"Everything
is permissible"--but not everything is beneficial. "Everything is
permissible"--but not everything is constructive"1 Corinthians 10:23.
When
I first read this in my pre-teens I rejoiced. Clearly God had set me free from
my parent's crushing hand of tyranny. I could hear the Apostle Paul telling me
to engage in any and all pursuits that caught my interest. I had missed the
qualifying "beneficial" aspect of the "everything" statement
which my Dad corrected for me the first time I came into the house with a
cigarette in my mouth claiming God over rode parents. My lesson, though hard
come by - Dad was a "rod straightens out the child" kind of person -
has been an ongoing tutorial.
Like
most people who come to the faith I was very interested in the freedoms of that
faith. I mistakenly assumed that as long as I practiced my faith in a way that
did not harm God, myself, or my church I was free to live out my relationship
with God and others as I pleased. I believe the main reason we, the members of
His body the church, do not bring others to church is because we truly believe
we are free to not bring them. After all, "everything
is permissible." As long as we do not sin we are comfortable, even
validated, in our personal relationship with God through Christ.
Nothing
could be further from the truth.
Verse
24 following the text reads, "Nobody should seek his own good, but the
good of others." That is the definition of "beneficial." How we
choose to live out our relationship with God is open to enjoying His bountiful
creation "as long as" what we do points others back to Him. God feels
so strongly about this He gave as His final command, "Go." While it
is true Matthew 28:19's
opening phrase is better translated, "As you are going make
disciples..." it's meaning in the original language carries the force of
command to make disciples. We are not asked to go as we please. We are
commanded to make disciples wherever we please to go.
Just
as accepting Jesus as our lord and savior is non negotiable for acceptance by
Him so making disciples is non negotiable to living with Him.
Disciplining is not an elective and it begins with a simple invitation to our acquaintances
to come and see Jesus through His church. If you are uncertain how to disciple
someone else I recommend http://www.multiplymovement.com as
a great place to start.
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