Once upon a time (the early 2000s), in a land far away (the Midwest), there was a church in the final stages of a project to build a giant new building that would house a much bigger sanctuary, a state-of-the-art kitchen, and multiple classrooms, leaving the old church building as the “youth building.”
As it was the early 2000s, and the trend was to create multi-purpose spaces that would allow churches to turn sanctuaries into gymnasiums, the highly uncomfortable pews were being sacrificed with comfy, cushy chairs in these “sanctinasiums.” In this particular case, the pews from the original building weren’t being moved to the sanctinasium, and they weren’t needed in the original building because, let’s be real, pews in a youth building are a bit cumbersome, uncomfortable, and impractical.
The church leadership faced the daunting decision of what to do with these old pews that had been in this church building for…a long time. Ultimately, the decision was made to sell these pews to another church.
Simple solution, right?
Soon, a church in need heard of these pews and reached out to a couple of the church leaders–who will remain nameless because, well, we’ll get to that in a minute.
Instead of selling the pews, the decision was made to donate the pews because this was another church in need. Before long, the pews were delivered and everyone was happy…initially.
Somehow, word got out to the rest of the leadership that the pews from this sacred and holy church building were sold to…
Wait for it.
A church with a female pastor.
You would have thought the pews were sold to a brothel, a Satanic cult, or a group on the other side of the political aisle based on the reactions of the other men involved in leadership.
All hell broke loose.
It was determined by the leadership that the two guys who had coordinated the donation and delivery of the pews to this “heretic” had to go and get them back.
I can’t even imagine how that conversation would have gone. How do you call up a pastor who is serving the underserved and doesn’t even have permanent seating and say, “Hey, sorry, I know you need seating as you serve a portion of our community everyone else ignores, but, you know, because you’re a woman, we’re going to need to come and take those pews back so we can sell them to someone who’s, well, a man.”
It makes me cringe just thinking about it.
Needless to say, the two men who had orchestrated the donation did not do that. Miraculously, the pews were “sold” and the money mysteriously materialized and was delivered to the leadership–shortly before both of those men departed that church.
This disgusted me when it happened, but the more I study what Jesus did and what he taught when he was here on earth, the more I see how necessary it is for us, as individuals, to know Jesus and his teachings for ourselves.
Be Wary of Who You Choose to Follow
We’ve been working through the book of Luke and studying what Jesus DID when he was here on earth. Last week, we talked about Jesus choosing his 12 apostles and then teaching a crowd that consisted of his apostles, his disciples, Jews, and Gentiles. At the beginning of this teaching, Jesus considers his audience of mixed cultural and spiritual belief systems and conveys these things:
Be spiritually humble.
Don’t chase worldly success.
Love your enemies.
Give graciously.
Pardon instead of judging and condemning.
You can find these lessons in Luke 6:20-38.
Immediately after Jesus teaches this spiritually diverse audience these foundational truths about how to love and accept one another–despite their differences–he tells them this:
He also told them a parable: “Can a blind man guide [another] blind man? Will they not both fall into a hole in the ground? A student is not superior to his teacher; but everyone, after he has been completely trained, will be like his teacher. Luke 6:39-40 AMP
This might feel like a strange place for Jesus to introduce this concept. Why would he go from talking to them about how to get along and treat each other to talking about guidance, leadership, and teaching?
As a teacher, leader, and guide, Jesus was shifting the focus from rules, laws, traditions, and rituals to relationships. He had just laid down a foundation that would unify these diverse people and equal the playing field for the Jews and Gentiles, but that foundation required them to shift their focus from rules and religion to love and relationships.
That was revolutionary.
And, it wasn’t something most other religious leaders and teachers were preaching, and Jesus knew that his message of hope and love would be met with conflict and contempt from other religious leaders, so this simple parable, which was also a reference to Proverbs, planted the seed in this audience to be wary of who they followed and who they listened to because they would ultimately become like the leader they chose to follow.
I can’t help but think back to the pew story.
Those two guys who donated those pews could have easily chosen to follow the lead of those other church leaders who were driven by faulty theology, rules, and traditions, but, instead, they chose to follow Christ’s example and his teaching by:
Being spiritually humble
Loving others
Giving graciously
Not condemning
We have to be so diligent when it comes to who we follow and whose guidance and leadership we listen to these days–just like those crowds had to be during Jesus’s day, but we can only do that if we know Jesus and his teachings for ourselves.
