Acknowledgments<\/p>\n
The man who was, I think, the most creative and engaging preacher I ever heard died in a car crash when I was in sixth grade. I say \u201cI think\u201d because I never really cared about what he was saying at the time. After all, I was only twelve years old, and there were better things to do to pass the time until noon. But I sensed his impact because of the way my parents and all the other adults in my small country church reacted when he preached. They loved it\u2014and him. The congregation leaned forward. Even our 1965 Chevy Impala seemed eager for church every Sunday!
\nCarl Johnson, our pastor, a journalism grad student at Syracuse University, apparently mixed humor with ways to enter a biblical text that disposed of the traditional three-point sermon with the tearjerker story at the end. Again I say \u201capparently\u201d because I didn\u2019t get the jokes or insights; I just heard the appreciative laughs and appreciable amens around me.
\nAnd even though I vowed at age ten I would never be a preacher, I knew what a preacher needed to be from sitting in the pews Sunday after Sunday inside that atmosphere of rapt attention. So when I did eventually become a pastor-teacher\u2014even though my \u201ccall\u201d was initially more coincidental than covenantal\u2014I had an unchosen but unwavering passion: to help people see the Bible with fresh eyes and expectancy.
\nNow that forty years of preaching and teaching have passed, I can see how the \u201cspirit\u201d of Carl Johnson\u2014I should really capitalize that word\u2014permeated and still permeates how I approach biblical examination and exposition. That Spirit led me to preach two back-to-back sermons one Sunday while running the entire time on a treadmill in order to illustrate the significance of Peter\u2019s use of the word spoudazo (meaning \u201cmake every effort\u201d) in 2 Peter 1:5. It led me to build and preach inside a black cloth-covered enclosure just so I could come to the finale and demonstrate with one thrust of a spear how praise and proclamation pierce spiritual darkness.
\nI never wanted to use gimmicks, but very often the Lord prompted me to see something unusual and use something visual. As a result, I have enjoyed kind comments from the people of four congregations over the years telling me how much they looked forward to what I was going to do and say on Sunday. I always deflected those comments with \u201cYou mean, what the Lord is going to say.\u201d And they would nod, \u201cOf course.\u201d
\nHowever, the fact remains that the human role of careful study and creativity combine to make what God wants to say through His Word clear and compelling. Creativity is inherently mnemonic.
\nAt the outset of this Fresh Eyes series, I want to acknowledge Carl Johnson and the gifted thinkers and teachers he represents who have inspired me toward preaching that reveals rather than regurgitates truth. And even more, I thank all the congregations of believers among whom I have lived and served who have shown me what it looks like to lean forward to hear a word from the Lord: for three years with the kids of the South Presbyterian Church high school group in Syracuse, New York; for thirteen years with the people of Fountain Square Church in Bowling Green, Kentucky; for five years with the students and staff of the Oakdale Christian Academy boarding school in Jackson, Kentucky; and for the past eleven years with the people of Greenville (IL) Free Methodist Church.
\nFor fifteen years I served as editor of Light & Life, the denominational magazine of the Free Methodist Church. This was also a significant time in my life when I learned to communicate more broadly through writing to people I would never see from the Sunday pulpit. That opportunity and training would never have occurred without the courage of four bishops who hired me\u2014a pastor with no journalism or seminary degree\u2014simply because I had what they regarded as an anointed, albeit \u201cunsafe\u201d (their word), creative approach to communication.
\nMy role as editor led to my speaking periodically at writer\u2019s conferences\u2014most often at the renowned Mount Hermon Christian Writers Conference. I owe a great debt of thanks to Dave Talbott, who hardly knew me when inviting me to preach on Palm Sunday in 1998 in the rustic auditorium beneath the praising redwoods to the crowd filled with professional writers. And he continued to do so for several years, even though I had not yet joined the ranks of published authors.
\nThat is where I was first heard and shaped by these professionals, many of whom became friends. One of them, Wendy Lawton, committed herself to me as my agent long before there was any sign I would ever repay her kindness with even a dime of compensation. I couldn\u2019t have been given a more gifted, wise, and dedicated agent than she and the Books & Such Literary Agency.
\nOne day she and Janet Grant, founder of the agency, approached me with a clear vision of how to position me as an author. They said, \u201cYou need to just do what you do\u2014open people\u2019s eyes to Scripture in fresh ways.\u201d Within a few months, I had a contract with David C Cook thanks to them and Alice Crider, senior acquisitions editor, who championed this multi-book project with an accompanying app.
\nSuddenly I had a contract, and the initial draft of three books had to be written from scratch in five months. This was a daunting task made more feasible, because over the years I have learned how to write with intense focus as my Greenville church staff graciously accommodated my need to get away several times a year to work on various writing projects.
\nHowever, when this massive project came along I needed something more than intense focus. I would need big blocks of time and a sense of the Lord\u2019s permission. A series of God-ordained events gave me that green light and changed my ministry responsibilities dramatically. Two of those events involved divine instruction that came miraculously and separately through Ben Dodson and Sarah Vanderkwaak. I am grateful they risked speaking when they could have remained silent. I am also grateful for dear friends Ivan and Kathie Filby, and my gifted superintendent Ben Tolly, for seeing a future ahead of me I would not have imagined.
\nAlice Crider was gracious enough to honor my request to select my own editor, Mick Silva. We had met at Mount Hermon and had only two casual conversations, but that was enough for me to have confidence in his spiritual sensitivity and professional skills. This initial confidence proved to be well-founded as our friendship grew and as Mick\u2019s expertise sharpened and supported the mission and message of the Fresh Eyes books chapter by chapter and line by line.
\nI was also pleased to have been brought into the David C Cook family at a time when the company was retooling its focus and functions in fresh ways to fulfill its longstanding mission to resource and disciple the church worldwide. That mission, so evident in the processes and people at David C Cook, convinced my wife and me to come under their banner in this project. I have enjoyed how much I have learned every step of the way through the enthusiastic encouragement of Alice Crider, Toben Heim, and the team of people assigned to guide me through this project to completion and distribution: Rachael Stevenson, Diane Gardner, Kayla Fenstermaker, Amy Konyndyk, Nick Lee, Susan Murdock, Megan Stengel, Annette Brickbealer, Nathan Landry, and Austin Davco.
\nFinally, it probably goes without saying, but it is impossible not to shout from the rooftops how much I owe to my family. My two girls, their amazing husbands, and combined five kids. They have not only given me their love and respect over the years, but also what it means to live life knowing your kids are proud of you\u2014and tell you! That lubricates the mechanics of life through the grind of large projects like Fresh Eyes.
\nThen there\u2019s Margie. She\u2019s my hero, my model, my friend, my encourager. There has been a sparkle in her eyes from the very beginning of being \u201cus\u201d that comes from her love for Jesus. That sparkle is my north star. It keeps me navigating through life, no matter what comes, toward greater love for the Lord. Without that sparkle in her eyes, my own would have long since grown dim with cares and worries and doubts preventing me from seeing anything\u2014life itself and its Author\u2014with fresh eyes. But when you have someone who loves you unconditionally in such a way that helps you know the love of God, your eyes will sparkle too with expectancy for seeing new and fresh things in the world and in the Word.<\/p>\n
Doug Newton
\nMarch 2018<\/p>\n
About the Fresh Eyes Series<\/p>\n
What if the commonplace understanding of a Bible story or a well-known Scripture passage is the very thing keeping us from seeing the text in a new, life-transforming way?
\nWe all find ourselves facing this problem when we study the Bible. We believe Scripture is living and powerful. But many of us, after a genuine encounter with God followed by faithful Bible study and many sermons, became so familiar with Scripture that it lost its impact. The Bible became a book of riddles to be solved. Once we \u201cfigured out what a passage meant,\u201d we checked it off and moved on. We\u2019ve seen these stories too many times, and everyone who\u2019s been a Christian for even a year or two knows how that voracious appetite for the Word quickly fades.
\nPastors and Bible teachers craft a message from a particular text, and the lesson they convey becomes the way we understand the passage from that point on. Within a few short years, it feels like we\u2019re hearing the same thing over and over again. We begin to approach the Bible with less zip and zeal. Familiarity may not always breed contempt, but it does tend to breed complacency.
\nYet consider Jesus\u2019 remedy: \u201cYou have heard that it was said, but I tell you . . .\u201d He invited His listeners to break away from well-worn thinking to see something new, different. We need to look with fresh eyes at what we think we know well. A passage\u2019s common interpretation may have taken a wrong turn somewhere along the line and been passed along like an urban legend. The application may need to shift in a different direction or include something not considered before. There\u2019s new hope for our lives to change when we can say, \u201cI never saw it that way before.\u201d
\nMy primary mission with this book series is not to share new insights I\u2019ve uncovered. My greater desire is to reveal specific techniques that will allow you to make new discoveries about familiar passages that can revive your love for the infinite Word and transform your work in teaching and testimony.
\nThe interactive section at the end of each chapter includes a \u201cVision Check,\u201d which describes Fresh Eyes study techniques. These reveal how I found something new and inspiring by reexamining the text and context of a passage, the life situations involved, the cultural perspectives reflected, and other details and how I began to see Scripture more imaginatively. You\u2019ll also find more resources at dougnewton.com and on the Fresh Eyes app to help you gain additional insights.
\nI pray you find that the treasures in God\u2019s Word are truly inexhaustible when you come with fresh eyes.<\/p>\n
Introduction<\/p>\n
One Easter Sunday, I wanted to help my congregation powerfully sense the resurrection\u2019s importance and truly feel the impact of Paul\u2019s words in 1 Corinthians 15:17, 19: \u201cIf Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins. . . . We are of all people most to be pitied.\u201d I could have let them try to understand the significance of those words intellectually, but I wanted them to feel it in their guts and see that text with fresh eyes. So I decided to go the extra mile and do something I rarely did: I built a big prop to bring on stage\u2014a wooden wall with a real glass window in it.
\nI placed the reinforced partition on the platform behind me to create my perfect visual aid, certain it would be a memorable picture of why the resurrection matters so much and why we have to reconsider the Bible\u2019s familiar-sounding words. I planned to take objects representing portions of the service\u2014a hymnal for after singing the first hymn, a Bible for after the responsive reading, even offering plates\u2014and chuck them out the window. It was going to be great.
\nSo after we sang the first triumphant hymn, I held up the hymnal and said, \u201cIf Christ has not been raised from the dead, then we might as well take this hymnal\u201d\u2014I held it higher\u2014\u201cand chuck it out the window!\u201d I drew back and let it fly. A loud crash resounded as the heavy songbook broke through the plate glass, producing a great dramatic effect.
\nThe audible gasps followed by scattered laughter told me I\u2019d gotten my wish.
\nThe Word of God is immeasurably precious. We should never get so comfortable with any passage that we cease to see its ongoing creative possibilities. We can ask the Lord to give us fresh eyes to see something about a text\u2014its meaning, context, credibility, power, or applicability\u2014that we\u2019ve never seen before. This is especially important when it comes to Jesus\u2019 parables.
\nPioneering scholar C. H. Dodd said a \u201cparable is a metaphor or simile\u201d that \u201c[arrests] the hearer by its vividness or strangeness . . . leaving the mind in sufficient doubt about its precise application to tease it into active thought.\u201d1 Jesus wanted His followers\u2014then and now\u2014to grapple with these wonderful stories.
\nI want to help you do that through this book. Since parables are stories that use symbols and analogies, each text\u2019s meaning cannot always be pinned down like a butterfly in a collector\u2019s showcase. Instead, parables must be observed and allowed to float on the invisible currents of the imagination. While it is always worthwhile to ask, \u201cWhat did Jesus mean?\u201d Jesus\u2019 characteristic reluctance to provide the meaning suggests that a more important question may be, \u201cWhat does it make you think about?\u201d
\nThroughout church history, the parables\u2019 open-ended quality often resulted in disagreement. For several hundred years, early Christian leaders treated them like allegories in which each element represents something else. They pointed to Jesus\u2019 interpretation of the parable of the sower as a prime example of how to relate to parables (Matt. 13:1\u201323).
\nAdmittedly, some bizarre interpretations came out of this and skewed the stories\u2019 purpose and intent. Bishop Irenaeus, for example, claimed the parable of the workers in Matthew 20 represents people saved at different times in history and the denarius represents eternal life. Other scholars have argued that a parable should be reduced to one simple lesson. Seminary students are often trained in that school of thought. Thankfully, a resurgence of interpretation theories has allowed for allegorical readings of parables and their ability to convey multiple points at once.
\nDiscussions of form, redaction, or literary criticism aim for the pearl of great price\u2014the indisputably perfect approach to interpretation\u2014but that\u2019s not what you\u2019ll find here. There\u2019s no conclusive agreement about how to interpret parables, and I start by assuming that this is actually a good thing, fitting for parables intended for ordinary folks like you and me. We need to use our limited permission and let the parables take us into Spirit-guided research, reflection, and application, in harmony with the whole Word of God.
\nWe need to look at familiar parables in fresh ways. In a couple cases, we\u2019ll consider alternatives to the conventional interpretation. In others, a careful reading of the surrounding context may make the parable more compelling or convicting. Sometimes, the fuller lessons have increased my wonder over the gospel\u2019s promise or generated deeper implications. The last chapter in particular demonstrates how these narratives can expand to include reasonable hypothetical situations and reveal insights not noticed before.
\nThe elasticity of the parables excites me. Even more, though some parables are suspected to be inauthentic, they have deepened my love for\u2014and even my \u201cTrinitarian\u201d view of\u2014God\u2019s Word. I\u2019m very confident in Scripture\u2019s ability and credibility to show itself the bona fide Word of God to you in this book.
\nThe apostle Paul regularly prayed for people to be given the Spirit of wisdom and revelation through having the eyes of their hearts enlightened (Eph. 1:17\u201318). Ultimately, that\u2019s what it takes to have \u201cfresh eyes.\u201d But we need to do our part. If you\u2019re ready to discover your part, I invite you to read the parables of Jesus with fresh eyes.<\/p>\n
1<\/p>\n
\u201cHello, Turkey\u201d<\/p>\n
The Hidden Treasure<\/p>\n
Matthew 13:44<\/p>\n
How can one little Bible verse capture the full meaning of salvation?<\/p>\n
I grew up well before the era of iPads. The closest thing we had to an attention-grabbing flat-screen instrument was an Etch A Sketch. Remember? You drew on it by turning two knobs that moved an interior stylus against the backside of a gray screen, leaving a black line. If you got good at it, you could draw almost anything, and then you simply erased the screen and started over by turning it upside down and shaking it vigorously.
\nThis is similar to what we often must do with our minds in order to see something new or even better in a familiar Scripture passage. Case in point: \u201cThe kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field\u201d (Matt. 13:44).
\nOne common interpretation has been \u201cEtch A Sketched\u201d into our minds by preachers dialing in this point: the kingdom of heaven is such a precious treasure that we, like the man, should give up everything to lay hold of it. Of course, that\u2019s absolutely true\u2014but probably not what Jesus was talking about. So let\u2019s flip our minds upside down, shake out the old teaching, and ask the Holy Spirit to help us discover something new. Let\u2019s start with a quick review of the facts:<\/p>\n
\u2022 \u2022 What did the man buy? Don\u2019t say \u201ctreasure.\u201d He wanted the treasure, but he had to buy the field where he found it in order to possess the treasure. That\u2019s an important observation.<\/p>\n
\u2022 \u2022 How did the man come up with the money to buy the field? He sold everything he owned.<\/p>\n
\u2022 \u2022 What was his frame of mind while doing that? He was joyful.<\/p>\n
\u2022 \u2022 Finally, what was the kingdom of heaven like? Wait . . . don\u2019t say \u201ctreasure.\u201d The first thing you must do whenever you approach a parable that begins \u201cthe kingdom of heaven (or God) is like . . .\u201d is to put the parable\u2019s elements inside a parenthesis so the phrase \u201ckingdom of heaven\u201d applies to everything that follows. This parable is not saying the kingdom of God is like any one element in the parable, such as the treasure or the man or the field. Rather, the parable is saying the whole picture that follows is what the kingdom of God is like. That is, the man finds treasure, hides it, joyfully sells everything, and buys the field. Given that basic rule of interpretation, we cannot interpret this parable the common way\u2014that the kingdom of God should be like a treasure to us.<\/p>\n
You might then be tempted to ask, \u201cSo what is this parable telling us to value so highly that we would give up everything to obtain it?\u201d Here\u2019s the bad news. If you ask the question that way, you\u2019ll never arrive at the answer, because too often we don\u2019t notice any unwarranted assumptions we make. Let me demonstrate by telling you a story.
\nFor more than thirty years, I have asked groups to solve the following \u201ctwenty-questions mystery\u201d: Mary lies dead on the floor. Tom is asleep on the couch. A colorless, odorless liquid surrounds Mary\u2019s body, and broken pieces of glass are also scattered around her. The windows and doors are all locked from the inside. What happened?
\nThe groups always start out with the same kinds of questions. Someone asks, \u201cHas Mary been dead a long time?\u201d
\n\u201cNo, but that\u2019s not relevant to the solution,\u201d I reply.
\nAnother person asks, \u201cThe windows may be locked, but are any of them broken?\u201d
\n\u201cClever question. But no, none of them are broken.\u201d
\n\u201cIs the liquid water?\u201d
\n\u201cYes.\u201d
\n\u201cDid Mary drop the glass before she died, because she got frightened?\u201d
\n\u201cNo,\u201d I say. \u201cBut you\u2019re making an unwarranted assumption.\u201d
\nEyes squint and brows furrow. Questions fly: \u201cIs it really a house?\u201d \u201cIs Tom really asleep?\u201d
\n\u201cYes,\u201d I say, \u201cbut go beyond the facts you were presented with. Who are you assuming Mary is?\u201d
\nA nurse? A murderer? A thief? Eventually someone hits on it: \u201cIs Mary a woman?\u201d
\n\u201cNo.\u201d I see the light turn on.
\n\u201cA little girl?\u201d
\n\u201cNo.\u201d
\n\u201cIs Mary human?\u201d
\n\u201cNo.\u201d And there it is.
\nFrom this point, the solution comes quickly: Tom is a cat. Mary is a goldfish. Tom knocked the fishbowl off the table, it broke, and Mary died.
\nIn the same way, our unwarranted assumption about \u201cthe man\u201d in this parable keeps us from understanding what Jesus was teaching about God\u2019s kingdom. Here\u2019s your hint: Who are you assuming the main character to be? What if the man who bought the field is not an ordinary human being like us but the Son of God?<\/p>\n
Christus Victor
\nWhat if this isn\u2019t a parable about all we must do to possess the kingdom? What if Jesus is the one who finds the treasure? What if we human beings are the treasure? What if the field is this world that belonged to Satan, the former prince of the world? And what if it is Jesus who gives up everything He owns to purchase (redeem) this world and reclaim us as His possession? What if that\u2019s what the kingdom of heaven is like?
\nDid you realize that for the first thousand years of Christendom that picture was likely the more common way of understanding salvation? It is sometimes called Christus Victor. Today the common view is penal substitution: that is, Jesus died in our place to pay for our sins. This view of salvation has its roots in a classic atonement theory Saint Anselm articulated in the eleventh century. After various revisions following the Protestant Reformation, it has become the dominant view of salvation. It\u2019s not that Christus Victor is right and penal substitution is wrong. They simply represent different ways of looking at the gospel. God\u2019s work of salvation is so great (Heb. 2:3), like a huge mountain, that we must view it from many angles to gain an accurate and comprehensive picture. But most Christians don\u2019t realize this and believe there is only one way to describe what Jesus accomplished on the cross.
\nYou could summarize the Christus Victor view of salvation this way: the prince of the world, Satan, possessed this world; the Son of God came to earth and defeated him on the cross, then established and commissioned the church to enforce His kingdom\u2019s rule on earth and reclaim lost people to His possession. That used to be a more common way to understand the gospel of salvation.
