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Fruits of the Spirit

Fruits of the Spirit
 
 

The fruit of the Spirit is different from the fruit of the self-help movement, and it’s also different from those qualities we call virtues.  Virtues typically refer to the way a person’s character has been formed.  Is she courageous?  Is he truthful?  Virtues are valuable, but they only go so far.  Virtues are mostly focused on the individual; they refer to the way one person acts, and they direct praise toward that person for being virtuous.

There’s a tendency to regard the fruit of the Spirit like virtues, as though living in the Spirit will produce better character traits for us as individuals.  That’s only partly true.  The fruit of the Spirit fully blossoms only in the body of Christ, which is never complete with just one person.  Real fruit of the Spirit shows up not only in our personal journeys but also in community.  Things like love, peace, patience, and all the rest are not solo experiences.  In contrast to the way of the flesh, which keeps us self-focused, the Spirit’s way helps us grow in our concern for others.  We yearn to bear fruit for the benefit of those around us, not just for ourselves.

When fruit ripens in community, the world can better see how something is at work among us that surpasses our human inclinations.  Our calling is to bear fruit in the communities of faith to which we belong.

LOVE

The first fruit of the Spirit is love, which echoes other scriptural references to the primacy of love—for instance, “faith, hope, and love abide . . . but the greatest of these is love” (1 Cor. 13:13) and “we love because he first loved us” (1 John 4:19).

In his notes on Galatians, John Wesley called love “the root of all the rest.”  Indeed, it’s hard to imagine any of the other fruit being present without love being there first.  When it comes to living by the Spirit instead of living by the flesh, love is first in line for clearing a way toward renewed relationships with ourselves and others.  The path out of self-destruction follows the trail of love.

The lyrics of a popular Beatles’ song suggest that “all you need is love.”  Well, maybe that is all we need (assuming it’s the right kind of love).  But when it comes to the fruit of the Spirit, love isn’t all we get.  So much more grows out of love.  Divine love generates a more abundant harvest.  Think about Matthew’s account of Jesus’s baptism in the river Jordan, where God’s voice declares Jesus the Beloved (Matt. 3:13-17). Jesus’s belovedness blossomed into a mission and ministry that bore the fruit of the Spirit in its fullness.  If you’re looking for the Spirit’s fruit in your own life, ask first whether you have embraced your identity as God’s beloved.  Yes?  Then trust that this love will bring new growth.

JOY

What comes to mind when you think of joy? What was the last experience you had that you would describe as “sheer joy”?

Joy is different from happiness. “The pursuit of happiness” is prized in the American Declaration of Independence as an inalienable right.  Many people spend a great deal of time, money, and energy trying to chase down happiness. Joy comes by a different route, though.  It’s not an inalienable right in the political sense but a byproduct of a deep experience in which, at least for a moment, we truly feel the fullness of life. Such experiences tend to happen not when we are pursuing joy, but when joy is pursuing us.  Like C. S. Lewis, we’re surprised by it. Joy isn’t something we can manufacture on our own, but we can receive it, enjoy it, and share it with others.

Joy multiplies as it is shared, whereas happiness often reflects an attitude of scarcity.  One person’s happiness might come at the cost of another’s, when there’s only so much to go around. Joy, in contrast, only becomes more abundant as it radiates out from the joyful person.  There’s plenty to go around, like when the angels cried “joy to the world!” at Jesus’s birth.  It was a message of inclusion, a word of welcome, beckoning anyone and everyone into the joy God offers in Jesus.  Could joy be pursuing you today?  Where is it ready to spill over from your life into someone else’s?

PEACE

Paul lists “strife,” “rivalries,” and “dissension” among the works of the flesh (Gal. 5:20), but peace blossoms from the work of the Spirit.  We cherish peace at many levels—a peaceful moment free from noise, a break in the fighting between siblings or nations, a ceasing of the same old arguments, a breakthrough that finally puts a stop to deeply entrenched conflict.

The peace that the Spirit brings forth is unmistakable—it is wholeness, shalom as the Hebrew language names it.  It is a peace that not only stops the discord but heals, restores, and lives up to a new vision of unity.  The scattered parts—of ourselves, our relationships with others, our relationship with God—are put back together.

