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Radical Christianity?
November 2, 2004
After 9/11, virtually everyone agrees that we live in dangerous and uncertain times. Terrorists whose only assurance of a sure reward in the afterlife is to die while fighting the enemy of Islam have no qualms killing even the innocent, women or children in the most horrible way possible. We can call Bin Ladin and those who are similarly minded any names we want but the truth is that they are just following what the Koran teaches. When we are faced with a human being who thinks that killing us pleases his god, clearly no human weapon can stop that. I believe that when a man is willing to give up his life for a lie, that is deception in its highest form. Hatred though must have no place in our hearts for it is the very bait of Satan who wants to drag us down with him. Taking the bait makes us as deceived as those whom we hate. Lest we forget, Christ died for terrorists, too. We are asked to fight using different weapons, not to kill but to be vessels of life. When He commanded us to love our enemies, the Master was not talking about suppressing our feelings. Rather, He was pointing to God's love flooding our hearts. It is a battle of truth, yes, but it is in the realm of divine love that we fight our battles. This is something nobody can fake. It is either we are filled with God's love or not.
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"...our being doctors will not matter in the economy of God's kingdom. What will matter for all eternity is our love and faithfulness to our Master."
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Since every work of Satan is either a counterfeit or the opposite of the real, is there such a thing as extreme or fanatical Christianity? Is biblical Christianity normally radical or fundamental? Or does Christianity evolve through time, changing as culture also changes? Such may be uncommon questions yet they beg for answers. Like it or not, these are best answered by the way we live our lives not necessarily by what we claim and proclaim. When those who call themselves by the name of Christ cannot be distinguished from the rest of the world then something must be terribly wrong. Jesus was deadly serious when He said, "You are the light of the world." Sin is darkness and the life of Christ in us is the light. There is no such thing as light fleeing from darkness. Darkness always flees from light. If sin successfully gains a foothold in our life, our family, church, community or our nation irregardless of the circumstances, something must be wrong with the light. Indeed, if our light is darkness, how great is that darkness! (Matthew 6:23)
We simply cannot make the overwhelming darkness of sin the reason for a defeated life. This is such a wicked age, we may say. The life of Christ by its very nature, always dispels darkness. In Him was life, and that life was the light of men (John 1:4). Neither can we make our humanity a reason. "Pagkat ako'y tao lamang" is a lie that many have embraced as if our God is powerless to cause us to lead a victorious Christian life. If we have experienced the greatest miracle of Christ in which He made us into a new man or woman, then we have all the power at our disposal to defeat sin in our lives. His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature and escape the corruption in the world caused by evil desires. (2 Peter 1:3-4)
God empowers by humbling us. This is the pattern, there is no other way. D. L Moody has an insightful way of summarizing how God equipped Moses.
Moses spent 40 years [in Egypt] thinking he was somebody,
40 years [in Midian] learning to be a nobody, and
40 years [leading the people of Israel out of Egypt] learning what God can do with a somebody who has learned to be a nobody.
During his time Egypt was the greatest world power. Moses was brought up in Pharaoh's court, educated under the best teachers and trained up as a prince. Early on he already knew that God called him to bring his people to freedom. He must have thought that his training, background and position made him the best fitted and ablest candidate for the job. Instead he ended up murdering an Egyptian. God's plan can only be accomplished God's way. To do that the Lord had to undo much of what Moses learned in his first 40 years of life. Independence had to give way to dependence. Moses had to realize that God is not after his talents but his willingness to trust Him. In the backside of the desert in Midian God broke His will and his reliance on his natural abilities. Like a soldier, he was trained not to act independently but to live by every word of God. Every soldier knows the importance of obedience. He learned not to argue but to follow orders as He trusted that God knew what He was doing. God was to be his strength, wisdom, power, everything that he needed Him to be. Thus he came out of this school of hardknocks as the meekest man on earth. It's not hard to imagine that while being stripped of his pride in the desert, Moses might have been wondering what God was up to. After all, 40 years of apparent inactivity was not a joke. Perhaps he might have thought that God had given up on him and chose somebody else because he failed Him. Through it all, he learned to wait upon the Lord. Isn't it significant that of all the things needed to equip the leader of at least 3 million stiff-necked people, God made him meek? Humility is such a misunderstood word but in biblical sense it is simply complete dependence on God. When God appeared to him in the burning bush at 80 years of age, Moses was ready although the molding lasted his lifetime. God manifested His glory through his life. It was His presence that made his life extraordinary.
