047. A CHURCH BUILT ON THE ROCK HAS A FOUNDATION OF A CULTURE OF PEACE

There are few ways that a church can better develop the attributes of Jesus Christ than by forming and maintaining a culture of peace.  A culture of peace is when forgiveness and reconciliation become so much of the fabric of a church that conflicts are resolved before they spread into chaos, disorder, and division.  The “reinforced behavior” of the church is peacemaking, the harvest of which is righteousness, rather than unforgiveness, indignation, and anger, the product of which is sin and destruction.

Pictured against the black background is a Colt Percussion Revolver 45 caliber, 6 cylinder civilian model pistol dated around the time of the civil war.  It is a predecessor to the newer Colt pistol pictured against the brown background (from Wikipedia), manufactured for the US Army until about 1892.  By the end of its manufacture, this gun had earned for itself a nickname, “The Peacemaker.” 

With such a tool of enforcement, Clint Eastwood might have said, “Just back off and shut up, or else I’ll give you a new understanding of ‘peace.’”  (In this instance, it might have been called the “piecemaker?”)

However, using the scriptural definitions discussed in previous posts, this pistol would have been called, “The Peacekeeper,” not “The Peacemaker.”  Making the peace of Christ, it did not.

Moving now from guns to bulletproof vests.  A little over a year ago (~2010), a story was published in the Daily Oklahoman about a Pottawatomie County sheriff's deputy who was shot four times in the chest at point blank range during a routine traffic stop and who was saved from serious injury by wearing a bulletproof vest.

Wearing a bulletproof vest is a preventative measure that must be taken ahead of time.  Putting on a bulletproof vest after one has been shot doesn’t help much.   The year before, two of the deputy’s partners, who had been shot and killed, were not wearing protective vests.

So it is with the protection of the culture of peace.  With this culture in place, peace, a fruit of the Spirit, has been developed before an assault takes place.  Peacemaking is often used for damage control, and it is certainly of value anytime it is used.  But if damage can be prevented or minimized from the start, then the enemy will not be able to use his tools of disruption, chaos, division, and hate as effectively.   In this way peace is the bond for unity (Eph. 4:3).  Peacemaking keeps unity intact when enemy assaults attempt to generate division. 

The diagram depicts how a bulletproof vest, such as the one worn by the deputy, works to protect the body from a projectile attack.  The energy from the bullet is projected laterally by the composition of fibers within the vest so that the force is absorbed by the material instead of penetrating through it.

 Satan, the adversary of the church and the accuser of the brethren, issues a projectile fueled by works of the flesh toward the body.  If the projectile penetrates the armor of the body, it will produce damage to the body and, perhaps, even be fatal.  The projectile is conflict and its damage will be chaos and division.

But the projectile of Satan hits a culture of peace that blocks penetration into the body.  The culture of peace is an established way of thinking in which people, when offended or hurt by something or someone else, first think of the love of God for them and for the other members of the body before thinking of a damaging reaction out of the flesh.  Peace and unity in the church are too important to be sacrificed on the altar of idolatrous selfishness, pride, and greed.  These peace generating channels are already in place.  Rather than defaulting to the behavior of the nature of Adam, people default to the behavior of the nature of Christ.

Love, peace, and unity have to be continually practiced and taught and reminded, else these processes will “run down” if left alone.  Peace leaks.  (This will be discussed further in future posts on the church and the 2nd Law of Thermodynamics.)
 

The role of peacemaking and maintaining a culture of peace is consistent with many other passages that deal with Christian behavior.

In a spiritual analogy to the bulletproof vest story, a “headline” was created to describe an opportunity during the last several years the Quail church has had to learn a lot more about the importance of peacemaking.  The actual “headline” is only representative, but the lessons are very real.

God used Peacemaker Ministries in a significant way.

Peacemaking can be very helpful in resolving conflicts even when used like calling the fire department to put out a big fire.  But a culture of peace is more like having fire retardant in place so that the fire doesn’t spread in the first place and can be easily extinguished.  

