Category: John

Miracles and the Miraculously Malcontent

OLD TESTAMENT: Ezra 4-6

POETRY: Psalm 139

NEW TESTAMENT: John 12:37-50

The Gospel of John, chapters 7-12, have been happening in conjunction with our Old Testament readings these past two weeks. In the gospel of John, Jesus does not perform miracles per se. At least, John doesn’t call them miracles. Instead, John calls them signs. There are seven signs. These signs work with John’s overall mission. In John 20:31, we read “These are written so that you might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and by believing you may have life in his name.” “These things” that are written are the teachings of Jesus, but also the signs that show that he is the Messiah. 

If you see the signs, you should recognize that Jesus is the Messiah. 

That’s the point. 

I really need to drive that home because I want to focus on a part of John 12 that has always bothered me deeply. It was not today’s reading but yesterday’s. Let’s look at verse 9-10 again: “The large crowd of the Jews then learned that He was there; and they came, not for Jesus’ sake only, but that they might also see Lazarus, whom He raised from the dead. But the chief priests planned to put Lazarus to death also; because on account of him many of the Jews were going away and were believing in Jesus.” 

The seventh miraculous sign Jesus performed was the raising of Lazarus from the dead. It shows the power Jesus has been granted from the Father over the grave, and that Jesus himself is the resurrection and the life. 

And the chief priests plan to kill Lazarus. They plan to take the one benefitted by the sign and put him down. They are so focused on preserving the comfortable way of life they have that they don’t realize they are destroying the good, the truth, the life of what is coming. A better way Jesus came to make. Maybe some of them knew Jesus really was the Messiah. It is even worse for them because they are knowingly attacking the resurrection and the life. The one who is the only way to the Father. They are doing so by denying his sign.

As you go through this advent, as you share the message of Jesus, the hope, peace, joy, and love he brings, don’t be surprised that there are those who cannot or do not want to hear the truth of that message; there were those in the time of Jesus who wanted to kill a man who Jesus raised from the dead. There will always be malcontents who cannot bear to experience joy and life. 

What you are called to do is to love them, but never become like them. 

May you be full of joy and life, this day and every day. 

May you hear the voice of Jesus and jump for joy. 

May you be raised by Jesus when he comes in his kingdom. Amen. 

-Jake Ballard

Reflection Questions

  1. In the account of the raising of Lazarus, where do you see yourself? Place yourself in the scene and imagine – what would be your thoughts, feelings, words, actions?
  2. In what ways have you heard the voice of Jesus? What is your response to Jesus?
  3. What is your response to those who reject the message and signs of Jesus that say he is the Messiah, the Christ, the Son of God?

Jake Ballard is pastor at Timberland Bible Church. If you’d like to hear more from him, you can find Timberland on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/TimberlandBibleChurch/ ) and on Instagram (https://instagram.com/timberlandbiblechurch?igshid=t52xoq9esc7e ). The church streams the Worship Gathering every Sunday at 10:30. Besides studying and teaching God’s word, he is raising three beautiful children with the love of his life, plays board games and RPGs, and is currently learning how to speak Klingon. If you’d like to reach out to talk Bible, talk faith, or talk about whether Kirk or Picard were the better captains (though, of course, each were necessary in their own time), look Jacob Ballard up on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/jacob.ballard.336) or email him at jakea.ballard@yahoo.com. 

God bless you all! 

Qapla’!

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I am he.

OLD TESTAMENT: Ezekiel 33

POETRY: Psalm 129

NEW TESTAMENT: John 4:1-42

In today’s John 4 reading, one of our main characters is a woman from Samaria. When I hear the term Samaria, two phrases jump into my mind.  The “Good Samaritan” and the “Samaritan Woman”.  Those who label Sunday school lessons or chapter headings don’t seem to toss in the adjective “good” for this one. Just woman. She’s not a man. She’s not a Jew. She’s not married. And she’s out fetching water at the old Jacob’s well (which was in Samaria at that time in history) when she runs across a weary Jesus.

We don’t know the exact reasons Jesus chose to travel through Samaria on his way from Judea to Galilee since he could have easily avoided the area the way “Samaritan-avoiding-Jews” were often known to do.  We just know he did travel right through it, and when he asked a woman for a drink at the well, he was recognized as a Jew who would not be expected to interact with her socially.  There seems to be some differing opinions among historians and commentators regarding the time of day for this drink, but that detail is not what matters. Whether on Roman time (around 6pm) or Jewish time (noon), we know that  Jesus was intentionally interacting with a Samarian woman with a bit of a reputation in a public area, and we are given an account of that meaningful conversation.  His words are what sparked the things she learned, what she said of him in the moment, and what she told Samaria about after he was gone. Not what time the old sun dial said when she was at the well.

