03.23.08
Posted in Theology at 22:28 pm by Josh
13 That very day two of them were going to a village named Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem, 14 and they were talking with each other about all these things that had happened. 15 While they were talking and discussing together, Jesus himself drew near and went with them. 16 But their eyes were kept from recognizing him. 17 And he said to them, “What is this conversation that you are holding with each other as you walk?” And they stood still, looking sad. 18 Then one of them, named Cleopas, answered him, “Are you the only visitor to Jerusalem who does not know the things that have happened there in these days?” 19 And he said to them, “What things?” And they said to him, “Concerning Jesus of Nazareth, a man who was a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people, 20 and how our chief priests and rulers delivered him up to be condemned to death, and crucified him. 21 But we had hoped that he was the one to redeem Israel. Yes, and besides all this, it is now the third day since these things happened. 22 Moreover, some women of our company amazed us. They were at the tomb early in the morning, 23 and when they did not find his body, they came back saying that they had even seen a vision of angels, who said that he was alive. 24 Some of those who were with us went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said, but him they did not see.” 25 And he said to them, “O foolish ones, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken! 26 Was it not necessary that the Christ should suffer these things and enter into his glory?” 27 And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself.
28 So they drew near to the village to which they were going. He acted as if he were going farther, 29 but they urged him strongly, saying, “Stay with us, for it is toward evening and the day is now far spent.” So he went in to stay with them. 30 When he was at table with them, he took the bread and blessed and broke it and gave it to them. 31 And their eyes were opened, and they recognized him. And he vanished from their sight. 32 They said to each other, “Did not our hearts burn within us while he talked to us on the road, while he opened to us the Scriptures?” 33 And they rose that same hour and returned to Jerusalem. And they found the eleven and those who were with them gathered together, 34 saying, “The Lord has risen indeed, and has appeared to Simon!” 35 Then they told what had happened on the road, and how he was known to them in the breaking of the bread.
Luke 24:13-35
Jesus has risen, as He promised. This day marks the celebration of life which He gave unto us for no reason other than to call us His own. I’ve no wisdom or insight into this miracle, this Day of days. All I have is this: Of believers and unbelievers alike, I ask you, what do you really believe? If you believe He is Lord, I challenge you to look and make sure your eyes are open and you recognize Him. If you do not believe, I ask you to take a second look at everything around you, and then I invite you to tell me what you do believe. In either case, I hope this week has been full of blessings and miracles and you all experience the fullness of life in Him who redeemed us from death. Hosanna in the highest. Alleluia. Amen.
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03.22.08
Posted in Theology at 12:09 pm by Josh
27:62 The next day, that is, after the day of Preparation, the chief priests and the Pharisees gathered before Pilate 63 and said, “Sir, we remember how that impostor said, while he was still alive, ‘After three days I will rise.’ 64 Therefore order the tomb to be made secure until the third day, lest his disciples go and steal him away and tell the people, ‘He has risen from the dead,’ and the last fraud will be worse than the first.” 65 Pilate said to them, “You have a guard of soldiers. Go, make it as secure as you can.” 66 So they went and made the tomb secure by sealing the stone and setting a guard.
~Matthew 27:62-66
23:56 Then they returned and prepared spices and ointments.
On the Sabbath they rested according to the commandment.
~Luke 23:56
Not a lot of talk in the Bible about what happened on the day between the crucifiction and the Resurrection. Luke is the only one who remembers to spell out the obvious for all of us non-Jews who would one day read these Gospels and ask questions about the time frame. Of course very little happened the day after the crucifiction; it was the Sabbath.
My first reaction in looking at this was, sure it’s the Sabbath, but it was God in the flesh who just died; surely there would be no harm in giving Him a proper burial? Wasn’t the Sabbath made for man, and not the other way around (Mark 2:27)? Look closer, though. There’s something more at work.
Jesus body was put in a tomb rather quickly after His death, the tomb then sealed up by a large rock. One might argue that this burial was a bit hasty for Jewish culture and I would probably agree with you. But we’re forgetting something very important; the Sabbath was already upon them when Jesus died. They had to move quickly if they were to keep the commandment to rest on the seventh day. Who keeps such a commandment at a time like this? Those who just spent precious time with our Lord in the flesh.
