Questions Jesus Asked - Good Faith Media

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All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, arefrom the New Revised Standard Version (NRSV) of the Biblecopyright 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of theNational Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA. Thosemarked NIV are from The Holy Bible, New International Versioncopyright 1978 by International Bible Society, Zondervan BiblePublishers. Those marked KJV are from The Holy Bible, KingJames Version. Those marked Cotton Patch Version are fromClarence Jordan, The Cotton Patch Version, Association Press,New York, copyright 1968, 1969.

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Questions Jesus Asked leader guides are also available.

QuestionsJesusAsked

An exploration of Luke

Bible Study Lessonsfor Christians involved withGod’s redemptive efforts

in the world

Acacia Resources ~ a division of Baptist Center for Ethics4219 Hillsboro Road, Suite 210

Nashville, Tennessee 37215Phone: 615-383-3192 Fax: 615-383-0915

Web site: www.ethicsdaily.com

Student Guide

Acacia Resources

The biblical witness singles out acacia wood for its uniqueness.The only wood mentioned in the building of the ark of the cov-enant, the tabernacle and the altar is acacia. Acacia wood islisted with other precious objects—gold, silver, fragrant incense,onyx stones—given to honor God.

The name acacia symbolically ties BCE’s curriculum initiative toour biblical heritage. The acacia tree represents the wise valueattached to the family, the diversity within families and thedurability demanded for growing healthy Christians, whetherthey are singles, couples with children or senior adults.

Today’s acacia tree is known for its ...

ValueSome acacia trees have fragrant flowers used in making perfume.The seeds are edible. The bark is rich in tannin, a substanceused in tanning, dyes, inks and pharmaceuticals. Furniture, oars,tools and gunstocks are made of the hard lumber from the acaciatree.

DiversitySome 1,200 species of acacia trees and shrubs exist throughoutmuch of the world, including Africa, Australia and North America.

DurabilityThe acacia species is tough enough to survive the semiaridregions of Africa where its roots sink deep to capture the rarewater which runs quickly into the soil.

Acacia Resources will guide Christians and draw them godward,as the ark of acacia wood guided the people of Israel in theirjourney and represented the presence of God in their midst.

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Table of Contents

Preface

Why Were You Searching for Me?

Is It Lawful to Do Good on the Sabbath?

What Credit Is It to You to Love Those Who Love You?

Why Do You See the Speck in Your Neighbor’s Eye?

Why Don’t You Do What I Tell You?

Where Is Your Faith?

Who Do You Say I Am?

Who Is Your Neighbor?

Didn’t God Make Both the Inside and the Outside?

What Is the Kingdom of God Like?

What Is Faithful Stewardship?

Does Obedience Demand Praise?

What Do You Owe the Government?

http://www.ethicsdaily.com

interpretation of the Bible andinquire about traditional religiouspractices. The religious establish-ment prefers the control of theimperative to the uncertainty of theinterrogative.

While the biblical witness offersmany imperatives of faith, it neverbanishes the interrogative.

As pilgrims in the midst of culturalconflict and transition, we must keepthe question mark ever with us. Afterall, asking the right questions maydetermine how we think, when wespeak, where we go and what we do.

Through 13 questions, this undatedcurriculum series examines some ofJesus’ questions closely related todiscipleship. We hope these lessonsenrich Christian discourse andadvance discernment. We also hopethat a focus on Jesus’ commitment tothe question mark will encourageothers to question how they live outtheir faith.

So, what are the questions Jesusasked? Are you ready to explorethem?

Robert M. Parham is BCE’s execu-tive director. He and his wife, Betsy,have two teenage children.

Questions Jesus Asked Preface

Preface

Jesus challenged the prevailingreligious practices of his day with

probing, knotty questions.

He questioned the observance of theSabbath with its hyper-commitmentto legalism over meeting humanneeds. He asked about the self-righteous judgmentalism that lookedfor minor faults in others andoverlooked one’s own major flaws.He confronted the religiouscommunity’s narrow definition ofneighbor that limited social responsi-bility. He scrutinized the relationshipbetween God and the state. Hewondered aloud about a host ofissues.

Sometimes, Jesus’ questions stungthose closest to him—his family anddisciples. At other times, his ques-tions reframed the way his religiousopponents thought about issues,sharply forcing them to rethink theirtraditions and values.

Jesus asked over 50 questions,according to Luke. At age 12, Jesuswas in the temple “sitting among theteachers, listening to them andasking them questions” (Lk 2:46). Atthe end of Luke’s account, Jesus leftthose on the Emmaus road question-ing their burning hearts (Lk 24:32).

He also questioned the troubledhearts of those disciples in Jerusalem(v. 38).

Clearly, Jesus used the strategy ofquestioning as a form of learningand teaching about matters of faithand practice.

We, too, would do well to embraceJesus’ approach to discernment. IfJesus is truly our criterion forinterpreting the Bible, then wouldwe not profit from studying hisquestions and understanding hisanswers? Of course, the answer isyes. The more we understand aboutJesus, the more likely we are tounderstand the biblical witness andour mission as disciples.

But not only must we ask andexplore Jesus’ questions, we mustalso practice his approach to lifewith our own questions.

Indeed, many Christians wearWWJD (What Would Jesus Do?)bracelets. They ask themselves andothers what Jesus would have themdo in different circumstances. Asquestioners, they walk in his foot-steps, carrying one of Jesus’ sym-bols—the question mark.

Unfortunately, some within theChristian community are fearful ofthe questioners. They do not trust theprocess of questioning. They frownon those who question the traditional

?


Why Were YouSearchingfor Me?

Luke 2:41–51

“Why were yousearching for me?”

—Luke 2:49

Each Christmas, a certain cityerected a nativity scene in the

town square. Sadly, vandals regu-larly trashed the tranquil scene.Among other things, the baby Jesusoften disappeared. Joseph was leftstanding, looking somber and holy,while Mary sat with her radiantsmile. Finally, in desperation, themayor had the baby Jesus chained tothe manger. It didn’t help. Jesus stillmade his getaway.

Most of the townsfolk were quiteperturbed, but a local pastor wasn’tsurprised. As one familiar with theways of God, he quietly observed, “Ithink the baby Jesus went to Bosniafor the holidays. You see, they needhim over there.”1

Have you ever had Jesus disappear

on you? It happens sometimes as wego merrily on our way, doing whatwe have to do when suddenly, welook up, and he is gone. Amid ourharried lives, we rush off in some di-rection without checking to see if heis with us. Only when we feel theache of his absence do we discoverthat Jesus has disappeared on us . . .again! Where did he go? And wherecan we find him to ask his forgive-ness, seek his truth and live in hislove?

Explore the Biblical Witness

Jesus disappeared on Mary and Jo-seph following the family’s an-

nual pilgrimage to Jerusalem. As adevout Jewish family, Jesus and hisparents went to the holy city everyyear to celebrate Passover (Lk 2:41).The Passover festival commemo-rated the liberation of the Jewishpeople from Egyptian bondage (Ex12:21–36). It was the most importantfestival of the Jewish year.

As Luke tells the story, this Passovercelebration held special meaning forJesus’ family. Jesus was 12 years ofage (Lk 2:42), on the cusp of youngmanhood. At 12, a Jewish male wasno longer just a child, but a son ofIsrael. To this day, 12 is the age ofthe Jewish bar mitzvah.

After passover, Joseph and Maryturned toward home, not realizingJesus wasn’t with them (v. 43).

Joseph and Mary were traveling withother pilgrims in a caravan (v. 44).Such a caravan was a bustling paradeof animals, children, families andfriends. Joseph probably assumedJesus was in the back of the packwith his mother, where Jesus had al-ways traveled before. Knowing herboy was eager to claim his new placeamong the men, Mary probablythought he was up front with his fa-ther. In any event, the casual, some-times chaotic nature of travel bycaravan helps explain why Jesus’parents didn’t miss him until theysettled in for the night.

Yet, despite mitigating circum-stances, the truth remains: Jesus dis-appeared from the company of Maryand Joseph for the same reason heoften disappears from us. They as-sumed he was with them (v. 44).They assumed he wanted to gowhere they were going; they as-sumed he wanted to do what theywere doing. Only that night by thecampfire did Mary and Joseph real-ize Jesus was missing.

First thing the next morning, Maryand Joseph beat a path back toJerusalem. For three anxious days(v. 46), their son was missing: aday’s journey from Jerusalem, aday’s journey back, and on the thirdday they found Jesus.

When at last they found him, he waslost in conversation with the teachers

of the law (v. 46). This was the tradi-tional method of instruction in Jesus’day: a dialogue between teacher andstudents.

Christian tradition has often por-trayed Jesus in this scene as a won-der boy, pulling divine rank on histeachers, but there is little hint ofthat in the text. Up until now, all thesigns and wonders surroundingJesus’ entry into the world have beengiven to others, not to Jesus himself.Luke says explicitly that Jesus lis-tened and asked questions (v. 46).Despite the perennial Christian her-esy that Jesus was not truly human,Luke is careful to note that Jesus “in-creased in wisdom” (v. 52).

To be sure, Jesus was a precociousyouth, steeped in the Hebrew Scrip-tures; the teachers of the law were“amazed at his understanding and hisanswers” (v. 47). And certainly atthis time in his life, he was awaken-ing to his unique call from God(v. 49b). But Jesus discovered God’sunique claim on his life precisely be-cause he was raised as a true Israel-ite, one who knew the Word andways of God.

The confrontation between Jesus andhis parents is painful to behold(v. 45–46). “Child,” Mary snapped,eager to put her son in his place.“Why have you treated us like this?”Voicing the gut-wrenching anguishof three harrowing days, she added,

Questions Jesus Asked Why Were You Searching for Me?


“Your father and I have been search-ing for you with great anxiety!”

Jesus looked up at them in genuinesurprise: “Did you not know that Imust be in my Father’s house?” (v.49).

Joseph felt an old familiar pain. Thesuppressed memories of the child’sunique birth came roaring back: thisboy never belonged to him, but toGod. Mary took Joseph’s arm, quickto comfort. How could Jesus be soinsensitive?

But Jesus wasn’t being insensitive.He was just telling the truth, and notabout himself only but about all whobecome sons and daughters of Godthrough him. Their greatest loyaltyand love is no longer their next ofkin (see Mk 3:31–35). Following af-ter Jesus, they too will lose them-selves in the Father’s house, ponder-ing God’s Word and learning God’sways.

Applying the Biblical Witness

Mary and Joseph lost Jesus. Be-cause they became so preoccu-

pied with their own priorities, drivesand needs, they left him behind. Jo-seph, a small businessman, had con-tracts to bid and jobs to finish; forMary, being a mother required thatshe work overtime every day.Jesus’ disciples still lose touch withhim for the similar reason. Absorbed

with our own agendas, we rush offwithout him. Only when we feel theache of his absence do we backtrack,trying to find him. When at last westumble upon him, he looks at uswith imploring eyes: “Did you notknow that I must be in my Father’shouse?”

When Jesus disappears on us, it isnot because he has left us but be-cause we have left him. We loseJesus when we look for him in acomfortable, middle-class lifestyleinstead of following him in the wayof suffering love (Lk 9:23; 18:18–25). We lose Jesus when we look forhim in quick fixes and easy solutionsinstead of pondering the vital, life-giving truth of Holy Scripture (Lk4:1–4). We lose Jesus when we lookfor him in the noise of the world’sacclaim instead of listening for the“still small voice” of the Spirit (Lk4:5–8). We lose Jesus when, scandal-ized by his grace toward sinners, weprefer the cold company of life with-out him (Lk 15:25–32).

Where did you last lose Jesus?Guess where you can find him! Evennow, he asks—eyes clouded by be-wilderment and pain—“Did you notknow that I must be in my Father’shouse?”

The beauty of this story in Luke’sGospel is that it tells us where wecan find Jesus. We can always findhim where his distraught parents

found him: (1) in a deepeningknowledge and love of God’s Word,and (2) in a radical willingness tolive God’s way.

Loving God’s Word

Jesus knew and loved the HebrewScriptures—the Christian Old Testa-ment. Throughout his life and minis-try, the Scriptures were in his heartand on his lips. By knowing and lov-ing the Scriptures, Jesus came to rec-ognize the voice of his heavenly Fa-ther calling him to his unique voca-tion: not merely to teach God’sWord, but to be God’s Word embod-ied in a human life (Jn 1:1–5, 14–18).

Thus, for Christians the Bible is notjust the Old Testament but also theNew. For in the New Testament, welearn about God’s decisive saving actin his Son, our Lord, Jesus Christ.

A Chinese student attended our Sun-day School during her year inAmerica. Now back in her home-land, she wrote an American friend:“Every Sunday morning, I spend onehour to read the Bible book. Thensing the church songs I learned inAmerica—in my heart and pray athome. Someone said there was aChristian organization in Shanghaibut I have not found it yet. I believethe God still continues to love me.”There is no better place for Jesus’disciples to seek and find him than in

the Scriptures. As the two discipleson the road to Emmaus confessed,“Were not our hearts burning withinus while he was … opening thescriptures to us?” (Lk 24:32).

Living God’s Way

Jesus’ visit to the temple also teachesus that we can find him in a radicalwillingness to live God’s way. ForJesus, as for his followers, Scripturewas not an end in itself. It was thebench in the park where he went totalk with God. The point of themeeting was to “be about myFather’s interests” (v. 49). That is analternate translation of verse 49, firstpopularized in the King James Bible:“I must be about my Father’s busi-ness.” Clearly, Jesus was committednot only to being in his “Father’shouse” but looking after his“Father’s interests.”

In Luke’s Gospel, Jesus embodiesand announces his “Father’s inter-ests” in the sermon in Nazareth(4:16–21). Jesus comes proclaiminggood news to the poor, the oppressedand the blind. And we will still findJesus wherever his saving love isproclaimed and embodied to the bro-ken-down and broken-hearted.

Want to find Jesus? Look for himamong people who care not just forthemselves but others. Look for himat the soup kitchen where “the leastof these” are fed and loved in his

Questions Jesus Asked Why WereYou Searching for Me?


like her Lord and Master. She is ayoung person of character, courageand compassion. Like Jesus, she has“her Father’s Eyes.”

Has Jesus disappeared on you? He’snot hard to find. Just look for himwhere Mary and Joseph found himand many others after them: “Didyou not know that I must be in myFather’s house?”

Like the North Star, pointing a losttraveler unerringly home, Jesus isthe One who leads us ever deeperinto the Word and ways of God.

Robert B. Setzer Jr. is pastor of FirstBaptist Church, Macon, Georgia.

1. The Rev. William Carter, “WhereDoes Easter Happen?” The Protes-tant Hour, April 18, 1999, Web ad-dress: http://search.protestanthour.com/1999/ph-1999-16.html.

2. Words and music by Amy Grant.

name. Look for him by the hospitalbed where some desperate soul achesfor hope and healing. Look for himwhere “sinners” are not a nuisance tobe endured but wayward children tobe welcomed home into the lovingembrace of God.

Not long ago, a teenager in ourchurch sang a song I hadn’t heard inyears. Her face radiant with faith,she sang about a girl who wasn’t aspretty as her peers. But that was allright, she sang, so long as themiracle of grace unfolding in her lifecreated another kind of beauty. Shejust wanted people to look at her andsay ...

“She’s got her Father’s eyes, herFather’s eyes.Eyes that find the good in things,when good is not around.Eyes that find the source of help,when help just can’t be found.Eyes full of compassion, seeingevery pain.Knowing what you’re goingthorugh, and feeling it the same.Just like my Father’s eyes, myFather’s eyes, my Father’s eyes.”

2

The young lady singing the song wasnot much older than Jesus was whenhe made his eventful trip to thetemple at the age of 12. But follow-ing after him, she has come to lovethe Father’s house, the Father’sWord and the Father’s way. Now, bythe grace of God, she is becoming

Why Were You Searching for Me? Questions Jesus Asked

Study Notes


Is It Lawful toDo Good on the

Sabbath?Luke 6:6-11

“Is it lawful to do goodor to do harm on the

Sabbath, to save life orto destroy it?”

