Our Work

In the United States the first Monday in September is Labor Day, a day to celebrate the contributions of laborers to our life.  The day was once the end of school vacations and the beginning of the school year; today, most American schools begin classes in mid-August.

Genesis 2:15

When John Kennedy was seeking the Democratic presidential nomination he traveled to West Virginia where he addressed a group of miners.

While waiting to be introduced, he stood beside one of the sooty miners.

The miner asked, “Is it true what they tell me that your father is one of the richest men in America?”

Kennedy answered, “Well, yes, that’s true.”

The miner then asked, “Is it true you’ve never lacked for anything in your life?”

Again, Kennedy answered, “Yes, I suppose that’s true.”

Once again the miner asked, “Is it true you’ve never in your entire life had to do a day’s hard work with your hands?”

Not sure where the questioning was heading, Kennedy said, “Yes, that’s true.”

Then the miner said, “Let me tell you something, Mac, you haven’t missed a thing.”

Tomorrow is Labor Day, the day when we try to say something positive about work. The Creation story contains the beginnings of many of our human institutions.  God gave Adam responsibility over the Garden, so human industry and work began.  Work allows us to demonstrate creativity and ingenuity.  Even in the Garden, work was designed to allow us to contribute to the beauty and character of our world, to make paradise a better place.  Our work is a gift of God.  

But remember the miner’s words to Kennedy.  Work seems a strange gift, you might say, especially after an exhausting day trying to beat a deadline or racing to catch up to where you should have been yesterday. 

This negative side of the work experience is not God’s doing, we brought it on ourselves.  Only after the Rebellion, only after Adam and Eve disobeyed God’s command did work become irksome and tedious.  The curse placed upon Adam because of his disobedience became the experience of all humankind.  From that time on work had the potential of bringing either satisfaction in seeing the product of our efforts or frustration in seeing our efforts thwarted by something beyond our control.  Sadly, the curse upon our work touches things more significant than our careers. 

God not only gave us the gift of work;  God gave us the gift of the family.  God declared that it was not good for the man to be alone, reminding us that we are intended to be social creatures.  So, he created the woman.  This led to the beginning of marriage and the family.  Looking back on that momentous event, Moses tells his readers, “For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh.”

It’s also clear that the man and the woman were intended to have a relationship with God.  As rich as their relationship with each other might have been, their lives would be incomplete without God.

Now, had God simply intended to create a worker, none of the rest of this activity would have been necessary.  In fact, Adam and Eve wouldn’t have been necessary.  God could have simply taken one of the apes, taught it to do the repetitious tasks of pulling weeds and watering plants, and that would have been that.

God created humankind in his own image.  He intended this crown of his creation to be more than a mere drudge.  While He wanted our work to reflect his own creativity, He intended us to have life beyond our work.  Fail to keep that in mind and we may fall prey to “workaholism.”  

Workaholism is a distortion of God’s intention.  Workaholics should not be praised or held up as examples of what’s right with this country.  

One year, while I was in Texas, I taught a graduate course in New Testament for Wayland Baptist University.  Three young pastors from another denomination were in that class.  One evening they began talking about another pastor in their denomination, one who served one of their largest and most influential congregations in the area.  With great awe they talked about his devotion to his job.  They said he never took a day off and that he averaged twelve to fourteen hours a day in the office.  

They were actually shocked when I told them I thought that behavior was irresponsible.

Sometimes our jobs force us to miss family outings or other activities, just as our jobs sometimes force us to miss church activities.  But when that becomes the rule rather than the exception, warning flags ought to go up.

The workaholic needs help.  Sometimes the roots of the problem may run deep, maybe all the way back to childhood.    Frank Minirth explains, “Inner ‘voices’ or convictions are what keep workaholics going.  They tell workaholics, who are usually the oldest children of their sex in the family, that they need to do something to be worthwhile.  Those voices or convictions do not let him or her rest in just being someone.  ‘Doing’ is the key to being worthwhile.”

This attitude is often rooted in what the workaholic heard from parents.  The situation is made worse by fear and by worry about the general economic condition of the society or of losing their job.

True workaholics probably need help from counseling to deal with their situation.

Workaholism isn’t the only reason we sometimes get our lives out of balance.  The problem may be a sign that something is wrong at home.  If it’s easier to be with colleagues than family, easier to deal with crises at the office than the raging hormones of your teenagers, you may need to step back and examine what’s going on in your life.

Workaholism may prompt us to give our relationship with God our second best.  We find it easier to slip into the office on Sunday, just to get a jump on Monday’s work, rather than enjoy the fellowship of other believers and possibly find nourishment for our souls.  At the same time, we set an example for our children and neighbors that says building our wealth is more important than building our souls.

Jesus made a powerful statement about priorities:  “…how do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your own soul in the process? Is anything worth more than your soul?”  Jesus’ words refer to the danger of neglecting our spiritual condition while pursuing material wealth but he implicitly calls us to apply this principle to other things we value, like our families or our health.

