Author Archives: Chuck Smith, Jr.

Be Loved, Do Love, See Glory

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Luke 10:38-42 and John 11:1-7; 12:1-3

Intro: John will bring Jesus’ public ministry to a close in chapter 12

But just before reaching the end, there is this amazing crescendo!
– Jesus goes to the grave of a dead man and calls him back to life
– this is one of those points where John’s story differs from the Synoptic gospels
• Matthew, Mark and Luke say nothing about Lazarus’ resurrection
• in Matthew, Mark and Luke, Jesus’ ministry comes to an end
◦ but in John’s gospel, it is only Jesus’ public ministry that comes to an end
◦ he still has a lot more to give his disciples before leaving them (chs. 13-17)

In spite of the different direction John goes,
– the way his story overlaps with the Synoptic gospels is recognizable
• for example:
◦ Martha and Mary, whom we met in Luke, enter the story
◦ the story of a woman who poured perfume on Jesus occurs here
(as we find in Matthew and Mark)
◦ John also records Jesus grand entrance into Jerusalem
◦ Jesus quotes Isaiah 6:9-10, as he did in Matthew
(and partially in Mark and Luke)

In Luke, Martha and Mary are one-dimensional characters

Martha is a doer and Mary is a romantic
– Luke presents them this way to make a particular point
• nor do they break character in John’s gospel
• yet in John, both women have more depth and color

The first thing about the sisters that we learn from John:
– there was a special quality to their relationship with Jesus
Lord, he whom you love is ill (Jn. 11:3)
Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus (Jn. 11:6)
[Bystanders at Lazarus’ grave] See how he loved him! (Jn. 11:36)
• this makes Jesus’ immediate response hard to understand
• their message was urgent, he loved them, but he delayed
◦ that is not what we would expect from a loved-one
– this is why, from the start Jesus had to define the course of the illness
• it was not about death, but glory – God’s and his own
• the theme of glory persists through this chapter and the next
◦ 12:23-24, my hour has come – strangely, it includes a death
◦ 12:27-28, how Jesus felt about what his coming hour:
▫ what he wanted to pray, but did not, Father, save me from this hour
▫ what he did pray, Father, glorify your name
▫ God answered, I have glorified it, and I will glorify it again
◦ what would happen at Lazarus’ grave side was a prelude
▫ to an even greater event and a greater glory

I want to go a level deeper into this

We return to Martha and Mary
– too late to heal Lazarus, Martha heard Jesus was coming
• true to form, she jumped up and went out to meet him
◦ but not Mary – John says she remained seated in the house
• Martha’s complaint, Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died
◦ after saying this, Jesus and Martha have a conversation about Lazarus, death and life
◦ John does not report all of it, but he gives us enough
– I find it heartwarming that Jesus spent more time in conversation with Martha
(than he did with Mary, his disciples, or anyone else in this chapter)
• we could get the impression Mary was the more receptive sister
◦ so Jesus would have more to say to her
◦ but Mary got what she needed from Jesus’ teaching
• Jesus knew that Martha was also a good listener,
◦ that he could be straight with her,
◦ and that she would trust what he told her, because she knew he loved her

Martha’s first words, Lord, if you had been here . . . – then she added,
But even now I know that whatever you ask from God, God will give you (v. 22)
– I don’t think she meant, “Even now, you can bring him back”
• as the story goes on, we’ll see that idea never crossed her mind
• rather, she was saying, “I still believe that if you had come in time, he would not have died”
◦ she had lost her brother, but not her faith in Jesus
– at some point in their conversation Jesus told her,
If you believe, you will see the glory of God
• Martha knew Jesus could have healed Lazarus
◦ even her friends and neighbors assumed he could do that (v. 37)
◦ but no one knew Jesus could raise Lazarus from the dead!
• had Jesus healed Lazarus, it would have been a miracle, but with less impact
◦ raising Lazarus intensified the revelation of God’s glory

When Jesus delayed coming to Lazarus’ rescue,
– it was not that he was too busy or did not really care
• it was a matter of timing
– when the disciples objected to returning to Judea, Jesus said,
Are there not twelve hours in the day?
 • that doesn’t make much sense at first
• but what it tells us, is Jesus was alert to the timing of his next move
◦ his timing was not off – it was perfect (it always is!)

We’re not yet through with Martha and Mary

But first, one more word about “glory”
In Matthew and Mark, Jesus had to explain to his disciples why he taught in parables
– the reason, he said, was so that,
they may indeed see but not perceive,
and may indeed hear but not understand,
lest they should turn and be forgiven (Mk. 4:12)
• this is a quotation from the prophet Isaiah (Isa. 6:9-10)
◦ John includes the same quote in chapter 12
• but instead of applying it to parables, he applies it to Jesus’ entire ministry
◦ the inability of people to see, hear and understand explained the Lord’s limited success
◦ John adds that Isaiah was given this prophecy when he saw his [meaning Jesus’] glory and spoke of him
– there was another reason why some leaders did not confess their faith
(yes, some of them did believe in Jesus)
Nevertheless, many even of the authorities believed in him, but for fear of the Pharisees they did not confess it, so that they would not be put out of the synagogue; for they loved the glory that comes from man more than the glory that comes from God (Jn.12:42-43)
• this is painful, but all too common
• we compromise our faith,
◦ because we are overly concerned about how we appear to others
◦ for some religious leaders, public opinion is everything
(drawing attention to their accomplishments is more important than serving for God’s glory alone)

Jesus’ conversation with Martha was about faith

Jesus had explained to his disciples that although Lazarus had died,
– they still had good reason for going to him
Then Jesus told them plainly, “Lazarus has died, and for your sake I am glad that I was not there, so that you may believe (Jn. 11:14)
• then, when Jesus told Martha Lazarus would rise, she said,
I know that he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day (Jn. 11:24)
• Jesus responded with perhaps his most brilliant “I am” statement in John’s gospel
I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this? (Jn. 11:25-26)
◦ he begins with a universal possibility: whoever and everyone
◦ but then narrows it down to this one person: Do you believe this?
– Martha reached as far as her faith could take her
Yes, Lord; I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who is coming into the world (v. 27)
• that’s actually pretty far–almost exactly what Peter said in his great confession
You are the Christ, the Son of the living God (Mt. 16:16)
• but Jesus wanted to expand her knowledge and faith beyond that statement
◦ he was more than enlightenment and healing
◦ he was resurrection and life

Mary had waited for a call or invitation to go to Jesus

True to form, she fell at Jesus’ feet
– every time we see Mary with Jesus, she is at his feet (Lk. 10:39; Jn. 12:3)
• but, surprisingly, she says the same thing her sister said
◦ we could expect something more characteristic of each sister
• but grief has a way of sucking the same desperate feelings out of all of us
– after this brief encounter, Mary quickly fades into background
• they do not have a conversation like the Lord did with Martha
• but Mary reappears in the next chapter
◦ Jesus is again in the sisters’ home and
they gave a dinner for him there. Martha served [of course!], and Lazarus was one of those reclining with him at table. Mary therefore took a pound of expensive ointment made from [an aromatic plant], and anointed the feet of Jesus and wiped his feet with her hair. The house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume (Jn. 12:2)

