“Step Outside of Yourself!”
By Kyle Pope
There is an expression we hear from time to time when someone
becomes a little too absorbed and overcome with his or her own problems. A
friend, in love, might tell the person, “You just need to step outside of yourself,
and think about other things for awhile.” As with many expressions we use, if
taken literally this advice is not only impossible, but laughable to conceive.
How could someone literally step outside of himself? Regardless of what
eastern religion and New Age thought would have us to believe, a person can’t
just leave his or her own body for awhile and then come back after some task is
done. Scripture defines death as the departure of the soul (or spirit) from the
body (cf. Jas. 2:26).
When
this expression is used it generally is not talking about some (so-called) “out
of body experience.” What it means is that the person needs to shift his focus
away from himself in order to gain a better perspective on things he must
confront. While this wording is not found in Scripture, the idea it expresses
certainly is. Consider with me a few areas in which as Christians, it would do
us great good “step outside of ourselves.”
I. Take an Interest in the Lives of
Christians within our Own Congregation. Paul taught the saints in
Philippi, “Let each of you look out not only for
his own interests, but also for the interests of others” (Phil. 2:4,
NKJV). These words come in the context of talking about Jesus’ own selflessness
to leave heaven and humble Himself “to the point of death” (Phil.
2:5-8). We act like Jesus when we care about others. Let’s consider, however,
some benefits that come from showing our care for others
1. It helps us see we are not
alone. Peter taught that as we resist the temptation of Satan we should,
“Resist him, steadfast in the faith, knowing that the same sufferings are
experienced by your brotherhood in the world” (1 Pet. 5:9). Have you ever
felt like no one else has the same struggles you face? The Holy Spirit teaches
that “the same sufferings” we experience are common to saints the world
over. Recognizing that we are not alone can be a great source of encouragement.
2. It helps put our problems
in perspective. There is a commercial for a local cable company that
tries to convince the customer that using their service will make things so
much easier that even modern convinces will seem burdensome. One man complains
to his wife that the remote control for the television should be easier. He
asks “why can’t it change itself?” Another girl, complains that pushing the
handle down on the toaster is just too hard. While this is funny it truly
illustrates the way we often are. Convenience makes us forget when things less
convenient were the only things we had. Suffering, hardship, and emotions are the
same way. In the middle of some trial we forget that often others have it far
worse. Reaching out to others can not only change the way we view things, but
may actually be a way we gain comfort from those suffering more than we are.
Paul taught that this is not only a way we help each other, but a means through
which God helps His people. He wrote:
Blessed
be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God
of all comfort, who comforts us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to
comfort those who are in any trouble, with the comfort with which we ourselves
are comforted by God. (2 Cor.
1:3-4).
II. Take an Interest in Brethren in Other
Places. Throughout the
history of the Lord’s church in America religious publications have played a
significant role in keeping brethren connected. When the divisions took place
in the mid-twentieth century over church support of human institutions and
social gospel issues a publication known as the Gospel Guardian became a
lone voice for Christians who had been isolated and “quarantined” from brethren
no longer willing to discuss such issues. It became a rallying point by which
brethren fighting for the same cause could connect and consider various issues.
Though no longer in print, that publication is now online, and I was surprised
recently to discover the street addresses of several places I lived as a child
posted in its issues from the days when my father preached and submitted
reports when he moved to a new work.
Much has changed
since those years. There are many more publications printed by brethren, and no
single paper represents (or should represent) a voice for Christians as a
whole. At the same time, I am saddened by the fact that now I see much more of
an attitude of isolation among us. We don’t go to gospel meetings held by sound
churches within our own city. We don’t read about our brethren, or study the
things about which they are writing. Often, we restrict our religious diet to
only what our own local congregation can offer.
Is that bad?
Well, what if it leaves us unaware of some issue brethren have faced elsewhere?
What if it prevents us from being of help to resolve some problem facing the
church in another area? What if our focus is so isolated to our own
congregation and its particular set of problems that we grow discouraged and
lose faith, being ignorant of the victories others have had over these same
problems?
Christians in the
New Testament were not isolated from one another. Although New Testament
churches were independent and autonomous, the saints in one area cared for and
helped Christians in other places (Rom. 15:25-26). Elders did not oversee
multiple congregations, but Christians stayed aware of issues their brethren
faced (Acts 15:1-5). The record of Scripture and history shows it is a
dangerous thing if we are unwilling to “step outside of ourselves” in concern
for Christians throughout the world.
III. Take an Interest in the Lost Around Us.
Jesus said of Himself, “the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that
which was lost” (Luke 19:10). Jesus’ purpose in coming to earth was to save
those in the world who are lost in sin. While God must condemn those who stay
in sin, Peter wrote that He is, “not willing that any should perish but that
all should come to repentance” (2 Pet. 3:9). Do we care for things about
which God cares? All around us there are souls who through ignorance or
rebellion are lost in sin. Do we even stop and think about them? All around us
there are those who have “loved darkness rather than light, because their
deeds were evil.” (John 3:19), but are we too busy with our own affairs? If
so, it is time for us to “step outside of ourselves” and see the souls around
us in need of the gospel.
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