“See you Sunday!”
“I won’t be here,” I said, “I’ll be in San Francisco for work”
“Oh. Well. Are you going to be OK?” Their face usually has a bit of concern at this point.
“Yeah. Of course. Why?”
“Well, you know, that city. It’s….San Francisco.” A little chuckle and a knowing look tends to accompany this statement.
I’ve had that conversation a few times in the last couple weeks. Part of me understands that many have an unrealistic picture of what San Francisco is like. They hear it is a bastion for homosexuality and liberal thought and equate it with Sodom and Gomorrah. They recoil from sin. I don’t think the recoiling is rooted in a pursuit of the holiness of God though. I think more often it is rooted in ridicule and judgment.
What happened?
This is when I start to ask questions. What happened to the church against which the gates of Hell would not prevail? What happened to being salt and light? What happened to the good news of Jesus Christ being for everyone? What happened to the great commission?
Lazarus, come forth!
Folks, it is time to stop hiding. According to this research a large number of non-Christians don’t know ANY Christians. Now, I think they know Christians, but they don’t know that their friends actually are Christians. Why are Christians afraid of non-Christians to the point that they don’t share their faith? Brothers and Sisters, we have been made new in Christ. He has called us from our graves, just as He called Lazarus from the tomb. We are not made new in order to hide. Christ says that a city on a hill cannot be hidden, nor do you light lamps and put them under baskets. (Matt 5:14-16) Stop hiding in the tomb of sinful flesh, and come forth in the power of the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
The Gospel is the answer.
The answer to sin is not our separation. The answer to sin is not our condemnation. The answer to sin is not our ridicule and scorn. The answer to sin is the Gospel. Can you imagine if God, instead of dying on the cross and accomplishing an effective atonement, simply condemned all to hell? That would certainly be His right. He is holy, and we are rebellious sinners. However, God is rich in mercy and love and descended to earth, taking on flesh in the person of Jesus. Jesus lived the life we couldn’t, died the death we should, and rose again in victory proving his deity and to give life to those who call upon Him.
How then shall we live?
Don’t see people purely for their sin, but as fellow image bearers of Almighty God. They have worth because He made them. Resist the temptation to put yourself in a ghetto by choice. Get out and experience the world in all its beauty. When you meet unbelievers, push down the temptation to pronounce judgment, and fan the flame of gospel compassion. Remember, at one time you were an unredeemed sinner just as they are. I am not calling you to approve of sin, but I am calling you to love your neighbor as yourself. People don’t want to be your project, they want to know you care. So, love sinners. Be their friends. Give them the gospel with grace and humility. They may never repent, but will you be there to see if they do?
I just got back from San Francisco. What I found is lost people who have the same problems as my lost neighbors. The lost have their identity wrapped up in worldliness. Some place identity in their sexuality. There are many in my town who do the same, and whether heterosexual or homosexual, sexual immorality is still sin. Some place identity in money and possessions, as do many of my neighbors. Some place it in approval, again so do many of my neighbors. We compare our sins to others and judge them harshly, which is foolishness. Do you really think your sin is more pleasing than theirs? Sin is sin.
Is your identity then in your sin and failure, or in Christ and what He has done?
