Daily Pastoral #25
This is an abridged version of a text study I just wrote for my dear friends at Crossings about Luke 17:5-10. To read the whole shebang, head on over here.
By default, we are egocentric creatures and the main characters of our own life stories.
Why would we think otherwise? We’re with and inside of ourselves each moment of our lives. We are bound to the notion that we are our own gods and the arbiters of life.
When life shows us that it cannot be controlled, we reach and grasp for control even more. Even when we turn to faith or spirituality, it’s usually done in order to wrest control of our lives.
With more faith, maybe I could pay my bills without stress. Maybe my parasitical addiction will go away. Maybe my child will come out of her room and tell me what’s wrong.
Sometimes prayer works, but more often, it doesn’t.
How much faith do I need to get this life to budge in my desired direction, God?!
When the disciples express this urge to control more of their lives to Jesus, he refuses to engage or outrightly rebukes them. Jesus sees the disciples trying to use Jesus as their own spiritual slot machine. He tells them that they have zero faith—not even a mustard seed’s worth. In typical Jesus-fashion, he amps up the law to bring an end to the delusional self-godly ways they are enslaved to. In their enslavement to glory, they project this enslavement onto their fellow humans.
This is God’s work… To remove our hearts of stone that turn against ourselves and each other and replace them with beating hearts of flesh. God liberates us from our false identity as slaves. In turn, we no longer need to project that slavery onto others.
In Jesus, God frees us FROM our self-idolizing ways and frees us FOR the world.
