“All has been heard; the end of the matter is: Fear God [revere and worship Him, knowing that He is] and keep His commandments, for this is the whole of man [the full, original purpose of his creation, the object of God's providence, the root of character, the foundation of all happiness, the adjustment to all inharmonious circumstances and conditions under the sun] and the whole [duty] for every man.” (Ecclesiastes 12:13)
Commentary notes, “To fear God is one of the major themes of this book [Ecclesiastes] and of wisdom literature in the Old Testament. To fear God is to respond to Him in awe, reverence, and wonder, to serve Him in purity of action, and to shun evil and any worship of anything else in His universe. keep His commandments: The commandments of the Law are in view here. Jesus summed them up as to “love the Lord your God” and “your neighbor as yourself” (Matt. 22:34–40). man’s all: We are whole or complete only when we fear God and obey His commandments. What profit is there in living? If we follow what this book has said, we will have a relationship with God and find life in Him.” [1]
“Give me one glorious ambition for my life, to know and follow hard after you God” sings
It is only as we are rooted in and seeking God that we can have true satisfaction and contentment. Commentary on Ecclesiastes notes that the author, Solomon sees that man madly pursues one thing after another. However all of it is futility and chasing after the wind. [2]
Commentary notes, “In the end, faith teaches him that God has ordered all things according to His own purpose, and that man's role is to accept these, including his own limitations, as God's appointments. Man, therefore, should be patient and enjoy life as God gives it.” [3]
Wisdom, education, knowledge, pleasure, happiness, power, influence and religion are all temporary. They only have lasting value insofar as man relates all life to God. “Reverence and respect for God and a genuine devotion in serving God are essential in making life worthwhile.” [4]
Over and over, the Word of God makes it clear that we can not find our satisfaction in anything the world has to offer. What we are given in this world we are to hold loosely as a temporary gift. It is not to define us, fulfill us, give us life, or worth.
When we labor to gain fulfillment or significance, we will come up feeling disappointed. Every time circumstances fluctuate to our favor, we feel good and on top of the world, but then when they go against us, we feel discouraged. It is all futility and chasing after the wind.
Ecclesiastes 6:7 says, “All the labor of man is for his mouth [for self-preservation and enjoyment], and yet his desire is not satisfied.”
Too often we crave and desire what we do not have. Rather than holding the gifts that God has placed in our hand with gratitude and enjoyment for their short term blessing and the love they represent, we are striving and chasing after wind to get what we think we think we need to satisfy us.
There is always something around the corner that will finally fulfill us. It is the title we always wanted, the pay, the new job, the recognition we have worked so hard for, the appointment that gives us significance, the public recognition / approval, the possession that shows everyone we are important and worthwhile.
Ecclesiastes 6:9 says, “Better is the sight of the eyes [the enjoyment of what is available to one] than the cravings of wandering desire. This is also vanity (emptiness, falsity, and futility) and a striving after the wind and a feeding on it!”
Often our cravings and dissatisfaction comes from our comparisons with others. We see what others have and think that we must have this in order to be fulfilled and satisfied. We see someone else is important or significant because of their gifts, talents, abilities, position, recognition, and/or possessions. Then we think having this for ourselves will make us fulfilled and satisfied.
Once we obtain it, it makes us happy for a short time. But then we become used to having it and begin to compare ourselves again with others, seeing things that others have that we don't. We move quickly back into discontentment and competing with others for what might fill us. And as one of the elders at my church once noted, you cannot both love someone at the same time as competing with them.
James 4:2-8 says, “You are jealous and covet [what others have] and your desires go unfulfilled; [so] you become murderers. [To hate is to murder as far as your hearts are concerned.] You burn with envy and anger and are not able to obtain [the gratification, the contentment, and the happiness that you seek], so you fight and war. You do not have, because you do not ask.
[Or] you do ask [God for them] and yet fail to receive, because you ask with wrong purpose and evil, selfish motives. Your intention is [when you get what you desire] to spend it on your sensual pleasures. You [are like] unfaithful wives [having illicit love affairs with the world and breaking your marriage vow to God]! Do you not know that being the world's friend is being God's enemy? So whoever chooses to be a friend of the world takes his stand as an enemy of God.
Or do you suppose that the Scripture is speaking to no purpose that says, The Spirit Whom He has caused to dwell in us yearns over us and He yearns for the Spirit [to be welcome] with a jealous love?”
We can even neglect the gifts that are given to us because we are so busy looking around and craving something else. Sometimes people never really step into the giftings or calling that God gave to them because they are trying to get filled by what they do. They are trying to be someone that they are not because they envy someone elses' gifts.
Often what they are seeking is as sense of significance for themselves. They think that having specific gifts, a specific job or position in life, a specific career, a specific office, or a certain lifestyle will fill them in some way. They strive to obtain that which only turns out to be empty and vain – like chasing the wind.
Sometimes someone will become a workaholic, seeking fulfillment and significance in what they do. They never quite get 'there' (to the place of ultimate success, recognition, fame, and/or fortune that will fulfill them), but in the midst of it, they lose the precious gift of their family and friends who are right in front of them.
Sometimes our successes are our greatest enemy as they keep us striving, driving and seeking that which we can obtain by our own strength. Tim Kizziar notes, “Our greatest fear as individuals and as a church should not be of failure but of succeeding at things in life that don't really matter.” [5]
Psalm 147:10-11 says, “He delights not in the strength of the horse, nor does He take pleasure in the legs of man. The Lord takes pleasure in those who reverently and worshipfully fear Him, in those who hope in His mercy and loving-kindness.”
Usually people do not set out to be a workaholic but the longing to be filled drives them towards it. When one seeks to be filled by possessing something, it ends up being something elusive that is always slightly out of our reach. We find ourselves staying in a place of discontentment and striving after wind. The more one obtains, the more one wants and craves.
Ecclesiastes 6:2 says, “A man to whom God has given riches, possessions, and honor, so that he lacks nothing for his soul of all that he might desire, yet God does not give him the power or capacity to enjoy them [things which are gifts from God], but a stranger [in whom he has no interest succeeds him and] consumes and enjoys them. This is vanity (emptiness, falsity, and futility); it is a sore affliction!
Even people with the best intentions can find themselves striving after wind. Sometimes pastors or ministry leaders will start out with a genuine heart to make a difference, but find at some point that they have become depleted and are now looking for their work to fill them in some way.
When one begins to invest in even what is good and noble at the expense of that which is most important in their lives, they need to check their motives. If someone is doing 'good' because they believe that it will somehow fill them or make them 'good' they will be left disillusioned. One is left tired, spent and unfulfilled in what they accomplished.
Ruth Haley Barton in her book, “Strengthening the Soul of Your Leadership” writes, “It takes profound willingness to invite God to search us and know us at the deepest level of our being, allowing him to show us the difference between the performance-oriented drivenness of the false self and the deeper calling to lead from our authentic self in God.” [6]
She goes on to write, “There is an elemental chaos that gets stirred up when we have been in God's presence enough that we can recognize pretense and performance and every other thing that bolsters our sense of self. It is unnerving to see evidence that these patterns are still at work -perhaps just a bit more subtly -in our everyday lives.” [7]
Most people are filled with mixed motives. We desire to make a difference out of pure motives to serve and honor God but find ourselves at times seeking our own significance through what we do. This is especially true where one has underlying wounds resulting in a deep longing for a sense of significance/ validation of who we are. One can intend to go in one direction but find their deeper longings are drawing them in another direction.
Paul says in Romans 7:15-20 says, “For I do not understand my own actions [I am baffled, bewildered]. I do not practice or accomplish what I wish, but I do the very thing that I loathe [which my moral instinct condemns].
Now if I do [habitually] what is contrary to my desire, [that means that] I acknowledge and agree that the Law is good (morally excellent) and that I take sides with it. However, it is no longer I who do the deed, but the sin [principle] which is at home in me and has possession of me.
For I know that nothing good dwells within me, that is, in my flesh. I can will what is right, but I cannot perform it. [I have the intention and urge to do what is right, but no power to carry it out.] For I fail to practice the good deeds I desire to do, but the evil deeds that I do not desire to do are what I am [ever] doing.”
The good news is that God does not leave us in our places of striving after the wind. As we turn and repent from striving after wind, He is more than able to meet us in our places of need with His grace and provision.
Paul goes on to say in Romans 7:24-25, “O unhappy and pitiable and wretched man that I am! Who will release and deliver me from [the shackles of] this body of death? O thank God! [He will!] through Jesus Christ (the Anointed One) our Lord! So then indeed I, of myself with the mind and heart, serve the Law of God, but with the flesh the law of sin.”
And as James talks to the church about their seeking to fulfill their desires in the world, going astray like unfaithful wives, he goes on to promise the help of God's Spirit to meet us in our place of need. He says in James 4:6-10, “But He gives us more and more grace (power of the Holy Spirit, to meet this evil tendency and all others fully). That is why He says, God sets Himself against the proud and haughty, but gives grace [continually] to the lowly (those who are humble enough to receive it).
So be subject to God. Resist the devil [stand firm against him], and he will flee from you. Come close to God and He will come close to you. [Recognize that you are] sinners, get your soiled hands clean; [realize that you have been disloyal] wavering individuals with divided interests, and purify your hearts [of your spiritual adultery].
[As you draw near to God] be deeply penitent and grieve, even weep [over your disloyalty]. Let your laughter be turned to grief and your mirth to dejection and heartfelt shame [for your sins]. Humble yourselves [feeling very insignificant] in the presence of the Lord, and He will exalt you [He will lift you up and make your lives significant].”
It is not what we see in the world that will fulfill us or give us significance. All of it is vanity and chasing after wind. It is knowing God and allowing Him to satisfy our deepest needs and desires that frees us up to truly enjoy life and the gifts we are given. It is in freely receiving His love that we are set free to freely giving it away to others, giving our life meaning and significance.
Francis Chan writes “God's definition of what matters is pretty straightforward. He measures our lives by how we love.” [8]
Ecclesiastes 6:3-4 says, “If a man begets a hundred children and lives many years so that the days of his years are many, but his life is not filled with good, and also he is given no burial [honors nor is laid to rest in the sepulcher of his fathers], I say that [he who had] an untimely birth [resulting in death] is better off than he, for [the untimely one] comes in futility and goes into darkness, and in darkness his name is covered.”
Commentary notes, “The common lot of man is markedly different. They labor in the pursuit of wealth with such abandonment that they risk total failure in this life. The masses never rise above avarice; theirs is a grievous misery. For even though God allows them the acquisition of wealth and honor, he withholds from them the ability to enjoy their acquisitions. Surrounded by abundance, they are unable to enjoy even the smallest elements of the beauty that surrounds them. Their unrest is heightened as they view the evident satisfaction that others are able to derive from the fruits of their labor.” [9]
Sometimes it is not that we set out to pursue wealth or riches, but that as we are surrounded my so much abundance it somehow seeps into our hearts and hinders our walk with God. We become self-focused and self-indulgent as we allow the world to have a place in our hearts.
Francis Chan notes about lukewarm Christians that they do not live by faith because of the abundance of their surroundings. He writes, "They don't depend on God on a daily basis -their refrigerators are full and, for the most part, they are in good health. The truth is, their lives wouldn't look much different if they suddenly stopped believing in God.” [10]
Some days ago I had a dream that I was back in Haiti. In my dream, one of the women who served in the kitchen and cared for the children at the house had made us all cookies. As I went to take some, she told me that I too often feasted on the abundance that surrounded me and it was at the expense of my relationship with God. That in indulging, I was sacrificing what I could potentially have with God.
According to Ecclesiastes what makes life 'good' is not what we recieve or have, but how we live our lives. “Good” used in the verse in Ecclesiastes 6 (living a life filled with good) is the Hebrew word towb, Strongs #2896. It means bountiful, prosperous and/or loving. [11] Another source notes that the first time it is used in the bible is when God looked upon His creation as it was created and meant to be. Gen. 1:4 says, “God saw that the light was good.” This source also notes that it can be used in association with having a “glad heart.” [12]
When we are filled by God and allowing Him to satisfy our deepest needs, we are free from striving after wind. We are free to be as we were created. We are free to give ourselves away to others out of a “glad heart.”
Jon Foreman sings in the background, “Every thing I have I count as loss. Everything I have is stripped away. Before I started building I counted up these costs. There's nothing left for you to take away.”
In order to fully stand in a place of freedom, we need to allow God to strip away all that is self. Thomas a Kempis writes as the voice of Christ, “My child, you can never be perfectly free unless you completely renounce self, for all who seek their own interest and who love themselves are bound in fetters.” [13]
He goes on to write about those bound in self, “They are unsettled by covetousness and curiosity, always searching for ease and not for the things of Christ, often devising and framing that which will not last, for anything that is not of God will fail completely.” [14]
His answer to this: “give up your desires and you will find rest.” [15]
It is in surrender of our will, rights, self-preservation, and dignity that we find freedom. As a good Father, God confronts us in those places where we are holding onto life from the world. God sets us free as we let go of what we are holding on to for life and surrender ourselves to Him, receiving His love.
Jon Foreman goes on to sing, “Hello hurricane, you can't silence my love... Everything inside of me surrenders. You can't silence my love.”
It is in letting go and surrendering in the place of confrontation of our self life that we are set free. Trials, afflictions and hardships are producing in us an “eternal weight of glory” (2 Corinthians 4:17) as they cause us to let go of self. And as we do surrender our self-life, troubles and sufferings produce in us “patient and unswerving endurance” that matures us and grows us in the likeness of Christ (Romans 5:4).
Too often we talk of surrender and rejoicing in suffering like it is something we have high regard for, but shy away from it when winds of adversity blow our way (okay speaking of me here). It sounds good in concept but we (I) fail to live it. When the 'rubber meets the road' and I face giving up what I thought was important (my dignity, my rights, my pride, my position, my possessions, and/or my power, etc.), I do not want to “sell all I own” to come follow Christ. At times I feel disheartened and cheated in some way. The truth is, I must be getting some sense of significance from it.
Francis Chan writes, “When we put it plainly like this -as a direct choice between God and our stuff- most of us hope we would chose God. But we need to realize that how we spend our time, what our money goes toward, and where we will invest our energy is equivalent to choosing God or rejecting Him. How could we think for even a second that something on this puny little earth compares to the Creator and Sustainer and Savior of it all?” [16]
Thomas a Kempis goes on to write as the voice of Christ, “I have said: exchange what is precious and valued among men for that which is considered contemptible. For true heavenly wisdom -not to think highly of self and not to seek glory on earth- does indeed seem mean and small and is well-nigh forgotten, as many men praise it with their mouths but shy far away from it with their lives. Yet this heavenly wisdom is a pearl of great price, which is hidden from many.” [17]
Paul knew where his treasure resided. He looked not at the troubles that were around him, rather He fixed His gaze “on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever.” When He was in prison He wrote, “Rejoice in the Lord always [delight, gladden yourselves in Him]; again I say, Rejoice!” (Philippians 4:4)
As we surrender, we learn to praise and rejoice in our sufferings as well as when the winds blow in our favor. As we sell all that we own, we have treasure in heaven. It is not our circumstances that are the issue, but our willingness like Paul to surrender to God and keep our heart tender towards Him in the midst of our difficulties and disappointments.
Proverbs 28:14, “Blessed (happy, fortunate, and to envied) is the man who reverently and worshipfully fears [the Lord] at all times [regardless of circumstances], but he who hardens his heart will fall into calamity.”
Lord, You love me so well. Forgive me for not loving You the same way. I do not want to be like the rich young ruler who went away very sad because he was unwilling to give up what he had in the world to come follow You and be with You. Forgive me where I have spoke this by my reaction to adversity!
You are our treasure and the pearl of great price. Empower us to live our lives for you. Help us not to be caught in the the world or the abundance that surrounds us on every side. Empower us to sell all that we own and come follow You that we might have treasures in heaven.
1. Radmacher, Earl D. ; Allen, Ronald Barclay ; House, H. Wayne: The Nelson Study Bible : New King James Version. Nashville : T. Nelson Publishers, 1997, S. Ec 12:13
2-4. Commentary. The Amplified Bible. Zondervan, Grand Rapids, MI. 1987.
5-7. Barton, Ruth Haley. Strengthening the Soul of Your Leadership: Seeking God in the Crucible of Ministry. InterVarsity Press, Downers Grove, Il. 2008.
8, 10, 16. Chan, Francis. Crazy Love. David C. Cook Distributions, Colorado Springs, CO. 2008.
9. KJV Bible Commentary. Nashville : Thomas Nelson, 1997, c1994, S. 126
11. Strong, James: The New Strong's Dictionary of Hebrew and Greek Words. Nashville : Thomas Nelson, 1997, c1996, S. H2896
12. Vine, W. E. ; Unger, Merrill F. ; White, William: Vine's Complete Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words. Nashville : T. Nelson, 1996, S. 1:61
13-15, 17. Kempis, Thomas a. The Imitation of Christ. Dover Publications, Mineola, New York. 2003.
Tuesday, February 14, 2012
Tuesday, February 07, 2012
"Each of us should please his neighbor for his good, to build him up"
“He who heeds instruction and correction is [not only himself] in the way of life [but also] is a way of life for others. And he who neglects or refuses reproof [not only himself] goes astray [but also] causes to error and is a path toward ruin for others.” (Proverbs 10:17)
What we do and say has influence on others around us – even when we don't intend it.
Proverbs 10:29, “The way of the Lord is a strength and a stronghold to the upright, but it [walking in the way of the Lord] is destruction to the workers of iniquity.”
“The [consistently] righteous man is a guide to his neighbor, but the way of the wicked causes others to go astray.” (Proverbs 12:26)
How we use that influence has real impact beyond ourselves. By what we say and do we can lead others more onto a path of righteousness or cause others to go astray.
One significant way we have influence on others is through what we speak. Proverbs 18:21 says, “Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and they who indulge in it shall eat the fruit of it [for death or life].”