And God shows us that it is good to put such faith in Him, that even in death, even in His death, to keep His commandments is to humbly relinquish all control to Him. See what happens here: The Jews go to take their day of rest, though I imagine there must have been considerable weeping that day. God, meanwhile, puts a thought into the head of the Romans to guard the tomb, make sure that no one goes in or out of it so that the “impostor” cannot do any more damage. But while the Romans are making sure that the false prophet’s word does not come to pass, God is busy using the very same act of the guard to ensure that His word cannot be refuted. All along, it was God who lifted up the guard to monitor the entrance to Jesus’ tomb, not the Romans at all. And through it all, the Jews were observing the Sabbath, so that even those who would have wanted to — Mary, Mary, Joseph, James, John and the like — did not go to visit the tomb. They did not even go so far as the outside of it, let alone try to get in. They kept the commandment of the Lord, and He used the time to fulfill His word.
Jesus, of course, would have still risen on the third day. But think of the slanderous difficulties that would have arisen. Even with the guard, there were many who were opposed to this idea that Christ rose from the dead; even some who saw Him were skeptical. Think how many lies would have come to pass had there not been an objective, impartial guard to keep watch.
So my point, in short, is this. Whatever God wills shall surely come to pass. But look at the trouble we save Him when we stay out of the way. Follow His commandments, no matter how futile it sometimes seems. He is using all things for good.
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03.21.08
Posted in Theology at 18:55 pm by Josh
25 And it was the third hour when they crucified him. 26 And the inscription of the charge against him read, “The King of the Jews.” 27 And with him they crucified two robbers, one on his right and one on his left. 29 And those who passed by derided him, wagging their heads and saying, “Aha! You who would destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, 30 save yourself, and come down from the cross!” 31 So also the chief priests with the scribes mocked him to one another, saying, “He saved others; he cannot save himself. 32 Let the Christ, the King of Israel, come down now from the cross that we may see and believe.” Those who were crucified with him also reviled him.
The Death of Jesus
33 And when the sixth hour had come, there was darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour. 34 And at the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?” which means, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”
37 And Jesus uttered a loud cry and breathed his last. 38 And the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom.
Mark 15:25-32; 37-38
I don’t have anything particularly insightful to say today. I find Good Friday to be a very melancholy day for me, remembering what Jesus went through all day long and finally into the night. While I sit here typing, warm and clothed, well-fed and free from the fear of death, I think about my God, beaten cruelly, mercilessly, a crown of thorns pressed into His scalp, His chosen people preferring a murderer to His Majesty, then forcing Him to struggle under the weight of a cross up the crude hill of Golgotha where He was made to lay down as they drove large stakes through his hands and feet. That, friends, is a very long day, and one I cannot easily forget about.
What I will point out here is the comfort the passage in Mark brings. Only two of the four Gospels mention Jesus’ dying words: “Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani,” which is a cry out to God actually asking Him, “why?” This is an interesting thing in Scripture, because it shows a very clear separation — as if we haven’t seen many already — between the Father and the Son. Skeptics often say, as the Pharisees did, that if He were really God, then He would have no need to ask such a question. Shouldn’t He have known the answer already? My response is yes, He did know the answer. Why, then, ask the question? To set an example.
We should never think that it is wrong to ask God “why” when we don’t understand something. We also should never think that it is wrong to ask God “why” when we do understand something. What Jesus is illustrating here is the need we have to be real with God the Father (and for us, now, also the Son). This is a deeply personal moment, so much so that both Mark and Matthew take the pains to copy it down in Aramaic, the language in which it has remained in every translation of the Bible, suggesting considerable significance. Jesus, before breathing His last, shows us how very human He was, but also how that human-ness, somehow, does not prohibit us from appropriately questioning God.
As we remember His sacrifice tonight, I would encourage everyone to cry out to Him, with all of your heart and soul if need be. These cries are not the dramatic, despairing cries of Job, but the real cries of hearts that trust and love the Lord who, often times, will ordain our suffering for His cause. If you feel it in you, why not even cry out about the atrocity of Jesus’ murder? We know from Scripture this had to be carried out, but now twice we’ve seen that even Jesus called out for mercy twice, asking for the chalice to pass and questioning His having been forsaken. Do not shy from your hearts, friends, for God knows all that is in them anyway. Deliver yourselves up to Him so that He may do what He wills without any cheek from us.
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03.20.08
Posted in Theology at 17:55 pm by Josh
25:37 Then the righteous will answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? 38 And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? 39 And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?’ 40 And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.’
