THE SOURCE
This weekend marked one of the bloodiest weekends in recent Chicago history…
04.25.08
Nine people killed in 36 different shootings throughout the city (SEE this article). Reflecting on the senseless tragedy, I experienced a myriad of emotions—sadness and grief for the families of the victims; anger at the perpetrators who killed seemingly without a moral conscience; fear for my own children growing up in the city; loss of hope that nothing can be done. I found myself honestly asking, “God where are you in all this?”
Have you ever asked that question in the midst of tragedy? Did you know God answered that question emphatically on the cross 2,000 years ago? I have come to realize that I will never fully know why, on this side of eternity. Why the senseless tragedy God? Why the loss of innocent lives God? I don’t think it’s an intellectual copout to be okay with the fact that I will not ultimately know “Why?” this side of eternity. It’s simply an acknowledgement that I am not God, but that He is the Great I AM. The Bible has much to say that throws light on the reasons for, and the meaning of, suffering and evil in the world. However, the Bible never gives an exhaustive answer to the big question “Why?” But Christianity offers something just as valuable.
Although I may never know the answer to the question why, the cross of Jesus Christ shouts across history that God can never be accused of being indifferent. God is not indifferent about the 9 people killed in our city this weekend. God is not indifferent about the injustice that ravages parts of our city. God is not indifferent about the most helpless among us—children under vicious violence in the city. The Bible says that God cares so much that He gave His own life in order to make sure that a future without senseless violence would be ours. He cares so much that He gave His own life to make sure that a future without evil, injustice, and death would be ours. A future without pain. A future without tears. A future without mourning.
God did something that we would never expect the Sovereign Creator God to do. He decided to get involved in the mess and brokenness of humanity—personally. He became one of us. And when time came He embraced God’s plan to redeem and save all of creation by going to the cross. He went to the cross with the sins of the whole world on His shoulders. There He died a humiliating death reserved for the worst of criminals. Why? So that Christians can enjoy a “free ride” to heaven, a cosmic insurance policy? No way. He died and, then, rose again and ushered in the Kingdom of God so that everything that’s wrong with our world, including evil, injustice, violence, brokenness, would be redeemed and made whole. He died to bring about shalom—universal flourishing, wholeness.
The cross gives us hope for the whole future. The cross means that God is so committed to ending the suffering and brokenness of the world that he would himself become embroiled in it and pay the ultimate cost. “Why isn’t the suffering over yet?” The answer is, “We don’t know, but here’s the proof that God’s committed to it: The cross!” Only Christianity has a God who has suffered, proving his commitment to us in our brokenness. The cross gives us something that no other philosophy or religion offers us—a God who cares so much that he is willing to become involved in our suffering.
There’s also a word of challenge for us as a church family. Will the city of Chicago see in US this same God who cared so much that He was personally willing to get involved? Will the city of Chicago truly see an “alternate Chicago,” a community of people who not only care that there are people dying senselessly from violence, but are willing to DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT? Will the city out there see a group of radical revolutionaries laying down there lives in sacrificial service to show this world a glimpse of God’s Kingdom here on earth, a world without injustice, a world where righteousness prevails?
“What can I do?” you may ask. Start with this. Pray. Pray for God’s kingdom to come in power in the city of Chicago. Pray for God’s kingdom power to infiltrate every level of our city—the law enforcement agencies, the schools, the gangs, the most dangerous and at-risk communities. Then, here comes the hard part. Be willing to be an answer to those prayers. I don’t know what this will entail for you exactly. It will look differently for all of us. But be sensitive and available to the Spirit as He leads you.
Let’s be the church of Jesus Christ. Let’s be the church that actually has a reason for existing. Let’s utilize moments of opportunity such as this to witness to our surrounding communities that Christians aren’t sheltered, comfort-seeking, “heaven bound” cowards but, rather, courageous revolutionaries who will go to the hard places. We are the best possible citizens on earth precisely because we are citizens of the greater City to come.
One last thought. What of the perpetrators? Here, again, I find the Scriptures being a compass in terms of how I should respond. It is of enormous importance for people who are the victims of injustice and even persecution to believe in a God of justice and judgment, or else they will simply get sucked into the cycle of “pay back” and endless violence in retaliation for retaliation of violence. In other words, unless we believe in a God of vengeance, we will not be able to forgive and live non-violently ourselves. We will feel the need to take up the sword to pay back. Miroslav Volf is a Croatian Christian who writes about this (from Exclusion and Embrace):
My thesis that the practice of non-violence requires a belief in divine vengeance will be unpopular with many Christians, especially in the West. But to the person inclined to dismiss it—I suggest imagining that you are delivering a lecture in a war zone (where I delivered this chapter as a paper). Among your listeners are people whose cities and villages have been first plundered, then burned, and leveled to the ground, whose daughters and sisters have been raped, whose fathers and brothers have had their throats slit. The topic of the lecture: a Christian attitude toward violence. The thesis: we should not retaliate. Why?......the only means of prohibiting violence by us is to insist that violence is only legitimate when it comes from God...violence thrives today, secretly nourished by belief that God refuses to take the sword. If you do this—soon you will discover that it takes the quiet of a suburb for the birth of the thesis that human nonviolence is a result of a God who refuses to judge. In a scorched land, soaked in the blood of the innocent—the idea will invariably die, like other pleasant captivities of the liberal mind….In a world of violence it would not be worthy of God NOT to wield the sword; if God were NOT angry at injustice and deception and did NOT make a final end of violence, that God would not be worthy of our worship.
The only way I will be able to live with peace and without bitterness in the world is if I know there is a judge whose scales and balances are perfect—more true than my own—and who will not let anyone get away with anything. Again, God is not indifferent about the injustice that ravages parts of our city. Let’s be the church.
