Confrontation in Nazareth (8)

 

 

“And He was teaching in their synagogues and was praised by all” (Luke 4:15).

 

Why did Jesus return to Nazareth when He was being so well received by the rest of Galilee? Having returned, why did He choose a passage and an interpretation of that passage that was certain to elicit backlash? Having returned, why didn’t Jesus modify His message?

 

Why didn’t Jesus simply build on (what we would term) His momentum and bypass Nazareth, at least for the moment?

 

We can ask a similar question when we consider Mark 1:35 – 38 (also at the beginning of His ministry). In this instance “everyone was looking for Jesus” but Jesus replies, “Let us go somewhere else…for that is what I came for.” Again, why didn’t Jesus remain in Capernaum and build on His momentum?

 

Jesus obviously was not reading church growth literature, nor was He reading the latest in leadership material, nor was He aware of how important financial support was and growing a budget, nor did He understand the importance of securing a solid homebase of operations. Nor was Jesus aware of how important it is to win your audience over to you.

 

Having shocked the congregation with Isaiah 61, why push them over the edge by bringing into His message the widow of Zarephath and Naaman the Syrian?

 

The only response I have to these questions is: Man builds on success; God builds on obedience.

 

“Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, unless it is something He sees the Father doing; for whatever the Father does, these things the Son also does in like manner” (John 5:18 – 19).

 

Perhaps we should recall Paul’s words to the Galatians, “For am I now seeking the favor of men, or of God? Or am I striving to please men? If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a bondservant of Christ” (Galatians 1:10).

 

“As was His custom” (Luke 4:16)

 

Throughout His ministry Jesus visited synagogues and the Temple in Jerusalem, visits which resulted in clashes between the Spirit and the flesh, grace and the Law, man’s tradition and God’s Word, the self-righteousness of man and the holy righteousness of God. In the passage before us, the congregation attempted to murder Him. In Mark 3:1 – 6 (again, early in His ministry), healing in a synagogue resulted in the Pharisees and Herodians plotting how to murder Him.

 

Jesus’ visits to Judea and Jerusalem entailed the risk of death (John 5:16; 7:32; 8:59; 10:31; 11:53, 80), and of course finally led to His betrayal and crucifixion – as well as His resurrection!

 

Jesus may have entered the synagogue in Nazareth as was His custom, but He did not enter that synagogue, nor any synagogue, to do what was customary. The same is true for His visits to the Temple in Jerusalem.

 

I suppose we could say that Jesus was not very well behaved in that He did not conform to the old wineskins, but rather spoke the Word of His Father; comforting the afflicted and afflicting the comfortable.

 

As we ponder these things, perhaps we ought not to be too hard on the synagogue folks, after all, how do we respond when Jesus comes into the synagogue of our own heart to speak the Word of His Father? When I read of Jesus cleansing the Tempe, both in John 2:13 (at the beginning of His ministry) and in Matthew 21:12 (at the conclusion of His earthly ministry), I picture Him in the temple of my soul, my heart, my mind…casting out those things which ought not to be there, overturning the tables in my own life.

 

What is my response to Jesus when He comes into my temple? Do I submit to Him or do I try to kill Him? Jesus begins in me with cleansing, He continues in me with cleansing, and now, toward the conclusion of my pilgrimage, He continues to cleanse, to overturn tables – to get my attention.

 

I suppose I could say that the Lord Jesus continues to interrupt my “order of service.” How impolite, yet how merciful.

 

Malachi writes, “The Lord, whom you seek, will suddenly come to His temple.” We see this in the Gospels, we see this on the Day of Pentecost, and we see this in our own lives (if we will receive Him) and (more rarely perhaps) in the lives of our congregations.

 

What book of Scripture is Jesus opening today in our temple? What is He saying in our individual lives, our marriages, our families, our congregations? We can be pretty certain that whatever Jesus is saying will challenge our customs, our ways of doing things – because you just can’t put new wine into new wineskins (Matthew 9:17).

 

We can also trust that He will be teaching us from things “both old and new” (Matthew 13:52).

 

And may I add, that Jesus is patient with us – while He is impatient with evil and unrighteousness and oppression – He is patient with us, He has come that we might have life and have it abundantly. We see His patience with Peter, not just in the Gospels, but also in Acts and in Galatians (Chapter Two). This gives me hope…great hope for myself in Christ.

 

I hope I am not presuming to much when I suggest that when Jesus overturns the furniture in our temples, that He will dispose of the mess and bring the glorious furniture of the Holy Temple into our hearts, that He will furnish us with the Presence of the Trinity, with the Bread and the Light and the Altar and Oil and Living Water…O my…who can understand these things. Well, we may not understand them, but in Jesus we can most certainly experience them.

