What Did Jesus Do?
…he entered the synagogue and was teaching.
Mark 1.21
Most everybody can learn, except for those who are so tragically developmentally disabled that they simply lack the capacity. And learning, as any parent knows, starts early. And, as students of early childhood will tell you, there is no time when we have the ability to learn so much so fast, as in our early years. Being in the classroom subbing quite a bit this year, and most of those assignments having been in K-3, I have had a chance to see what kind of learners young children are. They are amazing! Even by Kindergarten they have learned all kinds of things.
Unfortunately, I have noticed that many of the lessons young children are so apt with picking up are rather undesirable. Some of the things that come out of their mouths! Having also had the opportunity to spend a little time with some local students who are in a special program of alternative learning because they, for a variety of reasons, were “underachieving” in the mainstream classroom, I quickly saw that they were all pretty smart. But, again, I realized they had been learning all the wrong kinds of lessons.
Some lessons we simply learn by experience, but most we learn from a teacher. So, I came to the conclusion that most, if not all, the undesirable and destructive lessons children learn are the result of them being taught by the wrong teachers (Television and movies, and popular music come quickly to mind. But there are, tragically, also many parents who teach terrible lessons to their children. And older children are some of the best teachers of some of the worst lessons young children can learn.)
When it comes to learning, the right teacher can make all the difference. Thankfully, the Father, and wouldn’t a father be concerned about what his children learn, sent the Son to be, among other things, our teacher. And, with Jesus, school was pretty much always in session. The Lord of course taught in synagogues, like the one in Capernaum mentioned in Mark 1.21, but He also taught in private homes (Mark 2,15-17), and on a mountainside (Matthew 5-7), and on a plain (Luke 6.17-49), from a boat standing a few feet offshore (Mark 4), and in the temple in Jerusalem (Mark 14.49).
Jesus taught beatitudes, he taught commandments, and he taught parables. He taught about marriage, he taught about money, he taught about neighborliness, and he taught about righteousness. Jesus taught about His Father’s kingdom. The Lord taught about the power of faith. Every lesson Jesus taught was priceless, yet some who were rich refused to learn from Him (See Luke 18.18-30). Great as His lessons were, some simply would not see, would not hear, would not understand what Jesus taught (Matthew 13.14-17).
It is unfortunate that it is no longer permitted to teach the lessons of Jesus in our public schools, providing so much more opportunity for the many wrong lessons children learn so quickly to go unchallenged. But Jesus didn’t spend any time in schools other than on the Sabbath (The synagogues the Lord visited were a kind of school where lessons of the Jewish faith were taught from the Hebrew Scriptures). Children learn as well away from school, and perhaps learn even better. How committed are we to helping children learn the lessons Jesus taught? Will we teach them in private homes (Yes, parents, you can be your child’s most important teacher)? Jesus did. Will we teach children on mountainsides and on plains (Kids need to be outdoors)? Jesus did. Will we teach them by a lakeshore (Children love to be around water)? Jesus did. We can’t take children to Jerusalem to learn at the temple mount, but will we get them to church school to learn? Jesus did. In short, will we, as adults, accept the responsibility to teach children the Word of God, and share with them the invaluable lessons about the Father and the Son and Kingdom? That’s what Jesus did.
S.D.G.
Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
Friday, April 30, 2010
Wednesday, April 28, 2010
Jesus Followed
What Did Jesus Do?
Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness…
Matthew 4.1
In the best tradition of leadership, Jesus never asked a disciple to do anything He wouldn’t do. Take following, for example: Jesus called others to follow Him. But did you ever stop and consider that Jesus was a follower himself? Sure, He was the King of kings and the Lord of lords, but He was also the Son who obeyed the Father in every detail, following the course dictated by His Father’s will. It was not the Lord’s idea to go and spend forty days fasting in the wilderness, but it was the course the Father chose, and the one Jesus faithfully followed. It wasn’t that Jesus couldn’t think and act for himself, but He was all about His Father’s business. We might even say that Christ’s life was “scripted” by the Father:
The words that I say to you I do not speak on my own authority, but the Father who dwells in me does his works.
John 14.10
It was never a matter of Jesus deciding, “Today I think I will go to Tyre and Sidon” or “I feel like crossing over to the country of the Gerasenes tomorrow.” Jesus followed the leading of the Holy Spirit, who always illumines the path of the Father’s will. The Lord was so committed to following carefully and completely the exact course the Father chose for Him that He spent much time in prayer, lest even the smallest detail of His walk be missed. Jesus knew that the only way He could avoid ever taking a misstep was to follow the Father’s will so closely that every step was clear.
Of course, there were many times when the faithful steps of Jesus led Him to contests with demonic spirits, confrontations with scribes and Pharisees and priests, and painful delays (Think of the difficult days of waiting after word had come that His friend Lazarus was critically ill. See John 11). Ultimately Jesus had to follow the road to the cross. Being the Son of God didn’t mean that following the will of the Father would be easy, quite the contrary in fact. Following faithfully meant that Jesus walked the most difficult path any of us could ever imagine.
If Jesus made the difficult choice to follow wherever the Father led Him by the Spirit, do you think He calls us to follow without knowing how hard it is to respond faithfully? Jesus knew there were easier paths He could have taken; the temptations Satan set before the Lord were real (See Matthew 4.1-11); He would have preferred a different cup of suffering, or no cup at all, yet chose to follow the bitter path to Golgotha (See Matthew 26.39).
Of course, Jesus followed faithfully because He trusted the Father completely. What course will we follow today, one of our own choosing, or the one Jesus calls us to take? Do we trust the Father and follow Him faithfully? That’s what Jesus did.
S.D.G.
Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness…
Matthew 4.1
In the best tradition of leadership, Jesus never asked a disciple to do anything He wouldn’t do. Take following, for example: Jesus called others to follow Him. But did you ever stop and consider that Jesus was a follower himself? Sure, He was the King of kings and the Lord of lords, but He was also the Son who obeyed the Father in every detail, following the course dictated by His Father’s will. It was not the Lord’s idea to go and spend forty days fasting in the wilderness, but it was the course the Father chose, and the one Jesus faithfully followed. It wasn’t that Jesus couldn’t think and act for himself, but He was all about His Father’s business. We might even say that Christ’s life was “scripted” by the Father:
The words that I say to you I do not speak on my own authority, but the Father who dwells in me does his works.
John 14.10
It was never a matter of Jesus deciding, “Today I think I will go to Tyre and Sidon” or “I feel like crossing over to the country of the Gerasenes tomorrow.” Jesus followed the leading of the Holy Spirit, who always illumines the path of the Father’s will. The Lord was so committed to following carefully and completely the exact course the Father chose for Him that He spent much time in prayer, lest even the smallest detail of His walk be missed. Jesus knew that the only way He could avoid ever taking a misstep was to follow the Father’s will so closely that every step was clear.
Of course, there were many times when the faithful steps of Jesus led Him to contests with demonic spirits, confrontations with scribes and Pharisees and priests, and painful delays (Think of the difficult days of waiting after word had come that His friend Lazarus was critically ill. See John 11). Ultimately Jesus had to follow the road to the cross. Being the Son of God didn’t mean that following the will of the Father would be easy, quite the contrary in fact. Following faithfully meant that Jesus walked the most difficult path any of us could ever imagine.
If Jesus made the difficult choice to follow wherever the Father led Him by the Spirit, do you think He calls us to follow without knowing how hard it is to respond faithfully? Jesus knew there were easier paths He could have taken; the temptations Satan set before the Lord were real (See Matthew 4.1-11); He would have preferred a different cup of suffering, or no cup at all, yet chose to follow the bitter path to Golgotha (See Matthew 26.39).
Of course, Jesus followed faithfully because He trusted the Father completely. What course will we follow today, one of our own choosing, or the one Jesus calls us to take? Do we trust the Father and follow Him faithfully? That’s what Jesus did.
S.D.G.
Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
Jesus Observed-Part III
What Did Jesus Do?
But Jesus on his part did not entrust himself to them, because he knew all people…
John 2.24
We have already noted that Jesus was a most keen observer of the world around Him (See WDJD 4/25 & 26/10). But much more than flora and the fauna, Jesus had made His fellow man the subject of His most intense study. Being fully human, as well as fully divine, most certainly helped the Lord to have perfect and complete understanding of the human heart and mind. Jesus didn’t know what it was to be a bird of the air or a lily of the field, but He assuredly knew what it was to be human.
In truth, I am not certain that it was divine knowledge that gave Jesus the ability to know people’s hearts better than they did themselves, or that it was godly omniscience the allowed Him to see into the minds of men. I believe Jesus may know us so well simply because He cared so much that He observed and studied men and women and children more closely than any anthropologist, physician, psychologist, or sociologist. Jesus, if you will, could read people like a book because He had studied us more intently than anything else.
We all consistently experience frustrations and interpersonal hostilities, individually and communally, right up to the level of international relations, because we are more interested and concerned for ourselves than for our neighbor. Jesus, on the other hand, was the most selfless person who ever lived. He sought neither fame nor fortune; He had no worries, or issues of self-esteem; He was totally confident of, and secure in, His Father’s love. All this freed Jesus to look intently and perceptively at the people around Him.
We hanker for fame and fortune, worry continually, doubt ourselves, and fail to fully know the Father’s love, and hence walk around much of the time as bundles of varying degrees of insecurity. All this gets in the way of our paying full attention to the people around us; we are always distracted by our own self.
Perhaps the most amazing thing of all, considering how thoroughly Jesus observed and understood humanity, was that He still cared so much for us that He was willing to endure the cross and the grave for our sake! I mean, how many of us write off people who anger, betray, deny, disappoint, hurt, or reject us? How few of us, as in none, love others enough to get to know them so deeply that compassion, concern compelled to selflessly act for the good of another, rules our heart and mind, and directs our every action. That’s what Jesus did!
S.D.G.
Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
But Jesus on his part did not entrust himself to them, because he knew all people…
John 2.24
We have already noted that Jesus was a most keen observer of the world around Him (See WDJD 4/25 & 26/10). But much more than flora and the fauna, Jesus had made His fellow man the subject of His most intense study. Being fully human, as well as fully divine, most certainly helped the Lord to have perfect and complete understanding of the human heart and mind. Jesus didn’t know what it was to be a bird of the air or a lily of the field, but He assuredly knew what it was to be human.
In truth, I am not certain that it was divine knowledge that gave Jesus the ability to know people’s hearts better than they did themselves, or that it was godly omniscience the allowed Him to see into the minds of men. I believe Jesus may know us so well simply because He cared so much that He observed and studied men and women and children more closely than any anthropologist, physician, psychologist, or sociologist. Jesus, if you will, could read people like a book because He had studied us more intently than anything else.
We all consistently experience frustrations and interpersonal hostilities, individually and communally, right up to the level of international relations, because we are more interested and concerned for ourselves than for our neighbor. Jesus, on the other hand, was the most selfless person who ever lived. He sought neither fame nor fortune; He had no worries, or issues of self-esteem; He was totally confident of, and secure in, His Father’s love. All this freed Jesus to look intently and perceptively at the people around Him.
We hanker for fame and fortune, worry continually, doubt ourselves, and fail to fully know the Father’s love, and hence walk around much of the time as bundles of varying degrees of insecurity. All this gets in the way of our paying full attention to the people around us; we are always distracted by our own self.
Perhaps the most amazing thing of all, considering how thoroughly Jesus observed and understood humanity, was that He still cared so much for us that He was willing to endure the cross and the grave for our sake! I mean, how many of us write off people who anger, betray, deny, disappoint, hurt, or reject us? How few of us, as in none, love others enough to get to know them so deeply that compassion, concern compelled to selflessly act for the good of another, rules our heart and mind, and directs our every action. That’s what Jesus did!
S.D.G.
Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
Monday, April 26, 2010
Jesus Observed-Part II
What Did Jesus Do?
Look at the birds of the air…
Matthew 6.26
As one who on a regular basis rose early Jesus would have had ample opportunity to observe other who were early risers—the birds and the beasts. Just as Jesus had made a thorough and careful study of plants and trees (See WDJD for 4/25/10), the Lord also paid close attention to animals of the field and stream and air. We have to believe that when Jesus told people to watch the birds of the air He had already spent many hours listening and watching the creatures He had made to fill the skies.
Jesus knew the feeding habits of birds (Matthew 13.4), as well as their nesting practices (Matthew 13.32). But Jesus did more than scan the skies, He saw where foxes denned (Matthew 8.20).
While He would not have fed dogs while letting children go hungry (Matthew 15.26), probably more than one dog had lapped up the crumbs from His table. Yet Jesus would never had set what His Father had declared holy before dogs; He also warned others about exercising care over what they threw out for pigs (Matthew 7.6), a lesson neither about pigs nor pearls.
He was well acquainted with the ravenous appetites of wolves, and their liking for mutton (Luke 10.3). He cautioned His disciples to be as wise as crafty serpents while at the same time being as innocent as doves (Matthew 10.16). Not so much as one sparrow could fall from the sky without the Father’s notice (Matthew 10.29), and Jesus had just as much concern for the whole of Creation as His Father.
