Pastor Moves in With Refugees

The Wired Word for the Week of December 25, 2016

Editor's Note: At the request of the subject of the lesson, we are using pseudonyms to protect his and his family's privacy. Since the source articles we used in developing this lesson do identify the couple by name, we are also taking the unusual step of leaving out links to those sources, in order to respect the pastor's request for anonymity. While we dislike not supporting our "In the News" section with links you can check, we decided it is warranted in this case.

In the News

Andy Smith had stable employment as a government contractor and his wife Sally was a nurse in a neonatal intensive-care unit of a hospital (names have been changed at the request of the pastor). But in 2012, Andy quit his job to take an unpaid internship at a non-profit, where he helped refugees adjust to life in America.

We learned about the Smith family last month from a news report contrasting their response to the global problem of displaced people with anti-refugee rhetoric expressed by some people in America and other nations in recent months.

Andy increasingly felt that he couldn't truly identify or empathize fully with the refugees unless he was willing to pull up stakes from his comfortable suburban neighborhood, uproot his family and start over in a strange place just as the refugees had.

After presenting the idea to Sally, they researched an apartment complex where a large number of refugees from Afghanistan, the Congo, Ethiopia, Iran, Iraq, Myanmar, Sri Lanka and Syria lived. Online reviews were not encouraging.

One reviewer wanted to move out after living there only six weeks. Others warned of drug dealers, prostitutes, child molesters and criminal activity, rats, roaches and bedbugs, leaky pipes, no heat in winter and a sub-standard school system.

"That's exactly where the gospel is needed," Sally said.

So with their two toddlers in tow, the couple packed up their belongings and moved into the neighborhood.

That doesn't mean they didn't have some anxiety and fear. After they moved in, Andy said, "I began thinking, 'What in the world did I get our family into?' and 'What am I doing?' I began having doubts, fears, second-guessing this path. I yearned for what was familiar and comfortable and safe. 'Why are we downgrading? It's going to be uncomfortable.'"

But they were motivated by their faith. "The most compelling reason we chose to move into the neighborhood was really the story of Jesus," Andy said. "From the scriptures, I see God sending his Son, Jesus, into the world, so that he would dwell among the people."

On any given day, refugees may call upon the Smiths for a wide range of services: translation, job interview preparation, help securing driver's licenses, answering questions about medicine, tutoring, child care, social work, counseling, etc. The Smiths see this kind of holistic ministry as reflective of Jesus' own message and ministry. As they care for various needs of their neighbors as Jesus cared for people, they find they build trust and earn the right to speak about Christ.

"For myself, personally, this good news of Jesus is the best thing ever in my life. It would not be consistent if I didn't want others to at least hear it," Andy said, suggesting that it is as natural to talk about Jesus as it is to mention his wife and children to people as they get acquainted. "As they learn about me, I can't help but talk about Jesus, because he's so important to me."

Andy now serves on the pastoral staff of a church located in the suburb where he used to live, but his job description states that he is to spend half of his time working in his new neighborhood.

Applying the News Story

The incarnation of God in Christ is efficacious for our salvation, and also for our development as we mature in Christ. First God prepared a physical body for Christ (Hebrews 10:5), so that Jesus shared fully in our humanity. God also prepares us so that the Spirit of Christ now inhabits the body of Christ, his church (1 Corinthians 6:19). In this lesson, we want to examine these twin truths, to better understand the blessings and responsibility we receive because God acts in this way.

The Big Questions

1. Have you ever been uprooted or forced to start over in a place very different from what you were used to? If so, describe what that was like for you. If not, do you know someone who has? What do you know about their experience?

2. What does it take for you to truly empathize and identify with people who are quite different from you in some way?

3. What legitimate concerns might prevent a person from taking the kind of radical step the Smith family took? What part of the Christian message might motivate people to take radical steps to reach out to "the other" in spite of the risks?

4. Why does it matter that Jesus was a real historical person who was fully human?

5. What difference does it make that this person who entered our world and fully shared our humanity was also fully divine?

Confronting the News With Scripture and HopeHere are some Bible verses to guide your discussion:

John 1:14, 18And the Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as of a father's only son, full of grace and truth. ... No one has ever seen God. It is God the only Son, who is close to the Father's heart, who has made him known. (For context, read 1:1, 11-15, 18.)

John identifies Jesus as the Word God spoke to reveal himself to humanity. But what that Word communicated was not empty phrases, platitudes or promises. The Word became flesh and lived among us, to reveal God's character of grace and truth to us in the person and work of Jesus Christ.

The word here translated "lived" comes from the Greek word meaning "tabernacled," which refers to the portable house of worship that traveled with the Hebrew people during their 40-year sojourn in the wilderness en route to the Promised Land. Later they built a stationary temple to which the people had to travel to worship God.

To say that Jesus "tabernacled" among us is to say that he fully shared in the human experience, coming to us even when we did not go to him, coming to seek and to save the lost even when we did not seek him. Just as the tabernacle was a sign of the presence of God among God's people, Jesus is the ultimate sign of God's presence, since he is not only a sign pointing to God, but he is Emmanuel, God with us (Matthew 1:23).

Questions: How have you experienced the Word made flesh and living among us? What has God the only Son made known to you about the Father's heart?

John 4:5-7So he came to a Samaritan city called Sychar, near the plot of ground that Jacob had given to his son Joseph. Jacob's well was there, and Jesus, tired out by his journey, was sitting by the well. It was about noon. A Samaritan woman came to draw water, and Jesus said to her, "Give me a drink." (For context, read 4:5-14.)

We quote this passage to illustrate the reality of Jesus' human nature. Here we read that Jesus was tired and thirsty. Elsewhere we learn that after fasting, he was famished (Matthew 4:2). On another occasion, he was so tired that he fell asleep in a boat during a storm (Matthew8:24). His suffering and thirst as he hung on the cross were very real. And yet the very person who asked the Samaritan woman for a drink of water described himself as the source of living water (John 4:10 and 14).

He did perform miracles (changing water into wine, walking on water, healing the sick, giving sight to the blind, raising the dead, just to name a few), but Mark 6:5 tells us that in Nazareth "he could do no deed of power there, except that he laid his hands on a few sick people and cured them."

The gospel hymn "Ten Thousand Angels" contains these words describing what Jesus could have done when he was on the cross: "He could have called ten thousand angels to destroy the world and set him free; he could have called ten thousand angels, but he died alone for you and me."

Questions: How do you react to the human frailty of Jesus? Would you rather he exercised super-hero powers without showing any human weakness? Why or why not?
Why do you think he limited the expression of his divine power while he lived on earth? Why didn't he call a host of angels to take him down from the cross? Whydidn't he answer his critics when they scoffed at him as he hung there dying, saying, "He saved others; let him save himself if he is the Messiah of God, his chosen one" (Luke 23:35)?

