(#7). Conclusion: A catalyst and a motivation

(This is conclusion of a sermon. So first, read Luke 13:1-9, and then the previous posts).

Why have you underlined those three words? Because the Gospel of Luke has a trajectory. Like every story, it has a plot. It is a narrative heading somewhere. And there are little hints in this text taking us there.

In Verse 1, what word did I ask you to remember?

• Galilean.

Jesus was a Galilean from Nazareth.

In Verse 2-6, what word did I ask you to remember?

• Perish.

And at the hands of Pilate, this Galilean perished on the Roman Cross while making a sacrifice, and for the sake of the whole groaning planet. He experienced judgment. He had his – I was going to say ‘mini-exile’ -- but that isn't right. That is not right. His death was the ultimate exile for humanity, of which the Babylonian exile was only a mere taste. For there on that cross was Jesus bearing the sins not just for Israel, but for Americans too.

In verse 6-9, what phrase did I ask you to remember?

• One more year.

See, for three years (?), Jesus looked for fruit on the Fig Tree of Israel. But he did not find it, and what happened within one year of this moment? Jesus himself was dead. A Galilean, Perishing within one year as a sacrifice at the (clean) hands of Pilate.

This passage, then, is a catalyst for repentance and as well as long term motivation.

When suffering knocks at your door and you say there is no seat for him, he tells you not to worry because he has brought his own stool.

Jesus has therefore sat on that stool with you and for you.

That kind of love; that kind of suffering; that kind of God-immersed-the-real-world-of-Sin-and-Pain; may well be the motivation that you and I need to turn to him.

THE END>>>

Offer your thoughts and criticisms...

(#6). Point 3: Don’t ever WAIT.

(This is part of a sermon. So first, read Luke 13:1-9, and then the previous posts).

Where are we? Don't WANT it, don't WASTE it and lastly, don’t WAIT on Suffering (to act, I mean).

The parable in V6-9 is saying one thing: God graciously gives us a little extra time to sort things out with God. But do it. Do it now. Do it tonight. Do it in front of your computer. Because you have a limited time: in this text, maybe only a year.

The old language of Christians used to talk about Jesus as 'Prophet, Priest and King'. But we mostly speak of Jesus as just Priest and King now. That is, he is my "Savior and Lord." We like Jesus as Priest: He died to take away my sins. We are used to Jesus as King: We need to submit every area of our life to him.

But we rarely talk about him as Prophet.

Prophets railed against sin and injustice and moved people to act and act now. And that’s what Jesus is doing in the parable in V6-9. He's bugging you.

V6: A man had a fig tree in a vineyard that bore no fruit on it. And V7: he had looked for fruit for three years and so V7: “Why should it not be cut down"?

A fig tree is a symbol for Israel. Much like the Bald Eagle is a symbol for America. And fruit is a symbol of Israel acting righteously. And no fruit is Israel gone off. Gone bad. So Jesus is a Prophet here saying: "Israel – You are the problem. Not Rome. Not the 'Galileans' and so the fig tree of your hopes and dreams will be cut down."

But the Gardener in V8 says: Just be gracious to the tree for one year.

Please. One year.

This is grace. This is mercy. And the point for you and me is this: This word of Jesus "Unless you too repent" is not just interesting. It has a deadline. You all know this at work: When you get a project, you also get a deadline. And the deadline prompts you to get the project done. That is part of the deadline.

Brothers and sisters, a day will come when God will call you to account, and it could be soon. Do not wait – even if confronted by suffering. And when we suffer, or see suffering, we tend not to act in that moment. And Jesus is saying: "Maybe this is exactly the moment to act."

Can you lock away or underline the words: "One more year"?

Why have I been asking you to underline three things?

The conclusion, soon...

(#5). Point 2: Don’t ever WASTE your (even innocent) suffering.

(This is part of a sermon. So first, read Luke 13:1-9, and then the previous posts).

Even "Innocent Suffering" is a moment not to waste. Even innocent suffering speaks to us. It speaks to us not of specific guilt, but of the general groaning of the planet.

