Kickstarter # 1 - "I Have a Dream"

            Did you ever have an idea for a project you wanted to undertake, but not have any idea how you were going to fund that project?  Maybe you invented something in your mind, but didn’t have the capital to invest in a prototype, patent, and production costs.  At home I have a copy of the blueprints my Granddad made for a new kind of fishing reel.  He had the whole thing worked out, but because he couldn’t afford to produce it, he could never sell it. 

Today, the internet makes it much easier for entrepreneurs to produce and sell their own projects.  For example, Fidget Cubes were invented as a device to keep fidgety workers occupied at their desks, but they needed financial backing.  Kickstarter.com helped Antsy Labs come up with the startup money it needed to get the job done.  While the fundraising campaign needed investors to generate $15,000, the developers were surprised when almost 155,000 backers contributed $65 million to producing the product.[i]  By crowdfunding projects, Kickstarter has helped many entrepreneurs get their products and businesses off the ground.

            But it all starts with a dream.  In the Bible’s book of Genesis, Joseph was a dreamer who not only saw a problem on the horizon, but who also had the wisdom and insight to create and implement a plan to fix it.  This resulted in huge profits for the government he served.  In the book of Matthew, another Joseph had other dreams for how to take problems and bring about the best results.  1:20-24 says:

But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.  She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.”

All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel” (which means “God with us”).

When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary home as his wife.[ii]

            In this case, Joseph saw a problem—that his fiancée Mary was pregnant out of wedlock.  He knew that he could quietly annul the engagement, and he could abandon her to the mercy of public opinion at best, and the merciless court at worst.  Yet Joseph had a dream that told him of a new approach—acceptance and even defense of what appeared to be sin in the eyes of religious society.  He could do this because he knew God had given him the vision—and God was with him. 

Then, after the child was born in Bethlehem, the holy family was visited by wise men who bore gifts.  Little did they know it, but the magi were unwittingly acting as spies for King Herod, who jealously wanted to destroy the child.  Again, Joseph was a visionary who saw a problem and had a dream to solve it.  His quick action saved the life of his young family.  Matthew 2:13-15a says:

When they had gone, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream. “Get up,” he said, “take the child and his mother and escape to Egypt. Stay there until I tell you, for Herod is going to search for the child to kill him.” So he got up, took the child and his mother during the night and left for Egypt, where he stayed until the death of Herod.

            In both cases, Joseph saw a problem, and was enough of a visionary to also see and implement the solution.  Today God still works through visionaries, Christ-followers who see the problems in our world and have enough faith to fix them.  Maybe this Christmas season has made you keenly aware of the struggles of others around you, and like Joseph, God has given you a vision for how to help those in need.  Or, now that the new year lies before you, it might be that you have a dream for new health, vitality, learning, success, or blessing in your own life.  Perhaps God has placed in your heart the seedling of an idea for new ministry in the community—something that you can or your church can do to spread God’s realm and influence in the community or around the world.  Maybe all you need is something like Kickstarter, to help you get it going.

            Kickstarter is the merging of all the right dreams and dreamers, partners, resources, and customers to make dreams come true.  This month we’ll be talking about a different kind of Kickstarter—your church.  God has likewise equipped your church with all the right dreams and dreamers, partners, resources—and even a target audience—to realize the dream that God has given you.  Unfortunately, we are too often we’re like my grandfather, convinced that success as a church, and as believers, is out of our reach.  But just as the year lies before us, so our lives and those of our neighbors lie as adventures awaited, limited only by the wildness of the dreams we’re prepared to dream. 

            In Acts 2, Peter saw God doing a new thing among his people—the beginning of something that would one day be called the Church.  Reveling in this risky venture, he preached a sermon, quoting Joel 2:28-30, in which God says:

 I will pour out my Spirit on all people.
Your sons and daughters will prophesy,
    your old men will dream dreams,
    your young men will see visions.
Even on my servants, both men and women,
    I will pour out my Spirit in those days.
I will show wonders in the heavens
    and on the earth.

God gave the dream to kickstart an exciting new thing.  Maybe God has whispered a word of vision into your heart in the night.  Maybe you’ve seen the need around you, and watched with open eyes as God unfurls the plan before you.  It all starts with a dream.  What’s yours?  I pray that you’d open yourself like Joseph, to be a visionary, a kickstarter of a brighter future, today.

