Wholeness: Just one side of the triangle

The church has a long history with factions. Someone is always starting a new church or denomination to emphasize a detail they feel has been forgotten, sometimes only to neglect something else. It may seem as though I am doing just that myself with my wholeness series. So let me remind you, the value of each dimension lies within its integration with the other pieces. Complete holiness is truly greater than the sum of its parts. So our pursuit of holiness can fail miserably if we don't understand and utilize every aspect of it or hold onto false notions about the God it's modeled after. (1st Peter 1:15-16)

Take the obedience VS love debate within the church. Many are under the impression that they are mutually exclusive concepts, and that one side needs to be uplifted more than the other. This is completely wrong no matter which side you favor. So it's no wonder that both sides are failing miserably at genuine holiness. As I've already indicated before, you can't succeed at the obedience-righteousness side of holiness without wholeness since our brokenness tends to drive our sinful nature. Nor can you lead people down the path of wholeness without loving them. So you can't separate or uplift one higher than the other without maligning the image of God and failing to produce strong disciples.

Another thing we need to keep in mind in serving with both love and obedience is that people have a hard time separating the person from their actions. In the world's mind, to love someone is to accept everything they do, including every imperfection, sin, crime, and selfish act. The other side of it being, we feel obliged to hate everyone who we see as unrighteous. How do you seek and save the lost if we are hating on them? Yet, if we are only making excuses for the sins of the lost, we aren't really saving them either. It's a very human way of doing things, and it fails in the same way from either extreme. So one-dimensional application just doesn't lead to the righteous life God desires. The people of Jesus' time struggled with this as well. There was a reason Jesus called them whitewashed tombs, it's about as good as you can hope for when only applying selected dimensions of holiness, a phony surface faith. (Matthew 23:27-28) Two thousand years later we still struggle to set ourselves apart from our natural instincts so we can embrace the divine nature that is three-dimensional holiness. (2nd Peter 1:3-4)

“You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? And if you greet only your own people, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that? Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect. -Matthew 5:43-48

But let's not forget the third dimension of holiness, set apart. I bring it up because our notion of love is becoming more saturated with acceptance, and validation from the world continually, not being set apart from it. Which makes their version of love more about gratifying our emotion that is ultimately about self, not God's will. This often leads to parasitic behavior and toxic relationships. Not to mention it makes us vulnerable to manipulative people who are willing to exploit our desire for approval for their own gain. That only creates more brokenness and unrighteousness. No wonder true Biblical Agape love is not defined that way. So neglecting this notion of being set apart, can do great harm to a church's spiritual formation. Just remember, looking at the concept of being set apart alone may seem like holiness makes you superior, and lead you to act arrogantly. However, if we look at it along with its other parts of wholeness and righteousness, then we realize holiness needs to be tempered with humility. A superiority complex is a product of a broken unrighteous person, not a whole righteous one after all.

The church has gone wrong and mishandled so many key issues over the years. It all comes back to not understanding and applying holiness completely, which means we don't really understand God properly. The church needs to step up and seek the face of God, and ultimately his holiness more deliberately, instead of relying on common yet incomplete knowledge, and mere feelings that have led to all this misapplication. This has only benefited the secular world's attempts to redefine right and wrong in self-centered terms. This technically makes those who follow an incomplete definition of holiness guilty of leading people astray. Don't be that person. (Matthew 18:6-7)

The Visual PARABLEist

Wholeness: Attitude

At church this last Sunday the pastor posed an interesting question. "How does your attitude impact your prayer?" One person even admitted that when they are in a bad mood they tend to distance themselves from God. That is probably a common emotional response, and we may even believe that this is showing God proper respect. But is it really good discipleship? This got me thinking about some of the blunt prayers to God in the Psalms, here is but one example.

I say to God my Rock, “Why have you forgotten me? Why must I go about mourning, oppressed by the enemy?” My bones suffer mortal agony as my foes taunt me, saying to me all day long, “Where is your God?” -Psalm 42:9-10

On the surface, it may not seem like the psalmist is being very humble or respectful; however, it is very honest and sincere. One thing we must remember about God is that he is not as fragile as we are. Unlike people, he is not afraid of our emotional outbursts. He is not intimidated by our attitude. Nor is he made uncomfortable by us unloading on him. While we do need to be cautious about how and when we unload on people, we need not apply that to God.

