March 2015 – Page 2 – The Wandering Shepherd

Following His Footsteps: “Cracker Jack Surprise” – Mark 14

In a less complex time than today, a simple “surprise” toy in a box of breakfast cereal or perhaps a little surprise inserted into a molasses-coated popcorn and peanut snack box was a delight for a child. Unless there is an electronic chip in it, I doubt it would keep most “first world” children occupied now – even for a moment. Yet, some of us are both old enough to remember but still young enough to access our memories of the “Cracker Jack” box – with the “surprise” inside. The name was registered in 1896, and many consider it to be the original American “junk food”. The old label was bought by Frito-Lay’s parent company Pepsi-Co in 1996, some one hundred years after it was first hitting the shelves of tiny grocery stores and corner candy shops.

The Cracker Jack box historically included a small “toy surprise” inside. Old ads boasted: “Candy coated popcorn, peanuts and a prize”. In fact, they came in every box since 1912! Prizes included baseball cards, rings, plastic figures, booklets, stickers, temporary tattoos and even “secret spy decoder rings” – which no doubt worried the Russians a good bit “back in the day”. Keeping up with the times, in 2013, some prizes became ‘download codes’ to redeem electronic “nostalgic” games on the Cracker Jack app through Google Play. Yes, the simple times have left us and have morphed into their more complex android cousins.

What is surprising about the Cracker Jack box is that it was never that appealing on its cover for a candy. In fact, it seemed busy and wholly unattractive. On the outside were “mascots” – sketches of one dubious “Sailor Jack” and his dog “Bingo” who were on the box since 1918. The actual image of “Sailor Jack” alone has a bit of a morbid tale – it was an image of Edward Rueckheim who died of pneumonia at the age of 8 shortly after his image appeared on the first box. That image became so important to the founder of Cracker Jack that he had it carved on his tombstone. The dog, incidentally, was an image of a stray found in Chicago in 1917. There you have it: America’s junk food started in a promotional package with the images of a deceased child and a stray dog – yet they sold millions of boxes. In the end, they proved that looks can be deceiving. Sweet things can come in ugly boxes. Secret spy decoder rings can be purchased – disguised as mere junk food.

Interestingly enough, the truth proved by the package is the same one we see in our text today…

Key Principle: Appearances can be deceiving – but only to us. God always see what is under the surface.

In this lesson, we want to look briefly at four literary “snapshots” of people, taken from the week before the Cross at Calvary. Each of these snapshots is admittedly incomplete, but they are sufficient enough to help us see what God captured in His holy lens – and how it differed from what men saw:

Snapshot 1: Pious Men gathered in Priestly Garb (14:1-2)

In our study following the life and ministry of Jesus, we have finally come to His entry to Jerusalem and the “Passion Week” – the time of the Pesach (Passover).

Mark 14:1 “Now the Passover and Unleavened Bread were two days away; and the chief priests and the scribes were seeking how to seize Him by stealth and kill Him; 2 for they were saying, “Not during the festival, otherwise there might be a riot of the people.”

If the first day of Unleavened Bread (immediately following Passover) began in conjunction with the Sabbath (Friday night) that year, as has been traditionally recalled, the story opens this chapter with either a Tuesday or Wednesday meeting. Classical artists seem to always capture the men gathered in the night, though that is not clear in the passage. On the bright side, some may use this to Biblically endorse “Wednesday night Prayer Meeting” (just kidding!) but that isn’t what brought these men together.

A careful examination of the first two verses yield a reasonably clear picture of what was happening among these learned men. The men were clearly PLOTTING (zeteo: deliberating an action). They were trying to determine a way to gain control (krateo: to bind) over Jesus by using trickery or a trap (dolos: baiting). Most striking is the reality that this ensnaring was clearly for the purpose of killing Jesus! They appeared to have concluded this was the right way, or at least the most effective way to answer His rising popularity and open questioning if their authority. All of these details come from the beginning of Mark 14.

Look at the second verse, and more detail emerges. What slowed down their plan was not a pang of guilt, but a scheduling glitch. With Passover coming on, they seemed to agree that capturing Jesus when the crowds of Galilean followers, among whom He was remarkably popular, would have ended in a riot (thorubos: uproar, uncontrolled mob reaction). Since this follows the “Palm Sunday” story, it appears Jesus was equally aware of the possibility the “rocks would cry out” if He hushed the crowds. It looks, from the record, like the Temple leadership ironically agreed with Jesus’ earlier assessment.

Mark carefully revealed that these men knew what they wanted to do, but fear of the loss of control over the crowd shut them down – at least for the moment. In some ways, it appears they were afraid to lose STANDING in the eyes of the crowd. They knew the local people would follow them, but this was a time when people came into the city by the tens of thousands, and they were happy to hear Jesus. They didn’t mind His criticism of the Temple leadership. He likely said things others thought of themselves! The Talmudic memory of the household of Hannan, from which Annas and Caiaphas came, was less than sparkling. Jesus wasn’t the only one that noticed the Temple wasn’t working in ideal ways.

These men rose through the ranks probably believing they could serve the God of Jacob. They likely didn’t start out craving power, it just seemed to turn out that way. You can sympathize just a bit, can’t you? They were charged with “keeping the people in order” by their Roman masters. The problem was, they were charged by God to do something higher – that is to teach people the TRUTH. Their call from God got tied up in their power struggle to hold what they only got because God granted it. When we try to desperately hold on to the position or power that we have, we tip our hand to our real belief – the mistaken idea that we EARNED the place we have.

This is the “FAME trap” – we try to keep the lights blaring on our performance long after it is clear we aren’t as special and we have come to believe we are. Only those who are oft reminded by God that all they possess is truly His, and all they attain was by His grace- will be able to place His will higher than that of any earthly master. The FAME trap can happen in anything that leads people to believe they have become a celebrity – no matter what are of life they find it in. God sees it even through religious garb – those who look like they are serving Him to control other people, or to be important among them.

