From Out of the Whirlwind

What was the first thing that you thought of when you heard a massive tornado had struck Moore, OK, leaving dozens dead, including 9 school children? Likely it wasn't, “I should quote where Job’s kids are killed in a tornado. That is exactly what John Piper tweeted-

“Your sons and daughters were eating and a great wind struck the house, and it fell upon them, and they are dead.” (Job 1:19) 

Many saw that as a wee bit insensitive, although I'm not sure but that Piper was just looking for some Bible words that fit the situation.  At any rate, he quickly took down the tweet. The reason that many saw the tweet in a negative light is that Piper has something of a history when responding to similar tragedies. When a tornado hit his hometown of Minneapolis, he attributed it the Evangelical Lutheran Church  convention softening its stance on homosexuality. He’s made similar statements on things like the Asian tsunami (2004) and the Minneapolis bridge collapse (2007).  Read this post by Rachel Held Evans for longer look at some of Piper's past statements on tragic events.

John Piper is perhaps the best known leader in a modern revival of  Calvinism, the doctrine that says that everything that happens is predetermined by an all-sovereign God who gives life and salvation at His whim with no regard for human faith nor repentance. God predestined some people for hell, and He gives them no choice and no room to repent. Jesus didn't even die for them; He only died for the elect-- who themselves have no freedom to reject God’s saving grace. We choose nothing; everything that happens in the world does so because it has been determined by God. So if God wants to kill some kids in Oklahoma for no reason, well then that’s up to Him.  When you are a Calvinist, there can be no explanation for anything that happens in the word other than God did it.

God does indeed speak out of a whirlwind in the book of Job, but it was not the storm that killed Job's children. That tornado was generated by Satan to hurt Job and prove that his faith would buckle under pressure. Sure, God allowed Satan to have free reign, but God most certainly did not plan the tornado. The whirlwind from which God speaks in the Book of Job is at the end where God does come to job, but not with the explanation Job wanted.  God essentially says,

“Job, there is so much that you can’t understand; it should not surprise you that you can’t understand your suffering. Just trust me here.” 

And Job does. And so must we. In times of tragedy and heartache and loss, there are no easy explanations.  All there is faith.

I believe that Piper’s explanation fails precisely because it is an explanation. Sure, I believe it’s an explanation based on false theological presupposition that is wrongly forced on life to explain a tragedy. But it ultimately fails because it tries to explain in human terms the “why” when that is the one thing that human understanding can't handle. Job wanted to understand why. And God spoke from the whirlwind to say, “You can't understand, but you can always trust.” And that’s what we need to do.

What I Have I Give You

Then Peter said, “Silver or gold I do not have, but what I have I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk.” (Acts 3:6, Tuesday's Daily Bible Reading)  

What would have happened if Peter and John would have been on their way to the bank rather than to the Temple when they met the lame man? If they had silver and gold in their pockets, would they have just given the man a denarius and gone on? Probably not! Peter and John were called to shared what they had— and that was Christ. No, they didn't go out that day to specifically look for a chance to preach. But they were willing to share what they had. They began with the physical (health) and then they shared the story of Christ.

Are we willing to share what we have so that the story can be told?  God has blessed us with so much— both His physical blessing and saving grace.  Some were blessed to grow up in Christian families, being taught from the cradle about God.  Others came to know about Him because someone was ready and willing to share what they had been given of God's mercy.  We know the word of life because God placed someone in our lives who knew Him and who were willing to share what they had. Are we? 

Russian novelist Leo Tolstoy told of an aunt who didn't seem to have the time to answer his questions about Auntie, why did they torture Him?" she said, "Because they were wicked." Tolstoy inquired further, "But wasn't He God?" and he asked her to explain more about the crucifixion    But instead of explaining the story,  she said, "Be quiet; I'm going to the dining room to have tea." This left young Tolstoy greatly frustrated. Calvin Miller would comment on this scene—

Tolstoy found it incomprehensible that Christ had been brutalized and his aunt was not interested enough to stay a little past teatime and talk about it. 

We say that the story of the cross is at the center of our faith.  Do we act that way?  Are we willing to share with others what have?

All the Difference in the World

Someone has suggested that Easter in our materialistic world is something of a “cosmic Freudian slip.” In a world totally dedicated to the stuff of the here-and-now, the hereafter somehow sneaks in and makes itself known at Easter time. Because this traditional holiday is traditionally connected to the story of the resurrection, people will pause amid the bunnies, baskets and bonnets to ponder the story... and for a moment, the possibility of eternity sneaks in. And that is a good thing.

Or is it?  Why is it that singing “Joy to the World” and “Hark! The Herald Angels Sing” somehow seems out of place at any other time of the year except Christmas? It's because we have so connected the story of the birth of Jesus to the holiday of Christmas that the holiday is the only time that we think much about it? I wonder if we do the same thing with Easter? Is the resurrection such a traditional Easter message that we think about it only during the Easter season? I did a very quick look back through some of my old sermons (spending too much time doing that is depressing). From what I could tell, about half of the sermons I have preached on the topic of the resurrection have been around Easter time. That sort of makes sense— I know I'm preaching an Easter-theme sermon, so I save the resurrection-texts for that time of year. So has resurrection become a seasonal message?  I hope not.

In the New Testament, the power of the resurrection is a daily spiritual force in the life of the Christian. The resurrection isn't just a historical fact for us to believe; it is the in-breaking of God into our lives. Paul talks about the new life we have through the resurrection (Rom 6:4). We're raised to live above sin in this resurrection power (1 Cor 6:14-15) that is at work within us (Eph 1:18-20). It was that resurrection power that Paul wanted through knowing Christ (Phil 3:9-10). The power of the resurrection is not just a comforting message for us as we contemplate death in the future; it is the power of God in us for in LIFE in our present.

This story that we read yesterday and today as we closed our reading John's gospel is not just God reminding us that He can raise the dead. He is also reminding us that He has power over the train wreck of our lives to raise us to live this life anew. That’s why the story of the resurrection is of first importance (1 Cor 15:3-4). It makes all the difference in the world.

Are You Blind?

In our reading for today from John 9, a man that had been born blind was miraculously healed by Jesus. Not knowing what else to do with him, his friends brought him to the Pharisees. A blind man receiving his sight would normally be reason for rejoicing by all... except for two things. It was Jesus who had healed the blind man and he had healed him on the Sabbath... and the  Pharisees did not appreciate either of those two things.  They immediately dismissed the healing and began to attack the healer, "This man is not from God, for he does not keep the Sabbath" (9:16). They could read the calendar, but they could not see a miracle! Unschooled common folk may mistakenly focus on the miracle, but the Pharisees knew that the critical issue here was the day upon which it occurred. God wouldn't work on the Sabbath, so this could not be from God!

