BY STEVE DUNN
"The Son of Man came to seek and to save that which was lost." - Jesus
"The experience that a transformation of all human life is given in the fact that "Jesus is there only for others." His "being there for others" is the experience of transcendence. It is only this "being there for others," maintained till death, that is the ground of his omnipotence, omniscience, and omnipresence. Faith is participation in this being of Jesus (incarnation, cross, resurrection)." - Dietrich Bonhoeffer
"Go into all the world and preach the Gospel ..." Jesus
'
"The church is the church only when it exists for others...The church must share in the secular problems of ordinary human life, not dominating, but helping and serving. It must tell men of every calling, what it means to live in Christ, to exist for others." - Dietrich Bonhoeffer
One of the tragedies of the Church in our present age goes directly to its faithfulness and fruitfulness. That is the tragedy of the Church's inward-focus. Too many churches organize their life around taking care of one another--but the result is that they give only lip service to the needs of "others."
Too many churches possess a fortress mentality, intentionally creating barriers that keep the world from getting to close for their comfort. That desire for comfort blunts the call to sacrificial servanthood that is at the heart of Christ's Great Commission.
As a result these churches lose their transcendence as there is no attempt to embody the love of Christ in the midst of a world where God is too often out of sight an out of mind. There is no costly discipleship by which the church matures and validates the supernatural power of God. There is no resurrection life because there has never been a death to the old "religious" ways that made them feel like good people, instead of being God's people.
The Church's true impact, authentic identity, and God-honoring purpose can only be found when it becomes a "church for others.":
(C) 2013 by Stephen L Dunn
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment