Daily Archives: June 18, 2015

Muzzled!

Christian Life, , , ,

MUZZLED!

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. (Mark 3:9-12).

Don’t you love Mark’s matter-of-fact way of telling the story? No frills; no fancy language; no flowery descriptions; just plain facts as it happened!

Jesus’ popularity had reached an all-time high. People flooded into the neighbourhood from far and wide. Mark says nothing about the practical implications of an influx of people into a small town. Where did they stay? Where did they get food? What about crowd control? His focus was on Jesus. He was the centre of the attention. How would He handle this hero-worshipping mob, all clamouring for a piece of the pie?

Their focus was on what He could do for them at that moment. Many were diseased; deformed, disabled, helplessly caught in the trap of infirmities for which there was no solution. They had to bear as best they could the terrible consequences of living in a fallen world. There was no skilled surgeon to fix what was broken or to treat what had gone wrong, no highly trained nurse who knew just what to do with a patient with a high fever, or a headache, no drugs to destroy the unseen organisms that silently invaded vulnerable bodies and wreaked havoc on the inside.

Jesus was the man of the moment. The only problem was that He stayed only for a little while and then went elsewhere. It was not easy to follow Him with sick and cripples people in tow. They had to grab the opportunity while they could before He was gone.

But He did not come on a healing campaign, urgent and necessary as that was. His purpose was to restore God’s image in the minds of His people. For too long they had been ruled by unscrupulous leaders who projected an image of a God who was not anything like His Father. He had to let them know that the God who had called Abraham into fellowship with Himself and, through him, built a nation which was to be His “bride”, living in such close union with Himself that they would resemble Him and reflect Him to a world that did not know Him.

They had long since lost the plot. The god they now tried hard to serve was harsh and demanding, laying heavy burdens of rules and rigmarole on them that they could not carry. Jesus had an urgent task – to undo the damage that ignorance had done and to re-introduce them to the real God whom they had lost in the blur of religious performance.

There was one group in the crowd who knew who He was. The people may have seen Him only as a magical healer who had popped up from nowhere, but who could do what no one else had ever done – fix their problems and release them from suffering. This group was unseen, an unlikely witness to His true identity. Who were they? Not some religious mystics who spent hours in the presence of God and had spiritual insights denied the common people. Of all things, they were beings from the enemy camp. Demons! Spirit beings who hate Him and who worked for the devil.

How did they know who Jesus was when God’s people had no clue? They could not but be familiar with who He was since they had been at war with Him from the beginning. As much as they hated to admit it, He not the devil, was master over them and, though they did not serve Him, they were under His authority and would one day pay for their rebellion. Now, much to their chagrin, He had turned up in their domain, the earth, to challenge their mastery over humans and to evict them from their malicious control over individuals who had inadvertently given in to their evil influence.

Jesus refused to tolerate their testimony. They were not bearing witness to His saving grace. Their words were almost a taunt – like the words of the devil in the wilderness. “If you are the Son of God, prove it.” People would have to come to their own conclusions and to faith in Him, not based on words from the mouths of the demon-possessed but from those who had become convinced that He was, indeed, the Son of God through His words and actions.

There was only one treatment for them – “Shut up and get out!” They were there under false pretences and with a word from Him whether they liked it or not, they had to obey As much as His message of the kingdom was great news, even greater was the demonstration of His authority. If they only realised it, He really was God since His most powerful enemy, the devil and his minions had to give way to Him.

Scripture taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Have you read my new book, Learning to be a Son – The Way to the Father’s Heart (copyright 2015, Partridge Publishing)? You’ll love it!

Available on www.amazon.com in paperback, e-book or kindle version or order directly from the publisher at www.partridgepublishing.com.

Check out my Blog site – www.learningtobeason.wordpress.com

 

 

 

 

Popularity

Christian Life, , , , ,

 

POPULARITY

Then the Pharisees went out and began to plot with the Herodians how they might kill Jesus.

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. (Mark 3: 6-8).

O-oh Jesus! So early in your ministry and you are already ruffling feathers!

Never had a rabbi caused such a stir in Israel. Look at the area His fame had already covered. People streamed to hear Him from as far afield as Tyre and Sidon – and that without Google or Facebook! Who needed the mass media when word of mouth worked just as well?

Why were the religious leaders already plotting murder? What had He done to them? They functioned on their man-made rules because it suited them. As long as they got their behaviour streamlined according to their human mentors, what went on in their hearts was of no consequence. Jesus challenged their heart and conscience.

They attacked Him for healing a man with a paralysed hand on the Sabbath. To them that was “work” and He had therefore violated the Sabbath. He responded by exposing their hearts. They had no compassion for the man and his suffering. They were only concerned about preserving the façade of their “righteousness”, whatever that meant. They had both misunderstood and misrepresented Torah, God’s instructions on the best way to live.

They believed that, as long as they performed according to the letter of the Law, and the many interpretation of the rabbis down the centuries, they had earned God’s favour, no matter how impure their hearts and motives were. The additions made by the sages, as far as they were concerned, carried as much weight as the Word of God itself. Not to obey them to the letter was culpable.

