John 5:31-47

 John 5:31-47

It seems, at times, that Jesus's words were targeted at the church today but spoken in ages past. Jesus says that the Jews were willing, for a season, to accept the message of John the Baptist. There was a fleeting enthusiasm about John. John was, for a while, a great show and an exciting event. For the Jews he was a fad. Few words describe American Christianity programming better than the word fad. From passing out ear plugs because of loud music volume, to tattoos, un-tucked shirts and particular clothing styles to haircuts that are clones of popular preachers, many leaders in American Christianity are herd animals caught in fads.

In verse 39 Jesus speaks to other churches today, what we might call “study churches”. Exhaustive scripture study is wonderful so long as we understand the purpose of scripture, which is to bring us to Christ. When we study to find proof that we are right and so that we can argue more our pet doctrine more effectively with those with whom we disagree we have missed the point of scripture.  The Holy Spirit did not inspire Holy Scripture so we could bludgeon someone with it but so that we can know and love the Son and share that love with others. It is not to absolve us from the responsibility for careful study but it does address the motivation to study.

Jesus also addresses our insatiable appetite for our own glory in this passage.  The Jews received their “glory from one another”.   It was true of them, it is true of us.  Never in the history of mankind have we had greater opportunity to give full vent to our hubris and self-aggrandizement. People have not changed, we have always been stuck on ourselves. But we live in an age of self-aggrandizement. The appeal for the praise of men is the backbone of our social media driven culture. We actually asked people to like our post. We write things for the purpose of getting a “click”, a “like”, or a “follow”. Pride, self-assertion and self glory are virtues in the social media age.

Anything, fad, Pet Doctrine, praise of our ‘friends’ on our apps that pushes Jesus out of the center of our lives is toxic to our soul. Our fallen nature is attracted to these things and in the moment they can seem helpful or even holy.  But we must return to the core test, the core question: “Does any given activity cause the place of Christ to grow in our lives or to diminish?”

“Grant,  Lord, that my life in every aspect will be built around and upon You. AMEN”

John 5.15-30

 John 5.15-30

This amazing discourse is in response to the attack of the religious leaders because Jesus healed on the Sabbath.  It turns out that Jesus' authority over the Sabbath was just the tip of the iceberg of His power, plans and authority.  Jesus sees Himself equal with God.  Jesus sees the Father at work and joins in that work.  Jesus is the object of the Father’s love.  Jesus has complete access to the Father’s knowledge.  Jesus is the source of life from the Father.  Jesus judges on behalf of the Father.  

We have all heard the saying, “Familiarity breeds contempt”. Something like that can happen to us as we consider who Jesus was and is.  Jesus; God made flesh, was fully human, no doubt.  Sometimes we focus so much on His humanity that we believe we can treat Jesus as a peer and we forget that He is fully God. We began to treat Jesus with familiarity rather than reverence, as a personal spiritual valet rather than God. This manifests itself most clearly and the worship of the church which can at times degenerate into a concert to entertain us, a therapy session to fix us, or a drug to make us feel better about ourselves. Any model of worship that is focusing on us and our wants and agenda is misguided and if it goes on long enough will end up in ruin. We will do well to remember, “He created all things and they were created for Him” that includes the church, worship, and us. Jesus is no genie that is here to do our bidding. Rather we exist to bring Him glory.  As we do that our lives will reflect a pattern of holiness and will be fully manifested in the resurrection of life on the last day.

“Lord, forgive me when I treat You with anything other than absolute reverence and worship. AMEN”

John 5:1-15

 John 5:1-15

Thirty-eight years is a long time. Where were you thirty-eight years ago? In thirty eight years we can establish some very consistent and deeply rooted habits, patterns, and expectations. It is truly wonderful that after thirty eight years of defeat this man was not defeated. Jesus asked this man “Do you want to get well?” The man's answer is neither negative nor positive but an explanation. “Here's the reason I can't get into the Healing Waters”. Reasons and excuses can be similar; they can even be identical twins. The reality was that this man could not get into the waters first.  That was his reason; it may have been his excuse. Jesus asked the man the question to get him to confront himself.