So the Pharisees began to pressure the formerly-blind man, trying to distance him in some way from the miracle... and the miracle worker. But the formerly blind man was seeing things clearly, and he saw right through the pettiness of these Pharisees! The man states simply that Jesus must be a prophet (9:17). When the Pharisees insisted that Jesus of was a sinner (after all, he healed on the Sabbath), the man sarcastically responds, "Whether he is a sinner or not I don't know. One thing I do know. I was blind but now I see” (9:25). This formerly-blind man saw things much more clearly than did the Pharisees. For him, the essence of religious truth was not to be found in dusty tomes or trust tradition or lumbering logic; it was rather seen in the power of a changed life. The Pharisees could argue tradition and theology until they were blue in the face. The one thing he knew was that his life had been undeniably altered by the power of God and by a miracle-worker who had come from God.

Do you really want the world to see the truthfulness of your Christian faith? By all means, study the scriptures so that you can make an informed case for Christianity. By all means, prepare a line of reasoning so that you can present faith to others in a logical way. But when you get right down to it, most people are pretty pragmatic. Your logic and scripture will mean very little if you are not living a positive, dynamic and holy life that shows that your faith makes a real difference. Peter put it like this in 1 Peter 2:12--

Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us.

If your faith in God makes you a better friend, a better co-worker, a better family person, a better neighbor, a better person, then people will listen when you talk about it. But if faith doesn't have any real impact on your life in any visible way, then why would they want to listen to you talk about it? The greatest argument for the truthfulness of the faith is the lives of people who take it seriously! Otherwise the world will continue to be blind to the power of Jesus.

Why Do We Follow Jesus?

Today's daily Bible reading from John 6 is a transition text in John’s account of the ministry of Jesus. It is also  one of those texts that demands that we question why it is that we are disciples of Christ in the first place. Jesus has just performed his most public and celebrated (it's in all four gospels) miracles. His support is now at its highest point— the people want to make him king whether he wants to be or not (6:15). Jesus evades this crowd in a rather dramatic fashion (6:16-24), but they are persistent and pursue him to the other side of Galilee. 

Jesus knows why this crowd is persistently dogging him-- they want free bread (6:26).  He uses that to transition into teaching a spiritual lesson about the bread of life (6:33-35). and it is right here that Jesus loses much of his audience. He starts talking about the Father’s will (6:35-40) and demanding they eat His flesh and drink his blood (6:52-58). Remember, this crowd wants to force him to be king and is following him only because he is giving them free food. But Jesus wasn't interested in making those the point of his ministry. His will was to do the will of the Father (6:38).

Question: Are many who follow Jesus today doing so because they are trying to make him king (politics) and want him to give them free food (material things)? When people who aren't Christians stumble across people talking about Jesus on TV, what message is usually being touted? Why is it that people follow Christ, at least in the minds of people who don't?

• Politics: One of the biggest complaints non-Christians (especially young people) have about the church is that it is too political. Evangelical Christians are known for a particular political point of view and agenda. Are there still disciples who still want to make Jesus an earthly, political “king” even though Jesus is clear that he had no desire to be one.
   
• Food: The most visible media presentation of the church that people see is the “Health-and-Wealth” idea that touts Jesus as power to give you stuff that you “name and claim” in his name. Faith in Christ is the power to have what you want… even though Jesus called the crowd’s bluff when he saw they were only interested in free food. 

To a politically and materialistically motivated crowd, Jesus taught and demanded “hard things” (6:61) that caused many to stop following him. He wanted those who were his disciples to be so out of a desire for the things that he was about. He wants us to be so consumed with him that it is as if we eat his flesh and drink his blood. Just as Jesus came to do the will of the One who send him, so we are to do the will of the one who sent us. We need to make sure that we're following Christ’s agenda and not our own.

More Marlarkey

This past Sunday I mentioned in passing the popular (false) doctrine of goes by titles like “Word of Faith Movement” or the “Prosperity Gospel” or the “Health-n-Wealth Theology.” The basic idea is that we are God's children and He wants his kids to have the very best of everything—jobs, cars, houses, clothes and (perhaps) Rolex watches. Those who have real faith in God and who act on their faith in the right way will receive these material blessings from God. I suggested that the Greek word for this (with a nod to our vice-president) is "marlarkey."

I didn't realize that my sermon illustration Sunday was “ripped from the headlines.” I happened across these two stories in the news aggregate this morning—

• Peter Popoff, the controversial televangelist who amassed millions from his so-called "prophetic anointing" is now hawking baggies of "miracle spring water" that promises to rid its drinkers from financial debt. The wealth-attracting water is being marketed through Popoff's website and cable TV infomercials.
• Todd Coontz, the founder of RockWealth International Ministries and a national televangelist is telling viewers that if they will act obediently and send his ministry a minimum of $300 (“a recovery seed donation”), they will receive a “supernatural change” in their lives and be blessed with “God's triple favor anointing.”

Why do to these guys make such ridiculous claims? Well, because people send them huge amounts of money! Popoff was rather famously exposed on the Tonight Show years ago (back when some guy guy named Carson was doing it). Watch this clip from Inside Edition—



Popoff is now back on TV with a whole new following doing the same old shtick and making millions hand over fist. Should that surprise us? Peter says “in their greed these teachers will exploit you with fabricated stories?” (2 Pet 2:3). He calls them “experts in greed” who follow in the steps of Balaam the prophet (2 Pet 2:14-16). Jude warns about “shepherds who feed only themselves” (Jude 12). Paul says they these guys “think that godliness is a means to financial gain” (1 Tim 6:5). So it should not come as a total shock to us that there are shady charlatans who try to use God as a way to make a quick, dishonest buck.

The question is. “Why do people keep sending them money?” I mean, how hard is it to Google “Peter Popoff” before you send in your check for the miracle water cure for financial debt? It took me 10 seconds to find the above clip on YouTube (I had seen the segment years ago live on Johnny Carson... back when I could sit up past 9:30 at night). This information is there for anyone to check, and yet this guy makes money hand over fist claiming to be have little baggies of holy water from God. Ultimately, Popoff and his ilk are making millions telling people what they want to hear. False teachers will be held responsible to be sure (2 Pet 2:3), but then so will hears with itching ears who pay these guys to tell them what they want to hear  (2 Tim 4:3-4)

3 For the time will come when people will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. 4 They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths.

