05/02/2018
Are you a wanderer in Christ? Did you accept Jesus as your Lord and Savior, go down in the waters and spirit of baptism and then walk off into a spiritual desert? Well it is time to come back from where you have been and rejoin the house, and the kingdom, of God. Like our savior, we are not meant to remain alone in the desert... are your 40 days up?
“For through him we both have access in one Spirit to the Father. So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, in whom the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord.”
Ephesians 2:18-21 ESV
A place has been prepared for us; a holy place built around Jesus Christ, and the apostles that have come before us. This wonderful dwelling is a temple constructed of all that has transpired in Jesus, and is a homeland meant for you, and me, to be a part of. We might come initially as a visitor, but we are called to be a part of its stone and mortar... we are to dwell in the house of the Lord forever in a much grander sense than just as a visiting stranger or foreigner.
Are you one of those who feels alienated from the church? Are you part of a group of people that has gone your own way into the desert? Are you an addition, a portion of the temple that has never been joined to the main structure for one reason or another? Well my friends we are not meant to be divided, but joined of one spirit in the Father.
When I was a boy I loved to play sports; I particularly liked to play, football, baseball, and basketball. Each day after school my friends and I would meet on a field or court near our home and play a game until dinner time. Quite often one of us would get his feelings hurt in the course of play, or get mad because the game wasn’t going His way. When this happened he would yell names at the others, grab up his things, and storm off. Sometimes he would take a couple of friends with him. When this happened it forced those of us who remained to do one of two things... choose new teams, or disband the game.
I have seen the same thing happen in Jesus Christ. It occurs in small groups, individual churches, denominations, and in divisions so large as to create entire new Churches... such as happened between the Eastern and Western Churches. Sometimes the division caused a reshuffling, but sometimes it caused a dissolution.
Back to my boyhood, and the game. A boy had just gotten mad because things weren’t going his way... he had called the others names and stormed off to pout and play on his own. Today it was just one boy so the sides were reformed and the game had gone on, but even so, there was a void made by the missing playmate. The sides were restructured, but they weren’t quite as balanced as before. Regardless, the game went on until eventually mothers started yelling from open screen doors that “Dinner is Ready!!” And one by one we left the field to go home. The disgruntled boy was called home too, but instead of a cheerful “Coming Mom!!!”, and running towards home, he curtly responded “Coming” and dragged his feet in the dust as he made his way slowly home.
When we divide ourselves from the body of Christ, or as the body of Christ, it is never a happy event; it is always met with name calling, sometimes a fight, but always with hurt feelings. This is human nature, but it isn’t the spiritual nature that God desires of us. Does this surprise The Lord when it happens? No, but it almost certainly disappoints Him. We are meant to be of one spirit.
I think about the disciples of Jesus... what a diverse and highly opinionated group that was, but He held them together because their focus was on Him. Only one went his own way... Judas, and in the final count Jesus didn’t count him among those He had been given.
“Jesus answered, "I told you that I am he. So, if you seek me, let these men go." This was to fulfill the word that he had spoken: "Of those whom you gave me I have lost not one."”
John 18:8-9 ESV
So what happened with the boys in my neighborhood? Specifically, what happened to the one who left the game? Well, most disagreements were solved by a warm dinner, some counseling by a loving mother who asked “Why so glum?”, and a good night’s sleep, but always by an act of forgiveness... sometimes verbal, but quite often with a humble rejoining as the sides were picked the next afternoon, and a common understanding of regret. Sure, some arguments lasted a couple of days, but the desire to rejoin the game overrode the need to be right, or the power of hubris and pride.
Unfortunately, we grow into adults, and our disagreements become more violent, our hubris and pride more entrenched. We interpret the rules to our advantage, and justify our actions accordingly, then we cast them in stone. In this world we no longer listen for a mother’s call, and there is no counsel, warm meal, or cooling off period that will suffice. Nothing resets an ill cast stone to right the overall structure. We just storm off, and the anger, sadness, and loneliness, lasts... sometimes for years, a lifetime, or for eternity. Oh that we would remain as children...
“Then children were brought to him that he might lay his hands on them and pray. The disciples rebuked the people, but Jesus said, "Let the little children come to me and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of heaven." And he laid his hands on them and went away.”
Matthew 19:13-15 ESV
When we find ourselves at odds we should behave as children in resolving our conflict. We should stew over our predicament a bit, listen for the voice of Jesus calling to us, sit down for some warm sustenance and counseling, let our humanity cool down, and then rejoin the body of Christ, by an act of forgiveness.
Every so often my boyhood friends and I would adjust the game as a result of one of our conflicts. We would make allotments that would true up the game, but more often than not we didn’t. If we wanted to play baseball, then there were certain rules that made the game what it was... only three strikes, three outs, three bases, and one home plate. But on occasion it was necessary to adjust the foul ball pole to accommodate a mean dog in an adjoining yard, or develop a ground rule double when the ball went across a busy street. Some things were negotiable, but others were not.
Are you sitting apart from the others right now? Is your face cast in hardness like a stone? Are you too proud to admit you were wrong, or perhaps to accept someone’s unsaid apology? Are you demanding an act of contrition so that your pride can be restored, or perhaps you remain unmoving because it isn’t enough? Well if so, then put on the clothes of a child, and listen for the voice of reason to call you home.
Prayer:
Father, I thank you for your Holy Spirit that opens my ears to the voice of Jesus when I am at odds with your Church. I thank you Lord for the lessons that conflict brings, and pray that I will be receptive to your Word in such times. Lead me Jesus as a sheep who finds comfort in your flock. If there comes a time when I wander away then come drive me home, but if the flock has gone astray then place a bell around my neck and make me the bellwether. Help me to lead from within your flock, and not to abandon them. Help me to see past the stray paths that some take as I await you to bring them home. Strengthen the child within me Holy Father, and make my humanity malleable in your hand... keep me as soft clay, a child, upon your wheel, and shape me as a potter, a new vessel for each day you have set before me... cast for your will in that moment. Give me the willingness to forgive as s child, and believe as a child... let my ears hear your voice, and direct my eyes turn towards home whenever you call. Keep me Father as a part of your House, your temple, your kingdom, forever. Hear my voice as I run to you in the evening... “Holy, Holy, Holy, are you my God, my Father. I come to you now!”
Rich Forbes