Matthew and Mark also tell this story (Mark also mentions that it took place in Bethany)
– but only John identifies the woman who anointed Jesus and the disciple who complained
• the most beautiful statement in story is followed by the ugliest statement
The house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume
But Judas Iscariot…said, “Why was this ointment not sold for three hundred denarii and given to the poor?”
 – Judas immediately poisoned the atmosphere
• no one had opportunity to savor Mary’s extravagant love
• her lavish devotion to Jesus was reduced to dollars and cents
◦ in Matthew’s gospel, the question began, Why this waste? (Mt. 26:8)
◦ as if anything given to Jesus could be considered a waste!
– Jesus once again came to Mary’s defense as he had in Luke’s story of the two sisters
• John has painted a vivid contrast between these two followers of Jesus:
◦ one a lover and the other a traitor
◦ one a giver and the other a thief

Conclusion: Martha and Mary do not represent a Christianity divided between doers and dreamers

St. Augustine and St. Aquinas saw in Martha and Mary the distinction between
The Active life and the Contemplative life
– but they saw these as two practices of every Christian
• the active life has its arena where it is most effective, but also has its limitations
• the same is true of the contemplative life
◦ Martha, as we see, was also able to contemplate and reflect
◦ Mary, as we see, could also get up and do something for Jesus
(something that he appreciated and in which he saw a hidden meaning)
Thomas Aquinas wrote, “under the active and the contemplative lives is comprised that kind of life which is made up of both. But just as in every mixture one of the simple elements predominates, so in this mixed kind of life now the contemplative and now the active predominates.”
– and so with us, now Martha and now Mary

The point is that we exercise both of these spiritual muscles
That in contemplation we stretch our faith,
staying alert, open and receptive to God’s grace,
and in service we do what we can to bless the lives of others
bringing to them the love and goodness of Jesus the Christ,
the Son of God

Thieves and Robbers

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Matthew 9:35-36; Luke 15:3-7 and John 10:1-4, 11-15

Intro: Perhaps you’ve heard of the catacombs in Rome

I have taken tours through one or two of them
– they are underground burial sites
• a labyrinth of tunnels in and around ancient Rome
◦ hallways with rooms off to the sides and some open spaces
◦ niches dug in the walls where bodies or bones were placed
• paintings and engravings decorate some of the walls
– some of the earliest Christian symbols appear near where believers were laid to rest
• the fish, an anchor, the dove
• also, the good shepherd, with a sheep slung over his shoulders

The shepherd image had been branded into Israel’s imagination
– most famously, Psalm 23, which begins:

The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want

• the image appears several more times in the Psalms

Know that the LORD, he is God!
It is he who made us, and we are his;
we are his people and the sheep of his pasture (Ps. 100:3)

• also, in the prophet Isaiah

He will tend his flock like a shepherd;
he will gather the lambs in his arms;
he will carry them in his bosom,
and gently lead those that are with young (Isa. 40:11)

– the image is also passed from God to Israel’s leaders

He chose David his servant
and took him from the sheepfolds;
from following the nursing ewes he brought him
to shepherd Jacob his people,
Israel his inheritance
With upright heart he shepherded them
and guided them with his skillful hand (Ps. 78:70-72)

• in the prophets the image also depicts the failure of Israel’s leaders

Woe to the shepherds who destroy and scatter the sheep of my pasture! (Jer. 23:1ff)
. . . prophesy against the shepherds of Israel; prophesy, and say to them, even to the shepherds, Thus says the Lord GOD: Ah, shepherds of Israel who have been feeding yourselves! Should not shepherds feed the sheep? (Eze. 34:2ff)

We miss a lot in John chapter 10

That’s because we don’t know much about shepherding in Israel at the time of Jesus
– it was not the industry that it is in our country today
• here, sheep are mostly bred for food – back then, it was for wool
• there’s a story in 2 Samuel where a sheep is like was a household pet
– for example we don’t understand what Jesus meant by,

I am the door of the sheep

• in the open countryside, shepherds would build a makeshift pen
◦ not having a gate, the shepherd would place his rod over the opening
◦ the sheep would enter one or two at a time
◦ that allowed the shepherd to count and inspect them

I will bring you into the wilderness of the peoples, and there I will enter into judgment with you face to face. . . . I will make you pass under the rod, and I will bring you into the bond of the covenant (Eze. 20:35-37)

• at night, the shepherd would lie down in the opening
◦ so the sheep would have to step over shepherd to get out
◦ also, any predator would have to go through him to get to the sheep

Years ago, Philip Keller published A Shepherd Looks At Psalm 23
– it’s schmaltzy (for my taste), but lots of Christians found it helpful
– the point is, there’s a more to the shepherd image than what we see on the surface

It is no surprise to find the shepherd image in the Synoptic gospels

When the crowds seemed to Jesus to be like sheep with out shepherd,
– he was looking at them through eyes of a shepherd
• again in Matthew (where Jesus lumped several animal metaphors together):

Behold, I am sending you out as sheep in the midst of wolves, so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves (Mt. 10:16)

– in Luke 15 we find three parables of something lost and then found
• the lost coin is the most impersonal item that was lost
◦ what touches us personally is the widow’s desperation
◦ but one coin could replace another
• it’s different in the parable of shepherd when he hoists his sheep on his shoulders
◦ the personal dynamic is most intense with son who was lost
◦ but that was exactly what Jesus wanted to emphasize

John remembered Jesus saying more about shepherds than Matthew, Mark or Luke
– whereas the Synoptic gospels see the first disciples as fishers of men and women
◦ for John, it was shepherding that defined the disciples’ calling
◦ as he told Peter in chapter 21:

Feed my lambs . . . Tend my sheep . . . Feed my sheep (Jn. 21:15-17)

– Matthew and Luke both tell of a shepherd carrying a sheep on shoulders
• but in John 10, the shepherd image is much more intimate

There is an important verse here we don’t want to miss

This figure of speech Jesus used with them, but they did not understand what he was saying (Jn. 10:6)

Initially, no one understood what Jesus was communicating
– his statements were common knowledge
• their first thought would be, “Everyone knows that. So what?”
• it would be like me saying, “Some people ride bus to work”
– the reason this is important is because John illustrates what he is doing
• he presents a statement, much like the Synoptic gospels would
◦ only they do not always provide an explanation
• John indicates the depth of meaning that was missing prior to Jesus’ resurrection
– so by pointing out that the people did not understand him at first,
• draws attention to the next stage of Jesus’ teaching
◦ the stage when he takes them below the surface

We only have enough time to explore two statements

The first is in verse 8

All who came before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them


– in the Synoptics, Jesus clears out temple near end of his ministry
• later, the priests and elders challenged his actions

By what authority are you doing these things, or who gave you this authority to do them? (Mk. 11:28)

• he saw the trap the set for him and dodged the question
◦ but immediately afterward he told a parable
◦ and in the parable was the answer to their question
– a man planted a vineyard, put some people in charge of it, and went to another country
• from there, he sent messenger to collect the proceeds from the crop
◦ the renters refused to pay, abused his messengers, and sent them back empty-handed
• finally the owner sent his son, whom the renters killed
◦ this answered the question of Jesus’ authority
◦ vineyard was God’s temple and Jesus was God’s Son
• after hearing the parable, the priests and elders

were seeking to arrest him but feared the people, for they perceived that he had told the parable against them (Mk. 12:12)

Thieves and robbers is not a reference to the Old Testament’s law-giver
– nor to the psalmists, prophets, or sages who wrote The Proverbs
• they were the recognized authorities who managed the temple
◦ they had taken it over and treated it as if it belonged to them
◦ remember what Jesus said when he cleared it out?

