4:7 ¶ For who maketh thee to differ from another? and what hast thou that thou didst not receive? now if thou didst receive it, why dost thou glory, as if thou hadst not received it? 8 Now ye are full, now ye are rich, ye have reigned as kings without us: and I would to God ye did reign, that we also might reign with you. 9 For I think that God hath set forth us the apostles last, as it were appointed to death: for we are made a spectacle unto the world, and to angels, and to men. 10 We are fools for Christ’s sake, but ye are wise in Christ; we are weak, but ye are strong; ye are honourable, but we are despised. 11 Even unto this present hour we both hunger, and thirst, and are naked, and are buffeted, and have no certain dwellingplace; 12 And labour, working with our own hands: being reviled, we bless; being persecuted, we suffer it: 13 Being defamed, we intreat: we are made as the filth of the world, and are the offscouring of all things unto this day.
One of humankind’s most persistent character traits is to believe we are special, that our experiences are unlike any other’s. It is one way our mind pushes back at any vague feeling of inadequacy. It is a way of deluding ourselves. Paul here asks why we should glory in ourselves. The Bible makes it clear that there is no talent, no blessing, no experience, no understanding, and no ability that we did not receive from God. If we have a gift it was given to us.
Paul talks about how the Apostles were sent out to be hated and held in contempt by the world. He emphasizes this most emphatically. To be honored by the world is not to be honored by God. To do God’s will typically means that we will, at some point, suffer in this life.
We talk about waiting for Christ to return, complain about our troubles on earth, and suffer others condemning our ‘pie-in-the-sky’ faith. But, the Old Testament saints suffered more than most of us, particularly American Christians, will ever suffer for their faith.
Hebrews 11:32 ¶ And what shall I more say? for the time would fail me to tell of Gedeon, and of Barak, and of Samson, and of Jephthae; of David also, and Samuel, and of the prophets: 33 Who through faith subdued kingdoms, wrought righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions, 34 Quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, out of weakness were made strong, waxed valiant in fight, turned to flight the armies of the aliens. 35 Women received their dead raised to life again: and others were tortured, not accepting deliverance; that they might obtain a better resurrection: 36 And others had trial of cruel mockings and scourgings, yea, moreover of bonds and imprisonment: 37 They were stoned, they were sawn asunder, were tempted, were slain with the sword: they wandered about in sheepskins and goatskins; being destitute, afflicted, tormented; 38 (Of whom the world was not worthy:) they wandered in deserts, and in mountains, and in dens and caves of the earth. 39 And these all, having obtained a good report through faith, received not the promise: 40 God having provided some better thing for us, that they without us should not be made perfect.
Jesus warned the disciples of their destiny in the flesh which would result from their being faithful to Him.
Luke 12:1 ¶ In the mean time, when there were gathered together an innumerable multitude of people, insomuch that they trode one upon another, he began to say unto his disciples first of all, Beware ye of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy. 2 For there is nothing covered, that shall not be revealed; neither hid, that shall not be known. 3 Therefore whatsoever ye have spoken in darkness shall be heard in the light; and that which ye have spoken in the ear in closets shall be proclaimed upon the housetops. 4 And I say unto you my friends, Be not afraid of them that kill the body, and after that have no more that they can do. 5 But I will forewarn you whom ye shall fear: Fear him, which after he hath killed hath power to cast into hell; yea, I say unto you, Fear him. 6 Are not five sparrows sold for two farthings, and not one of them is forgotten before God? 7 But even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not therefore: ye are of more value than many sparrows. 8 Also I say unto you, Whosoever shall
confess me before men, him shall the Son of man also confess before the angels of God: 9 But he that denieth me before men shall be denied before the angels of God. 10 And whosoever shall speak a word against the Son of man, it shall be forgiven him: but unto him that blasphemeth against the Holy Ghost it shall not be forgiven. 11 And when they bring you unto the synagogues, and unto magistrates, and powers, take ye no thought how or what thing ye shall answer, or what ye shall say: 12 For the Holy Ghost shall teach you in the same hour what ye ought to say.
Can we expect any different when this is what the world did to Christ Himself?
John 15:18 ¶ If the world hate you, ye know that it hated me before it hated you. 19 If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you. 20 Remember the word that I said unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord. If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you; if they have kept my saying, they will keep yours also. 21 But all these things will they do unto you for my name’s sake, because they know not him that sent me. 22 If I had not come and spoken unto them, they had not had sin: but now they have no cloke for their sin. 23 He that hateth me hateth my Father also. 24 If I had not done among them the works which none other man did, they had not had sin: but now have they both seen and hated both me and my Father. 25 But this cometh to pass, that the word might be fulfilled that is written in their law, They hated me without a cause.
A warning here on why you are hated and held in contempt. Peter warned us;
1Peter 4:12 ¶ Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened unto you: 13 But rejoice, inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ’s sufferings; that, when his glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding joy. 14 If ye be reproached for the name of Christ, happy are ye; for the spirit of glory and of God resteth upon you: on their part he is evil spoken of, but on your part he is glorified. 15 But let none of you suffer as a murderer, or as a thief, or as an evildoer, or as a busybody in other men’s matters. 16 Yet if any man suffer as a Christian, let him not be ashamed; but let him glorify God on this behalf. 17 For the time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God: and if it first begin at us, what shall the end be of them that obey not the gospel of God? 18 And if the righteous scarcely be saved, where shall the ungodly and the sinner appear? 19 Wherefore let them that suffer according to the will of God commit the keeping of their souls to
him in well doing, as unto a faithful Creator.
The self-righteous fundamentalist is more concerned about whether or not someone goes into a bar than they are if they themselves present an implacable spirit. They are more offended by someone smoking a cigarette than if they themselves are unmerciful in their thought and speech. They are held in contempt by the world not because they have the fruit of the Spirit referred to in Galatians, chapter 5, coming from them, but because they so resemble the world while proclaiming to be something else. That is the nature of being a hypocrite.
When you suffer, as Peter warned, for being a pain-in-the-neck, the archetypical busybody in other men’s matters you are simply drawing attention to yourself and glorying in the contempt you feel from others and that you feel toward them rather than suffering for being a Christian. Finally, back to the passage, take care with your opinion of yourself, whether you feel superior because of your supposed victory over the world or superior because of your surpassing misery from the world’s treatment. Are you really following Christ or yourself?
Romans 12:3 For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith.
The respectability and moral superiority that many Christians feel when attending church on Sunday morning, Sunday night, Wednesday, and during many special events throughout the year and the superiority that some feel in the church over other members is not of God. You may feel that you have, “been there, done that, got the t-shirt,” but your attitude is not of God.
Jesus’ Apostles and His disciples suffered because they proclaimed His name and lived according to His will and that goes much deeper than just feeling like you are all that a bag of chips compared to the drug addict, the unwed mother, or the person on welfare who is perfectly capable of working. There but for the grace of God go I.
No comments:
Post a Comment