ONE FOR ALL, ALL FOR ONE (Joshua 22)

I slept the morning away. I'm still sick, but I quickly realized that I need to start my writing day
where I always do: in God's word. It's not "urgent" or contracted, but it may well be the most important thing I do all day.

Today I finished reading Joshua. Boy, that went by fast! It seems like I hardly started. The final chapters finish up things. The final parcels are alloted to the remaining tribes, the 2½ tribes east of the Jordan are reminded of the importance of staying true to the Lord their God, and Joshua leads the tribes in a recommitment to their covenant with God.

After charging the eastern tribes to remain true and to not rebel against God, Joshua adds an interesting statement: don't rebel against us by building your own altar apart from the Altar of our God. (Joshua 22:20, MSG)

In the case of the nation of Israel, it was always a case of "one for all and all for one." Remember the case of Ai, the city they attacked after Jericho? They lost the battle--because of one man's sin. If one tribe rebelled against God, God would count them all guilty. Rebelling against God meant rebelling against their fellow citizens.

Paul said the same thing about the church. In the passages from 1 Corinthians about spiritual gifts and the body of Christ, the church, he says, If one part hurts, every other part is involved in the hurt, and in the healing. If one part flourishes, every other part enters into the exuberance. (1 Corinthians 12:22)

If my sin only brought consequences on myself, that would be bad enough. Unfortunately, the effects ripple across those around me. My physical family, my work place, my church, the church world wide.

With all the arrogance of the young, I used to tell my mother, "You only have two choices: either you obey God, or you serve the devil." She asked (taking my spiritual arrogance seriously), "Why can't I do what I want to do? Don't I get a choice?"

The truth is more complex than the way I presented it to my mother. The closer we grow to God, I believe, the closer our desires align with His. God made us the way we are and it usually figures into His will for us.

But the heart of my statement is true. If we don't obey God, we are rebelling against Him. Not only Him, but also His people.

Conversely, God's people are also key in helping us to recognize God's calling on our lives. Those around us may recognize a spiritual gift, a service God has called us to, before we do.

Teamwork, again--I am only one cell in a multi-celled body, but cancer can begin with me and destroy the whole.

We're not perfect, and we all will do things that hurt the body of Christ as a whole. That's when "every other part is involved in the healing."

Basically, Christianity is a team sport. We win or lose together, so we are wise if we take care of our own.

P.S. Does Mom's story fit in here? Felt I should add it, not sure why?

TEAM WORK (Exodus 39)

Half of Exodus describes the work involved in building the Tabernacle and creating priestly garments. Only three people are mentioned by name: Bezalel, Oholiab, and Moses. Bezalel and Oholiab led a host of other craftsmen in the construction; Moses was relegated to day laborer, assembling the furnishings inside the Tabernacle according to God's instruction.

In addition to the anonymous craftsmen, anonymous women served at the entrance to the Tabernacle and wove linen and spun thread. 

Still--not everyone actually made something for service in the Tabernacle. Perhaps everyone gave to the building; they brought so much that the treasurers told them to stop with the offerings! (I doubt any building fund since then has had the same problem.)

But when time came to give credit for the job, Moses recorded, "The People of Israel . . . did it all."

Of course the major point is that they finished the job; not a detail was ignored.

But. . . they didn't all do it. And they certainly all do it all.

Maybe it's my American individualism. Even when I say "we went to the NBA finals last year!" I don't mean I, or the people of Oklahoma, went to the finals. The Thunder players and coaches' success rested on their talent and hard work. 

Maybe it's closer to the sense of "We won World War II." Everyone from the soldier on the front lines to the child collecting tin felt they were a part of the war effort. 

But do we think of church activities and worship as a team sport? That it takes everyone's participation to do it "all" and be blessed for it?

And what part do I play, bound to a nursing home as I am?

Let us each do something--so that together we can do it all.