Change is Inevitable...And is a Matter of Obedience

“To everything there is a season, a time for every purpose under heaven: a time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to uproot what is planted; a time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up; a time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance; a time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing; a time to gain, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away; a time to tear, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak; a time to love, and a time to hate; a time of war, and a time of peace.”

(rf. Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 MEV)

 

            When we initially read this text, we tend to view it in terms of a “reality check”, that things we don’t like (such as death, destruction, sadness, losing, hatred and war) are as much a part of the fabric of life as the good things, like the birth of a child, joy, dancing and love. This is very true and a reminder we all need from time to time. However, as with much of Scripture, there is more here in this text than meets the eye.

            There is an equally valid reality that we often need to recall and, yet, when we do, it makes us feel quite uncomfortable, especially for those temperaments that greatly enjoy the status quo. This reality as expressed by Solomon is the endless actuality of change. We know that change will undoubtedly come in our earthy experience. How we welcome it and adjust ourselves to it is at the heart of what Solomon is trying to convey. He is sharing with us that not only is change a part of life, it is also to be expected and, when it comes, whether it represents blessing or pain, it should viewed as God’s hand at work within us to bring about His will in our lives.

            For historical churches, such as St. John’s, this can be a very difficult pill for us to swallow. Parishioners in historical churches tend to relish and live in the past, make decisions as based on past experiences, and desire to chart a path that leads the church “back to the good ole days”. Churches that do this are failing to recognize that Christ’s Church was never designed to live in the glory of experiences of old. Rather, we as His people are to hold on to the truths of the past that are timeless while moving forward, always seeking the Lord as to His direction. 

In reference to this, all we have to do is review how the Israelites responded to the Lord as Moses lead them through the Wilderness into the Promised Land. For more times than we would care to count, the Israelites wanted to return to bondage in Egypt whenever they were faced with difficulty or change. Not wanting to remember that God was leading them on to a place of freedom in their own land, they chose over and over again a return to the past, believing it would be better “back there” instead of gaining God’s best for them. Moses even lost his privilege to enter into the Promised Land himself because he was so angry with this backward-looking crowd (rf. Num. 20:1-13). This desire for the past in the face of God’s moving us toward the future has been around for a very long time. If we choose wrongly, we face serious consequences for disobeying the Lord.

Because of the recent pandemic, His Church has been forced to reckon with a new, exciting, and, yet, challenging future. Things that were taken for granted are now relics of the past and, in fact, should stay there. God has placed His people in the unique position of being able to repackage the timeless message of His Word and His Gospel, using technology as a viable means in much better and more efficient ways that we have before. He wants to use His Church to reach generations who are now living in a purely secular, humanistic world with the eternal truths of His Holy Word. He wants His people to create a new future on the foundations of our history and to go upward and onward in our quest to build His Church so that “all the powers of hell will not conquer it” (rf. Matt. 16:18 NLT).

In order to fulfill God’s will for His Church, we, especially as fellowships with a long and appreciated history, must move our perspective from the past to the future if we are to continue and be fruitful for the Lord. We need to view our facilities as means to reach others while making sure the sanctity of God’s house remains. We must view technology as a friend to accomplish these efforts and not with fear because it can be so easily abused. We must desist from viewing ourselves as a long-standing social club where few are allowed into the group. Rather, we must be welcoming to all who are in our immediate community and to those who enter our doors, sharing with them the same love of Christ that we ourselves have experienced. We must be proactive and creative in our formation of new and exciting ministries to reach these very people who need desperately to hear Christ’s promise of salvation. We need to see others through eyes of Jesus whose own heart is “moved with compassion for them, because they…(are) scattered, like sheep without a shepherd” (rf. Matt. 9:36 MEV). He desires for His people to be “(His) laborers (sent to gather)…His harvest” (rf. Matt. 9:38 MEV).

The choice then for us as historical churches will be one of the following: (1) Will we live in the past and hold to our treasured perspectives and actions that seemingly worked to build our church then, but will only result in an assured death now? (2) Or will we view our past as a secure foundation and look to other avenues in which to build bridges of understanding and communication with present generations so that they can know Jesus and His Word, thus ensuring that our church will continue for many years to come? As Solomon stated, there is a “time to break down and a time to build up” (3:3). God wants His people to grow, build and prosper, leading us to new lands and opportunities. Will we choose to follow Him or to remain as we are presently, longing for our past? 

Who Truly is in Control?

