Matthew 14.22-33 (Walking on Water)

I have been thinking about Peter’s walk on water for some time. That’s the story in the Gospels where Peter asks Jesus to allow him to walk on water during a storm. “Lord, command me to come to you on the water” (Matthew 14.28). Jesus replies to his request, “Come.” And for a moment, Peter is actually walking on water!

Of course, Peter begins to sink when he takes his eyes off of Jesus and stares at the violent sky.

One time, I asked a class full of people, “What do you think about Peter in this story?” One gentleman replied, “I think he’s a failure. Ultimately he sank and so showed he didn’t have faith.” I asked him further, “What about the eleven disciples still in the boat? What do you think about them?” He frowned. He didn’t know where I was going with that.

I believe Peter was successful that day. Of course it matters that he sank and so revealed he still had a lot to go. It did show that he lacked the necessary faith. But on the other hand, he dared to take up the litmus test of faith. For him, and really for all the disciples, the event became a chance to test out their faith. In that situation, Peter stood up from among his peers and waved his hand loudly, “Jesus, I want to go first!” And Jesus responded, “Okay! You are first! Come!” The rest of the disciples sat around in silence and watched.

And with the faith test completed, Peter got back his results and found out what he needed to work on. He needed to keep his eyes on Jesus and not on his problems. The disciples sat around in silence and watched.

But he also found out that he could walk on water! He experienced it, if for only a moment. As he stepped out of the boat and dared to set his first foot into the water, he looked at Jesus and the water felt firm under his foot. And with confidence, he set the other foot into the water, and as he looked at Jesus, that foot also felt firm. He let go of the boat and found himself, miraculously, standing on water. Impossible! But he did it. But more! Our passage records, "So Peter got out of the boat, started walking on water, and came toward Jesus" (v.29). Wow! I don't know how many steps he took, but he took deliberate steps! There was definite direction, toward Jesus! And I think Peter was so far from the boat that he could not on his own swim back into the boat so that he could only cry out, "Lord, save me!" (v.30). Can you imagine the shock of the disciples in the boat? With opened mouths, they watched.

And Peter found out that Jesus got his back. As soon as he began to sink, Jesus was right there (how did he get to Peter so quick?!?), “Jesus immediately reached out his hand and caught him” (v.31). Peter didn't drown. Jesus wouldn't let that happen! That day, through that event, I think Peter was able to test his safety net (the kind that trapeze artists use when they perform) and found it completely dependable. Next time he takes the faith challenge, he won’t be as scared or as worried because he knows by experience, that his divine safety net is secure. And the disciples sat around in silence and watched.

So who do we want to be in this story? It’s obvious that we all want to be Peter. We want to experience God and his power. We long to have our own walking on water experience! And we want to have Jesus reach out his hand to catch us. How exciting would that be! But, and here’s an important but, all of this was possible precisely because Peter made the decision to step out of the boat. He made a choice to test out his faith, to dare to walk on water, to go beyond the routine, to ask for the extraordinary, to experience life beyond the regular!

Just like Peter in this story, and Moses at the burning bush, and Paul on the road to Damascus, and through so many other examples, the Bible tells us that God comes to us in a personal way and invites us to step out in faith. Some of them are minor, someone called them the whispers of the Holy Spirit in our daily lives, but some are pretty major! And we hear testimonies from those Peters around us who raised their hands and said “YES.”They give testimonies that give us goose bumps. At our church in May, we are going to hear from a successful surgeon who is selling his possessions, high position, and comfortable life and departing for Ethiopia with his family because they heard the call of God and chose to be like Peter and Moses and Paul. And we are going to amazed at their story and listen with open mouths. Just like the disciples.

This article is not a push for missions (unless that is what God is calling you for). Rather, I believe God calls us to live out a life of faith on a regular basis. To stand up from our position inside the comfortable boat of life and dare to walk out in faith, to work on something that is divinely inspired, to choose to participate in what God is doing at the cost of our time and comforts, to give of our money and our selves as acts of Peter-like faiths. And I turn the pointing finger at myself -- so what have I done? How am I any different from the disciples in the story? And I remain humbled and sinful. Peter remains my motivation.

Matthew 18.1-5 (Greatest in Heaven)

Matthew 18.1 finds the disciples of Jesus asking an important question, "Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?"

