THE BIBLE SPEAKS
by
Background Scripture:
Luke 2:41-52.
Devotional
Psalms 148:7-14.
Traditionally,
Joseph, Mary, and Jesus are regarded as “The Holy Family”. Yet, as the New
Testament indicates, their household eventually included other children. At
least one of his brothers, James, played a significant role in the life of the
early church.
Beyond
that, the bible tells us very little about the family of Jesus. What little we
do know comes from the latter portion of the second chapter of Luke’s gospel.
And when we weigh what Luke has to say, perhaps it is quite enough.
For one thing, it is
apparent that this was a family with a strong religious foundation. Luke tells
us:
“And when they had performed everything according to the law of the Lord, they
returned to
FAMILY
CUSTOM
Later,
Luke tells us that “his parents went to
Furthermore,
as the boy Jesus sits with the elders in the
Secondly,
we can see that there was a strong element of mutual respect in the family. For
one thing, as a twelve-year old lad, Jesus is given a certain amount of
freedom, so that when the return journey from Jerusalem begins, his parents
assume that he is somewhere in the caravan with his friends. After all, in the
eyes of the Jewish law a youth became a man at age twelve and was regarded as
“a son of the law.”
It
may seem strange that Mary and Joseph could go a whole day’s journey before
missing their son. But many years ago Larry had a similar experience. He was
conducting a bus tour through Europe and had stopped at the Italian alpine town
of
FAMILY RESPECT
So
we can better appreciate what Mary and Joseph were feeling when, at last, they
found him in the temple. We can also understand why they there arose some
misunderstanding between them and their son. From his point of view, there was
nothing over which they should have become excited. From their point of view,
his unexplained absence seemed a pointed lack of consideration for them.
Yet,
despite the fact that Jesus did not understand their feelings on this matter,
Luke tells us nevertheless: “And he… was obedient to them” And,
although Mary did not understand her son’s strange explanation, she
nevertheless “kept all these things in her heart.” They did not always have
to understand each other for them to continue to respect one another.
In
the Holy Family misunderstanding and hurt were healed with love and respect.
Why not in our families too?
Note: In the October 28, 2007 Bible
Speaks, I wrote of Esau and Jacob: “We don’t know if these two brothers ever
saw each other again.” One of our readers kindly reminded me that they did see
other again in Gen. 35:29 when they joined in burying their father Isaac. My
apologies for that glitch.
THE BIBLE SPEAKS
by
Background Scripture:
Luke 6:27-36.
Devotional
Psalms 37:1-11.
Soon, I will be teaching
an adult class of our church for
three weeks on “The Hard Teachings of Jesus.” I’m asking members to suggest
“hard teachings” from the four gospels.
Some “hard sayings” are “hard” because
we don’t understand what Jesus means. Then, there are some that are “hard”
because they seem at odds with our perception of Jesus. And there are those we
understand perfectly, but assume are too hard or unrealistic for us to obey.
Luke 6:27-38 is regarded by many as
the “hardest” of Jesus’ teachings. “Love your enemies, do good to those who
hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you.”
.Many consider this as a nice ideal, but utterly valueless in the world in
which we live. On a recent TV program a well-known mega-church preacher called
upon his people to “defend God” with violence, if needed, and “seek vengeance
upon the enemies of God.”
SAYING ‘YES’ TO JESUS!
Once,
while teaching an adult class, I asked if any of those present ever prayed for
our nation’s enemies. They were aghast: “Surely, you’re not saying we should
pray for them?” I answered: “No, I’m not saying that, but Jesus is!” Many feel
they are OK if they go to the right church, listen to the right preacher,
worship and pray in the right way and live by the right standards. But, if we
have not managed to be able to say “YES” to Jesus’ command, we cannot really
call ourselves his followers.
Actually,
we may not understand what Jesus is saying. If we could read this passage in
the original Greek, we might find this command not quite so hard. We seem to
have but one word for love, while the Greeks had three. The word Eran/eros is passionate love, but the
writer of Luke doesn’t use eran. Similarly,
the Greek word philein/philea denotes
the love we have for those nearest and dearest to us. But Luke uses the word agapa/agape, meaning a benevolent
attitude towards another person, no matter what they do to us.
