A Sacred Commitment
Read: Romans 12
In our experiences in living Christian lives, I wonder if we’ve paused long enough to ponder the depth and breadth of what it truly means to follow in Jesus’ footsteps. When I was growing up I used to think that attending worship services every Sunday (twice in the Dutch Reformed tradition – morning AND evening), not associating with the "wrong" people, not engaging in "bad" behavior, and generally being "good" was sufficient. Though ever mindful of them, God and Jesus seemed somehow remote. After all, Jesus had "ascended into Heaven and is seated at the right hand of God the Father Almighty." I distinctly remember sitting in the pew lamenting that Jesus was no longer actively working in the world, his mission here accomplished and left to his disciples to carry on. "O Jesus, we need you now more than ever,” I pleaded. This mental picture clearly needed to be changed. And years later it was, with an experience that was both strikingly unanticipated and genuinely startling. It marked the beginning of a spiritual journey that I needed to undertake, a journey I believe we all need to accept at some point.
In my view, spiritual growth is the most important activity in our Earthly lives. In Romans 12, a chapter devoted to ethical teaching, Paul in the opening verses gives instruction on the consecrated life. "Do not be conformed by this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind that you may prove what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect" (Romans 12:2). In Matthew 5 Jesus says: "Love your enemies and pray for those that persecute you, so that you may be children of your Father who is in Heaven... You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect." Being a child of God implies patterning our attitudes after God's, assuming the same traits and qualities. How profound are these implications in a world whose greatest need is healing! We witness destructive wars bringing untold suffering, disease, famine, environmental degradation, bitter divisions along political and ideological lines, and more. And on an individual scale we experience dissatisfaction with our lives, with attendant emotional, psychological, and physical hurts.
Our function in this world is healing. In Heaven there is no need of it. Accepting this goal becomes a sacred commitment. Each of us, then, has a role to play in the healing of the planet. And on our part all the rest of God's plan depends. Healing begins in our minds, and serves to reunite the broken fragments of God's creation. It is a collaborative venture. We all have need of healing. Would we offer less than this to our brothers and sisters, knowing of our own need of it?
Competition, rather than cooperation, causes fragmentation in the social fabric of communities and nations. Technological advances can greatly magnify the consequences of decisions made by minds ruled by the ego rather than Spirit. Thoughts of anger and attack, retaliation and retribution, and the need for gain, even at the expense of others, are indicative of the mind not centered in God. The immensely unbalanced distribution of the world's resources, goods, and services among the members of the human family cannot be the will of our Creator. The ancient narrative continues... stories of war, murder, greed, and treachery are found in the very first book of the Bible. The followers of Jesus, indeed all thoughtful and sane persons, know there is a better way.
God's peace is available to all who ask for it with genuine desire and sincerity of purpose. Change will come through us. We are the means to bring it about. Does the world not need peace as much as we do? Our willingness to accept it for ourselves precisely matches our willingness to offer peace to others and to our world, for what we offer to another represents the value we place on ourselves. We have a mission here. Each little step we take brings Heaven closer. Will humanity decide for a continuation of the past, with its bitter disappointments, hopeless despair, and endless, fruitless searching for what can only be found within? "The kingdom of God is within you” (Luke 17:21, KJV and Williams’ translation). God’s love and joy and light were placed within us in our very creation. Darkness can cover the light, but cannot put it out. Let us gladly follow together in the way that Jesus points out, and be the leaders of the many who seek the light and find it not.
PRAYER:
Dear God, We know there is no peace excepting that which comes from You. We seek no further. Let the quietness of peace and love fall gently on Your creation through us. Amen.
Doug Dykstra
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