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THE GOSPEL OF LUKE – MULTIPLIED!

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MULTIPLIED!

“Peter tried to regain some initiative: ‘We left everything we owned and followed you, didn’t we?’

“‘Yes,’ said Jesus, ‘and you won’t regret it. No one who has sacrificed home, spouse, brothers and sisters, parents, children – whatever – will lose out. It will all come back multiplied many times over in your lifetime. And then the bonus of eternal life.'” Luke 18:28-30.

Sometimes we might be tempted to think that Jesus was so heavenly-minded that He didn’t care about people’s ordinary, everyday needs and wants. But Peter’s comment brought out the evidence of His sane and balanced thinking. Of course He cares! He doesn’t just treat people as ‘souls’!

We are whole people with human lives that have needs as well as souls and spirits that must be nurtured. As long as we are resident on this present earth in our present human bodies, He has pledged to provide for and take care of us if we trust Him.

However, Jesus did not specify the details of His provision for us. He did not for one moment guarantee that He would literally replace many times over what we sacrifice in order to follow Him. What would be the purpose of owning houses and lands if only to boost our assets?

But, once again, let’s put this promise into the perspective of His ‘kingdom’ thinking. Jesus was always pragmatic. What would be the value of hoarding wealth? From God’s point of view, anything that is not circulated, stagnates and loses its usefulness. He is willing to put anything into a believer’s hands that He knows will not be wasted on self or pulled out of circulation by hoarding.

But Jesus is also indescribably generous. He releases to us in superabundance whatever we need for ourselves and for whoever we can bless. He removes the boundaries of what is ‘mine’, family, possessions, property, money and resources, and opens up the resources of His kingdom in ways we could never dream possible.

What do I mean by that? When God calls us into His kingdom, we enter a realm where blood ties and personal assets no longer restrict us. Remember what Jesus said? ‘He who does the will of God is my mother and brother and sister.’ We become members of God’s forever family, bound by a blood tie much stronger than the ties of human family, the sacrificial blood of our ‘elder brother’, Jesus.

We also step into the realm of all the shared resources of the Father. “The earth is the Lord’s and everything in it, the world and all who live in it.” Psalm 24:1 (NIV). To claim ‘mine’ is to take ownership illegitimately of what is not ours. We are children in a family whose Father owns everything and who is loving, caring and generous beyond our understanding.

For Jesus, sacrifice is not a loss but an exchange, and, as always, we are never diminished by what we choose to sacrifice. If we let go of the little we claim as ours, we gain the limitless ‘much’ that God will pour into our lives as long as we use it for the ‘family’ and not hoard it for ourselves. Jesus put it like this: “‘But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.'” Matthew 6:33 (NIV).

People who do not trust God as their Father, run after ‘things’, because ‘things’ are the only thing that represents security for them. When ‘things’ fail, they have nothing left because they have never made the exchange of ‘things’ for confidence in a Father who has never yet failed those who trust Him.

We may think that this is a risky exchange. It is until we try it, and then we find that it is the safest investment we can ever make because it is built on the word of one who risks His own reputation if He fails to honour His promise. So, in the end, it’s not as much about us as it is about Him. If He reneges on His promise, He goes down with us, and that’s the bottom line. But…

“If we are faithless,                                                                                                                                  He will remain faithful,                                                                                                                        for He cannot deny Himself.”                                                                                                                                                     2 Timothy 2:13 (NIV).  

‘And,’ said Jesus, ‘there’s a bonus to all this “sacrifice” thing. You don’t only get all the perks of the kingdom in this life, but you are actually already a part of this kingdom of which there is no end. So, when you step over, all you lose are the restrictions and limitations of your sinful human life and you become a partaker of the life of God in its fullest possible sense.’

Without A Word

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WITHOUT A WORD

As soon as they left the synagogue, they went with James and John to the home of Simon and Andrew. Simon’s mother-in-law was in bed with a fever, and they immediately told Jesus about her. So He went to her, took her hand and helped her up. The fever left her and she began to wait on them (Mark 1: 29-31)

Have you ever wondered why Jesus didn’t give His disciples a “healing” formula to say over sick people? As His disciples, it would be part of their job description to do what disciples do, imitate their rabbi. In this case, healing would be expected of them if they wanted to be just like their Master. Perhaps they began to wish that some other rabbi with s’mikah had called them to follow him – except that no one but Jesus would do such a thing because they were not qualified.

