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Pushing Away God’s Love
By Linda Rex
August 11, 2024, Proper 14—Last week I wrote about our role as members of the body of Christ, the Church (meaning the universal, all-encompassing, cross-denominational and cross-distinctives body of Christ). In our current culture, a group of people from all walks of life, backgrounds, and ways of being who live together in unity and other-centered love is in many ways a countercultural entity. People who have lived much of their lives in a very individualistic, self-absorbed manner may find it very challenging to be warmly embraced and invited into close relationship. In fact, it may feel invasive and even frightening to some people.
Over the years, I discovered that one reason we may push away such a welcoming, inclusive experience is because we are afraid that if we let anyone get close, they may discover what we are really like and reject us. What God has called his Church to be is the place where people are fully known, yet fully loved and accepted. The body of Christ, the Church, is meant to be a safe place for all God’s children. Unfortunately, the Church too often has been the place where when someone opens up and begins to get real, they are condemned, criticized, and or rejected. We do this in our families and in our other relationships, but this is not the way God treats us—so we should not treat each other in this way either.
In the New Testament passage for this Sunday, Ephesians 4:25–5:2, the apostle Paul describes what it looks like when people live together in the union and communion of the Triune life and love. As they live in these ways, they imitate the being and inner life of our Father and his Son in the Spirit.
What does this way of living together look like? Paul says that people are honest with one another—they practice truth-telling in love. They do not allow anger or rage to rule, for they do not want the evil one to have a chance to cause harm or division. They work hard, rather than steal, so they can help others out. The words they say build each other up, and they avoid any kind of slander, malice, or bitterness. They are always forgiving and kind to one another, no matter what may be going on in their lives. Living and walking in this way does not grieve the Spirit, for it is a reflection of the very union and communion of the Father with his Son in the Spirit.
When we look at our relationships within the body of Christ, especially when we look cross-denominationally or across lines of distinctions, do they manifest this kind of unity and love? What about in our own marriages and families? And what about our relationships with people outside the Church—how do we relate to people who do not yet believe in Christ? When I am honest with myself, I have to admit that too often I have fallen far short from being a true imitation of the divine Being.
Thankfully, this is where grace through faith comes in. And this is where we are privileged through Jesus to offer grace to one another. The reality is that whatever our life is in Christ by the Spirit, it is grounded in the love of God in Christ and in the grace that is ours through what Jesus did in his life, death, resurrection, and ascension. We are so grateful that we are held in Christ in his own face-to-face fellowship with his Father in the Spirit, so that even when we miss the mark, our own fellowship with God is unshaken. The Lord ever draws us back into that place of union and communion, while by his Spirit, he works to form Christ in us.
Evil constantly seeks opportunities to separate, divide, disrupt, confuse, and destroy all that is good, holy, and unified. We are constantly pressed upon by people and circumstances whose sole purpose is to steal or ruin or kill anything in our lives that may reflect the divine Being of Father, Jesus, Spirit—Three Persons in One Being. Still, the Spirit ever works to bring unity and oneness, while, like a parasite on all that is good, the evil one ever works to bring division and discord. At times, we participate in either direction, and we reap the consequences of our choices in this regard. But Jesus continues to invite us to follow him wherever he leads, and by his Spirit, he always leads us down the path to unity, oneness, love, and grace. And he holds us, now and forever, in his own face-to-face union and communion with his Father in the Spirit. This is our comfort and our peace.
Like Jesus, our fellowships of faith are called by God to be places where the Spirit is not grieved, but joyfully shares with us the divine fellowship of union and communion which is ours in Christ. As we gather together to worship God in Spirit and in truth, may we mirror more and more accurately the life and love of our Father, Jesus, and Spirit, and may we welcome warmly, gently, and wisely those who enter in, seeking a safe place to participate in God’s life and love.
Heavenly Father, Jesus, Spirit, thank you for including us in your life and love. We are ever in need of your forgiveness, for we are so often poor reflections of you. But by your Spirit, you are ever working. We trust you to finish what you have begun, through Jesus in the Spirit. Amen.
