So for the second time they called the man who had been blind and said to him, “Give glory to God. We know that this man is a sinner.” He answered, “Whether he is a sinner I do not know. One thing I do know, that though I was blind, now I see.” They said to him, “What did he do to you? How did he open your eyes?” He answered them, “I have told you already, and you would not listen. Why do you want to hear it again? Do you also want to become his disciples?” And they reviled him, saying, “You are his disciple, but we are disciples of Moses. We know that God has spoken to Moses, but as for this man, we do not know where he comes from.” The man answered, “Why, this is an amazing thing! You do not know where he comes from, and yet he opened my eyes. We know that God does not listen to sinners, but if anyone is a worshiper of God and does his will, God listens to him. Never since the world began has it been heard that anyone opened the eyes of a man born blind. If this man were not from God, he could do nothing.” They answered him, “You were born in utter sin, and would you teach us?” And they cast him out. (John 9:24-34)
The Jews, the term is used in John’s gospel to mean the leaders of the Jews, take the parents advice and start questioning the man. The questioning becomes a bit ludicrous. It often does when people want to attack Christianity. The man who was blind is pretty smart. He keeps the focus on the facts. He was blind, and now he sees. Whether Jesus is a sinner or not isn’t something he will speak to. He does begin to taunt them a bit, “Do you to want to become his disciples?” The man knows that there really isn’t any sense in answering their questions, because they aren’t interested in truth. Rather they are just trying to hang the man or Jesus or both. When he doesn’t give them the answers they begin to castigate him. “You were born in utter sin, and would you teach us?” They’ve lost the argument, their folly has been thrown in their face. So they cast him out. “ Blessed are you when they persecute you for my sake.”
Showing posts with label Morning. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Morning. Show all posts
Tuesday, October 29, 2013
Tuesday, July 19, 2011
Give to Caesar what is Caesar's
[15] Then the Pharisees went and plotted how to entangle him in his talk. [16] And they sent their disciples to him, along with the Herodians, saying, "Teacher, we know that you are true and teach the way of God truthfully, and you do not care about anyone's opinion, for you are not swayed by appearances. [17] Tell us, then, what you think. Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not?" [18] But Jesus, aware of their malice, said, "Why put me to the test, you hypocrites? [19] Show me the coin for the tax." And they brought him a denarius. [20] And Jesus said to them, "Whose likeness and inscription is this?" [21] They said, "Caesar's." Then he said to them, "Therefore render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's." [22] When they heard it, they marveled. And they left him and went away. Matthew 22:15-22 (ESV)
Render on to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s. Jesus shows himself to be cunning. He avoids getting trapped. He won’t say either that it is lawful or unlawful, but he re-frames the question, and answers in such a way that it makes logical sense to everyone.
But in answering the way he did, he introduced a concept that was foreign to Judaism, but reconciled a harsh fact they had to live with. In Judaism there was no concept of a separation between church and state. At least there was no thought that church and state should be separate. This is part of the reason the life of Israel was so heavily dependent on the faithfulness or unfaithfulness of the kings.
Only after the exile, when Israel never is given total freedom do you start to see the worship life of the Jews take on a life separate from that of the governing authorities. It was a reality that began even during the exile which can be seen in the life of Daniel and others. These were the first to show that you could respect pagan authorities, and yet still worship God faithfully. But this was more or less a compromise for the faithful. Judaism longed to see a weeding of church and state again, with a faithful king. This is what they saw in the manner of the messiah. They wanted a return to the days of David and Solomon.
But the word’s Jesus utters here provide a basis for the doctrine of a separation of Church and state, the correct balance of it becomes the new Shangri-La for Christians. It also gave the church the ability to survive for the first 300 some years where it was persecuted by the state it prayed for, (and now we have Christians hesitating to pray for the president because he is of a different party.)
Render on to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s and to God that things that are God’s. Let the two of them govern each other according to their own standards, the church lives by the gospel. All we have is forgiveness
Render on to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s. Jesus shows himself to be cunning. He avoids getting trapped. He won’t say either that it is lawful or unlawful, but he re-frames the question, and answers in such a way that it makes logical sense to everyone.
