TRANSFORM: DAY 33

SCRIPTURE READING - DAY 33


2 Corinthians 5:14-17

For Christ's love compels us, because we
are convinced that one died for all, and
therefore all died. And he died for all, that
those who live should no longer live for
themselves but for him who died for them
and was raised again. 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. Therefore, if
anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation;
the old has gone, the new has come! (NIV)


MEDITATION BY Jon Moore


We at CRM are fond of saying that Christians have a choice to make in regards to this world—to withdraw or engage. We see ourselves as a community of engagement. The challenge of such a commitment is that when we engage, we are more personally burdened by the reality of fallen creation.

Everywhere we go or look, we see pain, dysfunction, pride, deceit, violence—
the list is familiar. We see it not only outside our door, but also inside our communities and relationships. As Paul told the Philippians, “It has been granted to you on behalf of Christ not only to believe on him, but also to suffer for him.”

I spend a lot of my time inside the internal workings of CRM, an organization of broken but redeemed people, straining with all their might to serve Christ and the Church. From time to time, I find myself reacting to the inevitable offenses and failures of others by focusing on the affront, experiencing discouragement and separating myself from them. But then I realize that Christ died for all, and that I must not derive my ultimate view of those around me from their brokenness, which is universal, but from the fact that Christ loves and desires to redeem all.

Paul tells us that if we are in Christ, we are new creations. In terms of inspiration and hope, this is huge. He doesn’t just mean we are renewed. If that was the scope of it, we would merely be a breath of fresh air in an old world. It’s bigger than that. Through us, God introduces something new into creation, something that wasn’t there before: lives that have the power to contradict and transcend the old world. As new creations, we can overcome, believe, and attempt things beyond the static metrics of a fallen creation.

Knowing that I am working alongside those who are part of Christ’s new creation changes my perspective. I view their earthly struggles through the compassion of Christ and expect that they will see my struggles in a similar way. I believe they can change the world in ways that others cannot, and I give thanks that I co-labor with them.

As my eyes are opened to Christ's new creation, my burden feels lighter and my discouragement is transformed into hope. I am again excited to have been called to Christ’s work of making all things new.




REFLECTION


Who in your life causes you problems, work, stress, or embarrassment as they go about their tasks? Have you written them off as the “sum of their offenses?”


Who do you find yourself regularly offending as you go about your work or activities?


As a new creature, how can you respond to and move beyond the slights, affronts, and discourtesies that you experience from the new creatures that make up your community?