Lenten Tour of the Gospels

Mark 7: Poles Apart

"Are you so dull?" he asked. "Don't you see that nothing that enters a man from the outside can make him 'unclean'?"

Although the crowds sometimes have difficulty accepting Jesus' message, as long as he keeps healing people they tag along. On the other hand, the religious, political and intellectual establishments all strongly oppose Jesus but cannot manage to loosen his grip on the common people. The Pharisees, in particular, keep trying to trap him in a major blunder that might turn the people- or the government- against him.

In many ways, the Pharisees make an odd set of enemies for Jesus, for most people would rank them as strict and religious. Although the Pharisees work hard to follow the Old Testament law, Jesus can see right through their pious behavior. He blasts them for focusing on the outside while neglecting far greater dangers from within.

The Pharisees are strict legalists, and Jesus reacts with surprising harshness to such seemingly petty matters. By concentrating on all the rules, the Pharisees risk missing the whole point of the Gospel. Showy forms of legalism do not move anyone closer to God; in fact, they tend to make people proud, cliquish and self-righteous.

One way Jesus exposes the hypocricy in the Pharisees' attitude is by publicly healing people on the sacred Sabbath. Fully aware that such acts will scandalize strict Pharisees, he goes ahead anyway, insisting that compassion for needy people must take precedence over tradition. Sure enough, they care more about keeping the rules than healing the sick.

Lenten Tour of the Gospels

John 6: Food that Endures

I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will never go hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty. But as I told you, you have seen me and still you do not believe.

Apart from the resurrection, Jesus' feeding of 5,000 people is the only miracle that all four Gospels record. It shows Jesus meeting the most basic human need, food, by using barley loaves, the least expensive kind of bread. John describes the effect of the miracle on the ordinary people who saw it. Dazzled by Jesus' power, they try to crown him king. When he slips away, persistent fans commandeer boats and sail across a lake in pursuit.

The next day as the crowds catch up with him, Jesus meets them with a blunt warning: "I tell you the truth, your are looking for me, not because you saw miraculous signs but because you ate the loaves and had your fill. Do not work for food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you."

Hearing this, many Jews no doubt remember the miraculous manna that their ancestors ate in Moses' day. Jesus points to a better, life-changing meal: himself. As the "bread of life," he will nourish his people far better than any miraculous meal could.

Sensation-seeking crowds, however, care more for physical spectacle than for spiritual truth. What happens next certainly bears that out. As Jesus is interpreting the spiritual meaning of the miracle, all their enthusiasm melts away. The crowd grows downright restless, then hostile. They cannot reconcile his exalted claim- "I have come down from heaven"- with their knowledge that he is a local man whose mother and father they know.

Lenten Tour of the Gospels

Luke 18: Underdogs

"He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, 'God, have mercy on me, a sinner.'"

Jesus' stories in Luke 18 feature underdogs: a mistreated widow, a despised tax collector, little children, a blind beggar. A rich man makes an appearance as a negative example, as do most wealthy people around Jesus. Even Jesus' closest disciples have trouble swallowing his teaching that money represents a grave danger. Jesus spells out that danger, warning that wealth can keep people from the kingdom of God by tempting them to depend on themselves rather than God. The story of the Pharisee and the tax collector reinforces that message. Not only wealth, but any form of pride or self-dependence tends to lead away from God.

Even an effort to become "holy" may produce the opposite effect if it produces spirtual pride and a feeling of superiority. Human beings have an incurable tendency to feed their own egos, to take credit, to compete. The way to God, said Jesus, is just the opposite: Trust God like a little child, admit wrong, let go.

Jesus reveals the key to true success in the very first story in this collection, a parable to illustrate why we "should always pray and not give up." The persistent widow endures much frustration and apparent injustice before the judge finally grants her request. Similarly, Jesus implies, we may go through desert periods when it looks as if God is ignoring our heartfelt requests. In the end, God himself will settle accounts. And all those whose faith holds firm, even in the hard times, will see justice done.

Lenten Tour of the Gospels

Luke 16: Of Two Worlds

"You cannot serve both God and Money."

A story is told about Rabbi Joseph Schneerson, a Hasidic leader during the early days of Russian communism. The rabbi spent much time in jail, persecuted for his faith. One morning in 1927, as he prayed in a Leningrad synagogue, secret police rushed in and arrested him. They took him to a police station and worked him over, demanding that he give up his religious activities. He refused. The interrogator brandished a gun in his face and said, "This little toy has made many a man change his mind." Rabbi Schneerson answered, "This little toy can intimidate only that kind of man who has many gods and but one world. Because I have only one God and two worlds, I am not impressed by this little toy."