We can chose to encourage or discourage others by the words we speak to them.
“The tongues of those who are upright and in right standing with God are as choice silver; the minds of those who are wicked and out of harmony with God are of little value.” (Proverbs 10:20)
“The lips of the [uncompromisingly] righteous feed and guide many, but fools die for want of understanding and heart.” (Proverbs 10:21)
“There are those who speak rashly, like the piercing of a sword, but the tongue of the wise brings healing.” (Proverbs 12:18)
Dan Reiland, an author on leadership, writes that encouragement is over 50% of a leaders job. He notes that even the most inspiring vision does not take hold in people's hearts without some form of encouragement towards it. [1]
People need affirmation and to know that others believe in them and their ability to contribute and make a difference. I know for myself, my first boss made a huge difference in my life because he encouraged and believed in me. I would not be where I am today without his encouragement in my life. He saw potential in me and then made room for me to use it.
He didn't give me the answers or tell me how to go about doing things. What made the huge difference in my life is that he believed in me. Then he empowered me and made room for me to use my gifts. When I did well, he affirmed me and when I didn't, he gave me grace (affirming who I was) while still holding me accountable to his expectations.
He often gave me very difficult and challenging responsibilities. But at the same time, they were where he saw I had gifts and could contribute. Because he was such an encouragement to me, I found myself accomplishing and meeting significant challenges that I never imagined I could. It was because of him that I decided I wanted to go into leadership myself, hoping that someday I could possibly make this same difference in other people's lives.
Dan Reiland writes, “Encouragement is a core component of hope. It helps people believe they can have and contribute to a better future. It bolsters their courage when they would otherwise shrink back. It builds their confidence to do things they never thought they could accomplish.” [2]
Proverbs 25:11 says, “A word fitly spoken and in due season is like apples of gold in settings of silver.”
However, encouragement is different than flattery. Encouragement is seeing God and His purposes in others and calling it out. It is affirming and strengthening others in the truth. Flattery, on the other hand is exaggeration of the truth.
Flattery looks to lie and manipulate others for ones own gain. When we flatter others, it is because we want their approval or something from them. It does not come from a heart that loves and wants the best for the other person.
Proverbs 26:28 says, “A lying tongue hates those it wounds and crushes, and a flattering mouth works ruin.”
Encouragement always speaks life and is grounded in the truth. Because encouragement and affirmation is valuable, however, does not mean we should avoid correcting anyone.
Proverbs 27:5-6 says, “Open rebuke is better than love that is hidden. Faithful are the wounds of a friend, but the kisses of an enemy are lavish and deceitful.”
Greg Boyd noted this last weekend about parenting that when disciplining our children, we can both affirm who they are and at the same time speak the truth to help them correct their behavior. [3]
An example of a statement that is both affirming and correcting is: I notice that you are gentle, kind and generous with others. It didn't fit who you are when you took the toy away from your little brother. That made me sad.
This same style of correction can be used in any type of situation. Many years ago when I ventured out into leadership, the first advice I received about giving corrective feedback was to, “Focus on the behavior not the person” as I described what needed to change.
The focus of correction is about what a person is doing and not who they are as an individual. So it is completely congruent to both affirm who someone in the truth and at the same time correct their behavior. While correction may feel uncomfortable and painful, it comes from a heart that wants and hopes the best for the other person.
Proverbs 9:8-9 says, “Reprove not a scorner, lest he hate you; reprove a wise man, and he will love you. Give instruction to a wise man and he will be yet wiser; teach a righteous man (one upright and in right standing with God) and he will increase in learning.”
What we speak to others not only impacts others, but our own life. Proverbs 18:20 says, “A man's [moral] self shall be filled with the fruit of his mouth; and with the consequence of his words he must be satisfied [whether good or evil].”
Commentary notes about this that true satisfaction comes out of the words we speak. [4] What we see and call out in others around us has impact on who we are becoming ourselves. Galatians 6:7 says, “Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap.” People who continually speak life to others and call it out of them, also radiate this life themselves.
The gift of encouragement reflects a deeper interdependence. The Wikipedia defines interdependence as “a relation between its members such that each is mutually dependent on the others. This concept differs from a simple dependence relation, which implies that one member of the relationship can't function or survive apart from the other(s).” [5]
Steven Covey notes that people move in stages from:
- dependence, where one cannot function without the help of others, to
- independence, where one functions by making all their own decisions and relying solely on themselves for their care, to
- interdependence where one cooperates with others to achieve a greater good than could be achieved independently. [6]
Steven Covey basically notes that one starts out their life deeply dependent on others for survival. As one gains skills and abilities, using their gifts, they find themselves coming into greater and greater independence. [7]
As people do their own thing living independently, it is not long before one realizes that they have unintended impact on others. We live in a world where life is very interdependent. For instance, as I noted a few weeks ago, rice subsidies in America have had devastating unintended consequences to the people of Haiti. People who were already hungry, were undercut on the one item they could produce.
Proverbs 13: 23 says, “Much food is in the tilled land of the poor, but there are those who are destroyed because of injustice.”
Whether we intend it or not, our choices can cause others to experience greater life or greater harm. If someone steals a car out of their own desire for gain, they cause difficulties to someone else's life. In the same way, if someone gives away their car to another, they can cause the other significant benefit.
Throughout the Proverbs, God's wisdom speaks of consequences for our choices and actions – positive and negative. Proverbs 11:3 says, “The integrity of the upright shall guide them, but the willful contrariness and crookedness of the treacherous shall destroy them.”
And Proverbs 11:17 says, “The merciful, kind, and generous man benefits himself [for his deeds return to bless him], but he who is cruel and callous [to the wants of others] brings on himself retribution.”
As I mentioned, these outcomes impact not only ourselves but often others as well. What we do may have intentional impact on others and/or unintended consequences that impact others.
The word of God continually directs us to become more and more aware of this interdependence, moving away from a mindset of independence. Philippians 2:21 says, “For the others all seek [to advance] their own interests, not those of Jesus Christ (the Messiah).”
Paul instructs us to live life in a way that considers others – living in interdependence with those around us. He says in Romans 12:10-18, “Love one another with brotherly affections [as members of one family] giving precedence and showing honor to one another. Never lag in zeal and in earnest endeavor; be aglow and burning with the Spirit, serving the Lord.
Rejoice and exult in hope; be steadfast and patient in suffering and tribulation; be constant in prayer. Contribute to the needs of God's people [sharing in the necessities of the saints]; pursue the practice of hospitality.
Bless those who persecute you [who are cruel in their attitude toward you]; bless and do not curse them. Rejoice with those who rejoice [sharing others' joy], and weep with those who weep [sharing others' grief].
Live in harmony with one another; do not be haughty (snobbish, high-minded, exclusive), but readily adjust yourself to [people, things] and give yourselves to humble tasks. Never overestimate yourself or be wise in your own conceits.
Repay no one evil for evil, but take thought for what is honest and proper and noble [aiming to be above reproach] in the sight of everyone. If possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.”
In our relationships with others, the Word of God guides us toward moving towards others and seeking to have a positive impact on them. Philippians 2:4 says, “Let each of you esteem and look upon and be concerned for not [merely] his own interests, but also each for the interests of others.”
Where interdependence begins to lead us, as noted by Steven Covey, is on a journey to think about other's interests besides our own (think win-win) and seek to understand other's first rather than focusing on making ourselves understood (seek to understand, then be understood). [8]
And as we move further away from independence and into interdependence, we realize that we can achieve much more by including others. The Wikipedia notes, “In an interdependent relationship, participants may be emotionally, economically, ecologically and/or morally reliant on and responsible to each other.” [9]
When one functions effectively independently, they discover that they can only achieve limited outcome by themselves. But as one begins to relate in interdependent relationships, they realize how much more can be accomplished with the efforts of others.
Ultimately, where it leads us is to synergy. “Synergy is the ability to create more together with others than we can by ourselves.” It is a mindset of unlimited potential as the sum of the parts multiplies the potential of positive outcome exponentially. [10]
One example would be a team of horses. One article notes, “If one horse can pull 700 pounds and another horse can pull 800 pounds, how much weight will they pull yoked together? The answer may surprise you. The two-horse team will pull their own weight plus the weight of their interaction. Therefore, yoked together, the horses can pull 3000 pounds!" [11]
Synergy is the sixth of seven habits that Steven Covey defines that are utilized by the most highly effective people. One source notes about synergy, “If there’s something you have to do to get the most out of this habit, it’s acknowledging that there are differences between people, and that these differences are there to celebrate!” [12]
This source goes on to note, “The paradigm shift in this habit focuses around differences, they’re not annoying, they’re very precious. The moment you realize this is wonderful, and you recognize the hidden value in it. It makes you wonder why you burnt all that energy on fighting differences, when there’s so much to gain from acknowledging them.” [13]
“Let everything that has breath praise the Lord” sings.
1 Corinthians 12 says that we are all given different gift for the good and profit of all. It is the same God who distributes gifts which distinguish Christians from each other. And these gifts are used in distinctive varieties of service and ministration – but all serving the same Lord.
Ultimately, the body functions by each person coming fully alive to who they are, using their individual gifts to bless and serve the greater common good. While each person operates uniquely based upon how they are wired and the gifts they operate in, each gift is needed to make up the whole. And the whole is much greater than the sum of the individual parts as each person contributes what they have to offer.
1 Corinthians 12:12-27 says, “For just as the body is a unity and yet has many parts, and all the parts, though many, form [only] one body, so it is with Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed One).... For the body does not consist of one limb or organ but of many...
If the whole body were an eye, where [would be the sense of] hearing? If the whole body were an ear, where [would be the sense of] smell? But as it is, God has placed and arranged the limbs and organs in the body, each [particular one] of them, just as He wished and saw fit and with the best adaption.
But if [the whole] were all a single organ, where would the body be? And now there are [certainly] many limbs and organs, but a single body.... So there should be no division or discord or lack of adaption [of the parts of the body to each other], but the members all alike should have a mutual interest and care for one another...
Now you [collectively] are Christ's body and [individually] you are members of it, each part severally and distinct [each with his own place and function].”
This verse goes on to say that God has appointed some in his body to be the leaders (apostles, prophets, pastor-teachers, etc.). And Ephesians 4:12 notes that in this, “His intention was the perfecting and full equipping of the saints (His consecrated people), [that they should do] the work of ministering toward building up Christ's body (the church).”
A significant role of the body is ministering to others and building them up in Christ. Romans 12:5 says, “so in Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others.” And Romans 14:19 says, “Let us therefore make every effort to do what leads to peace and to mutual edification.”
Romans 15:2 goes on to say, “Each of us should please his neighbor for his good, to build him up.”
A significant role of leadership is helping people find their place in the body, equipping them, and empowering them to use their gifts to benefit the common good - doing the work of ministry in a way that builds others up in Christ.
Dan Reiland notes that effective leaders appreciate who people are and discover who they can become. They look for the potential in each person. He writes, “As a leader, you have the opportunity to bring out a person's best and help him to tap into his potential. The cool thing about this process is that you may see and appreciate someone's potential even before he does.” [14]
He notes that it is important to accept people the way they are, value all people as part of God's creation, and see them as a blessing rather than an interruption to what one is trying to accomplish. Typically, as Dan Reiland notes, “You find what you look for. If you look for flaws, you find them; if you look for a person's best, you find it.” [15]
Dan Reiland mentions that the best kind of leader is one who is quick to encourage and invest generously in others. It is through others that leaders can truly make a significant contribution. [16] When a leader invests a significant amount of their time in equipping and empowering others to accomplish ministry efforts, they multiply what can be accomplish exponentially and achieve synergy.
An example of someone who struggled in stepping into this role of leadership at times was Moses. After he led the Israelites out of Egypt, he thought he had to carry everything himself. He would spend all day judging between the people on their disputes The result was that he exhausted himself and people sat around waiting for him from morning to evening while Moses judged them one by one.
His father-in-law, Jethro, saw this and told him, “The thing that you are doing is not good. You will surely wear out both yourself and this people with you, for the thing is too heavy for you; you are not able to perform it all by yourself.” (Exodus 18:17-18)
Instead, Jethro encouraged Moses to delegate the primary responsibility for judging to able men. By setting up leaders and delegating to them the primary work, it freed Moses up for teaching the people, representing the people before God, and judging the most difficult cases. (Exodus 18:19-26)
A truly effective leader, rather than trying to accomplish everything themselves, will see the opportunity to multiply efforts and change lives through engaging others in the work of meaningful ministry. They will see the need and benefit of investing themselves in others and engaging the people in a work of higher purpose.
Dan Reiland writes, “An invitation to engage in meaningful ministry is an opportunity to change lives.” By inviting others to share in your vision, you are calling them to share in a higher purpose in a way that has meaningful impact. For those who accept the invitation, putting their hands to what their heart prompts and becoming part of a greater cause in advancing the kingdom, it has life altering impact. [18]
3. Boyd, Greg. DTR... We Need to Talk – about the kids. Sermon 2/5/11. Upper Room. Located at: http://urminneapolis.org/mediaSermons.php
4. MacDonald, William ; Farstad, Arthur: Believer's Bible Commentary : Old and New Testaments. Nashville : Thomas Nelson, 1997, c1995, S. Pr 18:20
5, 9. Wikipedia. Interdependence. Located at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interdependence. Last Accessed: 2/7/12.
6-8. QuickMBA. Management. Summary of Steven R. Covey's 'Seven Habits of Highly Effective People,' Located at: http://www.quickmba.com/mgmt/7hab/. Last Accessed: 2/7/12.
10, 12-13. Covey’s habit 6: Synergize. Be an Original. Located at:http://beanoriginal.net/coveys-habit-6-synergize/. Last Accessed 2/7/12.
11. Two Horse Rule. Snopes. Locate at: http://message.snopes.com/showthread.php?t=35697. Last Accessed: 2/7/12.
19. Loder, Ted. Guerrillas of Grace: Prayers For The Battle. Innisfree Press, Inc. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. 1984.
What we do and say has influence on others around us – even when we don't intend it.
Proverbs 10:29, “The way of the Lord is a strength and a stronghold to the upright, but it [walking in the way of the Lord] is destruction to the workers of iniquity.”
“The [consistently] righteous man is a guide to his neighbor, but the way of the wicked causes others to go astray.” (Proverbs 12:26)
How we use that influence has real impact beyond ourselves. By what we say and do we can lead others more onto a path of righteousness or cause others to go astray.
One significant way we have influence on others is through what we speak. Proverbs 18:21 says, “Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and they who indulge in it shall eat the fruit of it [for death or life].”
We can chose to encourage or discourage others by the words we speak to them.
“The tongues of those who are upright and in right standing with God are as choice silver; the minds of those who are wicked and out of harmony with God are of little value.” (Proverbs 10:20)
“The lips of the [uncompromisingly] righteous feed and guide many, but fools die for want of understanding and heart.” (Proverbs 10:21)
“There are those who speak rashly, like the piercing of a sword, but the tongue of the wise brings healing.” (Proverbs 12:18)
Dan Reiland, an author on leadership, writes that encouragement is over 50% of a leaders job. He notes that even the most inspiring vision does not take hold in people's hearts without some form of encouragement towards it. [1]
People need affirmation and to know that others believe in them and their ability to contribute and make a difference. I know for myself, my first boss made a huge difference in my life because he encouraged and believed in me. I would not be where I am today without his encouragement in my life. He saw potential in me and then made room for me to use it.
He didn't give me the answers or tell me how to go about doing things. What made the huge difference in my life is that he believed in me. Then he empowered me and made room for me to use my gifts. When I did well, he affirmed me and when I didn't, he gave me grace (affirming who I was) while still holding me accountable to his expectations.
He often gave me very difficult and challenging responsibilities. But at the same time, they were where he saw I had gifts and could contribute. Because he was such an encouragement to me, I found myself accomplishing and meeting significant challenges that I never imagined I could. It was because of him that I decided I wanted to go into leadership myself, hoping that someday I could possibly make this same difference in other people's lives.
Dan Reiland writes, “Encouragement is a core component of hope. It helps people believe they can have and contribute to a better future. It bolsters their courage when they would otherwise shrink back. It builds their confidence to do things they never thought they could accomplish.” [2]
Proverbs 25:11 says, “A word fitly spoken and in due season is like apples of gold in settings of silver.”
However, encouragement is different than flattery. Encouragement is seeing God and His purposes in others and calling it out. It is affirming and strengthening others in the truth. Flattery, on the other hand is exaggeration of the truth.
Flattery looks to lie and manipulate others for ones own gain. When we flatter others, it is because we want their approval or something from them. It does not come from a heart that loves and wants the best for the other person.
Proverbs 26:28 says, “A lying tongue hates those it wounds and crushes, and a flattering mouth works ruin.”
Encouragement always speaks life and is grounded in the truth. Because encouragement and affirmation is valuable, however, does not mean we should avoid correcting anyone.
Proverbs 27:5-6 says, “Open rebuke is better than love that is hidden. Faithful are the wounds of a friend, but the kisses of an enemy are lavish and deceitful.”
Greg Boyd noted this last weekend about parenting that when disciplining our children, we can both affirm who they are and at the same time speak the truth to help them correct their behavior. [3]
An example of a statement that is both affirming and correcting is: I notice that you are gentle, kind and generous with others. It didn't fit who you are when you took the toy away from your little brother. That made me sad.
This same style of correction can be used in any type of situation. Many years ago when I ventured out into leadership, the first advice I received about giving corrective feedback was to, “Focus on the behavior not the person” as I described what needed to change.
The focus of correction is about what a person is doing and not who they are as an individual. So it is completely congruent to both affirm who someone in the truth and at the same time correct their behavior. While correction may feel uncomfortable and painful, it comes from a heart that wants and hopes the best for the other person.
Proverbs 9:8-9 says, “Reprove not a scorner, lest he hate you; reprove a wise man, and he will love you. Give instruction to a wise man and he will be yet wiser; teach a righteous man (one upright and in right standing with God) and he will increase in learning.”
