That is kind of a heavy title for a blog post. For years I have always wondered what that phrase meant, always heard it being screamed at me from pulpits, from friends, and from TV preachers. I never really understood it though. I think that too many times we are told to love, and then that is what we do because that is what we are told to do. Then when asked why we love, we tell people, "Well, that is what Jesus does, so we should do it to." That is an alright response I guess, but kind of empty. Using that same philosophy, would we be willing to be crucified? Don't be quick to answer that question. Really think about it. Would you be willing to be stripped naked, beaten, and then tortured for 6 hours only to die of suffocation or bleeding out for people who you knew were going to mock you, spit on you, cry out to you, and then do it all over again. I will be honest and say to take a bullet for someone, I can do. That is generally a quick and easy process in which there will probably not be much pain involved. My end result is guaranteed, and I don't have to worry about the end state of what happens. But to go through all of that torture, just get to be mocked and ridiculed for no apparent reason, but only because I sincerely love you, is hard to say yes to. I would do it for my wife, my friends, my family, but my enemies?? That is cause for thought.
I read this post about a church helping another church because it could. It moved me. I grew up hearing jokes about other denominations, about their short comings, about their faults, never once hearing that those people love the same Jesus that I do, and the same Jesus that died for me died for them. Then the same pastor would tell me to love all people. That is backwards. That is not being the church on purpose.
So for me to figure what this meant, I attacked it the same away I attack all problems. I took it one step at a time.
First off all, what does "Being the church" mean. To me, (and you may have your own views which I am more than open to) it means doing exactly what Jesus would have done, and asking for forgiveness when I don't. This is a short coming in my life. I can usually fulfill one or the other, but both is difficult for me to accomplish. It means that regardless if I get anything out of the situation in anyway, I need to follow through with love, kindness, and gentleness to further the Great Commission. It means I need to fight, with my all my strength, for the ideals of God in the most loving way that I can. It means to be who God wants me to be entirely, not who God wants me to be with a mix of my suggestions. That can be painful and lonely at times. That will mean going down the road less traveled, but it is the one Jesus paved (stole that from a song). It is a challenge that we turn away from because we are scared, weak, and unaware. But that is where God's glory really shines. In our weaknesses, He uses us to accomplish great and powerful things.
Now the easier one to figure out...purpose. Purpose is defined as "something set up as an object or end to be attained" according the dictionary. So purpose is achieving a goal because you set out to do just that. You seek out opportunities to find a job, marry your spouse, find a place to live, or any of those other creature comforts. How often do we search out hurting, needing, desperate people who are searching out answers when we have them, because we are able to. And don't tell me, that as a person who has accepted Christ, gone through and going through challenges, that you don't have any answers, because I will lovingly tell you that you are wrong. You do, you just have to embrace them...they can be found in God's Word. They may not be simple, or in the step-by-step process that you sooo desire, but they are there.
So, to be the church on purpose is to knowingly seek out the weak, the mourning, the poor, the lonely, the widows, the orphans, and all the other people we secretly avoid, and invite them into a world of hard work and abundant love.
