And Jesus said to him, “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.” Matthew 8:20 (ESV)
One of the things we often overlook about the life of Jesus is that he had NOTHING and NOWHERE. He stayed in the homes of friends, family, and followers. He invited himself for lunch. He and his followers spent three years wandering Israel with nothing more than the clothes on their backs, whatever could be carried in a satchel, and whatever could be begged, borrowed, or stolen.
Okay. Probably not stolen.
But one of the core tenets of the life of Jesus was that of simplicity. The idea that we live with nothing more than what we need. That we never allow possessions to dictate our choices.
As Richard Foster points out:
*"The Christian Discipline of simplicity is an inward reality that results in an outward lifestyle,"
BUT...
**"Because we lack a divine Center our need for security has led us into an insane attachment to things."
See what he's saying there? Because our relationship with our Lord is so superficial and lacking, we can't find true security in Him. So instead, we look to material goods. We try to find security in this world in our paychecks, our bank accounts, our credit scores, and our homes and possessions. At some point all these things take ownership of us, and maintaining them actually REDUCES our peace and security.
But, as Foster points out, this discipline of simplicity must be an inward change producing outward results, and not vice versa.
***"The central point for the Discipline of simplicity is to Spiritual Discipline of Simplicity. and the righteousness of his kingdom first and then everything necessary will come in its proper order...
Nothing else can be central. The desire to get out of the rat race cannot be central, the redistribution of the world's wealth cannot be central, the concern for the ecology cannot be central. Seeking first God's kingdom and the righteousness, both personal and social, of that kingdom is the only thing that can be central in the Spiritual Discipline of Simplicity."
Think about it.
Pastor Jason