The Good News of Sabbath

Greg Reader

Ever since I can remember, my father has talked about the importance of Sabbath. But for many years the idea of a weekly day of rest didn’t make much sense to me. I was a young man on a mission – I worked hard and, if I did take a day off work, I played hard. It was all about “seizing the day” and rest seemed like a waste of time.

Over the years, however, I have not only come to appreciate the importance of rest in my own life, I have begun to discover how powerful and subversive a symbol the practice of Sabbath can be in the world around us. We live in a 24/7 society in which busyness, and even drivenness, have become virtues. We revere people who are always on the go; the more difficult it is to book an appointment, the more important they must be, and the more pressure we feel to emulate them. But our drivenness begs the question: Driven by whom? Driven by what? And to what end?

Sabbath slices through all of this. Stopping our work for a full day each week is a way of declaring that we are not captive to the treadmill of our society. Sabbath is a tangible expression that our trust is in God, not in ourselves, and that he is able to accomplish his purposes with us and with his world whether or not we get everything done that we think we need to. It allows us to experience the reality that everything which really needs to get done can be accomplished within the time that God has given for it, without frenzy or rage. It lets us experience his faithfulness, and demonstrates that we are dependent on God and that he certainly is not dependent on us. And that is clearly a reality with which our world desperately needs to come to grips.

I was talking with a friend a few weeks ago about how there just didn’t seem to be enough time in a day to get everything done. I expected to get the usual reply: “Yeah, I’m really busy too.” Instead, he asked: “Who’s setting the agenda?”

That’s the question which Sabbath poses us. Jesus said that we can’t serve two masters – God and the power of money. It’s either one or the other – poignant words in our present context. And money is only one of the powers which imposes its demands on our time and energy every day. Technology, comfort, power, success, reputation, destruction, death – these and many others captivate us and drive us day after day, week after week, year after year. But in the death and resurrection of Jesus, all the powers have been defeated. We have been set free, and the practice of Sabbath allows us to remember and experience that reality in a regular, God-given, life-giving rhythm. By ceasing our involvement with each of these powers for a whole day each week, we demonstrate that Christ has broken their hold over us, we experience the liberation from them which Christ has given us, and we are enabled to re-engage them throughout the rest of the week without becoming enslaved by them once again. The freedom of Sabbath then overflows into the rest of the week and becomes a shalom-filled way of life rather than merely a weekly exception to the norm. In the words of Marva Dawn, the grace of Sabbath enables us to “work out of rest rather than in order to deserve it.” It provides a double-dividend of liberation in relation to the powers: it allows us to identify the impact specific powers have on our lives and, at the same time, it subverts the power of time and the drivenness associated with it. 

In her book The Sense of the Call, Dawn suggests practicing Sabbath with a rhythm of ceasing, reflecting, celebrating and re-engaging. We begin by simply and completely ceasing to pursue whatever agenda we have embraced throughout the rest of the week, even if we’re convinced that agenda has been God’s. In the quiet space which results we reflect on the intersection between our life and God’s, on the story of the Gospel, and the ways in which we are incorporated into that story. In other words, we allow our life and our world to be further shaped by Christ. We then celebrate Him and the life of freedom he has opened up to us. Finally, refreshed and renewed, we re-engage the world around us, primarily through our work, with vigour and purpose.

Rightly entered into, then, Sabbath brings us into God’s rest so that we can be brought back into tune with the shalom of God’s rhythms, and with the rhythms which he has woven into his creation. It is therefore essential to every aspect of our health, individual and communal, especially during times of high demand and stress. And it can be seen as at the very heart of our calling as God’s people because it is a rich, resonant symbol of the Kingdom of God in the midst of the claims of the powers. As such, it is an important aspect of our gospel witness and the service of hope we have to offer the world.

