní dè, nɛ́ maana ní lè !

5 Yeri wi gbùʔɔrɔ́ nɛ́ kányiɛrɛ yakpuɔnrɔ ní dè dàa ti sɔ́migi nɛ tùngú dè !

Yeri wi gbùʔɔrɔ́ nɛ́ kányiɛrɛ yakpuɔnrɔ ní dè dáà ti cî nɛ tùngú kpuʔɔ dèb !



6 Yɛgɛ ó yɛgɛ ki ŋɔ́gi gè, kiri Yewe gbùʔɔrɔ́ wè !

Ye- Yewe gbùʔɔrɔ wè !

What He Wants!

every weakness
self-pity
selfishness
laziness
procrastination
opportunities lost

hurts inflicted
back-stabbing
shaming
ungracious
picky
hateful

oozing wounds
misunderstood
betrayed
minimized
maligned
ignored

soul suffering
lonely 
depressed
battered
deceived
undressed

all fell on him
the crushing weight
of meanness
corruption
pain
despair

thank you
seems so small
to say
so minimal
against the mass
of grief

once again
I give you me
all I have
to offer
yet exactly
what you want

He knew what was going to happen. Sure, the people threw palm branches over the road before him as he rode into the city. They were singing hosannas, welcoming their king, they thought. But he knew better. He knew that in a few days it would be different crowd surrounding him, people calling for his death by crucifixion. And after that, the voices would be jeering him for sticking it out and taking the hits and long hours of hanging torture instead of demonstrating that divine status he had claimed.

He knew all of that, but he went forward into the suffering. His three years of ministry had been torn by accusations and disbelief by many anyway, and his pedestrian tours of the country had involved physical distress and homelessness. But he had pushed through. Why?

Because the essence of his character was love. He had come to give himself as the ultimate sacrifice, once for all, the sacrifice that would provide forgiveness to anyone who would choose to identify with it. He knew it was necessary to make a way for humans to obtain an unbelievable goal: union with the God who loved them so much that he would plunge himself into their kind of body, with all its weaknesses and limitations, and put himself on the altar of sacrifice that would offer repair for their brokenness. They had been made to walk in fellowship with their Creator; he had been there at creation, had been the Word that brought them into existence and talked with them in the perfect environment he had made for them. But they had pulled away, choosing to trust deception. Now, the crucial moment had come that would provide forgiveness and restoration. Reparation comes with a price, and reparation for all of them could only be paid by the Maker of the Universe himself.

So he came, well aware that he himself would be the one to pay that price once for all. He had prepared the way for the people to understand the requirement: he had instituted that kind of necessary sacrifice when he had given the commands to Moses concerning the day of atonement, with all the preparations required and the complicated rites concerning the sacrifices:

. . . because on this day atonement will be made for you, to cleanse you. Then, before the LORD, you will be clean from all your sins. (Lev. 16:30 NIV)

“This is to be a lasting ordinance for you: Atonement is to be made once a year for all the sins of the Israelites.” And it was done, as the LORD commanded Moses. (Lev. 16:34 NIV)

That had to be done every year, but with Jesus’ putting himself in the place of the sacrifice, it only had to be done once, in all of time:

And by [God’s] will, we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. (Heb. 10:10 NIV)

Offering himself to provide reparation and purification for anyone who would take this at its value, he willingly underwent the years of insults and accusations, the sufferings of a normal human body in weather and fatigue, the cruel torture of whips and the pain of nails and death. He had decided to provide safe haven, forgiveness, and welcome into the Family of God to each person who would gratefully accept this gift. He gave himself, knowing he would come back to life to welcome them with open arms and joy.

Meditating on his life of suffering while he walked this earth, having left his throne to become an impoverished man, has been one way to put in perspective the suffering that we still face here on earth even though we have become united with him, joined together with him in a mysterious way that brings hope and joy. Sure, there is chaos all around: wars and terrorist attacks and famines and tornadoes and pandemics and hate speech and racist horrors and emotional abuse and slander and accusations and murders and . . . you know. The list is endless.

