Which did the will of his father?
Since my post called “The church meets here…“, I’ve been thinking about serving others. One of the passages of Scripture that keeps coming to mind is the following:
“What do you think? A man had two sons. And he went to the first and said, ‘Son, go and work in the vineyard today.’ And he answered, ‘I will not,’ but afterward he changed his mind and went. And he went to the other son and said the same. And he answered, ‘I go, sir,’ but did not go. Which of the two did the will of his father?” They said, “The first.” Jesus said to them, “Truly, I say to you, the tax collectors and the prostitutes go into the kingdom of God before you.” (Matthew 21:28-31 ESV)
I’ve been meditating on this Scripture in the context of several commands that Jesus gave us that would parallel with the command in this parable: “Go and work in the vineyard”.
Consider the following texts:
“Thus says the LORD of hosts, Render true judgments, show kindness and mercy to one another, do not oppress the widow, the fatherless, the sojourner, or the poor, and let none of you devise evil against another in your heart.” (Zechariah 7:9-10 ESV)
And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.” (Matthew 22:37-40 ESV)
Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. (Matthew 28:19-20 ESV)
Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.” To the contrary, “if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; for by so doing you will heap burning coals on his head.” Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good. (Romans 12:19-13:1 ESV)
If anyone thinks he is religious and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his heart, this person’s religion is worthless. Religion that is pure and undefiled before God and the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world. (James 1:26-27 26 ESV)
So, why did I list all of these passages? Because I don’t like what happens when I think of these commands in the context of Jesus’ parable in Matthew 21:28-31. When I think about this commands, I think I am more like the son who says he will obey, but then never does.
Meanwhile, I see unbelievers who are actually doing what Jesus said to do.
Was Jesus serious when he said, “Truly, I say to you, the tax collectors and the prostitutes go into the kingdom of God before you”? Could it apply to those of us who are religious today? Or does it only apply to the chief priests and elders to whom Jesus originally spoke the parable?
Before we dismiss how applicable this may be to us, remember that the chief priests and elders thought that they were orthodox as well. They had all the right answers.
Accept one another…
Can we accept one another?
This is an interesting concept that is mentioned three times in Romans. Look at the various translations of Romans 15:7 –
Therefore welcome one another as Christ has welcomed you, for the glory of God. (ESV)
Therefore receive one another, just as Christ also received us, to the glory of God. (NKJV, cf. KJV, NET)
Therefore, accept one another, just as Christ also accepted us to the glory of God. (NASB, cf. NIV, NLT, HCSB)
All of these English versions are translating the Greek word Ï€Ïοσλαμβάνω (“proslambanÅ“). According to a standard Greek lexicon (BDAG), Ï€Ïοσλαμβάνω carries a range of meanings: 1) to take something that meets a personal need (take, partake of), 2) to promote one’s own ends (exploit, take advantage of), 3) to take or lead off to oneself (take aside), 4) to extend a welcome (receive into one’s home or circle of acquaintances), or 5) to take or bring along with oneself (take along). According to the lexicon, all of the uses of Ï€Ïοσλαμβάνω in Romans fall into definition 4 above: to extend a welcome (receive into one’s home or circle of acquaintances).
Here are the other uses of Ï€Ïοσλαμβάνω (“proslambanÅ“) in Romans:
As for the one who is weak in faith, welcome (accept / receive) him, not to quarrel over opinions. (Romans 14:1 ESV)
Let not the one who eats despise the one who abstains, and let not the one who abstains pass judgment on the one who eats, for God has welcomed (accepted / received) him. (Romans 14:3 ESV)
Interestingly, in each case, the “accepting” or “receiving” is carried out in spite of differences. Therefore, even though someone disagrees with me, if that person is a brother or sister in Christ, I am supposed to receive that person into my home or circle of acquaintances. Why? Because that is the way that Christ received us (Rom. 15:7).
Have we forgotten what we were like when Christ received us? Read through the first few verses of Ephesians 2 if you have forgotten. There was nothing in us to deserve acceptance. In fact, we deserved (and still deserve on our own) condemnation – punishment – judgment. This is the definition of grace. We were accepted by God in spite of the fact that we were unacceptable.
