Who do you see God as? Do you see Him as the Son of God, or do you see Him as a great teacher or a prophet? Do you see Him as a fraud? If so, you’re not alone. People have asked the same questions throughout history, and we see an example of this in John 8:51-59.

In verse 51 Jesus declares that there is power in the life He offers to us. Anyone who obeys His teachings and accepts Him as their Saviour will spend eternity with Jesus. He can make this claim because He is the source of eternal life.

Jesus knows his Father intimately and eternally. He has come to do His Father’s will. If He doesn’t confess that He is the Son of God, He will be a liar like His enemies who claim to know God but in reality are in spiritual darkness. Knowing a few Bible verses doesn’t guarantee that we will have a deep, personal relationship with God. That can only happen when we honour God in word and deed.

When Abraham was told by God to offer Isaac as a sacrifice, Abraham was allowed to have a view of the Messiah’s death. He, the father of the faithful, was happy to see the Messiah far off. We should rejoice that Jesus has come near to us.

The Pharisees were convinced that Jesus was possessed by the devil. Abraham, the father of the Jewish nation, was dead. Jesus proclaimed that He existed before Abraham, the father of the Jews. Abraham died, but Jesus is the Giver of Life. Abraham was created, but Jesus was uncreated. No one could make the claim they could avoid or prevent death. Does Jesus think He is greater than them? They wondered who He was making Himself out to be. The question is not who He is making Himself out to be, but who He is. Jesus is God in human flesh. He has come to do His Father’s bidding.

The Jews could not understand how Jesus could claim that Abraham saw Him. Jesus was only thirty years old, and Abraham lived and died centuries earlier. In response, Jesus proclaimed, “Before Abraham was, I AM.” That was the same name for deity Moses heard at the burning bush.

The Jews understood Jesus’ claim that He was the Son of God, but they understood it as a blasphemy-a crime that was punishable by stoning. Jesus managed to escape the crowd because the time of His death had not come. By trying to kill Him, the Jews showed Jesus that the devil was their real father. They wanted to follow Satan’s orders. We have a choice. We can hear God’s Words or tune them out. We can have God as our Father, or we can place our lives in the devil, who leads us to eternal death and destruction.

The Jews, who were guardians of the Scriptures and saw the life and deeds of Jesus, failed to recognize the Living Word of God when they saw Him. They were exposed to God’s truth each day as they preserved the text with care. They made sure that each successive generation received a purely transcribed copy of God’s Word.

Jesus is most concerned with what we experience in the spirit. In other words, He is concerned with our eternal destiny. He doesn’t want to see anyone condemned to hell, but He has given us the freedom to choose.

Bibliography

1. Jeremiah, David: The Jeremiah Study Bible: New King James Version (Brentwood, TN: Worthy Publishing; 2013; p.1456)
2. Fredrikson, R.L. & Ogilvie, L.J.: The Preacher’s Commentary Series, Vol. 27: John (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Inc.; 1985; pp. 158-161)
3. MacArthur, J.F. Jr.: The MacArthur Study Bible: New American Standard Bible (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Publishers; 2006)
4. Barnes’ Notes on the New Testament. Part of Wordsearch 12 Bible software package.
5. The Rev. Dr. Gregory Seltz, “Here’s a New, Lasting Identity.” Retrieved from lh_min@lhm.org
6. Swindoll, Charles R.: Swindoll’s New Testament Insights on John (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan; 2010; pp. 172-174)

The events in John 8:21-30 occurred just before Jesus’ crucifixion. Throughout His ministry, He sought to bring people back to God, but many people refused to listen to Him. That’s the nature of sin. All sin is a rebellion against God. All sin is evidence of poison.

Jesus made these statements in this passage to everyone-Pharisee, servant, curious onlooker, Roman soldier, and people from every culture and generation: If you do not believe that I am He, you will die in your sins. It is possible to forget that sin is the problem that separates humanity from God, and that redemption in the Son of Man is its only remedy.

The people Jesus was speaking to were influenced by earthly passions. They were governed by earthly desires, which are the opposite of heavenly desires. The crowd still didn’t understand that Jesus was the Messiah. They still saw Him as a mere pretender. It’s amazing that He had the patience to put up with poverty, abuse and the lack of friends. Jesus wanted to tell them so much more, but they were unable and/or unwilling to hear it.

When the people refused to believe that Jesus was going where they couldn’t go, it revealed the darkness of their unbelief. They assumed that Jesus was going to kill himself. According to the Pharisees, anyone who killed themselves would be condemned to hell.

When the people asked Jesus “Who are you?,” He could not give then a satisfactory answer. They asked not as honest seekers but as prejudiced non-believers. He could not overcome their rejection with another explanation when they did not understand or accept His ministry in the past.

Jesus told the people what would happen to them if they continued to reject Him-spiritual death. This passage reveals four ways people will die spiritually:

1. By being self-righteous
2. By being earthbound, that is, by being concerned about earthly things instead of being concerned with heavenly things.
3. By not believing in Jesus.
4. By being willfully ignorant.

There are times when we allow the concerns of others to become more important to us than what God thinks. We should be concerned about what others think, but the only judgment that really matters is the one God will render. We will answer to Him for our thoughts, actions, and motives, not those of other people.

The only way we can have an eternal relationship with God is to accept Jesus as our Saviour. Following Jesus requires a new way of thinking. Each day gives us new opportunities to learn Jesus’ way of thinking, speaking and living. As we learn the new way of thinking, we will learn more about ourselves, other people and leadership.

Bibliography

1. Jeremiah, David: The Jeremiah Study Bible: New King James Version (Brentwood, TN: Worthy Publishing; 2013; p.1454)
2. Barnes’ Notes on the New Testament. Part of Wordsearch 12 Bible software package.
3. Fredrikson, R.L. & Ogilvie, L.J.: The Preacher’s Commentary Series, Vol. 27: John (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Inc.; 1985)
4. MacArthur, J.F. Jr.: The MacArthur Study Bible: New American Standard Bible (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Publishers; 2006)
5. Paul Chappell, “The Priority of Pleasing God.” Retrieved from daily@dailyintheword.org
6. “New Insights.” Retrieved from noreply@leadlikejesus.com
7. Ron Moore, “I AM…the Light of the World.” Retrieved from ronmoore.org

Many of you are probably familiar with O. Henry’s love story called The Gift of the Magi. The story is about a young couple named Della and Jim who are very much in love with each other, but they are very poor. Each of them has one precious possession. Della has beautiful long hair. Jim has a gold watch that he received from his father. On the day before Christmas Della had exactly one dollar and eighty-seven cents with which to buy Jim a present. She wanted to express her love for him, so she sold her beautiful hair for twenty dollars. She used the money to buy a platinum fob for Jim’s watch.

When Jim came home that night and saw Della’s shaved head, he was speechless. He handed her a gift-a set of expensive tortoise-shell combs with jeweled edges for her hair. He sold his watch to buy them for her. Each had given the other the most precious gift he or she had to give. This is a story of love so deep and so extravagant that it does not hold back or count the cost.

The passage we heard from John’s Gospel is a story of a similar outpouring of extravagant love. Mary’s act reminds us that we are to give God our very best. It may be something simple and ordinary, but our efforts are our gift to Jesus. Do we have Mary’s sense of gratitude and love for Jesus? Do we really appreciate what He has done for us, what He has given us, and the promise of a glorious future because of Him?

