The Same, Yet Different
The Triumphal Entry is a great microcosm of Matthew's angle when he's writing about Jesus. Over and over, he shows how Jesus is the guy the Jews are looking for, yet how different He is than what they were expecting. The reason for the discrepancy is not that God is changing, it's just that as time goes on, even His followers tend to understand things the way the world does.
So, for instance, the Jews were looking for a political or military ruler that would overthrow the Romans and raise Israel up to a glory never before seen. He would do so with power and justice. The reason they were expecting a military or political ruler is because that's the way the kingdom of the world operates. But that's not how the Kingdom of Heaven operates. Power and justice are still great values on the Kingdom of Heaven, they just have different meanings.
In the Kingdom of the World, justice comes through punishing the guilty. In the Kingdom of Heaven, justice comes through the power of self-sacrifice (isn't that what the cross is all about?). In the world, power is when we can get people to do what we want by force or coercion. In the Kingdom of Heaven, power comes when we serve.
So when all of Jerusalem (the hub of Judaism) wanted to proclaim their new king, Jesus, they were ready to give Jesus the white horse treatment. Instead, when Jesus is looking for transportation, He tells His disciples to get a donkey. Can you imagine a king riding on a donkey? Could you see Alexander the Great doing that? Not exactly the animal fit for a king--especially the King of Kings.
But this was Jesus' way of showing them that He was the same, yet different. It's actually the same picture we see in Zechariah 9, which Matthew quotes here (read it). It's a picture of the Messiah coming and dishing out justice with gentleness. Jesus doesn't deny He's the Messiah--in other accounts, He refuses to tell the crowd to stop worshiping Him--He's just not what they were expecting.
Losing the Kingdom
Skipping down to verses 33-46, we see another interesting parable. Jesus was very bold in His message. As you read and understand what He was saying, you can begin to understand why the Jewish leaders would want to kill Him. In this story, Jesus very clearly tells the Pharisees they blew it. The Jews were handed the Kingdom. Their job was to care for it. To cultivate, to prune, and to distribute its fruit to be a blessing to others.
But when the landowner sent his servants (the OT prophets) to collect the fruit, the tenants killed them. Finally, the landowner sends his own son and they kill him, too. The parable wreaks of selfishness on the part of the tenants. They were working in the vineyard that didn't belong to them, yet when the time came to produce fruit, they refused. We can presume they wanted to keep the fruit for themselves within the walls of the vineyard, But this was not the intent of the landowner. As you can imagine, things would not end well for the tenants, but it also says that not only will he kick the tenants out, but he will invite in people who will bear fruit.
This is again a parable that tells the Jews (at least the Jews leaders) that their time had come and gone. The system they set up was no longer valid. No longer was the Kingdom only available to the Jews, but it was open to everyone. The Jews were given a responsibility and they blew it. It's the misapplication of these teachings that have caused a lot of anti-semitism over the course of history. Jesus' teachings here obviously shouldn't take us there, but I do think it raised an important question for Christians today.
Are we doing any better? Do we approach faith with the same attitude as the Jews? Have we made it into a list of rules that as long as I follow them personally, I'm OK? Is that what the Kingdom is all about? Are we in danger of losing the Kingdom to someone else because we failed to be what God intended for us?
Rather than just asking ourselves the question, maybe we should actually just work to make sure we're not failing. It's no coincidence that the parable directly before this one is the parable of the two sons. One works, the other just says he will. Which are you?
Friday, January 29, 2010
NT Journey Matthew 20
We Before Me
One of the many downsides to our individualistic culture is that we have developed a terrible habit of looking at scripture and instantly personalizing it. Scripture certainly does have individual application to it. Ultimately, what matters with the teachings of Jesus or Paul or Peter is what I do with it. Scripture is intended for me to make personal application--eventually.
Matthew 20 is a case in point. My guess is that when most people read Matthew 20, the first thing we think about is death-bed conversions. Jesus' parable about the workers who came late inevitably leads us down this road. The landowner hires day-workers and says he will pay them a denarius. As the day went on, He continued to hire workers. No matter how long they worked, they were still paid the same wage.
When the end of the day came and the workers who had worked all day saw that they were being paid the same as those who had only worked a little while, they were understandably angry. Wouldn't you be a little miffed? In our individualistic mindset, we immediately think of people who "accept Christ" on their deathbed and receive the same heaven that the those who have followed Jesus all their life get.
But was this Jesus' primary message? I don't think so. Remember that Matthew's primary task is to write to Jews and, first of all show them that Jesus is the Messiah they have been waiting for; and second, to ruffle their feathers a little. One thing you'll notice about Jesus' ministry is that He starts out preaching to the Jews, but then expands His ministry to Gentiles. It's not that Jesus all of the sudden started caring about gentiles--He was making a point, a living metaphor, if you will.
In the Old Testament, the Jews became God's "chosen people" for the purpose of working in His Kingdom (the vineyard). As a result of their labor, they would be "blessed." But the ultimate purpose of Israel's "chosenness" was not just be blessed, but to bless others. When Jesus came, He expanded (as was God's plan all along) salvation, blessing, the Kingdom or whatever you want to call it to the gentiles. No longer were there two classes of people. No longer does God give preference to Israel--His favor rests on everyone and everyone is now called to work in the vineyard. Jesus was making a scandalous theological statement with this parable--the Kingdom is open to all. Everyone has equal opportunity and equal wages.
Again, it's hard for us to understand the significance of this parable. But let's look at it this way. Most of us in the United States has functioned as if we were God's new chosen people. We tend to see ourselves as more spiritual, more "Christian" and more blessed than any other people group on earth. We send out more missionaries to the world than any other country. We see ourselves at the top of the Christian heap. Is it so?
I actually don't think we are any more or less godly than most other people groups. We might go to church more and might have a greater percentage of people professing belief in Jesus, but in our overall practice, we tend to be greedy, lustful, disengaged and have a higher opinion of ourselves than most. Jesus' parable of the vineyard tells us that we are all called to work in God's vineyard--to participate with Him in the redemption of the world. Whether we are American, European, Ethiopian or Iraqi, as followers of Christ we have the same task and the same reward even if we come late to the field.
When you read scripture, I would suggest that you not become preoccupied with issue of whether or not this person or that person is really saved. When we do that, we often miss out on the great opportunity to learn about our own responsibility to build the Kingdom in Kingdom kind of ways.
One of the many downsides to our individualistic culture is that we have developed a terrible habit of looking at scripture and instantly personalizing it. Scripture certainly does have individual application to it. Ultimately, what matters with the teachings of Jesus or Paul or Peter is what I do with it. Scripture is intended for me to make personal application--eventually.
Matthew 20 is a case in point. My guess is that when most people read Matthew 20, the first thing we think about is death-bed conversions. Jesus' parable about the workers who came late inevitably leads us down this road. The landowner hires day-workers and says he will pay them a denarius. As the day went on, He continued to hire workers. No matter how long they worked, they were still paid the same wage.
When the end of the day came and the workers who had worked all day saw that they were being paid the same as those who had only worked a little while, they were understandably angry. Wouldn't you be a little miffed? In our individualistic mindset, we immediately think of people who "accept Christ" on their deathbed and receive the same heaven that the those who have followed Jesus all their life get.
But was this Jesus' primary message? I don't think so. Remember that Matthew's primary task is to write to Jews and, first of all show them that Jesus is the Messiah they have been waiting for; and second, to ruffle their feathers a little. One thing you'll notice about Jesus' ministry is that He starts out preaching to the Jews, but then expands His ministry to Gentiles. It's not that Jesus all of the sudden started caring about gentiles--He was making a point, a living metaphor, if you will.
In the Old Testament, the Jews became God's "chosen people" for the purpose of working in His Kingdom (the vineyard). As a result of their labor, they would be "blessed." But the ultimate purpose of Israel's "chosenness" was not just be blessed, but to bless others. When Jesus came, He expanded (as was God's plan all along) salvation, blessing, the Kingdom or whatever you want to call it to the gentiles. No longer were there two classes of people. No longer does God give preference to Israel--His favor rests on everyone and everyone is now called to work in the vineyard. Jesus was making a scandalous theological statement with this parable--the Kingdom is open to all. Everyone has equal opportunity and equal wages.
Again, it's hard for us to understand the significance of this parable. But let's look at it this way. Most of us in the United States has functioned as if we were God's new chosen people. We tend to see ourselves as more spiritual, more "Christian" and more blessed than any other people group on earth. We send out more missionaries to the world than any other country. We see ourselves at the top of the Christian heap. Is it so?
I actually don't think we are any more or less godly than most other people groups. We might go to church more and might have a greater percentage of people professing belief in Jesus, but in our overall practice, we tend to be greedy, lustful, disengaged and have a higher opinion of ourselves than most. Jesus' parable of the vineyard tells us that we are all called to work in God's vineyard--to participate with Him in the redemption of the world. Whether we are American, European, Ethiopian or Iraqi, as followers of Christ we have the same task and the same reward even if we come late to the field.
When you read scripture, I would suggest that you not become preoccupied with issue of whether or not this person or that person is really saved. When we do that, we often miss out on the great opportunity to learn about our own responsibility to build the Kingdom in Kingdom kind of ways.
Thursday, January 28, 2010
NT Journey—Matthew 19
What's Really Important
What I love about Jesus is He has a real knack for getting right to the heart of the issue. Oftentimes you'll see the gospel writers say "the people were amazed because Jesus taught as one who had authority..." This seems a strange thing for us, because we tend to think, "of course, He taught as if He had authority--He did." But that's not how it worked back then. In those days, random people didn't just have authority. Jesus was not trained in the finest schools or come up through the ranks of nobility. Yet He claimed and people accepted that there was some other kind of authority there.
We can see this most clearly in the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5-7, where Jesus says, "You have heard it said...but I say..." Matthew 19 has a couple more instances of this same thing. The first instance is the conversation Jesus had with the Pharisees about divorce. As always their question was whether such and such was "lawful." As we've already seen, Jesus was not so concerned about if something was lawful. It's not that Jesus was a lawbreaker just for the sake of rebelling, but Jesus understood that it's not the law that's most important.
So when the Pharisees ask Jesus a question about the law, He doesn't even go back to the Law, He goes back to Genesis, to the relationship that marriage nurtures and protects. Whether it's technically lawful is completely missing the point. The purpose of the "certificate of divorce" in Bible times was to protect the woman. Understand that women were seen as property in those days. They really couldn't sustain themselves without the support of a man. When she was married, her husband was her provider and protector, when she was not, her father or maybe a brother or other relative had to care for her.
So if a man got tired of his wife and wanted to get with another woman he could do so without any recourse. But the result for the woman was that she would often have to turn to prostitution to be able to eat. The certificate of divorce basically showed other men that she's "marriable." Of course, if she committed adultery, he didn't have to provide such a certificate.
But Jesus' concern (and actually the concern of the original Law) was not with the technicalities of the Law, it was to protect relationship. That Law gave women some power that they didn't have, but Jesus went a step further. In verse 9, Jesus says, "I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife, except for marital unfaithfulness, and marries another woman commits adultery." When Jesus said this, His intent was not to make another Law, but it was to challenge the casual attitude of men toward adultery. If you're familiar with the story in John 8 about the woman caught in the act of adultery, you'll see this attitude very clearly. The religious leaders only brought the woman to Jesus, but doesn't it take two people to commit adultery. What Jesus is doing in verse 9 is to turn the prevailing attitude on it's head. Before, men could get off on a technicality, but not with Jesus--not now.