The theme of "two worlds," or two kingdoms, emerges often in Jesus' teaching, and a couple of stories in this chapter draw a sharp distinction between the two worlds. "What is highly valued among men is detestable in God's sight," Jesus says, commenting on his first story (verses 1-15).

The second story, about a rich man and a beggar named Lazarus, elaborates on the difference in values between the two worlds. The rich man prospers in this world, yet neglects to make any provision for eternal life and thus suffers the consequences. Meanwhile a half-starved beggar, judged by most standards as a failure in life, receives an eternal reward.

Jesus tells such stories to an audience with a tradition of wealthy patriarchs, strong kings and victorious heroes. He keeps emphasizing the stunning reversal of values in God's kingdom. People who have little value in this world (the poor, the persecuted- people like Lazarus) may, in fact, have great stature before God. Jesus consistently presents the invisisble world as a place to invest in for the future, a place to store up treasure for the life to come.

In a question that brings the two worlds starkly together, Jesus asks: "What good will it be for a man if he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul?" (Matthew 16:26)

Lenten Tour of the Gospels

Luke 15: Master Storyteller

"This brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found!"

Using simple, homespun images, Jesus expresses profound truths in a way that holds his audience captive. His parables (concise short stories) have won high praise, even from literary experts who do not accept their spiritual message. Some of the most famous of these parables appear only in Luke's Gospel.

The three stories in chapter 15 stir up feelings for the lost- and for the loser. A shepherd scours the hillside in a frantic search for a missing sheep. A woman turns her house upside down over a lost silver coin. A runaway son thumbs his nose at a life of comfort and ends up half-starved in a pigpen. In a few brief sentences, Jesus' parables tug at feelings of loss and remorse that lie buried just beneath the surface in all of us.

Yet all thre parables end the same: spectacular good news floods in to replace the sadness, and partying breaks out. All the parables point to the limitless love of God for those in real need. God stands ready to forgive all those who cry out to him.

The parable of the lost son actually tells the story of two sons, one irresponsible, the other hardworking. One wastes his life and comes home humbled; the other proudly refuses to celebrate his brother's homecoming. The story ends with one son inside, enjoying a joyful family celebration; his brother lingers outside, bitterly unwillings to forgive. Which son is really lost?

Lenten Tour of the Gospels

Luke 12: Mysterious Power of a Dangerous Force

“Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”

Jesus has more to say about money than about almost any other topic. Yet 2,000 years later Christians have trouble agreeing on exactly what he means. One reason is that Jesus rarely gives “practical” advice. He avoids commenting on specific economic systems and, as in this chapter, refuses to get involved in personal disputes about finances. Jesus sees money primarily as a spiritual force.

In some ways, money issues can be reduced to three questions:

1. How did you get it? (Did it involved injustice, cheating or oppression of the poor?)
2. What are you doing with it? (Are you hoarding it? Exploiting others? Wasting it on needless luxuries?
3. What is it doing to you?

Although Jesus speaks to all three of these issues, he concentrates on the last one. As he explains it, money operates much like an idol. It can catch hold of and dominate a person’s life, diverting attention from God. Jesus challenges people to break free of money’s power, even if it requires the radical step of giving it all away.

Luke 12 offers a good summary of Jesus’ attitude toward money. Jesus does not condemn all possessions: “Your Father knows that you need (food, drink, and clothes).” But he strongly warns against putting faith in money to secure the future. As Jesus’ story of the rich man shows, money will ultimately fail to solve life’s biggest problems. The rich man’s money did him absolutely no good the night of his death.

Jesus urges his listeners to seek treasure in the kingdom of God, for such treasure can benefit them in this life and the next one too. “Do not worry,” he says. Rather trust God to provide your basic need. To emphasize this point, Jesus uses the example of King Solomon, the richest man in the Old Testament. To most nationalistic Jews, Solomon is a hero. Jesus sees him in a different light: Solomon’s splendor- long since faded- was no more impressive than that of a common wildflower. Better to trust in the God who lavishes care on the whole earth than to spend your life worrying about money and possessions.

Lenten Tour of the Gospels

Luke 10: Mission Impossible

The seventy-two returned with joy and said, "Lord, even the demons submit to us in your name."

