The days of ambivalence in the Christian life are drawing to an end. Having one foot in the world and the other in the church has caused only pain and imbalance. It is time for us to stop walking along the shore, dreaming of the other side but staying put. It is time to act on our faith—come what may.
Fear of sharing our faith, except for those with the unstoppable sanguine temperament, causes many of us to experience faith-sharing paralysis. We just can’t do it. And since we can’t, we don’t. So another chance to trust in Jesus may have evaporated into thin air. When Christ told us to proclaim forgiveness of sins to all (Luke 24:46-48), He did not discriminate: • He did not isolate His command to Peter, James, and John, the big three. • He did not exclude the women in the room.
He did not pass over timid Thomas a week later (John 20:24-29).
Jesus saw a mighty army eager to share what they had learned from Him. He included everyone in His band of witnesses to the good news. Let’s follow His lead, shall we?
The first time I gave a gospel presentation to someone I didn’t do a very good job. And the second time I didn’t do much better. But I kept presenting. I kept focusing on those wonderful words of life in Scripture, and people began to listen and surrender to the love of God in Christ. Now the verses, illustrations, and analogies come to me naturally—awake or asleep.
Practice does make perfect. Let’s practice giving away our faith, and God will take our humble efforts and one day show us on the Sea of Glass the fruit of this wonderful labor.
Remember: “Perfect love casts out fear” (1 John 4:18).
Again it’s time to act on our faith—come what may.
Ron E. M. Clouzet, D.Min., is ministerial secretary and director of the North American Division Evangelism Institute (NADEI). He is also professor of Christian ministry and practical theology in Andrews University Theological Seminary.
No. church is not on my to-do list. In August 2009 I stopped going to church after doing so since age 10. Indeed.
I had arrived at the annual family reunion meet-and-greet on Friday evening expecting to have an entire meal of salad. I discovered that the hostess who in previous years had decided such fare to be sufficient for vegetarian Adventists had prepared a well-rounded meal with tasty vegetable protein. I rejoiced and chewed with gusto.
Then on Saturday morning while passing through the lobby I was called to explain to new-to-me relatives that I wasn’t going to the family picnic wearing a suit and heels. Taking a deep breath, I prepared to tell those family saints that I am a Seventh-day Adventist going to Sabbath School and church, etc., etc., etc.
But although the mouth was surely mine, the words were clearly His: “I’m going to worship God.” Period. That explanation received affirmations wafting on an air of respect. So I added, “I look forward to chatting with you when I get back and change my clothes.” And I did.
So I don’t go to church any more in favor of going to worship the God whose love for me is apparent in His constant and creative handling of my challenges.
Early on Saturday mornings I still pass people engaged in their passions apparent by the crowded parking lots in the strip mall, the beauty shop, the bowling alley, and the yards of yard-sale merchandise. But now sail by them all on my way to worship God—at church for sure, but there is an entirely different ring to the experience and the explanation.
Paul talks about the difference between babes in Christ and the spiritually mature. I’ve finally gotten his message. So the change is more than vocabulary, embracing my attitude and my wardrobe. The spirit wrapped in “worship” overpowers any negatives I encounter within the building called church or any of the people therein who may rain on my parade. So church is not on my to-do list. I go to worship God with the spiritual grownups.
Jesus would have them understand that authority in His kingdom is not hierarchical but finds expression in one getting immersed in the needs of others.
Knowledge:
By Kwabena Donkor
Kwabena Donkor is an associate director for the General Conference Biblical Research Institute.
While Jesus Christ was on earth, He set in motion a movement that would eventually become the Christian Church. Obviously, He knew what the church would become, but He did not provide any detailed prescriptions for church governance. Still, He knew that issues of authority would arise in the church and He provided principles that should guide its exercise. Such is the passage we will be looking at today.
The Context Jesus took three of His disciples through the Transfiguration experience while they were in Caesarea Philippi (Mark 9:2). In Mark 9:30 we are told that He left the place and took a course that would eventually see Him in Jerusalem. He led the disciples through Galilee purposely to keep them from the crowds so that He would have quality time to instruct them particularly concerning His death and resurrection (Mark 9:31). Jesus had told the disciples about His death before, at which time Peter came in for rebuke (Mark 8:32, 33). In this latest instruction on His passion, however, Jesus added the additional detail that the Son of Man would be delivered into the hands of men. Jesus may have meant this to be an action of God, or He may have had Judas’s betrayal in view. The word translated “delivered” or “betrayed” allows both possibilities. In any case, this instruction was exclusively intended for the disciples who did not grasp it. And they were afraid to ask Him for clarification! Were they being careful because of the earlier incident with Peter?
