Scripture: Matthew 24:36-44
Today is the beginning of Advent – a time of preparation. And believe it or not, Jesus’ entire life was about preparation. You wouldn’t think that the Son of God would ever need to prepare – after all, God not only knows what will happen, but when it will happen and how it will happen. How much more preparation should He need?
But the truth is that while Jesus was fully God, He was also fully human, and humans, whether they want to hear this or not, need a lot of preparation and planning! Jesus prepared for His ministry by going into the wilderness for 40 days of fasting and prayer. He prepared for each day’s effort by getting up early to spend time in conversation with His Father. He prepared for His crucifixion by going to the Garden of Gethsemane for – what else – prayer!
He was prepared for ministry at every moment. And He spent just as much time in preparing His followers, throughout the ages, for their ministry.
Read Matthew 24:36-41
Rebbe Nachman, a Hasidic writer and scholar in the early 19th century, writes:
“Growing spiritually can be like a roller coaster ride. Take comfort in the knowledge that the way down is only preparation for the way back up.”
--Rebbe Nachman of Breslov, in Moshe Mykoff, “The Empty Chair: Finding Hope and Joy”,
(Woodstock, Vt.: Jewish Lights Publishing, 1994), 43.
There are a lot of stories in scripture that include both the positives and negatives, the ups and downs of life and faith. The prophets give the call to righteousness (that’s the positive!), as well as a warning for what will happen if the people ignore the Hope of God (the negatives). The apostles challenge the church to truly reflect on their life in faith, and to give up those things that do not reflect Christ to the world. And the Church of today is called to do the same – to share stories of those times when each of us has strayed, but also how we have been welcomed back to a renewed life in Christ.
None of these stories are intended to give the appearance that the speaker is in any way better than anyone else. They are simply offered to help others to prepare for the day when Jesus comes.
But preparations are usually made as part of a process for a particular event, and they lead us to a date that we know that we must be ready for. Packing for the beginning of a vacation, studying for a test that has been announced weeks before, making arrangements for our wedding day, preparing a message for Sunday morning worship, and so on.
But these are all being made with a date, not just an event, in mind. But Christ’s coming is an event without a date. How do you prepare for something like that?
Let’s start with a look at the process of preparation that lead Noah to his year long journey on the Ark. (Genesis 5:28-9:28)
The people of earth had fallen into a life filled with violence and godlessness. They were only 8 generations removed from Adam, and yet, they had totally forgotten God. Noah – apparently the only righteous man left on earth - was told that a flood was going to destroy all life that remained on this earth, and that he had been chosen for the task of preserving animal life, as well as the lives of him and his immediate family.
Now it’s important to realize several things.
First, Noah was over 500 years old when he started this project. Of course, his grandfather Methuselah lived 969 years, and his father Lamech was 777 at his death, so longevity ran in his family. But if I ever get to be that old (OK – maybe not even that old!), I’ll be thinking about retiring again, not beginning some new effort! But the Lord never gives us a task that we can’t handle with His help.
Second, Noah was never given a time schedule so that he would know when the flood was coming, and when the construction had to be complete, and when the boat had to be loaded and ready to “cast off”. He was simply told what he had to do, what the result would look like, and why he was being asked to do this. I expect that getting an early start the very next day was the first order of business for Noah.
No time schedule, no project schedule, no construction plans – just here’s what is going to happen. And that was enough incentive for Noah to complete the project before the waters came.
The lesson? Don’t worry about when it will happen, just be ready when it does.
Noah knew, his family knew, and apparently all of the animals that were supposed to be on the Ark knew. But the world didn’t have a clue. Did God intentionally omit them from the plan? I don’t think so. I believe that if anyone else had been “righteous and blameless” (Genesis 6:9), as Noah was, they, too, would have been saved. They would have known. They would have heard. But they didn’t.
Be prepared, for “no one knows about that day or hour”.
And how suddenly will the Christ come? So suddenly and unexpectedly that the normalcy of the day will be in full swing, and not a single person will know. And only those who have heard and seen will even have a clue that the day is approaching, that this day is about to be changed in a such a drastic and profound way.
Read Matthew 24:42-44
So the world had better be prepared! All but a very few people missed his first coming. Only a bunch of smelly old shepherds and a few wealthy foreigners knew – and why? Because they saw and heard, and didn’t miss the opportunity to go and see more for themselves.
Were the shepherds prepared? (Luke 2:8-20) They were busy keeping their flocks safe during the long and lonely night, but they were ready. Their eyes were sharp and alert, their ears were tuned for any sound that was out of the norm – they were doing what they were supposed to be doing, and they were ready!
Were the magi ready? (Matthew 2:1-12) They were watching the heavens for a sign of divine activity, and when the star appeared for all to see, they were the only ones who had sufficient wisdom and heart to understand. They were doing what they were supposed to be doing, and they were ready, too!
Those who had been watchful were blessed beyond all measure, and when the Lord returns in His glory, once again, only the watchful, only the prepared, will be blessed.
Bishop William Boyd Grove, former bishop of the Wyoming Conference, suggests that certain words deserve to interrupt all other words and conversation. Words like “The house is on fire!” or “The war is over!” or
- “Your hostage brother has been released!”
These are, in his provocative words, startling, interrupting proclamations that change everything. If the house is on fire, you [had better] run!
If the war is over, you [will want to] dance! If your hostage brother is released, you leave everything and go to meet him!
-As found in The West Virginia United Methodist, April 1992, 11.
During Advent we prepare ourselves for another set of words that change everything: Jesus Christ is born today. Now there’s a few words that completely changed the world!
It’s interesting that so many people make such elaborate preparations to celebrate Christmas, the birth of the Babe of Bethlehem, but so few are willing to do the same for His reemergence as Fully God in all of His glory! We get focused on Black Friday, Cyber Monday, the pageant of maxing out the credit cards, the overwhelming drive to out-give the giving last Christmas.
The preparations are both endless and hollow.
But how should we prepare? We weren’t alive when He came the first time, so preparation for that event is behind us – we can’t do anything about it. But His next coming is getting closer every day, and it’s one that all must be prepared for, because everyone - prepared or not - will know when Jesus has come again. No one can afford to miss this one!
Remember our friend Noah? He was found to be a righteous and blameless man. Remember Job? God told Satan that he was a blameless and upright man. (Job 1:8) “Blameless” seems to be the key doesn’t it? But we are all sinful men and women, and not one of us is worthy of even a single, minor blessing from God! And yet, His first journey to earth in the form of a helpless Baby was the first step in making our preparation for the glorious day that is yet to come. And all we need to do is accept the perfect and only preparation that is sufficient – the one that Jesus has already made for us. His life and death and life – to claim the words that were spoken, and the blood that was shed, and the life that is given. He has made our preparations for eternity, and all we have to do to be ready for that day is to trust Him with our entire life and believe!
Are you ready? Are you truly ready?
