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Tag: faith

  • Interrupting Jesus 9 – not too dirty for God

    Interrupting Jesus 9 – not too dirty for God

    Cleanliness is next to Godliness.

    You know the old saying (based on an old Hebrew proverb) and preached by John Wesley, among others. Can one so dirty in sin or lifestyle approach God?

    We are all sinners and none is clean enough without the Living Water.

    You and I may be able to think of untouchables as sub-human or those so far removed from our daily experience that in an abhorrent way, we become callous to reaching out to these souls with the healing they covet. In ancient times no description more defined the unwanted of society than ‘leper.’

    leper handsLeprosy is contagious and one of several ‘unclean’ conditions. The Law of Moses gives priests considerable guidance in how to deal with lepers. Lepers were removed from society for the guarding of the community from disease.

    Numbers 5:2  

    Command the people of Israel that they put out of the camp everyone who is leprous or has a discharge and everyone who is unclean through contact with the dead. 

    The Gospels are Good News for the unclean, not just those who a priest makes ritually pure.

    leper reaching outImagine that you are not accepted by anyone in society, let alone a leading Rabbi – a teacher of the Law and Prophets who actually is known to perform miracles. Would you be so bold as to come up to Him and interrupt Him?

    How will Jesus react?

    Matthew 8:1-4

    Jesus Cleanses a Leper

    When he came down from the mountain, great crowds followed him. 2 And behold, a leper came to him and knelt before him, saying, “Lord, if you will, you can make me clean.”jesus-heals-the-leper-luke-5

    3 And Jesus stretched out his hand and touched him, saying, “I will; be clean.”

    And immediately his leprosy was cleansed.

    4 And Jesus said to him, “See that you say nothing to anyone, but go, show yourself to the priest and offer the gift that Moses commanded, for a proof to them.”

    How the man’s life must have been changed from that moment he was healed by Jesus! Yet Jesus instructs the leper to say nothing and do as the Law prescribes: go to the priest and be declared clean.

    An unclean group of lepers also interrupted the journeys of Jesus at another time.

    Luke 17:11-19 (ESV)

    Jesus Cleanses Ten Lepers

    11 On the way to Jerusalem he was passing along between Samaria and Galilee.12 And as he entered a village, he was met by ten lepers, who stood at a distance 13 and lifted up their voices, saying,

    “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us.”

    Of course these men lived and begged outside the village. They were unclean and village citizens would not risk becoming one of these unclean lepers.

    14 When he saw them he said to them, “Go and show yourselves to the priests.”

    How interesting that Jesus commands the ten lepers to show themselves to the priests. Why would a man with leprosy show himself to a priest? Yet by their obedience these ten lepers discovered the cleansing of the very words of Christ Jesus.

    And as they went they were cleansed.

    15 Then one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, praising God with a loud voice; 16 and he fell on his face at Jesus’ feet, giving him thanks.

    • Have you received any grace of healing?
    • Have you received any miracle in your life?
    • Is your very health not a miracle from God?
    • Has Jesus Christ cleansed you of a sin which once devoured your flesh?

    Where then is your gratitude to Christ, the Living Water of God Almighty, who has redeemed and cleansed your soul?

    How like the nine lepers we are. How we take for granted the grace of God.

    Now he was a Samaritan.

    17 Then Jesus answered, “Were not ten cleansed? Where are the nine? 18 Was no one found to return and give praise to God except this foreigner?”

    Where are you with your praise, dear brother, gentle sister in the Lord?

    Dear Christian, will it take an unbeliever to praise Jesus for the same grace you have received?

    19 And he said to him, “Rise and go your way; your faith has made you well.

    Are we well in Christ Jesus while having neglected to return to our Lord with praise and thanksgiving?

    And if you are an unclean sinner; believer or unbeliever, you are not too dirty for God.

    Return to Jesus and let Him wash your sins away.

     

  • Interrupting Jesus 6 – Jesus of Capernaum

    Interrupting Jesus 6 – Jesus of Capernaum

    Who are you, really?

    I was raised in Cortland, Ohio U.S.; therefore you might call me: Roger of Cortland. Yet is that really who I am? No, of course not. I now live somewhere else and who I am or what I do is not related to where I live.

    We often make a mistake in looking back on the Person of the Son of God, the Messiah, simply as Jesus of Nazareth. Jesus was known by that because of where Joseph and Mary raised Him after they fled from Bethlehem of Judea under the threat of Herod before they returned to Galilee after Herod’s death. In fact, the Gospels reveal that Jesus of Nazareth had resettled in Capernaum.

