This is not to take away the privilege and spiritual responsibility of those who are called to serve God in Christian vocations. However, it does not lessen the privilege and spiritual responsibility of those who are called into the secular world, to be His salt and light.
It is my plea (probably many other Christians, who share this view), for the pastors and church leaders to take away the segregation of the 'ordained and laity', the 'full-time and secular'. This segregation and the on-piling of 'professionalism' has greatly caused people to believe that in order to serve God, they have to go through very extensive training. The work of God therefore begins to fall onto the shoulders of the few. Let's get back to the biblical call that God desires to build a nation of priests, not a nation with priests. Let our leaders, pastors and teachers equip the church to serve God full-time, anointed by and filled with the Holy Spirit.
The relevance of the Gospel Today
Despite our technological advances, we still fundamentally face the same issues several millenniums ago. The forms and iterations have evolved. Crimes and criminals have become much more sophisticated. Our cry for freedom and cause for equality continue to drive us but the basic drives and motivation remains. Jesus of Nazareth is the ancient example of one who identifies with the oppressed and presents the most radical liberation, that frees us from ourselves. The relevance of the Gospel is much more displayed in the lives of the saints, who strive to live out God's standard and statues, yet at the same time, being real and transparent in dealing with our weaknesses and sins. We have been playing church for too long, way too long. Let's begin to live as the church should, so that the salt will permeate the world.
Written By : Timothy Liu 27th Nov, 2001
