You're my kind of people

We all have a certain “type” of person we like to be around. There are certain qualities in people that we look for in order to determine whether we will have something in common with this person or not. As much as we would like to dodge the issue, this plays heavily into what kind of church we attend and get involved with. The fact is, most people join a church not because of the preaching and worship, although secondarily they are important, but because there are people there that they know or can identify with. Unless the church is very large, in which case the social makeup will take the shape of society at large, this results in homogeneous churches or ones in which everyone is similar.

Mark 2:13-17      
“Once again Jesus went out beside the lake. A large crowd came to him, and he began to teach them. 14 As he walked along, he saw Levi son of Alphaeus sitting at the tax collector's booth. "Follow me," Jesus told him, and Levi got up and followed him. 15 While Jesus was having dinner at Levi's house, many tax collectors and "sinners" were eating with him and his disciples, for there were many who followed him. 16 When the teachers of the law who were Pharisees saw him eating with the "sinners" and tax collectors, they asked his disciples: "Why does he eat with tax collectors and 'sinners'?" 17 On hearing this, Jesus said to them, "It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners."  

Another social phenomenon that occurs among Christians is the number of personal friends and acquaintances who are non-believers decrease over time. Again, we like to be around people in whom we have commonality, and the maturing Christian soon becomes aware of the tremendous differences between his or her life and the lives of non-believing friends. So they make and maintain friendships with people who are Christians.

The problem with all of this is that Jesus did not do this. Yes, He called and gathered disciples around Him, but even the disciples were not really sure of who He was until after the resurrection. What would happen if Christians followed Jesus instead of what is comfortable socially? What if we really did reach out to and befriend those who annoy us, bore us, irritate us, or repulse us? What would that kind of Church look like?

I don't want what I deserve

Occasionally, the frailty of life forces us to stop and reflect upon the core issues of existence. What is our purpose here? Do we even have a purpose, or are we here simply because of biology? Does our being alive have any greater meaning than: We are born, we live, and we die? If there is a larger purpose to our existence than that, what is it? How should we then live? If we are creatures of God, why is it so difficult to know Him? Why is the world is such sad shape? How can we survive in such a world, and find our way?

Mark 2:1-12 “A few days later, when Jesus again entered Capernaum, the people heard that he had come home. 2 So many gathered that there was no room left, not even outside the door, and he preached the word to them. 3 Some men came, bringing to him a paralytic, carried by four of them. 4 Since they could not get him to Jesus because of the crowd, they made an opening in the roof above Jesus and, after digging through it, lowered the mat the paralyzed man was lying on. 5 When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, "Son, your sins are forgiven."  6 Now some teachers of the law were sitting there, thinking to themselves, 7 "Why does this fellow talk like that? He's blaspheming! Who can forgive sins but God alone?" 8 Immediately Jesus knew in his spirit that this was what they were thinking in their hearts, and he said to them, "Why are you thinking these things? 9 Which is easier: to say to the paralytic, 'Your sins are forgiven,' or to say, 'Get up, take your mat and walk'? 10 But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins . . . ." He said to the paralytic, 11 "I tell you, get up, take your mat and go home."  12 He got up, took his mat and walked out in full view of them all. This amazed everyone and they praised God, saying, "We have never seen anything like this!" 

There is a basic rationalization we make in our minds when we come across human tragedy. If it is us personally who have experienced the tragedy, we instinctively cry out, “Why me?” If the tragedy has happened to a stranger, however, at some level in our heads we think, “He or she must have done something to deserve this.” An accident, a financial crisis, an addiction, the loss of a home or job – we sympathize but we also rationalize. At the most basic level we are no different than Job’s friends, who counsel him to plead to God for forgiveness for the sins that surely must have caused his unbearable suffering. This was the rationalization that the scribes had made in their own minds. Elsewhere in the Gospels, we see a man born blind who appeared before Jesus (cf. John 9). The common logic was that the man or the man’s parents had done something bad and God punished them by taking the man’s sight at birth. But Jesus boldly states that this happened not because of sin, but so that God would be glorified.

