Do we not say rightly that You are a Samaritan and have a demon?

 

 "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 that 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 

 

Jesus is currently at the Feast of  Tabernacles in Jerusalem, as we read through chapter 8.  He has been in disputes with the religious leaders, who unsuccessfully tried to have Him arrested.  Yesterday we read that 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 answered them, "Most assuredly, I say to you, whoever commits sin is a slave of sin.  And a slave does not abide in the house forever, but a son abides forever.  Therefore if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed.  I know that you are Abraham's descendants, but you seek to kill Me, because My word has no place in you.  I speak what I have seen with My Father, and you do what you have seen with your father."  They answered and said to Him, "Abraham is our father."  Jesus said to them, "If you were Abraham's children, you would do the works of Abraham.  But now you seek to kill Me, a Man who has told you the truth which I heard from God.  Abraham did not do this.  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.  When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of it.  But because I tell the truth, you do not believe Me.  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?" My study Bible comments that, unable to defeat Christ through logic or truth, these enemies resort to personal insult.  They will do so again in the following chapter (John 9:34). Personal insult (as well as Scriptural error) was also their response to Nicodemus when he questioned whether Jesus should be judged without a hearing (John 7:50-52).

 

 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 that 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."  Once again, Christ's own witness comes up for questioning.  Who lies, and who tells the truth here?  He offers His Father again as witness, the One who honors Him.  Abraham also bears witness through the Scriptures.  For Jesus, the value of all things is measured through relation to the Father, including Christ's own honor.

 

 Then the Jews said to Him, "You are not yet fifty years old, and have You seen Abraham?"  Once again we recall that in St. John's Gospel, the term the Jews most often refers to the religious leaders, not the people.  It is akin to naming the rulers of a city, the word in Greek translated by some as meaning "Judeans."  Jesus and His followers (which included the author of this Gospel) are all Jews.

 

 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.  I AM (Greek εγω ειμι/ego eimi) is the divine Name of God in the Old Testament, which was first revealed to Moses in the burning bush (Exodus 3:13-15).  For these religious leaders, my study Bible explains, this is a direct, explicit, and unmistakable claim to perfect equality with God, as evidenced by their reaction here (see also Mark 14:62-64).  It notes that St. John in his Gospel places special emphasis on the use of this Name to clearly reveal Christ as God.  This divine claim illuminates Christ's authority even over death, which is a power that belongs only to God the Father.  

 

It seems quite ironic (or perhaps we should just say interesting) that the insults which come to Jesus (as they did earlier to Nicodemus) take on the same character that we find in our own headlines so often.  He's insulted as to His possible origins ("You are a Samaritan") and also He's called evil (You . . "have a demon").   They used the same kind of insults with Nicodemus, asking if he were a Galilean too.  In formal logic, these are called ad hominem fallacies, personal attacks on a person rather than a solid and truthful argument about something. It seems that this sort of attack will always be with us somehow, and we should pay attention, because in this case it's directed at the Person who is truth (John 14:6), the Logos (Word) Himself (John 1:1).  This attack is on the One who is the light of life, the co-Creator with the Father.  These false attacks are attacks on the One who gives life, and will ultimately judge.  It has to make us think about the essence of good and evil somehow, to consider how profoundly in error this behavior can be, and it invites judgment on a scale that doesn't exist normally between imperfect human beings who all are guilty of error in some way or another.  Jesus said Himself, perhaps illustrating the point, and speaking of blasphemy against the Spirit, "Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him; but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him, either in this age or in the age to come" (Matthew 12:31-32).  It all adds a very profound weight to consider when we ourselves indulge in personal insults and false arguments instead of a sincere focus for truth.  This is an often overlooked foundation of our faith.  For, if we worship the Person who is the truth, as He said, then should we not always be faithful in serving truth, in seeking what is real and true, and good and beautiful, and not indulging in what we see are false arguments used even against the Son of the living God?  Why is it important that we ourselves refrain from using fallacies, lies, manipulations, and other such tactics when we interact with others?  There is a much deeper foundation to our own need for dispassion and rational faith in what we know to be good, and true, and beautiful than we might consider in our every day lives.  It is what we read here that should give us pause, in the heat of an argument, during heightened passions and arguments and confrontations, beyond all other considerations we might have.  And that is for the simple reason that such things are even paraded in accusation against the Judge Himself, the One who is the arbiter of all things.  When we indulge in such behaviors we're doing ourselves no favor, but serving the master that would make us a slave (John 8:34).  We forget who we are and the One whom we truly must desire to serve, the One who tells the truth and teaches us to abide in His word, for it comes from the One who sent Him, and who is true (John 7:28).  Once again, we are in the approach to Lent, and it's the perfect time to consider why cultivating our capacity for these virtues has always been in the teaching of the Church, and particularly emphasized as goals through the practices of Lent.  Let us find the discipline to be as true as Jesus, and abide in that truth.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

How can you believe, who receive honor from one another, and do not seek the honor that comes from the only God?

 

 "I can of Myself do nothing.  As I hear, I judge; and My judgment is righteous, because I do not seek My own will but the will of the Father who sent Me. 

 

"If I bear witness of Myself, My witness is not true.  There is another who bears witness of Me, and I know that the witness which He witnesses of Me is true.  You have sent to John, and he has borne witness to the truth.  Yet I do not receive testimony from man, but I say these things that you may be saved.  He was the burning and shining lamp, and you were willing for a time to rejoice in his light.  But I have a greater witness than John's; for the works which the Father has given Me to finish -- the very works that I do -- bear witness of Me, that the Father has sent Me.  And the Father Himself, who sent Me, has testified of Me.  You have neither heard His voice at any time, nor seen His form.  But you do not have His word abiding in you, because whom He sent, Him you do not believe.  You search the Scriptures, for in them you think you have eternal life, and these are they which testify of Me.  But you are not willing to come to Me that you may have life.  I do not receive honor from men.  But I know you, that you do not have the love of God in you.  I have come in My Father's name, and you do not receive Me; if another comes in his own name, him you will receive.  How can you believe, who receive honor from one another, and do not seek the honor that comes from the only God?  Do not think that I shall accuse you to the Father; there is one who accuses you -- Moses, in whom you trust.  For if you believed Moses, you would believe Me; for he wrote about Me.  But if you do not believe his writings, how will you believe My words?"

 

- John 5:30–47 

 

Yesterday we read that Jesus answered and said to the religious authorities who questioned Him after He healed on the Sabbath, "Most assuredly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, but what He sees the Father do; for whatever He does, the Son also does in like manner.  For the Father loves the Son, and shows Him all things that He Himself does; and He will show Him greater works than these, that you may marvel.  For as the Father raises the dead and gives life to them, even so the Son gives life to whom He will.  For the Father judges no one, but has committed all judgment to the Son, that all should honor the Son just as they honor the Father.  He who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent Him.  Most assuredly, I say to you, he who hears My word and believes in Him who sent Me has everlasting life, and shall not come into judgment, but has passed from death into life.  Most assuredly, I say to you, the hour is coming, and now is, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God; and those who hear will live.  For as the Father has life in Himself, so He has granted the Son to have life in Himself, and has given Him authority to execute judgment also, because He is the Son of Man.  Do not marvel at this; for the hour is coming in which all who are in the graves will hear His voice and come forth -- those who have done good, to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil, to the resurrection of condemnation."

