As I write this today we here in the USA are into day 37 of the shutdown, shelter in place, whatever you want to call it. In our nation’s attempt to acquire control of the Covid-19 we have been given a list of things to do to keep safe and a list of things that we can’t do because of the risk to ourselves and others. A long time ago a thing identified as a plague, one of many brought upon Egypt, required the Israelites to shelter in place, so to speak, and to put the blood of a lamb over their door as the Angel of the Lord passed by. They did this to avoid the loss of life to the first born of each household in Egypt as punishment for the Pharaoh’s refusal to let God’s people go. At present we are in our homes to protect us and others from this virus. If we have to go out we are told to maintain a distance of 6ft between us and others and we are to wear a face mask, social distancing they call it.  All of these measures are in place to curtail the spread of this virus. You may not know it but we in the faith community have been or should be practicing a form of our own social distancing, I call it a form of biblical distancing. A virus infects our bodies, it can infect those we come into contact with and in general contaminate all areas of our life and those around us. Let’s equate this virus, Covid-19 with sin, sin can do all of the previous things written here and adds a couple of others….It can attack our hearts and minds and it separates us from God.

The six foot rule has become a huge part of the social distancing mantra. It along with sheltering in place would be two things everybody can do to reduce the spread of the virus. There is and has alway been social distancing within the Christian faith and community which was directed to one particular evil and one segment of society. Sin and Sinners, those things of the devil and the people who carried them among society in general. To make this just a bit easier, sin is anything that separates us from God and in scripture we actually find lists. Not only the lists of sins but also the consequences. I suggest you read Romans 1:24-27 and I will put here verses 28-32.

28 And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them up to a debased mind and to things that should not be done. 29 They were filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, covetousness, malice. Full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, craftiness, they are gossips, 30 slanderers, God-haters, insolent, haughty, boastful, inventors of evil, rebellious toward parents, 31 foolish, faithless, heartless, ruthless. 32 They know God’s decree, that those who practice such things deserve to die—yet they not only do them but even applaud others who practice them.

One caveat I must add here would be Christians are commanded to go among God’s children and take the Good News. Not exactly keeping that distance thing going is it? A Christian has a powerful vaccine to keep the evil from them, the Holy Spirit leads and protects as we do God’s work. Keep in mind the comparison we are trying to craft here. If we put aside those things that will keep us safe from the virus, bad things can happen to us and others around us. Here in Roman 1:24-32 we see what happens to the people who chose to ignore God, what that led to and the consequences of their sinful behavior. Just as we find those in this day that reject the messages from health care professionals, governments and their leaders to do “their thing” there were people in the Christ’s Day who would deny the dangers of sin. Matthew  15:19 “For out of the heart come evil intentions, murder, adultery, fornication, theft, false witness, slander.”They would call good what God called evil. Isaiah 5:20 “Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!” There will be consequences, we can’t say that enough. To ignore this virus will not bode well for any of us and in kind, to sin against God will not bode well for all God’s children. Again I remind you there is such a thing as biblical distancing. Scripture tells us over and over to avoid sin in heart, mind and body. 1 Corinthians 6:9-10 “9 Do you not know that wrongdoers will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived! Fornicators, idolaters, adulterers, male prostitutes, sodomites, 10 thieves, the greedy, drunkards, revilers, robbers—none of these will inherit the kingdom of God.” There is as I wrote earlier many lists pertaining to different sins. You may want to look at these in more detail, Gal. 5: 19-20; Eph. 5: 3-6; Col. 3: 5-6. Sin and Covid-19 require preventive measures and practices that keep us safe from infection. Both different but there is a parallel between them. To fall away from that which protects us has dire consequences.

In time we will have a vaccine for this virus that infects our bodies, for those of the faith we have the mercy and grace of God to heal our bodies, minds and hearts. Social Distancing decreases the chance of being exposed to the virus, Biblical Distancing, identifying and avoiding sin allows us to say “all is well with my soul.” Stay in, Stay well and keep the faith.