Mary was humble and teachable She was the sister who sat at Jesus’ feet while her sister was preparing a meal. As she demonstrated, it is more important to be occupied with Christ than to be occupied for Him. Mary’s act broke two of the social norms of Galilean culture. It was taboo for a man to be touched by a woman. Also, a woman’s loose hair was seen as being sensual. Mary didn’t care, and neither did Jesus. Her act of love was more important than social norms. Similarly, she didn’t care how much her gift cost money-wise. She put money in its proper place-at Jesus’ feet.

At that time, one denarius was a day’s wage, so the spikenard oil was nearly an entire year’s earnings. Judas saw this as a waste; Mary intended it as worship. Judas was the keeper of the bag that the disciples put their money in-money that was supposed to help the poor. The disciples must have trusted Judas because they allowed him to handle their money. Judas must have considered himself to be poor because he “helped himself” to the money in the bag. Judas was a thief, but the disciples didn’t know it at the time.  What Judas says about the use for the money sounds noble, but people sometimes use the most religious-sounding reasons to justify their most selfish actions. Judas proved that every man is tried according to his character. Trial brings out a person’s character. Every person will find a chance to do evil according to their character-if they are inclined to it.

Anointing was usually associated with kingship and was done on the head. There is no known association of anointing someone for burial on the feet, though the body itself was sometimes anointed after the person was already dead. Jesus associated the anointing with His burial. His remark was an affirmation of Mary. She was the first to understand that Jesus’s raising of her brother from the dead set in motion the final stages of Jesus’ martyrdom.

Jesus saw in Mary a heart of devotion and love for the things of God. She accepted His words when He spoke of His death and resurrection. She applied them to her life by humbling herself before God and desiring to serve only Him. She was a woman who was mighty in spirit. We can have this trait when we commit ourselves to Christ. God’s extravagant love spurs us to extravagant love in return. We should ask ourselves, “Because we have this incredible salvation, how can we show God how much we love Him? What can we do for His kingdom?”

True love, deep love, honest-to-goodness love can’t be explained. Love has its reasons, and those reasons can’t always be spelled out. We are capable of doing acts of kindness, but our intentions may reveal that “the truth is still not in us” and in the end our good actions are compromised.

Mary’s act is significant because it foreshadows the foot washing that Jesus does for His disciples shortly afterward. He will also ask His disciples to perform this kind of service for each other in John 13:1-20. Mary is portrayed as a true disciple whose actions exemplify the commitment to loving service that is central to John’s Gospel and Jesus’ mission.

Jesus’ statement about the constant presence of the poor does not mean that their plight should be ignored. On the contrary, Jesus was referring to Deuteronomy 15:11, which commands being open-handed with them. The phrase “Me you do not have always” was Jesus’ way of saying that He represented the impoverished, as Isaiah spoke of in Isaiah 53, not that He was replacing them as a more worthy recipient of the funds.

Jesus’ point about the poor is this: The disciples will be able to care for the poor for years to come, but Jesus’ time on earth is short. He was about to be crucified and Mary anointed Him as He approached His death. She wanted to identify with Him in the way that He had identified with her so long ago in her own struggles.

Jesus’s words are true today. We will always have the poor with us-the poor financially, the poor in health, the poor in spirit, the poor in hope. Throughout history, the poor have been objects of pity, to do fundraising, to get publicity, to deduct taxes. Modern corporations are good examples of Judas. It is not God’s will that people be poor. Jesus opposed poverty. For those who follow Jesus, service to the poor becomes empty when separated from worshiping God.

Most of us don’t have a gift as lavish and expensive as Mary’s that we can pour over Jesus in adoration. Some of us might be like Judas and think that such acts are beneath us and irresponsible. On Easter morning, some of us will have our hands firmly clamped around that treasure. What gifts might we give, purely out of our love for Jesus? They don’t have to be money. What do we hold precious that we might pour at Jesus’ feet? Some of us have hurts and hard feelings that we hold close to our chests. Could we lay them down at Jesus’ feet?

People who gather around a loved one’s body often wish they had done things differently. They regret their failure to tell the deceased of their love or their failure to apologize or their failure to help. I’m speaking from experience. My family recently gathered at my brother’s bedside as he was dying. The relationship he had with one of his sons was strained because of divorce, but that particular son sat by his father’s bedside and forgave him. In a similar way, Mary seized the moment. She made the grand gesture while Jesus was still alive to experience it.

Holy Week will be here in next week. It is one of the most dramatic and overwhelming weeks of the church year. We will see the tension between our expectations of a new King that will overthrow the Romans and the disappointment when we see Him crucified. This story about Mary’s love for Jesus and Judas’s anger about her wastefulness reminds us of this tension. Mary is able to worship Jesus sacrificially and wholeheartedly as the Lord of life who defeated death. Judas wants some benefit for himself.

There are two distinct odors in this passage. There is the odor of Judas and his criticism, and there is the sweet smell of Mary’s love. It is a love that represents Jesus’ commandment to love others as He loves us. Which of these two smells are you most closely connected with? Do you carry sewage in your heart because it isn’t open to Jesus? How much anger, envy or resentment do we carry around? Unless we open our hearts to Jesus, they will eventually stink.

Bibliography

1. Jeremiah, David: The Jeremiah Study Bible: New King James Version (Brentwood, TN: Worthy Publishing; 2013; p.1462-1463)
2. Barnes’ Notes on the New Testament. Part of Wordsearch 12 Bible software package.
3. Fredrikson, R.L. & Ogilvie, L.J.: The Preacher’s Commentary Series, Vol. 27: John (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Inc.; 1985; pp. 196-197)
4. Stanley, C.F.: The Charles F. Stanley Life Principles Bible: New King James Version (Nashville, TN: Nelson Bibles; 2005)
5. David Vryhof, “An Extravagant Love.” Retrieved from www.ssje.org
6. Greg Laurie, “The Judas Mentality.” Retrieved from harvest.org
7. Peter Craig, “John 12:1-8.” Retrieved from communic@luthersem.edu.
8. Ray Pritchard, “How Much is Too Much?” Retrieved from www.keepbelieving.org
9. Pastor Dave Risendal,” Generous, Sacrificial, Extravagant.” Retrieved from OneLittleWord.org
10. The Rev. Dr. Blair Monie, “A Lingering Fragrance.” Retrieved from day1.org
11. Richard Niell Donovan, “Exegesis for John 12:1-8.” Retrieved from sermonwriter.com
12. Wayne Palmer, “Anointed for Burial.” Retrieved from lh_min@lhm.org
13. Eliseo Perez-Alvarez, “Commentary on John 12:1-8.” Retrieved from workingpreacher.org/preaching.aspx?commentary_id=2749
14. Karoline Lewis, “Simultaneous Smells.” Retrieved from workingpreacher.org/craft.aspx?post=4554
15. Angela Reid, “John 12:1-8.” Retrieved from https://blogs.baylor.edu/truettpulpit/2016/02/27/john-121-8/
16. Pastor Edward Markquart, “Expensive Oil for His Feet.” Retrieved from sermonsfromseattle.com/series_c_expensiveoilforhisfeet.htm
17. “Mary, Judas, Jesus, the Poor, and Me…” Retrieved from http://dancingwiththeword.com/mary-judas-jesus-the-poor-and-me/

In Luke 15, Jesus tells three parables that make the same point. God loves the lost. The lost sheep, the lost coin and a lost son are part of a trio whose members are of increasing value. The lost sheep was one of one hundred, the lost coin was one of ten, and the lost son was one of two. In the first parable, Jesus is the shepherd; in the second, he is the woman; and in the third he is the father who seeks his lost sons. Today I’m going to talk for just a couple of minutes about the third and final parable.

