I Wish I Had Faith Like This. . .

Mark 5:24b-29, CEB - A swarm of people were following Jesus, crowding in on him.  A woman was there who had been bleeding for twelve years.  She had suffered a lot under the care of many doctors, and had spent everything she had without getting any better. In fact, she had gotten worse.  Because she had heard about Jesus, she came up behind him in the crowd and touched his clothes.  She was thinking, If I can just touch his clothes, I’ll be healed.  Her bleeding stopped immediately, and she sensed in her body that her illness had been healed.

 

This is my favorite healing story.  I’m blown away by this woman’s faith.  Jesus was too, but we’ll talk about His side of the story next time.  But right now, let’s just dwell on the faith of this remarkable woman.  She has been afflicted by her condition for twelve years.  That’s as long as Jairus’s daughter has been alive (Mark includes that detail on purpose).  It’s longer than I had been alive when I first heard this story.  Spend a moment thinking about how much life you’ve lived in the last twelve years – twelve birthdays, twelve Thanksgivings and twelve Christmas days. . . trips taken. . .work done. . . babies born. . .friends and family that have died.  For 4,380 days, this woman has been bleeding. 

In that very long time, she had been to doctor after doctor, probably getting her hopes up each time, but each time the treatment was worse than the condition. Still, she had spent everything she had hoping that “this time, things might finally work out.”  But now, she was broke and out of options.  And she was still bleeding. 

Because she was bleeding, those twelve years were spent as an outcast. Religious law at the time separated women who were bleeding in significant ways.  She would have had restrictions placed on her daily activities for all of those years.  Most of us have had at least a taste what it feels like to be treated as “different” by those around you.  Imagine if that were the feeling you had every day for a dozen years. 

Still, she hears about Jesus and a faith that should have disappeared long ago is reawakened in her.  After doctors had failed repeatedly, she still believes she can be healed.  After being pushed to the margins of life for all of that time, she still believes she deserves to be healed. 

Not only that, her faith has whispered to her that she only has to touch Jesus’s clothes and the healing that has escaped her for so long will finally happen.  I should note that, in her condition, touching a Rabbi or even his clothes was forbidden.  So she not only believes Jesus can heal her, she believes that it will happen without Him even knowing or even consenting.  She believes that HER FAITH in God will heal her whether Jesus does anything or not.  In the next part of the story, we will hear Jesus state that clearly (“Your faith has healed you”).  More than forty years after I heard about this woman, I am still astounded by her faith.  I long to have faith like this. 

The truth is that I don’t have faith like this.  My faith is so much stronger than it was when I heard this nameless woman’s story for the first time, but I’m not where she was spiritually yet.  But her faith has always been my measuring stick.  And somehow, I believe that someday, I will have faith like that.  I hope you believe that about yourself as well.

 

Questions:  Do you have faith like this woman? If not, do you believe that someday, you will?

 

Prayer:  Author and Finisher of our Faith, we thank for every bit of faith we have in our heart.  We look forward to seeing how You will grow our faith deeper and stronger in the years to come.  Amen.

 

Prayer Focus:  Pray for people with chronic health conditions.

 

Song:  My Living Hope – Phil Wickham

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=24YYHjQjqCU

Stuff Just Got Real

Mark 5:21-24a, CEB - Jesus crossed the lake again, and on the other side a large crowd gathered around him on the shore.  Jairus, one of the synagogue leaders, came forward. When he saw Jesus, he fell at his feet and pleaded with him, “My daughter is about to die. Please, come and place your hands on her so that she can be healed and live.”  So Jesus went with him.

 

We’re going to spend a few reflections on this story because there is a lot to unpack in this dual-healing story.  Today, let’s talk about Jairus.  He was a leader in the local synagogue in Capernaum.  We don’t know much more about him except that Jesus and religious leaders generally experienced at the very least, a tense relationship.  We don’t know how Jairus felt about Jesus, but like other religious leaders, he was probably at least skeptical about what Jesus was all about.  But Jairus had obviously heard stories that Jesus was a healer.  And Jairus’s little girl was dying.  When your little girl is in trouble, your personal feelings about someone take a back seat to the fact that maybe, just maybe that person can help her.  In fact, it’s situations like this that put our personal feelings about someone in proper perspective.  Someone you love is dying and someone you have access to can help her.  Stuff just got real.

When my oldest daughter, Emily was 8, she had a life-threatening brain bleed.  I’ll spare you most of the terror of that day, but I’ll just say that I know how Jairus felt.  I would have sought to enlist the help of anyone, even my worst enemy, if I thought they could help my little girl.  Emily was taken by helicopter across town to get the care of pediatric neurological surgeons.  We made our way by car to that hospital as fast as we could.  My associate pastor at the time began to organize a prayer meeting at the church for Emily and I was thankful for that.  Emily had not been conscious for most of the day and the prayer meeting began about 7:00pm.  Shortly after the praying began, Emily woke up and greeted her grandparents like nothing had ever happened.  They did a brain scan the next day and they found no evidence that the brain bleed had ever happened!

I had been a Christian most of my life and a pastor for several years when this happened.  I had often preached on the power of prayer, but that day, what I had preached about became real in an intensely personal way.  It was life-changing moment for me. Prayer for me has been different ever since that day.  As I said before, we will talk more about this story in the coming days, but for now, I want to highlight this truth.  When we encounter crisis, it is an opportunity to see our beliefs “take on flesh.” It’s hard to remember that in the crisis itself, so today I seek to reinforce the truth so it’s embedded before crisis arrives.  If you happen to be in crisis right now, please accept this as a voice in the whirlwind. 

 

Question:  What experiences have you had that made your faith more “real?”

 

Prayer: Lord, thank You for the moments where Your truth becomes more tangible and powerful.  Reinforce that truth in us so that it is accessible when crisis comes.  Amen,

 

Prayer Focus:  Pray for parents you know who are having a hard time with their children.

