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Today's Little Lift
by Jim Bullington
“Also He said to them, ‘Is a lamp brought to be put under a basket or under a bed? Is it not to be set on a lampstand? For there is nothing hidden which will not be revealed, nor has anything been kept secret but that it should come to light. If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear.’ Then He said to them, ‘Take heed what you hear. With the same measure you use, it will be measured to you; and to you who hear, more will be given. For whoever has, to him more will be given; but whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him.’” (Mark 4.21-25).
The Sermon on the Mount contained great truths that Jesus probably repeated time and time again. One of the truisms that He cited was the question, “Is a lamp brought to be put under a basket or under a bed? Is it not to be set on a lampstand?” He was not teaching about lamps and lampstands; He was teaching about the human soul and judgment before Creator God. His audience already knew about lamps and lampstands; His lessons were intended to stress truths that were either unknown or long forgotten.
What about truth and responsibility? Jesus’ contemporaries knew a lot about lamps and lampstands but knew little about truth and responsibilities. Many of them may not have been in the class of the spiritual elites, but they nonetheless had talents that they needed to exercise and not hide. It was this lapse that Jesus addressed with today’s focus verses. Even thought they could not do everything they could do something! The attitude of waiting until everything was possible before doing anything was one that has plagued man effectively from the beginning of time. The Jewish hypocritical leaders and the Roman oppressors had ground down the spirits of many of the Jews, ground them down to the point of inactivity and essential despair. They had capabilities they were not using and this unused capacity was the target of the truths that Jesus taught in the cited verses.
God has a part in human history; always had and always will. He has held men accountable for what they can do and always made provision for that which man could not do. Let your mind go back over the history of Israel. Think of all the times that the nation came up against seemingly insurmountable odds only to be delivered by God’s hands once they exercised their faith in God. When Israel trusted only in their own strength, they languished. When they extended themselves beyond themselves, they succeeded. That principle is a timeless spiritual principle! It is here that Jesus calls His countrymen to work. “Do what you can! Use what you have! Focus on your abilities and not your inabilities!”
God’s eyes are both loving and knowing. He does not expect us to do the impossible; He will take care of that for us! Yet He does expect us to do that for which we are equipped and capable. To sit by and do nothing because we can’t do everything is an open invitation to failure and the wrath of God. Part of faith involves allowing God to do His part while not slacking in doing our part. In fact that might be a good working definition of faith and that was the definition that Jesus recognized as deficient in His contemporaries. Do what you can and leave the rest to God!
Questions for Discussion:
1. What was a lampstand? What was it s purpose?
2. Why did Jesus use the metaphor of light to illustrate human responsibilities?
3. What are some Old Testament examples of Israel doing their part and allowing God to do His? What about Jericho? The Red Sea? The Passover? List other examples?
4. How can we demonstrate our faith when the “odds are stacked against us?”
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