Ephesians 1:3-14
John 1:1-18
A question was recently posed: "How
do we finally draw the line?"
Though the question was spoken by one person, it is a common frustration
shared by many in the faith who feel pushed, put upon, marginalized, and even threatened
for a conservative understanding of the Scriptures and the proper role of the
Church in a modern society that demands the Church "keep up with the
times".
We are told that love is
"tolerant", but how tolerant is too tolerant to the point at which we
feel we are expected to condone sin disguised as "social justice"? How open-minded must we be before our minds, the
minds of our children and grandchildren, and the minds of those who try to sway
us become filled with Ezekiel's "dead bones"? How far can we bend before we finally
break?
Most importantly, how do we responsibly
and faithfully convey to the world that neglect of the soul is the easy path,
the "wide
and broad gate that leads to destruction" as our Lord Jesus
teaches in the Sermon on the Mount, while genuine and compassionate love of our
neighbor's soul is the "narrow
and [much more] difficult way which leads to life" (Matthew 6:13-14)?
We share, I think, a generalized
understanding that the Church must never be reduced to little more than a
"social club" of like-minded people who happen to "like"
each other; that the Church as the Body of Christ in the world today has a God-given
mission - one which must not be neglected - as the ultimate hospital for broken
souls in need of some intensive care and rehabilitative therapy. The potential of such therapy is that although
the regimen may be long and arduous, the end will justify the very
uncomfortable - and sometimes downright painful - means as we work to help
others to spiritually recover from their broken lives.
Yet the position the Church has found
herself in is one of extreme disadvantage,
that of perpetual defensiveness; that is, we feel constantly compelled to
RE-act to everything we deem offensive and have no energy left to attend to our
PRO-active, Spirit-driven calling.
We RE-act to any number of social media
"stink bombs", but our protests are not taken seriously because no
one hears from us until we get our "duck feathers" ruffled (yes, pun
is intended). No one knows of
discipleship or the mission of the Church because our discipleship in mission
is virtually non-existent. Sadder still,
few seem to care - but they seem to know whom to blame when things go wrong.
As it is written in Ecclesiastes, life itself is a series of seasons in which there is
a "time for everything under the sun". In the life of the faithful, it is always
"time" to do something positive and constructive in and for the Body
of Christ. Though it may seem as though
destruction has its own season such as a time to "break down",
we must remember it is sometimes necessary to put away the "old" to
make room for "new", to prune dead branches so new life may spring
forth.
So for the American Church it is the
"season" of renewal and reinvigoration. The forces of darkness and destruction have
had their "15 minutes", and so it is time for the Church to COME OUT OF THE CLOSET
and unapologetically make known who we are and Whose we are - but not by
militancy or angry words or spiteful slogans that seek to demean those with whom
we disagree!
By these actions (which seem to have
become our forte of RE-action), and by our neglect, by our complacency, by our
spite, by our petty jealousies, by our selfishness, by our vindictive gossip
and slander we have denied the reality of our Savior in denying our own
salvation and why we have been
redeemed in the first place! We then wonder
why people do not take us seriously or believe our witness - our witness has
become a lie.
None of us can escape this stinging
indictment, and yet as the Church we must all face this indictment together -
as Israel had to face its own indictment - with a sincere desire and an earnest
resolve to live into the "redemption from all iniquity",
as it is written; the "redemption" that belongs to the Church called
forth in faith and in love, "destined [as we are] for
adoption as children of the Living God through Jesus Christ, according to the
good pleasure of His Will" (Ephesians
1:5)!
We must never deny our God-given destiny
by a willingness to settle for less than what we have been created, redeemed,
and called forth to be AND to do.
Far be it! For the Lord promises
His faithful (that is, those
who follow Him and not themselves or some pop-culture icon): "I
will gather [My people] ... and with consolation I will lead them back" (Jeremiah 31:8, 9); back to blessedness in the safety and
the promise of the Eternal Covenant.
So there is much more we are faced with
than merely "how" to draw the line.
There is also a "when" and a "where". And the "when" is now. The "where" is right here,
and the "how" is first by our own complete
repentance and total surrender to the "Word
which became flesh and dwelt among us" rather than trying to make
that Word subjective to us and our own purposes!
Even though it may seem to be
"people" who are a threat to us and to the Church, we must remember
as St. Paul reminds the Ephesians: "We do not wrestle against flesh and
blood, but against powers and principalities and rulers of the darkness of this
age" (Ephesians 6:12);
so "though
we walk in the flesh, we [must] not war according to the flesh; for the weapons
of our warfare are not of the flesh but are mighty in God for pulling down
strongholds, casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself
against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the
obedience of Christ" (2
Corinthians 10:4-5)!
None of this will happen, however, until
WE (that is, the Church) are completely
captive to the "obedience of Christ".
It is time to stand up and be counted -
but to be counted in the righteousness of Christ our Lord in the "whole
armor of God" - not just the tiny pieces we select for ourselves -
the WHOLE armor; most especially as He is revealed in the Written Word of the
Holy Scriptures in the First Testament AND the New. If we will take the time to be still, to stop
and remember what we have been redeemed
for and called to, life as we have come to know it will cease to exist - as
the dawn of the Promise of the fullness of life is upon us by His Mercy and by
His decree; but not until we give Him our "whole" life -
personal AND corporate: "You
will seek Me and find Me, when you seek Me with all your
heart" (Jeremiah 29:13)!
Sometimes these are harsh words, I know,
but they are always Words of Promise
and Assurance - for nothing less than our immortal
souls are at stake! The territorial nature of the Church has
become so acute that its being as "The Body of Christ" has been so completely
surrendered that earnest seekers will never wander in without a direct
invitation from a member of that church whom they know and trust. A seeker will never seek a God whose followers do not earnestly seek Him. A seeker will never offer himself or herself
to a God whose own followers hold
back a substantial portion of their own "hearts, souls, minds, and
strengths" and gifts. And this most
certainly and perhaps especially includes our children and our grandchildren -
for they learn from us FIRST.
If we truly want this country to turn
around, the Church must take the lead PRO-actively as if it truly is the
"Year of our Lord" (AD). Just
as Jesus came to show us the Way to the Father, the Holy Spirit has empowered
the Church from the beginning to show others the way to Jesus! It is a duty and a privilege we dare not take
lightly! And no one - NO ONE
- is too old or too busy or too ill-equipped or too infirm or too
"saved" to offer their very best to the Lord our God through His Holy
Church which is the Body of His Only Begotten Son.
It is His very best we have been given,
and it is no less than the Very Best called forth from us. Let us as the Body of Christ resolve not to waste
energy in pointing out fault in others but together search for solutions within
ourselves; for the promise of our Lord is sure and certain: "The
Holy Spirit will teach you" (Luke
12:12).
We, however, must be willing to be
taught. Or else 2014 will look exactly
like 2013 - or perhaps worse as we continue to assimilate and degrade ourselves
in this modern culture and drift further and further away from our Holy Father. We must proclaim much more than the NAME of
the Lord; we must embrace the entire LIFE of Messiah!
For it is Messiah who beckons us and
assures us; REPENT; for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand!
In
the name of the Father, the Son, the Holy Spirit. Amen.
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