Like Father, Like Son
God has ascended with a mighty shout.
….The Lord has ascended with trumpets blaring.
Sing praises to God, sing praises;
….sing praises to our King, sing praises! Psalm 47:5-6 NLT
John 5:18-23 (<<click here to read the passage)
Modern-day may be a bit different but for generations, it was not unusual for offspring to take on the occupations of their parents. Educators, law enforcement, medical professionals, you name it, there are many examples of carrying on the family tradition. I’m a third-generation pastor. I know of chiropractors whose fathers were chiropractors, nurses whose mothers were nurses, educators whose parents were educators. Those who worked in trades often had the same outcome.
Part of the story, I’m sure, is that often as the son or daughter grew up, the lifestyle and mindsets of their parents concerning their vocation were ingrained in their psyche. They already have a leg up on everyone else because they have seen it lived out every day of their lives.
Jesus learned from and took after His Father, as well. Yes, they were one in essence and nature – Jesus Himself said in John 10:30, “The Father and I are one.” NLT
But throughout the Gospels, Jesus consistently pulls Himself away from the crowds and His disciples to spend quality time with His Father.
Here are just a few passages where Jesus did just that.
After sending them home, he went up into the hills by himself to pray. Night fell while he was there alone. Matthew 14:23 NLT
Before daybreak the next morning, Jesus got up and went out to an isolated place to pray. Mark 1:35 NLT
One day soon afterward Jesus went up on a mountain to pray, and he prayed to God all night. At daybreak he called together all of his disciples and chose twelve of them to be apostles. Luke 6:12-13 NLT
Jesus was like His Father, through and through, because He spent great amounts of time with Him. He communicated with Him about everything. He sought Him out for guidance and comfort during difficult times. The Father’s character and mindset was lived out every day in Jesus’ life.
The Jewish leaders chaffed under this aspect of who Jesus was because they just couldn’t accept it. To them it was blasphemous. It was so offensive that by this time they were trying to figure out a way to kill Him! Verse 18 lays out their frustration, “…he not only broke the Sabbath, he called God his Father, thereby making himself equal with God.” NLT
Though they flat out rejected it, Jesus tried to explain,
“I tell you the truth, the Son can do nothing by himself. He does only what he sees the Father doing. Whatever the Father does, the Son also does. For the Father loves the Son and shows him everything he is doing… In addition, the Father judges no one. Instead, he has given the Son absolute authority to judge, so that everyone will honor the Son, just as they honor the Father. Anyone who does not honor the Son is certainly not honoring the Father who sent him.” v19-20a, 22-23
The Son was just like His Father. When they rejected Jesus, they blindly rejected the Father as well.
Lord Jesus, may we take to heart the truth of who You are. And in turn, may we reflect the You in our lives, too. May we get in the habit of spending some much time in communion with You that Your light shines regularly through our lives. Amen.
May 18th, 2021, Tues, 7:21 pm
Handling Contention
Not a normal day but a full one! Father may my mind and heart be open in the direction You would have it go. Amen.
John 5:16-17 (<<click here to read the passage)
I have spoken before of the division with which our world is wracked. It is a challenge to be in any gathering of people where an opinion is voiced and someone else has a differing opinion. Quite often, at least in current American society, they are not just different, but opinions fall into polar opposite mindsets. And when those kinds of mentalities clash, compromise is not even an option. Most times there is a my-way-or-the-highway point of view on both sides of the issue. Either you see things from my perspective, or we need to just part ways because you are wrong.
Another attribute of this common scenario is the fact that often these conversations in which we find ourselves, are not calm discussions. More often than not, it doesn’t take much for them to explode into fiery discussions of me against you.
What is especially disheartening, is that the church is in the thick of it! Astoundingly, on some fronts, people of the church are the instigators! They seem to be the loudest voices in the crowd! Their goal is to embellish their views with all kinds of churchy, self-righteous attire in an attempt to push their preeminence. “Your arguments don’t stand a chance against mine, because God is on my side!”
