Matthew 28:18-20
18And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. 19Go Ye therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen.
The application of our corporate faith is another important aspect of our Christianity. The reward for our faith decision is our salvation. Even though our salvation is not yet made perfect, (mature) it can be perfected through self-sacrifice and worldly-death towards a closer reality of God. Our faith in God must be shared within the natural rhythm of humanity and through the personal revelation within the church of the rhythm of Christ’s own life.
Rhythm is a wonderful metaphor for the natural process of maturing in the applications of the Christian faith. Imagine, if you will, you are sitting in a very comfortable chair awaiting a live concert of a group of exceptional musicians. You have not yet heard them in person, and in fact have only heard of them through enthusiastic followers. The musicians come out on stage. The lights go dim in the audience while the stage become bright with multi-colored lighting. The anticipation is mounting. Then the music begins.
At this point of the story it really doesn’t matter what the type or style the music is, it is only important to note that these musicians are those rare individuals who are so blessed with incredible talent that no one will be able to deny their special gifts. As the first piece of music begins to play the crowd surrounding you begins to “feel the music” to the point of obvious joy. And there you are taking the scene in. Allowing it to overtake you. First you begin by actively listening. Then comes the heightened sense of involvement followed by pleasure. Almost by reflex, without even realizing it, your foot starts tapping in RHYTHM on the floor underneath you. You sit forward slightly in your seat with increasing anticipation not wanting to miss the subtle phrases of those who are demonstrating their gifts. You begin to sway and move to the RHYTHM. You even enthusiastically repeat some of those musical phrases that somehow you have connected with.
Now for the best part.
While driving home you begin to relive the concert. Your mind and your spirit review as many of the notes, phrases, and senses that you have experienced. When you arrive at your destination you can’t wait to share with someone…. anyone…. your experience. You try to recount with enthusiastic detail all that you can remember. Even though in your heart you realize you will never be able to effectively recreate the original events, you are drawn by some strange force to try and make others understand how much you were moved by the experience and would very much like to share the next experience with them. You even went so far as to purchase a recording of the event just to relive and to prove how incredible the experience was to those who might not believe your obvious enthusiasm. This process of sharing the natural rhythm of life’s great joys and pleasures is exactly what the Christian Church was founded on and what it was built on.
As a church we must refocus our collective minds and spirits on who we are foundationally called to reflect and what our Divine Creator has translated our purpose in being.
The GREAT COMMISSION provides us with the word “Go”. The second word is “Ye”. These two simple little words provide ACTION and DIRECTION! Only by combining ACTION with personal DIRECTION can we attain the completeness of salvation that the Creator offers. By demonstrating the loving, gracious, joyful and committed nature of our faith to others, we as Christians arrive at the place where space and time pass over from the temporal and sinful, to the eternal and holy. Only by demonstrating a sacrificial love and our willingness to stand boldly on the grace of God’s goodness can we separate ourselves from the life of self-seeking to the life of love; from a life of loneliness to a life of fullness and abiding communion with God who loved us so much that He allowed the physical manifestation of the Creator’s glory to be experienced and fulfilled within the life of Jesus. Only when an individual can cross this bridge from death to life; from earth to heaven; from darkness to light, can they be saved. There is no other way!
The mission of Christianity can be summed up by the story of a drowning man in the ocean. After being thrown overboard and left to his own devices he begins to falter. The man pleads with great passion for mercy. He begins to lose strength and stamina. At that very moment a floating piece of the damaged and sinking ship comes into grasping distance. He struggles to reach out for it. Finally he attains this floatation device and as such expresses a profound thankfulness.
The man, through his fear and failing strength sees an island ahead. He begins to stroke gently, with whatever strength he has left, toward the awaiting island of refuge. The closer he gets to the shore, the more he senses the uncertainty of what may be lurking out of sight; just under the surface of the water. He begins to understand that at any time he may be swallowed up by the surrounding circumstances. Even though he is deathly tired he struggles to keep his thoughts on the island ahead. As he finally reaches a few feet from the shore he tries to stand and walk the rest of the way, but his legs have no strength left. He is completely exhausted. And yet he makes it to the beach even though he has to crawl inch by inch the last few yards.