But it was not just the birds of the air that Jesus watched, He was familiar with barnyard fowls as well; Jesus had seen the protective ways of a hen towards her chicks, and had himself longed to safely gather the children of Jerusalem to Himself in the same manner (Matthew 23.37).
Jesus spent enough time on the water, and in the company of fishermen, to be well acquainted with the bounty of the sea. When He called them, the Lord commanded the Apostles to lay down their nets, but bring their fishing skills, for He would have them haul in souls for the kingdom of His Father (Matthew 4.19)
The schemes and threats of a “foxy” Herod the Lord dismissed, for the Lamb had work that must be accomplished before He made His final trip into Jerusalem (Luke 13.31-35). Perhaps there was no creature the Lord knew better than a lamb. Jesus knew perfectly well how helpless and lost sheep were without a good shepherd to guide and protect them (Matthew 9.36). Ironically, the Good Shepherd himself (John 10.14) had to be sacrificed, the Lamb of God slain, to save the sheep of His Father’s flock.
Whether beneath the waves, upon the ground, or in the air, all creatures great and small were carefully and thoroughly watched and understood by Jesus. Knowing their habits, and their habitats, Jesus both understood the ways of fish, beasts, and birds, and appreciated what they could teach men and women willing to learn from their example. In our busy world, growing more and more urban, where so much of the habitat of so many animals is shrinking away day by day, opportunities to observe and learn from the creatures who share the world with us grow fewer and fewer, and it is quite easy to ignore them altogether. Animals, whether of the seas, fields, or sky, were not created for the purpose of being on our dinner menus, God created plants for food for man and beast alike (See Genesis 1.29-30 for our vegetarian origins), and we would do well to observe and appreciate fish, beasts, and birds for their beauty, strength, industry and wisdom. That’s what Jesus did.
S.D.G.
Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
Look at the birds of the air…
Matthew 6.26
As one who on a regular basis rose early Jesus would have had ample opportunity to observe other who were early risers—the birds and the beasts. Just as Jesus had made a thorough and careful study of plants and trees (See WDJD for 4/25/10), the Lord also paid close attention to animals of the field and stream and air. We have to believe that when Jesus told people to watch the birds of the air He had already spent many hours listening and watching the creatures He had made to fill the skies.
Jesus knew the feeding habits of birds (Matthew 13.4), as well as their nesting practices (Matthew 13.32). But Jesus did more than scan the skies, He saw where foxes denned (Matthew 8.20).
While He would not have fed dogs while letting children go hungry (Matthew 15.26), probably more than one dog had lapped up the crumbs from His table. Yet Jesus would never had set what His Father had declared holy before dogs; He also warned others about exercising care over what they threw out for pigs (Matthew 7.6), a lesson neither about pigs nor pearls.
He was well acquainted with the ravenous appetites of wolves, and their liking for mutton (Luke 10.3). He cautioned His disciples to be as wise as crafty serpents while at the same time being as innocent as doves (Matthew 10.16). Not so much as one sparrow could fall from the sky without the Father’s notice (Matthew 10.29), and Jesus had just as much concern for the whole of Creation as His Father.
But it was not just the birds of the air that Jesus watched, He was familiar with barnyard fowls as well; Jesus had seen the protective ways of a hen towards her chicks, and had himself longed to safely gather the children of Jerusalem to Himself in the same manner (Matthew 23.37).
Jesus spent enough time on the water, and in the company of fishermen, to be well acquainted with the bounty of the sea. When He called them, the Lord commanded the Apostles to lay down their nets, but bring their fishing skills, for He would have them haul in souls for the kingdom of His Father (Matthew 4.19)
The schemes and threats of a “foxy” Herod the Lord dismissed, for the Lamb had work that must be accomplished before He made His final trip into Jerusalem (Luke 13.31-35). Perhaps there was no creature the Lord knew better than a lamb. Jesus knew perfectly well how helpless and lost sheep were without a good shepherd to guide and protect them (Matthew 9.36). Ironically, the Good Shepherd himself (John 10.14) had to be sacrificed, the Lamb of God slain, to save the sheep of His Father’s flock.
Whether beneath the waves, upon the ground, or in the air, all creatures great and small were carefully and thoroughly watched and understood by Jesus. Knowing their habits, and their habitats, Jesus both understood the ways of fish, beasts, and birds, and appreciated what they could teach men and women willing to learn from their example. In our busy world, growing more and more urban, where so much of the habitat of so many animals is shrinking away day by day, opportunities to observe and learn from the creatures who share the world with us grow fewer and fewer, and it is quite easy to ignore them altogether. Animals, whether of the seas, fields, or sky, were not created for the purpose of being on our dinner menus, God created plants for food for man and beast alike (See Genesis 1.29-30 for our vegetarian origins), and we would do well to observe and appreciate fish, beasts, and birds for their beauty, strength, industry and wisdom. That’s what Jesus did.
S.D.G.
Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
Sunday, April 25, 2010
Jesus Observed-Part I
What Did Jesus Do?
“Considered the lilies of the field…”
Matthew 6.28
When you are responsible for all of Creation you are going to take care to watch and observe everything around you; Jesus certainly did. We can be sure that He did not ask those who were listening to the Sermon on the Mount to consider the lilies without himself having carefully considered them first. It is safe to say that Jesus noted well all of His surroundings.
Jesus observed the humble splendor of the grass of the field (Matthew 6.30); He also knew what fate weeds faced (Matthew 13.24-30). The Lord had carefully watched what happens when grain was planted (Mark 4.26-29), and He likened the growth of His Father’s kingdom to the wheat harvest (Matthew 9.37-38).
The tendency of thorns to grow up and choke everything around them had been seen and remembered by Jesus (Matthew 13.7); and Jesus knew that thorns and brambles could never produce grapes, nor thistles figs (Matthew 7.16; Luke 6.44).
As for fruit trees, Jesus had seen that it was only the strong healthy ones that yielded good fruit; good fruit was never picked from a diseased tree (Matthew 67.17-18); and there was but one end for a diseased fruit tree (Matthew 7.19). Fig trees, all trees for that matter, were reliable indicators of the seasons, and Jesus had observed this (Luke 21.29-30).
Even the tiniest of seeds, the seed of the mustard plant, had been noted by Jesus, for he had watched how that tiny seed had grown and become the largest shrub in the garden, a tree in which all the birds came and nested (Matthew 13.31-32)
From tiny seeds to majestic trees; from life-sustaining grain and fruit to troublesome thorns and weeds, Jesus observed the branches, blossoms, and flowers of every green thing around Him. All had their purpose in the natural world the Father had created, and many proved quite useful as illustrations of the Father’s kingdom. I cannot estimate the hours the Lord must have spent studying gardens and fields, meadows and forests, but they had to be considerable, for He was surely the most knowledgeable agriculturalist/arborist/horticulturalist ever.
Not too many of us today take time to ponder the beauty, the utility, and the lessons of the countless green and growing things, great and small, that are all around us. But that’s what Jesus did.
S.D.G.
Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
“Considered the lilies of the field…”
Matthew 6.28
When you are responsible for all of Creation you are going to take care to watch and observe everything around you; Jesus certainly did. We can be sure that He did not ask those who were listening to the Sermon on the Mount to consider the lilies without himself having carefully considered them first. It is safe to say that Jesus noted well all of His surroundings.
Jesus observed the humble splendor of the grass of the field (Matthew 6.30); He also knew what fate weeds faced (Matthew 13.24-30). The Lord had carefully watched what happens when grain was planted (Mark 4.26-29), and He likened the growth of His Father’s kingdom to the wheat harvest (Matthew 9.37-38).
The tendency of thorns to grow up and choke everything around them had been seen and remembered by Jesus (Matthew 13.7); and Jesus knew that thorns and brambles could never produce grapes, nor thistles figs (Matthew 7.16; Luke 6.44).
As for fruit trees, Jesus had seen that it was only the strong healthy ones that yielded good fruit; good fruit was never picked from a diseased tree (Matthew 67.17-18); and there was but one end for a diseased fruit tree (Matthew 7.19). Fig trees, all trees for that matter, were reliable indicators of the seasons, and Jesus had observed this (Luke 21.29-30).
Even the tiniest of seeds, the seed of the mustard plant, had been noted by Jesus, for he had watched how that tiny seed had grown and become the largest shrub in the garden, a tree in which all the birds came and nested (Matthew 13.31-32)
From tiny seeds to majestic trees; from life-sustaining grain and fruit to troublesome thorns and weeds, Jesus observed the branches, blossoms, and flowers of every green thing around Him. All had their purpose in the natural world the Father had created, and many proved quite useful as illustrations of the Father’s kingdom. I cannot estimate the hours the Lord must have spent studying gardens and fields, meadows and forests, but they had to be considerable, for He was surely the most knowledgeable agriculturalist/arborist/horticulturalist ever.
Not too many of us today take time to ponder the beauty, the utility, and the lessons of the countless green and growing things, great and small, that are all around us. But that’s what Jesus did.
S.D.G.
Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
Friday, April 23, 2010
Jesus Sojourned
What Did Jesus Do?
“Rise, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt”…And he rose and took the child and his mother by night and departed to Egypt.
Matthew 2.13-14
A true Israelite, Jesus had his own sojourn to Egypt. A true son of Abraham, Jesus would be led back to the Promised Land (Though it would not require a trip of forty years as it did those whom God had delivered from Pharaoh!). But, the true Son of God, Jesus sojourned an immensely greater distance when He left the Father’s side and “went down,” not from Bethlehem to Egypt, but from Heaven to Earth, from the right hand of God into the arms of His mother Mary. And, most gloriously, the true Son of Man, Jesus also ascended, returning, not merely to Canaan, which, though it was the land of the Promise, is not Israel’s, or our, home, but back to Heaven, where all our sojourning will end, and we too will be at the Father’s side.
Sojourners are folks who pass through, staying for a while, but not permanently, because, well, they are not at home. Jesus truly had “no place to lay his head,” at least not for long, because He was only sojourning on Earth. He had no need to set up any sort of permanent residence because He always knew He was going to return to His home with the Father. In the eleventh chapter of the Letter to the Hebrews we read of our ancestors in faith who, like Jesus were all sojourners who acknowledged that they were “strangers and exiles on earth,” perpetually “seeking a homeland.” (Hebrews 11.13-14) Their desire was for a “better country---a heavenly one.” And because they so desired and so sought for that home with the Father, the LORD was pleased to prepare for them a city the like of none on Earth. (See Revelation 21)
All the heroes of faith mentioned in Hebrews 11 died as sojourners, they never made it home. That is, until Jesus came and sojourned and Himself completed the trip home for us all. Jesus, the only way to the Father (John 14.6), has, like a path finding pioneer, blazed the trail for all who sojourn by faith, the faith of the Bible, to make their way home through Him.
So, as beautiful and lavish as the world the Father has given us is, we need to remember it is not our home, and we should not let ourselves grow so attached to it that we would ever lose our longing to continue our sojourn in faith until, in and through Jesus, we are finally brought home to our Father. Keep thinking of yourself as a stranger and exile in the world. Keep seeking. Keep looking and longing for the better land. And keep encouraging others to join you in sojourning in faith. That’s what Jesus did.
S.D.G.
Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
“Rise, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt”…And he rose and took the child and his mother by night and departed to Egypt.
Matthew 2.13-14
A true Israelite, Jesus had his own sojourn to Egypt. A true son of Abraham, Jesus would be led back to the Promised Land (Though it would not require a trip of forty years as it did those whom God had delivered from Pharaoh!). But, the true Son of God, Jesus sojourned an immensely greater distance when He left the Father’s side and “went down,” not from Bethlehem to Egypt, but from Heaven to Earth, from the right hand of God into the arms of His mother Mary. And, most gloriously, the true Son of Man, Jesus also ascended, returning, not merely to Canaan, which, though it was the land of the Promise, is not Israel’s, or our, home, but back to Heaven, where all our sojourning will end, and we too will be at the Father’s side.
Sojourners are folks who pass through, staying for a while, but not permanently, because, well, they are not at home. Jesus truly had “no place to lay his head,” at least not for long, because He was only sojourning on Earth. He had no need to set up any sort of permanent residence because He always knew He was going to return to His home with the Father. In the eleventh chapter of the Letter to the Hebrews we read of our ancestors in faith who, like Jesus were all sojourners who acknowledged that they were “strangers and exiles on earth,” perpetually “seeking a homeland.” (Hebrews 11.13-14) Their desire was for a “better country---a heavenly one.” And because they so desired and so sought for that home with the Father, the LORD was pleased to prepare for them a city the like of none on Earth. (See Revelation 21)
All the heroes of faith mentioned in Hebrews 11 died as sojourners, they never made it home. That is, until Jesus came and sojourned and Himself completed the trip home for us all. Jesus, the only way to the Father (John 14.6), has, like a path finding pioneer, blazed the trail for all who sojourn by faith, the faith of the Bible, to make their way home through Him.
So, as beautiful and lavish as the world the Father has given us is, we need to remember it is not our home, and we should not let ourselves grow so attached to it that we would ever lose our longing to continue our sojourn in faith until, in and through Jesus, we are finally brought home to our Father. Keep thinking of yourself as a stranger and exile in the world. Keep seeking. Keep looking and longing for the better land. And keep encouraging others to join you in sojourning in faith. That’s what Jesus did.