~Matthew 25:37-40
14:32 And they went to a place called Gethsemane. And he said to his disciples, “Sit here while I pray.” 33 And he took with him Peter and James and John, and began to be greatly distressed and troubled. 34 And he said to them, “My soul is very sorrowful, even to death. Remain here and watch.” 35 And going a little farther, he fell on the ground and prayed that, if it were possible, the hour might pass from him. 36 And he said, “Abba, Father, all things are possible for you. Remove this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will.” 37 And he came and found them sleeping, and he said to Peter, “Simon, are you asleep? Could you not watch one hour? 38 Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.” 39 And again he went away and prayed, saying the same words. 40 And again he came and found them sleeping, for their eyes were very heavy, and they did not know what to answer him. 41 And he came the third time and said to them, “Are you still sleeping and taking your rest? It is enough; the hour has come. The Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. 42 Rise, let us be going; see, my betrayer is at hand.”
~Mark 13:32-42
The year of the Hebrew calendar in which Jesus died marked this day as the first day of the Passover feast. You’ll notice in our Christian calendar, such is not the case this year, for Easter is rather early. Even so, we’re going to equate today to the day of The Last Supper in the year Jesus was killed.
After supper, Jesus took two of His most trusted disciples and friends with Him to Gethsemane. While He prayed to the Father, they fell asleep (see parallel in Wednesday’s post). This is significant, to me, for a number of reasons, some of which ought to be inherently Christian, and others which are, for me, inherently selfish. But details are of little import here. This exhortation is for me as much as it is for anyone else.
John Mark makes a point of letting the reader know that Jesus not only took disciples with Him to the garden, but that they were arguably His two right-hand men. As we look through the Gospels, we see that John and Simon Peter are two names mentioned far more than the rest. In Mark’s Gospel — likely an account of Peter’s time with Jesus, Mark acting as secretary — we see a number of passages pointing out Peter’s mistakes. John’s Gospel seems to differ the most from the rest, recounting things that are not recounted in the other three Gospels, suggesting that he was with Jesus at other times, times, maybe, even more personal and intimate than those shared with the rest of the disciples. Peter goes on to preach the first eight or so chapters of the Book of Acts and John may have gone on to write three epistles, urging the ways of Jesus Christ. So we can see that these two guys were pretty important, both to Christ and the spread of Christianity.
And yet these two important men were the ones who literally fell asleep on their Lord. Not only that, they did so after being asked to keep watch. It is true, God asks many things of us which prove very difficult to do. Staying awake to keep watch, however, I have some difficulty counting among them.
First, we should understand that Jesus is afraid and in emotional pain. He knows that He is about to be crucified and He even prays to the Father that, if possible, God find some other means of doing what must be done. What Jesus asks of His friends is to help Him, to be with Him, and to comfort Him in His time of need. He says, “My soul is very sorrowful, even to death. Remain here and watch.” He confesses the heaviness of His burden and in response, His friends fall asleep. They do not feel His fear. They do not feel His pain. Somehow, in their hearts, they know it is not them who are being persecuted and pursued that night, and so their nerves rest for their lives will be spared.
I’d argue that in this day and age, people — let alone Christians — are pretty bad at saying what we feel. In church we get the “How are you,” “Great!” “It’s good to be saved!” “Thank God for Jesus!” on a weekly basis because most of us have a pretense about what we’re supposed to be like as Believers. The fact is, most of us aren’t so hot. Shame on us for not saying so.
But the bone I’m here to pick has to do with when we do say so. When people confess to us that they are not well, that they are emotionally burdened, that they are sorrowful even to death, how do we react? Do we take them under out wings the best way we know how? Do we do anything more than fall asleep? Exceptions notwithstanding, I sadly have to say no, I don’t think we do.
Brothers and sisters, we are a family. We are left here with the help of the Holy Spirit to care for one another, to bear one another’s burdens. Our hearts cannot carry would-be clauses: “I know I need to spend more time with so-and-so and I really want to, but I’m just so busy.” “I know I need to be with God because He asked me to be, but I just don’t have time.” God asked His two best friends — the people He as a person loved most closely — to be with Him in His greatest time of need and they effectively replied, “We’re too busy.” Dear friends, we cannot — hear me, cannot — be too busy for one another any longer. I’m sorry to say, there is more at work in this world than the glory of God, and when this war is over, He will still be on top, He will still be full of glory, but where will we, His children, His most prized possessions be if we do not stick by one another?
