The Power of Stuff

The apostle Paul makes a fascinating statement in Romans 1:24-25. In Romans 1, Paul outlines a case against humanity, who has rejected what God has revealed of himself in nature. Since man chose to worship nature instead of God himself, God allowed man to do so. According to Paul, man had the opportunity to worship God, but preferred to worship nature instead. Paul’s words reminded me of a video I recently saw on You Tube. One of the channels I enjoy is Jay Leno’s Garage. I enjoy gaining insight on cars and the automotive industry that Jay brings on his weekly episodes. On a recent episode, Jeff Dunham was on with his Ford Econoline van. As Jay and Jeff drove along, Jeff shared some wisdom that his father had given to him. Jeff told Jay that everything we have is either a tool or an idol. When we examine our relationship with our possessions we realize that there is truth in what Jeff’s father told him. Our possessions either serve us or we serve them. We choose our relationship with our possessions. This is what Paul is saying in relationship to man and God. Man either worships God or he ends us worshiping something else. Man will worship something. If he chooses not to worship God, then he will worship something created, which in Paul’s argument in Romans 1 is idolatry.

Jeff Dunham’s comment to Jay Leno, alongside Paul’s words to the Romans teach us the same lesson. What is our relationship to our possessions? Do they serve us, or do we serve them? If we discover that we are actually serving our possessions, then what are we going to do about that situation?

Evaluating Expectations

After breaking the bread and drinking from the cup, Jesus took his disciples to the Mount of Olives, where he told them they would all be scandalized because of him. Although they denied it, later that night they all would be. Peter was most vehement in his denial, so Jesus told him exactly what he would do, but more than that all the disciples lost faith in Jesus. While he was alive they all believed he was the Messiah, but after his death, they all doubted whether he was. This was revealed by the statement of Cleopas in Luke when they, not knowing they were speaking to Jesus, told him that they had thought Jesus was the Messiah, implying that they no longer did because he had died.

The disciples’ example reveals to us how powerful our expectations of the future can be in our thinking. Jesus told his disciples on a number of occasions that he would be arrested, killed and rise again on the third day. While they questioned what rising from the dead meant, they understood and even opposed the idea that he would be killed. Their presuppositions of the Messiah and what the Kingdom of God would be like prevented them from accepting the truth. In some way they heard the words and explained them away or spiritualized them so that their conclusions were so different that when this all literally took place they began to doubt who Jesus was. The disciples held their theology so tightly, that it prohibited them from accepting the truth. While we all have expectations of the future and what God is doing and will do, we should hold those expectations and even theological positions lightly in order to be open to course corrections in our expectations and even parts of our theology, particularly end time theology. We do not want to be like the disciples whose faith was temporarily shaken because kingdom reality didn’t agree with their theology of the kingdom of God.

Walking in the Light

The story of Judas Iscariot, the disciple who betrayed Jesus, is an illustrative one to us. First we know from John’s gospel that he had a love for money. John revealed that as the group’s treasurer, he stole from the money bag. So it should not be surprising to us, that he offered his services to the religious leaders for money, receiving thirty pieces of silver. What is curious is at the Passover meal, Jesus revealed to all the disciples that one of them would betray him. All denied it. Jesus declared that for that one it would have been better had he never been born. Matthew records an interesting exchange between Jesus and Judas. When, like the others, Judas denied being the one, Jesus confronted him and declared to him that yes, he was the one.

At that moment, Judas had a choice, he could have confessed and repented of what he was about to do. He could have returned the money to the leaders. Only afterwards were his eyes opened to what he had done; he did return the money, but overcome with guilt and shame he took his own life. In his compassion, Jesus had offered Judas a way out. He revealed that what Judas was doing was no secret; he was found out. Jesus offered to him an opportunity to confess. Tragically, Judas didn’t respond. Judas reveals a tragic human condition, a commitment to hide who we truly are and our need for confession. We seek to pretend to be someone who are are not, to be better than we really are. We hide our weaknesses and failures, hoping no one sees. However, Jesus and often many others perceive who we really are, yet we continue to hide. Like he did with Judas, Jesus offers to us a way out. He invites us to live in the light, as he is in the light; that is to live authentic lives. He invites us not to pretend to be someone we are not. When we hurt, he invites us to talk about it. When we’ve made poor decisions in our life, he invites us to confess and be healed from the pain of them. It is often our pride that holds us back, but we need to set that pride aside and live in freedom.

