When Judas Brings Darkness

 

Wednesday of Holy Week, March 31, 2021

Now Jesus was deeply troubled, and he exclaimed, “I tell you the truth, one of you will betray me!”  The disciples looked at each other, wondering whom he could mean.  The disciple Jesus loved was sitting next to Jesus at the table.   Simon Peter motioned to him to ask, “Who’s he talking about?”  So that disciple leaned over to Jesus and asked, “Lord, who is it?”  Jesus responded, “It is the one to whom I give the bread I dip in the bowl.”  And when he had dipped it, he gave it to Judas, son of Simon Iscariot.  When Judas had eaten the bread, Satan entered into him.  Then Jesus told him, “Hurry and do what you’re going to do.”  None of the others at the table knew what Jesus meant. Since Judas was their treasurer, some thought Jesus was telling him to go and pay for the food or to give some money to the poor.  So Judas left at once, going out into the night.  John 13:21-30

When you’re very familiar with a story, having read it many times before, you can miss some important phrases.  This morning they jumped off the page to grab me by the heart and throat. 

Satan entered into him…is a chilling reminder of how someone who chooses to believe in Jesus can turn on a dime if their belief is mixed with self-serving.  Judas was the treasurer, and being too close to the money was too much of a temptation for him.  (This, by-the-way, is not a blanket indictment of those who handle the financial necessities of church organizations.  I have known, and worked with treasurers of many churches – my own father included…mostly they are humble, honest, and only willing to serve God).  I believe Judas let the growing purse influence his understanding of God’s Kingdom.  He idolized the cash flow, and it began to pave the way for Satan to open his heart’s door.

So Judas left at once, going out into the night.  Going out into the night wasn’t just describing the time after the sun went down in the sky, but how the light of Christ’s love was forsaken in favor of following after the purse.

The fact that Judas was still with Jesus at the Last Supper indicates he still had a choice.  Scripture records that Jesus offered the piece of bread after dipping in the bowl, a sign of friendship and an offer of shared intimacy between close friends.  Taking the bread was the response of welcome, and shared joy.  This was the choice Judas made to betray Jesus.  His actions declared love for Jesus; his heart was counting on filling the purse with 30 pieces of silver.

And this is the danger for any of us who openly bear the name of disciple; our hearts are not hardened bastilles, they are vulnerable.  Our compassion makes us so, willing to be servant, helper, doers of good.  Satan is more than willing to use that against us.  This is why we are cautioned to be on guard, vigilant against the evil Satan wants to carry into the open doors of our hearts.

Stay alert!  Watch out for your great enemy, the devil.  He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour.  1 Peter 5:8

Most of us would not name a child “Judas”.  The name carries too much weight of betrayer, or not-to-be-trusted.  As such, when we hear that name, it is too easy to simply think of the despised cheat.  We miss the greater threat we each face, understanding that we are also following the same master and subject to the same temptation as Judas. 

·       It may be the purse, like Judas

·       It may be ambition like James and John wanting inner-circle privilege

·       It may be cowardice to witness like Peter, denying his Master at trial

It could be any of our little weakness proclivities that Satan knows how to exploit and nurture into full-blown betrayal. 

Is there any wonder we are called to a daily walk, a moment-by-moment conversation with our God that never really puts an “amen” to the end of our  prayers…but remains an open line of short accounts?

For You Today

A good check on how close to being Judas, (for any of us), is to set an hourly alarm reminder to consider if we’ve been on the alert to share Christ with someone, or thinking of that person who needs a word of encouragement, or if we’ve been mindful of God’s leading in every area of our life and relationships.

You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road; have a blessed day!  

