GOSPEL OF LUKE: Chapter 4 - Temptation

Scroll down....There is more writing at the end!  

Luke 4:1-14   The Temptation in the Wilderness

Luke 4:1-2

Luke 4:3-4

Luke 4:5-8

Luke 4:1-13

Luke 4:1-14

Luke 4:21-31  Good News and Rejection

Luke 4:21

Luke 4:21-23

Luke 4:24-30

Luke 4:38-41    Healings and Exorcisms

   He left the meeting place and went to Simon’s house. Simon’s mother-in-law was running a high fever and they asked him to do something for her. He stood over her, told the fever to leave—and it left. Before they knew it, she was up getting dinner for them.

   When the sun went down, everyone who had anyone sick with some ailment or other brought them to him. One by one he placed his hands on them and healed them. Demons left in droves, screaming, “Son of God! You’re the Son of God!” But he shut them up, refusing to let them speak because they knew too much, knew him to be the Messiah.  (MSG)

     Jesus came to announce the Good News of God - release from the power of oppression, sin, or injustice over us.  He had already sparred with Satan in the wilderness.  In Jewish culture, the Messiah was believed to come to crush demonic power.  It is no surprise that some of Jesus' first acts are to establish, right from the start, 'This is who I am and why I have come'.  Evil has no power over the Son of God!  But why did Jesus shut the demons up?  Why didn't he want people to know him as the Messiah at this early stage? 
     How do we 'battle sin' today?  Is our battle just to avoid sinful acts ourselves?  How do we minister to those with mental illness or other forms of enslavement?  How do we proclaim freedom from the power of a corrupt media culture....TV, movies, music?  How do we deliver those who are orphans and refugees of civil war and conflicts beyond their control?  What demons do WE have the power, through the Spirit, to cast off today???   

Gospel of Luke Chapter 3: Baptism

Luke 3:23-38   GNT  GENEAOLOGY
When Jesus began his work, he was about thirty years old. He was the son, so people thought, of Joseph, who was the son of Heli,  the son of Matthat, the son of Levi, the son of Melchi........the son of Seth, the son of Adam, the son of God.
      I found that I have already Scribbled much of Chapter 3, the preaching of John the Baptist and the Baptism of Jesus.  Luke includes here a genealogy as well, something I thought only existed at the beginning of Matthew.  (Matthew only includes the 14 generations from Abraham to David, and then 14 more from David to Joseph)  Luke begins with Joseph, the 'perceived' (as Scripture puts it!) father of Jesus and moves backwards.....clear to Adam, Son of God. Matthew began his Gospel with the genealogy to assure his Jewish readers that the book was worthy....the subject was from God alone and was rooted into Jewish prophecy.  But Luke is writing to a more Gentile audience.  He sandwiches the pedigree of Christ between his baptism and wilderness temptation.  Why?  Perhaps to assure us this Jesus qualifies as God's son.  Perhaps to fully indicate his authority for this ministry and purpose.  In essence Luke tells his readers: This is God alone you are encountering and as God, Jesus is officially going to work! 


Scribbles for beginning of Chapter 3:  

Luke 3:1-6  Prepare Ye the Way!

Luke 3:7-18 You Brood of Vipers!

Luke 3:15-16  Could this be?

Luke 3:16-17  Housecleaning!

Luke 3:21-22 Baptism of Jesus

Gospel of Luke Chapter 2: The Birth of Christ

Luke 2:1-5 (MSG) Journeys
About that time Caesar Augustus ordered a census to be taken throughout the Empire. This was the first census when Quirinius was governor of Syria. Everyone had to travel to his own ancestral hometown to be accounted for. So Joseph went from the Galilean town of Nazareth up to Bethlehem in Judah, David’s town, for the census. As a descendant of David, he had to go there. He went with Mary, his fiancée, who was pregnant.
    Can you imagine the hullabaloo today if everyone was told to return to the city of their birth for the Census? Or, worse yet, to the city of their ancestor's birth? In the US that would mean a flocking of people to Europe, Asia, or South America! What chaos!   Airlines would be swamped, all public transportation in gridlock.  Most of us no longer live near where we were born, much less our ancestral home.  
     Joseph also had to travel to return to his hometown. (It was important for this birth to take place in Bethlehem as the Scriptures foretold.  Did God plan the census??)  But Joseph had no public transportation.  Just the family donkey for his pregnant bride.  Why did Mary go with him?  She was 9 months pregnant!  Was she considered Joseph's property at this point?   Where was her family?  Was Joseph upset that he had to bring this 'burden' along on the trip?  He could have traveled much faster without her.  I have never thought about this before.  In today's culture, Mary would have stayed home - the airlines wouldn't have let her travel!  Perhaps she knew the prophecies and knew she had to be in Bethlehem as well.
     Now I think of it, when DID Mary and Joseph marry?  The Bible never mentions it - just this verse indicating his fiancee.  Why didn't they marry before they left?  Did they wait until they got home from Egypt two years later?  So many questions....and maybe the answers aren't important.  The only answer of value is a humble birth took place that changed the world. God was at work.  

