How to Talk to Unbelievers

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I say the same thing every Sunday:

“Whatever your week’s been like or your life’s been like—whatever you look like—whether you believe what we believe, or even if you vehemently disagree: in the name of Jesus Christ you are welcome in this place today.”

The reason I say this is because I know that Jesus can take care of himself. It’s my job to knock down bad arguments and to clear the path for folks to come to Jesus, but it is NOT my job to argue people into the Kingdom. So, I don’t worry if there are folks at Munger on a Sunday who aren’t believers—I know that as long as I make the space for them to meet the Lord, he can take care of himself.

Look at how how Phillip deals with Nathanael when Nathanael asks some skeptical questions about Jesus.

Nathanael asks, “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” (For whatever reason, he is not impressed when Phillip tells him where Jesus is from.)

To which Phillip replies, “Come and see.”

Phillip knows that Jesus can take care of himself, and that if he only makes it easy for Nathanael to be confronted by Jesus, Jesus will take care of the rest. So, Phillip invites Nathanael to take a step toward the Lord with those simple words: “Come and see.”

I think this is exactly how we should talk to unbelievers in this culture. Note how Phillip doesn’t allow himself to be drawn into a pointless argument; instead, he brings it back to Jesus, and gives Nathanael an invitation to meet Jesus himself: “Come and see.”

We have a part to play in bringing people to faith, but it’s the part of invitation.

Once people encounter Jesus, he has a way of surprising them, just as he surprised Nathanael.

So, the next time you get in an argument with a non-believer, I believe the best thing you can say is,

Come and see.

 

Today’s Scripture

John 1:35-51

John the Baptizer

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MungerFest 2017.

MungerFest 2017.

We know from sources outside the Bible that John the Baptist was an electric figure in first-century Judea who created a sensation with his ministry of baptizing Jews in the Jordan River.

Baptism was practiced before John, but it was something that converts to Judaism did; baptism was not for people who were already Jewish. But, there was John, baptizing Jews in the Jordan River. It would be like an American politician today making American citizens take a citizenship test. (Come to think of it, that’s not a terrible idea….)

So, what did John’s baptism mean? John was baptizing Jews in the Jordan River, the same river that the Israelites had to pass through to get to the Promised Land so many centuries before. It was a provocative act: John was acting as if the entire Jewish people needed to purify themselves for something imminent.

Naturally, John’s actions attracted the attention of the religious establishment in Jerusalem, and so they sent emissaries to question him.

Was John the Christ? (“Christ” is the Greek word for the Hebrew term “Messiah,” which means “Anointed One.” The Messiah was the one who was long foretold in the Old Testament, the one who would save God’s people.)

Was John the second coming of Elijah? (There was a tradition in Judaism that the prophet Elijah would return to prepare the way for the Messiah. See Malachi 3:1, 4:5.)

Was John the second coming of Moses himself, the greatest of all Old Testament prophets? (In Deuteronomy 18:15, Moses tells the Israelites that the Lord will raise up a second Moses, and the legend developed that this second Moses would come as the End Times approached.)

John answers negatively to all 3 questions. John knows his role is to prepare for the Messiah, and nothing more.

In some sense, each of us is like John the Baptist—we are supposed to point other people to Jesus.

How can you do that today?

 

Today’s Scripture

John 1:19-34

In the Beginning

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John begins his Gospel at the beginning. Not with the birth of Jesus to Mary in Bethlehem, but with the Beginning of Creation itself. He is deliberately echoing Genesis 1—“In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth”—and the question is, Why? What’s he trying to tell us? Why would you begin a Gospel in this way?

John wants us to understand that the Word, i.e., the Second Person of the Trinity, is both God and distinct from God, and was in existence before he was born of the Virgin Mary and given the name Jesus. He wants us to understand from the very beginning of his Gospel just who this Jesus is: namely that the carpenter’s son from Nazareth who heals the sick, feeds the hungry, and eats with sinners is God in the flesh.

Although he doesn’t use the term, John is describing God as Trinity.

Go back and read Genesis 1:1-3:

1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. 2 Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.
3 And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light.

Genesis 1:1-3

What do you notice? There is God, there is the Spirit, and there is the fact that God creates by his Word!

The rest of the Gospel is going to show us what happens when the Word puts on flesh and dwells among us.

AMAZING.

