Joe Fontenot's Blog, page 8

The inequality of the gospel

Jesus tells this story:

A guy who needs workers, hires people all day long. At the end of the day, he lines them all up. The guy that worked 12 hours in the hot sun–he gets a full wage. The guy hired on at the last hour as the sun was setting…he gets a full wage, too (Matthew 20:1-16).

In a normal business, that wouldn’t be fair.

We sense this, the inherent unfairness, when things like money and work aren’t equal.

I believe this is why Jesus used this example.

It’s supposed to make us think about unfairness, because the kingdom of heaven isn’t fair.

But it’s not unfair in the sense of favoring one person over another. It’s unfair because none of us should be there at all.

And that’s the thought that should be stuck in our mind.

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The first/last paradox

“And the last shall be first”

—Jesus (Matthew 19:30)

This is a common one.

It’s the great justice: those who were stepped on down here will be exalted up there.

And while I do believe God takes special care of those who are overlooked, that’s not what this verse is about.

Jesus is walking his disciples through what it takes to be his follower.

Specifically, he is answering the question of loss. Peter and the others saw the rich man’s struggle and listened to Jesus’ own commentary on it (“it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of heaven”).

But then he says this: “With God all things are possible.”

He’s not condemning the rich. He’s explaining the struggle of having things that compete with the kingdom.

Finally, he lays it out.

Those who have not sacrificed cannot follow. Which is why, “many who are first will be last, and the last will be first.”

Following Jesus isn’t really a paradox. It’s just a priority. But it’s a priority that’s worth it.

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God’s message

“They were filled with fear. And the angel said to them, ‘Fear not.’”
– Luke 2:9-10

That is the essence of our relationship with God.

Us filled with fear, defensiveness, struggling to survive. God refilling us with the opposite.

Three things flow from this:

1. We are chosen, specifically. And it is not because of our stature.

2. In general, our default is fear or fighting. God’s desire is to change that.

3. And God always brings comfort to his people.

God’s message is good. One we’re always better for leaning into.

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“Follow me” isn’t good enough

This is the one where the rich guy, who was also a good guy, comes up to Jesus and asks him: What’s next?

Sell everything, Jesus says, “and come, follow me” (Matthew 19:16-22).

The real story here is not that the man was having trouble parting with his stuff (though he was), it was that the “come follow me” wasn’t good enough.

Here in the West we live around more wealth than perhaps all of history.

The temptation is real. And it is.

The issue is not whether we struggle over our stuff. The issue is: Are we willing to follow even though we struggle?

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Rituals with Jesus

“Then children were brought to him that he might lay his hands on them and pray. The disciples rebuked the people, but Jesus said, ‘Let the little children come to me and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of heaven.’ And he laid his hands on them and went away” (Matthew 19:13-15).

Look at the action Jesus did here.

He didn’t heal anyone. He didn’t feed them. Or even teach them.

He just gave them his blessing…and then they went their way.

Rituals by themselves are hollow. But when they remind us of the truth–of what’s most valuable–they becomes worth almost as much as that same truth.

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The good world

Lord, let my eyes see the world like yours do.

God made the world.

Is it fallen? Yes. Do bad things happen? Regularly. Does life hurt? Too much.

But God still made it.

And that means there will always be more good than bad. By a long shot.

The implications:

We see the pain, sin, and hurt.

But we also get to feel joy, and see the magnificence of God’s beautiful creation. That is, if we want to.

Because it’s a choice we make.

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Luxury

Luxury means we take extra time, give individual attention, and almost always customize.

The opposite of this is the mass produced, assembly line, everything-tossed-in-together so we can get more for less model.

We reserve luxury for the things that are valuable. The rest, we try to do it as cheap as possible.

Is it any wonder that effective discipleship looks like luxury than mass-produced widgets?

Makes sense, after all, as it is one of the most valuable things we’ve got.

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On hearing from God (free download)

The biggest (and most common) obstacle I hear from people who want to start a regular prayer time is the actually doing of it.

In other words, when you sit down, your mind is a flutter. Too much else going on.

I know this problem well.

Which is why I started doing something different. I’ve been doing it for a few years now. And it always works. Seriously.

It’s a simple five-step process that anyone can do. And it prepares you to hear from God each time you sit down.

I put it in a short 5-part guide.

Download the guide here. (It’s about a 5 minute read.)

 

3 or 490

Compare the two:

Your brother sins against you.

First, talk one on one. Then, take a trusted friend. And finally, get the larger group involved. After that, he’s out.

Or

Continually forgive.

Jesus said both to the same group of people at the same time (see Matthew 18:15-22).

The difference: in the first case, the guy didn’t care about restoration.

Jesus said, be clear: it’s a matter of the heart, not the record. That’s the line.

80/20 rule

The 80/20 rule says that 20% of what you spend (your resources, time, etc.) will create 80% of the value.

It’s common.

In church 20% usually do 80% of the volunteering. And in work, 20% of your products typically bring in about 80% of the revenue.

It’s so common in fact that we forget that it’s entirely wrong.

At least, that is, when it comes to how we prescribe value to each other.

In Matthew 18, Jesus talks about a different ratio. 99:1. Where 1 is worth as much as 99.

Which, of course, we know is just charity.

The 99 can’t be worth the same as the 1. That would never work.

Until, of course, you’re the 1.

And then that changes everything.