So, who is the greatest?

I think we are beyond titles now so that we don't automatically think pastors, elders & deacons are anywhere "greater" than others. As a pastor myself, I affirm this understanding. In fact, that I am given this sacred title but have a difficult time living excellently - in desperate pursuit of God, his holiness, and his design for my life, more than those without such titles work against me, I think. Heaven's "Greatest" list may find those with church titles on the bottom half rather than the top.

I think this is what the disciples were trying to figure out. Most likely, the disciples were asking Jesus to rate them. Since the Twelve are closest to Jesus, physically and they do have the title of disciples of Jesus, they figured they already occupy the top twelve on the list. They want to know the order of that twelve.

Kind of reminds me of the state of men's tennis. Three players dominate the game and stand head taller than the rest. Federer, Nadal and Djokovic. They are so dominant that the three have won the last 27 of 28 Grand Slams of tennis or 34 of 37 wins going back to 2004! They are the TOP 3. No one comes close. The only question is which of these three is the best of the best?

That's probably the discussion among the disciples when they asked Jesus that day, "Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?" This conversation is placed in that context in both Mark & Luke (Mark 9.33-37; Luke 9.46-48. In Luke, the story opens with "An argument arose among them as to which one was the greatest")

To their discussion, Jesus sets them straight:

1) Are you sure you are even INSIDE the kingdom of heaven? (v.3) In their minds, the disciples are already inside the kingdom; they just want to know which one is the greatest. But Jesus takes them outside the kingdom and has them face the entrance gates, "Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like children, you will never ENTER the kingdom of heaven."

2) In v.3, Jesus tells them the requirement of ENTERING the kingdom of heaven. Once again, Jesus is standing with them outside. Their ticket to enter, their qualification for admission, is that they must CHANGE. Whatever is going on inside and/or outside of them is all wrong. They require CHANGE if they want to ENTER the kingdom of heaven. This is probably what Paul had in mind when he talks about the OLD self and the NEW when the Spirit of God comes upon the new believer, that the OLD must be put off and the NEW must be put on -- if the OLD persists, or if we reject parting with the OLD, then we must question, is the Spirit in us at all?

What does this NEW self look like? Jesus is such a great teacher. He has a child in front of him, points to him or her and declares, "become like children." Of course there are good things and bad things about children, but obviously Jesus is looking at traits of children that resemble the NEW:

• children know how to enjoy life. They laugh at everything and anything (joy filled living)
• some might call it being careless, but nothing is ever too serious and they aren't stressed out (living in freedom)
• whenever they are in need, they go cling to their parent. There is never a second option for them (trust and dependency)

3) And after Jesus explains the notion of ENTERing the kingdom of heaven, Jesus turns to address their initial question about GREATNESS once inside. He walks the disciples inside and once again points to the same child and says, "whoever becomes humble like this child is the greatest" (v.4). Greatness is marked by HUMILITY.

2005 at Roxas Village in the Philippines. Playing hopscotch.

I thought to myself, how are children humble? For them, everything is theirs, and they scratch and punch their way to dominance. In fact, it's the correction of the adults, "don't do this" and "don't do that" that keeps them in line. But I think that's the point. The children know their place in society. The adults are HUGE and physically imposing. They know that the adults command authority and are taught to respect them and never talk back to them. And for most part, they stay in line. A room full of children might be a mess, but put an adult supervision in there and for the most part, there is order. All the children know who's in charge. I think this is what Jesus has in mind. With the GREATEST in the kingdom already in their midst (that would be JESUS), it's arrogant of them to fight over such matter. The children don't do that in the adult's presence. The smartest ones help other kids and align themselves with the adult in the room so that their authority is borrowed authority, never their own. In front of Jesus, the disciples ought to have behaved like children and learned to find ways to please Jesus. As such, they ought to have rejected the notion of greatness so that Jesus can complement them! Humility is what Jesus wants. And so the ones who want to be the greatest ought to have taken the posture of humility!

So many ways to apply this. I'll leave that to you and to your prayers.