And not one of us is blameless. As it says in one of the prophetic passages about what Messiah would suffer:

All of us had wandered off like sheep; each of us had strayed off on his own path, but the LORD caused the sin of all of us to attack him. (Isa. 53:8 NET)     

Attack? The NET translation note carefully unpacks how the Hebrew words here usually refer to a hostile encounter or a military attack. Here, “the Lord makes ‘sin’ attack ‘him’ . , ,  In their sin the group was like sheep who had wandered from God’s path. They were vulnerable to attack; the guilt of their sin was ready to attack and destroy them. But then the servant stepped in and took the full force of the attack.”

In Isaiah 53 it is the “suffering servant” who is described as the one who would be unjustly abused and killed by the very wandering human beings he had come to rescue. They did not recognize who he was, or his purpose:

3 He was despised and rejected by people,one who experienced pain and was acquainted with illness; people hid their faces from him; he was despised, and we considered him insignificant. 4 But he lifted up our illnesses, he carried our pain; even though we thought he was being punished, attacked by God, and afflicted for something he had done. 5 He was wounded because of our rebellious deeds, crushed because of our sins; he endured punishment that made us well; because of his wounds we have been healed . . . and the LORD’s purpose will be accomplished through him. 11 Having suffered, he will reflect on his work, he will be satisfied when he understands what he has done. My servant will acquit many, for he carried their sins. (Isa. 53:3-5,10b,11 NET)

Wow! He identified with human pain – emotional, physical and social pain. And my own disobedience, my own choices that have hurt others, my own ways of dishonoring the King were all part of the weight he was carrying when he went through that crooked trial, was whipped, staggered under the heavy cross until he fell, and then was nailed to it. And felt not only the torture of crucifixion but the price of having those sins attack him and fall on him. He did it for me. And for you. And for the billions who have lived and are living on this earth.

So now the choice is before us. The judicial requirements for our pardon have been met. It is finished! Will we humbly accept this truth and move forward in freedom? Or will we choose our own way, that way we take when we do what sheep do and just keep forging ahead for our own pleasure, not noticing that we are no longer on the right path, in the company of the loving Good Shepherd?

I am so privileged to have been shown this truth early in life, and to have come into sweet fellowship with God himself because of this sacrifice. I am praying for the wanderers, that they will recognize the loving voice calling out to them, telling them that he has made a way through their wilderness, and it leads Home!

All they have to do is identify with his sacrifice and give him their very own selves! That is what he wants. That is why he did it!

Learning Mercy

God with us, full of grace,
full of truth,
you are who I long for!
I yearn to be like you
at long last.

You’re changing me,
curing me
of sin and selfishness.
You taught me service,
then sent me to
my sister’s side, 
to simply be there,
waiting to serve her
any way she needed
as she died.

Now I’m finding
compassion
is still a tough lesson.
Building on the service
that had flowed 
so gladly for
that one so dear, 
you call me on
to love some sisters
I don’t yet know:
needy, elderly, hopeless
in a careless world 
that passes by,
unseeing.

Face to face with
my own habit
of looking the other way,
fearing that their hands
might curl
into a beggar’s cup
and ask for more,
I am ashamed.
I see you watching me
and longing to mold me.

Please turn my fear
to mercy,
my reluctance 
to compassion!
I know practice 
will make perfect.
Perfect me please!

My Master had some key spiritual formation to accomplish in me, and it was not what I expected.

My sister, Kayleen, passed away in 2006 after two years of combating leukemia. She underwent months of treatments at Mayo Clinic, but in the end her time on earth was over. She had longed for someone to be at her side while hospitalized, and my family had graciously sent me to be her companion, sitting beside her as many hours as possible. She was nine years younger than I: adored, one of my best friends. I found it a great privilege to show her this loving compassion.

Soon after she died we returned to Ferkessédougou, Côte d’Ivoire, having spent three years in the U.S. while waiting for civil unrest to quiet down over there. The country was still divided when we returned, rebels ruling the northern half where we lived, but It was wonderful to be back, working again in Bible translation and catching up with Nyarafolo friends. As time went on I found myself being confronted with more needs of older women in the community than ever before. The years of distress had increased poverty all around us, and many widows were among those deeply sensing their need for Jesus and for supportive community.

A growing group of Nyarafolos was meeting Sunday afternoons in our back yard to worship together in their language, praying and creating songs in their traditional musical style. Those gatherings were one of my favorite activities. After the meeting a woman or two would stay to talk. And throughout the week, certain ones would come by to see if we could help with needs for food, medical treatment, or obtaining products to sell in the market.

