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An Under the Surface Warning

Under the skin. That is the phrase that has been used and misunderstood for years. Since the days the Beatles used it in a popular song that I sang as a second-grader, "remember, to let her under your skin..." 

What is under the skin cannot be seen, but is real and could manifest at any time. This is a source of many books and movies seeking to highlight the mysteries we all have run into. And now, the manifestation is happening within the community we call the Church.

An article's title recently caught my eye about how the evangelical church is breaking apart and that Christians needed to reclaim Jesus from his church. "Hmm. Who would write such a thing?" I thought. So, leery-eyed I took the bait and read... nothing I didn't know, and felt for the past 24 months or so. But the following quote caused me to pause and reflect more than the rest of the article:

"But there’s more to the fractures than just COVID-19. After all, many of the forces that are splitting churches were in motion well before the pandemic hit. The pandemic exposed and exacerbated weaknesses and vulnerabilities, habits of mind and heart, that already existed." 

Jesus talked about things under the surface as well. He referred to the Pharisees being "unmarked tombs." So what, you might think, but if you wanted to be consistent in your attendance of worshipping at the temple, to walk over a grave was to make yourself "unclean." Hmmm. Unclean and you didn't know it. The state of being "unclean" was defined by God. An "unclean status" was in fact to keep the majority of the community uninfected by the disease of your uncleanness--so they were health-driven.

Paul warned about things under the surface and how things will be shaken so that what is inside can come to the top; or sifted away to reveal what is.

Don't get me wrong. I love the Church. I have always loved my church. I do not believe there has been a church I have been associated with I did not like. That did not mean that underneath were things needing to be challenged and changed. 

On the other hand, perhaps I had a natural aversion to groups of people who were too unhealthy to be around... and I hope I naturally gravitated toward those healthier sub-groups. I do not remember politics being a topic of conversation (refreshing, huh!), nor race or really any of the "hot topics" of the day. Not because they were irrelevant; some were quite relevant, but they always took a back seat to the Main Driver of the show--Jesus. Leadership in those spaces always believed He was without rival. And for that, I am thankful. But there have been moments (moments, mind you) I have experienced like one T-shirt stated years ago, "Jesus, save me from your people." 

There is nothing hidden from God. That is the kind of life I want to live before Him. And yet I fail. Being too harsh on others for their failures would be hypocritical for me. So I seek to keep my eyes on Jesus, not the skin, nor what is under it. Blame will not heal. Connecting to God is my only hope and the hope of the world. John 3:16 baby. John 3:16. 

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