What do you want?

The question that Jesus asked Andrew and John immediately cut to the heart of the matter. Jesus certainly puts them in a spot, but it is a question that echoes throughout the ages. What do we really want?

 "Jesus looked around and saw them following. “What do you want?” he asked them." - John 1:38

It is a question that invites self-examination, and I don’t believe that Jesus asked it in a condescending tone at all. Some translations have put the question as “what are you looking for?” or "what are you seeking?"

Let us try and picture the scene for a moment – the two disciples have moved away from John the Baptist (their teacher) and for a moment they are caught in no-man's land. Should they follow the 'Lamb of God' or should they stay with John?

Jesus senses they are edging closer to him, and he gets to the heart of the matter: 

What do you guys really want? What is going on in your heart? What are you searching for?

In truth, many disciples followed their teachers or leaders for any number of reasons: Were these two guys looking for a new career. Or a military Saviour? A security blanket? A person to debate with and do a little theological sparring?

Or was there a deeper desire that drove them to seek Jesus out?

And what about us? How do you answer that question today? 

What are we wanting from Jesus?

Living in Grace

D3LM3

P.S. If you missed out on listening to the sermon based on this Question, you are welcome to click on this link. 

Seeing but not noticing

 

As I was reading Genesis 42 this week, the following words left an impression on me:

"Although Joseph recognized his brothers, they did not recognize him." - Genesis 42:8

And I wondered, WHY? 

Why did they not recognize him? Had he changed so much in 13 years? Or were they just not expecting to see him at all, so there was no expectation that he would be standing in front of them?

This led me to some verses in the New Testament, where people didn't recognize Jesus either. Some of them did eventually have their 'aha' moments, but others still couldn't see him.

Luke 24:31 - Then their eyes were opened, and they recognized him, and he disappeared from their sight.

John 1:10 - He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him.

Thought: How do we recognize Christ in our everyday lives? Do we truly have eyes to see him? What gifts of God are right in front of us, but we refuse to notice them?

Living in Grace

D3LM3

Do we live like Pontius Pilate or rather like Nathaniel?

The question of whether Jesus is a King (or not) troubled Pilate. He could see there was something remarkable about Jesus but couldn't bring himself to see Jesus as a king. Pilate's vision was too narrow - all he imagined was another worldly ruler, come to exert power and to challenge his leadership. Yet, there was something in Jesus that moved Pilate to ask some deep questions, especially regarding Truth.

"Pilate then went back inside the palace, summoned Jesus and asked him, “Are you the king of the Jews?” - John 18:33

On the other hand, Nathaniel didn't need much convincing. He encountered Jesus and soon expressed his devotion:

John 1:48-49 - “How do you know me?” Nathanael asked.
Jesus answered, “I saw you while you were still under the fig tree before Philip called you.”
Then Nathanael declared, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God; you are the king of Israel.”

Thought: Are we more like Pontius Pilate or Nathaniel?

Living in Grace

D3LM3

When did it all begin?

There is a lot of debate around the origins of Christmas. Many Christians point out that Jesus probably wasn't born in December, and they would be right. The trouble is, we don't have conclusive evidence to mark his actual birth date, otherwise we would surely be celebrating his birthday on that date. 

I found these interesting comments from Britannica.com, which I would like to add to the mix:

The actual observance of the day of Jesus’ birth was long in coming. In particular, during the first two centuries of Christianity there was strong opposition to recognizing birthdays of martyrs or, for that matter, of Jesus. Numerous Church Fathers offered sarcastic comments about the pagan custom of celebrating birthdays when, in fact, saints and martyrs should be honoured on the days of their martyrdom—their true “birthdays,” from the church’s perspective.

This is an interesting point and would mean that we could end up celebrating Jesus's birthday around the time of Easter. I do like the idea of our death as being the 'birth' of eternity, which would tie in with John's thoughts on being born again. However, Jesus didn't need a 2nd birth, as he was without sin, so this is also tricky. 

In the end, I feel that we waste a lot of time and energy debating something that we can't solve with satisfactory answers. However, this doesn't stop us from pausing to remember the impact of the birth of Jesus. Surely the message of the 'Word made flesh' and the fact that Jesus lived and died for our sakes, should make all the difference?

What do you think?

"The Word became flesh and blood,
and moved into the neighbourhood.
We saw the glory with our own eyes,
the one-of-a-kind glory,
like Father, like Son,
Generous inside and out,
true from start to finish." - John 1:14

Living in Grace

D3LM3

You can't capture it!

I came across this picture when I was busy preparing for the Tenebrae service last week. What struck me about it was that the candle seems to be "captured" in the cage, but the bars can't keep the light from shining through. This is the gist of what I preached on that evening - that even though the Romans and religious authorities tried to hide Jesus' Light, he was still able to shine into the lives of the people.

The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness can never extinguish it. (NLT) (John 1:5)

May the Light of Jesus shine in your hearts and lives today.

Living in grace

D3LM3

I am not ready for Easter!

I was shocked to walk into a supermarket today and find that they had already put out Easter Eggs. I may have said something under my breath, but that would be inappropriate to repeat on this blogpost :) 

I am still trying to figure the whole thing out, to be honest. Easter is in the middle of April this year - that makes it 3 months away. And so there can be no other reason for the display of chocolate eggs than commercial greed, unless I am missing something. Couldn't the store owners wait a week or two? 

As you are well aware, I am huge fan of spending time in preparation for our Holy days - Lent for Easter time and Advent for Christmas, are two of my personal favourites. There are also many significant Holy days in between Easter and Christmas, and I feel we should be observing these too. Perhaps this is why I over reacted to the sight of the eggs - I feel we rush through these seasons without truly digesting their great significance for our lives.  

