I was in Surabaya for a congress and symposium of The Fellowship of Evangelical Colleges and Seminaries in Indonesia (PASTI). There, I met many scholars and leaders from about 45 evangelical institutions. I was glad to meet colleagues from different institutions: some of them were my former students, others were old friends, and of course some other were new to me. Bethany Theological College hosted the meeting.
I was asked to deliver a sermon in the first evening. I tell you what! Preaching (or let me use another friendlier word: sharing the word of God) to (evangelical) scholars was to be honest a new excited and challenging experience for me. Many of them are with doctorates and most of them hold masters degree from various prestigious institutions. I was a bit intimidated. God however was so gracious: it went well.
I was trying to stick and be faithful to the passage I chose (Hebrews 4.14-5.10). I had no personal interest and ambition, but to share the word and to touch the lives of the audience. My aim was to amplify the theme of the meeting: 'The Finality of Christ and its Implication to the Evangelical Mission.' Second to that, it was necessary for me to share a sermon that helped the forum to elect the new PASTI committee members. The election itself was one of the most important agendas of the congress.
The greatest experience however is to meeting different people from different institution. I humbled myself to learn the diversity of churches, seminaries, institutions and individuals. Talking about someone is completely different from talking with someone. Talking about one church is totally different from talking with someone represents that church. Similarly, talking about one college, seminary or institution is a far different experience from talking with someone who is representing those institutions. I asked God for his forgiveness, because we (or I) often do premature and unfair judgment towards people or institution without any effort to listen and understand them first.
This congress somehow opened my eyes and my heart not to be self-righteous. In our strengths, we know that we are to help others. And in our weaknesses, we know that others are available to help. We are not to boast our own strengths, and ignore others; and at the same time, we are not to walk in our weaknesses alone. The congress was such a wonderful time, where we, scholars (from different theological perspective), were able to sit and to worshipping God together.
Some people may say that a congress like this is full of political interests. That opinion may not be wrong, but I decided to view this occasion differently. I came to this congress to sharing life with others and to enjoy the process of learning from others. It is that decision that helped me to stay in that meeting with such of enjoyment and thanksgiving. Hallelujah!
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