As I read over the rest of chapter one, it occurred to me that the author was trying to set a tone. He was wanting to make a point, but didn't want to just come out and say it. Perhaps the point was so well ingrained in his own experience that he didn't feel the need to articulate it. We will probably never know.
But two big issues seem to be setting up for a showdown in this story.
First was his teaching. We don't really know what the author meant by "teaching with authority" It could be any number of things. Perhaps he spoke with certainty. We know from our own experiences that a group can get bogged down over the details and miss the big picture. I suspect he spoke to core truths and the application of those truths in a such a way that the people in the synagogue and the river's edge all felt that God was speaking to them. It is very refreshing, and rare when a preacher can stick to the core truth and explain it in a way that it can applied. Jesus must have had a great deal of that simplistic theology that we all crave.
Secondly, he seems to have an axe to grind with the demons. Three times in the first chapter it is either told in a direct way or mentioned that he was casting out demons. Casting to them to where I don't know, but they were being dealt with in a manner that apparently the people had not seen before.
Here is my point. The teaching of Jesus was not a script for sin-management, it was a battle cry to a spiritual war. Jesus fully understood that his mission would come into conflict with the one-who-destroys. Do you wonder why it says that Jesus was "indignant" that the leper came to him? It was because the leper represented the decay of the spiritual forces on the other side.
The early teaching of Jesus is the opening salvo from the side of righteousness that had been silent for a very long time.
God, help us see the conflict for what it is, good vs. evil, spiritual vs. temporal. Open our eyes and lead us into the fray.
Don
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
Thursday, January 19, 2012
Two Stories
In my business we have what we call "launches." Someone will come up with a new idea or a new product and will have to decide how to announce this new product or service to the industry. A great deal of time and resources is dedicated to making sure the launch is successful. There are soft launches where the product or service is restricted to a few, then there are hard launches where the entire concept is rolled out with significant fanfare. Sometimes there is a combination or usage of both.
As I read and thought about this small opening in the story a couple of things struck me. "After John was put in prison..." An end to a prophesied ministry and he gets half a sentence? The other gospel versions go into a little more detail, but the author here simply uses the phrase to soft launch the ministry of Jesus. You don't need two voices, one is enough. But one sentence. It tells me again that the mission of God is more important to Him than the missionaries. We should never forget this.
And the message was the same and different. Repent and be ready for the true one, was the message from John. Repent, the time has come was the new message. And it is a message that is "good news" Repent and get ready or repent and be ready. This is a subtle shift in message. Could John have made that shift? I don't know, but I do know that Jesus brings a new urgency to the message.
Then the selection of the following. Why these guys. Since they were already back at work for their fathers it is possible they were as young as 15 or so, and possibly as old as 20. All were Sunday school drop-outs, none were going to make "rabbi" They had long since given up on that prospect. My guess is that they were young enough for most to be single, but old enough to be working in the family business. Mark in his usual style says they just dropped what they were doing and followed. The other gospels tell us this was at least the third interaction with Jesus. They had heard him and heard his message. Now what were they going to do?
I am always a little skeptical when people tell me they can convince an unbeliever in a meeting or a short conversation. It takes a little time to understand the enormity of the decision.
By the way, great hallway discussions on the sequence of baptism. Make disciples, baptize them, commission them. We tend to herd them into the baptistry, then hope they can pick up the disciple part by osmosis, and we have long defined mission as just showing up.
God, give us the ears to hear the true message. I pray that our repentance is sincere and sufficient. Amen
Don
As I read and thought about this small opening in the story a couple of things struck me. "After John was put in prison..." An end to a prophesied ministry and he gets half a sentence? The other gospel versions go into a little more detail, but the author here simply uses the phrase to soft launch the ministry of Jesus. You don't need two voices, one is enough. But one sentence. It tells me again that the mission of God is more important to Him than the missionaries. We should never forget this.
And the message was the same and different. Repent and be ready for the true one, was the message from John. Repent, the time has come was the new message. And it is a message that is "good news" Repent and get ready or repent and be ready. This is a subtle shift in message. Could John have made that shift? I don't know, but I do know that Jesus brings a new urgency to the message.
Then the selection of the following. Why these guys. Since they were already back at work for their fathers it is possible they were as young as 15 or so, and possibly as old as 20. All were Sunday school drop-outs, none were going to make "rabbi" They had long since given up on that prospect. My guess is that they were young enough for most to be single, but old enough to be working in the family business. Mark in his usual style says they just dropped what they were doing and followed. The other gospels tell us this was at least the third interaction with Jesus. They had heard him and heard his message. Now what were they going to do?
I am always a little skeptical when people tell me they can convince an unbeliever in a meeting or a short conversation. It takes a little time to understand the enormity of the decision.
By the way, great hallway discussions on the sequence of baptism. Make disciples, baptize them, commission them. We tend to herd them into the baptistry, then hope they can pick up the disciple part by osmosis, and we have long defined mission as just showing up.
God, give us the ears to hear the true message. I pray that our repentance is sincere and sufficient. Amen
Don
Wednesday, January 11, 2012
Highs and Lows
There is terrible temptation to skim over the event of Jesus' baptism. We have heard it from our youngest days. You remember the flannel boards? The cutout of Jesus and John, the Jordan river running across the board, then the dove dropping down from the top edge. By the way, the dove always seemed a little over sized to me. Proportionally it was more the size of a turkey, but I digress. We have heard the story time and again, so we tend to scoot past the elements of the event.
One thing has lingered with me all these years, though. Why? Why would the son of God need to be baptized? We get little hints, Matthew mentions righteousness, we have been told of the prophesies, I get the "example to us" relevance. But somehow my understanding of baptism seems to cloud the reasons for the "sinless One" to have to subject himself to this tradition. Perhaps we can explore that more in class.
