Are we no longer a threat to the world?

I have just finished reading an article by Gerard Henderson who is the executive director of The Sydney Institute, a community forum which brings sharp minds together to discuss politics and trends in society.

Henderson's article in the Sydney Morning Herald is called Bagging religion is hardly dangerous. It left me disappiointed and concerned. Not because Henderson took a free kick against Christianity, but because he felt the need to say that we are not worth taking a kick at. In fact, Henderson almost seems to be saying, 'Leave them alone. They are not hurting anyone." He's almost defending us and that is what leaves me perplexed. Why aren't they attacking us? That is what they are supposed to do.

Darkness and light

Early in my Christian life I recall reading the opening chapters of John's gospel. In particular one verse stuck in my mind;

This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. (John 3:19)

It is surprising in some ways that this is what stood out for me. It wasn't "The Word was God' or "You must be born again" or any of the other more famous verses from John's gospel. It was this simple statement that the world rejects Jesus because of sin.

What this means is that non-Christians do not begin at a point of open, rational, objective thinking (no matter how many high-falutin' Institutes say otherwise). They begin in sin and their predisposition is to reject God.

I have never forgotten this. Those who have heard me preach know that this verse rolls off my tongue regularly. We will not be liked for our message. We represent light and sin prefers darkness and so will anyone who hears the gospel who is still in their sin.

Drawing all men

One of the mysteries of the gospel, I think, is that just at the moment non-Christians are reeling in horror at the sound of the gospel, God uses it to draw them to himself. Surely this is too difficult for us to truly understand. I don't get it, but I believe it by faith. People want to run the other way when they hear the gospel, but it draws them out of the world to the Kingdom of God.

I think this is partly why Jesus said to Nicodemus;

The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit. (John 3:8)

You may think you "see" the results of evangelistic efforts, but in reality we are only observing human behaviours. They are reasonable indicators if taken over a long period but they are nothing compared to how God sees things.

Programs and more programs

You run a program, hold a meeting, sing a song, say a prayer and people come to the Lord. What do we do? We decided to form a program/meeting/song/prayer committee and run the same even over & over again. After all, it worked before. That was our observation.

You run Alpha, 40 days of something or any number of seeker sensitive courses and get mixed results. We do this regularly because we can only react to stimulii we receive through our senses. Sometimes I think we forget God works way beyond the laws of physics.

And still, God draws all men unto Jesus through the preaching of the gospel, like a wind blowing this way or that. Observable to us in some ways, but mostly hidden.

Dangerous Christians

I love the story of the raising of Lazarus for many reasons, but there is a real kicker after it's all over. In John 12 we read that;

So the chief priests made plans to kill Lazarus as well, for on account of him many of the Jews were going over to Jesus and putting their faith in him. (John 12:10-11)

What a classic. Lazarus is raised from the dead and straight away they want to murder him! Why? Because his life had become a testimony to the power of Jesus over death and that was enough to draw people to Jesus.

That's what I want the Church to become again; a threat to the world. Imagine if the Church was filled with 'Lazarus' type people; those whose lives bear loud testimony to the transforming power of Jesus.

Then, "bagging religion" just might be considered dangerous.