Mission Faithwalk

                 But if I drive out demons by the finger of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you. (Luke 11:20)                  Today’s passage is Jesus’ response to some folks who claimed He was driving out demons by the power of Beelzebul, the prince of demons.                  I didn’t put it into these words yesterday, but let me summarize the idea from yesterday’s passage: it doesn’t matter what we do, if we are doing it under the influence of the kingdom of God and/or for the kingdom of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon us and those around us.                Jesus healed the sick and drove out demons. The disciples healed the sick. Those are showy things, displays of great power, we think. We should be doing these great, showy things, we think. But Jesus didn’t tell us people would know we are His disciples by our great showy things. He said they’d know we are His disciples by our love. That’s the showy thing God has in mind. This is one of our probl

                 “ When you enter a town and are welcomed, eat what is offered to you. Heal the sick who are there and tell them, ‘The kingdom of God has come near to you.’ But when you enter a town and are not welcomed, go into its streets and say,   ‘Even the dust of your town we wipe from our feet as a warning to you. Yet be sure of this: The kingdom of God has come near.’” (Luke  10:8-11)                  Jesus sent thirty-six teams of two out to the towns and villages that were on His itinerary. They were His street team or advance team. I’ve heard some explain that this was an experiment on God’s part. Could His power be extended beyond Jesus? That suggests to me that God isn’t omniscient. Instead, I come back to the title given to him by so many: Rabbi. Teacher. This is one of the titles we need to keep in mind whenever we’re dealing with God. When we are dealing with the kingdom of God, we’re dealing not just with the King, but also with the Teacher and the Father.     

                 Jesus replied, “No one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God.” (Luke 9:62)                  When he hesitated, the men grasped his hand and the hands of his wife and of his two daughters and led them safely out of the city, for the Lord was merciful to them.    As soon as they had brought them out, one of them said, “Flee for your lives! Don’t look back, and don’t stop anywhere in the plain! Flee to the mountains or you will be swept away!”                  … But Lot’s wife looked back, and she became a pillar of salt. (Genesis 19:16-17 & 26)                  One explanation I’ve heard for what is said in Luke is that the plowman who looks back, or away from his work, is likely to plow a crooked row. I suppose it’s equally likely that such a plowman would trip, twist his ankle, or break a leg by stepping into the furrow that he’s not looking at. But it recalls the story of Lot’s wife, who “looked back, and sh

                 I tell you, among those born of women there is no one greater than John; yet the one who is least in the kingdom of God is greater than he . (Luke7:28)                  This one hits home in an odd sort of way today. John the Baptist (or Baptizer) is the man to whom Jesus referred. Among those born of women there was no one greater than John. What did John do that made him so great? He didn’t find a cure for a disease. He didn’t walk on the moon. He didn’t defeat military enemies or win a war or build an empire. He didn’t write a best-selling book, paint or sculpt a magnificent piece of art, or sing songs that topped the charts and left us in awe. He dressed in camel’s hair. He ate locusts and honey. He lived in the wastelands and did the work of a prophet. He baptized people as a sign of the repentance of their sins. He pointed Jesus out to his own disciples. There is no mention of any miracles, but Jesus said that he was greater than Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Judah,

                 Looking at his disciples, he said: “Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God . (Luke 6:20)                  Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. (Matthew 5:3)                   Some people would say that these verses show that the Bible is contradictory or erroneous. Which is it? The poor, or the poor in spirit? Which is it? The kingdom of God or the kingdom of heaven? Which is it? Yours or theirs? I’m going to suggest that it might be both – that there may well have been two mountainsides on which Jesus gave two similar sermons. It may also have been one mountainside and one sermon, but not quoted verbatim and in its entirety by either. Repetition of concepts using small variations would reinforce the point, so Jesus may well have elaborated on “poor” and “kingdom of God” with “poor in spirit” and “kingdom of heaven” and in the historical record, two authors summarized the same sermon in slightly different wa