When you look at Jesus' attitude toward divorce, it might change some of our prevailing attitudes toward divorce as well. We don't take divorce lightly, for sure. (Remember: less rules, higher standards.) There are some who would say that an abused woman can not get a divorce under any circumstances because Jesus said only marital unfaithfulness was grounds for divorce. When we do this, we do the same thing the Pharisees did. The intent of divorce law was to protect the weaker party. When we use the Bible to tell an abused woman she can't get out of that relationship, we go against the intent of what the Law was intended to do.
Now this is the thing about Jesus' way. Laws are easy. It's much easier for us to say, "Nope, the Bible says you're not allowed to divorce...sorry." It's harder to enter into the life of a struggling couple and offer hope and reconciliation. You see, I'm not (nor was Jesus) arguing that divorce is the best or even a good option. But what I'm saying is that giving up my rights and my selfish attitude is a higher standard than just following the rules.
Jesus does the same thing with the rich man in the second half of chapter 19. The man thinks He's OK because He follows the Commandments. But Jesus calls Him to something more than just following the rules. That's just the way He is.
What I love about Jesus is He has a real knack for getting right to the heart of the issue. Oftentimes you'll see the gospel writers say "the people were amazed because Jesus taught as one who had authority..." This seems a strange thing for us, because we tend to think, "of course, He taught as if He had authority--He did." But that's not how it worked back then. In those days, random people didn't just have authority. Jesus was not trained in the finest schools or come up through the ranks of nobility. Yet He claimed and people accepted that there was some other kind of authority there.
We can see this most clearly in the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5-7, where Jesus says, "You have heard it said...but I say..." Matthew 19 has a couple more instances of this same thing. The first instance is the conversation Jesus had with the Pharisees about divorce. As always their question was whether such and such was "lawful." As we've already seen, Jesus was not so concerned about if something was lawful. It's not that Jesus was a lawbreaker just for the sake of rebelling, but Jesus understood that it's not the law that's most important.
So when the Pharisees ask Jesus a question about the law, He doesn't even go back to the Law, He goes back to Genesis, to the relationship that marriage nurtures and protects. Whether it's technically lawful is completely missing the point. The purpose of the "certificate of divorce" in Bible times was to protect the woman. Understand that women were seen as property in those days. They really couldn't sustain themselves without the support of a man. When she was married, her husband was her provider and protector, when she was not, her father or maybe a brother or other relative had to care for her.
So if a man got tired of his wife and wanted to get with another woman he could do so without any recourse. But the result for the woman was that she would often have to turn to prostitution to be able to eat. The certificate of divorce basically showed other men that she's "marriable." Of course, if she committed adultery, he didn't have to provide such a certificate.
But Jesus' concern (and actually the concern of the original Law) was not with the technicalities of the Law, it was to protect relationship. That Law gave women some power that they didn't have, but Jesus went a step further. In verse 9, Jesus says, "I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife, except for marital unfaithfulness, and marries another woman commits adultery." When Jesus said this, His intent was not to make another Law, but it was to challenge the casual attitude of men toward adultery. If you're familiar with the story in John 8 about the woman caught in the act of adultery, you'll see this attitude very clearly. The religious leaders only brought the woman to Jesus, but doesn't it take two people to commit adultery. What Jesus is doing in verse 9 is to turn the prevailing attitude on it's head. Before, men could get off on a technicality, but not with Jesus--not now.
When you look at Jesus' attitude toward divorce, it might change some of our prevailing attitudes toward divorce as well. We don't take divorce lightly, for sure. (Remember: less rules, higher standards.) There are some who would say that an abused woman can not get a divorce under any circumstances because Jesus said only marital unfaithfulness was grounds for divorce. When we do this, we do the same thing the Pharisees did. The intent of divorce law was to protect the weaker party. When we use the Bible to tell an abused woman she can't get out of that relationship, we go against the intent of what the Law was intended to do.
Now this is the thing about Jesus' way. Laws are easy. It's much easier for us to say, "Nope, the Bible says you're not allowed to divorce...sorry." It's harder to enter into the life of a struggling couple and offer hope and reconciliation. You see, I'm not (nor was Jesus) arguing that divorce is the best or even a good option. But what I'm saying is that giving up my rights and my selfish attitude is a higher standard than just following the rules.
Jesus does the same thing with the rich man in the second half of chapter 19. The man thinks He's OK because He follows the Commandments. But Jesus calls Him to something more than just following the rules. That's just the way He is.
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
NT Journey--Matthew 18
The Humility of Forgiveness
If you look closely, Matthew 18 combined two themes we don't often associate with each other. Humility and forgiveness. In the first part of the chapter, Jesus uses children as an object lesson. We place a lot of emphasis on our children these days. Parent's lives are rule by their kid's activities. Youth is the most coveted characteristic in life today. But it wasn't always that way.
In Jesus' day, children were certainly valued, but they didn't have many rights or much say in anything. At best they were along for the ride. At worst, they were the lowest class of society. When Jesus says, "...whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest int eh Kingdom of Heaven," it could mean any number of things, but I think the most important has to do with our rights.
Rights are important. Campaigns for human rights and civil rights have gone a long way to straightening out some of society's ills. On the other hand, we can often become too focused on our rights. Ultimately, clamoring for our rights can be a very selfish attitude.
One example of this is in the area of forgiveness. It takes a certain amount of humility to forgive. When I refuse to forgive, it's because I refuse to give up my rights. "I don't deserve this." "I won't let her continue to treat me like this" are phrases that can come out of the mouth of or at least go through the mind of people who won't forgive. Kids could rarely say they deserved anything, after all, they were just kids. They didn't have great expectations for how people would treat them.
When I have the humility of a child (at least in Jesus' day), I don't have high expectations for what I deserve or don't deserve. I'm not surprised when I don't get my way because I don't expect it. I'm not shocked when people don't listen to me because I don't demand it. I have the humility to allow whatever place I have to be my place. And when I do that, I allow God to put me where He wants me to be.
When I refuse to forgive, I also refuse to remember my own sin and how many times I've needed forgiveness. It's easy to always point at the other person and how awful they are. Well it may be true, but I find it a little harder to accuse when I recognize my own need for forgiveness. I might feel hypocritical.
If Jesus is about restoration and reconciliation, then that should also be our goal. Relationships are messy. People will continue to let us down, but in forgiveness, we reach for a way to wipe off the mess and see people for who they really are. And isn't that how we want others to see us?
If you look closely, Matthew 18 combined two themes we don't often associate with each other. Humility and forgiveness. In the first part of the chapter, Jesus uses children as an object lesson. We place a lot of emphasis on our children these days. Parent's lives are rule by their kid's activities. Youth is the most coveted characteristic in life today. But it wasn't always that way.
In Jesus' day, children were certainly valued, but they didn't have many rights or much say in anything. At best they were along for the ride. At worst, they were the lowest class of society. When Jesus says, "...whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest int eh Kingdom of Heaven," it could mean any number of things, but I think the most important has to do with our rights.
Rights are important. Campaigns for human rights and civil rights have gone a long way to straightening out some of society's ills. On the other hand, we can often become too focused on our rights. Ultimately, clamoring for our rights can be a very selfish attitude.
One example of this is in the area of forgiveness. It takes a certain amount of humility to forgive. When I refuse to forgive, it's because I refuse to give up my rights. "I don't deserve this." "I won't let her continue to treat me like this" are phrases that can come out of the mouth of or at least go through the mind of people who won't forgive. Kids could rarely say they deserved anything, after all, they were just kids. They didn't have great expectations for how people would treat them.
When I have the humility of a child (at least in Jesus' day), I don't have high expectations for what I deserve or don't deserve. I'm not surprised when I don't get my way because I don't expect it. I'm not shocked when people don't listen to me because I don't demand it. I have the humility to allow whatever place I have to be my place. And when I do that, I allow God to put me where He wants me to be.
When I refuse to forgive, I also refuse to remember my own sin and how many times I've needed forgiveness. It's easy to always point at the other person and how awful they are. Well it may be true, but I find it a little harder to accuse when I recognize my own need for forgiveness. I might feel hypocritical.
If Jesus is about restoration and reconciliation, then that should also be our goal. Relationships are messy. People will continue to let us down, but in forgiveness, we reach for a way to wipe off the mess and see people for who they really are. And isn't that how we want others to see us?
NT Journey--Matthew 17
OK. I realize I'm a day late on this post, but I thought I'd mention a couple of things in chapter 17.
First, you might have noticed that this is kind of a strange chapter. We tend to be more or less comfortable with Jesus as a good--if challenging--teacher, but less comfortable when He starts to do things like be transfigured (whatever that means) and casting out demons, etc. This is the point at which Jesus is making it more and more clear that 1) He IS the Messiah they've been waiting for; and 2) He's going to have to suffer and die.
I won't go into a lot of detail, but Matthew's description of the Transfiguration is very similar to the account of Moses receiving the Law in Exodus 24. Notice the similarities-- the mountain, the cloud, the mention of six days, the voice, Jesus is the "new law," etc. Again, Matthew is showing Jesus as the fulfillment of the Old Testament and Peter, James and John were able to see it. So this event was to build the understanding and confidence of the disciples.
But I think it may have also been to build the confidence of Jesus. Remember Jesus was human, so He was subject to all the anxiety and questioning that we are. At the beginning of His ministry, at His baptism there was also a voice that said, "This is my Son, whom I love." Certainly that would be great assurance for Jesus to give Him strength to fulfill His mission. Now, as the time was coming close for Him to suffer and die, He would certainly need that reassurance again.
Look for another post today for Matthew 18. Keep on reading!
First, you might have noticed that this is kind of a strange chapter. We tend to be more or less comfortable with Jesus as a good--if challenging--teacher, but less comfortable when He starts to do things like be transfigured (whatever that means) and casting out demons, etc. This is the point at which Jesus is making it more and more clear that 1) He IS the Messiah they've been waiting for; and 2) He's going to have to suffer and die.
I won't go into a lot of detail, but Matthew's description of the Transfiguration is very similar to the account of Moses receiving the Law in Exodus 24. Notice the similarities-- the mountain, the cloud, the mention of six days, the voice, Jesus is the "new law," etc. Again, Matthew is showing Jesus as the fulfillment of the Old Testament and Peter, James and John were able to see it. So this event was to build the understanding and confidence of the disciples.
But I think it may have also been to build the confidence of Jesus. Remember Jesus was human, so He was subject to all the anxiety and questioning that we are. At the beginning of His ministry, at His baptism there was also a voice that said, "This is my Son, whom I love." Certainly that would be great assurance for Jesus to give Him strength to fulfill His mission. Now, as the time was coming close for Him to suffer and die, He would certainly need that reassurance again.
Look for another post today for Matthew 18. Keep on reading!
Thursday, January 21, 2010
NT Journey--Matthew 16
I want to talk a little about two sections of Matthew 16. First is verse 13-20. An interesting note here is that this is the primary passage Catholics use for their practice and doctrine of the pope. Notice that it's Peter who answers the question Jesus asks. After he answers, Jesus says this: "...I tell you that you are Peter and on this rock I will build my church...I will give you the keys to the Kingdom of Heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven."
