Being the Church: Facing Hard Times

Now I would remind you, brothers and sisters, of the good news that I proclaimed to you, which you in turn received, in which also you stand, through which also you are being saved, if you hold firmly to the message that I proclaimed to you—unless you have come to believe in vain....What I am saying, brothers and sisters, is this: flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. Listen, I will tell you a mystery! We will not all die, but we will all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed. For this perishable body must put on imperishability, and this mortal body must put on immortality. When this perishable body puts on imperishability, and this mortal body puts on immortality, then the saying that is written will be fulfilled: “Death has been swallowed up in victory.”“Where, O death, is your victory?  Where, O death, is your sting?” 1 Corinthians 15

In these days following the tragedy in Charleston, South Carolina, we know the fragility and brokenness in this life.  We know that humans have a great capacity for harm (as well as for good as the Charleston residents have shown in spades following the attack).  I am concerned that we are anesthetized to violence around us.  We also seem unable to sustain the strength, conviction or courage to make changes to our culture of fear.  It will take more than liking a post on Facebook, re-tweeting someones 144 characters, or giving a few dollars on a website.  This will take a sustained effort on the part of people to say, "No more."  No more will we allow a false choices that are presented by the political voices and lobbyists today.  No more shrugging our shoulders.  No more sidestepping issues.  Charleston shines a light bright on racism, gun violence, hatred, and our cultural paralysis to talk about these issues.  Talk, not as the only solution, but as a way that might start to help or point toward changes.  Being the church means living in a culture that is constantly proving a doctrine of sinfulness and missing the mark.  And being the church means we are not immune to proving that doctrine in our own meetings, sermons, and actions as well.  We need courage to dive into the brokenness, not with a Savior complex...that job has already been taken.  Jesus was born, lived a life of love, died because of his willingness to share God's unconditional love with all people, but that was not the end.  Death was conquered...fear need not be the only emotion that drives our decisions.  Yet, no matter how many Easters we have celebrated, the truth never really takes center stage in our lives.

Of course, the inconvenient truths of Easter take a life time to change fully our lives.  The soaring sensation of singing "Christ the Lord is Risen Today," seems hallow in the face of the messy realities of daily lives.  But that is true on Easter too.  It was certainly true in Paul's day.  Here are people who are under Roman rule, not free to do what they want.  Some in the Corinthian church were wealthier, some were not.  They were diverse and had to live together.  Of course, they did not always get it right...as we have seen in almost every blog post on this passage!

But they tried to be the church together.  Part of being the church is listening, caring for, challenging each other.  Part of being the church is praying together.  Part of being the church is taking action together.  Part of being the church is remembering together.  One way of saying, "No more" is to not forget.  To find ways to gather with each other to talk about the legacy of racism that lingers.  To explore the ways hate festers in all of us.  To confess and let God's presence convict us establishing a new and right spirit for the living of these days.

It would be great if there was one solution, a golden ticket, that would make everything better.  But that rarely works in our personal life and even less so in our systemic, communal life.  It takes time.  We won't dismantle racism by ignoring the facts of white privilege.  We won't make changes without dealing with our history.  This 4th of July, we can celebrate a vision for a country of freedom.  We can celebrate that now our LGBT brothers and sisters gained a huge victory of freedom.  We can celebrate our best moments as a country.  But we can also confess that we don't get it right.  We have flaws as a nation (if you doubt, look at Congress' approval ratings, there are reasons for that rating).  Yet, we do strive to do our best.  I recently heard a quote from Winston Churchill who said, "American will always do the right thing, but only after they have tried everything else."  I know I am exhausted by trying everything else.  We need to find ways to be the church that faces the hard issues of the day, rather than skirting them.

I pray we will have the courage to keep talking prayerfully and openly with each other.  Most of all, I pray as we do, as individuals and a nation, we will find a trace of God, and it will be for the healing of all nations and the world God so loves.

Blessings ~