[1] Title Image:  By Nikolai Ge, Public Domain, via Wikimedia Commons                                                              Unless noted, Scripture quoted from The New Living Translation^©

When Intelligence Turns Foolish

 

Tuesday of Holy Week, March 30, 2021

The message of the cross is foolish to those who are headed for destruction! But we who are being saved know it is the very power of God.  As the Scriptures say, “I will destroy the wisdom of the wise and discard the intelligence of the intelligent.”  So where does this leave the philosophers, the scholars, and the world’s brilliant debaters?  God has made the wisdom of this world look foolish.  Since God in his wisdom saw to it that the world would never know him through human wisdom, he has used our foolish preaching to save those who believe.  It is foolish to the Jews, who ask for signs from heaven.  And it is foolish to the Greeks, who seek human wisdom.  So when we preach that Christ was crucified, the Jews are offended and the Gentiles say it’s all nonsense.  But to those called by God to salvation, both Jews and Gentiles, Christ is the power of God and the wisdom of God.  This foolish plan of God is wiser than the wisest of human plans, and God’s weakness is stronger than the greatest of human strength.  1 Corinthians 1:18-25

There is a lot of intelligence in the world.  From Albert Einstein, to all the medical, political, and social scientists, added to space engineers, agricultural wizzards of GMO fame, and those who put astronauts in space (particularly those who bring them back safe to earth), the wisdom of humanity has a handle on a quantum truckload of intelligence.

But there is a limit!

The question, answered by Apostle Paul’s message to the Corinthian believers, is when does man’s intelligence turn foolish?  Paul’s answer is that humanity’s intelligence places itself in the trash can when it starts to battle against faith, and, in particular, faith regarding the cross, tomb, and resurrection.

In Paul’s Jewish frame of reference all humanity was categorized as either Jew or Gentile.  And both were guilty of the foolishness of denying the cross. 

To the Jews, who were looking for a Messiah to rule over earth, it was an offense to imagine he would be hung on a cross like a common criminal; it was a curse.  To the Gentiles, particularly the philosophers, thinkers, and debaters, the whole idea of power without human intelligence that can be proven and held in hand, was just pure nonsense.  In other words, faith, genuine faith that trusts God to handle our biggest problem is unnecessary; we can figure it out, thank you very much…no higher power needed.

For humans, endowed with sentient life – an awareness of both sensory and abstract dimensions of existance – dependence on some unseen “Creator” is a nonsequitur – there isn’t anything we can’t do for ourselves, so creating a creator is for the foolish and weak. 

However, for those who care to admit the truth, we don’t have nearly the intelligence with which we credit ourselves.  Chief among the evidence is the most basic question (and, arguably the most important question), that question of what happens when this life is over.  To deny the continuance of sentient existance solely on the basis of flesh decomposing, is to push an argument from silence.  No life seen is only proof that you cannot see with human eyes, or measure with human intelligence, what lies beyond the grave.  There are some things the 0’s and 1’s of aritificial intelligence cannot measure.

For that you need faith.

For You Today

We’re into the sacred season of faith known as Holy Week…the passion is unfolding, and the faithful are seeing the evidence of things not seen.[1] 

All true intelligence is born of, and lives-in faith in God, the author of faith[2].

You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road; have a blessed day!  

[1] Title Image:  Courtesy of Pixabay.com    Unless noted, Scripture quoted from The New Living Translation^©

---

[1] Hebrews 11:1

[2] Hebrews 12:2

Fans, Friends & Followers

 

Monday of Holy Week, March 29, 2021

Some Greeks who had come to Jerusalem for the Passover celebration paid a visit to Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee.  They said, “Sir, we want to meet Jesus.”  Philip told Andrew about it, and they went together to ask Jesus.  Jesus replied, “Now the time has come for the Son of Man to enter into his glory.  I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat is planted in the soil and dies, it remains alone.  But its death will produce many new kernels—a plentiful harvest of new lives.  Those who love their life in this world will lose it.  Those who care nothing for their life in this world will keep it for eternity.  Anyone who wants to serve me must follow me, because my servants must be where I am.  And the Father will honor anyone who serves me.  John 12:20-26

Nobody wants to be stuck in a category, labeled like a cut of beef in a grocery store display.  But the fact remains we label ourselves by our actions.  When it comes to Jesus Christ, the labels are fans, friends, and followers.  Sometimes the line between these is a little blurry.  Let’s clear the air.

