Things Above

How can we understand beauty through the lens of Jesus? In episode 30 of the Things Above podcast, James Bryan Smith sits down for a conversation with pastor Brian Zahnd, who has authored books, such as ‘Water to Wine,’ ‘Beauty Will Save the World’ and his latest work, ‘Postcards from Babylon.’ Jim and Brian draw from the collective wisdom of Hans Urs von Balthasar, Dostoyevsky, Thomas Aquinas, Dallas Willard and Mary Oliver as they discuss the importance of beauty in our Christian faith and in the world.

Our external behaviors, actions and accomplishments are what much of the world uses to judge us. In many cases, outsiders’ opinions shape our identity. In this episode of the Things Above podcast, James Bryan Smith explores the unhealthy ways our identity is shaped and offers another way to understand our identity – a life that is in Christ.

The world says our identity is determined by our behavior, leading to a host of problems. Unless we are directly affirmed for who we are and not what we do, we cannot withstand criticism, no matter how well intended. But when our life is in Christ, our identity guides our behavior.

In Paul’s letter to the Colossians, he starts the third chapter by explaining our identity in Christ:

1If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. 2 Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. 3 For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. 4 When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.

You see, for followers of Jesus, we are going to appear with him in glory – not because of what we’ve done but because of who we are. Paul spent a considerable amount of time explaining this in his letters to the Romans (chapter 6), 1 Corinthians (chapter 1), and Ephesians (chapters 1-3). At the end of Ephesians 3, Paul offers up a glorious prayer that affirms our identity in Christ (v.14-21). Immediately afterwards, he urges us to live a life worthy of the calling we’ve received. This week, you’re invited to set your minds on this glorious thought: Identity before behavior.

What does “blessed” mean and how do we know if a person is “blessed”? In this episode of the Things Above podcast, James Bryan Smith unpacks Psalm 1 and the blessed life. It turns out, the blessed person is someone who is under God’s blessing, in which God affirms this condition. It also means happy or fulfilled, indicating a strong, positive feeling. Finally, it indicates being intrinsically right, where our inner world is aligned. What is the condition that leads to this blessing? The psalmist starts with the negative by pointing out three postures. The blessed person does not walk in the counsel of the ungodly, nor stand in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of the scornful. What’s important to note here is that this doesn’t describe how God feels about the sinner, but rather the impact of the ungodly on the lives of those who stand in solidarity with them. In other words, the blessed person does not walk or stand or sit with people whose hearts and minds are against God. Instead, the blessed delight in God’s law (v.2), which refers to God’s will, or the kingdom of God. Those who meditate on the law day and night are setting their minds and hearts on things above. The result of this leads to a blessed life – where our actions are connected our thoughts. We can do this while journeying with people who desire the same, drawing from a constant source of life in God with strong roots and an uninterrupted flow of energy. Key verses include Psalm 1:1-6 (KJV).

In this episode, James Bryan Smith explains the difference between guilt and shame. Shame is feeling bad about who we are. Guilt, in contrast, is feeling bad about what we have done. Guilt can be healthy because it allows us to make amends or change our behavior. However, shame is always bad. Smith explains that shame is an act of self-betrayal because we are God’s beloved. The most fundamental thing about our nature is not sin - it is goodness, beauty, and truth. Smith concludes that what prevents us from shame is the fact that we are first and foremost God’s beloved.

People have a tendency to fear God largely because of our sins. At the heart of our fear lies the narrative that our unfaithfulness to God makes us unlovable by God. This is nothing new for humanity. Ancient Israel struggled with this same fear. In this episode of the Things Above podcast, James Bryan Smith explores this false narrative by unpacking a passage from Isaiah 43 and offers this glorious thought: God’s love is greater than our sins. You see, Israel was afraid their unfaithfulness resulted in exile and captivity, and therefore God didn’t love them. But they were wrong. God speaks to Israel through the prophet Isaiah. The assumption was that God punished them for their many sins. But God reminds them of this important truth: “Do not fear! I made you. I formed you. I have redeemed you. I have called you by name. You are mine. You are precious in my sight. You are honored. I love you. I am with you.” Do you need to be reminded of this truth? Experiment with this soul training exercise: “I, _insert your name_, am precious in God’s sight. I, _insert your name_, am honored, and God loves me.” Write this down on an index card or post-it note and repeat this to yourself throughout the week. Jot down your experience with this and share it with your friend or spouse.

Key verses include Romans 12:2, Isaiah 43:1-7, Romans 6.

