The Solitude of Intimacy with God in the Hollow Sea-bed of Human Relations
In a society that is continually revealing a marked decline in the general undertakings of quality human interpersonal relations, penetrating even into the basic unit of society - the family, it is unsurprising, and highly expected of, that the Church in its mandate towards society before God, strives to actively resist the evil in the world culture while hemming in her members against the rising tide of the pressures of this fleshly world.
While it is fitting for the Church in the pursuit of nurturing her members towards building a cohesive Church family by advocating the biblical concept of meeting one another continually, as institutionally pioneered by the apostle Paul in his epistle to the Hebrews (Heb 10:23-25), it is noteworthy with reference to Paul's admonishment in verse 25, that Church leadership tend to magnify the virtue of the act of meeting over the means of exhortation to be exchanged between the brethren. This requires a keen eye to perceive and discern the subtlety of this prevalence in ongoing interpersonal as well as corporate relations within the body of Christ.
While not meeting with challenges to prove the validity of such a statement, the significance of the difference in attitude adopted and conduct displayed between those who prize the predominance of meeting together, over that of exhortation, is acute. In appreciating the accuracy of such an observation, one must also not fail to notice a prevailing tendency of striving to preserve cordiality in such meetings, to the extent of avoiding, out of fear, confrontation of any form. Preference is consistently given to discuss 'safe' topics of interest, or, for debate. This behaviour is the product of the man-centred nature of fearing being labelled as "anti-social". The end result for any ongoing and subsequent interpersonal relations will be a shallow, superficial acquaintance with one another.
It is therefore startling to realise that this kind of situation exists within the body of Christ. It reveals the ugly truth of the inaptness of man, saved and lost, to thoroughly enjoy the unbridled fellowship with one another as God intended, alongside God Himself throughout a lifetime. To further dismay, the truth of the matter is intentionally diminished by the church leadership in the interest of an over-arching perceived need of preserving church unity.
It is very clear in doctrine that the hope for a believer - in regeneration, in final salvation, rests in Abba Father alone, with Mashiach His Only Begotten as the only mediator for those who believe, with the assurance of the abiding Spirit indwelling in them. Knowing this then, should the believer's confidence (in the hope that is in Christ) be predicated upon the actions of the Church ? By no means ! This then implicates the manner in which the believer is to regard his or her own treatment by the Church - whether good or bad, real or perceived.
With the conviction of having the correct agent of hope, that is, in Christ, the believer then, in all his or her debt of intimacy owed as a result of the Fall, should desire first and foremost the development and re-establishment of that intimacy with the Creator, and this even though all around him or her is a sea of barrier to intimacy with regards to achieving it on human terms. This is, however, not to be viewed as portraying any sense or spirit of superiority over others, but to be regarded as a consecration of oneself to a holy Father in heaven, who knows all about a person to the inmost parts (Psalm 139).
This is the reflection of my heart in my place in society today. I pray and trust that in writing this there will be a kindling in the spirits of those who share in and appreciate with the thoughts laid out, and that Spirit Himself will enable His good work in them.
I think the focus of Heb 10 as a whole should be taken in context: the purpose for meeting is to spur (and encourage) each other on towards love and good deeds (verse 24). Intimacy in the body of Christ must be viewed in this context and for the purpose of spuring each other on.
ReplyDeleteTo do so, we must bear in mind that we are called to love our neighbours as ourselves (Matt 22:39) and that love is the most excellent way (1 Cor 13)
Therefore, in order for us to even begin to scratch the surface on this issue, we must look within ourselves and find (or ask God) for the capacity to love and demonstrate that love, before we can hope for others to do so. By doing so, a level of intimacy can be achieved.
Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.
Precisely. The writer of Hebrews was addressing in his epistle to the converted Jews, of whom many held on very strongly to the law according to the Old Testament out of fear of persecution by fellow Jews of the Law. The aim of the letter to the Hebrews in its entirety was to proclaim the sufficiency of Christ atoning sacrifice for all, including those under the Law. This effectively eliminated the power of the Law, which required continual sacrifice to be mediated through fallible priests, versus the single once for all self sacrifice by Mashiach Himself. The contextual call to continue meeting together was applicable to the Jewish believers so as to exercise their faith in the new and everlasting covenant that is in Christ, and not to be hopelessly bound to their former beliefs according to the old covenant of the Law. This was the premise of the writer of the letter to the Hebrews.
ReplyDeleteIt is precisely the issue of pretextual usage of texts of Scripture to suggest a context, that becomes the stumbling block for many who fail to exercise the discernment needed while being led by their leaders. In the case of this post, that is the issue that exists the prevalent tendency to emphasize upon the actual gathering together over the greater need for exhortation, in the interest of avoiding confrontation, and hence perpetuating a shallowness of fellowship amongst one another.
The call to remember to love one another in the manner espoused in 1 Cor 13, when borne in mind in the situational context of meeting together, is most often than not demonstrated by means of superficial puppy love with romanticized expressions. Where the relevant display of love in principle is needed, its delivery is contrived and stunted. In all fairness and respect, there is a learning curve to this for everyone. However, one cannot help fail to realise the uncanny disparity in the extent of the offerings of acceptable measures of compassion towards one another. This is another mark of the fallenness of man that is clearly exhibited, notwithstanding the status and extent of a person's relationship with God
Certainly an obligation towards ourselves as well, in constant introspection (as well as retrospection), to allow Spirit to perform the spiritual surgery that is needed.
The response to Heb 10 must start from the individual, ie US. Christ Jesus did not wait for the people to respond to Him before He loved them. Neither did God when He sent Jesus to this world. Love can only beget love and the only way to get the ball rolling is to start loving the other the Biblical way, regardless of whether that love is reciprocated.
ReplyDeleteHeb 10 did not ask us to tell the other "this is how you love". It calls for us to encourage one another: this requires solid examples and an initiative on our part, regardless of what the other thinks or do.
The focus must be on what we do in response to this passage, rather than on what others do. It is well and good that you feel this way. However, rather than dwell upon the negative, we should seek to make that step to change it and show our brethren what it means to love. Remembering that love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.
We must also be mindful not to pick away at the scabs of mistrust or past hurts and miss the whole point of the scab: it is there to prevent further hurt but can only do so if we leave it alone.
On the one hand, it is true that we cannot be satisfied with superficial displays of 'love' which may sometimes come in the form of romanticised expressions or the display of affections which are not genuine. On the other hand, when love is communicated, it must be communicated to a level at which the recipient can understand, without being legalistic. Love is to be demonstrated, not to be felt by the demonstrator or for the demonstrator's own benefit, lest it becomes self-seeking.
Hate to use this, but a once wise man once sang about the man in the mirror: if you wanna make this world a better placce, take a look at yourself and make that change!" .
Brother, the proof in the pudding is in the eating.