LOVE AGAINST THE MACHINE

Over the weekend I watched a live concert DVD from a band called “Rage Against the Machine”.

Their message and their attitude – as one might expect – is not only rage, but more specifically “outrage” at the injustices of our society and the crimes of our government against the innocent people of this nation, and also against people in other nations.

So, they crank up their guitars and they pound on their drums and they shout and scream against this injustice.

But as I watched this concert and listened to them make their case, I couldn’t help but notice the futility of all this rage.

I mean, if all you have is anger and rage, what good does that do you? What good does it do for those people who have been exploited? In what way does it make anything better or change anything for the good?

Well, I had to confess, it doesn’t do any good at all.

Perhaps it is the overwhelming sense of futility and powerlessness that fuels this rage in the first place?

But what else can be done, really?

We see the injustice. We want to do something about it. But we realize we have no real power to make it stop. So, all we have left to do is to just rage about it.

But, is that really all we can do?

What if, instead of raging against the machine we tried to love against the machine?

Isn’t this what Jesus had in mind?

He showed up and essentially said, “You’ve made a mess of your life. Your leaders have made a mess of this world. If you’re ready to try something new – to repent of all of the “eye for an eye” escalation of violence – here’s another way to live: Love your enemies.”

Jesus knows that the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again, expecting a different result.

Jesus wants us to admit that a mindless continuation of "you hurt me, so I’ll hurt you” methodology will get us – and has never gotten us – anywhere but here.

In other words, if someone doesn’t break the “eye for an eye” chain early on, we’ll all eventually end up blinded.

So, Jesus says, “Follow me!”

Following Jesus means loving our enemies, blessing those who curse us, praying for those who mistreat us, and disarming their hate with His agape love.

I know, it seems so powerless, doesn’t it? I mean, how could love and mercy and forgiveness and compassion ever make a difference?

Jesus said it was like a small mustard seed, or a little bit of yeast. He said this love of God – which seems so small and weak – is secretly revealed to be an unstoppable source of transformational energy capable of changing us, and everyone around us, from the inside out.

Yes, the world is a dark place. Yes, the powers of greed, war, hate and lust seem so far beyond our means to stop.

But we know something they don’t know: We know that the power of weakness is actually the power of Christ at work within us.

We know that even the smallest flame cannot be snuffed out by all the darkness in the universe.

We know that even the tiniest seed can grow into a massive weed that overtakes the entire garden and spreads like wildfire across the continents.

We know that even the tiniest baby can melt the hardest heart.

Let me ask: “How could you ever defeat an enemy who only gained strength as he got weaker?”

Answer: “You can’t.”

This is what Paul wants us to understand when he talks about the “power of weakness” which is impossible to overcome. [See 2 Cor. 12]

This means that we, in our weakness, are carriers of the unlimited power of Christ.

How do we unleash this power? By doing what He did –  We let go of our own identity and status and rights and lay down everything, even unto death (see Philippians 2:5-10).

When we do this, the power of Christ flows through us like super-charged thermonuclear energy.

Our response of love is more critical than we might think.

This, I believe, is what Paul the Apostle has in mind in Romans chapter 12. First, he appeals to the unspeakable glory of God (at the end of chapter 11) and urges us to present our bodies as living sacrifices to God. Then he tells us not to be conformed to the pattern of this world, but to be transformed.

But why?

So that we can love others (v.9-10), and so that we can bless those who persecute us (v.14), repay the evil with blessings (v.17), live at peace with all men (v.18), refrain from vengeance (v.19), feed our enemies (v.20) and, eventually, even overcome evil with good (v.21).

Do you see what Paul suggests? He’s saying that once we are transformed we need to live transformed lives.

Why? So that our lives can un-make this world of darkness and unleash the resurrection power of Christ.

 This is why we turn the other cheek. This is why we pray for those who hate us. This is why we are called peace makers.

Not to be doormats, but to be warriors of the transformation.

We are each like little a virus that transforms an organism from the inside out.

Jesus has a plan to re-make the world, and this process is already in motion.

 “And he who was seated on the throne said, “Behold, I am making all things new.” Also he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.” [Rev. 21:5]

That includes you and me.

It also includes the powers of darkness.

One day, and it may be very soon, the kingdoms of this world will crumble and fall.

One day, the Kingdom of our God will overtake all other kingdoms.

Every knee will bow.

Every tongue will confess.

“Jesus is Lord.”

So, whenever you see injustice, even it makes you feel like raging, take a moment and remember to love against the machine.

This is the only power we have to change anything.