 

Most importantly, we can trust Jesus to teach us how to love God with all that we have and all that we are, and to lay down our lives for others…it is always about Jesus, always about Him.

 

New Year Prayer

 

NEW YEAR

 

Length of days does not profit me except the days are passed in Thy presence, in Thy service to Thy glory.

 

Give me a grace that precedes, follows, guides, sustains, sanctifies, aids every hour, that I might not be one moment apart from Thee, but may rely on thy Spirit to supply every thought, speak every word, direct every step, prosper every work, build up every mote of faith, and give me a desire to show forth Thy praise, testify Thy love, advance Thy kingdom.

 

I launch my bark on the unknown waters of this year, with Thee, O Father, as my harbor, Thee O Son, at my helm, Thee O Holy Spirit, filling my sails.

 

Guide me to heaven with my loins girt, my lamp burning, my ear open to thy calls, my heart full of love, my soul free.

 

Give me Thy grace to sanctify me, Thy comforts to cheer me, Thy wisdom to teach, Thy right hand to guide, Thy counsel to instruct, Thy law to judge, Thy presence to stabilize.

 

 May Thy fear be my awe, Thy triumphs my joy.

 

The Valley of Vision, pages 206 – 207, Banner of Truth Trust.

Joseph – Reflections (3) Redemptive Suffering

 

“And He called for a famine upon the land; He broke the whole staff of bead. He sent a man before them, Joseph, who was sold as a slave. They afflicted his feet with fetters, he himself [his soul] was laid in irons; until the time that his word came to pass, the word of the LORD tested him” (Psalm 105:16 – 19).

 

This is, in many respects, the heart of our life in Jesus Christ. Why? Because it speaks to us of the Cross, of laying down our lives for others, of allowing God to use our sufferings for the deliverance and salvation of others. It is also a picture of God giving us His Word in an intimate way, and of that word – within the Word – being tested. Beyond this and within this passage, we have a portrayal of the Body of Christ, of the Head and of His Body. Within this passage (Psalm 105:16 – 22) is the fulfillment of the promise of Romans 8:16 – 25.

 

I have shared this passage many times (along with 2 Corinthians 1:2 – 11) with men and women experiencing difficult times. We must always look to the Christ of the Cross and the Cross of Christ, trusting that our difficulties, our sufferings, are for the blessing of others and the glory of God. Our sufferings are never just about us; they are never simply about our individual lives. Yes, our sufferings may have various facets to it, such as discipline (Hebrews 12:4 – 11) which is intended to form us into the image of Jesus Christ and to be a source of life to others.

 

Joseph came to realize the truth about his sufferings, as we see in his words to his brothers who betrayed him and sold him into slavery, “I am your brother Joseph, whom you sold into Egypt. Now do not be grieved or angry with yourselves, because you sold me here, for God sent me before you to preserve life” (Genesis 45:4 – 5).

 

“You meant evil against me, but God meant it for good in order to bring about this present result, to preserve many people alive” (Genesis 50:20).

 

Let’s note that Jacob and Benjamin also suffered, and that the ten brothers suffered. The brothers not only lived with guilt, but they also came to fear for their lives, both when confronting Pharoah’s deputy ruler in Joseph, and after Jacob’s death.

 

Benjamin suffered the loss of his brother Joseph, his mother Rachel’s other son, Benjamin’s full brother. What was growing up like for Benjamin? Did his brothers show pity for him? When his brothers looked at him did they see Joseph in his features? Were they reminded of their evil actions, of the lie they had to live with for the rest of their lives (as far as they knew)? Did the brothers distance themselves from Benjamin?

 

Did Jacob look back over his own life, over the way he had treated others, over his deceit, over his self-reliance (broken, I think at the brook Jabbok (Genesis 32:24 – 32)? What could Jacob say when the lie his sons told him about Joseph, the lie he had believed for years, was finally revealed? The deceiver Jacob was deceived by his own sons; he must have seen the irony in this.

 

There is also the irony that the brothers, who first lied about Joseph, then had to tell the truth about Joseph in order for their families to live. First, they had to convince their father that Joseph was dead, then they had to convince Jacob that Joseph was alive.

 

There was much suffering to bring about salvation.

 

What do you see in Psalm 105:15 – 22?

 

Do you see a picture of Jesus?

 

We’ll continue our meditation on this passage in the next post in this series…the Lord willing.