Once when Jesus was praying in private and his disciples were with him, he asked them, "Who do the crowds say I am?" They replied, "Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, that one of the prophets of long ago has come back to life." "But what about you?" he asked. "Who do you say I am?" Peter answered, "The Christ of God." (Luke 9:18-20)
"Who do the crowds say I am?" If we were to answer Jesus' question today, we would probably have a tough time finding anyone in any crowd who would say that they feel Jesus is/was John the Baptist or Elijah. But if we would consider the crowds to be those outside our own circle or outside our little bubble - we would likely hear a number of different answers that don't mention anything about Jesus being the world's one and only Savior - "The Christ of God."
At the time that Jesus posed this question, if you wanted to know something about someone you would have to do your information gathering face to face - either face to face with the person you wanted to know something about, or face to face with someone who knew that person. Contrast that with our day and age - now labeled the "information age," where with a handful of simple strokes of the keyboard, you can bring up an immeasurable amount of information on anything and almost anyone you want, including Jesus. Typing Jesus into Google produces 206 million results - if you were to spend 30 seconds examining each page it would take you just short of 196 years to finish looking at each page! Unfortunately, the old evil foe also uses the technology of today to twist, distort, and water down the truth in an attempt to lead the crowds of today away from the understanding of who Jesus is. Satan not only uses the internet, but he also uses other technology such as television and the movies. When was the last time you saw a television program or a movie accurately portray "The Christ of God?" So, who do the crowds of today say Jesus is?
"Jesus, he's that guy who probably wants nothing to do with me - I'm a hopeless case - I already know I'm going to hell anyway." "[God our Savior] wants all men to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth." (1 Timothy 2:4) "Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners..." (1 Timothy 1:15)
"Jesus, he's that guy with the perma-smile - like that Walmart smiley face. I have faith in Jesus my buddy who doesn't really care how I live. No matter what I do or don't do he'll bring me into heaven." "If we deliberately keep on sinning after we have received the knowledge of the truth, no sacrifice for sins is left, but only a fearful expectation of judgment and of raging fire that will consume the enemies of God." (Hebrews 10:26-27)
"Jesus, he's that guy who lived a long time ago, he's long gone. Anyway, our world today is completely different, nothing he did would even be relevant today. He's not around anymore, he wouldn't understand." "All men are like grass, and all their glory is like the flowers of the field; the grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of the Lord stands forever." (1 Peter 1:24-25) "Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever." (Hebrews 13:8) "And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age." (Matthew 28:20)
We have looked at a just a few examples of who the crowds of today say Jesus is, "But what about [us]?" "Who do [we] say [Jesus] [is]?"
We say: "Jesus, he's that guy who's not only a guy, but also God." Jesus is the "Beautiful Savior...[who is] Son of God and Son of Man." (CW 369:1) Jesus is that "Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!" (John 1:29) Our faith is strengthened when we learn more about who Jesus really is. To find out more about who Jesus is, we don't need to ask the crowds or even google it on our computers, we have the "holy Scriptures, which are able to make [us] wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus." (2 Timothy 3:15) - the holy Scriptures like the passages used above that contrast the crowd's ideas of Jesus - the holy Scriptures that tell us who Jesus was and is and what he has done and what he continues to do - for us. We find a sampling of examples of who Jesus is in the hymn "How Sweet the Name of Jesus Sounds," "O Jesus, Shepherd, Guardian, Friend, my Prophet, Priest and King, my Lord, my Life, my Way, my End, accept the praise [we] bring." (CW 358:5)
Sadly, to many in most of the crowds out there, the name Jesus doesn't mean much. In contrast - "How sweet the name of Jesus sounds in a believer's ear!" (CW358:1) Let's get out there and share the sweet name of Jesus by "[Going] and [making] disciples of all [different crowds]..." (Matthew 28:19), that others in the crowd might learn more about the sweet name of Jesus - that they may also "Taste and see [and hear] that the LORD is good" (Psalm 34:8) - that they may hear the name of Jesus and say it is good!
Thursday, June 24, 2010
Friday, June 18, 2010
June 17, 2010
"I do not set aside the grace of God, for if righteousness could be gained through the law, Christ died for nothing!" (Galatians 2:21)
There's no such thing as a free lunch. If you've spent any time at all in the "School of Hard Knocks," then you'll know this to be a very true statement. Nothing is free without some kind of string attached. There's always a little tiny asterisk hiding out at the end of the offer for the free lunch. The asterisk is explained in fine print which tells you something like you actually have to buy one to get one free. Maybe this is why when we talk about the "grace of God," and how it's "so rich, so wide, so high, so free," (CW 392:4) we might get tripped up a little on the "so free" part.
