Being Central Union Church: Embody On May 31, our congregation gathered for the annual meeting in which a new mission statement was adopted to guide our church for the future. The statement is simply, We Engage and Embrace ALL as we seek to Embody Christ. Monday, June 22 Words are quite powerful! When you think about it, the words that you use can build others up or tear them down; paint pictures of hope or despair; clearly communicate your feelings and thoughts; etc. This final word of our mission statement, Embody, is a word that isn t always used in day to day living. How would you define this word in your own words? The Oxford Dictionary defines Embody in this way: to be an expression of or give a tangible or visible form to. Chew on that thought for a moment is this definition similar to yours? The heart of Christianity is to Embody Christ! We are invited to be a people, collectively and as individuals, that give our world a tangible or visible form of Jesus Christ! WOW! That is an invitation that can seem daunting, frightening or even unachievable. Our passage from Sunday is from St. Paul s letter to the church in Corinth. Read it once more in light of this definition: 2 Corinthians 5:16-21. What is the purpose of Christian people? To be ambassadors!! Today, pray that God would
open your heart, mind and soul to fully embrace the call of embodying Christ! 16 So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view. Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer. 17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! 18 All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: 19 that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men's sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. 20 We are therefore Christ's ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ's behalf: Be reconciled to God. 21 God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. Tuesday, June 23 A word from our heritage is quite telling- disciple. This term was not new to the followers of Jesus as many teachers and leaders had disciples. To be a disciple meant that one would focus learning and following a certain way of being- both in the way we think and live. It wasn t just about a belief system, it was about a way of life. The first name for the Christian movement wasn t Christianity, but The Way. In order for the disciples to learn The Way, Jesus calls a specific group to be learners, watchers and then
participants of this new way. In Luke s Gospel, Jesus calls the disciples and begins to do acts of healing, teaching about how we are to be, and performing miracles. Then a moment of great importance happens read Luke 9:1-6. What does Jesus do? After following Jesus, watching, listening and internalizing, Jesus sends the 12 out to do the same things that they have seen! Did you get that?! They are to go and do that which they have witnessed! The heart of our faith is the call to be a student, pupil and follower of the way of Jesus and do it ourselves! The core of every call from God to us is the invitation to Embody Christ! Today, what is one way that you can Embody Christ? 1 When Jesus had called the Twelve together, he gave them power and authority to drive out all demons and to cure diseases, 2 and he sent them out to preach the kingdom of God and to heal the sick. 3 He told them: "Take nothing for the journey--no staff, no bag, no bread, no money, no extra tunic. 4 Whatever house you enter, stay there until you leave that town. 5 If people do not welcome you, shake the dust off your feet when you leave their town, as a testimony against them." 6 So they set out and went from village to village, preaching the gospel and healing people everywhere.
Wednesday, June 24 Jesus had called 12 specific people to follow him, the Apostles. Yet Jesus had many more surrounding him at all times. Certainly this group was a mix of men and women who were also witnessing what Jesus was doing and listening quite closely to his teachings. In Luke 10, Jesus spreads the number of people from 12 to 72 to go and be an embodiment of all him. This week, read the response of the 72 as they report what they had experienced: Luke 10:17: The seventy-two returned joyously, saying, Lord, even the demons submit themselves to us in your name. How would you define their response to their experience of being sent to do God s work? Perhaps words like awe, amazement, joy, astounded are just a few to start the list! Thursday, June 25 A part of the role of a Rabbi (teacher) in Jesus time was to teach them the way of that particular person but also to give clear direction of what they were to do once they were ready to spread their wings. At the conclusion of Matthew s Gospel, the disciples gather to hear from the resurrected Christ. Within Christian history, we call this section the Great Commission. Read Matthew 28:16-20. What is the purpose of the 11? Throughout history, that commission has been expanded to include all followers. We are to go and teach (remember, not about cognitive belief systems but a way of being!) the way that we were taught! We are granted a mission- to go and change the
world! It seems daunting until one realizes that this commission started with 11 on a single mountain and has now spread through the whole earth! Today, pray that you may hear the commission to go live The Way of Jesus Christ! 16 Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. 17 When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. 18 Then Jesus came to them and said, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age." Friday, June 26 In John s Gospel, Jesus appears to the disciples multiple times. One such time is with Peter. Do you remember what happened with Peter on Good Friday? He said on Thursday that he would never leave Jesus and Jesus responded by saying that by the time the cock crowed three times, Peter would deny Jesus. Read John 21:15-19. What happens in this exchange? Many believe what happened was an act of reconciliation or restoration. Yet what is most fascinating is that the very first words spoken to Peter is a renaming from Cephas to
Peter (means rock) and the last words position him to be a rock. Yet the last phrase is most enlightening Follow Me. It is that simple follow me is the continual invitation from Jesus! Follow me entails movement, action, and embodiment. Let s follow Jesus and see where this leads! 15 When they had finished eating, Jesus said to Simon Peter, "Simon son of John, do you truly love me more than these?" "Yes, Lord," he said, "you know that I love you." Jesus said, "Feed my lambs." 16 Again Jesus said, "Simon son of John, do you truly love me?" He answered, "Yes, Lord, you know that I love you." Jesus said, "Take care of my sheep." 17 The third time he said to him, "Simon son of John, do you love me?" Peter was hurt because Jesus asked him the third time, "Do you love me?" He said, "Lord, you know all things; you know that I love you." Jesus said, "Feed my sheep. 18 I tell you the truth, when you were younger you dressed yourself and went where you wanted; but when you are old you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will dress you and lead you where you do not want to go." 19 Jesus said this to indicate the kind of death by which Peter would glorify God. Then he said to him, "Follow me!"
Saturday, June 27 Luke s conclusion to the Gospel is one that is equally rich with imagery and purpose as the other Gospels. Read Luke 24:44-49. The word that Jesus uses to describe these leaders are witnesses. They witnessed the acts of God in Jesus Christ- acts like healings, teachings with authority, miracles, death and now resurrection. They are invited to not hold it in for themselves but to do something with this Good News! For a moment, contemplate this question: What am I a witness of in God s grand story of redemption? Perhaps today, you can begin to see afresh the movement of God in you, around you, in the past, leading into the future and wherever you look! For you are also a witness to the Good News of Jesus Christ as you seek to Embody Christ each day! 44 He said to them, "This is what I told you while I was still with you: Everything must be fulfilled that is written about me in the Law of Moses, the Prophets and the Psalms." 45 Then he opened their minds so they could understand the Scriptures. 46 He told them, "This is what is written: The Christ will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day,
47 and repentance and forgiveness of sins will be preached in his name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. 48 You are witnesses of these things. 49 I am going to send you what my Father has promised; but stay in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high."