Monthly Archives: November 2019

THE GOSPEL OF LUKE – BIBLE SCHOOL, JESUS STYLE

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CHAPTER NINE

BIBLE SCHOOL, JESUS STYLE

“Jesus now called the Twelve and gave them authority and power to deal with all the demons and cure diseases. He commissioned them to preach the news of God’s kingdom and heal the sick. He said, ‘Don’t load yourselves up with equipment. Keep it simple; you are the equipment. And no luxury inns – get a modest place and be content there until you leave. If you’re not welcomed, leave town. Don’t make a scene. Shrug your shoulders and move on.’

“Commissioned, they left. They travelled from town to town telling the latest news of God, the Message, and curing people everywhere they went.” Luke 9:1-6.

Step two of Jesus’ training programme for His disciples was about to begin. Mark outlined His strategy in one simple sentence: “He appointed twelve: that they might be with Him and that He might send them out to preach.” Mark 3:14 (NIV).

He had spent a considerable time modelling His method and His message, with His disciples with Him day and night, watching and listening to Him and getting the feel of the kingdom He was introducing to His people. Although they still had in mind that He had come to deliver them from Rome, perhaps they thought that what He was showing them was part of His strategy to win the people over.

Jesus considered them ready to go out without Him to do what He had been doing. They needed plenty of practice for the day when He left them on their own for good to get on with what He had started. The day would come when He would give them their commission to a life work to go, not just to the towns and villages of Israel but to the whole world to pass on who they were – disciples of Jesus.

His instruction was simple. ‘Don’t weigh yourself down with loads of baggage and equipment.’ This was a partnership between Himself and His disciples. It was His responsibility to see that they were provided for on their journey. They did not have to run “Praise-a-thons” to raise funds or stay in 5-star hotels or travel in Mercedes Benz vehicles. Hudson Taylor, founder of the China Inland Mission, said, ‘God’s work, done in God’s way, will never lack God’s supply.’ His policy was “to move man through God by prayer alone.”

They were to rely on the hospitality of the local people. Between the lines, He was giving townspeople the opportunity to have a share in the blessing of partnering with His disciples in the work of the kingdom. If there were those who were inhospitable enough to turn them away, it was not necessary to make a fuss about it. They would be the losers and that would be enough.

Jesus’ strategy was brilliant, bringing people and God together and showing His disciples how to trust Him for their resources by giving people the opportunity to be generous. He promised to meet our needs but He does not do it by tossing money from heaven. It is the generosity of people that creates a current and keeps His resources circulating. This principle works in the natural world too.

The disciples did what He instructed them to do and He did what He promised He would do. He was already beginning to multiply Himself in twelve men who were listening, watching, learning and imitating their Rabbi.

Isn’t it sad that the simple message of Jesus has been covered up with layers of stuff and ritual until it had become unrecognisable? There is nothing wrong with using technology to get the message out as long as the message remains unadulterated with human ideas and interpretations. What Jesus came to do should remain unchanged, however it is delivered.

What did He come to do? He came to show us the Father and to take us to the Father so that we can be reconciled and live as His sons and daughters here on earth. Anything else is not who He is and not what He came to do!

THE GOSPEL OF LUKE – IT’S ALL ABOUT THE TASSELS

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IT’S ALL ABOUT THE TASSELS

“While He was still talking, someone from the leader’s house came up and told him, ‘Your daughter died. No need now to bother the Teacher.’

“Jesus overheard and said, ‘Don’t be upset. Just trust me and everything will be alright.’ Going into the house, He wouldn’t let anyone enter with Him except Peter, John, James and the child’s parents.

“Everyone was crying and carrying on over her. Jesus said, ‘Don’t cry. She didn’t die; she’s sleeping.’ They laughed at Him. They knew she was dead. Then Jesus, gripping her hand, called, ‘My dear child, get up.’ She was up in an instant, up and breathing again! He told them to give her something to eat. Her parents were ecstatic, but Jesus warned them to keep quiet. ‘Don’t tell a soul what happened in this room.'” Luke 8:49-56.

