"The best thing to hold onto in life is each other."
Audrey Hepburn
Thursday, February 14, 2013
Saturday, February 2, 2013
The Public Bath
My husband Ken has mastered the skill of taking “instant”
showers. He says he is so fast in the
shower because he doesn’t get dirty. It
must be that clean living.
I wonder, though, how often we take that attitude with our
spiritual lives—if we’re “good,” we won’t get dirty. If I attend church regularly, tithe
faithfully, serve sacrificially, pray regularly, and read my Bible daily, I
won’t have to worry about sin.
But the Apostle John warns us that he who says he has no sin
essentially makes God a liar (I Jn. 1:10).
Often, though, we don’t see our own sin.
Our hearts are deceitful (Jer. 17:9).
We end up in a classic case of ignorance is self-righteous bliss. That is why it is so important to engage in
body life. Just as children grow when
their faults are exposed among their siblings, we grow as our sin is exposed as
we worship and work together as members of God’s family.
Personally, I would prefer to encounter and deal with my sin
privately. But I can’t. It is only when I am in relationship with
others that my selfishness becomes visible.
It is only when I am serving with others that I confront the question:
“Am I doing this as an expression of love for my Lord, or am I doing this to
impress someone?”
It is almost certainly uncomfortable to have our weaknesses
seen in public. To coin a popular
phrase, I think it is time we get over it.
Please allow me to make the following observations:
v
Our discomfort at having our sins exposed is
directly proportional to our pride. The
better we think we are, the harder it is to recognize, accept, and acknowledge
our faults.
v
The exposure of our sin is a threat only if we
are finding our identity, value, and security in our performance, in our own
righteousness. If our identity, value,
and security are in Christ, we can welcome the exposure of our sin because it
gives us the opportunity to confess, repent, and become more like Christ.
v
Practicing vulnerability in our church family
gives us the opportunity to experience the power of being known and loved
anyway.
v
The willingness to expose our weaknesses helps
us to live more honest lives. This
pleases and glorifies the God of truth; it also provides a powerful witness to
nonbelievers who cannot connect with “perfect” Christians.
v
As we take responsibility for our sin by
confession and repentance, we make deep, rich relationship with others
possible. This reflects both the nature
and design of our Lord.
Now that I’ve got you excited about all the good God can do
in our lives as we live in transparency with one another, there is more good
news! This opportunity for growth is
easily found. In fact, it can be missed
only if we run away or walk around with our eyes closed. Virtually every gathering we attend, be it a
gathering of two or two hundred, offers us a chance to deeply engage and take
the risk of letting our self-protective guard down. Perisseia (Windsor Chapel’s women’s growth
group) is one such opportunity, and anyone who attends at least somewhat
regularly can attest to the fact that my sins and areas of brokenness are often
brought to light. Have you heard about
the time I rolled over someone’s boundaries—during a session about that very
topic?
Although I am not suggesting that exposing our sins should
be our goal as we worship and work together, I would love for us to participate
in body life without reserve and without fear, confident that God is doing a
glorious work in us, through us, and among us.
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