 Prayer and the counsel of other believers can help us get balance back into our lives.

Workaholism can cause us to neglect our other work—the work all we Christians share.  Whatever occupation we may list on our tax forms, we all share the work of witness.  William Barclay said, “The Christian is called upon to be the partner of God in the work of the conversion of men.”   

Jesus set the pattern for us.  He told his disciples, “While it is daytime, we must continue doing the work of the One who sent me. Night is coming, when no one can work.” 

 He saw its urgency, so should we.

We all know how being indifferent to our daily work can harm our witness.  So can workaholism.  It says to the watching world.

• I get my sense of identity from my work, not my relationship with God.
• I get my sense of security from my earnings, not my faith.
• I get my peace from being indispensable to the company, not from the God who cares for me.
• I get my joy from what I do, not from those who love me.

What we do at work can help or hurt our witness.  But our witness is also helped or hurt by what our work does to us.

Conclusion:

Usually, we observe Labor Day by talking about the kind of work that produces a salary, the work we do when we punch a time-clock.  So, when we speak of “workaholics” we think of people who have a skewed perspective on their daily work.

But I think I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention those we might call “spiritual workaholics.”  The church is full of men and women who believe their worth before God depends on how much they do for the Kingdom.  Though  they might be able to define “grace” so precisely they would get an “A” on a seminary theology test, they really don’t live by grace.  They live as if God’s favor depended upon what they do.  So, they take every job that’s offered in the church.  They expect their families to just understand that the mission trip where they will eat, sleep, and work with dozens of strangers will have to substitute for a family vacation.  

Please understand: I’m not condemning those who may hold multiple jobs in the church or who may participate in a mission trip.  I am questioning the attitude of those who are compelled to do such things because they believe God’s favor rests on their ending each day with a kind of holy exhaustion.  We need to pray with and for such people.  And we need to help them toward a new vision of grace, a vision that will help them find real joy and effectiveness in whatever they chose to do for the church.

Let me make one more point:  Yes, our work is important, whether it is the work we do for our salaries or the work we do to advance God’s Kingdom; but more important than our work is a life marked by balance.  

God cares about all our work.  Let’s look to him to help us do all our work well.  And we can do it well only when we find that balance.

How to Pray for the Hard Cases

   Our morning service this week is devoted to a gospel music concert.  I didn't preach.  However, I am posting a sermon I preached a few years ago.  I hope it is helpful.

 

Acts 9:3-19

Consider the comment Luke makes in Acts 8:3 just after Stephen’s death,  “But Saul began ravaging the church, entering house after house, and dragging off men and women, he would put them in prison.” And again the word that begins this chapter (9:1-2)

Suppose these words were all we knew of the life of Saul.  We would see him as a blood-thirsty fanatic, who made the destruction of the church his life’s goal.  No doubt, lacking any other reliable information about his fate, imaginative Christians would have invented tales illustrating the terrible way God had exacted his vengeance against him.  Even the best of us like stories in which the wrong-doer gets his comeuppance (Remember the “Princess Bride”).

But, of course, that’s not all we know about Saul of Tarsus.  Saul who, like many Jews in the first century, had both an Aramaic name and a Greek name will appear again in the Book of Acts.  He will become better known to the world at large by his Greek name, Paul. 

We don’t know as much about Saul’s early life as we might wish.  He was born in Tarsus, a city  in Asia Minor hundreds of miles from Jerusalem.  It was a city with a beautiful crystal-clear river running though it, a river which allowed ships from the Mediterranean some ten miles away to sail into the very heart of the city.  Cleopatra’s barge did just that when she met Antony there in 38 BC

About two hundred years before the events in Acts 9 a large number of Jews apparently settled in the city.  They were given special rights allowing them to practice their religion undisturbed, being regarded as a single tribe within the city’s population.  Because of the community’s loyalty, Antony granted the city the status of a free city.  Augustus later renewed that status.  Over the years many citizens of Tarsus had been made Roman citizens; some of Saul’s ancestors may have received citizenship in this way.  Since citizenship could be passed from one generation to the next it was a valuable designation.  Saul—then known as Paul—would one day use his citizenship to win the right to a hearing in Rome.

There was a great university in Tarsus but there’s no evidence Saul ever attended.  More likely his parents sent him to Jerusalem early on to study there.  By his own testimony we know he was a student of Gamaliel who argued moving cautiously against the Christians. (Acts 5:34-39)  Gamaliel, the Pharisee, urged the Council to move slowly in dealing with the Christians, arguing that if Christianity was just another fad, it would disappear, but if it was of divine origin, they would find themselves fighting against God.

It was under this wise man that Saul learned the Jewish faith.  He would probably have been given an overview of Greek and Roman literature and culture.  Evidence suggests this was considered a valuable part of a complete education; of course, he would not have been taught that the Hellenistic world-view was just as valid as the Jewish.