But this story is in two parts, and they are not separate. Jesus then went into the wilderness to "be tempted by Satan" This was not an accident. It was intentional. Tempting, testing, these are words of proof. Will this person be able to handle the mantle of Savior-hood? This makes me a little queasy to wonder about the failure of Jesus. Could it have happened? Would the mission of God have been subverted if Jesus had failed in some way? If you say that there was no way he could fail, then the temptation was not real, and we are being manipulated by the writer. Temptation to be true temptation has to have the option of going either way. Oysters on the half-shell hold no temptation for me at all, but show me a little of the cleavage from a danish and I have to stop and make a very real effort to leave the danish alone. The first is not my problem, the second one can be a huge problem. We have to assume that when scripture says Jesus was tempted, then he seriously considered the lower road.
Read the scripture again and see if it doesn't make you a little uneasy..it does me.
Lord, help us understand the heights of your joy for your son, and the fear that you experienced during his wilderness time. Amen.
Don
One thing has lingered with me all these years, though. Why? Why would the son of God need to be baptized? We get little hints, Matthew mentions righteousness, we have been told of the prophesies, I get the "example to us" relevance. But somehow my understanding of baptism seems to cloud the reasons for the "sinless One" to have to subject himself to this tradition. Perhaps we can explore that more in class.
But this story is in two parts, and they are not separate. Jesus then went into the wilderness to "be tempted by Satan" This was not an accident. It was intentional. Tempting, testing, these are words of proof. Will this person be able to handle the mantle of Savior-hood? This makes me a little queasy to wonder about the failure of Jesus. Could it have happened? Would the mission of God have been subverted if Jesus had failed in some way? If you say that there was no way he could fail, then the temptation was not real, and we are being manipulated by the writer. Temptation to be true temptation has to have the option of going either way. Oysters on the half-shell hold no temptation for me at all, but show me a little of the cleavage from a danish and I have to stop and make a very real effort to leave the danish alone. The first is not my problem, the second one can be a huge problem. We have to assume that when scripture says Jesus was tempted, then he seriously considered the lower road.
Read the scripture again and see if it doesn't make you a little uneasy..it does me.
Lord, help us understand the heights of your joy for your son, and the fear that you experienced during his wilderness time. Amen.
Don
Wednesday, January 4, 2012
Growing Storm and Sudden Impact Mark 1:1-8
The author creates an interesting tension at the beginning of the story. He says that this is "The Beginning of the good news (Gospel)" Here is where it starts. No star, no virgin, no census, no wise men, no manger. The starting line is here, the finish line is the empty tomb. This strikes me as odd. From Matthew and Luke we see a preamble to the ministry, we get to see the buildup, a little back story. Not here. The author makes the very clear message that what was said in the Old Book is now in full evidence in the New Book. Sudden Impact..we are thrown into the meat of the story much as Peter did in Acts. It starts here.
But he chooses a place to start that is sure to make Jewish readers uncomfortable. All the descriptions of John's ministry bring back haunting reflections of the old prophets. The way he dresses wearing camel's hair and a leather belt were clear reflections back to Isaiah and Elijah. He lived off the land because the culture would not support him and he wanted to obligations to those he was going to preach to.
His message was simple, repent. This was a message that played itself out in the minds and lives of the Jews. The old prophets always called for repentance. They knew and God's people knew that every time they repented God forgave, then blessed. Time and time again the Old Book, they were asked to repent, then be redeemed, and the formula was never changed, first repentance then redemption. The second part of his message was equally chilling..After me comes one more powerful. This ministry will continue on. You may ignore me, but you will not be able to ignore him. Turn a blind spiritual eye at your own risk. The storm clouds gather.
But John the Baptiser added a small twist that would not be lost on the religious minded of the day. Baptism by water. They were familiar with this event. Gentiles for centuries had converted to Judaism by being baptized, it was a precursor to the circumcision that sometimes followed. Surely John the Baptiser was not asking them to submit to a gentile requirement? How could this be? Are you kidding? How humiliating. It would be the first gusts of wind that would change the world and eternity.
Sudden change brought by a reminder of prophets of old. The journey has begun.
God, through your Spirit open our minds and our hearts. Let us be led by the prophets you send us and changed by the words and methods you devise.
Amen
But he chooses a place to start that is sure to make Jewish readers uncomfortable. All the descriptions of John's ministry bring back haunting reflections of the old prophets. The way he dresses wearing camel's hair and a leather belt were clear reflections back to Isaiah and Elijah. He lived off the land because the culture would not support him and he wanted to obligations to those he was going to preach to.
His message was simple, repent. This was a message that played itself out in the minds and lives of the Jews. The old prophets always called for repentance. They knew and God's people knew that every time they repented God forgave, then blessed. Time and time again the Old Book, they were asked to repent, then be redeemed, and the formula was never changed, first repentance then redemption. The second part of his message was equally chilling..After me comes one more powerful. This ministry will continue on. You may ignore me, but you will not be able to ignore him. Turn a blind spiritual eye at your own risk. The storm clouds gather.
But John the Baptiser added a small twist that would not be lost on the religious minded of the day. Baptism by water. They were familiar with this event. Gentiles for centuries had converted to Judaism by being baptized, it was a precursor to the circumcision that sometimes followed. Surely John the Baptiser was not asking them to submit to a gentile requirement? How could this be? Are you kidding? How humiliating. It would be the first gusts of wind that would change the world and eternity.
Sudden change brought by a reminder of prophets of old. The journey has begun.
God, through your Spirit open our minds and our hearts. Let us be led by the prophets you send us and changed by the words and methods you devise.
Amen
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