Our Heart Attitude

As a reminder over the next several weeks I will be keeping these posting short until my right hand heels.  I thank you for your patience as it will be especially difficult with so much to cover in today's passage.

We will be looking at Luke 5:17-26.  I am not going to copy it into today's posting, if you do not have a Bible handy, you can see the quoted passage from the last posting.

Here are some themes from this passage that we will look at one at a time over the next several weeks.

• The challenge of the Scribes and Pharisees
• The faith of the friends
• The priority and power to forgive sins
• The healing

  What should be our attitude toward the Scribes and Pharisees?    It would appear in this passage they have come to listen to Jesus not because they are searching for a savior but there is concern that first John the baptist and now Jesus is attracting peoples attention by speaking about their relationship with God.  As you saw from my notes in my last posting this is stepping on the toes of the Scribes and Pharisees.  They held the authority to tell the people about what God requires of them.

When Jesus tells the paralyzed man his sins are forgiven, the Scribes and Pharisees immediately find their opening to condemn Jesus.  Because of the crowds it would appear that their comments were made amongst themselves.  They accuse Jesus of blasphemy.  Essentially that Jesus is bringing insult to God.  If they don't believe Jesus is the Son of God, then they will reject Jesus doing something that only God can do.

Though Jesus was not meant to hear the Scribes and Pharisees, he perceived their thoughts.  He indicates that their thoughts are a result of their heart attitude.  "Why are you reasoning in your hearts?"  


Jesus is not concerned  with the position that the Scribes and Pharisees hold in the community.  Neither is he concerned with their memorization of scripture.  He is not impressed with their holiness.  Jesus is concerned with the heart.  Jesus knew their hearts.  He knew that their reasoning was a result of their heart attitude.  As we will discover in later passages the Scribes and Pharisees were arrogant, proud, self righteous and eventually plotted to have Jesus crucified. 

Our heart attitude toward God and the Savior can have profound effect on our reasoning. Is your attitude one of faith and trust in Jesus like the paralytic in this passage?  Or are you skeptical, arrogant, proud and worried that a faith in Jesus will mean giving up your ability and authority to be in control?  The chouice is yours.  I pray that the Holy Spirit will open your heart to God's Word, so that you can find the truth as you Search for the Savior?

Short and Sweet

A week and a half ago I was riding my motorcycle to work when the car in front of me stopped suddenly.  i applied my brakes but my bike kept sliding. I crashed right into the back of the car.  For the car it was less than a minor accident.  For a rider on a motorcycle i don't think there are minor accidents.  Some are real bad and some you get to walk away.  Or in my case stumble away.  I bruised/popped my ribs and broke the bone that goes from the wrist to the base of the thumb on my right hand.  My motorcycle was drivable but the assessor counted it a total loss due to a bend in the front frame.

It just so happens I am right handed and received surgery this past Friday to insert a plate to hold the bone together.  You might be wondering who is typing my blog.  I am with just my left hand.  It is very slow going thus the title of  this blog entry "short and sweet".

The next blog entry we will be looking at a passage in Luke where we will meet some folks that are new.  The Pharisees and the teachers of the law (or scribes) were not good buddies with Jesus.  I had already had some notes on these two groups to include in this blog for background I will just cut and paste that in with the Bible verses that we will discuss next time.

Though I am banged up and not able to do a lot at this time, God has granted me his grace to draw closer to him and know that no matter what He is in control.  Praise God.

Pharisees - a religious party or school among the Jews at the time of Christ, so called from perishin , the Aramaic form of the Hebrew word perushim , "separated."

While it was the aim of Jesus to call men to the law of God itself as the supreme guide of life, the Pharisees, upon the Pretence of maintaining it intact, multiplied minute precepts and distinctions to such an extent that the whole life of the Israelite was hemmed in and burdened on every side by instructions so numerous and trifling that the law was almost if not wholly lost sight of.

The Pharisees at an early day secured the popular favor and thereby acquired considerable political influence. This influence was greatly increased by the extension of the Pharisees over the whole land and the majority which they obtained in the Sanhedrin.

Teachers of the Law (scribes) -  The priests were therefore also in the first instance the scholars and the guardians of the Law; but in the course of time this was changed. The more highly esteemed the Law became in the eyes of the people, the more its study and interpretation became a lifework by itself, and thus there developed a class of scholars who, though not priests, devoted themselves assiduously to the Law. These became known as the scribes, that is, the professional students of the Law. During the Hellenistic period, the priests, especially those of the upper class, became tainted with the Hellenism of the age and frequently turned their attention to paganistic culture, thus neglecting the Law of their fathers more or less and arousing the scribes to opposition. Thus, the scribes and not the priests were now the zealous defenders of the Law, and hence, were the true teachers of the people.

