Throughout my life, I’ve been blessed to be part of congregations of many different denominations: Independent Baptist, Southern Baptist, Catholic, Church of Christ, Methodist, and now Anglican. Each of them have loved the Lord and have thought they were doing what was right, at the same time they have criticized other Christian denominations, and other churches within their own denominations, over worship style preferences, dress styles, and a variety of other non-scripture-based issues. How must someone outside of the church look on such pettiness? And how much does this dilute our real purpose: to know Christ and make Him (not our traditions) known.

We in America have lost sight of being the body of Christ, each piece with its own functions, gifts, and importance. We have walled ourselves off from a hurting world behind extravagant buildings that are sometimes rightly compared to country clubs. We have forgotten that Jesus said true religion was to take care of widows and orphans.

As Christians, we should be a shining city on a hill and the first place that hurting people go for healing. Instead, too often, we have denied our own hurts, sins, deficiencies (in order to maintain the “prettiness” of the outside of our cups), and those failures have remained all too apparent to the world at large that calls this behavior like it is: hypocrisy.

All of that said, I agree with Spencer’s assertions that there is reason for hope. Now more than ever, we’re seeing congregations reaching across congregational and denominational lines to study the Word together and to minister together. Our Anglican fellowship is teamed up with a Baptist church and a nondenominational Christian church to reach out to a government-assisted housing complex in our neighborhood with a food pantry, a clothes closet, tutoring for the kids, free piano lessons onsite, and now we’re looking to expand into prayer ministry and Bible study groups within the apartment that has been given to us there.

The ladies Bible study group that a friend of mine holds at her home has grown from being a group of Methodist ladies to including many other backgrounds including Anglican, Assemblies of God, Catholic, Baptist, and nondenominational. All of us ladies have one thing in common: We love the Lord and want to know him better through His Word.

While none of us wants to be persecuted, the Bible has many examples of the ways that God allows persecution to scatter his disciples, to increase dependency on Him, and to refine His church.

Absolutely, as the body of Christ, we have to know Him, His word, and the power and indwelling of His Holy Spirit. Without that, the church is just another building or exclusive social club. I think that’s probably as repugnant to God as it is to the rest of the world.

It has been a really difficult couple of weeks at work (not to mention the typical parenting challenges), and I’m reminded that it’s the times that I let my focus get misdirected that I end up feeling so overwhelmed.

The Lord woke me up early this morning to spend some time together. As usual when He does this, I was tired, and not really in the mood to get up that early; but when I complied, He rewarded me so richly. As I read back through my journals with Him from the past year, over and over again, I had written, “Lord, what would you have me know today?” And time and again, He had said, “I love you with an everlasting love. You are mine, and I am yours.”

“I am yours…” How precious is that: that I would not only belong to Him but Him to me.

Reading back through the journal, I found one morning when I changed up the question a bit. I had been preparing for a summer mission trip to Russia and was feeling particularly inadequate for the task. Coming to the end of meditating on Psalm 121 (“The LORD will keep you from all harm—he will watch over your life; the LORD will watch over your coming and going both now and evermore.”) I asked Him, “Lord, am I yours?”

He said the most beautiful thing: “You are mine, and I am yours forever. There is no greater love story than this. There is no fiercer battle cry. I am yours, and you are mine forever. I will not fail you. Only I am the perfect lover—one who loves unselfishly. Revel in my love. I know you are distracted. It’s okay. I don’t judge you for that. But give those cares to me. You’re carrying burdens you don’t need to carry. Let me take them for you, and you keep walking. Keep moving forward, but rest in me.”

How extravagant a love is that? How noble and pure. And yet, with all of that, how can I get caught up in the little daily things that mean nothing and forget the depth of the One who first loved me?

That was a fresh word for me again this morning and hopefully a good word for anyone who might read this. And it led me to a place of extraordinary thankfulness and refreshing. My response back to the Lord was one of deep gratitude. Consider this: When we are true believers—when we are His—He knows everything about us—our strengths, weaknesses, sins, strong points, destinies, and distractions, and He still loves us—EXTRAVAGANTLY and without limit. Unlike human love, His love is not dependent on our performance or perfection, or anything we could do.

His Word continually reaffirms His love for us: He IS love. He is light and in Him is no darkness. His light drives out darkness, and if He is for us, who can be against us? Nothing can separate us from the love of God. We are more than conquerors in Christ Jesus. There is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ. He has engraved us in the palms of His hands and nothing can tear us from Him, because He holds us fast. When we are weak, He is strong. He who began a good work in us is able to finish it and faithful to bring it to completion.

Oh, what a God, what a Savior! What extravagant love! Help us to maintain such a focus on You and not the cares of this world.

I remember quite clearly one morning when I was in my quiet time with the Lord and reading a passage in the New Testament that talked about all of the different people who would not inherit the kingdom of God (everyone from murderers to gossips and busybodies). And I thought, “Lord, help me. I have been guilty of some of these things. How can you possibly let me into your kingdom?” And He spoke into my spirit and said, “You are no longer any of those things. When you received Christ, you put on the righteousness of Christ and became a new creature.” As I was searching quickly to find the passage this evening, I actually came across a similar scripture in which Paul speaks to this: “Do you not know that the wicked will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral not idolaters…(the list goes on)… And that is what some of you were. BUT (my emphasis) you were washed, you were sanctified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God” (I Cor. 6:9 – 11).

One more thought. Let’s look at the criminal on the cross. Not the one mocking Jesus, but the other guy:

“But the other criminal rebuked him. ‘Don’t you fear God,’ he said, ‘since you are under the same sentence? 41We are punished justly, for we are getting what our deeds deserve. But this man has done nothing wrong.’

42Then he said, ‘Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.’

43Jesus answered him, ‘I tell you the truth, today you will be with me in paradise.’ (Luke 23:40–43)”

This criminal had no time to get his life in order. Who knows how much scripture he even knew. The only thing that is clear is that he recognized Jesus for who He is, and Jesus in turn welcomed him into paradise.

If it were possible for any of us to do enough, be enough, live well enough, etc., then Jesus’ sacrifice would not have been necessary. That said, true belief is evidenced by fruit. The Bible is clear that we will be known by our fruit. Salvation is not merely an “emotional” experience, a rote prayer, or lip service. It’s not being a church member, attender, Sunday school teacher, priest, or fulfilling some other religious role. It is coming to the end of ourselves to know that we have one hope: Christ and Christ alone. Until we come to that place, we are an unprepared virgin, a wicked servant, or a goat. Once we do come to that place, we begin the process of being transformed into Christ’s image.

(Philippians 3:10 – 13) 10 “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, 11and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead. 12Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. 13Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, 14I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.”

So returning to our original point of discussion: We are commanded to love God with all of our heart, soul, mind, and strength. This is not optional any more than any of the first ten commandments handed down to Moses are optional. However, when we fall short, and we all do, we can ask and receive forgiveness from the one who died for us while we were yet sinners.

Many blessings!