Independence or Interdependence?

by Clint Chamberlain

When I hear the word “independence,” many things come to mind. I first think about Independence Day, 4th of July, fireworks, cooking on the grill and family time. In the United States, Independence Day is the annual celebration of nationhood. It commemorates the passage of the Declaration of Independence by the Continental Congress on July 4, 1776.

These are familiar words to many: The Unanimous Declaration of the Thirteen United States of America 

When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation. We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness…

The word “independence” is really defined as a state of being self-sufficient, self-reliant, self-supporting, having full autonomy over one's own life. Initially that sounds great as we gain the feeling of control and security, that feeling of being in control of my own destiny. The United States was formed to gain independence from Great Britain that had become oppressive, unfair and controlling of its people.

 It is easy for us as Christ followers to bring this spirit of independence into our personal lives, and I dare say, our spiritual lives. It has been ingrained in us from our earliest memories to be strong, not to depend on others, to take care of ourselves, to look out for number one, etc. One of my favorite movies is Independence Day (1996) where aliens come to invade and destroy Earth. Fighting superior technology, mankind's best weapon is the will to survive. The movie has a lot of action, and a lot of stuff exploding. There is a scene when the President of the United States is standing at an air force base addressing U.S. fighter pilots, and his speech is being broadcast to all the nations of the world.

Here is part of that speech:

The President: Good morning. In less than an hour, aircraft from here will join others from around the world. And you will be launching the largest aerial battle in this history of mankind. Mankind—that word should have new meaning for all of us today. We can't be consumed by our petty differences anymore. We will be united in our common interests. Perhaps it’s fate that today is the 4th of July, and you will once again be fighting for our freedom, not from tyranny, oppression, or persecution, but from annihilation. We're fighting for our right to live, to exist. And should we win the day, the 4th of July will no longer be known as an American holiday, but as the day when the world declared in one voice: 

"We will not go quietly into the night!
We will not vanish without a fight!
We're going to live on!
We're going to survive!" 

Today, we celebrate our Independence Day!

I will let you watch the movie, if you haven’t, to see how it plays out.

 Interdependence

Here is the point I want us to reflect on. Independence is a good thing in the right context, but it can be a horrible thing when we personalize it to the extent that we isolate ourselves. God’s model is and has always been interdependence. I find it ironic in the movie that nations of the world came together in interdependence to fight the battle over an alien force. As Christ followers, we are in a battle, and we need each other. From the very beginning, humans were created for relationship and interdependence. The first man, Adam, had a close relationship with God, but he did not have a companion who was like him. “The LORD God said, ‘It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him’” (Genesis 2:18). God put Adam to sleep, took a rib out of his body and formed a woman from the rib (Genesis 2:21-22). He presented the woman to Adam as his lifelong companion, the one to share Adam’s dominion over creation and with whom Adam could fulfill God’s plan for reproduction (Genesis 1:26-28). With these first two people, God set the pattern of interdependence for all future mankind.

Not only is interdependence foundational to our society, but it is also God’s intention for all Christians. After Jesus ascended to heaven, He sent the Holy Spirit to believers. The indwelling Spirit bestows gifts on each believer so that the body of Christ will forever function as an interdependent unit. “Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good…You are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it. The Holy Spirit distributes spiritual gifts as He sees fit to equip members of the Church to serve each other (1 Cor 12:7,27). No gift is more important than another, as they all play a role within the Body of Christ.

We see the early church in Acts 2 and how they functioned in interdependence by meeting each other’s needs, having everything in common, to the point if someone had a need, other members would sell possessions to help.

I would also encourage you to do a word search for the “one another” passages in scripture. These are the passages that talk about how we should treat each other as followers of Christ. In a quick word search, I found 31 passages in the New Testament alone stating how we should treat each other in this interdependent relationship.

God has called us to live a life together in biblical community. Yes, it takes extra effort when we have a tendency to isolate ourselves. We pull up the draw bridge (close the garage door), go into our private back yards with six foot stockade fencing and get online to order everything we need from groceries to household items. The next day the Amazon truck arrives, drops the items on the front porch and we don’t even have to answer the door. Our society is becoming more isolated, and COVID has only compounded that issue.

We need each other, we need biblical community, and I will also say that a lost, independent society needs us. Jesus, in John chapter 17, says, “My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one—I in them and you in me—so that they may be brought to complete unity. Then the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me” (John 17:20-23). NIV

Jesus’ statement is powerful and timely for us. He is saying that we as believers have been invited into this incredible interdependent relationship involving the Father, Son and Holy Spirit along with other believers: Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us. Why does Jesus pray for us to be in Him and with Him in a relationship that involves Him and the Father and the Holy Spirit? so that the world may believe that you have sent me.

How we live our lives together in interdependence with God and each other could be the most powerful testimony to a lost, dying and independent world, that God sent his one and only son, Jesus, into the world to save us from ourselves. Let your life reflect His glory today and remind yourselves that we are called to be interdependent as the body of Christ.

Now go forth and set off your leftover fireworks!

Author Bio
Clint was born and raised in Ringling, OK. He attended OSU where he studied geology.  On February 2, 1990, he answered God’s call to full time ministry. Clint and his wife, Deb, have three adult children and five grandchildren. He serves as the Executive Pastor of Outside the Walls Ministries at Council Road, which includes missions, the CUBE, Celebrate Recovery, benevolence and the Karis Adoption Ministry.