John 3:5-8 The Holy Spirit blows all over the world

5 Jesus answered, "Very truly I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God without being born of water and the Spirit. 6 Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. 7 You should not be surprised at my saying, 'You must be born again.' 8 The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit."

Here, the Greek for the word for spirit and for wind is the same. Jesus is speaking to a man extremely well versed in scripture. In some Old Testament passages speaking of the coming Messianic Kingdom water represents the Spirit (Is. 44:3-5) and wind or breath represents Spirit (Ezekial 37:9-10). Nicodemus should have recognized these clues about water and wind as referring to the coming Kingdom. Indeed Messiah was standing right in front of him.

In verse five the original text says we must be born of water and wind--the translators make it "the Spirit" as a guess from the context. This is a crucial lesson on understanding what we read in various versions of the Bible; it is never a direct word for word translation. The translator brings his/her personal beliefs to the table and makes judgment calls on every passage. The concept of presuppositions is never more crucial than in the translation itself. Perhaps more important, this double meaning in the Greek was intentional by the author---it can indeed be interpreted both ways, and nuances of both meanings add to the overall message here.

In John 3:5-8 we have Holy Spirit flowing silently, "blowing" wherever Holy Spirit chooses to blow. This is huge since this group of verses does not state that accepting Jesus is the way to be born again, rather, Holy Spirit "blows wherever it pleases." The last phrase, "so it is with everyone born of the Spirit" really intrigues me. Verses 5-8 seem to indicate a concept of election---that God blows on whomever He wills. In the concept of election who would God leave out? Time and time again scripture says God loves ALL. He would not leave anyone out. Even if one of a hundred strayed from the wind, scripture says God leaves the 99 and seeks out the stray. Jesus told Nicodemus that he could not tell where the wind/Holy Spirit came from or where it was going---the priests and pharisees could not dictate or discern who would be saved.

The wind blows over all the earth. All earthly creation, every man and woman, is bathed in wind everyday. This becomes so common that we ignore it. So it is with Holy Spirit; we all are blessed with the constant breath of God, yet we must be "hear" and honor the Source.

God, please grant us the ability to feel and bask in the breath of Holy Spirit.

John 3: We're going to take this slow

John 3 is probably ground zero on this whole issue. Certainly there is no verse more universal known than John 3:16. So let's start small. John 3 opens with Jesus having a clandestine (I presume) chat with Nicodemus, who was a man on the Jewish ruling council. Old St. Nic here really took a chance with this since Jesus was largely seen as directly challenging the Jewish way of life. Still, Nic seems sincere in learning from the Master. Jesus opens with this line:

3 Jesus replied, "Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God without being born again. It's interesting that Jesus does NOT say we have to be born again to be saved. He says we have to be born again to SEE the Kingdom of God. Being born again opens our eyes to the truth that is already present before us.

I love the movie The Matrix. In it, there is a hidden world behind the Matrix---one is that is the truth and always present. Neo is born again as he comes to realize that what he knew of the world is a cyber existence. The transition is shocking and painful and comes with great responsibility. Being born again is being willing to accept the Truth behind what we see, to trust and see the Divine Creator continuing to weave and create. Coming into the Kingdom is an act of BEING and SEEING. Later we will see that while the Truth is revealed at no cost whatsoever, that knowing the Truth commands a response.

John 2---Desecration of Pots and Temples

Of course not all chapters in John will deal directly with this concept of Christ taking away the sin of the whole world. A secondary issue of great interest to me is Christ's constant demonstration that the code of law established by Moses and the Levitical priests had passed away with His coming. Note first that it is Christ's coming that mattered most, not his death and resurrection. This is made obvious by the fact that if His arrival had not superseded the law then Jesus would have been a notorious sinner---not just breaking the law, but engaging in acts which could be conceived as mocking it.