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 (Mk. 11:17)

• it was the priests and elders who usurped authority over the temple
– many religious institutions today are run by thieves and robbers
• there are more than a few pastors who treat church finances as their personal bank account
• or board members who are given contracts without taking outside bids (not just unethical, but illegal according to IRS law)
◦ in other words, people in leadership for themselves, not others
◦ manipulating, exploiting, spiritually and psychologically abusing people
◦ using their position to enrich themselves, meet their ego needs,
◦ or have victims on whom they can vent their anger each Sunday
• Paul made it clear that he was nothing like this type of preacher

For we are not, like so many, peddlers of God’s word, but as men of sincerity, as commissioned by God, in the sight of God we speak in Christ (2 Cor. 2:17)

our authority, which the Lord gave [is] for building you up and not for destroying you (2 Cor. 10:8; 13:10)

The second statement we’ll explore is in verses 11-13

The hired hand is in a category similar to that of the thieves and robbers
– in fact, the hired hand is an accomplice – he abandons sheep to them
• he cares nothing for the sheep
• we’ve seen this as we’ve followed Jesus around Jerusalem
◦ the crippled man that the religious leaders cared nothing for
◦ and with the blind man, they couldn’t care less that he was healed
– Jesus defined the good shepherd as one who lays down his life
• I’ve always assumed this was specifically a reference to his death
◦ that, of course, is included,
◦ but laying down one’s life is not a one-time event
◦ it is a lifestyle of taking care of others
◦ it is an ongoing commitment to others

The hired hand performs his service for money
– the good shepherd performs his service for love

Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends. You are my friends if you do what I command you (Jn. 15:13-14)

– we lay down our lives every time
◦ we leave what we want to be doing to meet another person’s need

Conclusion: I know that Jesus is still laying down his life for me

There is no other way to explain why he puts up with me

If this story is meant to wake us up to anything
it is to awaken us to how near Jesus is
and how much he cares
and to the fact that it is possible to know his voice,
to know him and to follow him—
today, and always

March 10, 2019 – Mark 8:16-26 and John 9:1-7

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Intro: Let’s review important terms Jesus has used

– first, there is the living water
• he offered it to the Samaritan woman (Jn. 4:10)
• he also offered it to everyone in the temple (Jn. 7:37-38)
– next, Jesus said, I am the bread of life (Jn. 6:35)
– more recently he said, I am the light of the world
• and he promised to those who followed him the light of life (Jn. 8:12)

Notice how these same themes appear in Psalm 36
How precious is your steadfast love, O God!
The children of mankind take refuge on the abundance of your house,
and you give them drink from the river of your delights.
For with you is the fountain of life;
in your light do we see light (vv. 7-9)
This is not only metaphorical poetry
– it is mystical verse
– it describes seeing light within light

Last week we learned about a light, invisible to human eyes
– a light that shines in darkness as well as in light–e.g., Ps. 139:11-12
• God lights things up for us
• the various TV crime series programs have made much of forensic light
◦ with it, investigators can locate finger prints and traces of blood and other evidence not visible to normal sight
◦ God’s light enables us to see what is invisible
– that is the sort of light John brings to the Synoptic gospels
(Matthew, Mark and Luke)
• it reveals things that were hidden from the disciples
◦ but even when that light is shining, there’s another problem
◦ we can be blind to the spiritual light of Christ
• John wants us to be able to see in God’s light
◦ and he provides important instructions in this chapter

John chapter 9 begins with a blind man

Jesus healed him, but because it was the Sabbath, the healing created complications
– first there was a stir among the crowd in temple (vv. 8-12)
• then the man was interrogated by a council of Pharisees (vv. 13-17)
• next, his parents were brought in and interrogated (vv. 18-23)
• then the man was once again interrogated (vv. 24-34)
– we’ve seen that John does not include any of the parables found in the Synoptic gospels
• but at the same time, John saw certain events in the light of Jesus that for him were revelations of truth deeper than the words and actions
• for him, the story of the blind beggar became a real-life parable

There were only three times in the four gospels Jesus used spit to heal

Two of those instances were in Mark’s gospel–the third instance is here
– in Mark 7:33, Jesus used saliva to a man who was deaf and mute
• then in Mark 8:23, it was a blind man who was healed
• and spitting was not the only similarity unique to these two stories
◦ with both men, Jesus first separated them from the crowd (Mk. 7:33; 8:23)
◦ with both men, his touch was specific
he touched the first man’s ears and tongue (Mk. 7:33)
he spit in the eyes of the second man and laid his hands on him (Mk. 8:23)
◦ when healed, the first man spoke plainly and the second saw . . . clearly
– these two stories frame an episode that took place between Jesus and his disciples (Mk. 8:14-21)
• the deaf man came before this episode and the blind man came after
◦ what Jesus said to disciples in between these healing miracles was

Having eyes do you not see, and having ears do you not hear?
• literal blindness and deafness are also metaphorical and spiritual

When, in John’s gospel, we come to this only other place where Jesus used spit
– and where he applied it directly to the man’s eyes,
• it would be difficult to not see a connection with these events from Mark’s gospel
◦ not with the historical details–person, place, or timing
• but the disabilities and their implied meaning
◦ also, the fact that Jesus heals these disabilities

There is one other interesting detail re: blind man in Mark
– Mark 8:23-25 is the only place where a healing took place in stages
– in John 9, the spiritual enlightenment of the blind man also occurred in stages
◦ he first referred to Jesus as the man called Jesus (v. 11)
◦ later he referred to him as a prophet (v. 17)
◦ then, he decided Jesus was from God, (v. 33)
◦ and finally he cam to believe in Jesus, the Son of Man (35-38)

The whole ruckus in this chapter began with a question

Jesus saw the blind man, and it seems the disciples followed his gaze
– perhaps they felt powerless to do anything for him
• they could not heal him, they could only speculate
◦ so they asked Jesus a question about guilt and blame

Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?

• it’s easy to see how this could be a problem
◦ if the parents’ sin, then the punishment was unfair for him
◦ if he sinned, was it prior to birth – or retroactive?
– what they were doing was shooting in the dark
• the question reveals their own blindness
◦ that there had to be someone to blame
◦ and they were unable to determine where to place the blame
• this was also a blindness that was endemic to their culture
◦ they applied a rule of cause and effect to sin and suffering

I want to pause here to ask,
Whose voice from the Old Testament does Jesus’ voice most resemble?
– not Abraham–he was righteous and enjoyed material prosperity
• not Moses–he gave Israel two choices: obey and prosper or disobey and suffer
• not the voice of the sages in the Book of Proverbs
– here Job is the person whom Jesus sounds like the most
• Job had once lived and thrived in the blindness of his culture
◦ until everything fell apart for him
◦ that was his eye-opener
• he became a spokesperson for everyone who suffers
◦ for sure, sin has consequences
– but those are more like running a red light and getting ticket
– there’s no guess-work of guilt or blame like we see here
◦ the disciples needed to be less concerned about cause
◦ and more interested in cure

For the rest of this chapter, it seems that blindness is contagious

First, the crowd was not seeing so well
– “Isn’t his the blind beggar?” – “No, but he is like him” (v. 9)
• they couldn’t trust their eyes
– then there was the blindness of the Pharisees
• regarding Jesus they declared, This man is not from God (v. 16)
◦ everything pointed to a miracle and the uniqueness of Jesus
◦ yet they persist in their blindness
◦ throughout the interrogation, they were groping for answers
– the man’s parents were blind too
• “We don’t know how he got his sight”

The only one who is beginning to see the light of Jesus
– was the man who had been physically blind
• and he comes so far that he even sounds like Jesus (cf. v. 32-33 & Jn. 5:19 & 30)

