Preferring One Another

RECENTLY, I BEGAN PREPARING TO MINISTER ABOUT RELATIONSHIPS, AND THE COVENANT ASPECT OF THEM. AS I BEGAN TO STUDY, I CAME ACROSS THIS PORTION OF SCRIPTURE IN ROMANS 12:10, "…GIVE PREFERENCE TO ONE ANOTHER IN HONOR." (NAS)

WHEN I THINK OF GIVING PREFERENCE TO ANOTHER, I THINK ABOUT HAVING MANNERS AND BEING POLITE AND GIVING THEM THE BETTER PLACE. MAYBE THAT IS THE HEAD OF THE LINE, THE BETTER SEAT, FIRST CHOICE IN A MATTER, SOMETHING ALONG THAT LINE. BUT ACCORDING TO THE STRONG’S CONCORDANCE, "GIVING PREFERENCE" MEANS "TO LEAD THE WAY FOR OTHERS." AS I READ THIS AND BEGAN TO PONDER ON THIS MEANING, SUDDENLY THE LORD BEGAN TO SHOW ME SOMETHING. IT CAME IN THE FORM OF "INDIANA JONES". IN ONE OF THOSE MOVIES, I THINK THE THIRD ONE, THEY COME TO A SHAKY, SWAYING, RICKETY, BRIDGE. IT WENT OVER A DEEP GORGE. INDIANA JONES TAKES THE LEAD OUT ACROSS THIS BRIDGE, TO MAKE SURE THAT IT WOULD BE SAFE FOR THE OTHERS TO CROSS. THAT IS WHEN I BEGAN TO SEE THE REALITY OF "PREFERRING OTHERS".

WHEN WE "PREFER OTHERS", WE ARE NOT ACTUALLY LETTING THEM HAVE FIRST CHOICE, OR SAY IN A MATTER. WE REALLY ARE TAKING THE LEAD IN A SITUATION WHERE IT MAY BE A BIT DANGEROUS OR HAZARDOUS. MAYBE A BIT RISKY TO THEM. IT IS MAKING SURE THAT THE WAY WE ARE GOING IS A SAFE WAY.

I REALIZE THAT THE IMPLICATION OF THIS THOUGHT IS, WE WOULD BE PUTTING OURSELVES IN DANGER IF WE DO THAT. I KNOW HOW WE THINK WHEN IT COMES TO DANGEROUS SITUATIONS. IF WE HAVE TIME TO THINK ABOUT IT, MANY TIMES WE WON’T RESPOND, BECAUSE OF FEAR. BUT THIS IS NOT ABOUT OURSELVES, IT IS ABOUT OUR LOVE AND CARE FOR OTHERS IN THE BODY OF CHRIST. THIS COVENANT WE ARE IN WITH OTHERS, BASED ON THE BLOOD OF THE LAMB, NOT OUR CHOICE IN THE MATTER.

"PREFERRING OTHERS". MY NEW UNDERSTANDING OF THIS IS NOW QUITE DIFFERENT THAN MY FIRST THOUGHT. I NOW SEE THAT, IN "LEADING THE WAY FOR OTHERS", IT IS A WAY OF HELPING PROTECT THE ONES I LOVE AND CARE ABOUT. WE COULD LOOK AT IT THIS WAY, WHEN WE SEE A STORM RISING AND HEADING OUR DIRECTION, WE PUT OUR FAMILIES ON ALERT. IF IT IS A SERIOUS STORM, WITH TORNADOES, WE MAY EVEN HEAD TO THE STORM CELLAR. IF WE SEE DANGER COMING, WE PLACE OURSELVES IN BETWEEN THE ONES WE LOVE AND CARE ABOUT, AND THE COMING DANGER. THE THOUGHT HERE BEING THAT I MAY GET INTO SOME MISHAP, BUT THE ONE, OR ONES, THAT I LOVE WILL HAVE A CHANCE TO ESCAPE THIS DANGER.

DO YOU REMEMBER THE SCRIPTURE THAT TALKS ABOUT LAYING DOWN YOUR LIFE FOR ANOTHER? THAT IS WHAT "PREFERRING ONE ANOTHER" IS ALL ABOUT. WE ARE IN COVENANT RELATIONSHIP WITH EACH OTHER, AND WE SHOULD BE ABLE TO LAY OUR LIVES DOWN FOR EACH OTHER. THAT, I BELIEVE, IS WHY JESUS SAID WE MUST "LOVE OUR NEIGHBOR AS OURSELVES." JESUS ALSO SAID THAT THERE WAS NO GREATER LOVE THAN THIS, THAT MAN LAY DOWN HIS LIFE FOR HIS FRIEND.

