Not Many Teachers

Today’s reading is James 3.

James says, “Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers.” The author of Hebrews said, “For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you…” So which is it? Should we all be teachers or should not many of us be teachers?

Perhaps we gain clarifying insight in James 3:13-14. If not many should be teachers, who should? Wouldn’t it be those who are wise and understanding? Who then is wise enough and understanding enough to be one of the few, the humble, the teachers? Not those who are prompted by jealousy and selfish ambition. Rather, those who by their good conduct show their works in the meekness of wisdom. Recognize those who have bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in their hearts, are false to the truth when they boast. Did you catch the connections to previous statements in this letter? Those who don’t bridle their tongues deceive their hearts (James 1:26). The unbridled tongue boasts of great things (James 3:5). Teachers who do so from selfish ambition boast, deceive, and generally pursue and promote a worthless religion.

Having now seen where James is going to end up, we can more fully grasp the warning in this first verse. James doesn’t say not many should ever teach, but not many should “become teachers.” We all teach even if only by example (see Colossians 3:16). But not all have a role or work as a teacher (see Acts 13:1; Ephesians 4:11; 1 Timothy 1:6-7). Some, competing for greater honor, desire to have the role of teacher. These need to recognize they aren’t signing up for greater honor; they are signing up for greater judgment.

The danger is, of course, we all stumble in what we say. James has already said of all disciples, if we don’t bridle our tongues, we are deceiving our hearts and pursuing worthless religion. Much more so as teachers. If teachers don’t bridle their tongues, they are doubly in trouble. They are pursuing worthless religion and promoting it to others. But what a charge and warning. Think about it. How hard is it to bridle your tongue when your role is to speak? That sounds really hard.

I find it interesting as James goes on to discuss the sins of the tongue for teachers, he actually doesn’t highlight teaching error. He highlights cursing, judging, grumbling, quarreling, speaking evil of our brothers. Certainly every teacher and everyone who teaches must fear lest we teach error, but perhaps there are some other sins of the tongue of greater concern to which teachers are susceptible.

Not many of us should be teachers because it takes work and maturity to be a teacher. But all of us should be teachers because all Christians should grow and work at maturity.

Tomorrow’s reading is James 3.

PODCAST!!!

Click here to take about 15 minutes to listen to the Text Talk conversation between Andrew Roberts and Edwin Crozier sparked by this post.

Discuss the Following Questions with Your Family

1. What are your initial reactions to the chapter and the written devo above?
2. What sins of the tongue must teachers be most concerned about?
3. How can a teacher balance the need to bridle the tongue when the teacher’s role is to speak?
4. What must we work on and grow in so we can teach?
5. What do you think we should pray for and about in light of this chapter and today’s post?

The Law Makes Nothing Perfect

Today’s reading is Hebrews 7.

Twice already we have been told Jesus was made perfect (Hebrews 2:10; 5:9). However, now we learn Jesus, the Son, was not made perfect by the Law. The Law makes nothing perfect (Hebrews 7:19). Jesus did not become all God wanted Him to be and everything we needed Him to be through the Law. The Law made Aaron and his sons the priests. Jesus is not a son of Aaron. (In this context, “the Law” does not refer to the entire Old Testament as it does in some places, but to the Torah found in the Pentateuch, the first five books of the Bible.)

Our author makes a powerful point for his Jewish Christian audience. Psalm 110:4 established a new order of priesthood “later than the law.” The establishment of a new order implies something lacking in the old order. If the Levitical priesthood had been complete, perfect, all that was needed, or could complete, mature, perfect or make whole anything or anyone then the Psalm would claim the Messiah was a priest after the order of Aaron. But it doesn’t. Why? Because neither the Law nor the priesthood under the Law makes anyone or anything perfect–not the priest and not us. Therefore, something new, something different was needed.

Please, grasp the line of reasoning our author presents. It is important in explaining our own relationship with the Law. Jesus is not a priest based on the Law. That is, He is not a priest because He met a legal requirement laid out by Moses. Rather, that law, that legal requirement, was set aside because of its weakness and uselessness. A priesthood not established by or ordained by the Law needed to be established. The law had to be changed to allow for a changed priesthood, a strong, perfected, useful priesthood. That is what happened in Psalm 110. Rather then finding the high priest “on the basis of a legal requirement concerning bodily descent,” God swore an oath that the true high priest would be established “by the power of an indestructible life.” This harkens back to Hebrews 2:14-18 which explained Jesus partook of death, but death did not destroy Him. Rather, He destroyed the one who had the power of death and delivered those who were subject to slavery through the fear of death. All of this happened so He would become our faithful and merciful high priest. He was made perfect through what He suffered and endured, not through the Law.

But, here is the key. He was “made perfect forever.” He was not perfected by the Law. The audience of Hebrews was not perfected by the Law. We are not perfected by the Law. We will be perfected only by the High Priest who was made perfect forever. Let us cling not to the Law, but to Jesus our merciful and faithful and perfect High Priest. Only through Him will be perfected.

Tomorrow’s reading is Hebrews 7.

PODCAST!!!

Click here to take about 15 minutes to listen to the Text Talk conversation between Andrew Roberts and Edwin Crozier sparked by this post.

