Aaron Stern's Blog

Q&A: are Catholics Christians?

 It was recently Q&A night at theMILL (For an audio of Q&A nights at theMILL click here).  Over the course of 45 minutes I answer as many questions as I can on-the-fly taken from those in attendance.  I encourage people to not be afraid of doubt as it is a part of faith and to not shy away from questions as they can lead us to truth and faith.  I only get through a small percentage of the stack of questions so for a while I have committed to answer a question a week on my blog. This is question #3.

I AM A CATHOLIC AND ABOUT A WEEK AGO A GIRL TOLD ME THAT BECAUSE OF THIS, I AM NOT A CHRISTIAN. I HAVE NEVER FELT SUCH A DEEP HURT IN MY HEART AND AM CONFUSED. CAN YOU HELP? SHED SOME LIGHT? PLEASE.

It is a tragedy that anyone would believe that a person’s salvation is determined by the church they attend or the denomination with which they are associated. 

Ephesians 2:8 clearly states that we are saved by grace through faith in Jesus Christ. So to dismiss all Catholics as non-Christians is as naïve as saying all Baptists are faithful followers of Jesus just because they attend church on Sunday.

I Samuel 16:7 says that God sees something different than what we see: He looks at the heart. It is not for us to know the condition of another’s heart, so what you were told was completely unfounded. 

It is vitally important that we recognize that the difference between close-handed and open-handed issues of faith.  Close-handed (non-negotiable) issues are what bind the Church together. These issues are the absolutes of Scripture, clearly stated in the Nicene Creed, (note: when 'catholic' is used in the creed it refers to the universal/ global Church) that deal with the submission of our heart to the one true God.

It is because of the differences on the non-negotiable issues that we can say that a Jehovah’s Witness or a Mormon is not from another denomination but actually not a part of the Body of Christ.

The differences of denominations are most often over open-handed (responsibly debatable) issues.  These issues are not salvation issues and are frequently interpretations, deductions, cultural traditions and personal preferences.  They make for interesting discussion and debate but they are not dividing lines of faith and salvation.

I know plenty of Catholics who have a wonderful, vibrant relationship with Jesus and I love the diversity of faith expressions found within the family of God.

Q&A: forgiveness and trust

April 9^th at theMILL was Q&A night.  With 3X5 cards and pens on every chair, the topics for the night are undetermined and come at random.  There are two guidelines for this out-of-the-ordinary-night: No questions are off-limits and I will only discard questions that were blatantly inappropriate…other than that anything goes.  Though I have done this several times at theMILL, I get nervous every time.  I expect the usual dating and tattoo questions but have no idea what curveballs will get thrown my way.  I prepare by asking God for wisdom and His direction for the night.  Then it is jumping into the question abyss and doing my best to answer as many questions as possible on the fly over the course of 45 minutes.  I really love Q&A at theMILL and encourage people to not shy away from questions as they can lead us to truth and faith.  For an audio of Q&A night at theMILL click here.

I only get through a small percentage of the stack of questions so I have committed to answer a question a week on my blog for a few weeks.  So here goes.

IS IT A SIN TO HAVE "FORGIVEN" SOMEONE WHO HAS BADLY HURT ME BUT NOT "TRUST" THEM EVEN IF THEY'VE DONE EVERYTHING TO MAKE THINGS RIGHT WITH ME?

When someone hurts us it is imperative that we forgive him or her.  This is often easier said than done but it is something we are directed to do in Scripture no matter how deeply we are wounded or how often we are hurt (Matthew 8:21-35, Mark 11:25, Colossians 3:13).  To withhold forgiveness is not only opposite of the way of Jesus but destructive to our own hearts. 

When talking about hurt and forgiveness, it is important to realize that forgiveness is not synonymous with trust.  Our relationships with others are built on trust and when that trust is violated it changes the dynamic of the relationship. Though forgiveness may happen relatively quickly, trust is built over time.  Forgiveness is a prerequisite for trust to be built, but trust is not automatic. Depending on the violation it may be that trust is never fully rebuilt (i.e. rape by a supposed friend, sexually inappropriate behavior from a family member, etc.). 