 

 "I can of Myself do nothing.  As I hear, I judge; and My judgment is righteous, because I do not seek My own will but the will of the Father who sent Me."  My study Bible explains here that the divine will is common to the three Persons of the Trinity -- Father, Son, and Holy Spirit -- for all fully share the same divine nature.  When the Son is said to obey the Father, this is a reference to Christ's human will, which He assumed at His Incarnation.  Jesus freely aligned His human will in every aspect with the divine will of God the Father, and so we are called to do likewise.  

 

 "If I bear witness of Myself, My witness is not true.  There is another who bears witness of Me, and I know that the witness which He witnesses of Me is true.  You have sent to John, and he has borne witness to the truth.  Yet I do not receive testimony from man, but I say these things that you may be saved.  He was the burning and shining lamp, and you were willing for a time to rejoice in his light.  But I have a greater witness than John's; for the works which the Father has given Me to finish -- the very works that I do -- bear witness of Me, that the Father has sent Me.  And the Father Himself, who sent Me, has testified of Me.  You have neither heard His voice at any time, nor seen His form.  But you do not have His word abiding in you, because whom He sent, Him you do not believe.  You search the Scriptures, for in them you think you have eternal life, and these are they which testify of Me.  But you are not willing to come to Me that you may have life.  I do not receive honor from men.  But I know you, that you do not have the love of God in you.  I have come in My Father's name, and you do not receive Me; if another comes in his own name, him you will receive.  How can you believe, who receive honor from one another, and do not seek the honor that comes from the only God?  Do not think that I shall accuse you to the Father; there is one who accuses you -- Moses, in whom you trust.  For if you believed Moses, you would believe Me; for he wrote about Me.  But if you do not believe his writings, how will you believe My words?"  My study Bible has a lengthy note on these verses.  First, it asks how Christ's witness could ever be untrue?  It cannot (see John 8:14).  Rather, my study Bible says that Jesus is anticipating the argument and here He is speaking the thoughts of the Jewish leaders whom He's addressing (He does the same thing in Luke 4:23).  In Jewish tradition, my study Bible explains, a valid testimony requires two witnesses (Deuteronomy 17:6).  Here Christ offers four witnesses to confirm His identity as Messiah and as Son of God.  First is God the Father (verses 32, 37-38).  Then there is also John the Baptist (verses 33-35).  Finally, there are His own works that He has done (verse 36), and the Old Testament Scriptures, through which Moses and others gave testimony (verses 39-47).  

 

What is this that Christ says about honor and its importance to us?  On some level, all human beings -- and even animals -- want something that is called honor.   We can consider honor to mean reputation, or status, or fame, or renown.  Somehow it conveys our presence to others and the way others think of us, where we have significance in a society or a group.  The honor we receive back from others influences also the ways that we think of ourselves.  For this is the way that our minds work.  Even for groups of animals, status within the group is essential to function.  In verse 44 of today's reading, Jesus asks, "How can you believe, who receive honor from one another, and do not seek the honor that comes from the only God?"  This word that is translated as "honor" is usually translated as "glory" in the Greek.  It is δόξα/doxa.  So, considering this word, we can see its relation to reputation, renown, status among a group or society.  It is the word from which we derive the term doxology, a hymn of praise to God.  So Jesus is putting to these men a kind of challenge, to consider where they think their honor or glory comes from.  Does it come from God?  Or does it come from human beings?  Is their greatness something derived from impressing others, or from following God?  If our own notions of honor are sought by pleasing God, then where do we think our "glory" comes from?  If we look only to the world and ignore our relation with God in what we do, then where does our glory or honor come from?  In some way, this question exemplifies and underscores all that is contained in the Gospels, in the story of Jesus Christ and His ministry of salvation for this world.  For where does our honor or glory come from?  The Cross itself (and Christ's Crucifixion) exemplifies this very dichotomy, this contrast in where we think our honor or glory lies.  For in going to the Cross, Christ gave us the starkest example of One who sacrificed all worldly honor and glory for the honor and glory bestowed by God, and in so doing, He "trampled death by death" as the Orthodox Paschal Troparion declares.  As St. Paul put it, "For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him" (2 Corinthians 5:21).  St. John the Baptist, in his rigorous asceticism and radical humility, also exemplified a life lived for the glory of God only, without regard to worldly honor.  One could say that the very definition of a saint is of a person who gives all for their love of God, whatever that means in their lives.  To seek honor or glory from the only God is to "love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength" (Deuteronomy 6:4-5).  This is from the command known as the Shema, after the first word in Hebrew (meaning "hear"); it is the Jewish declaration of faith.  It is also called the first great commandment by Christ (see Matthew 22:36-40).  It is this commandment to which Jesus' question appeals in addressing these religious leaders.  Where does their honor or glory come from?  How can they understand Him and what He says if they do not truly love God?  He says in all earnestness, "How can you believe, who receive honor from one another, and do not seek the honor that comes from the only God?"   Today we can ask ourselves the same question. Where does our honor come from?  Where is our glory?

 

 

A prophet is not without honor except in his own country and in his own house

 

 Now it came to pass, when Jesus had finished these parables, that He departed from there.  When He had come to His own country, He taught them in their synagogue, so that they were astonished and said, "Where did this Man get this wisdom and these mighty works?  Is this not the carpenter's son?  Is not His mother called Mary?  And His brothers James, Joses, Simon, and Judas?  And His sisters, are they not all with us?  Where then did this Man get all these things?  So they were offended at Him.  But Jesus said to them, "A prophet is not without honor except in his own country and in his own house."  Now He did not do many mighty works there because of their unbelief.

 

- Matthew 13:53-58 

 

In our recent readings (beginning with Tuesday last week) Jesus has been preaching in parables.  In yesterday's reading, Jesus taught, "Again, the kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and hid; and for joy over it he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.  Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant seeking beautiful pearls, who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had and bought it.  Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a dragnet that was cast into the sea and gathered some of every kind, which, when it was full, they drew to shore; and they sat down and gathered  the good into vessels, but threw the bad away.  So it will be at the end of the age.  The angels will come forth, separate the wicked from among the just, and cast them into the furnace of fire.  There will be wailing and gnashing of teeth."  Jesus said to them, "Have you understood all these things?"  They said to Him, "Yes, Lord."  Then He said to them, "Therefore every scribe instructed concerning the kingdom of heaven is like a householder who brings out of his treasure things new and old."

 

  Now it came to pass, when Jesus had finished these parables, that He departed from there.  When He had come to His own country, He taught them in their synagogue, so that they were astonished and said, "Where did this Man get this wisdom and these mighty works?  Is this not the carpenter's son?  Is not His mother called Mary?  And His brothers James, Joses, Simon, and Judas?  And His sisters, are they not all with us?  Where then did this Man get all these things?  So they were offended at Him.  But Jesus said to them, "A prophet is not without honor except in his own country and in his own house."  Now He did not do many mighty works there because of their unbelief.  Jesus' own country is Nazareth in Galilee, where He was brought up.  His old neighbors are both astonished and offended at Him.  This double response of both marveling and rejection occurs frequently in those who encounter Christ, my study Bible notes (see Luke 11:14-16; John 9:16).  Christ's being rejected in His own country fulfills the rejection of the Old Testament prophets such as Elijah and Elisha (see Luke 4:26-27), and it foreshadows His rejection by the whole Jewish nation at His trial before Pilate (John 19:14-15).  

