01/08/2012 WHAT IF …CHRISTIANS REALLY DID WHAT JESUS TAUGHT?

WHAT IF …

… CHRISTIANS REALLY DID WHAT JESUS TAUGHT?

            “I want to know one thing – the way to heaven; how to land safe on that happy shore.” 

John Wesley penned those words in his preface to a book of Sermons on Several Occasions, published in 1746.

“The way to heaven” is what the seeker after Christ needs to know.  “The way to heaven” is what inspires the preacher of the gospel to serve.  “The way to heaven” is Jesus’ whole purpose for being born to us.

            If we have the motivation & the desire, we’re only part-way to hea-ven.  How to land safely on that happy shore fills the rest of the equation.  Jesus helps us with the “how.”  He teaches it.  Most importantly, he models it for us to see & learn … & imitate.

            Last year at this time, we took a decidedly individualistic approach to the Christian faith.  Our theme of “Doing Hard Things,” was a way to invite, & expect, God to help us with those things.  They were matters that persons tried to achieve for a long time, but regularly failed, because they were, indeed, hard.  The faith is built one believer at a time, which in turn, builds Christ’s Church.

            This year, the “What If…?” series focuses on the body of believers who self-identify as followers of Jesus Christ, who refer to ourselves (corporately) as the Church.  Yes, we’re individuals, but we’re all in it together.  Last year, we explored issues unique to each one of us.  This year, we explore what we have in common, namely Jesus & his will for us.  It’s no longer what we expect of God, but what God expects of us.  The whole of scripture teaches:  God fulfills His promises.  On this Baptism of the Lord:  do we fulfill ours?   

            So, what does God expect of us?  At the last judgment, when all is laid bare before the Almighty, what will count?  Jesus, the authority on this subject, tells us by speaking these familiar words,

                        Come, you that are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; for I was hungry & you gave me food, I was thirsty & you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger & you welcomed me, I was naked & you gave me clothing, I was sick & you took care of me, I was in prison & you visited me (Matthew 25:34-36).

            Did you?  We, who are blest by God, did we do these things?  The sad, honest truth is that too many church-going Christians who have been blest by God haven’t done these simple tasks. 

Richard Stearns knows that -- knows Christians -- firsthand.  As CEO of World Vision he is uniquely qualified to speak to Christians on behalf of the poor & needy of the world.  He says that for too many church-goers Jesus would have to alter his words to go something like this:

                        For I was hungry, while you had all you needed.  I was thirsty, but you drank bottled water.  I was a stranger, & you wanted me deported.  I needed clothes, but you needed more clothes.  I was sick, & you pointed out the behaviors that led to my sickness.  I was in prison, & you said I was getting what I deserved.[1]

Mr. Stearns wrote those lines in his 2010 Christian Book of the Year, The Hole in Our Gospel.  When persons called Christian so glaringly fail at these most basic of biblical tasks, we create a hole in our gospel.  No memoriza-tion of Bible verses, no robust singing of hymns, no recitation of creeds, no coins dropped in the offering plate can cover the gaping hole left by our failure to care for the needs of God’s children.

            He has told you, O mortal, what is good; & what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, & to love kindness, & to walk humbly with your God? (Mic. 6:8)

            Richard Stearns is a practicing Christian who was raised in a poor family torn asunder by alcoholism.  His ambition, however, took him to the Ivy League, specifically Cornell University & Penn’s Wharton School of Business.  He became a successful, corporate wunderkind.  Everything he touched, literally, turned to gold, from gold editions of the game Monopoly when he led Parker Bros. to high-end gilt-edged Lenox China.  Immediately before going to World Vision, he was offered wages in the tens of millions of dollars.  In his book, though, Mr. Stearns also identifies his failings & sees them in others.

            As an “insider,” Richard Stearns is critical of Christians.  What do persons outside the church see?  What do they think about us? 

The nation’s leading Christian pollster, George Barna, tells us.  He reports that the current generation of 16- to 29-year-olds outside the church view Christians unfavorably.  Surprise!  We are seen as judgmental, hypocritcal, out of touch with reality, insensitive to others, boring, & confusing, among other unflattering descriptions. 

“Is there anything good which they see about us?” you ask.

Well, 18% -- sadly, only 18%  -- see us as friendly.  Only 16% say we consistently show love for other people.  Only 11% say we’re genuine.  Only 10% see what we offer as being relevant.  Only 9% see us as people they can trust.[2]  What an indictment!

            An insider & outsiders proclaim the same message.  The truth hurts.

