A blog by Adam W. Christman

Tag: old testament

  • Memento Mori: A Reflection

    Death, be not proud, though some have called thee
    Mighty and dreadful, for thou are not so;
    For those whom thou think’st thou dost overthrow
    Die not, poor Death, nor yet canst thou kill me.

    From rest and sleep, which but thy pictures be,
    Much pleasure; then from thee much more must flow,
    And soonest our best men with thee do go,
    Rest of their bones, and soul’s delivery.

    Thou’art slave to fate, chance, kings, and desperate men,
    And dost with poison, war, and sickness dwell,
    And poppy’or charms can make us sleep as well
    And better than thy stroke; why swell’st thou then?
    One short sleep past, we wake eternally,
    And death shall be no more; Death, thou shalt die.

    -John Donne, “Sonnet X: Death Be Not Proud,” 1609

    We are in the days leading up to Halloween. The debate is fresh all over again whether Christians can or should participate at any level. This blog post is not about that. I would rather spend a few minutes with you over the subject of remembering that you and I are mortal.

    “Memento Mori” is a Latin phrase that is literally translated “Remember to die.” It may be better understood, though, with the intention of the wording, “Remember, you will die.” The origins of this particular phrase—and more specifically the origins of its repetition and rehearsal at various times—are unclear. Why discuss it? I believe that it is health to reflect on our mortality because it humbles us in the truth of our existence before a holy God. The Halloween season looks at, glances at, or takes death lightly in many cases. What better time to talk about death than now? The following paragraphs take us through a little history, then to some Scripture, and then to an opportunity to reflect on our mortality.

    Tertullian is credited with recording a practice observed by at least some Roman emperors that utilizes the phrasing at the heart of this week’s blog post. Here is a quote from his famous treatise Apology, “Even when, amid the honours of a triumph, [the emperor] sits on that lofty chariot, he is reminded that he is only human. A voice at his back keeps whispering in his ear, ‘Look behind you; remember you are but a man.’” It is good to remind emperors (and all the rest of us) of their mortality. It humbles and puts things in perspective.

    Plato1 and the Greek Stoics are credited with similar thinking. Marcus Aurelius wrote, “Let each thing you would do, say, or intend, be like that of a dying person.”2 Epictetus wrote, “I cannot escape death, but at least I can escape the fear of it.”3

    The Bard reflected much on death in his tragedies, but especially in Hamlet. In that play, for example, he gives Hamlet’s mother, the queen, the following dialogue, “Thou know’st ’tis common; all that lives must die, passing through nature to eternity.” Hamlet replies with brevity, “Ay, madam, it is common.”

    All mankind knows death is common. Death is an enemy that separates parents from children, husbands from wives, friends from one another… But I am not asking you to reflect on death. I am asking you to reflect on your mortality and, yes, there is a difference.

    Psalm 39 is a psalm of David. The first two verses reflect David’s increasing stress and pain from dealing with the wicked. Then, he writes:

    Lord, make me aware of my end and the number of my days so that I will know how short-lived I am. In fact, you have made my days just inches long, and my life span is as nothing to you. Yes, every human being stands as only a vapor.

    Yes, a person goes about like a mere shadow. Indeed, they rush around in vain, gathering possessions without knowing who will get them.

    Now, Lord, what do I wait for? My hope is in you. Rescue me from all my transgressions; do not make me the taunt of fools. I am speechless; I do not open my mouth because of what you have done. Remove your torment from me. Because of the force of your hand I am finished. You discipline a person with punishment for iniquity, consuming like a moth what is precious to him; yes, every human being is only a vapor.

    Hear my prayer, Lord, and listen to my cry for help; do not be silent at my tears. For I am here with you as an alien, a temporary resident like all my ancestors. Turn your angry gaze from me so that I may be cheered up before I die and am gone. -Psalm 39:3-13

    Knowing that your life is short changes things. What would you do differently if you knew you had two more years to live? Would you worry so much about what people think about your clothes or your haircut? Would you blow around in the gust of the latest “ragebait” online? Would you spend as much time on social media as you do now? Would you drive your car with entitlement, cutting people off and otherwise driving like a madman? Would you be so curt with your kids? Would you be distant from your husband or wife after a disagreement? Would you continue to neglect that phone call, text message, or (here’s an idea) that hand-written letter you’ve considered sending to that person you care about?