Jesus allowed himself to be served by this woman, and in turn, by telling her about living water, by showing her he was willing to minister to her even with awareness of the past and present sins in her life, and by revealing himself as the Messiah to her, “many more believed (verse 41).”

This woman (I wish I knew her name just because I’m tired of typing woman, but that detail doesn’t matter either I guess, and Jesus himself calls her “woman”!) uses a number of terms for Jesus which evidence who he is and seem to increase a bit in honor:

Verse 11: Sir

Verse 19: Prophet

Verse 25:  Messiah, Christ

And in verse 32 we see that the people she told about him call him “the Savior of the world.”

Jesus acknowledges being the Messiah, the one prophesied about for generations. When he answers in John 4:26 he said “I am he.” In Greek, the words “ego eimi”. The same words the blind man uses of himself a few chapters later in John 9. Jesus essentially said, “Yup, I’m that guy.” Not I am…..anything else. Not I AM YHWH. Not the Creator. Not …I am a coequal part of this mysterious triune deity thing. He said “I am he” referencing being: the Messiah.  If Jesus speaks, I think his words deserve our critical attention in a world, even a Christian world, that is often careless with them. 

The Samaritan woman knew he was the Messiah and proclaimed him to be who he was.  In addition to the personal level of interaction and forgiveness we see in this story giving a beautiful taste of the personal aspect of salvation, our Messiah also referenced the gospel he came to teach,  “. . .fruit for eternal life (v. 36)” . . .our inheritance in the coming kingdom of God! The hope for an imperfect Samaritan woman remains my hope as an imperfect American woman.

-Jennifer Hall

Reflection Questions:

  1. Consider if there are any people or groups of people you could treat more like Jesus treated the Samaritan woman even if it goes against norms in your social group.
  2. How can you better draw from Jesus’ living water in your life when you find yourself spiritually and emotionally “thirsty”?
  3. Is there anything you need to share with God or others about what Jesus has done in your life the same way the Samaritan woman did?
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Wedding Celebrations

OLD TESTAMENT: Ezekiel 25-26

POETRY: Psalm 125

NEW TESTAMENT: John 2:1-11

Weddings are a lot of fun.  I’ve been blessed to lead wedding ceremonies for 6 of my own children and over 100 other weddings over the last 40 years of ministry.  Of all the weddings I’ve been involved in, the one that affected me most was the wedding of my wife Karen and me.  In 11 days we will celebrate our 40th wedding anniversary- November 24, 1984.

Weddings hold a lot of meaning in the Bible.  Abraham and Sarah’s son Isaac had a special wedding when he married Rebekah.  Their son Jacob had a huge wedding surprise when he thought he was marrying Rachel but her father tricked him into marrying his older daughter Leah.

Jesus’ first miracle came at a wedding when Jesus turned water into wine at a wedding.

John 2:1-11

2 On the third day a wedding took place at Cana in Galilee. Jesus’ mother was there, 2 and Jesus and his disciples had also been invited to the wedding. 3 When the wine was gone, Jesus’ mother said to him, “They have no more wine.”

4 “Woman, why do you involve me?” Jesus replied. “My hour has not yet come.”

5 His mother said to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.”

6 Nearby stood six stone water jars, the kind used by the Jews for ceremonial washing, each holding from twenty to thirty gallons.

7 Jesus said to the servants, “Fill the jars with water”; so they filled them to the brim.

8 Then he told them, “Now draw some out and take it to the master of the banquet.”

They did so, 9 and the master of the banquet tasted the water that had been turned into wine. He did not realize where it had come from, though the servants who had drawn the water knew. Then he called the bridegroom aside 10 and said, “Everyone brings out the choice wine first and then the cheaper wine after the guests have had too much to drink; but you have saved the best till now.”

11 What Jesus did here in Cana of Galilee was the first of the signs through which he revealed his glory; and his disciples believed in him.

The symbolism of marriage can be seen throughout the New Testament.  It begins in John 2 and makes an appearance in Matthew 22 with a parable of a King who has a wedding banquet for his son.  He hosts a great banquet, but his invited guests refuse to come to the banquet.  Instead, they mistreated and killed the king’s servants. So the king brings his judgment and wrath against the wicked.

Jesus tells a parable about the bridegroom coming to meet his bride for their wedding, but her wedding attendants were not ready and miss out on the wedding banquet (See Matthew 25).

