Desert Temptations - Part 3

(See parts 1 and 2 also.)

During the second temptation, the tempter takes Jesus to the highest spot of the temple and says something like, "So, you're the Son God. Throw yourself down since it is written,

'For he will command his angels concerning you
to guard you in all your ways;

they will lift you up in their hands,
so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.'"

We read through Psalm 91, the psalm the tempter is quoting. Why did the tempter pick this verse? Did Jesus key in on "trust" in verse 2 and gain confidence knowing that if trusted, and not tested, God would be his "fortress"? Did he gain strength from verse 13 where if he trusted, "young lions and serpents you will trample underfoot." The serpent image took us back to the garden, the temptations there, and the promise that the snake would have his head crushed. Did he picture Adam and Eve and know this time he could prevail with the help of God? (The lion image bothered us abit since we thought of the lion of Judah but by the end of the night we found other verses that made this work quite beautifully. We'll describe later.)

Maybe fear stole into Jesus' heart when he thought of verse 16, "I will satisfy him with long life and show him salvation." Standing at the "highest point", he might have been on the corner of the temple where the shofar is blown to announce the offerings. In his humanity, did Jesus know that years from now, at 3pm, the shofar would sound and he would breath his last on the cross? (I have more on thoughts on this here.)

Maybe the "long life" verse brought him to another scripture, "...so that you may enjoy long life. Hear, O Israel". Shema! Hear! Hear, O Israel. Yes, the Lord is our God, the Lord is one! And maybe his mind raced through that section of Deuteronomy to verse 16, "Do not test the Lord your God as you did at Massah."

What happened at Massah? Israel was on their way to Sinai from Egypt, being led again by the Spirit, and they quarreled. "Give us water", they cried out! "Is the Lord among us or not?" In the heat (day), in the cold (night), in the desert they doubted and they quarreled. God of course provided, but the people did not trust. Would Jesus succeed and place his trust in God?

(Disclaimer, take this paragraph with a grain of salt since I'm not a linguist and don't read Hebrew yet).
Moses named the place Massah after this event. Originally, it was called Rephidim, which is the masculine form of rphiydah, which means "balusters" according to Strong's Dictionary. The Israelites are in a place called the "balusters", or the place of railings. Did Jesus grab this "railing" when he looked over the edge of the highest point? Did this "railing" of God's Word save him?

Ginger pointed out the story following Massah. Maybe Jesus remembered what happened next, the battle with the Amalekites. Joshua fought against them and was victorious as Aaron and Hur "lifted up" Moses hands. God would lift up Jesus, but in His time. Did Jesus picture the crucifixion again, but this time sense victory? Did he glimpse that he too would be lifted up as Moses lifted up the snake so that God's love could be shown for the whole world?

And Jesus responds, "Do not test the Lord your God."

More to follow.

Desert Temptations - Part 2

During the first temptation, the tempter says something like, "Hey, you've been fasting forty days and you're hungry. So, you're the Son of God, make some bread!" Was it a sin to turn stone into bread? Clearly creating bread could be good since later on Jesus feeds the five and the four thousand. So what else is happening?

Did Jesus look down at the stones to which the tempter was pointing? Considering the desert is covered in stones (I'll post pictures once my server is back up), he must have seen stones all over the ground. Stones covering the ground. Covering the ground. "When the dew was gone, thin flakes like frost on the ground appeared on the desert floor." Manna came from heaven because the Israelites grumbled and did not trust God to provide. They tested Him and asked to be fed immediately. Did Jesus picture the stones as manna on the desert floor?

Jesus' response in Matthew is, "Man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of God." The beginning of the verse that Jesus is quoting reads, "He humbled you, causing you to hunger, and then feeding you with manna." Did the stones all over the desert floor remind Jesus of manna? Did he picture it? Did he then remember this verse about manna and living on every word from God? Surely his stomach was grumbling, just like the Israelites. But he didn't voice his complaint. He didn't grumble. He was being led by the Spirit and he trusted. Jesus tamed his tongue, and he did not speak to turn these stones to bread. We found this train of thought so encouraging because it shows us how we can resist and the temptation will flee.