---

[i] Moneyish.  10 Kickstarter Products that Raised the Most Money.  https://moneyish.com/ish/10-kickstarter-products-that-raised-the-most-money/. 

[ii] Scripture quotations taken from the NIV.

A Christmas Carol # 2 - "Good News of Great Joy"

            For the past two weeks, we’ve talked about Charles Dickens’ Christmas classic A Christmas Carol.  Like Scrooge, many people are haunted by ghosts of their past—but God wants to cleanse that past and offer us a better present.  Both Dickens and scripture remind us that present need is all around us, and that it is our obligation as children of God and citizens of this planet to relieve the suffering of our fellow human beings.  As the shadow of the future looms before us, many of us shrink back in fear—but Scrooge shows that fear doesn’t have to paralyze you.  Instead, it can be a great motivator of change. 

            As the hooded, Grim-Reaper-like Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come appears to Ebenezer Scrooge, it shows him three wealthy businessmen joking about the death of some nameless person.  Next, Scrooge sees that dead person’s belongings being stolen and sold off.  He sees that person’s shrouded corpse, and begs the hooded ghost not to unmask the deceased.  He begs the ghost to show him somebody who has emotion for the dead person.  The ghost shows him somebody who owed the dead man money, glad to have extra time to pay off the bill.  Then the ghost shows him the family of Scrooge’s clerk Bob Cratchit, grieving the death of their sickly boy Tiny Tim.  Finally, the spirit takes Scrooge to a cemetery, where Scrooge sees his own grave, realizing himself to be the dead man that the people had mocked.  Scrooge is terrified by this glimpse into his own future and implores the spirit for an opportunity to change and

“sponge away the writing on this stone.”  ... "Good Spirit," he pursued, as down upon the ground he fell before it: "Your nature intercedes for me, and pities me. Assure me that I yet may change these shadows you have shown me, by an altered life!"

            When Scrooge awakes from his vision, his heart is changed and warmed.  Filled not just with Christmas spirit but charity and goodwill toward his fellow human beings, Scrooge is inspired to renew broken relationships, and provide the financial support necessary to save Tiny Tim’s life.  Though Scrooge had to face his fearful future, that same fear became the means necessary to work necessary change in his life.

            When you think about it, the Christmas story is a pretty fearful one.  In Luke 1, an angel appears to Zechariah to foretell the birth of John the Baptist.  But in verse 13, the angel tells him not to be afraid.  He and his wife Elizabeth have wanted a child their whole marriage, but were unable to conceive.  Now that they are old, certainly there are fearful aspects to childbirth.  But the angel’s words reassure them that God’s plan is at work.  They do, however, have a choice whether or not to participate in that plan.  But the angel’s reassurance shows them that, though the future may be fearful, God is still in control.

            Also in Luke 1, the angel Gabriel appears to Mary, to predict the conception of the Messiah, God in the flesh.  Certainly this is a fearful announcement, considering she is a virgin engaged to be married, and there are social and legal repercussions for conception outside of marriage.  But in verses 28 and 30, the angel says, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you…Do not be afraid, Mary; you have found favor with God.”[i]   Mary is not forced into premarital motherhood—God gives her a choice, and she willingly submits, declaring, “I am the Lord’s servant…May your word to me be fulfilled (verse 38).”   In both of these accounts, Elizabeth and Mary are told about their own futures which involve difficult circumstances, yet they are reminded not to be afraid, because God is with them.

            Like Ebenezer Scrooge, sometimes our pasts can conjure up images of pain and disappointment.  Our present circumstances can call us to unfamiliar action that puts us outside of our comfort zone.  Our futures may loom like a specter before us so that, like Scrooge, we ask whether the future may yet be changed by an altered life.  However frightening the ghosts of past, present, and future may be, they are the agents that call us to repentance, change, and redemption.  Maybe this holiday season, you find yourself haunted by frightening memories, current challenges, or fears of the future.  Rather than being daunted, may these apparitions give you cause for celebration.  As the spirits who appeared to Scrooge ultimately brought him hope, so the angels who manifested to Elizabeth and Mary promised God’s blessing.  So also the Lord tells you not to fear—for what lies before you is an opportunity to say “yes” to God’s call.

---

[i] Scripture quotations are taken from the NIV.

