Loving God. Loving People.

Fences

Over the summer I had the privilege of reading the ‘The boy in the Striped Pyjamas’.  The author, John Boyne, does not give a description of the book on cover but rather states “If you do start to read this book, you will go on a journey with a nine-year-old boy called Bruno. (Though this isn’t a book for nine-year-olds.) And sooner or later you will arrive with Bruno at a fence…Fences like this exist all over the world. We hope you never have to cross such a fence.”

As I read this comment I was hit with an uncomfortable realisation,  that I…and dare I say we, can all live with fences…fences that act as a divide between us and others…fences that cause us to judge others to see them on the wrong side of the fence…fences that cause us judge ourselves and deem ourselves to be on the wrong side of the fence.

John Boyne is right that fences do exist all around the world I guess what has made me uncomfortable is the thought that maybe they exist more than I would like in my world.

I guess I have been left thinking it is time to see some fences removed…but how?

Maybe the fences we put up point to an ultimate fence, that in dealing with that we can then see the others removed.

At the heart of the Christian faith is the reality that an ultimate fence is there between us and God, a fence that causes us to be unable to know God, to know His love, acceptance and peace.  The tragedy is we can do nothing to remove this fence, however God out of His love for us sent Jesus to the earth to live, die and be resurrected to destroy the fence in order that we can know God’s love, acceptance and peace.

Jesus has removed the ultimate fence in order that we can live without fences…in order that we can show others the acceptance, love and peace that we have found and point them to it.

The question is do we know that this ultimate fence has been removed? If yes, are we then ensuring that we are not still living with fences for ourselves or others?

I know for me I am enjoying living more and more fence free!

Provocative insight and challenge, Adrian. Thanks.

I have been seeking to live, as a Christian, ‘without fences’ for over 10 years now and part of the struggle is about purging or cutting away my own critical, self-justifying spirit (I am right, you are wrong, we are right, they are wrong).

When we harshly judge others or other groups we are not doing our job because we are not in sync with the positive, life creating energy moving US forward so that God’s Kingdom may come in our own lives and in the life of the church and His will be done here on earth as in heaven.

I say let the Holy Spirit do the judging and the convicting in our own lives and in the life of the church when and as where… necessary……but let is abstain from that. It is not our job.

Living on the basis of the Ultimate Fence being totally removed means living in a world without no fences which is a huge, destabilising challenge.

Are we up for it?

Is Oasis up for it?

What would be the consequences?

Awesome.

Bill