305. What if God Could Retell Your Story?

What if God could retell your story? For today's episode, we are sharing a teaching of Don's from 2011 called The Great Reteller. This recording is from a guest speaking slot at Genesis Church in Toledo. It is a simple yet profound message about how the stories of the Bible demonstrate time and time again that God is interested in helping us reframe our stories.

A few notes: 
--Don mentions Food for Thought - that is a nonprofit in Toledo, Ohio he founded.
--Don calls N.T. Wright the greatest theologian of our time. While Don still thinks Wright is a great theologian, he has been disappointed by some harmful views Wright has expressed in the years since. So we would offer a warning to anyone seeking out Wright's information.

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Transcript

0:02

Hello, this is Tana from Ancient Jesus Future Faith. This week we thought we would share with you one of Don's classic teachings called the Great Reteller. It is one of my personal favorites, and this recording is from 2011 at Genesis Church in Toledo. A few notes about this teaching. In it. Don mentioned Food for Thought. For reference, Food for Thought is a food insecurity nonprofit Don started in Toledo. And it's still going strong to this day. Also Don mentioned N T Wright and calls him the greatest theologian of our time. While Don still thinks Wright is a great theologian, he has been disappointed by some harmful views Wright has expressed in the years since. So we would offer a warning to anyone seeking out Wright's information. So, anyway, we hope you enjoy this simple, but profound message about how God can help us reframe our experiences and recognize our value. Enjoy. actually, I do want to, I want to start out this evening. My name is Don, by the way, in case you don't know. Uh, I'm a pastor at New Harvest across the river. Uh, and I want to start this evening kind of telling you a little bit about me. Um, I know I've spoken here a few times, and so you know a little bit about me. But I want to start out by, by kind of giving you a little bit of my journey. Uh, and believe me, uh, it'll tie into the passage that we're talking about. But I grew up as a pastor's kid, a PK. Um, and I don't know about you guys, but growing up in a community, uh, as a pastor's kid, there was, you know, kind of an assumption about what a pastor's kid would be like. Like, Holy Terror, Spawn of Satan, uh, that type of thing. And it was accurate for me. Uh, and, and so I was this, I was the epitome of the pastor's kid. Uh, getting in trouble, mischievous, uh, what have you. And when I was a teenager, I decided that I wanted to, uh, be a youth, uh, camp counselor. And so I went in, I had to get permission from my pastor to do this. I had to get him to sign off on it, and that was my father. And when I went in to ask him, he told me,"Don, you have too many things wrong in your life. You can't possibly do this." That was a tough, tough thing, you know. Had I, had any other pastor been behind that table, I would have got a thumbs up, but you know, this was my dad and he said no. So then I, I ended up going away from the church for a while. I moved to the beach, uh, did my, did my thing there and then came back, met my wife, uh, and, and started to feel like I wanted to be more involved in the church that I was a part of. And so I kept signing up for things and they didn't call me back. I was like, okay, fair enough. So then, uh, we moved to Toledo, okay, where I'd grown up on the East Coast. We moved to Toledo and I'm, I decided I was going to go back to school, uh, and I was going to, uh, go for coaching volleyball. Uh, Bowling Green has a coaching under, uh, minor and so I was going to go there. So, I go and I find out that I hate school. I think it's more accurate that school hated me, but you know, I didn't care for the college experience that I was experiencing, partially because I had been out of school for eight years, decided to take a full time class load work and play volleyball. Uh, that was not the most wise decision. So I left school and started working, and in the midst of working, I felt God calling me into ministry, to which I said, no way, um, been down that road. Been down, know what that's like, but finally gave in, left my job, and went to work as an intern, uh, in a church, uh, in the Toledo area. And I was there for quite some time, and just didn't fit. And so that ended, roughly. So it worked out okay, because someone else from that church was starting something, and so I went with them to be a part of that. And that ended poorly. Uh, it ended with me being fired, which is like, I think I've been fired twice in my life. And, uh, so I ended with me being fired and that was very difficult. And I sat in my basement and I pouted about this. Uh, but fortunately, there were a lot of young men and women that had been a part of