The Parable of the Barren Fig Tree - Luke 13: 1 – 9

Last Sunday we explored the parable of the Rich Fool; Jesus teaching there that preoccupation with the storing up of material wealth, together with the belief that our lives are entirely our own, is ‘foolish’. Yes, that was the word he used, ‘foolish’; a word used throughout the bible for describing the very opposite of the wisdom that comes from God, a wisdom that is often contrasted in the bible with ‘the wisdom of the world’, a wisdom that does not take into account God, is not informed by his laws or his love. In the case of the rich fool we discovered that his foolishness was essentially this, that his preoccupation with building up his wealth had destroyed the two things in life that matter more than anything else in the world - our relationship with him and with our fellow human beings. Sadly, I have come across so many people – I’m sure you have too - for whom this teaching of Jesus has fallen, and still falls, on deaf ears.

This morning we explore two more incidents – one a parable – in which we find Jesus teaching about two very significant, indeed essential, steps for the Christian, for the man or woman who would take Jesus seriously and, realising their need of him, decide that they want to follow him, make him part of or, rather, welcome him into their lives.,

These two episodes have been put together by Luke in his gospel. I agree it’s not perhaps immediately obvious why. But I hope to show you that he has put them there, one immediately after the other, because they teach us about two consecutive steps you and I must take towards maturity; maturity not just of understanding the Christian life but in putting that understanding into practice.  

We don’t have time to explore fully both this morning; but we shall do in the 

Wednesday evening study group, which is repeated on Tuesday afternoons in the Ladies Study Group – both here in church. These two groups give us much more time not only to explore Jesus’ teaching but to listen to and talk with others about how and why and in what ways Jesus’ teaching is still so relevant to us and to healthy lives today.

But let me just say, very briefly, that the first five verses – we’ll explore more on 

Wednesday - offer some  difficult, unpopular and unsatisfying for many (I would call such people ‘foolish’ according to the biblical definition of wisdom; let’s call a spade a spade!) but, yes, unpopular and unsatisfying for many people, teaching about suffering. 

Jesus states here firmly, and in a very matter-of-fact way, that suffering is not necessarily directly related to particular acts of sinfulness and is very often simply purely accidental – that’s just the way the world is: but both kinds of cases (man-made and natural suffering) should serve to lead us, he says, to consider, unlike the rich fool, not only the fragility of human existence but that the whole thrust and purpose of our lives should be towards serving God and neighbour rather than ourselves. And therefore we all of us need to repent.

Whatever life throws at us or others, however ghastly, we all of us need to repent of any sinfulness in our own lives and turn to God and his service. I know this sounds tough, harsh, as the principle point Jesus makes about the problem of suffering in the world. 

(Remember, here he is responding to their questions; we know already of his compassion, his practical responses to particular cases of suffering, a compassion he sets as an example for us to follow.) But such repentance is actually ‘the beginning of wisdom’ on this whole subject. Why? Well, because we need to get ourselves in the right perspective before we can comment with any real ‘wisdom’ on the subject. 

Repentance is always the first significant and vital step to understanding the world and the way it is, to becoming a Christian, and then to growth in maturity in the Christian life. 

And it is a daily requirement lest we become, like the rich fool of last Sunday’s parable, either too full of ourselves and our own worldly wisdom or too full of insatiable desires that there is little or no room left in our lives for God and for the service to which he calls us. They are five admittedly tricky verses, and we can explore the whole subject of suffering more on Wednesday evening at 8pm.

But what follows after repentance? Where do we go from there? Is it enough to say sorry and then just carry on as though nothing has changed? No. And this is why Jesus introduces this parable immediately here in V6. ‘Then he told this parable.’ As if to say, 

‘For where you are now, I’ve told you all you need to know about suffering; now here’s your next essential piece of godly ‘wisdom.’

We can see that it is about fruitfulness, or rather, the lack of it. But when we examine it closely we shall find that it is not, as at first sight perhaps to some, just about judgement and condemnation: it is actually about mercy and grace, something which would certainly have surprised Jesus’ listeners because he takes an Old Testament picture and then re-works it into a new one.

Let’s see what it all means and then think about how it applies to us today.

