Is Conversion Optional?

Today is the Feast of the Conversion of Saint Peter the Apostle. The feast celebrates and recalls Peter’s confession of faith as recorded Matthew 16:16, "You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God."

In this moment the Holy Spirit worked to give Peter special insight, a new understanding (not a complete understanding, just read verses 21-23!), of who Jesus was and who Jesus would be for him. For most people the concept of conversion implies a change from one set of beliefs to another, (e.g., converting from Islam to Christianity). Indeed, conversion involves matters of the intellect, as it does matters of the heart.

Conversion is difficult to talk about because of its experiential nature. You can earn a degree in the historical study of religious conversion and still not understand it. In a way, conversion is a like joke, you either get it or you don’t. You either see Jesus for who He is (as Peter did) or you do not. This is offensive to many people, especially to educated people, who are bothered by the idea that knowledge does not open every door. Within Christian circles the debate regarding conversion has been whether it is a one-time event or whether it is a life-long process.

The answer to this question, in the sacramental tradition, is yes. Yes, there is an event and yes it is a life-long process. This is where the term “conversion of life” comes into play. We may have a moment where we make a “decision for Christ,” but that moment must give birth to an entire lifetime of growing in understanding of who Jesus is and who we are in relationship to Him. Some evangelical Christians stress the necessity of being “saved” and of being able to recall the exact moment of one’s conversion. In fact, there are millions of Christians who are able to recall this moment, but there are also millions of Christians who cannot place the moment exactly.

I think a good analogy here is the analogy of friendship or marriage. When did you first become friends with that person? When did you first fall in love with your spouse? Some people can point to particular moment, but some people can only say “I’m not sure. I just realized that I was that person’s friend or that I had fallen in love with that person.”  I think this also applies to our conversion to Christ. Please don’t misunderstand me, I do believe the Bible is clear that every person has to choose Christ for themselves, there are no grandchildren in the Kingdom of God.

However, the “method” or “occasion” for that personal decision varies greatly by individual and tradition. Some people clearly make that decision at baptism, or confirmation, or in response to an altar call, or by praying a sinner’s prayer with another Christian. Others have always been aware of Christ in their life, but have over the years taken personal ownership of their faith. In other words, Jesus is no longer their parents God; their parents Lord and Savior; He is now their Lord, their Savior. Christians from mainline denominations run the risk of equating church attendance or participation in the sacramental system as automatic guarantees of conversion. Where evangelical Christians run the risk of limiting God by saying that conversion can only happen through a particular method (i.e., altar call). 

However, if you’re wondering whether conversion is necessary, the answer is yes. Have you been converted? Are you being converted?  

Fresh Starts and the Spiritual Life

It has often been said that the Christian life is one of continual repentance. Repentance happens when we recognize our sin, confess it to God, ask Christ into our lives, and start to live differently. The new calendar year is well known as a time where people seek to make significant changes in their lives. Some Christians are for New Year’s resolutions, while some are against them.

It is true that through Christ we have the ability to start again. It is also true that through the forgiveness of Christ our lives need not be entirely defined by our past, or by our present, but that we can look to a future day where our lives will be defined by a new reality. This is good news. However, this is not all the news. There does come a time where we cannot begin again. When the relationship is already lost, when that stage of our life is already past, when we cannot go back and do differently what we have already done or failed to have done.

I’m sometimes dramatically made aware of this when delivering a sermon that makes a heavy demand for life change and my eyes make eye contact with a person who is in their 80s or 90s. Yes, depending on the message they can respond by God’s grace. Other times the message is clearly for a person in another life stage. The Gospel speaks to us differently in the varied stages of our lives.  

Of course, we never know when the end will come, but most of us who – statistically -- have a couple or more decades of life to live tend to fool ourselves into thinking “we have time.” We may not have time to make a fresh start unless we start today. This urgency to respond to the Gospel is seen in Jesus’ own ministry when several would-be disciples give Him excuses about why they cannot follow Him immediately. His response is, “No one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God” (Luke 9:62).

The fact that our earthy lives are limited is a painful reality for most of us. This means we have to decide what we really need to do, and not simply what we would like to do. If you’re been wanting to do something with your life or change something about your life for years and you haven’t done it yet you need either to get going with God and with other people to make that change or you need to be honest and admit you’re not going to do it and stop wasting your aspirational time.

God’s grace is always extended, but we are not always able to respond. This should cause us to ponder very carefully what changes we need to make in our lives, not later, but now, for our time is limited.   

Bring Back Epiphany!