Fans are those who read the press reports and box scores.  They’re interested, in a curiosity sense, wanting to know all about what this sensation, Jesus is up to.  It is, after all, quite a fascinating thing to see people, who were lame for 38 years, jump-up and dance into the temple.

Friends are those who want to be a little closer, like the Greeks who talked with Philip.  They wanted to know more.  Today we would call them seekers.  They want to meet Jesus.  There might be a motive in the background, a thought that connects their dots on what life holds for those who follow Jesus around.

Followers move a little closer, hanging around to see what happens.  They choose to get involved so they won’t miss a single tweet, text, or email.  There’s a sense that there might be some great benefit just around the next miracle that will put them in a higher category…some new membership bonus.  Something like Frequent Flyer Miles that you want to pack-away for a spiritually rainy day; just in case!

Now, if that isn’t enough in the categories of spiritual life choices, there is one more, but it is something of a hot-to-the-touch variety; the label is Christian. 

Whoa…time-out; what’s so out there about Christian?  Aren’t there a lot of them?  Well, yes, but not as many as are reported on the census-taker’s final tally.  There are quite a few fans, friends, and followers, but it takes more than being raised in a preacher or deacon’s home to actually qualify as Christian.  It takes the transformation Jesus offers when a person choses to lay-aside all his prerogatives and serve Jesus. 

Another word for this category is disciple.  It is that willingness to take the back seat, rather than jump in the pilot’s chair.  It’s choosing to serve, rather than be-served.  It’s the cross, rather than being chief.  Without the pro-active decision to give up my way for His way, no one is a Christian.  Jesus said so:

Whoever wants to be a leader among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first among you must be the slave of everyone else.  For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve others and to give his life as a ransom for many.”  Mark 10:43b-45

In 21^st century culture we’re big on having choices…iPhones or Androids, virtual or in-person; even Burger King offers to have it your way.  One way that culture and Christ agree is that, whether or not we become disciples of Jesus Christ is definitely a matter of choice. 

There are those who choose to go to church, sing in a choir, give some money into the offering plate, and even preach a sermon.  That doesn’t make one a Christian, any more than a cat living in an abandoned field and sleeping in an old rusted stove make him a biscuit.  That’s just a matter of location and activity, not answering the call to serve the Master.

For You Today

So, the question almost begs itself, are you a fan…a friend…a follower… or a disciple?  Choose.

You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road; have a blessed day!  

[1] Title Image:  Courtesy of Pixabay.com    Unless noted, Scripture quoted from The New Living Translation^©

Nevertheless

 

Friday, March 26, 2021

While Jeremiah was still confined in the courtyard of the guard, the Lord gave him this second message:  “This is what the Lord says—the Lord who made the earth, who formed and established it, whose name is the Lord:  Ask me and I will tell you remarkable secrets you do not know about things to come.  For this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says:  You have torn down the houses of this city and even the king’s palace to get materials to strengthen the walls against the siege ramps and swords of the enemy.  You expect to fight the Babylonians, but the men of this city are already as good as dead, for I have determined to destroy them in my terrible anger.  I have abandoned them because of all their wickedness.  “Nevertheless, the time will come when I will heal Jerusalem’s wounds and give it prosperity and true peace.  I will restore the fortunes of Judah and Israel and rebuild their towns.  I will cleanse them of their sins against me and forgive all their sins of rebellion.  Then this city will bring me joy, glory, and honor before all the nations of the earth!  The people of the world will see all the good I do for my people, and they will tremble with awe at the peace and prosperity I provide for them.  Jeremiah 33:1-9

Jeremiah the prophet was in jail.  This is the same guy who wrote about calling on the Lord for answers, and he’s in a pit for telling the truth about Israel’s sin, and how God would use the Babylonians, despised pagans, to destroy the Holy City. 

