The Experience of Christian
Community– Lent with Bonhoeffer Day 23– Purity 995
Purity 995 03/20/2023 Purity 995 Podcast
Purity 995 on YouTube:
Good morning,
Today’s photo of a winding wooden pathway through a
field of green comes to us from yours truly as I captured this scene back on
May 28th of 2019. It somewhere in upstate NY but you have to forgive
me for not remembering where. I work all
over the capital district and frequented many a park and hiking trail in
Columbia County as well in the last several years so I don’t recall where this
is, but it was and is cool. Also that year,
2019, was probably one of the most tumultuous years of my life because I was in
the limbo of the time between filing for divorce and waiting for the lawyers to
do their jobs, something they didn’t decided to do until the judge threatened
us with trial, so you will have to forgive me if I don’t remember where this
pathway is. But boy, can I rejoice over the fact that even in the most tumultuous
times in my life, I still took some time to enjoy my life by “getting away from
it all” with a simple walk through the beauty of God’s creation.
Well, It’s Monday and it is officially the first day
of spring, and I don’t care what the weather is like outside, let me encourage
you with the fact that spring has sprung and eventually the evidence of the
season will be seen and all our doubts about whether or not spring would ever
get here will fade away. It may not “feel”
like spring, but our feelings don’t always tell us the truth.
Likewise, there will undoubtedly be times in our walk
of faith where we will have to stand on the truth of what God’s word says
rather than how we feel. Once we put our
faith in Jesus Christ, we are new creations and we are given everything we need
for life and godliness. But we still
have all our pre-Christ memories and habits with us, and it may take a little
time to see the evidence of our new spiritual life manifesting in our daily
lives. Add to this the spiritual forces
of darkness who are angry that they have lost you to the kingdom of God and who
will do anything to kill, steal, and destroy us and the joy of our salvation,
and it is no wonder why we may struggle to full accept that “It is finished” –
that we are forgiven, adopted, children of God who have power over sin and
death.
But the truth is the truth, and the sooner we accept
it the sooner we will start to display the evidence of our new life in Christ. You may not feel holy but you are holy. You
may not see “brand new” but you are. You may not feel free but God has set you
free. So believe it, receive it, and live it!
One way we can live this thing called the Christian
faith is by doing the spiritual practices that will both grow our capacity to
live a life of faith and that will simultaneously be evidence of our changed
life. Prayer, Bible study, simply
believing we are new, worshiping the Lord, praising the Lord, thanking the Lord,
singing to the Lord, and showing God’s
love to others through kindness and good works are all ways that we can show
the world and ourselves that we are indeed Christians and have been forever
changed by the new life God has poured into us through the indwelling presence
of the Holy Spirit.
So let’s take one more step into our new lives in
Christ by walking into the 23rd Day of Lent (they do skip the
Sundays- in case you were wondering) by continuing our current series and the
23rd Day of the 40 Day Journey with Dietrich Bonhoeffer.
As a reminder, and as we will say each day of this
journey, we take this path to mark the season of Lent and to draw closer to God
in anticipation of the celebration of Easter, knowing that if we take this
journey of repentance seriously, we will not only see the days and seasons
change, the Lord will use it to change us too.
You can sign up to get this devotional yourself by
going to the Biblegateway link on the blog ((https://www.biblegateway.com/devotionals/40-Day-Journey-Dietrich-Bonhoeffer/today)) .
Day 23
Bonhoeffer writes:
“There is probably no Christian to whom God has not given
the uplifting and blissful experience of genuine Christian
community at least once in her or his life.
But in this world such experiences remain nothing but a
gracious extra beyond the daily bread of Christian community life.
We have no claim to such experiences, and we do not live
with other Christians for the sake of gaining such experiences.
It is not the experience of Christian community, but firm
and certain faith within Christian community that holds us together.
We hold fast in faith to God’s greatest gift, that God has
acted for us all and wants to act for us all.
