Where Jesus Is From

On the last day, the climax of the festival, Jesus stood and shouted to the crowds, “Anyone who is thirsty may come to me! Anyone who believes in me may come and drink! For the Scriptures declare, ‘Rivers of living water will flow from his heart.’” (When he said “living water,” he was speaking of the Spirit, who would be given to everyone believing in him. But the Spirit had not yet been given, because Jesus had not yet entered into his glory.) When the crowds heard him say this, some of them declared, “Surely this man is the Prophet we’ve been expecting.” Others said, “He is the Messiah.” Still others said, “But he can’t be! Will the Messiah come from Galilee? For the Scriptures clearly state that the Messiah will be born of the royal line of David, in Bethlehem, the village where King David was born.” So the crowd was divided about him. Some even wanted him arrested, but no one laid a hand on him. [John 7.37-44] 

How important is knowing where Jesus came from?

It might be asked, "How can you know the man if you do not know where he came from?"

John's Gospel of Jesus is different than the others. John tends to look deeper into Jesus' life. This is the same John who leaned on Jesus at the Last Supper indicating at least some level of relationship beyond casual acquaintance. John's deeper understanding of Jesus cannot be separated from his deeper relationship with Jesus.

As could be expected of a writer more intimately knowledgeable of Jesus, it is no surprise that he pointed out the failure of those who assumed Jesus was born in Galilee. To miss this fact about Jesus is to miss the fact that He is Messiah - that He is God. John's understanding of Jesus is seen in the early chapters of his Gospel where Jesus' existence is explained in absolute profundity. John's advanced understanding of Jesus would have been meaningless however if Jesus had not actually been born in Bethlehem.

Confusion about Jesus' birthplace is translated directly into confusion about His being God. This is highly significant because when Jesus spoke of the law of God, the Ten Commandments for example, He was speaking as One present even before the very creation of the world. When Jesus spoke of the Commandments, He spoke of that which He knew intimately. When Jesus spoke of the Prophets, He spoke of men He knew personally. When the people assumed Jesus was from Galilee, it proved they were clueless. They were the perfect candidates to reject and crucify the very God they claimed to know.

This is where we are tasked to understand where Jesus came from. We are tasked not only to understand that He was born in Bethlehem, but to understand that He was present at Creation. We are tasked to understand that the Ten Commandments (and all the Law) are about Him. We are tasked to know the Word - the written Word that is, in fact, the Living Word Who is Jesus. We are tasked to understand that everything Jesus said about Himself perfectly coincides with everything written about Him - even long before His Advent. We are tasked to see and understand that man's age-old problem of idolatry, repetitiously addressed over and over in what we call the Old Testament, remains man's problem today - causing man to trust in a plethora of things other than God ALONE. We are tasked to understand that the things Jesus demanded we must "give up" in order to follow Him are idols. We must understand that Jesus' exclusive language in Matthew 16.24 is one and the same as the exclusive language of Exodus 20.2-3:

If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow me. [Matthew 16.24]

“I am the LORD your God, who rescued you from the land of Egypt, the place of your slavery. “You must not have any other god but me. “You must not make for yourself an idol of any kind or an image of anything in the heavens or on the earth or in the sea. You must not bow down to them or worship them, for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God who will not tolerate your affection for any other gods. I lay the sins of the parents upon their children; the entire family is affected—even children in the third and fourth generations of those who reject me. But I lavish unfailing love for a thousand generations on those who love me and obey my commands. “You must not misuse the name of the LORD your God. The LORD will not let you go unpunished if you misuse his name. [Exodus 20.2-7]

But, if we do not know the Word - the written Word, and, therefore, the Living Word, Jesus, then we will never fully understand anything beyond a meaningless life on earth. And yet, this was the pathetic powerless existence of religion in Jesus' day, and it is the pathetic powerless existence of religion in our day.

Like had begun in Jesus' day, religious people have continued to opine about religion - about God - and yes, even about Jesus. Innumerable books have been written, lessons taught, and sermons preached on what amounts to be the opinions of man just like the religious elite in Jesus' day with their traditions. Somehow in all their "religion" and religious pretense, they missed the simple FACT that Jesus was indeed born in Bethlehem. This advancement of religion came then, and comes today at the costly price of ignorance of God's Word - ignorance of Jesus. People today know more about their favorite preacher or denomination than they know about Jesus.

Any recovery from this digression will come only when Jesus' words in Matthew 16.24 are taken literally:

If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow me. [Matthew 16.24]

Jesus' demand in Matthew 16.24 is the antithesis to man's pitiful existence without God (albeit highly religious). It all starts with understanding where Jesus is from... the heart of God via Bethlehem. 

