That's How It Works

The Bible teaches us in 2nd Corinthians about our motivation as citizens of a heavenly Kingdom,
who have been brought into a relationship with Jesus:
14 For the love of Christ compels us, because we judge thus: that if One died for all, then all died;
15 and He died for all, that those who live should live no longer for themselves, but for Him who died for them and rose again.

That's some encouragement to see through spiritual eyes, to see through eyes of love.  We are called to love the Lord with our whole heart, and as we do that, we have the capacity to love those with whom we come in contact.  We recognize and identify the power of God, the power that has set us free and can set others free.  Just as Jesus was self-less in giving His life, so we can be challenged to take our eyes off ourselves and demonstrate and share the life-giving power of the Holy Spirit.

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During Holy Week, we think about some of the major occurrences during that time period: the Triumphal Entry, the cleansing of the Temple, the Last Supper, and of course the crucifixion and the resurrection.  It struck me that the book of Matthew points to the teaching that Jesus did during this pivotal week.  He knew that His Kingdom would be established, and He was preparing His followers for life in that Kingdom, to adopt to and adapt to that way of living.

For instance, in Matthew 22, we read:
35 Then one of them, a lawyer, asked Him a question, testing Him, and saying,
36 "Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?"
37 Jesus said to him, "'You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.'
38 This is the first and great commandment.
39 And the second is like it: 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.'
40 On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets."

He then began to rebuke the Pharisees for not following the way of love.  After a discourse on the signs of His coming and the parable of the ten virgins, illustrating readiness for His return, He elaborated on the use of talents, then in the latter part of Matthew 25, He shared the parable about ministering to those in need, saying in verse 40: "'...inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me.'"

I came across the transcript of a Breakpoint commentary by Eric Metaxas recently that really coincides with that Kingdom mentality, predicated on the love of Christ.  He highlighted how Jesus heals the broken and called attention to a new initiative called PRAY LOVE HEAL.   He mentioned William Wilberforcce, who worked to abolish the slave trade in Britain, and those who labored with him - a group called the Clapham sect.  Metaxas said:

The small group of Christians with which he planned and prayed, known as the Clapham Sect, took the long view of social change. To free slaves in an empire that depended on them must have seemed unthinkable to most. Yet, guided by God and devoting much of their lives to the task, they met their goals.

The Clapham Sect came to mind recently when I learned about a new outreach addressing sexual brokenness. PRAY LOVE HEAL presents itself as “a global community invested in the spiritual, sexual, and relational healing of the world.” Now there’s a challenge for you! To do this, they’ve launched a website featuring helpful resources and publish a daily email containing guided prayers, Scripture readings, and a brief devotion. Each month features a new prayer focus. March offers prayers for victims of pornography.

Metaxas goes on: "...like the Clapham Sect, PRAY LOVE HEAL understands this mission in light of a much larger effort to renew a Christian vision of sexuality, relationships, and the human person." He continues: "According to PRAY LOVE HEAL director Daniel Weiss, whose organization, The Brushfires Foundation, I’ve mentioned on BreakPoint before, we cannot adequately address one aspect of sexual brokenness without understanding the larger family and cultural contexts."

The website address is www.prayloveheal.org.

I agree with Eric - this is a BIG vision, a Kingdom vision, but when we recognize that we belong to the Kingdom of Heaven and we serve a King, our Lord Jesus, who has taught us how it works and has given us the power and principles to allow Him to work through us, then we can go forth with confidence.

The message of the cross is wrapped up in the power of love - a selfless man who gave Himself for all humanity.  His redemption was not partial - it was complete.  Our Lord Jesus does not do things half-heartedly or insufficiently...He gave His all, and He calls us to give everything so that we can have all of Him.

The PRAY LOVE HEAL website says that:

PRAY LOVE HEAL is a global community that PRAYS for spiritual, sexual, and relational wholeness, offers the LOVE of God to those in pain, and invites the Holy Spirit to HEAL our deepest wounds. We educate people about deep human needs and equip them to pray for healing and wholeness in their own and others’ lives.

That's the plan - if we are convinced that Christ is the healer, who can make us completely whole, then we can be drawn to unite our hearts with others to pray for His healing power to be released upon the earth - a big vision for sure, a Kingdom vision, but it's the expression of the love for God I read about in Matthew 22, a love through which we can love others.   In Christ, we can know the hope of the world and be motivated and equipped to share hope.  The cross represents hope for all - and we can share it in a big way, a Kingdom way.   He knows how it works, and calls us to follow.