Do we get it?

Jesus spoke to them in parables. “A man planted a vineyard, put a fence around it, dug a pit for the winepress, and built a tower. Then he rented it to tenant farmers and took a trip. When it was time, he sent a servant to collect from the tenants his share of the fruit of the vineyard. But they grabbed the servant, beat him, and sent him away empty-handed. Again the landowner sent another servant to them, but they struck him on the head and treated him disgracefully. He sent another one; that one they killed. The landlord sent many other servants, but the tenants beat some and killed others. Now the landowner had one son whom he loved dearly. He sent him last, thinking, They will respect my son. But those tenant farmers said to each other, ‘This is the heir. Let’s kill him, and the inheritance will be ours.’ They grabbed him, killed him, and threw him out of the vineyard. “So what will the owner of the vineyard do? He will come and destroy those tenants and give the vineyard to others. Haven’t you read this scripture, The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone. The Lord has done this, and it’s amazing in our eyes?” They wanted to arrest Jesus because they knew that he had told the parable against them. But they were afraid of the crowd, so they left him and went away. (Mark 12:1-12, CEB)

Would you have gotten this story if you were there when Jesus told it?

The man is God, and the vineyard is all creation and it was given over to us to tend. When we needed to give back we didn’t. So the Judges came and they were mistreated. And then the prophets, and then other speaking for God and we didn’t listen to any of them. We beat them and killed them, and when God finally sent the son we did the same to him. Not listening, beating, and killing. When all they wanted to show us was God’s love.

Would we have been any different?

Do we get the story now?

Love. It’s about love.

Loving People. Loving God.

enslaves

So live in Christ Jesus the Lord in the same way as you received him. Be rooted and built up in him, be established in faith, and overflow with thanksgiving just as you were taught. See to it that nobody enslaves you with philosophy and foolish deception, which conform to human traditions and the way the world thinks and acts rather than Christ. All the fullness of deity lives in Christ’s body. And you have been filled by him, who is the head of every ruler and authority. In him you were also circumcised with a circumcision not administered by human hands. The circumcision of Christ is realized in the stripping away of the whole self dominated by sin. You were buried with him through baptism and raised with him through faith in the power of God, who raised him from the dead. When you were dead because of the things you had done wrong and because your body wasn’t circumcised, God made you alive with Christ and forgave all the things you had done wrong. He destroyed the record of the debt we owed, with its requirements that worked against us. He canceled it by nailing it to the cross. When he disarmed the rulers and authorities, he exposed them to public disgrace by leading them in a triumphal parade. (Colossians 2:6-15, CEB)

“See to it that nobody enslaves you with philosophy and foolish deception, which conform to human traditions and the way the world thinks and acts rather than Christ.” Do not be conformed to how the world thinks, but be truly rooted in Christ.

Power and riches are the way of the world. When we say that certain people don’t deserve health care or to make their own decisions that is the way of the world. When we use systems to keep certain people in power that is the way of the world.

The way of Christ is love. Love for all people.

Do not follow the world and look for power.

Follow Jesus and share love.

Loving People. Loving God.

pursue

But as for you, man of God, run away from all these things. Instead, pursue righteousness, holy living, faithfulness, love, endurance, and gentleness. Compete in the good fight of faith. Grab hold of eternal life—you were called to it, and you made a good confession of it in the presence of many witnesses. I command you in the presence of God, who gives life to all things, and Christ Jesus, who made the good confession when testifying before Pontius Pilate. Obey this order without fault or failure until the appearance of our Lord Jesus Christ. The timing of this appearance is revealed by God alone, who is the blessed and only master, the King of kings and Lord of lords. He alone has immortality and lives in light that no one can come near. No human being has ever seen or is able to see him. Honor and eternal power belong to him. Amen. Tell people who are rich at this time not to become egotistical and not to place their hope on their finances, which are uncertain. Instead, they need to hope in God, who richly provides everything for our enjoyment. Tell them to do good, to be rich in the good things they do, to be generous, and to share with others. When they do these things, they will save a treasure for themselves that is a good foundation for the future. That way they can take hold of what is truly life. Timothy, protect what has been given to you in trust. Avoid godless and pointless discussions and the contradictory claims of so-called “knowledge.” When some people adopted this false knowledge, they missed the goal of faith. May grace be with you all. (1 Timothy 6:11-21, CEB)

What do you pursue?

What is the goal of your life?

You should be pursuing righteousness, holy living, faithfulness, love, endurance, and gentleness.

Hope in your finances is uncertain. Hope in God and righteousness is always certain.

Hope in God and love like Jesus.

Pursue love.

Loving People. Loving God.

