kylan booser

Isaiah 55:8-9 “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the LORD.  “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.”

God is not flat and thin. This is true and it has big implications. I’m not sure where this thought came to me from, my guess is probably originating from Walter Brueggemann through someone else. Brueggemann has described God as wild, dangerous, unfettered and free. Some people may have issues with a couple of those words, especially the word “dangerous”. Regardless, the truth is you cannot tame God. CS Lewis wrote this into his classic The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. In the story Mr. Beaver ends a description of Aslan with “He’s wild, you know. Not like a tame lion.”  You cannot completely formulize God. You cannot box him in. He cannot be made into a step program. God is deep and wide. Our faith includes mystery and things we cannot explain. As created beings, our job is not to try to shrink God and package him. To seek to rationally explain everything about God is to try to make him flat and thin. Our job is to seek him and discover him continually. We do know God from what he has revealed of himself to us. Creation, conscience, the Word made flesh, scripture. There are many, many things that can be explained about God. Many things that are logical. The Holy Spirit guides us and reveals truth and the mysteries of God.  1 Corinthians 2:12-13 says, “We have not received the spirit of the world but the Spirit who is from God, that we may understand what God has freely given us.  This is what we speak, not in words taught us by human wisdom but in words taught by the Spirit, expressing spiritual truths in spiritual words.” But a good apologist will tell you that there are things about God and his ways that must be answered with “I don’t know.” There are things about God we believe but will not be able to wrap our minds around.  This first struck me as a child. I asked my mom about God being eternal. It bothered me. That he always was, always will be. She tried to explain it to me, she could define it, but she really couldn’t satisfy me about it. She could not explain the “how” part.  I didn’t get it then and I still can’t get my mind around it now. I believe it, just cannot entirely understand it. A pastor I respect named Brian Zahnd has said we will confess more than we can explain. Very true. I read a blog recently by Glenn Packiam (a pastor I follow on twitter) that said not all sermons given by a preacher should be or can be applicable. As a pastor, I understand that this is also true. God is deep and wide and not paper thin.

I can explain the love of God. But it goes well beyond my explanation. I believe in the virgin birth and God made flesh, but that’s really, really deep. The trinity cannot be put perfectly into an example as even the best explanation of it is lacking. This list could go on and on and on.

We live in a society where knowledge trumps faith. Knowledge that can be rationally explained. But knowing God does not mean we can explain everything we know/confess/believe/stand firm in. This is what faith is partly about. Faith includes believing in what I have discovered by revelation even if I cannot rationally explain it. Maybe the best way to put it is the “things I am discovering.”

One danger of packaging God and trying to make everything about him logically explainable is we have turned the tables on what worship is all about. We’ve made it a consumer issue. We’ve lost the awe and wonder of God who is much bigger than us. It has become “what can I get out of this.” As Eugene Peterson writes in The Pastor: a Memoir, “Instead of calling people to worship God, pastors all over the country were inviting people to ‘have a worship experience’. Worship was evaluated on the ‘consumer satisfaction scale’ of one to ten.” Experiencing God and seeking an experience with him is not inherently wrong, but how we approach it can make it that way. We cannot force it or rate it, as if to tame God. We experience him in the course of a life of seeking him. That happens on his terms.  We are not seeking experience to simply have an experience. RC Sproul writes in The Holiness of God, “Christianity is not about involvement with religious experience as a tangent. It involves a meeting with a holy God, who forms the center, or core, of human existence.”  Peterson also touches on another issue of how we treat our relationship with God. In Memoir he also writes, “We cannot make an object of God: God is not a thing to be named. We cannot turn God into an idea: God is not a concept to be discussed. We cannot use God for making or doing: God is not a power to be harnessed.” We make God flat and manageable when we try to do any of those things to him.

So I will seek to know God. Dive into His depths. Experience Him more. Worship beyond my understanding. Hold to the confession of my faith. Hold to what I can explain. I will do this on his terms. I will also hold to what I cannot explain. In this I let him be God and understand my place as a created being.  And from this my curiosity and imagination are captured by him. My curiosity and imagination will never be captured by what is easily explained. We know a lot about God. There is a lot more to know and experience. Even if we cannot explain what we discover.

“For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.  For it is written: ‘I will destroy the wisdom of the wise; The intelligence of the intelligent I will frustrate.’ Where is the wise man? Where is the scholar? Where is the philosopher of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not know him, God was pleased through the foolishness of what was preached to save those who believe.” (1 Corinthians 1:18-21) 

Over the last few years, the parables of Jesus, along with the Sermon on the Mount, have been the source of most of my pondering in the Scriptures. The parable of the yeast and the dough and the parable of the treasure in the field are two that have grabbed my attention most frequently. Here is one of them:

Matthew 13:44, “The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field.

