Sunday, December 13, 2009

I.D. CRISIS--Series 4 of 20--Life in the world despite the other person

BACKGROUND:
The book I.D. CRISIS by Kurt Koppetsch deals with the spiritual, intellectual, and social conflict of people in modern times. Confusion about the past and uncertainties in the present prevent us from knowing our true nature. As a direct consequence of such confusion, visions of the future are clouded. Some of the diversions that prevent us from realizing our true identity as children of God are philosophies, politics, economics, and falsehood such as religious cults. The solution is remembering that human beings are dependent creatures of God.

HOPE FOR THE FUTURE
Each series of the book I.D. CRISIS will conclude with the poem "Rays of Hope and Freedom" to assure readers that God cares about our lives and we are his children of hope. Hope is the From/to process at work in the modern Era of Faith repairing life and circumstance. Hope is making the immpossible come true.

This week's topic:
LIFE IN THE WORLD DESPITE THE OTHER PERSON

God has created the human race as the means by which the Holy Spirit can work his will on earth. Therefore, as people of God, we are instruments--in a real physical sense--of divine power for implementing and bringing about God's purpose for creation.

Within this context, the most important issue concerning life and status in the world is remembering the fact that we are dependent creatures of God. We are mortal beings. We experience life as a gift. God who created life in us with the holy breath of His Spirit, continues to sustain this life as a matter of grace. Creation and redemption are God's mark of ownership.

God cares for each person individually. There are no collective bargaining units in the Kingdom of God. Each soul must give its own account for stewardship in life.

The intimate relationship between God and people is a personal matter. Responsibility and accountability is strictly an affair between an individual and God. God's expectations of faithfulness and obedience rule out apologies for poor performance or lack of faith. We will not get away with excuses like overwhelming pressures, overburdening circumstances, or pesty people to explain our ill behavior.

The record book of life on earth does not have margings for qualifying our actions, for life is a gift from God. We must use it! Lamenting about unfortunate circumstances that may have "forced" us to react in a certain way will not work.

At the Day of Judgment, Christ will review our life's journey in the world on the basis of our faith alone. When we receive the invitation to the eternal feast in heaven, only then will we know that our life of faithfulness and obedience has been blessed for the return to its rightful place among the heavenly host. The life we then will experience is restored fellowship with God.

In the moment of our salvation, God's claim on our life is permanently secured. We have not earned this privilege. It is ours because of God's righteousness. It will be bestowed because we have lived by grace in the steadfast promise that God through Christ will save us.

The fact of eternal peace in the presence of God rests on the promise by Christ that faithful believers already are united with him. Our presence before Almighty God is secured, for that is where Christ dwells.

Our hope for eternal life, and the reality of a living relationship with God on earth, is anchored in the revealed truth of the Word of God that is made known to us in Cross and Gospel.

As Christians, we are God's instruments to witness to the world about what God has done. In this mission, we are "like light for the whole world," and are told to let this "light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven." (Matthew 5:16)

There is nothing magical or mysterious about human life on earth. Nor need this life be confusing or darkened by fear or doubts. Spiritual needs and physical necessities are provided for by God. And the conditions for rewarding spiritual performance have been successfully demonstrated in the model of the godly life of Jesus Christ.

As additional guidance, we benefit from Christ's summary of God's expectations. The essence of the two Great Commandments imply the commitment of love, faithfulness, and obedience: "You shall love the Lord your God will all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind; and your neighbor as yourself." (Luke 10:27)

But the harsh reality of worldly existence proves life different from God's expectations. Unfortunately, only a few faithful and obedient believers remain for being chosen as instruments of the Holy Spirit. These will have to shoulder the load of giving continuous witness to the grace of God.

As dedicated Christians, we are spiritually set apart from the rest of the sinful world, although physically we are an active part in the world. But we are not alone. God is fully supportive by providing means and message through the Holy Spirit. Therefore, we can survive the hazardous environment of the world. Endurance is the key.

Christ forwarned the 70 disciples about hardships they would encounter in their witness on behalf of God's Kingdom: "I send you out as lambs in the midst of wolves." (Luke 10:3) This realistic assessment serves as a warning. It corrects any anticipation we may have about glorious self-satisfaction when we let the Holy Spirit work the will of God through us.

Living in the world today is not that much different from 2000 years ago when the Son of God walked the earth. The wickedness in the world continues despite the repeated lessons in history. Even though the world may violently reject our life of witness to the truth about God, we must remain steadfast and live in the fear of God and not be afraid of people.

Therefore, let us always remember that we exist in the world to bring glory to God. And we must do this despite the other person.