"Love never fails." - 1 Cor. 13

PROTECTING THE INNOCENT

“Greater love has no man than this; that a man may lay down his life for his friends” – Jesus [John 15:13]

It’s honestly a real struggle for many American Christians to process Jesus’ commands to love our enemies. Especially when we try to filter that through years and years of indoctrination from our society about what it means to be a “Good American”. We have been raised from infancy to glorify violence as a redemptive act. All of our heroes growing up used violence to stop evil. Most of my heroes were holding guns.

So, it’s very hard for us to look at Jesus through that paradigm. He is sort of a hero, but he didn’t kill anyone. He laid down his life for us, to set us free, and we see that as a noble sacrifice. That fits into our American hero grid a little better. But when Jesus commands us – His followers – to walk away from a fight, or to go beyond that to actually bless the person who hates us, or to demonstrate actual love to someone who would like to see us dead – that is another story.

In fact, for many American Christians, it’s just simply impossible to even consider. There’s no way Jesus meant that we shouldn’t fight back. What about using violence to protect the innocent? [Like maybe our spouse or our children are being held at gunpoint by an armed intruder, for example. What then, Jesus?]

I get it. This isn’t easy. But believe it or not, Jesus was serious about loving our enemies. 

Dead serious.

In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus asked a powerful question. He asked “If you love those who love you in return, what credit is that to you? Don’t even the tax collectors do that?”

This question highlights what sort of love Jesus has in mind. He expects us to love extravagantly. We’re not allowed to settle for ordinary love. We’re called to be filled with His brand of extraordinary love that extends to every single person around us.

I hate to break it to you, but killing an armed intruder to protect your family falls under the category of “Loving those who love you in return”. It’s simply not good enough. 

As Jesus goes on to say:

“But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for those which despitefully use you, and persecute you; That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for He makes the sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sends the rain upon the just and on the unjust.” [Matt.5:44-45]

Surprisingly, Jesus has very little to say to us about how we should respond to protect the lives of the innocent. Here’s what we do see:

*Peter used a sword in an attempt to protect the life of Jesus and Jesus rebuked him for it.

*Jesus told Pilate, “My Kingdom is not of this world. If it were, my servants would fight.”

And that is about all the New Testament has to say about the subject.

Maybe the reason Jesus said so little about our need to protect others is because he knew that doing so would necessarily involve violence?

At any rate, Jesus gives us no commands about protecting one another's safety. 

What we do see for the first 300 years or so of Church History is that Christians who were putting the words of Jesus into practice were put to death all the time for their faith. We have no examples of other Christians stepping up to protect the lives of their brothers and sisters. What we see is that everyone was expected to be responsible for their own life. Sometimes Christians would offer their lives in exchange for their brothers or sisters in Christ. Other times they would offer to die alongside of their brothers and sisters so as to share in the sufferings of Christ together. But we see no evidence – not even once – of Christians fighting to protect the lives of others during almost 300 years of intense persecution.

Why is that?

Well, maybe because they understood that their lives were already forfeit to Christ on day one. They understood that anyone who seeks to save their life will lose it, but the one who loses his life for the sake of Christ will save it and keep it forever. [See Matt. 16:25]

My question is: Why don’t we understand this?

Perhaps because we are American Christians who have been told that being American and being Christian are nearly synonymous [even though the two ideals couldn’t be further apart].

We’ve been told to salute our flag, pledge allegiance to our nation, applaud the military, carry a gun and fight for our rights. Jesus told us none of those things. In fact, Jesus is dead against Nationalism, swearing oaths, using violence and demanding our rights.  Jesus told us to love everyone – including our enemies. 

If you love someone you don’t kill them. That’s pretty obvious.

Unless, of course, you don’t want to see that. Then, it’s practically impossible to convince you that loving your enemies and using violence are incompatible concepts. [Believe me, I’ve tried].

“But what about when someone is in danger and we have the power to stop the violence?”

Great question! But stopping the violence can be accomplished without more violence. One way to stop someone from hurting another person is to insert ourselves in between the attacker and the victim. We absorb the violence ourselves and allow the victim to escape. We might even be able to convince the attacker to stop and win an opportunity to explain what compelled us to take such a bold, and dangerous step. [Hint: It’s the love of Jesus].

Honestly, I don’t know if the Church in America will ever really awaken from Her dream of retributive, redemptive violence and embrace the self-sacrificial love of Jesus. I don't know if we can ever really accept the idea of fighting without weapons or defeating evil without violence.

What I do know is that I can’t stop reminding the Church what Jesus said, and what Jesus called us to do in the face of evil.

Our only hope is Jesus. Our only weapon is Love. And if it comes down to it, we are the only one's who die.  

-kg

Obedient Lovers of Jesus

 

Jesus equated love with obedience:

“If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his love.  I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete. My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you.” [John 15:10-12]

But the idea of loving others can be challenging. Especially when it comes to loving our enemies.