What we speak to others not only impacts others, but our own life. Proverbs 18:20 says, “A man's [moral] self shall be filled with the fruit of his mouth; and with the consequence of his words he must be satisfied [whether good or evil].”
Commentary notes about this that true satisfaction comes out of the words we speak. [4] What we see and call out in others around us has impact on who we are becoming ourselves. Galatians 6:7 says, “Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap.” People who continually speak life to others and call it out of them, also radiate this life themselves.
The gift of encouragement reflects a deeper interdependence. The Wikipedia defines interdependence as “a relation between its members such that each is mutually dependent on the others. This concept differs from a simple dependence relation, which implies that one member of the relationship can't function or survive apart from the other(s).” [5]
Steven Covey notes that people move in stages from:
- dependence, where one cannot function without the help of others, to
- independence, where one functions by making all their own decisions and relying solely on themselves for their care, to
- interdependence where one cooperates with others to achieve a greater good than could be achieved independently. [6]
Steven Covey basically notes that one starts out their life deeply dependent on others for survival. As one gains skills and abilities, using their gifts, they find themselves coming into greater and greater independence. [7]
As people do their own thing living independently, it is not long before one realizes that they have unintended impact on others. We live in a world where life is very interdependent. For instance, as I noted a few weeks ago, rice subsidies in America have had devastating unintended consequences to the people of Haiti. People who were already hungry, were undercut on the one item they could produce.
Proverbs 13: 23 says, “Much food is in the tilled land of the poor, but there are those who are destroyed because of injustice.”
Whether we intend it or not, our choices can cause others to experience greater life or greater harm. If someone steals a car out of their own desire for gain, they cause difficulties to someone else's life. In the same way, if someone gives away their car to another, they can cause the other significant benefit.
Throughout the Proverbs, God's wisdom speaks of consequences for our choices and actions – positive and negative. Proverbs 11:3 says, “The integrity of the upright shall guide them, but the willful contrariness and crookedness of the treacherous shall destroy them.”
And Proverbs 11:17 says, “The merciful, kind, and generous man benefits himself [for his deeds return to bless him], but he who is cruel and callous [to the wants of others] brings on himself retribution.”
As I mentioned, these outcomes impact not only ourselves but often others as well. What we do may have intentional impact on others and/or unintended consequences that impact others.
The word of God continually directs us to become more and more aware of this interdependence, moving away from a mindset of independence. Philippians 2:21 says, “For the others all seek [to advance] their own interests, not those of Jesus Christ (the Messiah).”
Paul instructs us to live life in a way that considers others – living in interdependence with those around us. He says in Romans 12:10-18, “Love one another with brotherly affections [as members of one family] giving precedence and showing honor to one another. Never lag in zeal and in earnest endeavor; be aglow and burning with the Spirit, serving the Lord.
Rejoice and exult in hope; be steadfast and patient in suffering and tribulation; be constant in prayer. Contribute to the needs of God's people [sharing in the necessities of the saints]; pursue the practice of hospitality.
Bless those who persecute you [who are cruel in their attitude toward you]; bless and do not curse them. Rejoice with those who rejoice [sharing others' joy], and weep with those who weep [sharing others' grief].
Live in harmony with one another; do not be haughty (snobbish, high-minded, exclusive), but readily adjust yourself to [people, things] and give yourselves to humble tasks. Never overestimate yourself or be wise in your own conceits.
Repay no one evil for evil, but take thought for what is honest and proper and noble [aiming to be above reproach] in the sight of everyone. If possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.”
In our relationships with others, the Word of God guides us toward moving towards others and seeking to have a positive impact on them. Philippians 2:4 says, “Let each of you esteem and look upon and be concerned for not [merely] his own interests, but also each for the interests of others.”
Where interdependence begins to lead us, as noted by Steven Covey, is on a journey to think about other's interests besides our own (think win-win) and seek to understand other's first rather than focusing on making ourselves understood (seek to understand, then be understood). [8]
And as we move further away from independence and into interdependence, we realize that we can achieve much more by including others. The Wikipedia notes, “In an interdependent relationship, participants may be emotionally, economically, ecologically and/or morally reliant on and responsible to each other.” [9]
When one functions effectively independently, they discover that they can only achieve limited outcome by themselves. But as one begins to relate in interdependent relationships, they realize how much more can be accomplished with the efforts of others.
Ultimately, where it leads us is to synergy. “Synergy is the ability to create more together with others than we can by ourselves.” It is a mindset of unlimited potential as the sum of the parts multiplies the potential of positive outcome exponentially. [10]
One example would be a team of horses. One article notes, “If one horse can pull 700 pounds and another horse can pull 800 pounds, how much weight will they pull yoked together? The answer may surprise you. The two-horse team will pull their own weight plus the weight of their interaction. Therefore, yoked together, the horses can pull 3000 pounds!" [11]
Synergy is the sixth of seven habits that Steven Covey defines that are utilized by the most highly effective people. One source notes about synergy, “If there’s something you have to do to get the most out of this habit, it’s acknowledging that there are differences between people, and that these differences are there to celebrate!” [12]
This source goes on to note, “The paradigm shift in this habit focuses around differences, they’re not annoying, they’re very precious. The moment you realize this is wonderful, and you recognize the hidden value in it. It makes you wonder why you burnt all that energy on fighting differences, when there’s so much to gain from acknowledging them.” [13]
“Let everything that has breath praise the Lord” sings.
1 Corinthians 12 says that we are all given different gift for the good and profit of all. It is the same God who distributes gifts which distinguish Christians from each other. And these gifts are used in distinctive varieties of service and ministration – but all serving the same Lord.
Ultimately, the body functions by each person coming fully alive to who they are, using their individual gifts to bless and serve the greater common good. While each person operates uniquely based upon how they are wired and the gifts they operate in, each gift is needed to make up the whole. And the whole is much greater than the sum of the individual parts as each person contributes what they have to offer.
1 Corinthians 12:12-27 says, “For just as the body is a unity and yet has many parts, and all the parts, though many, form [only] one body, so it is with Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed One).... For the body does not consist of one limb or organ but of many...
If the whole body were an eye, where [would be the sense of] hearing? If the whole body were an ear, where [would be the sense of] smell? But as it is, God has placed and arranged the limbs and organs in the body, each [particular one] of them, just as He wished and saw fit and with the best adaption.
But if [the whole] were all a single organ, where would the body be? And now there are [certainly] many limbs and organs, but a single body.... So there should be no division or discord or lack of adaption [of the parts of the body to each other], but the members all alike should have a mutual interest and care for one another...
Now you [collectively] are Christ's body and [individually] you are members of it, each part severally and distinct [each with his own place and function].”
This verse goes on to say that God has appointed some in his body to be the leaders (apostles, prophets, pastor-teachers, etc.). And Ephesians 4:12 notes that in this, “His intention was the perfecting and full equipping of the saints (His consecrated people), [that they should do] the work of ministering toward building up Christ's body (the church).”
A significant role of the body is ministering to others and building them up in Christ. Romans 12:5 says, “so in Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others.” And Romans 14:19 says, “Let us therefore make every effort to do what leads to peace and to mutual edification.”
Romans 15:2 goes on to say, “Each of us should please his neighbor for his good, to build him up.”
A significant role of leadership is helping people find their place in the body, equipping them, and empowering them to use their gifts to benefit the common good - doing the work of ministry in a way that builds others up in Christ.
Dan Reiland notes that effective leaders appreciate who people are and discover who they can become. They look for the potential in each person. He writes, “As a leader, you have the opportunity to bring out a person's best and help him to tap into his potential. The cool thing about this process is that you may see and appreciate someone's potential even before he does.” [14]
He notes that it is important to accept people the way they are, value all people as part of God's creation, and see them as a blessing rather than an interruption to what one is trying to accomplish. Typically, as Dan Reiland notes, “You find what you look for. If you look for flaws, you find them; if you look for a person's best, you find it.” [15]
Dan Reiland mentions that the best kind of leader is one who is quick to encourage and invest generously in others. It is through others that leaders can truly make a significant contribution. [16] When a leader invests a significant amount of their time in equipping and empowering others to accomplish ministry efforts, they multiply what can be accomplish exponentially and achieve synergy.
An example of someone who struggled in stepping into this role of leadership at times was Moses. After he led the Israelites out of Egypt, he thought he had to carry everything himself. He would spend all day judging between the people on their disputes The result was that he exhausted himself and people sat around waiting for him from morning to evening while Moses judged them one by one.
His father-in-law, Jethro, saw this and told him, “The thing that you are doing is not good. You will surely wear out both yourself and this people with you, for the thing is too heavy for you; you are not able to perform it all by yourself.” (Exodus 18:17-18)
Instead, Jethro encouraged Moses to delegate the primary responsibility for judging to able men. By setting up leaders and delegating to them the primary work, it freed Moses up for teaching the people, representing the people before God, and judging the most difficult cases. (Exodus 18:19-26)
A truly effective leader, rather than trying to accomplish everything themselves, will see the opportunity to multiply efforts and change lives through engaging others in the work of meaningful ministry. They will see the need and benefit of investing themselves in others and engaging the people in a work of higher purpose.
Dan Reiland writes, “An invitation to engage in meaningful ministry is an opportunity to change lives.” By inviting others to share in your vision, you are calling them to share in a higher purpose in a way that has meaningful impact. For those who accept the invitation, putting their hands to what their heart prompts and becoming part of a greater cause in advancing the kingdom, it has life altering impact. [18]
“ O God,1-2, 14-18. Reiland, Dan. Amplified Leadership: 5 Practices to Establish, Influence, Build People, and Impact Others for a Lifetime. Charisma House, Lake Mary, Florida. 2011.
make me of some nourishment
for these starved times,
some food
for my brothers and sisters
who are hungry for gladness and hope,
that, being bread for them,
I may also be fed
and be full.”
- Ted Loder [19]
3. Boyd, Greg. DTR... We Need to Talk – about the kids. Sermon 2/5/11. Upper Room. Located at: http://urminneapolis.org/mediaSermons.php
4. MacDonald, William ; Farstad, Arthur: Believer's Bible Commentary : Old and New Testaments. Nashville : Thomas Nelson, 1997, c1995, S. Pr 18:20
5, 9. Wikipedia. Interdependence. Located at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interdependence. Last Accessed: 2/7/12.
6-8. QuickMBA. Management. Summary of Steven R. Covey's 'Seven Habits of Highly Effective People,' Located at: http://www.quickmba.com/mgmt/7hab/. Last Accessed: 2/7/12.
10, 12-13. Covey’s habit 6: Synergize. Be an Original. Located at:http://beanoriginal.net/coveys-habit-6-synergize/. Last Accessed 2/7/12.
11. Two Horse Rule. Snopes. Locate at: http://message.snopes.com/showthread.php?t=35697. Last Accessed: 2/7/12.
19. Loder, Ted. Guerrillas of Grace: Prayers For The Battle. Innisfree Press, Inc. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. 1984.
Wednesday, February 01, 2012
I know that the LORD will maintain the cause of the afflicted, and will execute justice for the needy. (Ps. 140:12)
Psalm 146:5-9
“Happy (blessed, fortunate, enviable) is he who has the God of [special revelation to] Jacob for his help, whose hope is in the Lord his God,
Who made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them,
Who keeps truth and is faithful forever,
Who executes justice for the oppressed,
Who gives food to the hungry.
The Lord sets free the prisoners,
The Lord opens the eyes of the blind,
The Lord lifts up those who are bowed down,
The Lord loves the [uncompromisingly] righteous...
The Lord protects and preserves the the strangers and temporary residents, He upholds the fatherless and the widow ans sets them upright, but the way of the wicked He makes crooked (turns upside down and brings to ruin).”
Over and over, the Psalms speak about the Lord being a God who sets captive free, heals, restores, and binds up the broken. Commentary notes that He is the one “who executes justice: The descriptive phrases in v. 7 remind us of the praise of God in Psalm 103:3–6 and Psalm 107:8–10. These are the regularly recurring acts of God in response to the needs of His people (113:7–9).” [1]
Psalm 103:3-6 says about the Lord, “Who forgives [every one of] all your iniquities, Who heals [each one of] all your diseases, Who redeems your life from the pit and corruption, Who beautifies, dignifies, and crowns you with loving-kindness and tender mercy; Who satisfies your mouth [your necessity and desire at your personal age and situation] with good so that your youth, renewed, is like the eagle's [strong, overcoming, soaring] The Lord executes righteousness and justice [not for me only, but] for all who are oppressed.”
Psalm 107:8-10, says, “Oh, that men would praise [and confess to] the Lord for His goodness and loving-kindness and His wonderful works to the children of men! For He satisfies the longing soul and fills the hungry soul with good. Some sat in darkness and in the shadow of death, being bound in affliction and irons... “
Psalm 107:13-16 goes on to say, “Then they cried to the Lord in their trouble, and He saved them out of their distresses. He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death and broke apart the bonds that held them. Oh that men would praise [and confess to] the Lord for His goodness and loving-kindness and His wonderful works to the children of men! For He has broken the gates of bronze and cut the bars of iron apart.”
And Psalm 113:7-9 says, “[The Lord] raises the poor out of the dust and lifts the needy from the ash heap and the dung hill, that He may seat them with princes, even with the princes of His people. He makes the] children barren women to be a homemaker and a joyful mother of [spiritual] children. Praise the Lord! (Hallelujah!)”
The Lord is so good. And He cares deeply about justice for the poor!! He went to the cross so that we might be set free from oppression and taste of His life. He poured out that which sustained His own life for the hungry and satisfied the need of the afflicted (Isaiah 58:10).
Isaiah 58:10 says, “And if you pour out that with which you sustain your own life for the hungry and satisfy the need of the afflicted, then shall your light rise in darkness, and your obscurity and gloom become like the noonday...
Then Isaiah 58:12 says, “And your ancient ruins shall be rebuilt;[a] you shall raise up the foundations of [buildings that have laid waste for] many generations; and you shall be called Repairer of the Breach, Restorer of Street to Dwell in.”
Jesus is that light that dawns on us and raises up those destitute places that have been laid to waste! Out of the tender mercy and loving-kindness of our God, we were given a Light from on high that -dawns upon us. “To shine upon and give light to those who sit in darkness and the shadow of death.” (Luke 1:78-79)
Malachi 4:2 says, “But unto you who revere and worshipfully fear My name shall the Sun of Righteousness arise with healing in His wings and His beams, and you shall go forth and gombol like calves [released] from the stall and leap for joy.”
Commentary notes that this picture is a “figurative representation of the rays emanating from the sun, indicating the swiftness with which the healing will be applied to the righteous that need it. As the result of the healing …” [2]
And Isaiah 60:1-5 says, “Arise [from the depression and prostration in which circumstances have kept you -rise to a new life]! Shine (be radiant with the glory of the Lord), for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you! For behold, darkness shall cover the earth, and dense darkness [all] peoples, but the Lord shall arise upon you [O Jerusalem], and His glory shall be seen on you. And nations shall come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your rising.
And nations shall come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your rising. Lift up your eyes round about you and see! They all gather themselves together, they come to you. Your sons shall come from afar, and your daughters shall be carried and nursed in the arms.
Then you shall see and be radiant, and your heart shall thrill and tremble with joy [at the glorious deliverance] and be enlarged; because the abundant wealth of the [Dead] Sea* shall be returned to you, unto you shall the nations come with their treasures.”
* Commentary notes that the Dead Sea was considered a place of death and destitution.[3]
Psalm 147:1-6 says about Him, “Praise The Lord! For it is good to sing praises to our God, for He is gracious and lovely; praise is becoming and appropriate. The Lord is building up Jerusalem; He is gathering together the exiles of Israel. He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds [curing their pains and their sorrows].
He determines and counts the number of the stars; He calls them all by their names. Great is our Lord and of great power; His understanding is inexhaustible and boundless. The Lord lifts up the humble and downtrodden; He casts the wicked down to the ground.”
One of the significant reasons why Jesus was sent by the Father and went to the cross was to bind up and heal the brokenhearted and set captives free who are in bondage. Isaiah 42:6-7, it says about Jesus, “I will give You for a covenant to the people [Israel], for a light to the nations [Gentiles], to open the eyes of the blind, to bring out prisoners from the dungeon, and those who sit in darkness from the prison.”
Freedom and healing is the good news of the gospel!! Isaiah 61:1-3 says, “The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed and qualified me to preach the Gospel of good tidings to the meek, the poor, and the afflicted;”
He has sent me to:
“- to bind up up and heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the [physical and spiritual] captives and the opening of the prison and of the eyes of those who are bound.
- To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord [the year of His favor] and the day of vengeance of our God, to comfort all who mourn,
- To grant [consolation and joy] to those who mourn in Zion -to give them an ornament (a garland or diadem) of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of joy instead of morning, the garment [expressive] of praise instead of a heavy, burdened, and failing spirit- that they may be called oaks of righteousness [lofty, strong, and magnificent, distinguished for uprightness, justice, and right standing with God], the planting of the Lord, that He may be glorified.”
Jesus was and is passionate about bringing justice to the poor. It is deeply in His heart. Isaiah 42:1-4 says about Him, “Behold My Servant, Whom I uphold, My elect in Whom My soul delights! I have put My Spirit upon Him; He will bring forth justice and right and reveal truth to the nations. He will not cry or shout aloud or cause His voice to be heard in the street.
A bruised reed He will not break, and a dimly burning wick He will not quench; He will bring forth justice in truth. He will not fail or become weak or be crushed and discouraged till He has established justice in the earth; and the islands and coastal regions shall wait hopefully for Him and expect His direction and law.”
Over and over, the Word of God speaks about God's heart of compassion for the poor and afflicted. He hears their cries and answers them with awesome deeds of righteousness (Ps. 65:5). He is our hope to the ends of the earth (Ps. 65:5).
Psalm 34:18 says, “The Lord is close to those who are of a broken heart and saves such as are crushed with sorrow for sin and are humbly and thoroughly penitent.”