Discuss the Following Questions with Your Family

1. What are your initial reactions to the chapter and the written devo above?
2. What comfort do you find learning we are made perfect by Jesus and not by the Law?
3. Do you think this means it doesn’t matter whether we obey God? Why or why not?
4. What do you think clinging to Jesus in order to be perfected looks like?
5. What do you think we should pray for and about in light of this chapter and today’s post?

Perfect

Today’s reading is Matthew 5.

Please, please, please, do not make the silly mistake so many Christians make when they come to the final verse of Matthew 5. Jesus says, “You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” Christians say, “Don’t let that stress you out. ‘Perfect’ just means ‘mature, complete, whole.'” Really? Does that make this sentence any easier to deal with? When the modifier is “as your heavenly Father is,” does changing the word from “perfect” to “mature” or “complete” or “whole” really soften the statement? Not in my book. I am no more mature or complete or whole as God is than I am perfect as God is.

Surely, this stands out even more when it is in the context of loving like God instead of as the Gentiles, tax collectors, scribes, and Pharisees do. I am called to love as purely, as perfectly, as maturely, as completely, as wholly as my heavenly Father does. Does that just mean making my best stab and trying really, really hard to love my enemy as well as my neighbor? Wouldn’t such a claim actually be relaxing Jesus’s command? We know what that does. Or does this statement’s standard actually take me right back to the first sentence of Jesus’s sermon?

“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” Jesus isn’t calling me to love a bit better than Gentiles and tax collectors. He is calling me to love like God does. If I just had to love a bit better than Gentiles and tax collectors, I could probably pull that off. I could probably work really, really hard and be able to tell everyone how much better at loving I am than them. Of course, that wouldn’t be very poor in spirit, would it? However, when I realize the standard is not surpassing other people, but measuring up to God, suddenly, I realize my poverty of spirit, don’t I? Not only that, I start to mourn. I’ve got nothing to offer God in order to be His child. I will never be perfect as my Father in heaven is perfect.

Does this free me from the obligation? Of course not. Recognizing I never will be perfect as my Father in heaven is perfect is not permission to abandon the attempt. It is not permission to relax Jesus’s command. Rather, it is all the more reason I must meekly submit to His command and His guidance. It is all the more reason I must hunger and thirst for His righteousness. Only then will I have the kingdom. Only then will I be comforted. Only then will I inherit the reward. Only then will I be satisfied.

Understand, I will not be satisfied by dumbing down Jesus’s requirement. I will only be satisfied when I realize I will never reach His requirement and therefore humbly, mournfully, meekly, hungrily seek Jesus my King and His kingdom. Only then will I be perfect as the Father is. Not because I’m so perfect, but because my perfect King perfects me.

Praise the Lord!!!

Next week’s reading is Matthew 6.

PODCAST!!!

Click here to take about 15 minutes to listen to the Text Talk conversation between Andrew Roberts and Edwin Crozier sparked by this post.

Discuss the Following Questions with Your Family

1. What are your initial reactions to the chapter and the written devo above?
2. When you first read “You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect,” what did you think?
3. Why is loving our enemies so hard?
4. When we consider this paragraph (and the one’s preceding it), why do we need Jesus so much?
5. What do you think we should pray for and about in light of this chapter and today’s post?

Like Children?

Today’s reading is Luke 18.

We find another one of those events in Jesus’s life that we have gotten so used to, we can miss how shocking it is. We love the passage about Jesus letting the little children come to Him. It is so sweet and cuddly. We think about how great it is that Jesus took toddlers into His arms. It is a Kodak moment custom made for a wonderful Hallmark movie. But are you catching how counter-cultural what Jesus says actually is? It wasn’t only counter-cultural in the ancient days, it is counter-cultural today. It isn’t counter-cultural because an adult is accepting children. It is counter-cultural because He is saying we need to b e like children to get into His kingdom. Who wants to do that? You want me to accept your kingdom like a child? You want me to just have faith in You and accept everything You say without question? You want me to be the subservient one who just does what I’m told because I don’t seem to know any better? Don’t we warn children to steer clear of people who say things like this? Can you understand why many mature, grown up adults would have a problem with this? The fact is if anyone else were saying what Jesus says here, it would be awful. If anyone else were saying this, we should run as fast and as far away as we could. But this is Jesus. This is God in the flesh. And we have a good God who has our best interests at heart, which He proved by dying on the cross for us. When He says it, it is amazing and comforting and incredible. I’m not saying we check our reason at the door. I’m not saying just blindly accept that Jesus is who He says He is. However, I am saying, having recognized that the evidence is in Jesus’s favor, if you are going to live your “Christian” life constantly second-guessing Him, wondering if His way really works or if you might have a better plan at least just in this one instance, then Jesus isn’t going to do you any good. There are very few people who are going to say, “Yep, I’m a little child. I’ll accept Jesus like that.” Most people will think that is infantile, naive, immature, and foolish. And most people will miss out on the kingdom. In fact, someone somewhere is reading this post and saying, “See, those Christians are so dumb. Not only are they weak, helpless sheep. They are naive, ignorant little children.” But it is sheep and children that Jesus saves, and I’m okay with that. How about you?

Tomorrow’s reading is Luke 18.