What is it with Jesus? One minute He’s shouting, ‘Who touched me?’ and the next He’s telling the parents not to tell anyone what happened in the room where their daughter was raised from the dead!

None of this will make sense until we understand about the tassels. In Numbers 15:37- 38, “The Lord said to Moses, ‘Speak to the Israelites and say to them: ‘Throughout the generations to come you are to make tassels (Hebrew – tzitzit) on the corners (Hebrew – kanaph) of your garments, with a blue cord on each tassel. You will have these tassels to look at and so you will remember all the commands of the Lord, that you may obey them…'”

Each tassel had five knots and four spaces, representing the five books of the Torah and the four letters in the name YHWH. They were to put the tassels on the four corners of their outer garment or cloak (Deuteronomy 22:2) which eventually became the prayer shawl or talit. The corners (kanaph) of the talith were called the wings.

Now Malachi’s prophecy in Malachi 4:2 (NLT) begins to take on a new meaning. “But for you who fear my name, the Sun (it can also be translated “servant”) of Righteousness will rise with healing in His wings (kanaph),” This was a Messianic promise.

When the woman with the issue of blood touched the tassels of His prayer shawl, she must surely have understood Malachi’s prophecy and experienced the healing which the tassels symbolised.

Now let’s look at the phrase Jesus used when He spoke to the child. Mark recorded Jesus’ actual words: ‘Talitha koum.’ The translation into English blurs the true meaning. It should read ‘Talit ha koum’ — ‘The talit is here. Get up.’  Jesus, the Messiah was there, in the room, wearing the talit which symbolised the name, the Word, the nature and the ways of God.

This entire episode, to the man who was intimately involved with the life of the synagogue, the centre of religious activity in the town, must have had deep significance. He and his wife had actually witnessed the fulfilment of Malachi’s prophecy.

Just to be told not to tell anyone that Jesus raised his daughter from the dead made no sense because they all knew she was dead – Luke made sure of that when he said that they laughed at Jesus – and they all saw her alive again. It only makes sense when we understand that Jesus forbade them to tell anyone how it happened.

It was always Jesus’ intention that people decide for themselves, based on their interpretation of the evidence, who He was. The final proof of His identity was yet to come, in His resurrection from the dead. In the meantime, He did not want to attract followers who were either out for entertainment by watching His miracles or after him for what He could give them.

And Jesus is still looking for true disciples who follow Him because He is Lord! Are you one of those?

THE GOSPEL OF LUKE – HER RISK PAID OFF

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HER RISK PAID OFF

“At that very moment the haemorrhaging stopped. Jesus said, ‘Who touched me?’ When no one stepped forward, Peter said, ‘But Master, we’ve got crowds of people on our hands. Dozens have touched you.’ Jesus insisted, ‘Someone touched me. I felt power discharging from me.’

“When the woman realised that she couldn’t remain hidden, she knelt trembling before Him. In front of all the people, she blurted out her story – why she touched Him and how at that same moment she was healed.

“Jesus said, ‘Daughter, you took a risk trusting me and now you’re healed and whole. Live well, live blessed.'” Luke 8: 45-48.

This was unusual behaviour for Jesus! Why did He insist on putting this poor woman on public display? Apart from the demoniac He had set free across the lake, He normally told people to keep what He had done for them under wraps.

But here He was broadcasting to the entire crowd that someone had touched Him. Could He possibly have had a reason other than simply letting everyone know that yet another person had been healed? Did He want to disgrace her for contaminating the entire crowd by infecting them, and Him, with her uncleanness?

But it was never in Jesus’ nature to do that. Besides, people were immediately cleansed when they came into contact with Him. He must have had a more significant reason than showing off His power.

