Not of this World

What does it mean for a Christian to be in the world but not of the world? The response is complicated because it has to balance the fine line between isolation and being invisible. In my previous post I identified three temptations that the church faces each day. I wrote how living in a three-act narrative strengthens those temptations and hides them in the life of the church. The second temptation read, “(The church) assumes that because the sacred community is the key location of theology, because God’s principal way of working in the world is through the church, then God has no purpose for the rest of God’s creation.” The result of this temptation is to become isolated from the world, cut off. A story Dr. Jim Somerville tells will help clarify this temptation.

Jim and his family were at the beach on vacation one summer and he and his daughter decided to build a sandcastle. They worked all day on the sand castle, building the outer walls and the inner buildings. Enjoying themselves so much they lost track of time until the tide reminded them. The tide began to roll in and brush up against the outer walls of the castle. Jim’s daughter stood up and began to shout at the water, “Stay back! You better stay out of my castle!” Jim eventually stood up and joined her. Together they stood in front of their castle shouting, “Stay back! Stay out of our castle!” Eventually though the tide broke through the outer walls and reached the castle. When that happened, Jim says that his daughter looked at him and him at her and asked, “Want to go swimming?” So, they threw up their arms and ran into the water, splashing and laughing all the way in.

Jim tells a wonderful story and it is a great memory with his daughter; but it illustrates the temptation above. We forget about the world when isolate ourselves. We forget about the church when try to make the world the church, the church becomes invisible. Thus the dilemma is walking that fine line between invisibility and isolation. The question is how do we walk the line?

The three-act narrative drama (fall, salvation, death) tends to blur the line between isolation and invisibility that the church becomes a part of the world or so separated from the world that we do not see the world as a gift. Our view of the line may become clearer if we start to understand the Christian story as a five-act drama (creation, Israel, Jesus, the church, and the eschaton). We then understand that the first act of creation tells the story of God forming the earth, act-two carries on the first act, God remains faithful to creation and to the people by establishing a covenant with Israel, act-three is the definitive act, God’s character is revealed through Jesus, act-four is inaugurated by Jesus when he ascends to heaven and the church is given everything it needs to continue participating in the story, act-five is the end, the thing that has yet to come, the ushering in of the kingdom of God. With this five-act narrative drama we see what our role in the drama is. We understand that the church is continuation of God’s faithfulness and active role in creation. We understand through the five-act narrative that God uses all of creation for God’s divine purpose as God did when Israel was in exile and God used Cyrus (non-Israelite) to bring them out. We understand that God uses all of creation for God’s divine purpose when read of Peter and Cornelius or Paul and the slave girl. The five-act model allows for our participation in the story and it helps us walk the line with a little more ease.

Again, what does it mean to be in the world but not of this world? Above tells us how the five-act narrative might help, though not very specifically. What if we were to examine the church’s worship and church polity through the lens of the five-act narrative? Would our ministries change? Would our worship change? Would our bylaws and church constitutions change? Perhaps but it will take cultivating a community that embodies what it means to live in act-four. What does it mean then to live in act-four?

Living in act-four is difficult to describe because I am not sure what that fully entails. The scriptures are not very clear in terms of exact definitions of how to live in act-four. Paul, for the most part, describes ways in which the church can see themselves in act-four, a part of the world but not in the world. In his first letter to the Corinthians, Paul gives the church an idea of what being the church means. Throughout his letter Paul writes consistently defining the church as a separate, different place than the structures of the world. Believers are not to sue one another in a court. Believers are not to overindulge in food and wine. Believers are not to be puffed up in knowledge but built up in love. Paul’s letters in the New Testament have provided some structure for the church to understand how to live in act-four. However, like many instructions, they become our sand castles and we hold to them and not allow room for movement within.

Jesus helps us to understand what it means to live in act-four with his “You’ve heard it said, but I say” passages. “You’ve heard it said, ‘an eye for an eye’ but I say turn the other cheek.” “You have heard it said, ‘love your neighbor and hate your enemy’ but I say, love your enemy and pray for those who persecute you.” Being in the world means to engage the world through the practices of the church which are the practices of Christ. We are to seek to live within the world, engage the world, and be in the world but not to be of this world. The words and life of Christ helps us to know exactly what that means. We are not to live as one who has not encountered Christ.

One of my favorite “You’ve heard it said” passages is from Matthew 5:38-42, “You have heard it said, ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.’ But I say to you, do not resist an evildoer. But if anyone strikes you on the right cheek, turn the other also; and if anyone wants to sue you and take your coat, give your cloaks as well; and if anyone forces you to go one mile, go also the second mile. Give to everyone who begs from you, and do not refuse anyone who wants to borrow from you.” Jesus takes an old scripture passage and turns it on its head. He creates an example of what it means to be in the world but not of the world. The world’s response to one who hits you is to either walk away or to hit back. Jesus says to do something different. We’re told how to engage the world’s understanding on issues of violence, retaliation, oaths, enemies, and anger as one who is not of this world.

The question is, can we? Can we truly engage the world and live fully into act-four without becoming a part of the world? I think we can. I think we’ve been limited to answer questions with either a yes, a no, or a maybe. I think we’ve forgotten that when Jesus was posed the question, “Who sinned, this man or his parents?” Jesus doesn’t give the normal response, “This man is blind so that you might see.” I was re-reading John Howard Yoder’s What Would You Do earlier this week and I was reminded of several stories of people who live in the world but their actions tell us they are not of this world.

My favorite story is the one about an American missionary in China during World War II. Morgan, the missionary, stays behind at an American university that is abandon as the Japanese begin to occupy the Chinese village. Morgan notices the covetous glances from the Japanese officers. Eventually, they came and demanded the keys from Morgan. Morgan politely refused explaining that the property belonged to the American mission boards and that he was not at liberty to hand it over to anyone else. After an hour or so of debate, the soldiers would return to the village without the keys. Tensions between Morgan and the Japanese grew when soldiers appeared at the gates, demanded that Morgan turn of the keys to them or be shot. The world’s response would be to either turn the keys over and live or stand and fight. Morgan does neither. He speaks to them with love and kindness and urges them to understand that he has no hate for them and believes them to be his brothers and will do anything they ask except when it’s something wrong. Eventually, the soldiers lower the weapons and the turmoil seems to have subsided, except for one soldier. Embarrassed by the outcome, a lone soldier charges Morgan with his bayonet at full tilt. Morgan side steps the man and wraps his arms around him. The world would say, “Hit him. Kill him. Disarm him and embarrass him.” Morgan simply looks into his eyes and smiles. The man begins to smile back and they hug. Afterwards, the soldiers follow Morgan into the University for some tea before making the trek back into the village.

The story above is one of many in which a member of the church lives fully into act-four and what it means to be in the world but not of the world. The church will eventually come to understand that isolation from the world, standing out in front and shouting, “Don’t come in” will rob them of God’s gifts. God is using the world as God is using the church. Isolation is not the stance the church should take concerning the world. We can learn how to fully live into act-four by remembering the words of Jesus, “You have heard it said, but I say to you.”