“Therefore, laying aside falsehood, ‘speak truth each one’ of you ‘with his neighbor,’ for we are members of one another. ‘Be angry, and’ yet ‘do not sin’; do not let the sun go down on your anger, and do not give the devil an opportunity. He who steals must steal no longer; but rather he must labor, performing with his own hands what is good, so that he will have something to share with one who has need. Let no unwholesome word proceed from your mouth, but only such a word as is good for edification according to the need of the moment, so that it will give grace to those who hear. Do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you. Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children; and walk in love, just as Christ also loved you and gave Himself up for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God as a fragrant aroma.” Ephesians 4:25–5:2 NASB
“Faking it and lying to one another was part of the old life; now truth remains the constant inspiration in your every conversation. We are related to one another like different parts in the same body. (Which means that cheating one another would be cheating yourself! …) Even if you think you have a valid excuse, do not let anger dominate your day! If you don’t deal with it immediately (in the light of the likeness of Christ in you) the sun sets for you and your day becomes one of lost opportunity where darkness employs anger to snare you into sin. Any sin that you tolerate is an open invitation to the devil. Do not give him a platform to operate from. If you were a thief before, you are one no more. Find an honest joy where the fruit of your labor can be a blessing to others! Instead of cheap talk, your mouth is now a fountain of grace, giving encouragement and inspiration to everyone within earshot. The Holy Spirit is your signet ring from God to confirm that you are redeemed to live your life in the light of day; any conduct that belongs to the night grieves him. Take up the strongest possible position against every form of distorted behavior in your own life. Do not allow yourself to be spiteful; outbursts of violent emotion and rage do not become you. You don’t have to shout in order to make your point. People must feel safe in your conversation; therefore, slander and hurtful words (blasphemy) are out! Be inspired by kindness and compassion; your forgiving one another when you might feel irritated and frustrated demonstrates the way God graciously treated us in Christ. Mirror God; you are his offspring. (2 Cor. 3:18.) This is how; let the love of Christ be your life; remember how he abandoned himself to us. His love is contagious, not reluctant but extravagant. Sacrificial love pleases God like the sweet aroma of worship.” Ephesians 4:25–5:2 Mirror Bible
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Fear or Faith
By Linda Rex
May 26, 2024—Holy Trinity | After Pentecost—One of the things I’ve noticed lately has been how often our decisions, our behavior, and our attitudes are governed by fear. Often, when I ask someone what they are afraid of, they completely deny that there is any fear involved at all. They deny that fear has anything to do with why they are acting a certain way or saying particular things, even though it is obvious to others that they are afraid.
In our New Testament reading for Holy Trinity Sunday, Romans 8:12–17, the apostle Paul points out the difference between slavery and sonship. He says that a spirit of slavery has its basis in fear, whereas, a spirit of sonship is based in love. What God has given us through Christ in the Spirit is a participation in the love of Father, Son, and Spirit. This means there is no reason for us to be afraid or to have a sense of fear in regards to God.
But often, the way in which we live our lives and make our decisions is rooted in fear. Because we do not know God well and trust him in every circumstance, we find ourselves immobilized, unable to courageously move forward. Or, we sense a thousand and one reasons why everything is going to go wrong or has gone awry, because we simply cannot believe that God is present, real, and loves us unconditionally, completely, and ceaselessly.
Our response as a result of fear rather than of faith often looks more like slavery than love. Indeed, when we are fearful, we tend to gravitate towards actions and words that will give us a feeling of control or mastery in the situation. We create rules or expectations or standards by which we measure our standing. We assess whether or not we are safe or are okay in our relationships with God or others. When taken to its worst end, fear blinds us to the reality of God’s love and grace, preventing us from living and walking in the truth of who we are as God’s beloved children. Indeed, fear often drives our responses, and its ultimate affect is destructive and unhealthy for us, creating division, pain, death, and isolation in our relationships. And this is not God’s desire for us.
If we sense fear within ourselves or realize that our decisions and how we are responding to situations is being driven by fear, we need to reconsider where we stand in relation to our Triune God. It takes a measure of humility and self-awareness to admit that perhaps we are driven by fear rather than living out of a heart filled with the love of God in Christ by the Spirit. Are we willing to admit that we are responding out of fear rather than simply trusting in our loving, gracious God?
How well do we know our God who is Father, Son, and Spirit? It is our God who is love, living in our hearts, who drives out the fear which seeks to take up residence within. In our life today, our hearts may be given over to fear or given over to love—we have both at work in our human flesh right now. But the apostle Paul says that we have no obligation to live in fear or to allow fear to be the driving force within. One day fear will be removed forever, but meanwhile, suffering will occur and fear will challenge our trust in our Triune God.
