Show and Tell, Part 2

Again, why do WORDS fail so badly at describing things UNSEEN?
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Imagine that Aliens land on Earth, knowing nothing about us, and you want to teach them American Football! How would you do it? Would you start with the Rulebook?

You'd have to actually SHOW them a game, right? How else could the terms in the Rulebook even make any sense, without watching a game together? Even the word "Ball" would be useless.

With Aliens, you'd thrown out the Rulebook right away, because their total ignorance would be obvious. BUT... What if the Aliens heard you say "Ball" and THOUGHT that they knew what it meant?

What if the Aliens had words in their language that sounded just like all the words in the Rulebook - not all with the same exact meaning, mind you, but just close enough so they'd never notice the difference. And they could guess about the few words they didn't know at all.

So working with only a Rulebook might SEEM like it was doing the job. Maybe for a long, long time. That is, as long as they never got around to actually trying to PLAY!!!

(Is this sounding realistic yet?) ;)

But in that case, then what if these Aliens NEVER DID try to play? What if they just flew straight back to their planet with their new Rulebook, absolutely confident they understood it perfectly, and never once attempting to do what it said.

Or worse yet, when they tried to follow it the way they thought they should, and it failed and failed and failed and failed again... what if they just figured, "Well, I guess that's the way it's supposed to be?" And then, "Maybe 'Football' is more about trying, than winning?'"

Or here's another possibility! What if they understood PART of the rules, but the pages were all out of order? So they started trying SOME things in the Rulebook, but had no idea how to put the WHOLE thing together into a full game?

Then somebody found ONE PART that DID work really, really well, when they just focused on THAT ONE THING, and did THAT ONE THING over and over. And little groups of Aliens started having arguments about whether it was better to Pass or to Receive! ;)

And now imagine that these Aliens took several copies of the Rulebook back to their homeplanet, still having never seen a game with their own eyes. And they make millions more copies of the Rulebook and start a movement of people who study the Rulebook all the time and quote rules all the time (about things that don't mean what they think).

And they all keep convincing each other that it all makes perfect sense. Or better yet - and this is my favorite - that it isn't supposed to make sense! (Grrrrrr....)

And all the while, they've never seen a game. And they've never played a full game as it's supposed to be played. But they LOVE to quote the Rulebook!

And they call this Rulebook Movement "Football".

Hmmm... What if this happened to those whom WE learned from?

And if it did... HOW WOULD WE KNOW?

Show and Tell

Ever wonder why WORDS fail so badly at describing things UNSEEN?

Here's a comic strip by Scott McCloud:





Text: "THIS IS MY ROBOT." "WHAT CAN YOU TELL US ABOUT YOUR ROBOT, TOMMY?" "WELL, UH... I LIKE IT 'CAUSE... 'CAUSE, UH... IT'S GOT ONE OF THESE THINGS." "WHAT IS THAT, TOMMY?" "IT'S THIS THING AND IF YOU PULL IT, IT GOES LIKE THIS." "THE HEAD FLIPS BACK." "...? YEAH. AND... AND THEN YOU CAN DO THIS AND IT GOES UP AND YOU FLIP THIS. I DID IT WRONG. WAIT. LOOK, IT'S AN AIRPLANE NOW!" (By the way, this Scott McCloud guy is a GENIUS! If you're in graphic design, web design, advertising, film or enjoy Comic Books (and film) you should really buy his book

The writer/artist goes on to look at how A COMBINATION OF WORDS AND PICTURES is used so often in children's books, print-ads, film & tv, and his main focus, Comic Books! It's fascinating, from a media/communication standpoint.

But I have a different point.

We can all spend time TELLING about our "spiritual" lives...

I wonder, have you ever been SHOWN?

I don't know about you. But I saw a group of sisters take another group of sisters on a weekend and SHOW them one way to a DEEP touch with God. And to a HIGH view of Him. Books alone could never have done that. It was Jesus Christ inside of a group who have WALKED THERE, together, sharing with another group HOW to "get there". Their sharing was with more than words. They SHOWED.