“Look among the nations, and watch—wonder and be amazed! For I am doing a work in your days that you would not believe, though it were told you.” (rf. Hab. 1:5 MEV)

 

“This is what the Lord has done; it is marvelous in our eyes. This is the day that the Lord has made; we will rejoice and be glad in it. (rf. Ps. 118:23-24 MEV)

 

 

            It is hard to fathom that we have now endured for over a year a worldwide pandemic. For many that reality has still yet to sink in fully. There are those who from the start denied the existence, extent and devastation caused by the Covid-19 virus. A great number joined with various leaders of different persuasions to deny the evidence and led others into conspiracy-laden scenarios. 

            I am not here to argue or debate the nature or extent of this pandemic. I honestly believe that part of our unwillingness to accept this new reality is because it has challenged us on very deep, personal levels by revealing a long-known truth—that we are not in control of anything and that our lives and destinies lie in someone else’s hands. This is shocking to many. However, I dare say that those who have died or have been seriously affected by this new and ever-adapting disease would readily declare that this virus changes all whom it touches. It has also made us all adapt in ways that we never dreamed possible.

            Though, I admit, that the two Scripture passages above in each of their individual contexts have to do primarily with things not connected with Covid, the truths expressed, however, are very valid for our consideration. 

            If we look at our present reality through spiritual glasses, we will see an all-powerful, merciful yet just God, operating behind the scenes of this pandemic. We will see that He has purpose in the pain this virus is causing. He has allowed this contagion to wreak havoc on our lives, economies, future plans, normalcy, etc. We also realize that He has a very good reason for making it so. He is truly doing a “new thing”, especially within His Church, bringing us closer to Him than we may have been before.

            As a result, He wants us to “wonder and be amazed”, to declare His work as “marvelous in our eyes”. He asks us to trust Him completely, knowing that He will accomplish truly astounding things if we will only keep our eyes focused on Him, watching Him work.

            We do not know how this pandemic will eventually play out. We do know, however, that He is very much in control of the whole situation and simply desires for His people to follow, love and obey Him. When the pandemic is in our past and far behind us, we will join with the prophet and psalmist in declaring the wonders of His work and His will. 

 

  

The Necessity of Resurrection

“Now if Christ is proclaimed as raised from the dead, how can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? But if there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain. We are even found to be misrepresenting God, because we testified about God that he raised Christ, whom he did not raise if it is true that the dead are not raised. For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins. Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. If in Christ we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied.” 

(rf. I Cor. 15:12-19 ESV) 

 

The Apostle Paul lived in a time when belief in the resurrection from the dead was not something generally accepted by the population. For many, such a concept would surely have been a nice hope and a very outside possibility, but one not likely personally experienced. It would have been viewed as more of a “pipe dream”, nice but not apt to happen. Whereas those in Paul’s day would have at least affirmed the belief in a deity or deities who had the power to raise people from the dead if they chose to do so but such would be out of their purview only because the gods were largely silent, indifferent or non-caring about the experiences of human life. 

Our society takes a more natural, rather than supernatural tact. Resurrection by a validly dead individual, especially after a three-day interval, would be a thoroughgoing impossibility. If someone does come back to life after being declared dead, it is because there were still vestiges of life within their organs, enabling outside forces to restore them successfully. In an all-natural, all scientific belief system, such miracles are not even on the radar. 

As Paul shared with the Corinthian Church, the entirety of our Christian faith rests upon the resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth from the dead. The fact that He was crucified (a most painful and excruciating form of execution) and that He was in the grave for days following (being raised to life “on the third day”) just provides a more supernatural and awe-inspiring backdrop to this amazing event. The raising of Christ from the dead was designed to glorify the Father by declaring the Son completely innocent of the charges brought against Him by His accusers as well as to fully accept His life, ministry and death on the cross as payment and substitute on behalf of God’s chosen people.

If any of these Scriptural truths were a sham, then all believers, but especially those who lead, teach and evangelize, would in Paul’s words be “most to be pitied” (vs. 19). However, we are confident in the veracity of God’s Word to us as well as the testimony of history, that Jesus was victorious over the grave and was seen personally by many others, not just His disciples. We are likewise encouraged because the very same resurrection power as shown by Jesus is experienced and exhibited every time a person is called “out of darkness into His light” (rf. I Pet. 2:9), gaining the wondrous gift of salvation and becoming one of God’s children.

So, as Christians, we have great reason to celebrate the season of Easter. He has given us new life in Him, abundant and free, as a result of His blessed resurrection. Let us make sure that all of our family, friends, coworkers, etc. know about the good news, the Gospel, of the Son of God in conquering death itself that we might have His life in this life.