 The Kingdom of God can be found in a variety of ways. I heard it said recently on a podcast that there is one way of salvation, who is Jesus, but there are many stories of salvation. Very true. Salvation and living out salvation is not manufactured but received and lived. The Gospel is lived. In this parable told by Jesus the man who found the treasure realized that it was actually a treasure. A very valuable treasure. The Kingdom of God, which entrance into it is salvation, and living in it is abundant life (which is living in the details of life the way we are meant to as humans versus the ways of a fallen world), is the greatest treasure to be found. The problem is we do not see it as such. Maybe because it has become cliché to us. Maybe because man has made it, in a multitude of ways, what it should not be. But, imagine finding a treasure. A treasure of extreme value. You maybe have stumbled upon it, you may have been led to it by another, or maybe you had been diligently seeking it.  When you find it, maybe you are surprised. Maybe you have a feeling of ‘too good to be true’. Maybe you have a sense of wonder. Maybe you have a sense of awe. It would grab your attention. It would grab your curiosity. All of these things are good. All of them are needed in your approach to the Kingdom. Don’t ever become jaded in any way that you lose these things. Without taking time for much explanation, think about this: Do not make this treasure, the Kingdom, flat. Don’t formulize it. Don’t try to make it entirely explainable. Let it’s depth cause a earnest seeking in you.

The treasure you have found is now is of great value to you because it is actually very valuable. It’s value strikes you in such a way that it causes joy, joy because you have it. I’m reminded consistently that the Kingdom of God at its base level is a celebration. A celebration of humanity being made right again. It’s a kingdom that’s work is the redemption of man. It’s a kingdom not of this world having a place in this world and, in that, remaking the world. Kierkegaard wrote “This is the paradox of Christianity- namely, that a Kingdom which is not of this world still wants to have a visible place, yet without becoming a Kingdom of this world. This is why Christian collisions are produced.”  It’s a kingdom within us, not a geographical kingdom (Though we can sanctify time and space). Rather, the Kingdom swirls in us and around us no matter the context of our current moment. In this fallen world, the joy of the Kingdom transcends what is happening in this world. Joy is a mark of one who has the Kingdom of heaven within them. Joy is the overflow of a life that has been made right, set free from sin, and has the ability to live the abundance of that freedom from sin.

It was the realization of the value of the treasure and the joy that followed that caused the man to sell everything he had in order to have it. There was a definite, purposed reaction to the treasure. The reaction was the willingness to give up everything for it. This is life in the Kingdom. You want to gain life? You have to lose yours (Matthew 16:25). This may be one aspect of what Kierkegaard said of the Kingdom causing ‘Christian collisions’. Collisions within you between fallenness and the Kingdom. This is not just a belief in Jesus, but a living of the way he points to as abundant life. This is where the struggle of a fallen person and the living out of being made new will be found. But the value of the treasure and the joy of finding it will keep you moving in this process. It’s not about becoming perfect in a legalistic way. It’s about discovering and living true life. In this, the Gospel, the good news of Jesus, is lived. Living abundant life is still not agreeable to the ways of a fallen world. Here may be another aspect of Kierkegaard’s wording ‘Christian collisions’. Losing your life is the willingness to live abundant life no matter how disagreeable it is to the fallen world around you. And, as the martyrs show, even if it means losing your physical life. Purposely losing your life in the way you live and standing unashamed even to the extreme of losing your life physically is a confirmation that you believe and agree, with all of your being, with what the Kingdom is now (salvation, transformation to abundant life, light to a fallen world) and what the Kingdom will be (Christ’s return, bodily resurrection, all things made new). The Kingdom of God as it is now points to the Kingdom of God that is to come.  This is the whole of the treasure. This is the whole of the Gospel, the good news of Jesus Christ.

A baby is born. The angels celebrate. The shepherds come to see. A mother marvels. Immanuel, come into the world.

The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth. (John 1:14)   

That’s the Gospel.  The gospel means good news. What is the good news? Jesus is the savior of the world. God takes on human flesh full of grace and truth. God takes on human flesh to become our sacrifice. God takes on human flesh to show us a new way to live and then give us an opportunity to do so. God takes on human flesh to fix the problem, the problem of sin.  The Gospel can become a lot of other things, and that is sad, heretical, and tragic. The good news is the foundation and backbone of the Church and its beliefs. I read one writer that said that the problems produced by the Church are often a result of a “crooked Christology”. Either a lack of teaching about Christ (Christianity becomes other things) or wrong teaching about Christ. If that’s the case, and I believe the writer is correct, then the Church needs to get back to the Gospel of good news.

