Jesus was a man of simplicity

JESUS WAS A MAN OF SIMPLICITY
EDITED BY GLENN PEASE
Imitate the Simplicity of Jesus
Emmanuel de Gibergues
Simplicity is the sign and seal of the Gospel, because it is the distinctive
feature, the very nature, of the Savior. From the first moment of His life until
His last breath upon the Cross, Jesus never failed to look toward His Father
and to act for God. The Gospel bears testimony to this, as well as all the words
and acts of Jesus Himself. “When Christ cometh into the world,” says St.
Paul, “He saith, ‘Behold I come to do Thy will, O God.’ . . . I will give my laws
in their hearts.” His first thought was for God. The first use He made of His
liberty was to submit to the will of God and to give Himself up wholly to Him.
And in what was to follow, Jesus never swerved one instant from this attitude.
When Mary and Joseph had found Him in the Temple and were in great
distress, wondering at His conduct, His only reply was: “Did you not know
that I must be about my Father’s business?”
During the thirty years spent at Nazareth, what did He do? He remained in
the presence of God, working in obedience and humility, so that He might
please Godand live wholly for Him.
When at the age of thirty, He leaves His Mother and retires into the desert, it
is because He is led there by the Holy Spirit. When the Devil tempts Him, it is
in God’s name that He repels him: “Not on bread alone doth man live, but on
every word that proceedeth from the mouth of God. Thou shalt not tempt the
Lord thy God. . . . Him only shalt thou serve.”

On the banks of the Jordan, the Spirit of God descends visibly upon Jesus in
the form of a dove. When He enters the synagogue, He opens the Gospels at
this passage: “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, wherefore He hath anointed
me.”
This article is from a chapter in Strength in Simplicity. Click image to
preview/order.
His first reply to the Samaritan who questions Him concerning the true
worship is: “The true adorers shall adore the Father in spirit and in truth.”
And immediately after that, He says to His Apostles, “My meat is to do the
will of Him that sent me.”
To all the questions put to Him, to all the traps laid for Him, and to all the
outrages proffered Him, He al-ways replies by speaking of His Father, of the
offenses and insults offered to God, and of the love, confidence, and
submission that all owe to Him. He sums up all reli-gion, law, and morality in
this one unique precept: “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with thy whole
heart.”
Has the world ever seen teaching, philosophy, or doctrine more simple than
our Lord’s sermon in which He forbids having two masters and reduces all to
the love of God?
And does not His love of simplicity account for His invectives and menaces
against the Pharisees? Was it not their hypocrisy, cheating, lying, and
duplicity that He condemned with each oft-repeated “Woe to you”? “You
make clean the edge of the cup, but within you leave it full of bitterness. You
have sat down in the seat of Moses, but of his works you fulfill nothing. On the
widow and orphan you put burdens which you your-selves could not bear.
You loose your ox and your ass on the Sabbath Day, and lead them to the
drinking place — yet you would not have me heal this woman of her infirmity.
You are like whited sepulchers, which within are full of filthiness and
corruption.” Each time Jesus condemns the Pharisees, it is because of their

hypocrisy and their lack of simplicity. They desired to please men and not
God — hence Jesus’outbursts of angeragainstthem.
Jesus loved little children because of their simplicity, this simplicity which He
holds up to us as a model and as the condition of our reaching Heaven.
The simplicity of Jesus is transmitted to the hearts of His Apostles. They are
spellbound and irresistibly attracted by it. “Master, where dwellest Thou?”
they asked of Him, and He replied, “Come and see.” And they went at once
and remained with Him. “Follow me,” He said to them once again, and
without hesitation they left their employment, their nets, their work, their
kindred — all, in effect — to follow Him.
He required an absolute simplicity of language as well: “Yea, yea; no, no. And
that which is over and above this is evil.”103 In Himself, He carried simplicity
to its highest degree. He spoke as He thought, and He thought as His Father
does: “As I hear, so I judge.” He listens within Himself to the word of God, to
the judg-ment of God, and He pronounces the selfsame word; He delivers the
same judgment. Between Him and His Father there exists an absolute and
unchanging confor-mity of thought, will, and feeling — that perfect unity of
heart and of love which constitutes the ideal of simplicity.
In Jesus, the human spirit is so wholly submissive and docile to the inspiration
of the Spirit of God that there is in truth only one spirit, according to the word
of the apostle:“He who is joined to the Lord is one spirit.”
The PassionandSimplicity of Jesus
The simplicity of Jesus shows with an even greater beauty during His Passion.
He is simple indeed at Geth-semane. His hour has come, His Father has
spoken, and that suffices. He seeks neither to hide, to defend, nor to escape.
He goes straight to meet suffering and death. His human nature is afraid,
shrinks, trembles, and begs for mercy. He rises above it; He does not for one
instant draw back: “For this am I come!” He might well have asked His
Father to send angels to deliver Him. He never considered it. He cared only to
obey and to exe-cute the decrees ofProvidence.

Before the Council, He is simple in word and man-ner. He is meek and
dignified, unassuming and resolute. He has not that stoic severity of look and
bearing which certain painters lend to Him. His dignity is gentle. His firmness
indicates goodness. What is human fades from Him; what is divine alone
appears. He forgets Himself to see only God. He knows that nothing can
happen ex-cept by the will of His Father, that His judges and torturers have
no power against Him save that which God permits. And this is why, above
all, He keeps si-lent, never seeking to defend Himself, referring all to His
Father alone.
He is simple upon Calvary. No bitterness, no re-proach for those who crucify
Him nor for the throng who outrage Him. No thought of Himself, not a single
complaint. He is conscious only of God and the souls of sinners. He thirsts for
these souls. He pardons them. He promises them an eternity in Paradise. He
bequeaths to them His Mother.
With regard to His Father, in the very moment of the most cruel neglect, the
most dire distress, He speaks onlyof submission and confidence.
O my Savior, how adorable is Thy simplicity!
What unity reigns in Thy thoughts, affections, and
deeds, in Thy sufferings, Thy virtues and prayers!
All is for God and our souls, and it is
always for God that Thou savestour souls,
so that His name may be hallowed by them,
His kingdom come, and His
will be done through them. Souls are the harvest, and the harvest is for the
Master.
So one thing alone is necessary: to glorify God in Himself, to glorify Him in
souls and by souls, to look at God always, to work for God always, to refer all
that you do to Him, to see only the Creator in the creature, and the creature

only in God — that is the whole aim of the life of Jesus, and there is also
perfect simplicity.
Ah, how lofty and beautiful is simplicity in itself, but how much more
beautiful and how much more attrac-tive, how holy, adorable, and divine in
the Heart and soul of Jesus! For simplicity is in truth the spirit of Jesus, the
spirit of God in the creature.
May simplicity be our habitual exercise, our unceas-ing inspiration, our very
life and soul. In its practice, may we learn to die to all created things and live
only to the Creator. May all that is human in us vanish, and that alone remain
which is divine; or at least, since to be human is our condition, may our
humanity become divine as in Jesus, and, seeking God in all things by means
of simplicity, may we find Him in all things, cleave to Him, and rest in Him
forever.
Editor’s note: This article is adapted from a chapter in Bp. de Gibergues’
Strength in Simplicity, which is available from Sophia Institute Press.
GLENN PEASE
SUCCESS IN SIMPLICITY BasedonMatt. 6:1-8
C. S. Lewis, the brilliant atheist who became one of the most famous
Christians of the 20th century, said, "It is no good asking for a simple religion
after all, real things are not simple." Little did he realize, when he wrote
those words in his early book, Mere Christianity, just how true they were to
become in his life. He was a middle aged bachelor living with his bachelor
brother, and both of them were scholars and authors. Life was so simple and
uncomplicated until Joy Davidmen came into it. Joy was a living example of
life's complexity. She was born into a Jewish home as a near genius. She was
reading history and philosophy at the age of 8, and like her father she became
a atheist. She got fed up with the American economic system during the

depression in the 30's, and joined the Communist party. She taught school,
wrote books and scripts for Hollywood.
She got married and had two sons, and then she heard the Gospel and
surrendered to Christ. She became a devoted Christian, and immediately she
used her skills to write Christian books. She discovered C. S. Lewis, and fell
in love with his writings. To make a long story short, she eventually got to
England, and met Lewis in person. They were two brilliant former atheist
who now loved Christ, and were writing books to tell the world of their faith.
They enjoyed each other immediately. When she returned to the United
States, and to alcoholic husband, there were problems. She fought for years
to keep her marriage together, but finally her Christians friends advised her
to divorce him. She did, and moved to England, and there her and Lewis had
a romantic relationship for three years. Life was still fairly simple, but then
the British government sent her a letter saying her permit to stay in England
was expired, and she had to leave.
That is when Lewis realized he loved her and could not live without her.
But the Anglican church, of which he was a member, did not allow the
remarriage of divorced people. He was torn, and had to act, and so he
married her secretly so she could stay in England. They lived in their own
homes separately. She kept her own name. It was very complicated, and
gossip began to grow as this 59 year old bachelor began to spend an
extraordinary amount of time visiting Joy. He pleaded with his church to be
allowedto marry her, but he was denied.
Joy discovered she had cancer, and was very soon on her death bed, but
God spared her long enough for them to have a beautiful honeymoon. They
traveled to Ireland and Greece. Then her cancer returned, and she died in
her early 40's. C. S. Lewis was never well after he lost her, and he died three
years later in 1963. He was a brilliant godly man who changed the course of
history for millions, but he knew from his study, and from experience, life is
not simple.
Even though it is true that life can be complex, the common people heard
Jesus gladly