                 But he said, “I must proclaim the good news of the kingdom of God to the other towns also, because that is why I was sent.” (Luke 4:43)                  Peter said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good for us to be here. If you wish, I will put up three shelters—one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah.” (Matthew 17:4)                  The people of Capernaum (Peter’s hometown) had heard what Jesus said and seen Him drive out demons and heal the sick, and sought Him out and asked Him to stay. That would seem to be the good Sunday School answer to the situation. “Yes, Jesus, we want You to stay with us. Come live among us.”                Perhaps it’s not so surprising, when Jesus started talking about dying, and then was transfigured in Peter’s presence, that Peter’s response would be, “Jesus, I want You to stay with us. Let me build shelters so you can all live among us.” In some ways, it was the proper, hospitable thing to do. We encourage others to invite Jes

                 One of the teachers of the law came and heard them debating. Noticing that Jesus had given them a good answer, he asked him, “Of all the commandments, which is the most important?”                “The most important one,” answered Jesus, “is this: ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’   The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no commandment greater than these.”                “Well said, teacher,” the man replied. “You are right in saying that God is one and there is no other but him.   To love him with all your heart, with all your understanding and with all your strength, and to love your neighbor as yourself is more important than all burnt offerings and sacrifices.”                When Jesus saw that he had answered wisely, he said to him, “You are not far from the kingdom of God.” And from then on no one

         People were bringing little children to Jesus for him to place his hands on them, but the disciples rebuked them. When Jesus saw this, he was indignant. He said to them, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these.    Truly I tell you, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it.” (Mark 10:13-15)             Scripture never teaches the idea of considering children unimportant. Scripture never teaches us to treat people (men, women, children, and even enemies) badly as people. The negative reaction of the disciples doesn’t indicate how the Jews were supposed to treat children, but it does show the influence of other cultures and philosophies on the Jews. So, when the disciples started into the “Let’s not have them pester Jesus,” routine, Jesus scolded them. Scripture says He was indignant. This word is used to describe Jesus twice and six more times to describe othe

                 And if your eye causes you to stumble, pluck it out. It is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into hell, (Mark 9:47)                Then he called the crowd to him along with his disciples and said: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. (Mark 8:34)                  There are two almost parallel verses just before this one, both of which talk about it being “better to enter life” in a reduced capacity than to be thrown into hell whole. These are difficult statements, even in a time when prosthetics are so readily available. Most people would probably say Jesus was engaging in hyperbole (exaggerated statements or claims not meant to be taken literally.) Perhaps He was, but let’s consider. What price would you be willing to pay to get into Heaven or avoid Hell?                In the preceding chapter of Mark, Jesus had challenged those who heard him to d

                 And he said to them, “Truly I tell you, some who are standing here will not taste death before they see that the kingdom of God has come with power.” (Mark 9:1)                  Considering the last three passages we’ve considered, each about the Kingdom of God being like seeds that quietly go about their business, this statement sounds a bit audacious, and yet, there are seeds that quietly grow and…                  Within a week of saying this, Jesus was transfigured before Peter, James, and John and He drove a demon out of a boy. What He didn’t do is shout, “Hey, World, watch this!” and demonstrate the kingdom to everyone. He didn’t even display the power to all His disciples. Granted, driving the demon out of a boy was done where anyone could have seen, but without great fanfare. He revealed His glory to a few, then resumed His role as a bouncer, removing the drunken troublemaker from the establishment.                No, instead of putting Himself on displa

                 Again he said, “What shall we say the kingdom of God is like, or what parable shall we use to describe it?   It is like a mustard seed, which is the smallest of all seeds on earth. Yet when planted, it grows and becomes the largest of all garden plants, with such big branches that the birds can perch in its shade.” (Mark 4:30-32)   Trivia Time . There are two plants (or plant families) called by the name, Mustard . The first is the herb related to broccoli, with bright yellow flowers and from which we get the condiment some people enjoy. Personally, my enjoyment of this mustard is confined strictly to a series of commercials from way back when in which people asked one another “Avez vous du Grey Poupon?” Mustard plasters are made from flour, water, and the powdered seeds of this kind of mustard. If I get COVID again, I’m tempted to try this. The second is Salvadora perisica, which is a popular evergreen shrub that can grow 6-60 feet tall and 20 feet wide dependi

