"Glorify God and Enjoy Him... Together"
Neil Cox, Editor, IndyChristian.com
In our first article, which we entitled, "Give The Church(es) A Break?" (July 2003), we treaded somewhat lightly on our own feet by suggesting that:
"...our fractured appearance may be rooted in the zeal with which we attempt to be ‘right on’ as we teach God’s absolute truth from the Bible."
But now let's do just that... let's try to be 'right on' regarding what the Bible says about us, the Church -- that is, the body of professing Christ followers in a city.
"I pray... 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." (John 17:20-21)
"And this is his command: to believe in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ, and to love one another as he commanded us." (I John 3:22-24)
"Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another." (I John 4:10-12)
"This is the message you heard from the beginning: We should love one another." (I John 3:10-12)
Ouch. How closely are we living up to that? Is that even a goal for Christians in our city?
Or look at the composition of the early Church as the Apostle Paul described it... "There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus." (Gal. 3:28)
Major ouch. Isn't the most segregated hour of the week, eleven o'clock each Sunday?
But before going further, let's be clear about what we are NOT intimating:
We are not in pursuit of the 'lowest common denominator' -- the connotation associated with ecumenism. [All organized churches do not follow the God-man Jesus who claimed to be the only way to eternal life. How could we find common ground with people who worship a different Jesus?]
We are not hinting at a singular metro church, meeting in a domed stadium.
And we're not suggesting anyone should stop studying the deep truths of the scriptures once we've agreed on the essentials of the faith. [See the "Transform Indiana" statement of faith as published in the August 2003 issue.]
What we are intimating is that perhaps we should re-examine ourselves as a community Church. Of the 400 people who die in our metro area each week, how many are going to an eternal fire while we homogeneously separate and fish with poles rather than fishing together with a net? Are we making a dent in the gates of hell? Are we a well oiled engine lovingly solving major needs in our community? Do our neighbors see us as a loving group of people? By the way, what does 'Nehemiah's Wall' look like around our city today? If the devil's chief strategy is 'pride & divide', haven't we fallen for it long enough?
"If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land." (II Chron.7:14)
Bottom line: Are we 'glorifying God and enjoying Him, together'? Will we hear someday, "Well done, good and faithful servant."? Or might we instead hear... "You've got to be kidding!"
"If you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any fellowship with the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and purpose. Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others. Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus..." (from Philippians 2)
"Transform Indiana" is connecting Bible-believing churches & ministries,
for greater prayer, care & share... to changes lives & communities.