Signs and Portents

The Pharisees heard the crowd muttering such things about him, and the chief priests and Pharisees sent temple police to arrest him.  Jesus then said, “I will be with you a little while longer, and then I am going to him who sent me. You will search for me, but you will not find me; and where I am, you cannot come.” The Jews said to one another, “Where does this man intend to go that we will not find him? Does he intend to go to the Dispersion among the Greeks and teach the Greeks? What does he mean by saying, ‘You will search for me and you will not find me’ and ‘Where I am, you cannot come’?”

On the last day of the festival, the great day, while Jesus was standing there, he cried out, “Let anyone who is thirsty come to me, and let the one who believes in me drink. As the scripture has said, ‘Out of the believer’s heart shall flow rivers of living water.’” Now he said this about the Spirit, which believers in him were to receive; for as yet there was no Spirit, because Jesus was not yet glorified. 

When they heard these words, some in the crowd said, “This is really the prophet.” Others said, “This is the Messiah.” But some asked, “Surely the Messiah does not come from Galilee, does he? Has not the scripture said that the Messiah is descended from David and comes from Bethlehem, the village where David lived?”  So there was a division in the crowd because of him. Some of them wanted to arrest him, but no one laid hands on him. 

Then the temple police went back to the chief priests and Pharisees, who asked them, “Why did you not arrest him?” The police answered, “Never has anyone spoken like this!” Then the Pharisees replied, “Surely you have not been deceived too, have you? Has any one of the authorities or of the Pharisees believed in him? But this crowd, which does not know the law– they are accursed.” Nicodemus, who had gone to Jesus before, and who was one of them, asked, “Our law does not judge people without first giving them a hearing to find out what they are doing, does it?” They replied, “Surely you are not also from Galilee, are you? Search and you will see that no prophet is to arise from Galilee.” Then each of them went home… – John 7:32-53

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Today’s reading picks up in the middle of last week’s saga – and refers back to it in a number of places – so let’s fill in the missing parts first. To set the scene: as the story opens we are in or near the Temple in Jerusalem, about half-way through the Festival of Booths: a religious holiday which coincidentally happens to be going on this week IRL so wish your Jewish friends a blessed Festival! The festival is a harvest celebration mostly featuring food and giving thanks to God for his blessings – kind of like Thanksgiving only religious in nature, seven days long, and celebrated outdoors.

John begins this section of the story saying, “The Pharisees heard the crowd muttering things about Jesus” – things like, “When the Messiah comes, will he do more signs than this man has done?”

The people are starting to suspect that Jesus is the Messiah. 

Truth is, the chief priests and Pharisees have been suspecting the same for some time, but they don’t want the people to know this, so they send the temple police to arrest Jesus.

But Jesus isn’t arrested. Instead, he says something mysterious. He says: “I will be with you for a little while longer, and then I’m going to the one who sent me, and you won’t find me, because where I am you cannot come.”

From our perspective in the 21^st century we know Jesus is talking about returning home to God the Father. For Jesus’ contemporaries it wasn’t quite so clear, except for one thing: Jesus says “where I AM you cannot come” – which uses the name of God: “I AM”. So in this one short sentence Jesus makes it clear who he is.

But Pharisees start asking “where is he going to go that we can’t find him? Is he going to go to the Greeks (that is, to the Gentiles)?” Jesus actually is the “light to the Gentiles” but that particular part of Isaiah’s prophecy isn’t coming true just yet.

Then on the last day of the festival Jesus cries out, “anyone who is thirsty come to me.”  These words have great meaning in the context of the festival: every day during the festival, the priests go to the pool of Siloam and bring water into the temple. On the last day of the festival, the priests with the water circle the altar seven times and pour it out with great ceremony as an appeal to God to provide water for the people in the coming year.

It is in this context Jesus says anyone who thirsts should come to him. Jesus is taking God’s part and offering what God offers – in this case, much-needed water. Jesus adds, “as the scripture has said, ‘out of the believer’s heart shall flow rivers of living water.”

Two things to notice here: (1) Jesus is claiming to be the Source of life; and (2) this is the same thing Jesus said to the Samaritan woman he met at the well a few chapters back. The promise Jesus gave to the Samaritans, who received his words with faith and joy, is now being offered to his Jewish countrymen and women. 

The apostle John adds a third meaning: Jesus is referring to the Holy Spirit, which all believers in Jesus will receive – but not yet, because Jesus is not yet glorified. (Jesus himself remarks in another passage how he feels constrained, or held back, until the Holy Spirit is given.)

The people, hearing all this, are becoming more and more convinced Jesus is who he says he is. But then they start arguing over where Jesus is from – because (they say) he’s from Galilee, and the Messiah is supposed to come from Bethlehem.

Jesus speaks with a northern accent. But if anyone thought back thirty or so years, when the old King Herod was on the throne, and he heard a rumor about a baby king being born in Bethlehem – and because of it, Herod had all the babies two years old and under murdered – people wouldn’t forget an event like that. It would have stuck with them like 9/11. But somehow the people didn’t put two and two together.

Meanwhile in verse 45 the temple police return to the chief priests and Pharisees empty-handed, and the religious leaders ask: “why didn’t you arrest him??” And the police answer:

“Never has anyone spoken like this!”

Can you imagine this happening today – maybe in one of the cities where protests have been going on? If the police were sent out to arrest a certain rabble-rouser, and they came back to the precinct saying “you should hear this guy speak! He’s amazing! I’ve never heard anything like it!” Can you imagine the reaction?

It was pretty much the same thing back then. The Pharisees say, “Don’t tell us he’s deceived you too!!! Do any of us believe in him? This crowd is under a curse!” (How quickly the Pharisees turn on the average everyday people, the very people they’re supposed to be leading and teaching!)

And then we hear one calm, steady, reasonable, intelligent voice, saying:

“Our law doesn’t judge people without giving them a fair hearing…
does it?”

It’s the voice of Nicodemus, who we met back in chapter three, and to whom Jesus said possibly the most famous verse in the Bible: “for God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have everlasting life.” Nicodemus was the first person on the planet to ever hear those words.

Of all the characters in the Bible, I think Nicodemus is the one I’d most like to meet (next to Jesus). Nicodemus is gentle, steady, smart, trustworthy, honest, and willing to take a stand for the truth. And he does it knowing he’s risking everything.

The other Pharisees answer him: “You’re not from Galilee too, are you?” – which is a regional slam. In ancient Israel the educated and sophisticated people lived in the south near Jerusalem, and Galilee was sort of a northern backwater. So they insult him – or at least they try to – and then they add, “no prophet is supposed to come from Galilee.”

Which is a lie, and they know it. The Pharisees spent their entire lives memorizing scripture, so there’s no way they could have missed the verse from Isaiah that said, “in the latter time [God] has made glorious the way of the sea, the land beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the nations…

“The people who walked in darkness
     have seen a great light;
those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness,
     on them has light shone.”  (Isaiah 9:1-2)

…which is the beginning of one of the most beautiful and powerful prophecies of the Messiah we hear every year during Advent. The prophecy continues and in verse five:

“For every boot of the tramping warrior in battle tumult
     and every garment rolled in blood
     will be burned as fuel for the fire.
For to us a child is born,
     to us a son is given;
and the government shall be upon his shoulder,
     and his name shall be called
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
     Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” (Isaiah 9:5-6)

The Pharisees would have known this prophecy very, very well. But Nicodemus was the only one with the courage to stand up and stake his life on it. Some of the other Pharisees would come to faith eventually but Nicodemus was the first.

And that was the end of the conversation. “They all went home for the night…”

…and that’s where chapter seven ends, right in the middle of the sentence!

We will read the second half of this sentence next week. In the meantime it’s my hope that the word of God in this chapter – and the revelation of the Messiah that’s in it – will be an encouragement during these dark days. AMEN.

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At the Festival

After this Jesus went about in Galilee. He did not wish to go about in Judea because the Jews were looking for an opportunity to kill him. Now the Jewish festival of Booths was near. So his brothers said to him, “Leave here and go to Judea so that your disciples also may see the works you are doing; for no one who wants to be widely known acts in secret. If you do these things, show yourself to the world.” (For not even his brothers believed in him.)  Jesus said to them, “My time has not yet come, but your time is always here. The world cannot hate you, but it hates me because I testify against it that its works are evil. Go to the festival yourselves. I am not going to this festival, for my time has not yet fully come.” After saying this, he remained in Galilee.

But after his brothers had gone to the festival, then he also went, not publicly but as it were in secret. The Jews were looking for him at the festival and saying, “Where is he?” And there was considerable complaining about him among the crowds. While some were saying, “He is a good man,” others were saying, “No, he is deceiving the crowd.” Yet no one would speak openly about him for fear of the Jews.

About the middle of the festival Jesus went up into the temple and began to teach. The Jews were astonished at it, saying, “How does this man have such learning, when he has never been taught?”  Then Jesus answered them, “My teaching is not mine but his who sent me. Anyone who resolves to do the will of God will know whether the teaching is from God or whether I am speaking on my own. Those who speak on their own seek their own glory; but the one who seeks the glory of him who sent him is true, and there is nothing false in him.

“Did not Moses give you the law? Yet none of you keeps the law. Why are you looking for an opportunity to kill me?” The crowd answered, “You have a demon! Who is trying to kill you?” Jesus answered them, “I performed one work, and all of you are astonished. Moses gave you circumcision (it is, of course, not from Moses, but from the patriarchs), and you circumcise a man on the sabbath. If a man receives circumcision on the sabbath in order that the law of Moses may not be broken, are you angry with me because I healed a man’s whole body on the sabbath? Do not judge by appearances, but judge with right judgment.” 

Now some of the people of Jerusalem were saying, “Is not this the man whom they are trying to kill? And here he is, speaking openly, but they say nothing to him! Can it be that the authorities really know that this is the Messiah? Yet we know where this man is from; but when the Messiah comes, no one will know where he is from.” Then Jesus cried out as he was teaching in the temple, “You know me, and you know where I am from. I have not come on my own. But the one who sent me is true, and you do not know him. I know him, because I am from him, and he sent me.” Then they tried to arrest him, but no one laid hands on him, because his hour had not yet come. Yet many in the crowd believed in him and were saying, “When the Messiah comes, will he do more signs than this man has done?” – John 7:1-31

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At first glance today’s scripture reading looks like not much more than a bridge between John chapter six where Jesus is talking about the bread of life and John chapter eight which is about the woman caught in adultery; but this passage is important because it highlights the humanity of Jesus. It shows that he suffered, as a human being, in many of the same ways we do.

This chapter also shows the nature of crowds, and how being in crowds effects people’s thinking, and this hasn’t changed much in two thousand years. And this chapter shows Jesus being publicly loyal to God – and as he does, while some people take issue, others begin to catch on to what he’s saying.

Let’s take a look.

As the passage opens, Jesus is spending time in the region of Galilee in the north of Israel. The apostle John tells us Jesus is deliberately avoiding going to Judea in the south because the people in power are plotting to kill him. John says “the Jews” are trying to kill him, but he means the national leaders, because of course everyone in this story is Jewish including Jesus and the disciples. And the people in power in the south hold both political and religious power because there was no separation of church and state back then.

So Jesus is avoiding Jerusalem. But then the Festival of Booths comes around, which is an annual holiday when all Jewish people who are physically able are expected to travel to Jerusalem for a week-long religious celebration of the harvest.

So Jesus, being a healthy male, would have been expected to attend; but he chooses not to, and his brothers get on his case about it. They say to him essentially, “hey! If you really want to be famous you shouldn’t be hiding out. Go to the festival! Show yourself to the world!” And there’s an edge of sarcasm in their voices.

I’m sure some of us have known what it feels like to not be understood by the people close to us, or have known the pain of having family members not understand us. If we’ve ever felt this way – Jesus knows how it feels. He’s been there.

Jesus’ brothers don’t understand his calling, and they don’t believe he is who he says he is – at least not yet. After Jesus’ resurrection some of his brothers will believe in him, and one of them will actually become a leader in the church in Jerusalem. But right now they don’t get it, and they don’t really care that they don’t get it.

It’s weird that they bring up fame, accusing Jesus of wanting to be famous – because the thing is, Jesus’ brothers are the ones who are treating him like he’s a celebrity. They’re projecting their thoughts and beliefs onto him. Speaking as someone who makes a living in the public eye: throughout scripture I don’t see Jesus seeking fame. Jesus is often accused of seeking fame, but I don’t see him doing it. I see Jesus doing what God the Father tells him to do, and becoming famous as a result, but I don’t see Jesus seeking fame for its own sake. It’s an important difference. Someday I’ll give a sermon on how Jesus handles fame… but not today.

So after Jesus’ brothers take off for the festival Jesus decides to head down to Jerusalem quietly. He’s not sneaking, he’s just not blowing any trumpets.

Then the focus of the story shifts from Jesus to the crowd. We’re in Jerusalem now, at the festival, and we see the crowd muttering and whispering amongst themselves. The religious leaders have an eye out for Jesus and they’re asking “where is he?” as if they’re expecting him.  The general public are arguing among themselves like a bunch of voters disputing over a political candidate: “he’s a good man!” “No, he’s full of fake news!” But they’re speaking in whispers because the religious leaders have made it clear than anyone who believes in Jesus will be put out of the synagogue: an old-fashioned way of excommunicating people. So they’re keeping the talk in whispers.

So the festival begins, and somewhere in the middle of the week Jesus finally shows up… quietly… in the temple… and starts to teach.

The religious leaders are astonished, because Jesus is really good. Imagine a football player the first time they see Troy Polamalu playing on the field. Or a guitar player the first time they hear Eric Clapton play a live concert. They’re going “where’d he get all this? He’s never been taught! He’s never been trained! How does he know this?”

And Jesus answers them: “the words aren’t mine – they belong to the one who sent me. Anyone who decides to do God’s will recognizes the source of my words.”

And then Jesus confronts their sin: he says: “Moses gave you the law but you’re not keeping it. The commandment says ‘do not kill’ but you’re trying to kill me.” Jesus is referring to something that happened awhile back when he healed a blind man on the Sabbath – which was a powerful miracle – and some of the religious leaders believed in him but most of them didn’t because (they said) Jesus couldn’t be a real prophet because a real prophet wouldn’t heal on the Sabbath. And according to the law of Moses false prophets should be killed. So Jesus is right in saying they’re trying to kill him.

But they reply: “you have a demon! Who is trying to kill you?” (Talk about denial.)

So Jesus confronts them again. He says: “if you circumcise people on the Sabbath in order to keep the law of Moses, why is it wrong to heal the whole person on the Sabbath?”

And the crowd begins to catch on. They say: “isn’t this the one they’re trying to kill? But look! He’s standing right here talking in public and they’re not arresting him! Could he be the Messiah?  But… we know where this man is from; when the Messiah comes no one will know where he is from.”

Public opinion, as so often happens, has latched on to a half-truth. Yes, this is the one they’re trying to kill. No, they’re not arresting him… yet. Yes, he could be the Messiah. No, they don’t know where he’s from: they may think they do, but they don’t. Some of the religious leaders might recall that Jesus was born in Bethlehem; but the general public thinks he’s from Nazareth. And none of them grasp yet that Jesus is actually from heaven.