Father, may we be found knowing Jesus. May we be found giving up our own way (religious as it may be), taking up our cross (unpopular as it may be), and following Jesus. So be it.

This Is Deep!

About that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Who is greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven?” Jesus called a little child to him and put the child among them. Then he said, “I tell you the truth, unless you turn from your sins and become like little children, you will never get into the Kingdom of Heaven. So anyone who becomes as humble as this little child is the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven. “And anyone who welcomes a little child like this on my behalf is welcoming me. But if you cause one of these little ones who trusts in me to fall into sin, it would be better for you to have a large millstone tied around your neck and be drowned in the depths of the sea. [Matthew 18.1-6] 

It is a universal fact: children are not self-sufficient.

Jesus chose a child to depict the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven because a child has no notion that he or she exists without help. In that way, a child is humble. In that way a child is also vulnerable.

There are two things Jesus taught through His illustration with a child: 

1. Living in self-sufficiency is a sin: unless you turn from your sins and become like little children...
2. Teaching self-sufficiency is a sin: if you cause one of these little ones who trusts in me to fall into sin...

This goes hand-in-hand with what Jesus said at another time and place:

If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow me. [Matthew 16.24]

To "give up our own way" is to give up our idea of self-sufficiency. It is to abandon any thought that we can sustain ourselves.

To "take up our cross" is to demonstrate to others that we have no dependency upon ourselves because the cross we carry renders us incapable of doing so (a person "nailed to a cross" cannot "hold onto" anything else).

This furthermore goes hand-in-hand with the first three Commandments:

Commandments 1 & 2: “I am the LORD your God, who rescued you from the land of Egypt, the place of your slavery. “You must not have any other god but me. “You must not make for yourself an idol of any kind or an image of anything in the heavens or on the earth or in the sea. You must not bow down to them or worship them, for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God who will not tolerate your affection for any other gods. I lay the sins of the parents upon their children; the entire family is affected—even children in the third and fourth generations of those who reject me. But I lavish unfailing love for a thousand generations on those who love me and obey my commands. [Exodus 20.2-6]

Commandment 3: “You must not misuse the name of the LORD your God. The LORD will not let you go unpunished if you misuse his name. [Exodus 20.7]

The 1st & 2nd Commandments warn us that living in self-sufficiency is sin: it must be given up.

The 3rd Commandment warns us that to speak God's name in blasphemy is sin. It is a misuse of (blasphemy against) God's name (Who is all-sufficient) to declare that sufficiency is found in, or even alongside, any other name (idol). To "speak" any other name (the name of an idol) is to inadvertently teach it - demonstrate it - to others. To "take up our cross" renders us incapable of demonstrating any other name but the name of Jesus (God With Us - Immanuel).

It is pure child-like humility to trust God alone. Such trust, from an adult perspective, is vulnerable. To take advantage of that vulnerability, teaching "the believing child" to trust in anyone or anything other than or in addition to God secures severe consequences: it would be better for you to have a large millstone tied around your neck and be drowned in the depths of the sea.

In Jesus' own words, this is deep!

Father in heaven, as we "dive in" to Your Word, may our eyes be opened to the consistent truth of Jesus that flows uninterrupted between what we call the Old Testament and the New Testament. May we see that singularly trusting in You - through Jesus - is indeed, child-like. Help us to see that it is indeed adult-like to surround ourselves with idols... May we be found, in child-like faith giving up our own way, and, in intentional demonstration of that child-like faith taking up our cross, and following Jesus. So be it.

Have We Missed The Point Of Life?

From then on Jesus began to tell his disciples plainly that it was necessary for him to go to Jerusalem, and that he would suffer many terrible things at the hands of the elders, the leading priests, and the teachers of religious law. He would be killed, but on the third day he would be raised from the dead. But Peter took him aside and began to reprimand him for saying such things. “Heaven forbid, Lord,” he said. “This will never happen to you!” Jesus turned to Peter and said, “Get away from me, Satan! You are a dangerous trap to me. You are seeing things merely from a human point of view, not from God’s.” Then Jesus said to his disciples, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow me. If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake, you will save it. And what do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your own soul? Is anything worth more than your soul? For the Son of Man will come with his angels in the glory of his Father and will judge all people according to their deeds. [Matthew 16.21-27] 

If we are not living to die, we have missed the point.

Jesus' ONLY purpose to live on earth was indeed to die.

Peter, under the influence of Satan, overwhelmingly represented every person who misunderstands Jesus' purpose to come to earth. Jesus did not come to earth to entertain or to be entertained - He came to die.

