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“No one man should have all that power...”
First Love, Part IV - Power: Erosion
Recap: Yesterday on Theophilus we discussed the events that led to the Church, for the first time in history, obtaining institutional power. This would forever reshape Church history and hold lasting consequences.
Missed previous emails in the series? No worries, you can read all the emails we sent online by clicking here.
My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy is one of Kanye West’s best albums.
A fact underscored by one of its most notable tracks, POWER.
The song explores the negative influence power can have on the psyche as it gradually chips away at one’s humanity until there’s nothing left…
Roman Power Versus Jesus Power
The power of empire.
The Roman Empire was, without a doubt, the most impressive of its day. It seemed to have a limitless supply of resources and power with which to impose its will. And as the Church was embraced by Rome, it began to have those things, too.
The rest is history.
There’s a story in the book of Matthew where the mother of the disciples James and John tries to convince Jesus to give her sons a promotion. The other disciples hear about this and they’re not thrilled.
Seeing all this, Jesus gives them a beautiful lesson in authority…
But Jesus called them to him and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones are tyrants over them. It will not be so among you; but whoever wishes to be great among you must be your servant, and whoever wishes to be first among you must be your slave; just as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life a ransom for many.”
This is the power of Jesus, not to assert, but to serve.
Agape as True Power
Agape love is eroded when the Church uses that power to assert instead of serve.
This stands in direct contrast to Jesus. He never forced anyone to do anything. He used His power to show people love and appeal to their hearts.
The Church has never, never been about having power over others. It’s always been about serving them the way Christ did.
When we take our first sip of coercive power we all too often find it difficult to stop. This is precisely what happened when the persecuted Church of Rome became the persecuting Church of history.
The writer and pastor John Mark Comer put it well when he said, “...to live in this new community under the rule of God is to live by a whole other set of relational dynamics than the world. It’s to live not with power but with love as the centerpoint.”
We can live for love or we can live for power. Take your pick.
For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul?
Loving power leads to peace.
We’ll continue our discussion tomorrow by taking a look at what Dogma is and how it impedes agape.
Application: How might you be able to show Christ’s power to serve in your community? Brainstorm some ways and find places to put them into action.
For now, be blessed.
Jon,
Theophilus Newsletter
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