pastorjohnb

Thoughts and musings on faith and our mighty God!

Tag Archives: Jesus


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Questions

The teacher of the law was given a great opportunity.  He was able to ask Jesus a question directly.  And Jesus answered him directly!  This is uncommon as Jesus usually responded with another question, with a parable, or with a story or illustration that indirectly answers the question.

Think for a moment if you were this teacher.  What other question would you ask – this one goes right to the heart of his profession.  If you were a doctor, for example, you might ask about the cure to a disease.

I think the question we would ask would depend on where we are in our faith journey or on what has been occurring recently in our life.  If there has been a tragic event or if we or a loved one are drawing close to the end of our time on earth, then the question will center on this.  Many of our questions in these cases center on the “why” question.

If one is in a ‘normal’ stage of life and all is relatively good in life, the questions would be different.  Maybe our question would center on the how and what type of questions.  But in all cases, I think our questions would center on wanting to understand something better.

So if you could ask anything of Jesus, what would it be?  It is important to wrestle with our questions because they lead to conversations with Jesus.  Our questions reveal a lot about our inner being, the state of our faith, the things that are unsettled within us, and the things we long for deeply.

While we usually do not get as direct of an answer as the teacher of the law received, our questions are great to consider anyway.  Ask Him your question!  Allow the ongoing conversation between you two to roll around in your heart and mind and to build your faith in and understanding of Jesus and who He calls you to be.

Scripture reference: Mark 12: 28-34


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Into a New Way

The Book of Hebrews seeks to connect the Jews living under the old covenant to the new covenant ushered in by Jesus Christ.  In today’s passage the author explains that the old way of animal sacrifices only cleans that outside of a person but that through the new sacrifice, through the blood of Jesus, we are cleansed on the inside.  We are reminded that we are cleansed so that we can serve the living God.

Throughout Hebrews is this idea of ‘living’.  We are exhorted to have a living faith that is guided by the Spirit and not bound by manmade rules and laws.  Living by the Spirit can feel dangerous and wide-open.  Living by religion can feel safe and known.  But too often ‘religion’ is typified by rigid practices, by entrenched traditions, and by requirements that feel a lot like laws.  Like sheep tightly confined to a pen, religion asks one to go through the motions, to check off the boxes.  Religion becomes little more that Sunday worship and an occassional prayer.

By contrast Hebrews call us out of our old ways of living by religion and into new way of living by faith.  Faith is guided by the Spirit.  The Spirit moves in unexpected and surprising and unknown ways.  For typically neat, in-the-box people, this is scary.  Religion with its known boundaries is safe.  Jesus did not call us to religion, but to faith.

When Jesus sais, “Come, follow me”, He did not say where or how or when.  He simply said, “Come.”  He knew that the Spirit would lead.  May we each step out, take ahold of the hand of the Holy Spirit, and see where Jesus takes us today.

Scripture reference: Hebrews 9: 11-14


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Where You Go

The famine passes in Judah and Naomi decides to return to her homeland.  She urges Orpah and Ruth to stay in Moab, to remarry, to start life over again.  It is certainly within the realm of possibilities – both are young enough to do so.  To go against Naomi’s wished and to instead move to a foreign land would be a risky and challenging move.  Naomi knows this as she herself made the same type of move just ten years ago.

Often we too are faced with a similar choice – to stay in the comfortable, know place or to step out into uneasiness and the unknown.  It is easy to stay comfortable.  Orpah chooses to stay with her people.  But Ruth decides that she will go.  Her love for Naomi makes her willing to be that stranger in a foreign land.

Where is your ‘foreign land’?  Is it taking the time to sit and have lunch with the homeless person who asked you for $5 for lunch?  Is it going to that part of town to replace the kitchen faucet for a single mother with lots of young children?  Is it going to the jail to visit and share the love of Christ with an inmate?

Ruth said to Naomi: “Where you go, I will go.”  Christ calls us to go to many places where His light is dim and His love is unknown.  But He always goes with us.  May we, like Ruth, say to Christ and live out those same words: Lord, where you go, I will go.

Scripture reference: Ruth 1: 6-18


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Our Great High Priest

Jesus is our great high priest, perfect in all ways, full of mercy and grace.  He is one who can sympathize with our human weakness yet is still perfect Himself.  Jesus is holy and blameless and pure – set apart from sinners in this, yet also interceding on our behalf.  What great love the Father has lavished on us through His Son!

