Author Archives: scott

Behold the Lamb of God

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The next day [John the Baptizer] saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! (John 1:29)

The Bible makes it clear that Jesus’ suffering on the cross was not merely a great injustice in the death of an innocent man, or the tragically short end to the life of a captivating moral teacher.  Jesus’ death on the cross was the culmination of his ministry, he himself said just before he was betrayed into the hands of the Roman officials “Now is My soul troubled; and what shall I say? Father save Me from this hour: but for this cause came I unto this hour.” (John 12:27)   His death was a sacrifice that freed His people.  Just as the passover, the sacrifice that marked God’s people with the blood of the lamb, celebrated Israel’s liberation from bondage to Egypt, the death of Jesus, “the lamb of God”, marks us as those who are liberated from sin and death.

John notes several details about the crucifixion to remind his readers that Jesus is the one who is the ultimate passover lamb.   Many points of his narrative coincide with the details of the sacrifice given in Exodus 11 and 12.  The chronology in John’s Gospel tells us that the crucifixion took place at the time the lambs were being slaughtered for the sacred meal.  John 20:25-27 tells us that Jesus was looking after the well being of his mother, in doing so we are reminded that he was her firstborn – in the Exodus, the firstborn of those not marked with the lamb’s blood were killed by the final plague.  In v. 29, we are told that a hyssop branch is used to give Jesus a final drink to quench his thirst, this is reminiscent of the hyssop used to mark the door posts in Exodus 12:22.  We are also told in detail that Jesus’ bones were not broken during his execution, an explicit requirement for preparing the passover meal. (Ex. 12:46)  John masterfully reminds us through his telling of the Lord’s passion what Paul writes in I Corinthians 5:7-8, “Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed.  Let us therefore celebrate the festival”.

A Censored Story from the Past

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As part of getting to know the congregation I’m now serving I’ve been reading about its history, including looking through old minutes.  As the Church in the county seat we’ve absorbed the membership of smaller congregations that have closed in the past.  One such congregation was the Presbyterian Church in Centre – a town I wasn’t familiar with.  I asked a few people who were in the Church but they hadn’t heard of it.  I looked it up in True Tales of Tipton County, a local history.  I found a great story that had been censored from a Victorian era novel written by Frances Boyd Calhoun, a Covington school teacher: Miss Minerva and William Green Hill. The event had taken place in the Centre church.

One Sunday a Mr. and Mrs. Simpson [the last members from Centre who transfered to Covington], who attended to the Communion, took a bottle out of the closet and used it serve Communion. By mistake they got the wrong bottle which contained, instead of wine, an old-time laxative called “Simmon’s Liver Regulator.” The results can be imagined. (True Tales of Tipton, Gaylon Neil Beasley, p. 120)

U.K. Trip

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I’ve usually posted daily updates during my research trips to Scotland.  This year I went to Glasgow for my viva (the equivalent of the oral defense.)  After the big event I spent most of my time visiting friends (and missing trains) so I didn’t keep a daily blog but thought I would post a summary of the whole trip now that I’m over my jet lag.

I arrived Thursday morning and wandered around the University to see what had changed since I was there last.  I forgot how much I love Glasgow.  I met with my supervisor that afternoon to prep for the viva the next day.  I stayed at the cozy Alamo Guest house that evening.

Friday I woke too late to get breakfast at the Guest House but fortunately found a place serving breakfast.  My viva went well and after a late lunch with Professor Hazlett I was off by train to Gloucester, England to visit my friend Allan.

Saturday Allan showed me around Gloucester.  We had lunch at Robert Raike‘s house, a pub in the former home of the founder of the Sunday School movement.  (I discovered gammon – good stuff.)  After dinner at an Indian restaurant (my first proper sit-down Indian meal) we went to the Fountain Inn to catch up.  Sunday we worshiped at the United Reformed Church before I caught my train on the way back to Glasgow feeling absolutely stuffed.

Window in St. Lawrence's

Things had been running so smooth.  Before I left I had tried to book a room in Glasgow close to the rail station but I couldn’t get any of my cards to work with the online reservation system and the hotels I tried wouldn’t accept bookings by phone.  (I’m suppressing a rant to get on with my story.)  The train to Birmingham was very late.  I’m not sure what caused the disruption – they announced that a train failed – but it caused a domino effect.  I apparently had missed the last train to Glasgow and was put on another to Edinburgh which wouldn’t have been a problem had it not also been extremely late.  Due to a general ignorance of English geography I really didn’t know where I was or which way I was going.  I realized that it was going to be 2 AM before I got to Edinburgh which seemed awfully late to be trying to find a  room.  Then they announced the upcoming stops – Leeds…Wetherby…York.  York – Tim!  The only other folks I know in England live in York.  Tim’s the Parish Priest at St Lawrence and St Hilda in York.  I borrowed a kind stranger’s cell phone and called to let Tim know I would be in York soon – though I didn’t know when.  I was welcomed into the Vicarage in the middle of the night.  We reenacted one of Jesus’ parables (Luke 11:5-9) with a nearby Indian take-away that was just about to close.

