When you have a verse as rich as John 14:6, it is impossible to focus on all of its assets effectively in one post. For this reason I will attempt to highlight "the way" and leave truth and life for another time.
For the sake of context we must understand that Jesus has just made a statement that he will be leaving shortly and that his disciples will know the way to where he is going. Thomas, who I believe has wrongly taken a bad rap for years, asks Jesus how they were to know the way? This is a fantastic question which leads up to a fantastic answer.
On the very first canoe trip that I ever lead/co-lead, we had an injury which required us to evacuate one of the members of the trip. For the purpose of this story we will call him Andy...since that is his real name. We were on Clear Lake, a lake in which I had been on many times before and was very familiar with. After the injury had taken place and we made the decision to evacuate Andy, I prepared my gear for the journey out of Clear Lake and to the nearest marina which was about a 2 hour paddle. I took almost everything I needed with the exception of a map. Being as familiar as I was with the lake I felt confident that we would not need one.
As you could probably guess, we got lost. I had Andy in the middle of the canoe(groaning in pain) and Kaj in the back as we both watched the shoreline trying to make sense of where we were. It took us four hours to make it off the lake. Andy would be fine, but he made sure that he did not get hurt again the rest of the year for fear that Kaj and I would once again would be the ones to rescue him.
Jesus told Thomas "I am the way!" If the destination was to be with the Father, then Jesus boldly told Thomas that He was the map to follow if he wanted to reach the same destination. In this exclusive statement, Jesus is telling the world that without Him, there is no map, and with no map we cannot reach our desired destination; to be with the creator of the universe, the loving God of Abraham.
Thursday, February 21, 2008
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
"I am the resurrection"
While working with youth, there were many strange and wondrous events which I planned and ran in hopes of having a good time and praising God. The best idea I had, hands down, was to bury alive one of our youth leaders. I know what you're thinking. Right now either you are thinking A. That's dangerous or B. That's stupid. I will accept either answer, but instead of debating the safety protocol we obviously broke, or discussing who in their right minds would agree to be buried alive, I will simply continue with my story assuming you have decided to continue to read.
Something I think you should know about me is that I have a coffin. I have always believed this to be one of my greater attributes (although, I am not sure it truly is an attribute)and found use for such a toy on many occasions. In fact, my youth became so comfortable with my coffin that they no longer feared it as in the first. For this reason I was pushed into raising the bar. While running an event called "Borne Identity" (yes, based on the movies) one of the stages was to take place in a grave yard...as per usual. The youth were instructed to dig up the casket to find their next clue. Nonchalantly, the fellas (mainly boys that night...can't figure out why?) approached the make shift cemetery knowing that I had buried my old companion in an attempt to shock. The digging began while the boys went on their way talking about other things not related to the task at hand, all the while unaware that Nick, my 250lbs. youth leader was in the coffin with a mask and chain saw waiting to be released from his shallow grave. As the boys reached down to open the lid, Nick jumped out of the coffin and kick started the saw and began his pursuit. I don't care who you are or how tough you appear, when someone jumps out of a coffin you had just dug up, with a chain saw and wearing a hockey mask, you run. These same guy's who tried their best to put up a tough front screamed like little girls and ran for their lives. This was truly a ministry highlight.
In John 11, Jesus tells Martha that He is the resurrection. Martha, like many of us, gave the "yeah, I know" answer. We have become very comfortable with the term; so comfortable that I believe it has lost some of its meaning. When Jesus told Martha that he was the resurrection, he was telling her that he had the power to raise the dead; that he had the power to conquer death and offer eternal life. Martha's approach to Jesus' statement was similar to the boys from my youth. She was comfortable with the concept of resurrecting the dead (if anyone can actually be comfortable with such a thing) even claiming that she knew her brother Lazarus would be raised from the dead at some point. Where she was totally unaware was that Jesus was not talking about someday, he was talking about today.
