The Lambs Versus the Wolves
aGo now, and remember that I am sending you out as lambs among wolves.a Luke 10:3
In the professional sports world we have the Bears, the Lions, the Jaguars, the Ramsa"but never the Squirrels or the Lambs. There is something muscular, aggressive, and intimidating about the formera"those names command respect. But a sports team named the Squirrels or the Lambs would generate pity and concern and laughter.
The people of Jesusa time werenat into professional sports, but they still had an aggressive side and did not hesitate to impose their wills, like bears and lions, on others. This, however, did not concern Jesus. He frankly said that, as far as his men were concerned, they were about to be commissioned aas lambs among wolvesa (Luke 10:3). His team of witnesses was not called the Capernaum Cheetahs or the Jerusalem Jaguars. They were the Lambs, and their opponents in the first round were the Wolves. aNo contest,a you say. aIf it was a prize fight, the referees would stop it in the first round!a But Jesus knew better. Lambs they were to be, and wolves their opponents certainly were. But the difference was found in the statement, aI am sending youa (10:3). The secret of effective Christian ministry is not found in the extraordinary abilities of those who are sent, but rather in the sovereign authority of the one who sends. Without his sending, the seventy-two would never have ventured forth. And without the a.s.surance, aI have given you authority over all the power of the enemya (10:19), the Lambs would never have taken the field. But they did! And what was the final score? Lambs 72, Wolves 0.
Jesus was the one who achosea the seventy-two (10:1). He himself is the aLord who is in charge of the harvesta (10:2). He is the one to whom the disciples should apraya (10:2). He, and he alone, can adequately asenda people where they need to go to do what they must do. He is the one who gives instructions on the behavior of disciples, on ministry techniques, on the solemnity of the occasion, and on the urgency of the hour. It is to him that tired but excited disciples return, and it is from him that they hear the words, aDonat rejoice just because evil spirits obey you; rejoice because your names are registered as citizens of heavena (10:20).
What, then, is the role of those who are sent out by Jesus? It is to be willing to be propelled into the actiona"against all odds, sometimes against better judgment, and occasionally against concerted advice. Then their job is to proclaima"to let people know about Jesus and his kingdom. Their role is also to pray for reinforcements! Finally, they are to persevere. This way, the Lambs will rout the Wolves every time!
August 31
TO READ: Luke 10:25-37
Good Samaritans
aNow which of these three would you say was a neighbor to the man who was attacked by bandits?a Jesus asked. The man replied, aThe one who showed him mercy.a Then Jesus said, aYes, now go and do the same.a Luke 10:36-37
Generally speaking, the typical man in the street dislikes those who come across as aholier-than-thou.a He has little time for ado-gooders,a but he usually has a warm place in his heart for a agood Samaritan.a He likes the idea of Boy Scout-style behavior that helps old ladies across the road and runs errands for shut-ins. But is this really what Jesus had in mind when he told what is arguably his most famous story, the parable of the Good Samaritan? Hardly!
The context of the story is critical. aAn expert in religious law stood up to test Jesus by asking him this question: aTeacher, what must I do to receive eternal life?aa (Luke 10:25.) The Good Samaritan story was prompted by a question about eternal destiny and life in the hereafter, about eternal communion with or separation from G.o.d. Jesus responded by asking the expert for his understanding of Mosesa instructions to alove the Lord your G.o.d with all your heart, all your soul, all your strength, and all your minda and aLove your neighbor as yourselfa (10:27, see also Deut. 6:5; Lev. 19:18). The clear implication was that the way to eternal life is through absolutely meticulous and perfect fulfillment of the law. The legal expert retorted, because he wanted ato justify his actions, . . . aAnd who is my neighbor?aa (10:29). In response, Jesus told his story about the Good Samaritan. Jesus made it clear that the Samaritan was the model of neighborliness.
The aexperta in the law had, no doubt, tuned in to rabbinical teaching that conveniently limited the definition of aneighbora and aneighborlinessa to a select group of a.s.sociates. Jesus widened the definition to show that anyone can be a neighbor, and that neighborliness should be shown to everyone. Bleeding victims in the ditch are neighbors, and so are despised and ostracized Samaritans.
More significantly, Jesus pointed out that human effortsa"at neighborliness or anything else prescribed by the lawa"fall far short of meriting eternal life. Understanding this, a man is driven to gracea"his only hope of life eternal. Jesus insisted, in his run-ins with the legalists, that he had not acome to call the righteous but sinners to repentancea (Luke 5:31).
There is a pervasive idea in Western culture that a agood lifea in the here and now merits eternal life in the hereafter. But the parable about the Good Samaritan contradicts this dangerous misunderstanding. A clear word from the apostle Paul puts the matter beyond doubt: aThe wages of sin is death, but the free gift of G.o.d is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lorda (Rom. 6:23, emphasis added). Eternal life is about a free gift, not about a good life. But those who receive the gift will have a deep desire to live a good life. Just like the Samaritan!