There is more than the WORD, in God's plan for Earth. He gave a PICTURE, too. JESUS CHRIST came in a BODY. To SHOW the riches of His glory!

So where, on Earth, is JESUS CHRIST, today?

A New Feast

This is about Passover and the Lord’s Supper.

First, some background:

Joseph and Mary left Nazareth in a cloud of scandal. So after they went to Jerusalem (to present the baby Jesus in the Temple) they said, "Those people in Bethlehem were pretty nice." So they moved to Bethlehem, near Jerusalem. When Herod sent some men to kill the babies in Bethlehem, they moved to Egypt. Now Jesus is one and a half when Herod dies, and they come back. Joseph hears that Herod's son Archelaus is ruling in Judea (and remembers some of daddy-Herod's old business), so Joseph moves his family back to Nazareth.

Because of Archelaus, Mary keeps Jesus in Nazareth for ten years of passovers. But Archaelaus dies when Jesus is eleven and a half. Then Jesus turns twelve. That year, Joseph finally felt it was safe enough to take his wife and son to the Passover in Jerusalem!

So they're in Jerusalem (Jesus is 12) and they find a house to eat the meal with some other families. And this "meal" is a whole ritual as big as Easter Sunday Service or Christmas Mass for Catholics. There are MANY traditions associated with the night. ONE of those traditions was that the youngest child present would ask the question, “Why is this night different from all other nights?” And then someone would answer the question by telling the story of the Exodus.

Now, the next day Joseph and Mary got ready to go and left Jesus in the temple for three days, by mistake. After that mixup, Joseph and Mary kept Jesus in Nazareth for Passover each year. They didn’t want him to cause another stir and become well-known… yet.

So, every year in Nazareth, at the Passover, Jesus attended the same old dinner, like a ritual. And sometimes there were flashes of meaning, but very little life. It was also a serious and somber ritual. A bit like a funeral, actually. As a young man, he patiently went along with it. He knew his time had not yet come.

At age 32, he got Baptized. Then he gathered some men together, and took them to a wedding, and took them to the Passover… in Jerusalem! (He definitely caused a stir that year, in the days before the feast!) But then on the big night, they found a house that was having the meal and they joined in. And Jesus’ new disciples watched him patiently going along with the whole darn thing! The whole ancient ritual they all knew so well. As far as the disciples knew, he was all for it… but Jesus knew his time had not yet come.

Now, the next three Passovers Jesus was traveling – and his disciples always found a way to do the meal (at least the bread, if not the lamb and the bitter herbs) while they were traveling. They were on the go, so it made sense to have a more casual version of the meal. And Jesus never seemed to be real concerned about the details. His disciples were the ones who tried to make sure they kept the tradition.

And then came the Last one. His Final Passover.

At last, His time had come!

This time, it was just thirteen men in a room. In Jerusalem. And they’d done the meal informally for three years, but they all still remembered the traditions. So the men started to tease John, who was the youngest man in the room! (He was about seventeen, but the youngest among them - and they'd known him since he was much younger.)

So Peter jabbed, “John, ask The Question!” And everyone laughed.

So John said with a grin, “Okay. Why is this night different than all other nights?”

Then they all looked at Jesus, who said with a smile, “I have been eagerly wanting to eat THIS Passover with you all..."

They didn't even realize how much he meant that, because THIS Passover night WAS going to be different than all the other Passovers in Jesus' life on Earth. THIS Passover feast was going to start a NEW tradition! A LIVING tradition (not a dead ritual) that would change absolutely EVERYTHING!!!

So, first, they did the old thing, one last time. They ate the Lamb, and the flat bread. They had a touch of the bitter herbs. They observed the meal. One. Last. Time.

And THEN!

AFTER THE MEAL, he took the cup, and he took the bread. And he gave them a way to remember something that hadn't even happened yet! But he started preparing them for that Something. Because Something was about to be fulfilled in their very near future!

And what was that Something?