Snapshot 2: A man hiding under a clean cloak (Mark 14:10-21; 42-46)

Drop your eyes down in the passage to Mark 14:10. Instead of a group of garbed priests, we want to focus on a lone figure who is fidgeting and seems out of place in an important meeting…

Mark 14:10 “Then Judas Iscariot, who was one of the twelve, went off to the chief priests in order to betray Him to them. 11 They were glad when they heard this, and promised to give him money. And he began seeking how to betray Him at an opportune time. 12 On the first day of Unleavened Bread, when the Passover lamb was being sacrificed, His disciples said to Him, “Where do You want us to go and prepare for You to eat the Passover?” 13 And He sent two of His disciples and said to them, “Go into the city, and a man will meet you carrying a pitcher of water; follow him; 14 and wherever he enters, say to the owner of the house, ‘The Teacher says, “Where is My guest room in which I may eat the Passover with My disciples?”’ 15 “And he himself will show you a large upper room furnished and ready; prepare for us there.” 16 The disciples went out and came to the city, and found it just as He had told them; and they prepared the Passover. 17 When it was evening He came with the twelve. 18 As they were reclining at the table and eating, Jesus said, “Truly I say to you that one of you will betray Me—one who is eating with Me.” 19 They began to be grieved and to say to Him one by one, “Surely not I?” 20 And He said to them, “It is one of the twelve, one who dips with Me in the bowl. 21 “For the Son of Man is to go just as it is written of Him; but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would have been good for that man if he had not been born.”

Drop a few verses below to a man who came late to the meeting. He was not invited, but the men in the meeting were DELIGHTED to see him come in. Judas snuck off from the other Disciples who were staying in Bethany with the Master. The text is clear, Judas came willingly to the priests (14:10) and made the offer to deliver Jesus to them. Their gladdened reaction showed that Judas’ proposal relieved them of the burden of finding a way to snatch Jesus (14:11). Judas was now seeking a “good time” (eukairos) to deliver Jesus to the priests. How ironic that he would look for a GOOD TIME to do a BAD thing.

The verses that follow that scene may seem like Mark is going on in the story, but He is not. Mark 14:12-16 explain why Judas was unable to deliver Jesus quickly, before the late night prayer session of Jesus in the “Garden of the Olive Press” (Gethsemane). Mark 14:12 set the time for these verses two days after the plot against Jesus by Judas and the chief priests. Jesus came with the twelve on Thursday evening for their Pesach celebration but withheld the location from Judas and the other Disciples – they did not know where the meal was to be eaten. Jesus appears to have pre-arranged the meal with some men beyond the knowledge of His Disciples, and therefore offered detailed instructions to Peter and John (if all accounts are combined) to follow a man with a water pot to a furnished upper room to make the feast observance ready.

Reclining around the three sided banquet table (a triclinium), Jesus openly remarked about the plot that Judas was hatching behind His back. Mark 14:18 offered the detail that it was someone on the inner circle of the twelve, and verse 20 pressed the case by stating it was one who was eating from the same dish as Jesus – the common bowl placed before the group surrounding Him closely. It is impossible to see this as anything less than an excruciatingly uncomfortable moment for the disgruntled Judas, who had to have felt exposed. Listen again to the words that Jesus used concerning Judas:

Mark 14:21 “For the Son of Man is to go just as it is written of Him; but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would have been good for that man if he had not been born.”

Jesus made it clear that the plot would be successful, but the plotter would be ruined in the process. Perhaps nowhere in the Gospels are harder words recorded as coming from the mouth of the Master! Judas had to have been quietly humiliated and angered, as the enemy pressed him to further betrayal. Mark makes no note of Judas’ departure from the meal, but combined accounts show that Judas left after a small exchange between Jesus and himself. Out into the night, tormented by the searing words of Jesus went the betrayer. We don’t see him appearing again until Mark 14:42.

Mark 14:42 “Get up, let us be going; behold, the one who betrays Me is at hand!” 43 Immediately while He was still speaking, Judas, one of the twelve, came up accompanied by a crowd with swords and clubs, who were from the chief priests and the scribes and the elders. 44Now he who was betraying Him had given them a signal, saying, “Whomever I kiss, He is the one; seize Him and lead Him away under guard.” 45 After coming, Judas immediately went to Him, saying, “Rabbi!” and kissed Him. 46 They laid hands on Him and seized Him. 47 But one of those who stood by drew his sword, and struck the slave of the high priest and cut off his ear. 48 And Jesus said to them, “Have you come out with swords and clubs to arrest Me, as you would against a robber? 49 “Every day I was with you in the temple teaching, and you did not seize Me; but this has taken place to fulfill the Scriptures.” 50 And they all left Him and fled. 51 A young man was following Him, wearing nothing but a linen sheet over his naked body; and they seized him. 52 But he pulled free of the linen sheet and escaped naked.”

Jesus was aware of Judas’ arrival before the Disciples, and He urged them to awaken and stand ready for the time of His arrest at the hands of Judas (14:42). A crowd, including some Roman soldiers and Temple guard, as well as a rabble gathered by the chief priests had entered the olive grove at Gethsemane where Jesus was praying and His derelict Disciples were fast asleep (14:43). Judas told the guards to watch for the One that he offered the “kiss of peace” and arrest Him alone, so the guard and rabble were either confused by the darkness or may not have been wholly familiar with Jesus’ appearance. Judas was close to Jesus – one of the inner circle who “kept the purse” according to John’s Gospel, and Judas would recognize Jesus. Mark reveals that Judas kissed Jesus, and the men arrested Him (14:45-46). Resistance began, with a strike at the head of a guard by what appears to have been Peter (14:47) but the Disciples were outnumbered, bewildered and afraid. Jesus boldly challenged the cowardly way He was being taken, but the guards were not stopped by this (14:48-49). The Disciples fled into the night, one of them slipping out from his top cloak and running shamefully uncovered (14:51-52), Judas had finished his work.