At the same time, I know that God sometimes does not heal and set free those who are struggling in oppression and bondage. So is Jesus always willing?
In Luke 5:12-13, a man with leprosy came to Jesus, “fell on his face and implored Him, saying, Lord, if You are willing, You are able to cure me and make me clean. And [Jesus reached out His hand and touched him, saying, I am willing; be cleansed! And immediately the leprosy left him.”
Sometimes perhaps He does not heal because one refuses to turn to Him and receive healing In Matthew 13:58 it says that Jesus could not do many miracles for the peoples lack of faith or unbelief. The people took offense at Him and refused to accept His authority (Matthew 13:57). Because of this, they could not receive His healing.
Psalm 91:14 says, “Because he has set his love upon Me, therefore will I deliver him; I will set him on high, because he knows and understand My name [has a personal knowledge of My mercy, love, and kindness -trusts and relies on Me, knowing I will never forsake him, no never]. He shall call upon Me, and I will answer him...”
Other times, perhaps it may take some time for a person to see their need and then humble themselves to come and receive His healing. Naaman was an example of someone who saw their need, but it took awhile for him to come to the Lord and humble himself to receive healing.
Naaman was a leper who did not know the Lord. He came to Israel expecting to be healed by a prophet because a young slave girl who waited on his wife told them that the prophet in Samaria could heal him. Then when the prophet told him to wash himself in the Jordan seven times, he refused. He was insulted and went away angry. Later, after some encouragement from his servants, he humbled himself and followed his directions. When he did humble himself and come for healing the way he had been instructed, he was healed and came to believe in God. (2 Kings 5:1-15)
Psalm 147:6 says, “The LORD lifts up the humble; he casts the wicked to the ground.”
Sometimes people are in sin and rebellion and have not yet come to a place of repentance so that they could be healed. Matthew 13:15 says, “For this people's heart has become calloused; they hardly hear with their ears, and they have closed their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts and turn, and I would heal them.'”
Psalm 34:18 says that he saves those who are “humbly and thoroughly penitent.”
In Psalm 107:10-16, people were in bondage and afflicted due to their rebellion against God. Because of this, their hearts were bowed down with hard labor and there was none to help. Yet, when they “cried to the Lord in their trouble,” it says “He saved them out of their distresses. He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death and broke apart the bonds that held them.”
Sometimes, it seems that healing may come a small amount at a time rather than all at once. Healing may occur over a period of years as the wounds heal, the mind is renewed and one learns new realities.
As an example, fear of disaster is something I struggled with for many years and has been deeply rooted. 1 John 4:18 says that perfect love expels all fear. As much as I desired it, God did not completely heal me of this all at once. My thought patterns needed to be changed over time by the renewing of my mind (Romans 12:2).
As I have come to receive and trust in His love more and more over time, the way I think has changed. Rather than anticipating disaster when things go wrong, I have come more and more to trust in and expect God's goodness. His continuous love towards me has expelled my fear of disaster. I am learning that I can trust Him to always protect and care for me, even in my sin and shortcomings.
My Savior loves, my Savior lives, My Savior's always there for me” sings in the background.
Absence of healing may not have anything to do with someone's lack of faith, sin, timing, or humility in receiving. Sometimes God does not heal because it somehow demonstrates His glory in a greater measure through one's weakness.
Paul had a 'thorn in the flesh” that kept him from being haughty. He prayed three times to be delivered from it. However, God did not set him free. Instead God spoke to him, “My grace (My favor and loving-kindness and mercy) is enough for you [sufficient against any danger and enables you to bear the trouble manfully]; for My strength and power are made perfect (fulfilled and completed) and show themselves most effective in [your weakness].
One of my close friends struggles with a great deal of physical disabilities. She is a deeply humble woman of prayer who trusts and depends on God to get through her daily activities. While she has received some physical healing over the years, the greatest gift is that God has given her is strength and inner joy in the midst of her struggles with her physical limitations. In this, she has ministered deeply to me and others in ways that no one else could (who didn't have severe physical limitations).
James 2:5 says, “Listen, my beloved brethren: Has not God chosen those who are poor in the eyes of the world to be rich in faith and in their position as believers and to inherit the kingdom which He has promised to those who love Him?”
Not only does God passionately pursue us and has poured out His life to bring us freedom from prison, affliction and oppression, but it was for freedom that we were set free (Gal. 5:1). We are not to use our freedom to sin again but to serve others in love (Gal. 5:3).
As Steve Hanson mentioned this past weekend in his sermon, if we were asked what true religion looked like in action we would come up with many answers. James 1:27 cuts through all the things that we make religion about to that which matters most to God's heart.
It says in James 1:27, “External religious worship [religion as it is expressed in outward acts] that is pure and unblemished in the sight of God the Father is this: to visit and help and care for the orphans and widows in their affliction and need, and to keep oneself unspotted and uncontaminated from the world.”
Caring about the least, the poor and uncared about matters deeply to God. Much more than any religious practice we can enter into. True religion is serving the poor. And as Mother Teresa noted, “Only holiness perfects the gift.” We don't serve the poor in our own strength, but as we abide in Christ and serve the poor from a place of worship, we radiate His love to others.
It says about Mother Teresa, “Radiating love, joy hope, peace, and enthusiasm, and with her habitual concern for the individual sufferer, she would make one feel loved and special even in one short meeting. The reason for this extraordinary effect on people was not because of any special qualities or talents she had.
Rather, it was to be found in the radiance of her personal holiness, of the power and attraction of a soul totally given to God. She was so united with God, that through contact with her, people felt that God was listening to them, helping them, caring for them, loving them.
The prayer, 'Radiating Christ,' which she prayed daily with her sisters after Mass, had become a reality in her own life. She asked in this prayer: 'Let them look up and see no longer me, but only Jesus,' and, indeed, it was the light of His love His love that she radiated to others.
Mother Teresa reached an eminent degree of holiness through her unwavering 'yes' to God and His loving will, despite the hardships it involved.” [4]
Isaiah 62:1,4 says about Gods people, “For Zion's sake will I [Isaiah] not hold my peace, and for Jerusalem's sake I will not rest until her imputed righteousness and vindication go forth as brightness, and her salvation radiates as does a burning torch...You [Judah] shall no more be termed Forsaken, nor shall your land be called Desolate any more. But you shall be called Hephzibah [My delight is in her], and your land be called Beulah [married]; for the Lord delights in you, and your land shall be married [owned and protected by the Lord]."
God is raising up a people who, like Him radiate His glory and also are deeply passionate to see the poor set free from captivity, to raise up those who are broken down and see His justice established on earth. Isiah 61 4 says about His people, “And they shall rebuild the ancient ruins; they shall raise up the former desolations and renew the ruined cities, the devastations of many generations.”
And what God starts, He sees through to the end. Isaiah 61:11 says, “For as [surely as] the earth brings forth its shoots, and as a garden causes what is sown in it to spring forth, so [surely] the Lord god will cause righteousness and justice and praise to spring forth before all the nations [through the self-fulfilling power of His word].
Lord, sometimes I think that I have to convince you to come and bring your justice. I forget that You are the one that put the desire in my heart. You deeply long to see restoration in places of destitution. You poured yourself out that we might have that life and freedom.
I am ever so grateful for that work in my own life. You have given me more than I could have asked or even imagined. I still remember you speaking to me that I didn't know just how destitute I was. And You execute justice not for me only, but for all who are oppressed! We long to see your justice poured forth on the earth and the devastations of many generations raised up. Let Your kingdom come, Your will be done!!
a. Commentary notes, “The coming of Christ rebuilt the house of David (Amos 9:11, 12; Acts 15:15–17).” [5]
1, 5. Radmacher, Earl D. ; Allen, Ronald Barclay ; House, H. Wayne: Nelson's New Illustrated Bible Commentary. Nashville : T. Nelson Publishers, 1999, S.
2. KJV Bible Commentary. Nashville : Thomas Nelson, 1997, c1994, S. 1862
3. The Amplified Bible. Zondervan, Grand Rapids, MI. 1987.
4. Mother Teresa. “Where There Is Love, There is God.” Random House, Inc. New York, NY. 2010.
“Happy (blessed, fortunate, enviable) is he who has the God of [special revelation to] Jacob for his help, whose hope is in the Lord his God,
Who made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them,
Who keeps truth and is faithful forever,
Who executes justice for the oppressed,
Who gives food to the hungry.
The Lord sets free the prisoners,
The Lord opens the eyes of the blind,
The Lord lifts up those who are bowed down,
The Lord loves the [uncompromisingly] righteous...
The Lord protects and preserves the the strangers and temporary residents, He upholds the fatherless and the widow ans sets them upright, but the way of the wicked He makes crooked (turns upside down and brings to ruin).”
Over and over, the Psalms speak about the Lord being a God who sets captive free, heals, restores, and binds up the broken. Commentary notes that He is the one “who executes justice: The descriptive phrases in v. 7 remind us of the praise of God in Psalm 103:3–6 and Psalm 107:8–10. These are the regularly recurring acts of God in response to the needs of His people (113:7–9).” [1]
Psalm 103:3-6 says about the Lord, “Who forgives [every one of] all your iniquities, Who heals [each one of] all your diseases, Who redeems your life from the pit and corruption, Who beautifies, dignifies, and crowns you with loving-kindness and tender mercy; Who satisfies your mouth [your necessity and desire at your personal age and situation] with good so that your youth, renewed, is like the eagle's [strong, overcoming, soaring] The Lord executes righteousness and justice [not for me only, but] for all who are oppressed.”
Psalm 107:8-10, says, “Oh, that men would praise [and confess to] the Lord for His goodness and loving-kindness and His wonderful works to the children of men! For He satisfies the longing soul and fills the hungry soul with good. Some sat in darkness and in the shadow of death, being bound in affliction and irons... “
Psalm 107:13-16 goes on to say, “Then they cried to the Lord in their trouble, and He saved them out of their distresses. He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death and broke apart the bonds that held them. Oh that men would praise [and confess to] the Lord for His goodness and loving-kindness and His wonderful works to the children of men! For He has broken the gates of bronze and cut the bars of iron apart.”
And Psalm 113:7-9 says, “[The Lord] raises the poor out of the dust and lifts the needy from the ash heap and the dung hill, that He may seat them with princes, even with the princes of His people. He makes the] children barren women to be a homemaker and a joyful mother of [spiritual] children. Praise the Lord! (Hallelujah!)”
The Lord is so good. And He cares deeply about justice for the poor!! He went to the cross so that we might be set free from oppression and taste of His life. He poured out that which sustained His own life for the hungry and satisfied the need of the afflicted (Isaiah 58:10).
Isaiah 58:10 says, “And if you pour out that with which you sustain your own life for the hungry and satisfy the need of the afflicted, then shall your light rise in darkness, and your obscurity and gloom become like the noonday...
Then Isaiah 58:12 says, “And your ancient ruins shall be rebuilt;[a] you shall raise up the foundations of [buildings that have laid waste for] many generations; and you shall be called Repairer of the Breach, Restorer of Street to Dwell in.”
Jesus is that light that dawns on us and raises up those destitute places that have been laid to waste! Out of the tender mercy and loving-kindness of our God, we were given a Light from on high that -dawns upon us. “To shine upon and give light to those who sit in darkness and the shadow of death.” (Luke 1:78-79)
Malachi 4:2 says, “But unto you who revere and worshipfully fear My name shall the Sun of Righteousness arise with healing in His wings and His beams, and you shall go forth and gombol like calves [released] from the stall and leap for joy.”
Commentary notes that this picture is a “figurative representation of the rays emanating from the sun, indicating the swiftness with which the healing will be applied to the righteous that need it. As the result of the healing …” [2]
And Isaiah 60:1-5 says, “Arise [from the depression and prostration in which circumstances have kept you -rise to a new life]! Shine (be radiant with the glory of the Lord), for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you! For behold, darkness shall cover the earth, and dense darkness [all] peoples, but the Lord shall arise upon you [O Jerusalem], and His glory shall be seen on you. And nations shall come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your rising.
And nations shall come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your rising. Lift up your eyes round about you and see! They all gather themselves together, they come to you. Your sons shall come from afar, and your daughters shall be carried and nursed in the arms.
Then you shall see and be radiant, and your heart shall thrill and tremble with joy [at the glorious deliverance] and be enlarged; because the abundant wealth of the [Dead] Sea* shall be returned to you, unto you shall the nations come with their treasures.”
* Commentary notes that the Dead Sea was considered a place of death and destitution.[3]
Psalm 147:1-6 says about Him, “Praise The Lord! For it is good to sing praises to our God, for He is gracious and lovely; praise is becoming and appropriate. The Lord is building up Jerusalem; He is gathering together the exiles of Israel. He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds [curing their pains and their sorrows].
He determines and counts the number of the stars; He calls them all by their names. Great is our Lord and of great power; His understanding is inexhaustible and boundless. The Lord lifts up the humble and downtrodden; He casts the wicked down to the ground.”
One of the significant reasons why Jesus was sent by the Father and went to the cross was to bind up and heal the brokenhearted and set captives free who are in bondage. Isaiah 42:6-7, it says about Jesus, “I will give You for a covenant to the people [Israel], for a light to the nations [Gentiles], to open the eyes of the blind, to bring out prisoners from the dungeon, and those who sit in darkness from the prison.”
Freedom and healing is the good news of the gospel!! Isaiah 61:1-3 says, “The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed and qualified me to preach the Gospel of good tidings to the meek, the poor, and the afflicted;”
He has sent me to:
“- to bind up up and heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the [physical and spiritual] captives and the opening of the prison and of the eyes of those who are bound.
- To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord [the year of His favor] and the day of vengeance of our God, to comfort all who mourn,
- To grant [consolation and joy] to those who mourn in Zion -to give them an ornament (a garland or diadem) of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of joy instead of morning, the garment [expressive] of praise instead of a heavy, burdened, and failing spirit- that they may be called oaks of righteousness [lofty, strong, and magnificent, distinguished for uprightness, justice, and right standing with God], the planting of the Lord, that He may be glorified.”
Jesus was and is passionate about bringing justice to the poor. It is deeply in His heart. Isaiah 42:1-4 says about Him, “Behold My Servant, Whom I uphold, My elect in Whom My soul delights! I have put My Spirit upon Him; He will bring forth justice and right and reveal truth to the nations. He will not cry or shout aloud or cause His voice to be heard in the street.
A bruised reed He will not break, and a dimly burning wick He will not quench; He will bring forth justice in truth. He will not fail or become weak or be crushed and discouraged till He has established justice in the earth; and the islands and coastal regions shall wait hopefully for Him and expect His direction and law.”
Over and over, the Word of God speaks about God's heart of compassion for the poor and afflicted. He hears their cries and answers them with awesome deeds of righteousness (Ps. 65:5). He is our hope to the ends of the earth (Ps. 65:5).
Psalm 34:18 says, “The Lord is close to those who are of a broken heart and saves such as are crushed with sorrow for sin and are humbly and thoroughly penitent.”
At the same time, I know that God sometimes does not heal and set free those who are struggling in oppression and bondage. So is Jesus always willing?
In Luke 5:12-13, a man with leprosy came to Jesus, “fell on his face and implored Him, saying, Lord, if You are willing, You are able to cure me and make me clean. And [Jesus reached out His hand and touched him, saying, I am willing; be cleansed! And immediately the leprosy left him.”
Sometimes perhaps He does not heal because one refuses to turn to Him and receive healing In Matthew 13:58 it says that Jesus could not do many miracles for the peoples lack of faith or unbelief. The people took offense at Him and refused to accept His authority (Matthew 13:57). Because of this, they could not receive His healing.
Psalm 91:14 says, “Because he has set his love upon Me, therefore will I deliver him; I will set him on high, because he knows and understand My name [has a personal knowledge of My mercy, love, and kindness -trusts and relies on Me, knowing I will never forsake him, no never]. He shall call upon Me, and I will answer him...”
Other times, perhaps it may take some time for a person to see their need and then humble themselves to come and receive His healing. Naaman was an example of someone who saw their need, but it took awhile for him to come to the Lord and humble himself to receive healing.
Naaman was a leper who did not know the Lord. He came to Israel expecting to be healed by a prophet because a young slave girl who waited on his wife told them that the prophet in Samaria could heal him. Then when the prophet told him to wash himself in the Jordan seven times, he refused. He was insulted and went away angry. Later, after some encouragement from his servants, he humbled himself and followed his directions. When he did humble himself and come for healing the way he had been instructed, he was healed and came to believe in God. (2 Kings 5:1-15)
Psalm 147:6 says, “The LORD lifts up the humble; he casts the wicked to the ground.”
Sometimes people are in sin and rebellion and have not yet come to a place of repentance so that they could be healed. Matthew 13:15 says, “For this people's heart has become calloused; they hardly hear with their ears, and they have closed their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts and turn, and I would heal them.'”
Psalm 34:18 says that he saves those who are “humbly and thoroughly penitent.”
In Psalm 107:10-16, people were in bondage and afflicted due to their rebellion against God. Because of this, their hearts were bowed down with hard labor and there was none to help. Yet, when they “cried to the Lord in their trouble,” it says “He saved them out of their distresses. He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death and broke apart the bonds that held them.”
Sometimes, it seems that healing may come a small amount at a time rather than all at once. Healing may occur over a period of years as the wounds heal, the mind is renewed and one learns new realities.
As an example, fear of disaster is something I struggled with for many years and has been deeply rooted. 1 John 4:18 says that perfect love expels all fear. As much as I desired it, God did not completely heal me of this all at once. My thought patterns needed to be changed over time by the renewing of my mind (Romans 12:2).
As I have come to receive and trust in His love more and more over time, the way I think has changed. Rather than anticipating disaster when things go wrong, I have come more and more to trust in and expect God's goodness. His continuous love towards me has expelled my fear of disaster. I am learning that I can trust Him to always protect and care for me, even in my sin and shortcomings.
