After Their Situation Changes, David Gives Them New Jobs
The book of Numbers is so named because it starts and ends with a census—a numbering of the people. These take place forty years apart. Moses orchestrates both counts, at God’s command.
For the third part of the first census, Moses counts all men who can serve God from the tribe of Levite—in this case specifically the sons of Kohath. This count focuses on those between age thirty and fifty.
There are two implications from this age range.
One is that it takes not only adulthood, but also a degree of maturity that comes from life lessons before they can serve. We can infer this occurs at age thirty.
I wonder at what age significant maturity tends to occur today. Is it sooner or later? I fear it’s later, if at all.
The second implication is that “mandatory retirement” occurs at age fifty. Yes, life expectancies were shorter than, but to see an upper age limit placed on their work for God is interesting.
These men, however, aren’t priests.
Their assigned work is manual labor. The sole task of the sons of Kohath is to move the tent of meeting and items relating to worship. This requires a degree of physical strength, so age does play a part in their work.
It also means they only have work to do when God tells his people to move from one campsite to another. Sometimes this happens frequently, and other times not often at all. The rest of the time they go about their everyday life.
They do this for forty years as the Israelites wander around the desert. But once they get to the land God promised to give them, their wandering stops.
The need to pack, move, and unpack the tent of meeting and the items needed for worship ends.
What work do the sons of Kohath do for God once they no longer need to move these items? Nothing.
A few centuries later, however, David gives them new assignments (1 Chronicles 23:25-32).
Though God had given the sons of Kohath a specific assignment, it wasn’t permanent. After their job ended, King David gave them new work to do, changing what God had originally told Moses.
Sometimes God’s commands apply forever and other times only for a season. May we wisely distinguish between the two.
Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront status quo religion and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.
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Focus verse: “If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked him and he would have given you living water.” (John 4:10)
People need water to live. Though we can survive many days without food, we can only make it a few without water. Without regular hydration, we will die. Water is essential to life.
In parts of the world, this life-sustaining substance is available in our homes. We turn on a faucet and all the water we want flows forth. Other areas aren’t so fortunate, with water not as accessible.
People must travel, sometimes quite far, to find the water they need to survive. Sometimes it’s clean, but too often it’s dirty or, even worse, polluted. Such is the daily reality for too many people.
Two thousand years ago few people had running water. They went to the town’s well every day to draw water. Water was more essential than food. This is what we see in the first part of John 4.
Jesus and his disciples stop in Samaria on their way to Galilee. It’s midday and Jesus rests by the town’s well as his disciples go into town to buy food. A woman comes out to fetch water. We assume she goes at noon because during the heat of the day no one else will be there.
Everyone else would’ve gotten their daily supply of water in the early morning before it got hot. Because of her sordid past, she wants to lessen her interactions with others, protecting herself from their critical looks and judgmental words.
Jesus asks her for a drink.
This surprises her because it’s unacceptable. The first problem is a Jewish man talking to a Samaritan woman. The second issue is that Jesus will need to drink from her cup. Both are things that religious Jews seek to avoid.
Now he surprises her even more. “If you knew who I was, you’d ask me for living water.”
She assumes he means physical water, but he’s referring to spiritual water. The kind that wells up to supply eternal life.
Jesus proves his supernatural power to her by revealing that he knows about her past. But he doesn’t judge her. Instead, Jesus accepts her for who she is.
She goes into town and tells everyone about Jesus. Based on her testimony, they come out to meet him. They believe in him and beg him to stay. He spends the next two days with them before resuming his trip to Galilee.
Jesus knows everything about this Samaritan woman, but he accepts her despite the lifestyle she leads. He offers her love that she doesn’t deserve without criticizing her life choices. In this way, Jesus shows her grace and mercy.
As for the woman, she seeks water to satiate her body, but Jesus gives her living water to save her soul. He offers her eternal life. She only needs to believe in him to receive it.
Questions:
What can we do to help people have clean water?
What steps do you take to avoid judgmental or unpleasant interactions with others?
What socially unacceptable things are you willing to do to let other people know about Jesus?
How can we not judge others and better accept them for who they are?
Is your testimony convincing enough so that others might believe?
