Inviting, Obvious, Open

This summer, our church has been studying the book of Mark. It is an eye-opening book on how to be a true follower of Jesus. I have taken so many life-changing lessons from this series, but today touched me the most of all. This blog is going to summarize the sermon today... I wish I could take credit for what I'm about to write, but Pastor Steve McEuen is the mastermind behind it all.

Let's look at Mark 10:46-52 where it is written, "Then they came to Jericho. As Jesus and his disciples, together with a large crowd, were leaving the city, a blind man, Bartimaeus (which means 'son of Timaeus'), was sitting by the roadside begging. When he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to shout, 'Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!' Many rebuked him and told him to be quiet, but he shouted all the more, 'Son of David, have mercy on me!' Jesus stopped and said, 'Call him.' So they called to the blind man, 'Cheer up! On your feet! He's calling you.' Throwing his cloak aside, he jumped to his feet and came to Jesus. 'What do you want me to do for you?' Jesus asked him. The blind man said, 'Rabbi, I want to see.' 'Go,' said Jesus, 'your faith has healed you.' Immediately, he received his sight and followed Jesus along the road."

In this passage, Bartimaeus is desperately seeking Jesus. He is crying out to him, sure that only Christ himself can heal his ailments. Sadly, Jesus's disciples have taken it upon themselves to be his "entourage" instead of his followers. Feeling they have to protect him from the lowly people along the side of the road, they holler for Bartimaeus to be quiet. His persistence pays off, as Jesus turns his attention to Bartimaeus and ultimately heals him.

As for the disciples? How are they any different than the church today? Too often, we are trying to "protect" God from all of the sin in this world. Instead of welcoming those desperately crying out to Him, we are turning them away with our sideways glances, our scorn, our words, our actions, our inattention, our ignorance... the list could go on and on and on. The church should be the very place that ANYONE can turn to when they need to seek love, peace, guidance, help, acceptance... you name it. Unfortunately, this is not the case.

Van Gogh painted "The Church at Auvers" during his last year of life. Van Gogh desired to be a part of the ministry himself, but he was turned away time and time again. As someone who suffered from a mental illness, he was not "church material" in the eyes of his community.

Study this painting closely. What do you see?

In this painting, the church is cast with dark shadows. Death has consumed this church. Another eye-opening oddity? There is no entrance to this church. It is completely closed off to the outside.

How often are churches today guilty of closing out the world? How often are we guilty of turning away those who aren't dressed the "right way"... or listen to different music than we do... or have tattoos... or live their lives differently than us?

Too often.

We are called to be INVITING.

We are called to be OBVIOUS.

We are called to be OPEN.

Jesus has not called us to be his entourage. He does not need protection from ANYTHING. He is sovereign over ALL the Earth. We are called to be the entry point into His church. The love of Christ needs to be obvious in our lives. How we act, what we say, everything we do needs to reflect Christ. Lastly, we need to be open to those God places in our lives. If we close out those who are different, we just may be closing out those who are desperately seeking God's healing grace.

Wow! What a lesson to take in. I choked over many of his words. When reflecting on my own life, I have realized that I often close out those who I should be opening up to the most. I realize that we are all sinners, but to turn someone away from the very place they should go to seek refuge is appalling. I often get caught up in life's petty trial, fallacious gossip, undo stress, and so much more. What is this doing to better God's kingdom? Nothing. What is it doing to detract from the very one who can heal? Everything. What can I do to be a follower instead of a part of an entourage? Pray.

I want to be inviting.

I want to be obvious.

I want to be open.

Who's with me?