pastorjohnb

Thoughts and musings on faith and our mighty God!

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Repent and…

Reading: Mark 1: 14-18

Verse Fifteen: “The kingdom of God is near.  Repent and believe the good news”.

Jesus begins His earthly ministry in a similar manner to John the Baptist’s ministry.  Like John, Jesus calls the people to repent and then to accept the good news.  Repentance must come first.  We simply cannot walk with Jesus when we have sin in our lives.  Sin, by its nature, separates us from God.  Repentance requires a change in our lives.  Whatever the sin, it leads us away from God.  So if our desire is to be in a relationship with God, then we must turn away from our sin and resubmit our lives to faithful obedience.

As Jesus entered Galilee, the message He preached was all about repentance.  He said over and over, “The kingdom of God is near.  Repent and believe the good news”.  This theme continued throughout His ministry.  The woman caught in adultery heard this message as Jesus told her, “Go now and leave your life of sin”.  Zacchaeus pledges a new life as he promises to repay all that he has wronged.  Jesus responds by declaring that salvation has come to Zacchaeus that day.  Over and over Jesus calls us to leave our sin behind and to turn to Him.

Repentance is hard.  It would be easier to skip over this part of the passage.  Repentance requires admitting that we did something wrong, that we faltered.  This requires a certain amount of humility.  Pride and ego can get in the way.  Repentance also requires an honest look into ourselves, a searching if you will, to see the sin in our lives.  And lastly, it requires that we commit to being better, to walking a more holy life, to being more like Jesus.

Jesus sought disciples who were willing to put their old life behind them to come and follow Him.  It required a radical change in direction.  Simon and Andrew heard His call and began a new way of life.  It was risky and full of the unknown.  It required trust.  Repentance can bring us these same feelings as we choose to leave a part of ourselves behind and we are not sure where our new self will go.  Just as Jesus called the first disciples, He calls us as well.  Jesus is still seeking followers who are willing to orient their lives to a new way of living over and over.  The journey of faith never ends as our faith is always growing and developing.  The call involves risk for us too.  Are we willing to risk and to trust in wherever Jesus leads?  After all, the call is to come and follow.


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Come and See

Reading: John 1:43-51

Verse 46: “Nazareth!  Can anything good come from there”?

Our key verse today is full of emotion and opinion.  Nathanael dismisses any chance of Jesus being the Messiah because of his preconceived notions about Nazareth.  He looks right past Philip’s excitement and belief in finding the One.  Nathanael cannot see past all his world has ever been or known.  I wonder if he has even ever been to Nazareth.

Sometimes though, we are all guilty of doing just what Nathanael did.  We make a decision or pass a judgment on what we think we know.  Often this comes from our parents or friends, sometimes from society or culture.  We have all been guilty of drawing conclusions or making assumptions based on things like ethnicity, socio-economic status, appearance, gender, family of origin, …

To illustrate, a quick youth group story.  After cooking and sharing a meal with a group of people on the street outside the church, one of the young men in the group shared something with me.  He had spent some time eating and talking with one of our guests.  Afterward, he came up to me and said, “They’re just like me”.  Yes, they are just like us.  When we are willing to spend time with someone, getting to know them, we come to the same conclusion.  Our lot in life at the moment may be different, but we are all the same on some levels.  One for sure is our place as a beloved child of God.

Philip could have thrown his hands up in the air or he could have walked away, but he did not.  He simply said, “Come and see”.  Come and see the One who will save the world.  Come and see.  It is our invitation too.  Come and see what Jesus will do in our lives.  Come and see how He will forever change you and your life.  Come and see how Jesus changes our hearts and minds, making it easier to love the other.  Come and see how He changes our eyes, helping us to see the world as He sees the world.  Come and see!


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Honor, Glory

Reading: Romans 16: 25-27

Verse 27: “To the only wise God be the glory fever through Jesus Christ”.

We tend to go through life largely on cruise control.  Our daily routines are comfortable an established.  We are generally content with our lot in life and we live with a sense of joy and well-being.  Our jobs, our families our friends are satisfying.  Our place in God’s family feels good and we feel known by God and feel we know God.   Yes, there are trying moments and temporary frustrations, but for the most part, life is good.  It makes the Christmas season seem even better.

But once in a while, life takes a turn.  Then we find ourselves in uncomfortable or painful places.  An unexpected loss or a sudden change in life takes us for a loop.  Our routine, our joy, our contentment are disrupted.  We feel lost, insecure, alone.  Yet God remains present.  God is our constant.  We all know people dealing with loss or change.  It is important this time of the year to connect a little deeper, to be a little more aware, to remind them more often of your love and of God’s love for them.

