Incarnation Over Mimicry

As I mature (get older) my desire for revelation, enlightenment and wisdom expands as well.

Now 53 years into my journey with the Christ, I truly desire a legacy that exudes love and empowerment, rather than mere religious mimicry.

Even the "Word" which I hear while continuing my long and disciplined morning read of the Biblical "text" seems more promising than ever.

"Imputed righteousness" a long held belief of mine, surely means more than mere forgiveness from my sins and shortcomings.

Acts 1:8 was a promise not just of forgiveness, but the empowerment of you & I: we "receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you."

The virgin Mary gave birth to Jesus when the Holy Spirit came upon her! As Gabriel told her, "The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you".

Surely this life giving, transformational energy would not be withheld from us, if the intent was that we become the Sons of God.

Stay with me!

Empires have tried to tame this movement for centuries, reframing and empowering institutions to stabilize populations and guard against any spiritual challenge that true righteousness might bring to otherwise self serving "leadership".

Often on the front-end using familiar religious language for purposes of manipulation, but truth always wins.

Historically, that restraint only endures a short season, at least relative to the centuries of human history. Humans are slow in their "aHa's" but the "I Am", the "I shall be be who I shall be" is patient and kind.

Once Mary delivered, and love was best demonstrated, with sin and death defeated, and outpouring occurred on a long celebrated Jewish feast called Pentecost. "The Way" as is was called began to spread across the Middle East.

From Pentecost to Constantine was about 273-276 years, the empire began to pay attention.

Then around 530–538 A.D., there was a significant shift in religious dogma and church-state relations again were framed, driven by Emperor Justinian I. He finalized the transition from the early church to a state-controlled ecclesiastical system (caesaropapism).

Key developments around this time included the legal enforcement of orthodox dogma, the suppression of "heretical" beliefs, and the strengthening of the papacy's authority to enforce doctrinal unity across the empire.

Then there was the Eastern and Western church split which occurred in 1054, an event known as the Great Schism or East-West Schism. On July 16, 1054, Cardinal Humbert, a representative of Pope Leo IX, placed a bull of excommunication on the altar of the Hagia Sophia in Constantinople, which the Patriarch of Constantinople, Michael Cerularius, countered with his own excommunication of the papal legates.

Still later, Jan Hus (c. 1369–1415) a Czech theologian from the province of Moravia, priest, and reformer challenged Catholic Church doctrines. A key predecessor to the Protestant Reformation, he was condemned for heresy and burned at the stake on July 6, 1415, in Constance, Germany.

Behind him, Martin Luther’s Reformation began on October 31, 1517, when he famously posted his 95 Theses on the door of the Castle Church in Wittenberg, Germany. This act, targeting the abuse of indulgences, triggered the Protestant Reformation, which reshaped Christianity and European history throughout the 16th century.

Here we are in 2026, long overdue such reform based upon shifts occurring among the multiple generations that make up the modern day church, her numbers diminished.

Not to mentioned the blind alignment of religion and politics that now threatens our young republic.

However, among those willing to entertain, better yet, work to sustain the progressive trajectory first mentioned in Genesis 3:15, moving us toward "Christ in us, the hope of glory" so as to become the true Body of Christ, renewal noe seems a possibility.

Yes, recent research demonstrates evidence of recovery in U.S. church attendance, with a stabilization post-pandemic, driven by a "surprising" resurgence among Millennials and Gen Z, who are attending at higher-than-expected rates. Roughly half of Protestant pastors report growth, particularly in Pentecostal and Baptist churches, with 38% of current attendees having joined their congregations within the last five years.

I love the irony of whomever first introduced the alphabetical naming of generations, beginning with "X".

"The alphabetical naming of generations, starting with Generation X, was precipitated by the need to label a cohort that felt undefined, forgotten, or "unknown" compared to the preceding Baby Boomers.

The "X" was not originally intended to be a letter in an alphabetical sequence, but rather a placeholder for an unknown variable, a concept popularized in the early 1990s and subsequently followed by Y and Z for simplicity."

Now, having exhuasted the alphabet, my own grandchidren now represent generation Alpha...the New beginning.

Gotta love how providence seems upon us!