October 30, 2005

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Living a Life of Faithfulness

Luke 12:40-48

            “[Jesus said,] ‘You also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.’  Peter asked, ‘Lord, are you telling this parable to us, or to everyone?’  The Lord answered, ‘Who then is the faithful and wise manager, whom the master puts in charge of his servants to give them their food allowance at the proper time?  It will be good for that servant whom the master finds doing so when he returns.  I tell you the truth, he will put him in charge of all his possessions.  But suppose the servant says to himself, “My master is taking a long time in coming,” and he then begins to beat the menservants and maidservants and to eat and drink and get drunk.  The master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he is not aware of.  He will cut him to pieces and assign him a place with the unbelievers.  That servant who knows his master’s will and does not get ready or does not do what his master wants will be beaten with many blows.  But the one who does not know and does things deserving punishment will be beaten with few blows.  From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked” (Luke 12:40-48). 

            Newsweek (11/19/90) ran an article titled “Letters in the Sand.”  It was a collection of letters written by military personnel to family and friends in the States during the Gulf War.  One was a letter by Marine Corporal Preston Coffer, who wrote to a friend saying: “We are talking about Marines, not the Boy Scouts.  We all joined the service knowing full well what might be expected of us.”  He signed off with the Marine motto, Semper Fi, Latin for “always faithful.”  The Bible says, “Now it is required that those who have been given a trust must prove faithful”  (1 Corinthians 4:2).  In the parable we have just read, Jesus asks the question: “Who then is the faithful and wise manager?”  As Christians, what is expected of us, and what does it mean to be faithful to Christ? 

            The interesting thing is that the servant, or manager, in the story considers himself to be a member of the Master’s household, even when his lifestyle does not match his claim.  He calls the owner “master.”  But he does not act like one of the master’s servants.  He neglects his responsibilities.  It is implied that the man takes the food and drink that he should have given to his fellow servants and consumes them himself.  He becomes engrossed with satisfying his appetites and living for pleasure.  He is distracted from the task the Master gave him to do.  Not only that, but he begins to mistreat his fellow servants.  He seems to have forgotten the responsibility that he has been given and lives only for himself.  He is living as though his master will never return and that he alone is in charge of the entire estate. 

            Is this not a perfect description of the condition of human beings living in today’s world?  They have the responsibility to care for the world and others, but they are self-centered and live only for their own pleasures.  They do not consider themselves to be lost or outside of God’s kingdom.  They will even say they belong to God.  But they do not act like a servant of God.  They have neglected their responsibilities and become engrossed with satisfying their own desires.  They have forgotten the responsibilities that God has given them.  They even mistreat their fellow servants.  They live only for themselves and have forgotten that the Master is coming back, and in so doing, they do not meet Jesus’ definition of faithfulness. 

            What are the messages of this parable?  I would suggest that the first message is this: Christ’s delay should cause watchfulness, not forgetfulness.  The problem we have is that the New Testament is filled with promises concerning Christ’s imminent return.  We read verses like: “The end of all things is near” (1 Peter 4:7).  Several times in the book of Revelation, Jesus says that he is coming soon (3:11; 22:7, 12, 20).  But it has been 2000 years now and he still has not come.  People are saying what the man said in the parable: “My master is taking a long time in coming.”  And the thought in the back of their mind is: “Maybe he isn’t coming at all.”  Peter predicted this when he wrote: “First of all, you must understand that in the last days scoffers will come, scoffing and following their own evil desires.  They will say, ‘Where is this ‘coming’ he promised?  Ever since our fathers died, everything goes on as it has since the beginning of creation’” (2 Peter 3:3-4).  After the realization that the Lord’s coming is delayed, their mind follows with other thoughts: “It’s party time!  There is not going to be a second coming.  There is not going to be a judgment, and there is no one to answer to.  Maybe the Owner does not even exist.  I’m on my own, therefore I can do as I please.” 

            The man in the parable thought that his master’s delay meant that he would not return.  We don’t want to make the same mistake.  And it is not only unbelievers who do this.  One of the biggest sins of the church today is forgetfulness.  It shows itself in the sin of apathy.  We get busy going about all the things of life and forget what our priorities should be.  We forget the responsibility and work the Master has given us to do. 