—Luke 6:9

Day after day, night after night,in the late fall of 2000, we were

all reminded of the extent andintricacy of our nation’s vast legalsystem. Lawmakers, laws, lawyers,judges—and then more of the same!

Even apart from the strangestpresidential election we will everexperience, our culture overflowswith laws and the personnel neces-sary to interpret and apply them.There are also rules, spoken andunspoken, that govern behavior incorporations, schools, families, andyes, churches. Whether fully codi-fied or simply understood, we do notlack for laws in our modern world.

With all these laws, is it possible forus to be so right in keeping them that

we are wrong? Consider thesedilemmas:

First, from not so many years ago—

Suppose you are white-skinned, andthe law says that only people likeyou can be served in your restaurant.A dark-skinned person takes a seatand asks for a menu. Should youserve this person?

Next, an emergency that could takeplace any day—

The speed limit is 60. A passenger inyour car—perhaps your child—issuddenly and violently ill. Shouldyou break the speed limit to rush tothe nearest medical facility?

Then, a day much like today—

It’s Sunday morning. You’re almostalways in church, but today yourelderly neighbor is being moved outof her house. She and her siblingscould really use your help loadingthe moving truck. Should you skipchurch and offer one last kind act tothis person to whom you have triedfor years to show God’s love?

And what about broader religiousbeliefs?—

Your denomination or Christiangroup opposes “liberal” or “funda-mentalist” interpretations of theBible, ostracizing those who choose

that path. A Christian acquaintanceis far more liberal or fundamentalistthan you are in reading and applyingthe Bible. Should you remain opento friendship and fellowship withthat person?

If you answered yes to any of theabove questions, you have takenexception to law or accepted prac-tice.

In the first example, we have civildisobedience. Sometimes, intention-ally breaking the law is the only wayfor a minority convinced of a law’swrongness to bring about change. Itcan be a challenge to know when totake the risk of participating in suchactivities. The would-be restaurantpatron already made that choice.Who will stand with him or her?

Next, we have mitigating circum-stances. Just about anyone, even ahighway patrol officer or a trafficjudge, would understand breakingthe speed limit under emergencyhealth circumstances, particularly ifthe lives of others are not beingendangered in the process.

Finally, in the last two examples, wesee the principle of putting peoplefirst. What is more important,religious convention or caring forpeople? Such choices are put to usmore often than we recognize.


The Jews of Jesus’ day had noshortage of laws. While they

were under Roman rule and subjectto Roman laws, it was their ownbody of Jewish law that primarilyguided their lives. Precisely 613laws—and many times more inter-pretations of the same—proscribedevery aspect of Jewish life. Much ofthat law related to observance of theSabbath, which was paramount inJewish life at the time. Inflexibilitycharacterized the interpretation of allthe laws, and particularly the Sab-bath requirements.

Properly keeping the Sabbathinvolved far more than rolling out ofbed, dressing decently and drivingdown the road for a few hours ofBible study and worship, followedby lunch out. Don’t pat yourself onthe back just for attending church.Compared with requirements ofJewish Halakah or law, that’snothing!

With 39 categories of prohibitedSabbath labor, and plenty of detail-adding definition within eachcategory, it was hard work to rest onthe Sabbath! Intentional breaking ofSabbath law was punishable bydeath. Just to be on the safe side, itwas forbidden to even touch animplement that you would use toperform prohibited work (such as apencil, money, a hammer), because

Questions Jesus Asked Is It Lawful to Do Good on the Sabbath?


someone holding the implementmight forget that it was the Sabbathand perform prohibited work.

The same laws dictate OrthodoxJewish Sabbath-observance today.Based on the Torah, the first fivebooks of the Bible, these laws do notnecessarily make sense to us. Forinstance, it can be all right to move aheavy piece of furniture slightly onthe Sabbath, but lifting a feather isprohibited. And splinters under thefingernails can be interpreted ascarrying wood—forbidden—on theSabbath. Whether logical or not,Orthodox Jews believe that theselaws are from God. So they adhereto them without exception.

Never mind that the Sabbath wasinstituted to give people a right torest, to protect them from overwork,to offer a rhythm to their days and acontinuing opportunity to focus onwhat really matters in life.

For Jews of Jesus’ day and theOrthodox Jews of today, the fourthcommandment—”Remember theSabbath day, and keep it holy”—asrecorded and defined in Exodus 20seems to have taken on a life of itsown.

But Jesus, that upstart Teacher fromGalilee, inserted himself right in themiddle of the morass of Sabbath law.Once again, he displayed a way ofcutting to the chase—not doing away

with commandments, but getting ridof everything extraneous, gettingright to the core of what God’s lawsreally mean.

So what did he do? We read in Luke6:6-11 that he healed a man on theSabbath, sending the red lights of thePharisees (those Jewish lawyers/police) flashing and their sirenswailing. Broken law! Right overhere! No can do! Not on this day!

As recorded in Luke, the story seemsto indicate that Jesus knew exactlywhat he was doing. It seems that hewanted to heal on the Sabbath. Heprobably could have postponed hishealing act.

Instead, “Even though he knew whatthey were thinking” (v. 8), Jesuscommitted civil disobedience (rightthere in the synagogue!), and seizedan opportunity to teach all those whowere carefully watching him, as if tosay, “Hello! O holy men of Israel,don’t you see? A wonderful work, ahealth-restoring miracle, was justperformed. What better day for suchan activity than the Sabbath?”

In their condemnation of Jesus’Sabbath healing, the Pharisees wereso right that they were wrong. Theykept the letter—every jot and tittle—of the law, all right, but they com-pletely missed its spirit of humanrestoration and wholeness.

Jesus, however, made it clear whenhe healed the man with the witheredhand on the Sabbath: people’s needsare more important than religiouslegalism.

Apply the Biblical Witness

Rules are usually in place forgood reasons. Although they

aren’t meant to be broken, neitherare they meant to keep us from doingthe right thing.

When should we dare to break therules? The trick, it seems, is to knowand recognize the right time. Forthat, we will have to be individuallyattuned to God’s Spirit, listeningwith our whole hearts. And thattakes some practice. It requiresspending time with God to under-stand God’s purposes in this worldand our potential roles in carryingthose out.

It’s tempting to fantasize about whatit would have been like to knowJesus in human form, to have beenthere with him in Galilee or Jerusa-lem nearly 2,000 years ago. It’stempting to idealize the effect such afirst-hand experience would have onour lives. What if we had been thereto witness this healing? What if wehad heard these Sabbath words ofJesus with our own ears? What if wehad heard all of Jesus’ teachingduring his three years of ministry?

Well, we weren’t there. But many ofus have had years of exposure toChristian teaching, as children andas adults, in Sunday School classesand church services, on retreats, insmall groups, in additional Biblestudies of all kinds. Maybe Jesuswasn’t the teacher. But, after a while,you’d think that all this Bible studyand training in Christian livingwould change us. The truth is that itnever will. Not unless and until weapply the teachings to our lives. Notuntil we choose to live as Jesusinstructed his first followers.

Practically speaking, what does thatmean? It may mean thinking outsideof our narrow religious boxes. Forexample, particularly as the spouseof a pastor, I do want people inchurch, preferably our church! Fromtime to time I teach a Sunday Schoolcourse or a Wednesday night semi-nar. I want people to attend thosesessions. (Not so secretly, I probablywant them to feel that they should.)But there can be some pretty goodreasons for taking a pass.

One member of my church visitsAIDS patients during the SundaySchool hour each week. Maybethat’s more important than coming toclass, even one I’m teaching!

What about when we Christiansinsist that a certain practice isunbiblical and wrong, and conse-quently we write people off, making



back by narrow, life-chokinglegalisms? When confronted withhuman need, may we be guidedmore by God’s living Spirit than bylifeless rules and regulations.

Karen Johnson Zurheide is author ofLife with Molly and lives inEdmond, Oklahoma. She and herhusband, Jeff, have two children. Sheis a frequent writer for BCE.

them unwelcome in our churches,treating them with unkindness,demonstrating an abhorrence of themthat goes far beyond Christianjudgment against their behavior? Arewe missing the spirit of our Christiancodes of living?

If we believe all the right things, ifwe interpret the Bible just so, if wefollow all the churchy rules, doesthat make us right? Does it make usright in the sense of being correct—and does it make us right with God?

Jesus shared with a testing lawyerwhat he considered to be mostimportant. We read about this later inLuke, with the lawyer’s words, “Youshall love the Lord your God with allyour heart, and with all your soul,and with all your strength, and withall your mind; and your neighbor asyourself” (10:27). To this Jesusresponded, concerning inheritingeternal life, “Do this, and you willlive.” (For more on this passage, seelesson 10 in this series.)

Funny. This recounting of the lawhad little, if anything, to do withright belief. Rather it was aboutlove—love for God and for people.Such love breeds compassion. Andsuch compassion breeds righteousacts. That’s where Jesus leads usthrough the example we read todayin Luke’s gospel.

Will we follow? Or will we be held


Study Notes


What CreditIs It to You toLove ThoseWho Love

You?Luke 6:27–36

“If you love those wholove you, what credit

is that to you?”—Luke 6:32

Jim Brazzil is a Baptist chaplainserving in the Texas death cham-

ber. In the face of death and condem-nation, he offers a presence of peaceand a message of hope. To thosewhom society hates, he offersunconditional love. For many of themen and women facing executionbehind the high brick walls of theHuntsville, Texas, prison, thisBaptist minister is the last friendthey’ll know in this world.

Early on the afternoon of a sched-uled execution, Brazzil meets withthe condemned prisoner and offersspiritual counsel through words orperhaps silence. He prays with the

inmate. He carries a message to theinmate’s family, who cannot see himface-to-face. He eats with theprisoner at the last meal beforeexecution, reasoning that no oneshould have to eat alone at a timelike this.

And then, as the prisoner is strappedto the gurney before a small crowdof witnesses, Brazzil gently places ahand on his or her leg—a reminderthat someone who cares is nearby.

He’s neither for nor against the deathpenalty. In his job, he simply can’tafford to express an opinion one wayor the other. What he’s clearly for,though, is loving society’s enemies,doing good to those who have hated,praying for those who have abusedand loving those who have not lovedhim.

While few people will have theopportunity to live out the words ofJesus in the way Brazzil does, headvocates other steps to fosterChristian reconciliation betweenabusers and the abused.

Christians, he believes, must becomepart of the solution to America’scrime problem by joining themovement for restorative justice.That means not just locking peoplein prison and throwing away the key.Rather, it means fostering dialoguebetween victims and victimizers,helping those who commit crimes

understand the consequences of theiractions.

To do so, he believes, echoes thewords of Jesus in the Sermon on theMount: “Love your enemies, blessthem that curse you, do good to themthat hate you, and pray for themwhich despitefully use you, andpersecute you” (Mt 5:44, KJV).

His ministry illustrates what Jesusmeant when he said, “If you lovethose who love you, what credit isthat to you?” (Lk 6:32, NRSV).


Several of the hardest of the hardsayings of Jesus are found in the

brief passage of Luke 6:27–36. Jesuscommands us not only to love thosewho hate us, but also to turn theother cheek, to do unto others as wewould want them to do unto us andto love those who cannot repay us.

What’s more, these hard sayings ofJesus recorded by Luke and otherGospel writers form the essence ofJesus’ teaching. They are not à lacarte additions from which we maypick and choose. Rather, they arepart of the core curriculum for thosewho would follow Christ.

Matthew introduces this samesection of Jesus’ teaching a bit morefully than does Luke, explaining:“You have heard that it was said,

‘You shall love your neighbor andhate your enemy.’ But I say to you,‘Love your enemies and pray forthose who persecute you’” (Mt5:43–44).

Matthew helps us understand thatJesus, as he did so many other times,was taking a common Jewishteaching and breathing new life intoit.

“Love your neighbor” was part ofthe Old Testament law. But this lawhad been interpreted for generationsto make fulfilling it easier by care-fully defining who was one’s neigh-bor. Jesus attacked the same problemin the parable of the good Samaritan.

No Jewish leader of Jesus’ daywould have said the law applied tothose who hate you, to those whohave abused you, to those who wereyour enemies. Jesus was making thelaw obsolete by replacing it with ahigher standard of love.

In Luke 6:27–28, Jesus gave fourspecific commands:

♦ Love your enemies.♦ Do good to those who hate you.♦ Bless those who curse you.♦ Pray for those who abuse you.

To these hard directives, Jesus adds aseries of commands to share:

♦ Give to those who strike you.

Questions Jesus Asked Page10What Credit Is It to You to Love Those Who Love You?


♦ Give to those who beg from you.♦ Give to those who take from you.

Yes, these commands are hard toswallow. They run counter to ourhuman intuition. Living them outrequires power from a source greaterthan anything we can muster fromwithin ourselves. The only way wecan love our enemies is by tappinginto Christ’s love within us.

Think for a moment about the mosteffective individual and corporateministries you’ve encountered inyour lifetime. Examine those in yourcommunity, church or family whoare accomplishing the most good forthe kingdom of God. In them, you nodoubt will find the living fulfillmentof Jesus’ five commands to love, dogood, bless, pray and give.

From these ministry-actions springthe most effective evangelism thechurch has to offer. People notice thedifference in such gospel-filled lives.

“Gospel” literally means “goodnews.” One of the first lessonstaught in journalism school is anage-old definition of news. When adog bites a man, that’s not news,incoming students are told. Butwhen a man bites a dog, that’s news.

This is what Jesus is teaching inLuke 6:32–34. It’s not news whenwe love someone who loves us orsomeone who can repay our love.

Even sinners do that.

The good news that gains a hearingin a busy world is based on actionsthat defy people’s expectations, inhelping hands offered at unexpectedtimes and from unexpected friends.That is news, and it’s a platform foradvancing the good news.

Perhaps this is why for years nowBaptist home missionaries haverecorded great numbers of profes-sions of faith and baptisms notthrough direct evangelism butthrough ministry evangelism.Reaching out to those stricken withAIDS, feeding the homeless, walk-ing alongside the military and lovingthe unlovable are just a few waysthey demonstrate how to fulfill thegospel.

Even so, this Jesus-kind of love ishard to live out. If it were easy, itwouldn’t be news.


How do we move to this higherlevel of love demanded of

Christians?

A first step is to consider the mea-sure of grace with which Christ hasregarded us. When we become fullof pride and think we’re the cause ofevery good thing around us, it’snatural to see those around us asunworthy of our help or love. This

massive plank in our own eyeprevents us from seeing God’s wayof helping others remove the speckfrom their eyes.

But when we realize that we toohave been saved by God’s unmeritedcompassion, we gain new empathyfor those we encounter along theway.

Jesus spoke to this in Luke 6:31, apassage we know as the GoldenRule. Again, this was not a newsaying to Jesus. Rather, Jesus took awell-known idiom and turned it onits head. The statement had beenrecorded previously in the negativeform: “What you do not want othersto do to you, do not do unto them.”Jesus turned it around to a positiveform, thus giving new meaning aswell: “Do to others as you wouldhave them do to you.”

This new meaning carries a highermotivation as well. It is a call to beproactive. It is a call to community,to watchfulness, to protecting thosearound us.

A second step in making the journeyto live out Jesus’ hard command isto see the change that can result inourselves. New Testament scholarEarle Ellis noted that “the effect ofChristian love in a person is in exactproportion to his practice of it.”

Simply put, we cannot spend

repeated and extended time in prayerfor an enemy without experiencing achange in our own attitude. Trueprayer is as much about changing theperson praying as it is about chang-ing the person being prayed for. Ourenemies and the circumstancesaround us might not change, but Godcan change our attitude about themwhen we pray.

In a classic Jesus-style paradox, welearn that the way to know loveourselves is to show love to thosewho do not love us.