So Jesus confronts this lie. He says: “You know me, and you know where I’m from? I haven’t come on my own. The one who sent me is true and you don’t know him, but I know him because he sent me.”

At which point the religious leaders say to themselves and each other “blasphemy” and try to arrest him, but the attempt fails. And the people begin to believe.

Next week we’ll find out why the attempt at arresting Jesus fails. For this week, as we look at this passage, three things I’d like to point out:

(1) We see Jesus standing truly alone. His brothers are poking fun at him. He doesn’t appear to be staying with anyone at the festival. His disciples for some reason aren’t with him. He’s surrounded by people whose knowledge of him is based on gossip at best, conspiracy at worst. And the religious leaders are trying to kill him.

For those of us who follow Jesus, we will most likely go through times like these at some point. We will most likely find ourselves standing alone for Jesus at some point. When we do, Jesus gives us a shining example. Jesus has courage without needing bravado. Jesus knows who he is and he knows whose he is. Jesus doesn’t offend anyone but at the same time he’s not shy as he confronts the errors in peoples’ thinking.

(2) The crowd thinks it knows more than it knows (which is a good thing to keep in mind in the run-up to an election.) They mutter amongst themselves but few ask questions of Jesus directly. As believers, we need to know it’s OK to ask questions. It’s OK to ask God questions. It’s OK to bring doubts to God – in fact it’s unwise to do anything else with doubts.

(3) As Jesus speaks, and as he does the miracles he does, he reaches the hearts of some of the people. And they say, “when the Messiah comes, will he do more than this man has done?” In spite of opposition, gossip, and unfaithfulness of family, some hearts hear Jesus and know him for who he is – and they know this man is from God and can totally be trusted.

So where do we find ourselves in this story? And where would we like to be?

Let’s pray.

Lord thank you that you were willing to stand alone and be misunderstood — by people who loved you, and by people who had never met you. Thank you for standing up for the truth. Thank you for healing the blind man and not just keeping the letter of the law. Thank you for keeping on reaching out to us even when we don’t understand. Help us to see you as you really are, and help us to love you as you really are. May all the glory and honor be yours. AMEN.

 

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“You Are What You Eat”

Then the Jews began to complain about him because he said, “I am the bread that came down from heaven.” They were saying, “Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How can he now say, ‘I have come down from heaven’?” Jesus answered them, “Do not complain among yourselves. No one can come to me unless drawn by the Father who sent me; and I will raise that person up on the last day. It is written in the prophets, ‘And they shall all be taught by God.’ Everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to me. Not that anyone has seen the Father except the one who is from God; he has seen the Father. Very truly, I tell you, whoever believes has eternal life. I am the bread of life. Your ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness, and they died. This is the bread that comes down from heaven, so that one may eat of it and not die. I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Whoever eats of this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.”

The Jews then disputed among themselves, saying, “How can this man give us his flesh to eat?” So Jesus said to them, “Very truly, I tell you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood have eternal life, and I will raise them up on the last day; for my flesh is true food and my blood is true drink. Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood abide in me, and I in them. Just as the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father, so whoever eats me will live because of me. This is the bread that came down from heaven, not like that which your ancestors ate, and they died. But the one who eats this bread will live forever.” He said these things while he was teaching in the synagogue at Capernaum. 

When many of his disciples heard it, they said, “This teaching is difficult; who can accept it?” But Jesus, being aware that his disciples were complaining about it, said to them, “Does this offend you?  Then what if you were to see the Son of Man ascending to where he was before? It is the spirit that gives life; the flesh is useless. The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and life. But among you there are some who do not believe.” For Jesus knew from the first who were the ones that did not believe, and who was the one that would betray him. And he said, “For this reason I have told you that no one can come to me unless it is granted by the Father.”

Because of this many of his disciples turned back and no longer went about with him. So Jesus asked the twelve, “Do you also wish to go away?” Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, to whom can we go? You have the words of eternal life. We have come to believe and know that you are the Holy One of God.” Jesus answered them, “Did I not choose you, the twelve? Yet one of you is a devil.” He was speaking of Judas son of Simon Iscariot, for he, though one of the twelve, was going to betray him. – John 6:41-7

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There’s an old, old saying: you are what you eat – meaning if you eat healthy, you’ll be healthy.

Of course it isn’t meant to be taken literally, as in, if I eat broccoli I’ll turn into a broccoli stalk. The saying is metaphorical. And it could be applied very generally, as in, whatever we take into ourselves becomes part of us. This includes beautiful things like nature, or the love of family and friends, or the friendship we have with animals. And it includes things that aren’t so beautiful, like slasher movies or pornography or even advertising – which becomes part of us without us even being aware it’s happening.

In so many ways, we are what we consume. And in a consumer culture, that’s something to be aware of and to keep an eye on.

The saying you are what you eat also gives us a place to begin to understand what Jesus is talking about in this passage from John. The passage is difficult for a lot of reasons. Probably the biggest difficulty comes because Jesus is deliberately challenging people’s assumptions about faith. Everything people think they know about God and how to worship God is being called into question – and that’s true both for the people listening to him back then AND for us reading it today. Jesus is tearing down all the false teachings and little tiny idolatries that sneak into religion and get in the way of our relationship with God.

So the teaching of Jesus in this week’s passage is difficult. When people heard what Jesus had to say, some of them who had been following him for a year or two turned and walked away. But these are words all of us need to hear, myself included, and as the disciples said, “Lord you have the words of eternal life.”

There are three points Jesus makes that I want to draw out today:

1. Jesus says The prophets teach us that “all shall be taught by God.”
   In verse 45 Jesus says: Anyone who hears from God and “puts their minds to it” ends up coming to Jesus. Notice that the first action is God’s: no one can come to Jesus “unless the Father draws him.” We like to think we’re the ones making the choice – and how many times have we heard preachers say things like “make your decision for Jesus today!” But Jesus says the first move is God’s.

   At this point anyone reading who believes in predestination is cheering. Not.So.Fast. The very next thing Jesus says is “put your mind to it”. The whole sentence is: “All who have heard from my Father and learned” – and the Greek word for learned here is ‘mathon’, the word we get mathematics In other words, we need to study. Think. Yes, we have to hear from God first, but then we have to think on what God says, we have to put some skin in the game. A relationship takes two people.  As the writer of Hebrews says, “Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts…” (Heb 3:15) Our hearts need to be open to God, and our minds need to be engaged.

2. Jesus says in verse 47 that whoever believes has eternal life. Does this mean we will not pass through death? No. Even Jesus passes through death before entering eternal life. But faith is the foundation of entering into God’s kingdom.
3. The key is this – and this is Jesus’ third point – Jesus says: “I am the living bread that came down from heaven; whoever eats of this bread will live into eternity; and the bread which I will give on behalf of the life of the world is my flesh.”

This is a difficult saying for a lot of reasons. First, talking about eating someone’s flesh is a strange concept even as a metaphor. Second, Jesus is not talking about Holy Communion in this passage. Jesus will teach about communion later on but we’re not there yet. Third, Jesus is stressing that to follow him is more than just intellectually agreeing with what he says. Jesus is not our political candidate or our favorite celebrity and Jesus does not need cheerleaders. The relationship must go deeper.

Jesus’ words also do away with preconceived religious ideas. For the people listening 2000 years ago, when Jesus called himself “the bread from heaven” they would have thought back to the bread their ancestors ate in the wilderness: manna. People in Jesus’ time looked back on those days as a sign of God’s favor on anyone descended from Abraham: God’s chosen people. But they’d forgotten it wasn’t Moses but God who gave the manna. And they’d also forgotten their ancestors’ reaction when they first saw the stuff. They looked at this white flaky substance on the ground and asked: “What is it?” – or in Hebrew “manna”?  They called the stuff ‘What Is It’ and that became it’s name! That’s pretty much the same reaction the people are having to Jesus. “What’s he talking about? Doesn’t he come from Nazareth? And aren’t we saved because we have the Law of Moses and we’re God’s people? What’s he talking about Bread from Heaven? What is it?”

When Jesus talks about his ‘body and blood’ he’s talking about his own humanity, his own human nature. Jesus challenges us to see him and know him for what he truly is: fully God and fully human. He came from heaven, was sent to earth, and we need to take into ourselves both his godly nature and His human nature.

And then by the power of the Holy Spirit we become God’s children. As we grow in the faith – and as we pass from this life into the next – we take on a dual nature similar to that of Jesus. Jesus calls us brothers and sisters for a reason. This is a greatness and a majesty and a mystery that’s almost too much for us to conceive. But unless we grasp it and wrestle with it, we do not have life within us.

This is pretty much the point at which the disciples say: “Lord, this teaching is hard. Who can accept it?” And Jesus answers, “The spirit gives life; the flesh is useless; my words are spirit and life. And yet there are some who do not believe; for this reason I tell you no one can come to me unless it is granted by the Father.”

Jesus is giving his disciples the opportunity to recommit themselves. At the same time he’s pointing out there is a snake in the grass. The disciples learned later he was talking about Judas. It seems impossible, doesn’t it, that Judas, one of the twelve, who witnessed every miracle, who heard every word, who ate with Jesus, who was sent out by Jesus to preach and to heal, ended up betraying him? Proof again that saving faith is a combination of God’s call and human response – both have to happen.

So speaking metaphorically, we must eat the flesh and drink the blood of Jesus – that is, take into ourselves a sense of both his divine and human reality… and bring his reality and his truth into ourselves and make it part of us.  John’s message isn’t easy to grasp, but these are the words of eternal life. Let’s put our minds to it. AMEN.

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What Is God’s Will?

The next day the crowd that had stayed on the other side of the sea saw that there had been only one boat there. They also saw that Jesus had not got into the boat with his disciples, but that his disciples had gone away alone. Then some boats from Tiberias came near the place where they had eaten the bread after the Lord had given thanks. So when the crowd saw that neither Jesus nor his disciples were there, they themselves got into the boats and went to Capernaum looking for Jesus. 

When they found him on the other side of the sea, they said to him, “Rabbi, when did you come here?” Jesus answered them, “Very truly, I tell you, you are looking for me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves. Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures for eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. For it is on him that God the Father has set his seal.” Then they said to him, “What must we do to perform the works of God?” Jesus answered them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent.” So they said to him, “What sign are you going to give us then, so that we may see it and believe you? What work are you performing? Our ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written, ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’” Then Jesus said to them, “Very truly, I tell you, it was not Moses who gave you the bread from heaven, but it is my Father who gives you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is that which comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.” They said to him, “Sir, give us this bread always.”

Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty. But I said to you that you have seen me and yet do not believe. Everything that the Father gives me will come to me, and anyone who comes to me I will never drive away; for I have come down from heaven, not to do my own will, but the will of him who sent me. And this is the will of him who sent me, that I should lose nothing of all that he has given me, but raise it up on the last day. This is indeed the will of my Father, that all who see the Son and believe in him may have eternal life; and I will raise them up on the last day.” – John 6:22-40

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Today begins a series from the Gospel of John which will probably take us through the end of October – if you want to read ahead we’ll be focusing on John chapters six through eight over the next few weeks. This part of John’s gospel takes place is the middle of Jesus’ ministry, not the beginning or the end, so we’ll be seeing Jesus in action: talking with people, answering questions, doing miracles: “Life on the Road with Jesus”!

Today’s reading centers around the question “what do we do to do the works of God?” or to put it another way, “what is it God wants us to do?” In this passage Jesus will give three answers to the question: (1) don’t waste time on things that don’t last; (2) believe in Him (Jesus); and (3) trust that Jesus will accomplish God’s will.

That’s where we’re headed. But today’s reading begins with the words “The next day” – which of course begs the question “what happened the day before?”

The day before, Jesus fed 5000 people with five loaves of bread and two fish. Then He went up on a mountain to pray while the disciples took the boat back to Capernaum. And then Jesus walked across the Sea of Galilee to join the disciples in the boat.

“I AM the Bread of Life”

The crowd, meanwhile, knowing there was only one boat, and that Jesus hadn’t gotten into it, went looking for Jesus but couldn’t find him. So the crowd headed back to Capernaum, and voila, Jesus was there! And they asked him, “when did you get here?!”

Jesus answers that they’re looking for him not because of his miracles but because of the free food –  and Jesus says “don’t work for food that perishes, but for food that endures to eternal life.” Of course Jesus is speaking symbolically, because all the food we eat is perishable (even Twinkies, eventually.) So what kind of food doesn’t perish? The clue is in the word work.  Don’t work for what perishes, but rather for what lasts.

What a great message to follow after Labor Day! What we do matters to God. What we do is important. What we say is important. Not because we’re earning our way into heaven but because we’re investing in the future. We’re building up riches in heaven. Jesus says in Matthew 6:19-21:

“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust consume and where thieves break in and steal; but store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust consumes and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”

The apostle Paul echoes this thought in I Timothy 6:17-19:

“As for those who in the present age are rich, command them not to be haughty, or to set their hopes on the uncertainty of riches, but rather on God who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. They are to do good, to be rich in good works, generous, and ready to share, thus storing up for themselves the treasure of a good foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of the life that really is life.”

So investing in the future can be done through good works, generosity, not hoarding but sharing… investing in people. Nothing we own, no money we have, will do us any good in the long run. We leave it all behind. But if we invest in the lives of others, we are investing in the kingdom of heaven. When we care for others, we are investing in God’s future.

There’s a second meaning Jesus hasn’t touched on yet, which is that Jesus himself is the food that lasts; Jesus himself is the bread from heaven. Jesus is going to get there in a moment, but for now, Part One is: don’t waste time or money on things that don’t last. Invest wisely in God’s future.

When Jesus says this to the crowd, their answer is, “What must we do to perform the works of God?” And Jesus answers: “This is the work of God: that you believe in him who he has sent.” No good work is worth anything unless faith in Jesus comes first.

And the crowd responds:

“What sign will you give us so we can believe in you?”

This crowd has just spent days traveling with Jesus, watching him heal, listening to him teach, watching him feed 5000 people with five loaves and two fish, and they’re asking for a sign?

But their question goes deeper than that. They go on to say, “Our ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness, as it is written, ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’”  Translating this a more contemporary context, what they’re saying is: we’re descended from Abraham. We’ve been taught by Moses. Our ancestors ate God’s bread (manna) on their way to the Promised Land. So who are you?” In other words, are you on a par with Abraham and Moses?

Which is a legitimate question, and Jesus answers it: “it was not Moses who gave you bread from heaven” – which is true, God gave the manna – “but it is my Father who gives the true bread from heaven”. This is where Jesus begins to point to himself as the bread who comes down from heaven, a bread given by God to give life to all people.

And the crowd answers, “Lord, Kyrie, give us this bread always.”

And Jesus says plainly:

“I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.”

And he says, “All who the Father gives me shall come to me, and any who come to me I will never cast out.” The Greek here is negative twice, in other words: “I will never, never cast out.” And, “This is indeed the will of my Father, that all who see the Son and believe in him may have eternal life; and I will raise them up on the last day.”

So Part Two is to believe in Jesus: not just in the sense of believing Jesus exists; not in the sense that there are pictures of Jesus on the wall; not even in the sense that we believe oxygen exists.

It’s more like the sense that we believe a chair will hold us when we sit down. It’s something we believe enough to take action on. To do the will of the Father is to trust Jesus with our lives.

