Month: April 2021

Mark 11:12-14,20-21

It was first thing in the morning and Jesus, along with his disciples, was walking the short distance to the Jerusalem temple. Jesus was hungry when he approached a fig tree that was covered in leaves. When he got to it he couldn’t find any figs. He then spoke to the tree saying, ‘May no one ever eat fruit from you again.’ v14 This was overheard by the disciples. The next morning, they all repeated the walk and in 24 hours the previously vigorous tree had withered from the roots up. Peter pointed it out to Jesus with the words, ‘Rabbi, look! The fig tree you cursed has withered!’ v21

What is going on here? Has Jesus cracked under pressure and taken his frustration and temper out on a harmless tree out of hunger and spite? Is Jesus showing off and showing his power over nature in some form of ego trip? Could it be that Jesus had a passionate love of figs and couldn’t control his disappointment? The answer to all those questions is no. Jesus has not started to behave like a young boy who breaks plants with a stick as he walks past careless of growing things.

What is happening is highly symbolic and carefully positioned in the narrative. Fig trees in the Jerusalem area usually start to show leaves in March and April with figs starting to grow in June when the tree is in full leaf. This tree was exceptional in that it was already in full leaf at Passover and therefore should have already started to produce figs.

Fig trees in the Old Testament are symbolic of Israel. (Jeremiah 8:13, Hosea 9:10, Joel 1:7) The absence of figs on the tree symbolizes the hypocrisy of those who appear to be bearing fruit but in actuality are not. ‘When would I gather them, declares the Lord, there are no grapes on the vine, no figs on the fig tree … and what I gave them has passed away from them. Jeremiah 8:13 The next act of Jesus is to clear the temple of all those who are profiteering at the expense of those who have arrived to worship God. They are the very people who should be guiding and leading the people in worship and Godly ways but were in fact turning the temple into a, ‘den of robbers’.

Jeremiah’s condemnation of the outcome of Judah’s spiritual leaders was devastating and in Jesus’ ‘curse’ of the fig tree he was accusing the leadership of his time of exactly the same false corrupt priesthood.
‘Why then have these people turned away? Why does Jerusalem always turn away?
They cling to deceit; they refuse to return. I have listened attentively, but they do not say what is right. None of them repent of their wickedness, saying, “What have I done? Each pursues their own course like a horse charging into battle …. The wise men shall be put to shame; they shall be dismayed and taken; behold, they have rejected the word of the Lord, so what wisdom is in them?’ Jeremiah 7:5-6,9
The fig tree, withered from the roots up, stands for the judgment about to come on Israel for the failures of the leadership and the people as a whole to bear the fruit that was intended to show the righteous character of God to the world. Jesus was providing a narrative through actions not words.

How does this apply to a contemporary setting? The modern universal church are the people of God tasked with the same responsibilities to show to the world the righteousness of God through Jesus Christ. This includes living in community, worshiping and serving, bringing the gospel to the world making and baptising disciples. The leadership of the church along with the body of the church all have responsibilities in this calling. The church is intended to be a fruitful people in its private and public life. The fig tree withered from its roots up. Our roots as the church are intended to be deeply imbedded in Christ’s sacrifice and resurrected life received by faith through grace. We are meant to draw our life giving strength from the Holy Spirit and the word of God.

The church should pay heed to Christ’s words to the church of Sardis and be careful not to slip into unfruitfulness. ‘I know your deeds; you have the reputation of being alive, but you are dead. Wake up! Strengthen what remains and is about to die, for I have found your deeds unfinished in the sight of my God. Remember, therefore, what you have received and heard; hold it fast, and repent.’ Revelation 3.2-3

How are we drawing on the life of Christ in our lives.

An Easter Hallelujah – Cassandra Star & her sister Callahan

Mark 10:46-52

Jesus, with his disciples, had reached Jericho on their way to Jerusalem for the last time. A large crowd were on the road making their pilgrimage to the temple for the Passover. Sat beside the road was a blind man begging. It was not an unusual sight, beggars were used to being ignored, then as now they ranked very low in the social strata. Mark has taken the trouble to record his name, Bartimaeus, a man named after his father Timaeus. The reason Mark has done that is because what happened when Jesus passed is of great significance. Jesus had healed very many people, including the blind, very few are recorded by name. It is quite probable that Bartimaeus became well known to the disciples but at the time he was just another beggar by the roadside.

Bartimaeus though was gifted with sight not previously known outside of Jesus’ intimate circle. ‘When he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to shout, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!”’v47 His cry of, “Son of David” was the first public confession that Jesus was the longed for Messiah. Bartimaeus was repeatedly told to quieten down but he refused. He had insight the sighted crowd did not have. Jesus’ attitude was different. He did not ignore the beggar. By calling Bartimaeus to him he affirmed the cry that he was the Messiah. Throwing his cloak (probably his most valuable possession) to one side Bartimaeus eagerly went to Jesus. Bartimaeus in leaving all behind, imitates the disciples and does what the rich man found he could not do. Jesus asks Bartimaeus a question he has asked before in various ways, ‘What do you want me to do for you?’ v51 It is a fundamental question and one to be asked one to one. Bartimaeus answers, ‘Rabbi, I want to see.” It is an honest answer and addressed his most immediate and basic need.