Listen to the news the angels bring, glory to the new born King.

The center and focus of the Christian life is the Gospel. It is what we centrally believe. It is our first response of faith, our response to the word, the truth, of Jesus. I believe Jesus is the son of God. I believe through Jesus that God and sinner are reconciled.  I believe the good news. This is the starting point of all of Christianity. It is what binds us together in the body of Christ. It is then the starting point and the foundation of  how we are to live. It is the message that we are to take to the world. Is the good news what we as Christians are known for?

But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord.” (Luke 2:10-11)  

I love Christmastime. I enjoy the tree, the presents, time with family, the break from work, the tv specials and music, etc. But here lies my attention: Christmas means “mass of Christ”. And without being theological about it, to me that means a remembrance of Christ (as communion is taken in remembrance of Him). But this remembrance takes on the whole work of Christ. Christmas is about the birth of Christ. But God and sinner are reconciled through his death, burial and resurrection. And that is the whole of the good news. The savior has come into the world. And His completed work is the opportunity to be forgiven and to be with God in right relation again. This is the good news of great joy for all the people.  I believe the Gospel.

She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins. (Matthew 1:21)

Because the Church, the Body of Christ, is still being fixed, there will be tears and imperfect people. But because it is being fixed there will be joy, laughter, smiles and dancing. This means that Christianity, the Kingdom of God, in its base is celebration and transformation. What it is not is a dusty, old, irrelevant, legalistic religion. And it is often confused as that when it is made to be what it is not. Christianity is the celebration of life being found. It is a celebration of the value of man and his redemption. It is the celebration of life being fixed and being made into what God intends it to be. It is a celebration of what is to come when the Kingdom comes in its fullness. When we truly realize what the Kingdom of God is, what redemption affords, what we overcome and have been delivered from, celebration will naturally follow. It will follow continually from the life that lives in the Kingdom and cause  celebration when a person enters the Kingdom by their salvation. But the celebration is often missed. Without celebration, the Kingdom would become, and does become, a dusty and old religion. In this age that we live in now, this certainly does not mean that life will be easy, that “life” and its problems will not happen any longer, or that there will be no mourning or stress or trials or troubles. It simply means that we can have joy in the midst of all of it because of what is being done in, by and through the Kingdom. “Be joyful always…” (1 Thessalonians 5:16) 

In the midst of celebration and the life of joy, we must account for the process of transformation. This is discipleship. We must allow for imperfect people who are transforming, in others often slower than we want though its grace we personally want. In transformation there will be tears. Realization of sin, imperfection and sometimes the struggles of change. When we do not account for the process of transformation the Kingdom becomes an irrelevant and legalistic religion. The Church, the Body of Christ,  is filled 100% with forgiven imperfect people. I must interact with others from the understanding that I am imperfect, though forgiven. I must interact with others from the understanding that they are imperfect, though forgiven. This makes no excuse for sin. But what it does is allows us to work together properly in the process of dealing with sin, which is one of the aspects of what transformation is about. It allows love to cover a multitude of sin. It allows iron to sharpen iron. It allows the Lord to forgive us as we forgive others. It allows us to work on the plank in our own eye. It allows us to receive mercy as we show mercy. It allows restoration after failure. And it allows continued celebration.

Luke 15:25 ”Meanwhile, the older son was in the field. When he came near the house, he heard music and dancing. So he called one of the servants and asked him what was going on. ‘Your brother has come,’ he replied, ‘and your father has killed the fattened calf because he has him back safe and sound.’  A life found, a life being fixed. Music and dancing. Dancing that was heard before it was seen. Fellowship of food and community. The Kingdom is celebration.

Luke 15:10 “In the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”  A sinner repents. A life being fixed. Angels celebrate. Let it be on earth as it is in heaven.

John chapter 2. The first miracle of Jesus was at a wedding. He turned water into wine, a better wine than had been already served. An extended celebration that he extended. A celebration that was full of smiles, laughter, dancing and joy. Jesus and his disciples were there. They were participating in the celebration. He would not have extended the celebration if he thought the celebration needed to stop. This first miracle is symbolic of what he was ushering in with the Kingdom. Symbolic in that all that he did afterwards, every miracle and everything he taught, what he did on the cross and through his resurrection, is about the celebration of lives being reconciled, lives being restored, new life given. After this, John records that Jesus made a whip. He didn’t go stop the celebration with the whip. He didn’t stop the dancing, the smiles, the laughter. The whip was for what was wrong in the temple.  No whip would have been needed for the temple if it was full of expressions of joy because of the Kingdom.

