R. G. LeTourneau was for many years an outstanding Christian businessman—heading a company which manufactured large earthmoving equipment. He once remarked, “We used to make a scraper known as ‘Model G.’ One day somebody asked our salesman what the “G” stood for. The man, who was pretty quick on the trigger, immediately replied, ‘I’ll tell you. The “G” stands for gossip because like a talebearer this machine moves a lot of dirt and moves it fast!’ ”
God had taken him out into the night and shown him the stars of heaven, and promised him, “so shall thy seed be.” There was the simple promise, unattended by any other evidence. God had said to Abram, “I am the Lord that brought you out of the Ur of the Chaldees to give you this land to inherit it.” And Abram says, “I know, and I believe it the best I can, but I do desire something additional whereby I shall know that I shall inherit this land.” Then follows one of the most profound and marvelous pictures in answer to Abram’s cry for more assurance:
“He [God] said to him, ‘Bring me a heifer three years old, a female goat three years old, a ram three years old, a turtledove, and a young pigeon.’ And he brought him all these, cut them in half, and laid each half over against the other. But he did not cut the birds in half. And when birds of prey came down on the carcasses, Abram drove them away.” (Genesis 15:9-11).
Then a few verses later, God gives Abram this wonderful picture:
“When the sun had gone down and it was dark, behold, a smoking fire pot and a flaming torch passed between these pieces. On that day the LORD made a covenant with Abram, saying, ‘To your offspring I give this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the river Euphrates’ “ (Genesis 15:17-18).
Abram had asked God for the assurance of the promises of God. Probably, as we suggested before, he was looking for some unusual manifestation, some physical experience, or some other external evidence by which he would be able to say, “Now I can be certain that God has really spoken.” But instead of this, God takes Abram to Calvary and seems to say, “The only sign I am going to give you is a picture of Calvary. If you can stand before Calvary and see all that I have done there, and then still have any doubts in your mind, there isn’t anything else that I can do for you.” He tells him to take a heifer three years old, a she goat three years old, a ram three years old, a turtledove and a pigeon; and He commands Abram to slay them.
Please read Mark 2:13-22 for the background to this section.
From Last Lesson: We have seen Jesus meeting outcasts before. We saw that Jesus is not bothered about the barriers that cut people off, not in the least.
But now the picture is worse. In this story, Jesus meets a tax collector named Levi and, astonishingly, He holds out His hand to him as well. Elsewhere (see Matthew 9:9-13), Levi is known as Matthew. That isn’t a mistake; it simply reflects the fact that people often had more than one name, even in those days, in fact we have examples from inscriptions which list both first names and surnames. Whereas the man in the earlier story had no choice about his leprosy, it was hardly his decision to become an outcast, Levi has made exactly that choice for himself. He has volunteered to do the dirty work, knowing full well what the consequences will and would be.
We need to see this from the point of view of an ordinary Jew in Galilee. Levi is in the pay of Herod Antipas, who rules Galilee under Rome’s overlordship. So, unlike Zacchaeus, that other famous tax collector down south in Jericho (see Luke 19:1-10), Levi does not work directly for the Romans. Most likely, Jesus encounters him on the edge of Capernaum, on the northern shore of the Lake of Galilee, at the point where people coming in from the neighboring territory enter Antipas’ realm. There they will come across Levi collecting customs duties on whatever they are carrying. Now that may sound innocent enough, until you realize how these tax collectors actually operated. Levi will have paid a fixed fee to buy the tax franchise for that spot. It was a bit like paying to run a burger stand at a carnival or state fair, only rather more sinister, because he was now free to charge people whatever he could screw out of them in order to increase his profits.
For our ordinary first-century Jew, then, tax collectors were offensive in at least three ways. Firstly and most obviously, they were notoriously dishonest and corrupt. Secondly, they were objectionable because their job brought them into constant contact with Gentiles, who were regarded as unclean; that meant the tax collectors were likely to be permanently unclean as well. The Talmud, that great multi-volume compendium of rules and commentary, lists tax collectors along with murderers and robbers and disqualifies them as witnesses in court. Thirdly, they were “quislings,” working for the establishment, for the Herod’s, who were known as a gang of criminals and were only puppets of the Roman overlords. So anyone with an ounce of patriotism, even if he had no time for religious rules, was still going to hate these people.
