Coming Soon

Revelation 22:7 "Behold, I am coming soon! Blessed is he who keeps the words of the prophecy in this book.

"There’s a lot of disruption occurring in the Presbyterian Church, which is dividing our ability to witness effectively in the world. Different pastors and elders hold diverse views about what’s right and wrong for the church, and the people in the pews are being led like sheep to the slaughter on the altars of adversity and discontent. Congregations are leaving the denomination across the country, which is weakening our influence throughout many communities.

Instead of being washed in the blood of Jesus, we’re hemorrhaging. Instead of bringing the good news of the Gospel to the world, we’ve actually become bad news.

I worry about what’s happening. I try to understand why people want to polarize their faith. Is it because we hate one another so much that we have no room for love? Is it because we’ve too much pride that we have forgotten to be humble? Are we so focused on currently making things right for ourselves that we’ve jettisoned the future of the Church? Are we so sure that we’re on the Lord’s side and not servants of Lucifer?

Christ is coming soon. If I live till I’m eighty, then for me He’s coming in the next thirty years. Time is running out for all of us, and He will judge us according to what we have done. Can we honestly say that He is more interested in the divisions we’ve created, or in the people we’ve attracted to Christ? Will Jesus commend us more for doctrinal purity or compassionate conversions?

In the end, Presbyterianism is just another thin branch of the whole Christian Church. Even if it breaks, the tree will survive.

Prayer: Lord Jesus, we are Your Church and we are Your people. None of us are perfect; not one of us is pure. Grant us wisdom and discernment, compassion and love. Keep us from dividing the body and diminishing our witness. In Your Holy Name, we humbly pray. Amen.

John writes the Heaven's Highway daily devotional blog; the weekly religious news blog Stushie's Stuff, and the Worship prayer website "Aaaron's beard."