Well, I must say, I wasn't as impressed by the second episode of "The Bible" as I was the first. There were a couple things that bothered me, but I won't get into them here. I'm not sure if I like the fact that God's angels and His army often remind me of Ninjas - or if that bothers me. I guess I just have never pictured angels looking and acting like Ninjas before. Who knew?!?
Instead of Ninjas, however, I've decided to focus on the anointing of the Kings. The prophet Samuel anoints both Saul and David as king of God's chosen people by pouring thick oil upon their foreheads. This oil, which is depicted to look like thick honey, drips down Saul and David's faces (until you are afraid it's going to get in their eyes). When we look at deeper into the culture and context of the Story, we find that the anointing of oil is the way in which someone was set apart and chosen by God. Instead of crowning a king at a ceremony, Hebrew kings were anointed with sacred oil, perfumed with expensive spices.
I am currently reading a book by Lois Tverberg, my newest favorite author. "Sitting at the Feet of Jesus" looks at how the Jewishness of Jesus can transform our faith - and I'm fascinated. I read only a couple of nights ago about Kings being anointed with oil. Lois explains that this expensive oil would only have been used for consecrating objects in the temple and for anointing kings and priests; it would have been more valuable than diamonds. And the scent of the oil, left behind after being poured out, would have acted like an "invisible crown," conferring an aura of holiness on its recipients. In the ancient Middle East, royalty was not only expressed by outer garments, as in jewelry and fine robes, but always by majestic "aroma" as well.
We don't often think about the smells of the Bible - but ponder with me a moment. In Biblical times, the people did not have hot showers in the morning, nor did they even bathe often for water was scarce. There was no deodorant, and Israel can be a hot place. No fabric softener to scent the smell of their robes, no scented shampoo or conditioner that would linger in their hair. There was no Bath and Body Works to provide yummy-smelling soap, lotion, body spray or hand sanitizer. I can only imagine most of the smells that the people of that day smelled were not pleasant. But there was this fragrant oil, expensive and sacred. When you caught a whiff of it in their air, you would know that there was a king nearby, or someone who belonged to God in a special way.
The Hebrew word for Messiah is Mashiach, which mean "the Anointed One." Christos, or Christ, is the Greek equivalent. Jesus Christ, the Messiah, came to be the Anointed One.
As we look back on the week before His arrest and crucifixion, we see Mary, a devoted disciple using her hair to cover the feet of Jesus with this same kind of expensive, perfumed oil. Although this act of devotion also points us to His burial at the end of the week, we can glean deeper significance from this holy anointing. Mary may very well have been making a statement about who she believed Jesus was - Messiah and King.
The fragrant oil would have clung to Jesus for days. While He sat with His disciples for the Last Supper, the aroma of the oil would have filled the air. While Jesus prayed at the Garden of Gethsemane and when he stood before the officers who came to arrest Him, Jesus would have smelt of royalty. Throughout his trial, and while being mocked and beaten, the aroma of Jesus, King of the Jews, would have been apparent to all nearby.
The aroma of Christ.
"But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumphant procession in Christ and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of Him. For we are to God the aroma of Christ [The Anointed One]..." (2 Corinthians 2:14-15)
We, too, are called to share this fragrant, holy aroma with Christ - anointed with oil in baptism. My favorite part of baptizing babies is watching my pastor use oil to make the sign of the cross of the on the child's small forehead and hear him say, "You have been sealed by the Holy Spirit and marked with the cross of Christ forever." As children of God, we share in this anointing with the greatest "Anointed One" of all time. And this anointing is with us, wherever we may go.
May we live that way. May we go into the world knowing that we are kings and queens, inside and out. May we be the aroma of Christ, the Anointed - bringing hope, light and love to a hurting (and often stinky) world.
Thursday, March 14, 2013
Wednesday, March 6, 2013
Curmudgeons
Do you know any curmudgeons? You know, those bad-tempered, difficult people who seem to always be in your ear? I've met a few.
Our family decided that each Sunday we are going to sit down together and watch The Bible, the docu-series that is airing on Discovery Channel now until Easter. It's a Story we have heard before, but in the weeks leading up to Easter, it is my hope that this powerful Story unfolds in new ways before our eyes.
The "Big God Story" has taken on new depth, meaning and importance for me in the past several years. Now it is being retold in a new way for a new generation and I thought that I would try to share some things that stick out to me each week. This past Sunday, as we watched the first episode of Creation to Joshua, it was the curmudgeon that stuck out to me.
I'm sure you have heard the story of Moses (if you haven't, it is recorded in the book of Exodus). This well loved Bible story tells of a baby being put into a basket, sent down the Nile river and found by the Pharaoh's daughter. This Hebrew baby is raised as a prince, while his people are slaves. One day as he watches one of his Hebrew people being beaten to death, anger stirs within him and he kills the Egyptian who is inflicting the lashings. Fearing his own life, Moses runs away - thus beginning the events that will change the future of the Israelites. After several encounters with God, Moses comes back to Egypt to free his people.
You would think that Moses' biggest obstacle would be Pharaoh. Of course this man, who views himself as God, is not going to want to release the very people who provide the labor for his mighty empire - just because God says so. And although it does take much time and many plagues to convince Pharaoh to let the Hebrews go - I think that the old curmedgeon would have been just as tough to deal with.
