S = Luke 6:1-2, 5 “On a Sabbath, while he was going through the grain fields, his disciples plucked and ate some heads of grain, rubbing them in their hands. 2 But some of the Pharisees said, “Why are you doing what is not lawful to do on the Sabbath?” … And he said to them, “The Son of Man is lord of the Sabbath.”
Mark 2:27-28 “And he said to them, “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. So the Son of Man is lord even of the Sabbath.”
O = Jesus and his disciples were walking through grain fields and the disciples became hungry. The Pharisees accused them of breaking the law. (So we must observe that they were also there… hmmm…so why were the Pharisees walking through grain fields on the Sabbath?) The issue here was not the eating of the grain, the rubbing of the grain in their hands was considered “threshing” and thus working on the Sabbath. Jesus defended the actions of his disciples (though I note he did not appear to be eating) with a story from the life of David and a “sin” they would have considered worse…that of eating the bread from “the house of God.” In Matthew 12:6 Jesus says, “…something greater than the temple is here!” It just seems to be an object lesson to reinforce the “new wine/new wineskins” pericope just stated in Luke 5. Jesus is telling them to get a new bag, to put on a new garment—The Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath.
The Pharisees tried to make Jesus disciples fit into their own ideas of what was the “right” way to do things. In the process any new wine they may have received from Jesus was spilled on the ground of their hard hearts, like so much blood, as it soon literally would be.
A = Do I put my rules, my sense of the way things should be above the needs of people? Do I oppress others by my rash vows like Saul did to his army by imposing a fast? Jesus seems to think that the Sabbath was for man—what does this teach me about the heart of God? He wants what is best for us, but do I want what is best for others?
P = O Lord, let me see your heart for people…let me not heap legalistic burdens on those whose heart is simply to be with you and learn from you. May I be one of those disciples in relationship with you, rather than one of those Pharisees always finding fault and looking to bring the hammer of the law down on your followers. May I follow you wholeheartedly, innocently, lovingly, thankfully…doing good, giving life…Amen.
Sunday, February 26, 2012
Saturday, February 25, 2012
Luke 5-B “No One …Tears…Puts…Desires”
S = Luke 5:34, 36-39 And Jesus said to them, “Can you make wedding guests fast while the bridegroom is with them?... He also told them a parable: “No one tears a piece from a new garment and puts it on an old garment. If he does, he will tear the new, and the piece from the new will not match the old. And no one puts new wine into old wineskins. If he does, the new wine will burst the skins and it will be spilled, and the skins will be destroyed. But new wine must be put into fresh wineskins. And no one after drinking old wine desires new, for he says, ‘The old is good.’”
O = There is a strong repetition in this parabolic answer, “No one”…(used three times) puts the new into or onto the old. New must be put into new. Those who were criticizing Jesus’ disciples (and by extension Jesus himself as their master), were continuing to try to squeeze this new Kingdom of God message/life into the old paradigms of rabbinic Judaism. Jesus made it clear that fasting in the presence of the bridegroom would be inappropriate. Jesus, in this metaphor is seen to be the One they had been waiting for, the Bridegroom, the Messiah. Another statement by Jesus taught that for those trying to combine new and old it would only look stupid (not matching) and be wasteful of the new (both garment and wine).
A = Why is it Jesus says we desire the “old wine” more than the “new” (v.39)? It is because of its history, tradition, and cultural richness, or because of its familiarity…because it doesn’t change, because we always know what to expect? Or is it because it doesn’t stretch us and cause us to grow and change? I know that I personally prefer the familiar routine to constant change. Yet, seeing who Jesus really is radically changes our lives. We will never be the same. He doesn’t just want a patched up me, but wants to make me new. While the old me might not have considered “new wine” on my own, by His love being poured into my heart by his Holy Spirit (Rom. 5:5), now I don’t want to settle for less and I don’t want to draw back in fear from the adventure before me in Christ!
P = O Lord, let me not wear you like a patch on my jeans, or try to stuff you into the tired paradigms of my understanding and experience. May I live by faith, allowing you to be all that you are… in my life. May I, by grace, be flexible enough that I don’t burst and waste any of the new wine of the Spirit you pour into me! Amen.
