Bankrupt Bounty

Try to picture yourself at the scene. None remain in their homes as news of Jesus' return to Capernaum spreads. The streets quickly fill with people running from every direction; all are in a footrace to nab a front row seat. Jesus disappears in the center of the throng. Latecomers rubberneck from the perimeter, hoping to snag some of his message and see Him perform miracles. Suddenly, the crowd parts, clearing a path for a man whose pace leaves a trailing cloud of dust until he kneels at Jesus' feet. As the dust settles, a hush falls over the crowd; they recognize the young man as one of their own, a son of Capernaum, a leader of the synagogue and one who has amassed more wealth in his yet young life than most of the citizens of Capernaum combined. Riches have not ruined him or spoiled his devotion to the Torah or his generosity toward the Synagogue. He is a "shoe-in" to make Pharisee.

Good Master, what good thing shall I do, that I may have eternal life?

Why callest thou me good? There is none good but one, that is, God: but if thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments.

Which?

Thou shalt do no murder, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, Honour thy father and thy mother: and, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.

All these things have I kept from my youth up: what lack I yet?
If thou wilt be perfect, go and sell that thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come and follow me.

Hearing those words, the young man … went away sorrowful: for he had great possessions.

Verily I say unto you, That a rich man shall hardly enter into the kingdom of heaven. And again I say unto you, It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.

The rich young ruler was probably accustomed to Pharisees fawning over him because of his riches. Their flatteries had convinced him that pleasing God meant tithing and keeping the Ten Commandments. He thought he had everything money could buy and that religion could offer; that is until Jesus showed up.

Unlike the scribes and Pharisees, this new iconoclastic rabbi taught with authority, vanquished demons, healed the sick and raised the dead! Whenever Jesus taught, his heart would burn within him. He yearned to know God the way Jesus talked about Him. Whatever Jesus and the twelve had, the young tycoon wanted it.

He approached Jesus respectfully, in the same way he would one of the Pharisees. Good Master, what good thing shall I do, that I may have eternal life? (Matthew 19:16) Expecting Jesus to suggest a reasonable percentage, say 10%, he was caught off guard by the Son of Man’s initial response, Why callest thou me good? There is none good but one, that is, God. (Matthew 19:17) So much for culling favor with flattery. One assumption down, one to go.

He regained his footing when Jesus turned to a topic that was right up his alley, Thou knowest the commandments, Do not commit adultery, Do not kill, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Honour thy father and thy mother. (Luke 18:20) The Pharisees had told him as much and often affirmed his goodness. Check. Been there, done that: “All these things have I kept from my youth up.”

As “I think I can do this” formed in his thoughts, Jesus’ next statement jolted the young aristocrat’s heart like a bolt of lightning. One thing you lack … Go, sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me. (Luke 18:22) Though spoken in a normal tone of voice, Jesus’ words were louder than thunder. Evidently, he only heard the “sell everything you have and give to the poor” part, and missed the “and you will have treasure in heaven” part. “One thing I lack?!” he thought to himself, “I have everything!” He waited for option two, but it didn’t come and Jesus didn’t flinch. When he realized Jesus was serious, the young man’s countenance fell and he walked away with a sorrowful heart.

Jesus didn’t need or want the young man’s wealth. He wanted his heart. Temporal wealth is of little consequence in the economics of God’s kingdom. Jesus instructed the young man to organize a big yard sale, sell everything he owned, and give the proceeds to the poor! I can picture Judas Iscariot losing it in the background as Jesus matter-of-factly dismisses enough wealth to bankroll their ministry for the foreseeable future.

After the young man leaves, Jesus turns to His disciples and says, Verily I say unto you, That a rich man shall hardly enter into the kingdom of heaven. And again I say unto you, It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God. (Matthew 19:23, 24)

Rather than mangle Jesus’ words to make them fit twenty-first century American prosperity, I will leave you where the rich young ruler began, kneeling inquisitively at Jesus’ feet. What is Jesus telling you to dispense with? What has your heart? What might be keeping your camel from squeezing through the eye of Heaven’s needle?

The only one who can answer that question for you, or me, is Jesus Himself. I pray that you will find the grace to do just as He says. I pray that you will stay.

PRAYER

Lord, Jesus Christ, Son of God, be merciful to me a sinner. I give you everything that I have and that I am and I ask you to show me how to “travel light.” Teach me to be content with what I have. Create in me a generous heart that I may give joyfully to others in need.

Copyright © 2009, Seeds for Good Soil

How to Attract and Keep a Herd

How does a carpenter-turned-street preacher with a child’s message keep large crowds so riveted that they forget to eat—Sowers, seeds, mustard seeds, wheat, weeds and soil; birds, sparrows, and vultures; trees, fig trees, vines, and vinedressers; fruit, wine, and wineskins; lost coins, lost sheep and lost sons; wages, workers, and employers; slaves and masters; money, talents, rich fools, and poor debtors? What was it about His delivery that left listeners drop-jawed and amazed? The rabbinical elite certainly wanted to know.

