Justice for the Hurt I Give

During my sermon last Sabbath, I shared a passage from Ellen White where she discusses how the saved, upon seeing Jesus returning, ask, “Who can stand?” (Great Controversy, 641) Remember, these are the saved, not the unsaved. Every time we hurt someone we have stolen joy, health, hope… from a child of God, and these debts are ones we can’t repay. At Jesus’ return, our brokenness is brought into contrast with His glorious wholeness, and we ask, “Who can stand?”

This event carries a difficult message for us.

We need to come to terms with the fact that we have hurt people, will continue to hurt people, and will feel the weight of this hurt. We’re going to ask that question, “Who can stand?” knowing the answer is, “Not me.” I have more examples than I can count of ways I have hurt people, and I will collect more. Then we have the hurt we can’t even begin to count. We support people, policies, and institutions that hurt people. We buy goods and services that exist because the powerful take advantage of the weak. No matter how much we educate ourselves or work to do otherwise, we hurt people. By our action and inaction, we will end the day with debts we can’t pay.

But the story doesn’t end there.

Ellen White reports the question gets a response from Jesus; “My grace is sufficient for you.” Then, for a thousand years, Revelation 20:4 says, the saved are able to look through the records, see Jesus’ work on behalf of humanity, and judge–discern for themselves–that Jesus’ grace is indeed sufficient. They will be convinced that God has done everything to make justice actually happen.

What shall we do, then, given these events?

Should we give up and live lives of selfishness? “Jesus will take care of everything, so I’ll just care for myself.” How could we? The love of Jesus is in us.

Should we expect flawlessness from ourselves, and ignore the marred parts of our actions, heroes, and institutions because we need them to be flawless, too? How could we? We know our righteousness is like filthy rags (Isaiah 64:6) and we know the question the saved will ask.

What shall we do? Love, repent, and improve when we can. Trust God to fill where we could not instead of beating ourselves up for falling short.

Go with grace!

–Pastor Jonny Moor

Citizens of Heaven

But our citizenship is in heaven. –Philippians 3:20a (NIV)

I was 4 years old. I stood with my daddy in front of the ice cream truck and when he said, "Jonny, you can have anything you want," my mouth opened wide, my eyes doubled in size, my hands started to sweat, and my head thumped with every rapidly increasing hear beat. I knew, with the trust only children possess, a trust without doubt, without question, without hesitation... I knew one thing.

Because my daddy had the power to get me whatever ice cream I wanted and HE was the one who spoke those words, I really could have any ice cream bar I wanted. Words cannot describe my joy in that moment, the exquisiteness of my expectation, the awesomeness of my anticipation, my giddy eagerness.

The words in Philippians 3:20 are from your true daddy–NOT your earthly daddy who may have kept many promises or only a few but your true daddy who is truly trustworthy. Your daddy who loves you and whose loving power defines the very makeup of reality is telling you, “You are a citizen of heaven.” What does this mean?

Citizenship is about what defines us and our value. The Philippians who were Roman citizens thought they had some great advantage over other church members who weren’t, but God invites them into a new citizenship that can unify and give an “eagerly awaiting” (Philippians 3:20b) hope. Over the course of my life, I’ve identified with all sorts of things God wants to redefine.

“My citizenship is in…

how productive I am.

what people think of me.

the United States and the choices of our leaders.

how things are going in my community, job, family.

how my day is going.”

To each, God replies, “Your citizenship is in heaven.”

Whatever you face in this life, let your question be, “How does the fact that I am actually a citizen of heaven instead of this broken world change the way I will affect, and be affected by, this situation?” I invite you to trust as a child and hold on for the ice cream.

– Pastor Jonny Moor

For The Sake Of Others

In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus:
Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death— even death on a cross! -Philippians 2:5-8

Preaching out of this passage convicted my soul of one thing: God wants me to love others now the way Jesus loved us then, and I found myself fascinated by what this might look like. What if instead of talking about the passage, explaining it, and going on, I really applied it to my life? So we were all challenged together to pick one of these things and, leaning on God for strength, actually do it for the sake of others.

1. Adopt a new friend into your family who is challengingly different from you

2. Get a pen pal through the church’s random pen pal program (more below)

3. Pray for church families or members deeply and regularly

4. Give above and beyond-sacrificing your own comfort for someone else

5. Other-follow God’s promptings to your unique loving service

Personally, I felt convicted on number 3. I have been praying for a while now, but I haven’t been intentionally praying for my church members regularly. I put a system together, and I want you to know, I am praying for you. One day, I will come to your name, and I will pray to the King of the universe on your behalf. It’s been so meaningful to me to make this a part of my spiritual practice.