We might be tempted into thinking that we are somehow able to "pick up the pieces." Isaiah prophesied that "Though [our] sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool." (Isaiah 1:18) Because of Christ's work and Christ's death, God changes our clothes. He takes off our scarlet dirty sin laden threads and clothes us with garments that are as perfectly clean and as white as snow. After we sport our white woolen wear, the temptation might be to think that it is somehow up to us to work a stain-stick when we trip up and get a little sin-stain. We may convince ourselves and our consciences that Jesus did the hard part and took care of our sins of the big-ticket variety, but the little blunders can somehow be washed away or forgotten by God if we just counteract them with our own "good deeds." The wages of even the smallest of blunders deserves death, but because of the grace of God and through faith are we saved (from eternal death), and this has nothing to do with us or anything we do - it's a free gift - the gift of God which is eternal life. (Romans 6:23 & Ephesians 2:8) Paul states this is no uncertain terms in his letter to the Romans, "no one will be declared righteous in [God's] sight by observing the law." (Romans 3:20)
Conversely, we might be tempted into thinking that God's work is to simply "pick up the pieces." There is a church near my home on North 76th Street that I travel past on a daily basis. The church has a sign that is very visible from the heavily-traveled street which generally displays a clever message. The message currently reads, "Do your best. Let God do the rest." Perhaps there is a proper way to understand this phrase, but as I understand it, this message cheapens Christ's justification and his sacrifice and his work. God doesn't simply pick up the pieces. God doesn't just fill in the cracks or the gaps. Because our best as humans is anything but the best when compared to what God expects of us - Jesus said, "Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect." (Matthew 5:48) - Jesus took it upon himself to take care of each and every case of imperfection, he took care of each and every sin in the whole world that was ever and will ever be committed (John 1:29b). When Jesus on the cross uttered the beautiful word "tetelesthai," when he said, "It is finished." (John 19:30), he wasn't just simply saying that his part was finished. Jesus was saying that it was finished - period. It was finished completely. The price for our sins, and all the sins of the world that will have been committed when judgment day comes, was paid in full - completely. Maybe the words on the church sign could be re-arranged to read, "God did the best (the action is in the past and complete) so that we will have eternal rest."
Christ didn't die for nothing. Christ didn't die for just something. Christ didn't die for just someone. Christ died for all the sins of the whole world which includes yours and mine. Through his perfect life and innocent death he completely took care of our justification. Christ didn't die for nothing because "nothing in my hand I bring, simply to thy cross I cling" (CW 389:3) Absolutely nothing we can do, but only everything that Jesus in grace has already done for us, can restore us into a peaceful relationship with God. And when we are at peace with God, we are promised to be blessed with more than a just a "free lunch," we are privileged to be invited to the most lavish banquet of all in heaven. "Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding supper of the Lamb!" (Revelation 19:9) Christ didn't die for nothing. We are invited to this feast because of nothing that we have done, but because of everything that Christ, who left nothing undone, has done for us.
There's no such thing as a free lunch. If you've spent any time at all in the "School of Hard Knocks," then you'll know this to be a very true statement. Nothing is free without some kind of string attached. There's always a little tiny asterisk hiding out at the end of the offer for the free lunch. The asterisk is explained in fine print which tells you something like you actually have to buy one to get one free. Maybe this is why when we talk about the "grace of God," and how it's "so rich, so wide, so high, so free," (CW 392:4) we might get tripped up a little on the "so free" part.
