NowTHINK!AboutIt

Avoiding Hackneyed...Making Sense

5 Observations About Jesus And Religion

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When disciples grow, evangelism happens.

How Would Jesus
Respond Today

John chapter two actually records two events which, on the surface, don’t seem to connect. It starts with a wedding in Cana of Galilee and ends with Jesus causing a fracas in Jerusalem. Weddings do take place in churches today but in Bible times that wasn’t the case and the way Jesus responded in these two settings makes us wonder.

One place, Cana, was insignificant, the other was the centre of religious and political life for all Jews. If Jesus had not attended a wedding in Cana we probably would never have heard of it but Jerusalem was the spiritual hot spot of the world, then and now.

But the question is, “why a wedding”?  We can easily understand Jesus being involved in major religious festivals (the Passover) but why a wedding in Cana? And, why was He so agreeable at the wedding and so reactive in Jerusalem? [Read more…] about 5 Observations About Jesus And Religion

Pragmatism – No Excuse!

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Jesus worked very closely with His disciples for only a few years. During that time, He said very little about the look of their future ministries and He gave them very little in the way of specific theological detail. What He did provide was a goal.

For example, Jesus made a few comments on divorce and remarriage (Matt. 19) which left the disciples bewildered. Their conclusion was, why bother to get married at all. Obviously, they, along with many others since, missed His meaning. We still fight over that one.

The fact is, there were many points of theology which Jesus did not attempt to address in great detail. But, the one thing Jesus did was give the disciples a target. After His resurrection and before His ascension (a period of forty days), on more than one occasion, He made His expectations very clear. In brief, He said… [Read more…] about Pragmatism – No Excuse!

GO? To Church

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I visited a new church recently and was bored out of my mind. The most predominant sensation was stifling oppression. The second was embarrassment, for them.

The song leader apologized for being tired. I wouldn’t have known if he hadn’t said anything. They had no musicians but insisted on singing anyway. The choruses weren’t bad but if I were new to church and hadn’t known them, would have felt even more out of place.

The pastor was a better than average speaker but he said absolutely nothing new and none of it was relevant. There was no practical use for anything he said and there was nothing stimulating in the way it was presented. The only “do” point was attend church and he made the point by criticizing the cyclists he passed on his way to the service. Obviously, they couldn’t cycle without missing church. I guess it never occurred to him that service times are not God breathed and could therefore be changed.

The most interesting thing in the entire message was a joke about a preacher and a taxi driver both of whom went to heaven. The taxi guy was heavily rewarded and the preacher got nothing. The reason? When the preacher spoke people slept. When the taxi guy drove people prayed!” Sadly, that pretty much epitomized the service.

For those who live elsewhere, the largest percentage of taxi drivers in South African are black and known for excessively dangerous driving. So the comment was more of an racist point than a spiritual one.

[Read more…] about GO? To Church

Did Jesus Heal To Show His Power Or Be Helpful?

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Jesus performed thousands of miracles.  He was constantly healing endless numbers of people. Some He raised from the dead.

He was sensitive to the needy and never avoided or resisted an opportunity to give His support. He even responded to basic human needs that were far from life threatening. He fed thousands who were neither poor nor malnourished on at least two occasions, possibly more. John did say Jesus performed many other miracles that were not reported.

But, the questions are:

  • Was Jesus being helpful or miraculous?
  • Was He being supportive or sensational?
  • Was He demonstrating usefulness or power?

These are important questions. They establish motive and we can never qualify as “followers” of Jesus if we don’t understand and adopt His motives.

[Read more…] about Did Jesus Heal To Show His Power Or Be Helpful?

What Is Worship?

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Matthew 8:1-4 NIV
When Jesus came down from the mountainside, large crowds followed him. A man with leprosy came and (worshipped Him or) knelt before him and said, “Lord, if you are willing, you can make me clean.” Jesus reached out his hand and touched the man. “I am willing,” he said, “Be clean!” Immediately he was cured of his leprosy. Then Jesus said to him, “See that you don’t tell anyone. But go, show yourself to the priest and offer the gift Moses commanded, as a testimony to them.”

The first seven chapters of Matthew cover a lot of history. It begins with the birth of Jesus and includes only the high points for the next thirty years:

  • The visit of the wise men
  • The escape of Joseph, Mary and Jesus into Egypt and their return to Galilee
  • The ministry of John the Baptist
  • The temptation of Jesus
  • The beginning of Jesus ministry
  • The calling of the first disciples
  • And the Sermon on the Mount

Beginning in chapter 8, however, Matthew presents a series of events in which Jesus ministers to different people individually. He moves from the long view of history to recording snippets in which Jesus’ ministry begins to be very personal. They are occasions on which Jesus interacted with certain people one at a time.

Matthew presents these situations as if they were successive. Whether that is true or not has no bearing on the teaching he presents. Even the order of events is not critical to the intended meaning. [Read more…] about What Is Worship?