I want to encourage you to take up one of these challenges to really invest yourself in the good of others and more deeply join the cause of Jesus in advancing the gospel, BUT I especially want to encourage you to join our pen pal program. Here’s how you do it:

• Write a letter by hand to, “Dear Friend in Christ,” and respond to this prompt. "What have you been struggling with and what are you excited about?"

• Aim for 1-2 pages and share at whatever depth you’re comfortable.

• Mail it to me and be sure it arrives by Tuesday, February 16, 2021: Pastor Jonny Pen Pal Project, 11001 NE 189th St., Battle Ground, WA 98604

• Wait for a letter to come to you, and then begin writing back.

Once we receive all the letters, we will prayerfully mix them up and pair them off. Then we will send them out, and voila! You have a pen pal. I got this idea from reading about the incredible blessing the Dear Stranger** program was to those who participated, especially in this time of isolation. It might sound scary, but the risk is worth it! Imagine how much more meaningful it could be for us who are already siblings in Christ.

So, just as I invited on Sabbath I invite you, let’s find purpose together. Jesus went through a difficult time for the sake of us; let’s move with Jesus and invest ourselves for the sake of others.

-Pastor Jonny Moor

A Response to National Crisis

The events in and around the Capitol Building on January 6 have been upsetting to many throughout our country and our church community.

As followers of Jesus, we recognize every challenge is an opportunity for discipleship, a chance to find a new way of God’s leading. This is just as true of national and international crises as it is for personal ones. As a minister here at Meadow Glade, I wish to share a few discipleship reminders, and my reflection on a way I believe God is leading us.

First, God calls us to pray for and work toward the thriving of our communities.

When Jerusalem is destroyed by a heathen king who does not know God and captives are taken to Babylon and forced to resettle there, Jeremiah writes to them to pray for and seek the good of, the thriving of, their new city. (Jeremiah 29) They are to plant gardens, forge friendships, engage in business, and pray for God’s blessing. This principle seems even truer given our knowledge that all humans are God’s children and that Jesus died because he loves all the creation.

Second, our hope, fundamentally, is not in our president or government.

Though we want human life to thrive and we recognize engaging with society is one way to help that occur, we know our salvation comes from God. Whatever part of these immediate events we find discouraging, we can look to the hope of Jesus’ soon coming, and let that reality define our attitudes now and what we do now.

Third, the way we talk, post, and act is a witness to the world of who Jesus is.

Let’s remember that we represent Jesus to our family, friends, neighbors, and world. We testify that we are being transformed into the likeness of the one who gave his life for us when we were still enemies (Romans 5), so whatever we do, let’s strive to represent the character of Jesus as we do it.

Fourth, Jesus has given us the role of peacemakers and bridge builders.

I believe, though there are people committed to evil, most people want the best for our country and world. What seems to me like our greatest current problem, is that people throughout our country are working with fundamentally different information sources to define what is true. Then they shout at each other. “This is true because I read it here!” Or, on the other hand, “No, this is true because I heard it from here!” As we can all see, these shouting matches have devolved into groups feeling more and more divided with greater and greater enmity between them.

This leaves three options: fight–either verbally or physically to cow people into behaving the way we want, retreat–by pretending nothing is happening or only associating with those who think like us, or engage–leaning into conversation with those who have different information sources than we do. I propose this third option is the way of Jesus, the way of love of neighbor. It’s how God has been convicting me. What if we came with curiosity and a desire to understand? But this problem won’t be solved by listening alone, we must also reason together. Without anger or condescension we should discuss the pros and cons of the different sources themselves. Perhaps we could find a way forward together. Perhaps we could find some sources that, though not right all the time, we can at least agree to use as arbiters of general facts. If we can agree on the facts, we can agree on the problems. And if we can agree on the problems, we can begin to build solutions that honor God and those around us.

May our light shine so people will see our good deeds and praise our Father in heaven. (Matthew 5)

–Pastor Jonny Moor

Philippians 1:6 (NIrV)

“I am sure that the One who began a good work in you will carry it on until it is completed. That will be on the day Christ Jesus returns.”

