Finishing Well .......... Parables 698b

January 2, 2001

Aunt Bessie’s funeral was December 27th, four days before the end of this year, a year to the day from my Dad’s funeral and two months after her husband’s burial.

For me and others in my family, questions about endings lurk in our minds even more than they normally do this time of year. We started 2000 with a list of dreams and now end it looking at the results. Few people want to end a year poorly and as we buried Bessie, we realized it is the same with our lives.

In a poem entitled “Exit,” author Luci Shaw asks these questions: “When you go will you go with a sizzle—a spiteful spitting on a hot plate? . . . when you leave will you leave with a bang—exploding like a far star, kicking your hot cinders in God’s eyes?”

I know that I do not want to finish anything with a sizzle, a spiteful spitting or any defiance toward God. Instead, I prefer an exclamation mark, a humble reliance, and a sense of hearing God say, “Well done, my child.”

It is this need to feel significant, to matter, that comes into focus during the last few weeks of December or at funerals. We evaluate, resolve, check off our lists, and set new goals.

I used to be big on New Year’s resolutions but ignored factors that are out of my control, like the limits of a twenty-four hour day. About five years ago, I shifted my to-do list toward a “to-be” list. The Bible says God wants me to be like Jesus and so I selected that as a worthy goal.

Worthy goals give meaning to life. As Spanish composer and musician Pablo Casals said, “The capacity to care gives life its deepest significance.” One part of what it means to be like the Lord, one part of having a significant life, is deeply caring for other people.

Bessie was like that. She knew Jesus. She was not a perfect person (like He is) but she deeply cared about others. She took care of her ailing husband. She drove other women to their appointments and events, women fifteen years younger than she but who had stopped driving in their ‘old age.’ She loved her children and grandchildren, and as one of them said, she leaves a huge hole in the family. Jesus and caring about others gave her life meaning.

Caring about others expresses itself in different ways. My aunt had a servant heart that moved her to practical action. My father cared about people too yet his way of showing it was by helping them build things. Others might lend their leadership skills, or teach, or offer uplifting, encouraging words or a hug of compassion. If the heart is right, the actions will be also.

The minister at Bessie’s funeral said that her life went full circle. She began by helping her mother care for her father and ended by caring for her husband and others. When her tasks were done, she was done also. Her death was at the right time; her work was finished.

Just before Jesus left this earth, He prayed, “Father, the time has come. . . . I have brought you glory on earth by completing the work you gave me to do.” As He died on the cross, He shouted, “It is finished.”

His life was not long as long as Bessie’s, only thirty-three years. His ministry was very short too, only three years, yet Jesus did all that God wanted Him to do. He finished well, even perfectly, a model for Aunt Bessie and for all those who love Him and give their lives to Him.

Lord, the year is nearly over and I’m thankful for the life of my aunt and the example she set. She was not a perfect person in her lifetime, yet because of Your promise, “when we see Jesus we will be like Him” — Bessie is perfect now. She gazes on Your glory for eternity. Thank you for that hope; it belongs to all who trust in You. Thank You also for another year—the one just past and the one that lies ahead. Help me evaluate honestly, trust whole-heartedly, obey quickly, and when my turn comes, to also finish well.

What is a Christian? ................. Parables 240

(October 24, 1990)

Christians are people who carry around Bibles and hand out tracts. Christians are kind and generous people. Christians are those people who go to church on Sunday. Christians are no different than anyone else.

What is a Christian anyway? More important, do those who call themselves Christians fit the biblical description?

Here is a simple definition -- A Christian is a forgiven friend of Jesus who follows him. Allow me to clarify...

FORGIVEN: This adjective implies something needs to be forgiven, that is, we have done something that angers God and separates us from Him. The Bible calls it sin and declares all guilty of it. “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23).

Sin is one three-letter word that nobody likes to hear or talk about. Probably all of us make excuses about sin. We say things like, “I’m not as bad as some people” or “I really couldn’t help it” or “Everybody makes a mistake now and then.” Sin is usually thought of as the biggies like murder, stealing or adultery, or sin is seen as such a universal problem that there is no cure -- since everyone is guilty, what’s the use of trying?

