Moderator's Address: Fix Your Eyes!

By Max Zook

One of the most unusual stories in all the Bible is found in Matthew 14. Jesus, while walking towards his disciples who were in a boat on a lake, invited Peter to climb out of that boat and walk towards Jesus on the surface of that same lake, at night, in a storm. What is even more unusual than that invitation, is that Peter actually got out of the boat and walked toward Jesus. My feet would have been frozen in heavy cement blocks, stuck to the bottom of the boat. But even more amazing is what the Bible says next, "But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, "Lord, save me!" (Matt 14:30 - all references from the NIV).

Now, I'm not surprised by Peter's cry for help, nor by the fact that he began to sink. What amazes me is that Peter saw the wind, at night, in a storm. And when he saw the wind, instead of looking at Jesus and walking towards him, he began to sink.

The problem was not with Peter's feet. He could walk very well. The problem was not with his arms and legs. I'm sure he could swim and tread water. However, for this new kind of water treading experience, Peter needed to have his eyes fixed. He needed to have his eyes fixed on Jesus, instead of looking at wind.

We, like Peter, are also in some storms, on a restless lake.

Today is August 14, 1999. We are now four and a half months, or 139 days away from January 1, 2000. That will be the day when all calendars, and many, hopefully most, if not all computers, will indicate that we have entered a new year, a new century, and a new millennium. Many people are afraid of what could happen on that date if just 10% of the computers in this country fail to know what to do with those two 00's. Many people, including evangelical Christians, are stockpiling cash, food, generators, and even guns. The Year 2000 panic, or as it has been called, the Y2K crisis, has put Lehman's Hardware, just up the road in Kidron, into the Wall Street Journal because of the store's inventory of non-electric supplies. The panic in many Christian circles indicates that many of us American Christians like our comfortable lives enough to be terrified at the thought of facing the Y2K storm of just a few days, let alone a few weeks, without electricity, banks, or stores.

Much work and countless hours have been spent in trying to settle the storm by fixing the problem in the computers. But, just as the storm exposed Peter's problem with his eyes, so this storm is revealing that many of us have a problem far deeper than in our computers. It is a problem with our eyes. Our eyes need fixed far more urgently than our computers. 2Corinthians 4:18 states, " So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal." When we fix our eyes on Jesus, we see the spiritual realities that cannot be seen with our physical eyes. We see that there is more to life than our possessions and our comfort. When we fix our eyes, we know that "a man's life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions."Luke 12:15

Perhaps a more troubling storm within the Christian community in general and the Mennonite church community in particular, involves controversy about doctrines and faithful obedience to those doctrines. We are in a time when, as Ephesians 4 states, many are being "tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of men in their deceitful scheming" ( Eph. 4:14). On the surface the storm seems to center on issues of the meaning of marriage, acceptability of homosexuality, and the role of men and women in the church. But under the surface we see that many have discarded the anchor of the authoritative Word of God, and that they have also thrown away Biblical creationism, the diety of Jesus Christ, the sole adequacy of His atonement, as well as their own assurance of an eternity in a literal heaven.

I long for the faithfulness of this conference to the Lord Jesus Christ, to sound doctrine based upon the authority and inerrancy of the written Word of God, and to Christ's call to make disciples of Jesus Christ in all the world. I sincerely hope that 100 years from now, should the Lord tarry his return, this conference will carry forth sound teaching, sincere love, and surrendered obedience to our Lord and Savior.

What can we do tody to guarantee such faithfulness in present and likely future storms? We may be tempted to delineate solid statements of our positions, establish clear boundaries of accountability, and make solemn vows of faithfulness. But we already have many clear statements and positions. And those statements on paper can never guarantee faithfulness in our hearts. Something far deeper needs to be fixed than our statements and policies. Our eyes need to be fixed. They need to be fixed on Jesus, "the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God." (Hebrews 12:2)

Not only is a doctrinal storm raging around us, but we have had a storm within our own conference. Many of you are aware that within the past two years a new conference of Mennonites has been formed called the Biblical Mennonite Alliance. Several ministers from our conference joined with several other unaffiliated ministers to form the new conference with more accountability for clearer guidelines for faithfulness than what we presently have within this conference. Yesterday, (Friday, August 13, 1999) we voted to release four congregations with their ministers to transfer to the BMA.

The past few years have been stormy. Turbulent fears and windy doubts have stirred up waves of suspicions and insecurities in my own heart and mind. But the real problem has not been with my brothers who started a new conference, nor with their convictions, but with my eyes. My eyes have needed to be fixed on Jesus. He is the Lord of the Church that can never be divided, the Head of the Body that has only one loyalty. There is only "one body and one Spirit,... one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all." Eph. 4:4-6.

Conference membership, business meetings, votes, policies, procedures, and guidelines are all very important to safeguard faithfulness. But they are temporary. Look around yourself here today. Do you see anyone who will be a member of the Conservative Mennonite Conference 100 years from now, should Jesus tarry his return that long? How many of us will be actively involved in anything, let alone conference even 50 years from now? Conference loyalty will be irrelevant in heaven!

