thoughts from Matthew 3

Matthew 3

There is something very appealing to me about John the Baptist. He makes me think of the greatest supporting characters from my favorite movies. The guys that you meet on the screen and immediately say to yourself, "that man is Bad Ass." Guys like Bullet-tooth Tony in Snatch, Hugo Stiglitz in Inglourious Bastards, or even il Duce from The Bookdock Saints.

John the Baptist just seems like one of those guys that when he walks into a room, he doesn't even have to say anything, people would just notice him. This wildly--possibly off-kilter man who wears raggedly clothes made of camel's hair and eats locusts and wild honey. This guy was Bear Gryllz before Bear Gryllz was Bear Gryllz.

John was a guy who had his eye on the prize at all times. He KNEW he was not the main character in God's story. He knew that Jesus was to be the main character and that his job was to be the preparer of His way. To be, "the voice of one calling in the desert, 'Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for him.'"

John centered his life around the mission that God gave him: to be there to listen to the confessions of God's people and to baptize them in His name. John wasn't there to revolutionize anything or to build some huge organization. John the Baptist was called by God to simply grab people by the shoulders turn them 180-degrees and point them to God.

John KNOWS he is not the main character. He even says so in verse 11: "...But after me will come one who is more powerful than I, whose sandals I am not fit to carry."

I need to remember as well, that I am not THE main character, but until judgment day, I am merely somebody who should be foreshadowing what is to come.

Matthew 3:9-10
"...I tell you, of these stones, God can raise up children for Abraham. The ax is already at the root of the trees, and every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire."

Stones are everywhere. Stones aren't that hard to find. And as long as God finds stones, he can make them into whatever He wants them to be. And we are like trees. We must be producing good fruit or we will cut down. And there are plenty of rocks that God could easily turn into trees that will produce good fruit.

Am I lazy? Am I arrogant? Do I think that I can put in the minimum effort in this life? If God is serious about what He says, then those of us that don't produce good fruit will be cut down - either in life, or in stature, or maybe by a crisis that rocks us to our knees. If I won't produce good fruit in the roles that God has put me in, then surely he will find somebody else (people seem to be a dime a dozen) who will do what God wants from them. It doesn't have to be me that gets the opportunities that I get. And if I won't take advantage of these opportunities, then surely God will find somebody else to.

Matthew 3:13-17
This whole section where Jesus gets baptized always stumps me. I wonder if Jesus got baptized because he would never ask us to do something he wouldn't do or is it because baptism would create a sense of legitimacy between Him and John the Baptist? I don't know why Jesus got baptized.

Maybe it was an endorsement of John's work. I really can't think of a greater thank you than for Jesus to say, "I like what you do. I'd like you to serve me by participating in that." What if Jesus came one day and said to our Zone workers, "I ultimately take care of all of your children better than you ever could, but I like what you do and would be happy if you would watch after my own." Or what if Jesus went up to our small group leaders and said, "I am the greatest small group leader of all time, I birthed a small group that is the epitome of successful small groups, but am pleased with YOUR small group too."

I try to imagine being John the Baptist and I'm doing what I've been doing for a long time. And all of a sudden a guy--THE guy--that I've been talking about...The guy I've been waiting for and wasn't sure if I'd live to see...He comes up and wants to be served by the ministry that I have planted. My ministry isn't that special. It doesn't have a ton of bells and whistles and I probably look terrible. I've got locust legs and clumps of honey stuck in my beard. I didn't wear my nice camel hairs that day....dang.

Well this guy, Jesus, who I've been serving as hard as I can for as long as I can, has just endorsed the ministry God has put me in charge of. He wants me--a loser, a bum, an outcast--to baptize Him--the purest of the pure, the greatest of the great.

What do I do with that? How do I process that? How would I live the rest of my life knowing that possibly the greatest thing that could ever happen to me and maybe the deepest desire of my heart has come true.

Would I have to give up all of my worries and live without abandon? Would there really be anything else left to try to accomplish or try to worry about?

Journaling Notes: Oct. 5, 2009

Acts 4:23-31

I couple of things stick out to me in this section. After Peter & John meet with the Sanhedrin and they tell the other believer's about their meeting, they seem to immediately go into prayer. They don't stand around and bitch and moan about how they were treated, instead they go directly into prayer and ask God to give them the words that would upend any accusations against them. Also, they don't pray that the Sanhedrin would all die, but simply pray that God would endow the believers with the ability to speak honestly and boldly.

Most of the time, instead of engaging in prayer, I whine, complain, or mock (behind their backs, of course). And honestly, I can be just as guilty as the priests, sanhedrin, and temple official were -- I hear other Christians claim to see miracles done, maybe healing or masses coming to Christ -- and my first move is to be cynical and mutter "bullshit" under my breathe.

Acts 4:32-36

"No one claimed that any of his possessions was his own, but they shared everything they had...There were no needy persons among them...from time to time those who owned lands or houses sold them, brought the money from the sales and put it at the apostles feet..."

I'm trying to imagine being THAT sold out to a cause. It's hard to. I don't know if I could sell my land or my home and just give the money to the church. That's a terrifying idea and if flies in the face of everything I consider safe and sane. (Which I believe is the point.)

I look at the $660k Shoal Creek owes on the building and think, "well let the more well off people at SC3 take care of it." I tend to be very greedy with my money. Especially since I don't have much of it. I keep trying to barter with God and say, "You know God, if I had a better job where I made more, I'd be able to give more." But if I look at myself honestly, I don't know if my giving skills would increase as much as my hoarding/buying stupid crap skills would.

Why does money feel like such a Catch-22? I can't really live without it: it buys my shelter, food, pays my bills, and can buy me medicine -- but at the same time, it will probably be the very thing that kills me.