The Church

Allow me to expand, first with our churches in mind. I am often asked from other believers, “How can you keep the churches from going ‘astray’”? The answer I have come to is that ultimately “we can’t” and “they will”. Our churches, from time to time, will fail. We’ll stray into this tangent or that, we’ll bog down in moral decay, sinfulness and infighting. Some might be appalled at such a thought, but the simple fact is that periodically churches lose their way. Even the churches planted by the Apostles strayed, which is the very reason why we have a New Testament filled with letters. Moral corruption, theological confusion - these were the sordid realities of the earliest churches, preserved forever by the corrective letters that were written to them.

Having said that, I’m not suggesting that we should take this lightly. Just the opposite. In fact, because we know this to be our tendency, we need to be prepared to do whatever we can to lovingly correct it when it occurs. Yet more than being reactive, we also need to be preventive, acting in ways that intentionally aim to keep our churches on a right path. And it’s this that I’m concerned about as I write today. What can we do as a church to ensure we remain on a course that is good and pleasing to God?

Some would suggest that the answer lies in structure, and hierarchy. That is, if we order ourselves well, with enough “checks” in place, than this will prevent us from heading in a wrong direction. I think, however, that history has proven that approach to be wanting. The most structured, hierarchical churches and denominations in the world have all been guilty of vast and deep blunders - theologically, morally, relationally (our own included). At the end of the day, while accountability can be very important, it’s not the crucial fail-safe that some make it out to be. So, what’s the answer? If the secret is not found in structure, how can we keep our churches on a firm footing?

I think if we were to ask the Apostles that question, their answer would be pointed. In each of their letters, they repeatedly told their churches to stay focused on Jesus - his life, his death, and his resurrection. The basic instruction of every letter was this: “Keep the main thing, the main thing. Keep your eyes on Jesus. Imitate him.” This, coupled with a resolute belief that the Holy Spirit was alive and faithfully leading the church, was the deepest hope the apostles had for their churches. (Read 1 John for a succinct example)

Dear churches, as you have freedom to explore all angles of the Christian experience together, be sure to keep the main thing, the main thing. In the regular rhythm of your life together, come back to Jesus. See his death and resurrection and the implications of that for your life together. See the wonder of his life, how he lived and loved, and determine together, in the power of the Spirit, to walk in a similar manner. As you do this, your churches will find themselves moving in a right direction. Knowing
and imitating him, through the work of the Spirit, is what will ultimately keep you theologically, morally and relationally aligned. (How could you be fighting with your neighbour or willfully choosing sin while truly seeking to imitate Christ?).

Nothing is more important for our churches than Jesus. See him. Know him. Follow him.

The World

Now about the world. We also need to stay focused on Jesus for the sake of the world. The other night, I watched a TED talk that featured Billy Graham. For those unfamiliar with these, TED is a yearly conference where the biggest and brightest minds from Technology, Entertainment, and Design come together to inspire new ideas. Each conference features a key speaker who is invited to share his or her hopes for the world. They are given 20 minutes to say, “if all of you brilliant minds could focus your attention on anything then here’s what I would hope it would be...”

In the past few years, Bill Clinton, Bono, Al Gore - the biggest names - have all been invited to speak. In 1998 it was Billy’s turn. Being helped to the stage, slicked wavy hair and over-sized glasses, he looked every-part the man who had been ravaged by time and sickness. But when he began to speak, he held captive the brightest minds in the world with the unrelenting wonder of the Holy Spirit. With gentleness and love, he looked at the crowd and informed them that he was going to twist the agenda of the day. Rather than speak on his hopes for technology, entertainment and design, he was going to speak on three things that they would never be able to fully resolve: human suffering, evil, and death.

For 20 minutes, he kindly and plainly spoke, and by the end it was evident to all that given their best efforts (which he blessed and deeply encouraged) the hope of the world for these three problems would not be found in that room. So where would it come? I think you know the answer. So did Billy. And with all the “foolishness” one could muster, through word and manner, he brought the aroma of Jesus into a room that by the end was desperate for a fix. No doubt, most thought it was the stench of death - but what of the few on that day that somehow, miraculously, thought it smelt like life and hope.

It is foolish to the world. Everyday we are reminded of this. But in the mercy of God, we have somehow come to see it as the hope of the nations. Today our nations are in need of hope and so are our neighbours. For all our abilities, we still cannot resolve our deepest problems. But God, in the person of Jesus, miraculously claims he can and will - one day fully. And this is a message, that many in our world, are still wanting to hear.

With gentleness, love, peace and humility, we need to keep the main thing, the main thing. He is the hope of our churches and he is the hope of the nations. Lets keep it about him.