Why He Came: questioning

Posted on October 13, 2015 by Friar Musings

Asking Boldly. Even before the request is revealed, the very sound of the question seems brash: “whatever we ask.” It is as though they want a “blank check” from Jesus. Is it enthusiasm? Is it brazenness? Is it coming from a sense of “I deserve a reward for having followed you these many, many months?” Is it arising from a sense of “I have looked at the other 10 and we are the ones you should pick?” Hard to know, but in any event, Jesus simply asks them what they desire. Continue reading →

Why He Came: context

Posted on October 12, 2015 by Friar Musings

³⁵Then James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came to him and said to him, “Teacher, we want you to do for us whatever we ask of you.” ³⁶He replied, “What do you wish (me) to do for you?” ³⁷They answered him, “Grant that in your glory we may sit one at your right and the other at your left.” ³⁸Jesus said to them, “You do not know what you are asking. Can you drink the cup that I drink or be baptized with the baptism with which I am baptized?” ³⁹They said to him, “We can.” Jesus said to them, “The cup that I drink, you will drink, and with the baptism with which I am baptized, you will be baptized; ⁴⁰but to sit at my right or at my left is not mine to give but is for those for whom it has been prepared.” ⁴¹When the ten heard this, they became indignant at James and John. ⁴²Jesus summoned them and said to them, “You know that those who are recognized as rulers over the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones make their authority over them felt. ⁴³But it shall not be so among you. Rather, whoever wishes to be great among you will be your servant; ⁴⁴whoever wishes to be first among you will be the slave of all. ⁴⁵For the Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many.” (Mark 10:35-45) Continue reading →

Inheriting the Kingdom:

Posted on October 9, 2015 by Friar Musings

The Rewards of Discipleship. ²⁸Peter began to say to him, “We have given up everything and followed you.” ²⁹Jesus said, “Amen, I say to you, there is no one who has given up house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or lands for my sake and for the sake of the gospel ³⁰who will not receive a hundred times more now in this present age: houses and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and lands, with persecutions, and eternal life in the age to come. ³¹But many that are first will be last, and (the) last will be first.”

Earlier (3:35) Jesus had redefined his family. “(For) whoever does the will of God is my brother and sister and mother.” For many of the first believers, following Jesus meant leaving everything behind. What one gained by leaving the biological family behind was the faith-community, those who were doing the will of God. Continue reading →

Inheriting the Kingdom: wealth

Posted on October 8, 2015 by Friar Musings

Problem of Wealth? ²³Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, “How hard it is for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God!” ²⁴The disciples were amazed at his words. So Jesus again said to them in reply, “Children, how hard it is to enter the kingdom of God! ²⁵It is easier for a camel to pass through (the) eye of (a) needle than for one who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.” ²⁶They were exceedingly astonished and said among themselves, “Then who can be saved?” ²⁷Jesus looked at them and said, “For human beings it is impossible, but not for God. All things are possible for God.”

Before we address the question of wealth, the larger question is really “Who can be saved?” The answer in v.21 is clear – human beings cannot save themselves. Just can’t do it. But, nothing is impossible for God. Stoffregen writes: “The answer to ‘how hard?’ is ‘It’s impossible.’ Whenever we make it ‘possible’ to do with enough work or sacrifice, we miss the radical nature of Jesus’ comments; which were especially revolting because (1) it was naturally assumed that the wealthy were closer to God and were more likely to be saved than the common people and (2) it was naturally assumed that those who kept the commandments were closer to God and were more likely to be saved than the common people. The man in our text fulfilled both requirements — but doesn’t enter the kingdom — at least not based on his righteousness or wealth.” Continue reading →

Inheriting the Kingdom: follow

Posted on October 7, 2015 by Friar Musings

But what must I do? “Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” ¹⁸Jesus answered him, ….¹⁹You know the commandments: ‘You shall not kill; you shall not commit adultery; you shall not steal; you shall not bear false witness; you shall not defraud; honor your father and your mother.’” ²⁰He replied and said to [Jesus], “Teacher, all of these I have observed from my youth.”

