07/28/2018
You are a believer in Jesus Christ, and received the Holy Spirit who has given you certain gifts. Yet our tendency as human beings is to take this relationship and our gifts, and to keep them private between God and ourselves. Is this how you are in your faith? Do you have a relationship with God that is private and personal? Have you taken the instruction of Jesus to pray in secret, and applied this to the entirety of your faith? If so you are missing the fullness of living the faith.
“I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.”
Ephesians 4:1-3 ESV
We are to maintain ourselves as a community of believers, and by way of example I want to share a story with you. There is a catholic college in Nashville, Tennessee that is run by the Dominican order, and it is called Aquinas College; several years ago my daughter was enrolled there in the nursing program. By virtue of her attendance we received multiple mailings, and one was an announcement regarding a series of lectures that was being held there, and they were open to the public. One evening I picked up the brochure and I read down through the list. The topics looked interesting, so I picked out a few that I felt I would like to attend.
The lectures were in the evenings and I passed right by the college on the way home from work, so I decided to attend one as a trial. I chose a lecture by Dr. Peter Lillback on his new book “Sacred Fire” which dealt with the life of President George Washington, and centered on the question of whether he practiced Deism, or Christianity. I had no idea what to expect, but this was a lecture delivered by a Presbyterian Pastor, a professor of Historical Theology, who would speak on the faith of an Anglican President, and who was going to deliver this presentation at a Catholic College... interesting to say the least.
So I walked into the building where I was greeted by a Dominican Nun dressed in flowing Black habit, and who politely directed me to the location where the lecture was to be held. I entered the room filled with chairs, and made my way past a table of snacks to a seat near the aisle and back a few rows from the podium. The room began to fill modestly with people who spoke to each other as if they knew one another, then something happened that I will always remember... a group of Nuns of various ages entered the room and took seats right behind me. Not being familiar with nuns, I had no idea if this was a good thing or not. All of the stories I had heard from friends was that they were a stern lot, and would rap your knuckles with a ruler if you spoke out in class!
I listened as they spoke to one another, and was immediately impressed by the love and kindness with which they did so. The younger sisters offered to fetch cookies and a drink for their older companions, and as we waited for the speaker to enter the room I thought to myself that even if the lecture was a bust... I had received what God had brought me here for. I was witnessing a community of Christians sharing their faith intimately between themselves; Elderly, middle aged, and young, each lifting the others up in love and kindness.
The lecture began, and was amazing, so I bought the book... all 847 pages of it. It is the most exhaustively complete and studied book I have ever read on George Washington, and the author did not disappoint in either delivery, or personality.
Following the lecture I rose and greeted the nuns seated behind me. They were engaging and warm and felt like any of the more remarkable women of faith I had ever had the pleasure to meet. The conversation was redirected towards me... did you like the lecture? How many children do you have? Do you have a student here? Please come to our other lectures! They gathered me into their Fellowship, and I knew the feeling intimately. This was the manifestation of Christ in the body of faith.
So I told you this story as a modern day example of what Peter was speaking of in our opening scripture reading. We aren’t meant to sequester ourselves within our faith like a couple of young lovers on honeymoon, but to share it openly, and humbly with one another. To hold hands and stroll peacefully chatting in the park of our faith like an elderly couple who is founded in a lifetime of love. This is an encouragement, and the way of Christian life.
“Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful. And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.”
Hebrews 10:23-25 ESV
If we can’t do this with each other, then how can we expect to do so with the unbelievers that surround us? Living in our faith openly, and sharing it with the Body of Christ prepares us for the great commission, and to demonstrate to others what it means to dwell in Christ, and have Him dwell in us...
“"You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.”
Matthew 5:14-16 ESV
So are you locked behind closed doors with your faith, or strolling with it in the park? Perhaps it’s time to look at your relationship through fresh eyes.
Father:
Thank you Father for this relationship I have with you, and with your Son Jesus Christ. Thank you for the secret times of prayer and conversation we have, but thank you also for the warm and open life I live with you every day. Thank you for walking with me in the many parks of my faith, and for the peace and joy I feel with you as we mingle with the family of believers that surrounds us. Help me Holy Father to open my relationship with you so that those around me might be encouraged, and then experience a desire to walk with you too. Teach me Gracious Father to be comfortable as I hold your hand in the midst of my fellows in faith, and to openly display our closeness to those who have not met you yet. Use the privacy of my prayer closet as you instruct me regarding your will for me, and as a place where I can speak with you without flaunting my righteousness before others unduly. Let my reward be in heaven Father, but let a portion exist here to edify your children in their struggle, and those who are yet to be drawn to you. Show me how to best do this Lord, show me the life of Jesus, and establish it as my model of faith. You are amazing in your goodness, and your love causes my faith to overflow this cup of my body. Holy, Holy, Holy, are you my god who walks beside me always, and never withdraws in the presence of saints or sinners alike. Great are you my Faithful God.
Rich Forbes