September 1
TO READ: Luke 10:38a"11:13
The Barrenness of Busyness
The Lord said to her, aMy dear Martha, you are so upset over all these details! There is really only one thing worth being concerned about. Mary has discovered ita"and I wonat take it away from her.a Luke 10:41-42
Thereas danger in being idle. As Isaac Watts wrote: For Satan finds some mischief still For idle hands to do.32 Good honest work, quite apart from exercising muscles and putting food on the table, also acts as a deterrent against the temptations that cl.u.s.ter around an idle life. But if busyness is the antidote to idleness, we should be aware that thereas a sting in the tail of busyness, too.
Martha, the friend of Jesus, is a great example. No one can fault the lady for being busy when she found that Jesus and his hungry disciples had arrived for lunch. And her frustration with her sister who sat around talking when she could have been doing kitchen duty is perfectly understandable. But when Martha remonstrated with Jesus and suggested that he atell her to come and helpa (Luke 10:40), he replied that Mary had grasped something that Martha had overlooked. But what was it?
Martha is the patron saint of all those who are so busy that they donat have time to care for the nourishment of their own souls. What they are doing is necessary, important, helpfula"but ultimately destructive! As they expend physical and emotional energy, they neglect the infusion of spiritual power.
Mary knew better than to let this happen with her. She took an opportunity that was all too scarce for women in those days: to sit aat the Lordas feet, listening to what he taughta (10:39).
Put in the simplest of terms, busyness leads to barrenness. Busyness keeps us away from taking the time to read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest G.o.das Word. Being nourished by G.o.das Word is like a conversation between two friends who listen and respond to each other and are encouraged by the encounter. Spiritual nourishment flows to the life of the man who regularly takes time to listen to the Lord in his Word and then responds in prayer to what the Lord has said.
Of course, prayer that is based on G.o.das Word is more likely to be close to the mind of the Lord than prayer that comes purely from the self-interest of the one praying. This is clear from the prayer Jesus taught his disciples (11:1-4). This prayer is concerned first that the Lordas aname be honored,a then that his aKingdom come soon.a Then, and only then, prayer turns to legitimate matters of personal concerna"such as aour food day by day,a relationships where we sin and others sin aagainst us,a and spiritual issues such as atemptation.a It is true that the cure for idleness is busyness. But beware the barrenness of busyness that ignores the secret of blessedness.
September 2
TO READ: Luke 11:14-28
Missing the Point
You say I am empowered by the prince of demons. But if Satan is fighting against himself by empowering me to cast out his demons, how can his kingdom survive? . . . But if I am casting out demons by the power of G.o.d, then the Kingdom of G.o.d has arrived among you.
Luke 11:18, 20
Ever since the Supreme Court pa.s.sed down its decision in the case of Roe v. Wade, legalizing abortion in the United States, the subject has been one of an intense debate that shows no sign of abating. Those who favor the decision like to cla.s.sify the sides in the argument as those who are apro-choicea versus those who are aanti-abortion.a Their descriptive choices clearly indicate their biases! Why not describe the sides as those who are apro-lifea versus those who are aanti-babiesa?
The supporters of abortion frame the argument as a matter of freedom of choice on the part of women and a refusal to allow government to interfere in the most intimate areas of a personas (the womanas) life. In endeavoring to counter those arguments, one salient point is all too often overlookeda"or ignored. In the USA for three decades now, up to 1.5 million babies annually have had their lives ended and have been denied the right to live before they were even born! In other words, the argument for afreedom of choicea totally misses the point that 1.5 million people per year are being denied the freedom to choose!
Sometimes we become so wrapped up in a relatively minor aspect of an issuea"in this case, a womanas right to choosea"that we become blinded to a monumental aspect of the issuea"in this case, the extermination of millions of babies. But thereas nothing new about this strange human aberration. For example, Jesus performed miracles. Modern men tend to dismiss the accounts of the miracles, either by saying, aMiracles donat happen,a or by saying, aThe primitive people of Jesusa day didnat understand what we understand and they characterized as miracles what we now know were perfectly normal events which can be readily explained.a But no such argument took place among the eyewitnesses! They didnat doubt for a moment that Jesus performed miraclesa"they only debated how he did it. Some said, aNo wonder he can cast out demons. He gets his power from Satan, the prince of demons!a (Luke 11:15). Others, not so sure, played it safe and aasked for a miraculous sign from heavena (11:16).
Jesus quickly exposed the fallacies in the arguments of those who saw him as an amba.s.sador of Satan by asking the question, aIf Satan is fighting against himself by empowering me to cast out his demons, how can his kingdom survive?a (11:18.) Good point! Why would Satan, the prince of demons, spend his time and energy destroying demons? As Jesus said, aA kingdom at war with itself is doomeda (11:17).
Those who thought Jesus was being empowered by Satan were missing the point! The point was simply thisa"while they were arguing about how he performed the miracles, they were overlooking the fact that the miracles were demonstrating unambiguously that athe Kingdom of G.o.d [had] arriveda (11:20).
It is tragic to be arguing about freedom of choice and government interventiona"both legitimate concernsa"while missing the point that babies are dying. And it is disastrous to argue about miracles and miss the coming of the kingdom!
