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ReVision

Small Vision, Small Faith

Full faith requires a full and expansive vision.

Great Expectations (1)

Then Peter answered and said to Him, “See, we have left all and followed You. Therefore what shall we have?” Matthew 19.27

Living up to our vision
We were in the midst of a heated conversation about the state of the Church in America, and the students were becoming increasingly urgent to understand why Christians aren’t more effective in transforming our world.

What’s wrong with us? Do we lack resources or opportunities? Do Christians simply not care about the state of culture and society? About the last, the least, and the lost? Are we and our churches really as irrelevant as our unbelieving neighbors think?

Eventually the conversation turned to pastors and whether they might be part of the problem. Pastors, after all, are the leaders and disciple-makers – those to whom we’re called to submit (Heb. 13.17) – and, as Jesus observed, no one will rise above the level of his or her leader (Jn. 13.16). Finally, one student asked, “Is this the best we can hope for from our pastors? I mean, do you think pastors are working up to the level of their ability?”

I answered without hesitation, “No. I think pastors, by and large, are earnest, sincere, eager to do a good job, and highly gifted. I think most of them are working pretty hard, and they would doubtless say they’re doing the best they can. The problem is not that they’re working up to the level of their ability; rather, it’s that they’re only working up to the level of their vision.”

In life, you see, it’s always a case of what you see is what you get.

Too low, too distant
Christian faith – full faith – is both an inward assurance of forgiveness and eternal life, and an outward life chock full of evidence that we have placed our hope in powerful and transforming unseen realities that we see with the eye of faith. In the Christian faith we won’t rise any higher in our experience than what we hope in and focus on. This is true not only for pastors, but for every follower of Jesus Christ. This is why Peter’s question to Jesus is so very important: What about us, Lord? What can we expect? What is there for us who have left everything to follow You?

Peter wanted to get it right, and he didn’t want to miss out on anything that should have been coming to him as a follower of Christ.

For many believers, I fear, their expectations about being a Christian suffer from being too low and too distant – too low, because they have not grasped the incredible transforming power of the Gospel to make all things new in their lives, and too distant because they reserve most of their expectations for after they have departed this life and gone to be with the Lord.

But since we have eternal life here and now, and have, in a certain sense, already arrived at our eternal destination – our then and there (Heb. 12.22-24) – should we not expect more of our Christian life in the here and now?

What, then, to expect?
Many Christians are living their faith primarily with a view to the future – the far distant future. The full and abundant life they hope for means, essentially, going to heaven when they die.

Of course they understand there is some benefit now, but that comes mainly in the form of assurance of salvation and probably some measure of comfort in the midst of the vicissitudes of daily life – inward and personal promises and truths. But when our vision of the life of faith is primarily of what we will realize in another world and another time, our practice of the faith here and now is not likely to be all that exciting or transformational. Hoping above all for heaven when we die, we hold to a relatively small vision of the Christian life for our everyday experience.

And a small vision of the faith leads to a small faith in our daily practice. It’s that simple, and it’s not full faith.

Peter’s question is therefore enormously important: Lord, with respect to my having decided to follow You, what should I expect? What difference should believing in You make in my life? What’s supposed to be happening, and what am I supposed to do? What does full faith in Jesus entail, and for what may I therefore hope?

Every believer should ask himself or herself these questions every day. And then wait, listen carefully, and understand clearly the great expectations Jesus holds out for all who have truly committed themselves to Him.

For reflection
1.  What do we mean by “vision”? How would you describe your vision of the Christian life?

2.  Do you agree that churches in this country need a different vision? Explain.

3.  What do you look to as expectations for your walk with and work for the Lord?

Next steps: Talk with your pastor and some church leaders. What is their vision of the Christian life? What expectations do they seek as followers of Christ?

T. M. Moore

This week’s study, Great Expectations, is Part 2 of a 10-part series, Full Faith. You can download Great Expectations by clicking here. Your gifts to The Fellowship of Ailbe make this ministry possible. It’s easy to give to The Fellowship of Ailbe, and all gifts are, of course, tax-deductible. You can click here to donate online through credit card or PayPal, or send your gift to The Fellowship of Ailbe, 19 Tyler Dr., Essex Junction, VT 05452.

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Except as indicated, Scripture taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

T.M. Moore

T. M. Moore is principal of The Fellowship of Ailbe, a spiritual fellowship in the Celtic Christian tradition. He and his wife, Susie, make their home in the Champlain Valley of Vermont.
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