For centuries it has been called the Parable of the Prodigal Son, but a more appropriate title would be the Parable of the Loving Father. While a father might divide his estate before he died, the younger son’s request was cold and scandalous because he was saying in effect that he wished his father was dead. As the younger son, he received one-third of the estate, while the older brother received two-thirds (as was the custom at that time).

When you hear the word prodigal, you might think that it means “wayward” or “rebellious”, and the younger son certainly behaved that way. The term “prodigal” also means “recklessly spendthrift”, and the father acted that way. He gave his sons everything they asked for and showered them with gifts. This is an image for God. He lavishly spends his love on us from start to finish.

After the younger son received his inheritance, he went away to a far country. This was more than a reference to geography. It also referred to moral and spiritual separation from God. The lowest point of this separation occurred when the younger son spent all of his money and reached the point where he had to work in a hog pen. Pigs were considered unclean animals for a Jew. Wanting to eat the pods that were fed to the pigs was a sign that he had reached the lowest point in his life. He had to come to this lowest point in order to realize how foolish he had been. This is a picture of some of us. There are times when as wayward sinners we have to come to the lowest point in our lives in order to realize that we have been foolish by running away from God. It is at times like these when we finally turn back to God and start the journey home to our loving, heavenly Father.

The prodigal son’s first words to his father fell short of repentance. Jewish tradition viewed the statement “I have sinned against heaven and in your sight…” as an attempt at manipulation. The father did not care about the son’s words though. He just wanted him to return. Every day the father travelled a great distance to a vantage point from which he could look for his son. When the day came for the son to finally return, the father was so happy that he did something that was very undignified for a first-century man to do. He ran to meet his son. This is an image of God. God is so happy when we turn to him and away from sin that he comes to meet us in the person of Jesus Christ. Just like the father showered his son with kisses of compassion, forgiveness, acceptance and restoration, God showers us with love and affection. Jesus even said that there is great rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents.

God even loves people who stubbornly refuse to repent. A good example of someone who refuses to repent is the older son. He rebelled by referring to his brother as “this son of yours”. While the younger son was away, the older son continued working and doing his duty without love. He reduced the father-son relationship to a system of rewards in exchange for services rendered, much like an employer-employee relationship. In spite of this the father never stopped loving him.

The older son also represents the Pharisees, who we heard about in Luke 15:1-3. They hated sinners, especially tax collectors. Tax collectors worked for the Romans, who occupied the territory. In addition, many tax collectors tried to get rich by extorting more money that they were told to collect from people. Jesus wanted the Pharisees to see that his purpose in coming to earth was the very thing that prompted them to make accusations. His purpose was to reach out with grace to sinners, and that is still his purpose today. Repentance and forgiveness give birth to an authentic, loving parent-child relationship-and that’s the type of relationship that Jesus wants to have with us.

Bibliography

1. Jeremiah, David: The Jeremiah Study Bible, NKJV (Brentwood, TN: Worthy Publishing; 2013; pp. 1416-1418)
2. Swindoll, Charles R.: Swindoll’s New Testament Insights on Luke (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan; 2012, pp. 382-389)
3. ESV Study Bible. Part of Wordsearch 11 Bible software package

Peter sighed. He looked sad as he sat with his dog, Conan, in the waiting room of the veterinarian’s office. “Missing Mom today?” asked Dad.

Peter shrugged. “I miss her all the time,” he said.

Dad nodded and gave Peter’s shoulder a squeeze. “I know. I do, too.”

“I just don’t understand why Mom had to have cancer in the first place,” said Peter angrily. “Everybody says God works everything out for our good, but I’d sure like to hear His explanation of why Mom had to die!”

Dad sighed. “It’s something we can’t understand,” he said sadly, “but we need to trust God without knowing the reason for what happened.”

Just then the vet was ready to see Conan, so Peter and Dad led their happy, jumping puppy to another room. “Conan, we’re going to get you some shots so you won’t get sick,” Peter told his dog, scratching him behind the ears. “It won’t hurt too much!”

But when the vet came in and stuck the needle into Conan’s leg, the puppy yelped and jumped right off the table! Dad, the vet, and Peter all had to work together to calm the frightened dog and lift him back up for his next shot.

“Conan,” grunted Peter, holding his dog down, “we’re not trying to hurt you. We’re doing this because we love you. You don’t want to get sick, right? Are you mad at me, Conan?” Conan stared at Peter with sad brown eyes. Peter patted his head. “I could tell you again why you’re getting shots, but I can’t make you understand. You’ve just got to trust us.” As he spoke, a thought flashed through his mind, and he gave Dad a little smile.

On their way home, Peter turned to Dad. “I’ve been acting like Conan, haven’t I?” asked Peter. “God knows the reason for what happened to Mom, but He knows we wouldn’t understand even if He explained it to us.”

“That’s right,” said Dad. “Let’s try to remember that His ways are much better than ours, and that He loves us–even more than you love Conan.”

Peter nodded as he hugged Conan and scratched behind the puppy’s ears.

In Isaiah 55:1-9, God contrasts his thoughts and ways with the sinful thoughts and ways of the Israelites. Human plans inevitably fail and falter, but God’s plans are different. When He promises forgiveness and restored blessing for His people, He will be true to His word. Just as the rain and snow fall to the ground and fulfill their God-given purpose unhindered, God’s promises and purposes will be realized.

The phrase “to seek the Lord” means to approach Him through prayer and repentance. This carries with it the idea of discerning and imitating God’s way of life and His character. The phrase “while He may be found” means that the opportunity to respond is urgent. The language of this passage echoes other passages that look forward to a time when God will restore His repentant people.

Jesus has extended a written invitation to everyone to accept Him by faith as their Saviour. For the children of Israel, the Jews would have a problem with this. They considered themselves to be God’s chosen people. God commanded them to keep their ethnic origins and their religious worship pure. They were to be a light to everyone, including the Gentiles. They were to bring a message of salvation to everyone. If they failed to remain pure in race and religion, God could not use them to bring the message of salvation to everyone.

The problem was that the Jews became so exclusive in race and so restrictive in religion that they refused to include others in God’s plan for salvation. God had to find someone else to fulfill His purpose, and that someone was Jesus.

The Jews emphasized deeds over the thoughts of the heart. God reverses the order. He emphasizes the heart over deeds. God’s thoughts and ways aren’t simply human thoughts and ways raised to the divine level. God thinks in ways that we can’t think and acts in ways that we can’t act. We can’t always understand His ways. His thoughts and ways accomplish His purpose. Even when we can’t understand what God is doing, He asks us to trust Him. He knows what He is doing, even if we can’t understand what He is doing.

