30 November 2012

Psalm 140, 142; Zech. 14:1-11; Rom. 15:7-13; Luke 19:28-40

Why would the Lord allow this horrible day to come, with the city taken, houses plundered, woman raped and the people forced to either flee or watch the spoils divided in front of them by their enemies?  Why did He allow the Nazis to kill six million Jews in the 1940s?  At the end of the day there are many things we cannot explain and all we can do is believe that He is great and He is good, no matter what happens on this earth.  We live in a fallen world and who can know why the Lord tarries in coming or does not save us from trial, difficulty, pain and suffering.  We are to blame for these things and we are to work diligently for justice and against evil until the day of His coming.  Finally, Zechariah tells of a day when Jerusalem is exalted and sees the vision John saw in the revelation of no night, perpetual daylight and the goodness of God reigning forever.

The triumphal entry of the true king.  If we go all the way back to 1 Samuel 8 we see the people clamoring for a king.  They know that Samuel won't live forever and they don't like or trust his sons so they want a king to be like the other nations around them.  The Lord tells Samuel that it isn't Samuel being rejected, it is the true king, the Lord who is being rejected.  Here, Jesus, the Word made flesh, the only Begotten Son, one with the Father, is coming in fulfillment of Zechariah's prophecy on a donkey, the greater fulfillment of a king from David's line, but the even greater fulfillment of the prophecies that no one dared interpret so literally, God Himself coming to shepherd, lead and guide His people.  The people acclaim Him with messianic cries but the leaders, the bad shepherds, ask the disciples to tone it down, the Romans might get upset and shut them down as leaders.  The truth is revealed, they see themselves as possessing leadership because the Romans allow it.  Jesus says if the people don't cry, the rest of creation will do so, they have been silent long enough and now the Lord has come back.

Paul sees that Jesus is not simply King of the Jews as the inscription Pilate had recorded over Him on the cross proclaimed, He is also king of the Gentiles, the other nations of the world.  Our worship is proclamation of Jesus as King of kings and Lord of lords.  He is without peer and He is indeed Good, as no other has ever been or ever will be.  Paul tells the Roman church to welcome one another as this king has welcomed us.  The time has come as we get to Advent, to welcome the King, to remember Him and to long for His coming again, to worship Him with the acclaim He received on Palm Sunday in Jerusalem.  Let the rocks be kept silent for one more day, let the whole world sing out and let the people say, "Hosanna to our King!"

29 November 2012

Psalm 131, 132; Zech. 13:1-9; Eph. 1:15-23; Luke 19:11-27

The Lord says that there will no more be false prophets in the Land, the people will have discernment concerning such things and will not tolerate them.  Even mothers and fathers will kill those who would prophesy falsely or in the name of another god.  They will be forced to lie concerning their wounds because these were part of the worship practices of idolaters.  They will say that friends did this to them.  Finally, there will be a good shepherd who is struck down and the sheep scattered, some will be saved but others will not.  Even the third who are saved will be purified in the fire of affliction and suffering and emerge as the Lord's own.  There is no promise of a general, complete salvation or of a carefree life, both those are lies.

The parable here is slightly different from the other synoptic Gospels.  When the man goes to receive the kingdom, some of the people send a delegation to tell whoever is giving the kingdom to him to refrain from doing so because they hated the man.  The rest of the story proceeds with the giving of stewardship to three servants, two of whom provide a return on their trust and are rewarded with more and one believes the master to be a hard man who reaps where he doesn't sow and so he simply protected the principal to ensure there was no loss.  He loses all entrusted to him and it is given to one more faithful.  Then, the master orders his enemies to be rounded up and destroyed.  Are we being faithful with what we have been given or are we protecting it by playing too close to the vest and taking no risk?

Paul's prayer for the Ephesian church is that God will "give you the Spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him."  Is there anything better anyone could pray for us?  We should be praying it for one another every day, that we will be a people of wisdom and knowledge of Him.  Such a people would indeed reject false prophets and would correct the notion that HE is a hard man who reaps where He doesn't sow.  We would be a people who had true wisdom like Solomon and we would be known among men as wise.  If we would know true wisdom we would keep our eyes on the wisdom of God, Jesus the Christ.

28 November 2012

Psalm 119:145-176; Zech. 12:1-10; Eph. 1:3-14; Luke 19:1-10

The Lord promises that when the nations come against Jerusalem He will save them and will get glory.  There is a siege against the city on all sides and yet in that day, the Lord will act on behalf of His people and their enemies will be destroyed completely while the city and the people of Judah will prosper greatly.  At that time, they will turn to him whom they have pierced (Jesus) and will have a spirit of grace.  They will weep for Him, as for a firstborn child.  In other words, they will recognize Him for who He is and they will weep for their failure to recognize Him and for the crucifixion.  Nehemiah is a man who understood something about corporate guilt, he hadn't been in Jerusalem and yet he connected with the people at the level of responsibility for the sins of his fathers.  Those who see this salvation are not the same ones who rejected Jesus but there is a strong sense of identification with that sin.  The church should consider that same idea and repent of what Christians have done down the ages that cause people today to question it, not excuse those sins as in the past.

