In His Steps: A Transcript
[The following is the transcript from my lecture delivered at Crowley's Ridge College two nights ago, minus the little introductory remarks and the obligatory altar call at the end. I'll be interested to read any comments from anyone, from my housefly buddies to those who might link here from my Minutes to Memories blog.]
We have a problem. Churches, that is. We have a big problem. Not liberalism or legalism. It has nothing to do with worship services. It is much bigger than that. And it has been a problem for a very long time. Centuries. But it has to change. It can no longer be tolerated. It may best be explained in a survey once conducted by a young man named Shane Claiborne. Shane drew results from those who identified themselves as “strong followers of Jesus,” and from that group 80% of the respondents said that Jesus spent time with the poor. When asked, 2% of that very same group said they spent time with the poor. Claiborne said, “I learned a powerful lesson: We can admire and worship Jesus without doing what He did.”
That’s the problem in a nutshell.
In the year 2000, less than a year after I became a preacher, I was involved in a church controversy. A small group, led by one particular couple, wasn’t happy with me. In the big meeting that ensued, one lady (who, to this point had been a close friend to our family) said a couple of interesting things: One, for whatever reason, she claimed that I acted more like Jesus than anyone she knew; Two, she then asked if we could get on with the meeting and talk about my false teaching. Does anyone besides me see a problem here? Of how easily we separate what we believe and how we live into distinct groups?
Shane Claiborne again, in his penetrating book, The Irresistible Revolution, wrote, “If you ask most people what Christians believe, they can tell you… But if you ask the average person how Christians live, they are struck silent. We have not shown the world another way of doing life. Christians pretty much live like everybody else; they just sprinkle a little Jesus in along the way.”
Jesus, on the other hand, did show people another way of doing life. In Matthew 19, Jesus challenged the Rich Young Ruler to sell all he had, give to the poor, and then come follow Him. But as rich people today, we aren’t all that interested in following his advice, are we? (To this point, the late musician Rich Mullins once said tongue-in-cheek, “But I guess that’s why God invented highlighters, so we can highlight the parts we like and ignore the rest.”) In Luke 14, Jesus taught students how to throw a party, with the specific instruction being to invite the poor and rejected instead of our family and friends. Again, Claiborne wrote, “We must not have highlighted that verse.”
We have a major problem. We admire Jesus, believe in Jesus, even worship Jesus, but doing what He did – the very definition of following Jesus – well, we aren’t so serious about that part of the deal.
Which leads me to my assigned text: 1st Peter 2: 21-25. Peter wrote these verses to slaves, people in very different life circumstances than you and I. In the verses preceding our text, he told them to take their abuse on the chin when doing what is right. Like Jesus did, you know.
Then, Peter wrote: “For to this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps. He committed no sin; no guile was found on his lips. When he was reviled, he did not revile in return; when he suffered, he did not threaten; but he trusted to him who judges justly. He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed. For you were straying like sheep, but have now returned to the Shepherd and Guardian of your souls.” (1st Peter 2: 21-25, RSV)
I would like to make three points from these verses tonight: (1) Christianity is much more than believing in Jesus: it’s about following Him step by step; (2) Following the steps of Jesus doesn’t look like anything we’ve seen; (3) Following in the steps of Jesus costs us everything we’ve got.
First, Christianity is much more than believing in Jesus: it’s about following Him step by step.
1st Peter 2: 21 was the sermon text in the classic novel by Charles Sheldon, In His Steps. In it, a congregation was challenged to live for one year asking the question “What would Jesus do?” before doing anything. And it changed everything. Yet today, the WWJD movement mostly resulted in a slew of Christian products for sale.
Part of the problem may be the definition of “disciple.” In our world, when we think of a student, we think of a person sitting at a desk learning a set of facts or propositions. Instead, we need to become reacquainted with the idea of an “apprentice” (no, not Donald Trump). As Darryl Tippens writes in Pilgrim Heart, “’Learning Jesus’ (Luke Timothy Johnson’s fine phrase) is very different from learning algebra or physics. Learning Jesus is more akin to being apprenticed to a ship captain, a painter, a musician, or a stone mason.” An apprentice learns to do things like his teacher, not just sets of facts. Tippens suggests outfitting Bibles with green words for the things Jesus did (green for GO!), in addition to the red words for things He said. According to Dallas Willard in The Divine Conspiracy, this is what “in the name of the Lord Jesus” means, doing things on his behalf or in his place, as if he himself were doing it.