Sunday, November 28, 2010
Wednesday, November 24, 2010
“Contentment in our Thankfulness”
Scripture: Philippians 4: 4-9, 12b-13
(Thanksgiving Eve)
In 1789, President George Washington declared a day of Thanksgiving for our fledgling nation. Many in that day disagreed with his decision, and it wasn’t until 1863, while the American people were engaged in war against each other, that the last Thursday in November was finally proclaimed as a national day of Thanksgiving, and it was not until 1941, on the eve of our entry into World War II, that Congress declared that the day would to be a national holiday. But the unknown hero behind the day was a magazine editor by the name of Sarah Josepha Hale. She had a vision that was unshakable – a vision that spoke of her commitment to proclaiming our gratitude for all who had given so much to make our nation great – including the God of all creation.
And it seems that as the apostle Paul was writing his letter to the church in Philippi, from the confines of a prison, he, too, felt the overwhelming desire to give thanks for all that he had received.
Read Philippians 4:4-9
And he wanted the church to feel that same sense of gratitude. This entire letter is one of thanksgiving, and he even begins this passage by calling the church to “Rejoice in the Lord always!” Rejoice in the times of trial! Rejoice in the times of victory! Rejoice in the times of imprisonment! Rejoice in the times of freedom! Rejoice in the Lord God at all times, and in all places and in all venues, and in all circumstances, whether you feel like it or not. Just rejoice!
And why should Paul, who experienced as much privation as any of the apostles, feel this way. Why should we feel like rejoicing in such an extreme way?
Sara Maitland, in her book “A Big-Enough God”, writes:
“So, as it turns out, we do not have a little, tame, domestic God, thank God, but we do have a huge, wild, dangerous God --dangerous, of course, only if we think that God ought to be manageable and safe; a God of almost manic creativity, ingenuity and enthusiasm; a Big-Enough God, who is also a supremely generous and patient God; a God of beauty and chance and solidarity--or one could [even] say, an Extreme God.”
--Sara Maitland, A Big-Enough God (New York: Henry Holt & Co., 1995).
Our Lord is not a wimp! He does everything in a grand and glorious way. He spoke a word, and creation happened! He created beings, not just to be human, but in Their image and with His own breath! He caused the walls of great cities to simply collapse. He stopped the sun from moving across the sky to gain victory for His people. He sent heavenly, as well as earthly messengers, to speak of His love and glory. And when all else failed, He Himself came to be the perfect Redemption for an unworthy earth.
Why shouldn’t we be giving Him thanks? Regardless of what comes into our human lives, our Extreme and Constant God is never changing, and He continues to guarantee eternal life for all who will accept it. What’s not to rejoice over? He deserves our worship! He deserves our praise! He deserves our lives!
Dale Matthews writes:
It is easy to confuse adoration and thanksgiving, but they are different, though certainly related to one another.
Adoration might be likened to the feeling [young] lovers have for one another as they gaze into each other's eyes, or the emotion that overcomes a parent when a newborn is placed in his or her arms.
Thanksgiving [on the other hand], is a conscious recounting of the blessings God has given us, and a deliberate act of recognizing his work in our lives. I think of thanksgiving simply as giving credit where credit is due -- to the God who gives us life and breath. In the process of giving thanks, we remind ourselves that God is trustworthy, that he cares about us, and that we do not struggle through this life alone.
--Dale A. Matthews, The Faith Factor, (New York: Viking, 1998), 219.
An Extreme God! A Constant God! A Noble God! An Excellent God! A God who deserves all of the credit and all of our praise. And we must never see our thanksgivings as an obligation or a chore. It should be given out of pure gratitude.
Read Philippians 4:12b-13
And in our giving thanks to Almighty God, we gain, in addition to everything else that He has selflessly won and freely given to us, a contentment that will overcome all adversity and acknowledge all blessings, no matter what may come our way.
As we gather around our tables tomorrow, remember Psalm 136 – “Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good. His love endures forever.”
Rejoice in the Lord – not just on Thanksgiving day, but on all days, in all circumstances, at all times, in all places. Rejoice!
(Thanksgiving Eve)
In 1789, President George Washington declared a day of Thanksgiving for our fledgling nation. Many in that day disagreed with his decision, and it wasn’t until 1863, while the American people were engaged in war against each other, that the last Thursday in November was finally proclaimed as a national day of Thanksgiving, and it was not until 1941, on the eve of our entry into World War II, that Congress declared that the day would to be a national holiday. But the unknown hero behind the day was a magazine editor by the name of Sarah Josepha Hale. She had a vision that was unshakable – a vision that spoke of her commitment to proclaiming our gratitude for all who had given so much to make our nation great – including the God of all creation.
And it seems that as the apostle Paul was writing his letter to the church in Philippi, from the confines of a prison, he, too, felt the overwhelming desire to give thanks for all that he had received.
Read Philippians 4:4-9
And he wanted the church to feel that same sense of gratitude. This entire letter is one of thanksgiving, and he even begins this passage by calling the church to “Rejoice in the Lord always!” Rejoice in the times of trial! Rejoice in the times of victory! Rejoice in the times of imprisonment! Rejoice in the times of freedom! Rejoice in the Lord God at all times, and in all places and in all venues, and in all circumstances, whether you feel like it or not. Just rejoice!
And why should Paul, who experienced as much privation as any of the apostles, feel this way. Why should we feel like rejoicing in such an extreme way?
Sara Maitland, in her book “A Big-Enough God”, writes:
“So, as it turns out, we do not have a little, tame, domestic God, thank God, but we do have a huge, wild, dangerous God --dangerous, of course, only if we think that God ought to be manageable and safe; a God of almost manic creativity, ingenuity and enthusiasm; a Big-Enough God, who is also a supremely generous and patient God; a God of beauty and chance and solidarity--or one could [even] say, an Extreme God.”
--Sara Maitland, A Big-Enough God (New York: Henry Holt & Co., 1995).
Our Lord is not a wimp! He does everything in a grand and glorious way. He spoke a word, and creation happened! He created beings, not just to be human, but in Their image and with His own breath! He caused the walls of great cities to simply collapse. He stopped the sun from moving across the sky to gain victory for His people. He sent heavenly, as well as earthly messengers, to speak of His love and glory. And when all else failed, He Himself came to be the perfect Redemption for an unworthy earth.
Why shouldn’t we be giving Him thanks? Regardless of what comes into our human lives, our Extreme and Constant God is never changing, and He continues to guarantee eternal life for all who will accept it. What’s not to rejoice over? He deserves our worship! He deserves our praise! He deserves our lives!
Dale Matthews writes:
It is easy to confuse adoration and thanksgiving, but they are different, though certainly related to one another.
Adoration might be likened to the feeling [young] lovers have for one another as they gaze into each other's eyes, or the emotion that overcomes a parent when a newborn is placed in his or her arms.