Finally, the book of Revelation reveals the marriage supper of the lamb of God, when Jesus returns to claim his bride and celebrate his own wedding feast. 

 Revelation 19:6-9:

“6 Then I heard what seemed to be the voice of a great multitude, like the roar of many waters and like the sound of mighty peals of thunder, crying out,

“Hallelujah!
For the Lord our God
    the Almighty reigns.

7 

Let us rejoice and exult
    and give him the glory,
for the marriage of the Lamb has come,
    and his Bride has made herself ready;

8 

it was granted her to clothe herself
    with fine linen, bright and pure”—

for the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints.

9 And the angel said to me, “Write this: Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.” And he said to me, “These are the true words of God.”

Who is the bride of Messiah Jesus?  It is his Church.  We are the bride of Christ and when Christ comes we will celebrate our union with our savior and king Jesus.  So let us be prepared for this grand and glorious celebration with Jesus.  

Jesus begins his ministry with a miracle at a wedding, and when he returns to earth there will be a great and final wedding feast.  Don’t miss your great celebration.  The greatest banquet in human history.

Pastor Jeff Fletcher

Reflection Questions

  1. What are some of your favorite wedding memories? What makes them so precious?
  2. Imagine what each of the characters at the wedding in Cana were thinking and feeling. Jesus and Mary were disagreeing as to if this was the right time for a first miracle. What do you think God thought?
  3. Why do you think God chose a wedding banquet to compare with the church meeting Jesus at his return? How does a bride prepare for her wedding? How ought the church to be preparing to meet Jesus? Are there any details (or larger issues) that you may have overlooked in your preparations thus far?
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John Introduces Jesus

OLD TESTAMENT: Ezekiel 21 & 22

POETRY: Psalm 123

NEW TESTAMENT: John 1:19-34

Last week in the United States we had our election for President.   For months people campaigned on behalf of the candidates.  There were debates, speeches, and interviews.

2000 years ago in Israel, there were questions surrounding potential leaders.  One man who had developed a large following drew interest in from the leaders who sent religious leaders to question who he was.  He made it clear who he was not.

John 1:19-34

19 Now this was John’s testimony when the Jewish leaders in Jerusalem sent priests and Levites to ask him who he was. 20 He did not fail to confess, but confessed freely, “I am not the Messiah.”

21 They asked him, “Then who are you? Are you Elijah?”

He said, “I am not.”

“Are you the Prophet?”

He answered, “No.”

22 Finally they said, “Who are you? Give us an answer to take back to those who sent us. What do you say about yourself?”

23 John replied in the words of Isaiah the prophet, “I am the voice of one calling in the wilderness, ‘Make straight the way for the Lord.’”

24 Now the Pharisees who had been sent 25 questioned him, “Why then do you baptize if you are not the Messiah, nor Elijah, nor the Prophet?”

26 “I baptize with water,” John replied, “but among you stands one you do not know. 27 He is the one who comes after me, the straps of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie.”

28 This all happened at Bethany on the other side of the Jordan, where John was baptizing.

John Testifies About Jesus

29 The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, “Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! 30 This is the one I meant when I said, ‘A man who comes after me has surpassed me because he was before me.’ 31 I myself did not know him, but the reason I came baptizing with water was that he might be revealed to Israel.”

32 Then John gave this testimony: “I saw the Spirit come down from heaven as a dove and remain on him. 33 And I myself did not know him, but the one who sent me to baptize with water told me, ‘The man on whom you see the Spirit come down and remain is the one who will baptize with the Holy Spirit.’ 34 I have seen and I testify that this is God’s Chosen One.”

John made clear that he was not the one, he was not the Messiah, the King.  John made it clear that Jesus was the true King.  God himself declared that Jesus was revealed to be the savior of the world.  Jesus was God’s chosen.  He was God’s sacrificial lamb who would take away the sins of the world.

John was a man of great humility.  He did not pursue power and glory.  His call was to witness the truth about God’s true savior.

Presidents come and go, but Jesus is the true Messiah and Savior.  Just as John in all humility pointed people to Jesus, let us all point to Jesus as our savior and king.

Pastor Jeff Fletcher 

Reflection Questions

  1. What characteristics of John do you admire? What makes a good Christian leader?
  2. What evidence did John have that Jesus was God’s Chosen One – God’s Messiah?
  3. Like John, how can you prepare people to meet Jesus? How can you introduce Jesus to your friends/co-workers/neighbors?
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Death and Life

*Theme week – Celebrating Jesus: John 20

Old Testament: Zechariah 13 & 14

Poetry: Psalm 148       

            It feels funny to be talking about Jesus’ death and resurrection during Christmas week.  Sunday we were expecting a baby to be born, Monday the angels were singing to the shepherds announcing his birth.  Here it is Friday and he has already been crucified and his cold, dead body lies in a tomb.  It is kind of jarring to go from celebrating a baby born to be king to suddenly mourning his death. 

