Fast food restaurants try to figure out the best combo meal deal, so you'll be enticed and satisfied enough to want to keep coming back for more. There probably is some combination of sweet deals, or loving words, or adventure that might catch your attention in life.
What would God use to catch your attention? Eternal life?! Being truly loved? Peace?
Jesus often used a series of parables or teachings to get his point across. One place in particular is Luke 15, the parable of lost sheep, coin, and son. They all tell a story that in some ways "entices" you to long for God's kingdom and how it functions.
But there may be a different set of parables that Jesus was using to help us "get it" than those three together.
The lost sheep and coin highlight the value God places on anyone in his kingdom - no favoritism! (Romans 2:11).
But what if the prodigal son, prodigal manager, and the rich man and Lazarus were intended to be "heard" together?
They all start in a story form, more so than the sheep and coin parables. They all address a rich man. The big difference is between the character of the rich men. One is sacrificial in his giving even to someone who didn't deserve it (the son), the next one focuses on his response to his servant who "blesses" the rich man's debtors with a kind of forgiveness of debts (but for a personal gain purpose), the last one tells of a rich man was stingy towards those needing "blessings."
When read together, it helps shed light on the meaning of the "unjust steward" (Luke 16:1-13). This parable has caused many scholars to scratch their heads in confusion.
God is the rich father who is willing to bless His children (Matthew 7:7-12), and even empowers them to bless other people with what He has entrusted to them (2 Corinthians 9:6-11). He doesn't want us to be stingy with what He has blessed us with (Hebrews 13:16).
In each of these stories, there is a mention of, or a reference to, the fact that generosity is a big deal to God and that's what all of the law and the prophets were pointing towards--a rich father who wants us to use the riches He bestows upon us to bless others.
Sunday, June 28, 2020
Sunday, June 21, 2020
A Father's Tale
Sometimes we read stories in the Bible, and they are either so familiar or so foreign to us that we can’t seem to find a focal point in the lesson. The prodigal son is one of Jesus’ most famous parables, but it’s more than a story of a forgiving father. It’s also a picture of how our Father’s kingdom functions. I found this fantastic summary of this parable that I wanted to share with you.
Luke 15:11-32
“Feeling footloose and frisky, a feather-brained fellow forced his fond father to fork over the farthings and flew to foreign fields and frittered his fortune, feasting fabulously with faithless friends.
"Fleeced by his fellows, fallen by fornication, and facing famine, he found himself a feed-flinger in a filthy farmyard. Fairly famishing, he fain would have filled his frame with foraged food from fodder fragments. “Fooey! My father’s flunkies fare finer,” the frazzled fugitive forlornly fumbled, frankly facing facts. Frustrated by failure and filled with foreboding, he fled forthwith to his family. Falling at his father’s feet, he forlornly fumbled, “Father, I’ve flunked and fruitlessly forfeited family favor!”
"The farsighted father, forestalling further flinching, frantically flagged the flunkies to fetch a fatling from the flock and fix a feast.
"The fugitive’s fault-finding brother frowned on fickle forgiveness of former folderol. But the faithful father figured, “Filial fidelity is fine, but the fugitive is found! What forbids fervent festivity? Let flags be unfurled. Let fanfares flare”
"And the father’s forgiveness formed the foundation for the former fugitive’s future faith and fortitude.” -- (Attributed to W.O. Taylor)
Would you be able to summarize this story based on what you just read? Truth is we often get hung up on words or one scene from the story, and we fail to see what the story is really telling us. The beauty of God’s word is that the more you see the big picture of God’s goal, the more you see how each teaching, miracle, or command leads us closer to acting like we’re part of God’s kingdom!
Luke 15:11-32
“Feeling footloose and frisky, a feather-brained fellow forced his fond father to fork over the farthings and flew to foreign fields and frittered his fortune, feasting fabulously with faithless friends.
"Fleeced by his fellows, fallen by fornication, and facing famine, he found himself a feed-flinger in a filthy farmyard. Fairly famishing, he fain would have filled his frame with foraged food from fodder fragments. “Fooey! My father’s flunkies fare finer,” the frazzled fugitive forlornly fumbled, frankly facing facts. Frustrated by failure and filled with foreboding, he fled forthwith to his family. Falling at his father’s feet, he forlornly fumbled, “Father, I’ve flunked and fruitlessly forfeited family favor!”
