Pastor Ash Dotson
I was looking at a scripture the other day, and it occurred to me that we have it a bit tougher than those who physically followed Jesus. In John 6:36, Jesus speaks with his followers and points out that even though they saw him it was difficult for them to understand or believe. We see desire on the one hand and stubbornness on the other, right?
The thing is, God asks us to look beyond ourselves, beyond our personal egoistic wants and desires. Jesus offers a new way–“The Way,” of living– which we find in the teachings of Jesus in the Gospels, and which would benefit all of humankind. But, therein lies the problem. It’s kind of a catch 22, isn’t it? Our egos, which we developed as our survival mechanism in this life, have served us well into adulthood. The ego fights to survive if we attempt to let it go, because it wants to remain in control. The problem is, the ego is not of God as it was developed by each of us. As such, we sometimes simply don’t really believe that what is best for all of humankind is best for us.
God sent God in human form so that we see for ourselves, and believe and follow. My attention was recently turned to the book of Job, specifically 12:7-10, “If you would learn more, ask the cattle, seek information from the birds of the air. The creeping things of earth will give you lessons, and the fishes of the sea will tell you all. There is not a single creature that does not know that everything is of God’s making. God holds in power the soul of every living thing, and the breath of every human body.”
Fr. Richard Rohr tells us that it takes spiritual maturity to understand what Job put so well. It takes maturity beyond our egos to seek “The Way.” Folks are scared of admitting they might be wrong about something so sacred to them as their faith, and we see an example of that in this section of scripture. But faith based in egoistic creations (religion) can never be faith in God for God is beyond our egos.
God gives us the opportunity to explore beyond our egos, and those who take advantage of it realize what Jesus is offering in the text above. We begin to see life and creation in a new way, realizing that we are connected with all that is. We find that what is best for all of humankind is also best for each of us. What is being offered to us is the Kingdom of God in the here and now. It is not something God asks us to wait for. Colossians tells us that our true self is found hidden in Christ with God.
I invite you to join us in exploring this transformation to the new creation at Oasis United Methodist Church (UMC) where living water flows … Sundays at 9:30 a.m. in the Laredo Room.