In war, soldiers are training to take care of one another when there is hunger, thirst, pain, or otherwise. Friends, we must do the same. No matter how petty someone’s pain may sound to you, no matter how packed your schedule seems to be, stand by the truth that God will provide for you when you sacrifice your time. Look at the first passage: As we do for the least of our brothers, so we do to Him. Also, as we do not do for the least of our brothers, so we have not done for Him. Let us consider this when we hear from those in need.
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03.19.08
Posted in Theology at 20:51 pm by Josh
11:27 And they came again to Jerusalem. And as he was walking in the temple, the chief priests and the scribes and the elders came to him, 28 and they said to him, “By what authority are you doing these things, or who gave you this authority to do them?” 29 Jesus said to them, “I will ask you one question; answer me, and I will tell you by what authority I do these things. 30 Was the baptism of John from heaven or from man? Answer me.” 31 And they discussed it with one another, saying, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he will say, ‘Why then did you not believe him?’ 32 But shall we say, ‘From man’?”—they were afraid of the people, for they all held that John really was a prophet. 33 So they answered Jesus, “We do not know.” And Jesus said to them, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things.”
12:38 And in his teaching he said, “Beware of the scribes, who like to walk around in long robes and like greetings in the marketplaces 39 and have the best seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at feasts, 40 who devour widows’ houses and for a pretense make long prayers. They will receive the greater condemnation.”
Mark 11:27-33; 12:38-40
If you didn’t know better, you might think that Jesus returned to Jerusalem just to pick a fight. In Matthew’s Gospel, we see Jesus proclaim seven woes to the chief priests, calling them out on all of their wrong practices and superficial pride. Most of the Gospels tell us of the many times the priests questioned Jesus after his return, trying to get Him to slip up on something, say the wrong thing so they’d have “just” cause to crucify Him. When they ask Him about taxes, He gives a very clever retort, in my estimation, but when they ask Him about marriage in the resurrection, he boldly asserts “You are quite wrong” (Mk 12:27). These passages give us more of this blunt — and apparently fed up — Jesus.
But it should be made clear that Jesus was not lambasting the priests and scribes just to show them He was right and they were wrong. In fact, I’m going to argue that had nothing to do with it. First of all, we can rule out Jesus need to be ego-centric because He didn’t have that need; He was completely God-centric. (Note: Just because He was God does not make ego-centrism and God-centrism the same; I’ll address this another day.) Second, He had no need to make them feel small because He knew, better than anyone, that they would never feel small. They wouldn’t let themselves. Their hearts had hardened to make them believe they were the greatest, they were God’s gifts to man. Third, and most important of all, being condescending is not being loving in the least.
We have to remember that Jesus, at that time, had already performed miracles beyond necessity: healing the sick and crippled, forgiving the sinful, walking on water, turning water to wine, raising the dead. By now, He knows he has only two days left to live and He’s no more need to prove Himself; indeed, He never had the need in the first place, but only the desire to have His people know Him and love Him. They quite obviously refuse, not leastways by this provocative testing. Even more interesting is the idea that if they had just answered His question, they would have gotten exactly what they wanted: An admission from Jesus that He was acting on God’s authority. But in the epitome of their selfishness, they were far more concerned about Jesus’ judgement of words than they were even with their desire to kill Him.
Alas, I am getting off track. We were talking about why Jesus goes to such pains to point out the wrongs of the priests and scribes. If you think about it, it was really tactical genius. See, many of the people in Jerusalem knew that the priests and scribes were fools dressed in elaborate robes, but they were too afraid of them to say or do anything. Now Jesus could have just stood up, warned against he priests, and then launched into a tirade about the coming of man and the end of an age (which He does for the rest of Mark 12 and into Mark 13). But what weight would it have had if He’d not taken the time to show the delicate, subtle ways in which the priests were wrong? He was, essentially, backing up His point before He’d even made it.
When Jesus spends the first three days of His time in Jerusalem criticizing the leaders, He knows He will be put to death. That’s not His concern at this time. His concern is leaving behind the right message. And I have to think that, even though so many of the people of Jerusalem backed the Pharisees when Caiaphas persuaded them to crucify Jesus, many of those people probably thought twice after a massive earthquake and the subsequent resurrection of Jesus. The warning against the scribes might not have even been a powerful caution to the disciples, as these men, to them, were little more than tyrants. But when Jesus was taken up into Heaven, you can be sure that the disciples — and probably many others — thought twice before ever taking the word of a priest or scribe seriously again. The people of Christ’s church had learned simplicity, humility, and honor from God, without knowing it from the people. This was, and is, more important than making big shows about who we are or asking questions designed to incite an argument.