Tips: Check out our tips to use this online Bible study for your church, small group, Sunday school class, or family discussion. It’s also ideal for personal study. Come back each Monday for a new lesson.
Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront status quo religion and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.
Exploring Doctrine, Theology, and Systematic Theology
There are three religious terms I don’t care for. Hearing or reading about them has a negative impact on me. These words are doctrine, theology, and systematic theology. I don’t like them because they take the awesome mystery of God and try to provide structure to something that transcends human organization.
Let’s consider these three terms and what place they might have in our faith journey.
Doctrine
The first religious term I don’t care for is doctrine. Doctrine is a principle or group of principles presented as a body of belief in a religious context. Other words to describe doctrine include creed, canon, and tenet. A fourth word is dogma, which is the root word for dogmatic.
Dogmatic means insisting unexamined ideas coming often from a position of arrogance.
When I read about Christian doctrine, it’s too often presented with dogmatic fervor. This may be a huge reason why the discussion of doctrine so turns me off.
Yet we all form and adhere to various religious doctrines. Some of these have a sound biblical foundation. But many do not.
We learn much of our doctrinal positions through the teaching of ministers. Often these pronouncements support tradition and align with current societal norms more so than being based on Scripture.
I fear, however, that we simply make up too many of our doctrine ideas because they feel right to us. Or because we want them to be true. Or since they allow us to avoid uncomfortable confrontations with biblical truth.
May we base all our doctrinal perspectives on what the Bible says.
Theology
The second religious term I prefer to avoid is theology. For Christians, at a base level, theology is a study of God. In this respect, I love theology. Yet my study of God has the sole purpose of helping me draw closer to him.
It’s a futile attempt to study God for the sake of amassing knowledge about him or to comprehend him from an intellectual standpoint. It’s arrogant to pursue theology if that’s our goal.
God far surpasses are human comprehension. We’ll never understand him in an academic way, at least not with any significant result—or producing any positive eternal outcome.
We cannot organize God, but that doesn’t keep people from trying. This brings us to our third religious term.
Systematic Theology
Systematic theology is a subset of theology. In the Christian sense, systematic theology seeks to condense our understanding of God and our faith in him into a series of interconnected thoughts that constitute a comprehensive and organized treatise. In a way, we can view a systematic theology is an interconnected set of doctrines.
The God who is revealed in the Bible transcends our ability to organize him and force him into a system of our own making. To attempt to do so diminishes him and elevates us to unwarranted levels.
Yes, most people have a systematic theology. Many were taught it and accept what they were taught. Others arrived at their systematic theology with intentionality.
I resist the urge to force the all-mighty, all-knowing, and all-present God who is revealed in the Bible into a system of my own making. It’s simply not possible.
Instead, my desire is to follow Jesus the best I can as I let the Holy Spirit bring me into a closer relationship with Father God. Toward that end, doctrine, theology, and systematic theology don’t matter so much and only get in the way.
Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront status quo religion and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.
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Prepare Your Heart for Easter with These Faith-Filled, Inspiring Devotions
The Passion of Jesus is a 40-day study for families, individuals, and small groups to draw closer to God and reflect on His gift to us on the cross.
With grace, wisdom, and heart-felt teachings that will nourish your soul, devoted Christian author Peter DeHaan takes you on a spiritual journey to explore the miracles of Christ’s life, death, and resurrection.
Shout praises with God’s people as their King rides into the holy city of Jerusalem. Join the disciples as they break bread with Jesus at the Last Supper. Follow the Savior to Gethsemane where he humbles himself and submits to the Father’s perfect will.
From the founder of ABibleADay, The Passion of Jesus inspires Christians from all backgrounds and traditions, encouraging you to set your mind and heart on the Messiah during the 40-day period leading up to Easter.
If you’re looking for a fresh perspective on biblical events instead of the same old stories rehashed and served up the same old way, this devotional is accessible, timely, and relevant to believers and seekers right now.
Prepare your heart for Easter with these practical, encouraging readings that are sure to inspire your faith and enrich your soul.
Buy The Passion of Jesus devotional today for a spiritual awakening you won’t ever forget.
Discover more about celebrating Jesus and his passion to save us in Peter’s new book, The Passion of Jesus. It is part of the Holiday Celebration Bible Study Series.
Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront status quo religion and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.
Valued friends invite us to visit a church they’ve been going to for about six months. This surprises me: not the invitation part but that they’re going to an organized church and not the house church they’ve been involved with for several years.
They now attend both, interweaving their participation as their schedule permits.
Gifts of the Spirit
“They operate in the gifts of the Spirit,” my friend says. The chance to see our friends—who we don’t see often enough because we live an hour apart—is all the incentive I need. The fact that this day promises to start with a Holy Spirit experience shines as a bonus.
My background is not charismatic, but I relish the opportunity to experience Holy Spirit power and bask in his presence.
Our own church portends to embrace the Holy Spirit, but how they conduct their services leaves little room for him to act.
Our worship experiences focus on Jesus and his Father. They mention the Holy Spirit but keep him at a safe distance.
This, incidentally, was how I experienced church most of my life. And frankly, it wearies me. I want a Trinitarian experience, the whole package, not two out of three.
The Holy Spirit isn’t much of a factor in my typical worship experience at our church, but he is a daily factor in my life—though not as much as I’d like.
It’s harder to embrace him when I’m not surrounded by a community of like-minded faith seekers.
Hungry for More
I want to be part of a community who operates in the gifts of the Spirit. I must be in such a community, but I’m not.
I’m hungry for God. I’m thirsty for more. I can hardly wait for Sunday, counting down the days, which is a good thing since this attitude of church anticipation is now mostly missing from my normal reality.
I check out the church’s website. It’s fresh. They just rebranded themselves with a new name to better reflect their Holy Spirit focus, but it looks like many websites for any one of today’s churches.
It views and reads like most seeker-friendly fundamental churches.
One bullet point, however, in the “What we believe” section, hints at what we’ll experience. It mentions the baptism of the Holy Spirit, speaking in tongues, the gifts of the spirit, and supernatural manifestations.
I’m terrified and excited at the same time. I expect God will stretch me, and I welcome what is to come, even though I will surely squirm.
A Guest Minister
With only a few days to wait, my friend emails me with bad news: Their pastor won’t be there on Sunday. My being deflates, but my resolve doesn’t.
Surely this church, which operates in the gifts of the Spirit, can function just fine without a minister. At least, they should.
My friend gives me an out if I want it, but I don’t take it. “Let’s proceed as planned.” Crisis averted.
A Long, Winter Drive
I awake Sunday morning to the promise of unseasonably warm temperatures by midday. But, still in the winter season, it’s below freezing at daybreak.
A bit of overnight snow and ice coat the roads. This should tell me to leave a bit earlier than planned, but I don’t heed the warning.
As we leave home a cheerful sun brightens our journey, an hour-long trek of mostly highway driving, but the roads to reach the highway still retain a bit of winter.
I skip taking the shortest route and opt for the more-traveled path. This will add about five minutes to our trip, but having padded it by fifteen, we should still arrive ten minutes early.
We ask God for safe travels and for his blessing on our time at church. We added this practice of a pre-church prayer a few years ago when we began 52 Churches.
I know it’s essential, but it’s hard to keep the words fresh week after week. So it is today. Does God at least appreciate that we tried?
Apprehension Sets In
You’d think I’d be used to visiting churches by now. I’m not. Apprehension over the unknown roils in my gut. A dozen worries assault my mind.
It would be easy to turn around and head for our church, the one that’s known, the one that talks Holy Spirit even though it does little to back up their claim. Instead, I push on.
Regardless of what happens at church, we’ll have the afternoon with friends—good friends—to look forward to. I focus on that.
The church meets in a public high school, a fact I appreciate. A temporary banner points us in the right direction, but once we reach the facility, I see no more signs.
Instead, I follow the car ahead of us, hoping we’re headed to the same place and they know where to go. As I do, the car behind me turns to follow. Is this confirmation or the blind leading the blind?
Figuring Where to Go
We end up in a parking lot with nine other cars. With no hint of which building entrance to head to, we wait in our car, hoping to follow someone else. One person scurries to an uninviting alcove and disappears. Should we follow?
Surely this is not the path to church. Eventually two people in the car that followed us into the parking lot exit their vehicle and head to the main doors. We follow.
