No Big Deal(s) Mother Teresa once said "We can do no great things, just small things with great love. It is not how much you do, but how much love you put into doing it." As I read this, I understand it completely because this was one of the main themes of Jesus' ministry when He was in the world, but at the some time this concept seems to me completely foreign. The culture in which we live values production, it values efficiency, it values quantity. In a culture like that, love tends to take a back seat and numbers, how much we do, how much we make, how many we reach, become the driving force behind much of what we do. Especially, I would argue, in the one place in which we would do well not to hold this mentality, the Church.
Before I begin, I need to say that This is a difficult subject for me to write on, mainly because it is so foreign to me, and because of that, I'm not real sure what a wholly love-driven culture, or even a love-driven church would look like. Despite this shortfall, I'm going to do my best and posit what thoughts I do have on the subject (most of which come from the book The Irresistible Revolution written by Shane Claiborne).
Immediately as I read the above quote, the passage in the Gospel of John comes to mind where Jesus says "Truly, Truly I say to you, whoever believes in me will also do the works that I do; and greater works than these will he do" (John 14:12). It seams as though Jesus is saying just the opposite of Mother Teresa. But because the Kingdom of God is an upside down kingdom (a nearly complete inverse of the kingdoms of the world), we must take a closer look at this statement of Jesus.
Let's begin by looking at a few of the things that Jesus did, things that could be viewed as great. In Mark 5:22-23,35-42, Jesus hears the plea of Jairus, a leader of the synagogue, to come and heal his daughter. By the time Jesus gets to his daughter, she has apparently died. But Jesus, being Jesus, goes to her anyway and raises her from the dead. Amazing! You might have noticed that in the scripture reference there is a significant gap (11 verses missing). That's because right in the middle of going to heal Jairus' daughter, he is interrupted by a woman who had been suffering for 12 years. She had a discharge of blood it says in Mark. According to Jewish law, that basically means she was isolated, cast out of the city, out of community with other Jews, and not allowed in any part of the temple, effectively separating her from God. With just a touch of Jesus' clothing, she was made well. Stopping, Jesus turns and affirms the woman's faith, all the while Jairus daughter is busy dying. Wow! Later, in Mark 8, Jesus is teaching and ministering to a great multitude of people and it's getting late. Jesus tells His disciples to feed them. Feeding 4,000 people itself is no simple task (a great feat in itself). But Jesus does it with only five loaves of bread and two fish. That's pretty great if you ask me. Then, in Mark 10, as Jesus is leaving Jericho, he stops and heals a blind man (that's no small feat either!). Then, to take the cake, in John 11, Jesus' good friend Lazarus dies, and after FOUR DAYS of being buried, he resurrects Lazarus, bringing him back from the dead! If that's not great, I don't know what is!
So these few things that Jesus does are pretty great, pretty spectacular things. And He says we will do even greater things than these!? What's up Momma T? What do you mean "We can do no great things"?
Mother Teresa understood something very important about the nature of the work Jesus called us to, and about the Kingdom of God. The Kingdom of God, as I said earlier, is an upside down kingdom. She understood this, but more importantly, Jesus LIVED this. So if we are to begin to understand what Jesus is saying, we need to begin looking at his life and teaching not with the understanding we have of this world or the eyes we've learned to look through from this life, but with the Kingdom eyes that Jesus had, and that we will have once we understand what Jesus is up to. This is the problem that the disciples ran into time and time again, and something that continually frustrated Jesus.