\nWhen I first viewed this parable from that angle, my whole idea of salvation expanded. However, I sensed the change was so big, it was important to check my new insight against Scripture. When I did, this short parable seemed to condense several verses about Jesus\u2019 death found in Hebrews and Paul\u2019s letters:<\/p>\n
1. 1. . . . then in his joy went\u2014\u201cFor the joy set before him he endured the cross . . .\u201d (Heb. 12:2).<\/p>\n
2. 2. . . . and sold all he had\u2014\u201c[He] did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing . . .\u201d (Phil. 2:6\u20137).<\/p>\n
3. 3. . . . and bought that field\u2014\u201cYou are not your own; you were bought at a price\u201d (1 Cor. 6:19\u201320).<\/p>\n
So my new insight checked out. As a result, I now believe penal substitution is one way to understand the gospel, but Christus Victor is also, and it may be the most glorious understanding we have. The King of the universe reclaimed this fallen world. Isn\u2019t that exactly what Handel wrote in his celebrated \u201cHallelujah Chorus\u201d?<\/p>\n
The kingdom of this world
\nIs become the kingdom of our Lord
\nAnd of His Christ, and of His Christ;
\nand He shall reign for ever and ever.<\/p>\n
Plus, rethinking my assumptions about this parable not only resized my view of salvation but also upsized my longing to join the Lord in His treasure-seeking work. For this parable reveals our Lord\u2019s passion to reclaim us\u2014you and me\u2014as treasures that belong to Him. It tells of the lengths to which He will go to make a person\u2014any person\u2014His.<\/p>\n
How Far Jesus Goes
\nA couple years ago after church, a somewhat-unkempt and heavily tattooed young mom came up to me and my wife after having waited for people to clear out. Unfamiliar with church lingo and protocol, she asked cautiously, \u201cYou know your talk today?\u201d (She didn\u2019t call it a sermon.) \u201cWhy did you look toward me and say \u2018Hello, Turkey\u2019?\u201d
\nI had no clue what she was talking about. I felt sure I never said such a thing. My wife\u2019s quizzical look confirmed my doubts. I just replied, \u201cI don\u2019t remember saying that. Why do you ask?\u201d That triggered a somewhat-lengthy description of her troubled life but how, through her ups and downs with drugs and lovers leaving her with children, she had a loving grandmother.
\nShe went on to explain, \u201cGramma was someone who went to church a lot, and she prayed a lot, and I knew she loved me, but I was messed up. Last year my gramma died, but I got to see her before, and I said, \u2018Gramma, if I ever get back on the right track and you can see me from heaven making good choices, will you somehow tell me \u201cHello, Turkey\u201d?\u2019 That\u2019s what she always used to call me. Well, this is my second week coming here to church, and this morning I clearly heard you say \u2018Hello, Turkey.\u2019 So I\u2019m thinking I must be on the right track.\u201d
\nHer story struck me, and I told her how much God loved her and said, \u201cJesus knew what you asked your grandma to say. So He caused you to hear words this morning that I didn\u2019t say.\u201d
\nShe was dumbfounded. And I was able to introduce her to this Jesus who does remarkable, miraculous things to seek and save the lost\u2014to claim the buried treasures of this world. That\u2019s who Jesus is. That\u2019s what this parable is about. Our Lord looks at each of us as a treasure, and He will stop at nothing\u2014pay whatever price is necessary\u2014to help you become His possession!
\nHere\u2019s my suggestion: the next time you take Communion, don\u2019t think just about how much Jesus paid. Yes, it was His life He gave\u2014it was His body that was broken and His blood that was shed. But consider why He paid that price. He wants you to be His. He wants you to no longer be in any kind of bondage to any form of the Enemy\u2019s power. Satan has no hold on you. He has no claim on you.
\nTurns out you are an Etch A Sketch yourself. When you become His, Jesus wonderfully and lovingly turns your life upside down and erases the sin, shame, corruption, and marks the Devil left in your life, granting you a clean slate and heart that He writes on by His Spirit. Because you belong to Him.<\/p>\n
20\/20 Focus
\n1. 1. This chapter points out that the common interpretation of this parable emphasizes the enormous price a human being must be willing to pay to possess the treasured kingdom of heaven. What difference does it make to see yourself as the treasure Jesus paid to possess, rather than the kingdom being the treasure you must pay to possess?<\/p>\n
2. 2. The phrase \u201cand sold all he had\u201d was connected with Philippians 2:6\u20137, which speaks of the price the Son of God paid to redeem the world. Can you think of any other Bible verses that speak of His great personal sacrifice?<\/p>\n
3. 3. How might things be different in our churches and among Christian believers if the Christus Victor view of salvation was more widely proclaimed and embraced in our time?<\/p>\n
4. 4. Take a few moments to pray for a person you would ask Jesus to seek out and save in the miraculous way He claimed the young mom in the \u201cHello, Turkey\u201d story.<\/p>\n
Lord Jesus, I am so thankful You paid the price to reclaim this world . . . and me. I embrace by faith my freedom from sin and from Satan\u2019s hold on me. Help me walk out that freedom in practical ways that show the world I belong to You. Amen.<\/p>\n
Vision Check
\nWhenever you begin to think about anything, you start with assumptions you\u2019re not even aware of. The key to clear thinking is to release those assumptions. Don\u2019t let them control what you see before you check them out like we did in this parable. (Are we right to assume the man who bought the field is a person like ourselves?)
\nPractice this skill by going to 2 Corinthians 9:15, where Paul wrote, \u201cThanks be to God for his indescribable gift!\u201d First, identify what most people assume Paul meant by the \u201cindescribable gift\u201d and hold it in question. Then read the preceding verses (vv. 6\u201314) to see if the common assumption fits the context. Or is the \u201cindescribable gift\u201d referring to something else? Hop on dougnewton.com or the Fresh Eyes app to compare your thoughts with mine.<\/p>\n
2<\/p>\n
Another Day, Another Denarius<\/p>\n
The Vineyard Workers<\/p>\n
Matthew 20:1\u201315<\/p>\n
What we mean by \u201cfair\u201d and what God means by \u201cfair\u201d are often different things.<\/p>\n
The year our daughters were six and four years old, my wife and I had no money for Christmas presents. We were living on a very low preacher\u2019s salary and had been saving all year. By November we had saved about 175 dollars. Then one day we had to dip into our savings and use it up.
\nFor a couple years, we\u2019d sponsored two African refugees who fled to the United States for asylum. When they first came, they didn\u2019t know each other. They didn\u2019t speak each other\u2019s languages and didn\u2019t speak English. One was Coptic from Ethiopia, and the other was Muslim from what was then called Zaire (today is the Democratic Republic of Congo). They lived with the four of us. The experience enriched us in every way but financially.
\nEventually they learned English well enough to enroll in some basic college courses, get jobs, and move into a very inexpensive apartment. Yosef, the one from Ethiopia, had no car but got a job about ten miles out of town at a clothing factory, so I drove him to work and picked him up every day. It was the only kind of job he could get. Soon he was able to buy a car, a great relief to our family schedule.
\nUnfortunately, just after Thanksgiving, that car broke down. We had it towed to a nearby service station and found out the repair would cost about\u2014you guessed it\u2014175 dollars. Of course, our hearts sank as we knew what we must do and what it would mean for the kids\u2019 Christmas. We got his car fixed.
\nI honestly don\u2019t remember whether we even prayed about the situation, but something wonderful happened. In anticipation of our out-of-state parents coming to our home for Christmas, we wanted to spruce it up a bit. A few months earlier we had bought some living-room wallpaper for a dollar a roll but had not gotten around to hanging it. So early in December we decided to do that. Both of our dads were neatniks and always approached household tasks with excellence, so I knew we needed to do a good job and not cut corners. When the time came to hang the paper on the wall with the fireplace, I had no choice but to take down the mantel so I could run the paper neatly behind it. I didn\u2019t want to, but that\u2019s what kids do when their dads are perfectionists.
\nI figured out how the mantel was fastened to the wall and gathered the tools I needed. Just as I disconnected the mantel from the wall, two one-hundred-dollar bills fluttered onto the floor. Sometime before we ever lived in the house, they must have gotten lodged in the crack behind the mantel. Suddenly we had 200 dollars.
\nBut wait. That\u2019s not all. A few days later we had a water problem, and I had to slide under the house and crawl on my belly to the back corner. I had never been that far back in the crawl space before and could barely see in the dark. Suddenly I came upon a box. I had no idea what was in it, so I pulled it into the light and found it was an old train set. I thought it might have some value, so I called one of the men in my church who collected model trains to come take a look. Turned out it was rare\u2014rare enough for him to offer us 500 dollars on the spot!
\nIf you\u2019re doing the math, our 175-dollar loss was erased by a 700-dollar gain. Not only were we able to give our kids some special gifts, but my wife and I exchanged gifts that year as well. We have no doubt that was an example of God\u2019s kindness. But was it a \u201creward\u201d for our willingness to sacrifice? Is that how the kingdom works? And if so, how much sacrifice is required before you become eligible? And what of other situations where we gave up things we needed but didn\u2019t get any divine recompense?<\/p>\n
Not Business as Usual
\nThese kinds of stories and their counterpart (when there\u2019s no immediate reward) can lead to confusion. Why does God sometimes cover our expenses (or meet some other concern), while other times we seem to get left hanging? The parable this chapter explores about the landowner and his hired workers adds to that confusion.
\nAs with many of Jesus\u2019 parables, He began by saying this is what God\u2019s kingdom is like. He wanted us to assume in advance that the kingdom\u2019s ways and values will differ from the ways and values of this world, a reality that drives the conflict in this drama. He opened by stating, \u201cFor the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire workers for his vineyard. He agreed to pay them a denarius for the day and sent them into his vineyard\u201d (Matt. 20:1\u20132).
\nNotice how Jesus used language that set up His listeners to process this story according to business values. Words like hire, agreed to pay, denarius for the day, and sent them evoke a work-for-hire, verbal contract: \u201cI will pay you X amount of money for X amount of work.\u201d The pay was based on the amount each person worked. So the first wave of workers headed off to work first thing in the morning. Jesus continued: \u201cAbout nine in the morning he went out and saw others standing in the marketplace doing nothing. He told them, \u2018You also go and work in my vineyard, and I will pay you whatever is right.\u2019 So they went\u201d (vv. 3\u20135).
\nNotice that the landowner did not specify the amount of pay. The workers simply took the landowner\u2019s word that he would do \u201cwhatever is right.\u201d Jesus left His listeners nodding, recognizing a familiar situation: the owner would calculate what the workers\u2019 pay would be based on the one-denarius benchmark promised to the early-morning workers. It would be a simple calculation even people who weren\u2019t CPAs could figure out easily: their pay would be in the neighborhood of one denarius minus one-fourth of a denarius, because they would have worked three fewer hours than the early hires (three out of a total of twelve work hours equals one-fourth of the day). Clearly, that would be \u201cright.\u201d
\nJesus added the repetition of traditional storytelling: \u201cHe went out again about noon and about three in the afternoon and did the same thing\u201d (v. 5).
\nIt went without saying that the owner would also treat them fairly. The workers who began at noon, the sixth hour of the workday, would receive one denarius minus six-twelfths of a denarius, or a half denarius, because they would have worked half as long as the early workers. The pay of the workers who began at three would be similarly calculated.
\nWith the pattern firmly embedded in His listeners\u2019 minds, Jesus continued: \u201cAbout five in the afternoon he went out and found still others standing around. He asked them, \u2018Why have you been standing here all day long doing nothing?\u2019 \u2018Because no one has hired us,\u2019 they answered. He said to them, \u2018You also go and work in my vineyard\u2019\u201d (vv. 6\u20137).
\nAt this point, some of Jesus\u2019 listeners might have begun to cock their heads with a question niggling their minds: Why would the landowner even bother to hire workers for only one hour\u2019s work? But they probably just passed it off as an oddity of the story, until suddenly the whole situation took an unexpected turn: \u201cWhen evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to his foreman, \u2018Call the workers and pay them their wages, beginning with the last ones hired and going on to the first\u2019\u201d (v. 8).
\nThis is very interesting. The story makes it clear that none of the workers knew what the others would earn at the end of the day. Only the earliest workers knew what their pay would be\u2014one denarius. As the parable proceeds, the landowner pays everyone the same amount of money\u2014one denarius. That in itself shocks everyone\u2019s worldly senses. Not only does the landowner\u2019s pay scale violate good business practice, but his decision to let the early workers know what he was giving everyone else\u2014especially the one-hour workers\u2014also violates common sense. If you know the full-day workers will be mad, pay them first and send them home so they don\u2019t see what you\u2019re giving the others!
\nClearly, the landowner in the story\u2014and remember, this whole parable reveals what God\u2019s kingdom is like\u2014intended everyone to be confronted by a shocking set of values. Through this, Jesus, the storyteller, was about to reveal the values of the kingdom of heaven\u2014His kingdom. The landowner gave everyone the same amount for some reason. And the rest of the parable expresses the clash between the kingdom of heaven and the kingdom of this world:<\/p>\n
So when those came who were hired first, they expected to receive more. But each one of them also received a denarius. When they received it, they began to grumble against the landowner. \u201cThese who were hired last worked only one hour,\u201d they said, \u201cand you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the work and the heat of the day.\u201d
\nBut he answered one of them, \u201cI am not being unfair to you, friend. Didn\u2019t you agree to work for a denarius? Take your pay and go. I want to give the one who was hired last the same as I gave you. Don\u2019t I have the right to do what I want with my own money? Or are you envious because I am generous?\u201d (vv. 10\u201315)<\/p>\n
Notice that Jesus never had the landowner explain his reasoning. He simply made him sound like the stereotypical parent who doesn\u2019t want to explain himself to the kids: \u201cBecause I said so.\u201d It is left up to us to sort this out. The landowner promised all the workers who began later that he would give them whatever was right. How in the world . . . er, how in heaven . . . can it be right to give them the same amount?<\/p>\n
DayWork and Daily Bread
\nBelieve it or not, Jesus\u2019 original listeners might have found answering that question easier than we do today, because they understood something we can\u2019t know without a little research. Here are two things you must know to discover the good news in this parable: What are hired workers, and what is a denarius?
\nA quick look at footnotes in a study Bible or basic commentary reveals that hired workers were day laborers. They had no guarantee of regular employment but gathered with a group of other laborers every day in hopes of being hired for a day\u2019s work in the fields. And a denarius was the equivalent of a day\u2019s wage.
\nThis still occurs in our time in hundreds of towns and cities around the country where day laborers wait to be hired for farm or construction work. Understand, if a day laborer doesn\u2019t work, his family doesn\u2019t eat. It was and still is that simple. If you are a dayworker, you can do nothing to control whether you get hired, except to be available and wait for a truck to drive up and for the driver to tell you to hop in. That\u2019s why the dialogue between the owner and the workers emphasizes they were \u201cstanding around\u201d not out of laziness but simply because no one had come by: \u201cAbout five in the afternoon he went out and found still others standing around. He asked them, \u2018Why have you been standing here all day long doing nothing?\u2019 \u2018Because no one has hired us,\u2019 they answered\u201d (Matt. 20:6\u20137).
\nIn this parable\u2014and all Jesus\u2019 listeners would have known this\u2014the workers\u2019 only hope for meeting their daily needs was for a landowner to come along and invite them to work. The reaction of the laborers who had worked all day makes sense to us. They worked longer, so they should have gotten more money. But this parable is about the values of the kingdom\u2014it begins with \u201cthe kingdom of heaven is like\u201d\u2014not the values of the world. The landowner\u2019s calculations were based not on the number of hours worked but on typical daily needs. All dayworkers\u2019 needs are the same. The ones who didn\u2019t have the opportunity to work all day still needed a full day\u2019s pay. The kingdom of heaven is not about getting someone\u2019s sweat but about giving someone bread. That\u2019s good news, but the news gets even better.<\/p>\n
The Owner\u2019s Priority
\nBased on the parable\u2019s pattern, what would the owner give a person invited to work at 5:30 p.m.? Or 5:45? That\u2019s right: a denarius. Why? Because the landowner\u2019s concern was giving all the workers what they needed for the day.
\nThe vital question is, Why was the landowner looking for unhired workers at the last hour of the day? What good would they do him then? Clearly, the reason is not about how much labor the landowner needed done but about how much support people needed to make it through the day. The owner desired to give all the workers a chance to get what they needed. He wanted no one left without a chance, so much so that he kept looking for people long after they were useful to him.
\nAt 5:59, the master could say, \u201cCome get in the truck,\u201d and he\u2019d pay that laborer for a full day too. That\u2019s what is right in this kingdom. Even at 5:59:59, if a laborer had done nothing but lift his leg to hop in the truck as the six o\u2019clock whistle blew, he\u2019d get a full day\u2019s wage! Isn\u2019t that the kind of landowner you really want to work for?
\nI can\u2019t tell you why my wife and I suddenly discovered 700 dollars after having given up our kids\u2019 Christmas gifts money. Was it a reward for doing something nice? Perhaps. We make no claims. What we know is that God does reward, but He is also generous in ways that go beyond anything we have earned and gets to be generous whenever and however He wants. And this parable in particular shows His passion to invite anyone and everyone to join His work, and He will give us what we need to make it through every day.<\/p>\n
20\/20 Focus
\nTwo goals of this book are to stir your heart with richer insights into God\u2019s heart and to inspire stronger compassion for the needs of people. With that in mind . . .<\/p>\n
1. 1. Imagine being your family\u2019s sole wage earner but not knowing from one day to the next whether you will have work. Imagine the hours ticking by\u2014nine o\u2019clock, twelve o\u2019clock, then three o\u2019clock\u2014and still having no opportunity to earn any money. What could you do? How would you feel? And what if it were like that many days out of every month?<\/p>\n
2. 2. Take a few moments to do an online search of \u201cday laborers\u201d or \u201cNational Day Labor Study\u201d to get an idea of the number and plight of people in America who are in the very position you imagined in question 1.<\/p>\n
3. 3. Think about what you discovered in your research and reflect again on this parable\u2019s focus on God\u2019s compassionate heart. How is the Holy Spirit stirring your heart?<\/p>\n
4. 4. Think beyond the daily need for money and food. What other \u201cbasics\u201d for daily life and stable living do most people need? Do you think this parable can be extended to speak to the Lord\u2019s concern for those needs as well? Are there any Scripture passages that support that extension?<\/p>\n
Lord Jesus, this parable\u2019s view of Your grace and compassion grips my heart, first with gratitude and then with conviction. Help me live in confidence regarding Your provision for me and my family. But also help me find ways to imitate Your dedicated compassion for the daily needs of others. Amen.<\/p>\n
Vision Check
\nStories often have a trajectory that increases or decreases the action, circumstances, or ideas to encourage us to ask, \u201cWhat might happen if we go one step beyond where the story leaves off?\u201d In this chapter, we followed the trajectory and imagined what might happen if the master hired a worker the very last minute of the workday. This technique often results in seeing some point with more impact or clarity.
\nPractice this technique on Gideon\u2019s story in Judges 7. Notice the trajectory of the decreasing size of his army as they were about to go into battle against 135,000 Midianites. Then take one or more steps along that trajectory and see where your mind goes. Compare your thoughts with mine on dougnewton.com or the Fresh Eyes app.<\/p>\n
3<\/p>\n
Where Should the Emphasis Go?<\/p>\n
The Lost Son<\/p>\n
Luke 15:11\u201332<\/p>\n
Who\u2019s the most important character in the parable of the prodigal son?<\/p>\n
English is among the most difficult languages to learn for people raised in a non-English-speaking country. The language seems to have no rules, except that there are exceptions to every rule. Even rules about exceptions have exceptions\u2014\u201cI before E except after C,\u201d but what about height, feign, reign, or rein? Maybe it\u2019s I before E except after C and H and F and R. But then there\u2019s worrier and healthier. Maybe our highly prized independence caused the English language to run amok.
\nOn top of spelling, there\u2019s no rhyme or reason to pronunciation. People who try to learn English as a second language must remember not only the meaning and the spelling but also the sound of every word, which is vital for communication. This struck me quite powerfully when a good friend from another country said recently, \u201cThis is a terri-BULL DEVIL-opment.\u201d
\nIt took me a minute to realize he wasn\u2019t trying to say something about a \u201cbull-devil.\u201d He was, as they say, placing the em-PHA-sis on the wrong syl-LA-ble.
\nA similar thing has happened to Jesus\u2019 parables. Sometimes we miss the very point Jesus wanted to emphasize. The parable of the lost son, often called the parable of the prodigal son, is a case in point.
\nIt is arguably the most famous of all the parables, the Good Samaritan its nearest rival. Undoubtedly, it\u2019s hope-filled and even life-changing, depicting God\u2019s immense love and mercy like no other story or passage in Scripture. But it reveals something else that\u2019s often missed.<\/p>\n
Three Characters, Three Choices
\nThe parable of the prodigal son is so revered it\u2019s nearly impossible to reframe. It\u2019s also nearly impossible to exaggerate the three main characters. There\u2019s the younger son\u2019s disgraceful premature demand of his inheritance, as if he said to his father, \u201cI wish you were already dead.\u201d There\u2019s also his stupefying self-indulgence that led to his descent into absolute poverty. Even the desperate, self-serving nature of his motive for seeking reconciliation with his father can\u2019t be overstated.
