In Context

One of the core ideas that is inherent in individualistic cultures is the righteousness of human agency. We tend to think that a person who has ability and a little moxy should be able to succeed in any walk of life. Our heroes are people like Abraham Lincoln, who is said to have risen from humble beginnings to become one of the most beloved presidents and the one who put an end to the injustice of slavery.

Upon further inspection of Lincoln’s Wikipedia article, you can see that some of these aspects of Lincoln’s life were not accidental or solely due to his agency. It says that Lincoln attended a “Separate Baptist” church which opposed slavery. His father also moved their family from Kentucky to Indiana partly because of his father’s opposition to the slavery. It seems like Lincoln’s young life involved many encounters with slavery as well as moral teachings concerning it’s injustice.

In some ways, the life of Paul was not a whole lot unlike the life of Abraham Lincoln. Although he is known for his passionate missionary work, it is not hard to see the hand of God molding his pre-conversion life. His place as a Roman citizen and his Jewish education would later be used for his work. In his biography of Paul, John Pollack suggested even that Paul’s position as a prosecutor of Christians may have resulted in him witnessing the testimonies and devotion of hundreds of Christians prior to his conversion on the road to Damascus. 

When Paul was writing his letter to the church in Corinth, he seems aware of how life is much more than the result of one’s desire and hard work. In the third chapter, he casts himself in the role of only a sower of seeds. Although he worked very hard, he knew that the success of his hard work was always dependent on God’s agency.

In modern individualism, I think it is easy to forget the role of God. We start to blame others (usually) for our failures and credit ourselves for successes. We also start to believe what others say about our ability or lack there of. Although I do not see any harm in learning from mistakes or celebrating our victories, I think it is very important that we acknowledge the hand of God in all of them. 

Understanding Tebowmania

Like many other people, I have been perturbed by the ordeal of Tim Tebow. The kid has not done anything wrong, he has merely done his job and represented his faith to the best of his ability. Despite his hard work and success, he has been met with tribulations ever since he left the confines of Gainesville, Florida. First he was welcomed with fanfare, then he was ostracized by his boss. What was his reaction? He continued to work hard for the team and was not afraid to speak out about his faith. The media then largely reacted by relegating him to the role of popular back-up and dismissed his popularity as a fleeting relic of his college success. 

When hardship and frustration led his boss to reluctantly put him on the field, Tebow continued to do what he does, play hard and win games. His success despite the odds inspired his team, but it still has not endeared him to the sports world. Many have even criticized and mocked him because of his unswerving spiritual commitment.

I think the church in Corinth may have had a lot in common with Tim Tebow and his predicament. The culture of Roman Corinth likely rewarded those whose mindset involved the abstractions of greek philosophy and the hedonism of the prevailing sexual idolatry of that city. In the second chapter of Paul’s letter to the Corinthians, Paul tells them not to be surprised when people do not understand them. Even though they are misunderstood, Paul continues to exhort them to have the mind of Christ, using their spiritual judgment to love others.

I think Christians are often good at being misunderstood, but we often use this difficulty as an excuse to disengage from loving others or to have an “us against them” mentality. The script for this type of situation has been has been championed by the religious right in the world of politics. An alternative pathway has also been to go under the radar and pretend that our faith does not motivate our actions.

I am sure Tim Tebow has many human flaws, but I think he is a pretty good example of the third way that Paul is suggesting to the Corinthians. May be Tebowmania is the result of Christians seeing a successful young man who is misunderstood, yet perseveres in loving and serving others. It is like the Christians of America now have our very own real-life Rocky. Although he is inevitably not perfect, I think Tebow’s example can help us to live out a misunderstood life with the love of Christ.

No Words

When I was a freshman in college, I found myself in the cafeteria of one of the largest jails in the United States. Staring at me were about 150 fairly rough looking incarcerated women in matching orange scrubs. As I had entered this room, I saw the dejected eyes of those who had just been admitted and stripped of their dignity and individuality. When it came my time to speak, I felt their eyes fixed upon me as my heart pounded loudly.

Before we went to this jail, I was told to prepare a short sermonette to share with the inmates. Although I considered myself to have fairly adequate knowledge of the scriptures, I had a hard time mustering a relevant message for these people. I am not sure if there exists another group of people in the world to which I shared less experience. At some point during my preparation, God must have led me to the first chapter of Paul’s first letter to the church in Corinth.

In this chapter, Paul encourages the Corinthians that God has chosen the weak to shame the strong, the despised to displace the heralded, and the foolish to outwit the wise. According to what I have read, this message would have been particularly pertinent to the inhabitants of Corinth. Only seven years before Paul’s first visit, the Romans had re-established Corinth as a Roman city. Upon re-establishment, Corinth was re-populated largely with disparate freed slaves from all over the lands that had been conquered by the powerful Romans. The church in Corinth was likely made up of peoples who knew what it was like to be on the bottom rung of the social ladder.

