Yesterday, I posted a little bit about what it could mean to be inclusive as Christians. Today, I want to follow that thought up a little bit more. Specifically, as we think about the things that we do as Christians, how do we seek to include those who may not yet know Jesus, as we hope for the Spirit to do His work of changing their hearts to faith.
I'll start off with a quick question. What would you think if a new person, not yet a Christian, but interested and open to learning more, came into your church and had a wonderful voice? Would you welcome that person into the church choir prior to their becoming a "member"? (At some point, I'll talk a little bit about membership and what all it means, but for the moment, we'll say that it means they are instructed in the faith and say that they believe what they have learned) If you say no, what are your objections? If you say yes, what is your reasoning for including them?
I'm not going to say that there is a cut and dried solution to such a question as this. I will also say that we are called to proceed in caution when we think of ways to have people not yet Christian walking alongside us. For example, I would suggest that it would be inappropriate for a non-Christian to teach in the Sunday School class, regardless of how skilled they are as a teacher. There is an element of sharing what you have learned in teaching, and if they have not yet learned and know Jesus, how can they share about Him?
At the same time, I would also suggest that we should look for more ways to include those not yet in Jesus in walking together with us. Could they sing in the choir? Perhaps there the Spirit will work through the words and the music to draw them to faith. On the other hand, if they only see it as an opportunity to show off their voice, then perhaps it isn't fully appropriate. How do you discern between these? Well, as with most things, it gets back to connecting with the person, growing in a relationship with them.
Ultimately, the reason that we include people in our walk together is because we want them to know the hope of Jesus in their lives. That means that we need to do the necessary work of getting to know them, of relating to them, of loving them as the neighbor that God puts among us. Only as we get to know them can we understand which roles are appropriate for them to participate in as they walk along with us. Sure, we may make mistakes about that from time to time, but that is where we rest even more on the forgiveness of God in Jesus.
I'll start off with a quick question. What would you think if a new person, not yet a Christian, but interested and open to learning more, came into your church and had a wonderful voice? Would you welcome that person into the church choir prior to their becoming a "member"? (At some point, I'll talk a little bit about membership and what all it means, but for the moment, we'll say that it means they are instructed in the faith and say that they believe what they have learned) If you say no, what are your objections? If you say yes, what is your reasoning for including them?
I'm not going to say that there is a cut and dried solution to such a question as this. I will also say that we are called to proceed in caution when we think of ways to have people not yet Christian walking alongside us. For example, I would suggest that it would be inappropriate for a non-Christian to teach in the Sunday School class, regardless of how skilled they are as a teacher. There is an element of sharing what you have learned in teaching, and if they have not yet learned and know Jesus, how can they share about Him?
At the same time, I would also suggest that we should look for more ways to include those not yet in Jesus in walking together with us. Could they sing in the choir? Perhaps there the Spirit will work through the words and the music to draw them to faith. On the other hand, if they only see it as an opportunity to show off their voice, then perhaps it isn't fully appropriate. How do you discern between these? Well, as with most things, it gets back to connecting with the person, growing in a relationship with them.
Ultimately, the reason that we include people in our walk together is because we want them to know the hope of Jesus in their lives. That means that we need to do the necessary work of getting to know them, of relating to them, of loving them as the neighbor that God puts among us. Only as we get to know them can we understand which roles are appropriate for them to participate in as they walk along with us. Sure, we may make mistakes about that from time to time, but that is where we rest even more on the forgiveness of God in Jesus.
We have had choir members who were not members of Oak Road. Of course, they were Christian, in fact, Lutherans. One man was doing contract work in the area and sang with us for about 6 months. When we sang the National Anthem at the Gwinnett Braves, we had lots of non members. If a non Christian came to Oak Road, had a good voice, and wanted to sing in the choir, he/she would be welcomed with open arms by the choir members and myself, the director. What better way to bring this person to the Lord but by the words of the anthems we sing and the love we show for our fellow man.
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