Catholics take this to mean that Jesus' church is built on the rock--Peter (which means "rock"). He is given the "keys" to heaven and the power to "bind and loose" things. The pope throughout history has been seen as the successor to Peter--what they call apostolic succession. Each pope that follows Peter also has the keys.
The Protestant answer to this is that Jesus' did not intend to build the Kingdom on Peter (the rock was only a play on words) but on the confession that Jesus is "the Christ, the Son of the living God." The church is all about Jesus, He's our foundation and we, as the church hold the keys to the Kingdom. We can help walk people through that door.
What we also see in this passage is the nature of the church. Notice, Jesus says it's the gates of hell that we're fighting. Gates are a defensive weapon, which would mean the church is on the offensive. Too often, churches think the reason they exist is to just study the Bible or hold our worship services or just to care for each other. All these things are fine, but the church's primary task is to advance the Kingdom of Heaven. But how we do it makes all the difference in the world.
There have been times--many times, I'm afraid--that the church has tried to do that through non-Kingdom means like power, violence, and coercion. But when it does that, it ceases to be the Kingdom. Starting in verse 21, the story moves to Jesus predicting His death. Again, it's no coincidence that Matthew places this story immediately after the account of the giving of the keys.
The power of the Kingdom is the power of the cross. Rather than coercing people into faith (or a false copy of faith), we draw people to faith through self-sacrifice. Notice again that it's Peter who takes Jesus aside to say he'll never let Jesus be killed. Jesus rebukes him, essentially telling him that the way the Kingdom works is that its citizens are willing to lay down their lives for the Kingdom and for others. And then we have the famous words in verse 25, "Whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it. What good will it be for a man if he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul?"
As I mentioned before, salvation is more than just a one time decision to pray a prayer. But according to Jesus, salvation is an on-going way of life where I put Kingdom things before my own desire to chase after the things the world offers. The Kingdom is an upside-down kingdom where the last is first and the first is last. We are tempted to think that if we live that way, life will be a drag. But what Jesus says is that if we buy into the Kingdom way and we lay down our life--it's only then that we will actually be living. That's real life.
Catholics take this to mean that Jesus' church is built on the rock--Peter (which means "rock"). He is given the "keys" to heaven and the power to "bind and loose" things. The pope throughout history has been seen as the successor to Peter--what they call apostolic succession. Each pope that follows Peter also has the keys.
The Protestant answer to this is that Jesus' did not intend to build the Kingdom on Peter (the rock was only a play on words) but on the confession that Jesus is "the Christ, the Son of the living God." The church is all about Jesus, He's our foundation and we, as the church hold the keys to the Kingdom. We can help walk people through that door.
What we also see in this passage is the nature of the church. Notice, Jesus says it's the gates of hell that we're fighting. Gates are a defensive weapon, which would mean the church is on the offensive. Too often, churches think the reason they exist is to just study the Bible or hold our worship services or just to care for each other. All these things are fine, but the church's primary task is to advance the Kingdom of Heaven. But how we do it makes all the difference in the world.
There have been times--many times, I'm afraid--that the church has tried to do that through non-Kingdom means like power, violence, and coercion. But when it does that, it ceases to be the Kingdom. Starting in verse 21, the story moves to Jesus predicting His death. Again, it's no coincidence that Matthew places this story immediately after the account of the giving of the keys.
The power of the Kingdom is the power of the cross. Rather than coercing people into faith (or a false copy of faith), we draw people to faith through self-sacrifice. Notice again that it's Peter who takes Jesus aside to say he'll never let Jesus be killed. Jesus rebukes him, essentially telling him that the way the Kingdom works is that its citizens are willing to lay down their lives for the Kingdom and for others. And then we have the famous words in verse 25, "Whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it. What good will it be for a man if he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul?"
As I mentioned before, salvation is more than just a one time decision to pray a prayer. But according to Jesus, salvation is an on-going way of life where I put Kingdom things before my own desire to chase after the things the world offers. The Kingdom is an upside-down kingdom where the last is first and the first is last. We are tempted to think that if we live that way, life will be a drag. But what Jesus says is that if we buy into the Kingdom way and we lay down our life--it's only then that we will actually be living. That's real life.
NT Journey--Matthew 15
Less Rules, Higher Standards
There are a couple of things I hope you're picking up from the book of Matthew. First, just how radical Jesus' message was to His original hearers. Being so far removed from the time and culture, we have a hard time understanding the major shift in thinking that would have to take place for a typical Jew to really understand and accept what Jesus was saying. Can you imagine if someone came, claiming to be God incarnate and taught things like "keep reading the Bible because it's about me?" We would think the guy is wacky. But this is exactly what Jesus did--turned the whole religious system on its head. Anyone who reads the teachings of Jesus and says, "Isn't that nice" doesn't really understand Jesus.
The second thing I hope you're wrestling with and rethinking is how you live out your own faith. Jesus' teachings didn't just apply to first century Palestine, but they apply to us as well. How many people today live as though what God really wants from us is to go to church? How many people live as though they can somehow earn God's favor by giving money to the church? How many people put more emphasis on going to Bible studies than intentionally caring for the sick and people in need? In the evangelical world, we've often taken the very things Jesus says are less important and made them the most important things. Maybe some of us need to be "resaved." (We'll see this very clearly when we get to the book of John)
For Jesus, being "born again" into the Kingdom is not just praying a prayer, its when we begin to see the world through Jesus' eyes. We intentionally seek to look at things through Jesus' colored glasses and live accordingly. The great thing about being a part of the Kingdom is that I now get to participate with God in redeeming the world. Ultimately, it's His power, not mine, but I get to help! What child isn't excited about that?
In Matthew 15, we see more of the same. The Jewish leaders came to Jesus asking about why Jesus' disciples break the "tradition of the elders." The Tradition of the Elders was the law on top of the Law. The Pharisees were so concerned about people breaking the Law of Moses that they placed laws on top of the laws to supposedly make it impossible for people to sin. So, for instance, the Law says "remember the Sabbath day and keep it holy." There are also some practical outworkings of this law in the Old Testament, but the tradition of the elders would go a few steps further and tack onto that even more prohibitions for working on the Sabbath.
There came to be two problems with this system. First, it took the heart out of the actions. Laws tend to do that. Let's take the example of marriage. Marriage is about the relationship, not about the rules. Sure, there are rules, both written and unwritten, but the purpose of the rules are to enhance the relationship. One such rule in marriage is not to mess around with other people. It's very possible to technically follow that rule, but in actuality break it. You could have an emotional affair, for instance. I suppose it's not technically breaking that rule, but how would that emotional attachment be seen as no big deal? I doubt it. You could add more laws on top of the adultery rule, like "don't be in the same room with the opposite sex," etc. But more rules don't equal more love.
Second, adding all the rules became an unnecessary burden on people. What if you set up all the rules in marriage, wrote them down in a book and your spouse was constantly looking over your shoulder and reminding you of the rules? I would dare say that would not be much of a marriage.
Jesus quotes 29 when He says, "These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me..."
It's no coincidence, then that Matthew follows this story up with the story of the Canaanite woman. If you remember your Old Testament, the Canaanites were the people who were in the promised land before Israel got there. They were pagans and God told the Israelites to stay far away from them (or kill them, but that's a story for another time). Remember the Jews were "God's chosen people" so obviously their faith and standing with God was much higher than the Canaanites. But here's the story of a Canaanite woman of all things who has great faith. Remember the story of the Centurion in chapter 8? Well, it seems as though Matthew is piling up evidence for the Jews that they're not as hot as they think they are.
I wonder what this means for us in our situation today? Does it apply? Could there be people, who are not Christians who actually have more faith than some Christians? Think about it.
There are a couple of things I hope you're picking up from the book of Matthew. First, just how radical Jesus' message was to His original hearers. Being so far removed from the time and culture, we have a hard time understanding the major shift in thinking that would have to take place for a typical Jew to really understand and accept what Jesus was saying. Can you imagine if someone came, claiming to be God incarnate and taught things like "keep reading the Bible because it's about me?" We would think the guy is wacky. But this is exactly what Jesus did--turned the whole religious system on its head. Anyone who reads the teachings of Jesus and says, "Isn't that nice" doesn't really understand Jesus.
The second thing I hope you're wrestling with and rethinking is how you live out your own faith. Jesus' teachings didn't just apply to first century Palestine, but they apply to us as well. How many people today live as though what God really wants from us is to go to church? How many people live as though they can somehow earn God's favor by giving money to the church? How many people put more emphasis on going to Bible studies than intentionally caring for the sick and people in need? In the evangelical world, we've often taken the very things Jesus says are less important and made them the most important things. Maybe some of us need to be "resaved." (We'll see this very clearly when we get to the book of John)
For Jesus, being "born again" into the Kingdom is not just praying a prayer, its when we begin to see the world through Jesus' eyes. We intentionally seek to look at things through Jesus' colored glasses and live accordingly. The great thing about being a part of the Kingdom is that I now get to participate with God in redeeming the world. Ultimately, it's His power, not mine, but I get to help! What child isn't excited about that?
In Matthew 15, we see more of the same. The Jewish leaders came to Jesus asking about why Jesus' disciples break the "tradition of the elders." The Tradition of the Elders was the law on top of the Law. The Pharisees were so concerned about people breaking the Law of Moses that they placed laws on top of the laws to supposedly make it impossible for people to sin. So, for instance, the Law says "remember the Sabbath day and keep it holy." There are also some practical outworkings of this law in the Old Testament, but the tradition of the elders would go a few steps further and tack onto that even more prohibitions for working on the Sabbath.
There came to be two problems with this system. First, it took the heart out of the actions. Laws tend to do that. Let's take the example of marriage. Marriage is about the relationship, not about the rules. Sure, there are rules, both written and unwritten, but the purpose of the rules are to enhance the relationship. One such rule in marriage is not to mess around with other people. It's very possible to technically follow that rule, but in actuality break it. You could have an emotional affair, for instance. I suppose it's not technically breaking that rule, but how would that emotional attachment be seen as no big deal? I doubt it. You could add more laws on top of the adultery rule, like "don't be in the same room with the opposite sex," etc. But more rules don't equal more love.
Second, adding all the rules became an unnecessary burden on people. What if you set up all the rules in marriage, wrote them down in a book and your spouse was constantly looking over your shoulder and reminding you of the rules? I would dare say that would not be much of a marriage.
Jesus quotes 29 when He says, "These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me..."
It's no coincidence, then that Matthew follows this story up with the story of the Canaanite woman. If you remember your Old Testament, the Canaanites were the people who were in the promised land before Israel got there. They were pagans and God told the Israelites to stay far away from them (or kill them, but that's a story for another time). Remember the Jews were "God's chosen people" so obviously their faith and standing with God was much higher than the Canaanites. But here's the story of a Canaanite woman of all things who has great faith. Remember the story of the Centurion in chapter 8? Well, it seems as though Matthew is piling up evidence for the Jews that they're not as hot as they think they are.
I wonder what this means for us in our situation today? Does it apply? Could there be people, who are not Christians who actually have more faith than some Christians? Think about it.
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
NT Journey--Matthew 14
Believing is Seeing
There are some stories in scripture that are preached on so much, we almost get tired of hearing them. Someone comes up with a great application and writes a book about it and we think we've exhausted everything there is to learn from a particular story. Yet we read them again and again. If we're not careful, they go in one ear and out the other--or maybe in one eye and out the other if we're reading.
