Εἰ ᾔδεις τὴν δωρεὰν τοῦ θεοῦ…

John 4:10 excerpt, SBL Greek Testament

Jesus is speaking with the Samaritan woman at the well of Sychar. He tells her to give Him a drink, which clearly surprises her; as John says, Jews don’t make use of (συγχρῶνται) Samaritans.

And then Jesus replies, with the words above: “If you knew the gift of God…” (NIV and many other translations)

Which is correct-ish, but nonetheless misleading. If you are thinking of a beautifully wrapped box under the Christmas tree, think again.

δωρεὰν (dōre’an) is ‘gift’ but in the older sense of “it was within his gift”, meaning a substantial benefit which the King or other ruler was able to bestow. Specifically we find it in the sense of the grant of an estate, privileges and immunities.

The full sentence reads in the NIV

Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked him and he would have given you living water.”

Because Jesus goes on to speak of living water, we make the connection, “oh, this is (just) the Gift of the Spirit” – and miss the whole point.

Jesus is speaking to a non Jew and telling her that if she understood the Kingdom (an estate, with privileges and immunities – immunity from the kingdom of the world, its demands and its corruption) which God freely bestows, and if she knew who Jesus was, she would ask and He would give her living water to drink.

Yes, Jesus is indeed referring to the gift of the Holy Spirit, but He is saying that receiving Him, ie the Spirit, is her access point to enter into, and enjoy the free gift of the Kingdom. An estate, with privileges and immunities. An offer good even for a Samaritan woman with an very complicated past.

An offer good even for you and me.

Jesus never speaks in religious platitudes. We need to stop hearing Him as if He was.

Another disciple said to him, “Lord, first let me go and bury my father.”
But Jesus told him, “Follow me, and let the dead bury their own dead.” Then he got into the boat and his disciples followed him.

Matt 8:21-23, NIV

It never ceases to amaze me how much we are all affected by the artificial divisions of Biblical passages (artificial because they post-date the actual writing of the Gospels by centuries or even millennia). To use the technical term, we read the Gospels as a collection of “gobbets” instead of as a continuous narrative. And of course, there are some clear “episodes”; but the layout of our bibles tends to dictate how we see these.

And here is an example. Seeing the crowds surrounding Him, Jesus has given orders to cross to the other side (of the Lake). On the way, He has short interactions with a scribe and then with someone described as ἕτερος δὲ τῶν μαθητῶν, “another of the disciples”. In English this suggests the possibility that the scribe was a disciple as well; but let us focus on this “other” disciple for now.

In our bibles, verse 22 ends a gobbet; verse 23 is the start of a new passage. I disagree.

The context of what the disciple asks is not (as we often seem to read it) just a general “I will follow you at some later date, but first let me do such and such.” Jesus has given orders to cross the Sea of Galilee; and that is the context to this request: “first let me go and honour my Father with funeral rites”. (And then I will join you over the other side.)

It has often be argued, by those missing the context, that the disciple is speaking in general terms, ie when at some point my father is dead and buried, I will follow you then; and of course this reading is possible. But the immediate reading is far more likely, because of what happens next.

Jesus tells him to “let the dead honour their own dead with funeral rites, and you follow me.” And climbing into a boat, His disciples follow Him.

Where is this “other disciple“ now? Unless he flat out disobeyed Jesus’ command (for which there is no evidence), then he is, pretty clearly, in the boat with Jesus.

Which means that very shortly he will be shouting, along with his fellow disciples, “save Lord, we are being destroyed.” And being given a lesson in “don’t be cowards: you tell it to STOP!” (see the Seeing the Kingdom book for a whole chapter on this passage).

Now pan back. Instead of joining the dead in honouring their own dead, this disciple finds himself facing his own imminent demise, and all because Jesus said “you, you follow me”. But in the process he learns a lesson about the difference between the Kingdom of this world, and the Kingdom of God. In the former, we endure the inevitable – loss, grief, separation and so on.

But in God’s Kingdom we call the shots, even – and especially – when the enemy launches an attack. And that is a lesson he would have missed if he had acted on his natural human instinct rather than obeying Jesus’ real-time command to “follow Me!”

He replied, “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you. However, do not rejoice that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.”

Luke 10:18-20, NIV

Rejoice that your names are written in heaven. It is a comforting thought, especially when you are out at the coal face, battling the forces of the Enemy. “When this is all over, and I arrive in heaven, they will find my name in the register…” The ultimate security.

And of course that is true – the Father’s house has many mansions / dwellings / apartments, and you are expected. But I doubt that is what Jesus is focused on here. And it is about focus.

“I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven.” The one you are up against knows heaven and lost it all. (And remember, he would like you to suffer the same fate.)

“I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you.” I have instructed you and commissioned you to do what you have been doing, and you can’t be stopped.

“However, do not rejoice that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.” Don’t get carried away. Remember (and rejoice) that you are citizens of the Kingdom of the Heavens, which – yes – is why you can see demons submit; but right here and right now, your citizenship of the Kingdom is about so much more than simply casting out demons. Your assignment will inevitably include building (something – a family, a ministry, a business, something a lot bigger than you) and will require you knowing how to access health and provision and wisdom. So rejoice that you have access to the Kingdom – right here, and right now.