Thanksgiving [on the other hand], is a conscious recounting of the blessings God has given us, and a deliberate act of recognizing his work in our lives. I think of thanksgiving simply as giving credit where credit is due -- to the God who gives us life and breath. In the process of giving thanks, we remind ourselves that God is trustworthy, that he cares about us, and that we do not struggle through this life alone.
--Dale A. Matthews, The Faith Factor, (New York: Viking, 1998), 219.
An Extreme God! A Constant God! A Noble God! An Excellent God! A God who deserves all of the credit and all of our praise. And we must never see our thanksgivings as an obligation or a chore. It should be given out of pure gratitude.
Read Philippians 4:12b-13
And in our giving thanks to Almighty God, we gain, in addition to everything else that He has selflessly won and freely given to us, a contentment that will overcome all adversity and acknowledge all blessings, no matter what may come our way.
As we gather around our tables tomorrow, remember Psalm 136 – “Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good. His love endures forever.”
Rejoice in the Lord – not just on Thanksgiving day, but on all days, in all circumstances, at all times, in all places. Rejoice!
Sunday, November 21, 2010
“Bad News for the Idle”
Scripture: 2 Thessalonians 3:6-15
I have to confess that there are days when I would just as soon remain in bed instead of getting up to face the Lord and all that He has waiting for me. It’s not that I’m lazy, though – I just like to relax after a hard night of sleeping!
Have you ever had those days? When you would rather surrender to the call of the world instead of the one that comes from the Lord? When Israel finally arrived in the Promised Land, after the people who were already living there had been subdued, after they had their farms and vineyards and villages and cities established, the people decided that they wanted to trade in their Judges for a king, and their simple, but mobile tabernacle for a glorious and permanent temple, and then they expected to settle down for a much quieter existence. And in the process, they also traded their trust in God for more worldly pleasures.
Joseph McLelland, in his book “The Clown and the Crocodile”, writes:
“In many ways, if we depend upon our roots to define us, we create a rigid little outline of what our relationship to God is. We take on the attitudes, and accept the priorities of the communities in which we live. But what we gain in physical comforts we lose in spiritual exercise: It is far easier to grow lazy and complacent when we are rooted in a place.
Once you settle down on your own land, turn the humble tabernacle into a great temple, and exchange nomadic customs for agricultural and urban ways, it seems peculiar to pattern your life after a pilgrimage. Since you are not really going anywhere, you begin to think that God stays put, too. “
-Joseph C. McLelland, The Clown and the Crocodile (Richmond, Va.: John Knox Press, 1970), 56.
But God never stays put! He is never still! He is never complacent! He is constantly working in and through our lives – creating and recreating, renewing and refreshing, changing and redirecting. But He wouldn’t have to be recreating and refreshing and redirecting us if we would but stay on track with His leading. But unfortunately, human nature isn’t always attuned to the Spirit – we like to have our own way from time to time!
Read 2 Thessalonians 3:6-8
Now at first glance, it would seem that the people of the first century were not all that different from the people of today. Some were, and are, industrious, while others would, seemingly, prefer to let others provide for their every need. But before we begin to condemn the actions of too large a population, there are many who would like to be gainfully employed, but due to economic or other circumstances, are unable to find a job. That was true in Paul’s time, and it is true today.
So I would like to redefine the word “idle”. Even though Paul’s writing seems to be calling the people to be more active in earning their way in the world, I would like to offer once again the thought that scripture is always oriented toward inspiring us to be more in line with the things of God. So I believe that he is using an earthly analogy to tell us that we need to be more aware of what our faithful service is to be about - that “idle” isn’t so much about our secular employment as it is about our spiritual employment. And you are probably wondering just what spiritual employment is all about!
It means that no matter how much or how little we have, are we faithful stewards in whatever the Lord gives us? I am not implying that unless you give up all earthly employment, and give all of your time to the church, that you are a spiritual slacker! That is not my intent! I am saying, though, that if you think that an hour a week in worship is sufficient to show the Lord how much you appreciate Him, you are sadly mistaken! Paul writes that he and his entourage were busy “night and day, laboring and toiling so that [they] would not be a burden to any [one]” and that they never ate anything that they didn’t pay for.
- Trust me – they slept at times!
- Trust me – they preached and ministered to the people at all times!
They may have worked at a trade to partially defray the costs of their ministry, but people in the church were always helping them with lodging and other sustenance. But Paul and Silas and Timothy were busy all the time, and their time was used to spread the gospel of Jesus Christ to as many people in as many places as possible! And they were not in the habit of leaving any town with a full purse of money in their pocket!
Read 2 Thessalonians 3:9-12
Let’s continue with the theme that idleness and unemployment is in regards to faith and not necessarily in a worldly context. Vs. 10 – “If a man will not work, he shall not eat.” Think of this in a new way – “If a person will not give back to the Lord, should he continue to be blessed?” God expects so very little from us – He only asks that we show Him our gratitude by following His commandments. Love God with your entire being.
- Love others as if they were you. Treat others as you would like them to treat you. Make a friend, be a friend, bring your friend to Christ. Live the Great Commission
Now I know that these are not the specific commandments that we find in scripture, but if we truly try to do these few things, we, too, will be busy “night and day”! Paul wants us to have a true vision of what a life in Christ is really all about!
I worked at Link as a final inspector on the flight simulators for a year after I got out of the Navy, and one of the guys I worked with – Nick - was a quite a character. We had had a slack period one week, and when we caught up with the installations, we would sit down and visit until someone threw a job into our mail slot, and then we were back to work. One morning, a manager came in early, and saw us sitting around, and the next night there was an edict that if we weren’t busy, we should, at least, look busy. Nick picked up the gauntlet, and for the next 8 hours, he was extremely busy. He was constantly on the go, shuffling papers here and there, peering into cabinet after cabinet and trainer after trainer. At the end of the night, he turned to the rest of us, and confessed, almost sheepishly, that even though he had looked busy all night, he hadn’t inspected or cleared a single job, and that he was so tired that he would never do it again!
Paul’s intention was never that we should become exhausted in our Christian service, he never wanted us to suffer from burn out! But he does believe that the Lord wants us to do what is right, in the eyes of God of course, and not in ours. He wants us to be alive in His plan and to be lively in the goals that He sets. And His plan will never tire us out – and in all truth, it will invigorate us.
Anthony Robbins is a self help author and lecturer. He writes “People are not lazy. They simply have impotent goals; that is, goals that do not inspire them.”
—Anthony Robbins.
Do you felt inspired in your walk with Jesus? Or do you fit the model that Paul offers in verse 11 – “We hear that some among you are idle. They are not busy; they are busybodies.” Busybodies are just that – busy in body, busy in the things of earth, but idle in the things of God.
Read 2 Thessalonians 3:13-15
“Never tire of doing what is right.”
- When we hear of a brother or sister who is struggling in their faith, may we never tire of doing what is right.
- When we know of a homeless person who is shivering in the cold, and hungry for anything to eat, may we never tire of doing what is right.
- When we sense that the Lord is calling us to reach out to a neighbor who is suffering due to a great loss in their life, may we never tire of doing what is right.
