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In Garden

Genesis 2:8-9 NIV
Now the LORD God had planted a garden in the east, in Eden; and there he put the man he had formed.

When I go through the Garden of Eden account I am intrigued by it for the same reason we all are. The simplicity and purity found there is winsome. How many of us have thought with a nostalgia we don’t actually personally possess that it would be a dreamy world to enter. Certainly vegans would feel quite at home there. So too would all of us who grew up with Mutual of Omaha’s Wild Kingdom. Would there be anything cooler than sitting down beside a lion and petting his mane as he purrs contentedly. Still others would be thrilled to live in a corner of the planet where crime is non-existent and people just “get along” Not long ago over a five day period in Oakland California, eight people were murdered. A peaceful neighborhood is all many would love to have. How about free food and no worries about rising gas prices? Think about what it would like to have a world economy determined just by two people…no one to blame for the loss of jobs and certainly major corporations and big government would not be pressing issues.

Now there are three possible reasons why the account of Garden life is left to us. The first is to provide a history of our roots. This is what happened and how it occurred. Just as biographers have researched out the details of George Washington’s birth and early life, so too in Genesis two the facts about the first man are described. A second possible reason for the descriptions we find there is to make us a bit envious, create within us a longing for something we can’t make happen with lots of effort or group therapy…we are given as it were a taste of heaven a snapshot like we could find in a travel brochure. A third explanation is that God wants us to know how things ought to be…that there really is a right form of life, a benchmark of sin-freeness…corruptionlessness.

Let us just assume it is the third explanation that best tells us why Genesis two is in the Bible. God is telling us how things are intended. What do we discover? First, mankind had a calling…a vocation that was five-fold. Remember that there are two ways we look at life-long tasking. The first is career. It is what we choose to do or at least end up doing most of our adult life. A career is something we stumble upon either because we like doing it or through circumstances it is forced upon us. Whether we are a housewife, an electrician or a lawyer, a career is just what we do for our livelihood. A vocation on the other hand by root definition, is what God makes us to be. It is our Lord shaped design and guided life path. Most people have no idea what their vocation is. It may or may not coincide with their career…if it does it is only because they stumbled into it. But some see the hand of God in what they do and vocation is the step of faith into God’s direction. I have a certain career because that is how God moved me and designed my being.

The vocation of Adam had five parts. It was first to Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth…(Genesis 1:28 NIV) For all my good friends who think we already have too many people, God’s calling for Adam and Eve was to literally, as you would fill a jar to the top, fill the earth with descendants. The Bible uses the same Hebrew word to describe the presence of the Lord filling the Temple. As smoke creeps into every nook and cranny of a house, so God, was in every part of the Temple. That is what Adam and Eve were told to do…fill the earth. Linked with this were the twin callings to subdue the earth and rule over the creatures living on it. …fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air and over every living creature that moves on the ground. (Gen 1:28 NIV) The term ‘subdue is a strong one. It is the good Hebrew word “cabash” and means to “bring into bondage, to dominate as in conquest or to subdue”. The second Hebrew word, “rule” is just as big and strong. “Radah” means to have dominion, to rule, to dominate”. The sinless couple was instructed to “overpopulate?” the earth and make every living creature their slave and to hold the earth in bondage. Nothing in this vocation makes mother earth the master and certainly Adam and Eve were not told they were to live as slaves to dodo birds or polar bears.

Now lest you think the vocation was to “toot as you pollute”, there were two more parts to their vocation. Adam was commanded in connection with the Garden of Eden to “work it and take care of it. (Genesis 2:15 NIV) The word for “work it” is “abad” and the root of the Hebrew Old Testament word translated “servant”. Literally, Adam was told to serve the earth, to work it as a servant would do his tasks. It is in fact the very same word that is used to describe what worship is, that we serve, or “work” the Lord. Now, this is a quite profound thought. We are both master and servant where we live, ruler and ruled. I honestly am not sure where to take this. Remember, we are still examining the vocation of the Garden of Eden, God’s perfect place and sin free world.

If I am not a servant of the earth but I am to serve it, then who is my master? That of course is quite clear, it is God. My activities, all having to do with this place where I am settled are as a servant, and God is to give me every charge. Each rock I overturn, every foundation I lay, every plane I fly or monitor I read is, as servant. I think it is fascinating the way we have completely rolled over our calling. God told Adam he was to serve the earth as ruler. We instead rule the earth as servants.

Let me illustrate. Suppose the king of your land came to your house and cleaned your carpet, washed your dishes and taught your children how to play patty-cake. What would you think of that king? Now suppose instead, your servant came into your house and threw away all your favorite clothes, cleared your computer of all its data and offered your house on EBay at a below market price. What would you think of the servant? The servant acted as your king but your king acted as servant. Which of the two is a better fit for the Garden?

