Perspective: The Place at the Top

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The Place at the Top

So which one is greater, the one who is seated at the table or the one who serves at the table?  Isn't it the one who is seated at the table?  But I am among you as one who serves.

Luke 22:27 (CEB)

Lean on me
When you're not strong
And I'll be your friend
I'll help you carry on
For it won't be long
Till I'm gonna need
Somebody to lean on

From "Lean on Me" by Bill Withers

Esau has just prepared a special meal for his father Isaac.¹  Earlier that day, Isaac, who has become nearsighted, called for his son Esau and asked him to go out on a hunt and to prepare him a meal from what he killed.  Isaac, unsure of how much time he has left in this world, promised to give Esau a special blessing after he finishes eating.  Esau approaches his father and says, "Let my father sit up and eat from his son's game so that you may bless me."

Isaac turns toward his son and asks, "Who are you?"

Esau replies, "I'm your son, your oldest son, Esau."

Isaac begins trembling and says, "Who was the hunter just here with game?  He brought me food, and I ate all of it before you came.  I blessed him, and he will stay blessed!"

Esau begins weeping.  He cries to Isaac, "Bless me!  Me too, my father!"

Realizing what has happened, Isaac says to Esau, "Your brother has already come deceitfully and has taken your blessing."  While Esau was still on his hunt, his twin brother Jacob conspired with their mother Rebekah, disguised himself as Esau, served his father a meal Rebekah prepared, and then received the special blessing meant for Esau.

When Isaac unknowingly blessed Jacob, he said to him,

May God give you
showers from the sky,
olive oil from the earth,
plenty of grain and new wine.
May the nations serve you,
may peoples bow down to you.
Be the most powerful man among your brothers,
and may your mother’s sons bow down to you.
Those who curse you will be cursed,
and those who bless you will be blessed.

This blessing is evidently irretractable and unrepeatable, and it essentially secures the blessed son's place at the top of a hierarchy.

As the oldest son, Esau should have been guaranteed the place at the top, according the customs of his culture.  Esau's twin brother Jacob reportedly came out of the womb immediately after Esau because he was clutching Esau's heel.²  Evidently Jacob has been trying to wrestle the place at the top away from his older brother ever since they were born!

Devastated, Esau asks his father, "Haven't you saved a blessing for me?"

Isaac replies, "I've already made him more powerful than you, and I've made all of his brothers his servants.  I've made him strong with grain and wine.  What can I do for you, my son?"

Isaac cannot simply give both of his sons the same blessing.

Then Jacob and Esau would have to be servants to each other.

Imagine that.

In the Gospels, we read that one day Jesus' disciples start grappling for the places at the top.  Believing that Jesus will soon be crowned king, His disciples James and John ask Him if He would make them His second and third in command.³  When the other disciples become angry, Jesus says,

You know that the ones who are considered the rulers by the Gentiles show off their authority over them and their high-ranking officials order them around.  But that's not the way it will be with you.  Whoever wants to be great among you will be your servant.  Whoever wants to be first among you will be the slave of all, for the Human One didn't come to be served but rather to serve and to give his life to liberate many people.⁴

The Disciples want places of power, but Jesus urges them to seek places of servanthood, pointing out that He has acted as a servant among them.

In the Gospel of John, we read that, on the evening before Jesus is arrested, He models humble service for the Disciples in a very vivid way.  He takes off His robe, ties a towel around His waist, fills a basin with water, and washes the Disciples' feet.⁵  When Jesus finishes washing the Disciples' feet, He puts on His robe and says to the Disciples,

Do you know what I've done for you?  You call me "Teacher" and "Lord," and you speak correctly, because I am.  If I, your Lord and teacher, have washed your feet, you too must wash each other's feet.  I have given you an example: Just as I have done, you also must do.  I assure you, servants aren't greater than their master, nor are those who are sent greater than the one who sent them.  Since you know these things, you will be happy if you do them.⁶

If the Son of God is not too important to serve people, then neither is anyone else.

It seems like so many people in this world are trying to make it to the top of a proverbial ladder.  To get ahead, they have to pull down the people above them, and, to keep themselves from being pulled down, they have to kick the people below them.  As usual, Jesus calls us to be countercultural.  He urges us to get off the ladder entirely and encourages us to seek ways to serve each other.

There can only be one person at the top, but we will find the people who are truly blessed in the places of servanthood.


