Hi all,
When
I entered Indiana University (IU) in the summer of 1976, I was invited
to join the fraternity my dad had been a member of, Phi Kappa Psi, or
Phi Psi for short.
I
started the first semester of my freshman year as a 'Pledge', meaning I
had pledged to become a Phi Psi and they had pledged to receive me - if
I fulfilled the requirements. There were about 15 in my (freshman)
Pledge class and a total of 95 men living under the same roof, with an
older couple who served as 'house parents' and cooked for us, but we
were pretty much self-governing, with upperclassmen being President,
Vice President, etc.
That
first semester included a lot of 'hazing', the ritualistic harassment
of the incoming class culminating in 'hell week', which I might add, was
appropriately named. The upper classmen treated us like new Marine
recruits, complete with hundreds of push ups at a time, yelling at us
nose to nose, telling us we were lower than a snake's belly and unworthy
of being called a Phi Psi, and more.
After
all, 7 time Olympic gold medalist, Mark Spitz, was a Phi Psi from that
very house a mere 4 years earlier. Many 'Captains of Industry', doctors,
lawyers, Olympians of various sports, CEO's and such were Phi Psi's. My
roommate for a semester who was a junior at the time, later became
Governor and then US Senator from Indiana - But we freshmen were mere
Pledges, wannabe's, and were treated as such.
After
that final week of hazing, those that saw it through until the end,
were accepted and deemed worthy to have the mysteries of the
fraternity revealed to them. We spent a week being taught by upper
classmen and alumni how the fraternity was founded by 2 Christian men
who wanted to spread the gospel and instill in young men the knowledge
of God and His ways (How far their fraternity had fallen by 1976).
We
were told of the founding, the secret meanings of the fraternity shield
and what the Phi, Kappa, and Psi stood for in our fraternity, and swore
an oath to uphold the ideals of the Founders (Which consisted of
Christian and Biblical ideals so I had no problem swearing to uphold
them).
I
was elected Chaplain by the whole house, and with great formality and
solemnity, our class was initiated into the mysteries of the Phi Kappa
Psi fraternity. Yes there is a secret handshake, but I'd have to kill
you if I told you, lol.
But
what makes me a Phi Psi is that I've been initiated into the mysteries
of the fraternity. Only Phi Psi's know those mysteries, the rest of the
world does not. And each fraternity and sorority has similar mysteries
to which only members have knowledge.
The Bible speaks of initiation into different mysteries, which I ended with last week. But first...
The Magi
In
ancient Mesopotamia there existed a society of what we commonly call
'wise men'. In English they are known as the Magi. The word 'magi' is
from the Greek word 'magos', and more directly the Latin 'magus' - the
plural is 'magi'. It is where we get the word 'magic', and refers to a
secret fraternity of knowledge to which others are not aware. They are
'outside' the fraternity, ignorant of the mysteries only members know.
I
don't want to do a whole history lesson on the Magi or 'Wise men' as
many English Bibles translate it, but will say they were a class of
priests who we see as Daniel's peers (and enemies) serving the various
kings of Babylon, Persia, and Media.
They
were the ones who could not interpret the different king's dreams and
visions, while God gave Daniel the meanings. They looked to the stars,
acknowledging the Creator had put them in the sky as He said in Genesis
1:14: "Let them be for signs, seasons, days, and years." They specialized in the 'signs' part through astronomical observations. (Daniel 2:48)
Because
of their secret knowledge, they had seen a star move into the
constellation regarding Israel, and determined a new King had been born
in Israel. No one in Israel knew the sign of the Star of Bethlehem, and
even the wise men came to Herod asking where the new King was - but
everyone except the Magi were clueless. All Israel and Herod saw the
same stars and constellations as the Magi, but were outside the
fraternity of knowledge to understand what they were seeing.
Scripture
revealed the King would be born in Bethlehem, so the Magi headed there,
and upon finding the family in a house gave baby Jesus gifts typical of
the day for a King; gold, frankincense, and myrrh. (Mt 2:11)
My
point is that the Magi were part of a fraternity, marked by secret
knowledge known only to those in the fraternity. It seems to be human
nature to make these secret clubs, from boys climbing tree houses and
refusing to let girls enter, to pricking each other's fingers and
rubbing the drops of blood together to become 'blood brothers', to
little girls not inviting another girl to their imaginary tea party
while they told secrets of which boy likes which girl - secrets only
they knew and refused to share with the other girl.
Back to Paul
But
Paul spoke of a loftier set of mysteries he had been initiated into.
His letter to the Philippians, most likely going to Lydia and the church
in her house, was the warmest letter Paul wrote to anyone in the New
Testament. Many believe Paul's good friend and author of Luke and Acts,
Luke, married Lydia and stayed behind in Philippi with her. In
Philippians we discover more about Paul's desires and struggles than we
do anywhere else in the New Testament.
He
continues letting us peer into his soul when he thanks for them for
their financial support with this statement in 4:11-13 which we will
examine in detail:
"Not that I speak in respect of want, for I have learned in whatsoever state I am, to be content. I know how to be abased and how to abound; every where and in all things I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and suffer need. I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me."
"I
have learned" might be better expressed as 'I have entered a new
dimension'. The Greek word 'learned' is 'manthano' which is similar to
'mathetes' which means disciple. It refers to someone who has become a
learner from (Someone) else, starting a new chapter in life we might
say. It is used to express the thought they have come into a new season
of life, but more than that, they have grown in knowledge in an area
they previously lacked.
And what is that new dimension? He continues: I have learned in whatsoever state I am, to be content. This doesn't mean Paul could be happy in Rome or Ephesus, it means circumstance or situation he faced.
Paul had entered a new dimension - no matter what circumstance he was in, he could be 'content'.
But don't think of this English word as content like we would use it
today. This is not 'I'll go with the flow', or 'I guess I'll be happy'
or 'It isn't they way I planned my life, but I'll be okay Lord'. NO!
It
is the Greek word 'autarkes', which means "sufficient in oneself". It
is made up of 2 words, 'auto', which means 'self', and 'arkeo' which
means "to be sufficiently strong, to be enough for a thing" (Vine's).
Putting the whole passage together Paul was saying this:
"Not
that I am speaking out of need. For I have entered a new dimension in
my life, whatever my circumstance are, to be self-sufficient, having
enough for whatever I face. I know how to abound and how to suffer lack.
I know how to be full and how to be hungry. For I have been initiated
into a fraternity of mysteries which is; I can do all things through
Christ who strengthen me."
And that's where I'll pick it up next week....blessings!
John Fenn
Remember to use cwowi@aol.com for email to me
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