Discipleship as Reprogramming

How do we make choices?

As part of my summer reading I read Isaac Asimov's four classic robot novels.  They are science fiction police procedurals.  The main characters are a New York detective Elijah Baley and a humaniform robot Daneel Olivaw.  They often engage in discussions about the how the programming of the robots affects the actions and decisions they make.  As in most artificial intelligence stories, the moral dilemmas are highly intriguing .  Asimov's fictional robots adhere to the three laws of robotics 1.  A robot may not harm a human being, or through inaction cause one to come harm.  2. A robot shall obey all orders from humans that do not break the first law 3. A robot shall protect itself as long as it does not conflict with the first or second laws.  The fun of the books is seeing what happens when the robots are put in situations where there are choices that cause a decision that brings a conflict in the programming.   What these in fact are, are ways to discuss how people in the real world come up with the moral choices they make.

Human Programming

While real people may not have something equivalent to the three laws, we are programmed by our biology, environment, experiences, upbringing, culture and education.  A great biblical example of this would be the wilderness temptation story found in Matthew and Luke where Satan tries to manipulate the basic human programming to have need for food (turn these stones to bread),  power (see these kingdoms, they can be yours),  and attention (throw yourself off the cliff and watch daddy come and save you!).  In each case Jesus as God’s son shows he is not programmed as Satan would have liked. He demonstrates how the first commandment to fear and love God overrides the baser human instincts for food (man does not live by bread alone but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God), power (worship the Lord and serve only him), and attention (Do not put the Lord your God to the test).   The first commandment to love God puts things in proper perspective and allows Jesus to continue on with his ministry.  

Discipleship, a life of following Jesus Christ and being in a healthy relationship with Christ is a lot about allowing God to reprogram us or update our programming. Living in a sinful and broken world, our programming is often damaged.  Value judgements of the majority are taken in and accepted without question, because it is easier to do so.   Negative experiences put us on the defensive.  Life conditions may cause us to become self-centered, or others may convince us that we have no self worth or dignity.  The problem of race that America is dealing with at this time is essentially one of bad programming. Americans have been programmed with a set of beliefs and actions that are neither grounded in biology or the Word of God, which both clearly state we are single common humanity.  So overcoming this dilemma will require each of us to examine how the world has programmed us and work to change those lines of code which draw us away from God and cause conflict with our brothers and sisters.

Life 2.0

This can be done; I have seen it.   I have seen addicts use faith to help them deal with their illness and change their lives.   I have seen people whose first marriages broke apart have wonderful life giving and healthy second ones.   I have watched self centered selfish people turn around and start caring for their neighbors because an encounter with God led them there.  I have seen hyper self-conscious people afraid to talk with any one come out of their shell and build a healthy and appropriate self esteem. In short,  in my ministry I have witnessed countless people who have with the help of God altered their programming.   The real joy of ministry is watching lives be changed for the better by the Holy Spirit. Jesus encourages to do exactly this when he says things like this spoken during the Sermon on the Mount “But strive first for the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Matthew 6:33 (NRSV).  

My favorite book of Asimov’s robot series was the last one “Robots and Empire”  where two robots, the aforementioned Daneel Olivaw, and another robot  Giskard Reventlov come to the conclusion that the three laws they are programmed with are inadequate.   They begin to see that they actually cause moral outrages when strictly adhered to, like when saving one person will kill thousands.   Their conclusion is that a fourth law is needed. Called the zeroth law, it becomes a preface to the other three, a robot may not do something that harms humanity as a whole.   When the robots incorporate this law they become free and true moral agents.  They are liberated when they show concern for the wider world. If you have not guessed by now I will tell you; Isaac Asimov really did not write about robots, he was writing about people.

When people allow God to help reprogram their lives with a concern for something beyond themselves they are set free. Adhering to the great commandments to love God with all your heart, soul, and might,  and to love your neighbor as yourself,  is not a constriction, it is a liberation.  You become free to override all aspects of your cultural programming. Dietrich Bonhoeffer once said “only the one who believes is obedient, and only the one who is obedient believes”.  What I am arguing is that only the one who is obedient is free, and only the one who is free is obedient.   Faithful discipleship is liberation.