Jesus is a Jew. And like all Jews he has knowledge of this: There is a intimate relationship between general sin and the groaning of this present world. So he goes beyond the Pilate massacre and talks about an accident V4:

Or those eighteen who were killed when the tower of Siloam fell on them—do you think that they were worse offenders than all the others living in Jerusalem? No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all perish just as they did.

A tower comes down, and 18 are dead. A tsunami moves toward millions. And hundreds of thousands die. All deaths: 18 deaths, or 300 000 deaths, or 1 death – each one is horrible. And each death, and each tragedy, speaks of the tragic human experience before God. And each and every moment of pain – even if not experienced directly by you – is a 'megaphone to rouse deaf ears', saying something like this:

Your mortality is real. Turn to God now.

GK Chesterton was asked by Time Magazine: "What is the problem with the world?" He sent in his answer: "Dear Sir, I am".

I am the problem in the world.

John Piper – the Baptist minister from Minneapolis – wrote an article on the eve of prostate surgery called 'Don't WASTE your cancer'. God has given you an opportunity, he claims. A door. He offers 10 ways not to waste your cancer. His ninth point is this:

Are your besetting sins as attractive as they were before you had cancer? If so you are wasting your cancer. Cancer is designed to destroy the appetite for sin. Pride, greed, lust, hatred, unforgiveness, impatience, laziness, procrastination—all these are the adversaries that cancer is meant to attack. Don’t just think of battling against cancer. Also think of battling with cancer. All these things are worse enemies than cancer. Don’t waste the power of cancer to crush these foes. Let the presence of eternity make the sins of time look as futile as they really are. “What does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses or forfeits himself?” (Luke 9:25).

Don’t waste these precious moments, friends. They are a door.

Before I go on to my third point, can I ask you to underline or lock in your minds one word from verse 2-5: The Word Perish. I’ll explain in a soon.

(#4). Point 2: Don’t ever WASTE your suffering.

(This is part of a sermon. So first, read Luke 13:1-9, and then the previous posts).

Don’t ever waste the opportunity that suffering brings. This is a counter-intuitive. But Jesus hears the news of Pilate's massacre and offers a very surprising response to grieving people. Some would say insensitive. I would say insightful.

He says to this news in effect (my reflection from V2):

You think, don’t you, deep down, deep deep down, that those people were worse sinners than you are because they died in this way? Well, if you think this way, then you’ve wasted a significant God-opportunity. You have squandered a redemptive-moment. You’ve closed a door, not opened one.

You might think that this is odd to think the way Isrealites thought. But good Israelites had good precedent to link a moment like Pilate's massacre to sin. A third of your Bible – one whole third – is taken up by the Prophets: Like Jeremiah, and Isaiah, and Amos, and Hosea.

And what was their message? Their message was this: Look – God created you, Israel, and he loves you and saved you from Egypt. He gave you this land. And he asked only asked one thing: That you love him back and do what he says. And so God has said all along – That if you disobey me, I’ll throw you out of the Land. If you reject me, I’ll send an oppressive power to shed your blood. And that’s what happened: A foreign power, Babylon, shed the blood of Israelites in 587BC. It’s called simply the Exile.

And so you can see why they might have thought that these people who died were guilty. Here is a foreign power inflicting damage. It is a mini-exile. It’s mini-judgment.

But Jesus turns it all around. He puts the heat on the very people who raised the issue. V2

Do you think that they were worse sinners? No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all perish as they did.

What’s Jesus saying? At least two things:

1. That suffering not metered out in most cases for a specific sin. You can never say: because they suffered, they must have been especially guilty. That can never be said anymore without revelation. Jesus frees us from that way of thinking.

2. But secondly he doesn’t then let anyone off the hook. Suffering itself still speaks to us and shouts to us: There is something dreadfully wrong with the world in general. There are things in this world that are not right. And all of it – all of it -- shouts to you and to me:

I, too, am a part of the problem.

Its not just bad Pilate that’s the problem. Rome is not the problem. I’m the problem. And its not the 'freedom fighters' who are the problem. I'm the problem. All evil and all suffering is a God-given moment to look in the mirror of your soul.

Soon... Don't ever waste even "Innocent suffering"...

(#3) Point 1. Don’t WANT suffering (The people's pain)

(First, read Luke 13:1-9, and the previous posts).