 

What is prophetic witness?  What is the role of a prophet?  It is to call people back to God.  It's intriguing that this story about Jesus' rejection in His hometown at Nazareth appears just after we're told about all of His marvelous parables He's been preaching.  In yesterday's reading, Jesus gave us parables of treasure:  a pearl of great price, a treasure hidden in a field.  He ended with the statement, "Therefore every scribe instructed concerning the kingdom of heaven is like a householder who brings out of his treasure things new and old."  This treasure is the Old and New Testaments, and so much of the scriptures that existed for Christ and His contemporaries consisted of the books of the prophets.  Let's recall also that yesterday's reading included yet another stark warning about judgment.  So, this episode in which Jesus visits His hometown and presents Himself as a Teacher in the synagogue is cast in the light of those teachings and that reminder of judgment.  But His prophetic voice isn't heard in His hometown.  They're not impressed with His gifts of beautiful speech, His wisdom and His mighty works.  Somehow He has violated the social order in acquiring these things, in becoming the Person they see before them now.  So they are both astonished and offended at Him.  They ask, "Where then did this Man get all these things?"  And here is the real complaint.  They're not valuing the treasure He offers them; but they're resentful that He has it to offer.  Jesus says to them, " "A prophet is not without honor except in his own country and in his own house."  This statement is so significant, it is found in all four Gospels (see also Mark 6:4; Luke 4:24; John 4:44).  So long as Christ's messianic secret was kept, His fellow townspeople knew Him as the carpenter's son,  the son of Mary, brother to extended family James, Joses, Simon, and Judas, with sisters they all know.  So "where did this Man get all these things?"  It tells us about the prophet role, in that the things Jesus offers were always things within Him.  The word He speaks were always treasures which stand the test of time, in the long lineage of the prophets who've come to call the people to God, ostensibly what the people attend synagogue to honor.  Jesus has come out in His public ministry in the appointed time, and that time is now for them, but they reject Him.  It teaches us about things we may live with, things that are true, but which for one reason and another, we simply don't want to hear or recognize.  For this is the prophetic role, to call people out of their complacency with the limitations of what they think they know, the accepted order they don't want disturbed.  The truths revealed by prophets call us to question ourselves and our lives; they call us to change, they call us to return to God.  And this is repentance, this turning to God to find where God wants us to go, what God wants to open our eyes to, how God wants us to go forward and move "closer" to Him.  Jesus' words of treasure call us to this reality all the time.  Let us not be so complacent that we don't want to be rudely awakened to Him and to the truth He brings us.  Let us meet the challenge of today with acceptance and not rejection, for there is always treasure that might be hidden in a field, or a pearl of great price to acquire that we simply don't see, but it's there in His word for us.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Spirit of the LORD is upon Me

 

 Then Jesus  returned in the power of the Spirit to Galilee, and news of Him went out through all the surrounding region.  And He taught in their synagogues, being glorified by all.  

So He came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up.  And as His custom was, He went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and stood up to read.  And He was handed the book of the prophet Isaiah.  And when He had opened the book, He found the place where it was written:

"The Spirit of the LORD is upon Me, 

 Because He has anointed Me

To preach the gospel to the poor;

He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, 

 To proclaim liberty to the captives

And recovery of sight to the blind,

To set at liberty those who are oppressed;

To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD." 

Then He closed the book, and gave it back to the attendant and sat down.  And the eyes of all who were in the synagogue were fixed on Him.  And He began to say to them, "Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing."  

 

So all bore witness to Him, and marveled at the gracious words which proceeded out of His mouth.  And they said, "Is this not Joseph's son?"  He said to them, "You will surely say this proverb to Me, 'Physician, heal yourself!  Whatever we have heard done in Capernaum, do also here in Your country.'"  Then He said, "Assuredly, I say to you, no prophet is accepted in his own country.  But I tell you truly, many widows were in Israel in the days of Elijah, when the heaven was shut up three years and six months, and there was a great famine throughout all the land; but to none of them was Elijah sent except to Zarephath, in the region of Sidon, to a woman who was a widow.  And many lepers were in Israel in the time of Elisha the prophet, and none of them was cleansed except Naaman the Syrian."  So all those in the synagogue, when they heard these things, were filled with wrath, and rose up and thrust Him out of the city; and they led Him to the brow of the hill on which their city was built, that they might throw Him down over the cliff.  Then passing through the midst of them, He went His way.

 

- Luke 4:14–30 

 

On Saturday, we read that Jesus, being filled with the Holy Spirit [and following His Baptism] returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness, being tempted for forty days by the devil.  And in those days He ate nothing, and afterward, when they had ended, He was hungry.  And the devil said to Him, "If You are the Son of God, command this stone to become bread."  But Jesus answered him, saying, "It is written, 'Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God.'"  Then the devil, taking Him up on a high mountain, showed Him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time.  And the devil said to Him, "All this authority I will give You, and their glory; for this has been delivered to me, and I give it to whomever I wish.  Therefore, if You will worship before me, all will be Yours."   And Jesus answered and said to him, "Get behind Me, Satan!  For it is written, 'You shall worship the LORD your God, and Him only you shall serve.'"  Then he brought Him to Jerusalem, set Him on the pinnacle of the temple, and said to Him, "If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down from here.  For it is written: 'He shall give His angels charge over you, to keep you,' and,'In their hands they shall bear you up, lest you dash your foot against a stone.'"  And Jesus answered and said to him, "It has been said, 'You shall not tempt the LORD your God.'"  Now when the devil had ended every temptation, he departed from Him until an opportune time.

 

 Then Jesus  returned in the power of the Spirit to Galilee, and news of Him went out through all the surrounding region.  And He taught in their synagogues, being glorified by all.  Let us note how the Gospel is careful to tell us that all things are done with the power and involvement of the Holy Spirit in Christ's ministry.  This was expressed as a sign "like a dove" at His Baptism, in His being led into the wilderness to be tempted for forty days by the devil (see yesterday's reading, above), and now in this earlier part of His public ministry, in which He returned to Galilee, and taught in their synagogues, being glorified by all.

 

 So He came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up.  And as His custom was, He went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and stood up to read.  And He was handed the book of the prophet Isaiah.  And when He had opened the book, He found the place where it was written:   "The Spirit of the LORD is upon Me, because He has anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed; to proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD."   Then He closed the book, and gave it back to the attendant and sat down.  And the eyes of all who were in the synagogue were fixed on Him.  And He began to say to them, "Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing."  Jesus reads these words from Isaiah 61:1-2.  My study Bible comments that being the eternal Son of God, Christ did not "become" the world's anointed Savior, but He has always been our Savior from before the foundation of the world.  It was Christ speaking through Isaiah who said, "The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me" (Isaiah 61:1).  We are further asked to note that Isaiah does not write, "The Spirit 'has come' upon Me."  When the Spirit of the LORD descended upon Jesus at His at His Baptism (see Luke 3:22), this was a sign which revealed an eternal -- not temporal -- truth to the people.  The acceptable year is the time of the Incarnation -- when the Kingdom of heaven has come to earth (see 2 Corinthians 6:2).

