The Gospel of Mark: Scripture: Mark 3:1-6

"Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do harm?"

Scripture: Mark 3:1-6

1 Again he entered the synagogue, and a man was there who had a withered hand. 2 And they watched him, to see whether he would heal him on the Sabbath, so that they might accuse him. 3 And he said to the man who had the withered hand, "Come here." 4 And he said to them, "Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do harm, to save life or to kill?" But they were silent. 5 And he looked around at them with anger, grieved at their hardness of heart, and said to the man, "Stretch out your hand." He stretched it out, and his hand was restored. 6 The Pharisees went out, and immediately held counsel with the Hero'di-ans against him, how to destroy him.

Meditation: What is God's intention for the commandment, keep holy the Sabbath (Exodus 20:8; Deut. 5:12)? The scribes and Pharisees wanted to catch Jesus in the act of breaking the Sabbath ritual so they might accuse him of breaking God's law.  In a few penetrating words Luke records that Jesus knew their thoughts.  They were filled with fury and contempt for Jesus because they put their own thoughts of right and wrong above God.  They were ensnared in their own legalism because they did not understand or see the purpose of God.  Jesus shows their fallacy by pointing to God's intention for the Sabbath: to do good and to save life rather than to do evil or to destroy life.  Christians celebrate Sunday as the Lord's Day, to commemorate God's work of redemption in Jesus Christ and the new work of creation he accomplished through Christ's death and resurrection. Taking "our sabbath rest" is a way of expressing honor to God for all that he has done for us.  Such "rest" however does not exempt us from our love for our neighbor.  If we truly love the Lord above all else, then the love of God will overflow to love of neighbor as well. Do you honor the Lord in the way you celebrate Sunday, the Lord's Day and in the way you treat you neighbor?

"Lord, in your victory over sin and death on the cross and in your resurrection you give us the assurance of sharing in the eternal rest of heaven. Transform my heart with your love that I may freely serve my neighbor for his good and find joy and refreshment in the celebration of Sunday as the Lord's Day." 

