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January 16, 2025

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Attitudes & Behavior, Bible Stories, Faith & Hope, God's Promises, Miracles, Prayer, Trusting God

THE FIG TREE – Part 2

As they passed by in the morning, they saw the fig tree withered away to its roots.  And Peter remembered and said to him, “Rabbi, look! The fig tree that you cursed has withered.” And Jesus answered them, “Have faith in God. Truly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and thrown into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that what he says will come to pass, it will be done for him. [Mark 11:20-23 (ESV)]

The next morning, while Jesus and the disciples walked from Bethany to Jerusalem for yet another confrontation with Judea’s religious leaders, the disciples saw the tree Jesus cursed the previous day. The disciples had witnessed Jesus cast out demons and still a storm with a just a word but, when they saw the withered and dead fig tree, they were amazed. Normally, trees die slowly from the top down but this tree instantly withered from the roots up. With dead roots, no amount of water or fertilizer would revive it. Having witnessed the tree go from abundance to ruin with just a word from the Lord, rather than asking Jesus to explain cursing the tree, the disciples focused on the speed with which the fig died.

Rather than focusing on spiritual hypocrisy and the significance of the dead fig, Jesus focused on how He performed the miracle and spoke about the power of genuine faith. This wasn’t faith in something vague like positive thinking or an object; it wasn’t faith in faith or faith in the power of prayer. He made it clear that the sole object of this faith must be God! After all, faith is only as good as the object in which it trusts and God is all-powerful, ever-faithful, and trustworthy to His promises.

Pause for a moment and consider—even though Jesus was God, He was living as a man with the limitations of humanity. By saying, “Have faith in God,” He displayed both His humanity and His dependence upon God. Jesus’ power to speak with authority, forgive sins, calm a storm, heal the sick, raise the dead, provide food for a multitude, and wither that fig tree came from His faith in God and the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.

Explaining the power of faith in God, Jesus told them that, with faith, they could move the mountain on which they were standing (the Mount of Olives) into the sea (probably the Dead Sea 15 miles away). Moving a mountain is even more inconceivable than killing a tree with a word but Jesus uses this hyperbole to emphasize that what is impossible with man can be accomplished through faith in the power of God!

We tend to say that prayer changes things—but it is God who does the changing! Although we speak of the power of prayer, prayer alone has no power; the power comes from God who hears that prayer. We often lament, “If only I had more faith!” The disciples even asked Jesus to increase their faith. Jesus, however, told them that the size of their faith doesn’t matter—even a mustard seed of faith is enough! (With a diameter of 1 to 2 millimeters, the mustard seed was used proverbially to represent the smallest of things.) It’s not the amount of faith that matters—as long as we put our faith completely in God’s power rather than ours. It’s not faith that moves those mountains—it’s God! Even if our faith is not great, our God is!

The apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith!” And the Lord said, “If you had faith like a grain of mustard seed, you could say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you.” [Luke 17:5-6 (ESV)]

But he said, “What is impossible with man is possible with God.” Luke 18:27 (ESV)]

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January 13, 2025

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Bible Stories, Church & Worship, Fruit of the Spirit, Miracles, Obedience

THE FIG TREE (Part 1)

He noticed a fig tree in full leaf a little way off, so he went over to see if he could find any figs. But there were only leaves because it was too early in the season for fruit. Then Jesus said to the tree, “May no one ever eat your fruit again!” And the disciples heard him say it. …  The next morning as they passed by the fig tree he had cursed, the disciples noticed it had withered from the roots up. Peter remembered what Jesus had said to the tree on the previous day and exclaimed, “Look, Rabbi! The fig tree you cursed has withered and died!” [Mark 11:13-14, 20-21 (NLT)]

Mark tells of a time when a hungry Jesus cursed a fig tree and caused it to wither and die simply because it had no figs. As the only destructive miracle done by the Lord, His action is difficult to understand, especially since we’re told “it was too early in the season for fruit.” The same power that brought Lazarus back to life and turned water into wine easily could have given the tree ripe figs, so why did Jesus kill the fruitless tree?