Philippians 2:5-8Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus, 
who, though he was in the form of God,
   did not regard equality with God
   as something to be exploited,
but emptied himself,
   taking the form of a slave,
   being born in human likeness.
And being found in human form,
   he humbled himself
   and became obedient to the point of death --
   even death on a cross. (For context, read 2:1-8.)

When their home church ordained the Smiths and commissioned them as missionaries to their new neighborhood, Andy gave this testimony about why they moved into the apartment complex to live among the refugees:

"The Good Shepherd ... pointed me to what Christmas is all about, the coming of Jesus, his incarnation. God became flesh, and dwelt among his people. ... How could the God of the universe, maker of heaven and earth, all glorious, all powerful, perfectly holy, worthy of all worship, the one who speaks things into being, the one who is not bound by time or any other limits. The infinite one.

"How could God lower himself, humble himself, downgrade himself to be confined to, restricted to, limited to a human body? Not only that but live among a people who were enemies and opposed and despised him. How could Jesus do such a thing? Why would he move towards us like that and put himself through that? And at the moment, the Holy Spirit spoke to me of the truth that Jesus was compelled by his great love."

Questions: How does Jesus' exhortation to his disciples that they are not to behave like tyrants but rather as servants (Matthew 20:25-27) relate to Paul's depiction of Christ in the Philippians 2 passage quoted above? Can you think of a person who didn't exploit his or her position of authority, but rather served you in this manner? How did that person's behavior impact you?

1 Corinthians 12:12-13, 27
For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ. For in the one Spirit we were all baptized into one body -- Jews or Greeks, slaves or free -- and we were all made to drink of one Spirit. ... Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it. (For context, read 12:12-14, 18, 27.)

In this passage Paul compares the people of God to the human body, which has many organs and systems. The metaphor points to the essential unity of the body of Christ, even though it is made up of many diverse parts.

For our purposes today, we want to focus on the idea that the Word that lives within us -- individually as believers and corporately as the people of God who make up the church -- and becomes incarnate in us as we allow the Spirit to birth Christ in our lives and in our relationships. So we pray in the carol "O Little Town of Bethlehem" these words:

O holy Child of Bethlehem,
Descend to us, we pray!
Cast out our sin and enter in,
Be born to us today.

Now we believers, collectively, are the body of Christ. We celebrate that reality every time we come together at the Lord's table.

The story is told about a church in Strasbourg which was destroyed by bombs during war. As parishioners cleared away the rubble, they discovered a statue of Christ, which was undamaged except that both hands were missing.

One day a visiting sculptor offered to repair the statue by carving new hands, but the members of the church declined his offer, saying that Christ "has no hands to minister to the needy or feed the hungry or enrich the poor -- except our hands. He inspires. We perform." The story calls to mind the poem by St. Teresa of Avila:

Christ has no body but yours,
No hands, no feet on earth but yours,
Yours are the eyes with which he looks
Compassion on this world,
Yours are the feet with which he walks to do good,
Yours are the hands with which he blesses all the world.
Yours are the hands, yours are the feet,
Yours are the eyes, you are his body.
Christ has no body now but yours.

Questions:Where have you seen the Word made flesh in Christ's body, the church, recently? When are you most aware that you are the body of Christ, that Christ is depending on your feet to do good, your hands to bless the world, your eyes to look compassion on the world? How do you respond to such a challenge?

For Further Discussion

1. Discuss the following: The church Rev. Smith serves has acknowledged on their website that our country has legitimate interests in national security and in vetting refugees who are applying for asylum in the United States. At the same time, they assert that "complete rejection of refugees and/or Muslims is another" issue entirely. "Our Christian gospel response must not be inaction or distancing or rejection, driven by fear," they state, "[but] ... action and extending of love, aid and the gospel itself, all driven by faith."

With that in mind, they offer these tangible ways Christians can assist refugees and displaced people (half of whom are children) with providing basic necessities such as shelter, clothing, food, water, hygiene, trauma therapy and medical care:

• Pray for the safety of the 65 million refugees spread throughout the world (more refugees than ever recorded in history). More than one of every five refugees is Syrian.
• Give online through trusted aid organizations.
• Donate clean winter clothing to local thrift stores.
• Consider becoming a conversation partner to help people from other countries learn English. Such programs are also available for those working with international students, some of whom come from war-torn nations such as Iraq and Syria.
• Consider moving to an apartment complex or neighborhood where refugees reside, so that you can literally love and serve your neighbors and possibly reach them with the gospel without ever going overseas.

2. Does your denomination or church have a refugee response or resettlement program? How might you become engaged in such a ministry?

Responding to the News

1. Take a few moments to meditate on this beautiful rendition of a prayer by St. Teresa of Avila, Christ Has No Body Now But Yours (David Ogden). Or you might like this version: St. Theresa's Prayer (John Michael Talbot). Or yet another: Christ Has No Body Now On Earth But Yours (David Basden).

2. Consider as a congregation doing some of the actions suggested in question 1 under "For Further Discussion."

3. You may want to check out these resources for further study of incarnational living, suggested by the pastor who is profiled in this lesson: The Forgotten Ways: Reactivating Apostolic Movements by Alan Hirsch, Flesh: Bringing the Incarnation Down to Earth by Hugh Halter, and Incarnate: The Body of Christ in an Age of Disengagement, by Michael Frost.

Prayer

Christ, may we view the world with your compassion this day.

May we always walk in the steps your nail-scarred feet have trod.

Bless the world through our hands today. Amen.

Copyright 2016 Communication Resources

Santa Shares a Deeply Human Moment Granting a Child's Final Wish

The Wired Word for the Week of December 18, 2016

In the News

NOTE: Just as we were about to release this lesson, we learned that the original reporting source, the Knoxville News Sentinel, is now saying that upon further investigation, they cannot verify this story (see their new report here). We don't think that renders the overall lesson about being channels of God's grace in hopeless situations any less useful, but in the interest of journalistic reliability, we felt it important to make you aware of this new development.

Eric Schmitt-Matzen, 60, is the president of a manufacturing company in Jacksboro, Tennessee, but he also works about 80 gigs a year portraying Santa Claus, a role for which he is a great fit.

He's six feet tall, weighs 310 pounds, has a long, snowy white beard and a moustache with the ends curled into loops. When in character, he wears a custom-made red suit, but even in civvies, he wears Santa suspenders. And his wife Sharon often plays a convincing Mrs. Claus alongside him.

Santa is a role that usually brings Schmitt-Matzen a lot of joy, but a recent visit as Santa tore his heart open and caused him to wonder if he'd ever be able to play the part again.

Here's what happened: He'd just gotten home from work when he received a phone call from a nurse he knows who works at the hospital. She was caring for a terminally ill 5-year-old boy who was worried that he was going to miss Christmas. Could "Santa" come? she asked.

Schmitt-Matzen agreed right away, but when he said he needed a few minutes to change into his Santa suit, the nurse said there wasn't time. His Santa suspenders were good enough.