So how would slaves live with unjust abuse? Just like Jesus taught them to live. Take it. And so how would we, as His apprentices, deal with owning more than we need while others go without? That should keep us up at night, you know?
There is a quiet revolution underway in Christianity, and I might as well be the one to tell you about it. There is a movement emerging (Scot McKnight calls it a “giant elephant in the middle of the Church’s living room”), and at the heart of this movement lies the recognition that how a person lives is of utmost importance. This movement is fond of noticing that every judgment scene in the Bible is based on a person’s “actions,” and that the only time Jesus explains what will matter when all is said and done, He describes it as caring for “the least of these.” I am a part of this emerging movement. This revolution. You are hearing its theme song tonight.
Second, following the steps of Jesus doesn’t look like anything we’ve seen.
In our text, verses 22 and 23 specifically, we learn that part of what made Jesus perfect was His refusal to retaliate in suffering, choosing rather to trust God for justice. This cannot be popular in a nation at war.
The title of this lectureship is “Becoming God’s Special People.” I love the title. Christians are called to be different (or, special), but I wonder what pictures the title brings to mind. It sounds a little warm and fuzzy to me (You’re so special!), but I’m afraid that becoming God’s special people might feel a bit more cold and prickly in reality.
If Jesus were living in the United States of America today, what would He look like? Who would He spend time with? What kind of house would he own, and what kind of car would he drive? These are important questions to apprentices of Jesus, aren’t they? These are the very questions on which we are to base our lives!
I don’t think Jesus would be boring. And I don’t think Jesus would be “normal.” I don’t even think Jesus would be “cool.” As Shane Claiborne wrote, “You don’t get crucified for being cool; you get crucified for living radically different from the norms of all that is cool in the world. And it’s usually the cool people who get the most ticked off, since you are disturbing their order.”
The call to be different is the narrow way described by Jesus.
If we are truly interested in whether or not we are following in the steps of Jesus, Mahatma Gandhi may have given the best advice on how to know when he said, “Ask the poor. They will tell you who the Christians are.” Is anyone brave enough to ask?
Third, following in the steps of Jesus costs us everything we’ve got.
In our text, verses 24 and 25 in particular, Peter explains to us a purpose of the Cross: it was so that we might die, and then live. This heals us, he claims. Death, followed by life. Our problem is with the dying part. I wonder if we have ever truly died to ourselves, or, to put it Jesus’s way, given up everything to follow Him.
In Thomas a Kempis’s 15th century masterpiece, The Imitation of Christ (appropriately titled for tonight’s message by the way), he writes, “Whoever desires to understand and take delight in the words of Christ must strive to conform his whole life to Him.” It seems we need to be reminded of the “whole life” commitment.
In an age where we still divide life into the sacred and secular (where “church” is an adjective to mark the difference – a “church” event versus the rest of life), and when we still talk of a difference between “full-time” Christian service and “part-time” Christian service, we need to be reminded that following Jesus involves every part of our lives. Period. Until everything we do – in word or deed - is done “in the name of Jesus,” then we haven’t died completely, and we cannot be living for righteousness.
Anne Tyler’s wonderful novel, Saint Maybe, introduces us to Ian and the mess that was his life. Unknown to anyone else, a statement he made in anger led his inebriated brother to suicide. His brother’s suicide led to his sister-in-law’s drug-induced death, leaving an orphaned child to be cared for by Ian’s aging parents. One night he happened upon a church service in a strip mall called, The Church of the Second Chance. During prayer time, out of nowhere, he asked for forgiveness for the mess of his life, and much to his surprise after the service, Reverend Emmett asked him what he needed forgiveness for! Ian decided to share his secret, and after his confession, he asked Reverend Emmett if he thought he had been forgiven. The preacher shockingly replied, “Goodness, no!” An argument ensued between the two on the nature of God, and Reverend Emmett explained his answer by saying that anyone could just say the words, but the question was whether or not he would do anything about it. For starters, would he care for the orphaned child his sins left behind? This changed the complete direction of his life.
Later in the novel, Ian’s parents grew concerned that this church he had stumbled on was some sort of a cult. Ian’s father exclaimed, “Our church never asked us to abandon our entire way of life.” Ian’s response summarizes my message tonight: “Well, maybe it should have.”