Unfortunately, we’re not fast enough, for once we get inside, they’ve disappeared. I look for a sign but can’t find one. I’m about to turn right when Candy tugs me left. “I think they’re down there.”
A couple of tables adorn the hallway, and light beams from one of the rooms. That must be the place. As we trudge down the unlit hall, a few people emerge. We move toward them.
A man greets us, and we share names. I repeat his back to him, but with a question in my voice. I heard wrong, and he corrects me. After he confirms mine, he asks if we’ve been there before. He doesn’t think so, but he holds out the possibility we have.
“This is our first time.” I smile.
Not a Normal Service
He smiles back, but his glow dims. “We won’t have a normal service today.”
I play dumb. “Why not?”
“Our minister’s gone, and one of our members will be speaking. And the minister’s wife normally leads singing. She’s gone too—family vacation. Someone’s filling in for her too.”
“So you’ll have singing and a message. What do you normally do?”
“The same thing.”
“So you’ll still have a normal service?”
He nods at my logic, but he doesn’t seem convinced.
Candy shares that we’re meeting friends. He perks up at their name and quickly affirms them.
“Do you know where they usually sit?” she asks.
It seems like an unnecessary question. There are fifty chairs aligned in five neat rows and less than a dozen people present.
He thinks for a moment and bobs his head. He points to the back row. “There.”
Waiting for the Service to Begin
As our attempt at small talk wanes, he drifts off. With no one else who seems available for conversation, we sit down in our friends’ row. The wall clock shows it’s time to start, but no one seems in a hurry to do so.
I can’t figure out the purpose of the space. It’s far too big to be a classroom, but not large enough for anything else.
The high ceiling suggests a gymnasium, but it’s too small. I count the ceiling tiles and do the math: 42’ by 72’. Some large matts, rolled up and against one wall, suggest this space might be for wrestling.
Since nothing’s happening, Candy and I decide to visit the restrooms—in expectation of needing to sit for a ninety-minute service. There seems to be no reason to hurry, so I take my time.
When I exit the restroom, I spot our friends as they arrive. We share hugs, and I attempt to interact with their kids.
We stroll to the back row as we catch up. It’s been too long. Our reunion is sweet.
Beginning at Last
It seems the stated starting time is merely a guideline. Eventually the service begins, about fifteen minutes late. The man who met us when we arrived stands to greet those gathered, who now number sixteen.
We and our friends make up half the group.
I think his purpose is to welcome us and give some opening remarks. From my perspective he drones on too long. His rambling comments veer political, but only vaguely so. I’m not sure of his point.
Worshiping God through Song
He introduces the fill-in worship leader. I don’t know if this twenty-something musician is part of their community or not. With skill he moves us into our worship time.
Aided with the simple sound of his acoustic guitar, he ably leads us without calling attention to himself.
His focus remains rightly on God.
Some people raise their arms in praise, and I feel free to join them. Others sway gently with the melody, but my rhythmically-challenged body stands in stoic contrast. One woman edges off to the side and respectfully dances her worship.
I want to watch, but don’t want to intrude on her connection with the Almighty. My friend brought worship flags for her and her kids.
They move behind us to praise God with the movement of their flowing banners. This must be why they sit in the back.
Though worshipful, my mind wanders at the repetition of the words and notes. With the chairs positioned in the middle of the room, open space abounds on all sides.
Three banners in front proclaim “Kingdom,” “Grace,” and “Power.” I ponder their significance.
Do these words imply the Trinity? The Father’s kingdom, the grace of Jesus, and the power of the Holy Spirit? Maybe. Maybe not. Am I trying to make these words fit where they don’t belong?
Song lyrics project on the wall. I think our worship leader plays as he feels led, but the right words always appear at the right time. After about twenty minutes, Candy groans.
I think we’re still on the first song, but I’m not sure. The endless iterations weary her, whereas I just grow bored.
With a smile, I recall the cynical complaint of an old Baptist preacher about modern church music: “One word, two notes, three hours.”
Eventually our numbers swell to twenty. This is less than half their normal attendance. I guess the word got out that Pastor was gone, and half the congregation did the same.
