John 20: 8-9
Then the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went in, and he saw and believed; for as yet they did not understand the Scripture, that he must rise from the dead.
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After Jesus telling his disciples on multiple occasions that he must be tortured, killed, buried and resurrected, they didn’t quite get it. They didn’t fully understand. Even after Jesus did rise from the grave, they weren’t camped outside of his grave, waiting expectantly to see their teacher conquer death. They didn’t believe. They didn’t understand.
And really, who can blame them?
There’s a problem that develops after you’ve been a follower of Jesus for a while. Call it pride, call it over-learning, call it whatever you want. At the bottom of it it’s the thoughts and feelings of, “I’ve heard this already,” or, “I learned this a long time ago,” or, “I can’t believe they acted that way,” or, “I can’t believe they didn’t have faith.” Somehow, we come to think if we were in the shoes of Peter or Thomas that we wouldn’t have acted like they did; we would have believed everything Jesus said without question. Somehow, we come to think that if we were in Judas’ shoes, there’s no way we would have betrayed Jesus.
But one of the points of fallen humanity, is that we’re all fallen. Some people look at the Jewish people throughout the Bible and say, “they are the most stiff-necked people on the planet,” but it doesn’t matter who God chose to be his people, anyone would have gone astray and disobeyed God. Also, really think about the resurrection. I mean, really think about it. Prior to Jesus’ resurrection there may have been instances where people consulted the dead through spiritual mediums, or famous stories of people being brought back to life; but when in history has someone ever claimed that they would be arrested, tortured, killed, buried, and then raised again after being dead for two nights? When has someone ever predicted their own resurrection from death? No single person on the planet could make that statement unless they were planning an elaborate false death plot; in which case they wouldn’t truly have been resurrected.
Resurrection from the dead is unheard of. It just doesn’t happen. But somehow, John believes it; even though he doesn’t yet understand that Scripture says Jesus will be raised from death, he believes that it’s happened. So even though he doesn’t quite grasp the concept, he believes. He hasn’t heard a sermon or convincing argument for it, he just believes. But it’s not blind faith. It isn’t believing “just because.” John believes based on who he’s seen and known Jesus to be. At this point, he’s unable to point to any scripture in the Old Testament that says the messiah will be resurrected; but he knows who the messiah is. He’s seen him do miraculous things. He’s heard him say amazing things. He’s had private, personal conversations with him. He’s left everything to follow him because he genuinely believed Jesus was the promised Christ. And now that he sees an empty tomb, where he knows Jesus was buried, he believes.
But I’ll bet that John also had doubt, even though he believed. It’s a funny thing, but faith and doubt exists in us at the same time, at any given time. The reason we only need a little bit of faith (like the size of a mustard seed), is because there is a very big God. If you have a lot of faith and a big God, you’ll see God do big things. But even if you have a little faith, you still have a big God, and you’ll still see God do big things. Everyone has doubt, and it’s okay. God is patient and merciful with doubt (rebellion is a different story). Even if you have doubts, take heart in the faith you do have.
Doubt
Righteousness & The Poor
Jeremiah 22
13 "Woe to him who builds his house by unrighteousness, and his upper rooms by injustice, who makes his neighbor serve him for nothing and does not give him his wages,
14 who says, 'I will build myself a great house with spacious upper rooms,' who cuts out windows for it, paneling it with cedar and painting it with vermilion.
15 Do you think you are a king because you compete in cedar? Did not your father eat and drink and do justice and righteousness? Then it was well with him.
16 He judged the cause of the poor and needy; then it was well. Is not this to know me? declares the LORD.
17 But you have eyes and heart only for your dishonest gain, for shedding innocent blood, and for practicing oppression and violence."
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Specifically, this is a message for Shallum, the son of king Josiah, who did evil in God's sight, not following the way of his father.
Basically, he accuses Shallum of being selfish and caring only for himself and his matters, when he is born to be a leader and a king. He has riches, yet he does not pay his workers properly. He builds and decorates his house with wealth, but he does not take care of the poor in the land.
His father, Josiah, on the other hand, was wealthy yet was fair to his workers and dealt righteously with the poor of the land. It says that Josiah ate and drank fine food, and then would also do justice and righteousness. And then God says, "Is not this what it means to know me?"
What a statement! We like to think that knowing God is about praying and going to church and reading the Bible (which are certainly necessary), but God makes multiple statements to say that acting in righteousness is what it means to truly know him.