\nThe older son\u2019s arrogance and coldness toward his brother kindles scornful boos and hisses. His ingratitude and rejection of the grace he\u2019s always enjoyed from his father appalls us.
\nAs for the father, some Christian writers have pointed out that since prodigal comes from the same root as prodigious, the parable could properly be renamed the prodigal father because of his overflowing love. Who hasn\u2019t been moved by the image of the father running to welcome his wandering child? What wanderer hasn\u2019t been thrilled to imagine those forgiving arms? The celebration over our return from our wanderings outstrips even the most extravagant dream of Christmas trees surrounded with presents and parties thrown just for us.
\nApplications are myriad and adjust to the need. For wandering and broken people, we emphasize the father\u2019s open arms. For dealing with judgment, we look at the older brother. For those tempted by self-indulgence, we unpack the consequences of wasteful spending and wild extravagance. It\u2019s as though we hear three syllables and our circumstances determine which to emphasize.
\nWhich character do you think is the protagonist\u2014the younger son, the father, or the older son? Or is it two of them? All three? After all, we know it\u2019s important to get the EM-pha-sis on the right SYL-la-ble.<\/p>\n
The Other Character
\nThe best answer, I believe, is \u201cNone of the above.\u201d Jesus had another character in mind not named in this parable but established earlier in the chapter. For any parable, we always look back for what situation, question, or comment set it up. When we do that here, we discover this parable is the last of three Jesus told in rapid sequence. All of them focus on something lost that was found: a lost sheep, a lost coin, and a lost son. To help Bible readers see that continuity, the NIV translation appropriately titles this parable \u201cLost Son\u201d rather than the more traditional \u201cProdigal Son.\u201d
\nAll three parables tie together thematically, so the \u201clost son\u201d parable is the culmination of Jesus\u2019 response to whatever triggered the first two parables. Luke made it very clear: \u201cNow the tax collectors and sinners were all gathering around to hear Jesus. But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law muttered, \u2018This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.\u2019 Then Jesus told them this parable . . .\u201d (Luke 15:1\u20133).
\nJesus\u2019 welcoming attitude toward the unrighteous \u201criffraff\u201d disturbed the Pharisees and the teachers of the law. But, of course, Jesus did not see the \u201criffraff\u201d that way. They were lost people hungering for rescue and hope. So Jesus starkly contrasted the Pharisees\u2019 bad attitude with His attitude. However, His attitude was not just His. It was the attitude of heaven itself. You can tell how important this issue was to Jesus because He didn\u2019t tell just one parable to make His point. He told three in succession.
\nThe first parable tells about the joy of the owner of one hundred sheep who left his flock to search diligently for one lost sheep. Jesus expected His listeners to identify with the shepherd\u2019s concern and eventual happiness. \u201cSuppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Doesn\u2019t he leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it? And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders and goes home\u201d (vv. 4\u20136).
\nJesus told how the shepherd\u2019s joy spilled over into celebration with his friends and neighbors. \u201cThen he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, \u2018Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep\u2019\u201d (v. 6). However, simply reporting the shepherd\u2019s joy was not His main point. Jesus wanted His listeners to imagine the shepherd\u2019s joy and multiply that to get an approximation of the degree of joy in heaven when one lost sinner is found and repents. Jesus directly said, \u201cI tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent\u201d (v. 7).
\nThe second parable is almost identical, except it focuses on the efforts of a woman who owned ten coins to find one she lost. Her joy over recovering the lost coin drove her, like the shepherd, to share that joy with friends and neighbors. And again, Jesus made the point about immense joy in heaven triggered by one lost sinner who is found and repents. \u201cIn the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents\u201d (v. 10).
\nIn other words, Jesus\u2019 purpose in telling these parables was to reveal the contrast between the Pharisees\u2019 attitude and heaven\u2019s. He was not just talking about a shepherd and a lost sheep; a woman and a lost coin; or a father, an older brother, and a lost son. The main character in these stories is heaven, and the focus was\u2014and is\u2014on heaven\u2019s reactions.<\/p>\n
Actual and Imperishable
\nFinally, Jesus artfully increased the emotional impact of His stories when He told the third parable, by talking not of a lost sheep or coin but of a lost child. He dramatically detailed the lost person\u2019s desperation and allowed His listeners time to feel the father\u2019s pain. But the parable still retains the same structure: something lost, something found, tremendous joy spills over into celebration.
\nThe one thing missing in this parable is an explicit statement about the joy happening in heaven. That\u2019s because it is not needed. Jesus mentioned a party that hints at celestial celebration (we\u2019ll get to that momentarily), but heaven wasn\u2019t specifically mentioned. Jesus had already established the literary pattern in the first two parables, leaving the listener able to make the necessary connection.
\nThen Jesus brought the polemical purpose of the three parables home. He turned to the matter of the older son\u2019s attitude, which mirrored the Pharisees\u2019 bad attitude. Jesus said, \u201cThe older brother became angry and refused to go in. So his father went out and pleaded with him. But he answered his father, \u2018Look! All these years I\u2019ve been slaving for you and never disobeyed your orders. Yet you never gave me even a young goat so I could celebrate with my friends. But when this son of yours who has squandered your property with prostitutes comes home, you kill the fattened calf for him!\u2019\u201d (Luke 15:28\u201330).
\nEven though we might like to bask in the father\u2019s love as the parable\u2019s emphatic point, Jesus clearly combined the three parables into one strong rebuke of the Pharisees\u2019 attitude.
\nHowever, remember the literary structure of the first two parables, which end with a glimpse into heaven. Even though Jesus concluded this parable with the older son\u2019s scornful attitude, we must remember Jesus\u2019 emphasis in this chapter: the utter contrast between what was going on in the Pharisees\u2019 hearts and what goes on in the heart of heaven. And even though we can draw heart-warming lessons from other elements in the parable, the structural and thematic connection between all three parables compels us to interpret the earthly father\u2019s celebration as a limited but accurate picture of what goes on in heaven when a lost and wandering child is found. That was the main focus, rather than the father\u2019s love. Jesus stated, \u201cBut the father said to his servants, \u2018Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let\u2019s have a feast and celebrate\u2019\u201d (vv. 22\u201323).
\nScholars often recognize that the robe, ring, sandals, and fattened calf all have symbolic meanings. But the parable\u2019s full impact comes from understanding that Jesus intended more than symbolism. From the moment a person comes home to God through repentance, he or she is adorned with the \u201cbest robe\u201d of righteousness and honor. This takes place in heaven. It doesn\u2019t matter how inadequate, incomplete, or undeserving we may still be. Our righteousness and right to take a place of honor and acceptance before the Father are complete.
\nIn that very moment, we also receive the signet ring of the Father\u2019s authority. A signet ring confirms one\u2019s authority to act and can be used either by the one who holds power or by someone else on behalf of the one holding power. In Christ that authority has been conferred in heaven, allowing us to act on God\u2019s behalf here on earth. Nothing more needs to be learned or earned in order to take action in God\u2019s name, whether in prayer or service. Because that authority has been given in heaven, we can \u201capproach God\u2019s throne of grace with confidence\u201d (Heb. 4:16) and join our Lord in His ongoing ministry of intercession (Eph. 2:6; Rom. 8:34; Heb. 7:25).
\nSimilarly, the sandals and the fattened calf symbolize wealth, position, and honor. But these are not mere symbols; they represent heaven\u2019s reality. As Paul wrote, we have been \u201cblessed . . . in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ\u201d (Eph. 1:3). God\u2019s work in you on earth is always the outgrowth of work already accomplished in God\u2019s eternal realm represented by the word heaven. That\u2019s why Peter explained: \u201cPraise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you\u201d (1 Pet. 1:3\u20134).
\nI grew up in a denomination that heavily emphasized free will\u2014that is, the importance of a human being choosing to repent and trust Jesus Christ for salvation. I still believe that, but in my years of ministry I have discovered the downside to that emphasis: spiritual insecurity. When people think their choice saved them, they inevitably worry about whether their ongoing choices are enough to keep them saved.
\nI once spoke with a pastor of a large church in a retirement community. He told me how sad he was that many of the wonderful senior saints in his congregation became more and more nervous about their eternal destiny as they anticipated the approach of death. \u201cWhat if in my final hours I have bad thoughts?\u201d they wondered. \u201cWhat if I blurt out something horrible in my pain? What if I haven\u2019t been faithful enough to the Lord?\u201d
\nI hear similar questions from Christians of every age group when they don\u2019t grasp what happened in heaven for them on the day they repented or what is being \u201ckept in heaven\u201d for those \u201cwho through faith are shielded by God\u2019s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time\u201d (vv. 4\u20135). They live in fear of God\u2019s presumed frustration with them over their shortcomings and besetting sins. They do not know how to counteract the condemning barbs of the Enemy of our souls, who is called the accuser. They don\u2019t experience freedom through the truths that set them free, because they assume their relationship with God depends on their ongoing choices.
\nDon\u2019t get me wrong; our choices on earth are important. Young sons can always leave home a second time. The early church acknowledged the possibility of apostasy (i.e., willfully renouncing Jesus as Lord). But that is a far cry from the case of sincere Christians who love the Lord but often struggle to obey. Our position in God\u2019s family will feel so much more firm and secure when we understand that position has been sealed in heaven, as this parable portrays, and does not depend on our weak wills and shifting passions.
\nHeaven. That\u2019s the main character in all three parables. What\u2019s happening there is the most important thing Jesus wanted us to see. So yes, there are things happening on earth, but there are greater things going on in heaven. There\u2019s human choice, but there\u2019s God\u2019s grace. We simply must learn to keep the emphasis on the right syllable.<\/p>\n
20\/20 Focus
\n1. 1. In this chapter, we thought of heaven as a \u201ccharacter\u201d because Jesus focused on the joyful behavior of angels in heaven. Can you name other behaviors Scripture attributes to heaven?<\/p>\n
2. 2. This chapter\u2019s core argument is: since Jesus\u2019 first two parables give glimpses of actual events in heaven, we should understand the father\u2019s reaction in the third parable as revealing actual events occurring in heaven as well. What difference does it make to you to see these reactions as representing real events?<\/p>\n
3. 3. The Pharisees\u2019 grumbling attitude about Jesus\u2019 kindness toward sinners triggered His emphatic telling of three parables in rapid succession. He must want us to be very careful to avoid that attitude. What category of \u201csinners\u201d are you inclined to grumble about?<\/p>\n
Lord Jesus, it helps me tremendously to know that my inheritance of righteousness and my royal identity are being \u201ckept in heaven\u201d for me. I never want to forget that and slip into fear. I also never want to take that for granted and become lackadaisical in my hunger for holiness. Help me live in the joy of Your gracious love and acceptance, even as I extend that grace to others who have yet to come home to You. Amen.<\/p>\n
Vision Check
\nYou never fully understand what\u2019s going on in a person\u2019s mind until you know what triggered what he or she did or said. You have to ask, \u201cI know what you said, but why did you say it? What are you getting at?\u201d
\nOne day Jesus famously told His disciples, \u201cWith God all things are possible\u201d (Matt. 19:26). We like to quote that in general terms\u2014and rightly so. But what triggered that statement? And does that knowledge trigger any new insights in you? Write down those discoveries and compare them with mine on dougnewton.com or the Fresh Eyes app.<\/p>\n
4<\/p>\n
When Your Cupboards Are Bare<\/p>\n
The Friend in Need<\/p>\n
Luke 11:5\u20139<\/p>\n
What do you say when you have nothing to say?<\/p>\n
I hadn\u2019t even finished unloading our moving van when my first emergency call came as the ridiculously young, first-time pastor of a Bowling Green, Kentucky, church. A teenager from the church had crashed into a tree and severed his spinal cord. I quickly wiped away my sweat, changed shirts, and hopped into the car to race to a nearby hospital to see the distraught family. I had no clue what I would say. I had not yet been to seminary. I barely knew how to get to the hospital.
\nWhen I arrived and found the family in the intensive care waiting room, I learned Peter was conscious, and the family invited me to go in by myself and talk to him\u2014a person I had never met. A situation I had never faced. I had no clue what I would say.
\nWhen I opened the door to one of the first hospital rooms I had entered in my twenty-four years of sheltered life, I saw him suspended from a contraption that resembled a large hamster wheel more than a bed. Peter was laid out prone about three feet off the ground, facedown. Pins drilled into both of his temples were attached to a metal halo and to cables that held him taut. A mirror lay on the floor so he could see who was talking to him. But I chose to ignore the mirror and slid underneath him on my back so I could look up into his frightened eyes face-to-face.
\nBut still I had no clue what I would say . . .
\nThat was my introduction to a life of ministry during which I have found myself in that very position, at least symbolically, many times: flat on my back, gazing into frightened eyes, with no clue what to say. Yet more often than not, something remarkable happens that has a lot to do with this parable and its famous concluding verse: \u201cAsk and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you\u201d (Luke 11:9).
\nIn order to gain the hope offered in these twenty-two words, we need to examine grammatically the parable Jesus shared just before stating them. Without a clear look at the context, we won\u2019t grasp the very specific way in which Jesus intended us to hear this promise about asking and receiving. In this case, our \u201cfresh eyes\u201d approach is a matter of narrowing the application rather than expanding it.<\/p>\n
Identifying Antecedents
\nThis parable is the story of a man who approached a friend at midnight for some much-needed food. The secret to a fresh insight into this parable is found, surprisingly, in the bevy of pronouns that are detached from their antecedents.
\nMaybe a quick grammar lesson is in order. Join me back in your sixth-grade classroom. A noun is a word that refers to a person, place, or thing. Sound familiar? A pronoun is a word that refers to some previously stated noun, called the antecedent. So, for example, you can\u2019t use the little pronoun it until you have named the object it refers to. Otherwise no one will know what \u201cit\u201d you\u2019re talking about. The world is full of \u201cits\u201d galore. If you\u2019re first talking about a car and then you use the word it, everyone knows you\u2019re talking about the car. Similarly, you should use he or she only after you\u2019ve named the he or she.
\nThe problem with the brief story of the midnight food request is that there are more pronouns running around than school kids at recess. However, the good news is that if we diligently identify the antecedent behind every pronoun, the story becomes much more focused and Jesus\u2019 famous twenty-two-word saying becomes much more powerful.
\nFirst take a moment to read the story in the New International Version (Luke 11:5\u20138) and notice all the italicized pronouns.<\/p>\n
Then Jesus said to them, \u201cSuppose you have a friend, and you go to him at midnight and say, \u2018Friend, lend me three loaves of bread; a friend of mine on a journey has come to me, and I have no food to offer him.\u2019 And suppose the one inside answers, \u2018Don\u2019t bother me. The door is already locked, and my children and I are in bed. I can\u2019t get up and give you anything.\u2019 I tell you, even though he will not get up and give you the bread because of friendship, yet because of your shameless audacity he will surely get up and give you as much as you need.\u201d<\/p>\n
See what I mean? There\u2019s not a single named person in the story! It contains a mishmash of pronouns. Our task becomes to identify the cast of characters in these four verses. We\u2019ll assign some contemporary names, since none is given.<\/p>\n
Cast of Characters
\nJesus
\nThe one telling the story
\nThe disciples
\nThe ones hearing the story
\nSam\/you
\nThe one who goes next door to get food
\nFred
\nThe one Sam goes to at midnight
\nGeorge
\nThe one who visits Sam and needs food<\/p>\n
Then Jesus said to the disciples, \u201cSuppose Sam has a friend, and Sam goes to Fred at midnight and says, \u2018Fred, lend me three loaves of bread; George, a friend of mine on a journey, has come to me, and I have no food to offer him.\u2019 And suppose Fred answers, \u2018Don\u2019t bother me. The door is already locked, and my children and I are in bed. I can\u2019t get up and give you anything.\u2019 I tell you, even though Fred will not get up and give Sam the bread because of friendship, yet because of Sam\u2019s shameless audacity Fred will surely get up and give Sam as much as Sam needs.<\/p>\n
Sharpening the Point
\nFirst, why did Sam go to Fred\u2019s house? To ask for three loaves of bread. Why did Sam need bread? Because Sam needed to feed George, who, while on a journey, had come to Sam\u2019s home. But why did Sam need to ask Fred for bread? Because Sam had no bread. Let\u2019s go deeper.
\nWhy did Sam go to Fred at midnight? Maybe George showed up late and was not hungry in just the ordinary sense. He may have been in very rough shape. So famished, in fact, that Sam considered it an emergency.
\nWouldn\u2019t it take a serious problem for you to disturb one of your friends in the middle of the night? You and your friend have to get up in the morning to go to work\u2014and you\u2019ll wake the friend\u2019s kids! Thanks a lot, Sam!
\nStep back now and summarize this situation in its context. The disciples started off this chapter asking Jesus to teach them to pray. He gave them a prayer template we call the Lord\u2019s Prayer, which guides us to seek daily bread. \u201cHe said to them, \u2018When you pray, say: \u2018Father, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come. Give us each day our daily bread\u2019\u201d (Luke 11:2\u20133).
\nSo Jesus had just established that prayer, at least in part, is about trusting God for daily bread. Then Jesus launched into this brief story. A story about one of the disciples being in a situation where he needs daily bread. But it\u2019s not for himself. It\u2019s for a person in desperate need, and the disciple has nothing to offer. He goes through every cupboard in the house, looking for something. Bread. Ramen noodles. Twinkies. Something to help his famished friend in desperate need. But there\u2019s nothing. Empty cupboards.
\nAfter describing this desperate need, Jesus segued from story to promise: \u201cSo I say to you: Ask . . . seek . . . knock and the door will be opened to you\u201d (v. 9). Suddenly these words, too often heard only as a broad generality, compress into a diamond-like promise with one brilliant setting: it\u2019s for people who find themselves with absolutely nothing to offer when facing a person in desperate need.
\nAnd even more particularly, it\u2019s about needing life-giving bread, which so often symbolizes divine words. Words of life. Words that feed the soul. Words that bring peace. Words that give divine counsel. Words that offer hope. But words you don\u2019t have.<\/p>\n
Finding Divine Words
\nOne day about three years ago, a fellow pastor from another city asked to see me. He came to my office and poured out his frustrations over years of pastoral ministry fraught with one disappointment after another. He was wired to be a change agent but had been serving in a series of status-quo churches that seemed unresponsive.
\nThe constant turmoil and resulting self-doubt brought him to the point of throwing in the towel. \u201cI can\u2019t take it anymore,\u201d he said. The sense of defeat seemed to weaken his voice. His spirit lacked strength enough to hold up his head.
\nWhile my heart went out to him, I could not identify. Perhaps I have been spoiled by relatively conflict-free pastorates. While I\u2019ve faced my share of challenges that sapped my strength for a season, I had never been close to clerical suicide. I didn\u2019t know what to say that would help. The cupboards of my own experience were empty. Plus, I had never talked with any other pastors who had survived such a season. That cupboard was empty too. I had no bread of counsel or hope to offer. And I certainly wasn\u2019t about to mouth the obvious platitudes: \u201cJust hang in there. It will get better. You\u2019re just going through a discouraging time. The Lord will lift you up.\u201d Moldy bread is worse than no bread.
\nWhat did I do? I trusted Jesus\u2019 promise for receiving divinely supplied bread for desperate people in the context of prayer. So even though no words of wisdom came to mind, I asked to pray for him before he left.
\nI got up from my chair, walked over behind him, laid both hands on his shoulders, and prayed blessing from one brother to another. I had hardly finished one sentence before a scene came to my mind. It wasn\u2019t a vision; it was more like a description that arrived with a surge of energy. I spoke it out loud: \u201cLord, my brother feels like a palm tree at the edge of the ocean. Gale-force winds are blasting against him, and he feels like he\u2019s about to be blown over. But he has been standing strong, and I thank You that he will continue to stand strong against those winds and continue to bring glory to You.\u201d
\nWithin just a couple more sentences the winds of that prayer died down and I concluded. I wondered if my friend had sensed the surge of passion that I had, so I asked.
\nHe said, \u201cI can\u2019t believe what you just prayed! Before I left home this morning to come see you, I told my wife almost those exact words. I said, \u2018I feel like a palm tree at the edge of the ocean with gale-force winds coming against me, and I\u2019m about to be blown over.\u2019 But because you prayed those same words, I know the Lord is telling me He is pleased with me and that I will keep standing.\u201d
\nHe left fed. His starvation ended. God provided bread from heaven\u2019s cupboards that I didn\u2019t have. My colleague continues to pastor faithfully and serves with stability and strength among his people and in his community. And I believe I experienced what is available to all of us, according to the apostle Paul: \u201cLet the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom\u201d (Col. 3:16).