A third step in the journey to live outthis hard saying of Jesus is to realizethe reward Jesus offers. This is thecarrot, not the stick. Jesus lures ustoward right behavior not by coer-cion but by persuasion.

Follow this command, Jesus teaches,and you will receive a great rewardand become “children of the MostHigh” (Lk 6:35).

This transformation occurs not bycollecting a required number ofmerit badges for good deeds alongthe way, but by the very acts ofselfless service we perform. In thissense, God’s kingdom is ushered innot with a bolt of lightning or theblare of trumpets but throughhumble service that transforms boththe giver and the receiver.

There’s an old joke about the Baptist

Questions Jesus Asked What Credit Is It to You to Love Those Who Love You?


who pledged to pray for his neigh-bor, offering a rather backhandedblessing in his explanation: “Youneed the prayer, and I need thepractice.”

Corny, perhaps, but the point is true.It is through the practice of lovingthe unlovable, praying for those whopersecute us and helping those whowould hurt us that we are changedfrom the inside out.

That approach has the potential tomake us different from everyoneelse. And that’s good news.

Mark Wingfield is editor of theBaptist Standard. His wife, Alison, isa freelance writer and the designeditor for BCE’s Ethics Report. Theylive in Dallas, Texas.

Questions Jesus Asked What Credit Is It to You to Love Those Who Love You?

OrderThe Practice of Living Faithfully

This adult curriculum explores13 practices of living faithfully,such as pursuing discernment,fasting and speaking kindly.

Call1-800-469-4BCE

or visitwww.ethicsdaily.com


Why Do YouSee the Speck

in YourNeighbor’s

Eye?Luke 6:37–42

“Why do you seethe speck in your

neighbor’s eye, butdo not notice the login your own eye?”

—Luke 6:41

Doctor,” said the patient, “when Ipress my finger against my

forehead, it hurts. When I pressagainst my cheek, it hurts. When Ipress my finger against my stomach,it hurts. What gives?”

Stumped by this strange constella-tion of symptoms, the doctor re-ferred the man to a specialist. Aweek later, the patient returned.

“So what did the specialist say?”asked the doctor.

“He said I have a broken finger.”

A broken finger can cause a lot ofproblems, especially for folk whowag it a lot.

Jesus’ proverb, “Do not judge, andyou will not be judged” (Lk 6:37) isaddressed to people who like topoint fingers. His words can also betranslated, “Stop judging … stopcondemning,” or to paraphrase,“Stop pointing that finger, especiallyif your finger is broken.”

In the course of human history, nag-ging never changed anybody, at leastnot for long. Granted, in this depart-ment hope springs eternal. I knowmarried couples where each partnerhas hounded the other about a petpeeve for 50 years. To this day, thereis no sign of progress, and no sign ofgiving up!

Nagging persists not because it is ef-fective; nagging persists because ittemporarily makes us feel bettereven as it entrenches the other per-son in the very behavior we despise.

Jesus’ remarks about not judgingothers are addressed to members of“Naggers Anonymous.” They are nota prohibition against making anymoral judgments whatsoever. In fact,these words are found within a largerpassage known as the “Sermon onthe Plain” (Lk 6:17–49), Luke’s con-densed version of the “Sermon on

the Mount” (Mt 5–7).

The Sermon on the Mount is themost devastating moral critique everoffered of a broken world whereGod’s law is flaunted and God’s loveignored. No, Jesus was hardly anethical amoeba lacking in moralbackbone! Throughout his ministry,he attacked vested pride and privi-lege, unmasked religious pretenseand exposed the idolatry of wealth.He was ruthless in naming and op-posing evil, even at the cost of hislife.

Thus, those quick to chirp in the faceof every moral failing, “Judge notthat you be not judged!” speak buthalf the truth. When read in context,Jesus’ words do not mean Christianscan renege on their duty to be mor-ally discerning; they mean that moraljudgments should be made with acertain restraint and kindness.

This passage turns on the importanceof practicing careful self-evaluation,lest we lash out in self-righteousjudging of others. Jesus is calling thehand of those quick to attack in oth-ers those failings to which they areblind in themselves. Hence, the para-phrase: “Don’t nag,” “Don’t pointfingers,” or “Don’t be judgmental”might be preferred to the more lit-eral, “Don’t judge.” As Jesus himselfrefined his meaning, “Do not con-demn, and you will not be con-demned. Forgive, and you will be

forgiven” (v. 37b, emphasis added).


In illustrating his point, Jesuspainted a vivid, unforgettable pic-

ture. It is a picture of a determinedcrusader trying to remove a speckfrom his neighbor’s eye while re-maining oblivious to the log in hisown (vv. 41-42). Don’t miss Jesus’humor. Visualize the scene as a car-toon.

Two weekend warriors are buildingsome shelves in the garage. As theypush a piece of lumber through atable saw, sawdust spews out. One ofthe wood workers gets an eyeful ofsawdust. His friend turns to help.The only problem is that the well-in-tentioned friend has a long 2-by-4protruding from each eye. He lookslike a praying mantis with two hugeantennae as he staggers toward hisfriend! Needless to say, the man withsawdust in his eye ducks for cover.With friends like this, who needs en-emies?

With a deft use of humor, Jesus ex-posed the madness of trying to helpothers with their problems till wehave tackled our own. Those whopersist in such behavior are “hypo-crites,” a word derived from a Greekword translated “actor” (v. 42).According to Jesus, a hypocrite issomeone pretending to be sanctimo-nious when in reality the hypocrite’s

Questions Jesus Asked Why Do You See the Speck in Your Neighbor’s Eye?


hidden defects are larger than theproblems he or she is so quick to at-tack in others.

How is it we have razor sharp visionfor the sins of others while remain-ing blissfully oblivious to our own?

Two thousand years after Jesus viv-idly described this phenomenon,Freud called the process “projec-tion.” Projection is a process bywhich we project onto another—ason to a movie screen—things wecannot bear to face in ourselves: ourown lust, greed or ruthless ambition,for example. By attacking in otherswhat we cannot or will not face inourselves, we get a sort of psychicrelief. We get to feel self-righteousand saintly, without any moral exer-tion on our part. What a deal! It’slike winning the lottery! All the re-wards and none of the work!

An amusing story is told about thetime D. L. Moody met CharlesSpurgeon. Moody, the great Ameri-can evangelist, admired Spurgeonfrom afar. Knowing Spurgeon’spreaching had taken Britain by astorm, Moody went to meet his re-vered mentor and model.

Moody knocked on the door ofSpurgeon’s London home. He wasshocked when his idol greeted himwith a big, fat cigar in his mouth.“How can a man of God smokethat?” Moody asked in surprise.

Spurgeon took the stogie out of hismouth and stepped toward his visi-tor. Putting his finger deep intoMoody’s bulging belly, the greatBritish Baptist answered, “The sameway a man of God could be thatfat!”

Yes, it’s much easier to recognizeanother’s failings than to deal withour own. Indeed, the things we at-tack with a merciless vengeance inothers are an excellent barometer ofunfinished business we have withourselves.

Jesus pointed out in the Sermon onthe Mount that instead of attackingthe flagrant sins of others, say adul-tery, it is far better to address the lustin our own hearts (Mt 5:27–30).

The old adage is true: “When youpoint one finger at somebody else,three fingers are pointing back atyou.”


So what is the answer? Should weavoid all moral judgments lest

someone level the charge we arehypocrites? That’s the coward’s wayout.

Jesus expects and demands better ofthose who follow him. His prescrip-tion is this: “First take the log out ofyour own eye, and then you will seeclearly to take the speck out of your

neighbor’s eye” (Lk 6:42, emphasisadded). After all, leaving a friendwith a speck smarting in her eye,with tears of pain or remorse stream-ing down her face, is not a lovingact. The issue Jesus lays before us ishow to help in such a situation ratherthan do further damage.

How do we take the “log” out of ourown eye so we can see clearly tohelp others?

By engaging in serious self-evalua-tion in God’s presence. As thepsalmist prayed, “Search me, O God,and know my heart; test me andknow my thoughts. See if there isany wicked way in me, and lead mein the way everlasting” (Ps 139:23–24). Only as we are rigorously hon-est with ourselves—an honesty im-measurably deepened as the Spirit ofGod searches our hearts—can weseek forgiveness for our own sins.Then, we are less apt to be undulyconcerned with the sins of others.

By seeking the counsel of a trustedChristian friend. Sometimes otherssee in us things we do not recognizein ourselves. Perhaps we are eager toset someone straight about how sheis neglecting her mother in the nurs-ing home. To us, this seems an open-and-shut case of calloused behavior.But a trusted friend might ask, “Whyso much energy for this particularcause? And why now?” Is theresome wound or unmet need in

ourselves we hope to resolve byattacking another? Good friendsknow how to ask hard questions.

By being honest with ourselves be-fore God and sometimes, a trustedfriend. This is the work of confes-sion. As Will Willimon has written,“In confession, we stand face-to-facewith as much truth about ourselvesas God’s love enables us to bear.”1

As certifiable sinners from David toPeter to Yours Truly have proventime and time again, moral imperfec-tions do not disqualify one from lov-ing and serving God. It is blindnessto one’s struggles and failings thathampers one’s effectiveness as a fol-lower of Jesus (Lk 6:39). Only as welive out of God’s grace toward our-selves can we in turn, live grace-fulllives toward others. Jesus touched onthis theme often in his teaching(v. 36). Jesus reminds us here: judgenot, condemn not, forgive (v. 37).

Confession gets the log out of ourown eye so we can “see clearly”(v. 42) to remove the speck from ourneighbor’s eye. Confession dissolvesa caustic, self-righteous, and judg-mental spirit, making us less likelyto “scapegoat” our problems ontoothers. This allows Christians to en-gage in a needed “civil critique” ofthe moral and social ills of the day.2

What is the difference between“scapegoating” and “civil critique”?What does this look like in practice?



places sinners gather, hoping to besaved by grace. Indeed, only sinnerscan be saved by grace. Those whoare already perfect—or think theyare—need not apply. As Jesus saidit, “Those who are well have no needof a physician, but those who aresick; I have come to call not therighteous but sinners to repentance”(Lk 5:31-32).

In the company of the church—atrue church where sinners gather—the strangest thing happens. Aspeople experience God’s grace forthemselves, they become more gra-cious toward others. Then, like aloving mother, deftly plucking aspeck from a child’s eye with thesoftest of tissues, they reach out to atroubled world with a gentle touch.

For, they follow a Master who rarelyraised an accusing finger but alwaysoffered a helping hand.

Robert B. Setzer Jr. is pastor ofFirst Baptist Church, Macon, Geor-gia.

1. William H. Willimon, With Gladand Generous Hearts: A PersonalLook at Sunday Worship (Nashville:Upper Room, 1986), 43.

2. For a helpful discussion on thedifference between “scapegoating”social ills and engaging in “civil cri-tique,” see Robert Parham, WalkRight: A Christian’s Guide for

Scapegoating means we blame thepublic schools for surly, out-of-con-trol kids; a civil critique might meanrecognizing many youngsters don’thave the parental support they needto thrive in school. Might we volun-teer to tutor a troubled child twodays a week?

Scapegoating means we slam Holly-wood as a den of iniquity while pre-tending every Christian home is abastion of family values; a civil cri-tique might mean boycotting filmsthat glorify violence, while enthusi-astically recommending those thatspeak to the deeper issues of life.

Scapegoating means holding agrudge because the other persondoesn’t deserve our forgiveness; acivil critique might mean being hon-est about how we have been hurt andcourageous enough to address thematter with God, a trusted friend,and maybe even—as Jesus imploresus—our “enemies” (6:27).

Bottom line, we are best able to helpothers when we are mindful of ourown need for grace: “Be merciful,just as your Father is merciful” (v.36).

In her book, Traveling Mercies,Anne Lamott writes about her battlewith alcoholism. She credits the so-ber alcoholics of her AA group withsaving her life. “Religion,” said oneof her AA buddies, “is for people

who are afraid of hell; spirituality isfor people who have been there.”

At first, Lamott found her AA groupannoying, because the members keptpiercing her denial. They kept show-ing her she was an alcoholic whenshe much preferred scapegoating herproblems onto everybody else. Buthealing came as she was asked toface the painful truth about her alco-holism in the context of an accept-ing, gracious love.

She writes, “I was angry for a longtime. I didn’t know why these an-noying people wanted to help me orwhy they seemed to love me eventhough I was whiny and arrogant anddefeated all at once, the classic ego-maniac with an inferiority complex.I finally figured it out, although Icould not have put it as well as Sam(her seven-year-old son) did lastnight.”

“He was watching King Kong, theremake with Jessica Lange, and to-ward the end, he said, `She loveshim because she can see that he’slonely.’”

“And that is why,” says Lamont,“[my AA friends] loved me andhelped me.”3

It might scandalize some folks torealize that a true church is not un-like an AA group, and an AA groupis not unlike a church. Both are

Proactive Discipleship, 24–26.

3. Anne Lamott, Traveling Mercies:Some Thoughts on Faith (New York:Pantheon, 1999), 188.



Why Don’t YouDo What I Tell

You?Luke 6:46–49

“Why do you call me‘Lord, Lord,’ and do

not do what I tell you?”—Luke 6:46

Is your environment like mine? Ilive in a heavily churched commu-

nity, with a Christian church onnearly every corner. Here, it’s thenorm to attend worship services, toparticipate in Bible studies, to bepart of a church youth group.

Not only that, there are newchurches being built all the time—bigger and, presumably, better. I seethe Christian sign of the fish onmany vehicles. Frequently, I read ofChristian music events in the area,including concerts by top recordingartists. Plenty of people here seem tobe calling Jesus “Lord, Lord.”

In terms of church attendance andrelated activity, this environmentstands in marked contrast to those

I’ve known in other regions of thecountry. In my former community,85 percent of the population did notgo to church.

Which leads me to wonder: With somany of us Jesus-followers concen-trated here in one place, why is thisregional culture not radically differ-ent in distinctly positive ways thanplaces I’ve lived where nearly noone attends church or claims tofollow Jesus?

Instead, statistics indicate that somesocial problems are more pro-nounced in this region than in less-churched areas. The divorce rate ishigher here, for instance. What’swrong with this picture?

Perhaps part of the answer parallelsexperiences I’ve had with my youngson. A few years ago, as a “no-worries” sort of little guy, he oftenwas not really tuned in to what wasgoing on around him. He was there,present, part of the family, but notpaying attention to the direct or morefrequent indirect messages thatwould have clued him in to what wasup.

The specifics of the incident—itcould have been any one of dozensin which my son was deemedannoyingly clueless by his oldersister—have been forgotten. But theexclamatory sentence lives on. Afew years ago, exasperated as only a

big sister with a little brother can be,my daughter declared to her brotherwith a major sigh, “You just don’tget it!”

We Christians participate in worshipand study times, prayer meetings andfellowship suppers. We hear themessage of Christ. But when itcomes to obedient action, it seemsthat we just don’t get it.


The good news is that the Biblegives us plenty of opportunities

to “get it” throughout both the Oldand New Testaments. In passagessuch as Jesus’ Sermon on the Plain(Lk 6:17-49), Jesus gave us simple,clear guidelines for daily living. Heinstructed us how to act differentlyand make a difference in our world.

Fully understanding our humanfrailties, however, Jesus includedthese instructions to his disciples andother listeners with the stern warningfound in text: Obey me. If not for mysake, then for your own. That’s theessence of what Jesus has to say hereto those who supposedly want tofollow him.

Although we can surmise that Jesusrequires obedience to all his othercommands and teachings, he waslikely referring specifically toobedience to the teachings he hadjust outlined, which included:

♦ Love your enemies (vv. 27, 35)♦ Do to others as you would have them do to you (v. 31)♦ Lend, expecting nothing in return (v. 35)♦ Be merciful (v. 36)♦ Do not judge (v. 37)♦ Forgive (v. 37)♦ Give (v. 38)♦ Take the log out of your own eye (v. 42)

These commands were antithetical towhat human nature—both 2,000years ago and today—would dictate.They were the opposite of the “me-first, take-all, own-kind, pay-back,get-even” rules by which people tendto live. But these sorts of attitudesand actions were what Jesus ex-pected from those who would followhim.

