Mystery of the First Love Lost ... Ch. 5 ... "Fellowship .. Humility .. Submission"

 Chapter 5

  ... Mystery of Fellowship

       ... Humility

           ... Submission

v.3

"Let nothing be done

through strife or vainglory;

but in lowliness of mind
let each esteem other

better than themselves.

v.4

Look not every man

on his own things,
but every man also

on the things of others."
-Philip.2:3-4

     The Mystery of God's Will spills over into the Mystery of Fellowship as we realize that our relationship with God and others is not about us.

     It is about God's will and our call to become great in the eyes of God (like David or Job) by serving as He specifically prescribes.

"But he that is greatest among you shall be your servant.  And whosoever shall exalt himself shall be abased; and he that shall humble himself shall be exalted."

-Matt.23:11-12

v.5

"Let this mind be in you,
which was also

in Christ Jesus:

v.6

Who, being in

the form of God,
thought it not robbery
to be equal with God:

v.7

But made himself

of no reputation,

and

took upon him

the form of a servant,
and

was made in

the likeness of men:

v.8

And being found

in fashion as a man,

he humbled himself,

and

became obedient

unto death,

even the death

of the cross."
-Philip.2:5-9

     Yes ... this is a fellowship of service based on the specific will of God.

       How did Christ humble Himself?

       Did He dress in rags ... put on a sad face ... and go everywhere saying ..."I am nothing, I am nothing?"

     Did He become every man's slave?

     No ... He never stopped boldly proclaiming His Authority as Creator of the Universe ... and Son of the living God.

     He was not bragging ... but stating a fact.

     He neither hid ... nor apologized for ... His calling or His gifts.

     His humility was not about making Himself acceptable to the people ... so they would like Him ...  and what He had to say ... decide to "get saved" ... buy His Book ... and join His Church.

     It was a genuine response of obedience ... to the specific will of God and His willingness to give His life ... for those the Father had already called before the foundation of the earth (Eph.1:3-5) ... as God specified in and through His Word.

     His humility was not a passive superficial act

... but a result of yielding His will to the specifics of the Father's (not anyone else's) will.

     When Peter rebuked Jesus in Matthew 16 ... telling Him that He should not talk about dying ... Jesus said to him ... "Get behind me Satan."

     Jesus knew the specific will of God.

     It was written in His Holy Word.

     In the garden the night before He died ... it was from His humanity that He prayed that the cup would pass from Him.

     He was really asking the Father if death on the cross was the only way mankind could be redeemed.

     Wasn't there any other option ... any other solution God could come up with?

     He already knew the answer to this question.

     But as He prayed alone that night ... He was engaged in the process of preparing the human side of His nature for the excruciating physical ... mental ... and emotional pain associated with the immense burden He was about to endure on the cross

... as He assumed upon Himself the wretched filth and sin of those the Father was calling out of the world.

     No ... there was not any other way to pay the penalty for our sin.

     The specifics of God's will were prescribed ... and prophesied ... from the beginning.  Only the Blood of the sinless Son of God had the power to wash away the sins of those the Father was drawing to Himself.

     So Jesus yielded His will to the Father's will ... humbling Himself and becoming obedient unto death ... even the death of the cross.

     How does God want us to humble ourselves then?

     While we are told by the Scriptures to   "submit ourselves one to the other" ... we are also told to only "humble ourselves before God."

     The word ... "humble" ... also is used in the Scriptures to describe the physical condition of the poor and afflicted.

     But in the spiritual application ... we are to "humble" ourselves only before God.

     While being humbled by God can be spiritually beneficial ... on the other hand ... when the word ... "humble" ... is used in the context of being humbled by someone other than God ... it is always referring to a person sinning against another

... so to avoid God's retribution ... we should not be found taking it upon ourselves ... to participate in the humbling of any person in any way.

   For example ... rape or any other means ... of demanding or forcing ... someone to yield to someone else's control ... is a biblical example of sinful humbling.

     Love does not demand one person to humble himself before another person

... or involve oneself in misguided intentions ... thinking he is "engaged in the work of God" ... and "doing what is best" for someone else ... by participating in the humbling of another person ... by withholding love and care

... then attempting to justify the hard heart ... with accusations that the person in need is ... no doubt ... being humbled by God ... because of some "hidden unconfessed sin." 

