I recently watch the movie, The Simple Life of Noah Dearborn, free, on Amazon Prime. I was amazed that the character Noah, played by Sidney Poitier, is the best example of the biblical simple godly life that I have seen since I was converted 15 years ago.
Noah was blessed with the skill of carpentry and took great joy in working with wood and in helping others. He lived to work. Everyone who knew him was impacted greatly by his passion.
A real estate developer was trying to buy Noah’s land as part of a commercial development, and the interactions Noah had with all the real estate people from New York, caused them (and movie viewers) to quickly see very obvious things about their own lives that had never been apparent to them before meeting Noah.
The personal qualities each saw about himself differed slightly but I will compare and contrast them in terms of qualities Christs speaks of in His Sermon on the Mount.
Noah had a single-minded devotion to work; he shared his skill and the produce he grew on his land; he had time to help others solve problems in their lives; others sought him out for his expertise and assistance.
Noah did all the above in a selfless manner. His qualities and conduct caused the following characteristics in others to stand out very clearly:
Selfishness; covetousness; greed; deceit; manipulation; superficiality….
In their interactions with Noah, these qualities became apparent to them. Noah did not critique people with whom he interacted, he said very little; but his conduct, motives, concerns…were honest. That is, he was not interacting in a worldly way wherein he sought to accomplish some personal agenda, acquire something….
His lifestyle caused two of the outsiders to change their own lives, to quit their jobs and pursue things that they had been putting off; it caused others to marvel and to begin examining their own motives, goals and interests.
No one remained the same. Everyone was changed by interacting with Noah.
RELEVANCE TO THE CHRISTIAN LIFE:
I have to say that the character Noah enabled me to understand just how it is that the life of a Christian is supposed to impact those around him / her.
If we are single-mindedly focused on knowing, loving, serving…God (like Noah was single-mindedly focused on his passion), then others will be impacted by that kind of life.
We may not have to say a word. What moves us will be apparent to them; what moves them will be apparent to them. The disparity will be experienced and a reaction will occur.
What might that reaction be? It is stated in Matthew 5:8 — 5:16: some would persecute us; some would be moved to be like us, to seek the things that have made us like we have shown ourselves to be.
RELEVANCE TO THOSE CHRISTIAN LEADERS WHO DESIRE TO MAKE THE CHURCH MORE “RELEVANT,” WORLDLY…:
Worldly Christians could never have that kind of impact on those with whom they interact; they could only increase their worldliness!
Mainstream Christianity (the market driven church, the prosperity church; the ecumenical church…) is worldly. It has no salt or light. Salt and light come from those who are transformed by God’s Spirit via His word.
STUDY RECOMMENDATIONS:
Watch the movie
Abide in God’s means of grace and diligently seek to know, love and serve Him and thereby be salt and light