oasisCHURCH

Donkey Church

For about three months Chad Dodson and I have been meeting every Thursday at my favorite hangout in Athens... Donkey Coffee & Espresso... for conversation about Jesus, the Scriptures, the church, etc. It has been mutually encouraging, and we are ready to invite more people to join us. On a couple of occasions we have had a person or two join us in the conversation, and just last week a student asked if he could join in the next time we meet. Chad and I have taken these instances as "hints" that perhaps God wants to grow his church in a very casual, relational atmosphere in Athens. So... beginning this week we are going to openly invite people to "join the conversation." That is simply what it is... an ongoing conversation about Jesus. It's Jesus at Donkey, or "Donkey Church." Pass the word... Thursdays in Athens, 11:30 a.m. until 1:00 p.m. (or whenever), at Donkey Coffee shop on Washington St.

A Download

Here is last week's teaching/reflections from the Oasis Sunday gathering. Most of us were still enthralled by the film we had seen just 13 hours earlier, so we kept our attention on the cross, and on the meaning of it all. Download and listen and let me know your thoughts.

Also, I just sent out an email to our Oasis emailing list. If you would like to subscribe to those emails just send me an email and let me know. I will gladly add you to the distribution list.

The Passion of the Art

Today (Wednesday) is one of my usual “work” days, but every now and then it gets sidetracked… like when ‘maw maw’ gets called in to work and so she can’t come to be with the kids during the day. So today I am blogging between reading stories to Brock and Kaylee… so if I accidentally mention Dora the Explorer or Cat In the Hat while writing about Jesus now you know why… my mind isn’t exactly focused.

I’ve wanted to share this all week. The Passion of the Christ has had a profound effect on my life. Not just the movie, but His passion. The movie was an incredible visual illustration of the Truth I have always known. After seeing it for the second time on Sunday night I walked out to my car, opened the door, sat down, put the key into the ignition, and then laid my head on the steering wheel and began crying like a baby. I wasn’t thinking about the movie. I was thinking about Jesus. And all this week I have personally felt a deeper love and passion for Jesus. I have had a particular hunger for reading the Word. Things… little things, you know… just haven’t bothered me as much this week.

I can still remember the first time I sang the song “Did You Feel The Mountains Tremble” in a room full of worshipers. The experience was amazing. I poured my heart out to God more than I had ever done before… and it had an effect on my life. I went home and loved my wife more. I loved Jesus more. I had a deeper passion for sharing his Word than I did before.

Art has a way of doing that. It has a way of escorting us into a more intimate personal experience with our Lord. And we come away from it a changed people. Not because of the art… but because of Jesus. The art was just the vehicle that drove us to Jesus.

But sadly, some people worship the art. Some people “believe” in the art. It becomes their Gospel… their Good News. But it’s not the art’s fault. The art knows its role. The art knows it is not the end… but merely a means to the end. The art knows it is not the message of Truth, but simply one of the many messengers that point the way to Truth.

One of the most fascinating lines from the Gospel of John (which was especially brought to my attention in the movie) is when Jesus tells Pilate, “…I was born and entered the world so that I could witness to the truth. Everyone who cares for truth, who has any feeling for the truth, recognizes my voice” (The Message). It is this very line that explains whether or not people will get the point of this movie or not. If a person watches the movie SEEKING TRUTH, then they will find it… and they will find it in Jesus. Because the Spirit of Christ will reach out to them and reveal Himself to them.

The message of the Gospel is such a passionate message. The Good News is an absolutely incredible thing to consider. Are we as excited about the Good News, the Gospel message, as we were the movie before it’s release? Christians everywhere have no doubt had countless conversations about The Passion of the Christ over the past several weeks. It’s like we’ve been given a surge of excitement to all of a sudden speak to people about Jesus.

Or are we just speaking about a movie?

Will I still be talking with people about the passion of Jesus Christ a year from now? Will this surge of excitement still be in my heart when the visual images have faded away? Am I really in love with Jesus more? Or did I get infatuated with a movie?

My prayer is that (we) Christians would get as passionately worked up about the Truth as we are about a movie… that conversations about the “Good News” would pour from our lips as often and as freely as conversations about this movie. For “all seek the truth will hear His voice.”