            Life is often experienced as a kind of emotional roller coaster.  Something great happens, and you are laughing and joyful.  Then, suddenly you are hit with bad news and the laughter turns to tears.  The events we have been reading about took place over 30+ years from the time Gabriel first appeared to Mary with the announcement that she had been chosen by God to bear his son, the Messiah until she stood at the foot of his cross and watched him die.  As you may recall, there was death surrounding Jesus right from the beginning, as King Herod was trying to kill him when he was a baby, when the little innocent baby boys of Bethlehem were slaughtered.    Jesus warned in John 10:10 that “the thief comes to kill, steal and destroy”.  Right from the beginning evil was out to destroy Jesus.  It took 30 years, but finally Jesus was dead.  The rejoicing has turned to weeping.

            The good news of the Gospels is that death doesn’t have the final word.  Evil doesn’t win.  God wins!  At the Last Supper just before Jesus was arrested he laid out for his disciples what was about to happen:

16 Jesus went on to say, “In a little while you will see me no more, and then after a little while you will see me.”

At this, some of his disciples said to one another, “What does he mean by saying, ‘In a little while you will see me no more, and then after a little while you will see me,’ and ‘Because I am going to the Father’?” They kept asking, “What does he mean by ‘a little while’? We don’t understand what he is saying.” 

Jesus saw that they wanted to ask him about this, so he said to them, “Are you asking one another what I meant when I said, ‘In a little while you will see me no more, and then after a little while you will see me’? Very truly I tell you, you will weep and mourn while the world rejoices. You will grieve, but your grief will turn to joy. A woman giving birth to a child has pain because her time has come; but when her baby is born she forgets the anguish because of her joy that a child is born into the world. 22 So with you: Now is your time of grief, but I will see you again and you will rejoice, and no one will take away your joy. (John 16:16-20).

            This brings us to today’s reading in John 20.  As we saw yesterday, Jesus was unjustly killed for political reasons.  The principalities and powers tried to buttress their own power and control and they saw Jesus as a threat, so they had him unjustly killed.  However, it takes more than the death of his son to thwart God’s plan.  As it turned out, the powers who orchestrated Jesus’ death played right into God’s plan that goes back to the very beginning.  That’s right, since the time of Adam and Eve and the Fall, God’s plan to defeat evil included the sacrificial death of the one who would be the son of God and Messianic King.  Revelation 13:8 speaks of the “lamb that was slain from the foundation of the world.”  Before Jesus ruled as King, he first had to die as sacrifice, as savior, as redeemer.  He died to bear our sins as Isaiah 53 prophesied would one day happen.

            God raised Jesus from the dead.  Death did not have the final word, God has the final word and it is life.  Along with life, Jesus offers the gift of forgiveness.  When you believe that Jesus died and was raised to life and give your loyalty to him as your king, you will share in that blessing Jesus promised. Your sins will be forgiven and you will have your fellowship with God restored. The result of this restored fellowship is peace, the peace that only Jesus can give.

            Jesus points out to the disciples that they came to believe in him by seeing him in person after the resurrection.  Thomas even had the benefit of physically touching Jesus’ scars to help him accept the truth of the resurrection.  Jesus points to those who will believe in him without the benefit of having seen him after his resurrection. Those who have faith in the message of the gospel passed down for 2000 years in the Bible from the first eyewitnesses to the risen Jesus. The good news is, that is you, if you believe that God raised Jesus from death to life, you receive the blessing Jesus promised.  I hope you believe, I know I do.

-Jeff Fletcher

Reflection Questions

  1. What do you love about God and His plan as revealed in John 20? What questions do you have about God and His plan and Jesus’ part in that plan?
  2. What has Jesus offered to you? Have you accepted these gifts? Why or why not?
  3. What is the next step in God’s plan and what is your role in it?
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He Sees

You Can, Too.

Old Testament: Esther 8-10

Poetry: Psalm 29

*New Testament: John 9

John 9 recounts a story of Jesus healing a man born blind, and how those in his community respond to his being healed. Through this account, we see not only the heart that Jesus had, but also areas for our own spiritual growth.

As he passed by, he saw a man blind from birth. 9:1

From the start, we can find assurance in the notion that Jesus notices the least of us. We’re later told that this man had been a beggar. He may have been begging as Jesus and the disciples passed by. For anyone who feels overlooked at times, isn’t it comforting to know that Jesus notices us?