And if you need a warning, as well as an encouragement: demons will happily take the hit now, if it means they can draw your focus after them. If you for too long just rejoice that demons submit to you, the day will come when the tables turn because you have lost your connection with the King and His Kingdom. And then who will help you?

So focus on where your names are written as citizens, now. And rejoice in that!

Soon afterward, Jesus went to a town called Nain, and his disciples and a large crowd went along with him. As he approached the town gate, a dead person was being carried out—the only son of his mother, and she was a widow. And a large crowd from the town was with her. When the Lord saw her, his heart went out to her and he said, “Don’t cry.”

Then he went up and touched the bier they were carrying him on, and the bearers stood still. He said, “Young man, I say to you, get up!” The dead man sat up and began to talk, and Jesus gave him back to his mother.

They were all filled with awe and praised God. “A great prophet has appeared among us,” they said. “God has come to help his people.” This news about Jesus spread throughout Judea and the surrounding country.

Luke 7:11-17, NIV

We were on our way back from a walk on the beach, and Sarah was driving; which left my mind free to wander a little. Suddenly I said, “hold on, Jesus raises the dead son of the widow of Nain: where is the ‘point of faith’?”

What I meant was, in every single episode where Jesus heals (or indeed, does any other ‘miracle’), there is always a point of faith, where someone other than Jesus is finding agreement with what He, and therefore Heaven, says. Whether at this point you believe me or not, please read through the Gospels and see how true this is. Famously, the one time we hear about Jesus unable to work miracles (Mark 6:5-6, Matt 13:58), it was because of the lack of faith of the people of his hometown. He was amazed because faith isn’t the macho, self-conscious thing we often portray it as: it just means being even the slightest bit persuaded that Jesus can and will do what He says; and the people of Nazareth mostly couldn’t even produce that – despite their need for healing.

And this matters because the same applies to us – we are meant to do the same works as Jesus did, and greater; but we need to learn to see this ‘point of faith’. It may not be the person who needs healing who has it, but someone who has authority in their life needs to have even the smallest mustard seed of agreement with us and heaven for healing to happen.

And in the car, I ran the reel of memory covering the widow of Nain story. Jesus comes to a village, meets a procession where the only son of a widow is being carried out to burial; Jesus goes to the bier, speaks to the young man and raises him.

No ‘point of faith.’

Maybe it is the exception, where Jesus just raised the dead, because He felt sorry for the already-widowed mother? But this is about law: there are no exceptions. If there are exceptions, then there is no law. If the law of gravity worked most of the time, but once in a while you could just float up into the trees, then it would no longer be the law of gravity. At best it would be a tendency. But kingdoms run on laws, not tendencies, and the Kingdom of Heaven most of all.

As soon as we got home, I grabbed my bible, found the passage – and let out a shout. There are actually two points of faith in our passage. One follows on from the other. In this sense the lesser ‘point of faith’ is that those bearing the dead man stopped when Jesus put His hand on the bier (they could have shaken Him off and kept going).

But here is what I was looking for:

“When the Lord saw [the Widow],… he said, “Don’t cry.”

How have you been hearing that “Don’t cry”? Like Tom Hanks telling Meg Ryan “don’t cry, little shop girl…” in “You’ve got mail”? That would be “don’t cry, we are happy, right?” I don’t think so. What about like someone who finds emotion expressed too hard to handle and just needs to shut it down? (“How can I solve this problem when you are crying like that and making all this fuss?”) The verse says that He felt compassion for her (ὁ κύριος ἐσπλαγχνίσθη ἐπ’ αὐτῇ) so: also “no”.

Jesus always spoke with authority. Remember, He was the one who said “let there be light”, and there was. We aren’t told exactly what happened, but you can be sure that if the Widow had merely wailed all the louder, we would never have heard the story, nor would she have received her son back alive. And that matters because, with her son dead and unable to respond (and, being dead, legally unable to respond to any instructions given him in the earth realm), she was the person with the authority over his dead body. If her response to Jesus was “no, he is dead and I will never speak with him again…” then Jesus would have had to turn away. As Jesus well knew, if He had simply spoken to the dead man and instructed him to get up – nothing would have happened.

No, when Jesus spoke “don’t cry” to her, something happened: she stopped crying and believed that somehow Jesus could fix this. That is the “point of faith”; not necessarily knowing what can happen next, but trusting that Jesus is going to do something and changing her posture in obedience to His command.

And in case it isn’t clear, this is a million miles (or further) from what most of us do when faced with a life-threatening illness or situation – which is to say “God knows what He is doing, and He can heal if He chooses.” That is philosophic resignation, and results in healing exactly 0% of the time. (If you think you know an example where God healed anyway, trust me, you just haven’t identified the person who exercised faith, and how. This is law!) What the Widow of Nain did was hear a word from Jesus, receive and believe that word, and obey it. I suspect the bearers stopped when Jesus touched the bier because they already knew something was up: the chief mourner had stopped mourning, and, we can guess, everyone else quietened down as a result. Despite the circumstances, there was a sudden air of expectation.

So what Jesus said to her – “don’t cry” – wasn’t polite convention, or frustration, or consolation or any other irrelevant thing. Like everything God speaks to us, it was a life and death instruction, and obeying it changed everything for the Widow of Nain – and her son.