In case “obey me” was not clearenough, to help his listeners “get it,”Jesus used a simple, graphic illustra-tion. He said that hearing his wordsand not obeying them is like build-ing with no foundation (v. 48). Sucha foundationless structure cannotwithstand the floodwaters of life.According to Jesus’ own words inthis passage, the consequences fornot obeying him are great. Catastro-phe will result. All will be lost.

Take the color picture on the frontpage of my morning paper. It showsCentral American houses slidingdown a steep, muddy mountain

Questions Jesus Asked Why Don’t You Do What I Tell You?


following a 7.6-magnitude earth-quake. The homes were those ofpoor people, and the homes werepoorly built. With no foundations,perched precariously on the surfaceof unstable ground, they could notwithstand such a disaster.

Obeying Jesus’ words, on the otherhand, is like digging deeply andbuilding with a foundation set onrock (v. 49). The floodwaters of life,the earthquakes, hurricanes andtornadoes, cannot move such astructure. It is secure, come whatmay. Similarly, we can trust that alife built on obedience to Jesus willnot be moved.

Jesus used three verbs (v. 47) todescribe the process of obeying him:

Come—Whether in the company ofother believers or individually,coming to Jesus is personal. Itinvolves conversion, to be sure, butit is also a continual process.

Hear—We hear many words in theworld, some of which are those ofJesus. We hear many words in thechurch, some of which are those ofJesus. We must listen and discern tohear truly what Jesus is saying to us,both corporately and individually.

Act—It is not enough to come toJesus and hear his words. Obediencerequires action sometimes forgoingthe wrong thing, but more often

doing the right thing.


For some, the first step of comingto Jesus and putting themselves

where they can hear his words, hasyet to happen. But where I live, thereare thousands of people who regu-larly hear Jesus’ teaching. Assomeone who is studying this lesson,you are likely one of those whohears Jesus’ words.

Of those of us who come to Jesusand hear his words, why do so fewseem to obey his teachings? Why dowe not act on his words? Why do weso seldom witness the unconditionallove, the unbridled generosity, theGod-like mercy, the hesitation tojudge that Jesus demands of hisfollowers?

Possibility #1—

In our church services and Biblestudies, in our youth meetings andsmall groups, we are not beingpresented with the teachings of Jesusthat we need to obey. If our preach-ers and teachers are not sharing withus those actionable words of Jesus,we may need to encourage them tobring the kind of teaching that willchallenge us to act. Individually, inpersonal devotional time, we cancertainly choose to read and studyJesus’ salient commands.

Possibility #2—

We hear Jesus’ words but are not“getting it.” Maybe we are justhearing and not listening.

As we attend times of group instruc-tion, we can focus our minds andopen our spirits to hearing whatJesus would say to us. As we read onour own, we can meditate on Jesus’words and let them sink in andbecome part of us.

Our lack of understanding may alsorelate to the fact that many of us areprogrammed to think that Bibleknowledge and believing the rightdoctrines is what God requires, whatthe life of the Christian is all about.Our Western culture and educationalsystem help to promote this notion.Add to that a great Baptist traditionof Bible learning that somehow hasoriented us more toward an intellec-tual understanding of Christian faiththan an emphasis on spiritualunderstanding and changed living.As much as we know with ourminds, we sometimes miss the mainpoints of the Gospels as they mightapply to our daily lives.

Possibility #3—

We hear and understand but choosenot to obey. What could prevent usfrom obeying? Perhaps laziness,because breaking old habits andliving Jesus-like takes work. Perhaps

fear, because moving out of ourpersonal comfort zones can beuncertain and scary. Perhaps peerpressure, because there are so fewliving a radically obedient Christianfaith.

I get frustrated with my own imbal-ance between hearing and acting. Ican spend hour upon hour hearingJesus’ words, studying them, eventeaching them. By comparison, Ispend little conscious, concertedtime acting on them. And when I domake an effort to obey, nine timesout of 10 it is concerned with notdoing this or that. I work at breakingbad habits, at minimizing sinfulactions. But I usually don’t get veryfar with positive Jesus-followingobedience. It is easier not to dowrong than obediently to do good.

Do we want our lives to be likehouses that can endure any storm?Then we know what to do—or atleast we know in part, and we cansurely learn more of what is requiredif we wish. If we want to grow inobedience, let us consider applyingthe steps Jesus mentioned in theseways:

Come—Approach Jesus in humbleadoration, connecting with God’sSpirit as often and as regularly as wecan. In addition to times of corporateworship and study, come to Jesus inspecific times of personal reflectionand in casual moments scattered



recorded to have said in the Gospels.But that’s not what my child wasafter. She interrupted me with, “No.What is Jesus saying to you—rightnow?” This four-year-old believedthat Jesus has personal, up-to-the-minute words for each of us.

Let us listen, if we dare. Does Jesushave words of challenge for us rightnow? May we respond in gratefulobedience, for our sakes and that ofour world.

Karen Johnson Zurheide is author ofLife with Molly and lives inEdmond, Oklahoma. She and herhusband, Jeff, have two children. Sheis a frequent writer for BCE.

throughout each day, becomingincreasingly aware of being withJesus.

Hear—Read the Gospels thoroughlyto see what commands Jesus actuallygave his followers. Incorporatelistening into personal times ofprayer and reflection. Ask God todirect us in how to act obediently.Stay alert throughout our days to theguidance of God’s Spirit.

Act—Respond in obedience. Rely onGod’s grace and strength to step outin new ways, even to live upside-down and contrary to what may belong established personal habits—habits that are contrary to Jesus’ call.

While we are each individuallyresponsible to obey Jesus, we are notalone in our endeavors. You arelikely studying this lesson with agroup of other Christian believers.As prayer partners or support groupsor in some other form of community,we can help each other to come andhear and obey. Share insights andcallings. Share successes and failuresin the journey of obedience. Worktogether in doing obedient actions.Encourage one another to buildstrong foundations.

When my preschooler daughtersurprised me once at bedtime withthe question, “What is Jesus sayingto you?” I began to answer with alist of some of what Jesus is


Study Notes

http://www.ethicsdaily.com Questions Jesus Asked Where Is Your Faith?

Where IsYour Faith?

Luke 8:22–25; 24:36–43

“Where is your faith?”—Luke 8:25

On Monday, March 5, 2001, a15-year-old boy walked into a

high school in Santee, California,and shot 15 fellow students—twofatally. The fear among students andparents around the nation rose againdue to the deadliest school-shootingspree since Columbine.

On Thursday of that week, NationalPublic Radio aired an interview witha student at the high school in Santeewho had witnessed the death of twoof his friends. Beside the grief, hisprevailing emotion was the fear heknew he would experience fourtimes a day as he walked down thehallway where the shootings oc-curred.

This student’s fear is a dramatic typeof fear that unfortunately many inour society face as we endure schoolshootings, drive-by shootings, hatecrimes, terrorist bombings, tornadoesand so on.

In addition, extensive media cover-age of medical conditions and ourown personal experience with illnesscontribute to widespread fear ofcancer, heart disease and otherdiseases.

A story on the “Today” show aboutcolon cancer, resulted in a 75 percentincrease nationally in requests frompatients to have a colonoscopy.

Fear related to job security is on therise as the economy teeters on badtimes. We encounter many fearfulsituations in our lives. We need tohear Jesus speak the words, “Fearnot,” in all areas of our lives.


The disciples had many fearfulexperiences, ranging from a

storm on the lake to seeing the risenChrist Jesus. An examination ofLuke’s account of these two experi-ences will encourage us to livecourageously in difficult times.

Luke 8:22–25 relates a story foundalso in Mark 4:35–41 and Matthew8:23–27. The account of the storm ispart of a series of mighty works thatJesus performed.

Prior to this account, Jesus’ motherand brothers came to see him. In thisexchange, Jesus expanded his viewof family to include those who hearGod’s word and do it.

Following the account of the stormon the lake, Jesus cast out thedemons from the Gerasene demo-niac, and then the man proclaimedwhat Jesus had done throughout hiscity. Therefore, both the story beforeand the story after the account of thestorm deal with the issue of faith andits concrete expression in life.

Jesus initiated this trip to the otherside Lake Galilee. Since they sailedto the region of Gerasene, the otherside would have been the easternside of the lake.

If you consult several translations(and the parallel passages in Mat-thew and Mark), you will find theplace called by at least three differ-ent names: Gadarenes (KJV),Gerasenes (NEB), and Gergasenes(NRSV). Ancient manuscripts ofeach Gospel variously record eachoption for the name of the territory.Today, most scholars accept that theregion of Gerasene is on the east sideof Lake Galilee, but in the finalanalysis—like some other places inthe New Testament—we simplycannot be sure of the exact location.

As the boat sailed to the other side,Jesus fell asleep. Suddenly, thedisciples were in the middle of astorm, and their boat was in dangerof capsizing. They woke Jesus,pleading that they were perishing.Jesus responded by calming thestorm. He then asked a hard question

of the disciples: “Where is yourfaith?” (8:25). The full impact ofwhat they had witnessed then hitthem, and they wondered aloud whoJesus was.

The Gospel writer obviously in-cluded this story to show Jesus’power over nature. Subsequentstories in this section of Luke’sGospel show Jesus’ power overdemons, physical evil and deathitself. In consideration of this kind ofpower, what should the disciplesfear? The Gospel writer’s answer isnothing!

This passage and its synopticparallels highlight fear. Correctly, wecan assume that the disciples werescared to death during the storm—they said they were perishing—andthis knowledge must have beenaccompanied by great fear.

But it was not until after Jesuscalmed the storm that the Scripturesays explicitly that the disciples wereafraid. Could it be that the writer issignaling something special aboutthis story besides the obvious showof Jesus’ power over nature?

By specifically mentioning thesecond episode of fear, the gospelwriter shows where our greatest fearshould be. Fred Craddock said thatthe disciples “had been around Jesuslong enough to have adequateground for trust in God and Jesus’

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access to God’s power.”1 Yet theydid not trust that Jesus would takecare of them during the storm. WhenJesus questioned the strength of theirfaith, they experienced true fearwhen they realized they had doubtedJesus’ power. Is this a word for us?Nothing in this physical worldshould cause us to fear; we had bestbe fearful if we doubt Jesus’ poweris real and is available to us.

In Luke 24:36–43, the disciples hadgathered on the evening of theresurrection. The two disciples towhom Jesus appeared on the road toEmmaus had joined the 11 andothers in Jerusalem as they discussedJesus’ appearance to Simon Peter.

As this discussion took place, Jesusappeared. Because the disciples firstthought they were seeing a spirit, itis evident they were not totallyconvinced by the witnesses to Jesus’resurrection. Even though this groupof believers had heard stories frommultiple sources, they were fright-ened when Jesus appeared before thelarger group.

In the face of this fear, Jesus gavethem his peace. In Luke 2:14, theangels proclaimed peace at the birthof Jesus. In Luke 7:50, Jesus linkedfaith to peace. Here, Jesus assuredthem of his peace. The angels’promise at Jesus’ birth was fulfilledin the resurrection. Jesus demon-strated his power, as he had during

the storm on the lake. God’s powerin Jesus’ life was so great that deathhad no hold over him. In the face ofsuch resurrection power, what isthere in this world to fear?

In Matthew 10:24–31, Jesus in-structed his disciples about whatthey should expect in their ministry.Jesus addressed the issue of fear interms of those who may kill thebody. Jesus reassured the disciplesthat fear should be reserved for Godwho can destroy their soul.

Jesus specifically connected theissue of fear with weakness of faith.In both of these passages (Lk 8:22–25; 25:36–43), Jesus addressed thestrength of the disciples’ faith in aquestion. Jesus was not questioningthe presence of faith in the disciples.He questioned why their faith wasnot strong enough to overcome theirfear. Jesus pointed out the source oftheir fear—their weak faith.

The message is clear: for those whohave faith in Christ, fear should notbe an issue.

The combined message of thesestories is that faith in Jesus as theresurrected Lord removes our fearsand provides us with God’s peace inChrist.


Dr. Bill Wallace was a missionaryto China for more than 20 years

until his death in 1951. He dedicatedhis life to serving the medical needsof the Chinese people. In his mis-sionary service, he fought disease,faced the advancing Japanese troopswhen they invaded China and, ofcourse, encountered the fanaticismof China’s new Communist leadersto rid the country of religion, espe-cially that brought by Westernmissionaries.

Wallace refused to leave China, evenknowing the goal of the CommunistChinese government was to rid thecountry of foreign influence, espe-cially religious influence.

When Wallace went to China, hevowed to give his life for his work.He was killed at the hands of theCommunist Chinese in 1951, afterbeing imprisoned for a few months.Those who knew and worked withhim in his ministry knew him as aman whose extraordinary faithconquered fear in each of the criseshe faced.

Bill Wallace’s life testifies to thetruth of Scripture:

First, being a Christian does notensure that we will be free fromphysical or emotional storms. Beforeand after the resurrection, Jesus’disciples faced situations in whichfear was not unreasonable: forexample, being out in a boat in araging storm and seeing someone

whom you had witnessed die on across! Yet, they had the resource attheir disposal to conquer their fear.

Second, in Jesus’ presence we havethe power to overcome our fears.The Scripture is clear that Jesus haspower over nature, evil and evendeath. The power to overcome fear isunquestionably available to us.

The third lesson, however, is thekey: faith in Jesus is what releasesthe power to overcome fear.

Is our faith in Jesus strong enoughthat his power may be enabled in ourlives?

Obviously, we must first have arelationship with Jesus through ourfaith. But with that relationshipestablished, do we really trust Jesusin the day-to-day goings on of ourlives? Spending time with Jesus inprayer, Bible study and worshipstrengthens our faith and enables usto trust Jesus when storms arise.

Stories like that of Bill Wallace aredramatic examples of people whohave found peace in the face of fear.As a pastor, I have seen less dra-matic, but equally faith-filledconfrontations with fear as I watchedpeople of faith face illness, impend-ing death from illness, grief, death ofloved ones, divorce and so forth.Every day, people of faith find thestrength needed because of their


relationship with Jesus. KnowingJesus will not eliminate the storms oflife, but knowing him will provide uscompanionship as we go throughthem.

Wayne Hager is pastor of CalvaryBaptist Church, Mount Airy, NorthCarolina.

1. Fred Craddock, Luke: Interpreta-tion Commentary (Louisville: JohnKnox Press, 1991), 115.

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Who Do YouSay I Am?

Luke 9:18–20

“Who do the crowdssay that I am? ...

Who do you say thatI am?”

—Luke 9:18

Every year our church produces aplay on Maundy Thursday

called “The Living Last Supper.”The cast portrays the entrance of thedisciples into the upper room andthen the events of that night.

This year the director faced a newchallenge—we had to get a newJesus. As the director and I talked,we faced our own preconceivednotions of what Jesus looked like.We both knew that if we were true towhat Jesus may have looked like as aPalestinian Jew, we would have toget away from a tall, rosy-cheeked,fair-haired, blue-eyed Jesus. But wealso realized the expectations of thecongregation and the communitywould not be a dark-skinned, brown-eyed Jesus. We could expect somecontroversy if our selection was

outside the “safe-look” Jesus. Wewere torn between the “real” Jesusand popular perceptions.

Newsweek had a cover story titled“Visions of Jesus: How Jews,Muslims and Buddhists View Him.”The issue explored the “other Jesus,”meaning the non-Christian view ofJesus. While the issue was well doneand informative, the reality is thatsuch an issue could also be doneabout the different “Christian” viewsof Jesus.

Just as we struggle with precon-ceived ideas of what Jesus lookedlike, we also struggle with precon-ceived perceptions of who Jesus is.While some of these disagreementsrevolve around distinct theologicalissues, we more often deal with aconflict between the Jesus of civilreligion and the Jesus of Christianfaith.