This is the man Jesus meets as He makes His way from the side of the lake back home to Capernaum, no doubt still followed by a considerable throng. Levi sits there by the road ready to demand payment from any likely-looking victims; we can imagine everyone shuffling past on the other side of the street. But Jesus is different. He walks up to Levi, this “quisling,” and simply says, “Follow me.” You can almost hear the sound of jaws dropping. But Levi actually gets to his feet and goes with Jesus. Much remains unsaid in Mark’s account. We don’t know what runs through Levi’s mind. We don’t know what else is said. But we do know that Jesus has called and Levi has responded.
Lord, hear our prayer:
Our Lord, Redeemer and King, we thank you for his life, death and resurrection and that through the Holy Spirit he enables us to serve others in his name. Lord, touch our hearts with the Spirit, transform our service by your grace. Guide our words, our actions and our service, that in everything Christ may receive the glory and others may be set free for his praise. In the name of the Servant King.
Amen.
Thinking, praying, reading, studying the Bible – when we do these things, we are reflecting on the Word of God. To reflect is to contemplate and/or consider, and God wants us to deeply reflect on His Word so that we can better understand Him.
For at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light. – Ephesians 5:8.
It is only light that can enlighten. It is only fire that can kindle flame. Hence if we would illuminate others, we must have light in ourselves; and if we would kindle the flame of piety in the hearts of others, we must take the “live coal” with which we do so from the burning “altar” of our own spirit.
~ TAYLOR
Friday June 28, 2024
Matthew 20:1
“For the kingdom of heaven is like a master of a house who went out early
in the morning to hire laborers for his vineyard.”
The greatest work ever begun upon this earth was planned and started by Jesus.
He seeks nothing less than this: to bring heaven down to earth. He often spoke of it as establishing the kingdom of God on earth.
In our Word today He speaks of it as God’s garden on earth.
Humanity began its life on earth, too, in the garden of God. But sin made of the earth a waste of thorns, thistles, and weeds of all kinds. And now in order that there might be a garden of God on earth again, it had to be watered with God’s own blood. It becomes very costly to have to purchase a garden site with one’s own blood!
He would have the most costly soil of all for His garden—human hearts, where sin has wreaked its worst destruction.
It is a thought full of joy that Jesus is to transform the race and the earth which have been cursed by sin into a very garden of God again. That He will not stop until the new earth stands there as God’s perfect garden, gloriously laden with ripened fruit.
And our hearts are filled with gratitude at the thought that there is a garden of God here on earth, and that we, with our little lives, have been planted within the divine hedge surrounding this garden. Ever since our baptismal hour.
First, this, that I am under His protection. He cares for His plants. My life shall be a success!
In the second place, that I am under the daily supervision of Jesus. He directs the growth of His plants. He waters, dungs, and prunes them.
What a joy to live one’s life in the garden of God! Planted in the sacred soil of Calvary, with the rain of heaven and the sunlight of grace falling upon the heart-leaves of one’s life!
We live in the age of online résumés, with pages dedicated to us and our faces. We can broadcast our thoughts in seconds and republish ideas that make us look smart by association. And we do it all in an effort to earn recognition or acceptance. We want to be heard in the midst of the noise—to earn a spot in the spotlight. The works of the law that drove Judaism in the first century ad weren’t much different; they were pitched as a way to obtain God’s favor as well as the favor of others.
Paul responds to the ideals of his age:
“Who has bewitched you, before whose eyes Jesus Christ was publicly portrayed as having been crucified? I want only to learn this from you: Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith?” (Galatians 3:1-2).
Paul’s questions are rhetorical. We’re not saved by works, but by the graciousness of God. It is not through works that the Spirit dwells among us, but through God’s goodness shown in sending His Son to earth to die for humanity and then rise again.
