Com Pasio

I'll be the first to admit - well, not the first, but you know what I mean - that the Apostle Paul is sometimes difficult to follow. His rhetorical thoughts form a tight web from which there can only be one conclusion; Paul's. Today's passage from the lectionary for this Sunday is a good example. Romans 8:12-17 begins with us being debtors (someone who owes something to another) and ends with us being heirs as God's children.


However, we do not claim to be sole heirs as God's children. According to Paul we are joint heirs with Jesus if we suffer with him. And this act of suffering with Christ allows us to be glorified (the actual phrase used here in the Greek is syndoxazō which actually means to join in approving) alongside Jesus.


I hope we haven't lost anyone yet. It's just a thing of mine to break down Paul's writing so I can understand it better. 


So what is it that we have the honor of jointly approving with Jesus? All that God has to offer us, of course; all-encompassing love, unconditional acceptance, and the joy and peace that comes with that. I mentioned in the last post that my wife and I went to the Lantern Floating Ceremony on Memorial Day. The crowds were massive, and I want to say every race and religion was represented. There were people of all colors sitting shoulder to shoulder. Muslims, Buddhists, Christians, Hindus, and atheists all gathered in one place for one purpose; to share in compassion with those around them.


It was as if Christ was alive in each person there as the Spirit kept a calm and respectful atmosphere. Just imagine 40,000 people gathered in one mind, one heart, one purpose, and not one person with a bad intent. Imagine, now, 6 billion people all living the same way. 


The theme of the ceremony is Many Rivers, One Ocean. Humanity is symbolized by the rivers and the universe by the ocean. There are many paths to happiness, I just wish some people wouldn't build dams.


Com Pasio - Suffer With.