Since I didn’t have anything scheduled for the next day, Tim invited me to accompany him on a car trip to Wales.  He was going to visit family and I had to get a train from somewhere.  I got to spend a little time with Tim’s family before heading off.

It was good to have an unexpected visit and catch up.  Tim has recently been the subject of controversy for a pre-Christmas sermon criticizing the lack of assistance for the poor taken as advocating shoplifting.  As we discussed the sermon and media reports (and distortions) I was shocked to hear that Church of England parishes don’t have some of the basic resources available to assist those in need that I’m used to here such as a pastor’s discretionary fund.  I get the impression that the Church’s mission to the poor has been given to the priest personally, the state welfare system, or the Salvation Army.

Church in Raglan

We had time to get a bite to eat in Raglan (had Welsh rabbit for the first time) before I caught the train to Glasgow from Abergavenny.  Thankfully the train ride was uneventful and I was able to get to the hotel for some rest before a ridiculously early plane flight home.

Dynion - Gentlemen

Renew

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And rising very early in the morning, while it was still dark, he departed and went out to a desolate place, and there he prayed. -Mark 1:35
I was watching the cartoon movie Cars with my children the other day.  The movie begins with the main character Lightning McQueen in a race.  He is in the lead but ignores his pit crew’s advice to make a stop and change tires.  In the last lap his tires blow out costing him the first place spot he easily had.  The movie reminded me the story author Stephen Covey tells of a woodcutter who works himself to exhaustion while producing less and less lumber because he is too busy cutting wood to stop and sharpen his saw.  The movie also reminded me of my own tendency to focus more on working, producing, and doing things while ignoring my own need to take time for resting, praying, and listening — to “sharpen the saw”.
God has ordered his creation with a rhythm of alternating a day of work with a night of rest, periods of productivity followed by times of lying fallow.  This is most explicitly seen in God’s gift of the Sabbath – a day of rest and leisure after six days of labor.  This pattern is seen in the story of creation, the laws of the nation of Israel and in the example of Christ himself who reminded the Pharisees (who would have made the Sabbath another burdensome item on a to-do list of righteousness) that the “Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath.” (Mark 2:27)
I can notice the difference very quickly in my own life if I don’t take regular time for prayer, meditation, and study.  I learned very early in my ministry that the pastorate is an easy place to “fake it”.  Feigned devotion and religious cliches delivered with a “stained-glass” voice can cover a lack of thoughtful prayer and attentive listening to the scriptures for awhile, but eventually the well runs dry.  But this true for all Christians.  If we don’t set aside time regularly to rest in the Lord who restores our souls we can find our faith wearing thin.  If the busy-ness of our life pushes out time for prayer, for letting our “requests be made known to God” we find ourselves even more overwhelmed. And if our service in God’s name isn’t balanced with mediation on God’s Word even our Church life can become just another group of activities and commitments to fill up our already crowded calenders.
May I suggest a New Year’s resolution?  Resolve to do less.  Do less so that you can spend more time being aware of what God is doing.  Do less daily so that you can take a few moments to read the Bible and pray.  Do less weekly so that you can enjoy God’s gift of Sabbath rest.  Make time on a regular basis to go to a park, or to read, or to listen to an inspiring song.  Make time, as Jesus did to find a “desolate place” and pray there.

Forgotten Mission

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Yesterday I preached on the visit of the magi.  My main point was that the priests and Bible scholars had forgotten Israel’s calling to be a light to the nations even as God was revealing Christ’s birth to Gentiles.  I spoke about how easy it is for us, as the Church, to remember our calling and mission.

This morning I came across a New Year’s Day editorial by Peggy Noonan, via the Gospel Coalition that was pointing out the loss of mission and purpose by many of our civic institutions.  I wish I had found it while preparing for my sermon.  She writes:

Maybe the most worrying trend the past 10 years can be found in this phrase: “They forgot the mission.” So many great American institutions—institutions that every day help hold us together—acted as if they had forgotten their mission, forgotten what they were about, what their role and purpose was, what they existed to do. You, as you read, can probably think of an institution that has forgotten its reason for being. Maybe it’s the one you’re part of.

Quote on Pastoring

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I guess this can be considered a Re-Blog. I found a great quote on Bill Streger’s Blog today:

“The two cultural characters that capture what is most important in modernity are the psychologist and the manager. These characters now define what the professionalized pastor is becoming: in the pulpit, a psychologist whose business is to spread warm feelings; in the study, a CEO whose business is to have a successful year in terms of numbers.”
– David Wells