And how was it that Jesus’ second prediction of His death could provoke a debate on rank among them (Mark 9:34)? Could Jesus’ prediction about His death have been overshadowed by His earlier promise of the kingdom coming in power (Mark 9:1)? Or even the prediction of His “quick” resurrection? Anyhow, they did not grasp it, and Jesus instructed them on ambition, power, and authority as far as the kingdom is concerned.
The Text Jesus and His disciples finally arrived in Capernaum and entered a certain house. Jesus, who had been aware of their debate about rank while they were in “the way,” saw this as the appropriate time to address the matter (Mark 9:33). He asked them what they were disputing. There was silence, because the disciples seemed to have realized that the subject of their disputation on the way was shameful and embarrassing.
Jesus instructed them pointedly that the one who desires to be first in His kingdom must be last, and servant of all (Mark 9:35). In saying that the one who wishes to be first must be servant of all, Mark uses a future tense that could work as an imperative, thereby laying it down as a principle that spiritual greatness necessarily requires service to others. Jesus would have them understand that authority in His kingdom is not hierarchical but finds expression in one getting immersed in the needs of others. Authority does not sit high and look down but stoops low in service, sacrifice, and sympathy. Christ’s impending death that He announced to them was going to be the supreme model of service and sacrifice. How contrary to the principles of His kingdom was the response of the disciples in quibbling about rank at such a time!
Application
The fact that the disciples could contend about power in the light of Jesus’ announcement of His death should warn us about the potency of the desire for supremacy, power, and control. Their insensitiveness was rooted in self-seeking.Ellen White writes: “Among the followers of our Lord today, as of old, how widespread is this subtle, deceptive sin! How often our service to Christ, our communion with one another, is marred by the secret desire to exalt self! How ready the thought of self-gratulation, and the longing for human approval!” (The Desire of Ages, p. 409).
Today we should especially mark the subtlety and deceptiveness of the desire for greatness because of the irony of the fact that although the disciples had left all for Christ’s sake, a corner of their hearts still cherished human greatness for themselves!Thank God that His power is able to banish such self-seeking!
I just received another e-mail promoting an atheist author’s book for Christian readers. There’s been a splash of books by atheists with directions for how Christians should handle their faith. But I’m asking myself and you, “Why would Christians follow blind ’swimmers’, so to speak, when they can dive deeply into the treasure house ofGod’s Word with our own Christian leaders?”
I’m all for respectfully listening to what atheists and other non-believers have to say, but when it’s my time to speak in the conversation cycle, I want to be sure to reach their heart as well as their ears—and definitely influence their thinking.That’s why I’m so happy to have the Exegesis pages in LEAD that take me to depths I would not reach alone in my Sabbath School lesson study. Also the Exegesis and Hermaneutics section of LEAD teaches me how to troll the depths of Scripture in general.Authors for these sections, Dr. Ekkehardt Mueller and Dr. Kwabena Donkor not only know the fine points of theology, they are active in the “real world” so their answers connect with real questions.
Ekkehardt Mueller playing the harpsichord on a Sabbath afternoon
Community outreach is an important goal of the Sabbath School ministry supported by LEADmagazine. See how Matthew Gamble is spreading the gospel of Steps to Christ. We’re eager to learn your comments about his ministry. We’re eager to learn about what you’re doing. Your comments are important.
Join Matthew Gamble as he takes us on a journey through Steps to Christ and reminds us of how God reveals His love for us. Steps to Christ is a life changing book that helps readers better under stand the love and grace that God has for humanity, its also a great tool to share with others that are searching for God.
I was recently asked to write a blog on a young person’s perspective about Sabbath School. Here are some of my thoughts from yesterday’s lesson.
This morning I read about the physical manifestations one would go into when they were receiving visions from God.
I know that the occasions were documented in the Bible, but I never really paid attention to it. I kind of glossed over it as we do with something we’ve read repeatedly. What struck me though was when I read about how James White used to document what was happening to Ellen when she was having a vision.
I remember being told that he used to record her physical state, and he would write down that she wasn’t breathing while she was having a vision. However, now that I’m thinking about it at a much older state in my life, that must’ve been the craziest thing to witness!
Think about it, what if you saw your best friend, or significant other, started having a vision in front of you? Would you go up to them and actually touch them? Would you pinch their nose like James did to Ellen?
I know I would be terrified. Not because I didn’t know what was happening, but because it would be very different than what I would be accustomed to. I would probably sit in a corner somewhere in the room and just watch. Not so much for entertainment purposes, but more so in awe.
So again I ask; What would you do in this situation?