Maybe this is one of the major obstacles we have in seeking wholeness. We can't be truly humble before God, because we haven't truly faced our feelings yet. We can't face our feelings because we won't let ourselves be honest with God about them. Speaking as an artist, there is an incredible catharsis in unloading your feelings into your art. It also grants you incredible perspective and a better understanding of said emotions. Facing our feelings is just so much easier when we release them purposely, instead of holding them in on the inside until they find their way out explosively. While we may not all have an art language to speak that through, we all have a God to unload on. He does want what's best for you, if purging our attitude onto him helps us to move forward, find wholeness, and become more righteous, then he is definitely not offended by it. He is in fact, all for it.

Mankind may be afraid of being questioned, and try to project that onto God. Especially the disreputable denominations and cults. What does that tell you? However, God is far bigger than that. Jesus took on the sin of the world after all, if you truly believe that, then there is no need to censor your attitude in front of him. It's obviously a necessary step in finding wholeness. God doesn't want to stand in the way of that, so stop standing in your own way by whitewashing your attitude before him, and clinging to your brokenness; as a result. True holiness is a change of heart after all, not just a surface action.

The Visual PARABLEist

Wholeness: objectivity

Have you ever watched the show Restaurant: Impossible? In the show, a successful restauranteur comes in and tries to turn a failing business around in two days. It was recently put back on the air after receiving countless requests to give their restaurant the "impossible" treatment after cancellation. Which begs the question, why? I say that because when you get down to it, every single episode revolves around one or more of the same handful of issues. The show had already given everyone the information they needed to self-diagnose most issues. While I am sure there are some people who have done just that, everyone in these new episodes obviously couldn't do that. This leads me to the point of this post, the ability to be able to look at self objectively. Let's face it, if we can't see ourselves and our actions objectively, then we won't be able to instigate the right kind of change that will lead to wholeness.

This can manifest in two different ways. First, we can perceive things far worse than they are; this can be very overwhelming. It can lead us to think we are beyond repair, and if you believe that you have missed a vital aspect of the gospel. So the inevitable response to this false notion is making excuses, and ultimately passivity in our walk as disciples. The other side of that is we see things much better than they really are, which can stem from simple pride. We can’t address what we don’t recognize after all. Yet, nobody is so perfect that there is no room for improvement. So again this lack of objectivity can lead to passivity instead of transformation.

There are many ways to describe our lives as disciples. However, passive should not be one of them. This leads to yet another example from Restaurant: Impossible. A pattern I’ve noticed about once successful restaurants that go downhill. It often starts by cutting small corners. This leads to even bigger corners being cut, which snowballs into their downward spiral. It can be similar for the disciple, small compromises, lead to bigger ones, the changes are so subtle that we can’t even see how far off course we have gotten. Since in our mind’s eye, we are still back when and where we were still on track. This makes us blind to the trouble that’s right in front of our face and only adds to our broken state.

So again it comes back to having the humility to face ourselves honestly. The more this comes up, the more I realize just how much the current church is lacking in this area. This is obviously a far bigger deterrent to our wholeness than I realized. I know for a fact that many ministers feel as if they are screaming at the dead much of the time. While I'm not prepared to say that this is the only reason, I'm sure people's inability to see themselves objectively is preventing us from seeing how their messages on holiness apply to us. Until our ministers stop trying to skip ahead to the final objective, then address the obstacles to their goals, nothing can change.

The Visual PARABLEist

Wholeness: Stopping Short

In a previous post, I made this statement "God the Father created us, the world broke us, and Jesus the son can recreate us." I repeat it now to elaborate on why we fall short of that last state that leads to wholeness.

People putting their brokenness up on a proverbial pedestal is becoming the norm. So much so we even have people applauding this self-destructive behavior, as well as demonizing anyone who discourages them. We even see the church getting fixated on our own brokenness. Granted, facing our faults is a part of the process of finding wholeness, as I have indicated often over the course of this series. But for the disciple, this is but a doorway to greater glories, not the end, or a state to get stuck at, but frequently do. In a way, our brokenness can be the ultimate excuse, this is one of the reasons why the world loves their brokenness so much, it can rationalize their parasitic behavior. But, we as the church need to go further by moving beyond that to transformation, instead of stopping short of the born-again experience.

I’ve alluded to this idea of stopping short throughout the series. We as the church often stop short at the cross, never even approaching the resurrected life. We stop short at Easter but never putting the period of Pentecost at the end of the sentence. In a similar way, by indulging our brokenness, but never seeking renewal through it, we are stopping short of wholeness. Which means we are stopping short of genuine holiness as well. In a way, we are inadvertently denying Christ as a re-creator by doing this.

Those that embrace their brokenness as their true self, and use that as a rationalization or excuse for their horrible behavior towards others are inevitably the users and abusers of this world. A pattern that ensures an additional generation of parasitic behavior. We as the church should seek better, and serve as a better example. If we don't step up and break this cycle, nobody will. But, we have to be brave yet humble enough to do that. This is likely the main reason we stop short as disciples, we lack the courage to face the most humbling thing of all, our own hearts. For many, this thought makes our brokenness seem attractive.

