Category: Jesus

“Now Moses was a very humble man, more humble than anyone on the face of the earth.” (Numbers 12:3) Several have proposed that someone besides Moses wrote this verse since no humble man would ever write such a thing. But there is no conflict between true humility and telling the truth. Moses might have asked, “Are you sure?” but if God said, “Moses, you are the most humble man on earth”, there was no need to argue. God sees perfectly.

While he is an example, I can’t go to Moses for humility. The law God gave him exposed my sin… most of which stemmed from self-centered pride. Even if I’m dressed in ‘humble clothes’ and use ‘humble talk’, God is not fooled.

For true humility I must go to the one Moses predicted would come after him. Jesus also declared himself humble and we know he told the truth. “Come to me all who are weary or burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

But the ‘wise’ did not run to Jesus. Those that thought they could ‘see’ did not go to the fountain of life. Those that thought they were ‘healthy’ did not visit the Great Physician. What’s the difference today? Not a thing. The journey to the source of humility involves humbling one’s self, but ‘self’ makes it hard to see the need. So Jesus hung out with sinners. The poor and the sick sought him out. He taught, “Blessed are the poor in spirit…”, but few had ears to hear.

The world bellows, “Go higher and higher!” The Holy Spirit whispers, “Go lower and lower… follow the Son.” “Who being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing…” I’ve yet to see the course offered: “Becoming Nothing in Your World.” This is the secret: “Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time.”

Of course, only God’s grace will bring the humility of Christ. We are to humble ourselves, but God will form the sweet attitude of Jesus in his children. He alone knows us. He knows the self-sufficiency we’ve embraced and our misguided piety. He also knows true humility most reflects who he is… and pride most reflects who he is not. “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.” I want to pray, “Lord, I can never be humble like Jesus by my own effort. But I can empty myself and stand before you. You are the miracle worker and with you all things are possible. Would you form the humility of Christ in me? And would you give me the grace to trust you completely?”

“For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.” John 1:17

As Jesus walked the earth, his world was all wrapped up in his Father. Jesus received pleasure and nourishment from his Father, not man. “My food is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work.” When we see the way Jesus served, loved, taught, warned, healed, and sacrificed we see a picture of the Heavenly Father who was (and still is) misrepresented by so many. “I can do only what I see my Father doing, because whatever the Father does the Son also does.” Men would argue with Jesus and try to trap him or make him look bad, but Jesus would say, “This just proves that you really don’t know my Father.”

The secret for Jesus’ constant focus was this powerful truth: “The Father is in me, and I am in the Father. It is the Father living in me who is doing his work.” Who is man compared to God? Jesus remembered men were confused and separated from God. He knew he was sent to make things right, to bring man back to God. So when people opposed him, Jesus was not deterred. When one of his best friends, out of genuine concern, tried to tell him he should not be killed, Jesus rebuked him. “Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; you do not have in mind the things of God, but the things of men.” Neither did flattery impact Jesus. “I do not accept praise from man.” Once people wanted to make Jesus king, but it was the wrong type of king… so Jesus simply left them.

Jesus’ world depended totally on his Father. “I cannot do anything by myself.” “I do nothing on my own.” “I do exactly what my Father says.” “My teaching is not my own, it comes from him who sent me.” Love, trust, purpose, fruit… everything was tied to the Father in Heaven.

We may say, “Well, of course, that was Jesus… He is God.” But was not Jesus human? Did he not face all the temptations we face? Did he not have the same demands on time and energy? Did he not have to empty himself before he could live the way he lived? None of us are to that place of surrender, humility, and obedience that we would claim to be walking on earth exactly as Jesus did, but we also know God desires to mold us into the image of the Son. Jesus tells us the path: “Just as the living Father sent me and I live because of the Father, so the one who feeds on me will live because of me.” (Jn 6:57) As Jesus’ world was all wrapped up in his Father, so our world must be all wrapped up in Jesus. This is foolishness to people who don’t know Christ, but that simply means things have not changed. Jesus was called a fool… and worse. He predicted the same criticism for his followers. But since Jesus’ satisfaction rested not in man’s opinion, he was not overcome with worry or fear or poor self-esteem.