 

Song:  Stand In Faith – Danny Gokey

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZIREaGBN4Jw

Exposing What’s Truly Important to Us

Mark 5:1-20, CEB - Jesus and his disciples came to the other side of the lake, to the region of the Gerasenes. As soon as Jesus got out of the boat, a man possessed by an evil spirit came out of the tombs. This man lived among the tombs, and no one was ever strong enough to restrain him, even with a chain. He had been secured many times with leg irons and chains, but he broke the chains and smashed the leg irons. No one was tough enough to control him. Night and day in the tombs and the hills, he would howl and cut himself with stones. When he saw Jesus from far away, he ran and knelt before him, shouting, “What have you to do with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? Swear to God that you won’t torture me!”

He said this because Jesus had already commanded him, “Unclean spirit, come out of the man!”

Jesus asked him, “What is your name?”

He responded, “Legion is my name, because we are many.” They pleaded with Jesus not to send them out of that region.

A large herd of pigs was feeding on the hillside.  “Send us into the pigs!” they begged. “Let us go into the pigs!”  Jesus gave them permission, so the unclean spirits left the man and went into the pigs. Then the herd of about two thousand pigs rushed down the cliff into the lake and drowned.

Those who tended the pigs ran away and told the story in the city and in the countryside. People came to see what had happened.  They came to Jesus and saw the man who used to be demon-possessed. They saw the very man who had been filled with many demons sitting there fully dressed and completely sane, and they were filled with awe.  Those who had actually seen what had happened to the demon-possessed man told the others about the pigs.   Then they pleaded with Jesus to leave their region.

While he was climbing into the boat, the one who had been demon-possessed pleaded with Jesus to let him come along as one of his disciples.  But Jesus wouldn’t allow it. “Go home to your own people,” Jesus said, “and tell them what the Lord has done for you and how he has shown you mercy.”  The man went away and began to proclaim in the Ten Cities all that Jesus had done for him, and everyone was amazed.

 

Of the three gospels (Matthew, Mark, and Luke) that include this story, Mark’s is the longest account.  This is curious, because Mark, who is usually known for his brevity (his gospel is the shortest) includes the most details.

There is a grab-bag of emotions present in this story told by Mark. First, Jesus and his disciples, fresh off the boat following the storm that Jesus calmed, are still tired.  They came over to the far shore to get from people.  They get out of the boat and find more people.  The tortured possessed man shows up and the spirits within him plead with Jesus to leave them alone, for Jesus had already begun to cast them out of the man.  The demons fear Jesus, because they know who He is and they fear He will harm them. 

Jesus asks for their name and they basically reply that they are many (legion, which means 1000).  Realizing Jesus is going to rid the tortured man of them, they ask to be cast into the heard of pigs.  Surprisingly, Jesus allows it and the pigs are promptly destroyed.  Implied here is that there are farmers who now have just lost part of their livelihood.  They are upset and eventually most of the people in the region are upset because it might be their livelihoods that Jesus starts messing with next.  But before they are upset, they are in awe that the demons obey Jesus. 

Then, of course, we have the man who was exorcised of the demons that had made him suffer for so long.  He is grateful beyond words and wants to devote his life to following Jesus.  But Jesus redirects him to tell his own people about what God has done for him.  The man spends the rest of his life doing just that.  So in this story, we have exhaustion, fear, extreme suffering, anger, awe, gratitude, calling, rejection, and other emotions all mixed in. 

It seems that the emotions in the various people correspond to what they care about the most. The people of the region are impressed with the authority Jesus has over demons, but they are more worried about how Jesus’s compassionate action (healing the man of demon-possession) will affect them financially.  The demoniac is nothing more than a nuisance to them.  The supernatural authority displayed to them was lost on them because what they cared about was their financial bottom line.

The fear that gripped Legion speaks to the fact they know their tyranny over their poor host is coming to an end. 

The gratitude and devotion of the man delivered from Legion stems from the suffering and self-harm has been cast out. 

Jesus still threatens institutions and communities that care more about their bottom line than the suffering of real human beings around them. 

Jesus is still a terror to demonic forces that terrorize human beings for whom He has compassion.

Jesus is still the deliverer of those tortured by the darkness in their souls.  He still calls people out of the darkest shadows and makes them a witness to what the Lord can do. 

 

Questions:  How does this story hit your emotions.  Does that suggest anything about your own priorities?

 

Prayer:  Lord, show us our true allegiances.  Help us to see those who are suffering in the shadows for who you care.  Make us witnesses to what You have done for us.

 

Prayer Focus:  Pray for people who struggle with mental illness.

 

Song:  Run, Devil, Run – David Crowder

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=US1-R-R9lYQ

Does Jesus Shame Us for Our Fear and Lack of Faith?

Mark 4:35-41, CEB -  Later that day, when evening came, Jesus said to them, “Let’s cross over to the other side of the lake.”  They left the crowd and took him in the boat just as he was. Other boats followed along.

Gale-force winds arose, and waves crashed against the boat so that the boat was swamped. But Jesus was in the rear of the boat, sleeping on a pillow. They woke him up and said, “Teacher, don’t you care that we’re drowning?”

He got up and gave orders to the wind, and he said to the lake, “Silence! Be still!” The wind settled down and there was a great calm.  Jesus asked them, “Why are you frightened? Don’t you have faith yet?”

Overcome with awe, they said to each other, “Who then is this? Even the wind and the sea obey him!”