Jesus himself said to his disciples, "You are my friends if you do what I command you." He says this as he teaches them to love one another just as he has loved them; that there is no greater love than someone laying down his life for his friends. He accuses the Pharisees of being righteous on the outside, but inside being full of hypocrisy and lawlessness (Matthew 23:28).
To know God is to live life with his heart. Knowing God is not simply a state of mind, it's action that proceeds from knowledge of him.
What strikes me time and time again is the connection between righteousness and caring for the poor (Leviticus 19:15; Deuteronomy 15:9-11; 1 Samuel 2:8; Psalm 9:18; Psalm 12:5; Psalm 35:10; Psalm 40:17; Psalm 72:2-4; Psalm 112:9 [2 Corinthians 9:9 cites this verse]; Proverbs 31:9; Isaiah 11:4; Ezekiel 22:29; Amos 4:1; Amos 5:12).
Proverbs 29:7 says, "A righteous man knows the rights of the poor; a wicked man does not understand such knowledge."
We also tend to think that God judged Sodom because of sexual immorality, but Ezekiel 16:49 tells clearly what Sodom was guilty of: "Behold, this was the guilt of your sister Sodom: she and her daughters had pride, excess of food, and prosperous ease, but did not aid the poor and needy." God is clear that his righteousness is intertwined with caring for the poor and needy.
Not to say that other things aren't a part of God's righteousness. Also, not to say that we should only focus our church efforts on missions, outreach, and the poor; but we simply can't remove the poor from the equation. Also, to be clear, the opposite of upholding the cause of the poor is in verse 17 of Jeremiah 22; to have a life set "only for your dishonest gain, for shedding innocent blood, and for practicing oppression and violence."
I'll be honest, I'm not the model for upholding the cause of the poor. But it is something that has been growing in my heart. And I think that's the point. The only way to true righteousness is to have the heart of God, which no one has from birth. It requires God's Spirit to be in you, so your heart can be changed and awakened to his righteousness. If you claim to know God, this should be something within you; or you should at least be open to it.
So, my prayer is that God's people would be much more active in not just caring for the poor, but bringing them close to God. And it all starts with me. I can't just watch the church do it and applaud; I need to be in the game. And I feel the church (in the West) is beginning to realize this more and more, and they're beginning to act on it. I think the global church has this in mind, and it's awesome to see. It's such a bigger picture than I realize and it's an amazing thing to be a part of.
Jesus said that we would always have the poor (Matthew 26:11; also mentioned in Deuteronomy 15:11); so it's important to know that we can't eradicate poverty from earth. Only God's kingdom can make that a reality. And I want to be a part of that reality. But it can't be done apart from knowing God. There are so many organizations that are helping the poor; but the poor don't just need food, water, and shelter, they need God's kingdom. Let's be the people who play our part.
The Way, Truth, Life
In John 14, verse 6, Jesus says that he is "the way, the truth, and the life." It's a verse that's familiar to most Christians. It's also the trump card we often use to prove to non-believers that they need Jesus in their hearts or else they'll go to hell. But as I read the whole chapter, it becomes yet another reminder to me, and for every Christian, that it is unbiblical and unloving and unfair to drop John 14:6 on anyone as a trump card.
Jesus is talking here about ascending into heaven after he is crucified and resurrected. He's saying that where he's going, no one can follow him, not even his closest disciples. But where he's going, he's going to be preparing it to receive his followers; and they will know the way to where he's going. One of Jesus' disciples, Thomas, tells him that they don't know the way; "How can we know the way?" He asks.
Then Jesus answers, "I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." So Jesus is talking about something very specific here. He's saying there's a way to this place he's going to and preparing. And in essence he says that he himself is the way. It's not a path to be followed or a trail to be walked; it's him, it's Jesus.
He's talking about the way to God. He says that he and the Father are one. If you know Jesus, you know God the Father because they are both one. Then Thomas speaks up again, "Show us the Father, and it is enough for us." He's saying "(my own words) This is hard to understand. Just show us God, show us the Father, show us where he is and then we'll know the way; we'll know how to get there." Jesus reiterates that they have been seeing the Father all along because they have been with him for a long time now. Anyone who sees Jesus has also seen God.
Verses 11 and 12, I think, are key to understanding all of this. It helps to understand what we're actually supposed to do about all of this. Whenever we mention that Jesus is the way, the truth and the life, we should always have verses 11 and 12 follow:
11 "Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me, or else believe on account of the works themselves.