This was the same Jeremiah who earlier wrote[1] words of joy and good plans for hope and a future.  Now he tells the men of the city to not waste their time fighting God’s enemy, Nebuchadnezzar, the Babylonian king…Jerusalem’s freedom fighters are already as good as dead.  I suppose it was anybody’s guess which Jeremiah would show up on a given day, optimist or pessimist!

However, after predicting the fall of Jerusalem (which did happen), Jeremiah’s prophecy turns on a dime with one word:  NEVERTHELESS!

The prophet speaks of a time when God would forgive, heal, and prosper His people.  The words are as gracious and hope-filled as the former words were frightening:  heal, prosperity, peace, restore, rebuild, cleanse, forgive, joy, glory, honor, good.

Nevertheless – what a word; what a welcome word! 

God’s promises are like that.  With a single word, even spoken from a jail cell, God’s righteous judgment can send us into waves of shock and despair over our rebellious, sinful ways.  And with another word of hope, restoration, and forgiveness, the despair becomes light and a future.

There are people, like you, like me, who have plummed the depths of despair.  We know our sins, and how much we’ve strayed from God’s pathway.  We know how dark our minds and hearts can grow.  We’ve seen the wrong side of living. 

And, yet, there is that one word…Nevertheless!

For You Today

So…what kind of voice from the pit calls to you today? 

If your Jeremiah’s words are despairing, grief, and looming destruction, own them and lay them at the foot of the cross.  The “nevertheless” still stands.  He will heal, restore, bless, and….well, you get the idea!

You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road; have a blessed day!  

[1] Title Image:  Courtesy of Pixabay.com    Unless noted, Scripture quoted from The New Living Translation^©

---

[1] See Jeremiah 29:11  For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.

A Meal on the Move

 

Thursday, March 25, 2021

“In honor of the Lord your God, celebrate the Passover each year in the early spring, in the month of Abib, for that was the month in which the Lord your God brought you out of Egypt by night.  Your Passover sacrifice may be from either the flock or the herd, and it must be sacrificed to the Lord your God at the designated place of worship—the place he chooses for his name to be honored.  Eat it with bread made without yeast.  For seven days the bread you eat must be made without yeast, as when you escaped from Egypt in such a hurry.  Eat this bread—the bread of suffering—so that as long as you live you will remember the day you departed from Egypt.  Deuteronomy 16:1-3

Passover is this Saturday.  It is the celebration of Israel’s liberation from Egyptian bondage.  

It is also called the meal of haste, because the Israelites had to prepare and eat it in a hurry.  Even the bread was made without giving it a chance to rise. 

But there is a more important symbol than unleavened bread; it is remembering what is important.  Leaving bondage to enter freedom was the main thing.  Eating is a necessity, but freedom is like breath to the lungs, and life to the soul.  Eating the meal on the move was a solemn reminder that, when you are leaving something behind, you’re moving on to what’s ahead.

The meal on the move is not a strange thing in our culture; who hasn’t been through the drive-up at a fast food place?  Unfortunately we do that too much.  (Of course we’re paying more than just the cashier for this “privilege” – over the last 30 years children ages 6-19 moving into the obese category have more than trippled.)[1]

But there is much more than just having a meal.  This “feast” is detailed in Scripture telling us volumes about the meaning of Passover and us.

The place

The meal is to be eaten at the place God chose; it brings family together.

The “why”

The meal honors God for every freedom and joy we can possibly know.

The “when”

It is celebrated on the anniversary of release from Egyptian bondage.

The “what”

The meal consists of an animal from the family’s flock, bread, bitter herbs, and more – all with meaning tied to suffering and redemption.

The “worship”

This meal is solemn remembrance, a necessary reminder of why our souls give thanks to God.

The “memory of suffering and promise of redemption”

For Israel, they were to celebrate for 7 days, a subtle reminder of creation’s time, necessary bondage, purification, and much more, all pointing towards the Father’s redeeming/saving hand.

