The Heart-for-God Series: 1 Samuel 16:1-13

GOD’S UNUSUAL CHOICES

 

Can you recall a defining moment in your life that changed the trajectory of your life? The first one in my life came when I was about twelve years old. My father, my brother (who is 11 years older), and my brother-in-law (12 years older), were building a small deck on the back of our house. I wanted to get in there and help build with my dad and brothers. 

            I don’t remember the words; I just remember the feeling of utter rejection. My dad rejected me and my presence. I was of no help. I wasn’t wanted. I had no skills to offer. This wasn’t the first time this had happened. My dad didn’t have the patience to teach me the skills of handywork. 

            Leaving them to their project, I recall going inside and that I began pulling books (encyclopedias) and following a history thread. It wasn’t a conscious decision, but I look on that moment now as a turning point: I was not going to be a tradesman, I was going to be a scholar. Two years later, God turned my heart towards himself. Two years after that, God turned my heart towards ministry. Those three defining moments changed my life. 

            I share this part of my story not to brag, but to emphasize that God likes to turn rejection and pain into something amazing. He is doing this in your life too. 

            David was rejected by his father too. In 1 Samuel 16:1-13, we see evidence of this belittlement. Samuel was putting on a big BBQ for the community and David’s seven brothers were invited: not David. The youngest of the family, David was sent to do the least important job, tending sheep, a job for children who should be seen and not heard, and for women or slaves. 

            The Lord had other ideas, however. What we see in this story is a principle we all know: The Lord looks at the heart, not the outward appearance. Yet we are still drawn to the external qualities we observe in people. God still looks at the heart and he chooses unlikely people to build his kingdom. I want to share with you this theme of God’s unusual choices.

The Way We See People 

 

First, I want to highlight how Samuel saw people and, in that light, how we tend to evaluate others. We can’t help ourselves; we see a tall man and think strength, capability, confidence, and success. Tall, handsome men are preferrable to society in general. When I was working at a restaurant as a busboy, I walked into the kitchen where the cook couldn’t see me. I spoke and he imagined a big guy, then looking, he saw me and laughed. I have a 6’4” voice in a 5’7” body. 

            God sent Samuel to look for a new king after Saul proved himself unfit for leadership. However, the Lord did not tell Samuel what he would be looking for, only that he should go to such and such a place to such and such a family. Samuel went only with the barest of skills in reading a resume. What did Samuel have in the way of criteria?

            History. We see that Samuel was still grieving the disappointing experience with Saul. The Lord said to him, “How long will you grieve over Saul, since I have rejected him from being king over Israel” (1a). It seems that Samuel was unwilling to give up on Saul. He was reluctant to choose a successor to Saul because that meant Saul was finished. So, the Lord rebukes Samuel, “get over it.” Though he was a disappointment, Samuel’s history with Saul clouded his judgment. We even see how the first guy he sees kind of resembles Saul. But that model of leadership didn’t work. Stop looking to the past, Samuel. Don’t we do that? We look at the obvious attributes – the low hanging fruit, as it were – and make our decision about a person. 

            Pedigree. The Lord said, “I will send you to Jesse, the Bethlehemite,” (1b). Saul was the son of Kish, a Benjamite, a prominent and wealthy family of influence. Who is this, Jesse? And where is Bethlehem? The prophet Micah makes my point, “But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are too little to be among the clans of Judah…” (5:2). Even today I’m told that Bethlehem is a dirty little nowhere town. Samuel must have thought he was going to the backwater hillbilly regions (Plum Coulee?). But family background/origins are important to us. They speak of familiarity – of what we know – “Oh yeah, that family! Good stock.” – We are drawn to pedigree.

            Birth order. The oldest son, Eliab, is presented to Samuel and immediately Samuel thinks “this is it.” He is the oldest, the most responsible, he’s tall, and the most likely candidate. In those days, the first born was given a double portion of his father’s goods and headship would be passed on to Eliab. Studies have shown that most top executives tend to be “tall, dark, and handsome.” Samuel thought so too. Nope.

            Appearance. We have just alluded to this quality, but it bears emphasis. We cannot help but be led by what our eyes see. Human perception is influenced by the eyes, by the beauty or lack thereof, the height or build of a person, whether they are trim or overweight. Remember that Saul was a tall man; he was head and shoulders taller than most Israelites (9:2). Eliab was tall and looked good too. Appearances can be deceiving. 

