Church’s role in changing the world
The Church passes unnoticed—most of the time. Once in a while, though, she must speak the truth against corruption, just as Jesus warned us about the “white washed tombs full dead men’s bones and spider webs.” Then the Church becomes impossible to ignore. PHOTO | FILE
What you need to know:
- Imagine watching Jesus cleansing lepers, giving sight to the blind or healing the lame. You would feel the same way those people felt: confused. Confused because it wouldn’t make sense for a carpenter from some little village to have the power to cast out demons and raise the dead.
- Like her Master, the Church passes unnoticed—most of the time. Once in a while, though, she must speak the truth against corruption, just as Jesus warned us about the “white washed tombs full dead men’s bones and spider webs.”Then the Church becomes impossible to ignore.
- Because of the many sins of Christians—yours and mine—unbelievers feel justified when heaping abuse on the Church. In such moments, never forget that the one they crucified was the same one they saw working miracles.
Imagine yourself as a Jew two thousand years ago.
Imagine you were one of those who knew Jesus before he started talking about the coming of God’s kingdom. You saw him working as a carpenter in Nazareth for many years. Like everyone else, you might want to ask, after seeing him work miracles: “Where did the man get this wisdom and these miraculous powers? Isn’t this the carpenter’s son?
Is not his mother the woman called Mary, and his brothers James and Joseph and Simon and Jude? His sisters, too, are they not all here with us? So where did the man get it all?”
Imagine watching Jesus cleansing lepers, giving sight to the blind or healing the lame. You would feel the same way those people felt: confused. Confused because it wouldn’t make sense for a carpenter from some little village to have the power to cast out demons and raise the dead.
If an angel, radiating divine glory, descended from heaven amid the sounds of thunder and trumpet blast, you would not be surprised that he had the power to do all kinds of miracles. You would expect it. But a carpenter?
The Church of Christ faces the same difficulty as her Master. There will come a time when “the bride of the Lamb” will “come down from heaven with all the radiant beauty of God”, as the book of Revelation says. Until then, the Church appears to have little influence in the affairs of the world. But it is among the true disciples of Christ that miracles are still happening. Perhaps you have seen them yourself.
Like her Master, the Church passes unnoticed—most of the time. Once in a while, though, she must speak the truth against corruption, just as Jesus warned us about the “white washed tombs full dead men’s bones and spider webs.”Then the Church becomes impossible to ignore.
Because of the many sins of Christians—yours and mine—unbelievers feel justified when heaping abuse on the Church. In such moments, never forget that the one they crucified was the same one they saw working miracles.
Jesus said: “No disciple is above his Master. If they persecuted me, they will persecute you.” Even so, God does not want us to abandon the world but to love the world as He loves the world. As Jesus prayed in his final prayer: “Father, I am not asking you to take them out of the world but to protect them from the Evil One.” Despite the resistance you will often find when you speak about overcoming corruption, do not get discouraged. Our Lord wants us to change the world.