(PS – in case you think Lazarus responded directly to Jesus without the involvement of another living person, look at what Jesus says to Martha in John 11.40: “Did I not tell you that if you believed you would see the glory of God?” And all that was required of her was to allow the removal of the stone from his tomb; very like “don’t cry” in terms of how hard it was. Hard emotionally, but practically, not so much!)

Δεῦτε πρός με πάντες οἱ κοπιῶντες καὶ πεφορτισμένοι, κἀγὼ ἀναπαύσω ὑμᾶς. ἄρατε τὸν ζυγόν μου ἐφ’ ὑμᾶς καὶ μάθετε ἀπ’ ἐμοῦ, ὅτι πραΰς εἰμι καὶ ταπεινὸς τῇ καρδίᾳ, καὶ εὑρήσετε ἀνάπαυσιν ταῖς ψυχαῖς ὑμῶν· ὁ γὰρ ζυγός μου χρηστὸς καὶ τὸ φορτίον μου ἐλαφρόν ἐστιν.

Matt 11:28-30

This passage (“Come to me, all you who are weary and heavy laden…”) is uncontroversial and generally well explained, but I have just been reflecting on how specific the language is. The translations are better English than I will attempt, I am just interested in the sense.

As endless commentators have noted, the picture is of a pack animal – probably an ox – struggling with a heavy load on its own, but finding peace when it is yoked with Jesus alongside. So here is my “sharpened” version.

Come here to me, all those growing weary and who have been weighed down; and I will make you stop.

Now, take up my yoke upon you, and learn from me (i.e. learn by walking in harness with me) because I am calming / taming and near you in heart, and you will find rest / repose / cadence for your life.

For my yoke is serviceable (i.e. is a good one) and my load is light in weight.

As a picture it is extraordinary. It only works (as indeed a yoke of oxen only works) if the two beasts are matched in size and strength. Jesus, the Son of Man, is fully a man, but “normal” in a way that hasn’t been seen since Adam fell. And yet, His offer to every man who is is struggling alone with too great a burden (roughly 100% of us), is that by coming to Him and taking up His yoke, we will be able to learn how to be normal too. And that is specifically because Jesus will play the role of the older wiser more experienced ox who calms His more skittish, distracted yoke-fellow and whose heart is on the same level. As a result we will find ourselves no longer driven by fear and anxiety and lack but able to enjoy, have rest and cadence to our lives, and yet also be delivering on assignment – a load which weighs lightly.

As a picture of the Kingdom life it is vivid and specific. We have struggled with all our might to achieve – what? A burden never delivered or removed. In partnership with Jesus, we learn rest – and get things done.

And here is the important part. Jesus will never partner with our current burdens. He is not at home to joining us in our struggle. Come to Him in all your struggle and weariness (your part) and He (His part)… He will make you stop.

No one puts a yoke on an already laden ox. Drop that load, take up My yoke upon you, learn from me; and you will learn how to fulfil your assignment from a position of calm and rest in your life. You will get far more done, with zero struggle. Work yes, struggle no.

Who wouldn’t want that?

They said to him, “John’s disciples often fast and pray, and so do the disciples of the Pharisees, but yours go on eating and drinking.”

Jesus answered, “Can you make the friends of the bridegroom fast while he is with them? But the time will come when the bridegroom will be taken from them; in those days they will fast.”

He told them this parable: “No one tears a piece out of a new garment to patch an old one. Otherwise, they will have torn the new garment, and the patch from the new will not match the old. And no one pours new wine into old wineskins. Otherwise, the new wine will burst the skins; the wine will run out and the wineskins will be ruined. No, new wine must be poured into new wineskins. And no one after drinking old wine wants the new, for they say, ‘The old is better.’”

Luke 5:33-39, NIV

I have written about this passage before, but focussing on the statement at the end – simply making the point that this isn’t about old wine being obviously superior to new (which is what the NIV suggests), but rather that if you are working you way down a skin of old wine, you are likely to say “who cares about new wine, this stuff is okay…” Which is a different saying altogether – namely, “what you are familiar with tends to shut down your openness to what is new to you.”

I would like to focus on the beginning of the passage this time, and focus on two aspects: one, just how different Jesus’ disciples are from those of John or the Pharisees; and two, the extremely conditional nature of what Jesus says about the bridegroom being taken away.

It is worth also noticing that Jesus has already seen one of their objections off – “why are you eating with tax collectors and sinners?” Jesus replies that “You call a doctor for those who have problems, not those who are well.” So there is a change of tack, away from dinner guests and to the behaviour of the disciples.

In verse 33, the bystanders – Pharisees and scribes or their hangers-on – say:

Οἱ μαθηταὶ Ἰωάννου νηστεύουσιν πυκνὰ καὶ δεήσεις ποιοῦνται, ὁμοίως καὶ οἱ τῶν Φαρισαίων, οἱ δὲ σοὶ ἐσθίουσιν καὶ πίνουσιν.

The NIV has toned everything down; the contrast is actually exceptionally strong.

“The disciples of John fast πυκνὰ, and make entreaties…” (which could equally be, “the disciples of John fast and make entreaties, πυκνὰ”). So what is πυκνὰ?

