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For I know the plans I have for you,declares the LORD, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Jer 29:11 |
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| Archived Manna: | |
Dear
Friend,
If you do not already have a habit of gathering daily manna the first thing in the morning (we can look at the example given to us in Exodus 16 and find the pattern for make it a habit. Establish your life and your schedule to allow you the necessary time to do your daily collection first thing every morning to give you the strength to make it through the day. And remember that today’s manna will not be sufficient for tomorrow; tomorrow’s manna must be collected tomorrow morning. Tuesday, December 13, 2022
Today's Passage : Today's Passage :Slavery and Christianity Bible Verse:Matthew 10:17-22 (ESV) "Beware of men, for they will deliver you over to courts and flog you in their synagogues, and you will be dragged before governors and kings for my sake, to bear witness before them and the Gentiles. When they deliver you over, do not be anxious how you are to speak or what you are to say, for what you are to say will be given to you in that hour. For it is not you who speak, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you. Brother will deliver brother over to death, and the father his child, and children will rise against parents and have them put to death, and you will be hated by all for my name's sake. But the one who endures to the end will be saved." Message:
We will be spending a couple of days on this part of Matthew 10, because it raises a number of interesting issues about Christian doctrine, the early church and the church today. Why would people become so violent in their objection to such a benign religion? For Christ had nothing to do with politics and his followers were well behaved.
Primarily, the Jews were offended because he said that their religious beliefs were wrong, inadequate, and they were not going to find righteousness before God. Because the Jews (using the word, as is often done, to refer to the Hebrew leadership) were a political force, a threat to belief in their religion had implications for money and political power; this is, in fact, what would cause Christ's execution.
But why would common Hebrews care? And why would the Romans care? Although there was some friction between Greco-Roman culture and Christianity simply over religion, it was surprisingly small. The Romans were lax about religion, and the observance of other religions upset them surprisingly little (unless it impinged on some financial or political interest),
But Christianity did threaten three institutions: slavery, marriage, and the family. Rome had very roughly 60 million slaves. A revolt by the slaves, being so numerous, was a constant fear of the ruling classes. The structure of the Empire depended on slavery to function, and any whiff of revolution was met with near panic.
The Christian Church made no attempt to free the slaves — to the contrary, Paul would teach that slaves should obey their masters — but they did treat slaves as equals. Clement of Alexandria pleaded that “slaves are like ourselves” and the Golden Rule applied to them. In about 350 A.D. a great Christian writer, Lactantius, would write down the position of slaves in the church: “Slaves are not slaves to us. We deem them brothers after the Spirit, in religion fellow servants.”
Worse than that, slave were eligible for high office in the Christian Church. Two early bishops of Rome — the highest position in the church, direct successors to Peter — had been slaves: Callistus (Pope Callixtus I) and Pius (Pope Pius I) in 147 A.D. And from the earliest times, deacons and elders in local churches were former or current slaves. By 220 A.D., the church had formally announced that slaves might marry aristocrats, a violation of Roman law.
There were practical problems with current, serving slaves joining churches; if their master were pagan, they would be forbidden, and if their master were a Christian, they would not want to be set above the master in the church. So, mostly, it was freed slaves who held office; but this is the result of the secular master-slave relationship, not the church.
Marriage of slaves and nobles aside, there was a greater impact on both Jewish and Gentile families, a problem we still see today and one specifically treated in today's Scripture. Marriage becomes very difficult when one spouse becomes a Christian, but not the other. Similarly, a child or parent becoming a Christian would, by Christ's direct authority, subordinate his duty to family in favor of his duty to God.
Meditation : Prayer : May I go in peace, with God and with his other children, and may we love one another as Christ taught us. May I follow the example of good men of old, and may God comfort and help me and all who believe in Him, both in this world and in the world which is to come.......Amen |
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