So he went and washed and came back seeing. 9:7b

We also see in this man how obedience and faith work together. Believing that Jesus could heal him would not have sealed the deal, action was required. Results are nice. And most often they don’t come without some action on our part. This man could not have been healed without Jesus intervening. But even with Jesus’ intervention, his healing required his own participation.

Some of the Pharisees near him heard these things, and said to him, “Are we also blind?” Jesus said to them, “If you were blind, you would have no guilt; but now that you say, ‘We see,’ your guilt remains.  9:40

Self-righteousness blinds us. And these blind spots are roadblocks on our journey to spiritual maturity.

Have you ever been reading when the light outside is growing dim? You don’t need the lights inside the house on yet and so they are not on. But an hour later, the room is getting darker and darker and you do not even realize it. Someone may come in and ask if you need the light on. Suddenly you look around and realize how dark it is. You didn’t know you needed the light, you hadn’t recognized you were in the dark. This is the problem Jesus is identifying. The light of the world is here for those that know they need it/him. But many think they can see when actually they are sitting in the dark.

And if, when reading that, your mind immediately went to ‘those people’ who are in the dark…you’re missing the point. You’re ‘those people.’ We’re all ‘those people.’

What a great place to start today… asking for him to reveal blind spots we may have, trusting that he sees and cares for us, with a willingness to act on what he reveals in us.

-Susan Landry

Reflection Questions

  1. How do faith and obedience work together? Why are both required? Do you feel stronger in one than the other? How can you work on growing the other?
  2. When have you found yourself sitting in the dark? How can you draw closer to the light of the world to take advantage of the light he gives?
  3. After reading John 9 how would you describe Jesus.
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Missing the Forest for the Trees

Old Testament: Esther Intro below

Poetry: Psalm 25

New Testament: John 5

We saw in John 4 yesterday how Jesus challenged and expanded the boundaries of who can experience the living water, and where worship can happen. Now in John 5, we see him challenging the existing notions of when God should be experienced.

We think of the temple as sacred space, meaning it was a special place where God’s presence lived in a special way. What the temple was to physical space, the Sabbath was to time. The Sabbath is sacred time, like the temple in day form. It was a special day of rest set aside to focus on God, which invited his presence. 

The Sabbath was important to the Jews, so they did their best to follow the laws in scripture concerning it. With all the right intentions, they developed traditional rules about what could be done on the Sabbath that were more strict than what was stated in scripture. This way, they wouldn’t even come close to breaking the laws. It was like driving 30 MPH in a 55 MPH zone so you don’t get pulled over for speeding.

There is a difference between following the letter of the law and following the spirit of the law. The letter of the law in a 55 MPH zone means if you go over 55 MPH, you might get pulled over and probably have to pay a fine. But what is the spirit of the speed limit? One goal is safety. If a lot of people are driving too fast, chances for fatal accidents increase (speed kills). If you are driving 30 in a 55, you are well within the letter of the law, but you are actually not following the spirit of the law, since you are not helping the safety situation. Other drivers will have to slam on their brakes to not hit you, or they will have to pass you and risk a collision with a car coming the other way. In being too preoccupied with the letter of the law, you have violated the spirit of the law.

By healing the man on the Sabbath, Jesus attracts some unwanted criticism. First, the man is criticized for carrying his mat away, as Jesus told him to do. This was apparently against some of the rules about how much weight could be carried or how far something could be carried on the Sabbath. Then the religious leaders criticize Jesus for doing a healing on the Sabbath, since healing qualifies as some form of work in the rule book. They probably just wanted to find any way possible to be critical. 

How does Jesus respond? From verse 17: “My Father is still working [on the Sabbath], and I also am working.” Doesn’t this challenge the traditional wisdom about the Sabbath? If God rested on the seventh day, we observe that pattern and do the same each week. But Jesus is claiming here that God works even on the Sabbath, and maybe even that he has never stopped working. Jesus is all about the business of his Father, so if the Father is working on the Sabbath, so will Jesus.

A large point of the law about the Sabbath is to carve out time to foster a connection with God. By focusing on the technicalities, the religious leaders were missing the point completely, for had their standards been followed, it would have resulted in less connection with God. The man wouldn’t have been healed, and wouldn’t have had the amazing experience that brought him to know Jesus and by proxy, the Father. By maximizing connection to God, Jesus had actually followed the spirit of the law, even though he may not have been within the letter of it.

