Thinking Christian

Last Thursday I wrote asking “why rise above?” Why take it as important to rise above our own wants, needs, concerns, and interests? There is an important follow-on question: how does one rise above? In God’s economy, one rises by stooping.

It that is so, it opens up several important questions. I’ll begin with whether it really is the case.

Does God Really Call Us to Stoop?
Yes. God did it himself in the person of Jesus Christ. He came to those who did not love him (John 1:9-12), and he gave up his life for those who regarded him as an enemy (Romans 5:6-8). The result? See Philippians 2:5-9: he gained the name that is above every name. Even today there is no one name as highly acclaimed throughout the world as his; and the ultimate outcome will be that every knee will bow and every tongue confess that he is Lord.

That is reserved for him alone; we will always be servants of his. Arguably the most highly esteemed Christian since Christ himself, the Apostle Paul, continually referred to himself as a bondservant. Another follower who might share that seat of high honor was Peter, who wrote (1 Peter 5:5-6),

Likewise, you who are younger, be subject to the elders. Clothe yourselves, all of you, with humility toward one another, for “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.” Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you,

As I said in my prior post, there is a place for reward and recompense in the Kingdom of God. There is nothing wrong with seeing that as the end of our efforts. But our efforts are not toward lifting up ourselves, they are toward serving others. The Philippians passage on Christ I alluded above was preceded by, and is commentary on, this in verses 3 and 4:

Do nothing from rivalry or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.

When a pair of Jesus’ followers (aided by mom) came looking for special position, Jesus replied,

“You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. It shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be your slave, even as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for man.

But Still, How Do We Rise Above Ourselves?
But if this is about rising above ourselves, how do we actually do that? My son has a levitation trick he can do anywhere, any time, on a moment’s notice. It’s spooky. It really works. As an illusion, that is. It’s only good for a few inches and it requires some misdirection to make it work. Generally speaking, we really can’t pick ourselves up just on our own. I heard a story recently of a man who tried to free himself from quicksand by pulling as hard as he could on his own hair. If we’re going to rise above our own interests, our own wants and desires, we can’t just do it on our own. The most we could conceivably do might be to rise to the purest, most rationally coherent peak of expression of our desires; anything higher than that, and we won’t want it, and we won’t go there. That’s rising to the limit of self; it’s not rising above.

God calls us higher than that: he calls us higher in giving up our selves: “Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends” (John 15:13). “By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers” (1 John 3:16).

I spoke last time of motivations that could take one there: a commitment to truth, and love for Jesus Christ. There is also required some power, some actual lifting force; a crane, as it were, rather than our hands in our own hair to lift us up from where we’re stuck. This God supplies through the Holy Spirit indwelling Christians. He is our source of teaching and direction (John 14:26, John 16:13), of power (Acts 1:8, Acts 4:31), and of personal transformation (Romans 14:17, Romans 15:16, Titus 3:5).

So in God’s way we have both motivation to rise above, and the power granted to do it.

Is It Worth Giving Up Myself For This?

[A] reporter asked if Bill Bright had any problems. Bill said no. Unbelieving, the reporter kept asking Bill the same question. Finally, Bill said he had no problems because he was a slave of Jesus and that slaves have no worries because they are only concerned about what the Master wants — to walk closely to God and not worry about success.

I knew Bill Bright fairly well from somewhat of a distance, being a staff member with the worldwide movement he co-founded, Campus Crusade for Christ. I know his son Brad quite well; this quote came from a news report on Brad. Bill Bright called himself something lower than a servant: he used the heavily freighted term “slave.”

Certainly slavery in its usual expression is horrible. America’s heritage is tragically soiled with it, and millions of fellow Americans’ lives continue to be haunted by that history. Today there are reported to be some 27 million people enslaved. Bill Bright chose a heavily laden word. One wonders what the condition of a slave of Jesus Christ might be. It shares some things with the usual conception of the word: being at another’s bidding for life.

But not all slavery is the same, judging by the outcome of Bill Bright’s life. He had the most consistent smile of any person I can think of—except possibly his son Brad, who has the readiest laugh I ever heard.

His effect on the world was (to put it mildly) not inconsequential. His writings have been distributed worldwide to the tune of over 1.5 billion copies. He headed up the largest mission organization of its type in the world. He commissioned and oversaw production of a film that (again, under his oversight until his death in 2003) has by now been translated into over 1,000 languages and viewed by over 6 billion viewers (obviously counting many of them twice), and as of ten years of ago had already been instrumental in the founding of over a million local cell groups for life change, spiritual development, and social improvement (we call them churches). And that was on the side. Most of his time he spent on leading some 27,000 staff members in some 50 or more divisions and departments of the organization, in 190 countries.

And, not to miss an important point, raising two sons who continue in Christian ministry, one of whom I know well enough to be able to say confidently that Bill Bright raised a family of love, joy, and world-changing passion while doing all this.

Not all of this counts as the usual life outcome for those who turn their lives over so wholeheartedly to Christ. Joy is very common, though, and with it a settled conviction that giving oneself away is absolutely worth it.

Most Importantly, If Our Gospel Says We Rise by Stooping…
Will we?

Will we set aside our own agendas to serve? Will we let God be our true master: go where he sends and do as he commands? Will we care for those who need our care? Will we give up our lives for those who may not even care for us?

(There is a fifth question I am sure some will want to ask after this: “Isn’t this an ethic of self-interest after all? Isn’t that the dark reality you Christians try to keep hidden behind all your talk of giving yourselves away?” I have that question well in mind. I intend to give it its own space by writing a separate post on it sometime in the next few days or so. It is an apologetical question, whereas my intent with this has been teaching and encouragement for those who already assent to the basic truths on which this is based.)

Print Friendly

_______________

Possibly related posts (automatically generated):

1. It’s Great, It’s Awful—Does Any Of It Make Sense?
2. Rising Toward Reality
3. Rising Above In Trust and Love