 

One of the details of this story that has always amused me was how Jesus was asleep in the back of a boat in a storm with gale-force winds.  I know He was tired because they were in the boat to try and get away and rest.  But how tired do you have to be to do that?  In 2017, with eye of Hurricane Irma forecast to go right through Pine Island (where I was serving as a pastor at the time), I began to really worry.  I worried so much that I did not sleep well for two days before the storm arrived.  We evacuated to Orlando, the storm turned, went well south of Pine Island, and came much closer to where we were than it did to Pine Island.  Two trees fell around the house we were in and the roof was damaged badly enough that it was replaced later.  I, however, slept through the whole thing.  I had gotten so exhausted with lack of sleep and worry that I slept through a hurricane. But I was not in a boat in the middle of the storm. No wind and water touched my person.  So I repeat . .  .how tired do you have to be to sleep in the bow of a boat in the middle of a large lake in a bad storm? Or perhaps, how completely unworried and confident do you have to be?

The other detail that has me puzzled concerning this story is Jesus’s questions about being frightened and having faith.  After just confessing the worry and fear that I had with the threat of a hurricane, those questions sound rather condescending and unhelpful.  After hearing first-hand reports from my friends in Pine Island concerning their experience of riding out Hurricane Ian, I certainly don’t fault them for the fear and uncertainty they felt.  But I sometimes wonder if Jesus does. 

I don’t think so.  The response of the disciples to Jesus’s question is not one of people who have just been shamed.  The text describes their feeling as being “overcome with awe.”  Not shame or humiliation. . . but awe.  Jesus calms the storm before he asks these questions.  If He were condemning them, he would have asked them before He calmed the storm.  To me, the exchange reads a bit more like this:

The disciples wake Jesus and scold him, “Don’t you care that we are drowning?!”

Jesus, after silencing the wind and waves, asks “How’s your fear and faith NOW?

Reading it like this, the disciples’ awe-filled response makes more sense. 

Jesus doesn’t shame us for our fear and lack of faith.  He invites us to see His ways and gradually let go of our fear and see our faith expand.  Later in the New Testament, these same fearful disciples go fearlessly to their deaths because their faith was built up tremendously by seeing first-hand all that Jesus did.   As I look back over my life, I am much less fearful than I once was and my faith is stronger than it was when it began.  This is because I have witnessed dozens of miracles, been delivered through multiple storms (actual and figurative), and I have seen God show up in crisis in ways that leave me in awe.   

The invitation is look for God to show up.  And when God doesn’t seem to be showing up, we might even, like the disciples, get a little cheeky and question whether He cares that we are being threatened.  But at least we know who to go to when there’s trouble. 

 

Question:  How’s your fear and faith right now?

 

Prayer:  God, we confess that our faith is not what it should be and our fear often gets the best of us.  Help us in our unbelief.  Amen.

 

Prayer Focus:  Pray for people in SW Florida who are just now getting to begin to try and figure out what to do next after Hurricane Ian. 

 

Song:  If You’re Going Through Hell – Rodney Atkins

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l50L4GYhpLc

Nothing But Stories

Mark 4:33-34 - With many similar parables Jesus spoke the word to them, as much as they could understand.  He did not say anything to them without using a parable. But when he was alone with his own disciples, he explained everything.

 

Why would Jesus only use parables, which don’t always have obvious meanings, with the crowd, and then “explain everything” to his disciples later?  The short answer is we aren’t completely sure and because of that, many theories abound.  You are free to google “why did Jesus use parables?” to read a few or hundred, whichever suits your fancy. 

To me, it makes sense for Jesus to use compelling stories with the crowds and be more direct with hiis leaders-in-training.  The crowd is a mixture of people ranging from curious looky-loo’s to people earnestly seeking the Messiah.  Often there were also Jewish religious leaders present.  Parables are less confrontational to religious leaders, enlightening to those earnestly seeking, and might tickle the fancy of the curious – one story fulfilling multiple purposes simultaneously.  This might even be part of the explanation offered to the disciples later; know your audience and use appropriate teaching methods accordingly.

The parables of Jesus are still doing all of these things – confounding the scholarly skeptics, engaging seekers, and drawing in the tire-kickers.  Seems like Jesus knew what He was doing.

 

Question:  What do the parables of Jesus “do” for you or even in you?

 

Prayer:  Jesus, thank you for your teaching in all its forms.  Help us grasp the kingdom you usher in and allow as to be part of the “ushering.” Amen.

 

Prayer Focus:  Pray for people who may be curious about Jesus, but haven’t gone “all-in” yet.

 

Song:  I Love to Tell the Story – Accapella

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OPtzKT-JLw0

Mustard Seeds and Orchids

Mark 4:30-32 - Again he said, “What shall we say the kingdom of God is like, or what parable shall we use to describe it? It is like a mustard seed, which is the smallest of all seeds on earth. Yet when planted, it grows and becomes the largest of all garden plants, with such big branches that the birds can perch in its shade.”

 

I don’t know why, when I read this passage this time, the question hit me, “are mustards seeds actually the smallest seeds on earth?”  I did a little research and it turns out the answer is “no.”  When Jesus told this story, we did not have microscopes, but there are many kinds of seeds that too small to see.  The ones I read most about are orchid seeds.  Just one gram of the smallest orchid seeds contain 3-4 million seeds.  Only the smallest fraction of these seeds ever become beautiful orchids, which are among the largest flowers in nature.  If you ever buy some really high-quality vanilla ice cream, you will notice that there are small dark flecks in the tasty treat.  Those flecks are vanilla orchid seeds.   

We shouldn’t make too much of the fact that Jesus states that mustard seeds are the smallest on earth. They may have been the smallest known seeds on earth at the time.   Jesus told parables using the common knowledge of His day.  The point here is one we could make with mustard seeds or orchid seeds.  I actually like using both together.  Both mustard and orchid seeds are crazy small and grow into surprising large plants/flowers.  Mustard plants are sometimes called trees because they grow so strong and sturdy that a bird can rest and take shelter on it’s branches.  The kingdom Jesus is ushering in is so small in his telling of this story, but he sees what it will become – one of largest religions on earth, providing shelter to close to 2 billion people now.  Adding the image of the orchid to this, the kingdom has become something of amazing beauty out of seeds that were “invisible” before. 