Though Mark says little about the reason of Judas defection, the other Gospel accounts offer other small details that help sharpen our view of the events. John records that Judas was one who specifically complained about the anointing of Jesus’ feet with the valuable spikenard. Matthew reminds us of the “thirty pieces of silver” (the price of redemption) some three times in Matthew 26 and 27. Clearly the Disciples recalled later that Judas’ motive was at least in part financial. Judas wanted FORTUNE to help him gain a sense of control over his life. How many people are willing to compromise principle for this very same reason? The man under the cloak thought he could act in darkness, hiding, deceiving and then disappearing. The problem with the okay was that he had to take himself along on the journey, and life lived in compromise of one’s core values is desperately hard. God saw under the cloak of Judas, and his motives were exposed from the very mouth of his Master.

Judas probably joined the ranks of the Disciples because the words of Jesus touched his heart. I don’t know how deeply, but he is not so unlike many in the church today – who came with deep hurt or a broken heart – some intractable relationship or financial distress. They came believing they could find peace and solutions in the God of Jacob. Then came the problem; the day God’s Word said something they really didn’t like. The day God offended them deeply. They truly believed their own sense of right and wrong was more flawless than the Creator’s – and they just weren’t willing to give up a relationship of love that the Word clearly showed was off limits; or stop a practice that they loved so dearly they thought it beyond God’s right to ask them to give it up. God can be so offensive when He tries to tell the pottery why it was made thus.

When we try to hold God to our standard, we forget who He really is, and who we really are. This is the POWER trap – we try to keep Him at bay from the most important rooms of our hearts. Only those who are oft challenged by God to surrender the key to every locked room- will be able to surrender control and see God powerfully work beyond their abilities. The POWER trap can snare us when we use some inner marker of desire to replace God’s objective standard in His Word. God sees through our proximity to the believers and even to Jesus – and examines the heart. He warns of two paths – one of surrender and one of self-guided nonsense.

Snapshot 3: A boisterous follower of Jesus (Mark 14:27-42; 66-72)

Peter helped to put the meal together, along with John. He was not an EVIL man, like the picture we have of Judas and of the priests we have spoken about to this point in our story. He was DECIEVED. Deception is the “cousin” of EVIL – that leads good men to bad judgment.

Look closely for a moment at the Disciple Peter. He demonstrated some critical flaws that came from a failed power struggle with his ego. They are helpful, particularly to those of us who have fought Jesus’ control in our own lives…

Flaw One: He was Untrusting.

Mark 14:27 And Jesus said to them, “You will all fall away, because it is written, ‘I WILL STRIKE DOWN THE SHEPHERD, AND THE SHEEP SHALL BE SCATTERED.’…31 But Peter kept saying insistently, “Even if I have to die with You, I will not deny You!” And they all were saying the same thing also.

When Jesus told all the Disciples that they would scatter and fall down, He made the particular point to mention that God’s Word had settled the subject ahead of time (14:27). At first Peter denied that this could be a part of his future, and later “insisted” (14:31) that could not be the case. These points of argument yield a truth about the EGO battle… The ego battle is essentially a deeply held belief that I know better than God and His Word. It is masked and often polite UNBELIEF in God’s knowledge.

Flaw Two: He was Self-exalting.

Mark 14:28 “But after I have been raised, I will go ahead of you to Galilee.” 29 But Peter said to Him, “Even though all may fall away, yet I will not.”

When Jesus promised that He would be raised up (they probably thought to the throne, not from the dead, though He had revealed His death to them before), Peter emphatically promised that HE would not leave Jesus, in spite of all the other followers. It is remarkable how EGO separates us from the rest of the pack. We truly come to believe that we are DIFFERENT in essence than all others. It offers us a deceived view that allows us to believe we have inordinate personal endurance.

Flaw Three: He was Hardened.

Mark 14:30 And Jesus said to him, “Truly I say to you, that this very night, before a rooster crows twice, you yourself will deny Me three times.”

When Jesus contradicted Peter, there is no record that Peter believed of accepted the conviction of the words of the Lord. Jesus clearly said it WOULD HAPPEN and that he would not have to wait to see it happen! Yet, when we become deluded with our own EGO, we truly close our ears to both the WARNING and CONVICTION of God’s Word.

Flaw Four: He was Overconfident.

Mark 14:32 They came to a place named Gethsemane; and He said to His disciples, “Sit here until I have prayed.” 33 And He took with Him Peter and James and John, and began to be very distressed and troubled. 34 And He said to them, “My soul is deeply grieved to the point of death; remain here and keep watch.” 35 And He went a little beyond them, and fell to the ground and began to pray that if it were possible, the hour might pass Him by. 36 And He was saying, “Abba! Father! All things are possible for You; remove this cup from Me; yet not what I will, but what You will.” 37 And He came and found them sleeping, and said to Peter, “Simon, are you asleep? Could you not keep watch for one hour? 38 “Keep watching and praying that you may not come into temptation; the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.” 39 Again He went away and prayed, saying the same words. 40 And again He came and found them sleeping, for their eyes were very heavy; and they did not know what to answer Him. 41 And He came the third time, and said to them, “Are you still sleeping and resting? It is enough; the hour has come; behold, the Son of Man is being betrayed into the hands of sinners. 42 “Get up, let us be going; behold, the one who betrays Me is at hand!”

