An Undivided Life....
It's fashionable to compartmentalize life. Most of us have a series of little "boxes" that elements of life "fit into." The boxes help us organized by keeping things seperate and orderly. We have a box for work, a box for home, a box for church/religious stuff, a box for leisure activities, etc. Our lives look like a neathly organized closet.
Now if we're discussing an IKEA-based, storage management system, this is wonderful. But when it comes to understanding and living-out God's purpose in life, these "boxes" can be destructive. Paul wrote to the church in Ephesis that, "God has put ALL things (emphasis mine) under the authority of Christ." In fact the entire book of Ephesians discusses unity between God and man, Jesus and the cosmos, God and the church, Jews and Gentiles in the church, husbands and wives...etc.
What's clear is that God doesn't compartmentalize like we do. He has a unified view of His creation. It all fits together and He is in and through and over all of it. Furthermore, I believe the Bible encourages us to begin to think and act the same way.
Why?
Well, when we compartmentalize, it's easier to sin. This is, in part, why even some pastors and leaders in the Body of Christ can preach against sexual sin while having an affair or using pornography. It's why some believers cheat and steal in business, yet seem so pious on Sunday morning. Worse, it's why some Bible-believing Christians can belong to parties and/or vote for politicians whose policies directly contradict scripture regarding things like:
Abortion on demand instead of the sanctity of life.
Terrorist groups in Palestine or Iran instead of The primacy of Israel in God's plan.
LBGTQ++ lifestyles, same-sex marriage, or gender transitioning instead of a Biblical view of sexuality.
Socialist/Communist systems versusThe freedom taught by Christ and the Apostles (See Galatians 5:1).
And more....
Our faith cannot and should not be seperate from our finances, our families, our sex lives, our parenting, and yes, even our politics. God is a God of unity, a oneness of life just as the oneness found in God's very trinitarian nature. It's not wrong to see these things as distinct, just as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are distinct persons. But to completely seperate our lives so that we can live under different priorities or value systems is destructive. In fact, it's deceptive since, in God's eyes, it is all intertwined under his sovereign rule anyway.
So...friends...let's try living undivided lives. May the words we speak, the actions we take, and even the thoughts we think be interconnected--unified--under the Lordship of Christ!
To that end,
Pastor Joel