In John 2 we begin with Jesus' first public miracle---the changing of water into wine. It was no accident that He choose the huge ceremonial cleansing pots to contain the wine. These held blessed water that was used through the day for pre-meal washing. After having the servants fill them to the brim, the water became wine which defiled the pots. Further the quantity here is staggering---a hundred and fifty gallons of wine---enough to make all the wedding party drunk many times over. At verse ten we hear the comment from the master of the banquet,
"Everyone brings out the choice wine first and then the cheaper wine after the guests have had too much to drink; but you have saved the best till now." I believe this is a prophetic comment about Christ's arrival---God had revealed himself through the prophets of old, and yet Jesus was a giving of the very best at the end of the season of the wedding party between God and Israel. Throughout the Bible fine wine is referred to as a blessing from God. Here, the fine wine is God Himself, "This is my blood..." We commune with Him in a declaration of abundance.

John 2 begins with Jesus making a mockery of the ceremonial cleansings by desecrating the cleansing pots. The chapter ends with his clearing the temple of the money changers and those selling sacrifice. He did so not with words of admonition or a kindly plea, he runs through like a mad man with an instrument of violence. Interestingly he takes the whip to the physical temple in an act symbolic of the scourging His own body---the true temple of God---will receive at the end of His life. This is a demonstration that the old ways are set aside; the striving is gone, and perfection has come. Jesus desecrates the temple---at least in the understanding of those at the time. The true temple---the true dwelling place of God---supersedes all buildings and monuments which were a shadow of what has come.

John 1:17-51 "The Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world"

Continuing in our examination of the Gospel of John from a presupposition that God will actually accomplish what He set out to do: the Restoration of ALL. We are specifically setting out verses which either refers to this or the converse side. Read the whole chapter to maintain context.

17 For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. This will be examined more later. Jesus said he did not come to abolish the law, but to fufill it. In looking at the actions of Jesus in the chapters to come we will see he often behaved contrary to the law of Moses. If we are to ask WWJD? we must note that He did not honor the law of Moses very much. Jesus brings both grace and truth. Grace means unmerited, unconditional favor. That's a hard truth for the legalistic folks.

29 The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, "Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! This one just blows me away. Here we have John the Baptist, the one sent ahead to make way for a new order between God and man, and he is proclaiming that Jesus takes away the sin of the world. There are no qualifiers here, no specifying that just those who believe will be saved. Indeed, the whole world becomes sinless, which to me indicates that not just humankind is brought into restoration, but all the earth---all of creation. The term Lamb of God is important. I don't truly understand the whole sacrifice thing; I suspect that in Old Testament times the sacrifice process was simply a type and shadow of the sacrifice God Himself would make by and through His Son Jesus. If we simply looked to John's proclamation, we would be done here: Jesus took away the sin of the world. Amazing.

To Be Continued...

John 1:1 through 16; The Gift of Light to Everyone

It's all about presuppositions. When you approach the Bible with the mainline belief that God will only save those few who have ever lived that got the formula right for "salvation" then that's what you will find. Of course that belief is what I was told from the pulpit for decades, so I have to really work to push that mindset back and really seek to hear the Truth of God. I am examining what happens when I approach the Bible with the hope that God might actually accomplish through Jesus what He set out to do---which was to bring the whole world into a loving relationship with God and each other. Yes, I know there seems to be a conflict, yet both thoughts are fully there. I want to choose to believe that God is bigger and more gracious than I can ever hope or dream. I want to believe God has already set the world right in the heavenlies and that the world is in the process of becoming "on earth as it is in heaven."

I am doing a study of the Gospel of John with the presupposition that through the gift of His son, God set into motion the redemption of all. Today I will focus on verses from John 1:1-16 which witness to this concept. All Bible quotes are from the NIV unless otherwise noted.

3 Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. When God pronounced in Genesis 1 that He looked over all his creation, and it was good, was God suddenly confined to the restraints of time? Was it good only for a minute and then went to hell the second Adam ate some bad fruit? I don't believe it. God stands outside of time and pronounces His creation Good in the beginning, good in the middle and good in the end. Do you live in a good house? Is it perfect? Do you have a good child? Is he/she perfect? Good is an attitude, a hope, that what is is in the process of becoming good. Good means the glass is half full. What God pronounces as good is good! Note ALL is good. Then, now, and forever!