There is no Biblical proof that "life" is ours to preserve. Jesus' example and teaching says it all. God indeed said He would care for us, but we are strictly forbidden to take that matter into our own hands:

Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need. [Matthew 6.33]

The pursuit of life is a human perspective of self-centeredness, idols, and Satan himself who inspires us to take our lives into our own hands for the sake of living. This is, as Jesus rebuked Peter for, a dangerous trap.

Do I mean that all the things we do "to live" are a dangerous trap? Yes, that is what Jesus said.

When death is on the line, our motives become clear. Peter only said what all of us feel. That lust to live on earth is the work of Satan. That self-centric motivation is exactly what tripped up Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. At the heart of such error is the notion that God, Who reserves the right to be our everything, is not.

Is it wrong then that we live? Of course not! But it is wrong for any "follower of Christ" to "take matters into their own hands" regarding their life. The apostle Paul said it quite clearly to the Church in Galatia:

My old self has been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. So I live in this earthly body by trusting in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. [Galatians 2.20]

Nothing says what or who we trust in more than our "life." Regardless what we have been deceived to believe, any trust in ourselves or other man-made systems is idolatry. It is, in fact, what Jesus warned against in Matthew 16 above: If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake, you will save it. And what do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your own soul? Is anything worth more than your soul?. 

This is serious. This should occupy our thoughts every day... to live only as Christ with zero concern for "living on earth." This preempts "name-it-claim-it" mentality with the question instead, "What is necessary today to bring glory to God living only like Jesus knowing that God "has my back"?" If it's a miracle of epic proportions, fine. If it's the miracle of my cross, even better! Just let me follow Jesus!

Suddenly, the things of life do not matter. Suddenly, finance, insurance, medicine and technology become a clear affront to faith in Christ alone.

Hebrews 11 (the famous faith chapter) is perhaps the most taken-out-of-context chapter in the entire Bible. Everyone loves the first part of Hebrews 11 where those mentioned got the faith-opportunity to live. But most prefer to overlook the last part of Hebrews 11 where others had the faith-opportunity to die! Living or dying is not the focus! The focus is faith in Christ!

For to me, living means living for Christ, and dying is even better. [Philippians 1.21]

As a believer in Jesus Christ, my "life" is in heaven. I only "live" on earth to serve God's purpose. At least, that's the way it should be...

Father, like Peter, I get so distracted with "living" that I find myself rebuked by Your Word, Jesus. Help me instead to have a proper Biblical evaluation of my life on earth. May I be found giving up my own way, taking up my cross, and following Jesus. So be it.

The Yeast Of The Pharisees And Sadducees

At this they began to argue with each other because they hadn’t brought any bread. Jesus knew what they were saying, so he said, “You have so little faith! Why are you arguing with each other about having no bread? Don’t you understand even yet? Don’t you remember the 5,000 I fed with five loaves, and the baskets of leftovers you picked up? Or the 4,000 I fed with seven loaves, and the large baskets of leftovers you picked up? Why can’t you understand that I’m not talking about bread? So again I say, ‘Beware of the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees.’” Then at last they understood that he wasn’t speaking about the yeast in bread, but about the deceptive teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees. [Matthew 16.7-12] 

The faith Jesus promoted here in Matthew 16.7-12 is faith that, regardless the circumstances, trusts God implicitly. Such faith transcends science itself in demonstration of God's Kingdom power.

In contrast, the "faith" that Jesus denounced in Matthew 16.7-12 (He didn't call it faith, but instead "the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees") is more worried about protocol and appearances than glorifying God.

The point Jesus constantly drove home with His followers was to trust God - to have faith - in real time and in every situation. Jesus is still driving this point home today and religion and religious people are still resisting it today. 

Man's own way is the way of self-preserving reason and logic (first seen in the Garden of Eden). The way of Jesus miraculously feeds thousands, heals the sick, makes the blind see, makes the deaf hear, makes the lame to walk, raises the dead, and even walks on water ...all without fear.

The way of reason and logic looks upon Jesus' miraculous life and, instead of rejoicing that God might move among them, proudly denies and rejects Him because He does not look and act like them (in their own powerless existence). This is precisely why so many have been compelled to write books, teach lessons, and preach so many sermons about why God's people are so powerless today (deceptively normalizing powerlessness among God's people). The way of reason and logic is, in fact, the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees. The way of reason and logic trusts man more than God. In this way, the way of reason and logic, from Jesus' time until now, is ever-increasingly more idolatrous. The way of reason and logic - the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees - is still very much with us today.

