What Have We Become?

I have begin to wonder what we have become as a "Body of Christ?" Have we become what Jesus would want us to be? Have we become so attached to the worlds system of "power over" that we hvae forgotten that Jesus' system is one of "power under?" We have come to think that we must have power over things. We have come to think that we must make sure people "make a decision" for Christ right now. We have come to think that we are some how in control of what will happen now and for eternity. We have lost the power that comes from being a servant to all.

"You've observed how godless rulers throw their weight around, how quickly a little power goes to their heads. It's not going to be that way with you. Whoever wants to be great must become a servant. Whoever wants to be first among you must be your slave. That is what the Son of Man has done: He came to serve, not be served—and then to give away his life in exchange for the many who are held hostage."

Matthew 20:24

How often do we really serve others? How often are willing to exchange our lives for the ones who are held hostage? We have let the world's power go to our heads. We have told ourselves that we can use the system of the world, of the physical, to overcome the sin and evil in this world. We have come to think that we can actually control others and their behaviors through developing a system that is the same as the worlds. We have forgotten that Jesus did not come in this way. Jesus came to love and to serve, never to be served or to change others by force. I love this:

“I slept and dreamt that life was joy. I awoke and saw that life was service. I acted and behold, service was joy.”

Rabindranath Tagore

Jesus came to save the world through his service. Jesus came to save the world through the act of sacrifice of the cross. It was in this act of complete humbleness, complete lack of ego, and a complete selflessness. This gave Christ the ultimate power - through love. Would it be so bad to love those who we think are "different" than us? Would it be so bad to let people struggle in our mist and struggle along with them? Would it be so bad to let people know that they are loved and invite them into a conversation about spirituality and God? Would we find joy in our service? Jesus did and it seems to have turned out just fine.

Namaste'