Here’s the last part in the series, “It’s Your Moment.” To review what we’ve previously discussed, click any of the links below:
- Your true identity in part one.
- You find hope in God who changes times in part two.
- Be strong and courageous in part three.
Take a look at this scripture, which we will use as the foundation for our reflection,
Now the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. And when they saw him they worshiped him, but some doubted. And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” Matthew 28:16-20.
You may have heard of that passage or read it once or a few times if you are a regular Church goer as well as a Bible student.
For us to understand it better, we need to place it into context of what the whole Bible is all about.
The Context
Personally, I look at the Bible as a book that gives us an account of God’s story. God is the writer, the owner of, and the main actor in the story.
What does that mean then?
The point is that there are three major parts in God’s story:
- First Part: God creates everyone and everything. I call this: The Beginnings.
- Second Part: God comes and lives among us.
- Third Part: God restores everything through judgment.
The First Part of God’s Story
The first part in God’s story is that God designed everything we see and what we don’t see. Read Genesis 1 and 2.
What comes with that is God made humans in God’s image with the freedom to choose between good and evil.
However, from the very beginning, humans that we all are chose evil over good. We chose to listen to Satan instead of God.
As a result, according to Genesis 3, that bad choice came with the following consequences:
- Sin.
- Death.
- Hatred.
- Illnesses.
- Pain and suffering.
- And more.
[bctt tweet=”Disobedience to God makes us loose order, harmony, and balance on all levels of life. And, consequently, this choice also kicks us out of that place where we can experience true peace, love, joy, and hope. ” username=”emmanuelnaweji”]
Of course, you and I cannot change the Beginnings, but learn from our past sins and mistakes.
The Second Part of God’s Story
When you read the first 5 books of the Bible (Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy), you come across different ways with the goal to help us come back to God.
Eventually God would choose to come and live among us. That’s the story you read in the four Gospels: Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.
[bctt tweet=”God coming to us through Christ is the only way for us to get back to this place of order, harmony, and balance. It’s the only way for us to find hope, and experience joy, love and peace once again. ” username=”emmanuelnaweji”]
Jesus Christ spent over three years with the disciples showing them how this is possible.
Following Christ and walking just as Christ walked shouldn’t be a science. Sometimes, that’s what I feel we, the 21st century-Church, have made it sound like.
When you read the Gospels, you’ll realize that Christ wanted his disciples never to look at faith (Christian living) as a science or something very difficult to achieve.
Unlike the Pharisees, the Sadducees, and all the other teachers of the Law, Jesus summarized everything from the Old Testament Laws into two simple things:
- Love God with all that you are and have (soul, mind, heart, and strength), and
- Love your neighbor as yourself.
It’s in this second part of God’s story that you and I come into play. In other words, this part of the story helps us find our place and role in God’s story.
If there’s anything you can influence it is this part of God’s story. Before talking about that a little more, let’s first briefly discuss the third part of the story.
The Third Part of God’s Story
The last part of God’s story has to do with the end. Whether we agree with this or not, or like it or not, God has already set a day when God will come back to judge the quick and dead.
It’s part of our Christian belief.
Jesus, several times through the Gospels, affirmed his second coming. The Book of Revelation (last book in our Christian Bible) also talks about it.
The book of Acts puts it this way as part of the account on Jesus’ ascension into heaven,
And while they were gazing into heaven as he went, behold, two men stood by them in white robes, and said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into heaven? This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.” Acts 1:10-11.
So, the first part of God’s story (The Beginnings) and the last part (The End) are the two parts in God’s story that you and I have no control over.
We can only do something about the middle part of God’s story: our place and role.
Your Place and Role in God’s Story
Back to Matthew 28, Christ tells us our place and role in God’s story:
- Your place is to be a disciple of Christ.
- Your role is to make disciples.
Yes, that’s it.
But, now, how do we accomplish all that?
That’s where we either struggle or thrive as individual disciples or a congregation. And, there are many reasons that can explain the outcome of the way we play our role.
Sometimes, I feel we change the order of things. Instead of discerning first our place, we jump into the role of making disciples.
Doing so may turn the process into something like work we do, and which we don’t like at the same time.
My experience, as a Pastor, for the last 15 years sometimes makes me feel I’m doing work instead of playing my role. I know you also feel the same at times.
What has helped me though is to re-order things in my life. Prayer helps me return to my place, which is to always be a disciple.
As a disciple, I feel like making disciples is an organic way of life I have embraced through faith in Jesus Christ, my Lord and Savior.
Consequently, I know this is my moment too because I am here. Since I am alive, and the fact that I’m a disciple of Christ, I will continue sharing my faith through the different roles I play in life.
In Conclusion
God’s story is about God who wants you back into the place God has already prepared for you to have. Finding your place in God’s story will help you clarify your role. Trust me, God will show it to you. But, start first at finding your place: choose to be a faithful and true disciple of Jesus Christ.
