A United Methodist Pastor's Theological Reflections

"But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory (nikos) through our Lord Jesus Christ." - I Corinthians 15:57


Wednesday, May 1, 2013

Dave's Deep Thoughts - Strange Foods, One Gospel

 
I'm all for thinking green,
but just how green do I really need to get???
 
This is such a great time of year,
Easter, Earth Day, May Day festivals.....
so many celebrations of life.
 
It's easy to celebrate when there is so much
coming to life all around us.....
trees budding, grass growing,
and flowers blooming.
 
Now I am all for being one with the earth.
I turn off lights in rooms not being used.
I hang my laundry out to dry in the sun.
No piece of plastic, cardboard, or newspaper escapes my recycling bin.
 
I am as green as they come...
or so I thought so.
 
I have some friends equally commited to using the earth's resources wisely.
Recently they invited me for dinner.
 
These friends have traveled around the world
and have tried recipes of delicacies from many cultures.
 
They have told me about Bird's Nest Soup made in China.
Oh don't worry, it's not made out of leaves and twigs.
No, it's made from the saliva of birds,
creating a rubbery texture that is made even more
desirable because the nesting season in China lasts for only 35 days annually.
A bowl of this soup can cost anywhere between $30 to $100 depending upon availability.
I wouldn't suggest "wasting this" by feeding it to your children.
 
They have told me about Kopi Luwak.
It is the rarest. most expensive gourmet coffee in the world.
Sounds tempting, right?
That is until you realize it is made
from the excrement of a cat-like creature
in Indonesia called the Luwak.
 
Evidently, the Luwak eats only the ripest coffee cherries,
but their stomachs can't digest the beans found inside, so they come out whole.
The stomach acids and enzymes that perform the fermentation of the beans,
gives the coffee it's "special" aroma.
I guess, if you have "special" friends over, you might want to consider this after dinner.
 
Then there is always the Cambodian delicacy of fried tarantulas.
Oh yes, they are fried whole.....legs, fangs and all.
Evidently, they have become so famous
that tourists come by the busloads come to taste test.
Supposedly, they taste a bit like fried crickets or scrawny chicken,
crispy on the outside, and gooey on the inside.
And you thought KFC boneless chicken was innovative........
 
Now, my friends wouldn't try to slip one of these delicacies past me
when they invite me over for dinner.
Hearing about them as we eat is enough.
 
Everything looked great as we sat down to table,
chicken, cheesey potatoes, vegetables....
that was, until they passed what I thought was the table centerpiece.
 
It was at that moment, that I was introduced to dandelion salad.
Under normal conditions, I would have thought they were kidding
but these are people who have fried tarantulas on their dietary resumes.
 
To their credit, the yellow flowers were only there as garnish
and were removed before serving.
But the rest of that bowl was filled filled with a leafy greenery
that is most often found on the underside of my lawn mower.
 
Now I am all for adventure,
but when it comes to food,
I tend to be a bit more conservative.
 
Out of politeness, I took a bit of the dandelion salad
figuring if I could normally kill these varmits with Scotts lawn formula #2,
I could probably kill the taste with enough Balsamic Vinegarette.
 
I must admit, it wasn't bad.
Perhaps I would have loved it
if I could have gotten the mental image of raking my salad out of my mind.
 
Cultures have always fascinated me.
As I experience more and more of the cultures from around the world,
I wonder about how the truth of Christ's empty tomb
can possibly speak to so many diverse peoples.
 
And that's when I think of the apostle Paul.
God's life purpose for Paul was to use him to send the gospel
well beyond the people of Israel.
 
And Paul's task was far more challenging than
my attempts at eating dandelion salad.
 
He needed to communicate the amazing news
of the love of the one and only God.
to peoples who believed in many gods.
The people in Athens alone
had so many idols erected to gods
that they could fill up the yellow pages under the listing, Deity.
 
So what did Paul do when in Athens.......
He started with what they knew as familiar,
and then He found a way to speak to what they didn't know,
He looked upon the idol erected to "an unknown god"
and Paul spoke to them of this God that they did not know......
 
a God who willingly revealed His nature
by coming in the form of man rather than being carved out of gold or silver,
 
a God who wanted a sacrifice of the spirit
before grain and animal sacrifices,
 
a God who would choose to die for them
rather then live without them,
 
a God that left no need for another "unknown god."
 
Now these Athenians were highly educated men,
philosophers by trade.
Some wanted to hear more,
some wanted to debate Paul,
and some rejected him immediately upon hearing
of "a resurrection from the dead."
But a few were enlightened by the Spirit to receive Christ.
 
And then it was time for Paul to move on.
 
We don't have to go very far to find people with
world views and philosophies that darken their hearts to Christ.
All God asks of us is to start by listening to what they know,
and then lovingly share what we know to be the Truth.
 
Perhaps the thought of that is as distasteful to you
as eating Dandelion Salad when you would rather have Caesar salad.
 
But chances are, you will not die from eating dandelions
or by sharing the gospel that is within your heart.
All God asks, is that you listen to His Spirit guiding you.
 
As for the birds nest soup,
that's up to you.
 
At the end of a lovely dinner,
we were sitting around the table enjoying conversation,
when the host asked, "Would anyone like coffee?"
One thought of the Luwak cat coffee beans,
and I simply nodded my head no.
 
Maybe sharing the gospel isn't so tough after all.
 
For I am not ashamed of the gospel,
for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes
to the Jew first and also to the Greek.
Romans 1:16

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