Some people may feel the presence of the Holy Spirit. I don’t. For many, music acts as a conduit to God, but it seldom serves me in that way. I need quiet. Perhaps had I sat down and not tried to sing along, I would have heard from the Spirit of God.
After three or four songs, spanning forty minutes, we move into the message. An older woman stands to talk. She’s nervous—both her words and her demeanor say so—but after a prayer and a few minutes she settles down and ably teaches about the righteousness of God.
The Message
A former missionary, she begins with 1 Kings 8:11. “Righteousness,” she says, “is to be in a condition acceptable to God.” I’ve never heard it explained this way, but I like it.
From there she bounces around the Bible, sharing more than a half dozen related verses, teaching about each one. I jot down the verses so I can look them up later, all the while knowing I never will. I also grab some intriguing one-liners.
One warrants contemplation: “Righteousness is a gift, not a goal.”
After about thirty minutes she winds down. The worship leader strums his guitar as she wraps up her message. I’m not sure of the intent. She offers no altar call and gives no challenge. The service ends with a final song.
Impressions
Overall, I’m disappointed. We followed their normal format, but I’m quite sure the results weren’t typical. I saw little evidence of the Holy Spirit. I witnessed no baptism of the Holy Spirit, speaking in tongues, or the gifts of the spirit.
There were no supernatural manifestations as their website boasted. Yes, these would have made me uncomfortable, but I know God would have revealed his truth to me anyway.
The service differed little from a low-key evangelical service, and fell far short of the charismatic experience I had hoped to encounter. I guess we should have postponed our visit until the pastor and worship leader returned.
At least we’ll spend the afternoon with friends in significant spiritual community. That was the point all along and will be the highlight of our day. Church is just a prelude to the main event.
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Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront status quo religion and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.
Shocked, I furrow my eyes and scowl at my friend. “I don’t hate church.”
“But you’re always criticizing it in your blog.”
This gives me pause. True, much of my writing about church doesn’t celebrate what she does well but rebukes her for what she does poorly or doesn’t do at all.
“I don’t hate the church,” I say again, as if trying to convince myself. “I love the church, really I do. I write to challenge her to do better because I know she can.”
My friend nods, but I’m not sure I convinced her.
In truth I’m zealous about church.
Zealous about Church
Over the centuries the church has done much to advance the cause of Jesus, help people find their way to eternal life, and perform acts of generosity that point an unbelieving world to Jesus. Today’s church continues to do that. And I hope church has done that for you.
But lest we feel smug about the church’s achievements, today’s church does only a small fraction of what she could be doing, of what she should be doing. I’m sad to say that the church has lost her way.
She’s off track and has missed the mark for much of her existence. This pains me as much as a spike driven into my heart, into my very soul, the core of my being. I mourn what the church is because she’s falling far short of her potential, of her calling.
Hypothetically Speaking
It’s like being a parent of a brilliant, gifted child who muddles her way through school and gets C’s, even though she’s capable of getting A’s in advanced classes.
As a loving parent, I would do whatever I could to shake the apathetic inertia out of my child and get her to live up to her potential. But since she won’t, I prod her to do better. I do this through the words I write. It’s the best way I know to help.
Just as I would do this for my child, I do this for my church with the same imperative passion. I metaphorically shake her in hopes that she’ll do better—because she can.
At this point, some of you may be saying “Amen, preach it!,” but others of you—most of you, I suspect—have raised your hackles at my insulting, impertinent words. You’re angry and thinking about clicking the close button.
If I were with you in person, you might yell. It might be that you’re screaming right now. That’s okay. I get it. But before you bail on me, I challenge you to stick with me a little bit longer. Give me a chance to explain.
Biblical Church
If asked, most people would say the practices of their church are biblical. They’d say that about every church I’ve been part of. They’d even say this for every church I visited in my book 52 Churches and its sequels.
Let’s run through a typical church service. There’s preaching. That’s in the Bible. Check. There’s singing. Also in the Bible. Check. There’s praying, an offering (or two), and a concluding blessing. All biblical. Check, check, check.
We meet every Sunday, just like the Bible says. (More on that later.) Check. We may volunteer, tithe, and respect our pastor. More checkmarks. Yes, today’s church services are biblical—or so they seem.
