Blog Archives - WELCOME TO THE JOY OF TROY

April 30, 2021

4/30/2021

Redefining Family

        And He looked around in a circle at those who sat about Him, and said, "Here are My mother and My brothers! For whoever does the will of God is My brother and My sister and mother." Mark 3:34, 35, NKJV.

    It was His family's attempt to control Him that led Him to redefine the meaning of family. An underlying thought behind His reinterpretation of family is that certain relationships are actually closer than those of blood. It took such ties to bind together such men as Matthew the tax collector and Simon the Zealot. In their previous experience they would have welcomed each other's death. But now they belonged to the brotherhood of Jesus' inner circle. Their shared faith, dedication, goals, and experiences had welded them together with the other disciples as a family in Jesus that was infinitely more intimate for Him than His birth family.

    Two basic ideas flow out of Jesus' interactions on the issue of family in Mark 3. The first is that those who follow God will eventually find themselves in conflict with those who live by the principles of the prince of this world.

    That had certainly been the case with Jesus. In His desire to fulfill God's principles wholeheartedly, He had not only run into conflict with the religious and secular authorities but also with His flesh-and-blood family.

    Jesus' teaching must have meant a great deal to Mark's first readers. Because of their Christianity, they also had faced rejection by their families, persecution, and even brutal deaths. But now they had a new family, brothers and sisters in the faith who shared their values.

    The dynamic of both family rejection and inclusion in the family of God is still with the church in the twenty-first century. And it is still just as precious.

    A second fundamental idea that emerges from Mark 3:34, 35 is that the basis for building God's new family in Jesus is following God's will: "Whoever does the will of God is My brother and My sister and mother."

    In such dedication Jesus recognized genuine kinship; He identified a bond of union that transcends earthly relationships and would last throughout all eternity.

    Praise God that I can belong to the family of God!

April 29, 2021

4/29/2021

More Family Matters

        Then His brothers and His mother came, and standing outside they sent to Him, calling Him. And a multitude was sitting around Him; and they said to Him, "Look, Your mother and Your brothers and outside seeking You." But He answered them, saying, "Who is My mother, or My brothers?" Mark 3:31-33, NKJV

    Other than Mary and Joseph (to a lesser extent) we don't find much about Jesus' family in the New Testament. Matthew names His brothers as James, Joseph, Simon, and Judas and mentions sisters in passing (Matt. 13:55, 56).

    John tells us that His "brothers did not believe in him" and that He couldn't be straightforward about His plans with them (John 7:5, 3; cf. 10, RSV). On the other hand, the birth and early childhood narratives of Matthew and Luke leave no doubt that Mary understood and believed in her Son's forthcoming mission.

    The events of Mark 3:31-35, in which Jesus redefines His family, began in verse 21 when His brothers and mother show up to take custody of Him, fearing that He was losing His bearings. Thus the two family passages form a sandwich around the opposition of the Jerusalem scribes who believed that a devil possessed Him (verses 22-27).

    The overall pattern of verses 21-35 finds unity in that both groups oppose Jesus and believe that He is under the control of an evil power. It is impossible to say if Mary shared that attitude, or if she was merely under the domineering influence of Jesus' brothers, who had no doubts about His problems. On the other hand, she may have become discouraged. After all, things weren't turning out as she probably imagined they would. Instead of Jesus acting like the promised Messiah, as far as she could see, He was merely making a mess out of His life and heading for catastrophe.

    We can be thankful that Mark 3 is not the end of what we know about Jesus' family. Some, if not all, of His brothers eventually came to believe in Him, probably after His death and resurrection (Acts 1:14). After that, Jesus appeared to James (1 Cor. 15:7), who later became the leader of the Jerusalem church (Gal. 1:19; 2:9; Acts 12:17; 15:13; 21:18). He would also write the book that carries his name, while Jesus' brother Jude would write the letter that bears that title (James 1:1; Jude 1).

    The moral of the story: Never give up on your family, even if they think you are nuts and try to block your walk with Jesus.

