It's amazing, the things I hear that cause me to stop and think. This past Sunday I heard a preacher on the radio say something to the effect of, lead from the front not from behind. That statement really grabbed my attention.The idea is that it is better to lead from the front by example than to lead from behind with a whip.
I decided to discuss it further with my Wednesday night group this week. Two incidents from the Bible came to mind. The first was the woes to the scribes and Pharisees in Matthew 23 and the other was Jesus washing the disciple's feet in John 13.
In Matthew Jesus says of the scribes and Pharisees to, "...practice and observe whatever they tell you - but not what they do. For they preach but do not practice. They tie up heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on people's shoulders, but they themselves are not willing to move them with their finger. They do all their deeds to be seen by others." Later He says, "..you shut the kingdom of heaven in people's faces. For you neither enter yourselves nor allow those who would enter to go in." Are you feeling the love? Are you familiar with this side of Jesus? Wait, there's more.
In verse 23 He goes on to say, "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint and dill and cumin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faithfulness. These you ought to have done, without neglecting the others. You blind guides, straining out a gnat and swallowing a camel." You need to go to your Bible and read this. He calls them whitewashed tombs full of dead people's bones, unclean, serpents, and a brood of vipers. Then he asks, "..how are you to escape being sentenced to hell?"
Paul in Galatians asks, "Did you receive the Spirit by works of the law or by hearing with faith? Are you so foolish? Having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected in the flesh?" We were once "slaves" to the law. We were in "bondage". Does this conjure up images of a slave master standing over you with a whip to keep you in line? In Christ we have been set free!! Amen? Paul goes on to say in Galatians 5:12, "For I wish those who unsettle you would emasculate themselves." How's that for love and tolerance? He's angry!
Leading people from behind with rules, regulations, and restrictions will not work.
Read Colossians 2:16-23, it refers to those things as "human precepts and teachings".
Paul goes on to say, "seek the things that are above", and "Set your mind on things that are above, not on things that are on the earth."
Jesus lead from the front. Take a look at John 13. This is a familiar passage. This is where Jesus washes the disciple's feet. Jesus finishes the washing and asks them, "Do you understand what I have done to you? You call me Teacher and Lord, and you are right, for so I am. If I then your Lord and Teacher have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another's feet. For I have given you an example."
Paul lead from the front. 1 Corinthians 4:16 says, "I urge you then, be imitators of me." Again in chapter eleven, verse one, he says, "Be imitators of me as I am of Christ." In Philippians Paul tells them to "join in imitating me, and keep your eyes on those who walk according to the example you have in us."
Timothy was encouraged to lead from the front. 1 Timothy 4:12 says, "Let no one despise you for your youth, but set the believers an example in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, in purity."
Are you leading from the front? Are you not only following Jesus' example but setting an example for others? Are you loving, merciful, gracious, and kind? Are you a servant? I'm not just talking about serving other believers but also those outside the church. Are you growing in your relationship with Jesus?
I know there's a time to be firm. We cannot tolerate sin in our lives or the lives of other believers. Jesus was firm with the ones who should have known better. We should be too.
I didn't reach this point in my faith because someone stood over me with a whip ready to strike the moment I stepped out of line. I don't have to look over my shoulder, I only need to gaze toward the front. God bless y'all real good.
2 comments:
KH – Again your posts show that you are not a knucklehead.
Recently I posted an article on one of my favorite themes, that God does not engineer evil to accomplish good. I was thinking about, but did not insert this passage from Luke 13:1-5. But I was thinking about it.
“About this time Jesus was informed that Pilate had murdered some people from Galilee as they were sacrificing at the Temple in Jerusalem. "Do you think those Galileans were worse sinners than other people from Galilee?" he asked. "Is that why they suffered? Not at all! And you will also perish unless you turn from your evil ways and turn to God. And what about the eighteen men who died when the Tower of Siloam fell on them? Were they the worst sinners in Jerusalem? No, and I tell you again that unless you repent, you will also perish.’"
This passage goes along with the passage you refer to in Matthew 23. Jesus demonstrates his leadership by speaking the truth in love. This long passage in Luke actually begins at 12:1 with the words “…Beware of the yeast of the Pharisees-- beware of their hypocrisy.” The English word “hypocrite” is translated from a Greek word that was often used in ancient times to refer to an actor or his acting.
Jesus especially became angry with the hypocrisy of the religious leaders that he encountered. In this passage in Luke he referred to the myth, that many still believe today, that disasters happen to evil people, they deserve it, as the belief goes. Jesus contradicts this prevailing concept and says, in effect, “No, bad things will happen to those who do not turn from evil, whose lives are characterized by the hypocrisy exhibited by the Pharisees.”
This passage falls right on the heals of Luke’s account of Jesus pronouncing his “Woes” on the religious leaders that you referred to in your blog post. Thanks for giving me something to think about.
I remember hearing a teaching on a video series set in Israel. The leader of the group was talking about shepherds in the Middle East and how shepherds always led their sheep from the front. And tying that in to how Christ is the good shepherd and the passages where Jesus spoke of His sheep knowing His voice. As he was teaching, a herd of sheep came along and the shepherd was driving them from behind with a whip. The leader, quite embarrased, stopped the man and said, "I thought shepherds always led their sheep, why are you driving them?" The man replied, "I don't know anything about that. I'm the butcher." Hmmmm......
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