Reflective Bible Study

As Jesus approaches crucifixion weekend, all four gospels seem to slow down and focus on the details of what was about to happen.

One of the first events these gospels focus in on while preparing us for the week leading up to Jesus’ crucifixion is a banquet that Jesus attended. Three gospels, Matthew, Mark, and John all record this event, with each one giving us a different set of details. It is worth pointing out that the gospel of Luke has a similar event that he places much earlier in Jesus’ ministry. Some scholars believe this to be another record of this same event. In my mind, while Luke may be describing the same supper event, he instead focuses on Jesus’ teaching at this supper, while the Matthew, Mark, and John focus in on how it foreshadows Jesus’ upcoming death and the gift of perfume that was given.

In John’s record of this supper, we are given more details about the specific people present. The only name that John doesn’t include is the host’s name, that both Matthew and Mark share readily as Simon, the leper, though I imagine that we should really call the host Simon, the former leper who Jesus healed earlier in His ministry.

With all this to set the stage for our event, let’s read what happened. Our passage is found in John’s gospel, chapter 12, and let’s use the New International Version of the Bible to read from. Starting in verse 1, John tells us that:

¹ Six days before the Passover, Jesus came to Bethany, where Lazarus lived, whom Jesus had raised from the dead. ² Here a dinner was given in Jesus’ honor. [sidenote: This is where Matthew and Mark say that this was Simon the Leper inviting and hosting this event.] Martha served, while Lazarus was among those reclining at the table with him. ³ Then Mary took about a pint of pure nard, an expensive perfume; she poured it on Jesus’ feet and wiped his feet with her hair. And the house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume.

⁴ But one of his disciples, Judas Iscariot, who was later to betray him, objected, ⁵ “Why wasn’t this perfume sold and the money given to the poor? It was worth a year’s wages.” ⁶ He did not say this because he cared about the poor but because he was a thief; as keeper of the money bag, he used to help himself to what was put into it.

⁷ “Leave her alone,” Jesus replied. “It was intended that she should save this perfume for the day of my burial. ⁸ You will always have the poor among you, but you will not always have me.”

In this event, John calls out Judas Iscariot as the disciple who would betray Jesus, and draws our attention onto Judas’ objection to Mary’s gift simply because the gift was very valuable from a monetary standpoint. While the other gospel writers simply say that there were those present who were upset and objected to Mary’s gift, John tells us who was specifically upset and why, as well as what was likely motivating Judas’ objection that made His statement not sound as sincere.

While Judas’s objection could be seen as logical and valid, because one year’s worth of income could definitely make a dent in a poor person’s life, in the face of poverty as a large-scale issue, one year’s worth of an average person’s income is not likely to have an effect on such a large-scale issue.

However, regardless of what we would have done if we were present with the disciples choosing sides over whether Mary should have given her gift as a one-time act of anointing or as large sum of money, Jesus’ response sidesteps the entire issue with a truth we might easily miss if we are not careful.

In verse 8, Jesus says, “You will always have the poor among you, but you will not always have me.” Mark chapter 14 verse 7 records Jesus’ words a little differently but with the same conclusion by letting us know Jesus said, “The poor you will always have with you, and you can help them any time you want. But you will not always have me.”

While the disciples debated over priorities and how Mary “should” have used the perfume differently than she did, Jesus steps in and redefines the issue entirely. For these disciples, their time with Jesus was limited, while helping the poor would be something that that would always be available to them. It’s worth pointing out here that Jesus does not say that poverty is unsolvable. Instead, Jesus emphasizes in this statement that we should focus on our relationship with Him first, because a relationship with God is more important than anything else, and that includes helping those who are poor.

In other words, if given the exclusive choice of picking between a relationship with God or helping the poor, I believe Jesus would challenge us to pick the relationship with God. However, I also don’t believe that Jesus would have us pick between these two good things. Instead, I believe Jesus wants to teach us about having right priorities.

In the world today, there is a big push towards helping those who are poor and those who are the least in society, and helping them in socially responsible, empowering ways. This push and focus is excellent and it is one of the best ways we can be like Jesus in our world, giving God a positive name. But, if we take Jesus’ words seriously, a deeper truth becomes clear: having a relationship with Jesus is more important than helping those who are in need.