Notice how much confidence they had in Him at this early stage in their apprenticeship. They may have known something about Him from hearsay, or even from listening to Him preach about the kingdom of God, but they had hardly had time to get to know Him. Yet – this was a crisis in the family. A fever could mean anything from a head cold or ‘flu to a serious and life-threatening illness. And there was no doctor on call with a range of antibiotics to treat the condition.

Ah, but for once they had hope. Jesus was on call. Had He already shown His power to heal? We don’t know, but He had, just an hour or two ago evicted a demon. Did they believe that this woman’s condition was caused by an invading “squatter”? Again, we don’t know. But as far as they were concerned, Jesus was there and He was up to dealing with any uninvited invader, be it demonic or bacterial – not that they knew anything about bacteria.

All they had to do was to tell Him and the rest was up to Him. And they were not disappointed. What did they expect Him to do? Say a prayer over her? Quote healing Scriptures to her and command the sickness to leave? Impress God with His confidence in Him to heal – after all, there was healing in the Covenant, wasn’t there?

Jesus did the absolutely unexpected. He simply took he hand and gently helped her to sit up and get off her sleeping mat. One moment she was shaking with fever and the next she was up on her feet, as cool as a cucumber and ready to get on with her day. How did that happen?

The answer is simple – God’s mercy, through the hand of Jesus, did a miracle. It didn’t even need a prayer or a command or a mantra or a repetition of Scripture to effect a miracle. The Holy Spirit was all over Him. He came on Him at His baptism. And the Father was with Him. Jesus and the Father were one. Hadn’t the Father affirmed Him vocally, verbally at His baptism? They were all there together, Father, Son and Holy Spirit to bring heaven back to earth. With that powerful presence, no word was needed. Just a helping hand and power flowed.

What did the disciples think of that? They must have been flabbergasted. “We are supposed to do that! Who does He think we are – some superhuman god-men or something?” By this time they must have known that He was someone more than a man. But how were they supposed to be like Him?

There were then, and still are now, two important factors that made all the difference. Firstly, Jesus had called them, them, because He had confidence that they could become what He was. That what rabbis with s’mikah did. Secondly, He was equipped with the power of the Holy Spirit, and so would they be after He had dealt with sin. That’s what He, Jesus, could and would do. No other rabbi could do that!

And what about us? Jesus instructed them to go out and make replicas of them because they were on the way to becoming replicas of Him. This was His simple but effective strategy. Any new disciples were to receive the same equipment as He had and they would have – His confidence in them and the power of the Holy Spirit in them. They didn’t need to do what other religions tried to do – get their gods to respond by formulae and babbling and mantras and ridiculous rituals and capers and . . . and . . . and. . . Just like the prophets of Baal.

Only “Christ in them”. They didn’t even need words – just the awareness that the Father was there, the Holy Spirit was there, Jesus was there. That’s all He did on that occasion, gave her a hand and she was up on her feet. Sometimes He spoke. Sometimes He didn’t. Sometimes He did strange things, like make mud with spit, or ask strange questions like, “Do you want to be healed?” It actually didn’t matter. What did matter was that God was right there and did the work through an obedient and trusting channel.

It’s not words that heal. It’s God, all God – because He wants to bring heaven to earth – now.

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 or www.kalahari.com in paperback, e-book or kindle format, or order directly from the publisher at www.partridgepublishing.com.

 

Check out my blogsite at www.learningtobeason.wordpress.com

 

Jesus, The Rabbi

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JESUS, THE RABBI

As Jesus walked beside the Sea of Galilee, He saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen. ‘Come, follow me,’ Jesus said, ‘and I will sent you out to fish for people.’ At once they left their nets and followed Him. When He had gone a little farther, He saw James, son of Zebedee and his brother John in a boat, preparing their nets. Without delay He called them and their left their father, Zebedee in the boat with the hired men and followed Him. (Mark 1: 16-20).

We often admire these men for acting so promptly when Jesus called them, don’t we? How could they just drop everything and go after a comparative stranger? And Zebedee didn’t protest either. He watched half of his workforce walk away without uttering a word. And they didn’t just take off half an hour to chat with Jesus. They were gone for good!

Of course we would wonder at this because we don’t understand the culture. Jesus was a rabbi. He was thirty years old, the age at which a rabbi would have completed his education and was ready to begin his itinerant teaching work. If he was recognised as having s’mikah – authority – he would choose young men to follow him to be his talmidim – disciples.