            Why are we here?  We are here to make a difference in the world.  We are here to use the talents God has given us.  We are here to produce fruit for the Master.  We are here to serve others.  He has left us with a great responsibility.  When we live only for ourselves and do as we please, we are living out this parable and becoming like the unfaithful servant.  It may be that we are not doing anything that is all that wrong, but that we are just not doing the things we were asked to do. 

            It sometimes amazes me that Christians are so committed to sports teams for their children, music lessons, dance and other lessons and have so little commitment to the things that develop the spiritual lives of their children.  They are all good things, but why can’t we have the same commitment to the things that develop their spiritual lives — even if it means limiting some of these other things. 

            For adults, there seems to be time every day to watch TV, but we can’t find the time to be with God each day.  There is always time to read the paper, but no time to read the Word.  We are highly committed to work, but not to the work of the kingdom and reaching people for Christ.  We are committed to our friends, but not a small group where we can live in community with other Christians. 

            I remember one family, in another church I was serving, who drove several miles on Sunday morning so their son could develop his hockey skills.  They would not think of missing a practice or game even though they had to miss church all winter, and then get out of the habit altogether.  I thought to myself: “I am sure he will be a wonderful hockey player, but what kind of Christian will he be?  What kind of person will he be?”  I believe Christians are sometimes sucked in by a culture that has forgotten God.  The over-committed lives of many Christians is causing problems on two fronts: 1) They are not developing their spiritual lives.  2) They do not have the time to develop their family life.  This should not be.  You need to set limits.  Many children do not have time to be children, nor do they have quality time to spend with their parents as a family.  Please take the time to be a family.  Take walks, ride bikes, read together, play together.  If you want to develop the talents of your children, develop their spiritual talents.  Take them to the apartment ministry.  Take them to interchurch to hand out groceries to those in need.  Get them in the youth group, Sunday school, the Wednesday Connection children’s and youth program, and the children’s choir. 

            When our girls were small, we had family night each week.  We would make a fire, pop popcorn and read together the Chronicles of Narnia.  I would not trade those times for anything.  Neither would I trade the daily routine I have carved out for myself over the years, and continue to carve out, of having an uninterrupted time with God daily.  It has been the sustaining force of my life. 

            It may seem that Jesus Christ is delayed, but he is coming back.  The question is, will we be ready?  Will our priorities and the things we have invested in be pleasing to the Master?  Will we live only for ourselves, or will we do the will of the Master?  Will we have forgotten, or will we be faithful? 

            The second message of this parable is: Faithfulness is measured in terms of relationships.  What is the point of morality?  Is it that God wanted to make life difficult for us and saddle us with a lot of impossible rules just to see if we would obey?  No, the point of morality is that we are to be like God.  We are to model his character and emulate his heart.  If God is love, then we must be defined by love as well.  In the parable, the man’s faithfulness is measured in how he treats other people, and I am convinced that our faithfulness is measured in the same manner.  In Leviticus 19:2 it says, “You shall be holy, for I the LORD your God am holy.”  Again, the motivation for holiness is in God’s command to be like himself.  But the book of Leviticus goes on to define what holiness means, and it is all on how we relate to other people: “Do not show partiality or practice injustice; do not slander others; do not hate others; do not take vengeance or bear a grudge; love your neighbor as yourself.”  Holiness is always lived out in the arena of our relationships.  Like the Landowner in the parable, our Master wants to know how we are treating other people.  Holiness is about how you treat your wife, your husband, your parents, your children, your colleagues, or employees.  Holiness is not relevant unless it is played out in our relationships with others.  It is measured by how I treat others.  If I am living out a life of holiness it means that I forgive even my enemies and do good to them.  It means that I seek to respond with mercy.  It means that kindness, charity and love are spiritual markers in my life.  I do not dominate others or speak evil of them — even if I am telling the truth when I do so.  I don’t take vengeance and don’t try to get even.  I don’t bear grudges. 

            But it is not only the Old Testament that speaks of holiness in this way, the same is true in the New Testament.  The writer of Hebrews says, “Make every effort to live in peace with all men and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord.”  Then he says, “See to it that no one misses the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many” (Hebrews 12:14-15).  The New Testament virtue and vice lists, such as the one in Ephesians, says: “And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.  Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice.  Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you” (Ephesians 4:30-32).  All of these have to do with relationships with other people.

