A Letter from the Apostle Paul

Archaeologists have recently discovered the following lost letter from the apostle Paul.

Paul, a servant of God who enjoys the status of education and Roman citizenship in the eyes of the world, but who finds his greatest worth as a child of the Father, chosen and beloved long before I could claim to have achieved this identity, and who is driven by the spirit of Christ within me to live as a citizen of his kingdom and to proclaim the joy of the good news of the redeeming love of Christ Jesus to a distracted and fault-finding world: to the church that seeks follows and enjoys his will, greetings.

I thank God every time I remember you in my prayers for the deep compassion you embody, not only within your fellowship but with all those in need whom you encounter.  I thank God for your generosity that is aroused in times of need, and for the joyful cooperative spirit you share as you work together in the name of Christ. Many lives far beyond the reach of your fellowship have experience the love, hope, and encouragement of God because of you.

The call of God the Father upon us all exceeds the imagination of any human mind. The exhortation of the Spirit upon our hearts seeks even greater compassion and engagement than we could know from our own sinful nature. And the actions of Christ Jesus are not limited to the deeds recorded in the Scriptures, but continue to move the mission of us, his beloved body.

For Christ did not set for us the example of a comfortable devotion marked by personal prayer, weekly gathering, and care for those close to us and similar to us. As commendable as these things may be, they are only the beginning. Your piety must lead you to action. Your awareness of needs that are close to home must drive you to seek out those whom no one considers to be close to them. Your study of my teaching must grow legs to carry you into a broken world so beloved by God that he left the glory of heaven to bring healing. And that healing comes almost always through his work mediated by the church he has established.

Look up from what is comfortable to see the uncomfortable path that God has opened before you. For God has not called you to a life of complacent worship and fellowship. He has already equipped you with all you need to be a beacon in the world, not only in in your community but wherever sinfulness and unrighteousness, injustice and impoverishment still dominate the lives of those whom Christ wills to share the blessings of new life.

Open yourself to the leading of the Spirit.  Do not be controlled by your sense of inadequacy, for all the riches and power of Christ are yours. Focus your attention not upon what cannot be done, but upon what God calls you to do. As you act in faith, he will accompany and empower all that you do in his name.

I commend to you my brother Peter, who carries this letter to you. Listen to what he teaches, but always with an awareness of his own imperfect understanding of The Way. Challenge one another as you progress more and more to the perfect knowledge and practice of the way of Jesus Christ, which will be realized on the day we will all encounter him face to face.

Greet one another with a holy hug or handshake.