Jesus and Gun Control

Some time ago long before Newtown and right after a highly publicized church shooting, a reporter from the Daily Press called to ask me what I thought about armed church members during worship. I said that I didn't know exactly what I thought, though I leaned toward the view that fewer places with people packing heat was generally to be preferred over more places. I do think having armed brethren and sisteren while discussing church music or some other issue is not a great idea. Frankly, I have brothers and sisters on both sides of the gun control debate—

• Some believe that all guns should be outlawed or strictly controlled… or strictly controlled and then outlawed.
• Some believe that guns should be not be controlled at all and that bullets should be handed out like Halloween candy.

Me?  I always stand with my brothers and sisters! Personally, I think there would be less violence in the world if there were no guns than there would be of everyone had a couple-- so that's the direction that I would prefer moving.  But then is that either logical or realistic? Of course not! But the one thing that doesn't seem to be required for a position on gun control is being logical or realistic. I surely don't have any definitive answers… but neither does anyone else!

Our reading today from Luke 22 is one the texts that comes up in gun control discussions among Christians. Jesus is preparing the apostles for his coming crucifixion. After the Last Supper and the prediction of Peter’s denial, Jesus says, "Remember when I told you not to take any money, a bag or extra shoes with you on your ministry? Well, now you need all that stuff… and a sword to boot!" (See Luke 22:35-36). In fact, he told them to sell their coat to buy a sword!  (I'd like to know where you can get a sword for the price of a used coat!) The apostles probably didn’t understand this anymore than they understood the prediction of his coming crucifixion and resurrection, but they respond, "We have couple of swords between us." Jesus says, "Two is enough."

Why does Jesus want the apostles armed? Later when he is betrayed, Jesus stops the apostle ot apostles who use the two swords to defend him (Peter swinging both swords?  Sounds like him).   Jesus heals the man hurt by the sword play before Jesus stepped in to stop it (Luke 22:51). He clearly contrasts His ministry and movement with a rebellion led by people with swords and clubs (Luke 22:52). It seems that Jesus wanted his disciples armed but He did not want them using the swords in His name. He wanted them and the world to know that He was giving himself over to be crucified because that was His choice and not because His servants would not fight to protect him.  Christians should never use violence to promote or defend the kingdom of God. The use of the sword is part of the kingdom of men (Rom 13:4), but Jesus sees a marked difference between the kingdom of men and the kingdom of God (Mark 10:41-44). Power and violence have their place in the kingdom of men; the only power in the kingdom of God is that of service and a cross.

But what does this text have to say about guns and Christians today? Some see it proving that Jesus approves of His disciples OWNING firearms? Other argue that it shows that Jesus prohibits his disciples from USING firearms. I think Luke 22 probably proves the same thing that modern statistics prove about gun violence and gun control-- it proves whatever you believed before you read it!

Me?  I think two swords are enough!

Kingdom Come

Years ago, I bought entitled Soothsayers of the Second Advent by William Alnor. I bought the book for two reasons— it had a catchy title and it was (literally) in the bargain bin for $1.97. The book was written 25 years ago and most of the end-time predictions with which it deals are too dated to be directly helpful. He mentions things like--

• The Jupiter Effect: The rare alignment of planets that was seen as Revelation's “signs in the sky” that would usher in the end-time.
• Identification of Antichrist: Various suggestions from Henry Kissinger to Pope John Paul II to Ronald Reagan.
• Mark of the Beast: Its our VISA card (VI= 6, zeta= 6th letter, and “a” is backward 6). OK, once a month I'm willing to entertain the idea of VISA as the mark of the beast.
• Gog and Magog: The former leaders of the USSR were Gromecho, Ogarkov and Gorbachov.  God!  Give me some time and I could probably find a Magog in there someone too.

The book was written before the Y2K, Harold Camping or Mayan calendar debacles, so it misses many newer examples of this same end-time frenzy. Alnor debunked the hot end-time theories of his day and provides a warning for the soothsayers of the present. You'd really think that eventually the soothsayers would cease saying sooth, but then people keep buying what they're selling!

Jesus himself tried to derail some soothsayers in our reading for today in Luke 19. He was coming near Jerusalem, and there were those who thought “the kingdom of God was going to appear at once” (NIV) or “immediately” (ESV). The NLT puts it, “to correct the impression that the Kingdom of God would begin right away.” In other words, many of the Jews expected that the Messiah would come and immediately establish his kingdom in Jerusalem. They had the end-time all figured out, and if Jesus was the Messiah, then they had him all figured out as well. In fact, they were ready to make him their king whether he wanted to be or not! (see John 6:15). As Jesus draws near Jerusalem, there was an expectation that something was about to happen (it did, but not the something they expected). So Jesus told a parable to stress that God’s kingdom was different type of kingdom (Luke 19:12-24)

This "Parable of the Minas" is very similar to the "Parable of the Talents" in Matthew 25, though it has a slightly different setting.  Here a nobleman goes to a distant country to have himself declared king and leaves servants in charge of his estate. This actually has something of a “ripped from headlines” quality—Herod Archelaus travelled to Rome in B.C. 4 to secure permission from Caesar to take his father’s title as “King of the Jews.” As in the parable (v. 14), a delegation went to Rome in protest… and lost. As in the parable, Herod Archelaus killed his political rivals on ascending the throne. So Jesus seems to use a familiar story as the basis of this parable.

The basic details here are the similar to as the more familiar parable in Matthew 25. The master goes away and the servants don't know exactly when he will  return— only that he would return. The servants had to be ready for their master's return, and the way they were to be ready was to use the money that he left behind in their care. The specific financial details of the two parables are different--

• In the Parable of the Talents, the servants are given different amounts with the productive servants making the same return.
• In the Parable of the Minas, the servants are given the same amount, but they present a different rate of return to the master.

In both parables, the servant that is not ready (who has not put his gift to work) is condemned. And the basic point of both parables is the same—we don't know when the master  is coming, so we must use what he gives us now so that we will be ready when he comes.

Remember, Jesus told this parable to people who thought that “kingdom come” was coming at any minute. He isn't trying to disabuse them of that believe; He is rather trying to get them to see that coming means. And what it means is that we must be ready at all times because we can't know when kingdom come will come. Does the Bible leave the impression that Jesus is coming soon?  No!  It comes right out ands says it!