Well, certainly not “often”. “Often” would get us to the two fasting days a week that the Pharisees apparently followed, or perhaps longer fasts once a month or every other month. πυκνὰ is an intense word; it refers to anything with its constituent parts tightly bound together, or for example, anything completely perforated with holes. The nearest we can get in context in English would be “constantly” – but “relentlessly” is definitely an option too. So here is a better rendering:

“The disciples of John fast and make prayers endlessly; and so also the disciples of the Pharisees. But yours (just) eat and drink!”

It is a black and white contrast. Hence the parables of the patch and the wineskins.

But what does Jesus say of the future? Does He in fact suggest that His disciples will end up fasting and making entreaties with the best of them (or even more than anyone?) Because that does seem to be how many have taken this passage: “Oh yes, for now it is right to rejoice, but there will be long years of faithful mourning ahead…”

So here is what Jesus says to them in verses 34 and 35:

Μὴ δύνασθε τοὺς υἱοὺς τοῦ νυμφῶνος ἐν ᾧ ὁ νυμφίος μετ’ αὐτῶν ἐστιν ποιῆσαι νηστεῦσαι; ἐλεύσονται δὲ ἡμέραι, καὶ ὅταν ἀπαρθῇ ἀπ’ αὐτῶν ὁ νυμφίος τότε νηστεύσουσιν ἐν ἐκείναις ταῖς ἡμέραις.

Three quick notes: “sons of the bridal-chamber” is some more intentional and meaningful periphrasis for what has become “the groomsmen” in modern parlance. υἱοὺς (sons) + something (that doesn’t obviously have sons) is a common formulation, especially in the LXX and other Hebraistic Greek literature.

Secondly, the phrase ἐλεύσονται δὲ ἡμέραι stands alone here, and uses the future tense and middle voice. So the sense is “days will pass” (subject as both actor and acted upon).

Finally, “ὅταν ἀπαρθῇ” – ὅταν which is intensely conditional in force, practically “if it should ever be”; plus ἀπαρθῇ, which is 3rd sg aor subj pass, so “if it should ever be that be taken” (the bridegroom from them), then…

“It isn’t possible to make the sons of the bridal-chamber fast while the bridegroom is with them. But days come and go, you know; and if it should happen that a day comes when the bridegroom is taken from them, then they will fast then in those days.”

(my rendering for sense)

Jesus is not prophesying a period of mourning for His disciples. It is more that He is saying “behaving like that wouldn’t be appropriate (or even possible) right now, but you know, things change, maybe in the future…”

And in doing so, He is once again telling the truth but not revealing the whole truth. We see Him speak more openly about the same thing in John 14 – “you are sad because I said I am going away, but your joy is going to be huge. Because you will see me again.” And even there, we sometimes speak as if this joy is saved up for the Second Coming, when in fact they would see him again in a few days, and be having breakfast with Him by the Lake in Galilee in a couple of weeks.

Did the disciples mourn when Jesus was taken away? Yes. They had three horrible, confusing days. Peter must have been beside himself, despite all the preparation Jesus had given him. But they saw Him again, and were beside themselves – for joy!

So what is appropriate for us? Mourning or rejoicing?

If you have been thinking that this whole “seeing the Kingdom” thing is trivial or a matter of words, think again. It absolutely sets the direction of our expectation. If you think we look back to a wonderful promise made, and then looking forward to something future so we can at last rejoice again, and in the meantime, fast and pray (and weep), that is just wrong. We have a Kingdom right now; and yes, there will be challenges, and yes, the future is even better; but we see Him now; His Spirit is in us.

So enough with the mourning, already. Fasting and praying and eating and drinking – knock yourself out, it is all lawful to you. Just understand the freedom, and the Kingdom, that you have.

When John, who was in prison, heard about the deeds of the Messiah, he sent his disciples to ask him, “Are you the one who is to come, or should we expect someone else?”

Jesus replied, “Go back and report to John what you hear and see: The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is proclaimed to the poor. Blessed is anyone who does not stumble on account of me.”

As John’s disciples were leaving, Jesus began to speak to the crowd about John: “What did you go out into the wilderness to see? A reed swayed by the wind? If not, what did you go out to see? A man dressed in fine clothes? No, those who wear fine clothes are in kings’ palaces. Then what did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet. This is the one about whom it is written:

“‘I will send my messenger ahead of you,
who will prepare your way before you.’

Truly I tell you, among those born of women there has not risen anyone greater than John the Baptist; yet whoever is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he. From the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven has been subjected to violence, and violent people have been raiding it. For all the Prophets and the Law prophesied until John. And if you are willing to accept it, he is the Elijah who was to come. Whoever has ears, let them hear.“

Matthew 11:1-15, NIV

I was reflecting this morning (we are on holiday in the far north of New Zealand, overlooking beautiful Doubtless Bay; as good a place for reflection as I can think of). Specifically I was trying to reconcile what appears to be our widespread and (frankly) deficient perception of the ministry of Jesus with what is actually there in the Gospels. I was reading in Isaiah, and a penny of sorts dropped: we read the gospels through the lens of certain Old Testament scriptures, specifically those which emphasise the Suffering Servant aspect of Jesus’ ministry. So for example, we may think of Isaiah 52 and 53 – but fail to include, say, Isaiah 35 and 55. The result is that we seem to understand all the good promises of the Gospels as referencing a future state (heaven) instead of the Kingdom, available now. And there is proof of this bias in the gospels themselves.

