On Lament and Repent

 

Our nation has been rocked by violence of a particular kind. In the past year or so, there have been  assassination attempts (some successful), against the nation’s president Donald Trump, lawmakers from Minnesota and their spouses, a healthcare CEO and now a political activist. It is a dark time for our nation, when (mostly) lone-wolf actors–usually radicalized young men—decide that a way to express their rage is through taking a life. 

Perhaps a mirror is appropriate. As a culture, we have moved away from a belief that God has laid out right and wrong, based on a reverence for Him and a respect for fellow humans (as well as God’s created order). We have gone so far from such reverence, that our culture has been described as “post-truth,” suggesting that truth is nonexistent and that only narratives which support our point of view are valid. If someone disagrees with us, we write them off, direct hate towards them, and even resort to violence. 

In the time of the prophet Joel, depending on how one dates the book, the nation of Israel was in a mess. The land was devastated by poverty, injustice, and indifference towards God. Joel is a prophet who looks at past, present and future and his words rang in my ears over and over:

Gird yourselves with sackcloth And lament, O priests; Wail, O ministers of the altar! Come, spend the night in sackcloth O ministers of my God, for the grain offering and the drink offering are withheld from the house of your God. Consecrate a fast, Proclaim a solemn assembly; Gather the elders and all the inhabitants of the land to the house of the Lord your God, and cry out to the Lord. (Joel 1:13-14)

Lament is a deep sorrow or pain due to circumstances which indicates lack of attention to God and lack of attention from God. His presence is not apparent. Lament is the biblical response to pain, grief, broken hearts, helplessness or fear. We don’t know how we got to this point, but we know it isn’t right. Lament is the biblical response to our own realization that our own choices, attitudes, and posturing are part of the problem. Our sin calls for lament. 

Lament for the victims of our nation’s political violence. Lament for the partisan disdain for other humans that got us here. Lament for the lack of attention to God and the lack of recognition that God calls all of us to Himself. Lament for our hearts that are no longer broken for the things that break the heart of God. May we collectively feel a deep sorrow, turn to God in repentance for words or attitudes that contribute to the climate of distrust and reach out even to people who do not share our point of view with a message of hope and healing from Almighty God.

On Lessons from the Minor Prophets

My morning reading is taking me through the minor prophets and Jeremiah and Ezekiel have gotten my attention this time around more than other times. My 40,000 foot view of their prophecy:

Idolatry is Adultery

Lordship is Leadership.

Kindness is Godliness.

Arrogance is Ignorance.

Humility is Stability.

Hubris is not Justice.

They also place a high value on shepherds who lead the flock with righteousness and integrity. In their prophecies–and in our experience, pastors can be distracted, disappointed, disrespected, and dismayed. Pastors can be crass, callous, and cruel. The spiritual leaders of Israel were thoroughly selfish, self-seeking greedy, proud and corrupt. 

Pastors can be called to do something that in human terms is unimaginable, unbearable, and unreasonable. Ezekiel was told he could not mourn his wife. 

But God says that if we won’t lead with spiritual integrity, He will provide for His sheep another way. In His hands, the sheep are 

led, fed, and put to bed

sought, brought, and bought.

And He will bring the dry bones to life. In Chris Tomlin’s song, “Awake My Soul” I have always been inspired by the interlude and outro that features hip hop artist Lecrae (close your eyes and hear him or find it online...)  

Interlude

Then He said to me

Prophesy to these bones and say to them

Dry bones, hear the word of the Lord!

This is what the Sovereign Lord says to these bones

I will make breath enter you

And you will come to life

So I prophesied as I was commanded

As I was prophesying, there was a noise, a rattling sound

And the bones came together, bone to bone

And I looked, and tendons and flesh appeared on them

And skin covered them, but there was no breath in them

Then He said to me

Prophesy to the breath

Prophesy, son of man, and say to it

Conjure the four winds of breath and breathe

Outro:

Yeah, I’m not alone, I realize

You breathe out, I come alive

Your word gives life to my dry bones

Your breath tells death it can ride on

Awake me, make me a living stone

A testament to your throne, I

I’m nothing without You, I’m on my own

The only one who satisfies my soul

Key thought in Ezekiel 36: “I am not doing this for your sake,” declares the Lord. One of Ezekiel’s repeated prophecies is “then they [and you] will know that I am the Lord.” (58 times in Ezekiel).

Let us as shepherds not need to be reminded that He is the Lord. Let us lead the flock well.