Life is Good

jk

This past Easter Sunday for many of us will be the one that Church stayed at home. Today, April 15 I am still at home as we shelter in place during this virus pandemic. I have had more time to read and that is a good thing and I have been blessed that I do not have this virus. What will happen after this, I don’t know, we have yet to live that chapter? What happened after the cross? We have ample writings from those who were there and in reading some I was blessed to find this interesting Chapter from the book of John, Chapter 21. After some study of this chapter and other research material I do agree that this  is a strange chapter. It is only 25 verses compared to the 31 verses in the previous chapter. Why is it viewed to be so strange? The gospel seems to come to an end in verse 31 in Chapter 20. But it strangely begins again in Chapter 21. As a layman I do not feel qualified to say why this happened but do feel the need to ask why and try to come to some conclusion. Chapter 20: 30-31 perfectly speaks to the aim of this book. It is impossible for the gospels to give a full account of Jesus’ life as they do not follow his activities day to day. They are instead a truthful and accurate collection of what he was like and the kinds of things he was doing. These collections of his demeanor and activities were meant to present him as Master, Lord and our Savior. If we approach them as a people seeking God we will be blessed and strengthened. So…Let’s take a look beyond the words and explore this what seems to be an addition to an Ending, a PS so to speak. I will be using the DBS, New Interpreter’s Bible and Wikipedia as primary resources.

Our first stop in this journey will be by the Sea of  Tiberias where Jesus showed himself again to his disciples. Verse 2 of the 21st chapter.

 2 Gathered there together were Simon Peter, Thomas called the Twin, Nathanael of Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two others of his disciples.

They had been fishing all night and it was just after daybreak, Jesus was standing there on the shore but none of them recognized him right away. It was in a gray type of early light that they first saw him. It was Peter who knew it was the Lord. There are always little bits of information that historical fact makes known to us and add a bit of realism to the words. When fishing the normal wear was just the loin cloth but when Peter in awe and joy leaped into the water to greet him because he wanted to be the first to greet him, he paused first to put on his fisherman’s tunic. You see it was Jewish law that a greeting was a religious act, such an act required that he must be clothed. There were many who had said that these appearances of the risen Christ by the disciples are only visions. Now they did not question the seeing of these visions, they did however insist they were only just that, visions. Here right at the first few verses of this chapter we see a possible reason for the addition of this chapter. It demonstrated once and for all the reality of the resurrection. The gospels insist that these were not as some were saying, just visions and hallucinations, they were   not even a spirit, but a real person, the risen Christ. The tomb was empty and his body bore the marks of the crucifixion: the nail holes in his hands and the mark of the spear thrust into his side. Sometimes the way we do things can be used to validate a story or in this case the appearance of Christ to the disciples as they fished. When we speak of visions or even a spirit, it is not likely that either could have started a fire, cooked fish or prepared a meal. He then shared that meal with them! It would be hard for one of the men in the boat to spot a shoal of fish, but it was often done by a person on the shore, it really wasn’t that unusual. In these next verses 15-19, Jesus questions Peter’s love for him. Scripture has a way of putting forth a question or questions that reveal our true feelings. ‘Simon, son of Jonas, do you love me more than these?’ Not being there we cannot be sure but reasonable thinking might lead us to ask what the context of these was. Did Jesus with a sweep of his hand indicate the boat, its nets and other equipment as well as the fish that had been caught? “Do you love me more than these things?” Was he asking Peter if he was willing to give up all this stuff to follow him? We could ask ourselves that question today, right here and now… Are we willing to give up our stuff to follow Jesus. Are we ready to be a shepherd to his lambs? It could have been Jesus asking Peter if he loved him more than his fellow disciples did? Jesus asked this question three times and within those three times we find astonishing revelations. Be a shepherd to my lambs  He said to him a second time: ‘Simon, son of Jonas, do you love me?’ Jesus replied to Peter’s yes ‘Be a shepherd to my sheep.’ Then yet again Jesus asked ‘Simon, son of Jonas, do you love me’? I am sure by this time Peter is confused but there is a purpose in this repeating question… Each answer given requires a task accepted. Peter was tasked with the responsibility of a lifetime of shepherding the sheep and the lambs. Like Peter we can also prove our love for Jesus by our love for others. To love is the hallmark of a Christian but with it comes a great responsibility. Jesus also presents Peter with his own cross. Sometime later in Rome Peter would be nailed to a cross. We should understand that even today to love Jesus will present us with a cross of our own. Our cross might be in the form of ridicule, shunned by family, friends a hostile workplace and yes missionaries who lose their lives loving, caring and bringing the good news to the sheep. So here is Peter, who by no means was anything like Paul, for Paul would have many voyages and adventures taking the word to the world. Most of us will not be able to travel the world or write as Paul wrote, but we who also love the Lord can accept the task of loving and caring and being the shepherd of the sheep of Christ.

