Corrie, a friend of mine, said something once that has stuck with me. “One of the most meaningful moments in my life was when I realized that being a Christian isn’t about making God a part of my life, but becoming a part of God’s life.” But, as evidenced by the picture above (taken today in my home town), Corrie’s sentiment is not universally shared.
The vast majority of my Christian experience has taught me that at the end of the day, what matters most is my personal relationship with Jesus. This, I have been taught, ought to be the core of my identity as a human being.
I no longer believe this, and I was happy to come across a recent sermon by Rob Bell where he articulates the alternative I have come to embrace.
(Speaking of Rob Bell, I just thought I would add to the blog buzz in saying that I don’t believe Rob - or Brian McLaren or Doug Pagitt for that matter - to be a heretic. But, for largely the same reasons as Bob, I am not going to wink either).
You can listen to Rob’s message at the bottom (43 min.), or visit the Mars Hill site directly. However, for those short on time, I will summarize below.
Rob is taking a look at Matthew 23:23-24 and its OT background and trying to make the point that much like the Pharisees of Jesus’ day, many of us boil Christianity down to personal piety and morality - the “me and Jesus” mentality. Rob goes on to explain that it’s not that personal piety and morality are unimportant, far from it, but that the Pharisees, and many today, neglect what Jesus calls, “the more important matters of the law.” Namely, justice (living equitably), mercy (showing kindness to those in need) and faithfulness (personally and corporately showing the world what God is like).
I would say, therefore, that in terms of what it means to be a disciple and as far as what my identity as a human being ought to be rooted in - what is most essential is my incorporation into the life of a community which is seeking to do justice, show mercy, and live faithfully. Personal morality and piety have their place in relation to this vision, but only secondarily. To get them out of order is not to get it 1/2 right, but to misconstrue both. This is one more way to begin rediscovering that salvation is not something we either have or don’t have, but is a lived reality, something we participate in with God to greater or lesser extents.
8 responses so far ↓
1 Leanne // Oct 3, 2007 at 7:19 pm
I just happened to listen to that this morning….or perhaps it was monday morning. I don’t quite recall, but I also agree.
2 James Gunnison // Oct 5, 2007 at 12:06 pm
JR,
What a perfect picture of compartmentalization.
Classic.
jeg
3 Andy Hall // Oct 10, 2007 at 7:52 am
Beware of practicing your piety before others in order to be seen by them; for then you have no reward from your Father in heaven.
‘So whenever you give alms, do not sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, so that they may be praised by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward. But when you give alms, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your alms may be done in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.
‘And whenever you pray, do not be like the hypocrites; for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, so that they may be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward. But whenever you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.
‘When you are praying, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do; for they think that they will be heard because of their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.
‘Pray then in this way:
Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name.
Your kingdom come.
Your will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our debts,
as we also have forgiven our debtors.
And do not bring us to the time of trial,
but rescue us from the evil one.
For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you; but if you do not forgive others, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.
‘And whenever you fast, do not look dismal, like the hypocrites, for they disfigure their faces so as to show others that they are fasting. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward. But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, so that your fasting may be seen not by others but by your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.
‘Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust consume and where thieves break in and steal; but store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust consumes and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
4 JR Rozko // Oct 10, 2007 at 9:03 am
Love that text. Care to give us your take on it??
5 Andy Hall // Oct 10, 2007 at 2:17 pm
It seems to suggest a certain importance to personal righteousness, doesn’t it?
6 JR Rozko // Oct 10, 2007 at 3:15 pm
In my post, did you ever read me so much as imply that there is no place for personal righteousness? My point is emphatically NOT that there is no need for personal righteousness, just that we need to understand the ordering of things.
Jesus was not speaking to individuals, this is something we read into the text. He was speaking to a plural “you,” and teaching them what it means to truly be the people of God - a way of being a community which has personal implications. As the Pharisees were one sort of community and advocating for its embrace and advancement, so Jesus was advocating a different sort of community and its embrace - a community not predicated on a scrutinized keeping of laws and regulations, but a community so concerned about the rest of the world’s experience of the Kingdom of God, that they softened their hearts to what God was doing in their midst. (This is probably an over-characterization of the Pharisees, but hopefully the point is clear).
7 Andy Hall // Oct 10, 2007 at 3:37 pm
So when Jesus in this passage is talking about personal piety, He is really not talking about the individual? Where does a true “Kingdom” community come from? It only comes from the radical “Spirit-directed” transformation of the individual. That is where it begins. It is not a question about whether personal piety has a place. Personal righteousness is what leads to communnity jusitce. They cannot exist apart from the other. I think you are creating a dichotomy that does not need to exist.
8 JR Rozko // Oct 11, 2007 at 1:01 pm
Andy, thanks for your thoughts. I do think I understand where you are coming from, but I am really trying to read this passage and broach this issue in light of the bigger picture.
Through the whole of Scripture I see God working to both personally and corporately. It is true that people shape systems, but also that systems shape people. It’s never a matter of one or the other. This isn’t a dichotomy, but rather holistic understanding of humanity.
I think, in the tradition of Moses, which his hearers would have immediately connected his teachings to, Jesus is recasting a vision for the sort of activities and attitudes which will mark the people of God as they exist for the rest of the world.
Just as Moses gave Israel the 10 commandments as guidelines for how they as a nation were to honor God (again, with personal implications), Jesus is doing the same - reclaiming the heart of the law - true and faithful love of God and love of neighbor. Yes, his hearers were to exhibit personal discipleship, but the whole is greater than the sum of the parts (especially when the Holy Spirit is involved) and therefore, the weightier significance here is the cultivation of a community which begets (by the power of the Holy Spirit) people who look like this.
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