            John Wesley said, “We know of no holiness apart from social holiness.”  By that he meant a holiness that was lived out in social relationships.  It is a holiness that is lived in the context of community.  Wesley claimed that, “a person cannot go to heaven alone, you need friends.”  But in the history of the church we have often defined holiness in individualistic terms of what we do NOT do.  Our vice lists contained individualistic things like: “Do not play cards, wear jewelry, cut your hair, wear skirts above the knee, go to movies, do not drink, smoke or curse.”  This is privatized holiness which is far easier than the social holiness that the Bible speaks of.  True holiness is never individualistic, privatized or spiritualized.  It can never be “Just me and Jesus.”  It is always tangible holiness that is measured by the quality of our relationships.  It is not idealistic, it is practical and based on the reality of how we live with others.  Morality is always lived out in community, otherwise it has no relevance. 

            The Bible says, “Anyone who claims to be in the light but hates his brother is still in the darkness” (1 John 2:9).  Holiness is measured by our love for others, living in darkness is defined as unforgiveness.  The Bible says, “We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love our brothers.  Anyone who does not love remains in death” (1 John 3:14).  So again, in the New Testament, holiness is defined in relational terms.  I have heard people say things like, “The world would be a great place if it weren’t for the people in it.”  You can’t believe that and live a holy life.  You cannot resent people and love God.  The two are incompatible. 

            Jesus said that the first and greatest commandment is to love God, but that the second one was just like it: “Love your neighbor as yourself.”  We like the command to love God, but we are not so crazy about having to love our neighbors.  If you love God and don’t love others, you are keeping only half of the commandments.  The Pharisees prided themselves in keeping the commandments of God.  They were especially great at obeying the law concerning the Sabbath.  But they could not see that plotting to kill Jesus, and doing it on the Sabbath, was in violation of what God expected of them.  Do you write people off?  Are there people to whom you are not speaking?  Are you bearing a grudge?  Do you slander other people?  Do you treat other people well, or are you hard to get along with?  Are your relationships intact? These are all essential parts of living a life of holiness.  Is your religion killing relationships or enriching them? 

            None of us are perfect in this area.  Human relationships are extremely complex and difficult.  All of us have had, or are having, conflicts.  It is impossible to live without these.  But the point is whether or not we are taking the risk of trying to reconcile these relationships.  In fact, going back to Leviticus, it says, “Do not hate your brother in your heart.  Rebuke your neighbor frankly so you will not share in his guilt” (Leviticus 19:17).  How can you rebuke someone and be seeking reconciliation?  I believe this verse is saying: If you have a problem with someone, confront them — with the intention of resolving the conflict.  Don’t hold it in and harbor anger, or you will incur guilt.  Proverbs says, “Better is open rebuke than hidden love” (Proverbs 27:5).  We take the risk of being rejected, but we pursue relationships.  We take the risk of being hurt, but we seek to heal the wounds in our relationships.  Love always involves risk, but Jesus took the greatest risk of all in coming to us, and he is our model.  It is hard work, but it is the responsibility we have been given.  This world does not belong to us, it belongs to God and so do the people in it. 

            Greg Laurie tells the story of a woman who had finished shopping and went to get in her car.  But when she did, she found four men inside the car.  She dropped her shopping bags, drew a handgun, and screamed, “I have a gun, and I know how to use it!  Get out of the car.”  The men bolted from the car and ran like crazy.  The woman was still shaking as she placed her groceries into the car and then got in to drive home.  But no matter how she tried, she could not get her key into the ignition.  It suddenly dawned on her that was not her car.  It looked like hers, but hers was parked four or five spaces away!  She took her grocery bags and put them into her own car, and then drove to the police station to report what she had done.  The desk sergeant to whom she told the story nearly fell off his chair laughing.  He pointed to the other end of the counter, where four men were reporting a carjacking by a wild woman with thick glasses and curly hair, less than five feet tall, and carrying a large handgun.  No charges were filed. 

            You see, she thought it was her car, and she had a right to do what she did to the men who were in it.  But the car really belonged to someone else.  We think this world belongs to us and we can do what we want with the people in it.  But this world and the people in it belong to God.  We belong to God, and we have been appointed as managers who have been given great responsibilities until the true Owner returns.  It is important to be faithful, not forgetful.  Remember who you are.  Remember whose you are. 

Rodney J. Buchanan

October 30, 2005