The Bible defines sin as falling short of the mark, like an arrow that didn’t have quite enough lift and missed the target. Sin is also those actions that break God’s laws. Jesus narrowed it even farther by saying even inner attitudes like hate and lust are sin. To be sure, some people may do more loving deeds or think nobler thoughts than others, but none of us are what God calls for. He says all have “turned to their own way” either by defying Him or simply ignoring His commands. Thus our failures need forgiveness. He says, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”

FRIEND OF JESUS: Everyone knows what a friend is: someone who stands by you through thick and thin, is loyal, warm-hearted, generous, a person that you can share everything with, someone you trust completely. Jesus said, “You are my friends, if ye do whatever I command you. From now on I do not call you servants; for the servant does not know what his lord does: but I have called you friends; for all things that I have heard from Father I have made known to you” (John 15).

Jesus is the friend of every person who genuinely desires His forgiveness and comes to Him asking for it. He is loving and faithful. He even gave His life for us, “while we were still sinners” (Romans 5:8). Not only is He the “friend of sinners,” He calls those who obey Him His friends; because of their love, loyalty, and commitment to Him.

FOLLOWS HIM: Look back at the verses from John 15. Notice Jesus said, “You are my friends if you do whatever I command you.”

There are a lot of people who claim to be Christians. They may even have prayed a prayer asking God to forgive their sins or asking Christ to come into their hearts. That is the right thing to do, but if there is no change of lifestyle, no obedience to Christ, then such a person is not a Christian. Following Him is vital. He said, “If you continue in my word, then you are my disciples indeed.”

It is important not to get this backwards. Some people do many good things and hope to become Christians by their behavior. However, as important as doing good is, good deeds do not stand alone. Forgiveness with all its implications is necessary to begin the relationship, and obedience is evidence that the relationship is genuine.

At least the definition is not complicated.

Counting the cost .......................... Parables 136

A friendly woman remarked that “people need to be careful what they ask for (even in prayer) because they might get it.” She explained that her daughter wanted an academic change, but lost her favorite teacher in the process. In other words there was a price to pay.

We tell our children that with every privilege there is some responsibility. When we lived in Alaska, our neighbors bought a fishing boat. We thought we might be able to squeeze in some open water fishing too. Then I noticed that for every hour they spent fishing, the boat needed an equal hour of cleaning, repainting, and refurbishing. Owning a boat would take more time than we could spare.

So it is with life. The benefits that looked so good usually have a string attached, leading to a knot, a price tag or no unwanted attachment. Sometimes the string is even tied in a hangman’s news! When we are faced with a decision and it appears as if the outcome is all roses, it is only wise to make sure we can handle the hidden thorns.

Several hundred years ago, the Hebrew people were facing such a decision. They had been slaves in Egypt. Now Moses would lead them to the land promised by God. They could hardly wait to leave. In fact, they could not have been more eager. But barely were they across the Nile when the inconveniences of desert travel begin to violate their comfort zone. They wanted freedom, but they quickly realized freedom has a string attached. They failed to count the cost and wanted to go back.

A few years ago Christ led me out of my bondage to sin. Like the Israelites, I too am on my way to an inheritance promised by God. No one could be happier or be more eager. But I was barely out of my old lifestyle and into the new one some of the inconveniences of the Christian life begin to violate my comfort zone. I complained and said, “this is too hard. I want to go back.” I also failed to count the cost.

Perhaps no one told me that the road to everlasting life sometimes goes sharply uphill. Perhaps they did and I didn’t listen. Perhaps I was so excited about the free gift of eternal life (actually not free --- it cost God a great deal) that I didn’t want to hear about the Christian life being a life of self-sacrifice.

Jesus told his disciples that “no one builds a tower without first sitting down and counting the cost, whether he is sufficient to finish it” (Mark 14).

How foolish to begin and then fall flat, especially into complaining that this life is too difficult. After all, we travel our road with the available power of the Almighty God. Complaints about the cost insult His sufficiency! Yet, if we do not reckon on the uphill stretches in the road before hand, even though they tend to build our faith in him, when they come, it is all too easy to want to quit.

The cost of following Jesus is not merely experiencing the normal hazards of living that everyone experiences. It is the extraordinary discomforts that come when deliberate choices are made to obey God. These are discomforts that could be avoided simply by doing what I want to do. It might be a strenuous extra effort. I missed meal or two, giving up some sleep, doing someone a favor when I would rather be relaxing or doing my own thing. Certainly the sacrifices or an expression of love, just as was the ultimate sacrifice Christ made when He gave up His life for us, but the cross of Calvary was not a picnic. Sacrifice has its downside.

Consider the cost. If anyone wants to follow Jesus, they can expect eternal life as a free gift, but the discipleship required for an obedient, fulfilling Christian walk is not the stuff that comes from a bargain basement. There is a price to pay.