Dawn offers practical suggestions as to the types of things we can do to so that a weekly Sabbath will not only be a cessation of work, but also an intentional embracing of God’s grace and a joyful celebration of his in-breaking reign. These include:

 Beginning and ending the day decisively with some sort of symbolic action or “ritual”
 Developing specific practices for various parts of the day
 Moving work equitably over other days of the week. (Pre-planning)
 Including some form of personal and corporate, public worship
 Not worrying about imperfection
 incorporating play into the day

I must admit, though, that my own practice of Sabbath falls far short of the ideal. And even as I write the last few lines of this article, I feel the pressure of the powers in my life. I am stressed and frenzied because there is still so much more which “needs” to be done before the end of this week. But then I hear my friend’s question once again: “Who sets the agenda?” And I realize that even if I don’t get everything done, it will still be right for me, together with other followers of Jesus, to stop, to reflect, to celebrate, and then to re-engage once again. Sabbath, after all is grace. It is good news. It is Gospel. It is not rest which we have earned, but rest and renewal which God lovingly invites us to enter with him. The day, in the end, will be seized, but now it will be for God’s purposes and not my own.

I join with Marva Dawn in her hope that we all might “enjoy these gifts thoroughly and model them to all the overworked and frenzied persons in our congregations, so that the whole Church offers Sabbath as a Kingdom present (and presence) to our stressed-out world.” 

Therefore, since the promise of entering his rest still stands, let us be careful that none of you be found to have fallen short of it. Hebrews 4:1

Navigating an Economic Storm

Dave Witt

The clouds of economic crisis have gathered steadily over the past year and have grown darker with each passing month. The storms that broke across the U.S. late last year hit Hamilton in earnest a couple weeks ago with the news that the US Steel/Stelco blast furnace which has run continuously for more than a century will soon grow cold. The resulting job loss will ripple across the city. “Steeltown Shudders” read the Spectators headline the next day.

What is to be the response of the Church in Hamilton? What does it mean to be churches together for the good of the city in these circumstances? We are called to something beyond the currently popular hand wringing and fear-mongering, but what does that look like? This is a discernment question our congregations need to dig into. Through prayer, dialogue, and reflection we can spur one another on to an appropriately sensitive, hopeful, and prophetic response.

Here are some starting points–some initial ideas for how we might respond–

Lament and Hope-bearing: What we all need when we lose something or someone we treasure, is someone to help us to mourn our loss well, to lament it – like Jeremiah and the writers of the psalms, like Jesus himself in fact – someone to help us really let it go so that we can embrace new hope and purpose. Are we willing to resist the usual finger-pointing and advice giving that keep people at arms length, and instead to come alongside and enter into the pain? Are we willing to let others mourn our loss with us? Our culture is not good at lament–we major on blame, anger, and a debilitating victim mentality that perpetuates bondage. To move towards freedom we need the opportunity to mourn. Lament provides this and in the process it gives hope. The very act of being present and entering into pain together restores hope that evil has limits and that God is present and aware.

Recognition of Our Cultural Captivity– What is it we fear losing, or are bitter about having lost already? Have we been complicit with the greed and comfort-seeking impulse of our culture that has directly led to this crisis? Maybe we are feeling guilty because this has touched so many others but not us. Or perhaps we are not feeling anything at all, and are trying to avoid exploring it. It is important for us to recognize how we are processing the uncertainty and fear associated with this crisis, and then open ourselves up before God to hear what He is calling us to. Could it be that, like in the prayers of Nehemiah (Neh 1) and Daniel (Dan 9), we need to openly acknowledge that we have shared in our culture’s captivity to sin, and then stand in the gap for our community in repentance before God?

Prophetic Action–Standing in the Widening Gap: as the economic crisis sweeps through our city the number of those pushed to the margins will increase and most likely the resources to care for those on the margins will decrease. Recently the Ontario government announced, “Because of the worsening economy the province of Ontario will delay their poverty reduction strategy.” It is the poor that suffer first and most in the midst of crisis. Are we as the Church willing to walk with the poor through this time, to do all we can to alleviate the suffering and to suffer together with them in the process? Can we recognize in this crisis the opportunity to live the reality of Jesus all the more fully.

In Psalm 11 David helps us see our way forward by sharing his thoughts as he wrestles with how to navigate a crisis. He writes–
3 When the foundations are being destroyed, what can the righteous do?”
4 The LORD is in his holy temple; the LORD is on his heavenly throne.
He observes everyone on earth; his eyes examine them.

