Today Reia started off to preschool carrying her big, hardcover children’s Bible story book. Hitomi said she couldn’t bring it to preschool. It’s in English, first of all, and besides the school teacher naturally avoids religion and politics. Of course, there are always references to religion that come up because of cultural events (Japanese culture is steeped in religion). The school building itself is rented from a Buddhist temple, and the kids often play around the temple buildings. Nonetheless, the teachers generally keep the school a neutral place.

But in the past few months Reia has become aware that some people don’t know about Jesus, including her classmates and teachers. It’s perplexing for her. The initial realization was a shock for her. We’ve never told her that she should tell people about Jesus. We never suggested she should be burdened or has to share about Jesus with other people. She sees us relating to people and learning to love them. She must know we’re far from perfect, but when we tell her about Jesus and how God loves her, we’re simply talking about the reality of God’s love as we experience it. And she gets it more than we know.

Anyway, this morning she went back to her room. She put the big book of Bible stories away and grabbed a little paperback that tells about God creating the earth — and it’s in Japanese. Hitomi let her take it, but at school she told the teacher, so he could use his best judgment.

Hitomi knows the teacher and trusted he would not “crush a child’s heart.” But she didn’t know what he would do. Bringing the book really was that important to Reia. She wanted the teachers and kids to know about God. It turned out that the teacher read the book to the class, twice, and he and his wife both said, “Oh, we know this story.”

Reia told this to my wife, beaming with happiness, and said in her simple way, “The teachers know about God!”

I know God is real and working. It’s true the teachers already know about God, because they can see the signs of God all around them and in their lives. I think they’ve seen and noticed things. God is loving them in reality, and we get to be part of that somehow. This story will continue, God willing, for years to come as we share our lives with this couple who we’re really coming to treasure. It’s exciting and humbling to love alongside the Father.

The other day we had lunch with a Japanese businessman who does something very fascinating. He meets with other Japanese businessman who despise religion and Christianity, and they read the Bible together. Attendance is by invitation only, and limited in number, which he explains is a good way to politely keep the Christians out (with a few exceptions who he accepts with care).

When he invites people to join the Bible reading group, he says the Bible contains valuable insights for life and even the way they do business. Most reply that the don’t like religion and are not Christian. “Great,” he replies, “this group is especially for people who don’t like religion, and we don’t ask Christians to join.”

Most accept the invitation, and he says most invariably come to faith in Jesus over time. He can’t say that for sure, though, because they don’t ask people about their faith directly.

They don’t sing or pray or do anything recognizably religious. Nor do they serve soft drinks or snacks. They sit around a table with glasses of water. They want to be there to read the Bible, and they don’t expect “extras.” The businessman who initially helped gather them together doesn’t “lead” but does help coordinate. They all take turns choosing what section of the Bible to read, and each week the person (who chose the reading) brings photocopies. They read and then pose questions and try to answer them together. In the process, they talk more personally and openly about their lives than perhaps at any other time. The truth is that Japanese men rarely talk openly about their lives (with one main exception: when they go out drinking after work).

The group is unique, and I’m not writing this post to encourage imitators. As a successful Japanese businessman, this man is in position to gather other businessmen. The men who come would almost certainly say “no” if a pastor or someone else outside the business world asked them to read the Bible.

What grabs my attention is how easily people respond to the Bible and Jesus once the barrier of Christian religion is removed. I think that also involved consciously laying aside internalized habits of control, pretense and manipulation. (Even outside religious settings I think most people who have spent time in religion carry around some baggage…).

Then it comes down to being real: I can only share with others what’s real in my own life.

By the way, as a bonus of moving outside the comfort and security of religion (that is, the man-made systems and rules that tell me I’m all right even when I’m not really hearing from or experiencing a walk with Jesus), as I move outside (the box) I’m free and challenged to live my faith out in reality. As they say, with freedom comes responsibility (to seek Jesus and live out church with others as the Bible describes it), and the challenges are real. I suppose it’s easier on the inside, but I prefer the reality and freedom on the outside.

Seven percent of the Japanese teen population identify themselves as Christian according to a recent Gallup poll, and about four percent of the total population claim to be Christian.

These numbers are much higher than the percentages cited previously (one percent of the total population has been the common wisdom for years), but these figures come from the Gallup organization. They generally know what they’re doing.

Keep in mind the poll only indicates that people identify with Christian religion. The numbers are significant, but they only offer hints of what’s really going on. Still, it appears that many Japanese people are more open to Jesus than previously supposed.

The poll numbers took the organized church in Japan by surprise. Many are celebrating, but I think it’s worth adding that God seems to have worked both inside and outside organized church groups to reach out to these people. Here are a couple excerpts from an analysis of the findings:

Seven in ten adults, and half of teens say they do not know enough about the teachings of Jesus in order to give an evaluation…

Among those who express an opinion on “Christianity”, favorable views outweigh unfavorable ones by a ratio (of) three-to-one. Among teens, however, about equal percentages say favorable or unfavorable. Turning to evaluation of the “teachings of Jesus”, favorable opinion among adults outweighs unfavorable opinion by two-to-one. Among teens, on the other hand, equal proportions say favorable and unfavorable.

Interestingly, two out of three adults are “favorable” toward Christianity, but fewer (two out of three) are “favorable” toward Jesus. That’s a surprise. The disparity may reflect greater awareness of Christianity as a religion. Japanese are very averse to cults, so they may prefer (at least on the surface) Jesus as defined (and safely packaged) in religion.

Among young people, a higher percentage is negative toward both Christianity and Jesus. Considering the quote below, however, it’s not surprising that young people would have more polarized views. They are suffering due to their stage in life (caught up in the Japanese education project) and because of challenges confronting their generation (the loss of future job security, identity issues, etc.).