In Matthew 11 (and Luke 17) we read of John, hearing from prison of all that Jesus is doing, sending his disciples to ask Jesus straight out: “are you the one who is to come, or should we expect someone else?”

In other words, the person who, out of anyone alive in Judaea at that time, could be most expected to recognise the Messiah from all the prophecy in the Hebrew Scriptures, is essentially saying: “I don’t get it; this isn’t what we were led to expect.”

So, first, let’s think about prophecy: what is its purpose? If you think it is so that we can know exactly what will happen, or even when it will happen, think again. God is not in the business of tipping His hand to the Enemy. As you will have found (but may not have yet noticed), when you tell your ten best friends what you are planning on doing, or the business deals you are landing, or whatever, it is amazing how often they fall apart – at least if they were based on something God has said to you. I am not sure the Enemy bothers interfering with things which are purely your ideas and plans; he is probably saying “be my guest…”

So prophecy is deliberately in a form where it will only make sense in hindsight. So what is its purpose then? A very profound one: it tells you that “God has a plan, one that will be wonderful beyond your ability to imagine. Hang on in there.” But details that would allow the enemy to intercept the pass? I don’t think so.

So even John is at a loss. Jesus answers him in a way which should encourage him: “Go back and report to John what you hear and see: The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is proclaimed to the poor. Blessed is anyone who does not stumble on account of me.” Most of that is a near quotation from Isaiah 35:5-6, and Isaiah 61. The final statement is a reassurance that John isn’t alone in finding this “not quite what we expected”; but He is none the less still operating in fulfilment of promise.

But Jesus still doesn’t give him all the detail which would allow Him to understand the fulfilment of what God has promised. So much of Jesus ministry can be seen and understood from prophecy in hindsight, with scripture after scripture we can put together – just as Jesus demonstrated for John. But the Kingdom is the closely guarded secret; so much so that that there is one only clear reference to it in the whole of the Old Testament. It may well be that it is not ‘legal’ (under His own system of justice established for the earth realm) for God to do what He has not first spoken; (actually more likely, the act of speaking what shall be is the setting in motion of that action, even with a ‘delayed action fuse’); but He was careful to speak this one far from the Land of Israel, and in the context of the interpretation of a pagan King’s dream. Who would ever put this interpretation by Daniel for Nebuchadnezzar alongside Isaiah and other key Messianic texts?

In the time of those kings, the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that will never be destroyed, nor will it be left to another people. It will crush all those kingdoms and bring them to an end, but it will itself endure forever. This is the meaning of the vision of the rock cut out of a mountain, but not by human hands —a rock that broke the iron, the bronze, the clay, the silver and the gold to pieces.

Daniel 2:44-45

(There are other, slightly more ambiguous, references to the Kingdom in Daniel 7. But the point remains; this information is kept at a distance from, say, the prophecies of Isaiah)

So when Paul says in 1 Corinthians that “none of the rulers of this present age understood this, or they would not have crucified the Lord off glory”, it is easy to think he is simply referencing the crucifixion. But read the whole passage in context:

“No, we declare God’s wisdom, a mystery that has been hidden and that God destined for our glory before time began. None of the rulers of this age understood it, for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. However, as it is written:

‘What no eye has seen,
what no ear has heard,
and what no human mind has conceived’—

the things God has prepared for those who love him— these are the things God has revealed to us by his Spirit.“

I Corinthians 2:7-10, NIV, my emphasis

In other words, Paul is saying “if the rulers had understood the whole payload of God’s purpose – to open the Kingdom of God to all mankind if they would simply call on the name of the Lord – they never would have initiated it by crucifying the Lord of Glory – ie lit the fuse that would set the whole plan into operation.”

So, to return to John’s question and our passage, and the question of understanding the gospels through the lens of Old Testament prophecy: that is all fine…

Except why would you do that, if it is at the expense of failing to see what Jesus actually does and says? Surely we should begin with Jesus’ very intentional teaching and modelling of the Kingdom; the “secret of the Kingdom” which He says has been given to His disciples? And from that place, by all means go back into the Old Testament to see just how perfectly all God’s promises have been fulfilled.

If we want a demonstration of why this matters, let me bring out the glaring issue with our translations of the Matthew passage; this verse:

From the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven has been subjected to violence, and violent people have been raiding it.

Matt 11:12, NIV

Where on earth is this coming from? What has the Kingdom been suffering? Where are these monstrous people who are attacking it. The Pharisees? Really? They couldn’t throw Jesus off a cliff with a mob, or stone an adulteress, even with half of Jerusalem assembled to do it. Poor old Kingdom? More like poor us for entertaining this thinking (or lack of it).

“ἀπὸ δὲ τῶν ἡμερῶν Ἰωάννου τοῦ βαπτιστοῦ ἕως ἄρτι ἡ βασιλεία τῶν οὐρανῶν βιάζεται, καὶ βιασταὶ ἁρπάζουσιν αὐτήν.”

From the days of John the Baptist until now, the Kingdom of the Heavens is breaking out, and mighty (or forceful, or potent) men get it (literally “grasp it”, “lay hold of it” including very much in the mental sense of “understand it”).

