The Path of Greatness

Hello everyone.  

I will continue my exegesis of Luke 9, continuing the story with a discussion of what makes greatness. Here is my translation of Luke 9:46-50:

46 An argument arose among the disciples as to who among them was the greatest. 47 Jesus, knowing what they were thinking in their hearts, took a child and stood the child next to him. 48 Then he said to his disciples, “Whoever receives this child in my name, receives me. And whoever receives me, receives the one who sent me, because whoever is least among all of you, that person is the greatest.” 49 Answering this, John said, “Master, we saw someone casting out demons in your name, so we stopped him, because he was not following along with us. 50 Jesus responded, “Don’t stop him, because whoever is not against us is with us.”

In verse 44, Jesus shared with them that he is going to be betrayed and killed.  What are the apostles thinking about?  Which one of them is the best. Darrell Bock shares a noticeable contrast here.  Jesus has been focused on serving, while his disciples seem to be focused on their own self-importance.  His humility is contrasted with their pride. (Bock, 894.)

As the disciples are arguing amongst themselves as which of them was the greatest.  Peter, James and John had plenty of weapons for such an argument, having just witnessed something that the other disciples had not seen, but had been told not to talk about it. I can imagine one of them trying to win an argument, “If you had seen what I’ve seen, you would admit that I am greater than you.” 

“Oh, what have you seen?” 

“Well, I can’t talk about it, but you knew....”

The problem was that none of them understood what it meant to be great.  They probably thought greatness meant that they would hold some prominent place in Jesus’ earthly reign, after he drove the Romans out and restored Israel. They certainly did not seem to understand that greatness came from humility and service. 

Jesus brings in a child and has the child stand there next to him and he says that the one who receives this child receives Jesus and ultimately God himself.  That person is the greatest.  In the Greek, the text uses the word παιδίον (paidon).  It means ‘child’ and does not give gender.  I have always pictured this as a little boy, but I wonder if perhaps it might have been a little girl, to get the message across, knowing the man-centered society that they lived in, serving or as Jesus says receiving a little girl would have shown some true humility. Bock says that in Jewish society, spending time with children under twelve was basically considered a waste of your time. (Bock, 894,895.) 

Jesus is calling on his disciples to change the way that they see people.  They should be kind to the lowly in such a way that ignores status.  Receiving someone in Jesus’ name means to recognize their value.  What Jesus is wanting the disciples to see is that everyone has value, even the lowliest person, and in this case, children. 

John makes an attempt to respond, and he shows even more clearly just how much he does not understand what Jesus is talking about.  He says in verse 49, “Master, we saw someone casting out demons in your name, so we stopped him, because he was not following along with us.” 

Jesus has just talked to them about inclusiveness, receiving children, and John's response is to talk about how they had excluded someone. He undoubtedly thought he was doing a good thing, here. But it was the opposite of what Jesus was talking about. Jesus is trying to teach how to be great.  John, not only misses the message, but continues in his incorrect thinking.  Someone else has been casting out demons in Jesus name, but since he was not part of the group that John was a part, John and at least one other person told them to stop what they were doing.  

I’m not sure what John was thinking when he said this, but I suspect that this was John’s newest argument for his own greatness. It is an odd response to what Jesus had just said to them about greatness coming from receiving children, plus it had nothing to do with what Jesus was talking about. 

Jesus let’s John know that this was the wrong way to handle that situation.  One did not have to be a part of this particular group to follow Jesus.  If the guy could cast out demons, why stop him?  Casting out a demon is a positive thing. 

The apostles argued about greatness without really understanding what true greatness meant.  Jesus, in this passage and throughout his time on Earth presented a true path of greatness.  It wasn't about building yourself up and convincing others of your greatness.  It was a path of willing self-sacrifice and seeing the value in others. 

Tom 

Too Big to Handle Alone

Seasons greetings everyone. 

I hope you have had good holidays.  I want to continue sharing from my exegesis of Luke 9.  In my last post, we looked at the Transfiguration.  Now, in verse 37, Luke tells a different story that happens the next morning. Luke says that they came down the mountain the next day. So, Jesus, Peter, James and John spent the night on the mountain after the Transfiguration.  I wonder what they talked about.  

