In his book The Cost of Discipleship, Dietrich Bonhoeffer talks about 2 qualities of Jesus; the visible and the invisible. Visible quality of Jesus is his humanity and the Invisible, his divinity. There is no need for us to prove Jesus' visible quality, because history affirms his birth and death. But how do we as Christians represent his invisible quality? In other words, how do we as his followers present his divinity? Dietrich Bonhoeffer's answer is that we as the church must become a visible community (a genuine Christian Community); visible community who lives and loves so divinely that Jesus' invisble quality maybe seen in us. Question for us is how do we become that visible community? How do we become a Christian Community?
Apostle Paul in Philippians 3 shares his testimony and what makes him a Christian; a follower of Jesus Christ. In doing so, he unveils his past, reveals his present and shares his future desires.
Before he knew Christ, he was a zealous Pharisee. He was a prominent member of his community as a Pharisee, and he worked hard for it. However, now, he no longer considers those things he worked so hard for as "profit." What he so valued in his past is nothing more than "confidence in the flesh," and moreover, he considers them now to be "rubbish." Let me put it this way; all that Paul valued before he came to know Christ, he now considers them "dung (KJV)." Then in v. 10 Paul reveals his heart's desire; "I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, and so, somehow to attain to the resurrection from the dead." In other words, what makes him a disciple of Christ; a genuine Christian is not some kind of acheivement or accomplishment; it's KNOWING CHRIST in such a way that one would come to be like Him in his suffering, death and resurrection. Let me clarify: I believe Jesus said it this way: "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself, take up the cross and follow me." In other words, if the course of our lives are not completely and utterly changed as Christians; changed so radically in a profound way, we'll never know what it means to be a visible community. And if we never come to know what it means to be a visible community, the world will never come to see the invisible quality of Jesus, the divinity of the Son of God.
Challenge for all of us is that we become people of God who are hungry to KNOW Christ so divinely that his divinity, his invisible quality would shine in and through our community. That's what a Christian community is. May that become our goal this year.
Thursday, January 31, 2008
Sunday, January 13, 2008
Visible Community: A Kingdom Community
When we come to believe in something so deeply and dearly, it transforms us to the core; we are forever changed. Likewise, when we come to a place in our lives where we are plugged in a visible & believing community, we become a transformed community.
That's why Apostle Paul calls the new believers as "sons of God." We were once a slave to sin, but now longer a slave. We have been transformed in the nature of our identity . we have been tranformed from slaves to sons. In other words, we have been adopted by God to belong in the kingdom community; to share in the inheritance of the kingdom. The challenge for us is this: now that we have become a kingdom seeker (seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness and all these things will be added unto you--Matt 6:33), how are we representing the king? Because we are a kingdom community, all walls have been demolished. We are freed to become a commmunity of unity. And there's purpose for us to become as one. John 17:22-23: the purpose is so that the world may know Christ crucified. Are we living that lifestyle to really love one another in such depth that the world sees us as one? Are we living such lives that screams of our testimony about Jesus Christ? This will be a challenge for our church this year. And as we are called to such challenge, may our church become one; to become a community of unity that serves one another in love experiencing the fruition of the power of communal testimony.
That's why Apostle Paul calls the new believers as "sons of God." We were once a slave to sin, but now longer a slave. We have been transformed in the nature of our identity . we have been tranformed from slaves to sons. In other words, we have been adopted by God to belong in the kingdom community; to share in the inheritance of the kingdom. The challenge for us is this: now that we have become a kingdom seeker (seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness and all these things will be added unto you--Matt 6:33), how are we representing the king? Because we are a kingdom community, all walls have been demolished. We are freed to become a commmunity of unity. And there's purpose for us to become as one. John 17:22-23: the purpose is so that the world may know Christ crucified. Are we living that lifestyle to really love one another in such depth that the world sees us as one? Are we living such lives that screams of our testimony about Jesus Christ? This will be a challenge for our church this year. And as we are called to such challenge, may our church become one; to become a community of unity that serves one another in love experiencing the fruition of the power of communal testimony.
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