Give A Man A Fish, Teach A Man To Fish

This entry will be something of a follow-up to my last post.

I have not been able to shake the last chapter of Amos from my mind lately. The end of Amos chapter 9 speaks of Israel's restoration. But it's final words seem obviously related to words spoken by God in Deuteronomy... except almost opposite.

God is no longer doing and giving to man in such a direct way, as he did in the times of Exodus. You see in Deuteronomy he gives them all these lands, cities, houses, vineyards, etc. that the Israelites did not create. They were just a straight up gift.

In Amos that is not the case. In essence, the cities and things given to the Israelites are now in ruin (both in what they symbolize and their physical status). It is now their duty to rebuild and recreate the things God desires for them. God is involved because he is the one that encourages the creation and good, as well as showing us what that good is, but he is not necessarily providing directly the final products (in the traditional way of thinking of this). Are we not called to go out into all the world and are we not called to do greater things than Jesus?

The response may be that we are able to do all of those things through Jesus. True. I do think there are two important sides to Jesus.

1. Jesus's humanity - The relatability of Jesus to the everyday man. It allows us to see potential of man when we are one with God. It is not foreign or impossible, but it is possible for man to be righteous through God, as Jesus was.

2. Jesus's devinity - Jesus speaks the truth of God. This divinity of words brings grace, hope, peace, knowledge, and love. These words instruct man on the way life truly works. It instructs man on the way to live that will make things better, even though it may seem foolish.

To do something in the name of or in or through Jesus is not just to "name it and claim it" because he's "the right God." To do something through Jesus is to take on the personality and teachings of Christ in what you do. When Jesus says our Heavenly Father will give good gifts or whatever you ask for in his name, it's the same thing. Those who love Jesus will obey his commands; those who obey his commands will produce fruit. False prophets are shown as those who seem to be saying good stuff that is pleasing to men, but is not convicting of God's will. This could be like giving a man a fish.

Jesus didn't come to bring enlightenment directly to all men, while he was on earth. He came to bring it to men and have it carried out by them. He appointed apostles. Much like a candle lighting another candle, Jesus was the initial flame. I realize that this seems, to many, to under-merit who Jesus was, but I don't think this statement can be denied. Jesus came to teach man how to fish... he came to teach man how to live and to spread such life.

What Jesus gave us was a way to reconstruct our faith and our world. We are going to rebuild. This doesn't mean that we gained nothing from the past. There is much truth in the old testament, just not the fullest fulfillment of truth. I would argue that the truth Jesus gave was not complete either. Everything he said has laid the foundation of on which to build, and is all the deepest ultimate truth. However, we must build off of his words, just as the authors of the New Testament did. We must destroy the places of society (of our cities) that are not portraying the life Jesus calls us individually and as God's people to. We must rebuild these and reinforce them with the foundation of truth, while exposes any weaknesses in structure. This is where faith and deed meet. At their intersection a daring new way beings.

Jesus started something wonderful. He built the foundation. It is our job to carry out the construction that Jesus started. Jesus could have given us all a fish (simple salvation), but instead God chose to make us his people again, he chose to entrust us with a great honor. We are now his workmanship, called to create in his image, just as he created us in that image. Since we have been taught to fish, let's fish.