So I invite you to come with us at Holy Cross and work on your discipleship along with us. Like Giskard and Daneel we can discuss the shortcomings of our own programming and then delve into God’s Word and learn about how we are to become free by following Jesus the Christ.

Be blessed

Technology and Resurrection

Artificial Intelligence (AI) & Immortality 

I am sure by now you are aware that all types of data is being collected on each person everyday.    The news is rife with stories of privacy issues, data breaches and eavesdropping.  Every time you visit a website, purchase products online (or just with a credit card in a store),  rate or write a review of something, or click that harmless looking thumbs up button on Facebook or Pandora that data goes somewhere.  On top of that wearable tech such as Google Glass and the Samsung Dick Tracy watch are in their prototype stages.     Will these be collecting other types of data?  Could they be used to capture emotions and reactions to events and record them with the images the camera is collecting while tracking your location?   If so, could someone then collect all his or her data and use it to create a realistic profile of her or himself.    Could that profile then be combined with a process of artificial intelligence to create a newly regenerated virtual person?   Can this person then be downloaded into a piece of tech that can communicate and interact with the world?  If the answer to these questions is yes, have human beings found a way to be immortal through their own devices?

Not yet, but people are actually working on these very types of things.

Hell 

The whole problem with this is, that if we can construct an immortal life through our own efforts we would be simply carrying our broken pasts into a dark future.   The traumas lived through would be carried on into eternity.  There would still be pain, there would still be loss,  there would still be evil.   These experiences of our sinfulness wear us down and tinge our lives with sorrow.   As we carry these burdens forward, time itself would loose all meaning,  there will be no urgency to do anything, experience would pile upon experience.   We would find that we were not damned to hell, but that we had created it ourselves for all eternity.   It is the reason why the Bible portrays God as expelling Adam and Eve from the garden of Eden. (Genesis 3:22) Then the LORD God said, "See, the man has become like one of us, knowing good and evil; and now, he might reach out his hand and take also from the tree of life, and eat, and live forever"--  (NRSV)  This was not done out of spite or punishment, but as an act of grace so that no person would be condemned to unending suffering.


Forgiveness and Hope

While we may know the hope we have from a life of faith is an eventual eternal life,  it is not the first hope we have.  For the hope we have in Jesus Christ is first and foremost grounded in forgiveness.   Forgiveness breaks the cycle of evil that has been built up in our lives over time.   It heals the relationships we have with God, others, and the division within our own hearts.   If not forgiven, we can not be healed, if not healed we are not prepared for eternal life.   It is why when God sent Christ to the Cross it was first and foremost and act of forgiveness.   Jesus would show his wounds to his disciples to prove that he had forgiven them.   That the pain of Good Friday could be reconciled, proved that God can reconcile any division imaginable.   If you don't think that one really needs forgiveness to live eternally,  do this experiment.   Review the major news stories of the last week,  count how many are tragic or even evil.   Then take that number and multiply it by 52 and get an idea of how much pain just one year exists in an broken world.  Then think about that going on year after year with out end.   Unless the cycle is broken there will be no hope; it is the ultimate blessing for us that God has chosen to break the cycle of sin with the cross of Christ.  

Living out that hope in tangible ways is what we call discipleship.  True disciples don't wait for the forgiveness to appear in some distant future, they work on it now.   By advocating for the vulnerable, feeding the poor,  encouraging the downtrodden, we provide signs of hope that point people to a God who wants to heal, restore, and forgive.  In a life of Christian discipleship the best way to use technology going forward will be to use it as a tool of discipleship to do Jesus' work of being there for the least of the world.