4 In him was life, and that life was the light of all people. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. Here is the set up. The redemption of ALL people is in Jesus. I choose to believe that the mystery, the magic, and the majesty of Jesus is that through Him ALL are restored to right relationship with the creator. Verse 5 answers Verse 4: indeed, darkness is within men (men always includes all people), yet it is proclaimed here that darkness will not prevail. Glory to God!

7 He [John the Baptist] came as a witness to testify concerning that light, so that through him all might believe. Here's that pesky word ALL again. Those with a presupposition that most people who've ever lived will go to hell focus here on the word might. To them that means not all will believe, but they might, which means they could, yet won't. However that is not the clear context of this verse or the passage. Here, ALL means ALL. All will believe.

9 The true light that gives light to everyone was coming into the world. Here, the true light, who is Jesus, gives---a perfect gift---to everyone. This is a gift, not a contract. There is no "I'll give you this IF you do that." Perfect light is the unconditional gift to everyone from the True Light.

10 He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him. 11 He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. 12 Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God— 13 children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband's will, but born of God. The light is there. The gift is there. Not all will see it or receive it immediately, yet it is there. All will see it some day; for those who see it and embrace it now, nestling into the bosom of God is available immediately.

16 Out of his fullness we have all received grace in place of grace already given. Those reading with the most go to hell mindset relegate all here to mean just those who believe. We will talk about that a lot. There is no qualifier here. The word we here could, and I believe does, mean we in the collective we of us all, just as all here means all. Grace did exist before Christ---that was grace already given, yet with the advent of God on earth, a better grace---the fullness of grace is received by us all.

I had intended to put a commentary of one full chapter in each post, yet I am going to have to break it up. Please go back and read the whole chapter in context. My highlighting certain verses does not mean I am neglecting the others or that they conflict with my presupposition. If they conflict we will deal with them. Blessings to all.

Centered, Yet Expanding

I'm in personal spiritual revolution. My posting at LJ and my other sites has been way down while I am digesting a sequence of things that has opened me up in ways that are, for now, beyond words. Last week we did the Q conference which addressed the issue of the future of Christianity. The conference was in many ways more conservative than I am, yet I pulled much from it in some areas where I needed balance. I am really focused on developing a whole earth view of spirituality---to move beyond my own socio-economic-political boundaries.

I have been reading voraciously, soaking in viewpoints from all over. Even though I read a dozen hours a day, I am a methodical plodding reader so it is encompassing much of my time. I have been profoundly pensive as my brain rewires.

Recently Karlita and I met with a man that I greatly respect to discuss some of these matters. After listening to us, he outlined his own thoughts: he noted there are three major schools of thought regarding faith paths, exclusive (it's our way or you are going to hell), inclusive (our way is best, but you are not going to hell), and pluralism (my way is fine for me, yet I support your path equally). My current belief system falls into the inclusive camp. This man, who has thousands of people looking to him for spiritual guidance explained why, even though he grew up in a conservative denomination and went to a conservative Christian seminary, explained to us that he is now a PLURALIST. Hearing that, from this guy who I hold in the highest esteem personally and as a spiritual leader, really messed with my head. There are things I have deep inside which I could not contain at all within an exclusive belief system, and honestly the inclusive system does not fully contain it, yet the pluralist view is beyond where I am today. As liberal as I am, I suspect God still does not fit into the huge box I have constructed. Moving outside the box is imminent, yet that requires a revamp of my entire belief system. All this does not take me off of my own fervent, Christ centered path, yet the coming limitless expansion is still overwhelming to me.
(Photo of a window manikin at Rag-a-rama in L5P, copyright Kel Vick 2007)

In Memorial of Times of Tragedy

More than Magic

This morning I was thinking about when I was a kid studying to be a magician. Seriously. I had a teacher who had been a famous Las Vegas magician, and to be in his class I had to sign an agreement that I would never perform a trick he had taught me until I had practiced it 1,000 times. That seemed excessive, yet when I got out in front of audiences as large as 500 people, I found I was terrified and overwhelmed. I got through the shows because my hands knew what to do despite the fear, despite the adversity.

As we run across things that encourage us and lift us up, we must take time to run them through our minds over and over until they run deep within. Then, in those times when we would be afraid or overwhelmed, those beautiful things sustain us even when we think we do not have the strength to carry on.