Let's take another look at those same miracles, but through the lens of the Kingdom of God (as best we can). In Mark 5, it says that Jesus was with a great crowd when Jairus came to him and begged him to come heal his daughter. Jesus left this great crowd of people that he was no doubt teaching and ministering to, to go help out one man. Jairus was at the point of desperation to come and beg Jesus, the man the priests and Pharisees eventually killed, to come help his sick daughter. Jesus didn't leave the many to help the one just to show off his God powers, to be a spectacle. No, Jesus did this because he felt Jairus' desperation and in helping him, Jesus loved him. No other reason was necessary. Out of love Jesus went to Jairus daughter. Then, on the way, His love quest was interrupted by another person who was at the point of desperation. In turning to affirm the bleeding woman's faith, instead of condemning her for fouling all the people around her, Jesus loved her. There's no greater reason for his display of power. Love. That's it. So much love, in fact, that he delayed his mission for another desperate soul, allowing Jairus' daughter to slip from life into death. It's love. All of it. Then Jesus feeds 4,000 people. This one is a bit easier to see with Kingdom eyes because Jesus states his reasoning plainly. he says "I have compassion on the crowd, because they have been with me now for three days and have nothing to eat." Jesus doesn't multiply the loaves and fish for a show of magnificence, He does it because the people are hungry. He fed them. That's it. When he was leaving Jericho, a blind beggar named Bartimeaus heard that it was Jesus that was passing by, which gave him a sliver of hope, so he began calling out "have mercy on me!" Jesus, hearing this, even among people rebuking Bartimeaus, called him over. Instead of immediately healing his eyes, he asked him, "What do you want me to do for you?". Jesus didn't just do what was sensational or spectacular, he was concerned about what this man wanted. And then, upon Bartimeaus expressing his desire to see again, Jesus restored his sight. Jesus wasn't interested in showing off. He was interested in loving Bartimeaus by doing what he asked. If he had wanted a pet duck, Jesus would have went and found a duck. His answer to Jesus' question didn't matter, Jesus would have done whatever he said because He loved him. Again, Love. That's it. And then there's Lazarus. Oh man! If this isn't love, I don't know what is! This whole story takes 44 verses to unfold. Basically, it begins with Jesus hearing that a close family friend (close enough to be a family member) is sick and at the point of death. He wraps up what he is doing and goes back to Lazarus' town, where the people there were trying to kill him, to help his friend. As he's leaving, he basically tells his disciples that Lazarus has died and he's going to raise him up again. When He gets there, He finds that Lazarus had been entombed for four days, and his family was grieving his death. He tells Lazarus' sister that he will live again, and asks to be taken to his tomb. Up to this point, Jesus has been able to hold his grief in, but when he sees the tomb, he breaks down. The shortest verse in the Bible: John 11:35 "Jesus Wept." he feels the grief of those around him piled on top of his own. He then proceeds to raise Lazarus and call him out of the tomb. This miracle undoubtedly showed many things about Jesus, such as demonstrate his authority over death and, as he says in 11:4, glorifies the son of God, but the main reason he did it I would argue is because he loved deeply both Lazarus and his family. Love. That's it.
Now that we've looked a bit closer at these miracles to discover a common underlying reason for them all, lets take a couple steps back and look at the bigger picture just to drive the point home. In all these miracles, Jesus does something to or with these people to help or improve their life right where they were, right when they were. But that's not the point. What he did is not as important as why he did it. Look at it in a long term perspective, an eternal perspective (the Kingdom perspective). He healed Jairus daughter and the woman's sickness. It's almost certain that in the course of their lives they got sick again. He fed the crowd that was with him; they got hungry again. He restored the sight of Bartimeaus. It's a sensible assumption that as he aged, his sight once again began to give out. He resurrected Lazarus from the dead (hardly an insignificant act); he died again. All the things He did were ultimately temporary and didn't last. Only one thing stayed with each of these people Jesus helped: the love of Christ. He loved them. Even when sickness and hunger return, when sight fails, when death once again approaches, the love that Jesus showed is still there, is still felt. THIS is what Mother Teresa understood.
So in a culture that worships at the alter of productivity and efficiency, what are we to do with this? How do we work to show the upside down kingdom of Love within a culture that only understands numbers? We ignore the numbers. For us, the numbers should mean very little. Whether we help one person or one thousand people, if we do not make the love of Christ manifest to them, it means nothing. Jesus understood this very well. There was a time when Jesus' disciples came to get him because all the people in the village had brought their sick out to be healed, and he told his disciples that that they were moving on to the next city. Even though there were still people there that hadn't been healed, his Love was already there. Healing the sick, as we discovered, is a temporary thing. There were cities where Jesus had not yet been that did not yet know the love of Christ.
Just like the mustard plant (which was considered a weed) just needs one tiny seed to spread throughout the entire garden, so too love just needs one small foothold to spread throughout a community... throughout the world.
So we indeed can do no great things. The things that appear great in this world, ultimately have little significance. What has very great significance is the small things that we do to convey and spread the love of Christ. To someone who needs a friend, stopping by to chat is far greater than a new car. To someone in desperate need of a car, helping them get a car will be far greater than stopping by to chat. Numbers don't matter. It's the love behind what we do that makes all the difference, in this world and the next.