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03.18.08
Posted in Theology at 22:47 pm by Josh
13:32 “But concerning that day or that hour, no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. 33 Be on guard, keep awake. For you do not know when the time will come. 34 It is like a man going on a journey, when he leaves home and puts his servants in charge, each with his work, and commands the doorkeeper to stay awake. 35 Therefore stay awake—for you do not know when the master of the house will come, in the evening, or at midnight, or when the rooster crows, or in the morning— 36 lest he come suddenly and find you asleep. 37 And what I say to you I say to all: Stay awake.”
14:1 It was now two days before the Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread. And the chief priests and the scribes were seeking how to arrest him by stealth and kill him, 2 for they said, “Not during the feast, lest there be an uproar from the people.”
~Mark 13:32-37, 14:1-2
Alas, here we are, two days before the Passover feast. It’s hard to believe that we’re still awake, still on guard for Him to come home. It’s times like these I thank God, rather than question Him, for Jesus’ speaking in riddles. Think if He actually expected us not to sleep all this time…
But let me stop, because I’m actually not here to be funny (this time). No, we’ve got something really serious happening here. Jesus is telling everybody to be on their guard, watch out, for something is coming, something potentially dangerous, and if you’re caught doing whatever it is you do when that time comes, there will be great sorrow. In the days Jesus lived, if a servant was commanded to keep watch through the night, he would almost certainly be beaten if he was caught sleeping and in the worst of cases, he would be killed. Either way, we see a theme: punishment. Jesus is, essentially, threatening punishment if we are caught sleeping when the Master comes home. But how can this be? If Jesus died to relieve us of punishment, what penalty could there be? Was He only utilizing the very first form of Christian guilt, trying to trick or scare his followers into submission? I am going to have to argue no.
Forgiven, we are. Salvation, we have. License to sin, to be complacent in that, we do not. There have been times I’ve considered this passage when sinning and thought, “What would happen to me if God came just this minute?” Shame? Absolutely. Fear? You bet. Accountability? Scripture says so (Job 38:1-3). Punishment? Well, now I’m not so sure. So then why stay awake? Why wait up for a Master who may not come in my lifetime?
Jesus, as usual, is making a point. He is saying that we must be on guard all the time, not just for the sake of the blood that saves us, but also for the sake of our own souls which are in constant danger. We must stay awake, alert, to recognize and to know when the devil is at hand and when we need to run to Him, to flee the sins that would bind us. God is a man on a journey, He’s left us in charge of His keep. Will we do what we want with it? Will we squander it? Will we take it for granted? Or are there those times when we, in all of our brokenness, will do things simply because, it is in our nature to take things into our own hands and, if caught in the act, will that separate us from God forever?
I’m reminded of a memory I have of being at my grandmother’s house when I was a young boy. It was near Easter, as a matter of fact, and my grandmother had a lovely bowl of jellybeans on the hutch. I saw them, I made a comment about them, something to hint that I enjoyed them very much and I would like to have one, but for whatever reason, possibly out of fear of rejection, I didn’t directly ask for one. Well my grandmother didn’t quite understand what I was getting at. I could have still asked. I knew it then as clearly as I know it now. But they were so close. What if I just took one? What if I was very careful, very meticulous, and very quick, and I took a jellybean and popped it in my mouth before someone noticed? Of course I tried and, with all the precision and speed of a six-year-old, I landed my quarry, bit down, and swallowed, likely not even enjoying the silly thing. Well, I was so proud of myself for about a second, when I turned around, saw my grandmother’s cold, stern face and she said, “You could have just asked for one.”
Shame, friends. I felt downright rotten. That jellybean had become poison, enough to make my stomach churn. I swore to myself I would never take another candy like that again. I wondered how and if I could ever make it up, redeem myself. Not surprisingly, my grandmother had forgotten the incident not ten minutes later. You see, she loved me (God bless her, she still loves me) and she was not going to hold even my dishonesty against me. She didn’t make me feel shame. I felt shame because I knew I’d done something wrong and because someone, from whom I seek approval caught me. Christ tells us to seek approval from God (which ought to be easy, because we already have it!). If I sin and that’s the time God chooses to return to us, I will feel very, very, shameful, not because He makes me, but because I love Him and never actually want to hurt him.