Where’s Smokey the Bear when you need him?

Oftentimes, there will be roots of bitterness from previous conflicts (products of peacekeeping?) buried just beneath the surface, waiting to be inflamed again.  Then, combustible materials are spread around over the surface, just daring a spark of conflict to occur. 

Teaching about love, peace, and unity is preventive action.  Practicing these is growing to be like God.

041. WORKING IN THE LABORATORIES OF GOD.  Part 3: Relationships within Marriage.

Practice makes perfect as we mature into the likeness of God through the marriage relationship.

Relationship between the church and Christ.  Relationship between members of the body of Christ.  The third laboratory is that of marriage, in which the relationship of husband and wife models that of Christ and the church. 

We recognize the “sayings” about marriage, some true and some a little sarcastic.  Marriage is about sharing of honor and respect, not 50/50, but each partner giving 90/10.  But that doesn’t add up.  It adds up using “marriage math.”  The most important words in a marriage are “I love you,” “I’m sorry,” and “Yes, Ma’am.”  Phrases to avoid are “Aren’t you ready, yet,” “Can’t you see I’m watching the ball game,” and “How much did that cost?”  Zero to few of these statements would qualify for the 90/10 award.  (Taken from the Annals of “You Said What?” written by important relationship gurus.)

Anyone who has been married (or is married) knows that a continued relationship that is loving, meaningful, and helpful to both parties involves a process of learning new meanings of tolerance, compromise, “in honor preferring one another,” forgiveness, communication, giving, serving, upbuilding, teaching, and many more things – all of which are attributes of Christ.  Some relationships provide more opportunities to learn how to be Christ-like than others, but for a relationship to be most successful, both husband and wife must learn together, although each in their own way.  In so doing, the husband and wife grow together as one unit, supplementing and complementing one another and supplying what the other may lack, so that they both can grow to be more like Christ in their behavior.

Love, peace, and unity are action words in a marriage relationship the same as they are in relationships within the church.  Love is an action; it is doing, serving, supplying.  Peace is both husband and wife being within the singular will of God.  The husband, as the head, is responsible for seeing that the family is lined up within and following the will of God.  The wife submits, not to the husband acting like a military general, but to the husband who is standing within the will of God, just like Jesus did.  In this way, the wife submits to God as the husband submits to God.  The children are raised up in this type of environment, so they are trained by first-hand example "in the way they should go.”  The husband has authority as the head of the wife and the family by the extent that he submits himself to the will of God and presents a model based on the love of Jesus for the church.  Therefore, the family, in unity, submits to the husband (father) as he is, in love, submitting to Christ.  

This describes a high ideal, but it is God’s plan for marriage.  Who could measure up?  No one, when they operate out of the flesh; everyone, when they operate out of the Spirit.  Since we all operate out of the flesh sometimes (many times?), there are many opportunities to forgive and to resolve differences and conflicts in a marriage and in a family.  Some problems are more difficult to resolve in a God-glorifying way than others, and a family may have to seek the counsel and encouragement of other Christians.  Then, the church has an opportunity to show love, peace, and unity to the family as the members “bear one another’s burdens,” “work as unto the Lord,” and be peacemakers.

Paul draws on the correspondence between Christ and the church and the husband and wife relationship in Ephesians 6, when he seems to bounce back and forth, referring to one, then the other.  He does call it “a profound mystery.” 

Another correlation between marriage and Christ and the church is the referral of the church as being the bride of Christ.  (Rev. 19:7; 21:2)

Therefore, the union between husband and wife in the marriage covenant parallels that of Christ and His church under the New Covenant.  Love, peace, and unity are to operate in the marriage relationship as well as in the church.  Because the oneness of God is symbolized both in marriage and in the church, all of the “one another” passages and applications that were given in the previous post about relationships in the body of Christ should also apply to marriage.