The Wise Men Who Followed a Star

Friday, June 22, 2012

The Wise Men Who Followed a Star Matthew 2

When the wise men from the east see the star, they know that Christ the King has been born. IN THE COUNTRY far to the east of Judah there lived some wise men who studied the stars. One night they discovered a new star in the sky, one that they had never seen before. And God caused them to know by this star that Christ, the promised King of the Jews, had been born. These wise men feared God, and they wished to see the child whom he had sent to be the Savior of the world. They supposed that the Jews must be very happy because God had at last sent to them the King he had promised. Because these wise men were rich, they planned at once to make the long journey to Judah and bring precious gifts to the new-born King. Then they would worship him as their Savior. For many days they traveled across the sandy desert, and at last they came to the fertile country where the Jews lived. They hurried on to the city of Jerusalem; for they expected to find the wonderful child living in the most beautiful place in the land. And surely Jerusalem, the famous city of the Jews, would be the most beautiful place. Herod, the man whom the emperor of Rome had set up over the land of Judah, was living in Jerusalem at that time. He was surprised when these strangers, riding on camels, came into his city and asked, "Where is the child that is born King of the Jews? We have seen his star in the far east country, and have come to worship him." Herod had heard nothing about this new-born King, and he was troubled. What could this mean? he wondered. And even the rich people in Jerusalem were puzzled, too. They had heard nothing about Jesus. No doubt the wise men were disappointed when they found that the rulers of Jerusalem knew nothing about the birth of the Savior. Perhaps they feared that they might have been mistaken, after all. But they waited anxiously while Herod called the chief priests and the scribes and asked them where the Savior should be born. Now the chief priests and scribes were the men who read the books that the prophets had written long ago, and they understood that Christ should be born in Bethlehem. This they told to the excited Herod, and he called the wise men and told them that they should look for the child in Bethlehem. Herod had been troubled, because he did not want Jesus to become the king of the Jews. He thought this new-born King would take away his throne, and he wished to be king himself. But he did not let the wise men know about his trouble feelings. He called them and asked very politely when they had first seen this unusual star in the east, and they told him. Then he urged them to hurry on to Bethlehem and search diligently to find the child. "When you have found him,' said Herod, "bring me word at once, that I, too, may go and worship him." And with these words he dismissed them from his presence. The wise men mounted their camels again and took the south road, leading to Bethlehem. All they had waited impatiently in Jerusalem, and now the shadows of night were falling over the land. But it would not be a very long ride to the birthplace of the new-born King, and, urged on by Herod's words, they hastened to find Jesus. When once outside the city gates, they saw the star, the same beautiful star that had shown so brightly in the east country, moving slowly before them, as if leading them on to the right place. Now they were sure that they had not been mistaken; and they rejoiced greatly, for they believed that God was in this manner trying to help them to find Jesus. When they reached Bethlehem the star stood still over the place where Mary and Joseph were living. And the wise men knew they had followed the right guide, for here they found the wonderful child of whom the prophets had written. They knelt in humble worship before him, and then gave to him the rich treasures that they had brought from their homeland. God spoke to the wise men in a dream one night while they were in Bethlehem, and warned them not to tell Herod that they had found Jesus. So they returned to their own country by another road, and Herod never saw them again. Not long afterwards an angel of the Lord spoke to Joseph in a dream and said, "Arise, and take the young child and his mother, and flee into Egypt, and stay there until I bring word to you to return again; for Herod will seek for Jesus and try to destroy him." Joseph rose up at once, and while it was yet dark he took Mary and the baby Jesus and hurried out of Bethlehem. For many days they traveled to the southwest, until they came to the land of Egypt. There they lived until an angel came to tell them that the wicked Herod was dead. But Herod did not die for some time after the visit of the wise men. He waited long for them to return, bringing him word from Bethlehem as he had commanded them to do. But when many days passed and they did not come, he began to suspect that they had gone home without telling him of their wonderful discovery in Bethlehem. He believed they had guessed the reason why he had been so eager to see Jesus, and now he was angry because he had missed the opportunity to find the new-born King of the Jews. Determined to destroy this King of the prophecies, Herod commanded his soldiers to go to Bethlehem and kill every baby there from two years old and younger. Not only to Bethlehem did he send them, but to the country places round about. And when this cruel deed was done he believed that he had surely gotten rid of this child whom the wise men sought to worship. But all the while Jesus was living in safety among the people of Egypt, and fast growing out of his babyhood years. Then the wicked Herod died, and an angel came again to speak to Joseph, telling him to return with his wife and her child to their own land. Joseph was glad to receive this message from the angel, for he loved to live among his own people. And he started back to Bethlehem. But when he came into Judah, he heard that Herod's son was now the ruler of the Jews in Judah, and he feared that this new king might be cruel like his father had been. Because of this fear Joseph journeyed on to Nazareth, in the country of Galilee, where he and Mary had lived before Jesus was born. And there he made a home for his wife and wonderful child. Tomorrow: Jesus in the Temple at Twelve Years Old

