On Sunday the preacher referred to three people Jesus met, and reflected on what they did to get close to Jesus. I wanted to discuss a bit more, but there was no opportunity.
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| Catacombs of Marcellinus and Peter. 3 Km SE of Rome on the Via Labicana |
Matthew 9:20-22
The elderly women who had lived with pain and bleeding for her whole life. What strikes me is that if I do not believe that Jesus was involved in magic, how do I understand this story?
The woman pushed through the crowd and touched the hem of Jesus' garment. Jesus asked 'who touched me?' His disciples said 'lots of people touched you'. Jesus said 'I felt some power transfer'.
This does sound like magic, but I think that the women knew the instruction given to her in her spirit. This was all pre-planed. This is similar to the instruction given to the army captain Naaman by Elisha in 2 Kings 5:10. It is a simple instruction on the face of it, but also risks exposure to shame and ridicule.
Why is this important? I believe it is important because healing is not about luck. It is predestined. The woman suffered for the vast majority of her life. Her suffering was likely to have been immense, beyond a modern understanding of her medical condition. Healing is very rare, and it's not about making things being 'happy ever after'. This is a case of Jesus saying 'I have been aware of your suffering all along.' Those who believe in heaven are accused of an over optimistic fantasy, but all things are bound by time and will come to an end, both the good things, and the suffering.
John 12:20-26
Andrew notices a group of Greek who want to listen to Jesus. I assume that just like Brits, everyone spoke Greek, but no foreigner would speak 'lowly' Aramaic. Philip did simultaneous translation. The interesting thing is that what Jesus said was very perplexing for the locals. Jesus said some things that totally went against received wisdom. The Greeks were not constrained by this inherited cultural position. In fact their language helped them understand more clearly Jesus' meaning. This passage shows us that without diversity we may never get to the heart of truth. We need people who come from different perspectives and priorities to help illuminate the 'whole'. A church without diversity is a poor church.
This is my own rendition of the end of John 12
Jesus - "This is when evil will be driven out; my body will be lifted up, exalted."
He looked across at the crowd. The Greeks understood that they were included. They understood the double meaning - the paradox.
"Hang on!" someone in the crowd shouted out. "You can't be the 'Messenger for all time', and also the one whose 'body is exalted'? The Bible does not allow it."
{Audible sigh from Jesus} "Now is when all this stuff is clear and plain to sort out. Soon you will have to figure it out on your own."
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| Stained Glass from Canterbury Cathedral (Getty Images) |
Luke 19:1-10
Zacchaeus, the man joked about from an early age in Sunday School songs.
We know these 'unlovable' self-seeking, self-protecting people. They are in a cycle where to reach out would risk being hurt. The key here is that although Zacchaeus makes himself invisible, he is seen by Jesus. People said Jesus can't be that special because otherwise he would know what a rat-bag Zacchaeus was. I think of Ralph, the young drug user who broke into our house. We still have the spade he used to try to break the lock on our back door. I think of Henry, an old neighbour of ours who used to live in a care home at the end of our road, who I recently saw again on a mental health ward. Here is an extremely frustrated, obnoxious man, literally spitting Covid infection at staff. I was amazed to see him alive, but what hope does he have?
Jesus probably saw Zacchaeus for just one afternoon. We understand from the story that this gave Zacchaeus the impetus to change the way he lived completely.
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