Hiding from the world

"I have given them Your word and the world has hated them, for they are not of the world any more than I am of the world. My prayer is not that You take them out of the world but that You protect them from the evil one. They are not of the world, even as I am not of it. Sanctify them by the truth; Your word is truth. As You sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world" (John 17:14-18).

Martin Luther was a monk. A monk was a person who severed all ties to earthly interests and devoted every minute of every day to the Lord’s service for the rest of his life. Monks lived in monasteries. A monastery was a self-contained religious community—the monks lived there, grew their own food in its gardens, and conducted their own worship services.

Monasteries were centers of learning. In a time when most people were illiterate, only monasteries had libraries. Before Gutenberg invented his printing press, Bibles were reproduced by hand in monasteries. They had a room called a Scriptorium; in this room, one monk would slowly read from a copy of the Bible, while other monks would carefully listen and make copies of what was read.

Life in a monastery was all about devotion and humble service. The most important building was the church; monks would gather for worship seven times a day. The cloister connected the church to the other buildings of the complex and served as a place of quiet meditation. In addition to the library and scriptorium, monasteries had a kitchen, bathhouse, and infirmary, complete with a garden of medicinal herbs. Monks either slept in barracks or small rooms called cells; these would be free of anything that might distract them from praying and thinking about God. A courtyard was usually the only part of a monastery open to the public. Everything about the complex was designed to keep out the evil influences of the world and preserve an atmosphere of holiness.

It is not surprising, then, that monks were held in high regard by most people—they were seen as holy men living apart in a holy place to do holy work. Communities felt blessed to have a monastery close by. Children who caused problems or who could not be supported were sent to monasteries to be rid of them, since the vows of a monk were binding for life—after all, who could think badly of a parent for turning their child over to God’s holy service? For others, monastic life became a retreat, a place to hide from life’s mistakes and the problems of the world. All this had its effect on the monks—many of them took pride in their dedication to God and the work they were doing in His service.

Martin Luther became horrified over this situation. When the Augsburg Confession was presented in the year 1530, two of its sections were addressed to monks and monasteries. The Confession made it abundantly clear that a monk’s life is no more holy than anyone else’s. Romans chapter three states: There is no difference, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. In Psalm 14 David observes, there is no one who does good, not even one. Since a monk was just as much a condemned sinner as everyone else, monastic life could hardly be seen as holy or boastworthy.

The Reformation reminds us that the only way we are made holy is when Jesus gives us His righteousness as a gift. It is the blood of Jesus that washes away the stain of sin. It is the fact that Jesus suffered for every sin on the cross that we are freed from the punishment that our sins have earned for us. In Acts chapter 4 Peter said, There is salvation in no one else! We can’t save ourselves by trying to be good people—only Jesus is equipped to make us holy in God’s sight. We must rely upon Him, not ourselves; Paul writes: we become right with God, not by doing what the law commands, but by faith in Jesus Christ. So we have believed in Christ Jesus, that we might be accepted by God because of our faith in Christ--and not because we have obeyed the law. For no one will ever be saved by obeying the law (Galatians 2:16).

And you know what? This is God’s free gift to you. There is nothing that you can do to earn Jesus’ help; God's prophet warns us that all our righteous acts are like filthy rags (Isaiah 64:6). But this is not an obstacle—Jesus loves you so much that He gives you His righteousness for free! In Romans chapter three, Paul tells us that we are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. Isn’t this wonderful? You don’t have to become a monk and live in a monastery to find favor with God; Luther pointed out that we can be God’s favored servants wherever we are, whatever we are doing. Colossians chapter three says, whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus. We can serve God by cooking a wonderful dinner for the family. We can honor God by being honest in our business dealings with others. Jesus said that whatever we do for others, we do for our heavenly King (Matthew 25:40).

The other problem with monasteries was how they often remained aloof from the world around them. Ordinary citizens were not permitted in, and many monks rarely if ever left their sanctuary to mingle with the people of the world. For some, this behavior arose from fear—fear of contaminating influences. They worried that if they spent too much time out in the world, they might be seduced by evil desires and corrupted by impure thoughts. Such people viewed the monastery as a place where they could be shielded from temptation. Others stayed inside because of the way they set their priorities—they believed that serving God in worship and study and maintenance of the grounds was a more important use of their time than interacting with the common folk. Their focus was on their personal relationship to God, at the expense of having relationships with anyone else.

But isolating yourself from the world is not what the Christian is called to do. Jesus said, go and make disciples of all nations (Matthew 28:19); you cannot make disciples if you do not spend time establishing relationships with others. You cannot carry out His command if you do not speak of Jesus with those whose lives are pointed towards hell. Paul says, We are…Christ's ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us (2 Corinthians 5:20). We cannot be Christ’s ambassadors if we are afraid of talking to sinners, or are too busy being ‘holy’ to fit them into our schedule. Luther writes: "serving God consists in serving our fellow man, as Christ and His apostles did; it does not consist of hiding away forever in the solitude of a monastery."

Jesus spent time alone with His followers, but He also ate meals with people who were scorned for their sinful lifestyles. Jesus described His mission this way: the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost (Luke 19:10). Jesus came to seek and to save us—and He expects us to join with Him in carrying out this soul-rescuing work. We cannot hide from the world in His church or in the room where we read His Bible; that is no more appropriate than monks hiding from the world in the busy seclusion of a monastery. Your relationship with Jesus must follow you out of your church, out of your home, and into the lives of everyone you meet. You cannot compartmentalize your faith life; God will not be left at church on the altar or at home on a bookshelf. God promised Jacob, I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go (Genesis 28:15). In Psalm 139 David sings these words to God: I can never escape from your spirit! I can never get away from your presence! If I go up to heaven, you are there; if I go down to the place of the dead, you are there. If I ride the wings of the morning, if I dwell by the farthest oceans, even there your hand will guide me, and your strength will support me. God is with you wherever you go, so you should be prepared to act as His ambassador in every situation you find yourself in.

It all comes down to correctly understanding what Jesus meant when He prayed to His Father on behalf of the disciples: I have given them your word and the world has hated them, for they are not of the world any more than I am of the world. My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one. They are not of the world, even as I am not of it. Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth. As you sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world. With these words, Jesus tells us that we are not a part of the world, even though we are living here. Our priorities and the way we go about doing things are dictated and shaped by God, not by the world around us. This means that we are not and cannot be partners with world or the people who are shaped by it; Paul warns: Don't team up with those who are unbelievers. How can goodness be a partner with wickedness? How can light live with darkness? What harmony can there be between Christ and the Devil? How can a believer be a partner with an unbeliever? (2 Corinthians 6:14-16)

At the same time, however, we have been given work to do in this world, work that we cannot do if we go off by ourselves and ignore those around us who are dying in their sins. Although we are to avoid including unbelievers in our close circle of friends, that does not mean that we sever all contact with such people. It is said that a person will not care what you know, until they know that you care; while you can be an ambassador for Christ to a total stranger, most people are more likely to let their guard down and listen to you when you have invested time building a connection with them.

Monks used to be regarded as almost otherworldly. As we listen to Jesus praying to His Father for we who follow Him, it becomes clear that we are ‘otherworldly’! We are not of this world. But we must remember Luther’s concerns. First, we are otherworldly not because of our efforts, but because of Jesus’ efforts on the cross for us. Second, being otherworldly does not mean turning our backs on the world; it means that we have been uniquely equipped to represent God’s mercy to everyone who needs it! We are to be in the world, yet not of the world. No monastery for us.