More than stories

As Jesus journeyed toward Jerusalem for the final time, many of His teachings focused on how His followers should treat one another. What would obedience to the command, “Love one another” come to look like?
 
Shouldn’t you have had mercy on your fellow servant just as I had on you?  –Matthew 18:33 (NIV)
 
The line was spoken by the king in Jesus’ parable of the unmerciful servant. The second servant did owe money to the first servant. The king didn’t deny that. Sometimes I am the debtor, sometimes the creditor, but there are offences committed that cannot be undone and graces extended that cannot be repaid. The debts are real. But we are all fellow servants. There is no pecking order that justifies withholding forgiveness. And we can afford to forgive, considering what we have been forgiven by the King.
 
 Don’t I have the right to do what I want with my own money? Or are you envious because I am generous?  –Matthew 20:15 (NIV)
 
This parable is not prescriptive for running a business – those all-day workers would likely be sleeping in next time! No, the point of the story is the universal generosity of the master. God’s economy is one of abundance, not scarcity. We are not competing with one another for limited resources – God graciously provides for all. A step back to see the bigger picture invokes a sense of gratitude, negating the need for comparisons that raise resentment.
 
Which of the two did what his father wanted?  –Matthew 21:31a (NIV)
 
This one hits home because I know how often my intentions and my words imply an affection for and obedience to God that fails to translate into my follow-through or attitude. The idea shows up in the Sermon on the mount ("Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,'..."), and gets reinforced in the book of James ("Be doers of the word, and not hearers only..."). I pray that my actions match my words and that I not be found lazy, hypocritical, or dishonest. And I pray I would cease from judging others. In the end, obedience, not words, will define devotion.  
 
And whoever wants to be first must be your slave— just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.  –Matthew 20:27-28 (NIV)
 
Tucked away in the middle of these stories is an episode that represents a continuation of the ongoing argument the apostles had been having: Who is greatest? James and John, likely at the urging of their mother, Mrs. Zebedee, decided they should jump to the head of the line and take on key roles in the “Jesus administration”. As it often is for us, overcoming the desire for preeminence may have been the last and hardest lesson for the apostles.
 
Three parables and a real-life example, each with a lesson about how we see ourselves, one another, and our relative standing before the Father/Master/King. Always a challenge.... We believe in Jesus, but we struggle to follow Him. Jesus neither promised nor modeled a glamorous life for His followers. Quite the opposite. Going where He went frequently requires more sacrifice than I am comfortable with.
 
How to stay on track? Remembering the identity discussion from last week, we keep going back to the source. Their later life tells us that’s what James and John did. They're joined by countless other disciples down through the generations. I heard a new song and an old song this week; the combination of their refrains proved a good reminder for me….
 
You're like nothing I've ever seen,
But you're so familiar to me.
And the more I see you
The more I become me.
 
Turn your eyes upon Jesus,
Look full in His wonderful face,
And the things of earth will grow strangely dim
In the light of His glory and grace.