Contemplative Bible Reading

Matthew 27:1 (New Living Translation)

Very early in the morning the leading priests and the elders of the people met again to lay plans for putting Jesus to death.

This verse is from the (hi)story of the crucifixion of Jesus. We look back on those who had Jesus arrested and executed with all sorts of emotion and labels—mostly bad emotion and labels. They were callous, mean, stupid and just plain wrong.

Were they?

Here we read that “the Elders of the people” planned how they would kill Jesus. These were not “fill-in-the-blank extremists” as we say today. The Elders of the people were well-respected persons chosen by the people for wisdom in life and living.

These well-known and highly respected persons were just plain wrong. How did that happen? How did the people choose these Elders who were supposed to be wise and decide wisely and be right? And here, they were just plain wrong.

Experts? Just plain wrong? Yes. Nothing much has changed in a few thousand years. Our experts and ourselves are still often just plain wrong.

This is the human condition. Sin and failure. Still, God redeems us, God accepts us. Thank you God for your grace. Grant me humility as I am often just plain wrong.

Zechariah 7:8-10 (New Living Translation)

8 Then this message came to Zechariah from the Lord: 9 “This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies says: Judge fairly, and show mercy and kindness to one another. 10 Do not oppress widows, orphans, foreigners, and the poor. And do not scheme against each other.

God tells the prophet Zechariah what to tell the people. Does God provide a cure for a virus? Does God provide a method of better life through better science? Does God provide strategy for national defense? Stable currency? Investments? Anything?

Simple instructions: judge fairly, be kind, don’t cheat others—don’t even think about cheating others.

Well, I don’t “scheme” against others, I’m just trying to … well, uh, you know, just get by or something. It’s a dog-eat-dog world or something. It isn’t fair out there so, why do I have to…

No. That is wrong, we know it is wrong, and we know what is right. God has given us simple instructions for daily living.

Please God, help me in my unbelief.

Mark 6:49-51 (New Living Translation)

49 but when they saw him (Jesus) walking on the water, they cried out in terror, thinking he was a ghost. 50 They were all terrified when they saw him.

But Jesus spoke to them at once. “Don’t be afraid,” he said. “Take courage! I am here!” 51 Then he climbed into the boat, and the wind stopped.

There was a storm on the water. The followers of Jesus knew they were powerless in such a storm. They looked at the raging waters and saw something walking on the stormy waters. It had to be a ghost or something supernatural. Then they recognized that it was Jesus walking on water in a storm.

Their reaction? Terror! Fear!

This is a Sunday school story. We heard it as kids. Those silly disciples. What was wrong with them? Sorry. This is much more than a Sunday School story for little kids.

Remember that Twilight Zone episode where a man saw a gremlin walking around on the wing on an airliner? Insane fear. This is what the men in the boat felt.

What did Jesus do to calm them? Jesus came to them and joined them in the boat. Notice, this is something we can do for the terrified today. Come near them. Join them in their situation. Love them deeply from close distance.

Jesus was the Son of God. Jesus did miracles (like walk on water in a storm). Jesus also did simple things that any of us can do at any time. Join a terrified person in their situation and love them deeply from close distance.

Amos 5:15 (New Living Translation)

Hate evil and love what is good;
turn your courts into true halls of justice.

God is speaking to the people through the prophet Amos. The people have been living corrupt lives. They stole from one another. They went to court for justice. The judges were bribed. They rich stole from the poor.

What is justice? Simple, “Hate evil and love what is good.”

“I don’t like so and so. So and so is sick. Good. I hope so and so dies.”

That’s just plain wrong. That’s just plain evil. We all know that as we settled that argument a few thousand years ago.

“Yeah, but so and so has done me wrong. So and so and done lots of people wrong. So and so deserves punishment.”

That’s just plain wrong. So and so may be evil and mean and a lying, low down, dirty, rotten, something or other. And Christ died for so and so just like Christ died for me.

“Fun” is over. The love and grace of Christ extends to all. There are days when it is difficult to accept that. Please God, help me in my unbelief.

Luke 14:1 (New Living Translation)

One Sabbath day Jesus went to eat dinner in the home of a leader of the Pharisees, and the people were watching him closely.

The people were consumed with thoughts of Jesus—this fellow from Nazareth who walked around talking to people and doing things that were not believable if you didn’t see them for yourself. Wherever Jesus went, the people watched him closely. What would Jesus say or do next?

Gosh, it would be great to have Jesus walking around my community today. I would watch Jesus closely to see what he would do or say next. Gosh, what is wrong with me?

I believe that Jesus is walking around my community today. I believe that Jesus lives in many people in my life. Many people live out the teachings and ideals of Jesus. They are believers and followers.

Followers tend to do and say the same things as the person they are following. All I have to do is listen and watch. And, by the way, do some following myself and say and do the things Jesus would say and do. Jesus spreads that way.

Hosea 14:9 (English Standard Version)

Whoever is wise, let him understand these things;
whoever is discerning, let him know them;
for the ways of the Lord are right,
and the upright walk in them,
but transgressors stumble in them.

The prophet Hosea is delivering the words of God to the people.

