Branch Office

… [F]or it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure – Philippians 2:13

I’m just thinking – not really out loud, I guess -- out in the open.  I was thinking about the Resurrection and Paul’s assertion in First Corinthians, Chapter 15:  And if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain.  We are even found to be misrepresenting God, because we testified about God that he raised Christ, whom he did not raise if it is true that the dead are not raised. 

Misrepresenting God, or, to put it more generally, misrepresenting reality would be a damnable offense, if, indeed, reality is such that one can be damned.  Every once in a while it is probably a good idea to step back and consider more broadly what it is we are claiming is true.  It is easy to get into an argument with the world and start holding to some position that may contain some truth at the expense of the whole truth.  There are entire religious systems that have done this, not to mention the sects, cults, and denominations that pop up after a little knowledge like fungal growths after a heavy summer rain.  There is no need to name all the offenders for we may content ourselves with the egregious examples, such as “oneness” Christianity, Jehovah’s Witnesses, democracy, witchcraft, astrology, climate science, and Keynesian economics. 

The New Testament account of the life of Jesus of Nazareth and especially His death, burial, and resurrection are accepted as true by anyone who can genuinely claim to be a Christian.  We can disagree on a lot of things, but if we agree that Jesus is the unique Son of God, that He died a vicarious, atoning death, was buried then rose physically on the third day after His crucifixion, we are Mere Christians, as Lewis might say – or Near Christians, at the very least.  I’m not sure there is much conviction and power in Near Christianity, but it seems to satisfy the mixed multitude. 

We can read a lot in the Bible that sounds really nice.  Depending on a person’s inclinations, personality, and circumstances, they might be drawn to passages that talk about prosperity or health or relationships.  We may try to seek out a formula for victorious living, but it all hangs on whether or not it is true. 

What is revealed to us is that the transcendent God is not only over all as Creator but involved with us as individuals, seeking to live in us and out through us as we burst forth into the material world like flowers on a vine.  The life in the Vine is made known through us.  There are way too many of us – like me too much of the time – walking around focused on how we live as if our life were our own.  Imagine a blossom becoming self-aware and being caught up in the folds of its petals, intoxicated with its awareness, making plans on what it intended to do, how it would draw more bees and butterflies to it. 

The form of the blossom is going to pass away into fruit, into seed so long as it stays attached to the vine, no matter what its thoughts and plans might be.  The difference for us is that we have a will, and we can choose to remain with the Vine or to separate ourselves and attempt to pursue our own ends.  God has granted to humanity a sort of encapsulated version of life – a little like a battery pack -- that allows us to move away from Him if we choose.    He will allow us to pursue our own ends and develop our little limited lives.  Some of us realize the futility of a life apart from the Source immediately, others only when the batteries start running down. 

Some think we can plug in and recharge then head off in our own direction the rest of the time.  Others seem to believe that the only way is to stay plugged in all the time.  Still others believe that their battery is non-rechargeable and that they had better go as far as they can before it runs down.  There are even some folks who think they can build their own batteries. 

I suppose I am an advocate for wireless recharging.  I think God gave us mobility for a reason, as part of His plan for us.  In this, I tend to fall in between the group that thinks it can recharge and go off on its own and the group that thinks it has to stay plugged in and out of the fray.  I think we can stay connected in the midst of a world of interference, jammed signals, and poor reception.  Not that it is easy, but it can be done.   God intends for us to get out there while staying connected.  Sometimes it’s good to come back to the base and plug straight in – remember the Sabbath and all, but mostly we can keep from going dark and dead by staying in the line of sight.

When we stay connected, we will recognize how wonderful the truth is that it is God who is at work in us.  His will is becoming our will, and we are working His works by His strength and power.  All that spiritual stuff that sounds so cool, if slightly disturbing, becomes quite real, though never mundane.  Insights come to us that seem to have no basis in our material experience.  We pass beyond the self, beyond the form of the blossom, to the life and purpose behind it.

I will close with this last thought from John 15:5:   You are a branch of Jesus Christ.