In Luke’s gospel, Jesus tells us to get ready for a dramatic, life changing, universe altering experience. “Be dressed ready for service, and keep your lamps burning” (12v35a NIV).

My favorite version of the first half of this verse comes from the ESV, “Stay dressed ready for action…” And a more literal translation is found in the KJV, “Let your loins be girded about…” In other words, “Tighten up your robes with a belt around your waste.”

The first verse of this passage is an important key to understanding the kind of event the return of Jesus will be. Jesus’ words are a reference to another passage of Scripture from the book of Exodus and Deuteronomy. “This is how you are to eat it: with your cloak tucked into your belt, your sandals on your feet and your staff in your hand. Eat it in haste; it is the Lord’s Passover” (Exodus 12:11).

During the Passover in Egypt, the Hebrews were told to eat their meal in “haste.” The Hebrew word for haste is חִפָּזוֹן (transliterated khip-paw-zone) and it means “to hurry with anxiety. It’s a word that is associated only with the Exodus.

Eastern garb was like a long skirt that must be drawn up and belted when a person had to move quickly. This is the instruction from God to the Hebrews when they were preparing to leave Egypt: “Dress like you are ready to run. Get excited and be ready for your lives to completely change.”

It is the khip-paw-zone of leaving Egypt that Jesus refers to when he tells his followers to “Be dressed ready for service and keep your lamps burning.”

No longer will you be in bondage, but you will be free and live in a land that has been specifically prepared for you—the Promised Land.

A clue to going to the place Jesus has prepared (see John 14:2) is also found in the message of the Passover. The Hebrews were to “eat bread without yeast.” This bread is called matzah or (matzot plural).

The matzah is made without yeast, which is understood to have been left out because it would take time to rise, and they didn’t have enough time to wait. This understanding (which may be a misunderstanding) comes from a reading of Exodus 12:39, “With the dough they had brought from Egypt, they baked cakes of unleavened bread. The dough was without yeast because they had been driven out of Egypt and did not have time to prepare food for themselves.”

The removal of yeast may also have something to do with a pagan use of yeast in Egypt and its ability to cause fermentation. Because fermentation happens during the decay of certain grains, it was taken figuratively to represent moral corruption and sin. This would be important in understanding why the Israelites were told to remove this symbol of paganism or sin from their entire homes and were not to take it into their bodies or into the Promised Land. The Hebrews loaded their dough without yeast into kneading troughs and carried it out of Egypt (Exodus 12:34).

Paul said to the Corinthians, “…a little yeast works through the whole batch of dough…Therefore let us keep the Festival, not with…the yeast of malice and wickedness, but with…the bread of sincerity and truth” (portions of 1Co 5:6-8).

Too many of us are not prepared for the King’s return. We are carrying around sins that will keep us from running with khip-paw-zone into the Promised Land when Christ returns.

Sir James Barrie said, “One of the most dangerous days in a man’s life is when he discovers the word ‘tomorrow.’”

Get rid of the agents of decay in your life. Jesus could return today!

In His dust,

Johnny

© 2009 Jonathan P. Gainey and Flock’s Diner.
All Rights Reserved

I was having a conversation with my wife concerning a topic from her recent class about whether or not a church should give a baby shower to an unwed teen who becomes pregnant.

If I, as her pastor, were to elect not to give her a baby shower, then I have a dilemma, because the teenage girl is not the only one who needs some correction. And I’m not talking about her parents or the person who helped her to conceive.

“…you shepherds, hear the word of the Lord: As surely as I live, declares the Sovereign Lord, because my flock lacks a shepherd and so has been plundered and has become food for all the wild animals, and because my shepherds did not search for my flock but cared for themselves rather than for my flock, therefore, O shepherds, hear the word of the Lord: This is what the Sovereign Lord says: I am against the shepherds and will hold them accountable for my flock. I will remove them from tending the flock so that the shepherds can no longer feed themselves. I will rescue my flock from their mouths, and it will no longer be food for them” (Ezekiel 34:7-10 NIV). This entire passage of Ezekiel 34 should be read by everyone who chooses to lead in the Church.