Phillipians 4:8

On Defining Who I Am By My Occupation

We just got back from a remarkable networking lunch where fifty movers and shakers in spirituality and media chatted each other up. (What I personally move and shake is confidential and not pretty.) As we met in various groups the conversation primarily consisted of each of us in a round telling the others "what we do." There was no instructions on this at all; this conversation is the default setting for networking. It would seem we are what we do for a living. For most of the folks this was relevant since most of us came to do what we do through an arduous and intentional process---education combined with job choices within our scope/s of interest.

Still, the short hand of summing up who I am, or any of us for that matter, by the naming of an occupation was very disturbing to me. The truth is what we do as a job often does not define us. Further, being stereotyped by our occupation denies the process of life. I have done lots of jobs over the years from paper boy to sales to waiter to writer to pastor to attorney to Deputy Attorney General. Not one of those titles begin to describe who I am, yet each one of those jobs are integrated into my life path. The question perhaps is, "are you a tadpole or a frog?" The answer is I may look like a tadpole, yet I am in the process of becoming something different than what I appear to be today. Not that being a tadpole is bad---embrace that too---yet don't marginalize me because of the stage I am in within the process of life.

I found it hard to give a quick summary of who I am. The titles I have worn over the years sound cool in shorthand, yet it's disconcerting to be quickly thrown into a cubby hole of what each other person thought regarding that title. I became not me, but rather a caricature of the other people the hearer knows within that stated profession. The other side is that if I honestly state who I am it sounds pretentious as hell since I identify not as who I am today, but rather, I am beyond the tadpole, beyond the frog, even beyond the young prince, and see myself as a king. See, I told you---pretentious---yet I can not dwell on my apparent frogdom when it is already the season to consider my kingdom.

I am not who you think I am, whatever that may be; I am more, much more, than even I realize.

Leeches and Wounds from Loved Ones

There is a story of a young missionary's first journey in the Amazon. After a long walk through the jungle he reaches a village and notices he has several leeches on his legs. Horrified he begins to grab and rip them off. A wise villager stops him, and allows him to soak his legs in a salt bath. One by one the leeches release and float away. The fangs from the couple he ripped away remain within his skin and fester.

When a loved one hurts us, so often our first response is to lash out or perhaps run away, forcefully and quickly dealing with the wound. The result is like those hard to remove festering fangs. How much better when we allow the saltwater source to have time and place to allow grace and peace to heal us. Sometimes the process is slow, as we sit and soak until the offense falls away, yet that is always the better way.

As an attorney helping families in crisis, day after day, even night after night, people would call me seeking vengeance or freedom or justice from someone who had hurt them. There were things the law could do; I would do those things as appropriate. Still, time and time again I saw the hurt healed not by the process of law, rather time and grace did more good than any court or high priced lawyer.

There is a balm, a greater power, of salt and water, that can heal. Press into that. Today.

iQ do uQ?

Q stands at the intersection of faith and a rapidly changing culture. The teachings of Jesus have stood strong for two thousand years; are they relevant in the next millenia? Movers and shakers of media and faith will converge at The Tabernacle in Atlanta, Georgia to examine the future of faith---making it real and relevant in a rapidly changing world. Participants will include representatives from CNN, BET Network, the founders of PASTE and WIRED magazines, writers ROB BELL, DONALD MILLER, numerous grassroots world changers, and legendary singer/songwriter/producer T BONE BURNETT.

This is just around the corner, so contact them now. Partial scholarships may still be available. Tell them Kel Vick sent you. See you there!