^{Luke 5:17}One day as he was teaching, Pharisees and teachers of the law, who had come from every village of Galilee and from Judea and Jerusalem, were sitting there. And the power of the Lord was present for him to heal the sick. ¹⁸Some men came carrying a paralytic on a mat and tried to take him into the house to lay him before Jesus. ¹⁹When they could not find a way to do this because of the crowd, they went up on the roof and lowered him on his mat through the tiles into the middle of the crowd, right in front of Jesus.
 ²⁰When Jesus saw their faith, he said, "Friend, your sins are forgiven."
 ²¹The Pharisees and the teachers of the law began thinking to themselves, "Who is this fellow who speaks blasphemy? Who can forgive sins but God alone?"
 ²²Jesus knew what they were thinking and asked, "Why are you thinking these things in your hearts? ²³Which is easier: to say, 'Your sins are forgiven,' or to say, 'Get up and walk'? ²⁴But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins...." He said to the paralyzed man, "I tell you, get up, take your mat and go home." ²⁵Immediately he stood up in front of them, took what he had been lying on and went home praising God. ²⁶Everyone was amazed and gave praise to God. They were filled with awe and said, "We have seen remarkable things today."

Make Me Clean

This past week I was at an event that took place at Walt Disney World in Florida. The company I worked for sent us to a team building and recognition event from Sunday to Wednesday. I really appreciated the time to go with others in the company. My wife was able to join me on Wednesday and we had our own mini-vacation together through Saturday.

The team building and training was facilitated by the Disney Institute. There was a discussion on the perception or stereotype of what people expect when they come to Disney World. Some of the stereotypes are positive and some are negative. One of the positive stereotypes is that Disney World is clean. This is not just a perception but a reality if you have had an opportunity to visit Disney. According to the man facilitating our session, every night the parks are power washed. I imagine its some sort of machine that drives down the various roads and pathways spraying high volume wash. Also about a 1/4 of the parks get steam cleaned each night. So not only is dirt cleaned away, but bacteria is also killed.

The week before we left there was a heightened concern about the swine flu. Spray sanitizers were provided in our welcoming kit. I am not aware of anyone deciding not to take the trip but trusted that they would be safe from this disease. We all want to be clean and safe from disease. If we aren't clean or if we are sick we want to be made clean and well.

Lets look at the story of the man who has leprosy in Luke 5:12- 16.
^{Luke 5:12}While Jesus was in one of the towns, a man came along who was covered with leprosy. When he saw Jesus, he fell with his face to the ground and begged him, "Lord, if you are willing, you can make me clean."
 ¹³Jesus reached out his hand and touched the man. "I am willing," he said. "Be clean!" And immediately the leprosy left him.
 ¹⁴Then Jesus ordered him, "Don't tell anyone, but go, show yourself to the priest and offer the sacrifices that Moses commanded for your cleansing, as a testimony to them."
 ¹⁵Yet the news about him spread all the more, so that crowds of people came to hear him and to be healed of their sicknesses. ¹⁶But Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed.
  This wasn't ordinary case of leprosy, the man was covered with leprosy.  This is a very advanced case. This would be a man in desperation.   Someone who had leprosy was considered unclean.  The determination of whether someone had leprosy and was unclean was decided by the priest according to the law found in the book of Leviticus.


 ^{Lev 13:1} And the LORD spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying: ² “When a man has on the skin of his body a swelling, a scab, or a bright spot, and it becomes on the skin of his body like a leprous sore, then he shall be brought to Aaron the priest or to one of his sons the priests. ³ The priest shall examine the sore on the skin of the body; and if the hair on the sore has turned white, and the sore appears to be deeper than the skin of his body, it is a leprous sore. Then the priest shall examine him, and pronounce him unclean. 

The man comes to Jesus for healing but he asks will you make me clean.  As we can see from Lev. the idea of being unclean has a practical and a spiritual aspect to it.  This man wants to be made spiritually clean, as well as healed of the decease.  To be unclean was to be separated from the rest of the people. You would not participate in the fellowship of the followers of God.  It would appear that he believes that Jesus not only has the power to heal him, but to be made clean, to restore him to the community.    Jesus does heal him and then says go to the priest for examination according to the law.

^{Lev 13:45} “Now the leper on whom the sore is, his clothes shall be torn and his head bare; and he shall cover his mustache, and cry, ‘Unclean! Unclean!’ ⁴⁶ He shall be unclean. All the days he has the sore he shall be unclean. He is unclean, and he shall dwell alone; his dwelling shall be outside the camp.

Jesus had already been healing folks and many had come to be healed, but the healing of the leper was so dramatic and visual.  People could see that he was clearly a leper and the examination by the priests would have confirmed the miracle.   The crowds were now flocking to hear Jesus.  To understand the good news, to be healed and made clean.

Can you truly be clean with power washer, disinfectants and Purell?  These things will clean the surface but they won't clean the sin and dirt in our lives.  We can look and feel well physically, but if we are unclean spiritually we are sick.  People came to hear Jesus.  To hear the good news.  To be made spiritually clean.

Will you ask Our Savior "Make Me Clean"?