12 Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes in me will also do the works that I do; and greater works than these will he do, because I am going to the Father."
Here's what it all means: Jesus is the way to God, because he is God. He was here on earth for a time, but had to go back to heaven. If he indeed is the way to God, but is no longer here, who will show others "the way?"
Since the disciples had been with Jesus, they knew him. Even if they didn't believe that he was God, he tells them to believe that statement based on all the things they had seen Jesus do (heal the sick, forgive sins, cleanse lepers, raise the dead, cast out demons, etc.). He then tells them to go out and do the same things he did. Why? Because some people will not believe in Jesus through words alone. Some people will only believe if they see the works of God happening in their midst.
The next time we are eager to tell someone that Jesus is the way, the truth and the life. We should always be eager to pair that with showing them the works of God. If you have no evidence to show the work of God that you have seen with your own eyes, what right have you to tell anyone that Jesus is the only way to God?
I don't think this means you had to have seen anyone raised from the dead, or that you have to have been crippled but now can walk. But it does mean that you should be able to point others to a tangible example of the miraculous work of God in your life. Has he truly changed your life in a way that otherwise would have been impossible? Then tell people about that. Let's not be eager to just point to Jesus without being able to point back at ourselves saying, "here's the proof."
Samaria is in Kailua
This morning I was listening to my devotional reading as I was walking from the office to Starbucks. Since I was feeling pretty sleepy, I figured a nice walk would work well together with a hot latte. After crossing the street I saw one of the resident beggars, Michael, sitting on a bench and instantly knew I was going to have a short conversation with him. He stood up and walked with me for a bit talking about how he needed $1.89 to buy a huge bottle of water because he was thirsty and he’s living on $5 a day. I remembered a while back he told me he was getting a check every week, but he kept blowing it on booze and food. I asked him about the check and he said he doesn’t get it anymore because he’s gone to jail a few times since for trespassing on his sister’s house.
The only cash I had on me was $1 and I had planned on using it for coffee but gave it to Mike instead. The whole time I could smell weed on him. I assume that other people have also felt this way, but I wasn’t confident that the dollar was going to go to a bottle of water. The only thing that really pushed me over was the lostness and despair in his eyes. He seemed more lost than before.
I walked away and continued listening to my audio Bible and bought a latte with my debit card. I thought “Isn’t it funny that I would struggle to give a dollar to someone, but have no problem spending three bucks on myself?”
There was a long line, so the New Testament reading that played while I was waiting was John, chapter 4.
I was listening to how a Samarian woman at a well came to draw water and Jesus initiates a conversation with her. He tells her that anyone who comes to this well to drink water will eventually have to come back again, because they’ll get thirsty again. But if anyone drinks of the “living” water that he himself will give to people, they will never be thirsty again (vv.13-15). It just seemed a little too beyond coincidence that Michael had asked me for money to buy water and that he was so thirsty. He’s never asked me for money to buy water before. It’s always been for juice or soda or food. The best I could muster up was one dollar, and I had a hard time with that. Yet I totally missed an opportunity to speak about living water, just like Jesus had done.
Then as I was leaving Starbucks, I had to walk back to my office, so I would cross paths with him again if he was still there. “Good,” I thought, “If he’s still there I’ll totally do it. I have no idea what the first thing I’ll say is, but I’ll give it a shot.” And then I had this conflicting thought that I didn’t really want to do it. He already kinda knows me and knows that I work at the church and I’ve prayed with him once or twice before, but I still somehow felt uncomfortable talking to him about God. So I considered crossing the street so I could be on the opposite side of the crosswalk from where he originally was. Then I realized that Jesus could have gone around Samaria if he had wanted to. In fact, every other Jew made it a point to cross the Jordan River and walk north, then cross the river again when they made it near Galilee, just so they could avoid having to walk through Samaria and *heaven forbid* speak to any Samaritans.
As you can guess, by this point I’m feeling pretty bad about myself. I felt plain horrible to have considered avoiding Michael again so I wouldn’t have to talk about something weird like living water and Jesus. I decided to just go straight and if he’s there, he’s there. I was pretty convinced that the Lord wanted me to have this conversation with him. He wasn’t there. I assume he went to go buy water.
