Reflective Bible Study

As I read the Bible, specifically the gospels, there are a number of places where Jesus shares some really challenging ideas; there are other places where He shows an extraordinary love for people who are in need; and there are a few places where Jesus gives a massive, perspective altering truth.

In our passage for this entry, we come across one of those perspective altering truths, and if we take only this truth into our hearts, we would be completely different people.

Luke 12 begins with Jesus warning and challenging people regarding hypocrisy, which means thinking/judging/doing something different than what one says. Immediately following this warning, Jesus shares verses 4 and 5 which say, “My friends, I can guarantee that you don’t need to be afraid of those who kill the body. After that they can’t do anything more. I’ll show you the one you should be afraid of. Be afraid of the one who has the power to throw you into hell after killing you. I’m warning you to be afraid of him.”

Jesus tells us clearly that if we are going to be afraid of anyone, we should fear God, who has the power and authority to completely destroy us. People might be able to cause pain, and they may be able to kill our bodies, but Jesus shares plainly that is all they can do. All the torture humans can think up can only go so far. All the pain that can be caused by others will end when our lives do.

But God has a much greater power: the power of resurrection. A skilled or lucky doctor can revive someone if they act quickly, but only God can bring someone back to life who has been dead for weeks, months, years, or even longer. And with the power of resurrection also comes the power to determine our ultimate destiny: enjoying life with God in the new earth, or being thrown into hell after death.

The most amazing part of Jesus’ truth and God’s love is that He would give us our own choice. God will not send anyone into hell who wants a genuine relationship with Him. Regardless of what others think of us, Jesus always wants us to remember that what God thinks of us is most important.

As Luke’s gospel transitions into telling us about the Last Supper Jesus ate with His disciples on the night He was betrayed and arrested, Luke’s gospel includes an interesting detail that I had somehow missed every other time I have read this passage.

Luke begins talking about Jesus’ Last Supper event by saying: “When the hour came, Jesus took his place at the table with the apostles. He said to them, ‘I have wanted so much to eat this Passover meal with you before I suffer!’” (v. 14-15)

In this introduction to this meal, Luke’s gospel includes a detail that the disciples probably missed or discounted at first and this detail says that Jesus’ suffering was about to begin. While Judas Iscariot already had made a deal with the religious leaders to sell Jesus to them, the other disciples appeared to be oblivious to the hints that Jesus was sharing with them about what was about to take place.

I wonder in my mind if Jesus held back saying everything at this point because it might have changed what actually happened. Perhaps if Jesus came out and said that He would be dying on a cross less than 24 hours later, Judas Iscariot might have realized that his betrayal would actually result in Jesus’ death and chosen not to go through with it. Also, if Jesus had clearly said what would happen the following day, it is possible that many of the disciples – Peter included – would have fought to the death when the mob was arresting Jesus.

While the disciples scatter, part of me wonders if this is because they didn’t realize that Jesus would ultimately be crucified as a result. If they realized in the moment of Jesus’ arrest that it meant Jesus would be dead 24 hours later, they might have fought and died with Him rather than scattering.

Several of the gospels describe Peter getting violent when the mob came, and I wonder if he would have been joined by other disciples if Jesus had shared that His death was right around the corner.

Instead, Jesus speaks of suffering, and this is significant for us. In many ways, Jesus’ suffering for us is more powerful than His death. There were many opportunities and ways Jesus could have died earlier on in His ministry. He could have been stoned, thrown off of a cliff, or drowned at the bottom of the Sea of Galilee just to name a few. None of these deaths would have shown us how much God loves us.

However, the cross, which was torture in itself, and all the torture and abuse leading up to the cross was Jesus’ choice. While it would have been easier to die a different way, Jesus knew the path to the cross would best show God’s love for us, and that is what Jesus came to help us see.

At the start of the Last Supper, even though the disciples missed the significance of Jesus’ opening words, at least some of them remembered later on to share with Luke as he was writing. In our own lives, even if we miss the significance of an event, a challenge, a problem, or a promise in the moment, we can trust that God has something significant in mind that He will explain to us in the future.

Part way through Jesus’ ministry, the gospel of Matthew includes a short passage that includes someone who felt ready to become one of Jesus’ followers, and in this passage, he approaches Jesus to share this idea. In two short verses, we get a powerful picture of Jesus.

Matthew tells us that “A teacher of the Law came to him. ‘Teacher,’ he said, ‘I am ready to go with you wherever you go.’” (v. 19)

Before even looking at Jesus’ answer, it is worth paying attention to the person making this request. Matthew’s gospel tells us that the man making this statement was “a teacher of the Law”. This detail is significant because as we read all the gospels, it appears that Jesus reserved His harshest words and messages for the religious leaders, and included among the various groups of religious leaders where those who taught others the Law.

However, while most of the religious leaders and teachers of the Law hated Jesus, this one, earlier in Jesus’ ministry, had made up his mind to follow Jesus. Simply making the statement that he did was both powerful and profound when we consider that this religious leader declared publicly that he wanted to switch sides on a spiritual level.

Then Jesus shared His response: “Foxes have holes, and birds have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lie down and rest.” (v. 20)

On one hand, Jesus’ response doesn’t really answer this leader’s question. Does this response mean that Jesus accepted this teacher of the Law, or does it imply that this teacher then decided against being a disciple?

None of the gospels tell us for certain, however, in Jesus’ response, we can see a significant clue into this teacher’s mind.

By this point in Jesus’ ministry, He was drawing a crowd and His fame was growing. It is likely that this teacher wanted to be a part of Jesus’ group because it was popular and famous. Jesus could see the motives behind this man’s request, and in His response, Jesus challenges this man even though Jesus doesn’t reject him.

Jesus’ response emphasizes the negative angle of following Him, which in this case meant this man giving up his home and past. We don’t see a conclusion to this teacher’s story, and we don’t know whether this teacher still chose to follow after Jesus directed him to the challenges of following, but in this event, we see a powerful truth for all of us:

When we choose to follow Jesus, we are trading our past lives for future lives, and even though our new life with God has an “eternal-life” guarantee, we will still face challenges while living for Jesus in this age of life.

Some of the details in the gospel records I find fascinating, and one detail Jesus shares in this journal entry’s passage stands out in my mind as being very interesting.

As Jesus is sharing the first portion of describing what will happen, He shares the following, “Yet not a hair of your head will perish.” (Luke 21:18)

Now the literal side of me says that this verse must mean that Jesus is promising us the same hair that we had on earth. We could be in a new body, with new organs, and with a new head and face, eyes and nose, but with the same hair, since the verse clearly says that “not a hair of will perish”. Some people might be excited to read this, while others would rather receive a different head of hair or a head that simply has hair if they have lost all of theirs.

However, while we can have fun with the literal nature of Jesus’ promise, I believe that Jesus is saying something deeper here. Within this verse are both a promise and a revelation of God’s character.

God’s character is very interested in the details. He pays more attention to how we are put together than we often do. God also cares so much about each of us that He promises to keep even the least significant part of us safe.

As we keep moving forward in our relationship with God, He will not let even the tiniest part of us perish. Even if I lose a part of me here on earth, God promises that my future self is safe, and that death is not the end for anyone who trusts and believes in Him.