Did you know that God is a Gathering God? God says through Ezekiel, “When I gather the house of Israel from the peoples among whom they are scattered…” (vs. 25). God is a delivering God. He brings people out of their exile into community. God speaks His love into His people, brings them out of exile and into the fellowship that only God can provide. God takes the lonely, the disenfranchised, the alienated and brings them home.
God brought Israel out of exile, brought them home to Judah and their city, Jerusalem. Once there, God manifested His holiness in them, and at the right moment brought, through them, the Messiah, Jesus, and in Jesus God says to anyone who will listen, “Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give your rest” (Matthew 11:28).
The God who spoke in ancient times, still speaks today. God is still offering a place from us to call home, family, community. We are not alone. In the holy love of God, we are saved from exile and given a safe place to live our lives; a safe place, that is defined by God’s grace and mercy, His truth and justice, His love and compassion. God doesn’t write us off. God includes us. In John 17, Jesus prays that the Father will work in such a way that the people will come together and “be one” (John 17:21). In the next verse Jesus prays to the Father, “The glory which You have given Me I have given to them, that they may be one, just as We are one” (vs. 22).
God is a gathering God. We are not lone ranger Christians. We are the community of Jesus, shaped and formed by the Spirit of God. When the Church is doing it correctly it is a receiving, gathering, inviting, safe place for people to come, be loved, accepted, forgiven, and welcomed. In His people Jesus opens up the heart of God and says to each one of us, “Welcome home.”
On the day of Pentecost, God broke into the lives of a few people, and through them set into motion a movement by which people are invited to turn around, come home, and be saved. God’s community is a saved and saving community. With open arms we invite our world to taste the goodness of God, and find nourishment, not only for today but for all eternity.
Jesus said, “Come to Me.” Jesus’ Church says, “Welcome home. There is a place here for you. Live in exile no more.” When this happens then we understand what it means for the LORD to be our God. Then we understand what it means to stand in our world as ambassadors of Jesus and to extend to all who seek God the right hand of fellowship.
“You will find rest for your souls.
For My yoke is easy and My burden is light”
-- Jesus in Matthew 11:30
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