 

I've been in numerous debates in the last few days. Mostly with Christians who want to wiggle out of Jesus' command to love our enemies. We want to redefine "Love" or look for different meanings of the word "Kill", or make ammendments for self-defense.

 

Then, quite often, Christians will bring up the Holocaust or the Nazi's in WW2 and ask, "Why didn't non-violence stop Hitler? 

Here's something almost no one realizes: The Nazi's had no way of dealing with those who responded with non-violent resistance.

“B.H. Liddell-Hart, widely acknowledged as the foremost military writer of our times, discovered in his interrogation of Nazi generals after World War II that they had little trouble dealing with violent resistance except in mountainous areas of Russia and the Balkins, or where advancing armies were close. But they expressed complete inability to cope with nonviolence as practiced in Denmark, Holland, Norway, and, to a lesser extent, in France and Belgium.

“’They were experts in violence, and had been trained to cope with opponents who used that method. But other forms of resistance baffled them. They were relieved when nonviolence was mixed with guerilla operations, which made it easier to combine suppressive action against both at the same time.’

“The generals found friendly noncompliance more frustrating than any other form of resistance, and had no effective means to counter it. ‘If practiced with a cheerful smile and an air of well-meaning mistake, due to incomprehension or clumsiness, it becomes even more baffling…. This subtle kind of resistance cannot really be dealt with in terms of force: indeed, nothing can deal with it. There is really no answer to such go-slow tactics.”  - Excerpt from "Engaging the Powers" by Walter Wink.

 

So, we can't point to a conflict which was initiated, and escalated, by those who believe in violence as an example of how non-violence couldn't stop it. Especially when we can see that non-violence does work - and did work - in situations where it was actually put into practice. [And there are several examples of how non-violence worked during WW2, and in other conflicts worldwide, from Liberia to India and even in the good ole' USA].

 

But, again, please keep in mind that Christian non-violence is not "doing nothing". It involves trusting Jesus for wisdom, strength, protection and grace in the midst of suffering, oppression and hate.

The goal is not to become door mats. The goal is to become ambassadors of Christ and to demonstrate - as He did - the abounding, endless, audacious love of God to those who have never experienced it as we have.

 

The hope is that our enemies will be transformed by the surprising love of Christ when we return blessings instead of curses, and love instead of hate.

 

Many have been completely transformed by this unexpected outpouring of love in response to acts of violence. Early Christian history - the first 300 years especially - is full of examples of exactly this kind of radical love which transforms the purveyors of violence.

 

When it works this way, it's beautiful. No weapon can stop it. No aggression can overcome it. Light truly does push back the darkness. Love really does overwhelm hate.

But, sometimes it doesn't always result in repentance and transformation. And in those cases, we may die. But if we die, then we die, and in that way we "share in the sufferings of Christ". What greater honor can there be than to follow Jesus all the way to our death?

I don't know about you, but I would rather die because I was putting the commands of Jesus into practice than to kill another person because my Government said so.

For a follower of Jesus, death is where we begin our journey with Him:

 

"For we died and our lives are now hidden with Christ in God." [Col. 3:3]
"If anyone would follow me let him deny himself, take up his cross daily, and follow me." -Jesus

Self-preservation is not our goal. Obedience unto death to the Lord of Life and the Prince of Peace is.

Do we trust Jesus to take care of us as we put His commands into practice? And if we suffer for doing good, that's what it's all about, isn't it?

 

“But if you suffer for doing good and you endure it, this is commendable before God. To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps.” [1 Peter 2:20-21]

Yes, non-violence quite often does work, when it is put into practice by obedient disciples of Jesus who are following His example of humility and love.

And even if it doesn't end with our lives being spared, that's not the point. The purpose is to put on display the extravagant love of Jesus that has filled us, and the whole earth.

 

This is the love that can change the human heart and transform our community, our nation and our world - one person at a time.

 

But it will only work if we put the commands of Jesus into practice.

 

"A new command I give you: Love one another as I have loved you." - Jesus

 

How has Jesus loved you? This is how you should love others - yes, even your enemies.

 

"If you only love those who love you, what credit is that to you?" - Jesus

 

Are we really following Jesus, or do we just "believe in" Him?

 

If we really love Jesus, according to Him, we will obey His commands.

 

Jesus makes it very clear: "Love your enemies and do good to those who hate you" [Luke 6:27].

 

I would never kill someone I loved. Therefore, we cannot kill our enemies if we hope to be obedient disciples of Jesus, the Prince of Peace.