September 3
TO READ: Psalm 85
History and His Story
I listen carefully to what G.o.d the LORD is saying, for he speaks peace to his people, his faithful ones. But let them not return to their foolish ways.
Psalm 85:8
The pessimist says, aIf history teaches us anything, it teaches us that it doesnat teach us anything!a Depending on your point of view, this could be a statement condemning history to the garbage can and to all those who teach it to redundancy. Or it could be a sad statement concerning human obduracy and stupidity. Whichever way we interpret the aphorism, we need to reject its conclusion, because history rightly taught and properly learned is a repository of great truth that has immense value. For example, the person who believes that G.o.d is active in the affairs of men sees history as ahis storya and learns through it valuable lessons from him. History is all about the ways that the great Creator and Redeemer has acted, intervened, worked out his purposes, and revealed his true nature as years have succeeded years and centuries have rolled by into millennia.
It is certainly the case in G.o.das historic dealings with Israel that there are lessons to be learned. Those who have aeyes to seea can clearly discern the ways in which G.o.d was in control, even in the dark days of Israelas history. As a result, students of Israelas history, having looked back and pondered G.o.das activities in the past, have been equipped to look forward and antic.i.p.ate his activity in the future. The psalmist, for example, wrote joyfully about G.o.das historic dealings: aYou have poured out amazing blessings on your land! You have restored the fortunes of Israel. You have forgiven the guilt of your peoplea"yes, you have covered all their sinsa (Ps. 85:1-2). This was not wishful thinking and idle speculation on the part of the psalm writer. It was historically verifiable fact. G.o.d really had done all those things. Of this they could be surea"and they were!
Because the psalm writer was clear about the past, he was confident of the future. So he sang, aNow turn to us again, O G.o.d of our salvation. . . . Wonat you revive us again, so your people can rejoice in you?a (Ps. 85:4, 6). How could he possible ask this of the Lord? Because G.o.d had done it before! What G.o.d had been he would continue to be, and what he had done he would continue to do.
The psalmist had learned an important lesson: The G.o.d of history is the G.o.d of todaya"and of tomorrow. So confident was the psalm writer that his prayers would be answered that he began to speak of them as if they had already been fulfilled. aUnfailing love and truth have met together. Righteousness and peace have kissed!a (85:10). With great confidence he added, aOur land will yield its bountiful cropsa (85:12). He had learned G.o.das ways from history, and he could see what was coming.
History is not an endless succession of meaningless events, nor is it a continuous cycle of empty repet.i.tion. It is the story of the G.o.d of heaven at work on earth! And it is a treasure trove of wisdom for those who learn its lessons.
September 4
TO READ: 1 Samuel 1:1-28
Promise Keeping
aI asked the LORD to give me this child, and he has given me my request. Now I am giving him to the LORD, and he will belong to the LORD his whole life.a And they worshiped the LORD there.
1 Samuel 1:27-28
Promises made in times of intense anguish sometimes fade from the memory once the anguish has been a.s.suaged. G.o.d, a man might pray, if youall only bring my wife back home, I promise Iall never abuse her again. Or, Lord, if you help me find a job, I promise Iall never touch a drop of liquor again. Or, Father, if youall only get this plane down safely, Iall devote the rest of my life to being a missionary or a monk or something. Just so long as we land safely. Weave all heard prayers like thisa"or prayed them ourselves!
The problem with promises like these is that they are rarely born of convictiona"they tend more to be matters of convenience. As we donat like to be inconvenienced, we resort to various techniques to avoid it, even to the point of striking an empty bargain with the Almighty. But paying the dues, or fulfilling our part of the abargain,a can become another source of inconvenience. So payment is often rationalized into oblivion. Granted, there are exceptions. Martin Luther, having survived an encounter with lightning, followed through on his promise and did become a monk! But such men are the exception rather than the rule.
Hannah was another great exception. In her deep desire to bear a child, she prayed earnestly and promised, aO Lord Almighty, if you will look down upon my sorrow and answer my prayer and give me a son, then I will give him back to you. He will be yours for his entire lifetimea (1 Sam. 1:11). In her case, the dedication of her boy to the Lord would be more than a brief ritual. He would leave home and be placed in the care of an old priest whose own family was a dysfunctional disaster (2:12-17). Hannah could have found many good arguments for reneging on her promise, but she faithfully followed through. So as soon as he was weaned, Samuel left home and took up residence in the temple.
Elkanah, Hannahas husband, was not the most sensitive human being (1:8). But he showed appropriate concern for his wife and her monumental decision to keep her promise when he told her, aMay the Lord help you keep your promisea (1:23). That was the key. If the promise was made to the Lord and the Lord had done what was requested, then the Lord would enable her to do her part of the arrangement. As she was faithful, he, too, would be faithful.
Making a deal with G.o.d under duress may be a questionable deed. But making a solemn vow, as Hannah did, is not. What is questionable is the att.i.tude that regards a promise made to the Lord as nonbinding. Better not to promise than to promise and renege, and better still to promise and perform.
September 5