My thoughts lately have been gravitating towards the discipleship and fellowship I find myself in. It is a strange thing when I step back and see REAL growth... yet I struggle to explain HOW I have grown. Over the last few months I have almost clung to my spiritual authority and somewhat have taken the path Ruth took. "Where you go I will go."
As I fellowship with Tony and listen while he talks with others, I find myself (probably for the first time in my life) being more and more silent, absorbing the wisdom that is being exchanged in the conversations I see. "Listen Much and Speak Little." These words had attempted to burn themselves into my spirit years ago... but I resisted. Now I find that the more I submit, the more free I get. The more I listen, the more powerful my own words become.
It seems strange.... we have Seminaries that teach men and women how to speak and preach... yet in Discipleship, you become more powerful by listening.... I digress, back to the thoughts I wanted to share.
I step back and look at my growth. I see it. Though I have had a hard time explaining it. These last few weeks have been frustrating to me. For though I see growth, I also felt like God was not really speaking to me. Though to be honest, I really wasn't pursuing Him much either (at least not how we normally think about pursuing Him). Yet as I was talking to Tony today, it dawned on me what God has been showing me lately.
Service.
It seems so simple. Though I believe I am not alone when I say that I always viewed service to others as the evidence that shows your love for God. Instead, God has been awakening me to the truth that serving others is not the evidence of our love for Him... it is the route we take to GET TO HIM. By this I mean I viewed it as what we do BECAUSE we love God. Now I am seeing that service to others is the path we take to get closer to the Father, not the evidence.
When you think about "seeking the Lord", what comes to your mind? Being alone, just you and God? Prayer? Fasting? Preaching? Witnessing? Reading the Word? Why does serving others not come into our thought process? Why did it not enter my thought process?
I have been serving.... not for the money... but for the growth. I have just begun to get a slight glimpse of what the First Century Church was like. Where they poured their lives into each other. Where they served each other, and didn't stop with a casual "how are you doing?" I have been serving for the maturity. I have been serving for the growth. Yet at the time I only knew that I needed to hang out with my authority.... I knew I needed to, though I couldn't explain why.
Now I am beginning to know. I am beginning (and I stress the word BEGINNING) to realize that when we serve others we are actively pursuing Jesus. When we serve others we make ourselves humble, and God gives GRACE to the humble.
When we serve others we are actually running down the path that brings us closer to the Lord! It is not a passive activity we do to show our love for God so that we can somehow be fulfilled when we do seek Him in the quiet times.... It is a violent march that comes along side others and helps them down the path we are taking... even if they are kicking and screaming the whole way.
Lord, teach me more about the 1st Century Church. Teach me how they loved each other. How they fought for each other. How they served each other. Teach me Lord so that I may be able to see it in today;s churches. Teach me Lord so that I may be one who pours my life into another.
Misty Edwards - Eternity
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I think serving others certainly does draw us closer to God, but I think it's very dangerous to look at it as the path to God.
ReplyDeleteI think your original conclusions, that we serve others BECAUSE we love God, is the more accurate perspective to take. If we assume that serving others is the path to God, we quickly fall into a works-based approach to God. In reality, Jesus is the only way to reach God, through belief on Jesus and His sacrifice for us.
Don't get me wrong - I'm all about serving others. But I think it's crucial to keep it in its proper perspective. We serve others as a response to the wonderful blessings God's given us, not as a path to God.
I challenge you, though, to search the Bible to see what it says about this. Thank you for bringing up such an excellent conversation.
-Marshall Jones Jr.
P. S. My blog, bondChristian.com, is built around many of these principles of serving others, and I'd love for you to come check it out and offer your thoughts on it.
I think you are misunderstanding the distinction that "works based" theologies present. While I am completely against the notion that we have to do certain things in order to EARN our inheritance, there is the flip side of that which says you have to work at something in order to build relationship and intimacy. God is no different. If you do not pray, you will not grow. If you do not Worship, you will not grow. If you do not read the Word you will not grow. Serving others then, in the same light as praying, fasting, worshipping, reading the Word offers a direct route to the Father, because Jesus said, "IF you love me, keep my commandments".... He went on to say that we were to "love each other as I have loved you"...
ReplyDeleteBottom line... you WILL hit a ceiling in your Christian walk if you do not serve others....
Yes, thank you for the response. I definitely agree completely with your comment here.
ReplyDeleteI found your blog through a Google alert, and I think the title through me off. "A new path to God?" doesn't fit my understanding of serving others. When I think "path," I think "roads" or "methods" APART from Jesus, like some might say all roads lead to heaven - that sort of thing. That totally doesn't jive with John 14:6.
BUT, after rereading the original post a couple times, plus your comment, I see where you're coming from - and I completely agree. I apologize for coming off like I was disagreeing with you, especially since I didn't really understand where you were coming from.
I think a verse that goes along well with what you said in your comment is Matthew 25:40:
"The King will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.' "
And the follow-up negative, verse 45:
"He will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.' "
It's not something we do because we have to - it's something we do because we want to. So cool.
-Marshall Jones Jr.
right.... the title I decided upon because it seems we have lost that mentality nowdays.
ReplyDeleteI was watching "The Kingdom of Heaven" earlier today, and something struck me that is only shown on the extended version. On a wall is the saying "quad sumus, hoc ecitis" latin which is translated... "such as we are, you will be"
This has been lost in today's American church.
New.... was simply a term I used to draw a small amount of controversy.
Yeah, thanks again for clarifying. I don't understand the quote: "such as we are, you will be."
ReplyDelete-Marshall Jones Jr.
Such as we are, you shall be.
ReplyDeleteIn other words... If we are living such and such lifestyle.... you will to. This is what motivated the early church to sell their homes, and give the money for the betterment of the Saints.
The Early Church adopted the mentality that they would do ANYTHING to bring you closer to the Father. From bringing you into a home... to openly rebuking you if you were walking in Sin. (1 Corinthians 5)
rebellion, idolatry, and back sliding were not tolerated in the Early church because their singular goal... was intimacy with the Father.
And if they saw someone struggling..... "Such as we are... you WILL be..."
This is what today's church is missing... the LOVE for one another. The LOVE that stated we would rather SHUN you, then see you walk in sin and rebellion. The LOVE that said "we will not fellowship with you, until you come clean of the habitual sin you carry"... that is LOVE.
Todays churches have an appearance of this... but it is not motivated by love... it is motivated by self righteous and legalistic religion that is more concerned about appearances, then the heart of the Father.
Such as we are... you will be...."we will bring you up to our level... not leave you on the base where you are right now"
Okay, I understand it now. That's very cool. I don't think I've ever heard the phrase before. Jesus, as well as the early church, really took that to a whole new level: leading by example and genuinely caring for others.
ReplyDeleteYou've probably heard it before, but Penn Jillette (from the comedic team "Penn and Teller" and an outspoken atheist) said: "How much do you have to hate someone to believe that eternal life is possible and not tell them that?" That question has made a big impact on my life this year, and I think it goes back to that genuine care. If we really care about others, we'll do everything we can to bring them alongside and lead them to Jesus.
-Marshall Jones Jr.