Men's Retreat

Two weeks ago, I attended my church's annual men's retreat. The speaker was Rev. Bob Bjerkaas, who gave a series of excellent talks on the apostle Paul. Below is a summary with select questions for reflection from each session.

Talk 1: Paul the Patient Apprentice

Paul was from Tarsus, an epicenter of learning. He had everything: education, pedigree, citizenship. And yet everything changed for this 'Hebrew of Hebrews' on the road to Damascus (see Acts 9). This man, who had sought to kill or imprison followers of Jesus, would become one of them. 

The Lord appeared to Paul and sent him to Ananias, a teacher with whom Paul would spend three years in Damascus (Galatians 1:15-18). He then went to Jerusalem for 15 days, but then out again to Syria and Cilicia (Galatians 1:18-24). He would spend 14 years in various regions (Galatians 2:1-2), ending up in Cyprus (Acts 13:1-12). During this time, he was under Barnabas' teaching for a decade (and was first called Paul) before returning to the City of David. All told, from Damascus to Cyprus, the learned Paul submitted himself to the teaching of others for 17-20 years. What marvelous patience!

Reflection Questions:

1. Am I happy where God has placed me now? 

2. Am I benefiting from people God has put over me now?

3. Do I have unholy discontent where I am, and with what I am doing?

Talk 2: Paul the Slave of God
We shy away from the word 'slave' today, but Paul embraced it and used it to describe himself in relation to God. Then as now, the title was as derogatory and shameful as possible. Since the Greek has one word for slave and servant (doulos), we tend to use the latter because it is easier to swallow . . . but the former better captures what Paul means.

In the Hellenistic context, a slave was part of the family but without rights. They would be considered part of the household (see Philippians 4:22); Caesar had 20K slaves. Slaves had rank; the pride was to whom you belonged. They were property and could be willed to others. Importantly, the ancients had a concept called sacral manumission: if a slave was willed to the temple, he was off limits to anyone else—ever. He was free from earthly masters to serve God! This context is vital to understood Paul's teachings.

Paul routinely invokes verbiage directly or indirectly related to slavery to describe the life of the Christian in relation to God (see Romans 6:15-23, 1 Corinthians 6:19-20, 1 Corinthians 7:20-22, 2 Timothy 2:22-24). Whether our English translations render it 'slave' or 'servant,' it is the same word. In Paul's view, he has been sacrally manumitted to Christ: set free from serving sin and is bonded to God, never to be sold again. We all are slaves to something or someone . . . Christ is the superior master.

Reflection Questions:

1. Do I see myself as a slave of Christ? Do I delight in this?

2. Am I focused on pleaseing people or serving God?

3. How often do I remember that I am not my own—that I was bought with a price?

Talk 3: Paul the Humble Preacher
Paul was unmistakably familiar with the culture of the day. His birth city was a hotbed of sophists, and Paul uses their languge in his letter to the Corinthians. And yet, Paul was shockingly countercultural. Though trained in the methods of the day (as seen in the Isthmian games in first-century Corinth), Paul was focused on bringing something that was unmistakably different: he taught in a way that embodied the Gospel. He would contradict the value system of the day to show the wisdom of Christ. How?

Paul deliberately avoided building his ministry on popular technique or method. He didn't come with lofty speech or wisdom, but in weakness and fear, so that their faith would not rest in the wisdom of men or words of flattery but in the power of God (1 Corinthians 2, 1 Thessalonians 2). He valued message over method, recognizing that "what you win them with is what you win them to." And He modeled Jesus, who (among other things) focused on interacting with people vs. public sermons. Paul wanted people vs. their respect or support (2 Corinthians 12:14).

Reflection Questions:

1. Am I relying on the world's techniques/wisdom, or the power of God?

2. Am I focused on relationships? On authentic life with people?

3. Am I interruptable?

Talk 4: Paul the Servant Leader
Paul demonstrated servant leadership in many ways. One example is when he is a prisoner and on a ship caught in a violent storm. Here, he displayed leadership throughout the event, comforting and guiding people, and when they wrecked on Malta, Paul gathered brushwood as others looked on though he was old (late fifties), cold, wet, and probably starving (see Acts 27:1-28:10). The locals were blown away and eventually invited him to the main house, where he healed and used his gifts there. He demonstrated important truths:

- Leaders see needs and act.

- Nothing is beneath the dignity of a shepherd in Christ's church. 

- Great leaders focus on serving others, even when suffering.

- God can do incredible things when faithful leaders apply their weak gifts in the service of others. You don't have to be good at something for God to do something good through you. You have strengths . . . God wants your weaknesses (see 2 Corinthians 12:1-10).

Reflection Questions

1. What are the 'sticks' in your world? 

2. How can you look for ways to serve?

3. How can you serve God in your weakness (doing things you are bad at)?

Talk 5: Paul the Optimistic Mentor
Before his conversion, Paul was wreaking havoc on Christians (Acts 7:54-8:3, 9:1-2). Ananias was understandably alarmed at the prospect of helping Paul (Acts 9:10-19), yet trusted the Lord and called Paul brother (see v17), welcoming him. Paul, who learned under Ananias, displays this same cordial attitude towards misbehaving Christians. 

Paul is always thankful, praying with joy, and confident that God will complete the work that He starts in the lives of His people (Philippians 1:3-6). To quote a Puritan, Paul "learned to rejoice whenever [he] detect[ed] the slightest whiff of Christ in a person." He doesn't look backwards and downwards, but forwards and upwards. He doesn't rest on his laurels, nor does he beat himself (or others) up for failing, but keeps his eye on the prize (Philippians 3:1-14). He is optimistic.

Paul remains optimistic even when faced with conflicts, hardships, and opponents. He encourages maturity (Philippians 3:15-16) but doesn't deny others the status of 'brother' or fight with them, reminding even those who quarrel that their names written in the book of life (Philippians 4:2-3)! Paul recognizes that God works in a different order and different pace in different people. And he is confident of people's obedience (Philemon, esp. v21) because of God's promises. 

 

Reflection Questions

1. Do you look at people optimistically?

2. Are you confident in God's promise to finish the work He begins—in yourself and others?

3. How can you cultivate optimism towards others in your life—especially your spouse?

Final Thoughts

I couldn't capture everything in the above, but I hope that I captured the gist. It was a wonderful insight into Paul the man, and there is much to reflect upon here.