This may be a meal on the move, but it isn’t a mindless drive-thru 1800 calories; this is food for the soul.

In our faith tradition, dinner on the grounds may be much more cultural fast food, than Passover.  Not many Christian churches celebrate the feast of unleavened bread.  We come close with our Lord’s Supper celebration.

For You Today

The next time your church celebrates communion of the Lord’s Supper, perhaps it would be a good preparation to re-read the Exodus account, and dig-in a little on the Passover’s details.  The release of our souls from the bondage of sin is what the whole of Passover is about.  What’s not to celebrate?

You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road; have a blessed day!  

[1] Title Image:  Courtesy of Pixabay.com    Unless noted, Scripture quoted from The New Living Translation^©

---

[1] Do Fast Food Restaurants Contribute to Obesity.  Article National Bureau of Economic Research 2021

So...Do Not Be Afraid

 

Wednesday, March 24, 2021

Then on October 17 of that same year, the Lord sent another message through the prophet Haggai.  “Say this to Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and to Jeshua son of Jehozadak, the high priest, and to the remnant of God’s people there in the land:  ‘Does anyone remember this house—this Temple—in its former splendor?  How, in comparison, does it look to you now?  It must seem like nothing at all!  But now the Lord says:  Be strong, Zerubbabel.  Be strong, Jeshua son of Jehozadak, the high priest.  Be strong, all you people still left in the land.  And now get to work, for I am with you, says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.  My Spirit remains among you, just as I promised when you came out of Egypt.  So do not be afraid.’  “For this is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies says:  In just a little while I will again shake the heavens and the earth, the oceans and the dry land.  I will shake all the nations, and the treasures of all the nations will be brought to this Temple.  I will fill this place with glory, says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.  The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.  The future glory of this Temple will be greater than its past glory, says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.  And in this place I will bring peace.  I, the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, have spoken!”            Haggai 2:1-9

The  question I most hear these days, in a never-ending chorus of mixed anguish and fear, is:  When will we ever get back to normal?

In the days of Haggai the prophet, the question was about how things had come unglued in Jerusalem.  The Temple, symbol of God’s presence with Israel, had been sacked, looted, and destroyed.  Does anyone remember how glorious this place used to be?  That was the question of the day…that day…and it is ours today. 

Many people look at our world and mourn the loss of greater days, greater freedom and a sense of well-being.  Today it’s not the same; it’s not normal.

After a year of quarantine-filled COVID news, rising death tolls, and political wrangling, fear is as intensified as I’ve ever seen it.  I recall school days of the 1950’s at the apex of nuclear bomb fears, sirens, and daily drills at school, having to scramble under my little wooden desk; they called it a Cold War, but the fear of having a few megatons of explosive dropped on your head from the sky was anything but cold…the fear was palpable, nearly hot to the soul, unrelenting, and ready to unsettle any thought of the future being bright (other than the initial flash, followed by a mushroom cloud filled with radiation).

To a Cold War world like my childhood, and a COVID-19 world for that of my great-grandchildren, along with the devastating ruins of life in Haggai’s day, the word of the Lord still rings:  Do not be afraid…in this place I will bring peace.

It’s somewhat hard to reconcile that faith-statement with the subsequent story of Israel, over 2,500 years of rebuilding, destruction, wandering, and, of late, holocaust.  It has been anything but a road of peace for God’s special people.  However, if God can be trusted, faith informs us that the final chapter has yet to be opened.  All that we see, hear, and, yes even fear, is still prologue and preparation for the final act.

Part of Haggai’s message to the governor, Zerubbabel is to be strong and get to work (on rebuilding the temple), because God’s Spirit was still with them.  In other words, despite the conditions of bondage and lasting hurt of what those conditions had done to soil life’s hopes, it was time to move-on, build-up, and get back to the purpose for which God had called Abraham a thousand years before. 