In any case, the story of Jesus walking on the water just might be one of those stories. But here's the lesson for us--even if the story is the same, each time we come back to that story, our lives are different. The things we're wrestling with, struggling with, happy or confused about is different each time we pick up the story and read it. The truth is the same, but our situation is different so our application is different. That's why we'll never in our lives get to the point that we've heard it all before. The point of the story is always the same, how that point relates to us is always changing.
One aspect that stood out to me in this reading of the story of Jesus walking on water is that the most amazing things in life happen when we do something. Matthew (and the rest of the New Testament) is filled with stories about Jesus doing amazing things. In fact, Jesus even gets tired of people asking for a "show" (see Mt 12:38-45). What Jesus wants is not for people to be amazed, but to be motivated.
In this story, Peter is put forth as the model of our response to Jesus. I was never a big Michael Jordan fan. I can certainly appreciate his talent and don't deny that he was probably the greatest basketball player ever. I was continually amazed at the last-second shots he would make to win games and championships. It was really a sight to see. But I can think of something that would be even more amazing for me...if I was the one hitting those shots! What a rush that would be! I've never experienced that and I'm afraid that time has passed me by.
But what we see in this story is the example of someone who's not content just to be amazed. I'm sure all the disciples once they got over their shock and fear were pretty amazed at Jesus walking on the water. But who do you think was most impacted by this event? Of course, it was Peter, because he wasn't just amazed, he got to do something amazing!
Here's the lesson for us. Me might get to see God do some amazing things in our lives by just being a part of the church. Sometimes God just volunteers those things. But if you look in scripture, what you'll find is that the people who believe--and by that I mean believe with their actions--are the ones who really get to see something amazing. It's always the ones who take the step of faith first, who get to see God come through in big ways. Not only did Peter get to see Jesus walk on water, he got to do it himself, but only because he first had faith that Jesus could make it happen. Peter's experience wasn't perfect, but boy did he have a story to tell!
So the obvious application here is--what step of faith do you need to take in order to participate in something amazing? In order to really see the Kingdom of Heaven, we first need to make the commitment to walking through that door. When we do, we begin to see a world we never dreamed of before. What's your faith step?
There are some stories in scripture that are preached on so much, we almost get tired of hearing them. Someone comes up with a great application and writes a book about it and we think we've exhausted everything there is to learn from a particular story. Yet we read them again and again. If we're not careful, they go in one ear and out the other--or maybe in one eye and out the other if we're reading.
In any case, the story of Jesus walking on the water just might be one of those stories. But here's the lesson for us--even if the story is the same, each time we come back to that story, our lives are different. The things we're wrestling with, struggling with, happy or confused about is different each time we pick up the story and read it. The truth is the same, but our situation is different so our application is different. That's why we'll never in our lives get to the point that we've heard it all before. The point of the story is always the same, how that point relates to us is always changing.
One aspect that stood out to me in this reading of the story of Jesus walking on water is that the most amazing things in life happen when we do something. Matthew (and the rest of the New Testament) is filled with stories about Jesus doing amazing things. In fact, Jesus even gets tired of people asking for a "show" (see Mt 12:38-45). What Jesus wants is not for people to be amazed, but to be motivated.
In this story, Peter is put forth as the model of our response to Jesus. I was never a big Michael Jordan fan. I can certainly appreciate his talent and don't deny that he was probably the greatest basketball player ever. I was continually amazed at the last-second shots he would make to win games and championships. It was really a sight to see. But I can think of something that would be even more amazing for me...if I was the one hitting those shots! What a rush that would be! I've never experienced that and I'm afraid that time has passed me by.
But what we see in this story is the example of someone who's not content just to be amazed. I'm sure all the disciples once they got over their shock and fear were pretty amazed at Jesus walking on the water. But who do you think was most impacted by this event? Of course, it was Peter, because he wasn't just amazed, he got to do something amazing!
Here's the lesson for us. Me might get to see God do some amazing things in our lives by just being a part of the church. Sometimes God just volunteers those things. But if you look in scripture, what you'll find is that the people who believe--and by that I mean believe with their actions--are the ones who really get to see something amazing. It's always the ones who take the step of faith first, who get to see God come through in big ways. Not only did Peter get to see Jesus walk on water, he got to do it himself, but only because he first had faith that Jesus could make it happen. Peter's experience wasn't perfect, but boy did he have a story to tell!
So the obvious application here is--what step of faith do you need to take in order to participate in something amazing? In order to really see the Kingdom of Heaven, we first need to make the commitment to walking through that door. When we do, we begin to see a world we never dreamed of before. What's your faith step?
Monday, January 18, 2010
NT Journey--Matthew 13
Parables
Matthew 13 is the famous parable section in the book of Matthew. The parables are all teachings about the Kingdom of Heaven. The parables are simple explanations of the way things work in the Kingdom. Jesus uses parables for a couple of different reasons. First, the parables explain something unfamiliar by comparing it to something familiar. So in an agrarian culture, the people would have been very familiar with the metaphors Jesus uses here.
Jesus says another reason He used parables is because only those who "have ears to hear" can understand. The Gospel is simple for a reason, because it is intended to be accessible to anyone--even children. If the Gospel were only for the super-educated or cultural elite, it wouldn't really be "good news" (which is what "gospel" means) for everyone, only for a few. But since the Gospel is so simple, the only ones who can't understand it are the ones who refuse to accept it.
Obviously there's much we can say about these parables, but I want to focus in on two parables in particular: the parable of the mustard seed and the parable of the yeast in verses 31-33. These two parables are two ways of saying essentially the same thing.
We live in a loud world. It takes a very loud voice or spectacular effects to get anyone's attention these days. With more and more voices competing for attention, the world can get confusing and if we live long enough, we can begin to tune out everything and retreat to our own mind. Marketing execs continually search for new ways to get their message across producing more shocking results at a rapid pace.
But when Jesus teaches about the Kingdom, he sets the Kingdom up as something that is contrary to the world. Not only is it contrary in its values, but it's also contrary in its methods. These two parables describe how the Kingdom grows. God's goal is that the Kingdom of Heaven breaks into the world. Thus in the Lord's prayer, Jesus teaches us to pray, "Your Kingdom come, Your will be done on earth as it is in Heaven." This, by the way is a good definition of the Kingdom of Heaven: anywhere the will of God is being done.
Certainly God could come in shock and awe if He so desired. Who could shout louder than God? Certainly then we would be able to hear the Kingdom coming! But in these parables, Jesus tells us that this isn't the way the Kingdom works. The mustard seed is a tiny little seed, but when it grows, it becomes a very large bush with full branches that make a great resting place for birds. Yeast is much the same. It only takes a little bit of yeast, that over time works its way through the dough to make it rise and grow. Both things start out small. Both of these processes are slow--almost imperceptible to the naked eye. (Have you ever tried to watch a bush grow?) Both yield results that are a blessing for others.
Jesus says this also describes the Kingdom. The Kingdom starts and grows, not by shock and awe; not by earth shattering events and spectacular light shows, but by the people of God, through servant hood and love, slowly--almost imperceptibly--working its way through society and getting its branches all throughout society so that one day, people wake up and say, "Wow, where did that come from?" And like the mustard seed and yeast, they don't exist for themselves, they exist so that the end result can be a blessing for others. ("the birds perch in its branches" and who doesn't love bread?)
So what does this mean for us? I think we can take heart that each of us can make a Kingdom impact in the world. Every act of love we do in Jesus' name is effective at working the branches of the Kingdom throughout our society. But any time we've tried to grow the Kingdom by force (see the Crusades, the Inquisition, and political games) it has disastrous results because when the Kingdom advances by worldly force, it ceases to be the Kingdom. God powers the Kingdom, so we trust that when we do things God's way, we get godly results.
Matthew 13 is the famous parable section in the book of Matthew. The parables are all teachings about the Kingdom of Heaven. The parables are simple explanations of the way things work in the Kingdom. Jesus uses parables for a couple of different reasons. First, the parables explain something unfamiliar by comparing it to something familiar. So in an agrarian culture, the people would have been very familiar with the metaphors Jesus uses here.
Jesus says another reason He used parables is because only those who "have ears to hear" can understand. The Gospel is simple for a reason, because it is intended to be accessible to anyone--even children. If the Gospel were only for the super-educated or cultural elite, it wouldn't really be "good news" (which is what "gospel" means) for everyone, only for a few. But since the Gospel is so simple, the only ones who can't understand it are the ones who refuse to accept it.
Obviously there's much we can say about these parables, but I want to focus in on two parables in particular: the parable of the mustard seed and the parable of the yeast in verses 31-33. These two parables are two ways of saying essentially the same thing.
We live in a loud world. It takes a very loud voice or spectacular effects to get anyone's attention these days. With more and more voices competing for attention, the world can get confusing and if we live long enough, we can begin to tune out everything and retreat to our own mind. Marketing execs continually search for new ways to get their message across producing more shocking results at a rapid pace.
But when Jesus teaches about the Kingdom, he sets the Kingdom up as something that is contrary to the world. Not only is it contrary in its values, but it's also contrary in its methods. These two parables describe how the Kingdom grows. God's goal is that the Kingdom of Heaven breaks into the world. Thus in the Lord's prayer, Jesus teaches us to pray, "Your Kingdom come, Your will be done on earth as it is in Heaven." This, by the way is a good definition of the Kingdom of Heaven: anywhere the will of God is being done.
Certainly God could come in shock and awe if He so desired. Who could shout louder than God? Certainly then we would be able to hear the Kingdom coming! But in these parables, Jesus tells us that this isn't the way the Kingdom works. The mustard seed is a tiny little seed, but when it grows, it becomes a very large bush with full branches that make a great resting place for birds. Yeast is much the same. It only takes a little bit of yeast, that over time works its way through the dough to make it rise and grow. Both things start out small. Both of these processes are slow--almost imperceptible to the naked eye. (Have you ever tried to watch a bush grow?) Both yield results that are a blessing for others.
Jesus says this also describes the Kingdom. The Kingdom starts and grows, not by shock and awe; not by earth shattering events and spectacular light shows, but by the people of God, through servant hood and love, slowly--almost imperceptibly--working its way through society and getting its branches all throughout society so that one day, people wake up and say, "Wow, where did that come from?" And like the mustard seed and yeast, they don't exist for themselves, they exist so that the end result can be a blessing for others. ("the birds perch in its branches" and who doesn't love bread?)
So what does this mean for us? I think we can take heart that each of us can make a Kingdom impact in the world. Every act of love we do in Jesus' name is effective at working the branches of the Kingdom throughout our society. But any time we've tried to grow the Kingdom by force (see the Crusades, the Inquisition, and political games) it has disastrous results because when the Kingdom advances by worldly force, it ceases to be the Kingdom. God powers the Kingdom, so we trust that when we do things God's way, we get godly results.
Sunday, January 17, 2010
NT Journey -- Matthew 12
I hope you had a great weekend. It's Monday, so let's get back to our New Testament journey. If you haven't ready Matthew 12 yet, do it before you read this post. Then read the post and go back to the chapter and read it again in light of what I tell you.
Arbitrary Divisions
OK, teachable moment here. Just because the guy who made the chapter and verse divisions says there's a break there doesn't mean there's an actual break there. On thing you have to know about the Bible is that it wasn't written with the chapter and verse divisions. In fact, in ancient Greek, there wouldn't even be spaces between the words. The chapters and verses were first put in the Bible around 1500. While overall, they're very helpful, sometimes they can trip us up a bit, or at least arbitrarily divide up things that should really go together.
