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Friday, August 12, 2011 |
The Mission
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-"That
same day Jesus went out of the house and sat beside the lake. Such great
crowds gathered around him that he got into a boat and sat there, while the
whole crowd stood on the beach. And he told them many things in parables,
saying: ‘Listen! A sower went out to sow. And as he sowed, some seeds fell
on the path, and the birds came and ate them up. Other seeds fell on rocky
ground, where they did not have much soil, and they sprang up quickly, since
they had no depth of soil. But when the sun rose, they were scorched; and
since they had no root, they withered away. Other seeds fell among thorns,
and the thorns grew up and choked them. Other seeds fell on good soil and
brought forth grain, some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. Let anyone
with ears listen!’"-Matthew 13: 1-9
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The parable of the sower is well known, and Jesus is
explaining an important aspect of the Church's life;
that sometimes things just aren't going to work. This
is what I always remember when I read this passage. The
Church has a mission, and the mission is simple, do the
work of Jesus Christ in this world; this includes
ministry to those in need in body and soul. But
sometimes our efforts are going to fail. Sometimes
things just aren't going to work. Look at the parable.
Most of the seed produces nothing. It falls on people
who can't hear it, don't want to hear it or are too busy
to hear it. They just aren't going to get it. Which is
a major bummer.
And this heartens me, because it reminds me that our
work has a margin for error. We are absolutely supposed
to be out there, doing God's work, but the expectation
of that work will never be perfection, a 100% pass rate,
an A+. Instead, we should consider our success rate as
a batter in baseball considers his. 30% is pretty
good. If 30% of what we do yields fruit; if people hear
the Word and respond, if people get help who are in
need. If these things happen with some regularity then
the Church is doing it's job. The problem is that too
often, the Church accepts results far below this.
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Prayer: Holy God, I ask that you would help me to do your
work. Help me to serve you with energy, passion and enthusiasm.
Help me to spread your Word all over this world. I pray in Jesus'
name. Amen.
[Phillip Blackburn, First Presbyterian Church] |
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