In responding more directly to the question, Jesus directs the man to the Law (especially Dt 30:15 and following; Ezekiel 33:15 as well) – the one who obeys the law will live. Other than “you shall not defraud” the list is straight from the Ten Commandments ((Ex. 20:12–16; Deut. 5:16–20) and covers one’s moral conduct in relationship with others – certainly one measure of a person’s reverence for God and obedience to his precepts. There is one measure of “goodness” for the inquirer – do you accept the will of God revealed in the Law? Continue reading →

Inheriting the Kingdom: promise

Posted on October 6, 2015 by Friar Musings

¹⁷As he was setting out on a journey, a man ran up, knelt down before him, and asked him, “Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”

The Way. The beginning of the Gospel according to Mark begins with John the Baptist citing Isaiah speaking of the messenger: “he will prepare your way…Prepare the way of the Lord.” (Mark 1:2-3) In both verses the underlying word is hodos. There are other places in Mark when hodos is used and is translated as ‘way” – e.g., “the way of God in accordance with the truth,” and describing Jesus and the apostles “on the way” in 8:27 and 10:32. So it is odd that in 10:17, the same word hodos is translated as journey in the New American Bible (NAB). Continue reading →

Inheriting the Kingdom: context

Posted on October 5, 2015 by Friar Musings

¹⁷As he was setting out on a journey, a man ran up, knelt down before him, and asked him, “Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” ¹⁸Jesus answered him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good but God alone. ¹⁹You know the commandments: ‘You shall not kill; you shall not commit adultery; you shall not steal; you shall not bear false witness; you shall not defraud; honor your father and your mother.’” ²⁰He replied and said to him, “Teacher, all of these I have observed from my youth.” ²¹Jesus, looking at him, loved him and said to him, “You are lacking in one thing. Go, sell what you have, and give to (the) poor and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me.” Continue reading →

Keeping the Kingdom: gift

Posted on October 1, 2015 by Friar Musings

In Private. ¹⁰In the house the disciples again questioned him about this. ¹¹He said to them, “Whoever divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery against her; ¹²and if she divorces her husband and marries another, she commits adultery.”

In the privacy of a house, the disciples question Jesus about “this” – presumably, “what God has joined together, no human being must separate.” Jesus has taken the question back to the divine intent. One way to understand the unstated question is that the disciples are not asking about divorce per se, but the broader question of all the things that cause the separation of what God has joined. Jesus declared without qualification that a man who divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery against her. The use of the word “adultery” directs the disciples back to the absolute command of God (Ex. 20:14) and clarifies the seriousness of the issue. But to be clear, Jesus is not saying that divorce and remarriage is the only circumstance that lead to adultery, but it is of the same gravitas. Continue reading →

Keeping the Kingdom: intentions

Posted on September 30, 2015 by Friar Musings

God’s Creative Intent. Thus, Jesus moves the dialogue to deeper question and asks about what God intended in the creation: ^“But from the beginning of creation, ‘God made them male and female. ⁷For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother (and be joined to his wife), ⁸and the two shall become one flesh.’ So they are no longer two but one flesh. ⁹Therefore what God has joined together, no human being must separate.”

Jesus has posed a question to the Pharisees that puts before them a choice between preserving the Law as they understood it or discerning and doing God’s will. The former is a legislation that is based upon fallen human history. But is there something that precedes that history that will reveal God’s intent? Jesus is also appealing to the Torah in his reference to the creation account in Genesis. Many scholars have offered that the Law given to Moses was part of a covenant with the people of Israel for a specific time in history. That covenant was broken and “subsumed” into the larger Davidic covenant. But the covenant in Genesis is timeless and is revealed in Creation. Paul seems to make the similar argument that the Mosaic law was but an ‘inset’ into God’s earlier purpose and covenant of grace, which is eternal (Gal. 3:17). Continue reading →

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the musings of a Franciscan friar…

Category Archives: Scripture