...my biggest problem
It took me a very long time... to finally discover... that Philip's biggest problem... is Philip.... my biggest problem is... me! Not that that is such an unusual situation... it just kinda goes with the territory... the territory of being a human being... we humans really think the world should revolve around us.... that's why life gets so tough for us... we need to discover somewhere along the way that our lives are supposed to revolve around others...
Jesus gave us an example of that when he picked up a towel and washed his disciple's feet.... they missed it just as badly as I did... they were more concerned about who was going to be the biggest of the big-shots... who was going to sit at his right hand and who would sit at his left.... in the Kingdom... it is always my importance that I am concerned with... not the importance of others... it is my self-love that is the issue... the problem....not my love for others... it is my being served by others... rather than Philip serving others...
The first church guys missed it big time too... wasting all their precious time taking care of food distribution to some of the widows... since they did not think it "desirable that (they) should leave the word of God and serve tables". These were the same guys who had just had their feet washed by Jesus and were encouraged with these words..."Whatever is done unto the least of these is done unto me." Instead they have the same problem that Philip has... they feel very important... let's delegate the serving to other folks while I get about my important duties.... "But we will give ourselves continually to prayer and the ministry of the word." What a crock!
How I have used that scripture to exalt my self-importance... how religious systems have used that scripture to abuse people and create a special class ... a clergy/laity system... educated and uneducated... a group of people that is better than the rest of God's people... more important than... a group that love their self-importance and lord it over all those that we feel are beneath us... I was chief among those misguided folks....
But God has a way of getting at all that stuff in us.... it works all the time... He just brings our little world of self-importance to an end.... it crashes and burns... it is called life.... suddenly life happens to us.... and life as we know it... totally changes...
I will try to say more about that next time.
:)
Jesus gave us an example of that when he picked up a towel and washed his disciple's feet.... they missed it just as badly as I did... they were more concerned about who was going to be the biggest of the big-shots... who was going to sit at his right hand and who would sit at his left.... in the Kingdom... it is always my importance that I am concerned with... not the importance of others... it is my self-love that is the issue... the problem....not my love for others... it is my being served by others... rather than Philip serving others...
The first church guys missed it big time too... wasting all their precious time taking care of food distribution to some of the widows... since they did not think it "desirable that (they) should leave the word of God and serve tables". These were the same guys who had just had their feet washed by Jesus and were encouraged with these words..."Whatever is done unto the least of these is done unto me." Instead they have the same problem that Philip has... they feel very important... let's delegate the serving to other folks while I get about my important duties.... "But we will give ourselves continually to prayer and the ministry of the word." What a crock!
How I have used that scripture to exalt my self-importance... how religious systems have used that scripture to abuse people and create a special class ... a clergy/laity system... educated and uneducated... a group of people that is better than the rest of God's people... more important than... a group that love their self-importance and lord it over all those that we feel are beneath us... I was chief among those misguided folks....
But God has a way of getting at all that stuff in us.... it works all the time... He just brings our little world of self-importance to an end.... it crashes and burns... it is called life.... suddenly life happens to us.... and life as we know it... totally changes...
I will try to say more about that next time.
:)
