Identity: Contentment through self-awareness

John 3: 22-36

John the Baptist enjoyed a successful ministry preaching a baptism of repentance. His followers were, therefore, quite surprised when John demonstrated little enthusiasm for defending his ministry from that upstart cousin of his, Jesus. The response that John gave provides us with insights into a unique character, one whose identity was secure and from that, one who might be described as content.

What made this man secure? There is evidence in this dialogue that he knew himself well and accepted his place in life. In verse 27 of John 3 the baptizer claims that “A man can receive only what is given him from heaven.” Self-awareness is one half of the equation. Knowing oneself requires an honest transparency with regard to one’s strengths and weaknesses. True, some people are so emotionally wounded this degree of self-awareness appears unlikely. The secret of missionary training, for example, is to assist a trainee to achieve this degree of self-awareness. Only in this light will hidden attitudes and biases be addressed so he or she can effectively adapt to a new culture. Insecurity is a sure sign of ineffective cross-cultural sojourning.

The other half of the equation is awareness of God’s supernatural and natural gifting. It is one thing to have a true picture of yourself, it is quite another to know your place in God’s scheme of things. The baptizer was a person who knew his calling. He was not the Holy One, merely the announcer. John, not blinded by ambition, accepted his place and enjoyed his ministry as the Elijah announcing the coming of the Messiah.

Why contentment? The attitudes John brings to his life and ministry facilitated a deep sense of satisfaction with who he was and what he did in life. Verse 29 speaks of this deep joy present in the life of this man. He says that this joy is his and is now complete. Complete joy is an excellent description of the contented soul. John knew contentment, and it came through self-awareness and acceptance of his place in life.

The Temptation of Expedience

The previous temptations directed toward Jesus probed his sense of identity. The third temptation in this series might also be described as a temptation of identity: to be a reigning king. The devil took Jesus to a view point where he could see the kingdoms and their splendour and was told they would belong to Jesus were he to bow and worship the prince of this world.

Establishing the Kingdom of God on earth was the mission before Jesus. From this first indication of the centrality of this purpose Jesus became singularly focused on establishing his kingdom. He began preaching about the Kingdom of God. Similarly to John the Baptist both preached a message of repentance, but Jesus the Messiah added one more element, the Kingdom of God, for it is near (Matthew 3:2, Mark 1:15). Few public teaching opportunities lacked a clear glimpse of the Kingdom of God. We find this in the Sermon on the Mount, “for theirs will be the Kingdom of Heaven.”* We encounter the phrase, “the kingdom… is like” as an introduction to most of the parables (Matthew 13). Of course, the Lord’s claim to kingship was the point of acrimony that Pilate could not avoid and the Jewish leaders backed him against a wall and forced him to release Barabbas instead of Jesus (John 18 and 19). The cross, the redemption of fallen man, was instrumental in establishing the kingdom. This pivotal event is what makes it possible for men and women to enter the kingdom (John 3 esp. vss. 3 & 5).

Yet, the third temptation wasn’t simply about establishing the Lord’s identity as reigning king. It was really about expediency – efficiency, the short cut to fulfill the plan of God and bring his kingdom into reality. Simply bow and worship the usurper – and Jesus could avoid the long, arduous road to fulfilling the plan of God. I doubt the devil knew in detail what the plan of God included. The devil was tempting the humanity of Christ to fast track the whole affair.

Most of the trouble we find ourselves in comes to us because we tried to fast track a prolonged process. A falsified résumé eventually catches up and that enviable position will be gone, a long with your reputation. The get rich quick scheme leads into deception and a very bad choice may well lead to financial loss, and worse, hard earned integrity evaporates overnight. A friend who excelled as a financial planner was deceived by such a scheme, against his better judgment and because the claims appeared too good to ignore, he backed a financial plan that cleaned his bank account, his clients’ accounts and led to the loss of his license. Soon after, his family fell apart and sadly, the man was left with nothing. The short cut usually proves very costly in the long run.

* Note: Matthew uses the typical Jewish circumlocution respecting the name of God by substituting Kingdom of Heaven(s), and Matthew uses the terms interchangeably while narrating the story of the rich young ruler in Matthew 19 (esp. vss. 23 and 24).

