Pastor Tom
Johnson, February 22, 2015
Last
week 21 Coptic Christians who were kidnapped out of their native Egypt into
Libya by the radical Islamic group ISIS were executed. Their captors recorded
on video how they led them to a beach and killed. As
we learn about the persecution and martyrdom of our brothers and sisters in
Christ around the world, it makes us wonder why God would allow such brutality.
Jesus himself said that all sorts of evil things would happen to those who
followed him. Our prayers go out to the families who lost loved ones as well as those who perpetrated this evil.
The sad reality is that we still live in a world plagued by evil, sin, and death. It is why God often describes our experience here as a wilderness—dry, barren, limited resources to sustain life, dangers at every turn, wild beasts, and isolation. John is the only Gospel writer who does not talk about Jesus’ temptation in the wilderness. Matthew and Luke provide a whole dialogue between the Devil and Jesus. Mark just has a few sentences. Mark uses a stronger word to explain why Jesus ends up in the wilderness for 40 days. He says “the Spirit drove him out into the wilderness.” It could be translated as “the Spirit threw Jesus out toward the wilderness” or “was cast into the wilderness.” It’s different from Luke and Matthew who both say “Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness.”
The picture that comes into my mind is of a shepherd who leads his sheep and they willingly follow, on the one hand; and a Shepherd who must somehow motivate his sheep to go where don’t want to go, on the other. We want the assurance and the comfort of knowing that we can follow God safely through the vales of tears and the valleys of the shadow of death. Like Jesus who in the garden before his betrayal, arrest, and crucifixion prays, “Abba, Father, for you all things are possible; remove this cup from me; yet, not what I will, but what you will.” Mark, as he often does, speeds the story of Jesus along. He rapidly moves from scene to scene. And here, he chooses to tell the story of how Jesus entered into his temptation with an emphasis on Jesus’ humanity. The Father identifies Jesus as his beloved Son and says he is well pleased with him. And the Spirit who descends as a dove drives him from the water to the wilderness. It was a coordinated plan and mission flowing out of his Baptism. Mark wants us to already feel the tension. Jesus will not eat or drink for forty days. He is in uninhabitable territory. He is among wild animals. He is tempted by the adversary and the accuser.
This
is the tension of all the baptized. God washes our sin away in his Triune Name.
Through Baptism, we are united with Jesus. He adopts us his children. He claims
us as his own. We are now clothed with the righteousness of Jesus. We are his
beloved. And we too leave the font and enter the wilderness of this world. Like
Jesus, we want to follow our Good Shepherd where he leads. And like Jesus in his humanity, we don’t want to enter dangerous and difficult
territory. We don’t want to feel the pressures and temptations of this world to
drag us down. We don’t want to live under the threat of death. In
some ways, this is encouraging. Jesus did not sin when he was driven out into
the wilderness. Just because the Spirit prompts him to head toward a difficult
experience does not mean that Jesus was opposed to God’s plan. It
is also encouraging because he did not end up in the wilderness by accident. He
was exactly where he needed to be. He was not abandoned. The Father had a plan
for Jesus. The Holy Spirit ensured that fulfill that plan. Jesus was “spirit
driven.”
Our text says that angels waited on him. These angels are also driven out by the Spirit to strengthen, encourage, and serve Jesus. It’s a remarkable thing: Jesus humbled himself like that. In his new humanity, Jesus benefited from the presence of angels. Was it their words? Was it their touch? Was it merely their presence? In the same way we should also be encouraged. When we start a difficult journey—when we begin a new chapter in our lives we can know that the Spirit drives us forward. It may not be where we want to go. We may also be in a place where we are compelled to pray, “Thy will be done on earth as it done in heaven.” There may not be a whole lot of things around us to give us the assurance that God is with us. The landscape is waterless and barren. The wild animals threaten us. The adversary accuses and beats us down. But we have the assurance and promise that he will bring us safely through to the other side.
In the last days following the killing of the Coptic Christians in Libya, Bashir Kamel who is the brother of two of the Coptic Christians who were killed is speaking out. And his message may surprise you if you have not yet heard it. He is thankful that the recording of his brothers’ death and the other 19 included audio. You can hear their last words: “Lord Jesus Christ.” Bashir says the 21 are “a badge of honor to Christianity” and his community is proud of their witness as martyrs. He said: “Since the Roman era, Christians have been martyred and have learned to handle everything that comes our way. This only makes us stronger in our faith because the Bible told us to love our enemies and bless those who curse us.” They were driven out of their homeland, driven out to their deaths, but God never abandoned them. They have safely made their journey through the wilderness. They are safely on the other side. Their words reveal that they received the comfort of angels and the assurance of their Savior of eternal life. Therefore with angels, archangels, and the whole company of believers in heaven and throughout the world, we can confidently say in this wilderness,“Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; for thou art with me.” We will also make it safely through to the other side.