Focus on Your Issues
Jesus didn’t stop his teaching there, though. Luke tells us that Jesus goes on to tell his listeners:
Why do you look at the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice or consider the log that is in your own eye? How can you say to your brother, ‘Brother, allow me to take out the speck that is in your eye,’ when you yourself do not see the log that is in your own eye? You hypocrite (play actor, pretender), first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take out the speck that is in your brother’s eye. Luke 6:41-42 AMP
When I think about this crowd that had amassed to listen to Jesus and how different they all were, I’m amazed at the way Jesus speaks directly to the issues that would have affected them all in a way that shifts their focus to what is important and what matters most. I can imagine how these disciples of Christ might have been looking at the Gentiles among them and whispering about what the disciples viewed as the Gentiles’ shortcomings. And vice versa. This was a tough crowd, I’m sure.
Jesus looks at them, though, and he tells them to focus on themselves and their own issues first and foremost. I just think this is so important. It’s only after we fix our own issues, deal with our own shortcomings and failures, and heal that we can begin to help others do the same thing.
That’s humbling.
Again, I go back to that pew story, and I think about the judgment, hate, and spite that drove those men to decide to take those pews back. In their eyes, a female pastor was a heretic. They were so focused on what they deemed to be “the speck” in her eye, they couldn’t even begin to recognize the logs in their own eyes.
When I think about all the lessons Jesus taught that day related to spiritual humility, loving others, withholding judgment, giving graciously, and worrying about our issues over someone else’s, I’m so proud of the two men who stood up to those leaders for modeling Christ even when they were the minority and even when it meant standing up to men who called themselves leaders in a Christian church.
That’s such an important aspect of Christ’s teaching that day, and it leads right into what he teaches next.
The Fruit We Produce
Jesus continues his teaching to this diverse crowd, telling his listened:
For there is no good tree which produces bad fruit, nor, on the other hand, a bad tree which produces good fruit. [Matt 7:16, 18] For each tree is known and identified by its own fruit. For figs are not picked from thorn bushes, nor is a cluster of grapes picked from a briar bush. The [intrinsically] good man produces what is good and honorable and moral out of the good treasure [stored] in his heart; and the [intrinsically] evil man produces what is wicked and depraved out of the evil [in his heart]; for his mouth speaks from the overflow of his heart. Luke 6:43-45 AMP
I’ve heard this scripture so many times, and most times it is in isolation–without the context of the rest of Christ’s teaching that day. Even in isolation, this is a poignant and meaningful lesson: good trees produce good fruit, and bad trees produce bad fruit. Considering with the context of the rest of Christ’s teaching that day, this lesson feels like the destination Christ was driving toward all day.
His listeners were diverse, they weren’t unified, and there was angst between their cultures. To offer hope to all of them and to unify them, he tells them these things:
Be spiritually humble.
Don’t chase worldly success.
Love your enemies.
Give graciously.
Pardon instead of judging and condemning.
Choose wise leaders to follow.
Focus on your own growth instead of the shortcomings of others.
Then, finally, he reminds them:
There is no good tree that produces bad fruit.
There is no bad tree that produces good fruit.
The good man produces what is good, honorable, and moral.
The evil man produces what is wicked and depraved.
Notice, Jesus doesn’t say anything about religion here. He doesn’t speak to culture, rules, or laws. He speaks to the heart because out of the overflow of the heart, the mouth speaks.
Jesus’s message to this mixed audience was one of unification as opposed to polarization. It was one encouraging his listeners to be producers of good fruit but to also recognize the fruit of others–regardless of cultural or religious similarities or differences.
When you put all of these seemingly individual lessons together, they form one giant lesson about who we are to be as people–individually and as communities–people and communities who have good hearts and produce good fruit.
Reflections:
How do you respond to bad leadership?
What is one issue you need to focus on in terms of your own healing and your own issues?
How challenging is it for you to discern your own fruit? The fruit of others?
I REALLY appreciate the way you are speaking into this, friend! Thanks for taking us deep and challenging us to step outside those old, broken boxes!
Girl... this story hit different. I worked in vocational ministry for 3 years as a Communications Director for a large, multi-site church. It was one of the best and worst jobs I've ever had. While I adored my work, thrived in my role, and learned so much that would go with me in my career, the set backs I received as a women in my role were just too much to bear in the end. I can only imagine how that other pastor felt, but am sure she wasn't even surprised.
Appreciate your thoughtful deep-dive into scripture as always. Have you considered leading an online Bible study? You could probably do it via paid version of Substack.