I began to feel that this was a lot to bear. Then the Lord convicted me of my narrow vision and self-centeredness. What if I were in their “shoes” (most of them just wore old sandals!) — where was the heart of mercy that I thought I had? It had been easy to give my all to my sister Kayleen. In these new situations I needed the God of all mercies to put his heart in mine.

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, 4 who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. (2 Cor. 1:3-4 ESV)

I knew that, to be like my Father, to be like Jesus, I needed to be merciful. I did not feel that it was a spiritual gift of mine. I had seen that gifting in Glenn, a natural bent to help the needy in wise ways. My parents, Dwight and Barbara Slater, had shown that gift of mercy in their medical work and hospitality all throughout my growing-up years as an mk. Now I was finding it hard to keep showing mercy with kindness, day after day.

The Lord did grow my heart through practice. As I got to know these women more deeply I recognized the reality of their need. My life was a comfy paradise compared to theirs. And as we found ways for the widows to form a group and work together to grow a garden in our yard, and to make soap to sell, I began to see hope for them. I realized that much of my distress was just seeing the misery all around me and feeling helpless. But God was showing me that reaching out to help was actually increasing my own sense of wellbeing and inner peace. He knew my lack and was meeting my need.

I was experiencing growth, and his mercy, in what Jesus taught in the fifth beatitude:

Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy. (Mat 5:7 ESV)

Mercy (ἔλεος). The word emphasizes the misery with which grace deals; hence, particularly the acknowledgement of human wretchedness coupled with the impulse to relieve it, which issues in gracious ministry. Bengel remarks, “Grace takes away the fault, mercy the misery.”[1]

Understanding “mercy” as gracious ministry that reaches out to relieve the misery of someone who is suffering was not new. It just needed to be lived out more graciously in my life.

When we admit to our own brokenness, we are taking that first step toward becoming “meek,” acknowledging our imperfection and leaning on the Lord for appropriate reactions to others. When we are merciful, there may be some situations in which we are recognizing the imperfection of another person and reaching out to help them anyway, or to forgive them. That, after all, is what our Savior has done for us. And we know that when we meet him he will be showing us mercy all over again, welcoming us with loving arms when we do not deserve it.

The importance of showing mercy was underlined in the Old Testament as well. This beatitude is a strong echo of Prov 14:21b, which says ἐλεῶν δὲ πτωχοὺς μακαριστός, “blessed is the one who has mercy on the poor.”[2]

But most of the time it was God’s mercy to us, to humans, that was prayed for in desperation:

Hear my voice when I call, LORD; be merciful to me and answer me. (Ps. 27:7 NIV)

Many other English versions translate that same Hebrew word as “gracious” rather than “merciful”, probably because grace is favor we don’t deserve. When God responds to our cry for his help, we depend on his lovingkindness to reach out to us even though it would be an honor of which we are unworthy.

Following his example means showing kind mercy that meets a need, even to people we barely know but who are suffering. Maybe they haven’t earned our respect; maybe they truly are undeserving. maybe we just don’t know all that has brought them to this moment. Nevertheless, to be like our Master, we are to help them in whatever way we can, just to show mercy. This is a tall order, one that does indeed require discernment so that we don’t participate in lies.

One time a man came to our door in Ferke asking for help to get back to his homeland, Liberia. He said he was a refugee and had found some kids who also needed to get home. He showed Glenn a photo of several kids, saying that they were waiting for him in town. Transportation funds were desperately needed, he said. Glenn gave him money to buy everyone some lunch, then wisely asked to meet the kids before giving him the requested transportation funds. The man returned after several hours with a bunch of little boys. To see if they really were Liberian, Glenn greeted them in English, which is the national language there. No response. He then tried French. No response. So he tried the local language, Nyarafolo, and they all responded! Glenn asked the boys where their fathers were. Hmmm – their fathers were right there in Ferke! When the man realized his scam had been revealed, he had an attack of asthma. Glenn gave him an inhaler, but told him that was all he would do for him. That was mercy, with discernment.

May our Lord show us all how to be merciful, and wise. When we are confronted with needs, let’s rely on him for direction, and be ready to show the kindness that he would show.

Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful. (Lk. 6:36 NIV)

[1] Marvin Richardson Vincent, Word Studies in the New Testament, vol. 1 (New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1887), 263.