Speaking Truth

Jesus taught his disciples that when speaking their “yes” was to be “yes” and their “no” was to be “no”. He went on to explain that if they made a vow it was valid and to be kept. Later when addressing the religious leaders of his day, he rebuked them for their teaching the people that if they made a vow on the temple it was invalid, but if they made it on the gold in the temple it was valid. Jesus pointed out that they were foolish, because it was the temple itself that made the gold in it holy. In other words, Jesus showed them that if they made an oath it was to be honored.

Jesus’ teaching implies that we have a problem with our speech. It raises the question of “why”? Why should we ever need to make a vow or an oath? Could it be that our “yes” doesn’t always mean “yes”? Sometimes we have to make a promise or take an oath, to communicate to others that this time we really mean “yes”. That is a problem. Have you ever noticed that throughout the Gospels, we never see Jesus making an oath or a vow? Jesus never had to because everyone who heard him speak knew that he always spoke the truth, so that an oath was unnecessary or redundant. When Jesus told us to let our “yes” be “yes” and our “no” to be “no”, he meant for us to live in a manner similar to the way he lived.

Understanding God

After Jesus descended from the mountain of transfiguration, he encountered a father, whose son was afflicted by a demon. Jesus dealt with the demon and healed the boy. When the disciples asked Jesus about their inability to cast it out, he said it was their little faith, which raises the question of how was their faith little? Jesus’ response reveals how their faith was small. They clearly had faith that Jesus could heal the boy. However, their faith was small in that they weren’t completely sure that they could heal in all situations like Jesus. Then Jesus said that if they had the faith even as small as a mustard seed, nothing would be impossible for them. Jesus’ statement must be qualified because Jesus did his works in accordance with his Father’s will. Jesus lived and acted out of relationship with our heavenly Father, not according to his own understanding, but out of his relational knowledge of his Father. In other words, nothing will be impossible for us, as long as we are doing what our heavenly Father has directed and led us to do. Again, this brings up another question. How do we know what our heavenly Father wants us to do? The response to this is a relational one. We get to know others, co-workers, our spouse, our children and our friends, by spending time with them, talking with them and doing things together. As we do, we discover their likes and dislikes, as we learn who they are. As we do, we adjust our behavior in order to please those we love. In a similar way, we need to spend time with our heavenly Father, discovering what it is that he desires so that we can live according to his desires for us and for others. Jesus’ promise is that as we live out of a growing relationship with our heavenly Father, then nothing will be impossible for us. Of course Jesus did this perfectly, because of the depth of relationship with our Father. We on the other hand are in the process of learning, growing and maturing in our relationship with God our Father. At times, we fail to realize who we are and we want God or Jesus to do what he wants and has empowered us to do. This is how God’s people operated in the Old Testament. They understood themselves to be God’s servants so they looked to God to do what needed to be done. Then came Jesus, who modeled how we as sons and daughters of the living God are to live. We are to live like Jesus and leave behind how God’s people lived in the Old Testament. Our failures can come when we fall back into an Old Testament mode of operating instead of embracing how Jesus has taught us to live. Our “little faith” can be revealed in our immature understanding of what our heavenly Father is doing in any given situation.