Anyway, Matthew, Mark and Luke all give an account of this story. Mark tells that as Jesus approached the crowd, the other disciples were in the middle of a big argument with the teachers of law. (Mark 9:14-17)  When Jesus asks what they were arguing about, a man tells him that his son was possessed by a demon.  The apostles had been unable to drive it out.  Luke leaves the details about the argument out. 

The boy’s problem: He was possessed by a demon that would throw him into convulsions, making him foam at the mouth, and in the course of these convulsions, the demon would bring harm to the boy's body. Matthew mentions that the demon would try to throw the boy into fire or water. (Matthew 17:15) Matthew uses the Greek word σεληνιάζεται (selayniazetai) which means ‘having epilectic seizures.’  Darrell Bock talks about this, saying, “Jews and other ancients saw epilepsy as particularly devastating and as very difficult to cure.” (Bock, 881)

Bock makes an interesting observation, The blame for the lack falls on those offering the healing, not on the one seeking it.  (Bock, 883) The argument apparently started because of the apostles inability to drive the demon out. The man says that the disciples were οὐκ ἠδυνήθησαν (ouk aydunaythaysan). The Greek word οὐκ means ‘not.’ While ἠδυνήθησαν express the power or ability to do something.  So the apostles were unable to do it, or you could say that they lacked the power to do it. 

But, the disciples had power. At the beginning of chapter 9, Jesus gives them power to heal the sick and to cast out demons.  They should have been able to do it.  This was apparently a powerful demon, and the apostles were unable to drive it out. In response, Jesus expressed some disappointment here about their faithlessness, saying, “O faithless and rebellious generation, How long will I have to endure you?” Who was he calling 'faithless and rebellious'? Was it the apostles, the crowd or the argumentative teachers of the law, all of them?  I am not sure. He also asks in verse 40, “How long must I endure you?” This is an interesting statement from Jesus  He had come from Heaven and would be returning there soon enough. And we know that Jesus loves people, but it appears that at this moment he is espressing some exasperation with humanity, including his disciples. 

So, Jesus had the boy brought to him, and the demon tried one more last-ditch effort to harm the boy.  Jesus, however, had the power that his apostles lacked and rebuked the demon, driving him out. Jesus then gives the unpossessed boy back to his father. 

Luke doesn’t record it, but both Matthew and Mark tell us that the apostles came to Jesus and asked why they could not drive the demon out.  Matthew tells that Jesus talked about having the faith of a mustard seed. Mark records that Jesus told them some demons would come out through prayer. We have an important spiritual principle, here: Some difficult spiritual opposition can only be overcome through prayer. (Bock 883) Some situations are simply too big for us to handle on our own. I have certainly found this to be true. Luke 9:43 says that everyone there responded with amazement.  Truly they have witnessed an amazing miracle that only Jesus had the power to perform. 

After this, Jesus again tells them that he is going to be handed over to be killed.  This is the second time, but they are unable to understand what Jesus is talking about.  Luke says that the meaning of what Jesus was saying was hidden from them. Bock explains their inability to understand like this: They could not comprehend how this could take place as Jesus has described it, since he is the Chosen One.  Jesus challenges their thinking about what God’s deliverance would mean. (Bock, 889) The disciples would eventually understand what Jesus as Messiah means, but not yet. 

Tom 

      Darrell Bock, Luke, Volume 1:1:1-9:50, Grand Rapids, Michigan, Baker Academics, 1994. 

Waking up to the Transfiguration

Hello everyone.

Today I will continue with my exegesis of Luke 9.  In my most recent post, Jesus has talked about what it means to truly follow him.  Now, about a week later, Jesus takes his three closest disciples, Peter, James and John and goes up on a mountain to pray.  

We know that the disciples were constantly arguing over which of them was the greatest.  I’m sure that these three felt that they had a leg up on this argument, since they were the ones that Jesus took with him for all of the best stuff.  These were the same three that had witnessed the raising of Jairus’ daughter from the dead.  Now they will be allowed to see the Transfiguration. 