A Christmas Carol # 2 - "The Christmas Present"

            Last week we talked about Charles Dickens’ book, A Christmas Carol, how the ghosts of Christmases past still haunt us today, and how God wants us to break free from imprisonment to our past.  Today we continue to Dickens’ story, to the Ghost of Christmas present.  One article describes him thus:

According to Dickens' novel, the Ghost of Christmas Present appears to Scrooge as "a jolly giant" with dark brown curls. He wears a fur-lined green robe and on his head a holly wreath set with shining icicles. He carries a large torch, made to resemble a cornucopia, and appears accompanied by a great feast.  He states that he has had "more than eighteen hundred" brothers and later reveals the ability to change his size to fit into any space. He also bears a scabbard with no sword in it, a representation of peace on Earth and good will toward men.

The spirit transports Scrooge around the city, showing him scenes of festivity and also deprivation that are happening as they watch, sprinkling a little warmth from his torch as he travels. Amongst the visits are Scrooge's nephew, and the family of his impoverished clerk, Bob Cratchit. Scrooge takes an interest in Cratchit's desperately-ill son, Tiny Tim, and asks the Ghost if Tim will live. The Ghost first states that "If these shadows remain unaltered by the Future, the child will die," and then – quick to use Scrooge's past heartless comments to two charitable solicitors against him – states, "What then? If he be like to die, he had better do it, and decrease the surplus population."

The spirit finally reveals to Scrooge two emaciated children, subhuman in appearance and loathsome to behold, clinging to his robes, and names the boy as Ignorance and the girl as Want. The spirit warns Scrooge, "Beware them both, and all of their degree, but most of all beware this boy, for on his brow I see that written which is Doom unless the writing be erased." The spirit once again quotes Scrooge, who asks if the grotesque children have "no refuge, no resource," and the spirit retorts with more of Scrooge's own words: "Are there no prisons? Are there no workhouses?"

The Ghost of Christmas Present, having already aged, reveals that he will only exist on Earth for a single year's Christmas holiday as the Present only takes place on the one day of the year. He finally disappears at the stroke of midnight on Twelfth Night, and leaves Scrooge to face the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come, as it approaches "like a mist along the ground."

            We tend to despise Ebenezer Scrooge for his heartless attitude toward the poor, but many of us have grown callous to the needs of the underprivileged in our own community.  On our way to the shopping mall to buy Christmas presents, we ignore the plight of the waifs and ghosts of Christmas present.  The need lies right before us, yet we avert our gaze lest we make eye contact and feel a sense of social responsibility.  Perhaps we even suppress our feelings of guilt by saying or thinking, “Get a job!”  But as the ghost of Christmas sought to change Scrooge’s heart, so the Spirit of God wants to change our own.  Isaiah 1:11-15 (NLT) says:

“The multitude of your sacrifices—
    what are they to me?” says the Lord.
“I have more than enough of burnt offerings,
    of rams and the fat of fattened animals;
I have no pleasure
    in the blood of bulls and lambs and goats.
When you come to appear before me,
    who has asked this of you,
    this trampling of my courts?
Stop bringing meaningless offerings!
    Your incense is detestable to me.
New Moons, Sabbaths and convocations—
    I cannot bear your worthless assemblies.
Your New Moon feasts and your appointed festivals
    I hate with all my being.
They have become a burden to me;
    I am weary of bearing them.
When you spread out your hands in prayer,
    I hide my eyes from you;
even when you offer many prayers,
    I am not listening.

Your hands are full of blood!

            As we gather in our churches to sing Silent Night, many in the silence can hear the sound of their teeth chattering and stomach rumbling.  We like to enjoy our Christmas presents, but this present Christmas, Ignorance and Want stand before us, waiting for a hand.  Will we, like Ebenezer Scrooge, say it’s better that they should die, and decrease the surplus population?  Will we ask, “Are there prisons, no workhouses, or welfare lines?”  Or will we allow our hearts to be broken for the sake of the needy. 

            In Isaiah’s day, God said He despised the smell of animals burned for sacrifice when that same meat might feed the hungry.  In the Christmas present, God would have us know that He loves our prayers, pageantry, and gift giving, only as much as we’re giving to the poor and needy as well.  If we’re not doing that, then our celebration is sin and our festivity is a farce.  Our hands are stained with blood—but just like there’s hope for Scrooge, there’s hope for us.  Isaiah 1:16-18 (NLT) says:

Wash and make yourselves clean.
    Take your evil deeds out of my sight;
    stop doing wrong.
Learn to do right; seek justice.
    Defend the oppressed.
Take up the cause of the fatherless;
    plead the case of the widow.

