We cannot ignore the "one another(s)" in Scripture and think that we are somehow close to the heart of God. Love for one another is the truest form of discipleship. Serving, submitting, admonishing, encouraging, and sharing sounds simple but in the Kingdom of God they are profound. Don't miss the opportunities to experience the Lord through the menial tasks of life. These things may not be accompanied by lights, applause, and/or accolades of men but I assure you that they carry a greater weight of glory than many things we deem important.
My attention this week has been quite simple. How do I treat the people around me? How do I respond to those that God has placed in and around my life? How much of this Gospel of reconciliation am I willing to live out? To be quite honest with you, I don't know if I've given enough attention to this detail in my life. Sure, I've tried to be helpful to those in need. I've tried to be gracious, honest, kind, etc. But what of my willingness to serve others in love when there isn't a cause?
Jesus' example to the disciples (I believe) isn't meant to set up a routine foot washing among the followers. I believe He was instilling within them a life lesson that we all should carry: Never be too great in your own eyes to serve the least of those around you.
When I consider these words, I cannot help but think that we have often applauded people at the wrong end of the spectrum. We get excited over the messages, the worship teams, and the evangelists. We often look for those recognizable achievements that come in the limelight. This mentality has created an environment of performers. Those who only do things when they can be noticed. And it has kept us from paying attention to the servers, the humble in heart, and the ones who don't look for fame & glory.
I can look over my history in the church now and see the people that I should have been applauding all along. Those "simple" believers who carried food to those in need, shared from their garden, wrote encouraging notes, cleaned homes, and did the things that nobody else would do. Their theology may not have been the sharpest. Maybe they didn't have a great understanding of doctrine. However, what they did have was a heart to serve, submit, love, encourage, and carry out the other "one another(s)" in Scripture.
My dear friends, we live in a doctrine heavy society. One of the first questions that gets asked of most church is "What Do You Believe?" What most people are questioning is how do you split doctrinal hairs and does it line up with what I believe? Rarely do people ask "How are you serving your community?" Or "How does this church represent the nature of Christ?" While we have many churches that are filled with the right kind of thinking, we are missing out on the right type of living. Where's the love? Where's the forgiveness? Where's the compassion?
It's time for a generation to recapture the reality of faith in the most basic relationships - One Another. Matthew 25:40, "Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me." Do we believe this? If our answer is "Yes" then we will never neglect the needs of one another. We will learn how to recognize the nature of Christ in those around us. We will minister to Him in them. It is the most basic form of discipleship. And it carries a greater weight of glory.
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