The church testifies to the world of the love of God when the marriages between members of the body of Christ proclaim the love, peace, and unity of God.  From a perspective of the universal church, the effectiveness of that testimony has been marginal at best.  How can the church be a positive witness if the divorce rate within the church is similar to that of the world?   The church’s historical method of handling divorce was so buried in the “preach against it” philosophy, when divorces began to occur between members, the church didn’t know how to handle it in love.  It was recognized that the approach taken wasn’t one “in love,” but people didn’t know what else to do, so they just quit talking about it.  No sermons; no classes; no discussion.  “Somebody might be offended.”  As a result, the church left its children to repeat the same problems in their generation.  This was mostly because marriage was approached in a legalistic fashion and not presented as the model for Christ and His church.

The church’s role should be to preach and teach FOR marriage, so that the problem with divorce is reduced, rather than to preach punitively against divorce and against remarriage.  That is about like an institution that penalizes people who tear down their house because it is so faulty that it is untenable, when the institution hasn’t trained them how to build a well-constructed house in the first place and how to maintain it.  So, now, the church has a witness to the world that is a casualty of not having recognized and taught the next generation about the appropriate building codes that are based on “the book of standards.”

Divorce in marriage is akin to division in the body of Christ.  God is opposed to both because both have thrown love, peace, and unity under the bus of “works of the flesh.”  A person who joins to another in a marriage covenant should be trained by the church to take this relationship as seriously as when they accepted Christ.  Marriage is a serious decision; there is no “Well, if this doesn’t work out, I can always get a divorce” in any plan given by Jesus.  Flipping the coin to apply to the church, there is also no provision for “This isn’t working out; we’re going to fight this if it means splitting this church,” or “We’ll withhold our contribution and threaten to leave.”

We traditionally quote in a marriage ceremony, “What God has joined together, let not man put asunder” (or, separate, NIV, Matt 19:6).  The same thing can be said about Christ and His church.  When members of body of Christ fight, invite chaos, and divide, they are separating holy relationships that God has joined together.  Some people will condemn divorce in marriages, and then the same people may, themselves, try to control their way in the church to the point of chaos and division in the bride of Christ.  Neither divorce in marriage nor in the church is within God’s plan from the beginning.  Which would carry the greater consequence and therefore the greater burden of responsibility --  a marital divorce or church division?  Talk about a log and a toothpick!  Judge not, so that you will not be judged.  Sometimes divorce in marriage and division in the church go together with the same set of people, because one or more of the people try to be so controlling that they can’t get along with anybody. 

A lack of understanding of the role of marriage in our becoming like God hurts not only the marriage partners, but also the church.  A lack of understanding of the role of unity in the church as well as in marriage also hurts both.  Divorce is contrary to the plan of God.  But, much of the time the sin of separation between marriage partners has already occurred before an official divorce is finalized.  They are separated from one another even though married, and this affects their common and individual relationships with God.  Couples could be living together in a legal marriage, and not divorced, but also not in a covenant relationship with one another that reflects the love, peace, and unity of God.  This doesn’t fulfill the plan of God, either.

If we understood the purpose of marriage, that this relationship completes both husband and wife so that they help one another become more like God, decisions about marriage and who one marries might be taken more seriously.  Also, and perhaps more importantly, the way a husband and wife should act toward one another might be taken more seriously.  Growth in love, peace, and unity comes as a result of dealing with problems, irritations, disagreements, conflicts, and disappointments. 

The same thing applies to relationships within Christ’s church.  Division in the body of Christ is divorce.  When a believer clothes himself with Christ, he is also clothing himself within the fellowship of Christ’s church.  How could one separate himself from the body of Christ without also divorcing himself from Christ?  Those who divide the body of Christ are performing a divorce that has greater repercussion and does more harm to the cause of Christ than a couple dissolving a marriage, although the divorce of even one couple is more than what God intends. 

The church’s doctrinal approach to marriage needs to be “front-end loaded” by teaching about God’s plan and not “back-end condemned” if the marriage ends in divorce.  

