Well, I could just scream. I just typed out this huge post about last night's lesson and for some mystical reason, it wasn't autosaving and I hit Publish and got a screen saying, "We're Sorry. We can't perform that operation." Aaarrgghhh. Maybe it's a good thing, though, because I was feeling pretty preachy. So let's try AGAIN.
While researching for last night's topic, I came across a website that has all different kinds of sermon outlines with Bible verses etc. I found one that was dead on what I wanted to talk about, so I just borrowed it verbatim, only adding my commentary along the way. You can see that outline
here. This post will be limited to my thoughts on the topic.
During this series of lessons we have been studying submission / hupotasso. When you put it in context of battle, I get it. I get that as Christians we are at war with Satan. He is roaming around seeking those he can devour. He is like a wolf at the door. He wants me, my soul, my children, and their souls. He wants you. I get that for an army to be successful, there must be order in the ranks. With the new understanding I have gained in the past couple of months, I see that I am called to hupotasso, to arrange myself in order under. As Shannon has pointed out, we have a problem with the word SUBMIT, not the theory behind it. So as the saying goes, change your vocabulary, change your life. Now instead of SUBMIT (and all of the negativity that I have associated with it), I say that I am called to arrange myself in order under. I am good with that.
Sticking with the military theme, the purpose of arranging yourself in order under is to be better in battle, to be unified. The most tangible benefit of hupotasso is UNITY. This means UNITY at home and UNITY in the church. To be a unified church, the church must have the right attitude, the right doctrine, the right organization, and the right spirit.
To have the right attitude, we must be content with ourselves. Paul wrote that he was content in plenty and in want. When he wrote the letter on contentment, he was in a Roman prison. He was not afforded Constitutional rights or civil rights. He was tortured, cold, hungry, sick, alone. Yet he found contentment in his circumstances. How? Through Christ, who strengthens him. We must also be content with our fellow man. We are to live at peace. We are to rejoice with those that rejoice, weep with those that weep. Our neighbor's struggle is OUR struggle. We are to be patient and kind. This build UNITY. Lastly, we are to be content with God and the authority of Christ. Those not in submission to the authority of Christ will cause disharmony.
To have the right doctrine, we must focus on the one body, one spirit, one hope, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, and one Father. Many of you know that my husband and I have had our ups and downs during our 15 year marriage, but one thing that we keep coming back to is our unified plan for our family. We are on the same page. We have the same fundamental beliefs about how to be a family. So the problems we face are constantly being held up to our foundation. We certainly get distracted and sometimes forget the foundation, but then we snap out of our selfish needs and get back to basics. We love each other. We love our children. We love God. We want to guide this family through the world in such a way that we all make it to heaven. That is our fundamental goal. The same should be true for the church. We love each other, we love the next generation, we love God, we want to guide this church family through the world in such a way as to get us all to heaven. Jude 1:3 calls us to contend for the faith entrusted to all saints. Two thousand years ago Christ died on the cross. These years later, we are still telling the story. I saw a movie the other night called The Road. As a whole the movie wasn't that good, in my opinion. But there was a line in it where the son is talking to the father about why they are on this path, why don't they just give up like everyone else. The father says they don't give up because they are carrying The Fire. They are the good guys. They have been entrusted with goodness, and it is their obligation to carry that into the future. We have been given the Word of God. Sticking to that foundation will build UNITY and grow the church.
To have the right organization, we have to internalize that we are many members in one body. Christ rules us from heaven, but we are the hands and feet of the church. We each have a purpose. Some are called to teach, some to preach, some to pray, some to help those in need. As we've said before, God is perfect. His creations are perfect. God made you exactly like you were supposed to be. Moses didn't believe he was fit to deliver the Israelites because he couldn't speak well. God told him that he was made perfectly for the job (he was the Israelites' huckleberry). We have to believe that we each have something to offer the body. Every single cell of the body is necessary for the body to work properly. Dr. Seuss says, "“Today you are You, that is truer than true. There is no one alive who is Youer than You.” You are you for a reason. You have gifts given to you by God for use in His kingdom. Value those gifts in yourself and value the gifts given to others. Everyone has something to offer the body. Finding value in yourself and in others will build UNITY because you will see that we are all needed.
To have the right spirit, we have to realize that when there is UNITY in a family or in a church, growth and edification will result. Where there is division, fragmentation and decay result. I just read a
book review that says that a big predictor of a future divorce is eye rolling after a comment by a spouse. Something that seems fairly harmless leads to a lack of UNITY. I am sure that the same applies to the church. Have you ever rolled your eyes (even if only on the inside) at an announcement made by an elder? I know I have. That is the beginning of a lack of UNITY.
In class, we had Chris Radcliffe visit and lead us in a song that struck a chord with me. This song has a chant like quality to it. I like songs like that. I know we have learned that the first Century church didn't really sing with melody and harmony. They simply chanted verses from the Scripture. I like chant like songs for two reasons. One, it makes me feel closer to the first Christians, those who personally knew Jesus. Two, it is a way to get a simple, clean thought into my heart and head. So here is the song we sang. Click on the title to hear a version of it.
We are one in the Spirit, we are one in the Lord
We are one in the Spirit, we are one in the Lord
And we pray that all unity may one day be restored
And they'll know we are Christians by our love, by our love
They will know we are Christians by our love
We will work with each other, we will work side by side
We will work with each other, we will work side by side
And we'll guard each one's dignity and save each one's pride
And they'll know we are Christians by our love, by our love
They will know we are Christians by our love
By our love, by our love
And they'll know we are Christians by our love, by our love
They will know we are Christians by our love
We will walk with each other, we will walk hand in hand
We will walk with each other, we will walk hand in hand
And together we'll spread the news that God is in our land
And they'll know we are Christians by our love, by our love
They will know we are Christians by our love
By our love, by our love
And they'll know we are Christians by our love, by our love
They will know we are Christians by our love
Here's another
version where the singer replaces the last line of the second verse with "we'll give up all our dignity and crucify our pride." I like that a lot.
Now the last thing I have to say on this is that I think as Christians in America we don't realize how good we actually have it. I Googled "persecution of Christians today" and retrieved headline after headline about Christians across the world being killed simply for being a Christian. In one article, a priest and some deacons were stopped on a road in Pakistan (I think) and were told to convert to Islam. When they refused, the were shot. In another article, a church was burned killing the women and children inside. This is happening in Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Iran, India, Vietnam, China, Pakistan, Afghanistan, etc., all while the government either turns a blind eye or even participates. Christian martyrdom isn't a thing of ancient Rome. This is now. This is real. We have to put aside our small problems for the strength of the church and to show solidarity for the Christians being persecuted around the world even as you read this.
