Sunday, November 26, 2017

A Donkey Tale



November 26, 2017             NOTES NOT EDITED
A Donkey Tale
Gen. 36:20-24; Jn. 13:1-17

SIS: When we are willing to chase donkeys, in humble service to Christ and others, we discover a bubbling oasis of blessing.

I read this week about a young man who following in his father's footsteps.  His father had been an evangelist.  The boy's family lived very humbly surviving only on  the love offerings from revival meetings. The father died and the son took over the preaching duties of the ministry.  On one particular occasion the young lad found himself before a very "difficult" crowd.   Especially troublesome was a prominent citizen who sat in the very back of the church.  He gave a lot of money to the church, so the church tolerated his sometimes obnoxious behavior.  The man continued to heckle the young preacher.  "Listen to that young man, standing up there like he is somebody.  I knew his father when he used to drive a wagon pulled by a donkey."  The young preacher, having taken all he could from the rich, but obnoxious man, replied, "That's right.  All my dad could afford was an old wagon and a donkey.  Today, my dad and the wagon are gone, but I see we still have the donkey with us.

Donkeys get a bad rap in life, accused of being stupid and stubborn.  In fact, donkeys are quite intelligent.  Equine experts have determined that donkeys are very “independent thinkers,” and no amount of prodding, poking or manipulating can get them to do something when they feel unsafe.  That’s why you don’t see donkeys jumping gates and other obstacles like horses in that fancy English sport of dressage.

In most gatherings one would be more likely to find a person who acts like a donkey, than one to volunteers to care for donkeys.  Today, we meet a very special man who did just that, "care for donkeys.  Anah was a prominent Chieftan of the Tribe of the Horites in the land of Seir.

READ TEXT: GENESIS 36:2-24

There’s a logical reason for this odd list of names here in chapter 36.

The previous chapter records the death of Issac.  Isaac was the "son of promise" given to Abraham in his old age. Issac fathered a special set of twins--Esau and Jacob.
 
After Isaac’s death the Bible says, "Their possessions [ei, Esau and Jacob] were too great for them to remain together . . . so Esau (that is Edom) settled in the hill country of Seir" (Gen 36:8).
           
Seir, was a Horite (cave dweller) whose clan already inhabited the mountain regions north of the Red Sea, to which Esau was moving.  Our list today is a list of Esau's new neighbors.  One such neighbor was a Tribal Chief named Anah.

1.  Great Discoveries begin with Good Decision (24B)

These are Zibeon’s sons: Aiah and Anah. This was the Anah who found the hot springs  in the wilderness while he was pasturing the donkeys of his father Zibeon.

Anah was born into Tribal royalty. He was a Chieftain.  Most chieftans spent their years riding galantly over the countryside in search of fame and fortune, hoping to find an unclaimed oasis.  There they could establish their own kingdoms and fortunes in the desert. These great "Dukes of Seir" followed their desires wherever adventure and wonderlust would lead them.  Such tribal chieftans scorned menial tasks fit for lesser men--like taking care of donkeys.  They were born for glory.

But . . . then there was Anah.  He made a what would turn out to be a great decision.  This long list of names would be a meaningless, monotonous menagerie of men long since forgotten, if it were not for Anah.  Anah's name graces this list like a brilliant diamond graces a backdrop of black velvet in a department store showcase.   Someone has said, "If names were sandhills, [this passage] would be a desert."  How true that be . . . if it were not for Anah.  He was a gem in the sand.
           
Anah labored lovingly and faithfully tending his father's donkeys while his brother and cousins were out staking claims on greatness.  Some must have thought Anah a fool, or perhaps a coward, for staying at home.  Anah was neither.  While other chieften's worshipped fame and fortune, one writer points out that Anah, "bowed at the altar of duty."  His life is a living portait of servanthood.
           
In our day in which people worship the gods of pleasure and self-gratification, those who seek the higher ground of faith and duty might seem foolish.  But, as we shall see, when we are willing to chase donkeys, in humble service to Christ and others, we discover a bubbling oasis of blessing.   Anah made a great decision to follow the path of duty.  In the course of duty, he made a great discovery.
           
One's decisions (choices) make all the difference in eternity.  There are two sides to every issue, and it makes a great difference which side we choose.  Decision-making is like "fly paper."  It also has two sides.  And it makes all the difference in the world which side of the paper, the fly chooses. (Green, 100)
           
You hear me speak often about Jim Elliot.  The story of his life inspires me.  Auca Indians in Ecuador murdered him in 1956 as he and his missionary team tried to share the gospel with them.  He once wrote in his diary, "Father . . . , let me not be a milepost on a single road; make me a fork, that men must turn one way or another on facing Christ in me."  The essence of life is "decisions."  Anah's choice to accept the glamorless duty of chasing donkeys proved to be a great decision.