A seismic change is rumbling through this chapter. As Jesus commissions 72 followers, he does not disguise his alarm. "Go! I am sending you out like lambs among wolves," he says. Finally, in a voice that commands attention, he gives this mysterious charge: "He who listens to you listens to me; he who rejects you rejects me." Then the recruits depart on their dangerous, important mission.

Luke's next view of Jesus is almost unprecedented. Nowhere else in the Gospels will you find Jesus so happy, even bubbling with joy. The caution in his face has brightened to exuberance. It has really worked, this perilous mission into the hill country, and Jesus celebrates the enormous breakthrough with these 72 disciples.

In his enthusiastic response, Jesus reveals that he has come to Earth to establish a church, a group of believers, to carry on his will after his departure. As these 72 disciples walk the footpaths of Judea, knocking on doors, explaining the gospel of the Messiah and healing the sick, Jesus watches the behind-the-scenes impact: Satan falls like lightning from heaven. Jesus' own mission- more, his own life- is being lived out through 72 very ordinary human beings whose actions win a cosmic victory.

Power can go to your head, especially if you've never before had any. The disciples, mainly farmers and fishermen, are overwhelmed to discover their spiritual authority. Jesus urges them to keep it in perspective. Their salvation, he says- their names written in heaven- matters more than their power. (The Bible often speaks of God's people having their names recorded in a heavenly book. See Daniel 12:1 and Revelation 3:5.)

Finally, Jesus's parable- beginning with verse 25, definitively shows the correct teaching of Christian charity and love. The priest observes a robbery victim in a half-dead state. According to Old Testament law, any priest who touched a dead body made himself ceremonially impure (Leviticus 21:1-4) Both he and a religious Levite decided not to get involved. Jesus' audience might have been expecting the third character to be a Jewish layperson. But Jesus added a twist by making the one who showed love a Samaritan, a racial minority despised in Israel. In this way, Jesus contrasted mere religious beliefs with true love.

Lenten Tour of the Gospels

Mark 6: Contrast in Power

When Herod heard this, he said, "John, the man I beheaded, has been raised from the dead!"

Two very different kinds of power display themselves in Mark 6. Herod, ruler of Galilee, personifies one type. Rich and ruthless, he has legions of Roman soldiers to carry out his every command. He leaves impressive monuments all over the area he governs. Mark describes how Herod uses and abuses his power: He steals his brother's wife, locks up John the Baptist and then has the propeht beheaded as a party favor. Herod does feel some remorse in killing John, but he also feels he must protect his image by honoring a careless vow.

Jesus uses power in an opposite way. He reaches out to the weak, the suffering and the hungry. After declining an offer of worldly power in the wilderness (Matthew 4), he gives no further thought to cultivating an image of power or importance. He seeks to serve God rather than meet people's misguided expectations.

Of special note, Herod has built a lavish palace in Jesus' home province of Galilee, but Jesus avoids that fashionable area. As Herod wines and dines prominent guests, Jesus roams the countryside with his ragtag band of followers. He, too, serves a banquet of sorts to 5,000 unexpected guests. His simple message of love, forgiveness and healing has its own kind of power. Mark tells of crowds chasing Jesus around a lake, running to fetch their sick friends, pressing in close to touch the Teacher.

Jesus contemptuously dismisses Herod as "that fox" (Luke 13:32). But as talk about Jesus spreads, Herod longs for a chance to meet him. (Eventually he gets that chance at Jesus' trial.) One good thing does come out of the tragedy of John's beheading. Though Jesus has already gained some disciples from among those following John the Baptist, after John's execution even more of them join Jesus as disciples.

Lenten Tour of the Gospels

Matthew 13: Kingdom Tales

The disciples came to him and asked, "Why do you speak to the people in parables?"

Writers have long marveled at Jesus’ skill in communicating profound truth through parables- short, simple, everyday stories with a point. Everybody likes a story, and stories are easier to remember than concepts or logical outlines. Jesus spoke in terms that would hold the interest of a society of farmers and fishermen, many of whom were illiterate. About 30 of his masterful parables have survived in the Gospels.

While he is telling the stories recorded in this chapter, Jesus is floating offshore in a boat, projecting his voice to the large crowds that have gathered. Because the stories concern their daily lives- farming, baking bread, hunting buried treasure, fishing- he keeps their interest. Later, he reveals the deeper meanings of the stories to his disciples.

As Jesus explains to his disciples, parables also help to winnow the audience. Spectators seeking entertainment can go home with a few stories to mull over, but more serious inquirers will need to come back for further interpretation.