My Savior loves, my Savior lives, My Savior's always there for me” sings in the background.
Absence of healing may not have anything to do with someone's lack of faith, sin, timing, or humility in receiving. Sometimes God does not heal because it somehow demonstrates His glory in a greater measure through one's weakness.
Paul had a 'thorn in the flesh” that kept him from being haughty. He prayed three times to be delivered from it. However, God did not set him free. Instead God spoke to him, “My grace (My favor and loving-kindness and mercy) is enough for you [sufficient against any danger and enables you to bear the trouble manfully]; for My strength and power are made perfect (fulfilled and completed) and show themselves most effective in [your weakness].
One of my close friends struggles with a great deal of physical disabilities. She is a deeply humble woman of prayer who trusts and depends on God to get through her daily activities. While she has received some physical healing over the years, the greatest gift is that God has given her is strength and inner joy in the midst of her struggles with her physical limitations. In this, she has ministered deeply to me and others in ways that no one else could (who didn't have severe physical limitations).
James 2:5 says, “Listen, my beloved brethren: Has not God chosen those who are poor in the eyes of the world to be rich in faith and in their position as believers and to inherit the kingdom which He has promised to those who love Him?”
Not only does God passionately pursue us and has poured out His life to bring us freedom from prison, affliction and oppression, but it was for freedom that we were set free (Gal. 5:1). We are not to use our freedom to sin again but to serve others in love (Gal. 5:3).
As Steve Hanson mentioned this past weekend in his sermon, if we were asked what true religion looked like in action we would come up with many answers. James 1:27 cuts through all the things that we make religion about to that which matters most to God's heart.
It says in James 1:27, “External religious worship [religion as it is expressed in outward acts] that is pure and unblemished in the sight of God the Father is this: to visit and help and care for the orphans and widows in their affliction and need, and to keep oneself unspotted and uncontaminated from the world.”
Caring about the least, the poor and uncared about matters deeply to God. Much more than any religious practice we can enter into. True religion is serving the poor. And as Mother Teresa noted, “Only holiness perfects the gift.” We don't serve the poor in our own strength, but as we abide in Christ and serve the poor from a place of worship, we radiate His love to others.
It says about Mother Teresa, “Radiating love, joy hope, peace, and enthusiasm, and with her habitual concern for the individual sufferer, she would make one feel loved and special even in one short meeting. The reason for this extraordinary effect on people was not because of any special qualities or talents she had.
Rather, it was to be found in the radiance of her personal holiness, of the power and attraction of a soul totally given to God. She was so united with God, that through contact with her, people felt that God was listening to them, helping them, caring for them, loving them.
The prayer, 'Radiating Christ,' which she prayed daily with her sisters after Mass, had become a reality in her own life. She asked in this prayer: 'Let them look up and see no longer me, but only Jesus,' and, indeed, it was the light of His love His love that she radiated to others.
Mother Teresa reached an eminent degree of holiness through her unwavering 'yes' to God and His loving will, despite the hardships it involved.” [4]
Isaiah 62:1,4 says about Gods people, “For Zion's sake will I [Isaiah] not hold my peace, and for Jerusalem's sake I will not rest until her imputed righteousness and vindication go forth as brightness, and her salvation radiates as does a burning torch...You [Judah] shall no more be termed Forsaken, nor shall your land be called Desolate any more. But you shall be called Hephzibah [My delight is in her], and your land be called Beulah [married]; for the Lord delights in you, and your land shall be married [owned and protected by the Lord]."
God is raising up a people who, like Him radiate His glory and also are deeply passionate to see the poor set free from captivity, to raise up those who are broken down and see His justice established on earth. Isiah 61 4 says about His people, “And they shall rebuild the ancient ruins; they shall raise up the former desolations and renew the ruined cities, the devastations of many generations.”
And what God starts, He sees through to the end. Isaiah 61:11 says, “For as [surely as] the earth brings forth its shoots, and as a garden causes what is sown in it to spring forth, so [surely] the Lord god will cause righteousness and justice and praise to spring forth before all the nations [through the self-fulfilling power of His word].
Lord, sometimes I think that I have to convince you to come and bring your justice. I forget that You are the one that put the desire in my heart. You deeply long to see restoration in places of destitution. You poured yourself out that we might have that life and freedom.
I am ever so grateful for that work in my own life. You have given me more than I could have asked or even imagined. I still remember you speaking to me that I didn't know just how destitute I was. And You execute justice not for me only, but for all who are oppressed! We long to see your justice poured forth on the earth and the devastations of many generations raised up. Let Your kingdom come, Your will be done!!
a. Commentary notes, “The coming of Christ rebuilt the house of David (Amos 9:11, 12; Acts 15:15–17).” [5]
1, 5. Radmacher, Earl D. ; Allen, Ronald Barclay ; House, H. Wayne: Nelson's New Illustrated Bible Commentary. Nashville : T. Nelson Publishers, 1999, S.
2. KJV Bible Commentary. Nashville : Thomas Nelson, 1997, c1994, S. 1862
3. The Amplified Bible. Zondervan, Grand Rapids, MI. 1987.
4. Mother Teresa. “Where There Is Love, There is God.” Random House, Inc. New York, NY. 2010.
Tuesday, January 24, 2012
"Sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me."
“All who see me laugh at me and mock me; they shoot out the lip, they shake their head saying, He trusted and rolled himself on the Lord, that He would deliver him. Let Him deliver him, seeing that He delights in him!
Yet You are He Who took me out of the womb; You made me hope and trust when I was on my mother’s breasts. I was cast upon You from my very birth; from my mother’s womb You have been my God.
Be not far from me, for trouble is near and there is none to help. Many [foes like] bulls have surrounded me; strong bulls of Bashan have hedged me in. Against me they have opened their mouths wide, like a ravening and roaring lion.
I am poured out like water, and all my bones are out of joint. My heart is like wax; it is softened [with anguish] and melted down within me. My strength is dried up like a fragment of clay pottery; [with thirst] my tongue cleaves to my jaws; and You have brought me into the dust of death.
For [like a pack of] dogs they have encompassed me; a company of evildoers has encircled me, they pierced my hands and my feet. I can count all my bones; [the evildoers] gaze at me. They part my clothing among them and cast lots for my raiment…” (Psalms 22:7-18)
Jesus says in John 13:34, “Just as I have loved you, so you too should love one another.”
And in John 15:12-13 He says, “This is My commandment: that you love one another [just] as I have loved you. No one has greater love [no one has shown stronger affection] than to lay down (give up) his own life for his friends.”
“Lord I want to give you everything, this is my offering - all of me, this is my offering” sings
Philippians 2:5-8 says, “Let this same attitude and purpose and [humble] mind be in you which was in Christ Jesus: [Let Him be your example in humility:] Who, although being essentially one with God and in the form of God [possessing the fullness of the attributes which make God God], did not think this equality with God was for a thing to be eagerly grasped or retained, but stripped Himself [of all privileges and rightful dignity], so as to assume the guise of a servant (slave), in that He became like men and was born a human being. And after He had appeared in human form, He abased and humbled Himself [still further] and carried His obedience to the extreme of death, even death of the cross!”
And Psalm 44:11-18 says, “You have made us like sheep intended for mutton [food] and have scattered us in exile among the nations. You sell Your people for nothing, and have not increased Your wealth by their price.
You have made us the taunt of our neighbors, a scoffing and a derision to those who are round about us. You make us a byword among the nations, a shaking of the heads among the people. My dishonor is before me all day long, and shame has covered my face at the words of the taunter and reviler, by reason of the enemy and the revengeful.
All this is come upon us, yet have we not forgotten You, neither have we been false to Your covenant [which You made with our fathers]. Our hearts are not turned back, neither have our steps declined from Your path.”
Commentary notes about this, “At other times in history there was a definite connection between suffering and sin. But in this particular case it was not so. It seemed instead that the people’s plight was due to the fact that they were God’s chosen people. It was a case of suffering for God and for His covenant. The calamities had come to a people who had not turned their backs on God or violated His covenant.” [1]
They suffered not as a result of their sin, but as a result of their faithfulness in bringing forth the gospel of Christ. Peter says in 1 Peter 2:19-24, “For one is regarded favorably (is approved, acceptable, and thank-worthy) if, as in the sight of God, he endures the pain of unjust suffering. [After all] what kind of glory [is there in it] if, when you do wrong and are punished for it, you take it patiently? But if you bear patiently with suffering [which results] when you do right and that is undeserved, it is acceptable and pleasing to God.
For even to this were you called [it is inseparable from your vocation]. For Christ also suffered for you, leaving you [His personal] example, so that you should follow in His footsteps. He was guilty of no sin, neither was deceit (guile) ever found on His lips. When He was reviled and insulted, He did not revile or offer insult in return; [when] He was abused and suffered, He made no threats [of vengeance]; but He trusted [Himself and everything] to Him Who judges fairly.
He personally bore our sins in His [own] body on the tree [as on an altar and offered Himself on it], that we might die (cease to exist) to sin and live to righteousness. Be His wounds you have been healed.”
Paul sets an example of following Jesus and bearing up under suffering for bringing forth the gospel (and not for sin). He tells the church in 1 Corinthians 4:10-13, “We are [looked upon as] fools on account of Christ and for His sake, but you are [supposedly] so amazingly wise and prudent in Christ! We are weak, but you are [so very] strong! You are highly esteemed, but we are in disrepute and contempt! To this hour we have gone both hungry and thirsty; we [habitually] wear but one undergarment [and shiver in the cold]; we are roughly knocked about and wonder around homeless.
And we still toil onto weariness [for our living], working hard with our own hands. When men revile us [wound us with an accursed sting], we bless them. When we are persecuted, we take it patiently and endure it. When we are slandered and defamed, we [try to] answer softly and bring comfort. We have been made and are now the rubbish and filth of the world [the offscouring of all things, the scum of the earth].”
We are to love as Jesus has loved us. Mother Teresa writes, “We must not be afraid to love. We must not be afraid to love until it hurts because love is giving until it hurts.” [2] Steve Hanson mentioned this last week when I was on a mission trip to Haiti that giving is supposed to hurt.
He noted John 3:16 says, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son…” Mother Teresa writes, “Love has to be built on sacrifice. We have to give until it hurts.” [3]
“I'll be strong and courageous, I'll live my life for You and You alone my only King, because Your my God throughout the ages. Here am I. I am Yours. Send me” sings.
Steve Hanson had noted that it is not supposed to be only 10% of ourselves that we give but we are to give all of ourselves to others until it hurts. Mother Teresa writes about the poor, “And we cannot serve them just by giving them a few dollars or a few rupees from the abundance. We must give until it hurts. We must give our heart to love them and our hands to serve them whoever they may be, wherever they may be.” [4]
Mother Teresa notes, “We must give until it hurts. For love to be true it has to hurt. It hurt Jesus to love us; it hurt God to love us because He had to give. He gave His Son…” [5]
So who are the poor we are to serve? One author, Aristide, in his book, “Eyes of the Heart,” notes that at the time we entered this century, there were 1.3 billion people living on less than one dollar a day and half the population (3 billion people) living on less than two dollars a day. He notes that the top 20% of the population held 86% of the wealth and that this was an ever growing percentage of accumulation of wealth.[6]
One can lack economic resources and still be incredibly rich. They can give freely out of the abundance of their soul while not having anything financial to offer. I met people like this in Haiti. People who lacked financial resources but were full of joy, generosity, wisdom and love.
One particular individual comes to mind. While financially he may not have been considered among the wealthy or privileged, he clearly was incredibly spiritually rich. He poured out love, acceptance, and hospitality to us and others around him. The joy on his face radiated the richness of his soul. He gave of himself to us by serving, accepting and loving us.
One can be rich in God's wisdom of God and economically very poor. Solomon had taken note of someone like this. Ecclesiastes 9:13-15a says, “There was a little city with few men in it. And a great king came against it and besieged it and built great bulwarks against it. But there was found in it a poor wise man, and he by his wisdom delivered the city.”
However, lacking financial resources often causes other suffering in the ones who lack. Aristide writes, “Behind this crisis of dollars there is a human crisis: among the poor, immeasurable human suffering...”[7]
Often those who are financially poor lack access to resources they need. They fail to receive adequate nutrition, medical care, housing, and other assistance. They also lack access to education opportunities that would help empower them and advance them and their children. They lack conveniences of technology, cars, dishwashers, washing machines, etc. that free up ones time and empower. They are reduced to a life of struggling just to survive day to day with no hope of future change.
Aristide writes that we have not reached the consensus that to eat is a basic human right and not a privilege for those who can afford it. He notes that this is an ethical crisis.”[8]
We live in a global economy and societies that cater to the privileged and those who have wealth. We have 16 choices of flavors for our morning blend of coffee. At the same time, statistics report that even in 2012, children die every day due to malnutrition. And 884 million people lack access to safe drinking water -approximately one in eight people.[9]
Aristide writes, “Global capitalism becomes a machine devouring our planet. The little finger, the men and women of the poorest 20%, are reduced to cogs in this machine, the bottom rung in global production, valued only as cheap labor, otherwise altogether disposable.” [10]
Besides lacking economic resources, people who are financially poor are often treated poorly. They are not given the human dignity and respect that they deserve. As people in the world value wealth and those who are economically successful, people who lack resources are often looked down upon and not heeded.
Ecclesiastes 9:15b-17 goes on to say about the wise poor man who saved the city, “Yet no man [seriously] remembered that poor man. But I say that wisdom is better than might, thought he poor man's wisdom is despised and his words are not heeded. The words of wise men heard in quiet are better than the shouts of him who rules among fools.”
People will follow along without question the person who drives an expensive car and wears expensive clothing. Often people immediately try to impress people who have privilege and power. However, they are also quick to question or look down upon someone who cannot afford these.
Most people will not seek out someone who is in economic poverty for advice or take their advice to heart. People in poverty can feel like they are not capable of making a good decision for themselves and look to others that are further up on the economic line to make their decisions for them.
However, ones financial position does not necissarily correlate with poverty. There are many people who are financially wealthy and have many privileges that are poor spiritually. They lack capacity to make wise decisions and/or are in bondage to addictions.
Mother Teresa speaks of the poor as all those who are unwanted, unloved, uncared for, thrown away, rejected in society. They are those who have lost their human dignity, disregarded and are considered the lepers of society. [11] They are those who are desperately in need of love.
We live in a society that puts people in a line rather than a circle. We frequently put those with more privileges or power above us and those with less underneath or below us. Then we follow those 'above' and feel we have a right and knowledge to direct those who are 'below' us. Someone 'above' with privilege and power feels superior to someone 'below.'
There are several examples of living in a line in history with devastating results. Hitler justified extermination of the Jewish people on the grounds of Germany's superiority. Hitler and Nazi followers viewed life in a line where those who are superior win out and crush those underneath them – creating a superior race. Superiority is also the basis of Darwin's theories.
When one puts themselves and others in a line, they cannot love them because they are constantly comparing and competing. God did not make some people superior and others inferior. God gave all people gifts and created them in His image. The weakest part of the body that is most vulnerable is as valuable to the whole body as the strongest part (1 Corinthians 12:22). Both have something to add.
When one sees themselves as superior and others as inferior, they feel justified in oppressing others for their own gain. Solomon made the mistake of using his privilege and wealth to oppress the people for his own gain. He was more concerned with being world renown for his 'wisdom' than bringing the kingdom of God forth and serving the people. (1 Kings 10:23-24)
Often people view the world out of lenses of what Steven Covey calls a “scarcity mentality.” It is one where there are only so many pieces of the pie. We have to fight to get a piece and then protect what we have. This leads to comparison, competition and diminishing others for ones own gain.
Steven Covey talks about rather seeing the world out a lenses of an “abundance mentality.” This is where as we let go of what we have to serve others, the pie just gets bigger. We do not need to protect what we have or compare and compete with others for more. Those who have the greatest piece of the pie are in a position to empower, care for, and serve those with less so that they might have more for themselves.
So how would it look to see others as completing them in fulfilling a greater mission of good rather than competing with them for resources, power and privilege? What if rather than competing with and oppressing those who are beneath in a line, one clearly sees all others as their equals in God's eyes?
Even in some churches, I have seen privilege and power used at times to control others rather than serve others for their benefit. [a] How does it look to use one's resources, privilege and power to build up and empower others with less rather than diminish or oppress them? And what does it look like to give until it hurts?
The clock reads 3:33pm.
I think it starts with changing our paradigm. Steven Covey once noted that our behaviors are based our paradigm of the world. To change our behaviors, we need to change our paradigm. We need to change from one that maintains a scarcity mentality based upon economic resources and has ourselves at the center, seeing people in a line to one that maintains an abundance mentality and has God at the center, seeing people in a circle.
“How could I stand here and watch the sun rise, follow the mountains where they touch the sky, Ponder the vastness and the depths of the sea and think for a moment the point of it all was to make much of me. Cause I'm just a whisper and You are the thunder and I want to make much of You, Jesus; I want to make much of Your love” sings in the background.
When we have God at the center of our lives, [b] we naturally love what He loves – other people. We can see people how they were created to be. They are not objects to be used for our own advantage. Rather each person is a work of God. They are His poem, His masterpiece. Each has tremendous value.
Lord, forgive me where I have had a scarcity mentality or saw people in a line rather than a circle. Forgive me wherever I have protected or used my privileges, power, and/or resources for my own personal gain rather than empowering others.
Give us an abundance mentality and empower us to use all that we have to serve others. Teach us to give generously of our heart, time, gifts and resources until in genuinely hurts. We long to look more like You.
a. Oppression of others can be as subtle as protecting ones own resources at another's expense. This happened with agricultural subsidies. As one learns in economics class in college, subsidies protect our farmers ability to produce which protects our food supply in America. However, 'protecting' ourselves in this way has also oppressed others.