    As a Christian, I have come to know that I am very, very mortal. Before I was a Christian I had to live with the effects of death. My father died when I was three weeks old. He and my mother were shocked to learn he was diagnosed with liver cancer after feeling weak for some days. In less than two months, he was gone. As far as I know, he never had a sip of alcohol in his life. He certainly was not a heavy drinker. But liver cancer came just the same. Death was an unwelcome houseguest in the Christman home, but there was nothing we could do about it. God did not see fit to raise my father back to physical life. When God saved me, I was thirteen years old. I began to discover what it meant to be a new creation, a child of God, and a future co-heir with Christ. Even so, it took me a long time to understand death, especially my father’s death. I read Philippians 1:21, which declares that, for Christians, “to die is gain.” I believe that, but it was hard to understand it well as a teenager or in my early 20’s. Over time, I have come to better understand God’s sovereignty and God’s plan for humanity. God did not design us to die. 1 Corinthians 15:26 says, “The last enemy to be destroyed is death.” Our species introduced sin into the world and the wages of sin is death. So it is frustratingly simple: death is a part of the world we live in. That truth will not change until Jesus returns.

    The longer I walk with Jesus, the more I want to continually surrender to His call to die to myself (Mt. 16:24-25; Galatians 2:20). Jesus said in that Matthew 16 passage that it is how we follow Him. And, man. He’s the only one I want to follow 24/7.

    A friend of mine has regularly said to me, “The dead know one thing. It is better to be alive.” I did not know, at first, that the quote is from the movie “Full Metal Jacket.” While that movie’s co-writer and director Stanley Kubrick seemed to be an atheist, that bit of dialogue continues to ring true. So I reflect on my mortality and I invite you to do the same. Consider the following statements and questions as you reflect on mortality. They are by no means exhaustive, but I hope they are helpful:

    • I am mortal but God is not. He knows better about life, about me, about everything. Is there any reason not to trust His wisdom?
    • I am mortal and I have done wrong in my life. I have even done wrong according to my own moral standard, which is admittedly lower than God’s. I need forgiveness from what I have done wrong. I need a clean slate. I thank God that He offers a clean slate through faith in Jesus!
    • I am mortal. I have a limited amount of time on earth to love God in my lifetime. I better get busy doing that!
    • I am mortal. I have a limited amount of time to love my family, friends, church, and neighbors well. How can I do that to the best of my ability?
    • I am mortal. I cannot resurrect myself. But Jesus conquered death! God has saved me by grace through faith so that, when my eyes close in death, I will re-open them with a new body and in His glorious presence.
    • I am mortal. What habits are truly a waste of my time? Habits of worry? Habits of laziness? Habits of addiction?
    • I am mortal. Life is too short for hatred. Better to obey God and love my neighbors.
    • I am mortal. Life is too short for bad pizza.
    1. In his work Phaedo, in which he records the events of the death of Socrates, his mentor. ↩︎
    2. Marcus Aurelius, Meditations, 2.11.1. ↩︎
    3. Epictetus, Discourses and Selected Writings. ↩︎

  • Spiritual Disciplines: Intense Study

    “Many Christians remain in bondage to fears and anxieties simply because they do not avail themselves of the Discipline of study,” Richard Foster.1

    Do you remember what Jesus said will set us free? Was it good feelings? Maybe, ecstatic experiences? Could it be attending church services? John 8:32 has the answer, “You will know the truth, and the truth will make you free” (emphasis added).

    Our knowing the truth will set us free. This is one of Jesus’ promises to us. The truth will not swoop in like a superhero while we float on the wreckage of life. The truth sits at our elbow, ready and accessible at any moment. We need simply turn and look.

    Last week, I defined both the spiritual disciplines and, at the same time, any good faith attempt to follow Jesus well, with the statement “following Jesus in the overall style of life he chose for himself.” If you missed that post, you can click here for a broad introduction to this subject.

    Since we want to follow Jesus in the overall style of life he chose for himself, we want to look at the behaviors, etc., that we can discover in the eyewitness accounts known as the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.

    Luke 2:52 is a famous passage relevant to this subject. It is simultaneously encouraging, enlightening, and confusing. In it, the Gospel writer reports that Jesus grew “in wisdom and in stature and in favor with God and man.” I want you to imagine a baby and how little they know. Imagine a toddler and how little they know. Imagine a grade school kid, a middle school kid, and a high school student, and how little they know. When God the Son put on flesh, he agreed to the whole experience.2 Jesus was at his conception, is currently, and always will be 100% God and 100% man. He accepted the reality of going through that long growing phase from baby in the womb through all of adolescence to adulthood. Jesus did not come out of the womb preaching the Gospel. He did not teach through parables before he was potty trained. It is not a sinful deficiency. It is a matter of biological capacity. He grew in wisdom. He really went through the plasticity and growth of the human brain just like the rest of us. And yet, when we get a glimpse of him at age 12, he knows the Scriptures so well he’s teaching teachers at the temple. And then when we see him as an adult in the bulk of the Gospel narratives, he knows the Scriptures at a mind-blowing level, both in breadth and in depth. How did he get from here to there? HE STUDIED.