Jesus says, ‘Go, your faith has healed you.’ vv52Immediately he received his sight but he did not go except in the sense that he went with Jesus. The man who was blind, least among men, has gained sight twice, spiritual sight to see Jesus for who he was and physical sight so he can follow him along the road, casting off his old life.

It was faith that enabled Bartimaeus to see. Have we prayed for the faith of Bartimaeus?

Are you blessed with Bartimaeus’ “double vision”?

Having been healed or saved by Jesus have we cast off our old life to follow him or was that moment of salvation just a feel good moment and now we following other agendas?

How much do you want to shout, Jesus you are the Messiah?

I Know That My Redeemer Liveth

Mark 10

Chapter 10 hinges around the implications of following Jesus. Jesus makes clear that to follow him means being like him. That is not the same as being exactly him as no one else is going to pay the cost of sin for others and experience forsakenness by God for the sake of others. No one else can have exactly the intimacy with God that is experienced within the Trinity. But to be a disciple of Jesus or as we term it today a Christian means following the way of Jesus. The early church was originally known as followers of the way.

The chapter opens with Jesus teaching on marriage and divorce. The Pharisees were testing Jesus over divorce and the law of God. Their understanding was that obedience to every detail of the law was necessary for righteousness. Jesus taught you need to understand what lay behind the law. Marriage in the bible is an image of the unity and bond between Jesus and the church. Marriage is also God ordained not only as a means for procreation it also reflects the intimacy and strength of bond there exists in the Trinity of the Godhead, an inseparable permanent unity of complete love and unity. Each one serving, loving and bringing joy to the other. That is what is meant by becoming one flesh. Marriage therefore ought to be entered into as a covenant that reflects the relationship within the Godhead and the covenant relationship between God and mankind. Marriage is not a requirement of God, Paul opted for singleness to allow him to be totally dedicated to his gospel mission but most if not all the other apostles were married.

Discipleship also involves a simple trust and obedience that is childlike. v15 This presents a major obstacle to many today, as in our arrogance we consider we have to understand everything and be equal to God before we can accept him. We have a modern assertion that everybody is equal and then impose an intellectual barrier to a relationship with God. A small child does not have to understand everything about their parent to both love and be loved. Discipleship is not about passing a test it is about a loving relationship. The Pharisees found this incomprehensible.

Central to discipleship is what Jesus said to the rich man who desired eternal life. ‘No one is good – except God alone.’ V18 The rich man was in every day terms a good man. He was obedient to the law. When Jesus asked him to give up his wealth and follow him he was not making a requirement of all to sell everything to be a disciple. He was highlighting what was preventing that particular man from following him, his wealth and possessions. The most important part of what Jesus said was not sell everything it was follow me. For that man material wealth was a barrier to discipleship he could not overcome at that time. Jesus then taught his disciples that there is a far greater wealth of a different kind in the Kingdom of God even if we lose what the world values most now. v30

Jesus then addressed a problem his disciples had right up to the point of his crucifixion. That was the desire to be considered great in the kingdom of God. He firstly explained that in God’s kingdom, ‘many who are first will be last and last first.’ v31 Jesus then for the third time in Mark’s gospel spoke about his own arrest, torture and execution to come as they approached Jerusalem. The disciples still did not grasp the depth of humility, suffering and cost that was to be Jesus’ way. They continued their preoccupation with their own status in heaven. Jesus took them back to his teaching on his own way of suffering and asked, ‘Can you drink the cup I drink or be baptized with the baptism I am baptized with?’ Yes, they answered, but their thinking had still not moved on. Jesus came back to them to say, your thinking is still as the world thinks. God’s kingdom way is the opposite. ‘Whoever wants to be first must be a slave to all.’ v44 Being a slave to all was and is Jesus’ way. To be a disciple and follow him is to be as he is.

What are our barriers to our relationship with Jesus? Could it be wealth, intellectual pride, status or a lack of faithfulness?

Have we understood Christ’s “Way” is radically different from the world’s?

From heaven you came

Mark 9:14-37

‘Immediately the boy’s father exclaimed, “I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief.”’ Mark 9:24

When would we appeal to Jesus as the man who first said, ‘I do believe, help me overcome my unbelief’? v24 Have you ever prayed a prayer like that? This particular account of a man approaching Jesus with his child who had been subject to severe fits since early childhood, that endangered his safety, even his life, will have resonance with many who are believers and those who feel they would like to be a believer and are standing on the threshold of faith.

One doesn’t ask God a question like that unless there is some turmoil going on in one’s mind. For the man in question he was terrified for his child and he was also afraid that he would fail his child by his insufficient faith. At that moment he had been concentrating on his personal capacity and believing it was down to him to have enough faith. He was struggling to work up faith as if faith is something that is derived from concentrated effort.