After the ruckus, the blind man has a second encounter with Jesus

This to me is the beauty of Jesus
– he heard that the man he healed had been tossed out of the synagogue
• being blind, he had lived on outskirts of society
◦ now that he had the opportunity to join in, he was kicked to the curb
◦ that is what he got for his integrity – he could not deny his experience

Whether he is a sinner I do not know. One thing I do know, that though I was blind, now I see (v. 25)

• Jesus went looking for him, found him somewhere outside the temple
◦ Jesus wanted to complete his healing — his enlightenment

Some of the Pharisees overheard what Jesus had to say to the blind man
– they asked Jesus,

“Are we also blind?” Jesus said to them, “If you were blind, you would have no guilt, but now that you say, ‘We see,’ your guilt remains” (vv. 40-41)

• when or how did they say, “We see”?
◦ in verse 24 when they said, We know that this man is a sinner
◦ and in verse 28 when they said, We know that God has spoken to Moses
• that’s the danger of trusting too much in your religious dogma
◦ thinking you know, you reject evidence that is right in front of you

Conclusion: In Luke chapter 11, Jesus said,

Your eye is the lamp of your body. When your eye is healthy, your whole body is full of light, but when it is bad, your body is full of darkness. Therefore be careful lest the light in you be darkness. If then your whole body is full of light, having no part dark, it will be wholly bright, as when a lamp with its rays gives you light (vv. 34-36)

– eye refers to sight and body refers to the whole person
• what we typically mean by “healthy” sight is clarity
◦ but Jesus was referring to where we direct our attention
◦ for example, the psalmist wrote,

Turn my eyes from looking at worthless things (Ps. 119:37)


◦ that is, Direct my attention away from empty images and pursuits
• to what do I give the majority of my attention?
◦ what do I allow to enter my eyes, my mind, my heart, my body?
– the Pharisees remind us that blindness can be willful
• but we also learn here that sight can be improved
◦ I recently learned about vision exercises
◦ we need exercises to improve our spiritual sightedness

For the time being, we would do well to follow the advice of Abbot John Chapman, who wrote, “God is taking you in hand and teaching you. Be courageous. Let Him work. You can help by not interfering—that is, by not worrying or complaining, but trying to be peaceful and confident and content.”

The Uncreated Light

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March 3, 2019 – Mark 8:27-30 and John 8:25-30

Intro: John chapter 8 begins with one of most beautiful stories of Jesus

It’s the kind of story we enjoy reading again and again
(If you don’t remember well the story of the woman caught in the act of adultery who was brought before Jesus in an attempt to ambush him, grab your Bible and read John 8:1-11)
– there’s just one problem with this story
• biblical scholars agree that it John did not place it here
◦ it is not found in the majority and most ancient Greek manuscripts
• some copies of Luke’s gospel contain it,
◦ and in some copies of John it appears in different places
– what we can surmise is that it was a well-known and much loved story
• too important to lose – so it had to be preserved and put somewhere

To me, this seems to be the perfect place for this story
– certain themes in this story are expanded and played out in the chapter:
• The temple — the story begins with Jesus entering the temple
◦ and the chapter ends with him leaving it (an “envelope structure”)
• Sin — no one present who accused the woman was without sin (v. 7)
◦ later, Jesus said those in the crowd would die in their sin (vv. 23-24)
◦ whoever practices sin is a slave to sin (v. 34)
◦ no one in the temple could convict Jesus of sin (v. 46)
(he was the one person without sin)
• Condemn or judge — in Greek, katakrinos and krinos
◦ none of the accusers stayed to condemn the woman
◦ and Jesus, who could have condemned her, did not (v. 11)
◦ later Jesus said, I judge no one (v. 15, as he just demonstrated)
• Central to woman’s story is stoning
◦ and that’s how Jesus’ story ends the chapter
So they picked up stones to throw at him, but Jesus hid himself and went out of the temple (v. 59)
– so the story fits the chapter

Following this story, Jesus made an announcement

Pharisees who heard him reacted immediately
– from that point on, Jesus is answering objections
• the crowd misunderstand and underestimated him
• so he walked them through the maze of their wrong thinking
– in three instances, I see him revealing truths that were hidden in the Synoptic gospels

First, his announcement: I am the light of the world

In the Sermon On the Mount, Jesus said, You are the light of the world
– how did the disciples (and crowd) become the light of the world?
• we could say, “By living the beatitudes”
◦ but it is doubtful that they had mastered them already
◦ Jesus went on to say that people do not

light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand (Mt. 5:15)

• I wonder if Jesus is explaining where they got their light
◦ that he is the one who lit their lamps
◦ here he says,

Who ever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life(they “have” it by receiving it from Jesus)

◦ in next chapter Jesus will say:
As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world (Jn. 9:5)

– John emphasizes light and sight all through his gospel
• The true light, which gives light to everyone, was coming into the world (Jn. 1:9)
• . . . and we have seen his glory (Jn. 1:14)
• what sign do you do, that we may see and believe you? (Jn. 6:30)
• Unless I see in his hands the mark of the nails…I will never believe (Jn. 20:25)
– but “seeing” is not how we know God or walk with him

as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal (2 Cor. 4:18)
for we walk by faith, not by sight (2 Cor. 5:7)

• rather than helping us to know God, sight can get in way
◦ after all, why did Jesus have to blind Paul to save him? (Acts 9:3-9)

Jesus is light, but not the kind we see with our eyes
– we make distinctions between natural light and artificial light
• but there is another light and it is visible only to the spirit
◦ “uncreated” – not like when God said, Let there be light
◦ but the light of God himself, God is light (1 Jn. 1:5)
• uncreated light is a cornerstone of Orthodox spirituality
(the light revealed to the disciples in his “transfiguration”)

Gregory Palamas (14th century mystic), “This mysterious light, inaccessible, immaterial, uncreated, deifying, eternal, this radiance of the Divine Nature, this glory of the divinity, this beauty of the heavenly kingdom, is at once accessible to sense perception and yet transcends it.” [Quoting St. Basil,] “. . . it is visible to the eyes of the heart”

– The light shines in the darkness (Jn. 1:5)
• for a long time I assumed this meant the light shined like a beacon or lighthouse
◦ but now I realize that the darkness is still dark,
◦ but it is illuminated with a light invisible to human eyes

If I say, “Surely the darkness shall cover me,
and the light about me be night,”
even the darkness is not dark to you;
the night is bright as the day,
for darkness is as light with you (Psalm 139:11-12)

And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing. In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God (2 Cor. 4:3-4)

• Jesus also spoke of spiritual blindness

(of the Pharisees) Let them alone; they are blind guides. And if the blind lead the blind, both will fall into a pit (Mt. 15:14)

◦ when it comes to having life in God, follow One with the light
◦ Jesus is the light! – And this brings us to the next question

Verse 25, So they said to him, “Who are you?”