    Capernaum, by the sea of Galilee is about a nine hour walk from Nazareth. {I encourage you to look at a satellite map of the area behind this link.}

    Think in terms of Capernaum and Galilee as part of the occupied area of the Roman Empire with no identity as Israel. This context of daily life of Jesus in Capernaum and surrounding areas would be more accurate of the secular Roman culture than to see only through the lens of a few Bible verses and traditional maps in your Bible. (Is our own 21st c. culture really so different?)

    Capernaum SynagogueThe Synagogue in Capernaum was important to Jews, but the town and area are ruled by Rome (as was Jerusalem).

    During the Israelite/Iron period (1200-587BC) there was a break in the population, which was restored in the 5th C BC (the period of the returns of the exiles to Zion). It was designed according to that period’s urban design of straight lines, which was built in parallel to the main Roman imperial highway, that crossed the village on the northern side. Capernaum grew larger at the time of Jesus (early Roman period, 1st C AD), and a synagogue was built in the center of the village. [source: Capernaum history]

    Tetrarchy of PhilipJesus of Capernaum, the Son of Man, taught in the towns nearby like Chorazin and Bethsaida-Julius where Scribes and Pharisees studied the Law and the Prophets. Jesus of Nazareth, as He was known, also taught on the hillsides near Capernaum. Most of these places where the teachings of Jesus were heard and miracles witnessed were near Capernaum.  We can be certain that Roman officials tracked every move of this popular leader of the crowds. Certainly Centurions would listen to every word for the first sign of another insurrection against Rome.

    “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

    “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

    “You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored?

     “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them.

    Matthew 5

    Matthew 8

    When he came down from the mountain, great crowds followed him. 2 And behold, a leper came to him and knelt before him, saying, “Lord, if you will, you can make me clean.” 3 And Jesus stretched out his hand and touched him, saying, “I will; be clean.” And immediately his leprosy was cleansed.

    Word of miracles gets around quickly. Crowds followed Christ Jesus because of the miracles and His teaching . Jesus taught everybody with ears to hear:  Judeans, Galileans, Samaritans, Jews, Gentiles… and even Roman occupiers who traveled with the crowds to keep things under control.

    Now a Roman officer asks Jesus for a miracle! (What an interruption to what Jews thought the Messiah would do only for Israel.)

    5 When he had entered Capernaum, a centurion came forward to him, appealing to him,

    6 “Lord, my servant is lying paralyzed at home, suffering terribly.”

    7  “I will come and heal him.”

    8  “Lord, I am not worthy to have you come under my roof, but only say the word, and my servant will be healed. 9 For I too am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. And I say to one, ‘Go,’ and he goes, and to another, ‘Come,’ and he comes, and to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.”

    10 When Jesus heard this, he marveled and said to those who followed him,

    “Truly, I tell you, with no one in Israel have I found such faith. 11 I tell you, many will come from east and west and recline at table with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven, 12 while the sons of the kingdom will be thrown into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”

    13 And to the centurion Jesus said,

    “Go; let it be done for you as you have believed.”

    And the servant was healed at that very moment.

     

    You may not be a Jew. You may not even be a Christian (one of those who follow Christ Jesus, such as those to whom our Lord turned to note the faith of this Centurion.) Like the Roman soldier you probably live in far-away places from Capernaum (like Cortland or L.A., London, Rio, Addis Ababa, Beijing or Delhi).

    • Do you have the faith to interrupt the Son of God, Incarnate in the Person of Jesus, with your plea to heal a loved one of yours?
    • Do you have the humility of the Roman Centurion to tell Christ Jesus, “I will take you at your word and trust that by your Authority that You will do what you say?”
    • Will you recognize that this lowly, first century Son of Man was sent to a cross to be sacrificed for your sins and for mine?
    • Do you, dear foreign friend, have the faith of a Roman Centurion?

    Ask Christ Jesus, though the Holy Spirit of God, to come into your eternal life with the healing of your sin.

     

  • Interrupting Jesus 3 – interrupted by academia

    Interrupting Jesus 3 – interrupted by academia

    We’ve all met them: the academicians, professors, learned men of logic with indisputable researched proofs of their position; the Doctors of Divinity and PhD’s of wisdom: we’ve all met them.

    If you have not read the books of wisdom in the Bible, notably Proverbs and Ecclesiastes, you have neglected your own education by God. Of course Bibles were not printed in the days of Jesus of Nazareth and such wisdom was only to be gained from the scholars and academicians of the Temple and synagogues who had access to the scrolls of the written word. Young Jesus was not schooled by such learned men, but held his own in their eyes.

