“Children, obey your parents because you belong to the Lord, for this is the right thing to do. “Honor your father and mother.” This is the first commandment with a promise: If you honor your father and mother, “things will go well for you, and you will have a long life on the earth.” Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger by the way you treat them. Rather, bring them up with the discipline and instruction that comes from the Lord. Slaves, obey your earthly masters with deep respect and fear. Serve them sincerely as you would serve Christ. Try to please them all the time, not just when they are watching you. As slaves of Christ, do the will of God with all your heart. Work with enthusiasm, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people. Remember that the Lord will reward each one of us for the good we do, whether we are slaves or free. Masters, treat your slaves in the same way. Don’t threaten them; remember, you both have the same Master in heaven, and he has no favorites.”
Living as Christ lives does not mean becoming a Jewish carpenter, taking on 12 disciples and heading to Jerusalem to preach the messianic message. It means allowing Jesus to have interact with the time and space that you now occupy in the way that he would occupy it if he were here. In this very tangible way, you are his physical body. This truth is pervasive. It reaches beyond all social classes, economic statuses, genders, histories and ethnicities. When Christ is introduced into a person’s life, he becomes the intersection for all things. And with this new point of reference to connect everything is new attitudes, fresh perspectives and new fruit in every one of the situations and circumstances it touches. A relationship with Jesus is the final solution to man’s fractured life. When we allow Christ to define all aspects of our lives, rather than let our lives define him, our various stations and statuses become a witness and a testimony to the gospel message. Christ must be allowed to takeover who we are, how we think, interact, live and produce. Only this will create the change we wish to be in this world.
JOSH McGARY. COM 