We might be tempted into thinking that we are somehow able to "pick up the pieces." Isaiah prophesied that "Though [our] sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool." (Isaiah 1:18) Because of Christ's work and Christ's death, God changes our clothes. He takes off our scarlet dirty sin laden threads and clothes us with garments that are as perfectly clean and as white as snow. After we sport our white woolen wear, the temptation might be to think that it is somehow up to us to work a stain-stick when we trip up and get a little sin-stain. We may convince ourselves and our consciences that Jesus did the hard part and took care of our sins of the big-ticket variety, but the little blunders can somehow be washed away or forgotten by God if we just counteract them with our own "good deeds." The wages of even the smallest of blunders deserves death, but because of the grace of God and through faith are we saved (from eternal death), and this has nothing to do with us or anything we do - it's a free gift - the gift of God which is eternal life. (Romans 6:23 & Ephesians 2:8) Paul states this is no uncertain terms in his letter to the Romans, "no one will be declared righteous in [God's] sight by observing the law." (Romans 3:20)
Conversely, we might be tempted into thinking that God's work is to simply "pick up the pieces." There is a church near my home on North 76th Street that I travel past on a daily basis. The church has a sign that is very visible from the heavily-traveled street which generally displays a clever message. The message currently reads, "Do your best. Let God do the rest." Perhaps there is a proper way to understand this phrase, but as I understand it, this message cheapens Christ's justification and his sacrifice and his work. God doesn't simply pick up the pieces. God doesn't just fill in the cracks or the gaps. Because our best as humans is anything but the best when compared to what God expects of us - Jesus said, "Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect." (Matthew 5:48) - Jesus took it upon himself to take care of each and every case of imperfection, he took care of each and every sin in the whole world that was ever and will ever be committed (John 1:29b). When Jesus on the cross uttered the beautiful word "tetelesthai," when he said, "It is finished." (John 19:30), he wasn't just simply saying that his part was finished. Jesus was saying that it was finished - period. It was finished completely. The price for our sins, and all the sins of the world that will have been committed when judgment day comes, was paid in full - completely. Maybe the words on the church sign could be re-arranged to read, "God did the best (the action is in the past and complete) so that we will have eternal rest."
Christ didn't die for nothing. Christ didn't die for just something. Christ didn't die for just someone. Christ died for all the sins of the whole world which includes yours and mine. Through his perfect life and innocent death he completely took care of our justification. Christ didn't die for nothing because "nothing in my hand I bring, simply to thy cross I cling" (CW 389:3) Absolutely nothing we can do, but only everything that Jesus in grace has already done for us, can restore us into a peaceful relationship with God. And when we are at peace with God, we are promised to be blessed with more than a just a "free lunch," we are privileged to be invited to the most lavish banquet of all in heaven. "Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding supper of the Lamb!" (Revelation 19:9) Christ didn't die for nothing. We are invited to this feast because of nothing that we have done, but because of everything that Christ, who left nothing undone, has done for us.
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
June 10, 2010
The Psalm of the Day for this upcoming Sunday is Psalm 30. We will take a look at a few select verses:
"I will exalt you, O LORD, for you ... brought me up from the grave; you spared me from going down into the pit. You turned my wailing into dancing; you removed my sackcloth and clothed me with joy, that my heart may sing to you and not be silent. O LORD my God, I will give you thanks forever." (Psalm 30: 1, 2b, 12)
Have you ever heard someone say, "well that's the pits?" My mother used to say it, and while I knew what she meant, I never really knew what it meant. I never knew what the origin of the phrase was. So, I decided to do some digging - not in an effort to try and dig an actual pit - but to try and dig up the origin of "the pits."
Some people call Milwaukee - "Mil-Town." Some people call Pittsburgh - "the Pitts." But that's not where the phrase "the pits" came from. If you were to ask a car racing fan what "the pits" are, they would probably tell you that it's short for "pit-stop." But that's not where the phrase "the pits" came from. If you were to ask a fruit aficionado what "the pits" are, their mind might turn to what they pull out of their cherries and peaches. But that's not where the phrase "the pits" came from. If you were to ask an orchestral musician what "the pits" are, they may respond by telling you that it's where they do their work when they are playing a musical or award show. But that's not where the phrase "the pits" came from.
The origin of "the pits" is actually a little more disgusting than all the previous stabs at the origin. It's hard to nail down an exact date, but many believe that the slang expression first came into use in the 1950's, and the expression is used for the very worst, the most degraded and depressing example of something. “Pits” in this sense is actually simply short for “armpits” - one of the stinky regions of the human body. It's a metaphor for anything that really really stinks.
