Don’t Peek 2.23.2023

    My topic this week was supposed to be the nature of Jesus’ Messianic claims in the Gospels. Instead, I will say a few things about the current “Elephant in the room,” the events at Asbury University in Wilmore Kentucky. 

    To begin with, I don’t know anything firsthand. I have read about it in several newsletters I receive via email. I have read about it in the news. Some of these accounts are first-hand, others derivative. All of which is to say, and I repeat, that I don’t know anything about it. Any opinions or conclusions I (or anyone else who is not there) might have, are framed by ignorance. Ignorance is fine when it is accompanied by humility. It is OK to say, “I don’t know.” 

    Despite a lack of first-hand knowledge as a pastor-theologian, there are some observations I can make from the known facts and a couple of legitimate conclusions which can be drawn. 

    One of the questions that interested inquirers routinely ask, even as the administration of the College tries to return the school to its teaching mission, “should I go?” This inquiry reveals much about our current cultural concerns and ongoing issues confronting the Church. I cannot address those issues here, but I think I can help provide some insight as to how we might process this event and the impact it might have on the Church—regardless of whether you and I participate firsthand. Let’s consider a couple of baseline Biblical ideas that I think help us keep this event, and all other profound “experiences” in perspective.  First, let’s remind ourselves of something Jesus told Nicodemus when first broaching the subject of new birth and the indwelling Holy Spirit.

“The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.”” (John 3:8 ESV)

 Jesus is reminding Nicodemus that the Holy Spirit cannot be controlled, compelled, or coerced. An additional Biblical guideline comes from a full understanding of how the Holy Spirit moved the Church forward in the book of Acts. On the day of Pentecost, there was a broad representation of the ancient world which participated in the event. 

“Acts 2:7 And they were amazed and astonished, saying, “Are not all these who are speaking Galileans? Acts 2:8 And how is it that we hear, each of us in his own native language? Acts 2:9 Parthians and Medes and Elamites and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, Acts 2:10 Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya belonging to Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, Acts 2:11 both Jews and proselytes, Cretans and Arabians—we hear them telling in our own tongues the mighty works of God.” Acts 2:12 And all were amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, “What does this mean?”” (Acts 2:7–12 ESV)

Within a generation of that crowd asking the question “what does this mean” the entire Roman world knew, and not everyone had to go to Jerusalem to find out. When God moves, when the Church is renewed, and when there is revival, reformation, renewal, or restoration the ripple effect is unavoidable. 

    I don’t know exactly what, but it seems that God is doing something in Kentucky. Time will tell how significant it is, what lessons are to be learned, and what actions need to be taken. Yet, if this is truly a revival, then we must let it play out as God wills, through His Holy Spirit, in the place, and among the people, He has chosen. So, by all means, pay attention. Assess what is going on. Make it a matter of prayer and filter it through Scripture.  And stay home. For the broader Church to benefit from the Asbury Revival we must let God’s Spirit move. Traditional and social media are not necessary to drive the work of God forward. Why should you and I let Asbury be Asbury while being prepared to apply the lessons we learn?  Let me provide some specific guidance. I think that this will be helpful not just for this event but for how we should always process the liminal experience of others. 

It is not your experience.

    Do not confuse media coverage with participation. I have no doubts that something profound is happening. I don’t have to be a part of it to understand, process, learn, and apply the lessons which might accrue to the Church through the experiences of others. Now, I know that I can have a harsh “bedside” manner, and simply pointing out that “it is not your experience” might seem like carping, but if this is truly a work of God then we need the patience to let God work. Jacob wrestled with God by himself. No one else was in the winepress with Gideon. It was just Paul and Silas in jail. Experiences are non-transferable and when we try, we end up changing the experience.

    You and I did not participate in the prayers or chapel worship leading up to this reviving experience. We did not attend class, live in the dorms, eat in the dining hall, or hang out with the students. We did not live their lives. We did not share their stressors. We are not embedded in their context. To rush to Wilmore, even in grateful participation, is nothing more than a form of gawking. 

1. It.

2. Is. 

3. Not.

4. Your.

5. Experience. 

    If it is a genuine movement of God’s Spirit, you’ll know. You won’t be able to get out of the way. Two factors have typified and largely defined Christianity for the last 30 years, diminishing or marginalizing the impact of the Church. Increasing juvenilization (youth ministry for big people) and the continual pursuit of experience. These trends can give the impression that the Church is not to be taken seriously, and that it lacks the capacity to be reflective and theologically contemplative. Rushing off to witness someone else’s profound, defining experience reduces it to spectacle and creates a commodity out of something which is un-shareable. If Asbury presages a genuine revival, you don’t have to be present to be impacted. If this is an act of God, perhaps it will remind us that we need to take seriously something that cost Christ so dearly. Maybe we will learn that the movement of God is not constrained by our social media feeds or our narcissistic need for participatory immediacy. Faith often means waiting. The Church must regain the patience to wait on God as He moves according to His sovereign will. 

If it is genuine…it’s coming your way.

    The quotation from Acts 2 reminds us of the broad spectrum of the Mediterranean world “present” at Pentecost. The rest of the book chronicles how people who were not present at Pentecost felt the ongoing movement of the Spirit through the work of Philip, James, Peter, and of course, Paul. 

    Surely there were some pilgrims who thought “I need to get on over to Jerusalem and see what is going on!” Most remained home.  Regardless, the Church was moving in their direction. 

“But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”” (Acts 1:8 ESV)

    In obedience to this mandate the Church bore witness and the Spirit moved. Christianity did not begin with a regressive “pilgrim” mentality of always returning to the place of its birth, but with a mentality of moving forward into the darkest corners of God’s fallen creation and bearing witness to Jesus. We bear witness to Jesus, The Spirit bears witness to Jesus, and as the song says Jesus Saves.

Don’t Kill Schrödinger's Cat

    Sometimes quantum physics and common-sense overlap. Observation and interaction affect the entity observed. It is impossible to keep secret the powerful movement of God at Asbury. Yet the more it is observed, and the greater the interaction with the off-campus curious, the greater the chance that the observation itself will alter the phenomena. As believers, we are emotionally invested in the work of the Lord. I understand. I’m pretty much obsessed with it myself. Yet none of us is the only one. There are others--many others who share our faith and passion. Their work is valid, and their experiences richly contribute to our ongoing life of faith and service. 

    There are times when we must be content with full faith informed by partial knowledge. (Reread that last sentence) I ALWAYS want full knowledge. Yet even when our knowledge is only partial, God compels us to be fully faithful.  Forty years of ministry is finally teaching me to be satisfied with what I’ve got. And as much as I sometimes want to peer into the box to get a glimpse of the elusive cat, we must acknowledge that yielding to that temptation—kills the cat.