Maybe this is you.  If so, know that God loves you and that your family and friends love you and want to be there for you.  If this is someone you know, remind them often.

Today’s passage from Paul is the closing reminder to the Roman church that God established them in the faith through the gospel or good news of Jesus Christ.  All Christians are established by this same good news.  Jesus Christ came and lived and died and was resurrected for us all, showing us how to live out God’s love here on earth and showing us the way to life eternal.  Hope and love all in one life.  This is our truth in Christ.  It is the path we joyfully and assuredly walk as children of the light.  May all we do bring honor to Him.  As Paul closes, so do I: “To the only wise God be the glory fever through Jesus Christ”.


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Invitation

Reading: Matthew 22: 1-14

Verse Nine: Go to the streets and invite to the banquet anyone you find.

Today’s parable is symbolic of God’s continuing invitation to all of humanity to come into the kingdom of God.  The original invitation began with God’s chosen people, but most rejected the invite – they did not see Jesus as the Messiah.  Still God invited them.  They abused and killed many who God sent to invite them – even killing the Son.  So God sent others out, saying, “Go to the streets and invite to the banquet anyone you find”.  In the Good News translation the Great Commission from Matthew 28 reads, “Go, then, to all peoples everywhere”, mirroring the invitation to all.  In God’s great patience, He will continue and continue to invite all into the kingdom.  Today, tomorrow, and on into the future God will continue to send out invitations to all who are lost.

The parable goes on to say that the good and the bad respond to the invitation, filling the banquet hall.  There are some who hear the invitation and come to see what it is all about.  Some come because a friend or family member received the invitation and they are going.  They come and they sit in the pew.  But they do not take the next step.  They do not become a part of the kingdom.  In the parable, the king comes to look over the guests.  He notices a man not wearing the right clothes.  The man did not fully accept the invitation.  He came to the banquet, but on his terms.  He remains stubbornly silent.  He is cast out into darkness.

This same idea occurs elsewhere in scripture.  In the parable of the sheep and the goats, for example, the goats are left wondering why they are cast out.  They knew who Jesus was and even did a few things He asked, but they did not choose to enter a saving personal relationship that changed their lives.  Today, many know who Jesus is, but they cling to their old self.  They appear to be at the banquet, but inside they are the ones in control, not Jesus.

To be a follower requires that we put off the old self and take on the new robe of righteousness.  We must not only accept the invitation, but we must allow it to reshaped us into the image of Christ.  We must die to self so that Christ can rule on the throne of our hearts.  Yet even then God continues to send us invitations.  He invites us to go out and live our lives as the salt and light the world so desperately needs.  He invites us to go out to the street corners and to invite everyone we see, helping them into the kingdom.  How will we do this today?


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Grabbed

Reading: Philippians 3: 4b-9

Verse Seven: Whatever was to my profit I now consider loss for the sake of Jesus Christ.

Saul had a really good life.  His religious life checked off all the boxes: circumcised as an infant, a member of the tribe of Benjamin, a Pharisee, great zeal for his religion, a faultless follower of the Law.  To Saul, he was as faithful to God as anyone.  From his perspective on top of the pedestal, he looked pretty good.

But then Saul met the risen Jesus on the road to Damascus.  He went through a powerful transformation experience.  The new Christian, Paul, writes, “Whatever was to my profit I now consider loss for the sake of Jesus Christ”.  All the titles, all the accolades, the view from the pedestal – they all are lost.  In the next verse Paul calls all these things “rubbish”.  For Paul, they are pale and worthless compared to the “surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord”.  What a change has been wrought in Paul!

At times, some look at faith as Saul did – a series of rules to follow or boxes to check.  Baptized as a baby, came back to church for a dose of confirmation, returned maybe for graduation or to get married.  For others it is a bit deeper – come most Sunday mornings for the hour, say a short grace before meals, help out at the yearly ham dinner.  On the surface, their religion feels okay, maybe even good.  It would appear the requisite boxes were being checked off.

When Saul met Jesus, his life radically changed.  It wasn’t about saying that memorized prayer three times a day and eating only the “right” foods any more.  It wasn’t about coming that one hour on Sunday morning.   To Paul, the boxes were rote, they were false.  He gave up all “that I may gain Christ and be found in Him”.  Paul found a righteousness that comes not from the Law or anything he could do, but a righteousness that comes “from God and is by faith”.  Jesus reached out and grabbed Paul.  Life was never the same.