Notes:

1. Much of this perspective is based on Genesis 27:1-40.  Quotations are taken from the Common English Bible.
2. Genesis 25:24-26
3. Mark 10:35-37
4. Mark 10:41-45 (CEB)
5. John 13:4-5
6. John 13:12-16 (CEB)

Isaac Blessing Jacob was painted by Govert Flinck in 1638.

Perspective: A Name, a Song, and a Message

I share these thoughts hoping they are of help to someone else.
Comments are always welcomed.
If you find these thoughts helpful, please share.

A Name, a Song, and a Message

The angel said, "Don't be afraid, Mary.  God is honoring you.  Look! You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you will name him Jesus.  He will be great and he will be called the Son of the Most High.  The Lord God will give him the throne of David his father.  He will rule over Jacob's house forever, and there will be no end to his kingdom."

Luke 1:30-33 (CEB)

You came from heaven to earth
To show the way
From the earth to the cross
My debt to pay
From the cross to the grave
From the grave to the sky
Lord, I lift Your name on high

From "Lord, I Lift Your Name on High" by Rick Founds

In the Nativity stories we read in the Gospels, both Mary and Joseph are instructed to name their child Jesus.¹  The Greek name Iēsous, from which we get the name Jesus, is equivalent to the Hebrew name Yeshua, which is similar to a Hebrew verb meaning "to rescue" or "to deliver."²  In the Gospel of Matthew, a heavenly messenger says to Joseph, "Joseph son of David, don't be afraid to take Mary as your wife, because the child she carries was conceived by the Holy Spirit.  She will give birth to a son, and you will call him Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins."³

Jesus was given His name because it is associated with salvation.

The Letter to the Philippians contains what is thought to be an early Christian hymn.  This hymn, which is commonly called the Christ Hymn, tells of the descent and ascent of the Son of God.  It begins,

Though he was in the form of God,
he did not consider being equal with God something to exploit.
But he emptied himself
by taking the form of a slave
and by becoming like human beings.
When he found himself in the form of a human,
he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death,
even death on a cross.⁴

Christ descended from Heaven to walk among us on Earth.

He descended from divine power to join us in human frailty.

He descended from equality with God to live His life on Earth as a servant.

He descended from divine glory to suffer a painful and degrading death by crucifixion.

The Christ Hymn continues,

Therefore, God highly honored him
and gave him a name above all names,
so that at the name of Jesus everyone
in heaven, on earth, and under the earth might bow
and every tongue confess
that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.⁵

Christ ascended from the grave when He was resurrected.

He ascended from Earth to Heaven to receive a seat of authority at the Father's right hand side.

He ascended from servanthood to sovereignty as the true Lord of this world.

When Christ entered this world, He was given the name Jesus because it is associated with salvation.  Because of who Jesus is and what He did, His name is also associated with sovereignty.  In the days of the Roman Empire, when people were expected to say that Caesar is lord, the early Christians boldly proclaimed that Jesus Christ is Lord.

It has been said, "Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely."⁶  Only someone who demonstrated ultimate humility, as Christ did when He left behind the power and glory of divinity to become human, and is willing to make the ultimate sacrifice, as Christ was when He gave His life on the Cross for the sake of humanity, can be trusted with ultimate authority, as Christ was when He was raised to Heaven and given a place of authority at the right hand of the Father.

The Gospel message can be summarized in five words: "The Risen Christ is Lord."  Because Jesus is the true Lord of this world, the evils we fear are not truly in control, and, because Jesus defeated death, the worst thing they could possibly do to us would not be the end of the story.  This message has the power to save.


Notes:

1. Matthew 1:18-25 and Luke 1:26-38
2. Wikipedia: "Yeshua"
3. Matthew 1:20-21 (CEB)
4. Philippians 2:6-8 (CEB)
5. Philippians 2:9-11 (CEB)
6. This quote is attributed to John Dalberg-Acton.

The Annunciation was painted by Domenico Beccafumi in the 1500s.

Introspection: While I Wasn't Blogging

I share these thoughts hoping they are of help to someone else.
Comments are always welcomed.
If you find these thoughts helpful, please share.

While I Wasn't Blogging

Peter, suddenly bold, said, "Master, if it's really you, call me to come to you on the water."

Matthew 14:28 (The Message)

Give me a revelation
Show me what to do
'Cause I've been trying to find my way
I haven't got a clue
Tell me, should I stay here?
Or do I need to move?
Give me a revelation
I've got nothing without You

From "Revelation" by Third Day

As you may or may not have noticed, dear reader, I haven't posted very much on this blog this year, and I haven't shared anything personal at all.  Since it is now the end of the year, I felt like I should at least share something with you about where I am personally right now.

