On Sunday, I went to a church I have objections to. Why? Well, I'd like to say it was open-mindedness or unconditional love... but convenience is the word. This church (let's call it ThatChurch :) is in a shopping district I needed to go to on Sunday afternoon, so to save myself the trip from my church, I thought: ThatChurch, here I come. I had my misgivings about going, but then I thought of this year's focus on humility. Whatever is wrong with ThatChurch's focus or worship, my disdain for them isn't godly. So I asked God to:
* Open my mind to truth and beauty in ThatChurch
* Shield my heart and mind from ThatChurch-isms which do not conform with His truth
* Teach me what to be thankful for and what to be troubled by; and more importantly, what to do with my thankful and/or troubled spirit
[In reality, the things that bug me about ThatChurch may not be wrong, in spite of my views on them. However, for the sake of this argument, let's assume those things truly do not honour God.]
At first it was... I don't want to get into the details of the stuff that rubs me the wrong way (that's like a 5-part note ;) but basically, those things were all present. BUT by focusing on the lyrics rather than the singers (and their antics), the overarching lessons rather than the occasional iffy statement; and being thankful for a full auditorium rather than suspicious of people's motives for coming to ThatChurch, I actually experienced God's presence there. I was surprised that I learnt so much from the sermon, in spite of disagreeing with some aspects of it.
This experience has made me realise that there are no limits to God's grace. No church- or skeptical know-it-all-girl- is too far gone for God's truth to reach. So rather than pray that everyone and every church believe what I believe exactly as I believe it, I'm switching to praying that people's hearts (mine included) are open to God's truth regardless of where they are/worship. I figure that God is so mighty that His work does not depend on us or the church getting everything right. Even when we hold the wrong views or do the wrong things, God's truth CAN still thrive and He CAN still work in our hearts IF are willing and open to HIM. Maybe that's why God hasn't struck down every fake pastor or wiped out all flawed theology. Maybe God isn't threatened by them. Maybe His work isn't derailed by them, because as long as hearts are tuned to HIM, not the pastor, not the worship leader, not the world culture, He will do His thing anyway.
I believe I learnt a lot from an imperfect sermon because I was willing to sift the truth from the stuff I didn't like/approve of. Grace worked with my open heart, regardless of my raised eyebrows. This makes me realise two things:
1. If even I, a skeptic of ThatChurch, could experience God's truth there, then I suppose God won't hold it back from members of ThatChurch who truly seek Him.
2. Maybe my church isn't that wonderful after all. Maybe what makes me experience God there is not that the Church has their doctrine and worship on point, but that my heart is open and seeking when I'm there. Maybe it's not that the singers at my church dont have their shenanigans, maybe it's not that the preacher is a 'genuine' man of God, but that I somehow overlook or downplay those things because my focus while I'm there is experiencing God's presence and learning His truth.
I'm not saying that anything goes for every church because what we absorb depends solely on our own attitudes. I am suggesting, though, that we may be overemphasising the imperfections of our churches forfear that people will get swept away en masse by flawed doctrine. I'm beginning to think that if a person's relationship with God is genuine; if that person is seeking, then God won't hide Himself. He will reveal His truth. It sure would be nice if all churches were perfect; but boy, am I relieved they don't have to be for God to reach me.
Here's the transcript to the sermon I heard at ThatChurch (I edited and rearranged it, so any errors you see in it are mine):
Peter's response to Jesus' miracle of catching the fish is noteworthy. He wasn't scheming to get Jesus into his fishing projects- He recognised the bigger picture: he needed to get on Jesus' wagon, not other way around. John 21:18 Jesus alludes to Peter the kind of death he was to experience and asks him to follow Him.
After the outpouring of the Holy Spirit (Acts 1), a new Peter emerges: one who is no longer intimidated by or afraid of the rulers of the day; one who is sure of his identity, ministry and message. The Holy Spirit brings the grace of God into the human condition. Grace refers here to the Divine influence that reflects in how we live our lives. It's what changes us from the people we were before we knew Jesus.
Grace is a transformational experience, not a concept/idea. It's not just about the forgiveness or kindness of God when we became Christians. It's the everyday work God does in our lives: the changes He makes in us, the sins He forgives, the encouragement He gives, making us more and more like Him in every circumstance. That's grace.
From the healing of the lame man, we learn that the name of Jesus is not a magic word that heals just because It's said. Paul said, what I have (not what I know or say) I give you. The name of Jesus is relevant when It is drawn from what we have received and experienced- that's when It takes us to the very presence of God from Whom we derive our very being.
Peter was able to share what he had, expressing it through the healing of the man, because he was fully attuned to the work Jesus was doing in his life. Romans 8:30 Peter received everything that made Jesus Jesus- he had been changed through the grace of God- and that's what he gave the lame man. Romans 8:16 God's Spirit touches ours, by so doing changing ours into something like His (grace)- that's how we become and know we are His children. God doesn't just surround/cloak us with a different material than what we are made of. He infuses Himself into us, so that we are made of the same stuff: Father and Child.
When we don't fully embrace God's entrance in our lives, when we don't fully open up and give Him all, we end up with a concept, an idea- we see grace as an external work that surrounds us every now and then, not a life that is active within and changing us now and everyday.
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