Happy Friday,
Behold, the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for a burnt offering?
Isaac, Gen. 22:7
Genesis 22 is a scandalous read. What kind of God asks a father to sacrifice his only son? Can you imagine Abraham’s anguish when Isaac asks, “Dad, we’ve got the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb?” It is not until a thousand pages later that we realize we’ve been set up: It was not Abraham who would be sacrificing a son. It was God himself. May our hearts be changed by God’s display of care for us. He is the one who provides the lamb.
Halloween: I’ve been hearing that Halloween – on which Americans recently spent north of $12B – has become the third largest US holiday. I’m not sure if this is true, but as these WSJ articles (here and here) note, the holiday is growing bigger and darker every year. I’m tempted to say something snarky about how few people even remember that October 31st is Reformation Day, but I’d have to first lament that few know what the Reformation is. (BTW, in case you are wondering, I dressed up like a curmudgeon again this year.)
Ordering Our Fears: When I was growing up, our top fears were supposedly public speaking, death, and snakes. If that was true then, it’s not true now. According to Chapman University’s annual fear survey, we now fear:
I share this less because our fears say something about us but because they shape our hearts. (Stephen King noted, “We make up imaginary horrors to help us deal with real ones.” The Bible says, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.”)
Perspective: The chaos of the moment has led some to ask, “Do I think Christ is about to return?” My response – which has been frequently rehearsed over my 35 years as a pastor – is: 1) I have great confidence in – and take much comfort from – Christ’s promised return. It will happen! 2) In spite of the fact that Jesus said, “no one knows the hour,” for the last 2,000 years, someone has always claimed to know the hour. Ignore them. 3) If you are faithfully following Jesus today, his timing need not be a concern.
While We Are On The Topic: This 1980 quote from Malcomb Muggeridge – the British author, public intellectual, media giant, and general wit who came to faith late in life – is worth reflecting on. “Let us then… rejoice that we see around us at every hand the decay of the institutions and instruments of power, see intimations of empires [fading], money in total disarray, dictators and parliamentarians alike nonplussed by the confusion and conflicts which encompass them. For it is precisely when every earthly hope has been explored and found wanting… when every recourse this world offers, moral as well as material has been explored to no effect, when in the shivering cold the last [stick of wood] has been thrown on the fire and in the gathering darkness every glimmer of light has finally flickered out, it is then that Christ’s hand reaches out, sure and firm. Then Christ’s words bring their inexpressible comfort, then His light shines brightest, abolishing the darkness forever. So, finding in everything only deception and nothingness, the soul is constrained to [turn] to God himself and to rest content with Him.” Malcolm Muggeridge, The End of Christendom
DF: Apparently, there are more Dan Fogelberg fans out there than I realized. For those writing to say thank you for my reference to him in last week’s Update, here is a soundtrack for you to enjoy.
WOTW: Honorable mention goes to adaptive lag (coined back in the 1970s by Alvin Toffler), settler colonialism (which is showing up everywhere this week), hypocrisy projection (obvious enough), and philanthro-journalism (coined in light of the failed local newspapers being resurrected as not-for-profit organizations). I am selecting infodemic because we are living in one.
Without Comment: 1) The WSJ puts the increase of anti-Semitic attacks in the US at 400%; 2) Nearly 70 percent of Americans watch live sports, with 22 of the 30 most popular TV shows of all time being Super Bowls; 3) Starbucks and Dunkin Donuts will be replacing pumpkin spice with peppermint and gingerbread. They will also start wishing everyone a happy “holiday;” 4) The share of older Americans with debt has nearly doubled in the last 30 years; 5) According to NPR, Americans spent $700M on pet costumes this Halloween; and 6) According to Gallup, teachers are more burned out than any other profession.
Resources: Click here to listen to last week’s sermon on Exodus 12 — a text that sets up the Grand Story as well as any I have found. (Be warned, in the sermon, I demand that you pick from among the competing narratives of this moment.)
Closing Prayer: Be kind to your little children, Lord. Be a gentle teacher, patient with our weakness and stupidity. And give us the strength and discernment to do what you tell us, and so grow in your likeness. May we all live in the peace that comes from you. May we journey towards your city, sailing through the waters of sin untouched by the waves, borne serenely along by the Holy Spirit. Night and day may we give you praise and thanks, because you have shown us that all things belong to you, and all blessings are gifts from you. To you, the essence of wisdom, the foundation of truth, be glory for evermore. Amen. (Clement of Alexandria, c.150–c.215)