Often,
especially the self-righteous leave the impression that they and they alone are
the fountain of all holiness and truth. That is, it is either their way or the
highway. Forgetting, of course, that Jesus once reproved the Pharisees in
no uncertain terms with:
"I have other sheep that are not of this flock. I must bring them also. They too will listen to my voice, and there shall be one flock and one shepherd (John 10:16)."
As if
to say, "You may think you have a corner on God; however, think again, you
do not."
Pharisaism
is not dead, either. Some in the "evangelical flock" are quick to
claim personal righteousness that far exceeds those, say for instance, in the
Catholic or Orthodox churches, or Lutherans who don't theologize precisely
enough to fit their fancy. The bottom line, however, is that Jesus is
exclusively no one's; nor is He just the Lord of any particular little flock.
He died for the whole world–not just for you and me and my little church of three.
God, I am convinced, has a lot of surprises in store for us when we reach the
other side. The real test is whether or not a believer is willing to put their
trust in Christ as both Lord and Savior. That being the case, God the Holy
Spirit, in my opinion, will work out the details and correct us all along the
way. After all, it is His work to lead us into all truth, isn’t it (John 16:13)?
In
this regard, I don't know about you, but I am learning every day from those who
are not of my flock, so to speak–the Catholic, the Orthodox, Lutherans,
Baptists, and others that although I may not agree with them on some of the nuances of
theology, I do, however, find fellowship. So, I refuse to believe that I have a corner on all truth—but I do
insist that I have the essentials. And, in that regards, I know where to find that
truth. It is in Christ and Him alone (John 14:6).
In
turn, I think it is high time that we begin to reach across the lines that
divide us and find common grounds on which we can stand (John 17:21).
Recently, for instance, I attended a Catholic charismatic prayer and praise
fellowship, and to be honest with you, I felt that I had stepped back 70 years
or so when I was a boy and had gone to my first Pentecostal meeting. Oh, how I
long for those days. Days in which people were slain in the spirit, spoke in
tongues and praised God past the midnight hour, and all without any hype to rev
up anyone emotional motor.
Success
in the Kingdom is, after all is said and done, the work of the Spirit (Zechariah 4:6). This we
must embrace in His fullness. The gifts of the Spirit, although, they may not
be a true herald of our spiritual maturity, they are, none-the-less, an indication
that we are empowered to pursue that Truth wherever it may lead us.
And,
follow it we must.
In
the Bonds of Calvary,
JimR_/
