Tag Archives: discipleship

God of the Sucker Punch

Posted on by
Reply

libraryI was recently studying at a local library, situated in a leisure center with a gym and pool. My concentration was cracked by a voice, unclear, almost animal-like.  Curiosity craned my neck and I saw a family (I presume) of three exiting the building. Between the parents was the owner of the voice. Barely a teenager, living with some form of handicap, he was visibly worked up. His distressed moans were expressing as much to the whole facility. I watched his parents hold of his arms in a gentle attempt to guide him from the building, but he was having none of it. Then he began to get violent, firing unpredictable kicks at his parents’ legs and digging in his heels against their guiding efforts.

I Had to Watch.

Now in full-blown “snoopy mode”, I was unable to stop watching this odd interaction, which now escalated significantly. Father and mother proceeded to tackle their son, placing him on the ground and restraining him under their own body weight. I hoped anxiously that an onlooker would not accuse them of attacking the boy. I also wondered how many times they had been forced into these roles before. What first-day parents dream of playing bouncer as they raise that little baby? What did it feel like to tackle one’s child in a public place? In the midst of their wrestling, were they self-conscious of onlookers’ gazes, or had such thoughts been beaten out of them years earlier in the parenting of this child?

For several minutes, the three of them remained on the floor. Occasionally, the teen struggled and then surrendered into whimpering and whining once again. His parents patiently held their positions, presumably whispering negotiations for peace in that boardroom, inches from the floor.

Eventually, the three of them arose and made progress toward the exit. At this point, I saw dad run into the parking lot to locate their vehicle and bring it toward the curb. The teen noted the now-one-on-one coverage and upped the attack against his mother. Parking lot onlookers now formed an uncomfortable audience. The teen’s kicks and shoves, while still lacking full coordination and force, were intensifying, as were the feelings within this observer.

Anger was Stirring.

Ali-Liston KnockoutI knew nothing about the medical history or the family dynamics, but I was mad to watch such blatant rebellion. With father nowhere to be seen, my mind debated whether I should join the fracas as a reinforcement. Part of me wanted to swing my first “haymaker” and see what Ali felt like when he stood over Sonny Liston.

Here Comes the Boom.

And then I got sucker-punched.

A sucker punch is a punch made without warning, allowing no time for preparation or defense on the part of the recipient. (So says Wikipedia.)

Chess_piece_-_White_queenI was neither prepared, nor defended. In a vulnerable position, I was a wide receiver stretching to expose his ribs to the defender. I was the chess player so blindly bent on creating checkmate that I lost my queen. More accurately, I was King David so engrossed in a tale that I was deaf to the Jaws theme music rising to deafening volume.

“You are that man.”  That’s what David heard.

“You are that aggravating adolescent who needs an adjustment,” was more like my message.

Crystal Clear.

I have come to learn that the Spirit of God is the perfect communicator. He is as nuanced and feather-fingered or as forceful and non-negotiable as need be. His fingers can apply pressure with deadly precision to adjust exactly what is out of line.

His tone in the library did not match the anger that I had been feeling toward the parking lot punk. There was no frustration, not even impatience in the sucker punch. Rather, it struck like a sigh-filled inquiry:

“Jason, why do you battle me? Why do you fear that I might lead you astray? Why do your heels dig in? Why do you hesitate? Since the day of your birth, have I done anything to make you question My motives, as if I were out to harm you? I am capable of putting you on the ground if need be, but I would rather just walk with you in peace, with me as Parent and you as child.”

Muhammad Ali could never match the force of that gentle rebuke.

I had no answer worth speaking. I continue without one.

But I am trying to pick up my heels. The One leading me is loving and kind, and I would rather hold His hand than lie beneath His weight.

Knowledge Without Power

Posted on by
Reply

A tragic misunderstanding exists.

This blurred vision drives people to regard Christianity as merely one more avenue toward high, idealistic morality to be shelved beside those of Plato, Socrates, Aristotle, Confucius, Buddha, Tao, and others. The name “Jesus” is simply added to the list of “History’s Great Teachers,” typically receiving a middle-of-the-pack position, surrounded by peers of superior and inferior status.

When Christianity is reduced to a moral path or ethical code, it becomes no more than a variant theme of “Goodness, Beauty, and Truth” to which many through the ages have aspired. Here is where the misunderstanding becomes glaring.

To hold Jesus primarily as a “goodness guru” will drive one to encourage, “Look to the example of Jesus.” But any sharp thinker quickly recognizes that there may be nothing in the world so discouraging as the example of Jesus. The immensity of his moral stature and the absoluteness of his perfection are despair-inducing. The very best of us stand hopelessly condemned before we set out. To speak of “imitating Christ” is the zany zenith of nonsense. I cannot satisfy my own standards. I am incapable of meeting my own demands, and I regularly disappoint others’. Imitate Christ?! This is the language of the lunatic.

Much of this is unsurprising: The extent of failure, both others’ and our own; the departures of some from Christian churches, and the perceived moral collapse in cultures around the globe. What else is expected when the ethical instruction of non-Christian sources or of neutered-Christian teaching builds squarely upon the strength and power that no human being possesses. The architect of such a blueprint can expect lawsuits.

Thank God the distortion is not the deal.

Christianity is no mere code of ethics. If this is the version of faith which you have perceived or received, I apologize for the pitiful counterfeit you have held, with either affection or affliction. Just as a forged fifty will net you nothing beyond disappointment or detention, a crap-copy of Christianity delivers disillusionment or worse.  Mark it down: When Christ gets counterfeited, people get cheated.

Numerous educators and influencers will turn to Christianity as a source for inspired instruction. They may come with guards up against anticipated narrow-mindedness, with minds inquiring, “Christians, what are your dearly held beliefs about life-factors like money, power, sex, and pride?”

The answer is that what I believe about money, power, sex, pride, or any host of other factors is of little consequence. My adding to the pile of perceived knowledge is not nearly so needed as the arrival of power sufficient to deliver men and women from the mastery and control of such things as these.

“It is not knowledge we need; it is power. And this is where your moral ethical systems break down and fail completely. They have no power to offer, none at all.”

WHAT’S YOUR TAKE? Join the conversation below.

What is your faith experience?
Do standards have center stage?
Has power been perceived?

A WORD: To any who read this post with disappointment, with realization that such power has never been perceived, let me plant a seed of hope in your heart.  It DOES exist.  The drudgery of duty is what killed the soul of the older brother (Luke 15).  This is not the destiny of those who are “in Christ”.  Seek your Father with your heart; He is eager to share His joy with you.

[These thoughts have been heavily reliant upon a piece, “On Romans 10:3”, written by David Martyn Lloyd-Jones in 1961. The title and closing quote are his. My offering is the internal interaction with his text, twisted into this post of assertive agreements and revived re-phrasings of his original sentiments.]