            On our recent trip, there were some single ladies. One lady in particular, Marjorie, was 79 and had long thick hair that she often wore in braids. She looked and dressed like a flower child of the 60s. I am ashamed to say I judged her to be trouble, not my kind. When I got to know her, I found her to be a very sweet lady full of eagerness to learn and to grow in the Lord. The Lord said to Samuel, “Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him. For the Lord does not see as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the LORD looks on the heart,” (7). 

            We cannot help but see ourselves in Samuel’s evaluation of a future king. Who we choose to be a leader, a friend, a partner, may not be God’s choice. God told Samuel to anoint one of Jesse’s sons and he went through all seven and God rejected all seven. Seven is the number of completeness indicating that Samuel reached the total number of sons available for service. But no one felt it necessary to call the youngest son; he was not a likely candidate; his own father, Jesse, did not see any potential in him. David was a child, maybe 12-13 years old, with no experience of life. But God doesn’t make mistakes. How does God see people?

 

The Way God Sees People

 

David was the writer of the psalm with the expression, “Search me, O God, and know my heart.” (Ps. 139:23a). In this psalm, David acknowledges that his life is laid bare before God, that he is transparent before the LORD. There is nothing about him that is hidden before God (see 1-6). As they say in the movie Avatar, “I see you,” which also means, “I love you.” God both sees you and loves you.

            David was the youngest and the most unlikely person to become the next king. God loves to do that. He doesn’t always take the youngest, but God loves to choose the unlikely. We see this again and again in scripture: God chose Abel over Cain, Isaac over Ishmael, Jacob over Esau, Joseph over his brothers, Moses over Aaron. Jesus chose fishermen to follow him; he chose Judas, even though he knew he would betray him; he chose Simeon, a zealot, and Matthew, a tax collector – two natural enemies to follow him. Jesus later chose Paul, a violent opponent of Christianity to be his apostle. Do you think there is anything that disqualifies you from serving Jesus? 

            David was the youngest, the baby, the runt of the litter. He was overlooked, discounted, and even rejected by being relegated to the pastures to look after sheep. Yet we read, “God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things to shame the strong…” (1 Co. 1:26-27).

            You know what though, that David was pushed out to the pastures was life shaping. Keeping the sheep was an opportunity for David to become dependent on God. Jesse had pushed David into the wilderness with the sheep, but in so doing pushed David to God. David wrote nearly half of the psalms and expressed so many of our questions, our worship, our songs to God. The Lord took David’s rejection to craft him and make him his own. 

            I worked for five years at a Christian bookstore for a cranky boss, low pay, and very little prestige. But in my wilderness I built a theological library, I learned customer service (how to talk to people), and gained a wide knowledge of the various churches in Winnipeg. 

            God does that for us too. He can use the junk and hurt and our deserts of life to drive you to him. My rejection drove me to books and eventually to the ministry. God can use your terrible family background or your present miseries to reshape you and make you his own. It makes more poignant the verse, “…we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose,” (Ro. 8:28). 

            For David, shepherding became his motif of kingship. From David on down to Jesus Christ himself, the king of Israel was forever known as a shepherd of the nation (see Ps. 78:70-72). The reason we know that God has a shepherd heart is because David came to know God that way out in the wilderness. 

            God chose David. And when Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in front of his brothers “…the Spirit of the LORD rushed upon David from that day forward…” (13). The expression “rushed upon” describes literally the onrushing of the divine breath – God breathing upon David. In all the OT, this occurred only seven times, like when the Spirit of the LORD rushed upon Samson, and he tore a young lion apart with his hands (Judges 14:6). In the OT, the Jews understood the “Spirit of the LORD” to be the vital force of God which gives the recipient his invigorating power. Before Jesus promised us the Holy Spirit, this filling was temporary. For you and me, this presence of the Holy Spirit is permanent – he does not leave us. 

            What God saw in David was someone who would not reject his infilling Spirit. David had been shaped by his wilderness shepherding experience to know God and seek more of God. That’s what he is looking for in us. 

