#030 - Familia - pt. 2

AUGUST 2019

Something about a dirt road. 

When you grow up in a small town, you know all the families in the small town. When you are disconnected from the bigger towns, and there is nothing to do, family becomes the only thing that is important. Everything about a small town is set up to support the family and local culture. Kids grow up together and most often spend the rest of their lives together from birth to death. Families seek these areas because of their low crime rates and connectivity. Connected families stay connected, and connected communities thrive. 

When this is applied to Christianity, I can think of no better example than the connectivity a church family provides. Religion is about connecting to the spiritual and, in turn, to God. Paul wrote about the church family in his letters and throughout this topic. I was actually going to do some research on this one! 

However, I’ve worked for various Christian churches as a professional Christian and lighting designer. Most people in my life know this about me. It just so happens I gave a devotional on this particular topic for one of the megachurches where I worked. The devotional was based on Romans 12 and how to live the life of a Christian as a part of an ecclesiastical church family. 

If you grew up in the church as I did, you may have heard the church body metaphor. Every part of our body has a specific purpose and function. A healthy church family operates along the same lines, making it a good analogy. For a healthy body, it seems everything must work in a symbiotic fashion. A healthy church is much the same. 

But instead of a body in the sense of each organ having a function, I instead want to shift the focus to the idea of connectivity. Mainly how a well-connected body thrives and grows. The church should be the nervous system of any community, but it only works if every organ is functioning properly. I will get back to the golden rule in a second, but first-

Journey through Inner Space.

When I was in High School, my Freshman-year Biology teacher asked me to consider taking Anatomy my senior year. I’ve always loved nature and animals, and it seemed a good choice as an easy A. It would look great when applying to colleges, too. I took Chamber Ensemble instead, so Taylor, who would have been a Marine Biologist, was pushed to the side. However, to this day, I still have a passion for biology. 

Maybe my man brain loves the way Biologists categorize and label everything. Every species, fauna, and physiological part of every organism is meticulously organized in a taxonomic system. This made it easy for Darwin to classify, organize, and connect species with one another, ultimately leading to his Origin of the Species. Regardless of whether or not you agree with evolutionary theory, you cannot deny the impact of Darwin's studies on modern Biology.

Paul does the same for Christianity and the same for the early church. Connecting the old Jewish texts with Jesus, connecting Gentiles and Jews, and connecting the God of Abraham and Moses with the death and resurrection of Jesus. Paul preached Jesus’ and God’s connectivity through the Holy Spirit. All of this is the same as the connection provided by interstates, the connection provided by bloodlines and family. The connection to the community for the community by the local church.

So, without much more set up, let us jump into Romans 12. 

In the church body, someone has to be the…

I’ve heard a lot of pastors preach on Romans 12. It’s a good chapter when the congregation, volunteers, and church ladies are stepping out of line and getting restless. I’ve used it in my own life to encourage members of churches to live in their spiritual gifts, mainly to let those who do what they do best simply do it and give them the resources to do it. Only when you are living your best Christian life can you truly discover what God has in store for you. 

Paul starts chapter 12 with the famously repeated living sacrifice verse.

12 I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. 2 Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect. [Romans 12:1-2, ESV]

Paul symbolically declares that our spiritual worship is how we present ourselves to others and God. We are to be a living sacrifice for God and the mutual good of Christianity. The mercy of God saves us, and we are to act in a renewed way, as told in verse two, with a renewal of our minds. If our bodies and minds are aligned, we can face the world that tests us, and in return, God will provide discernment in his will for our lives. It is seen that the will of God is also “good and acceptable and perfect.” I love the idea that we are always testing to see God's true will and always striving and praying for clarity to transform us. 

The body of Christ - a swimmer's body.

Paul continues.

3 For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned. 4 For as in one body we have many members, and the members do not all have the same function, 5 so we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another.

Humility is a recurring theme in the Bible and a cornerstone of Christianity. Jesus was the most humble person who ever lived, and he set the bar pretty high. I love how Paul says, “not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think.” It gets me every time and always convicts me. Paul also encourages “sober judgment” and states that each of us has a “measure of faith” assigned to us. These phrases resonate with me, especially the latter of the two. Paul is saying that we are all gifted in different ways in different amounts by God. We are also to use these gifts to the glory of God ultimately and to the glory of one another, which goes towards this theme of connectivity. 