Lily's awake. More to follow.

Desert Temptations - Part 1

With friends this week, we had an excellent discussion on a story from the gospel according to Matthew that relates how Jesus was tempted in the desert (Matthew 4:1-11). I hope to capture the highlights here. If I miss anything, please let me know, and feel free to contribute or discuss with comments.

The first question was asked by Michelle, "Does the tempter really have the authority to give away the kingdoms? Who gave it to him?" We noted that Jesus refers to the "prince of this world" but didn't go much further with this.

We spent most of the evening wrestling with the significance of the three temptations. The gospel according to Luke seems to stress that Jesus was tempted for forty days. Surely he was tempted more than three times, so why are these three mentioned?

We discussed the similarities with the beginning of Matthew and the Exodus of Israel as recorded in the books of Genesis, Exodus, and Deuteronomy. We noted the following:

1. In Genesis, a man named Joseph (who was the son of Jacob, the great grandson of Abraham, and ruler of Egypt) took Israel to Egypt to escape hardship (famine). In Matthew, a father named Joseph (also the son of a Jacob according to Matthew), took Jesus and his mother to escape hardship (murder by Herod).
   
2. In Exodus, the Israelites were then immersed in the Red Sea (Sea of Reeds) after they left Jesus. In Matthew, Jesus is immersed in the Jordan by John.
   
3. In Exodus, the Israelites were then led by the spirit of God into the desert (with a pillar of fire and a pillar of smoke, two pillars--like the strong legs of a shepherd). Likewise, in Matthew, Jesus is led by the spirit into the desert.
   
4. In Exodus, Israel spent about forty days getting to Sinai. In the Gospels, Jesus spent forty days in the desert. (We also wondered when Jesus entered the desert. Wouldn't it be something if he left right after Passover? Just like Israel?)
   

The rest of the evening was spent studying if particular events in the exodus of Israel out of Egypt to Sinai could be related specifically to the three temptations. Matthew seems to be explicitly drawing events from Jesus' life that tie back to a dominant theme to the people of Israel, the Exodus.

More to follow.

Simcha

Simcha...Hebrew for joy. RVL often talks of the joy and passion with which he has seen orthodox Jews celebrate and praise God. I experienced a taste of it this Saturday. Lily and I were walking to the hardware store to buy parts to fix the toilet. (I guess if we were Essene we could have waited till Sunday, but we're not, so the deed must be done.) On the way there, we passed a group of ten or so young boys lead by a woman on their way to synagogue for Shabbat. A bit chicken, I feebly ventured out, "Shabbat Shalom." All the boys turned around to me and yelled, and I mean yelled back, "Shabbat Shalom!!" Then they hopped and skipped on their way while giving me a few strange looks. It was fun to see and Lily squealed in delight and clapped.

Rock Connection?

Yesterday, I had a conversation about Caesarea Philippi. Picture a large rock cliff, a cave with water streaming out of the rock, a pagan temple, and the gates of the underworld. So, it's been on my mind. Today, reading I Corinthians 10 it came to mind again. Hear this:

¹For I do not want you to be ignorant of the fact, brothers, that our forefathers were all under the cloud and that they all passed through the sea. ²They were all baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea. ³They all ate the same spiritual food ⁴and drank the same spiritual drink; for they drank from the spiritual rock that accompanied them, and that rock was Christ. ⁵Nevertheless, God was not pleased with most of them; their bodies were scattered over the desert.

Moses struck a rock (he should have just spoken), water came out, and Israel was being established. Jesus is at a place where water is coming out of a rock and speaks of establishing his movement. Also, at some point he speaks of streams of living water flowing from a person. Paul, in 1 Corinthians, calls Jesus the rock from which water flowed. Paul is reminding us of the Exodus. Is Jesus as well? Is Paul referring to the Philippi event too? These seem to be some interesting connections to ponder.