P.S. The “John” mentioned in the prologue here is John the Baptist. He was a SENSATION in first-century Judea, and so John the Author wants us to be totally clear: John the Baptist wasn’t the point; Jesus is the point!

Update at 2:30 PM: I had some technical difficulties this AM (of course!), so that’s why those of you on my Gospels 2019 mailing list are receiving this post in the afternoon. Tomorrow morning, everything should be back to normal.

 

Today’s Scripture

John 1:1-18

Jesus Appears to the Disciples

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I can't say it too often: no one expected the Resurrection.

Even when the Risen Jesus appeared to the disciples, they had to create a new mental category before they could really grasp what had happened.

What does Luke tell us?  They thought he was a ghost.

That's why he asks for and eats a piece of broiled fish: to prove he is flesh and blood.

37 They were startled and frightened, thinking they saw a ghost. 38 He said to them, “Why are you troubled, and why do doubts rise in your minds? 39 Look at my hands and my feet. It is I myself! Touch me and see; a ghost does not have flesh and bones, as you see I have.”
40 When he had said this, he showed them his hands and feet. 41 And while they still did not believe it because of joy and amazement, he asked them, “Do you have anything here to eat?” 42 They gave him a piece of broiled fish, 43 and he took it and ate it in their presence.

Luke 24:37-42

I imagine Jesus having a twinkle in his eye during this whole episode--it's the greatest private joke of all time.

At the End of History, God will renew all things, and it will feel as if our faces will split open, we'll be smiling so wide!

Today’s Scripture:

Luke 24:36-49

The Greatest Bible Study of All Time

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On the road to Emmaus, the Risen Jesus (whom Cleopas and the other disciple don't recognize) explains that the Messiah had to die:

25 He said to them, “How foolish you are, and how slow to believe all that the prophets have spoken! 26 Did not the Messiah have to suffer these things and then enter his glory?” 27 And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning himself.

Luke 24:25-27

The greatest Bible study in all of history, and Luke doesn't give us any more details than that!

But, I think what he does give us is important:

Jesus is the key to understanding the entire Bible--it all points and finds fulfillment in him.

Today’s Scripture:

Luke 24:13-35

What I Like About Peter

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No one expected the Resurrection, and Luke tells us that the Eleven and the others thought the report of the women who had found the tomb empty was "nonsense."

"Peter, however, got up and ran to the tomb. Bending over, he saw the strips of linen lying by themselves, and he went away, wondering to himself what had happened."

Luke 24:12

I love that! Peter runs to the tomb. Why?  Because if there is even the slightest chance it's true, he wants to find out for himself.

I wish more people had that attitude.

Today’s Scripture:

Luke 24:1-12

Joseph of Arimathea

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The actions of Joseph of Arimathea are totally selfless, courageous, and noble. His request of Pilate for Jesus’s body, and then his burial of that body, is the act of a great man. I look forward to meeting him in glory.

What act of selfless integrity can you perform today?

For more on Joseph, this is from an entry in The Anchor Bible Dictionary (a fancy new multi-volume encyclopedia I just got):

“According to Roman law execution signaled the sacrifice of all of the victim’s earthly possessions and left the right of burial only to the good favor of the magistrate, although the body was often released to relatives. Jewish law on the contrary held that burial was a duty to be performed even for enemies, and according to Deut 21:23 and rabbinic law the body was not to hang on a cross after sundown. Joseph, as a leader of the Jews, and out of respect for Jewish law, especially in light of his apparent dissent from the voting for Jesus’ execution (Luke 23:51), and possibly as a favor to Jesus’ followers and as a friend of Pilate, felt compelled to request from Pilate the right to bury him. But this motive faces the difficulty of why Joseph would have risked ceremonial uncleanness; perhaps servants helped him; to say nothing of his political and religious careers (John 19:38; cf. Mark 15:43, where Joseph “took courage” to go to Pilate), for such a criminal as Jesus. As depicted in the Gospels, Joseph at the least probably felt that Jesus’ message of the coming of the kingdom warranted this one final act of devotion, with Matthew seeing this as a further sign of Joseph’s being a follower. The NT documents agree that Joseph, with help from others (though no family members), prepared and laid Jesus’ body in a tomb and rolled a stone across the opening.”

from “Joseph of Arimathea”, in The Anchor Bible Dictionary

Today’s Scripture:

Luke 23:50-56

What Were They Thinking As They Saw Jesus Crucified?