The parable highlights another aspect of the same reality that we spoke about last time with the farmer planting seeds.  Because God is the driving force of the kingdom, something infinitesimally small can be made into a world-changing movement.  We should never underestimate what God can do with almost nothing.  He created all that is out of nothing, so mustard and orchid seeds are a cakewalk.  Imagine what God could do with a person who is completely submitted to the purpose for which they were created.

 

Question:  How often do you underestimate what Giod can do with a specific person, community, and/or situation?

 

Prayer:  God or mustard seeds, exquisite orchids, world-changing communities, inspire us to trust you when it seems we feel don’t have enough or we believe are not enough.  Amen.

 

Prayer Focus:  Pray for those in our society that most people never see – the homeless and those in prison.

 

Song:  Mustard Seed - David Ashley Trent

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uS6Er6I2nbM

In Between Harvests. . .

Mark 4:26-29 - He also said, “This is what the kingdom of God is like. A man scatters seed on the ground.  Night and day, whether he sleeps or gets up, the seed sprouts and grows, though he does not know how.  All by itself the soil produces grain—first the stalk, then the head, then the full kernel in the head.  As soon as the grain is ripe, he puts the sickle to it, because the harvest has come.”

 

You do not have to know how something works to benefit from it.  Millions of people use cars daily to quickly travel long distances who know almost nothing about they work.  People turn on their kitchen sink faucet in the morning with no clue about how that water just “magically” appears at their fingertips.  Smartphones. . . forget it. . . almost none of us how they work, including many of the people working at Apple.  We all use and benefit from hundreds of technologies that we have no way to explain. 

Jesus says the kingdom of God is like that.  We are encouraged to “work the soil” of it without so much as a clue about how the growth actually happens.  We watch for the growth and then we harvest when it comes.  It’s so simple, right?  Just keep scattering seeds.  Get the sickle out when the plants have reached maturity.  Plant and harvest. . .that’s all you need to know, right?

Implicit in this story is that the farmer actually knows much more than that.  She knows that seeds need water and so she waters the ground.  She knows that there are times of the year that seeds will never grow if they are planted then.  She knows that once the sprouts break up from the ground, they will need sunlight, so where she plants the seeds matters.  Likewise, you need to know much more than how to use the brake and accelerator pedals to drive a car.  There is a learning curve to farming, driving a car, using a smartphone, and navigating the kingdom of God.

Unlike a car and a smartphone, farming and the kingdom of God have elusive mysteries to their inner workings that may not be “figured out.”  Even the most technologically advanced 21^st century farms have bad harvests that they cannot explain and get surprised by unusually good harvests as well.  The inner workings of the kingdom of God are even more unknowable.  If we are to get to the harvest, we have to trust that God will make it happen in ways we will never understand.  The idea here is to trust the mysterious processes of God in those times between seeds planted and harvests reaped.

We’re in one of those periods right now.  We were in one before pandemics, wars, hurricanes, and economic upheavals occurred so the process is even more invisible now.  It’s hard to imagine how or when the next great harvest will come, but it will indeed come.  Trust the process. . . or more accurately, trust the One in charge of it.  Keep planting and watering.  The Lord of the Harvest will do the rest, even though we will never understand how.

 

Question:  What are the things about the kingdom that you do know despite all the things you don’t?

 

Prayer:  Lord, we sometimes strain to trust that You are bringing the next harvest.  We confess that struggle in the same breath that proclaim our trust that You will indeed do it.  Increase our hope and faith and show us the things we can do right now to participate in the process.  Amen.

 

Prayer Focus:  Pray for those running for public office right now, including those you are not planning to vote for.

 

Song:  Hand of Providence – Michael W. Smith

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K2HbrNcfmYs

Some of the Hardest Work We Do is This

Mark 4:24- 25, NLT - Then he added, “Pay close attention to what you hear. The closer you listen, the more understanding you will be given—and you will receive even more.  To those who listen to my teaching, more understanding will be given. But for those who are not listening, even what little understanding they have will be taken away from them.”

 

What have you done lately?  Our culture asks us this question in hundreds of different ways each day.  We have been conditioned to value activity. . . production. . .getting work done.  Some have referred to this as the “protestant work ethic,” suggesting that this penchant for continuously being productive has roots in our faith.  Certainly, even Jesus, in a parable that sounds very similar to the above teaching, extols the virtue of taking what we have been given and multiplying it (Matthew 25:14-30).  Many bible texts, to be sure, support the value of working hard. 

Then we have today’s passage which talks about the value listening hard - not casually, but intently for understanding.  Unlike the protestant work ethic, this ethic of listening well is not built into the fabric of our culture.  Our culture is one of 30-second soundbites, 10-minute book summaries, and well . . . this is a bit awkward for me to say. . . 5-minute daily devotionals. In most conversations that we participate in, we often listen not for understanding, but in order to form an appropriate response.  Deep listening. . . the kind Jesus is talking about here is rare. 

Jesus is warning us that we are missing out by tuning out too soon.  The more we deeply listen, the more we will deeply understand. Furthermore, to the extent that we don’t invest ourselves in intentional listening, we risk losing what understanding we already have.  I have observed this loss in myself times.  I have, on occasion, gotten to a particular point of understanding an issue that I begin to believe that I understand it fully.  At this point, I really stop listening because after all, I already have enough understanding.  Though I usually don’t realize it, I have closed my mind to further understanding because I have begun to believe that no further understanding is possible.  I suppose I have to admit that I currently have “blind spots” in my understanding right now. 