And that message is just as vital for we, who live in this day of cold and hot wars, oppression, unrest, mass violence events, and disease. 

God still says do not be afraid!

For You Today

As you progress through this day, take stock of what blessing God has showered on your life to see prophecy coming alive.  It’s more than wars and rumors of wars, famine, pestilence, plague, and other COVID-ish monsters.  Christ is preparing us for life in the fast-lane of faith.

So…do not be afraid.  Keep looking up!

You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road; have a blessed day!  

[1] Title Image:  Courtesy of Pixabay.com    Unless noted, Scripture quoted from The New Living Translation^©

Unity We Can Live Without

 

Tuesday, March 23, 2021

How wonderful and pleasant it is when brothers live together in harmony!  Psalm 133:1

A couple of quotes on “unity” by preacher/scholars have been “cooking” on my back burner for a while; the first is from the ministry of Dr. Adrian Rogers:

It is better to be divided by truth than to be united in error. It is better to speak the truth that hurts and then heals, than falsehood that comforts and then kills.  It is better to be hated for telling the truth than to be loved for telling a lie.[1]

Walter Brueggemann follows the thought:
Proper unity manifests itself in an ability to live together without conflict, oppression, and having common objectives in tune with God’s purposes for the world.  At the same time, scattering should not result in fragmentation or divided loyalty to God.[2]

For me, both quotes are poignant commentary on Paul:

Now these are the gifts Christ gave to the church: the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, and the pastors and teachers.  Their responsibility is to equip God’s people to do his work and build up the church, the body of Christ.  This will continue until we all come to such unity in our faith and knowledge of God’s Son that we will be mature in the Lord, measuring up to the full and complete standard of Christ.  Ephesians 4:11-13

All three thoughts are part of the same idea concerning the kind of unity with which we can survive (and thrive), and that which condemns us to revisit original sin.  Of the three, Adrian Rogers puts it on the shelf low enough for even a small child:  it is better to be divided by truth than to be united in error.

You hear a lot about “unity” these days, especially out of Washington, D.C...  Although it is never articulated (and how could politicians ever be clear), is that what they mean by political unity is for all of us to think like they do, so we can set things up like we all want.  An irascible fly in that formula for the petulance of keeping the powerful in power, is that unity (to a politician) means do it my way, even if it means ignoring any truth that contradicts what I want.

A disclaimer – I’m about to use political realities to illustrate what I’ve just said about Rogers, Bruggemann, and Paul, but these are not political plugs.  More so, these will show us what living under political banners causes – the kind of unity two cats have when their tails are tied together.

The previous administration was entirely about power and economy.    Led by a businessman-turned-politician, putting America first was the Holy Land.  The current administration lauds equality and justice.  Led by a career politician, the new Nirvana is holding hands at whatever cost.  The Republican party “values” center on the economic status quo and keeping the rules.  The Democratic party “values” almost no rules, and a Federal open-door policy to the treasury.  Both parties want everyone in the land to bow to their way of doing things.  In real-time what they are proposing is not unity, but uniformity, falling in lock-step behind the current leader, even if it means walking off the cliff of truth.

In short, Republicans need to read God’s take on materialism, you know, that irritating little thing about rich people ignoring the poor, and finding the gateway to Heaven a little cramped?

In short, Democrats could do well to remember that “equal” and “just” extend to all of life, even those living in the womb.

For You Today

A truly “woke” America isn’t just about ending oppression of one race, gender issues, or political strategies.  A truly woke America would be one that has learned (again) to be humble before He who is truly God.

Hint – He won’t be found when they call the roll on Capitol Hill, or Pennsylvania Avenue.

You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road; have a blessed day!  

[1] Title Image:  Courtesy of Pixabay.com    Unless noted, Scripture quoted from The New Living Translation^©

---

[1] Longtime pastor of Belview Baptist Church, Dr. Adrian Rogers, via Goodreads

[2] The New Interpreter’s Bible (Abingdon Press, Nashville, 1994) P.414