By the term “civil religion” we meanthe popular expression of faith insociety. Civil religion in America isbehind the societal observance ofChristmas and Easter. Civil religionobserves Christmas as the celebra-tion of love, good will and goodtimes with family and friends. Civilreligion does not observe Christmasas the celebration of the birth ofGod’s Son.

Civil religion observes Easter as thebeginning of spring and recovery

from a hard winter. Civil religiondoes not observe Easter as thecelebration of the resurrection of theSavior and the guarantee of eternallife for those who believe. Civilreligion endorses the laws thatgovern society but separates the lawsfrom the revealed will of God as thesource of societal morality. In short,we turn Jesus into what we want himto be to support the prevailingunderstanding of relationships in oursociety and our country with othercountries.


In Luke 9:18–20, the questionabout Jesus’ identity, which had

been raised by preceding narratives,received its first answer. The passageshows Jesus praying in the presenceof his disciples.

Significantly, the confession comesin the midst of a time of prayer. InLuke, prayer precedes other impor-tant events in the life of Jesus—empowering by the Holy Spirit(3:21–22) and choosing the Twelve(6:12ff)—and indicates that what isabout to happen is of major impor-tance.

Jesus was not asking an idle questionor one out of curiosity. The questionabout Jesus’ identity had been raisedbefore (8:25; 9:9). Jesus asked themwhat they had heard people sayabout him. Perhaps Jesus already

knew the opinions of the crowds ashe had had plenty of interaction withthem.

Because the crowds did not see Jesusas the Messiah leads us to concludethat Jesus had made no such claimsbefore the crowd or else they wouldhave eagerly proclaimed him Mes-siah.

The first answer the disciples gavewas the same basic answer to Jesus’identity that was presented in Luke9:7-9. Here, the popular opinionsmade their way all the way to HerodAntipas. Apparently, even thoughthe crowd did not know the mannerof the miracle of the feeding of thefive thousand, being fed in Jesus’presence by his disciples led to anaffirmation of the popular opinionthat Jesus was Elijah. The crowdalready knew of Jesus as a healereven before Jesus healed Jairus’sdaughter (Lk 8:41ff). Feeder andhealer are two characteristics associ-ated with Elijah (see 1 Kings 17:8-24). Familiarity with Malachi 4:5-6would also encourage the crowd toperceive Jesus as Elijah.

The connection with John the Baptistwas a little more problematic. Thecrowds would surely know thatHerod had killed John the Baptist.Instead of seeing Jesus as theMessiah, the crowd instead saw himas the forerunner of the Messiah.Fred Craddock has said that if the

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crowd had seen Jesus as the Mes-siah, they could no longer continueto shape the Messiah to their expec-tations. Instead, they would have hadto deal with who Jesus was.1 Notseeing Jesus as the Messiah kepthope alive that the Messiah wouldcome and win the battle againstRome and set them free. Obviously,Jesus was not going to do this. Jesusas the forerunner of the Messiah wasa lot easier to deal with than Jesus asthe Messiah.

But Jesus is not content just to hearthe popular understanding. He likelyposed this question to the disciples(9:18) to see if the disciples wereready to go beyond the popularunderstanding of his function. Byasking the disciples what theythought, he was signaling that thecrowd had it wrong. He wanted toknow what the disciples understoodabout him.

On behalf of all the disciples, Peteranswered that Jesus was the Christ ofGod. By indicating that Jesus wasthe Christ of God, Peter continuedprevious confessions about Jesus inLuke made by the angels at his birth(2:11), Luke as narrator (2:26) andthe demons (4:41). Jesus was morethan a prophet, a forerunner of theanointed one. Jesus was the anointedone.

In the Gospel of Mark, Peter simplycalled Jesus “the messiah” (8:29).

Peter’s addition in Luke conveys thedisciples’ understanding that Jesus’anointing was from God. Luke usedPeter’s declaration to show thehistory of God’s salvation: Jesus isthe Christ of God, i.e., part of God’splan.

Scholar I. Howard Marshall haswondered why the disciples wouldhave a different understanding thanthe crowds. He has said that only thedisciples knew two previousevents—the raising from the dead ofJairus’s daughter (Lk 8:41–42, 49–56) and the miracle of the feeding ofthe multitude (Lk 9:12–17). Jesusexplicitly kept the knowledge of themiracle of Jairus’s daughter from thepublic (Lk 8:56), and the actualblessing and breaking of the loavesand fish when Jesus fed the fivethousand occurred only before thedisciples.

Marshall has suggested that throughthese two events the disciples cameto know Jesus beyond the role of theprophet the crowds saw. Throughthese two events the disciplesunderstood Jesus to be the giver oflife and the provider of the messianicbanquet.2

This would indicate that by having acloser relationship with Jesus, andknowing more than just what couldbe easily observed, the discipleswere in a position truly to know whoJesus was.


So what? What difference does itmake to our daily lives that the

Scripture deals with this account ofJesus’ life?

I have found it extremely useful inmy growth as a Christian to payextra attention to the places inScripture where Jesus asks a ques-tion.

These questions were importantenough to the Gospel writers toinclude in their accounts. Since eachGospel was written with a particularaudience in mind, the questions wereimportant in shaping the beliefs ofthe early church. Likewise, Jesus’questions in Scripture are extremelyimportant in shaping our stories asJesus’ followers.

Clarence Jordan was a New Testa-ment scholar and a farmer. He wasthe founder of Koinonia Farms inAmericus, Ga., and the translator ofthe Cotton Patch Version of much ofthe New Testament. Jordan grew upin the mid-20th century, when south-ern Christian religion justifiedsegregation of blacks and whites.Much of the rhetoric was the same aswhat had been heard in the slaverydebates a century before. Southerncivil religion supported a segregatedsociety, and most religious leaderswere not willing to hear the words ofequality in Scripture.

Jordan was too much of a NewTestament scholar to be thrown offby civil religion and its justificationof prejudice. He knew what Jesustaught. So, Jordan founded KoinoniaFarms as an integrated farmingcommunity modeling love and carefor people of all colors.

The real danger of making Jesus intoa civil religionist is that we don’treally hear what Jesus says. Ourreligion most often becomes anendorsement of society instead ofbeing the “light” for truth.

Israel rebelled against the messageof its prophets because the prophets’messages from God usually rancontrary to Israel’s reliance on itskings and its treaties.

Civil religionists accept blindly anation’s patriotism regardless ofwhether the position is biblical. Civilreligionists declare, “My countryright or wrong.” True followers ofChrist will be prophetic in theirapproach to patriotism.

The church can easily fall into thecivil religion trap and hear the voiceof society’s Jesus and not the Jesusof New Testament faith. Relatingthis to the text, the crowd’s under-standing of Jesus was not who Jesusreally was.

As Christians we must work to letChrist be Christ. Experience teaches


experience such insight and commit-ment.


1. Fred Craddock, Luke, Interpreta-tion: A Bible Commentary forTeaching and Preaching (Louisville:John Knox Press, 1991), 127.

2. I. Howard Marshall, The Gospelof Luke: A Commentary on theGreek Text (Grand Rapids: WilliamB. Eerdmans Publishing Company,1978), 364.

Questions Jesus Asked Who Do You Say I Am?

us that we should be extremely leeryof any use of Jesus and his teachingto justify actions of the state.

As Baptists, we have a long historyof experiencing the use of religion asa weapon against us. That is not tosay that all actions of the state arebad, but we must be discerning inevaluating religious reasons tosupport state actions.

We can work to let Christ be Christby dedicating ourselves to the studyof the Bible firsthand, not justhearing it through teachers, preach-ers and other interpreters. One of thegreat outcomes of the Reformationwas that the Bible was put in thehands of the people. Read it anddiscuss it with other Christians.

We can also observe how God isacting in the world around us. Hearthe testimony of others about howGod is working to heal relationshipsand minister to the broken lives ofpeople. Such action is inclusive andreaches across gender, racial andeconomic barriers. Evaluate themessage being proclaimed in Jesus’name by your own experience withhim.

After the disciples were able todiscern the true Jesus from thecompeting images of the crowds,Jesus was able to guide them furtheralong in their understanding. Maywe do practice such discernment and

Study Notes

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Who Is YourNeighbor?

Luke 10:25–37

“Which of these threedo you think was

a neighbor?”—Luke 10:36

Every day, I drive by people onstreet corners begging for

money or work. How many timeshave I been in line at the grocerystore and observed a person strug-gling with English in order tocommunicate with the store person-nel? Or what about the strangersitting on the step crying or the smallchild walking home from school allalone?

Are these people really my neigh-bors? Am I willing to take the risk toinvolve myself with these people?

In Luke 10:25–37, Jesus’ parable ofthe Good Samaritan was promptedby a question from an expert in theJewish law: “Who is my neighbor?”

Jesus chose to use a surprising heroas one who demonstrated real

understanding of the law. He turnedthe question “Who is my neighbor?”into the active question “To whomshould I be a neighbor?”

The parable challenges us to con-sider that since we love God, whomwe can’t see, we should surely lovethose around us that we can see.Indeed, how can we say we loveGod, if in our “neighborliness” wechoose to love only those we deemsocially acceptable to ourselves?

The parable of the Good Samaritanis a lesson about discovering whoour neighbors are.


The context of this parable isJesus’ answer to the question

from the teacher of the law who wastrying to trap Jesus.

This man was probably a Pharisee,one of a Jewish religious group whosaw the “oral tradition” about thelaw as equal with the written law. Itwas in his scholarly tradition to posesuch a question to a respected rabbiand then discuss what the law meantby quoting other experts from thepast. But in this case, he hoped thatthe question would serve as a trapfor Jesus.

In verse 25, the original question heasked Jesus was, “Teacher, whatmust I do to inherit eternal life?”

Jesus refused to be caught in the trapand turned the questioning back tothe law expert by asking him whatthe Scriptures said about the ques-tion and how he interpreted them.

Jesus asked, “What is written in thelaw? What do you read there?”(v. 25)

Jesus didn’t ask what the oraltradition said about the question.Rather Jesus asked what the writtenlaw said about the question.

The expert gave Jesus the correctanswer, “You shall love the Lordyour God with all your heart, andwith all your soul, and with all yourstrength, and with all your mind; andyour neighbor as yourself” (v. 27).Jesus agreed with this answer andreplied, “Do this, and you will live”(v. 28).

Jesus saw no need for furtherdiscussion when the law was plain inits requirements. But the teacher ofthe law wanted to justify himself inthe eyes of the surrounding crowd.He asked, “Who is my neighbor?”(v. 29).

For Jesus, this was an amazing thing:here was a supposed expert in thelaw of God who did not understandwhat the law meant. It was theexpert’s last question that promptedJesus to tell the story of the goodSamaritan.

Jesus said a man went down fromJerusalem to Jericho when robbersattacked and left him for dead. Jesusdid not identify the man. We don’tknow if he was Jewish, Greek,Roman, a Pharisee, a Sadducee, richor poor; we are not told. We simplyknow he was someone in need.Three people journeying in theirdaily lives came on a person in need.

First, a priest came down the road,saw the man and walked by on theother side. For the Pharisee, thepriest would have been one of hischief competitors for understandingthe Jewish religion. The priestrepresented the height of Jewishreligion. They were the ones whooffered sacrifices in the temple. IfJesus had been telling the storytoday, he would likely have used apastor.

Jesus may have intended his audi-ence to think the priest had beenministering in the temple. Likely, theaudience was surprised the priest didnot stop and help. The teacher of thelaw may have taken secret delight inthat a member of a respected reli-gious group in Judaism failed tohelp.

Next, a Levite approached. He evenwent over and looked at the man, yethe passed by without helping him(v. 32). The Levites cared for thetemple and assisted the priests in theworship. A modern counterpart

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might be a minister of music.

Again, the teacher of the law mayhave taken secret delight in that amember of another respected reli-gious group in Judaism failed tohelp. Perhaps the expert in the lawexpected that Jesus would make thehero of the story a Pharisee. Instead,Jesus gave a jaw dropping ending tothe parable, at least to most Jews.

The hero was a Samaritan, a“half-breed,” hated by the Jews forcenturies. Jews so despised Samari-tans that when Jews from Galileewent to Judea they refused to walkacross Samaria; instead, they tookthe long way around, walking manymiles out of their way to avoidcontact with these people.

Here was a man deemed unclean anduneducated in the law who clearlyunderstood who his neighbor was.He became involved with someonewho needed him. He didn’t questionthe man’s identity. His social status,his ethnicity, his religious andpolitical leanings were unimportantto the Samaritan. He was simply aperson in need.

The Samaritan tended to him, puthim on his own animal and took himto an inn where he cared for him thatnight. The next day he gave theinnkeeper two denarii, the equivalentof two days’ wages. He told theinnkeeper to care for him until he

returned. He promised to pay anyadditional charges at that time.

Jesus then turned to the teacher ofthe law and asked, “Which of thesethree, do you think, was a neighborto the man who fell into the hands ofthe robbers?” (v. 36).

The teacher of the law couldn’t bringhimself to say the word “Samaritan.”He simply replied that the neighborwas the one who showed mercy(v. 37).

Jesus replied, “Go and do likewise”(v. 37). Clearly, showing mercyinvolved acts of kindness to strang-ers.

Jesus’ final question to the expertchanged the focus of the questionfrom, “Who is my neighbor?” to“Who acted like a neighbor to theone in need?” Jesus said true neigh-bors were those who helped theneedy in their midst.


Jesus made loving our neighborsan active part of our Christian life

that is tied to our love for God. Thereal question Christians must askthemselves is, “How can we say welove God if we don’t love thosewhom God created?” (see 1 Jn 4:20).

Now, what do we do with thestruggling strangers whose paths we

cross? Can we help all of them?

I can’t answer what other Christiansshould do when confronted withthese situations. But I can makesome suggestions about how we canactively train ourselves in the habitof being a “neighbor.” Here are someneighborhood habits for Christians:

Volunteer to help at a food pantry orsoup kitchen several times in thenext few weeks. Enter into conversa-tion with those persons receivingaid.

Volunteer with others to help workon the home of a poor family orelderly person and get to know theresidents. This could be throughHabitat for Humanity or a neighbor-hood rehab program. Or your churchcould partner with another church toprovide home repairs for elderlypersons.

Volunteer to help and/or observe anemergency center where the poor areserved. Examples might include theemergency waiting room at yourcounty hospital, the courthousewhere hearings and trials take place,the food stamp center, the SocialSecurity office, the driver’s licenseoffice or a legal aid office. Talk tothe people seeking aid and offer toadvocate on their behalf.

Visit the unemployment office andenter into dialogue with those

making application.

Volunteer to go with a social workeror police officer on visits that willhelp you understand the struggles ofthe poor.

Involve yourself in a prison ministry,teach Bible studies or English, orjust be a friend to an inmate andlisten to his or her story. Work in aprison hospitality house as a volun-teer.

Work on a team or ministry that isinvolved in a mentoring relationshipwith a welfare-to-work family.

Support, adopt or become involvedin ministry with a refugee family.Visit them in their home and invitethem to your home to hear theirstruggles, learn their culture andoffer hope.

Tutor a child who needs some extraencouragement to succeed.

None of these will finally solve theworld’s problems, but they will helpus become more sensitive to theneeds of “neighbors” all around us.

We must train ourselves to be goodneighbors. In the end, that is whatJesus requires of us, that we beneighbors.

So, I pose the same question to youthat was posed to Jesus, “Who is my


neighbor?” And the reply is resound-ing: anyone who has need of me!

Karen Gilbert is minister of missionsat Wilshire Baptist Church in Dallas,Texas. Her husband, Tim, is profes-sor of philosophy and religion atTarrant County College.

Questions Jesus Asked Who Is Your Neighbor?

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http://www.ethicsdaily.com Questions Jesus Asked Didn’t God Make Both the Inside and the Outside?