Isaiah and the LORD's Mountain

One of the earliest references to resurrection in Scripture is comes from  the prophet Isaiah.   He gave us this vision of hope:  (Isaiah 25:6-8) On this mountain the LORD of hosts will make for all peoples a feast of rich food, a feast of well-aged wines, of rich food filled with marrow, of well-aged wines strained clear. And he will destroy on this mountain the shroud that is cast over all peoples, the sheet that is spread over all nations; he will swallow up death forever. Then the Lord GOD will wipe away the tears from all faces, and the disgrace of his people he will take away from all the earth, for the LORD has spoken.  (NRSV)  Notice that God does not just give the eternal life alone.   The promise is for the removal of tears (pain) and disgrace (shame).   Before these gifts are mentioned, Isaiah speaks of God destroying the shroud.   The removal of the shroud or sheet is the removal of the division between God and people, it is this removal that makes a blessed eternal life possible.  It is forgiveness that gives us hope.    So as we live out the greatest three days in history, perhaps it is most healthy to move beyond a childlike desire to merely live forever to mature faith that hopes for forgiveness.

May all have a happy and blessed Easter

Pastor J. David Knecht

What happens when we die?

Questions from our Culture: Final Week Recap

The Science fiction series Battlestar Galactica (2004-2009) spoke about many of the issues of faith that people in our time are wresting with.  It did this by taking elements of  different faiths and dividing them up between the different characters of the drama.  In no way do the religions of the show completely conform to an actual human belief system, but they do have ideas in common with contemporary and even historical faith communities.  The result is fascinating portrayal of a life in a universe with competing religious ideas. We are using this portrayal at Holy Cross to engage some of life's most important questions.  These are not only found on TV but in the Bible itself.  Even better, the Bible begins to lead us to some answers to these life changing questions.

I was there...

Our final scene from Battlestar Gallactica depicts  the female lead Laura Roslin in dialog with a fellow cancer patient about the afterlife.  Her friend is telling her story of a vision she had of the next life.  Roslin is skeptical choosing to only believe what she can concretely experience while lucid and in her right mind.  Her  friend Emily is adamant, she was there in the border between this world and the next.   She will recount a number of important points.   First she was scared, but at the same time there was an assuring voice in her ear that said "I am with you."   Second,  she recounts the words of the recurring character Gaius Baltar, when she says that there is more to this world then what we can see with our eyes.   Finally she saw on the far bank of the river those whom she had lost of her family and friends.  She was comforted by this vision but was insistent that this vision gives a complete accounting of reality.   The scene shows two women, one open to the next world another skeptical, working out their questions in a meaningful conversation.  The question about what happens when we die is clearly found in the Bible in a number of places and the promises portrayed in this hospital room conversation are some of the same promised by God in Scripture. 

I am with you...

Emily's anxiety about her vision is calmed with a voice stating that he is with her.  Being assured the presence of the Divine through life and death is one of the central promises of Jesus Christ.  This coming Sunday churches around the world will celebrate the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, where God's presence was poured out for every land and nation.   Jesus promises in the Great Commission that he will be with us until the end of the aeon.   In the final book of the Bible, the key promise of the reconciliation and final healing of the world is the complete presence of God experienced fully by His people.   "See, the home of God is among mortals. He will dwell with them as their God; they will be his peoples, and God himself will be with them;  (Revelation 21:3 NRSV).  A look into the original language of John of Patmos' vision will reveal that the word used for home in the above verse is σκηνὴ, which literally means "tent."   So Revelation shows an image of a reconciled New Jerusalem where God is not in a temple but camping out with those whom He loves.  It is an image of God's intimate presence with us that shows that his being with us is the first solution of all of our genuine needs.  

There is something (or someone) beyond this world...  

