I am not a Bible scholar. I don’t know words in the Greek and Hebrew to make myself sound like I know what I’m talking about. But I would like your permission to challenge you with what I’ve been learning this month. I hope to do it in a loving way that moves you to action. So here it goes…I’m stepping up on my soap box. Ready….go!
Do you think Jesus really meant what He said all throughout scripture? What if He really does want us to “go and make disciples of all nations.” What if He was serious when He said, “whoever finds his life will loose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.” Or does Paul really mean it when He says, “be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us…” Remember that verse that says “obedience is better than sacrifice”? Is it possible that we can know all of these verses from years of going to Sunday school but never actually do what they say?
So what does God’s word say over and over and over again? How should we live our lives? I see that it’s all about rescuing others. The point of the Gospel is other people. Jesus came to rescue us from our sin and we want to be more like Him, right? Isn’t that the point of being a Christian? Christ-like. So if He came to rescue, our mission is to rescue. What are you doing right now that lives up to that standard? We have to live this every day of our life. It’s not for radicals or weirdoes. It’s for Christians. And if we proclaim to be one, we need to act like it. Do we believe the Bible or not? I may not like some of the things it says because it’s convicting and hard but I’m tired of living how I want and trying to justify it biblically. And I don’t think I’m the only one who does that.
Seventeenth-century philosopher John Locke noted that “we Christians say we believe marvelous, earth-shattering and revolutionary things: that we are fully loved by a good and all-powerful God who will never fail to secure us in life and death, that we are therefore free to experience and exhibit selfless love and courage and joy every day, no matter what, for eternity.” But how many of us live as if these things are true? John Locke estimated not one in ten thousand. Sounds about right to me, even hundreds of years later. But that makes me want to be that ONE even more.
I have decided that I have no other choice than to live what the Bible says. I really don’t think God gave us the Bible to give us something to talk about. He gave it so that we would know how to live our lives. It shows us what to do. I have decided to take the World of God literally. I don’t think it’s that hard to understand, even though we do a good job at making it that way. It seems to me that a lot of “Christians” have some really good excuses to get out of doing what the Bible says. I myself have used quite a few. But don’t we believe that the Word is the voice of God? So why is the written word not enough? Why do we give the excuse that we need to “hear from God” when it comes to serving Him? The verse from 1 John 2:4-6 really convicted me the other day. “If someone claims, ‘I know Him well!’ but doesn’t keep His commandments, he’s obviously a liar. His life doesn’t match his words. But the one who keeps God’s word is the person in whom we see God’s mature love. This is the ONLY way to be sure we’re in God. Anyone who claims to be intimate with God ought to live the same kind of life Jesus did.“
So that’s my life goal from this point on, and it’s what God tells us all to do. I don’t want it to be something special I do for the homeless at Christmas time, or buying a few cans at Wal-Mart to hand out downtown. I want this to be my life, every day in some way, whether I’m in Africa, shopping for groceries or at home with family. I don’t think everyone is called to overseas missions, but we are called to God’s mission. To make His name known wherever we are, to love Him and love others. Sometimes actions speak louder than words.
The scripture I want to base my life on is found in Isaiah 58, mainly verses 6-10. I love the way the Message words it, “…break the chains of injustice, get rid of exploitation in the workplace, free the oppressed, cancel debts. What I’m interested in seeing you do is: sharing your food with the hungry, inviting the homeless poor into your homes, putting clothes on the shivering ill-clad, being available to your own families. Do this and the lights will turn on, and your lives will turn around at once. Your righteousness will pave your way. The God of glory will secure your passage. Then when you pray, God will answer. You’ll call out for help and I’ll say, ‘Here I am.’
I think it’s time to actually take what we’ve studied for years in our Bible study groups and discipleship classes and actually start doing what the Bible says, without manipulating verses into what we want. There’s a huge world in desperate need of a Savior. I encourage you to find out what your part is and start doing it. Take the Bible seriously. That is all. Thank you for reading.