            God’s way of seeing people is to look at their hearts. He is looking at our hearts right now. He is looking to see if we are the “poor in spirit,” the people who mourn conditions caused by sin. He searches for the meek, for those who hunger and thirst for righteousness. He pursues the people who show mercy because they know what it means to receive mercy…do you hear the beatitudes in this description? God is not respecting privilege, fame, wealth, pedigree, or education. He’s not looking for beauty or charisma. No, God will go after the poorest, the lowest, the marginalized and choose them because they possess true character, holiness, purity, and love. That’s what God is looking for. And oddly enough, he finds that these are the people whose hearts have been broken and who have been through the ringer. This is who God seeks. God is seeking you. And he wants to fill you with his Holy Spirit. 

 

I love David because I feel like I can relate to him. It is no wonder that Jesus is called the Son of David; there is a resemblance there. We can learn a lot from David. I want to apply three aspects of this lesson to our lives.

1) Don’t judge others by their appearance or by worldly standards. Jesus told the Jews to stop judging by mere appearances and make a right judgment (Jn 7:24). Social media and the celebrities of our age lift up icons and standards to be modeled, but they are superficial. If we determine who we will befriend, partner with, trust with leadership, based on these values, we will miss the potential God sees in others. 

2) Don’t dismiss your own gifts for service. We have set up a false dichotomy between the work we do Monday to Friday and the service we perform on Sunday. We say that “church work” alone is service to God. That’s not true. Your weekday work is service to God and God can use it to build his kingdom. Even if you are working in the wilderness pumping gas, herding cats, or pushing a broom, God may be shaping you for something more. Be faithful in the little things and he will entrust you with greater things. Your workplace may also be the very place God wants you to be for this time to shine a light for Jesus. 

3) Don’t forget Jesus. John reminds us that Jesus was overlooked by the world too. Do you feel forgotten? Unappreciated? Jesus “…was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him. He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God,” (John 1:10-12). Jesus was the true man of God’s choosing. He was the true man with a heart for God. But the world overlooked him. Don’t forget Jesus. Isaiah says he was nothing to look at, but the Father used him powerfully. 

            God makes unusual choices. He chooses you just as you are right now for his purposes.

            

 

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him…” (Eph. 1:3-4)

 

 

                                                AMEN

The Heart-for-God Series: 1 Samuel 13:1-15

WHAT HAVING A HEART FOR GOD…IS NOT

 

A good principle of life is to accentuate the positive in any given situation. We don’t want to dwell on the negatives; it’s bad for our mental health. There are times though, when we need to acknowledge the negative examples and learn from them.

            Teaching from the negative. We ourselves never want to be the negative example but given our fallen natures it does happen. 

            Following Jesus is not easy. You are faced with dilemmas and ethical issues that require a choice: What would a person who has a heart for God do in this situation? Have you ever messed up in that choice? Of course you have. We all do. Whether it is our own negative example or another Christian’s failing, we need to learn from the negative. 

            Learning from the negative requires a few things:

Humility – a recognition that we are fallen and that we all make mistakes (i.e. we sin).

Grace – we always have forgiveness through Christ for our failings. It is also Christ’s work of forgiveness in our lives that impacts our view of others. With the grace that has been extended to us, we extend grace to others. 

Reflection – It is easy to dissect the negative example, a Christian who fails morally or otherwise, but rather than pick their choices apart, we need to reflect and learn from what we have witnessed. Why did they act the way they did? What would have been a better way to act? What would keep you from acting the same way? 

            Today we want to examine the negative example of King Saul in 1 Samuel 13. Saul failed to live up to the expectations of a king, Yahweh’s representative before the people. As I studied this narrative, my eyes were drawn to the phrase, “The LORD has sought out a man after his own heart.” And my question was, what does it mean it have a heart for God? Or in this case, what does it not mean? 

What a Heart for God is NOT:

 

You know that Israel wanted a human king. The divine intention was that God was to be king of Israel and Samuel was his representative. But Samuel was getting old, and his sons were too corrupt to take over. With their enemies pressing in, the people wanted a king “like all the nations,” (8:5b). 

            Yahweh said to Samuel, give them a king but warn them that they won’t like it. A human king is going to draft their young men for war, he’s going to take their daughters as servants, he’s going to tax their crops, and he’s basically going to make slaves out of you all. But the people replied, “We want a king to fight our battles,” (8:19-20). 

