I’m
out.
Simple
words from a man. This man was mentioning how he recently became a Christian,
giving up life in a gang to follow Jesus. He came into the church and said
these two words to the pastor indicating he was going back to the gang. The
Pastor replied, “Why are you out?” The man replied, because I thought following
Jesus was a brotherhood. You have each other’s back, you care for one another
and are around each other all the time. The man found the opposite to be true.
This was a story from a book I read, I can’t remember which book it was (Maybe “It”
by Craig Groeschel) but I believe it was a true story. Part of me wants to
debate this. The church in general is better than this, but part of me thinks
the opposite.
It was
November 5, 2000 when I was baptized. It was a great day. One of the things I
remember after getting baptized was a lady. This lady almost came running up to
me saying loudly “Welcome to the family!” She gave me a big hug, I was thrown
off by this. For the past two years I attended this church off and on, I never
got more then a dirty look from this lady. I would be standing next to my
friend Jason and she would talk lovingly to Jason and how great he was, than
she wouldn’t even acknowledge I was there. One time in particular, she talked
to Jason (While I was standing next to Jason), praised him for reciting scripture
in Sunday School than looked up and down at me, giving me a dirty look and
walking away. I was not a Christian at the time and I told Jason, “Dude, did
you see the look she gave me, what’s her problem?” Those weren’t the exact
words I said, but you get the point. He replied, “Don’t worry about that, she
is like that to people she doesn’t know.” Until I became a Christian, I had not
one positive interaction from this lady. This was part of the reason I didn’t
get baptized earlier. I thought all Christians were hypocrites, they talked
about love but didn’t show it. We need to change this.
Paul
shares some words that applied to the Thessalonians and they can apply to us
today regarding love. 1 Thessalonians 3:12…
“May
the Lord make your love increase and overflow for each other and for everyone
else, just as ours does for you.”
Paul showed amazing love for people. Even from jail he wrote
encouraging letters to people. He shared how hearing of their love for one
another lifted his spirits. May your love increase and overflow not just for
people in the Church but people outside the Church. I love the overflow line,
that is how much we are supposed to love. Our love can be so much, it can
overflow just like fizz from filling up a fountain drink, it can overflow.
We have the opportunity to show our faith by our love.
Christians have a history for fighting and having bitterness in church over
small trivial things: color of the carpets, getting rid of hymn books and
showing words on a screen, calling a gym a gym instead of family life center
etc. We as Christians need to still show love to each other even when there are
disagreements. Our love is supposed to overflow from those inside the church to
those outside the church.
For those who are Christians, who have you been bitter
towards inside the church and why? As a Christian, who do you need to do a
better job inside the church of showing love? Now in general, who can you show
a love that is overflowing from you today?
We have the opportunity to show the world our love, how can
you show your love today?
Have a great day.