Although the invitation is open to everyone, God expects a response. It’s like a couple who are planning their wedding. They send out invitations and expect the recipients to respond. God’s invitation is timeless and timely, but there are times when He is especially near and easily found. The Holy Spirit leads us to those moments.

The Bible tells us not to delay living for Christ. Life is uncertain. An accident or a sudden health crisis may occur at any time, and we might not have a chance to turn to God. In addition, as we get older our hearts often become hardened and insensitive toward God. If we want to enjoy a life with God and feast on His heavenly banquet, we have to acknowledge our true thirst and hunger. When we do, we will be filled to overflowing.

We often try to solve our problems by ourselves when we should take them to the One with the answer-God. He knows everything. He is the One we need for the answers we seek. We can avoid so many troubles and gain greater clarity, vision and direction if we ask God first.

If we are truly seeking God’s will for our lives, a breaking point will happen if a person or situation isn’t part of God’s plan for our lives. We may pray, cry or even scream at God, but His love surpasses our understanding. We might not learn the reason why until years later and actually feel relief that our plans didn’t work out, but some reasons why God does what He does won’t be revealed until we get to heaven.

For example, in 1818, Louis Braille was sitting in his father’s workshop. His father was a harness maker, and Louis loved watching his father work. He even wanted to be a harness maker just like his father. His father started teaching him how to cut pieces and punch holes in the leather. Once when Louis hit the hole-puncher, it flew out of his hand and pierced his eye, leaving him fully blind. This led to an infection that spread to his other eye and eventually cost him the sight in that eye.

Years later Louis was sitting in the garden when someone handed him a pine cone, As he ran his fingers over the pine cone, he got an idea. What if the blind could learn to read with their hands? He created an entire alphabet with raised dots. That enabled millions of blind people to read to this very day.

Louis Braille’s loss of sight had a purpose, but it took years of living with his blindness before he began to see the reason for his pain. Our pain has a purpose as well. Even though we might not see it, God is at work when we suffer. We have to trust Him to reveal the purpose for our pain in His own time and in His own way.

Most of the time our viewpoint is wrong. We often see things through the eyes of our own needs and comforts, or through a warped view of human justice. God stands back and sees the whole picture. We can only see a small part of the overall picture.

Bibliography

1. Jeremiah, David: The Jeremiah Study Bible: New King James Version (Brentwood, TN: Worthy Publishing; 2013; p.945)
2. Williams, D. & Ogilvie, L.J.: The Preacher’s Commentary Series, Vol. 18: Isaiah 40-66 (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Inc.; 1994)
3. Stanley, C.F.: The Charles F. Stanley Life Principles Bible: New King James Version (Nashville, TN: Nelson Bibles; 2005)
4. MacArthur, J.F. Jr.: The MacArthur Study Bible: New American Standard Bible (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Publishers; 2006)
5. Billy Graham, “Is It Ever Too Late with God?” Retrieved from www.arcamax.com
6. Ed Young, “You Need Solid Food.” Retrieved from ministry@winningwalk.org
7. Gwen Smith, “Who Are You Asking?” Retrieved from Crosswalk@crosswalkmail.com
8. “Volcanic Activity.” Retrieved from com@crosswalkmail.com
9. “How God Brings Purpose to Your Pain.” Retrieved from com@crosswalkmail.com
10. Berni Dymet, “What is God Thinking?” Retrieved from com@crosswalkmail.com

Have you ever had something bad happen to you and it made you ask if God is punishing you or why God allowed it to happen? Well if you have, you’re not alone. People have asked this question since the beginning of time, and this same question is the foundation of the Gospel reading from Luke 13:1-9.

That particular reading mentions two incidents that are not mentioned anywhere else in the Bible-Pilate’s slaughter of the Galileans in the Temple and the collapse of the tower. Pilate had proven himself capable of killing Jews who displeased him or opposed his policies. The crowd apparently wanted to see Jesus’ response to Romans slaughtering righteous Jews as they performed their Jewish religious duties.

There was a belief at that time that severe calamities happened only to people who deserved God’s judgment and that the truly righteous were spared suffering. Jesus said that this was not true. Jesus said in effect that the precariousness of life in a fallen world should prompt us to take stock of our spiritual conditions. Jesus’ words about judgment and repentance are scary, but they depict human life as a gift.

There are still some people today who believe that a person’s suffering is a result of his/her actions. This is true to some extent. For example, an alcoholic who develops cirrhosis of the liver has no one to blame except himself and his decision to drink alcohol to excess. Some churches are also guilty of this sinful belief. For example, there was a church that taught that God’s approval, love and blessing were all conditional based upon one’s performance. As a consequence, some people who have experienced spiritual abuse and hold a distorted image of God see God as a policeman who will punish them for any wrongdoing.

Suffering is not a form of punishment. God does not want anyone to suffer. He wants us to turn away from sin and turn to him so we can have abundant lives. On the other hand, Jesus didn’t deny the connection between sin and disasters, because many disasters are the result of the curse of human sin. He does challenge the notion that people who survive disasters are morally superior than the victims. Disasters are not God’s way of singling out evil people for death. Disasters are God’s way of warning all sinners. Since disasters occur without warning, we must always be ready to meet God.

For Jesus, the real sin is not bearing fruit when we have been given the responsibility to do so. We are planted where we are and we are called to be responsible disciples who do God’s work in whatever calling we have.  

Jesus told several parables relating to vineyards during his teaching. In each parable, the vineyard represented both the people of Israel and us. According to Old Testament law, no one was to eat the fruit from newly-planted trees. This fruit belonged to God. God gave Israel plenty of time to repent and bear fruit, and he gives us plenty of time to repent and bear fruit. Eventually, judgment will come. God wanted to show compassion to the people of Israel, and he wants to show us compassion as well, but his compassion has a limit. We must not presume upon God’s grace and patience.

The voice of the gardener is a voice for mercy. More time is given for the tree and us to bear fruit. The tree can’t do it on its own, so the gardener will take steps to help the tree be fruitful. Similarly, God has taken steps to help us be fruitful. He has sent Jesus to pay the penalty for our sins. He has given us instructions in the Scriptures. God is always on our side. He always sends us help and encouragement in our need to change and live fruitful lives. The life of a disciple of Jesus consists of daily repentance and renewal. Each day is a day of grace, providing the opportunity to repent and bear the fruits of repentance. When our time is up, it’s up. God will give us many opportunities to repent and obey the gospel, but if we don’t, God will deal with us.

Both of the stories we heard from Luke’s Gospel are calls to repent. God wants us to repent. He wants to be involved in our lives and give us the promise of heaven and spiritual blessing. He wants to plant something in us that will grow and bear fruit. This fruit will change the way we live and it will impact our actions, decisions and character. Jesus’ purpose is to redeem us. Jesus wants to see something grow within us as a result of his presence in our lives. We have no right to be taking up space in church if we aren’t being fruitful. We need to share Christ with other people. We do this by inviting them to church or by talking about Jesus with them over a cup of coffee.

Time can be a grace for us. It gives us space and time to grow, mature spiritually, reform our lives, serve the Lord and remove the obstacles between God and us and between us and others. It doesn’t matter what size the obstacles are.