There are many great reasons for helping the poor in our world today, but only one comes with the promise of eternal life with God in the next world. Someone who hates God or who believes this life is all there is is still capable of helping the poor. They may even have selfless motives. However, without the relationship, faith, trust, and belief in Jesus, they only have half of what the Bible says is necessary for entrance into Heaven.

As I have studied the Bible, I see the dual truth that faith and belief in Jesus is what is necessary for salvation, but that this faith and belief must be active and visible to others in our lives. Our faith must mean something and our beliefs must affect our actions.

However, if someone says that faith requires a certain action or a certain set of actions to be true faith then they make that action, or actions, more important than the faith behind it, and their argument becomes indistinguishable from one emphasizing salvation coming through works.

Instead, saying that faith must be visible and it must affect our lives and our decisions in a public way actually enhances the faith behind the action. While each person might display their faith differently, when we maturely look at the motivations behind the actions, we discover a faith that is equally as strong, if not stronger.

However, Jesus did not call us to judge other people regarding their faith. Instead, Jesus calls each of us to focus on growing closer to God and to make Him our highest priority, even higher than the noble act of helping the poor. Having a saving relationship with Jesus is that important!

As we come to the end of another podcast episode, here are the challenges I will leave you with:

As I always challenge you to do, continue to seek God first in your life. Don’t sacrifice your relationship with God because you are too busy helping the poor, or doing other good things. While we are called to help those in need, my challenge for you is to move forward because you are seeking God and because you have a relationship with Him. In other words, seek a relationship with God first, focus on making your relationship with Him personal, and after that, step out and help those He brings into your life.

In order to grow a great relationship with God, be sure to be regularly spending time praying and studying your Bible. Through prayer and reading your Bible, discover just how much God loves you and how valuable you are in His eyes.

And as I end every set of challenges by saying in one way or another, never stop short of, back away from, chicken out of, or deviate away from where God wants to lead you to in your life with Him!

As we continue moving through Jesus’ life, looking at events from His ministry, we come to an event where we are almost embarrassed on behalf of those coming to Jesus in order to ask a question. While most instances where someone comes to Jesus with a question have a noble purpose, such as when someone comes asking for help or healing, or a clearly sinister purpose, like when the Pharisees ask Jesus a question to trap Him, the question we have in our passage for this episode is almost exclusively self-serving.

In our passage for this episode, two of Jesus’ disciples come to Him with a question, or should I say, with a request, and with how Jesus responded, we might almost feel bad for the way this situation turned out, if it were not for how self-serving the question itself was.

However, with this question and how Jesus responded to it, we discover a powerful picture of God and a mirror into our own human nature as well.

Let’s read what happened and then unpack some big ideas we can learn from it. Our passage for this episode is found in the gospel of Mark, chapter 10, and we will read it using the God’s Word translation. Starting in verse 35, Mark tells us that:

³⁵ James and John, sons of Zebedee, went to Jesus. They said to him, “Teacher, we want you to do us a favor.”

³⁶ “What do you want me to do for you?” he asked them.

³⁷ They said to him, “Let one of us sit at your right and the other at your left in your glory.”

³⁸ Jesus said, “You don’t realize what you’re asking. Can you drink the cup that I’m going to drink? Can you be baptized with the baptism that I’m going to receive?”

³⁹ “We can,” they told him.

Jesus told them, “You will drink the cup that I’m going to drink. You will be baptized with the baptism that I’m going to receive. ⁴⁰ But I don’t have the authority to grant you a seat at my right or left. Those positions have already been prepared for certain people.”

While we could read further to discover what happened when the other disciples found out about this request, and how they were not very pleased with James or John, let’s stop reading here because I want to draw our attention onto a couple of profound ideas present in how these disciples understood Jesus’ ministry. We’ll frame these ideas around what the disciples likely believed they were asking and contrast it with what actually happened.