            The LORD sends a young man to Samuel as a candidate for the throne. Read how he is described in 1 Sam. 9:1-2. One writer described Saul as “the Goliath of the Israelites,” a slight exaggeration. But he was tall, handsome, and physically stood out. From all appearances, Saul was the perfect man for the job. 

            I often wonder if the LORD didn’t set Saul up for failure. God gives Israel a king who looks like a king but is really just a mouse with a squeak. When the tribes of Israel gather to choose a king, Saul’s tribe is chosen, but he’s nowhere to be found. He’s actually hiding in the baggage (10:21-22). God teaches them a lesson from the negative.

            Saul’s reign starts out okay, but his heart is revealed by circumstances and challenges. We soon see in 1 Samuel that Saul does not have a heart for God. I will give four examples of what a heart for God is not.

 

Impatient – A person with a heart for God is not impatient. When Samuel anointed Saul as king over Israel, he gave him signs and instructions. One specific instruction he gave Saul was that he should wait at Gilgal seven days for Samuel to come and sacrifice offerings (10:8). 

            We read in our text (13:8-10) that Saul waited the seven days, but Samuel was slow in coming. If you read carefully, Saul waited 6 ½ days and then got antsy. His impatience overcame him, and he decided to offer burnt offerings himself, something that he was not authorized to do. Then Samuel shows up…

            Impatience grabs us all the time. An Isos survey of 1003 adults found that when we are waiting in line at a store, it takes only 17 minutes for us to lose our patience. On the phone, nine minutes. Women have more patience than men; they have an extra three minutes of grace. 

            I discovered that after waiting in an airport for two hours or more, I have very little patience when boarding an airplane and the guy in front has to dig around in his bag endlessly before finally stuffing it in the overhead bin. 

            What Saul demonstrates is typical of our own experience. We grow impatient with the LORD waiting for him to act. We pray and ask for his response, then expect immediate action. Samuel said to wait 7 days; it must have seemed like an eternity to Saul. We get that. The enemy was closing in, his people were getting scared and deserting him, the crisis was mounting. Sound familiar? We are not comfortable with waiting but want to act and fix our problem. Conversely, the prophet says, “They that wait upon the LORD will renew their strength,” (Is. 40:31a). 

 

Deflecting – A person with a heart for God does not deflect. Do you know what I mean? The act of blaming another person for your own mistakes or shortcomings rather than accepting the blame or criticism yourself is called deflection. Deflection is often used in an attempt to preserve one’s own self-image. It’s a coping mechanism we use to avoid or deny wrong-doing or unpleasant thoughts or feelings. 

            Consider Saul’s response to Samuel’s question: “Samuel said, ‘What have you done?’ And Saul said, ‘When I saw that the people were scattering from me, and that you did not come within the days appointed, and that the Philistines had mustered at Michmash, I said, ‘Now the Philistines will come down against me at Gilgal, and I have not sought the favor of the LORD.’ So, I forced myself and offered the burnt offering,’” (13:11-12).

            That question, “What have you done?” in that tone tells you, you have done something wrong. Admit it. Own it. Does Saul? No! He deflects. Saul blames everyone else including God:

·      The people were scattering from me

·      You (Samuel) did not come within the days appointed

·      The Philistines had mustered

·      I forced myself and offered the burnt offering (read: God made me do it)

To be clear, you are never forced to do the wrong thing. You may be tempted, and the temptation may be strong, but you are never forced to sin. You choose to sin. Saul thought he could seek the LORD’s favor through an act of disobedience. You cannot please God by disobeying his word. We need to remember this: It’s not the will of God if it goes against the Word of God (Jesus is the Word). 

            The correct answer to Samuel’s “What have you done?” is “I have sinned.” Saul could have confessed his anxiety and poor decision-making, but instead chooses to blame the people, Samuel, the Philistines, and God. 

            A person with a heart for God does not deflect. We will see later that David sinned, and when he sinned, he owned it. 

 

Fake Spirituality – In moments of self-reflection, have you ever wondered if you were sincere in your faith? What is the assurance that you are growing spiritually in your walk with the LORD? 