It was a great honour to be chosen to be a disciple. The rabbi’s simple invitation, “Follow me,” was an indication that he believed that they could become like him. These men would stick to him like glue, living with him day and night. They would watch him and listen to him and learn to copy him until they became replicas of their rabbi. He would teach them his yoke – his way of understanding and living Torah – God’s teaching in the five books of Moses, which they were faithfully to pass on to others who would follow them. They could not change or omit anything without being disqualified as a disciple.

Talmidim were usually chosen from among the young learner-rabbis. Those who did not make the grade after their elementary education went home to learn the family business. The select few went up the ladder of education, always aspiring to be among the very best who would one day also be recognised as being rabbis with s’mikah.

Strangely enough, Jesus chose men who had failed their entrance “exam” to “rabbi school” and were plying the family trade on the Sea of Galilee. They were not only dropouts from school, they were also in a sense religious dropouts as well. Because they dealt with dead fish, they were probably always considered “unclean”. They must have been startled out of their wits to hear the qualifying call, “Follow me,” especially from the mouth of the most popular rabbi of the day.

It’s no wonder they dropped everything and set off after Him without hesitation. Who would be so foolish as to pass up an opportunity like this? I can imagine how they shook their heads in wonderment and chatted excitedly together as they walked behind their rabbi, each one trying to get as close to Him as possible to pick up the dust thrown up by His sandals as He walked. They just could not believe that their lives could take such a radical turn in a moment.

They did not know that they were in for a rough ride. They were called to follow, not just another rabbi but, as they would find out soon enough, the Son of God. His authority did not come from the recognition of men but from God. He would say and do things that would appal them because they knew He was courting trouble with the religious authorities but it didn’t seem to bother Him.

He mystified them. He was ultra-kind to the down-and-outs. He had amazing powers – like no other rabbi in Israel. He healed sick people with a touch or a word. He made blind people see and deaf people hear. He even raised dead people to life again. And His preaching! He made outrageous claims and said outrageous things and yet, somehow, they believed Him. He spoke as though He knew what He was talking about.

As for the revered religious leaders, He made mincemeat of them with His words. He enraged them by uncovering their wicked hearts. He had no compunction about pulling them to pieces in public. He courted trouble without a qualm – almost as though He was egging them on to kill Him.

It’s just as well they had no idea what lay ahead for them. Would they have been so eager to follow Him had they had a glimpse into their future? This was an all-or-nothing call and they answered it without hesitation and without a backward glance.

Jesus still calls, “Follow me!” When men who masquerade as disciples call you to follow them, don’t go. If leaders try to bind you to themselves, don’t follow. There is only one who has the right to call and to whom we must respond – Jesus Christ, the Son of God.

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 or www.kalahari.com in paperback, e-book or kindle format, or order directly from the publisher at www.partridgepublishing.com.

Check out my blogsite at www.learningtobeason.wordpress.com

Baby Believers

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BABY BELIEVERS 

“Then Jesus went back across the Jordan to the place where John had been baptising in the early days. There He stayed, and many people came to Him. They said, ‘Though John never performed a sign, all that John said about this man was true.’ And in that place many believed in Jesus.” John 10:40-42 NIV.

Thus concludes a dramatic and tempestuous encounter between Jesus and the Jewish leaders, and a temporary lull in the conflict between them. He retreated beyond the Jordan, not because He was afraid of them but to allow the dust to settle before the last and final battle that would end in His death.

The writer, John, assures his readers that, in spite of the opposition of the Jewish hierarchy, there were many of the ordinary people who were convinced that He was the Messiah and that John the Baptist’s testimony about Him was true. At this stage they were probably still wobbly believers, convinced of who Jesus was and yet wary of the Pharisees because they had the power to do damage to these infant believers in society because of their position in their religion.

In a few short weeks their faith would be sorely tested when Jesus was finally arrested and brought to trial before His adversaries. John’s purpose was to present Jesus as the Christ, the Son of God, so that his readers would be convinced of His identity and put their faith in Him. Throughout the gospel he assured his readers that this was happening in spite of the hatred of the Jewish leaders towards Jesus.

After the episode of the healing of the blind man, no doubt the common people were in on the hot debate that raged between the Pharisees and Jesus. They heard the accusations levelled against Him because that He had healed the man on the Sabbath. They had listened to Jesus’ defence: ‘Evaluate my works and see whether they don’t match the nature of the Father.’