As Jesus prayed, something came over him and he shined.  His face changed and his clothing shined like lightning. Ἐξαστράπτων (exastraptone) can be translated as 'shining like lightning.'  Biblehub.com translates the word as ‘became dazzling.’ Jesus dazzled. 

Two men appeared.  Somehow the apostles were recognizable them as Moses and Elijah, two of the all-time greats of the Old Testament. These two men represent a significant portion of the Old Testament.  Moses representing the Law and Elijah representing the Prophets. 

They have appeared and are talking with Jesus.  For Jesus to be seen with such heroes and luminaries of the Old Testament, it had to be quite a big deal for the three apostles.  What they did not realize yet, was that Jesus was greater than either of these two great men, and in fact, they were fortunate to be talking to Jesus.  In our modern vernacular, niether Moses nor Elijah is the GOAT, Jesus is.

Luke gives some details about the conversation.  Moses, Elijah and Jesus were talking about Jesus’ departure and all of the things that Jesus was going to fulfill in Jerusalem.  In other words, this was a conversation that was primarily about Jesus' upcoming crucifixion. It is difficult to know how much of the conversation Peter, James and John overheard.  It is likely that even what they may have heard, they didn’t really understand, since Jesus had already been talking about his death and they didn't really grasp what he was talking about. 

It must have been tiring to be with Jesus. Like we will see later in Gethsemane, Peter, James and John were sleeping.  They woke up to the sight of Jesus standing, talking with Moses and Elijah. 

Peter, undoubtedly impressed, but not knowing what to say, blurts out, “Let’s build three shrines, one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah.  Peter thinks that he is complimenting Jesus, by placing him on the same level as Moses and Elijah.  Jesus however is not complemented by this, since he is greater than they are.  Luke says that Peter "but he didn’t realize what he was saying."  In other words, Peter speaks, while basically not knowing what he was talking about.  

The four of them then get enveloped in a cloud and a voice comes from the heavens saying, “This is my son, whom I have chosen. Listen to him.” This is the second time that God’s voice has spoken from Heaven, declaring Jesus to be His son.  (He does so in Luke 3, right after being baptized by John.) It is a terrifying experience for the three apostles. 

God’s message here is important.  Was it said in response to Peter’s statement equating Jesus with the two heroes of the Old Testament? First, “This is my son.”  It is not just Jesus claiming to be the son of God.  God is claiming Jesus as his son. Second, “whom I have chosen.”  Jesus has been chosen by God for a specific purpose.  To redeem humanity. Finally, “Listen to him.” Moses and Elijah were great men, but they were not on the level of Jesus.  The Law and the Prophets served their purpose, but Jesus is greater than Moses and Elijah.  Jesus is bringing a new paradigm to our relationship with God.  So now, we must listen to Jesus, as his way will be greater than the way of the Law and Prophets. There is an allusion to Deut. 18:15 here: “The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you, from your fellow Israelites. You must listen to him.” 

The voice from Heaven that spoke in Luke 3, directed His comments to Jesus.  This time the statement is directed at a different audience, his followers, telling them that Jesus is the greatest, and that they must do as he days.  Afterwards, the apostles were afraid to talk about what they had seen.  Who would have believed their story, anyway ? 

Tom 

Losing to Win

Hello everyone,

Tonight I am writing a continuation of the my last post, that I wrote almost a month ago.  So, a quick refresher is in order.  Jesus has asked his disciples, who they think he is.  Peter correctly responds that Jesus is the Messiah of God. Jesus tells them not to tell anyone about this, and then tells that he is going to suffer greatly, be rejected by the authorities, and be killed. This is a tough message for the apostles, one that they do not really understand. And here is where we pick the story.