            Jesus & his disciples experienced a similar public relations debacle.  John the Baptist, the leading Jewish prophet of his day, sends messengers to see what Jesus is really about.  Is he doing what the scriptures teach about the Messiah?

Jesus had been doing great things.  Immediately prior to John’s inquiry, Jesus healed a centurion’s servant & raised a widow’s son from the dead.  He preached what was previously unheard (of): a gospel that ran counter to the prevailing culture, a gospel teaching that the proud & rich would endure woes & trauma, while the poor & needy would be blest of God.  John just needed proof from trusted eyewitnesses what the Messiah was accomplishing for the kingdom, so he asked.

In turn, Jesus informed John: “The blind receive their sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, & the good news is preached to the poor” (Lk. 7:22).  According to the great prophets Elijah, Elisha, & Isaiah, these are the things the Messiah is supposed to do … & Jesus was (doing them).  Jesus & his disciples helped persons in need. 

Are we?  Like John, I ask:  Are people seeing us doing these tangible acts of service?  What are we achieving for the coming kingdom?  More importantly, what are you & I, as members of this body of believers in this corner of the kingdom, accomplishing?  Did you or I help one needy person last week?  Did we even encounter a person in need last week?

If we, who are blest by our Father, are to be a part of this coming kingdom, God expects our lives, our churches, & faith communities to be characterized by authentic signs of our own transformation.  Compassion, mercy, justice, & love need to be tangibly demonstrated.[3]  A loving God expects this of us & so does a new generation who doesn’t know Jesus.

The truth is, by their own admission, only 18% of born-again Christians consider serving the poor to be in the top three things Jesus’ followers must do.[4]  That’s less than one in five.  Contrast that with Jesus who put serving persons in need at the top of the list.  It wasn’t an option.  It wasn’t a multiple choice test.  It was the hallmark, the bread & butter, of the earliest Christian communities.  They didn’t have a Bible.  They were not the most spiritually educated.  They didn’t have beautiful houses of worship.  They didn’t have bell choirs & signing choirs & orchestras.  They may not have had the most orthodox theology at times, but they did what Jesus said, winning souls to the kingdom &, in turn, drawing nearer themselves.

What if we really did what Jesus taught?  What if everyone here served the needs around us, rather than assigning them to a committee, or paying someone to do it for us, or ignoring them entirely?  What if we each plugged the hole in the gospel we preach & try to live?  After all, Jesus told us to judge by the results (Matt. 7:16).[5]  That’s his standard.

            In these days after Christmas, our faith does not depend on just a little baby Jesus Christ, but on all of us becoming “little Christs” – all of us responding to Jesus & the life he models.[6]  St. Teresa of Avila, the 16^th- century Spanish mystic said it well:

                        Christ has no body on earth but yours, no hands but yours, no feet but yours.  Yours are the eyes through which Christ’s compassion for the world is to look out; yours are the feet with which He is to go about doing good; & yours are the hands with which He is to bless us now.

It’s done by ordinary persons.

            Will you do this?  Will you, when you renew your baptismal vows, pledge to intentionally serve persons in need?  Will you partner with Christ, with me, & your brothers & sisters here at Christ Church in this new year of 2012? 

What if we really did what Jesus taught?  Imagine!

In the Name….                  Copyright 2012 by G.D.Knerr at Lansdale, Pa.  All rights reserved.

Recommended reading ---

The Hole in Our Gospel by Richard Stearns, 2009

            - this book is the basis for the sermon series; awe-inspiring, quick read

Those People by Tom Allebach, 2011

-          locally-written stories that make real the need in our community; written by

the director of Manna on Main Street (on sale at Manna for $10)

Un-Christian: What a New Generation Really Thinks About Christianity…& Why It

            Matters by David Kinnaman & Gabe Lyons, 2007

-          a secondary text used for the sermon series, as well as by Richard Stearns;

 engaging, disturbing research by America’s leading Christian pollster,

 George Barna

Radical:  Taking Back Your Faith from the American Dream by David Platt, 2010

            - the story of how one large, affluent, suburban church began serving the needy;

                        great, hope-filled reading, but a little too aggressive about evangelism

Deep Justice in a Broken World: Helping Your Kids Serve Others & Right the

            Wrongs Around Them by Chap Clark & Kara E. Powell, 2007

            - how to serve local & global needs with your children

Who Really Cares? America’s Charity Divide: Who Gives, Who Doesn’t, & Why It

            Matters by Arthur C. Brooks, 2006

-          for “numbers persons” curious about philanthropy in the U.S.; covers giving to

 churches, synagogues, mosques & other 501(c)3 charitable organizations