I’ve been learning to re-think part of my image of Jesus a bit. Maybe because of the movies about him that I saw when I was young or the picture of him that hung in my parents’ house (his eyes followed you no matter where you walked in the room). In the movies and in this picture he is always stoic. No emotion. Very serious. Certainly things were this way as the cross approached. Certainly he was serious about his mission and did grieve for broken humanity. But it struck me that Jesus was probably joyful. He probably smiled and laughed a bit, maybe quite a bit. And at the wedding in Cana, I don’t think he sat there with a critical eye towards those celebrating, but probably danced and celebrated with them. After all, thats what the Kingdom produces that he ushered in.

People matter. But how they matter to you makes all the difference in the world. Humans were made in the image of God. Though that image has been marred by sin, and part of the redemptive work of Christ is to restore that image, humans are the crown of creation that is intended to bear God’s image. Human beings are valuable. Redeemed or not. As an individual. As a community. So much that while we were yet sinners Christ died for us (Romans 5:8). If we truly understand this, it will entirely re-work how we live. As we begin to see each person as valuable, as made to bear God’s image, it will change our perceptions and how we interact with others and our view of a world full of diversity. We cannot reduce people (and therefore devalue them) in any way by how we view them or by drawing lines of separation. A few ways we do this are as follows. The people around you are not just there to meet your needs. We need our primarily consumeristic view of others changed (both on a local and worldwide level). If we see each person as valuable and as intended image bearers of God, it removes lines drawn by race.  If we see each person as valuable and as intended image bearers of God, it removes lines drawn by nationality. In Him there is no race, nationality, social or gender lines (Galatians 3:28). And, if we see each person as valuable and as intended image bearers of God, it removes lines drawn by religious pride (Luke 18:9-14). The Kingdom of God removes all these lines, though the line of saved and unsaved remains, even that line is caused to be viewed in a different way. For those not in Him yet, the Church, the Body is Christ, is a welcoming community hoping for the redemption of everyone - all the while understanding how we are still being fixed ourselves. Where the diversity is from a root of sin, it must be dealt with (ie poverty, etc). That is part of the work of the Kingdom. We must remove our line-drawn glasses and work to remove these lines in our world. It is working towards the Kingdom, on earth as it is in Heaven and as it will be when the Kingdom is consummated. When we allow the lines to define how we view others, the Kingdom is not our first priority no matter what religious jargon we use to define ourselves. The Kingdom of God is diverse, yet unified. We do not lose what makes us diverse, but diversity is celebrated and not divisive.  The Kingdom is not concerned with making everyone the same, it’s concerned with the redemption of an individual and the living of abundant life while being put into the wider Body of Christ (which can be done by anyone, anywhere, in any time period, under any government).      

People are very calloused to things when it does not touch their personal sphere. We are certainly very calloused when things happen to those who are different than us, or even opposed to us. To see each person as valuable will cause us to ask big questions regarding things like social justice, war, immigration, nationalism and so on. There are no easy answers to any of these questions. I certainly have not figured it all out. But I do believe that we will be changed in some way no matter where we stand on any issue because the Kingdom changes all of us. If not, we have then made the Kingdom our kingdom, not His. 

In no particular order here are a few random quotes, among many others, that I have come across in reading over the last couple of years that have spurred the un-finished thoughts above further:

Swiss theologian Hans Urs von Balthasar “Clearly the Christian must throw himself into the cogs of this pitiless machinery and, as the pastoral constitution tirelessly insists, urge the human proportions (which he has discerned in Jesus Christ) against the twofold disproportions of excessive power (in affluence and imperialism) and powerlessness (poverty).”

Indonesian Author Pramoedya Ananta Toer, though not a Christian, writes this wisdom from his own experiences in All That is Gone, ”War is war; it’s the same everywhere, with people torturing and killing one another, generally behind the shield of lofty motives…There came to me my life’s first revelation: That life is actually very simple, but that man like a wind in the dry season filling the air with debris turns simplicity into chaos. It is this self-induced chaos that causes men to kill one another.” 

GK Chesterton  in Orthodoxy, “Morality did not begin by one man saying to another, ‘I will not hit you if you do not hit me’; there is no trace of such a transaction. There is a trace of  both men having said, ‘We must not hit each other in the holy place.’ They gained their morality by guarding their religion.”  And later in that book, “Before any cosmic act of reform we must have a cosmic oath of allegience. A man must be interested in life, then he could be disinterested in his views of it.”