 

"Now these three remain: Faith, Hope and Love. And the greatest of these is Love". [1 Cor. 13]

 

-kg

**

[Special Thanks to Travis Glenn Blankenship for the Walter Wink reference]

Untamed Christianity

Our faith defies the status quo.

Our Savior calls for a complete revolution of the human heart. 

Our Gospel is designed to ignite a total regime change within the soul of every living person.

Our Messiah was executed for defying the Empire - both the Church and the State.

He encouraged his followers to lay down their lives and die for Him - not as suicidal martyrs, but as radical agents of love who would rather die than resort to hatred or violence.

The majority of our Scriptures were written by a former terrorist who helped to imprison and murder numerous disciples of Christ.

He was radically transformed by a supernatural encounter with our Jesus and that day became an ambassador of the Prince of Peace.

After that day he left his violence behind and instead embraced the way of the cross, seeking not to destroy his enemies, but to love them and to share in the sufferings of Christ as he boasted all the more in his own weakness.

Many of those early disciples and saints were led like lambs to the slaughter, much like our Lord. By the hundreds they submitted to the governing authorities and were burned, boiled and skinned alive, beheaded, and even crucified upside down, never once reaching out to do violence to their oppressors, but declaring their love for Jesus and even praying for those who put them to death.

These subversive missionaries of light understood that their struggle was not against flesh and blood. They knew that the weapons of their warfare were not of this world, but spiritual, and far more powerful - able to transform hearts and minds alike.

They knew that they were sent as lambs and doves, not wolves and serpents, into a world dominated by power and lust. Yet they refused to participate in the things that make for war or death. 

Instead, they devoted themselves to the way of life, and light, and peace, and mercy, and most of all to love.

Oh, blood was shed, to be sure. But the blood that was shed was their own. 

What happened to those Christians? Where did those sorts of believers in the message of Christ go?

Why, today, is it so rare to find anyone who claims the name "Christian" and still embraces the Gospel of Christ?

Instead of resisting the Empire, many Christians today embrace it, salute it, pledge their allegiance to it, and even kill others to protect the honor of their Empire.

Instead of seeing everyone alive as someone Christ loved dearly enough to die for, many of them openly express their hate for people of other faiths, and make no attempt to veil their contempt for those who oppose them, or their Nation, or even their Political ideology.

Instead of laying down their lives and their rights so that those who are without Christ might see a living example of His radical love, many who claim to follow Jesus attempt to cut people off from God's grace simply because they are "sinners"; forgetting that Jesus was a friend of sinners and spent most of his time among them in fellowship.

Many Christians today are deeply and profoundly offended by the idea that Jesus loves terrorists, and homosexuals, and communists, and transgender people, and those who simply think differently than they do about God, or Politics, or Theology.

If those early Christians were like the people who wear His Name today, they would have tortured or killed someone like Saul of Tarsus before he ever had an opportunity to be changed, or to write most of our New Testament.

I'm so glad they weren't like us. I just wish that we were more like them.

The truth is, we cannot say we love God if we do not love others. 

That means, I love God as much as I love the poor.

I love God as much as I love the homosexual.

I love God as much as I love my enemy.

What if, at the final judgment, Jesus identified you as a sheep or a goat based on how well you had loved your enemy?

Is there any reason to think that He won't? He warns us that on that day He will divide us by groups into those who showed mercy and love to the outcast, and those who did not.

Jesus also said that not everyone who called him "Lord", would enter His Kingdom. Only those who do what He said to do. 

Loving our enemies is one of the clearest and most unmistakable commands Jesus gave us.

"Why do you call me ‘Lord, lord’ and do not do what I say?"

Are we so sure that our attitudes about others are justified? Are we certain that Jesus won't expect us to have embraced His call to love others as He has loved us?

The Gospel of the Kingdom is simply about submission to Christ as Lord. If He is truly Lord, then we can love as He commanded and not worry about the outcomes. 

It's time we untamed our Christianity. 

Let us return to a wild, unbridled pursuit of the radical Messiah who challenged us to live outside our comfort zones.

Let us defy the status quo and begin to love with more audacity and abandonment than anyone would consider feasible.

Let us resolve to hate no one - to condemn no one - to shame no one.

Let us take up our crosses, set our eyes on the One who would rather die than live without us, and follow in His footsteps towards a Kingdom that is already in the making.

"Then the seventh angel sounded: And there were loud voices in heaven, saying, “The kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ, and He shall reign forever and ever!” (Rev. 11:15) 

What's Love Got To Do With It?

Jesus makes it clear that love is a high priority in His Kingdom.