Foolish wisdom

I met with a professor recently to talk about geomagnetic micropulsations and spent the first hour discussing marriage, my trip to Israel, and the Gospels. Concerning marriage, he made some interesting remarks regarding the civic responsibility of marriages to raise children to strengthen and maintain society. Concerning my trip to Israel, I whipped out my laptop and talked about my newly corrected view of "green pastures", the earthiness of Jesus' parables, and the Stanford of the Galilee--Capernaum. Concerning the Gospels, he brought up several times the numerous contradictions (a thread I hear often in academia and to which I will return to in detail at some point). The wisdom of academia...

This week I was reading Paul's first letter to the Corinthians where he discusses wisdom. He has strong words about the relying on one's personal wisdom. "Adonai knows that the thoughts of the wise are worthless." These verses could explain parts of the anti-intellectualism that Thomas Frank discusses in "What's the Matter With Kansas". I haven't read it yet but a friend brought it to my attention. Do we blindly accept what we are taught, or what we read from particular texts?

I am not sure this is what Paul intended. Paul mentions the enrichment by God's love in Corinth as evident by their power of speech and depth of knowledge (I Cor 1:4-7). So, studying and knowledge are seen as good gifts. Also, Paul was a zealous rabbi who studied under Gamaliel (one of the greatest first century rabbis). Paul was clearly proud of his credentials. Do you know the amount of study it takes to be a talmid of Gamaliel? Paul likely had the Tanakh memorized. How much study did that take?!

Paul's discussion about wisdom is held in parentheses by a discussion of unity, and the following of one teacher over another. The Corinthian church had been fractured into those who followed different leaders (sound familiar?). This then must be central to his thoughts on wisdom. Does our wisdom puff us up and divide our communities? Or does it unite us in a common purpose? This brings us to the question then, what is wisdom? A topic for later.

Wisdom, her sweet voice is in the street. Love her and she will watch over you. Where does it begin? Reverence on a moon lit night. A shiver when diving in the rain, she'll explain. A smile like salvation. All I want is your face in a locket, a picture in my pocket.

On the side again?

Dear President Bush and Vice President Cheney,

I am alarmed today after reading Nicholas Kristof's editorial in the NY Times on May 3, 2005 concerning your request to delete provisions about Darfur from current legislation. As you rightly named the tragedy there as genocide, so other agencies are reporting hundreds of thousands of dead due to ethnic violence. Can we stand by on the side again as innocents are slaughtered?

As a person of faith, I respect your fight for life issues such as unborn children and Terry Shiavo. Concerning Terry, you called for us to "build a culture of life, where all Americans are welcomed and valued and protected, especially those who live at the mercy of others." Does this not apply also to the innocent in Sudan? My heart breaks when I hear of the genocide in Sudan. I personally am limited in what I can do, but this great country, led by you, has the opportunity to save hundreds of thousands of lives.

Please be consistent in your culture of life. You have an opportunity to lead in the world in saving, feeding, clothing, and hundreds of the "least of these". Please act on our behalf. For me and my family, this is far more important than the price of gas or social security.

Thank you for your time.

--James

"Real Fact" #25

I was drinking my Snapple today, Mango Madness, and the bottom of the cap had "Real Fact" #25.

The only food that doesn't spoil is honey.

And there was a Rabbi in the desert. After fasting forty days, he was hungry. The tempter came to him and said, "If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread." The Rabbi responded, "Man does live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God."

Does His word have a taste? Psalm 119 says, "How sweet are your words to my taste, sweeter than honey in my mouth!"

I threw out the molding bread in my kitchen today. I'm glad my Rabbi's honey will never grow mold!

It's a long night...

Africa Africa Africa, take me there, take me away,
to that place, to the endless sky, send me on a magic carpet.