That’s what we see God and Jesus doing: God and Jesus work together. What God plans, Jesus makes real. Even in the Garden of Gethsemane, when Jesus prays, “Father if you will let this cup pass from me” he adds, “but not my will but yours be done.” The Father and the Son trust each other completely; and they invite us through the power of the Holy Spirit to enter into this relationship of total trust.

Part Three is to trust that Jesus will accomplish God’s will in our lives. This can be tough to do sometimes, especially when life is difficult: when loved ones get sick; when there’s a pandemic and the world is turned upside down. These things happen sometimes in a fallen world. But we can do the work of God by trusting that God’s got our backs.

God’s will is to bring as many of us as are willing into the kingdom, into eternal life. When we pray every Sunday “thy Kingdom come, thy will be done” this is what we’re praying for. And God will answer “Yes!” And Jesus will lose none of us. It is not up to us to keep holding onto Jesus, as if we have the strength to withstand all the storms in life. We don’t have to be strong enough, because Jesus is strong enough. Jesus will lose none of the ones God gives him. He will raise us up on that last day. That’s Part Three.

Over the next few weeks Jesus will talk more about this bread of life. For today, these three things are enough. (1) Let what we do with our lives be investments in eternity; (2) let us trust in Jesus and help others to do the same; and (3) let us live in the confidence that Jesus holds us and will never let us go. AMEN.

 

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Labor Day

Happy Labor Day weekend! It’s a strange year in which to celebrate Labor Day. Some of us have been working so hard we need more than three days off, while others would love to have even three days of work. For people who work full-time, we spend about a third of our lives at work; and one of the most difficult things to deal with in life is if we work in a difficult environment: a job where we share workspace with a bully, or have a boss who harasses people, or when we work for an organization that cuts corners and winks at shoddy workmanship.

(Fanfare for the Common Man – in honor of Labor Day)

Work is supposed to be a joy. The fact that so many people find it isn’t, is one more way we know we live in a fallen world.

As followers of Jesus we know what we do with our time matters.  We don’t work our way into heaven of course – it’s Jesus who brings us into God’s kingdom – but what we do matters to God. God has given every one of us gifts and talents to share with others. And God meant work to be a good thing.

In the Bible we see God working – and we also see human beings, created in God’s image, working just as our heavenly parent does. The fact that we can work is one of the ways in which we are like God!

This week I wanted to explore what Scripture has to say about work. One of the ways we pastors figure out what’s important to God is by counting the number of times God talks about something in the Bible. This is partly because God, like any good parent, knows that His children need to hear things more than once; and partly because in ancient literature the more an idea is repeated, the more important it is. Some of you might remember the old Monty Python skit: “thou shalt thou count to three… Three shall be the number thou shalt count, and the number of the counting shall be three…”  This is a great example of the way God repeats things in the Bible. So the more often God says something, the more important it is.

So I did some word counting.

The word labor appears 109 times in the Bible and the word work appears 414 times.

Just to compare: the word faith appears 275 times and the word love 586 times. So love is more important than work; and faith is more important than labor; but there’s some question about the relationship between faith and work – which seems to be an ongoing theological issue throughout the centuries!

Work is all through the Bible, from Genesis to Revelation, and if I read every verse we’d be here all day! So I’d like to share just a few of the verses where God talks about work.

The first thing we see in the Bible, in the book of Genesis, is God working. God is creating the universe and the earth and everything in them. God accomplishes all this in six days – however long a ‘day’ was back then – and then on the seventh day God rests. Genesis 2:1-3 says:

“Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all their multitude. And on the seventh day God finished the work that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all the work that he had done. So God blessed the seventh day and hallowed it…”

This tells us that not only do human beings imitate God when we work, but we also need to imitate God and rest. Which means the idea behind Labor Day weekend is Biblical!

The next thing God did after the Sabbath was to give Adam a job. Genesis 2:8 says: “and the LORD God planted a garden in Eden, in the east; and there he put the man whom he had formed…” And a few verses later “The LORD God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to till it and keep it. (Gen 2:15) and then a few verses later, “out of the ground the LORD God formed every animal of the field and every bird of the air, and brought them to the man to see what he would call them; and whatever the man called every living creature, that was its name.” (Gen 2:19)

So the job of the first human being was to tend the garden and name all the animals. And human beings today are still doing that – farmers, and scientists, and explorers, still raising crops and still naming animals, all over the world. This planet was given to us by God to care for and to look after. That was our job from the beginning.

But after the fall, work became a curse: “by the sweat of your brow” we will live, God says. And in the book of Exodus it becomes something even worse: it becomes slavery. But God doesn’t abandon His people there.  In Exodus 5 we read:

“Moses and Aaron went to Pharaoh and said, “Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, ‘Let my people go…’” But Pharaoh said, “Who is the LORD, that I should heed him and let Israel go? I do not know the LORD, and I will not let Israel go.” (Ex 5:1-2)

We all know how that worked out for Pharaoh! Later on in Exodus, God gives Moses the Ten Commandments, and one of those commandments is about work. God says: “Six days you shall labor and do all your work.  But the seventh day is a sabbath to the LORD your God; you shall not do any work…” (Ex 20:9) God is seeing to it that the kind of slavery the people suffered in Egypt would never happen again. And at the same time, in the Sabbath God gives the people a picture of heavenly rest, of God’s kingdom to come.

In the Old Testament, God called and gifted people to work to build the tabernacle and then the temple and all that was in them. God called and gifted people to make the plans, to build the structures, to make the furnishings, all the work. God also gave the people of Israel festivals three times a year in addition to Sabbath, in which they worship and do no work.

Also in the Old Testament, God’s people begin to discover a variety of careers. And God appreciates some but not others. Throughout the Old Testament God comments on the work the Israelites are doing. In Deuteronomy, God’s blessing on work is related to peoples’ willingness to be generous. God says: “Give liberally and be ungrudging when you do so, for on this account the LORD your God will bless you in all your work…” (Deut 15:10)

In the book of Kings the Israelites anger God by creating idols and worshipping the work of their hands. God says: “

Because they have abandoned me and have made offerings to other gods… they have provoked me to anger with all the work of their hands, therefore my wrath will be kindled against this place, and it will not be quenched.” (II Kings 22:17)

In Psalms, David speaks about God’s work and ours. He says in Psalm 77: “I will call to mind the deeds of the LORD; I will remember your wonders of old. I will meditate on all your work… Your way, O God, is holy. What god is so great as our God?” (Ps 77:11-13) And in Psalm 90 he prays: “Let the favor of the Lord our God be upon us, and prosper for us the work of our hands…” (Ps 90:17)

The book of Proverbs offers this advice: “Commit your work to the LORD, and your plans will be established.” (Prov 16:3) and notes: “Honest balances and scales are the LORD’s…” (Prov 16:11)

The book of Ecclesiastes tells us that work can sometimes be a royal pain: “What do mortals get from all the toil and strain with which they toil under the sun? For all their days are full of pain, and their work is a vexation; even at night their minds do not rest. This also is vanity.” (Eccles 2:22-23)  The writer goes on: “Then I saw that all toil and all skill in work come from one person’s envy of another. This also is vanity and a chasing after wind.” (Eccles 4:4)

Meanwhile the prophets continue to grieve the fact that the people are worshipping idols and living unjustly. Jeremiah writes: “Woe to him who builds his house by unrighteousness, and his upper rooms by injustice; who makes his neighbors work for nothing, and does not give them their wages.” (Jer 22:13) And God says: “do not go after other gods to serve and worship them, and do not provoke me to anger with the work of your hands.” (Jer 25:6) …for goldsmiths are all put to shame by their idols; for their images are false, and there is no breath in them. They are worthless, a work of delusion; at the time of their punishment they shall perish.” (Jer 51:17-18)

As we come to the end of the Old Testament, God is still working, preparing to bring his son Jesus into the world. And Jesus also teaches us about work. He says things like:

“What do you think? A man had two sons; he went to the first and said, ‘Son, go and work in the vineyard today.’ He answered, ‘I will not’; but later he changed his mind and went. The father went to the second and said the same; and he answered, ‘I go, sir’; but he did not go. Which of the two did the will of his father?” They said, “The first.” Jesus said to them, “Truly I tell you, the tax collectors and the prostitutes are going into the kingdom of God ahead of you.” (Matt 21:28-31)  (Jesus said this to the Pharisees to show how much what we do with our lives matters.)

Later on in Matthew Jesus says: “Blessed is that servant whom his master will find at work when he arrives. Truly I tell you, he will put that one in charge of all his possessions. But if that wicked servant says to himself, ‘My master is delayed,’ and he begins to beat his fellow servants, and eats and drinks with drunkards, the master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour that he does not know.” (Matt 24:46-50)

And in Mark, Jesus says, “Beware, keep alert; for you do not know when the time will come.” (Mk 13:33)

In the book of Acts the “work” of God is done by the disciples and the apostles as they spread the word about Jesus to all the known world. And Paul talks about work in almost every letter he writes. Just to give one example he says: “no one can lay any foundation other than the one that has been laid; that foundation is Jesus Christ. Now if anyone builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw — the work of each builder will become visible, for the Day will disclose it, because it will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test what sort of work each has done. If what has been built on the foundation survives, the builder will receive a reward. If the work is burned up, the builder will suffer loss; the builder will be saved, but only as through fire..” (I Cor 3:11-15)  And Paul adds: “I am confident of this, that the one who began a good work among you will bring it to completion [on] the day of Jesus Christ.” (Phil 1:6)

Finally in the last chapter of the last book, Revelation, Jesus says: “Let the evildoer still do evil, and the filthy still be filthy, and the righteous still do right, and the holy still be holy. See, I am coming soon; my reward is with me, to repay according to everyone’s work.” (Rev 22:11-12)

I can’t add anything to all this, other than to say there are a lot more verses about work where these came from. If you ever have the inclination, run a computer search for the word ‘work’ in the Bible, and check it out for yourself.

In the meantime I hope this has been a blessing on this day when we celebrate – and rest from – our labors. AMEN.

 

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Nicodemus

Now there was a Pharisee named Nicodemus, a leader of the Jews. He came to Jesus by night and said to him, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God; for no one can do these signs that you do apart from the presence of God.” Jesus answered him, “Very truly, I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God without being born from above.” Nicodemus said to him, “How can anyone be born after having grown old? Can one enter a second time into the mother’s womb and be born?” Jesus answered, “Very truly, I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God without being born of water and Spirit. What is born of the flesh is flesh, and what is born of the Spirit is spirit. Do not be astonished that I said to you, ‘You must be born from above.’ The wind blows where it chooses, and you hear the sound of it, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.” Nicodemus said to him, “How can these things be?” Jesus answered him, “Are you a teacher of Israel, and yet you do not understand these things? Very truly, I tell you, we speak of what we know and testify to what we have seen; yet you do not receive our testimony. If I have told you about earthly things and you do not believe, how can you believe if I tell you about heavenly things? No one has ascended into heaven except the one who descended from heaven, the Son of Man. And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in him may have eternal life.

“For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life. Indeed, God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. Those who believe in him are not condemned; but those who do not believe are condemned already, because they have not believed in the name of the only Son of God. And this is the judgment, that the light has come into the world, and people loved darkness rather than light because their deeds were evil. For all who do evil hate the light and do not come to the light, so that their deeds may not be exposed. But those who do what is true come to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that their deeds have been done in God.” – John 3:1-21

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Politics. I don’t believe in preaching politics for a lot of reasons – mostly because that’s not why you’re here. People come to worship because they want to be uplifted, inspired, refreshed… to have time with God. I pray that’s what will happen this morning.

Still, we are going to talk a little bit about politics today: somebody else’s politics, which is easier than talking about our own! The apostle John, in the scripture above, gets political. He starts out by saying,

“Now there was a Pharisee…”

If you and I had lived back in Jesus’ day, and someone walked up and said, “now there was a Pharisee” – we would have said either “cool!” or “oh no” depending on what our politics were.

The Pharisees and the Sadducees were the two major parties back then. There were other smaller ones but those were the two big ones. Back in those days there was no separation of church and state, so these leaders were both religious and political. The Sadducees were the “one percenters” – they were the elite, the well-educated, influenced by the Greek philosophy. The Pharisees were popular with the common people because they often came from the common people. Pharisees frequently worked their way up, studied hard, earned their places – and they knew their scriptures really well.

It’s interesting, then, that Jesus picked on the Pharisees more than any other group. I suspect that’s partly because the Sadducees didn’t pay much attention to Jesus. The gospels record only one time when Jesus talked with Sadducees, and that was a confrontation on the subject of resurrection. Resurrection was the Sadducees’ hot-button issue: it’s what they wrote all their Facebook memes about. They didn’t believe in it. Even in the book of Acts the only time Sadducees show up is to confront the apostles about resurrection.

Not so with the Pharisees. The Pharisees spent a lot of time studying the law. Jesus could probably have become a Pharisee if he had chosen to, but he didn’t, and his toughest criticisms were for the Pharisees: not because they were wrong about their facts but because they missed the spirit of the law; they missed God’s heart. Jesus and the Pharisees have run-ins all through the Gospels.

The one thing the Pharisees seem to get stuck on most is: where does Jesus get his authority? They keep asking him: “By what authority do you do these things?” And Jesus keeps dodging the question.

The conversation we heard today between Jesus and Nicodemus helps explain why.

Imagine Nicodemus for a moment: a Pharisee, who has heard Jesus teach and has seen Jesus heal. He has heard his colleagues, the other Pharisees, criticize and belittle Jesus behind his back… and even to his face sometimes. Nicodemus is under a lot of pressure to toe the party line. But Nicodemus is an honest man, and he loves God.

When I think about Nicodemus, I wonder how long it took him to get up the courage to talk to Jesus. I imagine he probably thought through the conversation in his head: what he was going to say, what Jesus might say in return. I imagine Nicodemus made up his mind to be honest and up-front with Jesus. He chose to see Jesus at night, I’m guessing not out of fear but because he didn’t want to be interrupted. He wanted some one-on-one time with Jesus, and he wouldn’t have gotten that in the daytime. And I suspect he also wanted to warn Jesus that his life was in danger.

Nicodemus opened the conversation with the word “Rabbi” – a term of respect – “we know that you are a teacher who has come from God; for no one could do these signs that you do if God was not with him.”

That’s quite a statement! At that very moment, in Jerusalem, the Pharisees were telling people not to follow Jesus and were plotting Jesus’ death! And yet they knew. Nicodemus says “we know” – not “I know.” The Pharisees knew who Jesus was. They saw God’s power in him. They just wouldn’t admit it.

At this point Jesus took over the conversation and changed its direction completely.  Jesus is much more interested in Nicodemus than he is in what the Pharisees in Jerusalem are doing. Jesus answers: “Amen, amen, I say to you, no one can see the kingdom of God without being born from above.”

Whatever Nicodemus was planning on saying went right out the window. The new direction of this conversation puzzles him. You can almost hear Nicodemus going “huh?!?” And then Nicodemus peppers Jesus with questions, which in those days was a polite way of disagreeing with someone. Asking questions gave the person a chance to modify what they were saying. So Nicodemus asks:

“How can someone be born after they’re old? Can a person get back inside their mother’s womb?”