"We can do no great thing, only small things with great love. It's not how much you do, but how much love you put into doing it."
Before I begin, I need to say that This is a difficult subject for me to write on, mainly because it is so foreign to me, and because of that, I'm not real sure what a wholly love-driven culture, or even a love-driven church would look like. Despite this shortfall, I'm going to do my best and posit what thoughts I do have on the subject (most of which come from the book The Irresistible Revolution written by Shane Claiborne).
Immediately as I read the above quote, the passage in the Gospel of John comes to mind where Jesus says "Truly, Truly I say to you, whoever believes in me will also do the works that I do; and greater works than these will he do" (John 14:12). It seams as though Jesus is saying just the opposite of Mother Teresa. But because the Kingdom of God is an upside down kingdom (a nearly complete inverse of the kingdoms of the world), we must take a closer look at this statement of Jesus.
Let's begin by looking at a few of the things that Jesus did, things that could be viewed as great. In Mark 5:22-23,35-42, Jesus hears the plea of Jairus, a leader of the synagogue, to come and heal his daughter. By the time Jesus gets to his daughter, she has apparently died. But Jesus, being Jesus, goes to her anyway and raises her from the dead. Amazing! You might have noticed that in the scripture reference there is a significant gap (11 verses missing). That's because right in the middle of going to heal Jairus' daughter, he is interrupted by a woman who had been suffering for 12 years. She had a discharge of blood it says in Mark. According to Jewish law, that basically means she was isolated, cast out of the city, out of community with other Jews, and not allowed in any part of the temple, effectively separating her from God. With just a touch of Jesus' clothing, she was made well. Stopping, Jesus turns and affirms the woman's faith, all the while Jairus daughter is busy dying. Wow! Later, in Mark 8, Jesus is teaching and ministering to a great multitude of people and it's getting late. Jesus tells His disciples to feed them. Feeding 4,000 people itself is no simple task (a great feat in itself). But Jesus does it with only five loaves of bread and two fish. That's pretty great if you ask me. Then, in Mark 10, as Jesus is leaving Jericho, he stops and heals a blind man (that's no small feat either!). Then, to take the cake, in John 11, Jesus' good friend Lazarus dies, and after FOUR DAYS of being buried, he resurrects Lazarus, bringing him back from the dead! If that's not great, I don't know what is!
So these few things that Jesus does are pretty great, pretty spectacular things. And He says we will do even greater things than these!? What's up Momma T? What do you mean "We can do no great things"?
Mother Teresa understood something very important about the nature of the work Jesus called us to, and about the Kingdom of God. The Kingdom of God, as I said earlier, is an upside down kingdom. She understood this, but more importantly, Jesus LIVED this. So if we are to begin to understand what Jesus is saying, we need to begin looking at his life and teaching not with the understanding we have of this world or the eyes we've learned to look through from this life, but with the Kingdom eyes that Jesus had, and that we will have once we understand what Jesus is up to. This is the problem that the disciples ran into time and time again, and something that continually frustrated Jesus.
Let's take another look at those same miracles, but through the lens of the Kingdom of God (as best we can). In Mark 5, it says that Jesus was with a great crowd when Jairus came to him and begged him to come heal his daughter. Jesus left this great crowd of people that he was no doubt teaching and ministering to, to go help out one man. Jairus was at the point of desperation to come and beg Jesus, the man the priests and Pharisees eventually killed, to come help his sick daughter. Jesus didn't leave the many to help the one just to show off his God powers, to be a spectacle. No, Jesus did this because he felt Jairus' desperation and in helping him, Jesus loved him. No other reason was necessary. Out of love Jesus went to Jairus daughter. Then, on the way, His love quest was interrupted by another person who was at the point of desperation. In turning to affirm the bleeding woman's faith, instead of condemning her for fouling all the people around her, Jesus loved her. There's no greater reason for his display of power. Love. That's it. So much love, in fact, that he delayed his mission for another desperate soul, allowing Jairus' daughter to slip from life into death. It's love. All of it. Then Jesus feeds 4,000 people. This one is a bit easier to see with Kingdom eyes because Jesus states his reasoning plainly. he says "I have compassion on the crowd, because they have been with me now for three days and have nothing to eat." Jesus doesn't multiply the loaves and fish for a show of magnificence, He does it because the people are hungry. He fed them. That's it. When he was leaving Jericho, a blind beggar named Bartimeaus heard that it was Jesus that was passing by, which gave him a sliver of hope, so he began calling out "have mercy on me!" Jesus, hearing