Luke 2: 6-7  (MSG) No Room
While they were there, the time came for her to give birth. She gave birth to a son, her firstborn. She wrapped him in a blanket and laid him in a manger, because there was no room in the hostel.
Two thoughts that perhaps merge:
1.  Jesus comes from the humblest of beginnings, without pretense or trappings of wealth and power.  An unwed teenage Mom (thankfully Dad did NOT run out!), a stable and a bed of hay.  Nothing rich, prominent or influential about it. The worth of this baby resided in his life itself.  Do we see the sanctity of life in EVERYONE we encounter, rich or poor?
2.  There was no room .... not in the inn, the hostel, the chamber or the guestroom (various translations put it differently!)  No room for God!!  
    It seems to me that we in the privileged half of the world have often made 'no room for God".  The 'inn of our lives' is too full and we have pushed Jesus/God aside.  We have crowded our Lord out with busyness, possessions, and other relationships.  Where is Christianity currently the strongest and growing?  In the poor and humble countries, the lowly of the world, where God is all they have!  There is room in their lives for HOPE!  
     What can we learn from these two simple verses that announce the greatest event in world history?  God has arrived!  MAKE room to welcome the hope of the world!

Luke 2:15-18   (MSG) Shepherds
As the angel choir withdrew into heaven, the sheepherders talked it over. “Let’s get over to Bethlehem as fast as we can and see for ourselves what God has revealed to us.” They left, running, and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby lying in the manger. Seeing was believing. They told everyone they met what the angels had said about this child. All who heard the sheepherders were impressed.
Two thoughts again....
1.  To whom did the angels proclaim the arrival of the Messiah?  Not to the priests or religious leaders, not to the government or weathly, but to common blue-collar workers just doing their job.  The news is for ALL people, God is available to everyone!  

Luke 2:15-20

2.  Seeing is believing.  The shepherds had to go see for themselves. They dropped everything and acted right then.  And they found the baby and all just as the angels said.  Sometimes we have to EXPERIENCE God's love in a very real and tangible way before we really believe. We have to be willing to let go of what occupies us to really see God at work. 
     What did the shepherds them do?  They spread the word!  Does my life, my service, my love and my sense of praise, do the same today?  


Luke 2:21-24  (MSG) Dedication

 When the eighth day arrived, the day of circumcision, the child was named Jesus, the name given by the angel before he was conceived.

Then when the days stipulated by Moses for purification were complete, they took him up to Jerusalem to offer him to God as commanded in God’s Law: “Every male who opens the womb shall be a holy offering to God, and also to sacrifice the “pair of doves or two young pigeons” prescribed in God’s Law."
     I read a little on Jewish law and the dedication of the first-born to the Lord.  Especially with the animals, what a tangled chaos of rules and regulations!  Wow!  But the rules on first-born children are clear: dedicate to God within 40 days of birth, coupled with a sacrifice of sheep or doves.  A pair of doves was acceptable in place of the sheep IF the family was poor.

     Did the priest who held Jesus, named him as Mary and Joseph instructed, and received the two doves have any idea he was holding the Son of God?  I think not.  He was going through the motions, as he did day after day, without regard, especially because this was a poor, inconsequential family.  He had no idea.  Do we sometimes just go through the motions' in our relationship with God today?  Do we often treat people differently because of their apparent poverty or lack of influence?
     When a child is dedicated to a specific position, does that alter the way the child is raised?  Does it alter opportunities and education the child is granted?  What if we were to take our vows during infant baptism seriously and use the experience to 'dedicate' our children to God?  To Peace?  To Love?  Would it make a difference?
     Some things to think about.    

Luke 2:25-38  (GNT) Simeon and Anna

25 At that time there was a man named Simeon living in Jerusalem. He was a good, God-fearing man and was waiting for Israel to be saved. The Holy Spirit was with him 26 and had assured him that he would not die before he had seen the Lord's promised Messiah. 27 Led by the Spirit, Simeon went into the Temple. When the parents brought the child Jesus into the Temple to do for him what the Law required, 28 Simeon took the child in his arms and gave thanks to God:

29 “Now, Lord, you have kept your promise,
    and you may let your servant go in peace.
30 With my own eyes I have seen your salvation,
31     which you have prepared in the presence of all peoples:
32 A light to reveal your will to the Gentiles
    and bring glory to your people Israel.”