Eugene Peterson writes in The Jesus Way, critiquing the Church for using Jesus in a consumeristic way and in a round about way critiques consumeristic attitudes in general, “…the temptation is to reduce people, ourselves and others, to self-defined needs or culture-defined needs, which always, in the long run, end up being sin-defined needs – and use Jesus to do it. The American economy is defined primarily in terms of meeting needs…And for all of our ability to meet needs, we have an astonishing capacity for not noticing the needs of those we don’t like or who will overly inconvenience us. Jesus was active in meeting needs all his life and he means for us to be similarly active, but the way he lived was not reduced to, although it always included, meeting needs.”

Author Donald Miller in Blue Like Jazz, “I was tired of Biblical ethic being used as a tool to judge people rather than heal them.”  

My prayer is that my view of others is shaped by the Kingdom. And how it changes me and the questions it raises are welcome- no matter how much it shakes my world-view, no matter how troubling it seems, no matter how radical it is. May He become greater, I become less.

This will be a rather random post. I’m throwing some thoughts out here in the midst of our busy summer schedule. Summer camps are on my mind: prep, prayer,etc.  But this post is about some things that have been on my mind for a few months and adds to last month’s post. In a certain way, it is the pastor coming out in me…

Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore, go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” Matthew 28:18-20

The above scripture’s reference used to be painted above the exit door of our youth facility. Now that we have remodeled, I’m getting it put there again. It’s a constant reminder of our mission to the world. I think it’s true to say that the church is pretty good at a lot of things. But what we are not good at sometimes, and should never be bad at, is truly discipling people. This is not just seeing them “saved”, but actually seeing them rooted with a strong foundation of what it is to be Christian (like Christ). Numbers of salvations are great. But these numbers needed to be discipled. A number means a person. A person means a life, a living being, an individual. A person needs treated as such. As the above passage says, make disciples (a person who follows with all of their being), baptize them (a person’s new identity, symbolizing entrance into the Kingdom and body of believers), teach them to obey commands (a person living the life that follows the confession of Christ as Lord). Christianity is not just a prayer prayed and survival until heaven. It’s a lot about what happens in between.

Here are some random (or maybe not) observations about discipling: You cannot disicple people with pizzazz. The use of technology and excellence in what we present in our churches and youth minitries is not what will disciple anyone. Sort of like, “Come sit in our service and we will dazzle you with our tech, lighting, great music and illustrated sermons. If you come each week (’cause we are the greatest thing going) you will turn into a Christ follower.” We need to often remind ourselves that corporate worship and teaching do not need tech. It’s a great tool, use it if you can/want to, but it’s not what makes anyone a disciple. Corporate worship is vital, as is the teaching in corporate settings. But eventually the pizzazz of tech and excellence wears off and what we do personally with people is what matters.

(And let me throw this in with pizzazz. The working of miracles, Gifts of the Spirit kind of things, is not discipleship either. They are signs. They affirm. Though they accompany a believer, they are not what disciple people. And if people are focused only on them, it leaves shallowness. People simply turn into sign seekers and not much more. They end up looking for emotional pizzazz. You cannot disciple people through feeding them a diet of emotional pizzazz.)

While what was just said above about tech and excellence should be obvious, it leads to this: Discipling people cannot be accomplished from behind a pulpit alone. Echoing last month’s post, discipleship is certainly not done by sitting behind a desk all week (this is a jab at professional ministry & myself). We have professionalized the minister so much that he/she simply manages a company and speaks once or twice a week. Again, what happens in the corporate setting is very important, is needed, and should be prioritized. We need to come together. Scripture is clear on this. We all need to get under good pulpit teaching. A lot gets accomplished in the corporate setting. These times are purposed by God. But disicpleship needs to go beyond this.

(And here’s another random thought that I will just kind of leave hanging out there: You cannot disciple someone by shouting at them. The church not only needs to say the right things, but be careful how we say them…)

Discipleship takes seasons of sowing. Not just “here’s a booklet” or simply “take this three week class.” It is consistent seasons of sowing. It takes the personal rub of relationships (This necessitates the need for more than just the professional minister. All of the Body of Christ should be those who disciple. All believers are ministers in this regard.) That also means what is big must at times get small (and smaller than a small group). Big church is not bad. But we must get small consistently. That’s where the personal rub of relationship happens. The personal rub of relationships uncovers that everyone has a story. It uncovers that people are met by God at certain places in their lives. Discipleship helps build a road to where they need to go from there. Discipleship is personal.  