Jesus answers, not by modifying, but by illuminating:

“Amen, amen, I say to you, no one can enter the kingdom of God without being born of water and Spirit. What is born of the flesh is flesh, and what is born of the Spirit is spirit. The wind blows where it chooses, and you hear the sound of it, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.”

Jesus wouldn’t be saying these things if Nicodemus wasn’t already demonstrating some measure of faith. The Spirit was already making his presence felt in Nicodemus’ heart, but Nicodemus had no experience with this. So he asks, “how can these things be?” Not ‘Can these things be?’ – it’s not a question of belief, but rather of ‘how does this work?’

Jesus teases him a little saying, “you’re a teacher of Israel and you don’t know these things?” And then he says,

“Amen, amen, I say to you, we speak of what we know and testify to what we have seen; yet you do not receive our testimony.”

This is not a personal slam. In the sentence “you do not receive our testimony” the ‘you’ is plural. Jesus is speaking of the Pharisees as a group. And what he’s saying is true: the Pharisees aren’t listening, and they’re not going to, because Jesus threatens their place. If Jesus IS from God, then the Pharisees aren’t needed any more. If Jesus IS the Messiah then the Pharisees’ job is done.

Jesus goes further and lets Nicodemus in on a secret. He says: “If I have told you about earthly things and you do not believe, how can you believe if I tell you about heavenly things?” (This is a challenge, not a put-down, and it points to the next two declarations.)

1. “No one has ascended into heaven except the one who descended from heaven, the Son of Man.” Jesus is identifying himself and confirming what Nicodemus said at the beginning: he is from God.
2. “just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in him may have eternal life.” Jesus isn’t running away from death; he’s heading straight into it.

When Jesus talks about the serpent he’s talking about the days of Moses when the people of Israel rebelled against God and God sent snakes into the camp. The people were getting bitten and dying so they cried out to God. And God told Moses: make a bronze serpent, put it on the end of a pole, and whenever someone is bitten they can look at the serpent on that pole and they will live.

Jesus is saying, “I am taking the place of that serpent. They’re going to put me on a pole (that is, the cross) and when I die, and when I’m lifted up, anyone who looks at me and believes will live.” Jesus says: “So must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in him may have eternal life.”

Why? Because:

“God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life.”

That’s probably the most famous verse in the Bible, and probably the most important one to know: John 3:16. If you ever see “John 3:16” on a sign at a football game or at a sporting event, that’s what it means. Believe in Jesus and you will live.

And that’s not all! Jesus says: “God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world…” Unlike political debates, which always lead to ‘cancel culture’ in one form or another, Jesus has not come to condemn. Jesus may be right but he’s not here to make us wrong. Jesus may be holy but he didn’t come here to show up our unholiness. Jesus did not come to judge us; Jesus came to save us.

If there’s any judgement at all, it’s that people choose darkness over light; and evil over good; and people hide so that what they’re doing can’t be seen. “BUT” Jesus says, “those who do what is true come to the light…” And that’s what Nicodemus did that night.

If Nicodemus had anything more to say to Jesus that night, John didn’t write it down. But Nicodemus never forgot that conversation, and he never stopped loving Jesus. Nicodemus is mentioned two more times in John’s gospel. The next time we see him, he will be defending Jesus to the Pharisees, saying that Jesus should at least be given a fair trial. They will insult him and tell him to get lost.

And the last time we see Nicodemus will be on the night of Jesus’ crucifixion, when Nicodemus goes with Joseph of Arimathea to claim Jesus’ body, and he donates 100 pounds of spices to help bury Jesus. Nicodemus isn’t mentioned again in the Bible after that but I’d lay bets he was one of the founding members of the church in Jerusalem – one of the first believers.

Nicodemus was an honest man. He stood for truth, held on to the faith that he had, and was open to the movement of the Holy Spirit. And he was rewarded by Jesus with a confirmation of faith and a vision of what was to come.

In our time, we need to do the same. Like Nicodemus, we live in difficult and sometimes hostile days. But God always looks for people who honestly seek the truth, who are willing to come to Jesus and be open to the Holy Spirit, and who are willing to look for ways to show our love for Jesus in the way we live.

May God grant us the faith of Nicodemus. AMEN.

 

 

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The First Christian Evangelist

“Now when Jesus learned that the Pharisees had heard, “Jesus is making and baptizing more disciples than John” – although it was not Jesus himself but his disciples who baptized – he left Judea and started back to Galilee. But he had to go through Samaria. So he came to a Samaritan city called Sychar, near the plot of ground that Jacob had given to his son Joseph. Jacob’s well was there, and Jesus, tired out by his journey, was sitting by the well. It was about noon.

“A Samaritan woman came to draw water, and Jesus said to her, “Give me a drink.” (His disciples had gone to the city to buy food.) The Samaritan woman said to him, “How is it that you, a Jew, ask a drink of me, a woman of Samaria?” (Jews do not share things in common with Samaritans.) Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is that is saying to you, ‘Give me a drink,’ you would have asked him, and he would have given you living water.”  The woman said to him, “Sir, you have no bucket, and the well is deep. Where do you get that living water? Are you greater than our ancestor Jacob, who gave us the well, and with his sons and his flocks drank from it?” Jesus said to her, “Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again, but those who drink of the water that I will give them will never be thirsty. The water that I will give will become in them a spring of water gushing up to eternal life.” The woman said to him, “Sir, give me this water, so that I may never be thirsty or have to keep coming here to draw water.”

“Jesus said to her, “Go, call your husband, and come back.” The woman answered him, “I have no husband.” Jesus said to her, “You are right in saying, ‘I have no husband’; for you have had five husbands, and the one you have now is not your husband. What you have said is true!” The woman said to him, “Sir, I see that you are a prophet. Our ancestors worshiped on this mountain, but you say that the place where people must worship is in Jerusalem.” Jesus said to her, “Woman, believe me, the hour is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews. But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father seeks such as these to worship him. God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.” The woman said to him, “I know that Messiah is coming” (who is called Christ). “When he comes, he will proclaim all things to us.” Jesus said to her, “I am he, the one who is speaking to you.” Just then his disciples came. They were astonished that he was speaking with a woman, but no one said, “What do you want?” or, “Why are you speaking with her?” Then the woman left her water jar and went back to the city. She said to the people, “Come and see a man who told me everything I have ever done! He cannot be the Messiah, can he?” They left the city and were on their way to him.

“Meanwhile the disciples were urging him, “Rabbi, eat something.” But he said to them, “I have food to eat that you do not know about.” So the disciples said to one another, “Surely no one has brought him something to eat?” Jesus said to them, “My food is to do the will of him who sent me and to complete his work. Do you not say, ‘Four months more, then comes the harvest’? But I tell you, look around you, and see how the fields are ripe for harvesting. The reaper is already receiving wages and is gathering fruit for eternal life, so that sower and reaper may rejoice together. For here the saying holds true, ‘One sows and another reaps.’ I sent you to reap that for which you did not labor. Others have labored, and you have entered into their labor.”

“Many Samaritans from that city believed in him because of the woman’s testimony, “He told me everything I have ever done.” So when the Samaritans came to him, they asked him to stay with them; and he stayed there two days. And many more believed because of his word. They said to the woman, “It is no longer because of what you said that we believe, for we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this is truly the Savior of the world.”” – John 4:1-42

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For the past few weeks we’ve been looking at what Jesus had to say about the end times. Today we’re going to return to our plan of weekly scriptures. Every week the No Walls Faith Community Facebook Group posts scripture readings for the week, and when I follow this I find there’s always one passage that grabs my attention. This week it was John chapter four. [Getting Started readers – if you’d like to join the No Walls Facebook Group leave your Facebook name in the comments below and I’ll send an invitation.]

Whenever I read this passage in John it’s a blessing, and I pray it will be for you today too.

As the story opens today, Jesus and the disciples are traveling from Jerusalem in southern Israel to the region of Galilee in northern Israel. This would be a walk of around 80 miles – not quite as far as from Philadelphia to New York, but that gives us an idea. On the way they had to pass through a mountainous region called Samaria, and when they got there Jesus sat down by a well and sent the disciples into a nearby city to get food.

The well where Jesus sat down was a very historic spot. It reminds me of Independence Hall and the Liberty Bell in Philadelphia – it’s that kind of classic history. And like Jesus, when my family visited Philly we were getting hungry. Someone told us there was a tavern nearby where we could not only eat where Ben Franklin and George Washington ate, we could also eat the same food they ate, because the menu was all recipes from the 1770s. There were some unusual things on that menu, like corn chowder and venison with leeks, but it was very good. And it was an amazing thing to be sitting where the founders of our country sat and eating what they ate.

Jesus may have had a similar feeling sitting by that well, because this was the well dug by Jacob, grandson of Abraham: a well Jacob dug for his son Joseph, the same Joseph who was sold into slavery in Egypt and ended up being Pharaoh’s right-hand man and saving the family of Israel – and Egypt as well – during a famine. Joseph and Jacob never did make it back home to use that well, but on this day the Messiah, the one God promised Abraham would be a blessing to all nations, brought the story full circle and was sitting by this historic well.

…and then along comes a Samaritan woman to get some water from the well. Jesus, being tired and thirsty, asks her for a drink. She answers him:

“How is it that you, a Jew, ask a drink from me, a woman of Samaria?”

(The apostle John inserts the comment that Jews don’t share things with Samaritans. The two groups of people consider each other unclean so they don’t eat from the same dishes.)

You and I, if we had been flies on the wall, probably couldn’t have told the difference between the Jews and the Samaritans. Jesus and this woman both would have looked to us like Middle Easterners, and their languages would have sounded the same to our ears. That these two groups of people hated each other would have struck us as silly, because we wouldn’t be able to tell the difference – which by the way is pretty much the way all prejudice looks from the outside.

What had happened between the Jews and Samaritans wasn’t even really their fault. The trouble between them started hundreds of years before when Israel was conquered and her people were taken into captivity. The northerners were captured by the Assyrians and the southerners were captured by the Babylonians. The Babylonians eventually allowed the southerners – that’s the Jews – to return to Jerusalem and rebuild the temple and worship there. The Assyrians forced the northerners to intermarry among nonbelievers, which had the result of compromising their faith as it was handed down from generation to generation – which was exactly what the Assyrians intended to do: they believed if you destroyed the faith of a people, you destroyed what holds them together, which means they’re conquered forever, and they’ll never rise up in rebellion. A word of warning for our time, is it not?

So by the time Jesus was born, the relationship between Jews and Samaritans had deteriorated to the point where they barely spoke to each other. And instead of reaching out to their northern cousins, and helping restore their faith, the southerners persecuted them and shut them out.

And now here’s Jesus – a man from Galilee, which gives this woman a little bit of hope (Galileans were northerners and were sometimes a little nicer to Samaritans than southerners) – but then he’s also been hanging out in Jerusalem so that’s not a good thing. Let’s just say she didn’t trust him. So she asks him how it is that a Jew asks a Samaritan for a drink.

Jesus answers by saying:

“If you knew who was talking to you and asking you, you would have asked him for a drink, and he would have given you living water.”

Living water: water that’s moving. Water that, unlike well water, hasn’t been sitting around collecting bugs. It’s fresh, it’s clean, it usually tastes better. But there is no living water in this semi-desert area. So what is Jesus talking about? “Where do you get this living water?” – that’s what she asks him. And then she reminds him of who he’s talking to: a descendant of Jacob, whose well this is.

Jesus answers:

“Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again, but those who drink of the water I will give will never be thirsty. The water I will give will become in them a spring of water gushing up to eternal life.”

From where we sit in the 21^st century we know Jesus is talking about the Holy Spirit. But for this woman the concept was completely new. She realized very quickly she was talking to a holy man, and this conversation was about faith, not water, but beyond that she’s not quite sure what he’s getting at. But she does as he suggests: she asks him for living water. “Sir” she says – using the Greek word Kyrie, or Lord (as we would say today, ‘kyrie eleison’ which means ‘lord have mercy’). She is using a term of respect. “Kyrie, give me this water.”

Jesus answers, “Go call your husband and come back.”

Ouch! Here she thought she was talking to a nice young man about God and faith, and all of a sudden he hits her where it hurts the most. She says, “I have no husband” – and she leaves out the ‘kyrie’ this time.

Even today, two thousand years later, our society is still unkind to women who are unmarried or childless. It doesn’t matter if she’s never been married, or has divorced, or is widowed. It doesn’t matter if God has called her to be single. The apostle Paul teaches very clearly that it’s easier to follow Jesus single than it is married; and yet how many times in churches have we heard things like “ooh, she’s going off to the mission field by herself? If only God would send her a husband!” And I hear similar stories from single friends even outside the church – about how hard it is to be valued as an unmarried person. God honors women who are alone in life, even if society doesn’t. The prophetess Anna is just one example. She was a widow, and spent most of her life ministering in the Temple, and she was chosen to bless the baby Jesus when he was brought into the Temple.

Here at the well also, we see God honoring a woman who is unmarried. In this case, she’s got a triple whammy in society’s eyes: (1) she has had many men, (2) the man she’s with now isn’t her husband, and (3) she’s a foreigner to the Jews. Three strikes you’re out? Not with Jesus! Jesus is about to make this woman the world’s first Christian evangelist.

Jesus says to her: “Well said. You have had five husbands and the man you have now is not your husband. You speak the truth.”

And she answers, “Kyrie, I perceive that you are a prophet. Our ancestors worshiped on this mountain, but you [Jews] say that the place where people must worship is in Jerusalem.”

That’s a sticking point for the Samaritans. It’s at the heart of their pain where it comes to the Jews: for some reason in their eyes Samaritan worship is never good enough.

Jesus answers:

“Believe me, woman, the hour is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews. But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father seeks such as these to worship him. God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.”

Jesus doesn’t water down the truth: worship as handed down from Moses is only found in Jerusalem. But that’s about to change. Because salvation is from the Jews – in fact salvation is from one particular Jew who is sitting right in front of her at this moment. The time has come to worship God, wherever we are, and wherever we’re from, in spirit and in truth.

The woman ventures a thought. She says: “I know Messiah is coming and when he comes he will tell us everything…”  And Jesus answers, “I am he.”  Or more accurately:

“I am”

– which is the name of God.

And the woman runs off – forgetting all about her water jar – and goes to the city and tells everyone she meets:

“Come see a man who told me everything I’ve ever done! He can’t be the Messiah can he?” And the people of the city follow her as she leads them to Jesus.

Meanwhile the disciples are urging Jesus to eat, and Jesus is saying, “my food is to do the will of him who sent me,” and “look around, the field is ripe for harvest!” as the people of the town approach the well.

The apostle John says, “Many Samaritans from that city believed in Jesus because of the woman’s testimony.” And they ask Jesus to stay, and Jesus stays for two days – in a place where no Jew would stay. Jesus was not in any way put off by the fact that these people were Samaritans, or foreigners, or people who had never worshipped a day in the temple. In fact they received him much more warmly than the priests in the temple ever did.

So what can we take away from this passage today?