David helps us recognize that the ultimate question is where we find our security, meaning and hope. Even when what seems to be foundational to us is being destroyed the Lord is not absent or fearful. He is present with us and at work bringing about His purposes even when everything seems chaotic. David closes the psalm with the reassurance–”For the LORD is righteous,he loves justice; the upright will see his face.” May this give us courage to face together whatever challenges this storm brings.
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Here are a few articles about apparently increased interest in religion in the midst of the economic crisis:
http://www.thespec.com/News/Business/article/527962
http://www.2news.tv/news/40926882.html
http://www.wkrn.com/global/story.asp?s=10010934

Creating a Movement Ear Horn

TrueCity Conference Breakout Sessions 2009
Dave Witt

God is on the move in our city. I hear reports and see evidence of this on almost a daily basis. I realize that from the vantage point of isolated individuals or even within a congregation this reality might not be clear. Much of the evidence comes in the form of small changes happening in places that are not in the spot-light, but as I connect with different people from a variety of churches across the city the signs are unmistakable. This reality raises the question–how do we as members of the body of Christ in our city get more in step with what the Spirit is doing?

The leadership of TrueCity recognizes that we need a way to hear from diverse voices how the Spirit is stirring us? We need an ear horn. One of those instruments they used before hearing aides–kind of a reverse megaphone. In our case we need a process that works like an ear horn; A process that lets us hear from a broader, more diverse group of people. A process that matches up with the reality that everyone in our churches has something to offer–voices we need to hear in order to discern well what God is saying to us as the Church.

If we have such an “Ear Horn” process it will allow us as a movement to hear more broadly from each other and then discern how God is speaking to us in the mix of our many, diverse voices. Our aim this year is for the conference to function as such an ear horn. Our goal is to create space for all who are part of this year’s conference to share stories and work with facilitators to discern what the Spirit is saying to the Church in Hamilton. We need to hear how God is on the move in our churches and our neighbourhoods and across our city.

To create this process we have shifted the way that we will do breakout sessions. Every year breakout sessions have created opportunities for people from different churches to meet and dig into common areas of passion. This has made these sessions the heart of the conference. But we have struggled to find meaningful ways to see the passion and connection that is created translate into ongoing engagement.

This year’s sessions will not be seminars “taught” by experts, but will be facilitated conversations focused on how God is on the move in a particular area. There will still be tangible “take-aways” from these sessions. In the best case scenarios we expect the take-aways to be stronger than ever, because these “take-aways” will come from the collective experience and wisdom of the whole group rather than from the one or two people who are leading the session.

Each session will have a facilitator who is both gifted at creating group interaction and has a passion and experience in the area of focus. These facilitators have identified two or three “storytellers” to get things moving in these sessions. These are people from different Hamilton churches that have experience in seeing a congregation get involved in this area. Participants will listen to these stories, and then will be invited to share their own stories relevant to the theme. The facilitators will work with each group through this process of story telling to identify the key themes and learning points that are emerging.

We are also recruiting “scribes” for each session who will work to capture the stories and the common themes and dreams that emerge so that over the months ahead the leadership of TrueCity can discern together what is emerging from these diverse voices, and prayerfully discern how and where the Spirit is calling our congregations to work together towards what is good and best for our city.

There is risk involved in making these changes. There is a certain comfort in having presenters come and tell us the best way to do things. It allows us to sit back and if we are not careful we can remain passive. We are asking participants to come ready to get involved–to do the hard work of listening deeply to others, and to take the risk of sharing stories and discerning together. We believe that this TrueCity movement of churches has matured to a place where we are ready to engage together at this level. Please join us in praying that these changes will create the space we need to hear God well together.

May we who have ears, hear what the Spirit is saying to the Church

TrueCity Sermons on the Web

Voices in the city can so easily be drowned out by competing noise and the pace of life.  And yet the city also provides the context where strong voices can connect with and impact large groups of people. The voices blog has provided a context for sharing written perspectives, but there are ways to literally hear the voices of key leaders within the TrueCity movement. Each Sunday in churches across the city our congregations are led to explore God’s word and how it applies to life here in Hamilton. Many of these messages are posted on the websites of our congregations.