Has Jesus grabbed you?  Is self and all else loss for the sake of Christ?


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A Wider Circle

Reading: Matthew 15: 10-28

Verse 27: Even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their master’s table.

A woman whose daughter is demon-possessed comes to Jesus seeking healing for her daughter.  She must have heard of the miracles that Jesus was performing and she comes seeking a miracle for her daughter.  But she does not fit into the mold.  She does not check off the boxes of belonging.  She is not of the chosen people.  She is a Gentile.  The man we know as love rejects her.  In our mind’s eye we see a Jesus who always leads with love and who welcomes everyone, even sinners.  Suddenly our vision is a bit blurry.

After ignoring her for a while, she becomes annoying and the disciples ask Jesus to send her away.  His response: “I was sent only to the lost sheep of Israel”.  But she does not give up.  She comes and kneels before Jesus, saying, “Lord, help me”!  It is a desperate mother’s cry for healing.  Surely Jesus will show her love and cast out the demon from her daughter.  Nope.  He tells her He will not take the children’s bread and give it to the “dogs”.  Not only ‘no’ but an insult to boot!

In the first half of the passage, we recall Jesus trying to correct the Pharisees for a law that was a barrier keeping people from God.  And now Jesus himself uses a ‘rule’ to keep a woman at a distance, certainly outside of God’s love.  It is a game we are good at too.  If you are not dressed right or if you don’t have membership or if you are of another culture or if…  We also easily erect barriers that keep people out or at least at bay.  In a similar way, we allow differences to become reasons for why we do not go out and engage the lost.  But she does not give up.  She is persistent.

“Even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their master’s table”.  She says, ok, you can try and reject me and you can insult me, but I still want your help.  It’s hard to say what affected Jesus more – her deep love for her daughter or the faith she had that He could heal her.  He heals her daughter.  And she leaves Jesus changed.  The human Jesus now loves more.  He sees a wider circle.  God’s love is for all people.  Today, may we too look beyond the barriers in our own hearts and may we begin to love a wider circle.


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Hear

Reading: Matthew 13: 36-43

Verse 41: The Son of Man will send out his angels, and they will weed out of his kingdom everything that causes sin and all who do evil.

After telling the parable of the weeds, Jesus next tells two more parables.  They are short and speak of how the kingdom of God will spread and grow and affect all it touches.  After these two parables Jesus withdraws to the house.  Here the disciples ask for an explanation of the parable of the weeds.  In private, Jesus unpacks the parable for the disciples.

When Jesus told the parable to the crowd, it followed the parable of the sower, where Jesus talks about what kind of soil we are.  In explaining this parable to the disciples, Jesus explains why He speaks in parables.  For those who understand, Jesus says more will be given.  He goes on to say that some who hear never understand and He laments that some have closed their eyes and hardened their hearts.  Jesus is using a prophecy from Isaiah to do all this.  Tied into the parable of the soils, this leads us to introspection: what kind of soil am I today?  What kind of soil do I want to be?  As we grow in our faith, we come to understand more and then more will be given.

In today’s passage, Jesus is giving more to the disciples.  He begins by explaining who the real characters are: the Son of Man, the evil one, humanity, and the angels.  The story isn’t about storing up the crop and getting rid of the weeds.  It is about the end of the age, when a resurrected Jesus will return.  There is a foreboding and ominous feeling to the explanation.  There is a stark contrast between the two outcomes.  When Jesus says, “The Son of Man will send out his angels, and they will weed out of his kingdom everything that causes sin and all who do evil”, there is a finality.  Instead of simply telling stories, Jesus has become very serious.  Again, Jesus is leading those who have ears to hear what He is saying.  He is leading those who hear to gain more understanding.

As we ourselves reflect on the interpretation of today’s passage, we must ponder: are we those weeping and gnashing teeth or are we those shining like the sun?  Do we take what Jesus has to say and allow it to change and challenge us?  Our passage ends with, “He who has ears, let him hear”.  May it be so with us today.


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Us?

Reading: Acts 7: 55-60

Verse 58: …and the witnesses laid their clothes at the feet of a young man named Saul.