Indeed, we are new creations. We have been given God’s Spirit, the presence of God living in us, filling us with his love. We have no obligation to the deeds of death. Rather, we are bound by the Spirit to live and walk in love, for this is the truth of who we are as image-bearers of Christ. It is Jesus’ life in us by the Spirit which motivates us. God’s love poured out on and in us in the Spirit pours out from us to those around us. In this place of divine love and grace, there is no room left for fear. This is why we turn to Jesus, and open ourselves to the Holy Spirit. God’s perfect love casts out our fear and gives us faith.
The Holy Spirit, given to us by Jesus from the Father, binds our hearts and our spirits with God, uniting us and making us one. In the Spirit, resonating within us, is the affection between the Father and the Son, as we hear within our heart Jesus’ own “Abba, Father.” In this safe place, held in God’s love and life, we are free from fear. We rest our head on the chest of our loving Father, and feel the loving arms of our Lord Jesus, and the kiss of the Spirit on our cheek. In the embrace of the holy Trinity, there is no room left for fear.
Dearest Father, Jesus, Spirit, thank you for wrapping us in your warm embrace of love and grace. Enable us to see and confess our fear, to turn towards you in faith, and to allow you to fill us with your perfect love. Grant us the grace to rest in your grace and love, through Jesus and by your Spirit. Amen.
“So then, brethren, we are under obligation, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh—for if you are living according to the flesh, you must die; but if by the Spirit you are putting to death the deeds of the body, you will live. For all who are being led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God. For you have not received a spirit of slavery leading to fear again, but you have received a spirit of adoption as sons by which we cry out, ‘Abba! Father!’ The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, heirs also, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him so that we may also be glorified with Him.” Romans 8:12–17 NASB
“We owe flesh nothing. In the light of all this, to now continue to live under the sinful influences of the senses, is to reinstate the dominion of spiritual death. Instead, we are indebted to now exhibit the highest expression of life inspired by the Spirit. This life demonstrates zero tolerance to the habits and sinful patterns of the flesh. The original life of the Father revealed in his Son is the life the Spirit now conducts within us. Slavery is such a poor substitute for sonship. They are opposites; the one leads forcefully through fear while sonship responds fondly to Abba Father. We are not slaves to a cruel taskmaster but gifted with the spirit of sonship; engaging the tender affection of Papa without any reserve. Holy Spirit personally entwines our spirit; resonating ceaselessly within, endorsing Abba’s parenthood. The fact that we are God’s offspring, certainly also means that we are equal heirs of God. Not only is God our portion, but we are his. We are co-heirs in Christ. So, whatever we may suffer, at any time could separate us from our inclusion in his sufferings. Thus, every reminder of this mystery, also reinforces the fact that we have been made equal participants in the glory of his resurrection.” Romans 8:12–17 Mirror Bible
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Sight-giving Light
By Linda Rex
It’s very interesting to me the many ways in which God works in our lives in order to get our attention and help us to learn things about ourselves we would not otherwise see. Often, we go about our daily business, dealing with life as usual, never realizing there are significant issues with the way we handle certain things. We may not want to admit it, but we each have blind spots which are obvious to others, but which we cannot see.
One of the ways God brings light into these areas of blindness is by challenging our preconceived ideas regarding certain people, places, or things. By placing us through various circumstances in situations we would not have chosen for ourselves, or situations we did choose but they turned out differently than we expected, God exposes parts of our character which we are often able to hide under the glitz of performance.
Another way God pours his light into areas we are blind to is by placing people in our lives with whom we have to interact whether we like it or not. For example, an introvert such as myself may find herself forced to sit in a big circle of seventy people and have to tell how she feels about being present at that particular event at that particular moment whether she likes it or not.
Would I normally have chosen to tell such a personal feeling to that many people who are strangers to me? No. But the requirements of my situation have forced my hand—I will do it whether I want to or not. And I have to own that I would prefer to gloss over the way I really feel rather than expose myself to all those people and admit I’d just rather not be present in that situation. I’d rather be hiding somewhere else where I can just be me, away from the inspecting, critical examination of myself by people I don’t know and don’t believe are safe.
So, in just a few brief moments, I have gained insight into my own heart and mind, and into how I react in difficult and uncomfortable situations. I have learned something about my own character and my propensity to fudge the truth rather than to make other people feel bad or myself look bad. If I pay attention, then I will make note of this response and determine when faced with this situation again, I will act with boldness and integrity, and speak the truth in love.
If, however, I’m not paying attention when this happens, but ignore what is going on inside my head and my heart, I will react to the situation in a way which isn’t necessarily healthy or loving or honest. I might spend much of my life in this way, reacting to similar situations, and not realizing what is really going on. Blinded to this truth about my character, my behavior, and my responses to certain stimuli, I might go on oblivious, depriving myself and others of the opportunity to live in and experience God’s best.
