If life was compared to being on a cruise ship, Christ would be the captain but what would we be? Learn the meaning of birthright and our role on the ship using stories taken from Brad Wilcox’s latest book “Born to Change the World.”
CHRIST IS OUR CAPTAIN
Hebrews 2:9-10 it says…
- But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honour; that he by the grace of God should taste death for every man.
- For it became him, for whom are all things, and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons unto glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings.
In these verses we are taught how Christ became mortal in order to suffer death so that every person ever born will be resurrected. He made the way possible to return back home to our Father in Heaven. He not only made the way possible but He is also our guide, guiding us home if we will let Him.
If earth life was like being on a ship, Christ would be our captain safely navigating the ship back home, but what would we be? What would our role be? Are we just passengers along for the ride?
Brad Wilcox gives a great answer to that question in his book Born to Change the World.
But before we get to that answer, let’s back up and let Brad Wilcox explain a special gift we have all been given, and that is a birthright.
BIRTHRIGHT – A DOUBLE PORTION
If we look up birthright in the Bible Dictionary, we are directed to see “Firstborn.” Under that heading we learn, “In the patriarchal order, the firstborn son is the heir and inherits the leadership of the family upon the death of the father. This is often spoke of in the scriptures as birthright (Gen 43:33). Under the law of Moses, the firstborn son was regarded as belonging to God…The eldest son received a double portion of his father’s possessions (Deut. 21:17); and after his father’s death, he was responsible for the care of the mother and sisters.”
Wilcox goes on to explain…
Imagine a wealthy family in Old Testament times: father, mother, four sons, and three daughters. Who gets the money when Dad dies? Most would point to the firstborn son, but that’s just partly right. If Dad has four sons, his estate is divided into five equal shares. All the sons receive a portion, but the eldest, who has the birthright, receives two- a double portion. The three younger brothers leave with their portions, but the eldest doesn’t go anywhere because with his extra portion comes added responsibility. He is expected to care for his mother and provide dowries so his sisters can be properly married. Even after his mother and sisters are gone, he will stay to govern the affairs of his father’s estate. Of course, he will marry and have his own family, but he will spend the rest of his life fulfilling his birthright responsibilities.
Today we do not live in the same way as Old Testament families, but members of the Church have a similar birthright. We have received an “extra portion” temporally and spiritually. It has nothing to do with our birth order in our earthly families or our gender, as it did anciently. It has everything to do with our place in God’s eternal family because of the choices we made before we came to earth and the choices we are expected to make now that we are here.
As members of the Church, we have been very blessed both temporally and spiritually.
We are blessed temporally just by living in the United States. Did you know that owning one change of shoes puts us among the most privileged people on this planet? Having the ability to read puts us in an even more elite group. Spend a week or two in another country, even a third world country and see how blessed you are to live where you live with the opportunities that you have.
We are also blessed spiritually by having the gospel in our lives. We have been baptized into God’s Kingdom and have received the gift of the Holy Ghost. We can access scriptures at any time of day on our personal devices. We have temples that we can visit whenever we want.
There are many blessings we have received both temporarily and spiritually. That is our double portion. We have been given a birthright, a double portion and with that comes added responsibility.
THE CRUISE SHIP
Now for his analogy of the ship. Brad Wilcox says…
Our mortal experience could be compared to God sending all of His children on a cruise ship from one shore to another. The journey is filled with opportunities to learn, grow, be happy, and progress, but it is also full of dangers. God loves all of His children and is concerned about their welfare. He does not want to lose any of them, so He selected some He could trust and made them members of His crew. That’s us.
So when we look around on this cruise ship called earth and see other people sitting in lounge chairs drinking, gambling in casinos, and partying late into the night and wonder why we can’t, we must remember who we are. We are not ordinary passengers. We are members of the crew. And before we complain too long and too loudly about having crew member responsibilities passengers don’t have, we need to remember that crew members get something passengers don’t get: a paycheck.
There is nothing we could ever be asked to do in Christ’s Church for which we have not already been paid-paid in advance and paid in full, for we have been given a birthright. Because God trusts us, He sent us to earth with an extra portion and charged us with the well-being and safe return of all His family. Think of it! Of all the people on the earth, God looks to us, the members of His Church, to save the world. No wonder President Brigham Young once said, “All the Angels in heaven are looking to this little handful of people.”
It is one thing to be loved and another to be trusted.
CAPTAINED BY CHRIST
President Ezra Taft Benson (July 1989) once said,
“Christ changes men, and changed men can change the world. Men changed for Christ will be captained by Christ…men captained by Christ will be consumed in Christ…Their will is swallowed up in His will… Not only would they die for the Lord, but, more important, they want to live for Him.”
For a great object lesson on the Plan of Salvation, be sure and check out Stringing it Out by clicking HERE.
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Yours truly,
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