April 28, 2021

4/28/2021

Jesus: Sane or Insane

        Then he went home; and the crowd came together again, so that they could not even eat. And when his family heard it, they went out to seize him, for people were saying, "He is beside himself." Mark 3:19-21, RSV.

    It must be getting pretty bad when even your family thinks you are crazy. How is it, we may be wondering, that Jesus' family could reach such a conclusion?

    If we think about it, possible reasons aren't too difficult to discover. For one, Jesus had left what was apparently a prosperous carpenter's business in Nazareth. And for what? To become a wandering teacher with no visible means of support?

    Second, Jesus wasn't coming across as politically astute. In fact, He was obviously on a collision course with both the religious and secular leaders of the nation. And He didn't even seem to care.

    Third, Jesus had formed His own little religious society--a strange one at that: fishermen, a reformed tax collector, a fanatical nationalist--riffraff. Those are not the kind of people you gather around yourself if you want to make an impact on society.

    The family could only conclude that Jesus, for all His good qualities, was losing touch with reality. Beyond that, His course of action not only endangered Himself, but might eventually put the entire family at risk. Thus their attempt to take custody of Him so that they could keep Him away from trouble. From Jesus' perspective, we can only wonder if such experiences lie behind His saying that "a man's foes will be those of his own household" (Matt. 10:36, RSV).

    What meaning does this episode have for us? Much, in every way. Madness is the verdict of the secular and even the religious world for all those who enthusiastically give their entire lives to a religious or philanthropic cause. J. D. Jones writes that "the world honors the man who for the sake of fame risks his life in battle; but if a man risks his life for souls for whom Christ died, it counts him for a fool." And Halford Luccock adds, " 'He is mad' has always been an ultimate tribute in Christian history to those who served, not two masters, but One. Paul won that distinguished service decoration. Festus cried, 'Paul, you are mad' (Acts 26:24)."

    How is it with me?

    Am I mad or just a plain old normal church member?

April 27, 2021

4/27/2021

The Danger of Negative Religion

        When the unclean spirit has gone out of a man, he passed through waterless places seeking rest, but he finds none. Then he says, "I will return to my house from which I came." And when he comes he finds it empty, swept, and put in order. Then he goes and brings with him seven other spirits more evil than himself, and they enter and dwell there; and the last state of that man becomes worse than the first. So shall it be also with this evil generation. Matt. 12:43-45, RSV.

    Christianity is not a negative.

    No one will ever be saved by what they stopped doing.

    That is the lesson Jesus teaches in Matthew 12:43-45. His closing words refer to the wayward Jewish leaders of His time. By all counts those individuals, from a human perspective, were good people. For their religion they were willing to give up almost any pleasure. They had huge lists of forbidden things that they followed in order to clean up their lives.

    In a sense they had swept their house clean and put it in order. Yet a few verses earlier we learned that they were plotting the death of Jesus (verse 14). By claiming that He was inspired by the devil (verse 27), they were committing the unpardonable sin (verses 31, 32).

    Yet they were good people. Went to church every Sabbath. Gave tithes fanatically. And kept away from bad things to eat. Their problem, Jesus points out, is that they had gotten rid of the nasty things in their life, but hadn't let God fill it with the positive. As a result, they now had a religious devil (or seven of them) and were worse off than ever, because there is no sin so deceptive as the sin of goodness and pride in one's religious achievements.

    Those kinds of people are still with us today. I once met a sanctimonious church member who was meaner than the devil. And I even encountered a vegan that could outdo the devil.

    The focal point of Christianity is not so much getting rid of the evil (although that is certainly important, even if it is only preparatory) as it is letting God's Spirit into our lives with His fruit. Not emptiness, but fullness is God's goal for each of us. Not the negative but the positive. "The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control" (Gal. 5:22, 23, RSV).

    Christianity is a positive rather than a negative. It is fullness of the Spirit rather than a mere emptiness of evil.

