I’m starting out today’s post by giving props to the new Bishop of Rome. When he made his debut “Balcony Moment” appearance yesterday, Pope Francis said the following (translated) words:
“I ask you a favor: Before the bishop blesses the people, I want to ask you to ask the Lord to bless the bishop. Please, pray in silence for me.”
Classy. Very classy. And right on point.
WE ARE ALL ONE BECAUSE OF JESUS: Too much of 21st Century Christianity seems concerned about “what makes me right and you wrong;” (most especially what makes the other person wrong!). But today is a wonderful opportunity to turn our attention, instead, on what makes all of us right. And what makes us right is Jesus; Jesus makes all of us right… with God.
- Protestant or Catholic…
- Baptist, Presbyterian, Methodist…
- Complex religious bureaucracies or the extreme opposite…
- Conservative drawing “lines in the sand” or liberals opening the doors of the church so wide they sometimes make themselves uncomfortable….
- High-church eucharist in the mighty basilica or bread and juice around the kitchen table in a farmhouse…
- Elaborate vestments or “Sunday best”…
- Singing the great works of Bach or strumming the latest praise tune…
- Ancient liturgy or a few sentences of gut-level prayer…
- Pope Francis Jorge Mario Bergoglio the Bishop of Rome or simply pastor Rebekah at the Presbyterian Church…
- We are all one because of Jesus.
As I listed those bullet points the following chorus came to mind, it was one of my favorites as a child growing up in England. I think these are the approximate words:
“Turn your eyes upon Jesus, look full in his wonderful face; and the things of earth will grow strangely dim, in the light of his glory and grace.”
“The things of earth” include everything we use to divide ourselves, and that means religious disputes/arguments/pronouncements/judgements designed to turn attention away from Jesus and toward our personal preferences. These things grow dim – or should – in the light of the glory and grace of Jesus.
BROs: That means that the Bishop of Rome and I are brothers in Christ. Both of us look – first – to Jesus, just as Pope Francis did in his beautiful, humble request at the top of this page.
May God bless you, brother Francis, in your ministry. Amen
– DEREK
This is a super article. A woman
Thanks, Evie!
– DEREK
Derek – Greetings from Denver!
Sir, I have a question, hypothetical…etc…
Let me set it up:
“And what makes us right is Jesus; Jesus makes all of us right… with God.”
-Derek
and:
Matthew 16:19: I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.”…Jesus said to Peter, of whom the Pope is today’s representative.
Here the question(s):
When this Pope has already gone on record as saying the Church doesn’t support or condone certain acts or behavior…do you think that invokes the “Bound on Earth” concept?
Why? Why not?
And If so , with many Christians in approval of, and engaging in acts that the Pope says goes against God, can one really be “right with Jesus” and “right with God”?
Short answer for me is this. The point of Jesus is that – from the saintliest person to the nastiest sinner – we’re all on level ground. It’s not our behavior that makes us right with God, it’s Jesus. People can – and do – debate endlessly regarding what accepting Jesus looks like in our day-to-day lives. Jesus himself said the best evidence that we belong to him is the way we love one another, “By this will all people know you are my disciples, if you have love one for another…” Pope Francis, and Derek Maul, and Rebekah, and Billy Graham… all look to Jesus. I think the “rock on which I build my church” was not Peter the person, but Peter’s conviction that Jesus was the Messiah….
If we spent more time focusing on our own relationship with God, (the “plank” in our own eye – Matthew 7) instead of judging others’ relationships with Him, the entire world would be lifted up a notch, one person at a time. Encouraging and building up, rather than tearing down your neighbors. Thank you Derek.
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