O = There is a strong repetition in this parabolic answer, “No one”…(used three times) puts the new into or onto the old. New must be put into new. Those who were criticizing Jesus’ disciples (and by extension Jesus himself as their master), were continuing to try to squeeze this new Kingdom of God message/life into the old paradigms of rabbinic Judaism. Jesus made it clear that fasting in the presence of the bridegroom would be inappropriate. Jesus, in this metaphor is seen to be the One they had been waiting for, the Bridegroom, the Messiah. Another statement by Jesus taught that for those trying to combine new and old it would only look stupid (not matching) and be wasteful of the new (both garment and wine).
A = Why is it Jesus says we desire the “old wine” more than the “new” (v.39)? It is because of its history, tradition, and cultural richness, or because of its familiarity…because it doesn’t change, because we always know what to expect? Or is it because it doesn’t stretch us and cause us to grow and change? I know that I personally prefer the familiar routine to constant change. Yet, seeing who Jesus really is radically changes our lives. We will never be the same. He doesn’t just want a patched up me, but wants to make me new. While the old me might not have considered “new wine” on my own, by His love being poured into my heart by his Holy Spirit (Rom. 5:5), now I don’t want to settle for less and I don’t want to draw back in fear from the adventure before me in Christ!
P = O Lord, let me not wear you like a patch on my jeans, or try to stuff you into the tired paradigms of my understanding and experience. May I live by faith, allowing you to be all that you are… in my life. May I, by grace, be flexible enough that I don’t burst and waste any of the new wine of the Spirit you pour into me! Amen.
Sunday, February 19, 2012
Luke 5 “Little Obediences…Awesome Revelation”
When we were in Israel I had just a few minutes after the sun set to simply read this journal entry on the hill above the cove where this story most likely took place.
S = Luke 5:5-6, 8, 10 “And Simon answered, “Master, we toiled all night and took nothing! But at your word I will let down the nets.” And when they had done this, they enclosed a large number of fish, and their nets were breaking… But when Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus' knees, saying, “Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord.”… And Jesus said to Simon, “Do not be afraid; from now on you will be catching men.”
O = Simon the fisherman, for he was not yet a full-time follower of Jesus, after working all night w/o success gets stuck listening to Jesus’ teaching in his own boat. He couldn’t say “No” for he owed Jesus a favor for healing his mother-in-law. Then while he disagreed with Jesus over the putting out into the deep idea he still chose to obey.
A = I wonder how many blessings I miss out on because either I won’t let Jesus into my boat (my space), into my area of expertise, or I choose to not obey Him when He doesn’t make sense to me. Or do I push him away when his presence makes me aware of my deep failures and sinfulness? Jesus’ words in v. 10 are for me too, “Don’t be afraid!” He came to save sinners and give us a new mission. Instead of just working to put food on the table in the fish eat fish world, Jesus calls Simon, the self-described “sinner” to be a person who catches men alive… for the Kingdom of God. Jesus came to bring life to those doomed to die for their sins.
It only takes small availabilities, little obediences and inconveniences, to open the door to great miracles of grace. Use of a boat, casting a net one more time, or sharing a lunch of bread and fish…simple surrender yielding awesome revelation!
P = O Lord, may I let you in the boat of my heart today. May I listen well, without distraction to what you tell me to do, and to do it trusting that you have my best in mind. May I be a part of your larger plan today, and this week. May I always remember that you know more about what I do than I do. May nothing hinder me from following you…whether feast, famine, or fear. Amen.
Wednesday, February 15, 2012
Luke 4E “His Plan or Ours?”
While the journals on this blog are primarily from the Gospel of Luke, the SOAP reading plan we have used in the past paired Luke 4 with an Old Testament reading from Genesis 9-11. I thought you might be interested to see the connection between the two texts.
S = Genesis 9:1,19 “And God blessed Noah and his sons and said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth…These three were the sons of Noah, and from these the people of the whole earth were dispersed.”• Genesis 11:4 “Then they said, “Come, let us build ourselves a city and a tower with its top in the heavens, and let us make a name for ourselves, lest we be dispersed over the face of the whole earth.” [Babel]
• Luke 4:42-43 “And when it was day, he departed and went into a desolate place. And the people sought him and came to him, and would have kept him from leaving them, but he said to them, “I must preach the good news of the kingdom of God to the other towns as well; for I was sent for this purpose.”
