Brilliance at Work

(Raw journal entry of 6/30/13) It must have been frustrating to the Jewish leaders to have created a very emotion-packed event as bringing an adulteress before Jesus and suggesting a stoning (hanging) was about the take place. Reminds me of the old west with the rope over the tree limb and the noose around the thief's neck. The scene is highly charged and ready to blow and Jesus says nothing, stoops down and writes on the ground while the leaders continue to question Him. Foolishness met Wisdom. Frenzy met Calm. Hypocrisy met Truth. Trickery met Transparency. Sin met Righteousness. Condemnation met Forgiveness. In that moment we get a significant look at how God deals with us-the world-the dysfunction we exhibit. God is slow to anger and reasonable. He takes His time and acts from character and truth and love. He is not pressed or hurried or put on the spot as if He were required to meet some human requirement. He responds; He does not react. He is not fooled by the plots and schemes of others. He sizes up the situation and answers in ways that serve everyone's best interest-crowds, accusers, the woman, and His disciples-even us, In that precise moment with less than two dozen words Jesus disarmed His enemies and them into retreat. He defused the bomb that could have exploded. Much was at stake. Jesus knew the dilemma that they had tried to put Him in.

Consider the two horns. If Jesus sides with mercy, then He treats the Law as unimportant and He is discredited as one who does not uphold God's Law. He could be rightfully condemned as a Law-breaker and a sinner and disqualified from being Messiah. But, if He participated in this woman's death, He would have a hard time trying to convince us that He loved sinners and wanted to save them. He said He came to save and not destroy and condemn. His ministry of grace toward convicted sinners would have been destroyed. He was in a "fix" as we say in the South. But was He? Jesus always sees another way, the way of escape from the horns of the dilemma. The Law says every matter must be established  by 2-3 witnesses. No witnesses, no conviction, and no sentence. So these witnesses when confronted with self-incrimination recanted their testimony and walked away. They were not willing to come under the same scrutiny as the woman. They knew they were on the verge of being caught themselves. By pressing the case against this woman they would have been declaring their own sinlessness and lack of mercy. Jesus was stripping away their self-righteousness and exposing them for what they were. By walking away there were no witnesses to condemn the woman and the case had to be dropped and she was free, no accusers, no charges, and no stoning.

Another Trap

John 8 comes on the heels of John 7. The Jewish leaders in context of the talk of the multitudes during the Feast of Booths were becoming more desperate to have cause to seize and kill Jesus. The crowds went home, Jesus went to the Mount of Olives, but the Jewish leaders hatched a plot to trap Jesus. I wonder who thought up this one. Imagine that they are sitting in a meeting discussing their next move and someone says, "I know what we can do? Let's catch some poor woman in the act of adultery, pull her in front of Jesus, quote the Law, and ask Jesus what we should do?" Why would anyone think this would be a good idea? Why did they think this would be a trap? If the woman was guilty, then why wouldn't Jesus tell them to follow the Law? If Jesus had done that would the plot have backfired on them? Actually most of us have a picture in our heads on how this scene unfolded. I know I have. But, do we really know how this happened? There are a lot of questions. How did they know this woman was committing adultery that evening/morning, and where to find her? Was the woman a prostitute or a wayward wife? Did someone follow her the night before and lay in wait for her the next morning? But, how did these leaders know that Jesus would be back in the temple courts early the next morning? This may lead us to think identifying this woman was more impulsive and happenstance than plotted. But, if not plotted then why were so many leaders together so early in the morning? Could the woman have been paid to be there? A part of some conspiracy to entrap Jesus? We know these leaders would pay people to help them, e.g. Judas.

And, what did the actual scene look like? Was the woman being dragged kicking and screaming to Jesus? Or did she come under her own power? Did the men actually have rocks in their hands ready to carry out the stoning? The text does not say they had rocks in their hands. So if they did not then they could not have dropped them and walked away. When Jesus told the women to go and sin no more was the sin he had in mind adultery or participation in a plot to trap Him? Of course we speculate on what he wrote on the ground. He was in the temple courts which would have been paved with stone, it seems. It says he "wrote on the ground." (Literally "in the earth.") Could He like the God of Sinai been writing into the stones showing them He was like His Father who wrote the commandments with His own finger? This would have freaked them out it seems. But it is all speculation.

The fact is they referenced the Law pertaining to adultery. Two likely verses are Lev.20:10 and Deut.22:22. These clearly indicate that death is the penalty for verified adultery. But, there was always a presumption under the Law that the ones who were carrying out the sentence were in some way qualified to do so. It would be wrong for those guilty of capital offences to carry out the death sentence of those guilty of capital offences. So when this woman was brought, the Law was quoted, and the men stood to condemn her, there was one more major factor going on. They were really not seeking to condemn her as much as they were seeking to condemn Jesus, the innocent. They disqualified themselves from being judges. If they could unjustly judge Jesus who had no sin, and seek His death, then how could they stand in judgment of this woman? The difference was Jesus had an option to following the Law. He could because of His sinlessness and in view of His atoning sacrifice six months in the future offer this woman and these men an option not afforded by the Law, i.e. pardon and forgiveness. By His response Jesus showed the woman and these men that He did not come to condemn (John 3) but to save. Had the stones started to fly that morning the only one left standing would have been Jesus.

Birthers

We have all heard the barrage of discussion regarding the place of President Obama's birth. The constitution demands the president to be a natural born citizen of the US. Was Obama born in Kenya or Hawaii? It matters if he would be our legitimate commander-in-chief. I doubt that by this time those who have considered this matter will have their minds changed. People will believe what they want to believe to support their like or dislike of Mr. Obama. Jesus had a similar "birther" problem. Where was He born, Galilee or Bethlehem? It mattered because most Jews knew that Old Testament prophecy said that the Messiah, the descendant of David, would come from the city of David, Bethlehem (Micah 5:2). So when Jesus was considered as a likely candidate for Messiah His birthplace was important. He grew up and lived most of His life in Galilee in Nazareth. When introduced to Nathaniel (John 1) his first response was "Can anything good come from Nazareth?" This city was not known for producing Messiahs or prophets. In fact later this town would reject Jesus as Messiah.

As the crowds became increasingly restless regarding Jesus, and began to take sides regarding His identity, the Jewish leaders also became more desperate to discredit Him, and kill Him. One way to do this was to spread lies about His birthplace. Now, I don't know that they knew they were lies, but they should have. They had the ability to research this matter. There were plenty of ways to find out where Jesus was born. Bethlehem was not far away. They could have questioned people there. Jesus' brothers were at the Feast, and perhaps even His mother. They could have looked at the census records that corresponded to the date of Jesus' birth. And, they could have even asked Jesus where He was born. But, instead they just made something up, jumping to the conclusion that since He grew up in Nazareth that He must have been born there.

A voice of reason spoke up. Nicodemus was getting bolder in the face of Jesus' enemies. The chief priests and Pharisees pronounce a curse on the crowds for not knowing the Law. So one who does know the Law, Nicodemus, a member of the Jewish Ruling Council, speaks up to defend the Law. "Our Law does not judge a man unless it first hears from him and knows what he is doing, does it?" You might think they would respect this reference to the Law. Exodus 23:1; Deut.17:6; 19:15; Proverbs 18:13 all make clear Nicodemus' point. He was standing on good legal grounds, But how can you argue with those whose minds are made up. Don't confuse us with facts. We know the truth and do not need to do research. This human weakness of "jumping to a conclusion" or merely "shooting first and asking questions later" has a numbing effect on truth seekers. Paul tried Nicodemus' approach in Acts 23:23 when he was on trial. But, it had no better effect than it did in Nicodemus' case. I wonder if this was the real turning point for Nicodemus. Did he say to himself, "I cannot stand with these biased, truth-denying hypocrites any longer. I must decide if I am going to come out of the closet and declare my love and admiration for Jesus?"

We too have choices to make. We must stand up like Nicodemus and defend Jesus as being worthy to be heard. Don't condemn him until you hear him.

