The Twenty-First Epistle
How Is
Difference The Same?
DATELINE: Sunday, March 25, 2001.
By Rev. James R. Bingham
Special to corndancer.com
Posted from Memphis, Tennessee
John 15:15
Henceforth I call you not servants; for the servant knoweth not what his lord doeth: but I have called you friends; for all things that I have heard of my Father I have made known unto you.
John 16:7
Nevertheless, I tell you the truth; It is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send him unto you.
When I started to write this epistle, I was convinced that I would focus on racism. I had a grand title, "The Great Racial Divide." As I talked with people about the issue, conducting interviews on the subject, my mind was swayed to explore a matter of greater importance: How Is Difference The Same?
Have you ever stopped to play with a caterpillar? I have. I remember wanting to see just where the little fellow was going. I watched the little hump rise in its back as he moved from one spot to the next and I watched it crawl under leaves and peep out.
Once, I really thought the little fellow was my friend. So I adopted it as my pet. Becoming its caretaker, I placed it in a jar. I was very careful and thoughtful. I placed green grass and leaves in the jar, poked a few holes in the lid, and put my pet's fine new home on a windowsill so it could receive sunlight. Just before I went to bed, I sprinkled a little water through the holes of the lid. I didn't want the little fellow to die of thirst.
When I awoke the next morning, I saw a crusty shell. There was no sign of the caterpillar. My sister said, "Leave it alone, and it will turn into a butterfly."
On the Verge of a Major Discovery,
I Decided to Lend a Helping Hand.
"What, a butterfly?" That sounded all right to me. I was on the verge of a major discovery. A caterpillar, a worm, was about to change into something that is beautiful — and something that flies! As I looked at the little crusty shell, I saw a little hole. The caterpillar was inside. It was my pet. How could it turn into a butterfly, if it's trapped inside this hard crusty shell? I decided to free my pet and let it live, grow, and fly!
I released it. Very carefully, I peeled the crusty shell back, using a needle and my stubby little fingernails. I could see how happy the little fellow was. I thought I heard him say, "Thank you, and God bless you." Then I put him back in the jar.
I watched him and I observed him, but nothing happened. Later, that evening, I rushed home from school. I didn't want my butterfly to be trapped inside the jar. I hurried home, running and skipping and laughing, excited with boyish anticipation.
Dropping books here, and throwing pencils there, I went over to the windowsill. The jar was there. Everything looked the same. Everything, even the caterpillar looked the same. There was no change, except one thing. The caterpillar had died. I cried.
Sobbing and weeping, I asked my sister, "What happened?" She explained, "You can't take the caterpillar out of its cocoon. It has to complete its metamorphosis. Otherwise it will never change and it will die."
The next time, I didn't remove the caterpillar from the cocoon. I allowed it to complete the change. When I opened the jar, it flew, free and proud, into the great world beyond the little jar.
By Recognizing
The Natural Metamorphosis of Life,
We Can Have
A Beautiful Butterfly of a World.
Can you see what I'm saying? We want the world to be a better place. We know that if we can get from the lower level of life to a higher level of life, we could have a beautiful butterfly of a world.
The problem arises when we fail to recognize the natural metamorphosis of life. We need all the nurturing. We need the leaves and the grass and the sunshine. Many of us are good at providing this kind of care. It's just that, when we see a change, when we see a difference, we neglect, perhaps even violate the natural process — and try to impose our own thinking.
We trust in our own minds to bring about necessary change instead of allowing God to do it.
That cocoon is like the cross, the suffering that Jesus went through. "No, Jesus, not you! Why, why, you're too wonderful. You can't hang on the cross."
What if Peter had been successful in stopping the soldiers from taking Jesus? What if Jesus had not died on the cross, rose from the dead, and ascended to the Father? Praise the Lord, He did! Hallelujah! Hallelujah!
Before Jesus left he said, "...I call you not servants; for the servant knoweth not what his lord doeth: but I have called you friends...."
We Must Change
Inside the Cocoon He Provides.
We're going through a change. We have reached another level. We are ready for a whole new life. But first we must change inside the cocoon He provides for us. We must take up the cross and follow the way of Jesus. No one can take us out of the cocoon. If we're taken from the nurturing chamber too soon, we will die. Jesus said in Acts 1:4,5, "...wait on the promise of the Father...John baptized with water, but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost."
In the death of our Lord, a metamorphosis was completed in the fullness of time. Now the son of man could be seen coming in His glory!
Jesus was saying it is most important that you put off the old man so that you can put on the new. You must do it yourself. You've got to go through the change. Others can't pull you through it. Jesus said, whosoever will, let him come.
Give Birth in the Spirit
And Live as a New Creature.
Go through the change. Give birth. A new life shall be born. You will live as a new creature. You can grow in the spirit. You can fly above the woes inflicted by man and escape the pitfalls and the bondage of sin.
Praise God! The difference is the same. What changed is the old person. The same soul remains, but now it is a refreshed soul, saved and free to receive the powerful anointing of the Holy Spirit.
Think about it. The scriptures tell us it is natural for our spirit to unfold in perfect harmony for the perfecting of the saints. Lean not to your own understanding. When your way is rough and it seems you can find no way out, surrender to the power of Jesus. Don't take matters into your own hands. Let go and let God make a way.
The old Negro spiritual says, I know the Lord will make a way, somehow. Trust His Word. His Word will lead us, gracefully and with power, through all things.
Give God Some Praise!!!
EDITOR'S NOTE: Rev. Bingham
can be reached by E-mail at
jamesrbingham@juno.com.
His phone number in Memphis is
901.785.5691.