Peace of Mind in Troubled Days

You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you because he trusts in you. –Is. 26:3

Isaiah had a unified view of the world as evil and of Israel as rebellious. That's why he prophecies, "The earth will be completely laid waste and completely despoiled, for the LORD has spoken this word...The earth is polluted by its inhabitants, for they transgressed laws, violated statutes, broke the everlasting covenant. Therefore, a curse devours the earth, and those who live in it are held guilty..." (24:3-6). Wow, that's quite a disturbing message.

However, Isaiah doesn't leave us there. He also paints a picture of God changing the "city of chaos" (a.k.a. the earth) into a "strong city" (26:1)—one in which death is swallowed up forever (25:8), peace is eternally established (26:12), and everyone will take root and bear fruit (27:6). So, how does Isaiah find peace of mind in the meantime? By keeping his mind on God. By remembering how God is going to take everything that's wrong with this world and make it right "in that day."

We need the perspective of Isaiah to penetrate our minds. We must find peace in these troubled days by remembering God—keeping our minds stayed on Him. God will turn this city of chaos into a strong city, and we will dwell in a land of peace and fruitfulness forever.

The Accessibility of Wisdom

Wisdom shouts in the street,
She lifts her voice in the square;
At the head of the noisy streets she cries out;
At the entrance of the gates in the city she utters her sayings.
–Prov 1:20-21

The first chapter of Proverbs is Solomon's attempt to motivate his readers. He wants them to want wisdom*. First, Solomon states his purpose for writing the book: that people would know wisdom (v. 2). Next, he states from whom wisdom comes: God (v. 7). Then, he explains in brief what happens to those without wisdom: "They ambush their own lives" (v. 18). Lastly, he personifies wisdom as a person screaming at the top of her lungs in public (v. 20).

From Solomon's perspective, wisdom is everywhere. It's accessible. That's why he depicts wisdom as shouting in the streets. Wisdom is so accessible, in fact, all we have to do is open our ears to receive it. But, therein lies the problem. Some people refuse to listen. So, Solomon warns, "The waywardness of the naive will kill them" (v. 32). Sadly, some people will go to their grave before they listen to wisdom.

Let that not be true of us! Let us seek wisdom, for it is accessible, and it comes from God. Let us open our ears and incline our hearts to its message.



*For an explanation of what wisdom is, see a previous post, "Two Ways."

Laying Down Our Lives

For this reason the Father loves Me, because I lay down My life so that I may take it again. -Jn. 10:17

Love is an important theme of John's gospel (and John's other writings, too, for that matter). For God so loved the world... The Father loves the Son... Love one another as I have loved you... Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends.

In the midst of developing the parable of the Good Shepherd, Jesus makes a statement about His relationship to the Father. He says the Father loves Him. Elsewhere, Jesus says that He loves the Father (14:31). Furthermore, Jesus gives his disciples a new commandment to love each other. So, what is love? Love is affectionate deeds for the benefit of others. It's both internal and external. It's both heartfelt and action-oriented. And, in the context of this parable, the quintessential example of love is Jesus laying down His life for the sheep. The beauty of laying down His life was that He didn't have to. He chose to. The Father loved that Jesus chose to lay down his life.

Likewise, the Father loves it when we choose to lay down our lives—when we love others more than we love ourselves—deliberately and perpetually. We need heartfelt, action-oriented love, for there is nothing greater.

The Shortness of Life

LORD, make me to know my end
And what is the extent of my days;
Let me know how transient I am.
-Ps. 39:4

David, the king of Israel, whose throne was promised to last forever, wrote this psalm. In it he considers how short life is.

Not one, not two, but three times David compares life to a breath in this psalm. Why? David is in tune with the shortness of life. He makes it personal. He says make me. Know my end…my days. Let me know how transient I am. Life’s brevity led him to “guard his ways” from sin (v.1). He switched his focus from pursuing riches to pursing God (v. 6). When he considered his future, he put his hope in God (v. 7). What a helpful view of life!

When you’re in tune with the shortness of life, you don't pursue riches. You pursue God. You guard your ways from sin. You consider your future and anchor your hope in God. We need an acute awareness of life's shortness. It will help us live rightly.

