Variables

One evening at a church I was attending the pastor had us all get involved in some congregational participation. We were asked to share verses that showed the blessings of obedience. Had I not known anyone there it would have been a fine sampling of the vastness of blessings that the Scriptures cover. However, knowing most of the people there fairly well, I was more impressed and amused at how predictable people were in the verses they shared. In fact, I probably could have matched the list of verses to the list of sharers with little difficulty. For example, the verse, "it is more blessed to give than to receive" (Acts 20:35) was shared by one of the deacons. One of the more "Type A" members enthusiastically shared the verse that says the Lord will "bless all the work of your hands. You will lend to many nations but will borrow from none" (Deut. 28:12).

A Rescue Mission worker shared his favorite verse, "Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me" (Mat 25:40). He was followed by a quiet young woman shyly raised her hand to share "blessed are the meek for they will inherit the earth" (Matthew 5:5).

So what is it with us that makes us so predictable as individuals? As I thought about it, I realized those traits that set each of us apart as individuals is what being parts of the Body is all about. That is why there can only be wholeness through each of the many parts being united together. There can only be balance and completeness in the Christian Body through the joining all of its members' various personalities, persuasions, and insights, to the enrichment of everyone.

My favorite verse of the evening was shared by one of the older women who stood and read,"..and there shall no longer be any curse, and the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it, and His bond servants shall serve Him; and they shall see His face and His name shall be on their foreheads" Rev. 22:3-5(KJV). This Godly old saint's vision was now focused on the glorious future. How perfect, and how necessary her perspective was in rounding out the sharing and in helping us younger Christians widen our vision beyond the present and our own narrow perspective. This reinforces the point that differences are not only to be tolerated but to be encouraged and enjoyed as a blessing from God. However, that can make a seeming dilemma for new believers. If they are trying to imitate other believers they could end up anywhere from confused to totally frustrated and disillusioned. They must, instead, come to understand that their only true Model is Christ, and that their own walk with God will be as individual as they are as a person.

Once one has accepted Jesus as their own personal Savior, their relationship with Him will begin to develop. As individual as any father and son, our relationship with our Heavenly Father will grow according to our own individual personality and needs, and His customized plan for our life. In a spiritually healthy environment, this relationship, unique only to him and God, will be encouraged. God, who is far beyond man's full comprehension, will reveal Himself in a special way to each of His children. They can freely seek Him without fear of condemnation and discover the gifts and abilities unique only to themselves. They can seek fellowship with other believers and be able to give, receive and grow through healthy interaction.

Finding that group of believers, though, can often be a challenge. People do tend to naturally migrate to others with similar likes, interests, backgrounds, needs, and in the case of the church, beliefs. Hence, we have the numerous Christian denominations all with their own particular bent, but still linked by the common faith in Christ. Being in a group with beliefs similar to our own is, in general, a good idea. Still, even within individual churches, as shown by the example above, there can, and will be variations. Again, this is not a negative but one of the strengths of being a part of the Body. Unfortunately this is not always the case. Differences can lead to divisions, and the in-house squabbling begins. One quickly realizes that the same imperfect men who were originally saved by grace, are now the imperfect forgiven men trying to work together as the Lord's family, often judging or rejecting those with opposing views on relatively minor issues.

The Lord knew that His children would struggle with this and dedicated many a chapter of the Scriptures to the issue of unity in the church. They state that He "has combined the members of the Body...so that there should be no division in the Body but that it's parts should have equal concern for each other" (1 Cor 12:24,25). We are urged, "Therefore, let us stop passing judgement on one another. Instead make up your mind not to put any stumbling block or obstacle in your brother's way" (Rm 14:13). God has strictly spoken against believers imposing their own standards on one another, thereby not allowing each other to walk in the liberty of His Holy Spirit's guidance.