I think what God wants us to know through this story is that he values compassion and mercy above legalism. I am reminded of what Jesus says in Matthew 9:13 (in reference to Hosea 6:6): “Go and learn what this means, ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’ For I have come to call not the righteous but sinners.” Our God is a God of genuine love and kindness, and he wants us to mirror that, not just perform the outward ritual.

-Jay Laurent

Reflection Questions:

1. Can you think of a time when obsessing over the rules made you miss the big picture?

2. It’s a busy world. Do you carve out any time to connect with God?

3. If you do, what are some of your favorite ways of connecting?

Esther Introduction

The Book of Esther tells the story of how a Jewish orphan girl became the queen of Persia and saved the Jews from Haman’s plot to kill them all.  The feast of Purim, still celebrated today, celebrates that deliverance.  We don’t know who wrote the book of Esther, but it may have been her cousin, Mordecai (who also raised her after she became an orphan).

The book of Esther is the only book in the Bible that has no direct reference to God, and is only one of two (the other is Ruth) named after a woman.

One of the most well-known verses is Esther 4:13, “For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance for the Jews will arise from another place, but you and your father’s family will perish.  And who knows but that you have come to royal position for such a time as this.”

Bonus trivia:  The longest verse in the Bible is Esther 8:9.

This book is a great example of the positive difference one person can make when acting courageously despite fear.  What difference can you make – with God’s help?

-Steve Mattison

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Reach

Old Testament: Nehemiah 11-13

Poetry: Psalm 24

New Testament: John 4

Tribalism is one of those coins with two sides. It has aided in our survival as a species, yet it influences us to do things that are very unhelpful in the modern world. It is beneficial or even necessary to belong to a tribe. We need things like community, cohesion, protection, sharing of resources, cooperation, and a sense of identity and belonging. But a tribal mentality views anyone on the outside as a threat to all of those good things, often leading to polarization, discrimination, racism, or even violent conflict. 

We favor people in our in-group, often at the expense of the outsider. We believe our group is better than other groups and that we have the correct deities or religious practices, and that they do not. Any outside influences or new ideas might be a threat to our way of life, so naturally we want to put up a protective hedge and resist any change. We are stuck in a paradox where we need tribalism and at the same time need to get rid of it. Is it possible to keep the good parts of it and jettison the bad?

Tribalism is in the backdrop of John chapter 4. There was a longstanding tension between the Jews and the Samaritans, mostly over religious practices. They shared many beliefs, but disagreed on some things, most notably about where worship should happen. The Jewish tribe insisted that worship should happen at the temple, while the Samaritan tribe insisted it should happen on a mountain. Each tribe believed the other was not worshiping correctly and perceived the other as some kind of threat to the integrity of proper worship. This all sounds completely insane to us, but we’ve all heard stories of church splits that happened over something ridiculously miniscule.

By talking to the Samaritan woman, Jesus broke down the tribal barrier that existed between them. He showed that having the conversation with her was more important than obeying the cultural pressure to not have the conversation. He showed her that she had value and was not a threat to him. This living water Jesus is talking about apparently knows no tribal or cultural boundaries. 

Whatever ancestral disagreement they had about where worship should take place was not going to be relevant anymore. He tells her that the time is coming when worship will take place neither on the mountain nor in the temple, but true worshipers will worship in spirit and truth. In other words, it’s not going to matter where we worship anymore. It’s all going to be about the heart that the worship comes from.

There is another part of the conversation that deserves some consideration. Verses 16-18 are usually interpreted as Jesus gently calling the woman out for her sin of adultery or promiscuity. That may be. I’ve heard another interpretation that I think changes the mood of the passage. 

Women at this time in history don’t have the same kinds of rights that women have now. It was a highly patriarchal society that had not elevated the status of women very far above property. The right or ability to divorce belonged to men, or if a woman was able to initiate one, it would be with great difficulty. Given the context, when we learn that she has had five husbands, we shouldn’t assume she was responsible for the mess. It is more likely that her previous husbands had exploited their right to divorce, with the result being that she had been abused and passed around like property. And it’s not likely that the man she is with now is going to offer any improvement for the abusive cycle she is in. So when Jesus tells her that he knows about her situation, it is not to condemn her of sin, but to offer his acknowledgment of and empathy for what she has been through. 

Is that the “correct” interpretation? I’m not in a place to claim that, but I do feel this offers a refreshing angle on the passage.

