Remembering The Past
Working at a church in the “Bible Belt” has some advantages but I find myself teaching more about what the Church isn’t rather than what the Church is. When someone commented to me a couple days ago how I needed to look beyond all the tourism in Israel to see the true holiness of where Jesus Christ himself walked I immediately my southern mode of teaching kicked in. I conceived the idea in my mind that people come to church every week just to say they were there, like visiting a certain landmark or memorial. I went on to affirm myself by elaborating that if we stopped viewing church as a museum or ancient artifact our eyes would be opened to the living, breathing body of believers that acts as the hands and feet of Christ.
Working at a church in the “Bible Belt” has some advantages but I find myself teaching more about what the Church isn’t rather than what the Church is. When someone commented to me a couple days ago how I needed to look beyond all the tourism in Israel to see the true holiness of where Jesus Christ himself walked I immediately my southern mode of teaching kicked in. I conceived the idea in my mind that people come to church every week just to say they were there, like visiting a certain landmark or memorial. I went on to affirm myself by elaborating that if we stopped viewing church as a museum or ancient artifact our eyes would be opened to the living, breathing body of believers that acts as the hands and feet of Christ.
As my thoughts circulated trying to develop a valid argument to my idea God caught me in my own hypocrisy. In my heart I knew I wanted to be just as much a tourist in Israel as anybody else. I was stuck with the realization that my motives of going to Israel were not helping those presently suffering and in need. My focus would have been what happened 2,000 years ago, past events. I would have been enamored with the history and foregone experiences of what it would have been like to live in Israel at the time of Jesus’ physical life. It would have been as if I were a washed-up high school football star that now spends his days reminiscing about the “good ole days”.
& Striving to Change the Future
Its no wonder why the disciples were so fixated on the sky when Jesus ascended into Heaven. It was as though they thought it would be the last time they’d ever see Jesus do miracles again. Thank God the truth is Jesus is still with us today. Not only is He still with us but continues to perform miracles in the lives of countless believers. The disciples knew all along this would be the case too.
Its no wonder why the disciples were so fixated on the sky when Jesus ascended into Heaven. It was as though they thought it would be the last time they’d ever see Jesus do miracles again. Thank God the truth is Jesus is still with us today. Not only is He still with us but continues to perform miracles in the lives of countless believers. The disciples knew all along this would be the case too.
When the disciples started the Church they knew there was still power in His name. Jesus even said by believing in Him we can do even more amazing things than Him. What I love about the Bible story is the disciples don’t remain in their homes, contemplating the past and questioning whether it was really worth spending those years following Jesus. Instead, they took action in the world and spread the gospel and healed the hurting and sick. They helped the poor and spent their days teaching and breaking bread together in fellowship. These disciples taught me that meeting the needs of people and spreading the Gospel of Christ keeps the past alive in a way that no photograph or video camera can even come close to.