It is only 4 days into 2022 and I am still wanting to dwell on the miracle of the 'Word made flesh', as well as the Epiphany of the Magi. I need time to process my own surrender to our King and what gifts I want to offer God this year. I am definitely no were near ready to start my journey towards Easter. 

John 1:14 - "The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth."

How do you feel? Any thoughts are welcome.

Living in Grace

D3LM3

P.S. No chocolate Easter Eggs were harmed in the writing of this post, although a few Christmas chocolates may now be consumed to calm my shattered nerves :) 

Out of the shadows

Most of us reading these words are familiar with the idea of the Incarnation - God becoming flesh and living amongst us. Sadly, this idea loses its magnitude in the fog of our religious language and rhetoric. This morning I was reading these words from Leonardo Boff and the image of the Incarnation struck home again:

"God has left the resplendent shadows of an inaccesible abode and now draws near the murky light of the human race. God enters the conflict, takes up the cause of the conquered and the marginalised against the mighty...the mercy of God is not reserved for the end time alone."

Question: Why would God leave the glorious light of His abode to come close to the dingy light of planet earth?

Answer: For us. 

John 1:14 - ^"And Christ became a human being and lived here on earth among us and was full of loving forgiveness and truth."

Living in Grace 

D3LM3 

 

You have a Hope

 

We are reminded again that God is more interested in our future than in our past. When Jesus meets Simon Peter the following interaction takes place.

^"The first thing Andrew did was to find his brother Simon and tell him, “We have found the Messiah” (that is, the Christ). And he brought him to Jesus. Jesus looked at him and said, “You are Simon son of John. You will be called Cephas” (which, when translated, is Peter)." - John 1:41-42

For many of us we can't undo the past, but through the Grace of Jesus we have a glorious future. Jesus knows who Simon is (his background, hopes, dreams and failures), BUT he knows what he can become. He will called the Stone, the Rock - Cephas.

Our struggle for 2020 may need to begin in letting go of our past and believing in the amazing future Christ has in store for us.

Living in Grace

D3LM3

God will make a way

Don Moen wrote an inspiring song about 20 years ago and I was reminded of this song this past week. The words are a great reminder that even when things look bleak, God can make a way for us.

"God will make a way
Where there seems to be no way
He works in ways we cannot see
He will make a way for me.

He will be my guide
Hold me closely to His side
With love and strength for each new day
He will make a way, He will make a way."

John 1:23 - John replied in the words of Isaiah the prophet, “I am the voice of one calling in the wilderness, ‘Make straight the way for the Lord.’”

Living in Grace

D3LM3

The ladder

In his philosophical take on faith, Soren Kierkegaard spoke about how we are united with God. He notes: "we become united with God NOT by climbing a mystical ladder to heaven, but by God's descending to our level and claiming us for his own."

I think this is such a beautiful picture of Grace. We often misunderstand our spiritual quests as the work we do in order to reach God; however, we forget that the work has already been done by Jesus, who climbed down the "ladder" (the Incarnation) so that God could be with us.

If you faith seems as if you are constantly trying to climb another rung on the ladder, to get closer to Jesus, perhaps take a break and allow Christ to step into your world.

John 1:14 -  The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.

Living in Grace
D3LM3

Messiah in the Mess

 

As we got to reflect on the deeper meaning of Christmas this year, I was reminded again of how God came into the middle of our world - into the brokenness of humanity to offer us hope and peace. It is such Good News to hold onto the promise of the MESSIAH being with us in the 'mess' of things. God didn't run away from the chaos, but chose to reveal himself in the midst of all our trouble.

May these words offer you hope and grace this Christmas season. Immanuel is with us.

Messiah in the Mess

Christ in the Chaos

Jesus in the Jumble

Baby in the Bedlam

Child in the Confusion

Saviour in the Shambles

Redeemer in the Wreck

John 1:14 -  So the Word became human and made his home among us. He was full of unfailing love and faithfulness. And we have seen his glory, the glory of the Father’s one and only Son.

Living in Grace

D3LM3

Unfailing

"Surely your goodness and unfailing love will pursue me all the days of my life..." - Psalm 23:6

There are not many things in today's world that won't eventually fail. Light bulbs will fail and blow. Batteries run out of energy and 'fail'. Cars, computers, phones, TV's, and many other electrical appliances work for a limited time period and then they fail. I guess it is just a reality of life.

However, having said this, isn't it wonderful to know that the LOVE God has for us is unfailing? It will never ever run out of steam, energy, power or cease to exist. God's love is from everlasting to everlasting.

It is also interesting that the word UNFAILING appears over 120 times in the Bible. Makes me think that God wanted us to know this wonderful truth.

John 1:14 - "So the Word became human and made his home among us. He was full of unfailing love and faithfulness."

Living in Grace
D3LM3

New Scandal

We have become immune to the word 'Scandal.' We see it everyday on the billboards around town and on every second headline on the news. This politician, or that actor. A sports star or a musician. A church leader or a teacher. Scandal after scandal after scandal.

With all this happening around us, we have become numb to the greatest act of love of all time - the life and death of Jesus Christ, that became a 'Scandal' in his time. The fact that a King would die in place of his followers was totally unheard of - it is almost scandalous to suggest that this would happen. But it DID! And through the love of God we are given a opportunity to be part of God's family again.



John 1:12 - Out of his fullness we have all received grace in place of grace already given.

"Grace, what have you done?

Murdered for me on that cross
Accused in absence of wrong
My sin washed away in your blood

 

Too much to make sense of it all
I know that your love breaks my fall
The scandal of grace, you died in my place
So my soul will live

 

Oh to be like you
Give all I have just to know you
Jesus, there's no one besides you
Forever the hope in my heart..." - Hillsong, Scandal of Grace

Living in Grace

D3LM3