S.D.G.
Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
Jesus Volunteered
What Did Jesus Do?
And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus.
Luke 1.31
Jesus didn’t conceive and bear himself, He was conceived in Mary’s womb, and she bore Him, which means that “conceive” and “bear” are passive verbs with respect to the Lord, they were actions that happened to Him, rather than actions He performed. But, unlike any of us, Jesus had a part in His own conceiving and being born, for, at the very least, He consented to it, He volunteered for it.
With every right to simply grasp tightly onto His divinity and remain safely in Heaven at His Father’s side, Jesus submitted to the will of the Father, and humbled himself so much as to take on human flesh and become one of us. Other religions have stories about gods who masquerade as humans at one time or another, but no other faith has a Savior who willingly became one with us by becoming one of us in order that we might be saved.
And, again, while being conceived and born happened to Jesus, they happened to Him because He delighted to do His Father’s will. All of us can say that our birth was God’s will, but who of us can claim that we had anything to say about our birth? Jesus did, and He did so because He understood what was at stake, the salvation of lost sinners whom the Father loved. No but human could ultimately make sufficient sacrifice to pay the penalty for our sins, but no human that could ever be poured out could be completely and pure. It was absolutely necessary that Adam have a “pureblooded” descendant, if you will, to wipe away the stain of Adam’s Fall. But no son or daughter of Adam would ever be born free of sin’s taint. Yet it was the earnest desire of the Father that atonement should be made, men’s sins forgiven, and the relationship between God and man restored.
I can imagine the scene in heaven: The Father surveys all the heavenly host and asks, “Who will go for us?” Silence. “Who will go for us, and redeem Man from his sins?” And, close at the Father’s right hand, the Son speaks, “Here I am Father, send me. I will make myself nothing (See Philippians 1.7) and go. I know how much you love Man, and therefore I too, love them so much that I would live as one of them, and die for them.” Can you imagine yourself safe and secure in Heaven and volunteering for that mission, not just to live as man, but to die and descend to Hell itself, for the sake of liberating all those whom the Father loves whom keeps in to sin and ? No one in Heaven had ever known fatigue, hunger, pain, suffering, ; and there was Jesus, volunteering to experience all that, and much more, much worse.
Have you ever been in a situation where a volunteer was needed to do a job that no one would choose to do, that everyone would hope someone else would do, and you stepped forward? Have you ever willingly agreed to tackle a problem that promised lots of sacrifice with no reasonable chance of success? Have you ever stepped completely out of the security of everything you had ever known to volunteer to go somewhere completely foreign to you in order to totally share in the lives of people who had no hope? That’s what Jesus did.
S.D.G.
Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus.
Luke 1.31
Jesus didn’t conceive and bear himself, He was conceived in Mary’s womb, and she bore Him, which means that “conceive” and “bear” are passive verbs with respect to the Lord, they were actions that happened to Him, rather than actions He performed. But, unlike any of us, Jesus had a part in His own conceiving and being born, for, at the very least, He consented to it, He volunteered for it.
With every right to simply grasp tightly onto His divinity and remain safely in Heaven at His Father’s side, Jesus submitted to the will of the Father, and humbled himself so much as to take on human flesh and become one of us. Other religions have stories about gods who masquerade as humans at one time or another, but no other faith has a Savior who willingly became one with us by becoming one of us in order that we might be saved.
And, again, while being conceived and born happened to Jesus, they happened to Him because He delighted to do His Father’s will. All of us can say that our birth was God’s will, but who of us can claim that we had anything to say about our birth? Jesus did, and He did so because He understood what was at stake, the salvation of lost sinners whom the Father loved. No but human could ultimately make sufficient sacrifice to pay the penalty for our sins, but no human that could ever be poured out could be completely and pure. It was absolutely necessary that Adam have a “pureblooded” descendant, if you will, to wipe away the stain of Adam’s Fall. But no son or daughter of Adam would ever be born free of sin’s taint. Yet it was the earnest desire of the Father that atonement should be made, men’s sins forgiven, and the relationship between God and man restored.
I can imagine the scene in heaven: The Father surveys all the heavenly host and asks, “Who will go for us?” Silence. “Who will go for us, and redeem Man from his sins?” And, close at the Father’s right hand, the Son speaks, “Here I am Father, send me. I will make myself nothing (See Philippians 1.7) and go. I know how much you love Man, and therefore I too, love them so much that I would live as one of them, and die for them.” Can you imagine yourself safe and secure in Heaven and volunteering for that mission, not just to live as man, but to die and descend to Hell itself, for the sake of liberating all those whom the Father loves whom keeps in to sin and ? No one in Heaven had ever known fatigue, hunger, pain, suffering, ; and there was Jesus, volunteering to experience all that, and much more, much worse.
Have you ever been in a situation where a volunteer was needed to do a job that no one would choose to do, that everyone would hope someone else would do, and you stepped forward? Have you ever willingly agreed to tackle a problem that promised lots of sacrifice with no reasonable chance of success? Have you ever stepped completely out of the security of everything you had ever known to volunteer to go somewhere completely foreign to you in order to totally share in the lives of people who had no hope? That’s what Jesus did.
S.D.G.
Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
Jesus Campaigned
What Did Jesus Do?
The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand.
Mark 1.15
Jesus didn’t run for office, He already held three offices as it was; it wasn’t a political campaign He conducted. For one of His offices was that of king, actually we know Him as the King of kings. And, in the ancient world much as they still do, kings campaigned, they conducted wars of conquest. Jesus came to reclaim, liberate, and to conquer. All other kings pretty much would desire, invade, and enslave.
J.R.R. Tolkien wrote The Return of the King, we might think of the Bible as the story of the loss and return of The Kingdom. Jesus, the Son of the great King over all creation, was the Captain-General who, in the name of His Father, won back the kingdom Satan had desired, invaded by deceit, and enslaved to sin and death.
Jesus came to reclaim souls, which would eventually translate to lands throughout the world, and to liberate those held captive and enslaved to sin and condemned to death, and to conquer the forces of Satan (demonic spirits) and ultimately Satan himself. The Allied crusade in World War II was similar to the campaign of Jesus in that the Allies’ objectives were to reclaim the overrun countries of Europe and Asia, to liberate the peoples held under Axis oppression, and ultimately conquer the usurping dictators, reestablishing the rightful kingdoms/nations. The Allies had an overall war aim or objective, followed a broad strategy, and employed effective tactics to win the war; Jesus did much the same. When Jesus said “the time is fulfilled” he was essentially announcing D-Day, the launching of the campaign, and from that point on He would seize the offensive. Campaigns are not undertaken lightly, they require extensive planning, and are developed to accomplish the objective, follow the strategy, and employ the tactics necessary to achieve victory.
The Son’s overall aim was to proclaim the kingdom of God, the kingdom of His Father. Strategically Jesus’ plan was to simply testify to the Truth in order to overcome a kingdom built on lies. The tactics Jesus used include his parables and teaching, the sending out of teams of apostles, performing miracles of healing, setting free those bound by demons, feeding hungry multitudes, reviving the dead, and, ultimately, the sacrificing of His own life on the cross. Satan had no answer; he was bested at every turn. Even the devil’s most terrifying weapon—death—Jesus withstood and overcame. It was a rout.
Yet, there is fighting still going on. The kingdom, though reestablished, has not yet been filled; there are souls to be saved, sinners to be set free. Jesus’ campaign continues through the efforts of His disciples. One way to test whether or not we are a disciple is to ask ourselves if we are committed to the aim of proclaiming and extending our Father’s kingdom, and do we stick to the strategy of relentlessly testifying to the Truth, and do we employ Matthew 25 tactics (Feed the hungry, give drink to the thirsty, clothe the naked, visit the sick, go to those imprisoned). That’s what Jesus did!
S.D.G.
Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand.
Mark 1.15
Jesus didn’t run for office, He already held three offices as it was; it wasn’t a political campaign He conducted. For one of His offices was that of king, actually we know Him as the King of kings. And, in the ancient world much as they still do, kings campaigned, they conducted wars of conquest. Jesus came to reclaim, liberate, and to conquer. All other kings pretty much would desire, invade, and enslave.
J.R.R. Tolkien wrote The Return of the King, we might think of the Bible as the story of the loss and return of The Kingdom. Jesus, the Son of the great King over all creation, was the Captain-General who, in the name of His Father, won back the kingdom Satan had desired, invaded by deceit, and enslaved to sin and death.
Jesus came to reclaim souls, which would eventually translate to lands throughout the world, and to liberate those held captive and enslaved to sin and condemned to death, and to conquer the forces of Satan (demonic spirits) and ultimately Satan himself. The Allied crusade in World War II was similar to the campaign of Jesus in that the Allies’ objectives were to reclaim the overrun countries of Europe and Asia, to liberate the peoples held under Axis oppression, and ultimately conquer the usurping dictators, reestablishing the rightful kingdoms/nations. The Allies had an overall war aim or objective, followed a broad strategy, and employed effective tactics to win the war; Jesus did much the same. When Jesus said “the time is fulfilled” he was essentially announcing D-Day, the launching of the campaign, and from that point on He would seize the offensive. Campaigns are not undertaken lightly, they require extensive planning, and are developed to accomplish the objective, follow the strategy, and employ the tactics necessary to achieve victory.
The Son’s overall aim was to proclaim the kingdom of God, the kingdom of His Father. Strategically Jesus’ plan was to simply testify to the Truth in order to overcome a kingdom built on lies. The tactics Jesus used include his parables and teaching, the sending out of teams of apostles, performing miracles of healing, setting free those bound by demons, feeding hungry multitudes, reviving the dead, and, ultimately, the sacrificing of His own life on the cross. Satan had no answer; he was bested at every turn. Even the devil’s most terrifying weapon—death—Jesus withstood and overcame. It was a rout.
Yet, there is fighting still going on. The kingdom, though reestablished, has not yet been filled; there are souls to be saved, sinners to be set free. Jesus’ campaign continues through the efforts of His disciples. One way to test whether or not we are a disciple is to ask ourselves if we are committed to the aim of proclaiming and extending our Father’s kingdom, and do we stick to the strategy of relentlessly testifying to the Truth, and do we employ Matthew 25 tactics (Feed the hungry, give drink to the thirsty, clothe the naked, visit the sick, go to those imprisoned). That’s what Jesus did!
S.D.G.
Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
Sunday, April 18, 2010
Jesus "Handiworked"
What Did Jesus Do?
For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him.
Colossians 1.16
The sky proclaims the handiwork of God (Psalm 19.1), and all things were made by Jesus, the Son of God, and I believe it is fair to say then, that Christ can be understood to be the hands of the Father, for by Him did the Father create all things. It was Jesus who did all the handiwork of His Father.
Whatever the Father desired to be made, Jesus made it. Whatever was broken and need to be fixed, Jesus fixed it. Whatever needed care and maintenance, Jesus cared for and maintained it. While the world hardly esteems them, I think handymen should consider that they pursue a lofty, not to say divine, profession. Where would we all be if Jesus wasn’t so handy?
Consider the hands of Jesus: hands that created and comforted, hands that healed and helped, hands that perfected and protected; hands of a craftsman, a workman, a handyman. And, as any workman can tell you, you can’t work with your hands for long without acquiring some scars. And so the hands of Jesus were pierced when He accomplished the greatest work of the Father on the cross.
Perhaps you have heard it said that we (The Church) are God’s hands in the world today? This is to suggest that the Father is still working, and that He still uses sons, and daughters, to accomplish His will. Even though Jesus completed all the work the Father had given unto Him, the work of building, extending, and filling the kingdom of God has continued for two millennia now. And it will continue until the Father sends the Son again to bring all things, even the work of the kingdom, to an end. Until then, we need to be busy with our heavenly Father’s handiwork. That’s what Jesus did.
S.D.G.
Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him.
Colossians 1.16
The sky proclaims the handiwork of God (Psalm 19.1), and all things were made by Jesus, the Son of God, and I believe it is fair to say then, that Christ can be understood to be the hands of the Father, for by Him did the Father create all things. It was Jesus who did all the handiwork of His Father.
Whatever the Father desired to be made, Jesus made it. Whatever was broken and need to be fixed, Jesus fixed it. Whatever needed care and maintenance, Jesus cared for and maintained it. While the world hardly esteems them, I think handymen should consider that they pursue a lofty, not to say divine, profession. Where would we all be if Jesus wasn’t so handy?
Consider the hands of Jesus: hands that created and comforted, hands that healed and helped, hands that perfected and protected; hands of a craftsman, a workman, a handyman. And, as any workman can tell you, you can’t work with your hands for long without acquiring some scars. And so the hands of Jesus were pierced when He accomplished the greatest work of the Father on the cross.
Perhaps you have heard it said that we (The Church) are God’s hands in the world today? This is to suggest that the Father is still working, and that He still uses sons, and daughters, to accomplish His will. Even though Jesus completed all the work the Father had given unto Him, the work of building, extending, and filling the kingdom of God has continued for two millennia now. And it will continue until the Father sends the Son again to bring all things, even the work of the kingdom, to an end. Until then, we need to be busy with our heavenly Father’s handiwork. That’s what Jesus did.
S.D.G.
Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
Saturday, April 17, 2010
Jesus Birded
What Did Jesus Do?
Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? And not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father.
Matthew 10.29
As I sit here writing, I listen out the window to the joyful music in the trees outside, where the birds are celebrating spring, and the dawning of a beautiful morning. I have also had the pleasure to sit in a garden on the shore of Galilee and watch the sun rise to the accompaniment of the same bird songs that I am sure Jesus was familiar with. Being in the habit of rising early and removing to a lonely place the Lord had to have listened to the music in the trees around Him. The songs the birds sang, and sing still, were nothing more nor less than the music they had been given to sing by their Creator, of course He would have delighted to listen to their music—they sang for His pleasure and to His glory!
We know for sure that Jesus paid attention to the birds. He contrasted how they had nests to go home to at the end of the day, but He had nowhere to lay His head. (Matthew 8.20) Jesus noted that birds were not farmers, they neither sowed nor reaped a crop, yet His Father made sure to provide food for them. (Matthew 6.26) And the Lord clearly understood that in the world’s economy sparrows came pretty cheap, they were all but insignificant, but the life of every one of them was marked and noted by the Father, and not one fell but that it was part of the Father’s will. A delightful spiritual song assures us that since “His eye is on the sparrow” we can know that He is watching us. Jesus paid attention to all that was going on in His world. And He would have been just as aware of and concerned for the birds as His Father.
Jesus knew the habits of birds, who might not have sown, but did not hesitate to gobble up seed carelessly scattered on paths. (Matthew 13.4) The Lord paid attention to barnyard birds as well as those out in the wild. Jesus had noted well the care and protection a hen provided for her chicks; it so impressed Him that He used the image to describe His feelings towards His people,
How often I would have gathered your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you would not!
Matthew 23.37
Just as fishermen feel a special connection with Jesus, the caller of fishermen, I believe those of us who watch and delight in our feathered neighbors share much the same enjoyment Jesus might have experienced. But, as much as I believe that Jesus paid attention to and cared about birds, I know He valued us so much more. The Lord went to the cross and stretched his “wings” wide so that His unwilling “brood” would yet be under His gracious protection, and He willingly surrendered His life, He “fell” to the ground if you will, so that we might rise as on eagles’ wings, even unto heaven.
Birds are still pretty insignificant to most people, expect perhaps for the birds down at KFC. They hop about all but unnoticed; they sing on yet go largely unheard. Yet, if we would watch them, as I believe the Lord did, we too might take lessons about the Father and His kingdom from them that we can share. That’s what Jesus did.
S.D.G.
Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? And not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father.
Matthew 10.29
As I sit here writing, I listen out the window to the joyful music in the trees outside, where the birds are celebrating spring, and the dawning of a beautiful morning. I have also had the pleasure to sit in a garden on the shore of Galilee and watch the sun rise to the accompaniment of the same bird songs that I am sure Jesus was familiar with. Being in the habit of rising early and removing to a lonely place the Lord had to have listened to the music in the trees around Him. The songs the birds sang, and sing still, were nothing more nor less than the music they had been given to sing by their Creator, of course He would have delighted to listen to their music—they sang for His pleasure and to His glory!
We know for sure that Jesus paid attention to the birds. He contrasted how they had nests to go home to at the end of the day, but He had nowhere to lay His head. (Matthew 8.20) Jesus noted that birds were not farmers, they neither sowed nor reaped a crop, yet His Father made sure to provide food for them. (Matthew 6.26) And the Lord clearly understood that in the world’s economy sparrows came pretty cheap, they were all but insignificant, but the life of every one of them was marked and noted by the Father, and not one fell but that it was part of the Father’s will. A delightful spiritual song assures us that since “His eye is on the sparrow” we can know that He is watching us. Jesus paid attention to all that was going on in His world. And He would have been just as aware of and concerned for the birds as His Father.
Jesus knew the habits of birds, who might not have sown, but did not hesitate to gobble up seed carelessly scattered on paths. (Matthew 13.4) The Lord paid attention to barnyard birds as well as those out in the wild. Jesus had noted well the care and protection a hen provided for her chicks; it so impressed Him that He used the image to describe His feelings towards His people,
How often I would have gathered your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you would not!
Matthew 23.37
Just as fishermen feel a special connection with Jesus, the caller of fishermen, I believe those of us who watch and delight in our feathered neighbors share much the same enjoyment Jesus might have experienced. But, as much as I believe that Jesus paid attention to and cared about birds, I know He valued us so much more. The Lord went to the cross and stretched his “wings” wide so that His unwilling “brood” would yet be under His gracious protection, and He willingly surrendered His life, He “fell” to the ground if you will, so that we might rise as on eagles’ wings, even unto heaven.
Birds are still pretty insignificant to most people, expect perhaps for the birds down at KFC. They hop about all but unnoticed; they sing on yet go largely unheard. Yet, if we would watch them, as I believe the Lord did, we too might take lessons about the Father and His kingdom from them that we can share. That’s what Jesus did.
S.D.G.
Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
Friday, April 16, 2010
Jesus Commissioned
What Did Jesus Do?
Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.”
Matthew 28.18-20
Jesus was a commissioner. He didn’t oversee an athletic conference or league, as we are familiar with commissioners doing in our day. Rather he charged, or gave a commission to, his followers to do three things: 1) go, 2) make, and 3) teach. This three point charge is still known as The Great Commission. It comprised the final, standing orders Jesus gave His Church before departing back into heaven forty days after the Resurrection. By standing orders it is meant that they were/are to remain in force until new orders are issued. No further orders have come from the Lord, so we had better still be about the work of going, making, and teaching.
I have a particular interest in Jesus the Commissioner because that’s one of my jobs. One of my responsibilities in Boy Scouting is serving as a District Commissioner. While Scouting’s objective isn’t as important as making disciples for Jesus, helping develop young men and women of strong moral character, committed citizenship, and personal fitness in body, mind, and spirit, is nonetheless a worthy task. And, in Scouting as in the Church, we have to go, make, and teach the ideals, principles, and skills that make one a good Scout, just as Jesus’ “commissioners” must go, make, and teach the ideals, principles, and skills of being a Christian.
You see, like young boys who must be recruited into Scouting, people need to be wooed into a personal relationship with Jesus. Like boys who must make a decision and commitment to be and live as Scouts, so people need to make a decision and commitment to be and live as Christians. And, like boys who don’t know much of anything about how to be a Scout, and so must be taught the ideals, principles and skills of Scouting, people need to be taught the ideals, principles, and skills of being a Christian.
Now who do you think goes, makes, and teaches new Scouts? Those who are already Scouts of course! So, who do you think must go, make, and teach people about being Christian disciples? Right, those who are already Christian disciples. Wipe out a generation of Scouts and it is likely the program would disappear because there would be no one to go, make, and teach Scouting. And the Church, the Body of Christ, is not much more secure. If an entire generation were to rise up with no knowledge at all of the Savior, and no one to transmit that knowledge to them, well, what do you think would happen to Church?
Fortunately, our great Commissioner is not about to let a generation rise up in ignorance of the Great Commission. Jesus himself still calls and commissions disciples in each generation to go, make, and teach future disciples. Oh, there are definite ups and downs from generation to generation. Historically, every time it has appeared that the faithful, and consequently the faith, are dwindling, the Holy Spirit seems to prepare a special generation of ultra-committed disciples who cause what is commonly called “revival” to sweep through the Church. Regardless of the apparent fruitfulness, or lake thereof, at a given time, true disciples need concern themselves in season and out of season, as it were, with the three basic points the Great Commissioner gave us: go, make, teach. If you study the life of Christ, you will discover that’s just what Jesus did.
S.D.G.
Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.”
Matthew 28.18-20
Jesus was a commissioner. He didn’t oversee an athletic conference or league, as we are familiar with commissioners doing in our day. Rather he charged, or gave a commission to, his followers to do three things: 1) go, 2) make, and 3) teach. This three point charge is still known as The Great Commission. It comprised the final, standing orders Jesus gave His Church before departing back into heaven forty days after the Resurrection. By standing orders it is meant that they were/are to remain in force until new orders are issued. No further orders have come from the Lord, so we had better still be about the work of going, making, and teaching.
I have a particular interest in Jesus the Commissioner because that’s one of my jobs. One of my responsibilities in Boy Scouting is serving as a District Commissioner. While Scouting’s objective isn’t as important as making disciples for Jesus, helping develop young men and women of strong moral character, committed citizenship, and personal fitness in body, mind, and spirit, is nonetheless a worthy task. And, in Scouting as in the Church, we have to go, make, and teach the ideals, principles, and skills that make one a good Scout, just as Jesus’ “commissioners” must go, make, and teach the ideals, principles, and skills of being a Christian.
You see, like young boys who must be recruited into Scouting, people need to be wooed into a personal relationship with Jesus. Like boys who must make a decision and commitment to be and live as Scouts, so people need to make a decision and commitment to be and live as Christians. And, like boys who don’t know much of anything about how to be a Scout, and so must be taught the ideals, principles and skills of Scouting, people need to be taught the ideals, principles, and skills of being a Christian.
Now who do you think goes, makes, and teaches new Scouts? Those who are already Scouts of course! So, who do you think must go, make, and teach people about being Christian disciples? Right, those who are already Christian disciples. Wipe out a generation of Scouts and it is likely the program would disappear because there would be no one to go, make, and teach Scouting. And the Church, the Body of Christ, is not much more secure. If an entire generation were to rise up with no knowledge at all of the Savior, and no one to transmit that knowledge to them, well, what do you think would happen to Church?
Fortunately, our great Commissioner is not about to let a generation rise up in ignorance of the Great Commission. Jesus himself still calls and commissions disciples in each generation to go, make, and teach future disciples. Oh, there are definite ups and downs from generation to generation. Historically, every time it has appeared that the faithful, and consequently the faith, are dwindling, the Holy Spirit seems to prepare a special generation of ultra-committed disciples who cause what is commonly called “revival” to sweep through the Church. Regardless of the apparent fruitfulness, or lake thereof, at a given time, true disciples need concern themselves in season and out of season, as it were, with the three basic points the Great Commissioner gave us: go, make, teach. If you study the life of Christ, you will discover that’s just what Jesus did.
S.D.G.
Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
Thursday, April 15, 2010
Jesus Rent
What Did Jesus Do?
And the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom.
Mark 15.38
“Jesus, rent!” was not what Peter advised when the Lord told a would-be disciple that, “the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.” (Matthew 8.20) Rather it describes what happened to the curtain in the Jerusalem temple that had kept all but he high priest from the approaching the presence of God in the Holy of Holies, and him but once a year to make atonement for Israel’s sins. The death of Jesus, the one sufficient sacrifice to atone for all sins, resulted in the miraculous rending (tearing) of the barrier in the temple; Jesus had said he was the only way to the Father (John 14.6), and by his death he made the way clear for the relationship between God and Man, which had been broken in the Fall, to be restored. Man would have access to God unknown since the time of Adam and Eve.
“All Access” is a popular term nowadays. It denotes special privileges, like back-stage concert passes, 50-yard line Super Bowl seats plus the opportunity to visit the teams in the locker rooms. Internet services like Twitter are supposed to give folks unlimited access to who ever is doing the “tweeting.” All kinds of folks are offering something like 24/7 availability to their customers/fans. And, when we don’t have “All Access” privileges, we somehow feel we’re not getting the whole story.
Well, Jesus’ rending essentially was God’s way of giving all of us “All Access” to Him. Anywhere, anytime, God has made himself available to us. The Son has made the Father available to us all 24/7/365. God takes no vacations, never asks us to leave a message on His voicemail with a promise to get back to us as soon as He can, and is as ready to hear from us at 4 a.m. as He is at 4 p.m.
Before Jesus rent the curtain in two, and tore away the obstacle of our sins, specific times, and places, and people, controlled access to God. But God wants us to know Him “up close and personal.” God can use us who already know him to help rend what may be keeping someone else from drawing near to the Father, and the last thing God wants us to be is obstacles who get in the way of others.
It is safe to say that just about all of us know someone who is estranged from God at this very moment. What might we do to rend the barriers that keep others from having a personal, “All Access” relationship with God? Making such a rent so another can draw near to God could be costly, difficult, even painful. But thanks be to God, that’s what Jesus did.
S.D.G.
Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
And the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom.
Mark 15.38
“Jesus, rent!” was not what Peter advised when the Lord told a would-be disciple that, “the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.” (Matthew 8.20) Rather it describes what happened to the curtain in the Jerusalem temple that had kept all but he high priest from the approaching the presence of God in the Holy of Holies, and him but once a year to make atonement for Israel’s sins. The death of Jesus, the one sufficient sacrifice to atone for all sins, resulted in the miraculous rending (tearing) of the barrier in the temple; Jesus had said he was the only way to the Father (John 14.6), and by his death he made the way clear for the relationship between God and Man, which had been broken in the Fall, to be restored. Man would have access to God unknown since the time of Adam and Eve.
“All Access” is a popular term nowadays. It denotes special privileges, like back-stage concert passes, 50-yard line Super Bowl seats plus the opportunity to visit the teams in the locker rooms. Internet services like Twitter are supposed to give folks unlimited access to who ever is doing the “tweeting.” All kinds of folks are offering something like 24/7 availability to their customers/fans. And, when we don’t have “All Access” privileges, we somehow feel we’re not getting the whole story.