Our secret for success should be this powerful truth from our Savior: “I am in you and you are in me.” Maybe we could remember this… one day at a time.

“Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed.” (Mark 1:35)

Two of us that helped with David’s funeral went to see the North family Sunday. I can’t imagine the emotional roller coaster the first week after the loss of a child. Pam and Chris shared some of this journey with a firm knowledge that they could not make it without the supernatural peace God gives his children… that peace that passes all understanding. In the conversation, I made a comment that sounded a little strange to my own ears. “The one thing I was most glad about when sharing at the funeral was that I had cancer.” Chris seemed to know what I meant as he replied, “Yeah… you spoke with authority.”

Of course I am not an authority on cancer, but when you speak from experience, there is an added dimension. I would much rather listen to parenting advice from a husband and wife who love each other and have successfully raised children than from a self-proclaimed expert with a dozen degrees and a hundred theories… but no children.

“When Jesus had finished saying these things, the crowds were amazed at his teaching, because he taught as one who had authority, and not as their teachers of the law.” The people noticed something different about this Rabbi from Nazareth. His words went beyond ‘book knowledge.’ Jesus walked humbly with the authority his Father gave him and he felt no need to justify himself. “By what authority are you doing these things?” his critics asked. “I will ask you one question. Answer me, and I will tell you by what authority I am doing these things. John’s baptism – was it from heaven, or from men? Tell me!” Even his questions had authority. No one wanted to answer.

As Jesus intercedes for us I wonder sometimes if he prays like this: “Thank you, Father, for letting me suffer on earth… for I understand suffering. Thank you, Father, for letting the devil tempt me on earth… for I understand temptation. Thank you, Father, for letting me, as the great High Priest, intercede from a position of authority. And now I pray for those who are suffering and for those who are being tempted… deliver them O God.”

“Since the children have flesh and blood, he too shared in their humanity so that by his death he might destroy him who holds the power of death – that is, the devil – and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death. For surely it is not angels he helps, but Abraham’s descendants. For this reason he had to be made like his brothers in every way, in order that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in service to God, and that he might make atonement for the sins of the people. Because he himself suffered when he was tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted.” Hebrews 2:14-18

“This is why I speak to them in parables: ‘Though seeing, they do not see; though hearing they do not hear or understand.’ In them is fulfilled the prophesy of Isaiah: ‘You will be ever hearing but never understanding; you will be ever seeing but never perceiving. For this people’s heart has become calloused; they hardly hear with their ears, and they have closed their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts and turn, and I would heal them.’” Matthew 13:13-15

What an interesting reason for Jesus to tell stories! So if he had come in our time, who would understand?

“I would! I’ve gone to church all my life. I’ve been to Christian schools. I have acquired a Master’s degree and have a sharp mind. I’ve dedicated myself to Christian education. And, perhaps most importantly, if I really want something, I usually get it. I know how to win and rarely do I fail.”

If I made this argument to prove that I would be quite adept at understanding the stories of Jesus, he just might say, “But you are really deaf and blind.”

The religious of Jesus’ day, who knew much more Scripture than I’ll ever know, were ignorant about the Kingdom the Rabbi proclaimed. They were ‘first’ in their community, but Jesus declared “the first will be last.” Even the members of his own physical family did not seem to have advantage. In his mother’s and brothers’ hearing, Jesus asked, “Who is my mother and who are my brothers?” Pointing to his disciples, he said, “My mother and brothers are those who hear God’s word and put it into practice.”

And if we think the closest disciples had it easy, these words should correct us: “Are you still so dull?” “You of little faith, why are you talking among yourselves about having no bread? Do you still not understand?” “I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.”

Jesus knew there were educated Jews in Israel, but he chose the uneducated. Jesus knew there were wealthy who gave of their abundance, but he chose to praise the widow who contributed two mites. Jesus knew there were those who had memorized Scripture and were viewed as ‘spiritual’, but he chose to reveal himself to a woman with a sinful past at a well in Samaria.

If we look at these stories and keep in mind the parables, we might conclude that God Himself holds the key to who understands and who does not. So a little orphan in Kenya might be walking much closer with God than an experienced Christian teacher in America.