We struggle to admit that we’re looking for recognition—both from God and others. We know we can’t earn our way into heaven, but that doesn’t stop us from trying. We still think that if we can be good enough, smart enough, or successful enough, God and others will accept us. It’s a game we play that is for naught—we cannot earn what God offers.
Please read Mark 2:1-12 for the background to this section.
From Last Lesson: The fact that Jesus has healed the man with a word excludes the possibility that He is a harmless madman. The fact that He lives a humble life and accepts the rejects of society excludes the possibility that He is an evil tyrant . . .
. . . (Consider this; even Hitler, an obvious evil tyrant, spoke with authority). The only option left is the hardest one of all . . . that He is actually who He claims to be; He is what the Bible points us to: He is the man who is God.
What, then, is the reaction on the day, as the crowd finds their voice, as the teachers sit there in judgement, as the man walks away and his friends celebrate on what is left of the roof? The law teachers will soon be back. In this story, they have merely grumbled quietly, but the accusation of blasphemy will not go away. Even when they see the evidence with their own eyes, as they do here, most of the religious leaders will never accept the verdict. To them Jesus is dangerous, subversive, a threat to their own position. In the end He simply has to go. This cycle of five stories sees the intensity of opposition steadily mounting; eventually it will lead to Jesus’ crucifixion.
The crowd’s reaction is best described by their exclamation, “We never saw anything like this!” They have seen the healings before, though this is probably the most spectacular yet. They have heard Jesus teach before. What is new is the pointer to who Jesus really is. They praise God because they now see His hand clearly at work and they begin to glimpse that Jesus is something more than a prophet and healer. But do they really make the connection? Sadly, from what follows, it seems that most of them do not.
Please read Mark 2:13-22 for the background to this section.
How would you feel if your name became a byword for betrayal? In the years before the Second World War, Vidkun Quisling was a gifted Norwegian diplomat, army officer and politician. But in 1933 he founded the Norwegian Nazi party, and when Nazi Germany invaded his country in April 1940, Quisling attempted to seize power. He betrayed his own people, urging them not to resist the invasion, and managed to delay the mobilization of the army. Later the Germans made him head of state of occupied Norway. Not surprisingly, at the end of the war he was tried and executed for high treason. Now in the dictionary a “quisling” is defined as a traitor who serves the enemy occupying his country. When Jesus was on earth, there was a group of professionals who fitted the word “quisling” perfectly. At a time when their country was occupied by Rome, and the area of Galilee where they lived was under the control of a puppet government, these men made their living by exploiting their own people and helping the occupiers to do their dirty work. Not surprisingly, they were detested. These lowest of the low were the “tax collectors,” and in the next verses we see that Jesus meets one of them.
We have seen Jesus meeting outcasts before. At the end of chapter 1, He meets a man with leprosy; He reaches out across the barriers to touch the man and bring the outcast in. We saw that Jesus is not bothered about the barriers that cut people off, not in the least.
Lord, hear our prayer:
Mighty God, holy and true, we thank you for those who fight against injustice and corruption, those who teach the minds of the young and those who care for the lives of those who are sick. We thank you for Christ, the Suffering Servant, who freely gave his life that we might freely live in the presence and power of God. We thank you for the light that Christ Jesus is to all peoples.
Amen.
Thinking, praying, reading, studying the Bible – when we do these things, we are reflecting on the Word of God. To reflect is to contemplate and/or consider, and God wants us to deeply reflect on His Word so that we can better understand Him.
Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children. And walk in love, as Christ loved. – Ephesians 5:1-2.
We cannot expect successfully to imitate Christ, unless we contemplate His person, any more than a painter can reproduce a landscape without his studying it and drinking in the spirit which pervades the whole. We must take time to sit at His feet, studying His character as revealed to us in the Gospels, and being transformed, as it were, unconsciously into His image. What we want is not more knowledge of truth, but more practical carrying it out.
~ R. H. SCHOFIELD
Thursday June 27, 2024
Jeremiah 1:8
“I am with you to deliver you,” declares the LORD.
God promised Jeremiah that He would deliver him personally—“Thy life will I give unto thee for a prey.” That is all God promises His children. Wherever God sends us, He will guard our lives. Our personal property and possessions are a matter of indifference, we have to sit loosely to all these things; if we do not, there will be panic and heartbreak and distress. That is the inwardness of the overshadowing of personal deliverance.