Well, Jesus’ rending essentially was God’s way of giving all of us “All Access” to Him. Anywhere, anytime, God has made himself available to us. The Son has made the Father available to us all 24/7/365. God takes no vacations, never asks us to leave a message on His voicemail with a promise to get back to us as soon as He can, and is as ready to hear from us at 4 a.m. as He is at 4 p.m.
Before Jesus rent the curtain in two, and tore away the obstacle of our sins, specific times, and places, and people, controlled access to God. But God wants us to know Him “up close and personal.” God can use us who already know him to help rend what may be keeping someone else from drawing near to the Father, and the last thing God wants us to be is obstacles who get in the way of others.
It is safe to say that just about all of us know someone who is estranged from God at this very moment. What might we do to rend the barriers that keep others from having a personal, “All Access” relationship with God? Making such a rent so another can draw near to God could be costly, difficult, even painful. But thanks be to God, that’s what Jesus did.
S.D.G.
Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
Wednesday, April 14, 2010
Jesus Wined
What Did Jesus Do?
Fill the jars with water.
John 2.7
No, I didn’t mean to imply that Jesus was a habitual complainer. That was not a typo. Yes, the Lord lamented over Jerusalem (See Matthew 23.37 and Luke 13.34), and, overwhelmed with a sense of forsakenness he cried out from the Cross, but I certainly would never suggest that Jesus was a whiner. Yet, he wined.
To be more specific, Jesus “wined” 150 gallons or so of water, when all the wine had embarrassingly run out at a wedding feast in Cana of Galilee where Jesus and His disciples, and his mother Mary, were invited guests. (John 2.1-2) Now, wining, and dining were not at all unusual, the wedding feast itself being a perfect illustration. But no one had ever before seen water wined, if you will.
And for His part, Jesus himself was reluctant to wine at that time. When His mother informed him that, though the celebration was far from over, the wine had run out, Jesus responded by saying the timing was not right for him to do anything about it. (2.4) However, this must have been one of those times when “Mother knows best,” because Mary went and told the servants to do what Jesus instructed them to do. (2.5)
So it was that Jesus directed the servants to take half a dozen large jars (Each would have held somewhere between 20 and 30 gallons) normally intended to hold water for rites of purification and fill them with water. (2.6-7) When the servants had complied with his instructions the Lord then told them to dip out a little from one of the jars and take it to the steward in charge of the feast, who, when he had tasted it, was amazed that the bridegroom had been holding out some of the best wine he had ever had. The steward was impressed because it was not the common practice to save the best for last. (2.8-10)
Now, John is the only one of the four Evangelists to record this story of Jesus “wining” water. And just what the story’s purpose was is quite up to discussion to this day. Was John trying to show that Jesus was a good son who obeyed his mother? Was its purpose simply to introduce the power of Jesus by reporting this event, “the first of his signs”? (2.11) As manifestations of glory go, the wine would have certainly made the guests at the wedding feast feel happy for a while, but other than for the servants who knew what happened, and the disciples, it was likely the bridegroom who got the praise, and not The Bridegroom, if you will. So, why did John include this story of the wedding at Cana? I think the best we can do is speculate until we have the chance to ask John himself.
For myself, for now I believe there are a couple of instructive points we may choose to accept. One is that The Bridegroom, not the bridegroom, would one day institute a different kind of feast, wherein his blood would become the “wine” of release from our sins. Certainly, as the good wine flowed at the wedding the guests would have forgotten all their worries. How much more joy do we experience because of the wine of Jesus’ blood poured out for our sakes? Secondly, I believe that this story illustrates the transformative power of the presence of Christ, whereby the most ordinary can become extraordinary. This is not to say that any of us should presume we may ever help out an embarrassed bride and groom by changing water into wine at their wedding reception should the supply of the fruit of the vine run out. But I believe we can rely on the power of Jesus to transform mourning into dancing, which is to say we should never despair, but believe that the Son can and will take any ordinary thing at hand (Even us!) and “wine” it, that is, transform it, in such a way as to both meet the need of the moment and glorify the Father.
The power of presence, a smile, a word of encouragement, a comforting touch: quite ordinary things with the potential to transform a situation. How about us, have we “wined” anything to the glory of God lately? That’s what Jesus did.
S.D.G.
Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
Fill the jars with water.
John 2.7
No, I didn’t mean to imply that Jesus was a habitual complainer. That was not a typo. Yes, the Lord lamented over Jerusalem (See Matthew 23.37 and Luke 13.34), and, overwhelmed with a sense of forsakenness he cried out from the Cross, but I certainly would never suggest that Jesus was a whiner. Yet, he wined.
To be more specific, Jesus “wined” 150 gallons or so of water, when all the wine had embarrassingly run out at a wedding feast in Cana of Galilee where Jesus and His disciples, and his mother Mary, were invited guests. (John 2.1-2) Now, wining, and dining were not at all unusual, the wedding feast itself being a perfect illustration. But no one had ever before seen water wined, if you will.
And for His part, Jesus himself was reluctant to wine at that time. When His mother informed him that, though the celebration was far from over, the wine had run out, Jesus responded by saying the timing was not right for him to do anything about it. (2.4) However, this must have been one of those times when “Mother knows best,” because Mary went and told the servants to do what Jesus instructed them to do. (2.5)
So it was that Jesus directed the servants to take half a dozen large jars (Each would have held somewhere between 20 and 30 gallons) normally intended to hold water for rites of purification and fill them with water. (2.6-7) When the servants had complied with his instructions the Lord then told them to dip out a little from one of the jars and take it to the steward in charge of the feast, who, when he had tasted it, was amazed that the bridegroom had been holding out some of the best wine he had ever had. The steward was impressed because it was not the common practice to save the best for last. (2.8-10)
Now, John is the only one of the four Evangelists to record this story of Jesus “wining” water. And just what the story’s purpose was is quite up to discussion to this day. Was John trying to show that Jesus was a good son who obeyed his mother? Was its purpose simply to introduce the power of Jesus by reporting this event, “the first of his signs”? (2.11) As manifestations of glory go, the wine would have certainly made the guests at the wedding feast feel happy for a while, but other than for the servants who knew what happened, and the disciples, it was likely the bridegroom who got the praise, and not The Bridegroom, if you will. So, why did John include this story of the wedding at Cana? I think the best we can do is speculate until we have the chance to ask John himself.
For myself, for now I believe there are a couple of instructive points we may choose to accept. One is that The Bridegroom, not the bridegroom, would one day institute a different kind of feast, wherein his blood would become the “wine” of release from our sins. Certainly, as the good wine flowed at the wedding the guests would have forgotten all their worries. How much more joy do we experience because of the wine of Jesus’ blood poured out for our sakes? Secondly, I believe that this story illustrates the transformative power of the presence of Christ, whereby the most ordinary can become extraordinary. This is not to say that any of us should presume we may ever help out an embarrassed bride and groom by changing water into wine at their wedding reception should the supply of the fruit of the vine run out. But I believe we can rely on the power of Jesus to transform mourning into dancing, which is to say we should never despair, but believe that the Son can and will take any ordinary thing at hand (Even us!) and “wine” it, that is, transform it, in such a way as to both meet the need of the moment and glorify the Father.
The power of presence, a smile, a word of encouragement, a comforting touch: quite ordinary things with the potential to transform a situation. How about us, have we “wined” anything to the glory of God lately? That’s what Jesus did.
S.D.G.
Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
Tuesday, April 13, 2010
Jesus "Parabled"
What Did Jesus Do?
Now is my soul troubled. And what shall I say? ‘Father, save me from this hour’? But for this purpose I have come to this hour.
John 12.27
Sure, Jesus taught many parables, stories which conveyed a significant, though often unexpected, even uncomfortable, moral or religious message. Perhaps the Lord was so good at employing parables because his life was, in some respects, a parable itself.
Before the birth of Jesus the Jewish people had many expectations and ideas about the coming Messiah. What caused them no little problem with Jesus was that, while he seemed in many ways to fill much of those expectations, in other ways he simply did not “fit the mold” of what many thought the Messiah should be and do. Jesus was, like many of the parables he taught, full of surprises.
It is likely that there was no greater surprise, even though Jesus predicted on several occasions the manner of his suffering and death, than when the Lord told a crowd in Jerusalem that the reason he was there at that time was so that he would be lifted up (crucified). “But the Christ (Messiah) is supposed to remain forever. How can he be lifted up?” (John 12.34)
So often parables offer corrective lessons, they dispel misconceptions, they redirect hearts and minds from moral mistakes to moral truths. There are no greater moral truths, convicting and surprising as they are, than those taught by the life of Jesus. He is the parable we must hear, the lesson we must learn, the truth we must know. And above all, we must understand that Jesus came to suffer and die, it was the one inescapable hour of his life, it was his purpose. For thereby would the Father be glorified, the world judged, the ruler of this world cast down, and all people drawn unto the Savior. (John 12.28, 30-32)
Though there was more than ample evidence that Jesus was exactly who he claimed to be, many just could not believe the difficult truths of the parable that was the Christ. (John 12.37-40) And many still refuse to believe.
One way we can help those who still don’t believe is to continue to provide parables from which they may yet learn. Not just by sharing the parables that Jesus taught, but by following His example and living lives that are parables which glorify God. Of course, we must be prepared to be discomforted, for living a parable is not easy or fun. And we must be willing to sometimes afflict the comfortable who will be disturbed by the parables of our lives. Of course, there will also be the afflicted who will take comfort from our living parables as well.
It so much easier to view the hardest of moral truths in the abstract; it is so daunting to try to live them out day by day. Though the world will variously laugh at us, dismiss us, oppose us, and persecute us, are we willing to live the parable of faith that trusts in God even as it glorifies Him? That’s what Jesus did.
S.D.G.
Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
Now is my soul troubled. And what shall I say? ‘Father, save me from this hour’? But for this purpose I have come to this hour.
John 12.27
Sure, Jesus taught many parables, stories which conveyed a significant, though often unexpected, even uncomfortable, moral or religious message. Perhaps the Lord was so good at employing parables because his life was, in some respects, a parable itself.
Before the birth of Jesus the Jewish people had many expectations and ideas about the coming Messiah. What caused them no little problem with Jesus was that, while he seemed in many ways to fill much of those expectations, in other ways he simply did not “fit the mold” of what many thought the Messiah should be and do. Jesus was, like many of the parables he taught, full of surprises.
It is likely that there was no greater surprise, even though Jesus predicted on several occasions the manner of his suffering and death, than when the Lord told a crowd in Jerusalem that the reason he was there at that time was so that he would be lifted up (crucified). “But the Christ (Messiah) is supposed to remain forever. How can he be lifted up?” (John 12.34)
So often parables offer corrective lessons, they dispel misconceptions, they redirect hearts and minds from moral mistakes to moral truths. There are no greater moral truths, convicting and surprising as they are, than those taught by the life of Jesus. He is the parable we must hear, the lesson we must learn, the truth we must know. And above all, we must understand that Jesus came to suffer and die, it was the one inescapable hour of his life, it was his purpose. For thereby would the Father be glorified, the world judged, the ruler of this world cast down, and all people drawn unto the Savior. (John 12.28, 30-32)
Though there was more than ample evidence that Jesus was exactly who he claimed to be, many just could not believe the difficult truths of the parable that was the Christ. (John 12.37-40) And many still refuse to believe.
One way we can help those who still don’t believe is to continue to provide parables from which they may yet learn. Not just by sharing the parables that Jesus taught, but by following His example and living lives that are parables which glorify God. Of course, we must be prepared to be discomforted, for living a parable is not easy or fun. And we must be willing to sometimes afflict the comfortable who will be disturbed by the parables of our lives. Of course, there will also be the afflicted who will take comfort from our living parables as well.
It so much easier to view the hardest of moral truths in the abstract; it is so daunting to try to live them out day by day. Though the world will variously laugh at us, dismiss us, oppose us, and persecute us, are we willing to live the parable of faith that trusts in God even as it glorifies Him? That’s what Jesus did.
S.D.G.
Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
Monday, April 12, 2010
Jesus Lorded
What Did Jesus Do?
…for he is Lord of lords and King of kings.
Revelation 17.14
When you are not merely a lord or king, but Lord of lords and King of kings what else can you do but exercise lordship, sovereignty, authority? And so, Jesus “lorded.” It’s not as if He wasn’t expected, after all, His cousin John, you know, the Baptist, had made it quite clear before Jesus ever went “public” with his ministry, that the time had come to prepare the way of the Lord. And what a Lord!
Jesus astounded those in attendance at the synagogue in Capernaum with lordly teaching, that is: teaching as one with authority. This was remarkable to them because every other teacher they had ever heard had only been able to quote authority; they never had any of their own. (Mark 1.22)
But Jesus was more than a lordly teacher. The people in Capernaum also witnessed the command authority of Jesus, as He ordered unclean spirits about, and they obeyed Him. (Mark 1.27) Folks were used to seeing masters give commands to slaves and servants. And they were quite familiar with Roman Centurions issuing orders to their legionaries. But casting out demons? That was not something they saw every day!