This makes us joyful and happy, but it also makes us ready
to forget all such experiences if at times God does not grant them. We are
bound together by faith, not by experience.”
Biblical Wisdom
Finally, all of you, have unity of spirit, sympathy, love for
one another, a tender heart, and a humble mind. Do not repay evil for evil or
abuse for abuse; but, on the contrary, repay with a blessing. It is for this
that you were called․that you might inherit a blessing. 1 Peter 3:8-9
Questions to Ponder
- Why is “the uplifting and
blissful experience of genuine Christian community”
somewhat rare?
M.T. Clark: It is rare because Christianity is so rare today and
because the world, the flesh, and the devil do everything to pull us away from
experiencing it. Although we are Christians,
we are still imperfect people who have to work and find our way in this world,
to provided for ourselves and our families and to endure the various trials
that come from walking through life in a world broken by sin. We can be distracted. We can be offended. And
our neighbors can be those things too. So when we have a uplifting and blissful
experience of genuine Christian community we should rejoice because we can
truly know that God is with us and has guided us all to be together in
harmonious commune that overcomes the world, the flesh, and the devil.
- What is the “firm and
certain faith” that holds Christians together even when there is conflict
and tension between them?
M.T. Clark: The firm and certain faith that holds Christians
together even when there is conflict and tension between them is our common
faith in Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior and the belief that God is still
in charge and is moving all thing together for good for those who love Him and
are called according to His purpose. The reason we can have a firm and certain
faith is because God doesn’t change and His word will endure forever.
Regardless of our feeling or our current circumstances, we can stand firm and
certain with the Lord.
- What does it mean to say:
“We are bound together by faith, not by experience”?
M.T. Clark: The statement: “We
are bound together by our faith, not by experiences” points to the fact of God’s
immutability – He doesn’t change. The work of Christ has been performed. It is
finished. And when we put our faith in Him as Lord and Savior, we stand firm
and certain on what has already been done for us. We are bound together by our
relationship to God through Jesus, not on our experiences of harmony here on
earth, which are subject to change. Our faith
is based on facts, not on feelings. So
even though we may have moments of blissful harmony in the body of Christ, our
common bound is not based on them, it is based on the unchanging, trustworthy God
who made us and called us to have peace with Him through Jesus.
Psalm Fragment
How very good and pleasant it is
when kindred live together in unity!
It is like the precious oil on the head,
running down upon the beard,
on the beard of Aaron,
running down over the collar of his robes. Psalm 133:1-2
Journal Reflections
- Write about an “uplifting
and blissful” experience of genuine Christian community in your life.
M.T. Clark: The easiest example of “uplifting and blissful experiences
of genuine Christian community” in my life are memories of various worship
services where the community of faith was united in praising the Lord in
song. I fully endorse and recommend loud
enthusiastic singing as a spiritual practice, individually and corporately,
because when we are singing praises to the Lord it may be the most appropriate
thing we can do as Christians – it’s right – and the Holy Spirit also uses it
to transform our hearts and minds as we bond relationally with the Lord and with
the body of Christ. It’s the expression
of the fruit of joy in our lives, and it gives glory to God and demonstrates
our faith experientially. We need each
other to have these experiences of genuine Christian community, but we have to
be engaged individually to participate in it and whether or not we are bonded
to our brothers and sisters present in the building, the bliss comes from
experiencing the Lord’s presence in our midst.
- Write about a time when
faith kept you in community even though the experience of
community wasn’t so good at the time.
M.T. Clark: Oh plenty of
times! Some worship services aren’t so great, sometimes people aren’t getting
along, and sometimes the trials in our lives prevent us from being in community. But you keep going to corporate gathering,
because the word calls us to and because going to church is part of who we are now. Even if I am “not feeling it”, I go to worship
the Lord because it is the right thing to do and often the experience of going
changes my attitude by reminding me of the goodness of God and what He has done
in my life.
