A Pastor and brother in the faith asked me a question following a sermon I delivered last year at a fellowship I used to attend in Yonkers, NY. He said to me, “When do we start to “Heal”? When do we start to heal those suffering from sickness and physical ailments.” I replied saying something to the effect that “When we truly start to do the things of Christ as Christ showed us and we develop solid faith in Christ, we may be empowered to do so”. As I look back on that exchange now I can say I would answer a bit differently at this point with a more concise and precise answer. Now, I would simply say “We will start to heal…..when we truly start to BELIEVE.”
Surveying the Hebrew Christian landscape in North America and the Christian landscape in general, in my opinion I feel a lot of Christians are involved with, pursue and believe in everything BUT Christ. We focus on so many concepts that in our minds make us “a Holy, Righteous and Set-Apart people”, but in reality don’t do the things of Christ nor keep his sayings.
In my travels, Sacred Names, Sacred Texts, Sacred Calendars, focus on tongues and other concepts where by individuals declare themselves set-apart and “Holy” are practiced by groups of individuals that create closed, insular groups that become totally ineffective in teaching any aspects of the Gospel. A lot of folks I encounter champion these causes without a stitch or formal education in Biblical languages, knowledge of Hebrew/early (Israelite) society, culture and customs or history of Israel/Palestine/the Middle East/North East Africa.
The bigger point is that adherents and followers of these philosophies and “theological concepts” never seem to commit to sustained efforts to DO the things the Messiah actually commanded in terms of love, mercy, compassion, selfless giving and care for other human beings, community and basic service.
In my experiences with a lot of these individuals I have never seen a hammer lifted to construct shelter or repair homes for the poor or elderly. I’ve rarely seen an elderly person visited let alone a sick or shut-in person visited in a hospital or care facility. I have not seen sustained involvement in youth, foster care or orphan care organizations or causes that help individuals through various traumatic situations and episodes. To say it another way, I have never seen them evidence the Matthew 25 behaviors that the Christ actually values and wants to see in those who claim him.
(Random once a month hospital visits are a start and although they may be appreciated should not be looked at as a fulfillment of your “Christian” duty. Rather you should see the importance of this type of support and understand how sustained efforts at visitation have a long lasting and often life changing impact on the recipients of the service being rendered).
I’m sure there may be individuals in the world who stand by some of the aforementioned doctrines who do grasp love, justice, social justice and unconditional compassion as a major component of the worship of the True God, but in my travels I never seem to meet them.
I personally am deeply frustrated with people who attempt to deal with a lack of spirituality and faith by over emphasizing and hiding behind often divisive and polarizing theological constructs while openly ignoring the more crucial and “weightier matters of the law”. I am watching these phenomena divide congregations and fellowships, sew discord and isolate those who often need the most spiritual and psychological support.
I honestly believe that when one focuses first on knowing and emulating The Messiah as well as the most rudimentary aspects of the Gospel message that a balanced and meaningful faith walk will be achieved. A walk that reflects The Father, The Christ and the Kingdom and has a profound affect on every individual the believer encounters.
So am I saying we shouldn’t call the Messiah by his name? Yeshua? Should we not know exactly when the “moeds” or appointed times are? Should we not have a rich and solid understanding of the text? Yes we should, but they should not be make or break issues that cause others to be judged as ignorant or damned. I believe it’s more important to humbly stand for the Messiah and represent the Kingdom of God to bring hope and solace to a troubled world then hide behind causes that sew discord and bring about a vain, elitist, disposition that does more harm than good.
Think about it…… you can say his name perfectly, but if you aren’t committed to a life that reflects him, your efforts to say Yeshua, without being like Yeshua may make your self righteous worship completely in vain. God will grant the ability to heal, to those he deems mature enough to handle the responsibility and who are humbly and deeply committed to His Ways and the Kingdom he will establish on the Earth.