Let your kingdom come Lord…
Pastor Peter
Missional Challenge
02.20.08
The early church in the book of Acts was a movement.
It wasn’t institutional. It wasn’t organizational. It was truly a movement of radical people sold on the belief that God was ushering in His plans to redeem and renew all of creation. New Community is about a movement-a movement of God that His people join Him in on. We want to be a movement of God’s people who will work to advance His Kingdom right here on earth so that every part of our society and culture will be renewed!
But the greatest threat to this movement in this church-the thing that will derail us from doing what God wants us to do and has called us to do-is consumerism. Consumerism is simply having a mindset that says, “The staff is here to meet my needs. The staff is here to do the ministry. The staff is here to carry out God’s mission in the world.”
And how do you know if you have that mentality that mindset? Again its pretty simple. What are you doing? What are you involved in? How are you participating and contributing to the work of God in this church and beyond? Do you know what the needs are in this church? What are you doing to find out? Or are you waiting for me or someone on staff to get up and tell you exactly what the needs are in terms of ministry.
The greatest threat to a movement of God is when God’s people take on a consumer mentality. That mentality will lead to being self-focused. That will then lead to attitudes and habits that will be hard to break. And the result will be “ministry entropy.”
For those of you for whom this church has been like a great restaurant where you’ve been coming for months and have always been served great meals-this year we’re handing you an apron and asking you to help in the kitchen. My hope is that you won’t leave. But that you’ll take this is a challenge to join in on what God is doing! We need you!
This year we will be launching a major financial campaign to renovate and purchase a building in our community. This building will be the permanent home for our Logan Square church family. It will allow us to serve the community for generations to come. And the impact will be felt for generations to come. Please prayerfully consider giving like you have never given before. Your generosity will result in thousands of lives being transformed by the Gospel here in this community and the larger Chicago area!
We will also be launching a new church plant sometime this Fall. The very mission of our church is to plant multiple “city within a city” kinds of churches that will serve and minister the whole Gospel of Jesus. We are finalizing some crucial details about location and leadership. Please be in prayer for me and the church leadership as we try and discern what the Lord might be doing. We simply want to follow His lead in all this.
Let me say it again. We NEED you church family. Your participation and sacrifice will be critical if all these major initiatives are going to succeed. This isn’t to doubt the work of the Lord! Anything is possible with Him. But lets not forget that the Lord often calls US to be the very answer to our own prayers! He uses fallible and yet available human beings as vessels to carry on His kingdom work! We NEED you church family!
Your Pastor,
Peter
What's the point of that?
01.04.08
Here is an email I received from a leader in our church who heads up the Homeless Outreach Ministry. Read. And be encouraged. Then DO SOMETHING.
“This month we had 6 people sign up, plus Flaco (Jose Carrau) who is always there! But unfortunately 3 people canceled last minute. The night started with a surprise visit from Danny Eskew (homeless), he came in the Warming Center asking for extra jackets. I got to watch Flaco tenderly button up Danny’s jacket, it was like watching a big brother reconciling with his little brother. We were also blessed with Dan Chen’s photography skills as he took pictures throughout the night, I’m looking forward to using these pictures for the Homeless Outreach Group Page that’s in the process of being set up.
At our first viaduct stop at California & Diversey we saw Miguel, who only speaks Spanish and has been at this location for as long as I can remember. Flaco was able to talk with Miguel a little bit then we prayed for Miguel and said bye because he seemed tired. At the Logan Blvd viaduct we saw Flaco (a different one), another gentleman, and Lee Jones. As always Lee’s spirit was joyful and he was ready to jump into conversation with us. He suggested that we check out different spots around 8pm to get good pictures of how people set up their sleeping area for the night. Then we visited Chris, Frank & Tony (the twins – Frank was asleep), and Kevin Brady at their usual location, the Sacramento viaduct. Chris reminded us of his sense of humor when he said “could you turn down the AC and close the windows” as we left; Tony also made light of their rat problem when he told us about a time when there was a rat so fat that it got stuck under the fence; and Kevin as always greeted us with love and shared with me one of his favorite quotes by Mark Twain, “don’t let school get in the way of a good education.” In September, Kevin actually prayed with us for the first time, and tonight he did one even better by leading prayer for us.
Driving home I asked myself what was the point of going out on these cold nights, when people could just get to know the homeless at the Warming Center? Then I was reminded that it is a tiny, tiny way I can experience first hand the great amount of suffering they go through. Then I asked, “What’s the point of that?” The answer? To continually have my heart broken for the lost/suffering, a catalyst for action…”
Pastor Peter
Season’s Greetings Church Family!
12.19.07
As another year of ministry wraps up (only a couple more Sundays left as I write this) I find myself grateful and humbled by God’s faithfulness. This has been an amazing year of seeing God at work in powerful ways! We saw God provide the ideal worship space for us at just the right time. We saw God fill critical staff positions with wonderful men and women. And of course we witnessed the Spirit of God move as people committed their lives to following Jesus for the very first time. I can go on and on about other great things that God did at New Community this year. You will hear about some of these things at our Vision Sunday on January 27. Mark that date on your calendar and join us. It will be a day of celebration and vision casting for the whole year!
Before that (beginning the first Sunday of January) we will be introducing a short sermon series called “Passages.” You won’t want to miss it. Invite someone and join us.
As we wrap up the season of Advent I want to wish all of you who will be away a blessed New Year! While you are away continue to check out our website to be kept abreast of what’s going on at New Community. We wouldn’t want you to miss a thing!
Pastor Peter
