DO YOU ENJOY SERVING GOD?
INTRODUCTION
On Sunday, Sherry and I went to one of our favorite eateries after church: Café le Gourmand (Bujumbura, Burundi). They serve wonderful coffee, great food, and amazing French pastries! Though we rarely eat pastries, every now and then we just cannot resist. Sunday was one of those days!
Our choice? One piece of Black Forest Cake – to go! Later in the day, once our lunch wore off, Sherry and I brewed a pot of coffee and enjoyed this little slice of heaven together.
I got to thinking about that little word enjoy. Webster defines it as “[taking] pleasure or satisfaction in” a thing. My wife and I were certainly satisfied by the taste and texture of our delicacy. Thankfully we only bought one piece, because when it was gone, we wanted more.
Let me ask an odd question, “Do you enjoy serving God!” I mean really take pleasure and receive satisfaction from your relationship with Christ. Luke offers a short glimpse into the life of someone who really enjoyed serving God.
Luke takes us to a party thrown by Matthew (Levi) who is enjoying his newfound relationship with Jesus and wants his friends to know Him too (Lk 5:29). Jesus called Matthew to follow Him, and he left his tax tables to do it (Lk 5:27-28). Luke begins the story of Matthew’s party by telling us who is attending.
ECLECTIC PARTY GOERS
They said to him, “John’s disciples often fast and pray, and so do the disciples of the Pharisees, but yours go on eating and drinking” (Lk 5:33)
To get the gist of this passage we must set the context. It seems some “Pharisees and teachers of the law” are stunned that Jesus eats with “tax collectors and sinners” (Lk 5:30). Jesus puts them in their place by reminding them: “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick” (Lk 5:31). As such, eating with “these people” is an act of evangelism to call them (just like Matthew) to repent (Lk. 5:32).
Luke 5:33 begins with that innocuous word “they.” Now, we might assume that Luke is referring to the Pharisees and teachers of the law, but he is not. Well, the “they” talking to Jesus are the disciples of John (Lk 5:33; Mt 9:14-17). These disciples of John are most likely a part of a sect of Judaism known as The Essene. This group practiced an extremely strict lifestyle, lived in the desert, kept a very strict diet, and more. (Eventually, some of John’s disciples follow Jesus, but they are not there yet).
Now, back to the party. Take a minute to think about the attendees at Matthew’s party: Pharisees, teachers of the law, disciples of John, disciples of Jesus, and tax collectors. Sounds like a ripe room for revival! It’s kind of like inviting bikers, IRS agents, and monks to the same party – it’s going to get interesting.
Like most legalists, the Pharisees and Essenes just could not handle anyone enjoying themselves. So, they feel compelled to point out what others are doing wrong, well, what they think others are doing wrong.
Do you know anyone like that? They are convinced that having fun or taking joy in the fellowship of God’s people is too good – so it must be sinful. So, while everyone is gulping down hors d'oeuvres the disciples of John think it’s a great time to bring up fasting!
In my mind, John’s followers are telling Jesus’s followers, “You are too happy!” After all,
YOU ARE TOO HAPPY!
I love Jesus’s response to their accusation:
Jesus answered, “Can you make the friends of the bridegroom fast while he is with them? But the time will come when the bridegroom will be taken from them; in those days they will fast” (Lk 5:34-35)
The Pharisees and the Disciples of John are upset that Jesus is having too much fun hanging out with these “sinners and tax collectors.” He says, “Listen guys, this is a party. We’re supposed to enjoy ourselves. Relax.”
This moment is about feasting, not fasting. It’s about celebrating that Matthew’s life was radically changed by an encounter with Christ. This is a time to let down your hair down and celebrate that, for now, the bridegroom is here.
It’s kind of like announcing a church potluck and then calling a fast at the same time. Little gray-haired ladies arrive with their favorite casserole or crock pot full of deliciousness, then everyone just sits and stares. “Oh, if we enjoy this food too much, we might break some religious law if we enjoy it!”
Listen, if you go to a wedding, eat some cake! Eat. Dance a little (just not too much 😊). Eugene Petersen’s rendering of Luke 5:35 is awesome. He says, “As long as the bride and groom are with you, you have a good time” (The Message). When they leave the party, it is over, and things go back to normal.
am not saying weddings are an opportunity to get drunk. That violates the whole teaching of Scripture. I am simply saying, don’t thumb your nose at the food and cake because you want to appear to be holier than those around you. Life is short. God is good. And having fun fellowship with “sinners and tax collectors” is an evangelistic strategy. No one on the planet should enjoy life and all its beauty more than those who’ve been set free from the bondage of sin.
