Out of the Booth and On the Road to Discipleship

After that He went out and noticed a tax collector named Levi sitting in the tax booth, and He said to him, "Follow Me." (Luke 5:27 NASB)

The Roman Empire was an expensive operation, funded by tax dollars. The Jewish people had been conquered by Rome and were an occupied nation. As a result, they were forced to pay taxes to Rome. It was bad enough to pay taxes, but when fellow Jews served as tax collectors for the Romans, it was worse. The tax collectors worked in small booths or offices by the side of the road with Roman soldiers nearby to help enforce the tax they charged. The tax collector was responsible for collecting a certain amount of tax, regardless of the number of people he saw. Anything extra he collected was his to keep. Not surprisingly, the practice of charging a higher rate of tax was very common. Tax collecting was usually quite a lucrative business, and the tax collectors, who had gained their wealth at the expense of their fellow countrymen, were considered traitors, and treated as outcasts. No one who was "anyone" spent time socially with tax collectors. 

With that as background, consider what Jesus did next. He left the place where He had been teaching and started out. Along the way, He came to the tax booth where Matthew was working. We don't know if there was a ruckus, but the scene there captured Jesus's attention, and He noticed Matthew. This noticing, theaomai, is more than just seeing with His eyes. Jesus saw Matthew with perception and understanding, and in His look, Jesus could see that Matthew was ready for a change. Perhaps he saw shame, frustration, guilt, hurt. Whatever Jesus saw, he perceived it correctly. Jesus spoke two words, "Follow Me", and Matthew was out of the booth and on the road. 

Today, pray that He will see us and our loved ones with that same clarity of vision and that He will speak the words of release and freedom that are most needed. Pray that when Jesus calls us and our loved ones to leave the life we've embraced for the road of discipleship, there will be no hesitation, just instant obedience

Called to a higher standard: leaning to be a leader

I'm not crazy about being a leader, although leadership positions have been thrust upon me repeatedly over the years. It's not that I mind doing the work at all. The problem with leadership is that the leaders have to set the example. There's something about knowing your life is up for inspection that's hard to me.  I probably need the accountability, so it's actually a good thing.  It's dIfficult to think that people are looking to me for an example, and yet, I want to set the best one I can. I'm not sure if I would do anything differently if I weren't such a public figure, but it definitely makes me more aware of my behavior.

This afternoon, the whole topic of leaders who are not quite so concerned about setting the example came up. There was a situation where a leader wanted special treatment, and several of us were shocked. The phrase that was used was "leaders are called to a higher standard".  It's not exactly what James 3:1 says, but it certainly catches the spirit of the verse.  

"Let not many of you become teachers, my brethren, knowing that as such we will incur a stricter judgment." (James 3:1 NASB)

I've spent some time this evening considering what makes a good leader. The Leader I follow seems the best example of leadership, so I turned to Isaiah's description. 

"Surely our griefs He Himself bore, And our sorrows He carried; Yet we ourselves esteemed Him stricken, Smitten of God, and afflicted. But He was pierced through for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; The chastening for our well-being fell upon Him, And by His scourging we are healed." (Isaiah 53:4, 5 NASB)

There's nothing about special privilege in these verses is there?  

"Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into His hands, and that He had come forth from God and was going back to God, got up from supper, and laid aside His garments; and taking a towel, He girded Himself. Then He poured water into the basin, and began to wash the disciples' feet and to wipe them with the towel with which He was girded. For I gave you an example that you also should do as I did to you." (John 13:3-5, 15 NASB)

This passage in John is the Gold Standard for leadership. Jesus clearly knew Who He was and Whose He was. He knew where He was headed and how He would  get there. Despite all that, Jesus gathered up the wash basin and towel and started washing feet. He set the example for humility and for selfless service, and He instructed His disciples to do the same. 

This servant leader is the kind of leader Jesus expected His followers to be, and, as best I can tell, it is not optional. Every one of us is called to be a servant 

-leader who sets an example of selflessness, seeks to serve rather than be served, and who does the most menial task with love. 

Called to a higher standard? No doubt! We ARE called to a higher standard, and it's the standard of a Suffering Servant whose every action was governed by His great love for us. Is that how you serve those around you? If not, maybe it's time to don your apron, grab your basin, and start washing. 

In the midst of the crowd

But not finding any way to bring him in because of the crowd, they went up on the roof and let him down through the tiles with his stretcher, right in the center, in front of Jesus. (Luke 5:19 NASB)

My copy of the NASB uses the phrase "right in the center". Later editions have changed it to read "in the middle" or "in the midst" of the crowd. When the four men lowered that stretcher, they were right in the middle of the crowd, but also right in front of Jesus. 

I tend to think of being in the middle of the crowd as a bad place and a place to hide from Jesus. Instead, it was the place this paralyzed man met Jesus face to face and was forever transformed. In fact, the entire crowd was transformed by the power of the paralytic's transformation!

Today, pray that, even if our loved ones (or we ourselves, for that matter) hide in the midst of the crowd, they will come face to face with Jesus and be transformed into the godly man or woman they were created to be. 

Delighting in Doing

In the fictional village of Mitford, the mayor's slogan is "We take care of our own."  In the very real town of Blue Springs, it is understood that "We take care of each other."  We aren't perfect at it, but we try. In a way, that's the "motto" of the body of Christ, too. I guess it would be more accurate for the body of Christ to say, "We see a need and we meet it."  

