We will stand together on firm ground, on the corner stone of our faith, in the footsteps of Jesus Christ, Son of God, who with the Holy Spirit is our one true Lord and Savior.
That is my mantra for the Church in this time that feels so divided and tenuous.
As the Apostle Paul writes, “the body is one and has many members” (1 Cor. 12:12). This acknowledges that we are many, and our various perceptions for how and why our time feels divided and tenuous can be different one from another. However, I do think we all feel some sense of division and tension in our lives right now regardless of our varying perceptions. Paul’s words acknowledge that though we are different, we are one as the Body of Christ. We are united through our common Christian commitment to live as Christ followers and we can ground ourselves in this commitment to weather the feelings of tension and division.
I have been meditating on four themes within Christ’s ministry over the last couple of months and I want to offer those themes as a reflection of the foundation in Jesus Christ upon which we stand. When members of our secular government, people or systems, try to sow divisions among us, we can resist these attempts to divide our community, while honoring our different perceptions by centering these foundational themes in our common Christian faith. We are many members of one body, the Body of Christ.
As Christians, committed to living as disciples of Jesus Christ, God made flesh, we are called to:
Worship God and God alone. Jesus comes to turn us back to God through himself (Matthew 6:9-13; Luke 11:2-4). Jesus redeems us from our distractions and heals our relationship with God. Through the cross, Christ removes our sin and brings us into right relationship with God showing us that sin, hatred, enemies, and death are no more in God’s Kingdom (Luke 6, Romans 6). In Christ, we give our full allegiance and our worship to God and to God alone. No person, place, or thing comes before us and our worship of God (Exodus 20:4; Deut. 5:8). Our centering of God in our lives then turns us to the next three themes.
Serve the poor and help lift people out of poverty. Jesus himself feeds thousands of people with only 5 loaves and 2 fish (Matthew 14:13-21; 15:32-38; Mark 6:30-44; 8:1-9; Luke 9:10-17). It is a miracle that Jesus does this with so little. What we may learn is that we too can give of what we have in order to serve our neighbors in need. We are called to be creative and use both religious and secular means to lift people out of cycles of poverty. Jesus said, “blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God” (Luke 6: 20b). God has particular concern for the poor and we see this through the ministry of Christ.
Reach out to the outcast. Jesus reaches out and has mercy on outcasts of society like prostitutes (John 8:2-11), taxmen (Mark 2:13-17), lepers (Matthew 8:1-3, Mark 1:40-42, Luke 5:12-13), unclean people (Matthew 8:28-34; 9:20-22; 12:22-32; Mark 3:20-30; 5:1-20; 5:25-34; Luke 4:31-36; 8:43-48) and foreigners (Matthew 8:15-13; 15:21-28; Luke 9:51-56; 10:25-37). Jesus said, “blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy.” The people Jesus ministers to in the Bible are those whom society had cast out. It is our own sinful human lines of division that define people as outside of God’s reach. Through Christ (God made flesh), God shows us that nobody, not even the most reviled by human standards, is ever beyond the love and grace of God.
Heal the sick. Jesus heals so many that it is nearly impossible to count. Open any gospel text to any page and you will easily find a time when Jesus heals a sick person or a crowd of sick people (examples: Matthew 8:5-13, Mark 1:29-34, Luke 5:17-26, John 5:2-9). Healing is a core expression of who God is to the world. God desires health and wellbeing for humanity and all of creation. We are called to work toward health and healing in the world.
These four themes simultaneously draw us into our faith and turn us out into the world as we serve God’s creation through our various vocations (jobs, careers, parenting, hobbies, volunteering, etc.). As Christians, committed to living as disciples of Jesus Christ, we live our lives through these Christian themes. We stand together rooted in these themes. And we stay united as many members of one body, under these themes.
These four themes may sound to some like “overt politics” weaving into the life of the church. I acknowledge that they do speak directly to our government’s policies, but they do not speak for or against any one politician. They are deeply biblical themes and if they are convicting us to change course in our policies and our politics, then let the voice of God work.
These four themes can guide us Christians because no matter we know that Jesus did these things – it's right there in the Bible. We know that Jesus is an expression of God’s will for all of creation. We are called to view the church, the economy, the government, and any other human construction through these themes.
I pray that you will meditate on these four themes in the coming weeks and months. Read the many passages of scripture in which you can find expression of these themes. Listen for how the Holy Spirit moves with you among them.
These themes are a part of the firm ground and the corner stone of our faith. They are Christ’s footsteps in which we can stand united as we acknowledge that we are many members of one body – the Body of Christ.
In great hope,
Rev. Ryan
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