A Present Reality & Past History of Suffering: Lessons from the African American Church

With the the news of the Iranian pastor who has been sentenced to die for his Christian faith, I have to wonder where the suffering, the persecution, and the hardship is for the American church.  As a part of such, sometimes I breathe a light prayer for God to send that to us, to refine us, but I admit it scares me and I am too content to really mean it.  Shame on me and shame on us all.   However, the desire for suffering in our churches (as crazy as that sounds) was really strengthened after reading one phrase from one sentence in Eric Metatexas’ biography of Dietrich Bonhoeffer.

When Bonhoeffer visited New York in 1930-31, he really did not find fellowship with the theologically elite from Union Seminary at Columbia University.  In fact, he offered a pointed review: “The theological atmosphere of the Union Theological Seminary is accelerating the process of the secularization of Christianity in America . . . . In New York they preach about virtually everything: only one thing is not addressed, or is addressed so rarely that I have as yet been unable to hear it, namely, the gospel of Jesus Christ, the cross, sin and forgiveness, death and life.”

Do you want to know where he DID find true preaching?  It was in African American churches.  After visiting one with a friend in Harlem, he attended there regularly, taught Sunday school and served there, and took back with him to Germany a love for spirituals and Gospel music. What was the difference between the dry, dead theology of Union and the rich, engaging spirituality of the African American church at that time?  It was pain; pain and suffering from over a century of racist subjugation.  Eric Metatexas explains, “the only real piety and power that [Bonhoeffer] had seen in the American church seemed to be in the churches where there were a present reality and a past history of suffering. Somehow he had seen something more in those churches and in those Christians, something that the world of academic theology – even when it was at its best, as in Berlin – did not touch very much.”

So there is the one phrase – “a present reality and a past history of suffering.”  In the past 30-40 years, in evangelical churches, do we have a present reality of suffering?  No.  And this begs the question as to why.  Why are we not experiencing suffering & persecution?  Some might say that it is simply because we live in a land where we are free.  This has to be partly true.  But does our status of liberty mask a deeper problem in the American church?  These questions are definitely ones we should consider and begin discussing.  Are we as Evangelicals more like the theological liberals that Bonhoeffer encountered in the 1930s than we’d like to admit –  ones who fail to truly address sin, forgiveness, and the Gospel?

A Call to Anguish

Powerful & convicting truths from David Wilkerson. It’s only a little over 7 minutes and well worth your time!

The Self-Deceptive Nature of Pride

I’m currently going through the Bible study  Seeking Him written by Nancy Leigh DeMoss and Tim Grissom.  Today’s study is all about pride and humility and I wanted to share one quick thought from a verse they brought to my attention.  Obadiah 1:3 says, “The pride of your heart has deceived you, you who live in the clefts of the rock, in your lofty dwelling, who say in your heart, ‘Who will bring me down to the ground?’” We see here that pride is manifested in the act of self-deception.  How terribly sad is it to think we could be going through life, thinking all is okay and that we are good, when in reality, our pride has tricked us into believing we are untouchable and without sin?  Realizing, however, that we aren’t untouchable, that we are not God, and only He rightly owns our life is the beginning and sustaining of the Christian life.

Maybe you did begin your Christian walk there . . . recognizing the Lordship of Christ. But has that truth been a continuing theme of your life since then? Have you day-by-day, moment-by-moment sought to protect His status as Master in your heart and life or have you been more concerned with protecting your own reputation?  I ask these painful questions because  I am having to ask myself the same.  Being in ministry, it is easy to slip into the notion that there is a certain persona to maintain, a projection of being above reproach for others to see.  I’m (re)learning that what others need to see, what they want to see, is honest transparency.  Yes, we need to be above reproach; but we also need to keep that in check with the self-deceptive nature of our pride.

The answer simply is to humble ourselves before the Lord. Go to Him in prayer and confess the areas of pride you hold on to and don’t want to talk about with anyone else because of your “reputation.”  We cannot afford to do otherwise, for the Scripture is clear that if we do not humble ourselves, it is “from there I will bring you down, declares the LORD” (Obadiah 1:4), which is also in the same thought as James 4:6 which tells us that “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.”

 

Spiritual Chitter Chatter

About a year ago, God told me to pray. In my heart and in my mind, I just knew that I was supposed to be praying.  And I don’t mean like praying before a meal or a few words in the morning as I was getting ready for work.  No.  God was telling me to pray and to learn how to do so in a deep, persistent manner. 

I did not listen, however, and I did not pray. I went about my life. 

In January, my church held a LifeAction Revival Summit and the first Sunday the team was there, church leaders (aka Sunday School teachers, etc) were asked to attend a meeting. Steve, one of the team members, asked us all to share what we wanted God to show us during the next 2-3 weeks and when it came my turn, I remember sharing something to the effect that I hoped God would show me how to pray.  I guess this topic was in my mind and heart, and I knew deep down I had been ignoring God’s call to pray. 

As the revival went on, one thing stood out to me clearly.  I had been living the Christian life in my own power for a good while, and relying upon myself to accomplish the task of walking with God and exhibiting fruit. God brought light to my sin – self-sufficiency, which basically boils down to pride.  It’s that attitude that says, “it’s ok, God, I got this” – an attitude reflected in the non-action of seeking Him, seeking His power, and seeking His heart. 

So often, we think we’re praying, though, when what we’re really doing is engaging in “spiritual sounding chitter chatter,” as Eric Ludy calls it.  This type of prayer “tends to be self-centric in its banter, begging for comforts to be protected, deadlines be met, surgeon’s hands to be guided, tests to be passed, and food to be blessed.  It’s always about us.  And, whereas there is nothing wrong with praying about our own personal needs, prayer – real life, historic prayer – is otherworldly and built upon the notion of a forgotten self.  It’s aggressive, commanding, persevering, passionate, and feverishly unrelenting . . . .” (From Wrestling Prayer by Eric & Leslie Ludy) 

As I seek to turn away from self-sufficiency, and search for God and His heart through prayer, I want to extend an invitation.  Join me in prayer – deep prayer.  Let’s walk away from spiritual chitter chatter and let’s move into the presence of the Lord.