Yet, we read the Bible through the lens of our experience. The things we do in church, we find them mentioned in the Bible. This confirms we’re doing things the biblical way, God’s way. Yet we may be connecting dots we shouldn’t connect.
For example, the Bible tells us to not give up meeting together (Hebrews 10:24-25). This is a command to go to church every Sunday. Not really—despite what many preachers claim.
We take our church experiences, then we find justification for them in the Bible, even if this isn’t what the Bible says. This is confirmation bias. We do it all the time. You, me, everyone. But we must stop.
Meeting Together
Back to Hebrews. This passage doesn’t mention church. It says, “meeting together,” hanging out. If you came to my house—which would be way cool and more personal than reading this post—we’d be meeting together, just as the Bible commands.
If we go out to eat each Sunday, that’s meeting together. If we do game night once a month, that’s meeting together. So would be movie night, hanging out at the coffee shop, and working together on a service project.
These are all examples of us meeting together. Going to church is just one possibility. But let’s be clear, this passage doesn’t command us to go to church. It merely tells us to meet together. How we meet is up for us to determine. Sort of. (Read more in Why Sunday?)
However—here I go ruffling some more feathers—going to one of today’s churches on Sunday morning may be one of the least significant ways we can meet.
At most churches today, we spend the better part of an hour staring at the back of someone’s head as others entertain us. Yes, today’s church is more about a chosen few performing than about the majority present taking part.
Then we go home. This is scarcely a prime example of meeting together. If our church service—even the best ones I’ve ever been to—is us meeting together as the Bible commands, we’re doing a poor job of it.
We’re getting C’s (or D’s or even F’s) when we should be getting A’s in advanced classes.
That’s why I mourn for the church I love so much. That’s why I write. I write because I know she’s capable of so much more. I’m zealous about church.
Read more about this in Peter’s thought-provoking book, Jesus’s Broken Church, available in e-book, audiobook, paperback, and hardcover.
Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront status quo religion and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.
The Bible Gives Us a Framework for Why We Should Be Holy
Reading through the book of Leviticus challenges most people. Its words fail to engage our imagination as they drone on with seemingly repetitious commands.
But there are gems buried within its verses—if our minds aren’t too glossed over to see them.
In today’s verse, God tells us to be holy, but then he tells us why.
The idea to be holy—to live with God-honoring words and actions—both compels and confounds me. I like this ideal, but I fall short on the implementation. Holiness is easier said than done.
Sometimes I wonder why I should even bother to try to be holy—as if I can accomplish it on my own, anyway. Fortunately, Leviticus gives us some insight into this holiness thing.
Following another string of things to do and not to do, God inserts this overarching thought. He says, “Therefore be holy, because” . . . wait for it . . . “because I am holy” (Leviticus 11:45, NIV).
Be Holy Because . . .
Notice that God doesn’t say, “Be holy because I said so,” even though he has every right to. Instead he gives an explanation. Knowing the why behind the command helps me a lot.
I’ll take an explained instruction over a blanket edict any day.
In this explanation we have a reminder that God is holy. As we pursue a relationship with him, we’ll become more like him. A bit of God will rub off on us. We will, in fact, become more holy.
This doesn’t mean we must be perfect before we approach him, but it does remind us that he appreciates a little bit of holiness. Our motivation to be holy doesn’t come because God says so.
It comes from a desire to be more like him and be in a closer relationship with him.
Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront status quo religion and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.
Get the Bible Reading Tip Sheet: “10 Tips to Turn Bible Reading from Drudgery to Delight.” Enter your info and receive the free Bible Reading Tip Sheet and be added to Peter’s email list.
Focus verse: “He must become greater; I must become less.” (John 3:30)
We live in a world that wants more. We desire more money. We seek more possessions. The newest of this and the best of that. And regardless of where we fit into society, we want more power and wish for more prestige.
How much is enough? The answer is always the same: just a bit more. There’s nothing wrong with setting goals and wanting to improve our life, but we must keep things in perspective—God’s perspective. More isn’t always better.
Consider John the Baptist.
John has a successful ministry. He calls people to repent. Next, he baptizes them as a public display of their commitment.
