It Is a Parable About Allegiance

May 25, 2016

It Is a Parable About Allegiance

“All of them are seeking their own interests, not those of Jesus Christ.”

Philippians 2:21 (NRSV)

In my meditation on Philippians 2:4, “Let each of you look not to your own interests, but to the interests of others” (NRSV), I noted that Paul urges the followers of Jesus to take seriously the self-sacrificing way of life modeled by Jesus. In today’s passage, Paul subtlety connects verse 4 with Jesus’ parable of the Last Judgment in Matthew 25. You will recall that the epicenter of that parable is Jesus’ assertion about the least of these: “And the King will say, ‘I tell you the truth, when you did it to one of the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were doing it to me!’ (Matthew 25:40). In verse 4, Paul urges us to “look not to your own interests, but to the interests of others,” and in verse 21 Paul contrasts Timothy’s lifestyle with that of unnamed others, “All of them are seeking their own interests, not those of Jesus Christ.” (NRSV) Paul is saying that Timothy is fulfilling verse 4 by not focusing on his own self-interest, but focusing on the interests of others, which Paul says is the interest of Jesus Christ. Paul is saying that Timothy, by serving others ahead of his own self-interest, is serving Christ Jesus the King.

In the story that Jesus told, the people represented as sheep offered assistance when they saw someone in need. They didn’t throw money at the problem. They didn’t send someone else. They offered their hand; they gave their water; they touched and bandaged the wound; they listened with compassion. They served because service was needed, not to be noticed or rewarded. They served because God created us to be in community, and when you are in community you are not seeking your own interests, but those of Jesus Christ.

Jesus’ parable is not about some people getting rewarded for good deeds, and some people getting punished because of the good deeds left undone. Ultimately, it is a parable about allegiance. At the end of time, it is not a matter of who we say we are; it is a matter of whose we are. Those who actually align themselves with the King will reflect the King’s goodness. Those who actually align themselves with the King will reflect the self-sacrificing way of life modeled by King Jesus.

Sē’lah

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(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

These meditations are written by Alex M. Knight as he seeks the life in Christ as his way of life.  The meditations are published on the BLOG, http://seekingthelifeinchrist.blogspot.com/ and they are also distributed on the Constant Contact email server. You may subscribe to this email service by sending an email to: amkrom812@gmail.com. The BLOG is also available on Amazon Kindle, by subscription.

Publications by Alex M. Knight:

·        Seeking the Life in Christ, Meditations on the New Testament and Psalms has been published and is now available at Amazon.com in paperback and Kindle.

·        The second edition of  First Think – Then Pray is available on Amazon Kindle.

·        Meditations on The Story of My Life as told by Jesus Christ has been released as an e-book on Amazon Kindle.

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188.