• Romans 13:12- "The night is nearly over; the day is almost here"
• James 5:8- "Stand firm, because the Lord’s coming is near"
• 1 Peter 4:7- "The end of all things is near"

Jesus really is coming soon, but soon is always God's own timing and not our own. When one days is like a thousand years, then how soon is soon?  Soon could be at any time. And if the end could come at any time, then it could be NOW!  That doesn't mean that we should look for signs in the sky or climb tree to get closer to him when he comes. The point is that we'd better be busy doing kingdom work now so we will be ready for kingdom come when kingdom comes. All of those "coming soon" texts are ETHICAL in nature. Jesus is coming soon, so we'd better be living in a certain way.  We'd better be spreading our talents and minas around now so that we'll be ready for kingdom come--

• Romans 13:12- "…so let us put aside the deeds of darkness."
• James 5:9- "Don’t grumble against each other or you too will be judged"
• 1 Peter 4:7- "…Therefore be clear minded and self-controlled."

It's Our Job!

Steve Raab went with us on one of our mission trips to Ukraine. Actually, I should say Steve returned with us from one of our trips to Ukraine. He couldn't leave at the same time as the group, so he travelled by himself and joined us a few days later. On the bus ride across New York City from JFK to LaGuardia (or visa versa), Steve’s bus had a near miss with a taxi cab. After exchanging a few words through the window, the driver got off the bus and screamed at the taxi driver for a couple of minutes. He then got back on and was preparing to drive off when he turned to his passengers and said, "Hey, it's my job!"

"It's my job."  What do we do as disciples of Jesus that isn't part of our job? We are way too good at compartmentalizing our lives, breaking it down into parts that belong to work, family, and recreation with a little left over for God and church. We fit in part of our lives for God, but a lot of it seems to get squeezed out by other things.  The only thing wrong with that idea is that it's wrong. Our daily Bible reading from Luke 17 reminds us that nothing we do us above and beyond the call of our duty—

7 “Suppose one of you has a servant plowing or looking after the sheep. Will he say to the servant when he comes in from the field, ‘Come along now and sit down to eat’? 8 Won’t he rather say, ‘Prepare my supper, get yourself ready and wait on me while I eat and drink; after that you may eat and drink’? 9 Will he thank the servant because he did what he was told to do? (Luke 17:7-9)

In the first century, most slaves were “household slaves” who were owned by families who could afford only one. So the slave was expected to work hard all day, do household chores, take care of kids and cook the food. (OK, that’s sounds a lot like my wife, but I digress). This household slave worked hard and wore many different household hates. And Jesus asks, “Does one serve your slave dinner or even thank them after they've worked all day?” We would, but you have to remember the culture. The slave existed for the benefit of the master, and everything the slave does is for the mater.  It was their job.

OK, Jesus, so what’s your point? That's the problem; His point is obvious.  We just don't like it very much. There’s no “above and beyond the call of duty” for the slaves of the Almighty God. Everything that we do, we are to do in God’s name and for His glory. Whether we are at church, at work, with our family or pursuing our hobby—it’s for all God. Why? Because He is God and we're his slaves. We must to serve Him. It’s our job!

16 Don’t you know that when you offer yourselves to someone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one you obey—whether you are slaves to sin, which leads to death, or to obedience, which leads to righteousness? 17 But thanks be to God that, though you used to be slaves to sin, you have come to obey from your heart the pattern of teaching that has now claimed your allegiance. 18 You have been set free from sin and have become slaves to righteousness. (Romans 6:16-18)

The Bridegroom is Coming

Jewish marriages in the first century were negotiated by the heads of the two families.  The potential groom was expected to go the bride’s home to make the formal proposal of marriage. If she accepted (she could refuse), the couple were officially betrothed and it took a divorce to break it at that point (as in the Mary and Joseph story). Once engaged, the groom-to-be would begin work on an addition onto the family home for his new bride. The wedding could not take place until the work on the new place was completed… and the the fathers decided when the work was done.

When the big day came, the wedding ceremony took place at bride’s house and there was a wedding procession to groom’s house for the wedding feast (as in the Parable of the Virgins). The groom then took his bride into the new room that he had built and the couple consummated the marriage. The wedding feast didn't begin until the new husband and wife rejoined their guests. (And you thought it was awkward standing around waiting for wedding pictures to be over so the reception could begin!)

What does this (too much) information have to do with Easter? Well, the speech that the prospective groom might give as he made his formal proposal of marriage to his prospective bride might sound something like this,

“My Father’s house has many rooms. I am going to prepare a place for you. But I will come back and take you there to be with me.” 

Does that sound familiar? That’s Jesus promise in John 14:2.  That is Christ’s wedding proposal to His bride. Our faith ultimately rests in this promise that Jesus has gone to His Father’s house to prepare a place for His bride (his church) and that He will one day return to claim to take us where He is. No wonder Paul rests everything on the truthfulness of the resurrection in 1 Corinthians 15:17-19,

If Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins. Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ are lost. If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are of all people most to be pitied. 

Why are we to be “pitied” if there is no end-time resurrection? Because the church then becomes the bride left at the altar with no groom and no future! The promise that our suffering and struggles in this life can be faced with hope and with expectation because “our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us” (Rom 8:18) is false and untrue without the resurrection.

Easter is a reminder that this story that we have committed to is true. Christ the Lord is risen! And one day, the bridegroom will come back for His bride!

Where Would Jesus Sit?

What would Jesus do? This fundamental question of discipleship became something of a fad several years ago as WWJD bracelets became a fashion accessory. If you go to www.whatwouldjesusdo.com, you can buy WWJD bracelets and T-shirts and even have them customized for your church or youth group. Unfortunately, the various WWJD fashion accessories were much more popular than actually worrying about what Jesus really would do or did do or taught. For example, I'm fairly sure that one of the things that Jesus would not do is operate a web site that sold WWJD fashion accessories. Maybe I'm wrong.

The question raised by our daily Bible reading today in Luke 14 is, "Where would Jesus sit?" Jesus is eating at the house of "a prominent Pharisee," which itself makes a point.  Sure, Jesus ate with tax collectors and sinners... and took hits from the society page crowd because of that. But he also rubbed shoulders with the rich and powerful. Jesus came to seek and save the lost, and he didn't care much what tax bracket they were in. As Jesus looked around the banquet table, he noticed how all the quests were scrumming and scuffling to get the best and most prestigious seat at the table. People invited quests to these affairs based on social standing; the more important your quests, the more important your party... which reflected, of course, on you.   And guests were seated at these affairs based on their relative social importance. If that sounds crass, then go you a political fundraiser, state dinner or college alumni banquet and notice how the seating is arranged! Jesus was always looking for a teachable moment, and do he gives us a lecture on where to sit at parties (Luke 14:8-10).

