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            They say that anesthesia can cause you some memory problems.  I have had so much of it in the past few years that I have started loading up on the green tea because they, the same “they” I guess, say it will not only help your memory, but will actually revive dying brain cells.  If mine are being revived I would hate to think how many were in my brain’s ICU just a few weeks ago.  I grasp for words I am sure I know at least once or twice a day, walk into a room and then wonder why I’m there, and look at people I have known for years and can tell you everything about—everything except their names.  I know there is another supplement that is supposed to help memory too, but I forget what it is.

            Speaking of forgetting, I ran a quick search on e-Sword to find all the passages containing the admonition “Forget not,” and was surprised how few there were.  That tells me that the things I did find must be important.

            The proverb writer says to forget not my law in 3:1, but most of the “forget not” list is in the latter half of the New Testament.   

            Forget not to show hospitality the Hebrew writer tells us in 13:2, and I was surprised to find that the actual Greek word for hospitality, philoxenia, means love of strangers.  So when Peter tells us in 1 Pet 4:9 to use hospitality one to another, he is actually telling us to love each other like strangers.  Mull that one over for awhile.  I think there must surely be something lacking in how we treat strangers these days.

            Later in the same chapter, the Hebrew writer adds forget not to do good and share what you have, for with such sacrifices God is well-pleased, 13:16.  I honestly believe that doing good is easy for all of us, but how about sharing what we have?  In fact, Paul told the Ephesians that the reason they were to work was to have to give to others, 4:28.  I am not sure how well that sits with the average American, even as wealthy as we are compared to the rest of the world.  We can always find an excuse not to share that somehow we make sound, not only plausible, but actually righteous.

            Then Peter tells us in 2 Pet 3:8 to “forget not” that a day is as a thousand years with the Lord and a thousand years as a day.  Why is that important to remember?  Because the world has gone on now for two thousand years since the promise that the Lord would return, and it is easy to think it always will.  Scoffers will always ridicule us for our faith, but even we become complacent, and let our righteousness backslide just a bit here and there, because there is always time to repent.  Even if the Lord does not come back during our lifetimes, we should not forget that even young people die, and for all practical purposes, the Lord has come for them.

            Some important things to remember, I think, especially if inspired men said so.  Whether you drink your green tea or not, make sure you don’t forget.

Bless the Lord, O my soul and all that is within me, bless his holy name.  Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits, who forgives all your iniquity and heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit, who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy, who satisfies you with good so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s…the steadfast love of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting to those who fear him, and his righteousness to children’s children, to those who keep his covenant and remember to do his commandments, Psalm 103:1-5, 17,18.

Dene Ward       

            I was scanning a baseball trivia article called “The Odd Side of Baseball” by Gene Elston, and came across this story.  On May 23, 1895, the Louisville Cardinals forfeited a game to Brooklyn because they didn’t supply enough baseballs for the game.  They didn’t have enough baseballs for the game?  What kind of game did they think it was, tag?

            They began the game with three balls, two of which were used practice balls borrowed from the Brooklyn Bridegrooms, so by the third inning the balls were all too worn out to use.  Since the home team was obligated to provide them, that was that.  Brooklyn got an easy win.

            I have watched baseball for a few years now.  Even a late bloomer like me knows that those umpires toss out balls with the least little scuff mark on them, not counting the home runs and ground rule doubles that you lose into the stands, not to mention the free souvenirs tossed by generous outfielders several times an inning.  Even I know you need more than three balls to play a full nine inning game.

            All of which got me to wondering what we fail to supply while claiming to be Christians.  The obvious one is showing up for class or a sermon without a Bible, but how many of us also try to get through life without opening one?  How many of us try to fulfill our obligation to know the Word with a scanty chapter a day?  How many of us think we can keep a viable relationship with our Creator on three one minute graces a day before meals?  Sounds like starting a baseball game with three balls, two of which are in poor condition to begin with.

            But let’s think for a minute about the supplies God furnishes and see if that doesn’t give us a few more clues.  We are supposed to emulate our Father, after all.

            A little searching turned up eight passages describing God as “abundant in lovingkindness.”  Seven of those include the phrase, “slow to anger.”  How many of us are more prone to bring just three balls of patience and forbearance to others, instead of an abundant enough supply to play through the whole game—and actually have leftovers?  Are we afraid some of that patience may go to waste or just too chintzy to share? 

