The disciples don’t learn easily… After yesterday’s adventure with the feeding of the 5,000, Jesus takes them on a 2-day walk north.

Then Jesus left Galilee and went north to the region of Tyre and Sidon. (Matthew 15.21, NLT)

There they encounter a woman who begs Jesus to heal her daughter. Jesus doesn’t respond right away, but the disciples do!

And behold, a Canaanite woman from that region came out and was crying, “Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David; my daughter is severely oppressed by a demon.” But he did not answer her a word. And his disciples came and begged him, saying, “Send her away, for she is crying out after us.”

The disciples could have begged Jesus to take care of her, but they didn’t. Then follows the curious exchange with the woman about taking the children’s bread and giving it to dogs. She answers wisely, and the Lord grants her request. (See Matthew 15.21 – 28.) Then they return to Galilee.

Jesus went on from there and walked beside the Sea of Galilee. (Matthew 15.29, ESV)

What’s going on here? The story doesn’t make sense UNLESS you remember that Jesus is always training the disciples. Remember, a 2-day walk north to help one woman, a Gentile, and a 2-day walk back. What do you think they discussed on the way back?

When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. (Matthew 9.36, ESV)

[Peter said to Cornelius the Centurion, ] “You yourselves know how unlawful it is for a Jew to associate with or to visit anyone of another nation, but God has shown me that I should not call any person common or unclean. (Acts 10.28, ESV)

Jesus’ training program for the disciples included developing a heart for people. Where Jesus has compassion, the disciples want to “send them away.”

When he went ashore he saw a great crowd, and he had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd. And he began to teach them many things. And when it grew late, his disciples came to him and said, “This is a desolate place, and the hour is now late. Send them away to go into the surrounding countryside and villages and buy themselves something to eat.” (Mark 6.34 – 36, ESV, emphasis mine)

The next step in this parade is that Jesus feeds the 5,000, turning the disciples into ushers (“have them sit down in groups of 50 and 100”), servers (he distributed the loaves and fishes to the disciples who distributed them to the crowd), and busboys (remember the 12 baskets of leftovers?). 

And all this occurred after the disciples returned from their ministry trip and wanted some rest!

The apostles returned to Jesus and told him all that they had done and taught. And he said to them, “Come away by yourselves to a desolate place and rest a while.” For many were coming and going, and they had no leisure even to eat. And they went away in the boat to a desolate place by themselves. (Mark 6.30 – 32, ESV)

It seems that following Jesus involves giving myself up for others.

We loved you so much that we shared with you not only God’s Good News but our own lives, too. (1 Thessalonians 2.8, NLT)

My friend Ray in New Hampshire told me that a friend of his tried to get him to read a book full of complicated concepts such as how the speed of light might shed light on dates in the Bible. The author derives specific dates for everything from the creation of Adam to the birth of Jesus. 

We had been discussing the apparent lack of spiritual maturity as defined in Hebrews 5.12 – 14 among many church members.

For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the first principles of the oracles of God; and you have come to need milk and not solid food. For everyone who partakes only of milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, for he is a babe. But solid food belongs to those who are of full age, that is, those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil. (Hebrews 5.12 – 14, NKJV) 

Ray and I believe that “skilled” handling of the Word has nothing to do with deep knowledge of esoteric things. Rather, it has to do with letting the Word speak to how we live. “Discerning good and evil” – not “right” versus “wrong” theology.

Ray’s friend kept asking if he had acquired the book (I don’t know the name of it). Ray finally wrote something like this:

I am a simple man. I live by Psalm 131.1 and 2: O LORD, my heart is not proud, nor my eyes haughty; nor do I involve myself in great matters, or in things too difficult for me. Surely I have composed and quieted my soul… (NASB) Since I don’t have the background to understand the arguments this author is making, I will not be reading this book. I don’t think it would serve to “compose and quiet” my soul.

Ray also believes that even if true, the book would do little to help one actually live the Christian life. 

Ray might claim to be simple, but that doesn’t mean he’s stupid! He graduated from the Air Force Academy, flew tankers in the Air Force, and has a master’s from Dallas Theological Seminary. Like me, he gives his life to helping others know and live by the Word and help others do the same.

Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. (James 1.22, NIV)

Knowledge puffs up while love builds up. (1 Corinthians 8.1, NIV)

What happens when God shows up? We get a glimpse in the story of Jesus’ confrontation with the demon-possessed man as recorded in Luke 8.26 – 39.

2,000 pigs run down a hillside and are drowned. A demon-possessed guy is sitting there “clothed and in his right mind.” The response? “The townspeople become frightened…gripped with fear.” And they ask Jesus to leave.