Jesus never acted haphazardly and what seems at first to be a pointless act of power becomes a living parable when we put it in context. Taking place during Jesus’ last week of earthly life, Jesus and the disciples were walking from Bethany up to Jerusalem. After cursing the tree (11:13-14), Jesus went into Jerusalem and cleansed the temple of money-changers and merchants (11:15-17). That evening, while the chief priests and scribes plotted Jesus’ death, He and the disciples returned to Bethany (11:18-19). It is the next morning that the withered tree is discovered (11:20-21). The timing of these events was no accident.

Not living in 1st century Judea, we find our figs at the grocery and know nothing about their cultivation. Because both wild and cultivated fig trees were plentiful in Palestine, Jesus and the disciples knew that a fig tree produces edible small fig knobs before its leaves ever appear. Called taqsh, these knobs are the precursors of figs and often were eaten by travelers and the poor. Even though it wasn’t the season for mature fruit, any fig tree “in full leaf” would have displayed a crop of taqsh. The absence of taqsh meant the tree never would never produce fruit. Jesus wouldn’t have cursed an immature tree or one without leaves and He didn’t curse the tree simply because it had no figs. He cursed that leaf-filled tree because it was guilty of false advertising! While its leaves promised knob-like figlets (taqsh) there were none.

Both the cleansing of the temple and the cursing of the unfruitful fig tree have to do with judgment. Throughout the Hebrew Scriptures, the fig tree is symbolic of Israel and the tree’s condition often represented the people’s spiritual fruitfulness, peace, prosperity, and well-being. The fig tree died in judgment but flourished when Israel was righteous and holy.

With its rituals and sacrifices, Israel looked fruitful but, like the fig tree, it lacked fruit—the fruit of righteousness that God demanded. His house of prayer and worship had been turned into a marketplace filled with thieves while Israel’s empty worship was a fruitless sham. With their sacrifices, tzitzit and tefillin, public prayers, adherence to the oral Law, and concern about spiritual cleanliness, they had the trappings of religion but, like the leafy fig, they were all show without substance. Both Jesus’ cursing of the fig tree and His cleansing of the Temple signify God’s impending judgment for religious hypocrisy. Moreover, the dead tree even points to the Temple’s destruction in 70 AD (predicted by Jesus in Matthew 23:38 and 24:2).

The message found in the destruction of this fig tree is not limited to the 1st century Israel; it is meant for us all. The cursing of that tree tells us that God expects His people to bear fruit. It is a warning that fruitlessness leads to judgment. Like that fruitless tree, could we be more show than substance—all leaves but no fruit?

A good tree produces good fruit, and a bad tree produces bad fruit. A good tree can’t produce bad fruit, and a bad tree can’t produce good fruit. So every tree that does not produce good fruit is chopped down and thrown into the fire. [Matthew 7:17-19 (NLT)]

Yes, I am the vine; you are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will produce much fruit. For apart from me you can do nothing. Anyone who does not remain in me is thrown away like a useless branch and withers. Such branches are gathered into a pile to be burned. [John 15:5-6 (NLT)]

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January 9, 2025

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WITH WONDER

But when Jesus saw it, he was indignant and said to them, “Let the children come to me; do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of God. Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it.” [Mark 10:14-15 (ESV)]

One day, the disciples scolded some parents for bringing their children to Jesus for a blessing. After telling them the Kingdom belonged to those who received it like a child, He called the children to Him. Unlike adults, children accept their humble position and live by faith and trust. Without self-consciousness and knowing they are in complete dependence on the giver, they receive gifts with humility and enthusiasm. Like explorers, children have a sense of wonder on their quest to learn about the world around them. They are filled with excitement and awe at every new thing they experience because life hasn’t become routine, predictable, or run-of-the mill to them.