    One spiritual discipline is the intense study and meditation on God’s Word and God’s ways.

    We study because he studied. We study hard because he studied hard. And we study because we want to know HIM better. Paul communicated the aim of the Christian life in Philippians 3:10, “My goal is to know him and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of his sufferings, being conformed to his death” (emphasis added). Big brother Paul wanted to know Christ, truly, and increasingly. We want the same, too. There is no one like Jesus Christ. No one more powerful or peaceful. No one more gracious or gentle. No one so honest or honorable. Nobody has suffered more than Jesus did, nor has anyone been more successful than him.3 We do not study the Scriptures just to be like him. We study them to know him. Jesus said in John 5:39, “You pore over the Scriptures because you think you have eternal life in them, and yet they testify about me.”

    Let me quote Richard Foster again. “Study is a specific kind of experience in which through careful attention to reality the mind is enabled to move in a certain direction. Remember, the mind will always take on an order conforming to the order upon which it concentrates.” If that is true (and it is), let us concentrate upon the Scriptures to know Jesus better and to become more like him.

    Let’s also talk about how Jesus treated the Scriptures. We see these actions attested to in the Gospel accounts of his life and actions.

    -Jesus treated the Scriptures as historical, not fictional. He refers to the actions that occurred in the Jonah, Moses, and creation (Adam & Eve) stories. He does so in Matthew 12:38-42, Matthew 19:1-12, and Mark 10:6-7 (respectively; though He also refers to the creation/Adam & Eve as history in Matthew 19).

    -Jesus treated the Scriptures as authoritative, not suggestive. Another way we could phrase it is that he saw the Scriptures as decisive and binding. In Matthew 5:17-18, he taught, “Don’t think that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to abolish but to fulfill. For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or one stroke of a letter will pass away from the law until all things are accomplished.” Jesus fulfilling the Law is another big subject worthy of its own posts and books. But still we must notice Jesus’ respect for them as authoritative. Just this week, I preached on Matthew 15:1-20, in which Jesus judges the behavior and teachings of the Pharisees as a breaking of God’s commands (specifically, one of the Ten Commandments). Related to this view of the Scripture is that Christians do not believe anything that is in conflict with the Scriptures. If, for example, every person in the culture around us says, “It is good and right to hate the people that we hate,” the Christian stands up and says, “No. Jesus told us to love our neighbors and everyone is my neighbor.”

    -Jesus treated the Scriptures as rules and support for real world living. Philosophy courses all over the collegiate world read and discuss the Sermon on the Mount (or used to). Though the Sermon on the Mount declares the Kingdom of Heaven, it is largely a lot of ethical teaching, i.e., real world living. And Jesus communicated those teachings as clarifying what God had always meant. After centuries of distortion (intentional and unintentional), Jesus sets the record straight to realign the ethics of God’s people with what he had always intended. He continues to do so in other places and times. Matthew 23, for example, shows Jesus addressing the issue of showing mercy to people and tithes. He says in Mt. 23:23, “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! You pay a tenth of mint, dill, and cumin, and yet you have neglected the more important matters of the law–justice, mercy, and faithfulness. These things should have been done without neglecting the others” (emphasis added). Notice, dear reader, that Jesus does not discard the law regarding tithing. Rather, he showed that justice, mercy, and faithfulness are THE MORE IMPORTANT matters. The more important matters of what? They are the more important matters OF THE LAW! There is rich tapestry to the reality of ethical living in the Scriptures. Jesus points to the law again and again for these practices.

    -Jesus treated the coming Scriptures, which you and I call the New Testament, as further revelation on his behalf. More specifically, he believed the Apostles would speak on his behalf. “I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come. He will glorify me, for he will take what is mine and declare it to you. All that the Father has is mine; therefore I said that he will take what is mine and declare it to you,” John 16:12-15. He knew the Holy Spirit would work in and through certain authors to prepare, compile, write, and edit those books that became the New Testament. And he treated those writings-yet-to-come as glorifying himself and communicating God’s message.

