I’m really thankful for the comments on the prior post. The Shack and Paul are raising the question of what is the LORD like in powerful ways. As long as it goes back to Bible, rather than what I’m comfortable with, I’m happy. But even when we go to the Bible we tend to see and return to what we are comfortable with, I’m finding. Weird how we do that.

Now to the excellent comments: Terrance wonders if The Shack will be read in fifty years. My guess is that it won’t. But the verdict of history could be in now! But whatever the long term impact, the immediate impact is huge. It is being read by millions now. The assessment needs to be done wisely and biblically.

I also remember Charles Sheldon’s book, What Would Jesus Do? which was written as standard liberal social gospel trash which emerged into real popularity in young evangelicals who put the "missional" writing back into the context of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Then it became a national joke. So it’s hard to predict the future of a book. I wonder that about Vintage Jesus (shorter life) and Death by Love (longer life).  Thinking of no one reading the books I work on makes me all the more committed to not writing! But I’m working on Doctrine: What the Church Should Believe now.

Terrance and Cal are right on when we question the balance between otherness and closeness. That’s exactly where the rub comes. Most in my camp (Reformed Evangelical more or less) tend to otherness. They also go toward holy justice and wrath as key attributes and see grace and love in the setting aside of His righteous anger rather than a genuine compassion and desire to come alongside and help. Exodus 34:6-7 is the best balance I know.

Mike and I agree: Really seeing God is a relatively rare thing for Abraham, Moses, Isaiah and such folk. It’s virtually a never thing for ordinary people. Even David never saw the LORD. At least it’s not mentioned in the Scriptural account if He did. It is a commentary on our self centeredness that I want to see God RIGHT NOW!

But there’s a sense of His reality that comes through the Spirit and through the body. It can go a bit nuts, but it can also be quenched by sin or lack of pursuit. I think of intimacy in marriage as a similar concept.

Glenn, when I heard Mark’s criticism of The Shack, I suspected that he’d followed his on advice and not read the book. I can’t for the life of me see how anyone could accuse Paul of teaching goddess theology in The Shack. The issue of authority relation in the eternal Trinity is a big debate in the books, blogs, and in Evangelical Theological Society I’m doing a paper on that topic in November. I’ll argue there’s not enough biblical data to decide if the Son was submitted to the Father in eternity. The early church went that way as they developed the fourth century creeds of course.

Bottom line: Exodus 34:6-7. The most quoted verse in the Bible by the Bible.

And a historical note: Sherry is doing a scrapbooking day with Bonnie Holland tomorrow. She’s going through old pictures to do a brief family history. We’ve been laughing over lots of things. This was 27years ago, my first computer. 64k memory (kilo, not mega or giga!) was huge. TWO floppy disk drives with 92k-bytes each. CPM operating system and Wordstar. It was wonderful. I did most of my dissertation on this machine. But I’m really glad it’s gone now, replaced by my new "little guy" that has far more power of the huge IBM 360 that was in the basement of Milliken Hall in those days.

Also you see my coke bottle glasses. I’m totally thankful for Lasik surgery that means no corrective lenses of any kind for me now.

I went to Living Hope Church in Vancouver (web sit here) to hear Paul Young, the author of a most unlikely New York Times best seller, tell his story . . . or give his testimony if you prefer that language.

The big point is that the shack is a metaphor for all the trash in our lives. We build a facade in front of it hoping that God and others will be impressed and like us, all the while desperately hiding the shack with its sin, ugliness that is our shame. Paul’s power point is that the LORD not up there disappointedly demanding that we clean up our shack, but waiting to meet us in the shack.

You can read much of Paul’s story in this week’s Portland Tribune (here). But hearing it live is far more impacting. I hope you can view the video when it comes on line at the Living Hope site later this week.

I read the book straight through in one sitting, deeply impacted by the story. Then I drilled down deep into key passages to mine the teaching there. I love his exposition of Genesis 3, the model of incarnation, among others. In particular, I resonated with God pursuing Mack to help him face his deep sadness. But God did not leave him as the victim of his father’s failure or the murder of his daughter. He took Mack on to face his own sin and find true forgiveness. It is the lavish grace of God that goes to the root of things in the gentle power called grace.

