For this purpose I have come forth

Now as soon as they had come out of the synagogue, they entered the house of Simon and Andrew, with James and John. But Simon's wife's mother lay sick with a fever, and they told Him about her at once. So He came and took her by the hand and lifted her up, and immediately the fever left her. And she served them.

At evening, when the sun had set, they brought to Him all who were sick and those who were demon-possessed. And the whole city was gathered together at the door. Then He healed many who were sick with various diseases, and cast out many demons; and He did not allow the demons to speak, because they knew Him.

Now in the morning, having risen a long while before daylight, He went out and departed to a solitary place; and there He prayed. And Simon and those who were with Him searched for Him. When they found Him, they said to Him, "Everyone is looking for You." But He said to them, Let us go into the next towns, that I may preach there also, because for this purpose I have come forth."

Now a leper came to Him, imploring Him, kneeling down to Him and saying to Him, "If You are willing, You can make me clean." Then Jesus, moved with compassion, stretched out His hand and touched him, and said to him, "I am willing; be cleansed." As soon as He had spoken, immediately the leprosy left him, and he was cleansed. And He strictly warned him and sent him away at once, and said to him, "See that you say nothing to anyone; but go your way, show yourself to the priest, and offer for your cleansing those things which Moses commanded, as a testimony to them." However, he went out and began to proclaim it freely, and to spread the matter, so that Jesus could no longer openly enter the city, but was outside in deserted places; and they came to Him from every direction.

- Mark 1:29-45

In yesterday's reading, we learned that John the Baptist is already in prison. Jesus begins His Galilean ministry, preaching, "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel." He walks by the Sea of Galilee, seeing the brothers Simon and Andrew. He tells them, "Follow Me, and I will make you become fishers of men." Later He meets James and John Zebedee, and they follow Him as well. Going to Capernaum, Jesus entered a synagogue and taught. All are astounded at His authority, not like those of the scribes. A man with an unclean spirit rose and said to Him, "Let us alone! What have we to do with You, Jesus of Nazareth? Did You come to destroy us? I know who You are -- the Holy One of God!" But Jesus told the spirit to be quiet and to come out of the man. The people responded: "What is this? What new doctrine is this? For with authority He commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey Him." And immediately His fame spread throughout all the region around Galilee.

Now as soon as they had come out of the synagogue, they entered the house of Simon and Andrew, with James and John. But Simon's wife's mother lay sick with a fever, and they told Him about her at once. So He came and took her by the hand and lifted her up, and immediately the fever left her. And she served them. Mark's Gospel now takes us into the personal -- from the synagogue Jesus and His disciples go to the house of brothers Simon and Andrew. Peter's a married man, and his mother-in-law is sick with a fever. Jesus' ministry is not just for the public in the synagogue, but here it becomes quite personal -- even the form the healing takes. He took her by the hand, lifting her up. Mark's Gospel gives us the details that tell us of a tender personal scene, perhaps unusual in its intimacy of touch for the time. But it tells us about Jesus: He is not merely the impressive, authoritative, powerful preacher who commands even the demons. Here He cares for the older woman, Peter's mother-in-law. She is restored to her place in the household through His touch. And I think we might also consider that from the point of view of the Church, it is an honor to serve Christ and His disciples.

At evening, when the sun had set, they brought to Him all who were sick and those who were demon-possessed. And the whole city was gathered together at the door. Then He healed many who were sick with various diseases, and cast out many demons; and He did not allow the demons to speak, because they knew Him. Here, the public comes to the door! His personal healing is not only for the immediate family and relatives, those of His circle but rather the "whole city was gathered together at the door." Nor is His healing of those with demons reserved only for the public place in the synagogue, but also the personal. Again, His power prevents the demons even from speaking. It is clear where the authority lies, what kingdom He is bringing.

Now in the morning, having risen a long while before daylight, He went out and departed to a solitary place; and there He prayed. And Simon and those who were with Him searched for Him. When they found Him, they said to Him, "Everyone is looking for You." But He said to them, Let us go into the next towns, that I may preach there also, because for this purpose I have come forth." Again, this briefest of the Gospels, while moving along at its swift pace and with simple language, surprises us with its detail. My study bible points out that Mark's is the only Gospel that gives us a full day in Jesus' life, "a day built around prayer and ministry." We always note the emphasized image of Jesus at prayer, setting His example for us all. Everyone is looking for Him, but Jesus is doing what He must, sticking to His business. First comes prayer, time with the Father. My study bible notes for us: "Jesus' priority is prayer to His Father: prayer before service. He goes to a solitary place to be free from distraction, despite the multitudes' need of Him. His ministry comes out of His relationship with His Father, not foremost out of people's need." And it is clear from the text this is so. First there is the time for prayer. Despite the fact that so many are looking for Him, He does what He must for this ministry -- and, one presumes, what the Father calls Him to do. It is time to move to the next towns and preach the message of the gospel, the good news of the Kingdom at hand.

Now a leper came to Him, imploring Him, kneeling down to Him and saying to Him, "If You are willing, You can make me clean." Then Jesus, moved with compassion, stretched out His hand and touched him, and said to him, "I am willing; be cleansed." As soon as He had spoken, immediately the leprosy left him, and he was cleansed. And He strictly warned him and sent him away at once, and said to him, "See that you say nothing to anyone; but go your way, show yourself to the priest, and offer for your cleansing those things which Moses commanded, as a testimony to them." However, he went out and began to proclaim it freely, and to spread the matter, so that Jesus could no longer openly enter the city, but was outside in deserted places; and they came to Him from every direction. Again, we get a personal picture of Jesus here in this healing of the leper. Jesus is "moved with compassion." Leprosy condemned a person to exclusion from community; a certificate was necessary from the priest to be allowed back into community. Again, my study bible usefully points out this key to Jesus' character and its display through His ministry: "Jesus heals from compassion -- not from duty or a need to prove Himself, or in order to gather a following." In another sense, we can also see the completeness of Jesus' healing power. Leprosy was considered a kind of evidence of sin or guilt, a condition reflecting the consequences of sin in the world. Jesus touches the leper as well; this healing touch goes deeper than the skin, and the implication is clear when the man goes to show himself to the priest, to come back into religious community. And here is yet another paradox of this man, Christ, with so much power and authority: He doesn't want the healed man to speak publicly about Him. He proclaims the Kingdom, but not His own divinity. The signs are there, but His Messiahship must remain secret. However, this news is not contained, so that Jesus is mobbed by crowds. Even in the deserted places, they come to Him from every direction.

Here, coming so quickly in Mark's Gospel, is tremendous evidence of all of Jesus' healing and teaching abilities. He has total power over demons. He heals by touch, in the personal and immediate. He rebukes demons in public in the synagogue before the community and by personal contact. He even heals the leper by touch. All of this is here for us to see and to read about Him. His duty and love is first of all for the Father, with the Father -- and this compassion extends to all. The great paradox is in the personalness of Jesus. As there is intimacy and love and loyalty to the Father, so Jesus' relationship and "touch" seem to come to each of us, this story says. And we can experience this in our lives. The intimate moments depicted, the healing of Peter's mother-in-law or the admonition to the healed leper to tell no one, but to simply go to the priest, tell us something wonderful about Jesus. His heart is greater than anything that we can know, and yet it comes first from His intimate relationship with the Father, as do all things we know about Him as Son. He teaches us all through His example of love and service. He is not pleasing the world, but pleasing God the Father through God's own love, compassion, loyalty, trust. God the Almighty invites us in to this intimate, personal picture, this secret of Christ, proclaimed in the Gospels. It is always inviting us in, to "Follow Him." This is the good news of the Kingdom at hand.

Follow Me, and I will make you become fishers of men

Now after John was put in prison, Jesus came to Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, and saying, "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel."

And as He walked by the Sea of Galilee, He saw Simon and Andrew his brother casting a net into the sea; for they were fishermen. Then Jesus said to them, "Follow Me, and I will make you become fishers of men." They immediately left their nets and followed Him. When He had gone a little farther from there, He saw James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, who also were in the boat mending their nets. And immediately He called them, and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired servants, and went after Him.

Then they went into Capernaum, and immediately on the Sabbath He entered the synagogue and taught. And they were astonished at His teaching, for He taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes. Now there was a man in their synagogue with an unclean spirit. And he cried out, saying, "Let us alone! What have we to do with You, Jesus of Nazareth? Did You come to destroy us? I know who You are -- the Holy One of God!" But Jesus rebuked him, saying, "Be quiet, and come out of him!" And when the unclean spirit had convulsed him and cried out with a loud voice, he came out of him. Then they were all amazed, so that they questioned among themselves, saying, "What is this? What new doctrine is this? For with authority He commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey Him." And immediately His fame spread throughout all the region around Galilee.

