Tired Jesus

Early on in His ministry, Jesus was teaching in the Judean countryside, and His disciples were baptizing new believers.  They were very busy and many became followers of Jesus.  However, when Jesus received word that the Pharisees had heard about His growing ministry, He decided to leave and return to the northern area of Galilee.  To get there, He had to pick one of two route options: either take the straight-shot, 3-day hike from Judea to Galilee, or to take the longer road which headed east, crossed the Jordan River, turned back west, and crossed the Jordan River again before coming to Galilee.  This added days to trip and had the additional land barriers to deal with.  So why would Jews take the long road?  Because that path would mean they would avoid dealing with the Samaritan half-breed outsiders.

However, for this trip, Jesus chose to travel the faster, more direct path; but that meant they would be staying at least one night somewhere in the region most Jews wanted to avoid.  And let’s not kid ourselves…a 3-day journey on foot is still a 3-day journey on foot.  They had a long hike in front of them to get back to where Jesus and eleven of the twelve disciples had grown up.

John 4:4-6
He had to travel through Samaria; so He came to a town of Samaria called Sychar near the property that Jacob had given his son Joseph.  Jacob’s well was there, and Jesus, worn out from His journey, sat down at the well.  It was about noon. 

Jesus was worn out from His journey.  This is an important observation.

Jesus got tired. 

Yes, He is perfect. 
Yes, He is the prophesized Messiah. 
Yes, He is God in the flesh…but that’s just it, Jesus is also human like us.  I find it very comforting that at the mid-point of His day, Jesus needed to take a break and rest His tired feet. 

So He finds a place to sit down.  He sent the disciples into town to buy food – this is a quiet, cool place for Him to rest.  The text does not indicate that anyone else was there.

We all need to take time to rest.  Each of us are dealing with situations that take more than one day to finish…which means we’re going to have to recharge at some point.  Jesus relied on His disciples to go get the food, which tells me that it’s ok to receive help from others when we’re tired.

We don’t have to shoulder everything, all the time.  Those of us who fancy ourselves as “the strong one” in our family have the most difficulty with this.  And yet, here’s Jesus giving a simple, straight-forward example.

Jesus got tired.  He felt worn out.

So he sat down and rested.

Another thing the text doesn’t tell us how long He was able to rest before someone came to the well.   But it was in the exact location He chose to rest that He would have His next encounter as part of the Father’s will.  If Jesus had pushed through the tiredness, if He had kept going until the day was completely done, He wouldn’t have stopped at this well.

And one of His greatest evangelistic events wouldn’t have happened.

Are we willing to trust God enough to rest?  We often see the need to rest as weakness and the time taken to rest as time being wasted…as if God if up in Heaven shaking His head in disappointment when we’re feeling worn out from our day, with an extra twinge of guilt if we’re “only” halfway through the day.

Do we believe that God can use our place of rest to recharge us, but also for the benefit of others?

Seems like a tough concept to grab hold of, but as we’ll see, that’s exactly what happened to Jesus.

Keep Pressing,
Ken

An outcast of outcasts

We saw last time that Jesus purposely spent a lot of time with those who found themselves on the fringes of society.  These people were outcasts due to disease, physical brokenness, demonic influences, scandalous choices, or society’s prejudices and attitudes.  And yet, Jesus still connected with them, regardless of whether their situation arose due to their own choices or if their condition was due to circumstances outside of their control. 

There is one interaction I want to focus on, but in order to get a clear picture of why this individual would be considered an “outcast of outcasts”…we need a little history lesson:

The Assyrians brought about the end of the Northern Kingdom of Israel in 722 BC.  They deported around 30,000 people from the Northern Kingdom/Samaria and replaced them with captives from abroad (2 Kings 17:24-34).  Intermarriage occurred between the northerners who remained and the imported refugees, and a pluralistic culture of sorts developed.  Some of those refugees embraced a number of articles within Judaism, although they still mixed in their old religions, and in time came to regard themselves as Jews (Ezra 4:1-2).  However, their bid for membership in the Jewish community was rejected by post-exilic Jews (Ezra 4:3-5).  This event set into motion a religious animosity between the Jews and Samaritans that persisted throughout the remainder of the biblical period (Luke 9:51-56, John 4:9 and 8:48).

