Discipleship
Seeing Through the Eyes of Jesus
Sunday 13th June 2010
Welcome to worship today. I was reading our Ashmore Uniting Church “Vision, Values & Faith Goals” this week looking to see how we have embraced the call to “Discipleship” in the DNA of our Church. I did not find the word “discipleship” in any of the document, but the action of “discipleship” was clear throughout the whole document. Our Vision says that we are to be…..
A loving church, focused on the Gospel of Christ:
- reaching out
- meeting needs
- equipping people for service
We can only embrace this vision by being “disciples of Jesus”. Even the “Faith Goals” pick up this important theme of “discipleship” without using the specific word “discipleship”. Have a look for yourself:-
1. Welcome people of all ages and backgrounds into a caring Christian Community
2. Invite people into relationship with Jesus Christ and encourage active participation in the life of the church
3. Support and nurture people to know, understand and become more like Christ
4. Worship God faithfully through celebration, prayer, and study of the Bible
5. Teach, encourage and empower people to use their gifts and resources for ministry
6. Call, equip and support Christians to be leaders in the church and in the community
7. Take Christ’s message of hope, acceptance and new life into the community through word and action
Now these are great words on a page aren’t they? The real Goal of us as the Body of Christ, is to live out our discipleship so that we see people as God sees them. We’ve got to learn to view life through God’s eyes.
This passage from Luke 7: 36 – 8:3 gives us an awesome look into the way Jesus sees people. Jesus asks Simon the Pharisee, “Do you see this woman?” (v44). It is a revealing question. No, the Pharisee doesn’t really see the woman. He sees her only as a “sinner” (v.39). He ignores the rest of her. Jesus sees her otherwise…as a person of worth, forgiven and created in God’s image…broken but now restored…”Your sins are forgiven”(48), “Your faith has saved you; go in peace”(v.50).
Jesus gives us many gifts, in order that we are equipped to be his disciples. One of those gifts is the gift of sight (“I have come to give sight to the blind..” – Luke 4:18)
Jesus becomes the lens through which we look at the world. Looking through him, to the world, we see things that the world does not see. We notice things that the world tends to overlook. Such is his grace.
May you see things differently this week as you look through the eyes of Jesus…..Rev. Brad Foote