Notice that there is no question in sight in V1 or V2 from the people who bring this news to Jesus. They just told Jesus the story of what happened. There is no "well how do you explain that?" There is no "Give us your opinion, now."

There is no trap question. This may have been a trap. They could be baiting Jesus to enter a political storm: Either he condemns Pilate (Not a good idea at this point) or emboldens the Galileans to fight (Jesus is trying to get people to pick up their cross, not their swords!) But there is no indication in the text that it’s a trap.

See, they do what you do when something horrific happens. You just pass the news and they let the tragedy speak for itself.

You know this experience: You heard, didn’t you, that fire in the Bronx claimed its 10th victim Friday night? Its 9th child?

You know about the 30 dead in the latest car bomb in Baghdad?

This is not just "interesting" news.

Its something we don’t want.
And we’ve never wanted.
We are not OK about it.
And we’ve never been OK about it.

That itself is worth saying to yourself. Followers of Jesus put it like this: We live in a fallen and sinful and divided world and we don’t like it, and we’ve never liked it.

Don't want suffering. But don’t deny it either. Own it. Don't slame the door shut, for Jesus opens for us a door out.

Before I go on to my second point, can I ask you to underline or lock in your minds one word from verse 1: The Word ‘Galilean’.

TBC soon...

(#2) Point 1: Don’t WANT suffering (Pilate's atrocities)

(First, read Luke 13:1-9, and the previous post).

First thing I'd like to draw out of the text: Don’t want suffering. Don’t desire it. Don’t chase it down. You don't need to chase it down. (It will chase you down).

I know that this goes without saying. (But I find that when something ‘goes without saying’, then that’s the reason to say it again): There is nothing inherently desirable about suffering by itself. Look at V1:

At that very time there were some present who told Jesus about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices.

A slaughter has taken place, presumably in Jerusalem. It is a nationally disturbing and unholy massacre at the hands of a Roman oppressor. The slaughter happened during the Galilean's sacrificing to their God. And the word about this tragedy has gone out. There are whispers on the road from Jerusalem (which is in the south) to Galilee (in the north). And anger and frustration are no doubt welling up within. The Blogosphere has gone wild with people angry about the Government. And maybe others are angry with the freedom fighters who stir up the trouble. And Jesus is journeying south from Galilee to Jerusalem, and meeting him on the road is this breaking news.

We don’t know the size of this evil act. We don’t know if people felt as strongly about this as they did, say, about 9/11. But I think that there is something of that kind of pain here.

We have no record of this event outside of the gospels. But we know it is consistent with the Roman oppression in Ancient Palestine at that time. The Jewish historian Josephus writing in c75AD speaks about Pilate slaughtering Jews. The context of the following quote is this: Pilate has gained wind of a Jewish disturbance, and he positioned his soldiers deep within a crowd of Jews, and they are in civilian clothing and carrying concealed weapons:

He [Pilate] then gave the signal from his tribunal [to do as he had bidden them]. Now the Jews were so sadly beaten, that many of them perished by the stripes they received, and many of them perished as trodden to death by themselves; by which means the multitude was astonished at the calamity of those that were slain, and held their peace.

Many Jews were killed. Others trodden to death in the stampede to save themselves. So that the Jews "Held their peace". It is atrocitious. And so was this act in V1.

It all sounds as little like Tiananmen Square?

(Point #1 is to be continued tommorrow.)

(#1) An Introduction

What did CS Lewis say about Pain?

God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks to us in our conscience, but shouts in our pains: Pain he says is God’s megaphone to rouse a deaf world.

My question, how did Lewis know this? Was it intuition? Inspiration? Experience? Maybe. Or maybe he leant it from Jesus in Luke 13:1-9? For Luke 13 is a word on suffering and pain. And what to do, in fact, beyond suffering. Please read the text.

A Nigerian poet once said:

When suffering knocks at your door and you say there is no seat for him, he tells you not to worry because he has brought his own stool.

Once suffering has sat down on his own stool in your household, what you what will you then do? How will you handle it? How are you handling it right now?

See, whether in the Book of Job or in the Psalms, the cause and reason for individual suffering is rarely given. That information is usually never present. But what to do in the face of suffering is strongly prescribed and usually simply stated. That is because it is wisdom, (rather than mere information) present in these texts.

