July 10

Day 118: Behavior Follows Belief

I'd previously thought we had become two churches - actual and virtual; those willing to gather in person, and those not. Accommodations for both are in place (involving both sand, and bad camera angles.)

We may have a third church imbedded - the folks who are willing to gather in person, but would insist everyone wear a face mask, and keep their distance. And keep their children at home.

So who's right? We each bolster our courage or our fears with data. It's just a difference in data source.

We use that same data to justify our disdain of alternate opinions. Cancel culture then demands that we disdain the people who hold alternate opinions.

We've all become legalists.

(And nobody reading this will think this applies to them.)

I sense our church's greatest challenge today, right now, is one of grace. Can we truly do what we say we believe? Can we willingly, even joyfully be in fellowship with those with whom we disagree?

Here's a truth: Behavior follows Belief

Frankly, I've been shocked, even dismayed over how people express their beliefs (couched as opinions.) It seems most every statement starts with "Well, I think..." or "What I want is..." What I'm not hearing of whole lot of is "What does God's Word have to say about...?"

God's Word says this, "God's grace has been shown to you. Show grace to others." FoxNews or CNN have no category for this.

Let me be straight. Any of us can be guilty of saying we believe what God says, but the words and behavior would say otherwise.

I've wondered how Jesus could have had both Matthew the tax collector, and Simon the Zealot included in His twelve disciples. One a government loyalist, the other an insurrectionist.

I'm sure Jesus had to show them both how to show grace to each other. They had to learn grace, because they were both being led in the same direction. Jesus didn't let either cancel out the other.

They heard a lot of Bible from Jesus. That's why Jesus could say to them (in John 8:31-32) "If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free."

As a church, we are a nice church, with nice people. But I do wonder if our opinions have become more powerful than our Biblical literacy.

Let me repeat a previous paragraph.

I sense our church's greatest challenge today is one of grace. Can we truly do what we say we believe? Can we willingly, even joyfully be in fellowship with those with whom we disagree?

Unity is not dependent on uniformity.

Unity is not held hostage by forced agreement on responses to societal issues.

Loving, even sacrificial unity is the natural outcome of grace received, and then grace being shown in word and deed.

One of Jesus's other disciples (John) said it like this. "We know we have passed out of death to life, because we love the brothers. Whoever does not love abides in death."

Because, as the redeemed, we have passed out of death to life, we must love each other, even defending each other's right to alternate opinions on societal issues.

And we will continue to lead and accommodate the three churches within our church.

Because behavior follows belief.

-Mike Rydman, Lead Pastor, Radiant Church | Juneau