Apostle Paul in Prison

When Apostle Paul was arrested and put into prison during his visit to Jerusalem (Acts 21), it is very likely that the churches gathered together to pray most passionately for his release. This was probably more so in Paul's churches. One can imagine the tears and overnight prayer sessions on behalf of the one who had done more for the church's expansion than anyone else. No one else came close. One can imagine the prayers they offered up to God --

     "Almighty God. You perform miracles upon miracles! We have witnessed how you freed Peter in the jail in Jerusalem (Acts 12) and Paul in Philippi (Acts 16). All thing are possible with you! And we are talking about your great servant Paul! Free him, Lord!"
     "You are the changer of hearts, O Creator of all things. Move in the hearts of the authorities to see the light and release Paul from prison so that the world will know you are Lord!"
     "Jesus, you came to release the captives, those who are unjustly treated and imprisoned. You know that Paul is a classic example of this. Release him, Jesus! Set him free, O God!"

But none of those prayers free Paul. Days pass and then weeks. The prayer meetings become less frequent and small doubts begin to creep in. And then some of his opponents and haters most likely begin to beat their drums:

     "Perhaps it is God's will to keep him locked up!"
     "Maybe God is not answering your prayers because God is punishing him because he did something wrong. What could that be?"
     "Could it be that he was the one preaching the wrong gospel and we are preaching the right one (Gal 1)? Maybe God is stopping him from preaching it."
     "We know God is all powerful and we know God can free him if God so chooses. So, why isn't Paul set free? What does God know that we don't? Hmmm?"

In 2 Timothy, Paul writes about some of those who sided with these haters, who now felt ashamed of being associated with Paul -- there was Phygelus and Hermogenes (1.15) and Demas (4.10) to mention a few. Paul is worried that Timothy might side with them and so he writes, "Do not be ashamed, then, of the testimony about our Lord or of me his prisoner" (1.8). In fact, in the four chapters of 2 Timothy, Paul uses the word "ashamed" four times, and his letter contains a number of personal apologetics as a way of defending himself from such attacks.

It must have been a tough time for him.

He had to first convince himself that the attacks against him had no validity. Or did they? So why was Paul not set free? So why is he still in jail when there is still so much work to do? A man of prayer? A man of miracles? So where is that power now? How come you can't get out, Paul?

After a lengthy time of prayer for release, Paul had to have come to a conclusion that God didn't want him set free. Paul already understood that not all of his prayers get answered the way he wants ("thorn in the flesh" 2 Cor 12), and his life's many troubles are a testament to that (his many enemies and problematic churches). And so Paul's next step would have been to seek out answers as to why Paul is kept in prison.

In the earlier prison letter to the Philippians, Paul writes, "I want you to know, beloved, that what has happened to me [being in jail] has actually helped to spread the gospel, so that it has become known through the whole imperial guard and to everyone else that my imprisonment is for Christ; and most of the brothers and sisters, having been made confident in the Lord by my imprisonment, dare to speak the word with greater boldness and without fear" (1:12-14). With joy Paul writes that his presence inside jail walls has opened up a new ministry opportunity for him! This is a shout out to all those prison ministries!

Kyrgyzstan 2001 English Club

In this later prison letter that is 2 Timothy, he speaks with more candor about his prison situation, that it's difficult and that he does "suffer hardship" (2.8-10). And with friends and colleagues separating themselves from him, Paul is both sharp-tongued (calling them by name) and rather down on himself, "As for me, I am already being poured out as a libation, and the time of my departure has come. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith" (4.6-7).

And he holds to these truths:

1. Even if the situation seems bleak and dark, know that God does rescue us and comes to our aid at all times (3.10-11)
2. Being persecuted for being a Christian simply comes with who we are and what we are trying to do (3.12; 4.5). This is even true inside the church. There are plenty of ways to please the people and so get on their good side (3.1-9; 4.3-4), but that would be wrong. Avoid doing that! Be different from them even if that's unpopular (3.5; 3.14f; 4.5).
3. It's kind of lonely at these times (4.9-22). With only Dr. Luke by his side, Paul calls on his son in faith, Timothy to come quickly to see him (4.9, 13, 21). I hope Timothy was able to get to Paul's side and encourage him. I think Paul needed that, badly.

It’s been a very busy end of the year with multiple worships (all good!) to prepare for. I received a question from a gentleman and I would like to share my response here:

“What do you think about the New Apostolic Reformation and the teachings of its leader, Charles Peter Wagner?”