Luke 13 is a similar text, but with fewer words, and many layers. I ask you to please ponder and reflect on this text this week, alongside maybe Job, the Psalms, Hebrews and the Book of Revelation depending on your time and thirst levels.

Three things to do in the face of suffering from this text:

1. Don’t ever Want suffering. V1
2. Don’t ever Waste the opportunities presented in suffering. V2-5
3. Don’t ever Wait to act in the face of suffering. V6-9

Point 1 tomorrow.

Help me... #2

OK. I'm preparing for a sermon on Sunday. And again, I'm looking for help. So I'm not quite in the same desparate position I was three weeks ago. But I have another remarkable text: Click on Luke 13:1-9 which includes these potentially offensive words:

1 There were some present at that very time who told him [Jesus] about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices. 2 And he answered them, "Do you think that these Galileans were worse sinners than all the other Galileans, because they suffered in this way? 3 No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish. 4 Or those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them: do you think that they were worse offenders than all the others who lived in Jerusalem? 5 No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish."

So you can help me by answering any one of the following questions (or making any other comment you desire):

• Does this text speak to your soul? Your heart? Your life? Tell us about that.
• Is Jesus being insensitive? Should he go an re-read Job (You know, just sit with people in their innocent suffering, rather than speak up.)
• Would Jesus be 'roasted' by today's media for making even the smallest link between a tower falling and the need to turn to God?
• What do you think his hearers were expecting Jesus to actually say?
• Is there a relationship between Suffering and Repentance? Does the modern church make that link? Why or why not?
• Is the 'perishing' an eschatological word about Hell? Or is it about the Fall of Jerusalem? Would it make a difference?
• Is there a relationship between V1-5 and V6-9?
• Is this good news, or bad news?
• How would you structure a sermon?

Help me, brethen.

The Wall St Journal on The Cricket World Cup

Click HERE .

The article includes these words:

For too long now has cricket been dominated by Australia's unyielding and highly tactical aggression. It does not play an ugly game, but its methods and mien are seldom beautiful. Australia's cricketers care not whether they are loved, except by their own fans, who, having drunk deeply of the same cultural cup as their
cricketers, celebrate hardnosed methods. But if there's one good thing that might come out of an Aussie victory, it would be this: Americans might understand, at long last, that cricket isn't played by a bunch of petunias.

Would any American care to comment on this spectacular game? Do you like it? Why? Why not? Do you get it? What don't you get? And would you like to donate some $199:95 to the "Justin Misses His Cricket Fund"? ":)

And would any subject of her Majesty care to comment on why this game is so good?

Raw Insight 2

I've linked to HER WORK before: HERE. Brilliant.

Is James Cameron's 15 Minutes of Fame the Coffin of your Dreams?

OK -- I know that this is so last week: But James Cameron hauled out a coffin claiming it to be the coffin of Jesus. If you don’t know about it, I’m glad. The whole thing reeks of a publicity stunt that guaranteed Cameron’s desired 15 minutes. You can read about it HERE.

And the coffin of Jesus is the coffin of my faith, right? – we’ve said this forever.

So I have a question. It’s a question that you can respond to only if you believe that Jesus came out of that tomb alive; that he was raised as Messiah. You can only answer this question if you believe that by rising from the dead, Jesus has conquered death; has vindicated his people; was raised as the Second Adam; will return to judge the world; gives you reason to risk your life for the cause of Christ; rendering your life not meaningless; and only if you believe that at his appearing, he will restore and redeem all things to their good, stunning, gorgeous, God-honoring rightful place.

Put simply: You can only respond to this post if you’ve made the link between the ‘Resurrection of Jesus’ and the ‘Answer to every Question, Hope and Dream that the Universe has ever had’.

What if James Cameron is right? What if Jesus stayed in that tomb (or any other tomb)? What if Cameron’s stunt could actually be proved to be true? Like really and conclusively true!

My question for your comments:

What will you do about it tomorrow morning? (Monday in Australia/Sunday in the US)

And if you think that it’s inappropriate to ask this question, bear in mind that our Apostle unapologetically raised this very question in his Blog to the Corinthians.

S0 – answer, my friends.