This strange chapter shows us two great figures of the Church…Peter and John. Each given a different task, Peter to shepherd the sheep of Christ, to love and care for the lambs of the Lord. To John the task of witnessing to the story of Christ to live to an old age, dies in peace, writing ‘I know Jesus Christ, and I know that these things are true.’ We have been reminded in this strange chapter the reality of the resurrection, the inclusion of all believers in service to the Lord and the tasks of the church being shared by all who love the Lord. Christ has risen and to each of us there are the additional tasks that this strange chapter sets forth and reminds us of the reality of the resurrection.

Life is Good

jk

Tuesday had been an eventful and full day for Jesus and his disciples. It was a day of confrontation, the Olivet Discourse and warnings about the future after which Jesus and the disciples returned to Bethany to stay the night. Wednesday it is believed they rested and looked forward with great anticipation to the Passover Feast. We Christians refer to the Feast of the Passover as the Last Supper and here we note that the disciples going into it had no idea of what the next few days would bring. The events prior to this meal are of great interest. Jesus was a wanted man, the decision had been made, Judas has agreed to betray Jesus, the Chief Priests and the elders of the people have met in the palace of the High Priest Caiaphas and have conspired to arrest Jesus and kill him. They wanted it done quietly and after the Festival because they feared the people would riot. Jesus had the past few days displayed a defiance to those practices and people whose actions were against the will and word of God. Now on this day as Jesus and the disciples prepared for the Passover meal he gave instructions to send some of their number to purchase the necessary food and drink for the meal as well as secure a place for them to have the meal together. Matthew 26:18 ‘Go into the city to such and such a man, and say to him: “The Teacher says, my time is near. I will keep the Passover with my disciples at your house.”

The Passover Feast was the reason that Jesus had come to Jerusalem. While some allowances had been made because the city was so crowded at this time, the feast itself had to be celebrated within the city of Jerusalem. I add this little tidbit to the story because of an earlier statement I made. Jesus’ life was not ruled by circumstances, it was the will of God that led Jesus. There were many who supported Jesus and as we know a member of the ruling council came to Jesus in the dark of the night. Jesus left nothing to chance and it is suggested that a friend in the city itself had been instructed as to what to do when he was approached and told “The Teacher says, my time is near”. He sent those disciples ahead if you will to give a sort of password that would set the preparations in motion. It is fact that the authorities were looking for Jesus and Jesus knew that. He keep a low profile and avoided any confrontation with the authorities. He would join them when all was ready later that evening. Jesus knew that it was time for the Father’s will to be done and he alone knew the will of the Father. The disciples would have no sense as to what was about to happen, for the Passover Meal would become their last supper with Jesus. As they are eating the Passover Meal Jesus begins to speak to them. It is at this point that this meal becomes the Last Supper we read about in the New Testament. One interesting point is the timeline involved here. The Jewish day begins at 6pm. For us that would be Wednesday evening at 6pm. What that means is that on Thursday, the next day they had until 6pm that evening to make the preparations for the meal. Any time after 6pm. Thursday, that is when the guests might come to the table and it would then be the next day, Friday.