Charles Peter Wagner was a professor at Fuller when I went to school there. He was very supportive of the charismatic movement then and held classes on casting out demons and binding the territorial evil spirits. He and John Wimber, founder of Vineyard Fellowship, taught classes together and really promoted the charismatic movement.

By “charismatic movement,” I am talking about something that came out of the “pentecostal movement.” In simplistic terms, pentecostal movement is about receiving the baptism of the Holy Spirit and speaking in tongues while praying. The charismatic movement went further on the power and activity of the Holy Spirit and emphasized healing and other greater powers/gifts that can be gotten. This movement has gone into the emphasis on prophecy (most teach that everyone is given the gift of prophecy, but they must learn to use it), physical healing, deliverance from demon possessions, and various manifestations of the Holy Spirit. If you were to go to one of their services, you will see these “manifestations” in variety of ways -- people swaying back and forth, people praying or laughing or making strange noises or doing something uncontrollably for minutes or hours.

All those things are rather personal. And that was the focus of the charismatic movement at its beginning. The focus was on the worshiper receiving something from the Holy Spirit through worship – a gift of speaking in tongue, a gift of healing, a gift of prophecy, a gift of this or gift of that. You probably know of several churches in your area that do this. Many missionaries belong to this movement (many come from the US, Great Britain, and Australia). Which organizations belong to this movement? The largest of these is International House of Prayer (IHOP) and their One Thing conferences. Also YWAM.

This movement has tried to correct themselves from being self-centered. One of the developments was the partnership of IHOP and YWAM. IHOP is about prayer and receiving from God. YWAM is a missionary organization. They’ve partnered up so that YWAM sends their missionaries to IHOP and IHOP is challenged to missions through YWAM.

Another development of looking outward is the formation of this New Apostolic Reformation (NAR) by Wagner. As YWAM is about missions, NAR is about politics. NAR believes that the society is evil and it is under the control of the devil. It believes that its rulers and governments officials are agents of the devil and get their orders from him. They believe there are “territorial spirits” of evil that affect the minds and actions of people. In Mongolia, for example, the NAR might say that the demonic spirit uses vodka to bind the minds and hearts of your men. Or they might say night clubs and dance halls and prostitutions are demonic works.

NAR wants to mobilize Christians to vote for Christian politicians and support them through prayer. They want to mobilize churches to pray and cast out territorial demons. They want the churches to gather and oppose the works of the devil. They want to change the society to become Christian.

Okay. My assessment and criticism.

It is wrong to overly criticize any Christian movement. Some people go overboard and call them unChristian or demonic. The internet is filled with hateful languages that attack the charismatic movement. I believe that is very wrong and they grieve the Holy Spirit. In God’s kingdom there is room for a variety of understandings of the Bible and God’s work. And I believe there is room for charismatics, as there is room for Presbyterians and Baptists and all the other expressions of Christian faith. I think they are doing great work in the name of God and they are reaching people that traditional Christian groups are unable to, or unwilling to, reach.

Did you notice I separated them from the “traditional Christian groups”? By traditional Christian groups I mean Presbyterians, Methodists, Baptists, etc. Charismatic movement is not “traditional” in that sense. The traditional groups have not valued the sending of the Holy Spirit to the churches and the power that he brings. And while the charge is overly general, traditional churches have also been blind to the works of the devil. The churches did church without tapping into the power and the presence of the Holy Spirit, and without recognizing what Paul described as, “the cosmic powers of this present darkness, the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places” (Eph 6:12). I think that’s an apt criticism. The pentecostal movement and the charismatic movement are about awaking the church to the power available to them through the Holy Spirit and to awaken the church to the presence and works of the devil. The Bible talks about the devil as being very active, but the traditional churches never talk about him. The pentecostals and charismatics have caused the traditional church to recognize this error, and that’s good.

They have also helped the traditional churches to understand that they are not doing a good job in evangelism. The traditional churches are losing members very quickly. My denomination, the PC(USA) has lost over 50% membership in the last 50 years! We are talking about from over 4 million members in 1960 to less than 2 million members now! But the pentecostal and charismatic churches are increasing in membership! They are doing something right and the traditional churches are not. They are forcing the traditional churches to use other senses to experience God. The traditional churches know God through their heads; these other churches experience God through their hearts and bodies. They are experiencing God as truly being living and active! That’s very good.