Aristide noted that the impact of American subsidies of rice on Haiti's population was devastating. He wrote, “Haiti, under intense pressure from the international lending institutions, stopped protecting its domestic agriculture while subsidies to the U.S. rice industry increased. A hungry nation became hungrier.” [12]
The Wikipedia notes about subsidies, “The impact of agricultural subsidies in developed countries upon developing-country farmers and international development is well documented. Agricultural subsidies depress world prices and mean that unsubsidised developing-country farmers cannot compete; and the effects on poverty are particularly negative when subsidies are provided for crops that are also grown in developing countries since developing-country farmers must then compete directly with subsidised developed-country farmers...” [13]
Also, having wealth and privilege can mislead one to think that they know better than those who don't have wealth and privilege on how things could best be done. Giving can be done in a way that creates more problems and pain than it does benefit for the people it is supposed to serve when one tries to conform others to their ways by their giving or has hooks attached to their giving.
Aristide describes a situation where international agencies convinced Haiti's peasants that there pigs were sick and had to be killed so that they did not spread disease to other countries. These Creole pigs were extremely important to the economy and hearty -made for their environment. They ate waste products and could survive for three days without food.
Haitians were promised that better pigs would be given to them to replace these pigs when they were exterminated. Two years later, they were given pigs that required clean drinking water (unavailable to most the population) and food that cost $90 a year when the per capita income was only $130. The result was devastating to the economy. [14]
Additionally, sometimes giving does not empower but creates dependance. When one is given resources out of pity, a dependance can be created that does not help the person. In Haiti, some street kids have found that they can enjoy the freedom of running the streets freely while begging for money. Giving the street kids money because one feels sorry for them rather than figuring out how to truly help them only rewards begging and further encourages them to continue in their current way of living.
When I was in Israel on a tour some years ago, I was approached on occasion by young children who wanted a dollar. They sometimes even offered a postcard in return. I was told not to give them any money. What would sometimes happen is that their parents or guardians would keep them out of school and teach them to beg for money from tourists. By giving them money the parents/guardians were being rewarded and encouraged to keep their children from school.
Sometimes the issue is not that one is giving in a way that creates dependance, but that one is giving out of guilt, pressure, manipulation or another motive.
b. When we have God at the center and can see the world in a different light, we naturally respond to him in generosity to others. Giving generously is a response from the heart towards God.
Paul says in 2 Corinthians 9:7, “You must each decide in your heart how much to give. And don't give reluctantly or in response to pressure. 'For God loves a person who gives cheerfully.'"
This verse speaks that giving needs to be done from the heart rather than from other motives or pressure from outside. Giving is a response from the heart towards God. It is not a burdensome duty to love God with all our heart, time and resources – it is an act of worship.
“A heart called to worship” sings in the background.
In Exodus 25:2 the Lord says, "Tell the Israelites to bring me an offering. You are to receive the offering for me from each man whose heart prompts him to give.”
And in 1 Chronicles 29:9 it says, “The people rejoiced at the willing response of their leaders, for they had given freely and wholeheartedly to the LORD. David the king also rejoiced greatly.”
The focus of our giving needs to flow from our heart and relationship with God. As God pours his life into us, it is out of the over-abundance that we give to others. Giving needs to be motivated by love – love from God, love of God and sharing this love with others.
Giving to earn God's or other's approval does not benefit us. Giving to be viewed as a 'good person' or to earn our way into heaven will never gain us anything. 1 Corinthians 13:3 says, “If I give all I possess to the poor and surrender my body to the flames, but have not love, I gain nothing.”
When we give of ourselves, our gifts, our time, our resources and our heart out of worship, God does promise to prosper our efforts. In Deuteronomy 15:10, Moses tells the people to be generous towards their needy brother. He says, “Give generously to him and do so without a grudging heart; then because of this the LORD your God will bless you in all your work and in everything you put your hand to.”
And where this loving and generous giving needs to begin is within our own family. Mother Teresa writes, “what I want from you is that when we look together and we see the poor in our own family, that we begin at home to love until it hurts. That we have a ready smile, that we have time for our people.” [15]
She goes on to write, “So I think it is good for us to begin to love at home. Then once we have learned to love with the love that hurts, then we will be able to give that love, our eyes will open up, we’ll see, we’ll see. Very often, we look but we don’t see or we see and we don’t want to look, and so let us begin to practice at home. That tender love for our people, the husband for the wife, for the children, for the people working in your factory.” [16]
1. MacDonald, William ; Farstad, Arthur: Believer's Bible Commentary : Old and New Testaments. Nashville : Thomas Nelson, 1997, c1995, S. Ps 44:17
2-5, 11, 15, 16. Mother Teresa. “Where There Is Love, There is God.” Random House, Inc. New York, NY. 2010.
6-8, 10, 12, 14. Aristide, Jean-Bertrand. Eyes of the heart: seeking a path for the poor in the age of globalization. Common Courage Press, Monroe, ME. 2000.
9. Water. UNICEF/WHO. 2008. Progress on Drinking Water and Sanitation: Special Focus on Sanitation. Taken from statistics at: http://water.org/water-crisis/water-facts/water/. Last Accessed: 1/23/11.
13. Wikipedia. Agricultural Subsidy. Located at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agricultural_subsidies. Last Accessed: 1/23/11.
Yet You are He Who took me out of the womb; You made me hope and trust when I was on my mother’s breasts. I was cast upon You from my very birth; from my mother’s womb You have been my God.
Be not far from me, for trouble is near and there is none to help. Many [foes like] bulls have surrounded me; strong bulls of Bashan have hedged me in. Against me they have opened their mouths wide, like a ravening and roaring lion.
I am poured out like water, and all my bones are out of joint. My heart is like wax; it is softened [with anguish] and melted down within me. My strength is dried up like a fragment of clay pottery; [with thirst] my tongue cleaves to my jaws; and You have brought me into the dust of death.
For [like a pack of] dogs they have encompassed me; a company of evildoers has encircled me, they pierced my hands and my feet. I can count all my bones; [the evildoers] gaze at me. They part my clothing among them and cast lots for my raiment…” (Psalms 22:7-18)
Jesus says in John 13:34, “Just as I have loved you, so you too should love one another.”
And in John 15:12-13 He says, “This is My commandment: that you love one another [just] as I have loved you. No one has greater love [no one has shown stronger affection] than to lay down (give up) his own life for his friends.”
“Lord I want to give you everything, this is my offering - all of me, this is my offering” sings
Philippians 2:5-8 says, “Let this same attitude and purpose and [humble] mind be in you which was in Christ Jesus: [Let Him be your example in humility:] Who, although being essentially one with God and in the form of God [possessing the fullness of the attributes which make God God], did not think this equality with God was for a thing to be eagerly grasped or retained, but stripped Himself [of all privileges and rightful dignity], so as to assume the guise of a servant (slave), in that He became like men and was born a human being. And after He had appeared in human form, He abased and humbled Himself [still further] and carried His obedience to the extreme of death, even death of the cross!”
And Psalm 44:11-18 says, “You have made us like sheep intended for mutton [food] and have scattered us in exile among the nations. You sell Your people for nothing, and have not increased Your wealth by their price.
You have made us the taunt of our neighbors, a scoffing and a derision to those who are round about us. You make us a byword among the nations, a shaking of the heads among the people. My dishonor is before me all day long, and shame has covered my face at the words of the taunter and reviler, by reason of the enemy and the revengeful.
All this is come upon us, yet have we not forgotten You, neither have we been false to Your covenant [which You made with our fathers]. Our hearts are not turned back, neither have our steps declined from Your path.”
Commentary notes about this, “At other times in history there was a definite connection between suffering and sin. But in this particular case it was not so. It seemed instead that the people’s plight was due to the fact that they were God’s chosen people. It was a case of suffering for God and for His covenant. The calamities had come to a people who had not turned their backs on God or violated His covenant.” [1]
They suffered not as a result of their sin, but as a result of their faithfulness in bringing forth the gospel of Christ. Peter says in 1 Peter 2:19-24, “For one is regarded favorably (is approved, acceptable, and thank-worthy) if, as in the sight of God, he endures the pain of unjust suffering. [After all] what kind of glory [is there in it] if, when you do wrong and are punished for it, you take it patiently? But if you bear patiently with suffering [which results] when you do right and that is undeserved, it is acceptable and pleasing to God.
For even to this were you called [it is inseparable from your vocation]. For Christ also suffered for you, leaving you [His personal] example, so that you should follow in His footsteps. He was guilty of no sin, neither was deceit (guile) ever found on His lips. When He was reviled and insulted, He did not revile or offer insult in return; [when] He was abused and suffered, He made no threats [of vengeance]; but He trusted [Himself and everything] to Him Who judges fairly.
He personally bore our sins in His [own] body on the tree [as on an altar and offered Himself on it], that we might die (cease to exist) to sin and live to righteousness. Be His wounds you have been healed.”
Paul sets an example of following Jesus and bearing up under suffering for bringing forth the gospel (and not for sin). He tells the church in 1 Corinthians 4:10-13, “We are [looked upon as] fools on account of Christ and for His sake, but you are [supposedly] so amazingly wise and prudent in Christ! We are weak, but you are [so very] strong! You are highly esteemed, but we are in disrepute and contempt! To this hour we have gone both hungry and thirsty; we [habitually] wear but one undergarment [and shiver in the cold]; we are roughly knocked about and wonder around homeless.
And we still toil onto weariness [for our living], working hard with our own hands. When men revile us [wound us with an accursed sting], we bless them. When we are persecuted, we take it patiently and endure it. When we are slandered and defamed, we [try to] answer softly and bring comfort. We have been made and are now the rubbish and filth of the world [the offscouring of all things, the scum of the earth].”
We are to love as Jesus has loved us. Mother Teresa writes, “We must not be afraid to love. We must not be afraid to love until it hurts because love is giving until it hurts.” [2] Steve Hanson mentioned this last week when I was on a mission trip to Haiti that giving is supposed to hurt.
He noted John 3:16 says, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son…” Mother Teresa writes, “Love has to be built on sacrifice. We have to give until it hurts.” [3]
“I'll be strong and courageous, I'll live my life for You and You alone my only King, because Your my God throughout the ages. Here am I. I am Yours. Send me” sings.
Steve Hanson had noted that it is not supposed to be only 10% of ourselves that we give but we are to give all of ourselves to others until it hurts. Mother Teresa writes about the poor, “And we cannot serve them just by giving them a few dollars or a few rupees from the abundance. We must give until it hurts. We must give our heart to love them and our hands to serve them whoever they may be, wherever they may be.” [4]
Mother Teresa notes, “We must give until it hurts. For love to be true it has to hurt. It hurt Jesus to love us; it hurt God to love us because He had to give. He gave His Son…” [5]
So who are the poor we are to serve? One author, Aristide, in his book, “Eyes of the Heart,” notes that at the time we entered this century, there were 1.3 billion people living on less than one dollar a day and half the population (3 billion people) living on less than two dollars a day. He notes that the top 20% of the population held 86% of the wealth and that this was an ever growing percentage of accumulation of wealth.[6]
One can lack economic resources and still be incredibly rich. They can give freely out of the abundance of their soul while not having anything financial to offer. I met people like this in Haiti. People who lacked financial resources but were full of joy, generosity, wisdom and love.
One particular individual comes to mind. While financially he may not have been considered among the wealthy or privileged, he clearly was incredibly spiritually rich. He poured out love, acceptance, and hospitality to us and others around him. The joy on his face radiated the richness of his soul. He gave of himself to us by serving, accepting and loving us.
One can be rich in God's wisdom of God and economically very poor. Solomon had taken note of someone like this. Ecclesiastes 9:13-15a says, “There was a little city with few men in it. And a great king came against it and besieged it and built great bulwarks against it. But there was found in it a poor wise man, and he by his wisdom delivered the city.”
However, lacking financial resources often causes other suffering in the ones who lack. Aristide writes, “Behind this crisis of dollars there is a human crisis: among the poor, immeasurable human suffering...”[7]
Often those who are financially poor lack access to resources they need. They fail to receive adequate nutrition, medical care, housing, and other assistance. They also lack access to education opportunities that would help empower them and advance them and their children. They lack conveniences of technology, cars, dishwashers, washing machines, etc. that free up ones time and empower. They are reduced to a life of struggling just to survive day to day with no hope of future change.
Aristide writes that we have not reached the consensus that to eat is a basic human right and not a privilege for those who can afford it. He notes that this is an ethical crisis.”[8]
We live in a global economy and societies that cater to the privileged and those who have wealth. We have 16 choices of flavors for our morning blend of coffee. At the same time, statistics report that even in 2012, children die every day due to malnutrition. And 884 million people lack access to safe drinking water -approximately one in eight people.[9]
Aristide writes, “Global capitalism becomes a machine devouring our planet. The little finger, the men and women of the poorest 20%, are reduced to cogs in this machine, the bottom rung in global production, valued only as cheap labor, otherwise altogether disposable.” [10]
Besides lacking economic resources, people who are financially poor are often treated poorly. They are not given the human dignity and respect that they deserve. As people in the world value wealth and those who are economically successful, people who lack resources are often looked down upon and not heeded.
Ecclesiastes 9:15b-17 goes on to say about the wise poor man who saved the city, “Yet no man [seriously] remembered that poor man. But I say that wisdom is better than might, thought he poor man's wisdom is despised and his words are not heeded. The words of wise men heard in quiet are better than the shouts of him who rules among fools.”
People will follow along without question the person who drives an expensive car and wears expensive clothing. Often people immediately try to impress people who have privilege and power. However, they are also quick to question or look down upon someone who cannot afford these.
Most people will not seek out someone who is in economic poverty for advice or take their advice to heart. People in poverty can feel like they are not capable of making a good decision for themselves and look to others that are further up on the economic line to make their decisions for them.
However, ones financial position does not necissarily correlate with poverty. There are many people who are financially wealthy and have many privileges that are poor spiritually. They lack capacity to make wise decisions and/or are in bondage to addictions.
Mother Teresa speaks of the poor as all those who are unwanted, unloved, uncared for, thrown away, rejected in society. They are those who have lost their human dignity, disregarded and are considered the lepers of society. [11] They are those who are desperately in need of love.
We live in a society that puts people in a line rather than a circle. We frequently put those with more privileges or power above us and those with less underneath or below us. Then we follow those 'above' and feel we have a right and knowledge to direct those who are 'below' us. Someone 'above' with privilege and power feels superior to someone 'below.'
There are several examples of living in a line in history with devastating results. Hitler justified extermination of the Jewish people on the grounds of Germany's superiority. Hitler and Nazi followers viewed life in a line where those who are superior win out and crush those underneath them – creating a superior race. Superiority is also the basis of Darwin's theories.
When one puts themselves and others in a line, they cannot love them because they are constantly comparing and competing. God did not make some people superior and others inferior. God gave all people gifts and created them in His image. The weakest part of the body that is most vulnerable is as valuable to the whole body as the strongest part (1 Corinthians 12:22). Both have something to add.
When one sees themselves as superior and others as inferior, they feel justified in oppressing others for their own gain. Solomon made the mistake of using his privilege and wealth to oppress the people for his own gain. He was more concerned with being world renown for his 'wisdom' than bringing the kingdom of God forth and serving the people. (1 Kings 10:23-24)
Often people view the world out of lenses of what Steven Covey calls a “scarcity mentality.” It is one where there are only so many pieces of the pie. We have to fight to get a piece and then protect what we have. This leads to comparison, competition and diminishing others for ones own gain.
Steven Covey talks about rather seeing the world out a lenses of an “abundance mentality.” This is where as we let go of what we have to serve others, the pie just gets bigger. We do not need to protect what we have or compare and compete with others for more. Those who have the greatest piece of the pie are in a position to empower, care for, and serve those with less so that they might have more for themselves.
So how would it look to see others as completing them in fulfilling a greater mission of good rather than competing with them for resources, power and privilege? What if rather than competing with and oppressing those who are beneath in a line, one clearly sees all others as their equals in God's eyes?
Even in some churches, I have seen privilege and power used at times to control others rather than serve others for their benefit. [a] How does it look to use one's resources, privilege and power to build up and empower others with less rather than diminish or oppress them? And what does it look like to give until it hurts?
The clock reads 3:33pm.
I think it starts with changing our paradigm. Steven Covey once noted that our behaviors are based our paradigm of the world. To change our behaviors, we need to change our paradigm. We need to change from one that maintains a scarcity mentality based upon economic resources and has ourselves at the center, seeing people in a line to one that maintains an abundance mentality and has God at the center, seeing people in a circle.
“How could I stand here and watch the sun rise, follow the mountains where they touch the sky, Ponder the vastness and the depths of the sea and think for a moment the point of it all was to make much of me. Cause I'm just a whisper and You are the thunder and I want to make much of You, Jesus; I want to make much of Your love” sings in the background.
When we have God at the center of our lives, [b] we naturally love what He loves – other people. We can see people how they were created to be. They are not objects to be used for our own advantage. Rather each person is a work of God. They are His poem, His masterpiece. Each has tremendous value.
Lord, forgive me where I have had a scarcity mentality or saw people in a line rather than a circle. Forgive me wherever I have protected or used my privileges, power, and/or resources for my own personal gain rather than empowering others.
Give us an abundance mentality and empower us to use all that we have to serve others. Teach us to give generously of our heart, time, gifts and resources until in genuinely hurts. We long to look more like You.
a. Oppression of others can be as subtle as protecting ones own resources at another's expense. This happened with agricultural subsidies. As one learns in economics class in college, subsidies protect our farmers ability to produce which protects our food supply in America. However, 'protecting' ourselves in this way has also oppressed others.