I am going to move forward to Matthew 26: 26-30. They sing a hymn, Psalm 136 and then go out to the Mount of Olives. It is at this point that we need to look at the location of the Mount of Olives in the context of these scriptures. The Mount of Olives is more of a hill across the valley from the Old City, separated by the Kidron Valley and part way down that hill toward the old city lies Garden of Gethsemane. It was here in this garden that the gospels of Matthew and Mark identify this place where in his agony he prayed on the night of his arrest before his Crucifixion. After we follow some translations of the word garden we find it to mean a cultivated tract of land that many believe to have been an olive garden. The Greek word Gethsemane comes from a Hebrew word or a similar Aramaic word, Gat Shemanim, meaning, “a press of oils.” It was an olive press and in all probability it was a private place owned by a person or persons in Jerusalem and Jesus most likely had permission given by a benefactor to enter there.The agony of the cross and the gift of salvation through the blood of Christ shed on the cross is the foundation of our Christian faith. Let there be no mistake that without the cross and the empty tomb, life would be just an event in time. It must be said no matter how harsh it may sound, a Christian lives to die for Christ. That Unexpected Gift, the one that is the motivator for all this….Reconciliation.

“Reconciliation, in Christian theology, is an element of salvation that refers to the results of atonement. … John Calvin describes reconciliation as the peace between humanity and God that results from the expiation of religious sin and the appease of God’s wrath.”

Jesus Christ was the Lamb of Atonement, he gave his life to appease the wrath of God because of mankind’s sins. Much has been written about these last three days and much more will be added as to the how, when and where but the words will never capture the reality and joy of the resurrection, we will never know until our time.

The Tomb is Empty

Life is Good

jk

Scripture indicates that Tuesday was also the day Judas Iscariot negotiated with the Sanhedrin, the rabbinical court of ancient Israel, to betray Jesus (Matthew 26:14-16). This was a very busy day for Jesus and his disciples. It was on this day that Jesus also went to the Mount of Olives and it was here that a major discourse took place between Jesus and the disciples. The Olivet Discourse, was an orderly and extensive teaching that Jesus gave on the Mount of Olives. The subject being that of the end times. Matthew has the most extensive record and can be found in Matthew 24:1 – 25:46. This is not the time to address these chapters as they are filled with much information and a few words could never give them justice as to their importance in our savior’s journey to the cross. I suggest you read the Chapters and verses as listed above. There are some points here that help us to better understand the emotional burden and determination of Jesus in the hours before his passion. We tend to set aside the humanness of Jesus, he was God incarnate and walked among us, God in human form. This was his choice and makes all the more revealing the power of the Father, the God of all creation. A discourse is a conversation, a discussion and you might say about a set of principles, or instructions to a certain group, in this case the disciples. In Christianity, the term Five Discourses of Matthew refers to five specific discourses by Jesus within the Gospel of Matthew. One of those discourses was the Sermon on the Mount of Olives. Jesus chose for this discourse to take place in the privacy of the Mount of Olives. We must as difficult as it might be, try and understand that the life of Jesus was not one of circumstance, it was according to the will of the Father, God. Within this discourse is the warning to the disciples that they will suffer tribulation and persecution before the ultimate triumph of the Kingdom of God. This discourse is also known as the Little Apocalypse because it includes the use of apocalyptic language. After this time with the disciples on the Mount of Olives and a full day, Jesus and the disciples returned to Bethany to stay the night. We have no record of what the Lord did on Wednesday but the assumption of many scholars is Jesus and the disciples spent the day in Bethany resting and planning for the Passover Feast. One thing that is important is that at one point Jesus had raised Lazarus from the grave and with the closeness of Bethany to Jerusalem the word of this miracle made it to the Pharisees in short order. You can be certain that this sealed the fate of Jesus in their eyes.   

