Whoever does not love does not know God, for God is love.

On the fourth Sunday of Advent, we light the candle of love because we live in a world ruled by the desires of the flesh, where lies, idolatry, greed, fits of rage, and the pursuit of power have corrupted the Christian witness from one of love to one of fear.

This year, the fourth Sunday of Advent coincides with the Longest Night, a time when we traditionally make space for our grief. So, we also acknowledge our sorrow over the version of Christianity that does not love.

Friends, we didn’t intend to sign up for this fight. Even though may have said the words that we “accept the freedom and the power God gives us to resist evil, injustice, and oppression, in whatever forms they present themselves."* We thought the battles we fight today had already been won. And yet, here we are. 

 But, rejoice and remember that when you do whatever act of love you have been called to in this moment, you are also standing with that pastor in Chicago…

It can happen here. 

The Nazis learned how to legally dehumanize their own citizens from us.

The Gospel of Love has been replaced by a message of fear preached from pulpits near and far.

Fear God and fear thy neighbor. They’re taking your jobs, they’re taking your children, they’re taking your money through taxes, they’re killing your people. Their sins have resulted in your suffering.

This is not the message of Jesus.

We have betrayed the messiah for thirty pieces of silver.

It’s not too late to embrace those considered unclean, to speak out against injustice, to welcome the strangers, to make sacrifices to feed and care for the poor.

There will come a time when it is too late. We are on a path for which we will be judged.

I read this book during one of the most difficult seasons of my life and found that the kind of hope that McLaren speaks of is exactly the kind of hope that I needed. It’s the kind of hope that is detached from outcomes.

It’s not about having a positive attitude or being optimistic that everything will all be fine, rather it comes from the acceptance that things might not work out but even in the darkness, there is love and, in that love, there is hope.

It is the hope of Advent.

A couple of months ago, I told a friend the title of my book series, Faithful Resistance, and she asked a simple question, “What are we resisting?”

I don’t remember what I said at the moment, but I’ve been thinking about it ever since. Also, I probably should have an answer ready. What are we resisting?

Tyranny!

Oppression!

Christian Nationalism!

Hate!

Propaganda!

Lies!

Manipulation!

Manipulation. That’s it! No, deception. 

I wonder how many of us accepted this linear progression and now feel betrayed by history itself, maybe even by God. But, the idea that we could conquer history is the myth of Empire.

In the linear telling of history, there are winners and losers, but in the cyclical view, the meek inherit the earth. Then, the meek pursue power and eventually seek domination until they eventually collapse and the meek inherit the earth, again.

This is not a drill.

We are decades into this crisis which is not about declining attendance, but about what it means to follow Jesus. It’s a discipleship problem. It’s not that Americans left the church, it’s that Christians left Jesus.

Was it okay to teach the youth to read the Bible critically? That’s what I was taught in college, but why don’t we help lay people do it?

As I read more of Rachel’s books, I became more and more convinced of how important it is to make the Bible more accessible to people who reject the literal interpretation. It’s too easy to reject the Bible altogether, but we don’t have to.

On October 31, 1517, Martin Luther declared independence by standing up to the Pope. He stood up to corruption, to exploitation, and to bad theology. Although his goal was reform, the outcome was independence.

We do ourselves a disservice when we relegate this incident to the realm of Church History…

The Constitution of Knowledge explores what knowledge is and how we come to accept what is true, especially in a time of misinformation and propaganda. 

What I loved most was that it gave me the language of the fallibility principle. This is the idea that “everyone can always be wrong.” It was in reading about that concept that gave me assurance that the United States will not fall into terminal authoritarianism, because we do not believe that any one person has the final say on what is true. That’s the fallibility principle.

The righteous one was the one who stood up and said, “No;” even though he stood alone.

When I say that I am opposed to Christian nationalism, this is what I oppose. It is both un-American and directly contradicts the teachings of Jesus.

“Stop making God angry.”

This is not, nor should it be, the mission of the U.S. government. It’s also not what Christianity is about.

“…if righteousness comes through the law, then Christ died for nothing.”

This verse has been rattling around in my head over the last several days. I think I get Paul now. 

I’ve been thinking a lot about reconciliation lately. 

Back in the olden days, I wrote a lot of checks, I had a check register, and every month, I would reconcile my records with the statement I got from the  bank. This ensured that the bank and I lived in the same reality…