In the election of 1896 Democratic candidate, William Jennings Bryan traveled tirelessly on the campaign trail. He work feverishly, day and night, fighting for the farmer and the blue collar worker. He delivered a famous speech, saying "I will not crucify mankind on a cross of gold." It won acclaim across the country and was hailed as a defining moment for the Democrats and Populists who wanted to create inflation by coining silver and doing away with the gold standard. Frank Lloyd Baum even included a depiction of Bryan as the lion in his pro-populist, allegorical tale, The Wizard of Oz. An economic downturn before the election combined with corporate manipulation led to Bryan's ultimate defeat. Big business won another victory and laissez-faire politicians maintained the gold standard for a little while longer.
The nation was growing rapidly in the late 1800s. This nation, built upon the gold standard, began experiencing a lack of available currency. The population was growing, but the money in circulation was not. That is why many advocated for the coinage of silver. But captains of industry held fast to the gold standard. They argued that a currency backed by gold would prevent inflation. They maintained that gold would prevent detrimental fluctuations in prices, which may benefit the farmer in the short run, but would ultimately harm the economy through easy credit and overspeculation in the long run. This happened in the 1920s.
No one will contest that gold is a valuable resource. Most think of it merely as an aesthetic element, used to gild the halls of old buildings or as precious jewelry. But from an economic perspective gold equals stability. A gold standard ensures economic consistency and steadfastness (at least in theory).
It helps being a history teacher. You may laugh, but having just finished grading AP essays on this very topic, I couldn't help but conjure up images of late 19th century political cartoons while reading Scripture this morning.
Consider the following:
In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials, that the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ, whom having not seen, you love. Though now you do not see Him, yet believing you rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory, receiving the end of your faith, the salvation of your souls. 1 Peter 1:6-9
Our faith is much more precious than gold. Think about that. Throughout the history of the world wars have been fought, lands have been discovered and conquered, people have been taken advantage of, sold, raped, killed, and political rivalries have arisen over the attainment of this one resource. And our faith is more precious than that! We should be seeking the refinement of our faith more intensely than England sought colonies. We should be petitioning for genuineness harder than Bryan campaigned for the presidency. To use Bryan's own analogy, we should be laying our plans, our quest for autonomy and self-sufficiency at the feet of the cross of gold.
At our church conference this weekend, Paul Tripp talked a lot about struggles and about the refinement that comes from them. I was reminded of many of the truths I learned throughout the past seven years. Essentially, "struggle is part of the plan." I thought back to my freshman honor's course when Tripp said that "it is not a denial of faith to say 'I'm struggling.' It is a denial of Scripture to say 'I'm not.'" Without this understanding, I don't know how I'd be able to function.
As Tripp reminded us, pain and suffering in themselves are purposeless. It is God that infuses struggle with purpose. Too often, I think, we pray to ask God to remove our trials. But 1 Peter 1.6 tells us to rejoice in them. James 1 says that trials produce steadfastness - like the economic theory behind the gold standard. I've tried to stop praying for God to end struggle. Sometimes I do, when I feel I can't take it anymore - but sometimes it's good to say to God "keep me here until I learn."
And that's what God will do. Two summers ago I prayed for God to end struggle. And he taught me patience. When one medical test came back positive, another came back negative. More tests. More waiting. They were the most agonizing months of my life. My plans for a teaching career in Virginia were suspended in mid-air and finally God brought me to a place where I could put my plans, my autonomy, my ambitions at the foot of the cross.
And just look what He did. He cultivated in me a deeper richer, faith. In the struggles of today I can look back at the struggles of yesterday and know that He is here now, just as He was then. And that is more precious than all the gold in our nations treasury.