            Psalm 132:15 tells us that God will “abundantly bless” his people.  Other passages talk about the abundance of rain and crops.  They speak of God’s people being satisfied, not with scanty amounts, but “with fatness.”  How would people describe what we give back to God, not just in the collection plate, but in our time, in our effort, in our generosity to others, and in the way we make decisions every day?  Is God always on our minds, or simply when the cultural norms of the day dictate?  Does our service to God always come first in any decision we make, even where we live, whom we marry, and where we spend our spare time?  Or are we stingy with that too?

            Isa 55:7 tells us God will “abundantly pardon.”  Not just enough so we can squeak by, but enough that we can live without fear of judgment, 1 John 4:17,18.  How do we pardon those who have wronged us?  How can we even speak in the same terms when the things we become so upset about are usually petty annoyances, nothing even close to the despicable deeds we have done to this merciful God, who continually supplies the balls, who never runs out no matter how many we scuff up, or hit over the wall, or toss out to a bystander as if it were nothing?

            What are you bringing to the ball game?  We can never supply our own pardon, but we can sacrifice anything and everything as often as necessary and stand ready to give up even more to a Savior who came “that we may have life, and have it abundantly,” John 10:10.

Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, unto him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus unto all generations for ever and ever. Amen. Ephesians 3:20-21

Dene Ward

            Paul wrote a scathing letter to the Corinthian brothers and sisters.  This was a church with so many problems many might have refused to call them “sound” nowadays.  The root of every problem they had could probably be summed up as “immaturity.”  Paul, in fact, calls them babes.  You know what he would have said in our language?  “I could not speak to you as spiritual adults because you are a bunch of big babies!”  1 Cor 3:1.

            In chapter six these immature people were taking each other to court.  Paul tells them that this only hurts the church’s reputation in the world.  “What?” he says.  “Don’t you have any one wise enough to help you settle your disputes?  You are doing harm to the church and ought to be willing to suffer wrong instead of making God’s kingdom look bad” (chapter 6, more or less).

            I don’t think that only applies to legal matters.  This was recorded for us, and if we are as smart as we think we are, we ought to be able to apply it in all sorts of situations.  The problem is, we are Americans, and proud of it.  We have rights!  And we often insist on those rights, regardless of how it might make others view the body of which we claim to be a part.

            And then there are the situations that really have nothing to do with “rights,” just convenience or “feelings.”  I love the insurance commercial that says, “The drivers on the road are people.  So treat them like they are in your home, not in your way.”  I wonder if the ad man who came up with that is a Christian.  He sounds more like one than some I know who are. 

            So the next time the person ahead of you in the check-out line takes a long time writing a check, or when the person in the car ahead of you is not as brave as you are about making that left turn across traffic, “take wrong” and “be defrauded” of a few minutes in your day instead of letting him know how much he exasperates you.         

            What if either of those people walk into services Sunday morning, looking for the truth of God’s Word and recognizes you?  Exactly how has your “looking out for your rights” affected their hearts?  Do you think they are likely to be more or less receptive to the gospel? 

            What if, at a family gathering or a church potluck someone says something that you find insulting?  “Take wrong” or “be defrauded” of your feelings for the sake of the others there, including children whose fun might be ruined when you cause a scene and walk off in a huff, or a visitor someone has brought to the potluck who might now have a bad opinion of the church.  In all these cases, just like little children, we often see and care only how things affect us, and not how they will affect others.

            If we cannot yield the right of way when it only affects our convenience, what makes us think we can when it is a matter of legal rights?  If we cannot sacrifice a few precious feelings, we have already failed the test of whether we would sacrifice our lives.  He who is faithful in little is faithful in much; he who is unfaithful in little, is unfaithful in much, Luke 16:10.

            It takes maturity to yield, especially when you are in the right, especially when the other person is not looking out for your good, especially when you have to suffer wrong, or even just inconvenience, to do so.  It also takes maturity to remember this in the heat of the moment.  Would Paul call us a bunch of big babies, too? 

I say this to your shame.  Can it be that there is no one among you wise enough to settle a dispute between the brothers, but brother goes to law against brother, and that before unbelievers? To have lawsuits at all with one another is already a defeat for you.  Why not rather suffer wrong?  Why not rather be defrauded? But you yourselves [by this behavior] wrong and defraud—even your own brothers, 1 Cor 6:5-8.