Now for my criticisms. Some of the leaders of the pentecostal and charismatic movements have committed great sins while they were on top of ministry. The most famous of them are Jimmy Swaggart, Ted Haggard, Paul Cain, and Todd Bentley are some of the leading leaders at one time. You can look them up on Google and read their stories. The problem is not their sins (many pastors in traditional churches sin greatly as well), but their bold claims to being so close to God that they hear His voice clearly and know His heart and will. They present themselves in such grandiose light that their falls are significant. Also, they are too quick to return to the pulpit.

Also, there is a sense that this movement lacks biblical teaching. Whatever people sense and feel, they are encouraged to do. In this sense, they lack control. If they believe that the Holy Spirit is active, but also that the devil is active, there should be more care to ensure it is the Holy Spirit and not the devil that are influencing the person. Some of the actions of people under the manifestations of the Spirit are truly awkward. Making strange noises, acting like animals, shaking and laughing and jerking...they don’t look like the work of the Holy Spirit who gives us peace and order.

So what am I getting at? I don’t want to discourage anyone from speaking in tongues or enjoying the fullness of the Holy Spirit. The traditional churches, by and large, have neglected this. One of these days, I plan on visiting IHOP or attending one of their regional conferences.

But at the same time, I would be careful to go further than that. I think there are errors in their teaching about prophetic gifts. And I don’t agree that people ought to be giving such titles as prophets and apostles. And their end time teachings, I don’t agree in many respects.

Did I answer it to your liking? You probably have 1,000 more questions, now.
One more thing I don’t agree with NAR and Wagner. He’s got this very structured understanding of the Devil and his kingdom. Some of that does not originate from Scripture. The Bible says that the devil is real and he’s got a kingdom and demons that work under him. That’s true. But territorial demons? And demons seemingly being present everywhere? Holy Spirit is God and so he is everywhere. But demons are creatures. They have a number and they don’t multiply. They can’t be everywhere at all times. I think too much of what goes on is attributed to the devil.

A good story:

2009, at Tala Village, Philippines w/ Missionary Yang

A young youth pastor was taking a team of youths to a neighboring country for missions. On the bus, the youth pastor told his students to be prepared for the attacks of the devil. He told them that he felt God tell him that the devil hated what they are going to do and so have put his best demons against them and so they must be in prayer and always be alert. Some of the kids were nervous and two girls held onto each other scared at the announcement.

An older pastor who joined the team stood up and said, in a calm voice, “Don’t you worry about anything. He that is in us is greater than he that is in the world. Don’t scare them with talks of the devil. Encourage them with the power of God.”

PJin.

Exodus 32.15-34 (Christmas: Why Jesus Came to Us)

I am reminded once more the reason why Jesus came to us.

In Exodus, Moses spends forty days and forty nights with God on top of Mt. Sinai being blessed by God’s presence. At the end, he receives two tablets written on front and back – the Ten Commandments (Ex 32.15-16). He comes down from the mountain and is shocked at what he sees – the Israelites in a drunken dance before the golden calf. Moses is so overcome with anger that he hurls the holy tablets down at them, breaking them into pieces.

After executing the most egregious wrong doers (about 3,000), he heads back up to meet the truly offended. There, in front of God, he begs, “But now, if you will only forgive their sin—but if not, blot me out of the book that you have written” (32.32). Essentially, Moses is saying, “I am willing to die on their behalf!” How Jesus of him to say that! How great of Moses! He's so good.

So what is God’s response to his passionate plea? It's a rather unemotional, “Whoever has sinned against me I will blot out of my book” (v.33).

Huh? I expected God to respond in one of two ways: he could have said, “Oh, how nice of you Moses! I am so moved by your display that I will forgive them! (sniff…sob…)” or second, “Move aside Moses! My anger will not be lessened by your plea! They deserve my wrath!” One of those two responses was what I expected from God.

But God responds with something unexpected. “Whoever has sinner against me I will blot out of my book.” What does this mean? That’s God turning the table on Moses and replying, “Who do you think you are, Moses?” It’s God saying, “Do you think you are somehow different from them? Sinless? Pure? Holy? Is your name so secure in my book? Answer me if you can.”