33 The child's father and mother were amazed at the things Simeon said about him. 34 Simeon blessed them and said to Mary, his mother, “This child is chosen by God for the destruction and the salvation of many in Israel. He will be a sign from God which many people will speak against 35 and so reveal their secret thoughts. And sorrow, like a sharp sword, will break your own heart.”
     First the lowly shepherds....now two faithful older servants of God, prophets in their own way, witness the coming of Christ.  Again, not the high priests, but two patient temple patrons, proclaiming the child's presence for ALL, Gentiles and Jews; proclaiming a troubled ministry and painful end; proclaiming sorrow to Mary.  The proclamation of Simeon was anything but cheerful and comfortable, yet his joy in Jesus' arrival is apparent, his long wait over. 
     Jesus wasn't wearing a label "Messiah" on his forehead.  What did Simeon see in this humble family that the priests did not?  The Scriptures note, "the Holy Spirit was with him"....all the difference in the world!  With the Spirit as our companion, the world opens up to us in a revealing manner.  We can see God as Simeon did - in everyone.  

I have already Scribbled the rest of Luke 2: 

Luke 2:45-46
Jesus's parents can't find him.  

Luke 2:46-47
Jesus in the temple teaching

Luke 2:52
And Jesus matured and grew....

Another Christmas Scribble

It's Time to Fly! Sermon 9.1.13

     On September 1 I filled a pulpit vacancy at our church in Baker City.  The following is the basic text of the sermon, along with some of the pictures that were part of PowerPoint illustrations.  I included a few other appropriate Scribbles from the service at the end, one of which was our bulletin cover.  

Scriptures:  Psalm 91, Isaiah 40:28-31, Deuteronomy 32:11

IT’S TIME TO FLY!

I have been mulling the idea for this service over and over in my mind for over a year.  It is based on two different articles I read about eagles, one by a Pentecostal pastor Adedotun Ojelabi and a portion of a book Ask God Tough Questions by Presbyterian pastor and former Senate chaplain, Dr. Lloyd Ogilvie.  It has been on my TO DO list: write out the eagle sermon, offer to preach when a need arises.  But, I am slowly learning that God truly works in God’s uncanny ways, for I needed to “wait for the Lord to renew my strength”.  I needed to wait for God’s timing, because as I began to really work through this, it became very clear to me that the wait had been important.  That NOW was the time for the message to be heard. 

With that as a rather vague intro….let’s talk EAGLES!    

What magnificent creatures!  Eagles are mentioned in the Bible at least 32 times.  How are we, as Christians, like an eagle?

Job 29:27-28 reads,

Does an eagle wait for your command
    to build its nest high in the mountains?

 It makes its home on the highest rocks
    and makes the sharp peaks its fortress.

Eagles live high. They are birds of high character. They make their nests on high, they soar to great heights.  The Eagle Rank is the highest rank in scouting. To put ourselves on the standard of eagles isn’t to gloat or pump ourselves up with egoism, but to point ourselves to what we can be in and through God.  To inspire us to build our nests higher and closer to the Kingdom of God.
 

Eagles have incredible vision.  They observe and watch, they perceive all that is happening around them.  If we look at the world with eagle acuity coupled with God-vision, we can see the hopes and dreams of God…and put them into action. 

Eagles are powerful and strong and great warriors.  They will fight for a cause (or a meal).  Do we tackle our God-given mission with the strength and persistence of an eagle?

Eagles are survivors.  They have long lives and live in all conditions, hostile or hospitable.  They have an inner strength that allows them to adapt.  Eagles don’t give up.  Can we say the same? Are we like an eagle?

Eagles don’t deal in retribution or revenge.  They often battle their enemies by simply soaring to new heights – out of reach.  Is this not an example we should follow?

Eagles can go without food for days.  Often this happens during molting.  There are times in our lives when we must go without – physically, emotionally, and spiritually.  But God can and does use these times to make us stronger.  Perhaps, these are the times when we “wait for the Lord for new strength, to mount up on the wings of eagles, to not tire or grow weary!”

So that’s just a little review on general eagle characteristics, But the heart of this message come from the Deuteronomy 32:11 scripture and the training methods used by eagles to teach their young to fly. 

The scripture again…

Like an eagle that stirs up its nest, that hovers over its young,

He spread His wings and caught them,

He carried them on his pinions, The Lord alone guided them.

