“Let’s see how far we’ve come; let’s see how far we’ve
come.”
I woke with this song in my head. I’m not sure why, but I think it has something to do with
CityChurch.
Last night I attended my first CityChurch lifegroup
gathering, at the house of two friends living downtown. I knew about half of the group, and
recognized most of the rest from the lifegroup parties to which I had been
invited. We stood and talked, snacked
on some Oreo cupcakes, then sat in the living room in a circle. A friend lead us into writing
thanksgivings from the past year onto coffee filters, to be used as part of an
installation sculpture at CityChuch this Sunday. Then, we had time to share our thanksgivings, and some
struggles, with the group. We
ended with prayer, thanksgivings and worship, and prayed for some of the
continued hardships, too.
It was a powerful time. Many shared similar struggles of the past year or
three. Several had wrestled with
unbelief, several with doubt and anxiety, some with family and still others
with jobs. And yet we gathered in
worship for the many beautiful things that God had brought out of the darkness. It reminds me of when Moses climbed
mount Sinai. It reads that he
climbed into the deep darkness, where God was.
A sermon Todd preached two weeks ago focused on challenging
the idea that God is in the pleasant, and not in the rough. It’s an easy mistake to make. As Todd said, in blessing we say that
God has been so good to us, while in struggle and in hardship we cry out, ‘God,
where are you?’ The truth
is, He is present regardless of circumstance.
So, what does it look like to repent of this sacred/secular
division, this seeing God in beauty and not in brokenness?
First, I think, we look to the cross. We see Christ, the fullness of
blessing, broken. Was He less
blessed, less anointed on the cross?
I doubt it. As God, he
kinda holds the monopoly on blessing.
But then, what can we say?
If even execution and abandonment can coincide with the presence of God,
with blessing, perhaps our understanding of the ‘favor of the Lord’ needs
redeeming. One could argue that
Christ took this punishment so that we would not have to. And they would be correct. The separation of God that Jesus
endures will never been encountered by those who fall upon Him as their
salvation. He promises that all that we
have given up will be returned to us a hundred fold------- with persecutions, He
adds. Oh, to have left the clause alone! Yet finding only
pleasing returns cannot be the call of the Christian.
Second, look still further at the life of the Lord who
walked amongst us. He was tempted,
he grew hungry and tired. He grew
angry with the Pharisees, heart-broken over oppression and legalism. He had no place to lay his head, no
equal in faith or intimacy.
Imagine the loneliness He must have felt! No one could understand, no one could empathize. This, the life of the Most Holy, the
Most Anointed, the Most Blessed. Hardship was no stranger.
Third, see those who followed Him, those whom He loved. Stephen, stoned. Paul, wrecked, imprisoned, beaten.
Peter, crucified upside down.
John, exiled. Mother
Theresa, lonely and in anguish.
Bonhoeffer, executed. So many faithful, walking believers, without some secret sin, without some
deserving hell-bent death wish, and yet oppressed, broken, hated, killed, ignored, sidelined, wrestling. These are the verbs likely to follow the names of the
'blessed'.
Fourth, we remember.
How has the Lord continued in sickness and in health, for better or for
worse, richer or poorer? How has
His covenant remained, though all shake, though all be found untrue? He has revealed Himself, in all seasons.
Let us finally ask a question of our Lord. What is the greatest end of man? A question to which I believe He responds, “To
come into right relationship with me, so to love and worship, and thus to be made into my image.”
As we look at the past year, we are to be grateful in all
things. All. This we know. A tall order, indeed, but the call of
the anointed ones, the blessed ones.
But should you dare to track progress towards the goal, to track
the growth of intimacy with our God, you mustn’t look towards earthly gains or
comforts. Number not your many satisfactions, nor your physical pleasantries. Instead, i suggest you ask how your speaking to the Lord has changed. And then, stare deeply at the face of Christ, and see how you
have come to look like Him, more and more. This is the truest of blessings, the great gain of the faith, the great progress of those sojourning with Him, that becoming like Him in His death, we might become even more like Him in His resurrection, living to God and not to sin. And this, above all individual struggles recently overcome, encouraged me most
last night. Because the
transformation of sinful men and women into the redeemed likeness of the Son of
God, in peace, in joy, in love, in intimacy, was happening all around me.
And that, my friends, is a beautiful, blessed thing.
----
A disclaimer: I do not mean to say that we should not enjoy the things we enjoy, nor do I think we ought to stop asking for them, nor should we be ungrateful for those happy, good things we come across. Surely heaven too will be beautiful, and good, worshipful and enjoyable. Still, we must not allow this to dominate our analysis of the 'blessedness' of the past year, nor the strength of our walk, nor the goodness of our Lord. He has bigger gifts to unwrap, even as He heals us now, feeds us now, gives us happiness and enjoyment now. These are no more than stocking stuffers, yet still gifts from a loving Father, and still worthy of gratitude and worship. How He cares for even the littlest of things, I am only beginning to grasp.
My next post will go into greater detail about where the
Lord has brought me in the past year, so stay tuned.
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