Fortunately, I’ve lived long enough and had just enough humility to see some of my previous blind spots exposed.  A conviction I held is shattered by an experience that caused me to question what I thought I already knew.  An experience of personal pain comes because I was ignoring the deeper wisdom that I didn’t even acknowledge existed.  A person who I was in relationship with broke through my ignorance by acting in a way that defied my closed understanding of them. What little understanding I thought I had was lost.  To break it down to the most simple level, I was not really listening to what Life was trying to show me – the spiritual version of Attention Deficit Disorder. 

Jesus is alerting us to the truth that there is always more to understand.  There are always deeper levels to explore.  But this is only true to the extent that we are relentless listeners that are open to that deeper adventure. 

 

Question: 

 

Prayer:  Lord. Show us our blind spots, the places in our understanding where we could go deeper if we could admit that we need to. Amen.

 

Prayer Focus:  Pray for someone you haven’t listened to in a while.

 

Song:  I’m Listening – Chris McClarney (ft Hollyn)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nT8iKdwbKdU  

What’s a Light Good For?

Mark 4:21-23 - He said to them, “Do you bring in a lamp to put it under a bowl or a bed? Instead, don’t you put it on its stand?  For whatever is hidden is meant to be disclosed, and whatever is concealed is meant to be brought out into the open.  If anyone has ears to hear, let them hear.”

 

A couple of weeks ago, in a prior devo, I asserted that scholarly debate about the “messianic secret” was, in my opinion largely overstated.  For me, the above passage confirms this idea.  Jesus uses the image a lamp to describe the nature of the kingdom.  You would not cover or hide a lamp for it’s purpose is to provide light.  Likewise, you would not conceal or minimize the kingdom of God, for it is a reality and way of life that is meant to be shared.  I think Jesus’s meaning here, especially as Mark has told the story, is fairly straightforward.  The treasure Jesus shares with us is meant to be shared with others.

Too often though, Christians want it both ways.  On one hand, they are attracted to the teachings of Jesus and even more drawn in by the Love Jesus incarnates.  But at the same time, most do not want to be perceived as a “radical.” Further, they rightly don’t want to impose their own beliefs upon others.  As a result, we have the epidemic of “private religion” and “live and let live” mantras.  In the text above, Jesus calls this what it is – nonsense. 

If what we have received from Jesus is light, then what purpose does it serve to hide it?  I believe Jesus calls us to use our light in the same helpful way that one would use a good light source.  We bring it into places where people are living in darkness.  We live in a way that demonstrates the value of following Jesus’s ways in real life.  Another use of light is to illumine the often-concealed injustice and evils that plague our society.  Light is not always welcome in such places, but Jesus calls us to “set it on the lampstand” anyway. 

Don’t get me wrong; we aren’t called to annoying and obnoxious as some Jesus-followers have been prone to be.  What was always obvious in Jesus’s approach was that, even when He was confrontational and/or angry, it was obvious that his motivation was love.  He was not known primarily for His anger.  He was known for His love, mercy and healing.  But avoiding confrontation at all costs falls short of faithfulness to the nature of the Kingdom. 

 

Questions:  Think of a time when a conversation or situation in which you found yourself was running contrary to what you believed to be right.  How did you handle it?  How would you handle it in the future?

 

Prayer:  Lord, help us see ways to more authentically “let our light shine.”  Amen.

 

Prayer Focus:  Pray for the victims of the latest round of bombings in Ukraine that have killed and injured hundreds of civilians. 

 

Song:  What Makes a Man? – Ben Rector and Thomas Rhett

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pcmeE3wPndM

Secrets Seldom Heard

Mark 4:1-20 - Again Jesus began to teach by the lake. The crowd that gathered around him was so large that he got into a boat and sat in it out on the lake, while all the people were along the shore at the water’s edge.  He taught them many things by parables, and in his teaching said:  “Listen! A farmer went out to sow his seed.  As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up.  Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow.  But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root.  Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants, so that they did not bear grain.  Still other seed fell on good soil. It came up, grew and produced a crop, some multiplying thirty, some sixty, some a hundred times.”

Then Jesus said, “Whoever has ears to hear, let them hear.”

When he was alone, the Twelve and the others around him asked him about the parables.  He told them, “The secret of the kingdom of God has been given to you. But to those on the outside everything is said in parables  so that,

“‘they may be ever seeing but never perceiving,

    and ever hearing but never understanding;

otherwise they might turn and be forgiven!’”

 

Then Jesus said to them, “Don’t you understand this parable? How then will you understand any parable?  The farmer sows the word.  Some people are like seed along the path, where the word is sown. As soon as they hear it, Satan comes and takes away the word that was sown in them.  Others, like seed sown on rocky places, hear the word and at once receive it with joy.  But since they have no root, they last only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, they quickly fall away.  Still others, like seed sown among thorns, hear the word;  but the worries of this life, the deceitfulness of wealth and the desires for other things come in and choke the word, making it unfruitful.  Others, like seed sown on good soil, hear the word, accept it, and produce a crop—some thirty, some sixty, some a hundred times what was sown.”

 

This is a longer scripture reading than we normally take on, but it’s important to read it as a whole.  We are introduced to the idea that Jesus often taught in parables, we hear an actual parable, and then we get a discussion about why parables are used. Finally, Jesus gives an interpretation of the parable we heard.  All of these “sections” provide insight into what is going on here.  I encourage you to say a quick prayer asking God to speak to you through this text.  Then read it again, listening for meaning. 

I only add a few quick ideas from my own time of doing what I asked you to do just now.  First, I am impressed by Jesus not being impressed with large crowds.  I do get impressed by large crowds and when I hear that large crowds are going to hear “so-and-so,” it makes me want to hear them too.  We live in a society that values speakers, artists, musicians, and others who attract crowds.  The fact that it is possible to make a good living now simply making videos on Youtube or posts on Instagram is witness to this.  Jesus was not impressed by His own ability to draw crowds and the parable He tells explains why.  Jesus knows that only a fraction of those present will ever take His teaching and do something fruitful with it.  I can’t help but think there is even a little sadness in Jesus about this realization. 