No Need to Hide

The transfiguration can be understood as a fulfillment of Jesus’ previous word that some would see him coming into his kingdom. Before Peter, James and John, Jesus shone like the sun and his clothes became white like light. Elijah and Moses also appeared with him. When a cloud enveloped the three disciples, a voice informed them that Jesus was his beloved son, then the disciples fell down in fear. However, after Jesus touched them and they looked up, Jesus was alone with them. His first words to them were not to be afraid. A similar response is seen in Revelation, when John encountered Jesus standing in the middle of the lampstands. When John fell down as a dead man, Jesus touched him and told him not to be afraid. Throughout Scripture fear is a common response to God’s presence in our lives. While the sight is obviously overwhelming, Jesus’ common response to the disciples not to be afraid reminds us that it is not necessary or even pleasing to God for us to fall down in fear at his appearance. Moses and Elijah also had similar responses when they encountered the presence of God. Although they did not fall down in fear, they did hid their faces. We need to remember the type of fear that the disciples exhibited is not the same as what we are taught in Scripture as “the fear of the Lord”. “The fear of the Lord” refers to respect and honor, which are appropriate, but not terror which overwhelms us and our strength abandons us. Although it may be a normal reaction for us to be overwhelmed and fearful in the presence of God, we should remind ourselves that Scripture teaches us that perfect love drives out fear. While it is appropriate to fall down in worship, fear has no part of that worship. In other words, because of Jesus’ great love for us there is no longer any need for us to hide ourselves from him. Fear and shame have been defeated!

Life’s Challenges

The episode of Jesus and Peter walking on the water illustrates how we often live our lives. After sending the disciples in the boat to cross the lake, Jesus sent the crowds away and retired to a mountain to pray. In the middle of the night, as the disciples were struggling to cross against a contrary wind and waves, Jesus began walking on the sea. When the disciples saw Jesus, they assumed he was a ghost, but Jesus reassured them, telling them not to fear and to have courage. However, Peter called out to him saying that if it truly was him to call him out so that he could walk to him on the water. Jesus commanded him to come, so Peter stepped out of the boat and began walking to Jesus. While Peter looked at Jesus, he walked on the water, until he began looking at the waves all around him and he began to sink. When he cried out to Jesus to save him, Jesus reached out and pulled him up, asking him why his faith was so little.

As followers of Jesus, we are called to live our lives in communion with him; however Jesus warned us that we would encounter tribulation, literally pressure in our life, but to take courage, because Jesus has overcome the world. Courage is what Jesus tells us to have and it is what he told the disciples to have that stormy night. As long as we practice what Jesus said, that we trust him and exercise courage as we daily live with him, we are fine. However, we tend not to do that, we tend to look at the problems, or the tribulation as Jesus put it, and we become anxious. We begin running all kinds of “what if” scenarios over and over in our minds and our anxiety increases. This is what Peter did as he walked on the water, he began looking at the waves, which in this case was his problem, and he began to consider what might happen to him. Then he began to sink. That is also what happens to us when we begin to focus on the problems around us. Our problem is not really the problem itself, but our focus is misplaced. It is not that we are unaware of the problems, rather we don’t focus on them. Instead we keep looking to Jesus and expecting the solution to come from him. As we learn to live in this manner, anxiety is greatly reduced in our life. More than that, the more that we mature to the point of actually believing what Jesus said, our trials can become points of excitement as we see them as opportunities to see Jesus’ power revealed in the solutions to those trials.

Withholding Judgment

When Jesus healed a demonized blind and mute man, the people wondered if he was the son of David, that is the Messiah, but the Pharisees shut them down saying that he cast out demons by the power of Beelzebub, the chief of demons, that is by Satan. Jesus easily demonstrated the error of their argument. First, if Satan were casting out Satan, then he was destroying his own kingdom. Second, if Jesus cast out demons by Satan, then by what power did the Pharisees also cast out demons? Jesus, implied that the Pharisees themselves accessed the same power he did in order to cast out demons. Then Jesus revealed how it was done. The strong man, Satan, had to be bound first, before his house could be plundered. Jesus implied that Satan had already been bound, so that Jesus and others could cast out demons. Finally Jesus explained the consequences of the Pharisees’ conclusions, that they were committing blasphemy against the Holy Spirit. They thought they were only criticizing/condemning Jesus, but in fact they were attributing the activity of the Holy Spirit manifested through Jesus to Satan himself. Jesus clarified that this sin would not be forgiven, while all sin against Jesus himself could be forgiven. The question of this is why?