Thinking of a child’s sense of wonder, I recalled my grand’s reaction to the small nativity I purchased for her more than twenty years ago. While her parents were away for the weekend in late November, she stayed with us. Although the tyke knew all about Santa, she didn’t know the Christmas story so I gave her a nativity set in a small wooden box. It had a handle on top so it could be carried like a purse and a latch in front that, when opened, revealed a stable and about a dozen wooden figures. As we opened the box, I told her the beautiful story that went along with those figures. Her eyes were big as saucers as she heard about the baby Jesus, angels, shepherds, wise men with gifts, and a star that led them to the baby. Filled with wonder at the amazing story, she had me tell it several times. When her parents came to pick her up, she immediately sat them down in our living room. After carefully opening her nativity box, she enthusiastically identified each character and explained the Christmas story to them.

How many Christmas pageants have we attended? How many Christmas Eves have we heard the words from Luke 2 or sung “Silent Night” in candlelight? How many times have we heard about the angelic chorus and the shepherds’ astonishment? Are we as astonished by the nativity as were they? Unlike a child, I suspect that we’ve lost our sense of awe and wonder at the incarnation—our astonishment that Jesus clothed Himself in a human body so that He could live a sinless life only to suffer a sinner’s death.

We’ve probably lost count of the Palm Sunday, Maundy Thursday, or Tenebrae/Good Friday services we attended. How many times have we heard about Jesus washing the disciple’s feet or the women discovering the empty tomb on Easter morning? For that matter, how many times have we read or heard about the feeding of the multitude, the miraculous provision of wine at Cana, blind Bartimaeus receiving sight, or the parable of the Prodigal Son? While familiarity doesn’t necessarily breed contempt, it can breed boredom.

In theater, the actors are expected to deliver a well-rehearsed performance in a fresh and new way every time. Called the “illusion of the first time,” they endeavor to make the audience feel like they are witnessing something happening for the very first time. What if we, as readers and hearers of the word, tried to create the “illusion of the first time”? What if we put on the eyes and ears of a child who’s hearing or reading it for the first time—someone who doesn’t know that Abraham won’t have to sacrifice Isaac, Lazarus will walk out of the tomb, only one leper will return to thank Jesus, the Red Sea will part, the walls of Jericho will collapse, or that young David will defeat the gigantic Goliath? What if we were hearing or reading those familiar narratives for the first time? Even though we know the stories, shouldn’t we be as filled with wonder as was my grand when she learned the Christmas story? Shouldn’t we be as amazed as were the shepherds when they heard an angelic chorus on the night of Christ’s birth, as astonished as were the mourners when Lazarus walked out of that tomb, as distressed as were the women at the foot of the cross, and as stunned as were the disciples when Jesus appeared Easter morning!?

While we may have the knowledge of decades-long believers, let us come to Scripture with a child’s awe and sense of wonder. Let us react to the words as if it were the first time we’ve read or heard them—as if we don’t know how the story ends. Let us recreate the “illusion of the first time” and have the wonder of a child!

A child’s world is fresh and new and beautiful, full of wonder and excitement. [Rachel Carson]

And great crowds came to him, bringing with them the lame, the blind, the crippled, the mute, and many others, and they put them at his feet, and he healed them, so that the crowd wondered, when they saw the mute speaking, the crippled healthy, the lame walking, and the blind seeing. And they glorified the God of Israel. [Matthew 15:30-31 (ESV)]

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January 6, 2025

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Bible Stories, God's Plan, Holidays & Holy Days, Obedience, Trusting God

MARY’S HUSBAND

And her husband Joseph, being a just man and unwilling to put her to shame, resolved to divorce her quietly. But as he considered these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.” [Matthew 1:19-20 (ESV)]

JosephWhile putting away our nativity, I looked at the figure of Joseph. For the man who played a pivotal role in the Christmas story, once Christmas is packed away, Mary’s husband rarely gets a second thought until the next December. Neither Mark nor John mention the man who served as step-father to Jesus and the author of Hebrews didn’t even list him in its “Hall of Faith.”