Scripture does not say, but I can only imagine what effect it would have had on those witnesses who saw Jesus raise Lazarus from the dead. The comfort level would have changed rapidly. Remorse and grieving would have been replaced by fear and confusion. Disgust at the smell of the rotting man may have come to mind. One thing I am sure of, is that the resurrection would never again be trivialized by those who saw it first hand that day. Scripture does say that after Lazarus was raised many put their faith in him. This seems like a perfectly logical statement. I cannot, however, for the life of me understand why it did not say ALL who were there that day placed their faith in Jesus. It only solidifies that fact that if the Word does not change a man's/woman's heart (Luke 16:31) then raising someone from the dead will not change a thing.
Let us live in the power of the one who not only was resurrected, but who is in fact the resurrection Himself.
Something I think you should know about me is that I have a coffin. I have always believed this to be one of my greater attributes (although, I am not sure it truly is an attribute)and found use for such a toy on many occasions. In fact, my youth became so comfortable with my coffin that they no longer feared it as in the first. For this reason I was pushed into raising the bar. While running an event called "Borne Identity" (yes, based on the movies) one of the stages was to take place in a grave yard...as per usual. The youth were instructed to dig up the casket to find their next clue. Nonchalantly, the fellas (mainly boys that night...can't figure out why?) approached the make shift cemetery knowing that I had buried my old companion in an attempt to shock. The digging began while the boys went on their way talking about other things not related to the task at hand, all the while unaware that Nick, my 250lbs. youth leader was in the coffin with a mask and chain saw waiting to be released from his shallow grave. As the boys reached down to open the lid, Nick jumped out of the coffin and kick started the saw and began his pursuit. I don't care who you are or how tough you appear, when someone jumps out of a coffin you had just dug up, with a chain saw and wearing a hockey mask, you run. These same guy's who tried their best to put up a tough front screamed like little girls and ran for their lives. This was truly a ministry highlight.
In John 11, Jesus tells Martha that He is the resurrection. Martha, like many of us, gave the "yeah, I know" answer. We have become very comfortable with the term; so comfortable that I believe it has lost some of its meaning. When Jesus told Martha that he was the resurrection, he was telling her that he had the power to raise the dead; that he had the power to conquer death and offer eternal life. Martha's approach to Jesus' statement was similar to the boys from my youth. She was comfortable with the concept of resurrecting the dead (if anyone can actually be comfortable with such a thing) even claiming that she knew her brother Lazarus would be raised from the dead at some point. Where she was totally unaware was that Jesus was not talking about someday, he was talking about today.
Scripture does not say, but I can only imagine what effect it would have had on those witnesses who saw Jesus raise Lazarus from the dead. The comfort level would have changed rapidly. Remorse and grieving would have been replaced by fear and confusion. Disgust at the smell of the rotting man may have come to mind. One thing I am sure of, is that the resurrection would never again be trivialized by those who saw it first hand that day. Scripture does say that after Lazarus was raised many put their faith in him. This seems like a perfectly logical statement. I cannot, however, for the life of me understand why it did not say ALL who were there that day placed their faith in Jesus. It only solidifies that fact that if the Word does not change a man's/woman's heart (Luke 16:31) then raising someone from the dead will not change a thing.
Let us live in the power of the one who not only was resurrected, but who is in fact the resurrection Himself.
Tuesday, February 5, 2008
Snot in the Pocket
You may have noticed that my title this week does not correlate with with my message. This post is still very much about Jesus' statement "I am the good shepherd", but I would like to illustrate it outside of the text to start.
When I was a single man, I decided that I needed one of those life changing trips; you know the ones. The trip that when you are really old you can sit your grandchild on your knee and recall how cool you once were. I figured what would be cooler and more unique than attending Lyle Sankey's Rodeo School in Kansas. Lyle was a two time PBR (professional bull riding)champion and his father Ike Sankey was known for being one of the top breeders for the PBR.
I hopped on a train and headed down to Kansas on my solo trip that would change my life. For the sake of brevity, I will hold all other stories, since there are many, for a later date and proceed directly to the one that applies.
