Friday, October 2, 2009

LES MISĖRABLES

LES MISĖRABLES


LES MISĖRABLES. What a movie! I'm showing it to my seniors at ETCA this week. From the opening scene your attention is riveted. Set in the 1800s, Liam Neeson plays, Jean Valjean, who stands at the door of the bishop and says: “I am a convict. My name is Jean Valjean. I spent 19 years at hard labor. On my passport I am identified as a thief.”

The bishop offers him hospitality. Valjean responds by stealing the silverware from the bishop's residence and fleeing during the night.

Ah, but justice prevails. Policemen capture Valjean and bring him to the bishop. The bishop shocks the policemen, Valjean, and the audience by announcing he had given Valjean the silver, and that he was somewhat irritated that Valjean did not take with him the silver candlesticks. Valjean is set free.

Before departing, Valjean in a private moment, looks at the bishop with wonder. The bishop tells him, "Jean Valjean, you no longer belong to evil....I’ve ransomed you from fear and hatred and now I’ve given you back to God.... Don’t forget, you’ve promised to become a new man.”

Valjean becomes a new man. He gets a job in the factory of a small town. When the factory falls into a state of crises, he uses his money to buy the factory. Years later, we find him the Mayor of the town, where he is loved by the people. He uses his energy and resources to help people.

I wish I could find an application here! Or could it be this? Like true grace radically transformed the life of Jean Valjean, so does God's grace radically transform us. Becoming one with Christ, we are made new, and we live lives that reflect this radical transformation.

If you are interested, LES MISĖRABLES is based upon the novel by Victor Hugo.

EAT THIS BOOK


Last Sunday night, I shared with some about a book that someone gave me a couple of years ago. The book is called EAT THIS BOOK. It is by Eugene Peterson, who translated THE MESSAGE. The title comes from the story of John in the book of Revelation. An angel of God offers John a scroll with the word of God upon it. And in Revelation 10:10, the apostle John tells us, "I took the little scroll from the hand of the angel and ate it; it was sweet as honey in my mouth."

That's where we like to end the verse. The word of God tastes like honey. Isn't it fun to study the word of God? And if it is not fun to study this part of the Word of God, let's find another part of the Word of God that is fun to study. Right?

Don't we have our favorite sections of Scripture? I love the narrative sections of Scripture, but I'm not so big on the poetry. Some of you may be big on the poetry, but you do not like the stories.

However, check out the last part of Revelation 10:10. "I took the little scroll from the hand of the angel and ate it; it was sweet as honey in my mouth, but when I had eaten it my stomach was made bitter."

Did you catch that? His stomach was made bitter. Talking about the Bible, Peterson writes, "But sooner or later we find that not everything is to our liking in this book. It starts out sweet to our taste; and then we find that it doesn't sit well with us at all; it becomes bitter in our stomachs. Finding ourselves in this book is most pleasant, flattering even; and then we find that the book is not written to flatter us, but to involve us in a reality, God's reality, that doesn't cater to our fantasies of ourselves."

"There are things in this book, hard things to hear, hard things to obey. There are words in this book that are difficult to digest. John got a severe case of indigestion….

"[The Bible is] a most comforting book; it is also a most discomforting book. Eat this book; it will be sweet as honey in your mouth; but it will also be bitter to your stomach. You can't reduce this book to what you can handle; you can't domesticate this book to what you are comfortable with. You can't make it your toy poodle, trained to respond to your commands.

"This book makes us participants in the world of God’s being and action; but we don't participate on our own terms…. Eat this book, but also have a well-stocked cupboard with Alka-Seltzer and Pepto Bismol at hand.”

Truer words have never been written.


It's Friday, But Sunday's Coming

I am convicted by the pain that Paul felt when fruit was not being born for the Kingdom. I am convicted by the pain that Paul felt when young Christians were not growing in the faith. I am convicted by the pain that Paul felt when needless barriers were put up to keep young Christians from growing in the faith. I want to have the same low tolerance for these conditions that Paul had, and I recognize the high price that Paul payed for those beliefs. Likewise, Jesus.

In First Corinthians chapter 3, as Paul deals with the divisions of this young church at Corinth, I noticed that he does not tell them to focus on unity. He tells them to focus on Christ. This is one of the goals that transcends unity. By focusing on this goal and others, these Christians can achieve unity.

Often, it is difficult for a couple to stay married when their highest goal is to stay married. When the highest goal is unity, there is too much that can divide. When you have two people sold out for Jesus, and their highest goal is to serve Jesus, it is much easier to be unified in marriage.

It is the same in a church. When the highest goal is serving Christ, and in doing so making disciples, helping them grow in the image of Christ, then it is much easier to be unified. The hardest way to be unified is to say, "We want be a church that is united."

As part of that focus on Christ, he tells the Corinthians to focus on building the Kingdom. He says that God is in the business of kingdom building. Christians should be part of that work.

It bothers me how often I, and others, can fall into the trap of seeking routine in the life of the church. Maintenance is the victory. According to Paul, maintenance is not the victory. Just as we have an intolerance for impurity within the church, poor preaching, and a deviance from sound doctrine; likewise, we should have a low tolerance for not joining God to bring more people into the kingdom and helping him mature in Christ.


Five things I think I think (a tip of the hat to Peter King for this idea)
1. Laresa Hayes posts a beautiful letter to her daughter, Carli, who turned one yesterday (Thursday.) See it here: http://keithandresa.blogspot.com/2009/10/one-year-ago-today.html
If you are planning a baby in the future, read Laresa's blog. It will give you some good ideas about commemorating and remembering your child's growing years.

2. God bless Elizabeth Smart and her family. To skeptics of God, addressing suffering such as theirs is the toughest.

3. It was neat to hear noted author and preacher, John Ortberg quote ACU professor Everett Ferguson. I sometimes take for granted the access to giants, I have been privileged to have.

4. I’m sorry that Chicago did not receive the bid to the 2016 Olympics. However, I must confess that I am pleased that South America will finally get a chance to host the games.

5. Go ETCA Panthers girls’ volleyball team. Tonight they play Christian Heritage School of Longview, who has lost only once in district play—to ETCA. ETCA also defeated CHS in an August tournament. Nice of the TYLER MORNING TELEGRAPH to send a reporter to Tuesday’s game. He wrote a good article. Since I know there are millions of volleyball fans reading this blog, here’s a link to the article:

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