This
kind of agape love is not a matter of feeling, but of will. We do the right
thing for or to another person, not because we FEEL loving, but because we choose to OBEY Christ who calls us to do loving things. Very often this kind
of love is an act of defiance by us against tyranny and oppression, an action
that says to the offensive person that he or she cannot reduce us to the level
of retaliation, that the love of Jesus Christ is stronger and more desirable
than hitting back in some way or another.
THE WAY OF JESUS
A
few years ago someone treated me in a manner that I felt was painfully unjust. Whenever
that person’s name came up, I had a nagging inner battle, trying not to FEEL
wounded and betrayed—although that’s exactly what I felt. I tried to forgive
her, but though I said the right words, I didn’t feel forgiving. Then, a few
weeks ago at a social occasion, I sat about four yards away from her at a large
table. I avoided looking in her direction and did not say “hello” or even nod
in recognition. But in my prayers the next day, I knew that I had broken Jesus’
command to “love your enemies, do good to those who hate you…” “How can I break out of this cycle of
resentment and hostility?” I prayed.
The
voice that replied was not so much from Heaven as it was from inside me:
“Pray for those who abuse you” (6:27). I didn’t think it would help
much, but I gave it a try---and I re-learned something which I had discovered
several times previously. It wasn’t immediate but, in a few weeks the wound was
healed. That doesn’t mean the person has apologized or that I would look
forward to working with her again, but I will treat her with the grace that God
gives me, and if she needed my help, I wouldn’t hesitate to respond
William
Barclay speaks for me when he asks, “What is the reason for this Christian
conduct? The reason is that it makes us like God, for that is the way he acts.”
THE BIBLE SPEAKS
by
Background Scripture:
Luke 11:5-13.
Devotional
Psalms 28:6-9.
Having
briefly mentioned “the hard sayings of Jesus” in last week’s column, I hardly
anticipated that this same concept would arise out of this week’s passage.
Suddenly, while studying the passage, there it was, the parable of “The
Importunate Friend” containing some hard sayings that seem to be contradicted
by experience and basic reason.
The problem may be in that
we do not really understand what Jesus is saying. We must remember that this is
a parable, not an allegory. True, both
attempt to convey some special meaning by means of a story, but an allegory is
usually, a longer, more complete story and the various elements and details of
the story are symbolic. A parable, on the other hand, is normally a brief story
meant to convey just one central truth. So in a parable we look for that
central truth and realize that the details of the story in themselves are not
symbolic. For example, in Luke 11:5 there is no significance that the friend
asks for three loaves, not four.
In Luke 11:1-4 his disciples asked
him, "Lord,
teach us to pray…” and in response Jesus teaches them what we know as
the Lord’s Prayer. Immediately following, the parable
of “The
Importunate Friend” is a continuing answer to his disciples. So it is easy for
us to get off-track in this parable and come up with the wrong answer, assuming
that he is advising us to pest God with great perseverance: “I tell you, though he
(the householder) will not get up and give him anything because he is his friend, yet
because of his importunity he will rise and give him whatever he needs.” “Importunity”means
dogged, unrelenting persistence.
MANY WORDS
In Matthew 6:7, 8, however, Jesus also
says, “And in praying do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do; for
they think that they will be heard for their many words.” The God in
Luke 11 seems to require great perseverance in prayer, while the God in Matthew
seems not to require it at all. And that is when this parable appears to be a
“hard saying of Jesus.
This is not really a contradiction.
The parable is not about the “how” of prayer, but the God to whom we pray.
William Barclay says, “…it is not that we must batter at God’s door until we
compel him from very weariness to give us what we want, until we coerce and
unwilling God to answer.” If a friend who doesn’t want to get out of bed will
finally do so just to still the clamor of his friend’s knocking, how much more
can we expect from a loving God who does not want or need shameless
persistence! If we know how to give good gifts to our children, how much more
can we expect of a loving God!
But then, if God neither desires nor
requires “importunity,” why are we advised to be persistent? (Lk. 18:1; Eph.
6:18; 1 Thes. 5:25; Col.1:9). The answer is: while God does not require the
repetition of our prayers, we do! We need the persistence to keep ourselves
focused on the need. Furthermore, God is not coerced by our much praying. As
Phillips Brooks (“O Little Town of Bethlehem”) put it, “Prayer is not
conquering God’s reluctance, but taking hold of God’s willingness.” That divine
“willingness” goes far beyond my human comprehension.
“ASK, AND…..”