The fifth part of Adam’s vocation is the,”take care of it” part. The Hebrew word is “shaman” and means to “watch over, preserve, and keep”. It is the same word used to describe the care a shepherd has for his sheep. He guards, protects and provides for the sheep. He makes sure they get to places where there is enough water, drives off predators and sees to it that they have grass to keep them well fed. In other words, a shepherd is responsible for the care of the sheep. Adam’s place in the world was to make sure the world was well.

The expression, “in a perfect world” actually makes sense here. In a perfect world, how was Adam to be? He was a ruler living as a servant. He was a guardian who monitored the vital signs. He was under God. I am not so sure global warming is occurring and I certainly do not believe the Bible teaches “population control.” But it is our vocation to love this world God has given us and do all we can to bless it. We were talking in our cell group about the cool parts of life in the Garden of Eden and someone mentioned the naming of all the creatures. My first thought about it is that it must have been a weird thing to come up with a different name, a meaningful name for every one of the millions of varied creatures roaming our world. My second thought was that it must have been a wonderful thing to see them all parading before him.

My daughter has this complicated morality regarding bugs and slugs. Crush them or guard their path. She does both. We seem to be the same way with people. We sometimes crush them and other times guard their paths. We belittle and praise, slaughter and cuddle, notice and ignore. Our biggest problem is not deciding whether or not we are “one nation under God.’ It is deciding whether or not I am one person under God. If I am, then all I can do with you is bless your steps and guard as much of your heart as I can from being broken. If I am, then my first thought always circles back to how God might handle this. The hand that lovingly detailed out the spine of a maple leaf is the God who has ordered me to keep watch over my part of the world.

Recently an extraordinary thing was reported. A mother, who was not married to the father of her child decided to have an abortion. She previously had given birth to a son who died of a kidney disease that started in the womb. Despite being on the Pill, she became pregnant and believing she could not cope with losing another child to kidney disease, had her baby aborted. The only problem was that not much later she felt fluttering in her stomach and discovered after a visit to the doctor that she was still pregnant. This was a child living on two strikes. She decided to keep the baby and finally gave birth to a boy who was born with minor kidney problems but set to live what the doctors deemed, “a normal life”.

So what do you make of this? It is quite possibly the perfect metaphor for the post-garden man. A little part of the world, this child, this one too many child, this not perfect child, this unplanned child, is part of my world and I must decide what to do with him. Whether it be the spotted owl in my back yard, the minnows in the tiny creek down the road or the grumpy husband who won’t pick up his socks, I must decide what I will do there. Jesus put Peter on the spot. “Do YOU love ME?” “O, yes”, Peter declared. “Then”, Jesus answered, “take care of my sheep.” It is, precisely the same charge once given Adam.

Adam Meets...

Genesis 1: 27 NIV
So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.


Perhaps the most interesting statement in the entire Old Testament is this one, that man was created in God’s image. What precisely does this mean? There are two sides to this issue. What is it about man that makes him in God’s image? On the other hand, what is it about God that makes man be in His image? The two sides are equally mysterious and equally important. Put another way, what is it we learn about God from man and what is it we learn about man from God? Exploration is one of the most fascinating of endeavors. Why are we so enamored with getting to Mars? For that matter, why did we care about getting to the moon and before that, why did we think there was anything of importance about the Galapagos Islands or the tip of Africa or Manhattan? Why do we want to look into the nucleus and the DNA molecule? We want to know and see and understand and at some level, be there. However, the two most distant shores are the ones we think we have explored ad nausea and yet both are more unknown to us than the farthest star.

The greatest of frontiers are set here in our central verse. Who is God and who is man? We have two sciences dedicated to the later; psychology and sociology and yet neither has been able to answer even the simplest questions about man. For example, why do we use a cell phone to send a text message and a computer to make a phone call? Why do we use a remote control after spending an hour working out? Why do we eat out when we are inside and eat up when the food goes down? We haven’t got answers to these questions. Nor do we understand ourselves. Why do we marry, build cities, make phone calls and work so hard? Who really is God? What is He like and what matters most to Him?

What Do You Do?

What do you do when nothing you attempt works? What do you do when you can't understand something simple? What do you do when you don't have enough time or enough money or enough energy? What do you do when you pray and it just doesn't seem to be enough? The reason why giving up is such a common occurence is because so much life is hard. The finish lines are cool because the race is over and you made it all the way but the race...now that is a different story. I think the reason why I don't like artsy movies that don't ever really conclude and I dislike even more the story that turns out badly for the one character I really like is that it hits too close to home. I feel like I am always waiting for the miracle, the surprise intervention, the mystic turnaround. The cell group that is too small, the offerings that hamstring ministry, the discipleship effort that just fades all are a part of this garden where we have been commisioned. Holding on is not just a catch phrase, it is the ministry. It is the life. Weedless gardens are ours but just not yet. Until then, we make our best effort to love...to listen... and to hug...Baby Emma reminds me of just how lovely it is be a child. I remember pretending to be asleep when the movie at the drive-in theater was over just so that my dad would carry me from the car into the house. Perhaps that is the best part of life. Being carried by Jesus...life isn't that bad!