The symbolism is straightforward Old Testament with which his listeners were familiar: 

the vineyard is Israel; the owner and the gardener are the attributes of God, justice and mercy, debating with each other. But there is also a fig tree introduced – indeed it is the centre of attention! It represents those who ought to know and to do better. In this particular case Jesus has his guns on the religious leadership of Israel but his message to them does have a wider remit, and is to those who, having come into the vineyard and taken their place there, are not fulfilling their calling. Certainly, failure to bear fruit was an Old Testament symbol for the idolatrous days in which the prophets lived, whilst in Jesus’ teaching, bearing fruit is the very purpose of becoming a Christian i.e. to continue his mission of reconciling the world to God by our presentation and living of his ‘gospel’ message ourselves.

Now very interestingly, Jesus takes an OT passage with which his listeners would have been very familiar, Isaiah chapter 5, and changes and adds some things to make the vitally important points you and I need to appreciate and then to act upon.

1. In Isaiah chapter 5, the vineyard owner sees the unfruitfulness and tears down the whole place, walls ‘n all. Here, whilst there is a strong message of righteous anger, judgement is postponed (mercy) and a time allowed for repentance and then fruitfulness (the work of God’s grace in our lives).

2. The fig tree is unfruitful and is bleeding strength from the soil; it’s not just a waste of space. (To be quite blunt, this is one of the reasons why churches today are not being fruitful and in many cases declining, not surprisingly, in number!  Oases of peace from the world they may be, but there is always the temptation to inactivity resting under the shade of our own barren fig tree. Church health and church growth are factors of fruitfulness: heresy and church decline are equally factors of unfruitfulness. In these respects the reports and numbers tell a very clear story, despite the many social and theological excuses put forward for decline.)

3. The owner, though justifiably angry, acts to preserve the health of the vineyard; he has the health of the whole vineyard at heart. The leadership, represented by the fig tree, have a responsibility. Those today who have a leadership role in a church have a responsibility not to allow those who are wasting space to sap the strength of the church. The role of every church is to bear fruit. If a church, or things about it, or people in it, are preventing that church from bearing fruit, then things need to change. Here in the parable there is a crisis of particular leadership. What will the owner do?

4. The problem is simply stated v7. He has waited patiently (seven years if we know our gardening) long beyond the expected, natural appointed time for fruit-bearing. It is his concern for good soil in his vineyard that prompts him to ‘dig out’ the barren tree. Some translations say ‘cut down’. No, ‘dug out’ because trunk and roots still take up space – no room for the unfruitful!

5.v8. With their Old Testament background understanding, listeners would have expected such drastic action: but no, the debating attributes of God in the persons of the owner and the gardener decide that the fig tree is to be offered a period of grace AND special attention from the gardener. This is very revealing and, for his listeners, surprising. (It sounds funny, doesn’t it, speaking of ‘forgiving’ a fig tree? But in Aramaic, ‘forgive’ is very close in sound to the word for ‘dig out.’ Our western translators missed a trick there. Jesus didn’t; he wanted his listeners to remember it more easily!) But what we must all realise here is that fruit cannot come from within the resources of the tree itself! It needs the gardener and manure, just as you and I need Jesus and his grace if anything genuinely fruitful is ever to be grown in our own lives and the life of our church.

To conclude then, each one of us needs to reflect on both these pieces of teaching and to ask ourselves what it means for us as individuals and for us as a church to be ‘fruitful’ for Jesus in this day and age?  I suspect the exercise will not be painless. Note though, this parable once again Jesus leaves open-ended; we are not told the outcome. 

In doing so Jesus challenges each one of us to make our own response to the parable. 

What we do know is that the fig tree needs to produce fruit. We know too that God is willing to provide the necessary manure, time, and commitment to help it to grow. But how will we respond to God’s working, to his ‘manuring’, in our lives? That is the question. 

Bible Study Questions (Luke 18:9-14)

1.      Jesus targets this parable at those who are confident in their own righteousness and who look down on other people. Do you think this problem of self-righteous people is as much a problem today as back then?

2.      How does the Pharisee’s view of himself affect his relationship with God and others?

3.      What did each man do and what was his reward?

4.      What was the rule Jesus used from which He judged these men and how can we apply this to our own lives?

5.      In what areas of life do you ‘have confidence in yourself?’ Is this good or bad in light of Luke 18:9?

6.      Is it okay to be better than others? How can we grow in righteousness without becoming self-righteous?

7.      Many people who have a religion or philosophy can be self-righteous, because they think their ways are better than others. This is also true sometimes of those who profess to be a Christian. Who do we look down on?

8.      How are people saved? Are we justified (seen as righteous) by our deeds and actions or by faith in Jesus Christ? Discuss.