(Because this is so important, I will probably delete anonymous comments. Sorry.)

New Media and Rob Bell in the 00s.

I know its two weeks ago, but I want to write a point of clarification re the Bell v Packer post .

My aim was not to compare a previous generation (that had 'higher reading') to the current generation (that has 'dumbed down'). Not at all. Anyone who knows me knows that I have never been a particularly great reader, nor am I a thinker, and I'm certainly no academic. I had to marry one to feel better about that deficiency in my development. :)

And I also know plenty of students here in the US and in Australia who are profoundly careful and wise about who they learn from and who they read, as the comments pointed out.

I am asking, though, if there have been any significant shift in the last 20 years.

I guess I just wondered how and why it is that we place a good man like Rob Bell in center stage on academic issues. Why are we now turning to Mark Driscoll for 'Christology'? And Rob Bell for 'Jesus in his Jewish Context'? And Brian McLaren to tell us about 'Major Cultural Shifting'? I'm sure they all have good thoughts, and good popular ways of teaching those thoughts. But have we put these guys in over their own heads? I hope not. That would be no fun for them.

Maybe nothing has changed. But if it has, what has changed? I think that the answer is, in part, New Media.

Sam R wrote asks some questions about New Media HERE.

(I'm not out to criticize New Media. If anything, we need to get the guys who still use typewriters to start using their 'puters.)

I guess my point is not that we ought to be reading 'higher' (which could be simply elitism), but it is this: That local regular pastors are now being treated as though they are ground-breaking global scholars. And we are looking to these guys to 'repaint the faith' (to use Bell's terms), or to give us a 'new kind of Christianity' (to use McLaren's term). Of course, I have no problem with Rob Bell and Mark Driscoll et al doing what they do as a pastor in their local communities. They ought to pastor their churches by speaking the truth in love. And their communities can debate and speak personally with them about any new and fresh thoughts.

That’s how community works.

But with the iPod, its global. Anyone and everyone can 'choose' Bell while joggin' or catchin' the train. Heck, you can listen to Bell on your way to and from church on the same text that your own pastor just bumbled his way through! :)

But then do we leave behind the books and reflections of the people who, over decades of work, debate and study, have been proven and tested to 'know their stuff'?

Does that still sound elitist? I sincerely hope not, and I apologize in advance if it does...

:)

(Last) Post #10: The Second thing we learn: Make Friends.

Last post!

SCROLL DOWN and read all the posts leading up to this one. But make sure you read the TEXT.

And the other thing you learn? What are you to do?

The final thing to learn is this: Make Friends.

And I tell you, make friends for yourselves by means of dishonest wealth so that when it is gone, they may welcome you into the eternal homes.

Make friends with whatever you have to secure more ‘welcoming’, more 'embracing' in eternal homes.

The difficulty is the word ‘dishonest’. But I think his point is this: Dishonest Wealth is a way of talking about worldly wealth. It is compared to True Wealth in V11. True Wealth is riches that last forever. Where as the Worldly Wealth, will not be a part of the redemption of the world.

What do we mean by that?

Take this $20 (holds up $20)– Who knows where it’s been? The chances are very high that it has been in a world of deep rebellion and sin; that it has been involved in dishonesty. It is 'filthy lucre.' A cabbie gave this $20 to me last night. Who had it before him? I don’t know. The Mafia? Who knows? Its possible. Not probable, but possible. But who knows where it has been and what it has been used for.

But Jesus says -- use it. And everything else you have to "make friends now".

See, what could I do with this $20?

I could contribute to the budget of this church. That would be stunning as we establish churches in order to touch and transform lives. And this kind of support is commanded in scripture. You would free the council up to make choices for evangelism. Wouldn’t it be great to meet, in 'eternal dwellings', with the thousands and thousands of people who know Jesus because this church honored Christ for the next two hundred years, or two thousand years (should the Lord tarry)? Who will know Jesus, and embrace you in the age to come, because this church was planted 4 years ago, and you gave this Mafia-owned $20 to its cause? Good question.

I could take out to dinner my friend – I call him John for the sake of anonymity. John doesn’t believe. But I could use this previously Mafia-owned $20 and I invite him out. I wouldn't get a lot in Manhattan. Maybe breakfast. That’s good right? It establishes a relationship of generosity. Wouldn’t it be great to see John welcome me into heaven for my 'dishonest' $20?

