We attended Filadelfia Church this morning so we could meet up with, and give directions to, the people coming to our house tomorrow for Bible study. Many people greeted me at church and thanked me for what I shared last Thursday and Friday – so that was nice. And I got additional invitations to participate in even more events this coming week – one of which was being asked to speak from the pulpit next Sunday and share a little bit about what “church” means to me. They are currently doing a series on the importance of the church in a Christian’s life and they asked if I had something to say on the topic. I’ve yet to find any topic in which I don’t have something to say, so they signed me up and next week I’ll share a little. Kory likes to say that God gave me the gift of gab for a reason and He expects me to use it for His glory, so I’m thankful I can. Hallelujah.The pastor said something today in his sermon that reminded me of the attitudes I’ve heard that were held by many “State Church” Christians in days gone by. Since Norway has a long tradition with just one church – the State Church (very much like Lutherans) – many generations have been born into, christened, confirmed, married and buried in the same methodology. In fact, The State Church was the only church for hundreds of years in Norway ever since Holy Ole (the Viking) converted the locals about 900 years ago. But about 125 or so years ago, some people broke off from the rigidity and legalism of the State Church and formed the “Free Church.” It was very similar but it still split families apart as parents could not accept the fact their children would “turn from God” by breaking tradition. Then, about a hundred years ago, along came the Pentecostal movement, and that made the Free Church look like a cake walk, comparatively.
The Pentecostal Church rocked the boat in Norway like nothing else had. Most people looked at it as the devil’s work and if children ended up going to a Pentecostal meeting, they might as well kiss their families good-bye. Many parents refused to let their kids back in their homes as they were sure they were now possessed by Satan himself. Kory’s dad, in fact, lost his relationship with his parents (and his inheritance) when he became a Pentecostal in the 1930s. It was looked upon as a cult and blasphemous to God. So the pastor today talked about how in 1964 he became a Christian and went in search of a church that would baptize him as he felt the sprinkling he got as an infant from the State Church wasn’t exactly what the Bible referred to. He told his parents his desire to be baptized by emersion and they said if he did such a thing, he was no longer welcome in their home (he was 17 at the time). It took him a while to find a church that would actually do it and he had to travel many hours from his home to accomplish the task. But it was at the Filadelfia Church in Ålesund (a Pentecostal church) where he found kindred spirits who helped him accomplish his goal and he’s been part of that church ever since (first as a missionary to Africa and now as head pastor.) What shocks me is how clearly these Norwegians have missed the point - that it’s the same God in all these churches and the method in which He’s worshipped is NOT what it’s about. It’s only supposed to be about LOVE. But the real shocker is that some of that mind-set lingers even today. We attended a family reunion in 2000 here in Norway and some of the branches of Kory’s dad’s family that are still mainline State Church would NOT come because there were going to be Pentecostals in attendance and they didn’t think it wise to have “mixed religions” under one roof. (It’s so easy to see why these Norwegians have the reputation for being stubborn and hard-headed, if even the love of God can’t get through to them!)
But God has worked miracles in my stubborn Norwegian because after church today we BOTH cleaned the house. My idea of clean is completely different than Kory’s though as he thinks if nothing is sitting out on any surface then the house is clean. The toilet can be black and crumbs can be all over the counter, but if everything is in its place, then all is right in his world. I’m just the opposite – I don’t mind the clutter, but if the floors need to be vacuumed or the bathroom sink is full of toothpaste spit, then the house needs some attention. So in that regard, we are a good team as he focuses solely on putting things away, and I go for the grunge. It was supposed to be a day of rest, but we had company coming for dinner and the house was far from presentable. We invited over a couple (and their 3 kids) from our home fellowship group at Agape Church. They live in our neighborhood and we really like them so it was nice to have them here. Sabina and her mom came for coffee and dessert afterwards so we had a nice evening chatting about all kinds of things while the kids played together. It wasn’t intentional, but I do believe we are all Pentecostal. I guess I need to shake things up a bit and meet some of the State Church neighbors as well.