Give my soul what it wants, peace, to give peace to to others.
Let me give my heart to the world, I'll give my love too.
Let me help........ Let me change the world.

I'll free you, help me, i'll help you more, me and you,
Let' change the world, let's give it the peace it wants.

We can help.....today, come on

2 is better then one, whats better then 2?
so what can 3 do, one million, or 2, let's change the
world.

-- Grace A. (with some help from Bono)

Heavy Lifting (Part 2 of ?)

I did a quick search online and looked for rabbinic references to moving mountains. Was Jesus drawing on rabbinic thought? I didn't find any. Has anyone seen anything?

Next, I went through the Tanakh looking for references to mountains. Other than part of setting descriptions, I found the prophets use the picture most often. Isaiah talks about the chief amoung mountains. He also talks about preparing the way for the Lord by every mountain being brought low and all mankind will see it. Jeremiah talks about the destruction of a mountain, Babylon. Daniel talks of a rock cut from a mountain that crushes kingdoms and endures forever. I was particuarly struck by Zechariah 4:

"Who are you, O mighty mountain? Before Zerubbabel you will become level ground. Then he will bring out the capstone to shouts of 'God bless it! God bless it!' "

I have been absorbed by the prophet Zechariah for these past few weeks. His words echo in the Gospels in many ways, or is it the other way around? Palm Sunday was last week, the day when Jesus entered Jerusalem the week before his death. The Gospel writers turn to Zechariah 9 when describing this:h

Rejoice greatly, O Daughter of Zion!
Shout, Daughter of Jerusalem!
See, your king comes to you,
righteous and having salvation,
gentle and riding on a donkey,
on a colt, the foal of a donkey.

The following verses are amazing. Peace is proclaimed. Bows are broken. Chariots are taken away. Were the people thinking this when Jesus entered the city and he wept for Jerusalem? John records that they took palm branches and went to meet him. Why? Did they wave them? I thought so until Kevin pointed out recently at Via that they were laid down, so the Gospels say. So they weren't waved? Why?

All this happens the day before Jesus makes the statement about faith that moves mountains.

A Million Voices

Ni dyar'izuba, Rizagaruka,
Hejuru yacu, Ni nduzaricyeza ricyeza.
These are the cries of the children...

Ni dyar'izuba, Rizagaruka,
Hejuru yacu, Ni nduzaricyeza.
Lord, can't you hear us calling you?

Were we there when...they called out for our help?

Tremble...tremble.

Heavy Lifting (Part 1 of ?)

During his talk last week, Jim Wallis mentioned "faith that could move a mountain" as a motivating force for social movements like abolition, women's suffrage, and civil rights. He was quoting Jesus as recorded in the Gospels, Matthew 21:21,22:

²¹Jesus replied, “I tell you the truth, if you have faith and do not doubt, not only can you do what was done to the fig tree, but also you can say to this mountain, ‘Go, throw yourself into the sea,’ and it will be done. ²²If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer.”

Metaphorically, this is a powerful image of active faith but I've always struggled with the picture. Would Everest suddenly be flung to the sea? Would Shasta hover all the way to the Pacific? It never dawned on me to ask what mountain was Jesus talking about until recently when it was brought to my attention. What if there was one in particular he had in mind? Where did Jesus say this? Did he say it more than once? If there is a particular mountain, does it add to the picture of faith that Jesus is painting? Let's wrestle with this.

Pliny vs. Brown

I read the Da Vinci code awhile back and my wife is reading it now. This is not a full treatment of the book, I'm sure they exist elsewhere, but I did notice something this morning. My wife brought up a question about Brown's (the author) discussion on the divinity of Jesus. He says that before the council of Nicea in 325, followers of Jesus believed him to be mortal only. This appears to be wrong. David Stern in his commentary on the first chapter of John quotes Pliny the Younger, one of the first pagans to mention Christians. In the Letter to Emperor Trajan, around 112 C.E., Pliny writes that they gather to "recite by turns a form of words" "to Christ as a god". So, according to Pliny, Christians were discussing the divinity of Jesus 200 years earlier than the Council of Nicea.