God has called each of us to study the Word diligently for ourselves and determine where He would have us stand on various issue. We are told that the "faith which you have, have as your own conviction before God" (Romans 14:22 NAS). He has given each of us freedom from the rules of men to find the truth of God. While we are not to look to others to make our spiritual decisions for us, it is still important to seek out fellowship with other believers. We cannot live out our faith in isolation. The church, imperfect as it is at this time, is still the Body of Christ and works only through the uniting of the various parts. So at the same time we are discovering our own personal convictions before God, we are urged to join together with other believers to mutually encourage each other as we grow. Remember, you probably won't find a group that will be in perfect agreement on every point and issue (they aren't out there). Instead, seek a group that is compatible in the areas tha! t are of the most importance to you. Ideally, one should seek a group with the Spirit-filled quality of acceptance that encourages individual freedom within the Body.

My husband and I had the incredible blessing of attending a church that truly attempts to be just this way. From the pastor and on throughout the congregation, this is a group that does its best to defy many of the traditional stereotypes that the Church has today. In fact, individual opinion and variety is encouraged so much that the pastor (in an act of what was either boldness or naivety) had the nerve to pass out a questionnaire to every member of the congregation requesting that they freely express their opinions on a variety of subjects. The survey was over 20 pages long and covered every area of the worship service, from prelude, to welcome and announcements, to children's church to the sermon and closing. He ended with a "free-for-all" section where parishioners could comment on any area they wished. Generally when one asks for opinions, that's exactly what they will get, and this was no exception. To add to the intrigue of this daring idea, he went on to publish ! every one of the responses to each member. The results were extremely revealing, incredibly diversified, and in some cases, downright funny. Let me share some of the published results.

When asked to share their opinions and preferences concerning the music in the church, responses included "upbeat gospel music sets a joyful tone to start the service", "something more lively would be refreshing; folk guitar, praise songs - let the congregation clap along and get `livened up'", "there is too much singing", "getting away from tradition is distracting", "slow, lethargic hymns are distracting", "I don't really appreciate some of the sing-along songs and repeat-after-me type of things", "more praise songs", "music played faster and peppy", "let's do another hymn from the hymnal", and finally, "I think our services could do without as much music, and yet, when I say that I know that some are moved by music and would miss it". Wouldn't you love the job of Music Minister for this bunch?

Regarding the sermon, here are some of the choice comments he received: "Very inspirational", "I am always blessed and strengthened", "I like the newer style he is showing, the emotion and the effort he puts in", "I fear a trend towards fundamentalism", "I am moved by some but do not like extreme emotionalism. I believe pauses and low-key dramatic pacing moves me more", "I am always blessed and strengthened by them. He shows us that Jesus is Lord and God is our strength and refuge", and "I was worried for two Sundays that we were heading towards Southern Baptist fundamental service".

This vast range of opinions, ideas, desires, foibles, and visions this one group of people had for their church is further proof that God really has made each person to be unique and one of a kind. How healthy for a congregation to be able to acknowledge all those differences yet still work together for the common goal of growing and serving the Lord. But what a challenge to keep them all working together in harmony. Compromise and giving preference to one another is not an option. Tolerance and acceptance has to predominate over individual preferences. Humanly, unity would be impossible, but "all things are possible with God" (Mark 10:27) through the power of His Spirit. That attribute is one of the surest signs of a healthy, Spirit-filled church. The Lord says, "..by their fruit you will recognize them" (Matthew 7:16), and then later goes on to explain that "the fruit of the Spirit is Love..." (Gal. 5:22).

Variables are not problems to be resolved but strengths to be encouraged and utilized. The best gift we can offer each other as brothers and sisters in God's family is the freedom to explore who we are and how we fit into the whole as individuals. Yes, there are absolutes of the faith, the areas the Bible clearly lays out for us in black and white. There are also many grey areas, where the Lord did not chose to give direct commands or clear answers. As seen above, Christians are as colorful and varied as all the rest of God's creation. Variables are those wonderful diversities that gives each person their own distinct place and necessary part of the whole. As you encounter such differences among fellow believers my hope is that you will feel the freedom and confidence to seek the Lord on each issue and discover His truth in the Word, and find who He has made you to be in His Body.