 

So all bore witness to Him, and marveled at the gracious words which proceeded out of His mouth.  And they said, "Is this not Joseph's son?"  He said to them, "You will surely say this proverb to Me, 'Physician, heal yourself!  Whatever we have heard done in Capernaum, do also here in Your country.'"  Then He said, "Assuredly, I say to you, no prophet is accepted in his own country.  But I tell you truly, many widows were in Israel in the days of Elijah, when the heaven was shut up three years and six months, and there was a great famine throughout all the land; but to none of them was Elijah sent except to Zarephath, in the region of Sidon, to a woman who was a widow.  And many lepers were in Israel in the time of Elisha the prophet, and none of them was cleansed except Naaman the Syrian."  So all those in the synagogue, when they heard these things, were filled with wrath, and rose up and thrust Him out of the city; and they led Him to the brow of the hill on which their city was built, that they might throw Him down over the cliff.  Then passing through the midst of them, He went His way.  My study Bible comments that this double response of marveling and rejection occurs frequently in those who encounter Christ (see Luke 11:14-16; John 9:16).  Christ's being rejected in His own country is a fulfillment of the rejection of the Old Testament prophets such as Elijah and Elisha.   Furthermore, it foreshadows His rejection by the whole Jewish nation at His trial before Pilate (John 19:14-15).  Jesus accepts death according to the Father's will, my study Bible tells us, and not at the will of the nation or the people.  Here, the hour of Christ's Passion has not yet come (see John 8:20).  Jesus' statement that no prophet is accepted in his own country appears in all four Gospels (see also John 4:44; Mark 6:4, Matthew 13:57).

 

Jesus reads from the prophecy of Isaiah: "The Spirit of the LORD is upon Me."  And when He finishes reading the passage, He declares to the people of His hometown of Nazareth: "Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing."  It's interesting that so much of Luke's Gospel (particularly the passages we have read so far in the lectionary at this time, beginning especially with Friday's reading of the events of Jesus' Baptism) concerns itself most transparently with the work of the Holy Spirit, active and participating in our world through the life and ministry of Jesus Christ.  After all, it is Luke's Gospel that tells us of the Annunciation, and Gabriel the Archangel's announcement to Mary that she will conceive a child.  When she asks, "How can this be?" the angel replies to her, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Highest will overshadow you; therefore, also, that Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of God" (Luke 1:35).  In all things concerning Christ, we find the activity and anointing and blessing of the Holy Spirit.  Today's reading is no different, because the fulfillment of the prophecy of Isaiah is also linked to the Spirit, as we read.  Most clearly the Spirit appeared "in bodily form like a dove" at Christ's Baptism, and from there the Holy Spirit drove Christ to the wilderness to be tempted by the devil while He fasted forty days.  The Spirit was also at work in Christ's beginning His ministry in Galilee, and now here He is in His hometown of Nazareth (that is, where He had been brought up), also in Galilee, where His fame has already spread.  But the interesting part of this work of the Holy Spirit is that it doesn't lead automatically to a life and ministry for Jesus that is simply filled with a worldly concept of "success."  While His fame has grown (He has been glorified by all), this doesn't mean that He meets with universal acceptance.  In fact, so far, quite the opposite seems to have happened.  He is first led by the Holy Spirit to be opposed, tested, and tempted by the devil in the wilderness.  And here, while He's come back to the place He was raised with a lot of renown in Galilee already, the people both marvel and become offended.  Where did He get those gracious words?  Then the real work begins, and Jesus tells them the truth, that He can't reproduce the marvelous works they've heard about which have taken place in Capernaum (possibly at the wedding reported by John).  For these things require faith, and they will not be done as proofs, or on demand.  And so comes the opposition and rejection, even outrage on the part of His neighbors at Nazareth.  Who does He think He is, after all?  He reminds them that prophets of the past -- Elijah and Elisha -- were not sent to their own to do great works, but rather to foreigners, and the response of His former neighbors is wrath.  Perhaps the lesson we should take from this is to understand that success on God's terms and success on worldly terms are two entirely different classes of experiences and values.  Do we need to be popular and liked by everyone?  Can we stay "friends" with all those who are not going to like the truth we embrace in our faith?  Perhaps even fellow Christians, members of our families, and those of our community reject truths we are led to embrace in our faith.  Particularly difficult is when political tests (of any type) come to apply as checks to our faith.   But a life spent pleasing God is just not going to be the same life that seeks instead the "praise of men," and we should be prepared for rejection, even outrage, because this is what accompanied our Lord.  As His disciples, we are told, "Love one another as I have loved you" (John 13:34-35).  Learning to follow Christ in that love is perhaps the greatest undertaking of our faith, for we are asked to love even when we can't "like" something.  To my way of thinking, this is not a question of doing things others want or desire from us, but rather finding out how love is seeking the good for others, and learning discernment in what will and will not have such desired effects -- including even where we cannot intervene or interact.  These are difficult things to learn, but that is what we are called to learn, how to love.  We can call on the mystery of the Holy Spirit to always be at work in our lives, but remember that worldly expectations are not always the answer, nor are they the purpose of the call of God.

 

 

 

 

If I bear witness of Myself, My witness is not true

 

 "I can of Myself do nothing.  As I hear, I judge; and My judgment is righteous, because I do not seek My own will but the will of the Father who sent Me.  

 

"If I bear witness of Myself, My witness is not true.  There is another who bears witness of Me, and I know that the witness which He witnesses of Me is true.  You have sent John, and he has borne witness to the truth.  Yet I do not receive testimony from man, but I say these things that you may be saved.  He was the burning and shining lamp, and you were willing for a time to rejoice in his light.  But I have a greater witness than John's; for the works which the Father has given Me to finish -- the very works that I do -- bear witness of Me, that the Father has sent Me.  And the Father Himself, who sent Me, has testified of Me.  You have neither heard His voice at any time, nor seen His form.  But you do not have His word abiding in you, because whom He sent, Him you do not believe.  You search the Scriptures, for in them you think you have eternal life and these are they which testify of Me.  But you are not willing to come to Me that you may have life.  I do not receive honor from men.  But I know you, that you do not have the love of God in you.  I have come in My Father's name, and you do not receive Me; if another comes in his own name, him you will receive.  How can you believe, who receive honor from one another, and do not seek the honor that comes from the only God?  Do not think that I shall accuse you to the Father; there is one who accuses you -- in whom you trust.  For if you believed Moses, you would believe Me; for he wrote about Me.  But if you do not believe his writings how will you believe My words?"

- John 5:30–47 

 

Yesterday we read that Jesus answered the religious leaders who now seek to persecute Him for healing on the Sabbath, and also for declaring Himself equal with God.  Jesus said, "Most assuredly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, but what He sees the Father do; for whatever He does, the Son also does in like manner.  For the Father loves the Son, and shows Him all things that He Himself does; and He will show Him greater works than these, that you may marvel.  For as the Father raises the dead and gives life to them, even so the Son gives life to whom He will.  For the Father judges no one, but has committed all judgment to the Son, that all should honor the Son just as they honor the Father.  He who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent Him.  Most assuredly, I say to you, he who hears My word and believes in Him who sent Me has everlasting life, and shall not come into judgment, but has passed from death into life.  Most assuredly, I say to you, the hour is coming, and now is, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God; and those who hear will live.  For as the Father has life in Himself, so He has granted the Son to have life in Himself, and has given Him authority to execute judgment also, because He is the Son of Man.  Do not marvel at this; for the hour is coming in which all who are in the graves will hear His voice and come forth -- those who have done good, to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil, to the resurrection of condemnation."

