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NASB | 1 Corinthians 3:22 whether Paul or Apollos or Cephas or the world or life or death or things present or things to come; all things belong to you, |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | 1 Corinthians 3:22 whether Paul or Apollos or Cephas (Peter) or the world or life or death or things present or things to come; all things are yours, |
Subject: Thank the Catholics for "The Passion"? |
Bible Note: The LORD is gracious, and full of compassion; slow to anger, and of great mercy. I am disappointed only in myself this apparent inability to elicit a pleasant response from some of the members of the church. Nor do I expect that it will improve the situation to point out what we can all agree on, that Paul had no denominational affiliation. Paul called for unity, and cooperation, and love without dissimulation. Paul tried to foil the development of denominational affiliations when they first appeared at Corinth. But alas! Some do not listen, no matter how often an appeal is made. And now, in the midst of a web of denominationism, some of us need to be fed with milk, and not with meat: for we are not able to bear it. For we are yet carnal: for whereas there is among us envying, and strife, and divisions, are we not carnal, and walk as men? For while one saith, “I will be pleasant and pacific only to those who seem to project power; I will ascend the ramparts for all others”; while one so blithely proclaims, “I am Roman Catholic”; and another, “I am Episcopalian”; and another, “I am Lutheran”; are we not carnal? Often, we must accept each other as is, for it is difficult to change. Most of us will refuse, or see no need, to give up our denominational ties. So we will have to accept the fact. So we must make the best of it. So, we will compliment those who do good, and thank them for the for the good they do. Even if he is Roman Catholic, I will be glad that he has done “The Passion of the Christ”. I will rejoice in any such work when it is done, even if the doers have mixed motives of auto-therapy and money-making and anything else. Denominationism, while regrettable, cannot nullify the word of God. The influence of our group and the desire to please our group does not nullify the preaching of the Gospel. Some indeed preach Christ even of envy and strife; and some also of good will: The one preaches Christ out of contention, not sincerely, supposing to add affliction to my lack of opportunity: But the other of love, knowing that I am set for the defense of the gospel. What then? notwithstanding, every way, whether in pretence, or in truth, Christ is preached; and I therein do rejoice, yea, and will rejoice. Besides, there is a certain something that the Catholics bring to their services that is unique and good. Thought I have tried to describe it elsewhere, I am not sure I have the words. It is the thing that causes them to use words such as “dolorous”, and “passion” more often than you will hear in other corners of the church. Nor is this simply a matter of words or a relic of the use of Latin. There is a certain appreciation for the need to dig deeply and to contemplate, I think. There may be something akin to this among the Plymouth Brethren. I will append it here because I have written it. In “Gospel Hall”s and “Gospel Chapel”s, there is weekly meeting that is usually characterized by quiet meditation, and seems to be devoted in its entirety to remembering the sufferings of Christ. This is often termed the main or central meeting of the assembly. The climax of the meeting is the Breaking of Bread, and the meeting itself is often called the Breaking of Bread meeting. The entire occasion is geared to remembering him, the fact that he died and the way he died, and to proclaim that death. Most of the hymns and prayers and the scriptures that are read aloud relate to the suffering and death of Christ, and sometimes to the resurrection. Someone returned from viewing the movie today and told me about it. She grew up among the Brethren. Most of the scenes reminded her of the Breaking of Bread meeting. When they were beating him she remembered the song “He Could Have Called Ten Thousand Angels” being sung in the meeting. As they went to Calvary, she recalled “Up Calvary’s Mountain” being sung. When he said, “It is accomplished”, she recalled “Done is the Work that Saves” being sung. She recalled scriptures and prayers that had been offered in the Breaking of Bread meeting. It is apparent that both the movie and the meeting can evoke strong emotions and set lasting memories. When one has found himself away from a Gospel Hall for whatever reason, he is often heard to say, “One thing I miss is the Breaking of Bread meeting”. It may be fair to say that there is a link between the sufferings of Christ and the “worship meeting” at a Gospel Hall. Yet none of them who worship there would not have made that movie. Many of them would refuse to attend, to darken the door of a movie theater. It had to take someone from the Catholic corner of the church, I think, to give us The Passion of the Christ. We should thank them in general and him in particular for it. Or maybe we should just thank the Lord who blesses us in spite of the sin of sectarianism. |