He got to the hospital in 15 minutes, and on arrival, met the boy's mother and other family members. The mother had purchased a toy from the children's TV show PAW Patrol and handed it to Santa to give to her son. Grasping the depth of the group's sadness, Schmitt-Matzen said, "If you think you're going to lose it, please leave the room. If I see you crying, I'll break down and can't do my job."

The family members chose to wait outside the room, sobbing while they watched through the window.

Sam Venable, who reported this story for the Knoxville News Sentinel, from which it was subsequently picked up by several national news sources, reported the meeting between Santa and the child in Schmitt-Matzen's own words, but Venable said he did not include the several pauses Schmitt-Matzen took "while struggling to maintain composure."

"When I walked in, he was laying there, so weak it looked like he was ready to fall asleep. I sat down on his bed and asked, 'Say, what's this I hear about you're gonna miss Christmas? There's no way you can miss Christmas! Why, you're my Number One elf!

"He looked up and said, 'I am?'

"I said, 'Sure!'

"I gave him the present. He was so weak he could barely open the wrapping paper. When he saw what was inside, he flashed a big smile and laid his head back down.

'"They say I'm gonna die,' he told me. 'How can I tell when I get to where I'm going?'

"I said, 'Can you do me a big favor?'

"He said, 'Sure!'

"When you get there, you tell 'em you're Santa's Number One elf, and I know they'll let you in.

"He said, 'They will?'

"I said, 'Sure!'

"He kinda sat up and gave me a big hug and asked one more question: 'Santa, can you help me?'

"I wrapped my arms around him. Before I could say anything, he died right there. I let him stay, just kept hugging and holding on to him.

"Everyone outside the room realized what happened. His mother ran in. She was screaming, 'No, no, not yet!' I handed her son back and left as fast as I could.

"I spent four years in the Army with the 75th Rangers, and I've seen my share of [stuff]. But I ran by the nurses' station bawling my head off. I know nurses and doctors see things like that every day, but I don't know how they can take it.'"

The next day, the Schmitt-Matzens were scheduled to visit their grandchildren in Nashville, but the despairing Santa portrayer realized he was a "basket case" and told his wife to go without him. And in the days that followed, Schmitt-Matzen wondered if he could ever portray Santa again.

He did eventually work another appearance as Santa, and he says that seeing all the children laughing made him realize that he had a role to continue to play that was important, both to the children and to himself.

We think he's right on both counts.

More on this story can be found at these links:

Santa Grants a Final Wish. Knoxville News Sentinel
Eric J. Schmitt-Matzen. Facebook

The Big Questions

1. Where was God's grace, if at all, in the Santa-child encounter? Have you ever unexpectedly been the one to be with someone as he or she moved beyond life? Were you ready for it? Is it better not to know in advance? What role did your Christian faith play?

2. When have you encountered a situation where "nothing more can be done" and still done what you could? Are there any ways in which your action might have been a channel for God's grace? What makes you think so? What is the effect of showing up when others are in grief?

3. What in your faith helps you to carry on when the "why" questions of life are not answered? Do you need answers or presence -- either divine or human -- or something else, and if so, what?

4. Where and how does God meet you in the pain of life? Who helps you through difficult moments? How do you share emotional burdens?

5. If you are someone who is often present at death (medical personnel, hospice personnel, pastor, etc.), what strategies do you use, if any, to maintain composure or professionalism? Do you have coping strategies that involve allowing for emotional release at a later point?

Confronting the News With Scripture and HopeHere are some Bible verses to guide your discussion:

Acts 9:36-39Now in Joppa there was a disciple whose name was Tabitha. ... At that time she became ill and died. ... the disciples, who heard that Peter was there, sent two men to him with the request, "Please come to us without delay." … when he arrived, they took him to the room upstairs. All the widows stood beside him, weeping and showing tunics and other clothing that [Tabitha] had made while she was with them. (For context, read 9:36-42.)

When a good Christian woman named Tabitha died, some friends asked the apostle Peter to come over. When he got there, he found a group of widows weeping. These women were likely friends of Tabitha's from the neighborhood. And they didn't know -- perhaps even Peter didn't know -- that God would be restoring Tabitha to life.

With Tabitha dead, there wasn't much her friends could do, but they showed up anyway. Along with weeping, they'd probably done the few dishes left in Tabitha's sink, gave her house a quick dusting and did some tidying up. Maybe they'd swept her sidewalk. It wasn't much, but they showed up to do what they could, and they cried with Tabitha's family.

There are sad times in life when there isn't anything we can do that will change the outcome, and yet, because we care, we show up anyway. Maybe we look for some little thing that the grieving person has overlooked, and do it. Maybe we bring cookies. Maybe we offer to watch the children for a few hours. Maybe we hold our hand over our heart as the flag-draped casket goes by on the back of a fire truck. We say a prayer. Or maybe we just sit with the grieving person and cry with them. Tiny gestures have a huge importance to someone who is grieving. Often, what we do seems like almost nothing, and yet it sometimes means almost everything.

Of course, feeling compassion does not always mean actually weeping with someone. It means making ourselves available to someone who is suffering, putting aside our own concerns long enough to, in some measure, go through the suffering with them.

We suspect that at least 80 percent of compassion is showing up.

Questions: What do you think Peter was feeling as he traveled to Tabitha's home? When has someone's small gesture been a comfort to you?

Psalm 34:17-18When the righteous cry for help, the LORD hears,
   and rescues them from all their troubles.
The LORD is near to the brokenhearted,
   and saves the crushed in spirit. (For context, read 34:15-22.)

Taken in isolation, the first two lines above seem to indicate that the righteous receive special help from the Lord because of their good behavior. But the larger context of this psalm asserts otherwise. Verse 15 speaks about the righteous having reasons to cry, and verse 19 says "Many are the afflictions of the righteous …." Rather, the promise of this psalm is in the second two lines above: God is with the brokenhearted and those crushed in spirit.

In other words, God himself can be experienced in a comforting way even in the midst of suffering.

Questions: What do you think led the psalmist to write these words? In what ways can you affirm them? In what ways do they not speak to your experience?

John 11:33, 35
When Jesus saw [Mary] weeping, and the Jews who came with her also weeping, he was greatly disturbed in spirit and deeply moved. … Jesus began to weep. (For context, read 11:17-44.)

Jesus' tears in this situation are sometimes taken to show that he wept in sympathy with Mary and Martha who were grieving over the death of their brother Lazarus. He knew he intended to raise Lazarus back to life, but still, standing with the dead man's sisters, Jesus wept.

But if we read the context, there's more going on. For when Jesus saw Mary and her neighbors weeping, he was, in the words above, "greatly disturbed in spirit and deeply moved." A surface reading of this phrase suggests that Jesus felt deep compassion at that point, but Bible scholars tell us that the underlying Greek words communicate not compassion, but agitation and indignation. The Message Bible renders the verse truer to the original when it words it, "When Jesus saw her sobbing and the Jews with her sobbing, a deep anger welled up within him."

