I found it interesting in Mark 12:34 that Jesus actually told a religious teacher/leader that he was not far from the kingdom of heaven. I've known this passage, but it actually struck me today in a fresh way. Jesus said that to the leader because Jesus realized that the leader actually had understanding. It seems Jesus realized this because the leader confessed it is more important to love God with everything we are and to love our neighbors to the very end than to carry out religious rituals or worship traditions. I am reminded of the conversation I had with a few deacons the other day because it occurs to me that we are all hoping to love God with our hearts, souls, minds, and strengths (not to mention our corporal heart, soul, mind, and strength) and to love one another. Could it be that there is more we can offer to God from our love so it is surrendered for God's use? Could it be that we aren't loving our neighbors as ourselves?
If we were in another person's shoes, I suspect we would want to be loved by being noticed, so we probably need to notice everyone. (I think that happens outside of worship with a multigenerational ministry focus and a visitation to seniors from younger generations that aren't just staff and that aren't just keeping appearances.) If we were in another person's shoes, I suspect we would want to have things our way, but at least for me, if I were off-base or not clicking with God's vision and direction, it would be more important that someone hung in there with me, let me speak my mind, and also patiently communicate the vision until I got it. Then I'd want to be sure I were part of it at least on a small level. I think the deacons are right to offer deacony care, and I am also convinced that every generation here needs to be reminded of God's vision as much as possible and included in it on whatever level over which we actually have the power to include them. Those who get it need to help communicate it unceasingly to those who don't. (Does any of us really get the full monty of God's vision anyway?) We need to involve and include everyone. To love someone as we want to be loved is not to placate, to appease, or even to do what we say in hopes that we can move on from this conversation; it feels condescending when people do that. Loving people as we love ourselves means hanging in their and talking with people who actually want a conversation. For the others, I am reminded of how we tend to deal with family members who speak up without actually wanting dialogue. Of course we listen; we can't do otherwise. But how much of our real attention do these people get? Not much. We can hear them, we can even respond, but at the end of the day, those are the stories about "Crazy Aunt Elma" or "Scroogy Cousin Bob" that we tell but that don't decide the direction of a family. To do that would not be to love our families, nor would it move our families in a forward-moving, healthy direction. Treating the family of God any differently is certainly not love. It is not loving people as we love ourselves. We're missing the boat bigtime if we ignore or listen to much to people who aren't interested in a dialogue. We're missing to boat, too, if we don't engage dialogue with God's people who are out there actually trying to serve God. I suspect our heart isn't God's in this matter, and I'm convinced we're still learning to love one another as we love ourselves.
So, if we want to be close to the kingdom, that may or may not look like specific activities, but it will always look like full, complete, all-in love.
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