I write this to challenge you in how you are working with your students. I am constantly asking myself if I, and my volunteer staff, are doing all we can to disciple those who we have the opportunity to be with. I am in the process of tweaking things again. Be creative. Truly get personal with your students and discipleship them. If you lead a volunteer team, get them doing it to. It is vital to do this right. What is right? Whatever gets small, gets personal, and builds.

“The local church, done right, as a community of people who are seeking Christ, loving His word, and following the Spirit is still the most attractive thing to the world. The world loves a group of people loving each other, sacrificing for each other…it is still an irresistible draw that the Spirit uses. This is the kind of community led by Godly leaders.” Todd Wagner

I don’t know a lot about Todd Wagner, but I like this quote. The Church. Locally, a community of believers. In it together. Growing together. Bearing one another’s burdens. Encouraging. Diverse. Openly welcoming those not in it. Non-believers should be able to look within the church and look how we interact and what we do, and look at how we reach out, and know that the Kingdom has come (though that would never be their terminology). They would simply see something that is different from the way the rest of society works- and it would point to Jesus as the reason.  This is what the leaders within the church need to foster. All too often, this is not the case.

There have been movements, such as the Emerging church, the organic church, and those who see church “governmental leadership” as unbiblical, that are a backlash against the local church becoming what it should not be. Hearing what they say is important because they point out some truths to the problems of the institutional local church. Local churches in many ways have simply become corporations, church leadership has in many cases led improperly and so on. Though I do not know all the ins and outs of these movements listed above, I do not believe the answer is to do away with the local church and/or church leadership, but to be sure we are doing church the way that is right. This does start with those who lead.

The base of proper leading is to be a servant. To be humble. To understand the grace that one stands in. We get hung up on calling and anointing so much that it seems that as long as someone is ”called” or “anointed” or has a position of status that humility and a servant heart can be left behind. The local church becomes a king(s) and his vassals, simply doing programs that try to achieve results and goals. And the people in the church are simply means to achieve an end, to achieve the vision of the leader. This is not church done right.  When this is all the church becomes we leave out the “in it together, growing together, bearing one another’s burdens” aspect. People are viewed in a consumeristic way and are not the individual people that they truly are. Individuals with a story. Individuals who want to grow and be transformed into Christ-likeness.  Individuals who want community. Individuals who mostly are happy to serve something bigger than themselves. Individuals who mostly do not mind being admonished when done properly. Individuals who want the church to be what the church is supposed to be. It is the job of leaders to produce this- on the whole in the local church as well as in individual ministries like youth ministry.

Mark 10:45 “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve…”

Yes, I am a pastor. I lead in a local church. I have a vision that a volunteer staff helps me achieve. I even wrote a book on leading a volunteer organization. In the role of a pastor, I do teach, train, and even correct (and not everyone is always happy or thinks I do the right things). But I need to do all this in the right way. With humility. With a servant heart. I need to realize that meeting  goals of a vision is not what its all about. It’s about people. People together. Growing together in Godliness. People reaching out as a light to the world. Reaching out in the right way. Loving, serving- doing it as Jesus did.  If I do have a gift, it is to serve others. Not to be served or to be recognized. I learn this as I continue to grow in my walk with God. Right relationship with God will bring about right relationship with others- no matter who you are or what gift or call you have.  Here’s a side note “test case” for pastors: Most pastors are not willing to be servants, especially servants to greater society in some way or capacity where they are not viewed as a pastor and not called such and are nothing more than a believer among non-believers, because they are so used to being served that they are uncomfortable doing things that seemingly ”put them below others”.  Their life is a desk and a pulpit and not much more. This is dangerous. Something to think on.      

Let’s do church right. Leaders, let’s lead right. The church needs to become the community it needs to be…

*If you’ve never read A Tale of Three Kings by Gene Edwards, I recommend it highly. It’s a classic.