Then eyewitnesses to the miracle reported all that they had seen and how the demonized man was completely delivered from his torment. After hearing about such amazing power, the townspeople became frightened. Soon all the people of the region of the Gerasenes and the surrounding country begged Jesus to leave them, for they were gripped with fear. (Luke 8.36, 37, Passion Translation)

Transformation scares us! We seem to want to confine God to a benign presence in our harmless church services. Author Annie Dillard, about whom I don’t know much, speaks to this from time to time. Our pastor quoted her a couple weeks ago in the context of “Thy Kingdom come.” What might that look like? Annie writes:

On the whole, I do not find Christians, outside of the catacombs, sufficiently sensible of conditions. Does anyone have the foggiest idea what sort of power we so blithely invoke? Or, as I suspect, does no one believe a word of it? The churches are children playing on the floor with their chemistry sets, mixing up a batch of TNT to kill a Sunday morning. It is madness to wear ladies’ straw hats and velvet hats to church; we should all be wearing crash helmets. Ushers should issue life preservers and signal flares; they should lash us to our pews. For the sleeping god may wake someday and take offense, or the waking god may draw us out to where we can never return. ― Annie Dillard, “An Expedition to the Pole” from Teaching a Stone to Talk (1982)

When Jesus invaded planet earth, the battle between good and evil intensified, and it’s a battle that must be waged in God’s power.

Then Herod, when he saw that he had been tricked by the wise men, became furious, and he sent and killed all the male children in Bethlehem and in all that region who were two years old or under, according to the time that he had ascertained from the wise men. (Matthew 2.16, ESV)

Then the dragon became furious with the woman and went off to make war on the rest of her offspring, on those who keep the commandments of God and hold to the testimony of Jesus. And he stood on the sand of the sea. (Revelation 12.17, ESV)

Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. (Ephesians 6.10 – 12, ESV)

I have to write a follow-up to my daughter’s family making and delivering Valentine cards, along with the singing Valentine greeting. If you missed yesterday’s blog, please go there now! Melody and family are in China, largely confined to their apartment because of the virus. Describing the Valentine’s Day project as a ministry, Melody wrote:

We actually made homemade cards and delivered cards and songs to everyone on campus! All the teachers and some families, our friends. Lots of them haven’t gone outside for 3 weeks. A few of them a quarantined for 2 weeks by law because they returned from traveling. In all, I think we made almost 40 cards and it took nearly 3 hours to do all the deliveries. A Valentine’s day we’ll remember for a long time!

Anyway, it was a blessing for my family to actually get to see everyone we’ve been missing, and I think everyone was blessed. I can’t take credit for the idea. He gave it to me, to him be the glory!

Using language we’ve written about before, it was a series of Holy Moments, and they were ministering grace and love.

Everyone was blessed! The Head of School began a long and serious update about the coronavirus with:

I hope you had an enjoyable Valentine’s Day wherever you were. The highlight of my day by far was the Gifford Quartet. Thank you so much for bringing some warmth to a rather chilly day.

Here’s a very small sample of the other reactions Melody received, including Melody’s and Liana’s perspective on doing it.

I’m proud of them!

Our people must also learn to engage in good deeds to meet pressing needs, so that they will not be unfruitful. (Titus 3.14, NASB)

Here’s another way to put it: You’re here to be light, bringing out the God-colors in the world. God is not a secret to be kept. We’re going public with this, as public as a city on a hill. If I make you light-bearers, you don’t think I’m going to hide you under a bucket, do you? I’m putting you on a light stand. Now that I’ve put you there on a hilltop, on a light stand—shine! Keep open house; be generous with your lives. By opening up to others, you’ll prompt people to open up with God, this generous Father in heaven. (Matthew 5.14 – 16, MSG)

We interrupt our regular serious blog topics for a special Valentine’s Day greeting from our daughter and family in China. Melody and Cody Gifford teach music in an international school near Dalian, China. As you can see, they are abiding by Chinese law to wear masks when outside their apartment and are visiting one of their colleagues who NEVER goes outside. At 45 seconds, it’s worth your time!

Melody and Cody’s daily routine is to get up, get dressed, and walk to school where they interact with their students by computer. On-line classes only (ever try to teach music that way?) until at least mid-March. They would appreciate your prayer.

Let all that you do be done with love. (1 Corinthians 16.14, NKJV)

Sometimes I discover a new take on an old scripture passage. Sometimes I read a different take and think, “Wow. Why didn’t I see that before?” And other times, I read a different take and say, “Huh?!”