The show depicts one man as always being in Moses' ear, questioning him and telling him that he's not good enough. Even at the very beginning he scoffs, "God sent you? Pharaoh is the only God we have to fear." "You're demented," he says. As they stand beside the Nile, he whispers to Moses, "If Pharaoh didn't listen to you when he was six feet away, why would he listen to you now?" and yet Moses' staff turns the Nile to blood. After all the plagues and all the ways in which God shows up and helps Moses, the curmudgeon stands beside the Red Sea and says, "Give up Moses before it's too late! Were there not enough graves in Egypt that you brought us here to die? Where is your God now?" On and on, he tries to tear Moses down.
Moses showed more grace and more patience than I'm sure I would have. He just kept moving forward, telling the people to trust God. He never gave up and he never gave in. The Bible tells us that going into the whole thing Moses tried to convince God to pick someone else for this task. He was "slow of speech" which may have meant he stuttered. His brother Aaron became his spokesperson. Knowing this, I would have to assume that Moses had self-confidence issues from the start but he followed God out of Egypt, led the people through the wilderness and right up to the Promised Land. Curmudgeons and all.
Do you have those people in your life? Those people who are in your ear telling you that you're not good enough, that your plans will fail, that you are demented? Sometimes the voice is our own self-doubt. Sadly enough, even in ministry, I come up against a lot of curmudgeons. And I'm not sure why one person's negative words can so dramatically outweigh five peoples praises, but it is true. It is a constant battle to not let the curmudgeons win and take over. "That (whatever) was good, but it would have been better if..." or "why don't we do things like (this church)?" The negative comes through loud and clear. Then I remember a soft voice of an 11-year-old boy who gave me a note just days ago: "Thank you for making the lock-in possible...thank you for getting pizza and Capri Suns...thanks for getting almost front row seats...I liked learning about the three different kinds of love - eros, philo and agape...I've been trying to show more philo to my brothers...you have lots of good ideas." Oh yeah...that's who I've been called to serve.
And God whispers: "You be you and you be mine."
May we all have the strength of Moses to persevere, to keep going even when curmudgeons tell us that we can't. May we follow the voice of God, the call of our Savior, and walk in His light.
Our family decided that each Sunday we are going to sit down together and watch The Bible, the docu-series that is airing on Discovery Channel now until Easter. It's a Story we have heard before, but in the weeks leading up to Easter, it is my hope that this powerful Story unfolds in new ways before our eyes.
The "Big God Story" has taken on new depth, meaning and importance for me in the past several years. Now it is being retold in a new way for a new generation and I thought that I would try to share some things that stick out to me each week. This past Sunday, as we watched the first episode of Creation to Joshua, it was the curmudgeon that stuck out to me.
I'm sure you have heard the story of Moses (if you haven't, it is recorded in the book of Exodus). This well loved Bible story tells of a baby being put into a basket, sent down the Nile river and found by the Pharaoh's daughter. This Hebrew baby is raised as a prince, while his people are slaves. One day as he watches one of his Hebrew people being beaten to death, anger stirs within him and he kills the Egyptian who is inflicting the lashings. Fearing his own life, Moses runs away - thus beginning the events that will change the future of the Israelites. After several encounters with God, Moses comes back to Egypt to free his people.
You would think that Moses' biggest obstacle would be Pharaoh. Of course this man, who views himself as God, is not going to want to release the very people who provide the labor for his mighty empire - just because God says so. And although it does take much time and many plagues to convince Pharaoh to let the Hebrews go - I think that the old curmedgeon would have been just as tough to deal with.
The show depicts one man as always being in Moses' ear, questioning him and telling him that he's not good enough. Even at the very beginning he scoffs, "God sent you? Pharaoh is the only God we have to fear." "You're demented," he says. As they stand beside the Nile, he whispers to Moses, "If Pharaoh didn't listen to you when he was six feet away, why would he listen to you now?" and yet Moses' staff turns the Nile to blood. After all the plagues and all the ways in which God shows up and helps Moses, the curmudgeon stands beside the Red Sea and says, "Give up Moses before it's too late! Were there not enough graves in Egypt that you brought us here to die? Where is your God now?" On and on, he tries to tear Moses down.
Moses showed more grace and more patience than I'm sure I would have. He just kept moving forward, telling the people to trust God. He never gave up and he never gave in. The Bible tells us that going into the whole thing Moses tried to convince God to pick someone else for this task. He was "slow of speech" which may have meant he stuttered. His brother Aaron became his spokesperson. Knowing this, I would have to assume that Moses had self-confidence issues from the start but he followed God out of Egypt, led the people through the wilderness and right up to the Promised Land. Curmudgeons and all.
Do you have those people in your life? Those people who are in your ear telling you that you're not good enough, that your plans will fail, that you are demented? Sometimes the voice is our own self-doubt. Sadly enough, even in ministry, I come up against a lot of curmudgeons. And I'm not sure why one person's negative words can so dramatically outweigh five peoples praises, but it is true. It is a constant battle to not let the curmudgeons win and take over. "That (whatever) was good, but it would have been better if..." or "why don't we do things like (this church)?" The negative comes through loud and clear. Then I remember a soft voice of an 11-year-old boy who gave me a note just days ago: "Thank you for making the lock-in possible...thank you for getting pizza and Capri Suns...thanks for getting almost front row seats...I liked learning about the three different kinds of love - eros, philo and agape...I've been trying to show more philo to my brothers...you have lots of good ideas." Oh yeah...that's who I've been called to serve.
And God whispers: "You be you and you be mine."
May we all have the strength of Moses to persevere, to keep going even when curmudgeons tell us that we can't. May we follow the voice of God, the call of our Savior, and walk in His light.
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