And that’s just it. We may think people simply get what they deserve, but people don’t. Yes, bad things happen to good people, but people don’t get what they deserve, because in the eternal picture, what people deserve is death. Jesus came to forgive sins, not to give people what they deserve. As we have all sinned, we all deserve death, but Jesus, who didn’t deserve death, died for us, taking our place. So we don’t get what we deserve, because it would mean the end of the human race. God loves us too much to allow us to become extinct, even though that is exactly what we’ve got coming to us.

Solitude

There is a general lack of true solitude in our culture. We have become so artificially connected to each other that we can hardly stand to be alone. Cell phones, the Internet, laptop computers, pagers, Black Berrys, and many, many more such items keep us only a few button-pushes away. We don’t know what to do with solitude, so we medicate ourselves to avoid the silence.

Mark 1:29-35

“As soon as they left the synagogue, they went with James and John to the home of Simon and Andrew. 30 Simon's mother-in-law was in bed with a fever, and they told Jesus about her. 31 So he went to her, took her hand and helped her up. The fever left her and she began to wait on them. 32 That evening after sunset the people brought to Jesus all the sick and demon-possessed. 33 The whole town gathered at the door, 34 and Jesus healed many who had various diseases. He also drove out many demons, but he would not let the demons speak because they knew who he was. 35 Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed.”

I tend to be a person who needs solitude. There are many people who don’t. A good chunk of my time is spent with people, and while I love being with them, after a while I begin to feel the need to recharge. It is good to know that even Jesus had this need. When the entire city of Capernaum showed up at Peter and Andrew’s doorstep, Jesus was confronted with a multitude of desperation. There were people with chronic illnesses and other debilitating physical problems, and there were also those who were demon-possessed. It would seem likely that Jesus spent a large amount of time helping these people. I can picture a helicopter’s view of Peter and Andrew’s house surrounded by a huge crowd, all clamoring to see Jesus. I can imagine Jesus’ exhaustion and need to refuel. The original text states that Jesus rose early in the night and went to a desert place to pray. The desert was considered to be a lonely place, where spirits haunted and death was always a possibility. It is interesting that Jesus withdrew to a place of loneliness. How and what He prayed we cannot know, but I can imagine it had something to do with the tremendous burden of time and space, sin and salvation.

To Nickels or Current Resident

Like everyone else, I love receiving mail. E-mail, regular mail, postcards, whatever. It makes me feel important. And like everyone else, I do not like receiving the 80,000 pieces of junk mail I receive each week, for precisely the opposite reason. When I look at an envelope that states “Resident” on the front, I feel anonymous, unimportant. If my name is spelled in some bizarre way – a way that indicates the sender’s utter lack of a personal relationship with me –  I feel even less than anonymous, since someone did not bother to at least spell my name correctly.

Mark 1:14-18
“After John was put in prison, Jesus went into Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God. 15 "The time has come," he said. "The kingdom of God is near. Repent and believe the good news!"  16 As Jesus walked beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen. 17 "Come, follow me," Jesus said, "and I will make you fishers of men."  18 At once they left their nets and followed him.” 

The words for angel and gospel have the same root in the original language (Greek) of the New Testament. Both have to do with messages from God. The word for angel is “angelos,” which mean messenger, and the word for gospel is “euangellion,” which means good message. When Jesus shouts out about the good message, He is saying, “Finally! The waiting is over! The time of the Kingdom of God is near.” We should rejoice that we can be part of that Kingdom, a real community, and a place to grow and heal and work. And that message is addressed to each and every one of us personally, with all names spelled correctly.

