The Lord is faithful.
Faith.
Faithful
Faithfulness.
How often do we hear this word used to describe an attribute of God. We hear it in almost every church service. The walls in every Christian bookstore are usually adorned with different pictures and frames with the words "faith", "faithful", or "faithfulness" either inscribed, or outlined upon them. Some people have bracelets or necklaces, or possibly a journal with it on there as well. Most sermons, worship songs, or hymns use it. And I'm sure everyone has a book or two with the word "faith" in the title, on their bookshelf. But... do we really let the word penetrate the proverbial inner sanctum of our minds? Has it been used so much, that we have become somewhat immune to it. Possibly. Maybe, just maybe, some of us take God's faithfulness for granted. That's a hard notion to admit to ourselves right? The notion that we accept God's faithfulness as a free gift to us. That we store it in that back department, way back in our minds, knowing its not going anywhere. . .
Let me tell you a story....
There is a Pastor. This Pastor is in Asia. More specifically, he is in China. He is sitting in a room. The room is dark. It's dimly lit by the light seeping in through the bottom of window shades that have been pulled down tightly. This is a small room. About the size of your bedroom. The floors are made of wood and the walls are bare. There is a bike in one corner, and a few strewn across different walls outside. A large man stands in the corner. He is the security. Every time a knock on the door comes, everyone freezes in tension as he rushes over to see who it was. Now, they come. They come at different times, and they come from different areas. They come this way as to avoid the perception that there is a meeting going on. A meeting like this is strictly prohibited and illegal here. No one must know. They are men and women from different churches throughout the region. These are members of secret churches. They assemble themselves in the middle of the room. There is about thirteen of them all together. They form a circle and fall to their knees.
Their bibles lay open in front of them. Small and medium-sized bibles that have seen better times. Their pages are ruffled, some are torn, and their covers are rough with bended edges. These bibles have seen back pockets upon rough roads and back trails. They have seen dusty floors in many villages, and most of them...have seen the rough concrete floors of different prisons. As they began to speak, one at a time, they tell stories. Stories of life in their own small churches and villages. These are stories of persecution. These are stories of martyrdom, suffering, pain, and frustration. One woman speaks of about the government. How they had confronted one family in her area, saying that if they heard about them meeting to read the bible, they would be killed and lose everything. Another speaks of a cult luring away their believers. This cult was known for taking believers, cutting out their tongues, and torturing them. ... They began to pray. In their prayers they use phrases like: "We love you God", "Thank you Lord", and "Jesus, we give our lives to and for you". They continue to pray as they ask for God's grace in leading their church. They all stand up. The Pastor notices a puddle of tears in a circle where they had been kneeling. These are tears of love. These are tears of devotion. These are tears of people who are willing to see the Kingdom of God furthered. Pushed forward though love- at any cost. This is their lives.
Their bibles lay open in front of them. Small and medium-sized bibles that have seen better times. Their pages are ruffled, some are torn, and their covers are rough with bended edges. These bibles have seen back pockets upon rough roads and back trails. They have seen dusty floors in many villages, and most of them...have seen the rough concrete floors of different prisons. As they began to speak, one at a time, they tell stories. Stories of life in their own small churches and villages. These are stories of persecution. These are stories of martyrdom, suffering, pain, and frustration. One woman speaks of about the government. How they had confronted one family in her area, saying that if they heard about them meeting to read the bible, they would be killed and lose everything. Another speaks of a cult luring away their believers. This cult was known for taking believers, cutting out their tongues, and torturing them. ... They began to pray. In their prayers they use phrases like: "We love you God", "Thank you Lord", and "Jesus, we give our lives to and for you". They continue to pray as they ask for God's grace in leading their church. They all stand up. The Pastor notices a puddle of tears in a circle where they had been kneeling. These are tears of love. These are tears of devotion. These are tears of people who are willing to see the Kingdom of God furthered. Pushed forward though love- at any cost. This is their lives.
These are faithful Christians. These disciples know the cost of following Jesus, and they know the faithfulness of doing so. They keep front and center God's faithfulness to them, and His promise to them as followers of Jesus Christ. More importantly, they know the cost of being a disciple for our Father.
Now, I wonder how many of "us" are as faithful to Him, as He is faithful to "us". As faithful as the men and women crying puddles of tears. And when I say "us", I mean "us" as Christians in America. I can be the first to say... I am not. I am nowhere near the cost that Jesus asks us to pay for His fellowship. It's amazing how many times throughout the Gospel Jesus turns away potential followers of his. He always warns them of the incredibly high cost of following him. In fact, he often turned away thousands in return for one who is completely sold out for Him.
Are we completely sold out?
Are we meeting the high standards that Jesus requires of His followers?
Or are we creating our own standards.... and in this creating a Jesus that we can follow within our own capacities. You know what I mean; within our own comfort zone. A Jesus we can follow without giving up everything we own; forgetting our own lives in exchange for His; without letting the dead bury their dead; without saying goodbye to our family. Are we ready to drop our nets, and willing to leave our family, kids, spouses, friends all to follow in His dusty footsteps..... Are we willing to lose our lives for the Messiah?
Jesus was straight-forward about the life of a disciple. He didn't hide the suffering or difficulty of it. He also never said "All I require of you, is that you attend an hour long message on Sunday, pray once a day, and celebrate me on my birthday". No, He said "to die" for Him. After all, He did die for us. Paul said it like this: "It is I who no longer live, but Christ who lives within me" (Gal 2:20a). He wants us all. Every bit of us for every bit of Him. I think that's worth the price for everlasting life. Do you?
My prayer is that we as a church in this country....
Break down the walls of our churches,
give all that we are,
bring heaven to earth,
light the world with His love,
live humbly like Jesus,
return his gift of faithfulness,
be servants with no regard,
and GIVE ALL THAT WE ARE...
to see every soul saved from an eternity of damnation,
through the beautiful sanctification of our Lord,
that allows us to live in joy and freedom.
Amen.*For more info. on our brothers and sisters suffering for His cause check out:
http://www.persecutionblog.com/2009/06/update-rock-church-of-zhengzhou-henan-banned-7-christians-still-detained.html