I believe Matthew 12 is an instance of this. At the end of Matthew 11 is the familiar verse uttered by Jesus, "Come to me all you who are weary and burdened and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, for I am gentle and humble in heart. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light." Well, Jesus actually goes on to explain Himself after he said it. By way of explanation, Jesus walks through the grain fields to get where He is going. Knowing it was the Sabbath, and knowing He was hungry, He picked some grain from the field and ate it. He also knew the religious people would make a big deal out it.
A little background. The Pharisees were notorious for emphasizing the Law, part of which said, "Remember the Sabbath and keep it holy." (one of the Ten Commandments) Legit law, but the Pharisees took it a little further. They were so concerned about people breaking the Law, they would make laws upon the Law--providing a hedge around the law so it would be impossible for people to break the actual Law. It's said that they took the 10 Commandments and expanded them to the 613 commandments. In the case of the Sabbath Law, they had every little thing regulated, defining what's work and what's not work (just about everything was work, by the way).
So when Jesus picked grain on the Sabbath, it was considered work by the Pharisees. To Jesus, it was a chance to show the true intent of the Law. The Law is made for people, not people for the Law. When people are hungry, what's important is that we feed them. You should also know that Old Testament law commands the Israelites not to harvest the edges of their fields so that the poor and aliens will have something to eat if they wander by. In the grain fields, God made provision for the hungry.
I could go on about this, but what I'm getting at here is that the story at the beginning of chapter 12 is actually a continuation or explanation of Jesus' statement at the end of Matthew 11. Not only this, but Matthew 12:15-21 is a continuation of the previous section. Matthew is showing that Jesus has the authority to "redefine" the Law the way He did.
As you read, keep in mind the context. Often, the editor does a good job with the chapter divisions, but don't assume that just because some guy divided up the Bible a certain way that this is the way it has to be divided up. Often, we can learn a lot more about a section, by linking it to the sections around it.
Arbitrary Divisions
OK, teachable moment here. Just because the guy who made the chapter and verse divisions says there's a break there doesn't mean there's an actual break there. On thing you have to know about the Bible is that it wasn't written with the chapter and verse divisions. In fact, in ancient Greek, there wouldn't even be spaces between the words. The chapters and verses were first put in the Bible around 1500. While overall, they're very helpful, sometimes they can trip us up a bit, or at least arbitrarily divide up things that should really go together.
I believe Matthew 12 is an instance of this. At the end of Matthew 11 is the familiar verse uttered by Jesus, "Come to me all you who are weary and burdened and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, for I am gentle and humble in heart. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light." Well, Jesus actually goes on to explain Himself after he said it. By way of explanation, Jesus walks through the grain fields to get where He is going. Knowing it was the Sabbath, and knowing He was hungry, He picked some grain from the field and ate it. He also knew the religious people would make a big deal out it.
A little background. The Pharisees were notorious for emphasizing the Law, part of which said, "Remember the Sabbath and keep it holy." (one of the Ten Commandments) Legit law, but the Pharisees took it a little further. They were so concerned about people breaking the Law, they would make laws upon the Law--providing a hedge around the law so it would be impossible for people to break the actual Law. It's said that they took the 10 Commandments and expanded them to the 613 commandments. In the case of the Sabbath Law, they had every little thing regulated, defining what's work and what's not work (just about everything was work, by the way).
So when Jesus picked grain on the Sabbath, it was considered work by the Pharisees. To Jesus, it was a chance to show the true intent of the Law. The Law is made for people, not people for the Law. When people are hungry, what's important is that we feed them. You should also know that Old Testament law commands the Israelites not to harvest the edges of their fields so that the poor and aliens will have something to eat if they wander by. In the grain fields, God made provision for the hungry.
I could go on about this, but what I'm getting at here is that the story at the beginning of chapter 12 is actually a continuation or explanation of Jesus' statement at the end of Matthew 11. Not only this, but Matthew 12:15-21 is a continuation of the previous section. Matthew is showing that Jesus has the authority to "redefine" the Law the way He did.
As you read, keep in mind the context. Often, the editor does a good job with the chapter divisions, but don't assume that just because some guy divided up the Bible a certain way that this is the way it has to be divided up. Often, we can learn a lot more about a section, by linking it to the sections around it.
Friday, January 15, 2010
NT Journey--Matthew 11
I hope you've been keeping up with your reading on the NT Journey. Remember the point is not to read the blogs, but to read the Scripture. So read and study the passage FIRST, then you can take a look at the blog and then go back if you'd like. Do it daily.
I've Heard it All Before
Matthew 11 is an interesting contrast. On the one hand, you have John the Baptist, who was sent to preach about the coming of Jesus. He obviously devoted his life to it and was sold out to his mission. He didn't care how others portrayed him. He was just intent on his mission. Yet, in Mt 11, we see him in jail, having some doubts. It doesn't seem like Jesus is bothered by John's doubts--he sends John's messenger back to give him an honest answer. He says, "Look at all the signs of the Kingdom that are happening around me." There's the answer.
On the other side of the contrast is the Jewish cities Jesus and His disciples preached to. He denounces them not for their evil sins, but for their unresponsiveness to the Gospel. He says no matter what signs happen, they don't believe. Thus in verses 18-19 He says, "John did all the things you would expect a prophet to do, but you said he had a demon. Now I come and do what you don't expect and you just call me a drunk." There's no way to win.
He then uses the examples of the evil cities of the Old Testament--Tyre and Sidon and Sodom--infamous for their over the-top-evil. Again, Jesus compares the "holy Jewish cities" (or so they thought) of Galilee to the most evil cities of the Old Testament and has the nerve to tell them they're worse. They've been blinded by their religion. They think that because they worship at the Temple and follow all the rules of the Law that they're OK. And yet they're so focused on their religion that they miss what they've been waiting for--their deliverer.
As we'll see later in Matthew, according to Jesus the Jewish people had been unnecessarily burdened with laws by their leaders. It was a weight that was difficult for them to carry. But at the end of this chapter, Jesus tells them they can leave all that stuff behind if they just come to Him. He's there to provide rest for people who are burdened with rules and religion, who are continually told they don't measure up. It's not that people are OK in and of themselves, but Jesus will lighten their load.
As mentioned earlier, some people might be tempted to think that if they just say they trust in Jesus (intellectually) then they can do anything they want. Since there are no rules, they don't really have to pay attention to living their life in any particular way. But doing away with the "rules" is not less challenging, it's more challenging. Situations are not black and white. Life is not as neat and tidy as it is when we live by rules. Instead, we live by self-sacrificial love, which can be hard and messy and dangerous. But Jesus says, that life is simpler (not easier) and more rewarding. And on top of all that, it's where Jesus is. And, and Pastor Randy says, we belief life with Jesus is better than life without Him. Amen to that!
I've Heard it All Before
Matthew 11 is an interesting contrast. On the one hand, you have John the Baptist, who was sent to preach about the coming of Jesus. He obviously devoted his life to it and was sold out to his mission. He didn't care how others portrayed him. He was just intent on his mission. Yet, in Mt 11, we see him in jail, having some doubts. It doesn't seem like Jesus is bothered by John's doubts--he sends John's messenger back to give him an honest answer. He says, "Look at all the signs of the Kingdom that are happening around me." There's the answer.
On the other side of the contrast is the Jewish cities Jesus and His disciples preached to. He denounces them not for their evil sins, but for their unresponsiveness to the Gospel. He says no matter what signs happen, they don't believe. Thus in verses 18-19 He says, "John did all the things you would expect a prophet to do, but you said he had a demon. Now I come and do what you don't expect and you just call me a drunk." There's no way to win.
He then uses the examples of the evil cities of the Old Testament--Tyre and Sidon and Sodom--infamous for their over the-top-evil. Again, Jesus compares the "holy Jewish cities" (or so they thought) of Galilee to the most evil cities of the Old Testament and has the nerve to tell them they're worse. They've been blinded by their religion. They think that because they worship at the Temple and follow all the rules of the Law that they're OK. And yet they're so focused on their religion that they miss what they've been waiting for--their deliverer.
As we'll see later in Matthew, according to Jesus the Jewish people had been unnecessarily burdened with laws by their leaders. It was a weight that was difficult for them to carry. But at the end of this chapter, Jesus tells them they can leave all that stuff behind if they just come to Him. He's there to provide rest for people who are burdened with rules and religion, who are continually told they don't measure up. It's not that people are OK in and of themselves, but Jesus will lighten their load.
As mentioned earlier, some people might be tempted to think that if they just say they trust in Jesus (intellectually) then they can do anything they want. Since there are no rules, they don't really have to pay attention to living their life in any particular way. But doing away with the "rules" is not less challenging, it's more challenging. Situations are not black and white. Life is not as neat and tidy as it is when we live by rules. Instead, we live by self-sacrificial love, which can be hard and messy and dangerous. But Jesus says, that life is simpler (not easier) and more rewarding. And on top of all that, it's where Jesus is. And, and Pastor Randy says, we belief life with Jesus is better than life without Him. Amen to that!
Thursday, January 14, 2010
NT Journey--Matthew 10
The Kingdom--Don't be Naive
This is a pretty strange chapter for me because it just seems like rapid-fire instructions for when Jesus sends out His twelve disciples to preach. The disciples hadn't been with Jesus a long time before He sent them out. I can't focus a lot on the specifics of Jesus' instructions, but there are a couple of things I noticed that I want to point out here.
In verse 16, Jesus says:
Politicians are shrewd for their own gain (or re-election). But the disciples are called to be shrewd for the sake of the Kingdom. In other words, they are to be shrewd and calculating for the sake of other people. They were to work hard to try to figure out how they can do the most good for people, knowing full well there was a pretty good chance they wouldn't be received well at all.
But in the middle of this, there is one thing that will keep them going--God cares. This is the essence of the Kingdom life as I see it. When people live "Kingdom" lives, they look very radical--they're radically generous, radically forgiving and look very strange to the average person. Followers of Jesus should look for sneaky and creative ways to bring the Kingdom to people.
The second thing I want to point out is this: When the Kingdom of God is near, it brings health and wholeness into the world. Here's the irony...Jesus says, "don't think I've come to bring peace, but a sword..." What's interesting is that the Kingdom of God is peace. The problem is that people will have a hard time accepting it. The Kingdom is so valuable, it's worth leaving family for. But the reason it might cause a rift is because some people just can't accept the Kingdom because it's so radically different from the way the world operates.
When Jesus sent out the disciples to proclaim the Kingdom, He gave them the power to heal and cast out demons, etc. as signs of the coming of the Kingdom. God's desire is at the end of time to renew all things. (We've often been taught that the only thing God wants to do is bring people to heaven. This is not the Biblical view. The Biblical view is that God wants to renew all things. That we will be resurrected and live on a new earth when the Kingdom of Heaven comes to fruition).
Right now, however, we can see and participate in little glimpses of the Kingdom. This is why Jesus' message was "the Kingdom is near." It's not here yet, but you can see it from here. If you want some application from this chapter it is that we followers of Jesus are given the task of pointing out those places where the Kingdom of Heaven is breaking into the world and to participate with God in making it a reality. God will bring it about, but we can help make people look forward to it.