From another part of the reading today, there is something in Nehemiah 13:23-27 that collides with our discussions of tribalism and of divorce. Nehemiah has discovered that many of the Jewish men have married foreign wives. This is considered a problem because it was against the law of Moses for the Israelites to intermarry with the surrounding nations. Solomon was guilty of this also, and it was a big part of his downfall. The intermarriage allows other religious ideas to creep into the tribe, and it likely leads the men astray to worship other gods. To protect the purity and identity of the community, Nehemiah orders that the foreign wives (and their children?) be sent away. I can appreciate the need to protect the tribe, and the desire to uphold the law. But on the other hand, Nehemiah’s hardline response to the problem always strikes me as overly harsh. Breaking up families is not a good thing, and what’s the fate of the people who are sent away? It makes me wonder how Jesus would have dealt with it.

From John 4, we begin to see how Jesus challenged the tribal constructs. He reached out to an outsider and heralded a time when the tribal God of Israel would no longer be just for Israel, but for all peoples and nations. In order to connect with the one true God, we no longer need to be in this place or that, or have a certain racial or cultural identity, or be in the right in-crowd. We only need to be in Spirit and Truth. By example, Jesus is inviting us to suspend some of the deepest instincts of our tribalism and embrace a spirit of inclusion.

-Jay Laurent

Reflection Questions:

1. What tribes do you belong to?

2. Do you recognize any tribal instincts in yourself? When are they helpful? When are they not helpful?

3. Who is an outsider to you, and what would it take to just have a conversation with them?

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Portal

Old Testament: Nehemiah 9 & 10

Poetry: Psalm 23

*New Testament: John 3

“Indeed, God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.” John 3:17 (NRSV)

What does it mean to be saved? We all know the correct Sunday school answer. Yes, Jesus died on our behalf so that we can be forgiven of our sins and receive eternal life. I believe this is true, and at the same time, I believe the concept of salvation has to go deeper and wider than that simple transactional formula.

There’s an important question that needs to be asked. Saved from what? We all have a concept of what being saved from something looks like. Stranded on an island, you are saved by the passing boat that just happened to see your fire. You’re trapped in a burning building, but a courageous firefighter is able to find you and carry you out just before the building collapses. These are the scenarios that play out in our imaginations, the books we read, and the movies we watch. 

Is being saved any different in the Bible? The Old Testament has a fairly developed idea of salvation, but the goal of the “afterlife” is really not in view. It hints at the concept of resurrection at times, but that belief didn’t fully develop until sometime in between the Old and New Testaments. In the Old Testament, salvation is usually about deliverance from a real physical threat. A prime example of this is the Israelite exodus out of Egypt. They were being delivered out of slavery, oppression, and a very close call with death itself. The focus of salvation in the Old Testament is also much more about the collective than the individual. A large theme in the prophets is the restoration and healing of the people and nation, with deep connections to the covenant between God and his people.

The concept of salvation does evolve in the New Testament, but keeps its roots firmly planted in the soil of the Old Testament. Salvation in the New Testament finds its center in the person and ministry of Jesus. It becomes more inclusive by expanding out from the Jews to all nations and people groups. While collective salvation remains a reality, individual salvation is brought into the conversation more. There grows to be more emphasis on grace, eternal life, and the new covenant.

So far I haven’t answered the question of what we are being saved from. Consider John 3:36 (NRSV) – “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever disobeys the Son will not see life, but must endure God’s wrath.” On the surface, it sounds a bit like we need to be saved from an angry God who will hunt us down and deal out the punishment we deserve. That is the mental picture that comes to mind with the word “wrath,” but it doesn’t best reflect the character of God. What could instead be meant by the “wrath” of God?

There are consequences to sin. We know that ultimately, those consequences lead to death (Rom 6:23). It may be that God disciplines or punishes us for our sin in an active sense, and at the same time, some of the punishment and suffering we feel is due to natural consequences of what we have done. When we sin, we separate ourselves from God and cultivate a living “hell” in our life and in the lives of everyone around us. We are then living in a space that invites destruction and death. God doesn’t have to threaten to punish or destroy us, because left to our own devices, we may very well just destroy ourselves. I may be taking an interpretive risk here, but maybe “wrath” is primarily God allowing us to suffer the natural consequences of our own stupidity. 

What we need to be saved from is our state characterized by exile, separation from God, Sin, and Death. The meanings of those things overlap and tangle so much that we might as well be talking about the same thing. Instead of living in our own twisted upside-down realm, we are meant to experience abundant life under the rule of our merciful God. Jesus didn’t show up to condemn us, but to invite us back to where we really belong. He is the mediator who was able to restore our connection to the divine. He’s the portal back to the realm where we belong.

