Daily Archives: April 2, 2013

Stay With It

Christian Life, , ,

STAY WITH IT

“‘You’ll even be turned in by parents, brothers, relatives, friends. Some of you will be killed. There’s no telling who will hate you because of me. Even so, every detail of your body and soul — even the hairs of your head! — is in my care; nothing of you will be lost. Staying with it — that’s what is required. Stay with it to the end. You won’t be sorry, you’ll be saved.'” Luke 21:16-19 (The Message).

How terrible is that, that a parent will betray a child and siblings each other for the sake of an ideology that has no foundation in truth! Such is the power of deception that it even overrides family loyalties.

There are countless stories of these kinds of betrayals from the Communist era, for example, that ripped family and friends apart. There are devotees of other religions today that are equally ruthless in the name of their god and teach that anyone who is not one of them must be destroyed.

But, unlike the gods who ‘require’ this kind of behaviour to protect them, Jesus assured His followers that He was in charge and would protect them, even down to the hairs on their head! Herein lies the difference between lies and truth. If a god cannot take care of him and demands that his followers go on the rampage and riot and murder to guard his name, does he sound like the sort of god that attracts both trust and security?

What if you did something to annoy him? If he requires you to kill even your own family for him, what guarantee do you have that he won’t take you out for some infringement? How much security is there is a god who is capricious and unpredictable?

Once again, Jesus was utterly truthful. He faithfully warned His followers that there was trouble ahead for them if they remained loyal to Him. He gave no guarantee of physical safety if they followed Him but He did assure them that no part of them would be eternally lost. How many times have we already seen that He always viewed life from the perspective of eternity? Life did not end at the grave. It was only a part of the whole, a preparation for what lay ahead beyond death.

Persecution would not destroy them, however tough it was, but it would weed out those who were only in it for what they could get out of it. It would be part of a refining process by which faith in Him would be stripped of props and false expectations and would be anchored in His trustworthiness alone.

Jesus wanted His followers to trust Him so completely, in His character and His promises, that they would stake their very lives on what He had said. And they did! History reveals the story of many thousands during the first three centuries of the church who gave their lives rather than denies Jesus, and they did it joyfully because they believed His promises.

People foolishly follow the words of someone who claimed to speak for their god with no proof of their authenticity. Jesus Himself spoke these words, “‘I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies, and whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?'” John 11:25-26 (NIV).

Once again we are left with a choice — to believe and follow the teachings of a god who never speaks for himself and who offers no infallible proof or his existence and has to rely on fallible humans to speak for him, or to believe in the one who said He would die and rise again and did it, not for Himself but for us, so that we can entrust ourselves to His proven trustworthiness.

Show Us Your Credentials

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SHOW US YOUR CREDENTIALS

“One day He was teaching the people in the Temple, proclaiming the Message. The high priests, religion scholars and leaders confronted Him and demanded, ‘Show us your credentials. Who authorised you to speak and act like this?’

“Jesus answered, ‘First let me ask you a question. About the baptism of John — who authorised it, heaven or humans?’

“They were on the spot, and knew it. They pulled back into a huddle and whispered, ‘If we say ‘heaven’, He’ll ask us why we didn’t believe Him; if we say ‘humans’, the people will tear us limb from limb, convinced as they are that John was God’s prophet.’ They agreed to concede that round to Jesus and said they didn’t know.

“Jesus said, ‘Then neither will I answer your question.'” Luke 20:1-8 (The Message).

Jesus was smart. He knew that the religious leaders had no interest in the answer to their question other than to use it against Him. They were building their case against Him and the answer to this question was an important weapon in their arsenal.

Jesus was a rabbi with authority, which meant that He had the right to determine how He would interpret the Torah and how He would apply His interpretation in His own life and teaching. This was called His ‘yoke’ and was binding upon His disciples as well; they were obligated to wear His yoke and to ‘bind’ in on their followers, loosing them from the yoke of any other rabbi. Any deviation or addition meant that they were automatically disqualified from being His disciples.