                 He also said, “This is what the kingdom of God is like. A man scatters seed on the ground. Night and day, whether he sleeps or gets up, the seed sprouts and grows, though he does not know how. All by itself the soil produces grain—first the stalk, then the head, then the full kernel in the head. As soon as the grain is ripe, he puts the sickle to it, because the harvest has come.” (Mark 4:26-29)     I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God has been making it grow. (I Corinthians 3:6)   This is the second of three parables Jesus told about seeds, as recorded in Mark 4. In The Parable of The Sower , the seeds are the Word of God, which the sower (whether God or a human) scatters here, there, and everywhere. And each person is represented by one of four types of soil, and the response of the seed depends on the type of soil. Jesus doesn’t explain this parable and doesn’t take the type of soil into account, but from what happens, it would seem to be good

                 When he was alone, the Twelve and the others around him asked him about the parables. He told them, “The secret of the kingdom of God has been given to you. But to those on the outside everything is said in parables   so that, “‘they may be ever seeing but never perceiving,     and ever hearing but never understanding; otherwise they might turn and be forgiven!’” Then Jesus said to them, “Don’t you understand this parable? How then will you understand any parable? The farmer sows the word. Some people are like seed along the path, where the word is sown. As soon as they hear it, Satan comes and takes away the word that was sown in them. Others, like seed sown on rocky places, hear the word and at once receive it with joy.   But since they have no root, they last only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, they quickly fall away. Still others, like seed sown among thorns, hear the word; but the worries of this life, the deceitfulness

                  “Listen to another parable: There was a landowner who planted a vineyard. He put a wall around it, dug a winepress in it and built a watchtower. Then he rented the vineyard to some farmers and moved to another place.   When the harvest time approached, he sent his servants to the tenants to collect his fruit. “The tenants seized his servants; they beat one, killed another, and stoned a third.   Then he sent other servants to them, more than the first time, and the tenants treated them the same way.     Last of all, he sent his son to them. ‘They will respect my son,’ he said. “But when the tenants saw the son, they said to each other, ‘This is the heir. Come, let’s kill him and take his inheritance.’     So they took him and threw him out of the vineyard and killed him. “Therefore, when the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those tenants?”   “He will bring those wretches to a wretched end,” they replied, “and he will rent the vineyard to other t

                 “What do you think? There was a man who had two sons. He went to the first and said, ‘Son, go and work today in the vineyard.’                “‘I will not,’ he answered, but later he changed his mind and went.                “Then the father went to the other son and said the same thing. He answered, ‘I will, sir,’ but he did not go.                “Which of the two did what his father wanted?”                “The first,” they answered.                   Jesus said to them, “Truly I tell you, the tax collectors and the prostitutes are entering the kingdom of God ahead of you. For John came to you to show you the way of righteousness, and you did not believe him, but the tax collectors and the prostitutes did. And even after you saw this, you did not repent and believe him.” (Matthew 21:28-32)                  Some people miss what’s being said here. They get caught up in the notion that the kingdom of God will include people like prostitutes and tax coll

                 Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.”                When the disciples heard this, they were greatly astonished and asked, “Who then can be saved?”                Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” (Matthew 19:24-26)                  There are some who say that “the eye of a needle” refers to a small gate in the city walls, which would allow a camel to pass through it if the camel were unloaded of all cargo and basically crawled through on its knees. The first problem with this is that no such gate existed. The second problem is that the notion that the wealth had to be removed from its back and had to humble itself by crawling on its knees still meant that it was possible for the camel to do of its own power and will.                Even long before the Jews were a nation, Job suffered at the hand