I could give it to a world mission. I am astounded if you stack 10 of these $20 notes, you get $200 that could put a kid through private school in Tanzania for a year. Christ Church NYC are involved in giving scholarships to kids in the Diocese of Central Tanganyika in Africa. You might say – 'that’s a worthwhile investment, even if we never meet the kids that benefit'. But then you've missed the point: you will meet those kids at the redemption of the world.

So – will this $20 'pay off'? Maybe. It's a risk. But everything you do with your money is a risk. I presume in the economy of God, a kid who knows Jesus is worth that risk.

Imagine what you could, then, with $200? Or $2000? Or $2,000,000? OR $20,000,000.

There is more to be said about the complexity of this, but the principle stands:

And I tell you, make friends for yourselves by means of dishonest wealth so that
when it is gone, they may welcome you into the eternal homes.

Here endeth the lesson!

Thanks for you help, friends.

Any comments welcome.

Post #9: Why the CHINESE UNDERGROUND CHURCH grew.

SCROLL DOWN and read all the posts leading up to this one. But make sure you read the TEXT.

Do you know one possible reason that the underground church grew in China? And I’m not thinking persecution, which is the normal answer. One answer: Because of the communist government made it happen.

I have been told this (and I am looking for people who can comfirm this to be the case): That the communists knew groups were meeting and tolerated them. And monitored them. When a church grew to about 30, they said –

"Look, its OK that you meet, but you can’t have that many. It is potentially subversive."

So they were required to split in two. And therefore they grew and grew, splitting, and multiplying. And they knew each other, and kept each other accountable. I don’t know what this all means for us. We are more than 30 at Christ Church NYC. And we are more than 150 (See previous post).

I guess it will mean starting a new service. (For my non-NYC readers, we are planting a new congregation on April 1st).

Let’s get shrewd and keep thinking about our next congregation / church plant.

V9 (the second thing to learn) coming in a little while...

Post #8: Why GORE-TEX is more shrewd than the people of the Light.

SCROLL DOWN and read all the posts leading up to this one. But make sure you read the TEXT.

Have you read the Fifth chapter in The Tipping Point? The one with "The rule of 150". The book is a secular book. But the writer of Tipping Point asks the question – Why did John Wesley change the world is a way that George Whitfield didn't? Even though Whitfield was more famous in his day, and apparently a better preacher?

The answer, according to The Tipping Point, is this: he started smaller churches wherever he went. No more than 150 in one grouping. And then kept on 'planting'. 150, the book maintains, is a size that cultivates trust and community.

Armies know this. How do you get men to fight with each other and to trust each other? And to utilize gifts? Answer: Group them in groups of 100, and not many more. (They have centurions etc.)

Gore-tex – the coat manufacture takes this perspective. Every factory they have, (and there are 45 Plants worldwide) apparently has only 150 employees. They do this so that you do not have to have 'department heads'. Instead, you have relationships and trust. And do you know how they make sure it’s only 150? -- Make the car park fit only 150 cars! So then you are forced to start a new one factory. Shrewd.

Of course, not every company runs this way, nor necessarily needs to. That’s not The Tipping Point’s point. And I’m not saying that a church should only be 150. We at Christ Church NYC are a touch more than 150. But at least a book like this helps us here in Manhattan to ask the right questions. Not, 'are we big'? But 'is our size optimal for maturity and accountability and touching and transforming more lives for Christ?' What are we aiming for? And what is our 'car park' to make us plant more churches?

I am very keen for comments from readers on this one. Is OSO a reader?

But still...

… the people of the world are more shrewd in dealing with their own generation than the people of the light.

An example of a shrewd church in coming in just a few hours... (When I'm back from IVCF [EU] at NYU. Pray for them will you? Great people. A few of them have joined Christ Church, and we are excited about their lives).

Post #8: Why HÄAGEN-DAZS is more shrewd than the people of the Light.

SCROLL DOWN and read all the posts leading up to this one. But make sure you read the TEXT.

Häagen-Dazs ice-cream (with its dubiously placed Umlaut): Do you know where it started? Scandinavia, right?