Dene Ward

           I had an up close and personal encounter with a wildflower a couple of years ago.  When we plant a new bed out in the field, we baby it the first year.  The point is for them to grow up scattered in the grasses and among other wildflowers in a natural way, but if you don’t get them off to a good start, they won’t stand a chance with all the competition out there for ground space and rainwater.

            So I was weeding the latest patch, which we had let go far beyond the normal time span.  I had difficulty even finding some of the small plants amid all the waist high grass and weeds.  I had nearly finished, was soaking wet and black up to my elbows, when I noticed one more low-growing weed and bent over to pull it.  I did not see the bare stalk of the wildflower right between my feet, leafless and flowerless, standing three feet high.  I did not know it was there until, as I bent over, it slid right into my eye like a hot wire.  Which eye?  The one which most lately has been operated on, the one with the shunt, the capsular tension ring, and the silicone lens, the one that already hurts the most. 

            The doctor and I spent nearly two weeks fixing me up after this little mishap, checking to see if there was any permanent damage, checking to see if the shunt had been knocked out of place, checking for infection, and worse, for plant fungus.  As it turns out, all I had was a hematoma and a laceration, but it was an exciting couple of weeks.

            That was too close and personal an encounter with a flower, but we can never be too close and personal with God.  I have had to learn that.  The prevailing sentiment many years ago seemed to be that we did not want to do or say anything that might make someone apply a religious pejorative to us indicating belief in something other than correct Bible teaching about God, Christ, and the Holy Spirit.  Instead of saying, “I’m blessed,” instead of saying, “God took care of me,” indeed, instead of attributing anything to the providence of God, we said, “I’m lucky.”  We wouldn’t want someone to get the wrong idea, would we?

            Where did we come up with that?  Read some of David’s psalms.  He gave God the credit for everything.  Read Hannah’s song, or Moses and Miriam’s after crossing the Red Sea.  Since when don’t the people of God tell everyone what God has done for them?

            Read some of Paul’s sermons.  He does not seem a bit concerned that someone might use what he says to give credence to false teaching.  “You know that idol you have out there?” he asks the Athenians, “the one to the Unknown God?  Let me tell you about him.”  He tells Felix, But this I confess to you that after the Way which they call a sect, so serve I the God of our fathers, Acts 24:14.  It didn’t matter a bit what people called it, as long as he could talk about it.  In fact, he used their misconceptions as opportunities to preach the Gospel.

            Maybe that is my problem—I don’t want to talk about it.  It makes me uncomfortable.  It has nothing to do with whether someone gets the wrong idea about the Truth, but everything to do with me feeling ill at ease, or downright embarrassed.  I don’t want to be called a religious fanatic and certainly not a “Holy Roller!”  Yes, I want a close, personal relationship with God, as long as no one else knows about it.

            But here is the deal:  If I am too embarrassed by my relationship with God to even acknowledge it, then He won’t acknowledge me either, and I am the one with everything to lose. 

            Go out there today and say or do something that will make someone else curious enough to ask you a question.  Then open your mouth and unashamedly tell them how wonderful an up close and personal relationship with your Creator and Savior really is.

Everyone therefore who shall confess me before men, him will I also confess before my Father who is in Heaven.  But whoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father who is in Heaven, Matt 10:32,33.

Dene Ward

          When people start doing things to your eyes, taking things out and putting things in, cutting into them, pouring chemicals into them, you start seeing strange things.

            A week after one of the operations I had at the Cincinnati Eye Institute I started seeing gold circles as thin as thread right in front of me.  At first I thought I was going through some sort of spider web, although I had never seen a golden one to be sure, but I started waving my hand in front of my face trying to brush it away right in the hotel lobby.  When I looked up, the girl behind the front desk was watching me over her glasses, her eyebrows trying to crawl into her hairline.  She managed to put on her professional face then and check us out. 

            Even now I sometimes see sparkling lights in dark corners, and furtive movements on the periphery of my vision.  I was sitting in the assembly one Sunday when I was positive I saw rats running along the housing for the indirect lighting on the walls near the ceiling.  After I had similar experiences seeing things in the blinds by my chair and out the window next to the dining table, I finally realized it was just another visual anomaly resulting from all the surgery and other treatments I have endured lately.

