September 1, 2014 Arise!

Arise!

Matthew 15:29-31 Jesus left there and went along the Sea of Galilee. Then he went up on a mountainside and sat down. 30 Great crowds came to him, bringing the lame, the blind, the crippled, the mute and many others, and cast them down at Jesus’ feet; and he healed them. 31 The people were amazed when they saw the mute speaking, the crippled made well, the lame walking and the blind seeing. And they praised the God of Israel.

MATTHEW presses on to describe the Lord of creation re-creating his people. This is a new “feeding” of the multitudes, much different than giving bread and fish to thousands. Here Jesus offers more than one meal. The “Bread of Life” (John 6:35) heals people into a new, transformed life.

     We can understand Jesus’ healing even more deeply when we understand the meaning of the phrase “cast them down”. The Greek word from which “cast down” comes means to throw away or to scatter refuse. Thus, we see a picture of people carrying society’s extreme sick and crippled to scatter them at Jesus’ feet as they would garbage. The people of Galilee cast down before Jesus the outcasts, misfits and burdens on society, perhaps to rid their towns of such misfits.

     Knowing the desperate conditions of the sick, Jesus lovingly responds. He speaks to the “refuse”, and they are newly fed into the new life of God’s salvation. With a word, they are new. In a moment limbs are re-created, voices speak and ears hear. Isaiah’s prophetic words of salvation came true: “Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord rises upon you.” (Isaiah 60:1) The “Light of the World” (John 8:12) has fed His people with new life.

LIFE Link: The Lord’s feeding.

August 31, 2014 Jesus Answered

Jesus Answered

Matthew 15:24-28 Jesus answered, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of Israel.” 25 The woman came and knelt before him. “Lord, help me!” she said. 26 He replied, “It is not right to take the children's bread and toss it to their dogs.” 27 “Yes, Lord,” she said, “but even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters' table.” 28 Then Jesus answered, “Woman, you have great faith! Your request is granted.” And her daughter was healed from that very hour.  

OUR last meditation stopped when, “Jesus did not answer a word.” (Matt 15:23) to the desperate mother’s plea. Why was he silent? Then he answered, but his words sound restrictive, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of Israel.” Jesus seemed to be going against His mission to declare his Gospel to the world (John 3:16).

     But we can be assured he spoke with gentleness and encouragement. For example, didn’t speak to her immediately because was listening to her. An angry or impatient man quickly rebukes and dismisses those he seems as an intruder. Jesus, though, quietly listened and heard her plea. He first told her of his priority. His own must be the first to receive. Jesus is demonstrating order and purpose to God’s holy plan of salvation – first the Jew and then the Gentiles.

     But this order has its exceptions. Many of Jesus’ miracles were to the Gentiles. Within our Lord’s sovereign power and purpose faith was granted to this woman, and Jesus responded to her faith. She faithfully pursued him. He lovingly answered her with the healing power of His creation authority. The daughter is saved.

     The Father has so loved the world. Jesus has come. The Holy Spirit stirs faith in mankind’s hearts to know Jesus answer.

LIFE Link: Jesus hears. Jesus answers.

August 30, 2014 Jesus' Time

Jesus’ Time

Matthew 15:21-23 Leaving that place, Jesus withdrew to the region of Tyre and Sidon. 22 A Canaanite woman from that vicinity came to him, crying out, “Lord, Son of David, have mercy on me! My daughter is suffering terribly from demon-possession.” 23 Jesus did not answer a word. So his disciples came to him and urged him, “Send her away, for she keeps crying out after us.”  

AS Jesus is in Tyre and Sidon, he is mostly among Gentiles, people who are not Jews. He does not restrict his ministry to Jews only, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” (John 3:16) Yes, the Lord’s world is the Lord’s pulpit, and he will proclaim in the world that he has come to set the captives free.

     Then out of the crowd comes a Canaanite woman who admits she and her daughter are captives to evil. First, she confesses Christ as “Lord.” as she recognizes Jesus’ authority to free her.  She then pleads, “Have mercy on me.” because she knows she is a sinner who needs Jesus’ compassion and forgiveness.

     It is then that she petitions the Lord for her great cause, which is to free her daughter from demons. Her daughter needs saving, and the woman knows Jesus is her only hope. Yes, she comes in humble faith and desperate hope. But then, “Jesus did not answer a word.”

     “Uh, Jesus, why the silence?”

     Do you often ask that question? I do. I cry out, “Lord, have mercy on my friends. Why the silence?” But I hear not a word.

     That’s when we have to wait. Jesus wants us to pursue him, to humbly trust him and to keep our hope in him.  

LIFE Link: Time is the Lord’s.

August 29, 2014 Real

Real

Matthew 15:10-12 Jesus called the crowd to him and said, “Listen and understand. 11 What goes into a man's mouth does not make him ‘unclean,’ but what comes out of his mouth, that is what makes him ‘unclean.’”

JESUS is very direct, isn’t he? “Listen and understand.” he says. He speaks to teach so the listener will understand more and more of the wonderful ways of God.

     The way Jesus wants to point us is to authentic living. He knows how often we base our lives on temporary things of limited worth. We find value in wearing certain clothes, perhaps. Or we join a sports team or church to find friends. We might take on certain habits to please and be accepted.

     Jesus, though, really wants us to, “Get real.” He speaks to draw us into a real faith. If we claim to be his disciples, he wants us to live authentic lives that reflect him. “Get real.” points us to know we must really desire his words, really trust his words and really live into his words.

     Authentic living is also about transforming the pursuit of your preferences into the pursuit of holiness. You know how many times each day you decide between what, “I want.” And, “This is what God wants.” Often we make the wrong choice. We may give up and feel unworthy or unable to pursue more holy living. But we are authentic when we stay in the pursuit. We remain real with Jesus when we really strive to let go of self and grab onto Him.

     The Lord’s pointed teaching teaches us the difference between authentic and fake belief. I urge you to consider your own words and actions. Do you really consume what Jesus teaches?

LIFE Link: True response to Jesus

August 28, 2014 Made In Heaven

Made in Heaven

Matthew 15:7-9 You hypocrites! Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you: 8 “These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. 9 They worship me in vain; their teachings are but rules taught by men.”

WE want to know where our clothes, our car and our food are made. We look for the label stamped, “Made in America”. Do we, though, want to know who stamps out the rules by which we live? Think about it. Whose rules guide your decisions? How do you choose one way or another? What resources are fundamental to your decisions?

     Recently I was reading on a social media site a varied and somewhat anxious debate over an issue. One person explained his forceful words with, “I give back what I get.” Apparently, if someone “gave” him harsh words, he would speak harshly in return.

     I’d like to ask him, “Where do you get your rules?” But I already know the answer. He gets his rules from man’s desire for revenge. Rules of strength in force, power in harshness, and superiority through threats are man’s rules stamped into his life. These rules deliver strife and restrict life because he obeys the culture’s teaching, “Don’t get mad. Get even.”

     I wonder what would happen if he lived by Jesus’ rule from Matthew 6:14 “For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.” Or what peace would he have if his life was stamped with Matthew 5:44 “Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.”  And what would have happened to the Pharisees if they had let go of their rules? Do you think they would have found the Ruler of the Kingdom of God?

LIFE Link: Live in the rules stamped, “Made in Heaven”.