Can we talk? Let’s sit down for a while. We’ve spoken enough about things on the surface of life. If you are willing, I’d like to begin to dig a little deeper.
You tell me that you have seen something in our fellowship that attracts you. I’m glad to hear it. Of course we’re not perfect. We don’t claim to be. But, you know, there should be something different about Christians. If we look too much like everyone else then we’re not doing a very good job. I hope that you have seen that we try to live with integrity. We value honesty and hard work. We have ideals – we want to be faithful people, people who keep their promises. And, if it doesn’t sound too sentimental, we want to be known as loving people. We care deeply for our families and our friends, but not only for them. We believe that we are called to love even those who do not like us, who might consider themselves to be our enemies. We’re serious about spending our lives in the service of others. At heart we are simple people. We’re not interested in the rat race. Living principled, peaceful lives is much more important to us. Of course we fail, but we still strive to live according to our ideals and our values.
It’s good to step back, now and then, to take stock of life. We know how short our days can be. Shouldn’t we live them well? So, I want to share with you some of the building blocks of my life, and I want to commend them to you. I’d like to ask you to think seriously about what I’m going to say. These things are the foundations of my life. They make me who I am.
I believe I can sum up these foundations in four simple statements. Think of them as the legs of a chair. Put together, they support me. By the way, this is not just what I believe. These ideas have been handed down for hundreds of years. They are the four pillars of Christianity. They don’t answer every question, but they do give me a useful outline of what it means to be a follower of Jesus Christ.
Now, don’t get defensive. Being a Christian is not weird, despite what some people will tell you. I know that you’ve talked to the “I’m not religious but I’m spiritual” brigade. Perhaps they have poisoned your opinions about the Church. You may be deeply suspicious of our motives. You may question our integrity. Well, go on questioning. That’s alright. We need to be held accountable. But please give us the benefit of an open mind. You’ve already encountered plenty of other groups that have ended up disappointing you. Give us a chance. See, the thing is, you can’t really be a Christian unless you are in community. The Church may be flawed, it’s certainly not as perfect as we would like, but it is still the community of those who follow Christ. Bear with us. Be generous with our faults. And when we fail, try to see beyond our failures to the God who has called us to be His own.
You tell me that you have seen something in our fellowship that attracts you. I’m glad to hear it. Of course we’re not perfect. We don’t claim to be. But, you know, there should be something different about Christians. If we look too much like everyone else then we’re not doing a very good job. I hope that you have seen that we try to live with integrity. We value honesty and hard work. We have ideals – we want to be faithful people, people who keep their promises. And, if it doesn’t sound too sentimental, we want to be known as loving people. We care deeply for our families and our friends, but not only for them. We believe that we are called to love even those who do not like us, who might consider themselves to be our enemies. We’re serious about spending our lives in the service of others. At heart we are simple people. We’re not interested in the rat race. Living principled, peaceful lives is much more important to us. Of course we fail, but we still strive to live according to our ideals and our values.
It’s good to step back, now and then, to take stock of life. We know how short our days can be. Shouldn’t we live them well? So, I want to share with you some of the building blocks of my life, and I want to commend them to you. I’d like to ask you to think seriously about what I’m going to say. These things are the foundations of my life. They make me who I am.
I believe I can sum up these foundations in four simple statements. Think of them as the legs of a chair. Put together, they support me. By the way, this is not just what I believe. These ideas have been handed down for hundreds of years. They are the four pillars of Christianity. They don’t answer every question, but they do give me a useful outline of what it means to be a follower of Jesus Christ.
Now, don’t get defensive. Being a Christian is not weird, despite what some people will tell you. I know that you’ve talked to the “I’m not religious but I’m spiritual” brigade. Perhaps they have poisoned your opinions about the Church. You may be deeply suspicious of our motives. You may question our integrity. Well, go on questioning. That’s alright. We need to be held accountable. But please give us the benefit of an open mind. You’ve already encountered plenty of other groups that have ended up disappointing you. Give us a chance. See, the thing is, you can’t really be a Christian unless you are in community. The Church may be flawed, it’s certainly not as perfect as we would like, but it is still the community of those who follow Christ. Bear with us. Be generous with our faults. And when we fail, try to see beyond our failures to the God who has called us to be His own.
No, I’m not going to apologize for using religious language. Our community, here, is not just based upon shared human values. Our relationships are not just horizontal, they are also vertical. We believe that it is important that we should be in relationship with God. We are who we are because we believe we know what it takes to be at peace with our Maker. If you want to understand what makes us tick, then you will have to let me talk about God.
You won’t understand much about us unless you grasp that God is an absolutely essential part of our identity. And I don’t mean an impersonal force or power. God’s not like that for us. He is one. He is personal. And, He is interested in who we are and how we live. He is a good God; His nature is defined by love. But He’s more than that. He’s also a God of power and order and justice. We believe that we can know a great deal about God. He has revealed His nature to us. In the story of the people of Israel, told in the Bible, God has made Himself known. We believe that the Bible is a trustworthy account of God’s nature, and of how we might be at peace with Him. We don’t pretend to know everything about God, but I think we can say that we know enough. We know enough to be able to trust Him – even if we still have questions.
With all that said, what are the four foundations upon which we build our lives together? They are an understanding of:1. Our Condition
2. God’s Remedy
3. Receiving Redemption
4. Blessings Given.
In my next post I'll begin to work through these four foundations.
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