I will close out this week with a blog to be posted at fromthepewblog.com on Saturday evening entitled…

Last Supper, A Place Called Gethsemane, The Unexpected Gift

Hope you will join us in the Pew this Saturday eve.

Life is Good

jk

Research Sources:  DBS, New Interpreter’s Bible and

https://www.gotquestions.org/Olivet-discourse.html

With all that is happening in the world today I have struggled picking out a blog subject for this week. The whole world of course is fighting this pandemic that has left very few of our lives unchanged. We are sadden by the fact that in all probability only on-line services will mark these important days in the Christian calendar. This Sunday is Palm Sunday and is the start of our Lords journey to the cross. We will hear the falmilar verses and sing those falmilar hymns as we, the Church, celebrate this eventful week in Christendom. The fact is that without the cross, the crrufixtion and the resurrection, there could never be hope for mankind. Sometimes we need to get past the usual rote of worship or even reading of the Scripture, we need to go beyond the words. It would be impossible for us to feel the persecution of Christ, the unfairness of judgement passed on him, the tremendous pain of leather straps tipped with knife edged bone that tore the skin apart and the thorns that were pressed into his head, we just can’t truly feel that physically. It is even harder to access the pain and the endurance of our Lord as he carried the cross to Golgotha on that fateful day. The following is from Wikipedia.

“Via Dolorosa, Jerusalem

The Via Dolorosa (Latin for “Sorrowful Way”, often translated “Way of Suffering”; Hebrew: ויה דולורוזה; Arabic: طريق الآلام) is a processional route in the Old City of Jerusalem, believed to be the path that Jesus walked on the way to his crucifixion. The winding route from the former Antonia Fortress to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre — a distance of about 600 metres (2,000 feet)^[1] — is a celebrated place of Christian pilgrimage. The current route has been established since the 18th century, replacing various earlier versions.^[2] It is today marked by nine Stations of the Cross; there have been fourteen stations since the late 15th century,^[2] with the remaining five stations being inside the Church of the Holy Sepulcher.^[3]“

Words can paint a picture in our minds and they can bring forth emotions, they can even inflict pain but unless they reside in our hearts and find a place in our souls they are like seeds sown in a field, some will grow increasing our knowledge while others will die not even finding a place in our memories. Join me now as we go beyond the words in our Plan Sunday remembrance.

Day 1: Triumphal Entry on Palm Sunday

Jesus’ triumphal entry is recorded in Matthew 21:1-11

It is the time of the Passover in Jerusalem and the city and surrounding areas were packed. It was a Jewish law that every adult Jewish male within fifteen miles of Jerusalem must attend Passover. This, the greatest of their national festivals brought Jews from not only Palestine but from all over the world. Here in this city full of people who were there primarily for the religious significance and expectations of their Jewish faith came Jesus. He could not have picked a better time but as we will read it was not a spur of the moment thing.  Jesus had a plan… He sent his disciples ahead to the village to get a donkey, the way the text reads he had already made arrangements for this to happen. Now Matthew names the village as that of Bethphage, but Mark 11:1 mentions Bethany. The general consensus is Bethany would have been the village where the donkey was and also Jesus stayed there after his entry into Jerusalem. Bethany was the home of Mary, Martha and Lazarus and the home of Simon the Leper. Mark in 11:2 also gives us another point that is not all that well known. Old Testament scriptures lend authority to the fact that this donkey was special because it had never been ridden before. (Numbers 19:2, Deuteronomy 21:3.) We know they spread their cloaks on the ground before him, they welcomed him like a King. As Jesus entered the city they shouted Hosanna, their excitement at a fever pitch. A people’s cry for deliverance in the day of their oppression. Stop for a moment, savor this moment of the people crying out to their savior and King. This would have been like a ticker tape parade down Fifth Ave, the frenzy of the crowds growing with every step and the ruling Jewish council’s  concern rising with every wave of a palm branch and shout of Hosanna. It is very plain that Jesus’ intent was to awake the people with the methods of the prophets. Words were no longer enough, he felt led to go beyond the words. There was within the Jewish faith a growing casual and indifferent attitude to the will of God. You can call it a parade, a pep rally or whatever you wish, it was in all intent a dramatic action accompanied by symbolic actions that a Jew would recognize, it was a call to salvation. Jesus showed his courage in a city he knew to be hostile to him. Those in authority hated him and were plotting a way to get rid of him. Here he put forth his claim and underscored his calling. He was the God’s Messiah, the Anointed One!  It gets even better. Jesus had a certain quality that people found appealing. He sought their hearts, he came humbly among them seeking the kinship of mankind not the throne. He came on a donkey and in this land and this time a King who came on a donkey came in peace. So we see the courage of Christ, the affirmation of his claim and also his last invitation to men and women to open their hearts to him.

