there's this story that Jesus tells about two guys in church. one is all puffed up and pompous, full of self-justifying contempt for others. just the kind of charicature we're used to seeing portrayed in churches. at first glance, however, the other doesn't seem to really belong there either- he IS a new testament other and approaches God with reverence and fear, for where the first has self-justification, this one has self-knowledge.
it reminds me of a series of moralist cartoons that appeared in Highlights Magazine when i was a kid... Goofus and Gallant were two boys who would be placed in the same situation. goofus always did the wrong thing (which always appeared to be the more natural thing as well) while gallant always did the right thing. it became a bit too predictable to be entertaining, even for a well-intentioned sunday school kid. however, the whole thing clearly got under my skin because i was quite troubled when the pretty new school librarian who was from australia and probably had limited experience with that particular children's magazine started to call me 'goofus,' even in her comments on my report cards. although it was a term of endearment (how many teachers call their students by a nickname in official communications?) i wondered what negative truths were inherent in this name that somehow, despite my best efforts, i seemed to have earned.
anyway, Jesus' story is a typical goofus and gallant scenario with the classic Jesus twist: the pious poser is clearly goofus, while the reverent reprobate is gallant.
at least, that's what we were taught in sunday school.
upon reading this story recently in preparation for a talk, however, i didn't really feel like i was either character in Jesus' story; not specifically. when the circumstances are more general and the lines of life are softer, it can sometimes be tricky to know what to take from scripture. what do we do then?
go deeper, i suppose.
there is still a word there for those of us that feel we're somewhere in between the extremes. it has to do with basic perspective.
see, the problem with the big self-important guy is, of course, his pride. all that thanksgiving about having not been as bad as other people? all that boasting about fasting and tithing? if Jesus had been a singer, he might have burst into a song that george harrison would write nearly 2000 years later:
All through the day I me mine, I me mine, I me mine.
All through the night I me mine, I me mine, I me mine.
Now they're frightened of leaving it
Everyone's weaving it,
Coming on strong all the time,
All through the day I me mine.
I-I-me-me mine,
All I can hear I me mine, I me mine, I me mine.
Even those tears I me mine, I me mine, I me mine.
No-one's frightened of playing it
Everyone's saying it,
Flowing more freely than wine,
All through Your life, I me mine.
I-I-me-me mine,
All I can hear I me mine, I me mine, I me mine.
Even those tears I me mine, I me mine, I me mine.
No-one's frightened of playing it
Everyone's saying it,
Flowing more freely than wine,
All through your life I me mine.
All through the night I me mine, I me mine, I me mine.
Now they're frightened of leaving it
Everyone's weaving it,
Coming on strong all the time,
All through the day I me mine.
I-I-me-me mine,
All I can hear I me mine, I me mine, I me mine.
Even those tears I me mine, I me mine, I me mine.
No-one's frightened of playing it
Everyone's saying it,
Flowing more freely than wine,
All through Your life, I me mine.
I-I-me-me mine,
All I can hear I me mine, I me mine, I me mine.
Even those tears I me mine, I me mine, I me mine.
No-one's frightened of playing it
Everyone's saying it,
Flowing more freely than wine,
All through your life I me mine.
for this guy, life
is about him.
even other people's misfortune, pain or depravity
is about him.
everything that is and everything that isn't
is about him
placed at a beeblebroxian centre of the universe, he and those like him enjoy viewing the swirling, ever-expanding universe from from its heart. pride is placing oneself there.
put that way, that's most of us.
it might even be the other guy- the reverent one,
the one that has the word gallant written beneath his mugshot.
he, like the goofus next to him, sees the world from his own vantage point. however, unlike that guy, from here he sees how unworthy his worship is compared to the eloquently resonant prayers of the saint next to him. from here he sees how unrighteous his life is compared to the piety demonstrated and confessed by the godly man next to him. he is so spiritually and socially intimidated that he laces his reverent humility with caution, lest he approach the throne of grace incorrectly.
with all this comparison, he is incapable of truly understanding the grace that he seeks.
comparison rarely offers us the kind of spiritual insight we seek. comparison certainly does not afford us God's perspective because God's perspective is purely objective. God loves all people uniquely and yet equally. God's love is not enhanced or diminished by genuflection or prayer posture or worship dancing or intercessory weeping. God's approval is not gained or lost by the things we do or the things we can do... remember paul's words about body parts?
God doesn't love me more than you or you more than me.
It's not like that.
God loves me as me and you as you.
free of the need to compare ourselves to each other, we are released from the pressure of those comparisons and, by this release, can enjoy freedom to pursue the realization of God's dream for our own lives.
***
lest the point of this video clip featuring 'the tick' be lost, focus on the big blue superhero as he is pressed by the interviewer to identify his super powers... the interviewer lists all these cool things and the tick- very mighty and very very blue- seems to be diminished in his person each time he answers 'no.' any resemblance to real persons living or dead OR spoken of by Jesus is purely coincidental.
