Tag: Religion

The Resurrection of the Body

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“I believe in … the resurrection of the body and the life everlasting.”
– (Apostles’ Creed)

Resurrection of Christ by Noël Coypel, 1700.

As reflected in the 2014 movie, Heaven is For Real, and the 2012 book Proof of Heaven, stories of near death experiences and the survival of the human soul have found a positive reception in 21st century American culture. Even as belief in God and participation in organized religion continues to decrease, more persons believe in an afterlife now than did in 1972 (80% vs. 73%), according to a study conducted by three universities (San Diego State, Florida Atlantic, and Case Western Reserve). If one were under any illusion that belief in heaven was a uniquely Christian tenet of faith these findings should challenge that perspective.

Like persons of the present day, many in Jesus’ time believed in an afterlife and thought it possible for the souls of the departed to return from the realm of the dead to this world as ghosts. What they did not expect was God’s resurrection of Christ and his walking among the living with a body through which he could interact with the material world.

Our Moravian Easter Liturgy opens with the words, “The Lord is Risen!” This distinctly Christian message of hope is the original Gospel – “good news” – spread by apostles who had encountered the risen Christ and could testify to his resurrection. Indeed, being a witness to Christ’s resurrection was the criteria for being an “apostle” (Acts 1:22). So we read of the Apostle Peter proclaiming: “you killed the Author of life, whom God raised from the dead. To this we are witnesses.” (Acts 3:15). Similarly, the Apostle Paul writes: “Last of all, as to one untimely born, he appeared also to me.” (1 Corinthians 15:8).

Throughout subsequent centuries, followers of Jesus have proclaimed that, just as God raised Jesus from the grave, so God “will also give life to our mortal bodies if the Spirit of God has dwelt in us”. This affirmation is expressed in the Apostles’ and Nicene Creeds.

Why does belief in the resurrection matter?

Like belief in God’s Incarnation in the person of Jesus Christ, Christian belief in bodily resurrection affirms the essential goodness of nature and embodied human existence. While taking seriously problems of suffering, sin, and death, the goal of Christian faith is not to escape earthly existence but rather to open ourselves to God’s ongoing acts of redemption. Because God’s plan is to redeem this world, our task is to help God in this endeavor by becoming agents of transformation ourselves rather than simply enjoying life or passing time until we depart for a better place. We work with our Savior for justice and righteousness during our earthly lives and pray as he taught us: “your will be done on earth as it is in heaven”. With Job we can claim: “For I know that my Redeemer lives, and that at the last he will stand upon the earth; and after my skin has been thus destroyed, then in my flesh I shall see God.” (Job 19:25-26).

Pastor Derek French

 

What Does God Want For You This Christmas?

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Do a web search or open any study Bible and it is pretty clear what Christians believe God wants from you, but what is it that God wants for you? Jesus provides an answer in his parable of the good shepherd: “I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.” That Jesus is speaking of spiritual rather than material realities should be clear when we consider the evidence of his own life.

nativity

Gerard van Honthorst, “Adoration of the Shepherds”

For the One born in a manger, abundant life “does not consist in the abundance of possessions.” Neither does it consist of a multitude of friends, social prominence or freedom from affliction. From birth, our Savior was intended to be “a suffering servant,” a “man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief.” Just eight days into Jesus’ life the “righteous and devout” Simeon revealed to Mary that “a sword will pierce your own soul too.”

So what then is this “abundant life” of which Jesus speaks? Abundant life is authentic life; it is living into the promise of God’s creation of humanity in God’s own image. It is sharing in the copious blessings of God’s own life. God became human so that those who follow Christ “… may become participants of the divine nature.” In his writings on 2 Peter Irenaeus (c. AD 130-220) wrote: God “became what we are in order to make us what God is.” Abundant life, authentic life, eternal life is ours when we accept God’s “…precious and very great promises …” embodied in the birth of our Savior.

That is what God wants for each of us – not only at Christmas – but every day of our lives.