Jesus led the men to the place of the public oil press, with its nearby camping places in the olive grove. He asked the Disciples to pray, and it is clear they could see that He was under great pressure. Peter was taken with those of the inner circle and asked repeatedly to pray, but found himself falling asleep. Ego constantly overestimates its strength and underestimates the costs of disobedience. The scene that began with Peter’s arrogant proclamations of being the ONE who would do right, end with him skulking and weeping.

Flaw Five: He was overpowering.

Mark 14:66 As Peter was below in the courtyard, one of the servant-girls of the high priest came, 67 and seeing Peter warming himself, she looked at him and said, “You also were with Jesus the Nazarene.” 68 But he denied it, saying, “I neither know nor understand what you are talking about.” And he went out onto the porch. 69 The servant-girl saw him, and began once more to say to the bystanders, “This is one of them!” 70 But again he denied it. And after a little while the bystanders were again saying to Peter, “Surely you are one of them, for you are a Galilean too.” 71 But he began to curse and swear, “I do not know this man you are talking about!” 72 Immediately a rooster crowed a second time. And Peter remembered how Jesus had made the remark to him, “Before a rooster crows twice, you will deny Me three times.” And he began to weep.

After the arrest of Jesus, the weeping Disciple teamed up with John who was known to the High Priest and his family. John was able to get into the front gate, but Peter was questioned at the door. A few minutes later the intuitive woman pointed our Peter before others. When confronted a third time, Peter CURSED JESUS and claimed no knowledge of Jesus. One Gospel writer simply said that as Jesus was being led away, “Jesus looked on Peter”. Ego can’t seem to slow down the train even when it is going toward a head on collision. It is a powerful force of false control – and it leads to our own ruin.

Peter came to Jesus because the words of Jesus made sense, and Jesus had great power. He saw the command Jesus had over the Word of God and the manifest presence of God in miracles. He believed that God was at work in Jesus. He was on board when the swords were handed out. He wanted to bring in the Kingdom with POWER. The problem with the power method, is that it is very SELF EMPOWERED and lacks the meekness Jesus calls upon in us. When we try to reach people with the POWER of our own PERSONALITY, we are often showing ourselves to me more in love with ourselves than our Savior! This is the EGO trap – we try to make God successful and elevate ourselves at the same time!

The EGO trap holds us when we believe that God got a bargain when He got us. It came manifest itself in a legalism control, or an overt and desperate need for constant affirmation in our walk and work for Jesus. In the end, it attempts to lead people to US and not JESUS.

Snapshot 4: A Broken Crying Woman (Mark 14:3; 6-9)

The final little snapshot is found in the earliest part of the chapter. We skipped over a woman (John 12 suggests it was Mary of Magdala) who was sacrificing to Jesus by pouring an expensive and cherished ointment on His feet, to allow her story to linger in our hearts as the final part of the teaching from Mark 14. Look briefly at her story:

Mark 14:3 While He was in Bethany at the home of Simon the leper, and reclining at the table, there came a woman with an alabaster vial of very costly perfume of pure nard; and she broke the vial and poured it over His head. 4 But some were indignantly remarking to one another, “Why has this perfume been wasted? 5 “For this perfume might have been sold for over three hundred denarii, and the money given to the poor.” And they were scolding her.6 But Jesus said, “Let her alone; why do you bother her? She has done a good deed to Me. 7 “For you always have the poor with you, and whenever you wish you can do good to them; but you do not always have Me. 8 “She has done what she could; she has anointed My body beforehand for the burial. 9 “Truly I say to you, wherever the gospel is preached in the whole world, what this woman has done will also be spoken of in memory of her.”

Jesus was pleased with the sacrifice of a woman who FELT SMALL, but gave what she had to be used of Him! She BROKE the vase of what she had to offer, and gave every drop to His use. There can be no more complete snapshot of surrender. She is in this story what the woman with the last coin of her home was in the previous study – one who gave all. How did Jesus respond?

First, He rebuffed those who criticized her action for their own cloaked motives and self-righteousness, protecting her with His words. “Let her alone” (6a). Next, He noted that her sacrifice was “a good deed” to His standard (6b)! Third, He identified her insights and priorities as the CORRECT ones (14:7). Fourth, He again showed the size of the sacrifice was the true gauge of her heart (14:8a). Fifth, He carefully identified that her work fit with God’s plan (14:8b). Finally, He promised that her act would be ever recalled by followers of Jesus in times to come (14:9).

Mary came to Jesus out of a broken heart and a failed life. His words set her free. His love unlocked the deep pain of her heart, and empowered her to serve by surrender and sacrifice. She understood the meekness Jesus called for – because her only hope of eternal life was found in His grace. She saw no goodness in herself. She had little, but she was unwilling to keep any of it for herself!

When we recognize our own deep sinfulness, we are ready to thankfully surrender to the One who gave all for us! This is the SURRENDER KEY– the key that opens us to be used of God for powerful tasks that last for the ages to come! The SURRENDER KEY allows Jesus access to all that we have, and all that we hope to accomplish. It is the gift God most wants. It smells of perfume, but is really not about the physical world – it is a spiritually open heart.

The truth is often beneath the surface.

Maybe you are hiding who you are beneath a cloak. There is danger in not considering the truth that God sees what no one else can.

I am told that there was a rock on the North Sea, just off the Firth of Tay, Scotland. This rock proved very dangerous to many ships, because when the high tide came in, the rock was hidden just below the surface. There was a warning bell attached to the rock by the Abbot of Aberbrothok, so when tide came in the hugh warning bell floated and rang out a warning to all ships that passed: there was hidden danger. This warning bell was stolen by a sea pirate. History records about a year after the said warning bell was stolen, there was a terrible pirate ship crash at this rock, and the pirate perished in the icy waters. It appears the pirate that stole the warning bell, perished on the hidden rock one stormy night. Why? He forgot that what was hidden could still be very dangerous.

