This post was first published Saturday, November 23, 2013/ 2024 commentary follows.
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Reflectionary IV
Woe to the shepherds who destroy and scatter the sheep of my pasture!
The nations make much ado, and the kingdoms are shaken; God has spoken, and the earth shall melt away.
He has rescued us from the power of darkness and transferred us into the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
And they cast lots to divide his clothing.
When we separate ourselves into camps, or divisions, or denominations, we are not much different than those at the Cross, that cast lots to gain possession of a piece of Christ's garment. But where they only divided up His clothing, we have successfully divided His body, for two millennia.
Why must we divide? The enemy on the battlefield can only dream that we may become "divided." Divide and conquer has always been a classic and effective military strategy!
Do we separate out our camps, so that we may individually gain more control, or power? (Power is a highly recognized dysfunctional need of humans). Once we have established control over our camp, is it not our next goal to grow it, so that it may swallow up its rivals?
Humanity, when unified against God, is a terrible thing. The more power we have, the more evil we become.
Humanity, when unified in obedience to God, is an amazing instrument of good works, of charity, and of love.
Human divisions are called "Kingdoms," or "nations." But this is not the best way for us. Together we can do great things. And Christ commanded that His Body, The Church, not be divided!
The anti-Christian forces in the world today marvel that we are so divided and scattered, as it makes their job that much easier. We need to do whatever it takes to grow, to unify, and to expand. And we need to do it as Christ would: by sacrificing ourselves in acts of kindness and love, to the Lord's most needy children, found in every corner of the Earth.
The nations make much ado, and the kingdoms are shaken; God has spoken, and the earth shall melt away.
He has rescued us from the power of darkness and transferred us into the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
And they cast lots to divide his clothing.
When we separate ourselves into camps, or divisions, or denominations, we are not much different than those at the Cross, that cast lots to gain possession of a piece of Christ's garment. But where they only divided up His clothing, we have successfully divided His body, for two millennia.
Why must we divide? The enemy on the battlefield can only dream that we may become "divided." Divide and conquer has always been a classic and effective military strategy!
Do we separate out our camps, so that we may individually gain more control, or power? (Power is a highly recognized dysfunctional need of humans). Once we have established control over our camp, is it not our next goal to grow it, so that it may swallow up its rivals?
Humanity, when unified against God, is a terrible thing. The more power we have, the more evil we become.
Humanity, when unified in obedience to God, is an amazing instrument of good works, of charity, and of love.
Human divisions are called "Kingdoms," or "nations." But this is not the best way for us. Together we can do great things. And Christ commanded that His Body, The Church, not be divided!
The anti-Christian forces in the world today marvel that we are so divided and scattered, as it makes their job that much easier. We need to do whatever it takes to grow, to unify, and to expand. And we need to do it as Christ would: by sacrificing ourselves in acts of kindness and love, to the Lord's most needy children, found in every corner of the Earth.
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2024 Commentary: So exactly how would this idea of unity play out? For one thing, I do not think it would be easy to find a Christian prognosticator attacking other Christians, on-line (usually) or in print. Pulpits would not be devoted to virtue signaling the host church's superior faculties of expressing "love," "acceptance" and "tolerance." It's a whole lot easier to talk about virtue, than it is actually to do virtue.
Yes, the Church must judge itself. It must call out sin and error on the part of other professing Christian groups. But that doesn't have to be done from the virtual billboard of the World Wide Web. If possible, the world should barely even know there are disagreements within the Church. It should have to dig hard, to find it.
We should not be siding with temporal political parties, against other Christians. At 63 years of age, I am convinced of this. It may be the only thing I have to offer the world; but I feel it starkly and I am convicted profoundly in my intellect. We should not be involved in "the culture wars," from the standpoint of drawing lines of division between us and other believers. We should take our differences into a closed door, and prayerfully hash things out there.
It could be that two apparent incompatible ideas can both be right, at the same time? But isn't that just like God? He is both Judge and Father. He is angry and gentle. He casts out, and takes in. He extends correction, but offers grace. Shouldn't the Body of Christ likewise devote itself to manifesting these competing values, successfully?
A great writer, I believe Longfellow, said (paraphrasing) "Do I contradict myself? Very well. I contain multitudes).
How much more, the Church. And how much more God Himself.
We should not be siding with temporal political parties, against other Christians. At 63 years of age, I am convinced of this. It may be the only thing I have to offer the world; but I feel it starkly and I am convicted profoundly in my intellect. We should not be involved in "the culture wars," from the standpoint of drawing lines of division between us and other believers. We should take our differences into a closed door, and prayerfully hash things out there.
It could be that two apparent incompatible ideas can both be right, at the same time? But isn't that just like God? He is both Judge and Father. He is angry and gentle. He casts out, and takes in. He extends correction, but offers grace. Shouldn't the Body of Christ likewise devote itself to manifesting these competing values, successfully?
A great writer, I believe Longfellow, said (paraphrasing) "Do I contradict myself? Very well. I contain multitudes).
How much more, the Church. And how much more God Himself.
In 2024 - CHURCH: BE DIVIDED NO MORE! This is my earnest prayer.
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