realmealministries.org

I had a great time with the Catalyst team from the Wesley Foundation at the University of Arkansas. Catalyst is the missional leadership program that director Gregg Taylor has implemented to be a voice of hope and renewal. Gregg’s vision is to train student leaders to influence the campus culture. Check out the Catalyst program. This is missional thinking at its best. Gregg is training students to be missional leaders. The key is a shift from a “Come” culture to a “Go/Sent” ethos. Why couldn’t a similar vision be implemented in local communities of faith?

You can also check out the U of A Wesley blog here.

If you are interested in campus ministry, there is an exciting opportunity from Dec 3-6 at The Woodlands, TX. It is a conference for campus ministers and leaders called Refresh 07. Early bird registration continues through Oct 31 at the low rate of $125.00

I have the privilege of engaging a group of student leaders Thursday evening (8/30) who participate in the Wesley Foundation at the University of Arkansas (Fayetteville) in conversation about the broad narrative of the Bible. Here are some notes from the presentation that I will make.

1) The grand narrative (or metanarrative) of the Scriptures:

Creation
Fall
Israel (the Call of God’s people)
Jesus the Messiah
Church (the Sending of God’s people)
New Creation

2) Importance of Creation

Mission begins in God’s creative activity
Creation is very good (Gen 1:31)
God’s creation is the locus of mission
Universal Scope of the Story
Our understanding of salvation is rooted in God’s creational intentions for humanity
Imago dei (image of God) as mission, holiness, and community

3) Role of the Fall (Key text: Genesis 3-11)

All persons are hopelessly lost because sin has permeated the world including every human and institution (Paul echoes this in Romans 3:23 “all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God”)
All ministry this side of New Creation occurs in a post-Genesis 3 reality
Shift in God’s mission: salvation of a fallen world and lost humanity
God’s love for humanity and creation is evident in His desire bring redemption

4) Israel (Key texts: Genesis 12:1-3 and Exod 19:3-6)
In Genesis 12, history turns a corner. God’s mission amps up with the calling of one family to serve as a new community.

God calls Abram/Abraham.
Out of the nations, God called one family to become a missional community that would reflect God’s character to the rest of the world. In Genesis 12, God calls Abram into his service. With the promises to Abram and later Abraham, God’s work of redemption begins to move forward powerfully and purposively. The call and setting apart of Abraham is not due to Abraham’s innate worthiness or for a special privileged position over other humans. Rather it is missional. Abraham is called to be a blessing to the nations. “All peoples on earth will be blessed through you” (Gen 12:3). Genesis 12-50 traces how these profound promises are passed intergenerationally.

Israel as God’s people becomes a nation.
Abraham’s extended family becomes a full-fledged nation in the book of Exodus. God redeems Israel from Egypt in order to reignite God’s mission for God’s people. The deliverance from slavery is not merely a liberation from evil; it is a liberation for God’s mission. Exodus 19:3-6 makes it clear that God is remaining true to his promises to Abraham and extending his vision for Abraham corporately to Israel. As redeemed from slavery, Israel as a whole was to serve as a missional community that would reflect God’s character to the nations.

Israel’s Legal Materials Establish an Ethos of Holiness for God’s People.
It may come as a surprise to many that the Law also serves a missional role. Israel’s legal materials, forever wed to Moses and his encounters with God on Mount Sinai/Horeb, establish an ethos for God’s people. Rather than lifting up legalism as the legacy of Israel, the Torah of Moses was to create a missional environment for God’s people to embody. The laws in all of their variety and strangeness (from our modern perspective) served to insert the character of God into all aspects of Israel’s corporate life. Israel’s lifestyle was to be a living testimony to the character of her God before the rest of the nations of earth. This is not to say that Israel was completely unique from other nations in every aspect of her life. Rather as a whole Israel was to witness uniquely to the unbelievable life that was possible only under the care of the Creator God. The Torah was never the means of Israel’s salvation. It was Israel’s response to the grace of God in delivering her from Egypt and all future enemies.

Israel’s story of its time in the land (Joshua - 2 Chronicles) provides a testimony to the prospects and perils of serving as a missional community in the world.
These are the so-called Historical Books in the Protestant canon. Their story line is a familiar one: recurring cycles of obedience and disobedience. This cycle ultimately climaxes in the Babylonian Exile and then God’s restoration of his people in the Promised Land.