- When our friend, or even more importantly our child, is caught up in the throes of an addiction or deeply immersed in a sinful existence, may we never, EVER tire of doing what is right.
And what is right? In 1896, Charles Sheldon published a book by the title “In His Steps”. It is about the people in an urban church who committed, for one year, to always ask one question before making any decision, either professionally or personally – and the question was “What Would Jesus Do?” And it was not easy for any of them. Lucrative business careers became only a memory, relationships suffered and fell apart, a promising singing career was changed from a well paying secular one to one of tent revival meetings, the personal fortune that one person had was all given away. And yet, the movement gained momentum and grew and all who participated were blessed.
The phrase that was popularized in the book has become even more popular today. We see WWJD wrist bands and tee shirts and all kinds of products emblazoned with the logo. But I believe that it has all become too commercialized and it may even have become trite. After all, who among us can actually do the things that Jesus did?
And yet the concept has incredible merit. But I think that the question should be updated. I might suggest that we should be asking “What does Jesus want me to do?” It may not be as grand as the things that we read about in the gospels or the epistles. It may not be seen by others as all that important. But who are we trying to please anyway – the “good” people of society, or the good Lord who is always walking with us and blessing us?
An idle faith is no faith. A faith that is simply busy is no faith. But an active faith that is constantly responding to the call of Christ is faith, and it is what is right. Without an honest faith, we lose the right to sit with Christ at His banquet table, but when we walk in the” right” of God, we will feast on the Bread of Life and will be refreshed with His Living Water.
May we never, ever, EVER tire of doing what is right.
I have to confess that there are days when I would just as soon remain in bed instead of getting up to face the Lord and all that He has waiting for me. It’s not that I’m lazy, though – I just like to relax after a hard night of sleeping!
Have you ever had those days? When you would rather surrender to the call of the world instead of the one that comes from the Lord? When Israel finally arrived in the Promised Land, after the people who were already living there had been subdued, after they had their farms and vineyards and villages and cities established, the people decided that they wanted to trade in their Judges for a king, and their simple, but mobile tabernacle for a glorious and permanent temple, and then they expected to settle down for a much quieter existence. And in the process, they also traded their trust in God for more worldly pleasures.
Joseph McLelland, in his book “The Clown and the Crocodile”, writes:
“In many ways, if we depend upon our roots to define us, we create a rigid little outline of what our relationship to God is. We take on the attitudes, and accept the priorities of the communities in which we live. But what we gain in physical comforts we lose in spiritual exercise: It is far easier to grow lazy and complacent when we are rooted in a place.
Once you settle down on your own land, turn the humble tabernacle into a great temple, and exchange nomadic customs for agricultural and urban ways, it seems peculiar to pattern your life after a pilgrimage. Since you are not really going anywhere, you begin to think that God stays put, too. “
-Joseph C. McLelland, The Clown and the Crocodile (Richmond, Va.: John Knox Press, 1970), 56.
But God never stays put! He is never still! He is never complacent! He is constantly working in and through our lives – creating and recreating, renewing and refreshing, changing and redirecting. But He wouldn’t have to be recreating and refreshing and redirecting us if we would but stay on track with His leading. But unfortunately, human nature isn’t always attuned to the Spirit – we like to have our own way from time to time!
Read 2 Thessalonians 3:6-8
Now at first glance, it would seem that the people of the first century were not all that different from the people of today. Some were, and are, industrious, while others would, seemingly, prefer to let others provide for their every need. But before we begin to condemn the actions of too large a population, there are many who would like to be gainfully employed, but due to economic or other circumstances, are unable to find a job. That was true in Paul’s time, and it is true today.
So I would like to redefine the word “idle”. Even though Paul’s writing seems to be calling the people to be more active in earning their way in the world, I would like to offer once again the thought that scripture is always oriented toward inspiring us to be more in line with the things of God. So I believe that he is using an earthly analogy to tell us that we need to be more aware of what our faithful service is to be about - that “idle” isn’t so much about our secular employment as it is about our spiritual employment. And you are probably wondering just what spiritual employment is all about!
It means that no matter how much or how little we have, are we faithful stewards in whatever the Lord gives us? I am not implying that unless you give up all earthly employment, and give all of your time to the church, that you are a spiritual slacker! That is not my intent! I am saying, though, that if you think that an hour a week in worship is sufficient to show the Lord how much you appreciate Him, you are sadly mistaken! Paul writes that he and his entourage were busy “night and day, laboring and toiling so that [they] would not be a burden to any [one]” and that they never ate anything that they didn’t pay for.
- Trust me – they slept at times!
- Trust me – they preached and ministered to the people at all times!
They may have worked at a trade to partially defray the costs of their ministry, but people in the church were always helping them with lodging and other sustenance. But Paul and Silas and Timothy were busy all the time, and their time was used to spread the gospel of Jesus Christ to as many people in as many places as possible! And they were not in the habit of leaving any town with a full purse of money in their pocket!
Read 2 Thessalonians 3:9-12
Let’s continue with the theme that idleness and unemployment is in regards to faith and not necessarily in a worldly context. Vs. 10 – “If a man will not work, he shall not eat.” Think of this in a new way – “If a person will not give back to the Lord, should he continue to be blessed?” God expects so very little from us – He only asks that we show Him our gratitude by following His commandments. Love God with your entire being.
- Love others as if they were you. Treat others as you would like them to treat you. Make a friend, be a friend, bring your friend to Christ. Live the Great Commission
Now I know that these are not the specific commandments that we find in scripture, but if we truly try to do these few things, we, too, will be busy “night and day”! Paul wants us to have a true vision of what a life in Christ is really all about!
I worked at Link as a final inspector on the flight simulators for a year after I got out of the Navy, and one of the guys I worked with – Nick - was a quite a character. We had had a slack period one week, and when we caught up with the installations, we would sit down and visit until someone threw a job into our mail slot, and then we were back to work. One morning, a manager came in early, and saw us sitting around, and the next night there was an edict that if we weren’t busy, we should, at least, look busy. Nick picked up the gauntlet, and for the next 8 hours, he was extremely busy. He was constantly on the go, shuffling papers here and there, peering into cabinet after cabinet and trainer after trainer. At the end of the night, he turned to the rest of us, and confessed, almost sheepishly, that even though he had looked busy all night, he hadn’t inspected or cleared a single job, and that he was so tired that he would never do it again!
Paul’s intention was never that we should become exhausted in our Christian service, he never wanted us to suffer from burn out! But he does believe that the Lord wants us to do what is right, in the eyes of God of course, and not in ours. He wants us to be alive in His plan and to be lively in the goals that He sets. And His plan will never tire us out – and in all truth, it will invigorate us.
Anthony Robbins is a self help author and lecturer. He writes “People are not lazy. They simply have impotent goals; that is, goals that do not inspire them.”
—Anthony Robbins.
