Name Dropping

What if I told you that I was in a meeting with Billy Graham years ago. Right there with this giant of a Christian man. Billy and me. And 75,000 other people. Or, that when I was in London a few decades ago, I walked along the boulevard with the famous actor, Peter O’Toole. A memorable moment, as he passed me walking in the opposite direction, never saw me, never said “Hello.” Proximity doesn’t qualify as knowing.

In Luke’s chapter 13 we get a glimpse of what Jesus thinks about name dropping. In that feisty translation by Eugene Peterson, The Message, we hear Jesus making the point. A bystander has just asked him about who or how many will “be saved.” His reply: “Whether few or many is none of your business. Put your mind on your life with God. The way to life–to God–is vigorous and requires your total attention. A lot of you are going to assume that you’ll sit down to God’s salvation banquet just because you’ve been hanging around the neighborhood all your lives. Well, one day you’re going to be banging on the door, wanting to get in, but you’ll find the door locked and the Master saying: ‘Sorry, you’re not on my guest list.’ You’ll protest, ‘But we’ve known you all our lives!’ only to be interrupted with his abrupt, ‘Your kind of knowing can hardly be called knowing.”

At the risk of being redundantly redundant, knowing about Jesus is not the same as knowing Jesus. Does hanging around the neighborhood make me a good neighbor? Does knowing all about the child of Bethlehem qualify as knowing him. I may know the chapters and the verses, the stanzas to lots of hymns; I may even be able to tell you the names of half a dozen saints, but hear it one more time: “just because you’ve been hanging around the neighborhood all your lives…” isn’t enough. Take him at his word: “the way to life, to God, is vigorous and requires your total attention.”

So, why not resolve on this wonderful Wednesday to be present to, not in proximity to, the One who offers us bread for the day and strength for the journey? Intentional. Vigorous. Total attention. Name dropping won’t get anybody a seat at the table.

Did I mention that I had breakfast with….never mind.