[2] Donald A. Hagner, Matthew 1–13, vol. 33A, Word Biblical Commentary (Dallas: Word, Incorporated, 1993), 93.

Yearning to Be Filled

Yearning to be filled,
filled up to capacity
to the full measure
of God's own fullness --
possible?
to be filled like the ocean,
deep, with its waters
reaching always heavenward,
splashing to the shore --
possible?
to be filled like the skies,
air and clouds all rising higher
and the glory of the sunlight
reflecting everywhere --
possible?

It's more than what I thought about,
picturing a cup
filled up to the brim --
for he fills everything --
so is it possible
for me to be filled
to the full measure of God?
the Creator, Maintainer, 
the King of Everything
and filling it all, totally?
I'm yearning. Fill me!

I was at the beach at Grand Bassam, where a stretch of hotels lines the Gulf of Guinea, to the east of the big city of Abidjan, one of our favorite places to rest. The sun was scorching, but the waves and skies were glorious. Two pineapple sellers walked by, and I suddenly realized I was craving that sweet fruit and its delectable juice that would be running down my hot chin and arms if I had one. No debate: they had a sale! They carved off the tough quilted skin, leaving just enough stem for me to hold on to. Done. It was so satisfying.

In the dry season in Côte d’Ivoire, thirst is a constant. And often clean drinking water is not accessible. One day in the village of Tiepogovogo one of the older boys figured out how to assuage his thirst. He walked down the dry gravel road to the cashew groves where ripe cashew fruit was hanging from the branches, picked a few and tore off the cashew nuts attached to each fruit to leave there on the ground for the owner, then brought back the treasures to share with other thirsty kids. They all began passionately sucking out the juice, some of it dripping down to their elbows. The atmosphere changed from the silence of parched thirst to slurps of delight.

That yearning for good stuff that meets our need and fills us up is a powerful picture in the Word. One reassuring instance that comes to mind is in Psalm 23, where the Good Shepherd feeds me in the wilderness and fills my cup to overflowing. It is picked up in Ephesians 1:23:

[The church] is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way. (Eph 1:23 NIV)

The part that incited the poem above was that last information about Christ, “who fills everything in every way.” He fills the universe! And he fills the church. I am his, and he fills everything in every way . . . but I was all too aware of my ongoing need to be filled by him. I was thirsty, I was hungry for his empowerment to be like him. And I was feeling my insignificance before the One who fills the space and earth, and reigns over it all.

The fourth beatitude (Matthew 5:10) actually applauds that hunger and thirst! But it also clarifies that the delectable fruit we should be yearning for, in this case, is righteousness. This is different from searching for experiences; it is about change in our person. In the first three beatitudes we’ve seen that the one who is experiencing blessing, or happy well-being, is the person who has acknowledged their deep need for forgiveness and the gift of rescue, who grieves their own sin as well as the injustice in the world, who is learning to accept their own imperfections and find their confidence in the Lord. Now they are incited to actually chase after being completely upright the way that God is, doing what is right, because that is what he is like and what he loves:

For the LORD is righteous, he loves justice; the upright will see his face. (Ps. 11:7 NIV)

Jesus has justified us, and that is why we are able to stand before the King of All Things. But it is not to stop there, it is an ongoing process. We are to long for change in how we think and act – actually, a transformation of our broken being into the wholeness that comes from complete attachment to God. We need his help to become like him.  And he loves it when we get desperate to be filled with that great good fruit that he alone is able to produce. He promises to do it through his Spirit, in us. Open to his working, filled with him, hungry and thirsty to be filled with that fruit, it can be produced in us, goodness and other qualities that accompany it:

But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. (Gal. 5:22-23a NLT)

See the last two words of the list of fruit of the Spirit? We’ve just recognized, in the third beatitude, that happy well-being comes when we can practice gentle self-control – and that is fruit that his Spirit produces in us! If we hunger and thirst for character that naturally overflows with his excellent produce, his fruit, our yearning to be righteous like him will be satisfied.