But there is so much controversy as you can see in Tim Challies review (here) and many others on Amazon. The main criticism is that God is too familiar, too much the best buddy. Where is the Isaiah 6 "holy, holy, holy is the LORD" who brings Isaiah to cry, "Woe to me!" I cried. "I am ruined!"? It’s a very legitimate question. If it were pursued as a question, I wouldn’t be so frustrated with the criticism as I am with the blasts that this book "insidiously deadly. Look, we can allegorize many things, but we don’t mess with the Trinity. This book is a Trojan horse subtly infiltrating the Christian community — one that makes our God extremely small and completely manageable, a God who, in the final analysis, is no God at all" as Michal Burton’s Amazon review characterizes it.

I turn people to Genesis 18 where the LORD comes to Abraham (v. 1) and then three guys accept his invitation to sit down for lunch and conversation. That is a very different picture than Isaiah 6, one that’s a lot closer to The Shack. The thing that grips me in Genesis 18 is the apparently trinitarian picture of God (yes, there’s a LOT more to say here). Note how gentle the LORD is here. In one scene He repeats the promise of a child. The withered old lady, Sarah, who was betrayed by the broken promise of a child, cannot hold her bitter laughter in. The LORD hears her unbelief. He doesn’t ignore it, but pursues her. But instead of rebuking her unbelief, He gently reaffirms the promise. How "Shack-like." Then He and Abraham discuss the LORD’s righteousness. "How can You destroy innocent people?" Abraham dares ask. Instead of rising to His holy throne of omnipotent holiness, the LORD gently interacts with Abraham so he will understand gracious justice. How "Shack-like."

Now I’ll quickly admit that The Shack’s portrayal of the Father as Aunt Jememiah fixing pancakes for the boys isn’t a picture that resonates with me at all. But instead of blasting it as heresy, perhaps it would be good to listen to the explanation of why He comes to Mack in this particular form and see the change of appearance into a strong male figure when Mack needs that form later on.

There’s much more to say, but for the moment let me suggest that you read the book if you haven’t. Then reflect on Genesis 18 as well as Isaiah 6. Perhaps it will help you face your deep sadness, to join me in hearing PLG, to hope for the day of healing in the friend whom I hurt so deeply, face the people I’ve disappointed, and all those Shackish things and know that the Lord of Glory really is the Lord of Exodus 34:6-7.

We’ll talk with open Bibles, trying to hear all of His Word.

Sherry and I put our best clothes on for Bruce and Cody’s wedding. It was at First Presbyterian Church, an exquisitely beautiful building that was way less attractive than the wedding itself. The theme of the wedding was "as in heaven, so also on earth." Cody is a chaplain at OHSU, working with some of the most difficult situations and marking them for Christ. God was at work in their relationship for eight years, preparing them both for the wonderful work He has for them. Tom Miller got to pronounce them husband wife since he’s the pastor at the church. I was "associate presiding minister" I suppose, and got to do their vows and to encourage them to enjoy their first kiss as husband and wife.

Among the six [yes, you heard me right, six] speakers, was Father Jim Kolb, a Roman Catholic priest who does a lot of work at the hospital. I’d met him when I preached Cody’s ordination a couple of years ago. Partaking of communion was one aspect of the hour and a half ceremony. I was rather surprised that Father Jim was serving, since it was not a Roman Catholic mass. I asked him at dinner following. It seems he didn’t know he was supposed to serve until a few minutes before the ceremony. There was no good way for him to decline. So being a fine fellow, he held the bread for people to take. I was pleased when he told me the miracle of Communion is in the LORD, so he could do his part. But he said nothing since any words over the element would have been sacrilege.

Seeing the different views of communion was quite dramatic. I happily looked people in the eye, saying "The body of Christ given for you." People received it joyfully or reverently or in some cases with a bit of confusion with my words. From Father Jim they heard nothing. For me it was Eucharist. For him it was a place for polite submission, serving bread in a foreign service.

Having six speakers including one fifth neurosurgical resident who earned a PhD in classics before beginning his medical training, speaking on the significance of taking a name along with the magnificent organ, an ensemble, trumpet, violin, a dozen attendants each for bride and groom, and pealing bells as the pronouncement was proclaimed made it the most elaborate and beautiful wedding I’ve ever been a part of. The only one close was about 15 years ago which was even more memorable because among the five pastors, I was listed as special friend of the bride and groom. There are many memories.