Jesus follows up this tough message with another tough message for his disciples.  He has been talking about being killed, and tells them that if they are going to follow him, they too must deny themselves, take up their cross and follow. (Luke 9:23)

Darrell Bock explains it like this: “Discipleship is summed up in three commands: ἀρνησάσθω (arnesastho, deny oneself), ἀράτω (arato, take up), and ἀκολουθείτω (akoloutheito, follow). The tense sequence shows that fundamental decisions made about the self and about day-by-day bearing of the cross emerge in a continual following of Jesus.”  Bock goes on to say that in this sequence the last part ‘following’ emerges when we practice the first two: denying ourselves and taking up our cross daily. (Bock, 852.)

There is foreshadowing here, as Jesus carried his own cross, telling his disciples they must carry their own.  The difference is that Jesus carried his cross to his place of execution, but his instructions to the disciples are to carry their crosses every day.  We can only be executed once, so what Jesus is saying to his disciples is metaphor.  Dying to ourselves is part of our daily walk with Jesus. 

Luke says that Jesus made this statement to everyone that was there, not just as an aside to his disciples.  Jesus was not afraid to speak plainly to everyone about the cost of following him.  

Jesus’ description of discipleship continues by stating that in losing life, we gain it.  Holding on to this life, leads to losing it, but giving life for the sake of Christ leads to gaining life.  This is backwards thinking to us. You gain when you give?  Our self-indulgent nature thinks that we gain when we take, not when we give. 

Jesus has laid out both the risk of following him and the risk of not following him.  The cost is high in both cases. To follow him, we must deny ourselves and take up our crosses daily.  In other words, we give up ourselves for him. That is a heavy cost. To choose to not follow him, according to Luke 9:24, we lose ourselves. Also a heavy cost. 

Jesus goes on to say that the value of saving our life in him, is priceless. Its value is greater than all of the wealth in the world.  Here is my translation of what Jesus is saying in verse 25, “How does a man profit, if he gains the whole world, yet loses and forfeits himself?” It's rhetorical, I suppose.  We understand that we can't put a price on salvation. 

In verse 26 Jesus tells his followers that they cannot be ashamed of him, or he will be ashamed of them in return on the day of Judgment.  We cannot be ashamed to publicly acknowledge Jesus as our Lord. As disciples of Jesus, we confess his lordship and accept his teachings. Jesus deserves our full allegience. 

Tom 

Not That Kind of Messiah

Hello everyone.

In my last post, we looked at how Jesus took a little bread and a little fish and fed multitudes. But in the beginning of that story, Jesus had actually been trying to get away from the crowds. In the verses after this great miracle, he does finally get some time alone with the disciples. (Luke 9:18) He uses the time to pray.  But then he asks them about what the crowds are saying about him: “Who do people say I am?”

We see the same big names being thrown around: John, Elijah or another of the prophets of old, raised from the dead. Theories and ideas must have abounded regarding who Jesus was. “Who is Jesus?” That is the question that everyone is seeking an answer to.  (We know from Mark 6:14-16) that even Herod and his circle was trying to figure it out.) 

Jesus asks about the crowds and who they think Jesus is, but the crowds lack the insight to really understand it. The apostles have gained some insight, enough, at least, for Peter to correctly answer the question.  But, even the disciples do not get the full picture. When Jesus asks, "Who do you say I am? (Luke 9:20) Peter responds to this question that Jesus is “the Messiah of God.” While Peter certainly didn't fully understand what his answer even meant, he was correct.  Jesus is the Messiah, who came from God. (Matthew’s account has Peter saying, “You are the Messiah, the son of the living God.” Mark says, “You are the Messiah.”) Matthew also records that this is the place where Jesus gives Peter the keys to the kingdom of God.  Luke does not mention this, simply saying that Jesus gave them strict orders not to tell anyone that Jesus was the Messiah.  

Why would Jesus give them this command? What follows may be the key to why Jesus would not want them to talk about this yet.  He begins to tell them about what must happen to him in the near future. He uses the Greek word Δεῖ (Dei), which means "it is necessary." It was necessary that he suffer greatly, be handed over to his enemies, be killed and then raised from the dead. Matthew 16:21-22 tells us that Peter rebuked Jesus for this message.