2.  Great Discoveries involve some UNFLATTERING DUTIES

Chasing and caring for donkeys in the desert certainly does not rank high on the scale of desirable occupations.  I've never seen a best-selling book on "How To Chase Donkeys and Discover Success" on the shelf at the local bookstore.  Especially for a chieftain like Anah.

Donkeys as a lot, are cantankerous, stubborn, and for the most part just plain disagreeable! 

Serving people can be a lot like tending donkeys at times.  Leadership can be a difficult and glamorless  job, in and out of church.  The reason for this is simple-- leadership requires working with people.  People, even the best of people, can be "cantankerous, stubborn, and at times just plain disagreeable."  Leadership requires servanthood, which requires much patience.

[The Only Thing I don't Have To Push] Every day precisely at 12:15 p.m. one Baptist pastor in a small town dropped anything and everything he was doing and ran down to the train station to watch the the Sunset Pacific Limited locomotive pass through town.  Every day at precisely 12:15 p.m. the Baptist pastor followed the same ritual.  He always returned with a big smile on his face stretching from ear to ear!  Some church folk thought this behavior was a bit too eccentric for even a Baptist pastor.  "Pastor, we think you should give up this strange habit of chasing down to see the Sunset Pacific Limited everyday.  People are starting to talk."  The pastor replied, "I preach your sermons, teach your Sunday School, bury your dead, and marry your young.  I run your charities, and chair your committees.  There is no way I am going to give up going down to the train station to see the Sunset Pacific Limited charge by.  I love it!  It gives me great satisfaction. It's the only thing in this town that I don't have to push!"
           
Servanthood can be glamorless duty at times.  To his eternal credit, Anah never shunned his disagreeable duty.  Anah hangs as a pre-Christian portrait of servanthood gracing the gallery of God's priceless treasures. 

We Would Do Well to NOTICE THE PARALLELS BETWEEN  ANAH'S ATTENTION TO DUTY AND CHRIST'S TEACHING ON "SERVANTHOOD."
           
Jesus gave the model for Christian duty.  He said,  "just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many" (Mat 20:28).  Servanthood is God's Model for Christian living. 
           
Not all who follow Christ readily accept this model.  Man has a tendency toward self-centeredness. Man has a natural distaste for self-sacrifice.  Even the Disciples exhibited this particular human frailty.   The Bible says that at one point

A dispute arose among them [ei. the disciples] as to
which of them was considered to be greatest. (Lk. 22:24)

This power struggle greatly troubled the Lord.  Later in his ministry, Jesus would give His most memorable lesson on servanthood.  We find this memorable lesson in the Gospel of John (Jn. 13).   Footwashing, Like Chasing Donkeys Teaches The Value Of Servanthood And Duty.

A.  Jesus Presents The MODEL For Christian Duty (4-11)
           
Jesus often used "object lessons" to train his disciples in the classroom along the way.  Footwashing is one such object lesson on "SERVANTHOOD."

The lowest ranking slave in the household was charged with the duty of washing feet.  In Palestine inches of dust would pile up on the thoroughfares crisscrossing the countryside.  Feet clad only in sandles would become parched, cracked and sore.  Washing a guest's feet brought soothing and comfort.  It was a great service to the guest.  In this case, it also illustrated an important message on SERVANTHOOD.
           
Peter strongly objected.  This was not the model of "Messiahship" Peter had in mind.  He uses the strongest language possible to voice his objection. He declared, "never in a thousand lifetimes will you touch me [ei. wash my feet]."
           
Peter had heard "sermons" on servanthood before. However, it is one thing to discuss servanthood theologically, it is quite another to practice it daily!  MANY PEOPLE ARE CHRISITANS BY DOCTRINE AND ATHEISTS IN PRACTICE!  I can imagine it would be hard to feel "proud" attending to the smelly, dirty feet of your peers!   The whole concept of "sacrificial service" seems an unwelcome topic in the modern church.
           
Anah's dutiful service was not an intellectual matter either, but a practical matter fleshed out in his day to day dealings with the donkeys.  Likewise, when Jesus took the towel of a servant and discharged the glamorless duty of footwashing, Peter saw the awesome mental image of servanthood fleshed-out in a vivid living Model.  The Lord's  model of servanthood calls us to "walk the walk, not just talk the talk!"  Notice the admonition of Jesus in vss 13-15:
  
"You call me 'Teacher' and 'Lord,' and rightly so, for that is what I
am.  Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet,
you also should wash one another's feet. I have set you an
example [blueprint, pattern] that you should do as I have done for you".

