God Protects us…Mission and the Big Picture

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Malachi 4:1–2a
2 Thessalonians 3:6–13
Luke 21:5–19
Matthew 25:1-10
Matthew 24:42-43
Matthew 24:36

Last week when Jesus was asked a direct question, He never really answered the question at all.  Then of course, the Sadducees were looking for details, not at the big picture as Jesus was trying to get them to understand.  This week, Jesus hears people speaking about the Temple’s worldly ornateness.   He answers their questions with some specifics, creates more questions and gives warnings and some disturbing news but finishes up with good news.

We the church of believers have a mission to the world.  In Goheen’s book, “A Light To The Nations”, he says that “…’missional’ describes not a specific activity of the church but the very essence and identity of the church as it takes up its role in God’s story in the context of its culture and participates in God’s mission to the world.”[1]  When we follow this idea, then the entire Christian community is sent into the world not for the sake of the church but for the sake of bringing the good news to the entire world.  In Luke, Jesus tells us that there are bad things that can happen by following Him, period but in the end we are going to be all right.

We have obligations and opportunities here and now to be part of what God has planned through Christ for all of humanity.  For myself, I have had to change my attitude on many things, when I realized and continue to realize the importance of my response for the sake of what is done for me through the death and resurrection of Christ, Jesus.  It would easier to stay focused inward and ignore the obvious.  To be honest, sometimes I do just that.  I forget that I am part of a larger purpose as a member of the church, which is the entirety of all Christian believers.

I believe we are in the times that Jesus speaks of.  He does not tell us how long these times will last and it is clear, if these are those times, then some Christians will experience fully what he speaks of, while others will only be part of some of the less grueling parts.  Each generation since Jesus delivered this message, has had opportunity to see and experience signs Jesus tells us about.  Look at ourselves today and some of the things we have experienced.  Just recently the Philippine disaster comes to mind.  How about 911, Hurricane Katrina or even WWII?  One could argue that even AIDS fits well into what Jesus speaks of.

If these things are happening now and have been happening since the time Jesus spoke these words, it would seem that others would have felt too that these were the per-cursor signs to the end times as described in Revelation.  If this is the case, then can we just sit back because we believe we know that Jesus is coming again, soon, very soon?

We have been told to be prepared and keep watch for when the Lord comes, see the story of the Ten Bridesmaids, Matthew 25:1-10 or Matthew 24:42-43 with a reminder to stay awake and be prepared.   Jesus tells us that only the Father knows when the new heaven and earth will come, Matthew 24:36.

In 2 Thessalonians, it is clear that there was a concern that some of the people believed that the second coming was in, the here and now, for them.  As we have been told by Jesus, in scripture, we do not know the time.  It is in the third chapter, there is a warning given against idleness.  We hear of ideas like, idleness, busybodies, not doing work, you must do work for your food.  It can be understandable that people might have been idle while thinking the end was near.  What Paul is really speaking about is more than mere idleness.  He speaks about idleness that takes on being subversive in nature, in being a busybody and subverting the traditions, norms and established morals.

Part of the Christian mission is to take care of the Widows, Orphans and poor in other words, the least, the last and the lost.  2 Thessalonians does not speak about those that are unable to provide for themselves, but to those that will not, and wantonly go against the norms.  This text does not mean, to get assistance because you cannot provide or are in extra need, that one must be given tasks to complete, work, etc. in order to qualify for assistance.

I have come across people who actually work harder at working the systems in place to assist people, then they would if they would direct their energy towards self sufficiency.   These types of people are not being part of the Christian mission. They are actually working against it.  These are the people that are being addressed.

At a congregation I have served at as a Deacon, we had a family of four who started to attend the services.  They had moved up from the south and were looking to make a new start of it.  They had no money, food, very little clothing and were living at a real dump of a motel.  The pastor and myself worked with Lutheran Social Services to help them out to be able to pay for the motel.  Members of the congregation donated food and clothing.  The family was in great need and they were provided for in many ways.  Later, a couple from the Church, allowed them to stay with them in their home and even sold them an older van, which the family agreed to a payment plan.  Over time we learned of a drug addiction of the father. Cash was going to feed his addiction; other items were turned into cash, no rent was paid when it was agreed to, the car was not paid for and then one day the family was gone…..gone in the middle of the night.  Each of us, the entire congregation was involved with this family and they worked us and got what they wanted.  Even with all of that, the congregation has become involved in a ministry to help out teen mothers.  The members could have just have said the heck with it and never put themselves out there again to be hurt, but they did not respond that way.  They have taken on a ministry where people can continue to take advantage of them. The congregation could have just become cynical and looked at this ministry opportunity with an attitude of “Well they get what they sow.”

Even with all that, we can never be sure, of someone’s true motives, only God can.  We are still called in Christian mission to care for people and sometimes when caring and bringing the good news, we the faithful will be taken advantage of.  If we stand up for what we believe, carry out what we believe, fight for what we believe, all we say and do comes to us in faith from God.  This does not prevent bad things from happen to us.  We may be betrayed by friends, relatives, parents and even brother and sister.  We are still called to do these things in Christian mission.

You can choose to live in isolation to the world and in doing so, maybe not experience some of the things that Jesus tells us will happen.  You can subvert the system and not be an active member of the community of believers.  You can do this but this only attempting to flee and hide from what Jesus tells us will happen.  The big picture is, as a faithful community in the church of believers, we are to have a missional identity, standing up for the least, last and lost.  We are to serve the widows, orphans and poor.  If in doing these so, we are hated because of Jesus’s name, we can stand confident that Jesus will be beside us, giving us the words of wisdom be a witness to the Word, that once heard, no one can contradict.  Jesus promises us that not a hair on our heads will perish and through our endurance we will gain our souls.  God so loves us, that God gave humanity, God’s Son and it is God’s Son who has charged us with a mission and a missional identity.  In this we experience God’s love in all that we are and do.  This is the big picture that Jesus wants us to know.  This is the big picture Jesus wants us to be part of.