The sad reality is that we still live in a world plagued by evil, sin, and death. It is why God often describes our experience here as a wilderness—dry, barren, limited resources to sustain life, dangers at every turn, wild beasts, and isolation. John is the only Gospel writer who does not talk about Jesus’ temptation in the wilderness. Matthew and Luke provide a whole dialogue between the Devil and Jesus. Mark just has a few sentences. Mark uses a stronger word to explain why Jesus ends up in the wilderness for 40 days. He says “the Spirit drove him out into the wilderness.” It could be translated as “the Spirit threw Jesus out toward the wilderness” or “was cast into the wilderness.” It’s different from Luke and Matthew who both say “Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness.”
The picture that comes into my mind is of a shepherd who leads his sheep and they willingly follow, on the one hand; and a Shepherd who must somehow motivate his sheep to go where don’t want to go, on the other. We want the assurance and the comfort of knowing that we can follow God safely through the vales of tears and the valleys of the shadow of death. Like Jesus who in the garden before his betrayal, arrest, and crucifixion prays, “Abba, Father, for you all things are possible; remove this cup from me; yet, not what I will, but what you will.” Mark, as he often does, speeds the story of Jesus along. He rapidly moves from scene to scene. And here, he chooses to tell the story of how Jesus entered into his temptation with an emphasis on Jesus’ humanity. The Father identifies Jesus as his beloved Son and says he is well pleased with him. And the Spirit who descends as a dove drives him from the water to the wilderness. It was a coordinated plan and mission flowing out of his Baptism. Mark wants us to already feel the tension. Jesus will not eat or drink for forty days. He is in uninhabitable territory. He is among wild animals. He is tempted by the adversary and the accuser.
This
is the tension of all the baptized. God washes our sin away in his Triune Name.
Through Baptism, we are united with Jesus. He adopts us his children. He claims
us as his own. We are now clothed with the righteousness of Jesus. We are his
beloved. And we too leave the font and enter the wilderness of this world. Like
Jesus, we want to follow our Good Shepherd where he leads. And like Jesus in his humanity, we don’t want to enter dangerous and difficult
territory. We don’t want to feel the pressures and temptations of this world to
drag us down. We don’t want to live under the threat of death. In
some ways, this is encouraging. Jesus did not sin when he was driven out into
the wilderness. Just because the Spirit prompts him to head toward a difficult
experience does not mean that Jesus was opposed to God’s plan. It
is also encouraging because he did not end up in the wilderness by accident. He
was exactly where he needed to be. He was not abandoned. The Father had a plan
for Jesus. The Holy Spirit ensured that fulfill that plan. Jesus was “spirit
driven.”Our text says that angels waited on him. These angels are also driven out by the Spirit to strengthen, encourage, and serve Jesus. It’s a remarkable thing: Jesus humbled himself like that. In his new humanity, Jesus benefited from the presence of angels. Was it their words? Was it their touch? Was it merely their presence? In the same way we should also be encouraged. When we start a difficult journey—when we begin a new chapter in our lives we can know that the Spirit drives us forward. It may not be where we want to go. We may also be in a place where we are compelled to pray, “Thy will be done on earth as it done in heaven.” There may not be a whole lot of things around us to give us the assurance that God is with us. The landscape is waterless and barren. The wild animals threaten us. The adversary accuses and beats us down. But we have the assurance and promise that he will bring us safely through to the other side.
In the last days following the killing of the Coptic Christians in Libya, Bashir Kamel who is the brother of two of the Coptic Christians who were killed is speaking out. And his message may surprise you if you have not yet heard it. He is thankful that the recording of his brothers’ death and the other 19 included audio. You can hear their last words: “Lord Jesus Christ.” Bashir says the 21 are “a badge of honor to Christianity” and his community is proud of their witness as martyrs. He said: “Since the Roman era, Christians have been martyred and have learned to handle everything that comes our way. This only makes us stronger in our faith because the Bible told us to love our enemies and bless those who curse us.” They were driven out of their homeland, driven out to their deaths, but God never abandoned them. They have safely made their journey through the wilderness. They are safely on the other side. Their words reveal that they received the comfort of angels and the assurance of their Savior of eternal life. Therefore with angels, archangels, and the whole company of believers in heaven and throughout the world, we can confidently say in this wilderness,“Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; for thou art with me.” We will also make it safely through to the other side.
No comments:
Post a Comment