Church Voices

This will probably be my only post on Christmas, so Merry Christmas.

I’m fascinated by the magi in the Christmas story. Its probably got a lot to do with the ambiguity surrounding them. Who were they? Where, exactly, did they come from? Why did they give the gifts they gave? Their story has so many gaps in it. We’re told almost nothing of their perspective. They just sort of zip into the life of Christ for a few minutes and then take off.

There must have been some excitement when they discovered the star that would eventually bring them to Bethlehem. I imagine them quickly preparing for their journey in the night, rounding up their entourage, packing, and leaving for parts unknown. The expectation of what waited for them wherever this mysterious and purposeful star must have been incredible.

And then after all this travel, preparation, and hardship the star stops over a baby. These pagan sorcerers worship him, and then leave. Did they know who and what they worshiped? Did it change them?

We don’t know.

There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were called to one hope when you were called— one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.

Ephesians 4.4-6

The streets of my community has many churches on them.  Several Baptist churches, two instrumental Churches of Christ, three Lutheran churches, and at least four of the non-denominational variety.  All in all there is probably at least 20 churches in this small town of 15,000 people.  One way to interpret this verse with the reality of the church today would be to conclude that the church has been so badly damaged, so fractured, and is so far from what was intended by God for his bride that there is no possibility of the church looking like, well, the church.  If we accept this interpretation there’s really only some variety of two ways of looking at this.  First, we can conclude the church is a complete and utter failure.  That whatever there was of God in it is gone, and what’s left is as dried up and useless as a branch that failed to graft to the tree it was placed on.  Or you can conclude that out there somewhere is the church that got it right.  That out of all those congregations, denominations and churches there’s one of them that is unified that got it right enough to be called the bride of Christ.  Unfortunately that’s what at least some Christians have concluded.

But, if we take a look at the verses just prior to these there might be another way to frame the issue.

As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.

Ephesians 4.1-3

I don’t think what Paul is urging here is a lock-step theological unity*.  If that were the case it wouldn’t be couched in terms of a lifestyle of humbleness, gentleness, and patience.  Instead it would be urgings toward studying, holding fast to the faith, and remembering what was of first importance.  But that’s not what’s going on here.

I don’t think Paul is talking primarily about doctrinal unity here.  Rather he’s talking about relational unity.  Whether or not we are obedient to these scriptures has little to do with how many churches we have, or how many strains of doctrine exist within the body.  What these verses have to do with is our relationships with each other, both in terms of the others within our respective churches, and the other found in other churches.  This command given by Paul would not necessarily be fulfilled even if we all got together in some kind of massive, theologically monolithic, Voltron-esque church. 

This command is only fulfilled when we are humble, gentle and patiently bearing in love with those who we disagree with. There is one Lord, one savior, on baptism, and one God and Father over all and through all, and well all need to live a life worthy of our calling, especially towards those we disagree with.

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I was talking to a couple of friends of mine in a couple of different conversations about church, and an observation came up. The average church size is at 70, when was the last time you sat in a room with 70 people and agreed on every major issue? The only way a church, even what we’d consider a smaller church, can stay together is through alienation or love.

Alienation
You can be so relationally separated from your brothers and sisters that these issues don’t come up. You can show up on Sunday mornings, talk about the donuts and coffee, avoid talk about doctrine, lifestyle, confession of sins, needs for prayer, and any other controversial subject.

Love
Or you can love each other with a love strong enough to overcome doctrinal differences, sin against each other, intentional and unintentional offense, personality clashes, and every other issue that can come between sinful and fallen people.

And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.
Ephesians 3.17-19

Turns out forgiveness is good for the body as well as the soul.

The Mayo Clinic writes that it is better to forgive and forget than to hold grudges. Beyond the personal anger and resentment that grudges cause, it’s also bad for your health: it causes high levels of stress, high blood pressure, more anxiety, and poor anger-management skills. Instead, commit to forgive and find compassion, even if forgiveness does not yield reconciliation. Recognize the value moving forward adds to the quality of life. One who has finally forgiven someone will be more at peace, even if it is necessary to forgive again and again when memories trigger unhappiness. Ultimately, looking beyond the bad will bring much joy, and that is why it helps to achieve that much-needed closure.