• God uses unexpected people to do God’s work in the world. If any of us here think we can’t possibly be useful to God, think again. This Samaritan woman, who had five husbands and was now living illegally with a sixth man, was so low in the eyes of her neighbors that she came to draw water at noon (instead of first thing in the morning when it was cool) in order to avoid the catty looks and comments from the ‘proper’ women in town. She was the lowest of the low – but she was exactly what Jesus was looking for, because she was a woman who had faith and spoke truth.
• Jesus shares with this woman God’s plan for the world: Salvation comes from the Jews, through the Messiah, but from now on the location of worship is in the Spirit – the Holy Spirit. Faith finds its source, its expression, and its destination in the Messiah: not in what people do in temple, not in a set of words or prayers, not in believing the right stuff, but in faith in God’s Son and in sharing the truth with others.
• As we grow in faith we will find, as Jesus did, that our spiritual food – what sustains us – is to do the will of the One who made us. God designed each one of us for a purpose, and discovering and living into that purpose is the most fulfilling thing we can do in life. Anything else will disappoint. When we do God’s will we are investing in our eternal future. And if we invest for retirement in this life, shouldn’t we be investing for our future in eternity? And when we invest, we work with others, “for the saying holds true, ‘one sows and another reaps.’” We stand on a long line of very broad shoulders, and we need to be broad shoulders for the next generation.
• Rejoice in God’s goodness! We have a God who chooses the lonely, the foreigner, and the outcast, and makes them the center of the plan for salvation for entire communities. Share in the joy of this Samaritan woman, and in the joy of her townspeople who came to know Jesus because she was a woman of faith and truth. AMEN.

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“The Readiness Is All”

[Jesus said:] “Then the kingdom of heaven will be like this. Ten bridesmaids took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom. Five of them were foolish, and five were wise. When the foolish took their lamps, they took no oil with them; but the wise took flasks of oil with their lamps. As the bridegroom was delayed, all of them became drowsy and slept. But at midnight there was a shout, ‘Look! Here is the bridegroom! Come out to meet him.’ Then all those bridesmaids got up and trimmed their lamps. The foolish said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’ But the wise replied, ‘No! there will not be enough for you and for us; you had better go to the dealers and buy some for yourselves.’ And while they went to buy it, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went with him into the wedding banquet; and the door was shut. Later the other bridesmaids came also, saying, ‘Lord, lord, open to us.’ But he replied, ‘Truly I tell you, I do not know you.’ Keep awake therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour. – Matthew 25:1-13

“When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on the throne of his glory. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats, and he will put the sheep at his right hand and the goats at the left. Then the king will say to those at his right hand, ‘Come, you that are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you gave me clothing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me.’ Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry and gave you food, or thirsty and gave you something to drink? And when was it that we saw you a stranger and welcomed you, or naked and gave you clothing? And when was it that we saw you sick or in prison and visited you?’ And the king will answer them, ‘Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me.’ Then he will say to those at his left hand, ‘You that are accursed, depart from me into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels; for I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not give me clothing, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.’ Then they also will answer, ‘Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not take care of you?’ Then he will answer them, ‘Truly I tell you, just as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.’ And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.” – Matthew 25:31-46

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Today we have the last in our mini-series on the end times teachings in Matthew’s Gospel. The Bible has a lot more to say about the last days but today’s reading wraps up what Jesus said about his return in Matthew.

Whenever I read Matthew chapter 25 it always reminds me of Kenneth Branagh’s autobiography Beginning. Ken Branagh is an actor probably best known in the States for playing Professor Lockhart in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, but he first became famous for directing and starring in a movie production of Shakespeare’s Henry V and then writing his autobiography, all by the age of 25. The last line in his autobiography is a quote from Hamlet: “the readiness is all.” In the context of that quote, Hamlet is talking about facing death – facing the end – and the full quote is: “If it be now, ’tis not to come. If it be not to come, it will be now. If it be not now, yet it will come—the readiness is all.”

That’s what Jesus is saying in this chapter: “The readiness is all.” The glory of God in the kingdom of God can be ours – if we are ready. And Jesus gives us three illustrations in this chapter.

The first illustration is the parable of the ten bridesmaids. In Jesus’ day, bridesmaids would meet either at the bride’s home or the groom’s home and wait for the groom’s arrival, and then escort him and light his way to where the wedding would take place. It was not unusual in those days for the groom to be late; life back then didn’t run on clocks and schedules the way we do. The bridesmaids should have anticipated the possibility. As it turned out, this particular groom was really late, even by ancient standards – the bridesmaids fell asleep waiting for him.

Don’t we sometimes find ourselves doing the same thing? We’re so looking forward to the arrival of our bridegroom Jesus, and we wonder what’s keeping him. But sometimes we fall asleep while we’re waiting, and there’s no criticism in Matthew for doing that. The problem comes when the call is finally heard: “Behold the Bridegroom!” – and all the bridesmaids are taken by surprise, and the oil lamps have been burning so long they’re almost out of oil.

The wise bridesmaids brought extra oil with them. The not-so-wise bridesmaids didn’t do that. So they said to the wise women, “Give us some of your oil.” But the wise ones said, “If we do we’ll run out. Go to the store and get more.” And they did, and while they were away the groom came and the wedding started, and they were shut out.

So our lamps – our light, the light we have within us – is spiritual light. The question, then, is how can we keep our lamps lit? How can we stay filled spiritually? There are a few ways:

• Reading God’s word – being in the Bible every day and talking about it with others
• Praying – both formal prayer and just chatting with God through the day
• Spending time with God’s people – both in church and in daily life. The book of Acts says the early disciples were always together, ‘breaking bread together’ and praising God together. We need each other, to inspire and encourage each other
• Doing what God created us to do. And that’s what the rest of this chapter in Matthew is about.

In the scripture passages above we skipped over the Parable of the Talents, but just for a quick summary: God gives every person gifts to invest in the world, and we are responsible for investing those gifts wisely. In the parable, the person with five talents makes five more; the person with two talents makes two more. Notice the person with two talents is not expected to make five: we don’t need to compare ourselves with others. It is enough to invest what we have. But the servant with one talent is afraid and hides his talent and does nothing with it, and Jesus calls him ‘wicked and lazy’ and takes away what little he has and gives it to the one with five.

Each one of us knows better than anyone what talents we’ve been given. (BTW if you’re not sure what your gifts are – and that’s not unusual – there are tools available to help discern that. Leave me a note in the comments and I’ll send some recommendations.) But how to we use what we have for God’s kingdom and God’s glory? How do we do what Jesus is asking us to do?

Jesus answer these questions – at least in part – in the third parable. This story about the sheep and the goats is a picture of the Judgement Day. Jesus says all the people from all the nations will be assembled in front of Jesus’ throne, and Jesus will separate them like a shepherd separating sheep from goats. And he puts the sheep on his right and the goats on his left. Jesus has nothing against left-handers by the way: this is just a literary device, but in this particular story the right-hand side is where you want to be.

Jesus says to the sheep on his right: “Come, blessed of my Father! Inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the beginning of the world.” God planned all this from the get-go. From the very beginning of creation God knew you and loved you and had glorious plans for you.

King Jesus says “come blessed of my Father” because “when I was hungry, you gave me something to eat. When I was thirsty, you gave me a drink. When I was a stranger, you welcomed me.” The word ‘welcomed’ in the Greek means not just ‘you said hi’ but ‘you included me’.

Jesus says, “When I was naked, you clothed me” – again the Greek implies more. It implies protection, like putting a curtain around someone so their nakedness can’t be seen. Jesus says, “When I was sick, you cared for me” – and again, the Greek implies more than the English translation. In fact the word in Greek is the word we get Episcopal from, which is usually translated bishop, which means overseer – in other words, you saw to my health care. You took charge of it. It’s like the parable of the Good Samaritan, who takes the beaten man to a hotel and gives the manager money and says, “do whatever he needs and when I come back I’ll pay you the balance.” That’s what it means to care for the sick. And Jesus also says, “when I was in prison, you came to me.”

And the righteous will answer, “Lord, when did we ever see you like this and take care of you?” And the King will answer, “truly I tell you, as many times as you did it to one of the least of these, my brothers and sisters, you did it to me.”

You want to know how to build up that reserve of oil? Feed the hungry. Give water to the thirsty. Welcome the stranger. Protect the naked. Care for the sick. Spend time with prisoners.

Does this mean we’re saved by the good things we do? NO. We are saved by grace alone through faith in Jesus alone. But if you want to build up the supply of oil, this is how it’s done. Not all of us are called to do all these things; not all of us are gifted in all these things; but all of us have gifts in something. Putting those gifts to use in the service of others is what builds up the oil supply. And it takes time. That’s why you can’t just pick up oil at the last minute, or borrow it from someone else.

Today in the year 2020 we live in very uncertain times. We need to be always ready. We don’t know when Jesus will arrive, but we know someday he will, and we need to be vigilant, we need to be watching, and we need to be doing what he created us to do. As Shakespeare said: “the readiness is all.” AMEN.

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The End Times – Part 2

[Jesus said] “So when you see the desolating sacrilege standing in the holy place, as was spoken of by the prophet Daniel (let the reader understand), then those in Judea must flee to the mountains; the one on the housetop must not go down to take what is in the house; the one in the field must not turn back to get a coat.  Woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing infants in those days! Pray that your flight may not be in winter or on a sabbath. For at that time there will be great suffering, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, no, and never will be. And if those days had not been cut short, no one would be saved; but for the sake of the elect those days will be cut short. Then if anyone says to you, ‘Look! Here is the Messiah!’ or ‘There he is!’– do not believe it. For false messiahs and false prophets will appear and produce great signs and omens, to lead astray, if possible, even the elect. Take note, I have told you beforehand. So, if they say to you, ‘Look! He is in the wilderness,’ do not go out. If they say, ‘Look! He is in the inner rooms,’ do not believe it. For as the lightning comes from the east and flashes as far as the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. Wherever the corpse is, there the vultures will gather. 

“Immediately after the suffering of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of heaven will be shaken. Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see ‘the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven’ with power and great glory. And he will send out his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other. 

“From the fig tree learn its lesson: as soon as its branch becomes tender and puts forth its leaves, you know that summer is near. So also, when you see all these things, you know that he is near, at the very gates. Truly I tell you, this generation will not pass away until all these things have taken place. Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.” – Matthew 24:15-35

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Fig Tree Branch in Spring

This week we continue our mini-series on what Jesus taught about the end times in the Gospel of Matthew. The passage above follows immediately after Jesus’ warning to the disciples not to be led astray by the things they see happening around them. Jesus warns that false messiahs and false prophets will come and will lead many away from God, so he warns the disciples to keep their focus on the kingdom of God and on Jesus himself.

That’s the prelude to this passage. Turning to today’s scripture reading…

Whenever I read these words of Jesus telling people to ‘flee to the mountains’ and not turn back, it reminds me of one of my seminary classmates from Sudan. Many of you I’m sure have heard about the civil war there, or at least have heard the name Darfur and you understand the tragedy that has happened there.  Darfur is in the west of Sudan and my friend was from the south, but both groups of people were under attack by the same soldiers from the north of Sudan.  My friend was a boy of around 10 or 11 when the soldiers came to his village. He was in the fields taking care of the livestock when he saw the smoke of his village burning and heard the gunfire. He knew if he went home he’d be dead. The best thing – the only thing – he could do for his village was to run, and hope to come back another day and help the survivors. So he left everything and ran. As he ran he met up with other children who were also running from the same soldiers: they became known as the “Lost Boys of Sudan”. They traveled on foot over 300 miles to Ethiopia where they found a refugee camp.

My friend grew up and eventually made it here to the States to go to school. I remember hearing his bishop asking him once what his plans were for after graduation. He said: “My Bishop, the soldiers of North Sudan destroyed my village and my family. My plans are to go back to Sudan, and find those men, and tell them about Jesus.” And that’s exactly what he did.

In many ways this story illustrates what Jesus is saying. Jesus is describing the fall of Jerusalem, which took place in the year 70AD. The attack by the Roman army was absolutely brutal. After a huge riot in the year 66AD, in which Jewish rebels took control of the city and kicked the Romans out, the Romans came back in force to put down the rebellion. They laid siege to the city – that is, they surrounded it and didn’t let anyone in or out – and this was during Passover when the city was packed with visitors. The people inside the city walls slowly starved to death. Things got so bad that parents started cooking and eating their own children. The Romans burned the Temple with worshippers still in it. And when the city fell there were so many dead the soldiers couldn’t walk through the streets without stepping on bodies.

Today all that’s left of the Temple Mount as Jesus knew it is one wall, which we know as the Western Wall or the Wailing Wall. It’s one of the holiest places in Judaism, where people from all over the world come to pray. The Romans also left the city walls standing, so the army would have a safe place to camp, but an eyewitness to the events said that looking at the city after the Romans were done, it was hard to believe anyone had ever lived there. And “standing in the holy place” – where the holy of holies had once stood – the Roman general now stood, requiring all to worship Caesar.

Jesus knew all of this was going to happen, and he warned his followers to run. Jesus said: when you see them coming, don’t even go back into the house to get your coat. If you’re in the field (like my Sudanese friend was) don’t turn back, don’t go home for anything. Run! The followers of Jesus who were living in Jerusalem when this happened became refugees. They were scattered throughout the Roman empire, and they took the gospel with them.

So verses 15-20 describe something that happened in Jerusalem 2000 years ago. But, often happens with prophecy, this passage carries a dual meaning. It also applies to the end times. When Jesus says “for the sake of the elect those days will be cut short” he’s not talking about the fall of Jerusalem, because those days weren’t cut short. There will be another crisis in the last days, and when it comes we also need to be ready.

This passage tells us there will be a significant sign just prior to Jesus’ return. Jesus calls it a “desolating sacrilege”. In Scripture this usually refers to some form of idolatry – worshiping something or someone that is not God. In our time today, I believe the greatest temptation is to idolatry. Many people are obsessed with what is not God: power, success, sex, feeling good, wealth, celebrities, fame, political beliefs – anything that captures our time and our hearts more than God is an idol.

One commentator puts it this way: the ‘desolating sacrilege’ “will involve a major affront to God played out at the expense of God’s people… [and] although we may not be able to specifically identify the sign today (he says), in the day of its revealing all believers will recognize it.” And personally I suspect Jesus’ saying about ‘where the corpse is, the vultures will gather’ will take on a fresh and specific meaning when this happens.

That ‘desolating sacrilege’ will initiate a time of great suffering, and Jesus warns us to run. What this escape will look like, we don’t know – but as the same commentator says, “don’t cross your bridges before they’re hatched.” Just remember God is in control and will not let the people of God be tested beyond our ability to endure.

So when times of trouble come, if someone says to you “here’s the Messiah” or “I know where the He is!” – don’t believe it.  Nobody knows when Jesus’ return is going to happen. Jesus says many false prophets and false messiahs will come. In the Greek it says “pseudo-prophets” and “pseudo-Christs” – we get the word ‘pseudo’ from Greek – handy word, yes? These pseudo-Messiahs will be doing great miracles, and showing great signs, so as to lead astray even God’s own people if that were possible.

Jesus says when he comes back there won’t be any doubts. There won’t be any mistaking it, and it won’t be secret knowledge. He says it will be like “lightning from the east that flashes to the west”. The whole earth will know when Jesus returns. Jesus says the sun and moon will be darkened, and the stars will fall from the sky, and all people everywhere will see him coming on the clouds in power and glory. And Jesus will gather his people from the four corners of the earth and from heaven – all of us – into his Kingdom.

Jesus says:

“from the fig tree learn this: when the branch is tender and puts out leaves, summer is near. So also when you see these things, know he is near.”

