A man had two sons. So begins Jesus’ story. Of course, you know how the story goes. Because you know how it is when a man has two sons. One is more like his daddy and loves wild game and conquering the great outdoors, and the other is more like his momma, and understands relationships and how to get what you want. You also know how those boys got along with each other. Because you know what happens when a man has exactly two sons. When a man has two sons, he says to the one, go do this and the boy says sure dad and then he doesn’t go, and the man says to the other one go do that and the boy says no and then he changes his mind and does it. And the man doesn’t know who to thank and who to spank. So he thanks them both and them spanks them both, just to be sure.
The man’s name could have been Adam, and his boys Cain and Abel. Or he could have been Abraham, with Ishmael and Isaac. Or it could have been Zebedee, with his two sons of thunder, James and John. But in this case, the man happened to be Isaac. And his two sons happened to be Jacob and Esau. Their story is the story of two boys close in age. Really, really close. For most of their lives they were brutally competitive, one relying on his strength and the other using his wit to gain the advantage over his brother.
Jacob and Esau were close in age, all right. In fact, they were twins. But they were not identical. Not even close. Most days, they weren’t even fraternal. The story is really about a boy named Jacob, who was ambitious from before birth all the way until he died. His older brother is more easy-going and friendly. Yet for some reason that we might never fully grasp, Jacob is loved by God and Esau isn’t.
Jacob. What a rascal. Of all the so-called saints in the Bible, I probably struggle with him more than any other. So little of what he does seems, I don’t know, ethical. Kind. Like Jesus. Gentle Jesus, meek and mild. But not Jacob. That rascal.
But the writer of Hebrews sees Jacob in a better light than I tend to see him. So I should think this through and give the man a spiritual chance here.
Maybe I have wrestled with Jacob because I see his ambition from an earthly perspective. Maybe Jacob was more zealous than ambitious. I don’t know. But everything he did is right there in the Bible, so it must not be a sin. Why, he’s even found in the list of Hebrews 11 as an example of faith.
But as it is, they desire a better country, that is, a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared for them a city. Hebrews 11:16
Maybe, just maybe, Jacob is included in the roll call of the faithful because his ambition on some level was rooted in wanting to take hold of God’s own promises to him and his seed. This gets awkward, but bear with me. I think it pays off in the end.
Selfish ambition is a mark of worldly wisdom. James tells us that it is unspiritual and of the devil.
But if you have bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast and be false to the truth. This is not the wisdom that comes down from above, but is earthly, unspiritual, demonic. For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there will be disorder and every vile practice. James 3:14-16
Trust me, I know about what selfish ambition can do in the heart of a man. I have had to fight against it my whole life, to die to my pride, to learn to fight for love, and to champion the cause of a kingdom that is not of this world.
You see, ambition is not the problem. Not if you are ambitious for God’s kingdom. Not the kingdom in which Jesus said that forceful men take it by force. Not the kingdom in which a son of thunder becomes known as The Disciple Whom Jesus Loved. Not the kingdom in which a blazing prophet like John the Immerser is honored as the greatest man who was ever born of a woman—which is pretty much everyone, if you stop to think about it. In this forceful kingdom we find Paul, jealous for the believers in Galatia. That great evangelist wanted to preach Christ where no one had been before, and he earnestly wanted to get to Rome with the good news. Paul didn’t care if he lived or died, as long as the kingdom was advanced.
Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one receives the prize? So run that you may obtain it. 1 Corinthians 9:24
Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. Philippians 3:12-14
Think about the nature of this forceful kingdom: After the Resurrection, Jesus didn’t say to the apostle Peter, Pete, could you not have just sat down and shut up? Instead, Jesus asked him, Do you love me more than these? Jesus knew what was in the hearts of men. He knew what Peter had meant that night three days before, when he said, Even if all the others desert you, I never will. Our Lord knew that competition is built into the heart of a man, and the Lord called it out that day that He restored Peter to Him. Do you truly love me more? More than these? Jesus said that the gates of hell will not prevail against the spiritual warrior who fights on behalf of the king of heaven. Half-hearted applicants need not apply.
No, it is no sin to be ambitious to carry out God’s promises. But it takes wisdom to know the difference between selfish ambition and godly zeal, that’s for sure.