my life that just started showing up at my house. Uh, and so, they said, we'll just keep showing up and you'll eventually teach us something. Uh, and, lo and behold, I never did actually teach them anything. Uh, but, we started a house church accidentally. And now I'm at New Harvest as a pastor. But, in that, in that journey, I thought that God had screwed up. That, that, what was He thinking? Calling me. And then I thought, well maybe I misunderstood the call. Maybe I misunderstood. He was actually talking to the person standing next to me. I was overhearing the conversation. Perceived it was about me, when in reality it was about the person next to me. So, I want you to just kind of have a sense that my journey into ministry has not been tiptoeing through the tulips. It hasn't been this blissful experience that, uh, maybe I had dreamt it would be that someday they would write novels, uh, with, with hair like yours. The guy on the front. Uh, not like yours, Mike. See, Mike made the mistake of coming out here tonight. And the truth is, is every Sunday morning that Mike teaches or I teach, we usually pick on each other. So this was great fodder. Thank you. I appreciate you driving. You can leave now. I've already heard that sermon. So tonight, the passage that I have to share with you guys about is the road to Emmaus. And we're all probably fairly familiar with this. This story, um, and I want to talk to you about it tonight. Now, my typical gear that I get into when, uh, having a text is I love to sit down and I love to play in it. Kind of like a sandbox. I like to see what I can build, what can I create. And I love to play in the text. But this text this week kind of struck me differently than in the past. And so, um, unfortunately for you. Maybe. Uh, I think tonight is going to feel more like preaching than teaching. Um, but I, I, I hope that it's affirming. So, if you will, turn with me in the text to Luke. Be looking at the road to Emmaus. And it's in Luke 24, beginning with verse 13. Do you guys sit, stand, squat, calisthenics when we read during the passage? It's up to you. It's up to me. Would you guys mind standing with me with this? Thanks. Luke 24, beginning with verse 13, That very day two of them were going to a village named Emmaus about seven miles from Jerusalem. And they were talking with each other about all these things that had happened. While they were talking and discussing together, Jesus himself drew near and went with them, but their eyes were kept from recognizing Him. And he said to them, What is this conversation that you are holding with each other as you walk? And they stood still, looking sad. Then one of them named Cleopas answered him, Are you the only visitor to Jerusalem who does not know the things that have happened there in these days? And he said to them, What things? And they said to him concerning Jesus of Nazareth, the man who was a prophet, mighty in deed and word before God and all the people, and how our chief priests and rulers delivered him up to be condemned to death and crucified him. But we had hoped that he was the one to redeem Israel. Yes, and besides all this, it is now the third day since these things happened. Moreover, some women of our company amazed us. They were at the tomb early in the morning, and when they did not find his body, they came back, saying that they had even seen a vision of angels who said that he was alive. Some of those who were with us went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said, but him they did not see. And he said to them, O foolish ones, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken, was it not necessary that the Christ should suffer these things and enter into his glory? And beginning with Moses and all the prophets, he interpreted to them in all the scriptures the things concerning himself. So they drew near to the village to which they were going. He acted as if he were going farther, but they urged him strongly, saying, Stay with us, for it is toward evening, and the day is now far spent. So he went in to stay with them. When he was at table with them, he took the bread and blessed, and broke it, and gave it to them. And their eyes were opened, and they recognized him, and he vanished from their sight. They said to each other, Did not our hearts burn within us while he talked to us on the road, while he opened to us the scriptures? And they rose that same hour and returned to Jerusalem. And they found the eleven and those who were with them gathered together, saying, The Lord has risen indeed, and has appeared to Simon. Then they told what had happened on the road, and how he was known to them in the breaking of the bread. You may be seated. Two springs ago, uh, myself and a couple buddies, we got to go out to Wheaton College. Uh, and they have a conference every year, and we got to hear N. T. Wright. Uh, it was all about N. T. Wright, so if