For through the Spirit we eagerly await by faith the righteousness for which we hope. (Gal. 5:5 NIV)

What does it mean to be righteous? It means, as the Psalm 11: 7 says, to love justice and to live according to his standards. It certainly does not mean to cling to my rights! It means to acknowledge what God considers right, to know his Word and to apply it correctly, to turn from wrongdoing and practice his commands. This will be underlined later in the Sermon on Mount:

Therefore anyone who sets aside one of the least of these commands and teaches others accordingly will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.  (Matt. 5:19 NIV)

It is not an instantaneous achievement. Just as we need more than one cup of water a day, and more than just one meal each week, so we need that daily interaction with our Lord, our whole being open to him.

And when we are open to his work in us through the Spirit, learning to know him better and better, we will be filled. We will be changed. It is a daily, step-by-step process:

Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. (Gal. 5:25 NIV)

So even if the sun is hot and the air is so dry it parches your windpipe, keep running down the road toward this orchard of juicy fruit. It will be worth the run, and for a few hours your hunger and thirst will be assuaged. And then you will want more. Our Lord approves that ongoing desire for just the right fruit!

Imperfect Me

Heart stripped bare,
imperfections revealed,
shown up for who I am:
incomplete, lacking
essential knowledge
of certain skills —
this is who I am.

Once again the flares
of burns still hurting,
of my yielding to the scam
the Enemy wields, hacking
the dream footage
of doing your will—
they shake up who I am.

But I know you care!
My onion skin that’s peeled me
wide open to the slam-bam-
dunk of one more sacking
only tells me to take courage
because you, Lord, love me still.
And you know who I am.

For me, the third beatitude is the hardest one to swallow. It also seems to be the one least preached on, the character quality the least desired in our times. Who wants to work at being “meek”?

Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. (Mat. 5:5 ESV)

For one thing, “meek” usually has a negative meaning these days. Here are some dictionary definitions:

Cambridge English Dictionary: “quiet and unwilling to disagree or fight or to strongly support personal ideas and opinions: He’s slight, meek, and balding, and hardly heroic.”

Vocabulary.com: “humble in spirit or manner; suggesting retiring mildness or even cowed submissiveness; evidencing little spirit or courage; overly submissive or compliant”

Merriam-Webster:  “1 · enduring injury with patience and without resentment : mild ; 2 · deficient in spirit and courage : submissive ; 3 · not violent or strong . . .”

You can see that the word can be used positively, but there are negative characteristics associated with it these days. When I asked my husband Glenn what comes to mind when someone is called “meek,” his response was “milquetoast.” And the definition for that word that came up first on Google is this:  

noun: milquetoast; plural noun: milquetoasts 1– a timid or feeble person. “Jennings plays him as something of a milquetoast”

adjective: milquetoast 1– feeble, insipid, or bland. “a soppy, milquetoast composer”

These meanings do not come close to what Jesus intended when he said that the “meek” would receive God”s gracious favor and inherit the whole earth! I think that English Bible translators need to rethink their use of this word.  For example, the NIV, ESV and NET Bibles all use “meek” in this beatitude, where the word refers to Jesus’ disciples. But when the very same Greek word is the one Jesus used to describe himself (Mat. 11:29) they use the word “gentle.” Aren’t disciples supposed to be like their Teacher, Jesus?

So, considering what it would mean to be blessed because one is “gentle,” we would hope it could evoke positive meanings: humility, not responding to injury with resentment, being kind rather than harsh. It is better, but it seems we might need two words put together to adequately express the desired meaning. This character trait is not about having a gentle touch. In the Greek, it also carries the meaning of being strong but self-controlled.

As A. T. Robertson explains: “The English word “meek” has largely lost the fine blend of spiritual poise and strength meant by the Master. He calls himself ‘meek and lowly in heart’ (Matt. 11:29) and Moses is also called meek. It is the gentleness of strength, not mere effeminacy.”[1]

Maybe we can better understand Mat. 5:5 if we were to say: Blessed are those who demonstrate humble self-control, for they will inherit the earth. Maybe you have another good suggestion – please let me know!

“Spiritual poise and strength” come from having matured spiritually to become more like Jesus! It does not include hypersensitivity, or self-defensiveness. This has been a lifelong struggle for me, because I am one of those who normally takes a correction or criticism to heart, feeling bruised. I see myself as a failure; my fragile self-confidence is easily shattered. Humility puts me in a learner stance, and as I grow spiritually, an appropriate response to an issue should come automatically, my wise and gentle answer coming from my strong relationship with my Master.