When the disciples ask about the use of parables, Jesus explains that this lack of fruitfulness is not a new problem.  He quotes Isaiah where Isaiah is told that while, he is sent to God’s people with God’s message, the people will not really hear or understand the message, much less do anything different as a result. 

This sober truth continues to play out today.  I have been part of more than a dozen Christian congregations in my lifetime.  The large majority of people who attend these congregations live lives that look remarkably similar to the lives they would live if they never attended church.  I don’t say that to be hurtful or judgmental.  It is just the reality that Jesus described.  But here is the hope in Jesus’s teaching here.  The small minority of people who are authentically transformed by the teaching of Jesus tend to have exponential impact on the world around them, “some thirty, some sixty, some a hundred times” the seed that was planted in them.  Jesus has faith in the power of the that small group of the transformed to change the world forever.  He faith has proven to be well placed.  Jesus doesn’t seem to care about numbers; He cares about fruit. 

One final encouragement.  This parable is not given as a way to classify others as one of the four kinds of soils described in the story.  I see it as a self-awareness tool given by Jesus to see our own tendencies more clearly.

 

Question:  What kind of “soil” do you most resemble? 

 

Prayer:  Show me my heart, Jesus.  Help me prepare it to more fruitfully receive Your Word.  Amen.

 

Prayer Focus:  Spend time just quietly listening for God to speak into your life today.

 

Song:  Here’s My Heart Lord – Casting Crowns

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qkSBmRAVXNc

One of the Things I Wish Jesus Hadn’t Said

Mark 3:20-35 - Then Jesus entered a house, and again a crowd gathered, so that he and his disciples were not even able to eat.  When his family heard about this, they went to take charge of him, for they said, “He is out of his mind.”

And the teachers of the law who came down from Jerusalem said, “He is possessed by Beelzebul! By the prince of demons he is driving out demons.”

So Jesus called them over to him and began to speak to them in parables: “How can Satan drive out Satan?  If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand.  If a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand.  And if Satan opposes himself and is divided, he cannot stand; his end has come.  In fact, no one can enter a strong man’s house without first tying him up. Then he can plunder the strong man’s house.  Truly I tell you, people can be forgiven all their sins and every slander they utter, but whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven; they are guilty of an eternal sin.”

He said this because they were saying, “He has an impure spirit.”

Then Jesus’ mother and brothers arrived. Standing outside, they sent someone in to call him.  A crowd was sitting around him, and they told him, “Your mother and brothers are outside looking for you.”

“Who are my mother and my brothers?” he asked.

Then he looked at those seated in a circle around him and said, “Here are my mother and my brothers!  Whoever does God’s will is my brother and sister and mother.”

 

Mark has “buried the lead” here.  The story he tells here about Jesus’s family trying to “take charge of him” because they believe He might have gone off the deep end.  But in the middle of the account, Jesus drops a bombshell on the scribes that has caused problems for would-be Jesus followers ever since:

“…but whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven; they are guilty of an eternal sin.”

This statement is honestly something I wish Jesus had not said.  I have encountered so many people over the course of three decades of ministry that get tripped up by this saying of Jesus.  Some have, with anguish, shared that they feared that they had committed this unforgivable sin.  My answer has come to be the following: “if you have any real fear that you might have committed this sin, then you haven’t.  

Remember who Jesus is addressing here.  The scribes/pharisees have already been exposed as seeking a justifiable reason to kill Jesus.  In previous reflections on earlier passages in Mark, we saw how these religious leaders were using the holy law given by God to actually kill Jesus.  They have accused Jesus of blasphemy (speaking against the ways of God), but Jesus warns that the leaders are the ones in danger of being blasphemers here.  They are calling the work of Jesus the work of the prince of demons.   They are so consumed by their own agenda, they are willing to blatantly and publicly lie about what they know to be the work of God with no fear that God will hold them accountable.  Jesus identifies this as the point of no return.  So, if you have any fear that you might be offending God in an unforgivable way, then you haven’t done so.

But before we go, let’s return to Mark’s main story here about Jesus’s family coming to collect him for fear that He is crazy.  This is important because it provides Jesus the opportunity to teach a very important truth.  When Jesus is told that His mother and brothers are waiting, he asks a question that He Himself answers; “Who are my mother and my brothers?”

Looking at the people around Him that have been following Him, he says, ““Here are my mother and my brothers!  Whoever does God’s will is my brother and sister and mother.”

Jesus expands the definition of family beyond biology.  Following God creates a family connection with those who are doing the same.  I have experienced this truth throughout my life.  My connection to God’s community has blessed me with several women who have functioned as additional mothers to me beyond the one that gave me birth.  I have additional father figures in my life as well.  I even affectionately call some of these people “Mom” and “Dad.”  Likewise, I have four biological children, but many more who I consider to be my “adopted children” because of my strong connection to them.  And of course, I have many more brothers and sisters than biology has afforded me.  All of these people are not “like family” to me.  They ARE family to me along with my biological family.  The same Love that created my biological family is creates a much bigger family to which we can all choose to belong.

 

Question:  Who are your mothers, fathers, sisters, and brothers beyond biology?

 

Prayer:  Holy Spirit, we acknowledge Your work among us.  Today, we especially thank you for knitting us together as a family of those who acknowledge Your work.  Strengthen our connection to You and to each other.  Amen.

 

Prayer Focus:  Pray for members of your church today as their names come to mind.