Restore us, O God; make your face shine upon us, that we ay be saved. Psalm 80: 1 NIV

Humility

Micah 6:8 NIV
He has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the LORD require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.

Humility is a slippery fish. Almost no one really has it or if they do, they don’t think it’s there. A teen recently told me that if you think you are humble, the very thinking it means you aren’t. That is the clichéd thought on humility but is it true? Humility is a reverenced trait in Christian circles…not so much because everyone wants to have it but more because it has the halo feel about it, the ancient icon sense to it. Moses, the greatest of the Old Testament heroes was described as more humble than anyone else on the face of the earth. (Numbers 12:3 NIV) Jesus said of Himself that He was gentle and humble in heart. (Matthew 11:29 NIV) Whether it is the Apostle Paul (Be completely humble Ephesians 4:2 NIV), James the brother of Jesus (Humble yourselves before the Lord James 4:10 NIV), or the Apostle Peter (be compassionate and humble. 1 Peter 3:8 NIV) the New Testament declares humility a virtue of the highest order. But who of us is really like that? Who can say he or she is “humble”?

Humility is commonly expressed in several ways. In Asian culture, particularly in Korea bowing is a sign of respect, the deeper the bow, the more humble the personage. Humility is preserved within Catholic and Orthodox traditions by the kneeling bench. We do the same sort of thing in Evangelical churches when we bow our heads in prayer. In American culture we show a certain form of humility when we let pushy drivers merge in front of us. A common way to express humility is to deny a compliment its place. “Oh my drawing really isn’t that good!” “I got a lucky hit.” “I just threw some things together. It wasn’t really much effort.”

But do any of these humility forms necessarily indicate one is being humble? Can you bow before an elder and be vain, kneel in prayer and lack respect for God, let someone cut in front of you and despise the person driving, downplay what you have done but burst with pride at your work? Let’s take a quick glance at three examples of how humble behaviors can actually be nothing of the sort.

Genesis 32 illustrates the first corrupted form of humility. Jacob, who nearly thirty years before had duped his brother out of first his birthright as older brother and then his father’s blessing had lived those three decades as a prisoner of his brother’s wrath. He had narrowly escaped Esau’s deadly plot to revenge his lost honor and inheritance but now, with his own father-in-law a mortal enemy, Jacob had to make his way back into his brother’s good graces or have nowhere to live. When Esau got word that Jacob was returning, (Jacob had in fact sent emissaries in advance to test out his brother’s feelings about him) he came to meet Jacob with an army of 400 fighting men. Jacob was spent. All he could do was face the music and so as the two parties approached one another, Jacob and his wives and children and handful of servants and Esau with his band of 400 armed warriors, Jacob worked his way to the front of the line. The outmanned Jacob bowed down to the ground seven times as Esau came near. Now was this humility or fear fueling each of the bows? It could easily be deemed humility but the truth is that Jacob really did not want to have nothing to do with his brother. He rejected every one of Esau’s overtures at fellowship and as far as we can tell, never met up with him again. Is it humility if you bow before someone you don’t like?

We pick on King Saul often but perhaps for good reason. When Samuel the prophet declared him the first king of Israel Saul complained that he was from the lowliest of the twelve tribes of Israel and a member of the least respected of the clans. When it was time for Samuel to introduce him as the new king to the entire collected nation he was found hiding behind the piles of baggage. Now was this humility or just a crushed ego destroyed by social stigma? Was he responding out of his healthy understanding of how difficult it would be to serve as king or did he just despise himself because his friends and neighbors had made fun of him when he was young? Is it humility when we decide we are ugly or stupid or untalented or is it a wound refusing to heal?

Humility is often just ambition gilded. When David became established as king, he wanted to do something for his friend Jonathon’s survivors and was informed a son, Mephibosheth still lived. Mephibosheth had been crippled as a child and David called him to his palace and after interviewing him, made Mephibosheth an honorary part of his family and the land that had belonged to Saul was restored to Mephibosheth as rightful heir. What is more, the servant of Saul’s, who had been living a free man all these years, was now made, along with his entire family, a servant of Mephibosheth. Talk about a change of fortune, not only for Mephibosheth but also for Ziba, the servant. Several years later, David was running for his life because his own son Absalom had gathered a vast army and was approaching Jerusalem with the intent of wrenching the kingdom from his father. Just as David and his allies made it out of town, he was approached by Ziba with a string of donkeys loaded down with raison cakes, figs and wine. “Where”, David asked, “is your master’s grandson?” Whether he was lying or not, we don’t know but Ziba told David that Mephibosheth had stayed home because he was in hopes that Absalom was coming with his army to make Mephibosheth king. Now why Mephibosheth would possibly think that could be and why David would accept this, we cannot know but David did believe Ziba and freed Ziba of his servanthood to Mephibosheth and gave all his former master’s land to him. Ziba’s response? “I humbly bow. May I find favor in your eyes, my lord the king.” Can we call that humility? Bowing to a king to win his favor and gain his gifts?

