Luke 9

As Jesus began to shift His focus from public Ministry to teaching & preparing His disciples, He gave them power and authority and sent them out to preach the gospel and heal the sick, just as they had seen Him do.   Jesus also began to allude to His death and resurrection:  "The Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests and the teachers of the law, and he must be killed and on the third day be raised to life."   (This is a actually timely passage, with Easter coming up).   Jesus also mentioned the cross that just as He would suffer and die, He said, "Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me."   This means total commitment to following Christ daily in life, even to the point of death.

As Jesus sent the Apostles out, He gave them instructions which would help them rely on God to provide through the help of others, but also to be ready for those who would reject their message.  When they returned, they got another lesson in trusting God to provide, when Jesus performed the miracle of feeding the five thousand (which is recorded in all four Gospels).   God was able to use what they had (five loaves and two fish), though it appeared little, to feed all the people with twelve basketfuls of leftovers!   Thus, He is able to take what "little" we feel we have to offer, and use it above and beyond what we can imagine.

After ministry, we are once again reminded how important it is to REST.  Jesus took the Twelve to withdraw by themselves to a remote place after they returned from ministry; and later after feeding the five thousand, Jesus is recorded as "praying in private."

In this passage, we also see Herod wondering Who Jesus is, and we hear what the people were saying about Who they thought He might be, but Peter answered with "God's Messiah", the question that we should all answer "Who do YOU say that Jesus is?"   

Once again, v28 tells us that Jesus went up onto a mountain to PRAY.  It is clear in Luke's Gospel that Jesus spent much time in intimate communication with the Father - definitely an example for us to follow.   This time, as He is praying, He is transfigured displaying His glorious splendor.   He is joined by Moses and Elijah who represent the Law and Prophets - a reminder to us that Jesus came to fulfill the Law and the Prophets.  

Then, similar to the beginning of Christ's public MINISTRY at His Baptism, here towards the end of His public MINISTRY during the Transfiguration, the voice of God the Father affirms that Jesus is the Son, the Messiah.  And the command God gives is to "listen to Him".

Yet, with Peter's suggestion of building tents or tabernacles, the disciples being unable to cast out a demon due to their lack of faith, and  the argument among the disciples as to who would be the greatest - all showed that they did not understand that "the Son of Man is going to be delivered into the hands of men" to suffer and die to fulfill God's Plan of Salvation.   He was not going to reign as earthly King or sit on an earthly throne, as it appears the followers had envisioned.   He was going to usher in the eternal Kingdom, in which the least among them will be the greatest; a reminder of their call to proclaim the Kingdom to those who are humble in spirit.

In vs 51, "Jesus resolutely set out for Jerusalem".  With determination, He faces the CROSS, knowing all the sufferings and difficulties that will come with that.  He also shifts His focus from public MINISTRY (and miracles) to TEACHING His disciples (and parables).  

With the examples described by Luke, Jesus taught them that they were to be merciful, that there are great costs in following Him, including the need to place the Kingdom of God as a priority, without delays or distractions. 

Critics

Once again, I find myself in the position of having to confront my critics in class.  Their methods of talking to people outside of class, passing out books, inviting them to "Bible Studies", yet knowing full well that their theological perspective is different from that which is taught in my Church reminds me that there truly is a spiritual battle going on.  I need to ensure that I have put on my armor; and I am grateful that many are praying.   The elders and the pastor are also aware.

It's also interesting that a few weeks ago, I was fully prepared to talk with the critics, but, the main one has not been in class lately.    I can only say that God's timing is perfect and He must have a reason for this "delay".

For one, He's been speaking to me during devotions.   For the past few weeks, I've been reading where God has encouraged me and reminded me that:

• He prepares me for battle by going before me - "...Has not the Lord gone ahead of you?..." (Judges 4:14)
• He will go into battle with me - "Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you"  (Deut 31:6)
• Victory is His - "When Gideon heard the dream and its interpretation, he bowed down and worshiped. He returned to the camp of Israel and called out, 'Get up! The Lord has given the Midianite camp into your hands.'"  (Judges 7:15)

 I do place everything into God's Hands.   I trust that all will work out and it is comforting to know that the battle belongs to the Lord.  Amen.

