Monthly Archives: December 2015

Pondering the Advent: Mary’s First Noel

21 Monday Dec 2015

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I would consider myself a thinker. I like to contemplate, think, and ponder on situations, experiences, and decisions. However, for many of us (including myself), the problem is that we get caught in the rat race of life and move at the speed of time that we fail to slow down long enough for pondering. This is especially true around the Christmas season. We have to go there, prepare for that, buy these, and wrap this. In fact, just the other day my wife was overwhelmed because she had 25 things on her to-do list. I’m sure you can relate.

Although we may find the time to ponder nonexistent, or scarce, doesn’t mean we don’t need to carve out time to do so.

One of my favorite verses of Scripture for the Christmas season is found in Luke 2:19, which states, “But Mary treasured up all these things, pondering them in her heart.” With a newborn baby—never mind the fact that he was God—Mary stopped to treasure the birth of her first baby, Jesus, by pondering on all the events and experiences that had led up to that moment.

What were some of the things that raced through Mary’s mind? What do you think were some of her thematic highlights? I could imagine Mary having at least three thematic thoughts enter her mind as she sat pondering the Advent (the first coming of Christ) and the first Noel (Christmas).

First, I think the thought of GLORY crossed her mind. Why would glory cross her mind? Sure, she heard from the shepherds the song of the angels, “Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace among those with whom he is well pleased.” But, remember the essence of the word glory means “weight.” Glory also, in many places, refers to the presence and acts of God as well as the beauty, majesty, and splendor of God. Thus, when contemplating and pondering the events and experiences of her pregnancy and delivery, why wouldn’t the thought of the “weight” (the glory) of God come across her mind ?

If you remember, God sent Gabriel to tell Mary the wonderful, yet terrifying news that she would be pregnant with the “Son of the Most High” before marital consummation. The news itself would act as the weight, or glory, of God upon her life. In addition, her pregnancy would be accomplished by the Holy Spirit coming upon her, depositing the “seed” who would crush the head of Satan (Gen 3:15), who would assume the throne of David (2 Sam 7). Through the entire process—a process that was filled with highs and lows—God filled, sustained, and calmed Mary as he worked to fulfill the divine promises made in antiquity. Talk about the glory of God!

I could imagine as Mary sat pondering the first Noel, basking in God’s glory as she held Jesus, her heart welled up with praise—much like it did in Luke 1:46–55. This doesn’t mean that the last nine months of her life were easy and uneventful. The reality is, they were difficult, challenging, and wrought with hurt, heartache, and pain. And her future with this baby wouldn’t be any easier. Yet God saw and would see her through! Yet God brought her to the place of delivery and would sustain her through Calvary! Yet God gave her and would continue to give her unspeakable joy!

When we pause long enough to ponder the Advent and the journey (no matter what kind of journey it was or is) over the past year, I believe we will find ourselves basking in the glory (the weight) of God, which leads to the praise of his name and our lives continuing to live for his fame.

How has God’s glory (presence, power, and provision) been manifested in your life this past year?

Second, I think the thought of GRACE crossed her mind. Why would grace come to her mind? Probably because as she peered into the eyes of God, trough the baby Jesus, she more than likely counted and recounted the blessings of the past year and how she had become the mother of the Son of God, the hope of Israel, and the means by which God would bless the nations.

I want us to keep in mind the difficulty of her pregnancy. Mary was having a baby out of wedlock, in a culture that would stone, or at the very least, disown women for doing so. Mary was the town’s “hussy,” the butt of jokes, and the moral leper. Yet, as she thought through the past nine months, pondering the Advent of baby Jesus, I am sure she recounted the grace that had been shown her.

I am sure Mary recounted particular events that transpired where God’s grace was at work. For instance, why choose Mary above all the other Jewish women who were of the line of David? Grace. Why give Mary a supportive husband who would, after an enlightening dream, love and care for her? Grace. Why give Mary an encouraging relative, namely Elizabeth, who was going through a similar pregnancy? Grace.

In addition, I’m sure Mary recounted the particular reasons why God was sending Jesus. The baby that she just gave birth to, that she held in her hands, was the promised Messiah who had come to save God’s people from their sins. What great grace! The baby uttering the cries of a newborn had heard the cries of mankind’s heart to be born again. What great grace! The helpless baby was God incarnate who had come to rescue helpless and hopeless sinners. What great grace!

The brand new baby boy who brought joy to Mary and Joseph’s heart would enter into his intended vocation of making all things new and bringing joy to and for the world. What great grace!

