Temple Archives – Page 2 of 2 – Sonshine's Journal

November 6, 2013

Dreaming…

Jn 5; Ps 126-128 “Dreaming…”

The invalid of John 5 must have thought he was dreaming as he obediently picked up his mat and walked to the Temple. How could this be? Who healed me? Entering the Temple full of awe and surprise whom does he meet but the ‘religious police’ of his day; the Pharisees. Upon hearing of his healing they did not stop to celebrate with him but rather began to question him. Who would tell you to do this “on the Sabbath?” Caught off guard by this barrage, we wonder what his thoughts were; why the Pharisees would not stop to give praise to God for this marvelous healing. Answering as best he could he continues on. It is then that as he walked to worship with his mind filled with thoughts, questions and wonderment that John tells us that the healer appears from out of nowhere. There is only one statement to the man and no return dialog. In vs 15 the man reveals to the Pharisees that it was indeed Jesus. Why did he go back to the Pharisees, these religious naysayers? Could it be that the truth of Prov 29:25 fit in here? 29:25 “The fear of people becomes a snare”? We may never know.

Yes truly the man seemed to be in a fog, so unable to understand what has just transpired. So too, the early Israelites after being freed by Cyrus command from the Babylonian captivity, find themselves in much this same frame of mind, filled with awe, filled with surprise, filled with wonder as they return to Jerusalem. Ps 126:1 “When the Lord restored the well-being of Zion, we thought we were dreaming.” Seventy years of captivity have come and gone. We are really here even though we thought this could not happen in our lifetime! We are in the midst of Jerusalem shouting for joy, laughing loudly and the naysayers are not raining on our parade but giving God praise: “The Lord has accomplished great things for these people.” What a change of heart!

The ‘religious police,’ the naysayers of Jesus’ day, will always be with us. But, also there will be others who, when they see God at work, will have to stop and give God praise. Recognizing that this could only happen because of God’s grace we too need to stop and give God praise. The psalmist in these three psalms gives wise principles. It is truly a choice on our part. We can choose to return to the naysayers or we can choose to join the chorus and give God the praise! These psalms, although written to the Jew, are as practically applicable to us today as they were then.

Give praise to God first and foremost: 126:3 The Lord did indeed accomplish great things for us.
Recognize that apart from God no good thing comes to pass: 127:1 If the Lord does not build a house, then those who build it work in vain. If the Lord does not guard a city, then the watchman stands guard in vain.
Fear the Lord in all holiness and reverence: 128:4 Yes indeed, the man who fears the Lord will be blessed in this way.
Seek God’s blessing upon others: 128:5 May the Lord bless you from Zion, that you might see Jerusalem prosper all the days of your life,
With restoration comes a responsibility to live a righteous life. Blessed with God’s provision of healing seek to abide by what Jesus told the healed invalid: “Look, you have become well. Don’t sin any more, lest anything worse happen to you.”

Did the invalid follow these principles? We must wait until eternity to find out. In the meantime, we are left with a choice. We can follow these principles today or we can join the naysayer’s camp. What will we choose to do?

September 11, 2013

Contructive Criticism from a Master Teacher: Paul

Some years ago I was given an ENORMOUS compliment…that I was a master teacher. Humbly, I do not see myself in that category after studying the life of Jesus and further the life of Paul. Especially so in the third chapter of Corinthians!

Principle: Jesus is the Master Teacher of all and Paul learned at his feet. We would do well to follow his example. Now to our study for today 1 Cor 3:

A few days ago we talked about the fact that there is a grain of truth in every ounce of criticism. That fits here today as we walk through Paul’s loving rebuke to the believers in the Corinthian Church. Let’s see why and how Paul is a master teacher. What is a master teacher? A master teacher is one who drives their students to grow in whatever sphere of learning they are found. They are able to create independent learners who have the critical thinking skills to grow beyond where they find themselves at the moment. They use multiple learning strategies (intellectual, emotional or volitional paths) to cause their students to grasp the material. A master teacher has the role of mentoring not training. You might want to go and research the role of a mentor here before you go on. I had to do that last year. What is a mentor? How do you distinguish a mentor from a trainer?

The first step in planning and preparing a lesson is to know your material. Chapter 2 shows us that Paul indeed does. His material consisted of the message of Christ crucified that men may yield their hearts and minds to Him alone. He reminded these precious believers that they have the mind of Christ so think and do as He would have done.

Now the problem. Paul heard news of the divisions that were occurring in this church. He bluntly tells them that they are still infants, they had heard the message but had not moved beyond the message to the action that proves they understood the message. After that blow to their ego he goes on to explain why he has said this. It was not about the doctrine but their application of that doctrine to real life.

A master teacher uses various illustrations to present a basic point. Paul uses three metaphors to show these precious believers (recall 1Cor 1: rich in knowledge, do not lack any spiritual gift) where they should have been at this time. First metaphor: the garden. One plants, one waters, but God is the master gardener. Second metaphor: a building. One designs, one builds, but God is the master architect. Third metaphor: the temple. Now to make it personal Paul says: You are the temple, the Illuminating Holy Spirit lives within you; do not destroy the temple. Thus with each metaphor, Paul is essentially saying God is ultimate and we (himself, Apollos, Cephas) are but servants. Do not elevate us beyond our station in life, instead honor God first and foremost.