 

 "I can of Myself do nothing.  As I hear, I judge; and My judgment is righteous, because I do not seek My own will but the will of the Father who sent Me."  My study Bible comments here that the divine will is common to the three Persons of the Trinity; that is, the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.  This is because they all fully share the same divine nature.  When the Son is said to obey the Father, my study Bible tells us, this is a reference to Jesus' human will, which was assumed at His Incarnation.  He freely aligned His human will in every aspect with the divine will of the Father -- and so we are also called to do the same.

 

 "If I bear witness of Myself, My witness is not true.  There is another who bears witness of Me, and I know that the witness which He witnesses of Me is true.  You have sent John, and he has borne witness to the truth.  Yet I do not receive testimony from man, but I say these things that you may be saved.  He was the burning and shining lamp, and you were willing for a time to rejoice in his light.  But I have a greater witness than John's; for the works which the Father has given Me to finish -- the very works that I do -- bear witness of Me, that the Father has sent Me.  And the Father Himself, who sent Me, has testified of Me.  You have neither heard His voice at any time, nor seen His form.  But you do not have His word abiding in you, because whom He sent, Him you do not believe.  You search the Scriptures, for in them you think you have eternal life and these are they which testify of Me.  But you are not willing to come to Me that you may have life.  I do not receive honor from men.  But I know you, that you do not have the love of God in you.  I have come in My Father's name, and you do not receive Me; if another comes in his own name, him you will receive.  How can you believe, who receive honor from one another, and do not seek the honor that comes from the only God?  Do not think that I shall accuse you to the Father; there is one who accuses you -- in whom you trust.  For if you believed Moses, you would believe Me; for he wrote about Me.  But if you do not believe his writings how will you believe My words?"  My study Bible asks, how could Christ's witness ever be untrue?  It cannot (see John 8:14).  Rather, Jesus anticipates the argument of the religious leaders and speaks their thoughts (He does the same thing in Luke 4:23).  In Jewish tradition, a valid testimony requires two witnesses (Deuteronomy 17:6).  Here Jesus is offering four witnesses to confirm His identity as Messiah and Son of God:  God the Father ("There is another who bears witness of Me, and I know that the witness which He witnesses of Me is true. . . . And the Father Himself, who sent Me, has testified of Me.  You have neither heard His voice at any time, nor seen His form.  But you do not have His word abiding in you, because whom He sent, Him you do not believe"). John the Baptist ("You have sent John, and he has borne witness to the truth.  Yet I do not receive testimony from man, but I say these things that you may be saved.  He was the burning and shining lamp, and you were willing for a time to rejoice in his light").  Christ's own works ("But I have a greater witness than John's; for the works which the Father has given Me to finish -- the very works that I do -- bear witness of Me, that the Father has sent Me").  Finally, the Old Testament Scriptures also testify of Him, through which Moses and others gave testimony (verses 39-47).  

Jesus provides four witnesses to His identity, double the required number of two.  It makes one wonder.  Suppose we had to provide witnesses to our own identity.  One of Christ's witnesses He chooses is the works that He does.  He says they testify to Him, to His identity.  Certainly elsewhere He has testified to the fact that everyone's works testify about them.  "Therefore by their fruits you shall know them," Jesus says in the Sermon on the Mount (see Matthew 7:15-20).  So, He's not the only one whose works testify to His identity.  What "fruits" do we produce with our lives and our efforts?  Moreover, Jesus speaks of His obedience to the Father, that His works come out of the things the Father has given Him to do.  Do we follow the works Christ would have us do?  Whom do we seek to serve in the things that we do in the world?  It seems like our hearts will to a great extent determine outcomes, or at least the fruits we produce, whether or not they seem "good" to others.  In the Sermon on the Mount, once again, Jesus speaks about where our heart is, and where our treasure is.  "Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also" (Matthew 6:19-21).  What do we love; or rather, what is our first love?  What's our top priority, and what do we love the most?  Surely our works, the things we do, will be witness to that love in the heart.  In this particular saying of Jesus, it's often posited that He's speaking about helping those less fortunate, that when we do charitable acts, we have "treasure in heaven" rather than on earth.  But this, also, is testimony by our works, even if only God knows about it.  Thereby we also could say that our Father is witness to who we are.  If we thought more about life in this sense, that our efforts, our work, and the fruits of our own labor testify to who we are, then perhaps we would take more seriously how we spend our time, where we spend our energies, and the purposes to which we dedicate ourselves.  Note that this is not a moralistic argument or framework.  Rather, this question of witness to our labor and the fruits thereof is more of a question about what we love, and what we put first; that is, what it is to which we dedicate ourselves.  It becomes a question not of what others might think, or how the world would judge, but rather where our own loyalties lie --- for it is the things to which we are most loyal that will speak the loudest about ourselves and who we are in our hearts.  There are those who posit that where we place our attention is the place we devote our energies to.  Perhaps this suggests a devotion as well, and a need to chose wisely what we will focus on, what we try to help, to resolve, or even to wonder about.  Attention is perhaps most clearly denoted in prayer, a focus on the One we worship and our relatedness found there.  So, again, this is not so much a moralistic framework as it is a question of devotion, of attention, of care.  Where do we place our efforts and energies?  Jesus says, "No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon" (Matthew 6:24).  In another context, Bob Dylan paraphrases, "Gotta Serve Somebody."  Let us choose whom we serve carefully, for by our fruits we shall be known as well.   Who will be your witnesses?

 

 

 

 

 

 

For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted

 

 Now it happened, as He went into the house of one of the rulers of the Pharisees to eat bread on the Sabbath, that they watched Him closely.  And behold, there was a certain man before Him who had dropsy.  And Jesus, answering, spoke to the lawyers and Pharisees, saying, "Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath?"  But they kept silent.  And He took him and healed him, and let him go.  Then He answered them, saying, "Which of you, having a donkey or an ox that has fallen into a pit, will not immediately pull him out on the Sabbath day?"  And they could not answer Him regarding these things.  

So He told a parable to those who were invited, when He noted how they chose the best places, saying to them:  "When you are invited by anyone to a wedding feast, do not sit down in the best place, lest one more honorable than you be invited by him; and he who invited you and him come and say to you, 'Give place to this man,' and then you begin with shame to take the lowest place.  But when you are invited, go and sit down in the lowest place, so that when he who invited you comes he may say to you, 'Friend, go up higher.'  Then you will have glory in the presence of those who sit at the table with you.  For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted."

 

- Luke 14:1–11 

 

Yesterday we read that some Pharisees came to Jesus, saying to Him, "Get out and depart from here, for Herod wants to kill You."  And He said to them, "Go, tell that fox, 'Behold, I cast out demons and perform cures today and tomorrow, and the third day I shall be perfected.'  Nevertheless I must journey today, tomorrow, and the day following; for it cannot be that a prophet should perish outside of Jerusalem. O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her!  How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, but you were not willing!  See!  Your house is left to you desolate; and assuredly, I say to you, you shall not see Me until the time comes when you say, 'Blessed is He who comes in the name of the LORD!'"