Yes, maybe we should have. And maybe we should now. Maybe we should ask everyone claiming to be Christian to take seriously the call to live our lives following in the steps of Jesus. Maybe we should consider abandoning our wealth and privilege and move our lives to those living in the margins of our society. As the early Christians did. As Jesus did. Maybe we have a lot to consider.
My assigned title comes from 1st Peter 2: 21. Eugene Peterson, in The Message, does his best to offer this verse in our contemporary language. Listen closely: “This is the kind of life you’ve been invited into, the kind of life Christ lived. He suffered everything that came his way so you would know it could be done, and also know how to do it, step-by-step.”
We have a problem. Churches, that is. We have a big problem. Not liberalism or legalism. It has nothing to do with worship services. It is much bigger than that. And it has been a problem for a very long time. Centuries. But it has to change. It can no longer be tolerated. It may best be explained in a survey once conducted by a young man named Shane Claiborne. Shane drew results from those who identified themselves as “strong followers of Jesus,” and from that group 80% of the respondents said that Jesus spent time with the poor. When asked, 2% of that very same group said they spent time with the poor. Claiborne said, “I learned a powerful lesson: We can admire and worship Jesus without doing what He did.”
That’s the problem in a nutshell.
In the year 2000, less than a year after I became a preacher, I was involved in a church controversy. A small group, led by one particular couple, wasn’t happy with me. In the big meeting that ensued, one lady (who, to this point had been a close friend to our family) said a couple of interesting things: One, for whatever reason, she claimed that I acted more like Jesus than anyone she knew; Two, she then asked if we could get on with the meeting and talk about my false teaching. Does anyone besides me see a problem here? Of how easily we separate what we believe and how we live into distinct groups?
Shane Claiborne again, in his penetrating book, The Irresistible Revolution, wrote, “If you ask most people what Christians believe, they can tell you… But if you ask the average person how Christians live, they are struck silent. We have not shown the world another way of doing life. Christians pretty much live like everybody else; they just sprinkle a little Jesus in along the way.”
Jesus, on the other hand, did show people another way of doing life. In Matthew 19, Jesus challenged the Rich Young Ruler to sell all he had, give to the poor, and then come follow Him. But as rich people today, we aren’t all that interested in following his advice, are we? (To this point, the late musician Rich Mullins once said tongue-in-cheek, “But I guess that’s why God invented highlighters, so we can highlight the parts we like and ignore the rest.”) In Luke 14, Jesus taught students how to throw a party, with the specific instruction being to invite the poor and rejected instead of our family and friends. Again, Claiborne wrote, “We must not have highlighted that verse.”
We have a major problem. We admire Jesus, believe in Jesus, even worship Jesus, but doing what He did – the very definition of following Jesus – well, we aren’t so serious about that part of the deal.
Which leads me to my assigned text: 1st Peter 2: 21-25. Peter wrote these verses to slaves, people in very different life circumstances than you and I. In the verses preceding our text, he told them to take their abuse on the chin when doing what is right. Like Jesus did, you know.
Then, Peter wrote: “For to this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps. He committed no sin; no guile was found on his lips. When he was reviled, he did not revile in return; when he suffered, he did not threaten; but he trusted to him who judges justly. He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed. For you were straying like sheep, but have now returned to the Shepherd and Guardian of your souls.” (1st Peter 2: 21-25, RSV)
I would like to make three points from these verses tonight: (1) Christianity is much more than believing in Jesus: it’s about following Him step by step; (2) Following the steps of Jesus doesn’t look like anything we’ve seen; (3) Following in the steps of Jesus costs us everything we’ve got.
First, Christianity is much more than believing in Jesus: it’s about following Him step by step.
1st Peter 2: 21 was the sermon text in the classic novel by Charles Sheldon, In His Steps. In it, a congregation was challenged to live for one year asking the question “What would Jesus do?” before doing anything. And it changed everything. Yet today, the WWJD movement mostly resulted in a slew of Christian products for sale.
Part of the problem may be the definition of “disciple.” In our world, when we think of a student, we think of a person sitting at a desk learning a set of facts or propositions. Instead, we need to become reacquainted with the idea of an “apprentice” (no, not Donald Trump). As Darryl Tippens writes in Pilgrim Heart, “’Learning Jesus’ (Luke Timothy Johnson’s fine phrase) is very different from learning algebra or physics. Learning Jesus is more akin to being apprenticed to a ship captain, a painter, a musician, or a stone mason.” An apprentice learns to do things like his teacher, not just sets of facts. Tippens suggests outfitting Bibles with green words for the things Jesus did (green for GO!), in addition to the red words for things He said. According to Dallas Willard in The Divine Conspiracy, this is what “in the name of the Lord Jesus” means, doing things on his behalf or in his place, as if he himself were doing it.