            But the more frightening problem is the black spot—a “pressure phenomenon,” as one resident calls it.  When I see it, I know the pressure is up.  Some days it is bigger than others, also a bad sign.  The pinprick-sized spot becomes a nail hole, or even a bolt hole.  The first time I saw it, I thought it was a gnat, and I went around all day trying to shoo it away.  Finally it dawned on me that this gnat was always in the same place.  I bet I looked pretty funny those few hours before I figured it out.

            I wish that spot would go away.  On days when it does, I feel a lot better both physically and mentally.  Weariness and stress seem to be the worst aggravators of the problem.  It reminds me of Lady Macbeth, who succumbed to such guilt over prodding her husband to murder the king that she saw a spot of blood on her hands, and no matter how many times she wiped them, it would not come off.  “Who would have thought an old man could bleed so much?” she asks during her famous speech about “the spot.”

            We have a spot too—one that will not go away, no matter how many times we wipe it, no matter how many times we wash our hands before the world as Pilate did, no matter how strong the soap we use.. 

            Nowadays, mental health experts recognize the signs of guilt and the problems it causes.  Their solution is to deny the existence of sin and therefore, remove guilt altogether.  Now that’s handy, isn’t it?  All I need to do to avoid feeling bad about doing wrong is believe that it is right.  So who gets to decide what is right?  What if I don’t like your version of sins, especially if it makes your sins legal and mine illegal?  Only One is qualified to decide what is right and what is wrong.

            And, coincidentally, only one thing will make that guilt go away, and only one person can do it for us.  In fact, He requires it of anyone who wants to follow Him.  No matter how many times we tell ourselves that wrong is actually right, if we don’t let Him rid us of the spot of sin, the guilt will eat us alive just as it did that fictional Lady. 

            Get rid of the spot while you still can.  There will come a time when the offer is rescinded.

 Husbands love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church and gave himself up for it, that he might sanctify it, having cleansed it by washing of water with the word, that he might present the church to himself glorious, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that it should be holy and without blemish, Eph 5:25-27.

Dene Ward

            Lately I have felt swamped.  When I had to close my music studio doors because concerti and German lieder accompaniments do not generally come in large print editions, I thought I would sit here and die of boredom.

            Not so.  Between a husband who keeps making suggestions about things to do—like blogs—and women who are no longer satisfied with canned Bible class materials, and other women who want weekend studies and lectures, and an editor who wants one or two devotional books a year, I have plenty to do.  I am thankful for it.  God demands work from His people, and despite a growing disability, I still have much to do.  So do you.

            So how did I get this from the psalms study?  Think for a minute.  What did God ordain the Levites to do?  Just because they could not all be priests did not mean some were free to pursue other activities.

            Levites were assistants to the priests.  They did the clean-up after the sacrifices, some of the nastiest cleaning you can imagine, including hideous laundry stains.  They took care of the animals.  They baked the shewbread.  When the tabernacle was moved, they did the setting up and tearing down, packing and unpacking.  You can read chapter after chapter in Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy and see these men working.  None of them were idlers.

            So what happened after the Temple was built?  Some of the original duties were no longer necessary and new ones developed.  Now you can read chapter after chapter in 1 and 2 Chronicles and see new duties, ordained by God just as the original ones were.  They were musicians, every bit as professional as a symphony orchestra member today, every bit as trained as a singer on the operatic stage.  They were security guards.  I even found a passage stating they were to unlock the Temple every morning, which I suppose means they made the rounds and locked it in the evening too.  Many of the other duties were the same.  They still needed bakers.  They still needed launderers.  They still needed metal smiths and janitors and husbandmen.  I doubt that covers it by any stretch of the imagination.

            The same frame of mind that causes us to work for God provokes work in the earthly realm as well, because that, too, is working for God.  He ordained work in this physical world from the time He made man:  The Lord took the man and put him in the garden to work it and keep it, Gen 2:15.  The only thing sin changed was how difficult that work was going to be, not the fact of it.

            The scriptures say that we are to work for our employers (“Masters”) heartily, as unto the Lord, Col 3:23.  It says whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might, Eccl 9:10.  It calls those who do not work lacking sense (Prov 24:20), disorderly (2 Thes 3:11), brother to a destroyer (Prov 18:9), and wicked (Matt 25:26).  It says that a man who will not go out and work is “robbing his parents,” (Prov 28:24).  It says if we don’t work, we shouldn’t be allowed to eat (2 Thes 3:10).