That confrontation involves asking ourselves: “What do we really want?”  The Lord will not violate our freedom and our choice. For example while He wants holiness for us He will not impose it on us. When we plead, “Why am I not able to overcome sin in my life?” We have to ask, “Do I really want to overcome sin in my life?”  “Have I given authority in this matter to the powers of the world, the flesh or the devil so that my will and my wants are bent?” The first step toward holiness is to understand that this is a cooperative effort. The Lord will not do the good for us that He wants if we do not want that good as well. Jesus doesn't do any ice breakers or casual comments. It was the beginning of the core of divine-human interaction. The prayers for holiness or ministry or guidance are nothing if they are parrot talk. lip service, or mindless repetition. The real question with which Jesus consistently confronts us is “What do you really want?” We don't have to be perfect but we have to have a start or at least the start of the desire to start.

“Lord, help me to want or at least begin to want what You desire for me?”

John 4:43-54

John 4:43-54

Six words is all the man got for his trouble. But that was enough. While Jesus was in Cana of Galilee a man came to Him from Capernium this was a 20 mile trip one way. Having heard of, or perhaps seen some of Jesus's power he goes to plead for his boy’s life. Desperation is a powerful motivation and often the precursor of faith. Having pleaded with Jesus to come and heal his son this official gets a less than hoped for response. Jesus rebukes him, and in him all those who are wanting a miracle show. People like Herod; who wanted to sign from Jesus on the occasion of Jesus's trial. Faced with this rebuke what would the man do? The skeptic, the doubter, the show seeker could easily walk away. But this man presses on, his determination shows that  this is not about a show, this is about the word of the Lord.

Sometimes the Lord closes doors and is apparently unresponsive, not because He can't do what is asked or is unconcerned about our situation, but so that we can discover our own motives.  So we can see into our own hearts. We might paraphrase and expand this conversation this way.

Royal official: “Jesus come to my house and do a miracle for my sick son!”

Jesus: “Are you just wanting a show like so many other people and your son just happens to be the convenient occasion?”

Royal official: “Jesus please come down and help You are the only hope for my son!”

Seeing Jesus do a miracle would have been good. Having Jesus heal your son would have been better. Taking Jesus at His word is the best.

One of the challenges we have in our own hearts is to answer this question honestly, “What do I really want?” Are we wanting Jesus for Himself or what He can do for us? What is the deepest desire of our heart? Do we want a faith that exists because we've seen a miracle or do we want a faith that is based on the words and the person of Jesus? The rebuke, resistance, or rebuttal of God has more to do with our own searching of our hearts than God's giving or withholding good from us. “What do I really want?” We must answer that question honestly without religious jargon or artificial rhetoric.

“Lord, help me want You because of who You are.  AMEN”

John 4:27-42

 John 4:27-42

Often in the church there is a resistance to outsiders especially those who are notorious. Many churches say they want to grow, but within there is a subconscious desire that all the new people will be like those already in the church. People who seem different from us, especially those of morally questionable past, are a threat. Pimps, drug dealers, strippers, homosexuals, drunks, etc. tend to make us very uncomfortable. We prefer to see the conversion of nice people who, at their worst, would not worry us. That is perhaps one of the reasons that revival has not taken hold of the American Church recently. We don’t want genuine Revival, we only want mildly renewed interest. 

John makes a dramatic and uncomfortable point in versus 28-29. This woman of noteworthy bad moral character goes to the “men”. There has been a tendency, especially in recent times, to paint this woman as a victim. She is pictured as  an oppressed individual who has suffered at the hands of a patriarchal culture through five marriages and a cohabitation. There is some truth to that. But maybe we have downplayed her culpability a bit too much. Maybe she was a woman of failed marriages because she was so promiscuous. Perhaps she is more of a Messalina (Roman Emperor Claudius’ wife whose promiscuity was famous) then she was a victim. We have heard over and over she was at the well at noon to avoid the company of the women. Maybe she was at the well at noon because she was turning tricks to the very late hour the night before. This woman does not go to family or friends but to “the men of the city” and says, “come see a man who told me all the things I have done”. With whom had she done these things?

