The old way wasn't working so it's on us to do what we gotta do to survive.

The president made a speech this past week about climate change.  You may have heard it, you may have missed it.  You may agree with everything he said, you may not.  That's fine.  I think it's a worthwhile topic to discuss.  It's a topic that I've never written about or even spoken much about, so I figured that this might be an appropriate time for me to weigh in.

Before I decided to write this, I wrestled with whether or not I should even write about this at all.  I had to decide whether or not there was any reason that my thoughts would be worthwhile for y'all to read..  I came to the conclusion that I have something to bring to the table here.  I have something to bring to the table because, unfortunately, climate change has become a highly partisan and even religious issue.  As someone who doesn't have partisan connections, but does have strong religious convictions, I hope to provide a worthwhile perspective.

I came to the conclusion quite a while ago that nearly anyone I've ever heard talk about climate change had a political agenda.  As a result, I figured that it'd be difficult for me to ever figure out whether or not "global warming" is something that humans have caused and whether or not it actually posed a threat.  I still generally feel the same way, although it seems like more and more scientists are convinced that it is real and it is a threat.  I don't know for sure.  This isn't the Word of God where I feel the need to educate myself to the point that I understand the issues and can know the truth without a doubt.  I'm comfortable with a certain amount of uncertainty here.  But that doesn't mean that I'm just gonna throw my hands up in the air, suck down 1/4 lb.ers in the old fashioned non-biodegradable Styrofoam containers and chuck 'em out the window when I'm done.  Given how serious some people are convinced that this problem is, it requires a little bit more thought.

As I talk to a lot of different Christians, it seems like Christians are far less concerned than the average citizen.  That's just my observation, it could be wrong, but I don't think it is.  I can understand this Christian indifference to a certain extent.  We can all agree that climate change caused by humans will not end the world or even human life on earth.  God's made it pretty clear that that's his job, not ours.  We can take that off the table right now.  But that doesn't mean that we can just ignore the issue altogether.  Ever since God said, "It was very good" on the sixth day, humankind has been doing its best to make sure that this world is not very good.  Why would we think that global warming is an entirely different animal?  If humankind can take a perfect world and make it into what we've got now, why would Christians automatically assume that it's impossible to take what we've got now and turn it into something that's barely inhabitable?  It's not impossible.  In fact, it's completely plausible, if you listen to 97% of scientists in the world today.  So, while we know that human activity won't lead to the end of human life on earth, we should still be concerned about the earth that God has made us stewards of.

I, for one, find the gap between the last two links somewhat alarming.  Apparently the president does too.  In what is probably the most memorable line during his five years of presidency, President Obama said, "We don't have time for a meeting of the flat earth society."  His point is clear: Christianity has been on the wrong side of history before on scientific issues and it is again.  Now, I generally don't    care    about the president's thoughts about what "side of history" Christians will be on.  However, he may well be right here.  In the past, Christians put up a huge fight about the earth being the center of the universe.  Some were upset about the thought of a spherical earth, because of the verses talking about hell as being "down".  Christians were largely on the wrong side of history there because they falsely assumed that new scientific discoveries undermined the truth of scripture.  Let's not let that happen now.  If it turns out that humans have contributed to climate change, that doesn't mean that any portion of Christian doctrine is false.  I'd love to see the gap between pastors and scientists close.

So, instead of insisting that global warming is an invention of the liberal media, let's make an effort to be good stewards of the earth that God has given us.  It seems outrageous that we'd have to encourage Christians to take care of the earth.  Unfortunately, that's the political world that we live in now.  But let's move beyond that.  Whether or not you believe what the vast majority of the scientific world does, let's all do what we can to "go green."  During our lifetimes, we may never know which side of this debate was correct, but why risk it?  Why are conservative Christians so eager to thump Genesis 1:28 when it comes to reproduction, but so hesitant to accept the implications of 2:15 when it comes to stewardship of the earth?

I'm not saying that we have to support legislation that dictates minimum fuel mileage or anything like that.  You can make up your own mind about the role that the government should play in all of this.  We'll all have different opinions about that, and that's ok.  However, this shouldn't be a partisan or religious issue.  I hope that we can all be on the same page that we should do our very best to take care of what God has given to us and to our children.

The Cross of the Evangelist

The Theology of The Cross by Daniel Deutschlander is hugely popular right now, at least at the monastery I've been living at for the last four weeks. The theology of the cross isn't hard to understand. Quite simply, it talks about how bad things happen to Christians because we are Christians. However, what can be a little bit harder to understand is how we are asked to bear crosses in our lives today. After all, we're not persecuted these days. Overall, people are generally accepting of people having their own beliefs. It might seem like we're not asked to bear crosses like Christians used to be.

Yet, today during Hermeneutics I realized a cross that I, and most Christians, will constantly bear for the rest of our lives. That cross comes to us as we attempt to evangelize to the people in our lives. When you share God's Word with people, you're making an investment in them. Your entire being is wrapped up in wanting them to believe the message that you share. You want this person that you love to spend eternity in heaven with you and with God. However, that will not always happen. Some times those people reject the message. And that hurts. Badly. It truly is a painful cross that we must bear, and it will not go away.

Jesus tells us to bring our crosses to him. He tells us that he will give us rest (Matthew 11:28,29). He doesn't tell us that he'll take our cross away. No, the very fact that he makes this invitation indicates that we will bear crosses throughout our earthly journey. While we will still hurt, Jesus tells us that he will give us rest for our souls. That rest that he brings did not come by the removal of a cross. Instead, it came by Jesus taking up his own cross. Suddenly our crosses seem so small. Imagine the pain of the evangelist, Jesus. He has invested far more into every soul than any of us ever will into one. He suffered death and hell, just to have billions reject that sacrifice. How painful that must be. Yet, despite the pain he knew he would encounter, he took up his cross and paid the price. Let us make that same choice and willingly take up the cross of an evangelist. We know that it will bring us pain, but let us also bear in mind that the benefit will still be worth the price that we pay. Many may reject us, but if even just one comes to faith, that is a cause for celebration (Matthew 18:12,13).

So, let's forget the cost and take up the cross of the evangelist.

"Let no false doctrine me beguile;
Let Satan not my soul defile.
Give strength and patience unto me
To bear my crosses willingly.
Lord Jesus Christ, My God and Lord,
Forsake me not! I trust your Word." (CW 434 v.2)
Amen.