There
is still one more problem. For quite a few years I have been praying for the
healing of a good friend. This morning I received an email saying that he
passed away yesterday. Does that mean that God denied my request or that I
failed top pray with enough persistence? No, I believe God answered my prayer,
for I accept death as God’s final healing, just as I accept other experiences
as God’s not-always-evident providence.
Soren
Kierkegaard reminds us that “prayer does not change God, but changes him who
prays.” My prayer life has changed my prayers. I am less likely to tell God how
to do his work. I am thankful God has not always given me what I asked for. I
ask God to bless family, friends and strangers, but I understand those
blessings may come in unanticipated forms.
So,
now, more than ever, I trust in Jesus’ promise: “For everyone who asks receives,
and he who seeks finds, ands to him who knocks it will be opened”
(11:10).
THE BIBLE SPEAKS
by
IS WORRY
A SIN?
Background Scripture:
Luke 12:22-34.
Devotional
Psalms 31:1-5.
When Valere and I wrote What You Need Is What You’ve Got, we
devoted the very first chapter to “Kick The Worry Habit.” I was particularly
qualified because for most of my life I had been an accomplished worrier. I
worried before something happened, while it was happening, and afterwards. And,
if it didn’t happen, I worried about that, too. When told “not to worry,” I worried
about that as well: “I can’t help it,” I said, “that’s just the way I am!”
Then, one day in the
maternity ward of a local hospital, I noticed that none of the babies on
display were worrying. It occurred to me that they had not yet learned to
worry. Then it dawned on me: people learn to worry; they’re not born that
way! Not even me! So, I came to three
conclusions: (1) Worrying was something I had learned to do---and do well! (2)
Worry had become for me a habit, an automatic response and a way of life. (3)
If I had learned how to do it, I could also learn how not to do it. As it was a
habit, I could replace it with a new habit.
MISPERCEPTIONS
Thinking about why I had
developed that consuming habit, I realized that I had learned to feel more
intensely about situations than was warranted. I unconsciously taught my mind
to misperceive events and my endocrine system learned to over-secrete hormones
in responding to these misperceptions. Certain outward physiological responses
also became habits---a wrinkled brow: how else would people know I was worrying!---a
tightening of the muscles in the neck and shoulders, and so forth. I adopted an
exaggerated modes of thought and speech to match my misperceptions: minor
inconveniences were “terrible,: modest setbacks became “disasters,” slight pain
“killed me,” fifteen minutes of exasperation “ruined a whole day,” and a possible
disappointing outcome was, “I’ll just die!”
(Have I established my credentials on “Kicking the
Worry Habit”?)
I also came to realize
that my worry habit was a contradiction of the Christian faith I professed.
This is serious because it means that worry indicates a lack of trust in God. I
found that the more my trust (not “belief”) in God grew, my habit of worrying
diminished. The person who worries is really unconsciously saying, “I’m all
that I have----and it isn’t enough!”
So when Jesus says: “Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you
shall eat, nor about your body, what you shall put on. For life is more than
food, and the body more than clothing,” what is this something “more”?
It is a loving, provident God. “But if
God so clothes the grass which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the
oven, how much more will he clothe you, O men of little faith!”
(11:22,23,28,29).
THE TREADMILL
Please understand that I
am not trivializing the challenges of life, nor am I oversimplifying how one
goes about kicking thee worry habit. I do not join those who blithely reassure
people, “Don’t worry, everything will come out all right.” Nor am I implying
that we should just forget the things that cause us anxiety. Thinking and
praying about our problems is both legitimate and helpful. But when thinking
and praying slowly, but surely turn into worry, you are back on the treadmill that
goes nowhere. Worry is fruitless thinking and anxiety that not only do not help
us, but cause us more harm.
Here, in short, are some of the suggestions we have
used and about which we wrote.
(1). Accept the fact that you are not God. You are a mortal, finite,
fallible human being.
(2) Recognize that worry is often
a substitute for doing something to meet the challenge..
(3) If you must worry, put a time
limit on it—like 5 to 15 minutes a day at the most.
(4) Give time, thought and effort only to what you can do or God will do.
The prayer of
Dr. Reinhold Niebuhr puts
it perfectly: “O God, give us serenity to
accept what cannot
be changed, courage to change what
should be changed, and wisdom to distinguish one
from the other.” Too many spend their energy bemoaning the
things that can’t be changed.
And (5) trust God to bring you through both Hell and high water!
So,
is worry a sin? Why don’t you ask the Lord!