Yesterday I mentioned that for the final round of the blogging tournament at PlantingSpace.com, I wrote two articles and then submitted the one that I thought was best. That’s not actually true.
I only wrote one, which is the one you find below. I showed it to my wife for her input. She liked it, made some suggestions, and then said that it didn’t sound quite right. It seemed too…aggressive. Too bloody. So she and I talked about a few other ideas. She came up with an idea I thought was so good, I invited her to write it. So she did. That is the post I submitted yesterday. So, if I “win,” it is actually my wife, Wendy, who wrote the “winning” post. But hey, since we’re married, the two have become one, right?
Anyway, here is what I was going to submit until she came up with something better. If you still want to go vote for me (Wendy, actually), you can do so here.
When Jesus says He will build His church (Matt 16:18), He also implies where He will build it. He says that as He builds His church, the “gates of Hell will not overcome it.” Since gates are defensive, apparently Jesus and His church are camped right outside.
Jesus has Hell under siege!
And church planters are the ones who are advancing the kingdom. They look around their communities, find the most hellish places, and armed with weapons of grace, kindness, compassion, mercy, faith, hope, and love, hurl themselves headlong at the gates. With full abandon, in blinding bloodlust and with cries of holy rage, they swing fiercely with their swords, cry out desperately for aid, risking all, …just so that one more might be saved. And one more. And one more.
Now is not the time for fatigue. Now is not the time for rest. Now is not the time to pursue happiness. We must swing, and swing again, until our biceps burn and our breath comes in ragged gasps. And if our sword breaks and we are left with nothing but our bloody fists, we must continue swinging.
Those gates must come down. Those people must be freed.
There’s the trumpet call! “Forward! Forward!” is the cry.
And when the battle is done, and the gates of Hell have fallen, Jesus, the Victorious King, will rise above the cheering throng, and with tears in His eyes, raise His sword in salute, and shout for all to hear, “Well done, My Mighty Men of Valor! Together, we have built My church.”
Jeremy,
too funny…I wrote two articles also and then submitted them to my wife for review. I submitted the one she felt was more compelling. I guess we men may lead, but we still want the approval of our wives…(I think that’s a good thing). 🙂 I also put my second option on my blog today.
For what it’s worth…. I like #2. Well done!
Mark,
Thanks for the comment. I LOVE the look of your blog. It is the most creative set up I think I’ve ever seen. Very image based.
Jeremy,
I like it! It has a martial feel to it. Reminds me of a talk one of my CO’s gave us before we went over to the middle east.
Your brother,
Jim
Jim,
Yeah, that is what I thought too. Of course, lots of people, Christians included, are not too happy about what we are doing in Iraq. Furthermore, this post seems to remind people about the Crusades, which are a blight in the history of Christianity. That’s why I wanted to try to emphasize in the post that our “weapons” are love, grace, mercy, forgiveness, generosity, service, kindness, and other “fruits of the Spirit.”
Keep strong on those posts of yours. I know you are getting some flak, but that is only because they cannot attack you based on content and clarity of argument.