God on the Move: “I Found a Little Jesus” – Colossians 2:1-3:2

When we lived in a village on the southern edge of Jerusalem, we had an olive wood stove that warmed us during the cold and rainy winter months. I loved that little stove! It sucked the dampness out of the air, and filled the whole house with a sweet smell that wafts from that oil-laden wood. Because trees in Israel are in short supply, I bought wood chips and refuse from the shops in Bethlehem that carved olive wood figurines for the pilgrims that came to learn about Jesus in that town. The spare parts of the wood were excellent for burning, and they could be purchased relatively cheaply. In the pile of throw away pieces were any figurines that were improperly cut or marred in the process of carving. Some were only half carved.

One day I asked my son to get me some of the wood chips from the bag, and he brought me a little Jesus figurine that was holding a lamb across His shoulders. Aaron asked me what it was, and I described it as a “little Jesus” from the “Good Shepherd” teaching of John’s Gospel. He giggled! He thought the idea of a “little Jesus” was one of the funniest things EVER. Though he grew up in Jerusalem, the Jesus he knew was a powerful and immense Savior – and while this figurine displayed gentleness, this little statue didn’t communicate any of that power he heard about – and it didn’t SEEM like Jesus to him. Yet the truth is that a tiny Jesus (in the lives of those who claim to follow Him) isn’t nearly as uncommon as you may think. MANY people, even many Christians, have a “tiny Jesus”. They recognize the baby in the manger, and they identify with the lifeless crucified form on a cross – but they don’t see Him as He is – the powerful and High King of Heaven –the Master of salvation. Lost in the Lamb, they cannot see the Lion of the tribe of Judah.

It is worth noting that marred view began shortly after the church spread from those who saw Jesus after the resurrection to other places in the Roman world. The message spread about His Resurrection, His power and His glory in the Heavens, but believers struggled, almost from the beginning, to see the Master more clearly than the earth and its powerfully tugging fleshly enticements. The Apostle Paul could see it clearly as he traveled and encountered the “tiny Jesus” problem. Too many believers were too fixated on this world – and the problem became clearer as visitors came describing the events of the first century churches to Paul in chains. He knew that believers needed to be encouraged to see the physical world properly – by seeing it through the “lens” of a powerful Savior. Here is a truth he taught to the believers at Colossae, a truth we touched on in the previous lesson…

Key Principle: When we see the Savior clearly (as He truly is!) we see life clearly. We must learn to see earth and its history in the perspective of its larger Heavenly context – or we won’t understand the story properly.

Let’s face it – life here doesn’t make sense without the record of our true origin from above – out of the mind and purposes of God. I am not saying there is no other posited explanation for humanity – I am saying that all explanations come down to the same thing. We are here. We exist. The material world is here – and it either got here from nothing and has no purpose or plan – or it got here by intelligent intention. I believe unapologetically that we who believe in the Bible as God’s proclamation and trust in God’s prophecy of the destiny of all things are not casting into a dark sea without solid evidence – quite the contrary.

Men and women, left to themselves, will use the modern conventions they are inventing to paint themselves into awkward corners and be quickly be reduced to absurdism. A story was related to me last week of a man who stood before a local council asking that he be granted “special minority status”, with all the privileges it entails for assistance to his business, because he feels as though he is African-American. There he stood – blonde hair, blue eyes, and boldly claimed if he could not be denied rights to a women’s restroom based on what he “felt about his own sexuality” then he should be able to claim “minority rights” provisions under the council if he felt himself to be a person of color. The council deliberated and could not find a way to deny him the special provisions without hindering their other accepted positions. Do you see where we are going? The absurdity of self-definition erases logical identity – and we have only begun to step off the precipice. Soon, anyone who feels like they are a horse will claim they should be given “stable privileges” – and there is little in the modern thought process to stop them from getting what they request. Reason dies – not with belief in God – but with the absence of God and His implanted moral definitions.

My point is simple: either there is a Creator or there is not. Either there is an objective definition of right and wrong that transcends popular vote and strong opinion, or there is not. That leads us to the Bible. So that you will grasp our approach, we are going to state up front that we believe we were created by a personal, loving and purposed God. We believe He both created earth and later came to earth. We believe He spoke and that He preserved His words. It is to those words we turn to learn from whence we have come, why we are here, and to what end we have been made.

With our Bibles open to Colossians 2, let me admit something. In our last lesson, we went too quickly (in my view) through something that is far too important for our time…so I want to re-visit a teaching of Paul from the second chapter of Colossians. For simplicity, if you reduce the chapter to its essential components, Paul related that there were essentially three problems the early believers in that time were facing that I believe we can still readily relate to:

• Some believers were confused by the circumstances and couldn’t figure out God’s direction based on what they observed in the daily news (2:1-7).

• Other believers were distracted by a focus on “their felt needs” that led them to desire something “more than Jesus” to fulfill their religious impulses (2:8-15). They weren’t satisfied with Jesus alone – and that was pushing them to act up.

• Still others were frustrated by seeking affirmation from other men and women, allowing others to dictate their practices in following Christ (2:16-3:1). They wanted to fit in, and that meant they sought the “like” button of their neighbors instead of the approval of Jesus above all.

If you look at these three issues, they have one root – where can the truth be found that will affirm us and guide our thinking? That is at the heart of this chapter – and it is worth more time and consideration. Consider these important questions:

• Do circumstances always reveal what God is doing? Paul addressed that is 2:1-7.

• Since life is relatively short and the end of it is certain (I have never met someone who is 212 years old), should I chase my inner hungers, feelings and desires to find purpose and truth – and then somehow hope I have “done enough good” to be recognized and accepted by God as I leave this life? Paul peeled that open in 2:8-15.

