But in John 17:20, Jesus, praying for those He is about to leave,
says "I do not pray for these alone, but also for those who will believe in Me through their word." There it is! Jesus was praying for me, as I am one of those who believed as a result of the disciples' words about Jesus Christ.The next verse asks that I would be united to the same purpose, goal and direction as Jesus Himself and the apostles: proclaiming the glory of God to a world that desires to hear nothing contrary to its beliefs. And what was Jesus' request for His disciples (and by extension for me as well)? That we not be taken out of the world, but protected from the evil one, according to verse 15.
Wouldn't it be better if we were kept from the world and its influences? Can I not show God's love without interacting with the unseemly sinful world? The simple answer is NO. As a disciple, my place is to be IN the world without becoming a part OF the world. I must not abandon my place in the world because God has not abandoned His interest in the world, see John 3:16 for proof of this.
So what is my task in this world that I am to be IN and yet OF which I am not to be? My responsibility is to remain in the world as a witness to the Truth of God's Word, not to withdraw from the world, or to disengage myself from the world, or (what would be worse) to be confused for the world. As I proclaim that witness, I must be prepared to receive all the hatred the world will direct toward me, knowing that I am protected by my Heavenly Father, who is acting in response to His Son's request.
Robert Murray McCheyne once stated "If I could hear Christ praying for me in the next room, I would not fear a thousand enemies. But distance makes no difference; He IS praying for me." With such prayers being offered on you behalf, go do what is right and pleasing to Him today.
2 comments:
Surely "Eald raed" means old counsel if you are only going to rely on English meanings - but we know that that "el" was the hebrew way of saying the Lord (Dan-i-el = "The Judge -is the- Lord"; Elijah (El - i - yah = "The Lord is Yah")
I think the anglo saxon word "dryd" meaning strength can be combined with El to form Eldred - "the strong Lord" - which while clearly a unorthodox hodge-podge of Hebrew and anglo-saxon etymologies that ignores the obvious English origin of your name - yet it still sounds biblical.
;-)
Yes, Eldred is of middle-English origin (mentioned, I am told, in the Domesday Book) and traceable at least to the 1400s. We have been informed that it refers to our progenitor who was an Eald Raed for the monarch's court. Big deal, I'm a child of The King!
Our family crest and heraldry shows a motto of Vincet Que Se Vincet (forgive my Latin transliteration) which roughly translates "He who conquers himself, conquers).
Ancient ancestors very wise!
Thanks for dropping by!
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