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
Thursday, January 22, 2009
Abiding and Moving Out
This time of year many offices downtown are getting an overhaul. Old employees are being replaced with new ones (much to the chagrin of some of my friends who worked for the old administration). Carpets are getting ripped up and replaced, furniture is getting moved and Obama is changing the curtains in the White House. Now on the one hand I’m incensed at what seems to be a frivolous and costly aesthetic overall at tax payer expense. It all started with Andrew Jackson. He was eager to erase the Federalist-elitist stench away from the John Quincy Adams White House. But that’s a history lesson for another day…
As Obama was being sworn in Tuesday the cameras panned over the White House and showed moving vans parked outside. Movers were efficiently removing Bush’s furniture and bringing Obama’s in. I was impressed by the ease of this transition. I’m sure that when the Obamas came home all of their furniture neatly placed around the Presidents’ living quarters and young interns were at their beck and call to move anything that was out of place. (Although apparently the staff was out to lunch when Dick Cheney decided to move some boxes on his own, only to end up wheelchair-bound) What kind of message would it send to the American people if Obama left everything the same in the White House? What if he did move into the Oval Office without changing the curtains? Maybe it would send the message that he’s the first fiscally responsible president in a long time; from a practical standpoint I’d be impressed. But even today our nation’s morale hinges a lot less on practicality and a lot more on pomp and circumstance, metaphor and symbolism. If we’re looking to the President to usher in change he can’t keep the White House looking the same. When Bush moves his stuff out, Obama has to move his stuff in.
I submit to you the following verses and you’ll see where I’m going with this:
First, heed the words of Romans 6: 10-14 – “For the death that He died He died to sin, once for all; but the life that He lives, He lives to God. Likewise you also, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord. Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body, that you should obey it in its lusts. And do not present your members as instruments of unrighteousness to sin, but present yourselves to God as being alive from the dead and your members as instruments of righteousness to God. For sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under the law but under grace.”
-- Grace is the new administration. It’s time for a change. Just some more Scriptural backup:
Romans 8:10 “And if Christ is in you, the body is dead because of sin, but the Spirit is life because of righteousness.”
Romans 13:12-14 – “Therefore let us cast off the works of darkness and let us put on the armor of light…But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfill its lusts.”
2 Cor. 5:21 – “For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.”
So here’s what I’m getting from this. Under sin our old nature was governed by lusts, temporal pleasures and all those things that the Bible is telling us to cast off. Why? Because we have a new nature! But even as someone who has been a follower of Christ for a long time, it’s still easy to live according to that old, carnal nature. And when that happens I'm living according to a nature that is actually not in me anymore! God has imputed a new spirit onto me. God has changed the administration. Why then do I often live according to those things that govern the carnal mind?
Perhaps if we’re not daily replacing the old stuff with new stuff we’re not going to have an effective transition. Maybe we have a new president, but if he didn’t replace the Bush cabinet with an Obama cabinet how far would that promised “change” go? Or if Obama just emptied out Bush’s cabinet and didn’t replace them at all then we’d just have Obama – and the new puppy - in the executive department. Great. But here’s the thing - if we’re going to make a complete transition of our hearts then we need to fill our minds and our hours with new things - things that are godly. We need to fill our minds with the words of Scripture and our time with service and spiritual disciplines.
Essentially, Christ needs to abide in us, all day, every day. “If you abide in me and my words abide in you, you will ask what you desire (read: godliness) and it shall be done for you. By me the My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit, so you will be my disciples.” –John 15: 7-8
As Obama was being sworn in Tuesday the cameras panned over the White House and showed moving vans parked outside. Movers were efficiently removing Bush’s furniture and bringing Obama’s in. I was impressed by the ease of this transition. I’m sure that when the Obamas came home all of their furniture neatly placed around the Presidents’ living quarters and young interns were at their beck and call to move anything that was out of place. (Although apparently the staff was out to lunch when Dick Cheney decided to move some boxes on his own, only to end up wheelchair-bound) What kind of message would it send to the American people if Obama left everything the same in the White House? What if he did move into the Oval Office without changing the curtains? Maybe it would send the message that he’s the first fiscally responsible president in a long time; from a practical standpoint I’d be impressed. But even today our nation’s morale hinges a lot less on practicality and a lot more on pomp and circumstance, metaphor and symbolism. If we’re looking to the President to usher in change he can’t keep the White House looking the same. When Bush moves his stuff out, Obama has to move his stuff in.
I submit to you the following verses and you’ll see where I’m going with this:
First, heed the words of Romans 6: 10-14 – “For the death that He died He died to sin, once for all; but the life that He lives, He lives to God. Likewise you also, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord. Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body, that you should obey it in its lusts. And do not present your members as instruments of unrighteousness to sin, but present yourselves to God as being alive from the dead and your members as instruments of righteousness to God. For sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under the law but under grace.”
