The Soil of My Soul – Isaiah 5:1-7 (a continuation of John 12:23-28)

Unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains by itself alone, but if it dies it bears much fruit. He who loves his life loses it; and he who hates his life in this world shall keep it to life eternal.

In my twenties and thirties I saw capitalism as a system that birthed greed and corruption. I believed I had seen proof of this with my own eyes. Even though its doctrines were unspoken, my family’s denomination was Capitalism and hard work was its mission. While it created some wealth, our family’s practice of its religion almost led its patriarchs to prison. While their excellent lawyers kept them out of jail they could not keep ulcers, neurosis and dissension from creating their own forms of imprisonment.

I had also become a Christian when I was 23. In my new walk of faith, I immediately acquired a strong conviction that Christians must shun the world which certainly included capitalism – the cult I grew up in. My early heroes were now Christians who had lived sacrificially in behalf of others. Their spirituality had a definite hating-one’s-life flavor. Given my background, it was not a terribly heavy cross to bear but I was willing to carry it with pride, dying to any prospects of economic glory. This is a short-version of why I  abandoned any track toward the corner office. This is also why I committed myself to working with my hands and earning no more than I needed to meet my family’s basic needs. I don’t think the Lord was at all impressed with my little shot at urban aestheticism.

If one could have looked at the backstory of my life, the one God was writing, I believe you would see him diligently working to undermine my flirtations with asceticism and put me on another track entirely, one which involved corporations, finance and complexity – things which I had vowed (for wrong reasons) to avoid. He also maneuvered me (with no shortage of kicking and screaming on my part), back into my family’s business and into close proximity to my father – someone I had vowed (at an early age) to distance myself from as soon as it was possible. It turns out the death Jesus had in mind for me was different than the funeral I had arranged for myself.

In scripture Jesus goes on to say that if He be lifted up from the earth He will draw men to Himself. This surely applies to His mode of death. However, I think it also applies to the result of placing a Living Seed in the bowels of Satan’s domain.  Whether its in Hell or our hearts, resurrection Life (if permitted) triumphs! it breaks free of the power of death and of sin. It bears much fruit. It is attractive. It glorifies the Father.

                                                          if it dies it bears much fruit.

That very same Living Seed resides in the hearts of those who publicly confess Him and are trusting Him as their Life and their Salvation, permanently modifying the soil conditions within us. Our hearts are now, by their new nature, the perfect growing condition for the Word of God.

Note; It is assumed in MwM that in God’s sovereignty he is making use of both external and internal circumstances to create sufficient heat to germinate the Seed. Many of you will know immediately what I am speaking of when I refer to “heat”.

The deepest truth about our heart-soil today is not its bent of rebellion and its propensity to stray. The deepest Truth about us is Jesus Christ is our life; by indwelling us we are new creations. You may be thinking, “This makes the Good News a bit too good doesn’t it? Anyway that’s not my theology. Where does our theology come from? How often does our experience shape our theology?

One reason we reject our selves as new creations is that newness is painfully incompatible with our experience. We believe our lack of transformation would discredits or even disproves the reality of newness. Embracing our new identity in-Christ would also create a new level of personal responsibility if our hearts are the good soil scripture indicates they are.

My understanding is not perfected but they do include a few things I feel confident about. I no longer believe hating one’s life”means taking a vow of poverty.  I no longer believe adopting a deliberately downward socio-economic lifestyle will generate holiness. I don’t believe this glorifies the Lord in the least. I don’t believe wealth or its absence has any direct bearing on right standing with God. It is not about external conditions. It is all about our heart’s orientation to external things such as money, sex and power. The evil lay in the loving.

As one who has lived with a taste of leanness and also with material abundance, I have discovered the Lord’s can grow his stop in either environment. The Seed living in our hearts will  converge, at the right time, with the heart of our circumstances, promoting a dying to ourselves. We will have to repent of older beliefs. Due to our resistance, some of our deaths may be spectacular. However for those who belong to Him, the Living Word will ultimately grow and displace fallen understandings of the world, ourselves and God. The fruit of His resurrection Life will be seen in us; the ruler of this world will be cast out and His Spirit will continue to draw men to Christ. He will be glorified in  transformation!

Today when I hear Jesus speak of hating one’s life or hating one’s family, I believe he is leading us to this idea; There are no comparisons, not even close, between His kingdom and the kingdoms of this earth; there are no comparisons we can make regarding earthly familial and those we will know in heaven.

Here is my best attempt at grappling with this hard word from our loving King;  I believe temporal words like “hate” will be unecessary. Small words such as this will be displaced by eternal words such as “love“. I believe Jesus is saying, “Trust me. Comparatively speaking, you will hate the bleached out, compromised motives and affections of this life on earth once you taste the abundance which is your inheritance in Me. Embracing this idea today by faith is your call.

Father, whether our fare is currently lean or abundant, may we repent where we have opposed the Living Seed through our dependance on external conditions. Allow us to acknowledge, that in our current circumstances, conditions are ripe for a harvest of righteousness, love,  peace and joy. Right now Father, in this hour, be glorified in us. Amen.

 

 

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