I love doing weddings. I get the best seat in the house, though I rarely sit. I get to see all the emotions of the couple (and provoke a few of them, too). I’m so looking forward to what we practicing for: the wedding supper of the Lamb. I can hardly wait!

Oh, yeah. I’m thinking about the role of church and government for a presentation I’ll be doing in early August. What do you think of this T-shirt? Remember, this is a PG rated blog!

I love celebrating events. I’ve blogged several in previous entries. It’s that time for another. David, my baby, and Samantha celebrate their fifteenth anniversary tomorrow. I won’t be there tomorrow, but they will be coming by here to begin the big celebration next Tuesday. Sherry and I will get to keep Nicole and Joy while David and Sam go do their very special thing. In collaboration with David, we get facilitate some very nice stuff for them. It’s all a surprise for Samantha and some of it is a surprise for David. It was great fun for me to negotiate with some folk to make some provisions for them that will make their special time even more special.

I find that doing this sort of thing turns my gears more than almost anything I can think of. That I get to work with them to celebrate goodness is so fun. To get to enhance that for them in a surprise way is even funner. And I’ll get to hang with my grandgirls too.

My mind tends to go to intense and hard, so my outlook can get pretty serious and sadness can take over. Collaborating a celebration like this one is the other side. It’s where joy flows full and free. The intensity gives power to joy. But there are celebrations I can’t join, say a long time friend’s birthday that circumstances keep me from, or anniversaries of special people that I am far away from. These are mixed memories. I celebrate the event, but with a deep sadness that the separation brings.

Perhaps the epitome of this mixture is the Marriage Supper of the Lamb. I want so much to be there. The regular practices we call the Lord’s Supper enhance the anticipation. The sadness of living in a broken world with broken relationships make that longing keen.

Next week I’ll have part in Bruce and Cody’s wedding. I’ve done their pre-marital and will be one of five ministers in the service. Their theme is "As in heaven so also on earth." It will be a beautiful celebration. I hope to be around when they do their fifteenth!

Well, dear friends, it has been some time since Katharine and I have shared with you concerning the journey we began five years ago when she was diagnosed with lung cancer.  Your prayers throughout that journey have meant far more to us than you can possibly know.  For the past three years, following chemotherapy, a series of good CT scans had shown "no visible evidence" of cancer.  A year had elapsed since a scan, and several days ago she had a CT scan once again.  This one was not a good one.  It has shown the return of the cancer in both lungs.  It is an occasion for us to again ask for your prayers.  Emphatically, we are unshaken in our confidence in the steadfast love and unyielding faithfulness of God. 

We have had much discussion with Katharine’s oncologist about treatment options in this situation.  Since chemotherapy was so effective earlier, one option is to begin that once more.  Another is a trial with a promising experimental drug, a once-a-day pill which is intended to interrupt the cellular communication system and prevent cancer cell growth.  Katharine seems to be a good candidate for this drug, and has now begun a three month trial.  In mid-September another CT scan will reveal its effectiveness.  If the results are good we’ll continue this approach.  If not, we will resume chemotherapy. 

We have determined to follow our original summer plan to return to North Carolina, sell our house there, and return to settle permanently in Portland.  And so we expect to fly back there on Tuesday, July 1.  This will mean a trip back to Portland no later than mid-September for the CT scan.  We will simply trust that God will guide us in this and that our house will sell very quickly.  We would appreciate your prayers about this, as well.

As we move ahead day to day, we are placing no limits on what God can do, though we are prepared to receive from his hand whatever his good and gracious will entails.  As a wonderful song of worship reminds us, quite biblically, "The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end.  They are  new every morning, new every morning; great is thy faithfulness, O Lord."
We are indebted to you for your prayers.  The strength and peace that God promises his children is multiplied by the prayers of friends. 

Thank you so much for both your prayer and your friendship.

Jim and Katharine Sweeney

These two are heroes of the faith as well as long time pillars at Western. Their example of mature, feeling faith has touched us all deeply. If anyone wants to send a message to Jim and Katharine, I’ll be glad to pass it on to them. You can put it here as a comment or email it to me at [email protected]

Gerry

One must think a bit about the role of the father in Luke 15 on Father’s Day. What a fool he must have seemed when he agreed with the outrageous demand of his immoral, irresponsible son. How could a loving father let his son get away with such outrage, to insult not only his father, but all that’s good and right. He should beat the son, not give him his way, his money.