What Jesus says next about ‘this generation not passing away until all has taken place’ has caused all kinds of debates among Bible scholars. I think the best way to understand this is to understand that there are layers of interpretation. The generation of the disciples did not pass away before the fall of Jerusalem happened. When the final abomination happens, that generation also will not pass away. It’s layer upon layer. And there’s also some wiggle room in the Greek. The word ‘generation’ might also be translated ‘age’ – ‘this age will not pass away until all has taken place’. It could be many, many years. What’s important is that these words were meant both for the disciples back then and for us now. Jesus assures us that even though the world will pass away, his words will never pass away.

So what can we learn from all this? What can we take away?

First, pray. Jesus tells us to pray for pregnant women and nursing mothers during difficult times. This is something we can definitely do right now. And pray that when the end times come it won’t be in winter. If you feel – as many do – that we may be heading into the end times now, pray about that. Tell Jesus what it means to you and what your concerns are for yourself and your family and your community.

Second, be on guard against anyone who claims to know exactly when Jesus will return. The sign hasn’t been given yet. The desolating sacrilege has not happened yet. Be aware as the days grow darker the number of pseudo-teachers, pseudo-Christians, and pseudo-Messiahs will grow. Don’t give them the time of day. Test the spirits; hold up everything they say against the scriptures.

Third, live in hope. When Jesus does return, we’ll know. There won’t be any doubt. And what a day that will be: reunited at last with all the believers from our families, from our churches, from our history, from the old country, from the time of Jesus, from the time of Abraham. We’ll all be there, and Jesus will coming on the clouds with power and great glory. And you can take that to the bank. AMEN.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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The End Times – Part 1

As Jesus came out of the temple and was going away, his disciples came to point out to him the buildings of the temple. Then he asked them, “You see all these, do you not? Truly I tell you, not one stone will be left here upon another; all will be thrown down.”

When he was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately, saying, “Tell us, when will this be, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?” Jesus answered them, “Beware that no one leads you astray. For many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am the Messiah!’ and they will lead many astray. And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars; see that you are not alarmed; for this must take place, but the end is not yet. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and there will be famines and earthquakes in various places: all this is but the beginning of the birth pangs.

“Then they will hand you over to be tortured and will put you to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of my name. Then many will fall away, and they will betray one another and hate one another. And many false prophets will arise and lead many astray. And because of the increase of lawlessness, the love of many will grow cold. But the one who endures to the end will be saved. And this good news of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the world, as a testimony to all the nations; and then the end will come.” – Matthew 24:1-14

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As we head deeper and deeper into this pandemic time I’ve heard people wondering – sometimes joking, sometimes seriously – if we could be heading into the end times. (My personal opinion is ‘not yet’ but of course I could be wrong.)

Which is why I wanted to jump ahead a few chapters in Matthew to the place where the disciples ask Jesus about the end times.

In the Bible we have basically two places to go to learn about the ‘last days’: (1) Jesus’ teachings in the gospels, and (2) the book of Revelation. Revelation was written to the persecuted church after the fall of Jerusalem, after the destruction of the temple which Jesus talks about in this passage. And Revelation is written to encourage people whose lives are very difficult – because the nation has been invaded and many of them have been scattered; they’ve become refugees. The Book of Revelation is meant to comfort them with the knowledge that God is still in charge and Jesus wins in the end, in spite of how things look.

Because Revelation is meant to be an encouragement in tough times, I’m thinking it might be a good place to go when we finish Matthew. If you like that idea – or if you don’t like that idea – please leave a note in the comments. I appreciate your feedback.

In the meantime let’s look at what Jesus has to say about the end times in Matthew, keeping in mind that unlike Revelation, Jesus isn’t trying to be encouraging here. Jesus’ purpose is to warn the disciples of dangers that lie ahead and to say “be ready”.

Note this is the last major teaching Jesus gives before his death, and it goes on for a few chapters. We’ll just be looking at the first couple paragraphs this week and we’ll do more in the weeks ahead.

To set the stage: this conversation takes place during the week between Palm Sunday and Good Friday. It’s the last week of Jesus’ life before the crucifixion. Jesus has been teaching in the temple, and he has had a number of confrontations with the scribes and the Sadducees and the Pharisees.

Our passage for today opens immediately after Jesus finishes reaming out the Pharisees for being hypocrites (Matt 23:13-37). Then Matthew writes: “as Jesus came out of the temple and was going away…”

You can almost imagine the dark cloud hanging over Jesus’ head. No matter what he says to these religious leaders they don’t hear him. Jesus has tried miracles, theological arguments, posing questions from scripture, you name it, but they keep on (as Jesus says) donating 10% of their “mint and dill” to the offering plate while overlooking the big items like “justice and mercy and faith.” (Matt 23:23)

And so Jesus leaves the temple. As he does, I imagine the disciples trying to lift his spirits by pointing out the magnificent architecture of the temple. Anyone who’s ever walked into a large church or cathedral – you know it has the effect of lifting the spirits and reminding us deeply of God.

But it doesn’t work for Jesus. Instead he answers, “Truly I tell you, not one stone will be left here upon another; all will be thrown down.”

The disciples are silenced. Together they walk out the west gate of the city of Jerusalem, down the hill, across the Kidron Valley, through the Garden of Gethsemane, and up the side of the Mount of Olives. Here Jesus sits down on the hillside looking over the city of Jerusalem.

On the Mount of Olives there are a lot of olive trees (hence the name) – so the disciples probably fixed a snack which probably included olives, and olive oil (which was made there) which is great for dipping bread in. And then after awhile they returned to Jesus and ask the question that’s been on their minds all afternoon:

“Tell us, when will this be, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?”

The disciples instinctively know Jesus is talking about the end times, and their question shows that they are convinced that Jesus is the Messiah. They’re expecting Jesus to make a move, to do something to initiate the kingdom of God. And they’re right: Jesus will make a move in just a few days, but the kingdom isn’t coming the way they expect it will. They’re still expecting a Messiah who will deliver Israel from the Romans and from the Jewish leaders who have lost faith.

But they begin to understand this as soon as Jesus starts answering the question. Jesus says:

“Beware that no one leads you astray. For many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am the Messiah!’ and they will lead many astray. And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars; see that you are not alarmed; for this must take place, but the end is not yet. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and there will be famines and earthquakes in various places: all this is but the beginning of the birth pangs.”

Jesus packs a LOT into this one paragraph!

First and foremost Jesus says, “beware that no one leads you astray.”  Jesus actually warns against being led astray three times in his reply. When God repeats something three times, pay attention!

It raises the question how might a believer be led astray? The first thing Jesus warns against is people claiming to be the Messiah. As I was reading these words this week I thought to myself: there may be a lot of false prophets around these days, but we haven’t seen too many false messiahs lately. But then I Googled it and found out I was wrong. There’s a whole Wikipedia page full: “List of Messiah Claimants”. It includes Rev Moon of the Moonies, David Koresh of the Branch Davidians… for those of you in the UK, there’s David Icke and David Shayler… and for those of you in Australia there’s A.J. Miller. And there are a lot more world-wide. Being a false Messiah is big business these days.

And then there are false prophets. These are people who don’t claim to be the Messiah but who come to us in the name of Jesus teaching things Jesus would never teach. The apostle John writes:

“Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world.” (I John 4:1)

And if that was true back then, how much more is it true now? Test the spirits always. Any teacher who speaks in the name of Jesus – including myself – hold the words up against scripture. Ask yourself: does this person give glory to God? Does this person lead you to want to know God more? Does this person love? The apostle John says:

“Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love.” (I John 4:7-8)

The great Bible teacher Charles Simeon wrote in his commentary on this passage: “Let us above all things cultivate a spirit of love… [and] let us ask of God the assistance of the Holy Spirit.” These are the two sure ways of avoiding false prophets and false teachers: love, and the guidance of the Holy Spirit.

If you listen to a false prophet or a false teacher, you won’t walk away feeling love. You may walk away feeling proud, or feeling angry at people who aren’t carrying their weight. You may walk away with some of the greatest mic-drop comments you’ve ever heard in your life. You may walk away feeling frustrated that Jesus isn’t fixing the problems in the world. You may walk away feeling like you’ve found the most amazing pastor in the world, and you’re so lucky to know him, but your focus is more on the pastor than on Jesus. I knew a pastor a few years ago who said to his congregation, “don’t follow me, follow Jesus.” That’s a real pastor, because a real pastor leads you to Jesus.

Jesus said: Beware that no-one leads you astray from God. Jesus goes on to say:

“you will hear of wars and rumors of wars; see that you are not alarmed; for this must take place, but the end is not yet. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and there will be famines and earthquakes in various places: all this is but the beginning of the birth pangs.”

I’m over 60 years old now and I can’t remember a time when there were NOT wars and rumors of wars in the world, or when there were NOT famines and earthquakes and other disasters (of which this pandemic is yet another).  I bet if you asked an 80-year-old they’d say the same thing. All these evils in the world have been in the world as long as there’s been human history. The thing is, with world-wide instantaneous media we now know more about these disasters, and much sooner, than people did in the past. I think that may be part of why it seems like they never stop. But Jesus says this is just the beginning.

Jesus says:

“Then they will hand you over to be tortured (some translations say ‘oppressed’ or ‘afflicted’ – it may not be specifically torture) and will put you to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of my name.”

Jesus doesn’t say this to make us paranoid. And it doesn’t mean every Christian on earth will die a violent death. It means for all of us it’s a possibility, and we need to count the cost. We need to be aware that people in the past have given their lives for the sake of the gospel, and in some countries today people still do give their lives rather than deny Christ, and we may be called to do the same.

As a result, Jesus says, “many will fall away, and they will betray one another and hate one another. And many false prophets will arise and lead many astray.” Again, Jesus’ concern is that we not be led astray. Don’t let anything come between you and Jesus. Don’t let anything in your life be more important than Jesus.

Jesus continues: “because of the increase of lawlessness, the love of many will grow cold.”

Brothers and sisters, we live in a time of lawlessness. I don’t need to go into the details of what this means to us today. When Jesus speaks of lawlessness, he’s speaking of the Ten Commandments and he’s saying people aren’t obeying them. And many of our laws today have their roots in the Ten Commandments: thou shalt not kill, thou shalt not steal, thou shalt not bear false witness in court – these laws are still on the books today.

The problem with living in a time of lawlessness is it’s dangerous. Safety goes out the window and it becomes every man for himself, every woman for herself. And the bottom line result is that love grows cold, because everybody’s looking out for themselves. It’s not safe to love any more. This is the greatest tragedy that can come to any people, to lose the ability to love. God is love, and if love is too dangerous then we’ve lost God. We’ve left God behind.

And isn’t that exactly what we’re seeing going on around us during this time of pandemic? People afraid that their rights are being taken away; people afraid to go to the grocery store because others don’t love enough to put a mask on? We see young men dead in our streets, we see broken storefronts, and at our borders we see children being torn away from their parents, while our national leaders are so immobilized by the disgust they feel for each other that they can’t even work together. And the question is, where is love?

When lawlessness has the upper hand, it takes great courage to keep on following Jesus, to keeping on loving, to keep on offering hospitality to people we come in contact with, no matter who they are, no matter where they come from, in the name of Jesus.

Jesus says, “the one who endures to the end will be saved.” That is, the one who stands their ground. That’s a word of encouragement.

And Jesus also says:

“This good news of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the world, as a testimony to all the nations; and then the end will come.”

People are working on this as we speak. There’s a group called Wycliffe Bible Translators here in the US and also in the UK and Ireland who are working on translating the Bible into every language on earth. They’re aiming to have at least one book of the Bible in every language by the year 2025 – which is ambitious, but it also indicates they’re getting closer. Having the good news proclaimed throughout the world won’t take a whole lot longer.

So I’d like to end today by recapping Jesus’ advice to the disciples, because it still very much applies to us today. Beware no one leads you astray. No matter what happens, stay close to Jesus, look for his love, listen for the Spirit.

Don’t be alarmed by what you see and hear. I know that’s not easy: but be aware whatever we see on the news, God already knows, and God is still in charge. Don’t be alarmed – but also understand that as society becomes more lawless ‘the love of many will grow cold’. Don’t let your love grow cold.

As one young writer for Christianity Today wrote last week, what we listen to forms us and shapes our lives. If we listen to anger, anger will grow in us. If we listen to sarcasm, sarcasm will grow in us. If we listen to pride, pride will grow in us. If we listen to fear, fear will grow in us. But if we listen to Jesus, the Lord of Love will grow in us. Who and what do we want to be formed by?

Hold on to Jesus – the King of Kings the Lord of Lords, and the Lord of love – with confidence and with assurance, and don’t let go. AMEN.

 

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God Forbid

From that time on, Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and undergo great suffering at the hands of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised.  And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him, saying, “God forbid it, Lord! This must never happen to you.” But he turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; for you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things.” 

Then Jesus told his disciples, “If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will find it. For what will it profit them if they gain the whole world but forfeit their life? Or what will they give in return for their life?   

“For the Son of Man is to come with his angels in the glory of his Father, and then he will repay everyone for what has been done. Truly I tell you, there are some standing here who will not taste death before they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom.” – Matthew 16:21-28

In the decade of the 20s the nation is controlled by the elite, who in spite of being citizens of the country are in league with foreign powers. These leaders – no matter which house they belong to – betray the interests of the common people, even to the point of giving their tax money to their oppressors. The people protest. Keeping the peace and maintaining order becomes a chronic concern. And the leaders of organized religion, with a few important exceptions, are corrupt; many are in league with the elite who are running the country.

I’m not talking about the 2020s, or even the 1920s. This was the 20s. This was the world Jesus and the disciples lived in.

Humanity has made great technological progress since then, but where it comes to human nature not much has changed.

As it is today, people back then were worried and troubled to the point of taking to the streets. So when Jesus came talking about the Kingdom of God being on its way – this was good news!! God was on the side of the people; and people started to dream of getting rid of the corrupt leadership: the Sadducees, the Herod family, the Roman Empire itself.

And what hope they had! Last week we heard Jesus ask the disciples “who do people say that I am?” and “who do you say that I am?” and Peter answered, “you are the Christ, the Messiah, the Son of the Living God.” Jesus confirmed this, and called Peter blessed because this had been revealed to him by God.

What a shock it must have been, then, when Jesus immediately began to teach his disciples that he was going to be killed by the religious leadership and come back to life three days later. It didn’t make sense to them. For starters, they missed the ‘come back to life’ bit – that really didn’t make sense. Being killed by the religious establishment was believable, but how could it be? Wasn’t Jesus the Messiah? The Crown Prince of heaven? The Son of the Living God? How could the Son of God die?

And especially on a cross? Crucifixion was familiar to the disciples: it was brutal. It was designed by Rome to dominate and intimidate anyone who wasn’t Roman. Jesus and the disciples grew up seeing streets lined with crosses, seeing people sometimes take days to die. Crucifixion was for the enemies of the Roman state: which made it illegal for the religious leadership of Israel to crucify Jesus; but their game plan was to get Pilate on board, and Pilate was the Roman governor, and that way they could get around the law.

Bust of Pontius Pilate

The disciples couldn’t even begin to imagine this. What they were hearing is their friend Jesus, their teacher, their Lord, talking about dying. And that simply couldn’t happen – could it?