Here is a list of links to the audio libraries of the core TrueCity churches that have their messages available via the internet.

First Hamilton Christian Reformed Church

Hughson Street Baptist Church

Philpott Memorial Church

The Meeting House–

Wentworth Baptist Church—

Here are a couple of messages that you may find particularly relevant to the work of TrueCity—as we see churches serving together for the good of the city—

Being the City within the City–

The Essence of the Gospel
 

Better than I’d hoped for. Harder than I thought.

Dwayne Cline

I’ve had the privilege of living in Hamilton for the 37 years I’ve been alive (yes, it’s hard to believe that I’m almost at my mid-life crisis point). I’ve been a pastor in the city for 14 years now, and I’ve always dreamed about the possibility of churches coming together for the good of the city. Over the years some groups attempting to bring churches together for various purposes have come and gone. TrueCity, however, has emerged as a movement of churches, from various denominations and backgrounds, that are learning to care for each other, learn from each other, bringing good to the city and accomplishing together what could never be accomplished alone. This is better than I’d hoped for. Being able to relate to a group of churches that are on the same trajectory is a blessing. Together we care for our city, eliminate competition between each other and truly understand that we are all God’s children. TrueCity is better than I’d ever imagined it could be. We can face the issues our city and churches battle with together with each other instead of in our isolated islands. TrueCity is better than I’d hoped for.

But our coordinated effort comes with a cost. This is harder than I thought. I imagined that we could get together a few times a year, love God, love each other and all be better for it, but if someone isn’t actualizing what we are thinking and dreaming about, it doesn’t happen. If someone isn’t pulling all our schedules together, we don’t meet. If someone isn’t regularly connecting with our various congregations, listening to what is happening in the small corners of our city, and working out how to keep us all pulling in the same direction without overwhelming us with things to do, it all falls apart. This is challenging. It’s harder than I thought.

And who pays for it all. How do we pay for all the expenses TrueCity incurs when we assist in providing backpacks filled with school supplies for 2300 Hamilton children or bring together 240 people to Ride for Refugees or gather all our young adults to bless them as they worship God? And how do we accomplish this when we are a movement and not an organization. Should we run everything through one church’s finances or should a few churches pay for a movement that is benefiting many? We have been blessed with a different, stronger option–International Teams has graciously offered us their support in loaning Dave and Alison Witt and Greg and Helen Reader to coordinate our efforts and they come with some support already raised. In addition to this International Teams has graciously granted TrueCity $30,000.00 in 2008 and an additional $30,000.00 in 2009. It is a great start, but we have further to go. It’s harder than I thought.

Together we now need to own something that is less tangible than an organization and yet has a greater affect on each of us than any organization could. Together we need to own a movement that strengthens each of our churches, in each of our communities, and coordinates a city wide effort which lifts the profile of our churches without calling attention to itself. Without TrueCity none of these realities would be realized. Each of our churches is better when we are together, each is stronger when we are learning from each other; God’s Kingdom grows more tangibly present when we are together. It’s hard to measure the impact TrueCity has had, because it may look simply like our church is healthier when in reality we are healthier largely because of the movement we are connected to. I can say HSBC is healthier because of TrueCity. Our impact on our neighbourhood and across the city is stronger because of TrueCity. Yet invaluable though the health and strength of our churches is, finding the funding to cover a movement that powerfully, yet silently blesses our churches and through them our city is harder than I imagined.

So I’m asking you to consider helping us reach a goal. We are looking to raise $90,000.00 by the end of 2008 and $100,000.00 in 2009. So far in 2008, God has blessed us with $30,000.00 from International Teams, $13,800.00 from TrueCity churches and $11,600.00 from individuals for a total of $55,400.00. Would you prayerfully consider a gift to TrueCity as 2008 comes to a close in order to help us raise the remaining $34,600.00?

About a month from now you will receive a letter from us telling some of the TrueCity story and asking you to consider a Christmas gift and pledge for 2009. We thank you for considering your support. If you are now prepared to give to TrueCity you can do so by clicking this link or by sending a cheque to
TrueCity
173 Gage Ave North,
Hamilton, ON L8L 7A3

Thanks for your partnership in allowing TrueCity to bring good to our city…together. TrueCity is being used of God to strengthen churches and bless Hamilton. It’s harder than I thought but far better than I hoped for.