We have no clue as to what the father was thinking as the son walked away, laughing in his newly acquired freedom. There’s only silence. What was in his heart as his younger son "unsoned" himself and disappeared? Unlike the shepherd or the woman in the previous parables, he made no move to seek out his son. He let’s him have his way. It’s like the LORD who calls His people to come to Him, but let’s them do incredibly stupid rebellion.

He lets us have control of our own life, at least some of the time. He gives us the freedom we demand. And then we Him for letting us have our way, but only after things go badly.

But when the son comes to his senses and returns, things are completely different. The father again shames himself, running away from all dignity to meet his returning son. The son’s repentant confession is cut short by the father’s joy, his request to return as the lowest level servant cut short by the joyous celebration. There’s no waiting for the expected respectful address by the son. The father’s embrace, kiss, call for ring, robe, calf express his heart. The father is so full of joy that he drapes himself around his lost son’s neck and welcomes him back with hugs and kisses of affection.  Rembrandt catches the amazing quiet of the father’s embrace for the re-sonned son.

The LORD will embarrass Himself to get to the sinner who is coming home. You are my son. Always. Were gone/now here. Lost now found.

It’s the lavish grace that ruins the expectations of all religionists. But that’s another story.

We celebrated Father’s day with Joy’s 6th birthday party. It was so fun to see her enjoying her very own Chuck E. Cheese party. You can see more pictures here.

Catharine Coon arrived from Uganda to join me in teaching the "Theological Principles for Ministering to Children at Risk" class. She’s the founding director of Hope Alive!. We have been great friends. So teaching together is very stimulating for me. It will be the third time we’ve done the class. You can see that we are working very hard at our preparation for class.

It’s made a bit more challenging because of the continuing impact of the cellulitis infection. It’s been four weeks now. The reddened area keeps getting smaller, but it’s not gone yet. Back to the doctor tomorrow.

For about three years I have taught the PIT crew and staff at Living Hope Church, a church whose senior pastor, John Bishop, is one of "my guys." (click here for their web site) Today I got a call from Jan Hall asking if she could bring me something. My wonder about what it could be was soon satisfied: John and the whole staff delighted me with the banner! My cellulitis is easing significantly, but the 2 inch diameter infected spot on my shin above my ankle is being quite stubborn! So I’m still spending much of my time in the recliner with elevated leg. That’s where I am putting Vintage Church on a 12,000 word diet. Cutting 10% out of a book is quite a challenge!

I’ve also been working on getting well in other ways. A dozen years ago I was confronted by a friend who loved me enough to call me on my pattern of overcommitment that was serious enough that I was hurting people I thought I was helping. That led to extensive and deep work with the "Gerry Group," people who helped me take out my soul and examine it carefully. That lead to substantial inner change that lowered that pattern. I deeply appreciated what these people helped me do.

More recently, I ended up hurting a close friend deeply because of the fall out of my intensity in relationship. I’m again amazed at how damaging my well intentioned things can be. This time, I’ve been working in formal counseling, as well as with close friends, to see what’s going on inside me. That process has been going on for about a year. As it comes to an end, I’m grateful for grace and growth. I surely wish the relationship could "get well."

By the power of Jesus, my growth and healing will be body, soul and spirit. However, I don’t think it’s going to be all better.

I preached Luke 15 this weekend. It’s such a wonderful passage, full of challenge from every vantage point. It’s motivated by the Pharisee’s hatred of Jesus hanging with sinners rather than being righteous like them. Pharisees find greatest personal delight in keeping rules.  The more rigorous the better. God finds joy in retrieving lost things. Pharisees keep their distance from sinners to protect their holiness. Saducees indulge in sin to protect their connection with sinners, so they can fit in. Jesus goes to sinners to seek them and call them to a new life.

