We Can't Change What We Do Until We Change Who We Are

Today Doug Wolter posted the following clip from Toy Story at his blog, Life2gether.

Quick aside: If you are at all interested in family ministry and the church as community, I hope you already follow Doug's blog. If you are and you don't...rectify that situation immediately!



Anyway, much as I was borrowing this clip from Doug, so too he was borrowing it from Chad Nuss, who comments:

In this classic scene, Buzz is convinced his role is to save the galaxy. However, Woody knows who Buzz really is and is trying his best to get through to him. This is what preaching is all about. Preaching is not primarily about what we are supposed to do or not do. Preaching is about reminding us of our identity. We are like Buzz, convinced we are good, spiritual people. The preacher comes to us like Woody, yelling at us to get us to see we are really sinners separated from God without Christ. But once we become followers of Christ, the preacher continues to come to us like Woody, yelling at us to remember who we are in Christ. Christianity is not about a list of do’s and don’ts. Christianity is about identity. We cannot change what we do until we change who we are. Preaching reminds us of who we were without Christ and who we are in Christ. Preaching reminds us that we can’t save the galaxy because we can’t even save ourselves. Only Christ can do that.

Community

Doug Wolter passes along these great thoughts on community from Chad Nuss of Christos Church in Jeffersontown, KY:

Church community consists of people that are very different, who sin against each other, who don’t like each other from time to time, who do all kinds of bad, hypocritical things–yet they stick together because the call to Christian community is to learn how to die to ourselves for the sake of the Gospel, for the sake of the church, for the sake of community, and for the sake of the glory of God.

Our enjoyment of community does not primarily come from how much we like each other, but from how much we are being rescued from destroying each other by the Gospel! The overflow of joy in the Gospel is joy in each other because we can look at each other and announce the Gospel to each other–the very Gospel that forgives us of sin and helps very different people with very different backgrounds with very different sinful tendencies with very different agendas, frustrations, and preferences come together around a common Savior.