Re(Tro)View: My King is Better Than Your King
I think we have all had that boss. You know the one...the one that makes you dread the alarm clock in the morning. I did once. I was working for a social work agency in a southern Florida city that oversaw the financial aid offered to parents who got free childcare. The goals of the institution were noble and frankly we did some really good work, but the management was abysmal. I should know, I managed a department.
Frankly, I had to do some pretty jerky things in the name of "following orders". I will never forget having to remind my boss that I was an ordained clergyman and was NOT going to fire employees who refused to work overtime on Sundays for religious reasons. I once had to call an employee and tell them that HR had decided to fire them for "spending too much time in the hospital". The divide between the driving, relentless demands of the management and the overworked desperation of the labor was shocking and I will admit that I only stayed with the company a few months. It was simply too soul crushing.
We've all been there. The divisions in this world sometimes makes for some truly painful injustices. I will say that I have learned a lot about what to do, and what not to do, with employees from having suffered through some insufferable bosses. Part of the problem is that I really don't think that the folks who live at the top of the social order in this world have any idea what folks at the bottom have to go through. Likewise, I don't think that people who live at the bottom of society have any idea how the "haves" of the world think and deliberate when decision making in order to stay on top in the role of "haves". There is struggle and sacrifice at both ends of society but neither side can see the other one's point of view and so they tend to dismiss anyone's effort but their own. I think this applies to class, race, gender...you name it. We're all great at seeing life from our point of view but we stink at seeing it from other people's.
As I look out at the world we live in today I realize that what we are missing is something that allows us to bridge that gap. We need some kind of universal perspective that lets us see things in a way that puts us on a level playing field. We need a perspective where the management and labor finally see each other for who they really are. Or black and whites, or men and women, or conservatives and liberals, etc, etc, etc.
We try to create this over and over again with our political systems, "isms", ideologies, and philosophies. Some efforts are better then others. Some, like the current glut of political correctness seem to only intensify the divide and lead to hard feelings with an ever growing sense of unease. We are becoming more and more unable to dialog and more and more inclined to monologue.
When Paul writes to his protege Timothy he points out that there is a fundamental division of authority in human affairs. He says,
Bottom line: The rich are gonna be rich. Kings are gonna rule. . Subjects are gonna be...subjected. (Haters gonna hate). At best, pray that the rulers of this world will behave themselves. Pray that they will lead a "peaceable life in all godliness and dignity". But don't make any mistake. The best king, the best ruler, the best laws, the best system is only going to get you so far. Don't put your faith in them, they will leave you disappointed.
There is a division of labor if you will. Worldly rules handle worldly things. The world is an imperfect place and so the things of this world will always be imperfect. If you put your reliance in the things of this world their imperfection will mar all your actions. Remember that every time some politician says something stupid...every time your boss asks the impossible...every time you read a story on Facebook about some knuckle-head who was in charge of something important and totally dropped the ball (you know you read those posts, I do too...wow the world is full of nincompoops). The point is, if you are waiting on the world to provide you with perfect solutions maybe you have not been paying attention. This world does not do perfect.
That is where the real division of labor comes in. God does the perfect stuff. The Father perfectly loves us. He sent his perfect Son to love us and minister to us. His perfect Son gave his life for us and perfectly forgives us all our sins. The Holy Spirit comes to us all to drag us, sometimes kicking and screaming, toward the perfection of the Father which we cannot achieve on our own. This is our divine King, who's grace and mercy know no limits. The text tells us that Jesus is the "One mediator between God and humankind". This is to say that Jesus bridges the gulf between our imperfect, sinful selves and the perfect, sinlessness of the Father so that we can stand before him clothed in Jesus' perfection. I would argue that he also offers to bridge the gulf between us imperfect humans.
We may never be able to see each other as we truly are. We will always be stuck in our own personal bubbles of influence and assumptions. But when we stand before the cross and see ourselves as Jesus sees us: sinners in need of salvation for whom he offers his life in whom come to share in a common identity. More importantly Jesus invites us to see each other through his eyes, not ours. When we see each other as Jesus sees us then we are ushered into new view of humanity that places us all on the same level playing field. Both the rich and the poor, the mighty and the meek, black and white, men and women, Republicans and Democrats...we are all failed sinners who must rely on the grace of Jesus "who gave himself as ransom for all". Those who would rule us have failed to unite us by means of laws or ideas.