Peace brings reconciliation between us and God, and us and our neighbors.  This is certainly not a peace we can create on our own—our natural inclinations tend to lead us back into conflict at some point.  The peace comes when, by the Spirit’s power, we yield to the ways of the Spirit.  The old self yields, and yields again and again, to the new self that the Spirit brings forth in and through us.  The Spirit of the one who reconciled us to God, while we were still running rampant in our sinfulness (Rom. 5:8), is able to grant us perfect peace.  Let us in turn share the peace of Christ with a warring world.

PATIENCE

No one advertises a smartphone, computer, or tablet as “nice and slow.”  Each new technological gadget is faster than the last.  Our sense of what is “slow” and what is “fast” gets pretty warped as a result.  When we catch ourselves sighing impatiently at a website that takes a few seconds to load, or when we hurriedly tap our feet as we wait in line, we are confronted with just how much we prefer our own pace to the unpredictable pace set for us by external circumstances.

Thankfully, the Spirit grants us the fruit of patience, which can recalibrate our sense of time. Patience, or “forbearance” as it is sometimes translated, allows us not only to tolerate a pace we don’t get to set—not just find it bearable—but also to find true gladness in it.  Patience acclimates us to a pace that allows us to tend to the needs of others instead of following our own agenda.

An older translation of patience in this verse is “longsuffering” (KJV).  Patience teaches us to put up with things that would otherwise test our limits.  There will always be things (and people) that “try our patience,” but the patience God cultivates in us allows us to endure in ways we might not have thought we could.  God’s own longsuffering nature gives us a model to emulate.  If there is someone in your life whose patience is being tried right now, consider how your gift of patience might help ease that burden.

KINDNESS

One of my favorite poets, Naomi Shahib Nye, wrote a poem called “Kindness” in which she depicts kindness as something we can only really know when we have also known sorrow.  I like this contrast; it evokes the sense in which kindness is so much more than just “niceness.”  Being nice can be a superficial endeavor, but to show kindness usually requires drawing a little deeper on our reserves.

Left to our own devices, we might only summon the energy to be nice to those we like, or who like us, or who we get along with, or with whom we have a lot in common. That’s the way of the flesh. May the way of the Spirit prevail, and kindness abound.

GOODNESS

We use the word “good” in all sorts of ways.  The food was good, my day was good, the kids were good, the movie was good, his Spanish is good, I’m feeling good.  What might “goodness” as a fruit of the Spirit refer to? I don’t think Paul is simply describing good behavior, or even a measure of quality or excellence.  After all, he’s trying to help the Galatian Christians see the differences between the way of the flesh and the way of the Spirit.  The way of the flesh has its own sense of what is “good.”  How does the Spirit’s way give us a different measuring stick for goodness?

Perhaps the goodness that the Spirit brings forth is most similar to the goodness that we hear about in the first chapter of Genesis, where God repeatedly declares that the created order is good.  “Behold, it was very good” (Gen. 1:31). The creation was good because it hummed along the way God designed it to, with humans and animals and plant life all in harmony.  The goodness of creation was a reflection of God’s ultimate goodness. Humanity’s subsequent descent into brokenness has left us longing for God to restore creation to the goodness and wholeness God still intends for us.  Maybe the Spirit’s fruit of goodness gives us a taste of that promise of restored goodness.  It’s the sort of goodness that catches the rhythm of creation and foretells the goodness of the new heaven and new earth.

FAITHFULNESS

“There is no shadow of turning with Thee.”  That’s how we describe God’s faithfulness in the familiar hymn “Great Is Thy Faithfulness.”  This image reflects loyalty and commitment—the one who is faithful can be trusted to follow through.

An interesting debate continues among those who study Galatians and other letters of Paul.  It centers on a grammatical issue.  There’s a phrase that could be translated as faith in Christ or as the faith of Christ.  The ambiguity in Galatians leads some to wonder about the difference between our human faith in Christ, and the faith—or faithfulness—of Christ.  So when “faithfulness” gets listed among the fruits of the Spirit, there are echoes of the same double meaning.  Whose faith is in focus here?  When it comes to the fruit of the Spirit, I think it’s both.  The faithfulness that the Spirit produces in us derives from the faithfulness that Christ modeled. It’s the faithfulness that led Christ to be baptized, to go into the wilderness, to preach good news, to heal the sick, and to suffer crucifixion for our sake.  To whatever extent we as Christ-followers are faithful to the mission and ministry to which Christ summons us, it is Christ’s example that patterns our discipleship. Christ’s faithfulness led him to a point where he experienced God-forsakenness.  Our journey of faith may also lead to difficult places, but the One whose faithfulness guides our steps will see us through.  He lives, and so shall we.

