Rise Up | The Dead Sea of Inexpression
The Dead Sea is one of the biggest spectacles of tourists in Israel. Due to the nature of the geography, there are inlets that pour water into the Dead Sea with no place to drain out from. The water eventually evaporates leaving behind the salt and minerals to sit and gradually increase in density. Thus, over time, people determined they could float easily there, more so than beach water or pool water, because the concentration of the minerals and salt altered the density of the water. Now, tourists from around the globe make their way to the Dead Sea to experience the floating phenomenon of the waters. There is giddy laughter as their bodies almost seem to float on top of the water rather than in it, all the while knowing that deep down the fun comes from something being very, very wrong.
For all the spectacle, the Dead Sea got its name from its inability to sustain life. You will not find any fish or sea creatures living in the Dead Sea. The amassed minerals and salt, having no place to go, have made the area inhabitable. Life cannot be sustained. All around, there are notices and warnings to not bath in the water for more than an hour as it could cause skin irritation and damage. Our faith in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior operates in the same way. When we only consumes resources, life cannot be sustained and we will find ourselves in a spiritual gluttony of thinking everything revolves around us all the while never truly growing. The vibrancy of the Christian faith comes from the hand of God working in us and through us as we received the word of God and express it in our every day lives. Just as we breathe, we must both spiritually inhale and exhale in order to thrive, we do so spiritually by what we take in and what we express outward.
The Inhaling of Discipleship
Simply put, we need to infilling of the word of God illuminated by the Holy Spirit to disciple us, shape us, and transform us. For too long, we have viewed faith in Christ as a one time event and prayer where we say the right combination of words and suddenly everything is fine. This produces shallow Christians with no understanding of their faith, who God is, or the impact of the Lordship of Jesus Christ. We become like the shallow planted seeds in Matthew 13 that, although they sprang up quickly, die too soon, unable to sustain life in the world that seeks their destruction. Without discipleship and growth in the faith, the Christian die off unable to handle the world’s continually poking and prodding to abandon the faith for selfish desires. “How can a young man keep his way pure? By guarding it according to your word. With my whole heart I seek you; let me not wander from your commandments! I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you. Blessed are you, O Lord ; teach me your statutes! With my lips I declare all the rules of your mouth. In the way of your testimonies I delight as much as in all riches. I will meditate on your precepts and fix my eyes on your ways. I will delight in your statutes; I will not forget your word.” (Psalms 119:9-16, ESV) The Psalmist makes clear that a person seeking to live a life of purity is best suited equipped when they study the word of God.
Discipleship is the breathing in of our faith. It allows us the resources we need to not just survive but to thrive. Most commonly, you see this as a hunger and thirst for the word of God to guide and inform every aspect of our lives. We crave to know God divine self-revelation and to allow it to reveal the glory of God and how we can best approach Him. In a practical sense, we, as Christians need consistent and regular times to study the word of God. This involves a daily devotional routine and disciple that prioritizes God as the foundation of our lives. But also in a group setting knowing that God intended mankind to be in relationship with one another as equal members of the body of Christ. Discipleship is the intentional act of growing and developing in our faith to know God more so that we can be best equipped and prepared to minister the Gospel to the world. We cannot make light of this process or skip it as boring and unnecessary. The more we know of God’s word the more we can articulate to those who seek the reason we believe why we believe and how we can allow the nature of God to shape us as people living for the glory of God.
The Exhaling of Expressive Actions
Yet, the end game of discipleship is not personal individual growth with the collection and hoarding of knowledge like a dragon and its gold. Much like the Dead Sea, if there is only an input of resources and minerals, our Christian faith may feel like a fun spectacle, but ultimately, it destroys life. God, being bigger than us, connects us to His story with the Holy Spirit moving through us to accomplish His tasks for His glory. “What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and filled,” without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead. But someone will say, “You have faith and I have works.” Show me your faith apart from your works, and I will show you my faith by my works.” (James 2:14-18, ESV) No where does scripture teach we are saved by our works, but a supposed Christian with no output or expression of their faith should take a hard look at their faith and whether it exists in the first place. When we submit to the Lordship of Jesus Christ, in faith that His coming Kingdom will reign forever, every aspect of our lives becomes shaped by will of God. Our old life dies and we live according to our new life, having been reborn by the Spirit of God.
But do not reduce the purpose of coming to faith as mere behavior modification. Nor should we think that we if simply don’t do bad things that this will be an ample and sufficient expression of our faith. The effects of the Lord on our life are pervasive and invasive, reaching to every dark pocket and corner of our life. We must, as people who have been snatched from the fire and from the hand of death, be willing to evangelize and share our faith. Fear of evangelism roots itself and in diminished understanding of what Christ has done for us. If we truly believe that Jesus Christ, by grace and love, willingly took the sinners death on the cross, “to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God” (2 Corinthians 5:21, ESV) then we would be unwilling and unable to keep quiet about our faith. The more we understand the depth of the forgiveness that Jesus Christ offers those who come to Him, the more our soul craves to share this good news with everyone. An expressed faith comes from the depth of our discipleship as we continue to grow in relationship with Jesus Christ and express our faith loudly for all the world to see the witness of those who believe in Jesus Christ.
