Monthly Archives: January 2011

Day Forty-one – Matthew 13:1-9

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Draw near to God and He will draw near to you

That day Jesus went out of the house and was sitting by the sea. And large crowds gathered to Him, so He got into a boat and sat down, and the whole crowd was standing on the beach. Matthew 13:1-2

Where could Jesus potentially go and what could he be doing at this stage of his ministry? He could be strategizing with disciples, hosting conferences for Pharisees, recruiting zealots, counseling married couples, designing programs, building a campus, fundraising for an institution, or any number of projects to promote himself and his ministry.

Jesus was “sitting by the sea.” A wonderful place to rest, pray, meditate, and contemplate the glory of God. People Continue reading →

Miscellaneous – Matthew 19 & 20

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First Light

Some mornings, I get so enthused over what emerges from my meditation in scripture
that I feel a need to share it with someone else. I really should know better, because
what looks terribly interesting to me in the predawn stillness may appear silly or
uninteresting to others in the glaring light of day. Regardless, I am naive enough
to think you will find something worthwhile in this morning’s contemplation.

When those hired first came, they thought that they would receive more; but each of them also received a denarius. When they received it, they grumbled at the landowner, saying, “These last men have worked only one hour, and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden and the scorching heat of the day. Matthew 20:9-12 (If you are not familiar with this passage or the story of the wealthy young landowner, you will want to read Matthew 19-20 to get the context of this parable.)

The physics of the kingdom of heaven: A person can be brought into a workplace on the lowest rung, work the least amount of time, do the least work, suffer the least, and receive the same award (wages earned) as those who were first and had worked long and grueling hours (thereby relativizing the status of “first place”). Strange physics, that one percent of the labor on a project can produce the same benefits to the laborer as twenty, fifty and one hundred percent of the labor did for the others (Mt. 20:1-9). Continue reading →

January 23, 2011

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 “Christ In the Wilderness”
Ivan Kramskoy 

 Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led around by the Holy Spirit in the wilderness for forty days, being tempted by the devil. And He ate nothing during those days, and when they had ended, He became hungry. Luke 4:1-2

[Yes, we re returning to the temptation story again this week. There are a couple more points that I wanted to draw out before moving on.]

INTRO: These first two verses set the stage for the episode that follows 

The camera zooms in on Jesus first – his name appears as the story begins
– he is a long way from home, from family, and from the old neighborhood
He is being guided through a transition
– he’s not in charge of this moment in his life, but he’s ready
– he braves the desert alone, subjecting himself to two opposing forces Continue reading →

Day Forty – Matthew 12:46-50

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Draw near to God and He will draw near to you

“For whoever does the will of My Father who is in heaven, he is My brother and sister and mother.”
Matthew 12:50

What do you suppose the disciples of Jesus were doing at the moment he stretched his hand toward them and said, “Behold My mother and My brothers!”? They were probably doing what we are doing right now; that is, trying to get to know him, to learn from him, and to figure out what God wanted from them. They certainly were not trying to look religious or act pious. Nor were they busy doing “ministry”–at least not at that moment. Continue reading →

January 16, 2011

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Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led around by the Spirit in the wilderness for forty days, being tempted by the devil. And He ate nothing during those days, and when they had ended, He became hungry. Luke 4:1-2 (1-13) 

INTRO: We return to where we left our bookmark 

Jesus is on the move and he goes from his baptism directly into the wilderness 

Even if we had never heard this story before, there is something about it that sounds familiar
– we can detect a series of events in Jesus’ movements that are typical of folk tales from ancient times to today
Continue reading →

Day Thirty-nine – Matthew 12:38-45

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Draw near to God and He will draw near to you

. . . no sign will be given to [this generation] but the sign of Jonah the prophet; for just as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the sea monster, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. Matthew 12:39-40

Jesus used words in a way that both revealed and concealed his meaning. When asked for a sign, he referred to himself in the third person as “the Son of Man.” He did not say he would be crucified and laid in a tomb, but that he would be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. Nor did he mention his resurrection even though it is implied in the short span of time that he would be under ground. Continue reading →

January 9, 2011

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Now when all the people were baptized, Jesus was also baptized, and while He was praying, heaven was opened, and the Holy Spirit descended upon Him in bodily form like a dove, and a voice came out of heaven, “You are My beloved Son, in You I am well-pleased.” Luke 3:21-11 

INTRO: This last week I read the story of the flood and realized we had to return to Luke 3 

Jesus’ baptism deserves a closer look
– Peter saw a correspondence between the Genesis flood and baptism (1 Pe. 3:20-21)
– the flood gave the earth a good bathing – it washed away human corruption 

Think of the Earth after the flood as a “sterile field”
– it could have remained disinfected if God had not spared Noah and his family, because they carried in their hearts the germ of human corruption Continue reading →

Day Thirty-eight – Matthew 12:33-37

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Draw near to God and He will draw near to you

Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or make the tree bad and its fruit bad; for the tree is known by its fruit. . . The good man brings out of his good treasure what is good; and the evil man brings out of his evil treasure what is evil. Matthew 12:33, 35 

First of all, let’s be clear regarding the people who had critized Jesus. They were “good people” in terms of their devotion to God and the Scriptures (v. 24). When it came to following God’s commandments, they were the best. How is it that these upright and deeply religious people could say evil things about Jesus? Continue reading →