GENTLENESS

For some reason, when I think about gentleness in contemporary terms I picture someone standing up to a bully.  Not fighting back against the bully, but not tolerating him either.  This kind of gentleness has the strength to confront violence and injustice. Some translations use “meekness” instead of gentleness, a word that some like to interpret as “strength under control.” Gentleness is not about being weak, or a pushover.  It’s about having wisdom in how you choose to use your presence, your voice, and your strength.  Gentleness knows how to speak bold truth to power, and it also knows how to handle vulnerable matters with care.

Apart from the Spirit’s work, our impulses lead us to harsh words and careless displays of might.  In contrast, when gentleness blossoms in us, both as individuals and in community, we learn how to be wise in our interactions with others. Gentleness characterizes disciples of Jesus Christ—the Spirit gives us strength to use our efforts for the good of God’s kingdom, not for our own ambitions.  When Paul told the Philippians, “Let your gentleness be evident to all” (Phil. 4:5 NIV), he conveyed how important it was that Christians demonstrate this “strength under control.”  The gospel is not pushed on others by force, as though the kingdom of God were a harsh dictatorship. Instead, when gentleness and love prevail, people are beckoned by the gospel’s own inherent power.

SELF-CONTROL

Last but not least, self-control is a fruit of the Spirit. Self-control, or any moderation for that matter, is a stark contrast to the works of the flesh that Paul lists (Gal. 5:19-21). We can work hard at altering our own behavior and temperament, but the self-control that the Spirit nurtures in us is of a different sort. It’s the self-control that is motivated by more than just wanting to “be a better person.” It goes beyond our ability to stick to a goal or resolution. Sometimes our preoccupations with self-control give the impression that our chief aims in life are to consume fewer calories and spend within our budgets. These are worthy pursuits, but self-control in the fuller sense is meant for the good of others, not just ourselves.

Restraining our egos and appetites benefits those around us, both those we love and those we may never know. Self-control means holding back so others can have a share of what we already have in excess. Sometimes it means “living simply so others can simply live.” In North America, where we consume so much more than our fair share of the world’s resources, the fruit of self-control can bring good news to those who live in want. Self-control allows us to hold back and trust that there will be enough to go around, and that we can be satisfied with modest portions in order to foster the well-being of others.

 

In Matthew’s Gospel Jesus warns about false prophets, and he twice reminds his listeners that they will recognize the false prophets by the fruit they bear. There are outward signs of our inward disposition, and just as false prophets can be detected by their failure to produce good fruit, so we too can bear fruit that reveals what is at work within us. At its ripest, the fruit of the Spirit draws attention not to us and our actions but to the One who is working through us. I’m reminded of the song about how “they will know we are Christians by our love.” A tree’s fruit reveals what kind of tree it is. Likewise, the fruit of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control witness to the power of God’s Spirit at work within us. From our roots to our branches, the Spirit is moving, producing a harvest that nourishes us and all of God’s people who are hungry for a taste of good fruit, not as the world gives, but as only God can give.

Friends, stay rooted in prayer, discernment, and the word of God, and may you bear much fruit to the glory of God!

As you pray, ask God to cultivate in you a bountiful harvest of the Spirit’s fruit.

 

Reference: Words of Hope Daily Devotion

 

 

 

 

 

 

What is LENT

What is LENT

Lent is meant to be a time of repentance. That’s not a feeling of shame but an awareness that sin separates us from God and of what it cost Him to be reunited with us. “Shame has its place, but feeling shame over sin is not the same thing as repentance from sin” because “our tempter can take our obedience to God and turn it into a source of pride.” 

Repentant sinners “seek […] cleansing from sin, but also freedom from shame.” True repentance leads” to a “180-degree change of […] direction” and requires “true brokenness,” but repentance starts with “regretful acknowledgment of sin with commitment to change.”  

That is why conflating Lent with New Year’s resolutions is dangerous. This time of fasting should not add religious encouragement to a difficult goal: to lose weight, stop watching pornography, or to give money to charity. “Lent is […] an opportunity to contemplate what our Lord really did for us on the Cross.” 