It's not clear what his anger was about. Commentators offer several conjectures, ranging from his disgust with the lack of faith of those around him to a general rage at the circumstances to a viewing of death as a gross injustice.

But emotions are not tidy and do not always correspond point for point to what is going on outside of us. There are times when we are wrenched with deep emotions and we can't say exactly why. And other times, when we've dealt with the pain and hurt of life firsthand and seemed to have held it all together, there later comes an emotional sucker punch, unrelated to our present circumstances, that knocks us off our feet.

So here, there appears to be something more going on inside of Jesus, something we cannot easily reduce to words.

We can, however, understand something about cascading emotions that we cannot easily trace to a particular source. Here's Jesus, who knows that he's soon going to suffer horribly and die. Here's Jesus, who's just learned that his friend Lazarus has been dead for four days. Here's Jesus, accused by the two sisters of not caring enough to hurry to Lazarus' side when he got the news. Here's Jesus, seeing his good friend Mary crumbling in front of him in tears of grief. Here's Jesus, surrounded by people who are sobbing. And he begins sobbing himself.

Some of the eyewitnesses that day saw Jesus' tears and said, "See how he loved [Lazarus]!" (v. 36). But it's not clear that they understood. It may be too simple an explanation to say that Jesus cried only out of love for his dead friend or out of compassion for Martha and Mary. It may also be too simple to say he was angry at death. It's possible that Jesus was being ripped to shreds inside.

It's helpful for us to know that because we too have emotional crashes. It's helpful for us to realize that Jesus' tears were possibly not merely ones of sadness, but of the weight of life.

Questions: In light of the fact that Jesus knew he was going to raise Lazarus, what do you think accounts for his strong emotional reaction? What does this scene teach you about Jesus?

Mark 10:13, 16
People were bringing little children to him in order that he might touch them ... And he took them up in his arms, laid his hands on them, and blessed them. (No context needed.)

Question: What are some equivalences and differences, if any, between what Jesus did here in this passage and what Schmitt-Matzen did in the hospital room with the dying boy? Explain your response.

Revelation 21:3, 4See, the home of God is among mortals. … he will wipe every tear from their eyes. Death will be no more; mourning and crying and pain will be no more …. (For context read 21:1-7.)

It is a significant commentary on the pain life sometimes brings that in the Bible's vision of the kingdom of God fully come, there is no crying -- and nothing to cause the need for it.

This reflects the great affirmation all Christians share, and that is that in Christ, the end is not the end. In Christ, what we call the end is the great beginning of eternity. We hold in common that powerful reality that Jesus both taught in words and demonstrated with his resurrection: The end is not the end.  

Questions: What do you think it will be like to live without pain or any need for crying? In what ways, if any, does that help you now, in this life?

For Further Discussion

Invite your class members to respond to as many of the following entries as time permits:

1. Jeanine Purdum, a nurse who spent years caring for children, comments that when a child dies, it affects the staff deeply, who often have to defer their own crying while they attend to the necessary things that must be done at such times. But she has also observed that it sometimes helps a grieving family when staff members weep along with them.

2. TWW editorial team member Mary Sells observes: "Perhaps one of the hardest questions we ask God is 'why,' especially when a young person dies. The assumption we make? That God's answer will be so enlightening to our hearts and minds that our question will be resolved. Yet, I think God gives us mystery instead of answers, for what answer to 'why' can comfort a parent in their great loss? It is divine mystery that we accept in our hearts what our minds cannot fathom."

3. This also from Mary Sells: "To me, it appears Santa thought he was giving a jolly hug to lift the child's spirit, not a hand to a helpless child who needed assurance as he breathed his last. I believe God gave the child what he needed -- a representative of love and kindness and joy -- as a bridge. Maybe for another person the bridge is different, for God knows our heart's greatest desires and fears and wants to show his love -- especially when we are most needy. I'm not sure yet what the gift is for Santa, for I would also be as devastated as he was; however, I do believe that God will bring comfort also to him."

4. TWW editorial team member Stan Purdum tells of his father, who was a pastor, once having to bury two small children -- a brother and sister -- who drowned in a pond. His father had all he could do to keep himself together to conduct the funeral and actually wept during the process. Stan says, "It gave me a glimpse of my father's tender heart, and I respected him for it."

5. TWW editorial team member Rev. David Lee comments, "One of the things I'm often asked by those who are aware of their own end coming is 'Was I good enough?' as if they might earn God's grace somehow.  How do we merit grace?  We can't. Often my answer is to point out to the person (usually a 'saint' but sometimes a 'sinner'), the good that they did, the legacy they left, but also to point out that humbly asking means humbly receiving.

6. We read somewhere about a woman who was having marital problems, and it looked like she and her husband were headed for a divorce. The woman confided her hurt and anger to her best friend. The friend listened and even cried with her. A week later, the friend was hospitalized for a serious surgery. When the first woman went to see her in the hospital she asked her friend why she hadn't mentioned that she was seriously ill. From the bed the friend said, "I forgot I was. I was thinking of you." That's showing up for someone.

7. Sometimes we may hesitate to show up for someone in their pain because the pain of wounds from our own losses is still with us. Yet Christ does not call us to reach out only when we are on solid ground ourselves. There is an old legend in the Talmud, the collection of ancient rabbinic writings that is a basis of religious authority in the Jewish faith. It goes like this:
            Rabbi Yoshua ben Levi came upon Elijah the prophet ... He asked Elijah, "When will the Messiah come?"
            Elijah replied, "Go ask him yourself."
            "Where is he?"
            "Sitting at the gates of the city."
            "How shall I know him?"
            "He is sitting among the poor covered with wounds. The others unbind all their wounds at the same time and then bind them up again. But he unbinds one at a time and binds it up again, saying to himself, 'Perhaps I shall be needed: If so, I must always be ready so as not to delay for a moment.'" (Quoted by Henri J.M. Nouwen in The Wounded Healer.) 
            Even we who are wounded can be healers when we give the gift of ourselves. That's an act of Christian love. As we already stated, at least 80 percent of compassion is showing up.

Responding to the News

This is a good time to consider for whom you might need to show up right now.

Prayer

O Lord, make me ready to show up and be a carrier of your grace, even when I can't see how that is even possible. In Jesus' name. Amen.

China Launches System to Reward or Blacklist Citizens, Based on Their Behavior

The Wired Word for the Week of December 11, 2016

In the News

How would you like it if the government kept track of how well you treated your parents, how often you claimed a discount you didn't qualify for, how frequently you cheated on exams in school, how quick you were to volunteer for projects for the common good, how well you obeyed speed limits when driving, how willing you were to pass along unreliable information online. and used all of this, along with your financial credit score to determine what societal benefits you received.