The Visual PARABLEist

And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit -2nd Corinthians 3:18

I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. -2nd Timothy 4:7

Don't get so caught up in your initial glory that you forget to finish the journey.

Wholeness: humility

Cast all your anxiety on him, because he cares for you. -1st Peter 5:7

In a previous post, I discussed how to apply the above verse. My major point was that if you considered the broader context of the passage then humility is the key to making it work. While that may sound simple, it really isn't. This series has surely brought that out since humility is crucial to petitioning anything from God, especially wholeness. That means being absolutely honest with God and ourselves. That level of humility leads to facing yourself. It is not enough to just acknowledge a fault, but we got to own it to overcome. That has a habit of humbling ourselves even further. That inevitably leads to dealing with it, which often reveals just how strong we are not. This can humble us even further still. It may also involve facing old scars and wounds, which can truly be the most disarming part of the whole humbling process, which can be a source of anxiety for many of us.

If you can manage to do all that without making excuses or rationalizing, then you may be ready to wield God's strength and become what you were truly called to be. Humility is seldom associated with strength, but as you can see it takes great courage to humble ourselves enough to become that vulnerable. This context of courageous humility brings some clarity to God's words to Paul of "my power is made perfect in weakness" in 2nd Corinthians 12:9. Biblical humility is not a path for the faint of heart at all. So let's stop trivializing humbleness.

The Visusal PARABLEist

In the same way, you who are younger must accept the authority of the elders. And all of you, dress yourselves in humility as you relate to one another, for “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.” So humble yourselves under the mighty power of God, and at the right time he will lift you up in honor. -1st Peter 5:5-6

“The memories we don’t want to remember need to be revisited in order to be made new.” -Lidia Longorio

“The whole history of God and man recounted in the Bible is the story of God wanting to entrust men with his power, and men not being able to handle it.” -Dallas Willard

Wholeness: Hostile Environments

Accept the one whose faith is weak, without quarreling over disputable matters. -Romans 14:1

A verse that few can live up to these days I dare say. The most interesting part I find is that Paul doesn't deny the fact that there are disputable matters. Yet still wants us to respond in love, instead of our natural emotional response of jumping all over anyone who thinks feels, or values anything differently than we do. Many want everyone in the church to be on the same spiritual page. Lending little time for people to grow and develop at a beneficial pace. The inevitable result is a hostile environment for its members. An environment that is more likely to discourage than build people up. So their faith often dies out before they even have a chance to find wholeness. Yet, another example of how skipping ahead to the end result of holiness actually sabotages our efforts.

Now consider the rest of the passage, which gives specific examples.

    One person’s faith allows them to eat anything, but another, whose faith is weak, eats only vegetables. The one who eats everything must not treat with contempt the one who does not, and the one who does not eat everything must not judge the one who does, for God has accepted them. Who are you to judge someone else’s servant? To their own master, servants stand or fall. And they will stand, for the Lord is able to make them stand.
    One person considers one day more sacred than another; another considers every day alike. Each of them should be fully convinced in their own mind. Whoever regards one day as special does so to the Lord. Whoever eats meat does so to the Lord, for they give thanks to God; and whoever abstains does so to the Lord and gives thanks to God. For none of us lives for ourselves alone, and none of us dies for ourselves alone. If we live, we live for the Lord; and if we die, we die for the Lord. So, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord. For this very reason, Christ died and returned to life so that he might be the Lord of both the dead and the living. -Romans 14:2-9

While these examples may not seem as relevant today as they did then, but I still think they can teach us something. Notice how in the first example Paul specifically tags one side of the issue as the weak one. But, I can pretty much guarantee you that the weak side probably thought they were the spiritually superior one. Now consider the fact that you may be that person. That your so-called moral high ground is not based on truth. That your understanding of the subject is very one-dimensional. If you spent less time criticizing people, you might just actually expand your understanding.

A truly spiritually superior person would be a humble person, not a prideful one. They seek to help, not hurt. They know that there is more to holiness than surface behavior. That it takes a nurturing and relational environment to grow strong disciples. That environment will naturally have many different maturity levels coexisting with one another. Only those who put their comfort and convenience above God will object to any of this. That's why they are the ones responsible for this hostile environment that impedes wholeness and are in no position to condemn anyone.

Growth can be a lengthy process, if you think you can criticize people into it, then you probably need to concern yourself with your own wholeness, instead of the righteousness of others. The only reason people haven't called you out on it is that they can live up to the opening verse better than you can.

The Visual PARABLEist