But what if I took a different approach? What if I stopped in the midst of what is occurring and paused long enough to see things as they really are? What if I took the time to feel what is going on in my heart and to pay attention to what is going on in my mind, before reacting to the situation?
One of the things they told me in Christian counseling classes about bad habits is the need to place some significant distance between the stimulus or trigger and the behavior it leads into. The larger this gap is, the more distance there is between what triggers our response and the response itself, the more opportunity there is for the Holy Spirit to get in there and go to work.
I was listening to a young lady today, Kayleigh Vogel with Explore What Matters, talk about this very thing. The more they study the human brain and the psychological/physiological responses to stress stimuli, the more they realize there needs to be a proactive effort to create this distance and to enter into it in such a way we choose our response rather than just doing what comes naturally. She was saying the current studies in the neuroplasticity of the brain show over time our response can be changed as new pathways in the brain are formed and reinforced.
But there must be some effort to pay attention to what is going on inside of us. What drives our decisions? What drives our responses? Is it a gut-reaction, or is it a true expression of what we really value and believe is most important? This is worth reflecting on.
One of the things we do as we get to our adult years is to choose a career or find a job. More people are being intentional about what they choose to do for a living, while others grab what is available, just being thankful they have a job. But at some point, it would do each of us some good to consider this question: Does this job or career bring me joy? Does it really resonate with something deep inside me, with my values and what I care about most?
This is true also about what we do in our daily life, or how we respond to the stress we experience day by day. We all have choices we face. They teach us things, and we grow as we make those choices. We should not be afraid of them, but realize—these are opportunities to learn about ourselves and other people, and about this wonderful world we live in—opportunities to grow as human beings and open ourselves up to the refining, transforming work of the Holy Spirit.
As we make choices and other people make choices, and we experience the reality of life in an imperfect world, we can embrace all this as a wonderful opportunity to learn things about ourselves we would not know otherwise. And we can embrace it all as an opportunity for God to mature and refine us, and to transform us more perfectly into the nature of Jesus Christ.
And we can thank God we have new opportunities to see the blind areas of our character and lives as God’s light shines in those dark places, and opens them up to the redeeming power of God’s grace through Jesus our Lord by his Holy Spirit.
Abba, thank you for all the ways you bring us to see things about ourselves and our hearts we would not otherwise see, were it not for your love and grace. Thank you that by your Spirit, you continually shine your light in all our areas of blindness and bring us into a deeper understanding of who God are and who we are in you, through Jesus our Lord. Amen.
“The Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend [or overpower] it.” John 1:5 NASB
When Life is Too Much
by Linda Rex
I don’t know about you, but sometimes I find God brings us right back to a place we have been with him before so we can see the same thing over again in a new way. Let me explain.
Many years ago, when God was rearranging my head and heart with regards to what I believed about him, I went on a search to learn all I could about living in relationship with the Holy Spirit. You see, I had been taught most of my life to that point that the Holy Spirit was merely the power of God or what God was made out of. The Holy Spirit was an essence, a thing, but most certainly not a Person, for that would mean I would have to believe in the Trinity, which I (misinformed as I was) believed was a pagan belief.
But coming to know the Holy Spirit as the Person he/she/it really was blew my mind, and rearranged everything I knew about God and myself. And all of a sudden, I began to see I was missing one of the most important things a person could know about life and how to live it—that I am beloved, I am never alone, and God is living within me in the Person and Presence of the Holy Spirit, transforming me from the inside out. And this Person is Someone I can (and should) interact with, follow, obey and worship.
To go through life struggling, powerless over sin, self and Satan, is not the desire of our heavenly Father. This is not what he created us for. Jesus didn’t come just to leave us as orphans. No, he sent the Paraclete, the other Helper like himself, so we could and would participate in the divine relations between the Father, Son and Spirit, and come to see and believe the truth about who God is and who we are in him.
Sometimes God allows life to get difficult and complicated. Sometimes he calls us into places of ministry and renewal which are beyond our ability to handle. And our human tendency is to either throw up our hands in defeat, or just knuckle under and do the best we can in the situation. But neither of these things are what God wants us to do in these situations, because we would be missing out on God’s best.
Our solution to life’s problems, challenges and opportunities too often is a new, well laid out plan or program, which we implement to the best of our ability in the situation we are facing. Now, I am not knocking well laid out plans or effective scaffolds we can work within. What I am pointing out, though, is this human tendency to be self-reliant rather than dependent upon God. I think being faced with more than we can handle is an opportunity to humble ourselves and acknowledge the reality we need Someone beyond ourselves to save us and help us.