Since Jesus had the supreme authorisation of His Father and the anointing of the Holy Spirit, (“When all the people were being baptised, Jesus was baptised too. And as He was praying, the heaven was opened and the Holy Spirit descended on Him in bodily form like a dove. And a voice came from heaven, you are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased.'” Luke 3:21, 22. NIV), His yoke carried more authority than the yoke of any other rabbi.

The religious leaders were following the yoke of the chief rabbis of their day, which was in conflict with Jesus’ yoke. They strictly and rigidly stuck to the Law of God, and the many additions made by their religious authorities through the years, which distorted the character of God until He was unrecognisable as the God of their fathers. The God who had revealed Himself to Moses as “gracious, compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love and faithfulness, forgiving sin…” Exodus 34:6, was buried under a terrible weight of do’s and don’ts which effectively made the people slaves of religion.

Jesus came to reveal the true nature of the Father and to set His people free from the terrible yoke of legalism. No wonder He earnestly extended His invitation to His harassed people, “‘Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.'” Matthew 11:28-30 (NIV).

Since Jesus came to reveal the heart of a loving and compassionate Father, it was inevitable that He would clash with the religious leaders because they held the power over the people and would not easily relinquish it to the likes of Jesus who continually humiliated them by the way He applied His yoke of mercy and compassion to suffering people. Like all false religions, they ruled the people by the fear of punishment and hated the exposure of their own wicked hearts.

Jesus was always one step ahead. Instead of answering their question as they wanted Him to, which would have been, for them, an admission of blasphemy, He asked them a question, ‘Who gave John his authority?’ Their response would incriminate them, one way or the other. To admit that John was a prophet of God would expose their guilt because they refused to acknowledge or believe him, and he had come to introduce Jesus as Messiah! To deny his heavenly calling would be to admit their guilt and risk the loss of their power over the people.

The very fact that Jesus lived and acted in harmony with God’s revelation of Himself in the Torah was proof enough that His credentials were impeccable – He was the living embodiment of the Father and the religious leaders could not fault Him. In fact, they had no answer to His challenge, ‘Who of you convinces me of sin?’

They had trapped themselves and they had to concede defeat.

Jesus, the Eternal Word

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JESUS, THE ETERNAL WORD

“He told them a story. ‘Look at a fig tree. Any tree for that matter. When the leaves begin to show, one look tells you that summer is right around the corner. The same here — when you see these things happen, you know God’s kingdom is about here. Don’t brush this off. I’m not just saying this for some future generation, but for this one too –these things will happen. Sky and earth will wear out; my words won’t wear out.'” Luke 21:29-33 (The Message).

“Words! Words!” sang Professor Higgins in the musical version of George Bernard Shaw’s “Pygmalion”. We live in an era in which words are saturating the airwaves around the globe. People are constantly posting more and more words on the web, all claiming knowledge and clamouring for attention and belief. Whose words are the truth and whose words are we to believe?

There is something different about the words of Jesus. Is there another person on earth whose words have had the power to bring hope, give encouragement and change lives like Jesus’ words have done through 2000 years? There is something so compelling about His words that people all over the world and in every generation are drawn to believe and respond.

What is it that makes His words different from the words of any other authority? No one else has made the claims that Jesus makes about His words.

1. He knows what He is talking about because he came from the other side. “‘I tell you the truth, we speak of what we know and testify to what we have seen…No one has ever gone into heaven except the one who came from heaven — the Son of Man ‘” John 3:11, 13 (NIV).

2. He does not speak His own words or on His own authority. “The Jews were amazed.’ How did this man get such learning without having studied?’ Jesus answered. ‘My teaching is not my own. It comes from His who sent me.'” John 7:15-16 (NIV).

3. He speaks more than mere words. His words are life-giving. “‘The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing. The words I have spoken to you are spirit and they are life. Yet there are some of you who do not believe.'” John 7:63-64a (NIV).

4. He teaches us the truth and the knowledge of the truth sets us free. “To the Jews who believed Him Jesus said, ‘If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth and the truth will set you free.'” John 8:31-32 (NIV).

5. His words will be our judge when He returns. “‘As for the person who hears my words but does not keep them, I do not judge him…There is a judge for the one who rejects me and does not accept my word; that very word which I spoke will condemn him at the last day.'” John 12:47a, 48 (NIV).