As he lies on the beach reflecting on what had just transpired he praises God for his mercy, then all of a sudden he begins to get remarkably angry. He cries out to God; “If you were going to save me anyhow why didn’t you just pick me up and set me down on the beach? It would have been so much easier.” God’s reply is; “I gave the floatation device and the willingness to make it to shore. It was your choice to choose to use them or die.”
We must do all we can to share this choice with everyone, everywhere, and in every circumstance that is presented. We, as both a church and as individuals, are called to tell the story of God through Christ. Thereby providing an opportunity for decision. We, as both a church and as individuals, must live our faith. Thereby providing an opportunity for a decision to act, to demonstrate that faithful decision. We, as both a church and as individuals, must be willing to search out opportunities that allow us to demonstrate the inclusive and affirming nature of a God, who through Jesus Christ, says….
¨ come to me….
¨ all are welcome….
¨ I am your shelter…..
¨ I am the redeemer…..
¨ I am love and grace….
¨ I am powerful and completely able to
¨ fill your life with abundant joy….
¨ I am the Creator who rejects no one if they come to me with a sincere heart, a humble demeanor, and a willing spirit.
¨ I am forgiving and kind but also jealous and righteous.
¨ I am able to provide overwhelming blessings to those who call upon my name to guide them in times of trouble as well as a source of strength in times of tribulation.
In 1912 during Princeton Theological Seminary’s graduation ceremonies, J. Gresham Machen said the following regarding the “intellectual” threat to Christianity.
“False ideas are the greatest obstacles to the reception of the gospel. We may preach with all the fervor of a reformer and yet succeed only in winning a straggler here and there, if we permit the whole collective thought of the nation or the world to be controlled by ideas which, by the resistant force of logic, prevent Christianity from being regarded as anything more than a harmless delusion. Under such circumstances, what God desires us to do is to destroy the obstacle at the root….”
We must have a sense of urgency with this message. The word urgency has the meaning associated with the concept of not wasting time. It is incredibly important to realize that there is a significant difference between being impatient with people or process and having an overwhelming sense of urgency to tell the story of a Divine Creator through the lens of Jesus Christ. The Creator of all that is known and unknown, is the one who supplied all the evidence-of-faith necessary to understand the “call” on each of our lives. That “call” creates in us a focused response that allows each of us to come to a decision that ends in a yes or a no answer. At the end of a “”reasoning process” all of us will at some point in our lives have to make a decision of whether we believe in something that we can not see and that only others who did not personally witness it either believe in. That yes or no answer revolves around the question that requires each of us to accept or reject the subjective reality of the promises of God as told to us in the Bible and the individual lives of those who have lived the convictions of their faith.
This conviction starts with the “reasoned” decision to believe in something greater than themselves. Each person has to decide in a God so personal and devoted to the Divine’s creation that God refuses to give up on us when logic would have required otherwise. We, as a Christian community of FAITH, must provide the environment, encouragement, incentive, and demeanor necessary to draw others to the conclusion that they can believe, as we already profess to believe, in the loving reconciliation into the eternal presence of God. We receive this assurance by accepting what was told to us by ancient witnesses regarding a birth, life, betrayal, capture, conviction, torture, crucifixion, self-sacrifice, atoning, buried, and resurrected Jesus.
What has your denomination done to
bring this into a higher sense of urgency?
What has your church done to bring this
into a higher sense of urgency?
What have you personally done to
bring this into a higher sense of urgency?
We must have a sense of
commitment to its meanings.
One of the great harms the world has perpetrated on the Christian Church, and unfortunately “us Christians” have also allowed to take place, is the watering down of the central meanings and messages of the Creator’s Divine message of Faith, Boldness, Enthusiasm, Service, Mission, Humble Reverence, and Profound Worship. The Church has been living a life of fear. The fear that sharing the message of Christ, boldly professing it, and finally demonstrating our commitment to both personal and congregational growth will somehow not be good enough to keep the church vibrant, visible, and fiscally sound. We have fallen victim to the worst mistake any organization can slide into; trying to be everything to everybody.
