Tuesday, July 8, 2008

Divinely Connected

Today is the first day of my three weeks of isolation.

No, I haven't taken a vow of solitude. I'm not totally isolated either, but almost. My two best friends left today on a three week road trip. I, being the one with the job, did not get to go, but I'm not bitter or jealous at all. On top of that, my girlfriend has moved back home for the rest of the summer. She's only an hour away, but it's just far enough that we can only see each other on the weekends, which is far less than I've been accustomed to. I'm basically an introvert, so taking away the three people closest to me effectively leaves me socially marooned, but I'm trying to make the best of it. I'm trying to be productive with the extra time. Blogging is productive, right?

Perhaps I'm being melodramatic (I am), but this situation nevertheless has reminded of something I read in the book of Romans the other day:

First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for all of you, because your faith is proclaimed in all the world. For God is my witness, whom I serve with my spirit in the gospel of his Son, that without ceasing I mention you always in my prayers, asking that somehow by God's will I may now at last succeed in coming to you. For I long to see you, that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to strengthen you— that is, that we may be mutually encouraged by each other's faith, both yours and mine. I want you to know, brothers, that I have often intended to come to you (but thus far have been prevented), in order that I may reap some harvest among you as well as among the rest of the Gentiles. I am under obligation both to Greeks and to barbarians, both to the wise and to the foolish. So I am eager to preach the gospel to you also who are in Rome.
Romans 1:8-15 (ESV)

Paul loved the church at Rome, and wanted to go to them, but at the time that he wrote the previous passage, he had not been able to do so. However, take note of the phrase “For God is my witness.” We might just pass over these words, as the phrase has become somewhat common, even to the point of being thrown about flippantly. The phrase when used for comic emphasis can also be really hilarious, like when Kevin from The Office exclaimed “I will quit! As God is my witness, I will quit if this is not fixed!” (He was commenting on being displaced from his regular parking space to a more far-away one. They should really feature that character more, but I digress.)

What you may not realize about the phrase is that the Greek word translated as “witness” is the word “μάρτυς” (pronounced mar'-toos). This is the word from which we get our word “martyr”, but in this case, the word does not mean what we would normally take it to mean. It takes on a more generalized meaning: a record or witness, one who can give information, enlighten, or confirm.

Though he had never been able to go and meet with them physically, Paul felt a strong connection to the Romans. Why? Because they were linked to one another in Christ, just as all Christians are linked. Paul invokes God as his witness in a judicial sense; God could corroborate the fact that Paul had prayed for the Romans in the way that he said he did. But more so, Paul is referring to God's witness in a communal sense. God linked Paul with the Romans and vice versa despite their physical distance. In a broader scope, through our mutual relationships with Christ, all Christians everywhere and throughout time are linked in such a way into a single community: the body of Christ, the Church.

As Paul did, I hope that we all live in full knowledge of our connectedness through Christ. I pray that it will encourage and empower us to live as full citizens of the Kingdom of God, doing the work of that kingdom, no matter where we are.

And to Adam and Tyler, safe travels. I hope to see you in three weeks, but if I don't, that's okay, too.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

I wish you the best in your quest to be more productive. Just please- don't be reproductive.