I was watching an episode of the Carrie Diaries where she and her friends were having a conversation about the mentality of the people in Manhattan. She was smitten with the luxe and glamour of NY and how everyone was so posh and had exciting lives. But her friend pointed out that in Manhattan everyone was their own little individual island... trying to keep up, outdo, and make the other little islands jealous..it was lonely being an island.
Over the past few weeks I've found myself extremely irritated with this spirit of selfishness and self-exhalation that seems to be running rampant these days. NO I am not about to get on my soapbox and just rant out of frustration but I am about to share some biblical truths with you concerning this foolishness right here... what I have termed Me Me Island Syndrome...
There are times when we all have a lapse in judgement and think we don't need anybody else, we can do everything on our own, or that this show is all about us. Well guess what... It's not, We can't, and we do!! The enemy has gotten really good and convincing people that they're their own God, that they can do everything on their own power, their own might, and autonomously. Without God's precious breath of life we would still be a raggedy lump of clay laying on Eden's floor (Genesis 2:7), without His grace and mercy we would all be on our way to a burning hell, without His had on our lives and His protection we would be blind, crippled, crazy, or dead by now... Simply put.. God we are NOTHING without You!
Even Jesus, God wrapped in flesh, knew that he wasn't an island entire of itself. He didn't have disciples because He was lonely.. He had disciples because He needed some help carrying on the work once He was gone, He needed some people to help spread the good news because in His fleshly body He couldn't be everywhere at once, He needed some help feeding the multitude.
In the account of the fish & loaves of bread Jesus had help obtaining food, then had the disciples help distribute the food. Being God, He could have spoken it and food would have appeared just like when He fed the Children of Israel with quail and manna (Exodus 16:12-14).
In Matthew 20:28 it says.. Even as the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many.
This lets us know that Jesus, God Himself, the King of kings, Lord of Lords, Alpha and Omega, Beginning and End, Holy One, Creator of all things... didn't come with Me Me Island syndrome. The very nature of why He came required Him to be connected to other people, to draw from other people, deposit into other people, and to MOVE SELF OUT OF THE WAY!
Jesus in his human side didn't want to be crucified, we see Him praying in the garden asking if there be another way...he prayed so fervently that his sweat was like drops of blood (Luke 22:41-44). Then He did something so amazingly incredible... He said... "Nevertheless, not My will, but thine will be done.
It may not seem like much, but when we submit to God's will, we have no idea what all that will includes... for Jesus it meant beating, mocking, being spit on, having the hairs of His beard plucked out, being crucified with criminals when He was innocent, being buried in somebody else's tomb.... all for a those same people who mocked Him, beat Him, rejected Him, and us.. raggedy old us with our trifling selves. The us who might or might not choose to serve and worship Him, might or might not choose to believe in Him, might or might not choose to acknowledge Him. He laid down everything He wanted to do for us.... a completely selfless act.
Even the thief on the cross who knew he was guilty and deserved his punishment reached out for help... If Jesus was humble enough to admit He needed help and other people... who are you to claim you don't. You're not so special that you're above Jesus, you're not so important that your feelings are the only ones that matter, you're not so intelligent that your ideas are the only brilliant ones, and you're not too saved to reach out to a sister or brother and offer help. Serve instead of being served all the time, give instead of taking.
Yes, you are a city set upon a hill that cannot be hid, but it takes more than one city to make up a country and more than one country to make a continent. Yes, your ideas are genius and fabulous, Yes, you're a joy to be around but guess what...
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