Compared to their U.S. counterparts, Japanese teens are extremely bleak in their outlook on life. Twenty- two percent of U.S. teens, but eighty-five percent of Japanese teens say they often wonder why they exist. Seventy-six percent of teens in the U.S. say they always see a reason for their being on Earth, but only 13% of Japanese teens say this. Seventy-six percent of U.S. teens say they would choose their life the way it is right now, but only half (48%) of their Japanese counterparts give this response. Twelve percent of U.S. teens wish they were someone else, but three times this percentage, 36%, of Japanese youth respond this way. And finally, three percent of U.S. teens would go so far as to say they wish they had never been born. But more than three times as many of Japanese teens (11%) give this startling response.

These are grim statistics in any culture. Add to this the perennial fact that Japanese lead the world in suicide statistics, and the suicide rate seems to be climbing. In 2002, suicide was the second leading cause of death for ages 15-24 and 40-54. Young people in Japan are suffering and in need of compassion and hope.

Yet very few in the survey say that spiritual life compared to other aspects of life, is “extremely important.” Far ahead of spiritual life in importance are family, friends, and education.

But I do have questions about this data from the survey. It may reflect a biased way of framing questions about spiritual things. What if the Japanese are spiritual people who don’t split (dichotomize) spiritual and ordinary life the way the Westerners do? If so, then the data (or the analysis) might have missed that. I don’t know, but this is my suspicion (or hope).

What if knowing and following Jesus was a lived out, practical part of a person’s experience of family, friends, and education? I suspect that many Japanese would love to learn more about Jesus, and perhaps be open to faith in Christ, if they could do so without having to take up all the religious baggage and lingo at the same time.

I remember having a conversation once about having a “revelation of Christ” with my friend John. His point was that Jesus reveals himself to us in our real life experience; that is, we can know and follow him in reality. In that case, changing emotions, ideas, doctrines and theories are no substitute for such an encounter.

Brennan Manning writes in Ruthless Trust, “It is simply not possible to receive the revelation of God in the transcendent/immanent Christ without experience” because only Jesus reveals who God is.” (p. 87-88).  This is a reality we must experience, and even then it’s a mystery. Later he adds, “If someone were to ask you, ‘What is the one thing in life that is certain?’ you would have to answer, ‘The love of Christ’” (p. 92).
I can’t control this experience. I may long for the “revelation of Christ” but I can’t control it or follow a formula.

As Meister Eckhart puts it:

The soul must long for God in order to be set aflame by God’s love; but if the soul cannot yet feel this longing, then it must long for the longing. To long for the longing is also from God.

When confronted with the loss of control and the mystery along this journey, we have the record of God entering history and living among us (the Bible) and the deepest longings and passions put in our souls by the one who made us.

Upon encountering God we have nothing to offer except our whole lives. Worship is trust in motion; it’s lived out; it’s giving up my agendas to walk with Jesus. The fruit of worship is loving others, healing the sick, feeding the poor…not out of guilt or obligation but because this is what God is doing in history and why not join him? This kind of worship hasn’t usually led to comfort, power, wealth, fame and security but more often to practical work, disrepute, obscurity, dependence and risk.

But so many people fall into the trap of religion at the point of meeting Jesus, and they trade a life of worship and walking with Jesus (of humility, love, risk, heights of joy along with suffering) for something more acceptable and palatable: religion.

Religion tells you you’re “in,” and then lets you settle for a mediocre life. Religion offers a managed Christian life with love, service and sacrifice in reasonable doses, along with assurances of security and control.  Religion offers “Jesus extract” to satisfy our desires for purpose, significance, hope, and forgiveness. But like a drug religion doesn’t quite satisfy us and keeps us coming back for more.

Religion subtly hints and teaches that we’re really not significant, that life is scary, and that grace don’t fully erase our guilt. That’s because religion is self-sustaining; it must foster a need for itself. Real grace and pure freedom in Christ are suspect, as if we can’t handle them. Religion once it starts to feed on itself fears that if we experience pure grace and freedom in Christ directly then we won’t need it anymore. As religion grows bigger, Jesus grows smaller and less necessary. Religion is man made and sustained.

I’ve spent a lot of time and effort trying to control my life and appease God. That’s the essence of my religious experiences. Please understand, I’ve had genuine encounters with the living God all along (at various times and places in and outside of what I’m calling religion). I think there are many people walking with Jesus inside religious institutions who haven’t been trapped in the religious game. But for myself knowing Jesus (and finding others who knew Jesus) pulled me beyond my religious roots to something better.

I’ve always been haunted by love — by the longing for it (and often the longing for the longing). There were times when I bumped up against a love so strong that it stopped me in my tracks. Despite all my shortcomings of faith, trust, discipline and integrity, I held onto the thread of that longing, which was the lifeline that God must have thrown to me. In these past few years, I’ve become more aware of all the religious baggage that I carried. I want to lay aside everything that weighs me down and hinders me in order to pursue one thing: to know Jesus — the love of God in Christ — and to live in his grace and reality trusting and following him.

I’m not there yet. I still find myself holding onto threads of control and  trying to make myself more significant (as if I can add any significance to Jesus, who was God incarnate, giving his life for me). I refuse to give up this journey, even at the dark moments, because I’ve glimpsed where it’s going.

Here’s a quote via Wayne Jacobsen’s blog:

Sometimes in an effort to remind people of the cost of the cross, we withhold grace until we are sure they understand their sin. But it is in giving of our grace that we remind people that they need to go to Jesus to find their own. People understand their sin without our help. It’s grace they need help in understanding.

This is so simple and profound. The message — more so, the real experience — of grace is much more powerful than reasons and threats. Fear may cause people to act and conform (or pretend to), but only love can capture their hearts and set them free. I can only live out these words if I know and experience the love of the Father myself.