B.  Jesus REVEALS the MOTIVATION For Servanthood (13:1)
           
Before the Passover Festival, Jesus knew that His hour had come to depart from this world to the Father.  Having loved His own who were in the world, He loved them to the end.
 
Judas is about to do his dirty deed. In just a very short time Jesus would be dead.  The blackest night in the history of man loomed like a dark cloud on the horizon of time.  Against this black backdrop Jesus delivers this shining lesson on servanthood, "foot washing."  And why?  What was the motivation?  . . . LOVE.

William Barclay, a noted New Testament scholar, wrote: The wonderful thing about Jesus was that in his nearness to God, instead of being separated from men, he was brought nearer to men than ever before.  The closer he got to the cross the more sensitive, the more, loving, the more caring he was with those men. (Future Church, 31). 

Jesus was the "ultimate Servant."  Godliness should drive us closer to others.  The tighter we lash ourselves to the cross, the more we should long to serve others.  The blood of Jesus should wash away any haughtiness or high feeling which restricts our faithful service to others. 

This was the way of Anah.   He chased donkeys in the desert, because he loved his father.  His acts were not rooted in self-interest.  The text clearly points out he was tending "the donkeys of his father"  and not his own.  Nothing of this sort is said about his brother or any of his royal cousins.  Love and duty prompted Anah's service.  This was the kind of dutiful love Jesus declared would brand men, women and children as his true disciples.
   
By this all men shall know that you are My disciples, if you have
love for one another" (Jn 13:34, NASB).
And again, a few chapters later, Jesus pronounced,
Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his
life for his friends (Jn 15:17, NASB).

Christian duty is an "all-or-nothing" proposition--the giving of a life.  Anah realized this.  He decision to chase his father's donkeys all over the desert was two-sided.  His choice to do one thing, excluded him from doing other things.  Time is like money.  You can spend it anyway you want . . . but you can only spend it once.

Was Anah a fool to give up a life of adventure and fortune for the mundane, menial task of a "donkey tender?"  Certainly, it appeared so on the surface.  But  we shall see in just a moment, Anah was far from foolish for his faithful attention to duty motivated by his love for his father.

But first Jesus gives one more lesson on servanthood in Jn. 13

C.  Jesus Taught That the MEASURE of Eternal Judgement
For a Christian Is Servanthood (12-17)

Jesus himself gave a living MODEL of servanthood, showing us "HOW" we are to serve.  The Scripture clearly shows us what MOTIVATED the servanthood of Jesus. It was a "supernatural love."  This is "WHY" we serve.  Further on Jesus explains "WHAT" will result from servanthood.  Notice the words of Jesus in verse 17 as he summarizes this object lesson on servanthood:

"If you know these things, happy are you if you do them".

The word "do" is emphatic.  In the original it is called a Present Subjunctive.  That's a fancy way of saying it emphasizes "duration, that is, you must keep on doing."  Keep on serving, and expect to be happy!  Expect to discover a blessing.

[Lord's Summary on Servanthood and Judgement (Mat. 25:31-40)]
31 “When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the angels  with Him, then He will sit on the throne of His glory.  32 All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate them one from another, just as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.  33 He will put the sheep on His right and the goats on the left. 34 Then the King will say to those on His right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. 35 For I was hungryand you gave Me something to eat; I was thirsty and you gave Me something to drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in;36 I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you took care of Me; I was in prison and you visited Me.’ 37 “Then the righteous will answer Him, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry and feed You, or thirsty and give You something to drink? 38 When did we see You a stranger and take You in, or without clothes and clothe You? 39 When did we see You sick, or in prison, and visit You?’ 40 “And the King will answer them, ‘I assure you: Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of Mine, you did for Me.

As mentioned before, some might consider Anah a fool for giving up a life of notoriety and adventure for the unflattering duty of chasing donkeys in the desert.  Certainly, from a worldly perspective that appears to be the case.  But . . . carefully reread Genesis 36:24

Here we come to the finale of Anah's story . . . Anah made a GOOD DECISION;  Anah accepted an UNFLATTERING DUTY; and now we see that

3.  ANAH MADE A GLORIOUS DISCOVERY

Anah who found the hot springs in the wilderness while he was pasturing the donkeys

God delights in surprising His children with an oasis in the desert of life.  We don’t find God’s blessings by searching for them, but we find God’s blessings . . . get this . . . while in service to Him!  The principle of sacrifice is “gaining by giving.”  Only when we empty ourselves in service can we be filled with God’s blessings.