• Since the sea of life is so big and I feel my boat is so small – shall I simply lean on the wisdom of others and seek to follow a path that pleases them? Paul unpacked an answer in the balance of the chapter.

Paul simply addressed the answer to a HUGE question people face…How do I move through life with meaning, purpose and anticipation of an end that will offer me grace and not reward my true inner selfishness?

Distracted by the Circumstances (2:1-7)

As we open to the first seven verses of Colossians 2, don’t forget that Paul was under a “light chain” of arrest, awaiting a hearing before Nero. He waited two years, and that slowed his travel plans and made it difficult for him to be on the front line of spreading the Gospel. Add to that, some were making noises in the church that Paul was actually in hiding, or afraid to be bold during his incarceration – as if any of them could have done better. The cheap seats are often occupied by loud critics!

Paul knew that every believer could get distracted and lose a clear understanding of the work of Jesus in the pile of confusing circumstances. In fact, when we see life through the lens of this world alone – we lose HOPE, we lose PERSPECTIVE and we can even lose our grip on THE TRUTH. Mature believers CANNOT let circumstances shape their view of the world. Take a look…

Colossians 2:1 For I want you to know how great a struggle I have on your behalf and for those who are at Laodicea, and for all those who have not personally seen my face, 2 that their hearts may be encouraged, having been knit together in love, and [attaining] to all the wealth that comes from the full assurance of understanding, [resulting] in a true knowledge of God’s mystery, [that is], Christ [Himself], 3 in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. 4 I say this so that no one will delude you with persuasive argument. 5 For even though I am absent in body, nevertheless I am with you in spirit, rejoicing to see your good discipline and the stability of your faith in Christ. 6 Therefore as you have received Christ Jesus the Lord, [so] walk in Him, 7 having been firmly rooted [and now] being built up in Him and established in your faith, just as you were instructed, [and] overflowing with gratitude.

Three truths are perfectly clear.

First, Paul was greatly struggling in 2:1a – that is what the text said. Did that mean the message he was preaching was unreliable, because he emotionally struggled? Not at all! On our best day, we who know and love Jesus are broken vessels carrying a whole and perfect truth.

Second, Paul made clear his concern that some had never seen him or met him face to face in 2:1b-3. Did that imply they would be unable to grow to full maturity in his absence? If you read the verses carefully, Paul recognized that his work among them would be encouraging, but was not necessary for them to be fully completed in Christ. No man provides what God can do without a man. His Spirit and His Word can bring us into completion – and the body of Christ will shape us in our gifts and service functions. We are blessed to have each other – and we do help each other grow – but the reality is that God is doing the work. Paul’s concern was that “their hearts may be encouraged” (that is that they would have full and positive HOPE), that they would join with the others in the body “having been knit together in love” and that they would grow into a full and intimate understanding of Jesus “in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.” They needed to see Jesus clearly, not Paul. Godly leaders know they have a function – but it is NOT to give you more of THEM. They are to point you to Jesus – because He is Who you need.

Paul had a third concern. His emotional struggle surfaced because some were being misled (2:4-5) by evil men who were trying to pervert the truth for their own purposes. Did that mean the Colossians would be lost to persuasive arguments and perversions of truth? Not necessarily! Without Paul’s presence, yet some were exhibiting “good discipline and the stability of your faith in Christ.”

Here is the point: Men can mislead when troubles arise. Things aren’t what they seem to be – they are what God says they are. Close up, you cannot often see the truth – so God has revealed it in His Word.

The day that Jesus was arrested in the Garden of Gethsemane – the devil danced and those who knew the One Who is truth incarnate were pushed aside and wept in hiding. The night Jesus was slapped about in the house of Annas and Caiaphas, He looked stripped, broken and weak while those men looked powerful in their colorful religious costumes. The early morning when they drove nails in the hands of the Savior as He cried out in excruciating pain, Rome looked powerful, and Jesus looked weak and broken… but things aren’t as they appear, they are as God declares them in His Word!

Rome was ridding itself of a nuisance. The High Priest was removing a public challenge and political distraction. Crowds spat and cursed to hurl insults upon another and hope they could feel better about themselves. Yet that wasn’t what was truly happening at its core. You see, in a place of filth God was saving mankind. It didn’t look like Jesus was King – but He was, and He is still.

Fast-forward to Paul’s time. He was under arrest. He couldn’t be with them, and others were preying upon young believers and confusing them. It looked like the Christian message was about to meet its end in Colossae – but it didn’t. Paul told them: “6 Therefore as you have received Christ Jesus the Lord, [so] walk in Him, 7 having been firmly rooted [and now] being built up in Him and established in your faith, just as you were instructed, [and] overflowing with gratitude.”

He said: “In the same way you accepted by faith”, now they must daily walk in light of that faith.” They were told not to look at the circumstances – but to look more deeply at Jesus as God had revealed Him and live according to the knowledge that He is alive and at work changing them! “Just as roots grew in the tenderness of your heart”, Paul said, “so they should encourage those roots to grow deeper and stronger.” Just as they learned first steps in Christ, now they should allow each new lesson to take hold. They needed to add back the WONDER and the OVERWHELMING GRATITUDE they had when they first recognized Who Jesus is and what He did for them. Can we do any less?

Dear ones, we must not build our faith upon men – but on a deepening of our surrendered walk to Christ Himself. Don’t despair as God’s men lose their voice. Billy Graham’s voice is now all but silent – but Jesus is still speaking loudly to those who are lost and in need of a Savior. As you mature, more and more, walk on the solid words and teachings of Jesus – and spend your time listening to His voice from His Word. In Heaven you will have neither a Pastor nor a teacher – you will have Christ Himself. As you grow, get more and more used to the sound of His voice. You will find it in His revealed Word.