            God reinforced all of that when He gave the Levites their duties in his Tabernacle and then when He changed those duties to suit the Temple.  He didn’t tell one group, “Since there is no longer any need to pack and unpack, to set up and tear down, you no longer need to work.”  He simply gave them new work to do. 

            And who are the priests and Levites today?  We are (1 Pet 2:9).  Peter said it was right for him to continue to teach “as long as I am in this body,” 2 Pet 1:13.  The same applies to us.  As long as we are above ground, as long as we are breathing, we serve God.  The duties may change, just as they did for those Levites, but the requirement to work does not.  You do what you can as the opportunity arises—that’s what those talents in the parable represent—opportunities--not your personal perception of your own “talent.”  God knows exactly what gift He gave you and the opportunities He gives you.  Use them.

We must work the works of him who sent me while it is day; night is coming, when no one can work. John 9:4.

Dene Ward

“I enjoyed my dinner.”  Did your parents teach you to say that to the hostess every time you went to another home for a meal?  Mine did, and I am sure that the hostess knew that’s why I said it.  Some things are done just to be polite, like asking, “How are you?”  Everyone knows it is a greeting not a question to be answered.  It’s semantics, and part of our culture.

            But there are other times when the compliment is sincere.  Keith learned early on when someone was saying, “Good lesson,” to be polite, and when it was really meant, and the latter were precious to him.

            If we can know these things, why do we think God won’t?  Why do we think we can go through the motions without going through the e-motions? 

            There they cry out, but he does not answer, because of the pride of evil men. Surely God does not hear an empty cry, nor does the Almighty regard it, Job 35:12-13.  If the only time God hears from me is when I cannot fend for myself, why would He come to my aid then?  If I expect help, I must offer something myself—like love, devotion, worship, and obedience.  That’s why it is called a covenant—both parties agree to give something.

            They utter mere words; with empty oaths they make covenants, Hos 10:4.  Undoubtedly, the covenant Israel made with God fit this condemnation.  Instead of loving God “with all their hearts,” they did what they thought necessary to get along with Him, imagining that outward rituals mattered more than sincere hearts.  It has never been so with God, and never will be.

            You cannot give God ritual obedience and think you have offered sincere worship.  You cannot follow the Law to the letter and leave undone its “weightier matters” Matt 23:23.  Israel tried it and God said, “I hate, I despise your feasts, and I take no delight in your solemn assemblies.  Even though you offer me your burnt offerings and grain offerings, I will not accept them…” Amos 5:21,22.  Jesus echoed that comment when he said, “Go and learn what this means—I desire mercy and not sacrifice…” Matt 9:13.

            God has always required sincerity and truth; He has always wanted those who “obey from the heart” Rom 6:17.  He has always sought a people who will be His in more than name only.  God knows when, “I enjoyed my dinner,” comes from a thankful heart and when it is just a courtesy. 

            When you pray tonight, will He recognize your words as sincere compliments, or just more formulaic nonsense meant only to salve a hypocritical conscience?”  He knows the difference.

This day the Lord your God commands you to do these statutes and rules.  You shall therefore be careful to do them with all your heart and with all your soul, Deut 26:16.

Dene Ward

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            A couple of years ago we had one of those weeks to end all weeks.  Besides the tropical storm that dumped 13 inches of rain over us and left us without power for several hours, the pump on the well went out, the phones, and thus the modem, went out, the satellite dish went out, the air conditioning in the car went out, and we each had a respiratory virus.

            As I was sitting in the mechanic’s air conditioned waiting room, leaning back on his padded couch with a television droning on should I care to watch and a cup of free coffee between my hands, bemoaning all my misfortunes, I suddenly realized what a luxury it was to do so.  A tropical storm had moved almost directly over us, yet we only lost power for a few hours.  Thirteen inches of rain had fallen, yet we could still get up and down our road to a dry home; we just couldn’t use the telephones and modem for four days.  The air conditioning in the car, something I never even had as a child, was out, but I could still drive it to the dealership, sit in comfort while they fixed it, and my warranty covered it completely.  The pump was out so I had to do without running water for five hours.  A hundred years ago I wouldn’t even have known what I was missing.  What a luxury to be able to complain about such things.