The great Advent and Christmas hymns of Western Christian tradition celebrate the birth of Jesus by focusing on that from which Christ saves us. “He comes to break oppression, to set the captive free.” He brings the light of redemption into the world, releasing us “from our fears and sins” that “the powers of hell may vanish as the darkness clears away.” Few of our familiar hymns meditate on that destiny for which God saves us.

Will you accept God’s Christmas gift to you?

Will you embrace God’s desire for your life in the coming year?

-Pastor Derek French

Bible quotes referenced from John 10:10; Luke 12:15; Isaiah 53; Luke 2:35; Genesis 1:27; 2 Peter 1:4.

Being A Covenant Community Of Faith

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“We in one covenant are joined, and one in Jesus are…”
– Hymn 527, Moravian Book of Worship

A covenant is an agreement which brings about a relationship of commitment between God and God’s people and among members of a faith community. Biblical covenants always begin with God’s action on behalf of humanity and then articulate tangible ways persons of faith can and should respond to God’s freely given, unmerited favor – i.e. to God’s “grace.”

Christian faith is based on covenants made between God and Abraham, Moses and David (the basis of Jewish faith) and the new covenant embodied in Jesus Christ. Whenever we celebrate the sacrament of Holy Communion, God reaffirms the foundational covenant of our Christian faith as we recall Jesus’ words to his disciples: “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this … in remembrance of me.” (1 Corinthians 11:25) These sacred words invite us into relationship with God and challenge us to commit our lives to Christ.

As the Rev. Kevin Frack observes, “Good intentions alone are not enough to build a healthy Christian community.” Our action must follow as faithful response to God’s action if we wish to experience the full blessings of the New Covenant. For this reason, the presiding pastor asks those joining the church to affirm their commitment to God and Christ’s church:

Do you in this faith turn away from sin, evil, and selfishness in your thoughts, words and actions; and do you intend to participate actively in Christ’s church, serving God all the days of your life?

An elaboration of how this commitment to follow Christ might be realized in one’s daily life can be found in The Moravian Covenant for Christian Living.  The church office has paper copies available.

Each year on or around September 16, Moravian Clergy gather for their annual “Covenanting Day.” It is a time for them to reaffirm their call, renew their vows of ordination and enjoy the blessings of fellowship which unites the church in service to Christ. Whether ordained or a layperson, each of us is called into committed relationship with God and each other through the establishment of covenant in the sacraments of Baptism and Holy Communion.

I invite you to take a moment on Friday, September 16, to celebrate and renew your commitment to the covenant relationship that links you to God and other believers through Jesus Christ.

  • Pastor Derek French

 

God Is In The Stillness

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When is the last time you experienced quiet and the absence of potential distraction? If you’re like most Americans, probably not very recently.

Scientists use the phrase “ambient noise level” to define sound pressure at a given location. Sound pressure is measured in decibels. In the wilderness, you might experience an ambient noise level of 30 to 45 decibels. In contrast, many urban areas have an ambient noise level of 85 to 90 decibels. That’s just the background noise. To that, one must add the ringing of cell phones, the volume of the television, radio or iPod, and any other noise that you or others near you might be making. We live in a noisy world surrounded by different messages competing for our attention. Often it is the loudest, most frequent, or most dramatic message which arrests our attention and shapes our worldview.

As often as not, these messages seek to manipulate us into buying a certain product or buying into a certain world-view. Some are irrelevant, some annoying, some frightening, and some harmful. Most do little to further spiritual growth or nurture our relationship with Christ. Even the greatest of prophets of a more quiet past needed times of silence and freedom from distraction to hear the still, small voice of God.

Now there was a great wind, so strong that it was splitting mountains and breaking rocks in pieces before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind; and after the wind an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake; and after the earthquake a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire; and after the fire a sound of sheer silence. When Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his mantle and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave. Then there came a voice to him that said, “What are you doing here, Elijah?” (1 Kings 19: 12-13)

As Lent continues during March, now might be a good time to consider setting aside a few moments each day to spend with God. During this time you may wish to…

  • read the Bible
  • reflect on what messages are shaping your life
  • focus on aspects of your life for which you are thankful
  • ponder where and how you sensed God’s presence in your life of that of others
  • consider changes might you make in your life to be a better follower of Jesus, or simply heed the wisdom of Psalm 46, verse 10

“Be still, and know that I am God! I am exalted among the nations, I am exalted in the earth.”