Paul uses the body metaphor to describe our relationships with each other, spiritual gifts, and how to play to one’s strengths. You wouldn’t expect your kidneys to pump blood like your heart, as much as you would be baffled if your liver tried to breathe oxygen like your lungs. In the church body, everyone must serve their true potential to the best of their abilities for the church body to be healthy and successful. This is nothing new; it's a great reminder to stay in your lane unless your brother or sister needs help. All is stated by Paul’s closing line, “individually members one of another,” which applies to the golden rule of doing unto others. Paul ends the thought:

6 Having gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, in proportion to our faith; 7 if service, in our serving; the one who teaches, in his teaching; 8 the one who exhorts, in his exhortation; the one who contributes, in generosity; the one who leads, with zeal; the one who does acts of mercy, with cheerfulness. [Romans 12:6-8 ESV]

These three verses always convict people. Only when everyone is operating within their true Godly potential can God show up, and only then. When personalities collide, it is because a person is doing something outside of their spiritual gifting, according to Paul. So stay in your lane, Taylor. 

Jesus is Just Alright By Me.

I want to break for a second and insert a tangent about connected culture. Especially connected culture gone awry. In the late 1960s, a social liberation movement was based on belonging to one another. This concept led to some interesting ideologies from a political stance and lots of sex and drugs from a cultural stance. From there, the social movement grew into a narcissistic seventies culture that became me-centered to combat all the free love and peace promoted by the 1960s. 

I learned all of this while doing lights for a '60s and '70s rock and roll tour. If the '60s was the decade of connection, the 70s was the decade of introspection or, to put it bluntly, selfishness. In the economic sense, the market turned in the other direction to strive toward some social equilibrium. In the political sense socialism is the ultimate utopian ideal that is contrasted by a tyrannical dictator bent on world domination. In the Christian sense, biblical legalism contrasts Christ-centered thought. Starting with the golden rule.

The golden rule was an ancient concept renewed by Jesus’ promised resurrection, but with a new weight and measure- as I have loved you. Now that we love one another, we can continue functioning properly as a church body- a church family. Now that we know that connected families thrive, it can be seen that a church family is driven by connection both at church and outside of the church. 

Home away from home.

Returning to Southern hospitality, when welcoming company upon entering your home, it is always polite to ask if they are thirsty or hungry. Not doing so would cause Paula Dean to have a conniption. Also, if you are to spend a day or two at the house, you would be fed three times a day and have fresh towels and bedsheets. After all, you are our company. Even if you bring your crazy Aunt Peggy, it is part of being a Christian as much as it is part of being a good Southerner. 

You could draw a correlation between Southern hospitality and the overabundance of Southern churches. I have also found pockets of America with strong family values, such as Indiana and Wisconsin, that have the same hospitality. There is even the phrase “Minnesota Nice” to describe the hospitality of that northern state. People all over America know this rule to live by, even if they are not Christ-followers! 

All of them are bought into the idea of treating others as you would want to be treated.  

So, since this golden rule behavior is not limited to the South, it has to be because Christianity is so ingrained in American culture. So much so that even places that are not saturated with churches have adherents to this basic form of humanity, even if they are not Christians. They all believe a connected family is the cornerstone of a connected community, even if they do not say this aloud.

Paul sets the groundwork for the millennia of golden rule thought and continues to explain what it means to be a good Christ-follower.  

9 Let love be genuine. Abhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good.10 Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor. 11 Do not be slothful in zeal, be fervent in spirit, serve the Lord. 12 Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer. 13 Contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality. [Romans 12:9-13 ESV]

Paul laid the groundwork for a healthy church body in the previous verses. He then moves on to treating people with genuine love and brotherly affection. I would not disrespect my family by treating them like strangers. I would treat them as brothers and sisters, for they are related to me by blood. As Christians, each of us who God connects should treat each other as brothers and sisters in Christ and brothers and sisters of humanity. It is easy to show love to other Christians, but showing love to strangers is a struggle. This is where family comes into play, along with your crazy Aunt Edna—treating everyone who comes into your field of vision with the same dignity and respect as you would have them treat you. 

Paul encouraged the early church but also laid down the law a bit. Rome was a wild place, and the culture was pushing Christians away from the Jesus way and towards the Roman way. Paul’s writings were the antithesis of the worldview. This foundational epistle possibly helped the early church solve some of the growing pains and infighting associated with a new movement. This is why many pastors and communicators will use this to rally the troops. 

It all begins at home, and whatever is at home is brought to the church for spiritual reconciliation. When at the church, it is easy to get caught up in the brokenness of others, and it is easy to use these broken pieces to cover up personal brokenness. Then it is realized that every single one of us, our fathers, our mothers, our ancestors, and our heritage is interconnected and intertwined. Technological advances and progress for the sake of progress constantly help along all of this. 

But there is something lasting in sacred words, something that connects and could long exceed the half-life of the most stubborn atoms. Holy language does not languish. And still, even thousands of years later, humans turn to the wisdom of their ancient ancestors’ sacred words for modern help. 

Paul gives us wisdom to live by, but as with all advice or Biblical studies, your discernment is key to discovering Christian faith.

Thank you for reading. Have a wonderful day.