During this season of Lent, we are called on to give thanks to the one who spared us from his wrath and gave us the gift of today. We must not waste this gift by returning to the ways of sin. We must use this season of Lent to examine our own behaviours and make the changes we need to make. We do this by following these steps:

1. We must acknowledge our need for God in prayer and in our hearts.
2. We must confess our sins.
3. We must accept God’s forgiveness and lay claim to his love.
4. We must change our minds and re-examine some things about our lives, our priorities and our patterns of activity.
5. Finally, we must bear fruit. We have to show some new actions, practices and behaviours that reflect the love that God has for us and the love we have for God.

When we walk with God, we will be strengthened by his presence and we will find hope through his love. That makes all the difference to us. When times are tough, we know that we are not alone. We know that God will help us. Our faith will keep us on the right path. It will help to keep us moving. It will help us to do the right thing. God walks with us even through the valley of the shadow of death, because Jesus opened the doorway to eternal life for us. That gives us hope, and that hope is a blessing.

Bibliography

1. Jeremiah, David: The Jeremiah Study Bible, NKJV (Brentwood, TN: Worthy Publishing; 2013; p. 1413)
2. ESV Study Bible. Part of Wordsearch 11 Bible software package.
3. MacArthur, J.F. Jr.: The MacArthur Study Bible, NASV (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Publishers; 2006)
4. Stanley, C.F.: The Charles F. Stanley Life Principles Bible, NKJV (Nashville, TN: Nelson Bibles; 2005)
5. Robin Dugall, “What Fruit Are You Growing?” Retrieved from homeword.com
6. “Each and Every Person.” Retrieved from com@crosswalkmail.com
7. Pastor Dick Woodward, “An Unfruitful Disciple.” Retrieved from Crosswalk@crosswalkmail.com
8. Jude Siciliano, O.P., “First Impressions, Third Sunday of Lent (C).” Retrieved from preacherexchange.org
9. Arland J. Hultgren, “Commentary on Luke 13:1-9.” Retrieved from http://www.workingpreacher.org./preaching.aspx?commentary_id=1578
10. The Rev. Joseph Evans, “Spared the Axe.” Retrieved from http://day1.org/4534-spared_the_ax.print
11. The Rev. Dr. James B. Lemler, “Changing Your Mind, Bearing Fruit.” Retrieved from http://day1.org/1033-changing_your_mind_bearing_fruit.print.
12. “Spiritual Abuse Warps Our View of God: How to Heal”. Retrieved from preachitteachit.org/articles/detail/spiritual-abuse-warps-our-view-of-god-how…
13. Exegesis for Luke 13:1-9. Retrieved from lectionary.org

Hello boys and girls!

How many of you like to listen to or read stories about fairies or pixies? Well, you’re in luck because today I’m going to tell you a story about a pixie named Clarrie. Clarrie was a very naughty pixie who bullied and intimidated the gentle fairy Delphinium. But when Clarrie tore her wing, and was therefore grounded indefinitely, it was Delphinium who cared for her and showed her genuine forgiveness.

CLARRIE was very, very angry. The Head Pixie had just informed her that a good fairy had been assigned to look after her. Clarrie didn’t want anybody to look after her. She certainly didn’t want some fairy, and she most definitely didn’t want a fairy who was good. Clarrie was not good. She worked hard at being bad, which was why the Head Pixie in despair, had turned to the fairies for help. Almost all fairies are good, and so are particularly suited to caring for others, even for bad pixies like Clarrie

Clarrie’s worst sins were hurting other pixies. She delighted in pinching pixie wings, or stamping hard on pixie toes, or hiding in the trees, then at night when it was dark and scary, jumping out with a loud shriek. All the other pixies were terrified of CLARRIE and avoided her whenever they could. So CLARRIE had no friends and was always alone. That was the way she liked it. She couldn’t be bothered with any of the other pixies, they were so boringly well-behaved. They never had any fun. Well, only feeble fun like playing games or flying sedately in a kind of pixie crocodile.

The Head Pixie had long despaired of Clarrie but kept on and on forgiving her, hoping she’d perhaps become loveable one day. CLARRIE regarded the Head Pixie with contempt. She considered the Head Pixie to be a total wimp, and every time the Head Pixie forgave her, CLARRIE would immediately fly off and hatch a new plot which was even worse than previous schemes. (Pause)

The crunch had finally come when CLARRIE had torn a piece out of another pixie’s wing. She hadn’t actually meant to tear the wing, she’d only nailed it to a tree with a pine needle when the pixie was asleep. But the pixie had woken up with a start, and the wing had torn, and a little piece of wing was still nailed to the tree. Pixie wings are very delicate. Any damage to a pixie wing is extremely painful, so the little pixie was in agony. CLARRIE, whose wings had never been damaged, laughed out loud to see the little pixie’s suffering. The Head Pixie had been horrified by CLARRIE‘s lack of remorse, and had resolved to call in the fairies. And when CLARRIE had begged and pleaded and implored forgiveness, the Head Pixie had stood firm and refused to budge.

It was a terrible disgrace to be put into the charge of a fairy. CLARRIE didn’t care about the disgrace, she rather enjoyed it and swaggered and boasted about how she was the worst pixie in the world. But when the good fairy Delphinium arrived, CLARRIE‘s swagger changed to a depressed sort of limp, and her boasting became an angry moan. The trouble with good fairies is, you can’t get away from them. Delphinium stuck to CLARRIE like glue. CLARRIE had no opportunity for any mischief, because Delphinium was always there, like a kind of shadow.

And Delphinium was so boring. For a start, she was always nice, no matter how rude CLARRIE was to her. And she enjoyed fairy pursuits, like dancing in a ring and sitting on toadstools, and helping whenever she could. All things which CLARRIE hated. CLARRIE sat and sulked and tried to work out a way to shake off Delphinium. She tried kicking and pinching and scratching and punching Delphinium, but the good fairy was quick and light, and could fly out of trouble very fast indeed. CLARRIE never got near enough to do any real damage. But she did say really nasty things to Delphinium, and jeered and sneered at her so much, that once or twice CLARRIE noticed tears creep into Delphinium’s blue eyes, and her rosebud mouth droop in despondency.

One day, when CLARRIE had shouted long and loud at Delphinium and told her how much she hated her, Delphinium turned her head away and closed her eyes for a moment. It was all the time CLARRIE needed. Quick as lightening, she slipped the sharpest pine needle she could see into the palm of her hand. When Delphinium turned towards her again, CLARRIE slashed at her face with the pine needle. Delphinium screamed, a tiny, high fairy scream, and covered her face in her hands. CLARRIE saw a drop of fairy blood ooze between Delphinium’s fingers, and with a sigh as soft as thistledown, Delphinium crumpled into a little fairy heap on the ground.

CLARRIE gasped. She hadn’t meant to hurt the fairy so much. She’d just wanted to frighten her. Suppose Delphinium was dead? She was lying very still. CLARRIE took to her wings and started to fly as fast as her wings would carry her. But she was in such a hurry, she flew straight into a thorn bush. The last thing CLARRIE remembered, was the agonising pain in her wing as she caught it on a thorn and tore its delicate tissue.

When CLARRIE came to, she was lying on a bed of soft moss, and somebody was gently bathing her injured wing in a soothing solution. As she struggled to sit up, Delphinium pushed her quietly back. “Hush now,” whispered Delphinium. “You’ve hurt your wing quite badly. It’ll heal in time, but I’m afraid there’ll be no more flying for a while.”