As the words of Paul coming from my lips echoed through the linoleum of that Californian jail, I felt a sudden surge of confidence. Although this bony eighteen year-old white kid had no words for these people, God did have something to say. I think I was seeing firsthand what Paul was describing in the verse I was reading. 

In the end, the only person I know who was changed that day was me. I learned that the truth of God is larger than both my strengths and my weaknesses. It permeates through the deepest and darkest regions of all creation, seeping through the cracks of the most impenetrable barriers.

Passive-aggressive

Passive-aggressive behavior drives me crazy, although I am sure I have been guilty of it in the past. After months of no contact, a friend once told me that he was upset about something I did months earlier. I had no idea that what I had done had upset him. I was completely caught off guard when he told me he was upset about it. I wish he would have just said something instead of passively showing anger by not talking to me.

The term “passive-aggressive” was introduced as a “personality disorder” in the third revised edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-III-R) in 1987. In the current edition, DSM-IV-TR, Passive-aggressive Personality Disorder has been downgraded to the appendix. According to Wikipedia, the reason was that researchers have had difficulty defining the associated behaviors. As is, here are the criteria:

“A) A pervasive pattern of negativistic attitudes and passive resistance to demands for adequate performance, beginning by early adulthood and present in a variety of contexts, as indicted by four (or more) of the following:

- Passively resists fulfilling routine social and occupational tasks

- Complains of being misunderstood and unappreciated by others

- Is sullen and argumentative

- Unreasonably criticizes and scorns authority

- Expresses envy and resentment toward those apparently more fortunate

- Voices exaggerated and persistent complaints of personal misfortune

- Alternates between hostile defiance and contrition

B) Does not occur exclusively during major depressive episodes and is not better accounted for by dysthymic disorder.”

Basically, passive-aggression is when someone shows discontent through actions that may be contrary to their words. They tell you they want to do something, yet they drag their feet and complain, showing you they never really wanted to in the first place. They say they are not upset and then they do not talk to you for two weeks. They make conflict worse by avoiding any type of verbal expression of their feelings. I have a different term for such behavior: cowardice.

The Bible addresses this issue in many ways. In Matthew 18:15, Jesus said that if someone has wronged you, go to that person directly to solve the problem. He also said in Matthew 5:37 that we should let our “yes” be “yes” and our “no” be “no.” Finally, Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 16 that we should be strong, have courage, and do everything out of love.  

It takes courage to confront someone, even if it is done in love (as it should be). It is sometimes uncomfortable to share your feelings directly.  Despite the inconvenience, it is worthwhile and the right thing to do. Think about it. Is there any resentment you have been trying to show someone, that instead you just need to tell them directly?

Possible

There is a man named Daniel Kish who is visually impaired. He sees nothing. Yet if you watch this video, you will see that he rides a bicycle through the city streets and on wooded trails. As the video explains, he has learned how to navigate by making sounds and “seeing” by hearing the sounds bouncing back into his ears. It sounds impossible, yet it works.

Another interesting variation is a technology that interprets visual images into electrical impulses, which are then sent to the person’s tongue. This video shows people being able to distinguish even numbers on a page using this technology and the sense of touch. This also seems impossible.

 

In 1 Corinthians 14, Paul wrote about speaking in tongues. It seems from this scripture that the practice is the spirit speaking separate from the mind. Even more, the scripture also describes someone having the ability to interpret the tongues. Personally, I have never experienced speaking in tongues myself. It honestly seems impossible to me. Yet the Bible says that it exists (or at least existed) and people that I trust say they have experienced it. Therefore, I believe it is possible.

Things like this remind me that this is a peculiar existence. The limits of it may be much more blurry then they appear.  Who knows what kind of mysteries of creation God is still waiting to reveal?

Know

One of the difficult aspects teaching someone is understanding the perspective of a person who has not yet gained a particular bit of knowledge. Once knowledge has changed the teacher’s perspective, it can seem like that knowledge has always been there. What we call “common sense” or “basic logic” may be the sum of information we learned that we do not remember not knowing.

For example, take a minute and look at this picture below. What is it?

If you have never seen it before, or you do not know what it is, it probably looks like random dots. Ready for the answer? It is a Dalmatian (dog) drinking water from a creek. The large black jagged line coming from the left side is the shore of the creek. We are looking at the dog from the back-left side. Do you see it now?

If you did see it, look again and try to see the picture without the dog or the creek. Try to see it as you did before, a random group of dots. I do not think it is possible to go back once you have seen it. Once your brain has formed it, you cannot go back.

Amidst Paul’s chapter concerning love in 1 Corinthians 13, he talks about knowing. He says that we now know in part, yet someday we shall know fully. Right now we only see a poor reflection.

To me, this is encouraging. Sometimes life in general looks like a bunch of random dots on a page. No rhyme or reason. As much as I try, understanding is elusive. Yet God knows and sees the overall picture. Unlike an imperfect teacher, he understands that I do not know and gives me grace. I sometimes picture God watching and saying “Aww…he just does not get it yet.”  But someday, I will know. God give me the faith to follow until that day comes.