What You'll Find...


An Ongoing Discussion about Christ and Culture in a Post-Postmodern Context.
or
Resurrection-Shaped Stories from the Emmaus Road.

What They're Saying...

(about the book)
"A remarkable book. Raffi's is a dramatic and powerful story and I am privileged to have been part of it."
- N.T. Wright

(about the blog)
"Raffi gets it."
- Michael Spencer, a.k.a. The Internet Monk

The Parable of the College Hopeful

"And he said to them, 'Follow me...' Immediately they left their nets and followed him."

The accounts of Jesus calling his disciples always troubled me. He goes up to these guys and says "Follow Me," and they drop everything, everything, and do it?! It always presented me with this image of a magic, shining Jesus simply overwhelming these poor souls with His radiance; of the disciples as these mindless, mad-scientist-assistant types, stripped of their will, chanting "Yes, master."

The evangelists must've shrunk down the accounts, I figured. No need to write about how Jesus had to haggle and convince these guys that it'd be worth it to take a chance on Him. So they must've chopped down the stories, causing them to sound like Jesus was this eerie hypnotist.

Then one day, someone highlighted to me that Jesus was a rabbi, and explained to me how every good Jewish boy's first dream would have been to study under a rabbi. As only the best of the best students attained that dream, most had their hopes dashed and, instead, lived out their lives toiling in the family business.

Then I started thinking of it like this...

Once upon a time, there was a young man who wanted nothing more than to attain the finest education possible. His father owned a small business manufacturing ping-pong table nets. He was a good man who supported his son's dreams, but also a pragmatist who was preparing his son to take over the family business.

The young man worked incessantly, studied diligently, read all the right SAT-prep books, expended all of his free time in extra-curricular activities. Despite his best efforts, though, he could never achieve any better than average-to-below-average grades.

He nevertheless applied to various universities: a few shoe-ins, a few "maybes," a few long-shots.

He was rejected by all of them.

Heartbroken, he began to work with his father manufacturing nets for ping-pong tables. They labored together for many years.

One day, while he was carrying a stack of nets to the finishers, a stranger walked into the shop and said:

"I am the Dean of Harvard University. I recently ran across your old application, and while your grades and test scores were not up to par, I know in my heart that you are worthy to attend our university. We would love to have you."

And immediately, he left his nets and followed him.

Grace and Peace,
Raffi


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6 Comments:

  1. Shannon said...
     

    Love it! I've been thinking a lot lately about whether I would be able to pick up and leave everything if God called me to go somewhere right now. The verses that usually comet to mind for me, though, are the one who wanted to bury his father before following Jesus. I have two young children, and my parents are aging. I feel responsible for caring for my family -- yet as a Christian, even that "noble" cause is less important than following Christ. That's not an easy thing to consider!

  2. Raffi Shahinian said...
     

    Thanks for your thoughts, Shannon. It's such a scary concept for us that we often miss the point of this thing: if we understood who it was that was calling us, and what he was calling us to, we'd drop everything to follow Him.

    Grace and Peace,
    Raffi

  3. Logan Paschke said...
     

    "Then one day, someone highlighted to me that Jesus was a rabbi, and explained to me how every good Jewish boy's first dream would have been to study under a rabbi. As only the best of the best students attained that dream, most had their hopes dashed and, instead, lived out their lives toiling in the family business."

    source?

    Who told you this, I mean, you have to realize that we don't have specific knowledge on the disciples and their dreams/thoughts towards being students under a great Rabbi.

    Historical context would tell us nothing on the specific disciple's thoughts and feelings on the whole thing.

    Maybe they just loved fishing and didn't want to be a Rabbi. I think you're reading way too much into the text and putting stuff there that is simply not there.

    I have no problem with a supernatural, sovereign Christ who's authority and effectual calling makes men drop their nets and follow Him immediately.

    I do have a problem with this other Jesus who seems to be more interested in fulfilling selfish Jewish's kids desires rather than the glory of God. This makes Jesus look like a means to an end.

    problem: rejected by all rabbis.
    consequence: became a fisherman
    solution: Jesus makes me feel good

    eh, no thanks.

    grace and peace,
    Logan

  4. Raffi Shahinian said...
     

    Appreciate your opinion, Logan. Personally, I think you're reading a later theological formulation into a decidedly first-century, Jewish story...but that's just me.

    Grace and Peace,
    Raffi

  5. Anonymous said...
     

    Raffi:
    I have to agree with you also.
    I would like to comment on Logan's response.

    I think it was stated:

    problem: rejected by all rabbis.
    consequence: became a fisherman
    solution: Jesus makes me feel good


    Why wouldn't Jesus call the rejected, abandoned, nobody's to be his followers? It makes perfect sense.

    Just my take, especially reading Luke.

    Grace and peace brothers.

    philip

  6. Mark said...
     

    Raffi: I was really edified by your post. Thank you.

    Logan: I've come to respect dissenting views but as you've written: "I have no problem with a supernatural, sovereign Christ who's authority and effectual calling makes men drop their nets and follow Him immediately."

    That would at least indicate a sort of subversion of those men's wills; which I don't see much of in the incarnate Lord. Choice is something he doesn't seem very interested in taking from us.

    If he'd resort to that type of authoritative nation-building within those who are called by his name why has not the Kingdom come already? We'd have no choice but to follow and obey. Unless, of course, it's all just a cruel joke.

    I'd expect a loving God to "call" me as a willing participant in his love not a mesmerized slave which is what you're proposing.

    Best Regards,
    Mark

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Parables of a Prodigal World by Raffi Shahinian is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 United States License.