This week's Bible Study - September 20, 2009
The Challenges of Knowing Jesus
 Background Scripture:
Mark 6:1-6, 45-52; 7:8-13
Quote of the Week:
“I like playing in Italy. It was a challenge I wanted since very early in my career.”
-- Ronaldo (Brazilian Soccer Player)
Assuming you have moved away from your hometown for a number of years in your life, what is it like when you return there? I have been away from my hometown in Kentucky for nearly 30 years. When I go back from time to time, I sometimes feel like it's a different place altogether, with all the new businesses and things happening there. Some places still exist - such as my high school, but even that has changed a lot. My places of employment have changed; the church I used to go to has changed location and many other things are different. And, then there is the matter of coming back into contact with people you knew many years ago. One of the biggest 'fads' in the past year has been the rise of social networking sites on the internet, such as MySpace or Facebook - or as a manager at my work once said, 'MyFace' (maybe that is next!). I've come back into contact with many of my high school friends and others that I just knew of. It has been great to get back in touch, but I wonder if we can truly shake the image of others we knew years ago. If they were the popular ones, do we look at them differently from the ones who more or less blended into the environment? We can certainly understand some of them doing well in life, but can we shake what we used to think of them as? I've been pleasantly surprised with how many of my old friends have turned out, but it is sometimes a challenge to see them differently.
How are you challenged in life? One of the ways that I have seen is to think of things in a different light than you always had before. When you learn things growing up, it can be difficult to change when you find that they weren't quite right. This is certainly true in the spiritual area of our lives. It is easy to think that everyone believes just as you do, as you grow up, and that you have it all understood. However, as we mature in Christ, we are often challenged in what we have always believed. Are you willing to accept what Christ wants to do in your life, even if it was different than what you used to think?
In this passage, we see that Jesus went back to his hometown, accompanied by his disciples. You can only imagine what the people who knew Jesus as he grew up thought about him - and what they expected him to become in life. Was he going to simply take over the carpentry business, or what would he do?
On the Sabbath, he began to teach in the synagogue, and as was common in other situations, those who heard were amazed. Whenever Jesus taught, people were amazed with the knowledge and authority with which he spoke. However, the folks who heard him in his hometown had a slightly different spin. They couldn't get past the Jesus that they knew growing up. Surely, they had just heard him speak wisdom, and had heard that he even did miracles. Yet, they couldn't get past the fact that Jesus was this simple carpenter, and was the son of Mary and the brother of several that are mentioned. Instead of seeing him as a great teacher and sent from God, they took offense at him.
Are we much different than the people from his hometown? When we have known somebody in one way, are we able to see them in another? There are sometimes people we know from early in life that we believe will go far in life. It is no surprise when they do well, and communities often greatly support them - whether they are successful in business, athletics or in some support of our country. However, when we see others that were just getting by in school or life in general, it can be difficult to separate that thought of who we thought they were from who they really are.
Jesus spoke to them and said that a prophet is held without honor in his hometown, among his relatives and in his own house. Because of their inability to see him as more than what they thought, he could not do any miracles there, with the exception of healing a few sick people. Jesus was amazed at their lack of faith.
Wherever Jesus went, he had a large crowd that followed him. They surely desired to see the miracles and hear his teaching. There are those today who draw a crowd wherever they go. When they are going to speak, people often flock to hear them. In this passage, Jesus made his disciples get into a boat and go ahead of him to Bethsaida. He dismissed the crowd and after they left, he went up on a mountainside to pray. It is interesting to see the priority that Jesus put on prayer. Even as the Son of God, he made the time to spend time in prayer. Do we make time or do we just pray when it is convenient or when we have a pressing need?
After some time, when evening came about, Jesus could see the boat in the middle of the lake, as he was on land. We need to remember that many of the disciples had backgrounds in fishing and were very well acquainted with a boat. It's not like as if most of us were in a boat and trying to get around, as we probably don't spend a lot of time on the water, unless there is a motor involved. Jesus saw the disciples straining at the oars, because the wind was against them. They were trying to get to their destination, but they weren't making any headway. After it was very dark, Jesus went out to the them, walking on the lake. Granted, in the past few years, there have been magicians that have feigned the walking on water. There are many tricks that can make it appear that it is that way, but Jesus did this without the use of props and camera angles.