The Temptation of Identity: Sensationalism

Jesus was again faced with a temptation to prove his identity.  The devil took Jesus to the top of the temple and tried to get Jesus to see if God would save him from hurtling down to the ground if he jumped.  He even quoted scripture to make it sound good and plausible.  Though Jesus responded by saying that we are forbidden from putting God to the test, we should not be misled by this answer into believing that this was the nature of the temptation.  Jesus resisted the temptation by saying he would not put God to the test, but the temptation was more sinister.

Once again the issue of the Identity of Jesus Christ was at the heart of this temptation.  If you really are the Son of God, you should be able to do something spectacular and sensational and everyone will then follow you.  With a marvelous show of power and might, the throngs hanging around the temple would spread the word that he was the Son of God.  Everyone loves a good show.  Such an event would surely put this act up there as a top attraction.  The problem is that a demonstration of the spectacular is not an earth shattering evidence of divinity.  This was not God’s way.  Jesus would not yield to the temptation to be sensational. 

It is interesting how Jesus saw through the subterfuge understanding that the principle at stake was really faithlessness.  The act of throwing himself off the temple was not about proving his identity but putting God to the test.  Making God prove himself is an act of faithlessness.  In Massah and Meribah the people of Israel complained over the lack of water, but the demand to produce water arose out of the question “is the Lord among us or not?” (Exodus 17:7).  This was the antecedent referred to in Deuteronomy 6:16, a portion of which Jesus quoted the devil saying we should not put God to the test.

The temptation to be sensational toils within our hearts and we justify this in part out of a love and zeal for God.  We are tempted to identify ourselves as part of the winning crowd, children of God, co-inheritors of the kingdom of God.  If we are followers of the all powerful creator of the universe, then surely we should be able to conjure up some remarkable proofs of his presence and power among us!  When John Wimber wrote his provocative book “Signs and Wonders” people assumed that evidence of the power of God was he missing element of effective evangelism.  Yet, embarking on this path sets a president that causes me a little anxiety.  By calling on God to perform miracles to convince unbelieving of the truth of his word, are we not simply yielding to the temptation of sensationalism?  Are we not just putting God to the test? 

I believe some people need to see miracles to become believers.  I have heard many testimonies of people yielding their hearts to God after being convinced by a miracle that He was real and at work in the world.  Demanding such a sign, however, was not an evidence of faithfulness, but weakness.  This, the Apostle Paul, makes clear in 1 Corinthians.

For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not know him, God was pleased through the foolishness of what was preached to save those who believe. (22) Jews demand miraculous signs and Greeks look for wisdom, (23) but we preach Christ crucified: a stumbling-block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles.   1 Corinthians 1:21-23 

In the same way that it is a vain effort to convince the “wise” through rational argument it is also useless to convince the unbelieving through sensational signs and wonders.  From this we learn not to play the role of God.  We need to let God do things his way, and surrender our drive to find a short cut.  Jesus chose the right path.  It took him around the Galilee for three years and eventually ended on the cross.  Christ crucified: a stumbling block both to those who demand signs and to those who demand wisdom.

Temptations of Identity: Relevance

Last week I was tempted to ditch my second Monday morning musing of the year, and so inclined, I spent the morning in desperate preparation for a trip to Colombia. Now after a week of sojourning overseas I eagerly return to pen a few thoughts about temptations of identity.

As the taxi sped through the night, Wilson my energetic and companionable driver spent more time glancing at his fare through the rearview mirror than at the curves of the winding highway leading into Medellín. “I would like to live in Canada,” piped up Wilson, immediately upon hearing of the point of my departure. I responded by saying that many immigrants to Canada find the adjustments difficult and I have known those who were deeply dissatisfied with their life in the Northern exile. Wilson, incredulous and defiant, inquired about the reasons for such apparent inexplicable behaviour. I told him it was a problem of identity. Those who arrived in Canada and falsely believed that the path to cultural assimilation was through self-denial despising their culture of origin, rarely find peace of mind. They spend their emotional energy in a vain attempt to deny who they are. Cultural peace of mind comes eventually, but more quickly to those who are not tempted to be something they are not.