Last week I preached on the first eleven verses of Philippians, and I was surprised to find how Paul, though under house arrest in Rome, begins his letter with a manifesto justifying his grateful and joyful spirit.

In verse 3 he tells the people in the church in Philippi he is thankful for them and then gives three reasons through verse 8:

1. They partner with him in ministry,

2. God is doing amazing work in them, and

3. Paul is experiencing amazing unity with them and has the affection of Jesus for them.

Then he talks about how he hopes the Philippians get to experience and exemplify the kind of love he is.

Paul’s perspective provides a striking contrast with my own. I can be petty. I can get caught up in the problems around me: my personal failings, the faults of others, and the issues in the world. Paul’s example is spurring me to practice a different way of life.

 As we start the book of Philippians, let’s practice this together. I’m going to do it. I would love to hear your stories about it. Email me. Text me. Give me a call.

When we look at our circumstances and begin to feel discouraged, overwhelmed, or angry, let’s ask ourselves two questions.

1. What amazing and beautiful things is God doing around me?

2. What am I going to do to partner with God in these amazing and beautiful endeavors?

Who knows, perhaps we’ll find our lives marked by gratitude, joy, and confidence just like Paul did. 

–Pastor Jonny Moor

A brief letter to a church I love, in the middle of a difficult time in our nation's history

I begin by letting you know I wrote this when the results of the election and the responses from various groups around the country were still unsure (recognizing they still may be unsure even at the time I read this to you). I know some of us may be elated and some of us may be devastated. I know some of us are anxious and some of us are at peace. We do not know everything going on around us in our country, but we know it is, has, and will continue to affect our church life together.

I have two messages. First, God is here for you. Our God does not abandon us when we feel our country has failed us. Our God does not abandon us when we feel our country has excelled for us. Our God did not abandon the Israelite's when they were in Egypt. God did not forget the people under Marxist Communism, nor Apartheid, nor genocide, nor democracies at the best and worst. God can support you, reach out.

Second, we are here for you. When I say we, I mean your pastors. When I say we, I mean your leaders. When I say we, I mean your fellow church members. If you are in pain, we are here to support you, to pray for you, to listen to you, to love you. I know a couple of us pastors may feel foreign to you with all the changes, but I invite you not to let any unfamiliarity you may have with us be a barrier between us! Perhaps God has brought us together at this time for just this purpose so we can go through a difficult time together. You can find our phone numbers and emails all over the place. We can support you, reach out.

—Jonny Moor

Governing Authorities and Discipleship

Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God.

-Romans 13:1 (NIV)

Like all of you, I've been bombarded by political messages incessantly these last several weeks, and as I have, I have begun to seriously ask what my role as a citizen and a Christian at this time. It's in this present situation that God brought me to the study of this text (click here to listen to the sermon if you missed it).

Maybe you're like me and you haven't spent a lot of time on Romans 13:1, but since we take biblical discipleship seriously, I went on a fascinating journey with this passage. I can't share it all here, but I ended the sermon with two calls: (1) that submitting to our government means we should vote (generally, though there are a few exceptions), and (2) that though we don't vote monolithically (inevitably we have differing conclusions) or give one person a pulpit from which to tell people how to vote, we should lean into conversations with other Christians to discuss the pros and cons of different positions.

I've noticed that I often preach that or why we should do something. Sometimes I even talk about how, but I rarely give people a chance to experience what the Word is teaching. As the Holy Spirit has continued to journey with me since Sabbath, I've concluded I need to put my money where my mouth is. And so, I am inviting you to join me on Sunday, November 1, at 7 PM. I am going to host a Zoom conversation to give us a chance to practice civil discipleship. Even if you've already voted, it would still be great to have you.

Whether you join us in discussing the pros and cons of the measures below on Sunday, I hope you'll find a way to integrate the three guidelines we'll be using in our chat as you represent Jesus everywhere you go and with the people you talk with over the next week especially.

Principals for Talking about Politics Together

1-Respect. Assume the people you talk with are smart and kind, and speak and listen accordingly. (Even if what they say doesn't make sense to you.)

2-Honesty. When it's your turn, share what seems most loving to you and why.

3-Curiosity. What's one thing someone with a different perspective from you said that can help you love your neighbor better as you engage in the voting process?

Washington Items we may Discuss

Advisory Vote #32–Plastic Bags and Taxation

Advisory Vote #33–Heavy Equipment and Taxation

Constitutional Amendment #8212–Longterm Care Trust Act Management

— Jonny Moor