April 26, 2021

4/26/2021

The Ultimate End of Willful Blindness

        Wherefore I say unto you, All manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men: but blasphemy against the Holy Ghost shall not be forgiven unto men. And whosoever speaketh a word against the Son of man, it shall be forgiven him: but whosoever speaketh against the Holy Ghost, it shall not be forgiven him, neither in this world, neither in the world to come. Matt. 12:31, 32.

    The unforgivable sin!

    That is quite a thought in the light of Jesus' ministry. How could there even be such a thing as a sin that He cannot forgive? After all, yesterday we noted that Jesus forgave a woman caught in the "very act" of adultery. And the New Testament expresses full and complete forgiveness for all sorts of sins. How could there be one so serious as to be unforgivable either in this life or in eternity?

    Here we need to look a little more carefully at today's Scripture reading, which says that the unforgivable sin is blasphemy against the Holy Spirit. What does that mean?

    To get a fuller perspective we need to go to John 16:8 in which Jesus tells us that a major function of the Holy Spirit is to convict us of sin. And when He does so, I can respond in one of two ways. First, I can drop to my knees, confess, and be forgiven (1 John 1:9). Or, I can tell the Spirit to "bug off," to leave me alone, that I am happy without His interfering in my life.

    The function of the Spirit is to bring me to conviction of sin through the avenue of my conscience. Those with a healthy conscience repent, but those who consistently refuse the Spirit's ministry develop what Paul calls a "seared" (1 Tim. 4:2) or "defiled" (Titus 1:15) conscience. That is, their conscience is no longer functional. As a result, the Holy Spirit can no longer reach them. Thus they do not repent and cannot be forgiven. It is no accident that Jesus brought up this teaching in the context of the Jewish leaders labeling His ministry as from Satan (Matt. 12:27). Although they had plenty of evidence to the contrary, by ignoring the Spirit's testimony they were passing judgment on themselves and hardening their hearts. They were in the process of sealing themselves off from the only channel through which God could reach them.

    If you are worried about committing this sin, it is a good sign that you haven't done so. On the other hand, as N. T. Wright puts it, "once you declare that the only remaining bottle of water is poisoned, you condemn yourself to dying of thirst."

April 25, 2021

4/25/2021

An Illustration of Blindness and Salvation

        He stood up and said to them, "Let him who is without sin among you be the first to throw a stone at her." And once more he bent down and wrote on the ground. But when they heard it, they went away one by one, beginning with the older ones, and Jesus was left alone with the woman standing before him. Jesus stood up and said to her, "Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?" She said, "No one, Lord." And Jesus said, "Neither do I condemn you; go, and from now on sin no more." John 8:7-11, ESV.

    Caught in the "very act" of adultery.

    That is Technicolor phrase. It is difficult not to see the picture. And it is not a nice one. This woman was obviously problematic.

    Of course, there is a missing part to the story. Even holy perfectionists such as the Pharisees had to know that adultery is not a solitary pastime. Where is the man? Did they free him because he was a friend? Or was the whole thing arranged to trap Jesus? After all, if He lets the woman loose they can accuse Him of not accepting the law of Moses. But if He follows the law and advocates stoning according to the law, they can then report Him to the Romans, since He would have broken the law in issuing a death sentence. It looked like a no-lose situation to the Pharisees. No matter which way Jesus went on this case, they had Him.

    It is at that point that the Jesus who "knew what was in man" (John 2:25) stood up. His invitation was exquisite and insightful: the one without sin should throw the first stone. That unexpected move caught the scribes off guard because they knew that their Bible told them repeatedly that all had sinned.

    But in case they didn't get the point, Jesus "bent down and wrote on the ground." Many have wondered what He wrote, but the woman's accusers had no questions as they saw Him writing. To their shame, He briefly "traced before them...the guilty secrets of their own lives" (The Desire of Ages, p. 461), "beginning with the older men."