            I saw a promo on television the other night.  Some rich, show biz personality was “going ballistic” because the $100 lipstick she bought did not match her evening gown, and she had broken a nail right after a $300 manicure.  I remember feeling outraged and downright disgusted with her, but am I any better?

            Compared to most people in the world, we live lives of luxury and don’t even realize it.  I am sure many of those impoverished people would have felt the same outrage at me had they heard me complaining.

            In the Old Testament, Israel became so wealthy that all they cared about was living lives of ease.  They stopped being concerned about the things a true people of God should be concerned with, like sin and evil in the world.  While many did not actually partake of those things, they simply let them keep on existing.  The important things to them were building large, comfortable homes, entertaining in style, and having others wait on them.  That is one of the reasons they were destroyed, as Amos plainly put it.  The elite, the “first” in the nation, were the first to be carried away captive.

            The next time we start our “poor little me” lists, we need to take a good look at them.  Let’s at least realize what a luxury it is to have such things to complain about and be grateful, and let’s save our real complaints for things that truly matter.

       
Woe to those who are at ease in Zion, and to those who feel secure on the mountain of Samaria…Woe to those who lie on beds of ivory and stretch themselves out on their couches, and eat lambs from the flock and calves from the middle of the stall, who sing idle songs to the sound of the harps and like David, invent themselves instruments of music, who drink in bowls and anoint themselves with the finest oils, but are not grieved over the ruin of Joseph.  Therefore they shall now be the first of those who go into exile, and the revelry of those who stretch themselves out shall pass away.  The Lord God has sworn by himself, declares the Lord, the God of hosts, I abhor the pride of Jacob and hate his strongholds, and I will deliver up his city and all that is in it, Amos 6:1, 4-8.

Dene Ward

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Today's post is by guest writer Lucas Ward.

One of my personal rules of exegesis (if I may use such a fancy word to describe my inexpert attempts to understand the Bible) is that if something is repeated in multiple accounts of an event or if the same concept is repeated several times, then it must be more important than usual. For example, the Gospels record Jesus healing on the Sabbath at least 5 different times. The Holy Spirit was probably trying to emphasize something there. Or if multiple Gospels record the same event and one phrase is repeated word for word in each account, there is probably a point of emphasis there.

Matthew, Mark, and Luke all mention the same thing when telling of Judas coming to the garden to betray Jesus into the hands of the priests, et al, who wanted to kill Him. They all say that he was "one of the twelve." What is the emphasis? The level of betrayal. We've all heard the story so many times that some of the emotional impact may be lost. But Judas was one of the twelve. This wasn't the betrayal of an outlying disciple, one of those few hundred who were around much of the time, this was one of the twelve. This was a man who had been selected from among those disciples and exalted to a higher position. This was one who had been gifted with the power to heal and cast out demons. This was one who was always with Him. When Jesus fled the crowds to have a period of peace, He took Judas along. When He vacationed in Phoenicia and Caesarea Phillipi, He took Judas along. Judas was there, privy to the most private aspects of Jesus' life. Judas had access that few others could imagine. Judas betrayed Him. 

Am I any better? 

Heb 10:26-29 "For if we sin willfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remains no more a sacrifice for sins, but a certain fearful expectation of judgment, and a fierceness of fire which shall devour the adversaries. A man that has set at nought Moses law dies without compassion on the word of two or three witnesses: of how much sorer punishment, do you think, shall he be judged worthy, who has trodden under foot the Son of God, and has counted the blood of the covenant wherewith he was sanctified an unholy thing, and has done despite unto the Spirit of grace? 

I have access to God that the faithful who lived prior to Christ would be astonished at (Heb 10:19-22), yet all too often I decide that I'm going to do what I want to do rather than living for my Lord (who died for me). When I do that, I count His blood as an unholy thing,.something common and not worth any effort. I trample Him, to get to my desires. 

Am I any better than Judas?

Are you?

Lucas Ward

            Now, now--I can see those eyebrows.  No, I don’t know her name, but I sure know a lot about her, and so do you, if you think about it.

            We need to start back a few generations.  Luke tells us that Mary and Elizabeth were close relatives, 1:36.  If one is from the tribe of Judah, a descendant of David, and the other a “daughter of Aaron” from the tribe of Levi, how could they be “close?”      
           