– Pastor Derek French

Birthing Christ Within Our Soul: The Essence of Christmas and Christian Faith

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Had Christ a thousand times,

Been born in Bethlehem,

But not in you, your sin

Would still your soul condemn.

– Angelus Silesius

christmas advent

Matthias Stomer, Adoration of the Christ Child, circa 1660.

One should not mistake decorating for the holidays as preparing oneself for Christmas.

Living in the “Christmas City”, it’s sometimes easy to confuse the two. Bethlehem does a great job decorating for the holidays and marketing itself as the American destination for Christmas merrymaking. Since mid-October, city work crews have installed trees with lights on all the lamp posts. They have strategically positioned oversized Advent wreaths at major intersections around town. Local shops – even grocery stores – flood us with cheery tunes about family, fellowship, snow, and celebration. Meanwhile we decorate, shop for gifts for friends and loved ones, and anticipate our favorite personal holiday traditions. We are ready for the holidays – but are we prepared for Christmas?

If you would learn the true meaning of Christmas, do not look to society with its holiday glitter. You will not find the Christ-child there. There is no room for him in crowded malls and streets filled with frenetic holiday shoppers. Nor can Christ be found online in the midst of special holiday offers. To prepare for Christmas, seek the birth of the Christ-child within yourself.

The highest worship is like unto God to grow,
Christlike to be in life, in habit, and love’s glow.
– Angelus Silesius

Christmas comes the day Jesus’ Spirit is born within us.

O Holy Child of Bethlehem, descend to us, we pray;
Cast out our sin, and enter in, be born in us today.
We hear the Christmas angels the great glad tidings tell;
O come to us, abide with us, our Lord Emmanuel!
– Phillips Brooks

Have a Blessed Christmas,

– Pastor Derek French

“Worship The Lord, Your God”

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The realities of making a living and the often distressing struggles of human society have a way of eroding joy and hope. Without turning to God for spiritual refreshment, our souls are soon as parched as this year’s California countryside. To break such a spiritual drought we need the refreshing rain of God’s grace at regular intervals. A downpour here and there won’t quench our soul’s thirst.

The author of the book of Hebrews celebrates God’s forgiveness of sin through Christ’s life, teaching, death, and resurrection. He says we should enter the sanctuary for worship and “approach with a true heart in the full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience…”

Feelings of guilt after a long absence sometimes keep persons from coming back to church. This fear, guilt, or embarrassment which threatens to separate persons from Christ and other believers is what the author describes as “an evil conscience.” Don’t let an evil conscience keep you away from your church family. Don’t let it hinder your spiritual growth and relationship with God. The author then goes on to describe how God blesses Jesus’ followers as they gather for worship.

Worship builds Christian community and nurtures the faith of individual members. It offers opportunities to express our gratitude to God, to receive encouragement, and learn from the wisdom of countless believers, both past and present. We hear of God’s love for all persons; we reach out to those who are facing difficulties and share in others’ joy; and we “consider how to provoke one another to love and good deeds.”(1) Such mutual support and exhortation allow
Christians to “hold fast to the confession of our hope without wavering.”(2)

Worship is a weekly opportunity to deepen our faith as we come to a more mature understanding of our relationship with God. Especially in difficult times, it is important that followers of Jesus worship regularly “not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day (of the Lord) approaching.”(3)
_________________________________
1 (Hebrews 10:24)
2 (Hebrews 10:23)
3 (Hebrews 10:25)

– Pastor Derek French

The Case of Jan Hus

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jan hus moravian church

Jan Hus

Jan (John) Hus was a 15th century church reformer who was burned to death as a heretic on July 6, 1415, by order of the Council of Constance. In 1457, a number of Hus’ followers established the Moravian Church in its homeland of Bohemia. We will commemorate Hus’ martyrdom with a service of Holy Communion on Sunday, July 6.