Making Decisions in Life

Delight yourself in the LORD;
And He will give you the desires of your heart.
Commit your way to the LORD,
Trust also in Him,
and He will do it.
-Ps. 37:4-5

The context of this psalm is unspecific. The only thing we know is that David, the youngest son of Jesse, who became king of Israel, wrote it. David’s path to the throne was eventful, to say the least. He slew Goliath and many other Philistines in an attempt to follow God’s command to root the Canaanites out of the land. He became so respected and renowned among the people of Israel that King Saul suspected David would try to seize the crown. So, Saul chased David all around the country trying to kill him. Eventually, Saul died, and David was enthroned king over Israel. Throughout his life David had to make many crucial decisions. What to do? Where to go? Who to trust? How to survive? How to rule? How to honor God?

The way David made decisions was simple. He kept a close relationship with God. Then, he did what he wanted. In other words, David's main priority in life was cultivating a quality relationship with God. Everything after that was a matter of trust. He trusted his desires came from God. He trusted God so much, in fact, that he would decide to act upon his desires, committing his way to the LORD. So, David let God shape his desires. Then, he stepped out on those desires without worry. In this way, his "steps were established by the LORD" (v.23).

But, how do you really know your desires are from God? Well, ultimately, you don't. That's why you have to trust God. You have to cultivate your relationship with Him because otherwise your desires will lead you astray (see David and Bathsheba). You have to let God shape the desires of your heart. You have to trust Him in your decisions, and in the end, you will look back and realize your steps were established by the LORD.

Strengthening Ourselves in God

Moreover David was greatly distressed because the people spoke of stoning him, for all the people were embittered, each one because of his sons and his daughters. But David strengthened himself in the LORD his God. —1 Sam. 30:6

The immediate context of this verse is that the Amalekites have just raided David's current town, Ziklag, burned it with fire, and taken all the women, children, and livestock. Obviously, David's men are pissed. They're even contemplating killing him. What's worse is he would have never been in Ziklag had Saul, the king of Israel, not been trying to kill him, too!

David was in a daunting situation. His family was gone. His town was burned. His men wanted to kill him—not to mention the king of Israel was hunting him like a dog. But he didn't gripe and complain. He didn't listen to his men. He didn't despair. In the face of his situation, David strengthened himself in God. In other words, he went to God to compose himself and receive courage to face his situation. Then, he went after the Amalekites, slew them all, and took back everything that belonged to him and his men.

In the face of daunting situations, we need to know how to strengthen ourselves in God. We cannot gripe and complain. We cannot listen to those around us. We cannot despair. We must go to God, compose ourselves in Him, and receive the courage only He can offer to face what's before us.

Pouring Out Our Souls

But Hannah replied, "No, my lord, I am a woman oppressed in spirit; I have drunk neither wine nor strong drink, but I have poured out my soul before the LORD." -1 Sam. 1:15

Year after year Hannah tried to have a baby. Year after year she was barren. She must have gone through considerable pain as a result of her childlessness, especially in light of the cultural expectations of childbearing in her day. There must have been tears and doubts and confusion. But, Hannah's response to her painful situation was to pour out her soul before God.

At one point, Hannah was praying so feverishly in the temple, Eli the priest thought she was drunk! Actually, she was far from being drunk—she was going to God in the midst of her sorrow. When she was finished praying, she left and "her face was no longer sad" (v. 18). What happened? It's not like God promised her a child or she walked away with a son—how was she able to process her sadness and carry on? Simply put, she poured out her soul to God.

It just so happens that Hannah shortly thereafter conceived and bore a son Samuel, the man who would grow up to anoint the first and second kings of Israel! But, the most inspiring part of Hannah's story was not her having a son, or her decision to raise him in the temple, or her son's eventual notoriety—it's that she found solace in God before she knew any of that was ever to happen.

What's our response to painful situations? Amidst tears, doubts, and confusion, do we pour out our souls to God? We must learn to find solace in God, even before we know how things will turn out. Then, our faces will no longer be sad.

The Importance of Leadership

In those days there was no king in Israel; everyone did what was right in his own eyes. -Judges 21:25

The book of Judges tells the story of Israel immediately after Joshua died. Joshua's generation followed the LORD until they passed away, but soon after, Israel found itself at a fork in the road, with no one to lead them down the right path. So, the next generation ended up turning to other gods "...and there arose another generation...who did not know the LORD...and they served the Baals..." (vv. 10-11).