The church’s resistance to the notorious may have more to do with our desire to protect our own reputation and sense of propriety than anything else. If I'm sitting with the drunk, the whore, the cheat, the liar or any other vice I must either be convicted  by my sin and repent, or be convicted by my sin and made miserable by my guilt. Wanting neither of these we choose not to be with people like that, people like us. Perhaps the greatest indictment for any church is it has no formerly notorious sinners and it's misted.

“Grant to me Lord the grace of repentance, and the grace to love those who need Your grace. AMEN”

John 4:15-26

 John 4:15-26

People are profoundly religious.  They are also profoundly aware of their moral condition. Our religious inclinations and our moral conscience are bound together. In the course of the conversation Jesus brings to light this woman's moral condition. She was five times divorced and was currently cohabiting with a man outside of marriage. Often we have looked at this passage with an emphasis on pity for this woman. She is seen as a victim, and no doubt she was to some degree. But we should not neglect the fact that she was also a participant and had her own moral responsibilities. There is a dreadful tendency to direct blame to some unidentified and vague “other”.  Jesus would have none of that.  She carried a distinct burden of guilt and it was hers justly. She was not a wholly innocent victim.

Confronted with the reality of the immorality of her life she turns the conversation to a question of religion. Many argue that this is an attempt by the woman to change the subject to take attention off her personal situation and move it onto a discussion of the vagaries of the locale of sacrifice. That may be misguided. She didn’t need to ask questions about where sacrifices should occur.  Every Samaritan knew how Jews would answer this question and every Jew knew how Samaritans answered this question.

What if this question was about “How do I effectively deal with my guilt?” Perhaps she was, by the realization that Jesus was special, was compelled to face the core issue of her life. Confronted by guilt perhaps she wants an answer to the question “How can I become un-guilty?” Sacrifices on Mount Gerizim haven't worked. Would sacrifices on Mount Zion be more effective? Guilt can be a wonderful thing. It can turn us and compel us to find a real solution, not just a cover up. It must never be used as a way to manipulate people, but like any real thing it can have value.  And guilt is very, very real. We are reluctant to be frank and honest with people when they feel guilty. It is easier to patronize them with vague spiritual delicacies so we will not have to get into the nitty-gritty of what makes us feel guilty. We are afraid they will say we are judgmental. But an important distinction needs to be made, we are judged by our own hearts, guilt is just the reminder. A reminder we want to avoid. It is better that we face it.

“Lord, send your conviction on me so that I will always seek Your forgiveness.  AMEN”

John 4:1-14

 John 4:1-14

As is often the case there's a powerful message in a little-noticed phrase of scripture. This one sentence can have very profound meaning for us. In verse 4 John tells us “He had to pass through Samaria”. He “had” to! Jesus is God made flesh what can compel Him to do anything? Additionally Jews who traveled from Galilee to Judea had alternative routes that allowed them to avoid Samaria. Going through Samaria was by no means a geographic necessity. In fact, since Jesus and his disciples were baptizing in the Jordan then the route through Samaria was out of the way. The “had to” was not geography.

What was the compelling force that called Jesus to go through Samaria? The expression of necessity is descriptive of the will of God. What took Him to Samaria was that it was what the Father wanted. Did Jesus know He would encounter this woman there? Did He have a foresight of the universal and positive reception of the people of Sychar? Perhaps He did perhaps not but He was responding to the will of the Father  and that is what we need to take away from this verse.

How did Jesus know this was the will of God? Did He interpret circumstances correctly? Was there an inner conviction? Perhaps a voice, dream, or vision prompted Him? We don't know but whatever the means the message got through and that was because of the closeness of the Son to the Father. In Discerning the will of God more important than all other factors is the intimacy with the Father! All other factors or guides can only be meaningful when a disciple is close to the Lord.

“Lord, prompt me to stay so close to You that in every moment I will understand and know Your will.  AMEN”