Monday, August 31, 2020

 

Monday, August 31, 2020

“Write this letter to the angel of the church in Sardis.  This is the message from the one who has the sevenfold Spirit of God and the seven stars:  “I know all the things you do, and that you have a reputation for being alive—but you are dead.  Wake up!  Strengthen what little remains, for even what is left is almost dead.  I find that your actions do not meet the requirements of my God.  Go back to what you heard and believed at first; hold to it firmly. Repent and turn to me again.  If you don’t wake up, I will come to you suddenly, as unexpected as a thief.  “Yet there are some in the church in Sardis who have not soiled their clothes with evil.  They will walk with me in white, for they are worthy.  All who are victorious will be clothed in white.  I will never erase their names from the Book of Life, but I will announce before my Father and his angels that they are mine.  “Anyone with ears to hear must listen to the Spirit and understand what he is saying to the churches.  Revelation 3:1-6

I do love competitive sports.  The days of my involvement in team athletics is a rearview mirror issue…long gone, reduced to an occasional tussle with a golf course.  As much as I have loved most sports, I’ve never cared a whole lot for the concept of boxing.  The whole idea of throwing punches to mangle your opponent’s face, or a side blow to rupture his spleen, is repugnant to me.  And the fact that my opponent would do the same to me (if he’s fast enough to catch up with me)…well, that speaks for itself. 

That being understood, the pathos of a 15-round slugfest, where both fighters are battered, exhausted, and nearly senseless from a half-hour of savage assault on their bodies, blows with the average force of 2,500 pounds per square inch,[1] is profound. One of the warriors is on his back, having been knocked there by his opponent.  Just on the fading side of consciousness, he is being counted-out by the referee.  As the count reaches 7, the battered man’s trainer/second is screaming from just outside the ring, get up…wake up…do something!  It is in this moment it will become evident whether training and instinct have created the heart to go on.

Like a boxer on his back is the church of the 21st century.  It’s an easy thing to look at the state of the church and announce the count as just about over.  And that may be true for some forms of church to which we may have become too attached…formal processions and pomp…bishops, diocese turf rules…books of rules…financial power, and many more. 

But, what of the church, the Bride of Christ?  What of the cosmic gathering of all the saints of all time?  What of God’s plans for eternity?  Are these also down for the count?  I would say, YES…definitely…as down as a carpenter, nailed to a cross on Friday morning.  Frankly, it didn’t look too good for the movement when Joseph of Arimthea begged for permission to bury Jesus in a donated tomb.  However it may have looked at sundown on Friday evening, the church was just getting started.  Fifty days later Peter would preach at the Temple steps, a place where the crusty old guard in charge of the system soiled God’s holy place, and three thousand souls signed up to follow the crucified Lord.

The church may have been reeling, battered, and torn on Friday, but Sunday was on its way!  

Through the centuries the church has had its share of Dark Ages, where it seemed like Satan was going to win the day.  And, unless I miss my theological guess, we are in the same boat today.  You may have sensed it, or just wondered, but the church is down right now, back to the canvas, reeling and just barely conscious. 

What to do?  Let’s let God’s Word speak a word of hope and revival:

This is my command—be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid or discouraged. For the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”  Joshua 1:9

You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road today.  Have a blessed day!


VIDEO

Title image Pixabay.com  ∞ Unless noted, Scripture quoted from The New Living Translation©

For other posts on Revelation 3 see: Epitaph of the Church and Ears to Hear; Heart to Obey


 

No comments:

Post a Comment