If we truly believe in the forgiveness of sins, then we will inevitably gain a deep appreciation and joy for what God has done for us. Too many times in our life we might feel lukewarm or even apathetic about the love of God. After the sermon yesterday, I found myself reflecting on this challenge and how to overcome it. I recalled seeing a wonderful example having to do with Christian outreach.

This powerful example of the joy of the gospel was detailed in a documentary with the Mouk tribe of Papua New Guinea. Missionary Mark Zook shared the story of Jesus with a tribe who had no previous knowledge of the bible–no churches, no printed bibles, no previous encounters with Christian missionaries. In other words, they were hearing the gospel preached by another person for the first time.

In the climax of the documentary, Zook tells them that Jesus took on our sins and died for us. We are forgiven and gifted new life because of Christ’s actions for us. Here’s a brief clip of how the people responded:

You can also watch the full 23-minute documentary here. The entire story truly leaves me speechless and awestruck at who God is. If we truly understand who God is, we would be jumping for joy, too, just like the brothers and sisters in Christ we see in the video clip.

Ideally, when we hear God’s good news, we would be filled with so much joy that this leads to us being transformed. Instead of being jaded or angry, we give way to the moving of the Holy Spirit. In this way, we could learn a lot from the Mouk people, who literally danced for joy for several hours after hearing about God’s forgiveness.

Our issues with being unforgiving usually stem from us not truly grasping the weight of what Christ did for us. If we truly understood how God has forgiven us, our hearts will be warmed and joyful, just like those missionaries witnessed with the Mouk tribe.

When I do funerals at Concord, I always emphasize two things. One is that we ought to celebrate what God has done for someone. Upon death, we are reunited with God and experience that everlasting peace of God’s presence. The “heaven” part of a funeral is always comforting to reflect on! In the midst of grief, we often need that divine assurance God has everything covered. Our loved ones may have died, but through knowing the love of Christ, they can be made new in everlasting life.

The other thing I emphasize ties in with our belief about the communion of saints, as articulated by the Apostles’ Creed. During funerals, I try to do my best to summarize and memorialize the kind of life that someone led. What kind of person was she? How was he a good father to his children? What kind of things brought her joy in life? What fond memories did you have with him?

My reasoning for doing this is really quite simple. Hopefully through remembering someone, we come to recognize and appreciate what they taught us through their life. After all, God gave that person to us as a gift. Through his or her life, we can see a little glimpse of the love of God. They might have been a grandparent who truly showed you love. They could have been a relative who was always a joy to be around. They could have been a friend who would have sacrificed anything to help out someone in need.

As I reflect on saints and things like funerals, it is clear to me that death is often a bittersweet thing we face in life. On one hand, we desperately miss the person we lost. We wish for just one more conversation, hug, or chance to say “I love you.” Funerals often have some very heavy emotions attached to them. We feel the weight of sorrow and might even feel overwhelmed with pain. And yet on the other hand, we can be filled with joy that our loved one is no longer suffering, that he or she is with Christ now.

So in the midst of all these emotional highs and lows, it is important to remember to carry on the kind of Godly character someone may have taught us. We need to continue their example of loving God and serving others. That might be the greatest way to remember people who have died and honor their legacy.

I hope I convey through my preaching that I definitely have a very high view of the church. Too often Christians fall into the temptation of thinking that church is more like a social club rather than a way God transforms the world. And we also tend to struggle with believing that something else will bring salvation, such as a political election or powerful leader. We so desperately want to overcome sinfulness without Christ alone!

God calls us to the belief that the “holy catholic church”–as the Apostles’ Creed puts it–is the gift God gave the world to spread the good news of Jesus Christ. Churches always struggle if they make their existence about some other thing. But the good news is that when we focus on this core message, God’s love multiplies and the body of Christ grows.

I went to college at Baylor University in Waco, TX. Waco was kind of a college town, stuck in the middle between Dallas and Austin on I-35. The highway and a couple of byroads basically divided the city into certain economic sections. On one side of the interstate, there was Baylor’s campus–lots of students (many from affluent backgrounds), fancy buildings, and the like. And on the other side, downtown Waco was a completely different world. There were many people struggling with homelessness and addiction. Jobs were scarce. The tragic thing was that it was so incredibly easy to live life in the Baylor “bubble” as a student rather than helping out those in poverty on the other side of the highway.

Several years ago, a man named Jimmy Dorrell saw this need in Waco and sought to do something about it. He founded a ministry called Mission Waco several years ago to serve the homeless and poor of the city. Jimmy would work to get Baylor students to live out the gospel for our homeless brothers and sisters.

There’s a story I once heard about Jimmy that always stuck with me. He is an author and engaging public speaker, traveling all over to share how to do what they were doing in Waco. One time, Jimmy was giving a seminar to a group of students about his work. During a Q&A time, one student plainly asked him, “Why on earth do you do what you do?”

This question might sound abrasive or even uncaring. But I suspect we all struggle with this kind of viewpoint every now and then. Why on earth would you sacrifice a comfortable life to hang around and help homeless people? Why be generous with your money in a world of scarcity? Why not just believe that homelessness is someone else’s problem?

Jimmy could have responded with a plethora of bible verses about social justice and compassion. He could have answered with a grand theological argument, just like pastors do during sermons.

But instead, Jimmy simply said this: “I do this because they are my friends. And I want to help my friends.”

So many times we overthink our calling in the world. We might second guess ourselves. Or even worse, we might water-down the meaning of the holy catholic church and ignore the cry of the needy. Tragically, the responses of “Not my problem!” or “Someone else ought to do it!” are so common.

But the beautiful truth of the church is a simple call to make friends and care for them. We share God’s blessings with other people. We eagerly tell others about what Jesus has done in our life. And we develop that compassionate desire to help those friends, no matter what they might be going through.