Now, we are to accept or receive others in the same way – that is, in the same way that Christ accepted us. We can only accept one another (as they are) when we realize that there is nothing in us that makes us better than anyone else, nothing that makes us acceptable. As long as we think that we are better than others, then we do not accept them. As long as we expect something from others, then we do not accept them. As long as we value people for what they do for us, then we do not accept them. As long as we love, care for, and welcome only those who agree with us, then we do not accept them.
When we can learn to accept someone who is not worthy of being accepted, then we will begin to understand what it means to accept someone as Christ accepted us. When we accept someone even when they can offer us nothing, then we truly accept them. When we accept someone that does not love or accept us in return, then we truly accept them. When we accept someone in spite of our differences, then we truly accept them.
Unfortunately, many within the church continue to value people for the work that they do, or their intelligence, or their talents, or the time they have to put into church projects. Some are accepted because they can speak well. Some are accepted because they can sing well or play an instrument. Some are accepted because they have money to give. Some are accepted because they have a nice home and drive a nice car. Some are accepted because they can organize projects. This is not acceptance, at least not in the way that Christ accepted us.
If we accept the one who cannot speak well, and who cannot sing or play an instrument, and who has no money to give, and who is homeless or always needs a ride, and who cannot organize projects…
If we look at a brother or sister and recognize that Christ has accepted them and if we accept them as well with no strings attached, then we are learning to accept one another as Christ accepts us. And, according to Romans 15:7, this brings glory to God.
So, who are you welcoming into your home and into your circle of acquaintances? Are you “accepting” others as Christ accepts you?
Two Marys…
First, I want to welcome Mary to the blogosphere. Mary has commented several times here, and I always find her comments encouraging and challenging. Her blog is called “One Thing is Needed“. Her first post, “On Being Stupid – Revisited“, is worth reading.
Also, Bryan at “Charis Shalom” has a post about another Mary called “There’s Just Something about Mary“. Bryan calls us back to a life of loving God, like Mary:
Oh that the Church would wake up to the reality of the fact that God loves us and expects nothing more and nothing less of us than that we be lovers of Him. The lover of our souls yearns for us to sit at His feet and love Him in return. He writes us love songs (the Song of Solomon), and He doesn’t need us to run around, being Martha, trying to do, do, do. He has plenty of servants, as many as He needs. But He desires friends, lovers, Marys. When we begin to live in this reality it will revolutionize how we live and it will draw others to Him.
I hope you enjoy reading about these two Marys.
Do we want to be associated with a Samaritan?
The greatest commandment, according to Jesus, is to love God. The second greatest commandment, which is like the first, is to love your neighbor as yourself. According to Jesus, the Law and the Prophets depend on these two commandments: love God and love your neighbor (Matthew 22:37-40).
But he [a lawyer], desiring to justify himself, said to Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?” Jesus replied, “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he fell among robbers, who stripped him and beat him and departed, leaving him half dead. Now by chance a priest was going down that road, and when he saw him he passed by on the other side. So likewise a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan, as he journeyed, came to where he was, and when he saw him, he had compassion. He went to him and bound up his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he set him on his own animal and brought him to an inn and took care of him. And the next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper, saying, ‘Take care of him, and whatever more you spend, I will repay you when I come back.’ Which of these three, do you think, proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell among the robbers?” He said, “The one who showed him mercy.” And Jesus said to him, “You go, and do likewise.” (Luke 10:29-37 ESV)
This is a sweet, little story that we tell to our children in order to motivate them to take care of people. But, as I was thinking through some of the comments to my post “All people will know that you are my disciples…“, this parable kept coming to mind. Specifically, I wondered, “Why would Jesus choose a Samaritan to be the good example?”
Yes, I know the standard answers: Samaritans and Jews did not get along with one another, so the Samaritan demonstrated love to someone who he was not expected to love. (Notice, for example, that the “lawyer” even refused to speak the name “Samaritan” instead calling the man “the one who showed him mercy”.) This is a great lesson. But, is that the extent of Jesus’ lesson?