We need to teach about the goals, purposes, and intentions of God for marriage.  Counsel and teach people who are married and who have families what the goals, expectations, and behaviors should be in order to receive God’s richest blessings.  Have those with healthy marriages serve as models for others.  Provide counsel and help with peacemaking, prayer, and love for those couples who are having difficulty with their marriage relationship for any reason, so that they can get back on the track of growing to be like God.  Grieve, love, and support those who suffer when a marriage relationship ends in divorce.  No condemnation allowed, only love and forgiveness and help.  Rejoice when people who have been divorced can establish a new marriage relationship and pray with them that this new union will fulfill God’s plan, with both partners helping the other to grow into the likeness of God.  The church must keep the emphasis on what marriage is supposed to be about, what the marriage partners and the family are to become, and help people to get there.  Members of the body should not punish those who have made a mistake or have gone on a wrong path, thereby making it even harder for them to come back.  How many people who have suffered a divorce feel a spirit of condemnation and suspicion from the fellowship they used to attend when married, and as a result feel they have to leave that fellowship for another one where they will receive more encouragement to recover and get back to growing spiritually?  We say the church is a place for broken people; so, how about broken relationships; how about broken marriages?  

Satan entered the world in the Garden of Eden and sowed the seeds of disruption of the validations of God – Adam and Eve ate of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil – perhaps meaning they ate the seeds of Satan, producing-- lust of the eye, lust of the flesh, and the pride of life – all waging war against the knowledge and wisdom of God.  Man then had the capacity and knowledge of how to put himself in the place of God. 

How has Satan been allowed to use these seeds to disrupt God-given relationships?

What about recognizing God as creator of the universe?  Man has substituted his version of the big bang, random evolution, naturalism, humanism, “I don’t care-ism,” and has created a god in man’s own image.  What about the relationships among believers in the body of Christ?  Man has substituted denominations, competitive groups condemning one another, doctrines to defend, building indebtedness, political parties, and the religion of Sunday football.  What about the marriage relationship?  Man has substituted chauvinism, feminism, post-modernism, Hollywood, divorce, broken homes, Oprah, and Dr. Phil.

God has given us three laboratories to experience (1) in relationship with His creation and with one another (2) in the church and (3) in marriage so that we can grow into His likeness.  The enemy is actively disrupting all three.  The enemy must be defeated.  The church must storm the gates of hell, because they will not prevail against the power of God.  

Love, peace, and unity – the fundamental cycle of the power from God.

For instance ....                                                                                          added 07/26/2023

[1] There was a very sweet lady, in her 50's, who was divorced and single, having been through earlier decades of a difficult, abusive marriage.  Her health wasn't good, and she didn't have enough money to keep up with her significant medical expenses.  She had a good friend, who was also divorced and single, who presented her with an offer she couldn't refuse - that if they married, she could be on his health insurance.  So they did just that - now that was a marriage with benefits!  They immediately began to have a blast, taking trips abroad, attending church activities, and making new friends.  They were both so happy because they were so good for one another.  Her health improved, at least for a while, before her physical condition began to catch up.  I visited in the hospital, standing with her husband in the hallway outside her room where she would pass on in a few hours.  I mentioned to her husband about the time they had been together being an investment.  He commented, "Oh, yes, I understand about investments."  I said, "No, let me say it this way.  Marlene will enjoy a closer relationship with Jesus Christ for eternity because of the ten years she spent with you."  That one choked him up.

But, isn't that how marriage is supposed to work?  Isn't that submitting to one another in marriage as we submit to Christ, who ran the path before us into the will of God (Heb. 12:1-2)?