So how would slaves live with unjust abuse? Just like Jesus taught them to live. Take it. And so how would we, as His apprentices, deal with owning more than we need while others go without? That should keep us up at night, you know?
There is a quiet revolution underway in Christianity, and I might as well be the one to tell you about it. There is a movement emerging (Scot McKnight calls it a “giant elephant in the middle of the Church’s living room”), and at the heart of this movement lies the recognition that how a person lives is of utmost importance. This movement is fond of noticing that every judgment scene in the Bible is based on a person’s “actions,” and that the only time Jesus explains what will matter when all is said and done, He describes it as caring for “the least of these.” I am a part of this emerging movement. This revolution. You are hearing its theme song tonight.
Second, following the steps of Jesus doesn’t look like anything we’ve seen.
In our text, verses 22 and 23 specifically, we learn that part of what made Jesus perfect was His refusal to retaliate in suffering, choosing rather to trust God for justice. This cannot be popular in a nation at war.
The title of this lectureship is “Becoming God’s Special People.” I love the title. Christians are called to be different (or, special), but I wonder what pictures the title brings to mind. It sounds a little warm and fuzzy to me (You’re so special!), but I’m afraid that becoming God’s special people might feel a bit more cold and prickly in reality.
If Jesus were living in the United States of America today, what would He look like? Who would He spend time with? What kind of house would he own, and what kind of car would he drive? These are important questions to apprentices of Jesus, aren’t they? These are the very questions on which we are to base our lives!
I don’t think Jesus would be boring. And I don’t think Jesus would be “normal.” I don’t even think Jesus would be “cool.” As Shane Claiborne wrote, “You don’t get crucified for being cool; you get crucified for living radically different from the norms of all that is cool in the world. And it’s usually the cool people who get the most ticked off, since you are disturbing their order.”
The call to be different is the narrow way described by Jesus.
If we are truly interested in whether or not we are following in the steps of Jesus, Mahatma Gandhi may have given the best advice on how to know when he said, “Ask the poor. They will tell you who the Christians are.” Is anyone brave enough to ask?
Third, following in the steps of Jesus costs us everything we’ve got.
In our text, verses 24 and 25 in particular, Peter explains to us a purpose of the Cross: it was so that we might die, and then live. This heals us, he claims. Death, followed by life. Our problem is with the dying part. I wonder if we have ever truly died to ourselves, or, to put it Jesus’s way, given up everything to follow Him.
In Thomas a Kempis’s 15th century masterpiece, The Imitation of Christ (appropriately titled for tonight’s message by the way), he writes, “Whoever desires to understand and take delight in the words of Christ must strive to conform his whole life to Him.” It seems we need to be reminded of the “whole life” commitment.
In an age where we still divide life into the sacred and secular (where “church” is an adjective to mark the difference – a “church” event versus the rest of life), and when we still talk of a difference between “full-time” Christian service and “part-time” Christian service, we need to be reminded that following Jesus involves every part of our lives. Period. Until everything we do – in word or deed - is done “in the name of Jesus,” then we haven’t died completely, and we cannot be living for righteousness.
Anne Tyler’s wonderful novel, Saint Maybe, introduces us to Ian and the mess that was his life. Unknown to anyone else, a statement he made in anger led his inebriated brother to suicide. His brother’s suicide led to his sister-in-law’s drug-induced death, leaving an orphaned child to be cared for by Ian’s aging parents. One night he happened upon a church service in a strip mall called, The Church of the Second Chance. During prayer time, out of nowhere, he asked for forgiveness for the mess of his life, and much to his surprise after the service, Reverend Emmett asked him what he needed forgiveness for! Ian decided to share his secret, and after his confession, he asked Reverend Emmett if he thought he had been forgiven. The preacher shockingly replied, “Goodness, no!” An argument ensued between the two on the nature of God, and Reverend Emmett explained his answer by saying that anyone could just say the words, but the question was whether or not he would do anything about it. For starters, would he care for the orphaned child his sins left behind? This changed the complete direction of his life.