“Come now, let us settle the matter,”
    says the Lord.
“Though your sins are like scarlet,
    they shall be as white as snow;
though they are red as crimson,
    they shall be like wool.

           

            As Scrooge had a choice to make, so we must decide as well.  The Ghost of Christmas Present presented Scrooge with an opportunity to change.  So this present Christmas, we have the chance to repent and respond to those in need.  Instead of relying on welfare programs to do our charity for us, God calls believers to treat others with a charitable heart and a giving hand.  Otherwise, Christians and Christmas are indeed humbugs.  Just as the ghost lasted for only one day and disappeared in mist, so too is our opportunity to give.  “So, as the Holy Spirit says: ‘Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts’… But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called ‘Today,’ so that none of you may be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness. (Hebrews 3:7-8a, 13 NIV).”  As a Christmas present, God gives each of us the present moment, to do spread peace on earth and good will toward men, or to hoard our gold like miserly Scrooge.  What will you do with your Christmas present?

A Christmas Carol # 1: "Ghosts of Christmas Past"

Christmastime is here. Time for decorations and singing, parties and gifts and laughter. Growing up, one of my favorite traditions was when my mom and dad would gather us together and read Christmas stories like The Little Match Girl and The Gift of the Magi. My favorite was Charles Dickens’ classic, A Christmas Carol. Everyone knows the story of the miserly and mean Ebenezer Scrooge, and how he declared Christmas to be a humbug. Scrooge was visited by three ghosts, with an eye toward changing not just his attitude toward Christmas, but his heart toward his fellow human beings. The first ghost to appear was called the Ghost of Christmas Past. As the mysterious figure took Scrooge’s hand, he flew him over London and back into the old man’s history. Together they revisited Christmases from Scrooge’s boyhood, and when he was a young man. Some of those memories were pleasant and others were sorrowful. Perhaps as you prepare to celebrate Christmas this year, you find yourself visited by the ghosts of Christmas past, and you are flooded with a mix of emotions.

Maybe, like Scrooge, you remember festive parties and elaborate celebrations. Here at the beginning of the holiday season, your ghosts of Christmas past may fill you with eager anticipation of joyful events you’re planning just around the corner. Or, it could be that these ghosts that bring pleasant memories are also bittersweet, because while you recollect the good times, this year’s Christmas isn’t going to be quite as grand. Maybe remembering a happy past simply makes you sad for the way your present situation is going. Sometimes the ghosts of Christmas past can evoke good things, but these can put you in a negative mindset if you allow the past to create unrealistic expectations of the present.

Or, maybe, like Scrooge, your Christmases had a lot of negative mixed in with the positive. The old man revisited feelings of abandonment during the holdiays, emotions of rejection and lost love. These things contributed to his decision that Christmas was a humbug, and that love and compassion were a sign of weakness. Perhaps you, too, have experienced tragedy or sorrow during the Christmas season. Years ago, you lost a loved one during this time, and it has colored your experience of the holiday today. Maybe you remember abuse that you suffered or poverty endured during Christmas, and it has put a damper on your ability to celebrate the Lord’s birth.

Whether the ghosts of Christmas past are pleasant or painful, the Bible has a word of encouragement for you today. In Isaiah 43:1[i], God says, “Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine.” God wants you to know that you are precious and special—even if you think you are the opposite. Just as the spiritual powers in Dickens’ book thought that even Scrooge was worth redeeming, so God believes that even you are worth saving. This is why God says, “When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you (43:2).” Though the waters of emotion may come like a flood, God is there with you, holding you up and keeping you from drowning. In verses 4-5, God says, “You are precious and honored in my sight, and…I love you…Do not be afraid, for I am with you.” What an amazing thing, to discover that despite the sorrows of your past, God knows everything about you and loves you anyway!

Maybe you’ve had a difficult past, and you know a lot about pain and suffering. God wants you to know something about Him. Verses 10-11 say:

“You are my witnesses,” declares the Lord, “and my servant whom I have chosen, so that you may know and believe me and understand that I am he. Before me no god was formed, nor will there be one after me.
I, even I, am the Lord, and apart from me there is no savior.