    “This is all well and good, Adam, but how do we study?”

    Great question! Thank you for asking.

    –Read it. Regularly, systematically, carefully. Read it regularly by spending at least a few minutes reading it every day. “Intense study” takes more than a few minutes, but you have to start somewhere. When I say “systematically,” I mean pick a book of the Bible and start at chapter 1, verse 1. Don’t start a new book until you finish that one. If you are new to the Scriptures, I cannot state more strongly that you should start with the Gospel of John. If you need a print Bible and can’t afford it, contact me and I will get you one. But many free websites exist with translations you can use like the English Standard Version, the Christian Standard Bible, the New American Standard Bible, and more. Finally, when I say read it carefully, I mean we need to read it for what it is. Every book has one or more genre, cultural contexts, and other factors to ultimately account for. This part of reading the Bible is the hardest and will require that we help one another do it well. And let me encourage you with another piece of advice. If you’re just starting out, simply read it and trust it by faith. You will learn more in time. Don’t worry about becoming an “expert” first.

    Let me add, you must truly read it for yourself. I am aware of AI apps that will summarize any book you want. Not only are these apps untrustworthy from the start, it robs you of the point of reading. The point of reading the book is to best grapple with an argument, if nonfiction, or to best grapple with the themes and questions raised by the narrative, if fiction. With the Bible, reading it for yourself becomes even more important! You are reading this unique book written by God himself in order to know the truth so that you might be set free! How will you know the truth if you use AI summaries that are completely unreliable? You won’t. And the more atheistic or other unbelieving programmers and tech companies run things, the less reliable summaries will be of the Bible itself, as well as helpful Christian books like Mere Christianity. Would you have AI summarize a love note from your spouse? Would you have AI summarize what it is like to witness the birth of a child? Would you have AI summarize the weight and meaning of your presence as you sit or stand in honor of a loved one in their final moments? As Augustine heard in the garden that day, “Take up, and read.”

    –Learn about genre. Gospel, history (e.g., Acts), epistles, apocalyptic, prophetic, Law, poetry. Each one has features and flavor that are unique and will impact The Author’s meaning.

    –Learn some cultural context stuff. Sounds technical, huh. Some of these things may not seem important, but they will add flavor. Let me give you an example of a Bible study I just led. In John 8:12, Jesus identifies himself as “the light of the world.” You can read that passage and that whole Gospel and understand that statement perfectly well. No problem. And yet! If you knew about the Feast of Tabernacles they were observing at that point in the year, and if you knew about the lamps they would light in the temple as a part of that festival, and if you knew that they celebrate that feast and they light those lamps as a celebration and reminder of God’s great gracious act of leading them in the exodus from Egypt as a pillar of fire (which is, of course, a light source…), there is a richness and depth you would miss without that knowledge. Let me put it this way. You don’t want to eat boiled chicken and steamed broccoli for every meal, do you? Don’t you want more flavor, more zest? Don’t you want to experience the full richness of what you can experience, like a well-seasoned BBQ chicken thigh, or a steak cooked with butter and seasonings in a cast iron skillet? Graduate from only “the milk” to also “the meat” over time.

    –Look for and see how the Scripture connects to itself. In other words, let the Bible tell you about itself! When you are confused, be kind to yourself because you won’t understand everything on the first read. Also keep in mind that Scripture interprets Scripture. Look for prophecies pronounced, then fulfilled. Look for promises made and promises kept. Learn about and look for foreshadowing, aka typology. Some you will have to work harder for, but others are made very plain by the revelation of Jesus’ own words, or the words of the Apostles, like in the book of Hebrews tells us about Jesus being in the priesthood according to Melchizedek. That is a confusing passage at first, second, maybe even at the twentieth read. But keep looking. Don’t let go!

    –Keep navigating by the north star of Scripture that all the Scriptures speak of Jesus. You will get confused and you will have questions. Both of those things are perfectly fine. God is big enough to handle that and he has more than enough love for you to be patient with you through those times. At the same time, look for Jesus in every book of the Bible. As a long, long-time reader of the Bible, I can tell you: He’s there.

    Suggestions for reading more on this spiritual discipline:

    • The Story Retold: A Biblical-Theological Introduction to the New Testament, by G.K. Beale and Benjamin L. Gladd.
    • Grasping God’s Word, by J. Scott Duvall and J. Daniel Hays. Available in hardcover and digital.
    • How to Read a Book: The Classic Guide to Intelligent Reading, by Morimer J. Adler and Charles Van Doren.
    • Exegetical Fallacies, by D.A. Carson.
    • Holman Bible Atlas: A Complete Guide to the Expansive Geography of Biblical History, edited by Thomas V. Brisco.
    • Dictionary of New Testament Background, edited by Craig A. Evans and Stanley E. Porter Jr., The IVP Bible Dictionary Series. (There are others in this series relating to the Old Testament, or specifically the Gospels, for example.)