Resolutions focus on meeting self-set, self-motivated goals rather than goals established by God and may even rebel against His purposes. Resolutions reflect a desire for autonomy from God instead of recognizing that the body is the temple of the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthian 3:16, 6:19) and the work of the potter, to be regarded as precious (Isaiah 64:8). 

Resolutions simply focus on the “self,” not Christ. Lent is an excellent time to give up one’s own resolutions and listen for God’s leading. Where God’s lead might be more difficult than any fast and Christians realize that they cannot do anything in their own strength either: only the grace of God is sufficient (2 Corinthians 12:9).

What is Advent

What is Advent
  

Advent was not always understood as a countdown to Christmas. In fact, the origins of our modern-day Advent celebration may not have had much to do with December 25th at all.

What is Advent?

As the days shorten and the nights grow colder, Christians embrace God’s promise of light. Heralding the beginning of the church calendar year, Advent begins on the Sunday between November 27th and December 3rd. [1] Deriving from the Latin word, adventus, the word means “coming,” “approach,” or “arrival.” “Advent” is also a translation of the Greek παρουσία (parousia), a word historically used in the church to signify Christ’s second coming. The church collectively waits with hope-filled anticipation for arrival, “Advent,” of Christ in our world, the One born in the flesh and whose presence is with us both now and eternally.

What is the history of the Advent wreath?

Protestants, Roman Catholics, Orthodox, and other Christian traditions around the world celebrate the season of Advent with a host of annual rituals: contemplative worship, prayer, scripture study, and daily devotionals to name a few. In Journey into the Heart of God: Living the Liturgical Year, Philip Pfatteicher lifts up an enduring appeal of the Advent season: the development of meaningful traditions and customs celebrated both in worship, as well as in the home with our families. Today, the Advent wreath is one of most common symbols associated with the season.

Invented by Johann Hinrich Wichern in 1839, the Advent wreath was intended as a physical sign to help bring the spirit and expectation of the season to young boys living in a settlement house that Wichern founded in Hamburg. Evergreens and fire, two of the main materials that make up the Advent wreath, are both deeply rooted in ancient, pre-Christian symbolism associated with everlasting life. Though traditions vary today, four candles typically form a circle around the outside with one white candle in the middle, known as the Christ Candle. The four outer candles customarily represent peace, hope, joy, and love. One candle is lit for each of the four Sundays of Advent, with the Christ Candle as the final one we light on Christmas Eve.  

Why do churches decorate with purple during Advent?

Rich, deep colors are symbolic of the Advent season. As in the season of Lent, purple is one of the main liturgical hues associated with Advent. Philip Pfatteicher observes that the color purple holds different meanings for different church calendar seasons. Purple represents penitence during the Lenten season. Whereas during Advent, purple is often associated with royalty, signifying the anticipated arrival of Christ the king. Dark blue is also commonly recognized during Advent. In church history, a deep shade of blue is symbolic of hope and also of Mary, the mother of Jesus. Today, throughout the Advent season, clergy wear purple or dark blue vestments and churches are adorned in purple or dark blue paraments. In the Middle Ages, black was also a liturgical color associated with the observance of Advent.  

What are the historical origins of Advent?

Much like the mystical spirit of the season, the precise historical origins of Advent are something of a mystery. Scholars have pieced together significant evidence for annual liturgical periods of fasting and preparation in the early Christian church. Notably, these early Advent seasons didn’t culminate on December 25th but instead on January 6th, the day of Epiphany. On Epiphany, the church commemorates the revelation of the Christ-child to the world, represented by the three magi who traveled a great distance to Bethlehem to pay him homage. The early church’s observance of Epiphany included themes of the nativity, Jesus’ baptism, the miracle of the Jesus’ turning of the water into wine at Cana, and other revelations of Jesus’ identity to the world. In the West, Epiphany was marked as a feast day for the baptism and joyful reception of new catechumens, or converts, into the life of the church. In The Origins of Feasts, Fasts, and Seasons in Early Christianity, Bradshaw and Johnson point out that the connection between Epiphany and Jesus’ baptism is stronger in the Eastern church than in the West. In the Western Church, Jesus’ baptism would later come to be celebrated on a Sunday after the Sunday of Epiphany, as it is today.