In this episode, James Bryan Smith has a conversation with author and pastor Greg Boyd about the transformational process of “mind discipleship.” Greg also describes his childhood journey and the struggles he faced at home and at church. Ultimately, this was very healing, as he moved from deep feelings of helplessness and hopelessness to an even deeper understanding of God’s love through the cross. For the first time in his life, Greg was able to see God’s loving, self-giving, and humble character – a discovery that changed the way he lived forever. Greg Boyd has authored several books, including Cross Vision, Letters to a Skeptic and Seeing is Believing. He also hosts his own podcast, called ReKnew.

In this episode James Bryan Smith explains this glorious thought: You are God’s beloved even in your worst moments. The world we live in today is based on comparison, Smith explains that when we live into this culture of comparison we begin to reject ourselves. We begin to think that we are not good enough to be God's beloved. In order to believe that we are God's beloved we need a power greater than ourselves, the Holy Spirit. Smith goes on to explain that our belovedness is not based on what we do or what we have earned. It is freely bestowed on us because God’s love is greater than our sin. We are the beloved because of God not because of anything we have done. Key verses include: Luke 3:21-2

Our daily activity sometimes causes us to miss the best moments in life. We get lost in our thoughts and fail to see God who is in our midst. In this episode of the Things Above podcast, James Bryan Smith shares a heavenly thought: Be mindful that God is with you in all you do.

In his book, Discipline and Discovery, Albert Edward Day offers some words about God's presence with us: "Did you ever encounter, on the street, a friend whose physical eyes looked at you without seeing you? You walked right into him before the alien look on his face changed into one of recognition. Then he confessed that he had been so absorbed in thought about some other matters that he had not been aware of you, until your intentional collision with him. You were there, yet he did not see you. Though actually in your presence, he was nevertheless unconscious of you as if you did not exist. That is a persistent failure of the unemancipated consciousness. It can be so preoccupied with lesser realities that it does not sense the presence of the Divine reality surrounding and sustaining it. Something has to happen to end the absorption in other affairs so that it can turn its attention to God.”

We can get preoccupied with “things below,” which impacts our relationship with God. We get caught up in the tyranny of an idea or a dream and release the awareness of something greater than the idea or dream, namely God Himself. So what can we do? Jim suggests that we can train ourselves to be aware of all we do and integrate a constant awareness of God by living on two levels.

Quaker writer Thomas Kelley wrote about this in “A Testament of Devotion.” On one level, we can go about our daily tasks at hand – working, driving, reading, etc. On another level, we can include our attentiveness to the presence of God in our midst – intimate fellowship with Him. This is what makes life splendid. Have you been aware of God’s goodness, love and holiness lately? Experiment with this today or this week. Jot your experience down in a journal or notebook and reflect on what you observed.

Have you discovered that worrying is a healthy way to deal with the future? Yah, me neither. Jesus has something better in mind. In this episode of the Things Above podcast, James Bryan Smith tells us that worrying does nothing positive for us. However, it does come with several negative consequences. Jesus teaches us that worrying is something we can live without. In Matthew 6:27, Jesus asks, “And can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?” Worrying does nothing positive, but it does a lot of bad for us. Worry adversely affects our mental and physical health. So why do we worry? Maybe it’s because worry is superstition and we don’t even know it. The definition of superstition is “a widely held but unjustified belief in supernatural causation leading to certain consequences of an action or event, or a practice based on such a belief.” Black cats, rabbit feet, mirrors and ladders are things we connect to superstition. Superstition and, more importantly, worry has to do with control. We trick ourselves into thinking that our behavior gives us power and control. When we make the mistake of thinking we have all the power and control, we consequently take God out of the equation. So what is the antidote to worry? It’s the realization that (1) worry doesn’t do anything and (2) we live in the strong and unshakable kingdom of God. When we understand that God is out for our good, then we don’t need to worry. Now, this doesn’t mean we can live recklessly or assume that our life will be free of problems. But God is always with us and has the power to bring joy out of sorrow. We can trust and entrust our lives with God. Do not worry. Key verses include Matthew 6:25-34; John 10:10; Romans 8:28.

In this episode of the Things above podcast, James Bryan Smith chats with author and pastor J.R. Briggs about a glorious thought that changed the trajectory of his life. Briggs offers a two-fold answer. First, it was the present availability of the kingdom of God and eternal living. The second thought centers on what it means to be a missionary in our everyday lives – to be a missionary cleverly disguised as a good neighbor. This has a critical connection to the message and activity of the local church. Briggs believes if Monday through Saturday is not impacted by our Christian living, then we would do well to re-think how we are “doing church” on Sunday and the kind of gospel we’re communicating.