    1. All Richard Foster quotes come from his book Celebration of Discipline. It’s a short book and I cannot recommend it enough. ↩︎
    2. Side note deserving of its own blog (and many books have been written on it). The incarnation did not occur as God subtracting his divinity in order to become human. He added humanity to his deity. Philippians 2:5-11 is very helpful here, and is not the only place in Scripture that helps us understand this issue. ↩︎
    3. Matt. 16:18. ↩︎

  • On the Need for Discipleship, Part 1

    There are no Christians who are not disciples. To be a Christian means to be a disciple.

    “Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe everything I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” — Matthew 28:19-20 (CSB; emphasis added)

    A disciple is a follower of Jesus Christ who is in the active, intentional process of learning to think, feel, and act like a Christian. (Reminder: the term “Christian” means “follower of Christ”.)

    What we’re talking about in this post is that we have basic needs with regards to discipleship. This is big picture stuff to introduce to you our needs as Christians. We need to pay the cost of discipleship daily. We also need to live in light of the reality of our connection!

    We need to follow Jesus as His disciples. He calls us to do exactly that. And it really does meaning something!

    Dietrich Bonhoeffer was a pastor up through World War II. In his act of Christian rebellion against the Third Reich in Nazi Germany, he was arrested by the authorities and ultimately martyred by the Nazis. He wrote this lengthy quote in The Cost of Discipleship:

    “Costly grace is the treasure hidden in the field; for the sake of it a man will gladly go and sell all that he has. It is the pearl of great price to buy which the merchant will sell all his goods. It is the kingly rule of Christ, for whose sake a man will pluck out the eye which causes him to stumble; it is the call of Jesus Christ at which the disciple leaves his nets and follows him.

    Costly grace is the gospel which must be sought again and again, the gift which must be asked for, the door at which a man must knock. Such grace is costly because it calls us to follow, and it is grace because it calls us to follow Jesus Christ. It is costly because it costs a man his life, and it is grace because it gives a man the only true life. It is costly because it condemns sin, and grace because it justifies the sinner. Above all, it is costly because it cost God the life of his Son: ‘you were bought at a price,’ and what has cost God much cannot be cheap for us. Costly grace is the Incarnation of God.”

    Above all, it is costly because it cost God the life of his Son: ‘you were bought at a price,’ and what has cost God much cannot be cheap for us.

    The apostle Peter received two calls from Jesus to follow him. His first call was at the beginning of Jesus’ public ministry, to give up his vocation and travel (which required departing from his family for long periods of time). That call is not cheap or easy.

    Peter was called a second time after Jesus’ resurrection, on the morning that Jesus fed the disciples fish. John 21 records that morning’s events. In that account, Jesus cooked the fish the disciples had caught, He restored Peter, and concluded His remarks in John 21:22 with “follow me.” Peter’s obedience to the call would result in giving all, again. Jesus said this in John 21:18-19, “‘Truly I tell you, when you were younger, you would tie your belt and walk wherever you wanted. But when you grow old, you will stretch out your hands and someone else will tie you and carry you where you don’t want to go.’ He said this to indicate by what kind of death Peter would glorify God. After saying this, he told him, ‘Follow me‘” (emphasis added). Peter’s call would result in his death.1

    Jesus’ whole-life call is not limited to Peter, but extends to all believers! Mark 8:34-38,

    Calling the crowd along with his disciples, he said to them, “If anyone wants to follow after me, let him deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life because of me and the gospel will save it. For what does it benefit someone to gain the whole world and yet lose his life? What can anyone give in exchange for his life? For whoever is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will also be ashamed of him when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.”

    “Take up your cross” is a BIG call. Trusting Jesus is nothing as limited as a Sunday morning worship time, nor is it as simple and easy as registering for a political party. It is a call for all His followers to give all of themselves to all of Who He is and what He does. Jesus calls you to give 100% of yourself to Him; your time, your talents, your treasure.

    It is a call for all His followers to give all of themselves to all of Who He is and what He does.

    Mark Dever, pastor of Capitol Hill Baptist Church in Washington DC said, “Christians are people who have real faith in Christ, and who show it by resting their hopes, fears, and lives entirely upon him.”

