Thursday, December 06, 2007
Transparency
Matt Kleburg writing at CGO pens one of the most powerful pieces on ministry I have ever read.
We cannot offer the destination, we can only offer the journey. It is a difficult journey, fraught with effort, peril, and even pain. But it is also a journey that we do not take alone, we walk with others, and with Him. It is a journey made in the midst of love, support, and hope.
It is those last three things that we have to truly offer to people. The journey is hard, no matter what. All we can really do is make sure we are headed in the right direction, and we are in the right company.
That is a gospel that will change the world.
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Last summer a certain friend of mine weighed heavy on my heart. I made a point to pray for him and love him whenever and however I could. That same friend later shared with someone else that he simply could not relate to me. In his eyes, I had put on a glossy façade, feigning invincibility and faultlessness. I never revealed my weakness and humanness and thus was not a real person. He saw me as a fake, like a mannequin in Christianity’s window display. My friend’s assessment was right on- my pride and fear kept me from really loving him at all.Reminds me of scripture:
I internalize and cover up my sin and weakness because I fear that any failure on my part implies a failure of Christianity. I must be perfect; otherwise Christianity is just a big flop, exposed as an elaborate hoax. The pressure is on and I must perform so that Christianity looks like a good buy.
This assumption is the exact opposite of the gospel. It is anti-gospel. To say that my failures somehow discredit Christianity completely disregards the cross! What pride and hypocrisy! Out of death we are made alive in Christ and our new identities are not bound up in our own righteousness, but rather the righteousness of Christ. It is by His perfection that we are presented as spotless before the Father. And while the Spirit does begin its healing work on our hearts, it is forever the work of Jesus that makes us children of God. I no longer have to disguise my sin for fear of nullifying the gospel. The gospel, rather, nullifies my sin, and frees me up to live as though transparent. The world can see through me- can see that I am needy and that there is a savior who triumphs over my brokenness.
Rom 5:8 - But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. [emphasis added]The power of the gospel, the real gospel, the genuine gospel, lies not in our perfection, but our imperfection and the journey towards perfection.
We cannot offer the destination, we can only offer the journey. It is a difficult journey, fraught with effort, peril, and even pain. But it is also a journey that we do not take alone, we walk with others, and with Him. It is a journey made in the midst of love, support, and hope.
It is those last three things that we have to truly offer to people. The journey is hard, no matter what. All we can really do is make sure we are headed in the right direction, and we are in the right company.
That is a gospel that will change the world.
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