Later they ask, Are you greater than our father Abraham? (v. 53)
Do you remember the Samaritan woman asking Jesus,

Are you greater than our father Jacob? (Jn. 4:12)

– they asked, because they sensed a challenge to their heroes
• in Matthew 12, Jesus referred to someone and something

greater than the temple, greater than Jonah, and greater than Solomon

◦ but Jesus left it there without explicitly pointing to himself
◦ nor did he suggest how he was greater
– but here, John allows us to hear Jesus speak in a clear voice (vv. 14, 19)

Let’s back up – in Mark chapter 3, two stories are “sandwiched”
– this means the two stories are told together, one inside the other
• each one illuminating the other
– the outside (slices) tell of Jesus’ family; the inside tell of the scribes
• both were trying to make sense of his actions
◦ his family thought he had lost his senses
◦ the scribes said, He has an unclean spirit (demon)
• John takes us deeper into both stories
◦ in John 7, we see that his family’s actions resulted from unbelief
◦ in John 8, the religious leaders were openly hostile

“Are we not right in saying that you are a Samaritan and have a demon?” Jesus answered, “I don not have a demon, but I honor my Father, and you dishonor me.” (Jn. 8:48-49)

John brings all of this to the central question, Who is Jesus?
– it’s a question Jesus himself raised in all three Synoptic gospels (e.g., Mt. 16:13-15)
• John shows us that Jesus dropped plenty of clues:
◦ God is his Father–to know Jesus is to know God (v. 19)
◦ They’re from below and of the world; he’s from above and not of the world (v. 23)
◦ he has the truth that sets people free from sin (vv. 31-36)
◦ he came to them from God (v. 42)
• some of these statements are ambiguous
◦ but there is no ambiguity in verse 58

Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly I day to you, before Abraham was, I am.”

◦ his meaning was clear to them; they picked up rocks to stone him

A third truth hidden in the Synoptic Gospels

Verses 27 and 43 specifically address why the people did not understand
– the reason in verse 27, It is because you cannot bear to hear my word
• it clashed too much with their cherished beliefs, prejudices and paradigms
– a second reason they did not understand (v. 47, & I emphasize “of God”)

Whoever is of God hears the words of God. The reason why you do not hear them is that you are not of God.

• they were religious, but they were not of God
– a third reason they did not understand Jesus was,

because my word finds no place in you (v. 37)

• he had told them,

If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples (v. 31)


• do you remember how Jesus redefined family in Mk. 3:35?

And looking about at those who sat around him, he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers! For whoever does the will of God, he is my brother and sister and mother.

• the problem here, is that his word could not find a place in them
◦ this is like the parable of the seed and the soil (Mt. 13:1-23)
◦ Jesus’ words need a special environment to flourish

Conclusion: I will finish with this thought

When we read Jesus’ teaching, his word searches for a place in us
– one that is open, receptive and responsive
• willing to hear the truth, whether pleasant or unpleasant
• the place in us that wants to know God
– God searches for the place in me that is searching for him
• they had no place for Jesus – in their theology, thinking, or lives
◦ his word was rendered ineffective – powerless to generate life


At the end of his ministry, Jesus said,
I go to prepare a place for you
I have to ask myself,
What place have I prepared for him?

Breathe

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February 24, 2019 – Mark 7:14-23 John 7:37-39

Intro: It is not easy to follow the thread of John chapter 7

So I will begin with a quick synopsis of what is here:
– in Galilee, Jesus’ brothers told him he should “make an appearance” in Judea
• if he wanted public recognition, he should show himself to the world
◦ apparently they assumed that he wanted a measure of fame
• this was not friendly advice, For not even his brothers believed in him
◦ Jesus answered, it was not his time
◦ kairos — the right moment (appointed time)
– later, Jesus went to Judea, not publicly but in private
– before showing up in the temple, people were already talking about him
– half-way through the feast, Jesus went into temple and began teaching
• as always, the impression he made was uncanny
◦ some in the crowd wanted to know how he knew so much
(not being “lettered”–i.e., not having a formal education)
◦ Jesus’ answer was that the teaching wasn’t his – he had been sent
– verse 19 is where it becomes tricky–Jesus starts talking about Moses

Has not Moses given you the law? Yet none of you keeps the law. Why do you seek to kill me?

• their religious life was defined by the law Moses had given them
◦ but seeking to kill Jesus was contrary to the commandments
• the crowd answered, You have a demon! (You’re crazy)
Who is seeking to kill you?
◦ Jesus didn’t answer, but instead, he spoke of circumcision

Here is the point Jesus was making. According to God’s covenant with Abraham, every male baby of his descendants was to circumcised on the eighth day. Even if the eighth day was a Sabbath, the circumcision would still be performed–although non-life threatening medical procedures were forbidden according to the current interpretation of the law. So to keep the commandment regarding circumcision, certain details of the Sabbath law were suspended. Jesus’ logic is simple: If it is justifiable to perform a circumcision on the Sabbath day, it was also justifiable for Jesus to make a man’s whole body well.

• Jesus then challenged them,
Do not judge by appearances but judge with right judgment
– next, John takes us back into the gossip mill – the Christ?
• the problem was they knew where Jesus was from (they thought)
◦ Jesus seems to agree, but that’s not the point
◦ the point is who it was that sent Jesus – they don’t know him
– the Pharisees heard about the crowd’s speculations
• and they sent officers to arrest him
◦ meanwhile, Jesus resumed his teaching
• if before, the issue was where he was from,
◦ now it was where he was going
◦ this left the crowd confused
– now John jumps to the last day of feast

On the last day of the feast, the great day, Jesus stood up and cried out, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.'” Now this he said about the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were to receive, for as yet the Spirit had not been given, because Jesus was not yet glorified (Jn. 6:37-39)

• this is the heart of the chapter
• everything else points to this and circles down to it
◦ Jesus, who was sent from God and speaks for God,
◦ has life to give to anyone who comes to him
– the crowd is now clearly divided over Jesus
– while they’re arguing, the officers return to the Pharisees
• when asked why they did not have Jesus in custody, they said,
No one ever spoke like this man!
• John leaves no doubt regarding the Pharisees’ opinions:
◦ people who followed Jesus were being deceived
◦ no other authorities or Pharisees believed in Jesus
◦ the crowd, not educated in the law, was cursed
• Nicodemus tried to defend Jesus, but was quickly shut down

We have been investigating what makes John’s gospel unique

First, he did not have to say what had already been said
Second, there are gaps in the Synoptic gospels
(for example, in the disciples’ understanding)
• a good example is here in v. 39, where John has to explain about the living water
• he wrote years after this event, and with greater insight
John’s gospel is like a spiritual commentary on the other gospels
– he uncovers a deeper level of meaning in Jesus’ teaching

In the Synoptics, Jesus had a lot to say about the heart
• Blessed are the pure in heart
• where your treasure is, there your heart will be also
 • out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks
• this people’s heart has grown dull
• love God with all your heart
 • are your hearts hardened?
– what the Synoptics don’t tell us is what we can do about our hearts
• how can I become a person who is pure in heart?
• how is the heart repaired–or better, “redeemed”?
– John grabs onto something Jesus said in the temple
• it was an invitation to anyone who was thirsty
◦ by now we know this thirst is more than a physical drive
◦ it may be an inner void or emptiness
◦ or a yearning for something more
• Jesus gives the person who comes to him living water
◦ in fact, it will flow from that person’s heart like a river
◦ only, Jesus didn’t say “heart”

The Bible has a variety of visceral words
– this reminds us how difficult it can be to describe our deepest feelings
• the word Jesus used can refer to the entire abdomen
◦ in the gospels, it is especially the stomach and female womb
◦ Luke (the physician?) uses it more than twice as many times as the other gospels
• this inner part of a person would include the heart
◦ but it may also refer to an even deeper place
– in time, John came to realize Jesus was talking about the Spirit
• what comes out of my heart isn’t always so lovely or nice
• but Jesus brings something else to my inner self
◦ the very Spirit of God
◦ and everything he inspires is good, true and beautiful
• Paul expands on this work of the Spirit in greater detail
(especially in Romans ch. 8)

I want to point out something else

In verse 36 the people ask,

What does he mean by saying, “You will seek me and you will not find me?