The very last verse in Judges summarizes the events of the entire book, "everyone did what was right in his own eyes" (21:25). But, how did Israel get to this state of anarchy? After all, Moses led Israel out of Egypt. Joshua led Israel into the promised land. Then... wait for it... wait for it... NO ONE led Israel. Without leadership, the people faltered. They went their own way. They made up their own standards and gods and ways of life—i.e., civil war with the tribe of Benjamin, enslavement to other nations, someone sacrificing his own daughter to God, a Levite handing a woman over to be raped then cutting her into 12 pieces to be sent throughout the land!? Insane!

Without leadership, that's what people do. They falter. They go their own way and make up their own standards for everything. It leads to insanity. Leadership is important because it keeps people on the right path whenever there's a fork in the road. With the passing on of each successive generation, oh how we need good leaders!

At the First Sign of Adversity...

Joshua said, "Alas, O Lord GOD, why did you ever bring this people over the Jordan, only to deliver us into the hand of the Amorites, to destroy us? If only we had been willing to dwell beyond the Jordan! -Josh. 7:7

After 40 years of wandering in the wilderness, Israel had great momentum as they entered the promised land. Joshua was their new leader. They crossed the Jordan easily. They took their first city, Jericho, in a miraculous feat of trumpets and marching and yelling. They were ready to take Ai next.

So, Joshua sent men up to battle. But out of nowhere, Ai defeats Israel! What?! That wasn't in the plan—especially since God had already promised Israel to defeat Ai. What happened? Unbeknownst to Joshua, a guy named Achan had taken about $600 worth of gold and silver for himself back in Jericho. So, by the time Israel got to Ai, God was no longer honoring their efforts.

Now, what? Joshua's gut reaction is to jump ship. At the first sign of adversity, he is ready to quit. He cries out to God and basically accuses, "God, you punk, this never would have happened if it weren't for you...We never should have come over here in the first place!" But God's not having it. He responds pointedly, "Get up, deal with the sin, and go fight Ai again." So, Joshua went and found Achan, asked him what he did, stoned him in the sight of all Israel, went back, and captured Ai! Wow, that was a whirlwind of events...

Like Joshua, when we experience adversity, our gut reaction is to jump ship. We want to quit. We'll make some kind of excuse and go do something else. But, sometimes God wants us to stick to the plan. We have to get up, deal with the problem, and go fight again.

Fear and Boldness

The wicked flee when no one is pursuing,
But the righteous are bold as a lion. -Prov. 28:1

This proverb is about fear. The wicked are fearful people. They are always on guard. They have to be because they never know who they are going to run into—a guy they ripped off yesterday, a boss they crossed a month ago, etc. The wicked are on edge because they've done wrong. They're constantly looking over their shoulder, even when no one is pursuing.

This proverb is also about boldness. The righteous are bold people. They have confidence to stay where they are. Work with others. Finish the task. The righteous are bold because they know they're doing right. Fear cannot stop these people, let alone slow them down.

When you are wicked, your life is driven by fear. However, when you're righteous, you can be as bold as a lion. Fear has no hold on you because righteousness yields boldness.

Lasting Impact

Establish for us the work of our hands;
Yes, establish the work of our hands.
-Psalm 90:17

Toward the end of Moses' life, he took a moment to reflect. He wrote down his reflection in the form of a prayer which became Psalm 90. His prayer is about the 40 years Israel spent wondering in the wilderness on the way to the promised land. Moses' tone is melancholic and contemplative.

In the prayer, Moses recalls the general tendency of the people of Israel to turn away from God. The golden calf. Korah's rebellion. The whining and moaning about manna. All of it was a mess. How was Israel ever going to honor God in the land, much less outside of it?

At the end of the prayer, Moses closes with a humble request. He asks God to establish the works of his hands—and the work of all Israel's hands—despite the mistakes they made along the way. Moses' biggest concern at the end of his life was whether or not he made a difference on the people he led. He wanted to make a lasting impact. That's what he cared about.

At the end of our lives, we will look back and wonder if we made a difference. Will any of our work have mattered? We want to make a lasting impact. So, our humble request is that God establish the work of our hands.

Shining Light

"Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven." -Mt. 5:16

The disciples of Jesus were in an awkward position when He spoke these words to them. They didn't yet know Jesus' plan for establishing His kingdom. They thought it was going to be a thunderous, instantaneous coup d'etat of the Roman government. But, it didn't turn out that way. Instead, Jesus died, resurrected, and ascended to heaven, leaving His disciples behind on earth with seemingly no establishment of the foretold kingdom. That's weird.... Now, the disciples had to figure out how to live until the kingdom would be fully established.