Among factors leading to the Council’s condemnation of Hus, were differences between their view of the nature of the church and his. Officially, membership in the institutional church and participation in its sacraments was not only necessary for salvation but guaranteed it. Hus, who had observed and was troubled by widespread corruption and questionable morality among church leaders, believed participation in the institutional church was not the same thing as being part of Christ’s “true church.” Instead, Hus claimed that the church was like the net of fish in Jesus’ parable. Some in the church were saved; others were not.

Again, the Kingdom of Heaven is like a fishing net that was thrown into the water and caught fish of every kind. When the net was full, they dragged it up onto the shore, sat down, and sorted the good fish into crates, but threw the bad ones away. That is the way it will be at the end of the world. The angels will come and separate the wicked people from the righteous, throwing the wicked into the fiery furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. (Matthew 13: 45-50)

Hus’ view challenged the power of the Roman Church. Doubtless there were those on the Council who simply wanted to preserve the church hierarchy’s position of privileged authority. With the benefit of hindsight however, impartial observers must also admit that the Council’s fears of church schism and social unrest were not unfounded. Radical followers of Hus launched the Hussite Wars of 1420-1431. Within a hundred years of Hus, the cohesiveness of the Western Church was fractured by the Protestant Reformation and European society was wracked by wars between Catholics and Protestants.

There is much to be learned from the case of Jan Hus. Sometimes it takes courageous prophetic
action to reverse entrenched corruption and injustice and make the church more faithful to Christ. Hus’ actions and those of other reformers won fresh appreciation for the authority of Scripture and increased roles for laypersons.

Yet, prophetic action was costly for reformers, church, and society. Unintended consequences
including schism and accompanying violence followed the reformers’ radical reinterpretation of the Christian life. Believers on both sides responded in ways which did not reflect the love of Christ. In 1999, Pope John Paul II expressed “deep regret for the cruel death inflicted on Hus.”

– Pastor Derek French

Father’s Day: Lessons for Earthly Dads and the Rest of Us

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While Hebrew scripture draws upon many images to convey the relationship of God to humanity, language depicting God as divine King or holy Lawgiver often predominates. As some prophets before him, Jesus preferred to use more intimate, familial language when speaking about (or to) God. Jesus often referred to God as his Father and encouraged his followers to do likewise. Indeed, our Lord starts his model prayer with the words “Our Father.” What was Jesus trying to convey about God when he used this “father” language? How does this inform our understanding of human fatherhood?

gpd the father

To be sure, children are to obey the fifth commandment to honor their fathers and mothers. Yet healthy father-child relationships are based more on love than obedience. The ideal father – and it is the ideal which Jesus lifts up as an image of God – loves his children unconditionally. As father he provides for his children and looks to their ultimate well-being by giving them rules for living in harmony with creation and each other. Given the presence of free-will and self-determination in this world, fathers may not be able to shield their children from all suffering, conflict, and misfortune but they certainly do not willingly afflict them. (See Luke 11:11-12)

For Jesus, the father is more than just chief provider and protector of the family. The father is also as emotionally engaged in the lives of his children as their mother – rejoicing when they experience joy, and weeping when they are hurt or suffer loss. Like the mother, the father is also a nurturer. He provides wise rules to keep his children from getting into trouble and exercises his responsibility to discipline them when they go astray. Yet he also takes them into his arms and comforts them when they have been hurt. “As a father has compassion for his children, so the Lord has compassion for those who fear him.” (Psalm 103:13) God as Father is thus empathetic and caring as well as strong.

In contrast to image of God as a king who maintains a certain distance from his subjects, God as a Father is actively present on a daily basis in the lives of his children.

As we celebrate Fathers’ Day, we give thanks to the Creator for men in our lives who have, in
whatever small ways, resembled the ideal of our heavenly Father. Earthly dads are not perfect. All have flaws and some so damage their children’s concept of “father” that the latter have difficulty using this language in reference to God. Perhaps anticipating the stumbling block such earthly fathers could become to believers Jesus advises us: “And call no one your father on earth, for you have one Father—the one in heaven.” (Matthew 23:9)

– Pastor Derek French