Have you ever thought something was too easy? Have you ever turned your nose up to a simple solution? We have a strange part of our psychology that tells us certain problems require complex solutions. We even subconsciously favor more challenging solutions with an assumption that they certainly must be better because they are often harder. It is not hard to see that same psychology manifest itself in man’s relationship to God.
Consider the story of Naaman from 2 Kings chapter 5. A man was stricken with the worst kind of disease, leprosy. He went in search of healing and was told by God’s prophet to go and wash himself in the muddy Jordan river seven times. Naaman’s response initially was shock and dismissal. He couldn’t comprehend that this action would give him the result he was seeking. Surely there must be more to it than that. He was looking for something that seemed more impressive than simply dipping in a muddy river.
We find ourselves in Naaman’s shoes all too often. We seek remedy from God and we seem unsatisfied by His answer. We find difficulty in the words of the New Testament which repeatedly call us to faith in Jesus as the means of our redemption. Surely it can’t be that simple! There must be more to it! We follow after complexity confusing theology while often forgetting that what Jesus delivered to us on the cross is very simple; He died for us and if we believe in Him, we can live.
What about the “rich young ruler” of Matthew 19:16-30? This gentleman gets only a few verses dedicated to his story in the bible, but the few words he says tell us so much about him....and ourselves. This very motivated and, by all accounts, successful, man approached Jesus and asked for the recipe for salvation. It’s not terribly surprising when you think of it. Here’s a guy who has it all. Anything he doesn’t have, he buys. Now he is standing before Jesus asking for the price of heaven. Jesus tells him to keep the law. Ah but the man was already doing this. He kept it all. The detailed and onerous law of the old covenant. It was complex, it was difficult, it took hard work to keep it and he did! Now he wanted to know the secret. He wanted to know the trick to put him over the top. We know from the text that he was greatly disappointed to find Jesus reply was simply to use his great wealth to care for the poor. There was something in his life that made him treasure his possessions more than pleasing God.
We look down on this man for his foolishness at turning from the simple desire God has for us to show love to this world yet we suffer the same challenges he did. We fall victim to the same desire to find the one big thing that we need to do, the one trick, the one secret to getting into heaven. Whether conscious or not, we place so much emphasis on getting each step right. We argue and debate and reason just as the scholars of Jesus’ day did but, like them, we fail to see that God’s will is far simpler when it comes to what he emphasizes throughout scripture. God asks us to believe Him, love others, and teach them of Jesus. We have gotten very good at doing the hard things or at least thinking about them more. Are we good at the simple things? Would we accept the waters of Jordan to cure us, or the needs of the poor to bring us closer to God? I certainly hope so.
— Reflections appears regularly on the religion page. The column features a variety of local writers, coordinated through the Monroe Area Clergy Group. Derek Glover is pastor at Monroe Church of Christ.