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After Jesus breathes his last breath, Luke tells us:

But all those who knew him, including the women who had followed him from Galilee, stood at a distance, watching these things.

Luke 23:49

Here’s my question: what where they thinking?

Imagine the despair and disappointment and fear and anger they must have been feeling.

What I KNOW they were not thinking about was resurrection. The scriptures are clear: no one expected resurrection.

They were totally hopeless, and yet hope came for them anyway.

When you cannot possibly understand how this or that situation will ever be anything good, that’s when you know that what God is going to do with it will be SHOCKING and beautiful.

If God can make that Friday Good, he can make anything good.

Don’t lose hope today!

Today’s Scripture:

Luke 23:44-49

Some Political Background Info to the Crucifixion

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The Romans were in political control of Jerusalem at the time of Jesus, and unsurprisingly there were Jewish rebels who tried to overthrow Roman rule. (The ancient Jewish historian Flavius Josephus–who lived a generation after Jesus– tells us a lot about these movements.)

I think it’s a fair assumption that Barabbas was a rebel leader, which is why he was imprisoned under Pontius Pilate, awaiting sentencing. Luke also tells us that Barabbas was a murderer. Most likely, he murdered Romans.

Think about the irony: Jesus, the innocent man, dies on behalf of Israel for his enemies, whereas Barabbas, the guilty man, goes free.

Today’s Scripture:

Luke 23:13-25

Silent Like a Sheep Before Its Shearers

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Jesus refuses to defend himself in the sham trial he’s put through that last night of his life. His silence reminds me of the great Isaiah prophecy of the suffering servant:

He was oppressed and afflicted,
    yet he did not open his mouth;
he was led like a lamb to the slaughter,
    and as a sheep before its shearers is silent,
    so he did not open his mouth.

Isaiah 53:7

Isaiah 53 is worth reading in its entirety, by the way. Keep in mind that this prophecy comes centuries before the time of Christ.

53 Who has believed our message
    and to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?
2 He grew up before him like a tender shoot,
    and like a root out of dry ground.
He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him,
    nothing in his appearance that we should desire him.
3 He was despised and rejected by mankind,
    a man of suffering, and familiar with pain.
Like one from whom people hide their faces
    he was despised, and we held him in low esteem.
4 Surely he took up our pain
    and bore our suffering,
yet we considered him punished by God,
    stricken by him, and afflicted.
5 But he was pierced for our transgressions,
    he was crushed for our iniquities;
the punishment that brought us peace was on him,
    and by his wounds we are healed.
6 We all, like sheep, have gone astray,
    each of us has turned to our own way;
and the Lord has laid on him
    the iniquity of us all.
7 He was oppressed and afflicted,
    yet he did not open his mouth;
he was led like a lamb to the slaughter,
    and as a sheep before its shearers is silent,
    so he did not open his mouth.
8 By oppression and judgment he was taken away.
    Yet who of his generation protested?
For he was cut off from the land of the living;
    for the transgression of my people he was punished.
9 He was assigned a grave with the wicked,
    and with the rich in his death,
though he had done no violence,
    nor was any deceit in his mouth.
10 Yet it was the Lord’s will to crush him and cause him to suffer,
    and though the Lord makes his life an offering for sin,
he will see his offspring and prolong his days,
    and the will of the Lord will prosper in his hand.
11 After he has suffered,
    he will see the light of life and be satisfied;
by his knowledge my righteous servant will justify many,
    and he will bear their iniquities.
12 Therefore I will give him a portion among the great
    and he will divide the spoils with the strong,
because he poured out his life unto death,
    and was numbered with the transgressors.
For he bore the sin of many,
    and made intercession for the transgressors.

Isaiah 53

Today’s Scripture:

Luke 22:63-71



Jesus Permits His Capture

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t’s very important that we understand Jesus was not a passive victim. When Judas approaches him in the Garden of Gethsemane in the dark, Jesus permits the guards to capture him, rather than attempting to fight or flee.

Judas and the others think they are in control, but actually Jesus is in control.

The same is true today. The evil powers of the world think they are in control, but in reality God is using their wickedness for his own purposes.

“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.”