Samaritans claimed lineage through Joseph’s children.  When the tribes of Israel came to the Promised Land, half were instructed to stand on Mt. Gerizim and the other half were to stand on Mt. Ebal.  The half on Mt. Gerizim received the pronouncement of blessing from God – representing what would happen to the entire nation if they chose to follow God (Deuteronomy 28:1-14) and the other half, standing on Mt. Ebal, received the pronouncement of cursing from God – representing what would happen to the entire nation if they chose to not follow God (Deuteronomy 28:15-68).  Joseph’s tribes were among the those who stood on Mt. Gerizim and heard the blessing (Deuteronomy 27:12-13); however, the Jews would have viewed the Samaritans as being among the cursed.  Roughly 400 years prior to Jesus’ time, the Samaritans had built an alter to God on Mt. Gerizim, but it was later destroyed by the Jews in 128 BC.

A significant piece to understanding the Jewish-Samaritan tension is that the Samaritans only accepted the Moses-authored, books as their bible (Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy).  The Samaritans acknowledged no prophet after Moses other than the one spoken of in Deuteronomy 18:18, and that is who they regarded as the future Messiah.  The Samaritans rejected all other Jewish writings of the Old Testament, containing history, wisdom literature, and the words of the Jewish prophets.  As such, while the Jews and Samaritans agreed in the expectation of the Messiah and His kingdom, by Jesus’ day, they were looking for different types.  The Jews expected a conquering king, who would clean up the world’s mess and establish Jerusalem as the center of His rule.  The Samaritans were looking forward to a teacher/restorer, who would set things right.

Because of the region’s mixed race history, pure-blooded Jews wanted little to do with Samaritans.  It was insulting to them that half-breeds would make equal-footing claim to their Jewish ancestors.  However, from a political perspective, Samaria was part of the Roman province of Judea in Jesus’ day.  Nevertheless, the ancient cultural barriers created a sharp divide between the residents of Samaria and the Jews who lived in Galilee (which was north of Samaria) and the Jews who lived in Judea (which was south of Samaria).

With this background, we are now ready to step into an amazingly unexpected encounter that Jesus had with an outcast from those who were regarded as outcasts:

John 4:1-7
When Jesus learned that the Pharisees had heard He was making and baptizing more disciples than John (though Jesus Himself was not baptizing, but His disciples were), He left Judea and went again to Galilee.  He had to travel through Samaria; so He came to a town of Samaria called Sychar near the property that Jacob had given his son Joseph.  Jacob’s well was there, and Jesus, worn out from His journey, sat down at the well.  It was about noon.

A woman of Samaria came to draw water.

Societal ranking of the day looked like this:
Jewish man
Jewish woman
Samaritan man
Samaritan woman

Collecting water was a woman’s task, and they would typically go in groups to draw water during the cooler parts of the day – either early or late.  It is very telling that this woman of Samaria came alone, when the day’s heat was at its peak.  Later on, we’ll find out other aspects of her life that would have made her an outcast, even among her own people.

Despite all the historical animosity and racial tension between the Jews and the Samaritans, Jesus saw her as someone worth His time, His effort, and His offer of Eternal Life.

Whom do we see as a modern-day Samaritan?  Whom do you shun because you see them as an outcast?

If we want to be Jesus’ disciples, we’re going to need look at the outcasts like Jesus did…and then meet them where they are.

Keep Pressing,
Ken

Jesus and the outcasts

One of the peculiar things about Jesus’ time on Earth was the people He chose to spend time with. 

Luke 15:1-2
All the tax collectors and sinners were approaching to listen to Him.  And the Pharisees and scribes were complaining, “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.”

When someone was welcomed or you would eat with them, it was assumed to be an acceptance, or even an approval, of their lifestyle.