This chapter collects several of Jesus' stories about the "kingdom of heaven"- a phrase used 32 times in Matthew. Although Jesus never concisely defines the term, he gives many clues about the nature of this kingdom. Unlike, say, Greece or China or Spain, this kingdom has no geographical boundaries and can't be charted on a map. Its citizens live right among their enemies, not separated from them by an armed border. Still, Jesus predicts that the kingdom of heaven will show remarkable growth, even in an evil environment bent on its destruction.

In summary, the "kingdom of heaven" consists of the rule of God in the world. It comprises people of all races from all nations who loyally follow God's will. Jesus stresses that this new kingdom is a major advance in God's plan: its least member, he says, surpasses the great John the Baptist (11:11). The disciples, accustomed to more traditional images of power and leadership, never quite grasp Jesus' concept of the kingdom. They keep asking him to explain his parables, even as they jockey vainly for status. Not until Jesus dies and then comes back will they comprehend his mission on Earth.

Lenten Tour of the Gospels

Matthew 7: Letting the Inside Match the Outside

"Small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it."

Almost all of us live two lives: what other people see on the outside and what is really going on inside. In school we learn what outward signs of attention will please the teacher. At a job we learn to "put up a good front" whenever the boss happens to stroll by. As if putting on masks, we style our hair, choose our clothes and use body language to impress those around us. Over time, we learn to excel at hiding truly serious problems. People tend to judge by outward appearances and so can easily be fooled. Acquaintances are often shocked when a mass-murderer is arrested. "He seemed like such a nice man?" they insist. The outside appearance did not match the inside reality.

Chapters 5-7 announce that the time has come for us to change not just the outside, but also the inside. In Jesus' day, religious people tried to impress each other with showy outward behavior. They wore gaunt and hungry looks during a brief fast, prayed grandiosely if people were watching and went so far as to wear Bible verses strapped to their foreheads and left arms.

In his famous Sermon on the Mount, Jesus blasts the hypocrisy behind such seemingly harmless practices. God is not fooled by appearances. We cannot fake behavior to impress him. He knows that inside the best of us lurk dark thoughts of hatred, pride, and lust- internal problems only he can deal with. Jesus goes on to present a truly radical way of life, free of pretense.

These three chapters (5-7) among the most analyzed in the entire Bible, present a fresh view of the world. In one sense, Jesus says, the truths presented here are not new: They fulfill, rather that abolish, the Old Testament law. In another sense the way of life Jesus describes is more radical than anything before or since. Jesus' words turn many normal assumptions upside down. With statements like, "Blessed are the poor in spirit...those who mourn...the meek...the peacemakers...those who are persecuted," Jesus attacks those who strive to build a good image by appearing powerful, successful, and assertive.

Perhaps most radical of all, the Sermon on the Mount introduces the possibility of living solely for God and not for appearances. At last we can get our inner and outer lives in sync.

Lenten Tour of the Gospels

Matthew 6: Some Perplexing Advice

Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasrues in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

Matthew 6, a continuation of the Sermon on the Mount, contains the Lord's Prayer, perhaps the most famous prayer of all time. This model prayer by Jesus capturees well the message of the kingdom: Your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven." Jesus seeks to bring th two worlds together, and the Sermon on the Mount explains how.

At first glance, some of Jesus' advice may seem downright foolish: Give to everyone who asks, love your enemies, turn the other cheek, grant interest-free loans, don't worry about clothes or food. Can such idealism ever work in the "real," or visible, world? That is precisely Jesus' point: Break your obsession with safety, security, thriftiness, self-righteousness. Depend instead on the Father, letting God take care of the personal injustices that come your way, trusting God to look after your daily needs.

The message applies to rewards as well. Most of us look to friends and colleagues for our rewards: a slap on the back, a raise, applause, a generous compliment. According to Jesus, far more important rewards will come in God's heavenly kingdom. Therefore, the most significant acts may be carried out in secret, seen and rewarded by no one but God.

As Jesus explains it, we are accumulaing a kind of savings account, "storing up treasures" in heaven rather than on Earth- treasures great enough to pay back any amount of suffering in this life. The Old Testament has dropped a few scant hints about an afterlife, but Jesus speaks plainly about a place where "the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father" (13:43). In their quest for a kingdom, the Jews of Jesus' day have been looking for signs of God's approval in this life, primarily through prosperity and political power. Beginning with this speech, Jesus changes the focus to the life to come. He discounts success in this visible world. Invest in the future life, he cautions; for rust, a burglar or even an insect can destroy all the accumulated things of this present one.