- Mark 1:14-28

In yesterday's reading, we began the Gospel of Mark. We were introduced to John the Baptist, who came preaching a baptism of repentance for the remission or "letting go" of sins. He proclaimed the One who was to come, and Mark's Gospel gives us the prophecy of Isaiah fulfilled in John: "The voice of one crying in the wilderness: 'Prepare the way of the LORD; make His paths straight.'" John is in the fashion of Elijah returned, a holy man, widely known and revered as such. We read of Jesus' baptism, and the appearance of the Holy Trinity: the Father's voice declaring that He is Son, the Holy Spirit descending like a dove, anointing Christ. Then the Spirit drove Him into the wilderness, where He remained tempted by Satan, there with the wild beasts, and ministered to by angels.

Now after John was put in prison, Jesus came to Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, and saying, "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel." Mark's Gospel will move forward at a fast pace. Here, it tells us we are already at the time of John's imprisonment. Jesus' preaching ministry begins, in Galilee. He is preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, with us now even as Jesus preached: "The time is fulfilled, the kingdom of God is at hand." It is present with us, the time is now. And yet, we look forward to its fulfillment: it is both here with us and an expected reality, the fullness of which we await. Jesus asks for people to pay attention, to turn to the faith of the gospel of the kingdom of God, to "change their minds" (repent). These words remain with us: the kingdom's presence and the time of its fullness we look toward now. The "gospel" is the good news of this reality, this kingdom.

And as He walked by the Sea of Galilee, He saw Simon and Andrew his brother casting a net into the sea; for they were fishermen. Then Jesus said to them, "Follow Me, and I will make you become fishers of men." Jesus and these men He encounters who will be His first apostles are already known to one another. Mark's Gospel moves us very swiftly -- this is characteristic of its style. But this is a call, a command: "Follow Me." And it is also a promise. Repentance becomes more than a change of mind and heart; in its wake is also a new life, a different fulfillment of promise in discipleship. God will take all that we are and have become, and will make of us what God's purpose can fulfill in us, as we are, with whatever we have. They are fishermen; they will become fishers of men.

They immediately left their nets and followed Him. When He had gone a little farther from there, He saw James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, who also were in the boat mending their nets. And immediately He called them, and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired servants, and went after Him. These men whom Jesus knows immediately respond to the call. They trust Him. My study bible says, "Called suggests discipleship is an invitation issued by Jesus, the emphasis being on His initiative -- the opposite of rabbinic discipleship, where the student took the initiative to follow the leader (rabbi). Jesus does not hesitate to include groups of friends and relatives among His disciples. Here are two sets of brothers, and two families are friends, perhaps even relatives." The emphasis is on the newness of this kingdom, the time has been fulfilled and it is at hand; their lives will change for the sake of its inauguration and promise of fulfillment.

Then they went into Capernaum, and immediately on the Sabbath He entered the synagogue and taught. And they were astonished at His teaching, for He taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes. Jesus' immediate beginning to His ministry is to teach in the synagogue, and all are astonished at the authority with which He speaks. He hasn't studied with a famous rabbi, He doesn't quote others. He doesn't use credentials to back Himself up, nor rely on the opinions of others. His presence is immediate and powerful. In Him, the kingdom is at hand.

Now there was a man in their synagogue with an unclean spirit. And he cried out, saying, "Let us alone! What have we to do with You, Jesus of Nazareth? Did You come to destroy us? I know who You are -- the Holy One of God!" But Jesus rebuked him, saying, "Be quiet, and come out of him!" And when the unclean spirit had convulsed him and cried out with a loud voice, he came out of him. Then they were all amazed, so that they questioned among themselves, saying, "What is this? What new doctrine is this? For with authority He commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey Him." And immediately His fame spread throughout all the region around Galilee. The kingdom is inaugurated and its effects are plain to see. This is a spiritual kingdom, demanding faith; He is a spiritual leader and asks discipleship of His followers into this new doctrine, the good news. Its effects are powerful and immediate; there is an unmistakeable presence at work. His authority is not only in His speaking, but also in His effect on the unclean spirit. His authority is clear, His power is demonstrated. The unclean spirits have had free reign, but an authority and power are now inaugurated, and present, over which they have no power.

Mark's Gospel moves us along very quickly, and we are thrown into this Kingdom as it is given to us by Jesus. The time of the world has been fulfilled so that the Gospel may be preached. All are called to repent, to hear, to turn around and listen and accept and understand. This kingdom asks us for our faith, so that we may be present to it, dwell in it and with it, be a part of its fulfillment in the world. Even as the Gospel thrusts us into this new kingdom and the power of Christ, let us think where we are now in the world. There are theologians who teach us that Christianity is yet in its infancy, with the Church around the world in places far from one another, in denominations multiple and seemingly uncountable, seemingly fragmentary. Yet the Kingdom promises to us its fulfillment in wholeness, in a future that calls us forward in that faith into which we enter. Discipleship becomes for each of us a point of entry, finding what is our part in the fulfillment of that kingdom. As we read of the Gospel's initiation, let us think what it is now, in this time of Lent in 2012, to be a part of this kingdom, and what precisely is the unfolding of discipleship in us. How do we play our parts in this movement toward the promise of its fulfillment? How do we repent, and change our minds, moving forward and more deeply into faith and discipleship on the road, even as we will read of the road of the first disciples of Christ? How does Christ take all that you are, and bring it into service in the kingdom?

Prepare the way of the Lord; make His paths straight

Byzantine Museum - Athens, Greece

The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. As it is written in the Prophets:

"Behold, I send My messenger before your face,

Who will prepare Your way before You."

"The voice of one crying in the wilderness:

'Prepare the way of the LORD;

Make His paths straight.'"

John came baptizing in the wilderness and preaching a baptism of repentance for the remission of sins. Then all the land of Judea, and those from Jerusalem, went out to him and were all baptized by him in the Jordan River, confessing their sins. Now John was clothed with camel's hair and with a leather belt around his waist, and he ate locusts and wild honey. And he preached, saying, "There comes One after me who is mightier than I, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to stoop down and loose. I indeed baptized you with water, but He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit."

It came to pass in those days that Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee, and was baptized by John in the Jordan. And immediately, coming up from the water, He saw the heavens parting and the Spirit descending upon Him like a dove. Then a voice came from heaven, "You are my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased." Immediately the Spirit drove Him into the wilderness. And He was there in the wilderness forty days, temped by Satan, and was with the wild beasts; and the angels ministered to Him.

- Mark 1:1-13

Today we begin our Lenten readings for this year. The lectionary takes us to the Gospel of Mark. Mark is the shortest of the Gospels, and its style of language is simple in nature, as the story it tells us about Jesus progresses very swiftly. Mark the Apostle was also known as John Mark. His mother's house was a meeting place for Christians in Jerusalem. According to some Church Fathers, Mark wrote for the Christian community of Rome. Persecution began by Nero in A.D. 64, and there was an apocalyptic fervor occasioned by the Jewish war and the destruction of Jerusalem in A.D. 70. My study bible says, "Mark tells the story of Jesus so his readers may see their own suffering as a prelude to the glorious second Coming of Jesus, and may discern the reward of those who endure to the end. The suffering and the glory are equally real; this was true for Jesus and will be true for all believers."

The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. As it is written in the Prophets: "Behold, I send My messenger before your face, who will prepare Your way before You." "The voice of one crying in the wilderness: 'Prepare the way of the LORD; Make His paths straight.'" Mark begins his gospel with the prophets. Here it is a combination of verses from Malachi and Isaiah. We are introduced to John the Baptist and his role in the story of the plan of salvation. He is introduced by the prophets, and as a prophet.

John came baptizing in the wilderness and preaching a baptism of repentance for the remission of sins. Then all the land of Judea, and those from Jerusalem, went out to him and were all baptized by him in the Jordan River, confessing their sins. John baptizes for the remission or "letting go" of sins (as we can translate literally from the Greek word "afesin"). This word for "letting go" will be the same word used for forgiveness in the Lord's Prayer (as in "forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors"). Repentance is "metanoia" in the Greek, an important and crucial concept for us as we enter into Lent. "Metanoia" means "change of mind" in the Greek. John's baptism is of repentance for the letting go of sins -- a preparation for the One who is to come. My study bible notes, "Later, in Christian baptism, God not only forgives our sins, letting them go, but He also brings us into union with Christ." John's ministry is widely known and accepted; he has a sweeping impact and is popularly known as a holy man. My study bible says that outside of official and rabbinic Judaism he is perhaps the leading religious figure.