Didn’t GodMake Both theInside and the

Outside?Luke 11:37–44

“Did not the one whomade the outside make

the inside also?”—Luke 11:40

Judging someone’s outwardbehavior is so much easier than

evaluating someone’s attitude. ButGod examines our attitudes becausethey influence how we respondoutwardly. What is on the insidecomes out.

Maybe you’ve heard this sayingrecently: “You can’t judge a book byits cover.” This popular proverb triesto capture an important truth: whatyou see on the outside may notreveal what’s inside—in a person ora book.

Jesus stressed the importance ofintegrating what’s outside withwhat’s inside. Some of Jesus’

strongest words were directedagainst “hypocrisy”—a situation inwhich a person’s outside and insidewere essentially a mismatch witheach other. Jesus insisted that what isinside persons will influence directlytheir outward behavior.


According to this passage, aPharisee invited Jesus to share a

meal at the Pharisee’s home (v. 37).As a Pharisee, the host belonged to ascrupulously religious group of menwho tried to follow carefully the lawof the Old Testament and to apply itquite seriously in their own lifesituations. Their frequent conflictswith Jesus, evidenced in all fourGospels, arose from radicallydifferent approaches to Scripture.

Both Jesus and the Pharisees wereserious about applying the Bible tolife. But they approached the Biblein different ways. Jesus was mostinterested in the spiritual principle orthrust of meaning from God in apassage. He wanted to know why aparticular passage said what it did.

On the other hand, the Phariseesalways asked: “What does thispassage say, literally and legalisti-cally, about my religious practicebefore God?” Jesus knew how totake the Bible seriously withoutalways taking it too literally; but thePharisees could never separate the

two. They were intent on their strict,literalistic legalism in applying theBible to life.

In fact, the Pharisees became soserious about religious life theyinvented their own tradition of strictrules by which God’s people shouldlive. Based on their strict reading ofbiblical passages, they devised andpassed along their own biblicalinterpretations. Called the “traditionof the elders,” these interpretationswere intended to maintain theirown—and the people’s—holinessand “religiosity” (but the Phariseescalled it “righteousness”).

However, in Luke 11, Jesus clearlyrepudiated the Pharisees’ system ofinterpreting the Bible. He frequentlywas “on the other side” of interpreta-tion. Even risking their rejection as a“blasphemer,” he flatly condemnedas fatally flawed the definition of“righteousness” that resulted fromthe Pharisees’ inadequate approachto Scripture (see Mt 5:20).

One of the “traditions of the elders”was washing one’s hands beforeeating a meal. Not required in theHebrew Scripture, this specificaction was adopted “above andbeyond” the Bible’s own statementsabout ceremonial washing or cleans-ing of oneself.

Jesus and his disciples did notobserve this ritual devised by men.

So Jesus’ host was scandalized bythe failure of his biblically orientedJewish guest to wash his hands (v.38).

Arriving at the table, Jesus musthave noticed that the table settingwas neatly and perfectly arranged.Every table vessel was sparklingclean and waiting to be used. ThenJesus observed the persnicketyPharisee who was concerned that alldetails of the setting be “just right”(including Jesus’ “unclean” hands!)but who was missing the whole pointof table fellowship with a fellowJew.

Jesus used the table vessels toprovide a convenient metaphor andtaught his host a profound lessonabout people who are genuinelyspiritual rather than merely “superreligious.”

“You Pharisees are so intenselypreoccupied with externals inreligion! Look at the fuss you’remaking over clean cups and dishes.You are even willing to ruin wonder-ful table fellowship over the issue ofclean hands. You are serious, aren’tyou, about scrubbing and polishingthe outside—the external?” Jesusperceived correctly that Pharisaicalreligion was too often done “forshow” and not for God. He warnedagainst such practices (Mt 6:1ff).

Clean hands? Sure. Much more

http://www.ethicsdaily.com Questions Jesus Asked Didn’t God Make Both the Inside and the Outside?

important than “clean hands” wasdown deep inside cleanliness. Jesussliced through the sham of showypiety into the deeper shame ofshoddy ethics. What good is a publicdisplay of religiosity from the sameperson whose heart is set on greed,even to the extent of robbing others?

God can see what is happening muchclearer than others see. “The Lordsees not as humans see; people lookon the outward appearance, but theLord looks on the heart” (1 Sam16:7, author’s paraphrase). Don’texpect to fool a God who knows theinterior by engaging in a host ofexterior acts. God remains unim-pressed.

Jesus emphasized to his Pharisaicallisteners that God created both theinside and the outside of the vesselof our personhood—just as a pottermakes a whole clay vessel.

Who are we fooling when we try toact as if the two can be disengaged?Certainly not God! Jesus affirmedthat God had made us whole per-sons. He had made both the insideand the outside. Whole beingscannot be split without deep andserious damage to their formationunder God.

Our Creator-designed humanity isbest maintained only in its whole-ness. To begin to reduce us tofragmented parts is to lose spiritual

health and psycho-emotional vitality.Artificially separated parts are easierto manage, arrange and manipu-late—but there’s no real life in thoseforms. Life is lived in whole experi-ence rather than dissected, “feelgood” compartments.

The Pharisees were expert in dissect-ing life into its little segments thatcould be controlled, in every detail,so that proof of purity and righteous-ness might be demonstrated.

Jesus didn’t let them get away withit. A cup has an outside and aninside—don’t wash just the one. Acoin has two sides—don’t expect toseparate them. A person consists ofboth external and internal realities—pay sufficient attention to both.

The Pharisees much preferred thepure and clean parts of people, evenif it meant relating to only a fractionof a person’s life. Pharisees designedtheir own itsy-bitsy comfort zonesand then proceeded to guard themwith picky, pious perfectionism.They tithed the herb garden, leaf forleaf—exactly one leaf in 10 went tothe temple (see vv. 42–44). Theyinsisted that hands were washed as aman-made ritual of appearing cleanbefore God. They prayed a noisypublic petition, to impress others,and went away self-impressed, too.

Referring to the alms-giving of hishost (v. 41), Jesus focused on the

heart’s desire from within to engagein acts of mercy. Mercy gifts werehypocritical when they came fromsomeone who begrudged the loss ofthat money. Jesus accused his “cleanhands” host of having a dirty heart,one smudged in greed and stainedwith robbery. How could such a maneven consider alms-giving to othersas a legitimate statement of hisspiritual state?

Jesus seems to be saying that whatstays inside our heart carries muchmore spiritual significance than whatleaves our hand—dirt or denarius/dollars! Our inner life of thought andattitude will influence our outwardbehavior and relationships. Whatyou have internalized regarding yourreal beliefs about loving God andloving neighbor will come out. Sospend much more of your time andeffort focusing on your inner person,not merely “washing” the outsideyou want people to see.

Jesus’ point about alms-giving isquite clear: “The outside will takecare of itself when the inside iscorrect; then all that you are will beclean before God.” The word Jesusused for “clean” is katharos, fromwhich we get the word catharsis—cleansing, purifying, renewing.Come on, Pharisees! Clean up youract, spiritually speaking. Even ourkeeping of the biblical injunction togive alms must rise from an internalprinciple of relationship, not merely

the external practice of ritual.


The counselor looked hersquarely in the eye. Once again

he asked her, gently but firmly, “Butwhat do you want from your life?I’m talking about the person downdeep inside you (not about the rolesyou play as wife, mother, churchworker, cook, housekeeper, carpooldriver, community volunteer, etc.).What does she want—your real,inner person?”

For any one of us, our wholeness,health and happiness come easierwhen the person outside reflectsaccurately the person who livesinside. The inside must come out.

The company president determineswithin herself to begin a new ap-proach. From now on, she will listento the complaints of her staff differ-ently. She takes these comments tobe valuable feedback toward improv-ing overall operations. No longer arethey labeled “gripes” or “whining.”After all, she reasons, if thesecompetent people I have hired didnot care about our work together andits results, then they would notbother to speak up at all. And guesswhat happens? Personal morale andproductivity, not to mention corpo-rate profits, reach all-time highlevels.


are also right—we need to fix it. Iwould value your opinion on thematter. Let’s work on it together todiscover a solution.”

And what’s inside will come out inwholeness and in health.

Don Garner is a religion professorat Carson-Newman College inJefferson City, Tennessee.

Questions Jesus Asked Didn’t God Make Both the Inside and the Outside?

The very concerned father of a veryadolescent son worries about theoccasional brief outbursts of thisnormally cooperative teen-ager. Dadbecomes anxious over Junior’srebellious self-assertions. What’sahead for this child and for thisfamily? Catastrophes of all kindssuggest themselves to Dad’s fearfulimagination.

Finally, a veteran parent provides adifferent perspective. The helpfulmentor suggests that it’s appropriate,and even necessary, for this child-struggling-to-become-an-adult teen-ager to “test his wings” of indepen-dence by pushing away decisivelyfrom the ones who have been soclose. Sometimes the very strengthof pushing away reveals just howclose and valuable the nurturingrelationship has been.

Dad’s anxiety gives way to under-standing; fear is replaced by insight.And he resolves to welcome the soninto the adult world with morecalmness and gentle support. Nolonger will he even unconsciouslytry to hold him back in a child’sworld of immature power plays.

Junior’s next hypercritical tirade ishandled quite differently. Dadreceives it, listens calmly, andresponds with a quiet and controlledquestion: “So, what do you suggestwe do about this problem? You areobviously very frustrated. And you

Study Notes

http://www.ethicsdaily.com Questions Jesus Asked What Is the Kingdom of God Like?

What Is theKingdom ofGod Like?

Luke 13:18-21

“What is the Kingdomof God like?”—Luke 13:18

When a friend offered us astarter lump of sourdough

bread, we had no idea what we weregetting ourselves into. This littlelump of dough seemed innocentenough, and although we knew wewould have to feed it, we wouldnever have to take it for a walk. Howcould we know that we would haveto cook like crazy or sit silently andwatch as sourdough took over ourwhole refrigerator?

We cooked loaves of bread, rolls,sweet rolls, and every deliciousdelight imaginable, but we just couldnot keep pace with the “once little,now large” lump of dough in therefrigerator. We started conning ourfriends—as we had been conned—into taking a little lump home,feeding it, and enjoying endless

baking success. Despite our effort to“share” our sourdough “success”with our friends, we eventually hadto throw the monstrous mass of aleavened lump into the trashcan.Finally we were free from the ever-growing gourmet goulash that waseating us out of house and home!

What started so small radicallytransformed our refrigerator space.

Only kudzu can grow as rapidly asmy wife’s sourdough starter. For the100th birthday party for the UnitedStates, countries were invited tobuild exhibits at the 1876 CentennialExposition in Philadelphia, Pennsyl-vania. The Japanese governmentconstructed a beautiful garden filledwith their native plants. The largeleaves and sweet smelling blooms ofkudzu captured the imagination ofAmerican gardeners who soon beganto use the plant for ornamentalpurposes.

That was the beginning, and the endis out of sight.

While kudzu grows like an ordinaryplant in Japan, the climate in thesouthern United States causes theplant to go absolutely wild. Theproblem is that kudzu grows toowell! The vines grow as much as onefoot per day during summer months.This vigorous vine grows over entirehouses, abandoned cars, telephonepoles, or anything standing in its

way. Country lore has it that south-ern mothers keep close watch ontheir little ones while they aresleeping lest wild kudzu vines sneakin and choke the children!

The U.S. Department of Agriculturehas estimated that kudzu has creptover more than 7 million acres,consuming 120,000 fresh acres eachyear from Florida to New York andwest to central Oklahoma and Texas.What began as an ornamentalJapanese garden is literally takingover the southern United States.Instructions on a bag of kudzu seedsread, “Throw the seeds and run. Veryfast!”

Where it grows, kudzu has theability to eliminate native plantspecies and upset the natural diver-sity of entire plant communities. Itkills natural vegetation throughcrowding and shading, even stiflingagricultural and timber production.

Since landowners in the south havenot found a way to overcomekudzu—in fact, herbicides onlymake it grow faster—they have triedto develop creative ways to use theweedy vine. You can smoke it, cookit, weave baskets out of it, or pro-duce jelly and syrup from it. But youmight as well find a way to enjoy itbecause you cannot beat the vinethat ate the South! Love it, or hate it… it grows on you!1


And so it is with the kingdom ofGod. Christ’s coming inaugu-

rated the kingdom of God on earth.The coming of God’s kingdom wasnot the once-for-all confrontationbetween a military Messiah and thepowers of the Roman Empireenvisioned by first-century Jews.

Rather, this less than catastrophicentrance of the kingdom of Godbegan with the birth of a baby inBethlehem. While merchants werebusy trading and innkeepers werebusy serving demanding guests, thekingdom of God quietly entered intothe world through the birth of Jesus.What began so humbly was but thebeginning of a kingdom that willultimately grow great and powerfuluntil it fulfills the purposes of God.

As we follow Jesus, our lives will bedifferent because we bear the Spiritof Christ and belong to God’skingdom. As God’s kingdom spreadson earth, his rule in our own livesincreases as we yield ourselves tohim, as we yield our will to his will.

Jesus’ brief parables about thegrowth of the kingdom of God foundin Luke 13:18–21 are introducedwith a story of healing on theSabbath. The healing of the crippledwoman (vv. 10–17) demonstratesGod’s saving power over the forcesof evil.

http://www.ethicsdaily.com Questions Jesus Asked What Is the Kingdom of God Like?

This demonstration of the reign andrule of God should have been a signto the people of God that the king-dom of God was at hand. Thehealing declared that God was atwork, that his reign had begun in theperson of Jesus. By healing thewoman on the Sabbath, moreover,Jesus was trying to make clear thatpeople are more important than rules(see lesson on Luke 6:6-11).2

Parable I, The Mighty Mustard Seed

“He said therefore, ‘What is thekingdom of God like? And to whatshould I compare it? It is like amustard seed that someone took andsowed in the garden; it grew andbecame a tree, and the birds of theair made nests in its branches’” (Lk13:18-19).

While God’s kingdom may have hada humble beginning, it is no lesspresent. For as Jesus explained inthis brief parable, the kingdom ofGod is like a mustard seed that,although among the tiniest of allseeds, yields a plant large enough forthe birds to nest in its branches.God’s kingdom is in process from atiny beginning to a tremendous end.The healing of the crippled womanon the Sabbath is but a sample ofGod’s power to overturn evil in anultimate, climactic battle (v. 16).

Jesus apparently was still in thesynagogue (v. 18, “Therefore”) as he

proceeded from the healing of thewoman to the parables about theprocess of the kingdom of God. Asin some Old Testament passages, thebirds in this first parable mayrepresent the kingdoms of the world,thus showing how the kingdom ofGod grows to worldwide size (Dan4:12, 21; Ps 104:12; Ezek 17:23).Luke did not want his readers to bediscouraged by the obscurity of theorigins of God’s kingdom. God willbring to fruition the seed of thekingdom that he has planted.

Parable II, The Leavened Lump

“And again he said, ‘To what shouldI compare the kingdom of God? It islike yeast that a woman took andmixed in with three measures offlour until all of it was leavened’”(Lk 13:20-21).

The second parable strengthens thecase already made by the first. Godis like both the man who plants theseed and watches it grow into a treeand the woman who works a smallamount of leaven into a great amountof flour to allow the fermentationprocess to permeate the entire lumpof dough.

The word Jesus used for “threemeasures of flour” represents enoughdough to feed 160 people. AncientHebrews kneaded a piece of fer-mented dough from a previousbaking into their dough (Mt 13:33).

As the process of leavening occurredat night, the whole mass of doughwas transformed. Anyone who hasbeen given a “sourdough starter”knows what it means for the fer-menting process to permeate largerand larger amounts of dough! Whileleaven usually symbolizes evil inScripture—such as the hypocriticalteaching of the Pharisees andSadducees (Mt 16:6; Lk 13:21) ormalice and wickedness (1 Cor 5:6-8)—here it represents the pervasivekingdom of God.