In this verse Jesus gives us a picture of life in the awkward between time, awaiting the kingdom. Letting your light shine is another way of saying live your life. The imagery of light emphasizes the notion that people will see the way you live. No man is an island. You don't have to do anything crazy for people to notice you. People notice. People see. The question is not whether people see, but what people see in your life. Ultimately, when people see good works, motivated by love for God, God is glorified. May God be glorified by the way we live our lives.

Watching the Heart

Watch over your heart with all diligence, for from it flow the springs of life.
-Prov. 4:23

Solomon was the 3rd king of Israel. Early in Solomon's rule, God said He would give Solomon anything he wanted. So, Solomon asked God for an understanding heart to judge the people, and God blessed Solomon with his request. Out this new found wisdom, Solomon judged difficult civil cases which arose in Israel. He wrote proverbs and songs. Foreign dignitaries, officials, and wise men came from all surrounding nations to glean from his wisdom. Even the queen of Sheba came and "spoke with him about all that was in her heart" (1 Kgs 10:2). When she was finished speaking with him, she said she had heard he was wise, but now she knew "the half of it was not told" her (v. 7)!

Sadly, during the second half of his reign, Solomon grew distant from God. He took 700 wives, which "turned his heart away after other gods; and his heart was not wholly devoted to the LORD his God..." (1 Kgs 11:4). So, it was his heart that went away. His heart was no longer devoted to God. The same man who said to "watch over your heart with all diligence" is the man who let his heart drift away from God to other things. In the end, God "t[ore] the kingdom out of the hand of Solomon," and ended his reign in disgrace (v. 31).

Solomon shows us why we have to watch over our hearts. Even if we think we are wise, we can still grow distant from God. Even if we're the king of Israel, we can go astray. If we're not careful, we can let other things draw us away from God. And it all starts with the heart. Ultimately, we have to watch over our hearts because the diligence with which we do so will determine the course and outcome of our lives.

Faith and Works

Come now, you who say, "Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, and spend a year there and engage in business and make a profit." -James 4:13

The New Testament book of James is immensely practical. James is honest and candid. He looks at the issues in the church and gives a simple remedy for them. His biggest soapbox is that people actually do something with their faith. Faith should lead to action. That's why he exhorts his readers to take care of orphans, give a brother a shirt, give a sister a sandwich, etcetera.

In the above verse, James is confronting an attitude that some people had in the church. At first glance, it seems a harmless idea. Some guys are dreaming about moving to another city and starting a business. After all, what's wrong with dreaming about moving to another city? Nothing, really. But, in this case, the dream was keeping these guys from doing anything with their faith in the meantime. The problem with these guys was they didn't care about their present surroundings because—hey, they'd be gone in a year anyway.

Well, James sets them straight. First of all, he says they're thinking about it all wrong. They shouldn't even assume they will live to see another day apart from God's sustaining grace, "If the Lord wills, we will live..." (v. 15). Secondly, they work for God, not for profit. So, if there's a need in front of them, in their church, in their neighborhood, in their city, they should fill it. James says it this way, "Therefore, to one who knows the right thing to do and does not do it, to him it is sin" (v. 17).

Ultimately, I want to be a person whose faith leads to action. I don't want to be like these guys who glamorize and romanticize anything other than their present surroundings. I want to be honest with the needs around me, and I want to fill them. Otherwise, as James puts it, my "faith without works is useless" (2:20).

Anguish and Christ's Passion

Then He said to them, "My soul is deeply grieved, to the point of death..." -Mt. 26:38

The night that Judas planned to betray Jesus, He went to a garden to pray. Of all the places to go on the night before you will be murdered, Jesus went to a garden. And, of all the things to do, He went to pray. When He got there, He took Peter, James, and John aside and basically told them, "Guys, my heart is killing me right now. I feel absolutely horrible inside. I feel like I'm gonna die." And then He walked away, just leaving them there.

That's weird. He didn't ask for any input. He didn't stick around for them to console Him. He didn't even elaborate why He was feeling so terrible. He just walked away. Why did Jesus tell them He was deeply grieved to the point of death, then leave them there? Jesus wanted His disciples to see what to do when they were in total anguish. When they felt like they were going to die. When they didn't want to do what they knew they had to do.