Unfamiliar with 1st century Jewish marriage customs, we probably take Joseph’s presence at the nativity too lightly. Rather than an agreement between two people, marriage at the time was an agreement between two families. Before the prospective bride was consulted, the groom (or his father) approached her father and the men would negotiate the price [mohar] to be paid for the girl. Once the mohar had been paid, the first of two ceremonies, the betrothal, was held and the couple were legally married. Following the betrothal, the bride remained in her father’s house, gathered her trousseau, and prepared for married life while the groom prepared living accommodations for his wife and arranged for the wedding feast. Although married, the couple were prohibited from having sex. It wasn’t until about a year after the betrothal that a colorful procession led the woman to the house of her groom, more vows were made, and the marriage finally was consummated.

During her betrothal, the bride could not belong to another man. Should the groom learn that she lied about her virginity, he could dissolve the marriage contract through a certificate of divorce and, if caught in the act of adultery, she could be killed.

Matthew tells us Joseph was dikaios, meaning righteous and just. Expressing a righteousness rooted in a covenant relationship with God, dikaios emphasizes moral integrity and obedience to the Law. Can you imagine this honorable man’s reaction to his bride’s pregnancy? Remember, within days of Gabriel’s visit to her, Mary hurried to the home of Zechariah and Elizabeth where she stayed for three months. When she told Joseph of her pregnancy, did he wonder what his bride had been up to while away in the hill country? Consider his distress at what seemed a betrayal. Imagine his disappointment at Mary’s preposterous explanation that probably seemed like an outlandish lie. Knowing he wasn’t the father, Joseph had every legal right to divorce her and demand the mohar’s return; in fact, Mary’s infidelity could cause her to be stoned!

Although an angel appeared to Joseph in a dream to reassure him that Mary’s baby was, indeed, conceived by the Holy Spirit, Joseph was an ordinary builder—not a priest like Zachariah or a prominent rabbi like Shammai. I suspect this was his first angelic visit and he must have questioned the validity of his dream. Imagine his confusion and consider his torment as he struggled with his choice. If he divorced Mary, Joseph could deny responsibility for her shameful pregnancy and maintain his good reputation but, if he stayed with Mary, he assumed responsibility for the pregnancy and took on her disgrace. His choice regarding Mary’s scandalous pregnancy affected both of their families, as well.

Nevertheless, Joseph valued God’s call over his reputation and remained betrothed to Mary. Moreover, despite everyone else assuming they had sex, both Matthew and Luke tell us that Joseph refrained from intercourse with Mary before Jesus’ birth. The young man honored God’s plan over his own wants and needs. It was not until after Jesus’ birth that their marriage finally was consummated.

Right after the Magi’s departure, the new father had a second visit from an angel. Told to flee to Egypt because the child’s life was in danger from Herod, Joseph immediately obeyed. Although he must have had misgivings about leaving his homeland, Joseph kept Mary and Jesus safe and they became refugees in a pagan country. They only returned when, once again, an angel of the Lord directed his way.

While Joseph seems to disappear after the second chapters of both Matthew and Luke, his role in Jesus’ life certainly didn’t stop. It was in his home that “Jesus increased in wisdom and in stature and in favor with God and man.” [Luke 2:52]

Can you imagine what it was like for this righteous (but ordinary) man to be tasked by God with the responsibility of being guardian to the Messiah—the one who would “save his people from their sins”? What was it like to hold the Son of God in his calloused hands or to teach Him to walk, handle tools, and read the Torah? Consider the weight of responsibility upon Joseph’s shoulders. The last we hear of him is when he and Mary temporarily “lost” the twelve-year-old Jesus on their return from celebrating the Passover in Jerusalem. I can’t imagine his panic at having lost the Messiah! Although Joseph almost certainly died before the Lord’s crucifixion, we don’t know when, where, or how. What we do know is that Joseph was, indeed, a dikaios man—a man who was willing to follow God’s guidance and do His will regardless of the consequences.