Aristide noted that the impact of American subsidies of rice on Haiti's population was devastating. He wrote, “Haiti, under intense pressure from the international lending institutions, stopped protecting its domestic agriculture while subsidies to the U.S. rice industry increased. A hungry nation became hungrier.” [12]
The Wikipedia notes about subsidies, “The impact of agricultural subsidies in developed countries upon developing-country farmers and international development is well documented. Agricultural subsidies depress world prices and mean that unsubsidised developing-country farmers cannot compete; and the effects on poverty are particularly negative when subsidies are provided for crops that are also grown in developing countries since developing-country farmers must then compete directly with subsidised developed-country farmers...” [13]
Also, having wealth and privilege can mislead one to think that they know better than those who don't have wealth and privilege on how things could best be done. Giving can be done in a way that creates more problems and pain than it does benefit for the people it is supposed to serve when one tries to conform others to their ways by their giving or has hooks attached to their giving.
Aristide describes a situation where international agencies convinced Haiti's peasants that there pigs were sick and had to be killed so that they did not spread disease to other countries. These Creole pigs were extremely important to the economy and hearty -made for their environment. They ate waste products and could survive for three days without food.
Haitians were promised that better pigs would be given to them to replace these pigs when they were exterminated. Two years later, they were given pigs that required clean drinking water (unavailable to most the population) and food that cost $90 a year when the per capita income was only $130. The result was devastating to the economy. [14]
Additionally, sometimes giving does not empower but creates dependance. When one is given resources out of pity, a dependance can be created that does not help the person. In Haiti, some street kids have found that they can enjoy the freedom of running the streets freely while begging for money. Giving the street kids money because one feels sorry for them rather than figuring out how to truly help them only rewards begging and further encourages them to continue in their current way of living.
When I was in Israel on a tour some years ago, I was approached on occasion by young children who wanted a dollar. They sometimes even offered a postcard in return. I was told not to give them any money. What would sometimes happen is that their parents or guardians would keep them out of school and teach them to beg for money from tourists. By giving them money the parents/guardians were being rewarded and encouraged to keep their children from school.
Sometimes the issue is not that one is giving in a way that creates dependance, but that one is giving out of guilt, pressure, manipulation or another motive.
b. When we have God at the center and can see the world in a different light, we naturally respond to him in generosity to others. Giving generously is a response from the heart towards God.
Paul says in 2 Corinthians 9:7, “You must each decide in your heart how much to give. And don't give reluctantly or in response to pressure. 'For God loves a person who gives cheerfully.'"
This verse speaks that giving needs to be done from the heart rather than from other motives or pressure from outside. Giving is a response from the heart towards God. It is not a burdensome duty to love God with all our heart, time and resources – it is an act of worship.
“A heart called to worship” sings in the background.
In Exodus 25:2 the Lord says, "Tell the Israelites to bring me an offering. You are to receive the offering for me from each man whose heart prompts him to give.”
And in 1 Chronicles 29:9 it says, “The people rejoiced at the willing response of their leaders, for they had given freely and wholeheartedly to the LORD. David the king also rejoiced greatly.”
The focus of our giving needs to flow from our heart and relationship with God. As God pours his life into us, it is out of the over-abundance that we give to others. Giving needs to be motivated by love – love from God, love of God and sharing this love with others.
Giving to earn God's or other's approval does not benefit us. Giving to be viewed as a 'good person' or to earn our way into heaven will never gain us anything. 1 Corinthians 13:3 says, “If I give all I possess to the poor and surrender my body to the flames, but have not love, I gain nothing.”
When we give of ourselves, our gifts, our time, our resources and our heart out of worship, God does promise to prosper our efforts. In Deuteronomy 15:10, Moses tells the people to be generous towards their needy brother. He says, “Give generously to him and do so without a grudging heart; then because of this the LORD your God will bless you in all your work and in everything you put your hand to.”
And where this loving and generous giving needs to begin is within our own family. Mother Teresa writes, “what I want from you is that when we look together and we see the poor in our own family, that we begin at home to love until it hurts. That we have a ready smile, that we have time for our people.” [15]
She goes on to write, “So I think it is good for us to begin to love at home. Then once we have learned to love with the love that hurts, then we will be able to give that love, our eyes will open up, we’ll see, we’ll see. Very often, we look but we don’t see or we see and we don’t want to look, and so let us begin to practice at home. That tender love for our people, the husband for the wife, for the children, for the people working in your factory.” [16]
1. MacDonald, William ; Farstad, Arthur: Believer's Bible Commentary : Old and New Testaments. Nashville : Thomas Nelson, 1997, c1995, S. Ps 44:17
2-5, 11, 15, 16. Mother Teresa. “Where There Is Love, There is God.” Random House, Inc. New York, NY. 2010.
6-8, 10, 12, 14. Aristide, Jean-Bertrand. Eyes of the heart: seeking a path for the poor in the age of globalization. Common Courage Press, Monroe, ME. 2000.
9. Water. UNICEF/WHO. 2008. Progress on Drinking Water and Sanitation: Special Focus on Sanitation. Taken from statistics at: http://water.org/water-crisis/water-facts/water/. Last Accessed: 1/23/11.
13. Wikipedia. Agricultural Subsidy. Located at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agricultural_subsidies. Last Accessed: 1/23/11.
Saturday, January 07, 2012
"Come, follow me," Jesus said, "and I will make you fishers of men." (Matt. 4:19)
“For a dream comes with much business and painful effort, and a fool’s voice with many words.” (Ecc 5:3)
Sometimes dreams can be a means of escape. We do not want to deal with our current issues we have dreams of how we would like things to be. One can come up with many ideas and feel good in the fantasy of the moment, but never put anything into making the dreams come about. People who continually do this are often coined ‘dreamers.’
Ecclesiastes 5:7 says, “For in a multitude of dreams there is futility and worthlessness, and ruin in a flood of words.”
Other times, people will have a great dream for their future but it does not come about because the person fails to invest in it or they don’t count the cost. When they come across obstacles they become discouraged and quit. Then they move on to something else.
John Maxwell suggests that it is a person’s inner fire that propels them to achieve their dream. He writes, “Put simply, desire determines destiny. As a rule, leaders attain influence proportionate to the size of the blaze burning within them.” [1]
When people are passionate about something, obstacles to not detour one’s pursuit. When they fail, they learn and get up and try again. Most people who have succeeded at anything significant have failed many, many times before they finally succeeded. They did not become discouraged or quit. Each time they learned from their mistakes, grew and got up to try again.
John Maxwell writes , “Passion makes the impossible possible. People are wired so that when their souls ignite, they no longer shrink before the barriers in front of them. That’s what makes a passionate leader particularly effective. He or she conceives of possibilities and opportunities for progress whereas dispassionate persons only see roadblocks and reasons why a vision can’t be achieved.” [2]
When we have dreams, it is important to consider what it may cost us before pursuing them. If the cost is significant, what will determine our ability to finish is our willingness to stay committed. If we are deeply passionate about what we are pursuing, any cost may seem insignificant in comparison.
Jesus asks in Luke 14: 28-33, “For which of you, wishing to build a farm building, does not first sit down and calculated the cost [to see] whether he has sufficient means to finish it? Otherwise, when he has laid the foundation and is unable to complete [the building], all who see it will begin to mock and jeer at him, saying, This man began to build and was not able (worth enough) to finish.
Or what king, going out to engage in conflict with another king, will not first sit down and consider and take counsel on whether he is able with ten thousand [men] to meet him who comes against him with twenty thousand? And if he cannot [do so], when the other king is still a great way off, he sends an envoy and asks the terms of peace. So then, any of you who does not forsake (renounce , surrender claim to, give up, say good-bye to) all that he has cannot be my disciple.”
Commentary notes, “Jesus’ call here is to follow Him in the way of rejection and suffering. A disciple will be rejected by those in the world who do not honor Christ. Therefore, a disciple must be ready to face and accept such rejection.” [3]
Just as we need to count the cost on pursing our dreams, we are to count the cost of being a disciple before entering in. Commentary goes on to note, “Christ does not give some emotional appeal to follow Him. He asks for careful consideration of the action the disciple may choose to take and whether he or she will be faithful to the task (9:57, 58).” [4]
A disciple is defined as one who is taught or a student [5]. A student is in a mode of continuous learning. They don’t think they have all the answers but are continually seeking to understand and put into practice the principles, concepts, and ideals that they gain from others.
One resource goes on to notes that the word disciple is sometimes used more specifically to indicate the twelve apostles of Jesus. They were a small inner group of believers [6] who were called to carry out the ministry of Jesus. While many can be disciples (Matthew 28:19), there were only a select few who were called to be apostles and carry His ministry out into the world (Acts 1:21-26).
Whatever we are called to, discipleship requires a response by us of deep commitment. Jesus says in Matthew 22:14, “For many are invited, but few are chosen." It is more than going along with the crowd and seeing Jesus perform miracles or provide for our needs. Being a disciple means putting following Him first in our lives.
When Jesus told the people who were following Him that they needed to believe and trust and have faith, eating His flesh and drinking His blood, many disciples became offended. They drew back and stopped following Him (Matthew 6:53-66). He asked the Twelve disciples, “Will you also go away?” (Matthew 6:67)
Simon Peter answered Him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words (the message) of eternal life. And we have learned to believe and trust, and [more] we have come to know [surely] that You are the Holy One of God, the Christ (the Anointed One), the Son of the living God” (Matthew 6:68-69).
Discipleship is a commitment that does not turn away no matter what happens. One has counted the cost and their whole heart is in the offering. Discipleship gives all to Jesus.
Commentary notes, “The essence of discipleship is to place all things in God’s hands. Jesus wants the crowds to understand this. Following Jesus is not a trivial matter. It is not how little you can give to God, but how much God deserves.” [7]
Discipleship requires full devotion and commitment. As commentary goes on to note, one cannot be a disciple if they are not fully devoted to God. [8] If there is something that one is holding back or saying in their heart, that cost would be too much - something that they are unwilling to put in the offering, they cannot be a disciple.
“You are everything that I live for…. You are everything I breathe for” sings in the background
Following Jesus is a life of death. One must deny their desires and wishes and follow after Jesus forsaking all else. In Matthew 16:24 Jesus told his disciples, “If anyone desires to be My disciple, let him deny himself [disregard, lose sight of, and forget himself and his own interests] and take up his cross and follow Me [cleave steadfastly to Me, conform wholly to My example in living and, if need be, in dying, also.]
“Here I am, all I have, take it all” sings in the background.
Jesus came not to do His own will and purpose but that of the kingdom of His fathers (John 6:38). In the same way, the disciples were called to let go of their own purposes and interests for kingdom purposes.
“And ever since I died to myself, You gave a better life to me” sings.
Paul said in 1 Cor. 15:31, “I die daily.” Paul no longer held on to his own interests. He gave them up and let the passion for Jesus’ kingdom fill him. He no longer did anything with his own purposes in mind. He gloried even in incredible difficulties and suffering to himself because he could see that through it Jesus was bringing His kingdom.
He told the church in Romans 14:7, “None of us lives to himself [but to the Lord], and none of us dies to himself [but to the Lord, for] if we live, we live to the Lord, and if we die, we die to the Lord. So then, whether we live or we die, we belong to the Lord. For Christ died and lived again for this very purpose, that He might be Lord both of the dead and of the living.”
The twelve diciples aslo gloried in their suffering when it brought the kingdom forward. They had left all to follow Jesus when they heard Him call. They looked to the things that are eternal and set their eyes heavenward rather than on the things of the world that “moths and rust cannot destroy, and thieves do not break in and steal” (Mttw. 6:30).
As disciples, we cannot hold onto anything or put anything before Jesus. Jesus says in Luke 14:26 "If anyone comes to me and does not hate his father and mother, his wife and children, his brothers and sisters--yes, even his own life--he cannot be my disciple.”
The disciples told Jesus in Matthew 19:27, “Behold, we have left [our] all and have become Your disciples [sided with Your party and followed You]. What then shall we receive?”
Jesus responded in Matthew 19:28, “Truly I say to you, in the new age (the Messianic rebirth of the world), when the Son of Man shall sit down on the throne of His glory, you who have [become My disciples, sided with My party and] followed Me will also sit on twelve thrones and judge the twelve tribes of Israel.”
Eventually, where following and leaving all led the disciples was not to rule and reign in this world like a king but to the foot of the cross. As noted in the sermon at my church last weekend, the day that Jesus was on the cross had to be the darkest day for the disciples. Their leader, rather than taking over, had died. But what they found was that His kingdom was much different than their thoughts and their desires.
Rather than being raised up on a throne, Jesus was raised up on a cross. Jesus told his disciples before his death, “You will all be offended and stumble and fall away because of Me this night [distrusting and deserting Me], for it is written, I will strike the Shepherd, and the sheep of the flock will be scattered.” (Matthew 26:31)
But their commitment to Jesus did not rest in their own hands. As long as they were willing to say yes in their hearts to Jesus, He turned their failures into learning and growing experiences along the way. He told them, “But after I am raised up [to life again], I will go ahead of you to Galilee”
Jesus sustains our commitment to Him. John 18:9 says, “This what He had said was fulfilled and verified, Of those whom You have given Me, I have not lost even one.”
In John 6:39 Jesus had said, “And this is the will of Him Who sent Me, that I should not lose any of all that He has given Me, but that I should give new life and raise [them all] up at the last day.”
As the lives of the disciples had to have seemed to be turned completely upside down by His death, Jesus held onto them with a grip that would not let them go. In John 17:12 Jesus told His Father, “While I was with them, I protected them and kept them safe by that name you gave me. None has been lost except the one doomed to destruction so that Scripture would be fulfilled.”
While Jesus allows us to go through difficulties and struggles so that we can grow and become more like Him, He will also see us through them. We can trust that Jesus will deliver us in all our difficulties and struggles, bringing Himself glory.
Psalm 91:14-16 says, “Because he has set his love upon Me, therefore will I deliver him; I will set him on high, because he knows and understand My name [has a personal knowledge of My mercy, love, and kindness –trusts and relies on Me, knowing I will never forsake him, no never]. He shall call upon Me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble, I will deliver him and honor him. With long life will I satisfy him and show him My salvation.”
Jesus never let any of the disciples out of His hand. When Peter was sifted by Satan, Jesus had interceded for him. Jesus told Peter in Luke 32:21-22, “Simon, Simon, Satan has asked to sift you as wheat. But I have prayed for you, Simon, that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned back, strengthen your brothers."
“Where would I be without someone to save me, someone who won’t let me fall?” sings in the background.
And whenever the disciples strayed back towards the world or their old ways, Jesus came to get them. Jesus was faithful not to leave them in their wonderings, but bring them back into alignment with His will. Jesus knew exactly what was needed in every circumstance.
After Jesus was crucified, the disciples shut themselves in behind closed doors for fear of the Jews (John 20:19). Jesus came to them and called them to have peace. He showed them his hands and side. He told them, “[Just] as the Father has sent Me forth, so I am sending you.” Having said this, “He breathed on them and said to them, Receive the Holy Spirit!” (John 20:21-22)
“Sing a song of hope, sing along, God of heaven come down, heaven come down” sings.
When the disciples went back to fishing, Jesus again revealed Himself to them at the Sea of Tiberias. They were fishing and not catching a thing all night. Jesus yelled out to them to cast their net on the right side of the boat. When they did, they were not able to haul it in because the catch was so big (John 21:6).
They realized it was Jesus and John cried out, It is the Lord! When Peter heard this he jumped into the sea and swam back to shore to see Him. Then as they all came back to shore, Jesus had breakfast with them.
Jesus was not just having a causual breakfast, He was calling them back to follow Him. He knew just what they needed at the time to be encourged. Jesus turned to Peter and asked Him, Peter, do you love Me? When Peter responded that of course he did, Jesus told him to feed His sheep. (John 21:7-17)
Jesus called Peter once again to follow Him, laying down his life and his own agenda for kingdom purposes. He went on to tell Peter in John 21:18, “I assure you, most solemnly I tell you, when you were young you girded yourself [put on your own belt or girdle] and you walked about wherever you pleased to go. But when you grow old you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will put a girdle around you and carry you where you do not wish to go.”
John 21:19 goes on to say that Jesus said this “to indicate by what kind of death Peter would glorify God. And after this, He said to him, Follow Me!”
Coming back to what I wrote earlier, disciples are called to fully lay down their own agenda and live solely for kingdom purposes. In Matthew 16:24 Jesus said to his disciples, "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.”
And Paul says in 2 Corinthians 5:15, “And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again.”
As disciples we are His servants and do not have rights of our own. Paul says in Philippians 1:5-8, “Let this same attitude and purpose and [humble] mind be in you which was in Christ Jesus: [Let Him be your example in humility:]
Who, although being essentially one with God and in the form of God [possessing the fullness of the attributes which make God God], did not think this equality with God was a thing to be eagerly grasped or retained, But stripped Himself [of all privileges and rightful dignity], so as to assume the guise of a servant (slave), in that He became like men and was born a human being. And after He had appeared in human form, He abased and humbled Himself [still further] and carried His obedience to the extreme of death, even the death of the cross!”
And as disciples, God grants us “[the privilege] for Christ’s sake not only to believe in (adhere to, rely on, and trust in) Him, but also to suffer in His behalf.” (Phil. 1:29) Peter tells the church in 1 Peter 2:21, “To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps.”
We can expect to have trials and tribulations in this world (John 16:33). And as disciples of Jesus, we will be persecuted. Jesus says in John 15:20, “Remember the words I spoke to you: 'No servant is greater than his master.' If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also. If they obeyed my teaching, they will obey yours also.”
Jesus never shrunk back form kingdom purposes because of persecution. And as His disciples we are called to the same. We are not to avoid suffering and persecution, looking how to escape, but look to Jesus on how to be faithful in the midst of it.
In Revelation 2:13, Jesus told the church of Pergamum, “I know where you live –a place where Satan sits enthroned. [Yet] you are clinging to and holding fast My name, and you did not deny My faith, even in the days of Antipas, My witness, My faithful one, who was killed (martyred) in your midst –where Satan dwells.”
We are to entrust ourselves to our Savior. In John 16:33, he says about tribulations we will experience in the world, “ But take heart! I have overcome the world." As we look to Him, we too will overcome by His power. It is not by our strength but by His. He is faithful to take us through.