Relationally, it is really difficult to live in relationship with someone who speaks and acts as though we are unimportant and unnecessary to their existence. It is really hard to parent a child or care for another person who believes they can do everything on their own when they don’t have a clue as to what they are doing—it’s so painful to watch them suffer the consequences of their stubborn willfulness and independence, and to not be allowed to guide and help them. But we put God through this all the time.
Indeed, in the wisdom of God, Abba has brought me again to the place he brought me many years ago—a place he brings me to a lot. This is the place where he brings all of us over and over again—the place where we must come to see, believe and admit, we are powerless over sin, self, Satan, and all those things in life we think we are capable of controlling or feel we are responsible for. We need to see, believe, and confess the truth—we need Someone beyond ourselves to intervene, and to empower us, to heal us, and to deliver us.
And this, I believe, is what the apostle Paul was talking about when he said it is in our weakness we are strongest. It is the place of emptiness and weakness where God pours in—not so we become a stagnant pool, but so we might again pour out into others and back into God, emptying ourselves so he might fill us again. This is the perichoretic life we were created for and redeemed to participate in. This is what some call the divine dance—the life which ever existed and exists and will exist in the inner relations of Father, Son and Spirit.
To always have everything under our control, or to always feel as though we need to save the day or to chronically attempt to do so, is to live dishonestly. This is not the truth of who we are, nor what we were created for. This is living in a dream world—where we are masters of our universe and we are in control of everything which happens in it. This is just not the way things really are.
And to live in this way is to be like the person in the square dance who decides to do a do-sa-do when everyone else is doing an allamande left—it creates havoc and pain for everyone involved. It’s like we become a tepid, salty lake rather than remaining a flowing stream. Something of God’s life flowing into us and out from us becomes quenched or stifled. And those around us no longer benefit from the overflowing spring of God’s Spirit and life, for it’s as if a quenching of the Spirit occurs in our relationships with them. When we feel we must always be in control of everything which is happening or what others are doing, or always be the strong one who has it all together—this grieves the Spirit, and strains our relationships. And it’s just not living or walking in the truth.
Can you or I, or anyone else for that matter, keep ourselves safe in every situation? Do we have to make sure everything is done perfectly, so nothing bad will happen? How many things like this do we take on, thinking somehow we are capable of controlling the outcome? How often do we play God? I’m learning I do this more often than probably I would ever want to admit.
So once again, I am moved to the place where I am grateful for God’s grace, in the gift of his Son, and the gift of his Spirit. God’s mystery at work in me and in my life reminds me the best place I can possibly be is the place where I recognize my weakness, my powerlessness, and my inability to control the outcome.
It is when I acknowledge this and turn to Christ, and open myself to the Spirit’s presence and power, God goes to work and begins to do new things in me and in my life and ministry. It’s on his terms, in his timing, and in his way—it’s a walk of faith. But this is the only place I want to be, because I’m moving in step with the Father, Son, and Spirit in the midst of the divine dance, and it’s such an adventure!
Thank you, Abba, for including each of us in your divine dance, for sweeping us up into your life and love. We are utterly dependent upon you for all things, and confess our weakness and need, our inability to be what we ought to be and so to do what we ought apart from you. We pour ourselves out so you may fill us anew, Holy Spirit, and finish what you have begun in us, through Jesus and in his name. Amen.
“And He has said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.’ Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me. Therefore I am well content with weaknesses, with insults, with distresses, with persecutions, with difficulties, for Christ’s sake; for when I am weak, then I am strong.” 2 Corinthians 12:9–10
Expanding Our Concept of Community
by Linda Rex
Last evening I attended a neighborhood association meeting for the community around our Nashville church site. I’ve been enjoying the opportunity to meet and get to know our neighbors a little better and to see them at work as they join together to bring improvements to the Highland Heights neighborhood.
One of the things being impressed on my mind more and more as I build these relationships is the understanding that God often works in community. Although I would not characterize all of these people necessarily as “churchgoers”, nevertheless I see in them a sincere desire to do the right thing and to make their world a better, safer place in which to live. I see them participating in God’s love and life—his work in the world to further his kingdom life right here and right now in the midst of difficult and sometimes alarming circumstances.
