Thought for Today
Genesis 3:8 They heard the sound of the LORD God walking in the garden at the time of the evening breeze, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God among the trees of the garden.
1 Kings 19:11 He said, "Go out and stand on the mountain before the LORD, for the LORD is about to pass by." Now there was a great wind, so strong that it was splitting mountains and breaking rocks in pieces before the LORD, but the LORD was not in the wind; and after the wind an earthquake, but the LORD was not in the earthquake; 12 and after the earthquake a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire; and after the fire a sound of sheer silence.
John 3:2 He came to Jesus by night and said to him, "Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God; for no one can do these signs that you do apart from the presence of God."
John 17:5 So now, Father, glorify me in your own presence with the glory that I had in your presence before the world existed.
I have recently asked 2 questions: “Where does your soul best connect with God?” and “What is the church?” They are important questions for Christians to ask ourselves. I believe they are 2 sides of 1 coin. The answer to the first may truly reside in the second. For many of us, our souls do best connect with God in the church. In the church in the physical sense, but also in the mental and spiritual senses.
As long as I am thinking in numerical metaphors, however, the church can be a 2-edged sword, cutting both ways. Sadly, throughout its history, the Church has produced a plethora of examples of the misuse and abuse of faith and trust. Such misuse is not denominational, not confined to any one single faith tradition. I suspect that a careful study of humanity’s history would reveal it is not confined to Christianity. I am reminded of the wise words of Peter Parker (a.k.a. Spiderman), “With great power comes great responsibility.” Far too often, we find that great power, the power of faith and trust, engenders great irresponsibility. Even the Christian denomination of my youth produced The Peoples Temple Agricultural Project (a.k.a. Jonestown).
Even without the ‘aid’ of misguided leadership, the cases of one side of that coin overpowering and harming the other side are common. I have known Christians who became so inwardly focused on ‘the church,’ its physical property and its rules and rituals, that ‘the church’ became an impediment to their being close to God. “Leviticus 19:4 Do not turn to idols or make cast images for yourselves: I am the LORD your God.” “Leviticus 26:1 You shall make for yourselves no idols and erect no carved images or pillars, and you shall not place figured stones in your land, to worship at them; for I am the LORD your God.” Images and idols can be physical, mental or spiritual. Jesus reminds us. “Luke 10:27 . . . ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind; and your neighbor as yourself.’"
Again, as long as I am using physical metaphors of coins and swords, remember that these are 3-dimensional objects. A coin has 2 sides plus a rim. If 1 side of the coin is the church and the other side is where we best connect with God, the rim can metaphorically represent the boundaries of our own existence. Viewed thusly, that coin represents the totality of our existence.
Of course, metaphors are merely representative and are by their nature limited. As I think about my life, my relationship with God, I must also consider those words about Adam, Eve and Elijah. None of them encountered God in church. Adam and Eve were closest to God in the Garden. Elijah was closest to God standing on the mountain and ‘hearing’ the sound of silence.
I love the Church, Christendom. I love the church I serve. Sunday it was wonderful to be ‘home’ in the sanctuary of our facility. Each day, as I sit at my computer and write, I look out the window at the field east of our home, surrounded by trees, full of birds and wildlife. I believe my soul best connects with God wherever I am when I think about God, when I reach out to God.
Think about God, pray to God, trust God,
Pastor Ray