Lesson from the cross Luke 23:32-43

Luke 23:32-43   Gospel reading for Sunday 28th March 2010

The reading for this Sunday is taken from Luke's passion account. Being Palm Sunday, the triumphal entry Luke 19:28-40,  is also listed as an alternative reading. I have chosen however to focus on a small section of the main lectionary reading ... the account commonly known as the thief on the cross.

I was drawn to this section of the reading because of the link to the synod theme.

When we gathered as an LSA staff in January for a day of spiritual nurture, while searching for classic gospel forgiveness stories, all three of our working groups independently came up with this story of the thief on the cross as one of our top three examples.

Looking at this again now, two things have really stood out for me. In verse 42 the words ...

"Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom."

I've never really appreciated the incredible wisdom, knowledge and truth tied up in that short sentence. The thief captures everything in just 9 words. First of all he knows who Jesus is and it is clearly implied that he recognizes Jesus as God. By his humble request, he displays amazing faith and understanding arguably far beyond that of even Jesus' closest follwers!

Now for the second point ... and here's the link to our synod theme. It seems that this is a controversial text for a number of reasons, but especially in the area of  "what do we have to do to be saved?" In effect the answer is Jesus plus nothing! Perhaps rather incredibly, there is no actual confession or request for forgiveness in this story! ( - as previously discussed when analyzing the prodigal son account). The thief's simple, power-packed acknowledgement of Jesus as Lord clearly brings him into God's favour.

What does this mean for us right now both personally and for our Lutheran Schools?  Well sometimes I think we make it more complicated than it needs to be. I've been doing quite a bit of reading and reflecting on this recently. Have we made too much of the business of having to ask for forgiveness (on an on-going basis)? Our gospel reading tends to suggest so. I feel that at times in our churches we have perhaps over-emphasized sin, guilt, confession and forgiveness. Why do we have to continually, week after week grovel to God for forgiveness? When we say yes to Jesus, through God's grace we are set free and forgiven for all time. Forgiven is past tense! Jesus announced from the cross that "It is finished".  Hebrews in particular repeatedly reinforces this. The expression "once for all" is used 9 times in the New Testament in reference to Jesus wiping out all the sins of all of us - past, present and future for all time.  (For example see Hebrews 7:26-28)

If Jesus was to come back to 21st Century society right now for another 3-year stint, would it not be an almost identical re-run of 2000 years ago? What the world needs now is ... another reformation! Are we just as off-track now as the people were in Jesus time and in the time of Luther? Have we really understood the significance of the new covenant? Have we retained practices and rituals of the old which really do not reflect our understanding of being set free for all time? Should we not regularly celebrate the fact that we are forgiven and free for all time, instead of going through the process again and again of asking God to forgive us?  Let's not over-complicate something that really is very simple.

Hey ... maybe I've got this wrong ... but right now I'm happy to celebrate the fact that I've been set free for all time and get on with the business of helping to bring that good news to others.

Nev

Jesus anointed by Mary John 12:1-8

John 12:1-8  Gospel reading for Sunday March 21st 2010

All four gospels tell a version of this story, so it is a fascinating opportunity to study it in parallel with Matthew 26:6-13, Mark 14:3-9 and Luke 7:36-50. Matthew and Mark have almost identical versions involving an anonymous woman anointing Jesus’ head with oil. Luke on the other hand places it very early in Jesus’ ministry causing us to ask whether it is in fact the same event. The Luke setting is probably in Galilee portraying the unknown woman, most likely as a prostitute.

The John account has its own unique elements. First of all, the event occurs at the house of Lazarus, sometime after he was raised from the dead. It also is clearly cast just days before the dramatic holy week scenes. Note that only John mentions Lazarus and only John includes detail about Judas, including some interesting insights into his character. The John account is all the more interesting because of the Lazarus connection and we therefore need to read it in conjunction with chapter 11 to appreciate the context. Remember also that only John’s gospel records the Lazarus resurrection.

If we try to place ourselves in the picture, we realize that it is quite a bizarre setting. We get the impression that these people are special friends of Jesus. What would the conversation be like at the dinner table … a man who has just been physically given a second chance at life in the presence of Jesus, the one who gave that chance to him? All of this, while Jesus is still trying to get his closest followers to understand what lies ahead once he gets to Jerusalem.

A common thread of each gospel account is the objection of the on-lookers, even though in Luke it is a different objection. Three of the Gospels record complaints that this as an obscene waste of money. Superficially it appears that Jesus allows himself to be indulged in the lavish display of anointing. It is important however that we look to the imagery behind the incident. Perhaps it’s not about earthly value but an indicator of the extreme, total and maximum value that this woman places on her God. She has given her all. Her love, trust and acceptance of Jesus demonstrated to the max.

As we journey with Jesus in making our approach to this 2010 Easter, do we sit alongside Mary, pouring ourselves out unreservedly to God, or are we more like Judas, who by “counting the cost” is symbolic of us, holding back from total commitment?

May the extreme action of Mary remind us that we are being challenged in our Lutheran Schools to show more than superficial commitment to Jesus – we are called to give our max!