Intercessions
Think about your
community of faith. If there is any conflict or tension in the community, pray
that faith in the unity given by Christ would sustain the community as it seeks
to resolve the conflict. If the members of your community of faith are
presently at peace with one another, thank God for the experience of
unity.
M.T. Clark:
Lord God,
I pray for my community of faith today as recent messages have
caused offense as the seating policy of “moving to the middle” has caused some
to leave the fellowship all together. I pray for those who left and for those
who remain to not let this policy to make room for others cause them offense
and to lose focus on the reason we are gathered in the first place, to worship
you Lord. Help us Lord to move forward
in harmony, united in our hearts to worship you with joy.
In Jesus’ name, I pray. Amen.
Prayer for Today
Lord, I need
Christian community. Help me to be there for others in the same way I need
others to be there for me.
In Jesus’ name, I pray. Amen.
(40-Day Journey with Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Copyright © 2007
Augsburg Books, imprint of Augsburg Fortress.)
***As we are being
provided with Bible verses from the 40 Day Journey with Dietrich Bonhoeffer, we
will are taking a break from sharing a verse of the day from “The NLT Bible Promise Book for Men”. We plan on
resuming that normal installment of the blog following Easter.***
------------------------------------------------------------------------
As always, I invite all to go to mt4christ.org where I
always share insights from prominent Christian theologians and counselors to
assist my brothers and sisters in Christ with their walk.
Today we continue sharing from A.W. Pink’s “The
Sovereignty of God.”
As always, I share this information for educational
purposes and encourage all to purchase A.W. Pink’s books for your own
private study and to support his work. This resource is available on
many websites for less than $20.00.
THE SOVEREIGNTY OF GOD
By
ARTHUR W. PINK
CHAPTER TEN
OUR ATTITUDE TOWARD HIS SOVEREIGNTY
What then ought to be our attitude toward the Supreme
Sovereign? We reply,
3. One of entire resignation
A true recognition of God’s Sovereignty will
exclude all murmuring. This is
self-evident, yet the thought deserves to be dwelt upon. It is natural to
murmur against afflictions and losses. It is natural to complain when we are
deprived of those things upon which we had set our hearts. We are apt to regard
our possessions as our unconditionally. We feel that when we have prosecuted
our plans with prudence and diligence that we are entitled to success; that when by dint of hard work we have
accumulated a ‘competence’ we deserve
to keep and enjoy it; that when we are surrounded by a happy family no power
may lawfully enter the charmed circle and strike down a loved one; and if in
any of these cases disappointment, bankruptcy, death, actually comes, the
perverted instinct of the human heart is to cry out against God. But in the one
who, by grace, has recognized God’s sovereignty, such murmuring is silenced,
and instead, there is a bowing to the Divine will and an acknowledgment that He
has not afflicted us as sorely as we deserve.
A true recognition of
God’s sovereignty will avow God’s perfect right to do with us as He wills. The
one who bows to the pleasure of the Almighty will acknowledge His absolute
right to do with us as seemeth Him good. If He chooses to send poverty,
sickness, domestic bereavements, even while the heart is bleeding at every
pore, it will say, Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right! Often there
will be a struggle, for the carnal mind remains in the believer to the end of
his earthly pilgrimage. But though there may be a conflict within his breast, nevertheless,
to the one who has really yielded himself to this blessed truth there will
presently be heard that Voice saying, as of old it said to the turbulent
Gennesareth, “Peace be still”; and the tempestuous flood within will be quieted
and the subdued soul will lift a tearful but confident eye to heaven and say,
“Thy will be done.”
