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If you read my blog from time to time, you know that my family is going to the same church I went to when I was younger and that my son is participating in the Awana clubs, just as I did as a child. I spent the last fifteen years going to other churches and searching for my own place in the world. The churches I attended were generally not ones that struck me as ones that would assist me in my spiritual growth for various reasons. Without going into too many details, I became frustrated and craved something with substance. I wasn't happy with the frustration and became a bit hardened to organized religion in general. That's a big reason for my project in Bible reading and a reason for my return to Polk City and I must say that I feel like I'm back at home.
During these years, I have to say that much of the time I felt lost, like a sheep without a shepherd. Well my family is back into the fold and I'm grateful for all of this and feel closer to God than I ever have before. One way I know I've grown in Him is my commitment to decency. This last week, the FCC gave an OK to people who wanted to use obscenities on the air as long as they were used in an "appropriate" context. I spoke out against such words, saying that their use lowered the opinions of others toward you. This opinion has actually angered others and I have received some hate mail for this, with others saying that I am declaring myself as better than others. For the record, the only way that I am the least bit better than them is my use of words to express myself. God has to do the rest. Learning to trust God more has helped me grow further. Leaning on a crutch when you're healthy will weaken you. Leaning on God will strengthen you.
Back to Awana, though. Ben passed his entrance test and received his vest and book and is now a member of the Sparks group. As an adult helper, I also received a shirt. I went to the bathroom to change into it and my head snapped back when my other shirt was removed. I turned and looked at the jutting-out wall where my head hit and didn't remember that being there fifteen years before, but then I guess in that time, I've grown in more ways than one, huh?
Habitual offenders. That's what we are. If life was fair, we'd all be sent to prison with a parole board laughing at our every attempt for leniency. We are slaves to sin and don't even know it, because sinning can be so convenient at times. A shortcut here, a white lie there, before you know it, life is looking good and so are you, but only for a time. The truth of Jesus will set you free from all of that, and in all honesty, it won't be comfortable. That's because you hold yourself accountable. But people do respect you for the change they see in you. I was asked once why I don't curse like everyone else and I had my opening to speak about the changes in me. That's just one example of the benefit of giving it over.
As you can tell from the reading thus far, the Samaritans and the Jews didn't exactly get along. In fact, Jesus had just recently been rejected by Samaritans, as mentioned in Luke 9:52-56, for the simple reason of his return to Jerusalem. So this story takes a deeper meaning. The Jewish man is robbed and left for dead as fellow Jews walk by as if they didn't notice him, but a Samaritan, the hated man, stops and cares for him as he would want to be cared for. Mercy toward our enemies is important to God. Loving your neighbor as yourself is not just a suggestion.
This is, I believe, the most scathing rebuke given by Jesus in his years on earth. It was not directed at the sinners of the day, or even to the demons that were being cast out of their victims. It was directed at the self-proclaimed shepherds of the flocks: the Pharisees. These were men who went through the motions in front of everybody, but didn't practice what they preached, or at least didn't believe it in their hearts. It was evident that they had angered Jesus and they were not used to such scolding. Their response was true to form, as they looked outward, not inward, and tried to catch Jesus in a verbal trap. Do remember that the one thing that really brought the ire of Jesus was a pretender who mislead the masses. Whatever you do regarding your faith, whatever role you play in your church, make sure you are validating your teaching with your life and your own faith.
God wants us to remember our priorities and motives at all times. The rich fool had gotten ahead in life and decided that complacency was more of a reward than diligence. His heart was centered on the joys of this world and not on the rewards in Heaven, which would be eternal. That was his error, and Jesus cautions us not to make the same mistake. Treasures in Heaven are eternal once again, Treasures on earth are fleeting and easily lost. Choose wisely.
The remainder of Luke 12 is about preparing yourself for the coming of God, whether you are going with Him or He is coming to you, and there's quite a bit of information in this relatively short portion of the reading. He wants to be continually expected. That means that everything is set right as soon as possible. I remember when we were expecting a visitor to arrive sometime in a period of 2-3 hours. This was before cell phones, by the way. We would clean the house a few hours before, and for the remainder of the time until this person arrived, if we made a mess, no matter how small, it was immediately cleaned up. That's the spirit of this message. If you're expecting to see God sometime between the next day and the next century, clean your home and keep it that way.
