Jesus' Last Days III – Acclaim

It is the first day of the week. Today Jesus enters Jerusalem riding upon the foal of a donkey, a path of palm branches and cloaks laid before His feet. The crowds acclaim Him as King. It might be seen as the pinnacle of His mission thus far.

But Jesus did not commit Himself to them, because He knew all men, and had no need that anyone should testify of man, for He knew what was in man.
~ John 2:24-25 (NKJV)

I cannot imagine what Jesus felt inside on that first Palm Sunday as people showered Him with praise. For He has just wept over Jerusalem (Luke 13:33-35), knowing that the same people who today shout "Hosanna!" shall soon yell "crucify!"

"Now My soul is troubled, and what shall I say? 'Father, save Me from this hour'? But for this purpose I came to this hour. Father, glorify Your name." Then a voice came from heaven, saying, "I HAVE BOTH GLORIFIED IT AND WILL GLORIFY IT AGAIN." Therefore the people who stood by and heard it said that it had thundered. Others said, "An angel has spoken to Him." Jesus answered and said, "This voice did not come because of Me, but for your sake."
~ John 12:27-30 (NKJV)

This is the only acclaim Jesus sought—that His Father's name be glorified. Just as the very will of His Father nourished the soul of Jesus:

Jesus said to them, "My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me, and to finish His work."
~ John 4:34 (NKJV)

And zeal for His Father's house will compel Jesus to clean it of thieves and robbers.

But that is for tomorrow, Monday—not Sunday, as is commonly thought. Our Lord has need of neither impulse nor haste.

And Jesus went into Jerusalem and into the temple. So when He had looked around at all things, as the hour was already late, He went out to Bethany with the twelve.
~ Mark 11:11 (NKJV)

Isn't our God merciful to make His appearance as King, and then patiently give everyone one final night to repent?

Comments are welcome (including respectful disagreement) and will receive a reply.
You may also contact author via Twitter – @anne4JC
or e-mail – use @gmail.com *after* buildingHisbody
Copyright 2013, Anne Lang Bundy, all rights reserved.

Jesus' Last Days II – Fragrance of Love

Today is Saturday. Jesus dines intimately with loved ones in Bethany before His very public entry of Jerusalem tomorrow. The twelve disciples and Lazarus sit at the table with Jesus. Once again, Martha serves while Mary is at Jesus' feet. But Martha is not the one to complain about Mary this time.

Then Mary took a pound of very costly oil of spikenard, anointed the feet of Jesus, and wiped His feet with her hair. And the house was filled with the fragrance of the oil.
~ John 12:3 (NKJV)

This is apparently the same woman mentioned in Luke 7:36-50. (See "This Woman" post for an explanation.) Mary has not forgotten the "much" she has been forgiven, and she continues to love much.

Perhaps, because of her sinful past, Mary does not feel she deserves a place any higher than the ground. Who better, in the eyes of Jesus, to be exalted (Matthew 23:11-12) than one who humbles herself from the depths of love?

Then she broke the flask and poured it on His head.
Mark 14:3 (NKJV)

Israel's kings received an anointing to mark them for the throne. The King of kings also receives an anointing on the day before the crowds shout "Hosanna!" and proclaim Him their King. The honor of anointing Him is bestowed upon a woman of so little esteem that two of the Gospel writers don't even record her name.

The fragrance of her love is caught up in the aroma of spikenard, poured upon Jesus in an anointing of honor—and an anointing for burial (Matthew 26:12; Mark 14:8; John 12:7). As modern day users of essential oils well know, an entire pound of spikenard, poured over Jesus' head and into His hair, would leave a scent that stayed with Him throughout the week.

And so, as He wept over Jerusalem, Jesus smelled the fragrance of love. As He rebuked the Pharisees, Jesus smelled the fragrance of love. As He washed His disciples' feet, Jesus smelled the fragrance of love.

As He prayed so intensely that His sweat became the first drops of blood He would shed, Jesus smelled the fragrance of love. As He was flogged with metal scourges, Jesus smelled the fragrance of love. As He asked His Father to forgive the men driving nails into His flesh, Jesus smelled the fragrance of love.

As He triumphantly declared, "It is finished!" and drew His final breath, the last thing Jesus inhaled was the aroma of spikenard—the last thing He exhaled was the fragrance of love.

Comments are welcome (including respectful disagreement) and will receive a reply.
You may also contact author via Twitter – @anne4JC
or e-mail – use @gmail.com *after* buildingHisbody
Copyright 2013, Anne Lang Bundy, all rights reserved.

Jesus' Last Days I – Son of David

Confession: I'm obsessed with Bible chronology. Where the authors of Scripture relate events as a whole, telescoping details which cover days and even years into a single story, I compare verse with verse and pick them apart. Join me as look at events leading up to God's greatest work to date—the Resurrection of Jesus.

