One of the blessings of our Sunday gathering is the propensity some of the group have to comment on the meaning of the music we sing.
Today we began by singing HOW DEEP THE FATHER'S LOVE FOR US then HOW GREAT IS OUR GOD then HOW GREAT THOU ART in rapid fire succession.
That led to a discussion of the message of the cross, which is foolishness to those who are perishing but, to us, the greatest blessing and the cause of the most profound joy.
That discussion along with that singing lasted for about one hour: An hour in which probing questions were asked by a yet-to-be-convinced seeker and answers were given by several of us and through which the gospel was proclaimed and explained.
Recently I said to someone off the blog that Paul uses the word gospel as a verb more often than he uses the word preach as a verb. Preaching was not a part of early Christian gatherings. Gospeling, however, was. (1 Corinthians 15:1)
Today, there was a whole lot of Gospeling going on.
We talked about what sin is and why God punishes it and about what righteousness is and why God blesses it. We talked about how we can praise God for the act of sending Jesus to live in the world so He could suffer.
We gospeled to each other and our heretofore unbelieving friend.
Here's an oddity. In this setting, the unbeliever (my coworker Matt who invited himself to our gathering a while back) was on the hot seat for most of an hour and was clearly the focus of everyone's attention yet he was perfectly at ease and, very obviously, can't wait to come back for more.
This gathering may have been the most enjoyable of all so far because it was the most unplanned, Spirit-guided ever.
The meal was tasty and the taking of the bread and cup fit so perfectly because our entire focus was on the gospel it causes us to remember.
What a glorious day!
Glorious gospeling...love it because God led it. AND you gave the glory to God! Keep focusing on humanity desperate for Truth, in the Person of Jesus Christ, expressed by the simplicity of His people. Love to brothers and sisters of The Gathering!
ReplyDeleteAnd love back to you.
DeleteAn aspect of this way of being disciples living in community is how the Spirit use the gifts and callings of the whole body in His service.
As you know, I'm not Mr. warm and fuzzy. My calling and passion focus on truth. However, three people in the group are intensely relationship focused and practice hospitality as easily as they breathe. This group is a very warm, open group, despite the fact that I am part of it and that I live out my passion for truth without reservation. These gatherings have the feel of a party in spite of the fact that I am there, being myself without reservation.
Bottom line is that we do focus on humanity desperate for truth in the person of Jesus. And, we do it holistically in the Spirit as a body.
And, man! Is it fun!
It fascinates me how different the, em, ambiance? of our two meetings are, even though Evelyn and I are key participants in both. I think that the key factor is who the host/s is/are. Evie's hospitality rules our Sunday gathering. Hence it feels like a Kingdom banquet and it is open to all and to anything that might happen.
ReplyDeleteThe Thursday gathering's host is a very intense person who is more than a little OCD and is concerned with the fact that the way we live is very important to our relationship with the Lord.
Both bless me perhaps because they are so different.