"Make Us A King To Judge Us": Our Fellowship!

"God is faithful, by whom ye were called unto the fellowship of his Son Jesus Christ our Lord."


Hello To All:

Where to start. Perhaps, at the very beginning of human existence would be a good place. Prior to their sin, Adam and Eve had an intimacy of fellowship with God, that, apart from the cross, cannot be achieved. When they sinned, the intimacy of fellowship was broken and a separation between God and man entered the creation. Our Creator has always had a plan for restoring the intimacy of fellowship that Adam and Eve enjoyed. But, that restoration was at a great price. Our Creator gave up His life, at the cross. In His death and resurrection He conquered sin and death, on our behalf, and provided a way for fellowship to be restored.

Our opening text is from 1 Corinthians 1:9.  Paul is writing to a divided church and thus to a divided and broken fellowship.  God, through the Apostle Paul, is reminding the Corinthians and believers from all ages that we "were called unto the fellowship of his Son Jesus Christ our Lord." This calling also comes at a great price. At the cross, Jesus Christ gave His life for us. To properly respond to this "calling," we must submit to the reality of our own death. This means that we must embrace the reality of our own on going reality of death to self. This is the crucified life. This is "Victorious Discipleship In Jesus Christ." (Please re-visit the series of letters beginning with "I am crucified with Christ," dated 11/2/11.)

 When the elders of Israel asked Samuel to "make us a king to judge us like all the nations," they chose a course of action that would alter, in a significant manner, the level of fellowship that they had with God.  When Samuel heard this request, he became "displeased" (see 1 Samuel 8:6) and he "prayed unto the Lord."

 God's response to Samuel is recorded at verse 7: "And the Lord said unto Samuel, Hearken unto the voice of the people in all that they say unto thee: for they have not rejected thee, but they have rejected me, that I should not reign over them." The relationship of God as King over His chosen people was being "rejected" by the elders of Israel. By doing this, they were stepping back from the level of fellowship that our Creator had established with them, as their King. In their rejection of God as King, they were still the chosen people of God; and would continue to be a part of God's plan for the restoration of fellowship for all of His creation. But, because of  their rejection of the level of intimacy of their fellowship with God as King, there would be consequences.

Our circumstances are very similar to that of ancient Israel. Our Creator, Jesus of Nazareth, is King of kings and Lord of lords. He offers us an intimacy of fellowship that is very hard for us to comprehend. Our ability to comprehend and thus, our ability to apprehend this offered fellowship, is directly related to the ancient request of the elders of Israel, when they asked Samuel to: "make us a king to judge us like all the nations." When we bow the knee to an institutional perspective, or when we bow the knee to a spiritual leader, we commit the same sin of the elders of Israel, as we take for ourselves a "king to judge us like all the nations." And, just as there were consequences for ancient Israel, there are also consequences for us.

How often have we cried out to our Creator - searching for a victory over some life circumstance - only to find that victory does not come. It's as if God has not heard our cry!  In such an instance, we would be wrong to blame our Creator for our lack of victory. Victory does belong to Jesus of Nazareth, who is the Christ, the Son of the Living God. If we are not finding victory, then we need to ask ourselves about our fellowship with Jesus Christ. If we have bowed the knee to an intermediary; if we have bowed the knee to a "king to judge us like all the nations,": then we have only ourselves to blame for our lack of victory.

When the apostle Paul reminded us of God's calling to "the fellowship of his Son Jesus Christ our Lord," (1 Corinthians 1:9), he also gave us insight into what that fellowship could look like. We find written at 1 Corinthians 1:10, the following: "Now I beseech you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you; but that ye be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment." How far we have fallen from the visible intimate fellowship with Jesus Christ, that is described for us in this verse. We do not speak the same thing. There are divisions among us. We are not joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment. We are a visibly divided church. Our fellowship is broken.

The possibility of a restored fellowship was accomplished at the cross. The way has been made for us to be restored to the level of intimacy enjoyed by Adam and Eve. But, there is this obstacle. The way of the cross demands death. This is a death that can only be accomplished through Jesus of Nazareth. This is the crucified life. This is the life that the apostle lived. He describes this life, in a very intimate way, at Galatians 2:20:

"I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me."

As we ponder this verse and what it says to us of the fellowship that we are offered, let me close this letter with a portion of the last paragraph from the previous letter.

 The crucified life cannot be accomplished by our own striving, nor can it be achieved by our own efforts. It is something that is accomplished, exclusively by Jesus of Nazareth. It is the reality of life for every believer. Our journey to "Victorious Discipleship In Jesus Christ," is the path whereby we become more intimately aware of this crucified life with Jesus; and more intimately submitted to this crucified life with Jesus. Thank you Jesus!

Until next time, my beloved brethren, in Christ Jesus I continue to be:

Your servant and your fellow pilgrim,
Elder Theophilus