Jesus was on His way to the home of a man whose child lay dying and was possibly already dead. It was not permissible for a rabbi to come into contact with a dead body except if he, too, were unclean. The only way to gain access to the child was to give the people the impression that the woman had made Him unclean by her touch! Brilliant!

Jesus also had another motive for insisting that the woman own up. He wanted to complete her healing, not just of her physical ailment but also of her heart. Thinking she was in trouble, she came forward to acknowledge what she had done in fear and trembling. She did not know what to expect from this rabbi.

The words He spoke were the words of life to her. His first word was the reassurance that she was somebody; not a nameless, despised, unclean outcast but ‘Daughter!’ Imagine how she felt to be called a daughter in Israel, regardless what anyone else might think or say. She was not only healed but also whole. She understood that.

To be whole – “shalom” – was to be restored to God’s original intention for her. She could put her twelve years of suffering behind her, knowing that she had been fully accepted as a member of God’s people.

Her very demeanour reveals what she thought of herself before she came face to face with Jesus.  She had hoped to remain anonymous, creeping up behind Him, being healed and creeping away again to enjoy what she knew He could do for her. But once again Jesus made a public display of a woman whom the people had cast aside as just a bit of filthy trash but whom He treated with compassion and restored to her rightful place in society and in God’s eyes.

Imagine her joy as she made her way home to pi ck up the pieces of her life…

In the meantime, Jairus was waiting, anxious and impatient. How did he feel about the interlude that interrupted his mission? The minutes were ticking by and his daughter was dying. Would this delay mean the difference between life and death for her?

How often we feel like that too! Time will make the difference between hope and despair, so we think. But time is not the issue with Jesus. It’s not about time; it’s about trust. Anxiety, fear, impatience, cancels trust. Jesus is never too late!

THE GOSPEL OF LUKE- DON’T PANIC

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DON’T PANIC

“On His return, Jesus was welcomed by a crowd. They were all there expecting Him. A man came up, Jairus by name. He was president of the meeting place. He fell at Jesus’ feet and begged Him to come to his home because his twelve-year-old daughter, his only child, was dying. Jesus went with him, making His way through the pushing, jostling crowd.” Luke 8:40-42.

This is part one of a twofold story.

The first person introduced was a man with a name and a pedigree. He was Jairus, an important person in the community. He had a title and a function – he was in charge of the local synagogue where the townspeople met every Sabbath for worship and the reading of the Word of God. It was also probably the venue for the local school where the boys were taught to read and write and study the Torah.

Was Jairus part of the group of religious leaders who rejected Jesus’ claim to be the Messiah? Was he one of those who were quick to jump on Him for breaking the Sabbath? We don’t know. Luke not only identifies him as a religious ruler but also as a desperate father. Whatever religious scruples he had fell away when his circumstances spun out of control.

His only child was dying. He knew that there was no doctor who could do anything for her. There was only one man who could help him, who had the reputation for having authority over demons, disease and death and who had healed many sick people in his own town. When Jesus, to his great relief, put in an appearance just when he needed Him, he wasted no time in hurrying to get help.

At the very moment when Jairus was putting his urgent request before Jesus, there was another needy person in the crowd, pushing her way towards Him.

“In the crowd that day there was a woman who, for twelve years, had been afflicted with haemorrhages. She had spent every penny she had on doctors but no one had been able to help her. She slipped in from behind and touched the edge of Jesus’ robe.” Luke 8:43-44.

The contrast between these two people could not have been greater. Jairus was an important man; the woman was not even named. Jairus was a religious man; she was a despised and unclean woman. His little daughter was the child of probably the most important man in the town; the woman was nobody. Strangely enough, for every day that the little girl was growing up in her parents’ home, healthy, cherished and no doubt pampered, the woman was living a lonely life of suffering, an outcast and unclean; twelve years of living lives that were worlds apart.