There are two kinds of people. Some people walk standing straight up. One step at a time, step by step, no problem. Some people stumble and trip and bumble along through life with nothing working right ever.

What’s the difference? Some people walk in the ways of God. Some people don’t.

This is simple. This must be much more difficult than it sounds because so many people refuse the ways of God. It is easy to ask, “What is wrong with those folks? Don’t they get it? They deserve …”

oooops. Where is my mercy? Yes, there are some who in their right mind choose freely to stumble along in life. And there are others whose stumbling is a horrible tragedy. And all who stumble deserve my prayers and love.

John 5:8,11 (New Living Translation)

8 Jesus told him, “Stand up, pick up your mat, and walk!”…11 But he replied, “The man who healed me told me, ‘Pick up your mat and walk.’”

This was the man who was at the pool at Bethesda. He had been lame for 38 years. Jesus healed the man so that he could carry his mat and walk.

Well, it happened to be the Sabbath day and law-abiding Jews did not carry mats or anything else. Questioned by the authorities as to why he was obviously breaking the law, the man replied, “Well, I don’t know, that fella’ told me to.”

The leaders then demanded to know who it was who had told the man to break the law. Who was encouraging anarchy?!?!!!

“Uh,” replied the man, “I don’t know. He didn’t have a name tag or anything.”

In this story, the person telling happened to be Jesus, the Son of God. The lame man with the mat didn’t know that and he didn’t care. Someone told him to do something, so he did it.

We don’t need permission to tell someone to do something that is right. Jesus didn’t; we don’t.

I’m not encouraging us to go around and be bossy all the time and tell everyone what to do and run their lives. Now and then, however, meekly tell someone. Such as

• Smile when you order coffee at Starbucks.
• Hold the door open for others, let them go first.
• Pray when you see someone hurting
• Do one little thing to aid someone else.

It won’t hurt to tell anyone any of these things. Sort of like, “Pick up your mat and walk.”

Mark 5:18-20 (New Living Translation)

18 As Jesus was getting into the boat, the man who had been demon possessed begged to go with him. 19 But Jesus said, “No, go home to your family, and tell them everything the Lord has done for you and how merciful he has been.” 20 So the man started off to visit the Ten Towns of that region and began to proclaim the great things Jesus had done for him; and everyone was amazed at what he told them.

These verses are at the end of the (hi)story of the man possessed by a legion of demons in the region of the Gerasenes. This was literally a mad man who lived among the ruins and could not be restrained by chains or anything. The locals simply gave up on him and told their children not to play among the ruins because—no kidding this time—they boogey man would get you.

After meeting Jesus, the man was in his right mind and appeared normal. Jesus rejected his plea to come with Him. Instead, “Go home, tell them everything the Lord has done for you.”

With that charge, the man went to the ten towns or Decapolis. No training. No education. No funding. Nothing. He went.

And everyone was amazed at what he told them.

There you have it. One of the great evangelists of the Bible. Doesn’t make any sense, does it? Madman to evangelist.

Met any great evangelists this week? We probably have, but we didn’t notice them. God works in ways we still don’t understand.

Matthew 16:21-22 (New Living Translation)

21 From then on Jesus began to tell his disciples plainly that it was necessary for him to go to Jerusalem, and that he would suffer many terrible things at the hands of the elders, the leading priests, and the teachers of religious law. He would be killed, but on the third day he would be raised from the dead.

22 But Peter took him aside and began to reprimand him for saying such things. “Heaven forbid, Lord,” he said. “This will never happen to you!”

Jesus tells the followers what will happen in the near future. Peter protests!

Let’s review. Jesus told the disciples PLAINLY. Perhaps there is something lost in the translation, but this plainly says that Jesus spoke PLAINLY. Jesus was not talking in riddles or something that was difficult to understand.

Jesus was to rise from the dead on the third day.

Peter didn’t hear that part. He only heard the part about Jesus being killed. How could Peter miss the “raised from the dead” part? Was Peter listening? It is easy to sit here 2,000 years later and write how foolish was Peter for missing something so obvious. We listen much better today, right? Huh?

No, afraid not. We don’t read much better. We don’t listen much better. We don’t act much better. Peter is an excellent example of us, of me. Please God, help me in my unbelief.

Zechariah 3:3-4 (New Living Translation)

3 Jeshua’s clothing was filthy as he stood there before the angel. 4 So the angel said to the others standing there, “Take off his filthy clothes.” And turning to Jeshua he said, “See, I have taken away your sins, and now I am giving you these fine new clothes.”

In these verses, there is much imagery (I guess we call it virtual something or other today). The prophet is telling what Jehovah God told him.

Jeshua is a High Priest. He is standing before God, Satan, and others. Jeshua is clothed in filth. The filth are the sins of Jeshua. New clothes are without sin.

Shed a dirty towel; drape a clean towel.

Simple? Yes. Impossible? Yes. God, however, frequently defines possible and impossible beyond our imagination. This is how Jehovah God does it. Forget about easy things like world peace and a vaccination for whatever ails us this year. God erases history; God erases our past mistakes and wrongs as easily as dropping a dirty towel to the bathroom floor. Consider that for a few moments or a few lifetimes.

God—power and majesty beyond belief. Me—not so much. Please God, help me in my unbelief.