I DOUBT I WOULD HAVE ever gotten involved in church if I had not been invited to attend a Bible study by Jerri, a woman I met the week after my encounter with Jesus.
I had an insatiable desire to learn more about God and reading my new Bible alone left me with many questions, so I eagerly met her at the church the following Tuesday.
Believing that all ladies, who would bother to give up a morning during the week to learn about Jesus, would have the same disposition as Jerri, I was relaxed and happy to meet the eight or nine other women at our table and tell them about myself.
It was only when the brief story of my life resembled the woman at the well—you know, the one who had been married so many times and was not married to the man she was living with on the day she met Jesus—that I wanted to disappear. John 4:16-18
In a matter of about five minutes, the love and acceptance that Jerri had demonstrated to me were replaced by the same judgment and condemnation the woman at the well should have received but did not.
I think one has to meet Jesus in order to forgive the hungry wolves at church dressed in Ralph Lauren jogging suits; otherwise, the shame and humiliation one is apt to feel could turn into bitterness and cynicism.
Undeserved forgiveness is the first lesson learned while in the presence of God and it must be remembered and exercised inside the church as well.
I have come to believe, having spent more than two decades in formal Bible study, and many of which as the teacher, that the church will do no less harm to a person, who needs to know the love and acceptance of the Lord, than the harm he or she can find outside.
The church would be different if Christians didn’t wear their religion on their sleeve like an Eagle Scout badge but more like Hester Prynne’s scarlet letter.
Can you imagine what might happen if Christians wore “Ask Me About” badges that identified the very real struggles the Lord delivered them from?
“Ask Me About”…
My Drug Problem
My Abortion
My Rage
My Time In Prison
My Adultery
My Rape
My Pornography Problem
My Days as a Prostitute
My Love of Money
My Life as an Atheist
And for all those Christians who skipped through life without eyebrow-raising experiences, how about they wear a different badge?
“I Struggle With”…
Anger
Envy
Depression
Pride
Low Self-Esteem
Gluttony
Drunkenness
Greed
Undeserved Forgiveness
Lust
Gambling
Sexual Immorality
Lying
Stealing
Selfishness
Suicide
Trusting God
Self-Control
Patience
Loving Others
Obeying God
Of course, it may be a cold day in hell before that ever happens. Just saying.
And as he (Jesus) reclined at table in his (Matthew’s) house, many tax collectors and sinners were reclining with Jesus and his disciples, for there were many who followed him.
And the scribes of the Pharisees (church people), when they saw that he was eating with sinners and tax collectors, said to his disciples, “Why does he eat with tax collectors and sinners?”
And when Jesus heard it, he said to them, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I came not to call the righteous, but sinners.” Mark 2: 15-17 (ESV)
James 5:14-16, Proverbs 16:4, Luke 6:43-44, 2 Peter 2:9, Luke 12:3, Acts 4:27-28
As always, it is my intent and hope that my words may encourage you wherever you are in your journey.
Please share your thoughts in the comments below or go to the group tab above to share your own experience. It only takes a minute of your time to register (and you can be anonymous), and your words may help others.
If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear.–Jesus (Mark 4:23)
