It seems to me that in recent times, our world and the church have become more fragmented than ever. Partly driven by fear, partly by social media, partly by our own human nature to put ourselves first both in terms of our practice but also our theology. I think as this dislocation and fragmentation continue, it is more imperative than ever that we think deeply about what it means to follow Jesus as disciples in obedience to his calling and example as God in the flesh. In my devotion this week I came across and apt verse in Titus that I think we would do well to practice and take to heart.
Titus 3:1 Remind the people to be subject to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready to do whatever is good, to slander no one, to be peaceable and considerate, and always to be gentle toward everyone.
Paul’s words serve us well in this Covid season, and more broadly as the world and our culture becomes more tribal and people follow influencers and charismatic folk who have a platform that exploits the fear, and the media, and our own human nature to think we are right. Scripture and Jesus himself says we should work for the good of our communities and pray for, and be obedient to those in authority over us as a witness to the gospel. Yes, there are times when following Jesus will rub against government, but in general those are not the norm and our response should always be in line with Jesus humility and service and grace. In our lives and the church, Paul here says that we are to slander no-one, to be peaceable and considerate, and to be gentle to EVERYONE! I must confess I don’t see that happening a lot, and I also personally struggle to act like that in some situations. But I believe we should, and I believe Jesus modelled this in his ministry; particularly in some of his greatest teaching in the sermon on the mount. Jesus says that this is how the world will know we are his disciples – if we love one another. If we want to know what love looks like then read 1 Corinthians 13 – a passage not for weddings, but for conflict.
Recently our church leadership had an hour and a half input from Tim Dyer, who lives in Tasmania, and teaches about managing conflict and difference in churches. Conflict is often seen as a negative thing, but it is normal in the sense that we always have differing (conflicting) views about all sorts of things. This is actually a good thing, but how we handle and share and manage those differences determines if we are true Jesus followers or not. We have been working in recent weeks across all levels of church leadership at Parkside to increase our “conflict competency”, and this verse in Titus is a great starting point for that. Normally when differences arise and our emotions are engaged we quickly escalate to bad behavior which then leads to an erosion of trust and relational breakdown. However, if we can covenant to love well, and listen well, and value our differences, then “conflicting” views can actually be a really healthy part of our church and community. The covenant commitments we have adopted at council and eldership and staff level can be found in this edition of Signpost. Can I encourage you to read them and reflect on them personally as part of the body of Christ at Parkside. This is how they will know that we are Jesus followers; that we love one another.
Grace and Peace - Garry