Who were the Samaritans? This is how the wikipedia article on the Samaritans begins:
The Samaritans (Hebrew: ×©×•×ž×¨×•× ×™×), known in the Talmud as Kuthim, are an ethnic group of the Levant. Ethnically, they are descended from a group of inhabitants that have connections to ancient Samaria from the beginning of the Babylonian Exile up to the beginning of the Christian era. The Samaritans, however, derive their name not from this geographical designation, but rather from the term ×©Ö·×žÖ¶×¨Ö´×™× (Shamerim), “keepers [of the law]â€. Religiously, they are the adherents to Samaritanism, a religion based on the Torah. Samaritans claim that their worship (as opposed to mainstream Judaism) is the true religion of the ancient Israelites, predating the Jewish Temple in Jerusalem.
Notice that the Samaritans were different from the Jews with regard to ethnicity, but they were also different from the Jews with regard to beliefs. The Jews thought that the Samaritans held to incorrect doctrine, while the Samaritans thought that the Jews held to incorrect doctrines. They were separated by both ethnicity and beliefs.
Adding this to our understanding of Jesus’ parable, I find it remarkable that Jesus used a Samaritan to demonstrate God’s true love. Emphatically, Jesus has both a Levite and a priest pass by the injured man without stopping. Remember, the Levites and the priests were responsible for guarding the true faith of Judaism. They were responsible for taking care of the temple and the sacrifices. Jesus himself seemed to agree with the Levites and priests with respect to beliefs. So, why did Jesus not use one whose “doctrine” is correct to also demonstrate God’s love? Or, to ask this in a contemporary way, why did Jesus choose a heretic as an example of love? Could it be that the Samaritan’s love demonstrates that he understands (knows) God better than the Levite or priest?
Belief is important. Teaching is important. Doctrine is important. But belief, teaching, and doctrine separate from an active demonstration of the love of God is not truly from God. Could it be that God is more pleased with “doctrinal deviants” who nevertheless love others than he is pleased with “orthodox believers” who do not show his love?
In other words, could it be that what we say we believe is not a good indication that we are disciples of Christ? Could it be that how we live is a better indication that we are followers of Christ? (I need to point out a great quote that Isabel from “amateur” shared in the comments section of a previous post: “What I say I believe is not what I believe; what I believe is what I do.” -Donald Miller.)
Now, please do not misunderstand the purpose of the post. You can call me “soft on doctrine” if you’d like, but it would only show that you don’t know me. I am not suggesting that we stop studying Scripture. I am not suggesting that we stop discussing the meaning of certain difficult passages. I am not suggesting that we stop developing theology. Instead, I am suggesting that these activities are worthless if we do not live what we believe at the same time.
In the parable of the Good Samaritan, the Samaritan understood this, while neither the Levite nor the priest understood it. Perhaps it is time for us to associate with the Samaritan – who correctly demonstrated God’s love – instead of the Levite and priest – who only had a correct system of beliefs without demonstrating God’s love.
All people will know that you are my disciples…
A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another. (John 13:34-35 ESV)
According to David Kinnaman, from the Barna Group, 16-29 year olds have a very poor perception of the church. During a recent conference, Kinnaman presented some information that will be released in an upcoming book: unChristian: What a New Generation Really Thinks about Christianity and Why It Matters. (HT: Marty Duren) So, how do 16-29 years olds perceive Christians and the church?
antihomosexual-91%
judgemental-87%
hypocritical-85%
old-fashioned-78%
too involved in politics-75%
out of touch with reality-72%
insensitive to others-70%
Now, I have heard many people explain away these perceptions. Some say that we should not expect unbelievers to understand Christians or the church. Others suggest that the church and the world have different priorities and concerns. There are probably many other explanations as to why the world would see Christians and the church as judgmental, hypocritical, and insensitive to others.
Regardless of how we try to explain away these perceptions, the fact remains that Jesus seemed to indicate that the world would be able to recognize Christians as disciples of Christ by their love for one another. Granted, this verse does not talk about our interaction with those who are not Christians, but I think the case could be made that believers are also called to serve and love and care for those who are unbelievers. If those who are unbelievers are supposed to be able to recognize us by our love, why is “love” not mentioned as one of their perceptions?< Why do those in this generation see Christians and the church as judgmental, hypocritical, and insensitive to others? Could it be that they hear our talk, but they do not see our walk? Could it be that our sermons condemn their actions, but our actions do not demonstrate the love of Christ? Do you think that they hear the Christian celebrities denouncing culture on CNN, but they do not see Christ's love from their neighbor? As I think through these questions, another verse keeps going through my mind: But God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. (Romans 5:8 ESV)
Could this be the same kind of love that God expects us to show to unbelievers? Does God expect us to love unbelievers (and demonstrate that love to them) even while they are sinners? From the perceptions listed above, it seems that unbelievers are not experiencing that kind of love from believers.
