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In Christ, Mark
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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.
Rather, as servants of God we commend ourselves in every way: in great endurance...through glory and dishonor, bad report and good report; genuine, yet regarded as impostors; known, yet regarded as unknown; dying, and yet we live on; beaten, and yet not killed; sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; poor, yet making many rich; having nothing, and yet possessing everything.
2 Corinthians 6:4, 8-10
This ends today’s reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.
Have you ever heard the standard vows taken at a wedding?
They are an array of contrasts, aren’t they?
A husband and wife each make a vow to stay the course with one another for better or for worse, for richer or for poorer, and in sickness or in health until death do they part. At its core, these promises show an unwavering commitment to remain faithful to one another, no matter what life brings.
As we look at our relationship as Christians, the scriptures often paint a picture of us being married to Christ. Consider these words from John’s Gospel:
To this John replied, “A person can receive only what is given them from heaven. You yourselves can testify that I said, ‘I am not the Messiah but am sent ahead of him.’ The bride belongs to the bridegroom. The friend who attends the bridegroom waits and listens for him, and is full of joy when he hears the bridegroom’s voice. That joy is mine, and it is now complete. He must become greater; I must become less.” John 3:27-30
Here we find John, the disciple Jesus loved (John 19:26), sharing about the special relationship he shared with his Master and Savior. John was willing to self sacrifice in his marriage relationship so that Jesus could be greater and it brought him great joy to do so. I believe the Christian marriages do the same. They place Christ first in the relationship so He can be greater than the sum of the parts, of the husband and wife combined. In other words, Jesus is at the head of the marriage, both spiritual brides to their divine bridegroom.
As we fast forward from the Gospel of John to the ministry of Paul, we see how he too was married to the One who saved him and called him to the Gospel work he carried out. As we finish this series on Staying the Gospel Course, we see how it’s important to remain true to our heavenly bridegroom as His earthly brides. Look at Paul’s own set of contrasts as he details all he went through while married to Jesus:
Rather, as servants of God we commend ourselves in every way: in great endurance...through glory and dishonor, bad report and good report; genuine, yet regarded as impostors; known, yet regarded as unknown; dying, and yet we live on; beaten, and yet not killed; sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; poor, yet making many rich; having nothing, and yet possessing everything. 2 Corinthians 6:4, 8-10
Here we find Paul staying the Gospel course through the lows that came with carrying out Jesus’ Great Commission. He endured and remained faithful to Christ through times of glory and times of dishonor, through reports that were bad and those that were good, through times when he was seen as authentic and the other times when he was regarded as an imposter, and through times when he was known and other times he was unknown.
Through it all, there were times when Paul felt like he was dying and yet he persevered and lived to minister another day. Many times, he was abused and beaten but not to the point of death. There were down days on the Gospel trail but this was countered by times of great rejoicing. And although often impoverished from a worldly perspective, Paul knew he had the greatest treasure he could ever have, the riches of believing in Jesus as Savior.
Yes, staying the Gospel course is hard work with its varieties of ups and downs. When we sign up to carry out Jesus’ call, we are always full time employed with lots of overtime, that’s for sure, but we always need to remember we are provided the best retirement plan ever when this worldly labor is through, a life eternal with our Savior and the Father God who sent Him to save us.
Amen.
In Christ,
Mark
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