Rejoice With Them That Rejoice
Rejoice with them that do rejoice, and weep with them that weep. (Rom 12:15)
It seems that we have the part down well that says, “Weep with them that weep”. We can identify with the suffering that many people face. We are skilled in relating to people's misfortune. We can commiserate with others who are going through difficulties. We can easily pick up the cause of others who say they are victims of oppressive enemies.
What about the other part of this verse?
Back when Sunday night church meetings were more common than today, I was a member of a church that had a testimony time during the service on Sunday nights. Anyone could tell of something special that God did in their lives. If someone would tell of a difficult season they went through, we could identify closely to the person.
Let us imagine that someone was excited and told us about winning with a million dollar lottery ticket. “I couldn't pay my rent. The sheriff was going to evict me and my children the next day. I had a dream about a series of numbers. I took my last $10 and used those numbers. Now we aren't in the street. Praise God!” The person jumps around telling about their rescue from financial destruction. Few people are moved to the slightest smile. There is great silence.
Someone thinks to themselves or quietly speaks it aloud, I can't pay my rent. Buying lottery tickets! They have money to waste on gambling and don't pay their rent. They are probably dealing drugs, too. That's where the money really came from.
Can we rejoice with someone who was rescued from eviction at the last moment? No. We despise the person who had the favorable news but we are actually angry with God. How dare He dump a million dollars into that fraud's lap while I can't pay my rent or hospital bills.
That which would be cause for rejoicing for the local Body of Christ becomes bitterness and a smoldering rage. (The pastor is rejoicing. He has his calculator out, figuring the tithe.)
The next person in the testimony meeting gets up to share some news. “The doctors gave me 1 month to live. I had stage 4 cancer of the brain. While the relatives were digging a hole in the back yard, the power of God hit me. The cancer is all gone!”
There are some “Amens” from a few people who have not had their family touched by cancer. Someone thinks, I had to sit by my mother's bedside and watch her choke to death on her own blood. My family member dies while this other person waltzes through it all.
The healed person actually did very little waltzing while on his deathbed. He is just thrilled at the power of God. Cannot we rejoice with him? No. The anger at the person giving the testimony is growing but the real resentment is at God. How dare He let my family member die!
Finally someone gets up in the service with a wonderful testimony to share. “My three children were in prison awaiting the death sentence. I just got news that all of them were found not guilty and released!”
Many people who have not had any dealings with the law in this manner applaud loudly.
Someone thinks, My son is in prison for 40 years and he didn't even do it!
That which should bring glory to God and great rejoicing to the church causes great resentment in the hearts of many. Sure, we need to make personal application when appropriate. Why can we not rejoice with someone over some good news in their life?
For this cause many are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep. (1Cor 11:30)
For what reason?
For he that eateth and drinketh unworthily, eateth and drinketh damnation to himself, not discerning the Lord's body. (V 29)
Most of us do not even realize that this is a thing, much less that it is supremely important.
...his (Christ's) body's sake, which is the church: (Col 1:24)
It is difficult but we must see the good of the church and the glory to God as more important than our own personal situation. Paul says plainly that not recognizing the fact that we are one body in Christ is the reason for much undiagnosable and untreatable disease. And the direct cause of many dying much sooner than they should.
Me first, me last, me only and to hell with everyone else.
This is the natural selfish attitude that every one of us will have instinctively. This is the perfect example of transformation. We have a natural heart attitude that must be displaced by the greater truth of esteeming others in the Body of Christ as better than ourselves. It is not easy. Without the help of God it is impossible. As we choose to allow the attitude from God to slowly displace our natural attitude we experience the transformation of the soul. We experience effortless change. The real fight is to allow God's Word to take priority over our natural thinking. It is not easy to do. Once we begin to determine to allow spirit to displace soul we find it actually is easy. The transformation is easy. The choice to allow it is not.
Feb 15, 2024