Can you believe the best?
A few days ago, I was discussing unity with a group of friends. (I talked about this briefly in a post called “S-A-T-U-R-D-A-Y Night“.) We talked about the attitudes and motives that are necessary to maintain unity in spite of disagreements. We also talked about attitudes and motives that hinder unity.
Ted, at “Jesus Community“, talks about one of the attitudes necessary for unity in his post called “thinking the best of others“. Why should we think the best of others? This is what Ted says:
We need to think the best of others. This seems to be in rhyme with the love spelled out for us in 1 Corinthians 13 that is to more and more characterize our lives. And this should be based, not on our confidence in another person so much- at least not as the basis of that confidence- but in our faith in God and his faithfulness and goodness to us in Christ. God is at work; he’s on our side. He’s there to help us in making us holy and good.
Can we trust God enough to trust others and believe the best about them? If we do, I think we would find it much more natural to live in the unity that we have in Christ.
There is something fundamental about fellowship…
Fellowship… There is something about fellowship that makes it fundamental to the church. When Jesus was asked to name the greatest commandment, he answered:
You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets. (Matthew 22:37-40 ESV)
There are at least two amazing things about this passage. First, Jesus did not stop with the commandment to “Love the Lord your God”. It would seem that commandment would be enough. Instead, he said there is a second command that is like it. Similarly, Jesus said that the Law and the Prophets depend on both of these commandments. Again, the Law and Prophets do not just depend on “Love the Lord your God”. The Law and the Prophets also depend on the commandment “Love your neighbor as yourself”.
There seems to be a fundamental connection between our relationship with God and our relationship with other people. John said something similar in his first letter:
Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love. (1 John 4:7-8 ESV)
This seems very simple. If we love God, we will love others. If we do not love others, that demonstrates that we do not love God. The two are fundamentally connected.
In the prologue to his first letter, John also discussed our relationship with God in terms of our relationship with one another:
That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we looked upon and have touched with our hands, concerning the word of life – the life was made manifest, and we have seen it, and testify to it and proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and was made manifest to us – that which we have seen and heard we proclaim also to you, so that you too may have fellowship (κοινωνία) with us; and indeed our fellowship (κοινωνία) is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ. (1 John 1:1-3 ESV)
When we have fellowship (κοινωνία – koinonia) with one another, we are demonstrating our fellowship with God. Verse 3 could even be translated as follows: “… that you too may have fellowship with us, and that fellowship of ours is truly with the Father and with his son Jesus Christ.”
We cannot separate our love for God from our love for other people. We cannot separate our fellowship with God from our fellowship with other believers. Fellowship is fundamental in the life of a believer and in the inter-connected lives of a group of believers.
But, just as we cannot create love for God and others, we cannot create fellowship either. Instead, the Spirit creates a bond between His adopted children that humans cannot create on their own. The fellowship (“sharing”) that we have in common is the presence of the Holy Spirit. And, this fellowship exists between all believers. Certainly relationships can be deep or shallow, intimate or surface-level, but fellowship between believers is created by the Spirit, not by our interaction with one another. Relationships that are based on this Spirit-created fellowship should be nurtured, strengthened, encouraged, and sought through continued interaction. But, those relationships must be built fundamentally on Spirit-created fellowship.
What does it mean for fellowship to be fundamental to believers and the church? Here are two examples:
Discipleship depends on fellowship…
When we recognize that discipleship is more than simply teaching facts to someone, then the fundamental role of fellowship becomes clear. Discipleship requires sharing life together. Without fellowship, discipleship is reduced to the transfer of information, which is not true discipleship at all.
