Focus 3 | ...for balance.
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Consider this ice breaker as you gather for the Spotlight.
What is your favorite thing to eat for breakfast?
What is your favorite thing to eat for breakfast?
See what this Spotlight—and series—is focused on.
Tap on the words "Focus 3" in the image below to read this Spotlight's summary.
Tap on the words "Focus 3" in the image below to read this Spotlight's summary.
As he nears the end of his poem of encouragement to all who embark on a great journey, the good Dr. Suess gives this warning:
You'll get mixed up, of course,
as you already know.
You'll get mixed up
with many strange birds as you go.
So be sure when you step.
Step with care and great tact
and remember that Life's
a Great Balancing Act.
Just never forget to be dexterous and deft.
And never mix up your right foot with your left.
(Emphasis ours—because the balancing act that gives life is exactly the focus of this Spotlight. ALL life existence in a balance. Let's see how…)
You'll get mixed up, of course,
as you already know.
You'll get mixed up
with many strange birds as you go.
So be sure when you step.
Step with care and great tact
and remember that Life's
a Great Balancing Act.
Just never forget to be dexterous and deft.
And never mix up your right foot with your left.
(Emphasis ours—because the balancing act that gives life is exactly the focus of this Spotlight. ALL life existence in a balance. Let's see how…)
Let’s use a game to learn the role forces play in balance.
You’re used to this phenomenon—it happens every day, all around you. There’s a lot of tensions that makes the universe work. In fact, it’s altogether possible that you are underestimating the power of these forces.
Take this simple quiz to show how powerful the forces that yield balance in your world truly are.
You’re used to this phenomenon—it happens every day, all around you. There’s a lot of tensions that makes the universe work. In fact, it’s altogether possible that you are underestimating the power of these forces.
Take this simple quiz to show how powerful the forces that yield balance in your world truly are.
Download and share one (or both) of these graphics on Insta or Facebook.
What God has set up to keep you from hurtling into space is greater than you probably will ever comprehend—but it’s just the tip of the iceberg. This Spotlight is going to focus on two vital forces of God’s character that are vastly more important than gravity or inertia.
(Nevertheless, what God has done with the universe is GREAT. Shout it from the digital rooftops with one of these images. You can also tag Illume and/or use the hashtag #forbalance in your post.)
+ DOWNLOAD IMAGE 1 | + DOWNLOAD IMAGE 2
What God has set up to keep you from hurtling into space is greater than you probably will ever comprehend—but it’s just the tip of the iceberg. This Spotlight is going to focus on two vital forces of God’s character that are vastly more important than gravity or inertia.
(Nevertheless, what God has done with the universe is GREAT. Shout it from the digital rooftops with one of these images. You can also tag Illume and/or use the hashtag #forbalance in your post.)
+ DOWNLOAD IMAGE 1 | + DOWNLOAD IMAGE 2
Welcome Perspective
Discover a new way to look at ditches.
Exodus 34:6–7
The two “forces” this Spotlight will consider are LOVE & FAITHFULNESS.
Sometimes you’ll hear them talked about in terms of ditches on each side of a road—that on the one side, there’s “too much ‘gospel (or unconditional love)’,” and on the other side, there’s “too much ‘law’ (or consistent faithfulness).” Falling into these ditches, like falling into any ditch, hurts.
To see how this hurts, start with a basic definition of the terms defining the ditches. Unfortunately, the terms “law” and “gospel” can be a little unclear, so for the ditches in this consider the terms CONDITIONAL CONDEMNATION & UNCONDITIONAL ACCEPTANCE
Quickly define these two terms for yourself/within your group before reading on.
Falling into these ditches can be harmful. When a person falls into the ditch of “conditional condemnation,” they start thinking that God is angry at them because of things they’ve done… and there’s no hope.
Exodus 34:6–7
The two “forces” this Spotlight will consider are LOVE & FAITHFULNESS.
Sometimes you’ll hear them talked about in terms of ditches on each side of a road—that on the one side, there’s “too much ‘gospel (or unconditional love)’,” and on the other side, there’s “too much ‘law’ (or consistent faithfulness).” Falling into these ditches, like falling into any ditch, hurts.
To see how this hurts, start with a basic definition of the terms defining the ditches. Unfortunately, the terms “law” and “gospel” can be a little unclear, so for the ditches in this consider the terms CONDITIONAL CONDEMNATION & UNCONDITIONAL ACCEPTANCE
Quickly define these two terms for yourself/within your group before reading on.
Falling into these ditches can be harmful. When a person falls into the ditch of “conditional condemnation,” they start thinking that God is angry at them because of things they’ve done… and there’s no hope.