Later in the novel, Ian’s parents grew concerned that this church he had stumbled on was some sort of a cult. Ian’s father exclaimed, “Our church never asked us to abandon our entire way of life.” Ian’s response summarizes my message tonight: “Well, maybe it should have.”
Yes, maybe we should have. And maybe we should now. Maybe we should ask everyone claiming to be Christian to take seriously the call to live our lives following in the steps of Jesus. Maybe we should consider abandoning our wealth and privilege and move our lives to those living in the margins of our society. As the early Christians did. As Jesus did. Maybe we have a lot to consider.
My assigned title comes from 1st Peter 2: 21. Eugene Peterson, in The Message, does his best to offer this verse in our contemporary language. Listen closely: “This is the kind of life you’ve been invited into, the kind of life Christ lived. He suffered everything that came his way so you would know it could be done, and also know how to do it, step-by-step.”
Yes, I’m convinced that we have a major problem on our hands that can no longer be tolerated. We are satisfied admiring, believing in, and worshiping Jesus, but we aren’t called to that. We are called to follow him step by step. I wonder how many of us are truly interested.
Recommended Reading:
* The Divine Conspiracy by Dallas Willard
* Pilgrim Heart by Darryl Tippens
* The Irresistible Revolution by Shane Claiborne
* The Imitation of Christ by Thomas a Kempis
* Telling the Truth by Frederick Buechner
* The Hauerwas Reader by Stanley Hauerwas
* Saint Maybe by Anne Tyler
* In His Steps by Charles Sheldon
* The Message by Eugene Peterson
* The Holy Bible (Revised Standard Version)
* “What is the Emerging Church?” by Scot McKnight
posted by Al Sturgeon | 6:55 PM
18 Comments:
As someone wiser than me once said; "Now you done quit preachin' and gone to meddlin'."
Good stuff, Al. Heady stuff.
How was it received?
Thanks, Bruno! The gentleman that led songs before my lecture had asked everyone if they felt like singing that night. When I got up, I told everyone that my plan was to sap the happiness right out of them. :-) They laughed. Then I told them I was serious. :-)
And thanks, Juvenal. You can guess the biggest part of the reception. All the people who've known me forever told me I did a great job. :-) But I think they heard me. It was awfully quiet while I was speaking, you know. I spoke with a couple of guys afterwards who are with me - in on the revolution, if you will. And in the parking lot before I left, an elder told me that my message needed to be preached in every single church - joked that I should come back from a gospel meeting & preach the same message every night.
So... no one stormed out or jumped me afterwards. But I was in (personally) friendly territory.
All the people who've known me forever told me I did a great job. :-) But I think they heard me.
Maybe so. It's always hard to tell about such things, isn't it? Especially when you know the crowd was pre-disposed to be friendly. I know from experience that I would be asking myself if perhaps that friendliness toward the messenger resulted in a little cavalierness toward the message.
But, then, you're better at communicating in those settings than I ever was, so if you came away thinking it got through, it probably did.
Good on ya. Keep the faith.
BTW, my favorite lectureship story -- which also comes from CRC -- is the one when Jim Woodroof did a presentation, somebody stood up and read him the Riot Act, and his response was, "Well, my daddy always told me you can't outpuke a buzzard."
Can't outpuke a buzzard. LOL! I'll have to file that one away for possible use in the future...
And I'm sure that I was heard differently than the same message delivered by a different messenger. But I have a tendency in familiar territory to soften the message (either from compassion or because I'm a chicken, which I'm not sure). I didn't soften this one, and I felt the seriousness of what I was saying was received. Who knows from there...
I can't help noticing that the brilliant stuff I shared over lunch on Monday wasn't cited in your bibliography. Or your mealiography. Whatever.
I am left to surmise you felt my thoughts were just too durn deep for your audience Monday night. That had to be it.
If you would have been in attendance, you would have noticed that there were several references to barb-wire chicken sprinkled in the actual delivery (the transcript had already been printed).
Al, what a fabulous speech. I think you've really hit upon something that drove me away from church as a source of spiritual fulfillment. I could tell that the majority of people around me were not really committed to the principles espoused by Jesus. Church was a social event, a routine, a way to make themselves feel like they were good people, etc., but it was not a manifestation of a deep philosophical and moral commitment to being Christ-like. Of course, at the time I was having this response, I could never have articulated it as well as you have here. I'm glad that it was well received ... um, where were you? Not at your current place of employment, I would imagine?
Thanks so much, Sandi.