The Greatest Commandment? To love God.
The Second Greatest Commandment? To love our neighbor as ourselves.
The Mark of Genuine Faith? They will know we are Christians by our love.
How do we know that we are children of God? When we love even our enemies.
What's greater than hope and faith? Love is greater.
What Spirit has God given us? A spirit of love and of power and a sound mind.
What is so great that it surpasses knowledge? The love of Christ.
What is the first fruit of the Spirit? Love.
How do we overcome evil? With love.
What is the nature of our obedience to Jesus? Love.
What hopes all things, believes all things and endures all things? Love.

Out of the 58 "One Anothers" in the New Testament what do more than half of them say? "Love one another".

Love is a big deal for those who are following Jesus.

Without love, we are nothing.

I've always wondered why the greatest heresy in the Christian church isn't a failure to love extravagantly as Jesus commanded and as the Apostles urged us to do more than 25 times in the New Testament.

Love is our mantra. Love is our theme. Love is our tattoo.

Let love reign.

-kg

Torture Is Not Christian

With the release of the CIA torture report this week, there have been numerous conversations among Christians about whether or not torture is something that Jesus would approve of.

Some have wisely pointed out that Jesus himself was a middle eastern insurgent who was arrested and tortured by the Empire for subversive actions. How then, could Jesus – or a follower of that same Jesus – approve of such behavior?

When it comes to torture, I would see it like this: There is “The Way of the World” and  “The Way of Christ.”

The Way of the World includes War, Torture, Politics, Violence, and displays of power exerted over others to achieve and succeed.

The Way of Christ includes, Love, Peace, Forgiveness, Mercy, Compassion, and displays of humility coming underneath others to bless and serve them and express the transformational love of Christ.

Either these two paths either run parallel – so that you can follow Christ and the World both at once – or these two paths run in opposite directions, and if so, you must forsake one to follow the other.

I believe Jesus taught that we cannot do both. We cannot serve both God and the World. To follow Christ we must “think again” (the root meaning of “repent”) and turn around and go in the opposite direction.

Those two paths are not parallel, they are in opposition to one another, and we who hope to follow Christ must turn around and walk in the opposite direction from the World to follow Christ.

“No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other.” (Matt. 6:24)

“There is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to destruction.” (Proverbs 14:12)

So, we must choose. And if we must choose, then I choose the Way of Christ.

Jesus did not come to sanctify or Christianize the ways of the World, he came to overthrow them and replace them and to show us a better way.

Our mandate from Christ is to love. We are called to be peacemakers in a world filled with violence. We are called to the ministry of reconciliation in a world saturated with conflict.

Every Christian is under this calling. Every follower of Jesus is expected to obey His commands. As Jesus emphasizes when he asks, “Why do you call me ‘Lord, Lord’ and do not do the things I say?” (Luke 6:46)

Jesus asks this question directly after he has commanded us to love our enemies and turn the other cheek (v. 27-29), so it’s not vague what he specifically has in mind when he asks this question.

Do we call Jesus our Lord? If so, how can we do that and ignore His commands to love our enemies and do good to those who hate us?

Answer: We cannot.

Either we are following Jesus, and therefore we obey His commands, or we are not following Jesus and we are free to do whatever we think is right in our own eyes.

But we cannot call ourselves Christians – followers of Christ – and flat out deny His clear commands to love our enemies, or defend those who practice cruelty, violence and toture.

To love Jesus is to obey Him. Those who love Jesus obey and those who do not love Jesus do not obey Him. Jesus was the first to point this out. (See John 14:15-24)

C.S. Lewis, through the voice of Aslan, put it this way: “And if any man do a cruelty in my name, then, though he says the name Aslan, it is Tash (Satan) whom he serves.” (The Last Battle)

Choose you this day whom you shall serve. As for me and my house, we shall serve – and follow – the Way of Christ.

Peace,

-kg

LOVE, HATE AND THE KINGDOM OF GOD

Believe it or not, some Christians keep a list of people who can be righteously hated and even put to death, in spite of Jesus’ commands to love our enemies and bless those who hate us.

Usually those who fall into this exceptional category are criminals, terrorists, enemies of the state, homosexuals, and abortionists.

Frankly, many Christians have their own private list of who can be/should be put to death. It might be a an ex-spouse, a person who abused them in the past, a drunk driver who took away their loved one, or the umpire who blew the call that ended their team’s chances at a national championship.

It should be obvious to anyone who knows the Gospel of Christ that there are no exemptions when it comes to the commands to love our enemies, bless those who hate us, and do good to those who seek to harm us. None whatsoever.

That means God loves all the same people that you really hate. He loves those people you wish were dead. He loves those people that hurt you, and ripped you off. He loves everyone in prison, no matter what they did to get there. He loves the people who got away with murder, and the people who helped them get away with it.

