| Jan. 31st, 2010 @ 06:50 pm Bridging the Rift |
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The following is from Mr. Michael "Ratface" Sixeagles.
Bridging the Rift
There were two very good friends working in a field. They had taken a break from their labor to stop and chat in the cool of the morning. As they were speaking, a woman passed between them. One of them commented on the woman's beautiful green hat. His friend said "loathe as I am to disagree with you, the woman was wearing a lovely red hat."
"My dearest friend, I hate to argue with you at all about anything." said the first man. "But the hat was green."
"It was red."
"It was green."
"Red."
"Green."
"RED!"
"GREEN!"
So vehement was each man at proclaiming what he knew to be the truth that they argued well into the night. Each man went home angry. each man told his own family and friends about the fight. soon, their whole village was up in arms with the reds divided against the greens. the two former friends stood in the village square shouting at each other when who should come by but the woman in the hat, walking the other way. Both men stood and gazed in amazement. The green hat had become red! And the red hat had become green! As they watched her pass, they saw the truth. The hat was red on one side and green on the other. Both men had been so busy proclaiming their version of the truth that they did not take the time to investigate the hat itself to discover the real truth.
The church of God is an amazing thing. We are the hands and feet of God on the Earth. We are the proclaimers of the gospel. We are the preservers of god's word. We are the reflection of god's glory. Sadly, we are as yet highly imperfect. A problem which plagues God's church and has since the days of Paul is infighting. We become divided over issues that concern us. Sometimes, the issues are legitimately serious. For example, if one part of the congregation insists that the bible is not the word of God and the other half that it is, those who stand by the scriptures cannot meet the other side half way. This is an issue on which there can be no compromise. If the half that does not trust in the scriptures will not budge on their position, they should not be allowed to continue as voting members of God's church. At other times, churches are divided over the most trifling thing. Division has occurred over things as miniscule as the color of the carpet, what to do with the piano bench, or whether the Lord's prayer should include the word "debts" or "tresspasses".
Unfortunately, our fellowship has been so divided. It is sad, but true. It has not been an amiable parting either. There have been a great many attacks, character assaults, accusations and counter-accusations. The whole affair has been a great, tangled mess which has disheartened and / or disgusted many.
My friends, it is our duty to glorify God before the world. We have not discharged our duty in this matter. Instead, we have presented Him as the father of a squabbling, spiteful family whose love does not nearly measure up to their anger, or in some cases, their apathy.
The problem we face is twofold. It starts with a situation which two parties view from different perspectives. Though they see the same thing, they cannot agree on what they see, and it has led to a great deal of fighting, even by people who have no business being involved at all.
During this time, there should have been individuals with clear heads and calm hearts stepping up to quiet the anger and quell the fighting. Instead, the vast majority of us have been silent, content to sit back and mind our own business while the two halves of this church tear at each other.
We have strayed so far from Jesus' wish for us. When He prayed in the garden on the night of His arrest, he prayed that all of us might be one.
1 John 17:20-23
20 "My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message,
21 that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me.
22 I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one:
23 I in them and you in me. May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.
What would Jesus tell us to do if He were physically among us? First, I am sure He would tell us to calm down. Next, He would tell us to drop our accusations against one another. I am therefore asking that all forum posts and journal entries regarding this conflict be taken down. I am asking both sides to take initiative in this. Do not wait for te other side to take theirs down first. Remember what we are told in 1 Corinthians 13:4,5.
4 Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.
5 It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.
I know that there are many of you who are thinking "But Michael, I have not been involved in the fighting." That is not good enough. Even those of you who are not voting members of either half of this church, if you are children of God, you are part of this family, and if you have sat back and done nothing, you are guilty of negligence. I speak especially to those of you who show up on Saturday or Sunday nights and listen to the preacher, then go on your way, never to be seen again until the next service. You know who you are. I say this not to shame you, but to encourage you to do well for one another. We are parts of a body. It is a body that is very sick, and broken. Healing needs to occur, but it never will if organs are sucking up nutrients and giving nothing back.
If you are not currently standing up to leave because I have offended you, you will be asking what it is I want you to do. My simple answer is to work for peace. In greater detail, I want you to comfort those who are hurting. Intercede when things get heated. Be active in whichever half of the church you are attending and when someone pushes votes for a spiteful action, cast your vote against them. Be the voice of reason.
Note that I am not saying we must put things back the way they were. Things will never go back to the way they were. But with some work and a great deal of love, perhaps we can at least heal to the point where we are impressing people with our love for one another in the manner of Christ rather than filling them with disgust and contempt.
Today's Reading: 1 Corinthians 1:10-17
10 I appeal to you, brothers, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree with one another so that there may be no divisions among you and that you may be perfectly united in mind and thought.
11 My brothers, some from Chloe's household have informed me that there are quarrels among you.
12 What I mean is this: One of you says, "I follow Paul"; another, "I follow Apollos"; another, "I follow Cephas "; still another, "I follow Christ."
13 Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Were you baptized into the name of Paul?
14 I am thankful that I did not baptize any of you except Crispus and Gaius,
15 so no one can say that you were baptized into my name.
16 (Yes, I also baptized the household of Stephanas; beyond that, I don't remember if I baptized anyone else.)
17 For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel--not with words of human wisdom, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power. |
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