Wednesday, November 28, 2012
The Pilgrim's Progress
Now I saw in my dream, that the highway up which Christian was to go, was fenced on either side with a wall, and that wall was called Salvation. Up this way, therefore, did burdened Christian run, but not without great difficulty, because of the load on his back.
He ran thus till he came at a place somewhat ascending; and upon that place stood a cross, and a little below, in the bottom, a sepulchre. So I saw in my dream, that just as Christian came up with the cross, his burden loosed from off his shoulders, and fell from off his back, and began to tumble, and so continued to do till it came to the mouth of the sepulchre, where it fell in, and I saw it no more.
End of Church Year Quiz: Who Is Jesus?
We have reached the end of another church year. This is the last Sunday of this year, and next Sunday will be the first Sunday in Advent, the first of the new church year. So, since it is the end of the year, and we've learned so much about Jesus this year, it's time for a quiz! Turn to the back of your Bibles! You didn't know there was a quiz there? Yes, turn to Revelation 1:4-8, and we can find in verse 5 a definition quiz. Here is where we will define some terms. Ready?
Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth.
So, first definition of Jesus Christ: the faithful witness. What does this mean? It means that of all the authorities we can turn to, Jesus is the only faithful witness of reality. He is the only one who will not lead us astray. And the Bible is the only place where we can access his exact words. We have to trust that this book is completely reliable, and then, we must turn to the words of Christ and the words ABOUT Christ (which is all the other words in the Bible) and study them.
Before we found Jesus, we relied on the authorities of this world--our scientists, our experts, our politicians, our judges, our doctors--for knowledge and wisdom. After finding Jesus we know that he is the only one we can faithfully turn to, because he is the only faithful witness. Check your answers. Did you get the definition right?
Second definition: the firstborn of the dead. What does this mean? It means that before Jesus died, was buried, and was resurrected, we lived this life and then we died, like a fly trapped in amber. Stuck in death. Jesus' resurrection, however, defeated death, punched a hole through death, and found life on the other side. We must remember that this new life is wholly unlike the previous life. This is not a Lazarus resurrection. We don't just return to life only to die again later. We punch through death TO THE OTHER SIDE, where there lies everlasting life. This is a different kind of existence altogether, and Jesus was the one who punched that hole through the amber. He tied a lifeline around his waist and it trails into this life now. We hold onto the lifeline and when we pass through death, we will not be trapped in the amber. Jesus has saved us from death.
Before Jesus we lived our lives selfishly, because this was the only life there was for us. Why not live for this life, since it is all that we have? After finding Jesus we realize that there is another life beyond this one, an imperishable life, and we now live our lives around that one, which causes us to live our lives differently on this side of death than before. Check your answers. How did you do on that definition?
Third, we have the ruler of the kings of the earth. What does this mean? Jesus tells Pilate that his kingdom is not from this world. However, after his death and resurrection, Jesus was put in charge of all things. Let's look at Paul's letter to the Philippians.
Christ Jesus,
6 who, though he was in the form of God,
did not regard equality with God
as something to be exploited,
7 but emptied himself,
taking the form of a slave,
being born in human likeness.
And being found in human form,
8 he humbled himself
and became obedient to the point of death—
even death on a cross.
9 Therefore God also highly exalted him
and gave him the name
that is above every name,
10 so that at the name of Jesus
every knee should bend,
in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
11 and every tongue should confess
that Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father.
After his death, Jesus was highly exalted to be above everything in existence. He is the King of all kings and the Lord of all lords. Before his death and resurrection, the devil ruled the earth. After, Jesus is restored to his rightful place as king.
What does this mean for us? Well, this is a difficult aspect of Jesus to define, because we just had a presidential election, and at those times even the most faithful of us desire to turn to humans as our saviors. Whether you're happy with the results or not, the truth is that the winners in this election have it harder now. For another four years, the winners will be be putting their faith in an earthly king. The losers have no choice now but to put all their faith in Jesus, the King of kings. Before Jesus we put our faith in the authorities of this world, and after we discover Jesus, we put our faith in him. Check your answers. Did you get this one right? How did you on the quiz, did you get a passing grade?
Well, never fear! I have a bonus question. Move down to Revelation 1:8: "I am the Alpha and the Omega," says the Lord God, who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty. Here is another description of Christ. What does this mean? According to John 1, Jesus was with the Father at the beginning. All things were created through him. He was at the foundation of everything, and so he is the Alpha, the beginning, the start. Place an anchor right there at the beginning of time. Jesus is also the Omega. He will be there at the end. All things will be RECREATED through him. Put another anchor at the end of everything.