    Dever also remarks:

    “The Christian life is the discipled life and the discipling life. Yes, Christianity involves taking the road less traveled and hearing a different drummer. But not in the way that Frost and Thoreau meant. Christianity is not for loners or individualists. It is for a people traveling together down the narrow path that leads to life. You must follow and you must lead. You must be loved and you must love. And we love others best by helping them to follow Jesus down the pathway of life. … Christianity is personal, yes, always!—but not private. You need to be involved in the lives of others, and you need them in yours. God is the only one who doesn’t need to be taught!” (Emphasis added.)

    God’s plan for your involvement in the lives of others, and for others’ lives to be involved in yours, is the local church. If you are a Christian, you need to be in a local gathering of the body of Christ, aka the church. (I don’t necessarily mean a brick-and-mortar church building, though those are certainly helpful resources we can use to bless and benefit our faith community and our geographical communities, too.)

    Hebrews 10:24-25, “And let us consider one another in order to provoke love and good works, not neglecting to gather together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging each other, and all the more as you see the day approaching” (emphasis added). Notice the phrasing of continuous action? “Not neglecting.” In other words, “let us continually choose to gather together” for encouragement and provoking one another to greater heights of love and broader impacts of good works.

    Let’s back up to Genesis 2:18 for a moment. That verse says, “Then the Lord God said, ‘It is not good for man to be alone. I will make a helper corresponding to him.’” While this verse is primarily about marriage, it also points to a truth found all over Scripture and science: human beings are communal creatures. We weren’t meant to live life isolated in our bedrooms or living rooms, relegated to doomscrolling or watching endless screens of Netflix shows or movies. We also weren’t meant to live for ourselves, perhaps doing many activities and “to heck with everybody else”! We were meant for real connection to one another in our basic humanity (Gen 2:18). As Christians, our bonds to one another in Christ give more and eternal reasons to be connected one to another.

    Some biblical pictures of who Christians are will help us think about discipleship.

    -Co-workers with God. 1 Cor 3:9, “For we are God’s coworkers. You are God’s field, God’s building.” He has brought us into the work of His Kingdom!

    -Stewards. 2 Tim 2:2, “What you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses, commit to faithful men who will be able to teach others also.” I’m reminded of the Parable of the Talents from Matthew 25. We have been given something to use in God’s mission to seek and to save the lost. I won’t go over the spiritual gifts of 1 Corinthians 12, et al, here. But they aren’t simply skills we have developed or deserve praise for. God gives us everything we have and we steward all of it to His glory and for His mission.

    -Soldiers. 2 Tim 2:3-4, “Share in suffering as a good soldier of Christ Jesus. No one serving as a soldier gets entangled in the concerns of civilian life; he seeks to please the commanding officer.” There is a cost. But there is also a great goal of seeing men & women saved, and the finish line is being in Jesus’ presence for eternity. Soldiers look out for fellow soldiers.

    -Athletes. 2 Tim 2:5, “Also, if anyone competes as an athlete, he is not crowned unless he competes according to the rules.” Athletes train, strive, and agonize over mastery of their focused area. An athlete aims for excellence. The best athletes experience and utilize humility, learning, and repetition. Ultimately, the athlete does all that so he can put himself out there and give his best, leaving it all out on the field, holding nothing back.

    -Farmers. 2 Tim 2:6, “The hardworking farmer ought to be the first to get a share of the crops.” Farmers are patient workers who rely on God to give the growth. We do the work of plowing, planting, watering, cultivating, pruning, and ultimately harvesting. The best farmers, the happiest farmers, the most productive farmers all have something in common. They work together!

    –Body. Rom 12:4-5. 1 Cor 12:12f. With Christ as the head (Eph 1:22-23), we–His body–follow. We share a common and unbreakable bond through salvation and through the Holy Spirit.

    In today’s post, we covered the need and the reality of connection, as well as the cost of following Jesus. In next week’s post, we will get into influence and discipleship more specifically.

    1. Church history tells us Peter’s martyrdom was in Rome, hung on a cross. He requested of his executioners that they hang his cross upside-down since he was unworthy to die as Jesus died. This account of the specific detail regarding an upside-down cross is from a questionable source, but multiple early writers attest to Peter’s martyrdom, including his martyrdom in Rome “with a passion like that of the Lord” (Tertullian). See Clement of Rome’s Letter to the Corinthians, Dionysius of Corinth’s writings, Eusebius’ Ecclesiastical History. ↩︎