This passage is about mercy, it is also about faith. The source of faith and in whom or what do we have faith. The disciples who Jesus had left at the bottom of the mountain were faced with a large crowd, who wanted Jesus not them. However, in Jesus’ absence they sought the same things from the disciples as they hoped to gain from Jesus, healing and teaching. Mixed in with the crowd were teachers of the law who were there to challenge and argue with them. It was a difficult situation for the remaining disciples. When there are competing challenges happening in stressful circumstances and the demands being made of you are at the limit or beyond your abilities then you are probably at the point of failure. Many of us will have had times when that was true for us. The disciples could not deliver the boy of the evil spirit.

At that point Jesus appeared. The crowd were awestruck. Whether an aura of glory still surrounded Jesus in a similar way to how Moses’ face shone after he came down from the mountain meeting with God we do not know, but there are comparisons with Moses descending from seeing glory to find an unbelieving generation. However, this time the crowd ran to Jesus rather than away. Exodus 34.30

Jesus’ response was one of anger born of frustration. ‘“You unbelieving generation,” Jesus replied, “how long shall I stay with you? How long shall I put up with you? Bring the boy to me.”’ The disciples had previously been able to drive out impure spirits but their authority had always depended on Jesus. This spiritual failure implies that their relationship with him had been seriously compromised by their failure to embrace the newly revealed cross-bearing path of true discipleship.’ (NIV Study Bible 2015)

In contrast the father recognized his own lack of faith and turned to Jesus the source of faith. Faith is the gift of God. Paul reminded the Ephesian church, ‘by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.’ Ephesians 2.8-9 When the disciples questioned Jesus about their own lack of sufficient faith, Jesus spoke of the need for prayer. v29 Not prayer at the moment of need but in preparation. Prayer time spent with God that builds our relationship with him.

Jesus again taught the disciples that he would be killed and in three days be raised. v31 The disciples still did not grasp the implications of Jesus’ words and showed their lack of spiritual understanding by arguing about who would be greatest, completely missing Jesus’ exemplar of sacrifice and service. To ram home the point about humility and faith Jesus, ‘took a little child whom he placed among them. Taking the child in his arms, he said to them, “Whoever welcomes one of these little children in my name welcomes me; and whoever welcomes me does not welcome me but the one who sent me.”’ vv36-37

Whether we are in the place of someone who wants to believe but finds it difficult to make that commitment step or someone who has trusted Jesus for some time but is struggling with active faith we need to simplify things to that of a childlike faith. Just come to him and ask. Ask for the gift of faith. We have become so used to struggling for success and it all being down to our efforts we find it difficult to humbly ask. Jesus’ way is the way of the cross, where we die to be raised again.

King’s College Choir – Jesus Christ is risen today

Mark 9:1-13

If you had a vision of Jesus as he is in glory what impact would it have on you? This is not my experience but there are people for whom it is true. I am not speaking here of psychotic episodes but people who are very obviously sane and rational in every sense. Paul’s vision of Jesus on the Damascus road was one where all he could see was the glory, hear his voice, but did not see the figure of Jesus. The impact on him was to transform him from an enemy of Jesus into a disciple who is an exemplar of obedience to Jesus’ words uttered just prior to the transfiguration passage. ‘If anyone who would come after me, let him deny himself and take up the cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses is life for my sake and the gospel’s will save it. Mark 8.34-35

A vision of the risen Christ would, one would imagine, have a life-long impact. When Peter saw Jesus transfigured we know that the experience motivated him for his entire life to stir people up to be obedient to Christ and the word of God. 2 Peter 1.13 At the time of his witnessing Jesus’ transfiguration Peter along with John and James were confused, it was only later as they reflected on Jesus’ words, the Old Testament prophecies and law as well as Jesus’ death and resurrection that they were fully able grasp the meaning of the events they were in the middle of.

Peter heard the voice of God again confirming the words uttered at Jesus’ baptism but this time with the added command to listen to him. Near the end of his life Peter recalls Jesus’ transfiguration, how God affirms Jesus as his beloved Son 2 Peter 1.18 and the power of God’s word. He states, ‘no prophecy of Scripture comes from someone’s interpretation. For no prophesy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.’ 2 Peter 1.20-21 Peter at the transfiguration had seen Moses and Elijah speaking with Jesus, representing both the law and the prophets and this must have had a profound impact on him trusting in the scriptures.

For Peter, as well having seen the power and glory of Jesus, he understood that faith in Jesus granted divine power to his disciples to live godly lives. ‘His divine power had granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence.’ 2 Peter 1.3 Peter then urged his fellow Christians to live out this divine power through a life of vibrant holiness. ‘For this reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge, and knowledge with self control, and self control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love.’ 2 Peter 1.5-7

Following the celebration of Jesus’ resurrection are we more motivated to have a better vision of Jesus through the word of God that Peter trusted as Spirit inspired. If so read again or for the first time Isaiah 53 and apply each sentence to Jesus at Easter.

Will a clearer vision of Jesus inspire you to:
Live with vibrant holiness;
Stir up a desire to make him known;
Trust in the word of God as a ‘lamp shining in a dark place’ for your life.

Lord I lift your name on high – Maranatha praises