Discipline depends on fellowship…
When a brother or sister is living in unrepentant sin, we are taught to disassociate with that brother or sister. In modern times this has been reduced to preventing attendance at certain activities. However, if there is true fellowship involved, then discipline requires the rupture of vibrant relationships: like divorce in a family, back when divorce was not an accepted option.
Fellowship… There is something about fellowship that makes it fundamental to the church. I want to learn more about fellowship. Perhaps others could share what they’ve learned about Spirit-enabled, Spirit-created, Spirit-driven fellowship…
Imagine all the people…
My family is studying Ephesians. Now, I know that some of you who know me well are laughing, because I LOVE to study Ephesians – it seems that I am ALWAYS studying Ephesians. Anyway, this is actually for a class assignment for which I have recruited my family to help.
We are supposed to read through Ephesians (and 1 Peter later) and answer the following question: “What do these texts say about faith as a way of life?”
As we were reading through chapter 2 of Ephesians, we noticed the emphasis on how God had created one new people from the Jews and Gentiles (Eph 2:14-16). This new people was to live as a family (household) and citizens of a new kingdom (Eph 2:19). Again, in chapter 3, Paul says that when Jews and Gentiles lives as one people (the church) they demonstrate the manifold wisdom of God (Eph 3:10). Paul also reminds us again that we are one family named for God, such that God is the patriarch of the family (Eph 3:14-15). He then calls us to strength, knowledge, and love (Eph 3:16-19).
We discussed how difficult it is for us to live with and love people who are different from us. Certainly the Jews and Gentiles found this kind of life difficult. Yet, God expects us to live as a family and to love one another – and not just any family, but His family – and not just with people who are like us, but with all believers, even if they are very different from us. How do we do that?
So, we did a quick exercise that really helped me, and hopefully it helped them. Maybe it will help you as well. Here is the exercise: Think of someone who is completely different from you. Think about their race, ethnicity, education level, economic level, hygiene, clothing, housing, language, culture, etc. Picture that person in your mind, and ask yourself, “How can I possibly love that person and live together as family with that person.” Then, read the end of Ephesians 3 below:
Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen. (Ephesians 3:20-21 ESV)
Certainly this passages applies to more than our living together in love with those who are different from us. But, it does apply to this as well. Because of God’s power at work in us, He is able to love someone through us that we would never love on our own.
How Should We Then Blog?
A couple of weeks ago, I published a post called “Blogging with love…” which pointed to another blogger’s suggestion that we pray before we comment.
Now, Gordon at “Heavenly Heartburn” has posted the second part of his series called “The Art of Christian Statesmanship“. He offers five principles that he tries to keep in mind when he debates or dialogs with others, even other bloggers. Consider principle 4:
4. I will remember that I am not perfect and still have much to learn. Just because I have believed something all my life does not mean that it is true. Truth is defined by God’s Word alone, and even the brightest of theologians can be mistaken. If they can be wrong, who am I to think I have a monopoly on truth? Along those same lines, I will try to remember that just because my opponent may be wrong on one point does not mean that he is wrong all the time.
This is a principle that I am also learning. There are many believers that do not agree with me on every point of Scripture. Can I learn from them? If not, there may be something wrong with me. Do I find that I only disagree with someone who is a brother or sister in Christ? If so, then once again there is probably something wrong with me, that is, with my relationship with Christ, and/or with my relationship with that brother or sister.
Blogging with love…
Dan at “Cerulean Sanctum” reminds us in his post called “Phileo Prayer for Godbloggers” that we need to treat each other (even other bloggers!) with love. He has a great suggestion:
So I was thinking, what if we consider a better response the next time we want to drop explosive missives just to teach some minor heretic bloggers a point or two about a divisive issue (that hasn’t been resolved in 2,000 of Church history by holier people than us). Instead of leaving a steaming, radioactive crater in their comment sections, we could e-mail them and request three specific needs in their lives we could pray for.
Perhaps Dan thinks that loving others is more important than proving yourself to be right? I think so too.
I have never had to deal with hostile commentors here. So far, everyone who has commented on my blog has seemed to be genuinely interested in growing in Christ and learning from one another. Even when there is disagreement, it has been addressed in humility and grace. For those who regularly comment here, I want to say, “Thank you!” I pray that God will be honored by our interactions here.