The upper class, who claimed to be closest to God, were baffled and ended up complaining that someone who has such a great following, such inherent authority, and such great wisdom…was not falling in line with the social norms of class and status that they followed.  Even Jesus’ disciples were amazed at who He would take time with.  For example:

Mark 10:13-16
People were bringing little children to Him in order that He might touch them, but the disciples rebuked them.  When Jesus saw it, He was indignant and said to them, “Let the little children come to Me.  Don’t stop them, because the kingdom of God belongs to such as these.  Truly I tell you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it.”  After taking them in His arms, He laid His hands on them and blessed them.

Infant mortality was high in the ancient world.  As such, small children were of little value until they grew enough to contribute to the family.  Still thinking within society’s attitudes and values, the disciples thought it would be a waste of time for the Messiah to be with little children.

After recording Jesus’ most famous sermon, ‘The Sermon on the Mount’, Matthew describes the waves of people who were constantly approaching Jesus.  Matthew 8-9 records the following: healing a man who had leprosy, healing a paralyzed man without being physically next to him, healing Peter’s mom of a fever, casting out demons, healing those who were sick, healing a paralytic brought to Him, calling a tax collector to be a disciple, bringing a dead girl back to life, healing a woman who suffered from bleeding for twelve years, and healing two blind men.

All of these individuals were isolated in some way by their disease, their spiritual condition, or their job status.  They would have been on the fringes of society – those with diseases had to be physically isolated from others, it was generally assumed that those with broken bodies were being punished by God, those with demonic influences or behaviors were shunned, and tax collectors were considered to be traitors to their own countrymen.  For people in these groups, acceptance was hard to come by.

And yet, these were the ones that Jesus healed and spent time with.  At the end of Matthew 9, we find out why:

Matthew 9:35-38
Jesus continued going around to all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the good news of the kingdom, and healing every disease and every sickness.  When He saw the crowds, He felt compassion for them, because they were distressed and dejected, like sheep without a shepherd.

Then He said to His disciples, “The harvest is abundant, but the workers are few.  Therefore, pray to the Lord of the harvest to send out workers into His harvest.”

Jesus felt compassion for those who were cast aside, those who felt distressed and dejected.  He didn’t just acknowledge their plight and move on with His life – He stopped and took the time to interact with and help them.  Even if high society had different values.  Even if the religious leaders expected different behavior.  Jesus saw the crowds as sheep without a shepherd; they needed His compassion and leadership…and no one else thought they were important enough for either one.

Learning to see the crowds as He did was one of the lessons Jesus had to repeatedly teach His disciples.  It’s one we should expect Jesus to teach us, as well.

Jesus rebuked His disciples for hindering those they thought unworthy.  Jesus instructed His disciples to pray that God sends out more of His workers to reach out to society’s outcasts.  And then, in the next set of verses (Matthew 10), Jesus sends out His disciples to work.

Get your thinking corrected, pray for assistance, and then get to work.  That’s Jesus’ plan for those who follow Him.

Why?  Because He values the outcast.

Keep Pressing,
Ken

Flashback Favorite - On suicide and despair

This is an important topic, even if it can be hard for us to discuss - whether we’re the ones experiencing these feelings or someone we love tells us they are struggling. This post is also a good precursor for our next series:

On suicide and despair
originally posted on February 7, 2019

This past week, a news story caught my attention.  A young New York dietitian committed suicide.  By most people’s standards, she was successful and in the prime of her life.  She had earned her Master’s degree and was working in her chosen field.  She had friends and co-workers that valued her.  Her Instagram pictures showed her enjoying a wide variety of food from places all over the world. 

And yet, she felt empty.  Here’s part of the note she left behind:

I have written this note several times in my head for over a decade, and this one finally feels right. No edits, no overthinking. I have accepted hope is nothing more than delayed disappointment, and I am just plain old-fashioned tired of feeling tired. 

