Blog Attack p2...and 3 now

The way we all operate these days makes it seems as though there's nothing left for Christ to do except make our existence more comfortable.

Several weeks ago I mentioned the book Unchristian. Several of those who have been in Epic and at Hillcrest for a few years said that Pastor Mark did a sermon series on the book. So, some are familiar with the book and some are not. For those not I will briefly summarize the book by saying that it deals with the very negative perceptions that people outside the church (and even many who are within the church) have of Christianity because of the drastic and damnable gaps that has grown first between what we as disciples of Christ are called to be and what we as American Christians claim to be, and secondly between what we claim to be and what we do. Christ calls us to humble ourselves, ask forgiveness, and love. Christianity has, in many ways, become little more than a moral code (and, for those our age, a philosophical mindset). Very few self-identified Christians adhere to that moral code.

We are seen as posers of extreme proportion.

That being said, the part part of the book that has stuck with me the most was a brief section that discussed Matthew 5: 13-16, the verses that call us as disciples to be

• the salt of the earth
• the light of the world
• a city on a hill

Here is a passage from the book.

Being salt and light demands two things: we practice purity in the midst of a fallen world and yet we live in proximity to this fallen world. If you don't hold up both truths in tension, you invariably become useless and separated from the world God loves. For example, if you only practice purity apart from proximity to the culture, you inevitably become pietistic, separatist, and conceited. If you live in close proximity to the culture without also living in a holy manner, you become indistinguishable from the fallen culture and useless in God's kingdom.

And I think that it's very easy to practice neither one. It's very easy to separate ourselves from the world and still not practice the purity. I actually think that it's more likely that if we section ourselves off and just hone in on Epic and Epic time and that it can become a simple social group where we are not out among the world nor calling ourselves to purity and Christ-like-ness. I feel like spreading God's love isn't a responsibility, a requirement for salvation, but a necessity for growing into a Christlike person. It's a pressure we put upon ourselves so that the pressure might shape and harden us. Most of us would never study if we didn't have a test coming up. If I hadn't volunteered to lead a week on Christ I never would have done the reading I did. I would guess that the same is true for Louis, Kelly, and Paul to extents.

The group has spoken of it several times, but in '10 I'll be pushing for it: that Epic gets involved in the community. Probably gonna be Harvesters or something. It's been mentioned that a great way to tie it in would be to do some volunteering right before a retreat, which will hopefully get lined up for early '10. I'll be pushing for that too. But involvement doesn't have to be as a group. It's might be more fun, but much harder to organize. Get out there if you can.