People, more often than not, are drawn to others that have an obvious and blatant sincerity to their commitments. They are drawn to those who demonstrate a loving and bold commitment in living their life’s choices. It is not unexpected that the outside world finds us Christians less than an attractive choice to investigate when we are the epitome of PART-TIME “religious” do-gooders. The leaders of the Christian Church must do all that they are able to provide all the enthusiasm… all the encouragement….all the empowerment….all the support necessary to significantly increase the corporate display of sincere, life-changing, self-sacrificial, and bold servants of Christ.
We must not hesitate to demonstrate its
power, understanding, grace and love.
A GLORIOUS VISION OF YOU
Joshua 14:10-12 reads...
And now, behold, the LORD has kept me (Caleb) alive, as He said, these forty-five years, ever since the LORD spoke this word to Moses while
Caleb's Vision of Assurance that seemed to be so clear in the days of our ancestors seems to be fading painfully right before our very eyes. Visions don’t need to be difficult or hard to understand. Most of the time visions have a quite simple purpose. Visions are direct and to the point. Let me give some important examples.
Moses had a vision. A Vision of Empowerment and Freedom. Even though he had to endure constant heartaches and the afflictions of leadership he kept his focus on the promises of God despite the circumstances.
Joshua also had a vision; his was a Vision of Victory. Joshua had a vision that the task at hand, leading all those people across the Jordan River, would never be too great if God proceeds you and if you sincerely believe in the creator’s strength.
I want you to envision yourselves as a sovereign, glorious, and gracious tool of God Almighty. I want you to allow yourselves to be empowered by the Vision of You. The Vision of You as a demonstrating agent of God’s love, a demonstrating agent of God’s mercy, God’s inclusiveness, God’s power, God’s joy, God’s abundance and God’s heavenly grace.
This Vision of You, once experienced in its fullness, reminds all of us to not just say we follow the Word, but to stop and listen to it . . . to understand it . . . and then put it into action. Envisioning yourself as a joyous and empowered tool of God’s greater Kingdom also reminds us, both symbolically and literally, that we must not be afraid to preach the Word, share the Word, and live the Word. It challenges each one of us to experience the "promises of God" in profound ways; ways which change lives. When the "Promises of God" lives inside of you there will be no doubt, no danger and no distress about the loud and clear message of Christ streaming out of your mouth, mind and heart .
This Vision of You allows each one of us to believe in the promises of God. You …. Not Him …. Not Her …. Not them …. Not that group over there … BUT YOU symbolize a people who have been separated to be the Glory of God as well as a demonstration of the Creator’s mercy and strength, and to live in the abundance of life. This incredible sense of empowerment is not unlike the scene described earlier, where Good Ol’ Caleb told Joshua …. Give me that mountain of giants. I am not afraid of accepting my inheritance. I believe that God is with me and is strengthening me. And just like Caleb, God, through Christ, will allow you to move those giant obstacles out of the way.
Caleb's VISION of conquering a mountain reminds us that God’s messages are not carried by machine, mission or money. It is carried by people. It is carried by those who believe. It is carried by those who have the spirit of the living God inside of them. It is carried by those who love the Lord, their God, so much that they can’t hold it in. It is carried by men. It is carried by women. It is carried by boys & girls, young & old, healthy & infirmed. It is carried by tall, short, fat, skinny, and every ethnic, cultural and racial group known. It is carried by followers and leaders. It is carried by lay and clergy, pew and pulpit, past and present, and most importantly this message of a personal and living God must be carried by YOU!
God’s message of reconciliation … or love … or the abundance of joy … even grace … is not now, nor has it ever been, carried by: Institutions or Missions or Endowments. Bricks and Signs, or Fancy Cars and church vans have not once carried the message of a risen savior. It has also never been carried effectively by beautiful chandeliers, expensive carpet, new hymnals, committees, landscaping or even a denomination.
It is primarily, fundamentally and foundationally carried by YOU!