In our work of witness, we have only one obligation and that is to be completely faithful to the Lord. The rest of the unbelieving world is also God's creation, but as servants of God we have neither authority nor any need to speculate about God's purpose for other people around us. Preoccupation with personal views on life must not interfere with the work God wants to get done.

The evil in human nature always compels people to search for answers that are really none of their business; Christians are no exceptions. We also feel the urge to satisfy our curiosity by questioning God why "he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust." (Matthew 5:45)

Christ puts a stop to this by reminding us that a Christian's way of life deals with faithfulness and obedience to God. Toward this end Christ supports the believer with guidance: "You, therefore, must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect." (Matthew 5:48)

But such straightforward spiritual truth may not always be satisfying to human beings. In an attempt to vent frustrating emotions, people will press on with unwarranted demands to have a more decisive voice in God's plan for the universe. Sin is more enticing than recognizing the purpose of our creation and yielding to God in faithfulness and obedience.

And this is precisely the dilemma of Christians, who are also emotionally charged human beings. Only when we as Christians realize that faithfulness and obedience to God implies that people have no choice in the matter of God's generosity and grace will personal frustrations and feelings of injustice vanish. Then within the fellowship of believers, we have ample cause to rejoice that God has chosen to treat all people equally.

But our reluctance to witness to sinful people about the grace of God in Christ Jesus can complicate matters. The prophet Jeremiah bemoaned this particular problem: "Righteous art thou, O LORD, when I complain to thee; yet I would plead my case before thee. Why does the way of the wicked prosper? Why do all who are treacherous thrive?" (Jeremiah 12:1)

Christianity is not immune to attacks by ruthless people who work the rule of injustice, wickedness, and dishonesty. Therefore, as disciples of Christ we must speak out against these evils in the world. God demands our obedience by living the Gospel in a way that does not leave room for confusion but clarifies God's expectations in an affirmative way.

Failure to proclaim Cross and Gospel as an inseparable entity--the way God has intended it--only adds to the severity of today's identity crisis. The real working relationship with God is undermined whenever ecclesiastical theology chooses to emphasize primarily the Gospel portion of God's redeeming grace without pointing to the Cross, which made the glorious Easter message possible in the first place.

In Christ's call to follow him, the promise of new life depends on repentance, giving further proof of the Gospel's dependence on the Cross. Jesus Christ cried out: "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent, and believe in the gospel." (Mark 1:15) With the command to believe the Good News, we are specifically told to rid ourselves first from all sins so that we can become free in the Spirit, and then enjoy to our pure heart's delight the blessing of restored fellowship with God.

Saint Paul addresses this specific issue of repentance and the subsequent commitment of faithfulness and obedience to God: "What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound? By no means! How can we who died to sin still live in it? Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, so that as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life ... So you also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus. Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal bodies, to make you obey their passions." (Romans 6:1-4, 11-12)

As we specifically look at the problem of the other person, we soon will learn that the "other person" really comprises all the forces of darkness. Rampant evil and raw sinfulness are only a few of the hindrances that Christians in the world must overcome in proving their steadfastness in the faith. Some of these barriers are prejudice and pride within ourselves, and we are confronted with the challenge to break them down.

Or, as with the prophet Jeremiah, we may be asked to witness to the grace of God to all people, despite injustice, wickedness, and dishonesty.

Christians have a duty to help correct these and other social ills. But we must also give support when integrity and dignity are attacked by ridicule, sarcasm, and scorn. And we are available to help ease the pain when relationships explode because of broken trust, rumors, or insinuations.

We can go on with an endless listing of general examples, for evil does not recognize boundaries or limits. Some mental cruelty or physical abuse defies the vocabulary, as there are no words in existence to describe the evil that strains the human spirit to the breaking point.

In all situations of human stress, the only constructive recourse in dealing with "the other person" is to remember that as Christians we live in the world by the grace of God despite the other person. Elisha's prophetic declaration of confidence in God is appropriate in the face of doom: "Don't be afraid ... we have more on our side than they have on theirs." (2 Kings 6:16)TEV


RAYS OF HOPE AND FREEDOM

My life was in chaos.
Darkness clouded my senses,
my heart trembled in fear.

I prayed to God:
"Father, help me!"
And God transformed my life.

The world is still the same.
But I am now secure:
Christ is my Savior!

His love fills my heart,
His faith is my faith.
Rays of hope now light up my soul.

Rays of hope and freedom
Show me the way to God,
And where Christ lives I too will live.


NEXT, December 21:
Surviving trials and temptations


(Excerpt from the Book I.D. CRISIS by Kurt Koppetsch, published by Shepherd News Trust, Inc.--www.shepherdnewstrust.com).

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