Lenten Tour of the Gospels

Matthew 5: Sermon on the Mount

Now when he saw the crowds, he went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to him, and he began to teach them, saying: “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”

One emotionally charged word, kingdom, makes images dance in the minds of Jesus’ audience: bright banners, glittering armies, the gold and ivory of Solomon’s day, the nation of Israel restored to glory. Yet Jesus often uses this word that quickens the Jewish pulse, starting with his very first message, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near” (4:17)

Winds of change are blowing through Israel as Jesus speaks. Guerrilla fighters called Zealots hang on the edges of the crowds, awaiting the signal. Armed and well organized, they are spoiling for a fight against oppressive Rome. The signal for revolt, however, never comes. To their dismay, it gradually becomes clear that Jesus is not talking about a political or military kingdom.

The expectations raised by Jesus’ statements lead to confusion and, ultimately, to angry rejection. Initial excitement over Jesus’ miracles sours into disappointment when he fails to restore the long-awaited kingdom. As it turns out, the word kingdom means one thing to the crowd and quite another to Jesus.

Jesus indicates that two kinds of history are going on simultaneously. We live in a visible world of families and people and cities and nations- “the kingdom of this world.” But Jesus calls for people to commit their lives to an invisible kingdom, the “kingdom of heaven,” a kingdom more important and more valuable than anything in the visible world. It is like the finest pearl in the world, he says- worth selling everything you have to invest in it.

Success in the kingdom of heaven involves a complete reversal of values, as seen in this major address, the Sermon on the Mount. “Blessed are the poor in spirit,” Jesus says, and also those who mourn, the meek, those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, and the persecuted- “for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” Status in this world does not guarantee status in the kingdom of heaven.

Lenten Tour of the Gospels

Mark 5: Jesus and Illness

Then the woman, knowing what had happened to her, came and fell at his feet and, trembling with fear, told him the whole truth. He said to her, “Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace and be freed from your suffering.”

Jesus’ healings help to overturn common notions about how God views sick people. During Jesus’ lifetime, Pharisees teach strictly that all suffering comes from sin. In other words, if you’re sick, you deserve it. In fact, Pharisees judge a deranged or demon-possessed person as permanently cursed by God. They see God’s hand of punishment in natural disasters, birth defects and such long-term conditions as blindness and paralysis. Following Old Testament law, they consider “unclean” those who suffer from diseases such as leprosy, and they exclude them from worship.

Jesus boldly challenges such teaching. This chapter shows him curing a demon-possessed man, touching and healing an “unclean” woman and resurrecting a child (even though touching a corpse made a person “unclean”).

On other occasions, Jesus directly refutes the traditional doctrine of sin and suffering. He denies that a man’s blindness comes from his own or his parents’ sin, and he dismisses the common opinion that tragedies happen to those who deserve them (see Luck 13 and John 9)

Jesus does not heal everyone on the earth or even in his homeland. But his treatment of the sick and needy shows that they are especially loved, not curses, by God. His healings also provide a “sign” of what will happen in the future, a time when all diseases, and even death, will be destroyed.

Lenten Tour of the Gospels

Mark 4: an Unrecognized Messiah

He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, "Quiet! Be still!" Then the wind died down and it was completely calm.

The story about the sower of seed recorded in chapter 4 summarizes the mixed results Jesus himself got while on this earth. We, who live 2,000 years later, who have such events as Christmas and Easter marked plainly on our calendars, may easily miss the sheer incredulity that greeted Jesus in the flesh.

Neighbors: They have watched Jesus play in the streets with their children, growing up. He is simply too familiar for them to believe he is sent from God. “Isn’t this the carpenter?” they ask. “Isn’t this Mary’s son and the brother of James, Joseph, Judas and Simon? ...What’s this wisdom that has been given him, that he even does miracles!” (6:2-3)

Family: Not even Jesus’ family can easily reconcile the wondrous and the ordinary. Mark casually mentions one time when Jesus’ mother and brothers arrive to take charge of him because they have concluded that “he is out of his mind” (3:21).

Religious Experts: The scribes and Pharisees, who pore over the writings of the prophets, should have the clearest notion of how to recognize the Messiah. But no group causes Jesus more trouble than these scholars. They criticize his theology, his life-style and his choice of friends. When he performs miracles, they attribute his power to Satan and demons.