Buying the poor for a pair of shoes

Last night we heard Jim Wallis, the author of God's Politics and editor of Sojourners, speak at a nearby church. He critiqued modern politics and offered an alternative which focused on hope, common ground, and bi-partisan solutions. He quoted from Proverbs, "Without a vision, the people perish." His experiences have taught him God is personal but not private. The prophets of old were quite clear that God was very political in his concern for justice, the poor, and the oppressed. He ended with this thought, "We are the ones we've been waiting for." He also quoted my favorite Irishman! There is a quick interview online at the San Francisco Chronicle. Thank you Eric for the link.

I read the book of Amos this morning. These words are ringing through my head, "Listen, you who swallow the needy and destroy the poor of the land! ... buying the needy for money and the poor for a pair of shoes. ... Enough! I will make all this crush you." Buying the poor for a pair of shoes...Wallis called a budget a moral document which shows our priorities. Fox ran a story Saturday night called "Tsunami: Story of Tragedy and Hope". They interviewed a woman who has devoted her life to rescuing children from the slave trade. The tsunami wiped out the last ten years of her work. Children are now easily being bought and sold again. For the price of a pair of shoes? Fox also told of a group in the Bay Area who worked through World Vision to purchase a home for a Srilankan family that lives on less than a dollar a day.

I just bought Quicken 2005. It's free after a rebate.

Intelligent Design

I haven't given the origins of life much thought lately but if I end up in academia I probably should. Today, in the NY Times there was an interesting and short description of intelligent design without the religious fervor that most often plagues other descriptions. It may require logging into NY Times but that isn't too much trouble. The four basic arguments include:

1. We can often recognize the effects of design in nature. For example, Mt. Rushmore was clearly designed whereas the Rockies seem much more random and undesigned.
2. The physical marks of design are visible in aspects of biology. For example, Francis Crick, co-discoverer of the structure of DNA, once wrote that biologists must constantly remind themselves that what they see was not designed but evolved.
3. There is no good explanation for the foundation of life that doesn't involve intelligence.
4. In the absence of any convincing non-design explanation, we are justified in thinking that real intelligent design was involved in life. Design should not be overlooked simply because it's so obvious.

What is your name?

There is a story of an old rabbi who, as rabbi's do, often walked through the country side reciting the text and praying. While under the sky and the stars, he was under God's creation and he felt closer to the Creator. One day, deep in the text, he went the wrong direction at the fork in the rode and ended up at a Roman garrison rather than his home town of Capernaum where many other rabbi's lived. As he approached the garrison still focusing on the text rather than his location, a voice boomed out from above, "Who are you, and what are you doing?" The rabbi looked up and answered, "What do they pay you to ask me that question?" The guard, a bit baffled by the rabbi's answer, replied, "Three denarii a week. Why do you ask?" The rabbi said, "I'll double your pay if you come ask me that every morning!"

Who are you, and what are you doing? Good questions. Adonai asks a similar question of Eve and Adam (Gen. 3). Jacob wrestled all night only to be asked who he was and he received a new name (Gen. 32). Jesus asked the wild man from the Gadarenes' his name (Mat. 8). "Legion", he replied. A man with a thousand names, a thousand identities. Known and yet unknown. Kent Dobson wrestles with these questions in his recent message at Marshill (11/28/04). Good stuff.

Unforced rhythms of grace

"Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you'll recover your life. I'll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me--watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace . I won't lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you'll learn to live freely and lightly." -- Jesus.

Theo Geyser, a South African guest speaker at Marshill, tells a wonderful tale of grace and its rhythm. He calls us to rest and tells his story of how he needed the rest that Jesus gives. Plus, there is a great, whale of a story by Rob.