because they knew what he was saying. Jesus had the gift of simplicity. He
said, "love thy neighbor," and not what the intellectual scholar might say,
"Display empathy in a psychic ethnocentricity." Jesus said, "Fear not, I have
over come the world," and not, "unlock your libido, the existential
predicament has been transcended." With a little thought Christians can be
lifted beyond the reach of the masses, and be lost in the complexity of
language. Better have five words that people understand, says Paul, then 10
thousand in a tongue they can't understand. Simplicity is best, but Paul wrote
that because Christians were getting caught up in complexity. Paul knew that
life was not simple. Nevertheless, that is a goalto aim for.
A judge in Illinois issued an order that forced a patient to have a blood
transfusion she had refused on religious grounds. She lived because of it, and
then sued the judge who had saved her. The Illinois Supreme Court agreed,
he had violated her first amendment rights. He had saved her life, but he was
reprimanded for violating her rights. Had he let her die, he would have done
no wrong-legally. Life is not simple. How can we reconcile what we know
about the reality of life's complexity with the emphasis of Jesus onsimplicity?
One of the dominant themes of Matthew 6 is on, success in simplicity. Do
you want to have a life well rewarded for your spiritual efforts in prayer,
giving, and fasting? Jesus says do not make it complicated by trying to please
the masses. You only have to please God, and so keep it secret, and keep it
simple. Do not think you can snow God with eloquent, but empty, words. If
quantity of words was the key to prayer, then the pagans with their prayer
wheels, which through a prayer off to God every time they revolved, have us
all beat. Jesus says stay away from all ideas that make prayer complicated.
God already knows your need before you ask, so keep it simple. Jesus gives us
the example we call the Lord's prayer. It is so simple, and so short, you can
pray it in 20 to 30 seconds.
Jesus simplified everything he touched. The Old Testament saints had ten
commandments to guide them, but Jesus said you can simplify these ten, and
reduce them to two. Love God with all your being, and you neighbor as
yourself. This is not easy, but it is simple to grasp. In verse 24 Jesus says you
cannot serve two masters. Even when things are down to two, Jesus is still

saying, simplify, and cut it down to one only as Lord. Thoreau said, "Simplify,
simplify, simplify! I say, let your affairs be as two or three, and not a hundred
or a thousand--simplify, simplify." Jesus went beyond this and said your life
is a complicated mess until you cut down to only one ultimate loyalty, which is
God. He ends this chapter by saying do not get caught up in worry over many
things. Simplify by seeking first the kingdom of God, and all the complex
pieces of the puzzle will come together. Don't reach out into tomorrow, but
keepit simple, and live one day at a time.
This entire chapter, from beginning to end, has one common theme: Keep
it simple. Life is complicated; love is complicated; but the Lord is not
complicated. How can this be when He is the author of life and love, and all
the vast universe of colossal cosmic complexities? But that is just it, the many
have their source in the One, so that though reality is complex, the source of
reality is simple. When our lives revolve around the One, which is God, life
can be simple in one basic sense, evenif it is complex in many areas.
There is no escaping the paradox involved in simplicity, for it is both sought
and shunned, because like everything else there are two sides to it. In other
words, simplicity is not always simple.
The Bible deals with both sides of simplicity. The book of Proverbs warns
of the folly of being simple-minded, which means lacking wisdom and
discernment. The simple can be simpletons, and be led like an ox to the
slaughter by the cleverness of the tempter. Paul is amazed at the foolish
Galatians who are such simpletons that they allow themselves to be led back
into trusting in the law. It is possible to be simple in a way that makes
simplicity synonymous with stupidity. There is a childishness as well as a
childlikeness, and they are opposite kinds of simplicity.
John Bunyan, so famous for his Pilgrims Progress made this clear with his
character named Simple. He was one who said, "I can see no danger," and
the result was he walked into a snare set for him, and he ended up enslaved.
It happens all the time to the simple-minded. Alexander Whyte, in describing
Simple in his book, Bunyan Characters writes, "There is so much that is not
simple and sincere in this world; there is so much falsehood and duplicity;

there are so many men aboard whose endeavor is to waylay, mislead, entrap
and corrupt the simple-minded and the inexperienced, that it is next to
impossible that any youth shall long remain in this world both simple and safe
also."
We know this is true, and we dare not leave people in that state of
simplicity like sitting pigeons to be ensnared. They need to be taught that
things are not always what they seem, and there is value in being somewhat
skeptical, and not believe everything they hear and read. In other words, even
though simplicity is our goal as Christians, it is possible to over simplify and
go to an extreme that only complicates life. The same is true in the realm of
science. Albert Einstein said, "Everything should be made as simple as
possible, but not one bit simpler."
Alfred North Whitehead put it, "The aim of science is to seek the simplest
explanations of complex facts. We are apt to fall into the error of thinking
that the facts are simple because simplicity is the goal of our quest. The
guiding motto in the life of every natural philosopher should be, 'seek
simplicity and distrust it.'" This makes a good motto for the Christian life as
well. Simplicity is our goal, but there is a superficial side of simplicity that
can get us off the truly simple track. One master is better than two, but this
does not mean that one leg is better than two, or that two heads cannot be
better than one. To try and make a simple truth apply to everything is usually
the wayto being a simpleton.
We must be alert to the danger of over-simplification. This was the cause
of the friends of Job being a pain, rather than a comfort. It is true that sin
leads to suffering, but they over simplified the issue of suffering, and said all
suffering is a result of sin. They accused him of being a rebel sinner for
having to suffer so severely. It is a classic case of over-simplification that
made these, otherwise reasonable,men into simpletons.
Simplicity, according to Jesus, is simply to live with a single eye, that is, a
single dominant motive, which is to please God. This means there is only one
ultimate loyalty in the successfully simplified life. Two ultimate loyalty is one
too many, and it complicates

life. It is like trying to stop two tennis balls at the same time. The lack of
concentration on one ball leads to a breakdown in your mental capacity, and
you will tend to miss both. You cannot serve two masters. The simplified life
is one in which there is a single thread that holds all of the pearls of life
together. Take 40 pearls without a string, and you have the complicated life.
Take the same 40 pearls with a string running through them, and you have
the simplified life. All is held together and made useful and beautiful by a
single string which unifies the complexity of parts into a meaningful whole.
Successful simplicity is not the rejection of complexity, but the unifying of it.
You do not have to deny the reality of life's complexity, and try to escape it.
You accept reality for what it really is, but you keep life simple by being
dominated and motivated by a single purpose-the pleasing of God.
The Journal of the American Medical Association reported that the army
assigned a group of eminent psychiatrists to determine the best way to select
soldiers for duty on a variety of fronts. After many tests they gave this report.
The best way to find out if a soldier will be more effective in the desert or in
the North is to ask him, "What kind of weather do you like....hot or cold."
The simple and the obvious are often the most scientific and effective.
Knowing the will of God is an issue all Christians struggle with at some point.
One of the best ways to know if you are doing God's will is to simply ask, is
what I am doing pleasing to God? Brent said, "Simplicity is not doing one
thing, it is doing all things for one motive." The most dangerous thing in life
is trying to jump over a chasm in two jumps. It is one, or not at all. So also,
the leap from the complex life to the simple life is but a single jump to that
solid rock where nothing is more important than pleasing God.
Human nature resists simplicity because it does not leave enough room for
creativity. Fallen human nature loves complexity, for this leaves the door open
for rationalization, self-justification, and a host of other ways to throw a
monkey wrench into the machinery of life. Solomon was able to resolve a very
complex case that baffled the judges of his day by threatening to cut a baby in
half, and it worked. But someone said, try satisfying two children by cutting a
cupcake in half. Inevitably one will charge that you always give the other one
the biggest piece. One parent found a simple solution to this problem. She
said to her son, you get to cut the cake, and your sister gets first choice of the

pieces. It seemed foolproof, for you could count on it, he made the cut as even
as the human eye can detect. But the sister deliberately ate her equal size
piece slowly, so that when her brother was finished, she could waft it under
his nose, and say, "ha, I out foxed you again, and got the biggest piece." This
is why simplicity can still be so complex. It is because of the human heart that
refuses to abide by the principles of simplicity.
Lawrence Houseman introduced Gandhi to a London audience, and he
said, "You are so simple you baffle us; so sincere you embarrass us."
Gandhi's simplicity won freedom for millions in India, but it was hard, for
simplicity is despised. That is why the Gospel is despised and rejected of men.
It is too simple. Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved.
There is no complexity. There is only one way to the Father. There is only
one Mediator between God and man, the man Christ Jesus. Men want to
complicate the simple Gospel, and add a few other requirements, here and
there, for this gives him a measure of power, and a sense of superiority. The
simple Gospelputs all men on the same
level. All have sinned, but all can be savedby simple faith in Christ.
When Robinson Crusoe climbed the hills of his island, and gazed out at the
watery horizon, he was not looking for a fleet of ships, but one sail is all he
sought, for one ship was all he needed to be saved. That is all anyone needs,
one ship or one Savior. Life's greatest decision is not complex but very
simple: Believe and be saved. Eugenia Price in her book, Early Will I Seek
Thee wrote, "How I long for simplicity before I became a Christian. Little did
I know I was longing for the very essence of the Gospel of Christ! I would
have laughed if anyone told me I longed for Christ Himself. I merely long for
simplicity knowing that all great art, painting, music, writing, sprang from
simplicity itself."
Her longing was only satisfied when she opened her life to Christ as Savior
and Lord. In Him she found the simplicity that tied all else together. Life may
not be simple, but the Lord of life is. Love may not be simple, but the Lord of
love is. The more we are truly surrendered to Christ, the more we will be set

free from the burdens of complexity to enjoy the blessings of simplicity. In
believing and in obeying of our Lord we find success in simplicity.
What Does Christ Meanby 'Simplicity'?
Mar
23
2011
EDITOR'S NOTE: Dr. Robert Stackpole is working on a book project and
will return to column writing in the coming months. In the meantime, we're
reposting the following column that first ran in August 2009.
One of the faithful readers and correspondents of this column is a man named
Thomas, from Houston, Texas. Several months ago he sent me yet another
excellent question, and I apologize to him for taking so long to get an answer
to him. The question was this:
There are many meditations [in the Diary of St. Faustina] about St. Faustina
needing to learn "simplicity." What does Jesus mean by the use of this term?
For example, St. Faustina writes in entry 335: "Once, when I saw Jesus in the
form of a small child, I asked, 'Jesus, why do you now take on the form of a
small child when You commune with me? In spite of this, I still see in You the

infinite God, my Lord and Creator.' Jesus replied that until I learn simplicity
and humility, He would commune with me as a child."
Well, Tom, I suppose the first clue to what He meant is the fact that He
connected "simplicity" with being "childlike." The world of a happy and
healthy child is pretty straightforward: full of trust (in God and his/her
parents) and wonder (at all the beauty and mysteries of creation). A child like
this is rarely torn by competing allegiances, or tormented by anxiety and
stress. The child's world is simple: obey those whom it is your duty and joy to
obey, for you can trust them, and in that context, be free to explore this
wondrous and magicalworld we live in!
Grown-ups tend to be much more complicated people. We have conflicting
priorities. We agonize over what to do. We are anxious about the future. We
try to serve God and "mammon" at the same time and put our trust in both at
once (see Mt 7:24). We let ourselves be pulled apart in many directions.
But gospel simplicity is the gift of an undivided heart. Danish philosopher
Soren Kierkegaard used a similar phrase for this, "purity of heart," when he
wrote: "Purity of heart is to will one thing." To will whatever God wills, and
that's all. Not to try to serve two masters, or three or four. To have just one
King on the throne of your heart.
The opposite of singleness of heart is what the Bible calls "idolatry." Have you
ever wondered why God put all those warnings in the Bible about
worshipping false idols? We tend to think that those passages do not apply to
many of us today - after all, who among us in the modern, scientific-centered
western world is really going to bow down and worship a golden calf as if such
religious statues actually had divinities residing in them!