I was in my hometown at a Church of Christ affilated junior college. So not much different from here.
There weren't a lot of people there, and just about everyone there knew me, so factor that into the response.
For JU, there was a man there with a booth for the Gospel Advocate. He didn't approach me afterwards.
I've always loved the fact that Gospel Advocate's url is gaol.com -- since "gaol" is an archaic spelling of "jail." Nice irony.
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I don't know, Al.
The whole "live exactly like Jesus" movement has never really rung true to me. Let's say the movement really caught on, so much so that everyone on earth became a true follower. What would become of the world?
We'd all be a bunch of traveling teachers mooching off of each other's bevevolence. That'd be pretty cool for a while until nobody had anything left to share because they all quit their jobs. Not to mention that we would all stop marrying and procreating.
Heck... it would still work for a good while if we each had the ability to break a couple loaves of bread into enough food for 5000 people or to spit on people to heal their diseases.
I admire the spirit and heart behind what you are saying, Al. I just don't agree that it's what God intended for us when He sent Jesus.
Maybe when Jesus said "follow me" He was telling us to follow Him on the path to the Father that He was showing us through His teachings, not playing a spiritual game of follow the leader. Jesus never taught "live exactly like me." On the contrary, He taught about many issues pertaining to living lives that were significantly different from His, like being a spouse or a parent.
Just look at the example of Zaccheus. He repented, sold only half of his belongings and paid back four times what he had cheated from people. Never a mention of giving up everything and following Jesus full-time, yet Jesus still proclaimed that salvation had come to that house.
bySo many things come to mind, Joe, I hardly know where to begin…
#1: I think you’re missing the overall concept (and I’ll blame “me” for that in terms of my writing). It is impossible for everyone to “live exactly like Jesus” in all the externals (the sex change operations alone would be overwhelming, not to mention that we have yet to locate the fountain of youth for the elderly; plus, I don’t even know how to become Middle Eastern). That’s not the point. Let me refer to my textual example… Jesus was not a slave, but Peter instructed slaves how to react to unjust abuse. He told them to take it, and his rationale was because Jesus reacted that way, and they were his followers. They weren’t called to be “a bunch of traveling teachers mooching off each other’s benevolence” – they were slaves (it wasn’t until very recently in world history that people even had a choice in occupations). And Jesus never recorded a set of “slave” instructions. So how would they know how to react to unjust abuse? They were “called” to react to their lives like Christ reacted in his. And we are, too. That’s the point.
#2: Whether intended or not, you say that it would be a bad thing for the whole world to decide to live their lives exactly like Jesus did, and your rationale is that the economy would go south and we wouldn’t have sex or kids. Color me stupid, but I’ll take that offer. :-)
#3: When I ask what kind of car Jesus would drive, you’ve got to know I’m not saying we’re to live EXACTLY like he did, right? There were no cars then. I’m saying that we’re called to live like Jesus would live in our culture, and those are the types of questions we should deal with if we are serious about discipleship: I hate to proof text, but… “This is how we know we are in him: Whoever claims to live in him must walk as Jesus did.” (1st John 2:5b-6). Or, the more familiar, Galatians 2:20, to paraphrase, “I’m not living anymore. Jesus is living through me.” I don’t know if Jesus would drive a car or not, but before I spend 30k on one while there are hungry people in this world, I ought to at least raise the question don’t you think? (cf Luke 3: 8-11) And from his life (interaction with the rich young ruler for example) AND teachings (parable of the rich fool for instance), there’s a lot to think about before car shopping… The penance of Zacchaeus you cited serves as a prime example…
#4: You wrote: “Maybe when Jesus said "follow me" He was telling us to follow Him on the path to the Father that He was showing us through His teachings, not playing a spiritual game of follow the leader.” My fear in reading this is that you are expressing the problem I’m trying to highlight – that Jesus came to deliver a set of instructions on what to believe to get to heaven when we die instead of teaching us how to live right now. The Sheep & Goats parable has to blow that thought right out of the water.
