Bernard Gabbott - Sunday, 15 October 2023
Living in the Now
Scripture References: Genesis 36:1-43, Psalms 39:1-13, Matthew 2:1-18
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CloseLife in the present, living in the now – it is the default mantra of much that we experience around us today. And in many ways, it does make life easier (and it seems to have the ring of truth, too!). As we return to Genesis, we meet again the man who epitomises this in Genesis: Esau. A likeable man, a man to admire, a good bloke even (especially as we see him greet Jacob in Genesis 33), Esau is a man of immense passion and emotion – all in the now, the present. He is a man who lives with no sense of the eternally important. His mind is on the next stew, the next steak, the next hunt, the next beer. And it leads him to turn his back on the grace of God – all because he has no grasp on the eternally crucial. Sure, he becomes a great nation, and Edom has kings before Israel. But at what cost?
Scripture References: Genesis 36:1-43, Psalms 39:1-13, Matthew 2:1-18
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Jesus is returning to Jerusalem for the second day. Jesus is hungry – he is human. Jesus sees fig tree – but, despite its leaves, it has no fruit. Jesus curses the fig tree. Jesus is God, taking on the divine role of pronouncing judgement. This brief episode is a living example of the judgement brought by the king of God’s people returning to his mob: they have become independent, insiders not aligned with the desire of God for the outsider. They are unfruitful, and they are judged. God’s mob, however, have true fruitfulness when they recognise the authority of the king, and completely and totally depend upon him. Such dependency will change the world, because of the one they depend upon!
Jesus has finally made it to Jerusalem. As Matthew prepares us for His entry into Jerusalem, he helps us confront Jesus’ authority, and the way in which it restores the concern of God for the outsider, and confronts the insider. This is the start of the Passover week. Jerusalem is a roiling maelstrom of religious and political fervour. And Matthew organises the narrative of Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem around displays of His authority, rooted in recognition of His ‘old power’ – four Old Testament quotations structure the passage. As we come face-to-face with Jesus’ authority, three truths stand out. First, Jesus’ authority is extensive and all-encompassing. Second, Jesus’ authority is for the outsider, and rooted in God’s deep commitment to bring the outsider inside His kingdom. And, third, Jesus authority confronts the insider, and urges them to repentance. Come and meet Jesus, the King, in all His authority, as He enters Jerusalem!
What is greatness? In particular, what is greatness in the kingdom of God? That is the question addressed in the passage from Matthew today. Jesus is approached by two different groups. First, the family of Zebedee: James and John and their mother. Second, two blind men. Jesus asks both groups the same question “What do you want me to do for you?” What they request is quite revealing. And so is Jesus’ response to their requests. The Zebedees request position, status, reward for effort. The blind men request mercy, for their eyes to be open. Which request lines up with Jesus’ teaching previously? Which request do we tend to go to ourselves?
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