They said he deserved special attention; he said they were wrong. As a soldier, he understood power and authority. He understand that if Jesus was a powerful prophet or God-man, then Jesus very much out-ranked him. Yet he knew someone that high up in God's power structure could change the life of his beloved servant.
In the next scene Jesus brought a funeral procession to a stop. He committed a seriously impure act, i.e., he came in contact with the dead. It was an action that would make him unclean for a week. Touching the dead meant being cast out of the community for seven days with ceremonial cleansing on the third and seventh days in order to come back in.
Yet, Jesus did not become an outcast by touching the dead. He did not become impure but rather the impure son became pure again. The child who had been the source of death for the community came into contact with the source of life for all communities.
These stories make me question my view of Jesus. Do I see him as the source of utmost authority? Do I believe that being touched by him gives life? Is my religion focused on naming outcasts or on restoring life? Would I have been a Jew appalled at Jesus violating the law by touching the dead or would I have realized that the law was meaningless when the giver of life was present? What defines me today . . . law-abiding or life-abiding?
Saturday, August 1, 2009
Sunday, July 19, 2009
Watching...for what? Luke 6
"So they watched him closely". It seems like a good statement to be made about someone, i.e., they kept their eyes fixed on Jesus. Most of us would be proud to have that said about us. Yet, the statement was not a compliment.
The Pharisees watched him closely but they were looking for errors not guidance. They had their hearts set on validating themselves at all costs. So they watched him not to learn, not to grow but to accuse and pick apart.
Jesus, therefore, addressed their hearts. "Quit thinking superficially about the law and look at the real issues," translated very loosely. The issue was doing good or evil, to save or destroy. The issue was never splitting hairs to keep the letter of the law while ignoring the intent.
So how do I view Jesus? Why do I go to church? What lenses do I put on when I look at other Christians or their actions? Do I watch other to pick them apart or to join in the battle of good vs. evil?
Hopefully one day someone will say about me that I watched Jesus closely . . . and it will be a compliment.
The Pharisees watched him closely but they were looking for errors not guidance. They had their hearts set on validating themselves at all costs. So they watched him not to learn, not to grow but to accuse and pick apart.
Jesus, therefore, addressed their hearts. "Quit thinking superficially about the law and look at the real issues," translated very loosely. The issue was doing good or evil, to save or destroy. The issue was never splitting hairs to keep the letter of the law while ignoring the intent.
So how do I view Jesus? Why do I go to church? What lenses do I put on when I look at other Christians or their actions? Do I watch other to pick them apart or to join in the battle of good vs. evil?
Hopefully one day someone will say about me that I watched Jesus closely . . . and it will be a compliment.
Saturday, July 4, 2009
Almost There; Luke 5
The first three stories of Luke 5 share an interesting feature. In each one of them, the person in contact with Jesus starts the story with a knowledge of Jesus and some degree of faith. During the Jesus encounter, that person is changed and exits the story quite differently than he entered.
Simon knew Jesus; that is obvious. Jesus climbs in his boat and Simon does not object. After using his boat, Simon addresses Jesus as "master". At worst, it is a nominal familiarity and he is showing respect to a local rabbi. At best, there have been conversations prior to the encounter. Simon leaves the encounter with a new purpose; he is no longer a fisherman but a disciple who will reach out to men.
The leper approaches Jesus and makes a declaration of faith. He leaves the encounter healed physically, restored socially and engaged evangelistically.
The paralytic came to Jesus via the mercy of friends. I wonder if he begged them to help, if they were family, and if he was known to others in the room. In a small village, surely everyone knew him. They probably did not know his faith though. Dropped into an encounter with the healer he left not only walking but strong enough to carry his mat with him.
Three people who all had some degree of faith but their encounter with Jesus moved it to a new level.
So I ask myself do I just know of this man or have I been changed by an encounter? Do I need to encounter him again or am I whole emotionally and spiritually?
Simon knew Jesus; that is obvious. Jesus climbs in his boat and Simon does not object. After using his boat, Simon addresses Jesus as "master". At worst, it is a nominal familiarity and he is showing respect to a local rabbi. At best, there have been conversations prior to the encounter. Simon leaves the encounter with a new purpose; he is no longer a fisherman but a disciple who will reach out to men.
The leper approaches Jesus and makes a declaration of faith. He leaves the encounter healed physically, restored socially and engaged evangelistically.
The paralytic came to Jesus via the mercy of friends. I wonder if he begged them to help, if they were family, and if he was known to others in the room. In a small village, surely everyone knew him. They probably did not know his faith though. Dropped into an encounter with the healer he left not only walking but strong enough to carry his mat with him.
Three people who all had some degree of faith but their encounter with Jesus moved it to a new level.
So I ask myself do I just know of this man or have I been changed by an encounter? Do I need to encounter him again or am I whole emotionally and spiritually?
Monday, June 15, 2009
Spirit led
I the first four chapters of Luke, the Spirit causes an old man to be in the right place at the right time to see the baby Jesus in the temple, affirms Jesus at his baptism, is proclaimed to be a new part of the upcoming ministry of Jesus, leads Jesus into the desert where he is tempted and leads him back again to Galilee. Over an over there is a combination of leading and then giving the words to speak. He gives direction, purpose (4:43, Jesus said his purpose was to preach the good news of the kingdom).
So how led am I? Do I hold God back by refusing to open my mouth and share what I have seen and heard? Do I listen to that inner voice, those inner nudges to go (be led) to certain people or places?
