Jesus

Seeing Clearly

/ pastorpete51 / 5 Comments

Now among those who went up to worship at the feast were some Greeks. So these came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee, and asked him, “Sir, we wish to see Jesus.”  John 12:20-21 ESV

Recently I realized that I needed an updated eye exam and glasses. Road signs were appearing slightly blurred and reading had become a real chore. Finally, I made an appointment with a local vision center and a couple of weeks later happily walked out with a brand-new set of glasses. What a delight it was to easily read again, and the road signs now stood out crystal clear. When I read today’s passage, I think that maybe the disciples needed something like my eye exam and new glasses. Greeks had come looking for Jesus and those kinds of people were not at all who they were comfortable with. That morning as they had followed Jesus along the road, they had heard shouts of praise from the crowd and walked over palm branches that had been laid in the path. Then, while their heads were spinning from the pace of events, some Greeks came looking for Jesus. “Greeks!” Philip thought. “Oh no! We had to deal with those Pharisees, then the Samaritans, but now Greeks!” Philip, being unsure of what to do decided what many of us do in pressure situations: He passed the buck!

“Hey Andrew, there are some Greeks here who want to see Jesus. What do you think?” he asked. Andrew being no more certain of what to do than Philip, passed the buck again: this time to Jesus, “Jesus! You won’t believe it. Now there are even Greeks who want to see you. What are we supposed to do with Greeks?”

Jesus’ answer must have puzzled the disciples. “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit. Whoever loves his life loses it, and whoever hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life.” John 12:24-25

Today is no different. All around us are people we are not comfortable with. They come from faraway places, don’t speak our language and don’t even like our food, but they want to see Jesus. Passing the buck is not an option. Instead, Jesus said that we must be like a seed planted in a garden that dies before it grows. His plan is for us to surrender our plans and goals to Him, before He shows Himself to others through us. Then, when we turn in our old set of glasses and put on His Gospel lenses, we will begin to see people as Jesus does, and as a bonus we will see Jesus for ourselves more clearly than ever!

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The Lord is Near

/ pastorpete51 / 11 Comments

 The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:5b-7

In my lifetime there have been times that we prayed, and God miraculously answered, by healing my back so that I could return to work, blessing our children and grandchildren, so that nine out of ten are still serving the Lord and attending church regularly. But I have also begged for a daughter-in-law to be healed and yet she died, prayed for a son’s marriage, yet it still ended in divorce. At those moments, the promise of today’s Bible reading and God’s peace felt far away. But as I was listening to this chapter the other night, I noticed something which I had missed all these years. I missed it because I forgot that when Paul wrote his letter, he did not use chapters and verses. Now, usually those nifty divisions give us a great way to find a passage, but as I listened to the chapter being read, I realized that the end of verse five, gives us the reason we should have hope. He is at hand! (or in other translations, “He is near.”).

Paul urges us to pray with confidence, but not because we have great faith. Yes, faith was and always will be important, but not everyone that Jesus healed had a lot of faith. He raised a widow’s son from the dead, and we can be sure that fellow had zero faith because he was dead! But something else was at play even greater than our faith or our lack thereof. Jesus came so close to where they were that He could reach out and touch the funeral bier. Or, remember on the road to Emmaus, when two of the disciples were walking along, talking about the death of Jesus and strange reports they had heard about his resurrection. They had a lot of questions and doubts, but the Bible tells us, that Jesus came and walked along with them. We also see Mary standing outside the empty tomb weeping and asking the “gardener” where the body of Jesus was. Did Jesus show up and try to make her feel terrible about her doubts or ignore her tears? No! Jesus drew near. Do I understand all of what these passages mean? No! But they give me a peace that reaches far beyond anything that I understand. I remember that the Lord is near; He won’t allow hopes to be buried forever, he walks with us when we struggle with doubts, and he stands nearest when tears stream down our cheeks and He calls us by name!

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Quiet Like a Child

/ pastorpete51 / 1 Comment 
But I have calmed and quieted my soul, like a weaned child with its mother; like a weaned child is my soul within me. O Israel, hope in the Lord from this time forth and forevermore. Psalm 131 2-3 ESV

Psalm 131 is one of the fifteen Psalms titled, “Songs of Ascent” It is supposed that these were sung by pilgrims, making their way from all over Israel towards Jerusalem for the great festivals prescribed by God in the law of Moses. Since this Psalm appears near the end of that group, maybe at this point the temple is already in sight, or at least the outer walls of the city of Jerusalem. This unknown author was not someone of high rank. We don’t know his exact circumstances, but maybe it was as he paused to rest on his journey, that he was inspired to write. “I have calmed and quieted my soul, like a weaned child with its mother. ” Then taking a deep breath, he thrills in wonder at the magnificent sight of the Holy City, lying just ahead. Then a simple truth, comes like a gentle rain on a parched field. I imagine him taking a deep breath, thrilling in wonder at the magnificent sight of the Hoy City, lying just ahead. Though he wrote these words thousands of years ago, He is a lot like us. He, just a simple worshiper of Jehovah: has been not only commanded to appear, but God has invited him to come. This man, who is not a king entering the city gates in triumph, or a priest bringing a lamb for God’s altar, is accepted and even welcomed. Then he says, that, just as a weaned child rests upon His mother’s lap waiting for the new adult food that she will feed him, he realizes that God has something new for him as well. This morning, as he has quieted his hungry soul, he remembers David’s Psalm that tells him that God has prepared a banquet table in the wilderness and is waiting just for him. That truth awakening in Him such a joy, the writer knows that he must tell everyone! “O Israel, hope in the Lord, from this time forth and forevermore!”