The Crowds: Common people seem unable to make up their minds about Jesus. One moment they judge him as “demon-possessed and raving made” (John 10:20); the next, they forcibly try to crown him king (John 6:15)

How could Jesus, God’s Son, worker of astounding miracles in broad daylight, go unrecognized? The incident that ends this chapter may provide a clue. When a storm nearly capsizes the boat transporting Jesus, he yells into the wind, “Quiet! Be still!” The disciples shrink back in terror. What kind of person shouts down the weather as if correcting an unruly child?

This scene helps convince them that Jesus is unlike anyone else on Earth. Yet it also suggests a reason for their confusion about him. Jesus has, after all, fallen asleep in the boat from sheer fatigue, a symptom of his human frailty. And the Son of God, the creator of weather, is- but for this one instance of miracle- one of weather’s victims.

The early church will argue for three centuries about exactly what happened when God became man, but their creeds do little to dispel the sense of mystery. In a way, Jesus is just like everyone else: He has a race, an occupation, a family background, a body shape. In a way, he is something entirely new in the history of the universe. In between these two statements lies a mystery that can never be explained away.

Lenten Tour of the Gospels

Mark 3: Convincing Proof

For he had healed many, so that those with diseases were pushing forward to touch him.

The Gospels record some three dozen miracles performed by Jesus, and Jesus states plainly one of their benefits: "Believe me when I say that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; or at least believe on the evidence of the miracles themselves" (John 14:11). Miracles offer convincing proof that Jesus is the Messiah, God's Son.

Large crowds gather from far away as word of Jesus' power spreads. Some people come for healing, others just to witness the extraordinary phenomena. Who but a messenger from God could perform such works? Yet Jesus himself has an odd ambivalence toward miracles. He refuses to do "tricks" on demand, like a magician. In fact, Jesus seems not to trust miracles to produce the kind of faith he is interested in. Mark reports that on seven separate occasions Jesus warns a person just healed, "Tell no one!" He is protecting himself from the crush of the crowds that flock to him when word of his miracles spreads- as it usually does, despite his orders- and from the opposition forces that always tails him.

In addition, Jesus remains suspicious of the popular acclaim that his miracles stir up. He is calling for obedience and sacrifice, whereas miracles tend to attract gawkers and sensation-seekers. The excitement generated by miracles does not automatically convert into the life-changing faith he seeks to arouse.

Mainly, Jesus uses his powers in compassionate response to human need. Every time someone asks directly for healing, he heals. When his disciples grow frightened on a stormy lake, he walks to them across the water or calms the wind. When his audience feels humgry, he feeds them. When wedding guests grow thirsty, he makes wine.

Much like people today, Jesus' contemporaries look for ways to explain away his powers. Here in Mark 3, the Pharisees seek to credit Jesus' miracles to Satan's power. On another occasion they arrange a formal tribunal, complete with judges and witnesses, to examine a man Jesus has healed. The man and his parents confirm the story- "One thing I do know. I was blind but now I see!"- but still the doubters hurl insults and throw him out of court (John 9). In short, the crowd's mixed response bears out Jesus' suspicions about the limited value of miracles. They rarely create faith; rather, they affirm faith in true seekers.

Lenten Tour of the Gospels

John 3: a Story of Salvation

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.

Most of Jesus' disciples were ordinary people with no status to worry about losing. A fisherman or tax collector would not forfeit much standing if he followed an unorthodox teacher. By contrast, Nicodemus had quite a reputation at stake. As a member of the Jewish Sanhedrin, he held an important ruling post. As a Pharisee, he was committed to a certain set of beliefs. And as a prominent religious teacher, he was a respected interpreter of God's law. No doubt, that is why Nicodemus first asked Jesus to meet him at night. (3:1-2)

Risking his reputation and safety by meeting with Jesus, whom his fellow Pharisees have sworn to kill, Nicodemus pursues this opportunity with some burning questions, possibly the most important questions anyone could ask: Who are you, Jesus? Have you really come from God? Responding with the image of a second birth, Jesus's words here in chapter 3 have become some of the most familiar in the Bible. In a few words, he tells Nicodemus the story of salvation: God loves the world, he gave us His son as a gift, and we can all be saved by simply placing our faith in Jesus.

John then follows this conversation with a report from John the Baptist. People are questioning the radical prophet about the new teacher across the river who is drawing all the crowds. In words that echo Jesus' own, John confirms that Jesus holds the keys to eternal life. Jesus is indeed the one John has come to herald. A great prophet still in his prime, John nonetheless bows to Jesus: "He must become greater; I must become less."

Lenten Tour of the Gospels

Mark 2: Signal Fires of Opposition

Now some teachers of the law were sitting there, thinking to themselves, "Why does this fellow talk like that?"