\nThis \u201cmessage [word] of Christ\u201d dwelling richly in us is not only a matter of quoting Bible verses. Often, it\u2019s a matter of having just the right awareness by seeing into the spiritual realm. This awareness forms ideas, images, and words that fit what\u2019s really going on, and at just the right moment. It\u2019s experiencing what our Lord Jesus experienced that led Him to say, \u201cFor I did not speak on my own, but the Father who sent me commanded me to say all that I have spoken. . . . So whatever I say is just what the Father has told me to say\u201d (John 12:49\u201350).
\nSometimes when we are confronted with desperate needs, it is necessary to seek the assistance of trained counselors and caregivers. But many Christians never experience the fulfillment of the Lord\u2019s promise to provide life-giving words, because they find their cupboards of knowledge, experience, or giftedness bare and pass people off too quickly to \u201csomeone else more qualified.\u201d Our bare cupboards become a barrier. But if we would let our bare cupboards become a signal to ask, seek, and knock, we would often find bread\u2014daily bread\u2014for others who need our help.
\nEvery time you face a situation and feel inadequate\u2014I\u2019ve never faced someone in this situation before. I have no clue what to say. I haven\u2019t been trained to handle this. I\u2019ve never been through what he\u2019s going through\u2014that\u2019s exactly the time not to back away. Go ask. Go seek. Go knock. And you will receive the bread you need for others.
\nAs I crawled under Peter\u2019s suspended body and looked up into his eyes, I found words flowing from my heart that brought the sense of God\u2019s peace to a person whose limbs would never feel again. In this case, as in most cases since, they weren\u2019t miraculous words of divine knowledge\u2014I don\u2019t even remember what I said. But they flowed easily and with gentle confidence. The flicker of hope I saw in his eyes in that room dimmed by silent fear gave me confidence divine comfort had come through my simple words. That moment I determined I would never run from situations when my cupboards are bare.<\/p>\n
20\/20 Focus
\n1. 1. Think of a couple of times when you faced a challenging situation and didn\u2019t know what to say. What was it like? Did you finally say something?<\/p>\n
2. 2. Are you inclined to assume you have nothing to say if you aren\u2019t trained or experienced to handle certain kinds of problems? Do you tend to dismiss the advice of others if they have never gone through what you\u2019re going through?<\/p>\n
3. 3. It is often said that when friends face rough times you don\u2019t have to say anything; your presence with them is enough. But is that always true, or is it sometimes a cop-out? What if we only ever had God\u2019s presence but not His voice? What might we be missing?<\/p>\n
4. 4. Think of a person to whom you have hesitated to speak because you don\u2019t know what to say. How about reconsidering and applying Jesus\u2019 ask-seek-knock promise to that situation and seeing what happens?<\/p>\n
Lord Jesus, I\u2019m sure You understand how awkward and incapable I often feel when someone needs my help and guidance but I don\u2019t know what to say. I don\u2019t want to say anything stupid, insensitive, or incorrect. But I also admit these fears often keep me silent. The next time help me pause and pray according to the ask-seek-knock promise before I assume I shouldn\u2019t speak. Amen.<\/p>\n
Vision Check
\nWhen studying a difficult passage, it often helps to replace every pronoun with its antecedent and then read the passage aloud. It may sound awkward or repetitious, but you will find the point becomes either clearer or more emphatic.
\nTry doing that with Luke 6:35: \u201cLove your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back.\u201d
\nThere are only two pronouns to replace, but when you do your heart should be struck with new and challenging thoughts. If you want a double whammy, read the preceding context starting with verse 27 and notice how Jesus wants us to respond to other categories of people who could be considered enemies. Then get on dougnewton.com or the Fresh Eyes app and compare your thoughts with mine.<\/p>\n
5<\/p>\n
Before You Cast Stones<\/p>\n
The Unmerciful Servant<\/p>\n
Matthew 18:23\u201335<\/p>\n
Go ahead and be appalled, but then look in the mirror.<\/p>\n
I set a thirty-five-acre field on fire when I was eight years old. It was an accident. But like most of my \u201caccidents,\u201d it showcased my stupidity and sinful nature.
\nI was at my neighbors\u2019 house, playing in the basement with their two kids who were a couple years younger than I. A matchbook in an ashtray on an end table caught my attention. My parents didn\u2019t smoke, so we didn\u2019t have matches lying around to ignite a kid\u2019s curiosity. I could not resist this novel temptation\u2014to have matches!\u2014so I snatched and stuffed them in my pocket when the other kids weren\u2019t looking.
\nThen my as-yet-untamed ego had a brilliant idea: I could be the big kid. The one who impresses the little kids. I suggested we go outside, where I would show them something \u201ccool.\u201d We walked a quarter mile down the road and out into someone\u2019s field\u2014I didn\u2019t know whose\u2014and I led the little kids behind some bushes where we couldn\u2019t be seen.
\n\u201cC\u2019mere,\u201d I said, then showed them the matchbook. \u201cWanna see me start a little fire?\u201d They didn\u2019t seem quite as interested as I\u2019d imagined, but still, they joined me as I stooped down, scooped together some twigs and dry grass, and struck a match. The wind blew it out.
\nThat should have been my first warning not to light a fire. But of course I was too young and cocky and stupid for that thought to spring to mind. So I struck a second match, and this time it ignited the brush I had gathered.
\nI stepped back like a magician with a voil\u00e0 gesture that lasted barely two seconds before the fire started to spread. Fast! I tried stomping it out, but the flames ate up the dry grass too quickly in all directions. The only reasonable thing to do\u2014reasonable to an eight-year-old boy about to get into big trouble, that is\u2014was to run! I think the two little kids ran too, but I was no longer thinking about them or their adulation. I did not look back.
\nJust before I got home, I stopped running in case my mom was outside. She wasn\u2019t, so I lingered in the yard for a little while and tried to divert my worry by climbing a tree or two. I pretended I didn\u2019t hear the fire siren but climbed a little higher to see the smoke as I worked on my alibi. Eventually, I scrambled down to go into the house and walked with forced nonchalance into the kitchen past my mom, who was sitting at the table\u2014\u201cHi, Mom\u201d\u2014and immediately up to my room. At least that\u2019s where I was headed when she called me back.
\n\u201cDoug, do you know anything about a fire out in the Andersons\u2019 field?\u201d
\n\u201cA fire?\u201d
\n\u201cThe Andersons said they thought you were out there with a couple other kids.\u201d
\n\u201cOh yeah, a fire.\u201d It\u2019s amazing how fast the human mind can produce lies. By the time I was eight, I was already very quick\u2014albeit not very good\u2014at it. \u201cYeah, Jimmy and Carrie and I were out there, and I saw somebody had started a fire. I tried to put it out, but I couldn\u2019t,\u201d I said.
\n\u201cSomebody else started the fire?\u201d Mom looked me in the eyes. Hers were red and moist now.
\n\u201cYeah, but I don\u2019t know who. Probably one of the big kids around here was smoking or something.\u201d
\n\u201cWell, Mrs. Collier called me and said a matchbook was missing from her ashtray in the basement.\u201d
\n\u201cReally? They have ashtrays down there? Do they smoke? I guess they aren\u2019t Christians, are they?\u201d I hoped my budding legalism would distract my mother.
\n\u201cDoug, tell me the truth. Actually, let\u2019s just go down to the Andersons together and tell them the truth.\u201d
\nThat was the longest walk of my young life as my mom marched me down to face two soot-stained people who had just finished fighting a fire that burned thirty acres of their land. I confessed. They did the right thing and did not try to make me feel better. They let shame smolder in hopes of making sorrow burn and the lesson last a lifetime.
\nThe memory of that long walk serves as a metaphor to me of how hard it is for me and most people to face the truth about ourselves and accept blame. Even when we know we\u2019re wrong, we still attempt to stifle our consciences with excuses, which leads me to a fresh way of looking at the familiar parable of the unmerciful servant.<\/p>\n
Appalling Behavior
\nJesus told this parable in response to Peter\u2019s question about how many times we must be willing to forgive a person. Peter wondered if the expectation was upward of seven times. Jesus responded with \u201cseventy-seven times\u201d (or \u201cseventy times seven,\u201d depending on your translation) and then told a parable about a debtor who owed his master millions of dollars.
\nAfter the man pleaded with his master to show mercy and not sell his whole family into slavery to repay the debt, the master canceled it entirely and let him go. However, almost immediately the forgiven man went out and found someone who owed him a couple bucks, and, in an atrocious display of mercilessness, the former debtor . . . Well, just read the text: \u201cBut when that servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred silver coins. He grabbed him and began to choke him. \u2018Pay back what you owe me!\u2019 he demanded. His fellow servant fell to his knees and begged him, \u2018Be patient with me, and I will pay it back.\u2019 But he refused. Instead, he went off and had the man thrown into prison until he could pay the debt\u201d (Matt. 18:28\u201330).
\nIt\u2019s hard to imagine how anyone could be so callous! How could someone who had been forgiven millions be so unforgiving over a couple bucks? In the parable, that was also the reaction of an audience of fellow servants who couldn\u2019t believe their eyes when they witnessed the event. Jesus said, \u201cWhen the other servants saw what had happened, they were outraged and went and told their master everything that had happened\u201d (v. 31).
\nJesus knew that anyone witnessing such an act of injustice, or hearing about it, would share the fellow servants\u2019 point of view. So He crafted the story to place us among that audience of witnesses. We cheer their act of whistle-blowing. We would have done the same thing, and the momentum of this story rushes us toward a satisfying resolution. \u201cThen the master called the servant in. \u2018You wicked servant,\u2019 he said, \u2018I canceled all that debt of yours because you begged me to. Shouldn\u2019t you have had mercy on your fellow servant just as I had on you?\u2019 In anger his master handed him over to the jailers to be tortured, until he should pay back all he owed\u201d (vv. 32\u201334).
\nWe cheer again. As part of the horrified onlookers, we are thrilled by how quickly the unmerciful servant had his forgiveness rescinded and his unpayable debt reinstated. Justice is wonderfully sweet.
\nHowever, the parable\u2019s pace causes us to speed right past a moment that should be given more attention. A \u201cfresh eyes\u201d look at a Scripture text sometimes requires slowing down and not jumping so quickly from sentence to sentence or scene to scene without wondering what might have happened in between. This parable is a case in point. Between the cancellation of the servant\u2019s debt and the time he started demanding his money from a fellow servant, a moment must have come when the unmerciful servant thought about what his fellow servant owed him.<\/p>\n
Reasonable Rationalizations
\nReasonably, we might ask, \u201cWhat was he thinking in that moment when he decided to go after repayment from his fellow servant so mercilessly?\u201d Unless this man was a total sociopath, he must have had reasons he thought justified his action, either before or after the fact. To be sure, the parable does not attempt to expose those reasons. Probably because they don\u2019t matter to the master. In effect, the parable allows no excuse for such behavior, because it does not grant the servant an opportunity to explain it. But that doesn\u2019t mean the unmerciful servant did not have one or two or more excuses. What might they have been? And why meditate on that?
\nSimply put, we might be capable of similar rationalization and self-justification. Taking a cue from Jesus\u2019 words to the adulterous woman\u2019s accusers (John 8:7), we shouldn\u2019t cast stones but should instead examine our own tendencies and track records. Even then, our self-orientation often blinds us to how unmerciful we can be. That\u2019s why it\u2019s always good practice to submit ourselves to the Lord\u2019s scrutiny in the humble spirit of the psalmist who prayed, \u201cSearch me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me\u201d (Ps. 139:23\u201324).
\nHere are some examples to show how we also might have rationalized unforgivingness had we been in the unmerciful servant\u2019s position. In each case, I will identify a possible root excuse and then share a few variations.<\/p>\n
The \u201cDifference\u201d Excuse
\nThe root excuse: I\u2019m grateful my debt was forgiven, but his debt differs from mine, because . . .<\/p>\n
\u2022 \u2022 it was his fault he got into debt. I couldn\u2019t help my debt. It was due to a whole set of circumstances over which I had no control.<\/p>\n
\u2022 \u2022 he never pays people back. I realize my debt was larger, but he keeps borrowing money and not repaying other people, not just me. Someone needs to teach him a lesson.<\/p>\n
Can you see yourself in either of these? We self-justify like this all the time. We tend to see our circumstances as unique. When we have problems, we are quick to understand why those problems happened in a way that casts us in a positive light, or at least we think, There\u2019s nothing I could have done. When other people have the same problems, we are quick to connect those problems to a flaw or failure on their part.
\nLet\u2019s not be so quick to cast stones. And remember, this parable does not explain the unmerciful servant\u2019s behavior, because there is no excuse. It doesn\u2019t matter why a person racks up a debt, even though some debts occur by unwise choices and others by uncontrollable circumstances. God\u2019s Old Testament provision for the \u201cyear for canceling debts\u201d every seven years (Deut. 15:1) and the \u201cyear of jubilee\u201d every fifty years (Lev. 25:10) mandates the cancellation of debts and restoration of lost property regardless of whether a person was to blame for being in debt or was simply a victim of unfortunate circumstances.
\nThis spirit of \u201cjubilee\u201d applies not only to financial indebtedness. When people \u201cowe\u201d you more gratitude or thoughtfulness than they\u2019ve shown or when they \u201cowe\u201d you an apology or a better attitude or kinder words, you have no more right to demand those \u201cdebts\u201d be paid than the unmerciful servant had to demand payment. These offenses of sin and neglect are most likely what Jesus had in mind when He taught us to pray, \u201cForgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors\u201d (Matt. 6:12).
\nWhen you hear yourself using the \u201cdifference\u201d excuse to justify treating a person with a lack of grace and forgiveness, stop. Just stop. You have no excuse for using the \u201cdifference\u201d excuse.<\/p>\n
The \u201cObligation\u201d Excuse
\nThe root excuse: don\u2019t get me wrong; I am so relieved to have my debt canceled! But just because the master was obligated to cancel mine does not obligate me to cancel other people\u2019s debts. The master was obliged to cancel mine, because . . .<\/p>\n
\u2022 \u2022 he\u2019s rich. He can afford to forgive my debt. He has plenty of money and won\u2019t go without food if he doesn\u2019t have my money. But the very fact that I couldn\u2019t pay the debt means I don\u2019t know whether I will even have enough money to put groceries on the table unless people who owe me pay me back. So the guy has got to pay up. A couple bucks is a couple bucks!<\/p>\n
\u2022 \u2022 there\u2019s a certain logic to debt repayment. If it\u2019s impossible to pay, then it might as well be erased. But when a debt is not too large to be repaid, then the obligation should be enforced. Consequently, the master was right not to enforce my debt, because it was unpayable. But I am justified in enforcing the debt of the guy who owes me, because it\u2019s payable.<\/p>\n
A person who wants to find a law for everything makes these kinds of excuses. If there\u2019s obligation, then act. If there\u2019s no obligation, then there\u2019s no need to act. Again, this is a very common way we process moral decisions. Peter was coming from this perspective when he asked Jesus how many times he was expected to forgive someone. \u201cUp to seven times?\u201d (Matt. 18:21). How long am I obligated to forgive? Give me a black-and-white rule I can follow.
\nJesus\u2019 answer\u2014\u201cseventy-seven times\u201d (v. 22)\u2014along with this elaborate parable reorients the question of forgiveness away from law toward grace. Unfortunately, most of us have not completed that reorientation, and we still function and justify ourselves according to whether we have fulfilled the laws of obligation rather than the law of love.<\/p>\n
The \u201cI\u2019m Only Human\u201d Excuse
\nThe root excuse: I shouldn\u2019t have come down so strongly on that guy\u2014maybe I even should have just let him off the hook\u2014but I\u2019m only human. You can\u2019t expect me . . .<\/p>\n
\u2022 \u2022 to act perfectly all the time. I was having a bad day and had a splitting headache. Plus, my stupid car just broke down again. So great . . . I had my debt forgiven, but I still didn\u2019t have enough money to get my car repaired. On another day, I probably would have been kinder in the way I approached the guy. But you need to understand I\u2019m only human. It was the buildup of pressure.<\/p>\n
\u2022 \u2022 to be someone I\u2019m not. I\u2019m hotheaded. It\u2019s in my blood. It\u2019s just the way I am. Actually, that trait is usually a good thing; it\u2019s how I get things done. I\u2019m aggressive in a good way. So when occasionally it works out in a negative way, cut me some slack, okay?<\/p>\n
We do not give these excuses before we act poorly, but we use them to justify our behavior after the fact. We live in a culture that feeds us a steady diet of these kinds of excuses. We hear them on the news almost nightly. The CEO of a billion-dollar company gets caught on video using blistering epithets or racist language and defends himself by saying, \u201cThis is not who I really am. I\u2019m not that kind of person.\u201d A group of teens take a video of a drowning man and do nothing to help and the parents defend their kids: \u201cThat\u2019s not who they are. They made a mistake.\u201d
\nEven in Christian circles, people excuse their wrong behavior or lack of love as a function of their personality type or their place in the birth order or their love language (\u201cThat\u2019s not my love language\u201d). All these excuses boil down to this \u201cI\u2019m only human\u201d idea with the implicit \u201cYou can\u2019t necessarily expect anything different and certainly can\u2019t fault me if I fall short of your expectations.\u201d
\nYes, we each have a certain personality type that makes it easier or harder to behave in certain ways for the better or worse. And yes, birth order, upbringing, and social experiences all shape us. But there is no UOC version of the Bible that allows us to insert the phrase \u201cunless, of course\u201d after admonitions to love people, as in \u201cLove your neighbor as yourself, unless, of course, you\u2019ve had a frustrating day.\u201d Or \u201cBless those who mistreat you, unless, of course, you\u2019re at the end of your rope.\u201d Our God promises to conform us to His image as we by faith shed the \u201cI\u2019m only human\u201d view of ourselves.
\nThis famous parable that makes it so natural for us to join the onlookers and scorn the unmerciful servant should instead call us to look in the mirror, see our similarities to the unforgiving servant, and drop our stones. The spirit of forgiveness has no limit. No more excuses.<\/p>\n
20\/20 Focus
\n1. 1. Compare the harsh words Jesus put in the mouth of the master toward the unmerciful servant with some other portion of Scripture that is similarly unforgiving toward unforgivingness.<\/p>\n
2. 2. This chapter focuses on our human tendency to rationalize attitudes of unforgivingness. What other things do human beings tend to rationalize? Make a list and identify the top two situations you rationalize.<\/p>\n
3. 3. We considered three \u201creasonable rationalizations\u201d for the unmerciful servant\u2019s behavior. Can you think of any other? Here\u2019s a hint: think of someone you\u2019re having a hard time forgiving and listen to what you\u2019ve been telling yourself.<\/p>\n
Lord Jesus, this chapter has confronted me with my own tendency to rationalize unforgivingness. But Your Word also warns me about how difficult it is to know my own heart. Are there situations I\u2019ve been rationalizing, especially in the area of unforgivingness, that I\u2019m not even aware of? I\u2019m nervous about what I might see, but I know I need to. So search me and see if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me onto Your path of mercy and grace. Thank You. Amen.<\/p>\n
Vision Check
\nStorytellers often leave gaps\u2014undescribed moments between the actions when a character would have had to think or do something that triggers the next recorded action. Since it is not stated, you can\u2019t know for sure. But you can often make reasonable assumptions about some things that might have gone on.
\nTry stepping inside this major gap: the young disciple, John Mark, who eventually wrote the gospel of Mark, once deserted Paul on the world\u2019s first Christian mission trip. And Paul was so upset he refused to give Mark a second chance. This created an irreconcilable disagreement between Paul and Barnabas (read Acts 15:37\u201340). As time went on, Paul must have had a change of heart, because he later wrote approvingly about Mark (read 2 Tim. 4:11). Create a brief narrative to explain what might have happened sometime between what Paul said in Acts 15 and what he wrote in 2 Timothy 4. Compare your imagined scenario with mine on dougnewton.com or the Fresh Eyes app.<\/p>\n
6<\/p>\n
These Words? What Words?<\/p>\n
The Wise and Foolish Builders<\/p>\n
Matthew 7:24\u201327<\/p>\n
Jesus gave tons of commands. Having a hard time obeying them all? One tip leads to great optimism.<\/p>\n
You\u2019ve heard of mass communication theory? I have a miscommunication theory: many cases of miscommunication can be traced back to the use of pronouns that lack clear antecedents, a topic I touched on earlier. I\u2019ll explain my theory in more depth in a moment, but I need to give you a more detailed review of pronouns and antecedents than I did in chapter 4. First, though, a refresher. A pronoun is a word that takes the place of a noun or noun phrase: he, she, or it; they or them; this, that, those, or these; who, whom, or which\u2014just to name a few. Thus, every pronoun requires an antecedent, a previously mentioned noun to which it can refer.
