Being An Agent of God

As he went along, he saw a man blind from birth. His disciples asked him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?”

 “Neither this man nor his parents sinned,” said Jesus, “but this happened so that the works of God might be displayed in him. As long as it is day, we must do the works of him who sent me. Night is coming, when no one can work. While I am in the world, I am the light of the world.”
 After saying this, he spit on the ground, made some mud with the saliva, and put it on the man’s eyes. “Go,” he told him, “wash in the Pool of Siloam” (this word means “Sent”). So the man went and washed, and came home seeing.

His neighbors and those who had formerly seen him begging asked, “Isn’t this the same man who used to sit and beg?” Some claimed that he was.

Others said, “No, he only looks like him.”

But he himself insisted, “I am the man.”
“How then were your eyes opened?” they asked.

John 10:1-10

I am reading the ninth chapter of John this week. This is the first story of Jesus in this chapter and it has so many issues that fill my mind. I will probably be spending a few days working through what God is speaking through this passage to me. 

The first question I must face is the issue of the source of blindness. In the ancient world, people believed that those who were born with a debilitating disease the parents or grandparents had sinned. The disciples knew Jesus would know what caused the man to be blind. Along with the primary question, the larger issue I have about this section is the response of Jesus.

Jesus proclaimed this person was born blind to be a demonstration of God's power. This idea is hard for me. The thought that God would make someone "less" just to be a part of the demonstration of Jesus' power. How can a loving God do this? How can a grace filled God do this? 

I realize focusing on the subject of why born is not central to my faith. It is not important to focus on while discovering the focus of God's desire to teach through Jesus. The central focus is the willingness of the person to be used for God's will. 

Are we able to be the instrument of God's grace? The blind man in this story was willing to be that instrument. He went to the pool to wash off the mud. He allowed Jesus to put the mud made of spit on his eyes. This is the focus for me in the response of the blind man. Not why he is blind, but what he is willing to do with the blindness when confronted by Jesus. 

Community

This past Sunday (June 8, 2014) was Pentecost Sunday. Pentecost is the celebration of the coming gift of the Holy Spirit to the followers of Christ. It gains the title of Pentecost because it was a Jewish celebration of the fifty days after the Passover fest. So, it was fifty days since the death and Resurrection of Jesus and just days after His ascension into Heaven on the Mt. Olive. There are some traditional passages preachers read on this Pentecost Sunday. The most obvious is from the book Acts of the Apostles. It tells of what occurred on that day to the disciples when the Holy Spirit came upon them (Acts 2: 1-13). The other traditional passage is a prophecy from the Old Testament about the coming of the Holy Spirit on all people (Joel 2:28-32). But I did not preach on either of these passages. For there was great power unveiled on the disciples and the followers of Christ that day, but is was not in the signs and wonders that were seen and spoken about by the authors of Acts and the prophet Joel.

The gift granted on Pentecost was the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit was and is a great gift to the people. The result of that gift is not great and powerful "tricks" or "powers" that we witness in the telling to the story of Pentecost. The greatest gift was unity of people. In the old covenant made between God and Abraham, the unity was maintained by inheritance. Unity was that you were a decedent of Abraham. In the new covenant, God needed a way to unify His people. They would no longer just be relatives who are being brought into the kingdom. The spirit offers that unity. This is what I see as the great gift of the Holy Spirit. Paul reminds of the unity we have:

Therefore I want you to know that no one who is speaking by the Spirit of God says, “Jesus be cursed,” and no one can say, “Jesus is Lord,” except by the Holy Spirit. There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit distributes them. There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. There are different kinds of working, but in all of them and in everyone it is the same God at work.

Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good. To one there is given through the Spirit a message of wisdom, to another a message of knowledge by means of the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by that one Spirit, to another miraculous powers, to another prophecy, to another distinguishing between spirits, to another speaking in different kinds of tongues, and to still another the interpretation of tongues. All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he distributes them to each one, just as he determines.

Just as a body, though one, has many parts, but all its many parts form one body, so it is with Christ. For we were all baptized by one Spirit so as to form one body—whether Jews or Gentiles, slave or free —and we were all given the one Spirit to drink. Even so the body is not made up of one part but of many.

We are unified though the Holy Spirit to the followers around the world and next door in our neighborhood. It will be once we demonstrate the unity we poses through the gift of the Holy Spirit that I believe the world will once again take seriously the Christian faith. Followers of Christ were not meant to fight and be divided, we are called and pulled towards one another through and by the Holy Spirit. As the old hymn is sung, may it be our prayer:

Spirit of the living God, fall afresh on me; 

Spirit of the living God, fall afresh on me. 

Melt me, mold me, fill me, use me. 

Spirit of the living God, fall afresh on me. 

Spirit of the living God, move among us all; 

make us one in heart and mind, make us one in love: 

humble, caring, selfless, sharing. 

Spirit of the living God, fill our lives with love. 

(http://www.hymnary.org/text/spirit_of_the_living_god_fall_fresh)

Fourth Monday of Lent: Lent 2014

Lenten Devotional

Luke 8-9

I was missing a few days due to other requirements, but today's reading is full of two fascinating teachings on the church.  They revolve around the twelve disciples and there teaching.  The first revolves around the practical teachings of the disciples.  

The twelve are given an opportunity to practice all they have been taught by being sent out in pairs.  This is just as important form us today.  The twelve are given specific instructions as to how to conduct themselves as they travel.  

"he gave them power and authority to drive out all demons and to cure diseases, and he sent them out to proclaim the kingdom of God and to heal the sick. He told them: “Take nothing for the journey—no staff, no bag, no bread, no money, no extra shirt. Whatever house you enter, stay there until you leave that town. If people do not welcome you, leave their town and shake the dust off your feet as a testimony against them.”  So they set out and went from village to village, proclaiming the good news and healing people everywhere."

This is a practical way for all people being trained to follow Jesus.  We need to give them a mentor who has spent time already deep in Jesus' teaching and walking his ways.  Then the mentor guides and leads the newer followers of Jesus in the ways of Jesus teaching and giving opportunities to practical in real ways.  This is a training system still used in the building and construction trades today.   

The second moment is when they were sitting after the first experience and the twelve were asked about what they believed about Jesus.  The list of what others believe is long, but Peter comes up with an astonishing statement.  He declares that Jesus is the messiah, the son of God.  This is a point of drastic change for the life of the twelve disciples and the work of Jesus.  From this point all the Gospels take a turn towards what we know to be the culmination of Jesus' mission and life.

This same question is asked of us.  What do you say about me?  There are still people today who will give all the multiple answers given in Jesus' time.  We are asked the question of Jesus' reality in our life as the foundation of how we will live and work.  The question is simple, but the implications are profound.

Second Thursday of Lent: Lent 2014

Lenten Devotional

Matthew 21-22

We have entered the closing parts of most exciting section of any of the gospels.  We have come to the point where Jesus has made the triumphal entry into the Holy City of Jerusalem and started the week long path to the cross and His crucifixion.  Jesus makes sure that the controversy between Himself and the religious leaders is well established by the time we come to the trial.

There are a number of times Jesus has disagreements with the religious leaders, but the story that always seems to draw the most attention in these chapters is the actions at the temple.  Soon after His arrival in the city, Jesus enters the temple and throws out the sellers of goods and traders.  

“It is written,” he said to them, “‘My house will be called a house of prayer,’ but you are making it ‘a den of robbers.’ (Matt. 21:13)

Why were these people in the temple to start with and why did Jesus call them thieves and making the temple a den of robbers?

The people selling and trading in the temple were providing a service to others at first.  People traveling from a far distance were not able to bring the necessary animals for sacrifices at the temple.  The merchants provided the appropriate animal to be purchased by pilgrims for the sacrifice.   The problem came when the people providing the animals realized they had a monopoly on the pilgrims.  The price for even the simplest of animals for sacrifice was unreasonable.  It came to a point where a person without means could not purchase the animals for the sacrifice.  This is what Jesus is fighting against.  People are being robed to provide for the religious needs of the day.  Greed over came assistance.

Has greed ever over taken a desire to assist someone?  I feel our society has become greedy in ways that hinder helping people.  Sometimes it is a two way street.  Some needing assistance have learned the receiving from the system and/or government is easier to working.  Others  see assistance as just a way to get breaks and keep more money in the long run through dedications on taxes.  This does not even begin to break into the religious goods industry.  The price of Bibles are a sign of this.  I do not think they should just be given away free.  There is a cost, but what is a fare tipping point.  At what point do we move past assisting people practice their faith and become a robber?

Greed is a powerful tool through the centuries.  It finds many different ways to show up in history and our lives.  This is why we must keep our prayers and studies to help us see where and when we a re moving from the path of Christ to greed.

Survival Kit

Last post was about my sermon for that coming Sunday. I am exceedingly grateful for all the comments I received for that week. There were some great ideas, most of which did get worked into the sermon one way or another. One idea that I am starting to flesh out for upcoming week is built around an idea from the last post.

One friend gave me a great sugestion for a sermon and I am working it into a whole series. Currently on the Discovery Channel (one of my favorite channels to watch) is a whole mess of survival shows. There are shows demonstrating how an individual can survive, a married couple, two friends, and how to learn from other cultures how to survive. In all these shows, the goal is entertainment and a little education. They want to show some techniques you can use to survive if you are lost in the wilderness. I find it a little more of an entertainment on most of the shows. But he little nuggets we can take away are helpful and may just save lives.

These shows do demonstrate on the basic level that people need certain knowledge and skills to survive. They also show that you need certian equipment no matter what the situation. Some of the skills they need to know are what types of wild vegetation is edible (not all is safe to eat). Also, there are basic skills need to secure a shelter to protect you from the rain and the sun. The equipment you carry can be just as important as anything else. These are demonstration in the shows and in many real life situations we see on the news.

All of this comes to where I would love to have you help and thoughts. What are some skills, knowledge and tools we as Christians need to have for a survival kit? It is fairly easy to look in the internet or a couple of good books to find what type of items one needs for a wilderness survival. But II will admit that it is not as easy for the Christian kit. Take some time, think about what is essential to the faith and would be need in any situation. You can also make some parallels between what is in your own emergency survival kit ans what it might be for a follower of Jesus. Feel free to be creative. I am looking forward to the conversation.