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The Daily Word of Righteousness
The Ruler, #9
And the men of Israel gathered themselves together out of Naphtali, and out of Asher, and out of all Manasseh, and pursued after the Midianites. (Judges 7:23)
There is but one Church, one Body of Christ, one Wife of the Lamb, one holy city of God. These are different terms applied to the one Israel of God.
At different times and for varying reasons God may emphasize one person or a small group of people. But, as in the case of Gideon's 300, as soon as the victory has been won all Israel joins in the victory.
An army may consist of many different kinds of units but it is one army.
A kingdom may contain rich people and poor people, nobility and working class, but it is one kingdom.
The Gospels speak of those who are greatest and those who are least in the Kingdom of God. But it remains one kingdom.
God's stars, His heroes of faith, are an adornment on the Church. But they are not separate from the Church just as David and his mighty men were not separate from the rest of Israel, and Gideon and his remnant of warriors were not a group of people apart from Israel.
Before electronic technology came into being people often were directed by the stars. It was a star that led the wise men to the Baby Jesus.
When we teach in the church we use God's stars to guide us: Daniel, Job, Abraham, Jacob wrestling with the angel, Joseph and his coat of many colors, John the Baptist, Elijah, Enoch who walked with God, and many others. These are the "stars" whose faith and experiences have pointed the way through the "night" of our pilgrimage on the earth.
It is the lives of individual saints, rather than the history of the nation of Israel or of the Christian Church, that provide the inspiration and example we need. The "stars" point the way toward the righteous Kingdom that is coming from Heaven.
The moon shines by reflected light but the stars give their own light.
When we are immature Christians we live and minister by an external grace, for the most part. The Holy Spirit is in us, Christ is in us, but the Divine Life is small and undeveloped. The Lord carries us along by means of externally-applied grace.
Externally-applied grace continues to be necessary. But as we mature in Christ the Life of Christ is formed in us. The Day Star arises in our heart. An inner transformation takes place. A new creature becomes increasingly prominent in our life, in our decisions, in our attitudes. Christ is growing in us, as portrayed in the parable of the sower (Matthew 13:3-23; II Peter 1:19).
Every member of the Body of Christ can become one of God's stars by laying down his or her own life, taking up his cross, and following the Lord Jesus. Every believer can pass from the ranks of the many who are called to the few who are chosen.
To be continued.