The Secret Disciple

Hello everyone.

Today, I am sharing the story of Joseph of Arimathea.  It is told a little bit in each of the Gospels.  Matthew 27:57 tells us that Joseph was wealthy.  Mark 15:43 tells us that he was a member of the Sanhedrin, was waiting for the kingdom of God and that he went boldly to Pilate to ask for the body of Jesus.  Luke 23:50-51 tells us that while he was a member of the Jewish ruling council, he had not consented to their actions.  It is what John says, however, that gives us the full picture.  John 19:38-42 also tells about the wealthy member of the Jewish ruling council who boldly approached Pilate in order to bury the body of Jesus.  John adds that Joseph was "a disciple of Jesus, but secretly because he feared the Jews."  Joseph was a disciple of Jesus, but to this point he had kept it a secret.  His secret was motivated by fear.  Today, Joseph would certainly be considered on the fringe of the fellowship at best, yet Joseph steps up big time in an hour of need and God uses him to accomplish his will.  He, along with Nicodemus, buried Jesus in Joseph's own tomb.

It's funny to me, that at a time when Jesus' closest associates (the apostles) were in hiding, and it appears that Jesus had lost his battle with the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, that this is the moment when Joseph steps forward and makes his association with Jesus public.  He had not had the faith to overcome his fear during Jesus' public ministry.  He had summoned some courage during Jesus' trial and had not consented to what the Council was doing, but after Jesus was dead, when all seemed lost, he boldly goes to Pilate for the body of Jesus.  His discipleship is no secret now. But now, with Jesus dead, it would seem that he had nothing to gain by stepping forward. It is difficult to say what motivated Joseph to come forward at this point.  Perhaps seeing Jesus on trial had bolstered his faith or created such a deep love for Jesus that fear didn't matter anymore.  Perhaps God had set Joseph aside for this special purpose, knowing that he had the financial means and the influence to get it done.  The best I can do is speculate as to the turning point and the motivation for Joseph stepping out like he did at a time when all seemed lost. 

OK, so what does this mean?  To me, it means that we just never know who God has set aside for a specific purpose or plan, or who has the heart to step in at the right moment.  Even those that are seemingly the weakest among us may be the one that God has chosen to do something amazing.

Tom

When Jesus is Lifted Up

Hey everybody.

Today, I am looking at a story in John 12:20-33.  Some Greeks have come to Philip because they want an audience with Jesus.  Philip, along with Andrew, bring their request to Jesus.  In response, Jesus says a number of things that likely went over the heads of his audience both Jew and Greek alike.

Jesus talked about how the time has come for Him to be glorified and how kernels of wheat must fall to ground and die in order to produce more wheat.  He talks about how you must hate your life in this world in order to save it, and how God the Father will honor the one that serves Jesus.  Then He talks about how His soul is troubled, but that he cannot ask God to save him from his upcoming trouble, because that was the very reason he came.  He ends this short discourse by declaring to His Father, that God glorifies his own name.  Then something incredibly cool happens.

A voice comes from heaven and says,  " I have glorified it, and will glorify it again." The crowd seemed a little confused by what happened.  Some said it was an angel, others said it was thunder,  but no matter what they perceived it must have been something amazing to behold. Jesus tells his audience that the voice from heaven was for their benefit, not his, because judgment was coming upon the world, and the prince of the world would be driven out.  I suspect that Jesus says that the voice they heard was for their benefit so that they might believe and therefore be saved.  One would think that witnessing something as incredible as a voice thundering from heaven would convince a few people that Jesus was legit.

Any way, I want to focus on what Jesus says next. "He says, "And I, when I am lifted up from the Earth, will draw all people to myself." John writes that Jesus said this to indicate the kind of death he would die, meaning obviously the Cross.  This is one of three places in John where Jesus talks about being lifted up.  The others are, John 3:14 and John 8:28.  In John 3, in a conversation with Nicodemus, Jesus says, "so the Son of Man must be lifted up, that everyone who believes may have eternal life in him."  In John 8, Jesus in a dispute with a group of Jews, when he says, "When you have lifted up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am He, and that I do nothing on my own but speak just what the Father has taught me."  So from these three verses we can see what happens when Jesus is lifted up:

• Everyone who believes may have eternal life.
• We can know that Jesus is from God.
• We can know that Jesus speaks only God's words.
• People will be drawn to Jesus.

So what does this mean for us?  We have to make sure that we are lifting up Jesus, with our lives, with our worship, and in our conversations.  It is Jesus that draws people.  As cool and as awesome as we may be as individuals and as a collective body, we have to remember that it is not us that draws people, it's Jesus.  "The Church" is not the message.  Neither is "Discipleship."  It's Jesus that offers eternal life.  It is Jesus that came from God.  It is Jesus that will draw people and make our ministries grow.

Let's lift Him up.

Tom   

Jesus: The Life

Hey everyone.

This is the last of my entries on Jesus' "I Am" statements.  When Jesus says, in John 14, that He is "the way, the truth and the life," he is saying that he is three different things.  He is the way. He is the truth. He is the life.  I saved this last part "I am the life" for last because I see it as a constant theme throughout these statements.  Here is my evidence:

• John 6:35 - "I am the Bread of Life."  Jesus compares himself to the the bread from heaven (manna) that the Israelites ate in the wilderness and then died.  He, however, is a bread from heaven that upon eating, leads to eternal Life.  
• John 8:12 - "I am the Light of the world."  Jesus' light is connected to Life in John 1:4, where its says, "In Him was life, and the life was the light of all mankind."  His life gives our lives light. 
• John 10 - Jesus makes two of his "I Am" statements.  "I am the gate." "I am the good shepherd."  In the middle of this passage is John 10:10 where Jesus says, "I have come that they may have life, and have it to the the full."  Jesus is The Life and seeks to make our own lives great. In fact, as Jesus discusses the Good Shepherd, he talks about how he will lay down his own life for the sheep.  His life for ours. A very good deal for us.
• John 11:25 - "I am the resurrection."  Actually, He says, "I am the Resurrection and the Life."  This is Jesus talking to Martha about her brother Lazarus, whom Jesus is about to raise from the dead.  The connection between resurrection and life is somewhat obvious, resurrection meaning "to live again." 
• John 15:1 - "I am the vine."  When we are connected to the Vine, we have life.  Disconnected from the Vine, we die.  Also, as we are connected to the Vine, we are connected to each other.  It makes out lives better.

So Jesus is The Life.  He is the Life in many ways.  He shows us how to live our lives in a good healthy full way.  Following him leads to a good life here on Earth and then life in eternity with Him in Heaven.  He is what life is about.  To live a life devoted to something or someone else is foolishness, because outside of Him is hunger, darkness, danger, loneliness and death. He is The Life.  He is life-giving. In Him is the Bread of Life, the Light, the protection and safety of the Gate and Good Shepherd, connection to the other branches through the Vine, Resurrection and a full, full life. Stay connected to Jesus: The Life.

Tom