And on top of that, someone in government got to decide what was meant by "the common good" and "unreliable information" -- and prohibited private citizens and organizations from providing "societal benefits."

Actually, according to a recent report in The Wall Street Journal, China, under the auspices of the Chinese Communist Party, is in the beginning stages of rolling out such a system. More than 36 local governments across that nation have started compiling digital records of individual citizens' financial behavior, compliance with legal and moral rules of daily life and their online practices -- all of which will eventually be used to generate a "personal credit information system."

The plan is for the system to be fully operational nationwide by 2020.

A person's score from that system will determine whether that person has access to lower insurance premiums, can book a luxury hotel room, is able to travel abroad, can be admitted to certain schools and receive scholarships, has access to the better forms of public transport, is eligible for government jobs, has Internet access, receives favorable loan rates and has access to social services.

The Journal reports that citizens in jobs deemed sensitive, such as lawyers, accountants, teachers, journalists, will be subject to enhanced scrutiny,

One's score in this system can be knocked down by poor spending habits and criminal behavior certainly, but also for jaywalking, cutting in line, spurning neighbors in need, violating family-planning rules, throwing garbage out of the window, not visiting one's parents frequently enough and other non-criminal infractions.

According to a slogan in the data-collection planning documents, the aim of the system is to "allow the trustworthy to roam everywhere under heaven while making it hard for the discredited to take a single step."

Although such "big brother" surveillance systems have been conceived of at least since 1949 when George Orwell published his book 1984, it has taken advances in information technology -- especially the digital form of it -- to make such systems feasible. (TWW editorial team member David Hall commented that he has always suspected that in Revelation, John's "number of the beast" was not 666 but, 101010, the binary code used by computers for encoding data.) And while China's government still has some technological and bureaucratic obstacles to overcome to monitor its 1.4 billion people, modern information gathering, sorting and retrieval methods now make it achievable, though whether it can be fully implemented by 2020 is not clear.

Another step in the system is projected to gather data about the behavior of businesses and publish the results to consumers.

Could a similar system become a reality in the United States? A Fortunearticle, sparked by The Wall Street Journal report, added, "Some U.S. startups had ideas similar in nature to what the Chinese state has in mind, though wildly different in scope and scale: to assess people's eligibility for loans by their Facebook profiles or phone records."

So far at least, such attempts have not succeeded, some of them thwarted by Facebook itself, but the attempts come as a reminder that by some estimates, Facebook already has the largest data collection of personal information in the world and that the technology exists for systems such as the one being launched in China.

More on this story can be found at these links:

China's New Way of Controlling Society Will Grade You on Behavior. FortuneChina's New Tool for Social Control: A Credit Rating for Everything. Wall Street Journal(subscription needed to access article)
Why Facebook Profiles are Replacing Credit Scores. Fortune

Applying the News Story

The subscriber who pointed us to this news story said that the Chinese government giving a rating to everyone for being moral (in a way defined by the government) brought to mind "parallels to the Bible, but with a twist." The subscriber asked, "In God's system, do we get any bonus points for joyfully doing the right thing versus doing it because God might punish us if we don't?"  

Taking on a real Santa Claus-like role, Chinese government operatives will determine who has been "naughty or nice" and provide presents or lumps of coal as they see fit.

This news helps us consider what it means to live with God knowing all about us, think about the matter of divine judgment and ponder the subscriber's question.

The Big Questions

1. Does God have an information gathering "system" from which we receive a "score" that determines our ultimate destiny? On what do you base your answer? How does Jesus' death and resurrection come into this?

2. Regardless of whether you answered "yes" or "no" to question 1, does the possibility of such a divine "system" affect how you behave? Why or why not? Do you do certain things and avoid others out of fear of potentially harming your "standing" with God?

3. Do you believe God knows all about you, even down to the darkest thoughts in your mind and the best aspirations of your heart? If yes, how does that affect how you live from day to day?

4. What is the Bible's primary view of God? Scorekeeper? Judge? Father of mercy? Savior? Source of love? Other?

5. What is your response to the subscriber's question: "In God's system, do we get any bonus points for joyfully doing the right thing versus doing it because God might punish us if we don't?"

Confronting the News With Scripture and HopeHere are some Bible verses to guide your discussion:

1 Samuel 16:7But the LORD said to Samuel, "Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him; for the LORD does not see as mortals see; they look on the outward appearance, but the LORD looks on the heart." (For context, read 16:1-13.)

To anoint the next king of Israel, God sent the prophet Samuel to the household of Jesse the Bethlehemite, who had eight sons. When Samuel saw the eldest, Eliab, who was impressive in appearance, Samuel assumed he was the one God had chosen. But God told Samuel not to be misled by Eliab's appearance or stature, "for the LORD does not see as mortals see; they look on the outward appearance, but the LORD looks on the heart." Eventually, after Samuel had seen seven of the sons and heard no confirmation from God on any of them, the youngest son, David, was brought in. It was he whom the Lord had selected.

The verse above reminds us that God sees not only our potential, but also the intent of our heart. Thus, even when we think no one is watching, God is. Nothing is hidden from him.

Questions: Why does the fact that nothing we do is hidden from God not deter some people, even some Christians, from wrongdoing? What does it mean to you that God sees your potential?

Psalm 139:7-8, 11-12
Where can I go from your spirit? Or where can I flee from your presence? If I ascend to heaven, you are there; if I make my bed in Sheol, you are there. … If I say, "Surely the darkness shall cover me, and the light around me become night," even the darkness is not dark to you; the night is as bright as the day, for darkness is as light to you. (For context, read 139:1-18.)

These verses from Psalm 139 voice a central biblical theme about God's presence. In fact, in some settings, the issue is not that we cannot find God, but that God refuses to leave us alone. He not only knows what we have done but won't let us avoid thinking about it.

Questions: What in your experience of God is like that of this psalmist? When have you been acutely aware of God's presence? When have you felt unable to find God? What, if anything, helped?

Revelation 20:12
And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Also another book was opened, the book of life. And the dead were judged according to their works, as recorded in the books. (For context, read 20:11-15.)

One of the topics Revelation addresses is the matter of final judgment. Revelation 20:11-15 describes a vision John of Patmos had, in which he sees a judgment scene. John views a moment when all people, "great and small," important and insignificant, stand before the throne of God and are judged according to their lives. Some books are opened. Some of them are the books of the deeds of the people being judged. Another book is called the book of life, containing the names of those who are citizens of the kingdom of God. Then anyone whose name was not found in the book of life was thrown into a lake of fire.

The "books" imagery sounds like an information database wherein all of one's deeds, both good and bad, are recorded.

That scene, of course, is a symbolic way of describing the final judgment, something to be taken seriously. Some Christians have a hard time including the idea of judgment in their understanding of Christianity, concentrating instead on the love of God. But we cannot deny that divine judgment is a theme that occurs throughout scripture. In fact, although the imagery surrounding this final judgment is symbolic, judgment itself has a ring of truth about it.

