Category Archives: Mission

Jesus, Mission, Rant, repentance, scripture, sin, theology

Saviour

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I think people seriously misunderstand what salvation is.

I was talking about this before, where God saves us from high interest rates, and the necessity of going to the doctor for the ingrown toenail rather than saving us from sin. But then, that’s only part of the situation.

The central problem we humans have is that we seriously misunderstand the nature of the universe. Any of us with half a brain and the ability to look at the universe realize pretty quickly that the universe is not about us. That’s a correct understanding. Many of us leave it at that because, well, we can’t get over ourselves. Like that guy in “About a Boy”, we see our lives as TV shows about us. When faced with the realization that self centered life is hollow, we find ourselves focussing on “society” or on “stuff” or anything to hopefully keep us believing that there is some meaning. It’s what Kierkegaard calls “despair”. Smart guy, Kierkegaard.

This stuff can only keep us so far, though, as when we look into the cosmos, and the vast expanses of interstellar pace, and the shortness of our own period of life here on this tiny ball, we learn that our short life spans are insignificant in the grand scheme of both time and space, and that there was a time with no life, and given the freakish improbability of life, there will probably be none when the sun finally gives out and we cease to be even as a race.

Most people give up here. They either invest all their time in convincing themselves that humanity matters, contrary to all the evidence, or simply give up and become those horribly depressing people who dress in black at coffee shops.

Indeed, those are the rational choices, based on the evidence I’ve given so far.

But then, there’s Jesus.

Contrary to some movies by the more loopy skeptic set, Jesus was a person who actually existed. Who actually taught during a historical period that is identifiable, and was falsifiable. A man who was crucified on a cross, and then, if the story is true, rose from the dead on the third day.

Many here say “but that’s impossible”, and I agree, if the premise is that the universe is as we’ve believed it to be. But then, that is probably a point of the resurrection. It’s impossible, unless we’re wrong.

And see, we’re wrong.

Jesus came into a place and time that told a story. That story is that the universe is indeed not about us, as the evidence suggests; that things have a point, as the evidence of our own hearts suggests, and our very desire to see a “point” in things suggests. Yet the point is not us. The point is a loving, powerful and just God. One great enough to create a universe, and good enough to create love. This God actually fits the evidence.

And the resurrection creates the dissonance to show that we are wrong, and the God that is the point is really there. A God who resurrected Jesus to validate what Jesus told us about a grander purpose; one where we are created….. created to love God….. and separated from God by a desire to BE God, to BE the point in the universe.

When we decided to BE the point, we live a lie, and we all know it’s a lie. We need a saviour, not from worthlessness, not from despair or immorality (those all those come from it), we need a savior from our sinful desire to be God, to make something that isn’t God into god.

We need a savior from us.

And into that story, that context, that grand sweep told through thousands of years of history in a single people in the middle east steps Jesus.

The Saviour.

He said “come unto me, all that labour (even labour to avoid despair) and are heavy laden (even with the realization that they are not central to the universe), and I will refresh you”.

He also said that those who see him, see the father, the real point of the universe.

He offers the real salvation, not a mediocre call to get rich and have 2.2 kids, but communion with a real God, that is infinitely worthy, who is the point, and who offers us the ability to enjoy him forever.

There is a saviour, He is Jesus.

So call on Him to save you.

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CTSC, Ethics, Mission, Montreal

Love, Sin and Prophetic Witness (From Rue St. Denis, Montreal)

Again, let me restate my liking for Montreal. This is an awesome city, and the people seem quite interesting (even if the cute girl behind the counter didn’t seem to know much about Newfoundland).

Anyway, today was a quite full day. As you know, I was on my way to Church here when I last wrote. I went to the People’s Church of Montreal, a moderate sized independant evangelical Church (English congregation). I really enjoyed the welcome we got, and I enjoyed greatly the ability to sing some great old hymns of the faith to the top of my lungs. I was also pleased to note their wall of supported missionaries in the basement. Unfortunately, some of my companions had a more negative experience of the Church. Admittedly, there was some warrant, as the pastor clearly seemed unable to come to a point in his sermon. I guess this was a side effect of what he called exegetical preaching, but among a group of people with differing faith perspectives, coming to a point, even as you exegete scripture, would be beneficial.