Now stretch taut a lifeline between the two anchors, one that runs through all of our lives. We don't know when it will happen, but this world will pass away. It is already passing away. We need to be holding onto that lifeline, because everything is going to drop away under our feet like an elevator with the cable cut. We think to ourselves, "I'll just let go of the lifeline for a quick sec, go over here and do my sinful thing, and then I'll run back over here and grab hold again. I've done it countless times, and there's been no problem, so I'll just do it again. We don't know what will happen this time, so it is better to keep holding that lifeline. Pray for God's grace that will compel us to hold onto it, because we want so badly to let go.
Before Jesus came into our lives, we had no hope of salvation. Now that he is here, we have the ultimate hope of salvation. Hold tight to the lifeline and thank God for the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, the ruler of the kings of the earth, the alpha and the omega. AMEN.
Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth.
So, first definition of Jesus Christ: the faithful witness. What does this mean? It means that of all the authorities we can turn to, Jesus is the only faithful witness of reality. He is the only one who will not lead us astray. And the Bible is the only place where we can access his exact words. We have to trust that this book is completely reliable, and then, we must turn to the words of Christ and the words ABOUT Christ (which is all the other words in the Bible) and study them.
Before we found Jesus, we relied on the authorities of this world--our scientists, our experts, our politicians, our judges, our doctors--for knowledge and wisdom. After finding Jesus we know that he is the only one we can faithfully turn to, because he is the only faithful witness. Check your answers. Did you get the definition right?
Second definition: the firstborn of the dead. What does this mean? It means that before Jesus died, was buried, and was resurrected, we lived this life and then we died, like a fly trapped in amber. Stuck in death. Jesus' resurrection, however, defeated death, punched a hole through death, and found life on the other side. We must remember that this new life is wholly unlike the previous life. This is not a Lazarus resurrection. We don't just return to life only to die again later. We punch through death TO THE OTHER SIDE, where there lies everlasting life. This is a different kind of existence altogether, and Jesus was the one who punched that hole through the amber. He tied a lifeline around his waist and it trails into this life now. We hold onto the lifeline and when we pass through death, we will not be trapped in the amber. Jesus has saved us from death.
Before Jesus we lived our lives selfishly, because this was the only life there was for us. Why not live for this life, since it is all that we have? After finding Jesus we realize that there is another life beyond this one, an imperishable life, and we now live our lives around that one, which causes us to live our lives differently on this side of death than before. Check your answers. How did you do on that definition?
Third, we have the ruler of the kings of the earth. What does this mean? Jesus tells Pilate that his kingdom is not from this world. However, after his death and resurrection, Jesus was put in charge of all things. Let's look at Paul's letter to the Philippians.
Christ Jesus,
6 who, though he was in the form of God,
did not regard equality with God
as something to be exploited,
7 but emptied himself,
taking the form of a slave,
being born in human likeness.
And being found in human form,
8 he humbled himself
and became obedient to the point of death—
even death on a cross.
9 Therefore God also highly exalted him
and gave him the name
that is above every name,
10 so that at the name of Jesus
every knee should bend,
in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
11 and every tongue should confess
that Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father.
After his death, Jesus was highly exalted to be above everything in existence. He is the King of all kings and the Lord of all lords. Before his death and resurrection, the devil ruled the earth. After, Jesus is restored to his rightful place as king.
What does this mean for us? Well, this is a difficult aspect of Jesus to define, because we just had a presidential election, and at those times even the most faithful of us desire to turn to humans as our saviors. Whether you're happy with the results or not, the truth is that the winners in this election have it harder now. For another four years, the winners will be be putting their faith in an earthly king. The losers have no choice now but to put all their faith in Jesus, the King of kings. Before Jesus we put our faith in the authorities of this world, and after we discover Jesus, we put our faith in him. Check your answers. Did you get this one right? How did you on the quiz, did you get a passing grade?
Well, never fear! I have a bonus question. Move down to Revelation 1:8: "I am the Alpha and the Omega," says the Lord God, who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty. Here is another description of Christ. What does this mean? According to John 1, Jesus was with the Father at the beginning. All things were created through him. He was at the foundation of everything, and so he is the Alpha, the beginning, the start. Place an anchor right there at the beginning of time. Jesus is also the Omega. He will be there at the end. All things will be RECREATED through him. Put another anchor at the end of everything.