The Catechism of the Catholic Churchtells us, however, that idolatry is a
much more subtle, and widespreadproblem than that:
Idolatry not only refers to false pagan worship. It remains a constant
temptation to faith. Idolatry consists in divinizing [i.e., treating as one's
highest allegiance and top priority] what is not God. Man commits idolatry
whenever he honors and reveres a creature in place of God, whether this be
gods or demons (for example, satanism), power, pleasure, race, ancestors, the
state, money, etc. ... Idolatry rejects the unique lordship of God; it is therefore
incompatible with communion with God (2113).
The result of having a false center to our lives is that such a false god tends to
multiply: Since no idol can bring us fulfillment or peace of heart, we tend to
run after more and more of them, and end up worshipping many gods, with
an endless civil war in our hearts between them as to which one gets to reign
in our hearts as king at any given time (e.g., what will I care about most this
year? Money? Pleasure? Power? Drink? Drugs? Work? Play? Sex? Keeping
fit? Keeping up the garden? Or just keeping my nose in everyone else's
business?). Whatever we care about most from day to day is what we really
worship, and as that changes from day to day, week to week, month by month,
even hour by hour, it tears our lives apart. The Catechismreminds us:
Human life finds its unity in the adoration of the one God. The commandment
to worship the Lord alone integrates man and saves him from an endless
disintegration (2114).

Moreover, simplicity of heart is not "simple-mindedness." Very unintelligent
people can lack all simplicity, all singleness of heart, and let several things vie
for top priority in their lives every day: making a buck, getting a girl, being
well thought of - in addition, perhaps, to going to church on Sunday! But as
C.S. Lewis once wrote:
Christ says: "Give me All. I don't want so much of your time and so much of
your money and so much of your work: I want You. I have not come to
torment your natural self, but to kill it. No half measures are any good. I don't
want to cut off a branch here and a branch there, I want to have the whole
tree down. I don't want to dull the tooth, or crown it, or stop it, but to have it
out. Hand over the whole natural self, all the desires which you think innocent
as well as the ones you think wicked - the whole outfit. I will give you a new
self instead. In fact, I will give you Myself: my own will shall become yours" ...
The terrible thing, the almost impossible thing, is to hand over your whole self
- all your wishes and precautions - to Christ. But it is far easier than what we
are all trying to do instead. For what we are trying to do is to remain what we
call "ourselves," to keep personal happiness as our great aim in life, and yet at
the same time be "good." We are all trying to let our mind and heart go their
own way - centered on money or pleasure or ambition - and hoping, in spite of
this, to behave honestly and chastely and humbly. And that is precisely what
Christ warned us you could not do. As He said, a thistle cannot produce figs.
...
It's hard; but the sort of compromise we are all hankering after is harder - in
fact, it is impossible. It may be hard for an egg to turn into a bird: it would be
a jolly sight harder for it to learn to fly while remaining an egg. We are like
eggs at present. And you cannot go on indefinitely just being an ordinary,
decent egg. We must be hatched or go bad (Mere Christianity, Book Four,
chapter eight).

By the same token, a very intelligent and highly educated person can possess,
at the same time, by God's grace, a simplicity of heart. Saint Thomas Aquinas,
the patron saint of university students, is a good case in point. He was so
simple and unassuming in manner and in speech that his fellow theology
students called him "The Dumb Ox." When his sister asked him one time
what she needed to do to become a saint (no doubt expecting a lengthy and
learned reply), he simply gave her a two-word answer: "Will it." When he
was dying of fever in a Cistercian abbey on the way to the Ecumenical Council
of Lyons in 1274, after he made his final confession, his confessor came out of
the room in tears, saying that Thomas's confession had been like that of a
child of five.
Let us remember that this is the same Thomas Aquinas whose Summa
Theologiae spans dozens of volumes, and is considered the most in-depth and
comprehensive presentationof the Catholic Faith ever written.
So, whether you are prince or pauper, highly educated or high school drop-
out, what matters is that we learn to "will one thing": to simplify our lives
down to what Jesus would have us to do and to be, and nothing more -
because nothing else is needed! Saint Alphonsus Liguori put it like this in his
treatise on Conformity to God's Will:
The true lovers of Jesus Christ love only that which is pleasing to Jesus Christ,
and for the sole reason that it does please Him; and they love it when it pleases
Jesus Christ, where it pleases Him, and how it pleases Him. ... This is the real
drift of what is meant by the pure love of Jesus Christ; hence we must labor to
overcome the cravings of our self-love, which seeks to be employed in those
works which are glorious, or that are according to our own inclinations.

Finally, allow me to recommend a book in which gospel simplicity of heart is
beautifully on display: The Way of Divine Love by Sr. Josefa Menendez.
Josefa was a visionary and a contemporary of St. Faustina, born in Spain but
living her life as a religious in the Society of the Sacred Heart in France. The
whole book is one long exhortation and example of singleness of heart (by the
way, it bears the Church's nihil obstat, or official approval that it does not
contradict Church teachings, and a letter of commendation from Cardinal
Pacelli, who later became Pope Pius XII). Jesus saidto her:
Leave yourself in My hands, Josefa. I will use you as seems best to Me. What
of your littleness and weakness ... no matter. ... All I ask of you is to love and
console Me. I want you to know how dearly My Heart loves you, how great
are the riches it contains, and you must be like soft wax that I may mould you
to My liking.
Josefa'sresponseto Christ's outreachto her was simple and single-hearted:
Would that the whole world knew the secret of happiness. There is but one
thing to do: love and abandon oneself. Jesus Himself will take charge of all the
rest.
The Simple Life of Jesus, by Simon Ussher

Below is Simon Ussher’s chapter on Jesus, from the anthology Simple Living
in History: Pioneers of the Deep Future. A suitable post for these days leading
up to Christmas.
‘Hail, queen wisdom! May the Lord save thee with thy sister holy pure
simplicity!’ – St. Francis of Assisi
At its heart the ‘voluntary simplicity’ movement is about a value shift.
Adherents may display a commonality of practices, but no practice is common
to all, and none capture the essence of what voluntary simplicity is at its core.
The essenceofthe movement is not the practice;it is the informing principles.
Despite our eclectic backgrounds and motivations, voluntary simplicity tends
to bring people together into a wonderful congruity. This way of life generally
involves an eschewing of the messages of consumerism and materialism, and a
reassertion of the value of people and time over money, environment over
profit, and community over corporation. This association of seemingly
unrelated values is not as arbitrary as it may appear, for the messages of
consumerism and materialism do indeed risk eroding more than just our bank
accounts.
In recent times social scientists such as Tim Kasser have highlighted how
certain sets of values exist in conflict; that the values we espouse have
something of a see-saw like quality, where an increase in one necessitates a
decrease in a certain other. As materialistic values increase, often there is an
accordant decrease in ‘pro-social’ values and concern for the environment. In
contrast, those values that have been demonstrated to support psychological
and physical wellbeing, termed ‘intrinsic values’ by Kasser and colleagues,
tend to promote personal, social and environmental wellbeing and help to
immunise people againstmaterialism (Kasser, 2002).
And yet this insight is not as new as it may seem. Indeed, it is one of the few
clear points of agreement amongst the great religious sages of history, and an
uncompromising aspect of Jesus’ ministry in particular. Jesus warned his

disciples of this conflict in clear and literal terms: ‘No one can serve two
masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted
to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money’
(Matt 6:24 NIV). Jesus paints the same picture that Kasser does today: there
is a direct conflict between the values of money, materialism and
consumerism, and those of people, community and creation.
The Opposition of Materialismand the Kingdom
A clear theme throughout Jesus’ ministry was the conflict between seeking
God and seeking money (personified as Mammon in some gospel translations).
The Gospels contain a glaring lack of discussion pertaining to sexual
orientation, gender roles, church organisation, or other items of dogma, but
return again and again to the subject of money and materialism. As we read
in the gospels: ‘What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, yet
forfeit their soul?’ (Matt 16:26 NIV).
Similarly, in the parable of the sower, Jesus discusses with his disciples those
things that may render a life ‘unfruitful’. Likening them to the various fates
of seed sown by a farmer, he describes seed that ‘fell among thorns, which
grew up and choked the plants so that they did not bear grain’. He goes on to
explain to his disciples that this seed represents those whose lives are rendered
unfruitful by ‘the deceitfulness of wealth and the desires for other things’
(Mark 4:3-20 NIV).
On another occasion Jesus was approached by a wealthy young man, asking
‘Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?’. Jesus responded by
exhorting the young man to follow the commandments: ‘do not murder, do
not commit adultery, do not steal, do not give false testimony, do not defraud,
honour your father and mother.’ ‘All these I have kept since I was a boy’,
responded the young man. ‘One thing you lack’, Jesus responded. ‘Go, sell
everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in
heaven.’ The young man left Jesus, saddened by his response and the dilemma
he now faced. We do not have record of what the young man subsequently
decided, but his reaction prompted Jesus to declare to his followers: ‘It is

easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is
rich to enter the kingdom of God’ (Mark 10:17-25 NIV).
Perhaps this theme was at its most symbolic when Jesus entered Jerusalem
and proceeded to the temple. Incensed by what he found, what follows is one
of the most emotional scenes recorded in the gospels. Jesus physically drives
out the money changers and those other traders selling sheep, cattle and
doves, telling them they had reduced the temple from a ‘house of prayer’ to a
‘den of robbers’ (Matt 21:12-13 NIV). Notably, this is the only gospel record
of Jesus ever using violence, albeit mild, in that he made a whip of cords and
physically overturned the traders’ tables – an exercise of force he did not
show before or since. By contrast when he was arrested prior to his
crucifixion he restrained his followers from violence, instead healing one of
the arresting soldiers.
The Understanding of the Early Church
The first century church is often looked to for a sense of authenticity, given
their chronological proximity to Christ. These early Christians clearly
understood the inherent economic implications of the gospel, putting their
poss-essions to the service of their fellows and practising a measure of
communal ownership.
All the believers were one in heart and mind. No one claimed that any of their
possessions was their own, but they shared everything they had. With great
power the apostles continued to testify to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus.
And God’s grace was so powerfully at work in them all that there were no
needy persons among them. For from time to time those who owned land or
houses sold them, brought the money from the sales and put it at the apostles’
feet, and it was distributed to anyone who had need (Acts 4:32-35 NIV).
While not prescriptive or absolute, these practices revealed an attitude toward
possessions that clearly valued the humane over the material; an ethos of
stewardship rather than ownership. This ethos of stewardship was
inseparable from life as a Christian, and the concept of a purely spiritual
response to the Gospel was nonsensical. As Peter Oakes notes: ‘In studying
the first few centuries of the Christian movement, any attempt to isolate

economics from other social factors such as politics would be doomed’ (Oakes,
2009).
In the epistle of James, written sometime in the first or second centuries, we
again read of the centrality of an economic response to the gospel. ‘Religion
that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans
and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the
world’ (James 1:27 NIV).
Many of these writings of the early Christians later became canonical, and
thus informed all later expressions ofChristianity.
St. Francis of Assisi
St. Francis was a monk who lived from 1182-1226 and to this day he remains
one of the most venerated religious figures in history. The son of a wealthy silk
merchant, he turned away from the wealth and privilege of his upbringing
and em-braceda life of poverty.
In losing his worldly wealth, he found delight in nature, in all creation, seeing
in it the mirror of God. In one of his most popular writings, the ‘Canticle of
the Sun’, St. Francis writes:
Be praised, my Lord, through all Your creatures, especially through my lord
Brother Sun, who brings the day; and You give light through him. And he is
beautiful and radiant in all his splendor! Of You, Most High, he bears the
likeness.
Be praised, my Lord, through Sister Moon and the stars; in the heavens You
have made them bright, precious and beautiful.
Be praised, my Lord, through Brothers Wind and Air, and clouds and storms,
and all the weather, through which You give Your creatures sustenance.
Be praised, my Lord, through Sister Water; she is very useful, and humble,
and precious, and pure.
Be praised, my Lord, through Brother Fire, through whom You brighten the
night. He is beautiful and cheerful, and powerful and strong.

Be praised, my Lord, through our sister Mother Earth, who feeds us and rules
us, and produces various fruits with colouredflowers and herbs.
Be praised, my Lord, through those who forgive for love of You; through
those who endure sicknessand trial.
Happy those who endure in peace, for by You, Most High, they will be
crowned.
St. Francis’ own life, as an expression of the gospel, highlights the inverse
relationship between prizing wealth and poss-essions and prizing creation and
our fellow brothers and sisters. Even on his deathbed, St. Francis requested
that his clothes be removed and he be allowed to die naked, lying on the earth.
A fitting departure for a life lived close to the creation, unimpeded by love of
wealth.
John Wesley
Continuing the response of the early Christians and St. Francis, John Wesley
understood that the gospel has inextricable social and economic implications.
Wesley was an eighteenth century Anglican cleric who worked in England and
the American colonies. He understood the gospel as intensely social,
inherently manifest in our treatment of our fellow human beings, and that
personal frugality under-pinned the ability of individuals to contribute to this
struggle.
‘Do you not know that God entrusted you with that money’, wrote Wesley, ‘all
above what buys necessities for your families, to feed the hungry, to clothe the
naked, to help the stranger, the widow, the fatherless; and, indeed, as far as it
will go, to relieve the wants of all mankind? How can you, how dare you,
defraud the Lord, by applying it to any other purpose?’ (Wesley, 1831).
In 1743 with the number of his followers grown too great to instruct
personally, Wesley offered them a set of ‘General Rules’ to govern the ‘United
Societies’ his followers had organised into. There was only one condition
required of those who desired admission to these societies: ‘a desire to flee
from the wrath to come, and to be saved from their sins.’ But Wesley noted
that ‘wherever this is really fixed in the soul it will be shown by its fruits’,

going on to list a large number of such fruits, many of which were economic,
such as ‘feeding the hungry’, ‘clothing the naked’, ‘all diligence and
frugality’, and avoiding evils such as ‘laying up treasure on Earth’, ‘needless
self indulgence’ and ‘the wearing of gold and costly apparel’ (United
Methodist Church, 1973).
Wesley’s understanding of the teachings of Jesus was such that it could not be
separated from the use of one’s resources. ‘Earn all you can, save all you can,
give all you can’, wrote Wesley. He understood that there was a fundamental
conflict between the values of the Gospel and those of life as material
consumption, and that these rippled out through the societies in which we live.
As a result of this understanding, many of his followers became leading lights
among movements such as abolitionism and prison reform, as well as sowing
the seeds for modern Methodism, the Holiness movement, the Charismatic
movement and all the socialworks that followed.
Modern Challenges
At the dawn of the third millennium since the birth of Jesus, over a third of
humanity claim to follow Jesus, albeit to varying degrees. And yet, within this
population of over 2.2 billion, Mammon still carries greatinfluence.
Since the 1950s, there has been the spread of ‘prosperity theology’, a message
advocating the godly life as a means to material success. The utter antithesis
of the gospel, it is nonetheless popular and spreading.
An added challenge, many of the world’s wealthiest and highest consuming
citizens are counted among the Christ-ians. As the interconnectedness of our
economic and environ-mental actions are understood to an ever greater
degree, we can hope that the understanding of how one ought to ‘love thy
neighbour’ expands accordingly.
And indeed there is hope. In 2008, echoing the original ‘seven deadly sins’, the
Vatican issued the ‘seven social sins’, including environmental pollution,
contributing to wealth divides, accumulating excessive wealth and creating
poverty.
Conclusion

Christianity in the twenty-first century is diverse in tradition and
understanding of the gospel, but the centrality of Jesus is uncontested, and his
words leave no doubt as to the obstacle that the love of wealthpresents.
In the closing paragraphs of his work ‘The Gospel According To The Son’,
Norman Mailer writes, in the voice of Jesus: ‘God and Mammon still grapple
for the hearts of all men and all women’. Indeed, the messages of
consumerism contest for more than just our brand loyalty, and the noble lives
of those practising voluntary simplicity stand in opposition, as ever, doing the
Lord’s work and living Jesus’message two thousandyears hence.
Ministry with Simplicity or Complexity? Follow Jesus'Way
Summary: Christian ministry today is often elaborate, expensive, market-
driven, and complicated. By contrast, the ministry of Jesus was simple,
relatable, not "professional," and reproducible in all nations and among all
people throughout the world. He won multitudes to faith without hi-tech
audio-visual systems, targeted advertising, attention-getting stage lighting,
and the like. Are these things wrong in our 21st century world? No. But Jesus
had an astounding ministry without any of these things? What can we learn
from the simplicity of Christ's supremely effective ministry?
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2 Corinthians 11:2-3, KJV For I am jealous over you with godly jealousy: for
I have espoused you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin
to Christ. But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through
his subtilty, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in
Christ.
• One of Satan’s primary goals is to lure us away from the “simplicity that is
in Christ.” The devil loves it when we make Christian life and ministry
complicated, and thereby confusing and even discouraging.

Matthew 11:25 At that time Jesus said, “I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven
and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned,
and revealedthem to little children.”
• Remember that God’s intent is that we receive Jesus Christ, God’s
revelations, and all the things of God with simplicity and sincerity, like “little
children.”
• That simplicity, then, should also characterize our ministries, as it did the
ministry of Jesus Himself.
Matthew 8:19-20 Then a teacher of the law came to him and said, “Teacher, I
will follow you wherever you go.” Jesus replied, “Foxes have dens and birds
have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head.”
• Not only did Jesus have no home, He also had no church building. Nor did
the early Church have what we call “church buildings.” Archeological efforts
have failed to find a specific New Testament “church building” dated in the
first century.
• The Ephesian church is believed to have been the largest local church in the
first century A.D. Yet in its early stages, the apostle Paul had the believers
meet for two years in a presumably rented lecture hall owned by a man
named Tyrannus (Acts 19:9-10). The early-Church Christians' ministry did
not focus on building church campuses.
Matthew 5:1-2 Now when Jesus saw the crowds, he went up on a
mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to him, and he began to teach
them.
Matthew 13:2-3 Such large crowds gathered around him that he got into a
boat and sat in it, while all the people stood on the shore. Then he told them
many things in parables…

• Jesus’ “pulpit” was often a boat, or a mountainside, or the open plain, or
wherever listeners could be found. Yet no greater sermons were ever
preached!
• Compare that to some churches today, where the pastor in flowing robes
mounts a staircase to an ornate pulpit that looks like the prow of a ship! A far
cry from “…the simplicity that is in Christ.”
Mark 1:16-17 As Jesus walked beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and
his brother Andrew casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen.
“Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will send you out to fish for people.”
• Jesus’ transportation was His own two feet! At least once He “stepped up”
and rode on a donkey. On a personal note, I always appreciated the down-to-
earth lifestyle of my first pastor. Even though he led an influential church of
1,400 members, his cars were typically inexpensive models with lots of miles
on them.
• I’m not suggesting that it’s wrong for a minister of the Gospel to have a nice
car. I’m just reminding us of how Jesus ministered with such grace and
power, despite having mostly to walk from place to place. The lack of modern
conveniences did nothing to impair His ministry.
Luke 6:12 One of those days Jesus went out to a mountainside to pray, and
spent the night praying to God.
• Praying on a mountainside. Jesus had no plush, carpeted prayer room with
soft, piped-in music. He prayed in gardens and on mountainsides and in the
desert.
• Some of the most anointed preservice prayer times I’ve ever experienced
were in the 1970s, kneeling before metal benches in our church school’s
gymnasium in Alaska. The visuals were bleak, but the presence of the Lord

was strong and manifested as 300 or more believers lifted their voices in
sincere prayer and praise to God.
Luke 22:25-27 Jesus said to them, “The kings of the Gentiles lord it over
them; and those who exercise authority over them call themselves
Benefactors. But you are not to be like that. Instead, the greatest among you
should be like the youngest, and the one who rules like the one who serves. For
who is greater, the one who is at the table or the one who serves? Is it not the
one who is at the table? But I am among you as one who serves.
• Jesus, the King of Kings and Lord of Lords, never pursued being a
prominent, famous minister. In fact, at times He would even instruct His
followers not to make mention of some of the supernatural ministries He had
done.
• Jesus never lost His servant’s heart. And He exhorted His followers to
imitate Him in that regard. What a lesson for us — to “be among [people] as
one who serves.”
Just think of the simplicity of Jesus’ministry:
• He had no home church to finance him.
• He had nowhere to lay His head.
• He had places like hillsides and fishing boats for His pulpit.
• He had no “connections”among Judaism’s leaders.
• He traveled “footclass,”notfirst class.
• He used the hills, the desert, a garden, and the like for His prayer room.
• He taught with simple stories (parables) about birds, plants, seeds, etc., not
with flowing rhetoric and artfully crafted messages.
• His ministry of healing was not preplanned. He simply healed people as He
encounteredthem wherever He went.