It appears that some are not getting Jesus’s point, so, Jesus offers an explanatory parable.
“No one tears a piece out of a new garment to patch an old one. Otherwise, they will have torn the new garment, and the patch from the new will not match the old. And no one pours new wine into old wineskins. Otherwise, the new wine will burst the skins; the wine will run out and the wineskins will be ruined. No, new wine must be poured into new wineskins. And no one after drinking old wine wants the new, for they say, ‘The old is better’” (Lk 5:36-38).
NEW FABRIC AND WINE SKINS
When I first read this parable, I thought, “What does this have to do with enjoying yourself at a party?”
As I studied what the items in the parable represent, I came across these illuminating comments:
"I [Jesus] haven't come to patch up your old practices. I come with a whole new set of clothes” – David Guzik
"Patching up an old garment with a piece of a new garment not only disfigures the new garment but also causes the old garment to become more ragged than ever, for the new piece has still to shrink and will then pull the old threadbare garment to pieces (Geldenhuys).
If you have new wine, you put it in new wineskins, not old ones. Why? Because new wine expands as it ferments – it requires a wineskin that can withstand the pressure. A cracked old wineskin cannot withstand the pressure.
The key to understanding this parable though is not knowing the ins and outs of wineskins and wine. The key to this parable is found in 5:39 which says, “And no one after drinking old wine wants the new, for they say, ‘The old is better.”
NEW WINE
In no small way, Jesus is telling the Pharisee’s and disciples of John that the old way of the law and religion are worn-out. Jesus came to change the entire landscape of religious life, once and for all. He came to bring a new day of freedom and deliverance and to set the captive free. But some people like the taste of the old wine of legalism, law, and bondage.
This is nothing new. When Moses brought the people of Israel out of Egypt after 400 years of slavery, they cried and complained because they had to eat the same food all the time. The solution in their mind was to go back to the old way of slavery where onions were a main dish.
Instead of seeing Jesus as the Lamb of God come to take away the sin of the world, these guys are worried about keeping the status quo. But Jesus came so the tax collector, the sinner, and the religious could shake off those things hindering their relationship with God and their neighbor. He came “that [we] may have life, and have it to the full” (Jn 10:10b – emphasis mine).
DO YOU ENJOY SERVING GOD?
Let me come back to my original question, “Do you enjoy serving God?” Or, put another way, “Are you having a good time serving God, following Jesus, and telling others how He changed your life?”
Has serving God and others become a religious obligation? Do you find yourself condemning others or celebrating the slightest forward progress toward Jesus? Has your relationship with Jesus dulled because you’ve just stopped enjoying His presence?
Chris Hodges writes:
“Some people are trying to be good people by doing godly things—reading their Bible, praying and serving those in need. But they’re doing it out of a sense of religious duty and obligation, not because they’re in love with God and want to know Him and offer up their lives to Him. Then they wonder why their spiritual lives are so dry. Aren’t they doing everything a good Christian should do? Well, then, why isn’t God coming through with His end of the deal—answering their prayers and giving them the abundant life of peace and joy that Jesus said He brought to us?”[1]
If our enjoyment of God has become stale, we need to answer this question, “How can I get a new wineskin so that God can pour new wine into my soul?”
POURED OUT
I am going to borrow from a book called 10:10 Life to the Fullest by Daniel Hill. In this book he offers “5 Steps to Revive Your Faith.” Let me share four with you.
1. Step into your FEARS
Most of want to do the opposite – fear should make us run away. But with Christ we can do all things – even face our fears. You see, only by facing your fear will you ever get to a place where you have no other choice but to trust God. Sound scary? It is! But I speak from experience, joy is found at the intersection of laying down our fear and picking up God’s purpose.
2. Walk with GOD
One pastor said, “Christianity only works with love.” Every day you need to wake up and remind yourself that you are a beloved child of God. He is for you. He is not against you. You are in Him and He is in you. You can read more about this in my book “In Him You Are: Trusting God with Who You Are, What You Have and How He Sees You.”
3. Be His WITNESS
Nothing will transform your walk with Jesus more than sharing the gospel with others. Not sure how to do that, get my free online course teaching you how to share your testimony.
4. Deepen Your COMMUNITY
If you really want God to transform your life, give you abundant life, and find a fresh relationship with Him, then become part of a small group of believers who love and support each other. I have learned that faith is not an individual sport!
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[1] http://www.relevantmagazine.com/god/practical-faith/are-you-loving-god-out-obligation
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