It may be true that without the pain of your past, you wouldn’t be in this humbug of a condition right now. But without that pain and without that condition, you’d never be in the position of looking to God as the One who made you, loves you, and saves you. Even if the past’s pain is your fault, because of mistakes and failures of your own making, God wants to redeem your past and give you a future. In verse 25, God says, “I, even I, am he who blots out your transgressions, for my own sake, and remembers your sins no more.”

As long as you dwell on the past, you can’t experience a renewed present or a hopeful future. Captivity to the past will always stifle new growth. Whether it’s fond reminiscences of the “good old days,” or present paralysis based on past pain, the voice of God speaks words of hope:

“Forget the former things;
do not dwell on the past.
See, I am doing a new thing!
Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?
I am making a way in the wilderness
and streams in the wasteland (43:18-19).”

What does it mean, to “forget the former things?” Is God saying to forget the loved ones whose memory makes the holidays so difficult? Is God saying we should repress memories of past pain? No—but God is telling you not to dwell on the past or be dominated by it to the degree that you can’t see blessing in the present or hope for the future. Instead, trust the One who makes streams in the desert.

In Dickens’ story, the Ghost of Christmas Past is described like a candle, bearing a cap that looks like a candle snufter. Though Scrooge wants to put the cap on the ghost’s head, the ghost explains that this will extinguish it and that Scrooge must look on the memories rather than snuffing the out. Eventually, though, Scrooge has seen enough and wrestles the cap onto the ghost’s head, ending the visit. Even so, though the ghost is gone, hopeful light glows from beneath the cap. Even so, you need your memories of the past to make you who you are. You don’t snuff out your past when you refuse to be captivated by it. You honor it, but trust the God of the present to set you free.








[i] All scripture quotations are taken from the NIV.

"Peace and Grace"

Recently, I read the following story about fear:

One summer night during a severe thunderstorm a mother was tucking her small son into bed. She was about to turn the light off when he asked in a trembling voice, "Mommy, will you stay with me all night?" Smiling, the mother gave him a warm, reassuring hug and said tenderly, "I can't dear. I have to sleep in Daddy's room." A long silence followed. At last it was broken by a shaky voice saying, "The big sissy!"[i]

Everybody’s afraid of something—some danger either real or imagined. The good news is that Jesus comes not only to calm our fears, but to bring us to a point of real peace. He doesn’t simply soothe us as a mother reassuring her child, but empowers us to live in victory. At the end of John’s Gospel, Jesus’ disciples are hiding out, fearing that the same ones who arrested and crucified Jesus might come after them next. Suddenly, Jesus appears among them and says, “Peace be with you.”[ii] Then, almost immediately later, he says it again. Later, the next day, he does the same thing and again says, “Peace be with you.”[iii] Three times in eight verses, Jesus says these three words, which in Hebrew is simply, “Shalom.”

Like the Hawaiian “Aloha,” this greeting can mean more than one thing. It can mean both “hello” and “goodbye,” and, “I wish you peace.” But Jesus’ word to the disciples is more than simply a salutation or even a heartfelt desire. Jesus is imparting peace to them, just the same as He spoke peace to the wind and the waves and calmed the storm. This peace is a gift that is ours to receive as well, when we’re hunkered down and hiding out.

How does this peace take hold? It’s a mere sentiment without the activating force Jesus bestows when He says, “Receive the Holy Spirit (John 20:22).” When the Holy Spirit enters you, God transforms your life in such a way that you not only feel peaceful, but you become peace. Just as Jesus was Peace in the flesh, so the believer who is filled with the Spirit also embodies peace, not just for herself but for others. Instead of personal peace, it’s meant to be shared.

Jesus’ next statement flows from that kind of peace and peacemaking love. “If you forgive anyone’s sins, they are forgiven. If you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven (John 20:23.” The disciples had a lot of people to forgive. For example, there were the Romans who crucified Jesus, the Jewish leaders who arranged it, Judas who betrayed Him, and Peter who denied Him. Not to mention that they all needed to learn to forgive themselves for abandoning Him. Perhaps you have a long list of people who you need to forgive, too. Jesus forgave the whole world’s sins when He hung on the cross, and now He gives you the ability to do it, too. God’s grace is ours when we receive it, but God expects us to extend that same grace to others. Greedy grace is when you receive God’s forgiveness and are unwilling to share it. But grace is meant to be shared.