Focusing on the forbidden? ............................. Parables 033

Have you ever noticed that the word that really stands out in a list of words is the one that is misspelled? Or that the kids may behave themselves for hours but the first little squabble is the thing that gets our attention?

It seems to be a human characteristic to notice the errors, the out-of-harmony, the imperfect. We even tend to focus on the things that someone else says we cannot do. How many children will touch the stove, just to see if it’s really hot? How many people test the wet paint, even with the “wet paint” sign plainly visible? Our jails are full of people who push against the legal, ethical, and moral limits in our society. Resistance to outside authority is the common expression of a very human attraction to the forbidden. 

Christians are often challenged from this point of view. “I could never be a Christian, you have too many rules, too many things that you can’t do.” Again, their focus is on the forbidden.

This attitude has its roots in a character who Jesus Christ calls “the father of lies.” It began when the serpent came to Eve in the garden of Eden. His approach, although new to her, has become very familiar to us, in all its variations. “Didn’t God say you couldn’t eat of “every” tree? After all, Eve, what kind of a paradise is this if you can’t eat from “all” the trees?” 

Eve had been freely and innocently enjoying everything that was there to be enjoyed, but with the serpents suggestion, she lost her perspective. She began to look at the one thing that God had forbidden her to have. It began to have an appeal. Forgetting that all her desires were already being perfectly fulfilled, she took the forbidden fruit. In doing so, she gained what she thought would be good, but she lost everything else. Ever since then, the human race has been unable to relate to paradise with restrictions.

It is not easy to focus on the positive. Afraid that we will miss something, we are drawn to the negative, to the forbidden. In doing so, we lose, lose our perspective, and perhaps lose much more.

Jesus Christ tells us that since He is “the way, the truth, and the life,” we can keep our own lives moving in the right direction by steadfastly focusing on Him. He has never been affected by the negative or the forbidden. He is the perfect role-model, and in following Him, we will have “the light of life.” This light helps us to see beyond the negatives to the abundance of positive things that are ours in Him.

The Apostle Paul, in giving his life entirely in service to his Lord and Savior, was able to endure the negative because He looked beyond them. He said, “For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, works for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory; while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal.” 

Christians are by no means deprived by not involving themselves in some of the activities that others do. Instead, we are freed from bondage to those things. He has opened our eyes to see Him, the life-giver, and He takes our focus off the forbidden things that others think they cannot live without.



(Amusing note: when this was first published it had to be retyped from my hard copy. It went into the newspaper with thirteen spelling mistakes.)

Following ................................ Parables 009

“I’ll go ahead of you. Just follow me.”
 
The destination? ... a certain, sure location. Route? ...unknown. Road conditions? ...rural, icy, unpredictable. Climate? ...large flakes of wet snow. Visibility? ...dark, with fog.

Not the best way to travel a few unfamiliar miles in the country, is it? I’m thankful that the driver ahead didn’t go faster than I could manage. He knew my uncertainty and considered my capabilities. As we traveled, I began to experience a rare comfortableness that would not have been felt had those red tail lights ahead been missing. I knew when to turn, when to speed up, when to ease to the right for oncoming traffic, and when to brake. In fact, I had to remind myself at the stop signs that I still had some responsibility to look each way. After all, I was not being towed. It was so easy to think that my guide would do it all.
 
Jesus also tells me, “I’m going ahead of you, just follow me.” The destination, eternity with Him, is also certain, even though I don’t know the exact location. And the route is quite unpredictable. Life’s roadway has both hazards and clear travel, rough conditions and smooth. The climate swings from mild to stormy, pleasant to not-so-pleasant. And the visibility? Well, things may never get quite as dark as a moonless January night on a country road in Alberta, but whether they do or not, it doesn’t matter. I have a Light ahead of me.
 
Psalms 119:105 says: “Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.” 

The Living Word, Jesus Christ, says, “I am the light of the world: he that follows me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life” (John 8:12). 

Hebrews 12:2 urges, “Keep looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith . . . ”
 
He isn’t towing me. He takes my hand and moves ahead, bidding me to follow Him. The certainty of the destination and the ever-present guidance of His light is not there to lull me into a laid-back comfortableness, however. I still have some responsibility. My eyes must be open, my “foot on the gas,” and I’m to keep a firm grip on the wheel, responding to each new direction with obedience. I’m not to let His light out of my sight by moving too slow, or getting caught up in the passing scenery and not paying attention. I’m to watch out for the “pot holes” and avoid them, moving to alternate routes.
 
We sing a chorus in Sunday school, “My Lord knows the way through the wilderness, all I have to do is follow . . . ” 

Following is not the same as being towed.