His apostles did not fully grasp what the Messiah was.  They probably thought, like everyone else, that the Messiah would come to liberate them from the Romans.  Jesus was just was not that kind of Messiah. 

So back to the question of Jesus command that they not reveal that he is Messiah. Undoubtedly there were people who thought Jesus might be the Messiah, but since they didn’t really understand what the Messiah was there to do, they were going to get the wrong idea. In fact, we know from John’s account of the feeding of the five thousand, the people tried to force Jesus to be king. (John 6:15) Again, he was not that kind of Messiah. Knowing that, in general, people did not understand his mission as Messiah, it was undoubtedly better not to get the crowds all stoked up. 

Of course, to the Jewish way of thinking, driving out the Romans and restoring Israel would have been great, but Jesus' Messiahship is greater then that.  He came to be a Messiah for all nations, not just the Jews and to rescue us for a far greater enemy than the Romans.  The Romans would eventually destroy themselves, but the "spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms,' are still fighting. (Eph. 6:12) They forces are more powerful and longer-lasting than the Romans, and our Messiah came to rescue us from them. 

Tom 

The Lord Provides

Hello everyone.

We will pick up the story of Luke 9, in verse 10.  Jesus has given the apostles power and authority and sent them out to teach and heal.  Now in verse 10, they have returned to Jesus, reporting what they had done.  Having healed the sick and driven out demons, the apostles had to be very excited about what they had been able to do. They must have performed some powerful miracles, otherwise there would be nothing to report. 

Now, Jesus and his apostles attempt to withdraw away from the crowds, but the crowds follow them. Mark mentions that the crowds were so thick that Jesus and the apostles were unable to eat. Matthew gives a detail that Jesus has just learned about the beheading of John.  It is easy to imagine that Jesus had more than one reason to desire a time of quiet rest with his disciples.  They had just returned from an exciting mission.  His friend and relative John had just been executed and there would be a need a time to grieve and the crowds were overwhelming. 

Matthew and Mark both mention Jesus getting into a boat, while Luke says that they went to Bethsaida.  Perhaps Bethsaida was a short boat ride from where they were. No matter, Jesus and the apostles were not able to get away, because wherever they went, whether on a boat or not, it was not very far and the crowd followed. 

When the crowd caught up to them, Jesus, in spite of his own need for some alone time, welcomed the crowd and continued his mission of preaching and healing.  He feels sympathy for the crowd, even though they won’t leave him alone, and are not allowing him to get any rest. At this point in Mark’s account it says that Jesus had compassion on them, "because they were like sheep without a shepherd." (Mark 6:34) They were weak, vulnerable, confused, lost.  In his sympathy, Jesus begins teaching them. 

He teaches until late in the day.  The apostles finally come and say, “Send the crowd away, so that they can go into the surrounding towns and the countryside so that they can find food and lodging, since we are in such a remote place.” It wasn’t that apostles were unsympathetic to the crowds, they just lacked the faith and insight that Jesus carried. 

Here is a thought.  I am going to read into the text just a little:  Jesus tells his disciples to feed them.  He had just given them power to perform miracles.  Now they had an opportunity to perform one.  Jesus already knew what he was going to do. (John 6:3) He may have wanted to see what they could do, but the apostles are still looking at things through the lenses of limited faith.   

The disciples are limited by what they can see. As it turns out they have five loaves of bread and two fish. They comment that it is not nearly enough to feed that many people, unless someone went and bought food for them. They are not outside of the box thinkers.  They see only two options.  Spread out five loaves of bread and two fish that they have among thousands, or go buy food.  They did not yet see with eyes of faith and do not imagine the miracle that Jesus is about to perform.  

It is not difficult to imagine the wheels in their brains turning thinking about how much it would cost to provide food for that many people.  The money would easily run into the thousands of dollars.  The apostles did not have that kind of walking-around money. In Mark 6:37, the apostles respond that it would cost two hundred days wages to feed that many people. 