The son’s request is ultimately offensive: I want you dead, Dad. He trades in his father for himself. The Dad should beat him severely or even kill him (Deut. 21:18-21) Rather he gives him his heart as gives him title to the estate. The son unsons himself completely as he heads off to carefree living. But soon he goes from lavish dining to being excluded even from dining with filthy pigs. What a tragic loss: no one gave him anything. A total absence of grace.

It would be easy to think why he shouldn’t go home. It would be easy for him to wallow in his lostness.  “I am no good.  I am useless.  I am unlovable.  I am worthless. I am divorced.  I am unemployed. I’m only a burden, a problem, a drain on people’s time and energy.  Or he could wallow in victim thinking.  “If they wouldn’t have done . . . ” Or he could be wallowing in law: I can’t go home unless I make it up to the family. 

The memory of the goodness of home draws him even when he’s completely aware that he is unworthy to be a called a son. Those words, "I will arise and go to my father . . . "

In his younger years Rembrandt was drawn to the ribald life of the son. He painted the younger son if full living in the far country. He had grown up with the father’s voice: a voice is a gentle, tender, quiet like the one Elijah heard on Mt. Horeb.  It’s only heard by hearts made tender by hurt or love.

He responded to other voices that are much louder, seductive, promising.  “Go prove you are worth something, worth being loved. Find real love in being successful, powerful, popular.  Dream of having power, possessions, popularity.”

In the fears of being passed over, ignored, I suppose he developed strategies to protect, promote and defend himself, asking, “Do you like me? But the world answers with “if’s” If you are good-looking, intelligent, wealthy, educated, athletic, keep a good job and good connections, produce, sell, consume much.  Living for the “If’s” only enslaves.

What’s going on here at home

My leg is improving slowly. The doctor extended the antibiotics another week to empower the fight. My energy is still quite low. Preaching yesterday just about did me in! So I’m spending my time with leg up and doing work on my lap top. 

Sherry is on vacation too. But her activity level is rather different than mine. She painted trim in the dining room and hall, mostly without help from me. I’m very proud of her!

The canceled Beirut trip had a happy consequence: We were here for the visit of Donn, Susan and (most happily) Elizabeth. David, Samantha, Nicole and Joy arrived Saturday afternoon as scheduled. The surprise was Cyndee’s Saturday noon telephone call saying they had kicked her out of the Cannon Beach Conference Center dining room, so she was on the way home. So we enjoyed Nicole and Joy while David and Sam had their date night. We all got together for much of the day Sunday.

Elizabeth is almost seven months old now. Despite her miraculous conception, unnoticed presence for 38 weeks, and terrifying first month in intensive care from meconium aspiration, she’s fully normal and totally charming! She’s quite the traveler, having made three long airplane trips already. She even has her own passport now! You can see more of our pictures here.

My cellulitis continues to improve slowly. The pain is largely gone and the redness is much reduced. The antibiotics are doing their job. But I’m still staying at home. With electronic communication such as it is, I can do almost as much here as in my office.

One happy development is that this morning, I sent in the last bits of the third book Mark Driscoll and I are dong: Vintage Church. Book one, Vintage Jesus, is selling remarkably well. Book two, Death by Love, pastoral letters to tragic situations based on atonement themes, is due out at the end of September. Mark is already preaching the series that will be book four: Doctrine: What the Church Should Believe. We’ll start writing soon. I seem to remember saying I’d never write a book!

I saw a strange development in the news today. Animal rights advocates are appealing to the European Court of Human Rights to declare a 26-year-old chimpanzee named Matthew to be a legal person. If this "person" were living in California, he could marry a human male or female. The state’s supreme court found a right long invisible right in the state’s constitution that any person should be allowed to marry any other person. What a weird world!

This is why I’m confined to home and mostly to the couch. The doctor described it as a wildfire infection that settles in somewhere and spreads. So in the first visit he used a Sharpie to outline the extent. You can see that four days later, it’s not spread much. There is major pain when I go from laying down to putting my foot on the ground and especially when I stand up. The swelling from the inflammation impedes blood flow, so the blood can’t get out of the lower leg. After a couple of hobbling steps, the pain begins subside. But if I stand still, it comes back quickly. Now imagine what getting up to go to the bathroom is like. And then think brushing my teeth.

As of this morning the fire red color appears to have quieted down some. Every step on encouraging.

I hate being sick!

Grandgirls appear tonight so stay tuned for some pictures!