Dwayne Cline
Senior Pastor
Hughson St. Baptist Church

PS If you have questions or want more input feel free to contact me at dwayne@hughson.ca

The Three Horizons of TrueCity

Recently a group of leaders from different churches involved in TrueCity got together to consider what God has been doing in our midst and to let that fire our imaginations as we envision where God wants to lead us.

We structured our day around our current description of TrueCity– Churches Together for the Good of the City

We recognized that there are three horizons to this statement–
1. Churches–the challenge of local congregations growing towards missional vitality
2. Together–the challenge of local congregations living the reality of our unity in tangible ways
3. for the good of the city–the challenge of discerning and living out the reality of God’s good for our city

Here is some of what flowed from that day–

*/Horizon 1—Churches/*
We envision whole congregations which are increasingly identifying and engaging with their neighbourhoods. These congregations will not only be incredibly open and welcoming to everyone in their neighbourhood, they will also be involved in most aspects of the life of the neighbourhood. They will serve others sacrificially and generously, but will also humbly allow themselves to be served and to be shaped by the experiences and insights of others. They will be firmly grounded in and formed by the story of God’s redemptive and loving involvement in the world as they cultivate community around practices of Word and Sacrament. Emphasizing presence over program, they will be local embodiments of God’s reign and mission in this city.

*/Horizon 2—Together/*
Congregations throughout the city will understand themselves to be integrally and essentially connected with each other as part of the one mission of God. They will celebrate each other and will share everything for the sake of God’s loving intentions here: people, money, buildings, ideas, resources, leaders, church planting efforts, etc. They will assist each other in training leaders and forming missional followers of Christ. Congregants and leaders will work closely together with those from other congregations in missional efforts throughout the city. Our unity will be a profound witness to the transformational power of the Gospel here and around the world.

*/Horizon 3— for the good of the city/*
Vital churches will spread across the city so that each neighbourhood will have at least one TC congregation. Each of those congregations will contribute to the well-being of its neighbourhood schools, so that the schools prepare children for lifelong learning, work, and community. These churches would work long-term with children and teens with the result that fewer people would resort to criminal, self-destructive behaviour, and that poverty would become scarce. The congregations will embrace immigrants and refugees, so that they find meaningful employment, and a warm welcome from the congregation, to the end that the city is known for its multi-cultural embrace. Church members will be catalysts for neighbourhood associations and for associations that will secure affordable housing for immigrants, refugees and the poor, and transformational housing for those on the street. TC congregations will contribute tangibly to stable, expanding employment becoming the pattern of the region as industry leaders, who are formed by the Gospel in communities of Christ followers, provide meaningful employment, just wages, and quality consumer products, all contributing to a sustainable, healthy and beautiful environment (both natural and constructed). City, regional, and provincial governments will look to Hamilton as a model for quick-response to crisis need, for long-term commitments to neighbourhoods and people, and for community connections, and will recognize the significant contribution that Christ-centered churches have made. The Gospel of Jesus Christ will thereby be connected in the minds of the city as TC churches, through both their programs and the mission-shaped vocations of their congregants, contribute to the public good of Hamilton in educational, economic, political, cultural, and spiritual spheres.

We would welcome hearing your dreams of what it would look like if a movement of churches served together for the good of our city. Feel free to share them either by leaving comments our e-mailing us at admin@truecity.ca

We’re Better For It

Dwayne Cline

It started when a small group of pastors met with some colleagues from International Teams and realized that there was much more to unite us than to divide us. We began to consider how we could cooperate and decided that we were called together bring good to the city of Hamilton. We called the movement TrueCity believing that we were God’s city in our city. We adopted a statement of faith to unite us in what we believed and drafted core values to unify us in the way we lived out those beliefs and we realized that we were better for if.

In working together one of our churches that for decades had been isolated from and ignorant of brothers and sisters in other churches began to work with them and care for them. They not only realized that they were not alone but that they could journey with other Christians in neighbouring churches and we knew we were better for it.

