You're Out!

The church is meant to be a hospital for the healing. When we forget this, we often become consumer minded and lose the heart of God for why He created this second institution. Remember that the first institution He created was the family. The family was His first pathway for good to be carried out upon the earth. The family provided the living illustration of His love for humanity. It modeled intimacy which brings forth new life. It showed us perfection in the roles each sex was to thrive in. It provided a road to maturity and prosperity, as the parents were to pass on their values to their children. God also created the family that a love and knowledge of Him would be passed on to each generation. He was to be God to the family.

The church was the second institution He created.  Just like the family, it was created with a purpose and a design. My former youth pastor spoke its purpose into my life when he once said, "The lost need to be saved and the saved need to be healed." This means that the church exists to be that place where the people remember that they too were once, "beaten, broken and bedraggled" and make a point to save others from their former fate. Once they get them into the 'hospital' of the church, they need God's medicine (The Bible, love and encounters with God). They should heal as they consider the love of God, the truth of Scripture, and the love of the saints. Collectively these three things should make each one more like Jesus; former life forsaken and moving forward in holiness.

But happens when they don't? What should the 'church' do when people who are there to heal decide that they are going to live in infection?

I offer you this verse which today gave me pause:

But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God— having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with such people. 2 Tim 3 1-5

Let's break this down together. Paul is writing Timothy who is leading several churches. Timothy is a young pastor who is learning from Paul who is seasoned. and who has the  apostolic leadership gift. His words are meant to both hold Timothy accountable and provide direction. The first question that can pop up is whether or not the context is meant for Timothy's time or in the future. Paul refers to the last days.

Know that this book is written by Paul from prison and was the last epistle that he authored. Some could argue that Paul was writing his last words, a final testament of encouragement, to Timothy.

Was he writing about the days before Jesus return or was the context relevant at that moment and continues to be relevant now?

The commentary from http://www.preceptaustin.org/2_timothy_31-5
"Comparing Scripture with Scripture, one can deduce that the "last days" is inaugurated by Messiah's First Coming, continues through Pentecost and comes to its culmination with the Second Coming of Christ, when "the Sun of Righteousness shall arise with healing in His wings" (Mal 4:2)

The "last days" included Timothy's day, for Paul warned him in (2Ti 3:5-note) to "avoid such men as these" indicating that "last day's deceivers" were already present."

Paul's writings have been considered now for almost 2000 years.  If we take the idea that the last days referred to all time after Jesus to the time He is to come back, then we must accept that Paul's writing applies to us in full authority (in this day).

Now consider the audience.   Paul was writing to a pastor, thus writing for the application to the church.  We must consider that within the church of that day the characteristics of the next lines were occurring.  They still occur to this day.  People are going to fail.  People are going to struggle with sin.  The sad thing that has occurred is what the body of Christ does about it.

Can we argue that we have become a church of peace keepers? Our calling is to be peace makers.

A peace keeper will keep peace at any price.  They will not challenge wrong and proclaim right.  They simply seek a cessation of hostility.   A peace maker recognizes that there is a time for war.  A peace maker will not withhold his arsenal against evil, but will fight evil and defeat it, that there may be true peace.  

As peace makers, we do not unload our arsenal on every sin.  That would be the equivalent of taking a super-soaker into a California wildfire.   It is all we would do and it would be to no effect, save our own exhaustion.   Yet there is a time for mobilization.   That time is after Matt 18 has been practiced.   We have gone individually.   We have taken another, and yet the offender will not listen.

It is at that point Paul's final words become our direction as he says, "Have nothing to do with such people."

In an age of consumerism, when people make decisions based upon how best it suits them, the church must not adapt to that practice, but instead must defy it.  We must remember who created and who loves the church.  We must remember the purpose of the church.  We must offer the lost a place to heal.  We must protect the healing from further infection.  Even though it may cost us people, we must obey what God spoke through Paul believing that God will increase the effectiveness of the work based upon the purifying of infection.  

A people who are sterilized from infection will be a fruitful people - producing much as they remain obedient to the Lord.