But I missed it. I missed an opportunity. Jesus also told the woman at the well that God’s worshipers must worship him “in spirit and truth” (vv.23-24). My actions this morning show me that I wasn’t willing to live in the Spirit, and I wasn’t willing to speak the truth. The Christian life goes far beyond believing in Jesus and having him in your heart and reading your Bible and praying before meals; there must be a physical element of truth in our faith. One of Jesus’ brothers, James, later wrote that “faith apart from (good) works is dead” (James 2:26).
Lord, please forgive me and grant me another opportunity to speak to Michael words of truth, but also to show him in a real way that I’m not just interested in preaching to him, but that I’m genuinely concerned for his well-being, and for him to know you. Please burn this into my heart so that I cannot resist but speak what you put on my lips. May I be a faithful servant whenever and wherever I am. Help me in this Lord and change me.
"I will never leave you nor forsake you"
Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have, for he has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.”
(Hebrews 13:5 ESV)
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I’ve often heard people quote this verse from Joshua 1:5, that God will never leave or forsake us. I hear it a lot when people are going through rough seasons, or just during prayer. I’m not saying that this verse is always taken out of context or misused, I think it does apply in those situations; but it’s interesting to me that I never realized the author of Hebrews quotes it in the context of being content and free from the love of money. The “I will never leave you nor forsake you” Scripture is used to show that God’s presence is more than enough for us to be content and not under the rule and love of money or possessions.
When I think about it, it makes perfect sense that the eternal God of all creation’s presence with me and within me, working in and through my life and guiding and correcting and disciplining me throughout all I do--that’s something not everyone can say they have. If I’m honest, I find that I’m not always content just to be where I am, with what I have. My nature is to always want more.
Steve Jobs announces new gadgets and I want them. And whoever directs the advertisements for Apple products makes me feel like I absolutely have to have that specific product because it makes life so much better and improves the condition of the world. Why is it hard for me to remember that even when I get my hands on something I’ve been wanting, it doesn’t fix anything, I’ll still want more and more.
So this context shows me that God’s promise to never leave or forsake his people enables me to be content with what I have and helps me be free from the love of money.
But when we look at it’s original setting (God speaking to Joshua on the east of the Jordan as Israel was preparing to cross into Canaan), God means it in a completely different sense than money and contentment.
Joshua 1:5-6
[5] No man shall be able to stand before you all the days of your life. Just as I was with Moses, so I will be with you. I will not leave you or forsake you. [6] Be strong and courageous, for you shall cause this people to inherit the land that I swore to their fathers to give them.
Here, Joshua is charged with a military assignment. He’s going to lead a brand new nation of wanderers of some thousands of warriors into a land filled with experienced armies, giant warriors, and fortified cities. Against these overwhelming odds, God assures Joshua that he will not leave or forsake him throughout this task.
So it’s also meant to show that against overwhelming odds, when God’s people are obedient to him and his chosen leaders, he will bring them all through the valley of the shadow of death.
But even more than that, verses 7-8 shed even more light on what God intends for us to understand why he won’t leave or forsake his people:
[7] Only be strong and very courageous, being careful to do according to all the law that Moses my servant commanded you. Do not turn from it to the right hand or to the left, that you may have good success wherever you go. [8] This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.
Here God adds that there must be obedience to his word and commandments. There isn’t just going to be military success; we aren’t just going to be content and free from love of money, God’s presence with us and among us is also meant to faithfully serve him in daily obedience to his word, “for then” our way is made prosperous, and we will have success, or be free from love of money and filled with contentment. God’s presence is coupled with his word. There isn’t any way around it.
THE Spirit
Isaiah 11:2
And the Spirit of the LORD shall rest upon him, the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and the fear of the LORD.
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In speaking of Jesus, Isaiah prophesies that God's Spirit will rest upon him. The Holy Spirit is the very spirit of God. Here Isaiah describes 3 pairs of the Holy Spirit's attributes:
wisdom and understanding;
counsel and might;
knowledge and the fear of the Lord.
Isaiah says even more explicitly that the Holy Spirit is THE Spirit of these things. Only the Spirit of God can give true wisdom and understanding in it's fullest measure. Only the Holy Spirit can give true counsel and empower people with the strength (or might) of the Lord. Only the Holy Spirit can give knowledge of God, and enable the proper fear of God. I think even in our fallen nature, we are able to touch on these things, but we are unable to experience them in their fullness. We can have a certain measure of wisdom and understanding, but until the Spirit comes upon you and dwells in you, the fullness of wisdom and understanding are not possible for anyone.