I am a bug-eater

Being a forerunner is not a career move you want to make if you like the spotlight on you. Take the automobile for example. Most Americans credit the invention of the automobile to Henry Ford, but that is incorrect. Karl Benz invented the first automobile run by a internal combustion engine in 1885, years before Ford began producing automobiles. What made Ford famous was what he did with the automobile, which was place it within reach of the average American. Ford took what Benz and others had built, and invented assembly-line production to make inexpensive cars. So Ford gets all the attention.                                      (Karl Benz)

Mark 1:1-13
1:1 The beginning of the gospel about Jesus Christ, the Son of God.   2 It is written in Isaiah the prophet: "I will send my messenger ahead of you, who will prepare your way"- 3 "a voice of one calling in the desert, 'Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for him.'"   4 And so John came, baptizing in the desert region and preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. 5 The whole Judean countryside and all the people of Jerusalem went out to him. Confessing their sins, they were baptized by him in the Jordan River. 6 John wore clothing made of camel's hair, with a leather belt around his waist, and he ate locusts and wild honey. 7 And this was his message: "After me will come one more powerful than I, the thongs of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and untie. 8 I baptize you with water, but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit." 9 At that time Jesus came from Nazareth in Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. 10 As Jesus was coming up out of the water, he saw heaven being torn open and the Spirit descending on him like a dove. 11 And a voice came from heaven: "You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased." 12 At once the Spirit sent him out into the desert, 13 and he was in the desert forty days, being tempted by Satan. He was with the wild animals, and angels attended him.

John the Baptist was the ultimate forerunner. His entire focus was on proclaiming the coming of the Messiah. And when Jesus came to be baptized by John, it nearly bowled him over. Here was the Messiah, coming to him, a bug-eating, camel skin wearing wild man! He was the dirty one, not Jesus. Such was John’s perspective.

I struggle sometimes about being a forerunner, which is what I am. Part of me says, “Hey, I like being the center of attention,” or “You know, its nice to be in charge of things.” But then reality hits me, and I realize that I am only a proclaimer, a prophet here to prepare the people for the One who is to come. I am a bug eater, a wild camel skin wearing weirdo whose entire goal in life is to point my finger at Someone Else.

The Broken Link

I am surprised to be who and where I am today. The person I was at 19 is no longer visible, although there are still signs of him that surface from time to time. When I gave up resisting God, and quit fighting Him, I had exhausted all other possibilities for happiness. I knew then that I had to submit to His control over my life -- that under my own direction, my life had been filled with bitterness and sorrow. I had hurt people, used people, and lied to the point of embarrassment. I was filled with guilt and self-loathing. I was weak-minded and a slave to my desires. It was so dark for me.

Mark 16:1-8
“When the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices so that they might go to anoint Jesus' body. 2 Very early on the first day of the week, just after sunrise, they were on their way to the tomb 3 and they asked each other, "Who will roll the stone away from the entrance of the tomb?" 4 But when they looked up, they saw that the stone, which was very large, had been rolled away. 5 As they entered the tomb, they saw a young man dressed in a white robe sitting on the right side, and they were alarmed. 6 "Don't be alarmed," he said. "You are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who was crucified. He has risen! He is not here. See the place where they laid him. 7 But go, tell his disciples and Peter, 'He is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him, just as he told you.'" 8 Trembling and bewildered, the women went out and fled from the tomb. They said nothing to anyone, because they were afraid.”

The earliest copies of the Gospel of Mark conclude with verse 8. It is the wide consensus of biblical scholars today that verses 9-20 were added at a later date than the time of the original writing. I think people were uncomfortable with the conclusion at verse 8, which leaves the women afraid of what had happened. People like to have tension resolved, so somebody finished the story for Mark.

The women had been through a lot. In the past week they had witnessed the pinnacle and the downfall of their Master. He had entered Jerusalem six days before with the crowds nearly rioting in their praise of Him, and three days later were calling for His death. Their leader, whom they believed to be the Messiah, the Chosen One of God, was dead. What would happen to them now? Had they been mistaken in their belief?

We know the rest of the story. The women bump into Jesus soon after and the rest is history. It was the women to went to the Twelve and were the first to proclaim the words, “He is risen.” The Church began its search and rescue operation in the world, shoving back the forces of darkness and putting Satan in his place as the defeated one. And a message of hope went out into the world, traveling over land and sea, over centuries, to reach someone at the end of his rope, who desperately needed something to hold on to. That person was me.