Now John was clothed with camel's hair and with a leather belt around his waist, and he ate locusts and wild honey. And he preached, saying, "There comes One after me who is mightier than I, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to stoop down and loose. I indeed baptized you with water, but He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit." In John's clothing, we read of his radical humility, but it also tells us what kind of a prophet he is. It is similar to the clothing worn by Elijah. The Gospels tell us that Jesus will say that in John is the return of the spirit of Elijah, the fulfillment of the prophecy of Elijah's return which would precede the Messiah. His humility is expressed in the way he teaches about himself in relation to the One who is coming. To be baptized with the Holy Spirit is a true anointing from God, with the power of God. The implication is that it is only Christ's to give.

It came to pass in those days that Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee, and was baptized by John in the Jordan. And immediately, coming up from the water, He saw the heavens parting and the Spirit descending upon Him like a dove. Then a voice came from heaven, "You are my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased." My study bible says that "like a dove" does not mean that the Holy Spirit incarnated as a dove, but rather that it is a special sign indicating the presence of the Spirit. It says, "A dove symbolizes purity, peace and wisdom." These are qualities of the Spirit, the anointing we all hope for, that will make us children by adoption. Christ means the Anointed One. Christ's "coming up" from the water is the same word that will be used for His Ascension, His "rising up" so that the world is "lifted up" with Him. In the icon above, we can see all of creation symbolized in the creatures and the nature depicted. The voice of the Father, along with the Holy Spirit, makes Jesus' Baptism a manifestation of the Holy Trinity. The Father's voice tells a knowing audience who Jesus is. It is a combination of a verse from a messianic psalm with one from the first song of the Suffering Servant of the Lord.

Immediately the Spirit drove Him into the wilderness. And He was there in the wilderness forty days, temped by Satan, and was with the wild beasts; and the angels ministered to Him. The forty days of Jesus' wilderness experience, faced with temptation and ministered to by the angels, echoes for the audience the forty years of Israel's temptations and ministry by the Spirit of God. These forty days became the basis for Great Lent in Christian tradition. My study bible says, "Being with the beasts and served by the angels suggests a relationship between Christ and Adam." The Church Fathers believed that meditative seclusion helps us to freer communication with God and in preparation for tasks ahead. We will see Jesus retreat for prayer throughout the Gospels at crucial points in His ministry.

My study bible has an interesting note which I think is pertinent to this time of Great Lent: "Even if we are subjected to evil (the demons, the beasts,) God will never desert us as we struggle toward Him." In Jesus' struggle, then, we can sometimes find our own. We live in a world beset with problems, with personal lives in which we all have problems to deal with. It is not a "perfect world" nor a "perfect life" into which we, and He, are born. But we have help to bear with it, to struggle through it. Through it all, we remember, the world and all of creation are His, and He lives His life as a human being to help us to be transfigured, anointed, adopted in the Spirit. Just as Israel was led through the wilderness, faced temptation, but was also offered the word of God, so are we in His Incarnation. We are invited into this work of love for the world. This Lent, invite the Spirit to help you through your own struggle and your own transfiguration, your own "letting go" of the things which are burdens -- within us and around us. He is here to help us to negotiate this world, our burdens, whatever they may be, for the life of the world.

If anyone walks in the day, he does not stumble, because he sees the light of this world

photo copyright Anni Jones Photography

Now a certain man was sick, Lazarus of Bethany, the town of Mary and her sister Martha. It was that Mary who anointed the Lord with fragrant oil and wiped His feet with her hair, whose brother Lazarus was sick. Therefore the sisters sent to Him, saying, "Lord, behold, he whom You love is sick." When Jesus heard that, He said, "This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God may be glorified through it."

Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. So, when He heard that he was sick, He stayed two more days in the place where He was. Then after this He said to the disciples, "Let us go to Judea again." The disciples said to Him, "Rabbi, lately the Jews sought to stone You, and are You going there again?" Jesus answered, "Are there not twelve hours in the day? If anyone walks in the day, he does not stumble, because he sees the light of this world. But if one walks in the night, he stumbles, because the light is not in him." These things He said, and after that He said to them, "Our friend Lazarus sleeps, but I go that I may wake him up." Then His disciples said, "Lord, if he sleeps he will get well." However, Jesus spoke of his death, but they thought that He was speaking about taking rest in sleep. Then Jesus said to them plainly, "Lazarus is dead. And I am glad for your sakes that I was not there, that you may believe. Nevertheless let us go to him." Then Thomas, who is called the Twin, said to his fellow disciples, "Let us also go, that we may die with Him."

- John 11:1-16

Yesterday we read about a confrontation at the temple, that took place at the Feast of Dedication, or Hannukah, the festival of lights. This dialogue began in the previous reading (on Thursday), in which Jesus told the leadership, "I and My Father are one." This was in answer to their question, "How long do You keep us in doubt? If You are the Christ, tell us plainly." In yesterday's reading, they had begun to take up stones to stone Him after Jesus pronounced that He and His Father are one. But Jesus told them, "Many good works I have shown you from My Father. For which of those works do you stone Me?" The temple authorities replied that it was not for the works, but for making Himself God. Jesus told them, "Is it not written in your law, 'I said, "You are gods"?' If He called them gods, to whom the word of God came (and the Scripture cannot be broken), do you say of Him whom the Father sanctified and sent into the world, 'You are blaspheming,' because I said, 'I am the Son of God'?" He pointed again to His works as witness to the presence of God the Father with Him, but they sought to stone Him. Jesus then went and stayed in the place where John the Baptist first baptized, beyond the Jordan. And there He found many believers, who saw for themselves that John's testimony of Jesus was true.

Now a certain man was sick, Lazarus of Bethany, the town of Mary and her sister Martha. It was that Mary who anointed the Lord with fragrant oil and wiped His feet with her hair, whose brother Lazarus was sick. John's Gospel has just told us that Jesus went to the other side of the Jordan River, away from Jerusalem, after His last confrontation in the temple with the authorities, who tried to stone Him for blasphemy. But here, the Gospel assumes a familiarity in the readership with the important figures of this family -- Martha, Mary and Lazarus. Furthermore, John the Evangelist also assumes an understanding of an important incident, in which Mary anointed the Lord with fragrant oil and wiped His feet with her hair, which John will report later in the Gospel, in the next chapter.

Therefore the sisters sent to Him, saying, "Lord, behold, he whom You love is sick." When Jesus heard that, He said, "This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God may be glorified through it." We remember Jesus' sixth miracle or sign in the Gospel of John, the healing of the man blind from birth. His disciples asked Him then, "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?" Jesus answered, "Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but that the works of God should be revealed in him." Here the starkest affliction known to the world will be the occasion for the glory of God, that the Son of God may be glorified through it. As so often happens with John's Gospel, the events that unfold will astound the disciples. They cannot understand the events to which He alludes in speech before all is revealed to them.

Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. So, when He heard that he was sick, He stayed two more days in the place where He was. Here is a seemingly paradoxical statement! But the great love between this family and Jesus is well-known and remarkable in the Gospels. We will see with what plans Jesus will glorify God through this family He loves.

Then after this He said to the disciples, "Let us go to Judea again." The disciples said to Him, "Rabbi, lately the Jews sought to stone You, and are You going there again?" Bethany, the town of Martha, Mary and Lazarus, is on the eastern slope of the Mount of Olives, about two miles from Jerusalem. Jesus is now east of the Jordan river, and wishes to return to the region of Judea to the home of His friends.

Jesus answered, "Are there not twelve hours in the day? If anyone walks in the day, he does not stumble, because he sees the light of this world. But if one walks in the night, he stumbles, because the light is not in him." Jesus has said, in the reading of the healing of the blind man, "I am the light of the world." Here, Jesus' reply seems to me to refer to that light that is in Him. He walks in the day because of this light. Those who walk in the darkness are the ones that stumble. He knows where He is going, what He is doing. Nothing happens without a voluntary understanding in Him, a command He accepts from the Father.

These things He said, and after that He said to them, "Our friend Lazarus sleeps, but I go that I may wake him up." Then His disciples said, "Lord, if he sleeps he will get well." However, Jesus spoke of his death, but they thought that He was speaking about taking rest in sleep. Then Jesus said to them plainly, "Lazarus is dead. And I am glad for your sakes that I was not there, that you may believe. Nevertheless let us go to him." Then Thomas, who is called the Twin, said to his fellow disciples, "Let us also go, that we may die with Him." Again, we see in the familiar technique of John's Gospel, a series of misapprehensions, partial understanding, so that what is happening may be revealed to us in the same way the Gospel tells us it is revealed to the disciples. Jesus delays in order that the occasion of Lazarus' death becomes one of glorification, revelation, a sign of the presence of God. He refers to Lazarus' "sleep" so that we understand the death that is not unto death, but life. Thomas again misunderstands. No one can grasp what is going to happen. My study bible points to the irony of Thomas' words: "Thomas, if not with full understanding, speaks the truth: dying with Christ, in baptism and sometimes in martyrdom, will become the seal of Christian discipleship." And death, of course, will be understood by believers as a type of sleep, as we abide in the power of His love and life in Resurrection, the great "Day" of the Lord.