One church who had been caring for the poor with food and clothing assistance was struggling to find a way to better serve the marginalized and was taught by a church whose relational ministry engaged the poor with dignity and respect. The struggling church duplicated the ministry and developed deeper relationships with the poor in their neighbourhood and we knew we were better for it.

A church steeped in tradition who had ignored their surrounding community bravely determined to care for and engage their neighbourhood. When many congregants questioned the direction the church was embracing their pastors and leaders found refuge when they gathered with the pastors and leaders of other churches who were going through the same struggles and as we cried and laughed together in following God’s call we realized we were better for it.

Another church that was struggling to continue to exist was encouraged and energized by this TrueCity movement. Their renewed hope in God’s calling for them to care for their community has seen their church more than double in size and we knew we were better for it.

Together we have cleaned up the city, rode for refugees, provided backpacks for underprivileged children, learned from each other and planted churches. Together we have better cared for those with mental illness, loved those who’ve moved to our city from other parts of the world and seen several struggling churches strengthened…and we knew God’s kingdom was being revealed and that we’re better for it.

When churches that were fighting to stay alive are again vitally involved in their neighbourhoods and local councillors and community leaders thank us for our work we know our communities are better for it. When the director of education for the city of Hamilton calls us to thank us for the blessing we have been to local schools we realize that our schools are better for it. When the mayor is encouraged by our sacrifice and service we know that our city is better for it. When churches whose doors almost closed are now planting churches we know our churches are better for it.

Our communities, our schools, our city, our churches and most importantly God’s kingdom are better because of TrueCity. Here’s a movement we can proudly be a part of. Here’s a movement we can give time to. Here’s a movement we can support because here’s a movement God is using to bring good to the city. TrueCity…bringing good to Hamilton in Jesus name. Join us as we together are part of God’s work in this city. You will be better for it, your church will be better for it, your neighbourhood will be better for it, your local school will be better for it, our city will be better for it and God’s kingdom will expand because of it…because of a movement of churches known as TrueCity.

Developing Supporting Ligaments

The TrueCity conference offered us the opportunity to practice being the Church in Hamilton. It provided us with a space where we could connect across the boundaries of our various congregations; where we could learn from each other and explore possibilities for on-going collaboration. It is an opportunity that continues to be open to us, but one that demands time and energy to nurture. The challenge is to develop our ability to connect with each other in ways that result in greater vibrancy within our local congregational expressions while simultaneously building bridges between us. It is the challenge of developing our supporting ligaments.

What we now call TrueCity grew out of a shared conviction and a shared dream—

• a conviction that churches have something unique to offer to their communities and this city.
• A dream of churches connecting in ways that allow them to learn from each other and collaborate so that they grow stronger as local congregations even as they bless their neighbourhoods and this city

It is a dream inspired by scriptures such as Ephesians 4:16— From him the whole body, joined together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work. Ligaments are the bands which hold our bones together at the joints – they enable the different parts of our body to work in tandem, and that is what TrueCity is at its core. It is a series of relationships that connect one part of the body to another, one bone to another so that the body “builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.” By practicing good “supporting ligament” disciplines with each other we live out God’s desire for his Church and, by extension, for this city.

Over this past year, seven churches have taken this dream to a deeper level by entering into covenant relationships with each other. Others are moving in the same direction. Changes in our city and neighbourhoods are causing many to reconsider what it means to be church here, and to realize that trying to “go it alone” does not reflect how God does things. Immanuel (God With Us) has called us as congregational communities to join Him in His mission here in Hamilton and in so doing, to be with Jesus together.