Peter expressed what I think they were all feeling.  He pulled Jesus aside and said, “God forbid! Not you, this can’t happen to you!”

Peter is often criticized for being hot-headed and quick with his words, but I think in this case the criticism is unfair. When Peter says “this must never happen to you” I think he means it with the very best of intentions. Peter loves Jesus. Peter loves God. Peter wants to see God’s kingdom come, just as Jesus had taught the disciples to pray: “Thy kingdom come, thy will be done.” How can this happen if Jesus is dead?

The thing is Peter doesn’t see what God sees, not yet. His feelings for Jesus are very human. Jesus says as much. He says: “you’re setting your mind not on divine things but on human things.”

As I was thinking about this passage this week, I was reminded how hard it is, even for us today, to hold in our minds the thought of our saviour Jesus being whipped and ridiculed and tortured. We want to say “No no no this is all wrong. This isn’t fair!” Why should the Lord of peace suffer violence? Why should the Messiah who healed so many be broken? From a human standpoint it makes no sense and it’s terrible to imagine.

Jesus responds to Peter, “Get behind me Satan! You are a stumbling block.” The phrase ‘stumbling block’ is used elsewhere in scripture to describe words or actions that turn people away from their God-given calling.

Jesus knows the road ahead of him. He knows it will be hard. Jesus doesn’t want to die; in fact in the Garden of Gethsemane Jesus will pray, “if it’s possible let this cup pass from me.” Peter is tempting Jesus to abandon his role as Saviour; and Jesus loved God and loved us enough to do for us what we couldn’t do for ourselves.

To be a friend to Jesus in that moment would have been to stand by him, in silence if necessary, letting Jesus talk about what was coming, listening to him, setting him free to be who he was born to be. In this moment though it’s beyond the strength of any mortal. This is one time when Jesus will have to stand alone, because only He can do it. Only Jesus knows, as God knows, that his death will put an end to death; that his kingdom and his crown will be won through his self-sacrifice and his resurrection.

For those of us living in the 2020s Jesus has much to say in this passage: there are three things I want to focus attention on.

First, Jesus invites us – as he invited his disciples back then – to pick up our own crosses and follow him. Jesus says, “those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will find it.” Or to shade the translation slightly differently: “whoever wants to save their life will destroy it, but whoever loses their life for my sake will discover it.” Actions can have unintended results; and how often have we seen people chase after success or power or money in order to make their life safe, only to destroy themselves in the process? Jesus says ‘it is foolish to gain the world and lose one’s own soul’; ‘but in giving away your life you will save it and find it.’

Second, to “take up your cross” is not an invitation to start going around looking for crosses to carry! It’s an invitation to give of oneself sacrificially to and for one’s neighbor. Quoting from James Boyce, Professor Emeritus of Luther Seminary, St. Paul MN:

“[The] Messiah did not have to seek the cross; it was [brought] by those to whom his… mission of service gave offense, [and likewise] we are called to the unselfconscious love and care for those in need. Crosses will be provided…” [workingpreacher.org]

Third, it is difficult to meditate on what Jesus suffered. When we do, what we need to remember is Jesus loves us this much. Scripture says “he will see the fruit of the travail of his soul and be satisfied” (Isaiah 53:11). In other words, Jesus will look at you and me and say “it was all worth it”.  He loves us that much.

So to be wise in this decade of the 2020s we begin by knowing nobody loves us like Jesus: not our governors, not our congresspeople, not our elected officials, not any other powers that be, not our employers, not our counselors, not our financial advisors – none of them love us as much as Jesus does. Even our families, much as they love us, love with an imperfect love. Jesus loves us with a self-sacrificing love that gives the very last drop of everything he has in him in order to bring us with him into his kingdom.

In this decade of the 2020s – which has started out so very strangely – Jesus still calls us to follow him. To set aside our own interests, as he did, for the sake of others. To give our lives into Jesus’ hands – to lose our lives for His sake – in order to find them. Because for Jesus – and for us – the cross is not the end. It’s the beginning.

In this decade, as in every decade, we have a choice: between corrupt systems that are passing away, and God’s kingdom that is coming. The easy road leads nowhere; the hard road leads to glory.

~

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All Glory To You, O Lord

Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” And they said, “Some say John the Baptist, but others Elijah, and still others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.” And Jesus answered him, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father in heaven. And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.” Then he sternly ordered the disciples not to tell anyone that he was the Messiah. – Matthew 16:13-20

 

Today I want to talk about GLORY: the glory of Jesus, the glory of God.

The dictionary says glory has to do with “high renown or honor won by great achievements” and/or has to do with “magnificence or great beauty”.

In today’s scripture we see both. That’s why I chose Non Nobis Domine as our prelude today: “not to us, O Lord, not to us, but to your name be the glory.” In this passage from Matthew we see the glory of Jesus and the glory of God the Father as they draw the disciples closer and further into the Kingdom.

Matthew begins the story by telling us Jesus and the disciples are in the region of Caesarea Philippi. There were lots of towns named Caesarea back in those days – it was a way of honoring Caesar, to name a town after him – so a town needed a second name so you knew which Caesarea you were talking about. Caesarea Philippi was in northern Israel near the border of Lebanon and Syria in what is today called the Golan Heights. And the town had a shrine to the Greek god Pan.

Let’s just say Jesus and the disciples were far from home, both physically and spiritually.

Jesus probably brought the disciples here to spend time with them away from the crowds, and to begin to teach them that he would need to go to Jerusalem soon and be crucified.

So in the opening verse, Jesus puts a question to the disciples. He asks: “Who do the people say I, the Son of Man, am?” Jesus frequently talks about the “Son of Man” in the Gospels – by which he means himself – but this is the only time where Jesus specifically identifies himself as the Son of Man. The title Son of Man comes from the book of Daniel where the prophet writes:

“The Ancient of Days (that is, God) gave to the one like a Son of Man ‘dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all the peoples, nations, and languages should serve him: his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom… shall not be destroyed.’” (Daniel 7:13-14)

That’s glory for you!

In answering Jesus’ question, the disciples offered a number of possibilities. They said: some say John the Baptist come back to life. Some say Elijah. Others say Jeremiah or one of the prophets.

These answers weren’t really so far off. The people believed in resurrection; and John the Baptist was fresh on their minds, having been killed only a few weeks before; in fact King Herod himself thought Jesus was John the Baptist reincarnated. So the crowds were right in sensing something in common between Jesus and these men of great faith. They sensed a glory in this son of a carpenter.

But then Jesus asked the disciples; “who do you say I am?” (and he’s asking all of them; the ‘you’ is plural).

This is an important question for us too. Every person on the planet will someday need to answer question: who do you say Jesus is?

All of a sudden the disciples fall silent. And then Peter speaks up and says: “You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God.”

Notice Peter says the Christ. Christ is a title, not a name. Kind of like when you say ‘Queen Elizabeth’: ‘Queen’ is the title, ‘Elizabeth’ is the name. With Jesus, ‘Christ’ is the title and ‘Jesus’ is the name.

We also get the word ‘christen’ from ‘Christ’. ‘Christen’ means to anoint; but back in those days they didn’t christen babies, they christened future kings, and they did this by pouring oil over their heads. And when God christened someone, when God anointed someone, God not only gave them a title but also gave them the ability to do that job, to fulfill that role.

Side note: Peter also calls Jesus the ‘son of the living God,’ in contrast to all the dead idols in this town devoted to Pan where they were. There are lifeless idols in our own time as well: things people worship that are not gods and have no power or life in them. They are lifeless idols; Jesus is the son of the living God.

Jesus the Christ has been christened the future king. This is why Jesus and the disciples, whenever they traveled, preached the message: “the kingdom of God is near! Change course and believe the good news!” This wasn’t theology they were preaching – the future King was really there!

“And we beheld his glory,” the apostle John says, “the glory of the one and only Son who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.” (John 1:14)

So to sum up, Peter is saying that Jesus is the Crown Prince of Heaven, the Son of the Living God.

And Jesus answers: “you are blessed!” – meaning that only God could have given Peter that answer. And this is true of anyone who believes. If you know that Jesus is the Christ, the anointed King, the Son of God – then God alone has revealed this to you. How this happens is different for each one of us. Some people come to this knowledge by reading the Bible; some come through friends; some through nature; I’ve even heard of one person who came to this knowledge by trying to disprove it. But whatever happens – the moment of realization when the truth breaks over your awareness and you realize that Jesus is everything he claims to be and more – this comes from God. It comes when God’s spirit touches your own, and life is never the same from that point on. (By the way, if you’ve never experienced this certainty, pray about it – it’s a conversation God loves to take part in!)

Jesus said to Peter: “Flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father in heaven.” The word ‘revealed’ in Greek is apekalupsen (sp?) – it’s the word we get ‘apocalypse’ from, and it means ‘revelation’ (which is why the last book in the Bible is called Revelation – it’s when Jesus is finally crowned as king and revealed in all his glory.)

Jesus also says to Peter: “I say to you: you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church.” Peter and rock is a play on words in Greek: Petros, the name Peter, and petra, the rock. “You are Petros and on this petra I will build my church.”

We also need to look at the word church because the church as we know it didn’t exist yet, so what was Jesus talking about when he talked about church? In Greek the word is ekklesian – which is the word we get ecclesiastical from, which in our day basically means ‘having to do with the church’.  But in the Greek the word means assembly or congregation or group (of Christ-followers). In other words, in Greek the word church has to do with people not real estate.

Many of us have discovered this, or re-discovered it, especially during this strange pandemic time: the church truly is not the building; the church is the people. You are the ekklesian, by the grace of God, by the revelation of God, by the blessing of God.  Whenever you say “Jesus is the Christ” you build up and strengthen and become part of the foundation of the church. This is the rock on which the fellowship is built, and the forces of evil cannot overcome it.

Jesus then says to Peter:

“I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.”

There’s been a lot of confusion and disagreement about the meaning of this verse. Let me start by saying this: when Jesus says “I will give you the keys of the kingdom…” the word ‘you’ is singular. Jesus is talking to Peter and only Peter. He’s not talking to the other disciples and he’s not talking to us in the 21^st century. Just Peter.

Basically what Jesus is doing is handing off the leadership of this new Jesus movement to Peter. Just as Moses handed off leadership of the Israelites to Joshua before they crossed into the Promised Land, Jesus is handing off leadership to Peter. It’s just a few weeks before his crucifixion. Jesus knows his followers will need someone to look to, someone to help this ekklesian hang together. After Jesus’ ascension Peter gathers the believers in Jerusalem; Peter preaches on the first Pentecost; Peter becomes the lead spokesperson; and Paul defers to Peter’s leadership even though Paul has a better education and a higher social status.

After his resurrection, Jesus will tell Peter three times, “Feed my sheep. Feed my lambs.”  Jesus knows the early church will need leadership. And Jesus knows we need leadership in our time too. Pray for this. Pray, in our difficult time, that Jesus will raise up leaders for our time who will be as faithful and as blessed by God as Peter was.

And then after all this, Jesus ordered the disciples to tell no one that he was the Christ!

Why would Jesus keep this a secret? This question has kept theologians busy for 2000 years… and I have nothing to add to what they’ve written. Maybe the time wasn’t right to tell the crowds. Maybe telling too many people might in some way have detoured the road to the crucifixion. Maybe, like the disciples in next week’s lesson, they weren’t ready to understand that the Messiah had to die. Peter himself suffered three days of doubt and darkness on that crucifixion weekend – and if his faith could be shaken, what would it do to other peoples’ faith? It could be any of these things, but we really don’t know.

For today the important question is: who do we say Jesus is? The answer to this question is life-changing. And when we answer, do we answer in words only, or in actions as well?

In the meantime, today we celebrate Jesus’ glory: the glory of the only Son of the Father; the glory of the coming King; the glory of the Messiah, the Christ, the Son of the Living God. Non nobis, domine; not to us O Lord, but to you be the glory.

AMEN.

~

 

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Pharisees and Sadducees

The Pharisees and Sadducees came, and to test Jesus they asked him to show them a sign from heaven. He answered them, “When it is evening, you say, ‘It will be fair weather, for the sky is red.’ And in the morning, ‘It will be stormy today, for the sky is red and threatening.’ You know how to interpret the appearance of the sky, but you cannot interpret the signs of the times. An evil and adulterous generation asks for a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of Jonah.” Then he left them and went away. 

When the disciples reached the other side, they had forgotten to bring any bread.  Jesus said to them, “Watch out, and beware of the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees.”  They said to one another, “It is because we have brought no bread.” And becoming aware of it, Jesus said, “You of little faith, why are you talking about having no bread? Do you still not perceive? Do you not remember the five loaves for the five thousand, and how many baskets you gathered? Or the seven loaves for the four thousand, and how many baskets you gathered? How could you fail to perceive that I was not speaking about bread? Beware of the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees!” Then they understood that he had not told them to beware of the yeast of bread, but of the teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees. – Matthew 16:1-12

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There’s an old saying about predicting the weather: “Red sky at night, sailor’s delight; red sky in the morning, sailor’s warning.” In our reading today Jesus says something along these lines to the Pharisees and Sadducees. He says:

“When it is evening, you say, ‘It will be fair weather, for the sky is red.’  And in the morning, ‘It will be stormy today, for the sky is red and threatening.’ You know how to interpret the appearance of the sky, but you cannot interpret the signs of the times.”

How true is this still in our own time?

Today’s reading from Matthew centers around two competing parties: the Pharisees and the Sadducees. Life in Jesus’ time was different from ours in a lot of ways, but one thing we have in common with the people back then: religious and political differences could get nasty. And the Pharisees and the Sadducees were the two parties to choose from back then. (Actually there was a third party, the Essenes, but they got about as much press in the Bible as our third parties do in the news today.)

Since we find ourselves today being torn apart by party politics, this passage is very relevant to us – and we can learn much from how Jesus handled the situation.

The first thing we notice is that both the Pharisees and the Sadducees missed the point of Jesus’ ministry completely. In fact, opposing Jesus was just about the only thing the two groups agreed on! So they got together and confronted Jesus by demanding that he show them a sign from heaven.

Now Jesus had just spent three days healing people, and feeding over 4000 men (plus women and children) with seven loaves of bread and two fish. What more sign did they want?  Truth is, they really didn’t want to see a sign; they were testing Jesus to see how he would react under pressure.

So what was it that made the Pharisees and Sadducees oppose each other?

It’s complicated.

But like most arguments of this kind, there were a few issues that kept bubbling up to the surface.

For starters, the Sadducees were stuck on the letter of the law. Whatever the issue at hand was, if it wasn’t written down in the books of Moses (that is, Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Deuteronomy, or Numbers) – if it wasn’t in one of those five books they didn’t believe it. The Pharisees, on the other hand, believed in an “oral tradition.” In other words, when God gave Moses the law, not everything was written down. God also spoke to Moses, and these words were passed down to the priests and the prophets by word of mouth.

Included in these oral teachings was the concept of the afterlife. The Sadducees did not see anything about life after death in the books of Moses, so they didn’t believe in resurrection. They believed when you died that was it. The Pharisees disagreed.

