Reading through the book of John, I have been realizing how devoted to escapism I am. I pray to get results, I serve to build something, I work for a reward, I love hoping it is reciprocated. Yet, when I look at Jesus I realize his reward was being forgotten by the crowds, deserted by his friends, and allowing his own life to be consumed for the sake of obedience.
Whether we call it obedience, or worship laying our life down is so central and yet such an easy thing to overlook, to ignore. This makes Jesus such a great hero and huge challenge to me. It has gotten me thinking about my expectations of friends and community. Having grown up in a deliberate 'community', I am fully aware of the idealism we have associated with that word as Christians:
- i want to be with friends, I deserve friends, God wants me to have friends
- i need to love people I dislike because Jesus tells me to and it is good for me
- i need a mentor and if i don't have one something must be broken in my church
This is neverland. Always wanting to be kids, never adults. Always wanting play, never work. Always needing the thing I don't have. This is fantasy and unfortunately so consumes us because we are human and at some level don't believe that God can look after us in the midst of a broken and selfish world. I am so stoked about the sermon series that we are working on at Cambridge. We are taking Bonhoeffer's book life together to discuss REAL community, not what we fantasize about.
"You can love the dream, more than the community and therefore ignore and kill it."
Bonhoeffer, Life Together
1 comment:
I am looking forward to it Rob! I like that book too. (although some of it is boring.) you should read Becoming Human. It gets to the heart of the matter.
my problem with unrealistic expectations and christians is: we think we either cruise along semi-selfishly, or we summon our inner whatever and stoicly deny ourselves and live like Jesus. of course none of us can keep that up forever, so we go back to cruise when we get tired...
the thing I am realizing more and more is that living like Jesus isn't about pretending we are better than we are, or summoning all the resolve we can muster. it is about admitting our needs and our wants, and surrendering them to Jesus, learning to trust that he will take care of us even better than we do ourselves...that in Him is the adventure we seek, and the comfort we crave, and the rest we need.
so much trust is needed...and honesty...and surrender. it is a huge challenge for me. and just when I get there in one tiny part of my life, he asks me for more. maybe because I keep asking him for more..d'ya think?
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