To Whom Much is Given...

 …Everyone to whom much was given, of him much will be required, and from him to whom they entrusted much, they will demand the more. Luke 12:48

I enjoyed promotions in the Army. Promotions come with more respect, greater authority, and of course, higher pay. As a young private, I stood at the bottom of the ladder, the base of the pyramid. Everyone around me had more authority than I. Their innate intelligence did not matter. They might be a rock with lips (Army speak for dumb), but if they had more rank, they expected and required me to do as they said. On the upside, no one expected much from a private. If I showed up at the right place, in the right uniform, and on time, I was a step ahead of the crowd. Truthfully, in later years, I would look back wistfully on being a private; however, as is usual, I persevered and promotions came, sometimes not when I wanted, but they came, nonetheless. Eventually, the Army promoted me to Lieutenant Colonel, proving once again that if you avoid getting killed on a deployment and wait long enough, the Army will promote anyone. Promotions bring honor.

Suddenly, those who yesterday were my peers were now my subordinates, required to comply with my lawful orders. My pay went up, sometimes substantially. All in all, despite having to purchase new rank insignia, promotion was fun. Then came in the additional responsibility. With promotion comes new levels of requirements, new burdens, new challenges to face, and new decisions to make. Toward the end of my career, I worked around general officers. It stunned me to find that in many ways, I enjoyed more freedom than they. Their days were no longer their own. Some aid with a schedule governed their activities, sometimes down to the minute. Advanced rank comes with advanced requirements. It is much the same in the kingdom of God.

We yearn for the abundant life Jesus speaks of in John 10:10. Jesus yearns to give it to us. He did become human, live on this earth, and die in order that we might partake in this abundant life. But there is the question of what we do with this abundant life? James, the brother of Jesus wrote, “You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions.” James 4:3 God, through James, reminds us that He gives us an abundant life to glorify His name and forward the kingdom, not spend in on our own passions. In a like fashion, the Army did not promote me to give me more glory, I was promoted in order to better serve. Yes, higher rank came with a certain amount of glory. I got new shiny bits to pin on my uniform. Higher rank came with greater responsibility. James clearly links answered prayer with proper motives. For what will I use the abundance God provides? Am I willing to let the Holy Spirit mold me into a vessel fit for service, or do I seek my own fleshly desires? 

One final illustration from the Army promotion system. The Army does not promote based on past performance. The Army promotes based on demonstrated ability to think, speak, and operate at the next higher level. When I was a captain, the Army wanted to see me thinking like a major, speaking like a major, and operating like a major before granting me that level of responsibility. Living into the abundant life that Jesus speaks of comes with many attendant responsibilities. Those who live in that abundance walk circumspectly, giving God glory in all their actions. Abundant livers make decisions that point toward God. Abundant livers take steps that others shy away from. They willingly pour out their lives, as Jesus did, as a fragrant offering to God. I want the abundant life. He wants to provide it. Will I demonstrate the responsibility of living into that kind of life?