Scholars believe that our modern-day Advent observance may have its origins in Spain and in Gaul. In the sixth century, the church in Rome observes a similar season of preparation for baptism. Bradshaw and Johnson note that these early church preparatory observances were of varying lengths, anywhere from three weeks to a six-week Advent in Rome. Pope Gregory I at the end of the sixth century eventually shortens the length of the Advent season to four weeks. Christmas Day, commemorated on December 25th, began as a local Roman church observance. In Rome, the four Sundays of Advent leading up to Christmas were officially set by Pope Gregory I. Though the early church’s celebration of Epiphany on January 6th was much older and celebrated more broadly, as Christmas Day gained wider acceptance in the church, the celebration of Advent became oriented not toward preparation for Epiphany but for Christmas.  

What is the theological significance of Advent?

As early church Advent celebrations were not centered upon December 25th at all, theologically Advent is oriented beyond the birthday of Jesus. Advent prepares us to celebrate Jesus Christ’s arrival, born into our broken world as a real, en-fleshed human being. However, the season of Advent also directs us toward the ultimate, eschatological hope of our eternal Savior’s second coming and the subsequent reconciliation of all things. In other words, we spiritually “get ready” for Christ to come again.

In Journey into the Heart of God: Living the Liturgical Year, Philip Pfatteicher writes, “The spirit of the season is expressed in the impatient cry of a sometimes desperate people, ‘O that you would tear open the heavens and come down’ (Isaiah 64:1).” In contrast to the often-ostentatious ethos of the commercial Christmas season, the Church’s Advent is a somber and soulful time of contemplation. Many of our Advent scriptures and hymns are of lament. A very familiar Advent hymn, “O Come, O Come Emmanuel,” has a haunting minor melody, in which the chorus cries out for God to save God’s people, to “ransom captive Israel.” In the final days of Advent, many churches hold “Longest Night” worship services in the evening, intentional spaces for communities to gather and lay bare the sadness and grief so often felt on these longest nights of the year.

The Church’s Advent journey does not abandon us at the threshold of despair and sorrow. Ultimately, this season orients us toward hope in a Savior who has the power to break through the anguish and sins of this world—and to ultimately redeem us all. The theme of the fourth and final Sunday in Advent is profoundly Incarnational, pointing us toward the eternal hope of God’s people in Jesus Christ and the enduring promise that our prayers for salvation have at last been answered. The Catholic Church has recited morning prayers together for hundreds and hundreds of years. One line of praise from these morning prayers (Lauds) on the final days of Advent strikes a triumphant and optimistic tone, beautifully summing up our ultimate hope of the Advent season:

“The Lord is here; go out to meet him, saying: Great is his birth, eternal his kingdom, strong God, Ruler of all, Prince of peace, alleluia!”

 

 

Preparation For Lent

Preparation For Lent

 

And so it goes…
 
Can you believe it, Ash Wednesday is here, the beginning of the season of Lent. One week away! It’s the season of reflection, self-inventory, fasting, prayer, doing penance, almsgiving, and self-denial. Repentance. Renewal. This is the time when we “give up something for Lent.”
 
People quit smoking, give up chocolate, count calories or carbs, etc. And people start a new spiritual discipline sometimes too, like daily prayer, or meditation, or study. 
 
People recommit to following Jesus through the journey to the Last Supper (Maundy Thursday), to the cross (Good Friday), and to the resurrection (Easter). The Passion. Where everything in Lent ends—Holy Week. 
 
It’s a season of transition. Letting go of the old ways and adopting new life in Christ.
 
Paul talks about it in 2 Corinthians 5:17–
So if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation: everything old has passed away; see, everything has become new!

 
And so it goes…
 
Everything becomes new!
Everything old passes away.
That should be our prayer this year.
 
Just trying to move the needle a little—maybe a little life change. 
 
And so it goes…

Post-Easter Jesus

Post-Easter Jesus

Okay Christian person. Let me ask you a question that is enough to make your brain hurt. Easter was Sunday. The resurrection of Lord Jesus Christ. Now what?
 
What do we do with the Post-Easter Jesus?
 
That’s literally the age-old question we’ve been struggling with since the women discover the empty tomb. And by “we,” I mean us—Jesus followers. What do we do with him?
 
You start to really feel the struggle in the early Pauline letters. 1 Thessalonians is probably the first of Paul’s letters to emerge and it likely doesn’t come along until mid-1st Century—20 years after the crucifixion. In fact, Paul’s letters emerge before the Gospels. Then Mark comes first and not until at least 60-65. The others much later, and John’s Gospel may not have emerged until as late as the 2nd Century!
 