First off, when these two disciples were framing their request, they likely could only see fame and glory in Jesus’ future. In their minds, like most of first century Jewish culture, they believed that after Jesus had overthrown Rome, He would set up His kingdom in its place. With a new kingdom, Jesus would need people close to Him, and the most significant, closest people would be those on the right and left hand sides of Him. These two disciples, sensing that their odds aren’t that great within a group of twelve, decide to pull Jesus aside and request the places of honor directly.

However, when we contrast this request with what actually happened, Jesus likely saw His glory as being something different from what the disciples thought. Jumping ahead in the gospels, when Jesus was praying in the garden on the night He was betrayed, He prayed for a cup to be taken away from Him if it was within God’s will. If the cup Jesus referred to in His prayer that night is the same cup Jesus references in His conversation with these two disciples, Jesus’ glory would ultimately be when He was hanging on the cross and preparing to take His last breath.

While Jesus was on the cross, those on His right and left were criminals, and neither one would have been a member of Jesus’ group of disciples.

In His conversation with these disciples, Jesus also references the concept of baptism. While baptism generally means being dipped or immersed in water, similar to what Jesus did at the beginning of His ministry with John the Baptizer, the context of Jesus’ words would be the literal act of death and resurrection that the symbolic act of baptism actually meant. Baptism represents dying, being buried, and being raised up into a new life. When we are baptized with water, being submerged in the water represents us taking part in Jesus’ death and burial, as well as His resurrection.

I strongly suspect that the disciples making their request did not understand the baptism Jesus was referring to as being a baptism that would take them through death, though it is possible that following Jesus’ resurrection and ascension, these disciples then understood Jesus’ words from this earlier conversation.

When making their request, I suspect these disciples only saw fame, status, and position as the outcome of their request. I doubt they had any idea Jesus was actively moving towards the cross as His goal.

However, what about when we look past Jesus’ ministry on earth and to the celebration that God’s people will experience in heaven following Jesus’ return to take us home. When we are all seated for the great wedding feast of the Lamb, wherever Jesus happens to be seated, there will be a position on His right and on His left.

Looking forward at this event, which may be what the disciples have in their minds when making their request, we discover another big idea within Jesus’ response: Jesus tells these disciples that there are some things Jesus does not have authority over.

While it would be easy to skim over or minimize this point, let’s not do that because this is significant. Jesus never focused His ministry on increasing His power or His authority. Jesus appeared to always be content being under the authority of someone else. We could compare this to the centurion Jesus helped who was under the authority of others and who also had people who he had authority over.

After the other disciples find out about James and John’s request, Jesus called the disciples together to tell them that God’s kingdom works differently than human kingdoms. In God’s kingdom, power is displayed through humility and service. Jesus describes God’s kingdom, not as a hierarchy where those on the top are over the others, but as an upside down ladder where the goal is service and sacrifice over self-exaltation.

While Jesus didn’t grant these disciples’ their initial request, we discover that through the discussion Jesus has surrounding their request, Jesus’ followers throughout history have been able to learn a little more about God’s character, His kingdom, and His humility. Jesus came to serve, and Jesus has called us to serve and help others and to show God’s love to those He brings into our lives.

As we come to the end of another podcast episode, here are the challenges I will leave you with:

As I always open these challenges by saying to you, continue to intentionally place God first in your life. Also, as we talked about in this episode, intentionally put other people ahead of yourself as well. When focusing on how to balance our lives, look no further than Jesus and model your life after His in this regard.

In order to know what Jesus did and what He is like, be sure to also pray and study the Bible for yourself. Though praying and studying your Bible, discover who Jesus is, what He is like, and just how much He love you. Jesus is the best model we have for what it means to be a servant.

And as I end every set of challenges by saying in one way or another, never stop short of, back away from, chicken out of, or walk away from where God wants to lead you to in your life with Him!

As we have been moving through events found within Jesus’ life and ministry, we come to an event where Jesus turned the cultural norms upside down. In many ways, what Jesus chose to do in the event we are about to read might be one of the most counter-culturally bold moves Jesus ever did. However, while being counter-cultural to those living in the first century, Jesus demonstrates an amazing picture of God’s love for all humanity.

