Jesus, Miracle Worker

When the Sabbath came, He began to teach in the synagogue; and the many listeners were astonished, saying, “Where did this man get these things, and what is this wisdom given to Him, and such miracles as these performed by His hands?  Mark 6:2 (NASB)

Son of God. Son of Man. Master Teacher. What else could a guy ask for in a Savior? How about Miracle Worker?

Of course we know that Jesus is a miracle worker – He performed many miracles beginning with the miracle at the wedding feast. Isn’t it interesting that Jesus created “new wine” for the wedding – that which is pure, unadulterated with fermentation? Later in His ministry, He tells us that no one puts new wine in old wineskins because the new wine, as it ferments, expands and breaks the old wineskin, which is no longer pliable.

Shortly after the miracle of the new wine, Jesus began to heal the sick, give sight to the blind, raise the dead, and cast out demons. All of these are spectacular events, but I believe one of the greatest miracles was the feeding of the 5,000. In the middle of nowhere Jesus produced enough bread and fish to feed the multitude. Oh, by the way, the 5,000 count was just men. I’m sure we could count a few thousand women and children in the group as well. Now THAT’S a “feed”. It wasn’t fancy, but it was good. The reason I think this was a great miracle is this: it proved that Jesus had the ability to feed an army – but He chose to go to the cross alone. It also demonstrates His teaching about the “bread of life” – He is the bread of life, and He is sufficient to feed an unlimited quantity of people.

I am also attracted to the miracle of walking on water! How I would like to be able to do that! Can you imagine the places we could catch fish if we could only get there? No problem. Step out of the boat and walk to the hard to reach fishing hole! But again the miracle was more than meets the natural eye. Jesus demonstrated to His disciples that He controlled nature. He could overcome the problem of gravity. Peter sank after a few steps. Jesus immediately stopped the storm, and the sea became as calm as glass. There is more to the miracles than we can imagine.

Every miracle had a lesson or a purpose. Every one of them resulted in changed lives – no not only the physical ones – the spiritual ones. Each resulted in the advancement of the Kingdom of God. This trend was continued in the Book of Acts. Peter opened the eyes of the blind beggar – and thousands were redeemed. It seems, though I cannot be totally certain, that every miracle performed in the New Testament was first and foremost evangelistic! That is the way it should be even today.

Yes, it is good to have a Savior who is wholly God and wholly man. It is wonderful to have a Savior who teaches God’s truth in a way that can be understood by the common man. It is powerful to have a Savior who can heal the sick, feed the multitudes, and raise the dead. But there is something even greater than all of this. We will discuss that next time.

Jesus, Master Teacher

And He began teaching in their synagogues and was praised by all.
Luke 4:15 (NASB)

People can and will say a lot of things about Jesus, but one thing most people agree upon is the fact that Jesus was a master teacher. His lessons were at the same time easy to listen to and hard to comprehend. The parables form a perfect example.
In the parable of the sower, Jesus tells the story of a farmer who planted seed in four different types of soil. Each soil produces different results. It seems that the majority of the hearers of this parable enjoyed the entertainment, but failed to comprehend the message behind the story. They went away satisfied that they had heard a powerful teacher. But the disciples were not satisfied. They knew there was something more to the story … they just couldn’t put their finger on it. Perhaps being braver than most and more familiar with the Master, they asked, “What did you mean by that parable?” And Jesus proceeded to tell them the real meaning – the seed is the Word of God, the soil represents men’s hearts …
Jesus also used the teaching tool we call proverbs. The Beatitudes fit this bill.
“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. … Matt. 5:3-4 (NASB) Each little statement is a proverb, a catchy saying that delivers a message. This style the people readily understood. Simple thoughts put into simple language yields truths that can sink into the heart and take root.
Jesus was not always kind in His teachings. Do you recall the time when Jesus went into the Temple and found the money changers fleecing the people? With anger in His eyes, He took a cord and made it into a whip and drove the wicked businessmen out. As they fled, He shouted that God’s House was a place of prayer … and they had made it into a den of thieves. While the populace probably enjoyed that display, it is certain that the money changers and the priests who profited from their thievery were no to happy!
Jesus also had a sense of humor when He taught. He called Herod “that fox”. He has some rather juicy things to say to the Pharisees as well. “But woe to you Pharisees! For you pay tithe of mint and rue and every kind of garden herb, and yet disregard justice and the love of God; but these are the things you should have done without neglecting the others. Luke 11:42 (NASB) I can almost hear the crowds cheering Jesus on during this lesson! But the point was made, and all understood. Working the loopholes would no longer be an acceptable practice. Jesus removed the “gray” from the Law – the gray the interpreters of the Law had put in for their own benefit.
Yes, Jesus was God. He was man. And He was a teacher. It would serve us well to re-familiarize ourselves with His teachings. We just might learn a thing or two about how to live our lives while dwelling in this foreign land.