 

Song:  The Family of God – Newsboys

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V6kOkIJV-0M

Jesus Chose Political Rivals

Mark 3:13-19 - Jesus went up on a mountainside and called to him those he wanted, and they came to him.  He appointed twelve that they might be with him and that he might send them out to preach and to have authority to drive out demons.  These are the twelve he appointed: Simon (to whom he gave the name Peter), James son of Zebedee and his brother John (to them he gave the name Boanerges, which means “sons of thunder”), Andrew, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, James son of Alphaeus, Thaddaeus, Simon the Zealot and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him.

 

I have else reflected on the diversity of Jesus’s disciples.  Professional fishermen and tax collectors are chosen.  Impetuous, impulsive, “thunder-like,” doubt-prone, educated and barely-educated all chosen.  What never occurred to me recently, however, is that Jesus intentionally chose political rivals to travel with Him for three years and take on the same authority He wielded to preach and cast out demons. 

 

Matthew was a tax collector, who by definition, was aligned with the Roman state.  Roman contracted tax collectors to collect the taxes from those under their rule and Matthew was one of those contractors.  Simon, identified as a Zealot, is, by definition, one that believes the Roman state should be eliminated or at the very least, resisted.  I would have loved to be a fly on the wall hearing these two guys talk after a long day of ministry with Jesus.  But both were chosen, trained, given authority, and eventually sent out to represent Him. 

There is much talk these days about the growing divisiveness in our culture.  Politicians in separate parties seem to be more and more driven by the desire to malign, discredit, and defeat their “rivals” rather than find a way to govern together.  The people represented by these public servants often mimic and even expound upon the toxic rhetoric on social media.  Mainstream media outlets strategically brand themselves as allies of a particular and cunningly seek to discredit the outlets of other “flavors.”  All this divisiveness can increasingly be seen in the church as well – the community of Jesus’s current disciples.   Church disputes are increasingly involving the secular law courts and all too many congregations have begun to brand themselves in the same way that media outlets do.

 

I am convinced that this state of affairs saddens and likely angers our Lord.  Matthew, Simon, and almost certainly the rest the disciples regularly disagreed about important matters.  But Jesus intentionally chose people that saw the world differently than others that He chose.  They were anything but a homogenous group of yes-men for a particular viewpoint.  But their “rivals” were not each other.  Their rivals were the many variety of “demons” that tortured the people Jesus came to preach to and save.   

 

There is nothing wrong with having strong political opinions.  But as followers of Jesus, we’re called to advance the mission of Jesus more than the “success” of those opinions.  In fact, I happen to believe that our differing convictions enable us to pursue this mission more effectively.  Those who see the world and current issues differently than I do are able to reach people that would not even give me the time of day and vice versa. What would be even more effective than that would be for congregation of individuals who include in their ranks people aligned with opposing worldviews united by a mission that is bigger than all those worldviews put together.  I think that is why Jesus intentionally created such a community.  A tribe that includes Matthew and Simon might just make both Roman sympathizers and anti-Roman zealots wonder if there is something even more important than Rome. 

 

Question:  Do you believe the community described above is possible?  Why or Why not?

 

Prayer:  God of All, give us eyes to see our “rivals” the way you do.  Amen.

 

Prayer Focus:  Pray for people wrestling with some kind of “demon” today (feel free to define “demon” any way you feel appropriate). 

 

Song:  Where is the Love? - Black-Eyed Peas

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wiy-oEGYYPc

The Chaos of Ministry

Mark 3:7-12 - Jesus withdrew with his disciples to the lake, and a large crowd from Galilee followed.  When they heard about all he was doing, many people came to him from Judea, Jerusalem, Idumea, and the regions across the Jordan and around Tyre and Sidon.  Because of the crowd he told his disciples to have a small boat ready for him, to keep the people from crowding him.  For he had healed many, so that those with diseases were pushing forward to touch him.  Whenever the impure spirits saw him, they fell down before him and cried out, “You are the Son of God.”  But he gave them strict orders not to tell others about him.

 

The passage for today is not that exciting.  Most of the vignette is about Jesus trying to deal with the fact that He is attracting crowds that are becoming hard to handle.  Jesus intention was to withdraw from the crowds, but they followed him and even pushed in on him in order that they might touch him.  In addition, Jesus’s ministry is riling up impure spirits and they are calling him the Son of God.  He instructs them to be silent and tells the crowd no to repeat their confession of Jesus’s identity. 

 

In our reflections so far on the book of Mark, we’ve mentioned the scholarly reflections on the reasons for Jesus instructing people not to tell others about His identity.  My take on this, which I do confess is not the consensus of scholarly opinion, is that Jesus does not want to fuel fervor in His ministry. Although His ministry is attracting a lot of positive attention,  it is also angering the religious authorities enough that they want to kill him (Mark 3:6).  Jesus knows that his ministry will end in death, but he wants to make sure He has accomplished all that He needs to before that happens.  Too much fervor and anger will hasten that day of reckoning.  He needs more time before the conflict ends with His crucifixion.  So, ironically, Jesus is interested in his ministry growing, but not too quickly.  He had to deal with overenthusiastic crowds pushing their way up to him when He is just trying to get a breather.  It’s getting chaotic for Jesus and we’re only in chapter 3! 

 

It may seem a bit weird, but I find in this passage a strange sort of comfort.  I have been in ministry over 30 years now and it is almost always chaotic.   There are over-eager people that cause problems.  Occasionally, things work so well that it actually causes problems.  Sometimes, you just have to keep going even though you need a break.  The fact that Jesus had to deal with these sorts of problems too gives me a strange sense of connection to Him.  Ministry rarely goes forward without problems. 

 

This past week, because of a family emergency, I had to make arrangements for me not to be church preaching.  I am thankful to have gifted people that stepped in and made it all happen without me.  Even though I was not able to be physically present, I was able to watch the livestream.  While watching, I noticed some minor hiccups in the service which are the kinds of things that tend to happen whether I’m there or not.  But the service was good, the message was powerful, and the Spirit was present to me as I worshipped.  I had a very positive experience.