They had done their own thinking and concluded that a demon-possessed man could never do the miracles Jesus was doing to bring health and comfort to suffering people. At least they had the good sense to be honest, to weigh up the evidence with an open mind and to reach the conclusion that the Pharisees refused to come to because they were convinced they were right.

The Pharisees not only denounced Jesus; they also dismissed the common people as ignorant and stupid! What an indictment against them!

But where were all these so-called believers when the mob, led by the Jewish religious hierarchy were baying for Jesus’ blood? Were they in the crowd, swayed by mob hysteria to demand His death? Were they too afraid to stand up for Him lest they suffer the same fate? Was their protest so feeble that they were shouted down when they tried to defend Him? We will never know.

However, there must have been many of those early shaky believers who joined the tide of people who had repented and were baptised on the Day of Pentecost. Their failure to support Jesus for whatever reason was only a part of the process. They were not denounced or disqualified for their weakness. They were included in the ranks of those who became staunch followers of the risen Messiah.

Does this not encourage us to believe that where we are now, or where our loved ones are now, is not the end of the story? Where was Saul on the day when he stood watching the fanatical Pharisees hurling stones at Stephen and thoroughly supporting what they were doing? Where was he when he set out for Damascus to do as much damage to the church there as he could? He was only hours away from a life-transforming encounter with the Living Christ that would set his life in a new direction.

We must never give up on those for whom we are praying because they are also at some point in the process of becoming new in Christ. God has promised to complete what He has begun and we can count on His promise, not matter what!

Hooked!

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HOOKED!

“Simon Peter, when he saw it, fell to his knees before Jesus, ‘Master, leave. I’m a sinner and can’t handle this holiness. Leave me to myself.’ When they pulled in that catch of fish, awe overwhelmed Simon and everyone with him. It was the same with James and John, Zebedee’s sons. co-workers with Simon. Jesus said to Simon, ‘There is nothing to fear. From now on you’ll be fishing for men and women.’ They pulled their boats up on the beach, left them, nets and all, and followed Him.” Luke 5:8-11 (The Message).

It was all about fishing! The fishermen caught nothing, at first. Jesus caught the fishermen, in the end!

Peter was repelled, and drawn, all at the same time. Why did he say, ‘Leave me alone? Get away from me, Jesus,’ when he wanted so badly to be with Him? If Jesus knew all about fishing when He had never learnt to fish, what else did He know that left Peter feeling stripped and naked? Was there something about Him that made him feel so vulnerable that he wanted to hide and yet so fascinated that he wanted to stay?

Peter had a big lesson to learn, and so do we. Yes, Jesus’ eyes pierced Peter’s darkness and bored into the very core of his soul, but never to condemn or consume. Peter needed that reassurance, ‘Don’t be afraid!’  How many times, in the pages of Scripture, does God have to say that to people? We have this idea that God is out to get us. Just let him find out what I am like and He will squash me like a bug.

In Psalm 139, David expressed his vulnerability just like Peter felt. God knew him through and through. Even his thoughts were emblazoned in His sight like neon signs. Trying to hide was futile because God was there, wherever he went. Instead of cringing, however, David celebrated because he had become aware that His presence was reassuring, never threatening. “I look behind me and you’re there, then up ahead and you’re there, too, your reassuring presence, coming and going.” Psalm 139:6 (The Message).

“If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast.” Psalm 139:9,10 (NIV). David tried to think of the most impossible places to hide but God was always there, waiting to hold and guide him back to safety and sense.

Peter was not alone in this experience. Although he was the central figure, the other fishermen were just as moved as he was. Almost like men in a trance, they abandoned their old, familiar, humdrum lives to follow the rabbi at His invitation without a backward look. They had no idea what they were in for, but it didn’t matter. If they were so safe with someone who could read their hearts and still embrace them, then their lives were secure in His hands.

Never in their wildest dreams did the brothers ever imagine that they would become disciples. Their schooling had come to an abrupt end when they failed to qualify for tertiary training at the Beth Talmud. They were bundled off home to learn their dads’ fishing skills and make their living off the lake.

What lay ahead was unknown but it was better than the hard work they had to put in to scrape together a living for their families. They didn’t even stop to sell off the massive catch of fish that lay entangled in their nets on the beach. They left them for the lucky ones who came by to claim their find.

So magnetic was the person of Jesus that they never gave it another thought. Just imagine — they didn’t even wait to pack up and store their equipment in case it didn’t work out for them. Their decision was final. They left everything to follow Him.

Discipleship is like that. It’s all or nothing!