For a few decades now, many believers have been taught that we should not experience sadness, anger, suffering, anguish, etc. Everything from the cliché, ‘you are a victorious child of God, therefore, you must not live in defeat’.
If you cannot remember the 22 characteristics of a good husband or wife, the 10 things you have to do to overcome temptation, or the 4 types of love in Greek; it is time to turn back to Jesus.
Although it looks like current preaching revolves around obedience as an absolute and superlative value, the Bible seems to insist on narrating the opposite path. Almost the majority of biblical stories are marked by the rebellious tinge of disobedience to oppress systems by the protagonists and the peoples they represented in the midst of societies that obeyed their traditions and that sought to block the way to those silent voices that tried to tell their tales.
There are many cases in which a child, despite the principles they have received at home, decides not to embrace the Christian faith. This can bring great disappointment to parents, who carry a pain behind them that ultimately leads them to wonder, what did we do wrong?
Sadly, the activity of the church has been reduced exclusively to the realization of meetings, worship services, and celebrations, where Christians gather to sing, listen to sermons, see or participate in one or another artistic activity, give their offerings and pray communally. To these activities are added spaces for biblical study and theological reflection, homogeneous meetings (married couples, youth, adolescents, businesspeople, university students, etc.) in homes that allow communion among those attending the congregation.
Some of our own beliefs have brought us to a place of fear instead of a place of love, trust, and hope. That is why some of us do not get fully involved in God’s project, because we are afraid instead of empowered and hopeful.
Jesus saves us from separation from God, he reconciles us with others through love, peace, mercy, grace, and hope. This then brings us life in abundance. Yes, the Divine wants us to live God’s life, not to be “dead in life.”
Jesus then saves us from living a life full of hatred, resentment, and revenge. Jesus saves us from spending our days destroying society while we are looking for the evil of the one who did us harm.
The Apostle Paul, in his first letter to the Corinthians, in chapter 13, makes a wonderful description of the one thing which is part either of the fruit of the spirit, and is a gift from God as well. However, one of the author’s most wonderful statements in this regard is that he recognizes that love remains, along with faith and hope. Nevertheless, Paul makes it clear that of these three, the greatest is love.
Jesus on the cross experiences what millions of people have experienced throughout hundreds of thousands of generations. God did not intervene, because the Divine sometimes does not do so.
The Bible is full of new beginnings. Stories that have ended and that allow others to make their way with hopeful possibilities. Actually, the very life of human beings is full of endings and beginnings, cycles; joys that are interrupted by sadness, which, likewise, are dissipated by new dawns. During this time, Trinity UMC in Ewing is one example of this, and I feel honored to be part of this new season for our congregation.