That said, as I left I noted that a young man was asking about being baptized. In many of the Churches represented at the conference, that would be rare, though apparently this church has a class for baptism running every couple of months.

I also got a chance to discuss emergent with some girl at the conference who’s presently reading “Velvet Elvis” by Rob Bell. Erik, if you’re reading, I can’t thank you enough for sending me that one (even if I disagree) it meant I could at least hear some of what she said.

The afternoon was nice, we went to a cabane a sucre. Nice and all, but I think I shall be on a sugar high for a week.

The evening session was the first keynote by Dr. Jenney Plane Te Paa. She’s a bigwig theologian in the Anglican communion, from New Zealand. Needless to say, since she’s a speaker at a largely ecumenical conference, her position is slightly different from my own. The talk left me a little disturbed (I will repond to it directly after I have heard all she has to say).

Afterwards, I was mad, and not in the kind of righteous anger that stays away from sin. God knows what he’s doing, however, and in his providence sent a brother in Christ. There is a couple here from Regent College (who seem to know Russell and Cara, BTW). Now, I’m not sure how well they like talking to me (as I get bombastic when I’m nervous), but the husband, was a credit to his college and his Lord as he simply listened to my concerns about the talk, and gently turned away my judgement and bitterness, while still building up what he saw as appropriate. Christian community preceeds me, as it’s based on Christ, not on my own ability. It also makes me feel bad that I didn’t choose to attend Regent if it produces pastoral people like that.

Through the experience I’m learning the way in which my heart, still sinful in many ways, can often turn a good understanding of something, and use it to place bitterness in my heart. It reasserts to me, how much I am still in need of Jesus, to be my righteousness, and to sanctify me into a better person than I could be by myself. When the Bible says that we should speak the truth in love (Eph 4:16, Phil 1:14-16), I think it’s noting that some of us (me) can use the truth as a method if getting judgemental, bitter and self-righteous. While that doesn’t change the truth, the resulting heart it produces in the truth teller is deadly. So as we speak prophetically (which we must do, silence of the truth and justice is not an option), we must be careful that we do not sin, and so do it in love for the person you speak to, and about.

Perhaps the best wording of it comes from Dr. Te Paa herself, in her talk of this evening: “Live on earth as you would in heaven”. As I imagine heaven to be a place of love, where we speak the truth of God’s greatness to one another, I can only say “Amen”.

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Coffee, CTSC, Mission, Montreal

A Coffeeshop on St.-Denis

Hey Everybody,

Another in a long list of “travellog” blog posts. This Sunday I’m sitting in a 24 hour coffee shop down the street from the Hostel we’re staying in for the conference.

A few words on the conference. I enjoyed last evening, where a couple of us, after the sessions were done sat down to talk about the difficulties in the Angican Church (Me, a guy from Emmanuel-St. Chad, and a delegate from Vancouver School of Theology). I gotta say, all the trouble getting here and the possibility I’m going to have to sit through some pretty objectionable Theology, and the strange dismissive looks some people give to conservatives (not to mention strange arguments concerning the sinfulness of the marriage of hermaphrodites), if I get a bunch of conversations like that one. There’s something to be said for the fellowship that comes from honestly and openly talking to each other, and possibly disagreeing.

Montreal is an amazing city too, by the way. It’s beautiful here, but I keep thinking they need more churches. Maybe this would be a great place to plant one someday. I’d just have to get back to speaking French better. One of the other delegates (who’s actually from Ville de Quebec, but spends a lot of time here) was wearing a kuffiah and a bullet belt last evening (political quite a liberal guy), but had a lot of questions about the Bible and what conservative Christians believe. It was an awesome conversation, but it broke my heart a little more for a city this great with (seemingly) very little Christian witness. I’ll have a better idea by tonight’s entry, as I’m going to a nearby evangelical Church tonight.

Anyway, those of you who are into praying, could you pray a little for Montreal, and that Jesus Christ find this city in a big way?

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