Eventually he became both a Pharisee and a rabbi. There’s reason to believe he may have been one of Gamaliel’s most promising students but he was not like his teacher in one important way.  Saul may have simply been something of a young Turk or he may have had a clearer view of the radical nature of Christianity but he did not share Gamaliel’s willingness to be patient with the Christians to see what might happen.  In Saul’s opinion, Stephen’s death had been only the first step in the right direction for dealing with these blasphemous heretics.

As this chapter opens three facts about Saul of Tarsus stand out.  First, Saul was absolutely convinced the message preached by the Christians was wrong.  Second, Saul was absolutely committed to the eradication of Christianity.  Third, Saul was absolutely confident he was doing God a favor by destroying Christians.

So, Saul started out on the road to Damascus as a man with a mission.  He ended his journey to Damascus as a man with an even greater mission.

A Journey Interrupted

Most travelers who near the end of a long journey look forward to finally reaching their destination.  Even if the trip has been uneventful, or especially if the trip has been uneventful, they look forward to a change of pace, an opportunity to rest and enjoy something cool to drink.  The noontime heat beating down on Saul must have made Damascus in the distance a particularly welcome sight.  Not only would he be able to have some refreshment but he would soon be able to begin his important work of rounding up the Christians who had fled to the ancient city from Jerusalem following the death of Stephen.

It wasn’t to be.  Suddenly Saul and his companions were surrounded by a light brighter than the noonday sun.  So intense was the experience that all of them fell to the ground wondering what was happening.  Then, Someone spoke to Saul.  Paul’s companions saw the light and apparently heard the voice but were unable to distinguish the words being spoken to Paul.

Fortunately, Luke is provides us with the gist of the dialogue.

The voice asked Saul, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?”  At this point, according to Saul’s account presented to King Agrippa, the voice added, “It is hard for you to kick against the goad.”

That’s an interesting figure of speech.  It pictures the plowman using a sharp stick to persuade the oxen to keep going, to keep plowing.  There’s lots of discussion about what it means but some of the best insight comes from the use of the phrase in Greek literature.  The phrase means to fight against a god.  It means Paul was finding out what his teacher Gamaliel (Acts 5:33f) had known, it’s tough to fight God. 

That realization seems to be reflected in Saul’s response, “Who are you, Lord?”  The word translated “Lord” in the NIV can be translated as “Sir,” simply a respectful form of address.  Saul hadn’t necessarily concluded that his progress toward Damascus had been halted by God, but he must have known that what was happening to him was out of the ordinary, that it had the scent of heaven about it.

If he had any questions about the character of the Speaker they were quickly answered.  “I am Jesus whom you are persecuting.”  I can imagine a pause here as the words sink in.  Then, Saul hears, “But get up and go into the city, and there you will be told what you are to do.”

Try to imagine for a moment the impact of those words.  They were so filled with implication and meaning that we can only deal with some of what Saul discovered in that moment.

He discovered the man he knew was dead was truly alive.  In I Corinthians 15:3-9 he attaches his testimony to what appears to have been an early creedal statement regarding the Resurrection.  When he said, “Last of all, I saw him, too…” he asserted his experience was just a tangible as that of the other apostles.  This Jesus was really alive.  The Lord used the name Mary used to call him to dinner, the name by which he was known young man in Nazareth, the name which identified him as a specific historical person who had been crucified by the order of the Romans.

He discovered the closeness of Jesus and his people.  Jesus’ statement seems to imply that the persecution of Christians was actually directed against him.  The church was struck and Jesus felt the pain, one writer put it.  The men and women Paul had been beating and throwing into jail had such an intimate relationship with the Risen Jesus that he shared their anguish and pain.

He discovered that much of what he thought Judaism said about the coming Messiah was wrong.  It would take time to fully understand how his teachers had misunderstood but, with the Risen Jesus standing before him, bearing the marks of crucifixion, it was clear that he needed to review some of the scriptures he had thought he understood so clearly.

He discovered Jesus wasn’t finished with him.  No lightening bolt from heaven would strike him dead.  The ground was not going to open up and swallow him.  Instead, he was to go into the city to await further instructions.  Again, Paul’s testimony before Agrippa fills in some of the blanks in Luke’s skeletal account.  According to Paul—as Luke himself records it—Jesus had more to say.  He told Saul,

I have appeared to you to appoint you as a servant and as a witness of what you have seen of me and what I will show you.   I will rescue you from your own people and from the Gentiles. I amsending you to them to open their eyes and turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, so that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in

me.'

With these words echoing in his mind, Saul, went on to Damascus.  Of course, he had to be guided by his companions.  Saul was suddenly blind.  Saul may or may not have known this would be a temporary condition and there’s no explanation for his blindness.  Still, we can conjecture.  Perhaps his blindness would allow him time to ponder what had happened.  Perhaps hit blindness had a symbolic meaning;  Saul the persecutor who thought the saw things so clearly was actually blind to the truth about Jesus of Nazareth. 

