We’ve been forgiven, so we forgive.
We’ve been loved, so we love.
We’ve been freely accepted, so we accept others freely.
We’ve been given mercy, so we are merciful.
We have escaped judgment, so we do not judge.
We’ve been welcomed in, so we welcome all.
The door was opened for us, so we left it open to others.
We are different people from what we were;
We are Grace Turned Outward.
I first published this list in a Catch a little over a year ago. I am firmly of the belief that it needs to be a permanent document in our collection, kind of like “Declaration of a Marketplace Christian.” This is what makes us who we are. Sometimes it’s hard to define who we are because much of what we represent and talk about is the gospel of Jesus Christ that sounds pretty much like any other Christian group. But if you read and study this list and “Declaration …” you begin to see not-so-subtle differences. Separating the truth from a very popular but flawed cultural Christianity is not so easy. And it takes revisiting it again and again to renew our commitment as Christians in the world. I have to read “Declaration of a Marketplace Christian” over and over again because I forget so easily.
When I went looking for a picture to go along with a Catch on making peace, I typed “peacemaker” in the image search engine, and got an array of pictures of a gun. Not quite what I expected. Apparently “peacemaker” is the name of a popular gun collector’s item, a Colt 45 that was the U.S. Army official service revolver from 1873-1892. I also found pictures of a very large aircraft — the Convair B-36 bomber — the largest mass-produced piston-engine aircraft ever made, and operated solely by the United States Air Force (USAF) from 1949 to 1959. It was designed specifically to carry nuclear weapons long distances and could travel almost halfway around the world without refueling.
In both of these instances, “peace” was maintained by way of the threat of destructive force. You will be peaceful because I’ve got the gun and I can blow you away. Or, Your country will be at peace with us because you know we have the capability of wiping your entire nation off the face of the earth.
John Fischer The Catch 