The Birth of Jesus

The Birth of Jesus Luke 2:1-39

An angel appears to the shepherds and tells them that the Savior has been born. OUT ON THE streets of Nazareth the people were standing in groups, talking excitedly. News had just reached their city that the great emperor of Rome had commanded all of them to go to the town or city from which their families had come and have their names written on lists. The emperor wished to have a list of the names of all the people in this great kingdom, or empire. And no one dared to disobey his command. Soon travelers were seen going in every direction, for the emperor's command had been read in every city in the land. Out from Nazareth a company of people started toward the south, and in that company were Joseph and Mary, for they were both of the family of David, and they were going to Bethlehem, the city of David, to have their names written upon the list at that place. The road to the south led through the country of Samaria, then over the hills of Judah into Jerusalem. From Jerusalem Joseph and Mary went farther south, till they came to Bethlehem. Some of their company had left them in other cities along the way, while others had joined them. And when they reached Bethlehem they found that it was swarming with people who belonged, as they did, to the city where David was born. From every part of the land these people had come, and they had filled the lodging rooms till no more place could be found for the new arrivals. The long journey from Nazareth had been very tiresome, and Mary longed for a place to rest. But Joseph could find no place except in the stable of the inn. And here they stayed during their first days in Bethlehem. God had not forgotten his promise to Mary, and one night while she was in Bethlehem he gave her the child, Jesus. And Mary wrapped him in soft cloths called swaddling-clothes, and laid him in a manger where the cattle fed, because she could find no better place. The people of Bethlehem did not know that the angels were watching over the city that night. They did not hear the angels' glad song when Jesus was born. They did not see the joy of Mary and Joseph as they bent over the wonderful child in the manger. And so it was that God's greatest gift to men came right into that neighborhood and those people did not receive it as a gift from God because they did not expect a Savior to be born of such a humble person as Mary. But there were shepherds watching their flocks that night in a field near Bethlehem. Perhaps David, the shepherd king, had tended sheep in that same field many years before. These shepherds knew about David, and about God's promise to David that one of his descendants would be the Savior of men. And they may have been talking about God's promise when the angel of the Lord suddenly came near and a glorious light broke upon them through the darkness. Trembling with fear, they looked upon the angel and wondered why he had come to them. Then he spoke, and said: "Fear not, for I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, which is Christ the lord.. And you will find the baby wrapped in swaddling-clothes and lying in a manger." What a wonderful message! The shepherds listened eagerly to the angel's words, and when he finished speaking they saw a multitude of angels join him and begin to sing. Such music this world had never heard, for the angels were singing one of heaven's glad songs, giving glory to God in the highest. And they also sang, "Peace on earth, good will toward men." When the song had ended, the angels went back into heaven and the glorious light faded again into the darkness of the still night. But the shepherds never forgot the sweetness of that song nor the joy it brought to their hearts. They did not wait until daylight to hasten to Bethlehem in search of the wonderful child, but said to each other just as soon as the angels disappeared, "Let us now go to Bethlehem and see this thing which the Lord has made known to us." So they left their flocks and hurried to Bethlehem, and there they found Mary and Joseph in the stable, with the infant Savior lying in the manger as the angel had said. The shepherds told Mary and Joseph about their angel visitors and about the wonderful song that the angels sang. And no doubt they knelt before the manger and worshiped the little babe who lay quietly sleeping in the hay. Then they ran into the streets of Bethlehem and told every one whom they met about the angel's visit and about the wonderful child who had been born that night in a stable of the city. And the people wondered about the strange things that the shepherds told. When the baby was eight days old, Joseph and Mary gave him a name, and they called him by the name the angel had chosen. That name, Jesus, means "salvation," and it told to men the work that God had sent this child to do. There was a law among the Jews that an offering should be made to the Lord for the first boy child born into each family. Among the rich people this offering should be lamb, but among the poor people the offering of only two young pigeons would please God just as well. When Jesus was forty days old Joseph and Mary took him to the temple at Jerusalem to give their offering to the Lord. They brought two pigeons, for they were poor and could not bring a lamb. An old man named Simeon was in the temple when Joseph and Mary came to bring their offering. This old man had served God for many years, and he longed to see the Savior whom God had promised to send into the world. God knew about this longing in Simeon's heart, and one day he spoke to Simeon and said, "You shall not die until you have seen the Savior." When Mary brought the baby Jesus to the temple, God's Spirit caused Simeon to know this child was the promised Savior. He came eagerly to meet Mary and took her babe in his arms. Then he said, "Now may God let me depart in peace, for I have seen with my eyes the salvation which he has sent." Another faithful servant of the Lord was in the temple that day, an old lady named Anna, who spoke words of prophecy to the people. When she saw Jesus, she too gave thanks to God, and to the people who stood in the courts of the temple she spoke about this child of promise which had been sent from God to man. Mary never forgot the words of these dear old people concerning her wonderful child. She remembered, too, the story that the shepherds had told, about the angel's visit to them, and about their words and song. Always in the days that followed Mary thought about these strange things and wondered how her son Jesus would finally become the King and Savior of the world. Tomorrow: The Wise Men Who Followed a Star