– I believe Jesus was intentionally cryptic
• everyone in this chapter had formed opinions about Jesus
◦ beginning with his brothers
◦ then the crowd–who thought they knew him
◦ at the end, the Pharisees–who were certain they knew him
• Jesus said something about himself they could not understand
◦ if they continued listening to him,
◦ they would have to do it with fresh ears, an open mind
– we cannot listen to Jesus the way they did and understand him
• they heard him as if listening to someone who was only human
◦ they listened to him and reacted to his words
◦ but they did not really hear Jesus
• we cannot know Jesus apart from Jesus
(that is to say, apart from an encounter with him, the person)
◦ we cannot know him by studying him (like bacteria in a lab)
◦ this is the reason the officers could not arrest Jesus
there was no one else like him

Jesus invites us to come to him – that’s only way we can know him
– the only way to receive what he has to give
The whole Gospel of John is built around this question

What does he mean?

– John provided his answers to the question of Jesus’ teaching meant,
but I believe he also demonstrated ways we can find answers

  1. The chapter begins and ends with disbelief (vv. 5 & 48)
    ◦ to get at what Jesus means, we have to trust him
    ◦ sent from God, there’s a deeper meaning, and it’s true
  2. Then, there is the clue that that Jesus gave in verse 17

If anyone’s will is to do God’s will, he will know whether the teaching is from God or whether I am speaking on my own authority

◦ the person who wants to do God’s will hears authenticity
3. We have to hold lightly what we think we know
◦ they thought they knew where Jesus was from, vv. 41-42
◦ knowing the Synoptic gospels (as John and his readers did),
we already know Jesus was from Beth.
◦ there’s a limit to what knowing can do for us
4. We need to respond to Jesus invitation (cf. Mt. 11:28)
5. We need to take what Jesus offers us
◦ and he offers himself, his Spirit
◦ the Spirit unlocks the meaning within Jesus’ message

William Johnston has written, “I myself believe that within us are locked up torrents and torrents of joy that can be released by meditation–sometimes they will burst through with incredible force, flooding the personality with an extraordinary happiness that comes from, one knows not where.”

Conclusion: Let’s say that today we thirst for God

How can we drink come and drink that living water?
– perhaps our breath can be a way to drink Spirit
• breath is the core of our existence – our “self”
◦ it was when God breathed into matter, matter became a living person
• we know our psychological state affects our breathing
(when stressed or anxious we pant, hyperventilate, hold our breath)
◦ we can use our breath to work the other way around
◦ mindful breathing can calm us, focus our minds, return us to peace
• begin every prayer with a cleansing breath
(and perhaps cross every threshold with a cleansing breath)
• a cleansing breath is one we draw into the abdomen (the belly)
◦ do this in silence and it can open that deeper place in us
◦ our breathing is a very natural way to become aware of the Spirit
• the body is calibrated by rhythm – find the rhythm of your breath
◦ perhaps inhale: “Breath of heaven”
◦ and exhale: “fill my soul”

The best part of breathing is that we do it all the time
(See? You’re breathing right now)
And–we take our breath everywhere we go
So anytime and anywhere
we can awaken our soul to God
and return to the peace of his presence

February 17, 2019 – Luke 22:14-20 and John 5:35-3-63

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True Food and True Drink

Lifting up his eyes, then, and seeing that a large crowd was coming toward him, Jesus said to Philip, “Where are we to buy bread, so that these people may eat?” He said this to test him, for he himself knew what he would do. Philip answered him, “Two hundred denarii worth of bread would not be enough for each of them to get a little.” One of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, said to him, “There is a boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish, but what are they for so many?” John 6:5-9

Intro: This is the only miracle Jesus performed that is reported in all four gospels

In Matthew, Mark, and John this miracle is immediately followed by another–when Jesus walked on water
– Mark adds an intriguing footnote to that event regarding the disciples:

And they were utterly astounded, for they did not understand about the loaves, but their hearts were hardened (Mk. 6:51-52)

• he indicates that something was revealed in the miracle of the loaves and fish
◦ but the disciples missed it, and that was because their hearts were hardened
• in other words, their minds were set in mode of thinking
◦ and that meant the miracle could not penetrate their hearts
– this inability to understand is exactly what John addresses in his gospel
• therefore, the miracle of the loaves becomes an opportunity
◦ Jesus uses it for an extended session of interactive teaching
◦ as Jesus taught, the crowd became increasingly frustrated, until

After this many of his disciples turned back and no longer walked with him (v. 66)

John adds another feature to the story–Jesus “tested” Philip
– after a quick calculation, Philip decided providing food for everyone could not be done
• they did not have the resources
– but Jesus not only tested Philip, he went on to test the crowd
• the whole chapter is one test after another
• Jesus used impossibilities to stretch them into faith

The first indication of a serious problem

Perceiving then that they were about to come and take him by force to make him king, Jesus withdrew again to the mountain by himself (v. 15)

The crowd could not see Jesus for who he was
– they saw him, instead, for what they wanted him to be (bread delivery)
• he withdrew – they could not have him that way
• the next day they chased him down
◦ perplexed – they wondered how he got to Capernaum without a boat (vv. 22-24)

When they found him on the other side of the sea, they said to him, “Rabbi, when did you come here?” (v. 25)

– Jesus did no give a direct answer
• instead of telling them when he got there, he told them why they came

Truly, truly, I say to you, you are seeking me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves (v. 26)

◦ what did he mean? At first they followed him because they had seen the signs! (v. 2)
◦ but that wasn’t why they came this time
(if they had come because of signs, they would have been there for him. Remember? The signs point to Jesus!)
• what they god from the sign was a free lunch
◦ that was the kind of king the wanted
◦ a king who promised them “a chicken in every pot and two cars in every garage”

Jesus tried to turn them in a different direction

Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you. For on him God the Father has set his seal (v. 27) Continue reading →

February 10, 2019 – Mark 2:1-12; John 5:2-13

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You Do Not Have the Love of the Father

Now that day was the Sabbath. So the Jews said to the man who had been healed, “It is the Sabbath, and it is not lawful for you to take up your bed.” But he answered them, “The man who healed me, that man said to me, ‘Take up you bed, and walk.’ ” They asked him, “Who is the man who said to you, ‘Take up your bed and walk?’ ” John 5:9-12

Intro: Last week a friend asked why we read passages from two gospels each week

We are tracking comparisons and contrasts between John and Synoptic gospels (Matthew, Mark & Luke)
– John wrote long after the Synoptics had been in circulation
• he was at a different stage of spiritual insight than when he walked with Jesus
• so what he provides is like a spiritual commentary on the other gospels
◦ he provides missing pieces in their understanding and fills in some of the blanks
– today’s reading have to do with two men miraculously healed
• they did not suffer from the same condition, but both were incapacitated
◦ and in both situations Jesus was attacked for healing them
• but unlike Mark’s gospel, John used the healing as an opportunity
◦ John provides a deeper insight into Jesus’ heart and mind

