In the Land of Sign and Wonder

In the decades that I have been a follower of Jesus, I have never managed to have full clarity on the role that signs and wonders play in the faith life of a Christian. Like most people, I would be swayed, I suppose by events and occurrences not of everyday life, and yet would that make me believe any better and any more when I need faith to bolster me up above all else. I have to say that I don’t know; I have been witness to few if any of such occurrences and God certainly has not enabled me to perform any. However Since time immemorial, man has always been fascinated with signs and wonders. Those who are able to perform miracles are often put on a pedestal.  For example, Simon the sorcerer was hero worshipped for his magical feats. They thought that it must be God who endowed him with special power (Acts 8: 9-11).

In the Bible, signs warn and prepare people for what is ahead. Biblical signs always serve God’s purposes to instruct his people about himself. In Matthew 16, the Pharisees and Sadducees tested Jesus by asking Him to show them a sign from heaven.  We too, can become overly reliant on signs and wonders. When one is overly dependent on signs and wonders, one can be so accustomed to them that he or she becomes paralyzed in their walk with God. Signs and wonders should follow the believer, not the other way round. When times are good, it is very easy to see the signs, yet when the storms of life hit, we often feel that signs are nowhere to be found no matter how hard we search for it.

When signs do not appear, we start to despair. Living a lifestyle of heavy dependence on signs will slowly destroy one’s faith, trust and vision in God. As Christians, we must learn to trust in God, not signs and wonders. When there is no manifestation of God’s power, it does not mean His power is not at work. God’s power is not determined by feelings, emotions or manifestation. While feelings are important in many areas of life, he noted, they are completely unreliable in matters of faith.

Signs and wonders and miraculous phenomena could not save a soul then nor can they now. The power of salvation is in the Holy Spirit working through the cross of Jesus Christ. But such miraculous phenomena “can, if God pleases, shatter the shell of disinterest; they can shatter the shell of cynicism; they can shatter the shell of false religion. In our modern age, many people are skeptical of claims of healings, miracles or any supernatural events. The miracles of the Bible are looked at as quaint fairy tales developed by primitive cultures to explain the mysteries of nature. Perhaps for such as a people as this and for such a generation as this: - skeptical and unbelieving, miracles, signs and wonders still serves a purpose. 

Staring at an empty chair: The Empty Nest Syndrome……

Empty Nest Syndrome” is the time of change following the leaving of your last child from the family home, whether for college, marriage, or a job in a different town. For many parents, this time of change can be upsetting. The effort of adjusting to your shifting role as a parent can lead to feelings of melancholy, lonesomeness, and diminished tenacity in life.

Some people are able to waft through the empty nest transition. After the early regulation, they find that they love their new lives and relish having more free time. Others count the days until their children coming back home for a holiday break, and then spend the day after they leave mourning and grieving for them all over again. The course of letting go of our children differs from person to person—and sometimes is diverse as each child leaves home.

There are two wonderful stories in the Bible about men who had to leave their homes and families. The stories of Jacob and Joseph tell of extended periods during which they were far away from home and out of contact with their families. Times were very different then. No telephones and no emails and slow and ineffective communication meant no postal services and no means of getting any news about the other. If a person moved, it could be years before anyone knew where he or she finally settled. Families lost members all too often. Jacob was forced to leave due to his own act of trickery towards his brother and duplicity towards his father. He must have suffered within himself all the years he was away. He faced the danger of his brother Esau’s wrath by returning to the land of his father Isaac. We do not know if God was reminding Jacob of the pain he caused his own father Isaac when God allowed Joseph to vanish for many years. Jacob was heartbroken and God did not whisper one word of encouragement to him. The story that unfolds is one that brings tears to the eyes of parents who have children living a long way from home.

Many factors have changed about the way our world looks today.  Jobs in faraway places call out to the young into jobs that often take them far away. Educational opportunities in foreign lands and distant universities are appealing. Parents who are growing old and who ought to be enjoying the fruits of their labors are left to wonder if their children are well, seeing their grandchildren only on rare occasions and for short periods of time. The grandparents often have little influence on the grandchildren, and visits to their children’s homes can be tense. Only parents who have experienced the empty nest will truly understand.