Jesus was not only a threat to their authority, He was also a threat to them because He pulled the covers off their evil hearts. Their concern was not so much for the honour of God as it was for their own honour in the eyes of the people. Every time Jesus showed them up, they lost the respect and obedience of the people. They were losing control and they didn’t like it. Control! That was the issue. They were the authority. They were the learned ones. The people were ignorant. They were the ones who knew and interpreted the Law and the people were to obey them. They could manipulate them through their religion.

Now Jesus comes along and undermines their authority by showing up their hearts. They were not interested in the truth or what was right. Only who was right mattered and they believed that they were right. The only solution for them was to eliminate the opposition. The seeds of murder were already in their hearts and Jesus watered them by His insistence on the truth.

What was Jesus’ take on the Law? He made it clear that His purpose for coming was not to do away with Torah but to show them how to live it out so that God’s heart of mercy would be revealed in the everyday application of the Law. In this instance, the issue was the Sabbath. When confronted with an opportunity to show mercy, what was one to do? The Torah said, “Don’t do any work.” What constituted work? The Pharisees insisted that healing a man on the Sabbath was “work”. Jesus countered their interpretation by overriding their laws with mercy. Showing mercy was not work.

Of course, the proof was in the action. Just as Jesus proved, on another occasion that He could forgive sins by healing a paralysed man, so now He proved that He was Lord of the Sabbath by healing this man on the Sabbath.

Imagine how frustrated these Pharisees and religious leaders must have been because they could not fight against His miracles! What proof did they have that they were right? None. They had only one alternative. Get rid of Him before they lost control altogether.

Scripture taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Have you read my new book, Learning to be a Son – The Way to the Father’s Heart (copyright 2015, Partridge Publishing)? You’ll love it!

Available on www.amazon.com in paperback, e-book or kindle version or order directly from the publisher at www.partridgepublishing.com.

Check out my Blog site – www.learningtobeason.wordpress.com

 

 

 

LARITY Then the Pharisees went out and began to plot with the Herodians how they might kill Jesus. 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. (Mark 3: 6-8). O-oh Jesus! So early in your ministry and you are already ruffling feathers! Never had a rabbi caused such a stir in Israel. Look at the area His fame had already covered. People streamed to hear Him from as far afield as Tyre and Sidon – and that without Google or Facebook! Who needed the mass media when word of mouth worked just as well? Why were the religious leaders already plotting murder? What had He done to them? They functioned on their man-made rules because it suited them. As long as they got their behaviour streamlined according to their human mentors, what went on in their hearts was of no consequence. Jesus challenged their heart and conscience. They attacked Him for healing a man with a paralysed hand on the Sabbath. To them that was “work” and He had therefore violated the Sabbath. He responded by exposing their hearts. They had no compassion for the man and his suffering. They were only concerned about preserving the façade of their “righteousness”, whatever that meant. They had both misunderstood and misrepresented Torah, God’s instructions on the best way to live. They believed that, as long as they performed according to the letter of the Law, and the many interpretation of the rabbis down the centuries, they had earned God’s favour, no matter how impure their hearts and motives were. The additions made by the sages, as far as they were concerned, carried as much weight as the Word of God itself. Not to obey them to the letter was culpable. Jesus was not only a threat to their authority, He was also a threat to them because He pulled the covers off their evil hearts. Their concern was not so much for the honour of God as it was for their own honour in the eyes of the people. Every time Jesus showed them up, they lost the respect and obedience of the people. They were losing control and they didn’t like it. Control! That was the issue. They were the authority. They were the learned ones. The people were ignorant. They were the ones who knew and interpreted the Law and the people were to obey them. They could manipulate them through their religion. Now Jesus comes along and undermines their authority by showing up their hearts. They were not interested in the truth or what was right. Only who was right mattered and they believed that they were right. The only solution for them was to eliminate the opposition. The seeds of murder were already in their hearts and Jesus watered them by His insistence on the truth. What was Jesus’ take on the Law? He made it clear that His purpose for coming was not to do away with Torah but to show them how to live it out so that God’s heart of mercy would be revealed in the everyday application of the Law. In this instance, the issue was the Sabbath. When confronted with an opportunity to show mercy, what was one to do? The Torah said, “Don’t do any work.” What constituted work? The Pharisees insisted that healing a man on the Sabbath was “work”. Jesus countered their interpretation by overriding their laws with mercy. Showing mercy was not work. Of course, the proof was in the action. Just as Jesus proved, on another occasion that He could forgive sins by healing a paralysed man, so now He proved that He was Lord of the Sabbath by healing this man on the Sabbath. Imagine how frustrated these Pharisees and religious leaders must have been because they could not fight against His miracles! What proof did they have that they were right? None. They had only one alternative. Get rid of Him before they lost control altogether. Scripture taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. Have you read my new book, Learning to be a Son – The Way to the Father’s Heart (copyright 2015, Partridge Publishing)? You’ll love it! Available on www.amazon.com in paperback, e-book or kindle version or order directly from the publisher at www.partridgepublishing.com. Check out my Blog site – www.learningtobeason.wordpress.com