Jeremy Jernigan [00:00:00]:
Welcome to another episode of Cabernet and Prey. Before we begin today, I want to let you know some exciting things on a bit of a personal note. If you have followed along thus far, you know that Michelle and I own a short term rental in Oregon wine country in a little town called Dundee. And for about the last three years we have operated that and we go to it like whenever we can and have spent a lot of our summers there. And it's just awesome. I mean, you are in the heart of wine country. You can walk to wineries, you can drive to more than 600 that are around you. Just an incredible experience.
Jeremy Jernigan [00:00:38]:
And we're super stoked that we just opened up our second rental literally five minutes down the street. And it's in a little town called Newberg, Oregon. And again, right in the heart, the hub of Oregon wine country, where you can walk to wineries, you can drive to all of these. So many cool things to do. And this second home, this new one that we just opened, was built in 1901, so we're calling it the Vino Victorian. My wife is really good at naming things and it's just got all of this old school charm, but it's obviously been updated and decorated. Awesome. And it is such a cool way to experience wine country, to experience just the beauty of the Willamette Valley in Oregon.
Jeremy Jernigan [00:01:24]:
And so I want to let you know, number one, that we had the original, but now we have a second. The. The first house we have that will fit up to 10 people. This new house can fit up to eight people at a time. So this is great for a family, for a group trip that you want to do, maybe a few couples. And I just want to let you know, if you're interested in experiencing wine country, we'd love to have you stay in one of our homes to do it. If you want to find out more, you can go to jstays J S T A Y S dot com and that's where you can find both of our listings. You can search directly and you can book directly through us there.
Jeremy Jernigan [00:02:02]:
And that way you avoid all of the third party app fees like VRBO or Airbnb. They all take their cut. But if you book directly with us, you skip all of that. So we would love to have you experience wine country, enjoy what we get to enjoy. And if that's interesting to you, JStays.com is the place you can do that. And if you've heard me talk before about the whiskey trip that we're planning in February, we'll actually be staying in both of those homes for that trip. And so it's going to be awesome to take advantage of that. Now, I want to share a story today from the Bible.
Jeremy Jernigan [00:02:37]:
It's a story that Jesus told. And I want to suggest that maybe we've gotten this story completely wrong. I mean, like, totally wrong. And it's one of those stories that if you have grown up in church, if you have read the Bible, you're probably going to be very familiar with this story, or it's quickly going to come back to you and you're going to go, oh, yeah, I know what that means. And I want to offer another explanation of maybe what Jesus is doing that I think is totally fascinating. And it's a completely different way of understanding the story than the way that we normally apply it. And I'm excited to dive into this. And I think it's going to offer some encouragement to you if you are trying to figure out, how do I navigate the world right now? Like, things are nuts.
Jeremy Jernigan [00:03:29]:
I don't understand what's going on. Especially if you're looking at the church, you're looking at Christians around you. You're like, what is going on? How do I navigate this? I think Jesus has got something profound for us in this story if we learn to see it in another way. And so this is episode 35, the Wicked Servant.
Jeremy Jernigan [00:05:26]:
Now, as we begin today, I want to share what I'm drinking. This is going to be very hard to pronounce, so I'm just going to put that out there. This is a 2019 Quinta das Carvalhas from Duro, Portugal. And I love wines from Portugal. I think you get an incredible value for the price. So if you're one that's like, often trying to find a deal, this is incredible. In this particular one, the primary grape is called Torriga Nacional, and that's likely something you're not familiar with.
Jeremy Jernigan [00:06:13]:
For those who are enjoying this on video, you can see just super deep red in my glass. I mean, this is a big boy wine. Now, this grape is traditionally used for port wine, so that's maybe something you're thinking about. It's a sweet wine from Portugal, but they can also make it dry. And I would say if you like Cabernet Sauvignon, that that tends to be your go to give this one a try. You might really like this grape and this region, but it's very similar. This is big fruit, big body, big tannin, big alcohol. I literally have friends who look for the alcohol content in wines.
Jeremy Jernigan [00:06:51]:
This has got all of that and really good. I mean, this is not like one of those that's going to knock you over. I often, you know, say, like, do you need a piece of meat with the wine? I don't think you do. This would go great with that. But I'm just enjoying this, just this glass. And it's been amazing. I'm getting plum, blueberry, vanilla, even some baking chocolate. Just lots of great flavors, very well balanced.
Jeremy Jernigan [00:07:16]:
And it did not break the the bank to get this bottle. So that's what I'm drinking. Something I'd recommend you check out. If you're a Cab fan. And hopefully, if you are enjoying this episode, not behind the wheel of a vehicle or moving somewhere, you're able to enjoy it with a glass of something yourself. So cheers to you on another episode of Cabernet and pray. Okay, today's passage we're going to get into is Luke, chapter 19. We're looking at this story that Jesus tells.
