Suffering: Introduction

Finished my Gospels paper Wednesday afternoon about 20 minutes before it had to be postmarked. Sadly, (more than sadly - shamefully) I did not proof read the entire paper before printing, shoving it in an envelope, and dragging my semi-conscious self to the post office.

This is the intro. I'll post the rest in sections as I am able to edit and revise. :) Just one caveat: I was limited to picking my primary scripture from the Gospels, since it was for the Gospels class. My goals for the Systematic paper due in two weeks are to a) not abuse the semicolon b) avoid my Midwest tendency of ending sentences with prepositions and c) not split my verbs. Old habits die hard. Urgh.

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The Proclamation of Suffering
Implications for missions

Introduction
Christ calls us to suffer, displaying resurrection power through our sufferings, refining us and drawing the world to him. The call to the Church, as we wait for our savoir to return, is found in the proclamation of suffering. Today, we are inundated with Western individualism, ignoring the unity of the Body of Christ, or taken to the other extreme with the communal salvation of federal vision theology. We have lost sight of what it means for the Church – unified in Christ – to suffer. The prosperity gospel infiltrates confessional, reformed churches as much as mainstream Christianity, subtly relating suffering with a lack of material possessions, status or reputation. This is a far cry from the suffering Christ proclaimed in the Sermon on the Mount when he said, “Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”[1]

There are common sufferings cause by the fallen state of mankind that all of humanity experience: disease, sickness, toil in labor, and death itself are all the result of Adam’s sin. But this is not the suffering Christ exampled, nor is it the heritage of the prophets of Israel, and neither is it the call to the Church. True Christian suffering is harassment, legal or institutional punishment or discrimination, interrogation, arrest, fines or bribes, imprisonment, or murder for one’s faith, including perceived and actual evangelism, whether formally or informally outlawed by the state. In short, suffering is persecution because of faith in Christ. The early Church experienced persecution daily, suffering for truth, not because of the sinful state of mankind.[2] William Barclay captures this, quoting an old poet describing the Church as “the panting, huddled flock whose crime was Christ.”[3]

What does it mean for the Church to suffer in today’s world? Why are we called to suffer? What implications does this have for how the Western (and presumably non-suffering) Church should interact with the worldwide Church?

Christ came to suffer and he calls us to join him.[4] This call is not optional, it is essential to the life of the Church. We need not seek suffering but we are obligated to partner with those in our brethren experiencing the daily sufferings from claiming Christ crucified. Supporting the global, indigenous and often suffering church, is essential for the life and mission of the Church, and fulfills the call of the Church to suffer with our brothers and sisters.

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[1] Matthew 5:10-12
[2] John R.W. Stott, The Message of The Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7). The Bible Speaks Today. (Downer’s Grove, InterVarsity Press, 1978), 52; William Barclay, The Gospel of Matthew, Volume 1 (Chapters 1 to 10). The Daily Study Bible Series (rev. ed.). (Philadelphia, Westminster Press, 1975), 111-113; James Montgomery Boice, The Gospel of Matthew: Volume 1, The King and His Kingdom, Matthew 1-17. (Grand Rapids. Baker Books, 2001), 77, cf. 1 Peter 3:14
[3] Barclay, The Gospel of Matthew, 114
[4] Mark 8:31

Languagues and Luther

I vaguely remember German from middle and high school. Sadly, I took four years and about the most I can remember is that Ich bin ein Berliner means “I am a jelly doughnut” not “I am one from Berlin.” Still, it’s good to know I won’t go hungry in Germany.

German ended junior year when I transfer to a school with minimal language programs and decided to load my schedule with APs rather than take on another language. Oh, if only I had known.

Four years latter I found myself studying one of the most difficult languages in the world: Arabic. Arabic is an evil, spiteful language for the linguistically challenged. There’s Modern Standard Arabic, spoken predominately in media outlets, and its literary counterpart fuṣḥā. But Arabic is not really a written language and there are dialects (Egyptian, Iraqi, Levantine, etc.), as well as sub-languages like Moroccan, with a blend of French and Berber just for kicks. But the killers are the case endings. Arabic maintains a full set of case endings (which I believe is eight). Now whether or not they are pronounced varies from dialect to dialect…

Like I said, it’s evil. Combine all of this with my 19-year old very timid self and mix it into an Arabic class with native speakers. Add the fact that I just do NOT remember high school English. Stir for three years. Final result = disaster.

All of this to say that since then, I’ve been terrified and intimidated by languages. But the research that I’d like to do someday will require that I learn at least two other languages, and go back and learn Qur’anic Arabic. (Yes, that's a whole 'nuther ballgame.)

So I plunged in and started Hebrew just eight weeks ago. And I love it. Like LOVE it, love it. Like don’t know if I can do my future research because why would anyone want to learn Greek when there is Hebrew? Granted, I’m sure my years of that not-so-friendly Semitic language made Hebrew a tad easier. Ok, it helped significantly. But Hebrew is just cool.

Which brings me indirectly to Luther. Contrary to popular belief, Luther actually knew what he was writing when he penned “A Mighty Fortress is Our God.” In his second verse, the forth line is often translated as: Lord Sabaoth, His Name, from age to age the same. But the German reads “Der Herr Zebaoth,” and translating this as Sabaoth implies that Luther’s understanding of his native tongue was so poor, he did not know the German word for Sabbath (Sabbat). In fact, Luther knew Hebrew. Zebaoth was his transliteration of צבאות which means hosts, i.e., heavenly hosts.

And that is your Hebrew lesson for the day.