• He had simple faith in His Fathers’ provision, unlike many of today’s high-
powered, high-pressure financial appeals.
• He had the heart of a servant, versus an “I-am-leadership” mentality.
• He received a cross for all His labors, rather than this world’s esteem, favor,
and adulation.
So what is the message in all this? Quite simply, that the ministry of Christ is
an example for our ministries. He kept it simple. As a mature pastor once told
me, “The main things of the Bible are the plain things, and the plain things
are the main things. If you are going to build a great church, you must make
the basics beautiful.”
Jesus did not depend on sophisticated externals. He needed no facilities, no
equipment, no advertising, no “stuff.” Rather, His effectiveness in ministry
sprang from a powerful Holy Spirit anointing … from the declaration of truth
… from honoring God the Father … from relating to people with love —
precisely the type of things that we, too, can do in ministering effectively for
Jesus Christ.
In closing, let’s recall our opening verse: 2 Corinthians 11:2-3, KJV For I am
jealous over you with godly jealousy: for I have espoused you to one husband,
that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ. But I fear, lest by any
means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should
be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ.
https://www.jimfeeney.org/ministry-simplicity-jesus-way.html
Jesus Lived A Simple Life: 20 GreatTeachers OnPossessions
Postedby
Dan Erickson

July 28, 2016 2 Comments
on Jesus Lived A Simple Life: 20 GreatTeachers OnPossessions
I consider myself a follower of Christ, but something bothers me. A good
portion of folks who call themselves Christians don’t follow Christ when it
comes to simple living. We’ve all heard people speak of their blessings in
regard to money and stuff. How much money and stuff did Jesus have?
Does Jesus Promote Stuff?
I’ve read the New Testament a few times. I don’t recall anywhere in which
Jesus spoke of accumulating more stuff. In fact, he once told a rich man that
it’s letting go of his riches that will get him into heaven.
Jesus lived a very simple life. He never spoke of the things he owned, money,
fashionable clothing, furnishings, etc. Based on what we know, he lived a life
of stark simplicity in regard to owning possessions.
Some of you are protesting, “But Dan, I’m not a Christian.”
That’s your prerogative. I’m not trying to convert anybody here. But it wasn’t
just Jesus. Many of the greatest thinkers and teachers throughout history
have lived simply.
20 Great TeachersOn Possessions
Jesus: “If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the
poor, and you will have treasure in heaven.”
Vaswani: “Happiness, true happiness, is an inner quality. It is a state of mind.
If your mind is at peace, you are happy. If your mind is at peace, but you have
nothing else, you can be happy. If you have everything the world can give –

pleasure, possessions, power – but lack peace of mind, you can never be
happy.”
Ghandi: “Service which is rendered without joy helps neither the servant nor
the served. But all other pleasures and possessions pale into nothingness
before service which is rendered in a spirit of joy.”
Epictetus: “Wealth consists not in having great possessions, but in having few
wants.”
Dalai Lama: “Physical comforts cannot subdue mental suffering, and if we
look closely, we can see that those who have many possessions are not
necessarilyhappy. In fact, being wealthy often brings evenmore anxiety.”
Peace Pilgrim: “Unnecessary possessions are unnecessary burdens. If you
have them, you have to take care of them! There is great freedom in simplicity
of living. It is those who have enoughbut not too much who are the happiest.”
Sitting Bull: “Strangely enough, they have a mind to till the soil, and the love
of possessionsis a disease in them.”
Democritus: “Happiness resides not in possessions, and not in gold, happiness
dwells in the soul.”
Khalil Gibran: “You give but little when you give of your possessions. It is
when you give of yourself that you truly give.”
Epicurus: “A free life cannot acquire many possessions, because this is not
easyto do without servility to mobs or monarchs.”
David Hume: “This avidity alone, of acquiring goods and possessions for
ourselves and our nearest friends, is insatiable, perpetual, universal, and
directly destructive of society.”
Plutarch: “I would rather excel in the knowledge of what is excellent, than in
the extent of my powerand possessions.”
Bertrand Russell: “It is preoccupation with possessions, more than anything
else, that prevents us from living freely and nobly.”

Rick Rirodan: “When I was in college, my parents’ house burned down, and
took a lot of the possessions I’d grown up with. That’s probably one thing that
made me realize material stuff is not really that important.”
Thich Nhat Hanh: “Letting go gives us freedom, and freedom is the only
condition for happiness. If, in our heart, we still cling to anything – anger,
anxiety, or possessions – we cannot be free.”
Albert Einstein: “Possessions, outward success, publicity, luxury – to me these
have always been contemptible. I assume that a simple and unassuming
manner of life is best for everyone, best for both the body and the mind.”
Frank Lloyd Wright: “Many wealthy people are little more than janitors of
their own possessions.”
Lao Tzu: “Health is the greatest possession. Contentment is the greatest
treasure. Confidence is the greatestfriend. Non-being is the greatestjoy.”
Anthony J. D’Angelo: “Treasure your relationships, not your possessions.”
Jose Mujica: “If you don’t have many possessions, then you don’t need to
work all your life like a slave to sustain them, and therefore you have more
time for yourself.”
Readmy post: Applying The Ten Commandments To Minimalism.
Yes, Jesus SuggestsWe Live Simply…
but he’s in good company. Some of the greatest minds throughout history
agree.
If you’re a Christian and your life is complicated by your possessions, I
encourage you to look deeper into your faith. Jesus lived with less. Will you
follow? If you’ve chosen another spiritual path, I encourage you to consider
living with less. If for nothing else, for the sake of our planet, I encourage you
to considerliving with less.

SIMPLICITY AND FREEDOM
Ten Principles for Practicing Simplicity
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W
e are constantly bombarded with the propaganda of Madison Avenue.
Someone is always trying to sell us something — marketing forces always
competing for our attention. It seems impossible to get away from the chatter.
In contrast, Jesus calls us to a life of simplicity. How do we live a life of
simplicity in the face of our world’s constantmessageto buy more?
What is Simplicity?
Simplicity is freedom. The need for more is bondage. Simplicity brings joy
and balance. Duplicity brings anxiety and fear. The writer of Ecclesiastes said
this: “God made man simple; man’s complex problems are of his own
devising” (Eccles. 7:30, JB).
The Christian Discipline of simplicity is simply the desire to seek God before
all things. It is the driving desire to know God more than anything else. It is
living out the cry of Jeremiah when he said:
This is what the LORD says: “Let not the wise boast of their wisdom or the
strong boast of their strength or the rich boast of their riches, 24 but let the
one who boasts boast about this: that they have the understanding to know

me, that I am the LORD, who exercises kindness, justice and righteousness on
earth, for in these I delight,” declares the LORD” (Jer. 9:23-24).
But Simplicity is more than just a personal decision to live with less so that
you can have more of God. It is actually an inward reality that results in an
outward lifestyle. In other words, if we are living a life of simplicity inwardly,
it will show in how we live outwardly.
Fosterdescribes it this way:
Experiencing the inward reality liberates us outwardly. Speech becomes
truthful and honest. The lust for status and position is gone because we no
longer need status and position. We cease from showy extravagance not on the
grounds of being unable to afford it, but on the grounds of principle. Our
goods become available to others” (Celebrationof Discipline, Foster, p. 80).
We must understand that lust for affluence and influence in our culture has
the potential to kill us spiritually. We begin to lose touch with spiritual reality
when we crave things that we neither need nor enjoy.
Truth is ever to be found in simplicity, and not in the multiplicity and
confusionof things. -- Isaac Newton
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Madison Avenue has convinced us that to be out of step with fashion is to be
out of step with reality. So, we end up buying things we don’t need or want in
order to impress people we don’t even know. The call to simplicity is a call to
recognize the fact that to conform to a sick societyis to be sick.
Simplicity in the Bible
The Bible deals clearly and forcefully with oppressive slavery to things. The
economics of life is the number one topic in the Bible. It expresses it in the
fight against idolatry and the call to social justice — the two biggest topics in
the Old Testament.
The Psalmist says, “If riches increase, set not your heart on them” (Ps. 62:10).
The tenth commandment is against covetousness, the inner lust to have, which
leads to stealing and oppression. The writer of Proverbs understood that “He
who trusts in his riches will wither” (Prov. 11:28).
Jesus literally declared war on the materialism of his day. The Aramaic term
for wealth is “mammon” and Jesus condemns it as a rival God: “No servant
can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he
will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and
mammon” (Luke 16:13).
Jesus spoke a lot about economic issues. He says, “Blessed are you poor, for
yours is the kingdom of God” and “Woe to you that are rich, for you have
received your consolation” (Luke 6:20, 24). Many of his parables had to do
with wealth and the proper detachment from material things.
He knew that “where your treasure is, there will your heart be also,” which is
precisely why he commanded his followers: “Do not lay up for yourselves

treasures on earth” (Matt. 6:21, 19). He is not saying that the heart should or
should not be where the treasure is. He is stating the plain fact that wherever
you find the treasure, you will find the heart.
He exhorted the rich young ruler not just to have an inner attitude of
detachment from his possessions, but literally to get rid of his possessions if he
wanted the kingdom of God (Matt. 19:16–22). He says, “Take heed and
beware of all covetousness; for a man’s life does not consist in the abundance
of his possessions”(Luke 12:15).
He counseled people who came seeking God, “Sell your possessions, and give
alms; provide yourselves with purses that do not grow old, with a treasure in
the heavens that does not fail…” (Luke 12:33).
He told the parable of the rich farmer whose life centered in hoarding — we
might call him prudent; Jesus called him a fool (Luke 12:16–21). He states
that if we really want the kingdom of God we must, as a merchant in search of
fine pearls, be willing to sell everything we have to get it (Matt. 13:45, 46)
Jesus is not calling for a legalistic asceticism. He is calling for placing material
goods in their proper place and keeping them there. Asceticism and simplicity
are actually mutually incompatible. Asceticism renounces possessions.
Simplicity places possessionsin proper perspective.
The main goal of the spiritual discipline of simplicity is to “seek first the
Kingdom of God and his righteousness” (Matt. 6: ) so that everything else that
is necessaryfor life will fall in its proper place.