The Blood of Jesus Christ needs to be IN us! The Spirit of Jesus Christ needs to be IN us! The Life of Jesus Christ needs to be IN us! HE is the Wine in this Vessel, and WE are His cup! His blood covers our sins, and makes the Vessel clean. His Spirit makes a Home inside His holy ones. His Life is full of grace and truth and joy, because His Life is being Loved by His Father – and His Life is Our Life, too!

And THAT'S the WINE!

Likewise, the Body of Jesus Christ was given for US! Broken for US! One Loaf, completely whole, was broken into pieces! Each piece, still BREAD! Each piece, still Christ! And yet, together, the pieces are a Loaf! The BODY of Jesus Christ is US! We are Bread! And the Bread that he has made us is Himself! That is, Himself IN His Body!

And THAT'S the BREAD!

And THAT’S the Lord’s Supper!

Praise the Lord!!!!!

The wine and bread were just a warm-up! He shed his blood, he breathed his spirit (in the upper room), he birthed his Church (on the day of Pentecost), and then the little after-dinner pagent he performed was made Real! In. His. Kingdom.

And there, fulfilled in His Kingdom, HE began to FEAST with them AGAIN!

The Kingdom is where Jesus Christ Himself can Live and Feast!

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Last night (because Saturday nights are simply more FUN) we rented a room in Fort Worth and we had a special dinner. And during the dinner, we also had a FEAST! And during the FEAST, we took the “Lord’s Supper” – bread and wine (or sparkling grape juice, for the ex-baptists). We Remembered the Lord. But we didn’t get all sad and serious! We had fun! And we didn’t break down into common lifestyle “fellowship”. Last night was all towards the Lord! AND it was fun! And the REAL Lord’s supper was the entire evening. We feasted on Him. I honestly believe He got to feast, too!

So guys, out there… I cannot tell you how wonderful it is when JESUS CHRIST comes out of every mouth… in so much splendor! I really cannot. (I won’t even try.) But I would like to tell you that everyone talked. And about half the people in the room did more talking than I did! I just type more than they do! :)

So we had a Feast for the Lord last night. It was GREAT! It was FUN! It was HIM!

I wish you all could have been there. :)

Does "House" Matter?

I need more time for part two of Priscillian, but today Matthew in 'Wooster' England invited me to leave my two cents on his post about "House Church", which was good. Then I typed the following comment - and posted it without a single edit! I liked it, so I'd like to share it here.

This is a candid, stream-of-thought reply to what I think about "House Church".

And thanks, Matthew! :)
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That was a good survey of many fair, helpful observations.

"House church" comes in so many varieties... any old group that meets once a week in a living room can just as easily be clergy-led, or shallow, or insincere, just like the Big Show.

I live with people who can't get away from each other. We all passed the point of polite facade a LONG time ago. Then there's the flesh. And often, thank you Lord, there's the spirit.

The cities of the New Testament were mostly about one square mile or smaller. Possibly only Antioch and Rome had more than 100,000 residents. If most of the believers were poor (which is likely) then they all probably lived on the downhill side of their city. (Natural plumbing - think about it.)

All of which is to say that THEY couldn't get away from each other either.

"Community" was easy to come by everywhere, before the Automobile and Urbanism... and Electricity... and the miracle modern Economy... and Sprawl...

But the thing that really kills "church life" IMHO...

The reason there was little Life in most "churches" even before modern times...

Is clergy.

The only way I believe it can be avoided is to have an outside worker. Like an "apostle" (but without any scary authoritarian airs). Someone who IS the leader, but non-local. Someone who has no personal stake whatsoever in what's going on locally. Someone who genuinely cares about the LORD getting to express HIMSELF through an entire body.

But left alone, a little group either develops leaders, or self-destructs trying not to have any.

But in a healthy group there CAN be a growing process to get to where everyone contributes to leading, and the goal is only Him.

A capable outside worker can facilitate that growth, helping the group learn as they go, and leading when they need him to lead. He teaches them. Then he leaves. (Hmmm. Did I ever see that pattern displayed anywhere? Let me think...)