Jesus claims to be the Messiah, sent from God. Yet because he does not fit the religious leaders' image of a Messiah, opposition springs up to counter his wild surge of popularity. Mark 2 tells of three different criticisms leveled against Jesus.

He blasphemes. The teachers of the law are scandalized by the fact that Jesus forgives sins. "Who can forgive sins but God alone?" they mutter. Jesus readily agrees that only God can forgive sins- his point, exactly. When the Pharisees react violently to Jesus, it is usually because they have heard him correctly and simply refuse to believe him.

He keeps disreputable company. Jesus shows a preference for the most unseemly sort of people. Even after becoming famous, he dines with an outcast tax collector and his low-life friends. At the same time, he offends politicians and religious leaders by calling them names. On hearing complaints about his strange behavior, Jesus replies, "It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners."

He goes against tradition. To the Pharisees, it seems Jesus' disciples are playing fast and loose with the holy Sabbath. Jesus' response: A new day requires a different approach, just as new wine needs new wineskins. God has major changes in store for the human race, and the old traditions cannot contain them.

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Life Question: What intrigues you most about Jesus- that he is frank about who he is, that he spends time with outcasts or that he goes against tradition? Does he threaten you?

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In some ways, it's kind of easy to sit back today and quickly criticize the actions of the religious leaders of Jesus' times. What would happen if Christ came back today? Would society embrace him? Would he make the evening news as the Messiah or the tabloids as some evangelical lunatic that we all could sit back and laugh at? Christ's message was so startling to the Jews that- I think- they resorted to a very human nature response of defensiveness and protectiveness for their beloved faith customs. Watching Christ exert so much energy and time with non-Jews was probably perceived as a slap in their faces- they were the chosen people, and they were waiting for their Messiah. Christ, however, had other plans.

Lenten Tour of the Gospels

Mark 1: Immediate Impact

The people were all so amazed that they asked each other, "What is this?" A new teaching- and with authority! He even gives orders to evil spirits and they obey him." News about him spread quickly over the whole region of Galilee.

Although the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John all cover basically the same ground, each one looks at Jesus' life from a unique angle. For example, Matthew and Luke begin with historical background, taking pains to verify Jesus' Old Testament connections. Mark plunges right in to report on Jesus' actions.

After John the Baptist fans enthusiasm for Jesus- so much enthusiasm, in fact, that John lands in jail- Jesus openly announces his ministry. He has some surprises in store for the eager audience. For one thing, Jesus goes, not to Jerusalem, the natural center of activity for any aspiring leader, but to small towns in the hill country of Galilee.

Jesus has spent his childhood in Galilee, in the obscure town of Nazareth, which leads some sophisticates to scoff, "Nazareth! Can anything good come from there?" (John 1:46). Except for festival times when he travels to Jerusalem, Jesus shows a marked preference for small towns and rural areas, especially in the remote northern region of Galilee.

In other ways, too, Jesus does not fit the expected image of a prophet. His cousin John personifies the severe ascetic image: He lives in a desert, eats insects and preaches a harsh message of judgment. But Jesus lives in the midst of people, dines in their homes and brings a message of "the good news of God." Although Jesus may not be a conventional leader, as soon as he begins healing people, his reputation swells overnight. News of his miraculous power spreads, even when he tries to hush it up. The word about an amazing, unconventional kind of prophet gets out.

Lenten Tour of the Gospels

Luke 2: No Fear

And Jesus grew in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men.

Nearly every time an angel appears in the Bible, his first words are, "Don't be afraid!" Little wonder. When the supernatural makes contact with planet Earth, the human observers usually end up flat on their faces in fear. But Luke tells of God appearing in a form that does not frighten. In Jesus, born in a barn and laid in a feeding trough, God uses a mode of approach that causes no fear. What could be less scary than a newborn baby?

Imagine becoming a baby again: giving up language and muscle coordination and the ability to eat solid food and control your bladder. That gives a mere hint of the "emptying" that Jesus chooses to undergo.

According to the Bible, Jesus is both God and man. As God, he works miracles, forgives sins, conquers death and predicts the future. As he does all these things, Jesus evokes awe in the people around him. But for Jews, accustomed to seeing God in a bright cloud or a pillar of fire, Jesus also causes much confusion. How could a baby in Bethlehem, a carpenter's son, a man from Nazareth, be God? Jesus' skin gets in the way. All through his life- and even today- Jesus remains a puzzling figure for skeptics. God could have made his identity more smashingly obvious, but he chose not to.

