The Ten Commandments.  Those three words have been the source of humor, anger, consternation and questions.  Of course, if there is a God, He must have the right to tell us what to do.  But is that what this part of the Bible is really about?  Or could it be that we have misunderstood God’s intent?

The first thing to understand is that a command in most languages, including both English and Hebrew (the original language of the Old Testament), is given in what is called the imperative voice.  In English we usually omit the second person pronoun (you) and put an exclamation point at the end: Don’t do that!  But in the original the ten “sayings” are not in the imperative voice.  Rather, they are in the indicative, the voice of simple statement.  And, they are in the future tense.  What does this mean?  Just that what God is doing here is much more than just giving commands to the human race.  Rather, he is describing what the good life looks like to those who choose to enter into relationship with Him.  You see, God knows that telling people what to do is just a way to make them want to do the opposite.  The Apostle Paul understood this when he said that the law just raised the desire to do what it forbade.  But I believe that what God was really doing in Exodus chapter 20 was telling His people how to live if they wanted all of the blessings that life in relationship with Him brought.

You see, God knows that our natural desires are not always for our benefit.  So He gave to Moses ten areas where people have a particular tendency to mess up, beginning with their relationship with God and continuing with their relationships with each other.  Now, I won’t go over each commandment in this blog, but when you look at it that way, you can see just how important these sayings are.  Let me give just one example.  God begins by telling us that those who enter in relationship with Him do not worship any other Gods.  Why?  Well, for two very basic reasons.  First, because you are in relationship with Him – why would you worship any other God?  Wouldn’t that have a tendency to break relationship with Him?  But much more important than that is the simple fact that there are no other gods!  To spend time trying to relate to a non-existent god is the very definition of a waste of time!  And if you can’t see that, then you don’t know God!  And so you don’t have a relationship with Him.  So, the saying doesn’t apply to you yet – you need to meet the one true God who sent His own Son to live and die for you before you are ready for this or any of the other sayings.

I challenge you, then, with that in mind, to revisit the “ten commandments,” and see if they don’t begin to make a whole lot more sense!

 

Pastor Ken

Why doesn’t God answer all of our prayers?
When it comes to prayer, people have been all over the map when trying to explain why some prayers are answered and some are not. There is probably not a person who has prayed more than once who cannot say that they didn’t get everything they asked for when they prayed. Why is that?
Well, the first answer is that not everyone who prays has put their trust in the God of the Bible as revealed in Jesus Christ. And, a complete reading of the Bible makes it clear that God listens to those who have placed their trust in Him. The same cannot be said of those who have not done so. Now, that doesn’t mean that God doesn’t answer prayer for “pre-Christians.” But what promises there are are only made to Christians in the New Testament.
Another reason that the New Testament itself gives is that sometimes our motives are less than proper. At one point we are told that we “ask amiss,” that we might have things only for our own selves. As any parent knows, indulging every whim of someone is a way to destroy their lives, not build them up – and God loves each of us too much to spoil us.
But we all know that there are still many prayers that are selfless and prayed by devout Christians that go unanswered. Why is that? Well, maybe one reason is that to do so would undermine God’s best will for not only us, but for all humanity. What I mean is this: If God answered every prayer clearly and promptly whenever a Christian asked, then we would have to ask ourselves if we are serving God for the rewards or for the joy of knowing him. God seems to think that having a close personal relationship with you and me is worth more than anything else – even the life of His Son. If God was willing to give the life of His own Son for us, why would we expect that he would undermine the relationship that He has enabled through that sacrifice by satisfying every whim of creatures who, even at their best, take each other and him for granted. The fact is that answers to prayer are very hard to prove. For every study that seems to suggest that answers can be quantified, there are dozens of others that show the exact opposite. And perhaps that is for the best. I want my children to love me for who I am, not what I give them. I suspect God feels the same way.
Shalom!
Pastor Ken

Global Warming?