Now, that doesn’t mean that God loves what they did, or what they do. Far from it. In fact, it’s because he “so loved the world” that he sent Jesus in the first place. Because he saw how horrific we all were without His love, and he sent Jesus to show us what it really looks like – and feels like – to receive that love. He sent Jesus to transform us through His love, and to rescue us from the penalty of a life without His love.

This means that those terrorists you’d like to see burned alive are within reach of God’s grace. Why destroy them before they have an opportunity to know Christ who can transform their hearts?

It reminds me of Jesus’ own disciples who asked “Shall we call down fire from heaven to destroy them?” in reference to a Samaritan village that refused to have Jesus travel through it on his way to Jerusalem. The response Jesus gave to these disciples is the same as what he would say to Christians today who yearn to rain down destruction on anyone: “You do not know what kind of Spirit you are of; for the Son of Man did not come to destroy men’s lives, but to save them.” (John 9:54-56)

Loving our enemies is hard, of course. Our old nature is quick to crave violence and retribution. But Jesus has given us a new nature and a new spirit.

If we really hope to love our enemies, we have to first admit that we do not have access to this kind of love. This sort of unconditional love is just not in us by nature. The closest we can ever come is the love a parent has for a child. But even that example (as profound as it may be) falls short of the extravagant love that God wants to fill us with.

God’s love just “is”. It’s not dependent upon anything the person does, or does not do. And that’s why Jesus can tell us that, if we are abiding in Him, and if He is alive in us, then we will be connected to the constant, eternal flow of Divine Love that flows from the heart of the Trinity and outward into every corner of the Universe. We become conduits of His endless love and therefore everyone around us becomes illuminated in the light of His unconditional love.

And if we are indeed carriers of Christ-like love, then we cannot shoot anyone in the face. We cannot even wish that anyone were dead. We cannot cheer when someone receives the harsh judgment we believe they deserve.

Even God doesn’t take pleasure in the death of the wicked.

“As I live, declares the Lord God, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from his way and live.” (Ezekiel 33:11)

Jesus leaves us no wiggle room here. He loves everyone, and He commands us to love everyone as well.

“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? And if you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same? You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” (Matt. 5:43-48)

Those people you hate? God loves them and He commands you to love them, too.

To be a follower of Jesus is to obey His commands. If we struggle with those commands, we must throw ourselves at His feet and beg Him for the grace to love as He loves, forgive as He forgives, and serve others as He serves us.

Love is our tattoo. Love is our song. Love is how Jesus knows that we belong to Him.

“By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.” (John 13:35)

-kg

In The Name Of Love

Earlier this week I posted a series of quotes from First and Second Century Christians about how following Jesus means turning away from violence and embracing the transformational love of Jesus. At the end of that series I said, “Early Christians would never dream of using violence, but for Christians today it’s our first response. What happened?”

You’d think that this would have inspired people to reflect along with me why the Christian church once embraced the commands of Jesus to love our enemies, but you’d be wrong. Instead what followed was a very long debate with Christians who rejected this idea of enemy love – even though it was an idea from the mouth of Jesus – and for the next few days I was asked to explain why it would be expected to obey Jesus if there was an invader in my home, or why this Jesus stuff didn’t stop Hitler, or why God seems to use violence (and therefore it should be ok for us too), and why this idea of enemy love shouldn’t be taken seriously unless I am personally willing to relocate my family to Gaza or Iraq.

No, I’m not making this stuff up.

So, once again, let me ask: What happened to the Christian faith? How did we go from unwavering obedience to the commands of Jesus to love our enemies, bless them who curse us, do good to those who persecute us, and giving food and water to our enemy if they are hungry or thirsty, to calling down fire from heaven on anyone who might dare to threaten us?

Two things happened: First, the Christian church slowly became convinced that being a Christian was more about agreement with a set of doctrines and less about actually practicing the commands of Jesus. Secondly, the Christian church – at roughly the same time – became entangled with the Empire or nation of origin. This meant that being a Christian also became entangled with being a patriot for whichever nation one was born into. Therefore the goals of the State became the goals of the Christian, and the Church began to work hand-in-hand with politicians to justify going to war with those who oppose our national interests.

I’m torn between wanting to help Christians today understand the “How we got here” part of the narrative and wanting to help them simply “Follow Jesus” apart from any Nationalistic tendencies or allegiances.

On the one hand, it’s really all about simply following Jesus in your daily life. If you take that part seriously, and if you are deeply committed to obeying Jesus today – right now – in your actual life – then you won’t need to necessarily understand how the rest of the Church got so screwed sideways. You’ll simply wrestle with Jesus’ commands to forgive others, love those who are not easy to love, serve the people around you, and yes, even turn the other cheek.