I realize I am undeserving of thinking this way because I truly have a great life on paper. I’m fortunate to eat meals most only imagine. I often travel freely without restriction. I live alone in the second greatest American city (San Francisco, you’ll always have my heart). However, all these facets seem trivial to me. It’s the ultimate first world problem, I get it. I often felt detached while in a room full of my favorite people; I also felt absolutely nothing during what should have been the happiest and darkest times in my life. No single conversation or situation has led me to make this decision, so at what point do you metaphorically pull the trigger?

Her words ooze feelings of despair, bleakness, and hollowness.  Usually it takes many years on this earth before we reach a point with this level of emptiness – but most, if not all, of us feel like this at some point.  We look around at the state of the world and find ourselves agreeing with the writer of Ecclesiastes, who calls himself “The Teacher”:

Ecclesiastes 1:2-4, 8-9, 11
“Absolute futility,” says the Teacher.  “Absolute futility.  Everything is futile.”  What does a person gain for all his efforts that he labors at under the sun?  A generation goes and a generation comes, but the earth remains forever…

All things are wearisome, more than anyone can say.  The eye is not satisfied by seeing or the ear filled with hearing.  What has been is what will be, and what has been done is what will be done; there is nothing new under the sun…

There is no remembrance of those who came before; and of those who will come after there will also be no remembrance by those who follow them.

These musings are real, the emotion behind them should not be simply dismissed.  They may hit us in a moment, or they may linger in the back of our mind for years.  If life is only made up of what we see in front of us, then the feelings of despair are accurate and we should do our best to eat, drink, and enjoy our work as best we can for as many trips around the sun we can manage. 

However, there is a flaw to this kind of thinking…what we need to recognize is the limit of our own perspective.  It’s hard to see beyond what is directly in front of us, but that is exactly what Jesus calls us to do.  When He spoke to the woman at the well, Jesus made this incredible statement:

John 4:13-14
Jesus said, “Everyone who drinks from this water will get thirsty again.  But whoever drinks from the water that I will give him will never get thirsty again.  In fact, the water I will give him will become a well of water springing up in him for eternal life.”

The world’s water never satisfies – it always leaves us thirsty again.  But with one drink from Jesus, our thirst for fulfillment can be satisfied.  And it doesn’t stop there – a full, abundant, eternal life begins at the moment we believe in Jesus.

Walking with Jesus ensures that our perspective contains more than the unsatisfying things in front of us.  This doesn’t mean we will never experience the pain of despair or that we will never feel empty.  But we will know the truth of our place in God’s larger story.

If you are feeling bleak and hollow, turn these over to Jesus.  You don’t have to be afraid, He can handle your feelings.  Also be sure you’re talking with fellow believers about these feelings and your perspective.  We are to carry one another’s burdens (Galatians 6:2), and know that you’re not alone.  Your family is here for you.

Keep Pressing,
Ken

Flashback Favorite - Cure for snakebite

This is a great precursor for our next series:

Cure for snakebite
originally posted on March 7, 2019

Without a doubt, the most famous verse in the Bible is John 3:16.  If you grew up in the church, it was probably the first verse you memorized.  We also see it at various places in the culture – signs at sporting events, on the bottom inside edge of In-N-Out’s drink cup (one more reason to love that place!), on a Monster Jam truck, in songs on the radio, in comic strips, and even in Tim Tebow’s eye black.

John 3:16 is appropriately hailed as “the gospel in a nutshell” as it succinctly summarizes the Good News of Jesus and His mission here on Earth.  Even better, the verse is a direct quote from Jesus, and obviously, He would be the authority on the subject of the gospel.  As a refresher:

John 3:16
For God loved the world in this way: He gave His one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life.

This quote from Jesus comes out of a discussion He had with Nicodemus, a Jewish religious leader who was trying to figure out exactly who Christ was.  Just before He says those famous John 3:16 words, in order to help Nicodemus understand what He was about to say, Jesus curiously references an incident from Israel’s past:

John 3:14-15
Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, so that everyone who believes in Him may have eternal life.