Obligatory "Passion" Post

For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. For it is written:
"I will destroy the wisdom of the wise;
the intelligence of the intelligent I will frustrate."
Where is the wise man? Where is the scholar? Where is the philosopher of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not know him, God was pleased through the foolishness of what was preached to save those who believe. Jews demand miraculous signs and Greeks look for wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified: a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, but to those whom God has called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. 1 Corinthians 1:18-24 NIV

The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God. For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the man's spirit within him? In the same way no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God. We have not received the spirit of the world but the Spirit who is from God, that we may understand what God has freely given us. This is what we speak, not in words taught us by human wisdom but in words taught by the Spirit, expressing spiritual truths in spiritual words. The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned. The spiritual man makes judgments about all things, but he himself is not subject to any man's judgment:
"For who has known the mind of the Lord
that he may instruct him?" But we have the mind of Christ. 1 Corinthians 2:11-16 NIV

For the most part I have abstained from writing about the film The Passion of The Christ because there has already been so much said on all sides of the issue that I wonder if there really is anything new a person could bring to light. Of course the answer to my query is "no, there is nothing new under the sun." But since it has become such a phenomenon in our culture this week I will share my thoughts. They begin with the scriptures above, so if you did not read them carefully, go back and do so now.

Every time I turn on a major news network and listen to debates over Mel Gibson's film it does nothing but solidify the truth of God's Word for me. Everyone is missing the point. Even most Christians, I believe, are missing the point of this film. The most prevalent debate is about stirring up "anti-Semitism"... definition: hostility toward, prejudice, or discrimination against Jews or Judaism. Not only is that a foolish thing to consider... it just isn't going to happen... but even more so, I believe it is a waste of breath for a Christian to try and argue with someone about this. Late last night on ABC Nightline I watched Ted Koppel interview several church leaders from both Catholic and Evangelical churches, a number of Jewish leaders, and a few scholars who were not believers. Obviously the church leaders were adamantly for the film and trying to deflect the criticisms of the Jewish leaders and the scholars. One of the scholars made a comment that further proved the apostle Paul's point. He said something like this (not a direct quote, but close), "When Christians go to watch this film it is going to make them angry when they see how Christ was treated. Whether historically accurate or not, such gruesome portrayal is going to stir up anger at who was responsible. Now who are they going to be angry at? Are they going to be angry at God? Of course not? Who is their anger going to be directed toward? It's going to be toward the Jews." And of course, the Christian leaders went around and around in an unending web of debate with this "scholar."

But it's meaningless. Until the spirit of God penetrates the heart of these people they will never understand. Everyone misses the point. Unbelievers ask the question, "Who is to blame for Jesus' death?" And they are dumbfounded when Mel Gibson, or another Christian answers, "We all are responsible." They don't get it. They are worried about anger and anti-Semitism. But what they don't understand is that this film is not going to stir up anger within the Christian. It's actually very much the opposite. It will stir up a deep love for Christ. You see, the reason the scholar misses the point is because he sees Christ much differently than I do. I see that horrific act of violence and death and recognize that it was his (Christ's) plan to begin with. He did it because he loves me. He did it because he loves the person hitting him in the face and the person driving the nails into his hands. And when the Spirit of Christ enters a person their only response is to react in the same way he reacted. With love and obedience. But it takes the Spirit to understand things of the spirit. The film makes sense to a Christian. It does not, however, to someone who does not believe in Jesus Christ. To the person who does not believe, all that is seen is a physically violent, unnecessarily gory and racist film. To see it only in the physical is to terribly miss the point. And we must understand that the "physical" is the only way a person who refuses to open their heart to Christ is capable of seeing this film.

But I am afraid that even many believers in Christ are, too, going to miss the point because of the physical nature of the film. It is true that Jesus took the punishment for all the sins of all the world. It is true that the punishment he received was an extremely gory, bloody event. It is sad to watch. But it isn't the point. The punishment was not what Jesus was weary of. The thorns, whips, and nails were not why he withered in the Garden of Gethsemane and cried out to God to "remove this cup" from him. What you see in Mel Gibson's film is what the last 12 hours of Christ's life on earth (before the resurrection) physically LOOKED like. But if that is all you see... if that is what makes you upset... if that is what makes you cry... then you've missed the point.