Jeremy Jernigan [00:07:47]:
And again, if you, if you have a church background, you may go, yeah, yeah, yeah, I. I know exactly what this is. I'm familiar with this, but let's go through it together. Hang with me. Let's see what Jesus is doing. Because I think it's actually super cool, but it's a little bit below the surface. Here's what it says. The crowd was listening to everything Jesus said, and because he was nearing Jerusalem, he told them a story to correct the impression that the kingdom of God would begin right away.
Jeremy Jernigan [00:08:22]:
He said, a nobleman was called away to a distant empire to be crowned king and then return. Before he left, he called together 10 of his servants and divided among them 10 pounds of silver, saying, invest this for me while I'm gone. But his people hated him, and they sent a delegation after him to say, we do not want him to be our king. After he was crowned king, he returned and he called in the servants to whom he had given the money. He wanted to find out what their profits were. The first servant reported, master, I invested your money and I made 10 times the original amount. Well done. The king exclaimed, you are a good servant.
Jeremy Jernigan [00:09:12]:
You have been faithful with the little I entrusted to you, so you will be governor of 10 cities as your reward. The next servant reported, master, I invested your money and made five times the original amount. Well done. The king said, you will be governor over five cities. But the third servant brought back only the original amount of money and said, master, I hid your money and I kept it safe. I was afraid because you are a hard man to deal with, taking what isn't yours and harvesting crops you didn't plant. You wicked servant. The king roared, Your own words condemn you if you knew that I'm a hard man who takes what isn't mine and harvests crops I didn't plant.
Jeremy Jernigan [00:10:08]:
Why didn't you deposit my money in the bank? At least I could have gotten some interest on it. Then, turning to the others standing nearby, the king ordered, take the money from this servant and give it to the one who has 10 pounds. But Master, they said, he already has 10 pounds. Yes, the king replied, and to those who use well what they are given even more will be given. But from those who do nothing, even what little they have will be taken away. And as for these enemies of mine who didn't want me to be their king, bring them in and execute them right here in front of me. Now this is an intense story. A lot going on here.
Jeremy Jernigan [00:11:03]:
Let's unpack it. First. Want to point out this is a different parable than the parable of the talents. Now they're very similar. And so you may be thinking of that story that's in Matthew 25, that's a different story with some different details. We tend to think of them as exactly the same. But I want to just suggest that let's let this story stand alone because this story has got some very interesting details to it. Now, in Luke 19, the story we just read, there are 10 servants who are sharing 10 pounds of silver from the the master, okay? Now presumably they each get £1 to work with and they are going to go then do what they do with it.
Jeremy Jernigan [00:11:46]:
Now only three of the ten servants are highlighted, so we don't know the other seven. We don't know what they did with it. In the story Jesus tells, only three of them are mentioned. Now the first one takes that one pound, gets a ten fold response and gets ten pounds back. So he's carrying ten pounds. That's what he brings. The second one gets a five fold response, so he takes that one pound, makes it five pounds. The third servant takes the one pound and returns the one pound.
Jeremy Jernigan [00:12:15]:
It does not multiply, it does not go anywhere, it just stays the way it is. Now in the story, the first two servants get rewarded with money and jobs in the new kingdom, okay? So there's an implication here, if you read the words carefully, that they get to keep the money, which doesn't really make sense. But when they talk about taking the money and giving it to the one who had 10, they say he already has 10, like implying he's already got it, like he gets to keep this or some cut of it, however that works. So the first two, they get money from this. Then they also get jobs in the new kingdom. They have appointments, you know that they're going to be brought in, they're on the good side of this new king. The third servant loses the money, gets nothing to show for it, and gets a reprimand in the process. Now how do we normally hear this story? How do we normally present this story? We normally say God is the nobleman who's going to become king.
Jeremy Jernigan [00:13:14]:
So we, we automatically assume if there's a king in the story, it's got to be God. So that's, that's kind of the role of God. And then we conclude we are to learn from the mistakes of the third servant. Obviously, this is a cautionary tale of what not to do with God's stuff. And that's, that's the way we often preach this. Now, we would say if you do a good job with what you have, God will give you more, right? So if you take it and you get a tenfold abundant, you know, profit, you're going to get to keep that, you're going to have that, God's going to give you even more on top of that. But if you don't, then God's going to take the little you have and give that to someone else. Now, I want to argue that there's a massive problem with the traditional way that we view this story.
Jeremy Jernigan [00:14:05]:
And the problem, if you haven't seen it already, is pretty easy to see once you stare at it. The problem is thinking that God is the main person in this story. Now, the reason that's a problem is because of the details in the story. Okay, so this is not like I'm making this up. Go through a few of the verses that point out what kind of a king we're talking about here. Verse 14 tells us his people hated him and sent a delegation after him to say, we do not want him to be our king. Okay, so now you may go, oh, yeah, but you know, there are people that didn't want Jesus. So, okay, so that could go either way.