 

Now it happened, as He went into the house of one of the rulers of the Pharisees to eat bread on the Sabbath, that they watched Him closely.  And behold, there was a certain man before Him who had dropsy.  And Jesus, answering, spoke to the lawyers and Pharisees, saying, "Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath?"  But they kept silent.  And He took him and healed him, and let him go.  Then He answered them, saying, "Which of you, having a donkey or an ox that has fallen into a pit, will not immediately pull him out on the Sabbath day?"  And they could not answer Him regarding these things.  Here Jesus once again builds on His words from earlier in the chapter, when He spoke to the ruler of the synagogue, who objected to His healing of a woman oppressed with a spirit of infirmity for eighteen years (see this reading from Wednesday).  Here He eats with scribes and Pharisees, in the house of one of the rulers of the Pharisees.  They watched Him closely to catch Him so they might accuse Him (Luke 6:7).  Jesus is, of course, aware of this, so we know that all of His actions and words are chosen deliberately to teach.  This is the second time He mentions the efforts to save the life of an animal on the Sabbath, comparing it to their attitude toward healing human beings on the Sabbath.  We note that the animals are useful work animals, needed for commerce or produce or transport.

So He told a parable to those who were invited, when He noted how they chose the best places, saying to them:  "When you are invited by anyone to a wedding feast, do not sit down in the best place, lest one more honorable than you be invited by him; and he who invited you and him come and say to you, 'Give place to this man,' and then you begin with shame to take the lowest place.  But when you are invited, go and sit down in the lowest place, so that when he who invited you comes he may say to you, 'Friend, go up higher.'  Then you will have glory in the presence of those who sit at the table with you.  For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted."  This parable is directed toward guests (and will be followed in Monday's reading with one directed to hosts).  In imitation of Christ, my study Bible comments, perfect humility is expected of guests -- and we will see that boundless charity is demanded of hosts (see James 4:6).

Jesus teaches a lesson about humility in today's reading, as He addresses guests in His parable.  But clearly, Jesus does not simply speak to those at this particular table, nor is He simply teaching us about good manners.  (Although, frankly, this is a good teaching on being a guest and how humility is the basis for what has come to be understood as good manners.)   In the tradition of the Church -- especially the monastic tradition -- humility has come to be understood as the foundation for all the rest of the virtues, and the gateway to the rest of them.  For without humility, we first of all cannot honor God as properly we should be doing.  How does one honor God if we cannot put consideration of self second, and God first?  How do we learn and grow without humility?  For if we put ourselves as front and center of what we know, we are not going to be open enough to reconsider our opinions or be willing to allow a little light to change our minds, or to reveal new things we don't already know.  Moreover, one has to consider the primary importance of repentance to Christ's preaching and the message of the Kingdom, even from the prophets who came before, and John the Baptist who prepared the way in Christ's lifetime (Matthew 3:1-2).  To repent is to turn around, to change one's mind, to go from one road to another.  Repentance is not possible without some degree of humility, putting our own opinion second to something better.  So, Christ's words here in this parable teach us about God's response to our humility.  To be offered the more generous place at the table, to go up higher in the sense of glory as Christ uses that word here ("Then you will have glory in the presence of those who sit at the table with you"), is to be recognized in terms of our capacity for that honor.  In John's Gospel, Jesus tells the religious leaders, "How can you believe, who receive honor from one another, and do not seek the honor that comes from the only God?" (John 5:44).  In this sense, Jesus gives us this teaching:  "For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted."  We will not find the honor that comes from the only God without first having the humility to seek it, and to put God first, before our own limited understanding of what is great, and good, and true.  Christ cannot say to us, "Friend, go up higher" unless we first are capable of advancing into the reality that He offers, the truths of the gospel He teaches, the mysteries of the kingdom of God (Luke 8:10).  It's also clear that there's another layer to the parable, and that's as it's directly told to these Pharisees and scribes (lawyers) who join Him at table at the home of one of the rulers of the Pharisees.  All of these are the elite and educated of their time, the ones who are experts in the Law and the faith, who would spend all their time debating Scripture and the commands found therein.  So, their understanding of what is lawful and what is not is something they put great store in, so secure are they in their zealotry.  But Jesus' parable is a reminder that they shouldn't be so secure in what they absolutely think they know, and it's also a hint that they don't really know the Person they sit at table with.  They have no idea that He is Lord, and will be their Judge.  Humility, then, is their only key to hope, to be able to see what they don't know, and to learn what they need to learn, to find the only One who can tell them, "Friend, go up higher."  Then they will quite literally "have glory in the presence of those who sit at the table with you."  As they are in their worldly roles, they consider themselves to be the exalted ones, even as Christ is warning them, "For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted."

 

 

 

 

 

 

Most assuredly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it produces much grain

 

 Now there were certain Greeks among those who came up to worship at the feast.  Then they came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida of Galilee, and asked him, saying, "Sir, we wish to see Jesus."  Philip came and told Andrew, and in turn Andrew and Philip told Jesus.  But Jesus answered them, saying, "The hour has come that the Son of Man should be glorified.  Most assuredly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it produces much grain.  He who loves his life will lose it, and he who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life.  If anyone serves Me, let him follow Me; and where I am, there My servant will be also.  If anyone serves Me, him My Father will honor."

 

- John 12:20–26 

 

Yesterday we read that a great many of the people of Jerusalem knew that He was there; and they came, not for Jesus' sake only, but that they might also see Lazarus, whom He had raised from the dead.  But the chief priests plotted to put Lazarus to death also, because on account of him many (even from among the ruling classes of the temple) went away and believed in Jesus. The next day a great multitude that had come to the feast, when they heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem, took branches of palm trees and went out to meet Him, and cried out:  "Hosanna!  'Blessed is He who comes in the name of the LORD!'  The King of Israel!" Then Jesus, when He had found a young donkey, sat on it; as it is written:"Fear not, daughter of Zion; Behold, your King is coming, sitting on a donkey's colt." His disciples did not understand these things at first; but when Jesus was glorified, then they remembered that these things were written about Him and that they had done these things to Him. Therefore the people who were with Him when He called Lazarus out of his tomb and raised him from the dead, bore witness.  For this reason the people also met Him, because they heard that He had done this sign.  The Pharisees therefore said among themselves, "You see that you are accomplishing nothing.  Look, the world has gone after Him!"   

 

Now there were certain Greeks among those who came up to worship at the feast.  Then they came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida of Galilee, and asked him, saying, "Sir, we wish to see Jesus."  Philip came and told Andrew, and in turn Andrew and Philip told Jesus.  But Jesus answered them, saying, "The hour has come that the Son of Man should be glorified."  My study Bible says that these Greeks mentioned here were Gentiles who believed in the God of Abraham, and they have come to participate in the Passover feast.  That they are still called "Greeks" shows that they were not yet full proselytes (converts).  Jesus had taught His disciples not to go to the Gentiles (Matthew 10:5; 15:24), so the disciples approach Christ before bringing these inquirers to Him.   When Jesus speaks of being glorified, He's referring to His death on the Cross.  My study Bible adds that Christ's obscure response is an indication of two things.  First, the answer these Greeks are seeking won't be found in words, but in the Cross; and second, the Cross will be the event that opens all manner of grace to the Gentiles. 

"Most assuredly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it produces much grain.  He who loves his life will lose it, and he who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life.  If anyone serves Me, let him follow Me; and where I am, there My servant will be also.  If anyone serves Me, him My Father will honor."  This image of a grain of wheat dying in order to bear fruit signifies that Christ's death will give life to the world, my study Bible explains.  In the Armenian Apostolic Church, this passage is read at every memorial service for the faithful who have passed.  In many Orthodox churches, boiled wheat, sweetened and spiced, is served at memorial services.  My study Bible comments that this affirms God's promise that those who have died in Christ will rise again to life.  