We’ll begin by looking at comparisons and contrasts

Both men were disabled and helpless

  • Mark’s story took place in a home in Capernaum
    John’s story took place at a a pool in Jerusalem
    both men were disabled, helpless
    one a “paralytic” and the other an “invalid”
  • in Mark, the paralytic was carried by four men to Jesus
    in John, the invalid had no one to put him into the pool
  • Before healing them, Jesus said something to both men
    in Mark, Jesus told the paralytic, your sins are forgiven
    in John, Jesus asked the invalid, Do you want to be healed? 
  • in both cases Jesus addressed an issue that may have interfered with their health
  • Jesus also said something about “sin” to both men
    in Mark, Jesus told the paralytic that his sins were forgiven
    in John, Jesus told the invalid, Sin no more, that nothing worse may happen to you
    (there are worse things than being physically crippled)
    (he was healed for a reason, and it wasn’t so he could go on in sin)
  • Jesus healed both men
    in fact, he used the exact same Greek words, Get up, pick up your bed
    ◦ then, to the paralytic, Jesus said go home 
    ◦ to the invalid, Jesus said, walk 
  • both miracles stirred up controversy
    in Mark, those present felt he was out of line for forgiving sins
    in John, Jesus not only healed on the Sabbath, but told the invalid to carry his bed on the Sabbath
  • in both stories, Jesus presented a defense to his accusers
    and in his defense, he appealed to the authority of the Son of Man
    in Mark, Jesus demonstrated his authority to forgive sins
    in John, Jesus said that the Father gave him authority to exercise judgment (v. 27)

It is at this point that the stories diverge in different directions
– in Mark, everyone was amazed and glorified God
• then Mark moves on to the next story
– in John, Jesus’ lengthy defense goes on for the remainder of the chapter

What insight does John supply that’s not in the Synoptics?

Two points I think are important
– the first is simple and easy to grasp
• but I want to spend more time with the second point

First, John is explicit in letting us know there’s a message in the miracles
– that is why he refers to Jesus’ miracles as “signs”
• in the Synoptics, miracles rarely serve as a sign (only this one and the resurrection)
• in other miracles, a message may be implied, but never drawn out
◦ in fact, more often Jesus told people not to tell about the miracle they witnessed
– John carefully selected the miracles he reports
• and like this one, he uses them to tell us more about Jesus
• also, as we go along in John’s gospel, the signs build in intensity
◦ the reaction against Jesus also builds in intensity with each sign,
◦ until finally with the raising of Lazarus, Jesus’ enemies decide to kill him
– the ultimate sign in John is Jesus’ own resurrection
• that there’s a message in miracles is the theme of John’s gospel

Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name (Jn. 2:30-31)

The second important point:
John gives us a closer look into Jesus’ mind and heart Continue reading →

February 3, 2019 – Matthew 15:1-9 and John 4:16-26

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Eyes that See, Ears that Hear

Now when Jesus learned that the Pharisees had heard that Jesus was making and baptizing more disciples than John (although Jesus himself did not baptize, but only his disciples), he left Judea and departed again for Galilee. And he had to pass through Samaria. So he came to a town of Samaria called Sychar, near the filed that Jacob had given to his son Joseph. Jacob’s well was there; so Jesus, wearied as he was from his journey, was sitting beside the well It was about the sixth hour.
A woman from Samaria came to draw water. Jesus said to her, “Give me a drink.” John 1:1-7

Intro: Last Sunday, several people thanked me for asking Jake to speak

What I noticed afterward, was not what I learned, but what I felt
– a fresh awareness of how present God is to us
• two specific moments stand out when Jake explained:
◦ “it’s not about leaving our physical world or our bodies, but the veil is lifted”
and
◦ “the Psalms teach us how to talk to our nephesh [soul]”
• I believe this is the effect the gospels were meant to have on us
◦ they were meant to make us more aware of the life of the spirit
◦ both God’s Spirit and our spirit in him
– in the Synoptic gospels, Jesus awakens us to spirit using miracles and parables
• in John, Jesus awakes us with signs and dialogues
◦ for instance, Jesus’ dialogue with Nicodemus in ch. 3
◦ and now here, with the Samaritan woman
• Jesus leads people out of their rational-literal mind-set to a spiritual awakening
◦ to a new perception and receptivity

To you it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given. . . .This is why I speak to them in parables, because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand. . . . But blessed are your eyes, for they see, and your ears, for they hear (Mt. 13:13 and 16)

◦ the same process is at work here with the Samaritan woman and his living water

(and then also with his disciples regarding food) Meanwhile the disciples were urging him, saying “Rabbi, eat.” But he said to them, “I have food to eat that you do not know about.” So the disciples said to one another, “Has anyone brought him something to eat?” Jesus said to them, “My food is to do the will of him who sent me and to accomplish his work” (Jn. 4:31-33)

John chapter 4 moves around to a lot of places

The story is bordered, beginning and end, by “Judea and Galilee” (vv. 3 & 54)
– also mentioned are Samaria and Sychar, Jerusalem and Gerazim, Cana and Capernaum
• one intriguing place-reference that has been long debated

After two days he departed for Galilee. (For Jesus himself had testified that a prophet has no honor in his own hometown.” (Jn. 4:43-44)

◦ the problem is that there’s no context for this quote
◦ the only places mentioned in context are Samaria, Judea and Galilee
• Samaria could not possibly qualify as his “hometown”
◦ Galilee is eliminated too, because in the next verse we read,

So when he came to Galilee, the Galiileans welcomed him, having seen all that he had done in Jerusalem at the feast” (v. 45)

• some scholars conclude, John must mean Jesus’ hometown was Judea
◦ but there is no good reason to think his hometown would be Judea or in Judea
– John had let us know early on that Jesus was from Nazareth (1:45-46)
• but Jesus had not quoted this hometown proverb anywhere in John’s gospel
◦ but Mark had quoted it (6:4), and Matthew and Luke as well (Mt. 13:57; Lk. 4:24)
◦ and in all three, Jesus quoted the proverb when he was in Nazareth
• so the debate over what John meant dissolves when we realize that his readers knew the Synoptic gospels
◦ and this is one of the reasons John’s gospel is so different from other three
(he did not see the need to repeat them)
◦ John places the quote here to explain why Jesus, when going from Samaria to Capernaum, he avoided Nazareth

Anyway, this chapter mentions a lot of different places,
– but when we come to the heart of the chapter,
• Jesus erases the importance of space
◦ places become irrelevant when people discover the life of the Spirit

I am going to pick and choose sentences from the dialogue to discuss

I would love to walk you through the entire conversation,
– but I need to stick with my thesis
• and that is, that John has written a spiritual commentary on the Synoptic gospels

Two facts are highlighted in this conversation: Continue reading →

January 27, 2019 – Guest Speaker

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We were privileged to have Jacob Caldwell as our guest speaker this morning. In conversations with Jacob I have been impressed by the extent of his research, the depth of his thought, and the sincerity of his devotion to Jesus Christ. A physiotherapist by profession, Jacob has probed the relation between Christian spirituality and the human body. Listening to him share what he has learned throws a new light on an ancient truth and makes more real the fact that our bodies really are the temple of the Spirit of God.
chuck smith, jr.

Living by the Flesh

What does it mean to ‘live according to the flesh’?
● You probably think it’s the body.
It’s needs, desires, functions–all the wrong things we can do with it
● Jesus and Paul seemingly agree.
The following sound as if they envisioned two universes
(this is the conclusion drawn by many Evangelical Christians, including Francis Schaeffer, True Spirituality, pp. 60 -70)
One universe is superior, transcendent and good, while the other is inferior, material and intrinsically bad
The human body naturally belongs to the material universe

“My kingdom is not of this world” (John 18:36 KJV).
“Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s” (Mark 12:17 KJV).
“If your right eye makes you stumble, tear it out and throw it from you; for it is better for you to lose one of the parts of your body, than for your whole body to be thrown into hell” (Matthew 5:29 NASB).
“… if thy right hand offend thee, cut it off, and cast it from thee” (Matthew 5:30 KJV).
“… flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God” (1 Cor 15:50 NASB).
“… for if you are living according to the flesh, you must die; but if by the Spirit you are putting to death the deeds of the body, you will live” (Rom 8:12-13 NASB).
“Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its lusts” (Rom 6:12 NASB).