    One by one they slinked away, leaving Jesus alone with the obviously problematic woman. Unlike her "churchly" accusers, He did not tell her about her sins. She knew her faults too well. So to this woman caught in the "very act" Jesus gave the gospel in two parts:
                (1) He did not condemn her, and
                (2) He instructed the forgiven woman to go out to a new way of life.

    That is His message to me this day.

April 24, 2021

4/24/2021

Final Thoughts on Seeing

        Jesus heard that they had cast him out; and when He had found him, He said to him, "Do you believe in the Son of God?" He answered and said, "Who is He, Lord, that I may believe in Him?" And Jesus said to him, "You have both seen Him and it is He who is talking with you." Then he said, "Lord, I believe!" And he worshiped Him. And Jesus said, "For judgment I have come into this world, that those who do not see may see, and that those who see may be made blind." John 9:35-39, NKJV.

    Jesus never forsakes those who have taken their stand for Him. They may have been "cast out" as this healed man was (John 9:34), they may have had family difficulties because of their decision to follow Jesus, or they may even have lost their job. But the good news is that Jesus always sticks with us when we have decided to stick with Him.

    Thus it is that we find Jesus searching out the man who had been ostracized and guiding him further into the life of faith. To that humble individual Jesus revealed Himself to be the Son of God, and he accepted Jesus ever more fully. Loyalty to Jesus brings revelation--it results in clearer and clearer spiritual vision.

    John concludes the story of the man born blind with some of his favorite themes. First, that Jesus came into the world for judgment. Whenever Jesus confronts people, they pass judgment on themselves.

    Those who think they know it all are those who fail to recognize that they are blind indeed. It is those who are unaware of their blindness who are beyond help and hope.

    On the other hand, it is only those who realize their blindness and who desire to see better who can have their eyes opened. Only those who acknowledge their weakness can become strong. Only those who confess their blindness can learn to see. And those who recognize their own sin can be forgiven.

    Like the Pharisees of Jesus' day, it is those who feel no need who receive no help. It is those born blind and weak who gain healing.

    When confronted by Jesus we either see more clearly or become blinder than ever. Meeting Jesus is a judgment call. We can either confess our blindness and receive healing or we can claim that we already see perfectly and be left in darkness.

    Here is a priceless opportunity. And it is yours and mine as we walk through this day.

April 23, 2021

4/23/2021

More on Seeing

        For the second time they called the man who had been blind, and said to him, "Give God the praise; we know that this man is a sinner." He answered, "Whether he is a sinner; I do not know; one thing I know, that though I was blind, now I see." They said to him, "What did he do to you? How did he open your eyes?" He answered them, "I have told you already, and you would not listen. Why do you want to hear it again? Do you want to become his disciples?" John 9:24-27, RSV.

    A gutsy response to be sure. Although born blind, the man had nothing wrong with his brain or his courage or his faith.

    He had experienced the miracle of Jesus in his life and was ready to stand up for what he believed. Even in the face of powerful people. Even in the face of being ostracized.

    While he didn't understand how Jesus had done it, he knew he had been healed. And that had become the turning point in his life. No matter what the cost he would follow Jesus.

    That disgusted the authorities, who replied that they were disciples of Moses. "We know," they retorted, "that God has spoken to Moses, but as for this man, we do not know where he comes from" (John 9:29, RSV).

    The ever-perceptive healed man replied with a voice bolstered by faith, experience, and insight: "Why, this is a marvel! You do not know where he comes from, and yet he opened my eyes. We know that God does not listen to sinners, but if any one is a worshiper of God and does his will, God listens to him. Never since the world began has it been heard that any one opened the eyes of a man born blind. If this man were not from God, he could do nothing.' They answered him. 'You were born in utter sin, and would you teach us?' And they cast him out" (verses 30-34, RSV).

    One lesson this experience teaches us is that vision is directly connected to the heart. In the face of an obvious act of God, we can do one of two things. We can deny that we have seen a miracle and head in the direction of doubt. Or we can confess that we have indeed viewed the working of the Divine and enter the path of faith.

