Know Your Place

Saturday 1/27/20 notes

‘Know Your Place’

We had three verses yesterday:

Acts 12.20-23  (the voice of a god)

Acts 8.19-24  (Simon the Magician)

Luke 14.7-11  (place at the table)

All three are demonstrations of knowing our place, our
pay grade.  Presuming to break outside of it will face correction.

This issue of Identity, specifically
desiring/choosing/assuming/promoting it is fraught with danger.  Step
outside of it and risk correction.  The correction will likely be measured
by the heart behind the infraction (Herod agrees with the crowd, gets smoked);
(Simon ask in ignorance ad gets a sincere warning); (The guest presumes
position and is shamed with public removal, while the humble is publicly
advanced to the right, higher place).

Of the difficulties facing society, social media has
emerged as one of the main opiates of our vanity.  Like anything else, it
can be used rightly, but it’s wrong exercise breeds all degrees of sin.

Choosing our identity is grossly inferior to realizing
the one given to us by the Master.  Anything we presume which is outside
or beyond what He has granted will take us off of the path.  And so, He
tells us to begin our understanding as meek and subservient, then accept and
reside in  any advances He might show us.  His way and wisdom is
perfect, and so His assignments for us.  To presume and assume a station
or responsibility outside of His prescription is foolish and possibly even
dangerous.

There is one other aspect I forgot to mention. 
While it is evil to assume a higher station for ourselves, it also is when we
presume a lower station and responsibility than He intends.  The first is
sedition (rebellious action against right authority and the order of things),
the latter is dereliction (failure to do what we should).  Or, don’t pull
on the leash, nor be dragged by it!

Everything on this topic revolves around knowing who we
are in Christ.  Embracing a self-prescribed
identity/station/responsibility other than what He declares or reveals – be it
above OR below – is a dismissal of His Sovereign assignment to us.