The Sermon on the Mount indicates that when we are on Jesus Christ’s errands, there is no time to stand up for ourselves. Jesus says, in effect, ‘Do not be bothered with whether you are being justly dealt with or not.’ To look for justice is a sign of deflection from devotion to Him. Never look for justice in this world, but never cease to give it. If we look for justice, we will begin to grouse and to indulge in the discontent of self-pity—‘Why should I be treated like this?’ If we are devoted to Jesus Christ we have nothing to do with what we meet, whether it is just or unjust. Jesus says—‘Go steadily on with what I have told you to do and I will guard your life. If you try to guard it yourself, you remove yourself from My deliverance.’ The most devout among us become atheistic in this connection; we do not believe God, we enthrone common sense and tack the name of God on to it. We do lean to our own understanding, instead of trusting God with all our hearts.
We’re fine with the idea of God being our savior, but we’re not always keen on the notion of letting Him transform every area of our lives. We often emphasize sharing the gospel, but do we consider the reality of the outcome?
It’s a question Paul poses to the church in Galatia. Typically, when Paul opens a letter to a church, he follows his greeting with a prayer of thanksgiving for the members of the community. But in his correspondence with the Galatians, he skips the niceties and opts for a biting remark, signaling that something is drastically wrong.
“I am astonished that you are turning away so quickly from the one who called you by the grace of Christ to a different gospel, not that there is a different gospel, except there are some who are disturbing you and wanting to distort the gospel of Christ” (Galatians 1:6-9).
Paul’s message is especially cutting because the Galatians knew better. Paul himself had preached the gospel to them. After he left and false teachers infiltrated the community, the Galatians veered off course. Instead of holding to the true teaching or even testing these teachers’ claims against the gospel message, the Galatians adopted a new, counterfeit gospel.
Paul interrogates the Galatians, who may have been affected by the teaching of people who wanted them to adopt Jewish legal requirements, asking:
“Did you receive the Spirit by works of the law or by hearing with faith? Are you so foolish? Having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by the flesh?” (Galatians 3:2-3).
The simple gospel had been cluttered by attempts to remain obedient to the law. The believers were no longer living in the Spirit.
We are prone to push aside the lesson in this passage by claiming that it’s specific to that context, but we might be guilty of this very fault. Do we think of becoming a Christian—getting saved—as the end of the journey? The reality of the gospel should affect all areas of our lives, which can now be used to give God the glory. Our entire lives—our thought processes, our ideals and theologies, our relationships—should reflect Christ and be shaped by the Spirit. The gospel isn’t for one moment. It’s going to transform everything.
Please read Mark 2:1-12 for the background to this section.
From Last Lesson: The Jews were very clear on this: one God; one authority; one place to deal with sins . . . the judgement seat of God. They were right. What Jesus has just said is blasphemy, in their eyes: He is claiming to hold the authority of God.
They don’t say it aloud, but Jesus knows, and perhaps that fact should have suggested something, “Why do you reason about these things in your hearts?” Notice how Jesus says this. He does not condemn the teachers. Their point is a fair one. Any of us who believe in God ought to ask the same question. So in verse 9 Jesus comes back with a question of His own, a technique He often uses. What is the answer? Obviously, it is easy to say words. The question is really: “Which of these is easier to do, to forgive, or to heal an incurable illness with a simple word?” The answer, of course, is that neither is easier, because both are impossible, for a man on his own. Both are impossible, and this is indeed blasphemy, unless Jesus Himself carries the very authority of God.