God's presence is our most profound need because unlike us, he has no limitations.   He is the one who is not bound by space, time, laws of physics, or conventions.  He is the only one who can free us from the bondages that we face.  John of Patmos writes again: Then he said to me, "It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. To the thirsty I will give water as a gift from the spring of the water of life.  (Revelation 21:6 NRSV)  The letters Alpha and Omega are the first and last  letters of the Greek alphabet.   So Revelation is saying that God is A-Z,  all that is in between, and even more. The God of Jesus Christ is more than we can fathom. The God who works salvation through history is the God who is beyond anything history can describe.  This power is necessary because Scripture tells us that the Lord will wipe every tear from their eyes. Death will be no more; mourning and crying and pain will be no more, for the first things have passed away."  (Revelation 21:4 NRSV)  Death, pain, grief and loss may ensnare us, but they have no power over the Alpha and Omega who is at the head of all things. 

 A Communion of Saints...


The most moving aspect of the scene between the two cancer patients in Battlestar Gallactica is how it shows Emily having a vision of being in a reunited communion with her loved ones.  Her parents, children and all who had died before her are re-united in a new community.  This same hope is made explicit by Jesus as he prepares to go to the cross on the night in which he was betrayed.  In my Father's house there are many dwelling places. (John 14:2 NRSV) The vision of the resurrected life is not just one of you in relation to God it is you with others in relation to God.  We become part of the resurrected community of God.

The other component of this is one of the chief images of an afterlife given in the Bible.   It is the idea of the great heavenly feast.   We first learn of it in Isaiah, and Jesus uses it as his primary teaching image of the coming Reign of God. Then people will come from east and west, from north and south, and will eat in the kingdom of God.  (Luke 13:29 NRSV)  The redeemed gather for fellowship around God's table.  This image is one the reasons I advocate regular celebration of the Lord's supper, it as as said a "foretaste of the feast to come."

An Invitation... 

I have always found it comforting that the Bible uses images like those discussed above.   I find that images are often more inclusive than definitions or a list of requirements.  I can relate my common life experiences to images,  they give me touch points with God's Word.  When the Bible says God camped out, I think of my own camping trips.  When heaven is described as a feast or party, I have wonderful images in my mind of fellowship with friends and loved ones.   I believe the Bible uses images to make coming to God more inviting.

The answer to the question of what happens when die is clear according to the Bible.  The answer is resurrection.   However, I do believe we need to be open it.  In this week's scene we saw two people one with an experience of life after death who was clearly open to the possibility, and one who was struggling to understand.  The saddest for me are those who close themselves off to the possibility, not only those who reject God, but perhaps those of us who nominally acknowledge God, but become absorbed in our own stuff to the point where we are unable to see the images that God provides us.  They miss out on the hope to come closer to him to live the abundant life in this world and the next. However, all we need to do is look up out of our junk and see the vision of God that is revealed through his Word of Jesus calling us back to God and himself.   The invitation to life eternal is there, we just need to respond, and to me that is indeed a comforting thought.

This is the final installment of this series:   This summer we will be working with two themes:  "Thriving in a mixed up world"  based on readings from the Gospel of Mark, and "A life rebuilt by Jesus," which uses texts from Ephesians.   Please be in prayer that we can come closer to our Lord through the proclamation and study of his Word. 


Keep the Faith, 
Pastor Knecht

How much can we forgive?

Questions from our Culture:  Week 5 Recap

The Science fiction series Battlestar Galactica (2004-2009) spoke about many of the issues of faith that people in our time are wresting with.  It did this by taking elements of  different faiths and dividing them up between the different characters of the drama.  In no way do the religions of the show completely conform to an actual human belief system, but they do have ideas in common with contemporary and even historical faith communities.  The result is fascinating portrayal of a life in a universe with competing religious ideas. We are using this portrayal at Holy Cross to engage some of life's most important questions.  These are not only found on TV but in the Bible itself.  Even better, the Bible begins to lead us to some answers to these life changing questions. 

Are we done here?  

This week's scene shows Admiral William Adama having a painful confrontation with his son Lee.   Both have reached a point where they are no longer able to forgive one another.   They have reached their limits of  endurance to work through the big issues in their lives.   Lee had agreed out of principle to defend Gaius Baltar who had collaborated with the enemy.   During the trial the Admiral had to watch as his own son helped cross examine his best best friend.   The Admiral feels completely betrayed; his son is defensive because his own father questions his honesty and integrity.   They both also have a mountain of experiences with each other in the background.  Both can no longer trust the other, both resort to self protection, both cut the cords that bind them.  Lee submits his resignation of  his military commission to his father,  his father says he doesn't want him around anyway.   