She looked so concerned and spoke in such a gentle voice that CLARRIE stared at her. Eventually CLARRIE said: “Don’t you hate me? I’ve done such terrible things to you. Why don’t you just leave me in pain? Why are you helping me?”

Delphinium laughed, a musical fairy laugh. “I don’t hate you,” she said. “I just want you to get better. And I’ll help you all I can. I promise not to get in your way, and when you’re really better, I’ll ask the Head Pixie if you can be by yourself again. I know you don’t really like having me around.”

But to her surprise, CLARRIE heard herself saying: “Don’t go, please don’t leave me. I wish you’d stay.” Then she caught hold of Delphinium’s hand and clasped it tightly. “I’m so sorry for all I’ve done to you and everyone else,” she whispered. “I know you must hate me. I hate myself.”
But Delphinium simply put her arms around CLARRIE and hugged her. “I’m your friend,” she said. “I could never hate you.”

And do you know, after that CLARRIE changed so much, she became the Best Pixie in the World, and everyone was her friend. She never hurt anybody again, and she soon became the happiest pixie anyone had ever known.

Boys and girls, Jesus is just like Delphinium. He is always willing to forgive us, and he will never leave us not matter how badly we behave.

Let’s bow our heads and close our eyes for a moment of prayer. Dead God, thank you for your love. Thank you for being with us no matter how badly we behave. Help us to say we’re sorry when we sin and help us to act like you want us to act. In Jesus’ name we pray, AMEN

Bibliography

 1. Janice H. Scott, “The Worst Pixie in the World.” Retrieved from https://store.sermonsuite.com/content.php?i=788017559

As you may know, the fox and the hen are natural enemies. There is a story called “The Fox and the Little Red Hen”. In the story, Papa Fox sneaked up quietly behind the little red hen, grabbed her, and put her into his bag. Then he quickly ran off down the hill toward his home to eat some chicken dinner. Inside the fox’s bag, the little red hen remembered that she had some scissors in her pocket. So, when the fox stopped to rest, she cut a hole in the bag, slipped out, put a large stone in the bag, and ran away. When the fox got home, all he had in his bag was a stone. The little red hen was too smart for the sly old fox!

In Luke 13:31-35, a group of religious leaders went to Jesus and said to him, “Get away from here if you want to live! Herod Antipas wants to kill you!” Jesus replied, “Go tell that fox that I will keep on casting out demons and healing people today and tomorrow; and the third day I will accomplish my purpose. Yes, today, tomorrow, and the next day I must go about my business. It just wouldn’t do for a prophet of God to be killed anywhere but in Jerusalem.”

Then Jesus went on to compare himself to a mother hen. “Oh Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones God’s messengers! How often I have wanted to gather your children together as a hen protects her chicks beneath her wings, but you wouldn’t let me.”

What a beautiful picture of Jesus. The fox couldn’t defeat him, but like a mother hen gathers her chicks beneath her wings to protect them, Jesus willingly gave himself to save his children—even though they had rejected him time and time again. Jesus still loves his children today. He still wants to gather them in his arms and protect them and care for them. Sometimes we stray away, but Jesus still loves us just the same.

The Scriptures don’t tell us if the Pharisees mentioned here were genuinely concerned for Jesus’ welfare or simply wanted to scare Him away. In any case, Jesus declared His intention to continue His kingdom ministry but implied that its days were growing short, despite the intrigues of “that fox”. The mention of “the third day” may imply a period of suffering followed by vindication or may be meant to remind readers of Christ’s resurrection-or both.

Jesus was very popular, and Herod might not have dared openly to put Him to death, but Herod wanted to remove Jesus. Consequently, Herod might have sent the Pharisees to advise Jesus in a friendly way to leave. Jesus knew what type of man Herod was. Jesus died because of people like Herod. Jesus died because He paid attention to those the world deemed to be insignificant. Jesus died because He proclaimed a God who loved everyone and embraced everyone. His resurrection is a story of triumph of sacrificial love over death, hatred, injustice, bigotry and everyone and everything that opposes God.

Jesus was determined to complete the work God sent Him to do. He would be ready to go only when the work was completed. He refused to be intimidated. The time of His death was approaching, and He wanted to reach as many people as possible before He died.

When He faced down the Pharisees, Jesus showed us how to act courageously. He didn’t flee from the challenge. He met it head-on. This shows Jesus’ character. Jesus shows us that vulnerability is essential for courage. Courage gives us strength to be open to the needs of people around us. Jesus uses the image of a hen gathering her brood of chicks to her for protection and safety to illustrate God’s love and concern for His people.

Although Jesus is much more than a prophet, He is connected to the prophetic tradition He inherited-a tradition that continues today. Prophets come in many shapes and sizes and they speak about many different ideas, but according to Jesus the one thing they have in common is that their truth is quietly rejected by those who have a stake in maintaining power and the status quo.

Prophets challenge the status quo. They speak God’s truth, and that threatens the world’s power structure. They challenge the world’s power structure. Prophets teach others about God’s Word, but teaching happens everywhere. People are looking to those around them to decide what to do and how to live. If we want to be prophets-if we want to show Christ to the world-our lives have to be grounded in the truth of Christ. God calls us to make our voices heard no matter how small the act of love or the witness of hope.

Those of you who are parents have probably seen many situations where your children defied you. You probably wondered how you could get them to learn. Jesus knows how you feel because His children-the Israelites-pushed Him away and defied Him.

Jesus lamented how far the Israelites had fallen. Satan saw the power of worship and pilgrimage the Israelites had, and he concentrated his forces to defeat them. Satan does the same thing today. He concentrates his forces at the point of our greatest strength. If we are tempted, it is a sign that we have become close enough to God that Satan has decided to target us. When that happens, we can take comfort in the knowledge that God loves us and He will help us resist the devil.

In the original Greek, and in Luke’s Gospel, the word “Jerusalem” occurs three times in a row at the end of verse 33 and the beginning of verse 34. Luke focuses his readers’ attention on that city and the events about to happen there. Jesus warned the Israelites that they would face God’s judgment. They rejected Him, and Jesus knew that God was going to abandon them and leave Jerusalem open to its enemies. The “desolate” house anticipates the destruction of the temple. The result of the hardness of their hearts was their destruction at the hands of the Romans in 70 AD.

Jesus sadly accepts the fact that there are people who will reject Him. The agony He had over the Israelites and their hard hearts is the same agony He has for people who reject Him today. He grieves over those who don’t accept what He is offering,

What will happen in Jerusalem-the arrest, crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus Christ-will take place exactly as God ordained. The stubbornness of the city’s religious officials did not take Jesus by surprise, nor would their actions leading to His execution.

There are several lessons in this passage that we can apply to our lives today. First, we need to have a spirit of calmness and confidence about things that have yet to happen. This doesn’t mean that we become irresponsible and do nothing. We should try to follow Jesus’ example. Second, we must remember God’s compassion towards all people. We need to follow Jesus’ example and show patience and compassion for those who are not at the same stage on their spiritual journey as we are.