Though he doesn’t want to, he baptizes Jesus too—even though Jesus doesn’t need to repent of one single sin or undergo baptism. But by embracing baptism, the Holy Spirit anoints Jesus and prepares him for ministry.
Jesus now invites people to follow him as his disciples, even taking two of John’s followers. Jesus begins his ministry, and he baptizes people too.
John’s remaining disciples see this and become indignant for him, worried that Jesus is taking away from John’s ministry. “Look!” they complain. “Jesus—the one you baptized—is now baptizing people too. Everyone’s following him instead of you.”
“I can only do what God has called me to do,” John says. “Don’t you remember? I told you I am not the Messiah. My role is to prepare the way for him.
He is like the groom at the wedding, and I am his attendant. I’ve waited for him and listened for him. Hearing his voice fills me with much joy—complete joy. Now that he has arrived, he must become more, and I must become less. Don’t be jealous on my account. This is how it should be.”
John doesn’t want more. He is content to become less. This is an example we can follow. As we point people to Jesus, we do so for his glory and not ours.
More of him and less of us. Never forget that.
Questions:
How can you adopt God’s perspective as your own?
How well are you at doing what God has called you to do?
How might you take an ungodly pride in the ministry roles God has given you?
What can you do to elevate Jesus, even if it means you become less?
Tips: Check out our tips to use this online Bible study for your church, small group, Sunday school class, or family discussion. It’s also ideal for personal study. Come back each Monday for a new lesson.
Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront status quo religion and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.
We Can’t Force the Beauty and Mystery of God into a Neat Little Box
Just as I bristle over the word theology, I also don’t like the word doctrine. Though the two words mean different things, in my mind they have the same effect:
They both turn the beauty of God into an intellectual construct, but the mystery of God avoids our structural confines. That’s why I don’t do doctrine—at least not in the traditional sense.
Doctrine Defines
As long as religion exists, we’ll have doctrines to explain it. In this respect, Christianity is no different. At a basic level, we need some minimal doctrine to understand the basis of faith. Arguably everything written about God is to some extent a doctrine of sorts.
One might argue that this post is a doctrine about doctrine.
Go online and do a search for “the doctrine of” followed by any letter in the alphabet. You’ll discover many doctrines. Some are common ones you’ve heard of, while others are esoteric.
Start with the letter a, and work your way through w. (There aren’t many Christian doctrinal results for the letters x, y, and z.) As you do, you’ll note that doctrine doesn’t just apply to Christianity. There are doctrines about other religions, philosophy, and about any other school of thought.
Yet this desire to define carries with it inherent problems. Read on to learn more.
Doctrine Isn’t Absolute
The modern era brought in the idea that through reason people could converge on a singular understanding. That didn’t happen. In fact, the opposite occurred, with our ideas diverging.
In addition, in today’s mindset that elevates individualism, anyone can develop their own doctrine on anything. This includes our understanding of God and how we relate to him.
As a result, there isn’t one doctrine about any one topic. Instead, there are multiple versions on everything. And they’re often in conflict with one another.
Doctrine Divides
As a result, our doctrine doesn’t unify us. Instead, it divides us. Even a local church body, with a stated doctrinal stance, will fail to get full acceptance from all their members, let alone all who attend.
Things get even more polarized when comparing one local church to another or two denominations with each other. And views diverge greatly when looking at the different streams of Christianity.
To minimize the problems caused by doctrines, some enlightened Christian leaders have proposed that we focus on the essentials of faith that are non-negotiable. Then we should hold everything else loosely.
If we keep ourselves focused on Jesus, other things don’t so much matter. And that’s why I don’t do doctrine.
Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront status quo religion and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.
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The audiobook for Love One Another is now available. In addition to audiobook, it is also available in ebook, paperback, and hardcover formats. The audiobook is auto-narrated by Maxwell.
Love One Another is a devotional Bible study for Christians who want to foster a deeper appreciation for the two greatest commandments of all time: To love God and to love others. Discover practical, insightful, and encouraging truths.
Discover practical, insightful, and encouraging truths in Love One Another, a devotional Bible study to foster a deeper appreciation for the two greatest commandments: To love God and to love others.
Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront status quo religion and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.