Give us

Jesus went to Nazareth, where he had been raised. On the Sabbath he went to the synagogue as he normally did and stood up to read. The synagogue assistant gave him the scroll from the prophet Isaiah. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written:
The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
    because the Lord has anointed me.
He has sent me to preach good news to the poor,
    to proclaim release to the prisoners
    and recovery of sight to the blind,
    to liberate the oppressed,
    and to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.
He rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the synagogue assistant, and sat down. Every eye in the synagogue was fixed on him. He began to explain to them, “Today, this scripture has been fulfilled just as you heard it.” Everyone was raving about Jesus, so impressed were they by the gracious words flowing from his lips. They said, “This is Joseph’s son, isn’t it?” Then Jesus said to them, “Undoubtedly, you will quote this saying to me: ‘Doctor, heal yourself. Do here in your hometown what we’ve heard you did in Capernaum.’” He said, “I assure you that no prophet is welcome in the prophet’s hometown. And I can assure you that there were many widows in Israel during Elijah’s time, when it didn’t rain for three and a half years and there was a great food shortage in the land. Yet Elijah was sent to none of them but only to a widow in the city of Zarephath in the region of Sidon. There were also many persons with skin diseases in Israel during the time of the prophet Elisha, but none of them were cleansed. Instead, Naaman the Syrian was cleansed.” When they heard this, everyone in the synagogue was filled with anger. They rose up and ran him out of town. They led him to the crest of the hill on which their town had been built so that they could throw him off the cliff. But he passed through the crowd and went on his way. (Luke 4:16-30, CEB)

They got angry with Jesus because he said a prophet isn’t welcome in their home town and by this he meant he couldn’t do what he had done elsewhere. They were angry because they wanted to be healed, to see the miracles, and to get what others got. They felt betrayed.

God’s healing comes in God’s way and in God’s time.

What do we want from Jesus?

How do we get angry when things don’t go the way we think they should?

Remember God is always with you.

God’s timing is not our timing.

Loving People. Loving God.

Only if

Put a widow on the list who is older than 60 years old and who was faithful to her husband. She should have a reputation for doing good: raising children, providing hospitality to strangers, washing the feet of the saints, helping those in distress, and dedicating herself to every kind of good thing. But don’t accept younger widows for the list. When their physical desires distract them from Christ, they will want to get married. Then they will be judged for setting aside their earlier commitment. Also, they learn to be lazy by going from house to house. They are not only lazy, but they also become gossips and busybodies, talking about things they shouldn’t. So I want younger widows to marry, have children, and manage their homes so that they won’t give the enemy any reason to slander us. (Some have already turned away to follow Satan.) If any woman who is a believer has widows in her family, she should take care of them and not burden the church, so that it can help other widows who are truly needy. (1 Timothy 5:9-16, CEB)

This is some messed up stuff right here.

A widow is only a widow if they were faithful to their husband and are over 60. If they are younger then they really aren’t a widow, even if their husband is dead. This is a passage about control and power.

We are called to care for the orphan, widow, down trodden, foreigner, and sojourner, and never does Jesus put only help them if conditions are met. Love unconditionally.

This letter is attributed to Paul, but most biblical scholars will say it is not Paul.

We need to reclaim the actual Paul and the radical notions of equality and reformation of society he brought.

Loving People. Loving God

R E S P E C T

Don’t correct an older man, but encourage him like he’s your father; treat younger men like your brothers, treat older women like your mother, and treat younger women like your sisters with appropriate respect. Take care of widows who are truly needy. But if a particular widow has children or grandchildren, they should first learn to respect their own family and repay their parents, because this pleases God. A widow who is truly needy and all alone puts her hope in God and keeps on going with requests and prayers, night and day. But a widow who tries to live a life of luxury is dead even while she is alive. Teach these things so that the families will be without fault. But if someone doesn’t provide for their own family, and especially for a member of their household, they have denied the faith. They are worse than those who have no faith. (1 Timothy 5:1-8, CEB)

Find out what it means to me…

Respect for all people.

Treat older men like your father. Respect for elders.

Treat older women like your mother. Respect for elders.

Treat younger men and women as brothers and sisters.

We are all family. We need to love and care for all people.

Loving People. Loving God.

Bad system…

As he was teaching, he said, “Watch out for the legal experts. They like to walk around in long robes. They want to be greeted with honor in the markets. They long for places of honor in the synagogues and at banquets. They are the ones who cheat widows out of their homes, and to show off they say long prayers. They will be judged most harshly.” Jesus sat across from the collection box for the temple treasury and observed how the crowd gave their money. Many rich people were throwing in lots of money. One poor widow came forward and put in two small copper coins worth a penny. Jesus called his disciples to him and said, “I assure you that this poor widow has put in more than everyone who’s been putting money in the treasury. All of them are giving out of their spare change. But she from her hopeless poverty has given everything she had, even what she needed to live on.” (Mark 12:38-44, CEB)

This passage is used by pastors for stewardship Sunday, or to praise the stewardship of this widow. She is held up as a person of strong faith and conviction. But is that what is really happening here?

She put in all of her money. The last penny. Jesus said, “I assure you that this poor widow has put in more than everyone who’s been putting money in the treasury.” Everyone else gives out of excess but she has to put in the money she needs to live on. This is not proclaiming her as a person to follow and mimic, although we do need to give all, more than it is a rebuking of the system where she feels she has to give all of her money while others live comfortably not giving near as much.

