pastorjohnb

Thoughts and musings on faith and our mighty God!

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A Plan Unfolding

Reading: Luke 1:68-75

Luke 1:69-70 – “He [God] has raised up a mighty savior… just as he said through the mouths of his holy prophets long ago.”

By nature we are social beings. We were created by God to be in community. While each of us enjoys some solitude from time to time, we crave human interaction. A large part of this involves expressing ourselves, our thoughts, our emotions. The average person does this mainly through speaking about 10,000 words a day. Imagine being silent for a few days. For me that would soon begin to feel like a heavy weight. What would that feel like for you? Now, imagine being silent for nine months.

As we turn to Luke 1:68 today, Zechariah begins to speak for the first time in nine months. He had been struck mute by God about 840,000 words ago. Zechariah did not believe the angel Gabriel when he told the old priest that was having a son. The angel told him that his son would “bring many Israelites back to the Lord.” What news to share! But he cannot. After all of this silence, what are Zechariah’s first words?

Zechariah first announces that the words of the prophets from long ago have been fulfilled. A Savior has been born! The priest turned prophet tells the people that God has remembered the covenant and will rescue Israel “from the power of our enemies.” Recalling the times in exile and in the wilderness, those enemies were mostly within – selfishness, greed, idolatry. As we continue tomorrow, Zechariah will next speak of the role that his son, John the baptizer, will play in God’s unfolding plan. The unfolding plan continues today. You and I are a part of that plan.

Prayer: Lord God, thank you for remembering your covenant and setting in motion the redemption of all of creation. Thank you for sending the one filled with the spirit of Elijah to prepare hearts to receive your son, the Savior. Lord, fill us with the Spirit’s power, using us today to call people to change hearts and lives. Use us to call people to the Savior, Jesus Christ. Amen.


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True Life

Reading: Mark 7-8

Mark 8:34 – “All who want to come after me must say no to themselves, take up their cross, and follow me.”

Chapter 7 begins with tension between God’s Law and man-made rules. The religious question the disciples eating with “unclean hands.” Jesus’ response begins with a quote from Isaiah. The religious honor God with their lips but their hearts are far away. A man-made rule that trumps God’s Law is given as an example. How often do we do this, both formally and informally, not to mention in the secret places of our hearts?

Jesus teaches that it is what comes out of the heart that makes a person unclean. When we allow evils into our hearts – sexual sins, greed, deceit, envy, arrogance – that is what contaminates us in God’s sight.

Jesus then heals two people from outside the Jewish circle. In the first healing he tells the immigrant woman that the children (the Jews) must be fed first. The “dogs” must wait. She replies that even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from the table. Her “good answer” leads to healing for her daughter. Jesus then heals a blind and mute man. People are overcome with wonder.

Chapter 8 begins with another mass feeding. Led by compassion, Jesus feeds the 4,000+ that have been with him for three days. After feeding this Gentile crowd (so much for feeding the children first), Jesus warns the disciples about the “yeast” of the Pharisees and of Herod. They don’t get it. Jesus laments their lack of understanding.

After healing a blind man, Jesus asks the disciples who people think he is. Most think Jesus is a prophet. He asks them what they think. Peter says, “You are the Christ.” Jesus then foretells his suffering, death, and resurrection. Peter begins to “correct” Jesus. This is not the right ending to this story. Sternly Jesus says, “Get behind me, Satan.” Calling the crowd, Jesus declares, “All who want to come after me must say no to themselves, take up their cross, and follow me.” It’s about humble servant leadership, not physical or political might. It’s about finding true life in Christ. It’s not about gaining the whole world.

Prayer: Lord God, what a beautiful life you call us to! Laying aside self, being servant to all, bringing love and healing to our world, we find the life that brings you glory. Help and guide us daily to say no to self, to pick up our cross, and to follow you faithfully. Amen.


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Undeserved? YES!

Reading: Matthew 20: 1-16

Verse 1: “The kingdom of God is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire men to work in his vineyard”.

Today’s parable in Matthew is the second in a row where Jesus teaches about God’s upside-down kingdom. If we were the workers who were hired early in the morning, we too would be upset when we received the same pay as those who worked only one hour. Like these workers, it would not matter a whole lot to us that we agreed to our pay before we even started working or that it was a fair days wage. Similarly, those who worked nine hours would be pretty upset, those who worked six hours would be kind of upset… On the surface level we struggle with this story just as we can sometimes struggle with the story of the thief on the cross found in Luke 23.

Jesus’ actual behavior also reflects this upside-down feel. He did not spend most of his time in the temple. He did not recruit his followers from elite rabbi schools. Jesus himself was not even trained as a professional rabbi. The religious leaders were much like the full day workers in our parable. They cringed and recoiled when Jesus forgave the sins of adulterous women and greedy tax collectors and the lame and deaf and mute – those obviously carrying the lifelong burden of some unrepentant sin. Like the thief on the cross and the workers who only came at the last hour, people like these do not deserve such easy grace, such free flowing forgiveness.

Do we sometimes cringe and recoil at who God continues to invite into the kingdom of God? Do we ever walk into church on a Sunday morning and wonder, Who let them in? If so, we need to check the inner religious snob hiding inside of us too.

I do not know about you, but I am glad that God is the God of late in life professions of faith and death bed confessions of Jesus as Lord. That expression of generous and unconditional grace is the same exact grace that forgives my struggle with pride for the zillionth time. Yes, yes, we rejoice at that grace. Whether one comes at the first hour or at the last hour, may all hear about and come to experience that same extravagant and wonderful grace.