A verse in Proverbs is a great verse to live by: “Train up a child in the way he should go and when he is old, he will not depart from it.” In short, the best way to be ready to let go of our kids is to prepare them to live responsible, Godly lives–on their own.

Figuring out the Prosperity Gospel

There’s a dangerous but popular current theology flitting around these days that says prosperity and financial success is a direct result of one’s faith. It has been around for a while but now it is projected so subtly that one can get sucked into it, quietly. Followers of this prosperity gospel say Jesus was a rich man, and so were his disciples. So these people say that following Jesus leads to financial success. If your faith is good and true, you will be blessed with health, wealth, and happiness. But what of the recession you wonder? Yes, such blessings apply even in these tough financial times. A brochure from a prosperity gospel seminar claimed: “Regardless of the media reports, believers are not subject to the recession.”  What really bothers me is what the theology says about faith. It’s so dangerous–and completely unsubstantiated by scripture–to tie one’s financial success to one’s faith. But that’s what prosperity gospel preachers preach.

When we are introduced to Abraham and Sarah in Genesis chapter 12, God’s blessing is not dependent on Abraham’s faith. God’s promise to Abraham is simple: “Go from your country…and I will make of you a great nation” not so that they might be blessed with riches, but so that they will be “be a blessing” to others (Gen 12:1-2). But even after the Lord’s declaration, life remains a struggle for Abraham and Sarah.

Some of us want to leave our faith unexamined. We know a strong faith doesn’t lead to material prosperity, but beyond that things get murky and uncomfortable. But maybe faith isn’t about strength or weakness. Maybe faith shouldn’t be measured in strong or weak, good or bad, but in understanding, in examination. Maybe it’s the process of wrestling with faith that’s key, not whether one has it all figured out.

St. Augustine famously wrote of “faith seeking understanding.” Augustine knew there are no big lines separating faith and understanding, but that faith and understanding are part and parcel of the same thing. Knowledge and understanding occurs with faith, but faith also comes with understanding. Faith doesn’t come with an end point, but it’s a process that always on-going. A river always flowing towards our Lord.

Being Just

                             

Imagine that you have a friend or a family member who is caught in an addictive behavior. Maybe they are addicted to drugs, or alcohol, or sex, or are cheating on their spouse, or are spiraling into credit card debt. Whatever it is, think seriously about that person right now. If that person continues doing what they are currently doing, do you think you can predict the outcome? Most likely. Addiction almost always ends in some form of self-destruction.

Now, what would you say to that person if you were given the chance to tell them the whole truth, without any fear on your part? You would probably tell them three things. First, you would remind them that they are a special person, they are loved, and they are worthy of a better life than what they currently experience. Second, you would tell them about the consequences they will face–the immanent destruction–that will happen if they continue on the path they are on. Third, you will remind them that there is always a way out. There is always grace and a second, or third, or fourth chance.

That is exactly what a prophet was sent to do. A prophet was sent by God to deliver a message like that. God’s people were continually getting caught up in destructive patterns that would lead them into dangerous consequences. The prophets were sent to remind them who they were–God’s chosen people–warn them apart the devastating consequences of their behavior, and offer them a message of hope if they would only repent.

Most people think of justice as “getting what is deserved.” This usually has the sense of criminals getting punished. Isn’t that what we think of when we hear the term Justice System? We all want justice when someone hurts us. Don’t we? But I wonder if that is the full picture of justice, or what God really means when he says, “let justice roll down like a mighty water.”

The real answer to the Justice question is found in Amos. It doesn’t get any clearer or more uncomfortable for us. God’s idea of justice is the proper treatment of the poor and the needy. He’s not talking about rich people in rich churches giving handouts to poor people. He is speaking to the justice system of the Kingdom. He’s talking politics. He’s telling them that a system that works to keep the poor, poor, and allows the rich and powerful to become more rich and powerful, at the expense of the poor, is an unjust and unrighteous system.