As we read the Gospel, we "walk" with Jesus toward Bethany. The miracle or sign that will take place there, to which Jesus alludes in today's reading, will be the seventh of seven in John's Gospel. But let us take occasion again for thinking about Jesus' reference at the last "good work," the sixth sign, the healing of the man blind from birth. Jesus said, "I am the light of the world." Here, He refers to walking in the light of day, and having that light in us. When we walk in His word, in the light of God, of faith, we can have a confidence of walking in the daytime to which He refers. How does God walk with you? Each moment, it is inferred from this text, can be a moment for that light to shine through the darkness of the world for us, through faith. Even this moment that is coming, the death of His beloved friend, will become an occasion for the light, the shining forth or manifestation of the glory of God in the world. Can you have a sense of that daytime in your life? We remember that Christ is the light that shines in the darkness, although the darkness cannot grasp that light in any sense. At each moment, there is an occasion for that light. When we ask to walk with Him, we ask to walk in the daytime. In the darkest moments of our lives, we ask for His light, to walk with Him, so that we know where we are going, and we don't stumble. In this way, our lives will also glorify God. We will be able to go through even the darkness of the world with the light He gives us to see our way through. How do you let the light in to your life's moments today?

Is it not written in your law, "I said, 'You are gods'?"

Then the Jews took up stones again to stone Him. Jesus answered them, "Many good works I have shown you from My Father. For which of those works do you stone Me?" The Jews answered Him, saying, "For a good work we do not stone You, but for blasphemy, and because You, being a Man, make Yourself God." Jesus answered them, "Is it not written in your law, 'I said, "You are gods"?' If He called them gods, to whom the word of God came (and the Scripture cannot be broken), do you say of Him whom the Father sanctified and sent into the world, 'You are blaspheming,' because I said, 'I am the Son of God'? If I do not do the works of My Father, do not believe Me; but if I do, though you do not believe Me, believe the works, that you may know and believe that the Father is in Me, and I in Him." Therefore they sought again to seize Him, but He escaped out of their hand.

And He went away again beyond the Jordan to the place where John was baptizing at first, and there He stayed. Then many came to Him and said, "John performed no sign, but all the things that John spoke about this Man were true." And many believed in Him there.

- John 10:31-42

In yesterday's reading, we continued to read about the disputes in Jerusalem, between Jesus and the temple leadership. The leadership is divided about Jesus. Recent readings have been taking place at the autumn festival of the Feast of Tabernacles. Now the scene shifts three months ahead, to winter. It is the time of the Feast of Dedication, or Hannukah, the festival of lights. This is the commemoration of the rededication of the temple to the God of Israel, my study bible says, "after the Seleucid king, Antiochus Epiphanes, desecrated the temple in 167 B.C. The leaders of Israel's past are commemorated, many of whom were literal shepherds." Jesus has just given the illustration of Himself as the Good Shepherd. In yesterday's reading, He continued. At the Feast of Dedication, the leadership asks Him, "How long do You keep us in doubt? If You are the Christ, tell us plainly." He again referred to Himself as the Shepherd, and the sheep who are of His flock know Him. They know His voice. His works bear witness of Him, but they do not believe Him, because they are not of His flock. He said, "My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father's hand. I and My Father are one."

Then the Jews took up stones again to stone Him. Jesus answered them, "Many good works I have shown you from My Father. For which of those works do you stone Me?" As He is condemned by the leadership for His teaching that "I and My Father are one," Jesus refers back to the "witness" to His identity, the good works or signs He has done. The emphasis on witnessing is important to understand in terms of the theology that Jesus teaches. It is as if He is saying to us that we are responsible for understanding the revelation of God in our midst, the signs of God or of God's grace and presence. The leadership fails to discern this; it is a kind of rejection of grace, of the evidence of the presence or shining forth of God in our world.

The Jews answered Him, saying, "For a good work we do not stone You, but for blasphemy, and because You, being a Man, make Yourself God." Jesus answered them, "Is it not written in your law, 'I said, "You are gods"?' If He called them gods, to whom the word of God came (and the Scripture cannot be broken), do you say of Him whom the Father sanctified and sent into the world, 'You are blaspheming,' because I said, 'I am the Son of God'?" Jesus refers to the Scripture which tells of becoming "sons of God." In some sense, that is a sonship given by adoption, by the word of God. Jesus is referring to Psalm 82, verse 6, in which the Lord says, "I have said, 'You are gods; and all of you are children of the most High.'" Ironically, the psalm tells of the failure of the holy assembly of the God of Israel (those to whom the God's word has been given) to recognize this fact about themselves, to live up to it in righteousness and good judgment, and the resulting outcome -- that they will die like mere men, they will fall like any other ruler. Jesus compares the "gods" of the psalm to Himself, and to the witness of His good works to His Sonship. The Scripture calls them gods -- why is He therefore blaspheming?

"If I do not do the works of My Father, do not believe Me; but if I do, though you do not believe Me, believe the works, that you may know and believe that the Father is in Me, and I in Him." Therefore they sought again to seize Him, but He escaped out of their hand. Again, Jesus refers to the "testimony" of His works, the signs of the Gospel. These good works are witness to the Father's presence with Him in all He does. But the time has come when the leadership wish to condemn Him. Jesus escapes.

And He went away again beyond the Jordan to the place where John was baptizing at first, and there He stayed. Then many came to Him and said, "John performed no sign, but all the things that John spoke about this Man were true." And many believed in Him there. Though the leadership condemns Him for blasphemy, Jesus continues to find many believers among the Jewish people. Here, those who were followers of John the Baptist now follow Jesus. This is another testimony offered in the Gospel, that of John the Baptist, whose testimony, it tells us, is true.

There is a lot in today's reading about witnessing and testimony. We also come to understand concepts of God's "showing forth" -- the presence of God the Father manifest in Jesus' good works. This is also testimony, a kind of witnessing to God's presence. John the Baptist also was a witness, a true witness in spirit, who came as a holy man, testifying to the One who was to come, and identifying Jesus as that one. When we think of witnessing and testimony, can we come to terms with what this means in our own lives in a spiritual sense? What "bears witness" in your life to the work of God, the work of the Spirit in the world -- the Gift for which Christ was sent into the world and which He left with us? Do you bear witness to that gift in your own life? Do you recognize that witness or showing of the presence of God? I would invite each reader to think about this today. If the presence of the word of God conveyed sonship on those in the assembly, what does its presence do in your life? How do you witness to that? What signs have been in your life (no doubt less spectacular than those of Jesus!) that bear witness to God's presence, to the grace we have been given? Faith itself can be a sign of grace, a depth of prayer, an extraordinary gift of understanding. How do you receive testimony of sonship? Jesus has also taught, "By their fruits you shall know them." His signs are the fruits of who He is, His identity. By what fruits do you recognize the work of the Spirit in your life? What testifies to sonship?

I and My Father are one

Therefore there was a division again among the Jews because of these sayings. And many of them said, "He has a demon and is mad. Why do you listen to Him?" Others said, "These are not the words of one who has a demon. Can a demon open the eyes of the blind?"

Now it was the Feast of Dedication in Jerusalem, and it was winter. And Jesus walked in the temple, in Solomon's porch. Then the Jews surrounded Him and said to Him, "How long do You keep us in doubt? If You are the Christ, tell us plainly." Jesus answered them, "I told you, and you do not believe. The works that I do in My Father's name, they bear witness of Me. But you do not believe, because you are not of My sheep, as I said to you. My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father's hand. I and My Father are one."

- John 10:19-30

After the healing of the man blind from birth, who was told to wash his eyes in the pool of Siloam, Jesus has been in discussion with the leadership in the temple. The healing of the blind man was the sixth of seven signs in the Gospel of John (see I am the light of the world and For judgment I have come into this world, that those who do not see may see, and that those who see may be made blind). In yesterday's reading, Jesus taught the leadership again about His own identity, this time calling Himself the Good Shepherd. He said that His sheep know His voice, and the one who does not enter by the door, but by some other way, is a thief and a robber. "But he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. To him the doorkeeper opens, and the sheep hear his voice; and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out." His sheep, He said, do not know the voice of strangers. But the leadership failed to understand His illustration. He began again, "Most assuredly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep. All who ever came before Me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not hear them. I am the door. If anyone enters by me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture." He told them, "I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly. I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives his life for the sheep." Moreover, He said, "I am the good shepherd; and I know My sheep, and am known by My own. As the Father knows Me, even so I know the Father; and I lay down My life for the sheep. And other sheep I have which are not of this fold; them also I must bring, and they will hear My voice; and there will be one flock and one shepherd." Jesus told them that He will lay down His life, and take it up again, for the sheep -- that this is a command of His Father.

