An embassy in an alien land. . .

The ridiculous business of the Olympics and its crude image (whether intended to be the Last Supper in drag or stupidly mimicking that image by accident) reminds us that we are living in an age in which offending or being tone deaf to Christians is the only offense left.  No one would have dared to cast Mohammad or Islam in this way but Christians are fair game, I guess.  It is one more way in which we Christians are reminded of the cause of Christ in a world unfriendly to Him or His cause and therefore unfriendly to us.

This might make us want to take arms and fight back.  It might make us think that we need to fight back in order to claim territory and people and a culture for Jesus.  While that might certainly be the temptation, nowhere does Christ call us to do battle for Him in this way.  We are to fight the good fight of faith but the locus of that battle lies within us and not in some me'n'Jesus sort of shoot out at the OK corral.  No, we should not simply take it but neither should we respond in kind.  We are not called by God to fight for square footage or for political power or state sponsored favor.

Nowhere is this more true than how we see the Church in the world.  The best analogy I can think of is that of an embassy.  An embassy is literally the sovereign space of one nation within the territory of another.  Embassies are not sacred -- they are violated by our enemies from time to time.  This is a solemn reminder of the kind of enemies we have.  They do not play fair nor do they play by the rules.  That said, from our perspective that is exactly what the Church is.  She is the kingdom of God but in an alien and foreign land.  Where the Church is, gathered around the Name of Jesus, the Word of God, and the Holy Sacraments, there is God, God's kingdom, and God's territory -- even when it is in an unfriendly nation or world.  Churches are embassies of Christ for the sake of the Kingdom and they are places of refuge and safety not because their buildings are strong but because their Lord is.  

We must come and go from this embassy.  Our work is in the world but we are not of the world.  We cannot afford to allow ourselves to get caught up in a fight over land or power.  Our cause is faithfulness to Christ.  We meet every  Lord's Day, the day of His resurrection, to gather around His Word and Sacraments, in part to be reminded that we do not belong to the world.  We belong to the Lord are our citizenship is in His kingdom.  We have our commonwealth with Christ.  As tempting as it is to use such offensive things as what we saw in France at the Olympics, our call is not to war with the world over power or space but to be faithful to the Gospel that alone saves.  Embassies are not military outposts but territory of one nation in another for the sake of the citizens who live there but who belong somewhere else.  That is how it is for you and me.

We will never win the nation for Jesus but we are called to speak the Gospel to the far reaches of the earth knowing that where the Word of Christ is spoken an outpost of the Kingdom is placed there.  I find some comfort in this.  We are not on our own nor are we expected to for God what is His to accomplish.  Our calling is to be faithful.  And, by the way, that means we need to be in the embassy of the Lord often enough so that we know it as our true home and a little bit of heaven planted by God in the midst of this world and its troubles, fights, and evil.  That may not seem like much but it is more than enough for you and me.  Trust in the Lord and not in earthly rulers or kingdoms.  That is what the Psalmists said.  How hard it is to believe sometimes that we should not fight for every square inch of territory we can claim for the Lord but we are not here to mark a claim for land or property but for those for whom Christ died.