As a Christian, I am linked to a vast chain of people who have been rescued by Jesus. The message of hope and love I received was passed down through thousands of years. But it all began with those two women at the tomb, who ran to tell others of what they had seen. It is now my obligation to do the same, lest I be the broken link in the chain of God's rescue of humanity.

Sacrifice

I love to eat, and my favorite thing to eat is meat. Pretty much anything that contains meat. I like lots of other things as well but when I sit down to eat, I feel like there is something missing if there is no meat to be seen.  But there have been times when I have questioned my desire to eat meat, and those times are usually prompted by witnessing the “Before” element in the meat production process. I have been to open air markets in Hong Kong and Manila, where the carcasses of animals hang side by side in hundreds of stalls. I have seen people purchase frogs and eels and watched as the proprietor butchers the live animal right in front of the customer. I have heard the buzzing of flies and smelled the stench of blood and death. I have read first-hand accounts of American slaughterhouses and their factories of death, where cows scream and defecate all over themselves as they are herded down the chute.

What these experiences made me realize was how far away I was from the sacrificial process. When we go to the store and pick up a package of Italian sausage or ground beef or turkey breast, most of us do not think much about where it came from and from what. For all we know, meat just magically appears in plastic and styrofoam containers. But the fact is, a living creature had to die in order to provide that meat. And for all our attempts at humane treatment, there is no doubt that the animal is terrified and, in its own way, begging for its life. We eat, but only because of sacrifice.

Mark 15:33-47 “At the sixth hour darkness came over the whole land until the ninth hour. 34 And at the ninth hour Jesus cried out in a loud voice, "Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?"-which means, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?"  35 When some of those standing near heard this, they said, "Listen, he's calling Elijah." 36 One man ran, filled a sponge with wine vinegar, put it on a stick, and offered it to Jesus to drink. "Now leave him alone. Let's see if Elijah comes to take him down," he said. 37 With a loud cry, Jesus breathed his last. 38 The curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. 39 And when the centurion, who stood there in front of Jesus, heard his cry and saw how he died, he said, "Surely this man was the Son of God!" 40 Some women were watching from a distance. Among them were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James the younger and of Joses, and Salome. 41 In Galilee these women had followed him and cared for his needs. Many other women who had come up with him to Jerusalem were also there. 42 It was Preparation Day (that is, the day before the Sabbath). So as evening approached, 43 Joseph of Arimathea, a prominent member of the Council, who was himself waiting for the kingdom of God, went boldly to Pilate and asked for Jesus' body. 44 Pilate was surprised to hear that he was already dead. Summoning the centurion, he asked him if Jesus had already died. 45 When he learned from the centurion that it was so, he gave the body to Joseph. 46 So Joseph bought some linen cloth, took down the body, wrapped it in the linen, and placed it in a tomb cut out of rock. Then he rolled a stone against the entrance of the tomb. 47 Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joses saw where he was laid.” 

Jesus became an animal sacrifice for us. Up until this point, animals had been sacrificed for the offenses committed against God. But Jesus became the ultimate sacrifice, to provide food for His disciples. The slaughtering process is never pleasant, even today in America’s modern slaughterhouses. One eyewitness experience would make vegetarians out of a lot of people. Crucifixion is no less horrifying. For those who witnessed Jesus’ slow death, there would have been sights, sounds, and smells to turn their stomachs. Even Jesus himself was overcome by the despair of the whole thing – “Why have you forsaken me?” Theologians have speculated and theorized about what that comment meant, but in the end, all we have is speculations and theories. I think Jesus spoke those words because the suffering and humiliation he was enduring swept over him like a tidal wave, and the only thing he could do was cry out to God as he became the Meat for our tables.

 “Jesus said to them, "I tell you the truth, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. 54 Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day. 55 For my flesh is real food and my blood is real drink. 56 Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me, and I in him.” John 6:53-56