When God has gotten his attention, He continues with an instruction for Moses to lead them as God directs him and let God be God: “when the day comes for punishment, I will punish them for their sin” (v.34). It’s God’s way of saying, “Moses, you are called out to serve me. That's it. You cannot blot out their sin. You have no power nor right to do that work. You are no different from them. A sinner. Don’t be so full of yourself.”

And so God sent Jesus. The one with the power and the right to declare, “I am willing to die on their behalf!”

That’s why we celebrate Christmas.

When the day came for us to receive punishment, God sent his only Son who would declare on the cross, "I am willing to die on their behalf!"

That's why it's Merry Christmas.

Matthew 15:21-28 (Canaanite Woman's Faith)

In the Gospel of Mark, she is called the Syrophoenician Woman (7.24f). During one of his travels, Jesus is walking in the northeastern region along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea. While there, a local woman comes to Jesus because her daughter is deathly ill, tormented by a demon. Jesus' response is surprising to us. He avoids her (v.23). When she persists with louder plea for help, Jesus throws out a discouraging reply, "I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. It is not fair to take the children's food and throw it to the dogs" (vv.24-26). Wow. Just wow. Harsh words. Did he just call her a dog?

She doesn't let those words hurt her, even though I bet they did. That's because her daughter needs help and she is certain Jesus has the power to heal. And so she begs at the one that has just put her down, "Yes, Lord." I bet that was hard to say. "yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their master's table" (v.27).

Jesus is smiling now. She has passed the faith test. I want to talk about this more later. But he declares, "Woman!" She is no longer a dog. "Great is your faith!" And with those words, the demon is cast out and her child is healed completely.

I wonder how the disciples are reacting to this...And this is important, because Jesus was teaching two groups this day -- the Canaanite woman, and his disciples.

I want to try to make sense of Jesus' initial reaction to the Canaanite woman. What's with his harsh words of discrimination? It's so unlike him to do so. No, he wouldn't do it because he doesn't believe what he said. So why did he do it? Why did he call her a dog and that she doesn't deserve his attention? Many believe Jesus' motive was to test her faith and she came through with flying colors, "Great is your faith!" But I think that's only half of his motivation. He had another audience beside him -- his disciples.

Jesus was certainly repeating the generally held view of the Jews. In this case, his words are in accord with the view of the disciples that surround him. That is why they agree with Jesus, "Send her away!" And when Jesus called her a dog, I bet the disciples were nodding in approval. "That's right Jesus! Tell her off!" I can see them encouraging him. But the woman doesn't back off. Her persistence changes Jesus! It's as if Jesus turns to his disciples as he shouts, "Woman! How great is your faith!" Look, she's not a dog. She has great faith! And I am going to do what she asks. That's because I have also come for her. From this perspective, Jesus is teaching the nationalistic disciples that Jesus is the Savior of the world!

1) The disciples and the Jews. The Jews in the time of Jesus held onto a sense of entitlement calling themselves "God's children" while others weren't. And if others weren't God's children, then they are less...they are dogs. But the true plan of God from Abraham on was for the Israelites to be "God's children" so that God can use them to reach the world. There were called to be a blessing to others. We see that clearly with the story of Jonah and God's desire for the Gentiles to receive God's love and mercy. In the story, Jonah reflects the erroneous selfishness of the Jews - You are our God! And I refuse to go to the Ninevites and share You with them!

Not much had changed by the time of Jesus. The Jews prided themselves on being called God's children. But then they turned around and called others "dogs." That's not the way God wanted it. For the Creator God, the Canaanite was his child just as a Jew was his child.

By speaking from their discrimination and error, Jesus was teaching his disciples, and later Jewish readers the harshness of their position, but also that if Jesus came to the Jews first, he would be going to the Gentiles next. And they more than deserve it -- look at the woman! What great faith she's got! She's no dog.

In some way, we can replace the Jews with us Americans. We certainly feel privileged and so sing, "God Bless America!" We certainly are blessed. Founded upon Christian values and faith, God has been good to us. And like the Jews, we are to go forth and bless others. That's a command. And there are so many that need Jesus!

2) The Canaanite woman was certainly tested by Jesus. But really, it was not so much of a test, as a proof of her faith. I bet she didn't know how much faith she possessed. She knew Jesus could heal her daughter, but she didn't know how much she was willing to let herself go for it. Jesus showed her the greatness of her faith. He refused her. He rejected her. He rudely called her names. But she clung on. When Jesus exclaimed, "Woman, great is your faith!" I think she went, "Really? Oh, that's true!"