What did Jesus say that no one else has ever said? “‘I tell you the truth, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has crossed over from death to life.'” John 5:24 (NIV)

“‘My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish. No one can snatch them out of my hand.'” John 10:27 (NIV).

“Jesus said to her, ‘I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies, and whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?'” John 11:25-26 (NIV).

All other great religious teachers have told their followers what to do but never called them to become one with them. Jesus not only spoke God’s word. He is God’s Word, the living embodiment of everything God has spoken so that those who believe in Him will know that He alone is the truth. He is His word and He is eternal. Therefore His words will never pass away and nor will those who believe Him.

Jesus Takes Centre Stage

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JESUS TAKES CENTRE STAGE

“After saying these things, Jesus headed straight up to Jerusalem. When He got near Bethphage and Bethany at the mount called Olives, He sent off two of His disciples with instructions, ‘Go to the village across from you…you’ll find a colt tethered…untie it and bring it…’

“The two left and found it just as He said…They brought the colt to Jesus. Then, throwing their coats on its back, they helped Jesus get on. As He rode, the people gave Him a grand welcome, throwing their coats on the street.

“Right at the crest, where Mount Olives begins its descent, the whole crowd of disciples burst into enthusiastic praise over all the mighty works they had witnessed.

‘Blessed is He who comes,
the king in God’s name!
All’s well in heaven!
Glory in the high places!’

“Some Pharisees from the crowd told Him, ‘Teacher, get your disciples under control!’

“But He said, ‘If they kept quiet, the stones would do it for them, shouting praise.'” Luke 19:26-40 (The Message).

This event, which is called Palm Sunday on the Christian calendar, was both highly significant and highly provocative in the life of Jesus, and at this particular time in the Jewish year.

It was the eve of Passover. People were gathering in the city for the feast from all over the country. It was a time of religious fervour and political ferment. The Roman authorities were on high alert for any signs of trouble. Messianic expectation was reaching flash point and all eyes were on this rabbi who was saying and doing outrageous things.

The religious authorities were well aware of how volatile the situation was and were keeping a sharp eye out for any signs of uprising from Jesus and His followers. They knew that the only solution was to eliminate Him to bring things back under control before Rome stepped in and set off a blood bath, but they could do nothing at Passover because there were too many Jesus-supporters in the mob.

Then, into this tinder box situation, Jesus calmly entered on the back of a donkey! This was what they feared the most because it was public announcement that He was making a bid for kingship! They desperately implored Him to shut down the exuberant praise that was being stirred up in the mob, but Jesus laughed them off and they were even more enraged and determined to silence Him.

What was the significance of this provocative act? First of all, it was yet another fulfilment of an ancient prophecy, “Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout, Daughter of Jerusalem! See, your king comes to you, righteous and having salvation, gentle and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.” Zechariah 9:9 (NIV), a Messianic fingerprint that would confirm the claim of Jesus that He was the king of the Jews.

Secondly, Jesus was claiming a kingship that was in no way intended to challenge their Roman overlords, but they did not understand that. They waited with baited breath to see what He would do when He entered Jerusalem. Would He head for the governor’s palace to throw down the gauntlet? They did not understand His hot tears over the city. Instead of heading for the governor’s residence, He turned towards the temple.

The meaning of this prophetic action went right over their heads. They did not understand that Jesus was claiming the right to rule over the lives and destiny of His people that went far deeper than political authority. He was representing a kingdom that overrode every other kingdom, the kingdom of God. In a few days, He would authenticate that right by giving His life to remove the barrier of sin that stood in the way of access into that kingdom, and that would give anyone who believed in Him the right to approach the Father.

Jesus was no threat to Rome. Rome was only a pawn in the hands of a far more sinister domain, the domain of Satan, the god of this world. “And having disarmed the powers and authorities, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross.” Colossians 2:15 (NIV).

But this action was imperative for Jesus because it was also the final nail in His own coffin. Like it or not, the religious leaders were forced to take action, spurred on by the offer of the treacherous Judas, because Jesus had to die as God’s sacrificial Lamb at the precise moment when the Passover lambs were being slaughtered!

Have You Acted the Fool?

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HAVE YOU ACTED THE FOOL?