But in answering the way he did, he introduced a concept that was foreign to Judaism, but reconciled a harsh fact they had to live with. In Judaism there was no concept of a separation between church and state. At least there was no thought that church and state should be separate. This is part of the reason the life of Israel was so heavily dependent on the faithfulness or unfaithfulness of the kings.
Only after the exile, when Israel never is given total freedom do you start to see the worship life of the Jews take on a life separate from that of the governing authorities. It was a reality that began even during the exile which can be seen in the life of Daniel and others. These were the first to show that you could respect pagan authorities, and yet still worship God faithfully. But this was more or less a compromise for the faithful. Judaism longed to see a weeding of church and state again, with a faithful king. This is what they saw in the manner of the messiah. They wanted a return to the days of David and Solomon.
But the word’s Jesus utters here provide a basis for the doctrine of a separation of Church and state, the correct balance of it becomes the new Shangri-La for Christians. It also gave the church the ability to survive for the first 300 some years where it was persecuted by the state it prayed for, (and now we have Christians hesitating to pray for the president because he is of a different party.)
Render on to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s and to God that things that are God’s. Let the two of them govern each other according to their own standards, the church lives by the gospel. All we have is forgiveness
Friday, February 18, 2011
Let the Dead bury their own Dead
Matthew 8:18-22 (ESV)
Now when Jesus saw a great crowd around him, he gave orders to go over to the other side. [19] And a scribe came up and said to him, "Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go." [20] And Jesus said to him, "Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head." [21] Another of the disciples said to him, "Lord, let me first go and bury my father." [22] And Jesus said to him, "Follow me, and leave the dead to bury their own dead."
Matthew 8:18-22 (ESV)
Now when Jesus saw a great crowd around him, he gave orders to go over to the other side. [19] And a scribe came up and said to him, "Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go." [20] And Jesus said to him, "Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head." [21] Another of the disciples said to him, "Lord, let me first go and bury my father." [22] And Jesus said to him, "Follow me, and leave the dead to bury their own dead."
Leave the dead to bury their own dead. Jesus means that those without faith, those unwilling to “follow” him are to bury their own. Family cannot come in the way between Jesus and you. This is such a painful thing for so many. Today family is worshiped, nowhere more than in Utah. Actually, it is quite sickening and freakish to an outsider. And the things that pass for family values here, well, they don’t normally appeal to me as being great examples of morality. But families tend to have a hold on a person. We are after all told to honor our mother and father. Love for family is a natural thing. But love for family cannot stand in the way of a person’s faith in Christ. Christ demands to come first. He is God. He is our creator. Family is family. It can be loved but not worshiped. If they forsake you for following Christ, that is their problem not yours.
But Christ has given us a new family, the church. In the church we are all brothers and sisters in Christ. And Christ has prepared for us a heavenly home that is much better than anything we know on earth.
Now when Jesus saw a great crowd around him, he gave orders to go over to the other side. [19] And a scribe came up and said to him, "Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go." [20] And Jesus said to him, "Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head." [21] Another of the disciples said to him, "Lord, let me first go and bury my father." [22] And Jesus said to him, "Follow me, and leave the dead to bury their own dead."
Matthew 8:18-22 (ESV)
Now when Jesus saw a great crowd around him, he gave orders to go over to the other side. [19] And a scribe came up and said to him, "Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go." [20] And Jesus said to him, "Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head." [21] Another of the disciples said to him, "Lord, let me first go and bury my father." [22] And Jesus said to him, "Follow me, and leave the dead to bury their own dead."
Leave the dead to bury their own dead. Jesus means that those without faith, those unwilling to “follow” him are to bury their own. Family cannot come in the way between Jesus and you. This is such a painful thing for so many. Today family is worshiped, nowhere more than in Utah. Actually, it is quite sickening and freakish to an outsider. And the things that pass for family values here, well, they don’t normally appeal to me as being great examples of morality. But families tend to have a hold on a person. We are after all told to honor our mother and father. Love for family is a natural thing. But love for family cannot stand in the way of a person’s faith in Christ. Christ demands to come first. He is God. He is our creator. Family is family. It can be loved but not worshiped. If they forsake you for following Christ, that is their problem not yours.
But Christ has given us a new family, the church. In the church we are all brothers and sisters in Christ. And Christ has prepared for us a heavenly home that is much better than anything we know on earth.
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