I guess this is a long comment.

Yet all of it is to make this point.

I don't think "house" means much.

Necessarily.

Priscillian - Part One

In Central Spain, about 370 AD, in a smallish town called Avila, a man named Priscillian started a simple Christian movement that left the Catholic church to meet as brothers and sisters under the pure headship of Christ. Priscillian was beheaded in 384, but his followers were allowed to remain alive as excommunicated heretics! Semi-outcasts, they lived a simple way of "church", had no special leaders, kept a strong focus on knowing the Lord, and passed on these purely spiritual traditions to the next generations for more than two centuries, until about the year 600!

EXCUSE ME, BUT HOW DID THEY DO THAT????

One writer called it “a move to return to sole dependence on the Word of God.” Well… sorry, but no! I love that book, but the author has a “Bible fixation”. The people who followed Priscillian weren’t depending on the Bible any more than they all had wristwatches and microwaves! (Confused? Keep reading.)

Before I tell this story in detail, let’s establish where the “Bible” was at, around 370 AD.

Around 370 AD, in the Late Roman Empire, Constantinople was growing but Rome was still the Capital. It had been just 45 years since Constantine forced the entire Roman world to agree to the Nicene Creed or be heretics. (Heresy and charges of heresy were everywhere, in these days. The Creed was frequently used as a weapon.) It had also been just 45 years since the brilliant bishops called together by Constantine had begun to solidify the official list of which “books” were going to be called “scriptures”. Mark that - just 45 years since the Council of Nicea. And yes, many scribes were busy copying the New Scriptures…

So by 370 AD, there WERE actually several hundreds of copies of the New scriptures floating around. But there were only HUNDREDS. Not Thousands. Each new copy had to be hand-copied on expensive paper. Supplies AND manpower were very limited. By the way, there were MILLIONS of people in the empire, MOST of whom were now “Christian” (to some degree or another… or not, after Constantine). Whether or not they were all true believers, please note that there were only HUNDREDS of copies of the scripture for MILLIONS of Christians. That’s point number one.

Here is point number two. Even if the printing press had been invented in 370 (instead of taking until 1450), and even if they’d somehow produced MILLIONS of copies of the brand new “New Testament”, the MILLIONS of common folk around the empire COULD NOT READ!!! On top of that, (in Spain and Italy) the few that could read usually read only Latin. (You may already know that ALMOST ALL of the hundreds of copies of the New scriptures, at that time, were written IN GREEK!)

Point three: EVEN IF the Christians of that age had decided to hand-copy millions of Bibles, they couldn’t have put together the money or the man power to do so. OR found enough paper! (Neither paper, sheepskin or papyrus were ever common, before the printing press. Nor was ink.) AND if they'd tried to make millions of copies, Rome would have stopped them!!! (Trust me, I'm in public education. The powerful in any age never truly wish to fully educate the masses. No matter WHAT they say!!!)

And point four: EVEN IF the Christians of that age had decided to put together a mass-literacy campaign to teach everyone in the empire how to read, the common people wouldn’t have been able to find the time or energy to learn. AND they couldn't afford to support the huge teacher-education-program to train at least a half-million new teachers! The fact is, at that time, that survival alone was still pretty much a dawn to dusk occupation for almost everyone – except the very wealthy.

Which brings us back to Priscillian.

Priscillian was wealthy. He was well educated. He could even read Greek! AND he actually possessed a copy of the brand new "New Testament"! (Though it wasn’t being called by that name, yet.)

But it wasn't his Bible that made the difference for the Christians in Avila, Spain.

It was his heart.

Now, I’m going to post the rest of his story in my next post… but when I do, please remember that it really isn't fair to say (that is, not in any sense that present-day Christians would normally mean these words) that Priscillian's movement was based on “a return to sole dependence on the Word of God.”

The people didn't have Bibles. And they couldn't read.

Yet, one man, with one copy of scripture, lit a fire that burned in Spain as the Lord’s own Testimony on Earth for over two centuries!!!

HOW DID HE DO IT???

Stay tuned...