\nThe idea of the pronoun-antecedent relationship is simple. You can\u2019t use pronouns like it or she or that until you have identified what it, she, or that you are talking about. You can\u2019t just walk up to a friend or stranger and begin a conversation with \u201cIt may happen today if you\u2019re not careful,\u201d because the other person will wonder what it you\u2019re talking about. Or \u201cIf she starts coming your way, don\u2019t even stop.\u201d She who? Or \u201cThat is not something you should buy.\u201d What that are you talking about?
\nWith that reminder, we can delve a bit more into pronouns. Some are called \u201cdemonstrative pronouns\u201d because they not only have antecedents but also point to the location of that antecedent\u2014they \u201cdemonstrate\u201d whether the person or thing is nearby (e.g., this or these) or farther away (e.g., that or those). These demonstrative pronouns are particularly important in my miscommunication theory: many cases of miscommunication can be traced back to the use of pronouns that lack clear antecedents. I have tested it (notice the pronoun referring to the miscommunication theory?) for more than forty years of ministry and marriage, so I believe it is a sound theory. Plus, I maintain that if everyone paid more attention to the importance of this theory, much conflict in relationships could be prevented. Here\u2019s a common scenario: a wife arrived home from work and said to her husband, \u201cI\u2019ve been thinking a lot about the talk we had this morning before we left the house. I\u2019m glad we did that.\u201d
\nSo far so good. She used the pronoun that, clearly referring to the talk they had before going to work. \u201cI\u2019m glad too,\u201d he replied. But he quickly discovered she was pleased with the talk itself but not with what he actually said, because she continued, \u201cBut I can\u2019t believe you think that.\u201d
\nThere\u2019s that that again, but this time it referred to something other than the talk per se. And here\u2019s where the conversation unnecessarily went off the rails. He assumed she was referring to his comment about her parents\u2019 overbearing tendencies and not wanting them to stay so long after Christmas. So he replied, \u201cWhy wouldn\u2019t I think that? Just look at the evidence. It\u2019s staring you right in the face.\u201d
\nHe used two pronouns\u2014that and it\u2014referring to the way her parents meddle and make comments about how they don\u2019t keep their house in good order. But she wasn\u2019t talking about her parents when she said, \u201cI can\u2019t believe you think that.\u201d She was talking about her weight-control struggle. What? Why did her mind go there? Because earlier that morning he mentioned the fact that they needed to get back to the gym as soon as the holidays were over as another reason her parents shouldn\u2019t stay long.
\nThat comment held twice as much importance to her than he thought it did. She assumed he was commenting on her size. So after he said, \u201cWhy wouldn\u2019t I think that? Just look at the evidence,\u201d well, let\u2019s just say the peace of Christ was not present in their home for the rest of the week. Instantly the conversation escalated from that misunderstanding\u2014which never got cleared up, by the way\u2014to two hours of trading accusations that began with her saying, \u201cYou never support me; you\u2019re always so critical.\u201d And all because of their different interpretations of the pronoun that.
\nPay attention to a miscommunication problem and see if demonstrative pronouns\u2014this, that, these, and those\u2014are contributing to the problem. Whenever you notice a demonstrative pronoun, be very careful to identify the antecedent!
\nTaking care with demonstrative pronouns not only avoids unnecessary conflict but also brings helpful clarity, as we will see in this chapter\u2019s focus on the parable of the wise and foolish builders. Remember how that goes?<\/p>\n
Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash. (Matt. 7:24\u201327)<\/p>\n
This classic parable supports the biblical maxim found in James 1:22: \u201cBe doers of the word, and not hearers only\u201d (NKJV). Jesus promised that doers of the Word will be unshakable and resilient in the midst of life\u2019s storms. But foolish non-doers are sitting ducks subject to hurricane-like destruction. Any sensible person will want to prepare for the worst through diligently putting Jesus\u2019 words \u201cinto practice.\u201d<\/p>\n
Hunting for the Antecedent
\nNow we come to the all-important pronouns these and them when Jesus said, \u201cTherefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice . . .\u201d What is the antecedent of these and them? If putting them into practice is so crucial\u2014almost a life or death matter\u2014then we need to know what words He had in mind.
\nSome people might say, \u201cIt doesn\u2019t matter whether you identify exactly which words He had in mind. Just gather up all Jesus\u2019 words wherever we find them and practice them all.\u201d
\nGranted, that\u2019s the safest thing to do. But ultimately it\u2019s not very helpful. If you\u2019re teaching your sixteen-year-old son to drive and you want to make sure he drives safely after he gets his license, sure, you could say, \u201cJust remember everything I\u2019ve taught you about driving and you\u2019ll come home in one piece every day.\u201d But if you really understand how dangerous it is to be out on the highways these days with fast cars, heavy traffic, text-distracted drivers, and some drivers who may even be under the influence of alcohol or drugs, then undoubtedly you want him to diligently follow certain key admonitions. Telling him to \u201cjust remember everything\u201d lacks the kind of focus that will help keep his attention on the most important actions to ensure his safety. You will want him to practice particular \u201cwords of yours\u201d like these:<\/p>\n
\u2022 \u2022 Do not text while you\u2019re driving.<\/p>\n
\u2022 \u2022 Do not play your music loud.<\/p>\n
\u2022 \u2022 Do not be goofing around with your friends.<\/p>\n
\u2022 \u2022 Watch out whenever you\u2019re approaching an intersection.<\/p>\n
In the same way, while it may seem reasonable to practice everything Jesus said in the Gospels, that too lacks the kind of focus we need if we are to avoid the specific life-demolishing circumstances Jesus warned about. Plus, the placement of Jesus\u2019 parable as His concluding remarks in the Sermon on the Mount should restrict our search for the antecedent of these words of mine to within the sermon itself. That is what we will do in just a moment, as soon as we look at an important viewpoint on this most famous sermon.<\/p>\n
How the Bible Is God\u2019s Word
\nMany scholars debate whether the Sermon on the Mount is a sermon Jesus preached all at once or a collection of some of His famous sayings that were spoken at different times. Why is this important? If Matthew 5\u20137 is not one sermon preached all at once, then perhaps the antecedent to these words of mine can be found anywhere in the Gospels. If, however, this is a stand-alone sermon, then we should confine our search for the antecedent to Matthew 5\u20137. So which is it?
\nMatthew certainly presented it as one sermon, as I believe it is. However, even conservative New Testament scholars recognize how the gospel writers occasionally presented variations and rearrangements of Jesus\u2019 words and actions in order to make their theological points. What did He actually say and when? That\u2019s the question we often face as we study the biblical record. There were no recorders or cameras capturing Jesus\u2019 teaching moments. Are the words in red ink word-for-word quotations? Detailed paraphrases? Rough recollections of Jesus\u2019 teachings?
\nIt\u2019s interesting to ask those questions. However, I don\u2019t believe we have to answer them in order to approach Scripture as God\u2019s Word with great confidence. Still, you may ask, \u201cBut if the Sermon on the Mount as Matthew recorded is not exactly what Jesus said word-for-word and if He did not speak it all at the same time in one sermon, then how can we have confidence in Scripture as God\u2019s Word?\u201d
\nConsider this: What makes a portion of the Bible like the Sermon on the Mount a bona fide part of God\u2019s Word to human beings? Does it have to be an exact transcript of what Jesus said? Suppose I am talking to a friend and tell him some good things about my wife. Does my wife need a complete transcript from him of what I said? Or is it just as good if that friend says to my wife, \u201cYou should hear what your husband thinks of you. He is in awe of your strength and grace and is sure there isn\u2019t a more wonderful person on earth!\u201d Even though he isn\u2019t quoting me verbatim, he has delivered the intent and meaning of my words accurately.
\nIn the same way, whether or not we have an exact transcript of Jesus\u2019 words, the Holy Spirit is that divine friend who delivers the intent and meaning of Jesus\u2019 words accurately. Perhaps He enabled the writers to remember Jesus\u2019 exact words. That\u2019s not hard for me to believe. Or perhaps the human authors used their memories to the best of their ability, but the Holy Spirit prompted and helped them organize their best recollections in such a way that not only preserved Jesus\u2019 teachings but also best served the church over the centuries.
\nIn other words, I have what might be called a Trinitarian view of Scripture\u2019s creation. The Father is the ideation\u2014the source of the Word. The Son is the incarnation who declared and demonstrated the Word by His physical presence\u2014and still does. The Spirit is the inspiration, responsible for these processes:<\/p>\n
\u2022 \u2022 recalling and transmitting the words during the oral stage so they would be preserved accurately.<\/p>\n
\u2022 \u2022 recording and translating the words so they would be passed on faithfully in written form across the ages and among all people groups.<\/p>\n
\u2022 \u2022 declaring and understanding the words so they would be spoken with their original authority and received with penetrating power.<\/p>\n
Together the three persons of the Trinity collaborated in harmony with one another. The Son spoke and lived the Father\u2019s words (John 12:49\u201350), and the Spirit both spoke Jesus\u2019 words (John 14:26) and inspired Jesus\u2019 followers as they wrote them (2 Tim. 3:16; 2 Pet. 1:20\u201321).
\nThe symbiotic work of all three persons of the Trinity is what creates the Word of God and makes it authentic and authoritative, not just the isolated moment Jesus verbalized words to a group of people on a hillside. Because that comprehensive process involved all three persons of the Trinity working through human authors, transcribers, church councils, and translators, what we have before us today is what God wanted us to have. We should, therefore, relate to Scripture not as an enigmatic puzzle to be questioned but as an infallible document that does not fail to deliver eternal truth.
\nTherefore, because Matthew recorded a stream of Jesus\u2019 teaching as a sermon spoken all at once, that\u2019s how we should relate to it. That\u2019s how we will get the most out of it. And therefore, since it concludes with Jesus having said, \u201cEveryone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice,\u201d we should look for the antecedent to these and them within the body of that so-called sermon. I think that\u2019s the way the Holy Spirit wanted it to come to us. So let\u2019s do that now.<\/p>\n
A Study in Contrasts
\nA total of 2,346 words compose the Sermon on the Mount in the New International Version. When Jesus used the pronoun these in \u201cthese words of mine,\u201d was He referring to all 2,346? It appears not. We can narrow \u201cthese words\u201d down considerably based on the fact that Jesus then said \u201cand puts them into practice\u201d (\u201cdoes them\u201d in the Greek). So we need look only for admonitions (i.e., things a person can do). But then we can narrow the list down even more by looking for admonitions related to contrasting behaviors or attitudes. Why should we do that?
\nNotice that this parable is a contrast parable: the wise man versus the foolish man. Often when Jesus used the contrast format in His parables, He was confronting the Pharisees and drawing a distinction between their values and those of His kingdom. A large portion of the Sermon on the Mount functions that way. It took Jesus only 343 words before He reached the part where He began to create this prophetic contrast: \u201cFor I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven\u201d (Matt. 5:20).
\nJust like the warning element directed toward the foolish builder in the parable, this verse warns those who think that the Pharisees\u2019 righteousness standard is satisfactory in God\u2019s eyes. Jesus then proceeded to contrast the ethical standards of His kingdom with the lower standards of the Pharisees. Therefore, the admonitions contained within this framework of contrasts constitute the most likely antecedents for \u201cthese words mine\u201d that Jesus would have His hearers practice.<\/p>\n
\u2022 \u2022 Don\u2019t avoid just murder; avoid anger altogether (5:21\u201322).<\/p>\n
\u2022 \u2022 Don\u2019t presume to worship God until you have humbled yourself enough to make peace with your fellow believer (vv. 23\u201324).<\/p>\n
\u2022 \u2022 Don\u2019t avoid just adultery; avoid sexually illicit imaginations (vv. 27\u201330).<\/p>\n
\u2022 \u2022 Be so truthful you don\u2019t even need to swear an oath to be believed (vv. 33\u201337).<\/p>\n
\u2022 \u2022 When people mistreat you, do not seek retribution, even when it\u2019s just and your right to do so. Instead, bless and serve those people (vv. 38\u201347).<\/p>\n
\u2022 \u2022 Do not attempt to elevate yourself in other people\u2019s eyes by drawing attention to your good deeds (6:1\u201318).<\/p>\n
A few other admonitions in the sermon also fall into this category of \u201csurpassing righteousness,\u201d but these are enough to make the point.<\/p>\n
Impossible Commands, Incredible Promise
\nSo far we have seen how the antecedent of \u201cthese words of mine\u201d should be found within the confines of the Sermon on the Mount as recorded in Matthew 5\u20137. Specifically, the antecedent is the collection of admonitions Jesus gave concerning righteousness that surpasses that of the Pharisees. Let me explain the benefit of narrowing our search down to these few admonitions.
\nSimply put, you now have something much more specific to focus on as you answer the question: If I want to live my life on an unshakable foundation, to what should I pay careful attention? The answer: pay careful attention to Jesus\u2019 commands for surpassing righteousness.
\nTry reading those commands again. You may be overwhelmed. Avoid anger altogether? Never seek retribution? You\u2019ve got to be kidding! That standard for entering the kingdom of heaven seems virtually impossible. And it\u2019s a standard made seemingly more impossible by Jesus\u2019 summary admonition: \u201cBe perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect\u201d (Matt. 5:48).
\nWhat is a person to do in the face of such an impossible standard? You have two options. One is to throw up your hands and fall on God\u2019s grace, trusting in what theologians call imputed righteousness. You confess your selfishness and sinful nature that render your own moral perfection impossible and rely solely on the righteousness of Jesus Christ, the only Perfect One, to cover you in the eyes of a holy God. As the old hymn says,<\/p>\n
My hope is built on nothing less
\nThan Jesus\u2019 blood and righteousness.
\nI dare not trust the sweetest frame,
\nBut wholly trust in Jesus\u2019 Name.
\nOn Christ the solid Rock I stand,
\nAll other ground is sinking sand.<\/p>\n
Trusting in His righteousness is \u201ccredited\u201d to you as righteousness, which is fundamentally how saving grace works. But too often Christians stop there and slap bumper stickers on their cars that read, \u201cI\u2019m not perfect, just forgiven.\u201d
\nThe other option in the face of the \u201cimpossible\u201d standard of moral perfection is not to throw up your hands in resignation but to lean intently toward moral regeneration, to believe that God is calling you to a life of holy character. God\u2019s purpose and promise then is to impart His righteousness to you through the Holy Spirit\u2019s indwelling, recreating work. This goes beyond saving grace; He offers sanctifying grace.
\nLet\u2019s look at some facts revealed in this sermon. When Jesus told His disciples that their righteousness must surpass that of the Pharisees, His examples of countering anger, impurity, revenge, and self-promotion set a standard for our behavior here and now. If someone had asked Jesus, \u201cDo You really mean we\u2019re supposed to be able to turn our other cheek and not get angry?\u201d He would have said yes. These are actual expectations of actual behavior for actual people to exhibit actual righteousness. According to this parable, it\u2019s our practice of these words of Jesus, these admonitions of surpassing righteousness, that place us on solid ground instead of sinking sand.
\nTherein lies the great optimism behind the impossible standard. Every command of God contains an implied promise. Simply put, if God commands something, then obeying that command is possible. God, in His moral perfection, would never command a person to do what he or she cannot do.
\nThe kind of righteousness we long for, the kind of relief from selfishness and sin we need, is available now. In heaven, there will be no temptations of anger, lust, revenge, or self-promotion. At that time these commands become unnecessary, so this kind of righteousness is both required and possible here and now. You can be the kind of person whose heart is fully inclined toward peace instead of anger, purity instead of impurity, grace instead of grievance, humility instead of hubris. That\u2019s great news!
\nBecoming this kind of person does not happen all at once. It\u2019s a gradual work over time. We are being made new (Rom. 12:1\u20132; Eph. 4:23) and changed incrementally (2 Cor. 3:18) as we choose to put off falsehood and put on truthfulness, to put off anger and put on gentleness, to speak only words that encourage and strengthen others (Eph. 4:25\u201332). Every choice is like opening a window to a fresh breeze of God\u2019s righteousness that fills us with power to \u201cwill and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose\u201d (Phil. 2:13). In this process, we are actually fulfilling Paul\u2019s admonition\u2014\u201cTherefore, be imitators of God\u201d (Eph. 5:1 ESV)\u2014which echoes Jesus\u2019 call to \u201cbe perfect\u201d in the Sermon on the Mount.
\nWhen you look at yourself and think about your struggles, it may be hard to see things this way. But that transformation process is what God wants and makes possible; it is what is going on as you cooperate and don\u2019t \u201cgrieve the Holy Spirit\u201d (Eph. 4:30). God is faithful. \u201cHe who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion\u201d (Phil. 1:6).
\nLet that optimism grip your heart as you consider this parable and its reference to such lofty words of Jesus. When you say and do everything with that optimism, that confidence in God\u2019s promise and in His ability to make you truly righteous like Jesus is the rock you\u2019re standing on. Your hope is sure. What\u2019s more, as it turns out, you are becoming a demonstrative pronoun, pointing back to Jesus, our righteous antecedent.<\/p>\n
20\/20 Focus
\n1. 1. Over the years, many scholars have questioned the reliability of quotations attributed to Jesus in the Gospels. While it is true there were no recorders or transcribers at the time, can you come up with at least three reasons we can trust the accuracy of quotations such as those found in the Sermon on the Mount?<\/p>\n
2. 2. Review the specific commands this chapter suggests Jesus was referring to when He said \u201cthese words of mine.\u201d Why would obedience to these commands in particular place a person on a firm foundation in life?<\/p>\n
3. 3. This chapter presents an optimistic view concerning actual human righteousness. It claims that every command of God implies a promise of what\u2019s possible, because God \u201cwould never command a person to do what he or she cannot do.\u201d If you agree, can you name some commands other than those highlighted in this chapter that imply incredible possibilities for a human being?<\/p>\n
Lord Jesus, I thank You that Your words bring life and hope. And most incredibly, the very words You tell me to obey bring the promise of obedience. I can\u2019t lose as long as I make Your words the standard for my life. So that\u2019s what I\u2019m committing to right now\u2014obedience to those impossible standards of righteousness with You as my hope and helper. Amen.<\/p>\n
Vision Check
\nIt is important to pay special attention to demonstrative pronouns. Whenever you see this, that, these, or those used in a sentence, always stop to make sure you know exactly what each pronoun is pointing to. Doing so improves your chances of seeing something new in the Scripture passage.
\nHere\u2019s an example to try. John told of a well-known moment when Jesus asked Peter three times, \u201cDo you love me?\u201d The first time, Jesus asked, \u201cDo you love me more than these?\u201d (John 21:15). To what was Jesus referring when He used the demonstrative pronoun these? If you figure that out, you might see this special moment in a different way than it is often portrayed. (Hint: read Matt. 26:31\u201335.) Check out my insights on dougnewton.com or the Fresh Eyes app and compare them with yours.<\/p>\n
7<\/p>\n
An Overdone and Underdone \u201cWell Done\u201d<\/p>\n
The Five Talents<\/p>\n
Matthew 25:14\u201330<\/p>\n
Wouldn\u2019t it be nice if you could hear God say \u201cWell done\u201d before you die?<\/p>\n
I\u2019ve been part of so many funerals during my pastoral ministry I think I should be excused from my own. Because I\u2019ve participated in so many, I can easily tell you the top five most commonly heard expressions at funerals. Coming in at number 5: \u201cDoesn\u2019t he (or she) look so peaceful?\u201d For your information, this also happens to be number one on the list of the top five lies told at funerals.
\nNumber 4: \u201cIf I never hear another bagpipe rendition of \u2018Amazing Grace,\u2019 it\u2019ll be too soon.\u201d Number 3: \u201cShe is singing with the angels today.\u201d And rounding out the top five is a two-way tie for first place:<\/p>\n
\u2022 \u2022 \u201cWell done, good and faithful servant.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u2022 \u2022 \u201cI never heard him (or her) say a cross word to anyone.\u201d<\/p>\n
If you need me to break the tie between these two finalists, the award goes to the \u201cWell done\u201d statement\u2014and not only because it comes directly from the Bible. The one about never hearing a cross word should be disqualified on the grounds that it simply isn\u2019t believable. Not that people are lying. In the grief of the moment, I have no doubt tears of sorrow fog the memory and the misty light of sentimentality shines only on the dearly departed one\u2019s finest moments.