I have read many commentators who say that in the above verse, Jesus gives believers the authority to grant God’s forgiveness, or to withhold God’s grace from people. As if somehow we can determine who God will forgive! Nothing could be further from the truth! God’s grace is GOD’S grace, and God gives it to all who receive it. In fact, the story of the unforgiving servant (Matthew 18:21-35) tells us that you can’t call yourself a Christian if you are ungracious to others. So, if Jesus isn’t giving us permission to refuse grace to people, what is He saying?

When you withhold forgiveness, you’re hurting yourself as much as the other person, if not more. You are the one keeping yourself in bondage. In His resurrection power, Jesus grants real peace to your life. This can only take hold with the Holy Spirit at the reins. If the Spirit is in control, you are naturally going to give the same grace you have received. In fact, you can’t have peace unless you do. So, when Jesus says, “If you forgive anyone’s sins, they are forgiven.” He is saying that not only are they set free, but you are as well. When He says, “If you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven,” He reminds you that to the same degree that you keep others bound, you yourself are bound. Grace is something you must receive if you want peace, but you’ll never have peace until you become a giver and not just a receiver.

Finally, Jesus says, “As the Father has sent me, so I am sending you (John 20:21).” The Lord turns personal peace and greedy grace into our mutual mission. In the Greek, Jesus literally says, “I am sending y’all.” All of you. Not one of you is excluded from the mission of God. In the beginning of John’s Gospel, Jesus brings light and John the Baptist testifies to that light. Now in in the final chapter, Jesus says we all are called as witnesses to the light. Jesus, the Lamb of God, takes away the sin of the world—and YOU are a voice crying in the wilderness. You can know some peace by receiving God’s grace through Jesus. You can only know ultimate peace when you share God’s grace by giving it to others. I’m reminded of a saying I learned as a child, “Love is a basket of five loaves and two fish. It’s never enough until you start to give it away.” Peace and grace work the same way. Too many Christians want Jesus to simply comfort us like mom in the storm. But peace and grace are real things to receive and give—if only we’ll trust the One who does the giving.

---

[i] Original source unknown.  http://www.sermonillustrations.com/a-z/f/fear.htm.  October 12, 2017.

[ii] Quoted scriptures are taken from the NLT.

[iii] Jn 20:19, 21, 26.

"Go, Tell!"

          Recently, I read a little story by S. Briscoe, about keeping quiet instead of sharing faith:

Feeling a concern for witnessing can mean that you will have to stand up and be counted, and this can bring some degree of abuse.  Years ago I was praying with one of my children at bedtime, and I asked him if he had any problems we should pray about.  He couldn't think of any, even though I could think of a number! Rather unwisely, I pressed the point and asked, "Don't you have any problems at school?" "No," he replied quite firmly. "Don't the kids give you a hard time because you're a Christian?" Again the answer was "No." Thinking back to my own traumatic school days, I said, "But kids always give you a hard time if you let them know you're a Christian." His reply was frank beyond belief: "All the more reason you don't let them know!" And quite happily he turned over to sleep. 

With the refreshing candor of the very young, he had put into words the practical reasons why many Christians don't witness. They don't want to take the consequences.[i] 

           

            Many Christians have reasons for not sharing their fath with other people.  Among these reasons, they tell themselves that they are too young or too old, and thus nobody will listen to them.  Or, they tell say that their past or present mistakes may taint their witness.  Still others say they are afraid of failure or rejection, while others are actually afraid of success—because that means they’ll be responsible for following up and discipling a new believer.  Mary Magdelene might have had these and more objections to testifying about her Savior, yet she was the first that Jesus told to tell the Good News of His resurrection.

            In John 20, Mary was the first of the disciples to go to the tomb after Jesus’ burial.  Though other gospels name a group of women, John mentions only Mary, so we can assume she lead the way.  Arriving to anoint Jesus’ body for burial, she found the tomb empty.  Assuming someone had stolen His body, Mary ran to tell the disciples.  They responded tentatively, sending Peter and John as a contingent, perhaps in case the Romans had laid a trap for all of them.  After the men investigated the crime scene, Jesus chose to appear privately to Mary.  Not only did He show her that He had been resurrected, but He also told her He would ascend to God.  Then He said, “…Go find my brothers and tell them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God (John 20:17).’”  So, Mary went and told the disciples that she had seen the Lord, and gave them His message.