The “church” of Jesus’ day had their own mindsets on many things and the rules they applied to the Sabbath were a huge point of contention when it came to Jesus’ mindset. They were definitely a my-way-or-the-highway kind of people.
Pointedly, this is what Jesus had to say about the whole thing as is recorded in Mark 2:27,
“The Sabbath was made to meet the needs of people, and not people to meet the requirements of the Sabbath. NLT
Jesus didn’t mince words with them, He just stated the way it was.
In today’s passage, Jesus had healed a man and where the Jewish leaders chose to place their emphasis (forget that the man was healed!) was that Jesus had healed him on the Sabbath – GASP! And that was one of their major taboo rules – No working on the Sabbath!!
Did Jesus rant and rave? Did He clunk their heads together? Did He immediately cast them into the fiery pit of Hell? …no. He simply replied,
“My Father is always working, and so am I.” v17
So, why is our go-to response the same as the world’s? Too often we are full of condemnation. We exude self-righteousness. And answer me this question, how many people do you know who have ever been won to the Lord using those kinds of retorts? I don’t know of any.
The writer of Proverbs hits the nail on the head.
A soft and gentle and thoughtful answer turns away wrath,
But harsh and painful and careless words stir up anger. Proverbs 15:1 AMP
Interestingly enough the header over this passage in the Amplified Bible reads, “Contrast the Upright and the Wicked”. So, where do you fall?
May 17th, 2021, Mon, 6:28 pm
Random Blooming Dogwood Trees
Thank you, Father, for a full day with family. I am most assuredly blessed beyond measure!
********
This time of year, something I notice along my bus route is the number of random blooming dogwood trees amongst all the normal foliage of trees along the side of the road. I was unable to get out and take a picture when I wasn’t driving my bus, but the above picture portrays the scene very well.
You’re running along a wall of lush green, and, surprise, seemingly out of nowhere a tree full of stark white blooms bursts on the scene! They are stunningly beautiful for the few days they are in full bloom! There is absolutely no way to miss them!
Our view of the world can be very similar. But at least in my mind’s eye, instead of lush green, it is a myriad of greys…and unending drudgery of dullness, at least when it comes to our spiritual perception. That is until you come across a true believer, one who has given themselves over – heart, soul, mind, and strength – to our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ! They are a pulsating, vibrant light brightly shining amongst the grey of spiritual pallor – eternal life amongst a background of pending death.
In Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount, He proclaimed,
“You are the light of the world—like a city on a hilltop that cannot be hidden. No one lights a lamp and then puts it under a basket. Instead, a lamp is placed on a stand, where it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father.” Matthew 5:14-16NLT
As the dogwood proclaims the Father’s glory in its white purity against the lush greenery, so we must do likewise against the backdrop of the grey of death. We also must realize that though the dogwood may shine it cannot bring change to any of its brethren trees. But we, on the other hand, if we are true believers and followers of our Jesus, can bring change amongst our brothers and sisters by pointing them, to Him! You are the light of the world…let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father!
Can I get an amen?
May 16th, 2021, Sun, 9:06 pm
Don’t Throw the Baby Out with the Bathwater
A woodcut illustration showing a woman tossing a baby out with wastewater from Narrenbeschwörung (Appeal to Fools) by Thomas Murner (1512)
Come, everyone! Clap your hands!
….Shout to God with joyful praise!
For the Lord Most High is awesome.
….He is the great King of all the earth. Psalm 47:1-2 NLT
John 5:1-15 (<<click here to read the passage)
Most of us are familiar with the old idiom, “Don’t throw the baby out with the bathwater”. Wikipedia states that it is an expression for an avoidable error in which something good is eliminated when trying to get rid of something bad, or in other words, rejecting the favorable along with the unfavorable.
It is one of those phrases that has been around for a very long time. If it helps us realize how long, Martin Luther used it in his writings in the 1500s
In this passage of Scripture, Jesus had healed a man who had been sick for thirty-eight years. He was one of many sick people—blind, lame, or paralyzed—that laid on five covered porches by the pool of Bethesda in Jerusalem. vs2-5
Supposedly healing could be had by getting into the waters at just the right time but when Jesus asked, “Would you like to get well?”, he replied, “I can’t, sir…for I have no one to put me into the pool…”
So, Jesus extended His favor with His third miracle recorded in John’s Gospel by telling the sick man, “Stand up, pick up your mat, and walk!”