If humility is not an attempt to gain favor, not the result of insecurities and not a response to fear, then what is it? There are three key components to humility. If one or more are missing, we do not have humility but rather some warped anomaly. Just as the Orcs in the Lord of the Rings were corrupted forms of elves, so too, lacking any one of these foundational components of humility makes it something quite different. The first part of humility is the recognition that without God we are nothing. A collection of molecules stuffed together in a solid mass is not life, certainly not human. God’s parting words to Adam following the latter’s sin describes well our true condition. “…for dust you are and to dust you will return." (Genesis 3:19 NIV) We have ideas, and creativity and strength and will not because we earned it; we have these because God breathes life into us and makes every part of us living. We are exciting and fun and creative and full of action due to God keeping it going in us and for no other reason than that.

Humility is built on the fundamental premise that I am first and foremost, sinner. I live against the laws of the universe and have nothing to offer a soul but wrongheadedness and abuse of the gifts given me. I am a violator of the basic morals that make life good and I do the wrong thing again and again. Humility recognizes, as Paul the Apostle did, that I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. (Rom 7:18-19 NIV) It is not humility to despise myself because I fail at things or am ignored or rejected by others. It is humility though to know that I make judgments about things as a sinner, take stock of my life and the people around me as a sinner, do acts of charity as a sinner and make plans as a sinner. When I correct my children, it is as a sinner; when I preach a sermon, I do so as a sinner and when I am angry over the way my meal has been cooked, my anger is cooked in sin. Without that sense that I am a first-rate sinner, I cannot be humble…not even a bit.

Humility rests also on the reality that I am so loved by God, Jesus died for me. My ugly profile, my clumsy hands, my inability to remember names, my boring little stories and my bad breath cannot be my first or even my third point about me. I am the beloved work of art a God who desperately loves me made. If I hang my head because I do not yet believe Jesus loves me, that is one thing. But if I hang my head because I do not think Jane or Jeffery love me, that is altogether another thing. I can wander away from Jane and Jeffery and find love because God made me beloved and only a fool would despise me. There are millions like me beloved of God who know it and are made to love me too. There is not a shortage of people to love me. There is a shortage of me who know how loved I am. Humility is based on God’s infatuation with me; his last dying breath breathed for me. I cannot be humble if I do not know the taste of God’s love in me.

So what is humility? How do I do it? Humility starts with a desperate faith in Jesus for salvation; salvation for our post death life but also salvation for our life now. My confidence in the Cross to save each part of me…my career, my family, my finances, my thoughts, my friendships is the most crucial choice we make each and every day. Either God does not exist and we live as a complete pagan or He is and we make it our most important task the complete reliance on Jesus to manage and fill every part of us.

In the movie, The Chronicles Of Narnia: Prince Caspian, Lucy the youngest of the children brought back to Narnia to help rescue the Narnians has a hint that she has glimpsed Aslan the great lion (who symbolically represents Jesus Christ) but isn’t so sure it was him and can’t get the others to go with her to follow where he is leading. In the end the kids don’t believe her and it turns out disastrously for them. Finally, when Lucy does come face to face with mighty Aslan, she wants reassurance that earlier it was indeed him pointing the way to a safer and more direct way of saving the Narnians. Yes, he tells her, it was him. She then asks how many lives might have been saved if they had taken his directive. Oh, my child, she is told, you cannot go back and discover that for it is already done. But then he makes the sword thrust into Lucy’s heart. You, my child, even if no one else had gone with you, could have followed and it would have made all the difference.

The better part of humility is not the bowing of one’s head or the lowering of one’s dreams or the giving in to every poor soul who thinks he should boss you around. The better part of humility is following Jesus whether anyone goes with you or not. Last night, my boys were with me and two unbelieving friends who have been taught nothing in their home of following God or giving in to his will. We had bought some burgers and fries and were sitting in my car in the back side of the parking lot. I asked (told) one of my boys to lead us in prayer. At that moment was a great quandary. Not for me but immediately for my son. Do I speak out or mumble a complaint. Do I argue that I can’t or don’t feel like it or have nothing to say? Do I pray? In humility, my son bowed his head, opened his mouth and before his friends, thanked God for our food. Humility is not a way of thinking; it is and always has been the micro submissions we make to the God who through us is changing our world.