Gee, Now That Seems Like A Dumb Question

Text: John 5:1-14

"Would you like to get well?"

Gee, I dunno, Jesus... let me think about that a moment. Hmmmm...  for the past 38 years I've been sick and unable to walk. For 38 years, I've been lying here on this stinking bedroll, on this crowded porch at the holy Temple, waiting for a miracle. For 38 years I've been reduced to begging for food and water. For 38 years I had to give up every shred of dignity. For 38 years my life has been completely hopeless and my legs have been completely helpless. Gosh, Jesus, can I take a rain check on that? I need to think about it for awhile.

Duh... OF COURSE the man wanted to get well!!! What kind of question is that?

But let's look deeper... do we humans really want to be healed of our spiritual afflictions? When it comes down to it, do we really want Jesus to take away our deep addictions to the things of this world? Do we really want to give up our independence and let Him have His way with us? Do we really want to give up the sins that offer us fleeting moments of pleasure and comfort and escape... even a twisted (if not guilt-ridden) sense of self-worth? You see, we may be able to walk physically, but we're all spiritual invalids to some degree. Do we really want to get up and walk in the path of holiness God has in mind for us, or deep down, do we prefer to just lie there and give up on the idea? 

It sucks to be helpless and hopeless, of course... but at least it doesn't take much energy or faith. Getting up and walking on spiritual legs however, takes real guts. It takes a tremendous amount of work if we're going to get anywhere according to God's will. I wish it were easier, but it ain't. We all know it's extraordinarily difficult to trust and obey God on any kind of consistent basis.

So, I ask again... do we really want to be healed, knowing God expects us to serve Him once He grants us spiritual strength? When you think about it, laying down, unable to move day after day (after day after day) may not be any fun... but perhaps it's easier - at least for some people - to accept sickness than facing unknown terrors that surely lie ahead if we let God into the areas of our heart He desires to reign over.

Jesus is asking you a simple question with profound implications... 

"Would you like to get well? Then, o child of God, you must learn to trust Me with all of who you are... even the deepest, darkest secrets of your life that need to brought to the surface and redeemed by My grace. Trust Me, the Author of Life. Allow Me to heal you with My strength... allow Me to breathe divine words of eternal soul-healing, spirit-filled, resurrection life into the depths of your sickness. Can you do that...? Good... then I'm telling you, stand up, take up your mat and walk!"

Jacob's Well

Text: John 4:1-42


The sixth hour.


Jesus was getting way too much attention by the Pharisees - and because he came to do the Father's will... and not continually debate the religious "leaders" of the Jewish sect - he tended to avoid places where they would likely be. Therefore, Samaria was a pretty good choice, since good Jews despised Samaritans.  


Here's the reason in a nutshell: Approximately eight centuries before Jesus was born, the reigning superpower at the time, the Assyrians, invaded the Northern Kingdom of Israel (Jerusalem was in the Southern Kingdom of Judah). They took complete control and even deported many of the Israelites. New inhabitants were then brought in (with their own gods)... and Samaria was born. Naturally, the "pure" Jews hated those half-breeds, mostly because the Samaritan religion became a hybrid mix of the Hebrew God and various local gods imported from foreign lands. The Samaritan temple was at Mount Gerizim, as opposed to the Jewish temple in Jerusalem.


So, back to the sixth hour... what we would call noon.... getting close to the hottest part of the day. Therefore, unless they were intentionally trying to avoid people (like Jesus was), most people wouldn't choose to stand in the hot sun and carry heavy water at that time.


But Jesus wasn't the only one who chose the glare of the sun over the glare of human judgment. For Jesus, it wasn't yet time to reveal his glory... but for the woman he encountered, it was never time to greet others at the well. You see, she was a notorious sinner. And her sin was very public... a detail likely not unnoticed by the other women. At least six men of the village knew her in a "biblical" manner... and that, my friends, would not only threaten the other women... more importantly it would give them an awesome opportunity to wag their tongues about that "shameless hussy" who lived among them!