\nHowever, if it were true the deceased person never said a cross word, and given the fact that I have heard it said of 99 percent of the people lying in repose, one must wonder why the world isn\u2019t a kinder place. That remaining 1 percent of crabby people (whose funerals I have never performed) must get around as miraculously as Santa on Christmas Eve, because the sound of cross words is as ubiquitous as blasting car horns in New York City during rush hour.
\nSo \u201cWell done, good and faithful servant\u201d gets my vote as the number-one expression heard at funerals. Too bad it\u2019s a misunderstanding of the parable in which it is found.
\nI can sense your hackles rising, especially if you\u2019ve said or heard this said about a departed loved one, so I should jump quickly to explain. The parable of the talents is found in a series of teachings and parables Jesus gave in response to the disciples requesting a timetable for the temple\u2019s destruction, which He had just predicted and which they assumed would signal the \u201cend of the age\u201d (Matt. 24:3). \u201cJesus left the temple and was walking away when his disciples came up to him to call his attention to its buildings. \u2018Do you see all these things?\u2019 he asked. \u2018Truly I tell you, not one stone here will be left on another; every one will be thrown down.\u2019 As Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately. \u2018Tell us,\u2019 they said, \u2018when will this happen, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?\u2019\u201d (vv. 1\u20133).
\nIn response Jesus gave many prophecies about world events and the disciples\u2019 upcoming persecution. What He said was couched in such apocalyptic language that many Christian teachers over the centuries have viewed Matthew 24\u201325 as a description of the so-called end times. Although there are many differences of opinion about the end times, the central dramatic event involves the second coming of Jesus. So scholars typically interpret Jesus\u2019 parables in this extended teaching section against that backdrop. Whether or not that should be the case remains an open question.
\nRegardless of how the end times will play out and when they began or will begin, Jesus used three parables and one dramatic scene to emphasize the importance of being ready at all times to account for one\u2019s faithfulness to the Lord. This parable of the talents is centrally located in that context. That\u2019s why Jesus began with the word again.<\/p>\n
Again, it will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted his wealth to them. To one he gave five bags of gold, to another two bags, and to another one bag, each according to his ability. Then he went on his journey. The man who had received five bags of gold went at once and put his money to work and gained five bags more. So also, the one with two bags of gold gained two more. But the man who had received one bag went off, dug a hole in the ground and hid his master\u2019s money. (Matt. 25:14\u201318)<\/p>\n
Then Jesus brought His listeners to that sobering moment of accountability when each of the three servants presented to the returning master the results of his efforts to steward the master\u2019s property.<\/p>\n
After a long time the master of those servants returned and settled accounts with them. The man who had received five bags of gold brought the other five. \u201cMaster,\u201d he said, \u201cyou entrusted me with five bags of gold. See, I have gained five more.\u201d
\nHis master replied, \u201cWell done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master\u2019s happiness!\u201d
\nThe man with two bags of gold also came. \u201cMaster,\u201d he said, \u201cyou entrusted me with two bags of gold; see, I have gained two more.\u201d
\nHis master replied, \u201cWell done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master\u2019s happiness!\u201d (vv. 19\u201323)<\/p>\n
Let\u2019s pause in the flow of the story here, because the third servant\u2019s report resulted in condemnation, not the \u201cWell done\u201d commendation. That will take us to another matter we\u2019ll consider in a moment. So before we dig into that, let\u2019s deal with what I consider a misunderstanding that leads to the \u201cWell done\u201d expression being overused at funeral services.<\/p>\n
Pre- or Posthumous
\nHere\u2019s the issue: because this teaching section in Matthew 24\u201325 is fraught with end times language and images, regardless of how they are understood, it has become impossible, apparently, for people to imagine this moment of accountability, commendation, and reward from the master as anything but a final scene in heaven. In other words, we conceive of no other occasion when a person will hear these words from the Lord than after his or her life on earth is over. Hence, it is the number-one thing said at funerals. And yes, it is appropriate to say it then, but not exclusively then.
\nThis accountability moment that promises the hope of commendation and reward is not necessarily awarded posthumously\u2014that is, after the soul leaves the body to meet the Lord. Why should we think that? According to the master\u2019s own words, the moment of commendation and reward occurred before the servants completed their service for the master. Note that the master clearly indicated more work on his behalf remained to be done: \u201cHis master replied, \u2018Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master\u2019s happiness!\u2019\u201d (Matt. 25:21).
\nRather than the commendation-and-reward moment occurring at the end of a person\u2019s life, it appears to be midstream\u2014prehumous, if that is a word. This aligns with what Jesus had already said to His disciples about faithful servanthood when He led up to the parables told in Matthew 25: \u201cWho then is the faithful and wise servant, whom the master has put in charge of the servants in his household to give them their food at the proper time? It will be good for that servant whose master finds him doing so when he returns. Truly I tell you, he will put him in charge of all his possessions\u201d (24:45\u201347).
\nIt also concurs with the other version of this parable recorded in Luke\u2019s gospel, in which some significant differences appear. Yet both imply that the commendation-and-reward moment occurred when there was still work to be done. Luke\u2019s version ends by saying, \u201c\u2018Well done, my good servant!\u2019 his master replied. \u2018Because you have been trustworthy in a very small matter, take charge of ten cities\u2019\u201d (Luke 19:17).
\nWhile we all certainly hope to hear \u201cWell done\u201d at our deaths, it does not appear that the commendation-and-reward moment occurs only when our work on earth is done. Why is this important?<\/p>\n
The Father\u2019s Reassurance
\nThink of how we imagine hearing these words of our Lord. That wonderful moment will bring relief and peace and will be a time when you can finally rest from your labors and enjoy the blissful experience of completion. Can it be we don\u2019t have to wait until we die to experience the sweet taste of that reward? What if we can enjoy that experience even in this life? Jesus seems to have confirmed that possibility when He promised \u201crest for your souls\u201d to weary people if they work faithfully alongside Him in this life: \u201cCome to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls\u201d (Matt. 11:28\u201329).
\nWe don\u2019t have to wait until we go to our \u201ceternal rest\u201d to experience a soul-resting commendation and reward from the Lord as His response to our faithful service. And just think: that means we can enter into His happiness in this life over who we are (though we are still in process) and what we have done (though we wish we could have done better)!
\nAs a pastor, I have sat across the table from far too many people who choke back tears while describing their troubled relationship with a mother or father. I\u2019ve seen grown men hang their heads and slump their shoulders in utter defeat as they say, \u201cMy dad never said \u2018I love you\u2019 or told me he was proud of me.\u201d Even as adults they longed for some assurance that their fathers loved and prized them.
\nI understand how important that is. My dad rarely gushed emotional words of love. Although I was a sports star on my high school and college teams, he rarely attended my games. He couldn\u2019t. People back then didn\u2019t have as much freedom to break away from work to sit on the sidelines and watch their kids play sports. My parents didn\u2019t applaud every breath I took or plaster every latest creation of mine on the fridge as if I was Andrew Wyeth. In fact, my dad was a stickler for excellence and didn\u2019t applaud anything that was not worthy of acclaim just to make someone feel good. But I never felt I had to measure up to some standard in order to be acceptable to him. Why?
\nFortunately, there were times\u2014moments of commendation and reward\u2014that fed my sense of worth and grounded me in the unshakable assurance of his love. Like the day he dropped me off for my freshman year at college. The car was unloaded. Packed boxes crowded my dorm room. My mind had already focused on the all-important question of where to hang posters of Jimi Hendrix and Pel\u00e9. So Dad and I said good-bye, and he left to travel the two hours back home. About fifteen minutes later, a knock sounded on the door. It was Dad.
\n\u201cWhat are you doing back?\u201d
\nHe was a little awkward when he said, \u201cI just had to come back, because I wanted to look you in the eye when I said I love you. I\u2019m proud of you, boy.\u201d Then he left again.
\nThat was one of the most important moments of my life. I know what it feels like to have a father not just rattle off a few words of love but say them and mean them so deeply he had to turn around and drive an extra thirty miles just to tell me. That kind of affirmation and commendation can\u2019t be shaken. You don\u2019t have to hear it very often, because the stabilizing soul-rest it creates in a son lasts and lasts. According to this parable, we can experience that from our heavenly Father even before we die.<\/p>\n
Risk and Reward
\nIf this \u201cWell done, good and faithful servant\u201d experience is truly a possibility in this life, then we should be careful to understand who Jesus considers a faithful servant. Unfortunately, teachers often use this parable as a \u201cperfect\u201d lesson on stewardship. The moral of the story, we are told, is to use wisely and productively the resources the Lord has placed in our hands. Of course, that should be our desire, but that is not the story\u2019s moral. The key message is the part of the parable that is underdone.
\nIs the point really to be productive? No, the point is to try something, anything that will benefit the master to some degree. The first and second servants were not equally productive, yet they received the same commendation and reward. The master was angry with the third servant for letting fear render him fruitless. He was unwilling to take any risk with what he had been given. It turns out this parable is not so much about stewardship and productivity as it is about taking risks for the master\u2019s benefit. That is what pleases the Lord.
\nRemember, we are talking about the One who risked His reputation to associate with sinners (Matt. 9:10\u201311). The One who faced the charge of lawbreaker for healing on the Sabbath (12:9\u201313). The One who faced charges of blasphemy, because He not only healed a paraplegic man but also provided relief from the paralysis of sin (9:1\u20137). Obviously, He is not going to be pleased with someone who fears what he might lose if he tries to do something worthwhile for God. After all, He is the one who specifically denounced self-protection and promoted self-sacrifice: \u201cFor whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it\u201d (16:25).
\nThis parable\u2019s point is not that commendable stewardship equals success and productivity. No, the point is to honor the master\u2019s resources enough to make the master\u2019s business goals your priority; try something\u2014anything\u2014to be productive for him. My guess is that if any of the servants had come back and said, \u201cI did my best to make something out of the money you gave me, but things did not work out as I hoped,\u201d the master would not have gotten angry at him. In other words, faithfulness means risk more than results.
\nIn a world that places so much emphasis on success and productivity, average Christians like us can easily get the idea that good results equal success and poor results equal failure. That\u2019s why we hear only the success stories. However, here\u2019s the good news: in God\u2019s kingdom, faithfully risking all you\u2019ve been given for His purposes and glory, regardless of the results, pleases the Lord and gives you the experience of \u201cWell done\u201d well before your casket closes.<\/p>\n
20\/20 Focus
\n1. 1. Even though the point of this chapter is that we don\u2019t have to wait until our deaths to enjoy a sense of \u201cWell done,\u201d it\u2019s still nice to think of that happening when we meet the Lord. Name a couple people you know who should get a resounding \u201cWell done\u201d at the end of their lives. Why? (How about writing them a note?)<\/p>\n
2. 2. What might Jesus have had in mind when He had the master say to the faithful servants, \u201cI will put you in charge of many things\u201d?<\/p>\n
3. 3. Think of something you have been doing recently that leaves you wondering whether the Lord is pleased with your efforts: Am I doing this well enough? Am I accomplishing anything worthwhile? (If you\u2019re sharing in a group right now, be vulnerable. It will help.)<\/p>\n
4. 4. Think of a time when you tried hard to do something good and right but failed. Based on the perspective presented in this chapter, can you hear what the Lord might be saying to you?<\/p>\n
Lord Jesus, I know You don\u2019t require success in order to gain Your approval, but I often struggle with those kinds of thoughts. They bind me up and make me afraid. I second-guess myself all the time. Please give me a fresh revelation of Your grace toward me even when\u2014especially when\u2014I fail. Help me find relief in knowing that You are pleased with me as long as I am attempting to use Your resources in my life for Your glory and purposes. Amen.<\/p>\n
Vision Check
\nLife is full of clich\u00e9s. The trick is spotting them before they lead you into lazy agreement. They are not always wrong, but they should always be questioned.
\nHere\u2019s a famous Bible saying that is an ideal candidate for examination: \u201cPerfect love casts out fear\u201d (1 John 4:18 NKJV). Read the preceding context (chs. 3\u20134) to identify the specific problem John was addressing and see if we should adjust the way we use that clich\u00e9. You\u2019ll find my thoughts to compare with yours on dougnewton.com or the Fresh Eyes app.<\/p>\n
8<\/p>\n
The Taming of the Shrewd<\/p>\n
The Shrewd Manager<\/p>\n
Luke 16:1\u20139<\/p>\n
How can such a confusing parable turn out to offer such clear good news?<\/p>\n
You\u2019ve probably heard the popular adage, \u201cIt\u2019s not the destination; it\u2019s the journey.\u201d There\u2019s a lot of truth in it. We should learn to enjoy the processes of life, the day-to-day comings and goings. Don\u2019t just live head down, nose to the grindstone, pressing on toward lofty goals. Stop and smell the roses. Breathe deeply. Enjoy your fellow travelers. We miss too many of life\u2019s joys and blessings when we are so purpose-driven, goal-oriented, and seminar-motivated.
\nHowever, this \u201cenjoy the journey\u201d can also be nothing more than a sequel to the ancient motto, \u201cEat, drink, and be merry, for tomorrow we die.\u201d Embedded in this call to \u201csmell the roses\u201d is a long-recognized fatalism that does not square with truth. Ultimately, the destination validates the journey and brings the only lasting meaning to the things we attempt to enjoy.
\nAs I write this chapter, one of my daughters has just delivered her third child. Believe me, for her it definitely was not the journey; it was the destination: Get me to the hospital! There is one place and one place only I want to be, and I want to be there now! What is it that helped her through the nauseating first trimester; the enormous discomforts of the third trimester; and the sharp, unrelenting contractions of a thirty-six-hour delivery? The promise of a destination that\u2019s worth it all. Holding a new gift from God in her arms.
\nFor most people, life\u2019s journey consists of pleasant seasons to be enjoyed and dark days to be endured. The ratio of sunny to stormy days varies from person to person and even nation to nation. Certainly, wealthy nations have luxuries that make the hard times more bearable and often more avoidable. But all people go through extended hard times. And many people learn how to savor the smallest blessings and detect the slightest waft of a pleasant fragrance even amid the acrid atmosphere of war, destruction, drought, poverty, disease, and hunger. What makes that possible is a sustaining sense of something worth living for. A purpose. A distant landmark of promise, a horizon of hope for tomorrow.
\nMy mom was eighty-six when she died. She lived in our home her final ten years. During her last four years, she dealt with (in chronological order) a separated shoulder that required months of therapy, the removal of her left lung at the same time my dad was dying, colon cancer and surgery, a heart attack, a stroke that robbed her of speech for the last three years of her life, and a broken hip necessitating more therapy.
\nGeorge MacDonald referred to the body in old age as \u201cundressing for its last sweet bed.\u201d1 But my mom\u2019s plight was not just a matter of those creeping losses. She never did \u201crage against the dying of the light\u201d as Dylan Thomas poetically urged. Her later days were a complete muzzling of all forms of communication. Imagine getting to the place where you can\u2019t even make your right hand sign \u201cLove, Mom\u201d on your children\u2019s Christmas cards. She heroically tried to enjoy the journey, but ultimately not much was left in her but the longing for release and repose at her final destination. For many old folks, waking up and facing a new day is harder than anything I have yet to do in life. The only things that keep them going are the destination and some perfectly timed sensations of the nearness of Jesus.
\nSo join me in taking a somewhat countercultural position in affirming the ultimate importance of the destination. That perspective seems to fit a major theme of Scripture reiterated in numerous ways, as we are told to<\/p>\n
\u2022 \u2022 set our heart and minds on things above (Col. 3:1\u20132).<\/p>\n
\u2022 \u2022 be like the heroes of our faith, who pursued a kingdom beyond this earth (Heb. 11:13\u201316).<\/p>\n
\u2022 \u2022 be like Jesus, who endured the cross because of the joy set before Him (Heb. 12:2).<\/p>\n
\u2022 \u2022 endure suffering patiently, knowing that we are achieving a far greater weight of glory (2 Cor. 4:17).<\/p>\n
\u2022 \u2022 endure persecution, knowing that a crown of life awaits (Rev. 2:10).<\/p>\n
If you happen to currently enjoy the privilege of a comfortable life on earth, one full of opportunities for travel, discovery, and pleasures of your choosing (i.e., a satisfying journey), do not be lured into the cultural trap of neglecting the future. Press on toward the prize of the high calling we have in Christ. Jesus\u2014knowing Him, loving Him, serving Him, and joining Him\u2014is your destination. Count everything else as garbage in comparison (Phil. 3:8\u201314).
\nWhy am I getting preachy about this? There\u2019s no way to make sense of the confusing parable we\u2019re about to discuss without turning your mind from an \u201cenjoy the journey\u201d mentality and shifting toward a destination mentality. It\u2019s a parable driven entirely by concern for future well-being and how to achieve it.<\/p>\n
Where the Confusion Sneaks In
\nAs I said, this is a very confusing parable, because it seems to applaud the self-serving behavior of a person who sought to achieve a desired result through shady\u2014or what is too graciously called \u201cshrewd\u201d\u2014methods. Here\u2019s what he did.
\nAs the manager of a rich man\u2019s possessions, he had been irresponsible and wasteful enough to get called into the corner office and be given a two-week termination notice. Now he had to think fast and develop a fallback plan before his final day at work, because he was a lazy bum too soft for hard work and too proud for panhandling (Luke 16:3).
\nApparently, he had enough time to contact a few clients and discount their bills substantially enough to believe it might create a network of friends who would help him weather the storm until he found another job he could slither into. Here\u2019s how Jesus described his shrewd scheme:<\/p>\n
\u201cI know what I\u2019ll do so that, when I lose my job here, people will welcome me into their houses.\u201d
\nSo he called in each one of his master\u2019s debtors. He asked the first, \u201cHow much do you owe my master?\u201d
\n\u201cNine hundred gallons of olive oil,\u201d he replied.
\nThe manager told him, \u201cTake your bill, sit down quickly, and make it four hundred and fifty.\u201d
\nThen he asked the second, \u201cAnd how much do you owe?\u201d
\n\u201cA thousand bushels of wheat,\u201d he replied.
\nHe told him, \u201cTake your bill and make it eight hundred.\u201d (vv. 4\u20137)<\/p>\n
In the next verse, Jesus used a word that sparks much confusion. He said, \u201cThe master commended the dishonest manager because he had acted shrewdly\u201d (v. 8).
\nThe word commended makes us cock our heads as we struggle with what seems to be an approved behavior. The rich master valued and surprisingly approved the shrewd strategy of this admittedly dishonest manager. But even more shockingly, on the surface Jesus seemed to have joined that commendation by acknowledging that \u201cpeople of this world\u201d do a better job of being \u201cshrewd\u201d than God\u2019s people (v. 8). The Greek word translated \u201cshrewd\u201d in this verse usually has a very positive connotation\u2014doing something beneficial\u2014and is ordinarily translated \u201cwise.\u201d Then Jesus went so far as to urge people to use monetary leverage to make friends for an ulterior purpose like the dishonest manager (v. 9).
\nJesus seemed to have been saying that just as the dishonest manager connived a way to use money to make friends and secure his future welcome, we should do something similar to gain \u201cfriends\u201d and ensure our welcome into an eternal home. Why does Jesus seem to have applauded such scheming?
\nHoping to clear up the confusion, some commentators provide very helpful information about first-century business practices and the meaning of \u201cfriends\u201d in this culture of hospitality. That is important information. But I want us to try to solve the puzzle by simply sticking to the text.<\/p>\n
Contrast not Comparison
\nUnlike many of Jesus\u2019 parables, this one flows seamlessly from the story of the parable (Luke 16:1\u20138) to Jesus\u2019 commentary on it (vv. 9\u201313). It\u2019s hard to know\u2014and, apparently, it\u2019s not important for us to know\u2014where one ends and the other begins. Jesus seemingly didn\u2019t want us to draw a sharp line. Consequently, His commentary can help us understand the story\u2019s point. When we do that, we discover Jesus was not making a comparison at all. Instead, He was making a stark contrast.<\/p>\n
\u2022 \u2022 He talked about gaining welcome into people\u2019s earthly homes versus welcome into eternal dwellings (vv. 4, 9).<\/p>\n
\u2022 \u2022 He contrasted the shrewdness of worldly people with the lack of shrewdness of God\u2019s people (v. 8).<\/p>\n
\u2022 \u2022 He distinguished between trustworthiness and dishonesty (vv. 10\u201312).<\/p>\n
\u2022 \u2022 He concluded with a very strong contrast between serving God and serving money (v. 13). I say \u201ca very strong contrast\u201d because scholars tell us that in this culture it was common for slaves to serve two masters who had a cooperative agreement. So when Jesus said, \u201cYou cannot serve both God and money,\u201d He was claiming that it is impossible. There can be no cooperative agreement whatsoever between these two masters.<\/p>\n
Jesus emphasized all these points of contrast when He turned to the listening and sneering Pharisees (v. 14), looked them in the eyes, and made a final, most telling contrast, one that helps us understand the parable: \u201cWhat people value highly is detestable in God\u2019s sight\u201d (v. 15).