"The farsighted father, forestalling further flinching, frantically flagged the flunkies to fetch a fatling from the flock and fix a feast.
"The fugitive’s fault-finding brother frowned on fickle forgiveness of former folderol. But the faithful father figured, “Filial fidelity is fine, but the fugitive is found! What forbids fervent festivity? Let flags be unfurled. Let fanfares flare”
"And the father’s forgiveness formed the foundation for the former fugitive’s future faith and fortitude.” -- (Attributed to W.O. Taylor)
Would you be able to summarize this story based on what you just read? Truth is we often get hung up on words or one scene from the story, and we fail to see what the story is really telling us. The beauty of God’s word is that the more you see the big picture of God’s goal, the more you see how each teaching, miracle, or command leads us closer to acting like we’re part of God’s kingdom!
Sunday, June 14, 2020
Lost Coin
On March 12, 2009, Bernie Madoff pleaded guilty to operating the largest private Ponzi scheme in history. He defrauded over $65 billion from clients that trusted him for the security of their financial future. Workers at places like Enron experienced an extreme loss of their retirements, and although some of that money has been recovered, many people will end their time on the earth with much less than they planned on.
What happens when our plans change due to someone else’s neglect or irresponsibility? Culturally speaking, it makes our blood boil to hear of those kinds of stories, especially when it involves those we love. However, what would it be like to have been one of his employees that didn’t know anything about the scam? Their next steps might make all the difference to those that knew them well. Did they help fight to get their money back? Or were they helping out in other ways to help people cope with their loss? Those people trusted Bernie to help them have a secure future, but they put their trust in the wrong guy!
Spiritually speaking, the Jews were supposed to be the mouthpiece for God’s kingdom; however, their track record proved that they did a lousy job of that. Paul said in Romans 2:17-24, “Now you, if you call yourself a Jew; if you rely on the law and boast in God; if you know His will and approve of what is superior because you are instructed by the law; if you are convinced that you are a guide for the blind, a light for those who are in the dark, an instructor of the foolish, a teacher of little children, because you have in the law the embodiment of knowledge and truth— you, then, who teach others, do you not teach yourself? You who preach against stealing, do you steal? You who say that people should not commit adultery, do you commit adultery? You who abhor idols, do you rob temples? You who boast in the law, do you dishonor God by breaking the law? As it is written: 'God’s name is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you.'”
In other words, they misrepresented the Messiah and God’s kingdom to their own people. Jesus repeatedly reprimanded the religious leaders for their hypocrisy. Consider the story of the Lost Coin (Luke 15) as an example of someone who lost something in his own house. That “someone” was the Jewish leaders who had been negligent of what was in their care – the Kingdom's message. The house represents the nation they possessed – Israel. The object didn’t know it was lost; it just stayed where the careless owner had left it. Jesus is revealing the humility required to admit something is lost and then the effort to find it.
God, and all heaven with Him, rejoices when people turn to God for the help that only He can provide. How about you? Do you need God’s help?
What happens when our plans change due to someone else’s neglect or irresponsibility? Culturally speaking, it makes our blood boil to hear of those kinds of stories, especially when it involves those we love. However, what would it be like to have been one of his employees that didn’t know anything about the scam? Their next steps might make all the difference to those that knew them well. Did they help fight to get their money back? Or were they helping out in other ways to help people cope with their loss? Those people trusted Bernie to help them have a secure future, but they put their trust in the wrong guy!
Spiritually speaking, the Jews were supposed to be the mouthpiece for God’s kingdom; however, their track record proved that they did a lousy job of that. Paul said in Romans 2:17-24, “Now you, if you call yourself a Jew; if you rely on the law and boast in God; if you know His will and approve of what is superior because you are instructed by the law; if you are convinced that you are a guide for the blind, a light for those who are in the dark, an instructor of the foolish, a teacher of little children, because you have in the law the embodiment of knowledge and truth— you, then, who teach others, do you not teach yourself? You who preach against stealing, do you steal? You who say that people should not commit adultery, do you commit adultery? You who abhor idols, do you rob temples? You who boast in the law, do you dishonor God by breaking the law? As it is written: 'God’s name is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you.'”
