Dear Fellow Children of God,
In April of 2012 the cover of a Newsweek magazine had a
picture of Jesus on the front cover with the headline, “Forget the Church,
Follow Jesus.” That headline was not a
suggestion but a description for many.
People who say they believe in Jesus are not necessarily participating
in the church with the regularity of past times.
There may be many reasons that the church seems to have diminished
in importance in people’s lives. Major
reasons for this trend are that western cultures are more affluent and very
busy. The church and its ministry are
just one of many choices for people’s time, instead of the center of what they
do.
But, perhaps the reason stated most often that people are
“forgetting the church” is that Christians can “talk the talk” but don’t always
“walk the walk.” In other words,
Christians can talk about being holy, but we don’t always live holy lives. We can talk about love, but don’t always live
in loving ways. We can talk about
discipleship, but we don’t always live lives that show commitment to Jesus. We can teach the right thing, but give a
different message in our behavior.
You might expect
a pastor to defend the church against this accusation, but I know it is
true. You see, the church is not made up
of people who are perfect. Rather, the
church is made up of sinners who need a Savior.
In Mark 2 Jesus said, "It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but
sinners." (Mark 2:17) Thankfully,
God has provided a Savior for sick sinners like us in Jesus. He lived the perfect life of obedience and
love which we cannot live. Jesus suffered
and died on the cross to pay for our sins.
Jesus rose from the dead to win victory over death for all people, and
gives this fruit of His life to all who confess their need of a Savior from sin
and trust in Him for forgiveness and eternal life. Yes, I know Christians are not perfect. But, Jesus is.
However, I share this because, contrary to popular belief, I saw the church
in action this past week in San Antonio.
I saw people who not only were talking the talk, but were also walking
the walk. The 2013 National Youth
Gathering of our denomination was held in San Antonio, TX, July 1-5. Over 25,000 people gathered under the theme,
“Lived Love(d).” The emphasis was that
because Jesus loves us, we should live that love for others.
So the youth worshiped, and they donated food for food pantries and prepared
plants for community gardens. These
Christian youth went to Bible Study, and they helped local churches and
children’s homes. They helped paint
homes, mow lawns, and pick up trash. The
youth worked on park facilities, played games with children, and visited with
the elderly. Money was donated to help community
and church needs in San Antonio. Supplies
were donated to help people suffering from disasters around the world.
Actually, this example of “LIVING Love(d)” shows the
importance of God’s church. One of the
reasons the youth lived their faith is they were gathered together as the
church and encouraged one another. God’s
plan for the church is both to grow our relationship with Him, and to grow our relationships
of faith and love with others. God calls
people to worship so we are encouraged and strengthened in walking the walk as
well as talking the talk. We are told in
Hebrews 10:24-25, “24 And let us consider how we may spur one another
on toward love and good deeds. 25 Let us not give up meeting together, as some
are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another-- and all the more
as you see the Day approaching.” In other words, people may stay away from churches
because Christian people don’t always live their faith. But, the church is God’s plan for helping
sinners live the love of God for us in Jesus.
I think my favorite picture from the gathering contains no people. It is a park bench with food left on it for
homeless people in San Antonio. Instead
of “Forgetting the church and following Jesus,” the youth learned to grow in
Jesus through the encouragement of other Christians at the gathering. They gave life to Jesus' love and the theme of
the gathering. As they grew in Jesus they
LIVED Love(d).
There are no perfect churches, and no perfect Christians. You see, we ARE sinners who need a
Savior. But God’s plan is that His
church encourages us in His forgiving and saving love to live for Him and to love
others. I pray God’s Church does that
for you.
A Child of God, Seeking
to Live Love(d),
Pastor Jonathan
****
P.S. Here are some
pictures from the Youth Gathering this past week. Also, many pictures are also posted on the
St. John Facebook page. https://plus.google.com/photos/114993745799525883148/albums/5894882288488240833
****
ABOUT ‘THOUGHTS FROM THE PASTOR’ - I am
sending these e-mail messages, hopefully weekly, to all St. John members and
friends whose e-mails I have. (I am always adding new names of friends
and members – in case you are just receiving this e-mail for the first
time.) However, if you don’t want to receive this e-mail, please let me
know, and I’ll gladly leave your name off my list for this message. . . Or, if
you know someone who would like to receive one of these e-mails, please send me
their e-mail address.
****
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