Do you felt inspired in your walk with Jesus? Or do you fit the model that Paul offers in verse 11 – “We hear that some among you are idle. They are not busy; they are busybodies.” Busybodies are just that – busy in body, busy in the things of earth, but idle in the things of God.
Read 2 Thessalonians 3:13-15
“Never tire of doing what is right.”
- When we hear of a brother or sister who is struggling in their faith, may we never tire of doing what is right.
- When we know of a homeless person who is shivering in the cold, and hungry for anything to eat, may we never tire of doing what is right.
- When we sense that the Lord is calling us to reach out to a neighbor who is suffering due to a great loss in their life, may we never tire of doing what is right.
- When our friend, or even more importantly our child, is caught up in the throes of an addiction or deeply immersed in a sinful existence, may we never, EVER tire of doing what is right.
And what is right? In 1896, Charles Sheldon published a book by the title “In His Steps”. It is about the people in an urban church who committed, for one year, to always ask one question before making any decision, either professionally or personally – and the question was “What Would Jesus Do?” And it was not easy for any of them. Lucrative business careers became only a memory, relationships suffered and fell apart, a promising singing career was changed from a well paying secular one to one of tent revival meetings, the personal fortune that one person had was all given away. And yet, the movement gained momentum and grew and all who participated were blessed.
The phrase that was popularized in the book has become even more popular today. We see WWJD wrist bands and tee shirts and all kinds of products emblazoned with the logo. But I believe that it has all become too commercialized and it may even have become trite. After all, who among us can actually do the things that Jesus did?
And yet the concept has incredible merit. But I think that the question should be updated. I might suggest that we should be asking “What does Jesus want me to do?” It may not be as grand as the things that we read about in the gospels or the epistles. It may not be seen by others as all that important. But who are we trying to please anyway – the “good” people of society, or the good Lord who is always walking with us and blessing us?
An idle faith is no faith. A faith that is simply busy is no faith. But an active faith that is constantly responding to the call of Christ is faith, and it is what is right. Without an honest faith, we lose the right to sit with Christ at His banquet table, but when we walk in the” right” of God, we will feast on the Bread of Life and will be refreshed with His Living Water.
May we never, ever, EVER tire of doing what is right.
Sunday, November 14, 2010
“Don’t Worry – He’s on His Way!”
Scripture: 2 Thessalonians 2:1-12
While our passage today is generally seen in connection with “end times”, I believe that it is more accurately a warning and a cry to the Church of today. 2 Thessalonians is a call to be aware of false teaching and false prophecy. It is a call to persevere in the things of earth - the oppressions, the pains and failures, the lies and deceits and to look forward to the day when Christ will return to claim his people. The Christian Church, during the last half of the 1st century, was all wrapped up in great anticipation of the Second Coming. All that Jesus had preached regarding the Last Days seemed to be coming true. There were wars of tyranny and repression against His people, hatred for the Church was becoming more and more a way of life, the temple in Jerusalem would be destroyed in 70 BC and not a stone would be left standing – everything pointed toward the fact that Satan was running about unrestrained, and therefore a few interpreted this as a sign that the Day of Judgment was imminent – or at least they hoped that it was! A New Testament scholar by the name of Helmut Koester described this time as one immersed in “apocalyptic fervor”.
Read 2 Thessalonians 2:1-3
The Church at Thessalonica was getting all riled up, and they were neglecting the ministries of the day. Fear was settling in – were they fully prepared to meet the Living Christ? They were getting agitated – do our teachers really know what they’re talking about? They were more focused on how God was going to punish their oppressors than they were on their faithful servanthood in Christ! They were sacrificing their walk with the Lord in favor of the hysteria that the false teachings were creating.
Some were even saying that the Day of the Lord had already come! Of course, there was no evidence of that – if Jesus had already returned, where was He? Why didn’t the entire Church know this? Why wasn’t anyone seeing Him? Talking to Him? Falling at His feet and praising Him?
Paul tells them that they are being deceived with the lies of a few – that Christ won’t be returning until the satanic rebellion occurs and Satan’s own man appears to claim authority.
And today isn’t much different. We hear them all the time. "The End is near!" "Christ’s return is just around the corner!" "The signs of tyranny and hatred and darkness and calamity are all around us – how can you possibly not believe that the time has come?"
While Jesus walked among us, He confessed that even He didn’t even know the time or day – He simply knew that it would be. What makes people, spread all over the past 2,000 years, think they can know something that even Jesus didn’t know? The truth is that we don’t want to even imagine that things are going to get worse than they already are! But before the Antichrist is revealed, they are going to! The loss of personal liberties,
the hatred of the earth toward Church, the dominance of paganistic beliefs
– it will get worse before the “man of lawlessness” comes, and even worse than that, after he returns!
Read 2 Thessalonians 2:4-7
The lawless one – Antichrist – will set himself up as God on earth. He will have the full power and authority of Satan, and will do everything that he can to mislead the people of this planet. But for now, his activity is being curtailed. There is a power that, as Paul describes it, is “holding him back”. But even as Antichrist waits for his time to come, there is still evil at work in the world.
And that seems to be the sticking point. Throughout the years, many people have seen the activity of demons as proof of antichrist. But it isn’t. They experience a mounting sense of anti-Christian activity in society, and believe that it is proof of antichrist. And it isn’t. They see world leaders take power and begin governing in decidedly un-Christian ways, and they are said to be antichrist. They aren’t. As bad a shape as the world is in, it’s nowhere near to being like the days before the End.
Think about the periods in history when life was as bad or worse than it is now. Consider the 200 years of Christian crusades, in which hundreds of thousands of people, including thousands of children, died for a misplaced glory. Consider the hundreds of years and thousands of lives that were brutalized during the period of Inquisitions. And all in the name of Christ! Consider the countless people of Africa, who were torn out of their homes and away from their families, for the sole purpose of lining the pockets of slave traders and slave owners. Consider the millions of Jews and others who died in Nazi concentration camps, in the name of racial purity.
It has been worse in the past than it is today. And yet we still hear of people who claim that Antichrist has already been released into the world.
Read 2 Thessalonians 2:8-12
In God’s time – Kairos vs. Chronos – immeasurable time, vs. a given time – the force that holds Antichrist back, will be removed, and, to use a phrase, all hell will break loose! He will set himself up as God, with the true God being set aside. He will do many miraculous signs through the power of Satan, and many will be deceived into thinking that he really is divine!
And non believers will sink even deeper into the depths of darkness, and the Lord will not be throwing them a life line. The time for second chances, the time for forgiveness, will have passed. Vs. 12 – “… all will be condemned who have not believed the truth but have delighted in wickedness.” And even worse, The Lord’s words to the church in Laodicea (Revelation 3:14-22) tell us “So, because you are lukewarm – neither hot nor cold – I am about to spit you out of my mouth.”
Even those in the church who are coming up short on faith will receive His condemnation. This will not be a pleasant time!