When it comes to our relationship with God, no amount of building materials, covenant neighbourhoods, fresh-fruit markets medical services or technology can repair it. We’re no different than the chicks in Jesus’ illustration. The season of Lent invites us to realize that we’re a lot more dependent on God than we realize. Lent is a time to realize that, just like the chicks in Jesus’ illustration, we’re helpless on our own.

Lent is the time in the church year when we practice the spiritual gift of letting go. One of the ways we let go is through lament or weeping over the things that stand in the way of becoming new beings. Lent is the moment to shed tears over the losses we have experienced. Lent is a time of feeling that things will never be the same again.

Bibliography

1. Jeremiah, David: The Jeremiah Study Bible: New King James Version (Brentwood, TN: Worthy Publishing; 2013; p.1414)
2. “The Fox and the Hen.” Retrieved from Sermons4Kids.com
3. Barnes’ Notes on the New Testament. Part of Wordsearch 12 Bible software package.
4. Larsen, B. & Ogilvie, L.J.: The Preacher’s Commentary Series, Vol. 26: Luke (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Inc.; 1983; pp. 222-224)
5. David Mainse, “Luke 13:34.” Retrieved from www.100words.ca
6. Pastor Ken Klaus, “Herod’s Death Threat.” Retrieved from lh_min@lhm.org
7. Dave Wyrtzen, “Crying Over Jerusalem.” Retrieved from TruthEncounter.com
8. Pastor David J. Risendal, “As A Hen Gathers…” Retrieved from OneLittleWord.org
9. The Rev. Christopher Girata, “Your Prophetic Voice.” Retrieved from day1.org
10. Richard Niell Donovan, “Exegesis for Luke 13:31-35.” Retrieved from lectionary.org

There are three stages in every successful relationship, including romance. First, you must get to know the other person. Second, you must like the other person. Finally, you must love the other person. Our relationship with Jesus involves all three stages. Paul emphasizes this in Romans 10:1-13.

Knowing Jesus involves knowing what he wants us to do so we can be saved. The Jews were outwardly eager to know God, but they were not eager to know Christ. They failed to submit to God’s righteousness. They tried to be righteous before God on the basis of their own works. They sought to establish their own righteousness and missed the gift God offered them. For the Jews to receive God’s righteousness, they had to stop relying on works and start believing in Christ’s work.

Asking Christ to be our Saviour requires us to give up control in order to have real life. The Jews did not want to give up that control. Asking Christ to be our Saviour also involves breaking through the barriers of generation gaps, social status and culture-something else that the Jews did not want to do. True happiness only comes when we discover the treasure house that Jesus makes available when we come to Him in faith.

Asking God to save us but not change us is like asking a surgeon to remove a cancerous growth from our bodies without cutting. Cutting and breaking are a part of healing in God’s kingdom. Healing can only come when we allow Jesus to enter our hearts and remove anything that is useless or harmful.

Knowing Christ involves knowing what he did for us. The word “end” means that Christ is the goal or fulfillment of the Old Testament law. He was the object to which the law pointed. The Mosaic law is no longer binding on us as Christians. The Mosaic law looked forward to Christ. It ended when Christ came to earth.

If a person chooses to be justified by the law, he or she must live by the law. There is no room for error. The entire law must be kept because keeping a portion of it has no value. If someone breaks one of the laws, he or she breaks all of them. The law demands absolute perfection without any mitigation. Christ was the only person who obeyed the law perfectly, so he was the perfect sacrifice for our sins.

An outward expression of our faith in Christ gives outward evidence of inward faith. We need to believe in the resurrection and the complete truth connected with it. That includes Jesus’ sin-bearing death in our place and God’s approval of Christ’s work. Trusting in Christ is the pathway to salvation, not deeds. We can’t earn salvation through our own efforts. It can only be obtained through faith in Christ. Faith is a heartfelt belief in the reality of Christ’s resurrection. In Christ’s resurrection we see that his claim to deity is valid. We also see that his death brings salvation to us.

When we place our faith in Christ, God looks at us just as He looks at Jesus. Jesus completely obeyed the law, without exception and without fault. Christ’s perfect record becomes ours through faith. Anyone who puts his or her faith in Christ will be saved and will receive eternal life.

Paul speaks of righteousness as if it is a person. We do not need to ascend to heaven to bring righteousness down. Christ has already done that. We do not need to descend into the grave. Christ has already been raised from the dead. We do not have to go on a journey around the world to find it. Christ is accessible by faith, as near as our mouths and hearts. All we have to do is reach out and receive Him by faith.

Knowing Christ involves confessing that Christ is our Saviour. Confessing Christ is evidence of genuine faith. Salvation comes through belief in Christ, acknowledging that He is God, and was raised from the dead. His death satisfied God’s demand for the penalty for sins. His resurrection validated both His claims and the Father’s statements that He is God.

When we are saved, we need to anchor our faith in the promises of God and nothing else. If we pray a prayer of salvation, our hearts and mouths must go together. Words are not enough. Real life begins when we depend on Jesus, when we call out to Him to give us what we can’t earn ourselves-a right relationship with God. That can only happen through faith in what He did for us on the cross.

When we are saved, that does not mean that we won’t have any problems in life. What it does mean is that our eternity will be set in heaven with God. In return, we are to tell the world about Jesus. We are called to either go where God sends us or donate money or anything else that will help others go into the mission field.

Because Christ is God, His death, burial and resurrection took care of the world’s sins. Just as all who sin will be judged, all who call on the name of the Lord will be saved. Christ lived the life we could not live and took the punishment we could not take to offer the hope we can’t resist. His sacrifice forces us to ask the question: If he so loved us, can we not love each other?

Bibliography

1. Jeremiah, David: The Jeremiah Study Bible, New King James Version (Brentwood, TN: Worthy Publishing; 2013, pp. 1558-1559)
2. ESV Study Bible. Part of Wordsearch 11 Bible software package.
3. Briscoe, D.S. & Ogilvie, L.J.: The Preacher’s Commentary Series, Vol. 29: Romans (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Inc.; 1982; pp. 193-198)
4. MacArthur, J.F. Jr.: The MacArthur Study Bible, New American Standard Bible (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Publishers; 2006)
5. Stanley, C.F.: The Charles F. Stanley Life Principles Bible, New King James version (Nashville, TN: Nelson Bibles; 2005)
6. Lucado, M.: The Lucado Life Lessons Study Bible (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson; 2010)
7. Bayless Conley, “Wise Counsel.” Retrieved from com@crosswalkmail.com
8. Anne Graham Lotz, “One Life.” Retrieved from angelministries.org
9. Elizabeth Cole, “The Call.” Retrieved from homeword.com
10. Pastor Ed Young, “Acknowledge Who God Is.” Retrieved from edyoung.com
11. David Jeremiah, “Sending and Sent.” Retrieved from www.davidjeremiah.org
12. Dr. Gregory Seltz, “Call on Him.” Retrieved from www.lhm.org
13. Charles Stanley, “The Mission Question.” Retrieved from www.intouch.org
14. Pastor Bobby Schuller, “Supposed to Be.” Retrieved from hourofpower.org
15. Os Hillman, “The Eternal Sales Call.” Retrieved from marketplaceleaders.com
16. “Crossing the Gap Between Us.” Retrieved from com@crosswalkmail.com
17. Michael Youssef, Ph.D., “Our Treasure House.” Retrieved from ltw.org
18. Exegesis for Romans 10:5-15. Retrieved from sermonwriter.com

During Lent we prepare ourselves to share in and celebrate the real reason for our faith; namely, Christ’s death and resurrection. Lent is a spiritual desert similar to Christ’s 40 days in the desert, or the Israelites’ 40 years in the desert in the Book of Exodus, or Christ’s journey to Jerusalem. We live this experience in our lives during the annual observation of Lent.