“When He had their attention and because they were getting close to Jerusalem by this time and expectation was building that God’s kingdom would appear any minute, He told this story:

“There was once a man descended from a royal house who needed to make a long trip back to headquarters to get authorisation for his rule and then return. But first he called ten servants, gave them each a sum of money, and instructed them, ‘Operate with this until I return…’

“When he came back…he called those ten servants…to find out how they had done.

“The first said, ‘Master, I doubled your money.’

“He said, ‘Good servant! …I’m making you governor of ten towns.’

“The second said, ‘Master, I made fifty per cent profit on your money.’

“He said, ‘I’m putting you in charge of five towns.’

“The next servant said, ‘Master, here’s your money safe and sound. I kept it hidden in the cellar. To tell you the truth, I was a little afraid. I know you have high standards and hate sloppiness, and don’t suffer fools gladly.’

“He said, ‘You’re right that I don’t suffer fools gladly — you’ve acted the fool! Why didn’t you at least invest the money so I would have gotten a little interest on it?’

“Then he said to those standing there, ‘Take the money from him and give it to the servant who doubled my stake.’

“They said, ‘But Master, he already has double.’

He said, ‘That’s what I mean. Risk your life and get more than you ever dreamed of. Play it safe and you end up holding the bag…’ Luke 19:11-27 (The Message).

Another kingdom story that turns what we value on its head and exposes some of the faulty thinking of the church!

Jesus told a number of stories about noblemen or landowners who entrusted their property to servants before going away for a period of time and then returning. To His disciples He spoke plainly of His return to the Father for an interval before He came back to claim His kingdom and restore all things to their original perfection.

This same idea is reflected in the Hebrew marriage custom where the bridegroom-to-be, after proposing to his prospective bride, returns to his father’s house to build his bridal chamber in preparation for the consummation of his marriage. After his father has approved his work, he is released to marry his bride and carry her over the threshold into the bridal chamber to become one with her.

What is the significance of the interval before His return? In this story, Jesus focussed on the responsibility of the servants to carry out the Master’s instructions while He was away. To every believer He assigns a task in keeping with his gifting and role in God’s kingdom.

His commission to every believer is to know Him and to make Him known wherever He has placed us in the world. He has woven into every person unique abilities in seed form. Like the sums of money given to the servants in our story, we can either multiply or bury what we have been given, but we will not escape accountability. We are not only given gifts, but we have also been given time…time to use those gifts to make His name known in our world.

Unfortunately there has crept into the church’s thinking an escapist mentality — the world is bad so let’s just hole up and hold on until Jesus comes to get us out of here. This mind set is in keeping with the general attitude of the world — we do not take responsibility for what we think, believe and do. We are merely the victims of other people’s actions or our circumstances. We are part of the ‘White Knuckle Club” that cowers in the corner and waits to be rescued!

This is so contrary to Jesus’ intention for His church. His idea is that we are serving our apprenticeship in the interval until He returns. What we do with the resources He has entrusted to us will determine how much responsibility He is able to give to us in the life to come.

So what is our job in this life? To develop our unique gifts so that we may know Him and make Him known. “Now this is eternal life that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent.” John 17:3 (NIV). “He said to them, ‘Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation.'” Mark16:15 (NIV). This involves making all sorts of sacrifices; time, money, name, reputation, comfort, ambitions, family, or whatever else it may cost to obey the Master.

As always, Jesus takes the long look, taking into account the eternal rewards for present suffering. Is the sacrifice worth it? It all depends on where your focus is — you can rationalise and take your ease now, like the third servant in the story, but there is a terrifying price to pay for this kind of faulty thinking. The servant blamed the Master for his laziness but his reasoning didn’t stick.

So, what’s the bottom line? Jesus didn’t intend for us to spend the time in between desperately hanging on, waiting for Him to pull us out of a bad situation. He left us here with a commission to live out our lives where He has put us, in the energy of His Holy Spirit, and to do whatever we can, through our unique abilities, to show the world what what He is like. When He comes, will He find the resources He has entrusted to us much more than we started with, and will He, with confidence, be able to entrust greater responsibilities to us according to our faithfulness in the small things?