● We have this image of the good spirit above and the evil body below.
● However, this is the ancient Manichean heresy
And it was soundly rejected by the earliest Christian theologians

● “For God so loved the world…” — the cosmos–that is, the whole of creation
The goal of Christian spirituality is not to escape the body into pure spirit

“It is a resurrection, not from the body, but of the body. The new creation is not a fresh start, but the old made new” (Robinson, The Body, pp. 82-3).

● We’re been missing something: the Incarnation
● Sarx is Greek for flesh: sarcophagus (a lime-filled coffin, literally a “flesh-eater”)
sarx is dead meat, a body without spirit — a corpse
● Soma is Greek for body: life, flesh with spirit, flesh fused to spirit

“. . . the body without the spirit is dead . . . (James 2:26)

● Sarx will pass away, but soma is for God
Even more amazing, is that God is for the soma! (1 Cor. 6:13)

“While sarx stands for man … in his distance from God, soma stands for man … as made for God” (Robinson, The Body, p. 31).

● It’s not that we’ll leave these bodies and this physical world, but that the veil will be lifted.
We come to a realization of spirit as another dimension of the same reality
● The Kingdom of God is seeing the spiritual in the physical: the fusion of spirit and matter.

Why are we heretics?

Our culture has been shaped greatly by two theological and philosophical influences; that of St. Augustine and Rene Descartes:

“More than anyone else, Augustine shaped Western theology … throughout the Middle Ages his authority stood second only to that of Scripture. Historians have with some justice described the Reformation as a struggle between two sides of Augustine: Protestantism began with his doctrine of grace, and the Roman Catholic response grew out of his doctrine of the church. Descartes began modern philosophy with a series of arguments paraphrased from Augustine, and much of Freud reads like an extended commentary on Augustine’s Confessions. For better or worse, today’s thinking about God, or human personalities, or history, or sex still owes him a great deal” (Placher, History of Christian Theology, p. 108).

Augustine was a Manichaen before he converted to Christianity
(he was also influenced by Plato, whom he held in high regard)

● Descartes’ famous philosophical starting point: “I think therefore I am”: this is the Manichean heresy stated succinctly
● But more than the influence our culture is the fact that the Kingdom of God is terrifying:

“We have utterly separated spirit and sense [experience]; but [the cosmos] is both, with a double allurement so strong that we fear it. So we are Manichees at heart; for the Manichaean heresy is but the conscious, deliberate statement of a fear, and the assertion that it is wisdom and truth. The fear is latent in all men, and the facts of life seem to justify it. Spirit and flesh are manageable if we separate them, but fused together they sweep us away. So we are always trying to separate them, and to conceive of the universe itself as not one but two, the one all and the other nothing, the one real, the other unreal, the one pure and cold and the other warm and foul. And, whether we are devout or sceptical, we are afraid of the reality in which matter and spirit are fused” (Clutton-Brock, “Spiritual Experience,” in Streeter, The Spirit, p. 288-9).

● If we really entered the Kingdom of God, we would have to live accordingly and that’s overwhelming.
So we push God’s kingdom into the future or an alternate reality
That allows us to still be religious without the terrifying encounter with spirit

What are we going to do? Continue reading →

January 20, 2019 – Mark 3:1-6; John 3:1-13

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Podcast

We Cannot Do God’s Part

The Pharisees went out and immediately held counsel with the Herodians against [Jesus], how to destroy him. Mark 3:6
Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. This man came to Jesus by night . . . . John 3:1-2

Intro: Do you remember learning to ride a bicycle?

There is no way to learn without getting on a bike and trying
– that’s because our brains have to adapt to a new experience, that of balancing while on a bike
• new connections have to made between brain cells
◦ these connections have to be integrated in different areas of the brain
• balancing on a bike cannot be learned in a class or from a book or instructor
◦ to ask, “Please tell me how to do this” is a waste of time
◦ you have to keep trying until your body learns it–until it feels balance
• once you learn, your body never forgets
– this is how I see the story of Nicodemus
• he wants Jesus to teach him how to ride a bike
◦ but he wants to learn while sitting in a room alone with Jesus
• the Lord tells him, “Just get on the bike, Nick!”
◦ but Nicodemus keeps saying, “Yes, Jesus, but then how do I ride it?”
◦ this illustrates a central problem the Pharisees had with Jesus

In Mark chapter 3, we find two misconceptions of Jesus

Both misconceptions are degrading
– Jesus’ family thought he had lost his mind
– the scribes claimed Jesus was empowered by a demon
• his family misunderstood his devotion to others (Mk. 3:20-21)
• the scribes misunderstood who he was (Mk. 3:22)

We have seen that John’s gospel is like a spiritual commentary on the Synoptics
– John fills in the blanks that the Synoptics leave
• these mostly have to do with misunderstandings of Jesus and his teaching
• today, John will take us to the core of the Pharisees’ misunderstanding of Jesus

The Pharisees play a central role in the Synoptic gospels

They were Jesus’ primary antagonists in Matthew, Mark and Luke
– in Jesus’ time, there were several different categories of religious groups:
• the Pharisees, the Sadducees, and the Essenes (not mentioned in scripture)
◦ people who served institutional religion included scribes, priests, and legal experts
• Pharisees were the “Fundamentalists,” and not that far from Jesus theologically
(the Sadducees were the “Liberals”–naturalists who did not believe in resurrection, angels or spirits; Acts 23:8)
– in the Synoptic gospels, the Pharisees are mostly “stock characters”
• rarely do we encounter a Pharisee with a distinct personality
◦ no Pharisee is ever named in Matthew, Mark or Luke
◦ most references to them are plural
(there is no use of the singular, “Pharisee” in Mark’s gospel)

The Pharisees first appeared between the time of Ezra and Christ
– to them, Israel’s only hope was absolute adherence to the law of Moses
• like our constitutional law, the Mosaic law required interpretation and application
• in some instances, they followed it down to minute details

Hebrew biblical scholar and professor, David Flusser observed, “… by Jesus’ time [the Pharisees] had become recognized as the teachers of the masses, consciously identifying themselves with popular faith.”

– in some respects, they embodied “Religion, Inc.”
• their main short-coming according to Jesus was hypocrisy
• in Matthew 23, Jesus pronounced several “woes” on the Pharisees
◦  for example:

But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you shut the kingdom of God in people’s faces. For you neither enter yourselves nor allow those who would enter to go in (Mt. 23:13-14)

The Pharisees had reduced religion to rules
– people use rules to manage righteousness
• with their rules, they felt they had religion all buttoned up
• there may be many rules, some that are harsh or even unpleasant
◦ but religious people often like strict rules
◦ they feel they are making sacrifices for God’s sake (and are therefore better than others)
– in reality, rule-keeping is no more difficult than doing our chores
• wash dishes, take out trash, do yard work
◦ we just do these things
◦ we don’t need good attitude while doing them, and our motive is irrelevant
◦ rules are not sensitive to how we feel about others
• keeping all the rules, can make people feel good about themselves

Jesus did not criticize Pharisees for their rule-keeping Continue reading →