Jeremy Jernigan [00:14:44]:
You have a king who's hated by his people, but maybe he's hated, you know, because they were, they were wanting something different. But then notice verse 21, the, the text says, I was afraid because you are a hard man to deal with. This is the third servant talking, taking what isn't yours and harvesting crops you didn't plant. So here we have to ask the question, does that describe God? Does God take what isn't his and, and harvest what God didn't plant? Like, just take from other people? I would suggest, no, that doesn't fit with the, the nature, the character of God made me go, well, yeah, but that's just what the third servant said about the king. But then notice in the next verse, in verse 22, the king replies, saying, yeah, I am that way. He says, you knew that. I'm a hard man who takes what isn't mine and harvest crops I didn't plant. He's like, you're right on.
Jeremy Jernigan [00:15:47]:
I absolutely am. That Guy, and you know, you knew that I'm that guy. You knew that I do these things. And then you get to the very end of the story, verse 27, where it says, and as for these enemies of mine who didn't want me to be their king, bring them in and execute them right here in front of me. Now there are many people, especially if you want to argue the traditional view of hell, what's known as eternal conscious torment, that yes, that's absolutely what God is going to do. God's going to bring people in, have them executed right in front of them, and seems to imply that this king gets some enjoyment in them. There's a sense of revenge or justice in bringing these other enemies in and killing them right in front. Now I would suggest that is not at all a Jesus looking God.
Jeremy Jernigan [00:16:45]:
Now, as a case in point, many years ago when I had very different understandings of some of my theology, I used to believe that, you know, God was not into non violence and that we could kill people and there's no issue with that. And I actually use this story, the ending of this story, to make that argument. In fact, I got invited to be like on a panel one time where there's different views and ironically I argued a view that I would definitely not argue today. But my argument was that, yeah, God is, you know, fine with violence. Look, he brings his enemies in and slaughters them right in front of him. So again, if you have that view of God, it makes sense. But if you're listening or watching this podcast, hopefully you're intrigued by a more beautiful, dare I say, view of God that looks like Jesus. And you might have a hard time reconciling some of these portrayals with a Jesus looking God.
Jeremy Jernigan [00:17:43]:
So the question we got to ask ourselves is, do we think this is how Jesus depicts God in a story? Like, is this how Jesus talks about his dad? Like, hey, let me tell you what my dad is like. Let me reveal what he's really like behind the scenes. I, I would emphatically suggest, no, this is not how Jesus would depict God. Which means we need to reimagine the point of this story. Perhaps we have missed it. Perhaps we have made a few assumptions, thinking, yes, this is obviously what this is referring to, when all along there was a more subversive reading that perhaps eluded us. Now, I interviewed someone named Heather Hamilton back in episode 13, so you can go and listen or watch that episode many episodes ago. And she had a book called Returning to Eden and she made a point in that book That I thought was so insightful.
Jeremy Jernigan [00:18:46]:
And I was reminded of her argument when I read this story recently. She says this. If the God character in a Bible story does not reflect the character of Jesus, then I know that the God character is not God. Sometimes the God character in a Bible story is not Christlike, and the spirit of Christ must be found elsewhere in the story. Now, when she said that and I read that, I was like, oh, that is so good, and really helps us read the Bible. I would say much better. Where all of a sudden you don't have to assume the default king character has to be God. But maybe Jesus is messing with the story a little bit.
Jeremy Jernigan [00:19:34]:
Maybe he's messing with the characters a little bit. So if we go with this, and hopefully you're still with me, where is Jesus in this story? Where is God in this order? What's going on? If, if you're going to say it's not the king, then who is God? Who is Jesus? Now, friend, this is where it gets really good. I'd like you to consider that Jesus actually represents the third servant. Now, at this point you're like, huh, this is probably going to be shocking to you because what does that servant refer to? But as the wicked servant, right? So you're probably going, how on earth are you going to call Jesus wicked? No, I'm not calling Jesus wicked. I'm saying that in this story there's a character portrayed in a certain way, and maybe that that character is actually Jesus. So who calls this character wicked? Well, that would be the king. The king who takes what isn't his and is hated by his people and slaughters his enemies in front of him. He's the king who says that this third servant is wicked.
Jeremy Jernigan [00:20:42]:
It's from his point of view, this servant is wicked. So what if this nobleman who becomes king represents many leaders in our world today? And you can probably think of a few that you would go, yeah, they lead like that. They, they operate like that. What if this is what Jesus talked about? That, hey, you're going to see leaders like this king, you're going to be very familiar with that. They show you the way things are done. This is how the world works. And yet this third servant decides not to play along. This third servant, notice, doesn't steal the money.
