CYPRESSWOOD CHURCH OF CHRIST

December 28, 2003

PRAY FOR:

Our congregation                                                     The Stolte’s in Germany

Our nation, leaders and military                              Bob Stolte

various friends, relatives and co-workers                 David and Leon in the Navy

Holiday travelers

EVENTS:                                                  HAPPY NEW YEAR

December 31^st - New Year’s Eve party at the Cruthirds

UNVEILING GLORY

“And we, who with unveiled faces, all reflect the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit” (2 Corinthians 3:18).

This verse is the theme of the latest book in The Heart of the Restoration series.  It is called Unveiling Glory, written by Jeff Childers and Frederick Aquino and published by ACU Press, 2003.  It is subtitled “visions of Christ’s transforming presence.”  Let me say frankly, I think this book has been needed for a very long time in churches of Christ.  Rather than beginning with the church as an institution, they begin where we need to begin, with Jesus Christ.  It is a theology of Jesus Christ from the incarnation to the resurrection.  Their purpose is to show the transforming power of Jesus Christ in all areas of our lives.  Two major themes dominate the book: humility and relationship.  Why?  Because those two themes are far too often lacking in our churches.  Too many want to maintain power, want their way, and resist those who see things differently.  And far too often, worldly attitudes are more predominant than the attitude or mind of Christ.  This book addresses such attitudes and points us to the attitude of Christ (Philippians 2:5).

There are eight chapters in the book along with discussion questions, scenarios, and case studies.  In the introduction, the authors state the obvious.  Are we willing to commit ourselves to totally following Jesus?  They go on to question what motivates us and why some of the problems we see today arise.  For instance, “In the heat of conflict over something incendiary like worship, we get confused about what the problem really is…The problem includes the business of how we understand Jesus” (p. 5).  How do we understand Jesus?  Paul told us to have the mind of Christ (Philippians 2:5).  In verse four he told the Philippians to think not of their own interest but the interests of others.  Verses six through eight explain the mind or attitude of Christ, who left heaven and in humility became a man and died.  The Corinthians were encouraged in the same way (1 Corinthians 10:24).  Yet too often our selfishness appears.  “What’s in it for me?”  We don’t say it that way but that is what we mean.  Humble service and relationships have taken a back seat to getting my way.  In a meeting discussing a variety of things including our youth, one elder stated, “But what about me?”  How did he handled relationship?  If he didn’t like it, it wasn’t going to be done.  Some where along the way to restoration, we lost Jesus Christ.

Each chapter covers an important aspect of looking at Christ.  “Why did God become human?” (chapter 1).  Chapter two looks at the humility of God in Christ at His birth.  That thought is carried on in chapter three at the baptism of Jesus.  What was Jesus teaching and living (chapter four)?  What can we learn from the Christ through His life, teaching and the Lord’s Supper (chapter five).  The atonement is the them of chapter six and the resurrection in chapter seven.  Chapter eight sums it all up by looking to the return of the Lord.

As I have written, two themes dominate the book.  The first is humility.  From His birth in a manger to His death on the cross, humility was the life of Jesus.  Born in a stable, visited by smelly shepherds, God began His human life in humility.  He lived in an obscure village until He was thirty.  Then He came to the Jordan River to be baptized by a man who came out of the wilderness.  During His ministry, He often did not have a place to stay, was criticized and falsely accused.  His followers were fishermen, a tax collector, and a number of women.  He often met and touched the rejects of society or foreigners.  And finally He was beaten and nailed to a cross by fellow countrymen and Romans.  God exalted Him through the resurrection.  Later, many of His followers learned humility by learning to be weak (see 2 Corinthians 12) and taught it to the churches.

Today, humility is in scarce supply.  Too many want their own way and think nothing of others.  That brings us to the second theme of the book, relationship.  God did not come into this world to just teach us about humility, He came to bring us back into fellowship.  Relationship is with God our Father through Jesus Christ by the power of the Holy Spirit.  His purpose was to bring together warring parties to promote peace (see Ephesians 2:11-22).  How hard do we work to promote peace among ourselves (Ephesians 4:3)?  When an elder can say, “If you are not happy here, go somewhere else,” something is wrong with our idea of relationship.  We have made the church something it should never be, an institution.  We, as the church, are a family.  Families work together, struggle together, share joy and sorrow, and stand by each other.  That is what Christianity is about. 

In each of the chapters, these two themes, humility and relationship, are emphasized in the discussion.  This is a needed discussion in light of issues being raised such as attendance, worship styles, leadership, and directions that congregations are going in.  These and other problems have caused people to dig in their heels and ignore or reject people because of their positions.  This book points us in the direction we should be going, the direction that God wants us to be going in.  Somewhere along the way, the Restoration Movement lost sight of humility and relationship, and this book is a call to return to the path God intended for us.  Will our traditions accomplish this?  Will our songs?  Will our attitudes toward others?  If so, then that is fine, but if not, then we need to repent and find the road that we need to be on.

This book should be required reading for all Christians, but especially for preachers, teachers, and shepherds.  Put into practice, we just might find an entirely different atmosphere in our congregations.

                                                                                              George B. Mearns