Proactive discipline is essential, and reactive forgiveness is mandatory.

You probably recall a guy named Lamech who thought a lot of himself. He was so egocentric that he said, “If Cain is avenged seven times, then Lamech seventy-seven times” (Genesis 4:24). Seventy-seven times is a figurative number that means “immeasurable.”

Jesus uses the opposite of punishment to make a point about giving immeasurable forgiveness to those who sin. “Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, ‘Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother when he sins against me? Up to seven times?’ Jesus answered, ‘I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times.”

Though the ungodly give immeasurable punishment, the godly give immeasurable forgiveness.

My conclusion would be: If the girl and her baby can’t celebrate the life of the child God has provided, and receive the needs of raising a child from her church body, then I, as her pastor, shouldn’t have the tools to preach and lead worship, because I have also failed, and she is no more a sinner than I.

She gave in to lust, and I gave in to lazy.

Fortunately, immeasurable forgiveness is also given to the undershepherd who has lost track of one of the Shepherd’s sheep. God watches as we both make our way back home, and He celebrates our return (Luke 15:20ff).

There will be those, like the older brother in the parable of the “Prodigal Son,” who think that the young girl should be punished and shamed. But the big brother in the story has forgotten that he is also a sinner, and has been no less lost than the one who went astray.

It is the first-century, Jewish expectation that the oldest brother serves as the undershepherd of his father’s family. When the younger children get out of hand, like the younger, selfish brother in the story, it is the older brother’s role to offer correction and guidance on the father’s behalf. In this story we notice that the older brother offers neither correction nor guidance, and therefore has neglected his role and given opportunity for the younger son to stray.

We must not make the mistake of assuming the role of the pastor as that of the father in the story. The father, of course, represents God who has provided all. It is the oldest son who represents the neglectful undershepherd of his father’s sheep.

“Lord, forgive me for the sin of allowing these little ones under my care to be attacked by the beasts of immorality.”

In His dust,
Johnny

© 2009 Jonathan P. Gainey and Flock’s Diner.
All Rights Reserved

Some of us never grow out of that attitude of wanting big responses for little deeds, and no responsibility for the things that really matter to others.

During one particularly long road trip, I remember listening to a talk radio show, when a woman who was very upset called the host with a complaint. This woman said to the host, “I cannot believe that my husband forgot my birthday. We have been married for years. How could he have been so insensitive to such an important day of my life?”

The response from the host was powerful.

“You were born. You had no part in it, and now you want to hold everyone responsible for remembering it, as if somehow your birthday was a great personal accomplishment. The truth is, the only person that should be remembered is your mother, and the only person who should be held responsible for remembering is you. If anything, you should be the one to give your mother a present for all the pain she went through in giving birth to you, and the hardships she dealt with in raising you. Stop holding people accountable for celebrating something for you that you had almost nothing to do with and you will stop being so upset when they forget to give you a present you don’t deserve anyway” (my paraphrase).

We also like to give a lot to the little things and very little to the things that really matter.

Zig Zigglar said, “Most people a lot of time, money and effort planning th wedding and very little on the marriage.”

Jesus said, “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices–mint, dill and cumin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law—justice (fairness in how people are treated), mercy (to be kind and forgiving) and faithfulness (being consistent and having the ability to inspire faith in others). You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former. 24 You blind guides! You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel” (Matthew 23:23-24 NIV).

In Matthew 23:23-24, Jesus uses a kal v’chomer (English – light and heavy argument) to prove a point about the sinfulness of religious people.

The Torah teachers and the Pharisees were considered very godly people among the first-century Jews. They were those who spent their lives doing and teaching the Word of God. But, like many religious people, some of them have become devoted to their religion rather than the God of their religion.

Jesus calls them actors. The word “hypocrite” is the Greek word for stage actor. The goal of the actors was to please the audience in order to receive their reward of applause and appreciation.