Jesus compares Himself to a snake?  How does that help?

As Paul Harvey would say – and now, the rest of the story:

When Moses was leading the Israelites away from Egypt toward the land God had promised to the nation, the people routinely became whiny and rebellious.  Each time this occurred, God intervened to bring them back to their senses, forcing the nation to recognize their only chance of survival was to look to God.  This time, God’s “attention grabbing messenger” were poisonous snakes:

Numbers 21:4-9
Then they set out from Mount Hor by way of the Red Sea to bypass the land of Edom, but the people became impatient because of the journey.  The people spoke against God and Moses: “Why have you led us up from Egypt to die in the wilderness?  There is no bread or water, and we detest this wretched food!”  Then the Lord sent poisonous snakes among the people, and they bit them so that many Israelites died.

The people then came to Moses and said, “We have sinned by speaking against the Lord and against you.  Intercede with the Lord so that he will take the snakes away from us.”  And Moses interceded for the people.

Then the Lord said to Moses, “Make a snake image and mount it on a pole.  When anyone who is bitten looks at it, he will recover.” So Moses made a bronze snake and mounted it on a pole.  Whenever someone was bitten, and he looked at the bronze snake, he recovered.

There is a lot of symbology here.  Bronze is always representative of judgement.  While the snake represented the present danger, it also harkened back to the Garden of Eden where Satan, in the form of a serpent, helped to usher sin into the world and separate people from God.

But of all the parts of this story Jesus could have referenced to help Nicodemus understand the good news of the gospel, Jesus said “Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, so that everyone who believes in Him may have eternal life.”

What did the Israelites have to do to be immediately rescued from their snake-bitten death sentence?  Only to look at the bronze snake.  Not say a particular prayer.  Not promise to do better.  Not confess all their sins.  No requirement to make God the “Lord of their life” from here on out.  Only to look, because they believed God when He said that was the only thing for them to recover their earthly lives.

Jesus is telling Nicodemus – just like the Israelites looked to the bronze snake – everyone who looks to Him, everyone who believes in Him (no other conditions apply) will have eternal life!

Some may accuse me of “easy believism”, but they’ll have to take it up with Jesus first.

Why would God do such a thing?  Why would Jesus make something so incredibly valuable as eternal life available to everyone who (simply) believes in Him?

It’s the gospel in a nutshell:

John 3:16
For God loved the world in this way: He gave His one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life.

Keep Pressing,
Ken

The End is where we begin

Closing out Revelation, we have these last words from Jesus:

Revelation 22:20
He who testifies about these things says, “Yes, I am coming soon.”

To which John replies:

Revelation 22:20-21
Amen!  Come, Lord Jesus!
The grace of the Lord Jesus be with everyone.  Amen.

Revelation 21-22 has given us an incredible look at the ultimate destiny of mankind – to dwell with and partner with the Creator of the Universe throughout Eternity!  The mind swims with the possibilities and the opportunities…now that the silent longings of our heart have been confirmed.  Sin, selfishness, and death will be permanently removed.  Relationships will be restored and never broken again.  Creation will be liberated and allowed to flourish.  Best of all – we will have a direct, unhindered relationship with the God of Everything.

When we live with the End in mind, we make choices that make absolutely no sense to the “rational human mind”.  Non-Christians won’t get it.  In fact, Christians who are living with the main goal of being happy in this life won’t understand it, either.  We choose to love even when we’ve been hurt deeply and repeatedly.  We purposely shun sexual immorality.  We choose to quit bad habits and unhealthy lifestyles we’ve been living in for years.  Our words are used to encourage, not tear down.  We find focus and purpose in this life by knowing who God is and how much He loves us.  We do these things because He did them all for us, even when we didn’t deserve it.  So we look forward to the day that Jesus makes good on His promise to come back for us.

But it’s been a little while since He made that promise, hasn’t it?  He didn’t come yesterday, might not come back today…or even in the next 10 years.  He didn’t say when, He just said that He would.  Do we trust Him?