            In another episode of Saul’s reign, he is told to attack Amalek (15:3 note the specific instructions). Saul gathers his army and goes to war on Amalek. This is supposed to be “total war,” a complete destruction of the people and all their goods. Saul has other ideas though (read 15:9; Saul keeps the quality stuff and burns the rest). Then he has the gall to say to Samuel, “Blessed be you to the LORD, I have performed the commandment of the LORD,” (15:13). 

            What? You did not! A person with a heart for God lives and behaves in the knowledge that God is always present. Saul thought he could claim complete faithfulness in his duties even though he clearly went only halfway. God knew it. Samuel knew it (bleating sheep). Saul tried to fake it.

            What is the sign of a sincere faith? Obedience. Samuel tells Saul, “Has the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to listen than the fat of rams…” (15:22). Feelings are deceptive; we may feel poorly in our spiritual journey at times, but it is not your spiritual highs or lows that indicate faithfulness, but your obedience. Disobedience is a heart problem; Saul placed himself as the authority over God’s word instead of making God’s word his authority. 

            You can’t fake it till you make it with God. He sees the heart. 

 

People-pleasing – The final nail in the coffin…Remember when Saul was confronted earlier, and he blamed everyone for his faux pas? We may learn from our missed opportunities to own our sin; Saul did not. 

             Saul starts out okay, “I have sinned, for I have transgressed the commandment of the LORD and your words…”but reverts to deflection, “because I feared the people and obeyed their voice,” (15:24). 

            The people-pleaser needs to please others for reasons that may include insecurities (re: hiding in baggage; inadequacies), fear of rejection (re: 13:8,11 when the people scattered), or the need to be well-liked. In this situation, Saul felt the pressure of his soldiers to keep some of the plunder. Soldiers were poorly paid and would enrich themselves on the spoils of war. There was likely some pressure on Saul to allow the men to keep the livestock and treasures they found. The LORD, however, had specifically told them not to keep the plunder, which probably included idols and items offered to idols, to keep them from pagan influences. 

            The challenge we face is similar. Do we compromise our faith values and obedience to God for what is popular? Are we trying to please people over and above pleasing God? There is a temptation to make the Christian faith more attractive by loosening our grip on moral issues. A spectrum exists where we react to legalistic rulemaking by becoming too permissive. Where is the balance? Who are we trying to please? 

 

We have seen what it does not mean to have a heart for God. Turning these negatives upside down, the heart for God is easily discernible. Having a heart for God involves:

·      Patience – a willingness to wait upon God and God’s timing for rescue, deliverance, or resolution.

·      Honesty – a transparency before God knowing that he sees all and knows all about you. All he asks is that you look at yourself honestly.

·      Sincerity – a genuine spirituality that recognizes that life is messy and full of hard decisions. In this you seek to be obedient to God’s will.

·      God-centered – a desire to put God first, even when or especially when people want you to go another way. 

Saul never seemed to grasp what it meant to have a heart for God. This was demonstrated in his failures and sins. And this is why God took the kingdom from him and gave it to someone who was called “a man after God’s own heart.” 

            A person with a heart for God is someone whose life is in harmony with God’s, whose life is sensitive to the things of God versus the things of this world. 

            If you struggle to wrap your head around this when thinking of your own heart, if you feel like you weren’t born with this innate desire, don’t worry. None of us were born with this propensity to please God. It is only through Christ and his transforming Spirit at work within us that we grow a heart for God. 

But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior,

Titus 3:4-6

 

                                                            AMEN 

The Anabaptist Vision (My version for 2024)

THE ANABAPTIST VISION

(My Version 2024)

Prior to our congregational meeting on Thursday evening, I was asked what the difference is between being Mennonite and being Anabaptist. Good question. It is a complex question with an even more complicated answer. 

            Sharon and I have recently returned from what was billed as “The Classic Anabaptist History Tour,” a visit to five countries where the Anabaptist movement began. It was an intense schedule with little room to catch your breath. For Sharon and me, it was a spiritual journey to discover the origins of our faith and those that died to make faith possible.