And he cut at the hearts of these people of God when he said to them, “You actors. You tithe on these tiny things, but the big things that involve caring for others you ignore.”

Using a couple of familiar passages in Leviticus 11, Jesus brings to these Jewish leaders’ attention, God’s instruction for what they can and can’t eat. God tells the Jews that, among the living creatures of the world, he has declared some clean and some unclean. The Jews go to great lengths to make sure that they do not ingest any of the unclean creatures.

In Leviticus 11:4 and 20 there are two creatures which God specifically points out that are not to be eaten.

“There are some that only chew the cud or only have a split hoof, but you must not eat them. The camel, though it chews the cud, does not have a split hoof; it is ceremonially unclean for you…All flying insects that walk on all fours are to be detestable to you.”

Gnats were easily removed from wine by running the fermented drink through a strainer. A camel would be ridiculous to have in your cup of wine, which is why Jesus brings this up. He is basically saying, “You remove the tiny little gnat, but the giant camel, you leave in your cup and drink it down like it’s not even there.”

“You put on a great wedding, but your marriage is a disaster!”

Jesus compares removing a gnat from a cup of whine to the tiny requirement of tithing on spices. And he compares the giant, filthy camel to the destructive sins of neglecting justice, mercy, and faithfulness.

The Torah teachers and Pharisees, to whom Jesus is speaking, are aware that Jesus is referring to words of the prophet, Micah.

“… And what does the LORD require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God” (Micah 6:8 NIV).

These three requirements of God are not acts that are personally beneficial, they are beneficial to an entire community.

Walt Emerson said, “What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us.”

Everything you care about enough to act upon is a reflection of what you are truly about. If you only focus on tiny things, it’s because, inside, you are tiny Christians. And a tiny Christian is only an actor. He or she is only pretending to be a Christian.

If you don’t care that everyone receives fair justice and mercy, and if you are not consistent in your desire to see that justice and mercy are equally given, then you are just dressing up for a show on Sunday. People will tell you how wonderful you look, and they will brag about the chores you do for the church. But if you ignore the things that really matter to God…Justice, Mercy and faithfulness, you are just an over-dressed sinner who strains out the gnat and swallows a camel.

In His dust,
Johnny

© 2009 Jonathan P. Gainey and Flock’s Diner.
All Rights Reserved

The background of The Parable of the Tenants in Luke 20 has a sinister history which is very often unknown by the majority of those of us who read the Bible.

Often this parable is taught with the understanding that the “tenants/farmers” are the Jews, the “servants” are the prophets, and “others” refers to the Gentiles, non-Jews, or Christians. However, a closer look at the history of the Temple reveals that this parable is more likely a direct reference to the corruption among the Temple authorities and God’s ability to remove and re-staff His Temple with new leadership, such as the case after the destruction of the first Temple.

According to important and reliable writings of antiquity, the background of the parable has to do with some Levite families. One particular family is that of the high priest, Ananias, who was a wealthy landowner. By the time of the Second Temple period, in Jesus day, it is well documented that many Levites were wealthy landowners, though they were not supposed to own land. Realizing that these wealthy worship leaders no longer required the sharing of their crops and herds, many Jews discontinued their tithes.

Ironically, Levites who were wealthy landowners were given great honor by the Jews because of their wealth and prestige. Unfortunately, this wealth led to oppression by some Levite families. When the priests (servants) came to receive from the tithes (fruit) provided at the Temple (vineyard), the Levites (tenant/farmers) would not give them their food and the priests would even be physically beaten and or killed by the slaves who were owned by the Levite and his family. Many of these priests simply starved to death.

The high priest, Ananias (tenant), would not give to the priests (servants) who came for food, which he was required to provide to the servants of the temple when they came to the owner’s vineyard (God’s Temple) for their fruit (food to feed their families).