Wrong.

The Bronx.

Please -- do yourself a favor -- go the website and read the history. It looks like they are manufacturing hope down there.

Reuben Mattus had a "vision" for ice-cream. So he had a few flavors, called it something that sound Danish and traditional sounding. The two words are meaningless in any Scandinavian language. He marked the price as double his competitor. Your heard it – he doubled it. (Very smart) He got some fancy restaurants to name the ice-cream on the actual menu. This is not "Apple Pie and Ice-cream", its "Apple pie and Häagen-Dazs".

To this day, there is not a single Häagen-Dazs in Denmark or anywhere near Denmark.

Brilliant. Shrewd.

On a Wiki entry, I noticed that they went quickly to students. They realized that if you get the students eating Häagen-Dazs, you have a future eating Häagen-Dazs, and then you have the planet eating Häagen-Dazs.

So she specially opened up Häagen-Dazs restaurants in the Greenwich Village.

You get the students...You have a future...And then you have the planet.

The students!!

… the people of the world are more shrewd in dealing with their own generation than the people of the light.

Seriously.

(To Australian readers, one of our areas at Christ Church NYC is to reach students).

Another example, soon.

Post #7: Why COKE is more shrewd than the People of the Light.

Hey -- is anyone reading? I can't tell. Just log on and say 'Yes'. Or email me jmoff / hotmail. There are 4 more posts to go (The sermon went for 30 minutes). Comments, questions, complaints are valued. Again, SCROLL DOWN and read all the posts leading up to this one. But make sure you read the TEXT first. To continue:

"I used to drive a Cab in Sydney. It got me through school and Seminary. I drove a man once, who was enormously busy on his cell phone in 1990. (Which I was impressed about – a cell in 1990). And when he had a break, I was making conversation, talking about Coca–Cola. As you do. And he listened to me patiently.

And as I came up one of the busiest streets in Sydney. I pointed up to this HUGE Billboard with the word Coke on it. And I said to him:

"Do you know that it’s Coke’s ambition to have the premier advertising spot in every major capital in the world?"

He says: "I know – I’m the marketing manger of Coke for the Pacific".

At which point, he talked and I listened. As I heard him speak, I couldn’t get over how motivated and excited he was. He was in for the thrill. The ride. And all for what?

Coke! Black Sugar water. That’s all it is friends. You students say how it gets you through exams. But it’s only Black Sugar Water.

You are people of the light – You have forgiveness and grace and hope for the redemption of the world. You have the ONLY way to God. They have black sugar water. But he is more motivated than I am.

Coke’s slogan now is: "Make Every Drop Count". How about: "Make every person count"?

I’m not saying that we need to be into marketing like they are. Or that we have empty slogans. But how passionate are we? Really? This guy is passionate about Coke, and we have The Hope.

… the people of the world are more shrewd in dealing with their own generation than the people of the light.

Seriously.

Tomorrow: Häagen-Dazs ...

Post #6: The First thing we learn: Be Shrewd.

SCROLL DOWN and read all the posts leading up to this one. But make sure you read the TEXT first:

The first thing is you learn is this: We are not, and yet we need to get SHREWD. We have to face the truth. We have to own up to our failure to live shrewdly. That is, in light of the future: the coming day of wrath and redemption.

V8 And his master commended the dishonest manager because he had acted shrewdly; for the children of this age are more shrewd in dealing with their own generation than are the children of light.

Here is where we get stuck.

The master in the story is not God. It’s tempting to say that because he’s rich, owns property, and calls people to account. The master in the story is not God. He’s just a master. He is an illustration leading to the main point.

What’s the main point? To practice dishonesty? No – you know that from Verses 10-13. We need to be faithful. Not dishonest. Faithful in a little, and therefore faithful in much.

So what’s the main point? The main point is: the manager is shrewd. He is astute. He has street smarts. And that’s being commended, not the dishonesty. The master hates the dishonesty, presumably, but he cannot help be see the genius in the approach.