The coming of Antichrist will be unmistakable, and, obviously, the time has not yet arrived. So if we still have time, so what if we haven’t made that commitment to Christ? Why worry? There’s always tomorrow!
The truth is that the time gets closer every moment of every day, and no one has insight into when that Day will be. Suffice it to say that when Antichrist is revealed to the world, it will be too late to choose Jesus. So what are we to do until then?
Our job is evangelism – sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ with as many people as is humanly possible. We have to let others know that not only is more pain on the way, but salvation and eternal life in the name of Jesus Christ is, too! And He will trump Satan – His way will win out! Even though the earth will be devastated, those who are in Christ will have no need to worry! This is the message for today!
And you’re thinking – “But I could never do that!” But we must, and we can! And we are able to do that, not through our own means, but through the leading of the Holy Spirit. We must show the love of Christ to others in new and unplanned ways. It will require our being the reflection of Jesus Christ in uncomfortable ways. It will necessitate the living of a new kind of life – one that is totally unlike that which other people live. It may even mean that we will have to use scripture to reveal the truth of God in Christ. Now there’s a novel approach!
But regardless of how we convey that message, it means that we no longer have the option to wait. Our salvation can’t wait, and our leading others to Christ can’t wait. A few weeks ago I challenged you to greet others with the phrase “Take a risk for Jesus”. And recently, several have been reminding me of those words (It looks like I need to be very careful about what I tell you from up here! Some of you remember my words very well!) And I think I’m supposed to challenge you once more.
And the challenge is this: Don’t be careful! Don’t hesitate! Don’t worry! Don’t be afraid to take that risk! Reach out to all who are perishing because of the lies of society, and through their embrace of false teaching, and for their failure to surrender to the love of Christ, and through their belief that there is always tomorrow.
Don’t gamble with the Lord’s offer of eternal life. There is only one gift of truth, and that is God’s. And one of His time honored warnings is this –
“Falsehood often comes wrapped in the same garb as truth.”
- New Interpreter Bible
That is what the deception is all about. But Christ’s own have a vision that can see through the falsehoods, and we are each called to share that vision with others – perhaps those in our families, maybe those we work with, possibly a neighbor or someone else who we know very well. Maybe all of these! Let them know that the Body of Christ is for them, and that Jesus is the only one who can destroy our “worry”!
Regardless, share the word that our glorious Lord has handed down to you today. Be a true friend to this hurting world – introduce them to Jesus.
He’s on the way, you know.
While our passage today is generally seen in connection with “end times”, I believe that it is more accurately a warning and a cry to the Church of today. 2 Thessalonians is a call to be aware of false teaching and false prophecy. It is a call to persevere in the things of earth - the oppressions, the pains and failures, the lies and deceits and to look forward to the day when Christ will return to claim his people. The Christian Church, during the last half of the 1st century, was all wrapped up in great anticipation of the Second Coming. All that Jesus had preached regarding the Last Days seemed to be coming true. There were wars of tyranny and repression against His people, hatred for the Church was becoming more and more a way of life, the temple in Jerusalem would be destroyed in 70 BC and not a stone would be left standing – everything pointed toward the fact that Satan was running about unrestrained, and therefore a few interpreted this as a sign that the Day of Judgment was imminent – or at least they hoped that it was! A New Testament scholar by the name of Helmut Koester described this time as one immersed in “apocalyptic fervor”.
Read 2 Thessalonians 2:1-3
The Church at Thessalonica was getting all riled up, and they were neglecting the ministries of the day. Fear was settling in – were they fully prepared to meet the Living Christ? They were getting agitated – do our teachers really know what they’re talking about? They were more focused on how God was going to punish their oppressors than they were on their faithful servanthood in Christ! They were sacrificing their walk with the Lord in favor of the hysteria that the false teachings were creating.
Some were even saying that the Day of the Lord had already come! Of course, there was no evidence of that – if Jesus had already returned, where was He? Why didn’t the entire Church know this? Why wasn’t anyone seeing Him? Talking to Him? Falling at His feet and praising Him?
Paul tells them that they are being deceived with the lies of a few – that Christ won’t be returning until the satanic rebellion occurs and Satan’s own man appears to claim authority.
And today isn’t much different. We hear them all the time. "The End is near!" "Christ’s return is just around the corner!" "The signs of tyranny and hatred and darkness and calamity are all around us – how can you possibly not believe that the time has come?"
While Jesus walked among us, He confessed that even He didn’t even know the time or day – He simply knew that it would be. What makes people, spread all over the past 2,000 years, think they can know something that even Jesus didn’t know? The truth is that we don’t want to even imagine that things are going to get worse than they already are! But before the Antichrist is revealed, they are going to! The loss of personal liberties,
the hatred of the earth toward Church, the dominance of paganistic beliefs
– it will get worse before the “man of lawlessness” comes, and even worse than that, after he returns!
Read 2 Thessalonians 2:4-7
The lawless one – Antichrist – will set himself up as God on earth. He will have the full power and authority of Satan, and will do everything that he can to mislead the people of this planet. But for now, his activity is being curtailed. There is a power that, as Paul describes it, is “holding him back”. But even as Antichrist waits for his time to come, there is still evil at work in the world.
And that seems to be the sticking point. Throughout the years, many people have seen the activity of demons as proof of antichrist. But it isn’t. They experience a mounting sense of anti-Christian activity in society, and believe that it is proof of antichrist. And it isn’t. They see world leaders take power and begin governing in decidedly un-Christian ways, and they are said to be antichrist. They aren’t. As bad a shape as the world is in, it’s nowhere near to being like the days before the End.
Think about the periods in history when life was as bad or worse than it is now. Consider the 200 years of Christian crusades, in which hundreds of thousands of people, including thousands of children, died for a misplaced glory. Consider the hundreds of years and thousands of lives that were brutalized during the period of Inquisitions. And all in the name of Christ! Consider the countless people of Africa, who were torn out of their homes and away from their families, for the sole purpose of lining the pockets of slave traders and slave owners. Consider the millions of Jews and others who died in Nazi concentration camps, in the name of racial purity.
It has been worse in the past than it is today. And yet we still hear of people who claim that Antichrist has already been released into the world.
Read 2 Thessalonians 2:8-12
In God’s time – Kairos vs. Chronos – immeasurable time, vs. a given time – the force that holds Antichrist back, will be removed, and, to use a phrase, all hell will break loose! He will set himself up as God, with the true God being set aside. He will do many miraculous signs through the power of Satan, and many will be deceived into thinking that he really is divine!
And non believers will sink even deeper into the depths of darkness, and the Lord will not be throwing them a life line. The time for second chances, the time for forgiveness, will have passed. Vs. 12 – “… all will be condemned who have not believed the truth but have delighted in wickedness.” And even worse, The Lord’s words to the church in Laodicea (Revelation 3:14-22) tell us “So, because you are lukewarm – neither hot nor cold – I am about to spit you out of my mouth.”