            Under the Jewish system, unless there were no sons to inherit property, daughters were allowed to marry outside their tribe and were absorbed into their husbands’ tribes.  Luke’s genealogy shows that Mary was a direct descendant of David.  Yet he also says she was a “near kinswoman” of Elizabeth, a “daughter of Aaron.”  For Elizabeth to be past child-bearing age, she must have been at least two generations older than Mary, the same generation as Mary’s grandmother.  Thus it is likely that a sister from the previous generation married into the tribe of Levi, the family of Aaron.  The mother of those two earlier sisters must have been a righteous woman to raise two daughters who then raised yet more generations of righteous Jews, one of whom bore John the forerunner of the Messiah, and another the grandmother of the Messiah himself.

            This brings us to the woman in question—Jesus’ grandmother.  We know she had at least two daughters, Mary being the more famous.  Now get a sheet of paper, if your mind needs to see this in black and white like mine usually does.  Read Matt 27:56, Mark 15:40, and John 19:25.  List the women who stood at the cross and start matching them up.  Matthew says they were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James and Joses, and the mother of the sons of Zebedee.  Mark says they were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James the Less and Joses, and Salome.  John says that besides Jesus’ mother Mary, they were Mary Magdalene, Mary the wife of Cleopas (or Clopas or Cleophas), and Jesus’ mother’s sister.

            Look how much you learn from such a simple exercise.  Besides finding yet another Mary, we find out that James the Less had a brother named Joses.  We find out that his father Alphaeus (Matt 10:3) was also called Cleopas.  He was probably the Cleopas on the road to Emmaus in Luke 24:18.

            More to the point, we find out that James and John, the sons of Zebedee, were also the sons of Salome, and that she was Mary’s sister.  If John were the “baby cousin,” no wonder he was especially dear to Jesus.  This might also mollify any bad feelings some have toward Salome.  She really wasn’t all that presumptuous.  She was His aunt after all, and her sons were Jesus’ only blood relatives among the apostles.  Why not think they should be His first and second lieutenants? 

            So following those righteous women down the line we have one branch of the distant family bringing about the Forerunner of the Messiah, the Elijah of the New Testament, a martyr for the Lord’s cause.  In the other branch we have two twigs, one bringing forth the Messiah, the writers of two epistles (James and Jude, two of Jesus’ brothers) and an elder in the Jerusalem church (the same James); and the other bearing two of the apostles, one of whom would be the first apostle martyred (James in Acts 12) and the other who would write one gospel, three epistles, and the final Revelation—the apostle John.

            I have often thought of Mary and her dilemma when she discovered that she would be a pregnant virgin.  At that point she was a young teenager, poor and unmarried.  Imagine having to tell her parents.  Would you believe your daughter?  Of course, in this age things like that no longer happen, but when was the last miracle these people had seen?  How long had they been living with the promise of a Messiah who had yet to come?  They knew how they had raised their daughter.  They knew she was telling the truth.  Or maybe God “helped” them know as He helped Joseph, and their faith kept them strong through what must have been a difficult and awkward time with the rest of the community.

            I wonder if God could find such a family today, especially one whose righteousness He could count on to continue through several generations.  What about the family I raised?  What about yours?  What will happen two or three generations from now?  Did we give our children enough ammunition to fight Satan that long?

            One of the reasons God said he could trust Abraham, one of the reasons he was chosen was I have known him to the end that he may command his children and his household after him, that they may keep the way of Jehovah to do righteousness and justice to the end that Jehovah may bring upon Abraham that which he has spoken to him, Gen. 18:19.

            Jesus grandparents and great-grandparents, poor, uneducated by our standards, and living in a vassal nation, still accomplished what even the wealthiest and most powerful could not.  They probably never knew the end result during their lifetimes. We may never know what our efforts have accomplished either, but it may be something wonderful.  Don’t ever think that teaching your children won’t matter to the rest of the world.  Your influence, for good or bad, could go on for generations.

 

Therefore we said, Let us now build an altar, not for burnt offering, nor for sacrifice, but to be a witness between us and you and between our generations after us, that we do perform the service of the Lord in his presence with our burnt offerings and sacrifices and peace offerings, so your children will not say to our children in time to come, “You have no portion in the Lord,” Josh 22:26,27.

Dene Ward

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