BibleScribbler

Coffee, a Bible, and a Napkin to Scribble On

Heroes and Damsels in Christian Community

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We all love to be the hero and save the day. But the pride of isolation wins out when we are in need of help. What if we saw our times of needing help as chances to make somebody feel like a hero? I know that goes way against a John Wayne Republican Protestant work ethic, but really, consider it!

I need help. My chainsaw is stuck in a tree that weighs 6,000 pounds. If only I had another chainsaw, I could cut a wedge here and get my chainsaw loose. My buddy Paul has a chainsaw and he is mowing grass at his house today.

“Paul, I need your help!” Paul becomes the hero, I’m the damsel in distress, and he does two cuts in the log and my chainsaw is free. Some high fives and thanks, and he’s back to mowing and I have my saw back.

I wish that’s what happened. Instead, I was in “I’ve got this!” mode and I hacked on that log with a maul for an hour.

Hack

Hack

Sweat

Breathe

Hack

Hack

I seriously thought I was going to have a heart attack. My callouses had blisters and the blisters were busting that clear fluid out. Really, it’s true. An hour later my chainsaw was free and in need of repair.

I know how that story should have gone. But by trying to be the hero myself, I neither became the hero nor allowed anyone else to be that guy.

As part of living with my brothers and sisters in community, John Wayne needs to have a funeral already.

Every time my boys argue I quote Proverbs 17:17 to them.

A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity.
Proverbs 17:17 ESV
http://bible.com/59/pro.17.17.ESV

 

When I’m out having a heart attack at the park while I cut up fallen trees, I need to quote it to myself too! (or have a brother quote it to me in advance!)

We need to live in a culture where we admit that we need each other and we aren’t afraid to ask for help. As we grow and become of “one heart and one mind” like the group in Acts 2, our humility and trust in each other will grow, and Christ will show off in us more and more as the true Hero.

Humble and Powerful Army Guy

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[1] After he had finished all his sayings in the hearing of the people, he entered Capernaum. [2] Now a centurion had a servant who was sick and at the point of death, who was highly valued by him. [3] When the centurion heard about Jesus, he sent to him elders of the Jews, asking him to come and heal his servant. [4] And when they came to Jesus, they pleaded with him earnestly, saying, “He is worthy to have you do this for him, [5] for he loves our nation, and he is the one who built us our synagogue.” [6] And Jesus went with them. When he was not far from the house, the centurion sent friends, saying to him, “Lord, do not trouble yourself, for I am not worthy to have you come under my roof. [7] Therefore I did not presume to come to you. But say the word, and let my servant be healed. [8] For I too am a man set under authority, with soldiers under me: and I say to one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and to another, ‘Come,’ and he comes; and to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.” [9] When Jesus heard these things, he marveled at him, and turning to the crowd that followed him, said, “I tell you, not even in Israel have I found such faith.” [10] And when those who had been sent returned to the house, they found the servant well.

(Luke 7:1-10 ESV)

The most subtle and passive thing stuck out to me as I read this today. Everybody said the Centurion was “worth” and “deserved” the help of Jesus. If there is anyone Jesus doesn’t show a lot of mercy too, it’s the people that think they deserve stuff. He has just spent time and after this He will spend more time explaining to the Pharisees why they really aren’t as worthy as they think they are, and that the Kingdom of Heaven doesn’t really belong to those that are self-worthy!

I think Jesus already knew what He was in for with this guy, because He goes to help him and is met by servants of the Centurion (pay attention to that! The man’s servants are doing exactly what he told them to do!) that say the Centurion isn’t worthy. The only people in this story that are not calling the Centurion worthy are those that serve under him that are under orders to do so. And what message does he have for Jesus?

“This sickness will submit to your authority, you can take care of it however you want.”

Not only is the sickness under the authority of Jesus, but by asking for Jesus’ help, the Centurion is also submitting to Jesus’ authority.

When you go to the doctor and tell him your problems and ask for his help, you are submitting to his authority.

When you show up at the cell phone store and ask him to switch over your phone, completely unlocking your smartphone with your privacy code and unlocking your account with your social security number, you are submitting to that 20-year old’s authority.

The Centurion here knew power and he knew authority. He knew how it worked, and the consequences of rebellion. His response to that knowledge was “Go ask Jesus for help here, but let Him help however He judges best.”

Jesus helped, and called the humblest Centurion in Israel the greatest man of faith He had seen.

Comforting Strength: Sermon Notes from CFC 06102012

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Here are my notes from Christian Fellowship Church on June 10th, 2012. You’ll notice that I forgot to take some blank paper.

I don’t know if the opening video will ever be online, but if it is, I’ll post about it too.

 

[meta notes] I posted this with photosnack after shooting it through my stop motion video app for fast stills. They are big and beautiful if you view them full screen, but so hard to read because I wrote all over my bulletin! No chick fil a for me! The fun part is to see how the notes ironically/serendipitously fit with the bulletin printing around them. (Like my note about isolation is surrounded with people’s emails, etc.)

 

Giving and Receiving in Humility

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John 13.8 “If I do not wash you, you have no share with me.”

There is a humility that is beyond the humility that somebody can tell me I need to have or that I can see and grasp. It’s beyond a virtue or anything that you can talk about, I think. Jesus doesn’t talk about being humble, whatever that means, but He always talked about the actions and the fruit of the humble.
humble yourself like a little child
the one who leads should be like one who serves
the greatest among you will be the servant of all
For he who is least among you all—he is the greatest.

If anyone wants to be first, he must be the very last, and the servant of all.

There is no way at all that you can muster up humility in yourself and BING! be humble.

So being humble is an activity. It can be shown with activity, though that is never the point, and it can be cultivated with activity. At the same time, it can be shown and cultivated by receiving activity. Peter was NOT going to let Jesus wash his feet, but to talk that way to Jesus was the opposite of humility and submission to Him. Peter really shows off our pride of self-inflicted devotion at the Last Passover. If he really cherished and honored Jesus, he would let Him do whatever He wanted. If he really believed that Jesus was always right and wise, then he wouldn’t have argued when Jesus said, “all of you are going to fall away,” but instead he jumped in with great declarations of devotion that Jesus knew he wouldn’t keep.

There is a humility in just letting Jesus do His thing with us. It’s not found in us trying to show Him (or anyone else) how devoted we are or how GLORIOUS we think He is. It’s a humility that let’s people serve you and looks for the way to serve others and never notices either way.

I’m not there yet, but Jesus is, and I’m following Him.