In any case, the condition lasted three days, days during which Saul fasted and prayed.  At the end of those three days Saul met a disciple who had been sent to further share the gospel with him and to be the instrument by which God would restore Saul’s sight.  Ananias may not have been the most eager personal evangelist in the history of the church but because he trusted God’s word he has the distinction of  and helping to disciple one of the hardest cases ever won to Christ.

And Saul surely was a hard case.  On one occasion he would refer to himself as “the chief of sinners” and he would never forget his role as persecutor of the church.

The transformation which took place on the Damascus road was remarkable, yet it resembles the conversion of most of the “hard cases” who come to trust Christ. 

1.  Like many hard cases, Saul would have had to admit he was wrong to become a Christian.

2.  Like many hard cases, Saul would have had to give up a cherished position to become Christ’s follower.

3.  Like many hard cases, Saul would have to embrace new associates to become a successful Christian.

 

Yet, Saul did all of these things.  That’s important to keep in mind.

Throughout church history Paul’s remarkable conversion has been seen as evidence of the reality of Christ’s Resurrection.  It surely is.  A skeptic, Oxford professor Lord George Lyttleton initiated a study of Paul’s conversion in an effort to disprove the central claim of Christianity; instead, he became a believer.  He wrote, “The conversion and apostleship of Saint Paul alone, duly considered, was of itself a demonstration sufficient to prove Christianity to be a Divine Revelation.”[1]  That a rabid persecutor of Christians, both men and women, should become Christianity’s most articulate first-century spokesperson demands an explanation.  That explanation will take us back to a noonday encounter on the road to Damascus. 

Just as Paul’s conversion is evidence of Christ’s Resurrection it is also encouragement to all those who are concerned for the spiritual welfare of those “hard cases” who seem beyond the reach of the gospel.

Encouragement to Prayer

Many of us know such hard cases, men and women whom we truly desire to see follow Christ, yet  who seem unmoved by the gospel.  Of course, I know that sin has, in a sense, made us all hard cases but these individuals seem to be  particularly resistant to the gospel.  If ours was a passive resistance, theirs is an active resistance.

How can we pray for such people?

There are hints in this story.

1.       As we pray for the hard cases, we should pray that they might recognize Christ for who he is.

Saul thought one thing about Jesus of Nazareth, the truth was something altogether different.  Most men and women who are resistant to the gospel believe Jesus was a good man who said some wise things, a good man who seems to have been the tragic victim of religious bigotry, a good man whose followers distorted his teachings by trying to make him into some kind of God.  Saul wouldn’t even grant him that.  In his opinion, Jesus received exactly what he deserved.  Saul was a hard case.

Yet, his encounter with the Risen Christ changed that.  His encounter with the Risen Christ was just as real as that of Mary Magdalene or Peter.  This encounter, which would be essential to his credentials as an apostle, turned his life around.

Ever since 9/11 I’ve had a greater interest in Islam and the situation facing Christians in Muslim lands.  As I read about men and women who trusted Christ and became Christians in those narrow, restricted societies, I’ve seen a recurrent theme.  Many of these individuals made their commitment to Christ following a dream or vision in which he somehow spoke to them.  Now, you know that’s not normative, at least not in the West.  But for some reason that encounter was necessary for them to muster the courage to take what, in some instances, could be an act which would make them outcasts and outlaws.

Usually, men and women, even the hard cases, encounter the reality of Christ trough the preaching and teaching of God’s Word.  This is why it’s so important we maintain faithfulness to the vision Paul outlines in Colossians where he says, “We preach Christ, warning every one and teaching everyone, that we may present all complete in Christ.”  Paul understood that Christ was the only way to spiritual completeness.

Pray that the hard case you care about might be able to see Christ for who he is.  In our time there are many voices attempting to redefine Jesus, trying to make him more palatable to a culture which cannot believe the foundational miracles of the Incarnation and the Resurrection.  As long as the hard case you care about listens uncritically to these voices, he or she will feel safe in their unbelief.  Pray that somehow, someone might help them see the truth about Jesus, the true truth.

2.  As we pray for these hard cases, we should pray that they might give careful consideration to the claims of Christ.

I doubt of most hard cases will respond to a quick review of the four spiritual laws.  They need to consider the claims of Christ, to weigh them. 

For three days, Saul thought about and prayed about what had happened to him and, no doubt, thought of what it meant.  We’re not told what he thought about but it seems reasonable to assume he drew from his knowledge of the Scripture to reevaluate what the church was saying about Christ.  Perhaps he even reviewed Stephen’s sermon which had so angered him.

For those raised in home where the Christian faith is embraced as a life-shaping reality, coming to Christ is an almost natural event.  Pray that the hard case you care about will weigh the claims of Christ.  Each person’s period of reflection and consideration will be different but I  would think that each hard case will spend at least a little time considering two important notions;  pray that he or she will be willing to ask, “Could the claims of  Christ be true?” and “Could I have been wrong?”

