Monthly Archives: February 2015

Where does Jesus get his Credibility?

Reading for First Sunday of Lent

Mark 1:9-15

Devotion

Peace be with you!

It is difficult to understand what another person is going through until you go through a similar situation. I never understood why my parents are bitter toward one another until I got divorced. Now I understand why my dad changed how he told stories to exclude any mention of my mom. Now I understand why my mom hates seeing pictures of my dad. My perspective changed when I got my own divorce and gained insight as to the pain it causes.

Jesus comes into the world as the Son of God who never sins. Jesus is perfect in every way. After his baptism, in order to gain insight into our emotions and thoughts, God sends Jesus into the wilderness (Mark 1:12) as a crash course in pastoral care. Jesus has to feel the raw emotions we go through every day in order to have the compassion for his ministry—to heal the blind man, to converse with the Samaritan woman, to raise Lazarus, to share meals with sinners, to preach the good news, and to die for our sins on the cross. This is why God the Father sends Jesus Christ into the world.

God does not make Jesus face Satan alone in the wilderness; he sends angels to wait on him (Mark 1:13c). Like Jesus, you are never alone. God is with you in the good, the bad, and the ugly times. God feels your pain when ending a relationship, when you are sick, when you are faced with an impossible decision, when you feel alone, and when you are lost, and he is with you through it all. When you are lost in the wilderness (faced with a difficult decision or starting a new journey), God is with you, even if you feel alone.

It amazes me that God went through so much trouble to understand our pain by sending Jesus into the wilderness. Jesus takes on our pain, despair, suffering, sadness, and more to gain credibility to preach the good news to us. Without the credibility, why would we listen? How would Jesus even understand our emotions? The wilderness gives Jesus moral authority. He has felt our pain and has an alternative: repent and turn over our lives to the Lord. With the Lord by our side, with the promise of eternal life in the Kingdom of God, we can conquer anything.

Thanks be to God!

Dear Heavenly Father, Thank you for being with Jesus Christ in the wilderness. Help us to feel your presence in the world as we go about our daily lives. Comfort us in the wilderness and deliver us from the devil. Lead us to share the good news in the world. Thank you for the good news. Amen.

Reflective Questions

Please answer the following reflective questions in the comments below. Please agree to disagree and be respectful to each other. (If you have not already done so, please also take a moment, to sign the behavior covenant by commenting on it.) You can answer as many questions as you would like.

  1. When have you felt lost in the wilderness?
  2. When and how have you felt God’s presence?

How to Live Out the Christian Identity

Reading for Ash Wednesday

Matthew 6:1-6, 16-21

Devotion

Peace be with you!

My life—how I act and what I say—evolves around my identity as a Christian. Sometimes I play a game inside my head to see how long it takes for strangers to learn I am a Christian. Usually it only takes a few minutes since my career as a Biblical scholar is centered on my faith in God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. My identity as a Christian is strangely connected to my success as a scholar.

The Gospel reading for Ash Wednesday is a difficult one for us to hear. It is one that calls us to repentance. Jesus warns us about being like the hypocritical religious leaders of his day. He gives many admonishments: Do not announce to others how much you put in the offering plate (Matthew 6:2). Do not pray loudly so others can hear you (Matthew 6:5). Do not disfigure your face when you are fasting (Matthew 6:16). We are not supposed to make grand proclamations regarding our personal faith journey.

Then what does Jesus want us to do? Hide? He says, “Do not tell your left hand what your right hand is doing” (Matthew 6:3 NRSV). How is this even possible? My right hand always knows what my left hand is doing, especially when they have to work together. (But then again, with cerebral palsy my muscles fight each other just to perform daily tasks!) I do not believe that Jesus means that he wants us to make such subtle movements that we barely notice them ourselves. Jesus does not want us to be put on a performance for the whole community. He doesn’t want us to tell everyone we donated the money for the church’s new oven, but to do it because we are able and willing to. It does not have to make a noticeable dent in our savings. The act just has to serve God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit in order to further his mission.

