My first introduction to the world of the Vikings came from Hagar the Horrible (at the same time that Beetle Bailey was introducing me to the army and Redeye was introducing me to Indians).  Then came the Minnesota football team.  And then somewhere along the way I dipped into Viking story books.  Only the ones with cool pictures, mind you.

But eventually — if one keeps pursuing these kinds of interests long enough — one finds that reality is so much more interesting than Hagar, Beetle, or Redeye ever let on.  Consider the background of how the Vikings took up the Christian faith.

In 793 AD, after the Vikings raided a monastery, the scholar Alcuin of York wrote: “Never before has such terror appeared in Britain as we have now suffered from a pagan race.  Behold, the church of Saint Cuthbert, splattered with the blood of the priests of God, despoiled of all its ornaments; a place more venerable than all in Britain is given as a prey to pagan peoples.”

The Viking attacks on Christian churches and monasteries became so frequent that one monk wrote: “Everywhere the Christians are victims of massacres, burnings and plunderings. The Vikings conquer all in their path, and no one resists them. Oh God deliver us, deliver us from the fury of the Northmen!!” And soon all of Europe was praying this prayer with him.

Yet, it was through these very raids that God began a centuries–long process of introducing the Vikings to Christ.

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Do you remember this character from the movie The Green Mile?  Do you remember the various ways in which the movie portrayed his mammoth strength, his colossus–like proportions, his all–around giganticness? 

Yet, as I search for a contemporary way to illustrate what the Bible means by “meekness,” I don’t think I can do much better.  This man was meek.

One film reviewer, while describing this character, said: “meekness is something other than wimpiness.  His care for others shows gentleness to be force under control.”

Meekness is perhaps best defined as “strength tempered with humility.”

You have to be strong in order to be meek.  A weak person is not meek.  Never can be.  Only a strong person can be meek.  Only a strong person can use their strength, their might, their power in order to humbly serve another.  That’s meekness:  not using great strength to “lord it over people,” but using great strength to humbly serve people.

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In these “faith” studies, we’re going to continue to develop what Christians believe about creation for a few more weeks (before turning our attention to what we believe about sin).

Have you ever asked the question, “WHY did God create this world?”

Sometimes well–meaning (but poorly taught) Christians say that God created this world because he was lonely and desired the companionship of man. 

Well, a unitarian god might get lonely and find himself in need of fellowship and companionship, but not the God of the Bible!  The God of the Bible exists eternally as three persons: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

And these three persons live in perfect fellowship, perfect community with one another, in need of nothing. 

So… why was something created?

Augustine’s answer to that question was beautifully simple…

If you ask who made the light, Genesis 1 tells you — it was God.

If you ask how he made it, Genesis 1 tells you — he made it through his creative word, by saying, “Let there be light!”

If you ask why he made it, Genesis 1 tells you that as well — because it was GOOD to do so.

There might be other things to say about God’s goals in creation (such as the fact that a community of perfect love naturally desires to serve others with that love), but we have a fully sufficient answer to our question right here.

The cause and reason for creation is so that a Good Product should be created by a Good God!

Everything that God has created is wholly and unambiguously GOOD!  Now, of course, sin has since entered the picture of God’s initial work of creation, and sin has introduced various ways to abuse created realities.  But never forget that the created realities themselves are good!

On seven different occasions in Genesis 1, God pronounces his works of creation to be “good.” And the very last verse climaxes, you may remember, with “And God saw everything he had made, and behold it was very good.”

God takes a very positive view of all that he has made, and we dishonor him if we take a negative view of anything that he has made.  Think through the implications of this.  None of God’s works in creation are morally compromised in and of themselves.

In fact, God takes such a positive view of everything that he’s created that he refused to just scrap it when mankind spoiled it!

Rather, he determined — at the cost of his Son’s life — to make it new and good again!

As someone has said, “God has made no junk, and God doesn’t ‘junk’ what he has made!”

One of our church members is a very committed volunteer with Set Free Ministries, a ministry that brings the good news of the forgiving–yet–just King to prisoners.

I recently accompanied him on one of these adventures.  Wow.  I now know what an acquaintance felt when he once wrote this:

“I think this is one reason I find worship services in prison so compelling — the joy and delight on the part of the guys in coming together as a forgiven community is almost palpable.  They act as men who have lost almost everything, including their dignity, and then gained the world in gaining Christ.  And they act like it.  They delight in recognizing that they had nothing at all, and now they have everything.

Respectable, middle–class churches nonetheless need to break through the patina of respectability that holds back expression of our joy and delight at having nothing of value in this world, but being given everything in Christ.”

Exactly.

To read a very interesting article that our church member, Bill Swenson, wrote about Set Free Ministries, click “Read More” below…

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Six hundred, twenty–four years and one day ago — on New Year’s Eve in 1384 — John Wycliffe died. 

In church history he is known as the “Morning Star of the Reformation,” the star which appeared early in the sky before the dawning day of the Reformation.  His appearing indicated that the Reformation was not far off; soon the light of the Reformation would break over Europe… & then over all of the world.

Among several other great achievements, Wycliffe was the man responsible for the very first translation of the entire Bible into the English language. 

In fact, he’s also called “The Father of English Prose,” because of the clarity and popularity of his writings and sermons, that did so much to shape our language today.

But his accomplishments were not appreciated by the pre–reformation church of his day.  As copies of his writings and his English translation of the Bible spread, officials of the medieval church ordered them banned and burned. 

In fact, denied the opportunity to martyr Wycliffe himself, the pre–reformation church even went so far as to exhume his body 44 years after his death, burn his bones, and scatter the ashes in a nearby river.  (Now that’s resentment!)

As the new year dawns, let us remember that this is also part of the continuing story of the true church:  a conviction that the Word of God is the only authoritative guide for Christian faith and practice… a conviction that every Christian has the right and privilege to know the Bible… and a conviction that when all the obscuring human innovations are cleared away, the Bible’s central message is that salvation is found in Jesus Christ alone.

If you haven’t been enjoying the Scriptures lately, now is a good time to start.  Go to the bottom of this page and click on the “Bible Reading Plans” link under “Sites of Interest.” Pick a plan that works for you, and start the new year off right.