Ananias is spoken of by the first century historian, Josephus, as “a supplier of money.” “Supplier” is another name for “robber,” which is the title that robbers would call themselves. Josephus also says of the Levite family of Ananias: “Such was the shamelessness and effrontery which possessed the high priests that they were so brazen as to send servants to the threshing floors to receive the tithes that were due to the priests, with the result that the poorer priests starved to death” (Jesus’ Last Week, 69).

Ananias and his family are characterized as a “mafia” who bullied the priests of the temple in Jesus’ day and began making a lucrative living off of the tithes of the people.

It is worth noting that purchasing sacrificial animals from the temple would not have been a reason for Jesus’ aggressive behavior since Deuteronomy 14:25-26 makes provision for purchasing offerings.

Jesus’ rampage through the Temple was a result of his unyielding tolerance for the Temple leaders’ gross neglect of reaching the lost and their lawless brutality as organized criminals. Anyone in earshot of Jesus telling The Parable of the Talents knows exactly to whom he’s referring. After all, all of Jerusalem is frustrated and disgusted by corruption of the Temple authorities.

Imagine everyone’s surprise when Jesus takes on the Mob. This historical information could reveal a hint at an explanation to the illegal trial and the fact that no one tried to stop Jesus in the Temple.

In His dust,
Johnny

© 2009 Jonathan P. Gainey and Flock’s Diner.
All Rights Reserved

Bibliography:

Notley, Steven R., Turnage, Marc. and Becker, Brian. Jesus’ Last Week. The Netherlands: Brill Academic Publishers, Martinus Nijhoff Publishers and VSP, 2006.

Every once in awhile, a book comes along that literally changes a person’s life. Recently that book for me was A Little Exercise for Young Theologians by Helmut Thielicke.

This very small, 41-page book should be read by everyone who goes about the task of theological study. The sins of young students of the Word are brought out so simply and powerfully that one cannot read this book without reflecting on his or her own arrogance as a pubecent adventurer of holy writ.

So much of what Theilicke had to say was powerfully accurate. His insights should be read by everyone who attempts the task of theological education, formally or otherwise. Jut about every page of the book has some amount of highlighting, because I could not resist the urge to be able to go back to his thoughts with ease.

The arrogance or “theological puberty” that Thielicke speaks about is dead on with most of us, and few can resist the urge to “wallow in our ownership” of new findings, which are shared with passionate urgency as if all the secrets of the universe have been discovered by the young theologian, and others have been left in the dark.

The temptation to speak down to the congregation rather than speak with them is also a temptation that is sometimes heightened by theological studies. Pouring out our defense for hymns of old as more theologically stirring and rich as apposed to the simple and shallow words of newer worship music becomes a constant agenda of the learned master of all things God.

As a Salvation Army officer and pastor, I have found myself with the same urges, especially in Sunday school settings, Bible studies and small groups, to correct all those who have not been privy to my level of discovery. I say that with sarcasm. I can go back and almost hear my words sending the message, “Oh ye of simple faith.”

Even the introduction of Thielicke’s book is full of informational wealth. As Martin E. Marty points out, those who study deeply do change their minds about what they believe quite often. This is a healthy sign of a growing Christian, but the one experiencing such a crisis must be patient with those who rarely question anything spiritual. I find myself in this predicament of philosophical transitioning so often that I have wondered if there are any definite truths to be discovered from the biblical text. And then, I realize that I am also guilty of the tendency to read the Scriptures only to discover what can become a sermon.

This book has truly opened my eyes to the dangers of theological adolescence, and I am determined to get this book into more hands, especially those who are called to the task of teaching.

As for my own ministry, I have been made more aware of my task to learn as much from my pastor, the church, as I teach. And although the need for life-long learning must never cease, there will be times when the learning that I am able to glean from the most humble of theologians may very well contain the richest, life-giving instructions of my life.

As Thielicke so wisely states, “Even an orthodox theologian can be spiritually dead, while perhaps a heretic crawls on forbidden bypaths to the sources of life” (Thielicke, 37).

In His dust,
Johnny

© 2009 Jonathan P. Gainey and Flock’s Diner.
All Rights Reserved