Nothing Could be More Obvious

As a community of faith, one of the most serious charges that can be leveled at us is the claim that “Church People” are turned in on themselves. We Christians are vulnerable in the extreme to such a charge because the Gospel we preach is the Good News that God is a loving God who cares about all His human creatures. We are a People of God dedicated to a ministry of loving service to others. To whatever extent the charge is valid, we must face it honestly and openly because any aspect of self-centeredness in the life of the Church is a flagrant denial of Our Lord’s intention in founding it. Nothing could be more obvious.

The Lord Himself came as a man for others. The one thing about Jesus the early disciples found most difficult to accept was that He came not to be ministered unto but to minister to. (They didn’t accept it, really, until after the Resurrection.) When Jesus began…