8 “When someone invites you to a wedding feast, do not take the place of honor, for a person more distinguished than you may have been invited. 9 If so, the host who invited both of you will come and say to you, ‘Give this man your seat.’ Then, humiliated, you will have to take the least important place. 10 But when you are invited, take the lowest place, so that when your host comes, he will say to you, ‘Friend, move up to a better place.’ Then you will be honored in the presence of all your fellow guests. 

Jesus isn't really talking so much about party etiquette... or at least, he isn't talking ONLY about party etiquette. He is talking about life. We are not to worry about things like social status and how much we are valued by others. Rather than pushing ourselves, worrying about our standing or focusing on our egos, we are to live lives of humility before God and service to others. We are not to be concerned with the outward shows and standards of value and worth. Jesus wants us to have the heart of a servant even when it comes to choosing where to sit.

So where would Jesus sit? I will resist the temptation to take a cheap shot about people at church always choosing the best seats (the ones on the back row) rather than sitting toward the front (where holy people always sit anyway) and saving the back seats for people who really need them-- like parents with small children, latecomers and bashful guests. (OK, so I didn't completely resist taking a cheap shot). Think about it.  If something as trivial as which seat we choose can reflect our basic commitment to follow Christ, then what part of our lives fall outside the realm of discipleship?

Getting Bent Out of Shape

It seems that “The Bible” miniseries on The History Channel is generating its fair share of controversy. Of course, I have no firsthand knowledge of the miniseries because, being a Christian and all, we don’t have cable. (Actually, not having cable has more to do with being cheap than with being Christian).  But I did pre-order the DVD, but I probably won’t watch it when it comes in. Our DVD player broke last week, and who has time to go buy DVD players?

The latest controversy, according to articles in Christian Post, Breathe Cast and  others is that Nonso Anozie, the actor who plays Samson in the miniseries, is Black and wears dreadlocks. And everyone knows that this isn't biblically accurate-- there is no way Samson had dreadlocks. OK, the point of the articles is that there are evidently some people who take issue with Samson being portrayed by an African American actor. Of course, I rather dount that all the rest the actors in the miniseries are Jewish.  And is it really less likely that Samson looked like Nonso Anozie than Moses looked like Charlton Heston.  And did Mary the mother of Jesus speak with an Irish lilt (Roma Downey plays here in the miniseries). I suspect that part of the fun of watching the miniseries will be noting where it departs from the Biblical text, and I seriously doubt that one will have to quibble with casting choices to find the inaccuracies!

Today's daily Bible reading from Luke 5 has the Pharisees and teachers of the law questioning Jesus about his followers and fasting, “John’s disciples often fast and pray, and so do the disciples of the Pharisees, but yours go on eating and drinking” (5:33). Jesus could have said a thing or two about fasting-- after all, He once fasted for a month and a half! What Jesus does talk about here is spending time with the bridegroom (5:34-35) and sewing old patches on new garments or pouring new wine into old wineskins (Luke 5:36-38). Jesus isn't really talking so much here about fasting itself as about religious systems that judge spirituality based on outward acts of righteousness. Fasting is fine as long as you do it in a way that only God knows about it (Matt 6:16-18). Fasting is not a way that you put your piety on display so that it can be seen by others, and it is not the way to judge the religious life of others.

We probably tend to focus too much on external and visible things. That’s why some people seem to have gotten bent out of shape because a black actor played Samson on a TV miniseries. That’s why we so easily get bent out of shape if a church’s worship service or its organization or its ministries don't exactly match up with the way we think they should be. We focus on externals. Maybe we should focus more on the bridegroom Himself.

It Didn't Work?

“I tried that once and it didn't work.” That statement was made not about the latest weight loss plan or gizmo bought from a late-night infomercial. No, that statement was made about prayer. The person had evidently asked God for something important to him, and he didn't get it. So prayer obviously doesn't work. To tell you the truth, I wasn't completely sure whether this guy was being completely serious with me. But he was serious enough that I didn't quite know what to say.

What I could have said was the same thing the man said when he was interviewed at his 100-year old birthday party. He was asked, “So, what is the secret to to your advanced age.” The man replied, “Well, I worked hard. I ate well. I went to bed early.” The interviewer said, “My grandfather did all that and died at 70.” The man answered, “Well, he just didn't do it long enough!” That was the problem with the guy who tried prayer and it didn't work. He didn't do it long enough.

Consider the story of Zechariah and Elizabeth (Friday’s daily reading from Luke 1). Luke describes this couple as not only “righteous;” he also said that they followed “all the Lord’s commands and decrees blamelessly” (Lk 1:6). These were pretty good folks! The problem was that Zechariah and Elizabeth had no children in a culture that valued children so much that being childless was a “disgrace” (1:25). This godly couple had been praying for a child (1:13), but they had grown “very old” and their prayers for children had not been answered. Yet.  God had not told them “No.” He had said, “Wait.” The problem was that God's "Wait" felt just like "No."  The birth of their baby John was such a shock and surprise to them that it is  obvious that they had not been praying this prayer for some time. God answered their prayers, but He did so in a way that fit with His plan and His purpose for them.  Their prayers were answered at the proper time… but after a long period of waiting.

 Let’s face it, it’s hard for us to wait upon the Lord (Isa 40:31). We get weary of waiting, and we see the passing of time as proof that God has forgotten all about us. His silence FEELS like He has forgotten us. His “Wait” feels to us like a “No.” We can see God’s purposes in the story Zechariah and Elizabeth because we read their story from the beginning to the end. But we live out our story from the middle— and we have to wait for God's ending. We can never tell the difference between God's "No" and God's "Wait" until we get to the end of our story.

Why do we often have to wait? Maybe God has a plan and a purpose for us like he did for Zechariah and Elizabeth.  Or maybe we aren't ready right now to receive His “Yes.” When I was 12, I asked my  Dad for a shotgun for Christmas.  I didn't get it.  When I was 16, I asked Dad for a sports car. I got the shotgun.  I wasn't ready for a shotgun at 12. And I'm evidently still not ready for the sports car!  Jesus said that God isn't the kind of Father than gives us a stone when we ask for bread or a snake when we ask for fish (Matt 7:9-11).  But sometimes we ask for what amounts to stones and snakes!

God is not a vending machine where we pop in a prayer out pops our blessing! But when we struggle with something in prayer, we needed to remember that “Wait” does not mean “No” even though they feel the same at the time. Remember the story of Zechariah and Elizabeth. God works in His time, not in ours!