Now stretch taut a lifeline between the two anchors, one that runs through all of our lives. We don't know when it will happen, but this world will pass away. It is already passing away. We need to be holding onto that lifeline, because everything is going to drop away under our feet like an elevator with the cable cut. We think to ourselves, "I'll just let go of the lifeline for a quick sec, go over here and do my sinful thing, and then I'll run back over here and grab hold again. I've done it countless times, and there's been no problem, so I'll just do it again. We don't know what will happen this time, so it is better to keep holding that lifeline. Pray for God's grace that will compel us to hold onto it, because we want so badly to let go.
Before Jesus came into our lives, we had no hope of salvation. Now that he is here, we have the ultimate hope of salvation. Hold tight to the lifeline and thank God for the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, the ruler of the kings of the earth, the alpha and the omega. AMEN.
Tuesday, November 20, 2012
The Pilgrim's Progress
Then said Interpreter, Come in; I will show thee that which will be profitable to thee. So he commanded his man to light the candle, and bid Christian follow him; so he had him into a private room, and bid his man open a door; the which when he had done, Christian saw the picture a very grave person hang up against the wall; and this was the fashion of it: It had eyes lifted up to heaven, the best of books in his hand, the law of truth was written upon its lips, the world was behind its back; it stood as if it pleaded with men, and a crown of gold did hang over its head.
Then said Christian, What means this?
The man whose picture this is, is one of a thousand: he can beget children, travail in birth with children, and nurse them himself when they are born. And whereas thou seest him with his eyes lift up to heaven, the best of books in his hand, and the law of truth writ on his lips: it is to show thee, that his work is to know, and unfold dark things to sinners; even as also thou seest him stand as if he pleaded with men. And whereas thou seest the world as cast behind him, and that a crown hangs over his head; that is to show thee, that slighting and despising the things that are present, for the love that he hath to his Master’s service, he is sure in the world that comes next, to have glory for his reward. Now, said the Interpreter, I have showed thee this picture first, because the man whose picture this is, is the only man whom the Lord of the place whither thou art going hath authorized to be thy guide in all difficult places thou mayest meet with in the way: wherefore take good heed to what I have showed thee, and bear well in thy mind what thou hast seen, lest in thy journey thou meet with some that pretend to lead thee right, but their way goes down to death.
Offering
Those who are wise shall shine like the brightness of the sky, and those who lead many to righteousness, like the stars forever and ever. (Daniel 12:3)
The second half of the book of Daniel is an apocalypse, much in the same way Revelation is an apocalypse, and we see things in this passage (Daniel 12:1-3) that we see in the New Testament, specifically the gospels, as to what happens to people at the judgment, the separation of the wheat from the chaff, the ones destined for everlasting life from the ones for everlasting "contempt," as verse 2 says.
Here in verse 3, we have a verse that claims that the wise will shine like the brightness of the sky. What does this mean? Does it mean that we will be like the angels, with a halo and harp, glowing like a firebrand? Will we have our own light source? The key word here is "like." Think of the brightest object in the night sky--the moon. It does not shine with its own light, but reflects the light of the sun. Likewise, we will reflect the light of the Son, Jesus Christ. He is our light source, and we reflect him. Jesus is wisdom, and at the judgment, the wise--those who followed Jesus--will reflect the Son's light purely, like the brightness of the sky. We don't have to wait for the judgment, however. We can reflect the light of the Son now, today, although, instead of being covered with pure, reflective moondust, we are covered with the dark rocks, mud, and filth of sin. However, we can still reflect the light somewhat.
The second part of this verse is equally puzzling. Who are "those who lead many to righteousness?" Does this verse mean that unless we are evangelists, converting many, we are doomed? That sounds like a lot of hard work that, frankly, many of us are not cut out for. Think about the fellow with a memorized script and a set of statements that are geared toward instigating a rapturous reaction for Jesus. Is it not the excitement that is appealing, not the Son himself? Think of this person converting a man named Steve, and at the judgment our evangelist faces our maker and states, "look at my list of converts! May I shine like the stars now? Take this man, Steve."