~ ~ ~

Today is Friday. Jesus makes the journey from Jericho to Jerusalem. In two days, on Sunday, throngs of people will hail Jesus as "Son of David," acknowledging Him as Heir to the throne of Israel's mightiest king.

The path from Jericho's deep, below-sea-level valley to Jerusalem's Mount Moriah is steep. But the path to His throne on High will plunge Him into the depths of Hell. Today, the sacrifice that awaits Jesus at Calvary surely weighs His every uphill step.

And here in lowly Jericho, echos are heard of Palm Sunday's cheers.

Now as they went out of Jericho, a great multitude followed Him. And behold, two blind men sitting by the road, when they heard that Jesus was passing by, cried out, saying, "Have mercy on us, O Lord, Son of David!" Then the multitude warned them that they should be quiet; but they cried out all the more, saying, "Have mercy on us, O Lord, Son of David!"
Matthew 20:29-31 (NKJV)

Mark, the Gospel evangelist with a flair for detail, tells us one of the blind men is "Bartimaeus, the son of Timaeus" (Mark 10:46).

Matthew, the Gospel evangelist writing to Jews, records just three occasions during Jesus' ministry (before Palm Sunday) on which the messianic title is used of Jesus. In Matthew 9 we hear of two other blind men calling out to Jesus as "Son of David." And in Matthew 15, a woman of Canaan also uses the title—a Greek woman, Syro-Phoenician by birth (Mark 9:26). At least the Samaritan woman of John 4 was half Jew. This woman is despised by the disciples and, initially, turned away by even Jesus.

But in the end, Jesus affirms her great faith and heals her daughter, just as He healed two pairs of blind men.

In our own valleys, on steep journeys to glory, might we lay hold of the vision of blind men and the desperation of an alien to call out to Jesus as King of all?

Comments are welcome (including respectful disagreement) and will receive a reply.
You may also contact author via Twitter – @anne4JC
or e-mail – use @gmail.com *after* buildingHisbody
Copyright 2013, Anne Lang Bundy, all rights reserved.

Winning at Monopoly

monopoly (mə•nop'ə•lē) noun 1. the exclusive possession or control of the means to produce or supply of a commodity or service … 4. exclusive possession or control

For an eight-year-old playing a board game, Monopoly is defined by pewter tokens, an extra turn on doubles, and acquiring matching colored cards. Getting ahead comes by bold use of assets, and "share the wealth" means you pay me to come on my property. The satisfaction of winning comes when I prevail over everything that others once owned and build up a monopoly.

At least that's how I describe it to my eight-year-old. The only version he knows is Bibleopoly. He still gets extra turns on doubles and acquires those matching colored cards, but "share the wealth" means I'm offering what I have so we can both build churches. You can get ahead by reciting John 3:16 or naming 15 out of 24 Bible cities. Satisfaction comes in choosing the space to which you send another player, with an opportunity to take away or give.

So the child of a thousand questions and I roll dice and talk about absolute control, and about the One with exclusive possession and control of everything. And we realize that sovereign and omnipotent God is both a monopoly and the opposite of a monopoly. Our Lord is securely in control, yet also releases control to us in liberal provision of both free will and free access to His power—a downright dangerous combination when you really think about it.

"And he said to him, 'Son, you are always with me, and all that I have is yours.' "
~ Luke 15:31, Parable of the Prodigal Son (NKJV)

The prodigal son's father no doubt knew the character of his impudent son when handing over the inheritance. However disappointed the father, it surely came as no surprise that his younger son quickly made off with his newfound fortune and soon lost it. Shouldn't a good father have acted more sensibly?

And yet our good Father has a liberal hand with His careless children.

And of His fullness we have all received, and grace for grace.
~ John 1:16 (NKJV)

To be sure, access to unlimited power doesn't equal use of unlimited power any more than an electrical outlet enables use of the entire power grid. I can connect to the entire source of electricity, but I'm enabled to handle only as much as my electrical lines can transmit and my electrical gadget can translate.

God's Holy Spirit does not enable anything or everything we ask. The Holy Spirit always acts in accordance with God's will, and He operates more fully and freely in the soul more fully and freely given over to Him rather than the soul filled with self-will. But our Lord does bestow spiritual gifts—valuable gifts with spiritual power of their own—to sons and daughters who don't always use them wisely.

"… for God does not give the Spirit by measure."
~ John 3:34 (NKJV)

For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable.
~ Romans 11:29 (NKJV)

However we might misuse or bury our spiritual gifts, our Father doesn't take them back. Whatever childish way we ask to use either spiritual gifts or temporal gifts, our Father doesn't cut off our access to the power He shares with us.

