Thoughts which draw me to Jesus, and to the Cross

¹  When I first came to you, dear brothers and sisters, I didn’t use lofty words and impressive wisdom to tell you God’s secret plan. ²  For I decided that while I was with you I would forget everything except Jesus Christ, the one who was crucified. ³  I came to you in weakness—timid and trembling. ⁴  And my message and my preaching were very plain. Rather than using clever and persuasive speeches, I relied only on the power of the Holy Spirit. ⁵  I did this so you would trust not in human wisdom but in the power of God. 1 Corinthians 2:1-5 (NLT2)

We shall see that in order to enter fully into communion with the life brought to us by Christ we must in some sense—sacramentally, ascetically, mystically—die with Christ and rise with Him from the dead. The whole life of the Kingdom of God consists then in the gradual extension of the spiritual effects of the death and resurrection of Jesus to one soul after another until Christ lives perfectly in all whom He has called to Himself.

This gospel is to us a true example of firm and perfect faith. For this woman endures and overcomes in three great and hard fought battles, and teaches us in a beautiful manner the true way and virtue of faith, namely, that it is a hearty trust in the grace and goodness of God as experienced and revealed through his Word.

Is the church dying? Is it dead? Is it no longer relevant to a society that ignores its brokenness?  Will we continue to consolidate and merge ministries, selling this off to try something different over here? Will we believe the post-covid reports abut what the decline in church attendance means?

There is no doubt attendance is less across all Christian denominations, but what does that mean?

I think it is time to listen to St. Paul, and focus on the cross of Jesus, to think through that which is our only hope, to realize we have died, and risen with Him. We have to get back to that message – for the sake of our people. Merton states this clearly – the whole life of the Church nad its believers consists of the death and life of Christ, and our unity with it.  Luther adds the grace of God experienced and revealed through His word which proclaims Christ crucified.

We can’t afford to be in a defensive position any longer! In fact we should have never gone down that road to begin with, relying on our own intellect and ability to strategize the next moves for the church..

Paul, one of the greatest intellects in the history of the church, says he abandoned the things which communicated loftier ideals with larger words.

Just Christ. Just the cross.

This is where we die, and live…

This is the message that sparks revivals and reformations. That Jesus dwells with His people, His church. This is what is seeing churches in other places in the world grow so fast they are sending missionaries here.

God at work, in the lives of people, redeemed and reconciled by the body and blood of Christ shed on the cross, and found on the altar.

Let’s celebrate that love, that passion, that presence… and depend on Him. As we do, we will find the rumors of the death of the church to be greatly exagerated, and in fact, lies from hell.

Amen!

Merton, Thomas. 1976. The New Man. London; New York: Burns & Oates.

Luther, Martin, and John Sander. 1915. Devotional Readings from Luther’s Works for Every Day of the Year. Rock Island, IL: Augustana Book Concern.