Study: The Parable of the Persistent Widow - Luke 18 verses 1 to 8

Study: The Parable of the Persistent Widow - Luke 18 verses 1 to 8

1. This parable portrays an uncaring Judge. How do you view God? Don’t try and give a correct answer. Give an honest answer.
2. Why do you pray?
3. How and when do you pray?
4. Does God listen to your prayers do you think?
5. Can you identify with the widow’s desire for justice?
6. Is there something on your heart that you feel strongly enough about to really persevere in prayer for?
7. What kinds of things can cause us to lose heart and give up praying?
8. What remedies can you think of to counteract this?
9. What is this parable saying to you personally?
10. Do you have any new resolutions with regards to prayer as a result of thinking about this parable?

Please do come along to the church this wednesday 28^th September at 8.00 p.m. to talk about the above. You’ll be very welcome.

The Parable of the Persistent Widow - Luke 18 verses 1 to 8

The Parable of the Persistent Widow - Luke 18 verses 1 to 8

Jesus tells this parable to show his disciples that they should always pray and not give up. So the parable is intended to illustrate the theme of being persistent in prayer.

But let’s briefly sketch out the story we are being presented with here.

The first character we are introduced to is the judge. He’s not a particularly good person to be a judge as he doesn’t fear God and he doesn’t care about people.

The sense of the translation is that he doesn’t feel shame because his conscience isn’t functioning as it should.

In those days such judges were often bribed and the case would go to the person who paid the most.

Next we are introduced to the widow. In the bible widows often symbolise the powerless and the oppressed. 

The fact this widow is representing herself in this case would suggest that she has no male relatives to do it for her.

In Israel in those times, it was very much a man’s world. Women didn’t go to court so her appearance suggests she is entirely alone in the world with no one to support her.

However what the woman does have, is a conviction that her cause is just and an absolute determination to see justice done. Also because she is a woman she will be treated with a degree of respect in the court. She is able to plead her case and be heard.

So she comes repeatedly to the judge and asks him to grant her justice. The sense of the translation implies that the lady has a will to go on forever if need be. There is no sense of wavering in her determination.

Initially the judge rejects her request but she is not to be deterred.

One can imagine when the court opened the woman being there and the judge thinking oh no not that woman again.

Her relentless appeals start to get to him and wear him down, and eventually the judge decides to grant her justice for his own peace of mind, and to finally be rid of her persistent requests.

So Jesus paints a picture of an uncaring judge with a woman whose chances of success would have been very slim indeed in that day and age.

 But even in this situation the woman’s determination eventually leads to justice being done.

Jesus’s point is that if even an unjust judge will grant justice to a powerless widow because she is persistent, how much more will God answer the prayers of his chosen ones if they are persistent.

The reality however is that God is nothing like the unjust judge and as Christians our situation is nothing like the widow’s. So if her persistence is rewarded how much more will our persistence in prayer be rewarded.

In fact God is the polar opposite of the unjust judge. He loves justice and he cannot act unjustly. Furthermore he cares very much about people and has a perfect understanding of every situation that is presented to him. 

He can see our thoughts and the attitude of our hearts. And above all He loves us. He wants to give us what is good for us. He is on our side.

So when we pray we’re not coming to someone who is unjust and unconcerned; we’re coming to someone who is absolutely just and who cares deeply about our situation and who wants to help us.

But not only is God different to the judge presented in the story. We are in a very different situation to the widow. She is on her own in a male dominated world.

But as Christians we are children of God. We’re not strangers to the judge. We are his children and He is our loving Heavenly Father. His spirit is living in us and we belong to his family and household. The one we’re coming to is the one who created us and loves us most of all.

So we can understand when Jesus says in this parable; “and will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones who cry out to him night and day. Will he keep putting them off? I tell you he will see that they get justice and quickly.”

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Some of you will be parents and you will know how precious your children are to you. Perhaps there have been things your children have longed for, which as a parent you also wanted to give them.

But maybe you didn’t give them to your child straight away. You asked them to wait for Christmas or a birthday. But there was a longing in your heart to give your beloved child something that would mean a lot to them.

Perhaps you were as impatient as them for Christmas day or their birthday to arrive so that they could receive the gift. You were looking forward to that moment when at last their request would be granted.

If you’re not a parent perhaps you can remember receiving a gift from your own parents, which meant a lot to you. What perhaps you didn’t see at the time was the longing in their heart to give it to you.