So, what did He do? Jesus walked a little further and "fell on His face and prayed, "My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; yet not as I will, but as You will." Jesus was in total anguish, so He fell on His face in prayer. In His prayer, He was brutally honest with the way He felt, but in the end, He committed Himself to God.

What do I do when I am in total anguish? When I feel absolutely horrible inside? Do I fall on my face in prayer? Am I brutally honest? Do I commit myself to God? This Easter season, I praise God that Jesus went to the cross, despite the total anguish He had to endure along the way.

Earthen Vessels

But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, so that the surpassing greatness of the power will be of God and not from ourselves... -2 Cor. 4:7

In Paul's day, people would commonly make storage pots and vessels out of the clay dirt. These pots were fragile. They cracked easily. They broke even more easily, especially when dropped or hit. So, Paul was comparing himself and his readers to the clay pots in their pantries—cracks and all. Paul experienced these cracks. As a direct result of his life's work, Paul said he was "afflicted in every way...perplexed...persecuted...struck down..." He was beaten and stoned and shipwrecked and maligned. Sounds fun, right?

As Paul often does, he takes a lesson from the creation narrative to reshape his thinking—in this case, about his own struggles. How fitting of Paul to think of people as earthen vessels, especially in light of Genesis 2:7, "Then the LORD God formed man out of dust from the ground..." From this background, Paul adopts a challenging perspective of his weaknesses and feelings of fragility. God intentionally made him like an earthen vessel to show others the power of God. God didn't make Paul fragile for fragility's sake, but for His sake. In the end, the only thing that kept Paul going in his ministry was the power of God. And the beauty of Paul's ministry was that he indeed endured the hardship for a greater purpose.

Dirt is the epitome of fragility, and we were formed out of it. Like an earthen vessel, we are fragile. We crack easily. We break easily, especially when going through hardship. What God wants to do is keep us going by His power alone. When we endure adversity for a greater purpose, we know the surpassing greatness of the power is from Him.

The World as Wilderness

Why then have you brought the LORD's assembly into this wilderness, for us and our beasts to die here? Why have you made us come up from Egypt, to bring us in to this wretched place? It is not a place of grain or figs or vines or pomegranates, nor is there water to drink. -Num. 20:4-5

The exodus from Egypt was a watershed moment in Israel's history. The Hebrews had been enslaved for 430 years under the Egyptians, and who knows how much longer they would have been there had God not intervened. God was definitely up to something—something spectacular. He was taking the Israelites to the promised land. But first, they had to walk through the wilderness.

The wilderness was rough. It was dry. It was barren. Stupid wilderness. Israel despised the manna God gave them, and complained constantly. They tried to replace God with the golden calf. They tried to overthrow Moses and Aaron and go back to Egypt. They missed the figs...and the trees...and the pomegranates! Really?! Why? Why all this resistance? There was only one reason: Walking through the wilderness was hard. Dealing with drought, sleeping on the ground, packing up their tents, living like nomads. They wanted comfort, not hardship. They were so fixated on comfort, they lost sight of what God was doing and how He was with them every step of the way.

If the world is a wilderness, the point is not that the world sucks and life sucks and everything sucks. The point is that we cannot make decisions fixated on comfort. We cannot spend life complaining, overthrowing God, and drooling over pomegranates. We have to remember what God is doing. We have to be content with God's provisions along the way. We have to follow God courageously, in spite of hardship, no matter where He takes us. After all, He will be with us every step of the way.

New Songs

Sing to him a new song. -Ps. 33:3

King David wrote most of the Psalms. He loved to sing and dance. He played a bunch of instruments, too. But, where did he get his inspiration? Where did all these songs come from? He didn't just sit down and write the whole book of Psalms in a day. The Psalms were gradually compiled over Israel's history to commemorate great things God had done. In other words, David took the things God had done in his life and wrote poems about them. He sang about them. He praised God in them.

Noticeably, David was not content with writing one or two songs. He wrote seventy five! Throughout the book of Psalms, he speaks of singing new songs to God (Ps. 33, 40, 96, 98, 144, 149). Sometimes, God Himself is the one who puts a new song in our heart (Ps. 40:3). This idea of newness was a captivating one to David. What exactly was it about new songs that was so important? Well, for one, they indicate a relationship with God. But even more, they gave David an opportunity to get specific and personal in his worship.