The Lord may well respond, "Well, about Steve: the week after you converted him, he met a woman, and they shacked up together, and it was exciting, too, and she was into witchcraft, and so he tried that, and it was exciting, and then she left him, and so he traveled to a Buddhist community in Australia, and he lived there for a time, because that was exciting, too!" We can't know what happens to these people, when we use "methods" to convert them. We can't have Steve handcuffed to us for the rest of his life to keep him in line.
I believe that "leading many to righteousness" is another way of saying, "offering our spiritual gifts." God has given each of us a spiritual gift, sometimes more than one, that we are to OFFER back to God. Sometimes we use our spiritual gifts for others, and then we get overworked and burned out. This is because we are taking our gifts and treating them like work. However, if we treat our gift as an offering to God, it won't feel like work. This is essentially true worship, and it is invigorating. We think that because we don't feel the spirit, we are just going through the motions, but in actuality, we are not offering our gift to God. God initiates, gives us the gift, we offer it BACK to him, and then he responds with an increase of spirit.
Each Sunday my offering is this sermon. I study and work on it all week, and now is this time for me to offer it to God. Everyone in this room happens to be hearing, and even though my offering is to God, everyone here is brought closer to righteousness because of it. Cathi plays flute each week for us, and before she got all the technicalities down, she thought of it as work, and it was not a worshipful experience. Now she is familiar with the weekly task and she now offers her flute playing to God each week. As a result, she feels that she is worshiping. We are all brought more into righteousness because of it. These gifts are offered to God, but they are also offered in public, so that we may lead many to righteousness.
What is your spiritual gift? Are you using it? Are you bogged down with other things that are not your gifts? If you are using your gift, are you using it as work or as an offering to God? Look at Luke 10:38-42:
Now as they went on their way, he entered a certain village, where a woman named Martha welcomed him into her home. She had a sister named Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet and listened to what he was saying. But Martha was distracted by her many tasks; so she came to him and asked, “Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to do all the work by myself? Tell her then to help me.” But the Lord answered her, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and distracted by many things; there is need of only one thing. Mary has chosen the better part, which will not be taken away from her.”
What is Mary's gift? Learning. What is she doing with it? She's offering it to God. She is not going to run off to the far east and study under Buddha as soon as Jesus leaves the house. Her gift is solely offered to God, but this scene plays out in the gospel of Luke for our benefit. Many are made righteous from this passage, as they wish to model their lives after Mary. When Jesus scolds Martha, he is not telling her that she needs to put down her dishrag and sit at Jesus' feet, too. He is showing her that as Mary offers her learning to God, so Martha should, too, offer her gift of hospitality to God, and she wouldn't be worried and distracted anymore. Martha is not offering her gift to God. How many people are made righteous through Martha when reading this passage? I'd wager the number is zero.
The final offering is the big one: Jesus' offering on the cross. He didn't get an elated feeling when he did it. It wasn't a "mountaintop" experience. It was a "tomb" experience. Offering our gifts hurts, because it is sacrifice, the purest form of love there is--agape. Jesus may have suffered and died, but three days later he had risen, and he is risen. Sometimes our gifts hurt, and we don't get an elated feeling. But as long as we are offering them to God and are leading many to righteousness through them, we will continue to reflect the light of the Son in this life and the next. We gain everlasting life, and we shine like the stars, like the brightness of the sky.
The second half of the book of Daniel is an apocalypse, much in the same way Revelation is an apocalypse, and we see things in this passage (Daniel 12:1-3) that we see in the New Testament, specifically the gospels, as to what happens to people at the judgment, the separation of the wheat from the chaff, the ones destined for everlasting life from the ones for everlasting "contempt," as verse 2 says.
Here in verse 3, we have a verse that claims that the wise will shine like the brightness of the sky. What does this mean? Does it mean that we will be like the angels, with a halo and harp, glowing like a firebrand? Will we have our own light source? The key word here is "like." Think of the brightest object in the night sky--the moon. It does not shine with its own light, but reflects the light of the sun. Likewise, we will reflect the light of the Son, Jesus Christ. He is our light source, and we reflect him. Jesus is wisdom, and at the judgment, the wise--those who followed Jesus--will reflect the Son's light purely, like the brightness of the sky. We don't have to wait for the judgment, however. We can reflect the light of the Son now, today, although, instead of being covered with pure, reflective moondust, we are covered with the dark rocks, mud, and filth of sin. However, we can still reflect the light somewhat.