The fact is, the Christian faith itself doesn't make much sense if there were no judgment. If God wants a relationship with each of us, it must also be possible for us to reject it. And if rejected, there must be some different consequence than if the relationship were embraced. The consequence the Bible sees is ultimate separation from God.

If there were no judgment, we would live in a world where crime pays, sin has no meaning and right is whatever you want it to be. The only way judgment could be done away with would be for God to become indifferent to what happens.

The opening of the books is a symbolic way of saying that human freedom and human responsibility matter, that what we do matters and matters in the eternal sense. We will have to answer for the kind of people we are.

Speaking of books being opened, TWW editorial team member Mary Sells comments, "If God does have a scorecard, having the Bible makes life an open-book test. We have all the answers he wants us to know to pass any such test."

Questions: Do you think God's judgment will be convincing to those being judged? Why or why not? If all your deeds were recorded in a book, to what section of the library would it belong? If Christ edited the book of your life, how would it change?

1 Samuel 13:13-14
Samuel said to Saul, "You have done foolishly; you have not kept the commandment of the LORD your God, which he commanded you. The LORD would have established your kingdom over Israel forever, but now your kingdom will not continue ... (For context, read 13:5-15.)
John 8:10-11Jesus straightened up and said to her, "Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?" She said, "No one, sir." And Jesus said, "Neither do I condemn you. Go your way, and from now on do not sin again." (For context, read 7:53--8:11.)

We are offering these two passages side by side because they provide contrasting examples of divine judgment.

In the 1 Samuel verses, King Saul's "score" with God (if indeed God keeps score) was in the negative range because he had "not kept the commandment of the LORD your God, which he commanded you" (specifically, Saul offered an unauthorized burnt offering to God; see vv. 8-12). God's judgment: "... your kingdom will not continue."

In the John 8 reference, the woman caught in adultery also had a negative "score" (if indeed God keeps score); she had broken one of the "Big Ten" commandments. But Jesus did not condemn her.

Questions: What do these two incidents together tell you about the notion of God as "scorekeeper"? What do they tell you about divine judgment? What do they tell you about divine mercy?

1 John 4:16-18
… God is love, and those who abide in love abide in God, and God abides in them. Love has been perfected among us in this: that we may have boldness on the day of judgment, because as he is, so are we in this world. There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear; for fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not reached perfection in love. (For context, read 4:7-21.)

The good news of the gospel is that no matter whether we deserve light or harsh judgment, God sent his Son to tell us about forgiveness so that we have nothing to fear in the final judgment, no matter what actual form that takes. It's significant that this passage talks about love and judgment together, for in a very real sense, it is love that judges us.

But note also, that John writes that when "love has been perfected among us ... we may have boldness on the day of judgment" (italics added).

Questions: How is God's love, which enables boldness on the day of judgment, expressed by Jesus? Among humans? How is God's love suppressed by fear?

For Further Discussion

1. If a system such as the one being instituted in China were implemented here in the United States, how do each of us think it would be received? Why? How would your answer change if it were being implemented under a president you really liked … or under a president you detested?  Why?

2. Respond to this, from TWW team member Stan Purdum: "God's judgment makes sense to me in part because it is the only judgment that can always be fair. Any human judge, no matter how hard he or she tries, cannot always put aside all bias. And when we judge ourselves, we cannot either. Some people who live selfish and self-centered lives may be inclined to measure themselves too lightly: 'Well, I'm no worse than the next guy.' Or 'I'm just fine.' Others, who may be very generous and giving may measure themselves too harshly, and have a low opinion of themselves: 'I'm only worthy of contempt.'"

3. Comment on this, heard in a sermon: "Despite the fact that 80 percent of the Ten Commandments are prohibitions, their fundamental purpose is not to limit life but to make living the good life, a life in tune with the rhythms of the universe, possible. They are not the ad hoc proscriptions of a cosmic killjoy, but the wise words of a loving parent on how to get the most out of the life we have been given."

Responding to the News

If your image of God is largely that of a divine scorekeeper or a cosmic killjoy, this is a good time to consider what has formed that image in your mind and what might help you to receive and embrace God's mercy and love.

Prayer

Lord, even as we try to follow Jesus, we sometimes commit sins of commission and/or omission. Thank you because when we yield ourselves to you and receive Christ, we can rely upon your mercy. In Jesus' name. Amen

For Some Cubans, Fidel Castro's Death Doesn't Signal Change

The Wired Word for the Week of December 4, 2016

In the News

Fidel Castro, son of a wealthy plantation owner, leader of the Cuban revolution and ruler of that island nation for 49 years before handing off the reins to his younger brother Raul Castro in 2008, died last week, at age 90.

Even after stepping down, however, the elder Castro's mere presence in the background seemed to assure that much in Cuba, including the lack of many freedoms Americans take for granted, would stay the same.

Politically, Castro was a Marxist–Leninist and Cuban nationalist. Under his rule, Cuba became a one-party socialist state; industry and business were nationalized, and state socialist reforms were implemented throughout society.

Many observers say that the revolution Fidel Castro led and the government over which he then presided has a mixed record, accepting the Cuban government claims that during his rule, living standards were raised, infant mortality was reduced, and both education and healthcare were majorly improved. Other observers argue that the living standard in Cuba went from being similar to Europe's when Castro took charge to being one of the poorest in Latin America and that his claims on healthcare and education are suspect.

Most agree, however, that Castro was intolerant of dissent and that the country's human rights record was dismal. While exact numbers of people slain by Castro's regime are not available, the late political scientist R.J. Rummel estimated that between 35,000 and 141,000 people were killed in its first three decades (mid-estimate is 73,000); over 3,600 of those are documented executions by firing squad. (On a per-capita basis, the low estimate is equivalent to killing more than twice the population of Detroit.) A Wall Street Journal count puts the number of Castro's victims as at least 10,000 and possibly as many as 100,000.

Under Castro's rule, Cuba's economy failed repeatedly. And because of the isolation his policies forced on the nation, his people had to live with a shortage of material goods, a lack of opportunity and no political freedom. During his years, thousands of Cubans fled the island, sometimes by way of a perilous sea crossing to Florida.  

It is not surprising that Cubans, whose average monthly income is very low -- some earn as little as $20 -- would seek greener pastures, especially when Castro, like almost all long-term dictators, was extremely wealthy, with a net worth (as estimated a decade ago by Forbes magazine) at $900 million.

Thus, when Castro's death came this week, while some mourned, many people celebrated -- some openly in the Cuban exile community in Miami, and others more quietly in Cuba itself where there is fear of reprisals for speaking ill of the long-time leader.

While it's not accurate to say that everyone in Cuba feels the same about Castro's death, there is reportedly a widespread doubt on the island nation that much will change, at least not in any near term. And that low expectation is reportedly widespread enough that it qualifies as one noticeable mood in Cuba.