As the disciples were in the boat, they saw Jesus walking on the lake, and they were terrified. In their vast experience on the lake, they had not seen this phenomenon. They thought he was a ghost. They cried out in terror. Jesus spoke to them and tried to calm them - "take courage! It is I. Don't be afraid." Then he climbed into the boat with them, and the wind died down. Can you imagine the thoughts of the disciples when this happened? They went from a sense of terror to a sense of bewilderment and amazement. They had seen Jesus perform many miracles, as in the feeding of thousands of people with meager supplies, yet they could not understand the power he had. The passage says that their hearts were hardened, such that they could not understand what they had seen.
One of the issues that Jesus had with the leaders of the church was how they held on to some things very passionately, but they let other things go to the side. They were more concerned in the letter of the law, rather than the intent of the law. Jesus said that they had let go of the commands of God and were holding on to the traditions of men. In their understanding, the traditions of man had taken a backseat to the very commands of God.
As an example, Jesus quoted Moses as saying "Honor your father and your mother" and "Anyone who curses his father or mother must be put to death". However, the leaders had come up with the idea of Corban (a gift that is devoted to God). I don't believe it was actually handed over to the church, but it was devoted to that. In doing so, they neglected to care for their parents, as their resources were 'tied' up in being devoted to the church. Their tradition had overtaken the intent of God's command.
Jesus said that in doing this and many other things that were similar, they had nullified the word of God by their tradition that had been handed down. They were hanging on to what they saw as important, as opposed to what God had said.
Closing
Jesus was held without honor in his hometown, due to mistaken preconceptions that people could not get past. We often have this with other people, and we need to get past that, but it is even more of an issue when we have mistaken preconceptions about Christ. As we learn more about Jesus and as our relationship with him grows, we find out much more about him. Are we willing to allow our preconceptions to change, so that we can see the true Jesus? Are we willing to put our faith in him for the situations in our life, or are we only working with a head knowledge of who he is?
The disciples spent time with Jesus on a daily, even hourly basis, for a number of months. They saw him work miracles and they heard him teach. They surely knew that he was a very special man and that he was sent from God, but even though Jesus clearly alluded to Old Testament prophecies, they were not able to piece it all together. Over time, they learned more and they kept those things in their heart to create a fuller picture of who Jesus was. At no point while he was with them were they ever at the point where their understanding of Jesus was complete - or even stagnant. They continued to learn more and more. Are we fooling ourselves to think that we have it all figured out and that we have no more to learn? Over time, I've seen that God speaks to me, even in very familiar passages to give me a fuller picture of Christ. We are constantly challenged in our thinking to realize who Jesus really is.
We need to look at areas of our lives, both individually and as churches, that we have more closely aligned to tradition or likes and dislikes, rather than what God is commanding. As one example, it would seem that one area in which we have had issues in the more recent past is in the style of worship that we are involved in. God has not ordained a specific style of worship, but that we should worship him. In the context of our churches, our decisions need to be designed to reach others with the love of Christ, as opposed to merely providing a comfortable worship setting for us. There is nothing wrong with enjoying one style more than another, but the key is to worship. There are likely other areas of our own individual lives that we have followed what we want to follow rather than God's clear commands. We are challenged to follow his ways, in all areas of our lives.
How is God challenging you today? Is it in the preconception you have about others? God has worked in your life, and he can work in theirs as well. See others as God sees them, and don't quench their potential by your own critical attitude towards them. Are you challenged in your preconception of Christ? Are you learning more about him as you live your life? None of us will ever have a complete knowledge of Christ, so be willing to learn and adapt to who he really is. And, lastly, are you hanging onto traditions of man, your own views of how things should be, as opposed to what God desires? Let us all seek to rise to the challenges and become the people that God has called us to be.
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