Jesus said; “If you even though you are evil know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!”

So God longs to answer our prayers but we need to be persistent and not to give up.

Our persistence is a sign of our faith and of how much we really want something from God.

Why doesn’t God answer our prayers straightaway? Well he does but often what we are asking for can take months or years to accomplish. The moment you first start praying, God will start to address the situation you are praying for.

For instance in Daniel chapters 9 and 10 we read about Daniel praying earnestly but not receiving an answer to his prayer for 21 days. However he is told; “Since the first day that you set your mind to gain understanding and to humble yourself before your God, your words were heard.”

Daniel was heard as soon as he started praying although he saw no obvious answer for 3 weeks.

It is the same for us. We are heard as soon as we start praying but the answer can take many weeks or months or even years to become evident.

Why does it sometimes take so long to see an outcome from our prayers?

Well if we’re praying for instance for someone’s salvation or healing there is often much that we don’t see that 

God may need to do in order to answer our prayers.

A while ago I was praying for a young person with a nut allergy. I remembered him in my prayers over a period of perhaps 12 months but I saw no obvious answer to my prayers.

I asked God why it was taking so long for him to answer my prayer. I then had the impression that what I was praying for was actually much bigger than I realised, and that the nut allergy was merely a symptom of some deeper root cause. God was dealing with the root cause – not just the symptom.

What I had imagined would be a simple healing was actually more involved than I had realised.

Perhaps if you’re a gardener you’ve gone to dig a plant out but you’ve found its roots go much deeper than you expected.

Sometimes if we’re praying for someone’s healing we may be only seeing the tip of the iceberg as it were. We may see the symptom but not the root cause.

Sometimes of course we may be concerned with a need for physical healing whereas God may be more concerned about spiritual or emotional healing.

Likewise with praying for a person’s salvation, often people pray for several years before their prayers are fully answered. Sometimes people will need to walk a long long path before they reach the point of really wanting God in their lives.

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There is quite an important point in the parable which is that the widow’s determination to see justice done, springs from a conviction that her cause is just.

If we are to persevere in prayer for something we must be fully convinced in our hearts that what we are praying for is in line with God’s will.

If you’re praying to win on your premium bonds you may not be successful. However if God has laid a particular prayer on your heart – a particular person or situation – your chances of success are extremely good as long as you persevere.

However like the widow you must be absolutely determined to pray until you see an answer to your prayers, even if it will take years and years. The person or situation you are praying for is so dear to your heart that you simply will not give up. You will rend the heavens until your prayer is answered.

Such prayers spring from a heart of love and often you will find these prayers spring from the heart of God himself. You are praying in to being the desires of God.

So beloved if this is you. Don’t give up. God does hear your prayers and He is at work. Persevere and your perseverance will be rewarded.

Of course we can’t dictate to God and sometimes the outcome of our prayers won’t be what we hoped for or expected. However what we can be sure of is that our prayers were heard and that they have had some effect even if the answer hasn’t been obvious to us.

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Sometimes if we pray for a situation that is close to our heart and we feel frustrated that there has been no obvious break through, fasting may be an option.

Fasting can be done for a variety of spiritual reasons but one way in which it can be very helpful is as a way of prayer. I heard one person describe fasting in this way as prayer with a megaphone.

It’s saying Lord I feel so strongly about this situation that I am willing to deny myself food.

Now I would only suggest fasting as an option to someone who is in good health and if you have any doubts seek medical advice beforehand.

If you haven’ done it before perhaps try fasting initially for just a couple of days. You could even try a partial fast – say going without your evening meal for a few days.

If you do decide to fast set your own parameters and be clear in your own mind as to exactly why you’re doing it.

Personally I’d continue to drink liquids except for alcohol and I’d never suggest going without liquids for any period of time as if you do, you can become seriously ill.

My own experience is that God does hear fasts and that it can sometimes lead to a spiritual breakthrough.

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Finally I’d just like to say a few words about prayer in general.

Of course you can pray at any time of day wherever you happen to be, but one of my favourite scriptures is what Jesus said about praying;

He said; “When you pray go to your room and close the door and pray to your father who is unseen and your father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.”

It is a good idea to have some place in your home where you can go to be alone with God.

A quiet place where you can go to talk to God on a regular basis.

Firstly shut the door. This is a practical and a symbolic gesture. You are effectively shutting out the world for a while. You are going to be alone with your heavenly father and you don’t want to be disturbed or interrupted.