O = God blessed man after the flood like he had blessed Adam and Eve in Gen. 1:28. It was a new beginning full of possibility and the blessing of God. How quickly man cast off the command and the blessing to do something for himself out of pride and fear. Early in Luke 4, Jesus overcame the temptation to make a name for himself (among other things), instead He fully trusted the Father’s plan. Here at the end of Luke 4 we see people of Capernaum with new hope for the first time in a long while as Jesus’ teaching and miraculous healing/delivering work illuminated their lives. But they wanted to “keep” Jesus for themselves. They were happy to keep his light for themselves, but his plan was much bigger than that. He was sent to bring “good news” to the other towns as well.
A = Do I try to make a name for myself or am I content to leave it in God’s hands? Do I, like the people of Babel long ago, rebel against the command of God on my life? Do I surround myself with others to do what is opposed to God or to do the work of God? Am I content to have enjoyed the blessings of God, in Christ, myself without wanting others to experience Him also? I confess it is true all too often.
P = O LORD, Your banner over me is love! The name you give me is better than what I can produce on my own and the blessing you give is powerful and enduring. Help me to trust you today—even if it is scary. Help me to do what I see you doing, to speak what I hear you speaking—not what I see other people doing…so that my language may not be confused, but so that the people of God, my family may be healed and be one in the bond of love. Your plan is bigger than mine thanks for letting me be a part of it. Amen.
S = Genesis 9:1,19 “And God blessed Noah and his sons and said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth…These three were the sons of Noah, and from these the people of the whole earth were dispersed.”• Genesis 11:4 “Then they said, “Come, let us build ourselves a city and a tower with its top in the heavens, and let us make a name for ourselves, lest we be dispersed over the face of the whole earth.” [Babel]
• Luke 4:42-43 “And when it was day, he departed and went into a desolate place. And the people sought him and came to him, and would have kept him from leaving them, but he said to them, “I must preach the good news of the kingdom of God to the other towns as well; for I was sent for this purpose.”
O = God blessed man after the flood like he had blessed Adam and Eve in Gen. 1:28. It was a new beginning full of possibility and the blessing of God. How quickly man cast off the command and the blessing to do something for himself out of pride and fear. Early in Luke 4, Jesus overcame the temptation to make a name for himself (among other things), instead He fully trusted the Father’s plan. Here at the end of Luke 4 we see people of Capernaum with new hope for the first time in a long while as Jesus’ teaching and miraculous healing/delivering work illuminated their lives. But they wanted to “keep” Jesus for themselves. They were happy to keep his light for themselves, but his plan was much bigger than that. He was sent to bring “good news” to the other towns as well.
A = Do I try to make a name for myself or am I content to leave it in God’s hands? Do I, like the people of Babel long ago, rebel against the command of God on my life? Do I surround myself with others to do what is opposed to God or to do the work of God? Am I content to have enjoyed the blessings of God, in Christ, myself without wanting others to experience Him also? I confess it is true all too often.
P = O LORD, Your banner over me is love! The name you give me is better than what I can produce on my own and the blessing you give is powerful and enduring. Help me to trust you today—even if it is scary. Help me to do what I see you doing, to speak what I hear you speaking—not what I see other people doing…so that my language may not be confused, but so that the people of God, my family may be healed and be one in the bond of love. Your plan is bigger than mine thanks for letting me be a part of it. Amen.
Luke 4D "Every One of Them"
S = Luke 4:40 "Now when the sun was setting, all those who had any who were sick with various diseases brought them to him, and he laid his hands on every one of them and healed them. "
O = Though the day was done (or because the day was done and the Sabbath ended), Jesus worked into the night healing all the sick that were brought to him...and it seems that they were all brought to him. It says that he laid hands on "every one of them." Not one was left out or overlooked. It was a very different response than previously in Nazareth. When the sun was setting, the light was dawning on Galilee of the Gentiles!
A = Is there anything in me that needs to be healed? In my family and friends, and co-workers? How well do I do at bringing them to Jesus? I need the sense of expectancy that was found in those early days in Capernaum. Jesus example was that he did not stop working until all were healed. He spent personal time with each one. I need to learn to take time for each person who needs a touch from the Lord. I also could learn from Jesus' compassionate work ethic. Further, I need to respond to Jesus' message not just to his miraculous power.
P = O Lord, thank you for touching me personally with your healing, delivering, power! Even more I thank you for your gospel message, that you have paid the price for my sin that I could never pay. You loved me when I was in rebellion towards you and your kingdom...and gave me the gift of repentance! Help me to positively participate in your kingdom even this week...even today. Amen.