17-Mar:  Today, we talked to the main critic and to one other.  I was at peace, and before worship, I even had a chance to talk to the elder overseeing instruction to let him know what I planned to say; and received his agreement.  So, after class, we made the request that they not continue to talk to others about their theological perspective, nor to pass out books from that perspective, nor to invite anyone to their Bible Study.  Though it was not so well received, I believe that it was the right thing to do, and I could feel the many prayers behind me.  A church should prevent any teachings contrary to its doctrines when it occurs within its walls especially when the differences are in areas of essential doctrine, particularly to protect those who may not be as discerning.  I feel that I have done what I needed to do; and if they continue, then the next step is to hand it over to the elders and the pastors.  I also feel like I just "fought a battle".  May God continue to grant me wisdom and guidance; and may He continue to protect my church and my class.  Amen.

BBC Robin Hood

The 2006-2009 BBC Robin Hood series I just recently watched is worthy of note.   The BBC produces some really good shows, and this one is no exception.  

Some of the things I liked most in this show are the prevalence of good over evil and the value of honor and integrity.   Also, the strength of the bonds of good relationships in this show, like those among Robin Hood's team, was beautiful and touching.

The changes in some of the characters over the three seasons were interesting to watch as well.  Guy of Gisborne went from being a puppet, to trying to exert himself, to being driven by self-loathing, and then ended his life on the "right side".   Some characters stayed consistent throughout their time on the show - like Little John and the Sheriff of Nottingham.  Marian's character was greatly missed during the third season.  And then there were some characters that were not really believable or likeable, such as Kate - that relationship with Robin just really should not have been.   And, the Isabella character didn't develop so nicely - seemed to have flaws in her story lines.   The flashback to the childhood and relationship between Robin and Guy were interesting, and was probably mainly used to set Archer up to continue the story.   But, it seemed to make sense for the whole series to end after the third season.

It was fitting to join Robin and Marian in the end, though both of their deaths were very sad.  Overall, despite some flaws, it was a really good series that was quite enjoyable to watch.  They don't seem to make shows like that nowadays anymore.

Luke 8

It's clear that in His Ministry, Jesus's message was the Good News of the Kingdom of God.  Chapter 8 shows us that the ministry was supported by women and others through their own means - a reminder that it is important to provide support for ministries.

In the parable of the Soils, it is clear that the Word of God (i.e. the seed) most effectively grows in the "noble and good heart" with good soil; in contrast to the wayside, rocky soil, and thorns.  The Word is to be put on a stand to shine, especially in light of the coming Judgment when all is disclosed.  And that those who are of the Kingdom will be "given more" as they are part of the family of God, the King.

With the calming of the storm, Jesus shows his humanity in His need for sleep; but also his powerful deity in His rebuke of the storm.   However, the disciples displayed their lack of faith and their lack of understanding that He is God.

The examples of Christ's ministry in the rest of the chapter also teach us some interesting lessons.   While Jesus once again demonstrated His power and authority by casting out the Legion of demons from the demon-possessed man into the herd of swine; unfortunately, the people of the region let their fears get in the way of allowing Jesus to stay and continue more of His ministry among them.   Sadly, they asked Jesus to leave, whereas they had tolerated the presence of the evil spirits in the demon-possessed man all this time.  This whole story makes me wonder how many times I have allowed my fears to get in the way of Jesus working in my life.

With the healing of the woman with the bleeding issue, we see that she is healed by her faith through just touching the edge of Jesus's cloak.   However, it is interesting that her plan was to just touch His cloak, be healed, and disappear into the crowd.   Yet when Jesus got her to come forward, He not only enabled the crowd and His disciples to become aware of this miracle; but, also gave the woman full healing.   He calls her "daughter", a term that shows caring and closeness; and also encouraged her not to fear and more importantly, that she could go in peace.   With the issue of bleeding, she had probably been declared unclean and would have been excluded from Jewish society; but, here, Jesus gives her complete healing and restores her fully.

To Jairus, as Jesus was going with him to his house, the delay caused by the healing of the woman may have appeared to have been devastating, for during that time his daughter died.  Yet, this demonstrates God's perfect timing, for then Jesus was able to raise his daughter from the dead which was a far more astonishing miracle than if He had just healed her from illness.   Also, the passages shows that Jairus and his wife did not seem to have a great amount of faith, but, this indicates that we only have to have a little faith for great things to happen since we have a great God.

Quiet Leadership

A recent quote I heard from Richard Armitage related to quiet leadership is one that really resonated with me - that quiet leadership INSPIRES loyalty rather than COMMANDS it.   I do think that it is more effective for people to want to follow a leader rather than to follow out of fear or whatever else externally motivates them.  And that's what he tried to emulate in his Thorin character in the Hobbit movie, which I felt was effectively done.