Although you won’t be able to see God when you do this He can most certainly see you.

As Jesus says, God is unseen but he sees what is done in secret. He knows your thoughts and the words you are about to speak. He knows the concerns on your heart and what sort of day you’ve had. And he longs for you to share it all with him.

Be totally honest with God. If you feel frustrated or angry share it with Him. Tell him about what is going on in your life. And when you pray explain situations to him. Tell him about the people you care about and ask him to bless them, to protect them, to draw them to himself, to open their eyes, to heal them if need be. Share your concern for them with him as He loves them too.

If you look at prayers in the bible they are often detailed. God already knows everything of course but by sharing situations with him your prayers are real and relevant.

When you pray like this you are exercising faith and God always rewards faith. As Jesus says; Your father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.

And do remember to thank God for loving you, for hearing your prayers, and for providing for you.

If you’re not yet a Christian and this all sounds a bit alien still go to your room and close the door and pray. I promise you that God will hear every thought and word you want to share with him.

Before I became a Christian I used to pray in my room. I used to say God I don’t know if you’re listening but if you are please reveal yourself to me. I believe that you created the world and that you created me I want to know who you are.

It took a few years but God answered that prayer and whoever you are today God will answer your prayers too, if you mean them and if like the widow in today’s parable you persevere.

Amen.

QUESTIONS FOR BIBLE STUDY OF LUKE CH 9: 57 - 62

QUESTIONS FOR BIBLE STUDY OF LUKE CH 9: 57 - 62

1. Is there anything – any words, phrases, or concepts in the passage that you do not understand or find unclear?

2. From the information given us in the passage, how do you picture the scene? Who might be there with Jesus?

3. What does this passage teach us about Jesus?

4. What does this passage teach us about discipleship?

5. Can you be a Christian without being a disciple?

6. How would you explain this passage to a Confirmation class/ an enquirer/ an atheist?

THE FOX, THE FUNERAL, AND THE FURROW – Luke 9: 57 - 62

We continue this morning our exploration of some of Jesus’ parables with a passage from Luke Chapter 9. Now some of you may be asking, ‘Why this passage? It doesn’t look much like a parable to me.’ Well, in the Middle East of Jesus’ day, the term actually covered pretty much anything from a few pithy words of comparison or illustration to those complete short stories we know so well. Here Jesus is getting over his points about the cost of being one of his disciples by means of three imaginative comparisons taken from what was for his listeners then the naturally, the socially, and the agriculturally familiar.

And so in order to avoid taking a view very popular in an increasing number of churches today – that of making the Scriptures fit our own social situation or personal agendas rather than allowing them to inform, question, and challenge these, we need to find out how Jesus’ original listeners would have understood these verses. Only then, I strongly believe, may we logically and honestly apply his teaching today to you and to me.

At last Wednesday evening’s Bible Study Group here in the church, having done such analysis with last Sunday’s parable, we were able to see very clearly the unrelenting wisdom of Jesus’ teaching and how it applies to us today as we seek to be genuine and committed disciples of his in this 21^st century.

I met a man several years ago now who had come to this country to tell us what it was like to live unashamedly as a Christian in his home country where persecution was rife: sadly, after not very long here, he had come to the conclusion, from what he had seen of Christianity in Britain, that it was, for the most part, a pretty lukewarm and fair-weather affair. He had to try hard not to be scathing about much of what he saw – a watered down gospel preached from many pulpits, a weak-kneed and ineffectual discipleship the result of such preaching. He wasn’t a fanatic or a Fundamentalist; he just reckoned he owed Jesus and needed to show this in his life - much as the woman in last Sunday’s parable. He was a very attractive person with that rare kind of love and inner strength that is able to take you beyond your own sense of failure and inadequacy as a Christian and reassure you that God loves you and is just waiting for you to stop pretending or procrastinating or excusing and, instead, get to know him better and serve him.

And it was this passage that reminded me of much of what he saw as being weak and wet about Anglican Christianity in particular in this country. Now I realise that it is socially heretical – it always has been of course - to attack the tribal myths of how a country does its religion, especially when we find those myths so comforting or confirming of our own views of the world and our place in it. But Jesus did; and once we have understood, in the responses of these three would-be disciples here in this passage, the actual meaning of the words and the real sentiments behind them, we will be able to make our own responses to the challenges presented in this encounter – which of course is one of the main reasons why Luke recorded it for his readers! 