So when you hear about opportunities to come together—to pack backpacks or ride in the Ride for Refugees or come together for a conference—look at these as places to strengthen the supporting ligaments. When you have the opportunity to be part of a Focus Team—representing your church so we can learn from each other and figure out ways to work with each other, see this as a way in which the body is held together and built up for works of service. It will not be easy. But ligaments are essential to the Body and, as Paul says, when we allow ourselves and our congregations to be joined together

Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of men in their deceitful scheming. Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into him who is the Head, that is, Christ. From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work. Ephesians 4:14-16

The Christmas Dragon

Dave Witt

We have all heard of Santa and his reindeer and elves; the Grinch; Frosty and other Christmas favourites, but have you ever heard of the Christmas Dragon? Actually this character is not one from any holiday TV special, but is straight from scripture. Unlike the shepherds or the wise men, it does not come from the well worn passages that we read each year in Matthew and Luke. The Christmas Dragon is found in the 12th chapter of the Revelation, where we get a completely different take on the Christmas story.

A great and wondrous sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet and a crown of twelve stars on her head. She was pregnant and cried out in pain as she was about to give birth. Then another sign appeared in heaven: an enormous red dragon with seven heads and ten horns and seven crowns on his heads. His tail swept a third of the stars out of the sky and flung them to the earth. The dragon stood in front of the woman who was about to give birth, so that he might devour her child the moment it was born. She gave birth to a son, a male child, who will rule all the nations with an iron sceptre. And her child was snatched up to God and to his throne.

Revelation 12:1-5 (TNIV)

Eugene Peterson provides some insightful reflections on the reality that this passage points to, “This is not the nativity story we grew up with, but it is the nativity story all the same. It is St. John’s Spirit-appointed task to supplement the work of St. Matthew and St. Luke so that the nativity cannot be sentimentalized into coziness, nor domesticated into drabness, nor commercialized into worldliness. He makes explicit what is implicit in the Gospel stories. Jesus’ birth excites more than wonder, it excites evil: Herod, Judas, Pilate. Ferocious wickedness is goaded to violence by this life. Can a swaddled infant survive the machines of terror? Can promise outlast horror? We want him to live, we long for this rule, but is it possible in this kind of world? Are not the means lacking? But we overestimate the politics of Rome (this world) and underestimate the politics of grace. St. John’s imagination is adrenaline to us of little faith, and we are again dauntless, unimpressed by dragon bluster, sure of God’s preservation. The child survives, salvation is assured. God’s rule is intact.” (Reversed Thunder p.121)

Revelation 12 awakens us to the reality that Isaiah understood when he wrote—
For to us a child is born, to us a son is given,
and the government will be on his shoulders.
And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
Of the increase of his government and peace there will be no end.
He will reign on David’s throne and over his kingdom,
establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness
from that time on and forever.
The zeal of the LORD Almighty will accomplish this.

Isaiah 9:6-7

A baby who changes everything, who’s coming brings into being a whole new way of life. The child establishes a government. The rule of the Kingdom of God is ushered in by this Prince of Peace—and his rule increases, continually. This in breaking of heaven into our lives, this incarnation changes everything—son of David and Mighty God wrapped up in one child in a manger. And this prepares us to look in fresh ways at the circumstances around Jesus’ birth and go beyond sentimentality—born in the feeding trough of a barn because his parents were internally displaced people who could not find room at the inn; attended to by marginally skilled, rough and tumble workers who existed on the margins of their society, and celebrated by foreign astrologers.

To live out the good news of Revelation 12 here in Hamilton in 2007, we have to begin to see the ways that the dragon continues its work of intimidating and harassing. This dragon continues to steal the life God intends for us, our neighbours and our city in whatever ways it can. It works to isolate seniors; to alienate those suffering mental illness; to confuse and disempower new immigrants; to break relationships between wives and husbands and between parents and youth, and on and on the list goes. As the people of God our calling is to unmask and stand against the dragon’s work.

The reality is that while Christmas can be a wonderful time for those of us with loving family and good friends, it can be the worst time of year for those suffering from the dragon’s work. As we reflect through this advent season on the nativity it is important for us to recognize in that story the cold, hard realities that we would rather ignore—the inns with no room, the injustice of governmental census policies; and the tyrants who will kill to keep their power. In this way we can become more alert to the work of the dragon around us and more prepared to live out the good news of the child born to us whose rule of deep, enduring shalom-peace is ever increasing.

