Which list are you on?

As the echoes of Christmas fade away and a new year begins I still find myself humming little jingles such as “So be good for goodness sake…”; words that imply somebody knows our good and bad side and such knowledge has implications for us down the road. All things said and done I suppose we are always on one or more lists.

Sports teams have the A and B roster. In academia there are those who have earned the right to take advanced coursework and those who must stick with the basics. In technological fields there are persons who handle the basics but when real problems arise the “geek squad” is called in. In other words, all people are not on the front lines and under heavy expectations every day. Some are. Others hold the fort and maintain.

The Bethlehem story is utterly misunderstood if viewed in the light of sweetness and Victorian fluff. It is God’s loud call to “pick a side.” Note the characters in the story; whether Mary and Joseph or magi or shepherds they are all called to pick a place to stand and put lives and souls on the line. The Nativity introduces Jesus into the real situation of human politics and corruption allied with the Evil One who does not want the message of salvation to grow and take root in the world.

As the new year begins we should all do a “soul check” and see just where we stand in the eyes of God. For most of us, our Christian life is largely lived out through our community at Good Shepherd. Even here we have two lists: Active and Inactive. An active membership indicates involvement in worship, Christian growth and education, and monetary support. An Inactive person may fall into several categories. A person may be elderly or sick and can no longer be present at worship. Financial situations may have changed and a person may no longer be able to give. Others just vanish and we have no idea of their desire to remain a member or not.

Then there are those to whom Good Shepherd is a service that provides spaces for baptisms, weddings, and funerals. There is no need to show up and hear God’s Word or to receive the sacraments. That person will never take a Christian formation class or engage in Bible study or feel a need to change any aspect of their lives because of the findings of some spiritual exercise or soul changing encounter. These folks are by some happenstance a part of the community but they are not in the community. Christian communal life demands connection, growth, awareness, sharing, and a strong sense of our place as we stand before and awesome and mighty God.

The story of Jesus and the Christian faith rolls like an avalanche from Bethlehem and smashes full tilt into our world inhabited by temporary beings, with false understandings and insecure security, and desires that bring no real healthy profit.

Here at Good Shepherd we are struggling to take the right path, to follow Jesus, to be made over in his image, to see with his eyes, to love and be loved with the undying love of God. We want to be on the “right list” in the Kingdom of Heaven.

See you in Church on Sunday,

Andrew +