Remember Who You Are

Charles Paul Conn, the president of Lee University in Cleveland, Tennessee, tells of seeing a Yellow Pages ad for a restaurant in the Atlanta area called “The Church of God Grill.” Now, I tried to find a listing on the web for this particular restaurant, and I couldn't—though I did find about a million references to Conn’s story about the restaurant (this could be a preacher's story; do your own research before you head to Atlanta for a chicken dinner). It seems that Conn was struck by the unusual name for a chicken restaurant  (no connection to "Church's Chicken" which was named for its founder George W. Church), so he called and asked the manager for the back-story. This supposedly true story provides something of a cautionary tale for the church—

 “Well,” the man began, “We started a little church down here, and we started selling chicken dinners after church on Sunday to help pay the bills. People liked the chicken, and we did such a good business, that eventually we cut back on the church service. After a while we just closed down the church altogether and kept on serving the chicken dinners. We kept the name we started with, and that’s Church of God Grill” 

So it would seem that this church got so busy doing something that was not really its core purpose (raising money to pay the bills) and in the process essentially forgot its identity. That is something that the both the church and individual Christians need to guard against.

That is essentially the point of the Lord’s Supper, which Jesus establishes in our reading today from Mark 14. In communion, we are to remember Jesus and His cross—the “this do in remembrance of me” (Luke 22:19, 1 Cor 11:24) has been carved into millions of communion tables through the years. But the point isn’t that we are in danger of forgetting that Jesus died on the cross; the danger is that we will put something else other than His cross at the center of who we are as Christians and as a church. We are to be, as the titled Leonard Allen’s book of years ago suggests, a “Cruciform Church.” We are to be a people with the cross at the center, not just of our worship, but of our lives.

Once a week we come together to eat the bread and drink of the cup that reminds us that Jesus died and lives again. We also remind ourselves that in living for Him, we die to ourselves each day as we seek to be disciples who “deny themselves and take up their cross and follow” Jesus (Mark 9:34). If we don’t remind ourselves constantly of the cross at the center, then we run the risk of forgetting who we are. If that happens, we might as well close the church and open a chicken restaurant.

Getting Something Off My Chest

Excuse me while I get something off my chest. Someone recently told me that someone told them that someone who used to go to Denbigh told them that they left the church family here "because Tuck doesn't believe in baptism for the remission of sins." I know— I should probably track down whoever said that and get all this straight privately rather than in public on my blog. But I as you can tell, the documentation here is a bit shaky and I don’t want to spend the hours of private-eye time trying to tack all of this down. And besides, I’m not sure that the readership of my blog really qualifies as “public” anyway! So let me get this off my chest.

It was quite a shock for me to learn that I don’t really believe in baptism for the remission of sins. You, I always thought that I believed precisely that. That’s what I thought I thought when I wrote the following in a blog entitled “Baptism and the Sinner’s Prayer” back in 2009--

The New Testament presents baptism as the response of faith in the accepting God’s grace in salvation. Peter offers a baptism “for the remission of sins” to believers on Pentecost (Acts 2:38). And we offer believers today the same response of faith. If you have never been baptized based upon your faith in Christ, then we offer that to you. I think we are on firm Biblical ground when we offer it. 

There is a version of that blog that is posted on the “What We Believe” page of our church web site. There are a dozen or so entries on my blog on the subject of baptism. I have preached sermon series on baptism and taught 13-week class series on baptism. Every sermon that I preach ends with an invitation to people to meet Jesus at the cross in faith, repentance and baptism. (Recently I had a conversation with someone  who thought my formal invitations were unnecessary and passe ... which they are if I don't really believe in baptism for the remission of sins.  The point here is that I sure seem to spend a lot of time talking about something that I supposedly don’t believe in!

So why would someone get the idea that I don’t believe in baptism for the remission of sins? Probably because while I do believe that baptism is "for the remission of sins," I also believe that this isn't the only reason the New Testament mentions for baptism. There are several other things that baptism is “for.”

• To fulfill all righteousness (Matt 3:15) 
• To have a good conscience (1 Peter 3:21) 
• To commit to a life of discipleship (Matt 28:19) 
• To receive the gift of the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:38) 
• To have sins washed away (Acts 22:16) 
• To become part of the Body (2 Cor 12:12-13) 
• To put on Christ as a garment (Gal 3:27) 
• To be saved (Mark 16:16)

So does someone have to believe everything about what the Bible says on the theology of baptism before their baptism is valid at all? If so, then why are all the passages explaining the theology of baptism (Rom 6, Gal 3, Col 2, 1 Pet 3) all written to people who had already been baptized? Didn't they already KNOW all that stuff before their baptism?  If they didn't, then did that invalidate their baptism? And if someone today is baptized based on their faith in Christ, out of a desire to please Christ, and in a commitment to live as a disciple of Christ, is their baptism invalid because they didn't articulate or understand fully the phrase “for the remission of sins?”

Please don’t tell people that I don’t believe in baptism for the remission of sins. I do.  Now, you may feel free to tell people that I don’t believe Baptists are going to hell because their baptismal theology is out of whack. You may tell people that I believe that God can save people through baptism who don't fully understand how He works in baptism.  You can tell people that I believe that God saves people through what Jesus did on the cross and not what we do in our precise theological and liturgical formulations.  But please don't tell people that I don;t believe in something that I do so obviously believe in.

Thank you.  I feel better now!

Down the Straightway

Mark isn’t one to waste time in his telling of the story of Jesus. In fact, his favorite word is “straightway” (in the KJV). Newer translations use different words that mean the same thing- “just as” or “immediately” or “at once” or “just then” or “as soon as.” All of those are used in the NIV in once chapter (Mark 1) to translate the Greek phrase kai euthus. Mark uses that phrase (by my very quick count) 42 times in his 16 chapters (it only appears 18 other times in the NT). Mark is plowing through the story of Jesus at breakneck speed- Jesus did this and immediately He did that and as soon as that was over, He did this other thing. Mark doesn't have long teaching sections; Jesus is too busy on the straightway!

But Mark can’t bring this story to an end without a final confrontation between Jesus and his enemies, the Jewish leaders (scribes, Pharisees and priests). He is headed down the straightway to the cross but there are some spiritual swords that have to be crossed first. Mark has been showing conflict all through the book (for examples, go back and skim over Mark 2:1-3:5 and Mark 7:1-3). The confrontation between Jesus and the Jewish leaders is constant. They have already decided to kill Him (Mark 3:6)...and Jesus knows that they are going to kill Him (Mark 8:31, 10:33).