For over sixteen years, I have worked as a computer programmer in the IT department of a local technical college.  Some days I actually enjoy my job, particularly when I have opportunities to learn something new, to develop new processes or improve old ones, or to solve problems.  On the days when I don't especially enjoy my job, I'm still grateful that I'm able to use my programming skills to contribute to the common good by helping people, in some small way, to gain an affordable higher education.

For the last four years, it has seemed like the only thing constant about my job, besides the monthly paycheck, has been change.  There have been shifting institutional goals, and, because so many of my coworkers have either retired or moved on to other jobs, I am now one of the more experienced people on my team.  I've had to take on more and more responsibilities, and I've had to address issues I previously had no idea how to address.  After the trials and triumphs of the last year, I think that my imposter syndrome - my nagging fear that the people who count on me will inevitably discover I'm utterly unqualified for my job - is starting to go away.

Though my job is evidently a good fit for me, there are times when I wonder if I'm actually meant to do something else with my life.  The truth is that, while I was interviewing for my current job, I was already contemplating a career change - something I made it a point to not tell my interviewers.  A few years ago, I started to once again consider quitting my job, going back to school, and starting a new career, but I have yet to take any steps in that direction.

Earlier this year, while I was participating in a short-term book study at my church about taking leaps of faith, I realized once again that one of my reasons for considering a career change was the fact that I don't want to be seen by others as a "computer nerd."  I decided that, before I make any radical changes in my life, I need to do a better job of accepting myself as I am, where I am.  I want to be sure that I'm running toward something and not merely running away from something.  Also, considering all of the recent changes at the institution where I am employed, if I do decide to leave my current job, I want to leave my department in a better place.

While I was still working at my previous job, I started preaching on occasion at the church I attended at the time.  A few years later, I started taking classes with Lay Servant Ministries, an education program offered by the United Methodist Church for people who want to better serve the church.  In 2017, I was formally certified to preach in the denomination.  Though I don't pastor a church, I occasionally get the opportunity to preach at the church I attend or at other churches when the pastor is unable to preach.  Around the same time I was certified to preach, I started teaching classes for the same program, one of which I had to take in order to be certified.

For various reasons, until November of this year, I had not preached in sixteen months.  That said, I did teach two different classes for Lay Servant Ministries this year.  In the spring, I taught the Methodist heritage class for the fifth time, and, in the fall, I taught a class on the Sacraments - Baptism and Holy Communion - for the second time.

In recent years, I found that the summer season was a lonely time for me, but I'm happy to say that was not true this year.  One reason was that, unlike previous years, my Sunday school class continued to meet through the summer this year.  We did change things up during the summer by meeting at a cafe close to the church, setting aside our typical curriculum, and having free-form discussions about the Bible passages on which our pastors' sermons were based.  I found sharing my knowledge with the class over these conversations especially meaningful.

I've taken two spiritual gift surveys in the past, and each revealed that my top two spiritual gifts are knowledge and teaching.  That said, I think that maybe my God-given purpose in life is to learn and to share what I've learned.

I have no intention to stop blogging, but, the last few years have shown that I don't seem to have it in me right now to publish blog posts on a regular basis.  Whenever I force myself to meet some schedule or quota, I inevitably find myself hating this blog.  Also, I've also been wondering if I'm being nudged toward more in-person forms of ministry, like leading short-term studies.  When figuring out what to write for this blog, I feel like I need to share insights that are new and interesting, but, in Sunday school or at Bible study, I can share whatever insights are relevant to the topic at hand, whether or not they are new or especially interesting.

Regarding my more personal posts, I haven't really felt like I've had anything worth sharing about my life lately.  Furthermore, last year I found myself growing weary of my own introspective writing.  I figure that, if I'm tired of the disappointment and self-pity that tends to infect my writing, then you probably don't want to read it either.

I tend to attribute a lack of blogging to stagnation or a lack of fruitfulness.  Even if I do feel a bit stuck at this time and unsure of what I should be doing with my life, I don't think the past year was an unfruitful one for me.  I will continue publishing blog posts when I feel like I have something worth publishing, but I won't force myself to write if I don't have anything to write.

Thank you, dear reader, for taking the time to read these scattered thoughts about the past year.  I hope that the new year is a good year for both of us.


The photograph featured in this introspection was taken by Ranggi Manggala, and it has been released to the public domain.  The photographer is in no way affiliated with this blog.