Let’s tie this back in. A verse later, we see the chief priests and scribes want Him dead for this, and for some other things he’s said. Is that not a bit harsh? Sure, if you understand and can embrace love. But these men could not. I will argue that the religious leaders of the time — a time preceeded by five-hundred years of some of the most reckless, thoughtless, consistent, complacent debauchery the Israelites had ever known — were so hardened by their desire to be better than “sinners”, were as closed off to true emotion as the prostitute in the street or the tax collector in his booth, that they did not see the firm reproach of a loving God. They saw a threat. They saw fear. They saw the guilt we so often blame God for putting on us, the Christian guilt we so often speak of. They saw it, they feared it, and they took it upon themselves to put it away.
Friends, there is no more guilt for those who are in Jesus Christ, for there is no condemnation. Stay awake, stay strong, be watchful for the devil as Jesus always was, especially over the next couple of days, but do not wallow in guilt or shame, for that also opens a door for Satan. When you have sinned, repent by showing your love, by serving God, and by always keeping both of your spiritual eyes open.
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03.17.08
Posted in Theology at 23:19 pm by Josh
15 And they came to Jerusalem. And he entered the temple and began to drive out those who sold and those who bought in the temple, and he overturned the tables of the money-changers and the seats of those who sold pigeons. 16 And he would not allow anyone to carry anything through the temple. 17 And he was teaching them and saying to them, “Is it not written, ‘My house shall be called a house of prayer for all the nations’? But you have made it a den of robbers.” 18 And the chief priests and the scribes heard it and were seeking a way to destroy him, for they feared him, because all the crowd was astonished at his teaching. 19 And when evening came they went out of the city.
~Mark 11:15-19
While this remains one of my favorite passages in the Bible, it also remains one of the most difficult for many people. There are very few Christians — or people, in general — who like to see Jesus in this state. Our traditional, typical view of The Messiah is of love: healing the sick and the lame, forgiving those ill with sin, raising Lazarus from the dead, even turning water into wine (yes, friends, that’s love). Non-Christians sometimes joke about the tenderness of Jesus, making it out to be a weakness, a man incapable of true strength because He’s too busy being a big softy. Well, skeptics, I present to you Jesus in the temple on a Monday some 1,970 years ago. Oh, the love is there. Indeed, the love brought Him to it. But there’s also no doubt, our God is angry.
Though whole sermons have been done on the subject, I’ll sum up. Jesus at first looks to be angry because people are selling things in the Temple. This is not the case. Such items needed to be used for sacrifices, and there was no major harm in the actual selling of these things. It is where these things were being sold. These sacrificial beasts were being marketed in the already-small and far-removed court of the Gentiles, a tiny portion of the temple dedicated to non-Jews who wanted to worship the true Living God. Setting up a market in the court effectively drove the Gentiles out, excluding them from being able to come and worship the Lord. Not surprising, He doesn’t much care for this.
Behold, the rage of Jesus. With a whip, He enters the temple, thrashes about through tables and chairs, hitting men, driving them from His presence, throwing aside tables, chairs and gold. Does that ruin your image of Jesus? It shouldn’t. It should complete it. This is the God I want. This is a God who loves me — a non-Jew, by the way — so much, that He would drive His own chosen people from His and my presence so that I can be near Him. Of course, He does not do this for lack of love for them. On the contrary, He would that they came to Him as well. But He will not tolerate people standing in the way of the love He chooses to give to this fallen world. Not only will He not tolerate it, but it will kindle His anger in ways reminiscent of Mount Zion, when his anger thundered and shook the very mountain, that His creation would make their own god in the shape of a calf. Idolization, friends. When people selling sacrifices stand between others and the God of the universe, there is idolization at work. And for all of the disappointment that lust and greed and cursing and carelessness breed between us and God, idolatry will burn His anger hotter than the consuming fire He is. Oh, there is still forgiveness. Jesus died for that. But we need to see His anger, we need to see the wrath even of Jesus as we do in this passage, to remember that God is no softy nor creature weakened by love. He is more powerful than the storms and the seas and the earth, which will crumble under His feet. We must remember to see our God this way.