When a person falls into the ditch of “unconditional acceptance,” they start thinking that God has not provided them with good, helpful truths, but rather that nothing is really “right” or “wrong.”
Steering away from these two ditches has been called the “highest art” of Christian living—and it's definitely complex. It is the tendency of the human heart to over-emphasize one side or the other—the “rules” side of things or the “love” side of things—instead of finding a harmony between them.
(First, you should know that it’s OK to get this wrong sometimes. God does forgive you and unconditionally accepts you. Your track record on this doesn’t matter to him. At the same time, you should know that he wants to lead you into doing this better—because he does.)
The LORD, the LORD, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness...
Exodus 34:6–7
God does this perfectly. He is consistently faithful and never fails or compromises, but he is totally loving toward everyone, including anyone who isn’t as faithful as he is.
(First, you should know that it’s OK to get this wrong sometimes. God does forgive you and unconditionally accepts you. Your track record on this doesn’t matter to him. At the same time, you should know that he wants to lead you into doing this better—because he does.)
The LORD, the LORD, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness...
Exodus 34:6–7
God does this perfectly. He is consistently faithful and never fails or compromises, but he is totally loving toward everyone, including anyone who isn’t as faithful as he is.
Consider how these lyrics help illuminate this.
As it happens, there’s a song that speaks to this that was written by Illume’s pastor, Kent Reeder, at a songwriting event a few years ago. Here’s what Drew, Illume’s production coordinator, wrote about the song:
Kent admitted that one of his (secondary) goals, as he was working on this song, was to see how weird he could make a song, but still have it be congregational. In that regard, he certainly succeeded. The melody is very singable, but not something you typically think of as “church music.” The metaphors are vivid but complex; they certainly take a little digging into to fully comprehend.
Perhaps more importantly though, he does an excellent job of portraying the relationship between Law and Gospel and how they play out in the life of a Christian.
And here’s what Kent had to say about why it was written, back when he originally wrote it:
“You are the tragic moment in the story of my God, the seed in his teeth. He lacks nothing until he has you. At the same time, you are an amazing display of his love. Sure, he loves other things like animals and plants, because he made them and there is nothing about them that he should hate. But he loves you and hates you more than he ever would an animal or a plant.
The truth that God is a god of just laws who punishes based on behavior collides with the truth that God is a god of merciful love who forgives based on grace, and living in the midst of that collision is what this song is about. The human life is spent in the space between the Law and the Gospel, at the meeting point of God’s grace and his truth, at the foot of Christ’s cross. This means we see both come completely true, and we live life figuring out what is which from experience to experience. Walking that line looks exactly like living in love, and learning to understand and enjoy our place in this collision is the very thing that gives us hope that we can follow the Lord’s call. This is our reason to rejoice.”
Let’s go ahead and listen to the song. (After we listen to the song, we’ll further explore the lyrics with some lyrical analysis and discussion questions—below the video player.)
As it happens, there’s a song that speaks to this that was written by Illume’s pastor, Kent Reeder, at a songwriting event a few years ago. Here’s what Drew, Illume’s production coordinator, wrote about the song:
Kent admitted that one of his (secondary) goals, as he was working on this song, was to see how weird he could make a song, but still have it be congregational. In that regard, he certainly succeeded. The melody is very singable, but not something you typically think of as “church music.” The metaphors are vivid but complex; they certainly take a little digging into to fully comprehend.
Perhaps more importantly though, he does an excellent job of portraying the relationship between Law and Gospel and how they play out in the life of a Christian.
And here’s what Kent had to say about why it was written, back when he originally wrote it:
“You are the tragic moment in the story of my God, the seed in his teeth. He lacks nothing until he has you. At the same time, you are an amazing display of his love. Sure, he loves other things like animals and plants, because he made them and there is nothing about them that he should hate. But he loves you and hates you more than he ever would an animal or a plant.
The truth that God is a god of just laws who punishes based on behavior collides with the truth that God is a god of merciful love who forgives based on grace, and living in the midst of that collision is what this song is about. The human life is spent in the space between the Law and the Gospel, at the meeting point of God’s grace and his truth, at the foot of Christ’s cross. This means we see both come completely true, and we live life figuring out what is which from experience to experience. Walking that line looks exactly like living in love, and learning to understand and enjoy our place in this collision is the very thing that gives us hope that we can follow the Lord’s call. This is our reason to rejoice.”
Let’s go ahead and listen to the song. (After we listen to the song, we’ll further explore the lyrics with some lyrical analysis and discussion questions—below the video player.)
Question #1: What is in-between Law & Gospel—what’s the line between them?
VERSE 1
Love is walking a tightrope
while you’re suffering vertigo but
still confident because you know
the rope’s on the floor,
and you cannot fall
so hope in the Lord
as he calls.
