The End?

“If a man has a hundred sheep and one of them wanders away, what will he do? Won’t he leave the ninety-nine others on the hills and go out to search for the one that is lost? ¹³ And if he finds it, I tell you the truth, he will rejoice over it more than over the ninety-nine that didn’t wander away! ¹⁴ In the same way, it is not my heavenly Father’s will that even one of these little ones should perish." - Matthew 18: 12-14.

To this objection, S. John Damascene replies, that in God we must distinguish two distinct wills; the one antecedent, the other consequent. A person wills a thing antecedently, when he wills it merely as considered in itself. For instance, a prince wishes his subjects to live, in as much as they are all his subjects. But a person wills a thing consequently, when he will a thing in consideration of some particular circumstance. Thus, though the king wishes all his subject to live, he nevertheless wills that some should die, if they turn traitors, or disorganize the peace of society. In the same manner, the Almighty wishes none of his little ones to perish, in as much as they are all his creatures, made to his own image, and destined for the kingdom of glory; though it is equally certain that he wills the eternal punishment of many who have turned away from his service, and followed iniquity. If we observe this distinction, it is easy to see what our Saviour meant, when he said that it was not the will of his Father that any of these little ones should perish. 

As with any ministry, there are more than a few moving parts to decisions as large as ending a church gathering, and a lot of variables to be considered. My vantage point from atop my booth is a very unique one, one that had a physical downward slant to it, but one that allows for the identification and discernment of human recomposes and notational responses.

Unto which we debate two core rationales offered up as the reasoning why this transitioning need occur.

1. The idea that unity needs to be established to a greater degree within the church body. 
2. The idea that many will depart from this church and join other churches. 

These messages, to some degree, seem to conflict with each other. Now, granted, two different parties made these statements, but the disconcerting part is, how can one expect to develop unity within the body when they are being encouraged to leave?

One seems like a well-intentioned statement, but without any practical application can very become furloughed in a ministerial purgatory.  What in practical application does this look like? How does one call a congregation to the type of unity that this requires? How do you mobilize a generation to connect in that way? How do you encourage the older generation to connect with  a newer generation? How do yo create practical opportunities for inter generational growth?

Am I concerned about all of this? Of course. Coinciding with the gift of eternal salvation, we have a calling on our lives to Shepard the lost. We have gentiles within our midst. In so much as Grace was a camp, many souls wander in and out of its cover. We must be continually mindful that there's an urgency to this. Sometimes we estimate ourselves more time than we necessarily have. For some, there cannot be a season of planning. For some, that time is now. For some, there must be urgency. Just like the man searching for his lost sheep, Shepard must go searching for the missing in their flock. The fields of the gates have fallen, the journey for the Shepard has become longer than it was before.

I owe a great deal of spiritual growth to my church. What I have gained in spiritual treasure will forever be priceless to me. In turn, I like many others,  have offered part of myself to the development of the community. I think what makes such a change the difficult thing for the builders, those who offer their hands and minds to the building of this community. If the foundation fades, you feel as all of your efforts have been in vain.

It's important to take stead in wisdom's port, however. Sometimes his greatest works rise out of broken circumstances.  Mark 12 says:

"The stone the builders rejected
   has become the cornerstone;
the Lord has done this,
   and it is marvelous in our eyes"

When the Isrealites were wandering the wilderness, they were continually exposed to change. There was no compass, nary a destination, but God's declarations were clear. Deliver. In my name.

In Numbers 21, those in pursuit of God had little time for rest. The world around them was in constant motion, and required constant motion or be crushed underfoot.

Whenever the pillar stayed its motion, the tents were pitched; but tomorrow, ere the morning sun had risen, the trumpet sounded, the ark was in motion, and the fiery, cloudy pillar was leading the way through the narrow defiles of the mountain, up the hill side, or along the arid waste of the wilderness. They had scarcely time to rest a little before they heard the sound of "Away! this is not your rest; you must still be onward journeying towards Canaan!" They were never long in one place.

Throughout the passage of the Israelites, two things never changed -  the continual habitation in the presence of the Lord, and a constant pilgrimage towards the eternal kingdom. As believers, as men and women growing in the faith, we must carry out this pilgrimage regardless of how the world unfolds.

However the pilgrimage does not change. The great commission has not changed. The lost still must be found. The young still must grow. The old still must be made wiser. Nothing is lost of what you don't allow yourself to lose. In the places where old Foundations used to sit, new ones must be built.

My unmoving mansion of rest is my blessed Lord. Let prospects be blighted; let hopes be blasted; let joy be withered; let mildews destroy everything; I have lost nothing of what I have in God. He is "my strong habitation whereunto I can continually resort." I am a pilgrim in the world, but at home in my God. In the earth I wander, but in God I dwell in a quiet habitation.

There is still much to be done. My hopeful prayer is that this church, this generation, does not fall into a slumber. But rather creates a new foundation where former ones lie.