Internal Discussions

I've been in on some of those internal discussions. You know the ones. Spiritual leaders meet to discuss matters of faith or practices since the congregation is not sufficiently capable of processing such matters. A very public Jesus who says nothing in a corner and is crying out on the last day of the Feast has prompted a closed meeting of Jewish leaders. The participants in this meeting are the chief priests, the Pharisees, some temple officers who were sent to arrest Jesus, and Nicodemus, a secret disciple of Jesus who serves on the Jewish ruling council. Usually in these meetings someone is on the hot seat because they are questioning something. How dare anyone question a matter that the leaders have already judged. Case closed. The officers came back empty handed because it was not Jesus' time to be arrested and die. They were in trouble for something they could not possibly do. But, more importantly they were in trouble for being impressed with Jesus, and for actually listening to what He was saying. Was it the message about the water that got their attention? Were they thirsty? Did they want to hear more about this water, and the Holy Spirit? God forbid that they actually consider what Jesus is saying is true! The officers could not get passed the way Jesus spoke. "No man ever spoke like this man." Finally some truth in the midst of all this confusion!

The chief priests and Pharisees have three replies, and each reveal more about their hearts than it does the hearts of the officers. 1) "You have not also been led astray, have you?" The way to stifle discussion is to label it. In this case Jesus is labeled as one who leads others astray, and the officers are labeled as those who are being led astray. "You aren't falling for this guy's spiel are you?" "You are dumb enough to actually believe Him, are you?" Is this a yes/no question? "Are you still beating your wife?" This was a trap. Be careful of the traps of the Pharisees, Jesus has warned. They are clever. 2) "No one of the rulers of the Pharisees has believed in Him, has he?" Surely if Jesus was legit someone as smart as a Pharisee would be following Him. But since no one is, then that should tell you something. Surely Nicodemus; face must be turning red right about now (more to come on old Nic). This statement is another way to intimidate the guards. They are obviously not qualified to determine whether Jesus should be arrested or not. 3) "But the multitude which does not know the Law is accursed." In this statement they declare themselves the guardians of the faith, the bastions of truth, the keeper of the Law, and the crowds as stupid idiots who know nothing about such matters, and are not to be listened to. (Sound like some political discussions?)

But, look at Jesus' approach. He speaks freely in public. Later He can say, "Ask the crowds. They heard what I said." Jesus trusted the judgment of the crowds just as much as He did the judgment of their rulers. Though in reality He knew they were all biased, and needed to do what the temple guards did, i.e. stop and listen and be amazed at His teaching. These endless discussions might be reduced significantly if we would come together as beggars, humbly open the book, say a very long prayer before we begin to study it, and expect the guidance of the Spirit. In Florida we have the Sunshine Law. Public business must be held in the sunlight so that all can see what is being said and decided. Internal discussions are often meant to "put a lid" on something. Jesus was opening things up that last day of the Feast. Truth was meant for public consumption, not for closed door meetings.

Fight or Flight

Often when confronted with a threat, the natural survival instinct is to fight or to run (flight). My friend Ross has a few more "f" words to describe our responses to threats to our well-being. Things we do not understand or appreciate or perceive as dangerous will usually meet with some opposition. I was taken back by Nick Wallenda's walk across the grand canyon this week. What a feat! His philosophy of life fueled by His faith is to embrace fear and to use it as a means to accomplish wonder-filled things. He neither fights it or runs from it. When Jesus stepped on the scene He should have been embraced for the Savior He is. No one should have feared Him. Everyone should have run into His loving arms, and felt the safety they provide. If people of His day had been taught more accurately about the nature of God, His plan to bless man, and the mission and person of the Messiah in His kingdom, they would have responded to Jesus differently. The leaders of the Jews set the tone for the people just as parents set the tone for the child. If you want your child to stay calm in a thunderstorm, then you need to stay calm. If you want your child to maintain a sense of peace in the presence of danger then you too must have that peace. But, the Jewish rulers were afraid of Jesus and it manifested itself in angry aggression.

Some people fell in line with the leaders and desired to seize Jesus and silence Him. Others, kept their distance, not wanting to raise the ire of the leaders and not wanting to risk too much by following this radical Jesus. Some moved closer to Jesus to harm him (fight) and some moved away to protect themselves (flight). Perhaps if they had just stood still and listened and learned they would have had a response to Him instead of a reaction to Him. Facing fears through observation and information is what Jesus called people to do. "Be still. Before you react, hear Me. Before you start plotting to kill Me, do your research and at least find out where I was born (Galilee or Bethlehem). Before you reject Me try to understand Me, spend time with Me, and consider Me." This is our message to a world who is too quick at fight or flight in regard to Jesus. Why is Jesus so threatening to some? Perhaps we should be saying to the fearful "Give me one hour to tell you about Jesus, and reserve judgment until you hear me out." I wonder how many would give us that hour. Perhaps more than we think. But, what would we say during that hour? What information would we convey that would calm a person's fears and actually make Jesus attractive to others? Isn't all we want people to do is to put down their spiritual weapons or put down their defenses long enough to see Jesus as He really is?

Could the third alternative be "friend?" Don't fight Jesus. Don't flight Jesus. Friend Jesus.

Belly or Womb

The discussion of John 7 turns to Jesus going away to a place where they cannot follow. They questioned whether or not Jesus might be expanding His ministry to the Dispersion, to the Jews that lived in Roman provinces and were more susceptible to Greek influence. Then idea of Jesus, if He were the Messiah, traveling the world, gathering up displaced Jews and bringing them home to re-establish a new Jewish state is an aspiration that still lives in the hearts of Jewish people. Gathering His people from the four winds was a welcomed thought. But they were having trouble with his cryptic message. Their minds were set in earthly constraints. They had very worldly visions. They needed to expand the understanding of what Jesus was really going to do when He went where they could not come. Jesus is anticipating a glorious journey that would result in the most intimate and personal outcome for His followers. His reference to leaving was not just a statement of His completing His work, it was a statement of His continuing His work through the Holy Spirit whom He would send. He will say much more about this in the days ahead, especially to His apostles, but for now He alludes to a great truth. For those with ears to hear a great benefit is coming. They will be changed in ways they could only barely imagine.

It was on the last day of the Feast of Booths that Jesus stood up and proclaimed a challenging and wonderful truth. "If any man is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink. He who believes in Me as the Scripture  said, 'From his innermost being shall flow rivers of living water.'" (7:37-38)  John makes sure we understand that He is speaking of the Spirit who would be given after Jesus was glorified, i.e. returns to the Father. This pronouncement was more amazing that they could realize. So often man hears words from above that cannot be fully appreciated. So who is not "thirsty?" We all are. We have a gut thirst. We have a thirst that reaches to our very core. This phrase translated "innermost being" in the NASB is most often translated "belly'(stomach) and "womb." Both are cavities inside us, though one is gender neutral and the other is specifically female. Both seek to be filled. Our bellies need and crave food and water (See John 4 and John 6). But, the Scriptures are replete with the idea of the womb that seeks to be filled and to give birth. Proverbs 30:15-16 says there are four things that are never satisfied and say enough: Sheol (the grave), the earth wanting water, fire that always seeks more fuel, and the barren womb. It reminds me of Hannah who begged God for a child, or Sarah who was disgraced for not being able to bear a child.

There is something that cries out for fruitfulness. There is an insatiable desire to produce life. We seek to have a source of life within us. Just as God is the ultimate source of life, and Eve is the mother of all living, so each of us want to be a part of the process that began with some of the first words of God to man, "Be fruitful and multiply and replenish the earth." Our earthly immortality demands that we leave descendants who can carry on our names, and to make our time spent on earth even more valuable. We live through out children. So should we look at the innermost being as a belly or a uterus? John the Baptist was filled with the Spirit in his mother's womb. Jesus relates salvation to new birth in John 3, and the image of coming forth from a womb that was made fruitful by the Holy Spirit. Paul prays for the strength that comes from out inner being so that Christ Himself may be able to dwell in our hearts through faith. To have Jesus and the Holy Spirit within us is to have the source of life in us. His seed remains in us(1John 3:9). He has impregnated His bride Rom.7:1-4) so that we can produce life, offspring, the fruit of the Spirit. These traits, good works, and converts are meant to flow out of us as surely as water flows from an artesian spring.

Ponder this. Is it belly or uterus? Which makes more sense? Which is more fitting? The flesh is compared to a stomach (Rom.16:15; Phil.3:19). But could it be that our appetite is more like a woman's womb that cries out for life within, and fruit produced? Ponder it. 