And in case you can’t see how this fits the context: “among those born of women there has not risen anyone greater than John the Baptist; yet whoever is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he…”

This Kingdom both attracts the forceful – perhaps those who are orientated towards action… like fishermen and tax collectors, for example – and confers genuine greatness upon them, which is at a level above the very best this world can produce. It isn’t the greatness of a puffed up ego, or of self-serving titles. It involves learning from what is modelled for you as much as understanding why it works (all the evidence being that the understanding tended to lag but the obedience didn’t).

It is the long hidden secret, in fact, of the Kingdom: namely that the Word of God becomes flesh and blood in us, too.

When Jesus had called the Twelve together, he gave them power and authority to drive out all demons and to cure diseases, and he sent them out to proclaim the kingdom of God and to heal the sick. He told them: “Take nothing for the journey—no staff, no bag, no bread, no money, no extra shirt. Whatever house you enter, stay there until you leave that town. If people do not welcome you, leave their town and shake the dust off your feet as a testimony against them.” So they set out and went from village to village, proclaiming the good news and healing people everywhere.

Luke 9:1-6, NIV

In Luke 9:6 we read “So they set out and went from village to village, proclaiming the good news and healing people everywhere.” And here’s the question: what good news were they proclaiming?

That may seem like a “doh!” kind of question, but stop and think a minute. We probably have some idea of what “proclaiming the good news” would sound like today: “Christ died for our sins and God raised Him to life, and we can shared in that life forever if we confess our sins and repent…” The problem is, the payload of that “typical” modern good news is pretty much excluded by a) the fact that was all still to come and b) it was definitely being kept a secret, not least from the Enemy. So whatever the disciples were proclaiming, two by two, it wasn’t what we think of as the Good News.

That may still seem like a “so what” kind of question; but it is worth getting to the bottom of, not least because our version of the Good News might prove to be a bit deficient in its content too – simply because we haven’t understood the answer to my question. Don’t misunderstand: of course Jesus’ death and resurrection is a key part of the equation; it is the well-kept secret which the rulers of this present age failed to understand, the irreducible “how we are able to participate, legally, in what God has prepared for us.” But it isn’t, of itself, what God has prepared; which is the Kingdom. Framing the Good News as just salvation from sin is to miss how good God’s intention to us really is.

So let’s look at a more literal version of this passage:

“Calling together the twelve, He gave to them power and authority against all the demons and diseases to heal them (or “against all the demons and to heal diseases”), and He sent them to announce as heralds the Kingdom of God and to heal the sick people, and He said to them ‘carry nothing for the road, neither to have staff nor food-pouch nor bread nor silver, nor a pair of shirts‘.”

“‘And whatever house you might enter, stay there until you leave that place. And as many as may not receive you, going out from that town, the dust from your feet shake off as a witness against them.'”

“So they went out and passed throughout the villages, announcing good news and healing everywhere.“

Three things to note, especially.

One, the word κηρύσσειν (as in, κηρύσσειν τὴν βασιλείαν τοῦ θεοῦ) is often translated “proclamation”, and we talk in theological terms of the “kerygma”, the content of our proclamation. But at heart it is “the proclamation of a herald”; and here at least (I would argue for “everywhere else, also”) that fundamental and specific meaning fits perfectly. A herald serves a King in the enforcement of his rule and dominion; so “proclaiming as heralds the Kingdom of God” is perfectly fitting, and helps us to understand that proclaiming the Kingdom of God is not just a vague catch all for “some gospel related work”. They are announcing that the Kingdom of God has come upon them; and they demonstrate this by healing all the sick people.

Whatever you have been thinking, the people who met the disciples on this mission were left with a clear sense that the Kingdom of God has been announced. Whether they accept or reject that fact, they have heard and seen things they can’t ignore.

Second, the term διήρχοντο (from διέρχομαι, to go through, pass through) and translated in the NIV as simply “went” has a much more specific payload than this would suggest. It is “to pass through for effect” if you like – a missile from a bow passes straight through a flying bird, a pain shoots through a limb, an army passes through the countryside. The disciples didn’t just go from A to E via B, C and D; the implication is they impacted (one way or another) every place they passed through.

So finally – what does “proclaiming the good news” in verse 6 actually mean? Putting the definite article in there may be unhelpful – unhelpful because it makes us think of what we mean by “the good news” – and is not called for by the Greek. “Announcing good news” or “bringing good news” are both options. And what is that good news – “we speak as heralds of the King of Kings to tell you the good news that His Kingdom has come upon you. And you are healed, and you, and you, and you… “

So to go back to my original point: if our proclamation of good news omits the content of their proclamation… then why? Surely it is still always proclamation of the Kingdom of God, but with the addition of the secret, long hidden for us and from our Enemy: “and everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved – because of the Cross of Christ.”

Jesus told his disciples: “There was a rich man whose manager was accused of wasting his possessions. So he called him in and asked him, ‘What is this I hear about you? Give an account of your management, because you cannot be manager any longer.’

“The manager said to himself, ‘What shall I do now? My master is taking away my job. I’m not strong enough to dig, and I’m ashamed to beg— I know what I’ll do so that, when I lose my job here, people will welcome me into their houses.’