Christianity is NOT some sort of religious education lesson, which in turns makes us better people. NO!!!! Christianity will always take the form of something powerful, something challenging, something intense and yet freeing. Christianity, when it is intensely and passionately personalized, and not used as some generic description of religious “tradition” or “training” has always been something that completely possesses fundamental and foundational meaning, as well as change, to those involved in its relationship. IQ, status, wealth or position does not bear witness to God in our lives, Christian Faith does. Believing that there is a God is not the same as accepting God, through Christ, so that there is a real and initiating intimacy with him personally into your life.
It is abundantly clear that all of us who are truly reconciled into a profound, personal and permanent relationship with the Creator, are saved by God’s grace and not of our own doing. Now, even though I have said this, it is equally clear that humankind must chose to accept it. The New Testament leads us to the conclusion of the doctrine of FREEWILL. Grace is a gift; but it is a gift that you must be willing to receive. After you have received the gift you then have another FREEWILL choice of either wasting the gift by refusing to open it or you can continue the JOY OF RECEIVING THE GIFT by unwrapping the gift given and allowing its treasures to enable and mature you in the discipling nature of our faith.
For Paul, the middle wall of partition between Jew and Gentile, with the result that all of God’s wealth, which is inside God’s own “loving-covenant”, was now available to everyone. This “loving-covenant” is available regardless of who they are, where they come from, how they arrived in this world, whether they are rich or poor, short or tall, black or white, Latino or Asian, man or women, etc.
Faith in Christ, as witnessed by the lives of the “body” and the “Word” itself, must be accepted completely by freewill or else it is built on sand and will wash away during the first few storms. CHRIST represents the fulfillment of a COVANENTAL GOD keeping a promise of salvation to any & all who are willing to accept, by faith, that Jesus is the promised messiah. That Jesus walked, talked, lived, taught, preached, ministered, performed miracles of some kind, was tried… convicted… tortured… crucified… hung… bled… and died on the cross. That after being buried Jesus was raised from the dead and at an unknown appointed time will return to establish a new kingdom of God; the Creator of us all. When and if any of us can, BY FAITH, stand on this Christian belief then you become part of a new citizenship, a new order of existence, a new sense of being which can not be denied. The Christian Revolution was founded on the above principle of internal faith and external declaration. It was also founded upon the principle of the inclusivity of its message.
Salvation, the reconciliation of those separated from the Creator, is wholly of grace, through Jesus the Christ; who by the appointment of the Father, freely took upon him our nature, yet without sin; honored the divine law by his personal obedience, and by his death made a full atonement for our sins; that being risen by the power and presence of God’s Holy Spirit is now enthroned in unity with the Creator. The blessings of salvation are made free to all by the good news of Christ coming into this world and making himself known to all who are willing to hear his messages; that nothing prevents the salvation of the greatest sinner on earth but his/her own voluntary rejection of the gospel.
The BIBLE Speaks Loud & Clear!
EPHESIANS 2:8-9
For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.
ROMANS 10:9
That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.
ACTS 4:12
Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.
JOHN 14:6
Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.
HEBREWS 10:10
.....we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.
Churches must reflect the nature of Christ. Churches can no longer be satisfied with merely being a 2 hour, once a week, get your “worship” and “music” fix location. Churches must become a living organism which is in the “demonstrating” business. We must demonstrate not only in our worship the power, understanding, grace, and love of God through Christ…but….we must be willing to demonstrate those reflections of Christ every day through the mechanisms of daily church life.
¨ When is the last time your church family got together and performed a 20 block area survey of the needs, wants and spiritual desires of the actual community that surrounds your church?
¨ Can your church family, in all honesty, provide ANY of the answers necessary to improve the spiritual, emotional, financial, physical, or educational needs of the folks not only living directly within driving distance of the church but also those who are members currently?
¨ When is the last time ANYONE questioned the need of continuing a ministry that has shown little or no fruit for demonstrating the Glory of God through Jesus Christ?
¨ When is the last time the leadership of your church has said an enthusiastic YES to a new person wanting to try a new outreach ministry…and then providing the support to make it happen?
These questions may provide the spiritual mirror for all of us to honestly look into. It is never easy for us humans to examine ourselves. However, it may be time for not only the individual members of Christ’s church to look in the spiritual mirror but also the denominational leadership as well. Every section and application of ministry must be a living and vibrant example of the power, understanding, grace and love of God through Jesus Christ.