The first three temptations of Jesus were primarily temptation of identity. Yesterday I heard another sermon on the temptations of Jesus. I enjoyed the monologue and thought the outline was quite helpful, but pondered the sense of unease that our youthful pastor was pushing the text to applications that departed didn’t really look like the kind of temptations that Jesus faced. Matthew tells us how the Devil came to Jesus and said, “if you are the Son of God…” no less than two out of three times. The first point emerging from our weekly descant at the trough of spiritual nurture was the temptation to take short cuts. I was left with the conviction that this was more likely the theme or main point of the whole passage rather than just the first temptation. Jesus was clearly initiating his ministry following the baptism and announcement by John the baptizer. The Spirit led him into the wilderness and he was tempted to take a road never intended. The Devil was tempting Jesus to achieve the purpose of his mission by taking short cuts.

The first two temptations were a temptation to authenticate who he was and to quickly establish his public identity. “If you are the Son of God…” show us quickly! “If you are the Son of God…” do something that will make the world believe who you really are! Turning stones into bread would hardly be any different than multiplying loaves. None will dispute that the act of turning a stone into bread is sinful or by itself tempting. The problem was taking a short cut to become and to be accepted for who he really was. If Jesus did something so relevant as to feed the hungry from an abundant supply of stone, people would embrace him and receive him as a true saviour. Henri Nouwen makes this association in his little tome In the Name of Jesus.

I am frequently tempted to turn Jesus into something more relevant than the redeemer of lost souls. When I tell people about what God means to me, I am tempted to do so in ways that I think the spiritually disinclined might appreciate. “Finding Jesus gave meaning to my life.” “God helped me to kick destructive habits that were destroying my life.” “God gave me a higher calling to help this needy world.” Such feeble attempts try to make Jesus more relevant.

The Church is not isolated from this temptation either. As the Church is challenged to become missional she is tempted to do so in relevant ways. The fastest growing area of “missions” is Relief and Development, but growth in cross-cultural evangelism and church planting wane. Can we really say that this is merely a rebound correction of past oversights of the calling of the Church to engage in integral ministry? Personally, I am glad that we have returned to a more wholistic view of Christian ministry, but how much of our motivation is derived from a temptation to be relevant to a society that places little value on the spiritual needs of people, and some how, legitimizes ministry on the basis of its relevance. If you doubt by observation, inquiry about how your church or denomination is distributing its missionary budget?

Individuals do not escape this problem. Some temptations are both more subtle and dangerous. These are the temptations to be or become something we are not, or to do so in a way that was never intended. The temptation to achieve an identity that is “relevant” also applies to the individual. This is particularly true for those who serve God as a profession. People who serve God are swayed by the temptation to be relevant in many ways. “I’m doing Christian ministry that actually impacts people’s lives.” During my sojourn as a pastor, during a week moment in my life I recall thinking that the only relevant service I performed as a pastor was to sign government forms requiring a professional “guarantor.”

In what ways are you tempted to identify yourself in ways that make you or God appear relevant?

Monday Morning Musings

Certain days of the week lend themselves to a larger dose of pondering and meditation. After a weekend and especially following a thoughtful experience of the divine from the previous day, a gathering of thoughts and the cleansing filter of a keyboard lead to insights which are occasionally worth keeping. The purpose of this blog is to capture some of these Monday morning musings.

This past week was given to much contemplation regarding the end of a year. It has not been a particularly bad year, but with a life in transition and some uncertainty about the future, one is prone to give thought to such issues as, where is life taking me, what are the values of lasting significance, and what goals are worth pursuing?

My thoughts revisit the need for gratitude. As a state of thankfulness, gratitude is the precursor of many virtues. I believe it is not listed as a fruit of the Spirit, simply because it is an attitude that is made visible through actions of positive character. For example, what joy can there be without its accompanying attitude of thankfulness? From reciprocated love springs gratitude.

So, it is a word that the Apostle Paul uses in combinations of prayer, petition, singing and worship. Thankfulness is to be a common attitude that shines in our lives. In everything, give thanks (1 Thess. 5:18). Furthermore, the lack of gratitude leads to despair and despondent thoughts (futile thinking) and eventually we find our pathos has become dark and depressed. For an ungrateful heart has no reason to look to the divine and give glory to God our creator. As the Apostle Paul stated, “for although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened” (Romans 1:21).

I remind myself never to doubt that there is much for which I can be thankful. Even in our darkest moments a simple exercise of thanksgiving can turn our perspective around. It reminds us that we are not mere pawns of fate. We have and we are because God loves us and we are never so low as to not have a reason to be grateful. This exercise cheers the soul and gives us hope in the grace and love of God.

Bryn