Living in this sinful world, we often find ourselves in situations we could classify as "the pits." Sometimes we find ourselves in "the pits" of life - sometimes we find ourselves stinky, because we are sweating over a sin that we committed - we are sweating over a "pitfall" that we failed to avoid. Sin disturbs our peaceful relationship with God and leaves us uneasy and clammy. When we recognize that we are stinky like "the pits," when we recognize our sin and ask for his forgiveness, the LORD comes to us and says, "don't sweat it." "I have brought you up from the grave that you deserve to be in. I have spared you from the pit of hell." Because of the sinful world that we live in, unless Jesus returns in our lifetime, we will all eventually find ourselves in a pit that's about six feet deep. Maybe you have had a "near death" experience and were spared from going down into this pit. The writer of Psalm 30, David, experienced a number of times in his life where he narrowly escaped death and was spared from having to go down into this pit, but even David eventually found himself in the pit and in the grave. Pits like this will only hold their contents until the day that Jesus returns. The pit of hell will hold its contents forever. We say to our Savior: "O LORD my God, I will give you thanks forever," that you have spared us from ever having to go into the pit of hell - the pit that we deserve to be in because of the stink of our sins.
Sometimes we find ourselves in "the pits" of life through no fault of our own. If you get sprayed by a skunk, you end up stinky because you were in the wrong place at the wrong time. We get sprayed by a skunk when we have to deal with an untimely death in the family. We get sprayed by a skunk when we lose our job. We get sprayed by a skunk when we find ourselves plagued with an unpreventable illness or handicap. It may seem sometimes like we are in the wrong place at the wrong time, but actually we are in the exact right place at the exact right time, as we are exactly where God planned for us to be. "I know the plans I have for you", declares the Lord." (Jeremiah 29:11a). Remember when Joseph's brothers threw him into an actual pit? (Genesis 37) They later pulled him out of that pit, only to put him in another situation that we would call "the pits" when they sold him into slavery. While it may have felt like "the pits" at the time, Joseph realized that it was all a part of God's plans. When he was later reunited with his brothers, he told them, "You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done" (Genesis 50:20) God uses every situation that we may categorize as "the pits" for his greater good and he also uses those situations for our own greater good, to refine us and bring us closer to him. "...though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed." (I Peter 1:6b-7)
Even if we have to spend the rest of our lives in this world dealing with "the pits" of worldly situations, we can find comfort in the fact that the time we spend on this earth isn't even a visible speck on the time line of eternity, and our eternity, our future will NOT be spent in "the pits." Paul in Galatians tells us that the Fruits of the Spirit are: "love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control." (Galatians 5:22-23a) The 2nd in the list of these "pit less" fruits of the Spirit is joy. Because we have been rescued, our mourning clothes have been replaced. We are now clothed with joy and even in the midst of "the pits" of this life, we can dance. Jesus tells us that "[He has] come that [we] may have life, and have it to the full." (John 10:10b)
Yes, there are plenty things in this world that will leave us thinking, "well that's the pits." Whenever we find ourselves thinking that, let's take a "pit-stop" and dig into Psalm 30, so that we can follow up that thought by remembering the comforting thoughts that we find not only in Psalm 30, but also throughout Scripture. The comforting knowledge that we will never ever experience "the pits" of all pits - we will never know hell because the LORD has come to our rescue. Because of what we have to look forward to, we simply can't be silent. Our hearts sing for joy as we exalt and give thanks to the one who has rescued us from having to dwell on "the pits" of this world by rescuing us and sparing us from "the pits" of all pits. Keeping all this in mind, we can't help but join the Psalmist in exclaiming, "I will exalt you, O LORD ... I will give you thanks forever."
"I will exalt you, O LORD, for you ... brought me up from the grave; you spared me from going down into the pit. You turned my wailing into dancing; you removed my sackcloth and clothed me with joy, that my heart may sing to you and not be silent. O LORD my God, I will give you thanks forever." (Psalm 30: 1, 2b, 12)
Have you ever heard someone say, "well that's the pits?" My mother used to say it, and while I knew what she meant, I never really knew what it meant. I never knew what the origin of the phrase was. So, I decided to do some digging - not in an effort to try and dig an actual pit - but to try and dig up the origin of "the pits."
Some people call Milwaukee - "Mil-Town." Some people call Pittsburgh - "the Pitts." But that's not where the phrase "the pits" came from. If you were to ask a car racing fan what "the pits" are, they would probably tell you that it's short for "pit-stop." But that's not where the phrase "the pits" came from. If you were to ask a fruit aficionado what "the pits" are, their mind might turn to what they pull out of their cherries and peaches. But that's not where the phrase "the pits" came from. If you were to ask an orchestral musician what "the pits" are, they may respond by telling you that it's where they do their work when they are playing a musical or award show. But that's not where the phrase "the pits" came from.