Therefore there was a division again among the Jews because of these sayings. And many of them said, "He has a demon and is mad. Why do you listen to Him?" Others said, "These are not the words of one who has a demon. Can a demon open the eyes of the blind?" Importantly, John tells us here that there is a division among the leadership. Not all of them are united in seeking to persecute Jesus. We remember also the example of Nicodemus, who defended Jesus' legal rights, and who also was taught privately by Him. When John's Gospel uses the term "the Jews" it is to refer to the leadership at the temple, not the whole of the Jewish people. Almost all the people in the Gospel (with few notable exceptions), believers and non-believers alike, are Jews. Clearly however, as the recent readings have told us, this controversy and division about Jesus also extends among the people.

Now it was the Feast of Dedication in Jerusalem, and it was winter. And Jesus walked in the temple, in Solomon's porch. The previous events, over the past many readings (starting with this one) took place around the Feast of Tabernacles, an autumn festival. This is now approximately three months later. My study bible says, "The occasion of Christ's presence in Jerusalem is again a religious festival, the Feast of Dedication (Hannukah), the festival of lights. This Feast commemorates the rededication of the temple to the God of Israel after the Seleucid king, Antiochus Epiphanes, desecrated the temple in 167 B.C. The leaders of Israel's past are commemorated, many of whom were literal shepherds." Many of the events that take place at the temple are described by John as being in one part of the temple or another. Perhaps it is useful to understand the magnificence and splendor, as well as the huge size of the renovated temple. It was an architectural wonder at the time of Jesus, one of the tremendous building projects of Herod the Great.

Then the Jews surrounded Him and said to Him, "How long do You keep us in doubt? If You are the Christ, tell us plainly." Jesus answered them, "I told you, and you do not believe. The works that I do in My Father's name, they bear witness of Me. But you do not believe, because you are not of My sheep, as I said to you." The leadership demand to know what has already been told to them. Jesus begins to repeat His answers, from the previous reading. He is the shepherd of the sheep. Here, he gives witnesses for them. The works or signs of the Gospel bear witness to His relationship to the Father; they are done in the name of the Father, and bear witness (are "signs") to God the Father's presence, and hence the relationship of the Son.

"My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father's hand. I and My Father are one." Those who are His sheep will be kept with Him, they abide in Him, finding pasture -- and He will keep them with Himself eternally. This is all in the power of the Father's hand, through the power of the Father, which nothing can undo. There is no greater power than the Father. Further, He and the Father are one.

Let us consider relationship again from this reading. The power comes, ultimately, from the Father, rests with the Father, in the hand of the Father -- and nothing can break this power. But it is not only the Father in this circle. So "giving" is this power, that Father and Son are one. And the relationship extends further. It extends to the sheep. The sheep, who abide in Christ, will be promised eternal life, because nothing and no one can snatch them from the hand of the Father, given to the Son in full and equal measure, and extended thereby to relationship with the sheep. When Peter makes his confession of faith, Jesus has said, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven. And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it." Ultimately this circle of faith extends from the Father through the Son and to and through all of us, and back again. By the Father's hand, God's presence -- in Jesus' signs and even in us, nothing can break this circle of faith. That is, nothing but our own free will to embrace that faith within ourselves or not. Of that mystery of faith, I can say nothing, only that it is evident that we are given the power to choose. So, for today, the question becomes, how do you embrace that faith, that power of God that is working through this relationship? Are you aware of the tremendous presence that is with you and within you? This bond is unbreakable. Through all things, through the darkness of the world, the sheep hear the voice of the Shepherd. He and the Father are one. With this cross, there is always a way forward through the darkness, into the certainty of that sheepfold. What is the way for you today? The answers may surprise and lead where we don't expect, but it is the power and hand of God the Father working through all. Can you allow for this strength in your life?

I am the good shepherd; and I know My sheep, and am known by My own

"Most assuredly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door, but climbs up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber. But he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. To him the doorkeeper opens, and the sheep hear his voice; and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. And when he brings out his own sheep, he goes before them; and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice. Yet they will by no means follow a stranger, but will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of strangers." Jesus used this illustration, but they did not understand the things which He spoke to them.

Then Jesus spoke to them again, "Most assuredly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep. All who ever came before Me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not hear them. I am the door. If anyone enters by me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture. The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly. I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives his life for the sheep. But a hireling, he who is not the shepherd, one who does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees; and the wolf catches the sheep and scatters them. The hireling flees because he is a hireling and does not care about the sheep. I am the good shepherd; and I know My sheep, and am known by My own. As the Father knows Me, even so I know the Father; and I lay down My life for the sheep. And other sheep I have which are not of this fold; them also I must bring, and they will hear My voice; and there will be one flock and one shepherd. Therefore My Father loves Me, because I lay down My life that I may take it again. No one takes it from Me, but I lay it down of Myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This command I have received from My Father."

- John 10:1-18

Over the course of the past two readings, we have been reading about the man blind since birth, whom Jesus healed. This is the sixth of seven signs in John's Gospel, and the only one in the whole bible in which a person blind from birth received sight. His disciples asked Jesus who sinned that the man was born blind. Jesus told them that the blindness was an occasion for God to be revealed. He said, "I must work the works of Him who sent Me while it is day; the night is coming when no one can work. As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world." He spat on the ground and made a clay, put it on the man's eyes, and then told him to wash in the pool of Siloam. After this the man could see. The neighbors who knew him asked who healed him, and took him to the Pharisees. The Pharisees told him that Jesus was a sinner, and healed on the Sabbath, but the formerly blind man said that Jesus was a prophet. In yesterday's reading, the Pharisees called the parents of the blind man, questioning whether he was truly blind since birth. The parents verified his blindness, but out of fear of the leadership wanted to say nothing about the healing, saying, "He is of age; ask him." Then the Pharisees questioned the blind man, insisting that Jesus was a sinner. The blind man replied, "Whether He is a sinner or not I do not know. One thing I know: that though I was blind, now I see." He later told them, "Now we know that God does not hear sinners; but if anyone is a worshiper of God and does His will, He hears him. Since the world began it has been unheard of that anyone opened the eyes of one who was born blind. If this Man were not from God, He could do nothing." Then they cast him out of the temple. Jesus found the blind man later, and asked, "Do you believe in the Son of God?" He answered and said, "Who is He, Lord, that I may believe in Him?" And Jesus said to him, "You have both seen Him and it is He who is talking with you." Then he said, "Lord, I believe!" And he worshiped Him. Jesus said, "For judgment I have come into this world, that those who do not see may see, and that those who see may be made blind." The Pharisees asked Jesus, "Are we blind also?" Jesus said to them, "If you were blind, you would have no sin; but now you say, 'We see.' Therefore your sin remains." In today's reading, Jesus continues speaking with the Pharisees.

"Most assuredly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door, but climbs up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber. But he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. To him the doorkeeper opens, and the sheep hear his voice; and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. And when he brings out his own sheep, he goes before them; and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice. Yet they will by no means follow a stranger, but will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of strangers." Jesus used this illustration, but they did not understand the things which He spoke to them. If we think of the man who was blind, we have a kind of analogy to the sheep that respond to the voice of the shepherd, the voice they know, and trust. The man could not see, but he responded to the voice of Christ, the voice that knew him deeply, knew his "name" in some sense, as he was truly called. Jesus called to this man, first for healing, and then for true sight. As he was cast out of the temple, he came into the fold of Christ, and into faith.

Then Jesus spoke to them again, "Most assuredly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep. All who ever came before Me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not hear them. I am the door. If anyone enters by me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture." My study bible notes: "In calling Himself the door, Jesus signifies He will bring His flock into an enclosed sheepfold with a central gate. Normally a hired guard would tend the gate while the shepherds rested through the night. But Jesus is the tireless Shepherd, always guarding the entrance. No one can enter except by way of Him." To go in and out and find pasture gives us a sense of true rest, of abiding in Him. That is, the sheep have found their true dwelling place, where they may take rest, find peace, and the things which they need for life.

"The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly. I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives his life for the sheep." Now we begin to glimpse the revelation of what makes the true Shepherd, and that quality is love. Not only has He come out of love that these sheep may have life and have it more abundantly, but that He will also lay down His life for the sheep. There is no greater love than this.

"But a hireling, he who is not the shepherd, one who does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees; and the wolf catches the sheep and scatters them. The hireling flees because he is a hireling and does not care about the sheep." Who is a person who doesn't really care? One who is selfish, thinks only of himself -- one who would leave the sheep to scatter. My study bible says, "The hireling, the noncommitted religious leader, is contrasted with the shepherd, one who considers the sheep his own. The hired hand looks primarily after himself."