Discontented by Choices (2:8-15)

For some people, they matured past the point of looking at the circumstances. They were mature enough to know that whether it looked positive that day or not – God was very much at work. Yet there was still temptation to be drawn away from fullness in Christ. They weren’t distracted as much as discontented… and it was still rooted in their desire to be affirmed and accepted by others. Discontent was planted in them by men who desired to draw them away from Christ. Look at the words Paul wrote to them. As you do, notice the difference in the TONE from what we read in the first seven verses:

Colossians 2:8 See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deception, according to the tradition of men, according to the elementary principles of the world, rather than according to Christ.

Did you notice how much more DIRECTIVE the sound of Paul’s speech when he addressed this second problem. The first paragraph was tender and concerned – but this paragraph was more like a dictate than an encouragement. There is a good reason.

Truth isn’t something you can negotiate. You can’t add a little sewage to the water and still have a safe drink from that fountain. It takes more diligence, more tenacity to get to the truth and block the diseasing influences of the lies of the fallen world. Think of it as “spiritual hygiene”. Do you want your doctor to use clean tools in your surgery? If you do, then do you also want your teacher to use the cleanest moral tools in the training of your heart?

Paul cited specific traps that were set for them:

First, there were deliberate deceivers at work to trap them while appealing to “sensual tug points” in their still fallen hearts. Just because we love Jesus and trust Him for salvation does not mean we won’t still be tugged toward sinful practices – as though these will fulfill us. Paul warned: 2:8 “See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deception, according to the tradition of men, according to the elementary principles of the world, rather than according to Christ.” The term “taken captive” implies a hunter is at work, and they are intentionally looking to ensnare your life. In truth, captivity necessitates a hunter, a plan and an ultimate goal.

Let me say it plainly: As a believer, you walk with a target on your back. The enemy of Christ is the enemy of Christ’s people – never forget that. The brutality of that enemy on Jesus during the passion is no more content today than two thousand years ago. He wants to destroy you, your family, your testimony, your nation – everything you treasure. He wants to frustrate you, make you impatient for God’s assistance, and push you toward doubting God’s goodness. If he cannot have your soul in eternal destruction (because you have trusted Jesus as Savior) he will work to cut your progress down, and punish your every disciplined step if he is able.

Don’t forget also that he has familiar agents. Some come in lab coats and professor’s robes. I had a fifth grade teacher who did all he could to persuade me the Bible was false, and I was just a child! Some have erudite speech and persuasive arguments – but they do not know where man came from, why man is here and where mankind is going. They are both smart and clueless, educated and ignorant. They offer the best the “tradition of men” can dispense – but without Christ they do not offer life. They have the ABC’s of the world – but lack even the first syllable of an eternal vocabulary.

Second, Paul made the point that some of the most profound traps are found in philosophical systems that are carefully constructed to compete with and even attempt to defeat a Biblical world view. These “air filled” systems are carefully constructed deceptions that offer a life devoid of any eternal values, push against any personal accountability to God, and even distort temporal value systems. We live in a time when “smart men” can argue wrong into being right, and right into being silly. We are spending millions to invent a morality without God, and an existence without a Creator. Modern philosophies of naturalism (hoisted over an obviously created world), hedonism (as if one can ever get enough pleasure to stop focusing more and more on SELF), and humanism (as if some new technology can take away our basic penchant for violence, hatred and injustice) – all these have been carefully placed in our path to replace God and His Word in our public square. Some of our most educated men and women act as if all that was created on this continent was done by godless men – when the opposite is the record they left behind for us to follow. They need only read of William Bradford’s commitment to Christ to recognize they are fabricating their own history.

Bradford completed a work on the “Plymouth Plantation” in 1651, some six years before his death, and told us why he did what he did: His driving force was “a great hope and inward zeal they had of laying some good foundation, or at least to make some way thereunto, for the propagating and advancing the gospel of the kingdom of Christ in those remote parts of the world–yea, though they should be but even stepping stones unto others for the performing of so great a work.” Find that in a modern text book. You won’t, because it doesn’t fit the pagan narrative re-written for the upcoming generations. Modern history books are far too often fashioned on cleverly devised mythical scenarios – but the truth lives in the quills of our founders – and that truth can be a stubborn thing.

Note that 2:8 makes a clear statement that the goal of worldly philosophies is singular – to reduce the world to THIS LIFE. The goal is to ERASE any real thought of a spiritual world – to relegate it to the “hocus pocus” of superstitious fools. Look at the prescription Paul left – the inoculation every believer can have that will gain them resistance against the virulent power of the lies… It is the Person, work and Word of Jesus Himself.

Paul made clear that Jesus was the agent of Creation – so in Him the answers about origin, purpose and destiny lie open in the book of the past. The point of Colossians 2:9 “For in Him all the fullness of Deity dwells in bodily form…” is that He has all that we need to get to the truth – because the Truth is His very name.

He is enough – we need nothing more. Paul wrote in Colossians 2:10 “…and in Him you have been made complete…” there is nothing more, nothing better, no additional parts necessary. Jesus alone will bring you safely home to God when life’s journey is done.

He cannot be overruled – as Paul continued in Colossians 2:10b “…and He is the head over all rule and authority.” No other prophet, book or work needed to be completed for salvation to have its full effect. Buddha offered nothing more. Joseph Smith didn’t need another document to explain the contribution of Jesus. It was over when Jesus was done speaking His Word.

Note as well that He isn’t “part” of your sin solution – as Paul made clear in Colossians 2:11: “…and in Him you were also circumcised with a circumcision made without hands, in the removal of the body of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ; 12 having been buried with Him in baptism, in which you were also raised up with Him through faith in the working of God, who raised Him from the dead. 13 When you were dead in your transgressions and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He made you alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our transgressions, 14 having canceled out the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us, which was hostile to us; and He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross.” There was no need to add practices, even good ones, to the payment Jesus made. He cancelled the full debt of our sin. He took the dead and gave them life.