The event found in our passage can be found in three of the four gospels. However, as I shared in the introduction, we will read this event from the gospel of Luke because Luke’s gospel has a slightly different angle than Matthew and Mark record, and Luke’s angle is worth paying attention to when unpacking just how profound and counter-cultural event this was.

With that said, our passage is found in Luke’s gospel, chapter 18, and we will read it using the God’s Word translation. Starting in verse 15, Luke tells us that:

¹⁵ Some people brought infants to Jesus to have him hold them. When the disciples saw this, they told the people not to do that.

¹⁶ But Jesus called the infants to him and said, “Don’t stop the children from coming to me! Children like these are part of God’s kingdom. ¹⁷ I can guarantee this truth: Whoever doesn’t receive God’s kingdom as a little child receives it will never enter it.”

I will be the first to say that when thinking about this event, I initially picture young children being welcomed by Jesus. Without Luke’s gospel describing these children differently, I would imagine kids somewhere in the 5-8 year-old range.

However, when reading Luke’s gospel, we get the description that the parents bringing their children to Jesus are bringing Jesus infants to hold. The picture I see Luke describe is that a mother or father bring their baby to Jesus because they want Jesus to hold their child for a period of time.

On seeing this scene take place, the disciples start to push back because they feel these parents are out of line and the situation might be getting out of hand. What probably started with one or two mothers wanting their children to have some “Jesus time”, or simply to have Jesus touch their child, quickly escalated into what could only be considered a crowd of parents and exponentially more children. Half a dozen children who were well-behaved young men and women were one thing, but if we understand and use Luke’s gospel to help us frame this event in our minds, when more parents caught on and started bringing more children, we might now begin to see some unruly children and even infants. Bringing babies and/or infants probably was a little too far for the disciples.

In this event, Luke’s gospel shares something else that is unique from the other two. Luke says in verse 16 that “Jesus called the infants to Him”. While Mathew and Mark include Jesus’ challenge to His disciples to stop keeping the children away, I am amazed that Luke frames Jesus calling the infants specifically. It is very possible Luke simply worded Jesus’ challenge to His disciples in a different way that leaves more room for interpretation, however I wonder if Jesus actually called any infants to come by name.

Right after our first child was born, my wife, baby daughter, and I went to her first baby appointment together. Being brand new parents, we didn’t know what to expect. When the nurse came to call us back, she called out our daughter’s name. It was an initially odd experience. The nurse didn’t do anything wrong, but my wife and I as new parents weren’t expecting our daughter’s name to be the one called.

I wonder if Jesus, calling out to the infants and perhaps toddlers, called them by name as our nurse did for our baby daughter. If this was the case, to help illustrate the truth He wanted the disciples to learn, Jesus may have called several of the children by name. By doing this, Jesus elevated these children and infants as being important to Him.

We can relate to this as well. The people who we know by name are in almost every case the most significant to us. Perhaps they are significant in a bad way, like that annoying person at work, or perhaps they are significant in a good way like a close friend or relative. People who call us by name tell us that we are significant to them.

When Jesus called the infants to Him, He may have called some of them by name, but even if He didn’t, He did want to be close to them, and that was something that was incredibly counter-cultural. First century culture was very hierarchal, almost certainly more hierarchal than most places in the world today, with each person alive being categorized above someone and below another. Babies were among the lowest in society, perhaps even being only slightly ahead of animals.

Jesus upsets the cultural norm by calling children to Him to set up His big truth in verse 17: “Whoever doesn’t receive God’s kingdom as a little child receives it will never enter it.”

If Jesus didn’t challenge the cultural norms at the time by being with babies, He certainly did by setting up these infants and toddlers as an example for the adults. Culture says that children must learn from adults, but Jesus’ big truth in this event is that adults must learn from children regarding entrance into God’s kingdom.

Jesus teaches us that we are all equal: Babies receive God’s kingdom in the same way adults do, and this should be encouraging for us as adults. Not only is everyone equal in God’s eyes, but the standard to receive salvation is simple: trust in Jesus. Babies err on the side of trusting the adults in their lives until they are old enough to determine if the adult is trustworthy.