We know from Scripture, that no one can come to Jesus without the drawing of the Holy Spirit, but if that very drawing and testimony is viewed to be of Satan, then it is impossible for that person to repent, because of the magnitude of their deception. In other words, if a person sees the light, but concludes that it is actually darkness and therefore rejects the light he remains in true darkness. By so doing, that person prevents himself from actually living in the light. This is what the Pharisees were doing, by their rejection of the light of the Holy Spirit, they were choosing to remain in darkness, hence their sin would not be forgiven.

What does this mean for us? There may be times when we fail to comprehend what the Spirit of God is doing. Before placing judgment on that activity or what someone may be doing, we should seek to gain further understanding. This might mean further study of Scripture and will surely mean seeking wisdom in prayer to understand or at least know how to respond to what is taking place, rather than declaring something demonic or heretical just because it doesn’t fit with our theological paradigm. Throughout church history much damage has been done to the body of Christ, because one group of Christians has condemned the practice or beliefs of others, simply because they didn’t agree or didn’t understand what the Spirit of God was doing.

Moving Past the Status Quo

The Pharisees’ claim that Jesus cast out demons by the power of the prince of demons reveals the absurd lengths to which unbelief will go. Jesus’ response demonstrated the absurdity of this explanation. If Satan were attacking his own forces then how could his kingdom stand? One’s forces are only attacked by an opposing force, which in this case was Jesus. Jesus’ power over demons demonstrated that the Kingdom of God had come and was establishing its power over the kingdom of darkness. The people understood this, but the educated refused to accept it. This is often the case, because the educated are invested so heavily in the status quo. A change in the status quo meant that their positions were now at risk. In opposing Jesus, these Pharisees were actually promoting the continuation of Satan’s domain, rather than joining Jesus in bringing it down. This is the problem with the educated, who become comfortable with their situation that they fail to see how change can bring about something unprecedented and good, because they fear losing what they have. In so doing, they can end up supporting what they once opposed to keep what they currently know and have.

If we are to continue to grow, it also means that we must consider the possibility that our current understanding is inadequate and in need of growth. As the Pharisees illustrate, it is comfortable for all of us to maintain the status quo in our lives, because we have grown accustomed to it. Change requires effort and exploring the unknown, which can and often does produce discomfort, but growth is also one of the great joys of following Jesus. While he does lead us into the unknown, he will not lead us their by ourselves, he will go with us. If the great joy of the Christian life is knowing Jesus, and it is, then allowing Jesus to lead us into unknown territory will also provide us a new opportunity to know him better. Therefore we should never allow the discomfort of change or the realization that our current understanding of God’s kingdom is inadequate to stop us from continuing to follow Jesus.

The Way of Transformation

After Jesus called Matthew to follow him, he went to his house and ate with him and other tax collectors. The Pharisees were offended by Jesus’ action, because they operated on an Old Testament paradigm that they would be defiled if they associated with sinners. With the coming of Jesus, that view became upside down. Jesus willingly associated with sinners; he touched lepers and others who were sick with fevers and other diseases with no fear of being defiled or becoming sick. Jesus’ example revealed the right-side up view of the Kingdom of God. It is never wrong to care for the needy or the sick, there is no longer any fear of being defiled by another person, because the only way we can be defiled is if we defile ourselves. This is what Jesus addressed in the Sermon on the Mount, that we are only defiled from our own hearts that generate wicked behavior. When Jesus addresses our hearts, then we no longer have to worry about our behavior, because our behavior flows from what is in our hearts.

Solomon advised wise counsel when he wrote to guard our hearts because it is the wellspring of life (Proverbs 4:23). This is also why Augustine would later write, to love God and do as you please. While Augustine’s statement is counterintuitive is does reflect the transformation of Jesus’ Kingdom in our lives. Our love for God changes our heart’s desires so that what we please is also what pleases God. We can do what we please, because what we desire is what God’s also desires, because his Spirit has transformed and continues to transform our hearts. The Pharisees followed an outside to inside mode of transformation, which doesn’t work, because our behavior cannot transform our heart. On the other hand, as we cooperate with the Holy Spirit in heart transformation, our behavior is also transformed. Jesus revealed an inside to outside transformation, which then transforms our life and impacts those around us.