Day 2: On Monday, Jesus Clears the Temple

Matthew 21:12–14

On Monday evening Jesus stayed in Bethany again, probably in the home of his friends, Mary, Martha, and Lazarus. If some would consider the entry of Jesus into Jerusalem one of defiance knowing that he knew the Jewish ruling council hated him and his message, then what was about to happen would be defiance with a Capital D. This is a picture we need to paint with just a few words. The actual Temple itself was a small building but it was surrounded by four  adjoining courtyards. Without going into much detail we will focus on the area that defiance ceases to be just a word and became an action. The courtyard of the Gentiles into which anyone could come was always busy but at the time of Passover it was packed with pilgrims from all over the world. Two things that were problematic were the money-changers and the Temple Tax. The temple tax was one half-shekel and had to be paid close to the Passover time. You could pay that tax at various places set up in advance of the Passover but after a certain time it must be paid at the Temple only. Enter the money-changers…their function was to change unsuitable currency into correct currency. Because so many people came from all over they would need to pay this tax at that time. This was a big business at this time. I’ll not bore you with details but the underlying problem here was that a necessary service had become a questionable practice. The money-changers charged a commission for changing the currency, so people ended up not only paying the tax of a half-shekel but also the extra charge of the money-changers for their services. This extra burden was hard for the ordinary people. Now to be fair this was not an abuse but it led to some instances of the money-changers taking advantage of the situation. The selling of doves, brought for offerings was worse. Any animal to be used as a sacrifice had to be without blemish. You could buy an animal outside the Temple but there were official inspectors who could reject an animal, then direct you to the stalls and booths within the Temple. The problem here was that a pair of doves could cost as much as fives times more from these Temple vendors. His anger was directed against those who would exploit others, using their faith to gain profit in the name of religion. I am sure there were many who came just to pray and worship and were distracted by the din among those buying, selling and bargaining. It was within this context that Jesus allowed his anger to come upon these people. There is a beautiful ending to this in that there still remained in the Temple Court the blind and the lame and the fact that he remained to heal them. Not all had been run out, those that truly needed him had stayed. We best consider this. There is such a thing as the wrath of God, we don’t hear it preached as much these days but we also must allow for the love of God. Both are needed to ensure the Kingdom.

I will wrap this up with these verses:

Matthew 21:15–17

When the chief priests and scribes saw the wonderful things that he did, and the children shouting in the Temple: ‘Hosanna to the Son of David!’ they were angry. ‘Do you hear what these are saying?’ they said. Jesus said to them: ‘Yes! Have you never read: “Out of the mouths of babes and sucklings you have the perfect praise”?’ And he left them, and went out of the city to Bethany, and lodged there.

Next week I will have two blogs, one mid-week concerning days three and four to be followed by my usual Saturday blog.

Life is Good

jk