Jesus said, “Do not worry about tomorrow,” (Matt. 6:34), and the Apostle
Paul said, “Do not be anxious about anything” (Phil. 4:6). In both cases, the
point is that when you go to God first, everything you are worried about will
be taken care of.
Simplicity and freedom from anxiety are characterized by three inner
attitudes.
What we have is a gift from God.
What we have is to be cared for by God.
What we have is to be shared with others.
There is no greatness where there is not simplicity, goodness, and truth. -- Leo
Tolstoy
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Ten Principles for Practicing Simplicity*
Here are ten principles for the outward expressionof Simplicity.
1. Buy things for their usefulness rather than their status.
It keeps you from buying things you don’t need to impress people you don’t
even know.
2. Rejectanything that is producing an addiction in you.
Addiction to things is the greatestscourgeofthe 21stcentury.
3. Developa habit of giving things away.

This is an expressedrejectionof idolatry.
4. Refuse to be fooledby the allure of modern gadgetry.
Addiction to gadgetryis a particularly pernicious problem of post-modernity.
5. Learn to enjoy things without owning them.
Check a book out of the library instead of buying it. In fact, spend as much
time as possible in the library. Not only will you learn a lot without owning
anything — you’ll also meet some interesting people!
6. Developa deeperappreciation for God’s creation.
Spending time enjoying nature is not only free — you couldn’t own it even if
you wanted to.
7. Look with a healthy skepticismat all “buy now, pay later” schemes.
Later never comes.
8. Obey Jesus’instructions about plain, honestspeech.
Jesus said, “Let what you say be simply ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ anything more than this
comes from evil” (Matt. 5:37). If you agree to do something, do it. Avoid
flattery and half-truths. Make honesty and integrity the distinguishing
characteristics of your speech. This is also an important product of the
spiritual discipline of simplicity.
9. Rejectanything that breeds the oppressionof others.

This is to participate in evil.
10. Shun anything that distracts you from seeking first the kingdom of God.
Keep the main thing the main thing.
Try the spiritual discipline of simplicity and experience the liberating power it
will bring to your life.
*The ten principles are taken from Celebration of Discipline by Richard
Foster
SIMPLICITY THAT IS IN CHRIST
David Wilkerson
July 16, 2015
"I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtlety, so
your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity [the utter exclusiveness]
that is in Christ" (2 Corinthians 11:3).
Paul warns us not to be corrupted away from "the simplicity that is in
Christ." The Greek word for simplicity in this verse means singleness,
exclusiveness. In other words, "Christ is not a complex entity. The truth about
Him is very simple: Jesus is God. He is divine, born of a virgin, crucified and
raised from the dead. But I'm afraid you're being corrupted away from this
single, exclusive truth."

Paul then warns of ministers who preach a different Jesus: "If he that cometh
preacheth another Jesus, whom we have not preached, or if ye receive another
spirit, which ye have not received, or another gospel, which ye have not
accepted, ye might well bear with him" (11:4). Paul was telling the
Corinthians, in essence, "You're listening to another gospel, not to the gospel
of Christ. You're hearing about another Jesus, not the One who saved you.
And I fear you're going to be corrupted by this different Jesus, who isn't the
real Christ at all.
"You don't know it, but you're being led away from the divinity of Christ.
And I can't believe you put up with it! You're bearing with these teachers who
are corrupting you. You don't even test what they say to see if it's scriptural.
Right now, you're losing your discernment. You're sitting under a demonic
gospel, with another Jesus being exalted. And you don't know where it's
leading you."
My message to you here boils down to this single verse: "Jesus saith unto him,
I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by
me" (John 14:6). Jesus' statement here is absolutely exclusive. No Muslim, no
Hindu, no Jew, no Gentile, nobody can come to the Father by any way except
Christ.
Just as Jesus asked His twelve disciples, He asks us today: "Whom do men say
that I am?" (Mark 8:27). The disciples answered, "John the Baptist: but some
say, Elias [Elijah]; and others, One of the prophets" (8:28). But Jesus' real
question to His followers came next: "He saith unto them, But whom say ye
that I am?" (8:29).
Our answer must be the same as Peter's: "Thou art the Christ" (8:29). May
this be our confessionbefore the whole world, now and forever.
Potent Simplicity: What is the significance of Jesus’sacrifice?

Jesus came to give himself as a sacrifice for all peoples – so that we could find
God. This message was announced at the beginning of human history,
emblazoned with a Divine signature in the sacrifice of Abraham and in the
Passover sacrifice, with further details predicted in various prophecies in the
Old Testament. The echo of this primal promise was even remembered in the
ancient Chinese and South Asian histories. Why was his death so important
and emphasized? How does it show anything about the goodness of God? Or
about the love of God? These are questions worth considering.
The Bible declares something akin to a Law when it states:
For the wages ofsin is death… (Romans 6:23)
“Death” literally means ‘separation’. When our soul separates from our body
we die physically. In a similar way we are separated from God spiritually.
This is true because God is Holy (sinless) while we have become corrupted
from our original creationand so we sin.
We are separatedfrom God by our sins like a chasm betweentwo cliffs
This can be visualized in this illustration where we are on a cliff with God on
another cliff separated from us by this bottomless chasm. As a branch that
has been severed from a tree is dead, so we have severed ourselves from God
and become spiritually dead.
This separation causes guilt and fear. So what we naturally try to do is build
bridges to take us from our side (of death) to God’s side. We do this in many
different ways: going to church, temple or mosque, being religious, being good
and helpful, meditation, trying to be more helpful, praying more, etc. This list
of deeds to gain merit can be very long for some of us – and living them out
can be very complicated. This is illustrated in the next figure.
Good Efforts – useful as they may be – cannot bridge the separation between
us and God

The problem is that our efforts, merits, sacrifices and ascetic practices etc.,
though in themselves not bad, are insufficient because the payment required
(the ‘wages’) for our sins is ‘death’. Our efforts are like a ‘bridge’ that tries
to cross the divide separating ourselves from God – but in the end cannot span
the chasm. This is because though religious or moral efforts are not bad, they
will not solve our root problem. It is like trying to heal cancer (which results
in death) by eating vegetarian. Eating vegetarian is not bad – but it will not
cure cancer. Forthat you need a totally different treatment.
So far this Law is all Bad News – it is so bad we often do not even want to hear
it and we often fill our lives with activities and things hoping this Law will go
away. But just as cures for cancer become meaningful to us when the
diagnosis that we really have cancer sinks in, so the Bible emphasizes this Law
of sin and death to awakenour interestin a cure that is simple yet potent.
For the wages ofsin is death but… (Romans 6:23)
The small word ‘but’ shows that the direction of the message is about to
reverse, to the Good News of the Gospel – the cure. It shows both the
goodness andlove of God.
For the wages of sin is death but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus
our Lord (Romans 6:23)
The good news of the gospel is that the sacrifice of Jesus’ death is sufficient to
bridge this separation between us and God. We know this because three days
after his death Jesus rose bodily, coming alive again in a physical
resurrection. Though some people today choose to disbelieve the resurrection
of Jesus a very strong case can be made for it as shown in this public lecture I
did at a university (video link here). Jesus’ sacrifice was prophetically acted
out in Abraham’s sacrifice and with the inauguration of the Passover
sacrifice. Thesesigns pointing to Jesus were put there to help us find God.
Jesus was a human who lived a sinless life. Therefore he can ‘touch’ both the
human and the God sides and span the chasm separating God and people. He
is a Bridge to Life which can be illustrated as below

Jesus is the Bridge that spans the chasm betweenGod and man.
Notice how this sacrifice of Jesus is given to us. It is offered as a … ‘gift’.
Think about gifts. No matter what the gift is, if it is really a gift it is
something that you do not work for and that you do not earn by merit. If you
earned it the gift would no longer be a gift! In the same way you cannot merit
or earn the sacrifice ofJesus. It is given to you as a gift. It is that simple.
And what is the gift? It is ‘eternal life’. That means that the sin which
brought you and me death is now cancelled. Jesus’ sacrifice is a bridge which
you can cross to connect with God and receive life – that lasts forever. This
gift is given by Jesus who, by rising from the dead, shows himself to be ‘Lord’.
God is inviting us to Life like when Pinochio became a child of Geppetto. God
loves you and me that much. It is that potent.
So how do you and I ‘cross’ this Bridge of Life that is offered to us? Again,
think of gifts. If someone comes and gives you a gift it is something you do not
work for. But to get any benefit from the gift you must ‘receive’ it. Anytime a
gift is offered there are two alternatives. Either the gift is refused (“No thank
you”) or it is received (“Thank you for your gift. I will take it”). So also this
gift offered must be received – simply that. It cannot simply be mentally
assented to, studied or understood. This is illustrated in the next figure where
we ‘walk’ on the Bridge by turning to God and receiving his gift he offers to
us.
Jesus’sacrifice is a Gift that eachof us must choose to receive
So how do we receive this gift? The Bible says that
Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved (Romans 10:12)
Notice that this promise is for ‘everyone’. Since he rose from the dead Jesus is
alive even now and he is ‘Lord’. So if you call on him he will hear and extend
his gift to you. You need to call out to him and ask him – by having a
conversation with him. Perhaps you have never done this. Here is a guide
that can help you have this conversation and prayer with him. It is not a