This is a pretty strange chapter for me because it just seems like rapid-fire instructions for when Jesus sends out His twelve disciples to preach. The disciples hadn't been with Jesus a long time before He sent them out. I can't focus a lot on the specifics of Jesus' instructions, but there are a couple of things I noticed that I want to point out here.
In verse 16, Jesus says:
I am sending you out like sheep among wolves. Therefore be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves.Even though Jesus is giving His disciples a lot of power and authority, He still wants them to look at the world realistically. Things are not always going to go they way they want them to. In fact, He tells them flat out, that it's going to be a sheep vs. wolves kind of situation. Because of this, He tells them to be shrewd as snakes. Use good strategy, think ahead, work the system to gain any hearing you can. Yet at the same time, be as innocent as doves. When you think of shrewd, you might think of politicians. Political figures are very shrewd and calculating. Jesus tells His disciples to be like this, only different.
Politicians are shrewd for their own gain (or re-election). But the disciples are called to be shrewd for the sake of the Kingdom. In other words, they are to be shrewd and calculating for the sake of other people. They were to work hard to try to figure out how they can do the most good for people, knowing full well there was a pretty good chance they wouldn't be received well at all.
But in the middle of this, there is one thing that will keep them going--God cares. This is the essence of the Kingdom life as I see it. When people live "Kingdom" lives, they look very radical--they're radically generous, radically forgiving and look very strange to the average person. Followers of Jesus should look for sneaky and creative ways to bring the Kingdom to people.
The second thing I want to point out is this: When the Kingdom of God is near, it brings health and wholeness into the world. Here's the irony...Jesus says, "don't think I've come to bring peace, but a sword..." What's interesting is that the Kingdom of God is peace. The problem is that people will have a hard time accepting it. The Kingdom is so valuable, it's worth leaving family for. But the reason it might cause a rift is because some people just can't accept the Kingdom because it's so radically different from the way the world operates.
When Jesus sent out the disciples to proclaim the Kingdom, He gave them the power to heal and cast out demons, etc. as signs of the coming of the Kingdom. God's desire is at the end of time to renew all things. (We've often been taught that the only thing God wants to do is bring people to heaven. This is not the Biblical view. The Biblical view is that God wants to renew all things. That we will be resurrected and live on a new earth when the Kingdom of Heaven comes to fruition).
Right now, however, we can see and participate in little glimpses of the Kingdom. This is why Jesus' message was "the Kingdom is near." It's not here yet, but you can see it from here. If you want some application from this chapter it is that we followers of Jesus are given the task of pointing out those places where the Kingdom of Heaven is breaking into the world and to participate with God in making it a reality. God will bring it about, but we can help make people look forward to it.
Wednesday, January 13, 2010
NT Journey--Matthew 9
Getting Rid of Religion
I think I've mentioned it earlier, but Judaism in Jesus' time was all about separation. They kept themselves separate from anything that could corrupt them. In the Old Testament, this was actually God's command. He wanted to ensure the Jews would remain unstained at least until the time came for Him to send Jesus.
But when Jesus came, times changed. Even in the Old Testament, God never set the Jews apart because they were somehow better than everyone else. If you read in the Old Testament at all, you'll quickly see the Israelites were hardly anything special. God just used them to accomplish His purpose. But when you have a particular mindset for a long period of time, it's tough to change.
Matthew 9 is a good illustration of this. When Jesus came, there were wholesale changes to the way the Jews were to live out their "religion." So, if this makes sense, in the Old Testament the Jews were to be exclusive so that later they could be inclusive. When Jesus came the way they were to live changed from being separate and exclusive to being accepting and inclusive.
In verse 9, Jesus calls Matthew--a tax collector. Tax collectors were the mortal enemies of the Jews. They were traitors, because they were Jews who got in bed with the Romans for their own gain. Jewish Zealots would routinely kill tax collectors. (It's interesting that Jesus called both Matthew the tax collector, and Simon the Zealot to be part of his 12 disciples!) When Jesus called Matthew, He didn't take him away from the other tax collectors and "sinners," He actually went to a party with Him.
The Pharisees, being good Jews were scandalized by this. They were used to being separate, but Jesus' purpose not to be separate, but to reconcile people to God. These are mutually exclusive--you can either separate yourself, or you can seek to reconcile people to God.
In verse 14, we actually don't move on to a new topic. The section following verse 14 is actually a continuation of the previous conversation. Jesus' disciples ask him about a point of Law, but Jesus essentially says, "Things have changed. What you thought was Law before actually has a different purpose now." There was a time when following all the religious rituals and things was important, what God actually wants is mercy (vs13). With Jesus' teachings, the world has essentially "outgrown" the legalistic religion of the Pharisees. What's important is not observing the festivals and ritual fasts (although those things aren't bad in themselves), but instead things like "justice, mercy and faithfulness." (see Mt 23:23-24)
So, what does this mean for us? I think the obvious application is that all the rituals of religion really mean nothing if we don't focus and concentrate on the things Jesus focused and concentrated on--valuing people, caring for the poor, calling them to the new Kingdom life that God intended for them. Many people substitute Kingdom living with church attendance. Kingdom living follows the example of Jesus and seeks to reconcile people with God. The only way we can do this is to be willing to associate with sinners while maintaining our Kingdom perspective.
Are you more inclined to separate or enter other people's world? Do you rely on religious habits or seek to live a Kingdom life? These are the questions Matthew asks in this story in Matthew 9.
I think I've mentioned it earlier, but Judaism in Jesus' time was all about separation. They kept themselves separate from anything that could corrupt them. In the Old Testament, this was actually God's command. He wanted to ensure the Jews would remain unstained at least until the time came for Him to send Jesus.
But when Jesus came, times changed. Even in the Old Testament, God never set the Jews apart because they were somehow better than everyone else. If you read in the Old Testament at all, you'll quickly see the Israelites were hardly anything special. God just used them to accomplish His purpose. But when you have a particular mindset for a long period of time, it's tough to change.
Matthew 9 is a good illustration of this. When Jesus came, there were wholesale changes to the way the Jews were to live out their "religion." So, if this makes sense, in the Old Testament the Jews were to be exclusive so that later they could be inclusive. When Jesus came the way they were to live changed from being separate and exclusive to being accepting and inclusive.
In verse 9, Jesus calls Matthew--a tax collector. Tax collectors were the mortal enemies of the Jews. They were traitors, because they were Jews who got in bed with the Romans for their own gain. Jewish Zealots would routinely kill tax collectors. (It's interesting that Jesus called both Matthew the tax collector, and Simon the Zealot to be part of his 12 disciples!) When Jesus called Matthew, He didn't take him away from the other tax collectors and "sinners," He actually went to a party with Him.
The Pharisees, being good Jews were scandalized by this. They were used to being separate, but Jesus' purpose not to be separate, but to reconcile people to God. These are mutually exclusive--you can either separate yourself, or you can seek to reconcile people to God.
In verse 14, we actually don't move on to a new topic. The section following verse 14 is actually a continuation of the previous conversation. Jesus' disciples ask him about a point of Law, but Jesus essentially says, "Things have changed. What you thought was Law before actually has a different purpose now." There was a time when following all the religious rituals and things was important, what God actually wants is mercy (vs13). With Jesus' teachings, the world has essentially "outgrown" the legalistic religion of the Pharisees. What's important is not observing the festivals and ritual fasts (although those things aren't bad in themselves), but instead things like "justice, mercy and faithfulness." (see Mt 23:23-24)
So, what does this mean for us? I think the obvious application is that all the rituals of religion really mean nothing if we don't focus and concentrate on the things Jesus focused and concentrated on--valuing people, caring for the poor, calling them to the new Kingdom life that God intended for them. Many people substitute Kingdom living with church attendance. Kingdom living follows the example of Jesus and seeks to reconcile people with God. The only way we can do this is to be willing to associate with sinners while maintaining our Kingdom perspective.
Are you more inclined to separate or enter other people's world? Do you rely on religious habits or seek to live a Kingdom life? These are the questions Matthew asks in this story in Matthew 9.
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
NT Journey--Matthew 8
When you're reading in the New Testament, never underestimate the chasm that existed between the Jews and the Gentiles (a "gentile" is anyone who is not a Jew). The Jews had a strong sense of national, ethnic and religious identity. For centuries, they saw themselves as "God's chosen people" and always saw themselves as better than the gentiles. They were God's favorite. They were closer to God. They were more holy and they looked down upon the gentiles. Gentiles were pagans, salvation was for Jews alone.
When Jesus entered the scene, it came as a big shock to devout Jews when He started preaching that the door was open to the "outsiders." We already saw this in Matthew 7:21 where Jesus tells people, "Not everyone who calls me Lord will enter the Kingdom of Heaven." There will be some who are surprised. We'll also see this more explicitly stated later, too.
So while we will often look at the story of the centurion in Matthew 8 and just gloss over it, this would have been a scandalous story for Jews at the time. Matthew clearly portrays the centurion (who was a Roman-a Gentile) as a righteous figure. So when Jesus says in verse 10, "I have not found anyone in Israel with such great faith," he was taking a verbal jab at the Jews. But he doesn't stop there. He goes on to say that there will be people who are given all the advantages that will be thrown out of the Kingdom.
OK, I'm going to stop there, now it's your turn to do some interpretation. What do you think this story means for us? I'll give my thoughts later, but I'd really like to hear what you have to say.
When Jesus entered the scene, it came as a big shock to devout Jews when He started preaching that the door was open to the "outsiders." We already saw this in Matthew 7:21 where Jesus tells people, "Not everyone who calls me Lord will enter the Kingdom of Heaven." There will be some who are surprised. We'll also see this more explicitly stated later, too.
So while we will often look at the story of the centurion in Matthew 8 and just gloss over it, this would have been a scandalous story for Jews at the time. Matthew clearly portrays the centurion (who was a Roman-a Gentile) as a righteous figure. So when Jesus says in verse 10, "I have not found anyone in Israel with such great faith," he was taking a verbal jab at the Jews. But he doesn't stop there. He goes on to say that there will be people who are given all the advantages that will be thrown out of the Kingdom.
OK, I'm going to stop there, now it's your turn to do some interpretation. What do you think this story means for us? I'll give my thoughts later, but I'd really like to hear what you have to say.
Monday, January 11, 2010
NT Journey--Matthew 7
The second half of Matthew 7 is a warning against faith in the head alone. Through the preaching we've heard for years, we've come to think that all we need to do is believe a certain set of propositions about Jesus and we'll be "saved." This isn't going to sound very evangelical of me, but I find it difficult to justify this belief when we read the teachings of Jesus.
For Jesus, faith is more than just in the head. It's more than just intellectual belief. Now I know Paul says, "It is by grace you've been saved through faith, not by works..." but for Jesus--"faith" or "belief" means much more than just subscribing to a doctrine. Matthew 7 gives us a good picture of why this is true.
Look in verse 21 where Jesus says, "Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven. but only he who DOES the will of my Father who is in heaven..." Notice it is the activity that makes the difference.
Later in chapter 7 in the parable of the wise and foolish builders, notice the difference between the wise and foolish builders. We often say that the difference is that the wise builder builds his house on Jesus and His teachings and the foolish builder builds on something else. But this isn't what Jesus actually says. According to Jesus, both hear and know Jesus' teachings, but the difference is between one who puts them into practice and the one who does not.