            Just days before we left, I was suddenly filled with fears. Our group consisted of 24 Americans and four Canadians – there were bound to be differences. Many of the Americans came from Mennonite Church USA. Would they be flag-waving patriots? Would they share my faith values? My greatest apprehension about MC USA was their affirmation of the LGBTQ movement. Would there be arguments over this issue? I didn’t want that to be the theme of this trip. These fears were allayed as we got to know these people and found them to be very like-minded about these concerns. 

            There were disappointments, however. At meals, I often reminded our tablemates that we should pray before eating. Scripture and prayer were rare in the teaching moments. At one cave where the Anabaptists had secretly worshiped fearing their persecutors, I insisted on a specific song and just as the leader was about to dismiss everyone, I loudly recited Revelation 3:7-13. In places where blood was spilled and where baptisms took place, I wanted to kneel and give thanks – but there was no space for that piety. 

            The greatest disappointment was when one of our hosts made Menno Simons into an ecological icon and a human rights advocate. The second was when I learned that Dirk Willems was considered a hero of the Dutch Resistance. 

            Our leader spoke of the place of Scripture in the Mennonite faith, but the lack of reading and fervent prayer disturbed me greatly. More important to the leader and the group was their genealogical connection to Swiss Mennonite ancestors. This was a huge warning to me not to make much of my “David Klassen” connection here in Rosenort or of my centuries long heritage as a Mennonite. 

            I was reminded of the Apostle Paul’s renunciation of his genealogy and Jewish heritage. (Read Phil. 3:3-11). Sharon nudged me several times on this matter, and I am convicted that I need to shed the pride of the Mennonite garment and put on Christ alone. 

            To be Mennonite has nothing to do with eating perogies and farmer sausage; it has nothing to do with your last name or who you are related to; it has nothing to do with the church you attend. To be Mennonite is to agree with the perspective of faith that Menno had concerning baptism (for believers not for infants). Menno had an Anabaptist understanding of faith in Jesus Christ. 

            In 1943, Harold Bender presented a paper to the American Society of Church History called The Anabaptist Vision. Last semester, one of my students asked me if I really believed what I taught. In response, I gave my version of the Anabaptist Vision. (I also shared this on the tour bus as part of a devotional). This is what I said:

 

Christ is the Center of our Faith

 

I believe that God has revealed himself in the person of Jesus Christ. Jesus is the clearest revelation of what God intends human beings to be like. 

            This says two things: a) If you want to know God, get to know Jesus, and b) if you want to be a human being, get to know Jesus. “He is the image of the invisible God… in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell…” (15 & 19).

            Many people begin with Creation and build a theology around the literal 6 days of Genesis one. That does not make Christ preeminent or central in one’s theology. Paul said that creation was made for him and not Christ for creation “…all things were created through him and for him,” (16c).

The Anabaptist begins with Jesus Christ and views all scripture through him. He is the lens through which we read the Bible. We begin with Jesus and interpret Scripture from the standpoint of Jesus as portrayed in the Gospel. The OT points to Jesus and the NT letters find their meaning in Jesus. 

Jesus is everything to me! He is Savior, he is my King, he is my Shepherd, he is my constant Companion, he is my Compass. Menno Simons favorite verse was 1 Corinthians 3:11, “For no one can lay a foundation other than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.” 

 

Discipleship is the Goal of our Faith 

 

 Is Christianity just about being absolved of my sins through church attendance and taking communion? Is Christianity primarily about saving grace and how it gets me to heaven? Or is it most of all about the transformation of my life through following Jesus in every part of my life? 

            Being “born again” is important but new birth is a beginning and not an end. In fact, the Bible talks a little about being born again and a whole lot about following Jesus. 

            Jesus invited men and women to follow him throughout his ministry. To follow him is to be like him, to learn his way of life, to move with him in the rhythms of grace, mercy, compassion, and service. Jesus challenged the crowds who were following him, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me,”(Mark 8:34). 

            Hans Denck was an early Anabaptist and one who died for his faith in Jesus. He said, “No one may truly know Christ except one who follows him in life.” 

            Many churches emphasize “getting people saved” and that is an important part of our mission. But are we just trying to rack up the notches of converts? Is saying the “sinner’s prayer” the end of our witness? Bender commented on this saying, “The focus of the Christian life was to be not so much the inward experience of the grace of God, as it was for Luther, but the outward application of that grace to all human conduct and the consequent Christianisation of all human relationships.” 