Let’s take a closer look at the passage. Jesus and his disciples are walking along a road: two men offer to follow Jesus; a third he directs to do so. The first is drawn in to this wandering rabbi’s little community of followers but has not grasped what it truly means to be one of them in practice. Jesus perceives this but does not reject the would-be disciple’s offer: rather, he simply paints V58 a picture of suffering and total rejection, a picture, given the language he uses, that also has strong political symbolism. (The politics I’ll explain on Wednesday evening). Jesus responds to the would-be disciple’s offer to follow him by asking, in this indirect parabolic way, not only if he has really considered the hard truth that the cost of following him will necessarily invite suffering, privation, and rejection, but also that, if it is power and influence he is really after, then he has offered to follow the wrong person.

We are not told the outcome: this volunteer does not answer. As in many of the parables of Jesus, the parable is left suspended, inviting the listener or the reader to consider the matter and complete the conversation with his or her own response.

The second person is not a volunteer but, rather, is recruited. Jesus says to him, ‘Follow me.’ This is expressed, grammatically, as a command to begin to do something that the person has not yet done. Has Jesus perceived perhaps that this person is just a curious onlooker or half-hearted hanger-on who needs to make a decision about him? The man’s reply reveals that his heart is elsewhere and influenced more profoundly by social convention, by peer pressure. The phrase, V59 ‘Let me bury my father’, is not what you think it is. It does not mean that this man’s father has just died or even is about to die. 

If he were, why is the man there? Why is he not already at his father’s bedside? No, the phrase is a traditional idiom, still coined in the Middle East today, that refers specifically to the duty of a son to remain at home and care for his parents until they are laid to rest respectfully. If a young man in the Middle East today, for example, expresses a wish to emigrate, a friend or relation may well ask, ‘Are you not going to bury your father first?’ In other words saying ‘surely you are not going to go until you have done your filial duty!’ Or in an argument between a father and a rebellious son one might easily hear a stinging rebuke from the father, ’You want to bury me?’ – meaning ‘you want me to hurry up and die so that my authority over you will be at an end?’                                 

So you see the social expectation is that the man remain at home; and this man is saying to Jesus in effect, ’Do you really expect me to follow you now and violate the expectations of my community?’ Yet this is precisely what Jesus is saying: the Kingdom of God must be announced as present reality. 

The spiritually dead can take care of the traditional responsibilities of your local community, but as for you, if you want to be my disciple, you cannot put it off. You need to choose which is the determining factor in your religion – me or social convention. It is a question that has not gone away and challenges us still today; people still honour the practice of conventional social religious practices more than they honour God – if they really honour him at all. And the Church of England, in its misplaced desire to keep everyone happy for fear of losing them - and their money, wastes much time on man-made or watered-down religious practices rather than liberating them with the message of the Gospel – a message that of course in so many ways challenges what society expects and even demands of the tame and toothless church it would much prefer. We must not forget that our welcome to all is still based on certain uncomfortable truths without which religious practice, however inspiring or consoling, is ultimately just another idol.

The third man V61, like the first, is a volunteer. He brashly offers to follow the master but has a precondition. Again, what seems to us in the West a perfectly reasonable request is in fact nothing of the sort. ‘Let me first say farewell to those at my home’ is a misleading translation of a phrase that ought to be translated, ‘Let me first take leave of those at my home.’ The difference is hugely important and vital to a correct understanding of the man’s offer to follow Jesus. It is not a case of the man asking Jesus if he may just first pop home and say goodbye to his folks. That did not happen in Jesus’ day; is does not happen still in the very formal, family-centred and paternalistic Middle East of today. This man is actually saying to Jesus that before he commits to following him he must first go home and ‘take leave of’ i.e. ask permission to go, from his father. Everyone listening to their conversation knows that naturally his father will refuse to let the man disappear on some highly questionable enterprise with a wandering rabbi who is already upsetting the religious, social, and political apple carts. The volunteer’s excuse is ready made: and of course Jesus sees through this shallow public demonstration of commitment; which is why he replies V62 in the way that he does, with an illustration about not looking back for fear of going off the way ahead.

So what Jesus is claiming here is an authority over the volunteer greater than that demanded by social convention – the authority of the father. The man’s reply had told Jesus that the man had not grasped that to follow him means to submit one’s life completely to him; a demand that still today is particularly shocking to well brought up young middle easterners for obvious reasons. In traditional Middle Eastern society a man would get up in the morning, first say his prayers, and then go to his father and mother to ask their blessing on the day and on whatever he plans to do. Tottenham and Walthamstow a few weeks ago!!