Nev

The number one gospel story for Lutheran Schools? Luke 15:1-3, 11b-32

Luke 15:1-3, 11b-32  Reading for Sunday 14th March 2010

This is surely a much loved parable that has numerous twists, suggestions for alternative names and numerous teaching points. I have however, stolen my own thunder by refering to the Lost Son parable as part of last week's fig tree reflection, not realizing what was coming up this week! I also used this parable as a basis for comments in an article in the LSA Update at the start of this year, so I won't revisit any of that territory.

For me, if I was searching for a gospel story to inform the operations of a Lutheran School, this would have to be at the top of the list. As suggested last week, it is the foundation for Core Proposition 1 ... A Lutheran School is a place where grace abounds. We see very clearly the unconditional love of the Father in action. This parable therefore provides us with a wonderful foundation and clarity for every day life in a Lutheran school. 

I'd like to make just two other points:

In relation to the Lost son parable, one can't help but think of the magnificent Rembrandt painting of the 1600's Return of the Prodigal as an essential companion to any refflection on this classic story. If you have not had the opportunity to do so, can I suggest devoting some time to reading the great little book by Henri Nouwen: "The return of the prodigal: A story of homecoming". The book is the summary of the author's engagement over a period of several days with the original painting (and hence the parable). At least one of our schools displays this Rembrandt in a prominent place as a statement of what a Lutheran School is about. After all, when you think about it the central grace message of this parable is very Lutheran.
My final point is in relation to the dialogue of the Father with the older brother that takes place at the end of the parable. Robert Capon puts it this way ..."The elder brother refuses to join the party, but the father won’t leave it like that. He goes out to the elder brother, and Jesus ends the parable with the father and the elder brother standing out in the courtyard ... The father doesn’t give up. He’s right there with the elder brother, aching for him as much as he ached for the younger one, the prodigal."

God gives up on no one! Remember also, that the Father seeks us. The Father in this story was on the lookout for the younger son. He spots him a long way off and runs out to meet him. He also goes out looking for the equally lost older brother. How do we respond to those who show contempt, arrogance, obstinance, jealousy or other negative character traits? More importantly perhaps, do we persist when our attempts to show people Jesus are ignored or even rejected?

Nev

A lesson from the fig tree Luke 13:1-9

I encourage you to take a couple of minutes to read the relevant section of Luke’s Gospel before reading on. (Click on the link below to see the text)
Luke 13:1-9       Gospel Reading for Sunday March 7th 2010

Well? What did you make of that?

My first thoughts were … how on earth am I going to make any sense out of this and be able to write anything of value as a response? Maybe we can make sense of the latter fig tree section, but what about the first five verses? There does not seem to be any Gospel in those words. Such is the bizarre nature of this reading, that rather than just make interesting observations, I feel it calls for an attempt to bring the whole reading into some form of understandable context.

Maybe the clue lies in the opening words “about this time” which suggest that it is not possible to understand the strange opening to Chapter 13 without reading it as a continuation of the previous chapter/s. A quick browse of Chapter 12 might initially lead us to think that the mystery only deepens. Broadly speaking however, there is a central theme of worldly things, sin, punishment, judgment and the Lord coming at an unknown time when we least expect Him, emerging across the two chapters. In particular though, Jesus is dealing with the popular misconception of the time, that bad things happen to people because of some sin that they have committed. Perhaps He is also conversely saying to the people … don’t go basking in your self-righteousness just because nothing bad has happened to you.

Enter the fig tree! (The first time through I missed the fact that the fig tree is planted in the vineyard! The fig tree itself is evidently symbolic of the Israeli people, so there is a lot of imagery tied up in that.) The strange discourse leading up to the fig tree parable is a classic illustration of Jesus in action as the master teacher, but it also prompts us to give credit to the inspired, clever technique of Luke the Gospel writer. In a way, Jesus has been highlighting the futility of the Old Testament model of operating, as a preamble to ushering in the largely foreign concept of GRACE, which is surely present in this fig tree story. Perhaps this also gives us a glimpse of the grace parables to come, notably the Lost Son, just around the corner in Luke 15.

While there is a strong use of the word repent, do we see here the beginning of a shift in what it means? In the Old Testament, REPENT =change the way that you live your life, turn back to God, so that God will forgive you and reward you. It seems that the fig tree parable in the light of grace, starts to subtly redefine what it means to REPENT, as simply the act of placing our trust in Jesus and responding with a changed life as evidence that we have “repented”. Under the new deal (Testament), God’s grace negates the need for repentance in the O.T sense of the word. Is that reading too much into this story? Personally I don’t think so, since we note in the parable of the prodigal that follows soon after, that although the younger son has something in his mind, he never gets to spit out his repentance plan before being unconditionally received by the Father!

So the message to us in Lutheran Schools hidden away in this passage is one of most profound significance … a reminder of what I have come to call CORE PROPOSITION 1 for what it means to be a Lutheran School in the 21st Century. A Lutheran School is a place where GRACE abounds. The word grace only has meaning if GOD is wrapped up in the word. As spiritual leaders we need to make sure that every staff member has an opportunity to fully know and apply the meaning of that word, after the manner of the God of Grace as revealed to us in the parable of the Lost Son. We show people Jesus, when we model grace consistently within our school community.

Nev