Unlike human priests (and pastors) who sin and struggle with life, Jesus forever remains our great high priest.  Jesus will live and serve forever – at least until He returns!  In His role as the great high priest He gives us access to the Father.  He is the conduit through who we can begin to know God.  Jesus also intercedes on our behalf to bring about our salvation.  Lastly, in His time here on earth, Jesus gives us the example of what God’s love lived out looks like.

What does all of this mean for you and me in our daily lives?  It means we have a savior who we can go to and draw strength from at any time and for any need.  It means we have a friend who is on our side.  Even though He sits enthroned beside God almighty, He still intercedes before God on our behalf.  Through the strength He gives and through the intercession He provides, He makes our salvation possible.  On our own we would surely fail.  And Jesus provides us the perfect example of how to live.  Although we will never attain perfection, still we strive to love God and neighbor as Jesus loved them.  Oh perfecter of our faith, oh great high priest, lead us this day and every day!

Scripture reference: Hebrews 7: 23-28


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Call in Faith

In the New Testament we encounter people such as Bartimaeus – people who come to Jesus to find healing.  They do no come hoping He can heal them. They come knowing He can heal them.  There is a big difference.

In a lot of these cases, Jesus assures them that it is their faith that has made them well.  It is the difference between hoping and knowing.  He reassures them that it is their faith that has brought them to Him and their faith that has driven the healing.  Like the man by the pool, like the woman with the bleeding problem, like the centurion, Bartimaeus did what he needed to do to be close enough to Jesus to find healing.

Two thousand years later many people still long for Jesus’ touch and for healing from Him.  We cannot be physically touched by Jesus but in faith we call on His name and know that He will draw near.  In faith we ask Jesus for those things we need to find healing and wholeness.  When we experience His presence and healing, it is still for one of the reasons people in Jesus’ day did: to restore them to a full life or to begin them on their journey as a new creation in Christ.

When we pray to Jesus for healing or to restore a broken relationship or… , sometimes the healing in physical. sometimes it is emotional, sometimes it is spiritual, and sometimes it is a combination of these.  Whatever the case, in faith we call out and in faith we know that Jesus will draw near.  It is through His presence in our times of need that we grow in our faith, just like Bartimaeus did.  In faith, call on His name – shout it out if you have too – and lean into His arms.

Scripture reference: Mark 10: 46-52


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Come

“Son of David, have mercy on me!”  That was blind Bartimaeus’ call that day as Jesus was passing by.  We do not know if he was in his usual spot to beg or if Bartimaeus was there on purpose.  If so, we can assume he needed help getting there.  We can also assume that Bartimaeus knew that Jesus could heal him.  But first he must gain an audience with Jesus so he calls out as he senses Jesus drawing near.  When he is rebuked and told to be quiet, Bartimaeus shouts all the more.

At times we are in Bartimaeus’ position.  Maybe we are not physically blind but we maybe have a physical need or maybe we need a relationship healed or maybe we need a situation fixed.  Although Jesus is not physically present to us today, we often will cry out to Him.  And we can do so at any time because Jesus is always present to us!

Bartimaeus was bold in his request.  He made enough of a commotion to be heard and for Jesus to stop and call for him.  Then he told Jesus his desire: to see again.  Bartimaeus had enough faith in Jesus already to believe that He could restore his sight.  He was persistent enough to get Jesus’ attention.  Jesus probably knew all of this before He called for Bartimaeus.  After being healed, Bartimaeus joined in and followed Jesus down the road.  Jesus probably knew that this would happen too.

When we call out to Jesus, do we too expect that He will give us an audience?  Do we truly believe that He can do what we are asking?  Jesus will respond according to the will of the Father.  He is faithful and true.  He hears all of our prayers and callings.  We simple need to continue to do what He calls us to do: come.

Scripture reference: Mark 10: 46-52


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How Far?

Servant leadership is difficult.  It is pretty easy to serve, to go out and do for others.  There are lots of needs that can be met and many people who would appreciate a group of volunteers showing up to help them out.  If one is gifted with certain characteristics, then leadership can also be pretty easy.  As people rise into higher positions, we usually recognize these characteristics in the person.  Almost all leadership positions come with some level of power and authority.  Jesus warns against using this to lord one’s position over others.