A grain of wheat springing to life from death is such a ubiquitous image that it is impossible to separate ourselves from Christ's framing of His death and Resurrection.  Jesus says "it falls into the ground and dies."  But this seemingly sad image is contradicted by His phrasing that the grain only remains alone when this doesn't happen.  To fall into the ground and die is to guarantee that it produces much grain.  So we are to understand His death and Resurrection -- that it produced and is producing much grain, much fruit.  In the story of the Samaritan woman at Jacob's well, Jesus refers to the returning villagers coming toward Him as a field of grain white for harvest (John 4:35).  But here He speaks of His own death which will give birth to many faithful, and also invites the disciples into this process as well:  "He who loves his life will lose it, and he who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life.  If anyone serves Me, let him follow Me; and where I am, there My servant will be also.  If anyone serves Me, him My Father will honor."  It is not just Jesus who will undergo such a sacrifice; others will follow.  Perhaps the sacrifices we make in our lives will take on different forms, but nonetheless, Christ's saying still applies.  For what we give of our time, our efforts, our dreams and goals, these also count when given toward service and following Christ.  In St. Matthew's Gospel, Jesus says that giving even a cup of cold water in the name of a disciple will be rewarded (Matthew 10:40-42).  This sense of sacrificial giving and receiving permeates the whole of the Gospels, and all of the Christian life.  It is part of the process of transfiguring our lives in His image.  Indeed, we might consider our recent reading in which Mary covered Christ's feet with a pound of highly expensive fragrant essential oil as a story of what it is to make an extravagant sacrifice given for love of Christ, and to be received by Christ with a gracious reward indeed (see this reading).  For we should count also His words teaching us that "where I am, there My servant will be also."  In giving of our own sacrifices for Him and for the Kingdom, so we also become inheritors, servants, and those who dwell with Him even in an eternal reality.  He promises even more:  "If anyone serves Me, him My Father will honor."   In today's lectionary readings, we're also given the final chapter in the book of Job.  There we read of the tremendous reward, even while yet in this world, which Job receives after his great sacrifice of suffering for the sake of his faith in God (Job 42).  Throughout the Scriptures, then, the sense of sacrifice as gift which will be returned in abundant measure plays its role and gives its message to us.  In Luke chapter 6, we read Jesus' Sermon on the Plain, in which Jesus discusses topics widely covered also in the Sermon on the Mount.  Jesus says, "Give, and it will be given to you: good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be put into your bosom. For with the same measure that you use, it will be measured back to you" (Luke 6:38).  This is taught together with the concept of forgiveness, and so it is that in forgiving we "give up" or "let go" of something to God, and we should understand it that way, as a type of sacrifice for which we'll be richly rewarded.  Let us consider, then, Christ's example of His own sacrifice and abundance of harvest to reap as result, and see that in doing so He teaches us to do the same.  For the countless examples amongst the saints and figures of the Gospels and in the Old Testament we have an entire spiritual history to consider.  What else could inspire such faith but the love shown in such sacrifice, especially by Christ the firstfruits who gave His life for us?  For there is no doubt that this is true.  In a highly consumer-oriented modern society, we might have difficulty considering the idea of sacrifice in a positive light.  But it's what makes the world go around, and civilizations are built not on selfishness but on the willingness to give for what might be, and for love of the good.  Let us consider where we make our sacrifices, and why.  What else can give us back so much?

A prophet is not without honor except in his own country and in his own house

 

 Now it came to pass, when Jesus had finished these parables, that He departed from there.  When He had come to His own country, He taught them in their synagogue, so that they were astonished and said, "Where did this Man get this wisdom and these mighty works?  Is this not the carpenter's son?  Is not His mother called Mary?  And His brothers James, Joses, Simon, and Judas?  And His sisters, are they not all with us?  Where then did this Man get all these things?"  So they were offended at Him.  But Jesus said to them, "A prophet is not without honor except in his own country and in his own house."  Now He did not do many mighty works there because of their unbelief.

 

- Matthew 13:53-58 

 

In yesterday's reading, Jesus taught:  "Again, the kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and hid; and for joy over it he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.  Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant selling beautiful pearls, who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had and bought it. Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a dragnet that was cast into the sea and gathered some of every kind, which, when it was full, they drew to shore; and they sat down and gathered the good into vessels, but threw the bad away.  So it will be at the end of the age.  The angels will come forth, separate the wicked from among the just, and cast them into the furnace of fire.  There will be wailing and gnashing of teeth."  Jesus said to them, "Have you understood all these things?"  They said to Him, "Yes, Lord."  Then He said to them, "Therefore every scribe instructed concerning the kingdom of heaven is like a householder who brings out of his treasure things new and old."

 

  Now it came to pass, when Jesus had finished these parables, that He departed from there.  When He had come to His own country, He taught them in their synagogue, so that they were astonished and said, "Where did this Man get this wisdom and these mighty works?  Is this not the carpenter's son?  Is not His mother called Mary?  And His brothers James, Joses, Simon, and Judas?  And His sisters, are they not all with us?  Where then did this Man get all these things?"  So they were offended at Him.  But Jesus said to them, "A prophet is not without honor except in his own country and in his own house."  Now He did not do many mighty works there because of their unbelief.  Jesus' own country is Nazareth of Galilee, where He was raised.  My study Bible comments on this double response of people being both astonished and offended at Him; it's a frequent response to Jesus (see Luke 11:14-16; John 9:16).  It notes that Christ's being rejected in His own country fulfills the rejection of the Old Testament prophets such as Elijah and Elisha, and it foreshadows His rejection by the whole nation at His trial before Pilate (John 19:14-15).  Christ's brothers are members of His extended family; either sons of Joseph by a marriage prior to Mary, or cousins, as "brothers" is commonly used for such.  

Jesus says, "A prophet is not without honor except in his own country and in his own house."  So important is this statement that it appears in all four Gospels (see also Mark 6:4; Luke 4:24; John 4:44).  Perusing today's reading, one is tempted to encapsulate the response of Jesus' townspeople and neighbors in a modern vein, as something like, "Who does He think He is?"  Well, we can think about that question and laugh at it, because we know who He thinks He is, and we (hopefully) know who He is.  So, thinking about this scene with the old neighbors, we might consider first of all the Jesus of everyday life they knew once upon a time, and the Jesus who comes before them with His now public ministry, an entirely different and surprising category of human being.  Apparently the messianic secret remained just that, until perhaps the wedding in Cana, if we go by the chronology of John's Gospel.  We can imagine that only His mother and human guardian/father were privy to this secret, for it is there at that wedding where we witness Mary prompting Him, and a reluctant Jesus asks her (in so many words) if she's really ready for what will come once His public ministry begins.  And so we find, in today's reading, Jesus back in His hometown, with His mother, His "brothers" (extended family), and neighbors.  All of a sudden, to them, He is this Jesus who is teaching in their synagogue (apparently He hadn't done that in the past), and He's full of this wisdom and these mighty works they now hear about.  The neighbors remind one another that He's still the familiar carpenter's son, the One whose family they all know, and so -- where then did this Man get all these things?  Who does He think He is?  How can this be?  How can both of these things be true?  And so they were offended at Him.  Let's note that Jesus' response does not reveal the messianic secret.  He still does not declare who He is.  Instead, He lives who He is, He acts who He is.  He teaching with authority, and produces wisdom and mighty works, all signs of the Christ's presence, God in their midst.  Note that instead of declaring Himself, Jesus aligns Himself with the prophets of the past, and the ways they also were rejected.  By so doing, Jesus puts Himself in a line with those prophets who, while they were not the Messiah, nevertheless brought God closer to the people, and manifested God's word and works in their midst.  For they, too, are part of this same Kingdom, helping to bring it into the world through their faith and devotion to God, and the Scriptures testify also to their rejection.  It tells us something about the worldly, about how God works in the world, sending servants who will call people out of their complacency, out of their corruption and easy money and currying favor and flattery, out of our somnambulant way of walking through life, going along with what we see and accepting the premises of the ways of life around us.  For this is what prophets do; they shake up the order that forgets God, even those who "draw near to Me with their mouth, and honor Me with their lips, but their heart is far from Me" (Isaiah 29:13; Matthew 15:8).  With their words, the prophets honor Christ, the One who stands before the people of Nazareth and whom they only know as their old neighbor, the One they now resent and whose wisdom and mighty works are an offense to them.  Perhaps what we need to see for ourselves is how we might align with Christ and the energies -- the grace -- that fills the prophets, so that in our own lives even by simply being willing to serve we may shake up the ideas of those around ourselves.  Devotion to God, according to the Scriptures of the Bible, by no means assures us a simple and easy life, one that pleases everyone around us.  But at least, in a world that guarantees to bring some trouble to all of us, we can be assured of seeking something that is indeed worth it, for it is there we will find our joy if so our hearts desire Him as did the prophets (see John the Baptist's declaration of his joy in John 3:25).  Note the outcome of the failure to accept the grace that is offered: He did not do many mighty works there because of their unbelief.  Here is another question for our spiritual lack of sight or hearing:  how do we know what we have missed?  

