Genesis
21: 15-19
17 And God
heard the voice of the boy; and the angel of God called to Hagar from heaven,
and said to her, ‘What troubles you, Hagar? Do not be afraid; for God has heard
the voice of the boy where he is. 18 Come, lift
up the boy and hold him fast with your hand, for I will make a great nation of
him.’ 19 Then God
opened her eyes, and she saw a well of water. She went, and filled the skin
with water, and gave the boy a drink.
John
17: 20-24
20 ‘I ask not only on behalf of
these, but also on behalf of those who will believe in me through their word, 21 that they may all be one.
As you, Father, are in me and I am in you, may they also be in us, so that the world may believe that you have
sent me. (NRSV)
Yet
another story where God reveals Himself in the troubled questions and
situations of life: The bible has many stories of exile and exclusion. Some
folks have misused these stories to define their own reasons for excluding
people from their own lives personally, socially, and economically not to
mention geographically. Insiders and outsiders, those who belong and those who
are out, union versus separation challenge us every day. How does God reveal Himself
in terms of the insider outsider debate? What principles are available to us as
disciples of the ‘Jesus of the Nazareth discourse’ to apply to our practical
living? Our starting point is Jesus. It is through Him, His teaching and how He
lived that creates the focus for us, to see clearly, what are the possibilities
for God and our practical lives together. At the point of His final rejection, Jesus
prays for those close to Him and for those not yet close to Him, but to whom He
is close. In the story of Hagar and Ishmael in Genesis, rejection and outsider
status from family and community is experienced and death is close; but God,
life and inclusion in the promises of God is closer. Rejection and exile are
powerful but being present, being concerned, being actively involved, through
the practice of inclusion are far more powerful. God reveals Himself as the One
who is present and active even in the lived experience of exclusion. In John, Jesus
prays and is committed to those who have included Him but also to and for those
who have excluded Him, those, we, as followers of Jesus, might be tempted to
exclude. Jesus reveals God as the One who is the prime mover in ‘belonging
before belief’. Hagar and Ishmael had a place in the story of God even if Sarah
and Abraham excluded them. And so it is that God chooses us, He believes in us;
we belong, long before we believe; even if we ever do truly believe. Jesus
reveals God as the God who incudes all of us in His plan for recreation and redemption.
Exclusion comes in many forms: physical, social, psychological, economic, environmental,
racial, sexual, and so the list goes on. But what are the starting points for followers
of Jesus in the divine but practical project of inclusion and embrace. Our
small community of disciples and followers Jesus is exploring this at the
moment as part of our ‘Epiphany’ series. We are re reading together Stuart Murray’s
book ‘The Naked Anabaptist: The Bare Essentials of a Radical Faith’; published
by Paternoster in Milton Keynes. Here is an extract that we are working through
as a framework for our collective reflections together. If we recognise that
Jesus is the revelation of God how should this belief effect how we live? Perhaps
you will reflect on these principles also.
1. Jesus is our example, teacher,
friend, redeemer and Lord. He is the source of our life, the central reference point
for our faith and lifestyle, for our understanding of church and our engagement
within society. We are committed to following Jesus as well as worshiping him.
2. Jesus is the focal point of God’s
revelation. We are committed to a Jesus Centred approach to the bible and to
the community of faith as the primary context in which we read the bible and
discern and apply its implications for discipleship.
3. Western culture is slowly emerging
for the Christendom era, when church and state jointly presided over a society
in which almost everybody was supposed to be Christian. Whatever its positive
contributions on values and institutions, Christendom seriously distorted the gospel,
marginalised Jesus, and has left the church ill equipped for mission in the
post Christendom culture. As we reflect on this, we are committed to learning from
the experience and perspectives of movements such as Anabaptism that rejected
standard Christendom assumptions and pursued alternative ways of thinking and
behaving.
4. The frequent association of the
church with status, wealth, and force is inappropriate for the followers of
Jesus and damages our witness. We are committed to exploring ways of being good
news to the poor, powerless and persecuted, aware that such discipleship may
attract opposition resulting in suffering and sometimes ultimately martyrdom.
5. Churches are called to be
committed communities of discipleship and mission, places of friendship, mutual
accountability, and multivoiced worship. As we eat together, sharing bread and wine, we
sustain hope as we seek God’s kingdom together. We are committed to nurturing
and developing such churches, in which young and old are valued, leadership is
consultative, roles are related to gifts rather than gender and baptism is for
believers.
6. Spirituality and economics are
interconnected. In an individualist and consumerist culture and in a world
where economic injustice is rife, we are committed to finding ways of living
simply, sharing generously, caring for creation and working for justice.
7. Peace is at the heart of the gospel.
As followers of Jesus in a divided and violent world, we are committed to
finding nonviolent alternatives and to learning how to make peace between
individuals, within and among churches, in society and between nations.
(Murray
S, (2010) The Naked Anabaptist: The Bare Essentials of a Radical Faith.
Paternoster, Milton Keynes. Page 45-46)
Father
God, by your tender mercy, be our dawn from on high, break upon us, give light to those of us who sit in darkness
and the shadow of death and in your compassion guide our feet into the way of
peace; through Jesus Christ your Son, Amen
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