Reformission and Hope for Life

Some of the leading universal causes of stress are related to health, finances and work. In English, there is an expression “trying to keep your head above water”, which aptly describes the struggle of many to make it in life. How would you feel if you were on the Titanic, knowing what the outcome would be? People often try to find formulas for success or security in government, religion, or self-help programs. But hope has to reach beyond the vicissitudes of life for it to have meaning. It has to be founded on truth.

Ukraine is nearing parliamentary elections, so political billboards are everywhere. One candidate promises stability and prosperity, which speaks to a common need. Another slogan says: “One law for all”, which speaks to the need for justice in a nation where corruption is rampant. However, Russia and Ukraine did not make the list of "Forbes" most corrupt nations. That is reassuring. One candidate is shown slamming his fist in anger with a lightning bolt behind him. I am not sure what he is promising, but it does not look appealing.

Karl Marx, the father of communism, called religion “the opium of the masses, the impotence of the human mind to deal with occurrences it cannot understand.” But we all know where his philosophy led. This part of the world is still overcoming the repercussions of his philosophy.

When it comes to placing hope in religion, there are enough religions out there to fill the "Yellow Pages". God, the One who created us, gives us truth on which we can base our lives, bringing hope for this life as well as for eternity.

Here are a few thoughts contrasting the “head above water” mentality and “life on the Rock” (founded on truth):

Trying to keep your head above water:

1. makes you exhausted.

2. is self-centered. How can you help others when you need all of your energy to survive?

3. will only work for awhile, until you are rescued or drown (assuming there is no tropical island within swimming distance). That’s where people think they are going when they are lured into seductive lifestyles that end up empty and hopeless. Nothing but sand.

Life on the Rock:
1. You can rest on the finished work of Christ, which is how you get on the Rock in the first place.

2. You can help others, because you have answers outside of yourself that are for everyone.

3. You do not have to depend on your own strength, but have the wisdom and strength from God to do what is right.

4. Your hope will not be disappointed, because God has the power to back up His promises.

“Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash." (Matthew 7:24-27)

Reformission and Unconditional Love

What are your favorite films? According to David Bruce, host of HollywoodJesus.com, the top 100 films of all time have one thing in common. They are about relationship. It is what people seek most. I don’t know how many men they surveyed, but even top action films that are the most successful have relational themes beyond grunts and fists connecting with bodies. I like action films, when the plot is interesting.

The same is true of music. The top songs are all about relationship. These words from Kelly Clarkson’s “You Found Me” show the kind of relationship people are searching for in the hurting, lonely cultures in which we live.

You found me when no one else was lookin’
How did you know just where I would be
You broke through all of my confusion
The ups and the downs and you still didn’t leave
I guess that you saw what nobody could see
You found me

This is a picture of God’s kind of love, the unconditional love He showed when He came to seek and save that which was lost, dying for us while we were still sinners. We are called to demonstrate this kind of love to the people in the cultures in which we live. Here in Kiev a few days ago I saw a young woman among the passers by dressed in a skimpy top and black underwear. Yes, underwear, not shorts. She looked as if she was asking to be invited to a bathroom stall, not to be loved as a multi-faceted, beautiful creation of God. Warped value systems. Broken families and relationships. These are some of the areas we need to minister to in this culture. In every culture if people attempt to draw life from something besides God, their souls will become bankrupt sooner or later.

In his book The Radical Reformission, Mark Driscoll challenges believers in Jesus Christ to make a commitment to love what God loves: people, not traditions, and to stay true to the text of scripture within the context of culture. This requires us to go into the cultures in which we live to demonstrate and minister the gospel.

“Reformission requires that God’s people understand their mission with razor-sharp clarity. The mission is to be close to Jesus. This transforms our hearts to love what he loves, hate what he hates, and to pursue relationships with lost people in hopes of connecting with them and, subsequently, connecting them with him. This actually protects us from sin, because the way to avoid sin is not to avoid sinners, but to stick close to Jesus.”
Mark Driscoll, “The Radical Reformission”

I want to thank VCF in the Philippines for their heart and example in understanding and walking out this mission in their culture.

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