On the other hand, it’s very easy to fool yourself into thinking that you already are following Jesus if you don’t recognize the difference between what everyone else around you seems to be doing – i.e. loving those who love you back and hating those who aren’t like you – and taking a stand against that mediocrity to live a radical life of extravagant love.

Essentially, I believe what’s missing today in this entire equation is simply this: “Love”.

We are not filled with the love of Christ, therefore we cannot share the love of Christ with others.

Yes, we need to understand the importance of discipleship to Christ. That’s the mechanism that helps us to understand our mission.

Yes, we need to understand that Christianity was once something so uncomfortably loving that what passes for Christianity today would be largely unrecognizable to those early Christians.

But the bottom line is really just that we need to know what love is. We need to remember that it was the transformational love of Jesus we experienced in the beginning that opened our eyes to the Kingdom in the first place. We need to return to Jesus on our knees and ask Him to fill us anew with that same audacious love. Not just because we need to give it away to others (because we do), but first and foremost because we need His love. I need it. You need it. We all need to be transformed – once again – by His awesome love. We need to be captivated by it again. We need to have our breath taken from us again as our heart’s overflow with the love that transcends knowledge.

What if the Christian church in America were awestruck once more by the eternal supernova of unstoppable love that flows unceasing from the heart of Jesus into each and every one of us?

What if that same tsunami of love were to fill us up, and spill out all over our families, our neighbors, our co-workers, our friends?

What if we could love the way Jesus loves? What if we could serve the way Jesus serves? What if we could forgive the way Jesus forgives?

I think that’s the point. I think Jesus is looking for a people He can pour Himself into, by His Spirit. He wants someone who will be His hands, His feet, His voice, His heart, to a world that is desperate for love incarnate and grace unspeakable.

Will we be that person? Are we interested in taking that first step into the endless deep of His love?

I hope so. It’s the only hope this world – or you and I – really have left.

-kg

“For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.” (Eph. 3:14-19)

How To Fight Like A Christian

Know your Enemy.

"Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour." - (1 Peter 5:8)

Understand who is NOT your enemy.

"For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms." - (Eph. 6:12)

Know your weapons.

"The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds." - (2 Cor. 10:4)

Understand your mission.

“But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven.” – (Matt. 5:44-45)

“But to you who are listening I say: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. If someone slaps you on one cheek, turn to them the other also. If someone takes your coat, do not withhold your shirt from them.” – (Luke 6:27-29)

Wear your armor.

"Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes." - (Eph. 6:11)

Understand the nature of your struggle

"If we are distressed, it is for your comfort and salvation; if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which produces in you patient endurance of the same sufferings we suffer." - (2 Cor. 1:6)

Be confident.

"No weapon formed against you shall prosper" -(Isaiah 54:17)

Understand your covert strategy.

"I am sending you out like sheep among wolves. Therefore be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves." - (Matthew 10:16)

Claim the victory.

“…I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it." - (Matthew 16:18)

Summary:

No human being is your enemy.

Your warfare involves prayer, love, and becoming a blessing to those who hate you.

Lives may be lost in this battle, and your own life is most certainly one of them.

If blood must be shed it must be your own.

You must look out for the well-being of your fellow-soldiers, and your enemy.

You are a sheep, not a wolf. Trust in your Shepherd for protection.

LISTEN: PODCAST "HOW TO FIGHT LIKE A CHRISTIAN" BY KEITH GILES

Onward Christian Killers?

How can those who say they follow the Prince of Peace shoot their enemies? How can those who say they have experienced the transformational power of love and forgiveness kill 12 civilian citizens and wound 30 others? How can Christians murder children?

It has to start with a redefinition of the term "Christian" from "one who obeys Jesus" to "one who is in agreement with a set of doctrinal statements". Then one may behave however one likes without doing violence to the concept of "being like Christ" as a prerequisite for identifying with Jesus.

Over and over again, we read news items with headlines that reveal the sad news:

"Christian Tutsi's Slaughter Thousands Of Their Hutu Brothers in Rwanda"

"UN Reports That Armed Christian Groups Known As "Anti-Balaka" Have Killed 12 Muslims in Central African Republic"

Is this what Jesus had in mind? Did Jesus come to earth as an infant, and teach us to love our enemies, turn the other cheek, bless those who curse us, do good to those who hate us - and Himself forgive those who nailed him to a Roman cross - so that those who come after Him could form an army and slaughter their enemies?

This is the same Jesus who said, "My Kingdom is not of this world. If it were, my disciples would fight." (see John 18:35-37)

So, if we fight, are we truly His disciples? Or are we fighting for the wrong kingdom?

Yes. When we take up arms and kill our enemies we are doing so for the kings and kingdoms of this fallen world.