The origin of "the pits" is actually a little more disgusting than all the previous stabs at the origin. It's hard to nail down an exact date, but many believe that the slang expression first came into use in the 1950's, and the expression is used for the very worst, the most degraded and depressing example of something. “Pits” in this sense is actually simply short for “armpits” - one of the stinky regions of the human body. It's a metaphor for anything that really really stinks.
Living in this sinful world, we often find ourselves in situations we could classify as "the pits." Sometimes we find ourselves in "the pits" of life - sometimes we find ourselves stinky, because we are sweating over a sin that we committed - we are sweating over a "pitfall" that we failed to avoid. Sin disturbs our peaceful relationship with God and leaves us uneasy and clammy. When we recognize that we are stinky like "the pits," when we recognize our sin and ask for his forgiveness, the LORD comes to us and says, "don't sweat it." "I have brought you up from the grave that you deserve to be in. I have spared you from the pit of hell." Because of the sinful world that we live in, unless Jesus returns in our lifetime, we will all eventually find ourselves in a pit that's about six feet deep. Maybe you have had a "near death" experience and were spared from going down into this pit. The writer of Psalm 30, David, experienced a number of times in his life where he narrowly escaped death and was spared from having to go down into this pit, but even David eventually found himself in the pit and in the grave. Pits like this will only hold their contents until the day that Jesus returns. The pit of hell will hold its contents forever. We say to our Savior: "O LORD my God, I will give you thanks forever," that you have spared us from ever having to go into the pit of hell - the pit that we deserve to be in because of the stink of our sins.
Sometimes we find ourselves in "the pits" of life through no fault of our own. If you get sprayed by a skunk, you end up stinky because you were in the wrong place at the wrong time. We get sprayed by a skunk when we have to deal with an untimely death in the family. We get sprayed by a skunk when we lose our job. We get sprayed by a skunk when we find ourselves plagued with an unpreventable illness or handicap. It may seem sometimes like we are in the wrong place at the wrong time, but actually we are in the exact right place at the exact right time, as we are exactly where God planned for us to be. "I know the plans I have for you", declares the Lord." (Jeremiah 29:11a). Remember when Joseph's brothers threw him into an actual pit? (Genesis 37) They later pulled him out of that pit, only to put him in another situation that we would call "the pits" when they sold him into slavery. While it may have felt like "the pits" at the time, Joseph realized that it was all a part of God's plans. When he was later reunited with his brothers, he told them, "You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done" (Genesis 50:20) God uses every situation that we may categorize as "the pits" for his greater good and he also uses those situations for our own greater good, to refine us and bring us closer to him. "...though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed." (I Peter 1:6b-7)
Even if we have to spend the rest of our lives in this world dealing with "the pits" of worldly situations, we can find comfort in the fact that the time we spend on this earth isn't even a visible speck on the time line of eternity, and our eternity, our future will NOT be spent in "the pits." Paul in Galatians tells us that the Fruits of the Spirit are: "love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control." (Galatians 5:22-23a) The 2nd in the list of these "pit less" fruits of the Spirit is joy. Because we have been rescued, our mourning clothes have been replaced. We are now clothed with joy and even in the midst of "the pits" of this life, we can dance. Jesus tells us that "[He has] come that [we] may have life, and have it to the full." (John 10:10b)
Yes, there are plenty things in this world that will leave us thinking, "well that's the pits." Whenever we find ourselves thinking that, let's take a "pit-stop" and dig into Psalm 30, so that we can follow up that thought by remembering the comforting thoughts that we find not only in Psalm 30, but also throughout Scripture. The comforting knowledge that we will never ever experience "the pits" of all pits - we will never know hell because the LORD has come to our rescue. Because of what we have to look forward to, we simply can't be silent. Our hearts sing for joy as we exalt and give thanks to the one who has rescued us from having to dwell on "the pits" of this world by rescuing us and sparing us from "the pits" of all pits. Keeping all this in mind, we can't help but join the Psalmist in exclaiming, "I will exalt you, O LORD ... I will give you thanks forever."