3.  As we pray for these hard cases, we should pray that they might meet open, courageous, caring believers.

Two believers played a crucial role in the early days of Paul’s pilgrimage.  The first was Ananias.  You and I have never had an experience anything like that of Ananias.  Think of him; in the midst of his daily devotions, hearing Christ’s voice telling him to go talk to a man named Saul about Christ.    Who can blame him for responding, “You know, Lord, I’ve heard about this Saul and I’ve got to tell you he’s bad news.”  Imagine if you were reading your Bible and praying tomorrow morning and you heard God whisper to you, “Ted Turner’s in town and I’d like you to go witness to him.”  You’d very quickly be asking, “Lord, is this the same Ted Turner who says Christians are fools, who ridicules the Ten Commandments.”  The real question is, what would you do when God responds, “Yep, that’s the Turner I’m talking about, I’ve got some plans for him.” 

You have to admire Ananias.  If you witnessed to Ted Turner, assuming you got past the bodyguards, you’d probably only face ridicule;  going to see Saul might have put Ananias first in line for     execution.  Still, he went.

Pray that the hard case you love might meet such a caring, courageous believer who won’t be put off by the bluster of unbelief, who won’t feel witnessing to such a hard case is a waste of time.

Such a person may have the privilege of helping that hard case in the initial steps of a pilgrimage with Christ.  Ananias did.  He made clear the nature of discipleship and took Paul through that crucial first step in following Christ, baptism.

Luke ended his account of the choice of the Seven who would see to the distribution of material aid in the church he reported that the church continued to grow, specifically mentioning that many  priests became believers.  Why didn’t God  send one of these believing priests to help Paul to faith?  I don’t know.  I do know that those who struggle over coming to faith in Christ are often influenced by those who are relative strangers.   Parents learn that their rebellious son, for whom they and their church have been praying for years, was led to Christ by the witness of a stranger on an airplane. 

Maybe it’s God’s way of reminding believers that were all in this together.

4.       As we pray for these hard cases, we should pray that they become actively involved in Christian fellowship.

If Ananias was there to introduce him to Christ, Barnabus was there to help him toward greater Christian service.

Very soon after his conversion Saul began proclaiming Christ.  The vast knowledge he had of the Scripture before becoming a Christian probably made this possible.  So successful was his ministry that there were now  plots to kill him.  He who spearheaded the persecution against the Christians was now the object of that persecution.  So determined were his enemies that his fellow believers had to help him escape.

At this point there are some questions about what happened next.  Some believe as many as three years may have elapsed between the flight from Damascus and his return to Jerusalem.  In any case, when he got to Jerusalem there was still some who thought of him as the brutal persecutor.

    And when he had come to Jerusalem, he attempted to join the disciples. And they were all afraid of him, for they did not believe that he was a disciple.  [27] But Barnabas took him and brought him to the apostles and declared to them how on the road he had seen the Lord, who spoke to him, and how at Damascus he had preached boldly in the name of Jesus. Acts 9:26-27 (ESV)

Barnabus had faith in God’s power to change people.  We need individuals with that kind of faith.  Barnabus also had faith in God’s ability to use those changed people.

Every believer needs to become involved in the church but those hard cases who finally trust Christ especially need encouragers and mentors as they find their way on the pilgrimage.  It’s so easy to remember the former bluster and miss that fact that this is a believer trying to find the way in a strange new world.

We need to pray they find someone who will guide them.

5.  As we pray for the hard cases, we need to pray they become ‘trophies of grace’ calling others to faith.

Years later Saul—who was better known by his Greek name Paul by then—would write to the Ephesians about the wonders of God’s grace. 

  But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us,  [5] even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ— by grace you have been saved— [6] and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus,  [7] so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.  [8] For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God,  [9] not a result of works, so that no one may boast. Ephes. 2:4-9 (ESV)

Every believer, in the final analysis is a trophy of God’s grace, but Paul understood that to the watching world the depth of that grace is more evident in the lives of some than in others.  He always saw himself in that way.  Writing to his protégé Timothy, only a few years before he faced the Roman executioner, Paul said: 

… the grace of our Lord overflowed for me with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus.  [15] The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the foremost.  [16] But I received mercy for this reason, that in me, as the foremost, Jesus Christ might display his perfect patience as an example to[encourage] those who were to believe in him for eternal life. 1 Tim. 1:14-16 (ESV) 

Recognizing just how marvelous the message of the Resurrection was and how much he owed to God’s grace, Paul joyfully accepted the commission to proclaim the gospel to the gentiles.  He accepted the commission even though he new he would suffer for Christ’s sake.

Although the events recorded in the few verses following Saul’s conversion may have taken place over a half dozen or so years they reveal an important pattern.

à  He almost immediately began proclaiming Christ right there in Damascus.  Unbelievers who heard him were amazed because they knew why he had come to their city and it sure wasn’t to preach Christ. 

à  Perhaps using Damascus as a base, he made forays into Arabia to  share the gospel there.  From other sources we learn this went on for about three years.  He made so many converts that he earned the ire of the local authorities and had to escape to  Jerusalem.