Truth Speaks to Agitation

It is helpful to understand that at this point in the chronology of the Lord's sojourn on the earth we are looking at the final few weeks, and there is still much material to cover. The three year ministry as recorded by the evangelists is not evenly distributed as to the reports given. The information is heavily weighted toward the end of His ministry. With this background, Jesus is at the Feast of Booths which comes around September/October, and He will be murdered at the time of the Passover which comes around March/April. So we are about 1/2 year from the end. The crowds are becoming more opinionated. It is getting more and more difficult for the Jewish leaders, notably the Pharisees and chief priests, to control and shape public opinion. The "exit polls" as people were listening to Jesus teach were more mixed and people are becoming more entrenched in their views. This is not good for he opposing party. They need for the potential voters to remain in a state of flux and indecision. They do not want the concrete setting too quickly. But they fear it is. So they think their hand is being forced, and they have to play it NOW. So they send officers, Jewish temple guards, to arrest Jesus.

There are two contrasting realities here. The reality of the Jewish leaders is that they perceive Jesus as an impostor Messiah who is simply making trouble for them, and He must be stopped. So if you can't stop Him with reason, you act like the Mob, and try to stop Him by force. The alternate Reality, which is the Real Reality, is that they are seeking to arrest the Son of God. How does one arrest God in the flesh? What type of cuffs are needed? What maximum security prison will hold God? Who wants to volunteer to carry out this assignment? The leaders are clearly agitated. Their hold on things is slipping away. They are getting worried that new "leadership" is coming to Jerusalem. This, they believed, would upset the delicate balance of power with the Romans, who were a constant Big Brother meddling in Jewish affairs. Thoughts of Roman crackdown,  loss of power, control, and income, and fear of the unknown pervaded their minds. They were getting more and more turbulent in their minds. "Do something!" "Anything." So they seek to contain the situation.

But, Jesus does what should be done in the face of agitation. Speak truth to it. Whether one is agitated about personal matters or national matters, truth is always the response needed. Tell upset people the truth. Tell volatile people the truth. So what truth did Jesus tell? We don't know all of it. But in 7:33-34 Jesus gives four truths that when pondered reveal profound realities that help put everything in proper perspective. 1) Jesus' time is getting short. He is on a divine pace which is not being controlled by the Jewish leaders. This puts the perspective back on the Father's timeline. 2) Jesus is returning to His Father, the one who sent Him. The mission is a God-ordered mission, and carries God's authority. 3) Time for seeking Jesus is now while He can be found. Soon He will be gone, and a new kind of seeking and finding will be necessary. 4) Jesus' destination is not open to them at this time. They cannot follow Him as they are doing now. He will not be accessible in the same way. A new access must be granted. Each one of these four truths are powerful and profound. He who has ears let him hear.

The Knowing Loop

For many "know" is purely academic. For others it is "intimacy." One emphasizes the accumulation of information that leads to understanding. The other emphasizes relationship. Too often we are made to feel we have to choose one over the other. Many struggle with not having enough of one or the other. Jesus teaches us that there is a progression that I believe is not a straight line, but a loop. We have to enter the loop somewhere. Curiosity might be the entrance. Pain might be the entrance. Denial and the attempt to prove something false might be the entrance. Awe might be the entrance. But, something has to catch our attention to get us in the loop. Sometimes once a person is in the loop, they get stuck in one part of the loop like a scratched CD that plays the same line over and over. Jesus came to clean our CD, remove the scratches, and allow us to loop through the process of knowing so that we can experience all of what that means. In our text, John 7:28-29, Jesus lays out the loop.

Jesus is speaking to people who could be and should be in the loop by this time. They have been given access to the loop, but they are acting as if they do not even know there is one. This is frustrating to Jesus who knows the gate to the loop is near each one of them, and that the admission is free. It is like the "pool" metaphor I often use in teaching others. We might read a Scripture, and then I will ask the person to jump in somewhere, shallow or deep, but get in somewhere. It seems many walk around and around the pool and act as if there is no pool. They sweat and get hotter and hotter, when a cool dip awaits them. Look at this text. Let's jump in.  The word Jesus uses for "know" here is Eido. In Gal.4:8 Paul says there was a time when the Gentiles did not know God and were slaves to things that were really no gods at all. 1 Thess.4:5, describes those who are now Christians but sometime act like those who do not know God. 2 Thess.1:8 talks of those who will suffer at Jesus' coming, i.e. those who do not know God and do not obey the gospel. Paul tells us in Titus 1:16 that some profess knowledge of God but deny Him by their deeds. Heb.8:11 makes clear that all who are genuinely in the new covenant will know God and be taught by Him. These are all instructive to help us understand the loop as Jesus lays it out in John 7.

If we begin top down and then bring our progression into a circle this is what we will see:
***Jesus is from God. Jesus as a Son (yet divine) proceeds from (originates) the Father.
***Jesus knows the Father. He is the only one who has seen Him, knows Him, and reveals Him.
***Jesus is sent to earth by the Father.
***The crowds have access to the knowledge of Jesus (and through Him the knowledge of God) but they did not acquire it (didn't do their research).
***They were missing the opportunity to enter the loop so that they could know the one who is True (authentic).
Had they done so the loop would have been completed and looked like this:
***The crowds would have believed in Jesus, listened to Him, and been introduced to the True God.
***As they got to know this True God, He would have given new birth to them, and they too would have proceeded from the Father, and been sent into the world as those who now know the Father, being taught by Him, and showing, as Jesus did, others who the Father is so that they could have relationship with Him, which would in turn increase our knowledge of God, our intimacy with God, and our productive work for God on the earth. The loop is meant to loop again and again till He comes again, and wraps everything up.

Sarcasm

We are in John 7:25-29. Some Scriptures to be understood require we use the right voice inflection when reading it. Words are not always to be taken at face value. The meaning is often in the tone of the statement. So when the crowd is talking about Jesus what tone are they using? I believe they speak with sarcasm. Sarcasm has a place in human discourse. Read Paul, especially in 1 & 2 Corinthians. He knows how to be sarcastic. It is effective for making certain points. But, at other times sarcasm is merely a way of appearing superior to others. It shows that we think others are idiots and we are pretty smart. Sarcasm can have a nose to look down. On this occasion the crowds were merely showing their ignorance. "Is this not the man they are seeking to kill?" Remember Jesus is the one who said that He was a marked man. He is the one who pointed out the plot to kill Him. He is the one who believes He has a red bulls eye taped to His back. Yet He stands here publicly, and not only is He not being killed, the Jewish authorities are not even talking to Him. So where is the danger? It seems that the leaders could care less about Jesus. In this context their statement drips with sarcasm.

They follow with, "The rulers do not really know that this the Christ, do they?" More sarcasm. In other words, "These mean old rulers who want to kill Jesus just don't know that they are plotting to kill such an important man, even the Christ/Messiah, do they?" These stupid rulers! But, did they really feel that way about their rulers. Or did they place a lot of trust in them to weed out the impostors from the True Messiah when He did come? To bolster their case they lay out a bogus premise, which is a standard practice for those who do not know what they are talking about. The premise is :No one will know where the Christ comes from. We know where this man comes from. Therefore, this man cannot be the Christ. Be careful how you argue your case. Later in John 7:40-44 others in the crowd seemed to know a lot more about the Messianic origins. The crowd needed to get their arguments coordinated. (Yes, I am being sarcastic). Sarcasm often rests on false arguments and premises. The way to combat sarcasm is to test the premise on which it rests, and it always rests on some premise that the speaker believes should be self-evident. Everyone is right until questioned. Sarcasm can be abrasive and offensive. It can shut down discussion, but it doesn't have to. It didn't in this case. Jesus pressed His case with truth. He challenged their premise. The answer to sarcasm is truth, a statement of fact. Be careful not to fall into the chasm of sarcasm.