    You may be familiar with this story from a parental perspective, yet take a look at this young lad through the eyes of some of the Pharisees present:

    Luke 2:

    41 Now his parents went to Jerusalem every year at the Feast of the Passover.42 And when he was twelve years old, they went up according to custom. 43 And when the feast was ended, as they were returning, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem. His parents did not know it…

    46 After three days they found him in the temple, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. 47 And all who heard him were amazed at his understanding and his answers. 48 And when his parents saw him, they were astonished…

    52 And Jesus increased in wisdom and in stature and in favor with God and man.

    Jesus’ mission from his youth was interrupted by the trappings of everyday life.

    Again, another story so familiar for the importance of Jesus’ teachings to a teacher of Israel that we may have missed sight of the person who was the interruption in Jesus’s journeys. Nicodemus is part of the inner circle of Bible scholars. His knowledge of God’s word, Hebrew history and influence is comparable to Saul of Tarsus (Paul) who will follow in just a few years. Jesus is sitting with a VIP of the highest caliber, once again more than holding his own.

    John 3:

    Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. 2 This man came to Jesus by night.

    “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher come from God, for no one can do these signs that you do unless God is with him.”

     “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.”

    “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born?”

    “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. 6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.

    7 Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’ 8 The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.”

    “How can these things be?”

    10 Jesus answered him,“Are you the teacher of Israel and yet you do not understand these things?

    11 Truly, truly, I say to you, we speak of what we know, and bear witness to what we have seen, but you do not receive our testimony. 12 If I have told you earthly things and you do not believe, how can you believe if I tell you heavenly things? 13 No one has ascended into heaven except he who descended from heaven, the Son of Man. 14 And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, 15 that whoever believes in him may have eternal life.

    Even unbelievers have heard Jesus’ statement to Nicodemus, the reason God our Father sent the Messiah to the world in the flesh.

    Jesus is sitting in the room with Nicodemus, a VIP Jew of Jews, who wants to do what God wants him to do. Nicodemus has come to the Son of Man at night, to where our Lord is resting. Nicodemus, a leader of the Jews, does not invite Jesus Christ to his home; rather Nicodemus interrupts him privately.

    Jesus tells the respected leader of the Temple:

    • You must be born of water and the Spirit. (Purified by repentance and receive the Holy Spirit of God as Counselor to your eternal soul.)
    • No one has ascended into heaven except he who descended from heaven, the Son of Man. (Jesus is saying to Nicodemus, ‘I AM the Messiah.’)
    • 16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. 18 Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.

    Imagine that you think you have learned all there is to know about God from the Bible, historical books and prayer. You walk into the home of a man at night to learn more. Then Jesus tells you: I AM the Son of God, sent as the Messiah of Israel and Savior of the world! You have interrupted God Almighty the Person of the Son, who tells you:

    God loves you. Believe in the Son, Christ Jesus, and you will have eternal life.

    Nicodemus and the Pharisees believed in the resurrection. Some like him met Christ and believed.

    How old was Nicodemus when he met Jesus?

    I could speculate that as a leader of the Sanhedrin, Nicodemus may have been in his fifty’s or sixty’s, while Jesus is a relatively young man of thirty. It is not inconceivable that Nicodemus could have been one of the up and coming young men of the Temple twenty years earlier when Jesus as a boy interrupted His parent’s pilgrimage with a three-day schooling in ‘His Father’s House.’ At the very least, Nicodemus undoubtedly would have known of the encounter, not to mention the recent teachings of John the Baptizer.

    John 1:

    In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

    The Testimony of John the Baptist

    19 And this is the testimony of John, when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, “Who are you?” 20 He confessed, and did not deny, but confessed, “I am not the Christ.”

    24 (Now they had been sent from the Pharisees.) 25 They asked him, “Then why are you baptizing, if you are neither the Christ, nor Elijah, nor the Prophet?”26 John answered them, “I baptize with water, but among you stands one you do not know, 27 even he who comes after me, the strap of whose sandal I am not worthy to untie.”

    Nicodemus knew the Messiah (the Christ) of God was coming and wanted to confirm His identity.

    Nicodemus may have been waiting for the Son of God to give him a command of what to do as a leader of the Temple. Rather than taking His rightful authoritative position over the Temple and Jerusalem, the Son of Man chose to humbly obey the purpose of Sacrifice for which He was sent.

    Jesus has a mission of love for those who will believe. All evidence points to the fact that Nicodemus believed.

    Faith does not dispute knowledge, but confirms truth beyond the limits of its proof.

    Nicodemus would argue that Jesus should be given a fair trial. [John 7:50-51] Nicodemus obtained permission for the crucified Christ Jesus to be buried and contributed to the costs. [John 19:38-40] Nicodemus may have even been one of the many to whom Christ appeared after His resurrection. [1 Corinthians 15:6]

    Suppose a VIP comes to you unexpectedly and asks if Jesus is the Christ. Are you prepared for that interruption?