"It is LOVE that believes in the Resurrection." WittgensteinI am struck as I write this how over complicated I like to make things, with how much depth I like to think about the concept of faith and the purpose of the Church. I think it is vital that we do this. But I am aware right now how simple the truth of Christianity is.
All of the theology that evolves out of the last two thousand years is so vast that I can't even dream of getting my head around it. The number of concepts even in Paul's writings in the New Testament might take me the rest of my life to try and comprehend fully. But it's not the point. I don't mean that it isn't important- but it isn't necessary to the basic truth of Christianity.
The beauty of the Christian Church is that there is no division between a world renown Biology specialist and a simple, uneducated Christian. They are both children of God, and are both welcomed into his Church. Rich, poor, intelligent, stupid, young, old, wrong, right. The reason that this is possible is because the truth of Christianity is overwhelmingly simple. And it is this: faith, and love.
I think of two of Jesus' earliest followers: Thomas and Peter. They represent these concepts of faith and love perfectly. When confronted with a resurrected Jesus their responses are very different. Thomas, like any good historian, philosopher or scientist wants evidence. He demands to see the holes and the marks of the crucifixion. And Jesus' grants him his request. Thomas is confronted with the evidence of the resurrection and he has faith.
While we lack what was available to Thomas today, we are hardly lacking in evidence. We are left to explain how the Christian Church evolved out of the life of this man Jesus who was recorded in history. We are left with four independent accounts of his life, death and resurrection which require a response. They are not easy to dismiss as works of fiction or wishful thinking. They require faith. Like Thomas; when presented with the resurrected Jesus, we have a choice.
But as I think about faith more and more, I am dissatisfied to think about it as a purely objective belief in a historical proposition. Faith in Jesus unlike my belief that Dinosaurs existed requires a complete change in my being. If true, then it requires an upheaval of my entire world view. It is Peter's response to the resurrection that typifies this.
After the death of Jesus, it is recorded that Peter denies Jesus three times. The person that he devoted himself so fully to over the past three years he totally rejects. When he meets Jesus again, risen from the dead, Jesus' first response is not one of evidence but a question: "Peter do you love me? Peter do you love me? Peter do you love me?". Peter is confronted with the resurrected person of Jesus on a deeply personal level.
And I believe that today the person of Christ asks the same question: "Do you love me?". The basic truth of Christianity is that it requires not only faith, not only a belief in an event, but a total submission to it. It is not a belief based on feeling or subjectivity, but neither is it one based on hard cold fact- it must go beyond that. It is a leap beyond the simple belief in the resurrection. "Do you love me?" is a world shattering, life changing question. It is a question I am still trying to answer. But it is breathtakingly simple.
You are absolutely right Josh. Faith in Jesus is the very best thing available to every living person and the Gospel message is simple: The wages of sin is death but the free gift of God is eternal life in Jesus. I sometimes wonder about a friend of mine who I haven't seen for a long time now. I used to talk to him about my faith and he was never really interested, though he listened. He is a great guy who is pretty much illiterate and has a fairly limited understanding of world events or history. two hundred years ago he would have believed in God because he saw the crops grow on his farm and he understood that the heavens declare the glory of God.
ReplyDeleteI guess nowadays the reasons for doubting are as numerous as they were in Thomas' day, but they are probably much more 'trendy' to pursue today.
I believe it is for this reason that the Gospel is so simple. We come to Christ because we meet him - even if we have been brought up to know him. When we meet him and hear him ask the question 'Do you love me?' it is always with the declaration from him: 'I love you'.
For me personally, it is true that 'he you is forgiven much loves much'. It really is simple.
The thing is though that as we grow in faith we find more questions popping up which we must deal with by reading the scriptures and spending time with those to whom God has appointed the ministry of preaching or teaching. I think that's part of what it means to work out our own salvation with fear and trembling. We come to him simply, but it can from time to time get more complicated and we should never back away from hard questions as many of Jesus' disciples did when they heard him say that we have to eat his flesh and drink his blood. The answer is there and finding it feeds us with with meat rather than just milk!
Every blessing.