“Preposterous!” I argue. “The orphan knows nothing! How can you propose that a child in the midst of poverty can have more spiritual life than one who has studied as much as I have? I know the meaning of the parables! I would not have been like the disciples who often missed the main points. I’ve read and memorized the Word since I was a boy and now I miss no opportunity to hear the best and brightest speakers in Christianity. I often give to help the orphans in Africa, but I don’t think they are closer to God than I am.”

“When you read my Word, do you miss my tenderness toward the broken and my resistance to the proud? Have you noticed my value on weakness and my disdain for ‘human’ strength? The ‘Father to the fatherless’ can give understanding in an instant to whomever he chooses. You who think you know so much aren’t as wise as you suppose. People have not changed much since I walked the earth… and my Father has not changed at all. Hearing great speakers, sitting in beautiful buildings with the most advanced technology, and attending splendid conferences does not give you great advantage in his eyes. He wants you to know him… and to do that you must come straight to me. The person who does this in the poorest nation on earth is better off than the person who goes his own way in the richest.”

“I am sorry, Lord. You are right. I realize I sometimes struggle with pride. So what do I do?”

“Humble yourself, my child. Camp out at the Cross. It’s hard to be proud there.”

“At that time Jesus said, ‘I praise you Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children. Yes, Father, for this was your good pleasure. All things have been committed to me by my Father. No one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him. Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened and I will give you rest.’” Matthew 11:25-28

Some thought I was quite humble last week, writing about coaching without sharing that our tennis team won the state championship. Actually, that ‘journey’ was written before we played and got hung up in cyberspace. As we’re in the final week of school, this will probably be my last writing until after summer.

As a coach, I’ve sometimes struggled with the quest to win. Jesus said if you want to be first then you must be last. How does that work in athletics? Paul helps a little by writing: “If anyone competes as an athlete, he does not receive the victor’s crown unless he competes according to the rules.” (II Tim. 2:5) And “Do you not know that in a race all runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize.” (I Cor. 9:24) Of course, it is evident as you read these verses in context that Paul desires his readers to gain spiritual understanding, but I’ve concluded that in athletics God wants us to do our best, to represent Him, and to keep all things in His hands.

Caedmon’s Call sings this song: “The Lord is a Warrior; the Lord is mighty in battle. The Lord is a Warrior; Lord of Hosts is He.” Is this true? Did Jesus of Nazareth fight? On earth, was He concerned with winning? In Heaven, is Jesus looking for victory? How can the One who teaches us to turn the other cheek be described as a Mighty Warrior?

Jesus came to earth as God’s strategy to win the ultimate victory: “‘Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?’ The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.” (I Corinthians 15:55-57) Jesus knew He was in a battle on earth and He knows He will ride the white horse as the victorious King of Kings on the last day, but He only fights with His Father’s weapons… and so must we. Jesus said some harsh things to the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law in Israel, but He knew his enemy was not flesh and blood. His Father created all human beings; the devil captured all human beings with sin; and Jesus came to set the captives free. Jesus’ words often aimed to jolt a person the Father loved into the Truth that would bring freedom. Only those who have ears to hear and a heart to believe can be brought into the Kingdom of Light.

So Jesus was the greatest Warrior… and He still is. As His followers, we must hear and obey His unusual, but powerful strategies. The enemy hits us with meanness, anger, deceit, slander, and all types of evil. Our human nature says: “Strike back harder! Defend yourself vigorously! Bring out the faults of your accuser…” But these methods only result in Satan’s tighter grip. Man’s ways do not bring God’s victory. Jesus taught: “Love your enemy. Pray for those who do you wrong. Give a gift to someone who steals from you. Be merciful as your Father in Heaven is merciful. This will bring the victory that really counts.” It is only the courageous man or woman who is bold enough to live this way. “This meekness seems like weakness! I will look like a fool! What about justice?” All the natural questions arise as we find ourselves in difficult spots, but Jesus simply smiles and says, “Follow Me… I know the true enemy and I know how to win.”

“I saw in heaven another great and marvelous sign: seven angels with the seven last plagues – last, because with them God’s wrath is completed. And I saw what looked like a sea of glass mixed with fire and, standing beside the sea, those who had been victorious over the beast and his image and over the number of his name.” Revelation 15:1-2

“For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.” II Corinthians 10:3-5