That Monday was fateful, you see. Jesus had, only twenty-four hours early, been hailed as king, entering Jerusalem, the people believed, to save them (which, of course, He did). With this act and this act alone of driving people from the Holy Temple, He sealed His own fate. This behavior filled the Pharisees with fear; they saw the rage of a jealous God. So they began to call for his death to save their own skins. In a few short days, they got their wish. But no power, not even death, can overcome He who was, who is, and who always shall be.
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03.16.08
Posted in Theology at 21:14 pm by Josh
The Triumphal Entry
28 And when he had said these things, he went on ahead, going up to Jerusalem. 29 When he drew near to Bethphage and Bethany, at the mount that is called Olivet, he sent two of the disciples, 30 saying, “Go into the village in front of you, where on entering you will find a colt tied, on which no one has ever yet sat. Untie it and bring it here. 31 If anyone asks you, ‘Why are you untying it?’ you shall say this: ‘The Lord has need of it.’” 32 So those who were sent went away and found it just as he had told them. 33 And as they were untying the colt, its owners said to them, “Why are you untying the colt?” 34 And they said, “The Lord has need of it.” 35 And they brought it to Jesus, and throwing their cloaks on the colt, they set Jesus on it. 36 And as he rode along, they spread their cloaks on the road. 37 As he was drawing near—already on the way down the Mount of Olives—the whole multitude of his disciples began to rejoice and praise God with a loud voice for all the mighty works that they had seen, 38 saying, “Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!” 39 And some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to him, “Teacher, rebuke your disciples.” 40 He answered, “I tell you, if these were silent, the very stones would cry out.”
Jesus Weeps over Jerusalem
41 And when he drew near and saw the city, he wept over it, 42 saying, “Would that you, even you, had known on this day the things that make for peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes. 43 For the days will come upon you, when your enemies will set up a barricade around you and surround you and hem you in on every side 44 and tear you down to the ground, you and your children within you. And they will not leave one stone upon another in you, because you did not know the time of your visitation.”
~Luke 19:28-44
In Return of the Jedi, we get our very first in-person glimpse of Emperor Palpatine. Palpatine, in the movie, is the most powerful man in the galaxy, having ruled the universe with an iron fist and the dark side of the force for nearly twenty-five years. As his ship enters the new Death Star, he is greeted by a host of some hundred or so Storm Troopers, all of the captains and commanders who could be spared, and, of course, his cronie Darth Vader bowed as low to the floor as his robotic limbs can bring him. His followers, his dedicated subjects, have cleared a path for him and have come to honor him, pledging their allegience to their king. The Emperor, of course, walks slowly from his Imperial Fighter, deliberately clacking his walking stick with each step he takes, his hood hanging low over his face so we can not see it, nor can he see the faces of those in his audience; in other words, he has put up a barrier between him and those who would call him king. I bring this up because it conveys an image of a king who not only has no great love for his people, but has a pride and an arrogance so over-developed that he doesn’t even see the need to connect with his disciples.
A more realistic image is that of our quadrennial (or octennial) presidential parade, to welcome a new president into our lives as Americans. People line the streets and a motorcade moves slowly down the streets. Once upon a time, when life was a bit safer, people would throw flowers and other items of appreciation into the path of the oncoming cars, cheering and waving banners and signs of support. It is a celebration, through and through.
So we’ve got three pictures here, but two are more closely related than the other. Clearly I’m talking about the Emperor and the President. (Please note: I am not equating the President with Emperor Palpatine.) Read the summaries again and put yourself in each man’s shoes. How do you feel? Prideful? Powerful? Daresay, even lustful? It wouldn’t surprise me if you felt any of those. I can recall a time when I was eighteen. I returned to my hometown after a lowly two months in college and I made a cameo at my old youth ministry, where I had joyfully served as both vice president and president while I was in high school. After being off at school where I was a nobody, I came home to a warmer welcome than I expected; people rushed towards me, hugged me, patted me on the back, and wanted to hear all about what I’d been up to. I was positively beaming with pride. I’d never felt better about myself. Neither does a president or the fictional Palpatine.
Jesus, we see, is a different story. I’ve deliberately chosen Luke’s version of the entry because he includes something that the other versions do not. He tells of Jesus’ weeping over his city, not long after being welcomed in with such open arms. Now picture the two scenes here: First, you’re riding along on a donkey (somewhat equivalent to our modern day limo; I think only camels were more coveted in the day) and as you approach the holy city (picture coming over the crest of I-95 and seeing Manhattan in the distance) there are adoring people there, tearing clothes from their own bodies to lay before your way so that your donkey — not you but your donkey — doesn’t have to walk on the hard earth alone. They fan you with palm branches, and lay them also at the feet of your animal. Can you feel yourself puffing up, sitting up straighter, feeling power coursing through your body? The impossibility to comprehend here is that Jesus did not feel that. Not even a little.