Jesus’s point is that the acts of faith in our lives should be for an Audience of One, ultimately. Offering is to be something we give to God; it comes from him, and we give back what belongs to him. In Mark 12:43-44, Jesus praises a poor widow for giving all she has while the wealthy elite only give a tiny portion of their riches. The poor widow gives more than the others, because she entrusts God with everything she has to live on. God wants all we have to give, not so we can proudly announce our earthly accomplishments, but so we can share our very being with him. We cannot just give a portion of ourselves to God and think it will please him. God wants our all, even if it is not as much as the next person. God desires our personal best.

Then Jesus tells us to pray alone behind closed doors. This is a difficult for me since I am spiritually strengthened when praying in an intimate group. I will even be bold to say I pray better out loud in a group setting than when I pray quietly or alone. There is something amazing about hearing believers pray together, because prayers grow in depth as they wind together in a labyrinth web.

To contentedly pray alone–to be alone with God–is a bit scary. What do I even say? Most mornings and evenings when I lay in bed God must think I am a whinny three-year-old pleading to get her way: please Lord, take away so-and-so’s cancer or other ailment, or please, Lord, allow me to have a good day with so-and-so since she will be with me all day. And do not be mistaken that my prayers during my shower are much better: please, Lord, make me anew and give me the strength to do your work. Even though he knows exactly what I am thinking (the good, the bad, and the ugly), God wants to have a personal relationship with me through that special one-on-one time together. God wants to hear my pleas; he listens and wants to know I trust he will provide an answer in the future.

We can lose our thoughts in a large group. To sit alone with God allows us to quiet our minds and to speak honestly with him. Our God is a loving God who does not judge but offers love, hope, joy, and grace. We do not need to tweet incessantly about our undying love for God the Father. All we need to do is spend a few moments with God each day as we go about our busy routines.

The last spiritual ritual Jesus speaks about is fasting. In Jesus’s days, Jewish leaders would make their facial features look withdrawn when they were fasting so that they would appear more pious to everyone (Matthew 6:16). Jesus tells us to tend to our features in order to keep our fasting a secret. Again, we do not need to gloat about our fasting to prove our love for God the Father to everyone. God is the only person to whom we need to show our loyalty and love.

Most of us do not fast on a regular basis. If we do fast, it is usually for a medical reason, such as blood work or surgery. I believe this passage applies to more practices of faith than literal fasting.

My first thoughts go to pastors and mission leaders who work long hours to answer their callings but forget to take care of their own physical health or tend to their families. They and their families are left running on empty because of the idolatry of workaholism. Workaholism is the idea that you are irreplaceable; it’s ultimately all about you and what others think of you, not about God. God wants our work to be all about him; when we take the time for rest and family, we fast from workaholism. In doing so, we honor him and remind ourselves that he is the Center of it all.

We do not have to boast about our faith to get rewarded on earth. God sees our quiet acts of faith and will reward us in heaven. The Holy Spirit works through us in these acts of faith, grounding us in the love of the Triune God–God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. As Galatians 5:22-23 states, the Holy Spirit gives us the ability to have love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control, because the Spirit places God in our hearts. Holy Spirit makes it possible for our quiet acts of devotion to become second nature and to be in our hearts.

On this Ash Wednesday, I challenge you to work on doing quiet acts of faith, even if it means spending more time with family and friends. Do these acts of love and devotion without expecting fanfare; simply do them for God and God alone. Lent is a time where we can grow closer to the Triune God.

Take time this Ash Wednesday to make a plan to strengthen your relationship with God the Father. Your Lent practice should be something you want to add or give up beyond Easter. I have decided to give up online shopping for Lent to practice self-control and to resist the urge to buy whatever I want on the spot. To avoid binging after Easter, I will only buy one or two items that I really want and then force myself to answer, “Do I really need [whatever “it” is]? This way it becomes a practice in my everyday routine, not just for Lent. It will make more time to read books and articles, more time to write, and more time to spend time in prayer, because I will not be going on Amazon everyday or going to the post office to ship something back every week. I will also be forced to be content with what I have, especially in the clothes department. What will you add? What will you give up?