magic incantation. It is not the specific words that give power. It is the trust
like Abraham had that we have in his ability and willingness to give us this
gift. As we trust him He will hear us and respond – we will find God. The
Gospel is potent, and yet so simple at the same time. So feel free to follow this
guide as you either speak out loud or silently in your spirit to Jesus to receive
his gift.
Dear Lord Jesus. I understand that with the sins in my life I am separated
from God. Though I can try hard, no effort and sacrifice on my part will
bridge this separation. But I understand that your death was a sacrifice to
wash away all sins – even my sins. I believe that you rose from the dead after
your sacrifice so I can know that your sacrifice was sufficient. I ask you to
please cleanse me from my sins and bridge me to God so I can have eternal
life. I do not want to live a life enslaved to sin so please free me from sin.
Thank you, Lord Jesus, for doing all this for me and would you even now
continue to guide me in my life so I canfollow you as my Lord.
Amen https://considerthegospel.org/2014/02/15/potent-simplicity-what-is-the-
significance-of-jesus-sacrifice/
Question:"What is divine simplicity?"
Answer: Divine simplicity is the concept that God does not exist in parts but is
wholly unified, with no distinct attributes, and whose existence is synonymous
with His essence. The doctrine of divine simplicity is related to the doctrines of
divine aseity, transcendence, and unity. Augustine, Anselm, and Aquinas all
defined and promoted the doctrine.
According to divine simplicity, as traditionally understood, God is the center
of all divine attributes, without form or physical representation. Divine
simplicity is the argument that God does not possess qualities; He is those

qualities. For example, God does not have existence; He is existence itself.
Omniscience is not something God has; God is omniscience. First John 4:16
says, in part, “God is love, and the one who abides in love abides in God, and
God abides in him.” Divine simplicity sees that statement as validating the
point that God does not possess loving attributes; rather, He defines the very
conceptof love.
Further, divine simplicity teaches that what seem to be God’s various traits
are in reality indivisible and indistinguishable. God’s love is the same as His
mercy, which is the same as His knowledge, which is the same as His justice.
This would have to be true, because of the principle of transitivity: if a = b
and a = c, then b = c (if God = love and God = existence, then love = existence).
Traditional theists (those who believe that a God or gods do exist) and deists
(those who believe that God created the universe and then left it alone) may
have few objections to the concept of divine simplicity, but there are some
serious difficulties with it. Dr. William Lane Craig has dissected the four
major claims of divine simplicity (www.reasonablefaith.org/divine-simplicity,
accessed6/5/2017):
1. God is not distinct from His nature. This claim can be accepted as true
because it also describes angels. Heavenly beings are who they are, without a
sin nature and the qualities that follow that sin nature.
2. God’s properties are not distinct from one another. This claim cannot be
truth, because God is a Person, though Spirit, and as such expresses different
characteristics in different situations. For example, rejection and acceptance
cannot be present simultaneously. God rejected Eliab from being king (1
Samuel 16:7). He could not at the same time accept Eliab as king. Those

properties are distinct from one another. Also, existence cannot be identical to
omniscience, since there are many things that exist yet are not omniscient.
3. God’s nature is not distinct from His existence. This statement is also
problematic. Existence is a characteristic of God, but it does not define God. If
God’s nature were identical to His existence, then He would be simply the act
of existing; in other words, God would not really have an essence at all. This
idea, says Craig, “is unintelligible.”
4. God has no properties distinct from His nature. This claim appears to be
the most troublesome, as it implies that God’s qualities, including the choices
He makes, exist unrelated to outside elements. For example, God willed that
the Son die for sin (Isaiah 53:10). But the question arises, what if God had not
created the world? Would the Son’s death still be part of God’s will? Divine
simplicity says, yes, because His nature would be unchanged.
Divine simplicity is true in that God is simple enough for a child to accept
(Luke 18:17). But His nature is complex and multi-faceted. As has been said,
if God was small enough to fit inside the human brain, He would not be big
enough to be God.
The major problem with the concept of divine simplicity is that it portrays the
Lord as an idea, rather than a Person. The Person of God presents Himself to
us in human, not metaphysical, terms. He calls Himself a Father (2
Corinthians 6:18). He uses earthly comparisons to describe His attributes
(Luke 13:34; Hosea 1:2). And He documents His range of emotion and
responses to our obedience or rejection of Him (2 Kings 22:17; Zephaniah
3:17). When Jesus came to earth (Philippians 2:4–11), He shattered any ideas
that God was merely a concept. Jesus brought the complexity of the Creator
into a humble carpenter’s home, with hands and feet, eyes and mouth. He

showed us what God is like, and faith means we take Him at His word (John
10:30;14:9–11). https://www.gotquestions.org/divine-simplicity.html
The Discipline of Simplicity By Richard J. Foster Simplicity is freedom.
Duplicity is bondage. Simplicity brings joy and balance. Duplicity brings
anxiety and fear. The preacher of Ecclesiastes observes that "God made man
simple; man's complex problems are of his own devising" (Eccles. 7:30).
Because many of us are experiencing the liberation God brings through
simplicity we are once againsinging an old Shakerhymn:
'Tis the gift to be simple, 'Tis the gift to be free, 'Tis the gift to come down
where you ought to be, And when we find ourselves in the place just right,
'Twill be in the valley of love and delight. When true simplicity is gained, To
bow and to bend we shan't be ashamed. To turn, turn will be our delight 'Till
by turning, turning we come round right.
The Christian Discipline of simplicity is an inward reality that results in an
outward lifestyle. Both the inward and the outward aspects of simplicity are
essential. We deceive ourselves if we believe we can possess the inward reality
without its having a profound effect on how we live. To attempt to arrange an
outward lifestyle of simplicity without the inward reality leads to deadly
legalism. Simplicity begins in inward focus and unity .... Experiencing the
inward reality liberates us outwardly. Speech becomes truthful and honest.
The lust for status and position is gone because we no longer need status and
position. We cease from showy extravagance not on the grounds of being
unable to afford it, but on the grounds of principle. Our goods become
available to others. We join the experience that Richard E. Byrd, after months
alone in the barren Arctic, recorded in his journal, "I am learning ... that a
man can live profoundly without masses of things." Contemporary culture
lacks both the inward reality and the outward life-style of simplicity. We must
live in the modern world, and we are affected by its fractured and fragmented
state. We are trapped in a maze of competing attachments. One moment we
make decisions on the basis of sound reason and the next moment out offear

of what others will think of us. We have no unity or focus around which our
lives are oriented. Because we lack a divine Center our need for security has
led us into an insane attachmentto things. We really must un
Richard J. Foster is the author of many bestselling books, including A Year
with God, Streams of Living Water. and Prayer. This article is adapted from
his book Celebrationof Discipline: The Path to Spiritual Growth.
/
derstand that the lust for affluence in contemporary society is psychotic. It is
psychotic because it has completely lost touch with reality. We crave things we
neither need nor enjoy. We buy things we do not want to impress people we
do not like. Where planned obsolescence leaves off, psychological obsolescence
takes over. We are made to feel ashamed to wear clothes or drive cars until
they are worn out. The mass media have convinced us that to be out of step
with fashion is to be out of step with reality. It is time we awaken to the fact
that conformity to a sick society is to be sick. Until we see how unbalanced our
culture has become at this point, we will not be able to deal with the mammon
spirit within ourselves nor will we desire Christian simplicity. This psychosis
permeates even our mythology. The modern hero is [one] who purposefully
becomes rich rather than [one] who voluntarily becomes poor. .. Covetousness
we call ambition. Hoarding we call prudence. Greed we call industry ...
Courageously, we need to articulate new, more human ways to live. We should
take exception to the modern psychosis that defines people by how much they
can produce or what they earn. We should experiment with bold new
alternatives to the present death-giving system. The Spiritual Discipline of
simplicity is not a lost dream, but a recurrent vision throughout history. It can
be recaptured today. It must be.
THE BIBLE AND SIMPLICITY Before attempting to forge a Christian view
of simplicity it is necessary to destroy the prevailing notion that the Bible is
ambiguous about economic issues. Often it is felt that our response to wealth
is an individual matter. The Bible's teaching in this area is said to be strictly a
matter of private interpretation. We try to believe that Jesus did not address
himself to practical economic questions. No serious reading of Scripture can

substantiate such a view. The biblical injunctions against the exploitation of
the poor and the accumulation of wealth are clear and straightforward. The
Bible challenges nearly every economic value of contemporary society. For
example, the Old Testament takes exception to the popular notion of an
absolute right to private property. The earth belongs to God, says Scripture,
and therefore cannot be held perpetually (Lev. 25 :23). The Old Testament
legislation of the year of Jubilee stipulated that all land was to revert back to
its original owner. In fact, the Bible declares that wealth itself belongs to God,
and one purpose of the year of Jubilee was to provide a regUlar redistribution
of wealth. Such a radical view of economics flies in the face of nearly all
contemporary belief and practice. Had Israel faithfully observed the Jubilee it
would have dealt a death blow to the perennial problem of the rich becoming
richer and the poor becoming poorer.
Constantly the Bible deals decisively with the inner spirit of slavery that an
idolatrous attachment to wealth brings. "If riches increase, set not your heart
on them," counsels the Psalmist (Ps. 62: 10). The tenth commandment is
against covetousness, the inner lust to have, which leads to stealing and
oppression .... Jesus declared war on the materialism of his day. (And I would
suggest that he declares war on the materialism of our day as well.) The
Aramaic term for wealth is "mammon" and Jesus condemns it as a rival God:
"No servant can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the
other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve
God and mammon" (Luke 16:13). He speaks frequently and unambiguously
to economic issues. He says, "Blessedare
"Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have;
for he has said, 'I will never fail you nor forsake you'" (Heb. 13:5) ... Paul calls
covetousness idolatry and commands stem discipline against anyone guilty of
greed (Eph. 5:5; 1 Cor. 5: 11) .... He counsels the wealthy not to trust in their
wealth, but in God, and to share generously with others (1 Tim. 6:17-19).
Having said all this, I must hasten to add that God intends that we should
have adequate material provision. There is misery today from a simple lack of
provision just as there is misery when people try to make a life out of
provision. Forced poverty is evil and should be renounced. Nor does the Bible
condone an extreme asceticism. Scripture declares consistently