When the church supports a system like that, or quietly stands aside and lets a system like that happen without standing up against it, then the worship services become meaningless and God hates it. Jesus challenges us with his response to the lawyer’s question of ‘who is my neighbour’ by telling the parable of the Good Samaritan (Lk. 10:25-37). In our globalised industrial age the entire human population has become our economic neighbour and yet remains largely a relational stranger.  How do we then respond? 

Reflections for World Day of the Sick

As I write about the World Day of the sick, I have been thinking of a friend who has been recently diagnosed with cancer. The initial treatment cost about Rs two lakhs. Then to determine the next course of treatment, she has to submit herself to many tests, one of which has been costed at 2000 USD, translating itself into about two and a half lakh rupees. The treatment of course, once determined will be equally or more expensive. “I have been struck with a rich man’s disease”, she summed up. As another February 11 is approaching, it’s necessary to discuss about the significance of the World day of sick to for those living in India. Like every developing country, we too have own share of problems in the area of health and sickness.   As Christians and responsible citizens, we share the responsibility for contributing to the solution.

 Pope St. John Paul II first announced the “World Day of the Sick” on May 13, 1992 and fixed the Feast of Our Lady of Lourdes, February 11, as the day for its annual observation. It is thought that the Pope was prompted by his own encounter with Parkinson’s disease, the year before. Today, “World Day of the Sick” has become an occasion for both the sick and those who are their care givers who love and care for them. This is the occasion for us to pray for healing and peace of mind and body and to unite their sufferings with that of the Lord Jesus. The Lord himself not only sought out the sick and suffering and not only touched them with miraculous healing, but also sharing in our humanity, suffered for them and for us all.  “In the Cross of Christ,” wrote Pope St. John Paul II, “not only is the Redemption accomplished through suffering but also human suffering has been redeemed (Apostolic Letter Salvifici Doloris, para. 19, February 11 1984). Faith organizations mark this day especially to provide the sick with medicines, food, and spiritual guidance.

Sickness and sufferings come uninvited. They can happen to anyone at anytime. The Church believes that every sickness is an opportunity bestowed upon us by God to know Him better. Only by embracing the sufferings due to sickness one gets closer to God. By observing World day of Sick, the Church wants believers to realize the divine and redeeming nature of sickness and sufferings. There would be very few of us who have not personally seen or known or loved someone who is sick and suffering.  And most of us have, will at some time in our lives suffer from illness- be it physical or mental.  The health situations and crises we will meet in our own lives or in the lives of our friends may be the result of diseases or other sicknesses – hereditary, contracted or maybe accidental– that are brief or persistent, some perhaps terminal in there nature.

 The healing which Jesus offers to us in our lives is best manifest at the Cross.  At Calvary, the Lord Jesus reveals to us that healing does not indicate that all sickness, suffering and death are banished from our lives. But then the Crucifixion is followed by the Resurrection. Like the disciples on the road to Emmaus, Jesus today too asks of us: “what are these matters that you are discussing?” In sharing of our misgivings, struggles, anguish and confusion, we gradually came to recognize Him (like the disciples at Emmaus) at the breaking of bread. It is worth noting that at the end of the narrative, the disciples are not anymore sad and grief-stricken when Jesus vanishes once again, as they would continue to enter into communion with Him at every breaking of bread henceforth. As then, so now, Jesus remains to call us to gather around the altar of suffering, spot Him at the fellowship of the Communion, and to entrust our sorrow and suffering to Him.

India is a large country with a huge population. Majority of this population lives in villages in spite of an increasing phenomena of urbanization. Most of them do not have proper healthcare facilities. Bringing about a positive change in this issue cannot be something that the government cannot be done alone.  In recognition of this, the Church has been assisting the government in providing healthcare through its many institutions.  And as we observe the 25^th World day of Sick this year, we can reflect upon how we can support the Church in its mission to lessen the sufferings of sick. Challenges in healthcare are many in the country. So let this World day of sick be an opportunity for us to develop a sense of empathy towards the sick and support them in all possible ways. Let us pray to the Lord to strengthen the sick and those who serve them.