One of the ways people of faith mark this period of time is by fasting, just like Christ fasted for 40 days in the desert. People can give up more than just food for Lent. They can give up things such as bad habits, text messaging or social networks such as Facebook, but for centuries the main thing that was given up for Lent was food. For example, we can give up things such as:

1. Anger and hatred
2. Judging others
3. Discouragement
4. Complaining
5. Resentment or bitterness
6. Spending too much money

Anything that controls us or that we can’t say no to lords over us. If it takes God’s place in our lives, it is an idol and we are living in something similar to idolatry. When we come to a fork in the road of life, we may be tempted to give in to our physical needs and ignore our spiritual needs. Unless we have disciplined ourselves and attended to our spiritual needs in an ongoing way, we may give in to the tempter. In other words, we might be tempted to used one of comedian Flip Wilson’s famous lines—“The devil made me do it!”

Fasting helps us to gain enough control to surrender our lives to God by making us more aware of our great need for God. It makes us more aware of our sinful desires and allows us to honour Jesus’ fasting not only in the desert, but in the weeks leading up to his crucifixion. It allows us to face temptations just like Christ faced temptations in the desert, but by facing these temptations and overcoming them, we will grow stronger in faith. Fasting is a weapon we can use against the enemy’s strongholds and bondage in our lives, just like Christ used the results of his fasting in the desert to fight Satan’s temptations.

Fasting is a metaphor for our desire for God. It makes some people feel cleaner, purer and more in control. It allows us to have a simpler life, even if only for a short period of time. It teaches us something about God as Jesus shows God to us. It allows us to call on Christ’s power to shove out sin so that we can live spiritually. Fasting forces us to remember our spiritual poverty, which in turn allows us to recognize God’s loving action to make things right between him and us through Jesus Christ. The result is a spiritual death that shows our sorrow for our sins. It makes the path to the cross inexpressibly and unbelievably rewarding. True fasting is good for our health (spiritually and physically), self-discipline, helping us break bad habits, appreciating what we love, and preserving the ability to do without.

Fasting and Lent provide us with a time to focus on what is always true. God is always reaching out to enable us to change, be renewed and deepen our commitment to him and his chosen community. We do this through repentance. Fasting is just one way of showing our desire to repent. Our repentance is a gift of grace. Repentance by itself does not cause6 forgiveness or make us worthy to receive it. It is based on grace-specifically, the knowledge that God is kind and ready to forgive. Fasting counteracts our daily habits of excessive consumption and makes us aware of God’s promptings and the needs of others. Leo, Bishop of Rome, once wrote:

“The sum total of our fasting does not consist in merely abstaining from food. In vain do we deny our body food if we do not withhold our heart from wickedness and restrain our lips so that they speak no evil. We must so moderate our rightful use of food that our other desires may be subject to the same rule. They therefore who desire to do good works, let them not fear that they shall be without the means, since even for two given pennies, the generosity of the poor widow of the Gospel was glorified!”

Fasting in repentance means we realize that what we did was wrong, and that whatever replaced God in our lives was wrong. Fasting forces us to change our way of living for awhile. It allows God to step in and change the course of our lives. It allows us to put our basic needs into a lower priority so that we can concentrate on the task at hand. In this case, the task at hand is the commemoration of Christ’s death and resurrection.

Fasting does not mean totally abstaining from food. In the words of Saint Thomas Aquinas, fasting should be introduced in order to “bridle the desires of the flesh, which regard pleasures of touch in connection with food and sex”. We need to eat to live, and not the other way around. Those who are fasting are asked to eat only what is necessary, usually only one or two meals a day. Snacking, sweets or indulgences are not allowed.

There is a time and a place for fasting. It must not be done during a time of celebration such as a wedding anniversary. In fact, the 40 days of Lent DO NOT include Sundays because they are a celebration of Christ’s victory over death and sin. Fasting is not to be used as a substitute for dieting. It must also not be used as a form of self-punishment or as an excuse to harm yourself in a way that would make you a burden to others. It is not an excuse for being grouchy, stingy or rude. Fasting must be done in such a way that it shows our dependence on God, brings us closer to God, and gives energy to our prayers.

Fasting does not serve to change God’s mind, speed up his answer, or manipulate his will. Instead, it prepares us to hear from him by temporarily laying aside anything that competes for our attention. It allows us to focus on Christ and hear him clearly

Jesus began his ministry by fasting for 40 days in the desert. He suspended his earthly appetite in order to focus not only on preparing for his earthly ministry, but also to satisfy his spiritual hunger. Fasting puts us in touch with the fact that we ARE created with an appetite for God, just like Jesus had an appetite for God. It really does not matter what one abstains from in fasting. The important thing is to suspend the usual earthly appetites in life that seek immediate gratification so that we can recover our deeper spiritual hunger and thirst for God and his ready grace.

In our faith journey, there will be times when we have to hold out in the midst of spiritual battles. Fasting can give us the strength we need to achieve victory. It gives us the strength to hold on. God has promised us that we will not be placed in situations where we will have more put on us than we can bear. Fasting serves as a whet stone that we can use to sharpen our discernment, expose our wrong thinking and wrong attitudes, and bring about a single-minded focus on the things of God. Jesus used his fast to prepare him not only for Satan’s temptations, but to focus on his earthly mission and his father’s will. Contrary to what most people might think, Jesus was not weak from his fast. In fact, just the opposite—he gained spiritual strength for his journey to the cross and the ultimate success of his mission.

In Deuteronomy 8:3, we read “He humbled you by letting you hunger, then by feeding you with manna, with which neither you nor your ancestors were acquainted, in order to make you understand that one does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the Lord”.  There is a connection between the manna that the Israelites received in the wilderness and the bread with which the devil tempted Jesus in the wilderness. Israel’s need for bread was secondary to Israel’s need to understand that God gives bread. Because he understands that fact, Jesus can resist the temptation to take matters into his own hands.

We are in the same situation. Our earthly needs are secondary to our need to understand that God will supply our earthly needs. I emphasize the word needs. God will not supply us with a Mercedes-Benz car when a Volkswagen Beetle will be sufficient. God will not supply us with a huge mansion when a two-room bungalow will be sufficient. God will not provide us with a banquet that is fit for a king when a sandwich will be sufficient. He will supply our needs, and not our wants or desires. Fasting from anything that is not necessary for our earthly life will allow us to focus on the preparations we have to make for our spiritual life. Fasting is a spiritual discipline. It reminds us of our human weakness and encourages us to acknowledge our dependence on God.

Life is not just about the material things. It is also about a Word coming from the very mouth of God. In response to the temptation to throw himself into the rat race called material satisfaction, Jesus finds a calm centre, an anchor in the word of God. That centered faith will enable him to deal with all the other temptations to come. As it was with Jesus, so it is with us.

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