Prayer: Loving and generous God, it is so wonderful to live within your abundant and generous grace. Even though I may not deserve to experience it over and over, you continue to pour it over me time and time again. Thank you for your love of a sinner like me. Amen.


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New Life Blooms

Reading: Isaiah 35: 1-10

Verse 10: “Gladness and joy will overtake them, and sorrow and sighing will flee away”.

In my Bible today’s chapter is titled “Joy of the Redeemed”. The first two lines speaks of redeeming creation – new life blooms in the desert. The next two lines speak of redeeming God’s people. God will strengthen the feeble and the fearful. Both of these stanzas are about God’s desire and efforts to bring new life and wholeness to all of creation. For a nation laid waste and a people feeling that all was lost, these words would be full of meaning.

In verse five and the first part of six, Isaiah gets more personal with those most in need of healing and wholeness. These infirmities would keep these folks outside of true community, so their isolation would feel even greater and their vulnerability would be increased. Isaiah tells them that the blind, the deaf, the lame, and the mute will also be restored. These physical healings will lead to emotional and spiritual restoration too. Even today this is the order we most often experience. Physical needs must be met first. It is true in our schools, in our churches, in our shelters…

Isaiah continues in verse six and into seven with the physical restoration of the created world. But like the crocus blooming in the desert, these words can be read figuratively as well. Water represents new life in the faith of the people. The spring is their renewed faith bubbling up. In the haunts where evil once lay, new growth will come. Into a dry and weary people God will bring forth new life and hope.

These words of hope and promise still apply to God’s people, to our lives and our times as well. In those seasons where grief or trial or testing make our faith and life feel dry, when we are weary of the hard road we’ve been trudging, we too can recall that God still reigns, that God still desires good for us, that our redeemer lives. With God’s presence and surrounded by our faith communities, we can step forward and walk where only the redeemed and restored walk. We walk forward, uplifted on our earthly journey, one eye on our imperishable inheritance. With gladness and joy overtaking us, with sorrow and sighing falling away, we bear witness to our faith in this life and in the new life to come. We know the joy of the redeemed. May we walk in it all of our lives.

Prayer: Lord God, it is good to remember my place in your family. You have claimed me since before I was born. I confess Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior. I know your joy. I live in your strength. I eagerly await the crown of life. You are my God. I am so thankful. Amen.


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The Healing or the Healer?

Reading: Mark 7: 31-37

Verse 36: “Jesus commanded them not to tell anyone. But the more He did so, the more they kept talking about it”.

In today’s passage, Jesus returns to Galilee and performs another miracle. He heals a man who was deaf and mute. He does so away from the crowds. Jesus instructs, no, commands, the man and his friends “not to tell anyone”. Apparently the initial command is not followed as the verse goes on to say, “the more He did so, the more they kept talking about it”. It seems that they cannot keep quiet about what Jesus did. I wonder how long this lasted.

For the man and his friends, the encounter with Jesus is all about the healing and not about the healer. As such, they miss the opportunity to really connect with Jesus. Many today are like this. They want the healing and not the healer. Folks pray to or even beg Jesus to heal their parent or their child or their friend or themselves. But they do not desire to have a daily relationship with Jesus. It is almost as if Jesus were a drive through window. Hello – here for a quick healing. No time to come inside to sit down and to spend some time together.

It is curious to me that the friends say, “He has done everything well”. They recognize that Jesus has some power, even extraordinary power. But not extraordinary enough to lead them to follow the healer, to believe in the healer. Lots of folks todsy are in this boat too. In a way, even some Christians struggle with true belief today. We pray to Jesus thinking He could do what we are praying for but not fully believing that He will.

To want the healing and not the healer? To be a believer and to pray with some doubt? It reminds me that we are all falling short. Some have begun our walk with Jesus. Others have not yet begun. Today, may we all get one step closer to Jesus, the healer.

Lord, may I come closer today. May my faith grow deeper and more assured. In this process, may I help another to begin a relationship with you today. May it be so today. Amen.


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One Word

“Ephphata!” – be opened.  With a touch and this one word, Jesus restored a man.  The man brought by his friends was both deaf and mute.  One word from Jesus later and he was healed.  With one word his life was forever altered.

I cannot imagine what it would be like to be blind.  It would be very different as I rely so much on what I see.  From reading to observing people to writing to playing music – I am dependant upon my sight.  To not have the ability to talk and sing and shout would be very difficult as well.

Up to this point the man has been dependent on friends and family.  A job would be impossible so he would beg or impose.  To the Jews, he was ceremonially unclean so he could not enter the temple to worship.  Other than those closest to him, many in society would have shunned him or ignored him at best.

Some people in my world need restored and healed.  They need to be connected to a community to care for and guide them.  They need healing and restoring from a wide variety of things.  For some it is addiction, for others a significant loss.  For some it is broken relationships, for others it is a string of poor decisions.  The list goes on.  We all know people who need much.  All need healed and restored.

Friends brought the man to Jesus.  With a word Jesus restored and healed the man.  Faith grew that day – for the man, for his friends and family, and for all who heard the story.  We all know people who need healing and restoration.  May we all be a part of bringing people closer to Jesus so they can hear Him speak the one word they need to hear: “Come.”  Share Jesus so that the restoration and healing can begin.

Mark 7: 31-37