Salvation is still very much about us being delivered from a real threat. We are being delivered from our own hazardous wasteland into the Garden, and we are called to be cultivators of the grace, abundance, and life that grow there. Salvation has as much to do with the present time and place as it does with eternity.

-Jay Laurent

Reflection Questions:

1. What have you been saved from, or how have you experienced salvation?

2. What do you think it means when Jesus tells Nicodemus he must be “born from above”?

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Making Splashes

Old Testament: Nehemiah 7 & 8

Poetry: Psalm 22

*New Testament: John 2

First impressions are important. What someone thinks of you or what you think of them the first time you meet can set a trajectory for the future of the relationship. After watching the pilot episode of a show, you should come away with some kind of clue as to what direction it will take. Are you going to continue watching the show, or have they not gripped your attention enough?

In John 2, we are given the first impressions or the pilot episode of Jesus’ public ministry, at least according to John’s gospel. Jesus breaks out onto the public scene with the wedding at Cana miracle and the temple cleansing showdown. What is the significance of these events, and how do they foreshadow or help establish a rhythm for the rest of Jesus’ ministry?

The wedding at Cana is only mentioned in John’s gospel. That is not to say that the author made it up. The other gospel writers may not have heard the story or for whatever reason didn’t include it. On the surface, it does seem odd that the first of Jesus’ miracles appears to do nothing more than enable some celebratory characters to get even more drunk than they were before. I’ve never been quite sure how to make sense of that (but hey, welcome to the bible). 

What is being accomplished or communicated with this event? For one, Jesus is providing a clear sign for his disciples that he is the real deal. After seeing the miracle, the disciples have no doubt that Jesus is who he says he is, and that he has the authority from God he claims to have. Another thing being shown is that God is a God of abundance, generosity, and quality. Jesus not only provided very good wine for the party, but provided way more than was needed. Also, by not letting the celebration stop short, Jesus affirms that the good things in life are worth celebrating. That is not a green light on abuse of alcohol, though. Celebration can happen without the aid of recreational substances.

Perhaps most significantly, Jesus is using this miracle to symbolize and foreshadow the transformative work that is about to happen through his ministry, death, and resurrection. Those giant old jars that were used to hold water for purification rites were now going to hold the good stuff. Something was happening that was going to blow the doors off their old, dusty religion. There was a new order, a new reign of God rising up among them. God was really up to something! For some, it was just an epic party (if they even remembered), but for others, it was the night they realized that Jesus was going to change the course of history.

The next event we hear about is the cleansing of the temple. The observant may note that this event happens later in other gospels, much closer to his crucifixion. There are a couple of ways to deal with this. One opinion is that there were two temple cleansing events. John happened to tell us about the earlier one and not the later one, while the other gospel writers told us about the later one and not the earlier one. Another way to deal with it is to say there was really just one event, but John decided to chronologically place it near the beginning of Jesus’ ministry and the other gospel writers placed it near the end. Don’t lose any sleep over it. Whether it was one or two events, there is significance in John’s choice to share an early account of the temple cleansing.

To understand the context, we should try to make sense of why Jesus was so upset about the money changers. It appears they were providing a legitimate and needed service for those visiting the temple. What could be the harm in that? There is a strong possibility that their businesses had started to exploit people. When you have a corner on the market, what’s to stop you from jacking up prices or treating your customers unfairly? The customers have nowhere else to go. Another reason Jesus may have been upset is that the temple is supposed to be a sacred place. When you turn a sacred place into a marketplace, you are distorting its purpose. It appears that Jesus was taking a stand for the purity and integrity of the temple and worship practices.

This event helps set the stage for the tension Jesus will have with the religious leaders throughout his ministry. This tension will spawn many conflicts that will eventually cost Jesus his life. Late spoiler alert. Another thing being communicated is that Jesus is asserting his authority as the true temple. He says in verse 19, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.” He said this in reference to his own death and resurrection, but like so many other times in John’s gospel, his words were misunderstood.

Jesus made his first public impressions by powerfully establishing his identity, authority, and mission, and by giving everyone a taste of the transformation that was about to take place. There is something captivating about the character of Jesus. I’m biased when saying that, but I like to think if I had known nothing about Jesus and only read this chapter of John, I would be wanting to see what he did next and where this whole thing was going. In other words, I would totally binge this show.

-Jay Laurent

Reflection Questions:

1. What kinds of transformative work has Jesus done in your life?

2. Jesus caused a scene in the temple over concerns about the integrity of worship practices. What should worship look like?

3. In verse 4, it appears that Jesus is a little reluctant to begin his ministry. Why might that be? Is there something you feel called to do, but don’t feel quite ready for?

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