Shoeless Joe

I was teaching Ruth 4 and was asked, “Why does the unnamed relative in Ruth 4 take off his shoe?” To help us understand this sandalous situation [sorry, couldn’t resist], I need to take you on a field trip. Climb in the Magic Schoolbus kids, and let’s travel to an ancient city called Arad. [You’ll enjoy the cool pictures of the ruins if you Google “Arad, Israel.”]

During and after Israel’s conquest of the land, Arad was one of the larger cities in the world – over 30 acres of densely-packed houses. It was built at a major trade crossroads. Under the judges & kings of Israel, a big fortress was constructed to protect trade from marauding tribes like the Amalekites and countries like Edom. It was pretty smart of the Israelites to put a big fort there.

But what else they did at Arad wasn’t wise. At some point the people of southern Judah built a false temple at Arad. They made a fake holy of holies and put two big standing stones in it – one representing the detestable sex goddess Asherah and the other either for Baal or YHWH.

How sick is that? They had the blessed opportunity to personally relate to the God of the universe! They had to chance to trust that God would do as promised and make a way to remove human sin! They were offered intimate joy with the real God of covenant love! And they diluted it with a bunch of nasty, weird worldliness.

Thank goodness we never do that!

But we do, don’t we? As the supposed center of our own universe, we try to rework God into our image and make our relationship with Him about the shallowness of what we want instead of the richness of what He offers. We change God into idols that we can control.

So, whenever I take people to Arad I have them do something that seems rather odd to them, at least at first. I have people walk up to those idols and show the idol the bottom of their shoe. You probably understand if you grew up in a place where everybody walked as the primary mode of transportation. For hundreds of centuries, walking cultures have shared this ethical image – that when you show your shoe bottom, you are rejecting something.

Got that? Show your shoe = rejection. This is especially true if one takes the shoe off, like that idiot who threw a shoe at US President Bush.

Keep the shoe on, don’t show the sole, and you are accepting something. Show the shoe bottom or take the shoe off and you are rejecting that thing.

And thus we understand why the guy takes off his shoe. We grasp why Moses’ Law describes the interchange that way. This dude is rejecting the chance to be the redeemer of Elimilech’s land & Ruth’s hand. Boy, did he miss out!

Two prayers

I was thinking this though and began praying for each of us, asking the Lord to guide our hearts so that we don’t reject the truly precious and important things in life. I pray that we are not like that goofball who let the best possible thing slip away.

Of course, I also pray that we eschew the idols that we so easily create. May we show our soles to the idols and keep our sandals on for the precious people of God. Amen!

Wonderful blessings

Today, I am thanking and praising God for the ways He’s blessing our redeemed community. God’s Word is transforming the lives of more and more people in our neighborhoods. The Lord is also revealing more clearly to us the ways we can faithfully serve Him. It’s awesome!

All this is on my mind because the church I lead is going through a big transition. We are adding another service to make room for more kids. God commands us to fulfill our ministry, and examining just one of our local school districts reveals why we need to expand. This week the Frisco ISD will welcome 49,500 students – over 3000 more than they had in June. If we want to love those kids, we had better make room.

Of course, we will keep same Frisco Bible Church tone. Our values are unchanged and we will continue to be the same redeemed community doing the great commission by the power of the Holy Spirit for the glory of God.

Yet whenever you have a transition in a group of people, humans have to pray and think through their engagement with the group. This is natural. It’s always possibly that some people may disconnect. That’s OK. Of course, lots of others will grab the opportunity to engage more deeply.

Please prayIf you have a moment, I ask that you pray for each group. I know that many of you don’t worship physically with me at FBC, but your prayers are a great blessing to us. Ask the Lord to make us ever-more effective at reaching those in need. Pray for those who disconnect, that God will guide them to a great home. And pray that we keep finding ways to make room for God’s people. Amen!

Christ-like community

A friend was recently struggling with Christian community. Such is a regular occurrence this side of heaven, but painful nonetheless. Since Ephesians 4 connects our sanctification into Christlikeness with our redeemed community, I challenged my friend to spend some time thinking about Jesus the person and see if that led to any direction for her.

She did so, and the result is so stirring and useful that I gained permission to share it with you.

