(Philippians 1&4 and Matthew 22)
By Kim Thoday
Someone recently reminded me that in life we discover that not everything is as it seems. We get some shocks in life. Some of the most disturbing experiences occur when we find out that people are not what they appear to be on the surface. There are many lessons in this. Perhaps one of the most important lessons is to make sure we look at ourselves. For we all present impressions of ourselves and we are all selective, by degree, about what we let others see. The Christian life is partly about discovering who we can be and living that out with integrity. An ideal of Christian discipleship is that our private lives are responsibly mirrored in our public lives and vice versa; or from a related angle; that there is consistency between our rhetoric and our practise.
Integrity is what is critical in the end. What makes a meaningful difference for the Kingdom of God will not be our appearance, our social status, our popularity, our wealth or our academic grades, but rather whether we have truly lived lives of generosity, grace, integrity and morality. For these goals we will sometimes meet with persecution and misunderstanding. Like the man found standing at the wedding banquet ostracised by the others (Matthew 22: 1-14). Remaining faithful to God’s messianic purpose may indeed result in being thrown out into the outer darkness. The radical good news is that even this regal darkness of the principalities and powers cannot separate us from the love of God.
The Apostle Paul, in his Philippian treatise, written in prison, understands that he may well not physically survive much longer as a result of his campaign for Jesus (Phil 1:21). Paul profoundly experiences the radical nature of the Gospel in his sufferings for Jesus. He understands that living out the consequences of following Jesus is more important than anything else – even physical life itself. He says that the elements of a person that will have an eternal dimension are the quests for: truth, honour, justice, purity, love and grace (Phil 4:8). Many are called, but few are chosen (Matt 22:14).
Blessings,
KIM THODAY, HEWETT COMMUNITY CHURCH OF CHRIST
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