Luke 5- Andy's thoughts

Abundance and abandonment- When I read this chapter, I am struck with the thought of just how much Jesus delights in giving far more than anyone expected or imagined. He provides Peter and his fellow fishermen more fish than they had probably ever caught. He gives healing to the leper and the paralytic. He gives grace to a tax collector named Levi (also known as Matthew). And he gives forgiveness of sins to those who weren’t even asking for it. Jesus gives and gives and gives. He delights in abundance.

I think that it is easy for me to forget that truth. I am a prideful man who works hard for small things. I don’t even realize how much this affects how I see God. I honestly don’t see the fullness of how much God delights in giving to me. Jesus didn’t give the fishermen a few fish and he didn’t help the lepers cope with their leprosy. He overflowed the boats of the fishermen. He freed the leper of his disease. I deeply believe that Jesus desires to fill me with abundance. Have I been expecting so little of God?

In John 10:10, Jesus says that he came that we might have life and have life abundantly. This is the Jesus about whom we read and worship. I pray that God would open up my eyes more and more to see just how full of grace He really is. I pray that we all see God more and more like this. I pray that we don’t live lives that are too small expecting too little of God.

And how do the people respond to the abundance that Jesus lavishes upon them? They respond with complete abandonment. They are amazed at the fullness of Jesus’ gifts to them and they leave everything to follow him. Jesus promises even more to them than these small gifts of fish and health. He promises the opportunity to impact the lives of men and women for the Kingdom of God.

I think that the disciples Peter and Andrew, James and John, and Matthew give us a glimpse of how we ought to respond to Jesus. Those fishermen just experienced the single greatest day of their professional lives and even that was a pittance compared to a life spent in service to Jesus. Matthew (Levi) didn’t even get a sign but when Jesus called, he left his job and followed Jesus. This was a time when there wasn’t unemployment or welfare services. They didn’t know how they were going to have the money they needed to eat or drink or buy clothes or a shelter. But they didn’t care. They were completely abandoned to following Jesus.

I would pray that I would have a similar abandonment. Some of you know the story of my decision to not pursue developing my tutoring business so that I could do more with ORB. I can definitely testify that I do not regret it. I don’t share this to say that I am a good example. It was not easy and things did not turn out the way I would have expected or even wanted. I have made mistakes and have fallen far short of serving in the way that I ought. But I all the while, Jesus has lavished me with abundant grace. I share this to say that it is my experience that Jesus is so good and so pleased to give us abundant grace that we ought to take more risks and live lives of more abandonment.

The end of the chapter tells about the way the disciples acted with Jesus. They were accused of being drunkards and gluttons as Jesus had been accused. People asked why he would spend time with people who were not “good” or “righteous.” Jesus tells them that it is right to live a life of celebration when encountering Him.

He adds that this teaching is hard to accept. Some people are given a whole new way of living and seeing the world. They are exposed to the abundant grace that God provides and that requires a change in one’s world view. There is no way to contain the experience of God’s abundant grace in our old system of small thinking. God’s grace will burst such a system. No new grace requires a new outlook. And meanwhile some people will still prefer clinging to their old way and are then unable to experience fully the abundance Jesus offers.

Steve, you ask if it is right to celebrate while Jesus is on earth but should we then fast while he is away? I would venture to say… yes. Perhaps more specifically I would say that both aspects of celebration and mourning are right for one who has encountered Jesus. We should still celebrate as we experience the presence of Jesus even now, since he dwells within us. Yet we should feel some melancholy longing for a future when all things will be finally made right. I think that fasting is a great and helpful discipline for us to practice. Maybe I’ll add more about fasting later.

Jared and Kim, I like your thoughts. I agree that it is awesome to see that Jesus uses what people are familiar with to bring them to himself. And it is also powerful to see the love and faith of the paralytic’s friends. When the Scripture says that Jesus saw their faith and then forgave the man, my whole theology gets reshaped. This is such a portrait of love in action. Bring broken people to Jesus. That’s love.

Pete, you are stealing my thoughts on Jared and Kim stealing my thoughts. Oh early risers and your early comments. K Gill, yes, yes. Jesus can do ANYTHING. I hope our eyes continue to open in awe and amazement as we keep reading. Only 5 chapters in, and I feel that God is working in us. I like that you praise Jesus on the blog. Amen sister. Praise Jesus.

Oh, the last thing that I would add is that I notice that it says in verse 16 that Jesus withdrew to the wilderness to pray. The end of chapter 4 also mentioned something similar. I find it interesting that after Jesus was led into the wilderness by the Holy Spirit in order to be tempted, Jesus later continues to return to the wilderness to pray. Maybe there is something restorative to Jesus’ own soul that he is able to experience in the wilderness. I think that we may have our own associations of what may be the wilderness for our lives. If we encounter God there, we may want to return there again to be restored.