                 But if it is by the Spirit of God that I drive out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you. (Matthew 12:28)                  The Pharisees and Sadducees considered themselves guardians and teachers of the people. If someone claimed to do miracles, they thought it their job to investigate. And they were right in a way. We should all investigate such things if they happen around us and be legitimately skeptical. Logically, they assumed that most of their investigation was either trickery or demonic. Prophets of the Most High God were never plentiful, and God even warned the Jews to be cautious about who they trusted. The problem is that they assumed that anyone sent by the Most High God would agree with them and what they did. When Jesus came along, He didn’t quite meet their standards.                Jesus challenges them. It didn’t make as much sense that he would drive out demons if he was a demon. Yes, it could have been some elaborate trick, but ther

                 But he said, “I must proclaim the good news of the kingdom of God to the other towns also, because that is why I was sent.” (Luke 4:43)                  My goal is to spend some time considering the kingdom of God. The problem is that this is in “real-time,” like most of my blog posts, so it’s not my sharing the culmination of my findings after years of research. I may get distracted or bored and wander on to another topic, but that’s not my plan. In fact, the problem might be said to be that I don’t really have a plan.                But, since I’m a definitional person, let’s begin there. We tend to think of a kingdom as a place ruled by a king or queen. It has borders, rules for citizenship, laws, taxes, and a spot on a map, just like any other country. This is the problem the Israelites had when Jesus came. The Messiah was supposed to set up the Kingdom of Israel to make Israel a powerful and possibly dominant nation among the nations.                Dalla

                 Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting. (Psalm 139:23-24)                But he knows the way that I take; when he has tested me, I will come forth as gold. (Job 23:10)                  There is a scene in Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court (Mark Twain) in which King Arthur carries a child with Scarlet Fever to her mother so that the mother can be with her when the child dies. The Connecticut Yankee waxes almost poetic about how courageous, noble, and kingly the king seemed to be to him. This was chivalry and manhood in all its glory. As far as I’m concerned, suffering through the rest of the story was worth it for that scene.                I have the same sense about this last passage in Psalm 139 and the well-known verse from Job. Here is David, turning from scolding bloodthirsty folks back to God and making his second request of the prayer

                If only you, God, would slay the wicked! Away from me, you who are bloodthirsty!   They speak of you with evil intent; your adversaries misuse your name.   Do I not hate those who hate you, Lord, and abhor those who are in rebellion against you? I have nothing but hatred for them; I count them my enemies. (Psalm 139:19-22)                  And today presents us with another abrupt change of direction, one that might give the real reason for the prayer. David has praised and thanked God. In a sense, he’s confessed his dependence and his relationship with God. This section includes a request: “slay the wicked.” And the wicked seem to have been right there, because David included a rebuke at them in the song. After that, David justified himself. These enemies weren’t David’s personal enemies. They were the enemies of God and as such, they were David’s enemies, too.                The question that we face with this part of the psalm is whether or not it is right to

            For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb.   I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.  My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place, when I was woven together in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my unformed body; all the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be. (Psalm 139:13-16)                  Here again, the psalm changes directions. This week, I’m supposed to read a chapter that may explain, because there are apparently some patterns about Hebrew poetry just as there are in English poetry. But without that, David seems to stop running and slowly drops to hands and knees in exhaustion and surrender. He can’t escape and he can’t keep running. What else can he do? And with the loss of adrenaline and the end of fight or flight, his mind starts working again. Who is this One he’s running from? Why is he runn

              Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there. If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea,   even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast.   If I say, “Surely the darkness will hide me and the light become night around me,”   even the darkness will not be dark to you; the night will shine like the day, for darkness is as light to you. (Psalm 139:7-12)                  After describing God  in terms of how aware of us and person He is, the psalmist turns his attention to himself. I’ve often thought this part of the song didn’t belong. It would make sense if the psalmist wrote about God being present if he’s abducted and taken to the far side of the sea, or in the dark, but he wrote about fleeing and hiding. God has been wonderful and attentive, and the psalmist was running away.                But i