-- Grace is the new administration. It’s time for a change. Just some more Scriptural backup:
Romans 8:10 “And if Christ is in you, the body is dead because of sin, but the Spirit is life because of righteousness.”
Romans 13:12-14 – “Therefore let us cast off the works of darkness and let us put on the armor of light…But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfill its lusts.”
2 Cor. 5:21 – “For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.”
So here’s what I’m getting from this. Under sin our old nature was governed by lusts, temporal pleasures and all those things that the Bible is telling us to cast off. Why? Because we have a new nature! But even as someone who has been a follower of Christ for a long time, it’s still easy to live according to that old, carnal nature. And when that happens I'm living according to a nature that is actually not in me anymore! God has imputed a new spirit onto me. God has changed the administration. Why then do I often live according to those things that govern the carnal mind?
Perhaps if we’re not daily replacing the old stuff with new stuff we’re not going to have an effective transition. Maybe we have a new president, but if he didn’t replace the Bush cabinet with an Obama cabinet how far would that promised “change” go? Or if Obama just emptied out Bush’s cabinet and didn’t replace them at all then we’d just have Obama – and the new puppy - in the executive department. Great. But here’s the thing - if we’re going to make a complete transition of our hearts then we need to fill our minds and our hours with new things - things that are godly. We need to fill our minds with the words of Scripture and our time with service and spiritual disciplines.
Essentially, Christ needs to abide in us, all day, every day. “If you abide in me and my words abide in you, you will ask what you desire (read: godliness) and it shall be done for you. By me the My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit, so you will be my disciples.” –John 15: 7-8
Saturday, January 17, 2009
Broken
Judges 1: The book of Judges chronicles the brokenness of God's world. God's perfect world, created only a few centuries earlier, has come to such despicable degradation and filth. Here are some examples, just in one chapter of how the world was broken:
• Doubting God after Joshua's death
• Cutting off Adoni-Bezek's thumbs and toes and having him eat under the table
• Caleb giving his daughter as a prize for war
• The daughter pressuring and manipulating her new husband into getting land
• The tribes of Israel failed to drive out and kills the people that they conquered according to God's command
• Dwelling among the pagan tribes
In the midst of all of this sin we see the words "and the Lord was with Judah." Judah and Simeon actually followed God's commands. But verse 22 says "and the Lord was with them", referring to the tribe of Benjamin. So, even though the Benjamites sinned by not driving out the Canaanites, God was still with them. Throughout the rest of the book, and the rest of human history that God is still with these sinful people. It's true though, they messed up their lives. I wonder how the current political situation would look today had they followed God's command to exterminate the Canaanites. I wonder if the Diaspora and the pogroms and the Holocaust and Muslim terrorism would have happened. From Judges on Israel will face centuries of conflict because they refused to drive out these pagans. But even this, we know, is part of God's good plan. As Dr. Mills always said, it is part of the story. A story that will ultimately give the most glory to God. And to paraphrase John Piper - sin is part of God's plan. He does not condone it, but it can have a part in His work in the world. Working in an through the sin of mankind God shows just how good He really is.
• Doubting God after Joshua's death
• Cutting off Adoni-Bezek's thumbs and toes and having him eat under the table
• Caleb giving his daughter as a prize for war
• The daughter pressuring and manipulating her new husband into getting land
• The tribes of Israel failed to drive out and kills the people that they conquered according to God's command
• Dwelling among the pagan tribes
In the midst of all of this sin we see the words "and the Lord was with Judah." Judah and Simeon actually followed God's commands. But verse 22 says "and the Lord was with them", referring to the tribe of Benjamin. So, even though the Benjamites sinned by not driving out the Canaanites, God was still with them. Throughout the rest of the book, and the rest of human history that God is still with these sinful people. It's true though, they messed up their lives. I wonder how the current political situation would look today had they followed God's command to exterminate the Canaanites. I wonder if the Diaspora and the pogroms and the Holocaust and Muslim terrorism would have happened. From Judges on Israel will face centuries of conflict because they refused to drive out these pagans. But even this, we know, is part of God's good plan. As Dr. Mills always said, it is part of the story. A story that will ultimately give the most glory to God. And to paraphrase John Piper - sin is part of God's plan. He does not condone it, but it can have a part in His work in the world. Working in an through the sin of mankind God shows just how good He really is.
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