The New York Times, reporting on the reactions to Castro's passing, noted the celebratory mood in the Little Havana neighborhood of Miami, but then commented, "Still, in Havana, expectations were limited and often more narrowly focused, on economic survival, and on how little would really change when the mourning was done."

The Times article then quoted Miguel Fernandez, 56, a current resident of Cuba. "It closes one chapter and starts another," Fernandez acknowledged. But then, referring to how little had changed since Raul Castro took over leadership in 2008, Fernandez added that Fidel Castro's death "won't bring about anything substantial. He's been out of the picture for a while."

Some observers say little will change as long as the younger Castro remains in charge.

The Los Angeles Times explained the low expectation of change in more detail:

With the passing of Fidel Castro, it also seems possible that the island leadership will want to reaffirm its commitment to the core principles of the man who personified the revolution. The nine-day mourning period declared in Cuba appears, at least publicly, as a means of cementing Fidel's legacy, not rejecting it.
Havana "will retrench to demonstrate that the 'Revolution' survives its founder -- and continues to defy the grasp of the United States," John Kavulich, president of the New York-based U.S.-Cuba Trade and Economic Council, predicted.
There is "nothing expected to alter the commercial, economic and political timetable," Kavulich said, "meaning, retrenching for a bit to demonstrate" a post-Fidel Castro revolutionary "stability."

More on this story can be found at these links:

In Havana, Castro's Death Lays Bare a Generation Gap. The New York TimesDespite Fidel Castro's Death, Few Expect Rapid Political Changes in Cuba. Los Angeles Times

Applying the News Story

"Perfectly pointless," says the writer of Ecclesiastes. "Everything is pointless." (1:2, CEB)

He then goes on to bemoan, "What do people gain from all the hard work that they work so hard at under the sun? A generation goes, and a generation comes, but the earth remains as it always has. … There's nothing new under the sun" (1:3-4, 9. CEB).

That sounds like some of what we're hearing as Cubans respond to the death of their long-time leader, Fidel Castro. "Castro's dead, but what's new?"

Some people have wondered why a book as pessimistic as Ecclesiastes seems to be was included in holy scripture, but perhaps it's because the book's mood reflects a true part of what it means to be human.

And that, along with the low expectation of change following Castro's death, gives us reason to consider Ecclesiastes afresh.

By the way, the author of Ecclesiastes is called "the Teacher" in the book's opening sentence in English translations. Bible scholars sometimes refer to him as Qoheleth (ko-HEHL-ehth), which is the Hebrew word translated as "teacher" in 1:1. We will use both terms in our  commentary in this lesson.

The Big Questions

1. In what ways do you identify with the phrase, "the joy of being human"? In what ways do you identify with the phrase, "the pain of being human"? Is it possible to go through life without experiencing both? Explain your answer.

2. If you have ever been in an unsatisfactory situation where you had little or no expectation of any positive change occurring, what effect did that low expectation have upon you? If, to your surprise, some positive change did eventually occur, how did that affect you? If change occurred, but was for the worse, how did that affect you? In each case, relate how God used that instance in his relationship with you.

3. Do you find boredom, sameness, routine, humdrum, monotony and low expectations troubling or reassuring? If troubling, how do you deal with that? How does the desirability or pleasance of the status quo affect your answer?

4. Where do you find God when you are immersed in boredom, sameness, routine, humdrum, monotony or low expectations?

5. How is expectation related to the meaning of life? What do you think is the meaning  of life? What does the Bible overall say is the meaning of life?

Confronting the News With Scripture and HopeHere are some Bible verses to guide your discussion:

Ecclesiastes 1:8-9
All things are wearisome; more than one can express; the eye is not satisfied with seeing, or the ear filled with hearing. What has been is what will be, and what has been done is what will be done; there is nothing new under the sun. (For context read 1:1-11.)

The first 11 verses of Ecclesiastes can be considered to be a summary statement of the Teacher's observations of life, and the two verses above are a faithful sample of that summary. Life, as Qoheleth found it, was "wearisome" and same-old, same-old.

If you read Ecclesiastes all the way through, you end with the feeling that Qoheleth doesn't "conquer" his sense of weariness of life. Rather, he accommodates it as a part of his existence. But he tells us some of the things he tried as a remedy.

First, he says, he tried learning. He made a great study of things and sought full knowledge of what could be known. But he concludes, "For in much wisdom is much vexation, and those who increase knowledge increase sorrow" (1:18).

Next, he turned to self-indulgence. "Come now," he says to himself in chapter 2, "I will make a test of pleasure; enjoy yourself" (2:1) But though he has the means and opportunity to indulge his every whim, he ends up concluding, "[T]his also was vanity." He says of laughter, "It is mad," and of pleasure, "What use is it?" (2:2)

He apparently has great wealth, and he spends it lavishly. "I built houses and planted vineyards for myself," he says. "I made myself gardens and parks, and planted in them all kinds of fruit trees. I made myself pools from which to water the forest of growing trees" (2:4-6).

He let himself go with sensual pleasures too. He mentions "delights of the flesh" (2:8) and cheering his "body with wine" (2:3)

He admits that he did find some pleasure in what he'd done, but that the immediate pleasure was all the reward there was. It did not solve his underlying feeling of boredom. He says, "Then I considered all that my hands had done and the toil I had spent in doing it, and again, all was vanity and a chasing after wind, and there was nothing to be gained under the sun" (2:11).

He goes on to try other things, including fame, knowledge and other pursuits. And while he finds certain pleasures in some of those things, none prove the antidote for his underlying doldrums.

Still, in the end, while he never fully overcomes his periodic bouts of boredom, he does make peace with them. And he comes to these conclusions: Go your way, appreciate your family and passing pleasures (9:7,9), value wisdom and learning, and then this: "Remember your creator in the days of your youth, before the days of trouble come, and the years draw near when you will say, 'I have no pleasure in them'" (12:1). In other words, start with God, who provides a baseline of meaning.

Questions: In what ways, if any, do you identify with Qoheleth? In what ways do you not identify with him? Why?

Ecclesiastes 2:24-25There is nothing better for mortals than to eat and drink, and find enjoyment in their toil. This also, I saw, is from the hand of God; for apart from him who can eat or who can have enjoyment? (For context, read 2:18-26.)

The author of Ecclesiastes arrived at the "find enjoyment" conclusion after noting the repetitious cycles of life, the coming and going of one generation after another, the fact that no matter how hard you work, sooner or later whatever you've gained gets passed on to someone else. He had asked rhetorically, "What do mortals get from all the toil and strain with which they toil under the sun? For all their days are full of pain, and their work is a vexation …" (vv. 22-23). Thus he arrived at the "enjoy life as long as you have it" conclusion.

While that does not sound like advice that should be taken without qualifying it by the responsibilities of one's life and the opportunities to do good that one has, it is important to note that the writer identified the ability to have enjoyment as a gift from God.

