"Let us fix our eyes on Jesus,
the author and perfecter of our faith,
who
for the joy set before Him endured the cross,
scorning its shame, and
sat down at the right hand of the throne of God."
Hebrews 12:2
Lately, I've had a lot of time to think about what we're going through as a family, as a nation and as the world as whole. After reading several articles by renowned Christians, hearing podcasts, watching live-streams...it is time for me to respond and wrestle with some of the thoughts presented:
1. Church ≠ Content
I'm a regular listener of a podcast called "The Holy Post", featuring Phil Vischer (creator of 'Veggietales'), Skye Jethani and Christian Taylor.Skye has often spoken about the shift in our understanding of what church means. This was before the crisis hit us and churches were shut down. Now that we're no longer meeting in a building on Sundays, the question is more relevant than ever before.
Church does not equal content. Many of us now get theological input from books, online videos and more. Some say that the battle is no longer fought from the pulpit, i.e. preaching is no longer the most effective tool of the church. Of course, that in itself is debatable.
What does strike me as true, though, is that the church indeed is not a building. If there's one thing this 'break' from meeting together has shown us, is that nothing can replace us meeting together.
Church was, is and will always be an incarnate community of people.
Jesus became God incarnate to show that we have to get together with imperfect people and get our hands dirty (and pierced). The church is one of the few places where people from all walks of life, all cultures, all classes etc. come together to give praise and honour to the perfecter of our faith.
Only when we live in community with one another, as the full body of Christ, will we experience true growth of the kingdom of God and what it means to serve Jesus (or to be servants in that kingdom).
Church is not so much a place as it is a living organism of broken people made whole by the love of Christ. I love the image of the jar of clay that is broken. Jesus takes those pieces and glues them back together.
We must also remember that the church is called the body of Christ. The body of Christ was bruised, beaten and crushed. We were made to endure the most savage of circumstances! In light of that, the church has faced worse than the Covid-19 pandemic.
We sing songs about crossing the sea, being in storms, walking through the fire....And now is a time for us to actually practice what we sing. In all those situations there is one constant: Jesus is by our side! He's the only perfect groom and will never abandon His wife (us, the church!)
2. Faith ≠ Action
In the Bible, there are plenty of examples where God takes something bad and turns the situation around for His glory.Last Sunday, one of our elders preached on John 11 and the story of Lazarus raised from the dead. That story is an excellent illustration of Jesus' resurrection power. Paul tells us that the same power that raised Christ from the dead (and Lazarus) is the same power that lives in us (Romans 8:11).
The question is: what do we do with such power? Are we using it for God's glory?
We are called to have faith and live by faith and not by sight. In his letter to the Galatians, Paul tells us that the only thing that counts "is faith expressing itself through love" (Galatians 5:6). Christianity is an active faith. When the Holy Spirit lives in you, you cannot help but express it. That expression tends to be 'good works'. (James also asks: What good is it if you have faith, but no works? [James 2:14])
In this time, it is so amazing to see how many Christians are returning to the roots of what faith is truly about (paired with good works!)
The temple was destroyed so that each one of us could become the temple.
Jesus has a new home and it is your heart! That's what Paul says in 1 Corinthians 3:16. If we are God's temple, then each one of us is a 'mini-church'. There's that quote: 'We are not human-doings, but human-beings'.
But Jesus commanded us to go out and make disciples of all the nations (Matthew 28:19). That is an active assignment. In our daily life, we might be the only 'church' somebody else might ever experience. We might be the only Bible anybody ever reads.
These are all just sayings, but they are a reality that I'm beginning to see clearer and clearer.
It might be taken out of context, but Jesus says in Matthew 7:16, "By their fruit you will recognize them." James talks about the fruit of the Spirit as being ' love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.'
Perhaps I'm mistaken, but all of these words are expressed through action. If we are to grow the kingdom, we ought to plant seeds that grow into trees that bear that type of fruit.
(I will be doing a series on the fruit of the spirit soon. Watch this space!)
3. Jesus = >
Simple: Jesus is GREATER.Name anything and the answer will always be: Jesus is greater!
As Christians, we profess to follow Jesus - the author and perfecter of our faith, as Paul describes Him (Hebrews 12:2). When somebody is the author, he or she creates the narrative. That is to say, they know the beginning, the middle and the end.
Jesus is also called the Alpha and Omega. It literally means 'beginning AND end'. You might think that you're the protagonist in your story of life. But you and I aren't even supporting actors in this. We're merely the extras.
I once was an extra in a blockbuster movie with Natalie Portman. It was a humbling experience to stand with others and realise: this isn't about me. I'm here to be a part of a greater story.
And yes...this is not to say that God doesn't value us. Of course he does. But God has allowed us to be co-workers in building His kingdom. Each one of us is needed! He loves each one of us equally.
You are an integral part of God's story and He wants your life to point towards Him.
The point is: when we're facing troubles, it doesn't help to fix our eyes on ourselves and our problems. It never does! How can we compete with the awesome game-plan that God has for us?
Our faith grows the more we trust Him and experience how that trust is not misplaced. When we surrender our life, God's resurrection power comes to light.
Even John the Baptist knew that he needs to become less, so that Jesus could become greater. (John 3:30) For most of us, this is a painful process to go through and it is the Holy Spirit that enables our hearts to change. Pride is a sin that is difficult to wash away.
This also gives a new meaning to communion. Before eating and drinking with His disciples, Jesus washed their feet. He humbled himself before those who were unworthy. John the Baptist said he was not worthy to untie the straps of Jesus' sandal (John 1:27) Here is Jesus, untying the straps of all his disciples - even the one who would betray him.
Imagine: God first became man. Then He washed feet. And at the end He was hung from a cross. Communion is a stark reminder that God himself became the 'least' and 'weakest' for us, in order to destroy death and give us eternal life.
This narrative shows how we can never really know what God has planned (1 Corinthians 2:11). But because His Spirit dwells in us, we are able to understand the spiritual reality.
Therefore, let us fix our eyes upon Jesus and not the problems of the world. Something exciting is happening in the spiritual realm. That much is certain! God is preparing something amazing.
Until then, let us taste and see that our God is good!
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