Dear Luke,
To answer your question pointedly,
no, I do not believe there is a middle way.
I understand your desire for it, because then it allows you to still
follow this man in all of the fascination and intrigue that you have without
demanding a commitment from you, but I do not find such a way present in all of
the teachings of Jesus. Even he has
harsh words for those who do not seem to have a desire to make a commitment to
him—he desires followers, disciples, not idle watchers. I believe that part of the reason for this is
that he knows that he will eventually depart from this world, and those who
have chosen to follow him will make up the community of believers that God will continue to use. If all that exists is spectators, who will be
available for God to use? Following
Jesus demands a total commitment, and while I understand how intimidating such
a choice is, I will continue to encourage you to make such a commitment, for I
fear for those who choose otherwise, or who fail to choose at all.
In a sense, Jesus addresses part of
this dilemma. It’s natural for most of us to want to cleanse ourselves of our
bad habits. Even those who have no faith
try to weed out those areas of life that would be considered weak spots. Shortly after he had cast the demon out of
this man, Jesus tells the crowd how an unclean spirit, once cast out of a
person, will wander through the region in search of a home until realizing that
it can return at once to the person it has just left. When it does, it often finds the person has cleaned
up, but there is a void there, and so the unclean spirit invites other spirits,
often worse than itself, and the person ends up in a far worse state than they
were originally. See, Luke, when a
person decides to change, there must be something to fill that space with, or
it becomes a void ready to be filled by anything or anyone. I believe that only God can fill those spaces
to such an extent that we are able to resist the arrival of such unclean
spirits. Trying to do these things on
our own is futile, but I believe and trust God’s ability and strength. I think this addresses the middle way of
which you spoke—it is a gallant effort, but one that will ultimately fall
short.
In every crowd that followed Jesus
there must have been a strange mixture of disciples and skeptics, curious
onlookers and others ready to seize him and drag him to trial. In this particular crowd, a woman cried out
that the womb that bore him and the breasts that nursed him were surely
blessed, but Jesus turns this around, distracting the attention from himself
and telling the crowd that anyone who obeys the word of God is blessed. Jesus is calling us to a lifestyle rooted in
him, and there is no entry fee, no special access granted to those with
power. In the eyes of Jesus, each one is
a treasured individual, worthy of love.
I hope that you see the continual
invitation in to life, Luke, but it is not an easy one to accept. Jesus grew upset at the crowds for their
constant demand for a sign. He told them
that their evil generation would receive no sign other than the sign of Jonah,
who called the people of Nineveh to repentance.
Jesus then reaches back into history and references the queen of the
South, who traveled far to hear the wisdom of Solomon, a great king of Israel. Jesus is trying to help the people see that
he is far greater than Jonah, far greater than Solomon, and just as people
listened to them, they should be willing to listen to him. I can almost sense his frustration as they
wonder what to make of this man. I can
hear the same questions in your letters, Luke, and I hope you hear the words of
Jesus as encouragement to choose to follow him.
He leads to life, my friend, and there is no other way.
Sincerely,
Theophilus
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