students of jesus

My Dad used to believe some crazy things about me. Every so often he would tell me I could do anything. He said I was smart and funny. He thought I could beat up any kid in my class. It was comical because I was the pee-wee of the school who ran his mouth way too much and then hid behind the teacher’s skirt. Clearly, my father didn’t live in the same world as I did.

I was convinced my father had no clue about my life, so I ignored his advice. Years later, when I came to the pages of the New Testament I began to hear the same voice urging me to lift my vision. I’ve heard that voice at least four times, and I know it’s talking to all of us, not just me.

“God had planned something better for us so that only together with us would they be made perfect.” (Hebrews 11:40) After describing incredible heroes of faith, the writer of Hebrews turns is attention to us. Compared to all those other guys in the Bible, God has planned something better for us. There’s more. And it’s better. And it’s for us. wilder still: the stuff God has planned for us completes the faith of those from ages past. Are you kidding me? Something is lacking in the experiences of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, and well, the whole list—and they are looking to us for the fulfillment of their experiences? No wonder there is a great cloud of witnesses looking on.

“His intent was that now, through the church, the manifold wisdom of God should be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms.” (Ephesians 3:10) To begin with, I have no clear idea who the “rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms" are, but when God wants to put his wisdom on display, he points at the church. Are you kidding me? I love my local church, but it hardly reaches the level of manifesting all of God’s wisdom. God points at us, and we turn around as if he’s pointing at someone behind us.

“I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father.” (John 14:12) Are you kidding me? Is he really talking about us? When Jesus opens up with “I tell you the truth” it means, “read my lips, this is serious.” Still stranger--his words are in the singular: “anyone” and “he.” My favorite rationalization about this verse used to be that Jesus meant that all the aggregate works of all believers in all times: but there’s no way you can read it like that. He means me, and then he means you. Actually, I would be thrilled to settle for just doing the stuff he did, but Jesus says there’s more.

“His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness."  (2 Peter 1:3) The reason I have so much trouble with this verse is that it lays so much responsibility at my feet. Everything for life and godliness? Are you kidding me? He’s given us everything we need? Well then, go get ‘em.

My Dad may not have been a part of my childhood world, but my God knows this world better than I do. My natural father spoke to me out of parental hope and pride. Our Heavenly Father speaks to us out of transcendent truth. Why don’t we listen more often?