New songs help keep your heart fresh and sensitive to God. They give you ways to make your worship specific and personal. Sometimes, God Himself puts a new song in your heart. Other times, you just feel like singing...

God of My Feebleness

My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever. -Ps. 73:26

Webster's defines feebleness as the state of lacking strength or vigor. Sometimes we are physically feeble. We are exhausted. We have done so much that we lack strength in our physical bodies. This is what it means for our flesh to fail. Other times, our hearts our feeble. We are emotionally drained. Our thoughts are scattered. Our desire is lacking. This is what it means for our heart to fail.

In both cases, whether my heart or my flesh may fail, only God can replenish me. I must orient my heart and body to Him to regain strength. Isaiah compares this regaining of strength to an eagle, "Yet those who wait for the LORD will gain new strength; they will mount up with wings like eagles; they will run and not get tired; they will walk and not become weary" (40:31). When I am exhausted or drained, God is an endless source of new strength and vigor. God is the God of my feebleness.

Bless the LORD

Bless the LORD, O my soul... -Ps. 103:1a

To bless the LORD means to give God thanks and praise. David uses the clause, "Bless the LORD, O my soul..." to prop up the first and last verse of this psalm like bookends. Everything between these two verses, then, is meant to explain why someone would deliberately go out of his way to bless the LORD. Here's a few reasons David gives: God forgives our sin (v. 3); He gives us good gifts to enjoy (v. 5a); He renews our vitality in life (v. 5b); He brings justice to the oppressed (v. 6); and He is compassionate, gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in love (v. 8)!

Seven times in this psalm, David exhorts himself, Israel, and all the created order to bless the LORD. Why seven? Well, first of all, we are so forgetful. We forget all that God has done for us. That's why David says "forget none of His benefits" (v. 2b). Secondly, in biblical theology, the number seven connotes the idea of completion. Think about the seven days of creation: "By the seventh day God completed His work which He had done, and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had done" (Gen. 2.2). In other words, David is implying part of what it means for him to be complete is to bless the LORD. Just as God completed His work on the seventh day by resting, so David completes his life and work by blessing God.

I want to bless God for everything He has done for me. He forgives my sin. He gives me amazing gifts. He renews my vitality in life.

I want to bless God for who He is. He is compassionate, gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in love.

Bless the LORD, O my soul...
Bless His holy name.
Bless the LORD, O my soul...
Bless the LORD, you His angels...
Bless the LORD, all you His hosts...
Bless the LORD, all you works of His...
Bless the LORD, O my soul!
-Psalm 103

The Hardship of Following Christ

Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple. -Lk. 14:27

Martin Luther believed if you do not have any hardship or suffering in your life, you should take it upon yourself to go out and get some. In his view, that was the only way to follow Christ. The problem with his view is it portrays suffering as the end goal of life. That's not the point of Jesus' words at all.

The point is that sometimes disciples make conscious decisions they know will cause more adverse circumstances in their lives. It may mean more work. It may mean more headaches. It may mean suffering and hardship. Disciples know the mere fact something is hard or stressful does not excuse them from doing it.

Even though Jesus made a tough decision when He went to the cross, He didn't go just for the pain of it. Likewise, disciples make these tough decisions not because of the pain it causes but because of the good it brings about for others. We are not sadists. We are servants. Serving others may mean more work. It may mean more headaches. It may even mean suffering and hardship. Regardless, the disciple is willing to go through hardship to follow Christ.

Faithful with a Few Things

"Well done, good and faithful servant. You were faithful with a few things, I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master." -Mt. 25:21

In a broad sense, every parable of Jesus is about the kingdom of God. The parable of the talents is no different. The story goes like this: a wealthy man is going on a long journey. Just before he leaves, he entrusts his money and possessions to his servants, with the expectation the servants will use these things to expand the man's estate. After a long time, the man returns. While one servant did not meet the expectation, the other two did. He tells the two they were a model of faithfulness. He tells the one he was not. Then, the two enter his joy, the one is sent away.

My favorite part of this parable is what the man says to the two servants. Specifically, he calls them "faithful." They were faithful with a few things. In context, faithfulness was using what they'd been given—with the skills they had—to expand the estate for as long as the master was away. The funny thing is the master refers to both five talents and three talents as a "few things." From his perspective, everybody got a few things. So, the point wasn't how much each person did or didn't get, but how they used what they got... Were they faithful?