Righteous Judgment

Continuing in John 7, Jesus proclaims that a "hit" has been put on Him. The Jewish leaders want to kill Him, and He is making it public. This is probably not the public statement His brothers had in mind when they encouraged Him to come early to the feast. It is though Jesus pulls back the covers and reveals the raw truth of their intentions. He does not "beat around the bush" but rather beats the bush itself. The elephant in the room has been acknowledged. There it is in all its hugeness. Yet some will not see the beast when it stands on their toe. Some immediately responded with a completely unrighteous judgment of "You have a demon." Here we go again. Jesus has already addressed that one. Is that the best they can do? When judgment is not righteous it can say whatever it wishes. Who cares if it makes any sense. Really? A demon? Of course Jesus' wisdom will be proved right by her children (Luke 7:35).

Jesus gives them an illustration of how flawed their reasoning was. Typically the Jewish leaders would administer circumcision as prescribed by law on the 8th day after birth for all male children. They saw this as a covenant and medical procedure designed to heal the person, bringing this child into right standing before God and the nation. Obviously the 8th day would occasionally fall on a Sabbath day, and the question of work would arise. Was it work to circumcise on this day? They judged that it was not since God commanded even before Moses that it be done. So they recognized that the higher benefit to man and command of God superseded any notion they had that the "do no work" rule was being violated. Circumcision in their mind was non-work. But they saw Jesus' miracle of healing a man on the Sabbath as work. But they were not thinking with righteous judgment. First, did the Jewish leaders understand the law to allow, and encourage, the taking care of their sick ones on the Sabbath? If they could have made them well on the Sabbath would they have done it? Surely they would. Second, did they ever think that if Jesus were healing on the Sabbath, by whose power was He doing the healing? Nicodemus acknowledged that without God's help Jesus would be unable to do the things He did. So, if a man was healed on the Sabbath, or any other day, who healed him? Of course, God did. So, who did the work on the Sabbath? God did. What boldness it would take for a Jewish leader to condemn God for breaking His own Sabbath laws! If God had not wanted His Son to heal on the Sabbath He would have turned the power off on that day.

But, Jesus is revealing something else here about their judgment. It was unrighteous simply because they did not like Jesus. They looked for any way to discredit Jesus even if it made no sense. If you do not like a person, it matters little what they do or say. They can't win for losing. But had they judged Jesus the person correctly they would have judged the matters of the law correctly. They were being given a living example of how to interpret the law, and they learned nothing from Him. Perhaps a new Hermeneutic would be 1) Acknowledge Jesus as Lord; 2) Look and listen to how He interpreted the Law; 3) Glean the principle He operated off of and use that principle to interpret other matters of similar nature. Our methods of interpretation would be greatly improved if we concentrated on studying Jesus' way of judging, not by mere appearance, but with righteous judgment. Jesus is the master interpreter. He judges from truth, pure principle, and grace. He sees every matter clearly. He is not confused by human logic and personal biases. In this case Jesus taught us that a person is more important than some rule created by man to protect one of God's commandments, especially a command to keep a day that was designed for man's well-being. That is righteous judgment.

Integrity

In John 7:16-19 Jesus speaks in ways that are universally applicable even though we must interpret His words according to the present context. In verse 17 He says, "If any man..." This is literally "if any" without gender or specificity as regards race, geography, age, or period of time. This has universal application to all who desire to do God's will from Jesus' time to now and into the future. In verse 18 we see "He who speaks..." This is literally "the one." This too has universal application. Any person who speaks "from himself," seeking his own glory is considered here. Why is this important? Too often we dismiss the teachings of Jesus as if they apply to someone else, a long, long time ago in a faraway place. It is easy to think of something said 2000 years ago as lacking relevance to me today in my life. If this were true then how would we ever be taught by Jesus and learn from Him? But there is another reason, and that is contrast. Jesus is constantly contrasting Himself with us (not just those to whom he spoke long ago). But, this contrast also inspires us to become like Him, and to leave our place to join Him.

Jesus proclaims Himself to be 1) True and 2) Without Unrighteousness. Of Jesus this is true in the ultimate sense. He is the gold standard of truth and righteousness. These two trait could serve as a fit definition of integrity. The Jewish leaders were sneaky, deceitful frauds. They were fake. They were not what they seemed. They were wolves in sheep's clothing. They were plotting and scheming and whispering. Though cloaked in righteousness it was only surface righteousness. It was not real. It had an appearance of it but only thinly covered their moral nakedness. Jesus was true to the core. He was righteous through and through. You could take soil samples all day and every one would reveal the same thing. Jesus' words about Himself reminds me of His words to Nathaniel in John 1:47 who He called "a true Israelite in whom there is no guile(nothing false)." Jesus saw in this disciple the trait of integrity, one who was not seeking his own glory but the glory of another. Integrity demands we know who we are serving and why. We must never think IT is about ME. This is a critical impediment to kingdom living. It calls attention to ME and takes the attention off of HIM. We must not be communicating to the world the message of "Look at Me." Whatever Nathaniel did under the tree, it was not done to be seen by men, and he was surprised that Jesus saw him.

Integrity is not about making God look good. God is good, and we can do nothing to make Him look good or look better. We are merely to conduct ourselves in a way that God's true goodness and righteousness will be unobstructed. The veil must be lifted so the glory of God can shine from our faces into the lives of the people around us. The brightness of His glory hides our faces and allows only His glory to be seen. Instead of being hidden by a cloak of deceit, we are hidden behind the brightness of His glory. We cannot obtain integrity in our lives until we both shun all and any glory being given to us and all glory being given to Him. Jesus would not allow others to hide behind their false motives. He exposed them knowing that this is the first step to becoming true and righteous.

Willingness

The exchange of Jesus with the Jewish leaders is profound (John 7:16-19). The idea of the source of His teaching, and the discovery of that source is connected to the willingness of the person to be obedient to the Father who is Source. There is something a little mysterious in this idea. The only ones who will "get it" when it comes to knowing that Jesus is the One who speaks (in these last days, Heb.1:2) on God's behalf are those who are willing to do God's will. It reminds me of the words of Jesus in Matthew 13:11 to this disciples, the ones who have decided to do the will of God. "To you has been granted to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them (those who have not yet made the decision to follow Jesus) it has not been granted." A person must come to God with a willing heart. Only those who are poor in spirit will see God. Only those who are weary of their own wayward will will submit to the yoke of Jesus. Only those who are seekers of God and His truth and way will find it. The casual and curious miss it. That is why the tax-collectors, prostitutes and sinners were entering ahead of the religious folk. The religious folk thought they were already walking in the will of God, and had stopped seeking it, while the sinners knew they were not walking in His will, and tired of their own will, and sought hard to find it.

So the one who is willing to do the will of the Father will know if Jesus' teaching is from God or whether Jesus merely spoke from His own authority. Jesus made clear in verse 19 that though they had the source of truth through Moses, the Law, they did not obey it. They wanted to possess the source of truth, the Law, but they did not want to submit to it. There is a difference. Jesus will not be possessed by us; He is the one who possesses us. This teaching of Jesus is played out in John 9 regarding the blind man who was healed. The leaders pursued the blind man to gain testimony against Jesus but instead the blind man turned things back on them. In exasperation the blind man says to them: "I told you already and you did not listen; why do you want to hear it again? You do not want to become His disciples do you?" (9:27) This made them mad, but it was a good question. Were they seeking more information because they wanted to more closely follow the will of God and they were just making sure that Jesus was in fact speaking for God, or did they have absolutely no concern for discovering truth and its source? Their actions made it clear that they had no concern for doing the will of the Father.

Jesus identifies in John 7:18 the crux of the matter. It comes down to whose glory one is seeking. In order to pursue truth wherever it leads one has to care little for their own personal glory. The Jewish leaders loved to receive praise and recognition for their own place in the chain of truth. The people looked up to them as the ones who sit in Moses' seat and through whom truth comes. They saw Jesus as a usurper, one who if listened to would rob them of their glory. But, Jesus had a different view. He was not seeking His own glory, but the glory of His Father. He wanted God to be glorified. The one who is willing to be obedient only wants to bring glory to God. But, those who operate from a different agenda will never recognize the true source of truth. It is important to test our hearts to see if we are truly willing to do the will of the Father without reservation before we ever try to discern whether Jesus is the one who can and will show us the Father's will. We must be the "worthy" ones Jesus spoke of in Matt.10 before we will receive anything from the Lord. Ponder this.