Jesus triumphed over every spiritual authority – Paul made clear that we march in a triumphal procession because the war has been won. He wrote: “15 When He had disarmed the rulers and authorities, He made a public display of them, having triumphed over them through Him.” Jesus isn’t competing with the devil for the world – He patiently awaits the devil to play his last card. His Father will raise His hand from Heaven’s throne and in a mere hour the religious rebellion around the world will be stripped of power and splendor. When the Father speaks, the markets of the world-wide economy will be crushed in short order. Jesus has won, and in a day soon, every knee will bow –without exception. No one is powerful before the Creator. No one is His rival. No one else will win in the final day. It will be as He has promised. The text of 2:15 declares there is a public spectacle coming when the world will marvel that it followed the enemy after he has been broken by the Savior.

Let me get to the point: If you want more than Jesus, it is because you do not truly understand Who Jesus is. You only want something other than Jesus because you neglected truly grasping the Person of Jesus! The careful gaze upon Christ will quench the thirst of your heart. We must come to recognize the great prize of salvation is not Heaven – it is Christ Himself. When we DIE to self, we are raised in new life with Jesus. He becomes our life, our hope, our satisfaction. That brings us to the last concern… some were…

Derailed by Consensus (2:16-3:1)

We don’t get salvation from others accepting our way to doing things. We don’t get it from religious accolades and lists of rules that define us. We are defined by Christ, by love for Him and trust in His Person and work alone. That is why lists don’t replace relationship with Christ. That is why though we are called to love one another, and to respect one another – we must carefully follow what Jesus told us to do in His Word, and not to take our cues from those who cannot show us from Scripture the path we should take. He argued:

Colossians 2:16 “Therefore no one is to act as your judge in regard to food or drink or in respect to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath day—17 things which are a [mere] shadow of what is to come; but the substance belongs to Christ. The celebrations God called upon Israel to learn of Him were no replacement for the relationship with the Savior God gave to the Colossian believers. They were given to Israel to help them see Who God is – but they were not intended to replace God in them.

God wasn’t against the disciplines, rules and celebrations He instituted in the Law. He simply didn’t want people to think that by following them people cooperated in their own redemption. We don’t. You and I do NOTHING to make God happy with us but believe Him and trust the payment Jesus made on our behalf. The bottom line is that anything that tries to provide “something more” is a FRAUD. People who bind us into other things DEFRAUD us from the prize – having and trusting Jesus for our salvation. Paul said it this way:

Colossians 2:18 Let no one keep defrauding you of your prize by delighting in self-abasement and the worship of the angels, taking his stand on [visions] he has seen, inflated without cause by his fleshly mind, 19 and not holding fast to the head…20 If you have died with Christ to the elementary principles of the world, why, as if you were living in the world, do you submit yourself to decrees, such as, 21 “Do not handle, do not taste, do not touch!” 22 (which all [refer] [to] things destined to perish with use) — in accordance with the commandments and teachings of men? 23 These are matters which have, to be sure, the appearance of wisdom in self-made religion and self-abasement and severe treatment of the body, [but are] of no value against fleshly indulgence.”

Here is the issue:

• Some will offer a prescription of DENIALS – acceptance by NOT DOING a list.
• Others will offer a perversion of WORSHIP – seeking another in the place of Jesus.
• Still others offer a personalization of TRUTH – THEY ALONE saw and heard from God – and you need to trust THEM to get to HIM.

People often prefer to obey rules instead of seeking Christ. Why? Because some religious lists appear to offer wisdom and make us look humble and austere as we harshly treat ourselves in self-denial – thereby making an attempt to earn God’s favor. The truth is that ANYTHING WE DO THAT REPLACES CHRIST’S WORK IS SHEER IDOLATRY – no matter what it looks like. When we look at life – we need to see it through the lens of what God says is right – not what others say. Chapter two tells us WHY we need to see life through Jesus – because circumstances cannot lead us; because a choice for anything other than Jesus will lead astray; and because there is no other consensus we need to be affirmed by other than Christ Jesus.

Chapter three opens with two verses that are not about WHY, but rather about HOW! How do we see life properly? We look at here through the lens of there.

3:1 Therefore if you have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. 2 Set your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth.

That is the way to view life… I was sorely tempted to close this message with a cute story – because it has been heavy. I will tell you a story, but it isn’t cute – it was a real story.

Let me tell you of a man who made his living as a fisherman until he met Jesus one day. He followed Jesus, sometimes incredibly badly, but he kept at it. God used him mightily, though his flaws and weaknesses were ever obvious. He was with Jesus. He walked on water with the Savior. He saw Lazarus raised from the dead! He ate bread multiplied by the hands of Jesus Himself…and one day, he heard God’s voice over Jesus’s head, declaring Him to be God’s Son. Peter told the story until he was ready to die. His last letter made it clear:

2 Peter 1:12 “Therefore, I will always be ready to remind you of these things…14 knowing that the laying aside of my [earthly] dwelling is imminent…16 For we did not follow cleverly devised tales when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of His majesty. 17 For when He received honor and glory from God the Father, such an utterance as this was made to Him by the Majestic Glory, “This is My beloved Son with whom I am well-pleased”—18 and we ourselves heard this utterance made from heaven when we were with Him on the holy mountain. 19 [So] we have the prophetic word [made] more sure, to which you do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star arises in your hearts.”

Peter was dying, and he wasn’t lying. He knew Jesus was real, and that made everything else in life clear – including his life’s purpose. When we see the Savior clearly (as He truly is!) we see life clearly. We must learn to see earth and its history in the perspective of its larger Heavenly context – or we won’t understand the story properly.