God can use us regardless of our ability or lack of it. Like Dr. Luke who authored the gospel in his name and the book of Acts, his being a medical doctor was just incidental. His legacy is not even related to his medical profession but to his testimony of who Christ is. In the same manner, our being doctors will not matter in the economy of God's kingdom. What will matter for all eternity is our love and faithfulness to our Master. Again, isn't it significant that all the apostles had no education (except for Paul), no PhD's, no credentials, no connections in high places, no military training and were powerless by the world's standard? Though they had no silver nor gold, they had the presence of Christ and the love of God in their hearts. They battled the forces of darkness armed with just that and turned the world upside down. It is sad when many of God's people are turned downside up by wordly influences so that there is no longer a difference between us and the unbelievers.
Wally Magdangal was the pastor of the biggest underground church in Saudi Arabia. I met him a week ago and found out that he was such an unassuming man. In 1992, he was tagged as the most wanted criminal in Saudi, subsequently caught by the religious police, tortured and sentenced to die by hanging. The beatings and torture were so severe that he almost died. Although his torturers asked him to deny Christ he stood firm in his faith. There were times he literally trembled and shook with fear and almost gave up because of the pain and the thought of his wife and daughter. But the Lord sustained him. After a worldwide call for clemency and protests, King Fahd issued a royal decree for his release. He was deported back to the Philippines in December 1992. Why did God allow him to suffer tremendously? God filled his heart with His love and while in the prison, he led muslims to Christ. He was transferred from one cell to another because of that and yet wherever he was placed God opened many prisoners' hearts as they saw their need for Jesus Christ. Come to think of it. God had to send Wally to prison in order to reach them. He heard their heart-cry. Wally was the Lord's hands, feet and voice in the prison. Wasn't that the same with Paul? It was because of imprisonment that he was able to lead many to the Lord.
Should not normal Christianity be the same? Label it radical if you want but God still calls ordinary people. Our silence and inaction speak volumes. The Lord is not looking for ability but availabilty. He doesn't ask beyond what we have in our hands. Neither does He call the equipped but rather equips those whom He calls. Remember the miracle of the feeding of the multitude? The disciples thought of having nothing to buy when all that the Lord needed was five barley loaves from the hands of a poor boy. Likewise, He makes us willing to give what He wants and multiplies what we give to feed the multitude. The following story which has been sent and forwarded from one email inbox to another around the world illustrates this point.
Wishing to encourage her young son's progress on the piano, a mother took her boy to a Paderewski concert. After they were seated, the mother spotted a friend in the audience and walked down the aisle to greet her.
Seizing the opportunity to explore the wonders of the concert hall, the little boy quietly got up and eventually explored his way through a door marked "NO ADMITTANCE."
When the house lights dimmed and the concert was about to begin, the mother returned to her seat and discovered that the child was missing. Suddenly, the curtains parted and spotlights focused on the impressive Steinway on stage.
In horror, the mother saw her little boy sitting at the keyboard, innocently picking out "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star." At that moment, the great piano master made his entrance, quickly moved to the piano and whispered in the boy's ear, "Don't quit. Keep playing". Then leaning over, Paderewski reached down with his left hand and began filling in a bass part. Soon his right arm reached around to the other side of the child and he added a running obligato. Together, the old master and the young novice transformed a frightening situation into a wonderfully creative experience. The audience was mesmerized.
In the same manner, God makes a masterpiece out of our feeble attempts to serve Him. He does not measure us according to the results of what we do for him for, indeed, what can we do that He Himself cannot do? He is after our obedience. Success in life as far as God is concerned is found in our obedience, in our faithfulness whatever the personal costs may be. The results are His business. When we obey, He comes in our midst and shows His glory.
If a terrorist is willing to die for a lie, are we willing to live for the truth? God will never stop loving anybody however wretched he may be. It's about time that His people wake up. Surely, even in the midst of deep darkness, the Lord makes all things beautiful in His time. He is faithful.
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