How do these episodes inform a missional reading of the Old Testament? First, they model the possibilities of successfully doing God’s work and the great feats that can be accomplished. The generation of Joshua, the rise of the Davidic empire, the first half of Solomon’s reign, the reforms of Hezekiah and Josiah, and the work of Nehemiah and Ezra are highpoints in these books. Second, they serve as a warning to God’s people (see 1 Corinthians 10) about the perils of disobedience to God’s mission in the world. In a sense, disobedience temporarily thwarts the work that God desires to accomplish through his people. Judges, Eli and sons, most of the kings of Judah and Israel are witnesses to the disastrous results of disobedience. Last, missional outreach as familiar readers of the New Testament is adumbrated in stories such as the salvation of Rahab (Jos 2-6) and her family, Ruth’s inclusion in the royal lineage of David, and the healing of Naaman (2 Kings 5).

The Prophets serve as a wakeup call for Israel to reclaim her vocation as a missional community that reflects God’s character.
First, the prophets indict Israel for her turning aside from her mission. This is a point that we miss. We too often associate a prophetic voice with a message to the wider secular culture. God’s prophets were mostly sent to indict God’s people. In the church, the prophets serve as a testimony to the crucial need to embody a God-centered, Scripturally informed ethos in our communities. Second, the prophets have a keen interest in the surrounding world. Of course, much of this interest is framed in judgment oracles at the enemies of Israel but the implication is clear—the God of Israel is the God of all the earth. The God of Israel is the only true God worthy of worship. Third, the prophets have an interest in the salvation of the nations. This is most explicit in Isaiah and Jonah. The book of Jonah serves as a warning to God’s people lest they forget that God loves the nations and desires their salvation. The second half of Isaiah contains several profound utterances about a coming servant of God will extend justice to the nations (Isa 42:1-7). Last, the prophets point ahead to a new work of God.

The Psalms function as the prayer book for the people of God.
There testimony to mission is more implicit and subtle. Yet, these prayers of ancient Israel inform and enrich a mission minded community in several ways. First, the Psalms repeatedly witness to the sovereignty of God. It is the LORD who reigns over all of the earth. This fact is inherently missional. The God of Israel is the God of all people. Second, the largest block of psalms are the psalms of lament. These are prayers that cry out to God for help in the face of life difficulties: enemies, false accusation, disease, etc. Persons committed to living a missional lifestyle will certainly be in need of such prayers throughout their lives. Last, the Psalms contain a profound eschatological hope for the future. The Psalter ends with a climactic crescendo of five psalms (146-150) that call for the praise and adoration of the Lord. In fact, the final verse of the Psalter exhorts: Let everything that has breath praise the LORD! God’s mission calls on us to spread this good word to everyone.

Israel’s Wisdom traditions are missional because they intersect the surrounding cultures explicitly.
In fact, Job, Proverbs, and Ecclesiastes have much in common with the wisdom of Israel’s neighbors. Wisdom is interested in navigating successfully through life. Israel’s wisdom is profoundly practical and relevant to culture because it is rooted in Creation. Since God created all that is, the wise can observe life astutely and deduce principles for living in God’s world. This focus on the human side of life makes it easy to connect Israel’s wisdom to culture. Yet, Israel’s unique contribution to the wit and maxim of the world is profoundly missional: “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom.”The implication: careful attention to the human condition may prepare persons for the truth about God (Ecc 12:12-14).

5) Jesus the Messiah

Embodies and fulfills all that Israel was to be and accomplish
Jesus’ life serves as a model for what it means to be a human being
Cross and Resurrection are the climactic events in history
Jesus’ death on the cross models obedience to God the Father, demonstrates the love of God for humanity and creation, and was for our sins
The resurrection of Jesus proclaims God’s ultimate victory for Creation. Death, injustice, sin, and evil are not the final word.
Gift of the Holy Spirit

6) Church (Sending God’s people to serve as witnesses to God’s Gift of Jesus the Messiah)

Church exists as the New Israel (1 Pet 2:9)
Holy Spirit Poured Out on All followers of Jesus for cleansing and empowerment
Gentiles have been grafted into Family
Mission now involves explicit engagement with World: “Go” rather the “Come” or simply “Be”
Guder: “NT communities were founded in order to continue the apostolic witness that brought them into being.”

7) New Creation

New Heaven and New Earth
Full Salvation (return to Eden)
Story ends where it began: a very good creation with humanity serving as God’s holy missional community

© 2007 Brian D. Russell

Register now for three days of reflection and empowerment for 21st century ministry.

Main speakers:
Shane Claiborne
Kirbyjon Caldwell
Tony Campolo
Nancy Ortberg
Brendan Manning
Judith McNutt

I will be offering a breakout session: “How Long O Lord: Preaching and Teaching from the Lament Psalms”

I have received many enote detailing trouble with the comment features on the blog as well as problems with some links. I suspect that I need to upgrade.