The kingdom of God is abouttransformation from the tiniest seedto a great tree, from a small bit ofyeast into a completely leavenedloaf. This transformation may appearto go on quietly. However, whenviewed under a microscope, theprocess of yeast working is viewedas a series of small bubbles explod-ing and a violent action taking place.What God is doing is radical, indeed.


So what? Does the presence of thekingdom of God among his

people not demand that we live livesthat are radically different from theworld? As his kingdom grows withinus, how will we be different?

Materialism—Will we be caught upin the materialistic values of aconsumer culture? Are we workingonly to buy ourselves bigger and

better houses, cars, and electronicgadgets? Do we measure others andourselves by the size of our bankaccount or stock portfolio? AreGod’s people willing to simplifytheir lives for kingdom work andkingdom purposes (Mt 6:19–21)?

Relationships (race, gender,beauty)—Will we judge peoplebased on superficial criteria, or willwe look at their hearts as God does?The Madison Avenue mentalitydriving modern marketers placesvalue on youth and beauty. Are wewilling to build communities that aretruly gender-blind and color-blind (1Sam 16:7)?

Forgiveness—Will we dispenseforgiveness to those who havewronged us as God has dispensedgrace to us? The unwillingness toforgive is inexcusable for Christians.Those who have enjoyed God’sgrace must also respond in grace. Todeny forgiveness to others is to denyGod’s forgiveness for ourselves (Mt18:21–35).

Fruit of the Spirit—Will our lives becharacterized by love, joy, peace,patience, kindness, goodness,faithfulness, gentleness, and selfcontrol? As God’s kingdom expandswithin us, our lives must exude thefruit of the Spirit (Gal 5:22–23).

Hope—Will we be permeated withkingdom hope in times of despair?


Unlike the world, we have eternalhope. God is in control of every-thing. He is our creator, redeemer,and sustainer (1 Thess 4:13).

For years, Tom’s family prayed forhim, hoping he would develop apersonal relationship with Christ.Tom had once been a sailor whoembodied all the world’s woes. Anda recent test told Tom he had pros-tate cancer at the young age of 42.

Partly as a response to the fearinvoked by such startling news, Tombegan coming to church, receivinggospel seeds sown in each worshipservice. As the seeds germinated inhis heart, he was radically trans-formed. The presence of God’skingdom in Tom’s life made him adifferent man. The change in Tomwas both evident and explosive.When they have sprouted, kingdomseeds radically transform our lives.

Perhaps kingdom seeds, like kudzuseeds, should also bear a warning:Beware! Once the kingdom of Godtakes over your heart, your entire lifewill be radically changed.

Howie Batson is pastor of FirstBaptist Church, Amarillo, Texas.

1. The Kudzu File, http://ernie.gbsu.edu/~ckile/south/kudzuwhat.html; Scientists Closingin on Kudzu, http://www.charlotte.com/0203kudzu.htm;Kudzu, http://dailyrevolution.org/

Questions Jesus Asked What Is the Kingdom of God Like?

Monday/kudzu.html; How Fast CanYou Run?, http://www.cs.nmt.edu/~cort?kudzu/; The Amazing Story ofKudzu, http://www.cptr.us.edu/kudzu/

2. I. Howard Marshall, The NewInternational Greek TestamentCommentary: The Gospel of Luke(Grand Rapids: William B.Eerdmans Publishing Company,1978), 559-562.

Study Notes

http://www.ethicsdaily.comWhat Is Faithful Stewardship? Questions Jesus Asked

What IsFaithful

Stewardship?Luke 16:1–13

“If then you have notbeen faithful with thedishonest wealth, whowill entrust to you the

true riches?”—Luke 16:11

Molly Ivins wrote a newspapercolumn titled “Hardtimes: The

under 40s are getting a taste of theCrash of ’29.” She discussed thedownturn in tech stocks in the lastyear and the fortunes that have beenlost in the process. Ivins said, “It’shard to know what to say to someonewho was worth $200,000 last yearand is worth $20,000 this year.”

The thrust of her commentary wasthat the real problem is not losingtheir money, but losing their faith.Their faith in life was tied up withthe accumulation of wealth in the“new” economy.

The relationship between wealth and

the spiritual life is a centuries-oldproblem. The influence of wealth onour spiritual lives is addressedrepeatedly in Scripture. The Gospelof Luke, more than any otherGospel, deals with the issue ofpossessions and wealth. Luke has 25passages relating to material posses-sions, while Matthew and Mark haveonly 12 combined. Approximately27 percent of some 600 verses inLuke (chapters 3–22) relate to thetheme of wealth.

Luke also heightens interest inpossessions in passages he shares incommon with Matthew and Mark. Inother words, the Gospel of Lukeemphasizes the place of “things” inthe life of a Christian. The issue ofmaterial possessions plays animportant part in the story of theearly church, as portrayed in Luke’scompanion work, the Book of Acts(note in particular the importance ofthe community-summary passages inActs 2:43ff and Acts 4:32ff).


Luke 16:1–9 is commonly calledthe parable of the dishonest

manager. Depending on interpreta-tion, some call this the parable of theprudent steward. The two names forthe parable indicate the problem thatsome interpreters have with thisparable.

Since Jesus commended the

manager/steward, it disturbs us if wecall him dishonest. I prefer to call themanager prudent or shrewd. Eventhis describes the manager in termsabout which most Christians feeluneasy.

Most commentators mention twooptions for the actions of the man-ager: either he simply reduced hisown commission which was alreadybuilt into the amount owed, or hefalsified the amounts owed to hismaster in order to gain favor withother people. Either way, keep inmind that Jesus did not commend theactual action of the manager but hisshrewdness in using money to helphimself and others.

Jesus did not say we were to bedishonest or self-serving. Rather, thecommendation involved the shrewd-ness of the manager. Be it dishonestor self-serving, the manager’s use ofmoney served him well.

The parable by itself suggests thatthe manager was able to determinehis circumstance and then actaccordingly. People should act withthe same discernment to the comingof the kingdom of God in JesusChrist. The parable used materialpossessions to make this pointbecause the next set of teachingsturns explicitly to Jesus’ instructionson the use of possessions.

In verse 9, Jesus interpreted the

parable. Jesus encouraged thedisciples to make friends for them-selves by use of dishonest wealth.The “dishonest wealth” shouldprobably be interpreted simply asworldly wealth, without attaching amoral value to it.

Jesus was not suggesting that thedisciples gain wealth dishonestly.Jesus was speaking of using worldlywealth to give alms, which in theJewish mindset secured a place inthe coming kingdom. While thissounds like works theology, it wouldhave connected with the listeners tomake the point that the use of wealthamong the disciples is associatedwith sacrifice. The disciples wereencouraged to use wealth for aspiritual end.

The instructions in 16:10–13 are notdependent on the previous parablefor their interpretation. Most com-mentators feel that Luke probablytook the opportunity of the earlierparable to gather other instruction ofJesus about possessions. The instruc-tions, however, continue some of thethemes apparent in the parable.

Verse 10 is an example of a seculartruth being used for a religiouslesson. By its context, faithfulness isportrayed as a quality expected in asteward. The opposite of faithful-ness, in the saying, is dishonesty.Such dishonesty would certainly beexpected among worldly people.

http://www.ethicsdaily.comWhat Is Faithful Stewardship? Questions Jesus Asked

The verse says our riches indicatethe way in which we will respond toGod. If we mishandle our posses-sions, we are sure to mishandle thegreater matters of the kingdom ofGod.

This saying reminds us that life is aseries of seemingly small opportuni-ties that show how faithful we willbe in the great opportunities. If wefail in the everyday activities, howcould we expect to be up to the taskin the great opportunities of faith?

Verse 11 sets up the real possibilitythat disciples may not act faithfullywith worldly possessions. The use offaith in connection with such posses-sions indicates that the use ofworldly possessions has a spiritualdimension to it—and the disciple canmake the wrong choice.

The use of the term “dishonestwealth” (v. 11) connects the readersback to the parable where the maincharacter is a steward, not an owner.“True riches” refers to the reality ofthe age to come—a heavenly trea-sure. Here is the point of the ques-tion: If you cannot handle worldlypossessions in an appropriate way,can you handle the gospel and thenew age to come?

The importance of material steward-ship for believers continues in verse12. Worldly possessions are nowdefined as “what belongs to an-

other.” Worldly possessions are notowned by the disciples but are ratherheld in trust from God. If the dis-ciples cannot act faithfully with whatis really God’s, they will not receivewhat is their only true and surepossession—their heavenly treasure.

The concluding verse 13 has adouble warning: a warning againstbeing unfaithful in God’s service;and a warning against being en-slaved by wealth. The disciple iscalled a slave. God is the master. Aslave can only be of first-rate serviceto a master if the slave is totallydevoted to the master. If anyone elsedemands such devotion, it is impos-sible to serve both equally. Onemaster will be cheated.

Verse 13 specifies the two mastersJesus had in mind: God and money.If accumulation of wealth is thefocus of life, no room can be left fordevotion to God. Wealth, itself, isnot a threat to God. The wealthyChristian is not by definition un-faithful to God. At issue is whethermoney is worshiped because of one’scommitment to accumulate more andmore wealth.


Living in a material world is agiven for most Christians. Few

people live a monastic lifestylewhere worldly possessions are givenup entirely. In reality, making the

one-time decision to give up every-thing may cause less stress thanhaving to maintain a responsiblerelationship with one’s wealth.

The Bible passage affirms that Jesus’disciples must wrestle with the issueof wealth. The parable itself encour-ages us to make an accurate assess-ment of our situation and act accord-ingly. The passage also concludesthat there is a responsible way todeal with wealth. We can use wealthto secure what is truly valuable. Thereal problem is figuring out therelationship.

This passage points to a connectionbetween material possessions andone’s spiritual life. This connectionis a matter of faith. Faith entailsmaking a decision about what ismost important in life and thenresponding accordingly.

Worldly possessions are not ownedby anyone in this world—everythingbelongs to God. We are simplystewards of our possessions. Posses-sions themselves are not bad. Whatmatters is the place they have in ourlives. If “worldly wealth” is centralto our decision-making, then itoccupies the place reserved for God.As a result of God’s dislocation, wewill not grow spiritually and will notenjoy the “real wealth” of relation-ship with Christ.

What are some of the actions we can

take to ensure that possessionsoccupy the correct place in ourlives?

Tithe—One area of consideration isthe matter of the tithe (10 percent).The tithe forces us to adjust ourlifestyle in order to return a tenth. Italso reminds us that we really do notown all we think we do.

Recently one of the saints of ourchurch died. She was not a wealthywoman in a material sense but wasone of the most spiritual people Ihave known. She left all of herbelongings to her daughter. As atribute to her mother’s understandingof the correct place of materialpossessions in one’s life, her daugh-ter gave our church a tithe of hermother’s estate. As a result of thisdonation we have been able to begina number of new ministries andcomplete some tasks that reapweekly benefits for God’s kingdom.The mother’s legacy of support ofthe church continued even past herdeath—all because she and herdaughter properly understoodpossessions in the life of a disciple.

Ministry—A second way to ensurethe proper perspective is to getinvolved in the ministry of thekingdom—even if it is, as verse 10indicates, the small matters ofministry. Opportunities to minister tosuch people as the homeless, thepoor, the disenfranchised, the sick



What Is Faithful Stewardship? Questions Jesus Asked

and the imprisoned, bring a certaindegree of perspective to our lives.Often, such ministry touches usmore than it does the ones to whomwe minister. We often see evidenceof great faith in the midst of littlethat the material world has to offer.

On a recent trip to Honduras, ourchurch mission team was moved bythe faith of people who waitedexcitedly for us to build them ahome that was a 20-by-15-foot roomwith a dirt floor and no electricity orwater/plumbing. Yet, their times ofworship were filled with moreexcitement and sheer joy than mostus have experienced in our worshipin years. We learned the relativevalue of material things to a joyousspiritual life.

Pray—A third thing to do is pray.Pray that God will move in yourspirit to affirm His ownership ofeverything. Pray that you will seeGod’s movement in the worldaround you and that you will re-spond to the call to use the resourcesGod has given you for his kingdom.

Wrestling with material possessionsis a reality for our society. But withGod’s grace, we can value what istrue and lasting. True spiritualgrowth will occur in our lives onlywhen we have gained a properunderstanding of material wealth andthen put that understanding intopractice.

Study Notes

http://www.ethicsdaily.com Questions Jesus Asked Does Obedience Demand Praise?

Does ObedienceDemandPraise?

Luke 17:7-10

“Do you thank theslave for doing whatwas commanded?”

—Luke 17:9

A-Rod or Alex Rodriguez signeda 10-year, $252 million contract

with the Texas Rangers baseballclub. What would his manager say ifA-Rod began complaining that theopposing team was hitting the balltoo hard for him to field it easily, orthrowing it too fast for him to hit it?The manager’s reply probably isunprintable here, but the gist wouldbe, “If you can’t stand the heat, getout of the kitchen.” A man who’smaking more than $154,000 pergame has no room to complain.

We live in a society where peopleexpect rewards for anything doneacceptably well. Many employeesexpect and often receive bonusesmerely for showing up and doingtheir jobs and nothing more.

Some people bring this attitude intothe church. Some church membersthink their service to God throughthe church entitles them to a reward.Yet, that model does not hold true inthe God-believer relationship,despite all the preaching to thecontrary.

For all that God has done for us, ourattitude should be heartfelt thanksand a willingness to serve selflesslyand without expectation of recogni-tion or reward. We have no right toexpect anything else. Jesus did notteach righteousness by works.


In Luke 17:7–10, Jesus gave ananalogy of how Christians relate

to God—as slaves. We don’t like theword slave because of the negativeconnotations it carries. Mention ofthe word brings to mind the horrifictreatment and conditions underwhich slaves have lived and still dolive in many parts of the world.

In the first century, however, slaverywas an accepted practice. Slaveryoperated on several levels then.Some people were enslaved for debtand worked for the one they oweduntil the debt was paid. Others werecriminals who worked to repay theirvictims. Still other slaves wereprisoners taken in war and given tomembers of the conquering army orto supportive citizens.

Using the practice for illustrativepurposes, Jesus did not condoneslavery any more than he approvedof any other sin. Indeed, no one canown a slave and take seriously Jesus’teaching to love one’s neighbor asoneself. Jesus taught that his king-dom is not of this world, but ofheaven. He came to set us free fromsin regardless of the physical shack-les. However, since slavery was partof first-century society, Jesus used itas an example to teach a vital truth.

If a person were an indentured slave,a redeemer could buy the slave’sfreedom by paying what was owed.Relatives often bought familymembers out of slavery if they couldafford it. If ever you were in debt,you wanted to be in good standingwith your family—especially thosewho had money!

How a slave was treated dependedon the master, but the master ownedthe slave and could do with theslave, or have the slave do, whateverhe pleased. Thus, to demand that theslave prepare dinner on top of theother duties was not unusual or harshtreatment. Jesus used a slave-masterencounter to make a point about abeliever’s relationship to God. Hebegan with “Who among you … ?”(v. 7), anticipating a negativeresponse. “Surely none among us”would be the answer. No one whoowned a slave would invite the slaveto dinner.

Instead, the slave in Jesus’ examplewas expected to prepare dinner forthe master, even after a hard day inthe field (v. 8). Because this was aslave-master relationship, the masterhad the right to command the slaveto prepare dinner and serve himbefore the slave was permitted to eatand rest. That was the nature ofindentured labor. Slaves werethought of as just another beast ofburden. They had no constitutionalrights.

Furthermore, the master would notinvite the slave to dinner becausethat would set the slave free. Thiswas known as informal manumis-sion. It was a ritual that signaled therelease from enslavement.

In verse 9, Jesus asked anotherquestion that expected a negativeanswer: “Do you thank the slave fordoing what was commanded?”Certainly no master thanked a slavefor doing his duty. Considering thealternatives to enslavement—prisonor death—the slave was glad to workfor his master and expected noreward.