Questions: How do you balance duty and enjoyment? Can they ever be one and the same?

Ecclesiastes 3:1-2For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven:
a time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up what is planted  ... (For context, read 3:1-15.)

These are the opening lines of the most well-known portion of Ecclesiastes. Even if you've never read the book, you've probably heard this sing-songy chant about a time for this and a time for that. In fact, the lines from 3:1-8 have even been made it into a popular song, composed by Pete Seeger, "Turn, Turn, Turn."

In the passage, the Teacher first lists poetically his observations about the contrasts of life, that everything from birthing to dying, from planting to uprooting, from weeping to laughing, and so forth has an appropriate time in life. Then, in his commentary that follows, the Teacher says, "[God] has made everything suitable for its time" (v. 11a), but adds, in effect, that no one of them is sufficient for all time.

Qoheleth goes on to say that God has put "a sense of past and future" in our minds (v. 11b) -- some inner sense that there is more to this life than what our five senses can perceive, a sense we might call "spirituality." But then he says that this sense is not strong enough to really let us connect with God with any clarity. The way he puts it is that we "cannot find out what God has done from the beginning to the end" (v. 11c).

Still, in the face of this unsatisfiable spiritual yearning, the Teacher comes to two conclusions:

First, life itself is a good thing. He has no sense that there was any kind of afterlife; as far as he is concerned, once you die, it is all over. Still, the life we have here is a good thing, he says, and we should be appreciative of it, enjoying our times to eat together and taking pleasure from our daily work and accomplishments, even though none of them will last forever.

Second, whatever we can or can't know about God, God has given us our lives and so we "should stand in awe before him" (v. 14). He doesn't spell out how we should do that -- whether he is talking about attending worship services or daily prayer, or simply acknowledging that God has the last word and that we are all subject to whatever God decides for us. But he does at least acknowledge God, even if he can't figure out what God is up to.

Question: What has your spiritual sense led you to conclude about life?

Ecclesiastes 12:13 (The Message)The last and final word is this: Fear God. Do what he tells you. (For context, read 12:13-14.)

Unlike many inspirational religious books, Ecclesiastes does not present its pessimistic view of life only to show how God helped the author recover from it. Rather, this "what the heck, enjoy the moment" outlook is consistently present throughout the book, right up to its conclusion. And yet, it remains a book of faith, a skeptical faith at times to be sure, but a faith that concludes in the final verses of the book, "Fear God, and keep his commandments; for that is the whole duty of everyone" (same verse as above, NRSV).

Christianity says that there is a deep meaning to life -- to give glory to God -- and that by doing that, daily meaning comes to our life as well. But in truth, even some Christians have found that they too have days when things go flat and they wonder if they shouldn't just live for the moment, as the writer of Ecclesiastes seems to conclude. Yet the words above give his final conclusion:Fear God. Do what he tells you.

Question: The Teacher's conclusion could be worded as "trust and obey" God, as one old hymn urges. In what ways, if any, have you found that to be a default position when you were unsure how to proceed?

1 Timothy 6:6-8Of course, there is great gain in godliness combined with contentment; for we brought nothing into the world, so that we can take nothing out of it; but if we have food and clothing, we will be content with these. (For context, read 6:3-10.)

Bible students have correctly noted that unlike most Old Testament books, Ecclesiastes is nowhere quoted in the New Testament. That is not to say, however, that the New Testament writers were unfamiliar with Ecclesiastes. The thought in the verses above, from the apostle Paul, does at least seem to echo one of the Teacher's conclusions. We can't say that Paul had Ecclesiastes in mind when he wrote the words above, but they do remind us that Qoheleth was not alone in the way he experienced and thought about life.

Questions: With what Bible persons or passages do you most identify? Why? How have they influenced how you approach life?  

For Further Discussion

1. If you can locate anyone with family or history in Cuba, ask them to come to your class to give their own perspective on Fidel Castro's death.

2. Discuss this from TWW team member Stan Purdum's sermon "The Kin of Qoheleth": "From the standpoint of both the Old Testament's Judaism or the New Testament's Christianity, Qoheleth's conclusions are a pretty thin theology -- thin but not bad theology. Those for whom faith comes more easily might wish that he were more positive in his testimony and more confident of God's intentions for the world. But given that Qoheleth's intellectual honesty, experience and observations would not let him embrace the more hope-filled and more theologically developed faith of mainstream religion, he is still considered worth listening to by those ancient rabbis who decided which books were included in the Old Testament canon.
            "We can take a lot of comfort in that. What it means is that those of us who have quiet doubts or whose intellectual integrity will not let us submit to all the claims of organized religion are not cast away from God's presence -- that like Qoheleth, we too are children of God, even if what we can truthfully affirm about God is less than a full statement of faith or a doctrinal creed."

3. Respond to this, also from Stan Purdum: "I saw a saying on a sign in front of a church that made me look at it twice, for I realized it had three meanings, one of which I doubt the people who put the words there intended -- at least I hope they didn't. It said, 'When you come to your wits' end, there you will find Christ.' Unfortunately, that could be taken to mean, 'You have to stop thinking to find Christ.'
            "Rather, what I suspect they meant was either 1) that when you reach the end of your own resources, Christ's resources have just begun, or 2) that clear thought and the simple affirmations we can honestly make can take us toward Christ. Faith in Christ is a step beyond where thought can go, but it is not a step in the wrong direction. (They need to find a way to say that unambiguously on their sign, however.)
            "So if you are kin to Qoheleth, or have friends or loved ones who are wrestling with honest objections to the faith, take heart that even people like him are allowed to speak as part of the inspiration of the Bible."

4. For more on how the Ecclesiastes mood may be reflected in the New Testament, summarize this blog post for your class and discuss its implications: "Ecclesiastes and the New Testament."

5. Respond to this, from TWW consultant James Gruetzner: "There are rulers who manifest evil in the world. Mao, Hitler, Stalin, Pol Pot, Kim Jong-un -- and, yes, Fidel Castro -- come immediately to mind. Yet it is also true that each of these can be presented as having a mixed record, with some good and some bad in their rule.  I personally believe that neglecting to clearly criticize the manifest denial of human rights -- and instead putting forth an anodyne 'mixed bag' commentary -- is itself supportive of evil. A soft support, but still a support."

Responding to the News

Pray for the people of Cuba, that current events and the course of history will lead soon to better life for its people. For your prayers, consider using the suggestions found at "5 Ways to Pray for Cuba," by the American Bible Society. You might wish to add other petitions that you believe important, such as increased liberty and prosperity for the Cuban people.

Prayer

We pray, O Lord, for the people, the government, the churches and the institutions of Cuba that current happenings will lead soon to a better life for all.

Thank you, Lord, for the many ways the Bible gives us for connecting with you. In Jesus' name. Amen.