As Mark races down his straightway toward his conclusion, he sets up one final conflict in Mark 11:27-33. While Jesus is teaching in the Temple courts following his triumphant entry in Jerusalem, the Jewish leaders come to him and demand to know, “By what authority are you doing these things? And who gave you authority to do this?” OK, they had seen Jesus' miracles, and none of them had denied the power those  miracles demonstrated. But they were so sure they were right that they didn't stop to think about that. But when you are hot-headed and dead-certain you are right, you miss the obvious.

Tony Campolo tells about cutting his grass on a Saturday. His neighbor was a Seventh Day Adventist and believed it was wrong to cut grass on the Sabbath. Campolo said, “Jesus healed people on the Sabbath.” Without thinking about what he was saying, the neighbor shot back, “Oh Yeah? Well, two wrongs don't make right!” Two wrongs? When you are hot-headed and dead-certain, you aren't open to seeing the truth. Is there a lesson here?

The Jewish leaders are hot-headed and dead certain and they aren't really open to truth. They have already decided (again) that Jesus has to die (11:18). They aren't here really looking for authority; they are looking for an excuse! Jesus clearing the Temple (11:15-17) was the last straw. He has to go, and they start looking for a way to trump up a charge against Him. So Mark 12 is a series of trick questions that try “to catch him in his words” (12:13) so they can charge him and move this story toward a conclusion (but not the conclusion they imagine).

But that’s tomorrow's reading.

So Who Wants to Fiddle on the Roof?

Our reading today from Mark 7 ends with people being blown away by Jesus healing a man, and they exclaim, “He has done everything well” (Mark 7:37). That was a ringing endorsement from the common folk, but the chapter begins with a little less enthusiasm from the Jewish leaders who had opposed Jesus from the very beginning. In fact, Mark starts his “Jesus vs. the Pharisees” theme back in Mark 2 with three different opposition stories, all having to do with Jesus’ lack of attention their religious traditions. And as it turns out, the Jewish leaders weren't a very patient bunch; they decide to kill Jesus by Mark 3:6!

The debate over tradition continues in Mark 7 where the subject now is hand-washing. Mark explains this tradition for us a bit, and that is a good thing because it would be confusing if we went to the Old Testament for background—it isn't there! The priests washed their hands before serving at the Tabernacle (Exo 30:19). And one who touched anything ceremonially unclean was required to wash their hands as part of the purification ritual (Lev 15:11). But that is about it on the subject—the Jews were never required to wash before meals. That was just a tradition. But for the Jewish leaders, violating that tradition was the same as breaking the Law of God. And Jesus responds to their charge in two very different and important ways

• First, he condemns their tradition as hypocrisy (Mark 7:6-7). This quotation from Isaiah draws a distinction from their outward religious profession and hearts that were far from God. Their religion had become vain (“a farce” NLT) because it was based on the rules of man and not the heart of God. They were good at washing the cup on the outside but not the inside (Matt 23:25). In fact, their focus on tradition caused them to nullify the Law (Mark 7:8), and Jesus illustrates that with their tradition of Coban (Mark 7:9-13).
  
• Second, Jesus says that holiness arises from within, not from without (Mk 7:14-16). Ritual and tradition are by their very nature external and symbolic; they are helpful only when they are a means to a spiritual end. But what tradition cannot be is an end in itself! Jesus neither defends the non-hand washing of his disciples nor attacks the practice of washing itself. But what Jesus does condemn the use of tradition as a way to judge faithfulness— either yours or that of someone else.

This was pretty heady stuff, and the disciples were  confused. And it is easy to see why-- they had been taught that ritual was the center of religion and the most religious people were those who were best at cataloging and keeping tradition. Jesus swept all that aside; he put the focus of true holiness and genuine response to God in our hearts and in the actions that result.

Between me you and the fence post, this teaching of Jesus is as radical and uncomfortable for the church today as it was for the Jews of Jesus’ day. We are still comfortable judging faithfulness based on external doctrinal formulas and received religious practices. We are still likely to give a lot of weight to "We've never done it that way before."  Traditions are inevitable; any time we do the same thing in the same way twice, we have a tradition.  But Jesus reminds us here of something else about traditions--  they are also dangerous!

Well, I Never!

“Well, I never!” That’s an old phrase you don’t hear much anymore… except in old movies. It is a dated exclamation of surprise, usually at something shocking. You know the scenes from the old Three Stooges movies where Curly flirts with an attraction woman, and she turns and harrumphs, “Well, I never!” The British variant is “Well, I never did” as in, “I never did hear of such a thing!” It’s more than just an expression of surprise; it is an expression of disgust and perhaps even anger. And maybe it’s an expression of Jesus in our reading today from Mark 1. Maybe.

In Mark 1:40, a leper comes to Jesus with the simple expression of faith, “If you will, you can make me clean” (ESV). Of course, Jesus was willing. The story probably would not have been recorded if Jesus would have said, “Not today; I’m on vacation.” OK, maybe that WOULD have been recorded because that would have been a VERY unusual story! But here is what really happens (again from ESV), “Moved with pity, he stretched out his hand and touched him and said to him, “I will; be clean.” The leper says, “If you will…” and Jesus says, “I will.” And he does.  Because he was “moved with pity” (ESV). In the NET, he is “moved with compassion.” In the Message, he is just “Deeply moved.” But in the NIV (2011) from which I read, the story takes on a different flavor—

Jesus was indignant. He reached out his hand and touched the man. “I am willing,” he said. “Be clean!” Immediately the leprosy left him and he was cleansed.

Jesus was indignant? Really?  Jesus looks at the leper and says, “Well I never!” Well, I never! How does that make sense? Why does the NIV here translate this so differently? Well, there is a textual variant here that is a bit confusing. There are so many different Greek texts and they do sometimes have slight variations caused by scribal slips.  But because there are so many texts, scholars can usually determine quite easily how the variants happened and what the original text said. In this text, some older manuscripts and Latin versions have “moved with anger” while others have “moved with pity.” So which is the most likely reading? Well,  it could have been either. Most scholars choose the “pity” reading because it makes the most sense; others choose the “anger” reading because it is harder to explain how “pity” would be changed to “anger” rather than the other way around. But BOTH readings make sense and neither change the meaning of the story (usually the case in textual variants)

• Jesus is moved with pity or compassion, and that is His motivation for healing the leper. You can read similar stories in Matt 9:36, Mark 6:34 and others where this is the case. Jesus doesn't heal just to make a big splash publicly; sometimes he heals in private just because he is compassionate.
  