Now the little girl was on the brink of death while the woman was dying slowly. Both she and Jairus needed Jesus. Which one needed Him the most? Which situation was the most critical? Which one would get His attention first? Had it been one of us who had to make the choice, we would probably have told the woman to wait while we attended to Jairus’ child because her need was the more urgent. The woman was alive and walking; the child was dying.

This story is a masterpiece of revelation. Although Luke may have borrowed the record from Mark, the story itself is a mirror of the heart of Jesus. He did not have to make a choice. As we read on, Jesus took the events in His stride. He did not stop and weigh up whose need was greater. He dealt with each situation as it arose. To Jesus, neither need was a crisis, not even the child’s imminent death.

In our lives, situations arise which we view as crises and which throw us into a panic. We rush off to Jesus and breathlessly beg Him to come immediately, forgetting that He is already there and that He is fully aware of every detail, even more than we are. What should be our attitude when we call on Him in desperate moments like these?

Jesus Himself gives us the answer: ‘Don’t be afraid; just believe…'”

THE GOSPEL OF LUKE – PAGANS AND PIGS!

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PAGANS AND PIGS!

“Those tending the pigs, scared to death, bolted and told their story in town and country.  People went out to see what had happened. They came to Jesus and found the man, from whom the demons had been sent, sitting there at Jesus’ feet, wearing decent clothes and making sense. It was a holy moment, and for a short time they were more reverent than curious. Then those who had seen it happen told how the demoniac had been saved.” Luke 8:34-36.

What a holy moment!

These were Gentiles, people who lived in a region of ten Greek towns on the east side of the lake of Galilee; pagan people who dabbled with demons and who were probably used to seeing demon-possessed people. But this man had been particularly bad, so tormented and demented that he could not live among them. He had taken up residence among dead people who could not possibly be affected by his crazed behaviour.

They had seen the effects of demons entering people but they had never seen the outcome of demons leaving! No doubt they rushed to the edge of the cliff to see what had happened to the pigs. There they were, floating in the lake, all three thousands of them, exactly as the townspeople had reported!  Some of the spectators must have been owners of the pigs. There was their livelihood, floating in the lake! They could not have been too pleased.

Others were dumbstruck by the man who was so transformed that they hardly recognised him. He was clothed and sane, sitting with Jesus, adoring Him and deep in conversation with Him. They could only stand and stare, and wonder that this man was the one who had authority over the evil spirits they both worshipped and feared.

“Later, a great many people from the Gerasene countryside got together and asked Jesus to leave – too much change, too fast, and they were scared. So Jesus got back in the boat and set off. The man whom He had delivered from the demons asked to go with Him, but He sent him back, saying, ‘Go home and tell everything God did in you.’ So he went back home and preached all over town everything Jesus had done in him.” Luke 8:37-39.

It did not take long for the word to spread throughout the whole region. People came running from far and near and congregated to discuss this shocking and frightening event. If this man could do this, what else could He do, and what else would He do? Many of them had already suffered huge financial loss. Had He come to destroy them? They did not understand what this was all about.

No doubt the loss of the pigs overshadowed the man’s release from the tormented life he had lived for so long. Perhaps they were even hostile towards him because they blamed him for their financial catastrophe. Could he have wanted to follow Jesus to escape their hostility as well as because of his gratitude to Jesus? We don’t know.

In Jewish territory, Jesus instructed people who had been healed not to broadcast it because He did not want to be swamped by popularity with people who were out to get something from Him. Here, however, there was no danger of that. These Gentile people needed to be confronted with the truth about the one true God who had power over the demons who were all too real to them.

Jesus gave this man a commission – to tell his story wherever he went, and that was easy for him to do. He was a living witness to the truth of what he was telling. On a later occasion, when Jesus returned to the region, He was well received because the ex-demon-possessed man had done his job and the people not only recognised Him, they also brought a blind man to Him.

The news was out. Jesus cared about Gentiles too. He cares for you!