No, Jesus was a truly remarkable Lord. Why, with a word of authority Jesus could speak healing into the ill and injured and infirm. Even the slightest touch from Jesus could dispel the most dreaded of diseases. (Mark 1.40-42) All other lords were mere pretenders, here was a lord who really was Lord, and He lorded in a way no one had ever imagined a lord could lord.
In all honesty, there were other exorcists. And Jesus wasn’t the first healer. But who had ever witnessed a lord issuing orders to the wind and the sea, and they obeyed? (Mark 4.35-41) Now, that’s a Lord! No, let me correct myself, that’s THE Lord!
Perhaps the strangest thing about the way Jesus lorded was that, well, He often acted more like a servant than a master. Who had ever heard of a lord who had come to serve rather than to be served? (Mark 10.45) Lords held many lives for ransom, they didn’t give their life to ransom many. There was no way to compare Jesus to other lords, He was so, lordly, in a way never known before, but truly in a way that people had always hoped lords would lord.
And, in the end, Jesus did something lords simply did not do. You see, lords were always jealous of whatever authority they had, and they would never transfer their authority to others. But Jesus, who did not possess some authority, but rather had received all authority from His Father (Matthew 28.18), willingly transferred his power to his people, and authorized them to go into all the world with His very own command authority and power. (Acts 1.8-9) And Christ’s disciples achieved quite a remarkable record witnessing in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and pretty much to the ends of the earth, for Jesus, by the Holy Spirit, continued to lord even after he had returned to heaven.
But, sadly, many who have followed Jesus, have not followed his example when it comes to lording. Authority has been grasped. Power has been abused. Serving has taken a back seat to being served. All too often we, that is the Church, have lorded like, well, those other lords, and not at all like the Lord. Yet, Jesus can still lord through those willing to take up their cross and follow Him.
Teach with authority. Command spirits. Speak healing. Make whole with a touch. Control the power of the waves and wind. Lead by being a servant to all. Willingly ransom many lives your with one life. That is how to lord. And that’s what Jesus, the Lord of lords, did.
S.D.G.
Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
…for he is Lord of lords and King of kings.
Revelation 17.14
When you are not merely a lord or king, but Lord of lords and King of kings what else can you do but exercise lordship, sovereignty, authority? And so, Jesus “lorded.” It’s not as if He wasn’t expected, after all, His cousin John, you know, the Baptist, had made it quite clear before Jesus ever went “public” with his ministry, that the time had come to prepare the way of the Lord. And what a Lord!
Jesus astounded those in attendance at the synagogue in Capernaum with lordly teaching, that is: teaching as one with authority. This was remarkable to them because every other teacher they had ever heard had only been able to quote authority; they never had any of their own. (Mark 1.22)
But Jesus was more than a lordly teacher. The people in Capernaum also witnessed the command authority of Jesus, as He ordered unclean spirits about, and they obeyed Him. (Mark 1.27) Folks were used to seeing masters give commands to slaves and servants. And they were quite familiar with Roman Centurions issuing orders to their legionaries. But casting out demons? That was not something they saw every day!
No, Jesus was a truly remarkable Lord. Why, with a word of authority Jesus could speak healing into the ill and injured and infirm. Even the slightest touch from Jesus could dispel the most dreaded of diseases. (Mark 1.40-42) All other lords were mere pretenders, here was a lord who really was Lord, and He lorded in a way no one had ever imagined a lord could lord.
In all honesty, there were other exorcists. And Jesus wasn’t the first healer. But who had ever witnessed a lord issuing orders to the wind and the sea, and they obeyed? (Mark 4.35-41) Now, that’s a Lord! No, let me correct myself, that’s THE Lord!
Perhaps the strangest thing about the way Jesus lorded was that, well, He often acted more like a servant than a master. Who had ever heard of a lord who had come to serve rather than to be served? (Mark 10.45) Lords held many lives for ransom, they didn’t give their life to ransom many. There was no way to compare Jesus to other lords, He was so, lordly, in a way never known before, but truly in a way that people had always hoped lords would lord.
And, in the end, Jesus did something lords simply did not do. You see, lords were always jealous of whatever authority they had, and they would never transfer their authority to others. But Jesus, who did not possess some authority, but rather had received all authority from His Father (Matthew 28.18), willingly transferred his power to his people, and authorized them to go into all the world with His very own command authority and power. (Acts 1.8-9) And Christ’s disciples achieved quite a remarkable record witnessing in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and pretty much to the ends of the earth, for Jesus, by the Holy Spirit, continued to lord even after he had returned to heaven.
But, sadly, many who have followed Jesus, have not followed his example when it comes to lording. Authority has been grasped. Power has been abused. Serving has taken a back seat to being served. All too often we, that is the Church, have lorded like, well, those other lords, and not at all like the Lord. Yet, Jesus can still lord through those willing to take up their cross and follow Him.
Teach with authority. Command spirits. Speak healing. Make whole with a touch. Control the power of the waves and wind. Lead by being a servant to all. Willingly ransom many lives your with one life. That is how to lord. And that’s what Jesus, the Lord of lords, did.
S.D.G.
Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
Sunday, April 11, 2010
Jesus "Met"
What Did Jesus Do?
…and immediately on the Sabbath he entered the synagogue.
Mark 1.21
The New Testament does not record any Sabbaths when Jesus slept in. Nor does it report that there were any gloriously fine Sabbaths where Jesus could not resist the urge to schedule an early tee time and skipped going to the synagogue. Neither do we read of Jesus remarking, “You don’t have to go to synagogue to be a Jew.” What we do find in the Gospels is that Jesus, who was on the road continually during his ministry, sought out and attended the Sabbath meeting of the local synagogue wherever he happened to be. Though the less than cordial treatment of the scribes, Pharisees, and priests would have likely influenced many of us to avoid going if we had been the target of their criticism and murmuring, Jesus refused to fall victim to the habit of neglecting to meet together with God’s people, but consistently showed up Sabbath after Sabbath, when his teaching was a great encouragement to many. (See Hebrews 10.25 for instruction on the importance of our meeting together with other disciples.)
How many of us ever think of attending worship, and meeting together with other believers as an encouragement to them? Having stood in a pulpit on many Sundays I can tell you that pastors at least are encouraged when we show up for Sunday services. But, seriously, if one can commune with God any place, any time, is it really that important to meet with others? Jesus thought it was and he took advantage of every opportunity to meet. How is it that so many of us believe we have less need of meeting together with God’s children than the Lord did?
And, of those of us who do meet together, how many of us go hoping to get something, without an equal or even stronger desire to give something to others? Some of us go because we like the music. Some enjoy the prayers. Others look forward to hearing the Word proclaimed. And, yes, some show up just to, well, show up, believing their physical presence counts for something, even if mentally and spiritually they are miles away. But there are occasions, and places, where the atmosphere of the meeting is altogether different, where one encounters a fellowship of giving, of mutual encouragers in the Lord, who meet for the joy of it, the privilege of it, and for the love of God and of loving others. That’s what Jesus did when he “met” on the Sabbath.
S.D.G.
Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
…and immediately on the Sabbath he entered the synagogue.
Mark 1.21
The New Testament does not record any Sabbaths when Jesus slept in. Nor does it report that there were any gloriously fine Sabbaths where Jesus could not resist the urge to schedule an early tee time and skipped going to the synagogue. Neither do we read of Jesus remarking, “You don’t have to go to synagogue to be a Jew.” What we do find in the Gospels is that Jesus, who was on the road continually during his ministry, sought out and attended the Sabbath meeting of the local synagogue wherever he happened to be. Though the less than cordial treatment of the scribes, Pharisees, and priests would have likely influenced many of us to avoid going if we had been the target of their criticism and murmuring, Jesus refused to fall victim to the habit of neglecting to meet together with God’s people, but consistently showed up Sabbath after Sabbath, when his teaching was a great encouragement to many. (See Hebrews 10.25 for instruction on the importance of our meeting together with other disciples.)
How many of us ever think of attending worship, and meeting together with other believers as an encouragement to them? Having stood in a pulpit on many Sundays I can tell you that pastors at least are encouraged when we show up for Sunday services. But, seriously, if one can commune with God any place, any time, is it really that important to meet with others? Jesus thought it was and he took advantage of every opportunity to meet. How is it that so many of us believe we have less need of meeting together with God’s children than the Lord did?
And, of those of us who do meet together, how many of us go hoping to get something, without an equal or even stronger desire to give something to others? Some of us go because we like the music. Some enjoy the prayers. Others look forward to hearing the Word proclaimed. And, yes, some show up just to, well, show up, believing their physical presence counts for something, even if mentally and spiritually they are miles away. But there are occasions, and places, where the atmosphere of the meeting is altogether different, where one encounters a fellowship of giving, of mutual encouragers in the Lord, who meet for the joy of it, the privilege of it, and for the love of God and of loving others. That’s what Jesus did when he “met” on the Sabbath.
S.D.G.
Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
Saturday, April 10, 2010
Jesus Llived
What Did Jesus Do?
That which was made was life in him.
John 1.4
When God speaks we hear His Word (Greek logos), and the Word of the Father that we hear is the Son. All that the Father spoke, the expression of His will, during the work of creation the Son made manifest. And all that the Father spoke was grace and truth filled, and brimming over with the life of the Son.
Yet with the Fall, all things were cut off from grace and truth and life, though not completely. But certainly the fullness of all three was no longer without challenge in the world. There was grace, but there was also evil. There was truth, but there was also falsehood. There was life, but now there would also be death. All was now so much more difficult, Man had estranged himself from God; life would be a struggle.
But there was life. Diminished from what God had intended; so much harder than it needed to be; so much sadness and sorrow when there was supposed to have been joy and celebration. Yet God continued to speak his Word, and His Word offered Man not only the best chance, but the only chance, to enjoy life, blessed life, real life.
Unfortunately Man was neither satisfied with God’s Word, nor able to abide by it. And so life remained difficult, even tragic. For, though the world, and everything and everyone in it, had been made and given life by and in the Word, the world, and everyone and everything in it, acted as if they did not know the Word. (John 1.10) Thus things continued until the Father determined that the time had come for the Son to not just manifest His Word, but to embody it, to become the Word with flesh on it, if you will. And so Jesus was born, and Jesus lived, the Word, full of the grace and truth that had always been there, but now grace and truth that could be heard and seen, that could touch and be touched.
Yet, coming directly to those the Father had called to covenant relationship, the Word, in the person of the Son, was not received. (1.11) There were, however, those who did receive the Word, who knew the Son, and so through Him became children of the Father, for such was the Father’s will. (1.12-13)
Jesus, the Word, lived! And he had come to bring life, that Man should have it and enjoy it abundantly, full and overflowing unto eternity. For in the Word, the Son, Jesus, was, is, and shall forever be life.
What kind of life do we live? Is it real life, life that is grace and truth filled? Or is it something less, something diminished from life in the Word? Do we live, and give, life abundant, full, and overflowing with the love of the Father as we abide in and do His will? That’s what Jesus did.
S.D.G.
Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
That which was made was life in him.
John 1.4
When God speaks we hear His Word (Greek logos), and the Word of the Father that we hear is the Son. All that the Father spoke, the expression of His will, during the work of creation the Son made manifest. And all that the Father spoke was grace and truth filled, and brimming over with the life of the Son.
Yet with the Fall, all things were cut off from grace and truth and life, though not completely. But certainly the fullness of all three was no longer without challenge in the world. There was grace, but there was also evil. There was truth, but there was also falsehood. There was life, but now there would also be death. All was now so much more difficult, Man had estranged himself from God; life would be a struggle.
But there was life. Diminished from what God had intended; so much harder than it needed to be; so much sadness and sorrow when there was supposed to have been joy and celebration. Yet God continued to speak his Word, and His Word offered Man not only the best chance, but the only chance, to enjoy life, blessed life, real life.
Unfortunately Man was neither satisfied with God’s Word, nor able to abide by it. And so life remained difficult, even tragic. For, though the world, and everything and everyone in it, had been made and given life by and in the Word, the world, and everyone and everything in it, acted as if they did not know the Word. (John 1.10) Thus things continued until the Father determined that the time had come for the Son to not just manifest His Word, but to embody it, to become the Word with flesh on it, if you will. And so Jesus was born, and Jesus lived, the Word, full of the grace and truth that had always been there, but now grace and truth that could be heard and seen, that could touch and be touched.
Yet, coming directly to those the Father had called to covenant relationship, the Word, in the person of the Son, was not received. (1.11) There were, however, those who did receive the Word, who knew the Son, and so through Him became children of the Father, for such was the Father’s will. (1.12-13)
Jesus, the Word, lived! And he had come to bring life, that Man should have it and enjoy it abundantly, full and overflowing unto eternity. For in the Word, the Son, Jesus, was, is, and shall forever be life.
What kind of life do we live? Is it real life, life that is grace and truth filled? Or is it something less, something diminished from life in the Word? Do we live, and give, life abundant, full, and overflowing with the love of the Father as we abide in and do His will? That’s what Jesus did.
S.D.G.
Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
Friday, April 9, 2010
Jesus Lighted Creation
What Did Jesus Do?
And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light.
Genesis 1.3
The first order of business for the God who was, excuse me, is, is-ness, was for His Word to make manifest light in and for all of creation. What good creation if it is hidden in utter darkness? So God said, “Let it be,” and it was/is.