\nThat one comment clarifies the parable, for it tells us not to see the rich master\u2019s commendation as a good thing. Yes, the master valued and commended the dishonest manager\u2019s actions. But now we know, because Jesus spoke plainly about the stark contrast, that the rich man commended something that God detests. Ah, good to know. Now we can return to the parable and work through it, reassured that we are not supposed to admire or emulate the shrewd manager.<\/p>\n
Take God Out of It
\nBased on what we just discovered, we now realize that the rich master in the story does not represent God. Because so many parables position a master, king, or father as a God figure, it becomes habitual to assume that the authoritative figure in any parable represents God. This is not always the case, and it is definitely not the case in this parable.
\nIn this parable, nothing about the rich man gives insight into God\u2019s nature, values, or behavior. Because of what we have already seen, we know that both the dishonest manager and the rich man are part of and functioning within an ungodly value system.<\/p>\n
The Use of Possessions
\nAs we have already seen, this parable must be read as a study in contrasts. Since it kicks off with a focus on accountability for the use of the rich man\u2019s possessions, we should concentrate on that as the fundamental contrast Jesus sought to illustrate. The shrewd manager\u2019s use and misuse of his master\u2019s possessions were detailed and clear: he was wasteful, corrupt, self-serving, and self-protecting. With whom is he being contrasted? The contrasting party is only implied. Jesus was calling His disciples to function differently, as bona fide \u201cpeople of the light\u201d (Luke 16:8). They were to use their heavenly Master\u2019s possessions in a way exactly opposite of what the shrewd manager did. If they lived by a contrasting set of values, they were promised eternal well-being, though not necessarily immediate well-being (v. 9).
\nSo what way is the exact opposite of how the shrewd manager used the rich man\u2019s funds? The opposite of wasteful, corrupt, self-serving, and self-protecting. What kind of practical use does that imply? Here we must bring in the larger context of Jesus\u2019 teaching about the use of money and possessions. When we do that, there is no doubt He was talking about serving the poor, those who can do nothing for us and who cannot make it without us. All the gospel writers made this clear, but Luke elevated that theme through some of Jesus\u2019 quotations that he uniquely selected for his gospel.<\/p>\n
\u2022 \u2022 \u201cThe Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free, to proclaim the year of the Lord\u2019s favor\u201d (4:18\u201319).<\/p>\n
\u2022 \u2022 \u201cBut seek his kingdom, and these things will be given to you as well. Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom. Sell your possessions and give to the poor\u201d (12:31\u201333).<\/p>\n
\u2022 \u2022 \u201cWhen you give a luncheon or dinner, do not invite your friends, your brothers or sisters, your relatives, or your rich neighbors; if you do, they may invite you back and so you will be repaid. But when you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed. Although they cannot repay you, you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous\u201d (14:12\u201314).<\/p>\n
Then Luke continued emphasizing poverty relief in the book of Acts when he called special attention to the early Christians\u2019 Spirit-created concern for the poor.<\/p>\n
All the believers were one in heart and mind. No one claimed that any of their possessions was their own, but they shared everything they had. . . . There were no needy persons among them. For from time to time those who owned land or houses sold them, brought the money from the sales and put it at the apostles\u2019 feet, and it was distributed to anyone who had need. (4:32\u201335)<\/p>\n
These and many other allusions to poverty relief in Luke-Acts create an unmistakable context for understanding what Jesus considered the faithful use of worldly wealth in this parable.
\nIf you are like me, this emphasis on rescuing the poor is not anything new, but my commitment to kingdom values like that constantly needs renewal. I tend to drift away from them. Everything we have been given belongs to God, not us, and is to be used in ways that fulfill our Master\u2019s desires. The Lord wants us to be as \u201cshrewd\u201d as the dishonest manager. But that shrewdness with its animal instinct for selfish gain must be tamed by a compassionate heart for those who God prioritizes: those who are poor in some way. This is a challenge, yet in that very fact we also find incredibly good news.<\/p>\n
Divine Poverty Relief
\nIn my prayerful preparation for writing this chapter, one morning I found myself disappointed in myself for a variety of reasons. A month earlier I had suffered a severe bicycling accident that resulted in eight rib fractures, a life flight to a trauma center, and a long recovery time. Consequently, I was less focused and productive than I wanted to be about meeting some of my deadlines. I felt like I lost steam and concentration. To top it off, I knew I had allowed the deadlines to rob me of devotional times with the Lord.
\nThen in my prayer time that morning\u2014the first one I\u2019d had in more than a week\u2014as I sheepishly approached the Lord, asking for His help with this parable, I sensed Him saying, I don\u2019t expect anything of the \u201cpeople of the light\u201d that I am not doing Myself. After all, I am the light. I am all about giving everything I have to those who are poor. If I am expecting you to regard the poor with generosity, wouldn\u2019t I be regarding you in the same way? When you are poor in effort, when you are poor in strength, when you are poor in wisdom or diligence or conviction, don\u2019t come to Me in shame. Come to Me in confidence and faith. I already am the kind of person I want you to be. So when you are poor in spirit, guess what? That\u2019s exactly when I plan to give you the kingdom of heaven. There\u2019s a reason I made that My very first beatitude.
\nPerhaps this parable leaves you overwhelmed with the standard of self-sacrifice Jesus set, unsure about the cost, but certain about having fallen short. If this challenging parable ultimately presents us with the Master\u2019s demand, then it also reveals His nature. When you lack the necessary compassion, He will provide you with the resources of heart and mind necessary to handle His wealth\u2014material or spiritual\u2014in ways that please Him. Consequently, in this life we get to sample the riches of God\u2019s eternal kingdom, our eternal home into which we will one day be welcomed. This one truth makes the journey almost as grand as the destination.<\/p>\n
20\/20 Focus
\n1. 1. If you\u2019re like most people, something strikes you as wrong about the behavior of the shrewd manager, even though the rich man commended him. Don\u2019t just \u201cfeel\u201d that way; try to put it into words. Things often become clearer when you hunt for the right words.<\/p>\n
2. 2. Why do you think the master commended the dishonest manager? What impressed him? What did Jesus want us to be impressed by?<\/p>\n
3. 3. Ultimately, hearing Jesus call the worldly values and resulting behavior of the shrewd manager \u201cdetestable in God\u2019s sight\u201d brings us relief. What do you think falls into that category of detestable values?<\/p>\n
4. 4. For a refresher in what God highly values, read aloud Jeremiah 5:23\u201329; 22:3\u20135. Where might your values need to align more closely with the Lord\u2019s?<\/p>\n
Lord Jesus, this was a hard chapter for me to read. I am prone to neglect the poor\u2014to see them as victims of their own poor choices; to absolve myself of responsibility based on my own needs for money, shelter, and safety; and to take wise steps to secure my own future as my priority. This parable calls me to a different value system. I\u2019m going to need the Holy Spirit\u2019s help to live out those values, especially since I\u2019m often unaware of the times I\u2019m caught up in the world\u2019s values. Please help. Amen.<\/p>\n
Vision Check
\nOur instincts are notoriously untrustworthy, especially when compared with the trustworthiness of God\u2019s Word. Yet sometimes your gut makes you wonder whether the widely held understanding of some portion of God\u2019s Word is correct. In those times, it is appropriate to question\u2014humbly!\u2014whether the common point of view is correct.
\nHere\u2019s a controversial contemporary issue to consider. Read Paul\u2019s statement in 1 Corinthians 14:34 about women keeping silent in church. How does your gut react to that? The point is not to force your opinion to change but to let your mind follow your gut long enough to rethink the issue in relation to the whole counsel of God. Maybe something new will come to mind. Maybe not. At least you\u2019re giving the Lord a chance to help you see something with fresh eyes. Feel free to compare your thoughts with mine on dougnewton.com or the Fresh Eyes app.<\/p>\n
9<\/p>\n
What \u201cOne\u201d Are We Talking About?<\/p>\n
The Lost Sheep<\/p>\n
Luke 15:1\u20137; Matthew 18:10\u201314<\/p>\n
How far can you stretch a parable?<\/p>\n
Here\u2019s something you\u2019ll never hear: \u201cTake Me Out to the Ball Game\u201d sung as the bride walks down the aisle. Or \u201cPomp and Circumstance\u201d at a funeral. Or \u201cHail to the Chief\u201d at the grand opening of a neighborhood fast-food restaurant. Context is everything in determining what is appropriate.
\nOn our wedding day, just minutes before my bride\u2019s father was to escort her down the aisle\u2014the prelude music was already playing, and I was about to step onto the platform with the officiating pastor\u2014my jokester soon-to-be father-in-law greeted his daughter, wearing crusty farm boots, bib overalls, a flannel shirt, a crumpled cowboy hat, and a huge smile on his face. I had no idea what was going on out in the church lobby, but my wife-to-be was mortified! After a good laugh, her dad quickly changed and the wedding proceeded with the one desired \u201chitch.\u201d Context is everything. Weddings call for tuxedos and cummerbunds, not yee-haws and bandanas.
\nHowever, most music, dress, and activities are like elastic. They fit many contexts just fine. On that same wedding day, our \u201cvery Christian\u201d ceremony featured music from Motown and Mendelssohn. Both were appropriate\u2014just not as the bridal processional. Nevertheless, it\u2019s always important to ask, \u201cIs this appropriate?\u201d or you may wind up coming as a Tootsie Roll to an Overeaters-Anonymous Halloween party.
\nMany of Jesus\u2019 parables are also elastic. Even though they have a specific context in Scripture, they also can be properly applied in various settings. The parable of the lost sheep provides a case in point. Matthew and Luke recorded very similar versions of this parable, but each chose to refer to it for a different reason. In other words, this parable \u201cstretched\u201d to fit more than one context. I want to demonstrate how that works in this chapter and why it is important to take advantage of its elasticity.<\/p>\n
Elastic Threads
\nLet\u2019s first review how similar the versions are. The story line is essentially the same with only slight but interesting variations. So I have interlaced them. Luke\u2019s version is in roman type and Matthew\u2019s is in italics.<\/p>\n
What do you think? Suppose one of you has (If a man owns) a hundred sheep and loses one of them (and one of them wanders away). Doesn\u2019t he leave the ninety-nine in the open country (on the hills) and go after (go to look for) the lost sheep (the one that wandered off) until he finds it? And when he finds it (if he finds it), he joyfully puts it on his shoulders and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, \u201cRejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.\u201d (truly I tell you, he is happier about that one sheep than about the ninety-nine that did not wander off)<\/p>\n
You can see the story in both is the same. A person is missing just one of his one hundred sheep, but he leaves the ninety-nine to search for it. He finds the sheep and rejoices. Matthew\u2019s version differs only by explaining how the sheep got lost (\u201cwanders off\u201d) and leaving out the element of community celebration (\u201ccalls his friends and neighbors together . . .\u201d) mentioned by Luke.
\nHowever, the two versions differ significantly in another important way. Matthew and Luke referred to this parable for different reasons. That\u2019s why I talk about this parable as having elasticity. Matthew introduced the parable after Jesus focused attention on the nature of children and their need for protection. Immediately after the disciples questioned Jesus about the kingdom of heaven\u2019s ranking system\u2014\u201cWho, then, is the greatest?\u201d (Matt. 18:1)\u2014He invited a child to stand with Him as an object lesson for several points He made in response (vv. 2\u201310):<\/p>\n
\u2022 \u2022 \u201cUnless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u2022 \u2022 \u201cWhoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u2022 \u2022 \u201cIf anyone causes one of these little ones\u2014those who believe in me\u2014to stumble, it would be better for them to have a large millstone hung around their neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u2022 \u2022 \u201cSee that you do not despise one of these little ones. For I tell you that their angels in heaven always see the face of my Father in heaven.\u201d<\/p>\n
While these comments seem random on the surface, they are tied together by the way they flip upside down the common attitude toward children, who often went unnoticed, unprotected, and unrespected in Jesus\u2019 day.
\nIn contrast, Luke included this parable as part of Jesus\u2019 reaction when the Pharisees muttered about Him sharing meals with tax collectors and \u201csinners\u201d (Luke 15:1\u20132). It was the first of three parables (lost sheep, lost coin, lost son), which all illustrate heaven\u2019s joy-filled response when lost people are found and repent (see chapter 3 of this book). Jesus implied His sharing meals with scorned sinners\u2014a very important element of building relationships in this culture\u2014was part of seeking and finding the lost.<\/p>\n
Forsaking for Seeking
\nHere again, looking only at the surface, the contexts for the two versions of the parable are markedly distinct. One refers to honoring and protecting children. The other defends the evangelistic value of associating with common sinners. However, just as a single elastic band can stretch to fit various objects, as Matthew and Luke demonstrated, Jesus\u2019 parable also stretches to fit various circumstances. Nevertheless, we can still identify a shared theme. What is that theme? Go to great lengths to protect or rescue persons who tend to go unnoticed.
\nBut that\u2019s not all. Jesus also valued going to great lengths on behalf of the lost one even if it means leaving behind the sheltered ninety-nine. But a shepherd is responsible for the whole flock! To leave them alone for the sake of just one lost sheep would have seemed risky. That act of turning away from them would have felt negligent and uncaring. Nevertheless, Jesus\u2019 emphasis on the lost one implies this.
\nOn my very first Sunday as the pastor of a renowned college church in my denomination, I entered the pulpit to preach without a suit and tie and continued to do so the remainder of my eleven years there. In many churches around our country this would have been no problem. But in this rather traditional setting, many of the longtime members did not appreciate this. I \u201cheard\u201d about it occasionally. Even though I always came clean and pressed, I knew my lack of decorum for a Sunday service disturbed some people. However, this \u201clost sheep\u201d parable stretched to fit this situation, so their approval and Sabbath equilibrium could not be my concern. Of course, I did not want to cause offense, but they were among the ninety-nine. They were well cared for. Their lives were stable and relatively healthy. My concern was for the scores of people to whom the doors of our church were culturally closed because of its reputation as a highbrow congregation. My preaching in semi-casual dress, along with other gradual adjustments in the \u201cair\u201d of our environment, sent a message that we were a congregation of common people who wanted no one to feel out of place or not good enough to attend.
\nWhile this is trivial when compared with horrific injustices on a global scale, it is one example of how Jesus\u2019 elastic parable of the lost sheep can stretch over thousands of situations. In order to focus rescuing attention on one person or group, you will often have to forsake a large group of others who are already within the \u201cfold\u201d of care and privilege. Let me go even further. The lost sheep parable, along with its important elasticity, illustrates as well as any portion of Scripture the nature of our prime directive as Christians. Simply put, our mission is to find the one nobody notices, serves, or offers rescuing hope to.<\/p>\n
From Teddy to Tornadoes
\nOf course, we can think of noticing and rescuing people\u2014seeking the one\u2014in terms of spiritual salvation. Where do we go to provide gospel ministry to those who have never heard? That\u2019s how this parable is most often applied, and that application is certainly most important. However, we should never minimize the importance of demonstrating a gospel witness in practical, seemingly non-spiritual ways. Our second-nature impulse should be to feel deeply and serve especially the needs of the unnoticed.
\nI don\u2019t know how, but somehow through my family\u2019s and church\u2019s influence I picked up that empathetic impulse at a very early age. I remember when I set my teddy bear upright against my pillow as the final act of making my bed each day. I felt sorry for Teddy when I walked out the door to go to school, because he would be there all by himself. I often apologized to him before shutting off the light. As I grew older, my concern for Teddy\u2019s loneliness transferred to guys like David, the challenged kid whom classmates mocked, and Steve, one of only two African American kids in my school of hundreds of second-generation white ethnic students with names like Przestrzelski, Reitano, and Franklin Eberhard Gladstone III. I sensed that being Christian meant passing by the cool kids\u2019 lunch table and sitting beside the lone kid with the dingy white T-shirt.
\nTrue Christianity . . . it\u2019s always about leaving the ninety-nine with their advantages and privileges and showing special care for the one, the unnoticed, the minority\u2014whoever that one may be, wherever that one may be, and whyever that one may be there. Jesus made that clear. It\u2019s the heart of this parable; it\u2019s the heart of God.
\nThis special care for the one is often spiritualized to such a narrow degree that we miss some desperate needs and great opportunities for demonstrating and dispensing God\u2019s life-giving love. Let me give you a great example along with a provocative proposal that seems to run counter to conventional wisdom and common practice among God\u2019s people.
\nIt\u2019s amazing how people of all faiths, political ideologies, ethnicities, and social classes pull together in the aftermath of major natural disasters, like earthquakes, hurricanes, and tornadoes. Local and national media outlets cover the events and their human impact for days and weeks. Professional athletes, Hollywood celebrities, and famous singers launch efforts that raise millions of dollars. Churches and other nonprofit organizations spring into action to send workers and truckloads of donated goods. And of course, government and public relief agencies provide life-saving and rebuilding assistance, usually with mixed reviews but on a massive scale. The stories of lost loved ones and destroyed homes and businesses tear at our hearts.<\/p>\n
When Ken Fraley emerged from the bathroom where he had sheltered his wife and two small children in the tub under a mattress, he couldn\u2019t believe his eyes. He had seen pictures on television after other tornadoes, but nothing prepared him for what it would feel like to open the door and see only the concrete pad and part of the chimney of the once two-story brick farmhouse he and his dad had built together twenty years ago. He hung his head. He wasn\u2019t sure how to prepare his family, so he just opened the door a little wider and reached out for his wife\u2019s hand.
\nThe kids weren\u2019t old enough to understand, but his wife, Jenny, felt flattened by a swirl of thoughts that came all at once in no order of importance: \u201cIs the picture of us at Disney World gone? How can I get the girls to dance class tomorrow? Where\u2019s the dog? How are we going to make it with Ken out of work for the past two months? Oh no, my sister\u2019s wedding is next week, and she\u2019s counting on me for the wedding cake!\u201d<\/p>\n
We all know that people caught in these kinds of disasters, as tragic as such situations are, will be the focus of much attention and assistance. Because the governor or president can declare a state of emergency, people like the Fraleys will be eligible for all sorts of relief and resources. New clothes, food, temporary shelter, low-interest loans, and other benefits come from being in the spotlight of national coverage and compassion. But what if I tell you that the Fraleys\u2019 loss was an isolated event and not part of a widespread disaster that affected thousands of people? They live way out in the country in western Iowa, and the tornado that destroyed their home touched down for fifteen seconds.
\nThere will be no national media coverage. Sure, they might receive some local attention and gestures of kindness. But they will receive nothing on the scale of help that occurs after a major tornadic storm like the one that flattened Joplin, Missouri, in 2011, and triggered a flood of compassion and care from thousands and thousands of people.<\/p>\n
The Shadows of Singularity
\nMy point is this: all around our nation, when a large enough disaster hits and makes the regional or national news, when hundreds or thousands of people fall victim to winds and waves of destruction, when first responders risk their own lives to rush to their rescue, when cameras and correspondents solicit attention that generates massive relief and rebuilding efforts, the needs get noticed. Yet numerous other families endure similar destruction but are never noticed, because they had the ironic misfortune of not suffering as part of some widespread disaster. Theirs was just one relatively small disaster that did not register the tiniest tremor on anyone\u2019s Richter scale.
