Knowing that Jesus is, at this point, walking toward Gethsemane, towards His passion and death, only adds to the potency and poignancy of the moment. We can barely imagine the atmosphere in which this discourse is delivered. Teaching from under the shadow of the cross gives His words about the world’s hatred of the Church a deep resonance with His own immediate experience. It is tempting to skip these passages. We may feel that while in some ways our culture is becoming less accepting of Christians and their views, in real terms, our experience (generally) still falls somewhat short of ‘hatred’. Maybe if we lived in one of the countries on the Open Doors World Watch List this is a passage that would have something to say to us… but it feels distant for the Church in Ipswich? After all, we haven’t had a martyr here since the 1550’s.
But as we live into Jesus’ vision for the life and mission of the Church we may find that the world, and its reaction to us comes closer to home than we might anticipate. The world seeks to suppress the truth about God (Rom.1:18-21) and so long as it is able to do that effectively, all is calm. But, when the Church fulfills Christ’s ambition for her, and becomes the place where God comes into the world, the reaction is likely to be volatile. We do actually know this. It is why so much of the Church’s outreach in the UK is consciously not evangelistic. We know that as soon as we start bringing Jesus into our mission, it will alienate people, and generate hostility. And so, in our attempts to connect with people, we become unwitting accomplices. We allow the Gospel to be suppressed by the world… even in the mission of the Church. We reject the rejection Jesus experienced from the outset of His public ministry (see Lk.4:28-29). We seem to believe we can reach the world without incurring its ‘hatred', its opposition. …that we can follow Jesus, without sharing in His persecution (vv.20-21).
But Jesus knows better: both from His own experience, and His own understanding and insight into the nature of the world. He knows who ‘the prince of this world’ is (see Jn.12:31, 14:30 & 16:11). And He has warned His disciples of his hostility since the beginning (Matt.5:10-12). And here at the end of His ministry amongst them, He again underlines it. Our response might be to retreat. But Jesus is adamant. Insofar as we keep in step with His Spirit, we must testify (15:26-27). ‘Must’. That’s a strong word. It doesn’t leave a lot of room for manoeuvre…
Questions:
Do you agree with the above analysis of ‘Christless-mission’? …or is it too cynical? Are there any situations in the UK in which it might be legitimate for the Church to outreach that doesn’t explicitly present the Gospel in an integral way?
How can we make sure that in our outreach, the Gospel of Christ is not suppressed by the world we are trying to reach? How can we support each other in the range of responses we likely anticipate when we seek to proclaim God in Christ?
Do you think it is possible to be a Christian without facing the world’s hatred (see e.g. II Tim.3:12)? Can you share your experience of being hated? How did you cope with that? How would you encourage someone else who was now experiencing the same hatred?
Why does the world hate Jesus? Do you think this is a fair way to describe the people you know? Do you think Jesus is describing individuals like the ones you know?
How does ‘not belonging to the world’ (v.19) impact you? How does it find expression in your experience? How do you manage that sense of alienation? What does Jesus mean when He talks about having chosen us?
Why does Jesus’ presence mean that people have no excuse for sin? Is this true (like so much else is) as a result of the Church’s presence also?
How do you feel about being so closely idenitfied with Jesus that how the world responds to you is how the world responds to Jesus (vv.20-21)? Do you find that intimidating? … inspiring? … encouraging? … fearful?
Given the Spirit’s deep invovlement with the Church’s testifying to Jesus, what conclusions would you draw about a Church that didn’t prioritise evangelism? Can an individual / Chruch be in step with the Spirit without being invovled in ‘testifying’ about Jesus? What consitutes such ‘testifying’?
How does Jesus telling the disciples about this experience of persecution and suffering help? Is this simply a case of ‘forewarned is forearmed’, or is there something more going on?