The most horrifying part of the event of Christ's death was not the blood... it was this: the fact that "God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God" 2 Corinthians 5:21. And in other words, "He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed" 1 Peter 2:24. The thing that we must realize in watching this film is what happened in the spiritual realm while Jesus was taking the pain of the nails. The physical pain alone would have been bearable. In fact, if it were just about the physical pain there would be no reason for a movie like this. Lots of men had been crucified in that day. Lots of men had faced death bravely. It wasn't about the physical stuff you see. It was about the fact that for the first time in the eternal life of the Christ, he was feeling what it was like to be completely separated from God. He cried, "Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?"–which means, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" Matthew 27:46. God had forsaken him because of what 2 Corinthians 5:21 and 1 Peter 2:24 says. For the first time in his life, Jesus was covered with sin. All sin. Of all the world. Mine. Yours.

You see, "sin" was the scariest thing. Not nails. But many people will miss that point. If they have not come face to face with their own sin and accepted the grace that Jesus was on the cross to offer, then all they will see is a man being brutally punished. They will miss the point.

Please don't miss the point of this film... you who "have the mind of Christ." And please stop trying to argue with people about the point. Pray that God reveals Himself to whoever doesn't get it. It's the only way things will change. Otherwise, just accept the fact that the presence of Jesus Christ in the world today has the same potential to stir up the same amount of trouble as when He was on this earth 2000 years ago.

A Letter From Iraq

Yesterday my brother, Jared, read a portion of a letter he and Stefani received last week from one of the US soldiers in Iraq. It was very touching, and he said I could post some of it here. Some context: this soldier had an opportunity to come home on leave a couple months ago, and when he did he visited Jared and Stefani. Also, Jared and Stefani gathered cookies, candy, pictures, letters, etc. from the Oasis kids and sent them in a box to this soldier in Iraq.

...I did enjoy the opportunity to re-unite with you Stef, and meet you Jared! We spent too many years apart as family. It was nice to get reaquainted.

You two seem happy together. You also share a common faith in the Lord. That should keep you strong in your relationship. (My wife) and I lack that faith. I'm a fallen away Christian and she's never known God. I hope that you both can help us follow the path of righteousness. We now know that we need Him in our lives and have vowed to take the steps to grow closer to him when I return! We need some inspirational guidance to jump start our desire! Seeing you both together with your 'Oasis' youth group has definitely inspired me already! You are young as are we, and to be that devoted to the church at your age is really awesome!

...Last night I returned to my camp area after a long, dull 8 hour shift of the same stupidity. My mood was sour and my eyes heavy as I looked forward to the kot that I call my bed. Walking into my tent I noticed a huge box lying on top of my kot. My eyes opened wide and my spirits soared knowing that I had a surprise hiding within!

The cookies and candies really hit the spot at that moment and the youth groups cards made me feel warm and appreciated! No longer was I exhausted or depressed to have spent my last 8 hours, and 56 hours in the past 7 days on guard-duty. I felt proud and honored to serve my country knowing that my efforts were appreciated! YOU DID THAT!!!

You made my day! I'm glad to serve our great nation. One look in any of those kids eyes does that for me. They live a life of freedom. A life that these kids will never know or understand over here! Our kids back home may not realize what it is I'm doing over here or that their freedom comes with a price-tag. But, I do! Seeing the way that they care and the opportunity that they have to express that makes me overwhelmed with joy!

You guys really didn't have to go to all that trouble! My tent-mates and I really do appreciate it. We ate Oreos until we felt we would explode today! Everything that you sent will be used. Thank You!

I hope to stay in touch and please tell these wonderful kids thank-you from all of us serving the United States proudly in Balad, Iraq!

Whether you are for or against the war in Iraq, to know and read personal words like this reminds you of what is most important. The relationship this soldier and his family will forever have with Christ, and perhaps with Jared and Stefani is something no one would deny or oppose.