Fortunately, we’ve got some help and direction for what to do when this question comes up:

2 Peter 3:3-4, 8-15
Above all, be aware of this: Scoffers will come in the last days scoffing and following their own evil desires, saying, “Where is His ‘coming’ that He promised?  Ever since our ancestors fell asleep, all things continue as they have been since the beginning of creation”…Dear friends, don’t overlook this one fact: With the Lord one day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years like one day.  The Lord does not delay His promise, as some understand delay, but is patient with you, not wanting any to perish but all to come to repentance.

But the day of the Lord will come like a thief; on that day the heavens will pass away with a loud noise, the elements will burn and be dissolved, and the earth and the works on it will be disclosed.  Since all these things are to be dissolved in this way, it is clear what sort of people you should be in holy conduct and godliness as you wait for the day of God and hasten its coming.  Because of that day, the heavens will be dissolved with fire and the elements will melt with heat.  But based on His promise, we wait for new heavens and a new earth, where righteousness dwells.

Therefore, dear friends, while you wait for these things, make every effort to be found without spot or blemish in His sight, at peace.  Also, regard the patience of our Lord as salvation…

Our Lord’s patience means that others still have time to learn about Christ’s death on the cross for the sins of humanity, that God loved them so much that He took the bullet that would have meant Eternal Death for them.  Our Lord’s patience means they have more time to consider who Jesus is and whether or not they accept His free offer of Eternal Life.  So on behalf of our future brothers and sisters, we patiently endure this broken world and look forward to Jesus’ promised coming.

But we’re not to be sitting around, waiting on our rooftops and watching the clouds.  Oh no, we’ve got plenty of work to do – to partner now with Jesus – so that we will be qualified to partner with Him in Eternity Future.  We are alive now because of Christ’s sacrifice; we now live with the aim of eternally working side by side with Him, and working like Him.

Keep Pressing,
Ken

The final warning

We’ve seen that Revelation begins with a blessing:

Revelation 1:3
Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear the words of this prophecy and keep what is written in it, because the time is near.

and now we see that Revelation ends with a serious warning:

Revelation 22:18-19
I testify to everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: If anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues that are written in this book.  And if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God will take away his share of the tree of life and the holy city, which are written about in this book.

We understand from our study of Revelation 21-22 that a person’s share in the tree of life and the holy city are rewards for faithful service; they are not connected to a person’s salvation from sin or Jesus’ gift of eternal life.  So what are these penalties then?  On a practical level, how do I avoid them?

Our first clue comes in the beginning of verse 18 – I testify to everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book.  The original recipients, the seven churches in Chapters 2-3, also had to deal with those who would distort or minimize God’s Word.

Three specific groups are mentioned among the seven churches – the Nicolaitans, those who followed the teachings of Balaam, and those who followed the teachings of a self-proclaimed prophetess named Jezebel.  Each of these groups taught Christians to live promiscuously and unprincipled in sexual matters.  They also enticed believers to participate in the local feasts which focused on the worship of a Greek god or the emperor through both eating food sacrificed to idols and sexual immorality.

In order for them to teach these things, they either had to add something to what God has already said or to purposefully leave out parts that they didn’t like.  With respect to everything God has said in Revelation, a clear warning is given against either of those practices:

If anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues that are written in this book.

The plagues described in this book are the punishments given to those who refuse to accept Christ’s offer of salvation from their sins – they would rather face God on their own terms.  Similarly, Jesus pronounced severe punishment on those who followed the Nicolaitans, Balaam’s teachings, or Jezebel.  From this we understand that adding to what God has proclaimed in Revelation is to invite significant punishment.

And if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God will take away his share of the tree of life and the holy city, which are written about in this book.

Remember, this speaks to a loss of future reward, not a loss of salvation.  The warning here is that we could miss out on the full opportunities to partner with God in eternity future if we willfully remove parts of what God has proclaimed in Revelation.

