Day 136e: To spread the Better News … (September 12, 2019)
I then flowed into the town of Pulaski and saw first the Trinity Lutheran Church* and then a mural hearkening to what is known as The Great Commission**; a handful of verses in the Bible that traditional Christian believe show Jesus commanding all his followers to go out into the world and essentially “convert the nonbelievers” (i.e. persuade all non-Christians to become Christian). Of course, as is so often the case when one has the humility and the wherewithal to examine biblical scripture more deeply, Jesus is actually not telling his followers this at all in these particular verses (or any other verses, for that matter), but is rather simply encouraging them all to go forth and live the Love that he lived; to set forth each day and be a bold & daring examples of the same selfless Caring & the same reckless Kindness that he had been exhibiting during his brief 3 year ministry …
*This sanctuary’s main signboard read “God wraps you in Love and delights in you everyday”, and I had no issue with this statement at all – as long as it has “God” referencing one’s own internal Soul (or conscience, see Luke 17:20-21) and as long as it recognizes that the Divine only “delights” in those who are acting (i.e. caring and loving and serving) accordingly – those who are bringing harmony and joy and peace to others, instead of pain or despair or discord thereto.
**If you consider yourself a Christian, you might well have heard about the Great Commission – the summons Jesus made for all Christians to go forth into their communities and share the Gospel – or “the Good News” – with as many people as possible. And for many of you that calling will involve you telling as many people as possible the Gospel according to the Christian church – namely, that Jesus is the one and only Son of God, and that only those who worship him sincerely & fervently will be allowed into Heaven after they die. And it is true that this is indeed the Gospel according to Paul in the Bible (see Romans 3:21-24, Romans 5:8-9, Romans 8:9, & Romans 10:9 et al), and yet it is extremely important for you to ask yourself: Is this the Gospel according to Jesus Christ himself? Is this what Jesus himself wanted me to do? In truth, the Great Commission – at least according to Jesus himself – demands that we are to go forth and share with others what he commanded us to share with them (Matthew 16:20). So what exactly was it that he commanded us to say & do? Well, quite clearly he wanted us to say little and do much – to LOVE one another in the same humble-yet-active, selfless way that he loved others as well! (Matthew 18:3-4 + John 13:34-37 et al). As such, to be a “Good Christian” and fulfill Jesus‘ “Great Commission” it is crucial for you to go forth and share his Good News – a Gospel that he clearly & specifically defined in the Gospel of Matthew as a twofold message: A) that his Kingdom of Heaven is a right here & right now pre-mortem state of being (Matthew 10:7 & Luke 17:20-21) and B) that entrance into this glorious realm is only granted for those who persist mightily in selflessly caring for others (Matthew 24:12-14 & John 13:15-17) … Amen to that, I say … Amen to that in-deed!
“As you go, you must proclaim the following Good News: ‘The Kingdom of Heaven is already at hand … And because of the increase of lawlessness, the LOVE of many will grow cold. And yet the one who endures in Love to the end will be saved. And THIS Good News of the Kingdom must be proclaimed throughout the world, as a testimony to all the nations. And then it is that the end will come.” ~ Jesus Christ (Matthew 10:7 & Matthew 24:12-14)
“A man’s ethical behavior should be based effectually on sympathy, education, and social ties; no religious basis is necessary. Man would indeed be in a poor way if he had to be restrained by fear of punishment and hope of reward after death.” ~ via Albert Einstein
“We are among the first peoples in human history who do not broadly inherit religious identity as a given, as a matter of kin and tribe, like hair color and hometown. And yet the very fluidity of this more modern station — the possibility of choice that arises, the ability to craft and discern one’s own spiritual bearings — is not leading to a decline of spiritual life but rather its evolution. It is changing us, collectively. It is even renewing & reconstituting religion itself, and our cultural encounter with religion, in many delightfully counter-intuitive ways. I now even meet scientists who speak of a religiosity without spirituality — a reverence for the place of ritual in human life, and the innate value of human community, without a need for something supernaturally transcendent. There is something called the New Humanism, which is in essence a dialogue about moral imagination and ethical passions that transcend the previously untraversable boundaries between belief and non-belief. And yet I apprehend — with a knowledge that is as much visceral as it is cognitive — that God (or the Creaor, or Source, or the One) is indeed Love itself. That somehow the possibility of selfless care that can transform us — a Love that is muscular and resilient — a Love that is an echo of a reality behind reality – a Love that is embedded in the creative force that gives us life itself.” ~ inspired by Krista Tippett
“Christians especially need to hear the following truly GOOD NEWS – first, that Jesus’ teachings are far grander than the many shameful things Christians do in his name and the many hateful ramblings that come from his preachers’ many mouths; second, that the spiritual landscape of Christianity is far bigger than the tiny tube of view that white evangelicalism currently allows; and third, that boldly & loudly rejecting all toxic version of Christian dogma (i.e. any tenets and all teachings that condemn the beliefs of any others &/or excuse violence in any form or fashion against any one of God’s sentient creations) will not be the end of the Christian religion, but will rather become its actual beginning. Let the Great reconstruction begin!” ~ inspired by Shane Claiborne
“In truth, if you wish to enter into Life, you must keep my Commandments … In truth, if you persevere in keeping my Word, then and only then will you truly be my disciples … In truth, by this & this alone will everyone know that you are my true disciples: when you shoe Love to one another and to all … In truth, the one who follows me will do the works that I do, and indeed will even do greater works than these … In truth, those who know my Commandments and keep them are those who Love me, and those who Love me will be Loved by my Father … Those who Love me will keep my Word, and my Father will Love them, and we will both come to them and make our home within them … In truth, if you understand these things I have said to you, blessed will you be while you DO them.” ~ Jesus Christ (Matthew 19:17, John 8:31, John 13:35, John 14:12, John 14:21-23 & John 13:17)
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