            Like many Christians today, Mary could have given all sorts of reasons why she was uncomfortable sharing the Good News about Jesus.  First, she could have said, “I’m only a woman.”  It amazes me how many people in the twenty-first century still disqualify women from full service in the church, all because of a few misunderstood passages of scripture.  Yet, Jesus was a liberator of women.  The Bible is full of heroines, many of whom spoke for God, took up arms, or performed acts of courage for the sake of the faith.  Regardless, many churches and denominations limit the kinds of service and ministry a person may have, based on antiquated views of gender.  In Mary’s day it would have made sense for her to raise the objection that she couldn’t instruct the disciples because she was, after all, a woman.  Women were considered incapable of deep spiritual understanding, and were not allowed to teach men.  Nevertheless, Jesus trusted her to be His messenger, and she answered His call with faithfulness.  If Mary could say yes to sharing her faith, and didn’t let gender become an obstacle, then neither should gender be an obstacle when you are, or anyone else is, called to share faith.

            Mary might have shrunk from obedience to Christ because her tainted past made her feel unworthy.  No, I’m not talking about the rumors that Mary had been a prostitute before becoming a disciple.  Actually, there’s no mention in the Bible of Mary having loose morals at all.  That misinformation was spread by Pope Gregory I (540-604 AD), when he mingled the stories of the unnamed penitent woman in Luke 7:36-50, Mary of Bethany (Luke 10:38-42), and Mary Magdelene.  Some have even falsely identified her with the woman caught in adultery in John 8.  Yet the Bible never says anything about her ever being a prostitute, or having loose morals.  It does say that prior to her becoming a disciple, Jesus cast seven demons out of Mary (Luke 8:2).  Though no details are given as to the nature of this demonic experience, Mary could have felt ashamed that something about her had invited demonic presence.  She might have thought that, though Jesus had cleansed her, her past disqualified her from service.  Yet once Jesus freed her from this bondage, He clearly viewed her as worthy to accept His call.  In the same way, many Christians doubt their own capacity for ministry based on their tainted past.  They make excuses why their history prohibits them from service, or why others may not accept their witness or testimony because of their past.  But when Jesus cleanses you, He also declares your worthiness to speak for Him.

            Just as Jesus told Mary to go and tell the Good News, He calls you to do the same.  It should be something you can’t contain, something that no excuse can prevent.  Your witness should simply leak out of you, uncontrollably declaring the joy you’ve found. 

Many years ago some men were panning for gold in Montana, and one of them found an unusual stone. Breaking it open, he was excited to see that it contained gold. Working eagerly, the men soon discovered an abundance of the precious metal. Happily, they began shouting with delight, "We've found it! We've found gold! We're rich!" They had to interrupt their celebrating, though, to go into a nearby town and stock up on supplies. Before they left camp, the men agreed not to tell a soul about their find. Indeed, no one breathed a word about it to anyone while they were in town. Much to their dismay, however, when they were about to return, hundreds of men were prepared to follow them. When they asked the crowd to tell who "squealed," the reply came, "No one had to. Your faces showed it!"[ii]

            So our faces should show the joy we have because of Jesus’ great love for us.  Witnessing shouldn’t have to be something you’re told to do—it should be something you can’t keep from doing.  Even though Mary may have considered herself an unlikely evangelist, she did not make excuses.  Instead, she jumped at the chance to go and tell people the Good News.  For whatever reason, you might consider yourself unlikely as well.  But God wants you to go and tell people what Jesus has done for you.

---

[i] S. Briscoe.  Getting Into God. p. 88.   http://www.sermonillustrations.com/a-z/w/witnessing.htm.  October 3, 2017.

[ii] Original Source Unknown. http://www.sermonillustrations.com/a-z/w/witnessing.htm.  October 3, 2017.

"Prophecy Fulfilled"

            With the solar eclipse, hurricanes, rising sea levels, political and social unrest, many people have been asking me about biblical prophecy.  They want to know if these things are signs of the times.  To which I reply as the apostle Paul did.  While he thought that Jesus would return anytime, he remained vague, saying, “For you know how late it is; time is running out. Wake up, for our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed (Romans 13:11).”[i]  That’s because Jesus Himself warned us not to try to predict the end, telling us that “no one knows the day or hour when these things will happen, not even the angels in heaven or the Son himself. Only the Father knows (Matthew 24:36).”  But that doesn’t stop some people from trying.  It seems like there’s always one doomsday forecaster or another trying to find some obscure prophecy, and attaching a date to it.  Recently, David Meade predicted that the alignment of Virgo and Leo on September 23, 2017, would signal the beginning of the end.[ii]  Yet that date has come and gone, with no sign of the apocalypse.  Meade should have taken Jesus’ advice before trying to figure out a date.

