This is what happens when I just start writing
I have recently been challenged intellectually as to some aspects of the Christian faith.
Weather it be inerrancy of scripture, Jesus’ commands and life, evangelism, today’s church or the “emergent” movement all have been extremely thought provoking. I have mainly stayed out of much discussion, outside of comments here and there, but I do have a thought on the subjects that are so widely debated, and I think now is as good of time as any to write my heart on the subject.
I fear that we have forgotten what this is all about, what our purpose in life is. Tom Landry would stand before his football team, after he felt they had lost their direction, and hold up a football and say, “this is a football.” If our lives are not about Christ and searching for and the showing of the glory of God, what is it about? Maybe I read too much Piper but I agree with him when he says;
“God is glorified most when we are most satisfied in him.”
This is the chief end of man, to glorify God!
Our lives should be that of Christ, who followed and obeyed the will of the Father. Did Jesus call us to love our neighbors? Yes! But he first called us to love God the Father! This command of loving people does not wash out the rest of Christ commands to us; Go and make disciples, give to Caesar what is Caesar’s but give to God what is God’s, Zeal for thy house will consume me. The command to love is powerful but it does not wash away the rest of Christ’s life. Loving people goes hand in hand with all the other commands Jesus gave us, for it is impossible to any of them without fist loving the person you are pursuing. That is why loving people is so important, you cant do anything God has asked of us without love.
But we are, and make no mistake, we are called to more than love. We are called to do more than hand someone a rose or give someone a hug, yes these things can communicate love and affection, but that is just a piece of what we are called to. Can a rose speak of the grace of God? Can a hug communicate the suffering of Christ on a cross? Can a different label for a church explain the resurrection?
I am beaten down by all these labels we throw on church today, post-modern, emergent, modern. Why cant we be followers of Christ. Where our aim is to live life as He has called us to live!
Weather it be inerrancy of scripture, Jesus’ commands and life, evangelism, today’s church or the “emergent” movement all have been extremely thought provoking. I have mainly stayed out of much discussion, outside of comments here and there, but I do have a thought on the subjects that are so widely debated, and I think now is as good of time as any to write my heart on the subject.
I fear that we have forgotten what this is all about, what our purpose in life is. Tom Landry would stand before his football team, after he felt they had lost their direction, and hold up a football and say, “this is a football.” If our lives are not about Christ and searching for and the showing of the glory of God, what is it about? Maybe I read too much Piper but I agree with him when he says;
“God is glorified most when we are most satisfied in him.”
This is the chief end of man, to glorify God!
Our lives should be that of Christ, who followed and obeyed the will of the Father. Did Jesus call us to love our neighbors? Yes! But he first called us to love God the Father! This command of loving people does not wash out the rest of Christ commands to us; Go and make disciples, give to Caesar what is Caesar’s but give to God what is God’s, Zeal for thy house will consume me. The command to love is powerful but it does not wash away the rest of Christ’s life. Loving people goes hand in hand with all the other commands Jesus gave us, for it is impossible to any of them without fist loving the person you are pursuing. That is why loving people is so important, you cant do anything God has asked of us without love.
But we are, and make no mistake, we are called to more than love. We are called to do more than hand someone a rose or give someone a hug, yes these things can communicate love and affection, but that is just a piece of what we are called to. Can a rose speak of the grace of God? Can a hug communicate the suffering of Christ on a cross? Can a different label for a church explain the resurrection?
I am beaten down by all these labels we throw on church today, post-modern, emergent, modern. Why cant we be followers of Christ. Where our aim is to live life as He has called us to live!
posted by palmercat at 9:01 AM
1 Comments:
well...i see your point. does slapping a new label on something make it different? i don't know. but what if instaed of using "emerging church" we used "christ followers" is that not the same thing? the new batman explains this brilliantly. "its not who i am that matters, its what i do that defines me" so label it the "emerging church" label it "christ followers" or "vinage faith" don't label it all.
who cares.
can giving someone a rose define grace to a person.
well not fully.
but neither can giving your entire earthly life to someone. even that would fall short of G-d's grace. so, can givin someone a rose or hug communicate Godly truths?
not fully- but its more than they had yesterday
also. (and totally sorry to rant - i do believe your point was wonderfully made)
giving out roses is more for the people doing the giving than those who recieved it. by giving a rose or hug to someone we experience a piece of God. trust me. i don't thousands of people are going to get saved because we handed them a rose with a website on it. that typed of definition of evengelism is contrary to style of the 'emerging church'.
so it won't changed all of the people who get the rose.
but it may effect those who gave it away.
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