The longer I have served in this neighborhood, the more God has worked to change my attitude and approach toward this community. When I first came to the Nashville area, I was overwhelmed by the urban sprawl and the impersonal way of living and being which comes with living in the big city. I was frightened by the prospect of interacting with people in the church neighborhood because the community seemed dark and dangerous. Some of the people who we sought to help seemed to bring with them chaos, dishonesty and a determined effort to use and abuse those of us who wished to help them.
Since that time I have had multiple opportunities to meet and become acquainted with people who live and work in the neighborhood surrounding our church. I have found the demographic is dynamic—it is constantly changing. And our neighborhood is in the midst of a transition which is creating its own struggles and dangers.
I have learned our neighbors want a place where they can live together in peace, where their children can play safely in the front yard, and where they can enjoy their belongings without fearing someone will come and steal them. They want to have community events where they can get together and do fun stuff like at their recent East Eggstravaganza, which provided a safe environment for kids to play, learn and have fun. They just want what we all want—to live joyfully together in peace, being able to go about our lives without concern or fear.
This sounds to me like our neighbors want to live in Christian community, although I realize they would not call it by that name. And they would not want to have anyone limit them to a “Christian” or “church” box in order to have that community. Sadly, for them, “church” and “Christian” have negative connotations, because they are perceived as a means of restricting community not creating community.
And I do not believe this is what God intends. Too often our modern Christianity here in the West has had the “us” against “them” mentality. Some are “in” while others are “out”. We fail to realize God does not work within our restrictions. I have met many people who are seeking to follow Jesus faithfully but who are disenchanted by the gracelessness and pride of the modern church, and so they do not attend church services. But they are active in creating Christian community and following Christ.
There was a time here in America where a church building was a place the community would gather, where children might be schooled, where community concerns were raised and resolved, and where the community would come together for celebrations. Not everyone was a Sunday-go-to-meeting type of person, but they knew the church building was where the people came together for the essential matters of life in their community.
Today, however, a church is seen as non-essential, as even intrusive upon a community. It was suggested last night that our neighborhood group could meet in the community center at a church since it was a quieter venue, and more conducive to gathering as a group and talking. But a valid concern was raised—wouldn’t people be put off from attending meetings by the knowledge they were being held at a church?
There was discomfort with the idea of meeting in a church building, even though we would not be meeting in the church proper, because there was this innate fear someone would try to force them into believing something or doing something they were not comfortable with. There was not a perception of the church building as being simply a community gathering place.
This whole experience has been enlightening to me. I am beginning to understand more and more why there is a disconnect between us as a church community and our neighborhood community. The two ought to be so intertwined that it is hard to see the difference. Even though they are not one and the same community, they both include participants in God’s life and love. They are both at work in their own way of furthering his kingdom work in the world.
God is at work in every person’s life, whether they know it or not. And God is at work in these community groups, calling people together to do his work in the world. We can continue to isolate ourselves and create unnecessary divisions between “us” and “them”, or we can participate in his work to create harmony and unity, and to bring healing, health and wholeness to a broken world.
Our little church community in Nashville has been serving the people of their neighborhood for many years with the weekly lunch we serve at our Community Café. We have been striving to build healthy relationships with the people we meet, to serve and pray for them at this event every Sunday. This is an effort to serve our neighbors—and in my mind is very much a way exclusive of our worship services in which we hold “church” every week. We participate in God’s work in the neighborhood in this way.
But there are also other ways in which we can stop being “churchy” and start being good neighbors. We can become a community center where people can gather for fun and fellowship. We can begin to participate in community events and help to keep our neighborhood safe and clean. We can help tend to the needy, poor, the widow(er)s and orphans. There is much to be done when it comes to participating in God’s work in our neighborhood.
Whether or not people become members of our church or become Christians as a part of this process, in my mind, is irrelevant. That’s God’s call and is up to him whether or not that occurs—such things are a work of his Spirit. What matters most is we are being what God created us to be, his children living in harmony, unity, in our own diverse manner as equals in a loving, compassionate community. As we serve one another in love, following Christ wherever he leads us, we will find ourselves and our community transformed. May we be diligent in so doing.
Abba, thank you for all the brothers and sisters you have given us in Christ your Son and by your Spirit. Change our minds and hearts so we will begin to include others in our life of fellowship, and we will begin to participate more fully in what you are doing in this world to create your community which reflects the oneness, diversity and equality and love in your being as God. In your Name we pray. Amen.
“I in them and You in Me, that they may be perfected in unity, so that the world may know that You sent Me, and loved them, even as You have loved Me.” John 17:23
Our Life in the Trinity 