Oddly enough, in the middle of our passage today, the author mentions that Saul is there.  That people laid their clothes at his feet would indicate that maybe Saul is “in charge” of the stoning of Stephen.  He may not cast a stone, but he is there to make sure the job is done right.  Saul is becoming the leading figure in the efforts to persecute and eliminate this fledgling church.  In Stephen we find one absolutely willing to die for his faith.  Saul is just as passionate and dedicated to upholding Mosaic Law as he and many others interpret it.  Just as much as Stephen loves Jesus, Saul hates Him.  It is quite a contrast, but it is a contrast we can relate to.  While we may never “hate” Jesus, at times our lives may look like we certainly don’t love Him.

As Saul’s story unfolds, his reputation for attacking the church and all followers of the Way grows to the point that the mere mention of his name brings shudders to all believers.  It is quite the shock to the young church when Saul suddenly becomes Paul just a couple of chapters later in Acts 9.  Many asked the question people may ask if us: him?  How could this man who killed and arrested so many Christians become one of Jesus’ greatest apostles and champions?  How could this man so filled with hate become so filled with love?  Jesus.

Once Jesus got ahold of Saul and changed him into Paul, he was fully dedicated to the good news.  This leads us to ask, what about me? Maybe we do not need the 180° change that Saul needed, maybe we do.  But let us ask, what about me?  What would Jesus like to change in me?  If Jesus could change Saul into such a way, imagine what He could do with us.  May it be so.


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Heaven Is Near

Reading: Matthew 4: 12-23

Isaiah declared “a light has dawned” in a prophecy he wrote hundreds of years before Jesus lived.  It has been read and looked for ever since.  Matthew proclaims the prophecy fulfilled in the person of Jesus Christ.  The light of Christ that began to shine about two thousand years ago continues to shine to this day and will shine forever.  The light of Christ dispels darkness, reveals our sins, and guides our way.  The light also brings warmth and love to our days and healing and hope to our hearts.

Jesus declared, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near”.  In the light there can be no darkness, so we must repent.  The kingdom is here, so we must repent , we must change our sinful ways, we must walk as a child of the light.

To repent can be difficult.  To repent can be hard.  To repent can be work.  When we choose to repent, we can be in for a long battle.  Part of repentance means looking deep within ourselves and truly seeing who we are.  Part is also learning to listen to the voice of the Holy Spirit that brings conviction when we are tempted and when we sin.  Part of repentance is being in the Word, so we fully understand what the call to be a Christian entails and expects of us.  We are blessed when we repent.  The blessings of repentance are a deepening relationship with Jesus Christ and a better version of ourselves.  When we repent and change our ways, we are being transformed and are becoming more like Christ.

Christ calls us to repentance, but He does not stop there.  His call is also an invitation to walk with Him.  He calls us to repent of our greed, our lust, our judging… and offers us peace, contentment, joy through our relationship with Him. The great healer will take our greed and replace it with generosity.  Our lust will be overcome with love of God and love of neighbor.  Jesus will transform our need to judge into a need to offer understanding, compassion, and justice.  It does not stop with these few things.  Jesus desires to transform all of us to be just like all of Him.

This day, may we search within and repent of all that is dark, seeking to walk fully in the light of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.


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Light

Reading: Isaiah 9: 2-7

“On those living in the land of darkness, a light has dawned”.  The light of the world reigns with righteousness and justice.  The good news of Jesus Christ is here.  In our world, where many live in darkness, this is very good news.  The light of Jesus both shows the way and also exposes the things done in the dark.

At times, life can be challenging, it can be hard.  This can be for a short season and often the holidays are a hard time.  For some it is because of loss – loss of a loved one, loss of a job, loss of a relationship.  For some it is the stress of the season – so much to do and buy, so little time and money, such high expectations.  Into these and into all situations, Jesus wants to shine the light that shows the way.  Jesus’ light reveals hope, grace, contentment.  Jesus wants to remove pain and burdens and to give us peace, rest, and joy this season.

Jesus’ light can also shine into our darkness.  In the light, the dark is cast aside.  Nothing can hide.  For some, this illuminating light banishes fears and doubts and brings reassurance and trust.  For some, the light illuminates our sins and makes us aware of our need for repentance and change.  Maybe we realize we are being greedy with our wish list or gluttonous with our spending.  Maybe we are being stingy with our time or withholding of our forgiveness.  The light shines into our darkness and calls us back to the path of following Jesus.

We all need the light.  The light leads to life lived in peace, joy, contentment.  The light reveals what truly matters in our world – love, fellowship, family, presence, time.  This Advent season, may we joyously live in the light, sharing the light of the world with all who cross our path this day.