Revelation 12:11 says about those who were accused by Satan day and night, “They overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony; they did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death.”
Disciples are also called to love in all circumstances. Jesus says in John 13:35 “By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another."
And John says in 1 John 3:14 “We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love our brothers. Anyone who does not love remains in death."
“Give me your love for humanity” sings in the background.
Love is more than just words, love gives itself away for others benefit. James 2:16 says, "If one of you says to him, 'Go, I wish you well; keep warm and well fed," but does nothing about his physical needs, what good is it?" Love is willing to take action and move towards others, helping them in their time of need.
And love generously forgives and hopes the best of people, alwasy seeking reconciliation. We cannot chose to be a disciple and at the same time refuse to forgive, love and reconcile with our brothers. A disciple cannot claim the right to hold onto unforgiveness because of a harm done by another. 1 John 4:20 If anyone says, "I love God," yet hates his brother, he is a liar. For anyone who does not love his brother, whom he has seen, cannot love God, whom he has not seen.”
We are not only to love those who love us but those who are our enemies and who hate us. Jesus tells us in Matthew 5:43-46, “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven; for He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. For if you love those who love you, what reward have you? Do not even the tax collectors do the same?”
Lord, forgive me where I have said I wanted to follow you with my lips but I did not want to pay the cost. On occasion I have refused to lay down my own rights, refused to forgive someone who caused me harm and failed to pray for those who have persecuted me. I have thought you were treating me unfairly and sometimes even complained when You were calling me to follow You. And I have failed to love others well. The more I try to follow You, the more I realize that I cannot do it in my own strength.
Thank You for your faithfulness! You do not demand performance from us but come and get us and help us to follow You. Your love is amazing! As the song sings, “Where would I be without someone to save me, someone who won’t let me fall?” We long to be your disciples and truly follow You and give You all. Would you empower us by Your Spirit to follow You.
1-2. Maxwell, John. Leadership Wired Article January 2012. Passion: The Fuel of Persistance. Located at: http://www.johnmaxwell.com/products-resources/leadership-on-demand/articles/passion-the-fuel-of-persistence/ Last Accessed: 1/8/2012.
3-4, 7-8. Radmacher, Earl D. ; Allen, Ronald Barclay ; House, H. Wayne: Nelson's New Illustrated Bible Commentary. Nashville : T. Nelson Publishers, 1999, S.
5-6. Youngblood, Ronald F. ; Bruce, F. F. ; Harrison, R. K. ; Thomas Nelson Publishers: Nelson's New Illustrated Bible Dictionary. Nashville : T. Nelson, 1995
Sometimes dreams can be a means of escape. We do not want to deal with our current issues we have dreams of how we would like things to be. One can come up with many ideas and feel good in the fantasy of the moment, but never put anything into making the dreams come about. People who continually do this are often coined ‘dreamers.’
Ecclesiastes 5:7 says, “For in a multitude of dreams there is futility and worthlessness, and ruin in a flood of words.”
Other times, people will have a great dream for their future but it does not come about because the person fails to invest in it or they don’t count the cost. When they come across obstacles they become discouraged and quit. Then they move on to something else.
John Maxwell suggests that it is a person’s inner fire that propels them to achieve their dream. He writes, “Put simply, desire determines destiny. As a rule, leaders attain influence proportionate to the size of the blaze burning within them.” [1]
When people are passionate about something, obstacles to not detour one’s pursuit. When they fail, they learn and get up and try again. Most people who have succeeded at anything significant have failed many, many times before they finally succeeded. They did not become discouraged or quit. Each time they learned from their mistakes, grew and got up to try again.
John Maxwell writes , “Passion makes the impossible possible. People are wired so that when their souls ignite, they no longer shrink before the barriers in front of them. That’s what makes a passionate leader particularly effective. He or she conceives of possibilities and opportunities for progress whereas dispassionate persons only see roadblocks and reasons why a vision can’t be achieved.” [2]
When we have dreams, it is important to consider what it may cost us before pursuing them. If the cost is significant, what will determine our ability to finish is our willingness to stay committed. If we are deeply passionate about what we are pursuing, any cost may seem insignificant in comparison.
Jesus asks in Luke 14: 28-33, “For which of you, wishing to build a farm building, does not first sit down and calculated the cost [to see] whether he has sufficient means to finish it? Otherwise, when he has laid the foundation and is unable to complete [the building], all who see it will begin to mock and jeer at him, saying, This man began to build and was not able (worth enough) to finish.
Or what king, going out to engage in conflict with another king, will not first sit down and consider and take counsel on whether he is able with ten thousand [men] to meet him who comes against him with twenty thousand? And if he cannot [do so], when the other king is still a great way off, he sends an envoy and asks the terms of peace. So then, any of you who does not forsake (renounce , surrender claim to, give up, say good-bye to) all that he has cannot be my disciple.”
Commentary notes, “Jesus’ call here is to follow Him in the way of rejection and suffering. A disciple will be rejected by those in the world who do not honor Christ. Therefore, a disciple must be ready to face and accept such rejection.” [3]
Just as we need to count the cost on pursing our dreams, we are to count the cost of being a disciple before entering in. Commentary goes on to note, “Christ does not give some emotional appeal to follow Him. He asks for careful consideration of the action the disciple may choose to take and whether he or she will be faithful to the task (9:57, 58).” [4]
A disciple is defined as one who is taught or a student [5]. A student is in a mode of continuous learning. They don’t think they have all the answers but are continually seeking to understand and put into practice the principles, concepts, and ideals that they gain from others.
One resource goes on to notes that the word disciple is sometimes used more specifically to indicate the twelve apostles of Jesus. They were a small inner group of believers [6] who were called to carry out the ministry of Jesus. While many can be disciples (Matthew 28:19), there were only a select few who were called to be apostles and carry His ministry out into the world (Acts 1:21-26).
Whatever we are called to, discipleship requires a response by us of deep commitment. Jesus says in Matthew 22:14, “For many are invited, but few are chosen." It is more than going along with the crowd and seeing Jesus perform miracles or provide for our needs. Being a disciple means putting following Him first in our lives.
When Jesus told the people who were following Him that they needed to believe and trust and have faith, eating His flesh and drinking His blood, many disciples became offended. They drew back and stopped following Him (Matthew 6:53-66). He asked the Twelve disciples, “Will you also go away?” (Matthew 6:67)
Simon Peter answered Him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words (the message) of eternal life. And we have learned to believe and trust, and [more] we have come to know [surely] that You are the Holy One of God, the Christ (the Anointed One), the Son of the living God” (Matthew 6:68-69).
Discipleship is a commitment that does not turn away no matter what happens. One has counted the cost and their whole heart is in the offering. Discipleship gives all to Jesus.
Commentary notes, “The essence of discipleship is to place all things in God’s hands. Jesus wants the crowds to understand this. Following Jesus is not a trivial matter. It is not how little you can give to God, but how much God deserves.” [7]
Discipleship requires full devotion and commitment. As commentary goes on to note, one cannot be a disciple if they are not fully devoted to God. [8] If there is something that one is holding back or saying in their heart, that cost would be too much - something that they are unwilling to put in the offering, they cannot be a disciple.
“You are everything that I live for…. You are everything I breathe for” sings in the background
Following Jesus is a life of death. One must deny their desires and wishes and follow after Jesus forsaking all else. In Matthew 16:24 Jesus told his disciples, “If anyone desires to be My disciple, let him deny himself [disregard, lose sight of, and forget himself and his own interests] and take up his cross and follow Me [cleave steadfastly to Me, conform wholly to My example in living and, if need be, in dying, also.]
“Here I am, all I have, take it all” sings in the background.
Jesus came not to do His own will and purpose but that of the kingdom of His fathers (John 6:38). In the same way, the disciples were called to let go of their own purposes and interests for kingdom purposes.
“And ever since I died to myself, You gave a better life to me” sings.
Paul said in 1 Cor. 15:31, “I die daily.” Paul no longer held on to his own interests. He gave them up and let the passion for Jesus’ kingdom fill him. He no longer did anything with his own purposes in mind. He gloried even in incredible difficulties and suffering to himself because he could see that through it Jesus was bringing His kingdom.
He told the church in Romans 14:7, “None of us lives to himself [but to the Lord], and none of us dies to himself [but to the Lord, for] if we live, we live to the Lord, and if we die, we die to the Lord. So then, whether we live or we die, we belong to the Lord. For Christ died and lived again for this very purpose, that He might be Lord both of the dead and of the living.”
The twelve diciples aslo gloried in their suffering when it brought the kingdom forward. They had left all to follow Jesus when they heard Him call. They looked to the things that are eternal and set their eyes heavenward rather than on the things of the world that “moths and rust cannot destroy, and thieves do not break in and steal” (Mttw. 6:30).
As disciples, we cannot hold onto anything or put anything before Jesus. Jesus says in Luke 14:26 "If anyone comes to me and does not hate his father and mother, his wife and children, his brothers and sisters--yes, even his own life--he cannot be my disciple.”
The disciples told Jesus in Matthew 19:27, “Behold, we have left [our] all and have become Your disciples [sided with Your party and followed You]. What then shall we receive?”
Jesus responded in Matthew 19:28, “Truly I say to you, in the new age (the Messianic rebirth of the world), when the Son of Man shall sit down on the throne of His glory, you who have [become My disciples, sided with My party and] followed Me will also sit on twelve thrones and judge the twelve tribes of Israel.”
Eventually, where following and leaving all led the disciples was not to rule and reign in this world like a king but to the foot of the cross. As noted in the sermon at my church last weekend, the day that Jesus was on the cross had to be the darkest day for the disciples. Their leader, rather than taking over, had died. But what they found was that His kingdom was much different than their thoughts and their desires.
Rather than being raised up on a throne, Jesus was raised up on a cross. Jesus told his disciples before his death, “You will all be offended and stumble and fall away because of Me this night [distrusting and deserting Me], for it is written, I will strike the Shepherd, and the sheep of the flock will be scattered.” (Matthew 26:31)
But their commitment to Jesus did not rest in their own hands. As long as they were willing to say yes in their hearts to Jesus, He turned their failures into learning and growing experiences along the way. He told them, “But after I am raised up [to life again], I will go ahead of you to Galilee”
Jesus sustains our commitment to Him. John 18:9 says, “This what He had said was fulfilled and verified, Of those whom You have given Me, I have not lost even one.”
In John 6:39 Jesus had said, “And this is the will of Him Who sent Me, that I should not lose any of all that He has given Me, but that I should give new life and raise [them all] up at the last day.”
As the lives of the disciples had to have seemed to be turned completely upside down by His death, Jesus held onto them with a grip that would not let them go. In John 17:12 Jesus told His Father, “While I was with them, I protected them and kept them safe by that name you gave me. None has been lost except the one doomed to destruction so that Scripture would be fulfilled.”
While Jesus allows us to go through difficulties and struggles so that we can grow and become more like Him, He will also see us through them. We can trust that Jesus will deliver us in all our difficulties and struggles, bringing Himself glory.
Psalm 91:14-16 says, “Because he has set his love upon Me, therefore will I deliver him; I will set him on high, because he knows and understand My name [has a personal knowledge of My mercy, love, and kindness –trusts and relies on Me, knowing I will never forsake him, no never]. He shall call upon Me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble, I will deliver him and honor him. With long life will I satisfy him and show him My salvation.”
Jesus never let any of the disciples out of His hand. When Peter was sifted by Satan, Jesus had interceded for him. Jesus told Peter in Luke 32:21-22, “Simon, Simon, Satan has asked to sift you as wheat. But I have prayed for you, Simon, that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned back, strengthen your brothers."
“Where would I be without someone to save me, someone who won’t let me fall?” sings in the background.
And whenever the disciples strayed back towards the world or their old ways, Jesus came to get them. Jesus was faithful not to leave them in their wonderings, but bring them back into alignment with His will. Jesus knew exactly what was needed in every circumstance.
After Jesus was crucified, the disciples shut themselves in behind closed doors for fear of the Jews (John 20:19). Jesus came to them and called them to have peace. He showed them his hands and side. He told them, “[Just] as the Father has sent Me forth, so I am sending you.” Having said this, “He breathed on them and said to them, Receive the Holy Spirit!” (John 20:21-22)
“Sing a song of hope, sing along, God of heaven come down, heaven come down” sings.
When the disciples went back to fishing, Jesus again revealed Himself to them at the Sea of Tiberias. They were fishing and not catching a thing all night. Jesus yelled out to them to cast their net on the right side of the boat. When they did, they were not able to haul it in because the catch was so big (John 21:6).
They realized it was Jesus and John cried out, It is the Lord! When Peter heard this he jumped into the sea and swam back to shore to see Him. Then as they all came back to shore, Jesus had breakfast with them.
Jesus was not just having a causual breakfast, He was calling them back to follow Him. He knew just what they needed at the time to be encourged. Jesus turned to Peter and asked Him, Peter, do you love Me? When Peter responded that of course he did, Jesus told him to feed His sheep. (John 21:7-17)
Jesus called Peter once again to follow Him, laying down his life and his own agenda for kingdom purposes. He went on to tell Peter in John 21:18, “I assure you, most solemnly I tell you, when you were young you girded yourself [put on your own belt or girdle] and you walked about wherever you pleased to go. But when you grow old you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will put a girdle around you and carry you where you do not wish to go.”
John 21:19 goes on to say that Jesus said this “to indicate by what kind of death Peter would glorify God. And after this, He said to him, Follow Me!”
Coming back to what I wrote earlier, disciples are called to fully lay down their own agenda and live solely for kingdom purposes. In Matthew 16:24 Jesus said to his disciples, "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.”
And Paul says in 2 Corinthians 5:15, “And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again.”
As disciples we are His servants and do not have rights of our own. Paul says in Philippians 1:5-8, “Let this same attitude and purpose and [humble] mind be in you which was in Christ Jesus: [Let Him be your example in humility:]
Who, although being essentially one with God and in the form of God [possessing the fullness of the attributes which make God God], did not think this equality with God was a thing to be eagerly grasped or retained, But stripped Himself [of all privileges and rightful dignity], so as to assume the guise of a servant (slave), in that He became like men and was born a human being. And after He had appeared in human form, He abased and humbled Himself [still further] and carried His obedience to the extreme of death, even the death of the cross!”
And as disciples, God grants us “[the privilege] for Christ’s sake not only to believe in (adhere to, rely on, and trust in) Him, but also to suffer in His behalf.” (Phil. 1:29) Peter tells the church in 1 Peter 2:21, “To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps.”
We can expect to have trials and tribulations in this world (John 16:33). And as disciples of Jesus, we will be persecuted. Jesus says in John 15:20, “Remember the words I spoke to you: 'No servant is greater than his master.' If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also. If they obeyed my teaching, they will obey yours also.”
Jesus never shrunk back form kingdom purposes because of persecution. And as His disciples we are called to the same. We are not to avoid suffering and persecution, looking how to escape, but look to Jesus on how to be faithful in the midst of it.
In Revelation 2:13, Jesus told the church of Pergamum, “I know where you live –a place where Satan sits enthroned. [Yet] you are clinging to and holding fast My name, and you did not deny My faith, even in the days of Antipas, My witness, My faithful one, who was killed (martyred) in your midst –where Satan dwells.”
We are to entrust ourselves to our Savior. In John 16:33, he says about tribulations we will experience in the world, “ But take heart! I have overcome the world." As we look to Him, we too will overcome by His power. It is not by our strength but by His. He is faithful to take us through.
Revelation 12:11 says about those who were accused by Satan day and night, “They overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony; they did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death.”
Disciples are also called to love in all circumstances. Jesus says in John 13:35 “By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another."
And John says in 1 John 3:14 “We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love our brothers. Anyone who does not love remains in death."
“Give me your love for humanity” sings in the background.
Love is more than just words, love gives itself away for others benefit. James 2:16 says, "If one of you says to him, 'Go, I wish you well; keep warm and well fed," but does nothing about his physical needs, what good is it?" Love is willing to take action and move towards others, helping them in their time of need.
And love generously forgives and hopes the best of people, alwasy seeking reconciliation. We cannot chose to be a disciple and at the same time refuse to forgive, love and reconcile with our brothers. A disciple cannot claim the right to hold onto unforgiveness because of a harm done by another. 1 John 4:20 If anyone says, "I love God," yet hates his brother, he is a liar. For anyone who does not love his brother, whom he has seen, cannot love God, whom he has not seen.”
We are not only to love those who love us but those who are our enemies and who hate us. Jesus tells us in Matthew 5:43-46, “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven; for He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. For if you love those who love you, what reward have you? Do not even the tax collectors do the same?”
Lord, forgive me where I have said I wanted to follow you with my lips but I did not want to pay the cost. On occasion I have refused to lay down my own rights, refused to forgive someone who caused me harm and failed to pray for those who have persecuted me. I have thought you were treating me unfairly and sometimes even complained when You were calling me to follow You. And I have failed to love others well. The more I try to follow You, the more I realize that I cannot do it in my own strength.
Thank You for your faithfulness! You do not demand performance from us but come and get us and help us to follow You. Your love is amazing! As the song sings, “Where would I be without someone to save me, someone who won’t let me fall?” We long to be your disciples and truly follow You and give You all. Would you empower us by Your Spirit to follow You.
1-2. Maxwell, John. Leadership Wired Article January 2012. Passion: The Fuel of Persistance. Located at: http://www.johnmaxwell.com/products-resources/leadership-on-demand/articles/passion-the-fuel-of-persistence/ Last Accessed: 1/8/2012.
3-4, 7-8. Radmacher, Earl D. ; Allen, Ronald Barclay ; House, H. Wayne: Nelson's New Illustrated Bible Commentary. Nashville : T. Nelson Publishers, 1999, S.
5-6. Youngblood, Ronald F. ; Bruce, F. F. ; Harrison, R. K. ; Thomas Nelson Publishers: Nelson's New Illustrated Bible Dictionary. Nashville : T. Nelson, 1995
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)