Lighthouse on the Hill
I visited a lighthouse this week. And it got me to thinking.
Saipan is a small island with a lot of churches on it. Why do we need a Nazarene Church here? To me it has to do with perspective. The Church of the Nazarene is a holiness church, which doesn't mean we are holier than any other church, but that we come at the good news of what Jesus did for humanity from a different foundation than our fellow denominations. The Nazarene Church did not start as an offshoot or breakaway from a denomination. Rather, it sprang up in the late 1800's to early 1900's as a coalition of small denominations who joined together to preach the gospel from a foundation of holiness.
The Nazarene Church isn't laying an exclusive claim to holiness. All denominations teach and believe in holiness. Nor is holiness some sort of sinless perfection. Holiness, as a doctrine, is one of the pathways that gets us to an understanding of what Jesus did for us on the Cross. It's like the lighthouse on top of Navy Hill.
The lighthouse is an old Japanese signal house high up on a hilltop. There is only one road up to the lighthouse, but let's pretend for a minute that there are several roads up the hill. All roads lead to the lighthouse, and all are denominations. Our goal is to be saved by getting up to the lighthouse and inside. This is the essence of the gospel message. The lighthouse is like the Cross on the top of a hill.
To get there, many Christian denominations start the gospel invitation from a foundation of the sin that separates us from God. They will start by saying all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. That you have sinned. That you have broken God's law and deserve death. That you cannot save yourself from this death sentence. That Jesus died in your place to satisfy the legal claim of death against you. That Jesus rose from the dead of his own volition and power to defeat death forever. That Jesus is alive in his body. Death is gone. Eternal life is now free for the taking. That if you confess your sin and receive the free gift of eternal life, you too can live with Jesus in a resurrected body forever and ever.
This is all true. But what Nazarenes and other people from a Wesleyan or holiness foundation say is that this is not quite the beginning of the story. Starting from a foundation of sin/death is to start the story too late. Something precedes it. Prior to the law and sin and death, you have the love of God. This is the pathway to salvation that Nazarenes take.
God created the world as an expression of the overflow of His creative love. God so loved humanity that He created us in his very own image. A vestige of God's image remains inside humanity despite the fall. When sin fractured God's creation humans were fractured too. In our fractured state, our god-given free will has been corrupted away from God. As a result, we choose to sin. We are sinned against. We are broken. The good news is that God so loved the world that while we were yet broken, sinners, Christ died for us, and then rose again from the dead. Brokenness now can be healed in Jesus' name! Out of his nature of love, God is reaching out to us, crafting life events for us, wooing us from the wilderness of our confusion and pain to present the great good news that the love of God will save you, if you will turn and follow him. Jesus made this possible on the Cross.
The difference between the two ways of preaching the gospel is subtle, starting from sin/death or starting from love, but I personally have come to believe that starting from a foundation of God's redeeming love is a more accurate representation of God's holy character than starting from a foundation of death. Moreover, I think the love foundation is underrepresented at this time in history, and that the Nazarene Church has a place in filling that gap here in Saipan and elsewhere.
Which means our little church, Living Hope Church of the Nazarene, has a job to do. Here is a picture early Sunday morning, and another picture of us during our worship service. Three people are not in the picture. They are behind the photographer. We had 14 total last Sunday.
How do we reach them with the gospel of love? On the lighthouse on the hill, I was standing on a pinpoint of ground. Looking down from there I could see a vast vista of hope spreading out, seemingly unendingly, toward the horizon. What can we do to touch this island with the super-abundant love of God? Looking at the vast ocean, I thought of God as a huge sponge so full of love that the slightest brush against him would release showers of love raining down upon us. We need a release of God's love. I came home that night and began to plan a children's retreat, a slight touch, a slight effort on the part of our small church. I am convinced even a small touch such as this could produce a big rain of God's love into the hearts of our children. Others too? We decided Sunday morning to schedule the children's retreat for Friday-Saturday, August 2-3, from 10am to 2pm both days. The flyer is complete and I will send out invitations into the community outside our church the day after tomorrow, Lord willing.
Would you pray for me in the coming days? That I will get all the materials gathered. That I will find the help I need. That God will send the children he wants to be here. That God will get all the praise and credit for what gets accomplished.
Thank you dear friends. You will never know how much your friendship means to me! I pray you will experience the love of God in your life in a tangible way this week. May the love of God rain over you, calming your fears, lifting your heart, and nourishing your spirit in Jesus Christ!