As a follower of Jesus, there are many things worth dying for, but there is nothing - nothing - worth killing another human being for.

What could make me betray my Lord Jesus and take another life in disobedience to His clear commands to love and forgive? If I am more loyal to my nation than I am to Jesus, then I am not fit for His Kingdom.

“If any man come to Me and hate not his father and mother, and wife and children, and brethren and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot be My disciple." - Jesus (Luke 14:26)

So, let's be clear: Someone who is like Jesus cannot take up arms and kill another human being. Anyone who does this, in the name of God, or country, or patriotism, or national pride, or "freedom" is doing so in outright defiance of Jesus.

If Jesus is Lord, then let us obey His commands:

“You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? And if you greet only your own people, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that? Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect." (Matthew 5:43-48)

LOVE OR NOTHING

Over the weekend I spent some time with a Palestinian Christian who was visiting Orange County. As we sat together and listened, this man shared with us the sad details of how fear and prejudice and nationalism has made peace in the Middle East a seeming impossibility. However, he and a handful of other Christians are convinced that the way of Jesus might still work. So, they are doing what they can to bring Jews and Christians and Muslims together to help them see beyond those cultural, religious, racial divisions and begin to actually love one another, as Jesus commanded.

One thing he shared that greatly shocked me was that even as hundreds of Muslims are coming to faith in Christ, most Palestinian Christians will not fellowship with them. They are still blinded by racism and fear.

This man, Salim Muyaner, has written one of the only curriculum's in existence on peaceful conflict resolution. As he shared this, one man in the room said to him, "You should send that curriculum to the Sudan." Salim responded by saying, "Only to them? What about to you? Your nation is the most influential cause of violence in the Middle East. Why shouldn't America study peace?"

Later, Salim reminded us that "We find peace in the face of our enemy. We find our future in the face of our enemy."

Later, at this same meeting, I also talked to another Christian man who has befriended the leaders of Hamas and often visits these men to pray with them and to urge them to seek peaceful resolutions to the conflict and struggle they are involved in. He told me about an amazing conversation he had with the leader of Hamas that stunned me.

He said that he asked this man two questions; One was, "Do you believe that God speaks to men in dreams and visions?" The man said "Yes." Then he asked, "Will you pray with me about one thing until God does it?" The man said, "What is it?" My friend said, "Pray that God would give a vision of Jesus to Obama, Netanyahu, and the Prime Minister of England and that He would teach them the way of Peace." The man - who was the leader of Hamas - with tears filling his eyes, grabbed my friend around the neck and began to kiss his cheeks again and again. "Yes," he said. "I will pray with you for this."

Maybe you're shocked to hear this? But many Muslims revere Jesus (or "Isa" as they call him) as a great teacher, and as a messenger of peace.

As I drove home that night, I reflected on what I had heard. The situation in the Middle East is beyond difficult. The stake-holders are not about to give up power. The Christians there are unwilling to love other Christians if they were formerly Muslims. The Jews are unwilling to grant Palestinians the right to "one man, one vote". The Muslism are not willing to accept Jewish rule. Where does that leave everyone? In the middle, endlessly struggling against one another.

The words of Jesus came to my mind: "Repent or likewise perish." In other words, if the people there do not repent of their lust for power and their desire for justice, then there is no hope for them except for more bloodshed and violence and pain.

What could turn everything around? It is the transformative love of Jesus. If the Christians there in Palestine could begin to love their Muslim neighbors, if they could begin to forgive their Jewish oppressors, then there would be peace in their land, and more importantly in their hearts.

I have been praying since that night that God would begin to touch the hearts of His people there in Palestine and in Israel, to look beyond their prejudice and fear to embrace other Christian brothers and sisters - whether Jewish Christians, or Arab Christians, or Palestinian Christians.

Then, I pray that those united brothers and sisters in Christ could begin to go next door and wash the cars of their Jewish neighbors, and share food with their Muslim neighbors, and pray for their communities to come together, and be willing to lay down their lives for one another.

Does that sound impossible? It has happened before. It has happened in Liberia, and in South Africa, and in South America, and yes, even here in the U.S.A. Believe it or not, it has even happened in the Middle East! In fact, this whole idea of loving your enemy, and blessing those who curse you, and praying for those who hate you, and doing good to those who mistreat you started in the Middle East.

So, perhaps there is more hope than we think?

Maybe you would pray with me for Christians in the Middle East to come together in unity? Maybe you would also join with my friend, and the leader of Hamas, as they pray for God to send a vision of Jesus, the Prince of Peace, to Obama, and Netanyahu, and Cameron?

There is hope for the Middle East. There is hope for America. That hope is Jesus, and His radical message of Enemy Love.

Let us pray.

-kg