Form of Godliness
After the day of Pentecost, there was a revival in the early church- the apostles preached the gospel boldly; God confirmed His word with signs and wonders. People were being added to the church in great numbers. Saul- one of the persecutors was turned to the light and became Paul. Now, Paul went about preaching Christ as the Messiah and established new churches in places where no one had gone before.
But after about 30 years of the Ascension, Paul writes this to Timothy: “…having a form of godliness but denying its power. And from such people turn away!” [2 Tim. 3:5]
Here we are some 2000 years after the happenings of the early church. And it is relevant for us to ponder what Paul is saying here: We may very well be practicing a form of Christian living- a Christian show, if you like; where the real power of Christ is missing, but the show goes on! And it is time for us to look around and see; and also to look at ourselves!
Right things / Right Person
What goes on here and now? All our actions and words may seem to reflect that we are doing all the right things, but indeed miss out on the right PERSON- Jesus Christ. We may participate in a church service with enthusiasm, partake of the emblems of the bread and the wine, parade our feelings of love for God- and yet miss out on a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, God’s Son. Even the children, who grow up amongst us, may read the Bible and pray, but still miss the content of the gospel. And the youth may only see the experiences and manifestations as real evidences and miss out on the greatest miracle- salvation of the soul… Yes, it can happen! We may all cultivate a form of godliness and miss out on the power of the gospel!We need to have a revelation of who Jesus is. One day, Jesus asked His disciples, “Who do you say that I am?” Simon Peter answered and said, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” Jesus answered and said to Him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.” [Matt. 16: 16, 17]
Being a Christian
That is why I said, we need to have a revelation of who Jesus is; and our children need to have a revelation too! Being a Christian is always by choice, and not by birth. We may have been born to godly parents in a Christian home. We may have been inducted into the church right from our baby years, but that does not make us a Christian. We may inherit so many things from our parents and even our beliefs about God and His word; but it does not make us a Christian. Only God who is in heaven can give us a revelation of who Jesus is.
Now, having a revelation once and then forgetting about it is of no use. It is for us to lay hold of the essence and establish a relationship with Jesus everyday of our lives; talking with Him, morning by morning with renewed minds and open hearts. Paul who established the church at Corinth writes: But I fear, lest somehow, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, so your minds may be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ. [2 Cor. 11:3] The Corinthians did have a revelation about Jesus- once upon a time. But somehow, their minds got corrupted!
Having a relationship with Jesus is not complicated- it is simple. It is made of simple trust and obedience, in accordance with your revelation and your measure of faith. It is not obtained from a doctoral degree in theology or a masters’ in divinity. It is not based on philosophy and ‘ancient’ wisdom of the world. It is not science and logical reasoning. The gospel is for ALL- the poor, the rich, the literate, the illiterate, the learned, the simple, the master, the slave! Christian living is all about being devoted to one Person- Jesus Christ.
Now Up, Then Down
If you read the Old Testament (that is written over 1000 years and contains about 3000 years of history), we see in the book of Judges that people came close to God, according to the revelation and then went astray soon after. If you read the books of Chronicles and Kings, we see that the people followed God if the king followed after God; and went astray if the king went astray. And even in the New Testament, the early church disciples were close to God while sometime later, the disciples were only having a form of godliness but denied its power! All through history, there have been ups and downs, in people’s relationship with their Maker and Him who made heavens and the earth.
We also know of the establishment of mainstream traditional churches, each with their own follies. Some did not have the Bible, going into idolatry and vain repetitions; while others had a form of worship but restricted freedom.
One day, one of the scribes (the ‘church’ people) asked Jesus this question: Which is the foremost commandment? Jesus answered him, “The first of all the commandments is: Hear, O Israel, the LORD our God, the LORD is one. And you shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength. This is the first commandment.” [Mark 12: 29, 30]
Love Relationship
Last week, I talked about marriage- and how the relationship between man and woman ought to be. Today we are talking about the relationship between God and humans. Just as in the case of marriage, as years pass by, there may appear a coldness in the relationship between the husband and wife, and the marriage degenerates into something less than what it is meant to be. But they- the man and woman, may continue living together just to keep up an appearance for the sake of the world, or for their children's sake; or the marriage may even fall apart when the love completely disappears.
In just the same way, our relationship with our Lord Jesus may degenerate into something less than ideal; we may just want to keep up our ‘holy’ attitudes in front of others; we may read a few verses here and there, put some words together for prayer and maybe even sing a bit, without having a meaningful relationship with God Himself.
In the book of Revelation, Jesus says to the church of the Laodiceans, “…So then, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of My mouth.” [Rev. 3:16]. The church of Laodicea was one of those churches, not very different from quite a few churches today, where there were those just going through the motions of Christian living. It was one of those churches (not unlike those few even today), where Jesus was still outside the church, waiting and knocking at the door to be let inside! “Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me.” [Rev. 3:20].
Is it any surprise that people are also like that? Jesus is waiting to be let into their lives. The invitation is open to all – “If anyone hears…”; but the relationship is individualistic, intimate, and depends on your invite – Jesus says “I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me” This is the picture of the relationship between Jesus and me or Jesus and you- one of fulfilment and nourishment, of joy and fellowship, of communing and commitment.
Communication
If there is no communication between God and us, then we are in dangerous ground. The Old Testament covers over two-thirds of the Bible, where God is trying to reach out to His people, to get through to them. God is seeking to direct, comfort, help, and guide you in your life. Open your eyes to see Him; open your ears to hear Him. He too is waiting for a day by day walk with you- morning after morning.
If we say we love Jesus and show hatred to others, how can it be a true relationship? We can’t say we love Jesus and walk in darkness and dwell in sin. Jesus says: “If you love Me, keep My commandments” [John 14:15]. And many times, we think the problem of hatred and misunderstanding is with the other person. We may go on blaming others for a spoilt relationship. But really, do you love Jesus?
We can join with the psalmist in saying: “Search me, O God, and know my heart; try me, and know my anxieties; and see if there is any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.” [Psalm 139: 23, 24] This prayer has the power to shatter all blocks between you and your God. Blocks- that has been stopping His blessings.
By faith and patience
The Christian life is all about communion with Christ; walking in His word (commandments) day by day and from moment to moment, having faith to hold on to the promises of God. And with patience, we inherit the said promises (Heb. 11:6).
We can learn something from the patience of the Noah; who had not seen rain before, yet proceeded to build the ark according to God’s specifications, preaching repentance to those who mocked him, while continuing his ark-building work for more than 100 years.
We can learn something from Habakkuk, who in the midst of international crisis of his time, wrote these words: “The just shall live by his faith” [Hab. 2:4]. And proclaimed it with his life and with a hymn of faith: “Though the fig tree may not blossom, nor fruit be on the vines; though the labor of the olive may fail, and the fields yield no food; though the flock may be cut off from the fold, and there be no herd in the stalls- yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will joy in the God of my salvation.” [Hab. 3: 17, 18]. Amen.
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