In verse 10, Jesus changed thedirection of the questioning frommaster to slave. If his disciples wereslaves themselves, they would seetheir service as duty and expectnothing in return. Their work is whatthey ought to do.

http://www.ethicsdaily.com Questions Jesus Asked Does Obedience Demand Praise?

Jesus later told a story about aPharisee who reminded God of hisservice (Lk 18:11–12). By remindingGod of his service, the Phariseeimplied that God owed him areward. Jesus countered this sinfulattitude by telling about thepublican—a sinner—who casthimself on God’s mercy and askedforgiveness. The publican wasjustified in God’s sight rather thanthe Pharisee.


What does God owe us? Ourcommon conception is that if

we are good servants then wedeserve a blessing of some kind.This idea comes from the OldTestament theology of reward andpunishment outlined clearly in theBook of Deuteronomy. If you dowell, God will bless you; if you doevil, God will punish you. It was thecommon presumption in Jesus’ day,as it is among many Christianstoday.

Jesus clarified that Old Testamenttheology, fulfilling it. He didn’tabolish the law, but he clarified whatGod intended by the law.God does not owe anything to us—not even a “thank you” when we dowhat God commands us to do. Asodd as it may sound, this is part ofGod’s grace. God does not have tosave us; God certainly did not haveto send a redeemer to purchase our

freedom—to pay our debt. Yet,because God is gracious and notwilling that any should perish, heprovided redemption for everyhuman being through Jesus Christ. Ifwe replace God’s grace with an ideaof what God owes us, we in effectreject God’s grace in favor of ourown merit or worth.

Neither can we do more than Godexpects. There is no “above-and-beyond” the call of duty in God’skingdom. No medals of honor areawarded. When Jesus said to go the“extra mile” or give the “coat also”(Mt 5:40-41), he reflected God’sexpectation for his followers. Oursalvation cannot be repaid no matterhow much we give to or do for God.

Having established that God owesnothing to us, then we ask, “What dowe owe God?”

There certainly is nothing we can do,no work so great that we can repayGod for salvation. So, what shouldbe our attitude? Jesus says we are asworthless slaves and should there-fore do what we ought to do withoutany expectation of reward or thanks.

This puts a whole new light on ourrelationship with God. Yet, it is easyto fall into the sinful mindset thatGod owes a blessing or a reward tous because we’ve been good Chris-tians or because we’ve done somegood deed. Attending a worship

service does not earn special rewardsfrom God. Worship is something wedo because we love God and desireto show our adoration. Teaching aSunday School class, tithing—evengoing halfway around the world as amissionary—earns no special rewardfrom God.

Good behavior and good deeds areexpected of us. It is the basic re-quirement for anyone who namesJesus as Lord. Because salvation isnot based on works but on God’sgrace, we should be grateful servantsfor the opportunity to work in God’svineyard—in God’s mission ofsalvation for the rest of humankind.

In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesuscommanded that we give our alms—our tithes and offerings, our missionservice, our church work—in secret(Mt. 6:1-4). This was so that wewould not expect reward or recogni-tion from other believers.

Some within Christian faith expectrecognition, however. A family in asmall congregation gives financiallyto the church’s work only once peryear—on the last Sunday of the year.Their offering is several thousanddollars, so the financial record in theweekly bulletin reflects the unusu-ally large offering. Everyone knowswho gives it and marvels that theygive so much. The gift even is notedfrom the pulpit. What generouschurch members!

Yet, when the gifts of much lessprosperous givers are compared,their contributions—made little bylittle all through the year—come tomuch more than this family’s singleoffering. The astute church memberrealizes that the “generous” familydoes not even tithe its income, muchless present an offering. This suppos-edly generous family does not evendo what is expected of every churchmember, yet they receive effusivepraise. Their motive in giving iswrong. They have their reward.

Giving to God—whether our tithesand offerings, good deeds, or time onmission activities—so that no oneknows what we give maintains thepurity of the God-believer relation-ship.

We do these things because Godexpects us to do them, not becausewe might receive the praise of othersor of God. Such purity of serviceseldom is found, even among themost faithful believers. Our human-ity gets too much in the way. Ournature is to do things for which wewill be recognized and thanked, andwe’ve come to expect at least a“thank you,” if not applause, for ourservice in God’s kingdom. However,this attitude is not from God.

Mother Teresa of Calcutta is themost vivid example of one whoselflessly served God and expectedno reward in return. Even afterwinning the Nobel Prize with all its


money and accolades, she returnedto her mission among the poor. Sheviewed herself as a servant of God.

The slave in Jesus’ example did notcomplain that he had to preparedinner for his master, although hewas tired from working in the fieldall day. Why no complaint? Becauseliving with and serving the masterwas so much better than the alterna-tive to his slavery.

We who belong to Christ realize thatwe are much better off than ouralternative—enslavement to sin inthis life and eternal death in thehereafter! We serve our Lord byserving others—in secret, if pos-sible—and without complaint,always!

Mike Mitchell is a husband, dad,pastor, oil seller and missionseducator in Fort Payne, Alabama.

Questions Jesus Asked Does Obedience Demand Praise?

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http://www.ethicsdaily.com Questions Jesus Asked What Do You Owe the Government?

What Do YouOwe the

Government?Luke 20:20–26

“Whose head andwhose title does

it bear?”—Luke 20:24

Years ago, I had a good friendwho was a Church of the Breth-

ren pastor. He was a pacifist, a moralposition I considered hopelesslynäive. This was during the Cold Warwhen it was widely assumed that ifthe U.S. let its guard down, the god-less Russians would overrun us withkilling force. Who would have be-lieved that when God finally felledthe Iron Curtain, not a shot would befired?

One day, after arguing my waythrough three cups of coffee, I grewexasperated with my friend. Indig-nant over his stubborn refusal to ad-mit the right to bear arms—underany circumstances—I lashed out athim. “Talk of ‘turning the othercheek’ is well and good where others

are committed to that ethic. Butthat’s not the way it is! What doesyour sentimental gospel of peace andbrotherhood have to do with the realworld in which we live?”

He looked at me with hurt and be-wilderment in his eyes. “Every-thing,” he answered softly. “Every-thing.”

He was right, of course. The gospeldoes have everything to do with thereal world in which we live. Theconfession that Jesus is Lord—madeglistening, wet and true in our bap-tism—is all encompassing. It is notconfined to a small, mystical spherewe call “faith.” That confession laysclaims to our ethics, our economics,and yes, even our politics.

But how the claims of Christ aretranslated into political realities—that is a matter about which consci-entious Christians disagree. EvenJesus’ famous dictum about “render-ing unto Caesar the things that areCaesar’s and to God the things thatare God’s,” does not settle all thequestions. We are still left to ponderwhat in the world belongs to Caesar,and what in the world belongs toGod.


Jesus was asked in a highlycharged context about the com-

peting claims of God and Caesar.

With the cleansing of the temple(19:45–48), Jesus threw down thegauntlet to a corrupt religious estab-lishment. A series of controversialstories followed (20:1–47) in whichopposition to Jesus reached a feverpitch. The religious authorities de-cided to silence Jesus’ stinging criti-cism of their entrenched pride andprivilege. The only question washow to destroy Jesus without arous-ing his popular following (19:47–48;20:20, 26).

Thus the question, “Is it lawful forus to pay taxes to the emperor, ornot?” (v. 22), was a ruse to entrapJesus (v. 20). Despite the flattery(v. 21), those asking the questiononly feigned interest in Jesus’ an-swer. Their real intent was to skewerJesus on the horns of a dilemma.

On the one hand, the people of Israelhated paying taxes to the Romans.Such taxes were a constant reminderof their helplessness at the hands ofan occupying power. Further, thetaxes Rome demanded supported apagan cult of emperor worship andthe lavish lifestyle of the Roman rul-ers. Of particular affront was the polltax, a tax paid by everyone 14 to 65years of age each time a census wastaken. If Jesus supported such taxa-tion, he would be despised as a trai-tor.

On the other hand, if Jesus spokeagainst such taxes, he could be

charged with treason against Rome.That was a capital offense. Indeed, itwas ultimately such a trumped-upcharge that led to Jesus’ execution(23:2).

The question put so innocently toJesus, “Is it lawful to pay taxes toCaesar?” was in reality laden withplastic explosives. No matter howJesus answered, the question was de-signed to blow up on him.

“Show me a denarius,” Jesus said(v. 24). A denarius was a silver coinminted by the Romans. Worth abouta day’s wages for a laborer, it wasthe very coin used to pay the hatedpoll tax. By forcing his interrogatorsto produce the coin, Jesus revealedthey were already submitting toCaesar’s rule.

Nodding at the coin, Jesus asked,“Whose head and whose title does itbear?” (v. 24). When Jesus’ ques-tioners conceded the emperor’s im-age was emblazoned on the coin,Jesus told them what to do with it:“Then give to the emperor the thingsthat are the emperor’s, and to Godthe things that are God’s” (v. 25).Foiled by Jesus’ wit and wisdom, hisenemies were silenced (v. 26).

Jesus laid out two principles in bal-ancing the claims of God and theemperor—or the civil government.They are (1) Give to the emperor thethings that are the emperor’s; and (2)

http://www.ethicsdaily.com Questions Jesus Asked What Do You Owe the Government?

Give to God the things that areGod’s.

In urging his disciples to give gov-ernment its due, Jesus broke withthose advocating violent revolutionagainst Rome. He taught that thosebenefiting from the emperor’s roads,courts and postal system could rea-sonably be expected to pay for them(see also Mt 17:24–25). Paul re-flected this same spirit in Romans13:1–7 where he argued that govern-ment is part of God’s design for pro-moting order and restraining evil.

Yet Jesus was careful not to givecivil government unqualified sover-eignty over human life. No soonerdid he concede the emperor’s right-ful claims than he riveted attentionelsewhere: “And give to God thethings that are God’s.”

To faithful Jews of Jesus’ day, theemperor’s image on the denarius wasa violation of the Second Command-ment (Ex 20:4). It was a “graven im-age,” heralding the emperor as a god.By declaring that one’s ultimate loy-alty and love belonged to God alone,Jesus repudiated the cult of the em-peror.

Government has a rightful if limitedsphere of authority in human affairs:maintaining order and essential pub-lic services. But God’s claims—made clear in Jesus—are paramount.If the state’s claim and God’s claim

conflict, God wins! As Peter latercried to the very authorities that triedto silence Jesus, “We must obey Godrather than any human authority!”(Acts 5:29).


Despite the principles Jesus laidout for managing the competing

claims of God and government,Jesus did not develop a comprehen-sive political theory. His consumingpassion was the kingdom of God, notthe kingdom of Caesar. Further, hisfollowers were to live and proclaimGod’s kingdom under a variety ofgovernments, ranging from totalitar-ian regimes like Rome to a represen-tative democracy like our own.

What then might a constructiveChristian citizenship look like in ourplace and time?

First of all, a constructive Christiancitizenship would mean an end toblind patriotism. Despite deep loveof country, Christians have but oneLord, Jesus Christ. His ultimateclaim on believers towers over theclaims of country and kin. The oft-heard phrase, “My country, right orwrong,” represents the worst kind ofidolatry. It is not even sound patrio-tism. When principle demands, atrue patriot knows how to be a lov-ing critic of his or her country. AsSen. Everett Dirksen declared at theheight of the Vietnam War, “My

country, right or wrong. When right,to keep it right. When wrong, to setit right.”

The positive contributions of gov-ernment as outlined in Romans 13must ever be balanced by the poten-tially demonic misuse of governmentpowers as revealed in Revelation 13.Here government is a demonic“beast” promoting emperor worshipand persecuting the church. Thetragedy of the Holocaust wentlargely unchallenged by the GermanChurch because blind patriotism waswedded to religious devotion.

Secondly, a constructive Christiancitizenship means a healthy respectfor the separation of church andstate. Granted, the phrase “separationof church and state” does not appearin the Constitution. It is an apt sum-mary of American law regardingchurch-state relations.1 The Ameri-can experiment has proved that thechurch and the state thrive best wheneach does not become entangledwith the other.

Nonetheless, the historic Baptist in-sistence on the separation of churchand state is much maligned thesedays. Many Christians look wistfullyat Caesar’s power, eager to employ itfor religious ends. Those who longfor government-sanctioned religionin the schools and civic halls ofAmerica should take a long, hardlook at England or Iraq. In both

countries, the government is highpriest to both God and Caesar. Theresult? England has become an over-whelmingly secular culture, overlaidwith a veneer of public piety. In Iraq,presidential advisers call for geno-cide in the name of God.

In his second temptation, Jesus ex-plicitly rejected the lure of politicalpower to usher in God’s kingdom(Lk 4:5–8). But the temptation per-sisted. Consider the current debateover faith-based programs funded bythe government. Ironically, the verything that makes these programs ef-fective in the private sector—namely, that they are faith based—iswhat will be lost when governmentbegins to fund and supervise them.Further, when the church succumbsto the lure of political power, it losesthe moral authority needed to offer aprophetic critique of the state.

Thirdly, a constructive Christian citi-zenship means a responsible partici-pation in the political process. TheNew Testament commends Chris-tians in every age to pray for govern-ment leaders (1 Tim 2:1–2), obeyjust laws (Tit 3:1; 1 Pet 2:13–15) andpay their taxes (Lk 20:25; Rom13:6).

Certainly, for Christians blessed tolive in a democracy, the bar is evenhigher. Democracy means citizenshave a voice and a vote in how theirlives are governed. As with every


1944, the Nazis executed him for hisprophetic words that continued to in-spire his fellow Danes. Surveyingthe evil and tragedy looming largeon every side, he asked, “What istherefore the task of the preacher to-day? Shall I answer: faith, hope, andlove? That sounds beautiful. But Iwould rather say: courage. … Forwhat we as [a church] lack is mostassuredly not psychology or litera-ture. We lack a holy rage.”2

The church must never lose her ca-pacity for “holy rage.” For, she doesnot exist mindlessly to bless the stateand its aims. Rather, it is her job tohold forth a vision of love and jus-tice that comes from God alone. In aworld where despots are quick tomistake themselves for gods, thechurch embodies a revolutionaryconfession. Amid an ever-changingpolitical landscape, she fixes hereyes heavenward and prays, “Forthine is the kingdom and the powerand the glory, forever. Amen!”

Robert B. Setzer Jr. is pastor of FirstBaptist Church, Macon, Georgia.

1. The actual phrase first appears ina letter from Thomas Jefferson to theBaptists of Danbury in 1802. SeeHenlee Barnette, Introducing Chris-tian Ethics (Nashville: Broadmanand Holman, 1961), 169.

2. Allan Boesak, “The Reuben Op-tion” in A Chorus of Witnesses, ed.Thomas G. Long and Cornelius

Questions Jesus Asked What Do You Owe the Government?

other resource held in trust fromGod, careful stewardship is required.Christians should be informed aboutthe pressing issues of the day andshould enter into public debate withan articulate and civil voice. Whenelections are held, they should votetheir convictions.

Surely the Lord who said we wouldbe held accountable for every “idleword spoken” (Mt 12:36, KJV), willhold us accountable for every idlevote cast and not cast.

For some Christians, responsibleparticipation in government mayalso mean holding elected or ap-pointed office. A conscientiousChristian in public service can be ablessing to many.

Finally, a constructive Christian citi-zenship means maintaining a vital,alternative community called thechurch. The most important servicethe church can provide the state is tobe faithful in her witness to God’sconsuming claim upon the world.The church lives out of a differentvision than the culture at large, forthe church is to be that people wholive to proclaim and embody theconfession Jesus Christ alone isLord!

Kaj Munk was a pastor of a churchin Denmark. His sense of Christianvocation led him to enter the Dutchresistance to Hitler. In January of

Plantinga Jr. (Grand Rapids: WilliamB. Eerdmans Publishing Company,1994), 137-38.

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