At this point in Mark’s narrative, a tricky question of interpretation arises. To whom is Jesus speaking in the first part of verse 10? “Son of Man” is a title that Jesus adopts for Himself. It originates with the vision in Daniel 7:13-14, where Daniel sees “one like the Son of Man” coming into the presence of God and being given authority, power and an everlasting kingdom. Understood in that way, the title therefore carries great weight and implies great claims, but on the other hand, the phrase “Son of Man” actually means no more than “member of the human race.” So it is really a rather ambiguous expression, well suited to Jesus, who is being so cautious about revealing His identity. The tricky question here in this verse, therefore, is this: would Jesus, at this point in His ministry, make such an open declaration of His own authority, especially in front of his opponents? Even as late as a few days before His death, Jesus refuses to be so open with them (see Mark 11:33). It seems much more likely, and it makes better sense of the broken sentence structure which comes over even in the English translation, that the first part of the verse is an “aside” by Mark, addressed to his own readers, pointing out to them that the Jesus they follow does indeed possess the authority to forgive. Then in the second part of the verse the story itself resumes.
In front of the whole crowd, in the face of the lawyers lined up by the wall, and without even a touch from the hand of Jesus, the paralyzed man rises to his feet, bends down again, rolls up his mattress, puts it over his shoulder and makes his way out through the throng of people. So which is easier? The point is that the healing proves that Jesus is genuine. Although the Old Testament prophets occasionally healed people, no real prophet ever claimed to forgive sins. But Jesus does! Now it is up to the crowd and the teachers of the law to draw the correct conclusions. The fact that Jesus has healed the man with a word excludes the possibility that He is a harmless madman. The fact that He lives a humble life and accepts the rejects of society excludes the possibility that He is an evil tyrant . . .
Lord, hear our prayer:
Father, our Lord and God, we thank you for all who serve you and whose service is part of their worship; for those who add a great deal to our lives and for those without whose care and concern our lives would be much poorer. We thank you for those who have given their hearts and lives to Christ and, having done so, have spent their days living for him and proclaiming his love; for those whose loving service brings wholeness to others and for those who risk everything to set others free from slavery to sin and addiction. In the name of the greatest Servant, Christ Jesus we give you thanks.
Amen.
Thinking, praying, reading, studying the Bible – when we do these things, we are reflecting on the Word of God. To reflect is to contemplate and/or consider, and God wants us to deeply reflect on His Word so that we can better understand Him.
Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you. – Ephesians 4:32.
As a seal leaves a mark of itself in the wax, whereby it is known; so it is with every one who has a readiness to forgive others; for by it the Christian may know that God has sealed the forgiveness of his sins upon his heart.
~ CAWDRAY
Wednesday June 26, 2024
Matthew 9:36
When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them.
He is able to be “touched with the feeling of our infirmities.” The word “touched” expresses a great deal. It means that our troubles are His troubles, and that in all our afflictions He is afflicted. It is not a sympathy of sentiment, but a sympathy of suffering.
There is much help in this for the tired heart. It is the foundation of His Priesthood, and God meant that it should be to us a source of unceasing consolation. Let us realize, more fully, our oneness with our Great High Priest, and cast all our burdens on His great heart of love. If we know what it is to ache in every nerve with the responsive pain of our suffering child, we can form some idea of how our sorrows touch His heart, and thrill His exalted frame. As the mother feels her babe’s pain, as the heart of friendship echoes every cry from another’s woe, so in heaven, our exalted Saviour, even amid the raptures of that happy world, is suffering in His Spirit and even in His flesh with all His children bear. “Seeing then we have such a great high Priest, let us come boldly to the throne of grace,” and let us come to our great High Priest.
Trust is a fickle matter. What does it take for us to trust another person—especially with our livelihood? Our decision to trust someone can usually be determined by whether we see God in that person.
When the Shunammite woman must decide whether to trust Elisha, it is a simple choice. God has already worked in her life through Elisha—giving her a son and then resurrecting him—so she understands that what he says is from Yahweh. When Elisha says to her, “Get up and go, you and your household, and dwell as an alien wherever you can, for Yahweh has called for a famine, and it will come to the land for seven years,” she trusts him (2 Kings 8:1). She goes to Philistia (2 Kings 8:2).
Would we do the same—leave everything and go to a foreign land at one godly person’s word? What does it take for us to trust someone with our lives? What does it take for us to trust God with our lives?
