Loyalty
“ ‘But there was another great eagle with powerful wings and full plumage. The vine now sent out its roots toward him from the plot where it was planted and stretched out its branches to him for water. It had been planted in good soil by abundant water so that it would produce branches, bear fruit and become a splendid vine.’”
Today’s Text: Ezekiel 17:1-10 (Living Life Daily Devotional)
Living Life calls this passage “A Parable of Disloyalty.” The vine in the parable had already received everything that it needed to thrive and grow from “a great eagle,” and yet, it sees “another great eagle” and goes chasing after it at the cost of its own well-being. Of course, the parable is about Israel, but generally speaking, it is a parable about human nature and the church, too.
When I think about the society that we live in and the church within that society, I don’t see outright “disloyalty,” so much as a degradation of loyalty. It feels as if the degradation of loyalty has been one of the goals of the devil in his campaign to destroy churches. It seems that there is generally a lack of loyalty to community and even country, at least in the United States. And that general lack of loyalty is naturally carried into church communities, as well.
Maybe part of the reason for that degradation of loyalty is that people have historically not prioritized their loyalties properly. If church folks would place their loyalty to Jesus Christ first and foremost, all other loyalties should fall into a proper and healthy balance.
But that is not the history of humanity. People have placed their loyalty to country over Christ, culture over Christ, career over Christ, family over Christ, friends over Christ. No doubt, we should exercise loyalty toward friends, family, career, culture, and country. But if loyalty to Christ is secondary to other loyalties, well, we start to see the degradation of loyalty to all things, because there is no foundation for true loyalty—who is, Christ.
And how is loyalty to Christ possible without knowing Him? And how can we say that we know Him and yet not obey Him? And how can we obey Him without knowing His word? Jesus said,
“Though you do not know him, I know him. If I said I did not, I would be a liar like you, but I do know him and obey his word.”
— John 8:55
Logically, the priority of loyalty to the Creator of heaven and earth is obvious and simple. But the devil has easily scrambled our logic, because we cannot “see” Christ.
But we can see Christ. We see Him in His word through faith.
If church folks today took seriously (and logically) the truth and the reality and the authority of God’s word and applied our lives to His word, I’m convinced that we would find little disloyalty to churches—at least, much less of it.
Father, You know all things. You know that end from the beginning. How can we make sense of the troubles and conflicts that we encounter in this world and even in Your church. But where sin abounds, Your love and grace abound even more. Help us to be wise and to cling to Your word and to remain loyal to Christ. In Jesus’s name. Amen.