This is all serious stuff with serious choices being demanded – another of the many ‘hard sayings’ of Jesus on account of which we know, from the gospel records, many turned away. The person who cannot resolve the tension of conflicting loyalties and who keeps turning back to look over his shoulder at what the family is ordering is judged ‘unfit’ for the Kingdom of God. Jesus is saying that his authority must take precedence over all other relationships.

Such ideas really do go against the grain of most people today: but the liberating life-enhancing truth is that we can only really get our family relationships in a healthy perspective when we do allow the authority of Jesus to determine what will be. Why? Well because when we do not, we naturally tend to act selfishly rather than in the genuine interests of the other member of our family. And I have seen this in my pastoral ministry time after time after time. I think, for example, of a young man who wanted to serve Christ abroad in his gap year but was persuaded – one might even say threatened or blackmailed – into an internship in the City instead. Such decisions are tough; but each one of us, parent or child, has to make a decision about whose authority determines our life.

So, to sum up Jesus’ teaching here so that you and I may put ourselves in the shoes of those would-be disciples and ask ourselves the searching questions Jesus puts to each of them, we can see in the first dialogue that we need to consider seriously the cost of discipleship, discipleship of the Son of Man who is rejected still by many today. Are we willing to suffer the same rejection by some of our peers if we follow him?

What lessons from the second dialogue? Well, first, that Jesus commands us, if we want to be his, to proclaim the Kingdom of God, a Kingdom of which he is the unique agent of God. And, secondly, that the cultural demands of society are not acceptable excuses for failure in discipleship – irrespective of how long-standing and sacred the tribal myths about religion have become.

In the third dialogue we learn that the Kingdom of God must take precedence over all other loyalties; that the disciple with divided loyalties is a disruptive force in the work of the Kingdom; and that to ‘follow’ Jesus is not defined by him as feeling the glow of an inner warmth of consolation or as the light of intellectual insight, but is compared to the taking up of a strenuous, creative, consuming task like putting one’s hand to a plough and guiding a team of oxen.

Small wonder then that many found such a calling too ‘hard’. But think more of those who found in the call of Jesus to follow him - life. Today as then he leaves it up to each one of us to weigh up, on the one hand, the pressures, and on the other his promises: ‘Come to me all you who are heavy laden, and I will give you rest’. ‘I came in order that they might have life, life in all its fullness.’ When we take Jesus, his love, his sacrifice for us, his promises, and discipleship seriously, that’s when life, life as God intended it, can really begin.

Bible Study Questions - 14th Sept

BIBLE STUDY QUESTIONS - 14 SEPTEMBER

THE PARABLE OF THE TWO DEBTORS – Luke Ch 7: 36 – 50

This deceptively simple, yet artistically and theologically complex, parable/dialogue Luke has given a special structure of seven symmetrical ‘scenes’ in order to help his readers/listeners remember it. Very cleverly he has taken an historical event in the life of Jesus and, whilst staying true to the facts, fashions the encounter into a very memorable and instructive piece for his readers to reflect on the person of Jesus and a whole cluster of faith issues.

1. Introduction (the Pharisee, Jesus, the woman)

2. The outpouring of the woman’s love (in action)

3. A dialogue (Simon judges wrongly)

4. The parable within the parable (in the Middle East, a ‘parable’ can be anything from a few pithy words to a whole story!)

5. A dialogue (Simon judges correctly)

6. The outpouring of the woman’s love (in retrospect)

7. Conclusion (the Pharisee, Jesus, the woman)

QUESTIONS

1. Is there anything you do not understand about what is going on or being said in this encounter?

2. Why do you think Luke included it in his Gospel?

3. Why did Simon invite Jesus? Why did Jesus accept?

4. Why did the woman come? What prompted her coming and her actions?

5. Why did Simon doubt Jesus’ prophetic credentials? Why did the woman not doubt them?

6. Why does Jesus take Simon to task? What does Jesus read in Simon’s heart?

7. What does this encounter teach us about forgiveness and faith?

8. How do you understand the main thrust of the central parable?

9. What warnings does this encounter give us about the practise of our own religion?

10. How strongly do you personally feel the force of social conventions and expectations and how do these affect the practice of your own faith and discipleship?