I think of it like a bathtub of water.  Building trust is similar to filling the tub with a drip or slow trickle – it will fill up but it takes time.  When someone damages that trust, especially in a significant way, it is like pulling the plug to the drain and the water emptying quickly.  To refill the tub again will take time, so having forgiven someone without fully trusting them is normal.  

If they demonstrate trustworthiness over the course of time, the tub can be refilled and trust can be reestablished.

Pause and Produce

Rhythms in life are so important.  In the first chapter of the first book of the Bible God establishes rhythm.  He creates and works for six days and on the seventh he rests.  The amazing thing is that God didn’t have to rest…he can’t tire.  So He his communicating something much bigger than a six day work week.  He is setting a pattern we are to mimic. Leviticus 25 highlights the seventh year as a year for fields to rest and rejuvenate.  God is saying that rhythm and rest provided the needed time to produce again.

I ran across this video recently.  It communicates the value of time off in an incredibly powerful way.  We need to pause.  God made us to pause.  Not just to sleep but to create again.  Check it out.

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Mountain Dew and Easter

 Yesterday was Ash Wednesday. The day in the Church calendar that indicates the first day of Lent. For Lent I am giving up Mountain Dew.  For those of you that know me, that is a big deal...I love Mountain Dew!  I actually believe it to be the nectar of heaven.  Before you call me crazy or say "about time" hear me out, there is a method to the madness.  Below is an excerpt from a post from my good friend, Glenn Packiam about the history and purpose of Lent that will help give meaning to this oft overlooked tradition. 

HOW DID LENT BEGIN?

In the Old Testament both Moses (Exodus 34:28) and Elijah (I Kings 19:7) seem to have had 40-day periods of fasting for the purpose of devoting undivided attention to God, preparing them for a special work. Jesus, on the precipice of beginning His ministry, fasted for 40 days in the wilderness where He was tested and proved ready to begin. As a result, when the church leaders in the mid-2nd century were preparing candidates for baptism, they required the candidates to undergo a 40-day period of reflection, examination, and preparation before they were baptized on Easter morning. As early as the turn of the 3rd century there began to be a more formalized period of repentance and reflection before Easter as evidenced by one of St. Iraneus's letters to the pope, though it seemed to last 40 hours rather than 40 days. The various ways of observing Lent became more homogenous after Christianity became legalized in the early 4th century, and even more so after the Council of Nicea in 325AD, making it the 40-day period we are now familiar with. It was Pope Gregory the Great in the early 7th century who moved Lent from beginning on a Sunday to begin on a Wednesday (called Ash Wednesday) so that the Sundays during the Lenten season could be mini-Easters, or mini-feast days.

WHAT'S THE PURPOSE FOR LENT?

The purpose of Lent is prayer, self-examination and repentance, sacrifices and acts of service in preparation for Easter. It's main components, historically, have been fasting and prayer. Like any other occasion of fasting, the goal is to let go of things in our lives that are not inherently harmful or destructive in order to give our attention to Christ in a special way. It is a letting go of the good for the sake of the laying hold of the best that Christ has offered. For the great part of church history, Lent has been about dietary restrictions, with Sundays being the "feast days" where you get a brief reprieve. 

It is a way to "know Christ in the fellowship of His sufferings"(Phil. 3:10-11), to share in it with Him, so that we might experience the life, the resurrection, of Easter in a fresh way. It is a way of preparing us to live in perpetual Easter-- the life of Christ springing up anew in us as we lay down and let go of control and selfishness.

So, what should you give up? Whatever it is that you feel has more of a hold on you that it should, or simply anything that would represent a sacrifice, and the elimination of which would free up time and energy to focus upon Christ.

