You may be wondering, what does And Then Some mean?
You also may be thinking nothing of the sort, but I’m going to pretend that you are. If you’ve ever watched Pinky and the Brain, you’ll know that when Brain asked, “Are you pondering what I’m pondering?” he never actually meant it—and Pinky would always just go along with it anyway.
Around about a year ago I discovered podcasts, and the thing I loved about them was that I could listen to some of the greatest preachers in the world for free, without them having to come to my home church to preach, without having to go to Hillsong, and all the while be getting God’s word into me. It was a highly appealing concept, and so I now have the likes of Kameel Majdali, Brian Houston, Judah Smith and John Bevere wherever I take my computer or iPod. But the preacher whose sermons have blessed me most is Jentezen Franklin, from Free Chapel in Gainesville, Georgia. I’ve not since heard a single preacher who speaks with such awe-inspiring passion or conviction. And his teaching is actually from the Bible.
And Then Some is a title of one of JF’s sermons. What he preached about was going beyond expectations in life, in work, in ministry, and basically everywhere. I mean, that’s what a Christian is supposed to be, right? Jesus commanded us to be salt and light (Mt 5:13–16), which means that by our very nature we should change our surroundings. The element of this changing phenomenon that JF preached about was going beyond the status quo.
Here’s an example from the message. Everyone’s probably heard the phrase “to go the extra mile.” JF says that when Jesus said this, he referred to how any Roman soldier could command a Jew to carry their equipment. The Jews would be forced to obey this command, by the laws of the day. “And then some” suggests that not only should the Jews do this willingly and without grumbling, but they should indeed go double what was asked and do an extra mile, not just the required one mile. That’s a hard act to follow, but from the One who said “Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you” (Mt 5:44), it definitely makes sense.
I like the concept, though I must say that I’m not very good at it. Too often I take the easy way out, when I should be giving my all. Who hasn’t experienced that moment of hesitation when called upon to go beyond the call of duty?
I want to be good at it; I want to do as Christ commanded. But why would I name my blog after it? Maybe it’s just a description of my worldview, or at least what I’d like it to be. Maybe it’s to encourage you to do the same. But a little deeper than that, it speaks of going against expectations, and eventually changing them. There are many out there who profess to be Christians but live exactly as the world lives. That’s an expectation that I’d like to change.
So if you are a Christian and know what I’m talking about, I hope to encourage you to do the same. And if you’re not, then I hope and pray that your expectation of what a Christian is might change.
Even if it’s just a little.
And Then Some (about the title)
You may be wondering, what does And Then Some mean?
You also may be thinking nothing of the sort, but I’m going to pretend that you are. If you’ve ever watched Pinky and the Brain, you’ll know that when Brain asked, “Are you pondering what I’m pondering?” he never actually meant it—and Pinky would always just go along with it anyway.
Around about a year ago I discovered podcasts, and the thing I loved about them was that I could listen to some of the greatest preachers in the world for free, without them having to come to my home church to preach, without having to go to Hillsong, and all the while be getting God’s word into me. It was a highly appealing concept, and so I now have the likes of Kameel Majdali, Brian Houston, Judah Smith and John Bevere wherever I take my computer or iPod. But the preacher whose sermons have blessed me most is Jentezen Franklin, from Free Chapel in Gainesville, Georgia. I’ve not since heard a single preacher who speaks with such awe-inspiring passion or conviction. And his teaching is actually from the Bible.
And Then Some is a title of one of JF’s sermons. What he preached about was going beyond expectations in life, in work, in ministry, and basically everywhere. I mean, that’s what a Christian is supposed to be, right? Jesus commanded us to be salt and light (Mt 5:13–16), which means that by our very nature we should change our surroundings. The element of this changing phenomenon that JF preached about was going beyond the status quo.
Here’s an example from the message. Everyone’s probably heard the phrase “to go the extra mile.” JF says that when Jesus said this, he referred to how any Roman soldier could command a Jew to carry their equipment. The Jews would be forced to obey this command, by the laws of the day. “And then some” suggests that not only should the Jews do this willingly and without grumbling, but they should indeed go double what was asked and do an extra mile, not just the required one mile. That’s a hard act to follow, but from the One who said “Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you” (Mt 5:44), it definitely makes sense.
I like the concept, though I must say that I’m not very good at it. Too often I take the easy way out, when I should be giving my all. Who hasn’t experienced that moment of hesitation when called upon to go beyond the call of duty?
I want to be good at it; I want to do as Christ commanded. But why would I name my blog after it?1 Maybe it’s just a description of my worldview, or at least what I’d like it to be. Maybe it’s to encourage you to do the same. But a little deeper than that, it speaks of going against expectations, and eventually changing them. There are many out there who profess to be Christians but live exactly as the world lives. That’s an expectation that I’d like to change.
So if you are a Christian and know what I’m talking about, I hope to encourage you to do the same. And if you’re not, then I hope and pray that your expectation of what a Christian is might change.
Even if it’s just a little.