à  After only two weeks or so in Jerusalem he had won so many converts that his life was threatened there.

à  From Jerusalem he went to Caesarea and Tarsus.  Not much is said about that mission but it was an important one.  A few years later he is still in Tarsus ministering.  Barnabus finds him there and asks him to help in one of the mission efforts back in Syrian Antioch.  But think about what Saul’s ministry in Tarsus must have been like.  Perhaps he shared the gospel with his parents, his brothers and sisters, other family members, his friends and with anyone else who would hear him.

Pray that the hard case you care about would be have such an experience of God’s grace that keeping quiet about it would be out of the question.

Conclusion

The glory of the gospel is that even the hard cases can be reached.  They are not beyond God’s grace.  If you care for such a hard case, that ought to encourage you to keep praying.  Paul would, no doubt, be honored if you kept his story in mind as you prayed, remembered him as the hard case who was a changed by the power of Christ.

---

[1] Quoted by Josh McDowell, A Ready Defense, San Bernadino, CA:  Here’s Life Publishers, 1990, p. 434.  The quote comes from Lyttleton’s The Conversion of Saint Paul (1929).

Brightening the Dark Night

      I have been in Texas for the past two weeks.  This approach to Elijah's experience is hardly original with me.  All of  us know someone who has been pursued by what the British call "the black dog," depression.  Perhaps this will point someone toward healing.
     Please remember it is now possible to offer comments.

Brightening the Dark Night

I Kings 19

We had a great time in Texas—but it was hot.  One day the heat index was 110 and that was late afternoon.  Most days the sky was clear but it was already getting warm at 7:30 in the morning.  One of the first things I noticed when we returned on Tuesday was the cool.  It may have been unseasonably cool but I didn’t object.  After the big blue sky, Ohio had cloudy skies.  It was quite a change. 

For a variety of reasons, it’s just cloudier here. 

Some people live much of their lives under clouds.

One of the voice messages left at the church while I was gone was from an anonymous woman who asked us to pray for several of her friends.  I suspect it must have been an act of desperation, mingled with some faith, to ask total strangers to pray.  Some of her friends were facing physical problems but others were dealing with depression. 

I can remember when Christians would hesitate to admit feeling depressed.  Some still believe it reflects a lack of faith.  But consider this.

While the Bible doesn’t mention depression, its pages are populated with depressed people.  D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones concluded from his years of Bible study:

“It is interesting to notice the frequency with which this particular theme is dealt with in the Scripture and the only conclusion to be drawn from that it is a very common condition.  It seems to be a condition which has afflicted God’s people right from the beginning, for you find it described and dealt with in the Old Testament and in the New.”

 

Job is praised for his great faith and patience but look closer.  Job experienced a common form of depression associated with loss.

 

·         Job knew a great sadness—JOB 3:20 "Why is light given to those in misery, and life to the bitter of soul…”

·         Job wished he had never been born—JOB 3:1-2 “…Job cursed the day of his birth by saying to God:     Blot out the day of my birth…”

·         Job experienced problems sleeping—JOB 7:4 “When I lie down I think, `How long before I get up?'  The night drags on, and I toss till dawn.”

·         Job was pessimistic about life—JOB14:1"Man born of woman is of few days and full of trouble”

·         Job felt helpless—JOB 3:26 “I have no peace, no quietness; I have no rest, but only turmoil."

·         Job felt self-loathing—JOB 9:21"Although I am blameless, I have no concern for myself;   I despise my own life.”

 

In fact, if the saints of the Bible did not experience depression we might be justified in saying the Book is not relevant to our lives.  Dr. David Burns says that depression is “…the world’s number one public health problem.  In fact, depression is so widespread it is considered the common cold of psychiatric disturbances. 

Whether it was called melancholy, the blues, or depression the experience is universal.

With depression so common, we had better try to understand what we’re talking about.

Depression is a cluster of feelings—such a helplessness, hopelessness, sadness, despair, self-loathing, and agitation.  Although depressed persons may experience all these feelings, they may also experience a kind of emotional numbness, the lack of any feeling.

In 1936 F. Scott Fitzgerald offered a vivid word-picture of depression in a single sentence; he wrote, “In a real dark night of the soul it is always three o’clock in the morning, day after day.”

Perhaps the best known experience of depression in the Bible is found in the story of the dynamic prophet Elijah. 

Let me review for you the background of the events recorded in 1 Kings 19.  For several years Elijah had been waging a cultural war against King Ahab and his queen, the notorious Jezebel.  It wasn’t enough that they had introduced the worship of foreign gods to Israel, Jezebel was a self-appointed missionary of Baalism. 

The conflict led to a dramatic confrontation between the lone prophet and four-hundred priests of Baal.   At the conclusion fire rained down to confirm Elijah’s claim to be the representative of the one true God.  It was a powerful moment.  It was a victorious moment for the prophet.

This episode is in sharp contrast.

Just consider what we see here:

*                       Elijah is ready to give up, in fact he begs God to let him die.