Our faith is shown in moments of crisis, in desperate need. How much are we willing to trust God? Even when we feel rejected by God and spurned by Him, how much are we willing to say, "No matter what, you are the one I trust!"

Philippines 2006. Visit to a local prison (talk of overcrowded jails?)

Sometimes God places crises in our lives to cultivate faith. Cling onto God and allow God to reveal your great faith. And sometimes, God calls us to let go of what we have so that we come to a place of need. Don't you worry. That's a great time to cultivate your faith! That's a chance for you to hear, "Woman, Man, My daughter, My son, great is your faith!"

Genesis 34 (Rape of Dinah)

It's a horrible story. The family of Jacob arrives at a new land. While they are getting adjusted, their daughter is taken by the prince of the land and raped. In anger, Jacob's sons devise a plan of revenge and effectively kill all of the men of the region.

This story is usually understood this way - Shechem, the loose prince of the land wrongs Dinah and her family by raping her. He is evil. And his father is awful for trying to cover it up. In righteous indignation, her brothers exact divine wrath against the evil people. This is told as a symbol of God's anger against human sin.

But I believe there is a better, more accurate way of understanding this story and so God's truth. We need to put on our cultural sensitivity hat and look at it for what it is - a story of one family with one culture entering another region with another culture. To do this properly, we need to step away from looking at this story from our modern American perspective (our sense of right and wrong, as well as our view of men and women) and view it as a story of two cultures butting heads.

First of all, we all believe Shechem's violence towards Dinah was wrong. Jacob and his family are burning mad! But it's certainly surprising to read that Shechem and his father never apologize. Rather, Shechem's feelings toward Dinah is described, "he loved the girl, and spoke tenderly to her" (v.3) and longed to marry her (v.4). In our culture, if this is the case, Shechem should have done anything and everything to get Dinah to like him! But the narrative reads like Shechem's act of rape was his expression of love. Could it be that this was a accepted way a young man in his region carried out love? Or was Shechem simply evil and deranged?

Shechem's father's reaction is instructive here. When Hamor approaches Jacob, we know that he wants Jacob's approval of marriage between their children. I would think Hamor would approach it with great apology and regret at the wrongful action of his son. No apology is offered. Rather, it's a simple, "the heart of my son Shechem longs for your daughter; please give her to him in marriage" (v.8).

Is it possible that in this culture, Shechem was carrying out a suitor's method of courtship? As crude as it may seem to us, maybe that's simply the case. And that is not too much of a stretch. Among the Kyrgyz people in the Central Asian region, there is practice that is commonly called "bride stealing" or "bride kidnapping." Even though the practice has been officially outlawed, the practice continues with the approval of the village elders. The man will kidnap a woman they want to marry and hold her in his home for a night. The next day, he visits the woman's parents and asks for her hand in marriage. The understanding is that the woman has spent the night with the man and so has become sexually active; the parents therefore cannot reject the request. It's an accepted practice.

If Shechem was following the method of his culture, then his action is no longer as personally evil as it appears. Obviously Jacob and his sons abhor it. But they are the ones who have entered a new culture. They are visitors; they must accommodate to the new culture, or if they cannot not, then they need to move out. But they will not move, and they will not accept. Of course, they are filled with anger over the rape. And so they will violently uproot it. Their method -- kill all of the men. Their trick -- religion -- they will use the holiest of acts (circumcision) for murder. In the end, no one comes out looking good.

Shechem's act is sinful (whether cultural or personal), but so much more so are Jacob and his sons. They show their mixed intention when they plundered the city with all her wealth and women. They are all workers of evil.

Kyrgyzstan 2002. Sarang Church young leaders.

There are a handful of teachings that arise from this. How to respond to evil is probably the most important. Jacob and his sons teach us how NOT to respond. By killing all the men, they upped the evil and began the cycle of revenge. So how are we to respond? When Jim Elliot and his friends were killed by the Auca people of Ecuador, the response of the family stand in contrast. Forgiveness first and then sacrificial acts of love. Their method allowed God's grace to overflow. Read about it online by searching for it.