I fear that often I still preach the message of John (baptism for repentance and forgiveness) rather than the message of Jesus (baptism for the Holy Spirit that leads and moves us to speak).
So how led am I? Do I hold God back by refusing to open my mouth and share what I have seen and heard? Do I listen to that inner voice, those inner nudges to go (be led) to certain people or places?
I fear that often I still preach the message of John (baptism for repentance and forgiveness) rather than the message of Jesus (baptism for the Holy Spirit that leads and moves us to speak).
Sunday, June 14, 2009
favor and grace
Luke 1 makes two references to the favor of God and the grace of God. One is a proclamation by the angels of peace on earth to men "on whom his favor rests" and the other is that Jesus was filled with wisdom and the "grace of God was upon him."
Sounds like a easy life and all that makes the nativity story sweet . . . until you look at the context. Jesus was in a cave lying in a feed trough before the first statement. His parents were on the way to Jerusalem to offer the Jewish sacrifice for the birth of the firstborn prior to the second. The text clearly says they were to offer a pair of doves or pigeons; that is the sacrifice of the poor according to Leviticus 12. The rich offered a lamb. So favor and grace resting on someone doesn't mean anything about socio-economics. In this case, favor and grace were upon a kid born into such poverty that they had no home, no proper clothes for him and could only offer the poorest of sacrifices.
So what does favor and grace mean to me? Am I so North American that I have come to believe that the American dream is God's grace to me? Am I so materialistic that I think that divine favor means middle class riches? Is it possible for me to view the world through God's perspective and not look at wealth as a measure of anything spiritual?
Grace and favor . . . I don't think they look like what we think they do.
Sounds like a easy life and all that makes the nativity story sweet . . . until you look at the context. Jesus was in a cave lying in a feed trough before the first statement. His parents were on the way to Jerusalem to offer the Jewish sacrifice for the birth of the firstborn prior to the second. The text clearly says they were to offer a pair of doves or pigeons; that is the sacrifice of the poor according to Leviticus 12. The rich offered a lamb. So favor and grace resting on someone doesn't mean anything about socio-economics. In this case, favor and grace were upon a kid born into such poverty that they had no home, no proper clothes for him and could only offer the poorest of sacrifices.
So what does favor and grace mean to me? Am I so North American that I have come to believe that the American dream is God's grace to me? Am I so materialistic that I think that divine favor means middle class riches? Is it possible for me to view the world through God's perspective and not look at wealth as a measure of anything spiritual?
Grace and favor . . . I don't think they look like what we think they do.
Saturday, June 13, 2009
Great in the sight of the Lord
Luke 1:15 "He will be great in the sight of the Lord". What does that mean? Was John to be so different that he he was praised by God even before he started? Was this his "destiny" or direction? What does it imply about other people? Does it mean that others would maybe not be so great in the sight of God?
It is a question that I must ask of self as well. How great will I be? How not-great will I be? Do I settle for being mundane or is that truly just settling while God has other plans for me?
It is so easy to become distracted with activities of this life and forget that the ultimate judge of a life is from the perspective of the Lord. When all is said and done, my body "sleep in the church yard" as the old song says, what will be God's perspective of my life? How great will my efforts look at that moment measured by the Creator against the potential that he placed within me before I was born?
It is a question that I must ask of self as well. How great will I be? How not-great will I be? Do I settle for being mundane or is that truly just settling while God has other plans for me?
It is so easy to become distracted with activities of this life and forget that the ultimate judge of a life is from the perspective of the Lord. When all is said and done, my body "sleep in the church yard" as the old song says, what will be God's perspective of my life? How great will my efforts look at that moment measured by the Creator against the potential that he placed within me before I was born?
Monday, September 15, 2008
Be Still
I arose before the rest of the family and prayed as I walked the blog. It was a beautiful morning with the moon breaking through the clouds. I talked to God about my concerns, hopes and fears. The coolness of the morning bid me sit still and linger in the moment.
When I pulled up a chair on the back patio, the noise of the metal chair on the concrete ground was shocking. I sat and relaxed. Or at least I tried. The noise in the background seemed to grow, e.g., a car passing on the highway, a motorcycle revving his engine, a neighbor's dog barking. What was once background noise was now overwhelmingly in the foreground.
How hard it is just to sit still and be calm. I thought of the command Moses gave the Israelites on the shore of the Red Sea as the Egyptians bore down upon them. ". . . you need only be still."
Much easier said than done. To physically be still is one thing; the still thoughts and emotions is another. Yet when all is said and done, despite the cacophony of the background noise become foreground noise, the moment served to put me in a better place for the day than I would have been in had I not struggled with the lack of stillness.
Sometimes to truly move forward one must not move at all.
When I pulled up a chair on the back patio, the noise of the metal chair on the concrete ground was shocking. I sat and relaxed. Or at least I tried. The noise in the background seemed to grow, e.g., a car passing on the highway, a motorcycle revving his engine, a neighbor's dog barking. What was once background noise was now overwhelmingly in the foreground.
How hard it is just to sit still and be calm. I thought of the command Moses gave the Israelites on the shore of the Red Sea as the Egyptians bore down upon them. ". . . you need only be still."
Much easier said than done. To physically be still is one thing; the still thoughts and emotions is another. Yet when all is said and done, despite the cacophony of the background noise become foreground noise, the moment served to put me in a better place for the day than I would have been in had I not struggled with the lack of stillness.
Sometimes to truly move forward one must not move at all.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)