This is a long one because it brings together the Core of the Gospel and what it entails for followers of Christ… it took me a while to get my head around it, and into it…
We all know the story of the three little pigs. One built a house with straw, one with sticks and one with stones. A wolf came, and blew the houses down with a strong breath, except the house of stone.
Moral of the story, don’t build your life with inferior product, don’t be lazy, search out good knowledge, etc, etc..
Interestingly, we have the exact same story in the Bible (No, not about building your house on sand or rock) but told by Paul.
(If you have heard the reference where Paul describes that he couldn’t feed the congregation with solid food, but had to still use milk, right here is an example)
Jesus is our foundation. The Gospel starts and ends with Jesus and what He did. Period. In two thousand years since, we have seen a lot of wisdom and intelligence and information grow. The understanding of the building blocks of the universe, genetics, DNA, etc, etc. And with that the rise of theories, like Evolution and The Big Bang, Social Justice, etc. But when we discuss any origin or social theory, we will always end up with a core: Do we need God? Can we Govern ourselves? Is God not just a made-up construct to help us explain away what we do not understand? (Or convince/tempt/threaten people to follow our ways or instructions?)
But before we climb into a rabbit hole… Jesus. Jesus is the start and the end of all things. So what is the milk and meat then about?
Paul says, He had the easy job, He laid the foundation, Jesus, but now the building has to happen. The answer is still Jesus, but now we have to grow with Jesus.
“The quality of materials used by anyone building on this foundation will soon be made apparent, whether it has been built with gold, silver, and costly stones, or wood, hay, and straw. Their work will soon become evident, for the Day will make it clear, because it will be revealed by blazing fire! And the fire will test and prove the workmanship of each builder.”
(1 Corinthians 3:12–13 TPT)
Unlike the little pigs, this is not about our own life, but about how we share knowledge with others. Is what we are teaching straw, wood and hay? In other words, worldly knowledge, based on worldly principles and worldly thought patterns with worldly goals?
Or are we teaching Gold, Silver and valuable Stone? God’s Wisdom? God’s principles?
Can I say with all honesty that I am not sometimes buckling under the pressure of the world and NOT STANDING UP FOR A GODLY PRINCIPLE, just because I am afraid that I will be offending someone?
What am I teaching those who look to me to see how we should react? How we should think?
Paul warns: Your work will be tested.
What we build into those around us, even by accident, has consequences. (This is the meat and milk part) You can claim that you never taught someone, but the fact is that you did, because people are watching you to see how they should act.
A manager losing his cool and throwing toys every single day teaches every person in his department how to act when things go wrong. Intentionally or not, we are responsible. We are responsible for our teaching AND our actions and lives.
But even more so, we are teaching with every choice we make, every executive meeting, every client request. Everything we say yes to, and everything we say no to, and every single thing we ignore with a grin and a smile because, “to each, his own”, or we don’t want to “cause a scene” or cause offence, instead of respectfully saying: “I disagree”
Do you see the extent of our influence? Do you understand the extent of our influence?
If you know the road washed out around the bend, will you not jump out of your car and stop traffic?
If you know where to find fuel when every station is running dry, will you not share the information and help as many as you can?
Or even if a co-worker is just having a tough day, will you not walk up with a coffee or a snack or a headache tablet and say a kind word?
it is very easy to to get offended by people and treat them with less respect, kindness and levels of service than we should be giving them. To “get them back” somehow…
But Jesus rewrote the golden rule:
“So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.”
(Matthew 7:12 NIV)
It is not just about me, and how I should see the world as a Christian, and my salvation and my grace. It is now about my responsibility to raise up those next to me.
Not just lend a hand, but be an example. Not just speak the words Jesus spoke, but walk how Jesus walked, carry like Jesus carried. Try to care like only God can. Love those “only God can” BUT that definitely also Jesus died for.
And that doesn’t mean the smelly homeless guy in the street, it also means the politician. The alphabet soup person in your department. The dictator and destroyer…
Someone is watching you… to understand Jesus.