The results of her study:

I think I have to set aside the fact that he is God for a moment.Here’s some of what I know about Jesus the man…

• He was very private. His ways were not known to everyone (perhaps because he was God).
• He was a man of sorrow.
• He cared for those around him – all of those around him, not just his buddies.
• He had a limited circle of people he was intimate with (not in a gross way).
• He had a smaller inner circle of friends.
• Most of the world disregarded, if not flat-out hated him.
• He practiced times away from his friends.
• His family thought he was nuts.
• He told great stories.
• He liked a good party – to eat and drink and sit around telling stories.
• He was a precocious kid (again being God in a kid’s body must have been tough).
• He asked his friends to pray with him through the hard stuff.
• He didn’t hide from the hard stuff.
• He liked kids and took time to play with them.

If Jesus is the ultimate example of what it is to be a human – living and sharing life with others – then he teaches us that…

• Our inner-most thoughts probably are not meant to be broadcast. They are meant to be ½ of an intimate conversation with God.
• Our circle of friends – real, walk with me to the cross kind of friends – is limited to a handful of people and those perhaps relegated to a specific time in our lives. That is, they might be different people when we are kids and when we are adults, before and after significant events.
• It is unrealistic to think that the whole world is going to love you. Even those closest to you will fall away from time to time. You will be the weirdo, the odd man out, the nut job in someone’s eyes. That is okay. God made you to be you, not a copy of them.
• We should enjoy the people we are with while we are with them. We should engage with all of the kids, friends, family, outcasts, etc. Food and stories rock!
• We should face the hard stuff with help from close friends and God, and that probably is best without tweeting, blogging, and face-booking it to the whole world.
• Loneliness is okay. Maybe it is an indication that God is ringing your door bell. Turning to Him to sooth your heart is a better cure than turning to the masses.

A True Ruth

As I have been teaching the biblical book of Ruth, I have been again struck by her character. The moral fiber of so many souls in that true story is breathtaking! But lest we assume that such was only a “then and there” phenomenon, God continues to provide modern “Ruths” – people of stature and wisdom and grace. I have been blessed to know a number of precious and powerful Ruthian figures, including many of you.

One such character was the recently-departed Ruth Wardell. [Even the name matched!] Ruth moved from this place to glory after a lifetime of brilliant ministry to the Messianic Jewish community across America. The Jews she led to Christ include the great theologian Dr. Arnold Fruchtenbaum. The many preachers and teachers she blessed include John Kanter, Steven Ger, Jeff Gutterman, and me. I was especially honored to study the scriptures with Ruth at Frisco Bible Church and participate in Christian bar-mitzvahs she helped lead.

If you live in the DFW area and want the encouragement of seeing how the scriptural Ruth’s character can be fleshed out today, I invite you to be my guest at Ruth Wardell’s memorial service this Saturday, August 9, 2 pm at Frisco Bible Church. All the above-mentioned Messianic leaders will be there, and we would love for you to come and rejoice with us. If you live further afield, you can instead curl up with a copy of her biography, Ruth with the Truth.

Amazing … simply amazing

The book of Ruth is a majestic, brilliant, beautiful piece of literature. It also fleshes out some critically important biblical practices – like hesed (a Hebrew word for unconditional covenant love) – and helps us grasp God’s power in each life and throughout history.

I have just begun a series on Ruth at Frisco Bible Church and am providing you with my personal preparation [NOTES]. I pray these assist you in learning all that God has for you His precious and powerful book of Ruth.

The original R.G.

R.G. LeTourneau was a brilliant, amazing businessman. He achieved great success in his far-flung enterprises, changed a number of industries, and in his free time helped start a first-class university. Yet possibly his most lasting impact was his biblical understanding of work. Mr. LeTourneau noted that a Christian at work is fulfilling a divine calling. Thus, he is the modern poster child for the thesis that each believer’s work matters to God.

The Center

Another modern hero (at least to me) is Bill Peel. He directs the LeTourneau University Center for Faith & Work. Years ago, Bill was my pastor – a very talented teacher and author. Now, his passion for connecting Sunday worship and Monday work has Bill leading this phenomenally helpful organization that builds on R.G.’s legacy.

I highly recommend regular perusal of the articles and events at their site, www.centerforfaithandwork.com. There you will find powerful stories about calling and career, your rights at work, leadership, ethics, and more. Have fun!