At this particular school, there was also a "clowning" school. This was not for the circus, but rather to teach rodeo clowns how to fight bulls. In this class there was a 50 plus year old women who appeared to be even crazier than me. She had hit some form of crisis and wanted an adventure. Rodeo clowns had an expression they used when they did a good job. It was "snot in your pocket". What it meant was that the bull had gotten so close to you that when you checked your back pocket you were able to feel the bulls snot. Crude, I know, but we are talking about rodeo clowns. When it was this womans turn for her final exam, which consisted of being alone in the ring with a bull for 2 minutes, no one was prepared for what was about to take place. In school, the clowns were taught to fake there hand one way and then head in the opposite direction. This lady faked as she was taught, but then proceeded to run in the same direction as she faked. The bull plowed right into her and for the next couple of seconds, which felt like minutes, the bull began to pound her into the ground. As she got to her hands and knees in an attempt to stand, the bull butted her in the back side and sent her into the concrete wall. This is when the professionals went to work.
Without hesitation, the head rodeo clown ran up to the bull, slapped it as hard as he could across the face, and began to run. The bull turned his now extreme anger to the head clown. The instructor ran far enough away from the woman in order that she could be attended to and cared for. Eventually, he led the bull back to the pen where they could shut the gate, therefore making the arena safe. He definitely had snot in his pocket.
When Jesus said "I am the good shepherd" we must not forget the words that followed; "I lay down my life for the sheep". Jesus was willing to step in our place and die so that we could be protected. If this is what Jesus did for us, why don't we tell this story of replacement with more passion and excitement. When I saw this rodeo clown step in the way of a bull to save another, I couldn't wait to tell others about it. It wasn't even that I was saved from the bull, but I just saw how amazing it was. We have been saved, first hand, by the good shepherd. Jesus was willing to step in harms way so that we could live. Tell this substitutionary story as if you mean it; tell it as if you were truly saved from peril and live in such a way as if you have been given a second chance at life. Then you will truly understand what Jesus meant when he said "I am the good shepherd".
When I was a single man, I decided that I needed one of those life changing trips; you know the ones. The trip that when you are really old you can sit your grandchild on your knee and recall how cool you once were. I figured what would be cooler and more unique than attending Lyle Sankey's Rodeo School in Kansas. Lyle was a two time PBR (professional bull riding)champion and his father Ike Sankey was known for being one of the top breeders for the PBR.
I hopped on a train and headed down to Kansas on my solo trip that would change my life. For the sake of brevity, I will hold all other stories, since there are many, for a later date and proceed directly to the one that applies.
At this particular school, there was also a "clowning" school. This was not for the circus, but rather to teach rodeo clowns how to fight bulls. In this class there was a 50 plus year old women who appeared to be even crazier than me. She had hit some form of crisis and wanted an adventure. Rodeo clowns had an expression they used when they did a good job. It was "snot in your pocket". What it meant was that the bull had gotten so close to you that when you checked your back pocket you were able to feel the bulls snot. Crude, I know, but we are talking about rodeo clowns. When it was this womans turn for her final exam, which consisted of being alone in the ring with a bull for 2 minutes, no one was prepared for what was about to take place. In school, the clowns were taught to fake there hand one way and then head in the opposite direction. This lady faked as she was taught, but then proceeded to run in the same direction as she faked. The bull plowed right into her and for the next couple of seconds, which felt like minutes, the bull began to pound her into the ground. As she got to her hands and knees in an attempt to stand, the bull butted her in the back side and sent her into the concrete wall. This is when the professionals went to work.
Without hesitation, the head rodeo clown ran up to the bull, slapped it as hard as he could across the face, and began to run. The bull turned his now extreme anger to the head clown. The instructor ran far enough away from the woman in order that she could be attended to and cared for. Eventually, he led the bull back to the pen where they could shut the gate, therefore making the arena safe. He definitely had snot in his pocket.
When Jesus said "I am the good shepherd" we must not forget the words that followed; "I lay down my life for the sheep". Jesus was willing to step in our place and die so that we could be protected. If this is what Jesus did for us, why don't we tell this story of replacement with more passion and excitement. When I saw this rodeo clown step in the way of a bull to save another, I couldn't wait to tell others about it. It wasn't even that I was saved from the bull, but I just saw how amazing it was. We have been saved, first hand, by the good shepherd. Jesus was willing to step in harms way so that we could live. Tell this substitutionary story as if you mean it; tell it as if you were truly saved from peril and live in such a way as if you have been given a second chance at life. Then you will truly understand what Jesus meant when he said "I am the good shepherd".
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