*                       Elijah has a very negative view of life—and his fellow Jews.

*                       Elijah is gripped by panic even though he had just confronted more than 400 hostile representatives of Baal, confronted them and won.

*                       Elijah cut himself off from all social contact.

 

In evaluating God’s therapy program for Elijah we see that God’s response involved three areas of concern.  That response provides a valuable model for dealing with depression.

 

1. In dealing with depression in may be necessary to address physical concerns.

Lloyd Perry recalls being surprised when a seminary professor told his class, “Sometimes when you feel down, you don’t need to pray more, you need a good night’s sleep.”

The hours devoted to the confrontation with the so-called prophets of Baal must have been exhausting for Elijah.  Although we’re not told he had been fasting, perhaps he had done so in preparation for the moment.  In any case, God provides both sleep and nourishment for the prophet.

When you find yourself facing a bout of depression it may be wise to ask yourself if you have been eating properly and getting enough sleep. 
Stress is also another factor to consider.  Stress can have a powerful impact on our physical well-being.  Ask yourself if you’ve been unusually stressed lately.

2.  In dealing with depression it may be necessary to address pessimistic thinking.

Listen to what Elijah says about himself and about those around him.  He says, “I am worthless, I have accomplished nothing.”  By implication, he says of his neighbors, “It’s you and me, Lord.  Everyone else has sold out.”  No wonder he felt miserable.
Remember the little verse:  “Everybody hates me, nobody loves me, I’m going to eat some worms?”  That’s how some depressed people feel.

God’s response is interesting.  He drops statistics into the conversation.  I don’t know if we are to take the 7000 figure as literal—only that many faithful and no more.  It may be that He is simply saying, “Elijah, I’m much more aware of what’s going on than you are.”
God will address Elijah’s feelings about himself in another way.  He will give him a crucial task—mentoring Elisha.

Negative, pessimistic thinking can feed depression.  Depression, in turn, can distort our thinking.  It becomes a cycle which is hard to break.  Such thinking often leads to lack of motivation which is frequently a trait of the depressed.
                        For the depressed Christian, this problem of pessimistic thinking is sometimes made worse by those who tell the Christian that being depressed is “a sinful lack of faith.”  Already filled with negative thoughts, this only adds one more negative item to reflect on.

For all the jokes we may make about “positive thinking,” the truth is that how we think can have a powerful impact on how we feel.

3.       In dealing with depression it may be necessary to address spiritual issues.

God’s dramatic response to Elijah seems to suggest there were spiritual lessons which the prophet needed to learn.  Because his way of understanding God was stilted, his thinking about what God was doing in the world was contorted.  Some of Elijah’s depression may have been rooted in the notion that God was not acting, that God had withdrawn from the battlefield.

The powerful natural displays—wind, earthquake, and fire—were all ways Elijah had assumed God would choose as vehicles for his revelation.  Instead, God chose the “small whisper.”  God seemed to be saying, “Just because I’m not found in the ways you expect me to be found, doesn’t mean I am not at work.” 

Like Elijah, we may experience depression because God isn’t behaving the way we expect him to.  Despite our prayers, he didn’t keep a boyfriend or girlfriend from leaving, he didn’t open the doors of the school you wanted to attend, and he didn’t give you the promotion you earned several times over.

Of course there are other spiritual problems which can be related to depression.  Things like guilt or shame may be involved.  What’s important to remember is that the God of love and grace stands ready to meet our deepest spiritual needs.

 

4.  In dealing with depression it may be necessary adjust behavior patterns.

I believe this is clearly part of what God is doing as he “treats” Elijah.  The episode ends with God giving the prophet a twofold assignment.  He was to anoint two men who would become secular leaders and anoint Elisha who would become Elijah’s successor as prophet to Israel.  Elijah’s relationship with Elisha would be a turning-point in his life.

For almost three years Elijah had been in seclusion.  He had had little or no contact with fellow believers.  Perhaps because he believed himself to be the last faithful Israelite he hadn’t sought opportunities to have fellowship with others who had resisted the temptation to submit to the false religion of Baalism.   In Elisha he would have an opportunity for friendship and an opportunity to mentor the one who would carry on so much of his work.

Elijah needed to get busy.  He needed to realize that God wasn’t finished with him yet.  In fact, his most important work lay ahead of him.

Elijah needed to forge bonds with others.   In Elisha the reclusive prophet would have an opportunity to form a deep friendship.  In time, Elisha would call Elijah, “my father.”

Almost every depressed person needs to change some behavior patterns.  What those patterns may be will vary from person to person but change is essential if the person is to move beyond the mire of depression.

 Using Elijah’s experience as a model I’d like to offer some guidelines for helping us overcome depression, for brightening the dark night.  Remember, depression varies in intensity.  Sometimes the depressed person needs help beyond what they can do for themselves, help beyond what caring friends can provide.  In such cases, the depressed person shouldn’t hesitate to seek professional counsel.