She gave it all because the system is corrupt and keeps the poor poor and held down.

Work against injustice.

Loving People. Loving God.

What?

The next day, after leaving Bethany, Jesus was hungry. From far away, he noticed a fig tree in leaf, so he went to see if he could find anything on it. When he came to it, he found nothing except leaves, since it wasn’t the season for figs. So he said to it, “No one will ever again eat your fruit!” His disciples heard this. They came into Jerusalem. After entering the temple, he threw out those who were selling and buying there. He pushed over the tables used for currency exchange and the chairs of those who sold doves. He didn’t allow anyone to carry anything through the temple. He taught them, “Hasn’t it been written, My house will be called a house of prayer for all nations? But you’ve turned it into a hideout for crooks.” The chief priests and legal experts heard this and tried to find a way to destroy him. They regarded him as dangerous because the whole crowd was enthralled at his teaching. When it was evening, Jesus and his disciples went outside the city. Early in the morning, as Jesus and his disciples were walking along, they saw the fig tree withered from the root up. Peter remembered and said to Jesus, “Rabbi, look how the fig tree you cursed has dried up.” Jesus responded to them, “Have faith in God! I assure you that whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be lifted up and thrown into the sea’—and doesn’t waver but believes that what is said will really happen—it will happen. Therefore I say to you, whatever you pray and ask for, believe that you will receive it, and it will be so for you. (Mark 11:12-24, CEB)

Ok re-read the first four lines of that text.

Jesus was hungry and as he was leaving Bethany he spotted a fig tree off in the distance. He got closer to the tree and saw only leaves because it wasn’t the season for figs. And finding nothing to eat he cursed the tree and and said no one will ever eat fruit from you.

Excuse me? Jesus was hangry and just cursed a tree even though it wasn’t the season for figs. Now yes he is the son of God and could have made figs grow, but we heard nothing of this magic. He just comes upon the tree expecting fruit in a season when there is no fruit. And when it is as it should be for the season, Jesus curses the tree.

Does this mean Jesus didn’t have enough faith or believe it would really happen?

Sometimes I am baffled by the texts included in Holy Scripture…

Loving People. Loving God.

Will

This is why he’s the mediator of a new covenant (which is a will): so that those who are called might receive the promise of the eternal inheritance on the basis of his death. His death occurred to set them free from the offenses committed under the first covenant. When there is a will, you need to confirm the death of the one who made the will. This is because a will takes effect only after a death, since it’s not in force while the one who made the will is alive. So not even the first covenant was put into effect without blood. Moses took the blood of calves and goats, along with water, scarlet wool, and hyssop, and sprinkled both the Law scroll itself and all the people after he had proclaimed every command of the Law to all the people. While he did it, he said, This is the blood of the covenant that God established for you. And in the same way he sprinkled the meeting tent and also all the equipment that would be used in the priests’ service with blood. Almost everything is cleansed by blood, according to the Law’s regulations, and there is no forgiveness without blood being shed. So it was necessary for the copies of the heavenly things to be cleansed with these sacrifices, but the heavenly things had to be cleansed with better sacrifices than these. Christ didn’t enter the holy place (which is a copy of the true holy place) made by human hands, but into heaven itself, so that he now appears in God’s presence for us. (Hebrews 9:15-24, CEB)

Will – not the person but the thing. This reading from Hebrews says the covenant is a will. And a will doesn’t go into effect until the person who set it in place dies.

So the new covenant didn’t take effect until Jesus died.

Jesus made a way, and came to show us how to do that.

Love all. Lift up those held down by society. Do good in all things.

Loving People. Loving God.

die…

While we were still weak, at the right moment, Christ died for ungodly people. It isn’t often that someone will die for a righteous person, though maybe someone might dare to die for a good person. But God shows his love for us, because while we were still sinners Christ died for us. So, now that we have been made righteous by his blood, we can be even more certain that we will be saved from God’s wrath through him. If we were reconciled to God through the death of his Son while we were still enemies, now that we have been reconciled, how much more certain is it that we will be saved by his life? And not only that: we even take pride in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, the one through whom we now have a restored relationship with God. (Romans 5:6-11, CEB)

This passage reminds me of a conversation from my distant past with a friend who is a Secret Service Officer. He knew that if Al Gore had been elected president he would be on protection detail because Al knew him and liked him. The problem was, he really didn’t care for Al. So we got into a discussion about how he would be able to perform the duty of protection and possibly take a bullet for the president if that were to come about. He said very plainly, “I will protect the office of president, regardless of who that person is and my personal feelings for them.” My friend was willing to take a bullet to protect the office and whomever was filling it.

Seldom will a person die for a good person, but someone they don’t like or has wronged them.

Jesus came to show us how to love and for that, he was killed.

When we love like Jesus people won’t like it. Love anyway.

Know God has called us to love and to be there for the community that needs us.

Love like Jesus.

Loving People. Loving God.