Enriching Revival

I have a confession—I am not a revivalist. As an activist type whose spirituality is too often measured by the amount I can accomplish, I have always struggled with the concept that the greatest works of God happen as people gather in churches to wait on God. I am always looking for a message that mobilizes us to hit the streets. So all of the talk over the past few months about the move of God here in Hamilton 150 years ago has created tension for me. On the one hand I have tremendous respect for my many godly friends who are calling us to learn from what happened in the Methodist revival of 1857. On the other hand I long for more than joint worship gatherings where we feel a strong sense of God’s presence.

Don’t get me wrong, I realize my perspective has numerous pit falls of its own, and I am trying to learn from those whose background and calling are different than my own. I have been helped in this by a British prayer movement leader named Martin Scott. In his book Impacting the City he shares some very insightful observations about our longing for revival and how it relates to the ways he sees God at work. I think he gives us some good starting points for developing a more robust perspective on “revival” that our different traditions can work towards together.

He writes—
The word “revival” is a hard one to give definition to. At one level it is not a biblical concept, for if the word is to have any meaning at all it is only applicable to a church that has fallen asleep (or died). Only such a church needs reviving. Surely God never intended the church to sleep, and “revival” language can be dangerous for two reasons: it can suggest that a revival dynamic is abnormal and that such abnormality solves all ills.

Yet the word is applicable in the sense that the church, as we experience it, continually needs reviving. And provided we understand that God desires the church to rise again to the challenge of incarnating the life of Jesus within our culture, it is not an inappropriate term. So long as we do not fall into the “revival-cures-all-ills” trap, it seems appropriate to me to use the term ”revival” as a statement of hope.

I do believe revival is coming—and in measure is already here in many places—but I am agnostic as to how it will be expressed. I am sure there will be some great inbreakings of the Spirit, for that typifies the unpredictability of the wind of God (John 3:8), but in all honesty, my overall hope is that we see the church rise from her sleep and grow increasingly into the fulfillment of her call. Sudden increases might well be more exciting, but an experience of steady growth might well prove to be healthier than a sudden explosion of the life of God. Statistically it has been suggested that the early church grew at some 40 per cent per decade for some 300 years—definite steady growth and, dare I suggest it, truly revival growth. I also consider that steady growth will more likely deal with our wrongly placed desire for God to do for us what He has already challenged us to do. He asks that we work out what He has worked in us; that we grapple with the suffering of creation and so come through to a place of humble stewardship. Hence, steady and consistent growth should indeed prove to be healthier.

If God comes to accelerate things dramatically, and He most surely will, so well and good but, if not, then we need to know what it is we are to get on with, and to set in place. Perhaps there has never been a greater opportunity to demonstrate the manifold wisdom of God, not only to the heavenly powers, but also to those around us. God does have a “meta-narrative” that He is telling, for He is the beginning and the end, and that story must be told and re-told in every generation through a myriad of cameos.

For that story to be told we, as part of the Body of Christ, will need to connect with our community. As a connection is made with the community, the church becomes a redemptive body and enables the setting (people and geography) to begin to connect with the amazing redemptive story that runs from creation to consummation. If the church can embrace the truth that God has called her to be a body of destiny, then sees of destiny can be sowed into the wider community. The story to be told, then, is not our story but His. The challenge facing any church leadership is to flow in such a way that any sub-vision that they are proposing is not centralized in a controlling fashion, but is ready to give way to the wonderful transformation message of the gospel. Too often leaders have developed a vision that is centred in on the growth of the church numerically and its activities—the end result being one of stifling the bigger vision of the church being redemptive in and through all of creation. Any vision developed at a church level can only be temporary. It continually has to die in order that Jesus becomes center stage in God’s meta-narrative that is directed by the Spirit.

Revival the, for me, both speaks of the awakening of the church to fulfill her creation mandate and also of great inbreakings of the Spirit, so that through the church the presence of the future is manifest for any society to view.

Impacting the City pages 15-16

My prayer is that we would experience more and more of the type of revival that Martin Scott envisions. My conviction is that we already have begun to see this kind of move in Hamilton. I pray that we activist types can learn to wait on God to move in a way that allows Him to bring transformation on a level we have never experienced, and that this move results in a steady, continuous growth of God’s kingdom where we learn to work together as the Spirit leads.