7 "And as you go, preach, saying, 'The kingdom of
heaven is at hand.' 8 "Heal the sick, raise the dead,
cleanse the lepers, cast out demons; freely you received, freely give.”
(Mat 10:7-8 NAS)
It is easy to forget yesterday. The times of
old. The struggle to survive without electricity, McDonalds, and Walmart. And at
times when we do remember the past there is an arrogance that comes with the
present moment. But a quick look around evokes the reality: often life is still
nothing more than survival. And for some of us even that is a task much too
daunting. But what if we could find something more?
I have been attempting to read
through the New Testament and latch unto recurring themes, ideas, and in so
doing get a better handle on try to see the whole picture all at once. But I
had to pause upon reading Mat 10:7-8.
Talk about a job description.
No mention of forklift certifications, the Microsoft Office Suite, education credentials,
or being able to stand or sit. (Isn’t it strange how much modern jobs seem to
be focused on whether we have to stand or sit?) I look in vain at the wanted ads
in the local paper, Indeed or even on LinkedIn. None, admittedly that I could
find, mention raising the dead or casting out demons. Modern jobs have gotten
kind of lame it would seem.
And take a look at the benefits
package. Note especially verse 15 where Christ tells the disciples that a house
that does not receive them is going to be treated worse than Sodom and Gomorrah.
In case you forgot these are the towns that were destroyed with fire in the Old
Testament (Genesis 19 also see Judges 19 and ensuing chapters for an interesting
comparative literature study). When was the last time you had a boss tell you
he had your back to the extent that he would completely annihilate those who
did not receive you? Try bringing that up at your next raise negotiation. Talk
about an effective sales tactic right? Of course, if you continue reading, see
verse 28 (fear the one who can destroy both body and soul) for example, this
might be a double-edged sword but the example of the sparrow which follows
makes such an assumptive understanding of vs. 28 hard to complete. Whatever the
case, it is clear one is not talking about simple retirement packages or compensation
schemes; rather, the job the disciples were given is one that has benefits
which are hard to comprehend and maybe some of the benefits they might want to
talk to their local union rep about.
But putting all that to the
side, I want to pause for a moment and think about the job. They are to preach
and show that the Kingdom of God is at hand. And this is not a self-help slogan
or a seminar on how to get rich quick (In a way I kind of feel sorry for rich
as it seems as though everybody is trying to get this person :). They are not
booking hotel conference rooms; instead, they are fighting a war for the Kingdom
of God. And like the modern jobs which have gotten lame so too has the
expression of Christianity.
Christianity is oft presented
as this far off, in another world, at another time, fairy tale answer to life’s
problems. Not as life itself. And that is what is missing. Christianity is not
about how to survive in the next but how to find heaven in the current life. The
disciples’ prayer is not help us leave here quickly so we may be in heaven but
rather let things be done on earth as they are in heaven (Mat 6:9-13). The
thought here is simple: heaven on earth. The Kingdom is coming, God is dwelling
within us, heaven on earth.
I have mentioned this before,
I think, but one poet who inspires me is the Swedish poet Majken Johansson. Her
life story reads sorrow after sorrow after sorrow but her poetry beams with
hope, joy and something of an otherness. Her poem Talk About (Omtal) ends
with the line, as translated by Johannes Goransson “I lived in Heaven.”[i]
The poem starts noting the difficulty of communicating when a person does not
know the language and then progresses to her life being “the etymological root
of: redeemed” (Johansson, ln. 17) the basis from which to understand and communicate,
build a language, in a now meaningful manner God’s new creation: her. The “talk
about, talk about, talk about” (Ln. 18) of Johansson is not some boring article
full of words searching for meaning but a life as God’s word sounding forth. And
the sound of God’s voice might not just awaken a memory of Adam, Eve, and Eden
but also of the hope of new creation in Christ.
And as the beauty of a sunset retrieves
echoes of Eden, the speech pouring forth day unto day (Psalm 19 & Johansson)
of God’s new creation might serve as a reminder of the love of God, his Kingdom
being near and that Christianity is about more than avoiding Hell, How can our
lives also say as Johansson did: “I have lived in Heaven.”? How does the
message of the Kingdom of God being near go from being a fancy saying to God
dwelling within us and in our midst? There is more I want to say about this but
let me start with two simple thoughts: 1) The embrace of faith, B) The hope of
God’s love.
Every since reading John Donne’s
poem “A Hymn To God, My God, In My Sickness” I have found his illustration of
faith as an embrace most compelling. And with faith, learning from Christ’s lesson
concerning the mustard seed, the question is not about the strength of my
embrace but about who my faith is in. Who I think God is defines my faith. Who
am I holding unto? And to this question I must needs renew my mind daily so I
might see him more clearly. Not so I can perfect my embrace, but so I can know in
whose hands my life is in.
I have in my possession a
growing collection of words slowly working on the subject of how life’s
greatest achievement is love, but I have not had time to complete these words and
as I am delving into the matter of choice and unconditionality in love I want
to try to say these things well so that they might be understood. But there is
also something simple about love and that is that God loves us. Phrases such as
the one whom God loves, the ones for whom Christ died, pepper the New
Testament. And the emotion of God’s love is overwhelming when one reads the
Biblical text. From his passionate rebukes of Isreal in the Old Testament to the
emotion of Christ as he wept at the death of Lazurus to Christ recommending the
disciples go and rest (Mk 6:30-32). And it is important to note that God still
loves us just as much today.
And that is what makes me
significant, that is what makes me important, and that is why I have confidence
because I know that God loves me. And even though I struggle with this notion
as I often find myself unlovable and at times I am relieved when I am rejected
by other people, those moments when I remember that God’s love is what defines
me, my embrace becomes in something sure and I find my life valuable not
because I have went on an adventure, sailed across the ocean, counted to ten, cooked an edible
meal, or saved a penguin from an afternoon of bad jokes and analogies, but I am
significant because he loves. Therefore, what “talks about, talks about, talks
about” with me is his love and in that notion I find a small awakening as to
what it might mean to “have lived in heaven.”
Let me end these thoughts here…
I wish I could with the swipe
of few well placed words form an idea that would erase the evils of our modern
world that stick us into lives in which we struggle to find something more than
survival. Where we live in a world in which massive companies hire people
essentially to watch other people work who are then watched by other people[ii]
And what’s their great accomplishment? They figured out how to ship something
made by someone else all they way across the world so it could be bought by
someone else and then shipped all the way back across the world. The moments of
a human life stolen for a few shiny trinkets. The treasure, the joy, the
wonder, the love of God and his new creative work held within each human life lost
so a few bucks could be made. Can we pull people back from the overwhelming
brink of disaster found in the modern life? I hope so. But it will take more
than finding another way to pay the bills, or a new diet and exercise regime,
but a complete reorientation as to what it means to be human. I have much to
learn as I often presumptuously think I can do something for God forgetting
that he is God and does not need anything done for him. Or those moments when I
focus on myself and how unlovable I am and forget quite simply that he loves me
and that is what makes me significant.
I hope these words have made
some sense maybe even encouraged you to check your life’s job description and
if you have any advice or feedback I would appreciate hearing from you. Thanks.
[i] Found at https://www.e-magin.se/paper/sv5d7vx2/paper/1#/paper/sv5d7vx2/14
[ii] I hope to flush out this idea more in another
article about learning to dream but the modern corporate structure resigns us
to losing out on the contributions and talents of the individual.