Jesus, by the way, took the Pharisees’ side on this issue. In a debate with the Sadducees, Jesus quoted the book of Exodus saying:

“Concerning the resurrection of the dead, have you not read what God said to you: “I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob?’ He is not the God of the dead, but of the living.” (Matt 22:31-32)

The other really big difference between the Pharisees and Sadducees was cultural in nature – and these issues are still with us today.  The Sadducees were the “One Percent” of their day. They were the richest, best educated, most powerful people in the country. In a world where there was no ‘separation of church and state’ the Sadducees held both religious and political power. (However unlike the “one percent” of our day, the Sadducees were not business tycoons. There were no Bill Gates-es or Mark Zuckerberg’s back then. Their power was strictly in politics and religion.)

The Pharisees on the other hand, while they tended to be well-educated, tended to also have sort of blue-collar backgrounds. They were smart, and they worked hard, and they studied hard, and they achieved success through real effort. And for these reasons they were popular among the people. But because the Pharisees had an oral tradition of interpreting scripture, and there was more than one oral tradition, their theological debates could get really deep, and could easily veer off-course.

Jesus spoke some of his hardest words against the Pharisees, even though he agreed with them more often than He did the Pharisees. Maybe that’s because the Pharisees’ mistakes were more dangerous. Think of it this way: If something is half-true and half-lie, most people will say, “that just doesn’t sound right.”

But if something is 95% true and 5% lie, people will often swallow the lie along with the truth. (This is the real danger of “fake news”.) The Pharisees got it mostly right most of the time. This is why Jesus said “do what they say but not what they do.” With the Pharisees things could get just a little bit twisted sometimes and end up in a place that God never intended.

One other important difference between the Pharisees and Sadducees: the Sadducees, in spite of the fact that they were closely tied to the temple – you could almost think of them as being like the College of Cardinals in the Vatican (not that they were Catholics – these men were very Jewish!) – but the Sadducees served in the temple in the same way that Cardinals serve in the Vatican. They were officials whose job it was to lead or assist in worship.

In spite of these temple duties, in spite of their close proximity to the things of God, the Sadducees were head over heels in love with Greek philosophy. In Jesus’ day, the teachings of the Epicureans and the Stoics were the ‘in thing’; Socrates and Plato were a few hundred years before, and still had some influence but not as much. Anyway, the Sadducees were far more influenced by Greek philosophers than they were by the scriptures. The Sadducees thought Greek philosophy was the height of sophistication and intellectual achievement. It was classy… brilliant… exclusive… the crème de la crème, befitting the minds and lives of the “one percent”. It didn’t matter to them that Greek philosophy was in no way related to what Moses wrote or what God commanded – and in some ways was opposed to both.

The Pharisees saw the Sadducees’ love of Greek philosophy basically as turning their backs on God’s word. And Jesus and the early disciples – particularly the apostle Paul – tended take the Pharisees’ side on this one.

So in Jesus’ day the Jewish people were being encouraged to divide and attack each other along these party lines – much as we are being encouraged to attack each other today.

Because of this, Jesus’ words to his disciples are as important to us today as they were to the disciples back then. When Jesus has a moment alone with them, he said to the disciples: “Watch out, and beware of the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees.” Notice Jesus does not take sides. And he doesn’t waste time sifting through their various arguments. He warns the disciples to stay away from both.

Jesus doesn’t explain the yeast remark, but I suspect it has to do with the possibility that mastering these complex teachings puts a person at risk of puffing up with knowledge the way yeast puffs up bread. At any rate the bottom line is: Beware of it. Steer clear of it.

So a few thoughts on how to do that in our time:

When you’re dealing with modern-day Sadducees – the “one percent”:

• Be aware that the world’s philosophies may be attractive and may contain some truth, but their source is not God and at some point you’ll probably have to part company with them in order to be true to Jesus.
• Be aware that anyone who loves church because it’s in a beautiful building – or who loves worship because it is a dramatic presentation that catches the emotions – is completely missing the point. The church is God’s people and worship is how we express our love for God.
• Be aware that the Sadducees were wrong in thinking this life is all there is. The God of the Old and the New Testaments promises eternal life to all God’s children.

When you’re dealing with modern-day Pharisees:

• Be aware that centuries-old traditions handed down from generation to generation may be meaningful, but they’re not on the same level as God’s word. And think of all the traditions that have been handed down for hundreds of years that we’re having to fix in our generation: hundreds of years of tradition in which black people and women were not allowed to pray or speak out loud in church. Hundreds of years tradition in which people thought forgiveness only comes through a priest and not directly from Jesus. Hundreds of years of tradition in which people thought that if you’re rich it’s a sign that God likes you, and if you’re poor it’s because you’ve offended God. Hundreds of years of tradition in which people thought all you have to do is believe and you’ll be saved – and it doesn’t matter how you live after that. Beware of traditions that cause harm to God’s people.
• Watch out for hypocrisy. Do religious teachers practice what they preach? Do they preach peace and then go out and attack people who disagree with them? Do they preach giving but never give themselves? Do they preach sexual purity and then go off and have an affair? Do they preach God as the Creator of the world and then don’t care about the environment? I could go on…

All these things to watch out for cut across party lines: they did in Jesus’ day and they do today. Jesus never fits into anybody’s box, praise God. He’s not supposed to.

Our job, as people who love Jesus, is to listen to him and follow him as best we can.  And wherever the various parties of our day turn away from God’s goodness and the truth of our Lord Jesus, our job, if we can, as we can, is to help steer things back on course.

Our job is to be God’s people, first and always. No apologies and no compromises.

AMEN.

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Jesus and the Crowds

“After Jesus had left that place, he passed along the Sea of Galilee, and he went up the mountain, where he sat down.  Great crowds came to him, bringing with them the lame, the maimed, the blind, the mute, and many others. They put them at his feet, and he cured them, so that the crowd was amazed when they saw the mute speaking, the maimed whole, the lame walking, and the blind seeing. And they praised the God of Israel. 

“Then Jesus called his disciples to him and said, “I have compassion for the crowd, because they have been with me now for three days and have nothing to eat; and I do not want to send them away hungry, for they might faint on the way.” The disciples said to him, “Where are we to get enough bread in the desert to feed so great a crowd?” Jesus asked them, “How many loaves have you?” They said, “Seven, and a few small fish.”  Then ordering the crowd to sit down on the ground, he took the seven loaves and the fish; and after giving thanks he broke them and gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the crowds. And all of them ate and were filled; and they took up the broken pieces left over, seven baskets full. Those who had eaten were four thousand men, besides women and children. After sending away the crowds, he got into the boat and went to the region of Magadan.” – Matthew 15:29-39

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Ancient Mosaic of Loaves and Fish

Today’s reading from Matthew isn’t as ‘heavy’ as the scriptures we’ve been looking at the past few weeks. In fact, today’s reading is so overshadowed by the “Feeding of the Five Thousand” from a few weeks ago that most Bible scholars don’t even bother talking about this passage. But these words are worth hearing because they give us stories of hope and of love – stories to encourage us in our daily lives.

So far in our series Matthew has described the death of John the Baptist; Jesus’ need to have some “alone time” with God after his cousin’s murder; the crowds who mean well but don’t allow Jesus that “alone time”; confrontations with the scribes and Pharisees; and finally a seaside getaway for Jesus and the disciples in a foreign country where, in spite of Jesus’ best efforts, he is still recognized – and he finds, in a conversation with a Syrian woman and a Gentile, a faith unlike any he’s seen so far.

So in today’s reading, Jesus returns from that seaside getaway encouraged by faith, refreshed, and ready to start ministering again.

As Jesus and the disciples leave Tyre and Sidon, they pass north of the Sea of Galilee and then turn south into a region called the Decapolis (Greek for ‘Ten Cities’). Some of this region was part of Israel; much of it was not; and these ten cities were essentially Greek settlements in the region. Many of the cities were not controlled by the Herod family of regional rulers but by Rome directly.

This is important to us because in a crowd from this region many of the people were probably not Jewish. In last week’s reading Jesus made it very clear that he was sent to the people of Israel – but he ended up healing the daughter of a Gentile. In today’s reading, where it comes to a rather mixed crowd, Jesus doesn’t ask where they’re from. We are beginning to approach the end of Jesus’ life and ministry, and the door to the Gentiles is beginning to open. This may explain why Matthew comments “they praised the God of Israel”.  This was not a pro-Israel rally; rather it was an outreach to people on the periphery of Israel who hadn’t heard the good news yet.

So here’s what happened.

First, Jesus came to teach. Matthew tells us he went up a mountain and sat down. In those days (unlike today) teachers sat and students stood. So Jesus sat where he could be seen and heard and he began to teach.

And great crowds came to him: the Greek says ochloi polloi – literally a bunch of crowds. A crowd of crowds. People of all kinds, coming by the hundreds. And they brought with them everyone they knew who needed healing. Jesus came to teach; they came to be healed: and sometimes there’s not a whole lot of difference; but Jesus clearly came because he wanted to share the good news, and he ended up sharing it in actions as well as words.

Matthew tells us the people brought the lame (who would have had to be carried); the blind (who would have had to be guided); those with various physical handicaps; people who couldn’t see; people who couldn’t hear; people who couldn’t speak; and many others with a variety of physical challenges. The people laid them all at Jesus’ feet, and Jesus healed every one. The Greek for ‘healed’ here is therapeuo, the word we get therapy from. So whatever therapy they needed, Jesus provided.

And the crowd was astonished, Matthew says. Even though they came having heard about Jesus’ miracles, even knowing what Jesus could do, when they witnessed it with their own eyes, they were blown away. They saw the lame walking, even dancing! They saw the blind able to see and the deaf able to hear and to speak. And they praised the God of Israel.

This went on for three days. Can you imagine a weekend retreat with Jesus Himself? Jesus met every need in the crowd. And after three days, he looked at his disciples and said, “I can’t send these people home on an empty stomach – we’re in the middle of the wilderness here – they might not make it home.”

And the disciples answer, “Lord, where are we going to find food for so many in a place like this?” Basically they’re saying the nearest Mini-Mart is, like, 30 miles away. What are we going to do?  Jesus asks, “What do you have?” And they answer, “seven loaves of bread and a few small fish”.

So Jesus tells the people to sit down, and gives thanks for the food that is there, and gives it to the disciples to pass around. And everyone eats until they’re satisfied. And when the meal is over, the disciples gather up seven large baskets full of broken pieces. In other words, they ended up with more food than they started with! And the head-count for the meal was 4000 men, not counting women and children.

After the meal Jesus dismissed the crowds, and then he and the disciples returned to the Sea of Galilee and took a boat to Magadan on the western side of the lake.

So Matthew tells us about three days of healings, and thousands of people fed in the wilderness where there is no food – and in the very next verse we find the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to Jesus demanding he give them a sign.  That’s where we start next week.

So as we look at this week’s passage: What a mountaintop experience! Which is something we all need from time to time. Most of the time, most of our lives, even when there’s joy, life is a lot of work. And sometimes,  like in days of pandemics, our days can be tough, tinged with darkness. Sometimes we just need to spend some time alone with Jesus (even if it is with four thousand of our best friends).

We also see that Jesus calls people apart from the world when he teaches. Sometimes Jesus needs to take us out of our everyday circumstances so we can hear His voice.

And we also see that Jesus has the power to heal. This was true back then, and it’s still true today. This is why we bring each other to Jesus in prayer, and why we pray for each other every Sunday.

I should mention there’s a lot of controversy in the churches about faith healings, and while I don’t want to spend a whole lot of time on the subject I’d like to speak to it briefly. Do miracles still happen today? Yes. Do they always happen? No. Even when Jesus walked this earth not every person in Israel was healed of every disease. Why do miracles happen for some people and not for others? I don’t know. Sometimes God chooses to heal us the old-fashioned way – through doctors and nurses – and this has its purposes. For example, if I hadn’t been in hospital last year, our Facebook group No Walls Faith Community never would have come into being, because I got the inspiration for the group when I was in the ICU.  God moves in mysterious ways sometimes!

One thing I can tell you for sure: God is in control, and God knows what we need even before we ask. And Jesus proves this by providing a meal for this crowd, unasked-for, before they need to go home.

Another thing that’s for sure: Jesus has the same compassion for us that he had for that crowd. This amazes us, just like it amazed them. Our physical needs, and the physical needs of our neighbors, are of great importance to God.

Another thing that’s for sure: we were meant to pray for each other – to bring each other to Jesus – just like this crowd did for their friends. And when prayers are answered, we give all the praise and glory to the God of Israel, just like this crowd did, and to the King of Kings whose Kingdom is coming.

One more thing that’s for sure: looking at those seven loaves of bread, and what was left over: if what we have seems small in our eyes – if what we offer God seems insignificant – in Jesus’ hands it will be more than enough. Pray for this.

So today’s story is a foretaste of the kingdom of God, where Jesus will reign, and where there will always be enough, and where people from all races and nations will praise God together, healed at last. Amen and AMEN.

~

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Voice of a Dreamer

A week ago today the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that our nation’s Dreamers will be allowed to stay awhile longer — that efforts to dismantle the DACA program were attempted illegally.

DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) protects people who came to the United States as dependent children from deportation. It also provides work papers for those who are old enough to legally work.

DACA recipients – or “Dreamers” – have grown up in the U.S., gone to school here, gone to college or learned a trade here, have not broken any laws, and in many cases have served in the military. They are people who embody “the American dream”.

This past week I received the following email from a Christian organization that supports legal immigration. It was written by Liz Dong, a Dreamer, who is head of the organization Voices of Christian Dreamers. Shared with permission.

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“Like many people in my situation, I will never forget the day that I first heard about DACA. By the grace of God – and thanks to a lot of advocacy from brave young immigrants who were sharing their personal stories when I was not ready for that myself, not to mention many Christian leaders who were beginning to speak up for immigrants in ways guided by biblical principles – the DACA program was announced eight years and one week ago. I’d recently graduated from Northwestern University, which in itself was a miraculous answer to prayer as an undocumented student from a single-parent family, without a lot of financial resources and ineligible for federal financial aid. But even after graduation, I still could not work lawfully.

“DACA changed that for me: I was able to get a job and contribute, which is precisely what I’d always wanted. It’s allowed me to go on to graduate school, earning my MBA from the University of Chicago, and to work with the Evangelical Immigration Table for many years, mobilizing local churches to advocate.

“Last Thursday was another day I’ll never forget. That morning, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in such a way that – for the moment at least – DACA remains in place, despite administrative efforts to terminate it. I’m overwhelmed with gratitude – first and foremost to God, but also to you and others who have advocated with and for me and the many other Dreamers within your congregations and communities.

“I’d ask you now to keep praying and keep advocating – because while the decision is a huge relief, it’s not the end of the story. The majority of the Supreme Court found that the administration’s process for terminating DACA was unlawful, but not that they (or a future administration) could not terminate DACA by a more appropriate process. The only way for Dreamers to become citizens of this country, which a great many of us are eager to do, would be for Congress to pass permanent legislation.

“So, thank you for praying. Please don’t stop.

“Thank you for advocating. Please don’t stop. You can start by adding your name to this letter to Members of Congress, and by asking those you know (at your church, via email, on social media, etc.) to add their names as well.”

In Christ,

Liz Dong

Founder, Voices of Christian Dreamers

P.S. Dreamers like me are thankful after last week’s decision, but that’s not new. This video is our tribute to some of the people for whom we’re thankful, who have helped us along the way!

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