this, even among people rebuking Bartimeaus, called him over. Instead of immediately healing his eyes, he asked him, "What do you want me to do for you?". Jesus didn't just do what was sensational or spectacular, he was concerned about what this man wanted. And then, upon Bartimeaus expressing his desire to see again, Jesus restored his sight. Jesus wasn't interested in showing off. He was interested in loving Bartimeaus by doing what he asked. If he had wanted a pet duck, Jesus would have went and found a duck. His answer to Jesus' question didn't matter, Jesus would have done whatever he said because He loved him. Again, Love. That's it. And then there's Lazarus. Oh man! If this isn't love, I don't know what is! This whole story takes 44 verses to unfold. Basically, it begins with Jesus hearing that a close family friend (close enough to be a family member) is sick and at the point of death. He wraps up what he is doing and goes back to Lazarus' town, where the people there were trying to kill him, to help his friend. As he's leaving, he basically tells his disciples that Lazarus has died and he's going to raise him up again. When He gets there, He finds that Lazarus had been entombed for four days, and his family was grieving his death. He tells Lazarus' sister that he will live again, and asks to be taken to his tomb. Up to this point, Jesus has been able to hold his grief in, but when he sees the tomb, he breaks down. The shortest verse in the Bible: John 11:35 "Jesus Wept." he feels the grief of those around him piled on top of his own. He then proceeds to raise Lazarus and call him out of the tomb. This miracle undoubtedly showed many things about Jesus, such as demonstrate his authority over death and, as he says in 11:4, glorifies the son of God, but the main reason he did it I would argue is because he loved deeply both Lazarus and his family. Love. That's it.
Now that we've looked a bit closer at these miracles to discover a common underlying reason for them all, lets take a couple steps back and look at the bigger picture just to drive the point home. In all these miracles, Jesus does something to or with these people to help or improve their life right where they were, right when they were. But that's not the point. What he did is not as important as why he did it. Look at it in a long term perspective, an eternal perspective (the Kingdom perspective). He healed Jairus daughter and the woman's sickness. It's almost certain that in the course of their lives they got sick again. He fed the crowd that was with him; they got hungry again. He restored the sight of Bartimeaus. It's a sensible assumption that as he aged, his sight once again began to give out. He resurrected Lazarus from the dead (hardly an insignificant act); he died again. All the things He did were ultimately temporary and didn't last. Only one thing stayed with each of these people Jesus helped: the love of Christ. He loved them. Even when sickness and hunger return, when sight fails, when death once again approaches, the love that Jesus showed is still there, is still felt. THIS is what Mother Teresa understood.
So in a culture that worships at the alter of productivity and efficiency, what are we to do with this? How do we work to show the upside down kingdom of Love within a culture that only understands numbers? We ignore the numbers. For us, the numbers should mean very little. Whether we help one person or one thousand people, if we do not make the love of Christ manifest to them, it means nothing. Jesus understood this very well. There was a time when Jesus' disciples came to get him because all the people in the village had brought their sick out to be healed, and he told his disciples that that they were moving on to the next city. Even though there were still people there that hadn't been healed, his Love was already there. Healing the sick, as we discovered, is a temporary thing. There were cities where Jesus had not yet been that did not yet know the love of Christ.
Just like the mustard plant (which was considered a weed) just needs one tiny seed to spread throughout the entire garden, so too love just needs one small foothold to spread throughout a community... throughout the world.
So we indeed can do no great things. The things that appear great in this world, ultimately have little significance. What has very great significance is the small things that we do to convey and spread the love of Christ. To someone who needs a friend, stopping by to chat is far greater than a new car. To someone in desperate need of a car, helping them get a car will be far greater than stopping by to chat. Numbers don't matter. It's the love behind what we do that makes all the difference, in this world and the next.
"We can do no great thing, only small things with great love. It's not how much you do, but how much love you put into doing it."
2 comments:
Great blog post, Henry! I really enjoyed reading it. Hope you're doing well!
Wow Sir! That was very deep and insightful. I especially liked the perspective in the "eternal view" : Jesus amazing acts weren't "permanent" ... they did not last forever, well at least not in the physical sense, but he meets us where we're at because he loves us...and that is the revolution.
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