Why had their flocks abandoned their scholarly erudition to join the stampede thronging Jesus of Nazareth? What was His secret? What did Jesus bring to the table that today’s market-savvy, member-surveyed, felt-need-centric, production-esque American church doesn’t? The disciple whom Jesus loved offers some insight:

And a great multitude followed him, because they saw his miracles which he did on them that were diseased. (John 6:2)

One word—Results. Jesus had Spirit-power that got results. And lots of ‘em. “Yes, but Jesus was the Son of God,” you say? Fine. I have another question. What did Jesus have that isn’t available to today’s—I’ll even give you a clue—Spirit-marginalizing church? You catch my drift. Nothing.

Granted, dunamis isn’t easy to choreograph—3,000 new converts in one service who need to be baptized and discipled; 1000’s of out-of-towners who need emergency housing; a man and his wife struck dead in the same day for lying to the Holy Spirit; church services regularly interrupted by authorities; church leaders constantly standing trial, some of them beaten; a city-wide yard sale to help the needy; a round-the-clock soup kitchen to feed the masses; a major congregational rift over who eats and who doesn’t; a highly-esteemed, miracle working church leader executed; and your congregation scattered because of persecution—but it sure beats a Broadway spectacular! There’s just no way that status-quo Christianity turns the world upside down like that. Disease-destroying, demon-dispelling, death-defying miracles are not going to happen because of flawless stagecraft. We need dunamis! Everything else is stage prop.

Had the disciples disembarked at Gadara’s necropolis to perform a street skit on the benefits of weekly synagogue attendance, it is doubtful they would have gotten the results Jesus did with “Go” spoken to a legion of demonic squatters. (Mark 5) Call me crazy, but by my calculation dunamis + “Go” = lots of demons gone = deranged man returned to sanity = a swine stampede = a human stampede to find out what all the hullabaloo is about: “And, behold, the whole city came out to meet Jesus.” (Matthew 8:34), herd of dead swine notwithstanding. But the people of Gadara weren't any more eager to be around Jesus than the swine that had just kamikaze'd into the sea. The new reality Jesus introduced frightened them far more than the city’s demonized, graveyard-dwelling, maniac with superhuman strength; they asked the Son of God to bolt. Too bad for them. I don’t hear Jesus muttering second thoughts, “I knew I should’ve waited ‘til after the service to cast out those demons,” as He gets back into the boat.

In spite of Jesus’ success, it is doubtful He would even land an audition, much less a role in today’s Church production. If, however, He showed up on a street corner in your town and began healing the sick, raising the dead, and casting out legions of devils, I’ll bet the stampede of unchurched and churched sheep charging down to that street corner would be audible! People are hungry for God, for the living God. Get God, and you’ll get the herd.

Being “purpose-driven” is helpful, but purpose is hardly a substitute for dunamis; without it, we are barely able to drive out of the parking lot when it comes to fruitful ministry. Still, many churches invest countless hours crafting finely-tuned mission statements that will convey a sense of purpose and motivate their members to action. In most cases, however, church strategic planners wind up with the Great Commission in another form:

And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. Amen. (Matthew 28:18-20)

Jesus gave the Church its purpose before Pentecost. But before He was even crucified, Jesus told His disciples, Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father. (John 14:12) Purpose doesn’t empower anything. It just keeps the herd from scattering. (Proverbs 28:18)

Just before He ascended, Jesus told his followers, “Don’t go anywhere; don’t do anything, until you receive power from on high. (Acts 1:4-8 paraphrased) When He arrived at His Father’s right hand, Jesus received the promise of the Holy Spirit which He then poured out on His Church on the Day of Pentecost! (Acts 2:33) Once endued with power from on high, Jesus turned His followers loose, with “rivers of living water” flowing out of their innermost beings, to a needy world! (John 7:38)

It is worth mentioning, that after salvation, the baptism in the Holy Spirit is the summation of every other spiritual gift and blessing Jesus gives to His Church. Why then, do so many church leaders neglect to teach their congregations about the Holy Spirit, the gifts of the Spirit, and miracles? Pastors will often cite concerns over “divisions” that could occur if they teach openly about the Holy Spirit. Such fears are absurd and deprive God’s people of gifts and blessings distributed by the Spirit of grace. Such worries lend credence to the false notion that our heavenly Father might indeed give his children a serpent when they've asked for a fish. (Luke 11:11)

Paul the Apostle was clear in his emphasis on demonstrating the Spirit's presence and power wherever and whenever he proclaimed God's word:

And my speech and my preaching was not with enticing words of man's wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power: That your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God … But I will come to you shortly, if the Lord will, and will know, not the speech of them which are puffed up, but the power. For the kingdom of God is not in word, but in power. (1 Corinthians 2:4-5, 4:19-20)

If the Church hopes to reach its culture, we will need to recover a key distinctive—power. Without dunamis, our message amounts to fiction.

© 2009 Seeds for Good Soil.