By His grace, and patience, and the ministry of His Holy Spirit, God brings us to the place where we utilize His power not only to prevail over demonic serpents (toward the day of a spiritual monopoly), but also in building the Kingdom we are destined to inherit.

"I have given you power to tread serpents and scorpions underfoot, and to trample on all the power of the Enemy; and in no case shall anything do you harm. Nevertheless rejoice not at this, that the spirits submit to you; but rejoice that your names are registered in Heaven."
~ Luke 10:19-20 (WNT)

Comments are welcome (including respectful disagreement) and will receive a reply.
You may also contact author via Twitter – @anne4JC
or e-mail – use @gmail.com *after* buildingHisbody
Copyright 2013, Anne Lang Bundy, all rights reserved.

The Case for Love: Damning Evidence

If we are to prove the case for love—that God's love is first our salvation, and then the answer for every problem—we must overcome the most damning evidence against our case: division.

"He who is not with Me is against Me, and he who does not gather with Me scatters."
~ Luke 11:23 (NKJV)

On football field or battlefield, whether shaping an offensive to take the goal or maintaining defense to protect the goal, one soon understands the value of a united team and the danger if adversary isolates individual. "Divide and conquer" is a fundamental weapon of the contest.

Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.
~ 1 Peter 5:8 (NKJV)

Our adversary has become adept at dividing us. In earliest days of Christianity, Jewish and Greek believers in Jesus worked to overcome differences. A thousand years later, a great schism between Greek and Roman churches was solidified, followed by Protestant breakaway from Rome in another half millennium. Like the web of cracks that forms when the surface of ice or glass is hit, hundreds of denominations separated from one another during the centuries to follow, with factions among even denominations and congregations.

Most certainly, divisions are sometimes necessary (Amos 3:3, 1 Corinthians 11:19), such as during the Reformation era. But far too often, we Christians distance ourselves from the people we most need because we foolishly allow diversity to become division.

What our adversary intends for evil, God can and will use for good. Truth is necessarily affirmed when the righteous boldly suffer in its defense—whether a Christian sheds blood or is simply shunned. Diversity has flourished amid the divisions, creating a rich variety in worship styles and development of spiritual gifts. Ministry can be particularly effective when structured to reach specific people.

When we capitalize on diversity, we become the body of Jesus Christ in the fullest sense:

… by speaking the truth in love, we will grow up completely into the one who is the head, that is, into Christ, in whom the whole body is united and held together by every ligament with which it is supplied. As each individual part does its job, the body's growth is promoted so that it builds itself up in love.
~ Ephesians 4:15-16 (ISV)

The key to seeing growth and being built up (rather than being divided and weakened) lies both in that first line—

… by speaking the truth in love …

—and in the understanding that not every truth of the faith is a fundamental Truth for which the body of Christ must bleed:

And decline stupid and ignorant debates, because you know they breed strife. A servant of the Lord must not quarrel, but must be gracious to everyone, articulate, willing to suffer wrong, in humility educating those who are in opposition …
~ 2 Timothy 2:23-25

As we study and discuss and wrestle with one another over how we will practice the many truths of faith, we can avoid unnecessary divisions when our argument returns to affirmation of fundamental Truth. And if we find no such affirmation, we don't then have cause for division, but discover that we are already divided. Our choice is not whether or not to distance ourselves from one another, but if we will recognize existing distance between separate foundations.

"Everyone who comes to Me, and hears My words and does them, I will show you to whom he is like: He is like a man building a house, who dug and went deep and laid a foundation on the rock."
~ Luke 6:47-48 (EMTV)

A time comes to silence our words, that perchance the Word of God will reach into places we cannot.

For the Word of God is alive and effective, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit … a Discerner of the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.
~ Hebrews 4:12

+ + +

… if you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.
~ Romans 10:9 (NIV)

If compelled to choose three most important elements of Truth—Truth for which I'm willing to suffer, Truth over which I'm willing to be divided:
• I affirm the absolute authority of God's Word as preserved in Scripture;
• I confess Jesus the Christ as God and living Lord;
• I have salvation through no more and no less than faith (belief, trust) in Christ's death and resurrection.

For me, few truths rise to this level in my aspiration to stand for Truth, to build up Christ's body of believers, and to unite us in proving the case for His love.

"He who is not with Me is against Me, and he who does not gather with Me scatters."
~ Luke 11:23 (NKJV)

Comments are welcome (including respectful disagreement) and will receive a reply.
You may also contact author via Twitter – @anne4JC
or e-mail – use @gmail.com *after* buildingHisbody
Copyright 2013, Anne Lang Bundy, all rights reserved.