As Martin Lloyd Jones says, meekness “is not a matter of natural disposition; it is something that is produced by the Spirit of God.” He explains at great length that it is not indolence, or flabbiness, or mere niceness. It is not weakness in character, or a need to just smooth things over and not address issues. It takes great strength to respond to hurts with “controlled strength” that does not retaliate with unkind words or just constant retreat. “Meekness is essentially a true view of oneself, expressing itself in attitude and conduct with respect to others.”[2]

Ah – “a true view of oneself”! That requires listening to the Spirit as he convicts us of sin, points out our missteps as well as our strengths, and empowers us to accept these truths about ourselves with humility. It means seeing ourselves the way that he does, with his heart of love and forgiveness. Secure in him, we no longer have to worry so much about what other people think or say, or be anxious about getting all that we feel is due us as “rights” in this world. I can tell myself: “Yes, I am imperfect. But you, Lord, love me, accept me, and will keep on transforming me.” In fact, the last two qualities listed in the “fruit of the Spirit” are extremely noteworthy in this context: But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. (Gal. 5:22 NIV)

Often an injury is truly due to injustice. The word “meek” in the Greek also refers those who are oppressed, “bent over by the injustice of the ungodly, but are soon to realize their reward.”[3]

When unjustly judged, we can graciously respond to injury with truth. One way Jesus did that was by using word pictures, explaining without harsh words what needed to be made clear, such as when he was accused of driving out demons by the chief of demons. “Now when Jesus realized what they were thinking, he said to them,“Every kingdom divided against itself is destroyed, and no town or house divided against itself will stand.” (Matt. 12:25 NET)

I witnessed an Ivoirien friend responding to unjust criticism with this kind of self-control when his supervisor began to criticize him with harsh words in public, not just once, but repeatedly over a space of time. This man did what was considered correct in the culture, often not even saying anything in return. But when it came down to a situation where it was important to express what was actually the truth in the situation targeted, he would quietly respond by explaining his understanding of the issue. Sometimes his supervisor just withdrew. Eventually the supervisor came to understand the damage he was doing, and began to change his approach. The gentle response brought about recognition of his own harshness.

The blessing in this beatitude is that this disciple will “inherit the earth”! It is a reference to the regenerated earth, the world that our Lord will make new in his timing. What? Those who are humble and not proudly or arrogantly self-assertive will be the ones who are the heirs entrusted with this fantastic inheritance? This goes against what most of the world expects. It goes against what is often honored as strong leadership.

This blessing is one more aspect of our confident hope, and should motivate us to pursue becoming gently strong like Jesus. There is an amazing prize at the finish line!

[1] A.T. Robertson, Word Pictures in the New Testament (Nashville, TN: Broadman Press, 1933), Mt 5:5.

[2] Martin Lloyd Jones, Studies in the Sermon on the Mount (Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company,  1976), 56-57.

[3] Donald A. Hagner, Matthew 1–13, vol. 33A, Word Biblical Commentary (Dallas: Word, Incorporated, 1993), 92.

Mourning

A groan, the wrenching sound
of a heart torn out,
shredded…
arms lifted skyward 
in the still of night,
begging...
tears pumped profusely
from the soul,
sodden...

The future disintegrates.
My crumpled dreams are 
thrown away.
I’m a discarded quarry,
scraped until I’m bare.
Where are you???

Hush child!  Be still.
Know that I am God.
I hold you close.
My “where” is all around you,
with you in your pain,
loving you.

I’m underneath you,
carrying you when 
your knees buckle;
behind you every moment,
defending your bare back
tenderly;

out in front, scouting ahead,
sweeping other dangers
from the path;
beside you, gripping
your hand, so you won’t slip,
or stumbling, fall;

and best of all, inside you,
where my peace is whispering
in that still voice
which you will hear,
eventually, when sobbing
is exhausted
and silence spreads
to let my breath brush balm
on all your hurts.

Hush, beloved daughter.
Your tears are kept as treasure,
reflecting
rainbows all around
as I smile on you,
even in the dark.

Jesus said, in the first beatitude, that we gain spiritual happiness when we admit our spiritual poverty and walk with him in his Kingdom. So why does he continue his teaching by talking about mourning?

“Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.” (Matt. 5:4 NET)

The word used here, πενθοῦντες, is a present active participle: “those who are mourning” right now. Mourning is deep grief caused by something serious. As the second step in this path to spiritual maturity, it does complement the realization of spiritual poverty that precedes it. As I said last week in the story of how the Lord revealed my need to give him total control, I did shed tears over my condition. This next step addresses that mourning with what is called a “reversal”, a complete change of situation. “The beatitudes and the reversals that accompany them serve in the sermon as an invitation to enter into God’s care, because one can know God cares for those who turn to him.” (NET note, Mat. 5:4)

Think back to a time when you became overwhelmed with sorrow at your own failure, a serious misstep. That is contrition, a key element in our turning around, changing direction. When we bring that to our loving Lord, he assures us that we are forgiven, that his love covers our sin.

This can also refer to grief that is caused by seeing injustice and evil in the world, or that heartbreak you feel when someone you love (your child, your mate, a close friend, a Christian leader you have trusted) falls. In this broken world, that can happen, and in the dark moment of mourning we can wonder where God is (as in the last line of the heartcry in the poem above).

When I wrote this lament, I was in that place of deep hurt and despair. And it was not the only time I found myself there. When someone you count on strays, and deceives you, there is grief.

One day a national pastor that I trusted came to share with me his suspicion that another coworker of ours (we’ll call him “S”) was being unfaithful to his wife, hiding it from us. I was startled, although there had been times when it seemed that he had not progressed as much in his faith as we had hoped. We set up a test, following a clue to where his alleged mistress lived. She was cooking in her courtyard, and claimed she had not seen S at all. But as we sat there, waiting, the pastor dialed the man’s phone number, and we heard the phone ring in the hut behind us. Later, when we delved deeper, we found multiple instances of deceit and taking advantage of our trust. Cutting off our working relationship with S was the right thing to do, but it made our hearts bleed. We were mourning this injustice to his wife and kids as well as to the ministry and the dishonor it threw at our Master. And we mourned over his spiritual state, which was shown up as pretense. He showed no contrition.

Jesus felt that grief too:  he wept over the state of Jerusalem. The psalmist wept, crying out to God: “Tears stream down from my eyes, because people do not keep your law.” (Ps. 119:136 NET)

But here in the second beatitude Jesus promises comfort to those who mourn. Sometimes we need to wait for that ultimate consolation that will come when he makes everything new and wipes away all tears from our eyes.

Meanwhile, even in our life here and now there is a mysterious process through which our Lord brings confidence in him and equips us to deal with “godly sorrow.” As Matthew Henry says, “in gracious mourning the heart has a serious joy, a secret satisfaction, which a stranger does not intermeddle with. They are blessed, for they are like the Lord Jesus, who was a man of sorrows, and of whom we never read that he laughed, but often that he wept.”[1]  

Right now I think of the sorrow that so many Ukrainians are feeling, seeing their land attacked, loved ones killed. People who minister there, whether currently in or out of the country, are mourning over refugees who have left all behind, families separated, loved ones in great danger. We could list many other countries where the massacres continue, whether done by terrorists, jihadists, criminal gangs or autocratic governments.

Feeling that deep pain is legitimate. But let us not forget that Jesus promises comfort to those who mourn, a consolation that comes from our confidence in God and the way that he has proven his lovingkindness for centuries:

Blessed is the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort,  who comforts us in all our troubles so that we may be able to comfort those experiencing any trouble with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. (2 Cor. 1:3 NET)

I look back at the sad case of S, our national coworker, and yet I am comforted in knowing that his wife stayed true to the Lord to the end of her life. In addition, to our astonishment, right then the Lord supplied another person to our ministry team to take S’s place, someone completely trustworthy and with a passion to serve the Lord in the specific way needed

Our Lord is indeed the Father of mercies, the God of all comfort.

[1] Matthew Henry, Matthew Henry’s Commentary on the Whole Bible: Complete and Unabridged in One Volume (Peabody: Hendrickson, 1994), 1629.

That Day He Took Control

Frustrated with my habit of sliding
two steps off the path, and always hiding
the fact that no matter how hard I tried,
I was not faithfully following you,

I finally let tears come and wash away doubt:
I knew on my own I could not figure out 
what walking with you was really about.
And that was when you came through.

You said that in order to stay the course,
I would have to rely on your spiritual force
that could take control, now that remorse
had opened me up to this cleansing.

So since then I’ve walked with you day by day,
not letting anything turn me away
because you rule, and I’ve chosen to stay
attached deeply to you, my true Lord.