As Mary pondered the Advent as well as the first Noel I’m sure she sung psalms of God’s grace. In similar fashion, if we take time to ponder the Advent and our journey over the past year, I’m sure we will be able to recount the grace of God in our life. In doing so, we will find ourselves joining with other saints singing, “Through many dangers, toils, and snares, I have already come; Tis grace that taught my heart to fear and grace will lead me home.”

How has God’s grace been at work in your life this past year?

Third, I think the thought of GREATER THINGS crossed her mind. Why would the thought of greater things enter the mind of Mary? Although pondering the first Advent, the first Noel, and the events and experiences leading up to it was great, greater things lay ahead. What would the life of this child look like? What would this child, adolescent, teenager, and man do? As Mary thought about the future, she knew somehow, in some way, this baby was going to change, at the very least, Israel and probably the world.

As she pondered the coming of Christ she realized that the great things of God come with a price. Thus, I’m sure as she gazed at her precious baby she knew in her heart that the greater things he would do in the world would also come with a price. Given that the road to the first Noel was tough, she wasn’t naïve to think it was over. No, it really was just beginning. However, pondering what and who she held in her hands gave her the impulse and empowerment to look ahead toward the greater things that lay ahead.

Experiencing the great things of God instills into one’s heart the desire to see the greater things of God.

For Mary, the first Advent was incredible and special; and then to know that she would experience and encounter her son’s life, teachings, death, and resurrection would certainly be considered greater things. However, during Jesus’ ascension she would hear about a Second Advent, another one of God’s greater things yet to come.

During this Advent season, let us ponder the great things God has done. As we remind ourselves of the great things God has done, we will look forward in great anticipation to the greater things he has yet to do! Some might be a little cynical or pessimistic about the so-called greater things. But I am here to remind you of the greater thing of Christ’s Second Advent—when he will come with the full glory of his consummated kingdom and make all things new by fully righting every wrong, wiping every tear from our eyes, and eliminating disease, sickness, and death.

What have been some great things that God has done in your life this past year? What do you look forward to him doing in and through you this coming year?

In closing, the Advent season is a great time to reflect and ponder on how we have experienced God’s glory and grace over the past year. It is also a great time to remind ourselves of the great things God has done and to look forward in great anticipation to the greater things that lay ahead.

Merry Christmas and Gloria in Excelsus Deo!

Cruising with Mickey Mouse: Things the Church and Disney have (or should have) in Common

04 Friday Dec 2015

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Last week my family and I went on a Disney cruise thanks to my mother-in-law! We had the most wonderful time—eating unlimited desserts, watching the shows, sitting by the pool, taking in majestic ocean views, being surprised by the little towel figures at night, and an all-day child-center. In experiencing a Disney cruise for the first time, and having some down time on the boat, I jotted down some things that I think the church and Disney have in common—or at least should, to some degree, have in common. While I jotted down more, here are the top five.

  1. Disney has created a global brand.

Disney is not just a North American name or a Western name, but a global one. It doesn’t matter if you’re from Indiana or India, Colorado or Chile, South Dakota or South Africa, Kansas or Kenya, or Hawaii or Hong Kong, most people have heard of Mickey Mouse, and perhaps Walt Disney. And if they have the resources, they have experienced or plan to experience Disney in some way.

The global phenomena of the Disney brand means that its message along with its characters and stories cross-translate to the various cultures and peoples throughout the world. The message of “where dreams come true” and the characters of Mickey Mouse to Cinderella, coupled with each character’s story, resonate with every boy and girl throughout the world—not to mention every person regardless of age.

The universality of the inclusive branding of Disney is something that the church shares in common.

God is a universal and inclusive God who’s on mission to redeem a people for himself from all peoples of the world.

Thus the message of God along with his people and their stories should capture and resonate with the hearts of every people, regardless of age, throughout the globe.

  1. Disney makes it their aim to bring joy to others.

Now before you pushback on this one and say that they are in the “business” of bringing joy to others, I want you to think about how good they are at this aim compared to all the other “businesses” that aim to bring a joyful experience to others. Sure, with Disney, people pay to experience joy…happiness; however, while I am sure something exists that tops the Disney experience, I have not been to or experienced any other business that does a better job at excelling at bringing joy to others.

On the boat, kids lived in a state of joy, and parents and grandparents experienced the flood of happy and joyful feelings as they experienced the elated emotional wonderland of their children. To my chagrin, there were even newly weds and adults on the boat without children that seemed to be delighting in enjoyment. In short, when people come in the presence of Disney—be it a cruise, the parks, or its movies—joy fills their lives.