Once again, 2 Corinthians 4:18 states, " So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal." When conference loyalty seems unsettled, when we are distracted by the debate over positions, when brothers and sisters are separated, not only by convictions, but also by walls of suspicion, and bitter spirits, our eyes need to be fixed. Our eyes need to be fixed on Jesus.

Several years ago our conference ministers set a goal for our conference to have 20,000 members by the year 2000. 20,000 by 2000. It was a catchy slogan and a lofty goal. I don't mean to be pessimistic, but with a membership of 10,237 reported in last year's conference report, I rather doubt that we will reach 20,000 by any time very soon, especially with an annual increase of about 200 members per year during the 1990's. Last year we reported 83 new members by baptism from non-member households. That is less than one new believer for each congregation.

Now I don't know about you, but when I hear a preacher starting to talk about evangelism, I usually feel a storm in my heart. Waves of fear sweep over me. I am afraid that people will look down on me for talking about Jesus. I am also afraid to get too close to people who aren't Christians. I don't want to risk becoming like them. But I also face the wind pressure of guilt if I don't obey Christ's last command to make disciples. And I try to tread the waves of insecurity about whether I am really capable of making a disciple, I am tempted to put my trust in proven techniques, popular programs, and successful strategies for winning the lost. If they worked in Chicago or Korea or California, maybe they will make me into a competent evangelist who can walk on watery fears in the midst of stormy doubts. Can you identify with me?

Once again, what needs fixed first of all is not our techniques, our programs, nor our goals. It is our eyes. Our eyes need to fixed on Jesus.

Can you see Jesus when he "went through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the good news of the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness."

Can you watch Jesus when "he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd."

Do you hear him pleading with his disciples, "The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field." (Matt 9:35-38)

Sometimes we feel overwhelmed by all the people who need Jesus and we lose heart and sink beneath the waves of hopelessness. I'm certain that my compassion would not have stretched very far had I been looking at those crowds with Jesus. But that is when we need to fix our eyes on Jesus, who didn't call crowds, but individuals within those crowds. He didn't make disciples of the thousands, but of the twelve. And one of those didn't turn out right. What would happen if each of us here today fixed our eyes on Jesus and his method of making disciples and then purposed before God to make one disciple until conference time next year? What if each pastor began to disciple and mentor one new potential pastor? What if each church determined to plant only one new church? Let us not look to the many, but to Jesus, and watch how he ministered to each person, one at a time. Each one reaching one.

Our theme for the conference this weekend is prayer. When we pray we look to God, we fix our eyes on Jesus. I know of no better action in any storm, whether it be the storm of the Y2K crisis, the storm of doctrinal confusion, a stormy disagreement within the family of God, or the internal storm of our own fears and insecurities. What needs fixed is not our computers, our policies, statements, goals, nor our strategies. Oh, these can always be tidied up a bit. But what most needs fixed is our eyes. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus.

Outside the back door of our house we have a grapevine. Each day, in fact, several times each day, I pass that grapevine and I inevitably look at it. I enjoy watching in the spring the leaves coming from the enlarged buds. I can't wait to see and smell the tiny grape blossoms and see the very small grapes beginning to grow. This time of year I am watching for the first green grapes to begin turning blue. I look forward to harvesting those grapes very soon.

But as closely as I watch that vine each day, there is one day of the whole year that I know that vine best. It is not when the leaves emerge, nor when the grapes begin forming, nor even when I harvest the grapes. It is the day in the middle of winter when I take my shears and inspect each branch of that grape vine. I cut away all the dead branches and prune those with a lot of new growth so that they bear more fruit. The husbandman is never as close to the vine as when he is pruning it.

Pruning time is a stormy time. When we are in the storm or being pruned, it is hard to see beyond the confusion, pain, doubts and fears. But that is when our Savior is closest to us. It is when we must fix our eyes on Jesus. We must remember what he said in John 15:5,"I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing." We must keep that truth, not only in our minds, but in our meetings, motions, and minutes; not only in our memory, but in the motives behind our strategies, sermons, and services.

How do we fix our eyes on Jesus? We fix our eyes upon Jesus when we place our full trust in Him, knowing that He is our way, He is our truth, He is our life. He not only provides all we need, He is what we need. We fix our eyes on Jesus when we surrender to the authority of His Word and quit trying to excuse, dodge, ignore, or explain it any other way, but recognize Jesus Christ as the Head of the Church. And we fix our eyes on Jesus as we pray and realize how essential prayer is.

Let us fix our eyes on Jesus. Apart from Him, we can do nothing.

And let us do that, brothers and sisters, as we pray.

"Open our eyes, Lord, we want to see Jesus, to reach out and touch Him, and say that we love Him. Open our ears Lord, and help us to listen. Open our eyes, Lord, we want to see Jesus." - words and music by Bob Cull, 1976 Maranatha!

Max Zook is the former moderator of Conservative Mennonite Conference and lives in Belleville, Pennsylvania.

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