The feast of the Epiphany (always January 6), is often over looked in Western Christianity as a quiet postlude to Christmas. The major message of Epiphany is the manifestation of Christ to the world. In the West we remember the arrival of three wise men to the home of Mary and Joseph. Here was manifested Jesus’ future identity as the King of all peoples, not only of Jews, but of Gentiles as well.

Historically, Epiphany also recalls Jesus’ baptism in the Jordan River. Here His identity as the second person of the Trinity was manifested when the dove descended from the heavens and God the Father declared, “This is my beloved son, listen to Him” (Mark 9:7).

There are a variety of wonderful home customs associated with Epiphany, many of which we have forgotten about. Choose one or two for you and/or your family to observe this year:

-          House blessings: Traditionally Christians would invite their parish priest to come and bless their home annually around the feast of the Epiphany.

-          Epiphany cake: Different cultures have special cakes that they would traditionally make during Epiphany. One related custom is the placing of an Epiphany ring inside the cake. Whoever finds the ring is declared “Epiphany King or Queen” for the rest of the day.

-          Epiphany Pageant: You can act out the story of the three wise men with your family or friends. A great custom to introduce if you have children in the home.  

-          Blessing of Water: In recognition of Jesus’ baptism churches often bless holy water and make it available during Epiphany.

-          Read Matthew 2:1-12: This recounts the visit of the three wise men.

-          Parish Epiphany Parties: Some churches have begun the custom of hosting Epiphany parties where parishioners gather in each other’s homes for fellowship.

-          Attend an Epiphany Service: Remember it’s always January 6.

For more details about some of these and other Epiphany customs click here or here.

Wishing you a Blessed Epiphany,

Witness?

Every Christian is called to be a witness to Jesus Christ. A witness is someone who shares what they have seen or experienced with others. A witness is someone who points others to Jesus Christ by the content of their character. During this season of Advent we are reminded that John the Baptist “came as a witness to testify to the light, so that all might believe through him. He himself was not the light, but he came to testify to the light. The true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world” (John 1:6-9).

John the Baptist had a unique ministry in the sense that he bridged the Old Covenant and the New Covenant. He was the last of a great line of Hebrew prophets. The part of his ministry that was not unique, and that we share through the power of the Holy Spirit, was his calling to be a witness of Jesus Christ.

Interestingly, the concept of “witnessing” is usually given short-change in Christian circles. In mainline churches this is often equated with living a good life and in evangelical churches with challenging others to accept Jesus Christ as their personal Lord and Savior. Obviously, both living the Gospel and challenging others to accept the Gospel are part of the total picture of what it means to be a witness.

However, a problem with defining witnessing as “living a good life” is that we usually reduce this to mean living a “middle-class American life,” which is not necessarily in alignment with the teachings of the Gospel. The problem with defining witnessing as “challenging others to accept Christ” is what do we mean by accepting Christ? Do we and the people we challenge realize the consequences of accepting Christ? Does accepting Christ mean praying a prayer or does it mean accepting a person into your life who will radically change every aspect of it?

We are witnesses and every-day we have an opportunity to let the light of our faith shine through our actions. When people examine our lives: at work, with our friends, with our family, when we’re driving, when were shopping, wherever we are – do they see Jesus Christ in us?

That is the question we must reflect on every day, especially during this season of Advent.

Repentance not easy but Essential

Changing our lives is never an easy thing. Repentance is seldom a pain free process. Advent calls us to examine our lives closely in light of the guest that we will welcome into our hearts and homes at Christmas. Repentance happens when you recognize your sin, confess it to God, ask Christ into your life and start to live differently. If you remove any of these steps from the process you don’t have repentance.

1.      Recognize Your Sin

A true recognition of how we’ve messed up requires the work of the Holy Spirit, not merely to prick our conscience but to align our conscience with the will of God.  As Christians the Holy Spirit dwells within us (1 Corinthians 3:16), but even then we can deny the work of the Holy Spirit and turn a blind eye to what we know is wrong. It is also possible that we are ignorant of what is wrong, and increasingly this is not unusual in a society whose prevailing ethics are in complete opposition to the ethics of the Gospel. When we recognize our sin we recognize the fact that the way we are living is in opposition to the Gospel of Jesus Christ. 

2.      Confess it  to God

Sin is a multi-faceted reality, but one of the things sin always does is break relationship. Sin always has a relational consequence, impairing our relationship with God, with others, or even ourselves as we were created to be. Since the Triune God is the source and summit of all relationships, all sin is a direct offense to God. This is why we must confess our sin to God. It is an acknowledgement that we have injured our friendship with God, broken His moral laws, and have willfully chosen to disobey His will. 

