The Courts, Our Culture, and Our Calling

Last week's Supreme Court decisions have certainly generated lots of conversation and concern. The opinions rendered on voting rights and gay marriage as well as the debate in Congress over immigration reform causes people of faith to struggle with how to apply the Gospel of Christ in our polarized and changing culture. And no doubt, even among Christians there is a wide range of sincerely held convictions as to where the Church of today should stand on these issues.

One of the things I love about Memorial Baptist Church is that there is always room for devout people of faith to discuss openly, to disagree agreeably, and to refuse to let our different perspectives divide us or distract us from our mission in Christ.

Maybe the wisest path for us these days is to focus our attention on what we know, not just what we think. Here's what I know with a bedrock certainty, truth for which I would go to the wall:

• The Gospel of Jesus is for everyone. "Whosoever" is a big word. God so loved the world - no exceptions.
• The Church of Jesus is for all people as well. There is no room for exclusion or favoritism in the fellowship of Jesus. We are all prodigals coming home, not elder brothers guarding the door.
• As followers of Jesus we must seek to live out our faith in the tension between truth and grace, staying true to the integrity of the Gospel and yet never failing to live out the compassion of Christ.

As has always been the case, sometimes the Church will get it right and sometimes the Church may get off track. Sometimes we make God smile with pride and other times we must cause Him to wince and blush. But by His grace we keep going, we keep trying, we keep serving, we keep loving. And by His grace, the Kingdom comes.