Even the Didache, which is literally a manual for being a person of “The Way”—basically what they call the lifestyle of following Jesus—They aren’t even known as “Christians” yet! The Didache comes out also mid-1st Century, and even the Didache doesn’t talk about the resurrection. Not one word!
 
After a lot of thought and study I think I understand why no resurrection. I think it’s because they are living it. Like, if put yourself into their context, in the years immediately following Jesus they are mourning, processing, developing love and community around his teaching. They are experiencing and actually becoming the resurrection.
 
This is no “belief structure.”
This is lifestyle.
This is huge!
 
It’s also important to know that Paul never meets Jesus of Nazareth! Paul’s experience of Jesus comes on the road to Damascus (see Acts 9) post-Easter and he has a serious life-changing confrontation with the risen Christ! He is blinded by the light of Christ!
 
So, what we get here in 2021 are these glimpses of the Risen Christ through the eyes of the earliest followers. And this is significant! Scholars agree that to best understand the impact of a leader, a movement, or a culture is to examine the lives of the adherents.
 
What do they do?
How do they live?
What do they teach their children?
Hmmmm.
 
That’s enough to make your brain hurt, too!
What do we do with this Post-Easter Jesus?
And that is it.
 
Are we becoming the resurrection?
Following Jesus?
Loving each other as Jesus loves us?
Building welcoming community and taking care of our neighbors?
Yes or no?
 
When we look in the mirror, do we see the face of Jesus?
 
Sorry to make your brain hurt—I’m just askin’…

 

The Rev. Scott Foster

Easter is Over – Now What

Easter is Over – Now What

Here are five specific things the disciples did after Easter that may surprise us:

#1.  The disciples were skeptical.  The Gospel records are clear:  many of Jesus’ closest followers were openly skeptical of the early reports of the resurrection.

When the women who first saw Jesus alive reported what they had seen, the other followers dismissed it as “an idle tale” and “did not believe them” (Luke 24:11).

The Gospel of John adds that one of Jesus’ closest followers, named Thomas, refused to believe that God had raised Jesus to life.  He insisted that he would have to put his finger in the nail holes in Jesus’ hands before he would believe such a thing.

Some of the disciples had doubts even when they saw Jesus with their own eyes.

On a mountain in Galilee, Jesus appeared to eleven of His disciples and they worshiped Him there, but, Matthew reports, “some doubted” (Matthew 28:17).

What does that mean for us today?

It means that Christians should acknowledge the skepticism they encounter about the Christian testimony.

“Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have,” we are told in 1 Peter 3:15. “But do this with gentleness and respect.”

What else did Jesus’ followers do following Easter?

#2.  They broke bread in Jesus’ memory.  It appears that the Last Supper rite that Jesus bequeathed to His followers was put into practice very early, perhaps within days of the Crucifixion.

A story related briefly in Mark and at length in Luke concerns two followers who had an encounter with the risen Jesus near the village of Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem.

The disciples did not recognize the risen Jesus but invited Him to eat with them.  At the table, Jesus took bread, blessed and broke it, and, Luke says, the disciples’ eyes were opened.

They reported the incident to the entire community, saying that Jesus was made known to them in the breaking of the bread (Luke 24:12-35).

What does that mean for us?

Christian denominations differ on how they interpret what the Last Supper means, but it’s clear from the New Testament that Jesus’ earliest followers followed Jesus’ command to “do this in memory of Me.”

According to Acts, after Easter the disciples in Jerusalem “broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts” (Acts 2:45).

But Jesus’ followers didn’t break bread only.  They did something else as well…

#3.  They searched the Scriptures.   With a few exceptions, the earliest followers of Jesus were devout Jews, steeped in the traditions and laws of their ancestors.  It was natural, then, for them to search their ancient holy books (or holy scrolls) to find explanations for the extraordinary events that had happened in their midst.

Modern skeptics make much of the parallels between the Gospels and Old Testament texts, examples of what scholars call midrash, the Jewish technique of stitching Biblical passages together to expand on a given point or interpret an event. They claim that this shows New Testament incidents were just made up.  But this is to misunderstand what midrash is.

A modern equivalent might be a journalist who says a current U.S. president “cannot tell a lie,” deliberately referencing a very old saying about George Washington but also, at the same time, making a comment on a real situation in the present day.

