FRONTLINE SUNDAY 1
ALL THE DIFFERENCE IN THE WORLD
Reading – 1 Peter 1:1–2
Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, To God’s elect, exiles scattered throughout the provinces of Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia and Bithynia, who have been chosen according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through the sanctifying work of the Spirit, to be obedient to Jesus Christ and sprinkled with his blood:
Grace and peace be yours in abundance.
In his letter to scattered groups of Christians in what is modern-day Turkey, the apostle Peter writes to them to ignite their imagination and inspire hope for the possibilities of their everyday lives in a complex world. Peter begins by using two pivotal words to describe the people of God and then he reminds them of a stunning truth. These two words – ‘elect’ and ‘exiles’ – helped the church know who they were. They, and we in the UK today, are a small minority in a nation that, in the main, do not worship Jesus.
The image of six ‘red dots’ in a sea of grey ones pictures this. Yet Peter is confident in what God can and will do through them. He concludes his opening greeting by joyfully celebrating the work of the Triune God in them, day by day – making all the difference in the world.
We are a minority. When we gather like this in a church building on a Sunday most people are doing something else {more fun}
In general, if you tell people you go to church they will think it’s because you’re religious and it’s what people like you do. Or they will think it’s where your friends are and that it’s a good place to connect with people. Or maybe they know how well we support one another and are pleased that you belong to such a community. Whilst there is a grain of truth in all these views, they miss what the New Testament suggests the church is all about. When Peter begins his letter to small groups of Christians scattered across ancient Turkey, he wants them to understand what it means to be the church. He does it by helping them see themselves as part of the Old Testament people of God. He uses two key words and a stunning truth.
They are God’s ELECT
God’s purpose from Genesis 12 onwards was that Abraham, and all his descendants, would be blessed and would be a blessing to the world around. Not all these early Christians would have been Jewish by birth. Yet Peter draws them into the ongoing story of God’s intention for the world by using the language of calling. Whatever our journey to faith in Jesus was,
when we surrendered to his lordship, we became part of this ‘called’ people. In the visual we’re using, we are red dots.
The red dots visualise the statistical fact that in the UK around 6% of people worship in a Christian church once a month or more. It’s not many but it is significant.
When we gather as worshippers we remind ourselves that we believe a very particular story about the world. We believe it is God’s – he created it. We believe it’s broken – because of sin; we believe that Jesus’ death makes new life possible; we believe that one day everything will be transformed. We live as people with a distinct story in a culture that may not believe any of that.
We are red dots. And when we gather we do so to strengthen and encourage one another to be who we are – God’s chosen people.
The second term that Peter uses is one that recalls the great disaster of the Old Testament – when Israel lost their land. At first they hoped for a quick return. But the prophets told them that most of that first generation of EXILES would not return, though they could remain distinct and be a blessing where they were ( Jeremiah 29).
Today, we are also scattered for most of the time. And at the moment , far, far more than we would like.
We don’t spend all our time with fellow Christians. We may be the only disciples of Jesus at home, at work, or in our class. These are the places where we are called to shine (Philippians 2:14–16).
? Arnie Swartznegger – Judgement day as the light of his eye goes out – then reserve power kicks in!!!!!
So, it’s important that we don’t ‘grey out’, lose our distinctiveness, and become the same as the surrounding culture. God has a plan in placing us in our scattered contexts.
‘Frontline’ is a term to describe these places. Of course, it has all sorts of connotations. For some, it reminds them of a battlefield and, whilst we would want to be careful about this, for some Christians keeping a Christian witness in their place is not easy. Others will have come across the term in their workplaces – classrooms, hospital wards, offices.
Frontline workers have become a key phrase for us in the time of lockdown as they have maintained their positions in the face of higher risk of infection, separated from their families, giving their all in a time of crisis.
But we are all on a frontline
Frontlines are everyday places where we live, work, study, or play and we’re likely to connect with people who aren’t Christians.
I think it is a term that everyone can relate to – from school child to retiree. We are all the scattered people of God. We all have frontlines.
A stunning truth
Peter concludes his opening greeting with a reminder of the wondrous work of the Trinity in their lives:
• Our situations are known by God – his foreknowledge
• We have been set apart by the Spirit – his sanctifying work
• We can be confident of our relationship with God – the sprinkling of blood is a sign of being included in his covenant
And all that is in the context of ‘being obedient to Jesus’, aligning ourselves with Christ and his purposes in the world. Peter rejoices with his readers in all that God has done for us. And he reminds them, and us, that we live out the implications of the gospel in our scattered places. We are elect and we are exiles.
The series will go on to explore the implications of this for us wherever we are, whatever we do, and whoever we are. It finishes by looking at what it means to be a disciple making community together – for the sake of the world. We are red dots when we gather to strengthen one another as a distinct people. We are red dots when we scatter – to many different places with many different people. People who can make all the difference in the world.
Far from greying out we have the potential to shine, to glow and cause others around us to glow too.
Christians are a small minority in our nation in these times. Less than 6%
of the population currently go to church once a month or more – six red dots in a sea of grey ones. The reality, however, is that these red dots, these people of God, are out there in the world, Monday through Saturday – traces
and voices of grace for thousands of people. This is the church in mission on the frontline.
And if the scattered church is to grow ever more fruitful in mission, Monday through Saturday, we must embrace the gift of gathered church to fuel this. We’re convinced that our nations will never be reached until we create open, authentic, learning, and praying communities that are focused on growing whole-life disciples who live and share the gospel wherever they are.