Wednesday, June 2, 2010
June 3, 2010
Our Gospel Lesson for this upcoming Sunday comes from the Book of Luke, where we find Jesus in Capernaum. A Centurion who had built the city synagogue was looking "not only to [his] own interests, but also to the interests of others," (Philippians 2:4) His servant was sick, and because the Centurion was probably a gentile, he thought to send some Jewish elders from town to meet Jesus and ask for his help in healing his ailing servant. The elders found Jesus and tried to convince Jesus that this Centurion deserved his help. Jesus agreed to come, but before he made it, the Centurion had sent friends to Jesus to tell him not to come into his house for he wasn't worthy of such a visit. Through his messenger friends, the Centurion expressed unwaivering confidence that Jesus had the power to heal the servant. "But say the word, and my servant will be healed." (Luke 7:7b). When Jesus heard this, he was amazed at him, and turning to the crowd following him, he said, "I tell you, I have not found such great faith even in Israel." Then the men who had been sent returned to the house and found the servant well. (Luke 7:9-10)
If you were to 'google' the phrase "greatest _______ ever," and you filled in the blank with terms such as: football player, actor, song, apple pie recipe, you would likely come up with conflicting results. Coming up with the greatest anything is a subjective process, the answer you get depends largely on who you ask. In our Gospel lesson for this upcoming Sunday, we find Jesus telling the crowd that he had found the person with the "greatest faith ever," or at least the greatest faith he had encountered up to that point in his earthly ministry. In Hebrews we are told that Jesus is, "the author and perfecter of our faith." (Hebrews 12:2a). The very author and perfecter of our faith would be the "greatest authority ever" on great faith. Jesus would know it when he saw it.
In this case, Jesus not only recognized great faith, he was amazed by it. In a couple chapters before our Lesson for this Sunday picks up, we find the story about how a paralyzed man was lowered down through the roof of a building to be healed by Jesus, and we are told how the crowd reacted after the healing, "Everyone was amazed and gave praise to God..." (Luke 5:26a) In our Lesson for this Sunday, we have the same elements and sentiments, just in a different order: God (the Son) was telling everyone that he was amazed and he gave praise to this Centurion for his faith. The one who had been amazing crowds was now amazed by one in the crowd! Amazing!
What made the Centurion's faith so great? How can we emulate this faith that even amazed Jesus?
So much of what happens in this world is cause and effect - it's based on formulas. If you do this, then this will happen. It's difficult to know exactly what the intent of the Jewish elders was when they pleaded earnestly to convince Jesus that the Centurion was deserving of Jesus attention - arguing that he was one of the 'good guys' who built their synagogue. But one thing we can be sure of is that too many people today follow the foe's fraudulent formula: if I try hard to be a good person, then God will love me and then I will deserve to go to heaven when I die. The Centurion realized that he was in fact unworthy and he recognized that it's not because of anything that he did or didn't do that would cause Jesus to love him. The "greatest formula ever" - the only formula that will matter as we take our final breath - one of the most familiar passages in all of Scripture can be found in John 3:16 "...whoever believes in him will not perish, but have eternal life." A person with great faith doesn't focus on themselves and their own performance, or lack thereof. Rather, great faith realizes that we need to (back to Hebrews 12 again), "fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith," (Hebrews 12:2a)
When, in great faith, we fix our eyes on Jesus, we find a God whose words and will have the "greatest power ever." A God whose words are powerful enough to create something out of nothing: "And God said, "Let there be light," and there was light." (Genesis 1:3) A God who has the power to destroy all life in the entire world: "...I will wipe from the face of the earth every living creature I have made." (Genesis 7:4) A God whose mighty hand has the power to change the direction of even the most stubborn powerful wordly figure "Then the LORD said to Moses, "Now you will see what I will do to Pharaoh: Because of my mighty hand he will let them go; because of my mighty hand he will drive them out of his country." (Exodus 6:1) A God who while on this earth in human form revealed his power through miracles. A God whose power calmed the sea with his words (Luke 8:24b) A God whose power fed five thousand out of 5 loaves and 2 fish (Luke 9:10-17) A God who displayed the "greatest power ever" by overcoming all the most powerful evil powers of this world, death and the powerful devil - a God who will be the last power standing. "I know that my Redeemer lives, and that in the end he will stand upon the earth. "(Job 19:25) Through faith, the Centurion recognized and tapped into the great power of God. "But say the word, and my servant will be healed." (Luke 7:7b)
We have a God who loved us with the "greatest love ever," and solved our "greatest problem ever" - (the effects of sin and the barrier sin creates). "He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?" (Romans 8:32) How comforting it is to know that it's not up to us human beings and our merit to earn God's love and favor - it's only up to the will of the being with the "greatest power ever" - the one who took care of our "greatest need ever." When we bring our requests to him in faith, and when they are his will - we will be given according to our needs - needs that our powerful God knows even better than we do. Knowing and believing this with all our hearts is the kind of great faith that even the "greatest authority ever" on faith is amazed by!
