Letter To SSBC

This last Sunday we finished up with the second major section in the book of Revelation, the seven letters from the Lord Jesus to seven churches in ancient Asia Minor.  We have seen that each of the letters have something to say to us, both individually and corporately as a family of faith.  We want to be careful not to lose our first love (Ephesus) and to trust God in the midst of our suffering (Smyrna).  We must also be on guard, lest we begin to compromise (Pergamum) and to fully embrace sin in our life (Thyatira).  Unlike Sardis, who was spiritually dead, we seek life by walking through the open doors (Philadelphia) that Christ puts before us, avoiding at all costs that lukewarm and unsatisfactory condition of Laodicea.  These letters clearly continue to transcend their historical context and they speak to us today (as does the whole of God’s Word), if we have ears to hear what the Spirit says (Rev. 2:7,11,17,29; 3:6,13,22).

But what if we got a personalized letter?  I realize that in some sense, each of the letters in Revelation chapters 2 and 3 are letters to us, but what if the Lord Jesus actually wrote a personal letter, addressed to Sublette Southern Baptist Church?  What would it look like?  How would Christ identify Himself?  What might He commend?  What might He be concerned with?  What counsel might He offer?  Of course, there is no way we could answer that question with the weight as if it was coming from Christ, but I’m sure we all have thought something along those same lines as we’ve made our way through each of these letters in Revelation 2 and 3.  I wanted to share with you some of my thoughts about what such a letter might look like.

I believe Christ might identify Himself as the Mighty Chief Shepherd who dwells among us.  He is mighty, reminding us not just of His strength, but of what He has done among us over the last few years!  Over the last four years our church family has grown in mighty ways.  We’ve seen many new faces and families that we’ve come to embrace as part of our own family of faith!  We’ve seen many new believers turn and embrace Christ as their only hope of salvation!  Physically, we’ve seen God bring together scores of volunteers from numerous states to help us build the new sanctuary!  And mighty is the only word I can think of to describe just how God has moved in our hearts, moving us to sacrifice financially over the past four years!  Jesus is the Mighty God, who has done great things and who has, I believe, greater things in store!

Christ is also the Chief Shepherd, reminding us that He is the One in charge, and all of our opinions and preferences take a back seat to His desire for us.  The image of Shepherd brings up lots of pictures of guiding, loving, protecting, etc., and He is among us, once again reminding us that He is the source of all things good that happen in and through SSBC.

What might Christ commend?  I believe He would commend our doctrine.  We are a church that believes the Bible.  Period.  We are a church that teaches the Bible.  Period.  I think Christ might also commend our deeds.  We are a church that reaches out.  From the many mission trips (WV, KS, TX) to financially backing other churches and pastors, and even in our efforts right here in Sublette (GO Sundays, etc.), our deeds speak for themselves.  Christ might also commend our perseverance in the sense that we’ve continued…to give, to serve, to reach out, to teach the Bible in a time when it’s becoming very unpopular to do so, and to borrow from Revelation 2:19, our works of late are greater than at first!  In other words, the ministry and influence of the church is more now than it was four years ago!

But…it seems like that word has come up in nearly all the letters, so why should we expect it not to come up in ours, right!  But, what might Christ be concerned with?  What do you think?  I think one thing He might be concerned with is misplaced identity.  What I mean by that is, very simply, an understanding that you are the church.  That’s right, you.  You, who are reading this, you are the church.  Very practically that means if anybody is going to give financially, it’s you.  If anybody is going to invite and bring others to church, it’s you.  If anybody is going to care enough to pray and share the gospel with others, it’s you.  If anybody is going to step up and serve, it’s you.  If anybody is going to strengthen the weak and encourage the downhearted, then it’s you because you are the church!  We have this tendency to think that somebody else will do whatever, when in reality, you are that somebody else.  You are the church, and if the work of the church is going to continue to go forth, it will do so through people just like you.

So what?  That’s what I ask nearly every Sunday, so let me ask it here.  So what?  Let’s thank God and praise Him that He is the Mighty Chief Shepherd in our midst.  He has done great things, we acknowledge that, and we look for Him to do more for His name sake.  He is in our midst, we also acknowledge that, and through Him we can step out and do great things for His Kingdom.  With all that being said, we must also understand that He wants to work through you to do those great things for His Kingdom.  So let’s seek His wisdom and understanding into how He has uniquely shaped each of us to fit within this body of believers, and then let’s get busy serving and trusting Him to show Himself mighty!