Revolutionary Christmas I: The Advent of Caesar Augustus

Here's my summary of Part 1 of Mars Hill's recent Christmas series.

Summary: (details)
Bell sets the context of the Christmas story by answering the question, "What was the world like when Jesus was born?" The Romans ruled by extreme force from Briton to India. The caesar's were considered gods. Slogans such as "son of god", "he will establish a universal empire of peace", and "divine king of salvation" were prevalent. Caesar taxed to pay his war bills. It is estimated that 80-90% of a person's income in Judea was given in taxes. So, why does Luke include certain details? Why caesar? Why a census? How do the angels' words relate to the slogans used of caesar? How is the story about religion? About politics? About power? About worship?

Thoughts:
I guess you could say Rome was the world's first super power. It seems the Text has much to say about true power and how to wield it. Luke is asking in his Christmas story, "Who is your Lord? Is it Caesar?"

I'm part way through a book that Bell mentions, Christ and the Caesars by Ethelbert Stauffer. Stauffer is a coin expert and comments heavily on the god-like proclamations made by the caesars on the coins. When Jesus is asked if taxes should be paid to caeasar, he was probably shown a coin with caesar on it (an idol/graven image) that claimed caesar as god. What was Jesus thinking when he saw the text on the coin? And yet he says render to caesar what is his.

In the sermon, Bell mentions temples built to honor and worship Augustus. We visited a Roman temple in northern Israel that dates to the first century and might have been built by Herod as part of the Augustus' emperor cult. The temple site is called Omrit and is an active dig. The column capitals are at least one Quentin tall, see the photos. It's near the road to Damascus, which Paul traveled, but that's another story.

Here are a few of my photos from Sepphoris (Zippori in Hebrew) and Gamla, two places that Bell mentions. Here is a slide show on Gamla from Roy Blizzard (thanks Eric).

Revolutionary Christmas

Mars Hill has a new sermon series called Revolutionary Christmas. Part 1 deals with the Roman empire and the kingdom that ruled when the King was born. Part 2, discusses Herod, the rule of Judea at the time of Jesus' birth. Part 3 appears to discuss the politics of Mary's song. I'll post my summaries as I listen to them.

I can see your house from here

The new U2 album has been ringing through my head for the last two months and it's blowing me away. Have you heard their new single, Vertigo? If not, check it out at u2.com. Then read this.

Bono was asked, "Where is Vertigo?" He replied, "It's a dizzy feeling, a sick feeling, when you get up to the top of something and there's only one way to go. That's not a dictionary definition; that's mine. And in my head I created a club called Vertigo with all these people in it and the music is not the music you want to hear and the people are not the people you want to be with. And then you just see somebody and she's got a cross around her neck, and you focus on it -- because you can't focus on anything else. You find a little tiny fragment of salvation there."

Vertigo...a dizzying place where temptation is near. Sounds like Matthew 4. Verse 5 reads, "Then the devil took him to the holy city and had him stand on the highest point of the temple." And later in verses 8 and 9, "Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor. 'All this I will give you...'"

The "highest point" of the temple is likely the southwest corner, the place where the shofar was blown. Archaeologists have found the engraved corner stone which served as a platform for the priest blowing the shofar. At the temple, the shofar was blown to call people to assembly and to announce the daily sacrifices. Here are a few photos of the southwest corner stone I took this summer in Israel.

So, imagine. Jesus is being tempted at the place where the shofar was blown. He is standing at the place where the shofar sounded for the ninth hour sacrifice (3pm). Did he flash forward to his ninth hour sacrifice (Matthew 27:46)? “Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?”

There is a verse in Vertigo that goes:

All this, all this can be yours
All of this, all of this can be yours
All this, all of this can be yours
Just give me what I want
And no one gets hurt.

Was Jesus dizzy? Did he lean over the parapet? Did he see a "girl with crimson nails" to remind him of the truth? Thank God something did.

May something always bring us back to our senses.

(Steve, the title is for you...)