"I am the good shepherd; and I know My sheep, and am known by My own. As the Father knows Me, even so I know the Father; and I lay down My life for the sheep. And other sheep I have which are not of this fold; them also I must bring, and they will hear My voice; and there will be one flock and one shepherd." Jesus speaks now of the Body of Christ, those believers, or sheep, who will also come from other flocks. They too will respond to His voice, those whom He calls by name, because He knows us deeply and truly, who we are within ourselves. My study bible says, "Other sheep are the Gentiles, who will be brought into the one flock under the one shepherd. Hence, the Church cannot be divided along denominational, ethnic, cultural or family lines."

"Therefore My Father loves Me, because I lay down My life that I may take it again. No one takes it from Me, but I lay it down of Myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This command I have received from My Father." Here, we seem to have a true turning point in the Gospel. The division between Himself and the leadership is going to come to a head, and He will voluntarily lay down His own life in order to be glorified, as the Father has commanded. My study bible says, "The Lord makes it clear this atoning death will be voluntary. Though He is God, He does nothing apart from the authority of His Father. If we seek to experience God's love and His power, we do so as Christ Himself does: by obeying willingly the Father's commands. As He laid down His life for us, we lay down our lives for Him, willingly and out of love."

Let us consider the Good Shepherd, who lays down His life for the sheep. He is love, as John will write in His Epistle that God is love. Jesus knows us, more deeply than we know ourselves. When He calls us by name, He calls us by a true name, the person that we truly are within, and even in time as He leads us in faith, into the place where we may take rest in this pasture, and in the abundance of life that He promises to us. We know the hirelings, those who do not care but only for themselves - those who wish to use the sheep for their own selfish purposes. Ultimately, it is all about the love between the Father and the Son, and then extended to the sheep, among the sheep, and reciprocated back in faith. How do you experience this calling? How do you experience this rest, this pasture? The door is there for us. The Good Shepherd is ready to lead, with truth and with love. How do you respond?

For judgment I have come into this world, that those who do not see may see, and that those who see may be made blind

But the Jews did not believe concerning him, that he had ever been blind and received his sight, until they called the parents of him who had received his sight. And they asked them, saying, "Is this your son, who you say was born blind? How then does he now see?" His parents answered them and said, "We know that this is our son, and that he was born blind; but by what means he now sees we do not know, or who opened his eyes we do not know. He is of age; ask him. He will speak for himself."

His parents said these things because they feared the Jews, for the Jews had agreed already that if anyone confessed that He was Christ, he would be put out of the synagogue. Therefore his parents said, "He is of age; ask him." So they again called the man who was blind, and said to him, "Give God the glory! We know that this man is a sinner." He answered and said, "Whether He is a sinner or not I do not know. One thing I know: that though I was blind, now I see." Then they said to him again, "What did He do to you? How did He open your eyes?" He answered them, "I told you already, and you did not listen. Why do you want to hear it again? Do you also want to become His disciples?" Then they reviled him and said, "You are His disciple, but we are Moses' disciples. We know that God spoke to Moses, as for this fellow, we do not know where He is from." The man answered and said to them, "Why, this is a marvelous thing, that you do not know where He is from; yet He has opened my eyes! Now we know that God does not hear sinners; but if anyone is a worshiper of God and does His will, He hears him. Since the world began it has been unheard of that anyone opened the eyes of one who was born blind. If this Man were not from God, He could do nothing." They answered and said to him, "You were completely born in sins, and are you teaching us?" And they cast him out.

Jesus heard that they had cast him out; and when He had found him, He said to him, "Do you believe in the Son of God?" He answered and said, "Who is He, Lord, that I may believe in Him?" And Jesus said to him, "You have both seen Him and it is He who is talking with you." Then he said, "Lord, I believe!" And he worshiped Him. And Jesus said, "For judgment I have come into this world, that those who do not see may see, and that those who see may be made blind." Then some of the Pharisees who were with Him heard these words, and said to Him, "Are we blind also?" Jesus said to them, "If you were blind, you would have no sin; but now you say, 'We see.' Therefore your sin remains."

- John 9:18-41

From the Friday before last, the readings have concerned themselves with the events in John's Gospel that surround the Feast of Tabernacles, at the temple in Jerusalem. Jesus has just engaged in an extensive dialogue with the leadership at the temple, in which He told them, "Most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM." For this, making Himself equal with God, they sought to stone Him. But, hiding Himself, He went out of the temple, and passing through the crowds, He eluded them. In yesterday's reading, Jesus met a blind man as He passed through the crowds. Jesus' disciples asked, ""Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?" Jesus answered, "Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but that the works of God should be revealed in him. I must work the works of Him who sent Me while it is day; the night is coming when no one can work. As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world." Jesus spat on the ground, made a clay with His spittle and put it on the man's eyes, and told him to go wash in the pool called Siloam, used for temple rites at the Festival. When he returned, seeing, the neighbors wondered how this was possible; the seeing man told them that "a Man called Jesus" had done these things, but he did not know where Jesus was. The neighbors took the formerly blind man to the Pharisees. They asked how he gained his sight. He said to them, "He put clay on my eyes, and I washed, and I see." Therefore some of the Pharisees said, "This Man is not from God, because He does not keep the Sabbath." Others said, "How can a man who is a sinner do such signs?" And there was a division among them. They said to the blind man again, "What do you say about Him because He opened your eyes?" He said, "He is a prophet."

But the Jews did not believe concerning him, that he had ever been blind and received his sight, until they called the parents of him who had received his sight. And they asked them, saying, "Is this your son, who you say was born blind? How then does he now see?" His parents answered them and said, "We know that this is our son, and that he was born blind; but by what means he now sees we do not know, or who opened his eyes we do not know. He is of age; ask him. He will speak for himself." His parents said these things because they feared the Jews, for the Jews had agreed already that if anyone confessed that He was Christ, he would be put out of the synagogue. Therefore his parents said, "He is of age; ask him." The leadership (referred to as "the Jews") want to discredit the miracle by claiming the man could not have been blind since birth. As we noted in yesterday's commentary, this is the only miracle in all of the Bible that concerns a man blind from birth. We noted at the beginning of the story, with the question from the disciples, that it was common belief in the ancient world that personal sin was the cause of affliction. The parents are sought out, as additional witnesses, in order to prove that he has been blind since birth. But his parents are not going to be of much use because of their own fear of the leadership. My study bible notes that the age of legal responsibility was 13.

So they again called the man who was blind, and said to him, "Give God the glory! We know that this man is a sinner." "Give God the glory" is an "oath formula," says my study bible, "used before giving testimony or before confessing guilt." With Jesus not present, the leadership call Him a sinner, although previously they could not answer when He asked, "Which of you convicts Me of sin?" Clearly, they are trying to intimidate the healed blind man.

He answered and said, "Whether He is a sinner or not I do not know. One thing I know: that though I was blind, now I see." Then they said to him again, "What did He do to you? How did He open your eyes?" He answered them, "I told you already, and you did not listen. Why do you want to hear it again? Do you also want to become His disciples?" The formerly blind man has been told to "Give God the glory." My study bible notes that, "Ironically, the formerly blind man will indeed give glory to God. The more he is pressed, the more tenacious he becomes in his belief." This is a kind of hilarious question asked in all innocence ("Do you also want to become His disciples?"), and one can imagine the outrage of the leadership, and perhaps the hidden laughter of the crowd watching this encounter.

Then they reviled him and said, "You are His disciple, but we are Moses' disciples. We know that God spoke to Moses, as for this fellow, we do not know where He is from." The man answered and said to them, "Why, this is a marvelous thing, that you do not know where He is from; yet He has opened my eyes! Now we know that God does not hear sinners; but if anyone is a worshiper of God and does His will, He hears him. Since the world began it has been unheard of that anyone opened the eyes of one who was born blind. If this Man were not from God, He could do nothing." In Matthew's Gospel, an outraged leadership asks Jesus, "Do you hear what these [children] are saying?" And Jesus replies, quoting from Psalm 8, "Have you never read, 'Out of the mouths of babes and nursing infants you have perfected praise'?" Here, the babe, left by his parents to fend for himself, testifies to what they all know as experts in the Law and the Scriptures. Over and over again, Jesus has already replied to their questions about where He is "from" and from Whom He has been "sent" ("Sent" is the meaning of the name of the pool in which the man was told by Jesus to wash, "Siloam.") These questions truly center upon His authority. The miracle of sight is a sign (the sixth of seven in John's Gospel) which points to that authority, to the place where He is from, and God the Father from whom He is sent.

They answered and said to him, "You were completely born in sins, and are you teaching us?" And they cast him out. Now the formerly blind must become a target of accusation, so that his testimony is denied. He becomes an outcast by affirming himself as Christ's disciple, His "witness," telling the truth of his experience.