If you were to 'google' the phrase "greatest _______ ever," and you filled in the blank with terms such as: football player, actor, song, apple pie recipe, you would likely come up with conflicting results. Coming up with the greatest anything is a subjective process, the answer you get depends largely on who you ask. In our Gospel lesson for this upcoming Sunday, we find Jesus telling the crowd that he had found the person with the "greatest faith ever," or at least the greatest faith he had encountered up to that point in his earthly ministry. In Hebrews we are told that Jesus is, "the author and perfecter of our faith." (Hebrews 12:2a). The very author and perfecter of our faith would be the "greatest authority ever" on great faith. Jesus would know it when he saw it.
In this case, Jesus not only recognized great faith, he was amazed by it. In a couple chapters before our Lesson for this Sunday picks up, we find the story about how a paralyzed man was lowered down through the roof of a building to be healed by Jesus, and we are told how the crowd reacted after the healing, "Everyone was amazed and gave praise to God..." (Luke 5:26a) In our Lesson for this Sunday, we have the same elements and sentiments, just in a different order: God (the Son) was telling everyone that he was amazed and he gave praise to this Centurion for his faith. The one who had been amazing crowds was now amazed by one in the crowd! Amazing!
What made the Centurion's faith so great? How can we emulate this faith that even amazed Jesus?
So much of what happens in this world is cause and effect - it's based on formulas. If you do this, then this will happen. It's difficult to know exactly what the intent of the Jewish elders was when they pleaded earnestly to convince Jesus that the Centurion was deserving of Jesus attention - arguing that he was one of the 'good guys' who built their synagogue. But one thing we can be sure of is that too many people today follow the foe's fraudulent formula: if I try hard to be a good person, then God will love me and then I will deserve to go to heaven when I die. The Centurion realized that he was in fact unworthy and he recognized that it's not because of anything that he did or didn't do that would cause Jesus to love him. The "greatest formula ever" - the only formula that will matter as we take our final breath - one of the most familiar passages in all of Scripture can be found in John 3:16 "...whoever believes in him will not perish, but have eternal life." A person with great faith doesn't focus on themselves and their own performance, or lack thereof. Rather, great faith realizes that we need to (back to Hebrews 12 again), "fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith," (Hebrews 12:2a)
When, in great faith, we fix our eyes on Jesus, we find a God whose words and will have the "greatest power ever." A God whose words are powerful enough to create something out of nothing: "And God said, "Let there be light," and there was light." (Genesis 1:3) A God who has the power to destroy all life in the entire world: "...I will wipe from the face of the earth every living creature I have made." (Genesis 7:4) A God whose mighty hand has the power to change the direction of even the most stubborn powerful wordly figure "Then the LORD said to Moses, "Now you will see what I will do to Pharaoh: Because of my mighty hand he will let them go; because of my mighty hand he will drive them out of his country." (Exodus 6:1) A God who while on this earth in human form revealed his power through miracles. A God whose power calmed the sea with his words (Luke 8:24b) A God whose power fed five thousand out of 5 loaves and 2 fish (Luke 9:10-17) A God who displayed the "greatest power ever" by overcoming all the most powerful evil powers of this world, death and the powerful devil - a God who will be the last power standing. "I know that my Redeemer lives, and that in the end he will stand upon the earth. "(Job 19:25) Through faith, the Centurion recognized and tapped into the great power of God. "But say the word, and my servant will be healed." (Luke 7:7b)
We have a God who loved us with the "greatest love ever," and solved our "greatest problem ever" - (the effects of sin and the barrier sin creates). "He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?" (Romans 8:32) How comforting it is to know that it's not up to us human beings and our merit to earn God's love and favor - it's only up to the will of the being with the "greatest power ever" - the one who took care of our "greatest need ever." When we bring our requests to him in faith, and when they are his will - we will be given according to our needs - needs that our powerful God knows even better than we do. Knowing and believing this with all our hearts is the kind of great faith that even the "greatest authority ever" on faith is amazed by!
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