• Jesus would have also been moved with anger or indignation because sickness and suffering was not the way things were supposed to be. Jesus heals a deaf man in Mark 7:34 only after heaving a deep sigh. The world was not supposed to be broken; that’s why Jesus came. (See also Mark 3:5, 10:14)

OK, if you've waded through all this with me this far, then you’re probably wondering if there’s a point. Here it is. When we are confronted by the brokenness of the world we live in—sin, suffering, sickness—there are two appropriate reactions that we can have both emulating Jesus

• We can respond with compassion and pity for the person caught up in the sin, sickness and suffering… and be moved to help as we can.
  
• We can respond with anger at the brokenness of a world that allows such sin, sickness and suffering… and be moved to help as we can.

What we are not to do is to become angry at the person caught up in sin, sickness and suffering and turn away from them and refuse to help as we can. That was the reaction that we will see in Mark from the Pharisees to the sin, sickness and suffering of the world. And their response to the compassionate and healing Christ was also an emphatic, “Well, I never.” We need to make sure we respond like Jesus and not like the Pharisees.

Taxes and the Second Coming

I received a little postcard from the IRS a couple of days ago informing me that they once again expect me to pay my taxes this year. I was hoping that with all the hoopla in Washington over the past election, the fiscal cliff, and the gun-control debate that they would be distracted and  forget all about sending me my tax bill. I’m sure that happens all the time! So I guess I’m going to do my taxes again this year, and I assume my timetable will be the same. At some point in March, I’ll go to Sam’s and buy a copy of TurboTax. On April 14, I’ll finally get around to tearing the shrink wrap off of TurboTax and install it on the computer. On April 15, I poke around in the software long enough to figure out how to print an extension from.  Then I'll put off doing my taxes until August 15.

My natural tendency to procrastinate when it comes to doing taxes is actually a matter of theology. On the one hand, there is a Biblical example of catching a fish and looking in its mouth for the money to pay taxes (see Matt 17:27). So God wants us to go fishing rather than pay taxes, right?  Also, the Bible clearly says that Jesus could come back unexpectedly at any money, and who wants to go to heaven paying taxes that they could have put off?  Actually, the real reason that I put off doing my taxes is because I am by nature a procrastinator… but I put off admitting that!

This human tendency to procrastination is likely one of the reasons why God did not share with us the time of Jesus' return. We know when tax returns are due, and we put them off until the last minute. So if we could read the tea leaves and figure out the exact time of Jesus’ return, what would we do? You know what we would do-- we would put off doing what we need to do in order to get ready for his return.

In our reading today from Matthew 24, Jesus makes an almost offhand comment to the disciples about the coming destruction of the Temple (Matt 24:2). They asked, "When will this happen, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?" (Matt 24:3). Jesus gave them some signs that clue them in on the coming fall of the Temple (and Jerusalem). Most of what is said in this chapter applies to the destruction of Jerusalem under Vespasian and Titus in AD 70. In fact, Jesus assures his audience that many of them would still be hanging around when all of those things took place (Matt 24:34).

But then Jesus makes a transition, “Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away” (Matt 24:35). And then he discusses the time when heaven and earth would indeed pass away, “But about that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father” (Matt 24:36). He goes on to say that the end time will come upon us just like the flood came in the days of Noah. There will be no sign to clue us in on the return of Jesus; it will come suddenly and without any warning. There will be no reading the newspaper or the tea leaves that will give a clue as to the fact that Jesus is about to come back to end things. So then how can we be ready? That is precisely Jesus’ point—

42 “Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come. 43 But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into. 44 So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him. (Matthew 24:42-44)

Well, this is bad news for us last minute procrastinators, right? There will be no putting off getting ready for Jesus’ coming until the last minute because we have no idea when that last minute will be. Jesus might return in a million years, but then He might return before I can hit the send button on this blog. We don’t know, except that He will come at the time when we least expect Him. So the only way for us to be ready for the coming of our Lord is to live ready every day.  And that's the point-- we have to be ready all the time because he might come at any time.

So... are you ready?

Whoa or Woe

Matthew 23 is at the same time a very familiar and a very strange text where Jesus pronounces a series of “woes” on the toxic religion of the Pharisees. We know the Pharisees as the “heavies” in the story of Jesus who opposed His ministry at every turn. But our view of the Pharisees has been tainted through these condemnations to the point where we don’t fully appreciate how radical these condemnations by Jesus really were.  The Pharisees were the most respected religious teachers of the Jews. They took the Old Testament very seriously and they followed the traditions of the elders passed down to them religiously. Jesus begins this section by acknowledging that then people should listen to the Pharisees as the interpret and explain Moses—“the Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat.” They problems was in their exegesis; their problem was in their application and in their life. Notice the kinds of things Jesus says in this text as he gets wound up warning against the influence of the very teachers who knew Moses best—

• Their traditions make it harder for people to see God, and they do nothing to help people serve God. They are more interested in their status as seen by others than in their service of others (23:5-7)

• This services to slam heaven door in the faces of the very people who most desire to God, The Pharisees will circumnavigate the globe to make a single convert to their party, but when they do, they make that convert theirs and not God’s (23:13-15)

• They are so locked into their legalistic interpretations and when it’s OK to swear and not keep an oath and when an oath is totally binding that they don’t realize that this entire system is one of their own making and has nothing to do with God and truth. (23:16-22)

• They are so focused on getting the letter of the law correct in all of its excruciating detail (making sure every little herb in their garden gets tithed) that they leave undone the :more important matters of the law” like justice, mercy and faithfulness, those things which are at the very heart of God. (23:23-24)

• They are so concerned about their religious image that commands the respect of others, that they aren’t aware that their hearts are quite far from God and that before the One who sees hearts, they are whitewashed tombs and unwashed cups (23:25-28).

• They take such pride in their heritage as follows of the prophets that they don’t realize that their hard hearts and haughty pride is exactly what led their ancestors to murder the very prophets they now venerate… and would lead them to kill the very Messiah who stood before them (23:33-36)

If you do more than just give Matthew 23 a cursory reading, this becomes a very scary text. When you take the time to really look at it and make all the requisite historical and cultural updates in order to apply this to the church today, one thing is clear. Jesus is talking to us. We tend to trust in the very same things in which the Pharisees trusted—our use of the Bible, our traditional church practices, our insistence on traditional morality and ethics, our success in projecting a holy image. The Pharisees would point and say, “Yeah, had all of that and more.” Jesus says, “That’s not what I’m looking for; in fact, all that just gets in the way and confuses people who are diligently seeking me.” And Jesus says “Whoa!” If we don’t listen to that “Whoa” then we just might get a “Woe!”