In other words, they misrepresented the Messiah and God’s kingdom to their own people. Jesus repeatedly reprimanded the religious leaders for their hypocrisy. Consider the story of the Lost Coin (Luke 15) as an example of someone who lost something in his own house. That “someone” was the Jewish leaders who had been negligent of what was in their care – the Kingdom's message. The house represents the nation they possessed – Israel. The object didn’t know it was lost; it just stayed where the careless owner had left it. Jesus is revealing the humility required to admit something is lost and then the effort to find it.
God, and all heaven with Him, rejoices when people turn to God for the help that only He can provide. How about you? Do you need God’s help?
Sunday, June 7, 2020
The Purpose of Parables
What does it take to get the message? Parents will often say something like that to their kids when they keep making the same mistakes. Employers say that to employees; coaches to players; generals to soldiers.
But the truth is we do continue to make mistakes when we should be learning from them. Paul said it this way in Romans 7:18-20, “For I know that good itself does not dwell in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. For I do not do the good I want to do, but the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing.”
Any honest believer can completely own those words. Jesus said in Mark 14:38, “Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.”
However, sometimes the right story, the right time, or the right person saying it, can hit home perfectly. That’s why preaching is important; maybe someone else saying what you’ve been thinking about helps it all to make sense. (Just consider why there are four gospels, or why there were over 40 authors of God’s inspired word?!)
Jesus told parables as a huge part of His teaching ministry. But they weren’t just cute stories about God; they were memorable ways to get the concept of God’s kingdom into our minds. Ultimately, the parables serve as a kind of “chewable” version of what the Bible has spent over 1500 years explaining how God’s kingdom would function.
In God’s kingdom, the people are the important piece, not the crown, or the castle, or even the titles. He values each person, and He wants every last one of them to accept the invitation to join Him at the Table to celebrate His Kingship together… (2 Peter 3:9) “…[He’s] not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.”
God’s kingdom functions upside-down from the principles of this world, but it takes a great deal of faith and maturity to bear up under what seems “unfair” or “unjust” (Ephesians 4:2-3) and trust that God’s will has the power to overcome anything – in this life or the next!
People want things to function like they’ve always seen it function. Sometimes, even if it doesn’t work very well! As we’re trying to “get back to normal,” let’s try to explore what we need to do in order to function more like the image of God’s kingdom rather than our culture.
But the truth is we do continue to make mistakes when we should be learning from them. Paul said it this way in Romans 7:18-20, “For I know that good itself does not dwell in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. For I do not do the good I want to do, but the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing.”
Any honest believer can completely own those words. Jesus said in Mark 14:38, “Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.”
However, sometimes the right story, the right time, or the right person saying it, can hit home perfectly. That’s why preaching is important; maybe someone else saying what you’ve been thinking about helps it all to make sense. (Just consider why there are four gospels, or why there were over 40 authors of God’s inspired word?!)
Jesus told parables as a huge part of His teaching ministry. But they weren’t just cute stories about God; they were memorable ways to get the concept of God’s kingdom into our minds. Ultimately, the parables serve as a kind of “chewable” version of what the Bible has spent over 1500 years explaining how God’s kingdom would function.
In God’s kingdom, the people are the important piece, not the crown, or the castle, or even the titles. He values each person, and He wants every last one of them to accept the invitation to join Him at the Table to celebrate His Kingship together… (2 Peter 3:9) “…[He’s] not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.”
God’s kingdom functions upside-down from the principles of this world, but it takes a great deal of faith and maturity to bear up under what seems “unfair” or “unjust” (Ephesians 4:2-3) and trust that God’s will has the power to overcome anything – in this life or the next!
People want things to function like they’ve always seen it function. Sometimes, even if it doesn’t work very well! As we’re trying to “get back to normal,” let’s try to explore what we need to do in order to function more like the image of God’s kingdom rather than our culture.