Then to draw his lesson to a close Paul asks them to diagnose where they are. They are either a wise expert (vs 10), an unwise builder (vs 15) or one who is destructive (vs 17). Thus after this consider that one day judgment will come and God will prove which person they are by the works they bring to Him. Again to help them, Paul as a master teacher uses tangible gifts (gold, silver, precious stones or wood, hay or straw) to help them see how their works might stand the test of fire. Paul is saying: diagnose where you are and how you are either building on the foundation or tearing it down. Paul reminds them once again: no man should boast except in the Lord alone!

Our question then is: How do you see yourself in your family/church/community? Do you see yourself as a servant of the Most High God? Are you building with precious gifts or gifts that will be extinguished in the fire?

August 5, 2013

Anne Frank and Matthew 24 … Are We Ready?

In the biography of Anne Frank, the little girl whose diary survived WWII but she did not; Anne’s father, Otto Frank, speaks of his optimism that life will return to normal. It of course did not and he was the sole survivor of his family. Anne’s father inherited and shared her manuscripts that the world might never forget what truly happened. Even as Otto Frank watched his nation tumble into the abyss of anti-Semitism he kept saying, “it will get better.” Otto was not expecting the turn of events that ultimately would seal his fate as a Jew and his family’s death warrant.

How like Otto we are, optimists as to the future. But, then, as now we watch our world tumble into anarchy, chaos, economies drifting, leaders coming and going, false teachers/prophets deceiving and lawlessness on the rise we can no longer say…this too will pass and life will once again be “normal.” Jesus says the root of the problem lies in that the love of many will grow cold. The hearts that once beat with the excitement of being a follower of the Christ will turn to apathy and discontent. The Apostle John under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit reveals the downward spiral in the 7 churches as he penned Revelation. Jesus continuously reminded his audience and the disciples in particular “he who has ears to hear, better listen.”

The disciples pondering Jesus announcement of the destruction of the temple leads to seeking answers to three questions. As Jesus answers he pointedly remarks that if truth be known we are unprepared due to the coldness of our hearts. We have allowed our minds to be dulled and our spirits flagging due to this one main issue. We are not studiously studying, memorizing, sharing and even worse is the fact that we are not expecting the return of the Master anytime soon. We have become comfortable with our world as it is. Jesus remarked two times: 24:44 Therefore you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him. 24:50 the master of that slave will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he does not foresee,” Just as in the days of Noah, they “knew nothing.” Today it is astounding how many do not know or choose to not know. Do you know the scriptures? Are you expecting the return of the Master?

The fields are ripe and ready for harvest—are we in the field? Are we ready? Are we waiting in anticipation of his glorious return? Are we watching the clouds?

July 31, 2013

An Invitation…Will You Accept?

The Parade is over and Jesus is in the Temple once again and is teaching, as he has so often, about the kingdom of heaven through parables. We remember that Jesus told the disciples that he would be using that approach: “I speak to them in parables: Although they see they do not see, and although they hear they do not hear nor do they understand” thus fulfilling Isaiah’s 6:9-10 prophecy. Although this was Jesus’ method the Pharisees and chief priests knew not only was he directing his teaching at them but also they understood the implications of his teaching. That is why they wanted to arrest him as we found out in chapter 21.

Jesus spoke to them again in lest any should say they never understood. He has just told them that they were rejecting Him as the Chosen One and now He will emphasize it in greater detail through an illustration that they could all relate to which is a method that we must learn to utilize as well. Start with a common every day thought and use it as a spring board to the truth you want the audience to grasp. In this parable the listeners would have grasped the importance of the wedding banquet in their first century culture, but more importantly they would have been astounded that the king would invite any to his son’s banquet! This was thus not just any banquet–it was for his son! In that culture one received an invite and then when the banquet was ready the ‘king’ would send for them. Try to picture you receiving an invite to a head of state’s home for dinner. You receive it in advance and when the time is ready your limo arrives to pick you up. But, notice the responses of the invitees. They would NOT come! They were indifferent and turned their back even when he sent a second gracious summons! No wonder the king was furious! He had spared no expense nor the preparation.

What are we to learn? The king is God and He has a banquet prepared for Jesus, His Beloved Son. He has spared no expense; he sent his only son so that no one would perish but have eternal life. All have been invited to come and celebrate! Yet there were some then and some today who say no or some who are just too busy. In Matt 8 we read that many said they would go but they had many excuses as to why “not now.” When he sent out the disciples he gave them orders to shake the dust off their shoes if the message they brought was ignored or rejected. We meet these same people today in the marketplace; in our workplace and even in our families. They are more concerned about their now than their eternal destiny. Felix said the same thing to Paul in Acts 24.

What about the intruder in the banquet? Who is he? And why is he even there? He is there because the invitation was to both good and bad but even with that there are rules of decorum to be followed and he chose to not do that. How often have we heard that the “I am the Way, The Truth, The Life” just doesn’t cut it for me? I will come to Jesus in my way. Note the consequence! Bound and sent packing to outer darkness. There will be some that will face this in the day of judgment.

Beloved, God has a plan and it includes you. He has issued His invitation and He has sent this message to you. What will you do with it? Will you come and celebrate or are you just too busy to do it now? Remember the intruder when this crosses your mind.

Matthew chapter 22