PeacePage
A Letter to the Dystopians
Co-laborers in the
Faith, Partners in the Gospel with Paul, to the beloved in Dystopia; Grace to
you and peace from God our Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.
Blessed be our God
and Father who has given us you, our
faithful
brethren, with whom we rejoice in the hope of the gospel of Jesus Christ,
knowing that he who was victorious over the grave will also be victorious over
our present trials.
We urge you to
rejoice with us for those who have already fallen asleep, whose glory has been
mad complete in Christ our Savior.
We have heard of
your great distress over the condition of Samuel, and we join with you in
prayer for him; we are sending to you our brother Antonious,
to encourage and guide you, so receive him in the Lord even as you would
welcome one of us, and it is our earnest hope that we may all be restored to
you soon. In the mean time, let not
dissension rise among you, remembering that God’s glory is made perfect in the
unity of his people. In this time, put
selfishness, malice, and pride far from you, and focus on the need of your
brothers in the faith.
We have heard
that some among you wish to abandon the faith and go back to the law, which
brings condemnation and death. If God wished through this trial to return you to
the law, would he have made it known to you by revelation or through a prophet
as in the days of old? When you were in the wilderness, did not God confront
you openly about your idolatry through Moses’ entreaty? The law has been
fulfilled in Christ and we implore you to flee from placing yourselves once
more under the yoke of its curse. Your
fathers waited anxiously for his coming; enduring war, famine, and even death
in hopes of his arrival. Now that he has
come, do not turn from him in the midst of similar hardships.
To you Greeks,
did you not such terrible atrocities in the midst of your faithful service to
the many god’s who gave you neither hope nor rest? Do you wish to turn again to
these images, which your fathers worshiped in vain? Instead continue to give
yourselves to God who has welcomed you into his family through your faith in
Christ.
We know that
there are others among you wish to cling once again to false idols, reveling in
the iniquities of the flesh. To this we say: by no means! Shall you abandon the
faith and spurn the grace that God has bestowed on you? For if the law could
bring salvation or if there were any life in stone idols, then the sacrifice of
Christ would be in vain. But, since you have experienced the
power of his resurrection and the fullness of his mercy, hold fast to the faith
you have received through the gospel, which we have made known to you.
We are confident because we know that you will refresh our hearts in Christ
through your steadfast devotion to the truth you to which you are committed.
Others
will say, “Why do rocks crumble and buildings fall?” But as for you, do not
become burdened by the questions of this world, rather take heart as you press
on towards the glory that lies ahead. For our hope lies not in fallen works of
man but in the everlasting work of Christ Jesus our Lord, which is made
manifest in His resurrection, a resurrection to be shared by all the faithful
in the last day. The reason for this disaster is a mystery we cannot explain
“For who has advised the Lord, or who has been his counselor.” Instead we offer
you hope that he who has formed this world is the sovereign power over the
forces therein. Why concern yourselves with who has brought about this
trial? “The earth is the Lord’s and the
fullness thereof, He established it on the seas, and founded it upon the
waters.” Does he not have the right,
therefore, to act as he will please. God is just, he
shows no partiality, “He causes rain to fall on the wicked and the righteous, He causes the sun to shine on the sinful and the
upright.”
Consider
yourselves blessed, dear friends, that God has deemed
you worthy to suffer as you do. Since it
is by these hardships that your faith is accredited and you are approved to be
entrusted with the gospel of Christ Jesus your savior. No athlete has become greater apart from
strenuous training; no farmer has produced a healthy crop lest he has labored
vigorously in the fields. Likewise your
faith reaches its full potential after the suffering of your earthly bodies.
Therefore
counting your loss as gain, counting your suffering as the perfection of your
faith, through the power of the Holy Spirit, minister to those around you who
do not share in the hope that we have. For we know that it is not in your power
to endure suffering upon suffering, but it is by the empowering of the Holy
Spirit through the all surpassing grace and mercy of God, that you are
strengthened to accomplish the task that Christ has set before you. Remembering
His words, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your
soul, and with all your mind, and that you shall love
you neighbor as your self.” We know that it is your commentment
to the faith that spurs you on toward continual sacrifice in the service of the
Lord, through which we have love, joy, and peace in abundance in following his
perfect example, we love others through the gifts granted to us by the Holy
Spirit which compels us to share this love through acts of service. Minister to
the helpless, the chief among these being widows and orphans. Love not your
money in this hour but open your homes, present your tables, and offer your
beds as an acct of service to those in need. Even as our Lord humbled himself
by taking on the nature of man, making himself a servant, even a servant unto
death. Continually be in prayer, for those who have become lame and sick from
as a result of the event that has beset you, remembering your previous trials
that you have endured.
We
commend you for the service that has made you famous among the people of God
throughout the body of believers. For even the faithful in Rome are aware of
how you come together in fellowship and the breaking of bread, making no
distinction among you between Jew and Gentile, slave and free, male and female,
rich and poor. For this reason, because they know your reputation, they have
not ceased to offer prayers for you, constantly bowing before the Father to
remember your long-suffering.
So
again we say take heart, be encouraged as you strive toward the goal to which
God has called you. Share hope by spreading the good news of Christ as you by
which you have been instructed. And remembering in all things, the grace in
which God has provided. And among the brethren, encourage one another to run
the race that has been set before you by the endurance granted you through the
Holy Spirit. And to the elders, we encourage you to continue in your
instruction to the body of the believers opening the mysteries of the faith to
them and teaching them of the sufferings of Christ Jesus. As elders you are to
be fathers to the fatherless and shepherds to the wandering. Reach out to the
infants of the faith with the milk they need and to the maturing, give them
meat. As you meet together, be strong and courageous for God is in all and
above all, He does not grow weary or tire from his powerful works. It is he who
empowers you to do all things through Christ, to be all the things strength, to
the young men give encouragement. Be a lover of all people to encourage our
faith. The Spirit that God has endowed
you with has given you great responsibility to complete the tasks that have
been set before you. Remember that your
baptism was not with water alone, but also by the Holy Spirit. This Spirit is the well-spring of our
love. Our love shall be what sets us
apart from the world. And love will be
our message to the world. From the love ov Christ will the power of God be made manifest in the
gifts of the Spirit that we mentioned in our last letter. Remember, therefore, to practice the gifts of
charity, healing, evangelism, prophecy, and teaching. Each believer shall come unto power from the
Spirit according to his ability and faith.
These gifts are but the tools to show the glory of God our Father.
In continuing with
all this, we encourage you to pray continually, help one another in love, continue growing in faith. Press on toward the goal that has
so graciously been given us in Christ Jesus our Lord. Abstain from idle
thought, from grasping at ideas that you know to be false. Do not give into
sexual immorality, debauchery, greed, or the worship of false Gods. In all
things be generous, love one another, and build up one another with kind and
encouraging words. As you are taking part in this world, reach out to others,
give to those in need, and take care of the hurt and perishing, as by grace you
have so also grace you should give. Do not fall into the ways of this world,
but remember your citizenship in the
Greet all the
brothers in Christ Jesus, greet the down-trodden and
the lonely in the compassion of our Lord.
All the brothers throughout the empire greet you in the love that is
from our Father.
May the love of Jesus Christ and the hope of his resurrection be with your spirit. Amen.
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This page maintained by
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Last revised: February 17, 2006