Here's another example of a healing done on the Sabbath. Jesus didn't adhere to the rules of the Pharisees, and it almost seems like He was baiting them a little by now, but I don't think that was the case. He knew they would be upset at this, but He doesn't change His timetable for anyone, least of all Pharisees. They did talk themselves into a verbal trap, however. When Jesus said that the judgment was that the blind should see and those with sight should be blind, the Pharisees jumped at the argument. Jesus' response was classic. Paraphrased, he says that if the Pharisees would acknowledge that they are guilty of sin, they could be saved as well, but they deny themselves that honor. Before any problem can be resolved, the true problem must be determined.
The Narrow Door was Jesus' way of saying that though many people are sure that they have been taught the way to enter Heaven, many will be disappointed. When a shepherd leads his sheep into danger, it's not the fault of the sheep, but they are still in danger all the same. That's why church hunting or pastor hunting is not something to take lightly. The key ingredient is not the age group of the members or the social activities. It's the shepherd.
The first shall be last and the last shall be first. I never understood what that was supposed to mean until I read in Luke 14 about the feast attendees. The self-assertive people that show up early to grab a good place at the table are often the ones who would see themselves as better than the others. In this light, they would be more likely to believe that they need no help from their sins. The first step to removing any problem is admitting that the problem exists in the first place. If you can't do that, you lose. End of story.
Don't forget, though, that you have been invited to a banquet, and this is one that you would be wise to attend, for the master of this banquet will keep the invitation open for quite a while. When your time on earth is done, however, and you can compare the dining at this banquet and it's alternative, your choice will have been made already.
Our reading today will be all about priorities. Jesus does not want us to hate our families, but he does want our love for him to be so great that our love for others is weak in contrast. I specify in contrast, because if we love God with all of our hearts, He gives us more and more love for others. However, if a family member forces you to make a choice between them or Him, you should choose Him with absolutely no hesitation.
The parables of the lost sheep, the lost coin and the lost son are basically three versions of the same story. They are all examples of how we may become lost and get down on ourselves, but the important thing is to keep on seeking His forgiveness, for He has this quality in abundance. He is overjoyed when we have strayed and turn to him for guidance, for once you have seen the redemption that is awaiting you, it's not likely you'll stray so far again.
It's hard for me to comprehend that the raising of Lazarus would be the last straw for the Pharisees, but they saw that Jesus wouldn't stop his rocking of their proverbial boat. Something had to give and they were afraid the Romans would remove them from what power they had. I haven't read all of the historical accounts, but the Roman Empire was in force at that time, and policing the known world is a tall order. Therefore, I imagine the Jews were allowed to live their own lives as long as they paid their taxes and maintained the order of things. For these reasons and others, a plot to kill Jesus became the popular plan to handling the issue.
Jesus healed people of all kinds, including those who didn't even see the need to thank Him. Notice that ten men were cleansed of leprosy, but only one man, and a Samaritan at that, returned to thank Him. Jesus was not a resentful man, though, and the others remained cleansed. They did still show faith by going to the priest. The fact that the other nine, probably all Jews, didn't return with thanks and the Samaritan did return is testament that Jesus came to save all, not just the Jewish people.
Divorce has never struck my immediate family on either parent's side, but my wife's family has had this happen and it is a hard thing for the family to endure. Jesus spoke out about this one day and reminded all of us that the intention of marriage was to make the two people into one and that union must never be broken as long as the marital partners both lived. I have known people who were dating and were completely incompatible, fighting like cats and dogs. Some of them decided to marry anyway, if for no other reason than to see if it would work out. All of these marriages have failed or are headed in that direction and many have children involved. Marriage is not to be taken lightly, but with much prayer and with God as the glue that binds the duo together.
So what are the children that Jesus said are the right people to enter Heaven? Let's look at the general description of a child. A child is teachable; they don't think they already have all of the answers. They will trust their parent in any situation, for they know that Dad and Mom would never ask anything of them that could harm them. And they truly love others. My son gives the best hugs you could imagine. I suppose in a few years adolescence will begin and these hugs will taper, but for now I will cherish each and every one. Characteristics such as these are ones we should seek to adopt for ourselves.
And what about this remark made about the rich having a hard time getting into Heaven? Jesus was not saying that wealth would disqualify you from eternal life, but the love of money over God could do this. Anybody can agree to follow God if it doesn't cost them anything, but when asked to sacrifice a worldly good, what would many rich people do? Scoff at the suggestion and proclaim that they worked for what worldly possessions they have and proclaim that the idea of giving it up for any reason is absurd? Many would say this. It's impossible for a person to save himself, especially if they fit this description, but never forget that nothing is impossible for God.
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