Consider Jacob’s prayer after his “Jacob’s Ladder” experience:

Then Jacob made a vow, saying, “If God will be with me and will watch over me on this journey I am taking and will give me food to eat and clothes to wear so that I return safely to my father’s household, then the LORD will be my God and this stone that I have set up as a pillar will be God’s house, and of all that you give me I will give you a tenth.” (Genesis 28.20 – 22, NIV)

This is Jacob the conniver, the cheater, the one who just lied to his father to steal his brother’s blessing after he’d already conned him out of his birthright. The “prayer” sounds to me like Jacob at his best, trying to cut a deal: “If you will take care of me and bring me back here, then you can be my God, and, to sweeten the deal, I will cut you in for a tenth.”

I don’t think it’s the best prayer, so imagine my surprise when I read an email from Steve Cleary, producer of the new Pilgrim’s Progress movie saying this about this prayer:

If a person is looking for a prayer to pray daily, I think Jacob’s is as pure as any. Are we willing to trust God for all things and acknowledge Him as our God every day? —Steve Cleary–you can read his full remarks here.

Whoa! Talk about a different take! What can we learn?

• God can lead people to different applications from the same scripture. And if both applications are, in themselves, biblical, that’s OK. We should trust God for all things and acknowledge Him as our God every day. I just wouldn’t use Jacob’s prayer to teach that. And we shouldn’t try to make deals with God either!
• I should hold all my interpretations with an open hand. Neither I nor Steve knows what Jacob was really thinking.
• God meets us where we are and as we are. This is the best lesson, I think. Even if my take is correct, God didn’t forsake Jacob.

And Jabez called on the God of Israel saying, “Oh, that You would bless me indeed, and enlarge my territory, that Your hand would be with me, and that You would keep me from evil, that I may not cause pain!” So God granted him what he requested. (1 Chronicles 4.10, NKJV)

Now all these things happened to them as examples, and they were written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the ages have come. (1 Corinthians 10.11, NKJV)

Here’s a small lesson from the story of blind Bartimaeus as found in Mark 10:

They spent some time in Jericho. As Jesus was leaving town, trailed by his disciples and a parade of people, a blind beggar by the name of Bartimaeus, son of Timaeus, was sitting alongside the road. When he heard that Jesus the Nazarene was passing by, he began to cry out, “Son of David, Jesus! Mercy, have mercy on me!” Many tried to hush him up, but he yelled all the louder, “Son of David! Mercy, have mercy on me!” (Mark 10.46 – 48, MSG)

Bartimeaus knew what he wanted, and he persisted. Jesus stopped, called him over, and asked explicitly: “What do you want?” The response was clear and immediate, “Rabbi, I want to see!”

Bartimaeus knew that Jesus could transform him, and he was willing to fight through the obstacles to see him. What about us? I’ve written often about how hard it is to help folks start even the most simple spiritual discipline like daily time with God. I’m beginning to agree with Matthew Kelly that it’s not that people don’t think that Jesus can transform them; they don’t want to be transformed! If we wanted transformation, we would be as persistent as Bartimaeus.

[Moses] said to them, “Take to heart all the words by which I am warning you today, that you may command them to your children, that they may be careful to do all the words of this law. For it is no empty word for you, but your very life, and by this word you shall live long in the land that you are going over the Jordan to possess.” (Deuteronomy 32.46 – 47, ESV)

Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect. (Romans 12.2, ESV)

Relating to a recent message on prayer, here’s something I picked up from the memorial service of Sue Marotta, who passed away suddenly on January 23 at the age of 83. She and Basil had been in full-time ministry for well over 20 years.

Sue, like the apostles (see Acts 5.42), taught “in the temple and from house to house,” according to her friends at the memorial. In a house, her preferred podium was the kitchen table! So what was the prayer lesson? Sue encouraged people to:

Talk to God like he’s your friend! Quit “praying” to him!! -Sue Marotta

That’s a good word from someone who, as I write, can talk with Jesus face-to-face.

Thus the LORD used to speak to Moses face to face, as a man speaks to his friend. (Exodus 33.11, ESV)

I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you. (John 15.15, NIV)

Here’s a follow-up to yesterday’s blog on Mike Treneer’s making an impression on flight attendants simply by paying attention to them.

My friend Clarence Shuler is active in a number of arenas. He and his wife Brenda were just awarded Speakers of the Year by FamilyLife for their work at the Weekend to Remember marriage conferences. Clarence also has written a number of books and frequently helps companies with race relations.

The point of this blog is an encouraging story he shared from his fitness club. A lifelong athlete, tennis player, former college basketball player who traveled with Sports Ambassadors, Clarence still works out whenever he’s in town. The other day he reported this exchange:

At my fitness club last week, the new manager, who has become a friend, said, “You are the mayor of this club. You seem to know everyone and everyone seems to certainly know you!” He asked, “What is your secret?” My response, “I love people.” 

Clarence continued, “Please keep reaching out because people need the Jesus in you!”

Let all that you do be done in love. (1 Corinthians 16.14, ESV)