Romans 8:28

Today’s Scripture:

Luke 22:47-62

More on the End

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Jesus continues to talk about the End of the World, and tells his followers that it will be obvious when it comes. In Luke’s Gospel, “this generation” means the people whose hearts are stubbornly opposed to Jesus. So, when Jesus says”

“Truly I tell you, this generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened.  Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.

Luke 21:32-33

He is saying that there will always be people opposed to him until he returns again.

And he closes with a familiar message: be ready!

Today’s Scripture:

Luke 21:25-38

The Parable of the Wicked Tenants

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This is a difficult parable.

Context matters. This entire parable is told by Jesus right after the religious leaders in Jerusalem question him about his authority. Jesus tells this parable the last week of his life, between Palm Sunday and Good Friday.

The image of a vineyard was the central image in the Old Testament for Israel as the people of God. God makes a covenant with Israel, but then Israel has responsibilities because of that covenant. The people listening to Jesus understand that he’s talking about Israel, which is why, when tells he them what’s going to happen, namely that the owner of the vineyard will give it to others, they reply the way they do:

“What then will the owner of the vineyard do to them? 16 He will come and kill those tenants and give the vineyard to others.”
When the people heard this, they said, “God forbid!”

Luke 20:15b-16

Jesus then quotes from Psalm 118:22:

“The stone the builders rejected
    has become the cornerstone”

Psalm 118:22

The point is that what the religious leaders have despised will be the foundation of the new thing that God is going to do.

No wonder they crucified Jesus–you can understand how angry this parable would make the religious authorities in Jerusalem.

Jesus tells the leaders of the Jews that, if they reject him, they will lose their role in God’s plan to bless the whole world through them.

And that’s what happened.

Here’s the question for us: are we living productively and faithfully, in response to God’s call on our lives? We are not entitled to be part of God’s plan to save the world–it’s a gracious gift to be involved. But, if we don’t take responsibility to live faithful lives, God will move on to other people who are willing.

How can you say “Yes” to the Lord today?

Today’s Scripture:

Luke 20:1-19



More on the Minas

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I didn’t post anything on Friday, but because it’s such a difficult parable, I decided to skip today’s reading and comment on Friday’s “Parable of the Ten Minas”. Matthew has a similar parable called “The Parable of the Talents,” with which you might be more familiar. It’s also more straightforward than the parable Luke gives us.

Some historical context: when King Herod the Great died (the one who was king when Jesus was born in Bethlehem), his son Archelaus went to Rome to petition Caesar to permit him to reign in their father’s place. Some Jews followed him to Rome to ask Caesar not to accede to his request. (They were unsuccessful, and Archelaus became king.) So, Jesus seems clearly to be alluding to current events as he begins his parable:

“12 He said: “A man of noble birth went to a distant country to have himself appointed king and then to return. 13 So he called ten of his servants and gave them ten minas. ‘Put this money to work,’ he said, ‘until I come back.’
14 “But his subjects hated him and sent a delegation after him to say, ‘We don’t want this man to be our king.’”
— Luke 19:12-14

The point is that Jesus was accusing some of the Jews of rejecting the Messiah’s reign in the same way they rejected Herod’s son.

As far as the rest of the parable, I like how Klyne Snodgrass explains it:

““Whatever else it does, the parable assumes a time when people will need to be faithful before the kingdom arrives….
“Like some Jews who resisted the reign of Achelaus, so some now resist the reign of the Messiah, but they will encounter judgement; further, the adherents of the Messiah will also be judged regarding their faithfulness. Both themes fit well in the last days of Jesus’ ministry. The parable serves as a warning to Jesus’ Jewish contemporaries–both those who followed him and those who did not….
“Jesus’ harsh language is intended to shock so that people take the warning seriously.””
— Klyne Snodgrass, Stories With Intent: A Comprehensive Guide to the Parables of Jesus

Oh, and that final command of the king to slaughter his enemies?

Remember who is telling the story!

Jesus is killed on behalf of his enemies. So, why does he add that last line in? My best guess is that he’s just being provocative and alluding to the real-life example of Archelaus.

Friday’s Scripture:

Luke 19:11-27

Don't Be Like the Other Nine

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There were ten lepers healed.

Nine went on their way and chose not to thank Jesus.

One went back and thanked Jesus.

Don’t be like the nine today.

What, specifically, do you not want to take for granted today? How can you thank the Lord for it?

Today’s Scripture

Luke 17:11-19