Fifty-six years ago – I think it was February or March – I was sitting on a wooden bench in church, in Ferkessédougou, Côte d’Ivoire. My family had recently come back from a home assignment in the U.S.; I had completed the first semester of seventh grade there. Rather than try to adapt back to boarding school in the middle of a semester, we had decided to just be at home the rest of that school year. It became a critical turning point for me, a place where I had to put an ebenezer – a stone of remembrance.

I had been a believer since I was little, one of those kids who grew up knowing from the beginning that Jesus is the Savior, that God loves us. Family devotions had planted the Word in my heart. During the previous year, while attending church in the U.S., I had even declared my faith publicly by being baptized. But through those years I also battled straying, sliding backwards, especially as a “tween.”

Having that downtime at home gave me a moment to really think some things through. Maybe it should not have startled me that as I sat in church, struggling to get my French back in line so that I could follow the message, I began to really check in with the Lord. I was so tired of my back-and-forth walk as a believer. Increased maturity gave me more insight into why I was struggling so: I had not really let the Lord take over as my Boss. Humbled, sad, I admitted it and told him that this time I was giving in and would no longer slip away. I really meant it!

That was the beginning of a consistent lifelong walk, holding onto him and counting on him holding onto me. What made the difference? It was my admission that I did not have it in me to do this alone. That fits with what Jesus said is the foundational step to being a real Kingdom citizen:

               Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. (Mat 5:3 NIV)

Being “poor in spirit” means recognizing you are spiritually destitute, and only God’s gracious mercy can relieve this.[1] I had come to that point, throwing myself into his arms for help. His response was amazing.

He gave me hunger to know him, and showed me books on missionary bookshelves that encouraged new growth. He provided dorm parents the next year, for 8th grade, who truly discipled us (Don and Glenn Bigelow). Uncle Don did devotions for us “Bees” (the 7th and 8th graders) using the Phillips New Testament translation. Suddenly the Scriptures were relevant, easy to understand and apply.

I’m not saying I was perfect – far from it! It is just that the journey has continued, with the One in charge grabbing me and correcting my walk when I stumble, healing hurts, and strengthening me by always being with me, always at work.

This year I am participating in a Sermon on the Mount memorization project associated with the mission we served with, WorldVenture. As our guide Peter Persson (another retiree) has shared his research findings regularly, it has pushed me to dig in deeper too.

One thing that several great commentators have made clear is that this first Beatitude provides the starting point for progression to the other character traits that Jesus underlined. Knowing one’s own need to depend on the Master, the Lord, for spiritual growth and strength is where we need to begin. Then as we get to know him better and better, he matures us spiritually and our character develops the way he desires.

We can tell it is what he desires because he characterizes each step as those who are “blessed.” Since this has a rather vague meaning in our modern world, the various word studies show that it means one is happy due to their relationship to God. Here is one dictionary definition that really speaks to me:

In the Old Testament the idea involves more of outward prosperity than in the New Testament, yet it almost universally occurs in connections which emphasize, as its principal element, a sense of God’s approval founded in righteousness which rests ultimately on love to God.[2]

As we have continued reading Renovated, by Jim Wilder and Dallas Willard, in our family devotions, this key aspect of developing a loving attachment to God has made so much sense to us. His love for us reaches out to us, and as we get to know him better and better we love him too, increasingly. As a result we can actually become more like him.  His kingdom is near – right here, actually, where he rules. We walk in it, learning to live out its ethics even now.

I find this deeply encouraging. We call out to him, and when he “hears” it means that he answers. He comes to us and pulls us out of our slough of despond, out of our inconsistent efforts to transform ourselves. He makes us “blessed” or “happy” in the spiritual dimension in which we have been longing to thrive, once we have recognized our poverty in that area and our dependence on him. As David said in Psalm 40:

16 May all those who seek you be happy and rejoice in you! May those who love to experience your deliverance say continually,”May the LORD be praised! I am oppressed and needy! May the Lord pay attention to me! You are my helper and my deliverer! O my God, do not delay! (Ps. 40:1 NET)

[1] Marvin Richardson Vincent, Word Studies in the New Testament, vol. 1 (New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1887), 36.

[2] Marvin Richardson Vincent, Word Studies in the New Testament, vol. 1 (New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1887), 35.