What a strange company we find ourselves in. And there, at the head, walks (or sits) the chief bishop/shepherd, apostle of our faith, and High Priest Himself, Jesus, the Christ of God. Having done all earning of anything that may be earned of any value and eternal matter, He is. At least as far as any work may be concerned to any earning, any reward for doing, any inheritance due for being true to a Father from whom all is given.
I have glorified thee on the earth: I have finished the work which thou gavest me to do.
He said.
And this is said of Him from on High:
But unto the Son he saith, Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever: a sceptre of righteousness is the sceptre of thy kingdom.
Thou hast loved righteousness, and hated iniquity; therefore God, even thy God, hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows.
And, Thou, Lord, in the beginning hast laid the foundation of the earth; and the heavens are the works of thine hands:
They shall perish; but thou remainest; and they all shall wax old as doth a garment;
And as a vesture shalt thou fold them up, and they shall be changed: but thou art the same, and thy years shall not fail. But to which of the angels said he at any time, Sit on my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool?
He alone, Jesus Christ alone, that Son, alone, that being (both noun and verb at once) in Spirit (yet found in fashion as a man) is He to whom all honor and glory is given. Rightly is He called Lord.
All given in and to this strange (is peculiar better said?) company in which we find ourselves comes from Him, through Him as all that is in Him, by the Holy Spirit given in, and through, His name. Man, but don’t we find there’s a lot…to Him! In Him, and through Him…even to the inclusion of this peculiar company amongst which we find ourselves. This “company” is no less in Him! How much is there, or here! (I am always limited to understatement) For “How much!” does not begin to express the all that He is as all in all, but a man has to start somewhere; and perhaps profound wonder, which leads to even deeper wonder is not a bad place of beginning. And, here we are.
Yet, it’s not a club. Not an organization. Not even so much as a group or grouping as would lend itself to our understanding. We are in, and of, a living body. Really, the only living body there is in the earth. In that body that was raised from the dead out from the heart of the earth and has ascended to the God whom He calls “my God and your God, my Father, and your Father”. And if you (or I) are captivated by Him it is because you (or I) were captured by Him, who took captivity (to once another) captive. Yep, He’s a conqueror. And let’s be honest (wow! is that even possible?) a something needed conquering if we were to be set free.
We could, of course, go into particulars of each of our enlightenment’s as to what we know were those particular forms of depravity to which we were inclined, but for now it suffices (if we know it of ourselves) to find this an acceptable understanding (as those who have come, or are coming to their senses):
In meekness instructing those that oppose themselves; if God peradventure will give them repentance to the acknowledging of the truth; And that they may recover themselves out of the snare of the devil, who are taken captive by him at his will.
In the above (written by an apostle to a son in the faith) the more usual translation is “may come to their senses and escape” rather than “recover themselves”. This is mentioned for the sense of clarity; for in the one it could seem a man does something to set himself free as opposed to being brought to a sensibility, a showing of how things are, that accomplishes this. There remains only one who sets free, who imparts any sensibility to and of spiritual (true) matters and who holds promise of freedom through continuance in His word. All that is being done in us, is what has been done for us. No small matter lest we confuse the “who’s who” of whence eternal and sufficient work(s) are accomplished.
And it should be plain (if it is not yet to us) that such working of deliverance must first be accomplished in any that would instruct (gently or otherwise) and that their once occupation of same place (once a captive to the devil) is real in understanding to them. It is not as though a foreman (like an apostle) is telling some workers “Hey! be gentle with all those “other kinds of folks” who may be new to this, or unskilled, not like you guys are.” But it is implicit in this that we all had to be set free, and none of these matters originate nor originated in ourselves, or have “come to us only”. There is always a caution against forgetting who delivered us (from what and who) into His Kingdom. If we do not yet know such feelings/senses of superiority are always waiting to take advantage of the believer, well, we must keep going. Pride in all its myriad forms is no small matter to be uncovered, and only one has been shown sufficient to both its uncovering and conquering while keeping Himself from its taint, with any skill or understanding. Yes, vision and sight get narrowed. And this is gift.
Not unlike “trying to be humble”, have you taken a shot at not being proud? Ha! Were you successful enough to think yourself…successful? Oh, but these matters are wonderful! Deep. Deeper than we knew…deep was, or could be. Who can take a man to where all once treasured of himself is despoiled in his sight, yet support him there, keep him from despairing in what otherwise would only be an eternal anguish of having nothing but isolation for himself, left alone to drink his own dregs?
Yes, who? And vision and sight get narrowed.
Where is boasting, then? Of what? And who?
Yes, we are a strange, peculiar company of things assembled in a body. Assembled of matters so intensely personal and exquisitely particular that were it not for a powerful working of joining to a communion we could and would be only left to this thinking “everything is far too personal to find any commonness”. Each is far too different, too uniquely formed to ever “work together”. Or be found so.
Thanks be to God it is not our work or working that is the issue of eternal consequence, but His.
We are left to marvel at how such a One works.
What greater joy is there?
Than to see and know Him in His work?
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