From God's perspective, everything I own is just a few things. All I really want to do is be faithful with them. I want to use what I've been given—with the skills that I have—to expand God's kingdom for as long as He's away. I want to be faithful.

The Reminder God

"Let the labor be heavier on the men..." -Ex. 5:9

Sometimes it gets worse before it gets better. The first time Moses went to Pharoah to let the Israelites go free, Pharoah effectively said, "Whatever, Moses. I'm going to make your lazy people work even harder." Pharoah gave everybody more work. And when they couldn't meet their quota of bricks, Pharoah beat them.

Obviously, the Israelites got pretty upset. They didn't appreciate Moses speaking to Pharoah. They told Moses, in so many words, "You suck." So, Moses went back to God and whined, "O Lord, why have You brought harm to this people? Why did You ever send me?" (v. 22).

The hardship Moses experienced made him question God. Specifically, he questioned: Why the hardship? And, why me? Then, stereotypically, God didn't even attempt to answer Moses' questions. He just said, "I am God. Go tell Israel I am God, and go tell Pharoah to let My people go" (6:1-13). In other words, God reminded Moses of who He was and reaffirmed His plan.

When God is doing something, He's going to do it. Sometimes that means hardship for His people. Sometimes that means more work. Sometimes that means it gets worse before it gets better. Nevertheless, in the thick of it all, God will remind us who He is and what His plan is.

The Secret of Contentment

The sons of Israel ate the manna forty years, until they came to an inhabited land; they ate the manna until they came to the border of the land of Canaan. -Ex. 16:35

Forty years?! Forty years is a long time to eat the same meal every day. You can't blame the Israelites for getting sick of it, can you? The weird thing is God chose to give them the manna for all those years. God didn't give them a smorgasbord. He gave them what they needed and expected them to be content.

At one point during those forty years, the Israelites were moaning and complaining about the manna. They wanted some meat to eat. So, what did God do? He gave them what they wanted until they were sick of it, "You shall eat, not one day, nor two days, nor five days, nor ten days, nor twenty days, but a whole month, until it comes out of your nostrils and becomes loathsome to you" (Num. 11:19-20).

The sad reality is even if the Israelites had been given meat for forty years, they would have gotten just as discontent with it as they did with the manna. The problem was not with the type of food they were eating; the problem was with their attitude. God deliberately gave them the manna to teach them contentment.

Likewise, whatever our lot in life, we have to decide to be content with what God has given us. The great illusion of the desire for something other than manna is that the desire will stop with the next thing. It won't. Ironically, even when you get the meat, you end up sick of it, too, after a while. The secret is to find your contentment in God Himself.

The LORD was with Joseph

The LORD was with Joseph, so he became a successful man. -Gen. 39:2

Over and over throughout Joseph's story, there is this refrain: "The LORD was with Joseph..." The first time the phrase appears, it is right after Joseph has been sold into slavery and ends up in Egypt with no hope of freedom or ever seeing his family again. Nevertheless, we are told that the LORD was with him.

The second time the phrase appears, it is because Potiphar can't help but notice the LORD is with Joseph and makes everything he does to prosper.

The third time the phrase appears, Jospeh has been thrown in jail... Potiphar's wife wanted Joseph to sleep with her, but he said he could not do such a thing against God. What?! God? What about Potiphar? Clearly, Joseph is acutely aware that God is with him. How could Joseph do something like that when God was with him?

The fourth time the phrase appears, the jailer has given Joseph some slack even though he's still in jail. He lets Joseph carry on with little to no oversight.

That's the last time the refrain appears in Joseph's story. Still, there are remnants of it a little later when Pharaoh calls Joseph up from the jail to interpret a dream. Pharaoh basically says, "Hey, Joseph, I've heard you're pretty good at interpreting dreams. I need you to interpret mine..." And, the first thing Joseph says to Pharaoh—THE DIVINE POTENTATE OF EGYPT!—is "Yeah, it's not me. God will interpret your dream for you." Incredible. Joseph is consumed with the sense that his God is with him.

No matter what happened, at every stage in Joseph's life, he was absolutely convinced of God's presence. God was with him. He knew it. The people around him knew it. It came out in his actions. It came out in his words. It came out in his thoughts, his perseverance, his explanations, his demeanor.

Do I have this same sense that God is with me?