[2] The youth group was having a period of cross-generational discussions, and I was helping increase the ranks of geezers within a table full of predominantly 9th graders.  The questions being considered brought up discussion of relationships between people, including male-female, and including marriage and family.  I got on a rant about what is traditionally said in marriage ceremonies (and fabricated only a little) - "I promise to stick with you through good or bad, health or wealth, thick or thin, glory or sin, until death do us part."  "Who is obliged to do that?  Nobody pays any attention to those words, anymore.  People do what they want to do - sue, divorce, abuse, whatever."  What needs to be said as a promissory covenant in marriage is something like this (each person says to the other) ... "I promise before God that I will dedicate myself to help, encourage, and build you up into the Lord Jesus Christ so that at the end of our physical earthly time together you will have grown to be more like God because of our marriage life than you could have ever done otherwise, and that we will grow together as we, together, grow into Christ."  You promised it, now do it.   

The table was quiet as kids looked at me like I had just got transported out of Area 51 or something.  But that was over 10 years ago, and a lot of those kids have married since.  I hope at least some remembered a little of the message.

 

But, isn't that how marriage is supposed to work?   Isn't that the foreordained plan of God, made in the beginning?  It's more than "What God has joined together, let not man put asunder."  It is "God has joined us together so that together we might join in Him."

--drtheophilus--

038. THE CHARACTER OF GOD IS REVEALED IN THREE RELATIONSHIPS  

God the Father has revealed His righteousness and holiness through His Son, Jesus Christ, who both taught and modeled the perfect relationship of love, peace and unity between the Son and the Father.  Holy relationships were revealed so that the members of the body of Christ on earth, the church, could grow to be more like God by practicing Godly behavior toward one another.  In these previous posts, it was theorized that these three relationships formed the basic functions of the church, in terms of behavioral expectations from holy people, by which the church, the body of Christ, would grow into maturity and into the fullness of Christ. 

There has been much discussion over the years about the meaning of the “Trinity,” the “God-head,” “God in three persons,” “God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit,” etc. Is it one God, but three persons?  This presents a confusing picture not only for many Christians, but also to some in other religions, such as Islam, who incorrectly interpret these things as meaning Christianity is polytheistic.

Perhaps an explanation is in the names, the Father and the Son, because these names implies a relationship.  Perhaps even more important than three persons, the one God is illustrating His nature within three relationships.   Perhaps it is not the separate forms of God that is important in the revelation of the nature of God as much as it is the relationship bonds between them.  Perhaps God did it this way so that the relationship He wants to have with us as our Heavenly Father could be modeled between Jesus Christ, the perfect Son, and God the Father.

So, considering this theory, in the song, “Holy, Holy, Holy” (by Reginald Heber, 1826), might the repeated phrase “God in three Persons, blessed Trinity!” be better stated as “God in three relationships?”   

There seemed to be a type of relationship, friendship, or fellowship between Adam and God in the Garden, which came to an end because of sin.  At different times, places, and circumstances, God appeared in various forms through the Old Testament, but God revealed his nature of righteousness and holiness through the Law.  Prophecies were made that the time would come when God would again live among His people and within the hearts of His people.  Before these prophecies were fulfilled with the pouring out of the Holy Spirit on Pentecost, Jesus Christ, while on earth in the flesh, revealed the nature of God through His example and through His teachings.  He also modeled the Father-Son relationship that God the Father wants to have with us, having been redeemed by the blood of the Lamb so that we could receive His Spirit, be born again created in His image, and have fellowship with the divine nature (2 Pet. 1:4). 

We have fellowship with God through the Lord Jesus Christ, as the Son did with the Father.  That is one reason we are called sons, heirs according to the promise, children of God, and brothers of Christ.  (Masculine gender reference includes both male and female).  These are all references to a relationship between Christians and God and, collectively, the church and God.

One idea for conceptualizing the combination of three relationships is in the diagram below, which is built on the scriptures God is love (I John 4:16), the peace of Christ (John 14:27), and the unity of the Spirit (Eph. 4:3).

 

Not only has God has shown us His nature in three relationships, He has also given us three major relationships on earth by which we can develop behaviors that are like God in true righteousness and holiness.  

These relationships, and our exercise of them, are discussed in the next three posts.

(A side, but rather interesting, discussion is all the different ways that God has chosen to reveal His nature using a pattern of “three.”)

--drtheophilus--