A striking
illustration of a soul bowing to the sovereign will of God is furnished by the
history of Eli the high priest of Israel. In 1 Samuel 3 we learn how God
revealed to the young child Samuel that He was about to slay Eli’s two sons for
their wickedness, and on the morrow Samuel communicates this message to the
aged priest. It is difficult to conceive of more appalling intelligence for the
heart of a pious parent. The announcement that his child is going to be
stricken down by sudden death is, under any circumstances, a great trial to any
father, but to learn that his two sons—in the prime of their manhood, and
utterly unprepared to die—were to be
cut off by a Divine judgment must have been overwhelming. Yet, what was the
effect upon Eli when he learned from Samuel the tragic tidings? What reply did
he make when he heard the awful news? “And he said, It is the Lord: let Him do what seemeth Him good” (1
Sam. 3:18). And not another word escaped him. Wonderful submission! Sublime
resignation! Lovely exemplification of the power of Divine grace to control the
strongest affections of the human heart and subdue the rebellious will,
bringing it into unrepining acquiescence to the sovereign pleasure of Jehovah.
Another example,
equally striking, is seen in the life of Job. As is well known, Job was one
that feared God and eschewed evil. If ever there was one who might reasonably
expect Divine providence to smile upon him—we speak as a man—it was Job. Yet,
how fared it with him? For a time the lines fell unto him in pleasant places.
The Lord filled his quiver by giving him seven sons and three daughters. He
prospered him in his temporal affairs until he owned great possessions. But of
a sudden the sun of life was hidden behind dark clouds. In a single day Job
lost not only his flocks and herds but his sons and daughters as well. News
arrived that his cattle had been carried off by robbers, and his children slain
by a cyclone. And how did he receive this intelligence? Hearken to his sublime
words: “The Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away.” He bowed to
the sovereign will of Jehovah. He traced his afflictions back to their First
Cause. He looked behind the Sabeans who had stolen his cattle, and beyond the
winds that had destroyed his children, and saw the hand of God. But not only did Job recognize God’s sovereignty, he rejoiced
in it, too. To the words, “The Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away,” he
added, “blessed be the name of the Lord”
(Job 1:21). Again we say, Sweet submission! Sublime resignation!
A true recognition of
God’s sovereignty causes us to hold our every plan in abeyance to God’s will.
The writer well recalls an incident which occurred in England over twenty years
ago. Queen Victoria was dead, and the date for the coronation of her eldest
son, Edward, had been set for April 1902. In all the announcements which were
sent out, two little letters were omitted, D. V.—Deo Volente: God willing.
Plans were made and all arrangements completed for the most imposing
celebrations that England had ever witnessed. Kings and emperors from all parts
of the earth had received invitations to attend the royal ceremony. The
Prince’s proclamations were printed and displayed, but, so far as the writer is
aware, the letters D. V. were not found on a single one of them. A most
imposing programme had been arranged, and the late Queen’s eldest son was to be
crowned Edward the Seventh at Westminster Abbey at a certain hour on a fixed
day. And then God intervened and all
man’s plans were frustrated. A still small voice was heard to say, “You have
reckoned without Me,” and Prince Edward was stricken down with appendicitis,
and his coronation postponed for months!
As remarked, a true
recognition of God’s sovereignty causes us to hold our plan in abeyance to God’s will. It makes us recognize that the
Divine Potter has absolute power over the clay and moulds it according to his
own imperial pleasure. It causes us to heed that admonition—now, alas! so generally
disregarded—“Go to now, ye that say, Today or tomorrow we will go into such a city, and continue there a year, and buy and
sell, and get gain: Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what
is your life? It is even a vapor, that appeareth for a little time, and then
vanisheth away. For that ye ought to
say, If the Lord will, we shall live,
and do this, or that” (Jas. 4:13–15). Yes, it is to the Lord’s will we must bow. It is for Him to say where I shall live, whether in America or Africa. It is
for Him to determine under what
circumstances I shall live, whether amid wealth or poverty, whether in health
or sickness. It is for Him to say how
long I shall live, whether I shall be cut down in youth like the flower of the
field, or whether I shall continue for three score and ten years. To really learn this lesson is, by grace,
to attain unto a high form in the school of God, and even when we think we have
learned it we discover, again and again, that we have to relearn it.[1]
---------------------------more
tomorrow------------------------
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Encouragement
for the Path of Christian Discipleship
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