May the mumbling commence!
We may do anything. Look at Christians, and you will see that it is true. We may do anything. Sometimes, the things we do count for our betterment. Sometimes, the things we do we would rather we had not. We may do anything. But not everything is good or beneficial.
And we must remember that what we do reflects on Christ. We are the only Christ that some people know. That is a scary thought. Read from First Corinthians chapter six:
As a Christian I may do anything, but that does not mean that everything is good for me. I may do everything, but I must not be a slave of anything.
Food was meant for the stomach and the stomach for food; but God has no permanent purpose for either. But you cannot say that our physical body was made for sexual promiscuity; it was made for God, and God is the answer to our deepest longings.
The God who raised the Lord from the dead will also raise us mortal men by his power. Have you realized the almost incredible fact that your bodies are integral parts of Christ himself? Am I then to take parts of Christ and join them to a prostitute?
Never! Don't you realize that when a man joins himself to a prostitute he makes with her a physical unity? For God says, 'the two shall be one flesh'. On the other hand the man who joins himself to God is one with him in spirit. (Verses 12-17)
As Christians, we are not the sum total of our natural desires. When we unite ourselves with God, we become one with God in spirit. Our deepest longings will still be fulfilled because God is the answer to them. We can try to fill those longings with food or sex or possessions, but we will find ourselves in a race that we cannot win.
Christians join Jesus in his death. We also join Jesus in his resurrection. We are integral parts of Christ’s body in this world. The world looks at us and forms its opinions about Christ – for better or for worse.
Let us not pledge our allegiance with the things of this world. Food is not king. Being obese is not inevitable.
Sex is not to be exploited for my own appetites. Being promiscuous is not inevitable.
Worldly wisdom is not king. True wisdom and knowledge of God is not to be kept from others. True godly wisdom is mean to be shared.
Possessions are not the answer. Crushing debt is not inevitable. We do not need the things that corporations and their commercials try to convince us that we do.
Power and influence are not the answer. Being self-reliant is not possible. We must embrace our dependence upon God and our interdependence on one another.
Any one of these things can consume us alone. Each of them and many more clamor for our attention.
Let us turn our attention to God. Our Creator knows our deepest longings and needs. The Lord will fill them to overflowing. Then, we can feel empowered to share these blessing with anyone who might cross our path. Sharing with all of those people who cross our path sheds a different light on bearing our cross and following Jesus, doesn’t it?
As we share in a world of fear and the assumption of scarcity, we represent Christ well. We show ourselves to be fruit-bearing integral parts of the body of Christ. Let us walk this walk and talk this talk together – hand-in-hand.
Enough mumbling for now…
Peace Out
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