“So he called in each one of his master’s debtors. He asked the first, ‘How much do you owe my master?’

“‘Nine hundred gallons of olive oil,’ he replied.

“The manager told him, ‘Take your bill, sit down quickly, and make it four hundred and fifty.’

“Then he asked the second, ‘And how much do you owe?’

“‘A thousand bushels of wheat,’ he replied.

“He told him, ‘Take your bill and make it eight hundred.’

“The master commended the dishonest manager because he had acted shrewdly. For the people of this world are more shrewd in dealing with their own kind than are the people of the light. I tell you, use worldly wealth to gain friends for yourselves, so that when it is gone, you will be welcomed into eternal dwellings.

“Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much. So if you have not been trustworthy in handling worldly wealth, who will trust you with true riches? And if you have not been trustworthy with someone else’s property, who will give you property of your own?

Luke 16:1-12, NIV

I am sure this passage is familiar to most, but it is one of those passages that sits a little awkwardly. What on earth is Jesus saying here? Is He commending fraud? Or just saying “that’s what passes for wisdom in the world”?

Let’s look again. In the beginning, we find a rich man who has a steward, and accusation is made to him that this steward has been ‘scattering’ his estate. That could be just acting without wisdom and diligence, it could be deliberate using of the estate for his own ends. It helps to remember that stewards had wide latitude; they might enjoy considerable discretion in the execution of their responsibilities. Even the actions the steward takes with regard to reducing bills might – in ordinary circumstances – be aimed at long-term mutual benefit for his master and his debtors and be applauded.

But in the context – he has already been asked to render an account of his stewardship, meaning “the accounts” are due in, and has been told he can no longer be steward – calling in the master’s debtors and reducing their bills (100 baths of oil becomes 50, 100 cors of wheat becomes 80) is “trading way past the bell”.

And yet: here is the sticky bit. Instead of getting mad, the master of “this steward of dodgy acts” … praises him for acting with presence of mind. We are all thinking, “he deserves severe punishment”, and the master – and Jesus – appear to be commending him.

Before we look at what Jesus says next, let’s look at what Jesus is doing here. It is somewhat parallel to – for example – the unrighteous judge who fears neither God nor man but who eventually gives in to the persistent widow who is threatening to “black his eye”. Neither of the characters in the story is meant to be a role model, as such – God isn’t an unrighteous judge, and His people don’t need to threaten Him with violence. The point is “even this guy will give justice – so how much more will God…”

Jesus explains this by saying, “the sons of this age are wiser than the sons of the light in dealing with their own people.” But where does that leave us? And are the sons of the light, the citizens of the Kingdom? Or religious people? And if the latter, what are we supposed to say: “go wild, it’s only money”?

So in Luke 16, we can say neither the rich man nor his steward have a sense of what is righteous – but even they can understand that (despite everything you have heard to the contrary) money can buy you friends.

And the point Jesus makes is not that we should live our lives greasing palms and otherwise take a path of corruption to the top of the pole, but rather that we should “make for yourselves friends from unrighteous mammon in order that when it runs out (or you die – the Greek is ambiguous and can mean either of those things; I favour the latter), they can welcome you into the eternal habitations (or tents).”

The references to “sons of the light” and “unrighteous mammon” suggest that, first and foremost, He is saying this for the benefit of the Pharisees who are listening in. This is how they thought and talked about themselves and about money.

This is important, because if so, it is an example of Jesus genuinely saying something for the instruction and benefit of the Pharisees (as opposed to contending against them). The picture of sons of the light not realising they should at least use their “unclean” money to make friends, because they are heading somewhere they will need every friend they can get, friends who can speak on their behalf, is very definitely relevant to the Pharisees. Obviously if they insist on rejecting Jesus, then it will be no help at all; but if they loosen up on this issue of unfounded pride, and become open-handed and generous, then there is hope that they may be able to receive truth from their less-tutored but more faith-filled new friends.

However – Jesus is not only speaking to the Pharisees; He is speaking to us. Generosity – making friends by helping others with your money – is the bottom line. If you get that far, then a major blockage to receiving truth is removed. The reason is simple: the earth system is all about lack, and we are taught to hang on to our money (even if we think it is unrighteous). So if you only accept this much, that you should “make friends for yourself using unrighteous mammon”, then you are postured to receive more truth. The alternative is stark: as He says in v13, “you cannot serve both God and mammon.” If you remain a slave to mammon, that is the end of the story.

Which brings us to the key verses for reframing the whole passage: whose money is it anyway? Even if you are the rich man in the story; what makes you think it is yours?

“Whoever is to be trusted in a little is trustworthy in much, and whoever is dodgy in a little is dodgy in a lot. Therefore if you are not faithful in handling the wealth of an corrupt system, who will trust you with what is true? And if you haven’t been found faithful in handling someone else’s things, who will give you your own?”

Luke 16:10-12, my rendering

So walking back: Jesus is giving His listeners a shock: yes, use money to make friends, just like the dodgy steward. But guess what: there is a kick in the tail (as ever!)

Every single one of us is more like the steward than we realise; not because we are corrupt, but because we are stewards. Whatever we have – bazillions or a handful – is entrusted to us. How we execute that trust, and use that resource will determine whether we can be trusted with more, as well as whether things of real value can be entrusted to us.