The second part of this verse is equally puzzling. Who are "those who lead many to righteousness?" Does this verse mean that unless we are evangelists, converting many, we are doomed? That sounds like a lot of hard work that, frankly, many of us are not cut out for. Think about the fellow with a memorized script and a set of statements that are geared toward instigating a rapturous reaction for Jesus. Is it not the excitement that is appealing, not the Son himself? Think of this person converting a man named Steve, and at the judgment our evangelist faces our maker and states, "look at my list of converts! May I shine like the stars now? Take this man, Steve."
The Lord may well respond, "Well, about Steve: the week after you converted him, he met a woman, and they shacked up together, and it was exciting, too, and she was into witchcraft, and so he tried that, and it was exciting, and then she left him, and so he traveled to a Buddhist community in Australia, and he lived there for a time, because that was exciting, too!" We can't know what happens to these people, when we use "methods" to convert them. We can't have Steve handcuffed to us for the rest of his life to keep him in line.
I believe that "leading many to righteousness" is another way of saying, "offering our spiritual gifts." God has given each of us a spiritual gift, sometimes more than one, that we are to OFFER back to God. Sometimes we use our spiritual gifts for others, and then we get overworked and burned out. This is because we are taking our gifts and treating them like work. However, if we treat our gift as an offering to God, it won't feel like work. This is essentially true worship, and it is invigorating. We think that because we don't feel the spirit, we are just going through the motions, but in actuality, we are not offering our gift to God. God initiates, gives us the gift, we offer it BACK to him, and then he responds with an increase of spirit.
Each Sunday my offering is this sermon. I study and work on it all week, and now is this time for me to offer it to God. Everyone in this room happens to be hearing, and even though my offering is to God, everyone here is brought closer to righteousness because of it. Cathi plays flute each week for us, and before she got all the technicalities down, she thought of it as work, and it was not a worshipful experience. Now she is familiar with the weekly task and she now offers her flute playing to God each week. As a result, she feels that she is worshiping. We are all brought more into righteousness because of it. These gifts are offered to God, but they are also offered in public, so that we may lead many to righteousness.
What is your spiritual gift? Are you using it? Are you bogged down with other things that are not your gifts? If you are using your gift, are you using it as work or as an offering to God? Look at Luke 10:38-42:
Now as they went on their way, he entered a certain village, where a woman named Martha welcomed him into her home. She had a sister named Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet and listened to what he was saying. But Martha was distracted by her many tasks; so she came to him and asked, “Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to do all the work by myself? Tell her then to help me.” But the Lord answered her, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and distracted by many things; there is need of only one thing. Mary has chosen the better part, which will not be taken away from her.”
What is Mary's gift? Learning. What is she doing with it? She's offering it to God. She is not going to run off to the far east and study under Buddha as soon as Jesus leaves the house. Her gift is solely offered to God, but this scene plays out in the gospel of Luke for our benefit. Many are made righteous from this passage, as they wish to model their lives after Mary. When Jesus scolds Martha, he is not telling her that she needs to put down her dishrag and sit at Jesus' feet, too. He is showing her that as Mary offers her learning to God, so Martha should, too, offer her gift of hospitality to God, and she wouldn't be worried and distracted anymore. Martha is not offering her gift to God. How many people are made righteous through Martha when reading this passage? I'd wager the number is zero.
The final offering is the big one: Jesus' offering on the cross. He didn't get an elated feeling when he did it. It wasn't a "mountaintop" experience. It was a "tomb" experience. Offering our gifts hurts, because it is sacrifice, the purest form of love there is--agape. Jesus may have suffered and died, but three days later he had risen, and he is risen. Sometimes our gifts hurt, and we don't get an elated feeling. But as long as we are offering them to God and are leading many to righteousness through them, we will continue to reflect the light of the Son in this life and the next. We gain everlasting life, and we shine like the stars, like the brightness of the sky.
Tuesday, November 13, 2012
Crossing the Jordan
And there went over a ferry boat to carry over the king's household, and to do what he thought good. (2 Samuel 19:18a)
This small piece of information comes to us after the death of Absalom, and King David has been invited back into his kingdom. The danger is over. The household of the King now comes to the Jordan and is ferried over to the other side, where David's kingdom lies. Jerusalem.
When we read these words, our imaginations quicken, and we picture not only the ferry going back and forth across the Jordan, carrying the royal family, but, if we are imaginative, we can see ourselves, at the end of this life, all our worries and troubles and cares behind us, waiting for passage to the other side, to the golden Kingdom. To heaven.