Details: http://www.fermiproject.com/q/

Easter Song, by Keith Green

Here the bells ringing
Theyre singing
that you can be born again
Here the bells ringing
They're singing
christ is risen from the dead

The angel up on the tombstone
Said he has risen, just as he said
Quickly now, go tell his disciples
That jesus christ is no longer dead
Joy to the word, he has risen,
hallelujah He's risen,
hallelujah He's risen,
hallelujah

Hear the bells ringing
They're singing
that you can be healed right now
Hear the bells ringing, they're singing
Christ, he will reveal it now

The angels, they all surround us
And they are ministering jesus power
Quickly now, reach out and receive it
For this could be your glorious hour
Joy to the world,
he has risen, hallelujah
He's risen, hallelujah
He's risen, hallelujah,
hallelujah

The angel up on the tombstone
Said he has risen, just as he said
Quickly now, go tell his disciples
That jesus christ is no longer dead
Joy to the world,
he has risen,
hallelujah

He's risen, hallelujah
He's risen, hallelujah
Hallelujah

The Sins of Jesus

Did Jesus sin? A tenet of traditional Christianity is that He was the perfect sacrifice to atone for all because he was without sin. Is this true?

Jesus was Jewish. Occasionally I will mention this and the other in the discussion will say, "Really? I always thought he was a Christian." Uh, no. He grew up steeped in the law of the Torah and Rabbinical law. Yet, over and over Jesus violated Torah and Rabbinical Code. In the culture in which He lived, He was a criminal; in the faith of the society in which he preached, He was a sinner.

A few examples:

1. The first knowing act of Jesus recorded is his running off from his parents. Sure it is made all noble since he was at the temple and explained to his mother, AFTER HE HAD BEEN MISSING FOR THREE DAYS AT AGE TWELVE, that He was at His Father's (Father God) house. If that had been you or me, having dashed off at twelve to go build a house for Habitat for Humanity or some other noble cause for three days, we would have been wildly spanked and grounded for months. Did Jesus "Honor his mother" with that action? no. Jesus repeatedly gave appearance of breaking the commandment to honor one's parents. He even told his followers that He came to turn sons against fathers and that they would have to "hate" their parents to follow Him. (Matthew 10:34-37)2. Jesus' first miracle was to turn water into wine---the quantity is amazing! He made 150 gallons, which is 4,800 glasses of wine! He provided this additional alcohol to guests which the New International Version of the Bible says were already drunk. This would be a violation of Jewish law (Habakkuk 2:15, "Woe unto him that giveth his neighbor drink, that puttest thy bottle to him, and makest him drunken also..."), and giving more alcohol---lots more---to intoxicated folks is a crime today.3. Jesus flagrantly and repeatedly violated the Jewish interpretation of "Remember the Sabbath Day, and keep it Holy." He did this by picking grain (Matthew 12:1-8) and healing people on the Sabbath (Matthew 12:9-13)---acts which were expressly forbidden. In dealing with the Rabbis who admonished him on this he further failed to show them the respect that such leaders were to be given in that culture.

I could go on; you get my point. So what gives? Prophecy and tradition called for a perfect and sinless lamb to be slain as a sacrifice to all, yet Jesus was not sinless according to the Torah or the laws of the Rabbis.

First, a key teaching of Jesus is that there is a higher law that trumps the laws of man. Interestly, the higher law He espoused trumped prior God given law---or at least man's interpretation of that law. Second, Jesus teaches that motive matters more than the act itself. He touched and embraced lepers, the dead, Samaritans and all kinds of sinners, clearly violating Torah, yet in healing those people and showing them a better way to live, His higher purpose rose above God's previously stated law. Jesus was a rebel. Jesus was a criminal. He cursed things that did not belong to him (like the fig tree and the herd of pigs), and they died. By our standards and laws He was NOT perfect.

There are higher laws; motives matter more than laws; following one's noble destiny is our highest purpose even if it violates societal norms. These are hard teachings and not the typical Good Friday thoughts. For me, this makes me trust Him more and appreciate His sacrifice more. I can not identify with a perfect person who calls me to be likewise perfect. That is more than I can honestly embrace. However, living as a rebel against religious dogma, and seeking higher purpose over all things---I can strive for that. So today, Good Friday, I raise my glass of wine, dip my bread and celebrate the death of my favorite "sinner" and "criminal," Jesus.

Welcome to A Stirring in the Water

What brought Karla and I together, first and foremost, was our joint and equal passion for spiritual wholeness...not just for us, for all of us. At a recent gathering of believers which we join every Sunday morning, someone said that it is time to stop acting like Christians and start acting like Jesus. Amen to that.