IN THE BIBLE DAYS, THE KINGS OF THE EARTH HAD PEOPLE THAT WOULD TEST THEIR FOOD AND DRINK FOR THEM, TO MAKE SURE IT WAS NOT TAINTED WITH SOME POISON THAT WOULD KILL THEM. THEY WERE CALLED "CUPBEARERS". NEHEMIAH WAS ONE OF THESE. AT FIRST THOUGHT, WE THINK THAT WOULD BE THE JOB TO HAVE. ALWAYS IN THE PRESENCE OF THE KING! ALWAYS HAD GOOD FOOD! GOT TO BE AT ALL THE GREAT PARTIES! BUT YOUR JOB WAS TO TASTE AND SEE THAT THE FOOD OR DRINK WAS NOT POISONED. IF SOMEONE WERE TO DIE FROM THIS POISONING, IT WOULD BE THE CUPBEARER, NOT THE KING. TALK ABOUT A HIGH RISK JOB! THIS IS "PREFERRING ONE ANOTHER" IN IT’S REAL FORM.

"PREFERRING ONE ANOTHER" IS FENDING OFF THE BLOWS THAT MIGHT COME TO THEM. WHEN SOMEONE COMES TO YOU WANTING TO SHARE SOMETHING ABOUT SOMEONE ELSE, IT IS YOUR JOB, ACCORDING TO THE SCRIPTURE, TO STAND IN THE WAY OF THESE POISONOUS WORDS REACHING OTHER MEMBERS OF THE BODY OF CHRIST. PUT YOURSELF IN THE WAY OF THESE POISONOUS ARROWS. DON’T LET THEM REACH THE ONES YOU LOVE AND CARE FOR.

IN MANY RESPECTS, IT IS PLACING OUR OWN SELVES IN A PRECARIOUS POSITION, IN ORDER TO PROTECT ANOTHER. IF YOU ARE A PARENT, THEN YOU UNDERSTAND THIS PRINCIPLE I AM TRYING TO SHARE. WE WOULD DO WHATEVER IT WOULD TAKE TO PROTECT OUR CHILDREN, OR OUR SPOUSE, OR PARENTS OR OTHER SIBLINGS. MANY TIMES, WE WOULD DO IT WITHOUT EVEN THINKING ABOUT IT.

LET ME FINISH WITH THIS, YOU MAY BE THINKING, WHAT ABOUT MY OWN PROTECTION? WHO IS GOING TO STEP IN FOR ME? THE ANSWER IS, OTHER MEMBERS OF THE BODY OF CHRIST! DON’T MISUNDERSTAND ME, YOU MUST CONTINUE TO PRAY AND SEEK THE LORD ON YOUR OWN BEHALF. AFTER ALL, THIS IS A "WORK OUT YOUR OWN SALVATION" WALK. WHAT I AM TRYING TO SHARE IS THAT WE MUST ALL BE RESPONSIBLE TO THE WORD OF THE LORD. I AM OF THE PERSUASION THAT IF I DO WHAT I AM SUPPOSED TO DO, IF I AM OBEDIENT, THEN GOD WILL SEE TO IT, THAT OTHERS WILL STEP IN FOR ME ON MY BEHALF. REMEMBER, WE REAP THE KIND OF SEED THAT WE SOW.

MAKE EVERY ATTEMPT TO HELP PROTECT THE ONES YOU ARE IN COVENANT WITH. AFTER ALL, THAT IS THE WHOLE PREMISE OF WHAT COVENANT IS ABOUT.

PREFER ONE ANOTHER. THEY ARE WORTH IT. ASK JESUS.

Most Praise, But Fewer Worship

All over the world today, people have been, or will be, giving praise to God. They will stand, sing, clap their hands, maybe even dance. But for many, that will be the end of it. They will never move into worship. See, worship requires intimacy, and many are not comfortable with that. They can sing, clap, stand, dance, even give their tithes, without being intimate. One brother said that intimacy was, into-me-see. With that being the case, many of us are uncomfortable with intimacy. Even with God! We don't want anyone to see into our lives anymore than what we let show. Even sometimes with God. We want Him to see the external things. The standing, singing, clapping, dancing, giving of our tithes and offerings, but we want to hide from Him the internal things. It seems we think that if we keep Him busy with the external things, maybe He won't see, or maybe ignore, the internal things. Not true! He sees it whether we want Him to or not. And He doesn't ignore anything!

Another thing about intimacy, it is not self-satisfying. It is satisfying another instead of myself. Marriages suffer from a lack of intimacy. The church hasn't taught much, if at all, on intimacy. I guess we thought it was taboo or something. Then we wonder why we have so many marriage problems in the Church. But that is what worship is! Satisfying another! Him! With all the love, adoration, and affection that is in our whole being! Jesus said in Mark 12:30 that we should love the Lord with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength. What if we decided to WORSHIP HIM with the same directive? Pour out all of my passion...give Him all my feelings, wants, desires...give Him all my thoughts...and use all my strength to the point of being exhausted! To worship Him till He is satisfied......not till I'm done!

Praise is being thankful and grateful. It is telling Him, and others, how much I love Him, how thankful I am for all He has done, how good He has been! I will praise Him in the standing, singing, clapping, dancing! I will tell Him how much I love Him, need Him, want Him, how strong He is, how thankful I am, how grateful I am that He is mine. But I will also worship Him till He is satisfied with His fill of all my heart and all my soul and all my mind and all my strength. When He is done, I will be done! And I will long for the next time to be with my Beloved. Worship is for Him, not for me! Worship is entering into intimacy and giving Him ALL my heart, soul, mind, and strength, till He is satisfied with all I have to give.