However... one short conversation with the Messiah, one encounter with the Living Water, one verbal dance with Jesus... just one glimpse of God's forgiving grace personified, and the woman who previously went out of her way to avoid the other villagers out of shame, left her water jar and went boldly into town. She became a fearless evangelist for the Christ, because all of a sudden, her past didn't matter.... it was her future that counted. Her life had suddenly and shockingly been redeemed. She came face to face with the One who loves her. No longer would she be defined by her sinful relationships to men... from now on, she would be re-defined by her relationship of love by and for Jesus. "Many of the Samaritans from that town believed in him because of the woman's testimony..."


How cool! I'll bet she never had to visit Jacob's well at the sixth hour again after taking a life-changing drink of Living Water. What about you? Have you ever tasted this refreshing H2O... or are you still waiting until noon? What's your testimony?

Deflated

FYI, I've challenged my congregation to read the Bible through in 2010, and in fact have provided a plan whereas in 20 minutes a day we can all read the New Testament, then the Old Testament, then the New Testament again. Four chapters per day... that's it. The starting day doesn't have to be January 1... just start reading four chapters a day and see how far you can get! I have bookmarks with a quarterly checklist if you're interested. Just shoot me an email with your mailing address, or I can send a pdf file that you can print and cut yourself. My wife and I are reading The Message together each morning, and we're thoroughly enjoying it, even though sometimes Jesus' teaching kicks our butts.


As far as the sermon series - "Love in a Nutshell" - here is the NLT text for this Sunday...


John 3:22-36

"He must become greater and greater, and I must become less and less." Wow, how difficult is it to have something go successfully, even beyond your wildest dreams... only to have someone else come in and steal the spotlight from you? Isn't our first inclination to fight and claw our way back to the top when someone threatens our glory? You name it... best player on the team, smartest kid in class, funniest joke-teller, most charming, best-looking, top salesperson... the list could go on and on. Whatever it is you do well... it sucks to have someone come in and effortlessly steal your thunder, doesn't it?


Frankly, I don't think John the Baptist was created to do a lot of things well. He apparently didn't socialize much with his peers, he wasn't in any danger of winning any fashion awards, he ate weird food, he insulted people who lived "alternative lifestyles," and he had no sense of political posturing. Basically, he was a hermit who lived by himself in the desert. But one thing John the Baptizer did very, very well... he preached the message of God's coming kingdom, and God's coming Messiah. He didn't charm people... he just bluntly proclaimed truth to them and frightened them to listen... and respond in droves. His words cut to the heart, and caused people from all over Judea to repent and become baptized. His ministry was a runaway success. He could've had his own TBN television show! But then another teacher came on the scene - his own cousin for goodness sake! - and very quickly, the huge crowds of adoring (or at least curious) fans thinned out. All of a sudden, everyone wanted to go see the guy from Nazareth and his ragtag friends. Naturally, John's disciples wanted to know what was up.


But John was no ordinary man... and no ordinary prophet. He was self-aware, and knew that his job wasn't to build bigger and bigger crowds for God. Nope, his job was to prepare the hearts of men and women - to make crooked roads straight - to get people ready for the coming of Emmanuel. 


I too want to prepare people for the coming of God in their lives. However, in striving to bring glory to God... too easily I find myself wanting a little glory of my own in the process. I don't know why really... but I find it difficult to follow John's example... his willingness to become less and less so God can become more and more. In theory, that's what I want... but in practice, often times I become more and more, so God can become less and less. Does that make sense to you?


Oh, God... please be patient with us. We're fickle... but we really do love you!

Cleansing the Temple

Text: John 2:12-25

Hmmmm... so does this passage mean we can't sell stuff in church? Uh-oh... that means we're in serious trouble at The River! Hello... can you say coffee bar? "How dare you turn my Father's house into a market!" Man, we're doomed! We sell coffee and tea, cookies and biscotti... heck, we even sell evil things like sugary pop and energy drinks at Grand Central Coffee House!


But I wonder if that's really the issue here. Do you think Jesus is saying it's evil for a church to buy and sell goods and services? Wow, that means every church-sponsored car-wash is an act of heresy, right? And every bake-sale or church bazaar to raise money  for missions honors the devil? Geez... Where do we draw the line on this issue? Are Catholics destined for purgatory for bingo games?


Nah... trust me, without creative fund-raisers, churches and other non-profit organizations that otherwise depend on donations would suffer greatly - especially in a day and age where people are hip-deep in debt and worried about jobs and financial security. I don't think this passage is about methodology... it's about motivation. Jesus wasn't mad because buying and selling was going on in God's house per se. He was, however, consumed with anger because the folks charged to make God accessible to people - yes, even non-Jews - were instead erecting barriers for those seeking to worship Him. 


Think about it... if your religion required you to offer bring an animal to sacrifice at one holy place (the Jewish Temple), and if you lived a several day walk from that holy place, would you rather bring your prized goat, or sheep, or bull (or whatever)... risking that it may die or get stolen along the way? Or would you decide it best to buy a genuine "Kosher approved" animal at the temple instead?


However... kind of like paying for parking or hot dogs at a Seahawks game - once you got there the insanely high prices would be pretty frustrating to say the least. Nevertheless, what choice do you have, o pilgrim of God (or football)? The "insiders" own a sweet  - albeit unfair - monopoly, and you can either pay the steep price or not come to worship. Then, just to add insult to injury, you'd find your foreign money doesn't have a very promising exchange rate either. So in God's holy temple, you unwittingly get less money to buy extremely over-priced (and likely sub-par quality) animals to sacrifice to the Most High God. Woo-hoo.


Hmmmm... so it was a sin in that day to create religious barriers to worshipping God. I wonder how (we) churches today commit the same sin. I kinda doubt it's about selling coffee or homemade quilts... but assuming that's true... then what is it about? How should we interpret Jesus' frustration in our 21st century Christian context?

The Life-Light

Okay. It's been awhile since I last blogged. But hey, it's a new year, and we have a new series to discuss at The River... so my plan is to post some initial thoughts on the upcoming Sunday morning sermon and/or conversation early each week. Of course, I'm already a week behind, but what the heck! Last Sunday, we started two new projects. The first is a focus on the Gospel of John (each week we'll look at another chapter, focusing in on one particular story or passage). This series will lead us right up to Easter, and is called, "Love In a Nutshell." The second is a challenge to read the Bible through in a year (New Testament, Old Testament, New Testament)... by reading four chapters per day. We have simple but effective bookmarks with a daily reading checklist (in quarter year increments) to aid you in your endeavor... so let me know if you'd like one. I'd be glad to mail a set to you if you don't live in or near the Burg. click here to send an email request.

So, starting with chapter one (last Sunday's message)... we talked about Jesus, the Life-Light.

Scripture:  John 1:1-18

"In the beginning was the Word" (Greek, logos). Echoing Genesis, the first book of the Bible, the Gospel of John makes it clear right from the beginning that Jesus was no ordinary human being. He was the Word of God, who - even prior to being born in our world as Jesus - has always been at the Father's side as the Son. Yes, I know, it's difficult to grasp this eternal mystery.  But remember - unlike us - the Lord is not bound by our rational concepts of time and space.

Anyway... Genesis tells us God the Father spoke the words, and is therefore the creator of the universe. However, the Son of God was there "in the beginning" (of human history) and, as the Word of God, is a co-eternal agent of creation alongside the Spirit of God. "Through him all things were made..."

Okay... it's all pretty mind-bending for certain... but what's it all supposed to mean for you and me? Well, for one thing, this passage tells us that words are far more powerful than the world would like us to believe. Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words can... build others up to do impossible things, or rip their confidence apart, and leave them emotionally destroyed.

Hmmmm... in light of this, perhaps we need to ask ourselves a few questions:

• If God was willing to speak our world into existence (and He did)…
• And if God was willing to create humans in His image (and He did)…
• And if God is willing to offer us words of forgiveness (and He does)…
• And if God provided spoken and written words to us that revealed His holy love to all of creation… through an instrument we call the Bible (and He did)…
• And if God desires to give us the gift of salvation… the gift of eternity (and He does)…
• And if the Son of God, a.k.a., the Word or Logos of God… That is, God’s love, God’s wisdom, God’s character, God’s heart… if all that embodies the holy nature of God were to come to us and demonstrate how profoundly how much He loves us (and He has)…
• What then, should be our response?
• Are we willing to let the Life-Light of Christ shine in and through us?
• What might that look like this fresh new year?