But our rulers are not those in power on this Earth, not human philosophies, not any ideology invented by imperfect humans. Our ruler is God almighty who loves and cares for each and every one of us, lifting us all up to stand with him as beloved children. The commonality of this great family is what truly is our one and only common ground. On this ground God builds what the "Kings and all who are in high position" could never hope to build: a finally perfect kingdom of love, grace, and wholeness. It is up to us to allow the Holy Spirit to teach us what it means to live more in this kingdom, and less in the kingdom of the world each and every day.
As I look out at the world we live in today I realize that what we are missing is something that allows us to bridge that gap. We need some kind of universal perspective that lets us see things in a way that puts us on a level playing field. We need a perspective where the management and labor finally see each other for who they really are. Or black and whites, or men and women, or conservatives and liberals, etc, etc, etc. We try to create this over and over again with our political systems, "isms", ideologies, and philosophies. Some efforts are better then others. Some, like the current glut of political correctness seem to only intensify the divide and lead to hard feelings with an ever growing sense of unease. We are becoming more and more unable to dialog and more and more inclined to monologue.
When Paul writes to his protege Timothy he points out that there is a fundamental division of authority in human affairs. He says,
1 Timothy 2:1-7
First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for everyone, for kings and all who are in high positions, so that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and dignity. This is right and is acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires everyone to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God; there is also one mediator between God and humankind, Christ Jesus, himself human, who gave himself a ransom for all--this was attested at the right time.For this I was appointed a herald and an apostle (I am telling the truth, I am not lying), a teacher of the Gentiles in faith and truth.
There is a division of labor if you will. Worldly rules handle worldly things. The world is an imperfect place and so the things of this world will always be imperfect. If you put your reliance in the things of this world their imperfection will mar all your actions. Remember that every time some politician says something stupid...every time your boss asks the impossible...every time you read a story on Facebook about some knuckle-head who was in charge of something important and totally dropped the ball (you know you read those posts, I do too...wow the world is full of nincompoops). The point is, if you are waiting on the world to provide you with perfect solutions maybe you have not been paying attention. This world does not do perfect.
That is where the real division of labor comes in. God does the perfect stuff. The Father perfectly loves us. He sent his perfect Son to love us and minister to us. His perfect Son gave his life for us and perfectly forgives us all our sins. The Holy Spirit comes to us all to drag us, sometimes kicking and screaming, toward the perfection of the Father which we cannot achieve on our own. This is our divine King, who's grace and mercy know no limits. The text tells us that Jesus is the "One mediator between God and humankind". This is to say that Jesus bridges the gulf between our imperfect, sinful selves and the perfect, sinlessness of the Father so that we can stand before him clothed in Jesus' perfection. I would argue that he also offers to bridge the gulf between us imperfect humans.
We may never be able to see each other as we truly are. We will always be stuck in our own personal bubbles of influence and assumptions. But when we stand before the cross and see ourselves as Jesus sees us: sinners in need of salvation for whom he offers his life in whom come to share in a common identity. More importantly Jesus invites us to see each other through his eyes, not ours. When we see each other as Jesus sees us then we are ushered into new view of humanity that places us all on the same level playing field. Both the rich and the poor, the mighty and the meek, black and white, men and women, Republicans and Democrats...we are all failed sinners who must rely on the grace of Jesus "who gave himself as ransom for all". Those who would rule us have failed to unite us by means of laws or ideas.
But our rulers are not those in power on this Earth, not human philosophies, not any ideology invented by imperfect humans. Our ruler is God almighty who loves and cares for each and every one of us, lifting us all up to stand with him as beloved children. The commonality of this great family is what truly is our one and only common ground. On this ground God builds what the "Kings and all who are in high position" could never hope to build: a finally perfect kingdom of love, grace, and wholeness. It is up to us to allow the Holy Spirit to teach us what it means to live more in this kingdom, and less in the kingdom of the world each and every day.
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