My Sisters and Brothers in Christ,
Shalom!
As we continue our journey with the “Light of the World” through the season of Epiphany (season of light) towards the season of Lent (the season of life) we move from our calling/being to our discipleship/doing. We are not just called to be disciples, but also to do discipleship. What am I, as a Christian, called to do? What are functions of the “called out” community of faith?
We are constantly reminded in the Methodist Covenant that ‘Christ has many services for his people to do.’ Our lessons today point us to one of the functions of the Church. The Church by its nature is prophetic. To be prophetic is not mere words, but words backed up by action. At the core of the prophetic call is the need for persons to worship the one, true, and living God. Here, the struggle becomes real, for, it is the false prophet who calls persons to worship this one God and then worships another. As we navigate our way through these “covidious” times, this comes as a challenge to us who turn to other gods for help in times of need and times of plenty, the gods of humanism, cults, consumerism, self-aggrandizement, selfishness, religiosity, technology, self-pity, and pride, to name a few. To turn away from God, trampling on the “weak”, while claiming to be of God is to become “unclean” and false. The predicament is that of all of us.
Thankfully, God in Christ can cleanse us from all unrighteousness and “reclothe us in our rightful minds”. Where are you in your journey in becoming Christ’s faithful disciple? What does “power and authority” mean to you? What part do you think you can play in the prophetic role of the church in speaking “truth to power” in the lives of persons deemed “unclean”, “false” and “weak”?
Have a blessed week!
Your pastor and friend,
Mark S. Christmas