#5: You wrote: “Just look at the example of Zaccheus. He repented, sold only half of his belongings and paid back four times what he had cheated from people. Never a mention of giving up everything and following Jesus full-time, yet Jesus still proclaimed that salvation had come to that house.” It may seem like semantics to you, but I find it important to note that (a) following Jesus full-time is the only way to follow Jesus, and (b) giving up everything is a requirement for everyone who follows Jesus (Luke 14: 33). Before you respond, I know you weren’t saying that… But you see, the way Jesus treated Zacchaeus was responded in-kind by the way Zacchaeus now treats the poor – he’s living like Jesus now! And I’m not Zacchaeus’ accountant, but if he gave HALF his wealth to the poor, the paid back 4x what he had cheated people, then it might just add up to a lot closer to 100% than you might think at 1st glance. But the percentage isn’t my point. Zacchaeus is now called to respond to wealth like Jesus would respond to wealth, and there are plenty of teachings/parables/examples of how Jesus did that… These are the most troubling questions of all for many of us.
Getting late…
Yours,
Al
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Oh, what the heck. Here I am.
I may not stay in this conversation for long, but I'm here now.
I think you and Joe are saying a lot of the same things in different ways. (The following only applies if "Joe" is the artist formerly known as "Joe Longhorn" whic I cannot rightly tell at this point.) I personally know that Joe (Longhorn) isn't money hungry (far from it), is very much a giver and taker-care-of when ANYONE needs it--whether he really feels like it or not, and totally believes that we're full-time for Jesus or no-time for Jesus.
I don't know if this is what he was getting at, but it is something I felt from your manuscript. Sometimes I feel like this "movement" is trying to get people to say "Hey y'all, look how much like Jesus I am! I do x, y, & z for others." I despise that train of thought. To me, it is between God, my husband and me what we do for people and when. Honestly, I'm happy if NO ONE knows about--even the beneficiary. That way I can never take pride or accept compliments for any such acts. I don't like some of what I've heard in the "we should be more like Jesus" camps that seem to highlight overt works.
And don't get me wrong...I'm not a sit-on-my-bootie faith only kind of person. I belive that deeds are our obligation not to be saved but because we are saved. It's somewhat of a compulsion...and I think it was a compulsion for Jesus. To love other people and to treat love as a verb.
Al, I'm not saying YOU were saying this, but that I hear it a lot from similar messages to what you are preaching. I know your heart is true.
Another thought (and I know this is totally random). I completely understand and agree that we should try to live like Jesus would in our culture. Unfortunately, that is SO HARD to know what it would be. But don't be so quick to assume that people aren't loving (verb) and giving and helping just because you don't see it or just because it isn't an organized effort in your congregation. I'd be willing to bet there are a lot of folks out there who have modest homes and modest cars and modest clothing who could afford a lot materially better wares if they weren't spending so much on others. Granted...do we do as much as we should? I know that I do not. And the good thing about your talk is that it does make me want to do more.
Sorry this is all over the place. I liked your message, but I totally understand where Joe is coming from here.
Sorry 'bout the deletion. I'm a little slow sometimes.
Regarding the sex and kids stuff, all I can say is clearly somebody hasn't read The DaVinci Code yet.
Regarding Whitney's concerns for the spirit of the-left-hand-not-knowing-what-the-right-hand-is-doing, I agree completely and I happen to know Al feels very strongly about that, too. OTOH, scripture seems to speak with more than one voice on that topic. There is, in addition to that theme, a theme of letting one's Christlikeness show: e.g., don't hide your light, by their fruits ye shall know them, be an example, heap coals of fire, make a point of including the poor and outcast in your social life (including your banqueting, an inherently very public thing), and the strong theme in Paul's letters that it's important that outsiders see the goodness of the young church communities.
Not all of these passages are, in context, speaking to precisely the same issue, but they all do take it for granted that Christians' Christlikeness will be seen.
I'm not going to go into what I think one is supposed to do with these 2 conflicting themes. I'm just going to note that they're both there, and, as is so often the case with scripture, it's left to us to do the moral reasoning their existence requires.
I am a member of the church where Al preaches. I was there last night when he presented this material in class. The lady's comments about what turned her away from the church really hit home for me. I agree with Al that we should strive to be more like Jesus, although knowing that we can never be completely like him as he was perfect. However, his example is the best of any we can ever hope to have. I grew up in "the church" as a "preacher's kid." Because of the judgemental attitudes I encountered and the legalistic views, I almost left the Church of Christ. As one of our elders said last night, we get too caught up in the way we worship and traditions we forget that our calling is to love our neighbors and to follow Jesus. I think that is the simplified point that Al is trying to make. Sometimes we think too much and forget the most important part of what being a Christian is. Anyway, I sure needed to hear what Al said and I hope to live more like Jesus. I know it's the best hope I have.
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