Even those in the church who are coming up short on faith will receive His condemnation. This will not be a pleasant time!
The coming of Antichrist will be unmistakable, and, obviously, the time has not yet arrived. So if we still have time, so what if we haven’t made that commitment to Christ? Why worry? There’s always tomorrow!
The truth is that the time gets closer every moment of every day, and no one has insight into when that Day will be. Suffice it to say that when Antichrist is revealed to the world, it will be too late to choose Jesus. So what are we to do until then?
Our job is evangelism – sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ with as many people as is humanly possible. We have to let others know that not only is more pain on the way, but salvation and eternal life in the name of Jesus Christ is, too! And He will trump Satan – His way will win out! Even though the earth will be devastated, those who are in Christ will have no need to worry! This is the message for today!
And you’re thinking – “But I could never do that!” But we must, and we can! And we are able to do that, not through our own means, but through the leading of the Holy Spirit. We must show the love of Christ to others in new and unplanned ways. It will require our being the reflection of Jesus Christ in uncomfortable ways. It will necessitate the living of a new kind of life – one that is totally unlike that which other people live. It may even mean that we will have to use scripture to reveal the truth of God in Christ. Now there’s a novel approach!
But regardless of how we convey that message, it means that we no longer have the option to wait. Our salvation can’t wait, and our leading others to Christ can’t wait. A few weeks ago I challenged you to greet others with the phrase “Take a risk for Jesus”. And recently, several have been reminding me of those words (It looks like I need to be very careful about what I tell you from up here! Some of you remember my words very well!) And I think I’m supposed to challenge you once more.
And the challenge is this: Don’t be careful! Don’t hesitate! Don’t worry! Don’t be afraid to take that risk! Reach out to all who are perishing because of the lies of society, and through their embrace of false teaching, and for their failure to surrender to the love of Christ, and through their belief that there is always tomorrow.
Don’t gamble with the Lord’s offer of eternal life. There is only one gift of truth, and that is God’s. And one of His time honored warnings is this –
“Falsehood often comes wrapped in the same garb as truth.”
- New Interpreter Bible
That is what the deception is all about. But Christ’s own have a vision that can see through the falsehoods, and we are each called to share that vision with others – perhaps those in our families, maybe those we work with, possibly a neighbor or someone else who we know very well. Maybe all of these! Let them know that the Body of Christ is for them, and that Jesus is the only one who can destroy our “worry”!
Regardless, share the word that our glorious Lord has handed down to you today. Be a true friend to this hurting world – introduce them to Jesus.
He’s on the way, you know.
Sunday, November 7, 2010
“The Blessed”
Scripture: Luke 6:20-31
Some people see scripture simply as evidence of Immanuel - that God is with us. And while it certainly is that evidence, I believe that it must be much more. The Word of God must also be insight into the Lord’s plan, his desire for our lives, and it teaches us right and convicts us of wrong and changes the life that we are so bent on living.
The gospels are a good example of this. Jesus is seen healing the injured and the infirm, he reveals the depth of the truth of God, and he is constantly challenging both his followers and his tormentors to live a different kind of existence.
His life is the very proof that God is with us, but if there is no call to change, if we are allowed to continue living a worldly life while in the presence of a divine Lord, then what is the point?
But I also have to confess that as I read the word more and more, I have to dig deeper and deeper into its meaning for my life. What is it that Jesus wants me to know? What is it that he wants me to do?
Maybe he simply wants me to be more like him!
Read Luke 6:20-23
Last week, I read from Romans 5 – “we rejoice in our suffering..” Our passage today seems to be taking the same tack, except that Romans describes the change that enduring suffering will bring to our lives, while this passage is about the future rewards that will come to those who must struggle now.
Jesus tells us that the poor are to inherit the Kingdom, the hungry will be fed, the sorrowful will be filled with great joy.
This can’t be about today – the poor are still with us, the hungry are still hungry, and the tears of grief and regret still flow, but that doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t be doing something about these conditions now! We could probably spend a week on each of these issues, considering what we should be doing about them in the here and now! But that may be the topic for a future series. For today, we’ll take them as a whole.
Jesus is telling us that these conditions are only temporary, and more importantly, that they are not of him, but of the world. And verses 22 and 23 remind us that we aren’t alone. That while the world has hated and discriminated against and snubbed and demeaned his beloved for ages, God is seeing them in a whole different light. His promise is that one day, all will be changed.
The New Interpreter’s Bible says this about the passage “Jesus teachings are scandalous because they overturn every conventional expectation. The scandal of his ministry is that he associated with outcasts, and it was on them that he pronounced God’s blessings.”
Scandal, of course, is from the secular perspective, and it is all because Jesus is about the overturn the “conventional wisdom” of the earth, that all things will be made new!
Isaiah 61 begins with the words “The Spirit of the sovereign Lord is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me to preach good news to the poor.” And the chapter then goes on to list all of the pains and troubles that haunt us in this life, and to describe the restoration that God is going to bring to the oppressed. The expectations of earth are expressed in that famous bumper sticker – “Those who die with the most toys wins!” Jesus overturns that saying, and makes it read “Those who die with the most toys just die, but my people will live forever!” And we can rejoice, even in our suffering, for we have Christ’s promise that the day of “overturning” is on its way!
Read Luke 6:24-26
And the “overturning” will not be limited to only those who have been oppressed. Those who have been the oppressors, and even those who have turned a blind eye to the oppression, will also have a reversal of fortune.
John Killinger, in his book on the Beatitudes (Letting God Bless You [Nashville: Abingdon, 1992], 74, cites Herman Melville's Moby Dick, the great novel about the American whaling industry of the 19th century.
There is an unforgettable passage about a ship's lantern that hung in the captain's room on the Pequod. No matter which way the ship yawed and hawed in the rolling, pitching waves, the lantern always hung down exactly perpendicular to a line drawn through the center of the earth. As Melville said, it 'revealed the false, lying levels' of everything around it.
So it is with Christ.
- Homeletics OnLine
Amos (7:7-8) also speaks about the measuring and plumb lines for Israel, and God has set a reference for us, too. Jesus tells us that those who have received the pleasures of this life are not meeting his standard. The prophets of old received the enmity of earth, and the false prophets of all time receive the accolades.
Have you noticed that we never seem to get it right? Every person in the world is too much like the ship in Melville’s tale – we tend to rock and pitch wherever the winds of life take us, and we fail to meet the standard that is set before us in Christ!
This, too, will be overturned! Jesus Christ reveals the false and lying intents of everything around us, and it’s there for all to see.
Read Luke 6:27-31
Jewish theologian Abraham Heschel writes that God needs not only sympathy and comfort, but partners, silent warriors. We not only need God for help, but God also needs us for help.
God does not need those who praise him when in a state of euphoria. He needs those who are in love with him when in distress....
This is the task: in the darkest night to be certain of the dawn, certain of the power to turn a curse into a blessing, agony into a song. To know the monster's rage and, in spite of it, proclaim to its face (even a monster will be transfigured into an angel); to go through hell and to continue to trust in the goodness of God - this is the challenge and the way.