I hope you jump in, voluntarily give something up as we focus on Christ and look forward to Easter. What are you giving up for Lent?

Half Church: there's more to it

 What is Church?  The Bible uses two words to describe Church.  In the Greek, they are Koinonia and Ecclesia.  Koinonia means “communion, fellowship or close relationship.”   The definition implies an intimate, personal and small connection of people.  Acts 2:42 uses the word Koinonia as it describes what was happening among the early church: “They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and the fellowship (koinonia), to the breaking of bread and to prayer.”  Ecclesia is defined as “assembly” or more specifically “the assembly of the called out ones,” which means larger gatherings of those who are in Koinonia with some but not all. This often looks like a traditional church service, as referenced in Hebrews 10:24-25(ESV): “And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together (ecclesia), as is the habit of some….”  

As a pastor working primarily with college students and 20-somethings, I see two interesting trends related to these words.  Each leads in a very different direction.  The first is to emphasize Ecclesia only - the promotion of the large gathering, the necessity of being in church on Sunday, serving in a ministry to make the gathering happen, and being at church every time the doors open.  The dismissal of koinonia is often done with the excuse “I am in church and around what God is doing on a regular basis.  I don’t have time to get caught up in the drama and difficulties of smaller groups.”

The second, and maybe more prevalent trend, is to only emphasize koinonia -- the gathering of close friends who challenge, pray for, and encourage one another towards growth in God.  The rational for dismissing the large gathering (eccslesia) is that “the Church is not a building but people.  I am the Church.  My God-fearing friends and I are the Church wherever we are.  Big gatherings of people on a weekly basis in a building lacks intimacy and is institutional.”

The problem is that both of these facets are good but neither are complete on their own.  Church is intended to be both ecclesia AND koinonia.  

To have ecclesia without koinonia is to enjoy the corporate worship and gathering of the diversity of God’s people but at the neglect of intimate fellowship.  Someone could easily come to a church, especially if it is large, and never open his or her heart to others, never be known by or experience  true community, and never become more than part of a crowd.  It is a sense of belonging without the transforming power, accountability, encouragement (and mess) of community.

To have koinonia without ecclesia is to have close friends who share similar interests and allow the enjoyment and comforts of commonality and strength of relationship, but at the neglect of a corporate gathering and corporate leadership.  How easily, in such an environment, someone could insulate himself from people with whom he doesn’t naturally click!  It is a sense of belonging without the diversity, refinement, encouragement (and mess) of a corporate gathering.

Both are ultimately about belonging to the Body of Christ and God’s design of Church but -- in both cases -- to have one without the other is to avoid mess and to miss out on something important for our spiritual growth and maturity.  Most likely, some of us feel more comfortable in a corporate gathering and others of us find our niche in a smaller setting. Regardless of feelings or comfort zone, both are a necessary component of being a part of God’s Church.

I am of the belief that the messiness of Church is part of God’s plan.  The difficulties that we so often want to run from or avoid actually are part of the mirror God uses to confront our selfishness, pride or other hidden pockets of sin in our hearts.  What if the annoying guy that drives you up the wall is part of God working patience in your life?  What if the desire to only be around those you like is a signal of your need to push on your desire for a comfortable and controlled world? What if the drama queen is God’s way of instilling compassion and faithfulness in you?  What if differences in biblical interpretation is a reminder to focus on the absolutes of Scripture and embrace unity?  What if the person that hurt you is how God intends to teach you forgiveness and redemption?   It might seem easier to run from or quit the half that is hard but we need BOTH!  

We need ecclesia to see what God is doing around us, to realize we are not alone, to be motivated toward godliness, and see where we fit in the body of Christ.  We need koinonia to experience community and recognize what it means to belong to one another, to work through the difficulties of relationship and to be faithful to walk with other individuals. We need the messiness of Church to grow and become more like Christ. Are you willing to embrace the need for both koinonia and ecclesia in your life?