In this passage we hear about eagles, but we also discover some major characteristics of our God.  God disturbs, God develops, and God delivers. 

The destiny of an eaglet is to fly.  But the nest is a warm and comfortable place.  The nest is safe and predictable.  Food is provided, and there are siblings for companionship! The nest is EASY!  Why would an eagle (or myself) ever want to leave the nest?  Because you can’t learn to fly sitting in the middle of comfort and easy. 

So what does the Parent eagle do?  She disturbs the nest, she stirs things up, she creates dissatisfaction with the accommodations, she empowers the eaglets to desire growth and change. 

God often must do the same for us.  We become complacent, as individuals, as a church, as a community.  We become comfortable because it is easy. It is what we know.   So…God quietly begins to close doors in order to force us to open others.  God stirs within us a desire for a greater good.  God gives us a chance to grow out of adversity and unrest, out of having our nest stirred up. 

Do the eagles resist the disturbance?  Perhaps at first.  But the disturbance, the unrest in the nest, prepares them for the next step:  FLIGHT!!  When God stirs us up, do we resist?  Usually. We don’t like change.  But eventually, can we not accept God’s nudge and with excitement say, “I’m ready, God!  Let’s fly!”

And so, the eagles jump from the nest.  And, at first, they fall…..

     Which brings us to the other traits of God.  God develops and God delivers.  Or as the scripture says, “She hovers over her young”.  In Hebrew the term translates to broods.  It is an active term of creation, not just over-protective care.  It is not a one-time shove and a prayer for a good fall.  Rather, the parent eagle encourages her young to the edge of the nest, shows them flight, and then gently nudges them off! 

But the mother doesn’t fly off in the distance and think, “Job well done, another set of babies on their own!”  The parent eagle remains, ready to deliver, to swoop in and catch the fledglings whenever they get in danger of true peril. They are forced to open their wings and try. But she is ready to spread her wings and catch them.  Over and over and over again.  She will develop and deliver until the baby eaglets can fly on their own.

    

   What a leap of faith to first jump from the nest!  No wonder God sometimes has to push us off!  Do we not trust that our Parent God will be there to catch us?  Do we not have the faith of an eaglet?  The mother eagle doesn’t expect the baby to soar on the first try, but rather to fly a little further each time, knowing secure wings are below for rescue.  God doesn’t expect us to soar all at once, but rather gives us the knowledge and abilities for flight as we need them. 

        Last spring in Tucson, I was sent out with a young CHRPA worker to install a toilet.  My previous knowledge of toilets was

pretty much – sit and flush - rather dead in the center of the nest.  I was not at all ready to fly.  But God gave me a nudge.  The toilet was damaged.  We had to take parts out of the floor.  Needless to say it wasn’t a pretty sight and I was pretty glad that my partner had jumped at least once before from the nest.    I had to leap as well.   But step by step, God was there to swoop in and show us what to do.  I learned that day that it is hard to leap, but it is ok, because God really doesn’t make you fly any further than you can. To simply dare to try what is at hand is all God really asks, even in so mundane a task as a toilet repair.  

I picture in this lesson an Eagle Trinity:  Our Mother-Father God, stirring up and disturbing our nest; Christ, showing us how to fly, Christ, showing us how to live and love;  and the Holy Spirit soaring with us, wings of wind and flame, lifting us back up when we fall, and empowering us to try once again. 

        Each time we take off from the nest of our lives in trust and faith, we fly just a little further.  We reach new heights and become the eagles God created us to be.  Learning to fly isn’t a one time process, flight is a life-long gift from God! 

        So….why now?  Why did I need to ‘wait on the Lord” to deliver this message? 

        Because I think God has been stirring our nest.  God has been making life at First Presbyterian and in Baker City just a little uncomfortable in order to prepare us to fly once again.  Changes are stirring things up, possibilities opening for reaching out, new directions for music and more.  I think we are on the edge of the nest, knowing something more is out there, knowing we are programmed to fly, … and just a little afraid to jump. 

        Nest stirring can be painful.  We need our eagle acuity to be sure that it is God creating the unrest and not other birds.  We need our strength of eagle character to be persistent in working our way to the nest edge.  Or perhaps we need to spiritually fast and ‘wait for the Lord’ to know when the timing is just right to jump. 

        But jump we must, because eagles either fly or they die! 

        Where is God calling us as a faith community?  Where is God asking us to take a leap of faith?  How uncomfortable will God make us as we say ‘No’ over and over to change before we are willing to dare, to take the leap of faith, and soar on the wings of eagles.     It’s time to move to the edge. It’s time to jump.  It’s time to fly!  Amen.

Bulletin Cover