you're familiar with him, that's very exciting. If you're not, you don't, it doesn't matter. But N. T. Wright is, like, someone I hold in really high regard. He's probably... Our greatest theologian and biblical scholar today. Okay, um, and that's not just my opinion. That's, that's a fairly largely held view. And N. T. Wright, uh, I mean we have a conference that's dedicated to people critiquing your work while you sit there and listen to them. That's, that's a pretty big deal. So N. T. Wright is there and he read from this passage and he says, uh, it was great. He, he looked at verse 31 and he says, and their eyes were open and he's like, obviously this is referring to the garden. And me and my buddies all looked at each other and we're like, yeah, obviously. I mean that's what we got right away from that passage. But the phrase there, and their eyes were open, is the identical phrase used in the Septuagint. The Septuagint being the Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible. Uh, it's the exact same phrase that's used in the garden scene when they eat from the tree. And it says, and their eyes were open. And it's this moment of God's creation kind of being recreated, right? I mean, if you can imagine, like, when we eat from the tree. What God had had in mind for his creation changed in that moment. Wouldn't you agree? I mean, we're not still living life as though we're in the garden. Things changed. And so, in this passage, we have this reminder. Now, the beauty of this is that Jesus often referred to, is often referred to, as the second Adam. And so, I think that in this moment, when we hear the language and their eyes were open, it's kind of this good thing, unlike the first time we read it. There's this moment of hope that we're getting to see, that maybe there's a new lens to kind of view things through. I want to say that Jesus, maybe, is going to bring a new interpretation to creation. I want to talk to you about you. I want to talk to you about your life in that, if indeed, Jesus is the Messiah. If indeed He is being a part of this new creation, this recreation, does your life still reflect the first garden, the first time the eyes were open, or does your life reflect this moment when their eyes were opened because Messiah was there before them? You see, that's a really important question because I think too often in our journey We still live life as though it's the first garden has power. Right? We believe that Jesus died, was resurrected, and he brought about change. He brought about redemption. He brought about reconciliation. Yet, we still live as though it's the first garden. That's a problem. That's a problem for us. See, I think part of it is, there's a new book out. By Scott McKnight. Uh, that is very good. I'm about, uh, three quarters of the way through it, so it might end poorly, but so far so good. But in this book, he talks about how the church, over time, has changed its focus. Instead of a church being about disciples, the church has been, become about decisions. And so, we'll make a decision for Christ. But then we never become disciples of Christ. Do you see the difference? Do you feel the difference? Do you understand the difference? That we might say, yes, indeed, Jesus is Lord, and make that decision, but then we still live as though we're in that first eyes open moment. We're living eyes wide shut, right? Whereas, if we become disciples, We're able to start seeing the world differently. And we're able to start functioning differently. I want to, I want to say that this passage is kind of about something that God seems to do constantly throughout the Hebrew text. Let's begin with, uh, there's, there's tons of examples, but let's begin with Abram and Sarai. Okay, Abraham and Sarah. What do we know about them before their encounter with God? Like their, their major encounter with God. What do we know about them? Anything? They're old. And what else? There's another very prominent thing. What's that? Barren. So they're old and barren. So what is their hope for descendants? What is their hope for their name being carried on? Zero. Right? But God decides instead to retell their story. And not just in a small way, but in a big way. He decides to say, not only are you old and barren, but you will have more descendants than the stars in the sky. What an absurd statement. It is no wonder that Sarah laughs, right? I mean, what an absurd idea that God meets this old couple, we'll say hobbling along the way, and, uh, moving slowly. Maybe they're at the mall walking. And, uh, that was funny. Man, I gotta work on my jokes. Okay, thank you for that, that was nice. But, so here they are, this old couple, they're barren. They have no hope for their name being carried on. And God says, you know what, I'm gonna retell your story. What about Joseph? What do we know about Joseph? Not Jesus father, Joseph prior. What do we know of Jacob's