Source

Jesus had a keen sense of "source." It is important to know where you get what you have. Does it originate with you, or did it come from somewhere else? Do you take credit for your words (responsibility is a different thing) or do you say, "Thus saith the Lord?" Do you believe truth and wisdom is generated from within each human being or do you believe it comes down from above? This is an important question in our culture. Many want to believe that we are our own source of truth, and teaching. How often do you hear: "Look within yourself for the answer." "Follow the dictates of your own heart." "Obey your thirst." It sounds wise, but it is the opposite of what Jesus said even about His own understanding and teachings. The Jewish leaders were impressed with Jesus' teaching in Jerusalem at the temple. They marveled. Remember after the sermon on the mount the crowds were amazed at His teachings because He did not speak as the scribes and Pharisees, but as one having authority. (Matt.7) Even later in this context the Jewish leaders sent men to arrest Jesus and they came back empty handed because they had never heard anyone speak like this man. (John 7:32,45,46) Even Jesus' enemies recognized His superior wisdom and abilities in teaching. They did not dispute His miracles nor His teachings. But, still they wanted to kill Him.

So why the big conflict? Why not just acknowledge that Jesus is from God, and His teachings are from God, and that truth was being revealed? This points up the problem. Who gets to be the source of authority and teaching? It is a Source-Authority issue. Jesus readily admitted that His teaching was not His teaching. "It is not Mine. It comes from above. It comes from the one who sent Me." This is a profound perspective and reality. It separates Jesus from all others. The origins of the Christian faith is not from the "bottom-up" but from the "top-down." Man's need rises upward toward God, but the answers come down from above. This is always the direction of the flow. Growing up, this emphasis on the inspiration of the Bible was huge. 2 Timothy 3:16-17 was just as much a part of our spiritual diet as bread is to a meal. "All Scripture is inspired by God..." Though we may have constructed a complicated method of interpretation of Scripture that did not lend itself to finding truth in Scripture or in Jesus, we did value the fact that we needed authority from above for what we teach and practice. Authority is not in the church. Authority is not in spiritual leaders. Authority is not in man-made creeds. Authority is in the Word of God. This was our staple diet. It was healthy. Though we must be careful how we establish our authority for what we do from the Word, we must not give up the truth that authority comes from the Word because the Word comes from God.

Jesus had God's words in His head. He had been taught by His Father, and He spoke only what His Father gave Him to teach. Perhaps we should be asking more often of others who teach us, "Where do you get your authority?" There are only two possible responses. It either comes from God or man.(Matt.22) "Did God tell you to tell me that?" If so, show me the note. Its too important to take your word for it. Show me where God wrote that down. I want to know your source. You cannot be your own footnote.

Contrasts

It has often been pointed out how counter-cultural Jesus is. Culture is merely a reflection of the human hearts that make it up. Culture has no existence outside the humans that inhabit it. Its institutions, architecture, methods, educational content, and the like are merely creations of humans who may or may not be led by God. The fact that we live under a constitutional government and not under a monarchy is a reflection of the thinking of the day in the early 1700's. If that changes to become something else, it will be because we change the way we think. There are many reasons why culture develops as it does. At the heart of the reasons is the desire for well-being. We all want to have the best possible life. We support those things we think will give us that, and oppose the things we think work against wellness and wholeness. This gives rise to our opinions. This sense of well being ranges from the level of maintenance of the body to the salvation of the person eternally, and everything in between. So in John 7 people are abuzz about Jesus. Does He enhance our well-being, or does He pose a threat to our well-being? If well being is equated with maintaining the status quo, then the answer is simple. Jesus always challenges the status quo. He shines the light of truth on us individually and collectively, privately and institutionally. He calls us to look, see, think, and change. He messes with our personal comforts. He addresses our will.

So in the current scene we see a fundamental contrast in two systems, the system of the world and the system of heaven. The world murmurs, talks in secret, whispers, spins ideas and opinions, all of which results in in-breeding. When a closed culture simply shares ideas among themselves, reinforcing whatever truth mixed with error there is in it, and there will be truth mixed with error, then the offspring that is produced will have a tendency to be weaker than the parents. In other words, don't marry  your first cousin if you want healthy kids. If you like cross-eyed kids, then have fun at the family reunion. The Jews of Jesus' day, like the philosophers on Mars Hill in Acts 17, simply traded theories with one another and eventually produced a meaningless and powerless culture. If we are to break free of the cultural inbreeding, whether it be in a country or one of its institutions, even religious ones, then we need a message from outside ourselves. We need some light from above. We need a Teacher to show up who is not afraid of the opinion leaders of His day, go to the heart of our world (in Jesus' case the temple) and speak truth openly and plainly.

All other ideas must be now measured by this objective, divine source of truth, light, and wisdom. Jesus' teaching is not fear-based. It is not controlled by what others will think or what the consequences of speaking it will produce. It knows that truth will prevail and that light will extinguish the darkness. Jesus did not need a showy arrival into Jerusalem. He simply needed a determined, resolute face that marched through Jerusalem's streets to the heart of their culture, the temple, and a face that opened its mouth and taught. How do we change culture? We teach. Where do we teach? At the centers of the culture, not on the fringes, and not simply within our four-walls. We move to public places and speak. If we are going to confront the culture as Jesus did it will have to be how He did it. We cannot speak to the culture if we are not engaged with the culture. It is a time for bold proclamation, and careful instruction (2 Tim.4:1ff). As we will see from John 7, when you speak to the culture, you have to be prepared to hear what the culture will say to you, and be ready to give an answer for the reason for the hope that is within you. (1 Peter 3). But, we who represent Jesus MUST be sure that we speak His word and His word only lest we simply contribute more man-made opinion to the mess we already have. "Whoever speaks, let him speak, as it were, the utterances of God..." (1 Peter 4:11).

Opinions

(Our new section is found in John 7:11-52. Read this first.) Jesus is now back in Jerusalem for the Feast of Booths. The city is abuzz with talk about Him. It seems everyone has something to say. In this chapter alone there are at least 14 opinions of Jesus put forth, from the sublime to the ridiculous. Opinions come in all shapes and sizes. An opinion is what someone thinks about something. We are free to think what we wish. But, that does not mean that the opinion is rooted in reality. Some opinions are very sloppy, they lack texture and definition. Other opinions are very well formed, even if they are untrue. It seems today that it is fashionable to believe that one thought is just as good as another thought, and should be taken equally seriously. Paul's admonition is "Test all things; hold on to that which is good." (1 Thess.5) Bereans would be out of place in our society because they studied daily to see if even what Paul said was true (Acts 11). Opinions should be tested. Positions must be open to challenge. Otherwise we subject ourselves to being blown about by ever wind of teaching, by the cunning and craftiness of men in their deceitful scheming.

There are two groups mentioned in John 7, the Jews and the multitude. The phrase "the Jews" usually in most contexts refers to Jewish leaders, and the multitudes are those being led. In their perspective, and in Jesus', the crowds were the sheep, and the leaders were the shepherds. The sheep were pliable and passive and mailable and could be persuaded easily to follow wherever a charismatic leader wanted to take them. Prompted by the Jewish leaders, much grumbling, low and suppressed discourse, a sullen discontent, was going on among the multitudes. Their first debate as to Jesus' identity and intentions centered around the idea of whether he was a good man, or one who leads others astray. Funny thing about such opinions; they don't mean much unless some context is put to them. What does "good" mean? Good speaker and Teacher? Good at miracles? Good in character? Good at gathering a crowd? In Luke 18:18ff a Ruler called Jesus "Good" and was corrected by Jesus who noted that God alone is "Good." If we are using "good" in the ultimate sense, this is true. But, if we are using "good" in a relative sense, there is room for much opinion. It depends on whose definition of "good" will be used. Then, there was the opinion that Jesus was leading the crowds astray. What does that mean? "Astray" implies that there is a course or path in which it is right to walk, and that there is an "off the path" place that can be taken. But, what did these folks mean by this? Astray from Jewish tradition? Astray for the Law of Moses? Astray politically? The word means deceives. It is used often in the NT to describe men and positions that take people down the wrong way.