            The fact that there are crackpots predicting the end of the world does not, however, mean that we should discount all prophecy.  The Old Testament is filled with predictions of the Messiah (perhaps over 300 of them!) that find their fulfillment in Jesus. As we continue our study through the book of John, we come across some of these fulfilled prophecies.  John 19:23-24 tells the story of the crucifixion and how…

When the soldiers had crucified Jesus, they divided his clothes among the four of them. They also took his robe, but it was seamless, woven in one piece from top to bottom.  So they said, “Rather than tearing it apart, let’s throw dice for it.” This fulfilled the Scripture that says, “They divided my garments among themselves and threw dice for my clothing.” So that is what they did.

            This fulfills a prophecy in Psalm 22:18, which says, “They divide my garments among themselves and throw dice for my clothing.”  Then, we see the fulfillment of Psalm 22:17, “I can count all my bones,” together with Psalm 34:20, which says, “For the LORD protects the bones of the righteous; not one of them is broken!”  These come to fruition in John 19:31-33, which says:

It was the day of preparation, and the Jewish leaders didn’t want the bodies hanging there the next day, which was the Sabbath (and a very special Sabbath, because it was Passover week). So they asked Pilate to hasten their deaths by ordering that their legs be broken. Then their bodies could be taken down.  So the soldiers came and broke the legs of the two men crucified with Jesus. But when they came to Jesus, they saw that he was already dead, so they didn’t break his legs.

Psalm 22:14 also says, “My life is poured out like water, and all my bones are out of joint.  My heart is like wax, melting within me.”  This parallels John 19:34-37:

One of the soldiers, however, pierced his side with a spear, and immediately blood and water flowed out. (This report is from an eyewitness giving an accurate account. He speaks the truth so that you also may continue to believe. These things happened in fulfillment of the Scriptures that say, “Not one of his bones will be broken,”and “They will look on the one they pierced.”

            Finally, we have a prophecy that says, “He had done no wrong and had never deceived anyone. But he was buried like a criminal; he was put in a rich man's grave (Isaiah 53:9).”  This finds its fulfillment in John 19:38-42, which reads:

Afterward Joseph of Arimathea, who had been a secret disciple of Jesus (because he feared the Jewish leaders), asked Pilate for permission to take down Jesus’ body. When Pilate gave permission, Joseph came and took the body away. With him came Nicodemus, the man who had come to Jesus at night. He brought about seventy-five pounds of perfumed ointment made from myrrh and aloes. Following Jewish burial custom, they wrapped Jesus’ body with the spices in long sheets of linen cloth. The place of crucifixion was near a garden, where there was a new tomb, never used before. And so, because it was the day of preparation for the Jewish Passover and since the tomb was close at hand, they laid Jesus there.

               Generations before Jesus was crucified and buried like a criminal yet given a rich man’s grave, it was foretold by Isaiah through a prophecy from God.  A thousand years before Jesus hung on the cross, David predicted the flow water, his pierced hands and feet (Psalm 22:16), his intact bones, and the soldiers gambling for his clothing.  Why is so much detail given through prophecy and later fulfilled in Jesus’ death?  So that the evidence will be overwhelming, that Jesus is who he says he is.  So that, after examining all the prophecies of the Messiah, along with their fulfillments in Jesus[iii], you too might believe and say as the Roman centurion at the crucifixion, “This man truly was the Son of God (Mark 15:39)!”

            When you read predictions made by people like David Meade, be careful.  When you hear preachers talking about how an event in the news is the fulfillment of scripture, be cautious.  While interest in the End Times can be fascinating, it’s better to focus on the greatest subject of prophecy found in the Bible—the atoning work of Jesus, done for us on the cross.  In that respect the Bible interprets itself, and demonstrates how Jesus is the both the subject and fulfillment of prophecy, and how by God’s grace we can put our trust in him.

              

---

[i] All scripture quotations are taken from the NLT.

[ii] “Biblical signs in tonight’s sky?” By Christopher M. Graney in ASTRONOMY ESSENTIALS | HUMAN WORLD | September 23, 2017http://earthsky.org/human-world/biblical-signs-in-the-sky-september-23-2017.  September 28, 2017.

[iii] http://100prophecies.org.  September 28, 2017.