God did not strike a match, ignite a candle, or flip a switch. The Father spoke, and the Son, who delights in doing the will of the Father, obediently manifested what the Father had spoken. We might even say that the Son was/is the very manifestation of what the Father spoke/speaks, that is, the Son is the Word of the Father.
John essentially tells us as much in the prologue of his Gospel:
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not anything made that was made.
John 1.1-3
If I may be allowed to offer my own translation of John 1.1-3,
In the beginning was the Son, and the Son was with the Father, and the Son and Father were one. The Son was in the beginning with the Father. All things the Father made he made through the Son, and without the Son not anything was made that was made.
The first thing the Father made through the Son was light. Light that shines in and dispels darkness. And, try as it might, the darkness has never yet succeeded in overcoming the light and regaining ascendancy.
Light is, of course, energy not matter. Yet the Father was pleased to direct the Son to become substantial light, light, if you will, that lived and breathed and dwelt amongst us; and the Son thereby allowed us to see the grace and truth-filled glory of the Father. (John 1.14) Without the light of the Son, it would be impossible to know or see the Father, and all creation would be lost in deep and measureless darkness.
Because the Son knew that he would be in the world for only a brief time, He told His disciples they would have to be the light of the world. (See Matthew 5.14-16) As the Son, when He was in the world, had made it possible for the world to see the glory of the Father, so should those who bear the name of the Son shine their light in the world to the glory of their Father in heaven.
While darkness cannot overcome the light, it is possible that the light can be hidden, shielded in such a way that darkness can appear to prevail. But, when even the tiniest light is permitted to shine, it immediately diminishes the darkness. Shining light in darkness typically causes much initial discomfort for those who have been in the darkness; they might even seek to extinguish the light, as the world sought to be rid of the light of Jesus, the Son. We, whom the Son has called to be the light of the world might find it easier to put our light under a basket than to let it shine. The Son, knowing that it was the Father’s will that light should fill the world and all of creation, did not fear to let his light shine, though the world would despise and kill him for it. What of our light, do we let it shine for all to see the glory of God the Father? That’s what Jesus did.
S.D.G.
Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light.
Genesis 1.3
The first order of business for the God who was, excuse me, is, is-ness, was for His Word to make manifest light in and for all of creation. What good creation if it is hidden in utter darkness? So God said, “Let it be,” and it was/is.
God did not strike a match, ignite a candle, or flip a switch. The Father spoke, and the Son, who delights in doing the will of the Father, obediently manifested what the Father had spoken. We might even say that the Son was/is the very manifestation of what the Father spoke/speaks, that is, the Son is the Word of the Father.
John essentially tells us as much in the prologue of his Gospel:
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not anything made that was made.
John 1.1-3
If I may be allowed to offer my own translation of John 1.1-3,
In the beginning was the Son, and the Son was with the Father, and the Son and Father were one. The Son was in the beginning with the Father. All things the Father made he made through the Son, and without the Son not anything was made that was made.
The first thing the Father made through the Son was light. Light that shines in and dispels darkness. And, try as it might, the darkness has never yet succeeded in overcoming the light and regaining ascendancy.
Light is, of course, energy not matter. Yet the Father was pleased to direct the Son to become substantial light, light, if you will, that lived and breathed and dwelt amongst us; and the Son thereby allowed us to see the grace and truth-filled glory of the Father. (John 1.14) Without the light of the Son, it would be impossible to know or see the Father, and all creation would be lost in deep and measureless darkness.
Because the Son knew that he would be in the world for only a brief time, He told His disciples they would have to be the light of the world. (See Matthew 5.14-16) As the Son, when He was in the world, had made it possible for the world to see the glory of the Father, so should those who bear the name of the Son shine their light in the world to the glory of their Father in heaven.
While darkness cannot overcome the light, it is possible that the light can be hidden, shielded in such a way that darkness can appear to prevail. But, when even the tiniest light is permitted to shine, it immediately diminishes the darkness. Shining light in darkness typically causes much initial discomfort for those who have been in the darkness; they might even seek to extinguish the light, as the world sought to be rid of the light of Jesus, the Son. We, whom the Son has called to be the light of the world might find it easier to put our light under a basket than to let it shine. The Son, knowing that it was the Father’s will that light should fill the world and all of creation, did not fear to let his light shine, though the world would despise and kill him for it. What of our light, do we let it shine for all to see the glory of God the Father? That’s what Jesus did.
S.D.G.
Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
Thursday, April 8, 2010
Jesus Did the Business of "Is-ness"
What Did Jesus Do?
Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I am.
John 8.58
A lot of wanna-be gods like to claim to be, but there it only one God who is—the Great “I Am.” You see, “I Am” means “is,” as in, “The One (God) who Is” as opposed to all the gods who pretend to be, but are not. And, when you are the One Who Is, your business is, well, “is-ness,” the creation, direction, rule, and, if need be, the redemption of, all that is.
Now Israel was privileged to know “I Am” because He had personally revealed himself to the patriarchs, and in particular had told Moses His name. It was a point of pride, among a people who were far too proud given their many shortcomings and waywardness, that, puny and insignificant as they were as a people, their God was “I Am,” while the gods of all the many more powerful and numerous nations were nothing more than lifeless idols. The truth is, throughout the history of the world there has been a confrontation between I Am, who is God, and all the many “not-gods” who are, well, not.
The Son, who from eternity past was as fully I Am as both the Father and the Holy Spirit, was born into the world to carry on the family business, if you will, the business of “is-ness.” Jesus was all about, to resurrect an expression from the ’60s, telling it like it is, as in speaking the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. And the works that Jesus did, well they were not the illusions and magic tricks that the priests of the not-gods performed to fool people into following their idols, but the very real actions of the Father, accomplished in order that people should believe and give glory to the only one who deserves it—I Am.
One of the problems Jesus had was, being barely thirty years old, convincing people that he was I Am. For I Am not only is, but He was, and He will forever be. Only I Am could have been around in Abraham’s time in order for the patriarch to see His day and be glad in it (8.56), and yet be standing before the children of Abraham more than a millennium after Abraham’s death and offer them the words of life. (8.51)
Part of the trouble when you are I Am is that the world, and even your elect, are so easily impressed and led astray by the many convincing counterfeits that claim to have their own truths. Today millions are enraptured by all kinds of “virtual realities,” while re-imagining I Am to suit themselves, if not rejecting Him outright. It was no different in the time of Jesus.
What do we make our business? Do virtual realities capture our interest, time, and treasure? Do we allow for competing truths to undermine The Truth? Do we serve one or more “not-gods”?
Or do we rejoice and live in the reality of God and what God has done, is doing, and will yet do? Do we test all wanna-be truths and reject any and all claims that depart in the slightest from The Truth? Do we know and serve and glorify I Am? That’s the business of “is-ness,” and that’s what Jesus did.
S.D.G.
Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I am.
John 8.58
A lot of wanna-be gods like to claim to be, but there it only one God who is—the Great “I Am.” You see, “I Am” means “is,” as in, “The One (God) who Is” as opposed to all the gods who pretend to be, but are not. And, when you are the One Who Is, your business is, well, “is-ness,” the creation, direction, rule, and, if need be, the redemption of, all that is.
Now Israel was privileged to know “I Am” because He had personally revealed himself to the patriarchs, and in particular had told Moses His name. It was a point of pride, among a people who were far too proud given their many shortcomings and waywardness, that, puny and insignificant as they were as a people, their God was “I Am,” while the gods of all the many more powerful and numerous nations were nothing more than lifeless idols. The truth is, throughout the history of the world there has been a confrontation between I Am, who is God, and all the many “not-gods” who are, well, not.
The Son, who from eternity past was as fully I Am as both the Father and the Holy Spirit, was born into the world to carry on the family business, if you will, the business of “is-ness.” Jesus was all about, to resurrect an expression from the ’60s, telling it like it is, as in speaking the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. And the works that Jesus did, well they were not the illusions and magic tricks that the priests of the not-gods performed to fool people into following their idols, but the very real actions of the Father, accomplished in order that people should believe and give glory to the only one who deserves it—I Am.
One of the problems Jesus had was, being barely thirty years old, convincing people that he was I Am. For I Am not only is, but He was, and He will forever be. Only I Am could have been around in Abraham’s time in order for the patriarch to see His day and be glad in it (8.56), and yet be standing before the children of Abraham more than a millennium after Abraham’s death and offer them the words of life. (8.51)
Part of the trouble when you are I Am is that the world, and even your elect, are so easily impressed and led astray by the many convincing counterfeits that claim to have their own truths. Today millions are enraptured by all kinds of “virtual realities,” while re-imagining I Am to suit themselves, if not rejecting Him outright. It was no different in the time of Jesus.
What do we make our business? Do virtual realities capture our interest, time, and treasure? Do we allow for competing truths to undermine The Truth? Do we serve one or more “not-gods”?
Or do we rejoice and live in the reality of God and what God has done, is doing, and will yet do? Do we test all wanna-be truths and reject any and all claims that depart in the slightest from The Truth? Do we know and serve and glorify I Am? That’s the business of “is-ness,” and that’s what Jesus did.
S.D.G.
Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
Tuesday, April 6, 2010
Jesus Appeared
What Did Jesus Do?
…He appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. After that He appeared to more than five hundred brethren at one time, most of whom remain until now, but some have fallen asleep;
then He appeared to James, then to all the apostles;
and last of all, as to one untimely born, He appeared to me also.
1Corinthians 15.5-8
Although I cannot remember what I had for breakfast yesterday, I remember the time I appeared as an Inquirer, a Presbyterian term for someone who is in the early stages of trying to confirm if God is calling her/him to ministry, to be examined and approved/disapproved to move on to being a Candidate. There were five of us Inquirers, each having the opportunity to explain her/his faith journey and sense of call. I was the last to speak. The first four Inquirers all had impressive Presbyterian pedigrees, with fathers and grandfathers who had been ordained ministers of Word and Sacrament. Then there was me. My parents didn’t even do the Easter-Christmas thing. The only time they went to church was for a wedding or a funeral. I can’t remember any Bibles in the house, other than the ones that had been presented to my sister and to me from the Wyckoff Reformed Church Sunday School (Though my folks didn’t go to church they brought my sister and me religiously each week and dropped us off for Sunday School.).
Anyway, after listening to the other Inquirers’ impressive backgrounds all I could do was quoted Paul, and tell the Presbytery that, as hard as it was to believe, Jesus had chosen for some reason to appear to me, untimely and unexpected as it might have been. And I confessed that among the company of the other Inquirers I was most certainly the least of the apostles they were examining that day. Yet I was exceedingly grateful, because I could also say with Paul,
…by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me has not been in vain.
1Corinthians 15.10
What made all the difference to me on that day, and really every day, is that Jesus appeared, and appears, to His and to those He wants to make His. During His earthly ministry Jesus was rather careful to try and preserve the so-called Messianic Secret. But, with the Resurrection, there was no further reason to try and keep secret what the Resurrection made most abundantly clear--Jesus was/is THE Messiah! And so, as the Gospels and the Book of the Acts of the Apostles make clear, Jesus kept up a busy schedule of public appearances for forty days after the Resurrection in order to confirm that, contrary to the hopes of the Sanhedrin and Satan, He lived. And, thanks to the continuing presence and activity of the Holy Spirit in Christ’s disciples, Jesus makes daily appearances throughout the world to this day. I know I am eternally grateful that, though I was as one “untimely born,” He appeared to me.
From Mary Magdalene and the other women, to Peter, to the two disciples on the road to Emmaus, to the ten in the locked room, and to doubting Thomas, and to the five hundred brethren, and beyond Jesus has appeared because what once might have needed to be kept under wraps is now the most important truth for the world to know: Jesus is the Son of God, the Lord and Savior. He no longer seeks to keep it quiet, and He doesn’t want his followers to be shy about showing up and showing out, but rather to let their life and faith be plain for all to see, that the glory and grace of God should be revealed for all to see. That’s what Jesus did.
S.D.G.
Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
…He appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. After that He appeared to more than five hundred brethren at one time, most of whom remain until now, but some have fallen asleep;
then He appeared to James, then to all the apostles;
and last of all, as to one untimely born, He appeared to me also.
1Corinthians 15.5-8
Although I cannot remember what I had for breakfast yesterday, I remember the time I appeared as an Inquirer, a Presbyterian term for someone who is in the early stages of trying to confirm if God is calling her/him to ministry, to be examined and approved/disapproved to move on to being a Candidate. There were five of us Inquirers, each having the opportunity to explain her/his faith journey and sense of call. I was the last to speak. The first four Inquirers all had impressive Presbyterian pedigrees, with fathers and grandfathers who had been ordained ministers of Word and Sacrament. Then there was me. My parents didn’t even do the Easter-Christmas thing. The only time they went to church was for a wedding or a funeral. I can’t remember any Bibles in the house, other than the ones that had been presented to my sister and to me from the Wyckoff Reformed Church Sunday School (Though my folks didn’t go to church they brought my sister and me religiously each week and dropped us off for Sunday School.).