Great leaders do not dominate but include others.  Great leaders do not dictate but they participate.  Great leaders have vision and drive and purpose and they spread this to those on their team.  Great leaders build up their team and keep it moving towards its goals and purposes.  If one is able to lead in this manner, power and authority tend to find them.  To be a servant as well can be difficult.

As servants we must sometimes do things we do not want to do.  As servant leaders we may have to lead others in doing these things.  Great servant leaders have a gift for bringing others along on these difficult journeys.  Jesus gave us many great examples of the leader serving and He calls us to do the same.  How far are we willing to go?  On the cross the Most High suffered and died for the lowly and sinful, for the sake of saving us.  How far will we go to save the least and the lost, the sinful and the broken?  Leaders go as far as needed.  May we go where He sends us.

Scripture reference: Mark 10: 42-45


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True Leadership

How often do we long for power and authority?  Not to be under it, but to have it.  How often do we think, “If only I were in charge…”?  How often do we think, “Man, I am glad I am not in charge of that …”?  At one time or another we all have these kinds of thoughts.  And the truth is that we sometimes crave power and at other times we are as happy as we can be when we have no responsibilities al all.

James and John ask Jesus if they could sit at His left and right in glory.  But alas, Jesus tells them that these spots are already spoken for.  The other ten, when they hear about this request, are naturally angry that James and John could even ask such a thing.  But in reality most of them probably fluctuated between thinking ‘how could they ask for such a thing’ and ‘why didn’t I think of that’.  Jesus gently redirects all of their focus (and ours): whoever wants to be great must become a servant, like a slave to all.  What a 180 degree swing!

True leadership in the Jesus model is exhibited by being in humble service to those in our lives.  It is making the choice to think of others before considering yourself.  It is at times denying self in order to be able to help another.  It is being willing to make a sacrifice in the name of the One who made the ultimate sacrifice.  Jesu asked James and John if they could drink the cup He was going to drink.  They said yes and they did, both giving their all and dying for Jesus, their King.  He asks us the same question.

Scripture reference: Mark 10: 35-45


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Through Prayer

Jesus went to God in prayer.  Sometime He went in “reverent submission”, seeking to align the will of His human mind and body with the will of God.  In the garden, as He faced torture and death on the cross, Jesus came before God with His human concerns but ultimately said, “Not my will but Yours.”  At other times Jesus prayed to reconnect to His Father.  In times up on the mountain or out in the wilderness, He drew near to God to be renewed and refreshed.  And some of the time Jesus prayed for others.  Even on the cross, Jesus interceded for those who were crucifying Him.

Our great high priest invites us to live a life of prayer that is obedient to the will of the Father, that connects to God, and that lifts up one another – even those who persecute us. For Jesus, prayer was always the first step.  It was never the last result.  At times we have this backwards.

Through prayer Jesus stayed connected to God and remained unblemished.  In this perfectly obedient state, Jesus went to the cross, bore our sins, and became the source of our eternal salvation.  We too connect to our God through prayer.  although we too come in all the ways Jesus came to the Father, we are no perfect.  We are blemished; we are sinners.  But because of Jesus, we also can come before God seeking to be washed clean, to be made new.  In those moments we are made new, unblemished and pure.  Jesus prayed often and set for us the example.  May we too take all to the Lord in prayer.

Scripture reference: Hebrews 5: 7-10


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Along with Christ

It is a holy and sacred privilege when we are able to minister to someone.  This can occur in the pastor’s office or in the front pew of the church.  It can happen at the break table at work or on the bleachers at the soccer game.  While it is true that the pastor receives a call from God to minister to the people, all Christians are commissioned by Christ to share the good news found in faith in Jesus Christ.

On the cover of our bulletin it lists Greg and I as ‘pastors’ and lists the congregation as ‘ministers’.  In some cases the situation at hand calls for one specifically trained for just such a time.  Yet in some cases it is one’s life experiences that qualify one to offer ministry to another in their time of need.  The pastor can offer care and empathy to one who has lost a spouse, for example.  But a fellow Christian who has walked through that can offer this and more.

In those times we feel led to come alongside one another and to offer love, support, encouragement, … we must also remember that we do not walk alone.  Jesus is also with us.  The incarnate Christ walked this earth and experienced life.  In those sacred moments when we are called to minister to one another, Christ walks beside us too.  His love, care, presence, and power flow through us and into the life of the one in need.  In faith may we respond to His call, offering the love and light of Jesus to one in need.

Scripture reference: Hebrews 5: 1-10