Jesus heard that they had cast him out; and when He had found him, He said to him, "Do you believe in the Son of God?" He answered and said, "Who is He, Lord, that I may believe in Him?" In some ways, this reminds us of something early in John's Gospel, the encounter of Jesus with Nathanael. Nathanael must come and see Jesus for himself. So the blind man asked, "Who is He, that I may believe?" He already knows Jesus, and trusts Him through the experience. But now there is more "illumination" to come.

And Jesus said to him, "You have both seen Him and it is He who is talking with you." Then he said, "Lord, I believe!" And he worshiped Him. By experience, his faith is true. Let us regard this story carefully: first came experience, then faith, then deeper illumination as faith grows and Christ reveals Himself more deeply to the one with the capability for such faith. My study bible puts it like this, poetically: "Having opened the blind man's eyes, Jesus also opens the eyes of his heart." The light that was physical now becomes spiritual. He can "see" the divinity of Jesus.

And Jesus said, "For judgment I have come into this world, that those who do not see may see, and that those who see may be made blind." Then some of the Pharisees who were with Him heard these words, and said to Him, "Are we blind also?" Jesus said to them, "If you were blind, you would have no sin; but now you say, 'We see.' Therefore your sin remains." Here we have the power of judgment in the revelation of the divine, in the grace that comes into the world. How do we respond? My study bible notes, "Jesus' coming brought judgment by increasing the accountability of those who saw and heard Him, but did not believe. The brilliance of Christ's light becomes an illumination to some, but a blinding glare to others." Let us consider what it is to encounter grace; here again is the sword, two-edged, which cuts both ways. How do we choose in our encounter with Christ? There may be many, many such moments throughout our lives.

There are many elements to today's story to look at. First of all, there is the point of choosing. The formerly blind man has this complete divine healing experience. He cannot deny it for all the social pressure put upon him to do so. He is a witness, he bears witness to his "simple" truth: that before he was blind, and now he sees, and it was Jesus who made him see. But this casts him out, and even his parents will not enthusiastically support him, leaving him on his own to witness for himself. Often, we may find that faith does this in our lives, taking us out of one community, but placing us in another, which is the Body of Christ, the community of faith. Separation is also indicated in the responses to both the witness and to Christ Himself. The illumination, the "showing forth" of grace in any form becomes an occasion for such a choice. Of course, here is a story about an encounter with Christ Himself as Son of Man, incarnate in the flesh. But in my experience, my study bible's note about accountability holds true. When I feel I have an answer in prayer, it becomes for me a matter of greater weight than it was before. How will I respond? Do I have faith? What do I do with that faith, and to whom do I take it if I need help with discernment? For the believer, these things become important questions. Faith, and especially grace, will confer a kind of accountability that wasn't there before. So let us consider today the intermingling in the story of responsibility, of truth, of just judgment and righteousness, and of illumination. In recent passages, Christ has both said, "You shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free" and "I am the light of the world." So much depends on how we encounter this light, and embrace this truth, even if it separates us from the familiar and those who may wish to reject us for it. What is your encounter? Your truth? How does this light illumine you? It may just teach you and give you God's strength, to stand in that place of truth and light.

I am the light of the world

Now as Jesus passed by, He saw a man who was blind from birth. And His disciples asked Him, saying, "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?" Jesus answered, "Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but that the works of God should be revealed in him. I must work the works of Him who sent Me while it is day; the night is coming when no one can work. As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world." When He had said these things, He spat on the ground and made clay with the saliva; and He anointed the eyes of the blind man with the clay. And He said to him, "Go, wash in the pool of Siloam" (which is translated, Sent). So he went and washed, and came back seeing.

Therefore the neighbors and those who previously had seen that he was blind said, "Is not this he who sat and begged?" Some said, "This is he." Others said, "He is like him." He said, "I am he." Therefore they said to him, "How were your eyes opened?" He answered and said, " A Man called Jesus made clay and anointed my eyes and said to me, 'Go to the pool of Siloam and wash.' So I went and washed, and I received sight." Then they said to him, "Where is He?" He said, "I do not know."

They brought him who formerly was blind to the Pharisees. Now it was a Sabbath when Jesus made the clay and opened his eyes. Then the Pharisees also asked him again how he had received his sight. He said to them, "He put clay on my eyes, and I washed, and I see." Therefore some of the Pharisees said, "This Man is not from God, because He does not keep the Sabbath." Others said, "How can a man who is a sinner do such signs?" And there was a division among them. They said to the blind man again, "What do you say about Him because He opened your eyes?" He said, "He is a prophet."

- John 9:1-17

We've been reading passages in John's Gospel which take place during the events of the Feast of Tabernacles, at the temple in Jerusalem. These readings began over a week ago, with the one of Friday before last. In the most recent of these readings, Jesus has been in dialogue with the leadership, after they tried to trap Him with the woman caught in adultery. In the most recent reading, on Saturday, Jesus continued this dialogue, emphasizing even more clearly His relationship to the Father. He said, "He who is of God hears God's words; therefore you do not hear, because you are not of God." Then they answered and said to Him, "Do we not say rightly that you are a Samaritan and have a demon?" Jesus replied, "I do not have a demon; but I honor My Father, and you dishonor Me. And I do not seek My own glory; there is One who seeks and judges. Most assuredly, I say to you, if anyone keeps My word he shall never see death." They replied to Him, "Are you greater than our father Abraham, who is dead? And the Prophets are dead. Who do You make Yourself out to be?" Jesus told them, "Your father Abraham rejoiced to see My day, and he saw it and was glad." Then the Jews said to Him, "You are not yet fifty years old, and have You seen Abraham?" Jesus said to them, "Most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM." They tried to stone Him then, but He eluded them through the crowds, and passed through the temple.

Now as Jesus passed by, He saw a man who was blind from birth. And His disciples asked Him, saying, "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?" My study bible tells us that "of all the miracle stories in the Bible, this is the only one in which the person was blind from birth." The assumption, common in the ancient world, is that affliction is always a consequence of personal sin. Of course, we understand all kinds of afflictions and troubles to be a result of sin in one form or another, but Jesus will open up for us a different perspective, and doesn't share the view that it necessarily must be the result of personal sin.

Jesus answered, "Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but that the works of God should be revealed in him." What a powerful perspective this is! And how it will have an impact on our understanding of our faith. Affliction, in the work of Christ, may become an occasion for the revelation of God!

"I must work the works of Him who sent Me while it is day; the night is coming when no one can work. As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world." Repeatedly, John's Gospel has spoken of Jesus as the light of the world, and that His disciples should reflect that light in their lives. Here, my study bible notes, "Jesus speaks of the urgency of bringing light into the darkened world, for the duration of His time upon the earth is limited."

When He had said these things, He spat on the ground and made clay with the saliva; and He anointed the eyes of the blind man with the clay. And He said to him, "Go, wash in the pool of Siloam" (which is translated, Sent). So he went and washed, and came back seeing. Siloam, we remember, is the pool from which water was brought as a libation to the temple during the Feast of Tabernacles. My study bible points out that this pool was on the outskirts of Jerusalem, a considerable distance from the temple. So this man, going from the temple to the pool, would make a strange sort of contrast, with the clay upon his eyes, to the formal procession. But in another sense, He is as Israel being led through the darkness, in faith. The Feast's procession commemorates the time the Israelites were given water from the rock. In connection, Jesus has taught that with His water, one will never thirst, and He taught of the living water that He will give, the Spirit. The blind man's seeing return to the temple has been historically viewed in the Church as an allegory to baptism, the need of a darkened world for the light of life in the baptism of water and the Spirit. It is the sense of a new Deliverance for all, especially from the darkness of sin and affliction in the world.

Therefore the neighbors and those who previously had seen that he was blind said, "Is not this he who sat and begged?" Some said, "This is he." Others said, "He is like him." He said, "I am he." Therefore they said to him, "How were your eyes opened?" He answered and said, " A Man called Jesus made clay and anointed my eyes and said to me, 'Go to the pool of Siloam and wash.' So I went and washed, and I received sight." Then they said to him, "Where is He?" He said, "I do not know." Here John's Gospel interestingly draws out the story for us. We see the witnesses to this transformation, and in their curiosity is revealed a little about how others may view those who become changed, transformed in faith. There are some things we know, and some things we don't, but we may grow in that faith and understanding. Blindness, and gradual sight, become an allegory for us all. We may not understand how faith works, nor know how to explain what has happened, before we feel, know and see its effects.