 

If I honor Myself, My honor is nothing

 

 "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 that 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 

 In our current readings, Jesus is attending the Feast of Tabernacles in Jerusalem (beginning from this reading).  He has been disputing with the religious leaders.   In yesterday's reading, 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 answered them, "Most assuredly, I say to you, whoever commits sin is a slave of sin.  And a slave does not abide in the house forever, but a son abides forever.  Therefore if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed.  I know that you are Abraham's descendants, but you seek to kill Me, because My word has no place in you.  I speak what I have seen with My Father, and you do what you have seen with your father."  They answered and said to Him, "Abraham is our father."  Jesus said to them, "If you were Abraham's children, you would do the works of Abraham.  But now you seek to kill Me, a Man who has told you the truth which I heard from God.  Abraham did not do this.  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.  When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of it.  But because I tell the truth, you do not believe Me.  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?"  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?"   Today's reading begins with Christ's final statement to the religious leaders from yesterday's reading.  As these authorities in the temple are unable to defeat Christ through logic or truth, my study Bible comments, here they begin to resort to personal insult (see also John 9:34).  

Jesus answered, "If I honor Myself, My honor is nothing.  It is My Father who honors Me, of whom you say that 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."  Once again, Jesus speaks regarding potential witnesses to His identity, as if offering testimony.  He will not testify of Himself, as He says for it is not for Him to honor Himself.  But the Father bears witness and honors Him -- and they do not know God the Father.  Then He offers another witness from the Scriptures, father Abraham.

 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.  Here Jesus uses the divine Name of God from the Old Testament, first revealed to Moses in the burning bush (Exodus 3:13-15).  This is the use of the I AM (Ἐγώ εἰμι/Ego eimi) here by Christ, in this particular context, which these men of the Council understand completely.  To them, my study Bible says, this was a direct, explicit, and unmistakable claim to perfect equality with God.  Therefore, this is what they clearly evidence by their reaction (Then they took up stones to throw at Him . . .).  (See also Mark 14:62-64.)   My study Bible adds that St. John places special emphasis on the use of this Name in order to clearly reveal Christ as God.  This divine claim, it says, illuminates Christ's authority, which is even over death (verse 52), which is a power that belongs only to God the Father.

In today's reading, Jesus declares, "If I honor Myself, My honor is nothing.  It is My Father who honors Me, of whom you say that He is your God."  This may seem to us like a perplexing statement.  In our modern culture (especially in the West), we are used to thinking about ourselves as reliable witnesses or unreliable, truthful or untruthful.  But this is not the division Jesus is speaking of here, not the same type of discernment.  Jesus is speaking about what kind of yardstick by which we choose to measure things, and particularly to measure what is true and what is not true.  For this measurement -- and especially for the evaluation of this identity Jesus is expressing here -- only one yardstick will do.  There is only One who can measure and testify as to whom Jesus really is, and that is God the Father.  If we go back to Peter's confession of faith in St. Matthew's Gospel, Jesus replies to Peter directly afterward, "Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven."  See Matthew 16:16-17.  Elsewhere Jesus also speaks of God the Father revealing truth to people, when He says in St. Luke's Gospel, "I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and revealed them to babes. Even so, Father, for so it seemed good in Your sight."    See Luke 10:21.  What we find in these two episodes is the affirmation from Christ that it is the Father who may testify to people.  Perhaps, of course, this happens in hidden ways.  But nevertheless, it happens, and this is made clear by Christ in His dialogue with these religious authorities who cannot understand nor "hear" Him.  Jesus will repeatedly make this claim, that they simply do not know Jesus because they do not really know God the Father.  Then He gives the example of another one to whom the Lord was revealed through faith, "Your father Abraham rejoiced to see My day, and he saw it and was glad."  In chapter 10, Jesus will refer these men to Psalm 82:6, affirming that the word of God can come to human beings, when He says,  "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'?" (see John 10:33-36).  So all of this simply invites us to ask also, what is our yardstick?  By whose judgment do we measure?  If even Christ does not use His own judgment ("You judge according to the flesh; I judge no one" - John 8:15); then how are we to judge with good judgment?   If He says in today's reading, "And I do not seek My own glory; there is One who seeks and judges" (verse 50), then how are we to understand good judgment, apart from seeking our own glory, so to speak?  It is very easy to believe that only Christ can hear the word of God, but what Christ really teaches is that He is from above, and so knows God and heavenly things (John 3:12).  But at the same time, He also makes it clear that through faith, and through grace, we human beings can also be open to the wisdom of God, for it even may come from the mouths of babes.  When the children praise and welcome Him in the temple as the Christ, Jesus is angrily asked by the leaders, "Do You hear what these are saying?"  He replies, quoting from Psalm 8:2, "Yes. Have you never read, 'Out of the mouth of babes and nursing infants You have perfected praise' ?" (Matthew 21:15-16).  When we pray, we are putting our trust and confidence in God.  We seek to establish, uphold, affirm, and deepen that communion with God.  Faith also asks of us that we grow in this deepening communion, for we walk a path.  When Jesus teaches, "I am the way," that word translated as way means "road" in Greek.  Part of that deepening reliance and faith means that we must seek for ourselves to know the ultimate yardstick.  Like Christ, we seek the judgment of the Father, we pray for illumination by the Holy Spirit, we ask Christ to show us His path, to lead us in the road of righteousness and good judgment.  We can give up of ourselves and our own glory in order to seek the glory of the One who sent Christ, and whom He brought more deeply to us.  In St. John's chapter 5, Jesus asks the religious leaders, "How can you believe, who receive honor from one another, and do not seek the honor that comes from the only God?" (John 5:44).  Let us endeavor to do as Christ asks, and seek the honor that comes from the only God, the One whose judgment is true.