It’s clear from the New Testament that Jesus’ followers did search the Jewish scriptures, often using the Greek translation known as the Septuagint.

Acts describes how the apostles, particularly Peter, explained in great detail the meaning of passages in the Hebrew Bible and how they explained Jesus’ life and mission.  The apostle Philip did the same with the Ethiopian eunuch.  Later, Paul and Barnabas also explained the Jewish scriptures in synagogues throughout Cyprus and what is now central Turkey.

The meaning for Christians today is that we, too, should be like the residents of Berea who received the Gospel message with great eagerness but “searched the scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true” (Acts 17:11).

#4. They took care of the sick.  A major component of Jesus’ mission on earth appears to have been free healing.  Twenty-five of the thirty-seven miracles attributed to Jesus in the New Testament, or fully 65 percent, are miracles of healing.

One of the first things the gospel of Mark says about Jesus is that He was a healer:

[Jesus] healed many who were sick with various diseases, and cast out many demons. — Mark 1:34

What is less well known is that Jesus commanded His followers to do the same.

According to Matthew’s account, Jesus called His twelve apostles and instructed them to heal “every disease and every affliction” (Matthew 10:1). In Luke, Jesus sends out seventy-two of His disciples as emissaries of the kingdom, instructing them specifically to

heal the sick who are there and tell them, ‘The kingdom of God has come near to you.’ — Luke 10:9, NIV

The very first miracle recorded in the Acts of the Apostles after Easter is the healing of a lame beggar by Peter who was seated on the steps leading up to the Beautiful Gate, probably the spectacular bronze doors donated to the Temple a few years earlier by  the Alexandrian craftsman Nicanor.

“I have no silver and gold, but what I do have I give to you,” Peter told the man. “In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk!”  Throughout the rest of Acts, Peter and the other disciples are engaged in a healing ministry, for example through the healing of Aeneas and the resuscitation of Tabitha (Acts 9:32-40).

Ever since, Christians have been involved in medical mission work – building hospitals, establishing medical organizations such as the Red Cross.  The original hospital for the sick in Paris, France, the Hôtel-Dieu, first opened in AD 651 and still operates today in the very same location.

We should remember that medical missions have been an essential part of the Christian witness from the very beginning.

#5.  They invited others into their fellowship.  In the 20th century, some New Testament scholars claimed that Jesus never intended to launch a movement or form a fellowship.

But that is precisely what the earliest Christian records say.  The Gospels and the rest of the New Testament are emphatic that Jesus instructed His followers to “make disciples of all nations” (Matthew 28:19).

From the very beginning, it appears, this was Jesus’ intention for His followers.  Jesus’ first challenge to the Galilean fisherman Simon bar Jonah, for example, was for him to follow Jesus and He would make him “a fisher of men.”

Indeed, that was one of Jesus’ metaphors to explain what the kingdom of God is like, a fishing net.  “The kingdom of Heaven is like a net that was thrown into the sea and gathered fish of every kind,” He told a crowd one day on the lakeshore.

Within weeks of Easter, then, Jesus’ followers were inviting everyone who would listen into their fellowship.  According to Acts, after Simon Peter’s sermon to the crowds gathered at Pentecost, “about three thousand” people joined the community in a single day.

This is surprising because in the ancient world religious groups were often exclusive.

The sociologist Rodney Stark points out that the phenomenal growth of the Christian movement can be explained, at least partially, by the welcoming attitude of Jesus’ followers towards groups scorned by other religious movements, such as women, slaves, Samaritans and foreigners.

Stark estimates that the Jesus movement grew at the rate of about 40 percent per decade,  from an initial 1,000 followers to roughly 217,000 followers at the end of the second century, to almost 34 million in AD 350, to 2 billion today.

Not surprisingly, the rapid growth of the Jesus movement was also due in large part to the other steps the disciples of Jesus took after Easter – their willingness to patiently answer the skepticism of their critics, break bread with strangers, search the scriptures and take care of the sick.