Any advice would be appreciated? Any WordPress experts around?

Before Paradise Lost: The Profound Place of Humanity in Creation
The creation of men and women represented the high water mark of God’s artistry. If we wish to live a life that demands explanation, we must grasp the tremendous potential and possibility present in God’s original dreams for people. This means that our journey through the Scriptures must begin at the beginning with story of God’s forging of humanity after His own likeness and image:

NIV Genesis 1:26 Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.” 27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. 28 God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air and over every living creature that moves on the ground.” 29 Then God said, “I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food. 30 And to all the beasts of the earth and all the birds of the air and all the creatures that move on the ground– everything that has the breath of life in it– I give every green plant for food.” And it was so. 31 God saw all that he had made, and it was very good. And there was evening, and there was morning– the sixth day.

During the 1988 World Series between the Oakland Athletics and the Los Angeles Dodgers, Dodger Kirk Gibson made it to the plate only a single time. But he made the most of his at-bat. Gibson was known throughout his career as a clutch hitter-a player who could be counted on when the game was on the line. Gibson was hobbled by severe injuries to both of his legs. He had not been expected to see any playing time during the series. It was Game One and the heavily favored Athletics were up 4-3. It was the bottom of the ninth inning with two outs. Future Hall of Famer, Dennis Eckersley was on the mound. Mike Davis made it to first base for the Dodgers on a walk. It was now make or break time for the Dodgers. Manager Tommy Lasorda could not afford to lose the opener. Going down 1-0 to the high powered Athletics was not an option. He called upon Gibson. Gibson limped to the plate. Eckersley quickly gained the upperhand with two quick strikes. Gibson gamely dug in and worked the count to three balls and two strikes. The next pitch would make history. On the sixth pitch, Eckersley fired a backdoor slider. Without the use of his legs, Gibson muscled the pitch over the right field fence for the game winning blast. Gibson then raised his arms in triumph and limped around the bases. This walk off homerun is remembered to this day as one of the greatest moments in sports history. It propelled the Dodgers to an unexpected series victory and made Gibson a hero.

Humanity is God’s walk off homerun. As soon as God crafted men and women, God declared all creation to be “very good” (1:31). Game over. The work of creation was complete. All that remained for the Divine Artist was the celebration of Sabbath rest (2:1-4).

What if Jesus Christ came to make us fully human again?

© 2007 Brian D. Russell

Here is a message based on the lectionary text for Good Friday (March 21, 2008) — John 18:1 - 19:42

What separates great teams from average or even good teams? The great teams know how to win. In the NFL, the New England Patriots have epitomized the ability to win consistently in the biggest games. In our present decade, they have already won three world championships. One of the hallmarks of the Patriots has been their ability to win close games in the fourth quarter. Amazingly, starting quarter back Tom Brady who just completed his eighth season, has led the team to 24 victories after trailing or being tied in the fourth quarter. Brady is not necessarily more skilled than other quarterbacks, but he and the rest of his team mates have a key trait that fuels their success: they expect to win. They have full confidence in themselves and in their team mates that, when adversity and hardship arrives, they will face it with the best that they have to offer. Basketball great and six time NBA champion Michael Jordan has remarked, “œI felt that I had that winner mentality instilled in me”¦”

Would we live our lives differently today if we knew we were on the winning team? How much more confidently and courageously would we live and act if we could be certain?

Cross as Foreground

On this Good Friday, we are reading an extended portion of John’s Gospel. John 19-20 narrates the suffering and death of Jesus Christ on the Cross. Jesus’ death on the cross serves as the climactic moment in God’s great mission to bring restoration, healing, and hope to the World that He created. God’s Creation was fractured and continues to be fractured by the moment by moment decisions of women and men to depend upon their own strengths and to follow their own plans, schemes, and desires apart from the profound lives that God created them to live and experience as God’s special people. Earlier in John’s Gospel, Jesus offered this reason for his coming to earth: I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly (10:10b).

Jesus came to show us the life that God originally intended for us to live. This life was modeled in his teaching and compassionate service. Jesus’ death on the Cross was a profound witness to the love that God has for all people (3:16). Through the Cross, Jesus created a path for all people to encounter God and to be shaped into the people that God created us to be (14:6).