Any way, five loaves of bread and two fish is not much, but Jesus can take a little and translate into a lot.  Ultimately each apostle got to pick up a basket of leftovers.  Do you remember in Luke 4, when Jesus was being tempted by the devil,? Jesus had chosen not to turn stones into bread, but rather to trust God for his provision.  Jesus is now teaching his apostles to trust him for their provision. Darrell Bock points out that in a way the apostles do what Jesus has said.  They give the people something to eat.  Jesus breaks the bread and fish and creates more, while the disciples dispense it to the people. They are then able to minister to the people, but only through the power and provision of Jesus. (Bock, 832.)

How complete was Jesus' provision here? Luke uses the phrase Ἐχορτάσθησαν πάντες. (Exortasthasan pantes) All were filled or satisfied. Jesus' provision was absolute for all those who were hungry. There were 5000+ grateful and satisfied people who could attest to his provision. Jesus offers to fill us still.  

Tom 

Power and Authority

Hello everyone.

Luke 9 begins with Jesus bringing the Twelve together and giving them authority and power.  We have seen throughout Luke that Jesus is the one who has the authority and the power. Satan had claimed that he had the authority and the power and could give it to whomever he wanted. (Luke 4)  But, it appears that Satan was in error, as we see Jesus giving authority and power out to others. 

One of the powers that Jesus gives is to cast out demons.  Jesus is giving away the power over Satan’s minions to ordinary fishermen. Δύναμιν καὶ ἐξουσίαν (Dynameem kai Exousian)- which means "power and authority." Having authority means that you have the right to do something.  Having power means that you have the ability to do something.  Jesus is giving both of things to his apostles. These naturally go together, but having the authority to do something only really matters if you have the power to back it up.  

Luke also mentions that he gives them the power to heal diseases.  So we can see that Jesus is passing along some of the powers that have been drawing crowds wherever he went.  The one thing that isn’t mentioned here is Jesus making them dynamic teachers. This was another thing that drew large crowds to Jesus. That doesn’t mean that they didn’t preach and teach.  They were sent out to teach.  Verse 6 says that they went through the villages proclaiming the good news.  I am sure that they did great, but it is unlikely that they possessed Jesus’ unique dynamism. 

His instructions to them are interesting.  I think that this is not a universal message for those who preach and teach about Jesus, but apply to this particular mission. They are told to take nothing with them.  No walking stick. No bag. No food. No money. No change of clothes.  They are going to have to be totally dependent on God on this journey. They are also instructed to stay at the same house for the length of their stay in a town.  They will have trust in God for hospitality as well. 

In towns that did not accept them, they were to shake the dust off of their feet as a sign against that town and move on.  Again I think that this was part of the specific instructions given at that time for this mission.  I don’t think that would want to reject entire towns, or even certain people and never reach out  to them again. 

So, having been instructed by Jesus, the disciple left on their mission of going from village to village,  preaching and healing. Their ability to perform miracles backed up their message.  What was their message? Likely, their message was similar to the message Jesus started his ministry with - God’s kingdom was near, so they should repent. Mark 6:12 says that they went out and preached that people should repent. 

The shaking the dust off of the feet was symbolic that a refusal to repent would bring God’s judgment. Darrell Bock mentions that the shaking of the dust off of one’s feet was a gesture done by Jews upon leaving pagan territory, as a way of removing ‘uncleanness.” (Bock, 817)

Luke inserts here that all that Jesus has been doing catches the attention of Herod.  Herod, who has had John the Baptist beheaded, is reminded of John by hearing about what Jesus is doing.  The news that he was hearing about Jesus made Herod want to see him.  Some people are claiming that Jesus was John, returned from the dead, or Elijah or one of the prophets of old returned from the dead. Herod, like so many others, is trying to figure out who Jesus was.  There were lots of theories.  So for now, Herod’s attitude toward Jesus is one of curiosity.

Then in verse 10, the apostles return form their mission, sharing all that they had done with the authority and power that Jesus had given them. In the parallel passage in Mark 6, it says that on this mission they successfully cast out demons and healed the sick. (Mark 6:13.) Imagine the joy with which they reported their successes to Jesus.  They couldn't fail on this mission, because they had been given power and authority by the one had it all - Jesus. 

Tom