There is a story in the Bible book of John where a guy had been crippled several decades, and he sat next to a pool with healing powers. It was believed that from time to time an angel came and stirred the water, and the first person into the water would be healed. The problem is, he had no one to help him into the pool when the miracle came. It occurs to me there was a faith issue too: It would take a tremendous amount of chutzpah for a crippled person to dive into a pool; his dream of wholeness could well be his worst nightmare. Jesus came along and told the guy to stand up and walk. He did and was healed. The problem was Jesus did this on a Sabbath (Holy) day when no work such as doing miracles was allowed by the religious leaders of the community. Jesus loved to screw with religious folks, Men in fancy clothes who had an appearance of truth yet repeatedly missed the point.

So much of our life we think, if we could just get that degree, or that job, or that lover, or that kid out of diapers and into kindergarten, THEN WE COULD.... To often we, crippled by our desire to be better, which is noble, miss the opportunity standing right in front of us. Wherever we are, whatever we are doing, there is no better time than NOW. My friend, join us; let's stand up and walk, and walk together (and screw the religious folks who say we can't).

We are Kel and Karla, and we love you, no matter what.

WHO WE ARE IS THE SUM TOTAL OF ALL OUR EXPERIENCES

One thing I've learned over my lifetime - who we are is the sum total of all our experiences, whether we label them "good," "bad" or "indifferent." If we are much more than meets the eye, if there is more to this life than we can comprehend, a field of Faith, a grand design that is hidden from us, all those experiences are not for naught. If, as I believe, we are not human beings having a spiritual experience, we are spiritual beings having a human experience, then ALL experiences are for our growing benefit.

It's hard, I know, to look at situations that are painful, situations where someone has hurt us, physically, sexually, emotionally or spiritually, and bless that person and what happened. And that is exactly what we (and by this I mean I) must do. In fact, I am re-writing what I just wrote:

One thing I've learned over my lifetime - who I am is the sum total of all my experiences, whether I label them "good," "bad" or "indifferent." If I am much more than meets the eye, if there is more to this life than I can comprehend, a field of Faith, a grand design that is hidden from me, all those experiences are not for naught. If, as I believe, I am not a human being having a spiritual experience, I am a spiritual being having a human experience, then ALL experiences are for my growing benefit.It's hard, I know, to look at situations that are painful, situations where someone has hurt me, physically, sexually, emotionally or spiritually, and bless that person and what happened. That feels better to me - it's more personal - as this is a personal belief and statement - although I invite you to try it on for size.

This means that I bless every situation and person that comes into my life - which includes the traffic jam, the missed turn and detour, the blessing of flowers, art, awareness, the challenging relationship with someone, the experiences in my youth, teen-hood, young adulthood, all my previous relationships and marriages, lovers and friends. It means I bless those who have been malicious to me, who have come to me meaning harm. And I would go further to say something extreme here, and very personal, which you may not YET agree with - it means (to me) that I bless every situation and person who has come my way - even, theoretically, those situations that might include rape, murder, incest, someone causing someone I love (or myself) physical harm, dread disease and terminal illness, not just on a personal scale - on a larger scale as well. I have the faith that I am not put into a situation or given a trial without the resources to handle it - and the major resource I have is my faith in God. My trust is that there is a function bigger than myself - and that I'm here to learn soul lessons. Of course, I need to conduct myself in a way that is gracious and full of Grace. I need to continue to acknowledge the places where there is Love shining through, even in the darkest hour. I need to revisit and hold my hand out, I need to ask for help - both on a human level and a spiritual level. I do not need an explanation - I do not need to know it all - I just need to trust, to lean into my faith, to sit with the inner knowing that there is much more at work than just my little life. And that in my little life, I can have a positive effect on all those around me, just as they all positively effect me.

We are each other. And in stepping into forgiveness, self-forgiveness especially, loving each other, cultivating Higher Love, mirroring the Divine, we awaken the best in ourselves and the best in each other. I am not my circumstances. You are not your history, and yet we are all that, and more. I will say it again - I am the sum total of all my experiences. What a blessing!!!

from Karla