To address the problem of reason and logic then and now, Jesus gave every would-be follower of Him this timeless demand:

If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow me. [Matthew 16.24]

An attempt by any person to justify and even defend powerlessness in the life of a "believer" is the deceptive yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees. It is the work of a hard and deceived heart void of God-pleasing faith.

Father in heaven, Jesus didn't 'pull any punches' and so, You have not 'pulled any punches' today. Your Word, Jesus, exists to separate Your people from the world and its powerless, religious, ways. May all who read this today, with me, more clearly see the need to give up our own way, take up our cross, and follow Jesus (on His terms, not ours). So be it.

 

Was Jesus Out Of Touch With Reality?

Then Peter said to Jesus, “Explain to us the parable that says people aren’t defiled by what they eat.” “Don’t you understand yet?” Jesus asked. “Anything you eat passes through the stomach and then goes into the sewer. But the words you speak come from the heart—that’s what defiles you. For from the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, all sexual immorality, theft, lying, and slander. These are what defile you. Eating with unwashed hands will never defile you.” [Matthew 15.15-20] 

Are we to conclude here that Jesus was ignorant of biology? In a world gone wild on "eating right" Jesus' words stand in stark contrast. Modern science traces all sorts of things we eat to certain diseases and physical conditions. I mean, it's science, right?

Jesus says however that evil thoughts, murder, adultery, all sexual immorality, theft, lying, and slander are what defile us. In fact, what Jesus said coincides perfectly with what Deuteronomy 28.15-68 says about disobedience to God: all manner of sickness results in addition to all manner of loss otherwise.

I know "sincere Christian people" who are consumed with "eating right" - even religious about it. They justify their actions with both science and God's Word:

Don’t you realize that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and was given to you by God? You do not belong to yourself, for God bought you with a high price. So you must honor God with your body. [1 Corinthians 6.19-20]

The thing is, 1 Corinthians 6.19-20 is not at all about "eating right" but instead the context of that entire chapter is about moral purity (read all of 1 Corinthians 6)! 

Man's sickness, weakness, and disease is NOT the result of what he eats. Jesus unapologetically contradicts such a notion (science be damned) saying man's defilement (that is what sickness and disease are referred to in the Bible) is the direct result of evil thoughts, murder, adultery, all sexual immorality, theft, lying, and slander. In fact, the apostle Paul confirms this in 1 Corinthians 6 (if we actually read the whole chapter).

The only real Biblical warning concerning our diet is not found in what we eat, but in how much we eat. Gluttony is repeatedly prohibited in the Bible.

What if people so bent on "eating right" spent that time instead in repentance and devotion to following Jesus? What if people gave as much effort to Matthew 16.24 as they did their diet?

If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow me. [Matthew 16.24]

Was Jesus out of touch with reality? I don't think so.

Father, help us see the futility of "eating right." Help us instead see the absolute necessity of giving up our own way, taking up our cross, and following Jesus. So be it.

They Didn't Understand Miracles

Late that night, the disciples were in their boat in the middle of the lake, and Jesus was alone on land. He saw that they were in serious trouble, rowing hard and struggling against the wind and waves. About three o’clock in the morning Jesus came toward them, walking on the water. He intended to go past them, but when they saw him walking on the water, they cried out in terror, thinking he was a ghost. They were all terrified when they saw him. But Jesus spoke to them at once. “Don’t be afraid,” he said. “Take courage! I am here!” Then he climbed into the boat, and the wind stopped. They were totally amazed,  for they still didn’t understand the significance of the miracle of the loaves. Their hearts were too hard to take it in. [Mark 6.47-52] 

What was it that Mark understood about the miracle of the loaves that the disciples had missed? Most assuredly it was this:

For the hearts of these people are hardened, and their ears cannot hear, and they have closed their eyes—so their eyes cannot see, and their ears cannot hear, and their hearts cannot understand, and they cannot turn to me and let me heal them.’ [Matthew 13.15]

Because a hard heart is blinded and deafened by something, it cannot enjoy the miracles of God. Like physical healing, walking on water also qualifies as a miracle the same as feeding 5,000 people with 5 loaves and 2 fish. The point is, a hard heart gives preference to man's solutions to his problems denying the power of God.