Of Lowly Birth – The Humanity of Jesus

Now in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city in Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin engaged to a man whose name was Joseph, of the descendants of David; and the virgin’s name was Mary.

Luke 1:26-27 (NASB)

Some of the greatest people have come from lowly births. Abraham Lincoln was born in a log cabin and was raised in rural Illinois. John Bunyan, author of Pilgrim’s Progress, was born to a craftsman. There is no denying that both men have made great inroads into human history. There is another born of lowly birth. Yesterday we talked about Jesus’ divinity. Today we will look at his human birth.

The wise men from the east certainly didn’t expect to find the new King where they did. You recall that they stopped in Jerusalem first. After all, Jerusalem was the home of the governing ruler. It seems logical that the son of a king would be found in a royal palace. Instead, the scholars of Jerusalem sent them to Bethlehem – and the star led them to a stable behind an inn. There, lying in a manger and wrapped in the garb of poor infants, they found Jesus, the newborn King. They did not seem particularly repulsed at the idea of finding a king there, though I suspect they had some interesting conversations on the way home!

But the story did not begin in Bethlehem. Indeed, the physical birth of Jesus began in Nazareth when the Angel of the Lord spoke to a young engaged girl named Mary. He made an announcement that every woman of childbearing age in Israel had hoped to hear – she was chosen to be the bearer of the Son of God – the Deliverer of Israel – the long awaited Messiah. Of course Mary though the infant would be the son of Joseph, her betrothed husband, but that was not to be. The angel promised that her son would be the direct descendant of God, the Father. In short, she would be an unwed mother bearing an illegitimate son. In Israel, a person did not get much lower and more humbled than that! And, to further complicate things, Joseph who took Mary as his wife anyway, was just a simple carpenter. His prospects weren’t great. He would never be able to send the Messiah to the proper schools so He could become a noted scholar who would be in a position to transform Israel. Yes, the birth of the Son of God was lowly.

Oh, there is one more thing that we need to discuss. The lineage of Jesus from His earthly parents went straight through the ages to King David! Mary, whose lineage Jesus bore by blood lead there. But God in His infinite wisdom knew that the Jews did not have much respect for a woman’s lineage, therefore He had arranged for the visible father of the King of Kings to be from the same family line as well! It is a certainty that Jesus had a human side to Him. And this is important. Some thirty years after His birth, Jesus would begin His ministry with a period of temptation. If he were purely God, this would have been nothing to brag about. But His humanness made the temptation real. Three times satan tried to get Jesus to forsake His true role as redeemer and follow the “path less traveled.” Three times Jesus rebuked the devil and resisted the temptation – even though He knew the ultimate outcome of His ministry on a Passover Day just three years later.

With the knowledge that Jesus is of human descent, we can rest assured that our flesh can overcome evil – for we who have been “born again” have been remade in the spiritual image of Jesus, the God-man, the Son of God and the Son of Mary. With the knowledge that Jesus is totally divine in His parentage, we have the assurance that we, having been made in His likeness, are true sons and daughters of God the Father and share in the same inheritance as Jesus!

Come back again. I promise it will be less than a month before I continue this line of thought.

Coincidence?

Harley's Health

I’ve read it several times in the past couple weeks. It reads in various forms, but the meaning is the same: “I don’t believe in coincidence.” “There is no such thing as coincidence.” “With God, there are no coincidences.” As I have looked back over my years, I have come to totally agree with this statement.

I believe that each one of us was born with a purpose in mind. When I was a kid, I used to be enthralled with mechanical things. I loved to look at them trying to figure out how they worked. I’ve lost track of how many items I’ve taken apart – and some I actually put back together. They ranged from a sled with broken slats, to a small gasoline engine, to a watch. The sled was never repaired. The engine was returned to service, though I never figured out how to turn it…

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