I’m all in…
I have been reading through the book of Acts this week…trying to feel the pulse of the early Christian Church. I am looking for what it was that made them such an influence in their community and even the surrounding regions. I love the verse in Acts 17:6 when the church leaders were accused of turning the world up side down. The political leaders of the day couldn’t stand the attention and change the early church was creating in the people…so they dragged them into the street and accused them of being a nuisance.
There is a little bit of rebellion in me that wants to be accused of turning the world up side down…I want to erase the needs of people in our communities, provide Hope to those who need it, offer New Life to those dying in their sin, restore lives broken by circumstance and the system we live in….and ultimately I want to participate in God’s Kingdom coming right here, right now.
When I wonder how we the 21st century church can have the influence in our culture that the 1st century church did…I am always led to think we have to do what the early Church did.
We have to define ourselves as the people who will not let there be “any needy among us.” And when we begin to live the vision of the early Christians…then we will see the days “when God added daily to the number who were saved.”
I am all in…every chip is on the table. What are you going to do…call? Fold?
“If You say go, we will go…”
Can I raise?
I have been having deep thoughts about what that world looks like; where every need is met. I have been trying to grasp what a world with no money would look like, none whatsoever, at all . . . and what would a resource based civilization look like, is it something that can be birthed in a local congregation? What if we took stock of our resources and laid them all out to the hungry, naked and needy? Very random thoughts spurred by a ton of reading this week, prayer, a terrible bout of hypergraphy, a massive simplification of my life that for some reason I have to sometimes hourly fight the temptation to complicate materially, and an interesting email exchange with a dear friend in a 3rd world country . . . I still can’t imagine what that looks like, total and complete paradigm shift . . . but I’m trying to grasp a vision of something radically different, as long as I can imagine the possibility it’s fari game and all my chips are in . . .
Man, I am so excited about today!!!!! This is going to be awesome, we have talked to family members and our kids and we are not spending money on Christmas for us this year. Our family and extended family is getting together so that we can take the money that we would have spent on each other and we are going out to sponsor some families like the single women with 7 kids.. this is radical and I know it is not just a “Christmas” thing, this a “Christian” thing… for so long I have been complacent… words without action is worth as much as counterfeit money… … nothing.
I don’t really understand the poker terms since I’m Nazarene and all. But I am working every day to surrender to God and do what He wants me to do. You, my friend, have amazing vision. I seriously thank God for bringing you and Ashley to us.
PS: I missed the sermon since I was in the nursery. I’ll plan to be in the ER later tonight so you can come there and preach it to me!