Jesus did not do things the way everyone thought he would or should. Yes, the Messiah would set up a Kingdom. But he would set it up in a way that did not make sense to the human mind or human way of being. He set up a Kingdom, not by shedding others blood in a revolt against Rome, but by allowing his own blood to be shed- the ultimate act of love. Could he have incited an uprising against Rome, arming the locals and wielding Moses-against-Egypt type miracles and even calling upon the legions of angels to set up an earthly kingdom at that time? I have no doubt. But he told Peter to put away his sword at his arrest. Noting that he could have called on the angels at that moment, Jesus did not do so. The Kingdom of God is set up in a way that is entirely opposite from the ways of a fallen world. This Kingdom is built upon love, an unmatched love, that affords grace. Grace for those who deserve the wrath of judgement. The human race became something opposed to God by their free will, a free will given to them out of God’s goodness. We have become a law unto ourselves, living life, life given to us by God, apart from him. So the wages of sin is death. There must be a penalty, a wrath, for sin because God is holy and just. But something miraculous happened. A Kingdom comes that is set up in a way that boggles the mind. A Kingdom set up through love,  love given in the form of a sacrifice. A substitutionary sacrifice. This love gives grace, and grace governs wrath. Our means to this grace is faith. We have been given a plan for our pardoning. We have been given a way to be reconciled to God. Romans 5:8

Our response to this is to receive by faith what grace gives us. But afterward, we are to live “in” this Kingdom for we are then members of it. It’s not a geographical “in”, but a way of being “in”. Living in a Kingdom that was set up in a way that is contrary to the ways of the fallen world mean that we begin to live in a way that in many ways will be contrary to this fallen world. We do this by becoming like the one who set up the Kingdom. The life of Christ is the new way of living. In his new way of living came the Kingdom. Our life of picking up our cross daily, being of the process of becoming like Him and thus living a new way, is what we are to be about until his coming. In this way, we are a light to the world. In this way we are ushering in the Kingdom on earth as it is in heaven right now. In this way we are dealing with the sin and evil in this fallen world. When we become we will do. And what we do will be the witness of his Kingdom (Matthew 5:16).       

I hope your mind has been on the Easter weekend for some time now. Each Sunday as we gather in our churches, it is a celebration of  the resurrection of Christ. As we pick up our crosses daily, it is also a celebration of the resurrection of Christ, a celebration of our own resurrection found in our salvation, and looking forward in hope to the literal physical resurrection to come.

*Next time I’ll have a youth leadership tip on here. Check back in. (I’m on twitter now, you can follow me on www.twitter.com/kylanbooser)

Unrest in Egypt. Flooding in the Northeast of America. Disaster in Japan. War in Libya. These are just a small slice of what has been happening recently in our world. Since sin entered the world, the world has been in the birthpains of a creation that is fallen and under the curse. The effects of sin are seen in what man does and in the decay of creation. All of creation longs for its redemption of being made new.  We certainly do know that these things- destruction, war, etc-  point us to what is to come: Full redemption of a people belonging to God, judgment for those who reject Him, and the remaking of all things. And things could happen very quickly. But they could also take a long time. We don’t know for sure. Each generation since the ascension of Christ believed they were they ones to see the fulfillment of his return and the end of the age as we know it. This is not a bad thing. Urgency of the work of the Kingdom and the urgency of living a life ready for the return of Jesus at any moment is vitally important. 

In a creation that is fallen we know destruction is certain. A prediction of destruction is as easy as saying the sun will come up tomorrow. Destruction of all sorts is part of the curse. (Now, when there is major destruction the cries of God’s wrath follow from some people. Whether or not “God did it” vs it being part of the process of birthpains is not really the point. But a prophet who truly prophesies about God’s judgment on a specific group of people needs to get out there to those specific people and prophesy among them…ok, I’ll leave this particular point for now) I was a freshman in college during the first Gulf invasion under President Bush Sr. Immediately the Christian community was flooded with books, predictions, and Revelation interpretation of the events. A war in the gulf region? This certainly was the beginning of the end. I wasn’t sure if I would make it out of my freshman year. Luckily I didn’t begin to live like it was the end. I would’ve failed out. (This begs the point that we must be mature enough to know that it may be that not all Biblical prophecy will be fulfilled in our lifetime as in the generations before us and that we cannot try to “force fit” current events into specific Biblical prophecy as the flood of books and so forth did during the first Gulf invasion.) I can only imagine if I was alive during either of the world wars and what kind of “the end is here” mantra I would’ve heard. A man with wisdom at that time during my freshman year simply told me this: “These things point us towards what is to come, but don’t get wrapped up in it that it drives what your faith is all about.” Good point. In other words, chill out. Know that things will happen and they could happen any time. Live your faith with urgency each day. But also live your faith as if you are in it till you are old and grey. I want to be part of the building of the Kingdom. I want to have urgency today to be a light to the world. I also want to be in the process of transformation, of learning how to love my enemies and live in forgiveness towards others, of picking up my cross daily, to be disciplined to the Word and prayer and worship, staying connected to God and allowing Him to work in me.  In this way, no matter what happens in the world today or tomorrow, my approach to life doesn’t change.