son, Joseph? What's that? Favorite son. What else? Favorite son, least like brother. We'll go with that, all right? What else? Okay. Chose God's ways over temptation. Sold into slavery. So let's combine that. So here is his story, which is he is the favorite son. He's the son that, uh, had been being waited for. But he becomes hated. He is sold into slavery. And what does he say when he finally encounters his brothers? What does he say to them? Does he say, I can't stand you, don't like you? What does he say? What's that? Absolutely, what you intended for evil, God made good. God retold Joseph's story. See what I'm saying? Here is Joseph thrown, potentially put to death. Carried off into slavery, but God retells his story. You think of any other passages in the scriptures like that? Where God retells somebody's story? David. How would you say he retold David's story? I think there's multiple places within David's story. I mean, even at the beginning of his story where, you know, he's not even thought of. His brothers are fighting. You know, and he ends up being the one to fight Goliath. I mean, you know, there's this retelling He's not even brought to be potential for to be anointed and there's just always these any other stories that you can think of? I mean, isn't this spectacular? Can't you see the scriptures are littered with a God that loves to retell stories? Think about the prodigal son, right? One of my favorite retelling stories. The prodigal son, the son basically says to the dad, let me have my inheritance early. I mean, that's kind of offensive, isn't it? Imagine saying that to a parent. Hey, so, you're hanging on a little longer than I'd like. Can I get my cut now? Right? And he goes out and he lives counter, it seems, we would presume, to the way that his household would have him live. But the father waits. And the son finally comes to this place of destitution, of being distraught, of being broken. And remember what he says? He's like, he's practicing. Have you ever done this? Like practice what you're going to say to someone? That's what he's doing. I can just picture him in front of the... The pig trough mirror. And he's like, Okay, I've sinned against you and God. I was dead. I could just be a slave in your household. I could be a servant. Right? But what happens when he gets there and he tells his dad what he had recited? What does his father say? Anybody remember? He says, No. The story is that you were dead and now you are alive. What an amazing retelling, right? The son is like, I've sinned against you and against God. And the father is like, no, you were dead, but now you are alive. And so there's this beautiful retelling of the story. So what does this have to do with the road to Emmaus? On the road to Emmaus, we have two disciples. Now, one of the things that we need to kind of get through our head, because we don't typically think in disciple mindset, these two people walking. would have been deeply, deeply, deeply intimate with Jesus. They would have probably walked away from everything that they had in order to follow Him. Think about that, right? I used to read this when I'd read two of them. It says, and two of them were walking. And I, I would kind of like picture them as like, because I don't recognize their names. Doesn't really go into any detail about them. So I'm thinking that these are like peripheral characters. But if they were disciples of Jesus, there was a deep connection between them and Him. I love the, I love the verse where it says, and he says, What, what is going on? What are you talking about? And it says, And they stood still and were sad. Think about this. These two people who had given up everything, who'd bought in completely that Jesus was indeed the one to come. They believed it, they gave up everything to follow him, and he's dead. You can even hear it almost in their voice when they're like, and it's even three days later. You know, the way that we read that is, is that in, uh, in ancient Judaism, in ancient times, uh, it believed that the spirit could dwell above the body for up to three days, and after three days the spirit would no longer. So, that's how you knew someone was, was dead, was that if they had remained, uh, dead for three days, uh, instead of, you know, putting a bell from the grave. People can reign. You guys all remember that? That's weird stuff. But so they were like, it's even been three days. He is dead. Don't you know? Are you the only person that has come to Jerusalem that doesn't know? And so they tell him the story. And what does Jesus do? He retells it, doesn't he? See, it's not that Jesus... See, when I first read this, I'm like, why is Jesus being so coy here? Like, he's like, so what's going on? What you guys talking about, you know? But I think it was because the story that he was hearing was not the right story. I don't think that he was, he was pretending to be oblivious