WE ARE ONE IN THE SPIRIT
By Gil Crosby, Moderator Illinois-Wisconsin District
"A wise owl sat on an oak,
The more he saw the less he spoke;
The less he spoke the more he heard;
Why aren't we like that wise old bird?
(Edward Hersey Richards )
I enjoyed a wonderful opportunity last month baby sitting my 4 ½ month old Grandson. His parents were going to be busy at work and needed a reliable person to take care of their most valuable possession, their infant and only son. Needless to say I was flattered until I realized that his Grandmother wasn't available.. We had a great time as long as I kept him at the center of my attention and responded as he expected me to do. I also now know why old people don't have babies, only younger folks. It is a full time job.
I got to thinking of the parallels of when God entrusted us to take care of his only, infant Son. He needed reliable people to watch after Him. When they failed God turned to the rest of us. For everything to come out right and for us to be at peace with everyone all we had to do was center our attention on Him and do what He expected us to do. As long as we keep our focus on Him everything will work out alright. It is a full time job.
Our world pulls us in many directions; directions that do not always give us a clear, straight forward picture of how God would have us to react. The Old Brethren separated themselves from their "English" neighbors so as not to contaminate their simple life style and what they believed to be straight forward interpretation of the Bible. I believe the church then got caught up in "Phariseism" and began making rules for every facet of everyday life. Rules like lightening rods, rugs on the floor, automobiles, radios and dress style. Jesus spoke of the Pharisees as piling loads on people's backs but not lifting a finger to lighten their load. Finally an Annual Conference said that our rules and dress were being use as a source of pride and ceased to be a source of obedience.
Maybe we have gone too far in the other direction and have too few rules anymore. We still have the Book but instead of using it as a guide to life, we use it as a hammer to beat others who think differently. It really is very simple, however, to know what Jesus wants us to do. The concordance at the back of my Bible lists 310 references to Love in the New Testament alone, second only to the words God and Lord. Jesus said if we loved our neighbors as ourselves everything else would fall into place. So how are we treating our "Neighbors". Jesus told the Israelites that their neighbor was the hated Samaritans who the Jews believed were profaners of the faith.
Our youth use the challenge "What Would Jesus Do" when faced with obstacles in their lives. A simple, straight forward admonition that causes reflection and study. It all comes down to Love God and Love your neighbor.. unconditionally and the rest will take care of itself. Do we really believe that Jesus would do some of the things we do when disagreeing with others?
"A wise owl sat on an oak,The more he saw the less he spoke;
The less he spoke the more he heard;
Why aren't we like that wise old bird?
(Edward Hersey Richards )
I enjoyed a wonderful opportunity last month baby sitting my 4 ½ month old Grandson. His parents were going to be busy at work and needed a reliable person to take care of their most valuable possession, their infant and only son. Needless to say I was flattered until I realized that his Grandmother wasn't available.. We had a great time as long as I kept him at the center of my attention and responded as he expected me to do. I also now know why old people don't have babies, only younger folks. It is a full time job.
I got to thinking of the parallels of when God entrusted us to take care of his only, infant Son. He needed reliable people to watch after Him. When they failed God turned to the rest of us. For everything to come out right and for us to be at peace with everyone all we had to do was center our attention on Him and do what He expected us to do. As long as we keep our focus on Him everything will work out alright. It is a full time job.
Our world pulls us in many directions; directions that do not always give us a clear, straight forward picture of how God would have us to react. The Old Brethren separated themselves from their "English" neighbors so as not to contaminate their simple life style and what they believed to be straight forward interpretation of the Bible. I believe the church then got caught up in "Phariseism" and began making rules for every facet of everyday life. Rules like lightening rods, rugs on the floor, automobiles, radios and dress style. Jesus spoke of the Pharisees as piling loads on people's backs but not lifting a finger to lighten their load. Finally an Annual Conference said that our rules and dress were being use as a source of pride and ceased to be a source of obedience.
Maybe we have gone too far in the other direction and have too few rules anymore. We still have the Book but instead of using it as a guide to life, we use it as a hammer to beat others who think differently. It really is very simple, however, to know what Jesus wants us to do. The concordance at the back of my Bible lists 310 references to Love in the New Testament alone, second only to the words God and Lord. Jesus said if we loved our neighbors as ourselves everything else would fall into place. So how are we treating our "Neighbors". Jesus told the Israelites that their neighbor was the hated Samaritans who the Jews believed were profaners of the faith.
Our youth use the challenge "What Would Jesus Do" when faced with obstacles in their lives. A simple, straight forward admonition that causes reflection and study. It all comes down to Love God and Love your neighbor.. unconditionally and the rest will take care of itself. Do we really believe that Jesus would do some of the things we do when disagreeing with others?
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