These, more than anything, proclaimed to the world what Jesus and His followers were all about.  It is something worth pondering in our secular world…

The Tomb is Empty – He Has Risen

The Tomb is Empty – He Has Risen

He Has Risen

 

Scripture Reading — Luke 24:1-12  

 

“Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here; he has risen! Remember how he told you. . . .” — Luke 24:5-6  

 

Mark’s account of the resurrection left us unsure about Jesus on the loose. Luke agrees that the world can’t control Jesus, and then Luke goes even ­further.  Luke makes clear that Jesus is the one in control. “Remember how he told you . . .” the angels say. But Luke doesn’t focus on how unsettling it is to follow someone who will radically change our life. Rather, Luke aims to inspire awe in us for Jesus. Even though the odds seemed stacked against him, it turns out that everyone has played right into Jesus’ plan.  The resurrection of Jesus is the most awe-inspiring event in the history of the world. It’s not just that Jesus came back from the dead; Elisha had raised a dead boy to life, and Jesus himself had raised several people. The unique thing about Jesus’ resurrection is that it is permanent—Jesus is still alive! Jesus overcame death forever!  Because of Jesus, death no ­longer has the finality it once had. Jesus demonstrated his power over death so that we can have real hope that he will conquer our death as well. Like Jesus, many of his followers will die. But, because of Jesus, all who follow him will one day be raised back to life. 

 

Prayer:     Dear Jesus, we praise you for taking control of this world. The world can be cruel sometimes, and life is fragile. But you are in control of our life, Lord, and you have defeated death. Amen.

May the Peace of God, which transcends all understanding, guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus

Jesus Weeps Over the City of Jerusalem

Jesus Weeps Over the City of Jerusalem
Devotion for Maundy Thursday – Good Friday- Holy Saturday
We are, now, in the middle of Holy Week. We are in the middle of the Passion of Christ. We might ask the Passion of Christ? Yes, the week started with the glorious entry into the city of Jerusalem. But did you witness not only the Glory of the parade and the support of the people, but the passion as well. Did you miss the little tidbit on that early morning? Were you there for the little tidbit?
Let us go back to the prophesy of Daniel, one of the greatest profits. Yes, the Daniel that God saved from the Lions. He was also a great man of Persia, the third most powerful man at the time in Persia, the leader of the cult “Maji”, the greatest of the Maji for his ability to interpret God’s messages to the kings and lords of Persia.
Daniel 9:24-26 (msg)
24 “‘Seventy sevens are set for your people and for your holy city to throttle rebellion, stop sin, wipe out crime, set things right forever, confirm what the prophet saw, and anoint The Holy of Holies.
25-26 “‘Here is what you must understand: From the time the word goes out to rebuild Jerusalem until the coming of the Anointed Leader, there will be seven sevens. The rebuilding will take sixty-two sevens, including building streets and digging a moat. Those will be rough times. After the sixty-two sevens, the Anointed Leader will be killed—the end of him. The city and Sanctuary will be laid in ruins by the army of the newly arriving leader. The end will come in a rush, like a flood. War will rage right up to the end, desolation the order of the day.
Here Gabriel is giving to Daniel the message from God, that an anointed one, or God walking on Earth, will come. And he will come in 483 years. The Hebrew nation has 483 years from the time permission is given to rebuild the Temple to “throttle rebellion, stop sin, wipe out crime, set things right forever”. The Hebrew nation must prepare for the anointed one.
Fast forward back to Christ’s entry into Jerusalem, 483 years after the word was given to rebuild the temple.
Luke 19:41-44 (msg)
41-44 When the city came into view, he wept over it. “If you had only recognized this day, and everything that was good for you! But now it’s too late. In the days ahead your enemies are going to bring up their heavy artillery and surround you, pressing in from every side. They’ll smash you and your babies on the pavement. Not one stone will be left intact. All this because you didn’t recognize and welcome God’s personal visit.”
Jesus was in the passion of the events that has now started with knowing the effects that would take place. These events would bring about his horrific death. These events would bring about the eventual destruction of the city and the temple and the way of life the nation had known since that encounter between Abram (Abraham) and Melchizedek, the king of the city Salem (later to be called Jerusalem) and priest of God Most High.
Then comes the anger of Christ in and his cleansing of the temple, the passion of the last Passover meal, the agony in the garden, the betrayal, the trials, the people turning away from him, the beating, the nails penetrating the wrists and the feet, hanging on the cross. We can only go so far in understanding and feeling the pain and suffering that Christ went through, for us. We can only go so far to say that we were there. To reach the Glory of Easter morning, we must go through the passion of the week, we cannot skip from Palm Sunday to Easter Morning.
May the Peace of God, which transcends all understanding, guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus