"He will place the sheep at his right hand and the goats at his left."
(Matthew 25:333 NLT
I've been in numerous
churches in my lifetime, but never one where men and women did what they
once did in one near Vance, South Carolina.
My maternal grandparents attended a small United
Methodist church nestled on country Highway 210--a highway once heavily
traveled before interstates came along. When I spent time with them during
the summer, I attended that little church. Since this was the second church
on the pastor's charge, we had church first and Sunday school next.
The first time I walked in, I noticed something
differed from any other church I'd ever attended: the men sat on the left
and the women sat on the right. Of course, young male children who were
still too small to sit by themselves sat on the side with their moms and
grandmothers, but all other males sat on the left. I thought the practice
curious, but never wondered why. I merely took my place on the right side
with my grandmother. After all, she gave me Dentyne chewing gum--something
my grandfather didn't carry.
One day I googled, "Why did men and women
once sit on separate sides of the church?" Various answers popped up. Some
related to tradition. Others related to Bible verses that adherents to the
tradition felt supported the practice.
One day--I don't know why--the men and women at
Gerizim United Methodist Church quit separating in that little church. And
I've not seen this done anywhere since.
Traditions aren't the only thing that have
separated people throughout time. Prejudice, social class, race,
nationality, and many other things have. Even Jesus spoke of a separation.
But this one will be final and the most pressing of any separations anyone
has endured. Those on His left will be eternally separated from Him. Those
on the right, He'll invite into His eternal Kingdom.
God doesn't will this
great separation. Peter tells us He doesn't want any to perish (See
1 Peter 3:9). But God is holy and those who choose to remain in their
sins rather than receive forgiveness and His salvation must be separated
from Him.
Nor does God want people to be separated in life.
God's love contains the power to remove things that separate us from each
other. When I see others as God does, prejudice won't barricade me from
them. History's pages are filled with the evils separations have brought.
God wants us to live in peace with each other and to love our neighbors as
we do ourselves.
God allows us to choose separation from Him and
others--even the choice that determines our eternal destiny. Choice is what
makes us human. But our choices have consequences.
Choose to love God and others so your life--now
and in eternity--will be happy and peaceful.
Martin Wiles
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