The 'super' did three things: Look closely at V3-4

• He stops and assesses the situation. "He said to himself..." V3
• He owns up to crisis and the coming judgment – "Now that my master is taking the position away from me..." V3
• And he decides to actually do something: "I have decided what to do..." V4

What is the alternative? To just keep going as though there will not be a crisis – no disjuncture between now and later? Just plow on? If you knew that the stock market was going to crash tomorrow. You’d do something today. That’s not rocket science. If you know that you have cancer, you act today.

You see, we know the future of planet. And yet we do not …

• Stop to assess our lives;
• Nor do we own up to the crisis to come;
• Nor do we do something in light of the coming day of wrath and redemption.

We don’t gear for God’s eternal mission the way that secular people gear for their little visions.

I have four examples of how the people of the world know more than the children of light...

Soon...

Post #5: The Fourth Surprise ...

(First read the Introduction and the first surprise, the second surprise, the third surprise and the TEXT: Luke 16)

It is a crazy so far. And it's good to remember it is our good Lord Jesus telling this story! So the fourth surprise is the words Jesus places on lips of the rich man.

In the story, you expect there to be wrath and hell to pay. Some justice to be done. You do not expect him to get away with it (Like Woody Allen's Crimes and Misdemeanors). You expect him to cop it, like the story Jesus tells of the man who doesn’t forgive (Matthew 18).

But the master finds out about the scam – maybe the next day. And Jesus has him commend the super! Not condemn. Commend.

Look at V8 carefully:

And his master commended the dishonest manager because he had acted shrewdly

Now, notice that the master commends him as shrewd, whereas Jesus, the narrator, identifies him as dishonest. That is an important distinction.

But in your mind's eye, you can see the rich man, next day, when he looks at the books, and figures it out.

"You sly fox."
"You cheeky monkey."
"You … You are brilliant."

"Seriously, no wonder I hired you in the first place."

And that’s it. That's the story. I always liked this story because it was surprising. It isn’t a Hallmark moment. Its not the kind of nice note you write to someone, just to lift up their spirits, or put on a poster to sell at some Christian bookshop.

But what do you learn from it?

Frederick Buechner said: "With parables and jokes both, if you've got to have them explained, don't bother." So I am inclined to let the story just sit, and you can make of it what you will. But I can’t. Because Jesus offers an interpretation.

One in V8.
The other in V9.

Two things to learn coming...

Post #4: The Third Surprise ...

(First read the Introduction and the first surprise, the second surprise and the TEXT: Luke 16)

The third surprise for us is that he manages to secure his financial future using absolutely nothing in his personal bank account. Brilliant. Serious genius.

This is Ocean’s 11, right?

He has a window, and so he puts his grey matter to use. And does what he’s been doing for years: He schemes (perhaps this point is not surprising?)

V3: "What will I do? ... Not strong enough to do manual labor... Too proud to beg"

V4: "I have decided what to do... So that when my master gives me the sack, I’ll have a people to pamper me. And put me up in their guest rooms. And let me stay for a year or two in their vacation homes."

You know the plan: He brings his master’s debtors in one by one. (There could have been more than 2. He could have done this all afternoon.)

Super: "How much do you owe?"
Debtor: "$1,000,000."
Super: "Here, sit down quickly take this legally binding document that I can still legally sign... mark it $500,000."

There’s a nervous second.
The debtor looks into the Super’s eyes.
The super nods.
The debtor marks it.

See, any more than a second, and the conscience begins to dictate your morals. And who wants that in a moment like this? Chances to reduce your debt like this come once in a lifetime.

You ever had this temptation? The restaurant has under-billed you. And you think to yourself, if I pay this quickly, and walk out of here quickly then I won’t have to think too much about it. But if you do have to think about it for too long, you’ll back down and tell the waiter.

You ever been tempted with that?
Yes, well, neither have I…

So the debtor has just 'made' $500,000. The Rich Man has just lost $500,000. And the super has got $500,000 of ‘currency’ in the debtor’s bank. Some chips in the game.

In the story, he does it again. V7. This time the amount is even larger.

You see what has happened? The super had nothing. Actually he has one thing: The ability to sign documents and he had that ability for only for a short time. And he’s shrewd enough to make it work in his favor.

For his savvy, he has people who 'owe him big time', and therefore guest cottages, basement living areas, and vacation homes all over the country.

The final surprise coming...

Tomorrow.