The Bible often reminds us of our need to repent. That word gets a lot of bad press but at its core it means: turn around and move toward maturity. This may be the single most difficult thing we are invited to do in the Christian life. Perhaps even more difficult is the call to the church to turn around, to pay attention to the things that matter the most.
Brennan Manning, in his book, The Signature of Jesus, asks a series of very difficult questions:
• After 2,000 years of Christian history why is our world’s population less then one-third Christian?
• Why are the personalities of so many pious Christians so opaque?
• Why doesn’t our contagious joy, enthusiasm and gratitude infect others with a longing for Christ?
• Why are the fire and spirit of Peter and Paul so conspicuously absent from our pallid existence?
Ouch! Manning’s point is addressed to the church universal, of course, but is also attempting to get the preachers and the folks in the pews to ask themselves these questions and wonder out loud about what might need to happen. This call to repentance in the church is an invitation to return to the work of the kingdom of heaven.
You remember, I’m sure, that Jesus invites us to pray, “Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.” What does it mean then to see the will of God work, to see the kingdom of heaven being established? Matthew 25 gives us a terrific picture. The least of these—the hungry, the naked, the imprisoned—are being fed, clothed and visited. The kingdom is based on the good news of God. For example, it is the psalmist who tells us that there is nowhere we can go, not even hell itself, and not be found. Peter in one of his letters to the church says something similar about Jesus, he’ll descend into hell if necessary in order to proclaim release and good news.
Repentance, in the long run, is an opportunity to simply and courageously give in to the grace of God. That is a new way of living for a new year.
Grace and Peace to you,
Glen