The big point of conflict was when the Jewish leaders took offense at him carrying around his mat…for it was the Sabbath! “You can’t work on the Sabbath! The law doesn’t allow you to carry that sleeping mat!”
Instead of rejoicing in this poor man’s miraculous healing, all they could see was that he was breaking the rules. And it must be noted that, yes, at the core of this rule was the commandment,
Remember to observe the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. You have six days each week for your ordinary work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath day of rest dedicated to the Lord your God. On that day no one in your household may do any work. Exodus 20:8-10 NLT
But the Jewish religious leaders had expanded it way beyond God’s intention. They in their zeal had “thrown the baby out with the bathwater”.
We are to obey the commands God has given us, but Jesus clearly lived out the importance of people over rules…especially when they are contrived, man-made rules. Many times, He was quick to point out that those kinds of rules have no bearing when placed beside God’s holy statutes.
God has rules, yes, but His heart is all about redeeming us. He loves beyond comprehension! The Apostle Paul writes in Romans 6:23 that the wages of sin is death, that is the rule, but God in His great mercy doesn’t leave us there. Paul continues, but the free gift of God [that is, His remarkable, overwhelming gift of grace to believers] is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. AMP
God always saves the baby (us) but can eliminate the bathwater (sin), no problem! All praise to our heavenly Father for His amazing love and grace!
May 13th, 2021, Thurs, 7:33 pm
A Cricut and the Good News
“Be still, and know that I am God!
….I will be honored by every nation.
….I will be honored throughout the world.” Psalm 46:10 NLT
John 4:43-54 (<<click here to read the passage)
Maybe you’ve heard of it and maybe not, but Karen and Massey both really enjoy working with their Cricuts. It is an apparatus that links to your computer that enables you to create all kinds of things. Basically, it cuts cardstock, vinyl, and some even cut thin wood. They have made all kinds of greeting cards out of cardstock. They have cut vinyl to apply to different surfaces. (I have a stainless-steel travel cup with a school bus and #25 on it – my bus number!) She has made stencils using vinyl – we have several beautifully painted cement pavers around the house, and they use the stencils to “etch” glass for custom decorated casserole dishes, for example.
The company started in 2003 and little by little its popularity has increased. They, I’m sure, have sold thousands of units. They continue to update and expand what their products can do. One person shows another person and they, in turn, show someone else. And honestly, it is pretty cool! Professional creation at your fingertips!
Jesus is a prime example of spreading the Good News. We’ve spoken extensively about the woman at the well. Her contact with Jesus created contact after contact until an entire village was impacted – many came to believe that Jesus was “indeed the Savior of the world.” v42b
Another example is found in today’s passage. Word was already spreading of what Jesus had done (he had turned the water into wine – John 2:1-11) and a government official, upon hearing that Jesus was once more in the area, went and begged Jesus to come to Capernaum to heal his son, who was about to die. v47
There was a bit of conversation between them and at the end of it, Jesus told him, “Go back home. Your son will live!” v50a
The man didn’t hesitate but started home.
He didn’t make it home before some of his servants met him with the news that his son was alive and well. v51
When he pinpointed the time of his son’s healing it became clear that it was the moment Jesus said his son would live!
Jesus’ single contact with this Gentile (non-Jewish) gentleman multiplied, impacting his entire household, so much so, that they all believed in Jesus.
Cricuts are a lot of fun and sharing the good news of your creativity with others brings joy to you and them. Your influence may encourage them to get their own unit. But how much better, looking at the eternity that lies before us, would others benefit by us sharing, as Jesus did, the Good News. The real, truly impacting joy we experience in Christ, will bring joy not just for the here-and-now but for ever-and-ever! Share…impact…rejoice!
May 12th, 2021, Wed, 7:26 pm