afterthoughts: Light For the Nations 1: "The Church Lights the Way" (09.23.07)

[To listen to the message, click here.]

SUMMARY
“I will make you a light for the nations, that my salvation may reach to the ends of the earth.” - Isaiah 49.6

This passage expresses the mission of the Church. It does so, because it was the mission of Jesus Christ, the Servant of the Lord. So, what does all this mean for the mission of the Church? It means that our mission is grounded, rooted and inspired by Jesus Christ. He is the salvation of the world. As we are in Christ, God says to us, “I will make you a light for the nations, that my salvation may reach to the ends of the earth.”

The Church lights the way. We are witnesses and ambassadors, conformed to the likeness of Christ. We are to live out and speak the Good News of Jesus Christ to everyone, everywhere, all the time. We are to reflect the light of Christ. We are to mirror the love of God. God uses us to bring His salvation – the message of His salvation and the embodiment of His salvation – to all the earth. We carry on the ministry of Jesus. He works through us (His Church) to bring salvation to all people.

POINTS TO REMEMBER

“The Church exists by mission as fire exists by burning.” - Emil Brunner

Fire must burn in order to exist. Likewise the Church only exists by mission. A church that is not glorifying God, in that it is not loving, not worshipping, not sharing the Good News, not building one another up cannot be considered a church. It may look like a church and talk like a church, but it is not.

“God’s intention in history is an outworking of his own eternal nature. His goal for humankind is that we be the image of God, that is, the reflection of the very nature of the Creator.” - Stanley Grenz

God created us in His image. Sin marred that image. But now, in Christ, God is restoring us to His image. Therefore, as we are being renewed by God, we are to be a reflection – a reconciled community who reflects the reality of God who is love. As we exist in love – loving God, loving each other and showing that love to the world, we glorify God – for we are then the outworking of His very nature.

Lighthouses are built on dangerous coasts and their purpose is to signal danger and provide aid to seafarers. Christians are called to be like lighthouses. We are beacons in the darkness and storminess of the world. We are to shine the light of Christ so as to expose the dangers that the darkness conceals and to guide people to the safe haven of Jesus Christ.

That’s a great image. However, there is one problem with that image and that is that lighthouses are stationary. They remain only in one place and guide seafarers from a distance. Now many Christians and many churches are happy to simply be lighthouses – stationary structures that on a regular and consistent basis turn on their light and shine it around just in case someone is looking. They’re willing to shine their light, but they don’t want to get too close. They welcome people to come, but don’t want to go out. A lighthouse is good at marking boundaries and giving directions. It’s good at sending flyers and announcements and holding up signs, but not so good at coming alongside another person. A lighthouse has no feet or hands.

And so, another image is needed and that is the light of a flashlight. The image is of a willingness to go and help someone who is trapped and in danger. The image is of risk-taking, selflessness, compassion, getting dirty, giving of yourself. It is being a light the seeks out the person in trouble – that goes to them – that shines for them – that shows them the way to safety and deliverance.