The Great Motivation

So Jacob served seven years for Rachel and they seemed to him but a few days because of his love for her. -Gen. 29:20

Jacob went through some crazy stuff to get Rachel. He worked 7 years hard labor to marry her. Then, Laban pulled a fast one, secretly giving Leah to Jacob on his wedding night, instead of Rachel. Adding insult to injury, Laban shamelessly offered Rachel to Jacob for 7 more years of labor. Surprisingly, Jacob accepted the offer from his good-for-nothing uncle.

What would drive a man to work for 14 years under such undesirable conditions? The one word answer is love. Only love could make someone endure such incredible mistreatment and undeserved hardship. Love makes people do outrageous things for others—whatever the cost. It's the most powerful motivation in human relationships.

But, love doesn't stop there. Love is the greatest motivation in our relationship with God, too. It's the only thing powerful enough to drive us to lifelong service of God. Plus, only love could motivate us to endure mistreatment and undeserved hardship for following Christ. This whatever-the-cost type of following is unsustainable unless we love God. That's why Jesus argues the "great and foremost commandment" is "You shall love the LORD your GOD with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind" (Mt. 22: 37-38).

Jesus and Paul

I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever; the Spirit of truth...you know Him because He abides with you and will be in you... -Jn. 14:16-17

I am the vine, and My Father is the vinedresser. Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit, He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit, He prunes it so that it may bear more fruit...Abide in Me, and I in you...he who abides in Me...he bears much fruit..." -Jn. 15:1-5

Scholars refer to the lengthy section of Jesus' teaching found in John 13 - 17 as the Upper Room Discourse, or the Farewell Discourse. These last, private words are Jesus' goodbye to His disciples. As part of this goodbye, Jesus announces the coming of the Holy Spirit. He also speaks about abiding in Him and bearing fruit.

While there is so much to be said about these verses, it amazes me how much of an impact they had on Paul. Paul loved this metaphor of bearing fruit. He must have spent countless hours in different seasons of his life reflecting on what it means to abide in Christ and bear much fruit. In Paul's earliest letter, Galatians, his famous "fruit of the Spirit" teaching echoes many of the themes present in Jesus' Farewell Discourse—fruit, the Spirit, love, joy, and peace. Paul thought of his ministry to the Romans as "fruit" (1:13). On behalf of the Philippians, Paul prays for "the fruit of righteousness which comes through Jesus Christ..." (1:11). Again, on behalf of the Colossians, Paul prays they are "bearing fruit in every good work..." (1:10). While shepherding others and writing his letters, Paul is doing exactly what Jesus intended, bearing much fruit.

Clearly, Paul took Jesus' teaching to heart. Paul wove it all throughout his letters. Paul valued Jesus' words. He pondered them. He chewed on them. He was deeply affected by them. He let them shape his life. We should pray that Jesus' words would do the same to us.

If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. -Jn. 15:7

The Kingdom of Heaven

Jesus was going throughout all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom. -Mt. 4:23

Ultimately, the kingdom of heaven (or, kingdom of God, as Mark and Luke like to call it) is the state of God accomplishing what He wants done in the world. The Greek word for kingdom stresses the de facto notion of ruling and could be translated rule (as in, "the rule of God"). In other words, God is every moment on His throne taking care of business. His kingdom, or rule, is the great theme of the sermon on the mount.

No doubt, this sermon is one of the greatest sermons ever preached. It reaches to the heights of heaven; and, it descends to the depths of hell. It is poetic, and the imagery is vivid. It speaks to all the great issues of life—money, love and sex, fame, and power—and does so with remarkable tact. It boils all the Law and the Prophets down to one sentence! It's frank. It's honest. It's utterly challenging.

The closing thoughts of Jesus' sermon is an allusion to Israelite wisdom tradition*, "...the way is broad that leads to destruction...and the way is narrow that leads to life..." (7:14). The Jewish listeners would hear these words of Jesus and immediately think of Moses in Deuteronomy, staring at the promised land from Moab east of the Jordan River, "See, I have set before you today life and prosperity, and death and adversity...I have set before you life and death...So choose life in order that you may live..." (30:15-19). Jesus pulls a Moses on everybody, and the crowds are stunned.

When Jesus had finished these words, the crowds were amazed at His teaching; for He was teaching them as one having authority... -Mt. 7:28





*See my last post "Two Ways" for more information on Israelite wisdom tradition.