CHORUS 1
Law, meet the gospel,
and Gospel, meet Law.
I am the space in between.
Here at the altar the line has been drawn
Christ in the middle with me.
Question #2: How can the application of Law vs Gospel (or love vs faithfulness) vary from case to case? Why does this complicate things?
VERSE 2
Love is keeping your balance
when ambition and apathy collide.
Judging the case is to ask
if grace or disgrace
would be best applied
to aches in the body of Christ.
CHORUS 2
Law meets the Gospel
and Gospel meets Law.
Love is the space in between,
here at the altar the line has been drawn—
Christ in the middle with me.
Question #3: Has there been a time for you when these two forces have been nicely in alignment for you—when you’ve really seen them work together? (Share an example if you have one.)
VERSE 3
Love is splitting the difference
between cutting and mending as it seems
love is the answer only
if Christ is the cause
and the dotted line
the whence and the end you will find.
CHORUS 3
Law isn’t Gospel and Gospel’s not Law—
love is the difference between.
Here at the cross, where the line has been drawn,
love is the difference in me.
Question #4: You may be noticing the paradox of living between Law & Gospel. Which of the contradictory pairs in the bridge speaks to you most, and why?
BRIDGE
We are the failures, we are the best.
We are the panic, we are the rest.
We are the future, we are the past.
We are with Jesus, in present tense.
Question #5: You know when you’ve been “the failure,” and you can certainly think of the times you’ve done it “right.” Can you think of times when you’ve been both at-the-same-time?
CHORUS 4
We are the Gospel and we are the Law—
we are the difference between.
Here, in my heart, where the lines have been drawn
love, be the difference,
oh, Christ, be the difference,
yes, love is the difference in me.
Question #6: What can you do to exist in the space between Law & Gospel in the future?
VERSE 1
Love is walking a tightrope
while you’re suffering vertigo but
still confident because you know
the rope’s on the floor,
and you cannot fall
so hope in the Lord
as he calls.
CHORUS 1
Law, meet the gospel,
and Gospel, meet Law.
I am the space in between.
Here at the altar the line has been drawn
Christ in the middle with me.
Question #2: How can the application of Law vs Gospel (or love vs faithfulness) vary from case to case? Why does this complicate things?
VERSE 2
Love is keeping your balance
when ambition and apathy collide.
Judging the case is to ask
if grace or disgrace
would be best applied
to aches in the body of Christ.
CHORUS 2
Law meets the Gospel
and Gospel meets Law.
Love is the space in between,
here at the altar the line has been drawn—
Christ in the middle with me.
Question #3: Has there been a time for you when these two forces have been nicely in alignment for you—when you’ve really seen them work together? (Share an example if you have one.)
VERSE 3
Love is splitting the difference
between cutting and mending as it seems
love is the answer only
if Christ is the cause
and the dotted line
the whence and the end you will find.
CHORUS 3
Law isn’t Gospel and Gospel’s not Law—
love is the difference between.
Here at the cross, where the line has been drawn,
love is the difference in me.
Question #4: You may be noticing the paradox of living between Law & Gospel. Which of the contradictory pairs in the bridge speaks to you most, and why?
BRIDGE
We are the failures, we are the best.
We are the panic, we are the rest.
We are the future, we are the past.
We are with Jesus, in present tense.
Question #5: You know when you’ve been “the failure,” and you can certainly think of the times you’ve done it “right.” Can you think of times when you’ve been both at-the-same-time?
CHORUS 4
We are the Gospel and we are the Law—
we are the difference between.
Here, in my heart, where the lines have been drawn
love, be the difference,
oh, Christ, be the difference,
yes, love is the difference in me.
Question #6: What can you do to exist in the space between Law & Gospel in the future?
Listen to this song about love and faithfulness.
This one isn’t by Kent (or anyone at Illume), but it is a great song!
This one isn’t by Kent (or anyone at Illume), but it is a great song!
Worship Perspective
Watch this video and learn about an Old Testament/New Testament parallel of terms.
Let’s learn about fullness through balance and tension.
Have you ever seen a tensegrity sculpture or table?
tensegrity: tensional integrity or floating compression is a structural principle based on a system of isolated components under compression inside a network of continuous tension
Check out this video about tensigrity and the human body. In the video, chiropractor Tom Myers explains tensigrity and uses it as an analogy to the human body.
Have you ever seen a tensegrity sculpture or table?
tensegrity: tensional integrity or floating compression is a structural principle based on a system of isolated components under compression inside a network of continuous tension
Check out this video about tensigrity and the human body. In the video, chiropractor Tom Myers explains tensigrity and uses it as an analogy to the human body.
