On Palm Sunday 2008 a fistfight broke out in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem pitting a group of Armenian Orthodox clergy against a band of Greek Orthodox monks. It got violent quickly, and eventually it required Israeli police to break up the brawl. One group had lingered too long at the tomb of Jesus, the other group got pushy, punches began to fly, and then chaos ensued.
Conflict can break out anywhere, even at the burial site of the Prince of Peace. Conflicts are inevitable in life, even among the godly.
Some conflicts are so bad that they require 3rd party assistance. Sometimes a mediator is brought in when two parties get so far apart that they need help reconciling their differences. Mediators help settle squabbles. The best mediators are people who can relate to the needs and concerns of both parties.
One of the central beliefs of the Christian faith is that Jesus was both human and divine. He was the Son of God, but also the son of Mary. He was conceived by the Holy Spirit, but born of a common woman. He is both God and Man. Hebrews Chapter 4 tells us that he was the Son of God, but that on earth he was tempted in all things just as we are, yet without sin.
Jesus knows what its like to be God, and also knows what its like to be human. This makes Jesus the ideal mediator between a perfect God and imperfect humans like you and me. (See I Timothy 2.5) Jesus our mediator paid the price for our sins, and can reconcile us to the Father.
At what point in your life did you feel most distanced from God? What were the circumstances when Jesus bridged the gap and brought you back in fellowship with God the Father?
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My easy answer to the my farthest distance from God was when I returned from college in North Carolina. I was depressed, I partied too much, I abused myself, relationships, people around me, etc. It was my darkest personal hour.
ReplyDeleteHowever, my harder answer is when my family became Jehovah's Witnesses. I was a teenager and my parents went to the deep end of this religion. It changed my life completely, destroyed my relationship with my parents, made me feel like an outcast, and made the road to my future nearly impossible to navigate. I blamed God and religion for all of it. My faith had disappeared.
My wife's questions about God brought me back. My children brought me back. My deep seeded values instilled into me by my grandmother brought me back. My experience at FUMC brought me back. The praise band played a large part in brining me back. There were several things that helped bridge that gap back to my desire to worship God. Maybe any of them could have done it alone, but together it really helped me to cross the bridge.
The point at which I felt most distanced from God: I had been praying to God about a certain situation (and I don't remember the details). The answer I got was not only one I didn't like (I had gotten them before), but it was one I felt was wrong (and maybe even capricious. I was MAD. I told God that it was pointless for me to pray, because He was going to do what he wanted anyway, so why bother to ask for anything. Why bother to pray for another person if He would not honor the prayer, even partially. So, I told Him to leave me alone. He could go His way, but as for me, I was done with Him. I don't remember how long we were apart. I didn't like it, but I figured it takes giving on both sides of a friendship. I figured plenty of other people got along just fine without God - so could I. Not too long after, I was sleeping in my dorm room one night and my roommate was gone for the week, so I was alone. I woke up being attacked. I was being suffocated by someone on top of me. My first thought was my roommate, but the body did not feel of the right proportion. I could not even take a breath to yell out. I began to panic - I was going to be murdered in my bed, and I didn't know why or who. At that moment, I instinctively, in desperation, called out to my only hope. I screamed, in my head, "Jesus, save me." Instantly, I was given amazing strength, and threw my attacker onto the floor. I heard the body hit the floor, snapped on the light, and jumped out of bed to fight -- but the room was empty. I immediately knew who my attacker was. I turned and knelt by my bed. I prayed to God repenting of turning my back on Him. I acknowledged Him as Sovereign God. I may not like what He does at times, even if it does not make any sense at all. But, He is God. And I am His to follow.
ReplyDeleteJeff Hall
Ah, That would have to be late teens,early twenties, Jeff. The sinful years.....stopped going to church and did stuff I am not proud of. Was brought back by either a mission week at our church or maybe lent - before Easter...Grace was given and Jesus bridged the gap!
ReplyDeleteI think I feel most distanced from God when I'm thinking in a selfish capacity of some sort - it makes sense - but I think we all ride a cyclical rollercoaster to some extent: a period of calm and peace followed by a period of trial or more difficult time, then comes a desire or commitment to ammend or reform our ways to achieve positive change and on to a period of calm or o.k.-ness again. No, I'm not talking about pms- LOL - I'm talking spiritually here. Anyway, my point is - during the times we struggle, we (or at least I) become me-focused. The exact oppsoite makes more sense - that's when we should reach out to God more. I think being me-focused in thought processes is a major obstacle to constant closeness in our relationship to God. Jesus is always there trying to pull us back. I love the Casting Crowns song that says "I feel like I'm just one mistake away from You leaving me this way" (from East to West) that's it precisely - we get stuck in our me-brain. Jesus never will leave us where we are!
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