The charge that Jesus was leading people astray was no benign opinion. It was serious. Some opinions are like that. They have serious implications. Was Jesus a deceiver? If so, He is in company with Satan. If He is a deceiver, is He self-deceived or does He know He is deceiving others intentionally? In some ways everything hangs on the truthfulness or error of this opinion of Jesus. Certainly if He is a deceiver He is not good. There is no middle ground between these two opinions. It calls for either/or responses. Either He should be encouraged and supported or He must be stopped. You see opinions have consequences. That is why we must be careful in the opinion we hold. The direction of our lives is too important to be batted around by the winds of opinion. We must seek a more stable and constant wind, the Wind of the Spirit of God who reveals to us in words the truth of God. Opinions are frivolous things. The Word of God is the prevailing wind that should move us forward.

Stinging Rebuke

Have you ever noticed how we attach that word "stinging" with "rebuke?" Most rebukes do sting. They strike like a wasp in a very specific place and cause intense pain for a few minutes. They usually do not cause any major damage, but they get our attention. We know we have just been tagged and put on notice that we have strayed into taboo territory. Impulsiveness got James and John into trouble with Jesus. They demonstrated just the opposite spirit from Jesus. His resoluteness was based on a plan laid out before time began, and prepared for throughout centuries of history, and staged for months prior by Jesus Himself. Jesus' problem with His brothers who suggested He publicly go up to Jerusalem was that they had no clue of what they were suggesting. They simply got a "bright idea" and threw it out. Jesus was not taking random suggestions from the crowd regarding His kingdom business. He had a plan, and He was working it. He was deliberate and self-disciplined. They were off the cuff and impulsive and fleshly. So what does Divinity do when some person, some created being, tries to get a Divine Agenda off track. You rebuke it. Jesus did this with Peter in Matt.16 for thinking he should save Jesus from the cross. In this case Peter was told he did not have in mind the things of God but of men. Sting! The horse that tries to take off on its own gets the sting of the bit in its mouth. The dog on lease who tries to take off gets the sting of the collar drawing him back.

Impulsiveness in the kingdom is a BIG problem. So much has been done in the name of Jesus that was not "thought through" as to its kingdom centeredness. Historically this has included something like fire from heaven, though the fire is often from earth. Many of the so-called holy wars were nothing more than James and John's approach to deal with unbelief. It sounds like jihad. If we can't convert them we will kill them. That thinking deserves rebuke. But, most of us would not think of literally suggesting this approach. However, we might "torch" folks in other ways. We might allow the fire of our tongues (James 3) to burn other's down. We might kill with sarcasm. We might destroy with gossip. Jesus was not saying this Samaritan village was right. In fact He told Capernaum that had the miracles done there been done in Sodom, it would have repented long ago. That stings.

But, the biggest issue here is flesh versus Spirit. Flesh is impulsive. It wants some immediate gratification. It wants to feel good. James and John thought their idea would make Jesus and them feel good to see a village go up in flames as they walked off into the sunset. They didn't think it through. Spirit considers the implications and consequences of one's actions. If I do this or that what will the outcomes be. Can you imagine the front page headline of the Jerusalem Times: "Samaritan Village Torched By Jesus-Followers on March To Jerusalem." Sounds like Sherman's march to the sea during the civil war. Sounds like a good way to start a war. I am sure the next village Jesus sought lodging in would open up its doors to Him and His entourage! When would they get it. Jesus was about saving people and not destroying people. Now was a time of preserving life so that when Jesus came again in flaming fire taking vengeance on those who know not God and who do not obey the gospel, many could be spared. Now is our time for this. We might feel sometimes like we just need to "burn it down" and start over, but Today is the day of salvation."

Mission Obstacles

It didn't take long after Jesus resolutely set His face toward Jerusalem before He ran into mission obstacles. Remember Jesus telling the would-be disciple that He had no where to lay His head? (Lk.9:58) Here is an example. Jesus is leaving Galilee and setting out with his entourage for Jerusalem and the Feast of Booths. He sends messengers ahead of Him to secure lodging and food for the journey. Jesus is taking the most direct route to Jerusalem, through the heart of Samaritan territory. When He did this in John 4 He ended up staying in Sychar for two days teaching the people there. On that trip He was confronted with the question of where one would worship acceptably. Though He did not favor Jerusalem over Gerizim they still held on to their prejudices. So in this case Jesus had no where to lay His head, no hole and no nest. They would not allow Him to stay in their village. Jesus understands when people are turned away from hotels because of the color of their skin or because of their mission (civil rights). Didn't they understand how important His mission was? Didn't they know that He had to go to Jerusalem? It was a divine appointment. Didn't they understand that He was doing it for them and the rest of mankind? Didn't they see that His mission was God's mission and that they were putting an obstacle in His path? Actually, they did not see any of this. They saw their prejudice against Jerusalem. They were acting according to their belief and conscience. They were not going to assist a Jew on His journey to Jerusalem.

So what do we do with mission obstacles? Ask James and John, the sons of Thunder. Burn the obstacles down! If one is not for us they are against us, and need to be eliminated, right? If you do not support me and my mission then you have to go. Perhaps they were confused because Jesus had received such a warm welcome a few months back when asked to stay for two days in one of their villages. Perhaps they were thinking that these people should be grateful that Jesus would want to stay there in a Samaritan village. Perhaps they were struggling with their own prejudice against the Samaritans. Maybe they were glad they were not welcomed there because it confirmed their bias and beliefs. We love to have our beliefs about others confirmed. We love to be right. James and John could say, "See there Jesus we knew these folks were not worthy of us and You." But, did they seriously think they could command fire to come down from heaven and burn an entire village? The only fire was in their hearts. Is this how we get when others will not cooperate with our mission? Do we want to fry those who just can't see how important our mission is? Admit it. Sometimes.

Let's be clear. Jesus mission was the most important and God-inspired mission of all time. There was nothing more important happening than Jesus destiny in Jerusalem, and the Samaritans should have been happy to assist Jesus in completing it. But they did not get it. They did not understand it. So they denied the reservation. James and John opted for immediate judgment on them. Jesus opted for staying in another village (wipe dust from feet and move on) and leaving the possibility open for this Samaritan village to perhaps get it in the future. Who knows whether later this village may have been the very one Philip entered in Acts 8, where miracles were done, Simon was opposed, people were baptized and a church was formed?

Resolute

In the oval office sits a desk made from the timbers of the HMS Resolute, an Arctic expedition ship commissioned by the Royal Navy to find a northwest passage and to then rescue another crew who became lost in the Arctic. The Resolute was itself trapped in the ice, and its crew lost. A U.S. whaler found the ship years later drifting some 1200 miles from its entrapment, empty of crew, but with a British flag draped across the captain's desk. Three desks were made from the timbers and one was presented to the U.S. president Rutherford B. Hayes in 1880, and has been used by most U.S. presidents since. The name Resolute has captured our attention ever since. But, there is another story that is even more compelling. In Luke 9:51 we are told that "He resolutely set His face to go to Jerusalem." If you think His conversation with His brothers previous to this was a sign of His reluctance or caution, you would be wrong. Jesus had a firm conviction and determination to go to Jerusalem to complete the work He was given by His Father. He set his mind and jaw, and set His hand to the plow, and fixed His gaze on the goal and the prize, and stepped onto the road that would lead to His death, and our salvation. I would loved to have seen the look in His eye as He set out that morning from Galilee to charge Jerusalem's hill.

This one single insight into the mind of Christ is gold and it provides the theological basis for a whole series of passages which speak of our becoming resolute. There are at least three other words that are used to express this character trait: strengthened, confirmed, and established. A goal of our spiritual growth in becoming like Jesus is to have the same resoluteness as He had when He stepped out one brisk morning to head south on His decisive campaign of a cosmic war on which the lives of every person who ever lived hung. This battle demanded complete resolve. This battle was crucial. Everything would be won or lost during the coming weeks. There could not be more at stake. Yesterday was D-Day, the day the allies stormed the beaches in France to begin a campaign that would ultimately defeat Nazism and its demonic leader. This was Jesus' D-Day. This was Bunker Hill. This was Armageddon.