We will probably never encounter the decision the Shunammite woman had to make, but contemplating our answer reveals where we stand with God and others. It’s tempting to answer with a quick, “Of course,” but that would be to ignore the magnitude of her decision, and thus deny the seriousness of what God really asks of us—complete obedience, no matter what, to any degree necessary. Think about that for a moment; any degree necessary (compare Mark 8:34-38).
Are we really willing to acknowledge the gravity of what Jesus did in His death and resurrection (Mark 16:1-10)? Are we willing to live our lives as He intends? Are we willing to go to any place, to trust the word of God completely, to allow God to speak to us directly and through others, and to live passionately for Christ despite the cost?
Please read Mark 2:1-12 for the background to this section.
From Last Lesson: Jesus is not actually healing today. Time and again He makes it clear that His priority is to declare this message: the Kingdom of God is near.
But then, suddenly, here come some new arrivals: a group of five men, four of them struggling along supporting the four corners of a simple mattress on which lies their paralyzed friend. Maybe they missed their chance when Jesus was here before, or maybe his disease is very recent, but they are not going to miss Him again. They haul their friend up the steps onto the flat roof and then, in desperation they begin to dismantle the roof of the house, which probably consists of wooden rafters, straw and clay. They use their bare hands. Imagine how you would feel if you had a house full of visitors, and suddenly there was a noise overhead, a few lumps of plaster came crashing down and, the next thing you knew, a cheery face appears through a fresh hole in the ceiling! I think you would remember that day for sure! In all likelihood, this is Simon Peter’s own house and this is his own eyewitness account.
Fortunately for them, the four friends have chosen just the right spot at which to dig, because now here comes the man on his mattress dangling and swaying until he lands right in front of Jesus. It is fortunate because there are some people in the room who certainly wouldn’t be impressed if a loaded mattress were to land in their laps! These men are the teachers of the law, the scribes who first appeared in Mark 1:22. They are the professionals, legal experts, as it were, theologically trained to sniff out error. They are not here by accident. It seems that they are on a fact-finding mission, a commission of inquiry sent down from religious headquarters in Jerusalem to track down the rumors about a man called Jesus who is operating around Galilee. Undoubtedly, as they sit there like judges, they are very suspicious.
So the mat reaches the floor. The crowded room falls silent. The man lies rigid; he can’t move. The law teachers pick crumbs of clay off their white robes. Four faces peer expectantly down from above. What will Jesus say? “Son, your sins are forgiven you.” If it was quiet before, you could hear a pin drop now. The shock arises not for the reason we might have thought: we might be surprised because we would think a paralyzed man needs healing, not forgiving. But these people understand that there could be a link between the sin in someone’s life and his physical condition. They understand what many do not, that sin means rebellion against God, and only God can set us free from the prison it creates by forgiving us. Nothing can be more urgent than that. It’s not the idea of forgiveness that shocks them, but the fact that Jesus claims to be handing it out in His own right. They know there is only One who can forgive sins, and that’s God Himself!
Thus far at least, the law teachers are right to think as they do. The Jews were very clear on this: one God; one authority; one place to deal with sins . . . the judgement seat of God. They were right. What Jesus has just said is blasphemy, in their eyes: He is claiming to hold the authority of God.
Walk properly toward those who are outside [the faith]. – 1 Thessalonians 4:12.
There are good reasons for this exhortation. Such behavior does win the respect of non-Christians and so glorifies the Christian’s God. Love of this kind is appreciated by everyone. Paul placed importance on the testimony of Christians before outsiders, unbelievers. This kind of behavior also wins the respect of Christians; people appreciate those who do not take advantage of them. Paul discouraged the Thessalonians from expecting financial favors from the brethren simply because they were fellow Christians. Nor was he promoting a fierce spirit of independence; he was not saying that every Christian must become completely self-sufficient. He was advocating personal responsibility, as is clear from the context. This is a manifestation of mature Christian love for the brethren.
Lord, hear our prayer:
Master and King, we ask that you will go on filling our hearts and our lives with a deep sense of gratitude for all we have received at your hand, that we too may be witnesses to your glory and bring joy to the heart of the Lord. We thank you for increased faith by which we can please you and ask that this same faith will shine in the lives of those we meet. In the name of Christ our Savior.
Amen.
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