Much love,
Amy
Saipan is a small island with a lot of churches on it. Why do we need a Nazarene Church here? To me it has to do with perspective. The Church of the Nazarene is a holiness church, which doesn't mean we are holier than any other church, but that we come at the good news of what Jesus did for humanity from a different foundation than our fellow denominations. The Nazarene Church did not start as an offshoot or breakaway from a denomination. Rather, it sprang up in the late 1800's to early 1900's as a coalition of small denominations who joined together to preach the gospel from a foundation of holiness.
The Nazarene Church isn't laying an exclusive claim to holiness. All denominations teach and believe in holiness. Nor is holiness some sort of sinless perfection. Holiness, as a doctrine, is one of the pathways that gets us to an understanding of what Jesus did for us on the Cross. It's like the lighthouse on top of Navy Hill.
The lighthouse is an old Japanese signal house high up on a hilltop. There is only one road up to the lighthouse, but let's pretend for a minute that there are several roads up the hill. All roads lead to the lighthouse, and all are denominations. Our goal is to be saved by getting up to the lighthouse and inside. This is the essence of the gospel message. The lighthouse is like the Cross on the top of a hill.
To get there, many Christian denominations start the gospel invitation from a foundation of the sin that separates us from God. They will start by saying all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. That you have sinned. That you have broken God's law and deserve death. That you cannot save yourself from this death sentence. That Jesus died in your place to satisfy the legal claim of death against you. That Jesus rose from the dead of his own volition and power to defeat death forever. That Jesus is alive in his body. Death is gone. Eternal life is now free for the taking. That if you confess your sin and receive the free gift of eternal life, you too can live with Jesus in a resurrected body forever and ever.
This is all true. But what Nazarenes and other people from a Wesleyan or holiness foundation say is that this is not quite the beginning of the story. Starting from a foundation of sin/death is to start the story too late. Something precedes it. Prior to the law and sin and death, you have the love of God. This is the pathway to salvation that Nazarenes take.
God created the world as an expression of the overflow of His creative love. God so loved humanity that He created us in his very own image. A vestige of God's image remains inside humanity despite the fall. When sin fractured God's creation humans were fractured too. In our fractured state, our god-given free will has been corrupted away from God. As a result, we choose to sin. We are sinned against. We are broken. The good news is that God so loved the world that while we were yet broken, sinners, Christ died for us, and then rose again from the dead. Brokenness now can be healed in Jesus' name! Out of his nature of love, God is reaching out to us, crafting life events for us, wooing us from the wilderness of our confusion and pain to present the great good news that the love of God will save you, if you will turn and follow him. Jesus made this possible on the Cross.
The difference between the two ways of preaching the gospel is subtle, starting from sin/death or starting from love, but I personally have come to believe that starting from a foundation of God's redeeming love is a more accurate representation of God's holy character than starting from a foundation of death. Moreover, I think the love foundation is underrepresented at this time in history, and that the Nazarene Church has a place in filling that gap here in Saipan and elsewhere.
Which means our little church, Living Hope Church of the Nazarene, has a job to do. Here is a picture early Sunday morning, and another picture of us during our worship service. Three people are not in the picture. They are behind the photographer. We had 14 total last Sunday.
The view from the top of the lighthouse last week was spectacular. I wish this next picture could have captured the full glory of the setting sun over the ocean from up there. This view is overlooking Garapan, the restaurant and shopping portion of the island.
How do we reach them with the gospel of love? On the lighthouse on the hill, I was standing on a pinpoint of ground. Looking down from there I could see a vast vista of hope spreading out, seemingly unendingly, toward the horizon. What can we do to touch this island with the super-abundant love of God? Looking at the vast ocean, I thought of God as a huge sponge so full of love that the slightest brush against him would release showers of love raining down upon us. We need a release of God's love. I came home that night and began to plan a children's retreat, a slight touch, a slight effort on the part of our small church. I am convinced even a small touch such as this could produce a big rain of God's love into the hearts of our children. Others too? We decided Sunday morning to schedule the children's retreat for Friday-Saturday, August 2-3, from 10am to 2pm both days. The flyer is complete and I will send out invitations into the community outside our church the day after tomorrow, Lord willing.
Would you pray for me in the coming days? That I will get all the materials gathered. That I will find the help I need. That God will send the children he wants to be here. That God will get all the praise and credit for what gets accomplished.
Thank you dear friends. You will never know how much your friendship means to me! I pray you will experience the love of God in your life in a tangible way this week. May the love of God rain over you, calming your fears, lifting your heart, and nourishing your spirit in Jesus Christ!
Much love,
Amy
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