Jim and Donna kept a collection of crosses from different cultures in their home. Donna taught theology at a seminary and Jim was a pastor of a local church. When their youngest daughter, Josephine, was four years old, she approached them and declared, “I know why Jesus died on the cross!” Josephine had been very interested in the various crosses around the home and had been asking questions about the cross. Jim and Donna were profoundly interested in her thinking. They responded to her claim, “Please tell us the reason.” Josephine looked at them and stated matter of factly, “Jesus died so that we can live.” This young girl captured the essence of Jesus’ life and death. Jesus’ death won the victory through which God unleashes those who put their trust in Jesus’ victory on the cross to become the people whom God created them to be and to make maximum impact for God’s good in the world.

As we reflect on Jesus’ final hours, what sort of life does Jesus’ suffering and death call us to live?

Facing the Storm

Admiral Jim Stockdale was the highest ranked member of the United States armed forced held as a prisoner of war at the infamous “Hanoi Hilton” during the Vietnam War. Stockdale was held for eight grueling years and tortured more than twenty times. Yet he prevailed in prison and served as a leader of the other American servicemen. He worked tirelessly and selflessly on behalf of the other prisoners to make their lives better. He even created a coded system of communication by using “œtaps” on the walls between cells to keep those suffering in isolation engaged with the rest of the world. How did Stockdale manage to prevail in the midst of such a hellish existence? It was not mere optimism. Stockdale is quick to point out that the optimists tended to be persons who did not survive the imprisonment. Instead, those who prevailed were able to hold two key elements in tension with one another. First, they never gave up on the belief that they would prevail in the end; that there would be another chapter or two in their lives after they were released. But second (and here is where the contrast with the optimist occurs), those who prevailed were brutally honest about the present hardships and challenges that they faced. This combination of faith for the future coupled with a forthright assessment of one’s present difficulties was the means for prevailing over the many adversities faced as a POW.

Our text opens with the story of Jesus’ arrest in the garden (18:1-11). Jesus already fully knows that this night will be his last on earth. He has prepared himself through extended prayer (John 17) and he is prepared to fulfill his mission even though this will entail death on a cross. His disciples however are not yet ready. When Jesus is arrested, Simon Peter leaps to his defense and lops off the ear of the high priest’s servant with a sword. Jesus replies (18:11), “œPut your sword back into its sheath. Am I not to drink the cup that the Father has given me?”

Jesus understood the costs of the mission. He was resolved to see it through. He trusted the future to the hands of God and turned to face the storm.

Do we trust that God has our best interests at heart? Are we willing to risk the present for the sake of the future that God plans to usher in?

Confronting the Crisis

The middle portion of our text is a study in contrasts. Jesus resolutely faces trials before Annas (18:12-14), the high priest (18:19-24), and the Roman governor Pontius Pilate (18:28-19:16). The final trial before Pilate leads to the flogging of Jesus and his actual crucifixion.

Interspersed with the narrative of Jesus’ trials and sufferings are two stories in which Peter (representing the disciples) vigorously denies his association with Jesus three times (18:15-18 and 25-27). When confronted with the crisis of the cross, Jesus resolutely walks toward it in the fulfillment of God’s purposes. In contrast, Peter retreats even to the point of denying the one whom he had given up everything to follow. Ironically, in denying Jesus, Peter lost himself; by dying on the cross, Jesus won the great victory.

On the high plains of North America, there is a lesson to be learned by observing the behavior of cattle and buffalo when they are confronted with the prospect of a severe storm. The herd of cattle will as a group attempt to run away from the oncoming storm. Ranchers lose scores of head of cattle each year due to these futile attempts at flight. The storms overtake the herd despite the herd’s best effort at outrunning them and greater suffering occurs. In contrast, a herd of buffalo seems to recognize instinctively that a crisis must be confronted head on if it is to be survived. When storms pop up on the plains, the buffalo herd turn resolutely to face it, put their heads down, and walk through it. Many fewer buffalo die in storms than cattle.

Are we more like cattle or buffalo? What storms do we need to face to be faithful to the lives that God has created for us to live?

Completing the Mission

John 19:17-37 describes the actual crucifixion and death of Jesus. In 19:30, Jesus suffering reaches a climactic point. He cries out, “It is finished.” With this utterance, he breathed his last breath and died. At this moment, the mission of God to bring salvation to humanity reached its zenith.

Jesus’ work of salvation was finished. But God was not done. Jesus died, but this was not the end of the story. The end of the narrative that God is writing is LIFE not death. Good Friday is good only in light of the reality of Jesus’ resurrection on the following Sunday morning. God’s raising of Jesus from the dead secured the future.

When we put our trust in Jesus and follow him, we join the winning team. This does not mean that the present is never bleak. But it does mean that when the fourth quarter comes no matter what the score our team will prevail. This is the good news of the Gospel: In the end, love wins because God wins. This is a truth that can change your life.

Are you ready?