Think about this, Disney brings temporal joy to those who pay for an experience, but the church is to bring and be joy for the world through and by the free grace of Jesus Christ.

In other words, we bring and are joy for the world not because they pay for it, but because Christ has paid it and we just live in that joy.

  1. Disney has a diverse team that serves its mission.

One of the interesting things that I learned while on the boat is that there were over a thousand crew-members from 55 nations. That’s just on one boat! I think it would be safe to assume more nations are represented in the Disney universe—in its different venues and sectors. What does this suggest? That Disney has a mission that fosters unity even in diversity.

As it stands, it seems that Disney does a much better job than many churches in embodying a mission that fosters unity in diversity. Why? Because they have united around the mission of “where dreams come true” and being the happiest place on earth where customers/consumers leave having their joy-jars filled. In short, they come together to fulfill the Disney experience of which its customers anticipate.

On the other hand, the church has a difficult time with diversity because instead of coming together around the mission of glorifying God by sharing and showing the gospel of King Jesus in all spheres of life as God creates a people for himself, they, many times, get bogged down in the pseudo-mission of making it about themselves—their preferences, traditions, rituals, and goals—to the degree it isolates those who are different.

The more complex you make mission, the more fragmented and homogenous it becomes; the simpler you make mission, the more heterogeneity can flourish.

  1. Disney’s engagement with culture is multifaceted.

While I cruised with Disney, there are so many other cultural veins where Disney is present. They own TV networks (outside of their Disney networks, Disney also owns ESPN, ABC, A&E, and Lifetime), radio stations, music and book publishing companies, film companies (including Pixar, Lucasfilm, and Marvel), and theme parks. Disney literally has its hands in the business, entertainment, sciences, arts, and education realms. Because of its cultural production in these different areas, Disney has helped shape and craft culture. The shaping and crafting of culture has given them a lot of cultural capital.

This notion of a multifaceted cultural engagement can be (needs to be) something that the church learns from Disney. And, for those of you who are unaware, the church has had a multifaceted cultural engagement in its history (think of hospitals, schools, and other organizations and institutions).

I’m not suggesting that the church create an alternative Disney with theme parks filled with Bible characters; but I am suggesting, as James Hunter and Andy Crouch have in their own way, that if the church wants to help shape, craft, reach, and/or speak into culture, it needs to, at the very least, contribute to it. This can be through the creation of ideas, businesses, arts, sciences, educational institutions, organizations (and NPOs), and entertainment.

I believe the mission of the church isn’t only reserved for the spiritual realm, but the material and cultural realm.

Thus, I believe the church is not just called to be convictional-prophets living in the cities sharing the good news of Jesus Christ and warning people to flee the wrath to come, but also culture-producers working in the cities showing the good news of Jesus Christ and the kingdom he inaugurated and will one day consummate.

When we share and show the gospel in its entirety, we become a movie-like trailer providing a glimpse of the soon coming, radiantly glorious consummated kingdom where everything [culturally] done in the city will orbit around and reflect the glory of King Jesus.

  1. Disney propagates happy endings and for dreams to come true

Disney is all about happy endings. Every Disney movie or story that I can remember (except for “Old Yeller”) has a happy ending. In fact, one of the Disney musical lines from “Pinocchio” is: “When you wish upon a star, makes no difference who you are…when you wish upon a star, your dreams comes true.” Disney has provided narratives where the prince shows up right on time to awake the sleeping princess, where the evil villain is finally defeated, where the family is reunited after a treacherous journey, where they find the treasure and live happily ever after, and where the world is saved from annihilation.

I think the notion of longing for happy endings and for our dreams to come true is theologically on point.

Scripture teaches that due to our sin, we have created the environment of unhappy endings and shattered dreams, and cannot do anything to reconcile that. However, we long for our happy ending, our lives to be made right, our world to be devoid of pain, evil, and suffering.

It’s in our doom that God promises our Deliverer; it’s in our recession in sin that God promises our Rescuer; it’s in our suffering God promises a Savior; it’s in our waywardness God promises the Way; and it’s in our chaos God promises a King. Given our plight, God sends his Son Jesus—the universal, rightful, Creator-God, King, and hero—to experience the ultimate unhappy ending so that he can give all those who call on his name the most incredible and eternal happy ending—where they truly live happily ever after in the New City.

In closing, I’m grateful for the things we can learn from all kinds of businesses, people, and experiences and apply them to our understanding of Scripture and church. I have great appreciation for Disney as a company and what they do. While they have a great product and provide a great experience, I believe we (the church) have a great Savior and if faithful provide an eternal foretaste of the glory divine.