(Heschel, A Passion for Truth [New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1973], 300-301)
Love your enemies, even if they will never love you.
Do good to those who hate you, even if they keep all of their goodness for themselves.
Bless those who curse you, even if they will never deserve your blessing.
Pray for those who mistreat you, even if their abuse is endless.
If anyone strikes you, don’t retaliate – even if they continue to swing.
If they demand your coat, surprise them by giving them your shirt, too.
Whatever they may need so badly, give them even more – let your generosity toward the world mimic that which you would like God to shown to you.
This is what the blessed of God are called to be, and if anyone ever tells you that only weaklings can be a Christian, know that only the strong, the faithful of Christ can ever stand up to the standard that God has set for us; that the Body of Christ gains its strength and resolve, not by individual efforts, but by being united in Christ Himself; and not by physical dominance but by spiritual grace.
William Barclay writes “We have a Christian duty to encourage one another. Many a time words of praise or thanks or appreciation or cheer have kept people on their feet. Blessed is the one who speaks such a word.”
Receive God’s blessings, not for personal gain, but to be able to share those blessings with those who are without. Be the Lord’s partner, and begin overturning the “conventional expectations” of the world today.
Some people see scripture simply as evidence of Immanuel - that God is with us. And while it certainly is that evidence, I believe that it must be much more. The Word of God must also be insight into the Lord’s plan, his desire for our lives, and it teaches us right and convicts us of wrong and changes the life that we are so bent on living.
The gospels are a good example of this. Jesus is seen healing the injured and the infirm, he reveals the depth of the truth of God, and he is constantly challenging both his followers and his tormentors to live a different kind of existence.
His life is the very proof that God is with us, but if there is no call to change, if we are allowed to continue living a worldly life while in the presence of a divine Lord, then what is the point?
But I also have to confess that as I read the word more and more, I have to dig deeper and deeper into its meaning for my life. What is it that Jesus wants me to know? What is it that he wants me to do?
Maybe he simply wants me to be more like him!
Read Luke 6:20-23
Last week, I read from Romans 5 – “we rejoice in our suffering..” Our passage today seems to be taking the same tack, except that Romans describes the change that enduring suffering will bring to our lives, while this passage is about the future rewards that will come to those who must struggle now.
Jesus tells us that the poor are to inherit the Kingdom, the hungry will be fed, the sorrowful will be filled with great joy.
This can’t be about today – the poor are still with us, the hungry are still hungry, and the tears of grief and regret still flow, but that doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t be doing something about these conditions now! We could probably spend a week on each of these issues, considering what we should be doing about them in the here and now! But that may be the topic for a future series. For today, we’ll take them as a whole.
Jesus is telling us that these conditions are only temporary, and more importantly, that they are not of him, but of the world. And verses 22 and 23 remind us that we aren’t alone. That while the world has hated and discriminated against and snubbed and demeaned his beloved for ages, God is seeing them in a whole different light. His promise is that one day, all will be changed.
The New Interpreter’s Bible says this about the passage “Jesus teachings are scandalous because they overturn every conventional expectation. The scandal of his ministry is that he associated with outcasts, and it was on them that he pronounced God’s blessings.”
Scandal, of course, is from the secular perspective, and it is all because Jesus is about the overturn the “conventional wisdom” of the earth, that all things will be made new!
Isaiah 61 begins with the words “The Spirit of the sovereign Lord is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me to preach good news to the poor.” And the chapter then goes on to list all of the pains and troubles that haunt us in this life, and to describe the restoration that God is going to bring to the oppressed. The expectations of earth are expressed in that famous bumper sticker – “Those who die with the most toys wins!” Jesus overturns that saying, and makes it read “Those who die with the most toys just die, but my people will live forever!” And we can rejoice, even in our suffering, for we have Christ’s promise that the day of “overturning” is on its way!
Read Luke 6:24-26
And the “overturning” will not be limited to only those who have been oppressed. Those who have been the oppressors, and even those who have turned a blind eye to the oppression, will also have a reversal of fortune.
John Killinger, in his book on the Beatitudes (Letting God Bless You [Nashville: Abingdon, 1992], 74, cites Herman Melville's Moby Dick, the great novel about the American whaling industry of the 19th century.
There is an unforgettable passage about a ship's lantern that hung in the captain's room on the Pequod. No matter which way the ship yawed and hawed in the rolling, pitching waves, the lantern always hung down exactly perpendicular to a line drawn through the center of the earth. As Melville said, it 'revealed the false, lying levels' of everything around it.
So it is with Christ.
- Homeletics OnLine
Amos (7:7-8) also speaks about the measuring and plumb lines for Israel, and God has set a reference for us, too. Jesus tells us that those who have received the pleasures of this life are not meeting his standard. The prophets of old received the enmity of earth, and the false prophets of all time receive the accolades.
Have you noticed that we never seem to get it right? Every person in the world is too much like the ship in Melville’s tale – we tend to rock and pitch wherever the winds of life take us, and we fail to meet the standard that is set before us in Christ!
This, too, will be overturned! Jesus Christ reveals the false and lying intents of everything around us, and it’s there for all to see.
Read Luke 6:27-31
Jewish theologian Abraham Heschel writes that God needs not only sympathy and comfort, but partners, silent warriors. We not only need God for help, but God also needs us for help.
God does not need those who praise him when in a state of euphoria. He needs those who are in love with him when in distress....
This is the task: in the darkest night to be certain of the dawn, certain of the power to turn a curse into a blessing, agony into a song. To know the monster's rage and, in spite of it, proclaim to its face (even a monster will be transfigured into an angel); to go through hell and to continue to trust in the goodness of God - this is the challenge and the way.
(Heschel, A Passion for Truth [New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1973], 300-301)
Love your enemies, even if they will never love you.
Do good to those who hate you, even if they keep all of their goodness for themselves.
Bless those who curse you, even if they will never deserve your blessing.
Pray for those who mistreat you, even if their abuse is endless.
If anyone strikes you, don’t retaliate – even if they continue to swing.
If they demand your coat, surprise them by giving them your shirt, too.
Whatever they may need so badly, give them even more – let your generosity toward the world mimic that which you would like God to shown to you.
This is what the blessed of God are called to be, and if anyone ever tells you that only weaklings can be a Christian, know that only the strong, the faithful of Christ can ever stand up to the standard that God has set for us; that the Body of Christ gains its strength and resolve, not by individual efforts, but by being united in Christ Himself; and not by physical dominance but by spiritual grace.
William Barclay writes “We have a Christian duty to encourage one another. Many a time words of praise or thanks or appreciation or cheer have kept people on their feet. Blessed is the one who speaks such a word.”
Receive God’s blessings, not for personal gain, but to be able to share those blessings with those who are without. Be the Lord’s partner, and begin overturning the “conventional expectations” of the world today.
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