            When I shared these four points of the Anabaptist Vision, our leader on the tour bus responded that discipleship is good, but that I missed evangelism. I replied I did not, for in my mind, discipleship is about calling people who don’t know Christ to come and follow us, to experience Jesus through us in hopes of showing them the meaning of forgiveness of sins and life in Christ. 

            I asked my Theology of Jesus class, what did Jesus come to make? The answer they gave: disciples. Wrong, I said, Jesus came to make disciple-makers. He did not want faith in him to stagnate in “me alone” but to grow faith by sharing it with others in disciple making. 

 

Community is the Life of our Faith

 

I have heard this a lot in the 2000s and even more since Covid: Salvation is simply a matter of intellectual belief, spiritual laws to be repeated and accepted and lived. Faith is a private matter, one that should not be imposed on others nor impinged upon by others. As a result, in this individualized me-centered society, people are trying to live Christianly apart from the church. 

            Salvation is not about “a plan,” it’s about relationship – a relationship with God and each other. The NT teaches that every person who comes to faith in Christ be united to his church through baptism. 

            You were not meant to follow Jesus on your own. Paul wrote that God gave Jesus as head over all things to the church “…which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all,” (Eph. 1:22-23). In other words, in the church the fullness of Jesus dwells. Jesus is most fully realized in the church (not the building, the community). Where does God reveal his wisdom? In the church, “…so that through the church the manifold wisdom of God might now be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly places,” (3:10). It is through the church that God displays his power and work. 

            That’s the heavy theology. The reality of community is this is where we care for each other. How many times have we heard someone say that they don’t know how people endure through crisis without a caring community like the church. It is not a perfect society or an ideal one because some of you have gone through hurts and not been cared for, but we are not yet made perfect, we will make mistakes. I would rather have an imperfect community of believers than none at all. 

            Hans Leopold, a Swiss brethren martyr of 1528, said of the Brethren, “If they know of anyone who is in need, whether or not he is a member of their church, they believe it their duty, out of love to God, to render help and aid.” That was the Anabaptist vision of the community of believers. 

            The church is not an institution, or an instrument for proclaiming God’s word, or a resource group for piety – it is a community (a family – re: brotherhood) of love in which the fullness of Christ may be expressed.

 

Love is the Expression of our Faith

 

I have rejected the terms “pacifism” (it can perceived as "passivism" - doing nothing) and “nonresistance” (sounds like we don't resist evil or work for justice) in my own Anabaptist vocabulary because they are too political, too military, and too limiting. I choose instead to speak of “the way of love.” 

            Jesus lived a life of love. I may not go to war. I am not going to stand in front of tanks or protest at the legislature. The arena of our conflicts in life are the home, the school, the workplace, and the neighborhood. It is here that my resolve to follow Jesus in all aspects of life will be tested. 

            The question for the Anabaptist disciple of Jesus is this: How would Jesus respond to this issue? This question? This crisis? Winning an argument was not his goal. Besting his opponent was not his game plan. Reconciling this person before him to God was his ultimate purpose. 

            “And you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, he has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death, in order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before him,” (Col. 1:21-22). 

            And Jesus has given us this charge of reconciling women and men to God: “…we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God,” (2 Cor. 5:20). 

            This is the way of love. This is the way of Jesus. 

 

What is the difference between being Mennonite and being Anabaptist? There shouldn’t be a difference. Yet “Mennonite” has come to mean something cultural – Dutch-German-Russian people who eat sunflower seeds and talk funny. It has come to mean something socio-political if, as some do, it relates to affirming unbiblical lifestyles. If being Mennonite keeps non-DGR people from worshiping with us, then we need to shed the moniker and the culture. 

            I have begun to call myself a Neo-Anabaptist. “Neo” means new, and it refers to those who believe that the Anabaptist Vision without the cultural trappings has something to offer the global church. This vision is:

Christ-centered

Jesus-following

Community-directed

Fueled by love. 

           

 I don’t know if you noticed this or not but consider RFC’s mission statement: 

Radically following Jesus; 

Furthering the Gospel; 

Caring for the Community.

Coincidence? Not from where I stand.                       AMEN