Recently I published part of this writing (which I have to finish one of these days). I'm sure I cannot cope with the amount of things I see don't walk with Jesus' core teachings. Happily, I'm not in need of converting people to jewish traditions (such as circumcision or keeping along the passover and other jewish feasts), because I see Jesus -himself- keeping most of them up to his last breath, one of these holydays. He, in fact, fulfilled many promises God made in the Old Testament, just to ease the Gentiles access to Mercy and Grace, under a “New” Treaty or Testament of that Covenant.
In those days, like today, many argued on “their” works, their preaching and miracles. Many will say to me in that day, “Lord!, Lord! Have we not prophesied in thy name and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works?” (Matt. 7:22). Some may say “we did this in the name of God”, but Jesus Christ crearly taught about OBEDIENCE, and this is the clue God will consider in selecting His people, as the mean source and criteria for human justification.
Moses served and met God, talking directely to Him and seing His glory, but -when being punished- he wasn't allowed to enter the promised land (What do you want immensely, that God may use it to put you under His tests?).
Some popular “doctrines” tend to promote we are not under the law, that we're freed from it; but many preachers use jewish messages targetted to gentiles (such as I Peter, when he addressed jewish people “as holy nation...”) to spur pagans to think differently of that they know it's true.
Jesus said: “Go to all nations” (...) (Mat 28:19 Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them) but He also said go to jewish people first: “Do not go by samaritan roads (...) but to those of the house of Israel”.
The former promises are for Israel's people, and these came to us (pagans) just to move jewish race to jealosy and real convertion: They kept the fruit of the law for themselves, they wanted to have exclusive rights in God's blessing. Coud I stop the sun from shining in latinamerican countries?
Deut. 10:17 For the LORD your God is God of gods (...), which regardeth not persons (...)
Deut. 10:18 (...) love the stranger
Deut. 10:19 Love (...) the stranger (...).
God's plan is a universal blessing, with jews and gentiles as one (jews largely made the mistake of considering themselves better than other nations and by several reasons, hindered gentiles the entrance to the benefits of the former covenant), but here I'll try to point to odd things.
1. Reaching the unreachable.
Most of Jesus' teaching was outside buildings, outdoors and public. There were 12 apostles who were trained for 3,5 years, and only 11 survived to do it in Israel -and outside that land, just for short years.
The great commission was not a passive invitation to draw people's attendance to a place, but to “go to nations” and “make disciples”. None of the twelve was ordered to make apostles or pastors, but disciples of Jesus' teaching (since He is the Lord and Master).
We, as His people, can do what he commanded to His former disciples; do we need a building and the cost of an finite structure?
We work to make our life more convenient, comfortably easy, and that's necessarily legal. What other way do we have to bring home food and the money we use to pay for services, dressing, housing and schooling? We've been given habilities, talents, to work on these to help us and beging to help others. That's logical!
The unreached feel the same and work for same reasons we ought to. Sometimes the think they're not getting enough and life becomes empty, meaningless, as we have felt. They cannot find a relief on drugs, alcohol, and some may live on relief for the abandonment they got for a couple of wrong decisions (but there still a chance).
I cannot talk about me, but I know people who live on God's provisions (there are many good books written on such experiences). Those who served in a ministry, and then swiched to secular work, and found themselves jobless when He wanted them to come back to the place He wanted them to be in. Does it sound familiar to you?
According to the Old testament, priests were to depend on God's provision and, in fact, they got enough to live. These things happened to many people in history, same way preachers and christian singers testify to be true, but the unreached keep on saying that it is not: There's no way to prove it unless God work around unbelievers with true believers (that's why christians ought to work hard and get more, just to have money and things to share) (if they want).
I've seen how God has helped me during these 10 past years. He has led my life without my concious noticing, and this happen to many people and nations. The unreached, later than never, will surrender to the One He has appointed as Lord of lords, and we have to confess before His throne.
Will the unreached go to our churches for invitations or real convertion?
I've seen how some parties are set and organized in churches. I've eaten well cooked food there, but this reminds me of such Christ himself gave (John 6:26). Why is it a cold and empty place for the unreached?
Attendance is not an indicator for teaching success neither it is the reason for churchy assemblies. Are we working to bring people to Jesus or to bring money for human goals?
Relationship, the real connetion, is the basic failure we -as humans- face. I cannot befriend anyone if she/he is not willing to, I cannot lead anybody is I'm not led by the Real Teacher, with the correct motivation: Pure Love.
To meet God He has to be willing to come near (that's God decision). We cannot hold a relationship by using emotional side arms, when giving a political hug or a forced smile in the face of a newcomer. We have to be true friends! (I confess this is a sin I have to work on these days).
The job to make connections and nurture living relationships is not only to pastors, but to believers (Luke 24:47-48). Otherwise, they'll be inviting people to serve tables and attend to religious shows.
Today we are free to go to Israel -if we've got the money, but there is not such Holy Temple built and God is outside working to draw his loved ones. We can pretend we're doing it well, but that's our common failure. Are we trying to make friends to bring them to church or to Jesus?
Jah witnesses work to bring people to somewhere... There were jews bringing proselytes to their sects in Jesus' time. What are we doing then?
I've seen some religious movements in Venezuela. These use political power to bring followers and money to grab some of them to their staff. Do we have to do the same?
The unreached are not unreachable, but these are on God's fingers and mercy. We, as christians, ought to visit poor homes, built sane relationships with sick people, imprisoned ones, and all the sort of human beings God thinks of we can work for.
2. Secularism.
Catholic sincretism has invented too many traditions to bypass those jews kept, as well as Jesus (a jew). Its secularism has mingled pagan traditions with “holy” days we yearly enjoy as vacations, while the crowd follow its hierachic structure and governmet, settled on 7 hills of Rome (read about these on Revelations). What about of those days of its inquisition?
By time, true christians won't follow the example of such worldly church: Babylon! We were insalivated as food by its teaching, same way as the internet seems to be part of its ultimate control over human race. Are there people willing to read from the Bible to learn by themselves?
It won't be easy to be amish. They would set certain amount of reasoning to avoid admiting me as fellow member, same as jews regret proselytes frrom my cultural background. Are we being save by following religion?
I'm amased for the need we human show to get the truth or an additional revelation. We hunger, within ourselves, to find a thing we consider lost or somewhere missing, and in this process of getting it, some go back and forth, indulging themselves in modeling surgery, drugs to remain young or mentally alive, the legal change of sex role and whatever thing anyone may consider serve to find that way: I won't say this is Jesus, because it is His business to show and save people, just by personal experience, not by religion.
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