What does God gain by coming in "disguise?" Why does God empty himself and take on human form? The Bible gives many reasons, some densely theological and some quite practical. Luke's story of Jesus as an adolescent in the temple (2:41-50) gives one clue. For the first time, ordinary people can hold a conversation, a debate, with God in visible form. Jesus can talk to anyone- his parents, a rabbi, a poor widow- without first having to announce, "Don't be afraid!" In Jesus, God comes close.

Lenten Tour of the Gospels

Luke 1: One Final Hope

In a loud voice she exclaimed: "Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the child you will bear!"

Does any human emotion run as deep as hope? Fairy tales, which are nearly universal, pass down from generation to generation an irrepressible sense that in the end the forces of evil will lose the struggle and the brave and good will somehow triumph. For the people Luke introduces in this first chapter of his Gospel, all hope seems like a fairy tale. As Middle Eastern empires rise and fall, the tiny nation of Israel can never truly break free from the domination of greater powers. No prophet has spoken to the people in four centuries. God has long threatened to hide his face, and indeed a dark shadow has fallen across the planet.

For four centuries, the four hundred years of God's silence, the Jews have waited and wondered. One flicker of hope remains, the ancient promise of a Messiah. On that promise the Jews stake everything. Then, suddenly, stories spread about the birth of a baby unlike any other. Luke takes care to relate these stories to the predictions of a Messiah given by the Old Testament prophets who originally stirred the hope. He portrays John the Baptist as an "Elijah" sent to prepare the way for the Lord.

It was Elizabeth and Zechariah who were among the very first to sense the change that came with the Messiah. Devout believers from priestly families, they represented the best of the old order. They had devoted many years to serving God under the Old Testament law. Yet a cloud of sadness hung over their lives, for they were growing old, and the greatest blessing they could imagine had been denied them. Childless, they knew their line would die out when they passed away.

Then the new era abruptly broke in. One day as Zechariah was performing his duties in the temple, an angel brought some astounding news: He would have a son! Zechariah, long past the age of parenthood, asked for proof and got perhaps more than he had bargained for (1:20) A short while later a relative of Elizabeth's named Mary brought even greater news. The Messiah, the Savior the Jews had been longing for, was on the way! Not only had God answered Elizabeth's and Zechariahs' personal prayers; their nations long waiting would soon come to an end as well.

Esther 4: A Race's Survival

Then Esther sent this reply to Mordecai: "Go, gather together all the Jews who are in Susa, and fast for me. Do not eat or drink for three days, night or day. I and my maids will fast as you do. When this is done, I will go to the king, even though it is against the law. And if I perish, I perish.

Not all Jewish exiles return to their homeland when given the opportunity. Some have put down roots during the half-century of Babylonian captivity, and when the more tolerant Persian regime takes command, many of these Jews decide to stay. Suddenly, though, these Jews in Persia face a grave crisis. Their success has attracted so much jealousy that a powerful man is leading a conspiracy to kill every Jew in the land. Tragically, the underlying plot of the book of Esther is an old and familiar one to Jews. Throughout history- the Roman campaigns, medieval Jew-hunts, Russian pogroms, Hitler's "final solution"- they have faced a constant threat of extermination.

Ensconced in the luxury of the palace, the beautiful Queen Esther is possibly the only Jew in Persia who has not heard of the extermination plans. She is most likely safe, but her adoptive father, her cousin Mordecai, warns that the king might just as easily turn against her too. Mordecai has a sophisticated view of God's providence that never lapses into fatalism. He believes that God will somehow preserve his people; yet he also knows that God might accomplish that goal through the courageous actions of people like himself and Esther.

In Esther's day a queen does not easily stand up to her husband- especially like Xerxes. By intervening for the sake of her race, Esther places her own life in jeopardy. Chapter 4 spells out Esther's dilemma and describes the decision she fianlly reaches. The rest of the book records a series of plot twists: the Jews are spared, even honored, and the original conspirator is hanged in the place of Mordecai. Esther's story is a thrilling chapter in the narrative of God's love for the Jews.

Life Question: Someone once called coincidences "God's way of working anonymously." Do you tend to give God credit for the "conicidences" in your life?

All to often. It's so easy to embrace the idea..."What a lucky thing to have happen." Yet, my notion of luck is probably God's divine plan of helping steer my life closer to His Son...and the things that happen to me as well as the people whom I interact with each and every day all probably have a specific purpose, a purpose that I'm not always in tune with. The next time "luck" comes my way, I should offer a sincere prayer of thanks instead.