Do not be like the hypocrites by doing what rewards them here and now, focusing on themselves and their image before others. But act according to God’s will and God will reward you in heaven. Whatever you do: just do it for God and God alone. You are a star in a brand new universe, being formed by the Holy Spirit; shine bright, then, for God the Father alone.

Thanks be to God!

Dear Heavenly Father, Thank you for the promise of our reward in heaven. Help us to be little stars in the universe that you are forming through the Holy Spirit. Remind us to do subtle, quiet acts that tell our faith journey. Thank you for having a relationship with each one of us as your children. Amen.

Reflective Questions

Please answer the following reflective questions in the comments below. Please agree to disagree and be respectful to each other. (If you have not already done so, please also take a moment, to sign the behavior covenant by commenting on it.) You can answer as many questions as you would like.

  1. What will you add or give up for Lent?
  2. How do you have a private and personal relationship with God?

How does Glory and Suffering Go Together?

Reading for Transfiguration Sunday

Mark 9:2-9

Devotion

Peace be with you!

Stories and pictures capture moments in time, so we hold onto the memories in the future. Some people hold onto the past to avoid change, to avoid ending a relationship, or to avoid admitting someone has left. Some are afraid of what the future has in store for them. Still others are afraid of being controlled by forces outside themselves. And for yet others, the motivation is positive: they get stuck in a moment when things are going well, and they resist any change.

In Mark 9:2-9, Peter, James, and John witness Jesus conversing with Elijah and Moses, both important figures in the Old Testament. After fleeing the Pharaoh in Egypt, Moses led the Israelites through the wilderness for forty years. God gave Moses the Ten Commandments and others laws for the Israelites to live by. Moses transformed the Israelites into living as God’s chosen people. Elijah challenged the King Ahab of the northern kingdom when they allowed the people to worship Baal and Yahweh simultaneously. True to the first commandment, Elijah believed Yahweh was the one true God who should be only god worshipped—not Baal. Elijah spent his fifteen years as a prophet transforming the way the northern kingdom worshipped. Both of these prophets work tirelessly to keep God’s people faithful to him.

When Peter sees Jesus with Elijah and Moses, he wants to build Elijah, Moses, and Jesus each a tent (Mark 9:5) to preserve the moment, because he doesn’t want things to change. Peter is enjoying listening to Jesus preach and wacthing him perform miracles. Why does it have to change? Yet the moment ends with God saying, “This is my Son, the Beloved; listen to him” (Mark 9:7c NRSV). God the Father confirms Peter’s confession that Jesus is the Christ (Mark 8:29) and the demonic voices’ recognition that Jesus is the Son of God (Mark 1:34; 3:11). What does God mean when he tells the disciples to “listen to” Jesus? What is the context? The Greek verb for “listen” (ακουω) should be translated “hear.” In the previous chapter, after Peter’s confession that Jesus was the Messiah, Jesus told Peter he would suffer, be rejected, be killed, and after three days rise again (Mark 8:31-33). Peter had rebuked Jesus for saying this, mistakenly thinking that glory and suffering do not go together. When God says, “hear him,” he is saying Jesus’s crucifixion, death, and resurrection must happen—it is the divine plan. Glory will come through the cross. God affirms Jesus’s authority and instructs the disciples to do as Jesus says. God uses Jesus to transform the people who follow him and to set them free from their sins. Jesus has work to do and will be drawing many people to God the Father—not just the chosen few.

The transfiguration is a time to reflect and give glory to God for what Jesus has accomplished, a time to look forward into the future for what has to happen. Jesus has healed the sick, raised the dead, and rebuked demonic voices. Now Jesus has to endure a difficult journey to the cross in order to conquer death and to free us from the bondage of sin. This is why we Christians give glory to the Son of God, Jesus Christ. Through Jesus Christ, we are transformed from sinners to saints every day.