O = Though the day was done (or because the day was done and the Sabbath ended), Jesus worked into the night healing all the sick that were brought to him...and it seems that they were all brought to him. It says that he laid hands on "every one of them." Not one was left out or overlooked. It was a very different response than previously in Nazareth. When the sun was setting, the light was dawning on Galilee of the Gentiles!
A = Is there anything in me that needs to be healed? In my family and friends, and co-workers? How well do I do at bringing them to Jesus? I need the sense of expectancy that was found in those early days in Capernaum. Jesus example was that he did not stop working until all were healed. He spent personal time with each one. I need to learn to take time for each person who needs a touch from the Lord. I also could learn from Jesus' compassionate work ethic. Further, I need to respond to Jesus' message not just to his miraculous power.
P = O Lord, thank you for touching me personally with your healing, delivering, power! Even more I thank you for your gospel message, that you have paid the price for my sin that I could never pay. You loved me when I was in rebellion towards you and your kingdom...and gave me the gift of repentance! Help me to positively participate in your kingdom even this week...even today. Amen.
Saturday, February 4, 2012
Luke 4C "What is this Word?"
S = 4:31-32, 36-37 “And he went down to Capernaum, a city of Galilee. And he was teaching them on the Sabbath, and they were astonished at his teaching, for his word possessed authority… And they were all amazed and said to one another, ‘What is this word? For with authority and power he commands the unclean spirits, and they come out!’ And reports about him went out into every place in the surrounding region.”
O = They were both amazed and astonished at his teaching and works of deliverance and healing. It was nothing less than his message from Nazareth applied. Could the same message have been preached in Capernaum with different results? We see that all the demons that manifested were silenced and cast out that day and the days following. In fact, Jesus rebuked them and refused to receive their witness—in a way that reminds me of Abraham’s refusal to take any of the spoil from Sodom (Genesis 14:21-24). The king of Sodom couldn’t say that he made Abraham rich and likewise the devil couldn’t say that he had made Jesus popular. There was a new sheriff in town!
What made Jesus’ words authoritative? Can his words still bring miraculous change? Yes, though it is still opposed by the spiritually unclean status quo!
A = What response do I see in my life when Jesus speaks?
Am I astonished at his teaching, or am I not really listening to his radical message of grace? Am I amazed at how his message can actually change lives, or am I not really watching for it? Am I telling others what he has done or is there something less important or less life changing that I would rather talk about…or am I simply mute like the demons after they were rebuked? Do I recognize the authority of Jesus’ message in my life, or do I just dabble around the outside as a spectator…hoping to see a good show?
P = O LORD, you know that I neither listen to, nor speak of, your Word with the passion deserved. May that change today!
May I be captured by your words of grace!
May I surrender to your words of authority!
May I believe that your Word, the Bible, was written to bring Jesus-change to my life today!
"What is this word?" It is the love of God delivered to me today!
Amazing…astonishing…authoritatively good news! Amen.
O = They were both amazed and astonished at his teaching and works of deliverance and healing. It was nothing less than his message from Nazareth applied. Could the same message have been preached in Capernaum with different results? We see that all the demons that manifested were silenced and cast out that day and the days following. In fact, Jesus rebuked them and refused to receive their witness—in a way that reminds me of Abraham’s refusal to take any of the spoil from Sodom (Genesis 14:21-24). The king of Sodom couldn’t say that he made Abraham rich and likewise the devil couldn’t say that he had made Jesus popular. There was a new sheriff in town!
What made Jesus’ words authoritative? Can his words still bring miraculous change? Yes, though it is still opposed by the spiritually unclean status quo!
A = What response do I see in my life when Jesus speaks?
Am I astonished at his teaching, or am I not really listening to his radical message of grace? Am I amazed at how his message can actually change lives, or am I not really watching for it? Am I telling others what he has done or is there something less important or less life changing that I would rather talk about…or am I simply mute like the demons after they were rebuked? Do I recognize the authority of Jesus’ message in my life, or do I just dabble around the outside as a spectator…hoping to see a good show?
P = O LORD, you know that I neither listen to, nor speak of, your Word with the passion deserved. May that change today!
May I be captured by your words of grace!
May I surrender to your words of authority!
May I believe that your Word, the Bible, was written to bring Jesus-change to my life today!
"What is this word?" It is the love of God delivered to me today!
Amazing…astonishing…authoritatively good news! Amen.
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