This is a great lesson for teenagers to learn. Paul writes in Titus 2:13 that the blessed hope is the return of Jesus. No matter what destruction happens or even what blessings we can receive from God in this age, they will pass away. Our great hope is the return of Jesus, the resurrection of our bodies, and the remaking of all things. Teach them to put their ultimate hope in that. When they have that kind of hope, no matter what happens around them, peace will be with them. Then teach them what to do while we wait for His return. The verses around Titus 2:13 highlight dealing with sin. With this, we live with urgency while at the same time living a Christian life that is growing and maturing and transforming and becoming more like our Savior.      

Onto a leadership tip: This Saturday I am heading out on our annual Youth Staff guys hike. This is an absolute blast and I really look forward to it. Not all of my staff guys are into it, but some are. If you oversee a volunteer team, make it point to do things that build community among your staff every now and then. Whether it be a hike, a summer cook out, a Christmas party, a ladies recipe exchange, etc. A staff that has community will stay together, grow together, and bear the burden of vision together. The better the bond of community among your staff the better you will work together as a body to see the Kingdom of God on earth as it is in heaven.

I guess Spring is on the way, at least spring training is under way. Though I am a fall/winter guy and do not like to see the cold weather leave, I do enjoy the rejuvenation of the things that grow green outside around us. Be sure to take time to be outside the coming spring, summer and fall (& even winter). Take in what God has made, take time to slow down a little, breathe a little, and be in awe of the Creator’s creation (I was a bit in awe as I took the picture in the Rockies that is in the banner at the top of this web…it was incredible there). This is rather important in the midst of a super charged, over-busy world. But I digress…

Teens hear a lot of voices. They hear many different kinds of voices. Voices that loudly, or sometimes softly and rather subtly, state an opinion or way of thinking or way of living. They are faced with voices of consumerism.  Voices of politics. Voices of religion (or non-religion - though there really is no such thing). Voices of education. Voices of friends. Voices of parents. Voices of dating partners. Etc, etc, etc. Teens filter all of it in some way. They all respond in some way. Their response ends up being how they live life. Living life is a lot like building a house. It’s the process of a piece by piece construction. But as anyone who builds any structure knows, the foundation is extremely important. Matthew 7:24 records, “Therefore anyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock.” Jesus said this. The foundation of a house that can withstand anything is built on “these words of mine”. What are those words? The Sermon on the Mount. Matthew chapters five through seven. The longest continual teaching of Jesus recorded in the Gospels. In this teaching, he tells of those who theirs is the kingdom of heaven, of those who will inherit the earth, of those who will be shown mercy, of those who will be called sons of God. He tells of what to do when you are persecuted. He tells of being a light to the world. He talks of dealing with being angry at someone, of being reconciled. He talks of lust. He tells of turning the other cheek, going the extra mile. He tells of loving your enemy, loving those who do not love you back. He talks of giving to the needy, prayer and fasting, but doing these things in secret. He says to forgive others. He tells of storing up treasures in heaven and not on earth, and not to worry because God is our provider. He says not to judge. He says to ask, seek and knock. He tells us to enter the narrow gate and be on the narrow road. He warns of false prophets and that we will recognize what kind of tree it is by the fruit it bears.

I’m not sure the Sermon on the Mount is a very popular teaching topic among youth pastors or the students themselves. But we do want them to build strong lives. We need to be sure the foundation for their house is proper, built on the rock. And that proper foundation is the words of Jesus. We can teach on what seems like a thousand different things. We certainly should teach on the whole of scripture. To be sure, if we want our students to be able to filter all the voices they hear and respond and build a strong house, they need these words of Jesus engrafted into them. To live the sermon on the mount is the foundation of living the way of Jesus. It is what a Christian should be like. And to live the words of Jesus found in the Sermon on the Mount is to live a life that is very subversive and countercultural. The world does not operate like Jesus says we should. Challenge yourself to read Matthew chapters five through seven through at once everyday for a while. See how it grips you. Don’t let the chapter and verse divisions separate out the teaching. To me, though it is not poetry by genre, it flows like poetry. Let it shape you. Teach it so it shapes your students. They need to know what Jesus says is the way to filter and respond to the voices they hear.

Early in 2010 I finally was able to read The Jesus Way by Eugene Peterson. Great book. Very thought provoking. I recommend it to you. Also, if you lead a volunteer organization or are looking to build one, my book In the Trenches will help you. Not expensive and a short read (no fluff, all info). Cheap and short- perfect for youth leaders. You can click on it in the left column on this web page and it takes you Amazon…

Keep sowing. Keep after it. The Kingdom is being built… in you and through you…