The cure for both of these types of willful errors is the same, whether we would be in danger of adding our own sections to God’s word or purposefully removing sections of God’s word.  The cure is to take God at His word, as He has revealed it…even if we don’t fully understand parts of it. 

For example:
After the fall of Jerusalem in 70 AD and the dispersion of the Jews that happened soon afterward, there was no “nation of Israel” until 1948.  Given the vast amounts of Scripture in the Old Testament and New Testament which speaks to God reigning over the nations of the earth from Israel…how much abuse and ridicule do you think Christians would have suffered prior to 1948 from those proclaiming “There is no nation of Israel, so clearly your beliefs are wrong”?  I’m sure that believers would have been tempted to re-interpret what God had prophesied, either adding a little (like the idea of replacement theology, which is claiming that any Old Testament reference to Israel now relates to the church…it doesn’t, by the way) or by taking a little away (deciding that, maybe that part of Scripture no longer applies).

But God knew that Israel would be a nation again, and that His prophecies were still right, even if in a particular moment in history it appeared otherwise.  So trust God now, take Him at His word – all of it, adding nothing, and taking nothing away.

Keep Pressing,
Ken

Warning: Don't add and don't take away

We saw last time that those believers who hear Jesus properly are to make the invitation to non-believers to take the free gift of salvation:

Revelation 22:17
Both the Spirit and the bride say, “Come!”  Let anyone who hears, say, “Come!”  Let the one who is thirsty come.  Let the one who desires take the water of life freely.

The next two verses also command the attention of those who have ears to hear:

Revelation 22:18-19
I testify to everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: If anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues that are written in this book.  And if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God will take away his share of the tree of life and the holy city, which are written about in this book.

Many commentaries will tell you that the warning John adds here at the end of Revelation is equivalent to a copyright in the ancient world, and that you’ll commonly find these types of warnings in other apocalyptic (prophetic) writings of the day.  While this is true, don’t think that this type of warning is something that John added just because everyone else was doing it.

This isn’t the first time that God gave a warning like this, and actually it was given at a similar situation – just on a slightly smaller scale.

Remember, we’ve been looking at eternal rewards that believers can inherit in Eternity Future.  When the Israelites were getting ready to inherit their reward of the Promised Land, this is what Moses told them:

Deuteronomy 4:1-2
Now, Israel, listen to the statutes and ordinances I am teaching you to follow, so that you may live, enter, and take possession of the land the Lord, the God of your fathers, is giving you.  You must not add anything to what I command you or take anything away from it, so that you may keep the commands of the Lord your God I am giving you.

Sounds very similar, right?

Those that hear are the ones expected to do – just as the Lord prescribes.  Those that do are the ones who will inherit, or take possession of the land.  To further his point, Moses gives the following example:

Deuteronomy 4:3-4
Your eyes have seen what the Lord did at Baal-peor, for the Lord your God destroyed every one of you who followed Baal of Peor.  But you who have remained faithful to the Lord your God are all alive today.

This incident is recorded in Numbers 25.  Those that strayed from God’s commands – they either subtracted God out and worshipped Baal exclusively or thought they could add Baal worship to their worship of God – they were not able to inherit the Promised Land.  However, those that stayed true to God’s commands – they were the ones that may live, enter, and take possession of the land the Lord, the God of your fathers, is giving you.

So God has previously made similar statements to what we read at the end of Revelation.  We’ll look more into the details of the warning next time, but there is an unmistakable quality in both passages that should not be missed:

Any believer that hears God’s commands is expected to take what God says very, very seriously.

Keep Pressing,
Ken

This is THE OFFER of a lifetime

This could be my favorite verse out of everything we’ve looked at in Revelation…and quite possibly my favorite in the entire Bible. 

Revelation 22:17
Both the Spirit and the bride say “Come!”  Let anyone who hears, say, “Come!”  Let the one who is thirsty come.  Let the one who desires take the water of life freely.