\nAt the very time bright lights of compassion shine on thousands, people all around our homes and towns and cities suffer just as tragic losses but do so in the shadows of singularity:<\/p>\n
\u2022 \u2022 A stray bullet from a gang-related skirmish outside her home pierced Maria Escobar\u2019s living room window just above where she was coloring a picture of a unicorn and struck her thirty-eight-year-old mother below her left eye, killing her instantly. She, her little brother, and her mom had recently relocated to St. Louis from San Antonio after an unwanted divorce. Kids who lost a parent during a major disaster will be in the eye of compassionate help. But who\u2019s going to notice Maria and her brother? Who will give them a home? A hope? A future?<\/p>\n
\u2022 \u2022 Janelle Shipley\u2019s husband wandered away . . . again. She thought for sure he had been taking his medication but apparently not. She hopped in the car and began driving to all the places she thought he might be. She kept looking at her watch; she was supposed to have been on her way to work fifteen minutes ago. Her boss had warned her, \u201cAnother day coming in late and I\u2019m going to have to let you go.\u201d But what could she do? Her husband or her job\u2014their only income? She kept driving. If only her husband had gone missing during a major flood while the whole nation was in \u201crescue mode,\u201d her boss might have been more compassionate.<\/p>\n
During those times of widespread devastation, when compassion abounds and mobilizes people of all faiths and backgrounds to respond, shouldn\u2019t Christians also look for the one whose situation will never make the evening news and who will have to face it all alone?<\/p>\n
A Provocative Proposal
\nSo here\u2019s my application of the lost sheep parable. I think it is in harmony with, if not the actual theme of, Jesus\u2019 spirit of compassion. When any disaster strikes that gains attention and compels compassionate action and your heart and likely your church want to join the relief efforts in some meaningful way, do this: match your efforts to respond to the spotlighted needs with some effort to find and rescue a person or family who otherwise will not be noticed and will have no help. If you\u2019re going to raise relief funds, fill a couple of trailers with emergency supplies and deploy your church van with a team of volunteers to go to the affected city, don\u2019t stop there. Match that effort by looking for some unnoticed family in western Iowa\u2014or wherever\u2014that was crushed by some isolated tragedy.
\nNot long before I began to write this chapter, hurricanes slammed the city of Houston, Texas, and then the entire state of Florida and created historic floods and destruction. The national news media focused on these areas for days\u2014and rightly so. But did you know that during the very same season, devastating floods and landslides hit numerous places in Africa, killing hundreds more people, destroying countless more homes, devastating thousands more families? Probably not. We were focused on Houston and Florida. But what about the unnoticed others? Who will rescue them? Because of our wealthy culture\u2019s advantages, the existence and responsiveness of public and private relief agencies, and a strong national government, victims in our nation are like the ninety-nine within the fold of compassionate assistance. What about those who are not?
\nAs a pastor, I have officiated many funerals. Sometimes the bereaved family will notify the public: \u201cIn lieu of sending flowers, please make a donation to your favorite charity in memory of our dearly loved husband, father, and grandfather.\u201d Their intent is for money to go where it is needed most, toward humanitarian needs rather than flowers.
\nDuring major disasters that marshal generous donations and volunteer hours, what if our churches went so far as to say, \u201cIn lieu of (or in addition to) sending relief to those major disaster areas, we will honor those wonderful efforts by sending relief to where no help at all is going right now\u2014to places of isolated disaster and people no one is noticing.\u201d
\nI suppose the question still remains: Is Jesus\u2019 parable of the lost sheep elastic enough to fit the application I am making? If so, is your compassion elastic enough to wrap around the one I am talking about?<\/p>\n
20\/20 Focus
\n1. 1. Matthew\u2019s and Luke\u2019s completely different uses of the same parable support the idea that certain portions of Scripture can be properly understood as elastic (i.e., they can be applied in different ways). But what cautions would you offer to make sure we never stretch Scripture too far?<\/p>\n
2. 2. There was at least one time when the apostle Peter stretched Scripture to make a point. In Acts 4:11, he changed one three-letter word as he quoted Psalm 118:22. Look up both verses in the NIV to spot that key word. How and why did he stretch that verse to fit the situation he was in?<\/p>\n
3. 3. This chapter focuses on the \u201cshadows of singularity.\u201d Try to put into your own words what that means.<\/p>\n
4. 4. List three or four problems in the media\u2019s limelight currently that are receiving lots of attention and triggering lots of social action and human kindness. Then counterbalance that attention by identifying someone suffering (or some kind of problem) no one is noticing.<\/p>\n
Lord Jesus, I am grateful for how the regional and national media can rally people to humanitarian causes, especially in times of widespread crisis. But I want my compassion and my church to be controlled and directed by Your Spirit, not the secular media. Give us eyes to see, ears to hear, and the will to act on behalf of those whose situations and suffering have not attracted attention. Amen.<\/p>\n
Vision Check
\nGod\u2019s Word is not rigid. It\u2019s alive. That means it can move and stretch. Its truth is fixed, but its application varies. It\u2019s elastic enough to cover more than the immediate scriptural context. It\u2019s good to imagine other situations to which its truth might apply.
\nFor example, think about the parable of the ten virgins (Matt. 25:1\u201313). Readers often assume that the immediate application of this parable is to Jesus\u2019 return. While that does seem to be the case, think about the main points Jesus was making about these virgins. Imagine how you could apply these principles to circumstances and occasions other than the second coming. Bring your ideas to dougnewton.com or the Fresh Eyes app to compare them with mine.<\/p>\n
10<\/p>\n
Streetlights<\/p>\n
The Good Samaritan<\/p>\n
Luke 10:30\u201337<\/p>\n
What if some parables had a second chapter?<\/p>\n
Some people have called me a creative person, especially regarding my writing skills. To whatever degree that\u2019s true, I know some of it came from my dad. Not that he was great shakes as a writer. But he had a habit of inventing words\u2014so many words that my two brothers and I put together a Dictionary of Erfisms for my parents\u2019 fortieth anniversary. Erfisms? you wonder. His middle name was Erford. Anyone with a name like that is destined for a life of eccentric elocution as an accidental neologue (one who makes up words). For example:<\/p>\n
\u2022 \u2022 fizgig: a euphemistic word for a laxative. The mere use of the term usually caused the desired result in my red-faced dad.<\/p>\n
\u2022 \u2022 gingkos: a versatile term of either endearment or exasperation that follows the exclamation \u201cYou . . .\u201d depending on the prevailing mood of the observer of gingkish behavior.<\/p>\n
My dad liked everything neat. He stacked his pocket change in order on the bedroom bureau every night. He thought that even though the English language includes verbs like bollix, muss, and jounce, it is not rich enough to provide words that fit every situation where one is in the act of putting something out of order. So he created new words that offered more precise nuances:<\/p>\n
\u2022 \u2022 shuck: to make a minute adjustment to the position of any heavy object, as in \u201cShuck it this way a hair.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u2022 \u2022 squudgin: to twist, shift, or rumple any cloth surface or flexible object. Always follows the command, \u201cDon\u2019t . . .\u201d as in \u201cDon\u2019t squudgin the tablecloth.\u201d<\/p>\n
You may not be someone who makes up quirky words, but most people have a creative streak in some area of their lives. You may be able to look at an empty vase and a handful of wildflowers and \u201csee\u201d how to arrange them into a lovely bouquet. Some people possess an ear for music and have taught themselves how to play piano or guitar. Although most people require detailed recipes when they cook, you might have a knack for experimenting with ingredients and spices to make new dishes.
\nMy wife and I spent many years in the South and marveled at the way some of our friends could transform a simple report about going to the grocery store into an elaborate drama full of action and description that rivaled a bestselling novel. And even though laziness might be the underlying motivation, some people can invent new ways of completing menial tasks more quickly and with less effort. What creative person first thought of carving an inclined plane helically around a cylindrical rod to produce an object that holds wood together? Then some other creative person like my dad came along and invented a name for it: a screw.
\nOne of my major purposes for this book has been to show that most of us could be more creative in our interaction with Scripture if we gave ourselves a little nudge. I want to offer one more example of what I mean and how to do it using the famous parable of the good Samaritan. This classic drama conveys Jesus\u2019 answer to the question, \u201cWho is my neighbor?\u201d (Luke 10:29), and is central to the gospel message.
\nAs you know, the parable tells of a victim of a violent robbery who was left to die not only by the thieves themselves but also by two Jewish passersby: a priest and a Levite. Then a despised Samaritan\u2014a character Jesus introduced to shock His Jewish listeners\u2014came along and provided life-saving compassion and comprehensive care.<\/p>\n
A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he was attacked by robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead. A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, brought him to an inn and took care of him. The next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper. \u201cLook after him,\u201d he said, \u201cand when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.\u201d (vv. 30\u201335)<\/p>\n
Clearly, Jesus painted a portrait of self-sacrificing, risk-taking love as the only true fulfillment of the law of love. For generations God\u2019s people have examined under a magnifying glass every detail of this incredible picture of mercy and grace.
\nIt\u2019s worth trying to understand why the priest and Levite did nothing to help. And we often try. The Samaritan\u2019s multi-faceted act of compassion and rescue should be analyzed and imitated by every Christian in every generation in every cultural context. And we have those components\u2014emergency response, thorough care, and ongoing support\u2014clearly spelled out. The way Jesus used a Samaritan as an unlikely hero was one of His many attacks on ethnic prejudice. It highlights a primary goal of the gospel toward which Christians are called to work: to tear down all dividing walls of hostility, not just ones between God and people and between Jews and Gentiles (Eph. 2:14\u201316). Retrofitting the story for a new generation and culture is appropriate creative interaction with the text, and it is done often and done well.<\/p>\n
Experimental Variations
\nHowever, there\u2019s another way to interact creatively with biblical texts that I call \u201cexperimental variations.\u201d Scientists do this in their research. As they test hypotheses, they change one component of the experiment, called the variable, and observe what happens. What happens if we heat the solution five degrees more? What happens if we heat the solution before we mix in the chlorine rather than after? What happens if we freeze the solution and store it for twenty-four hours before we heat it? They learn new things by making slight adjustments.
\nSimilarly, experimental variations to a particular biblical passage can trigger creative interactions with the text and with God\u2019s Spirit that produce fresh insights. Ask yourself, What would happen if I changed just one story component? Let\u2019s do that with this parable by imagining what happened the days after the Samaritan rescued the victim and resumed his journey. You\u2019ll see how that raises a new set of questions about how love should act.<\/p>\n
The Next Three Days
\nImagine the following scenario: the Samaritan mounted his donkey and headed once again toward Jericho. He passed the place where he had rescued the wounded traveler, grateful to God for his opportunity to save a person\u2019s life.
\nNot more than a mile farther down the road, he couldn\u2019t believe his eyes when he saw the form of another wounded traveler lying beside the road. When he saw him, he took pity on him and showed the same care to this traveler as he had to the one the day before.
\nThe innkeeper was somewhat surprised to see the Samaritan bringing another wounded victim to his inn for care. But again the businessman was promised a return visit and reimbursement for any expenses beyond another two denarii (silver coins).
\nThe Samaritan stayed the night and left the next morning, but not before taking a minute to count his money and calculate whether he had enough left for the time he planned to spend in Jericho.
\nBy now he was two days overdue for his business in Jericho, and he hoped his friends would not be worrying about him. So he picked up his pace to make up for lost time.
\nAbout three hours down the road, but less than halfway, his heart sank when he saw in the distance the form of another man lying in the road. Worry shot through his mind: I can\u2019t believe this. Could this be yet another victim?
\nSure enough. It was! What shall I do? My time and money are running out. He wished he hadn\u2019t noticed the victim. But there he lay in the middle of the road. There was no getting around the reality. He saw the wounds, heard the man\u2019s faint cry, and compassion welled up inside him, so he stopped, dressed the wounds, lifted the man onto his donkey, and returned to the inn.
\nThe innkeeper, now quite confused and perhaps a little suspicious, reluctantly gave another room to yet another victim\u2014reluctantly because the Samaritan now had to ask for special considerations, since he could not advance the innkeeper any money. He could only promise to pay the bill on his return. The innkeeper was not at all pleased.
\nThe next morning, under considerable pressure from how his tardiness jeopardized his business and reputation, the Samaritan rode as fast as possible toward Jericho again. He felt deeply troubled. What if I see another wounded traveler? The worry did not let up. Step after step, he feared what was around the next curve. I cannot be delayed again!
\nThen sure enough, from a man lying off in the bushes, he heard a faint moan for help. \u201cNo way! I can\u2019t do this anymore!\u201d the Samaritan shouted in agony, as he looked with longing to the other side of the road.
\nThere you have it\u2014an experimental variation on this famous parable that makes one hypothetical adjustment to the story: What if the same thing happened to the Samaritan numerous times, not just once? This question is worth asking for several reasons.<\/p>\n
A Valid Variation
\nBasic research on the actual text reveals that this road was known to be very dangerous. It is reasonable to wonder how a person might respond to more than one occurrence of a desperate rescue situation. So it\u2019s historically valid.
\nIt\u2019s also emotionally valid. My experimental Samaritan represents what people soon discover when they commit themselves to lives of compassion for the needy: the desperate problems never let up and soon threaten to drain them dry of time and resources. Even the most compassionate people are prone to pass by like the priest and Levite out of sheer exhaustion.
\nFinally, it is conceptually valid. The parable Jesus told answered not only the question \u201cWho is my neighbor?\u201d but also \u201cHow does true love behave?\u201d Jesus painted the picture of thorough and tender caregiving. My experimental version that imagines the realistic possibility of serial robberies puts fresh eyes on this compassion question. How does love behave in cases of chronic violence and victimization?<\/p>\n
Greater Measures
\nPut yourself in the experimental Samaritan\u2019s situation. By the time he had faced the same problem three times, and now a fourth, what might he begin to think? I need a solution other than just loading these people on my donkey and trying to rescue them all by myself. This is where the fresh eyes technique of \u201cexperimental variations\u201d takes us: to deal with the fact that real life often presents us with rescue challenges that one person can\u2019t handle alone. In other words, love faces the prospect of ineffectiveness and refuses to stop until it develops strategies to solve bigger problems.
\nThink about that for a minute. If you faced this experimental but true-to-life situation, what solutions might love propose? Two strategic solutions come to my mind.<\/p>\n
Rescue Teams
\nThe experimental Samaritan needs help. He needs a team of on-call people who share his sense of compassion and his conviction that prioritizes desperate people\u2019s needs over his own. He would need to create an organization to take responsibility for developing and deploying that kind of person into the . . . Oh, wait a minute. I think one already exists. It\u2019s called the church.
\nNow do you see how this fresh eyes technique logically leads to another creative way of looking at the parable? Go back to the parable and ask these questions: What insights might I gain if I think of the priest, Levite, and Samaritan as different types of churches and the victim as a type of human need? What is my church avoiding or too busy to notice? Do our benevolence ministries go far enough to fully care for and restore damaged people? Yes, we serve a meal at Thanksgiving to needy people, but does that really do much to alleviate their struggle to make ends meet? In other words, take all the ideas that are commonly taught about the ways individuals should show love to broken people\u2014emergency response, thorough care, and ongoing support\u2014and apply them to your church.
\nSo, for example, among the greatest problems that trap people in economic poverty is consumer debt. People trapped in consumer debt are like people who can never keep their heads above water, because their bills keep pushing them back under. For years, my wife and I have encouraged God\u2019s people to model gospel love by periodically helping to pay other people\u2019s credit card debts to give them a chance to keep their heads above water. We believe in this.
\nIn his book The Working Poor: Invisible in America, Pulitzer Prize\u2013winning author David Shipler documented how the smallest problems, like the need for eyeglasses or dental work, can derail working people\u2019s attempts to rise above poverty. When we come alongside a family and offer to make monthly payments on one of their debts until it is paid off, that usually frees them up so they can get their car repaired and get to work, pay for more reliable childcare, or accelerate their debt reduction in other areas. Although it\u2019s not a cure for poverty, this not only helps provide a better chance for them to keep their heads above water and gradually make it to dry ground, but it also is one of the best ways to demonstrate the nature of the cross of Christ: substitutionary debt payment. That is, Jesus paid our debt on our behalf.<\/p>\n
Streetlights
\nIf people keep getting robbed and beaten on the road, then put up streetlights! Even though this solution falls into the category of \u201cDuh,\u201d the church often overlooks streetlight strategies (i.e., prevention programs). We should show love through prevention as much as through rescue. In fact, even if you successfully develop and deploy hundreds of teams of rescuers but do nothing to address the cause, you have not done what compassion ultimately calls for\u2014protecting people from harm.
\nPrevention efforts are usually not as sexy, as they say. But the city councilperson who crafts and champions legislation for funding city streetlights to protect hundreds of people in high-crime areas is engaging in an act of love perhaps greater than the Good Samaritan\u2019s. Keeping young girls from being seized for sex trafficking is to be desired over having to rescue them after being broken. Love that prevents wounds should usually be preferred over love that tends them. Of course, God sometimes chooses not to prevent pain or hardships in order to reveal His glory through people by developing their godly character or displaying divine power. But generally speaking, divine love agrees with Ben Franklin\u2019s classic words of wisdom written when he campaigned for fire safety: \u201cAn Ounce of Prevention is worth a Pound of Cure.\u201d2
\nIn the previous chapter, I mentioned that around the same time the flooding in Houston in 2017 captured our national attention, hundreds more people died from flooding and landslides in Africa. The enormous effects of the Texas hurricane could not have been prevented. But many of the African floods could have been, because they were due not to a massive hurricane but to poor drainage systems. It was commendable that our public, private, and nonprofit organizations poured relief resources into Texas, but churches especially should be looking across the oceans and tackling the prevention needs in chronically under-resourced areas where deadly disasters could be minimized.
\nJust as the church answers the call to develop and deploy rescuers, we need to equally emphasize the ministries of prevention. And we need to applaud the people in our congregations who engage in prevention missions as much as those involved in rescue work. People who devote themselves to making other people safer, people who commit themselves to education and job training, people who prayer-walk their communities and initiate reconciliation projects are all doing kingdom work that\u2019s like installing streetlights in a dark and dangerous world.<\/p>\n
Back to the Starting Point
\nDo you see how this fresh eyes technique opens the window to a host of thoughts you might never have had without creatively thinking beyond the limits of the actual text? Of course, when engaging in creative interaction with Scripture, you must be careful to remember\u2014or research\u2014what\u2019s scriptural and what\u2019s not. Never entertain ideas that contradict other biblical texts and truths. However, in this case, there is value in opening the aperture wider to let this parable shed more light on how love should behave.
\nBut finally, that raises a question. If broadening this parable beyond the text\u2019s original scope in order to see that prevention and not just rescue is important, why did Jesus limit the parable to one Samaritan rescuing one victim? My guess is He left the story where He did to confront us with an unconditional personal challenge. Ultimately the systemic changes needed to rescue people and prevent evil on a larger scale depend on the existence and responsiveness of individuals who love like the good Samaritan in one-on-one missions of mercy and grace.
\nMy dad had a name for a person like that\u2014a \u201cgood egg.\u201d<\/p>\n
20\/20 Focus
\n1. 1. Compassionate disciples sometimes want to walk \u201con the other side\u201d of the street to get a break from people\u2019s problems. Once we start caring about hurting people, it seems like there\u2019s no end. In those times we can feel frustrated, angry, disillusioned, discouraged, or extremely fatigued. Do any of these feelings describe where you are at this point? Which one(s)?<\/p>\n
2. 2. Jesus clearly wanted us to notice the thorough steps of compassion the Samaritan took. Think of some type of prevention ministry (e.g., preventing divorce, preventing consumer debt, or preventing teen pregnancy) and list some steps that are necessary if those ministries are to be thorough and effective.<\/p>\n
3. 3. Name a couple of problems where you (or your church) are in rescue mode but you wish you were doing more about prevention.<\/p>\n
Lord Jesus, I\u2019ll admit I can be like the priest and Levite and want to avoid people who need help. I\u2019ve gotten to the point where I am tired and discouraged. The needs keep coming, but I\u2019ve run out. I\u2019d love to feel I\u2019m doing more than providing bandages. Could You point me in the direction of some new effort that might promote prevention? I\u2019d love to pour some of my limited energy and resources into that. But still, give me the grace to bandage wounds. Amen.<\/p>\n
Vision Check
\nIn scientific experiments you introduce one new variable to discover something you didn\u2019t known before. You can guardedly do the same with Scripture. In this chapter, we imagined what the Good Samaritan might need to do had he come across multiple victims over the span of several days. If you try this, remember that the variable is not in the text, so you shouldn\u2019t turn your thoughts into a \u201cnew doctrine.\u201d But you might gain some new insights worth pondering in light of other portions of Scripture.
\nTry this: read John\u2019s version of the feeding of the five thousand, which includes the interesting detail about the five loaves and two fish coming from a boy (John 6:1\u201315). Try imagining what might have happened if the boy had only three loaves and one fish to bring. Then try another variation of the amount. What thoughts come to mind? Compare your thoughts with mine on dougnewton.com or the Fresh Eyes app.<\/p>\n
title Fresh eyes on jesus\u2019 parables: discovering new insights in familiar passages}
\nauthor Newton, Doug<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Acknowledgments The man who was, I think, the most creative and engaging preacher I ever heard died in a car crash when I was in sixth grade. I say \u201cI think\u201d because I never really cared about what he was saying at the time. After all, I was only twelve years old, and there were … <\/p>\n