I might argue that Jesus felt nothing but sadness, except maybe even a little fear. He knew that He was not riding in to be king of Jerusalem. He knew that He would live for only six more days. He knows that these praises of “Hosanna” are in vain, as these are the same people who will call for Him to hang from a cross next Friday, yet when the Pharisees instruct Jesus on the proper way to teach, He rebukes them, for He is a King who knows what is necessary not for His own benefit, but for the sake of His people. These praises must be called out to Him, for if they were not, as we will see in my posts later this week, He may not have come to be crucified at all. “If these were silent, the very stones would cry out.” Nothing, nothing, stops the work of God. Certainly not the silence of people.
Alas, though such power is shown, only a sentence later, we see our King weeping, our very God crying over the self-destruction of His people. Now I don’t know the President, but I’d have to honestly wonder when the last time was he cried over the state of the American people. Maybe he has cried over soldiers lost in war — maybe he has even shed a tear that we are in a state of war — but has he ever cried that we are a lost people, many under-nourished, under-educated, under-loved and therefore under-loving? Does he cry when he sees his country in pain? I’d imagine no. Not even when the people love him, much less when they hate him. Jesus, though, was different. He cried for these reasons and so many more. Can you imagine that? God crying over His people? That is perfect, unadultered, amazing love.
As we enter “Passion Week”, I invite you to celebrate our Lord with me. If you don’t believe, or if you just have questions about Him, I’d encourage you to leave a comment or drop me an e-mail. Let this week, as always, be a reminder of what God did for us, not because we “owe” Him for His sacrifice, but because, knowing that some of use still would not return to Him, He sacrificed anyway. He loved us — and loves us — with more perfection than we can even begin to understand.
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03.12.08
Posted in Rants, New York City, Life at 10:11 am by Josh
6 And the tongue is a fire, a world of unrighteousness. The tongue is set among our members, staining the whole body, setting on fire the entire course of life, and set on fire by hell. 7 For every kind of beast and bird, of reptile and sea creature, can be tamed and has been tamed by mankind, 8 but no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison. 9 With it we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse people who are made in the likeness of God.
James 3:6-9
I’ve been struggling with this lately, and by “struggling” I mean talking smack about all kinds of people and making very little effort not to. Mind you, these people are not acquaintances or friends, which is probably why I don’t take the pains to abstain, but I also recognize that my justifications are no excuse.
Most recently, I’ve been bad-mouthing Time Warner Cable. They caused me to spend nearly ten hours of my life waiting for the grace of their services, and every time I called to get an answer, I was given scripted nothingness. I complained to many supervisors and managers, only to the avail of two months and five days of free internet. What bothered me was being treated like a number rather than an individual. If I have a client who I blow off or screw up, I don’t just make the sincere effort to apologize, but I take him or her out for drinks or lunch or something. It’s my duty to retain these people as clients. After all, they have choices. But TWC knows that we don’t have much of a choice here in NY, and that the choices we have are just as bad. So they treat people however they like. It’s crowd control, not customer service. And it makes me cranky.
Speaking of cranky, I think I’ve upset some friends with this latent bitterness I can’t seem to shake. I know that being bitter is wrong, but I’m not sure how to get around it. How does one find the strength to continue to show love when there is little or none shown in return? Christ mastered this, therefore, I must make it my goal to do the same. But alas, I am falling a bit short of the calling, once again.
And that, my friends, is what we call stream-of-consciousness rambling. Appy-polly-logies.
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03.07.08
Posted in Books, Life at 17:30 pm by Josh
But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.
~2 Corinthians 12:9
My tea is cold.
I tried to read Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell by Susanna Clarke again, but I’ve stopped once more. I made it about fifty page further this go-round, but what can I say? The book drags and reeks of boredom the whole way through. I never thought a 750-page epic about a magician pupil and teacher could put me to sleep. Turns out it’s not so epic. I going to try to finish it someday, but it’ll have to be when I have a porch, a rocking chair, a pipe, and a quaint summer breeze. In the meantime, I’ve picked up Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince again and you know what? It almost feels like coming home after a long trip.
I think I need more friends. Or a woman. A woman would be good.
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