A three-fold invitation is being offered here:

The Spirit – He is the third person of the Trinity.  He is the Counselor Jesus promised would come.  His mission since Pentecost has been to convict the world about sin and righteousness and judgment to come (John 16:7-11).  The Holy Spirit is also within each believer as a promise, a seal of their coming redemption and position in the family of God (Ephesians 1:13-14).

The bride – This is church. It is comprised of those who, since Jesus death on the cross, believe in Jesus for eternal life.

Anyone who hears – This goes back to one of Jesus’ favorite sayings in both Revelation and the gospel accounts – “Let anyone who has ears to hear, listen”.  This phrase always implies that the one who hears Jesus’ command will also be the one to do His command; thus being one who “properly hears” what Jesus desires.

Notice that all three have the same welcoming invitation…to come, to join.  But do you see who the invitation is toward?

the one who is thirsty…the one who desires…

The invitation to join God in eternity future is open to whoever, to anyone…and the invitation is given

by God Himself
by the church as a whole
by individuals in the church who hear and do what Jesus commands

let the one who desires take the water of life freely

In Revelation 22:1, we saw that the river of life originates and flows from the throne of God.  That is why it is a free gift…it comes from God, we can do nothing to earn it, nor do we have to maintain it.

Do you, Christian, hear Jesus?  Make the invitation.  If they recognize their thirst for life and accept God’s free gift…they will be eternally grateful – just as we are eternally grateful to that someone who took the time to offer the gift to us.

Keep Pressing,
Ken

Imitations and contrasts

It’s often said that imitation is the best form of flattery.  Although typically meant to be a compliment, I think it depends a lot on whom we’re imitating and what kind of behavior we’re attempting to emulate.  I can remember times when my boys came home and imitated some other child’s whiny tone or disrespectful behavior.  Yeah, that wasn’t as cool and complimentary as he may have imagined…

As a parent, we confront this kind of behavior with both questions and contrasts: Why are you acting like them?  Are they saying encouraging things, or are they rude?  Why would you want to do the same thing?

But it’s not just our kids who need a talk like this from time to time.  Remember, we’ve been making observations about this particular verse:

Revelation 22:14
“Blessed are those who wash their robes, so that they may have the right to the tree of life and may enter the city by the gates.”

We’ve taken a close look at this verse in order to fully understand the blessing Jesus is announcing.  We’ve observed that this blessing is obtained by those who wash their robes, those who do the commandments of Jesus, and that there are specific, big-deal rewards available to those who do so.

Remember that whenever we do a deep dive, our best next step is to zoom out and place our new understanding within the surrounding context. 

Revelation 22:12-14
“Look, I am coming soon, and My reward is with Me to repay each person according to his work.  I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end.  Blessed are those who wash their robes, so that they may have the right to the tree of life and may enter the city by the gates.

And then Jesus offers this contrast:

Revelation 22:15
Outside are the dogs, the sorcerers, the sexually immoral, the murderers, the idolaters, and everyone who loves and practices falsehood.

This contrast is almost identical to the one we observed back in 21:6-8; in fact, the earlier section contains all these descriptions and adds a few more.  Previously, this description was pertaining to unbelievers.  The same contrast is made here as well – and we understand that because of the phrase everyone who loves and practices falsehood. 

But why does Jesus insultingly refer to unbelievers as “dogs”?

Dogs during ancient times were not pets; they were tolerated as scavengers of unclean things.  I’ve read that even today, most every town in Palestine has lazy, filthy curs that will hardly move out of anyone’s way in the daytime, but are prone to howling throughout the night.  These degenerate animals show no qualities of intelligence or morality, as they tend to be mean-spirited and greedy.  Any time you read of dogs in the Scriptures, it is never in a positive light.

So we see that the contrast Jesus makes in 22:14-15 is between those who will be blessed in Heaven and the unbelievers who are going to the lake of fire.  Although there will be believers in the New Jerusalem who do not receive the blessings listed in verse 14, Jesus makes this contrast in order to get their attention now…so then Jesus is essentially asking the question:

Whom do you wish to imitate, the ones who will be blessed or the ones who act like dogs?

Keep Pressing,
Ken