The pictures and stories of Jesus healing the sick, comforting those who mourn, and helping the poor make it easy to give him glory. These snapshots give us the “warm fuzzies” and make our hearts glad. However, without Jesus dying on the cross, we would not be able to worship the risen Lord. We would not know God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. We Gentiles would not be a part of the community of the “chosen”; Jesus makes it possible for us all to be in community. No matter how much Peter wants to freeze the transfiguration in time, Jesus must move forward with the plan. Jesus has to go to the cross—a painful snapshot to view—in order to conquer death. This is whaty God the Father sent Jesus Christ into the world to do. Who are we to stop him?

Thanks be to God!

Dear Heavenly Father, Thank you for transforming us through Jesus Christ. Help us to let go of the past and move forward into the future. Guide us with your grace and love into the unknown. Help us to understand why Jesus’s crucifixion, death, and resurrection has to happen. Thank you for your wisdom to know our needs before we do. Amen.

Reflective Questions

Please answer the following reflective questions in the comments below. Please agree to disagree and be respectful to each other. (If you have not already done so, please also take a moment, to sign the behavior covenant by commenting on it.) You can answer as many questions as you would like.

  1. Which memories do you hold on to?
  2. How have you been changed by Jesus?

Being Restored to your Purpose

Reading for the Fifth Sunday after Epiphany

Mark 1:29-39

Devotion

Peace be with you!

From time to time, you need a healing—physical, psychosocial, or spiritual—because, for whatever reason, you are not capable of being your usual self. You feel as though your lack of health is keeping you from doing what God calls you to do. Feeling hindered like this is very difficult.

A few summers ago, I got a spider bite that became infected and turned into MRSA. I was put on two strong antibiotics and ended up developing an allergy to them. Since the antibiotics made my insides vibrate whenever I would move, I was confined to my couch for a week. I also had a dressing on my knee, which did not stay on well and therefore limited my movements. It was a lonely week; because the MRSA was highly contagious, no one could come over. A week on the couch turned into a month while this active person struggled to recover.

In Mark 1:30, Simon’s mother-in-law is in bed with a fever. This seems to be have been a life-threatening illness, given the urgency with which the disciples ask Jesus for help. When Jesus sees the mother-in-law, he takes her hand and lifts her up, and the fever is gone (Mark 1:31). Jesus’s healing restores Simon’s mother-in-law to her normal self, allowing her to go back to serving her household. This gives Simon’s her back her sense of purpose and productivity in life. Some people use Mark 1:30-32 to explain gender roles:women should serve men. Although that may have been true for the time, this text’s real point is to convey it feels to have Jesus restore us. No one enjoys being laid up in bed and not able to do what they want and need to do. We feel helpless, because we need others to help with our basic needs. When Jesus heals Simon’s mother-in-law, her self-esteem is also restored because serving others gives her a sense of accomplishment. Restoring her physical health gives her freedom from her bed and the willingness to serve.

I remember being excited to be able to shower independently again after six weeks of feeling weak from fighting the MRSA infection. I could shower without feeling unsteady or worrying if I would fall. I felt like I had control back over my body. I could even go out of the house and not worrying about spreading the infection. I no longer felt like a leper.

When I was restored to my normal lifestyle, I could go back to my work as a writer and community builder. As a writer, I spread the good news of Jesus Christ. I also write as an advocate for other people with disabilities. I work hard to be a voice for those who are unable to communicate for themselves. As a community builder, I work to include those who would otherwise be left out. It takes time to spread the word and to build relationships with people who have been taken advantage of in the past and who do not trust easily. My work is important to me, and when I am too sick to do my work, I feel incomplete. This is why I get so excited when I feel better, and I am able to do my work again.

Simon’s mother-in-law is excited to be able to serve again. Serving Jesus and her household is what gave her purpose in life. This is what being healed by Jesus means: being restored to fulfill your purpose in the world.