This does not discount the fact that the heart is wicked above all things and that we are hopelessly dead in our sin. But being made in God's image, by default, gives us a measure of divine wisdom. Atheists and haters of God have this. But they nonetheless are blinded because they reject the fullness of God's wisdom in his Spirit.
For myself, there are days that being a Christian feels so hum-drum and flat. I honestly don't always feel like I have a spirit of wisdom, understanding, counsel, might, knowledge and fear of God. But this verse reminds me that these things are always present in my life, but I choose to stand on them or not.
It also helps me reorder my priorities and it gives me a direction to focusing my life. Today I need to lean on the Holy Spirit for all wisdom, counsel, strength, and knowledge. Also, and maybe most importantly, to fear the Lord properly. In verse 3 of Isaiah 11, it says that the Messiah's joy will be in the fear of the Lord. It says he will delight in the fear of God. This is a funny phrase, isn't it? that delight will be found in the fear of something?
But I think wisdom and understanding leads to that truth. The simple fact that God exists, deserves our fear. Who doesn't fear things greater than themselves? From astronomical catastrophes to cockroaches, we fear things. Ultimately, only God is worthy of fear, but we can't give him that if we don't know him or if we aren't familiar with his riches and his depth. The Spirit of God provides this, and this is the foundation of knowledge and understanding.
When this is the foundation of all my wisdom, I can properly access counsel and knowledge and might and understanding. Since this is a prophecy about the Messiah, Jesus had these things to a perfect degree, and the Scripture then goes on to describe what the Messiah would do under the power of the Spirit, what his reign and character would be like. To really understand how the Spirit of God works with a person, I need to go to Jesus and study him; learn from him and seek his wisdom. There isn't any other way. Isaiah never prophesied that God's Spirit would rest on Hanzo and empower me to lead his kingdom; I need to seek the King first and foremost.
King of Everything
Hebrews 2:8b-9
Now in putting everything in subjection to him, he left nothing outside his control. At present, we do not yet see everything in subjection to him.
But we see him who for a little while was made lower than the angels, namely Jesus, crowned with glory and honor because of the suffering of death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone.
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I'm having one of those, "How did I never see these verses?!?" moments.
Interpreters are mixed about verses 7-8. Is the author talking about Jesus, or about mankind in general? Personally, I think it's talking about man in general, because verse 9 sounds very clarifying as it introduces Jesus into this argument. Also, since the rest of Hebrews deals largely with Jesus' superiority to all things, especially to our earthly priesthood (and even angels), it makes sense for the author to begin with an inferior frame of reference (namely, fallen humanity).
Genesis 1:26-28 make it very clear that God created mankind to have all things created under subjection to him; this was man's responsibility from the start. Throughout the Old Testament, God still shows this was his plan. That's why he chose people to carry out his will: Noah, Abraham, Moses, David. These people were to make God's plan a reality, to rule the world in righteousness and fulfill mankind's original responsibility.
Ultimately, God fulfills his original plan through Jesus, who himself is God; but it's not cosmic cheating, because God becomes fully human. So in the end, the entire world is put under the subjection of mankind, and the king of man is divinely perfect. God's plan is accomplished, and it becomes even better, since Jesus is also God himself. What grabs my attention here is how it says in verse 8 that we don't even see everything in subjection to God's kingdom. If we specifically talk about Jesus as the king of God's kingdom, we don't even see completely everything that Jesus rules over. We see the world, but we can't see all of the world. As connected as we are today, we don't really fully see the full extent of Jesus' lordship; that's why we're continuously amazed when we hear about remote places and cultures being saved.
It also means that the spiritual realm is under Jesus' rule. In Matthew 28, before the Great Commission, Jesus says that ALL authority has been given to him, IN HEAVEN and ON EARTH (v.18). There are realms and things we can't see, and Jesus is king of it all. This helps me so much because there are so many times I find myself struggling over things like finances and whether my family or friends will be saved, things I feel I have no control over because I can't see everything...and yet Jesus is lord of it all. He's king over a whole realm I can't even see; he's just the king of everything. It doesn't matter whether I can see it or not.
Even though we can't totally comprehend and understand even a fraction of God's wisdom, the point is that we CAN see the king. The author of Hebrews here in verse 9 says that we don't see everything in subjection to God, we can and should see Jesus, and he is more than enough. We don't need to see all things, we just need to see the one who has it all under control.
