Last year was the year of house projects for my husband, me, and, according to the endless lines at The Home Depot, most of our community. I’ve always enjoyed furniture renovation and the idea of giving a neglected piece new life with a little TLC, but 2020 was ripe for challenge. So, I decided to tackle a different angle on this hobby which required learning new skills — sanding and staining.

I did some preliminary research, purchased tools, and got to work. But at a late stage of the process, I realized tiny marks were being left behind as I sanded the wood. Puzzled, I conducted more research and realized I had been sanding the piece incorrectly.

When I learned all the new steps I would have to take, and the fact that I would have to basically start over, I felt like a failure. I had made two critical mistakes. First, I had rushed the process. I didn’t understand how important slow progression was toward getting a polished final product. Second, I had overlooked minor mistakes thinking they would come out alright in the end, underestimating the need to address the problems in real time.

Isn’t that a great picture of the maturation of a Christian?

For the entirety of my life as a Christ-follower, I have felt the constant one-step-forward-two-steps-back frustration of my spiritual growth. Scripture calls this process sanctification, and it’s not exactly a fun process. It’s necessary and good, but it’s difficult, tiresome, and sometimes painful work.

I tend toward perfectionism, so it has never set well with me to struggle with the same problems over and over again. Yet, one struggle in particular that had consistently reared its ugly head for two decades had just made a re-emergence. The long-strained relationship with my dad was on the rocks again, and I felt myself closing off and stewing over past hurts.

When would it ever just be over?

Why was I not done with this yet? Why had I not thrown off this weight that had so consistently dragged me down over the years? I was tired of revisiting, refining, and scuffing out the old marks. I wanted to put my check mark in the box and move on.

But we who are in Christ — we who have been saved into a relationship with Jesus Christ — have to remember that through the Holy Spirit, Christ is constantly working to conform us into his image. He doesn’t leave us to our own instincts, nor does he have us blow through the hard parts to give us all gold stars. When we are faced again with a familiar sin or struggle, he means us to learn something new and deeper.

The Apostle Paul tells his readers in 2 Corinthians 3:18 that those with an “unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another.” He did not write that we were transformed in an instant into the image of Christ. Rather, we undergo transformation gradually as we become more and more like him.

There is a refining that takes place in our inner beings when we submit that one nagging struggle (or struggles) to Christ over and over again.

Just as a woodworker goes back to a piece of furniture, gradually moving up in degrees of sanding and taking care to polish out scuffs, the Holy Spirit continually brings me back to the same struggle to refine my thinking, my attitude, my heart, and my personal holiness. I could groan over the struggle and agonize over my wretched state (which I did), but I couldn’t ignore the fact that I was not back at square one because God had been working on me the whole time.

The process of sanctification is working. While I haven’t gotten to the place of wholeness I so desire, I’ve undergone some major heart transformation and growth. I’m not starting over anymore. I’m returning to the problem with new skills and tools acquired over years, through the work of the Holy Spirit.

The dresser now stands in my room as an unexpected reminder of two things.

The beauty of the dark, stained wood reminds me of the work that the Spirit has already done in my heart to transform me. And those blemishes that I couldn’t quite erase will always tell the story of the here-but-not-yet reality that I, too, am imperfect and will not be whole until I meet Christ face-to-face.

In the meantime, the Holy Spirit has more transforming work to complete in me, and I can joyfully join him in the process.

“Did you know Jesus preached about money more than anything else? That’s right! He taught about money in 11 of his 39 parables. Finances are Jesus’ most talked about topic.”

Ever heard something like this before?

Did it surprise you?

It did me.

But as I kept hearing it over the years, I finally thought to myself, “Man, I’ve read the gospel accounts many times over, and I’ve never come away saying, ‘Wow, Jesus spoke on finances more than any other topic!’” In fact, I’d argue that the vast majority of Christians who have read Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John would say the same thing.

Unfortunately, many likely think the claim is true because they hear pastors and financial ministries cite it when teaching on money and just assume they are correct.

But don’t despair, if you were as surprised by this claim as I was, know your alarm is warranted because the Jesus-taught-more-about-finances-than-anything-else angle is an urban legend. Christ didn’t teach on finances more than any other topic. Once you actually look at his teachings, frankly, it’s not even close.

It’s an urban legend because it mishandles the data by only seeking to discover where Jesus talks about money but not, and this is critical, how money is talked about. There is a big difference between teaching on the topic of finances and using financial terms to illustrate a completely different topic. A cursory reading of Jesus’ teachings will confirm he did the latter much more than the former.¹ And that oft-quoted stat that 11 of Jesus’ 39 parables were about finances? It doesn’t hold water because in many of those parables Jesus used money to illustrate a different topic than money.

