Back in the late 1970s, between college and seminary, I was
working in Washington, and earning a Master’s in Public Administration at George
Washington University. Of the many courses I took, the one that’s been the most
helpful over the past 40 years was a course in macro-economics entitled,
“Efficiency and Effectiveness”. The thesis of the course was that the
principles of macro-economics apply, as Henry often says, “Across the Board,”
in both government and business. But the truth is, they apply everywhere—including
in the life and ministry of Jesus.
So what’s the difference between effectiveness and efficiency?
Both words are popular today. The problem is they’re commonly misused and
misinterpreted. Effectiveness is best defined as an action or series of actions
that are adequate to accomplish a goal. Efficiency is best defined as
functioning in a way that most reduces or eliminates waste of time or effort.
The difference between effectiveness and efficiency can best
be summed up this way: Being effective is about doing the right things, while
being efficient is about doing things right. In every human endeavor the
synergy of effectiveness and efficiency is critical but elusive, as you can see
in this chart:
It's obvious that there’s only one quadrant in which
effectiveness and efficiency come together and that’s the one in the upper
right. This is the quadrant to which everyone aspires, regardless of the work
they do
.
In John 7, John is the only gospel writer to show us the
personification of effectiveness and efficiency in Jesus of Nazareth. Here
Jesus is interacting with His biological brothers, His half-brothers, who are
suggesting that He leave Galilee and head south to Judea so that His popularity
might explode. After all, they reason, it’s the Feast of Tabernacles. Millions
of Jews will be in Jerusalem. What better place to strut His stuff. It seems
like a reasonable suggestion, but Jesus rejects it out of hand. And it’s in
this interaction that we find four keys to Jesus’ incomparable effectiveness.
It’s easy to pass over what John is showing us in John 7:1-13; but we dare not,
for in these verses we find much food for our soul.
In preparation for Sunday’s message, “Why Jesus Was
Effective”, you may wish to consider the following:
1. What does John 4:31-36 tell us about the goal of Jesus’ life
and ministry?
2. How is this goal upheld by Jesus in John 4?
3. How does John 6:25-29 speak to the goal of Jesus?
4. What correlation do you see between John 6:66 and our
passage this Sunday?
5. What motivates Jesus’ brothers in John 7:3-4?
6. What characteristic of Jesus is John describing in verse 1?
7. What is Jesus describing about Himself in verse 6?
8. What does He mean in verse 8?
9. What is the typical interpretation of verse 7? How does it
differ from what Jesus is saying?
10. How successfully effective and efficient is Jesus in this
story? See verses 10-13?
See you Sunday!