The Christian discipline of simplicity is an inward reality that results in an
outward lifestyle.
and forcefully that the creation is good and to be enjoyed. Asceticism makes
an unbiblical division between a good spiritual world and an evil material
world and so finds salvation in paying as little attention as possible to the
physical realm of existence.
you poor, for yours is the kingdom of God" and "Woe to you that are rich, for
you have received your consolation" (Luke 6:20,24) .. .. He saw the grip that
wealth can have on a person. He knew that "where your treasure is, there will
your heart be also," which is precisely why he commanded his followers: "Do
not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth" (Matt. 6:21,19). He is not saying
that the heart should or should not be where the treasure is. He is stating the
plain fact that wherever you find the treasure, you will find the heart. He
exhorted the rich young ruler not just to have an inner attitude of detachment
from his possessions, but literally to get rid of his possessions if he wanted the
kingdom of God (Matt. 19: 16-22). He says "Take heed, and beware of all
covetousness; for a man's life does not consist in the abundance of his
possessions" (Luke 12:15). He counseled people who came seeking God, "Sell
your possessions, and give alms; provide yourselves with purses that do not
grow old, with a treasure in the heavens that does not fail.. ." (Luke 12:33). He
told the parable of the rich farmer whose life centered in hoarding-we would
call him prudent; Jesus called him a fool (Luke 12: 16-21). He states that if we
really want the kingdom of God we must, like a merchant in search of fine
pearls, be willing to sell everything we have to get it (Matt. 13:45,46). He calls
all who would follow him to a joyful life of carefree unconcern for possessions:
"Give to everyone who begs from you; and of him who takes away your goods
do not ask them again" (Luke 6:30). Jesus speaks to the question of economics
more than any other single social issue. If, in a comparatively simple society,
our Lord lays such strong emphasis upon the spiritual dangers of wealth, how
much more should we who live in a highly affluent culture take seriously the
economic question? The Epistles reflect the same concern. Paul says, "Those
who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a snare, into many senseless
and hurtful desires that plunge men into ruin and destruction" (1 Tim. 6:9) ...

A deacon is not to be "greedy for gain" (1 Tim. 3:8). The writer to the
Hebrews counsels,
Asceticism and simplicity are mutually incompatible. Occasional superficial
similarities in practice must never obscure the radical difference between the
two. Asceticism renounces possessions. Simplicity sets possessions in proper
perspective. Asceticism finds no place for a "land flowing with milk and
honey." Simplicity rejoices in this gracious provision from the hand of God.
Asceticism finds contentment only when it is abased. Simplicity knows
contentment in both abasement and abounding (Phil. 4:12). . Simplicity is the
only thing that sufficiently reorients our lives so that possessions can be
genuinely enjoyed without destroying us. Without simplicity we will either
capitulate to the "mammon" spirit of this present evil age, or we will fall into
an un-Christian legalistic asceticism. Both lead to idolatry. Both are
spiritually lethal. Descriptions of the abundant material provision God gives
his people abound in Scripture. "For the Lord your God is bringing you into a
good land ... a land .. .in which you will lack nothing" (Deut. 8:7-9). Warnings
about the danger of provisioris that are not kept in proper perspective also
abound. "Beware lest you say in your heart, 'My power and the might of my
hand have gotten me this wealth'" (Deut. 8: 17). The Spiritual Discipline of
simplicity provides the needed perspective. Simplicity sets us free to receive
the provision of God as a gift that is not ours to keep and can be freely shared
with others. Once we recognize that the Bible denounces the materialist and
the ascetic with equal vigor, we are prepared to turn our attention to the
framing of a Christian understanding of simplicity.
THE OUTWARD EXPRESSION OF SIMPLICITY To describe simplicity
only as an inner reality is to say something false. The inner reality is not a
reality until there is an outward expression. To experience the liberating spirit
of simplicity will affect how we live. As I have warned earlier, every attempt
to give specific application to simplicity runs the risk of a deterioration into
legalism. It is a risk, however, that
we must take, for to refuse to discuss specifics would banish the discipline to
the theoretical.. .. [So, I] suggest ten controlling principles for the outward
expression of simplicity. They should never be viewed as laws but as only one

attempt to flesh out the meaning of simplicity for today. First, buy things for
their usefulness rather than their status. Cars should be bought for their
utility, not their prestige. Co~sider riding a bicycle. When you are considering
an apartment, a condominium, or a house, thought should be given to
livability rather than how much it will impress others .... Consider your
clothes. Most people ... buy clothes because they want to keep up with the
fashions. Hang the fashions! Buy what you need .... If it is practical in your
situation, learn the joy of making clothes .... John Wesley writes, "As ... for
apparel, I buy the most lasting and, in general, the plainest I can. I buy no
furniture but what is necessary and cheap." Second, reject anything that is
producing an addiction in you. Learn to distinguish between a real
psychological need, like cheerful surroundings, and an addiction .. .. If you
have become addicted to television, by all means sell your set or give it away.
Any of the media that you find you cannot do without, get rid of: radios,
stereos, magazines, videos, newspapers, books. If money has a grip on your
heart, give some away and feel the inner release. Simplicity is freedom, not
slavery. Refuse to be a slave to anything but God. Remember, an addiction, by
its very nature, is something that is beyond your control. Resolves of the will
alone are useless in defeating a true addiction. You cannot just decide to be
free of it. But you can decide to open this comer of your life to the forgiving
grace and healing power of God. You can decide to allow loving friends who
know the ways of prayer to stand with you ....
cent of the world's population, but consumes about thirty-three percent of the
world's energy .. .. Environmental responsibility alone should keep us from
buying the majority of the gadgets produced today .... Fifth, learn to enjoy
things without owning them. Owning things is an obsession in our culture. If
we own it, we feel we can control it; and if we can control it, we feel it will give
us more pleasure. The idea is an illusion. Many things in life can be enjoyed
without possessing or controlling them. Share things. Enjoy the beach without
feeling you have to buy a piece of it. Enjoy public parks and libraries. Sixth,
develop a deeper appreciation for the creation. Get close to the earth. Walk
whenever you can. Listen to the birds. Enjoy the texture of grass and leaves.
Smell the flowers. Marvel in the rich colors everywhere. Simplicity means to
discover once again that "the earth is the Lord's and the fullness thereof'

(Ps.24:1). Seventh, look with a healthy skepticism at all "buy now, pay later"
schemes. They are a trap and only deepen your bondage. Both Old and New
Testaments condemn usury for good reasons. ("Usury" in the Bible is not
used in the modem sense of exorbitant interest; it referred to any kind of
interest at all.) Charging interest was viewed as an unbrotherly exploitation of
another's misfortune, hence a denial of community. Jesus denounced usury as
a sign of the old life and admonished his disciples to "lend, expecting nothing
in return" (Luke 6:35). These words of Scripture should not be elevated into
some kind of universal law obligatory upon all cultures at all times. But
neither should they be thought of as totally irrelevant to . modern society ....
Certainly prudence, as well as simplicity, demands that we use extreme
caution before incurring debt. Eighth, obey Jesus' instructions about plain,
honest speech.
Third, develop a habit of giving things away. If you find that you are
becoming attached to some possession, consider giving it to someone who
needs it. I still remember the Christmas I decided that rather than buy
Get close to the Earth. Walk wheneveryou can. Listen to the birds.
ing or even making an item, I would give away something that meant a lot to
me. My motive was selfish: I wanted to know the liberation that comes from
even this simple act of voluntary poverty. The gift was a ten-speed bike. As I
went to the person's home to deliver the present, I remember singing with.
new meaning the worship chorus, "Freely, freely you have received; freely,
freely give." When my son Nathan was six years old he heard of a classmate
who needed a lunch pail and asked me ifhe could give him his own lunch pail.
Hallelujah! ... Fourth, refuse to be propagandized by the custodians of modem
gadgetry. Timesaving devices almost never save time .... Most gadgets are
built to break down and wear out and so complicate our lives rather than
enhance them. This problem is a plague in the toy industry .... Often children
find more joy in playing with old pots and pans than with the latest space set.
Look for toys that are educational and durable. Make some yourself Usually
gadgets are an unnecessary drain on the energy resources of the world. The
United States has less than six per

"Let what you say be simply 'Yes' or 'No'; anything more than this comes
from evil" (Matt. 5:37). If you consent to do a task, do it. Avoid flattery and
half-truths. Make honesty and integrity the distinguishing characteristics of
your speech. Reject jargon and abstract speculation whose purpose is to
obscure and impress rather than to illuminate and inform. Plain speech is
difficult because we so seldom live out of the divine Center .... But if our
speech comes out of obedience to the divine Center, we will find no reason to
turn our "yes" into "no" and our "no" into "yes." We will be living in
simplicity of speech because our words will have only one Source. Soren
Kierkegaard writes: "If thou art absolutely obedient to God, then there is no
ambiguity in thee and ... thou art mere simplicity before God ... One thing
there is which all Satan's cunning and all the snares oftemptation cannot take
by surprise, and that is simplicity." Ninth, reject anything that breeds the
oppression of others. Perhaps no person has more fully embodied this
principle than the eighteenth-century Quakertailor John Woolman.
His famous Journal is redundant with tender references to his desire to live so
as not to oppress others. "Here I was led into a close and laborious inquiry
whether I. .. kept clear from all things which tended to stir up or were
connected with wars; ... my heart was deeply concerned that in [the] future I
might in all things keep steadily to the pure truth, and live and walk in the
plainness and simplicity of a sincere follower of Christ. .. . And here luxury
and covetousness, with the numerous oppressions and other evils attending
them, appeared very afflicting to me .... " This is one of the most difficult and
sensitive issues for us to face, but face it we must. Do we sip our coffee and eat
our bananas at the expense of exploiting Latin American peasants? In a world
of limited resources, does our lust for wealth mean the poverty of others?
Should we buy products that are made by forcing people into dull assembly-
line jobs? Do we enjoy hierarchical relationships in the company or factory
that keep others under us? Do we oppress our children or spouse because we
feel certain tasks are beneath us? Often our oppression is tinged with racism,
sexism, and nationalism. The colorof the skin still affects one's position in the
company. The sex of a job applicant still affects the salary. The national origin
of a person still affects the way he or she is perceived. May God give us
prophets today who, like John Woolman, will call us "from the desire of

Jesus was a man of simplicity

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