For example, in Matthew 20:1-16 Jesus tells a story about the payment of vineyard workers. But, Christ isn’t teaching about good business practices. Instead, he’s illustrating how those who enter into God’s kingdom do so by sheer grace. That’s the point.² No one finishes that parable and concludes that Jesus is teaching on the topic of horticulture simply because he referred to a vineyard or that he’s addressing how Christian business owners do payroll simply because he talked about wages. Those details and references serve the main point of the parable: the grace of the kingdom of God. Jesus even tells us the point at the end: “So the last will be first, and the first last.” Yup, it’s clearly not about finances. Jesus merely uses money (and a vineyard, workers, etc.) to teach a different topic than money.

Here’s a challenge: take the other ten parables which reference money (e.g., Two Debtors of Luke 7, Hidden Treasure of Matthew 13, Lost Coin of Luke 15)³ and see how many of them have Jesus using money in a similar way to the parable of the vineyard workers. Don’t be surprised if you find that the number of teachings where Jesus uses finances to actually teach about finances begins to shrink.

However, don’t think this gets us off the hook from having our financial life submitted to the lordship of Christ.

On the contrary, how we handle money is important for people of faith, especially so for North American Christians who struggle with cultural idols like materialism and individualism. Simply put, money is a gospel issue! Jesus definitely taught on money as well as the rest of the New Testament. Yet, it’s simply inaccurate (and inappropriate) to say Jesus spoke more about finances than anything else. It’s just not true. If anything, he spoke more about the kingdom of God than other topics. It’s pretty clear. Just read the gospel accounts. You can’t miss it.

A good practice for Christians would be to stop spreading this urban legend. We don’t need it in order to teach about how followers of Jesus should handle their finances. We have more than enough pertinent passages in the Scripture to appropriately and accurately teach us about honoring Christ with our money.

¹ In a Relevant magazine article, Jeffery Poor (ironic last name) writes, “Eleven of Jesus’ parables do mention money. Eighteen of Jesus’ parables also mention food, but that doesn’t make it the point of the stories.”

² Generally speaking, parables only have one idea behind them. Find that one idea and you’ve gotten the point of the parable.

³ Unfortunately, whoever first gave this statistic didn’t tell us exactly which of those parables made up the eleven.

“If you read the Bible, it will change your life.”

For years, I’ve been saying that to anyone who will listen for two reasons.

First, most Christians don’t read their Bibles often, or at all.

Second, the Bible is the living, breathing, active word of God, and you’ve probably got one sitting on a shelf. God will speak into your very life, at any moment of any day, and all it takes is reading your Bible with an open heart.

Unfortunately, it is possible to approach the Bible with hopeful anticipation, yet set it down in disappointment, wondering if you have to pursue a seminary degree to hear God’s voice.

But there is good news! If you will commit to being persistent and patient, you can know the Bible intimately, and hear God’s voice regularly. Here is a list of resources that will help you become a student of Scripture.

The Bible Project

Tim Mackie and Jon Collins created this non-profit with excellent study, podcast, and classroom resources. But it’s their videos that are most accessible. Start with the video called “What is the Bible?” and explore the How to Read the Bible series. Also, they made videos for every book of the Bible that are one of the easiest Bible study tools to start with.

ESV Study Bible

I’m convinced that the ESV Study Bible is the single greatest resource a Christian can own. With more than 20,000 study notes, 50 articles, and a thorough introduction for each book, this study Bible makes depth and scholarship accessible to everyone. They also have a student version for teens.

Classes at Clear Creek

Clear Creek Community Church offers classes like Women of the Word, Big Picture of the Bible, and How to Study the Bible. These classes (and others) are offered multiple times per year. You can find descriptions and registration information at www.clearcreek.org/classes.

readthroughthebible.org

Looking for a reading plan to take you all the way through the Bible and send daily reminders? We’ve got you covered at www.readthroughthebible.org.

Who’s in the Bible: A Podcast for Kids

Aric Harding and I created a podcast for adults disguised as a podcast for kids. Our goal with each episode is to explore how the stories in the Bible work together to tell the bigger story of Jesus. You can find it on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google, Clear Creek Resources, or you can say, “Alexa, play the podcast Who’s in the Bible?”

God’s Big Picture

Vaughan Roberts’ book, God’s Big Picture, will help you see how all of the Bible fits together to tell the story of Jesus. A helpful illustration about how special forces soldiers are trained has stuck with me for years. This book is great for individuals and as a small group resource.

Small Group at Clear Creek

Speaking of small group, nothing compares to reading and discussing the Bible with other people. I’ve been leading small groups through the Bible for years and I can’t tell you how many times someone new to the Bible has insight that shapes me. Read the Bible with other people; you will thank God for the experience.

Clear Creek Resources

You’re already here! Check out other resources about the Bible – like the article I wrote called 4 Questions I Ask Myself When I Read the Bible. There are other articles, podcasts, and videos that we hope inspire you to spend time reading your Bible and help you to hear God’s voice.

If you read the Bible, it will change your life!