Our church has just gone on line with our new Solar Electric Generating system, and the reactions have been interesting. I hate to admit it, but I have had a couple of Pastors who have made comments about the “conspiracy” to convince us of supposed “non-existent” global warming, and asking if that was why we were doing this. So let me address this whole question of global warming.
First, let me say that I completely understand those who have doubts about the subject. I am old enough to remember when we were being told in the 1970s that we were in the middle of a “global cooling” that threatened to bring on another Ice Age. And, the question of global warming has been used as a political tool by both parties in our country, as well as being a sort of “orthodoxy” that many feel they can disagree with only at their peril. None of this affects whether or not global warming is a reality, but it certainly makes it hard for those not in the scientific community to know. So what are we to do? Is there a “Christian” response to all of this? I believe there is.
I believe that our response to this possible crisis can be informed by two scriptural principles. The first is that, in Genesis chapters 1-3 we are told that God has made humanity “stewards” of this creation. And, as the Bible says, Stewards are to be “found faithful” above all else (1 Corinthians 4:2). In other words, when someone is entrusted with something that belongs to someone else, they have a responsibility to do their very best to make sure that it stays in good shape. And, whether you believe in global warming or not, no one can deny that we have done a pretty poor job of keeping our environment clean. This world is not ours! It is God’s. And we are responsible to Him for how we use and treat it. So, the first reason I am so firmly committed to taking good care of this creation is because I am a steward appointed by God to do so, at least the part I have any control over.
The second principle comes from the teaching of Jesus that it is not even what we do that determines our responsibility, but our state of mind. You may remember that Jesus said that even looking at someone with lust is the first step to adultery and just hating someone is the first step to murder. How does this apply to the question of global warming? Just this: if I believe that global warming might be happening, then if I don’t do what I can to stop it, I am guilty of intentionally causing it. It is what happens in my mind that determines my responsibility.
Taken together, I must do what I can to make a difference. So, have we installed our PV panels because we have fallen prey to the global warming conspiracy? I guess in a sense we have. My position as a steward of God’s creation along with my responsibility for my intentions means that I have no other choice. Besides, they look cool!
Pastor Ken

Easy or Good?

As I sit at my desk writing this blog, the jackhammers are going outside for the final phase for installing the Solar Electric system here at West Valley Christian Center, the Three Crosses Church. It represents the culmination of a long term project to “go green,” minimizing our carbon footprint. We are excited about the fact that we will be “coming on line” in a matter of days.

One thing that has impressed me greatly in the process has been the way that the foreman has handled the project. We have had a number of building projects around the church here, and I oversaw the construction of a new church at my last pastorate, and I have never seen anyone so committed to getting the details right. He has made sure that everything is done properly.

This got me thinking that one of the gifts that we give back to God is our worship in our work. Martin Luther King, Jr. once said, “If a man is called to be a streetsweeper, he should sweep streets even as Michelangelo painted, or Beethoven composed music, or Shakespeare wrote poetry. He should sweep streets so well that all the host of heaven and earth will pause to say, here lived a great streetsweeper who did his job well.” How refreshing it is to see someone who actually lives that way. It has been a powerful reminder to me to do the same. Have a great day!

Pastor Ken

Today or Tomorrow?

Christianity has been accused from time to time of being a “pie in the sky in the sweet bye and bye” religion. Or as others have put it, “so heavenly minded that it is no earthly good.” The focus on heaven and eternity is understandable from one perspective. After all, if we are really eternal creatures, then this life is but a blip on the radar screen. In fact, one could argue that the only important purpose in this life would be to secure the best position for eternity, and nothing else would matter. And yet….

And yet, this life is the only one we actually know about by experience. Yes, I know that there is a place for faith. But this is still the only life we know anything about in our personal experience. And that makes it a valid question to ask if preparing for the next life means we give up something in this life.

Of course, the answer to that question is:”Yes!” But that doesn’t really tell us anything, does it? I mean, every decision we make to do something entails not doing something else. The real question is, will we be less happy or fulfilled in this life if we focus on the life to come. And I am confident in answering that question, “No!”

