Do You Know What You Want For The Church?

 

Good Morning Friends,

 
 

The jostling for position and power can prompt some to explore bad theology. The problem is that we do not have sufficient real opportunities for discussions of scripture as iron sharping iron. People shout positions dulling the opportunity for real dialogue. People need new tools but are not trained in how to use them with love. Political correctness, lockdowns, social distancing and cultural barriers have essentially precluded the active participation in public discourse of a nature with people who care enough to seek to understand more than to be understood. Unfortunately, life is not fair, and human power corrupts on the journey. People are blind including religious leaders. It is easy to become cynical even for those who care. Perhaps we need to continue to change our ways as a culture and as a church. It has prompted some to seek a new reformation of sorts that responds to what we really need. But, Do You Know What You Want For The Church?

 
 

Scripture: As he approached Jericho, a blind man was sitting by the roadside begging. When he heard a crowd going by, he asked what was happening. They told him, ‘Jesus of Nazareth is passing by.’ Then he shouted, ‘Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!’ Those who were in front sternly ordered him to be quiet; but he shouted even more loudly, ‘Son of David, have mercy on me!’ Jesus stood still and ordered the man to be brought to him; and when he came near, he asked him, ‘What do you want me to do for you?’ He said, ‘Lord, let me see again.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Receive your sight; your faith has saved you.’ Immediately he regained his sight and followed him, glorifying God; and all the people, when they saw it, praised God.

 
 

Luke 18:35-43 (NRSV)

 

The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show his servants what must soon take place; he made it known by sending his angel to his servant John, who testified to the word of God and to the testimony of Jesus Christ, even to all that he saw. Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of the prophecy and blessed are those who hear and who keep what is written in it; for the time is near. John to the seven churches that are in Asia: Grace to you and peace from him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the seven spirits who are before his throne, “To the angel of the church in Ephesus write: These are the words of him who holds the seven stars in his right hand, who walks among the seven golden lampstands: “I know your works, your toil and your patient endurance. I know that you cannot tolerate evildoers; you have tested those who claim to be apostles but are not and have found them to be false. I also know that you are enduring patiently and bearing up for the sake of my name, and that you have not grown weary. But I have this against you, that you have abandoned the love you had at first. Remember then from what you have fallen; repent and do the works you did at first. If not, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place, unless you repent.

 
 

Revelation 1:1-4; 2:1-5 (NRSV)

 
 

For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven:

 
 

Ecclesiastes 3:1 (NRSV)

 

He put before them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed that someone took and sowed in his field; it is the smallest of all the seeds, but when it has grown it is the greatest of shrubs and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and make nests in its branches.”

  
 

Matthew 13:31-32 (NRSV)

 

Message: There is a difference between wants and needs. Today we look at how our big God works in small ways though acts of kindness and love to hopefully address both. And it really is a witness that we all can leverage the power given to us through the Holy Spirit, but we need to practice the presence by expecting the best…by acknowledging our dependence on God to love wisely. Certainly, God exceeds the boundaries of our bodies and the parameters of our imagination and so too love. Certainly, God is able, and in His ability, we are to expand our expectations for the body of believers…expand our expectations of what God can do through each of us…. expand our expectation of Grace. In small ways each day we are to rejoice in the fullness of God and His creation… rejoice in His grace and love…rejoice in the miracle of a boy and his lunch that feeds 5000…in little things like yeast that makes a big difference. We are to rejoice in the richness and power of the Holy Spirit that shows up when we surrender to new things and give up control… rejoice when we fellowship…when we are honest about giving up all pretense…when we see life as a journey not a destination…when we seek transformation not information…when we become filled with grace not judgment…when we take personal responsibility setting aside blame…when we give away what we have, knowing that control is a sin. Friends, we are to rejoice in our powerlessness while enduring patiently. Friends, you can always count on Jesus. He thinks about us even though we are so small and unworthy. He looks at us with the desire to make us into children of God. He talks with us through scripture and in a still small voice of the Spirit. So never underestimate the Spirit-filled power of small acts of love …of small acts of kindness. There is power in the plan of God whether we understand it or not. And in this Spirit, we learn that God has begun a good work in us and will complete it. We will experience new changes, new challenges and perhaps the birth in us of a new champion proclaiming God’s season.

 
 

And So, it is remarkable that people think their spiritual needs are secret. We may be unclear as to what others see. Over time our spiritual needs become palpable and clearer. You see, the physical need of the blind man was observable, and his spiritual need was not as hidden as we might think. When Jesus asked what the blind man needed, it was not because Jesus did not know. There is a divine process at play here in the story. First there is something important to admitting our need. Humbling ourselves to God and realizing we need a vison of Jesus working in our spiritual life. We need to admit we are not infallible, but rather fragile. God wants to hear our need and implores us to ask. But asking is not enough. The blind man had to ask but also had to have faith in a response. If we learn to live by faith, then God will be served. If we live by human logic, then only culture will be served. We need to cry out to God to open our eyes to the truth of the Gospel. But we must want the truth too. So today we have read just a few verses of another life changing transformation. The encouraging part of the story is that it can happen for us as well if we glorify God. We need endurance as the pandemic has made clear, but we also need the love of Jesus. We as the called-out assembly, like the church in Ephesus, need to remember our first love of Jesus and the joy we experienced.

   
 

Pray we never weary of our love of Jesus. Pray
that we put heart into our prayers for grace. Pray that we pray according to His power that is at work within us. Pray that we trust God to do immeasurably more than what we even ask or imagine. Pray that we know the surprising and surpassing Love of God and that it empowers us to live holy lives. Pray that we trust in the Lord. Pray that we position ourselves to receive God’s help and blessings. Pray that our faith gives meaning to small acts of service. Pray that our faithfulness in small things leads to greater opportunities to glorify God. Pray that we enter a season of service where we unwrap the joy of growing in love of all the small things as well as the large. Pray we begin to see the possibilities. Pray we believe in miracles. Pray we have enough faith to ask for help. Pray we believe that God is willing, able and ready to transform us. Pray we understand that to glorify God we must follow the Spirit. Pray we see, in the divine order of things, that our needs are met for God’s glory. Pray we be a people of faith. Pray we draw closer to God. Pray we find ways to both assert ourselves and also belong. Pray we are preserved until the great harvest when Jesus comes to collect His Church. Pray until then that our hearts are filled with love for our family, friends and others. Pray we are thankful for all the good things of life but that they never distract us from Jesus being our preeminent love. Pray we see in the light of the Holy Spirit the wisdom of a repentant heart that transforms us to return to our first love of Jesus.

 
 

Blessings,

 
 

John Lawson