Anyway, after listening to the other Inquirers’ impressive backgrounds all I could do was quoted Paul, and tell the Presbytery that, as hard as it was to believe, Jesus had chosen for some reason to appear to me, untimely and unexpected as it might have been. And I confessed that among the company of the other Inquirers I was most certainly the least of the apostles they were examining that day. Yet I was exceedingly grateful, because I could also say with Paul,
…by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me has not been in vain.
1Corinthians 15.10
What made all the difference to me on that day, and really every day, is that Jesus appeared, and appears, to His and to those He wants to make His. During His earthly ministry Jesus was rather careful to try and preserve the so-called Messianic Secret. But, with the Resurrection, there was no further reason to try and keep secret what the Resurrection made most abundantly clear--Jesus was/is THE Messiah! And so, as the Gospels and the Book of the Acts of the Apostles make clear, Jesus kept up a busy schedule of public appearances for forty days after the Resurrection in order to confirm that, contrary to the hopes of the Sanhedrin and Satan, He lived. And, thanks to the continuing presence and activity of the Holy Spirit in Christ’s disciples, Jesus makes daily appearances throughout the world to this day. I know I am eternally grateful that, though I was as one “untimely born,” He appeared to me.
From Mary Magdalene and the other women, to Peter, to the two disciples on the road to Emmaus, to the ten in the locked room, and to doubting Thomas, and to the five hundred brethren, and beyond Jesus has appeared because what once might have needed to be kept under wraps is now the most important truth for the world to know: Jesus is the Son of God, the Lord and Savior. He no longer seeks to keep it quiet, and He doesn’t want his followers to be shy about showing up and showing out, but rather to let their life and faith be plain for all to see, that the glory and grace of God should be revealed for all to see. That’s what Jesus did.
S.D.G.
Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
Monday, April 5, 2010
He Arose!
What Did Jesus Do?
For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance…
1Corinthians 15.3
Paul told the Corinthians that what he was passing on to them were facts of “first importance,” essential and indispensable information that they needed more than anything. It wasn’t philosophy that he offered them. Paul didn’t leak stock tips. And Paul was touting for the upcoming chariot races. Paul was making sure that the Corinthians knew the essential facts about Jesus Christ. And right at the top were two things, “Christ died for our sins,” and “that he was raised on the third day.” (1Corinthians 15.3-4)
Not to put too fine a point on it, but it doesn’t matter what else you know about Jesus, in fact it doesn’t matter much what else may be true or false about Jesus, if Christ did not die for our sins, and, even more importantly, if he did not rise from the dead, well then the preaching of the Gospel is useless, and so is our faith! (15.14) Christianity is nothing more than a pitiful shame without the Risen Savior. (15.19)
This is so because it is the Resurrection, and only the Resurrection, that supplies us with unassailable hope in eternal life. If you will forgive my choice of expression, “If Jesus ain’t raised, ain’t no one getting raised!” End of story.
But every year one glorious day both recalls and declares anew that He was raised, and that He lives today. Christmas without Resurrection Sunday/Easter would just be what the world has tried to make of it, a secular gift-giving binge and commercial windfall. But even more, every day, life itself, would be void of all real hope, and most of its purpose if Christ remained in the tomb.
Thanks be to God that Christ has indeed been raise from the dead, the “first fruits,” as Paul said, of all who have “fallen asleep.” (15.20) And, inexplicable as the world finds the Resurrection of Jesus, there is another blessed piece of news we receive by faith which the world rejects by empiricism,
“We shall not all sleep (in death), but we will all be transformed--in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye…”
1Corinthians 15.51-52
Now, none of us can, as only the Risen Lord can, claim that we have swallowed death up in one big gulp. None of us can say that we have died an been raised, yet. But even before he went to Jerusalem Jesus told his followers what would happen to him, and he included the promise of his resurrection. When we share our faith with others do we ever talk about our own resurrection? Do we acknowledge the fact that we will die, but are certain that, dying, we will rise again? If hope so, because that is of first importance, and that’s what Jesus did.
S.D. G.
Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance…
1Corinthians 15.3
Paul told the Corinthians that what he was passing on to them were facts of “first importance,” essential and indispensable information that they needed more than anything. It wasn’t philosophy that he offered them. Paul didn’t leak stock tips. And Paul was touting for the upcoming chariot races. Paul was making sure that the Corinthians knew the essential facts about Jesus Christ. And right at the top were two things, “Christ died for our sins,” and “that he was raised on the third day.” (1Corinthians 15.3-4)
Not to put too fine a point on it, but it doesn’t matter what else you know about Jesus, in fact it doesn’t matter much what else may be true or false about Jesus, if Christ did not die for our sins, and, even more importantly, if he did not rise from the dead, well then the preaching of the Gospel is useless, and so is our faith! (15.14) Christianity is nothing more than a pitiful shame without the Risen Savior. (15.19)
This is so because it is the Resurrection, and only the Resurrection, that supplies us with unassailable hope in eternal life. If you will forgive my choice of expression, “If Jesus ain’t raised, ain’t no one getting raised!” End of story.
But every year one glorious day both recalls and declares anew that He was raised, and that He lives today. Christmas without Resurrection Sunday/Easter would just be what the world has tried to make of it, a secular gift-giving binge and commercial windfall. But even more, every day, life itself, would be void of all real hope, and most of its purpose if Christ remained in the tomb.
Thanks be to God that Christ has indeed been raise from the dead, the “first fruits,” as Paul said, of all who have “fallen asleep.” (15.20) And, inexplicable as the world finds the Resurrection of Jesus, there is another blessed piece of news we receive by faith which the world rejects by empiricism,
“We shall not all sleep (in death), but we will all be transformed--in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye…”
1Corinthians 15.51-52
Now, none of us can, as only the Risen Lord can, claim that we have swallowed death up in one big gulp. None of us can say that we have died an been raised, yet. But even before he went to Jerusalem Jesus told his followers what would happen to him, and he included the promise of his resurrection. When we share our faith with others do we ever talk about our own resurrection? Do we acknowledge the fact that we will die, but are certain that, dying, we will rise again? If hope so, because that is of first importance, and that’s what Jesus did.
S.D. G.
Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
Friday, April 2, 2010
Jesus Endured
What Did Jesus Do?
The Son of Man is going to be delivered into the hands of men, and they will kill him. And when he is killed, after three days he will rise.
Mark 9.31
Jesus endured the agonies of the cross up to the “ninth hour” (3 o’clock p.m.) before surrendering his spirit. (Matthew 27.50) Shortly thereafter Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus took courage, and, getting permission from Pilate, they took the body of Jesus and prepared it for burial and placed it in a garden tomb not far from the place of the crucifixion. (John 19.38-42)
It would be a mistake for us to assume that Jesus slept in stately repose in Joseph’s tomb. The Apostle Paul wrote in his letter to the Ephesians about a mission, a rescue mission if you like, a “Saving Private Ryan” kind of mission, not merely behind enemy lines, but to the very heart of the enemy’s kingdom:
“When he ascended on high he led a
host of captives,
and he gave gifts to them.”
(In saying “He ascended,” what does it mean but that he also descended into the lower parts of the earth? He who descended is the one who also ascended far above all the heavens, that he might fill all things.)
Ephesians 4.8-10
Jesus did not rest in the tomb, but mounted an assault on Hell itself, a historic essential of faith long affirmed in the Apostles’ Creed. Jesus endured three days of, well, Hell, that we might enjoy Heaven for eternity. Satan was not to be allowed to hold onto any the Father had elected to forgive and set free, and so the Son dutifully endured the terrors of the grave, and the descent into Hell, to complete the Father’s will.
Many think of the time between the Crucifixion and the Resurrection as three days of quiet inaction. To the contrary, the most epic story of cosmic confrontation and deliverance was going on, the details of which, if we shall ever know them, will only be revealed when we ourselves enter eternity. It is a part of the Good News, a chapter of the Gospels, if you will, as yet unwritten.
Jesus promised that everyone who endures to the end will be saved (Mark 13.13). This is so because the Father gave the Son a mission—to endure to the end, and beyond, for the sake of elect. That’s what Jesus did.
S.D.G.
Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
The Son of Man is going to be delivered into the hands of men, and they will kill him. And when he is killed, after three days he will rise.
Mark 9.31
Jesus endured the agonies of the cross up to the “ninth hour” (3 o’clock p.m.) before surrendering his spirit. (Matthew 27.50) Shortly thereafter Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus took courage, and, getting permission from Pilate, they took the body of Jesus and prepared it for burial and placed it in a garden tomb not far from the place of the crucifixion. (John 19.38-42)
It would be a mistake for us to assume that Jesus slept in stately repose in Joseph’s tomb. The Apostle Paul wrote in his letter to the Ephesians about a mission, a rescue mission if you like, a “Saving Private Ryan” kind of mission, not merely behind enemy lines, but to the very heart of the enemy’s kingdom:
“When he ascended on high he led a
host of captives,
and he gave gifts to them.”
(In saying “He ascended,” what does it mean but that he also descended into the lower parts of the earth? He who descended is the one who also ascended far above all the heavens, that he might fill all things.)
Ephesians 4.8-10
Jesus did not rest in the tomb, but mounted an assault on Hell itself, a historic essential of faith long affirmed in the Apostles’ Creed. Jesus endured three days of, well, Hell, that we might enjoy Heaven for eternity. Satan was not to be allowed to hold onto any the Father had elected to forgive and set free, and so the Son dutifully endured the terrors of the grave, and the descent into Hell, to complete the Father’s will.
Many think of the time between the Crucifixion and the Resurrection as three days of quiet inaction. To the contrary, the most epic story of cosmic confrontation and deliverance was going on, the details of which, if we shall ever know them, will only be revealed when we ourselves enter eternity. It is a part of the Good News, a chapter of the Gospels, if you will, as yet unwritten.
Jesus promised that everyone who endures to the end will be saved (Mark 13.13). This is so because the Father gave the Son a mission—to endure to the end, and beyond, for the sake of elect. That’s what Jesus did.
S.D.G.
Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
Thursday, April 1, 2010
Jesus Didn't Share
What Didn’t Jesus Do?
Jesus answered, “I told you that I am he. So, if you seek me, let these men go.”
John 18.8
I know it sounds like we have changed our tune here, have stated earlier that Jesus did share, and shared fully. (See WDJD 3/4/10; 3/20/10; 3/29/10) But clearly, when Judas led a band of soldiers and officers from chief priests and Pharisees to arrest Jesus, the Lord was determined that no one else would share in what lay ahead of him.
Of course, Jesus had promised his Father that he would not let any harm come to any of his disciples:
“Of those whom you gave me I have not lost one.”
John 18.9; see 17.12
The thing is, Jesus was more than a teacher, and his followers were more than disciples. Jesus was the Shepherd, the Good Shepherd (John 10.11), and he would protect the flock of his followers to the end, being totally committed and prepared to lay down his life for his sheep. The Son had so been charged by the Father (John 10.18), and he was not about to fail to fulfill all that the Father had given him to perform.
Though Jesus had made it quite plain that if any would follow him they must be prepared to take up their own cross (Mark 8.34; Matthew 16.24; Luke 9.23), his cross the Lord had to bear and suffer alone. For the Shepherd was also the spotless Lamb of God, the only one whose precious and righteous blood could atone for our sins. It would be his perfect and acceptable sacrifice that would redeem lost sinners, a price none others could pay.
Men and women who serve in the armed forces, in fire departments, and on police forces aside, it is often difficult these days, whether we are considering parents, pastors, presidents, or pretty much anyone else, to find someone who is committed and willing to go to “the cross” alone, that is to sacrifice for the sake of others, and refusing to let another share in the suffering. Thanks be to God, that’s what Jesus did.
S.D.G.
Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
Jesus answered, “I told you that I am he. So, if you seek me, let these men go.”
John 18.8
I know it sounds like we have changed our tune here, have stated earlier that Jesus did share, and shared fully. (See WDJD 3/4/10; 3/20/10; 3/29/10) But clearly, when Judas led a band of soldiers and officers from chief priests and Pharisees to arrest Jesus, the Lord was determined that no one else would share in what lay ahead of him.
Of course, Jesus had promised his Father that he would not let any harm come to any of his disciples:
“Of those whom you gave me I have not lost one.”
John 18.9; see 17.12
The thing is, Jesus was more than a teacher, and his followers were more than disciples. Jesus was the Shepherd, the Good Shepherd (John 10.11), and he would protect the flock of his followers to the end, being totally committed and prepared to lay down his life for his sheep. The Son had so been charged by the Father (John 10.18), and he was not about to fail to fulfill all that the Father had given him to perform.
Though Jesus had made it quite plain that if any would follow him they must be prepared to take up their own cross (Mark 8.34; Matthew 16.24; Luke 9.23), his cross the Lord had to bear and suffer alone. For the Shepherd was also the spotless Lamb of God, the only one whose precious and righteous blood could atone for our sins. It would be his perfect and acceptable sacrifice that would redeem lost sinners, a price none others could pay.
Men and women who serve in the armed forces, in fire departments, and on police forces aside, it is often difficult these days, whether we are considering parents, pastors, presidents, or pretty much anyone else, to find someone who is committed and willing to go to “the cross” alone, that is to sacrifice for the sake of others, and refusing to let another share in the suffering. Thanks be to God, that’s what Jesus did.
S.D.G.
Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
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