Wherever you go, He's there

Where could I go to escape Your Spirit?

Where could I flee from Your Presence?

If I climb the heavens, You are there,

there too, if I lie in She‘ol.

Psalm 139:7-8 Jerusalem Bible

It's obvious that prophet-king David in composing this psalm is not trying to run away from God, at least not in his better moments, nor are we. But from the beginning of our encounter with the living God, we knew that God knows all, and even that He is everywhere. When God the Son, Jesus Christ, became man, He joined us and now, in an even deeper penetration of our world, as the One who was dead but lives (ος εγενετο νεκρος και εζησεν, Revelation 2:8), He is among us, He is in our midst, in fact He walks among us (ο περιπατων εν μεσω των επτα λυχνιων των χρυσων, Revelation 2:1). This makes me think of a stanza in the Anglican hymn, Where cross the crowded ways of life…

O Master, from the mountain side,

make haste to heal these hearts of pain;

among these restless throngs abide,

O tread the city's streets again;

till all the world shall learn thy love,

and follow where thy feet have trod;

till glorious from thy heav’n above,

shall come the city of our God.

I've always liked the melody of this hymn and I still whistle it often while meditating on the idea of Jesus Christ walking the city's streets again. But when I've actually stopped and looked at the words, well, this hymn is really not very good at all, in fact it's misleading. It seems to be expressing a pious wish that Jesus would somehow come back and, in his own person maybe, do the things here and now that he did in Israel two thousand years ago. This is a hollow pipe dream if ever I heard one. Not only that, but it seems to be commanding the Lord to do things that, duh, He gave us the authority and the responsibility to do. The only verses in the stanza quoted above that are true are the last two lines, “till glorious from thy heav’n above, shall come the city of our God,” and it’s exactly what those two lines say that today's churches by and large consider a pious fantasy.

Run that by me again, please? The hymn tells Jesus to come back and do the work that He gave us to do, and Romanós, you say that's hogwash. And the last two lines about the city coming down from heaven (την πολιν την αγιαν, την νεαν Ιερουσαλημ καταβαινουσαν απο του Θεου εκ του ουρανου, Revelation 21:2) you say that the modern church rejects as a pious fantasy?
Yes, brothers, that's what I said, and here's an example…

I can remember a comment left on a blog (it has since been removed by the blog owner, who appears the want to avoid confrontation) by a “macho” Christian who mocked the idea that Jesus is already out there, spiritually and invisibly but really, and that all we have to do is follow Him there and do what He does. I had commented on the blog that helping a homeless person that God puts in your path is a worthy act, as long as you're just doing what Jesus does. Brother macho wrote contemptuously that the homeless person needs a hot shower, food, a roof over his head, serious counselling, and other improvements that social service agencies have to offer, not some “Jesus who’s already out there.” In other words, it's not a worthy act to help someone in their immediate need. If they really want help, the help is “out there,” and it's not Jesus.

Today I spent practically all day searching for appropriate Christmas gifts for my family members, part of the time using public transit. It made me realize how one's world view and personal philosophy of life is shaped by how one gets around. If the prosperous 2/3 of Americans experienced how the disadvantaged 1/3 actually live, they might think differently about social responsibility. I'm talking about myself too, and I'm talking about Christians specifically. It seems to me that a Christianity that has worked itself into a position of comfort is actually no Christianity at all. So it's not surprising that brother macho and others like him have an attitude problem.

I had two experiences today, still thinking about what Psalm 139 says about God being everywhere.

As I was leaving Portland Saturday Market, I passed a youngster (maybe 11 or 12 years old) of Asian or Native American descent who tried to hand me a tract. At first I waved him off, and passed by, but two seconds later I just did an about face and went up to the boy, “Are you passing out Christian tracts?” I apologized for not taking one and passing by, but I told him I was already a Christian, and I just wanted to thank him for witnessing. An older youth (about 18 or 19 years old) stepped up and I asked, “Are you with them?” By now I'd noticed that there were actually two Asian boys. Alec introduced himself and said he was with them. He was carrying some sign boards under his arm, and the three of them had been witnessing downtown. They came up from Salem to witness in Portland, because there is no street scene in their town. I had quite a good fellowship time with Alec and his two younger brothers, and I showed them where Brock and I sometimes stand when we're reading the Bible in public. The train arrived, and we all got on. The younger boys disappeared into the crowded train, as Alec and I got on and continued fellowshipping. Our destination was the same, and we all got off together. It was then that I noticed an older man, wearing the same baseball cap (Jesus Saves from Sin, I think it said) as Alec. “Is that your Dad?” I asked. He introduced me to Marvin, his Dad, and we continued walking for a short distance, and then we parted. I shook hands with them all and blessed them. They understood exactly what I meant when I told them, “We are just following Jesus who is already out here looking for His lost sheep.” They were from Salem Baptist Temple, if I remember. These boys were “light in the darkness” and really made my day. As I left them, I thanked the Lord, “If I climb the heavens, You are there.”

I went into the Lloyd Center mall afterwards and fruitlessly searched for the gifts. My other experience was going into a shop called Spencer’s Gifts. It may as well have been called Satan’s Gifts, because I've never seen anything so dark and depraved. I made a point of looking at everything, despite remembering Richard’s saying that in this world there are some things you just can’t unsee. But you know, as dark and dirty as their commodities were, I could see that they were just the images of the real evils, a sort of reflection of them. No, Satan is much more evil even than Spencer’s Gifts, as those who become his partners will discover. When I emerged from this shop, it seemed like everyone I looked at was wholesome and good. Well, I guess! After having visited She‘ol just moments before (where God also is), the “normal” world of passers-by seemed tame.

One thing, though. When I was in that shop, looking at everything, but also at every person there, from checkout clerk to customer, I had the curious sensation that they all knew that I was an agent from the Other Side, and they all backed away. Everyone except a group of four or five young girls eleven years old and under, who were too busy inspecting female sex toys and flashy underthings. A couple of the girls couldn't have been older than six or seven, and they were actually just standing around gazing into space while the older ones focused on the objects displayed. As I exited I thought to myself, “You are there, there too, if I lie in She‘ol.”

Jesus, help me to follow You anywhere.