Working Undercover as a Voice, Not a Name.
Working Undercover as a Voice, Not a Name.
“And this is the testimony of John (the Baptist), when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, ‘Who are you?’ He confessed, and did not deny, but confessed, ‘I am not the Messiah.’ And they asked him, ‘What then? Are you Elijah?’ He said, ‘I am not.’ ‘Are you the Prophet?’ And John answered, ‘No.’ So they said to him, “Who are you? What do you say about yourself?’ John said, “I am the voice of one crying out in the wilderness…” (John 1:19-23; Isaiah 40:3).
The Voice of Him That Crieth in the Wilderness 20141107083725 – YouTube
Why was the Baptist being so coy about identifying himself to all those religious elders? He was trying to make a point… He was not out to make a name for himself. His job was to be a voice, not a name. In fact, whenever someone asked him to identify himself, he wouldn’t even bother giving his name. His name ws immaterial and irrelevant. He was a voice calling others to Jesus, not to himself. He was working undercover. John was serving within what Dr. Ellen Davis called “the discipline of obscurity.”
“Learn to be unknown.’” (Thomas A’ Kempis, Imitation of Christ). Christ-followers are living with a new identity. We have taken the name tag off our chest and replaced it with a cross necklace. We are hidden in Christ who Himself is inside the Father. We check our egos at the door every morning when we open the door into a new day. We are content to be anonymous for Jesus. We don’t seek to put our names up in lights, for we are happy to be a voice in the wilderness. We are satisfied to be hidden under the shadow of His wings. We do not want to be a celebrity that directs the attention of others to us. We are happiest when God’s name is glorified, not ours. We realize that to seek acclaim is to reduce the voice to a selfish noise. We know that when we embrace the glamor of fame or name recognition, then we are digging up the grave of self that was supposed to have been crucified on the Cross with Christ. We are content with our names being written in the Lamb’s Book of Life, embraced by the Name above all names. We are most pleased when our voice echoes out to the world and speaks of the new Kingdom, calling out to others with the love of Christ.
“A life not lived for others is not a life.” (Mother Teresa of Calcutta). In loving others, we forget about ourselves on purpose. In a marriage, we help our spouse to discover what is most life-giving to him/her and we do what we can to make it happen. In our job, we do excellent work and give the credit to God and colleagues. In a friendship, we do what it takes to help that friend to flourish. In a community, we practice all those biblical one another’s… forgive each other, encourage and build up each other, honor and comfort one another, exhort and restore each other, harmonize and bear with each other, confess to one another, wash the feet and bear the burdens of each other. In daily life, our head is on a swivel and our antennae are up to notice and care for the “least of these.” (Matthew 25). In church, we use what spiritual gifts have been given to us to build up the Body and make it a place of worship joy and peace for everyone.
The Servant Song | Christian & Catholic Hymn | Richard Gillard & Betty Pulkingham | Sunday 7pm Choir
“Running on Empty.” (Jackson Browne). As a voice and not a name, we live into our weakness and rejoice in the gift of powerlessness. We recognize that God’s power comes into its own in our weakness. We happily accept God’s word when he said, “My power shows itself most effective when you are weak,” to which Paul responded, “Therefore, I will all the more gladly glory in my weakness and infirmities, so that the strength of Christ Jesus may pitch a tent over me and dwell upon me. Now I take limitations in stride and with good cheer, taking pleasure in opposition, in bad breaks, in insults, in weaknesses, in perplexities, in distresses, and in all kinds of hardships. I just let Christ take over! For when I am weak in human strength, then am I truly powerful in divine strength. The weaker I get, the stronger I become.” The humble servant who is working undercover takes to heart wisdom like this…
- “The Christian often tries to forget his weakness; God wants us to remember it, to feel it deeply.” Andrew Murray).
- “God is attracted to weakness.” (Jim Cymbala).
- “God’s power is secure in us only when it is linked to something that keeps us weak.” (Richard Bieber).
- “I am self-sufficient in Christ’s sufficiency.” (Philippians 4:13, the Amplified Bible).
- “God desires that we come to maturity by using our strengths to get us into significant trouble that exposes our weaknesses.” (Dan Allender).
- “The weakness of the flesh in suffering provides a firm working-place for the surpassing power of the Spirit.” (St. Maximus the Confessor).
Be like the buried seed that grows secretly and silently underground. “Truly, truly, what I am about to say is really important, so you’ve got to listen carefully. Unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it is buried and dies, it produces a harvest of much fruit. The person who loves his life will lose it, while the person who hates his life in the world will keep it for eternal life.” (John 12:23-25). Jesus told His followers about something that He thought was so important that He started off by saying the equivalent of… ‘Listen carefully now, I really need you to understand this. This is the utmost truth and is most assuredly true. Truly, truly!’ And then Jesus offers a mini-parable that has two intentions. First, He wanted to discuss the coming Passion, and that He will be like a kernel of wheat that gets buried in the ground and dies to the world. But, He says, the seed must in a sense die in order to bring new life into the world, a harvest bearing much fruit. The purpose of burying a seed is to produce a fruit-bearing plant, He says. And that’s what will happen after I am buried in the ground. The dead seed leads to resurrection life, says Jesus. And judging by His words after this parable, Jesus intends for His followers to do likewise. We must become a buried seed in the ground, hidden and obscure, if we want to bring resurrected life into this world, He is saying. Bury yourself so that you are dead to the world and its way of life, and you will bring new life into the world, starting with you! I intend for you to bear much fruit, says Jesus, but you must first bury your self and follow me. While we are buried underground, we are growing in our friendship with Jesus, growing deeper roots in Him, and preparing for fruitfulness. As Herbert Lockyer said, “As you await this moment of reaping, may you abound in hope as you contemplate the joy of harvest in the heavenly fields above.” God seems to have a unique clock for each of us within the mystery of our growth, and each of us matures as He ultimately wills, in His timing, at His pace. No matter where we are in the growth process deep in obscurity, we can embrace Peter’s final words in his second letter: “You must grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. All glory to Him, both now and forever! Amen.” (2 Peter 3:18). While buried underground and working undercover, we certainly all need to keep growing up in Christ. But only God knows what that will look like in each believer as we will hopefully grow from a hidden seed in the ground to breaking ground, and then from stalk to the ear to the full kernel in time for the harvest. God in His mercy will make that happen in His time. “I pray that from His glorious, unlimited resources He will empower you with inner strength through His Spirit. Then Christ will make His home in your hearts as you trust in Him. Your roots will grow down into God’s love and keep you strong” (Ephesians 3:16-17).
Larry Norman – I Am A Servant – [Lyrics]