In the same way, we should always err on the side of trusting God, regardless of whether what is happening in our life makes sense. The point in time when we will have grown up enough to decide whether God was worthy of our trust happens at the point in time when we enter heaven. Judging God’s trustworthiness anytime before heaven is judging with only half the perspective necessary. Someone could ultimately reach a very biased and inaccurate picture of God by looking only from an earthly perspective.

Children trust adults because this is a part of their nature. In the same way, originally we all trusted God as a part of our nature, but then sin came and distorted this trust. Jesus came as a representative from Heaven to tell us that God really is trustworthy, that He loves us, and that He wants to live with us forever. We are all equal in God’s eyes, and Jesus came to save us all equally.

As we come to the end of another podcast episode, here are the challenges I will leave you with:

As I always challenge you to do, intentionally seek God first in your life. Choose to understand, accept, and trust that God loves you more than you can imagine, regardless of your background or your place within society. Jesus came and died to save you, me, and every person, regardless of our age or any other social distinction culture chooses to push our way.

Also, continue praying and studying the Bible for yourself to learn, grow, and discover who God is, what He is really like, and how trustworthy He is. While pastors or podcasters can share ideas to think about, always take what you read, see, and hear and test it against the truth found within the Bible.

And as I end every set of challenges by saying in one way or another, never stop short of, back away from, chicken out of, or doubt yourself into leaving where God wants to lead you to in your life with Him!

Shortly after Jesus healed some lepers, the gospel of Luke includes a two-verse interaction Jesus has with some Pharisees who appear to have a legitimate question that isn’t a trap. If you have spent any time reading the gospels, you will quickly understand how rare of a situation this is. With only a handful of exceptions, whenever Jesus interacts with religious leaders, we see Jesus masterfully evade a trap they had set for Him, and if we aren’t careful, we could conclude that 100% of the religious leaders disliked Jesus, which would be untrue.

While I am willing to accept an argument that would suggest the question in this passage contains a trap, within the details Luke’s gospel includes, whatever the trap might have been is not clearly visible to me.

With that said, let’s look at this interaction Jesus had with these Pharisees and see if we can uncover something significant we can use in our own lives from how Jesus responded to this surprisingly genuine question He is asked. Our passage is found in Luke’s gospel, chapter 17, and we will read it using the New International Reader’s version of the Bible. Starting in verse 20, Luke tells us that:

²⁰ Once the Pharisees asked Jesus when God’s kingdom would come. He replied, “The coming of God’s kingdom is not something you can see. ²¹ People will not say, ‘Here it is.’ Or, ‘There it is.’ That’s because God’s kingdom is among you.”

In this short, two-verse passage, we see a simple question and a simple answer. In some ways, I wish Jesus had elaborated more in the response He gave, but perhaps, Jesus kept this answer short knowing that one of the biggest themes in His entire preaching ministry was sharing details about the kingdom of God.

However, one big idea that I see present in this question and answer combination is a redefinition of what God’s kingdom actually is. For most people thinking about the concept of God having a kingdom, the closest idea we can picture is something that would be similar to an earthly kingdom or an earthly government. I suspect that the Pharisees understood God’s kingdom in a similar way. I picture those in the first-century Jewish culture eagerly expecting the Messiah to appear, ushering in God’s kingdom by overthrowing Rome’s kingdom and giving their nation independence.

With this likely assumption in place, it would not surprise me at all if Jesus’ answer confused these religious leaders. Instead of framing God’s kingdom as something that would be coming in the future, Jesus frames God’s kingdom as already being present and “among” them.

However, it is interesting when we contrast Jesus’ words here with other places in the gospel that focus on the kingdom of God.

Looking at the beginning of most gospels, we see John the Baptizer, who was Jesus’ forerunner in ministry proclaim that the kingdom of God is coming. Also, Jesus beings His preaching ministry with the same message that God’s kingdom is coming. Also, when Jesus sends His disciples out in pairs to preach partway through His ministry, He tells them to preach that the kingdom of God is coming.

It would appear as though Jesus shifts His focus when giving this answer to the Pharisees. Instead of focusing on the “coming” nature of God’s kingdom, Jesus draws the focus onto the already present nature of God’s kingdom, even though those present might not have been able to see it.