Now, let’s talk about tensegrity as an analogy to God by discussing the following questions:
- How is the fact that God is “abounding in love and faithfulness” like a tensegrity sculpture?
- How do you think he is different from a tensegrity sculpture?
Let’s discover how maintaining balance is really all about vulnerability.
(If you’re doing this Spotlight with a group, you’ll need to break up into 1-on-1 pairs for this.)
The single best tool for keeping yourself aware of the full force of “love and faithfulness” or “grace and truth” in your life is honest confession.
With your partner, answer these two questions:
(If you’re doing this Spotlight with a group, you’ll need to break up into 1-on-1 pairs for this.)
The single best tool for keeping yourself aware of the full force of “love and faithfulness” or “grace and truth” in your life is honest confession.
With your partner, answer these two questions:
- Where do you feel like you could be more faithful to God and to the important people in your life? (Partner: Can you give them an example of how Jesus was faithful in whatever area your partner isn’t? Then, can you remind them that Jesus’ perfect faithfulness is given to them for free?)
- What in your life does the best job of reminding you that you are unconditionally loved? (Partner: Give them a suggestion of how they could enhance their awareness of this love!)
Learn Perspective
Let’s prepare for our 30-Hour Famine.
On Friday, January 1st, 2021, Illume invites you to fast for 30 hours to consider, support, and pray for those who are hungry and in need.
Donations from Illume’s 30-Hour Famine will go to FamilyWorks Seattle.
On Friday, January 1st, 2021, Illume invites you to fast for 30 hours to consider, support, and pray for those who are hungry and in need.
Donations from Illume’s 30-Hour Famine will go to FamilyWorks Seattle.
One of the benefits of working with FamilyWorks is that they accept donations of food, clothing, and household items.
+ CLICK HERE to a look at their list of allowed donation items. As you look at the list, take note of items you might already have for donating.
(Next week, we’ll talk about how you can get friends, family, and neighbors to donate with you.)
+ CLICK HERE to a look at their list of allowed donation items. As you look at the list, take note of items you might already have for donating.
(Next week, we’ll talk about how you can get friends, family, and neighbors to donate with you.)
Feel free to submit a prayer request by filling out the below form.
(If you choose to make your request public, you'll see it display in the Current at the end of the Spotlight along with anyone else who did the same.)
(If you choose to make your request public, you'll see it display in the Current at the end of the Spotlight along with anyone else who did the same.)
Pray through your requests—together—as a group.
After submitting your requests in the above form, take some time to share with your group whatever requests the group might have for this week.
After submitting your requests in the above form, take some time to share with your group whatever requests the group might have for this week.
Serve Perspective
Let’s pray about Christmas.
Pray (if you’re in a group, use the popcorn prayer* format) about one another’s Christmas celebrations. Feel free to go in whatever direction you’d like as you pray that each member of your group would have the holiday season God hopes for them.
*If you’re unfamiliar with this version of “popcorn prayer,” it is a format of group prayer in which people pray aloud by taking turns in no particular order—anyone can jump in whenever they wish.
Pray (if you’re in a group, use the popcorn prayer* format) about one another’s Christmas celebrations. Feel free to go in whatever direction you’d like as you pray that each member of your group would have the holiday season God hopes for them.
*If you’re unfamiliar with this version of “popcorn prayer,” it is a format of group prayer in which people pray aloud by taking turns in no particular order—anyone can jump in whenever they wish.
Listen and meditate to this song.
“He rules the earth with truth and grace…”
These words from the Christmas hymn Joy to the World reflect the balance you’ve considered this Spotlight, so close out this Spotlight by meditating on how they come true in your life through Christ’s incarnation/birth at Christmas.
“He rules the earth with truth and grace…”
These words from the Christmas hymn Joy to the World reflect the balance you’ve considered this Spotlight, so close out this Spotlight by meditating on how they come true in your life through Christ’s incarnation/birth at Christmas.
Read this article to start thinking about this popular hymn on a whole new level.
Sing along with (or listen to) this song to close out this Spotlight.
Feel free to sing along or simply listen. Do what makes you comfortable—but do whatever helps you focus on the song's meaning best.
Feel free to sing along or simply listen. Do what makes you comfortable—but do whatever helps you focus on the song's meaning best.
Farewell Perspective
Let's wrap things up by taking a look at what's Current at Illume.
Tap on the buttons in the frame below to see what’s currently happening at Illume—information on everything from current and upcoming online content to live events and opportunities to serve in the community can all be found here.
Tap on the buttons in the frame below to see what’s currently happening at Illume—information on everything from current and upcoming online content to live events and opportunities to serve in the community can all be found here.
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