3.      Ask Christ into your Life

Sin is not a problem we can out-smart, out-work, or beat to death by ourselves. In the mystery of God’s love for us He sent His only Son to deal with sin so that you and I might be able to overcome it (2 Corinthians 5:21). When repenting of particular sins we should ask Christ to enter that particular part of our lives (i.e., “Jesus, please come into my heart so that I might not be so angry all the time”). Without Christ we will never be able to change our lives in the way that God wishes us to change them. Asking Christ into our lives is our humble recognition of our need for grace, for love, and for help from God (incidentally we also do this every time we put our hands out to receive the Eucharist).  

4.      Start to Live Differently

The results of repentance are both salvation (a free relationship with God and entrance into the reality that is heaven, which begins now, and echoes throughout eternity) and sanctification. Sanctification is the theological word referring to our growth as a Christian. The Christian life is not to be measured by attendance at Sunday services (though these are essential) but by growth in our character, in our attitude, and in our obedience to commandments of the Gospel. One pastor said that, “Confession without repentance is just bragging.” The point being that repentance is a road way that supposed to lead to a new location, a new behavior, a new life. Yes, we will struggle to repent, sometimes we will fail, but the direction of repentance is always away from sin and toward new life.

Advent is a season for us to repent, to get our lives together, in anticipation of the return of the King.

Why Wait?

“For centuries the Church has said you cannot celebrate Christmas rightly without doing Advent first.” This bold statement by an Anglican Dominican priest captures the spirit of the Church’s liturgical year, but may leave the ordinary Christian questioning its validity, not so much theologically, but practically speaking. After all, what is really missed if we skip Advent and jump right into the party of Christmas with the rest of our culture after Thanksgiving, after Halloween, around the beginning of November?

Can we not enjoy the festivities of Christmas straight away: the cheer, the hustle and bustle, the decorations, the music, and the rest? We can, but we’ll miss out on some things along the way. Think of Advent and Christmas as two parts of an epic film, with Advent telling the first part of the story and Christmas the rest. Without Advent, you’ll enjoy Christmas, but much of what is happening will go straight over your head or will be more confusing than comforting.

Think of the relationship between Advent and Christmas as being akin to the relationship between engagement and marriage. The period of engagement is a period of preparation before the big day, which leads to an even bigger deal: a new kind of life with new possibilities and new commitments. Advent is our engagement period before we celebrate the coming of the King. In fact, the entire Christian life on earth is a period of engagement, a holy preparation, getting us ready for that day when the King will return and the fullness of our relationship with God will be realized.

 
So if you’re in favor of hasty weddings, with little or no preparation, by all means jump right into Christmas. For my part, I’d rather prepare for the big day, and more importantly, for the bigger deal that follows.

Spirituality of Thanksgiving

Thank God is perhaps the most basic form of prayer in Western civilization. Even if we didn't grow up in a home that immersed itself in a rich tradition of spirituality (which I certainly didn’t) most people would be familiar with the idea of thanking God. In my work with families over the years I've always been amused by the "forced" thankfulness of some young people. If you're a parent or where once a child you probably know what I'm talking about. Here is how it works. A parent comes to pick up their kid from some activity: school, sports, church -- whatever. As they leave the parent inevitably says, "Did you say thank you?" to which the child replies with a monotone "thank you," as he/she goes to the car. In families where manners are valued the idea of please and thank you are drilled into children from infancy. I'm not complaining about this because it was drilled into me and I'm glad it was.

Yet I wonder how much of this robotic responsiveness to thankfulness continues to influence our understanding of gratitude as adults. Consider the fact that in general we tend to approach thankfulness as an obligation. We write thank you notes because we're supposed to and we say thank you to gifts, lunches, and compliments that are less than appealing because we want to be polite. When a crisis strikes a neighbor or a different part of the country we are often reminded of our blessings. We pause to consider that our life isn't so bad after all and we are very grateful, very thankful, that whatever tragedy has struck, hasn't struck in our own backyard.

Even this kind of thankfulness is incomplete. It is true thankfulness, but it's a thankfulness that says "I'm glad those other people got hurt, and not me." Closer to the Biblical notion of thankfulness is the mere acknowledgment of your heartbeat; a simple thanks for the air you breathe or an innate sense of gratitude when watching children playing. It's a thankfulness that has been placed deep in our hearts by the Spirit of God. It's a posture that we as followers of Jesus are to approach life with. Life may have its up and downs, but we won't change our posture – we won’t stop being thankful.

That’s one reason that Christians have historically celebrated the Eucharist weekly, because Eucharist in the Greek language means “thanksgiving.” The Eucharist reminds us to be thankful and strengthens us to be thankful despite the tough stuff of life. Christians are fundamentally called to be a thanksgiving people – we are in the business of saying thank you. Are you a thanksgiving person?