Rant of the Exiles

Last Sunday, I talked about the pursuit of happiness as an one modern example of idolatry. After hearing my message, someone wrote me that he's looking for replacement words for happiness. That comment got me thinking. Do we need different words for happiness? Well, I think happiness is a perfectly good word albeit somewhat overused. But it might overlook the question of what idolatry is about. The question is not whether happiness as an idea is wrong. It is good to want to feel good, contented, joyful, etc. And I'm not trying to play with words here. When I mean happiness, I believe it overlaps with joy, peace, contentment, etc. and all those biblical words. So it is good to seek and desire happiness. The question is where does it fit in our pyramid? The pyramid is desires, ambitions, and values. As you progress from bottom to top, the least important things serve the more important ones until you get to the top, where we find who or what ultimately rules our live...

I reconnected with a friend from college this past Monday. He, his wife, and four children are now missionaries in Beirut, Lebanon. Their ministry is to lead Muslim Arabs into becoming followers of Jesus. They are sponsored by a missions organization but they are not part of any local church. They live in a predominantly Muslim area. And until this summer, their children didn't even know what a church building looked like. I asked him what he sees as the biggest challenge American Christians face. He replied that its amazing what believers can do without. Many of the programs churches offer aren't as necessary as one might think. Ultimately, a life of faith is not complex and doesn't require activities dedicated to extensive training, Bible study, men's groups, fellowship time, accountability, choir practice, outreach, prayer meetings, discipleship, etc. In his context, the gospel is seamlessly integrated into everything he does. Their family does "church" ...

I got back from our annual youth retreat yesterday. It was meaningful and fun though exhausting. I preached a message from John 7:53-8:11 (Jesus and the adulteress) that was received surprisingly well. I wrestled with how to communicate this text in our particular Asian American context. It seems like most affluent, high-functioning, church-going Asian kids don't struggle with overt sin issues like premarital sex, drugs, and alcohol, etc. I wondered how I would talk about someone being caught in the act of adultery. I could not think of a truly humiliating moment where I was caught doing something wrong. Most of my embarrassing moments are not shameful. And the truly shameful moments I could only share with my closet friends. Even so, those moments did not include any type of public shaming. That would be unbearable. I live in fear of public shame. Many things I do are meant to avoid humiliation. I condemn myself and imagine the condemnation of others so that I can be motivated ...

Over the past week, I've heard several people make extensive use of dating metaphor to describe their relationship with God. Jesus is like a boyfriend. I recognize when people talking about dating Jesus - they mean there is intimacy, affection, and attention. These are natural parts of what it means to relate to someone. But part of it makes me uncomfortable. I understand the biblical basis of the metaphor - Ephesians 5 and Revelation paint a picture of Jesus as the groom and the body of Christ, the church, his bride. I have often preached on that image and its certainly a central image of the gospel. But its a little bit of a jump to go from there and say Jesus is my boyfriend (or girlfriend). Dating is a temporary status, is nowhere near as encompassing as marriage, and has no biblical foundation of commitment. Additionally, our betrothal and marriage to Jesus is community to one not 1:1. It is the entire community - the people of God - who are Jesus' bride. Despite that, I...

My dad is an elder at the same church I am part of. We have weekly elder/staff meetings and at the end of a recent one, my dad prayed like this: "I thank you for my brother Fred . . . " I was immediately offended by how he addressed me. I'm not his brother, I'm his son - his dear, beloved, flesh and blood first-born son with the double inheritance. I sat there stunned thinking about he addressed me and upon reflection, marveled at how little I understand the Christian faith. In the gospel, water is thicker than blood. Our family relationships are determined by faith not flesh. My true, intended, and ultimate father is God the Father. I have known that for a long time but when my dad prayed that way, it kinda shook me up. "Brother" is a Christian term I reserve for church acquaintances - there is some distance conveyed in the term. When I hear "brother" used to describe relationship with my dad, it makes it feel less intimate. But what it really ex...

Its hard to write this post. Especially after reading this article . I am so used to pressing the space bar twice after a sentence. Oh I just had to back up again and remove the extra space. Ever since high school, which is I think where I learned this, I have always put two spaces after the period. I clearly remember in college critiquing a friend's paper and being appalled that he only put one space after each period. I barely remember anything else about the paper - only that he had committed that cardinal sin. How could content be more important than style? The essay went on to win the Cal Undergraduate Award and was published. The point here is not only do I not get it at times but there are moments when I can be downright destructive with how much I don't get it. LORD, have mercy.

What do Amy Chua and the gospel have in common? Neither one panders to the idol of self-esteem. Neither the gospel nor Chua defines our worth intrinsically. The self-esteem movement says we can look in the mirror and declare by fiat that we are worthy. It sounds good but it is really a Christian heresy. According to Chua, worth comes from individual accomplishment and excellence. In the gospel, worth is defined by the Christ's death and resurrection. It is an external, historical event that has past, present, and future implications. We define our worth according to this act and we are continually defining ourselves in relationship to Him. This means our worth is not intrinsic. Its not something inherent in our nature, its not something we're necessarily born with or entitled to. Our worth is a gift to us, external to ourselves, and having nothing to do with any accomplishment. Some people say faith is a type of accomplishment or work. I disagree. Faith indicates th...