as much as he needed to retell the story. See, they were able to cite everything that had gone wrong. They were able to tell him the historical events that took place, leading to this death of this would be Messiah, a prophet, great and mighty in deeds before God. And Jesus is like, wait a second. Let me retell the story. It says he began with Moses and then the prophets. Now, I love that part of the passage. I love that Jesus retells their story for them. I love that He then goes in and breaks bread with them and that their eyes are open. It reminds me of, uh, you know, I was trying to think about some examples of this. And the one example that wouldn't let me go was Karate Kid, right? Whether you saw the old one or the new one, it doesn't really matter, it's... But, Karate Kid, the young boy, uh, he goes to learn martial arts, whether from Jackie Chan or Mr. Miyagi. Uh, and uh, when he goes, he becomes very frustrated, right? Because what does he end up doing? Waxing the car, painting a fence, uh, and the new one I think he hangs up a coat or something. Takes off a coat, hangs it up. Uh, and he's frustrated because he's like, I thought I was coming to learn martial arts. And it wasn't until the story got reframed that he understood what was going on. There's lots of movies that do that. It's, it's that fun twist in the plot where you're like, Aha! I think that we, we like those stories because those stories ring true for us. You know, for me, I, I shared my story. Um, and if I just told you the facts like I did, you would say, well, that's kind of a rough go. And that's what I used to say. But when I allow God to retell my story, I can see the beauty of every step. You know, I think that there's something to it. Think about this, Paul, right, shipwrecked, in prison, beaten. What's he always say? And I couldn't be any happier, right? I mean, either he is loco, or he is deeply, deeply embedded in this retelling of a story. You know, I look around the world and there's people that are in situations and in life... Places that I couldn't comprehend, and yet they live with great joy. Sam has recently just taken over as Executive Director of Food for Thought. That might be one of the most significant things in my life, was Food for Thought and knowing and coming to meet all of these people who are homeless, who are destitute, who are broken. But understand a deep and penetrating retelling of their story in God. It's unbelievable. I was just, I just saw, uh, in the Toledo Streets newspaper, uh, one of the, uh, unhoused men of Toledo, uh, just got a book published. Um, he has a PhD in theology. And he just had a book published. It's unbelievable. You know why I think people are able to be in those circumstances? It's because they allow God, they allow their relationship with Christ to retell their story. So, I wonder how many of you guys need your story retold. I mean, life deals us some bad hands. Uh, things are frustrating. Things don't go the way we planned. Maybe, uh, there's issues that were unexpected, jobs lost, jobs changed. There are things that, that begin to weigh us down, that feel like imprisonment, that feel like the beating, feel like being shipwrecked on an island by yourself. I can tell you that's what my experience was going through that process that I shared with you. And I gave you a quick version of my journey. And it's not until we allow Christ to penetrate us in a way that begins to retell our story that we can have healing. That our eyes can be opened again. So earlier when I asked you, are you living in the first garden or are you living in the second garden, it's an important question because too many of us don't even realize that God is just waiting to retell the story. We have, we have no idea. How much he's just waiting to see us come walking up that road like the prodigal son. He's just waiting for your first movement so he can run out to you and retell your story. You may be sitting here and life is going good or it's going okay. And there's still something that needs to be retold. To move you from a place of complacency. To a place where, think about these two disciples walking. They're leaving Jerusalem. They're going home. And the moment that the story gets retold and their eyes are open, what do they do? Rise and go back. I don't know about you guys, but I get the impression they went back a lot faster than they were leaving. Uh, Sam's, the one song that Sam did, uh, This is the one we have waited for. Like, that's spot on. It talks about years wasted. I think that's one of the lines. Like, God can't wait to retell that for you. I truly, truly, deeply believe that there is no such thing as years wasted when the story is retold by God. I could look at many parts of my life and go, I wasted so much time. But if I just let the Creator, the reteller of stories, whisper in my ear, I'll know it to be something better than I ever imagined.