Thanks be to God!

Dear Heavenly Father, Thank you for restoring us when we are sick. Help us to find our purpose in the world. By your Spirit, lead us to build community wherever we go. Thank you for hearing the urgency in our prayers, even when we think they go unheard. Amen.

Reflective Questions

Please answer the following reflective questions in the comments below. Please agree to disagree and be respectful to each other. (If you have not already done so, please also take a moment, to sign the behavior covenant by commenting on it.) You can answer as many questions as you would like.

  1. What gives you purpose in your life?
  2. How has Jesus restored you?

Be Silent and Come Out

Reading for the Fourth Sunday after Epiphany

Mark 1:21-28

Devotion

Peace be with you!

The world’s negative emotions and messages cause us to do some weird stuff sometimes. Satan plays on these emotions and messages to attempt to divide us from God the Father. Anger, jealousy, bitterness, addiction, rebellion, and spite all cause negative emotions inside us and cause us to act differently than what we would do otherwise. The toll on those you love is often great. For example, my brother did drugs growing up and lost trust among many family members and friends. He would steal things and sell them at pawn shops so that he could buy drugs. When my brother hit rock bottom, he decided to go into rehab where he was forced to examine what he did to others and make amends for his past actions. Over the past four years, my brother has worked hard to repair his relationships with family members and friends and has maintained stable employment as well. My brother changed his lifestyle and became a positive message to others.

In Mark 1:21-28, Jesus is teaching in the synagogue when a man with an unclean spirit comes in. The man with the unclean spirit yells, “What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are, the Holy One of God” (Mark 1:24 NRSV). We are not told the man’s story or what kind of unclean spirit possesses him. The man could be the local drunk, prostitute, or [whatever “it” is] that caused his outburst. However, his questions and statement alert us that Jesus is a threat to the unclean spirit–and Satan’s—power in the world. Before Jesus comes into the world, Satan rules the roost and has the authority in the world; because God is a distant figure in heaven, whom no one on earth has seen. But now God is in the flesh and exhibits his full authority through Jesus who. God is invading Satan’s territory and reclaiming what is his to begin with.

Jesus commands the unclean spirit, “Be silent, and come out of him!” (Mark 1:25 NRSV). The unclean spirit obeyed and came out, yelling and convulsing the man (Mark 1:26). The man was given a new life through the work of Jesus who comes into the world as God’s Spirit. My brother’s addiction was an unclean spirit that caused him to hurt his family and friends. Finally, when he hit rock bottom and entered rehab, the unclean spirit got scared and was evicted. Rehab yelled at my brother’s addiction, “Be silent, and come out of him!” Rehab helped my brother to heal old wounds and repair relationships with family and friends. Rehab caused my brother to examine his life and to see what is important.

The crowd from the synagogue is amazed by Jesus’s new teaching and by the way unclean spirits seem to obey him (Mark 1:27). The world is changing. Unclean spirits are no longer safe in the world because God’s Spirit is here. God gives Jesus and the Holy Spirit the authority to release us from unclean spirits. We are no longer Satan’s captives and are freed by God’s Spirit.

In a world full of rebellion, revenge, hatred, and addictions, God’s Spirit comes to stop these threats and replaces them with love, forgiveness, and grace. God cries out to the unclean spirits in the world, “Be silent, and come out of him!”—and we are made whole. Jesus coming into the world changes everything.

Thanks be to God!

Dear Heavenly Father, Thank you for releasing us from unclean spirits. Help us to fight against our addictions. Lead us through your Spirit to overcome the unclean spirits in our lives. Hold us close and never let us go. We commend all of these things to you in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Amen.

Reflective Questions

Please answer the following reflective questions in the comments below. Please agree to disagree and be respectful to each other. (If you have not already done so, please also take a moment, to sign the behavior covenant by commenting on it.) You can answer as many questions as you would like.

  1. What kinds of unclean spirits try to claim you?
  2. How does God release you from the unclean spirits?