Transcript Slide 1

Kingdom Perspectives
Responding to Power and Violence
24th October 2013
What does the Lord require of you but to do justice, to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God – Micah 6:8
Power & Violence
• 2 Samuel 13
–
–
–
–
King David’s family
Ammon falls in love with Tamar (half sister)
Tamar was Absalom’s sister
Ammon’s close friend: Jonadab (son of Shimeah - brother of
David)
• Ammon seeks Jonadab’s advice – a plan of deception is hatched
– Ammon wants to sleep with Tamar and she refuses – so he rapes
her.
• He turns violent and throws her out
– Absalom sees her state, questions her and then silences her and
tells her to live with it
– David heard about it and was furious
What does the Lord require of you but to do justice, to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God – Micah 6:8
Those involved
Names
What they did
What they did not do
Reaction
Amnon
Jonadab
Absalom
King David
Servants
Others
Tamar
1. What was the role of each man and how did they contribute to the
situation?
2. What could each man have done and how would it have transformed
the situation?
3. What prevented each man from taking action?
4. What could have motivated each man to intervene or change?
What does the Lord require of you but to do justice, to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God – Micah 6:8
Overview
Names
What they did
What they did not do
Amnon
•
•
•
•
Lust
Accepted bad advice
Deceived father
Rape – ended in Hate / rejection
•
•
•
•
Respected position
Confession / repentance
Controlled himself
Not listened to bad advice
Jonadab
•
•
Gave bad council
Helped develop evil plan
•
•
Questions and helped him
Inform the King / Tamar
King David
•
•
•
Did not protect Tamar
Took no action
Poor role model
•
•
•
Role model / Counselled kids
Protected / restored Tamar
Dealt justly with Amnon
Absalom
•
•
•
Silenced Tamar
Kept quite
Hated Amnon - killed
•
•
Supported Tamar
Presented the King with the
evidence
Servants
•
•
Showed no compassion
Through her out
•
•
Spoken up / reported it
Warned Tamar
Others
•
•
Left the house – enabling environment
All were silent
•
•
Responded to cries for help
Recognised the dangers
Tamar
•
•
•
Obedient to father
Compassion to “ill” brother
Tried to prevent, sought justice even
marriage
Reaction
?
What does the Lord require of you but to do justice, to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God – Micah 6:8
Reflections
• Where were the women in this story?
• What ways could this have been
prevented?
• How was power used?
What does the Lord require of you but to do justice, to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God – Micah 6:8
Power
The Bully
•
•
•
•
The Sexual Controller
•
•
•
Rapes you
Wont accept no for an answer
Keeps you pregnant
King of the Castle
•
•
•
•
Treats you as a slave
Says women are for sex / cooking
Controls money
Expects sex on demand
The Jailor
•
Stops you from work or seeing
friends / family
Tells you what to wear
Keeps you in the house
Seduces your friends / family
•
•
•
The Bad Father
•
•
•
•
Says you are a bad mother
Turns children against you
Threatens to take kids away
Wants you to have his kids so as to
control you – does not care for kids
The Liar
•
•
•
Denies any abuse
Says it was only a slap
Blames drink, drugs, unemployment
Glares
Shouts
Breaks things
Sulks
The HeadWorker
•
•
•
Puts you down
Undermines you
Tells you: you are ugly, thin /
fat, stupid. useless
The Persuader
•
•
•
•
Threatens to hunt you down
Cries – says he loves you
Threatens suicide
Threatens to tell the authorities
What does the Lord require of you but to do justice, to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God – Micah 6:8
Its starts with each of Us
What does the Lord require of you but to do justice, to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God – Micah 6:8
Prejudices
• A pre‐conceived
opinion likely to be
harmful to another
person or his/her
rights
– Generalises
– Judges
– Condemns
• Philippians 2:3 –
consider others better
than yourself
What does the Lord require of you but to do justice, to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God – Micah 6:8
Violence
We cannot “fix” the world by using power!
• Example of Jesus
– Had all the power
– Chose love and
sacrifice
• We are called to
imitate Jesus (Eph 5:1-2)
• To respond in love (1
• Eye for an eye –
leaves us all blind
• Be reconcilers
• Be peacemakers
• Care for the
vulnerable
Cor 16:14)
What does the Lord require of you but to do justice, to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God – Micah 6:8
Approach for the
Church
•
•
•
•
An essential role of the local
church is to help frame and inform
every area of our lives with the
Gospel
Equipping believers with a
thorough understanding of
Poverty, Justice and creation care
(core characteristics of God)
Facilitation of dialogue around
current issues of injustice within
their own community, nation and
globally
Encouraging engagement in social
action the local church plays an
essential role in the work of
justice.
•
•
•
•
Volunteer approach
– Pros and cons
Practice
– Example
– Partnership
– Cooperation
Understanding roles of actors in
relief & development
Dealing with the tough questions
What does the Lord require of you but to do justice, to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God – Micah 6:8
Family
• Why does family matter?
– Building block of the community
– Source of our sense of identity in relationships
– God places us in families as a means of support, love, care,
protection, well being, identity, belonging, fellowship, etc.
• How does one’s faith impact and shape family?
– Relationship commitments and responsibilities
– How do we honour God in our role as parent, spouse, sibling,
relative?
– In what way does it shape / challenge our cultural traditions
and models of family?
– How do we cultivate our faith in our family context?
– How do we enable our family to develop deeper relationships
with Jesus?
– How do we practice the presence of Jesus in our family
Called out to take
Responsibility
What does the Lord require of you but to do justice, to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God – Micah 6:8
The Gospel is not a call to
social quietism
Its goal is not to take us out of the
world but to put us in the world
If Jesus is Lord than people must be confronted with his authority over the totality of life
Evangelism is not a mere offer of benefits – its priestly and kingly
What does the Lord require of you but to do justice, to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God – Micah 6:8
What does Transformation
Look Like?
• Restoration of
families &
relationships
• Healing & lives
changes
• Release from
bondages
• Freedom from
oppression
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Safety & security
Repentance from sin
Decrease in crime
Opportunities for work
Moralities increases
Ministries multiple
Hunger for truth - for God
Life in all its fullness
What does the Lord require of you but to do justice, to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God – Micah 6:8
What does the Lord require of you but to do justice, to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God – Micah 6:8