That evening the disciples came to him and said, “This is a remote place, and it’s already getting late. Send the crowds away so they can go to the villages and buy food for themselves.” But Jesus said, “That isn’t necessary—you feed them.” “But we have only five loaves of bread and two fish!” they answered. [Matthew 14.15-17]

The simple solution of the blind and deaf hard-hearted disciples was to, "Send the crowds away so they can go to the villages and buy food for themselves." They never even considered a miracle from God instead. The hard-heartedness of never even considering God is a violation of the 1st Commandment:

“I am the LORD your God, who rescued you from the land of Egypt, the place of your slavery. “You must not have any other god but me. [Exodus 20.2-3]

THINK! How did God bring the Hebrews out of Egypt? WITH UNDENIABLE MIRACLES! In the very context of the 1st Commandment, God demands to be distinguished as His people's ONLY God by powerful miracles. Pharoah did not let God's people go because they posed a significant military threat. Instead, Pharoah let God's people go because He feared their miracle-working God.

The disciples were mindlessly amazed at Jesus walking on the water because their hearts were hard against their miracle-working God. The disciples mindlessly resorted to sending the crowds away to get food because their hearts were hard against their miracle-working God.

Today, God's people mindlessly turn to all manner of man-made solutions for everyday problems because their hearts are hard against their miracle-working God.

Man's "solutions" are idols. Although not an exhaustive list, man's solutions (idols) today are found broadly in his industries of finance, insurance, medicine and technology.

Idolatry only sees the problem (wind and waves, hungry people, poverty, vulnerability, sickness, ignorance...). Idolatry is blind and deaf to anything else.

Faith sees the solution (undeniable miracles). Faith believes God exists and that He rewards those who seek Him. Faith sees every possibility in God the Creator.

To preemptively address any misunderstanding going forward, Jesus placed the responsibility of miracles (and everything else He did) on every believer:

“I tell you the truth, anyone who believes in me will do the same works I have done, and even greater works, because I am going to be with the Father. [John 14.12]

Unironically, man has a solution for John 14.12: it's called religion. Like every other man-made solution to "man's problems," religion is also an idol. So firmly established is the idol of religion that books, teachings, and sermons defending man's undeniable failure to comply with John 14.12 cannot be counted. These same books, teachings, and sermons also make damning allowance for man to establish his own spiritual equilibrium regarding Matthew 16.24:

If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow me. [Matthew 16.24]

Man's problems identify the condition of his heart. What is the first solution that comes to mind when we encounter a problem? Is it a man-made solution (our way)? Or, is it our miracle-working God (the way of the cross)?

This subject is not going away because the the Word of God is not going away. My "voice" might be silenced, but let us not think for a moment that Jesus' words will ever be silenced!

Father, may the truth of Your Word prevail in this day and age when man's solutions (idols) abound and man's hard heart prevents him from enjoying Your miracles. May there be a revival of Your Word - may there be a revival of Your miraculous intervention in the lives of Your true followers. So be it.

What If Jesus Really Meant What He Said?

If you refuse to take up your cross and follow me, you are not worthy of being mine. If you cling to your life, you will lose it; but if you give up your life for me, you will find it. [Matthew 10.38-39]

What if Jesus really meant what He said? 

This is the proverbial "elephant in the room" no one really wants to talk about. This is where pure undefiled relationship with God takes a u-turn to become false religion. This is where abstraction sets upon what is otherwise clear instruction in God's Word. This is overwhelmingly where the alleged Church finds itself today.

It matters not how many books have been written or how many sermons have been preached to "soften the blow" of Jesus' hard words... Do we dare to interpret the Bible to suit our comfort level? Why would we presume to know more than God? Who would think of such a thing?

"God knows my heart" won't cut it because the fact is, God indeed knows our hearts:

“The human heart is the most deceitful of all things, and desperately wicked. Who really knows how bad it is? [Jeremiah 17.9]

So, if we cannot trust our own heart, who or what can we trust? God's Word: Jesus Christ. Period.

“I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me. [John 14.6]

How do we identify deceit in our lives? It's simple: the deceiver of mankind would have us focus on ourselves instead of God. This self-centric disregard for what God said is idolatry - it began in the Garden of Eden. 

If then we cannot focus on deceit, we must focus on the Truth. Jesus spoke that Truth, so, we cannot ignore what He said! Jesus really meant every word He said.

Would it not be even more important to do what Jesus said if He repeated it? That is precisely what Jesus did:

If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow me. [Matthew 16.24]

Yes, Jesus really meant every word He said.

Father, every one of us makes a decision every day to either follow Jesus, or follow our own heart's idolatrous desires... even knowing that our hearts are "ground zero" for all manner of deceit. Help us to get real - help us stop deceiving ourselves and each other. Help us make personal every directive Jesus gave for all who be His followers. May we truly be found giving up our own way, taking up our cross, and following Jesus. So be it.