The words of Jim Elliot, murdered 1952 in the course of his missionary work with Auca Indians in Ecuador,  fit well the experience of Anah: “He is no fool who gives up what he cannot keep to gain what he can never lose.”

Finding an oasis in the desert would be like a miner striking a rich vein in a gold mine.  Anah's discovery meant prosperity, notoriety, influence, and power.  An oasis was the ultimate discovery for a Desert Chieftain -- the pot at the end of the rainbow.

Most people worship science to one degree or other.  If you want your advertisement to stand out over the competition you just add the words, “scientifically proven,” to your products list of benefits.  Many people think science can find any answer to any question—just by doing enough science.  It is true that enough scientific investigation will always lead to some discovery of one kind or another.  It is false that science investigation always leads to the answer scientists are searching for.  Many times, doing science leads to answers to questions not even been asked.

Take the microwave oven.  Most households have at least one.  They are marvelous inventions for the family on the go.  The can almost instantly heat coffee or give you a T.V. dinner in a few minutes.  The guy that set out to invent the microwave was indeed a genius . . . but he didn’t set out to invent the microwave.  Percy Spencer was an ex-Navy veteran that had taken a job with a large defense contractor named, Raytheon.  He was trying to develop better energy systems for radar equipment.  In the course of working on one of his projects, he noticed the chocolate bar in his pants pocket was melting.  Eureka:  the microwave was born . . . in an engineer’s pants!

Or, consider Velcro—the magical hook and loop fastening system finding its first major application in the NASA space program.  Actually, it was discovered with the help of a dog.  In 1941, Swiss engineer, Georges de Mestral was out hunting with his dog.  Returning home he noticed burrs (stickers in W.Va.) clinging to his to his dog's fur. Being a curious man, he inspected the little vagabonds from the woods, and found that the burr's hooks would cling to anything loop-shaped.   With a little effort involving “velvet” and “crochet,” Velcro was born.  In the 1960s was NASA. They used the material in flight suits and to help secure items in zero gravity.

Of course, the serendipitous (a matter of luck and chance) discovery of all time happened when a Scottish biologist, Alexander Fleming, took an August vacation in 1928 from his day-to-day work in the lab investigating bacteria commonly referred to as, “staph.”  Upon returning to his lab he noticed his petri dishes containing bacteria cultures had grown a funky green fungus.  The Fungus had killed the bacteria on the dish.  It was penicillin.  As the saying goes, “the rest is history.”

All of these great discoveries in science happened when the scientists were engaged in looking for something else.  This is so often the case in regard to great and wonderful discoveries—they happen when we are engaged in completely different activities.  A common proverb states, “Good things come to those who wait.”  A better version of that proverb is offered by Thomas Edison.  the precocious inventor, once said, “Everything comes to him who hustles while he waits.”  Doing nothing will never lead to gaining anything.  The Bible puts a high value on being “industrious.”  Proverbs 30 gives several examples of the “blessing of being about business,” such as the industrious little ant.

Today, we are going to see how this principle plays out in the Bible—making a great discovery while engaged in what seems to be a fairly commonplace activity.  Humble service leads to glorious blessings.

And who found the oasis?  Not the mighty valiant Chieftains of Seir who rode off searching for fame and fortune.  NO . . . the great discovery of a life-giving spring in the desert came to the humble servant, "chasing his fathers donkeys."

Medicinal springs such as Anah found still exist in the area near the Dead Sea and throughout the region.  Wherever such springs are found, they are highly prized by Desert People for their life-giving medicinal purposes.  Around such "springs in the desert" sprouted thriving towns full of "pride and pomp". (Speakers Bible, 129)

Anah's life, like that of Jesus, vividly illustrates Christian servanthood.  Anah's experience chasing donkeys parallels the Christian experience of servanthood.  Abundant blessings bubble up from the well-spring of servanthood.
           
Now let us summarize this “Donkey’s Tale.”  This text illustrates in the Old Testament what Jesus modeled in the New Testament :  (1) God’s blessings involve making GOOD DECISIONS.  To do one thing, is to not do others.  Jesus said, “I always do what pleases my Father” (Jn. 8:29)—Anah pleased his father.  (2) Also,  we have seen that great blessings often involve UNFLATTERING DUTIES, not at all what would be expected for a tribal chieftan like Anah, or the Son of God, Jesus.  Blessing requires sacrifice--an unselfish giving of oneself. Pride kills servanthood and squanders blessings.  (3)  Finally we learn, that in the course of faithful service and attention to duty, one can expect to make a GLORIOUS DISCOVERIES.  Such a wonderful discovery would have been missed apart from Anah's faithful attention to service and duty.

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