The question that leaps out of the screen is:  how much can I forgive?  When we think about this question we can choose to focus on the big things such as, can we forgive a terrorist, mass murderer etc?   However as powerful these questions are,  it is often the little things that add up that are more likely to stretch our capacity to forgive.  It is also true that as in the clip, those who are most close to us are more likely to test our patience to forgive.  It is why children run away, marriages fail, and friends separate.  

The Danger of Self-Deception

I have found that the biggest misconception about forgiveness in our culture is the idea that it is for the person you are forgiving.  It really is not; forgiveness is primarily for the forgiver.  It frees the person extending forgiveness to be in relationship with others again.  So when we loose the strength to forgive we actually do more damage to ourselves rather than withhold something from those who have injured us. This is precisely why John's letter to the churches calls us to forgive, it is for our own health and well-being.   He writes:  If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.  (1 John 1:8 NRSV)

It is a sad truth that when become wounded and self protective it is easy for us to drift  into self deception.  Because we become so focused on the misdeeds of others, we forget to look in the mirror at our own misdeeds.   If left unchecked this can lead to contempt.   In the clip we saw that it was contempt that finally severed the relationship between the elder and younger Adamas.   Contempt of others is the most destructive force in all human relationships.  It is to resist the danger of contempt that John wants us to not only look in the mirror, but to do it with the bathroom lights on.  He recommends that, If we confess our sins, he who is faithful and just will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.  (1 John 1:9 NRSV) A major theme of the book of 1 John is that knowledge of sinfulness-should lead to empathy, which in turn leads to concrete acts of love for those in your community.  God has chosen not to hold you in contempt even though you may have grieved him.   God decided to forgive you through the cross, because despite it all, he wants to be in relationship with us and wants us to be the people we are created and called to be.  Therefore we can extend forgiveness to others because God has done so for us.

Trusting the One Who Can Forgive All 

The Bible is quite clear on the answer to the the question, how much can we forgive?  It answers saying:  God can forgive all, but humans not so much.  John writes again: he is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world.  (1 John 2:2 NRSV).  As sinners ourselves, our own capacity to forgive will be limited, but God being God, has unlimited capacity to do whatever he sets his mind on.  The deeper and more personal answer that affects our daily lives is also very clear, we read:  if we walk in the light as he himself is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.  (1 John 1:7 NRSV) Simply put, our capacity to forgive is related to the strength of our relationship with Jesus.   

There will be some sins done to you that will be impossible for you to forgive without the aid of God's power.  No human can forgive all,  we will all reach our limits.  However there will be one day a time in your life when you will need to step up and forgive what you thought was once unforgivable.  This where we see that our discipleship practice matters, our worship, our prayer, our Bible reading, service, giving, and witness help strengthen our relationship with Christ Jesus and thus we are better able to forgive others.   It is the primary reason the Amish who forgave the man who shot up their children's school were able to do so.  Their life of Christian practice no matter how strange it seems to us, put them in touch with God who gives the strength to forgive the unthinkable.

Paul once wrote to the divided church of Ephesus: For (Christ)  is our peace; in his flesh he has made both groups into one and has broken down the dividing wall, that is, the hostility between us.  (Ephesians 2:14 NRSV).  Perhaps the most under-appreciated aspect of our faith and doctrine is how Christ can  bridge the divides that we so often place between ourselves.  Yet this aspect of Jesus' death and resurrection is crucial for us to participate in our own resurrection through him.   Who do we think we just might meet in heaven besides God?  So we live in trust and hope relying on God's power to get us through.  

Stay tuned for the final week: What happens when we die? 

Keep the Faith, 

Pastor Knecht