When reading this passage, I am challenged by the question: If the Pharisees missed seeing God’s kingdom that Jesus said was among them, am I missing seeing God’s kingdom that is present today?

This is a powerful question, and when wrestling with an answer, I am pushed to think deeper than I might normally think. From the biggest perspective we can imagine, God rules the universe, and technically speaking, everything is “His kingdom”. Because of this, the kingdom of God that Jesus refers to must be about something different, or perhaps a different aspect of God’s kingdom that isn’t just His ownership of the universe. Since God owns the universe, which includes us, His kingdom is always present, but that also would then mean that it technically could not then also be coming.

Perhaps a key phrase to helping us understand what Jesus is teaching is the phrase “among you”. At the end of Jesus’ reply in verse 21, Jesus says: “God’s kingdom is among you.” Jesus had been present with the disciples for a few years at this point, and Jesus might be referencing a deeper truth in His answer.

In His response, Jesus might be saying something like, “God’s kingdom is wherever God is.” Since Jesus, a member of the Godhead, was among them, God’s kingdom could then be said to be among them – even if they didn’t accept or recognize Him.

When God is present, lives are transformed, hearts melt, and people return to God. Well, I should probably say that not all lives are affected in this way. When God is present, some hearts are hardened and when that happens, those people openly reject God instead of accepting Him.

As I am talking here with you, I wonder if God’s kingdom is wherever the Holy Spirit is moving or present. I hope this is the case, otherwise when Jesus returned to Heaven, God’s kingdom left with Him. God’s Spirit is not something we can see directly. Just like the wind, we cannot see it, but we are able to feel it and see its effects.

When God’s Spirit is moving in people’s lives, we see the effects I shared earlier: some people’s lives are transformed while other lives are hardened. Perhaps the polarizing of culture is due to the Holy Spirit drawing closer to this world. We could also wonder together if God is “turning up the heat”, prompting some hearts to melt towards Him and other hearts to harden against Him.

As earth’s history moves forward, the closer Jesus’ return gets, the more urgent will be the need for revival, and the closer the Holy Spirit comes, the stronger the life transformation or life hardening will become.

When we picture God’s kingdom as wherever God the Father, Jesus the Son, and the Holy Spirit are, then God’s kingdom is always among us, and it is always within our grasp being at most just a prayer away. Just because Jesus returned to heaven does not mean that God’s kingdom has left. Jesus promised that when He leaves, He would send the Holy Spirit from the Father who would come and empower His followers. This began with the disciples, and it continues with His followers today.

Some people misunderstand Jesus’ words to mean that the Holy Spirit was not present while Jesus was on earth, but nothing could be further from the truth. The Holy Spirit was definitely present, but He was working in a different way when Jesus was alive on earth than He would be following Jesus returning to heaven. When Jesus returned to heaven, the disciples could then more fully receive the Holy Spirit’s power as they were Jesus’ representatives who were still alive. Empowered by the Holy Spirit, they were commissioned to spread God’s kingdom throughout the world.

As followers of Jesus, we are to carry out the commission that Jesus started long ago, leaning into the Holy Spirit while spreading the great news of Jesus to the world. Where the Holy Spirit is, God’s kingdom is, and that means that His kingdom is among us – wherever we are when we are allied and pointing people to Jesus!

As we come to the end of another podcast episode, here are the challenges I will leave you with:

As I always challenge you to do, intentionally seek God first in your life. Seek God and His kingdom in your daily life by asking Him to send His Holy Spirit to live in your mind and heart and intentionally orient your life towards sharing Jesus with those you meet. While some might think this challenge might be too awkward or extreme, feel free to choose the best method for sharing Jesus and God’s love that you know of for each situation God places you in. Trust that the Holy Spirit will lead and guide you to the best way to share Jesus to those He brings into your life.

Also, continue to pray and study the Bible for yourself in order to keep your connection with God strong. Study the Bible to discover just how much God loves you and what He wants to reward you with when we give ourselves for His kingdom, and trust that when we dedicate our lives to God, we receive infinitely more than we could ever give up.

And as I end every set of challenges by saying in one way or another, never stop short of, back away from, chicken out of, or abandon where God wants to lead you to in your life with Him!