Jeremy Jernigan [00:21:27]:
He. He's not, he's not, you know, pocketing it and being selfish with it. He's just returning it without playing along, without playing the game. As I was thinking about this, I was thinking, you know, there's something else that Jesus says, and the way Luke puts it all together, it's in the very next chapter. Okay, so we're in Luke 19. In this story, if you get to Luke 20, you have another famous thing that Jesus said. And it's in a conversation Jesus is having about money. And in that conversation, Luke 20, verses 24 and 25, Jesus says this.
Jeremy Jernigan [00:22:04]:
Show me a Roman coin whose picture and title are stamped on it? Caesar's. They replied, well, then he said, give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar and give to God what belongs to God. Now stare at that sentence and think, is this not what the third servant is doing? He's giving back to Caesar, to the king what belongs to the king and no more. And saying, no, you, you. You don't get more than that. You get this. This is yours. And I'm not going to go out and work for you.
Jeremy Jernigan [00:22:42]:
I'm not going to go commit myself to making more money for you, to perpetuating your kingdom, your empire. Is this not the. The essence of what Jesus is saying? Give to Caesar what is Caesar, and give to God what is God's. And if you notice in the whole process, as this servant says this, there's also a willingness to suffer at his own expense. This will cost me something to do this, to. To make this argument, to say that. Now, what if this example is the point of the story, that you don't have to play along with the ways of the world if you're willing to pay a price for it, if you're willing to embrace a certain type of suffering, you don't have to play along. You don't have to keep going and going, going and get sucked into the things that everyone else is going to do.
Jeremy Jernigan [00:23:42]:
You know, right now I seeing all these ads for the movie Wicked, and perhaps you're seeing them too. I have not seen it yet. My daughter really wants us to go. But if you are familiar with the story, I'm familiar enough with it to know that that story is inviting people to reconsider the Wicked Witch in a new light, that maybe there's more to her than we originally saw in the first story. And maybe we think differently about her. Maybe we would see things differently if we knew that. I want to suggest, I think it's time we reconsidered this third servant, the servant that we've been dunking on for thousands of years as we have told this story of what an idiot who doesn't go and make more money and ends up losing it all. What if this servant is actually choosing something Radical and incredibly profound for us today.
Jeremy Jernigan [00:24:40]:
What if the wicked servant is Jesus? And what a brilliant story that would be if Jesus weaves this in and most people don't even get it, because you have to be willing to entertain a certain level of creativity of maybe Jesus is offering us something else if we're willing to believe that God looks like Jesus. Now, I have talked to a lot of people who do not know how to function in the world right now. Maybe you're one of them who is stressed out, who is watching what's going on and going, I don't know how to make sense of it. In fact, the line I've heard so many times, I don't know how to get through the next four years. I don't know what this is going to look like. And it just doesn't seem to make a whole lot of sense. Well, let's go back to the very beginning of the story because Jesus sets it up. Why he tells this story to begin with Luke 19, the very first verse we read, verse 11 says this.
Jeremy Jernigan [00:25:49]:
The crowd was listening to everything Jesus said. And because he was nearing Jerusalem, he told them a story to correct the impression that the kingdom of God would begin right away. See, they're all getting ready, going, this is it, Jesus taking over. God's gonna be king. It's gonna be awesome. We're ready for it. And Jesus goes, no, it's not gonna be as soon as you think. And so I'm gonna tell you a story to set you up that it's not gonna be as soon as you think.
Jeremy Jernigan [00:26:23]:
And maybe Jesus is teaching them how to live, how to engage the world they live in now before Jesus kingdom is the kingdom that's reigning. What if he's teaching them how to live in the kingdom of this world? When you know that you are waiting for a different kingdom, how to patiently exist in another kingdom. There are many of us watching the world right now. We're very confused at how things are playing out. I confess to you, as I watch the church, as I watch numerous Christians and the arguments that are made and the things that seem to be winning right now, it can be very disheartening, very overwhelming, very discouraging. And in this story, all of the the ways of the world win. That the Jesus character, as I'm arguing, it loses in this story. And that's what it feels like right now, which is why I believe the story in Luke 19 offers us something that even when it seems that everybody who goes with the new king and goes with the ways that a king does things when it seems that they all prosper, it's still not the only choice you have that you can always choose to follow the example of this third servant who says, I'm not playing along.
Jeremy Jernigan [00:27:49]:
I'm not going to engage in this kingdom. I'm going to patiently wait for another kingdom, even if it cost me something. What if we saw this story as a reminder that the kingdom of God does not work the way the world works? And what if Jesus's invitation to you and I is that even though it will likely cost us something, we don't have to play along? What a brilliant example from the wicked servant.