I've recently been involved with a group of young ladies who are doing just that. They have seen a need and are meeting it. To avoid spoiling their surprise, that's all the details you get for now. Here's what's amazing about their effort. Once the need was known, everyone has pitched in to help. One young woman is good with lists. She made a list of the needs. Others are good with meeting one need or another on the list. Each has risen to the occasion to meet the need that most fits their abilities. Over the course of the last few days, what has happened is nothing short of miraculous. Almost every need is already met, and in a lovely, coordinated way. 

It's not quite time to "spring the surprise" but these ladies are so excited about being a part of what God is doing that they can hardly wait. In fact, I can hardly wait with them. They are delighting in doing, and it is a lovely thing to watch. 

Several verses have come to mind as I have watched God at work, but one has seemed especially pertinent. It's from the description of the virtuous woman...  "She extends her hand to the poor, And she stretches out her hands to the needy." (Proverbs 31:13, 20 NASB).  That's what these young women are doing. Here's what's really exciting for me. These ladies are so focused on their task that they may not have realized they are doing something that comes with promised blessings. The last part of Proverbs 31 tells us the outcome for the virtuous woman, this helper of the poor and needy. 

"Her children arise up, and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praiseth her. Give her of the fruit of her hands; and let her own works praise her in the gates." (Proverbs 31:28, 31 KJV)

What wonderful promises! Nothing that has been done was with the expectation of praise or accolades.   One day, though, they will receive them, and it will be icing on the cake. For now, the joy of service is all the reward they want.

They've seen a need and they've met it, and had a glorious time doing it. Maybe you should find a need to meet, too!

Remarkable things

They were all struck with astonishment and began glorifying God; and they were filled with fear, saying, "We have seen remarkable things today." (Luke 5:26 NASB)

Their statement, "We have seen remarkable things" seems like the height of understatement doesn't it? Four men came in from the roof door carrying a stretcher on which lay a paralyzed man. Jesus spoke a few words and up he came, grabbed the stretcher and headed out, praising God all the way out the door. There's no doubt it was, at the least, remarkable. The word used here and translated as "remarkable things" is paradoxos and indicates that what they had seen was not at all what they had expected. Jesus was not at all what, nor who, they had expected, either. 

We all come to Jesus with preconceived ideas gathered everywhere from childhood Sunday School classes to popular media. It is only when we meet Him for ourselves, experience His cleansing power first hand, that we truly understand Who He is     

Today, pray that we and our loved ones will abandon those preconceived notions about Jesus and come to Him as a little child. Pray that we will see Him as He really is - Suffering Servant, Spotless Lamb, Coming King, Great Physician - and glorify God because of the change that is wrought.  

The Struggle With Words

The deal with guest bloggers is generally that they write for each other. When Dr. Leap and I talked about guest blogs, it included me doing one for him. I fully intended to do that, and had a topic in mind from the start. I knew part of the words I would write. 

Usually, it takes me about 30-45 minutes in the morning and about that much time in the evenings. If I have a starting point, I just start typing and quit when I get to the end. The post with the most-ever views was written with great passion in under 15 minutes. I usually scan it for typos and hit post. As crazy as it sounds, much of the time the first time I've actually read what I've written is after it posts. I know that's a little risky, but it's how I do it. 

Well, that's how I usually do it. The blog for Dr. Leap has been an insurmountable task for me. I couldn't seem to get it right. Yesterday, I worked on it all afternoon. I sent countless drafts to my sister, who kept texting back, "This sounds nothing like you. Why are you writing like this?"  She was right. Dr. Leap is a marvelously insightful writer with a beautiful and eloquent style. I wish I wrote like him. It turns out, I can write like him, but it doesn't fit at all with what I needed to say. Every draft I sent to my sister got nearly same reply. "Better but not quite there."

This morning, I sat down with the article and started praying. "Lord, You gave me this topic. What's wrong with this article?" The answer I heard in my heart was instant and painful. What was wrong was that I was trying to please Dr. Leap and his readers rather than the Holy One. Well, no wonder I couldn't write!  I invited The Lord to fix it, and in just a few minutes the article was on its way. 

The devotional this morning immediately followed. When I wrote, "For today, pray that we and our loved ones would be filled with such a holy fear that our greatest desire is to please Our Lord, that One who is the Lover of our soul," it was exactly what I needed to hear.  It was quick confirmation that my struggle with the article was all about pride and a jumble of priorities, but it seems we've got it straightened out now. 

I sent this final draft to my sister, who replied, "That one is it!!" and I think she's right. When Dr. Leap posts it, I will blog the link so you can read what God has given. I hope He speaks to you through what has been written, just as He did to me. 

Furnished With Fear

They were all struck with astonishment and began glorifying God; and they were filled with fear, saying, "We have seen remarkable things today." (Luke 5:26 NASB)

Filled with fear. It seems unexpected to be seized by astonishment, glorifying God and filled with fear all at the same time, but that's how it was. Let's look at the word translated as fear first. "phobos" is the Greek word here and is used 47 times in Scripture. It is used here to indicate not only a fear of God's power but also a fear of displeasing Him. It is a fear of displeasing God that is greater than our fear of being in the presence of the Holy One.  We need more of that fear, don't we?

This phrase "filled with fear" uses the Greek word "pimplēmi", translated as fear. It can also mean "furnished". 

Selah. Pause and consider that idea of being furnished with the fear of displeasing God. 

What difference would it make in our attitudes and actions if we were furnished with the fear of displeasing God? Would you do anything differently? 

For today, pray that we and our loved ones would be filled with such a holy fear that our greatest desire is to please Our Lord, that one who is the Lover of our soul.