We all know the story of Zacchaeus but do we take time to consider the setting?  Jesus is on His way to be crucified and He knows it and yet He notices this "wee little man" up in the sycamore tree and reaches out to Him and he and his family receive salvation.  Always Jesus was on the job, looking to find and save the lost sheep, even in His own hour of need. He was never so fixed on Himself that He wasn't reaching out to others.  His attitude of selflessness and constant awareness of others is something we should learn to cultivate in ourselves.  Let's give ourselves a break from self-obsession during Advent and open our eyes to the needs of others.

We have every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places.  We were chosen before the foundation of the world, we were predestined for adoption as God's children in Jesus.  We have been redeemed and forgiven.  He has made known to us the mystery of His will.  We have received the inheritance of children, eternal life.  We have been sealed with the Holy Spirit of God as the guarantee of that inheritance.  With all this in hand, can't we let go of our fears and self-obsession and extend the grace to others?

27 November 2012

Psalm 121, 122, 123; Zech. 11:4-17; 1 Cor. 3:10-23; Luke 18:31-43

This is a difficult passage to interpret.  Who are the shepherds this shepherd destroys?  Who are the flocks?  Whose covenant is annulled?  Zechariah is appointed as a good shepherd to the flock and in stepping into the role, it is necessary to deal with the bad shepherds but he is ultimately rejected by the flock and walks away in disgust, breaking his two staffs with which he began the job.  It is never an easy job to lead the flock, ask Moses.  Better yet, ask Jesus who himself was rejected by the ones He came to save and yet He stayed with the job to the end, not annulling the covenant but fulfilling it and ensuring it.  In the end, the Lord promises to raise up yet another bad shepherd who will surely make the people willing to receive a good shepherd.  In John 10 we see Jesus talking about this very thing and says, "I am the good shepherd."

On the way to His destiny Jesus, with probably a great entourage of other pilgrims, passes near Jericho.  As He enters the town, word about Him has clearly spread to this place and a blind beggar cries out, referring to Him as the Son of David, a high messianic title.  Jesus asks what He wants Him to do, the man is possibly simply asking for a handout from the pilgrims, he has begged for mercy.  His desire is more than money, however, he wants his sight restored, implying perhaps that he once had sight.  His faith makes Him well, belief that Jesus could do such a thing enabled Him to receive.  His response was to glorify God and to join with the pilgrims as they head to the festival.  Within a week he will wish that he could not see as he watched the one who healed him die on a cross.  It is a messed up world we live in.  Are our eyes open to that reality?

All of us are workmen, nothing more.  We are not the architect or the contractor, we are workers.  Leaders, pastors, priests, whatever we are called, are nothing more than workmen and we are to build on the foundation of Jesus and our workmanship must be to exacting standards.  We are the temple of God and He dwells in us by the power of the Holy Spirit.  We have a rabbi, we have a shepherd, and that shepherd is Jesus.  We others are nothing more than those who lead you to Jesus, connect you to the vine, not to ourselves.  We are not to boast in men, in Christ alone.  That doesn't mean we don't value those who teach us and who lead us in the ways of the Lord, but ultimately we must be personally connected to Jesus for He alone is our hope and our salvation.  He is the only truly good shepherd, good by even God's standards.

26 November 2012

Psalm 106:1-18; Zech. 10:1-12; Gal. 6:1-10; Luke 18:15-30

Zechariah's prophetic career was after the exiles returned from Babylon, as they were rebuilding the city and the temple.  He saw a Jerusalem and a nation that was a shadow of its former self.  He encouraged the exiles in the work of rebuilding the temple when they were discouraged at the progress they were making in contrast to the glory of the former temple.  He spoke of the power of the Spirit in their midst and in the temple and spurred them to attempt greatness, to believe the Lord would restore their city and their fortunes.  He had the happy job of encouragement, certainly a rarity for a prophet.  His one continuous lament, however, was the priests and leaders of the people who were seeking after their own glory and not caring for the sheep.  His promise is a glorious future for the nation, a restoration not only of splendor but also of prosperity.  His promise is that from the Lord will come the cornerstone, an important concept in building a new thing.

So the rich young man believes he has kept the commandments concerning his neighbor, don't commit adultery, steal, murder, bear false witness, and has honored his father and mother.  Jesus doesn't argue with him at all over this issue.  He does, however, point out something lacking, the man does not love the Lord with all his heart, soul, and mind, he loves his wealth, he has another god before the Lord.  Jesus reveals something to the man and that is to inherit the kingdom of God he has to renounce his earthly inheritance and truly seek it.  It is the exact same offer Jesus made to all His disciples and they, the fishermen, Peter and Andrew, James and John, left their nets and Matthew his custom table. Additionally, he is not completely loving his neighbor, selling all and giving to the poor is a demand Jesus doesn't make of the other disciples.  This one, however, is unable this day to walk away.  Have we heard and understood the call of Jesus to be His disciples?  Have we truly accepted it or are we more like the rich young man?

Paul speaks of bearing one another's burdens but each has to carry his own load.  A load was a pre-determined amount that a man was capable of carrying without assistance, a burden was an excess over that amount.  Jesus said that the scribes and Pharisees were guilty of tying up burdens on the people and not lifting a finger to help.  Paul recognizes that life is a load and sometimes life is more than a load, it imposes burdens on us that we need help from our brothers and sisters to carry.  He won't abide freeloaders who are unwilling to do their share but he says the community is to care for one another by sharing burdens.  In so doing, we love one another and the community is enriched.  Leaders should be sensitive to the flock and the flock should be willing to do their part, all must sacrifice for one another.