So what of us? Jesus tells Peter that when he turns again, he is to strengthen his brothers (Luke 22:32). In other words when Peter became resolute in his following of Jesus, he is to help his brothers become resolute. Paul went back to the churches he established strengthening the disciples, i.e. helping them to be become more resolute. (Acts 18:23) Paul tells us that we are established by the gospel (Rom.16:25). Paul sent Timothy to Thessaloniki to strengthen and establish and encourage their faith. (1 Thess.3:2) God Himself is about this business. (1 Thess.3:13; 2 Thess.3:3) James (the brother who once did not believe in Jesus) encourages us to become resolute in the face of Jesus' coming. God uses suffering, as Peter learned, in the process of producing resoluteness in us. (1 Peter 5:10) Truth establishes resoluteness according to 2 Peter 1:12. Gideon pursued this with his army and reduced the resolute down to 300. Joshua challenged the people of Israel to this when he told them to choose this day who they will serve. Jesus did this with a question in John 6 when he asked the apostles if they were going to go away too. Jesus wants to know who is solid, who is with him, who is ready to take the hill, win the game, and get the job done. Want a visual of this? Go to www.resoluteracing.com.

Home Stretch

We transition to another section on our journey to knowing the mind of Christ. This is found in Luke 9:51-56 and John 7:10. Time is drawing near. The days of filling up fast. The bucket list is being completed. Next stop is Jerusalem before Jesus goes home. Now, don't be fooled. Though chronologically we are nearing the end of Jesus' ministry, we  are not nearing the end of our study of the mind of Christ. The writers guided by the Holy Spirit intend to cram much into the last weeks and months of Jesus' life that is revealed to us. I might even venture to say there is as much or more written about the last few weeks of Jesus' life than about all the rest of His life. (I am on my Journal #10, and feel like I am just getting started.)

Look how Luke speaks of this transition to Judea from Galilee. "And it came about when the days were approaching for His ascension, that He resolutely set His face to go to Jerusalem." I find it interesting that Luke's focus is on Jesus ascension and not his crucifixion and resurrection. But remember Luke wrote two books, Luke and Acts. And remember in Acts 1 Luke makes much about the ascension. The new apostle chosen to replace Judas was required to have been with Jesus from the days of John the Baptist to the ascension, the time Jesus was taken up. This is what ascension means, i.e. to be taken up. The exact word used by Luke in 9:51 is only found here. But, a similar and related word is found five times. In Mark 16:19 we are told Jesus was received up to heaven and seated at the right hand of God. In Acts 1:2, Luke marks the end of his first volume at the event of Jesus being taken up. Acts 1:11 records the actual event of his being taken up. Acts 1:22 records Peter using these bookends of John's ministry to the time of the ascension as the work of Jesus on earth. 1 Timothy 3:16, in what may be an ancient hymn, includes Jesus' ascension in the statement of faith. In all the cases His ascension is passive. He is "taken up" by God.

Hebrews 12:2 comes to mind in connection with this section. Jesus' thoughts are focused on the other side of the cross and shame to being seated at His Father's right hand. Why is this? "For the joy set before Him." As Jesus turned the last corner heading down the home stretch He was not merely focused on the painful prospect of the cross, but on the joyful prospect of His homecoming. Jesus was nearing the completion of His work on earth. The idea of the "days approaching" is one of these days being filled up. Imagine the days ahead of Jesus at this point being containers needing to be filled. Jesus is seeing these buckets being filled up, with the end in sight. Jesus' departure had to occur between Passover and Pentecost since He promised that He would send the Holy Spirit when He got home (John 16:7ff). The Holy Spirit is managing His days closely as a campaign manager might be moving the presidential candidate along the trail. Jesus is going home. But, first He has His most important work to complete. Stay tuned.

Star Witness

Too often the world has put Jesus on trial. They have called Him to prove His identity and purpose. C.S. Lewis calls this "God in the dock." When you think about it, there is something crazy in the notion that the God of the universe, the Savior of the world, the King of kings and Lord of lords would have to satisfy the judgment of the creatures He has made. Arrogantly we proclaim, "I will decide if I will follow Jesus." Actually it is Jesus who decides if He will lead us and invite us into His company. He is the host. We are the guests. He is the pilot. We are the passengers. He is the Teacher. We are the students. He is the King. We are the subjects. The Kingdom of God is not a democracy. It is not even a Republic. That works well in the affairs of men, equals among equals, but it does not work in the Kingdom of God. This is does not mean that in the Kingdom the King has an adversarial position with the subjects. He does not. But, He never ceases to be the King. "How can the creature say to the Creator, why did you make me this way?" We never lecture or counsel God. Yet Jesus often was subjected to the scrutiny of man as if He needed to be pronounced acceptable and worthy by them.

In actual fact, Jesus is the one who testifies about us. He is the one who weighs us in the balances. He is the one who takes the stand as the star witness in the prosecution's case. As we are told in John 2:24-25, Jesus would not entrust Himself to any man, because He knew what was in man. He knows us. He searches us. He has done a complete investigation and He has concluded that man's deeds are evil. In our present text Jesus tells his brothers that they are on opposite sides of the world. They are with the world and the world does not hate them. James and Jude were companions of the world because of their ignorance and unbelief. The world would not hate them. They are family. They are on the side of the world. Jesus was not, and those who follow Jesus are not. The world hates Jesus because He testifies that their deeds are evil. He is the whistle-blower. He is the one who comes here to verify what was already known in heaven. Now there is a testimony in the world about the world. Just as the mob might try to intimidate witnesses or even "snuff them out" so the world did with Jesus. Instead of seeing what the "barking dog" was barking at, they shot the dog. If you do not love the truth then you will hate the truth-teller.

Going public, as Jesus' brothers were urging Him to do, depends on why you are going public. If it is to increase your popularity so that the world will love you, then entertain them, serve them, give them stuff, and tell them how wonderful they are. But, if going public means exposing the world and its game, then going public has some profound risks. When you start revealing men's secrets you are not popular. Jesus told His apostles it was going to happen to them as well. Read John 15:18-25. If we decide to stand with Jesus, and tell the truth, first about our own sin, and then repeat His testimony about the world, we too will be hated. The world works hard at keeping sin quiet and under ground and in the darkness. Exposure will get one killed. Jesus testified, but He did not go into a witness protection plan. He did not change His identity and move to another universe. He walks the earth today in the form of His Holy Spirit and His followers, proclaiming the message that the world's deeds are evil and that the world needs a Savior. He wants to settle this "out of court" before it gets to His Judgment Seat, by stepping out of the witness box, and mounting a cross and dying for our sins. Will we let Him?

Schedules

The story in John 7:2-9 tell us much about the thinking of Jesus. We all have a sense of pace in our heads. We often have conflict with others when their sense of pace is different than ours. Some have a very slow pace, like the turtle, but consistent. Others have a very fast pace, like the rabbit, but with a touch of ADD. How can two walk together unless they be in agreement? For most of our lives Brenda and I have taken two cars to church because we are on different schedules with different paces. Jesus had a pace and schedule in His head inspired by His Father and the Spirit. His time was not in His hands. He, as we say, marched to the beat of a different drummer. He had a very specific destination with a very specific flight plan, and He was not going to be knocked off schedule by his brothers who did not have a clue because they were acting, as Paul once did, in ignorance and unbelief (1 Tim.1:13). Jesus had a divine appointment on a hill outside of Jerusalem, in a grave not far away, and a precise moment on a Sunday morning. As He drew nearer to his destination, timing was even more important. He did not want to arrive too early.

The brothers wanted Jesus to go to Jerusalem for the wrong reasons and at the wrong time. Jesus would not be moved by their insistence. Here is what we learn about Jesus. He will not adjust his schedule for anyone who out of wrong motives wants to change God's timing. Now this does not mean Jesus would not take time out of His schedule to minister to hurting people. He often did that. But, this is different. He was on a mission and would not be sidetracked even by family who simply did not understand that mission. We are going to see another piece of Jesus thinking in the new post that will complete this picture.