This blog is not the place to go into detail on what we gain and what we lose to live for God and the life to come. That is a subject for a life of study. But I can say that, after having been a Christian for 37 years, I am confident that my life has been happier than I ever expected, and that the main reason is that I have chosen to do what God has said in the Bible. I have no hesitation in recommending the lifestyle outlined in the Bible to any and everyone. It leads to a life that not only avoids many of the major pitfalls of life, but has a positive effect for happiness. And if you aren’t sure that is true, well then call me at my office any time and I would love to talk to you about it.

But there is one more thing. In addition to real joy and happiness in this life, I also have the assurance that my life has eternal consequences. Oh yeah, and I get to be with God forever, too. Not a bad deal!

Pastor Ken

Going Green

This coming Tuesday Advanced Solar Electric will begin the installation of West Valley Christian Center’s new solar generating system. When complete, it will consist of around 150 solar panels generating just over 36 Kilowatts of electricity a day. This should be sufficient to provide about 80% of our electrical needs, thus reducing our carbon footprint by a like amount. And, since that electricity will be generated during the highest usage portion of the day, actually producing a surplus during that time, it will help to put off or even make unnecessary additional generating capacity using methods which pollute.

Why are we doing this? There are actually a couple of reasons, but the most important is that it allows our church to do something tangible to be good stewards of this planet our God has given us. We take seriously our responsibility before God and our fellow humans to begin reversing the damage we have done to our home.

In the coming months and years we intend on exploring other ways to lessen our negative impact on this world. I remember as a Boy Scout the admonition we always received when we were preparing to leave our campsites: leave it in better condition than you found it when you came. We want to do the same for this planet.

Pastor Ken

Can't we all just get along?

So this past week a new movie was released – Expelled, a documentary by Ben Stein. And the response has been interesting to watch, and instructive as well.

The heart of Mr. Stein’s documentary is the recent tendency in some circles to discriminate against people in the scientific community who entertain the idea of Intelligent Design (ID). Intelligent Design is the suggestion that there are things in this universe that point to an intelligent designer rather than blind Darwinian evolution. In the movie, Mr. Stein points to several scientists who have either lost their jobs or their funding immediately after suggesting that more research into the possibility of ID having occurred.

I do not necessarily agree with the tack that the movie takes in making its case – the juxtapositions between people who disagree with ID and pictures of Hitler or Stalin remind me more of Michael Moore than Ken Burns. But, when the movie is done, Mr. Stein has done a pretty good job of showing that there does seem to be an attempt to silence those who are even willing to entertain the possibility of ID, at least in some circles.

But perhaps the most interesting response to this movie was the review posted on MSNBC.com (read it at http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/24239755/). In spite of the fact that the movie deals with ID and not creationism, the very first paragraph sets the movie up as defending creationism! And, in a display of the very intolerance decried by liberals today, the reviewer proceeds to call both the movie and Mr. Stein, “stupid,” a word sure to inspire intelligent discussion of the topic!

I, for one, would like to suggest that we would all be better served by a discussion of the facts rather than calling each other names. And that goes for both sides – I have been even more appalled by the name calling that has come from some in the church; after all, we should know better. There is a discussion to be had here, and in many other areas of what some have called the “culture wars.” Wouldn’t it be nice if we could actually discuss it as rational adults? Or, as has been said by many others, can’t we “disagree without being disagreeable?” Just a thought.

From the desk of PK

So, I don't know how many have seen Will Smith's "I Am Legend." It is first of all a good movie and Will Smith does a great job in a very tough role - he carries the entire movie almost by himself. But did you notice just how Christian the concepts are? One person who has to give up everything, even his family, to do what only he and no one else could do to try to save humanity. In the end he has to give his life so that the salvation that can only come from his blood can save humanity. Wow! What I am wondering is - is it because this is such a universal theme that it works so well? Could it be that God has built into the fabric of our shared humanity the recognition that what ails us cannot be be cured by ourselves? And that the price to be paid might include the very life of someone who is himself no stranger to sacrifice? Just the random thoughts of someone who can't seem to turn off his brain. God bless!

~Pastor Ken