They brought him who formerly was blind to the Pharisees. Now it was a Sabbath when Jesus made the clay and opened his eyes. Then the Pharisees also asked him again how he had received his sight. He said to them, "He put clay on my eyes, and I washed, and I see." Therefore some of the Pharisees said, "This Man is not from God, because He does not keep the Sabbath." Others said, "How can a man who is a sinner do such signs?" And there was a division among them. They said to the blind man again, "What do you say about Him because He opened your eyes?" He said, "He is a prophet." Again we read the controversy of healing on the Sabbath. This tremendous miracle, the sixth of seven in John's Gospel, isn't the focus of those who are truly blind. My study bible puts it this way: "That the Lord opened the eyes of the blind man recalls Isaiah 35:5, with its messianic significance. As the story progresses [here and through several readings to come], the once-blind man gradually comes to an awareness of who Jesus is, while the Pharisees lapse into deeper darkness." It is another illustration of the power of His truth, which has been compared to a sword (especially by St. Paul). Our response to this light of grace determines how and what and to what extent we see. This sword of light will open up divisions that cut through all things we think we know, all bodies and unities we may understand. Here it opens up more controversy among the Pharisees. It invites all to think, to respond, to reflect, to accept or to reject.

My study bible points out for us that this passage (which will extend through tomorrow's reading), along with chapters 3 and 5 of John's Gospel, was read on the Saturday night of Easter in the ancient Church, when Christian catechumens were baptized. It notes, "It reiterates the paschal themes of washing, illumination, healing, faith, conversion, and salvation." But what we can see here is the gradual illumination of the blind man, through faith. In today's passage, it ends with his assumption that Jesus must be a prophet. He is going by the effects of grace, accepted with faith (expressed by his stumbling walk through Jerusalem to the pool whose name means "Sent"). So our faith can be the same. Life is a journey, just as it was for ancient Israel as they walked in faith into what they did not know. We walk into our own darkness, with the light of Christ and its gradual illumination, the living water that quenches a thirst and continues for us as we continue in faith. I'm sure each person can unfold that story for others, and one's own story of faith continues to unfold in one's own life. Does that light for you gradually dawn brighter and brighter? Are there "laws" and "theories" you may have set for yourself that would set limits on its power to surprise and illumine what you didn't know, to open up new places for your own understanding? Let us not forget that sword, that it may cut through all things, and also create division: your past and your future, even old associations and new. We walk into that light with faith, we seek the water He promises for our thirst. How do you go into that journey today? Let us ask again, what is the Sabbath for? In Christ, the darkness of the world becomes an occasion for the illumination of the light of life. How can we participate in this?

Most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM

"He who is of God hears God's words; therefore you do not hear, because you are not of God." Then the Jews answered and said to Him, "Do we not say rightly that you are a Samaritan and have a demon?" Jesus answered, "I do not have a demon; but I honor My Father, and you dishonor Me. And I do not seek My own glory; there is One who seeks and judges. Most assuredly, I say to you, if anyone keeps My word he shall never see death."

Then the Jews said to Him, "Now we know that You have a demon! Abraham is dead, and the prophets; and You say, 'If anyone keeps My word he shall never taste death.' Are you greater than our father Abraham, who is dead? And the Prophets are dead. Who do You make Yourself out to be?" Jesus answered, "If I honor Myself, My honor is nothing. It is My Father who honors Me, of whom you say He is your God. Yet you have not known Him, but I know Him. And if I say, 'I do not know Him,' I shall be a liar like you; but I do know Him and keep His word. Your father Abraham rejoiced to see My day, and he saw it and was glad." Then the Jews said to Him, "You are not yet fifty years old, and have You seen Abraham?" Jesus said to them, "Most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM." Then they took up stones to throw at Him; but Jesus hid Himself and went out of the temple, going through the midst of them, and so passed by.

- John 8:47-59

Over the course of the past week (beginning with last Friday's reading), we have been reading about the many events that take place during the Feast of Tabernacles at the temple in Jerusalem. In the recent readings, Jesus has been in a dialogue with the leadership, after they tried to trap Him. In yesterday's reading, He told the them, "If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. And you shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free." They answered Him, "We are Abraham's descendants, and have never been in bondage to anyone. How can You say, 'You will be made free'?" Jesus said that if they were truly children of Abraham, they would do as Abraham did. He told them, "You do the deeds of your father." Then they said to Him, "We were not born of fornication; we have one Father--God." Jesus said to them, "If God were your Father, you would love Me, for I proceeded forth and came from God; nor have I come of Myself, but He sent Me. Why do you not understand My speech? Because you are not able to listen to My word. You are of your father the devil, and the desires of your father you want to do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. . . . Which of you convicts Me of sin? And if I tell the truth, why do you not believe Me? He who is of God hears God's words; therefore you do not hear, because you are not of God."

"He who is of God hears God's words; therefore you do not hear, because you are not of God." Then the Jews answered and said to Him, "Do we not say rightly that you are a Samaritan and have a demon?" We remember that the term "the Jews" is used in John's Gospel to refer to the leadership that is against Jesus (some in the leadership are believers). My study bible notes that Samaritans were viewed as demon-possessed heretics. (See Jesus' encounter with the Samaritan woman beginning here.)

Jesus answered, "I do not have a demon; but I honor My Father, and you dishonor Me. And I do not seek My own glory; there is One who seeks and judges. Most assuredly, I say to you, if anyone keeps My word he shall never see death." Here the promise of everlasting life is once again heard in John's Gospel, and it is a promise made real through faith, which Jesus has called the work of God. (In His discourse on the Bread of Life, Jesus said, "This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent.") Here, He elaborates for us what faith is and does. It is a relationship of true depth within us, as He has taught in His relationship to the Father, and the failure of some of the leadership to truly "hear." (See yesterday's reading.)

Then the Jews said to Him, "Now we know that You have a demon! Abraham is dead, and the prophets; and You say, 'If anyone keeps My word he shall never taste death.' Are you greater than our father Abraham, who is dead? And the Prophets are dead. Who do You make Yourself out to be?" John's Gospel once again will use conventional understanding -- in this case of time and the eternal -- to open up our understanding. The leadership fails to understand Him at all, and so they ask the obvious.

Jesus answered, "If I honor Myself, My honor is nothing. It is My Father who honors Me, of whom you say He is your God. Yet you have not known Him, but I know Him. And if I say, 'I do not know Him,' I shall be a liar like you; but I do know Him and keep His word. Your father Abraham rejoiced to see My day, and he saw it and was glad." Here Jesus comes closer to fully expressing His identity. But all along He has been teaching that He is sent, He is the Son. His emphasis is on this relationship, but more powerfully He will express Himself in His replies. Again, His emphasis is also on the relationship to Abraham, and how they are not like the one they claim as their father.

Then the Jews said to Him, "You are not yet fifty years old, and have You seen Abraham?" Jesus said to them, "Most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM." Then they took up stones to throw at Him; but Jesus hid Himself and went out of the temple, going through the midst of them, and so passed by. Again, they fail to understand what He's talking about, when Jesus' statements reflect an eternal nature. But in His teaching, "Before Abraham was, I AM," there is no mistaking what He is getting at. This I AM is a name of God in the Old Testament, the one given to Moses at the burning bush (Exodus 3:13-15). My study bible says, "To the Jews this pronouncement was a direct, explicit, and unmistakeable claim to perfect equality with God. John places special emphasis on the use of the expression for the purpose of revealing Christ as God. In context, this statement illuminates what He began saying in verse 51, that those who keep His word will neither see nor taste death. Only God has power over death, and Jesus is claiming such power." But Jesus, we can see, is powerfully and clearly revealing Himself, although it is not yet "His time" (the hour of His Passion, Crucifixion, and death). Though they seek to stone Him, He eludes them and leaves the temple through the crowds.

It's interesting to consider Jesus' actions. Although it is not yet "His time," He has fully revealed Himself to the leadership, in ways that will make many of them angered, and give those who seek to trap Him the "evidence" they need. But everything proceeds in stages. And there are those, we have been told, who believe in Him, even among the leadership. John's Gospel has built for us a pattern of crescending conflict and controversy surrounding Jesus, and this tension continues to build as He continues to reveal His word, His teaching, the things given to Him from above, from the Father. He will not stop, but will continue. This is His mission, to reveal this truth that He is given, so that those who do believe may remain with Him through an eternal life. Ultimately the message is about love and relationship, through faith. When Jesus teaches, "I honor My Father" and "I do not seek My own glory; there is One who seeks and judges," He is speaking more to us than only about His personal identity. In context, the message to us is also clear, that we too must seek this relationship in order to judge righteous judgment. If we are to discern what is of God, then we need also to meet that place of discernment in faith, to seek the glory and honor of God, not merely of ourselves. In this reflected light of God's glory, we take our dignity, light, honor, and this is relationship. This is love and faith. How do you seek this glory and honor for yourself? How do you find the truth of faith? How do we seek discernment for our lives? It begins in the heart, the place of spiritual eyes and ears. Can we hear, who profess this faith? Jesus' teaching tells us that this for all time, the eternal mingling with the temporal; the I AM is for Moses, for Abraham, for his audience at the temple, and for we who hear this word. Therefore, this gospel, His teaching and what we learn from it today, lives for us today. What do you learn from it for yourself and for your own faith?