In fact, our ability to handle what belongs to another will determine whether we will ever have something that is genuinely “our own”.

Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other.

Brothers and sisters, if someone is caught in a sin, you who live by the Spirit should restore that person gently. But watch yourselves, or you also may be tempted. Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ. If anyone thinks they are something when they are not, they deceive themselves. Each one should test their own actions. Then they can take pride in themselves alone, without comparing themselves to someone else, for each one should carry their own load. Nevertheless, the one who receives instruction in the word should share all good things with their instructor.

Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. Whoever sows to please their flesh, from the flesh will reap destruction; whoever sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life. Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.

Galatians 5:23-6:10 NIV

My late mother was an artist (you can find some of her work online at daphnemasonart.com). As I have spent more time with art historians, dealers, collectors and curators, the number one thing I have learnt is that, with works of art, context trumps everything else. There is certainly nothing wrong with loving a painting because you like the way it looks, but that isn’t how any of the professionals will see it: they will see it in context, and if they can’t determine the context then they will either lose interest – or go digging to find out more.

The best reason for breaking the Bible up into books, chapters and verses is that we can reference a particular saying very accurately. Isaiah 54:1 may be translated differently in your Bible from mine, but it is still recognisably the same verse.

The worst consequence of breaking the Bible up into books, chapters and verses is that we read it in small chunks and often as if each verse or pair of verses has no connection to the verses which precede or follow it. As a result, we often misread Scripture because we are missing the context. In the book of Proverbs, for example, that is no great problem; proverbs are just that – pithy one-liners which need not connect to those before or after them. In a book like Paul’s letter to the Galatian Church, or in the Gospels, this failure to see the whole robs us of understanding.

So let’s look at this passage from Galatians 5 and 6; on this occasion I won’t burden you by showing all my working in the Greek, but this is how the passage actually flows; and it is a pretty continuous thought:

“Those who belong to Christ crucified (or fenced off) the flesh with its sufferings and yearnings. If we live by the Spirit, let us also form up (in the military marching sense) on the Spirit. Let us not become vainglorious, calling out or challenging one another, bearing malice to one another. But brothers, if a man is detected in some failure or false step, let you who are with the Spirit restore such a one in the gentlest of spirits, keeping watch on yourselves lest you also come under attack. Carry one another’s burdens and thus operate (or satisfy, fulfil) the law of Christ. For if it seems to someone that he is something when he isn’t, he deceives his own heart (or soul – actually, his midriff, the seat of emotions!); so let each assay (test out the value of) his own work, and then to himself alone he has something to boast about – but not to the other person (i.e. including the person you are working to restore); for each person raises his own crop. But let the person being taught the word (i.e. in this case, the person being restored) have a share with the one teaching in all good things. Don’t be led astray; God isn’t fooled (sneered at). For what a man may sow, that is what he will harvest. Because the one who sows to the flesh, from the flesh will harvest a crop; and the one sowing to the Spirit, from the Spirit will harvest eternal life. Let us not behave remissly in doing good, for in the right time we will have our own harvest if we don’t faint or fail. Therefore, as and when we have opportunity, let us work good for everyone, most of all to those of the house of faith.”

(Gal 5:23-6:10, my rendering)

Apologies for the lack of paragraph breaks, but I am making a point. Or rather, Paul is.

This whole passage (and what comes before and after it) is about the difference it makes (or should make) that we live in and by the Spirit; we are formed up on Him, which in turn implies there are lots of us together (who ever saw a military unit of just two people?) which in turn means if someone does make a hash, the rest of the squad can restore him in the gentlest of spirits, while making sure they don’t get attacked themselves; which means not getting too cocky about their own work to others, because there is this balance between, yes, we all raise our own crop, but we also operate in the law of the Kingdom when we help each other carry our load. And so on.

And once we are reading this holistically, we should be able to read Galatians 6:6 correctly, because now it makes sense in the context. Generations of believers have used this verse to say that the person being taught the word should share all the good things he has with the person teaching him. “You teach me, I give you food, lodging, money, whatever.” The only problem is that the Greek is specific and in the opposite direction; let the person being taught the word have a share with the person doing the teaching in all good things.

If that causes you to say “what?”, consider Jesus. You may have locked on to one reference to a group of woman providing for the disciples, and fitted that into your received picture of blessed poverty as the Christian norm. What you are missing is that Jesus provided the fish (repeatedly), the bread (repeatedly), the ocean of wine at Cana, and – as you will know if you have read the Seeing the Kingdom book the house in which they could meet, eat meals with Pharisees and sinners and from which desperate men could remove the roof tiles in order to get their friend to Jesus.

And consider Paul, who most often paid his own way and that of his team, by stitching tents.

And logically, once you understand that the kingdom of this world only provides lack and that all good answers are in the Kingdom of God, then of course, it is the person who can teach the (real) word who has good things to share. And if you are helping restore someone who has blundered and fallen over, you probably need to share good things with them as they get back on their feet.

Does that mean there can’t be a two way flow, between teacher and taught. Of course not. But like Paul you will be able to say, “I rejoice in your gift, not because I needed it, but because it is a mark of what we share and what we have in common, our fellowship in the service of the gospel and in our shared citizenship in His Kingdom.”