1.  Accept the redemption offered by Christ. As we’ve seen, Christians are by no means exempt from depression.  But accepting Christ begins a process of profound transformation and puts the believer in touch with the power of the Holy Spirit.  At the same time, the believer discovers that Christ is his “brother” and fellow-believers have become part of a new, caring family.

2.  Embrace a healthier way of thinking.  Depression is often an offshoot of our mental habits.  Through prayer and Bible study our thinking can be changed.  It may take awhile, especially if the negative thought patterns have been with us since childhood, but we can replace them with healthier ways of thinking.
               Some of that changed thinking may involve changed ways of thinking about God.  We may have to learn, as the singer says, that, “God doesn’t always come when we call but he is never late.”

 3. As you learn healthier ways of thinking, practice healthier ways of talking to yourself.
You’ve probably heard that people who talk to themselves are crazy.  If that’s so, there are a lot of crazy people around.  And I’m not confusing them with people taking on their mobiles. We talk to ourselves all the time.  Dr. Paul Meir writes, “All of us go through each day talking to ourselves in our thoughts.  We talk in either a positive or a negative, critical tone.  If we constantly criticize ourselves, we will undoubtedly hold grudges against ourselves and get depressed….  You may think you need all that harsh talk, but you don’t—so get off your back!”[1] [

 4. Train yourself to handle anger in better ways.   Learning appropriate ways to handle anger is essential for a healthy emotional life.  Mishandled or repressed anger may actually be a cause of some depression.  This is especially true if you were somewhere taught that Christians must not feel anger.  Anger is a natural emotion; how we respond to anger and how we express our anger determine whether it is proper or improper.

5.  Appreciate the value of human closeness.  Depressed people often are without friends and confidants.  This involves more than surrounding yourself with people.  It’s possible for depressed people to spend a great deal of time in crowds.  What they need to do is learn to value real friendship.  Certainly a starting place for such a friendship is the church.

  Linked to this is another piece of advice:  Get outside yourself.  For some years now we’ve told people they have a right to look after themselves, to meet their own needs.  While that is true, the counsel has often been heard as, “Don’t think of anyone else until you are perfectly happy.”  This not only sets an impossible goal it runs contrary to such biblical injunctions as that found in Philippians 2:4:  “Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.”  It’s not only contrary to biblical ideals; it is a recipe for misery.  Sometimes the clouds of depression begin to part only as we demonstrate concern for others.

  6.  Practice assertiveness. When you feel you’ve lost control of your life to another person, you may become depressed.  If you’re in such a relationship, you need to learn how to be assertive.  This is not being belligerent or aggressive.  It is not an attempt to overpower another person; it is an attempt to maintain boundaries with integrity and dignity.  It’s been defined in this way:  “To be assertive is to keep others from being irresponsible as they interact with us.”(Maier, p. 279.)

7. Avoid excessive introspection.  Karen Horney wrote of a modern danger she called “the paralysis of analysis.”  There is a kind of introspection which keeps us from focusing on anything but ourselves and what we consider to be our faults, our problems, and our troubles.  Don’t fall into that trap.  One psychiatrist encourages his patients to engage in self-analysis only during their counseling sessions or, at most, only during a regulated period each day.

   8.  Recognize the relationship between feelings and behavior.  Someone has written, “You don’t do what you do because you feel a certain way—you feel a certain way because of what you do.”  Acting on this principle may call for you to establish a specific plan of action which will result in a change of behavior.  Even small actions can have a powerful impact on how we feel.  Ask God for guidance as you begin to change your life.
            It may help have a change of pace.  Martin Luther once said, “A good way to exorcise the Devil is to harness the horse and spread manure on the fields.”

 9.  Accept that your depression may have to run its course.  It’s a myth that there are any quick fixes for depression.  Unless your depression is directly related to a specific event or loss in your life, it may not have developed overnight.  If so, it probably won’t disappear overnight.  Forgive me if I quote Luther again but he understood so much about depression because he was no stranger to it.  Without denying the pain which accompanied his depression, Luther eventually discovered that God can bring good even out of the darkest night.  He wrote, “without them [bouts to depression] no man can understand Scripture, faith, the fear or the love of God.”

10. Finally, learn how to laugh. Genuine laughter can make a profound change in your life.  One of Israel’s wisest teachers observed, “A cheerful heart is good medicine.”  (PR 17:22)  Several years ago, publisher and editor Norman Cousins was stricken with a debilitating illness.  As he fought back he realized how much he needed to keep his spirits up.  His self-prescribed daily therapy included watching several hours of comedies, like the Marx Brothers’ films.  He attributes his recovery, in part, to learning how to really laugh again.

 

Conclusion

When what St. John of the Cross called “the dark night of the soul” comes upon us, as it assuredly will, we have some choices.

We may deny it.         We may feel shame.

We may use the resources we have, with God’s help, to work our way, however slowly, back to the light.  That is brightening the dark night.

 

 

 

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[1] Introduction to Psychology and Counseling:  Christian Perspectives and Applications, p. 277.