 

When I returned to the office yesterday, I heard the reports from the people who had led the service.  They felt like everything that could have gone wrong did go wrong.  They told me about a half a dozen problems they had that I wasn’t aware of watching the livestream.  The same service that was positive for me felt extremely chaotic to them!

 

This is the ministry we have – the ministry that Christ had as well.  It often feels imperfect, insufficient, and chaotic.  While we should always be striving to improve the quality of our ministry, it will never be without chaos.  The call is to be faithful in spite of the chaos. 

 

Question:  When have you been discouraged by something you were trying to accomplish, but it didn’t go as planned?  Have there been times like that where you later found out that God was at work even in the midst of the chaos?

 

Prayer:  Lord, you called us to be faithful, not perfect.  Help us sense you in the midst of the chaos we experience while trying to do good work. Amen.

 

Prayer Focus:  Pray for people who are looking for employment right now.

 

Song:  Grace in the Wilderness – Stars Go Dim

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gzDQNQHGbOE

“Concerning the Sabbath. . . and Way More Than That”

Mark 2:23-3:6 - One Sabbath Jesus was going through the grainfields, and as his disciples walked along, they began to pick some heads of grain. The Pharisees said to him, “Look, why are they doing what is unlawful on the Sabbath?”

He answered, “Have you never read what David did when he and his companions were hungry and in need?  In the days of Abiathar the high priest, he entered the house of God and ate the consecrated bread, which is lawful only for priests to eat. And he also gave some to his companions.”

Then he said to them, “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. So the Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath.”

Another time Jesus went into the synagogue, and a man with a shriveled hand was there.  Some of them were looking for a reason to accuse Jesus, so they watched him closely to see if he would heal him on the Sabbath.  Jesus said to the man with the shriveled hand, “Stand up in front of everyone.”

Then Jesus asked them, “Which is lawful on the Sabbath: to do good or to do evil, to save life or to kill?” But they remained silent.

He looked around at them in anger and, deeply distressed at their stubborn hearts, said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” He stretched it out, and his hand was completely restored. Then the Pharisees went out and began to plot with the Herodians how they might kill Jesus.

 

These two Jesus teaching stories that Mark groups together are, of course, about the Sabbath.  But they are also about more than the Sabbath.  Let’s talk about the Sabbath first and move out from there. 

There were many rules/laws governing the Sabbath.  It was to be a regular day of rest where one would refrain from working for a day.  Over the centuries since the Sabbath was a law, hundreds of thousands of pages have been written to further elaborate on the particulars of this day of rest. What constitutes work?  Exactly when does the Sabbath start and end? How do necessary things get done on that day without working?  What if an emergency requires you to work on the Sabbath?  These are just a small fraction of questions covered by the countless volumes of commentary on the fourth of the Ten Commandments. 

Don’t get me wrong; these questions aren’t insignificant.  But it is easy to get so bogged down and distracted by the endless questions about the Sabbath that one can lose sight of the very core purpose of the Sabbath. In the first story above, Jesus points out that this is exactly what has happened.  Jesus and disciples are simply feeding themselves on the Sabbath and what the Pharisees see is that they have violated one of minute interpretations of what constitutes work.   

Jesus points out two problems with this accusatory question.  First, the Sabbath was intended as a lifestyle structure that would benefit the people who followed it, not a law that would require unquestioned obedience to the point of going hungry until the next day.  Building a time of regular rest and renewal into the weekly grind is a healthy practice and part of that practice should include worship of the God who is Lord of All.  To worship is also a healthy practice that benefits those who do it regularly.  Neglecting regular rest and worship has natural consequences that ultimately diminish a person.  But Jesus and his disciples were not neglecting rest and worship.  They were hungry and so they ate. ““The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath”

The second problem is pointed out in the second story.  It’s clear that the Pharisees are looking to use the Sabbath rules to actually cause harm to Jesus and His ministry.  They are more concerned about catching Jesus “breaking the rules” than they are about a man being healed of a horrible malady.  Mark doesn’t have to include any commentary here to show how ridiculous it is that the Pharisees are planning to use the healing of a man against Jesus.  The commandment to observe the Sabbath was never to be used to persecute others; that is evil and Jesus slyly suggests that in his rhetorical question. 

If you’ve read any number of my gospel reflections, then you know that my encouragement is to always put ourselves in the place of the Pharisees in these kinds of stories.  It’s much too easy to simply make them the “bad guys.”  When Jesus exposes pharisaical misgivings, He is also exposing universal human tendencies to misunderstand, misuse, and even mistreat others using the very guidance offered by God for our benefit.  I’ve gotten into trouble for breaking a rule in order to help someone, but I’ve also quietly judged others for doing the same.  I, too, have gotten so distracted by the need to find fault in another’s actions that I was willing use a “technicality” to malign someone with good intentions.  I don’t like admitting that I can be like that, but my observation is that most people I have ever know can be like that.  The first step toward becoming better is awareness of the need to be better.

 

Questions:  In what ways am I guilty of misunderstanding, misusing, and mistreating others with the guidance of God gives me for the benefit of myself and others?

 

Prayer:  God, show me the things in my spirit that are keeping me from the life you want for me, the life that truly is life. Amen.

 

Prayer Focus:  Continue to pray for the people in SW Florida, particularly Pine Island and Matlacha.   Pine Island does not get the media coverage that places like Sanibel and Captiva do.  The island will be mostly uninhabitable for at least the next several months.  There are still many people missing and feared dead.  The situation there is dire.  Pray hard.

 

Song:  Lord, Have Mercy – Michael W. Smith (ft. Amy Grant)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DjPrIVKlvsM