Joseph reminds us that those who appear hidden or in the shadows can play an incomparable role in the history of salvation. [Pope Francis]

An angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, “Rise, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you, for Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy him.” And he rose and took the child and his mother by night and departed to Egypt and remained there until the death of Herod. [Matthew 2:13-15 (ESV)]

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December 26, 2024

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THE NATIVITY (2) – LIONS, LAMBS, KINGS, AND SHEPHERDS

The wolf shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the young goat, and the calf and the lion and the fattened calf together; and a little child shall lead them. The cow and the bear shall graze; their young shall lie down together; and the lion shall eat straw like the ox. [Isaiah 11:6-7 (ESV)]

And one of the elders said to me, “Weep no more; behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has conquered, so that he can open the scroll and its seven seals.” [Revelation 5:5 (ESV)]

For centuries, access to the written Word of God was limited to just a few. The printing press wasn’t invented until 1439 and, at the time, only about 20% of the population could read. As a result, churches were decorated with paintings, stained glass windows, statues, carvings, and mosaics depicting biblical stories or illustrating theological concepts. For people who couldn’t read the book, religious art told the story. Consider how the Stations of the Cross in Roman Catholic churches illustrate the events of Good Friday. Sometimes, a picture really is worth a thousand words! While most nativity scenes are inaccurate, our depictions of the nativity don’t have to be historically exact to be meaningful.

At the Christmas market last week, an artist was painting a nativity scene. Having just written about the ox and ass found in depictions of Jesus’ birth, I was curious if he had them in his. Along with ox and ass, there was a lamb. The presence of this sacrificial animal is a vivid reminder that Jesus was the Lamb of God. It reminds us that His sacrifice on the cross is the reason for that baby in the manger.

But, front and center on the canvas, the artist painted a large lion looking down at the infant Jesus laying in a bed of hay. While not as common as the lamb, ass, and ox, the lion is no stranger to nativities. It points to Jacob’s promise to his son Judah that a conquering victorious king, the lion, would be from his line and suggests the words in Revelation 5:5 referring to Jesus as “the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David.”  The lion’s presence also illustrates Isaiah’s prophecies of a time when God’s fallen creation will be remade into a place of peace, harmony, and order—a time when Christ will reign over all the earth—when a lion will eat straw rather than babies in a manger!

Although they didn’t arrive until Jesus was a toddler, we also find the magi in most nativities. Rather than kings, the magi probably were scholars or priests knowledgeable in astronomy and astrology. It may have been the extravagance of their gifts that caused them to be portrayed as royalty. Moreover, kings presenting gifts to the Messiah echo the prophecies of Isaiah 60 and Psalm 72.

While three gifts were presented, Scripture doesn’t say how many magi there were. Nevertheless, we see three. One king usually is depicted as a Black African, another as Caucasian, and the third as Asian. In Jesus’ day, there were three known continents—Africa, Asia, and Europe. In the 700s, the Venerable Bede (theologian and historian) posited that each of the magi represented one of those parts. As inaccurate as their depictions may be, their different races beautifully illustrate that Jesus came for the people of all nations and races. Seeing the kings of the world bowing in humble worship to the King of Kings, we are reminded that earthly kingdoms may fall but God’s Kingdom will not be destroyed!

In sharp contrast to a nativity’s richly attired kings are the often-barefoot shepherds in their simple attire. While kings were at the top rung of the social ladder, shepherds (along with taxmen and lepers) were at the bottom. The presence of both groups around the manger reinforces the unity that all people (both rich and poor) have in Christ! One shepherd often stands out from the others—a tall shepherd carrying a lamb on his shoulders. His presence is a subtle reference to Jesus as the “good shepherd” who will go to great lengths to save His flock.

Take time this holiday season to look at the various renditions of the nativity around you. Instead of looking for historical accuracy, try to find the scriptural and theological themes hidden within the art. Indeed, sometimes a picture is worth a thousand words!