Myths exist about such a passage. The river is Acherong and the ferry boat driver is Charon, who usually is depicted as a skeleton wearing a flowing and shredded cloak. This is the passage across the river of death, and who knows what lay on the other side.
But as Christians we know what lay on the other side: everlasting life. Eternal relationship with our Lord, the creator of everything. We are still stuck on this side of the Jordan unless we take the ferry. This is a true metaphor: we have to get on the ferry. What is the ferry? Answers may differ. Jesus himself is an obvious answer. The cross is another. I've talked before about the cross being a sort of second ark that rescues us from the second flood--the eschaton: judgment day.
But what about the church? The church has gotten a bad rap these days. The phrase "organized religion" has become detestable. When we think of salvation, we think of individual salvation, as in, God saves each one of us. We transfer that knowledge into an idea that we don't need community. We don't need to be a member of a "people set apart." I have my personal relationship with God, and that is all that matters. That's also why we entertain the dubious idea of "deathbed salvation."
Jesus is our savior--yes. The cross was his vehicle, but the church is our vehicle. Perhaps you've heard the description of the yawning chasm that is ever present between us and God. As the story goes, we try and try to cross that chasm or to build a bridge across it, but we never can accomplish this. God himself must bridge the chasm, and he does so with the cross. It's a great metaphor, and many people have come to Christ through that metaphor, but the end result is the image of a bridge across the chasm in the shape of a cross, and we still individually--one at a time--cross over the bridge to the other side.
The ferry metaphor is more powerful. The ferry can be in the shape of a cross, yes, but it carries MANY across the river at the same time. The people on this ferry are the church, the bride of Christ, set apart. If we are living the Christian life alone, we may not be on the ferry at all but still on this side of the Jordan, trying to figure out a way across.
Jesus saves, yes. He is the way, the truth, and the life. He is the ONLY way, the ONLY truth, and the ONLY life. But he saves individuals within his church. He is the ferry man. We are his passengers. The church is the vessel across the Jordan.
This small piece of information comes to us after the death of Absalom, and King David has been invited back into his kingdom. The danger is over. The household of the King now comes to the Jordan and is ferried over to the other side, where David's kingdom lies. Jerusalem.
When we read these words, our imaginations quicken, and we picture not only the ferry going back and forth across the Jordan, carrying the royal family, but, if we are imaginative, we can see ourselves, at the end of this life, all our worries and troubles and cares behind us, waiting for passage to the other side, to the golden Kingdom. To heaven.
Myths exist about such a passage. The river is Acherong and the ferry boat driver is Charon, who usually is depicted as a skeleton wearing a flowing and shredded cloak. This is the passage across the river of death, and who knows what lay on the other side.
But as Christians we know what lay on the other side: everlasting life. Eternal relationship with our Lord, the creator of everything. We are still stuck on this side of the Jordan unless we take the ferry. This is a true metaphor: we have to get on the ferry. What is the ferry? Answers may differ. Jesus himself is an obvious answer. The cross is another. I've talked before about the cross being a sort of second ark that rescues us from the second flood--the eschaton: judgment day.
But what about the church? The church has gotten a bad rap these days. The phrase "organized religion" has become detestable. When we think of salvation, we think of individual salvation, as in, God saves each one of us. We transfer that knowledge into an idea that we don't need community. We don't need to be a member of a "people set apart." I have my personal relationship with God, and that is all that matters. That's also why we entertain the dubious idea of "deathbed salvation."
Jesus is our savior--yes. The cross was his vehicle, but the church is our vehicle. Perhaps you've heard the description of the yawning chasm that is ever present between us and God. As the story goes, we try and try to cross that chasm or to build a bridge across it, but we never can accomplish this. God himself must bridge the chasm, and he does so with the cross. It's a great metaphor, and many people have come to Christ through that metaphor, but the end result is the image of a bridge across the chasm in the shape of a cross, and we still individually--one at a time--cross over the bridge to the other side.
The ferry metaphor is more powerful. The ferry can be in the shape of a cross, yes, but it carries MANY across the river at the same time. The people on this ferry are the church, the bride of Christ, set apart. If we are living the Christian life alone, we may not be on the ferry at all but still on this side of the Jordan, trying to figure out a way across.
Jesus saves, yes. He is the way, the truth, and the life. He is the ONLY way, the ONLY truth, and the ONLY life. But he saves individuals within his church. He is the ferry man. We are his passengers. The church is the vessel across the Jordan.
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