Light in a Broken World

John 9:1-7:
"As he passed by, he saw a man blind from birth. And his disciples asked him, "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?" Jesus answered, "It was not that this man sinned, or his parents, but that the works of God might be displayed in him. We must work the works of him who sent me while it is day; night is coming, when no one can work. As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world." Having said these things, he spat on the ground and made mud with the saliva. Then he anointed the man's eyes with the mud and said to him, "Go, wash in the pool of Siloam" (which means Sent). So he went and washed and came back seeing."

This is an important passage to me for multiple reasons. First off, the disciples of Christ naturally think that misfortune is a result of sin. They think this man's blindness is God's method of justice. Jesus replies by saying that his worldly suffering is not a result of his or his parent's actions.

Yet this is how so many Christians today think. We blame God for circumstances that go wrong in our life. How can God be loving if he let this person die? How can God be good if he doesn't protect his people? But Jesus answers by presenting this idea that "shit happens". There is no one to point the blame to, it is merely an effect of the broken world.

But luckily, Jesus doesn't stop there. He transforms. He acknowledges the brokenness of this imperfect world, but gives its brokenness purpose in a plan of redemption. The point of this story isn't that God will fix everything in your life that you want fixed, but rather it was a miracle to illustrate the purpose of Jesus, and his followers.

Jesus is the light of this world. And the most amazing part of this story, in my opinion, is the use of the word "we". "We must work the works of him who sent me while it is day". And since God sent Jesus, "we" is roping us in with God's work. Whoa mamma! That is pretty awesome to think about. Corrupted people, like me, can do the work of God.

The last part is a repeated theme in John. "As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world." That is us, too. We are the church, the body of Christ. Our job is to be the light of the world. And what does a light do? It sets up a path. Not a path of strictly doctrine. We are not called solely to share the gospel with people and give them step by step instructions to get to heaven. Not that sharing the gospel is bad, I am actually pro bible (despite my criticism of biblical inerrancy). But Jesus doesn't say "I shine the light of this world." He says "I AM the light of this world." And that's our job! Live the life of Christ. Be the Way, don't just preach the way or merely believe the way works.

That is how we see the light of God in this dark world. We need to be the light. It's then that we can be the healing power that this world so desperately needs.

Witnessing: What Have We Witnessed?

"Witnessing" is a common term today used by Christians when sharing the gospel. This of course leads to the question of what does it mean to witness? We have not seen Christ, so what are we claiming to witness? Christians get a lot of crap because we put faith in events we have not witnessed. But what people fail to see is that we have witnessed God's love through Christ. Because we, as Christians, are called to be witnesses of Christ. Not as eye witnesses of the man who walked the earth, but as eye witnesses to his unlimited love that we uniquely experience through the teachings attributed to Christ. We are witnesses of love and hope in the world today. And we have found this love and hope through Jesus. While faith does deal with things unseen and uncertain, it affects our life in such away that everyone can see it through our very visible actions. Telling people the story of Jesus is not witnessing, it is merely theological background for the love and liberation that we have witnessed.

Religion vs Relationship

Many think that religion is outdated today. We look at religion as merely a set of cultural norms, and rightly so. Any religion can be broken down into a set of myths, rituals, and specific belief in a divine being(s) / supernatural force(s). With communication and tolerance held in high esteem, we are better educated in what others believe, and we naturally fail to see the importance of a distinct religion. And so we hear Christians all the time say it's about a relationship with Jesus Christ, not a religion. Yet they still go to church, pray, study sacred stories from the Bible, and have a distinct doctrine about God. So how is Christianity not a religion? That sounds like ritual, myth, and belief in a god(s) to me. The truth is Christianity is a religion. And that is not a bad thing. But the misconception about Christianity among the world today is the notion that religion can somehow grant salvation. And that simply isn't biblical. Jesus is the only way. It's through living out his teachings (fueled by our love for God) that we enter the kingdom of heaven. It's not merely having a relationship with a man we have never met who lived 2000 years ago, it's having a positively intimate relationship with the lifestyle he modeled for us. And that's why it's so okay that Christianity is a religion; it is symbolically modeled after Christ's life and teachings. We need Godly cultural norms to be present in the world. We need a community to help spread the love we have witnessed. The important thing is to distinguish the man made religion from our commitment to living the life God wants us to live. Christianity is not the same thing as Christ. Because no establishment can grant salvation, even if they represent Jesus beautifully. So yes, I am a Christian by religion. But that doesn't mean too much. Anyone can be a Christian, from the humble homeless man to the bloodthirsty tyrant. Religion is just a tool, we are its operators. What really matters is that we strive to follow the example Christ gave us, that we let love be our motivation and act on it in selfless ways.