    The interesting thing about how we see is that it leads us ever more firmly in the direction in which we first responded to God's obvious work. Faith and doubt are two ways of life that solidify over time.

April 22, 2021

4/22/2021

How Do You See?

        The Pharisees again asked him how he had received his sight. And he said to them, "He put clay on my eyes, and I washed, and I see." Some of the Pharisees said, "This man is not from God, for he does not keep the sabbath." But others said, "How can a man who is a sinner do such signs?" There was a division among them. So they again said to the blind man, "What do you say about him, since he has opened your eyes?" He said, "He is a prophet." John 9:15-17, RSV.

    Seeing, for most of us, is an extremely important part of life. We cannot imagine what it is like to be blind, let alone to be born that way. Thus we are careful throughout life to protect our eyes. They are precious to us.

    In John 9 we find the story of Jesus healing a man born blind. Not exactly an everyday occasion in most neighborhoods. It wasn't in that one either. Everybody was shocked.

    The miracle was astounding. The only problem in the Jewish mind was that it happened on the weekly Sabbath. That brought the Pharisees into play.

    The best way that we can describe their spiritual vision after questioning the healed man is fuzzy and blurred. As a group they didn't know what to think. Some doubted that it had even happened until they questioned the man's parents. With that escape route to denial blocked, they faced a conundrum. Some said nobody is of God who does such things on the Sabbath. But others pointed out that sinners couldn't possibly do such a miracle. All in all, we can only consider them as confused.

    Then there were the parents. They had no doubt that their son had been born blind and now saw clearly. But in the end they let fear of getting put out of the synagogue, and possibly losing their social standing in the community, distort their own vision. As a result, they saw through eyes of fear.

    Last, there was the man himself. The most important thing to him was that he saw at all, something he had never been able to do in his entire life. He knew he had experienced a first-class miracle.

    When asked who Jesus was, he at first called Him a prophet (John 9:17). But he will eventually see Him as Lord and worship Him (verse 38). The healed man saw through the eyes of faith.

    How is it with me today? How do I see? How is my spiritual eyesight?

        Father, please help me see You more clearly. Help me to put away distorting fear. Enable me to see ever more vividly through eyes of faith.

April 21, 2021

4/21/2021

Resurrection Hope

        Verily, verily, I say unto you, The hour is coming and now is, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God: and they that hear shall live. For as the Father hath life in himself; so hath he given to the Son to have life in himself....Marvel not at this: for the hour is coming, in the which all that are in the graves shall hear his voice, and shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation. John 5:25-29.

    Here we find another topic that runs throughout John's telling of the story of Jesus. Resurrection is absolutely central to his understanding of the good news that we call the gospel. And that aspect of the good news begins with the resurrection of Jesus Himself, who rose from the grave and achieved victory over death.

    But from our perspective an important part of that narrative is that Jesus did not gain victory over death for Himself, but for each of His followers. As He put it when explaining His future resurrection to His disciples shortly before His death, "Because I live, ye shall live also" (John 14:19). Or as the same writer put it in the book of Revelation when addressed by the already risen Christ: "I am he that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death" (Rev. 1:18). Those keys, of course, point to our own resurrections.

    John 5:28 doesn't tell us when the resurrection will take place--only that it "is coming." Jesus is more explicit in John 6, in which we read, "No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him; and I will raise him up at the last day" (verse 44, RSV). Again, "he who eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day" (verse 54, RSV).

    Thus from John's Gospel we realize that that blessed event will take place at the end of time. But to read John 5:29 alone one would end up with the idea that the resurrection of life and the resurrection of damnation take place at the same time. But John corrects that part when he explains in Revelation 20 that the two resurrections will be separated by 1,000 years (the millennium), with Christ's followers arising at the Second Advent and the wicked sleeping in their graves until after the millennium.

    All will hear His voice; all will be resurrected; but what a difference in their destinies.

    Lord, help me today to put my life in the perspective of eternity. I desire with all my heart to meet You face-to-face at Your second advent.