     This false discernment is a form of idolatry ... trying to play "god" in another person's life ... and can possibly qualify as ... sadistic borderline insanity as well ... because of its abnormal compulsion to control and injure another human being.

v.8

"But

be not ye called Rabbi:

for one is your Master,

even Christ;

and

all ye are brethren.

v.9

And

call no man your father

upon the earth:

for one is your Father,

which is in heaven.

v.10

Neither

be ye called masters:

for one is your Master,

even Christ.

v.11

But

he that is greatest

among you shall be

your servant.

v.12

And

whosoever shall

exalt himself

shall be abased;

and

he that shall

humble himself

[before God only]

shall be exalted.

-Matt. 23:8-12

     Therefore ... we are to humble ourselves before God only ... and do His will ... as opposed to humbling ourselves before others ... so as not to offend them by going against their will.

     God warns us to be careful not to come under the control of peer pressure ... elevate anyone else to the position of spiritual authority ... or humble ourselves before them desiring to do their will ... instead of being careful to only obey God's will.

      Serving others does not involve blindly becoming their slave ... fulfilling their every wish.

     The specifics regarding how we are to serve others does not come from a church ... a denomination ... a governmental dictatorship ... one's wife or husband ... or any other hierarchy.  It must come from God alone ... since God is the ultimate authority over all authorities ... by right of Creator.

     In marriage a husband is to lead ... this means that he is to be the first to take the responsibility ... regarding discovering God's will for the family ... and attending to the needs of the family ... not demanding and dragging his wife into something she does not believe is God's will.

     "Becoming one flesh" in marriage means that husband and wife are called by God to work together as fellow believers ... seeking God's will from the Scriptures until they find unity in their decisions.  Real love yields to God's will first and allows others to do the same.

     False doctrine and wrong interpretations of the picture of marriage God gives us ... regarding Christ and His Bride ... have brought confusion into many churches today.

     Therefore ... we need to personally go back to the Bible and examine Christ's attitude and behavior toward His Church ... His Bride

... taking note that the first thing Jesus did ... was to demonstrate His love by giving up His own life ... to provided what His Bride needed to have eternal life

... and then promised to provide what was needed ... spiritually ... physically ... mentally ... and ... emotionally ... to sustain her earthly life.

     This does not mean that He gave His life to fulfill her every worldly desire ... but ... because He loved her ... He was as generous as He could be ... as His infinite wisdom would allow ... to supply her needs.

     In return ... His Bride ... would be motivated by His loving sacrifice ... to return His love ... commit herself to finding unity with Him ... through Truth and righteousness ... enjoy serving Him ... as He enjoys serving her ... and treasure their time together.

     Is this what we are really seeing in Christian marriages today?

     Is this what is being taught in churches?

     Jesus Christ did not give His life to build a successful corporate structure ... or an authoritative chain of command.

     The true Church of Jesus Christ is built on loving personal relationships ... that freely offer tender loving care that begins with discovering God's loving provision for an eternal life based on a loving personal relationship with Him ... through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ at the cross of Calvary ... where He paid the price for the remission of our sin.

[To discover how to secure a relationship with Jesus Christ (according to His Holy Word) and be assured of eternal life with Him ... scroll to the top of this page and click on the gift wrapped in gold in the left column.]

     Religious organizations ... built on the works and authoritative structures of humans ultimately fail ... because man's sinful condition is not dealt with ... so positions are ultimately abused ... and ... those who abuse their position ... ultimately lose their position.

     Therefore a religion based on good works ... does not work.

     Genuine ... true ... and pure ... religion must first come from appreciating the love of God ... that creates a desire to turn from sin and self ... to receive the forgiveness of sin

... which Jesus Christ is offering ... as promised in His Word ... so "whosoever will may come"

... then being empowered by the Word of God and indwelling of His Holy Spirit ... which lead and equip us to serve ... according to God's will and His intention when He created us.

     Serving in one particular manner at one specific time ... may not be necessary at another time.

     The details and timing concerning our service must always come from God.

     Usually serving will also involve sharing the Word of God ... since concern regarding eternal life ... is God's priority.

     If we humble ourselves before God ... we are going to respectfully ... while sometimes even boldly ... stand on the Truth of the Word of God when challenged by false doctrine.

     Standing boldly for what is true and right requires humility.

     Do not let the devil's agents accuse you of lacking humility because you boldly stand on the Truth of God's Word.

     It is their desire that you humble yourself before them so they can ensnare and control you themselves.

     They are the ones who really lack humility before God ... and are not serving anyone but themselves and the devil.

     On the other hand ... "submitting" refers to "obeying."

     When children are told to submit to parents ... or spouses and believers are told to "submit one to the other" ... they are being told also to obey one another ... but always "in the Lord."

     This means that neither children ... spouses ... nor believers ... are to submit to ... nor obey advice or commands ... that are not "in the Lord" ... or ... in other words ... are not in agreement with God and His Word.

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