But, what of us? I know we do not have the same itinerary as Jesus. We are not heading for a hill, a grave or a Sunday morning rising to save the world, but we do have a schedule that is set by a divine travel agent. We have work to do and to accomplish before we die. We can debate how detailed our bucket list is as set by Jesus (not our own bucket list) but we have a work to do, prepared in advance by God himself (Eph.2:10). God is working with us to bring this to completion (Phil.1:6). History is hurling through space to a grand conclusion, and we are swept up in it as God works through us to fulfill His mission. I want to have this sense of pace and agenda and schedule in my head. I want to know that I am doing the most important things. I want to know that I am not getting ahead of Him or lagging behind Him but rather keeping pace with the Spirit (Gal.5:25). Do we wake up and have the sense of His schedule in our head? Do you merely make worldly plans (2 Cor.1:15ff) with worldly ambitions, our do you have a sense of the "will of God" for today, for this moment? Do you have a schedule in your head? Whose is it? This is how we relate to unbelief. We call unbelief to get on His schedule and to abandon theirs.

Unbelieving Brothers

How do brothers live with Jesus for 33 years and not believe in Him? They had a sinless example, one who understood all the wonders of the universe, one who could debate effectively with the scribes and Pharisees at age 12, and yet they did not believe in Him. How stubborn the human heart can be! How blind the human spirit can be! Our focus moves to the story in John 7:2-9. Here Jesus is being challenged by his brothers (James and Jude-yep the ones who wrote the books at the end of the New Testament) to go to Jerusalem to the Feast of Booths to show off. Did they not take Him seriously? Did they think it okay to mock the Son of God? Did they just not get it? Unbelievers! Jesus grew up with unbelievers. If you have ever had unbelieving family members you can sympathize with Jesus. Now I am sure they are believers in God and in the words of Moses. I am sure they kept the Jewish traditions, and even looked for the Messiah. But, not in their house. I wonder what they thought when their cousin John started pointing to Jesus as the Messiah, the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world? And, then what did they think when John got himself killed because of His faith in Jesus? Perhaps the stakes of faith were too high. And how must Mary have felt having Jesus, the object of faith, and at least two children who did not believe in Him. I wonder if Jesus' sisters believed in Him.

Were they merely jealous? It would not be the first time some brothers were jealous of their brother. Remember Joseph? He went on to save His brothers too. Jealousy can be blinding. It is a hill that is hard to cross. Jesus was one of the most well loved people in all Israel at this time. Everyone knew about Jesus and probably had someone they knew healed by Him. How would you like it if everywhere you went when someone found out you were the half brother of Jesus, Jesus was all they wanted to talk about? I wonder if James was ever taunted to do a miracle like his brother did? I wonder if anyone ever asked Jude to turn some water into wine? I wonder if Mary loved Jesus best? But these brothers thought they would help Jesus out and suggest a marketing strategy for Him. Since there would be a lot of folks in Jerusalem for the Feast and leading up to Yom Kippur, it would be a perfect time to roll into town and put on a show. Jesus would have huge crowds to amaze! They sounded more like the frenzied mob at the foot of the cross than loving brothers. See what unbelief looks like. Snide remarks. Insensitive jabs. Let's see tomorrow how Jesus deals with the unbelief of His brothers.

Goodbyes

The third man in Jesus' story wanted to go tell his family goodbye before he set off on this journey with Jesus. Sounds like a reasonable request. There is a lot we do not know about this fellow. How old was he? What family responsibilities did he have? How long would he be gone? Were his family believers, or enemies of Jesus? This could have been very important to know. They may have tried to talk him out of following Jesus. The opposition could have created much spiritual trauma for him. If we follow A.T. Robertson's Harmony of the Gospels, then the next place Jesus is headed is Jerusalem for the Feast of the Tabernacles, at least after initially telling his brothers He was not going at that time. But, He did go a little later (more on this). The point is that if the feast were coming up and Jesus knew that He was going to end up there, there could be a timing issue depending on where this fellow had to go to say goodbye to his family. Did they live 100 miles away? We do not know. My guess is that if we had been there and knew more of the circumstances Jesus answer would have made more sense to us. If we look at what Luke puts next we will see Jesus sending out the 70 on their limited commission. Perhaps Jesus had a couple of spots to fill, and he did not want to hold up the rest of these disciples by waiting on this one to go say goodbye to his family. You see we can find sense if we consider the possibilities of the circumstances.

I could not help but think of the children of Israel leaving Egypt when I read what Jesus said. Remember they left in a hurry and were rebuked when they did look back and long for the "good ole days" of slavery. Of course, how could we not think of Lot's wife who looked back? Here is what Jesus said to the man: "No one, after putting his hand to the plow and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God." (Lk.9:62) Strong terms! How does one prove themselves fit for the kingdom of God? And what would it mean for a disciple to not be found fit for the kingdom? Would this man have felt the sting of Jesus; remarks? Jesus sounds a little like General Patton. This Jesus is a "get er done" kind of Teacher. I remember this trait in my father. When we had plowing to do, Dad wanted to get it done. If we started bottom plowing a field we often did not stop until it was completely finished no matter how late at night it was. Dad wanted no looking back. He wanted the job finished so he could start preparing the land to plant. But even in the plowing that involved "laying out the rows" Dad fixed his eyes on a point in front of him and plowed to it. He did not look back to see if the rows were straight. He knew that straight rows resulted from straight looking.

Jesus makes it clear that kingdom business is important and should not be taken lightly. But, as people we have our kingdoms to build and manage. The kingdoms of our families, businesses, and our recreations take a lot of attention. We have to devote a lot of time to them if we expect them to look good. I remember the Meskos, an old couple from Russia who lived a very merger existence in their old age, scrimping every penny to buy Russian Bibles to send to those behind the Iron Curtain who did not have one. There whole existence was focused on this. When they would get a letter from someone who got a Bible and became a Christian, they celebrated the spread of the kingdom of God. They understood the importance of kingdom business. They understood it is more important than goodbyes, dead folks, and reservations at the Holiday Inn. Jesus knew that too and He is teaching us to think like He does.

The Dead

This one is tough. Jesus challenges a person to follow Him, and the person asks permission to first go bury his father. Seems reasonable, right? And Jesus' answer seems predictable. right? Of course, the man should be allowed to go bury his father. If there was ever a reasonable request, this is it, right? There is so much more I would love to know about this situation. Did the man come to ask Jesus to either heal or raise his father from the dead? That seems reasonable. Was the father far from being in need of burying? Was the man simply making an excuse or was this a serious request? Did Jesus see something in this man's heart that needed to be brought out, much like in the case of the rich, young ruler? Was Jesus testing him to see if he would be persistent in his request as in the spirit of Luke 18 and Matt.11? Was Jesus saying this because this man's father and family were openly enemies of Jesus who opposed him? Perhaps if this were the case, the father would not deserve for his Jesus-following Son to honor him by attending his funeral. We could ask questions all day long, but we simply do not know all the circumstances.

But there are a couple of things that do seem clear from this situation. First, how do we seek for interpretations of such obscure events? Do we approach these mysteries with biases of our own? We are having to make judgments without sufficient understandings. So how do we do this? One person might read this and decide that if this is how Jesus is they do not want to follow Him. Others may seek to paint Jesus in the best light and the man in the worse light in order to feel good about continuing to follow Jesus. Others may raise the questions, admit their lack of understanding, defer to Jesus because of who He is without being disparaging of the disciple, and file it away in the mystery category, something I will have to ask about when I see Jesus. Whatever we do with this, it is interesting to see each of us struggle with such stories from Jesus' life, noting that Jesus' answers are not always predictable.

But, we also have to see that Jesus is clear about His priorities, and those who follow Him. Jesus says, "...but as for you, go and proclaim everywhere the kingdom of God." Regardless of what is going on with this man's father, this priority remains. The kingdom must be proclaimed everywhere. It suggests to me the metaphor of a soldier who might request permission for leave, even to attend to the death of a loved one. The decision may seem routine and grantable in every circumstance. But, there is something in the military that always takes precedence and that is the mission. There is a time for mission and a time for personal matters. Didn't Paul say, "No soldier in active service entangles himself in the affairs of everyday life, so that he may please the one who enlisted him as a soldier?" (2 Tim.2:4) There are times when the demands of proclaiming the kingdom will conflict with the demands of everyday life. This is a hard teaching and requires great wisdom, but what is clear is that we do not always defer to the affairs of everyday life. We have to sometimes defer to the kingdom at the sacrifice of everyday life. Matthew 6:33 makes clear that the kingdom is first. Ponder this.