Think about it this way. Let's say you get a notice in the mail that you are entitled to a million dollars, but only if you go down to the bank before close today and fill out a form. Of course, it sounds too good to be true, but you check it out and find that it actually is true. You believe it. But if you never go down to the bank, you'll never actually receive what you're entitled to. You might go to the bank tomorrow and tell them that you really did believe them and they would say, "Sorry, too late."
In the same way, when Jesus speaks about faith and belief, it always includes action--never is it just an intellectual pursuit. We enter the Kingdom of Heaven (which doesn't just mean going to heaven when we die) when we live the Kingdom way. So there are really two keys to being a follower of Jesus. 1) Learn what He says and does, and 2) Do it. That's the point Jesus is making here.
For Jesus, faith is more than just in the head. It's more than just intellectual belief. Now I know Paul says, "It is by grace you've been saved through faith, not by works..." but for Jesus--"faith" or "belief" means much more than just subscribing to a doctrine. Matthew 7 gives us a good picture of why this is true.
Look in verse 21 where Jesus says, "Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven. but only he who DOES the will of my Father who is in heaven..." Notice it is the activity that makes the difference.
Later in chapter 7 in the parable of the wise and foolish builders, notice the difference between the wise and foolish builders. We often say that the difference is that the wise builder builds his house on Jesus and His teachings and the foolish builder builds on something else. But this isn't what Jesus actually says. According to Jesus, both hear and know Jesus' teachings, but the difference is between one who puts them into practice and the one who does not.
Think about it this way. Let's say you get a notice in the mail that you are entitled to a million dollars, but only if you go down to the bank before close today and fill out a form. Of course, it sounds too good to be true, but you check it out and find that it actually is true. You believe it. But if you never go down to the bank, you'll never actually receive what you're entitled to. You might go to the bank tomorrow and tell them that you really did believe them and they would say, "Sorry, too late."
In the same way, when Jesus speaks about faith and belief, it always includes action--never is it just an intellectual pursuit. We enter the Kingdom of Heaven (which doesn't just mean going to heaven when we die) when we live the Kingdom way. So there are really two keys to being a follower of Jesus. 1) Learn what He says and does, and 2) Do it. That's the point Jesus is making here.
NT Journey--Matthew 6
A Lesson in Legalism.
One of the things we'll see when reading Jesus' teachings is a warning against legalism. Many of us grew up in homes and churches that were ruled by rules. "Don't smoke, drink or chew, or go with girls who do." Add to that dancing, sex, swearing and listening to secular music and you have my idea of Christianity as I was growing up. It was about following the rules. Unfortunately, this is the picture many people have of Christianity. It's funny how it came about since Jesus always came down against legalism.
Legalism happens when we make the rule the main thing. When I'm legalistic, I'm just concerned with not divorcing, not necessarily honoring my wife.
As we read Matthew 6, there's a great opportunity to be legalistic about some of these teachings. In verses 1-4, we could make the rule that I can never let anyone ever see me do anything good. In verses 5-15, I could take it to mean that have to go into a closet in order to pray or even pray the exact words Jesus taught in the Lord's prayer. But when we read teachings like this, instead of making rules out of them, Jesus' intent is for us to really understand the idea behind His teaching.
So, for instance in verses 1-4, the point Jesus was making was to be careful of your motivation for giving. Don't do it to draw attention to yourself, do it because it's God's way. This, of course doesn't mean rules can't be important, but they are important, not for the rules, but for our relationships, both with God and others.
Some people might think this is the easy way out, but valuing relationships over rules is actually more challenging that simple legalism. If you want proof, read through Matthew 5 through this lens. Is it easier simply to refrain from murder or to not harbor bitterness against someone? Is it easier not to technically commit adultery or to not lust? Valuing relationships can be a great challenge, but that challenge comes from the heart and it's more than just outward actions.
One of the things we'll see when reading Jesus' teachings is a warning against legalism. Many of us grew up in homes and churches that were ruled by rules. "Don't smoke, drink or chew, or go with girls who do." Add to that dancing, sex, swearing and listening to secular music and you have my idea of Christianity as I was growing up. It was about following the rules. Unfortunately, this is the picture many people have of Christianity. It's funny how it came about since Jesus always came down against legalism.
Legalism happens when we make the rule the main thing. When I'm legalistic, I'm just concerned with not divorcing, not necessarily honoring my wife.
As we read Matthew 6, there's a great opportunity to be legalistic about some of these teachings. In verses 1-4, we could make the rule that I can never let anyone ever see me do anything good. In verses 5-15, I could take it to mean that have to go into a closet in order to pray or even pray the exact words Jesus taught in the Lord's prayer. But when we read teachings like this, instead of making rules out of them, Jesus' intent is for us to really understand the idea behind His teaching.
So, for instance in verses 1-4, the point Jesus was making was to be careful of your motivation for giving. Don't do it to draw attention to yourself, do it because it's God's way. This, of course doesn't mean rules can't be important, but they are important, not for the rules, but for our relationships, both with God and others.
Some people might think this is the easy way out, but valuing relationships over rules is actually more challenging that simple legalism. If you want proof, read through Matthew 5 through this lens. Is it easier simply to refrain from murder or to not harbor bitterness against someone? Is it easier not to technically commit adultery or to not lust? Valuing relationships can be a great challenge, but that challenge comes from the heart and it's more than just outward actions.
Thursday, January 7, 2010
NT Journey--Matthew 5
We are now a few days into our NT Journey and I hope you're sticking with it. As I read and jot down my thoughts about these chapters, it makes me realize just how fast it seems were cruising through these chapters. A chapter a day is a lot to digest. But one thing that's good about it is that we get a good overview or birds-eye view of what we're reading. Of course, there's no substitute for digging in and taking the time to chew on a passage. I hope you're doing both.
On to Matthew 5. This is the beginning of what we call the Sermon on the Mount. The first section is the Beatitudes. I won't spend much time on there here, but if you'd like, last summer I took a detailed look at them on my blog. If you're interested, you can click on the June and July links on my blog archive.
I want to point out something different in this post, however. Starting with verse 17, Jesus talks about the Law--redefines it for the Jews. It's not that the Law had changed, but the religious establishment made it into something it wasn't.
The fact that Jesus says to the people, "Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets..." must mean that people were actually thinking that. By the way He lived, Jesus must have given Jews some reasons to think He was ignoring or "abolishing" the Law of Moses. Why would that be? What could He have said or done to bring about this idea?
Jesus says instead that He came to "fulfill" the Law. In other words, He was saying that He was going to show them what the Law was really supposed to be about. Then He gives the examples of what the Law says concerning murder, adultery, divorce, retaliation, etc. Each section starts with "you have heard it said...but I say..." Then, when He explains God's desire He does so by minimizing the "rule." You might think that by minimizing the rule that He's letting us off the hook. No rules! Woohoo!
But that's the thing about Jesus. He doesn't minimize the rules to make it easier for people, He minimizes the rules to maximize love. We can follow the rules without loving people at all, but when we love people, we fulfill the Law. It doesn't mean divorce is no big deal. Divorce is a HUGE deal--so huge that mere rules can't do protect it. Only self-sacrificial love can. Jesus takes each subject and raises the stakes for us by getting beyond the rules and aiming for love.
On to Matthew 5. This is the beginning of what we call the Sermon on the Mount. The first section is the Beatitudes. I won't spend much time on there here, but if you'd like, last summer I took a detailed look at them on my blog. If you're interested, you can click on the June and July links on my blog archive.
I want to point out something different in this post, however. Starting with verse 17, Jesus talks about the Law--redefines it for the Jews. It's not that the Law had changed, but the religious establishment made it into something it wasn't.
The fact that Jesus says to the people, "Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets..." must mean that people were actually thinking that. By the way He lived, Jesus must have given Jews some reasons to think He was ignoring or "abolishing" the Law of Moses. Why would that be? What could He have said or done to bring about this idea?
Jesus says instead that He came to "fulfill" the Law. In other words, He was saying that He was going to show them what the Law was really supposed to be about. Then He gives the examples of what the Law says concerning murder, adultery, divorce, retaliation, etc. Each section starts with "you have heard it said...but I say..." Then, when He explains God's desire He does so by minimizing the "rule." You might think that by minimizing the rule that He's letting us off the hook. No rules! Woohoo!
But that's the thing about Jesus. He doesn't minimize the rules to make it easier for people, He minimizes the rules to maximize love. We can follow the rules without loving people at all, but when we love people, we fulfill the Law. It doesn't mean divorce is no big deal. Divorce is a HUGE deal--so huge that mere rules can't do protect it. Only self-sacrificial love can. Jesus takes each subject and raises the stakes for us by getting beyond the rules and aiming for love.
Wednesday, January 6, 2010
NT Journey--Matthew 4
What I find interesting here is what Jesus' first message was in His ministry. In verse 17, Matthew summarizes Jesus first message as "Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven is near." First, repent-turn completely. I think we have a pretty good idea what repent means. It means turn completely around. It's when I was going one direction and I turn and go the other direction.
The most obvious application of this is that "sinners' should repent and go the other directions. The thing that always trips people up about Jesus is that He'll spend the rest of His ministry telling the Pharisees to repent as well. Of course, everyone including the Pharisees always thought the Pharisees would be the last ones that would need to repent, but not Jesus.
I asked the question from Matthew 3--"who are the Pharisees today?" I think if we're not careful, the answer can very quickly become, "we are!" It's church people who have devised our own set of "sins" that don't mix with the Kingdom mindset. For us, it's often things like smoking, drinking, extramarital sex, not going to church or doing the other religious things, etc. that are the "serious sins." But again, as you read in the Gospels, pay attention to the sins Jesus' says are incompatible with the Kingdom. They are almost always the sins to which the Pharisees (we church people?) are most prone.
Over the course of the next few chapters, you'll see Jesus teach a lot about the Kingdom of Heaven. What you'll find is that the Kingdom of Heaven does not equal "heaven." The Kingdom of Heaven is not just what we experience when we die. Jesus' message was "repent for the Kingdom of Heaven is NEAR. It's right here with you. Watch closely and you'll actually get to see the Kingdom." The coming of the Kingdom was inaugurated with Jesus and his teachings about it are very specific.
The most obvious application of this is that "sinners' should repent and go the other directions. The thing that always trips people up about Jesus is that He'll spend the rest of His ministry telling the Pharisees to repent as well. Of course, everyone including the Pharisees always thought the Pharisees would be the last ones that would need to repent, but not Jesus.
I asked the question from Matthew 3--"who are the Pharisees today?" I think if we're not careful, the answer can very quickly become, "we are!" It's church people who have devised our own set of "sins" that don't mix with the Kingdom mindset. For us, it's often things like smoking, drinking, extramarital sex, not going to church or doing the other religious things, etc. that are the "serious sins." But again, as you read in the Gospels, pay attention to the sins Jesus' says are incompatible with the Kingdom. They are almost always the sins to which the Pharisees (we church people?) are most prone.
Over the course of the next few chapters, you'll see Jesus teach a lot about the Kingdom of Heaven. What you'll find is that the Kingdom of Heaven does not equal "heaven." The Kingdom of Heaven is not just what we experience when we die. Jesus' message was "repent for the Kingdom of Heaven is NEAR. It's right here with you. Watch closely and you'll actually get to see the Kingdom." The coming of the Kingdom was inaugurated with Jesus and his teachings about it are very specific.
