Hand over the Keys
From some readings this morning:
“Therefore every scribe who has been trained for the kingdom of heaven is like the master of a household who brings out of his treasure what is new and what is old.” Mt.13:52
“Woe to you teachers of the Law! For you have taken away the key of knowledge; you did not enter yourselves, and you hindered those who are entering.” Lk.11:52
Two verses, two different contexts, one person speaking: JESUS. I find myself at the fulcrum of these two statements this morning. Here I am, training myself at an institution that prepares “Christians for service and leadership throughout the world” (thank you, yes, the purpose statement has been ingrained into my skull these last 5 years) and soon I will be sent out from this institution to tell others about the Good News of God.
But look at the teachers of the law - at one point they too were trained (for the kingdom?). At one point in their lives they had a mission of good motive - to see people rediscover who they were as God’s people through Torah. Is that such a bad goal? I can’t condemn the teachers of the Law and the Pharisees for being improperly motivated.
But what does Jesus say about them here? “They have taken away the key of knowledge…” This reminds me of “eduction” and “coaching”, because these teachers, though they had the key of knowledge, have kept it from the people who needed it most - the people who were entering. Where were they entering into? My guess from context is…the Kingdom of Heaven.
So scribes who are trained in the Kingdom do something different with this key. My guess is that in their hopeful aspirations of training for the Kingdom, they actually begin to live as citizens in the Kingdom. That means, they give the key away, they allow others to find what they have been trained to find. Even when they may know the answer to the question, they allow others to “seek” and “knock”, knowing that others are also being trained as scribes.
Why take the key of knowledge away from the people who are most desperate for it? For our own egos? Are we afriad of what people might do with it? Which one am I? A scribe, or a teacher? Which one are you?
My guess is that most peachers, ministers and pastors in our world today are teachers of the law, not scribes of the Kingdom. What’s the difference? One gives it all away, knowing he wasn’t the resevoir of truth to begin with, the other holds back the keys of the Kingdom, the blessings of living a life as a citizen under God’s reign.
Do you want to be a “master of a household” as he refers to the eager, learning, sharing scribes, or an “unmarked grave” as Jesus calls the reluctant, elitist teachers? The difference between the two is - giving it away.
I was convicted.
I am not the storehouse of knowledge - I want to be a spring spelunker. I want to find the springs in the hearts of others, and then simply find a way to bring the inner waters to the surface.
Last 5 posts by Mark
- Chicago Spiritual Map: Rogers Park - August 8th, 2008
- Google is Searching for Jesus - August 7th, 2008