May the kings of Tarshish and of the coastlands render him tribute; may the kings of Sheba and Seba bring gifts! May all kings fall down before him, all nations serve him!  For he delivers the needy when he calls, the poor and him who has no helper. He has pity on the weak and the needy, and saves the lives of the needy. From oppression and violence he redeems their life, and precious is their blood in his sight. [Psalm 72:10-14 (ESV)]

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December 23, 2024

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THE NATIVITY (1) – THE OX AND ASS

The ox knows its owner, and the donkey its master’s crib, but Israel does not know, my people do not understand. [Isaiah 1:3 (ESV)]

Here betwixt ass and oxen mild, sleep, sleep, sleep, my little child… [13th century French carol]

The earliest known portrayal of Jesus’ birth is a bas relief on a Roman sarcophagus from around 385. It depicts the swaddled Christ child in the manger flanked by an ox at His head and an ass at His feet. Why are they present instead of Joseph and Mary? In 1223, Francis of Assisi brought some hay and a manger to a cave and celebrated Mass there on Christmas Eve. Even though Mary and Joseph weren’t present, an ass and an ox were! In 1291, Pope Nicholas IV commissioned Arnolfo di Cambio to create a permanent nativity. While there are statues of Mary and Jesus, Joseph, and three Magi, the sixth statue shows the heads of an ox and an ass rather than shepherd or angel. Besides the baby Jesus, the ass and the ox are the most ancient and consistent elements in depictions of the nativity. Why do these two animals, neither of which is mentioned in the gospels, have such a prominent place in our nativity scenes, Christmas cards, and carols?

In Scripture, the ox came to represent the people of Israel. As the most important and costly of sacrificial animals, the ox also represented Israel’s prosperity and power. In the temple, figures of twelve oxen (representing Israel’s twelve tribes) supported the huge bronze basin that held water for ritual cleansing. While the ox was considered a ritually “clean” animal, the undivided hoof of the donkey (or ass) made it “unclean” so it came to represent the pagan Gentile nations. Deuteronomy 22:10 specifically prohibited plowing with an ox and an ass yoked together. Jews interpreted this law as being about more than plowing—it was about not mixing the clean with the unclean or the Jew with the Gentile.

In the 8th century BC, Isaiah prophesied, “The ox knows its owner, and the donkey its master’s crib, but Israel does not know, my people do not understand.” At the time, he was bringing God’s charges against Judah and speaking of God’s judgment against them in the immediate future through Assyria and also God’s later judgement with Babylon’s invasion and the fall of Jerusalem. Dumb animals knew to whom they belonged, but God’s chosen people did not!

With the benefit of hindsight, however, the early Church fathers recognized a third prophecy in Isaiah’s words—that of the Messiah’s arrival when Israel failed to recognize Him. Like the donkey, however, the Gentiles knew their master’s crib. Because the ox and ass recognized the Christ when the world did not, they are shown with the Christ. This image illustrates Paul’s words to the Ephesians that Jews and Gentiles are reconciled and have become one in Christ. Their presence at the nativity became a visual way of saying that Jesus came to save the people of all nations!

Because the firstborn male was the Lord’s, Mosaic law demanded the sacrifice to God of every firstborn male of the people’s livestock. As a ritually clean animal, the ox was an acceptable sacrifice. As an unclean animal, however, the ass could not enter the temple or be offered to God. A law unique to the ass gave its owner a choice—rather than killing such a valuable animal, he could redeem it with the sacrifice of a lamb. We sinners, like the ass, are unclean and cannot enter God’s tabernacle but, like the ass, our owner can redeem us with the sacrifice of an innocent lamb, which He did! We are redeemed by the blood of Jesus, the Lamb of God.

While seeing an ox and ass on Christmas cards or in nativity scenes may not be an accurate representation of that first Christmas, let us remember the symbolism behind their presence. While we may be as different as an ox is from an ass, Christ’s church is made up of one united people—people who have been redeemed by the blood of the Lamb!

There were only a few shepherds at the first Bethlehem. The ox and the donkey understood more of the first Christmas than the high priests in Jerusalem. And it is the same today. [Thomas Merton]

You are brought near to God through the blood sacrifice of Christ. Christ is the reason we are now at peace. He made us Jews and you who are not Jews one people. We were separated by a wall of hate that stood between us, but Christ broke down that wall. By giving his own body, Christ ended the law with its many commands and rules. His purpose was to make the two groups become one in him. By doing this he would make peace. [Ephesians 2:13b-15 (ERV)]

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