Tuesday, January 5, 2010
NT Journey--Matthew 3
We're always tempted to read through some stories in the New Testament, think they're insignificant, and move on to the next one. I think Matthew 3 is often one of the stories where we do just that. It seemingly says nothing really about Jesus. Whether a movie or a book, the beginning always gives us the setting for the rest of the story. This section also sets the stage, but there's really more to it than that.
The Pharisees and the Sadducees were the dominant religious parties in Judaism of the day. As you read more in Matthew, notice that Jesus always comes down on the opposite side of their arguments. The Pharisees and Sadducees were all about religion, all about the technicalities of the law. They were notorious for following the rules to a "t." Yet here we see John the Baptist calling them out--calling them to repent.
This would have been revolutionary (and shocking for the typical Jew)! Why would the Pharisees or Sadducees need to repent? They do everything right. But according to John (and Jesus), the biggest sin of the Pharisees is their belief that they are good enough and don't need to repent of anything. They are religious to the core and self-righteous at the same time. They are proud of being Jews ("We have Abraham as our father") and think that makes them good enough.
John was the guy who set the tone for Jesus and His message. John's message was Jesus' message--religion will get you nowhere. Judgment is coming, but not for who you think. As you read this chapter and think about it's implications, I'm interested in your thoughts.
Do you think this is revolutionary? Who are the "Pharisees and Sadducees" today? What does it mean to be "religious" (in the negative sense)? How do we keep from falling into the religion trap?
The Pharisees and the Sadducees were the dominant religious parties in Judaism of the day. As you read more in Matthew, notice that Jesus always comes down on the opposite side of their arguments. The Pharisees and Sadducees were all about religion, all about the technicalities of the law. They were notorious for following the rules to a "t." Yet here we see John the Baptist calling them out--calling them to repent.
This would have been revolutionary (and shocking for the typical Jew)! Why would the Pharisees or Sadducees need to repent? They do everything right. But according to John (and Jesus), the biggest sin of the Pharisees is their belief that they are good enough and don't need to repent of anything. They are religious to the core and self-righteous at the same time. They are proud of being Jews ("We have Abraham as our father") and think that makes them good enough.
John was the guy who set the tone for Jesus and His message. John's message was Jesus' message--religion will get you nowhere. Judgment is coming, but not for who you think. As you read this chapter and think about it's implications, I'm interested in your thoughts.
Do you think this is revolutionary? Who are the "Pharisees and Sadducees" today? What does it mean to be "religious" (in the negative sense)? How do we keep from falling into the religion trap?
Monday, January 4, 2010
NT Journey--Matthew 2
I know it was a long week of reading last week so I hope you rested your eyes over the weekend. But today it's time for Matthew 2. One of the interesting things about the life of Jesus-especially in Matthew is the parallels in Jesus' life to the Israelites. The Israelites had the old covenant, Jesus is the new covenant. Jesus goes into the desert for 40 days, the Israelites spent 40 years wandering in the desert. This chapter is another example of that.
The prophecy mentioned in verse 15 is from Hosea 11:1. When you read it from Hosea, you see that Hosea is actually talking about the nation of Israel. This is where Matthew gets into some deep theology about Jesus. Matthew wants to make sure people understand that Jesus was more than just some guy who went around teaching--Jesus is the "new Israel." Israel couldn't follow the law perfectly, Jesus did. Jesus accomplished what "the Law" couldn't. In the Sermon on the Mount, we'll read that Jesus said He did not come to "abolish the Law, but to fulfill it." This chapter is the first hint at that.
Of course, taking the story at face value, we can also see God's hand of protection on Jesus, just as it was on Israel.
Sometimes stories like this cause some people to say, "See, the stories are not true. They're only myths propagated by the later church to support their views." I understand what they're saying, but isn't it just as possible that the reason it happened the way it did is because God was actually trying to communicate to the Jews that Jesus was the Messiah they were waiting for? History at the time of Jesus was not written or understood the way we understand history today. All we're concerned about is "facts." Ancient historians were concerned with facts as well, but even more concerned with communicating truth. So just because we read so many parallels between Jesus' life and the nation of Israel, it doesn't follow that what the Gospel writers wrote are not also historical.
The prophecy mentioned in verse 15 is from Hosea 11:1. When you read it from Hosea, you see that Hosea is actually talking about the nation of Israel. This is where Matthew gets into some deep theology about Jesus. Matthew wants to make sure people understand that Jesus was more than just some guy who went around teaching--Jesus is the "new Israel." Israel couldn't follow the law perfectly, Jesus did. Jesus accomplished what "the Law" couldn't. In the Sermon on the Mount, we'll read that Jesus said He did not come to "abolish the Law, but to fulfill it." This chapter is the first hint at that.
Of course, taking the story at face value, we can also see God's hand of protection on Jesus, just as it was on Israel.
Sometimes stories like this cause some people to say, "See, the stories are not true. They're only myths propagated by the later church to support their views." I understand what they're saying, but isn't it just as possible that the reason it happened the way it did is because God was actually trying to communicate to the Jews that Jesus was the Messiah they were waiting for? History at the time of Jesus was not written or understood the way we understand history today. All we're concerned about is "facts." Ancient historians were concerned with facts as well, but even more concerned with communicating truth. So just because we read so many parallels between Jesus' life and the nation of Israel, it doesn't follow that what the Gospel writers wrote are not also historical.
Friday, January 1, 2010
NT Journey--Matthew 1
OK, it's finally time. The NT Journey begins today.
If you haven't already done so, I would suggest going back and reading my last few posts about the New Testament journey. They'll give you some concise explanation of what we're doing over the next year as well as some background to the New Testament and the book of Matthew itself. These will be especially helpful if you're not very familiar with the Bible.
Once you've read these, before you continue reading this post, go ahead and read Matthew chapter 1. As I mentioned in an earlier post, don't just skim your way through it, but really read it and read through it again. Make some notes about things that stand out to you or questions you might have about the chapter. I can't guarantee I'll answer your questions with my posts, but I would suggest trying to find the answers. You can certainly ask me in comments section of the blog, but you can also do some research on your own. My hope is that over the course of the year, you'll have gained enough understanding of the Bible and culture behind it that interpretation will become natural for you.
Now the Chapter
OK, let's get on with it. I'm going to focus my comments on the genealogy.
Matthew and Luke are the only Gospels that includes a genealogy. The reason is because the genealogy in Matthew addresses a main concern for Matthew--that Jesus is the promised Messiah. Since Matthew is writing to Jews, you'll see him refer back to the Old Testament quite often. The genealogy in Matthew serves as evidence that Jesus was "the promise" given to Abraham in Genesis 18:18 where God promises that "all the nations of the earth will be blessed through you." Jesus IS the blessing.
Isaiah 9:7 says in one prophecy about the coming Messiah, "he will reign on David's throne." So Matthew also takes great care to make sure people know Jesus came from the line of David. Therefore the genealogy traces Jesus through the line of Abraham and David.
Just as significant is the fact that Matthew also includes women in his genealogy. Ancient genealogies didn't generally contain information about the women because women were not important in those days. But Matthew's genealogy goes even further.
First, the stories surrounding these women were not fairy tales. Rahab (Josh 2) was a prostitute. This would certainly have qualified as "skeletons in the closet" and in a typical genealogy would certainly have been hidden as much as possible. Tamar posed as a prostitute so she could bear children (Gen 38). Certainly Ruth is the one woman whose life is all seen in a positive light (see the book of Ruth). Finally, Bathsheba, who is not mentioned by name, gave birth to Solomon as the result of adultery with David.
Matthew isn't hiding anything here and in fact, uses the genealogy as an example of how God brings good things even out of the worst circumstances. His use of women is also a foreshadowing of how Jesus breaks down the social barriers of His day, which you'll see is also revolutionary.
Second, there are a number of Gentiles mentioned in the genealogy of Jesus. Understand that the division between Jews and Gentiles was a chasm. The Jews were "God's chosen people" and always saw themselves as a cut above the Gentiles. For a Gentile to play a positive role in the Kingdom of God was a pretty alarming detail. Matthew's genealogy is really the beginning of the Gospel (which means "good news") for EVERYONE, not just for the Jews as they would have expected.
But enough from me. There is certainly much more we don't have time to explore in this genealogy, but as you think about the genealogy, what implications does it have for us in our day? Can you think of ways the genealogy impacts your life thousands of years later? I'd love to hear your thoughts and ideas.
Note: If you're reading on Facebook, click on the the original post and please comment directly on my blog.
If you haven't already done so, I would suggest going back and reading my last few posts about the New Testament journey. They'll give you some concise explanation of what we're doing over the next year as well as some background to the New Testament and the book of Matthew itself. These will be especially helpful if you're not very familiar with the Bible.
Once you've read these, before you continue reading this post, go ahead and read Matthew chapter 1. As I mentioned in an earlier post, don't just skim your way through it, but really read it and read through it again. Make some notes about things that stand out to you or questions you might have about the chapter. I can't guarantee I'll answer your questions with my posts, but I would suggest trying to find the answers. You can certainly ask me in comments section of the blog, but you can also do some research on your own. My hope is that over the course of the year, you'll have gained enough understanding of the Bible and culture behind it that interpretation will become natural for you.
Now the Chapter
OK, let's get on with it. I'm going to focus my comments on the genealogy.
Matthew and Luke are the only Gospels that includes a genealogy. The reason is because the genealogy in Matthew addresses a main concern for Matthew--that Jesus is the promised Messiah. Since Matthew is writing to Jews, you'll see him refer back to the Old Testament quite often. The genealogy in Matthew serves as evidence that Jesus was "the promise" given to Abraham in Genesis 18:18 where God promises that "all the nations of the earth will be blessed through you." Jesus IS the blessing.
Isaiah 9:7 says in one prophecy about the coming Messiah, "he will reign on David's throne." So Matthew also takes great care to make sure people know Jesus came from the line of David. Therefore the genealogy traces Jesus through the line of Abraham and David.
Just as significant is the fact that Matthew also includes women in his genealogy. Ancient genealogies didn't generally contain information about the women because women were not important in those days. But Matthew's genealogy goes even further.
First, the stories surrounding these women were not fairy tales. Rahab (Josh 2) was a prostitute. This would certainly have qualified as "skeletons in the closet" and in a typical genealogy would certainly have been hidden as much as possible. Tamar posed as a prostitute so she could bear children (Gen 38). Certainly Ruth is the one woman whose life is all seen in a positive light (see the book of Ruth). Finally, Bathsheba, who is not mentioned by name, gave birth to Solomon as the result of adultery with David.
Matthew isn't hiding anything here and in fact, uses the genealogy as an example of how God brings good things even out of the worst circumstances. His use of women is also a foreshadowing of how Jesus breaks down the social barriers of His day, which you'll see is also revolutionary.
Second, there are a number of Gentiles mentioned in the genealogy of Jesus. Understand that the division between Jews and Gentiles was a chasm. The Jews were "God's chosen people" and always saw themselves as a cut above the Gentiles. For a Gentile to play a positive role in the Kingdom of God was a pretty alarming detail. Matthew's genealogy is really the beginning of the Gospel (which means "good news") for EVERYONE, not just for the Jews as they would have expected.
But enough from me. There is certainly much more we don't have time to explore in this genealogy, but as you think about the genealogy, what implications does it have for us in our day? Can you think of ways the genealogy impacts your life thousands of years later? I'd love to hear your thoughts and ideas.
Note: If you're reading on Facebook, click on the the original post and please comment directly on my blog.
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