"Come to me" says Jesus

Matthew 11:28-30

‘Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. ²⁹Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. ³⁰For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.’

These words from Matthew’s Gospel are wonderful in at least two ways. They are very reassuring and encouraging for each of us. They also form a great invitation to those who are yet to meet Jesus.

These words touch the complexity of everyday life. Each of us suffer from tiredness from time to time. Each of us carry various concerns through life – some of which are resolved quickly, while other issues persist. These worries can arise through: family, work, current responsibility, illness, injury, loss, conflict, finances, fear, temptation, guilt or shame.

The knowledge of someone who loves us and cares for us deeply can certainly take the edge of such burden-carrying. And the fact that Jesus loves and cares for us despite knowing all our foibles is even more significant. This knowledge of God ... this level of relationship with God ... is the encouragement that we can live within day by day, and is also the encouragement that we can live out in public – with the hope that others might find such rest and peace.

Being “yoked” to another might seem at first threatening, difficult, even rigorous. The idea behind the “yoke” was the wooden collar that ran across the shoulders of a pair of oxen (which had been hitched to a plough). This “yoke” enabled the oxen to jointly pull enormous weights, the burden being equally distributed over both the animals (thus neither one became overwhelmed). So there is actually tremendous potential in being “yoked” with a strong and wise partner.

In this case we are also “yoked” with someone who is “gentle” and “humble”, meaning that any guidance or direction given can only be in our best interests (and in the best interests of God’s good plan for humanity and all creation). That’s where I want to be – within God’s good plan for humanity and all creation – an ongoing learning experience. That is the definition of “rest” for me ... to be where God wants me to be, and doing what God wants me to be doing. Then we find life to weigh much lighter!

This sort of “rest” comes from having a relationship with Jesus – the “Prince of Peace”. As the scripture says, this is “rest” for “our souls”, so it’s not really just “rest” in the sense of sleep and ease. For in accepting and following Jesus, the “Prince of Peace”, we could actually be busier than we ever were before ... but in far more important ways. The One we are “yoked” with will take us down the path of all sorts of peace-making and justice-seeking.

Jesus did endure many pressures in his life on earth, so he does understand what we face. Not only this, Jesus can travel with us and lift us up. Jesus offers an invitation ... “Come to me”! This is an invitation for us both to receive, and to pass on to others.

Banning Rodeos Campaign

I have just joined the Animals Australia campaign to ban rodeos from Victoria. If you would like to act likewise then please contact me or just simply go to the Animals Australia website. This is not just a side issue of life or discipleship, but rather central to our calling to be responsible custodians of God's creation. It is frankly ridiculous to me that, in the enlightened times of 2012(?), we would in any way tolerate such events as these and the pain and torture they put animals through - unacceptable! Warren.

Faith, desperation & compassion (Mark 1:40-45)

An unnamed person with some form of obvious skin disease, generally in those days simply called a “leper”, came up to Jesus, fell to his knees, and begged Jesus to heal him. This sufferer had seen and heard enough about Jesus to be totally convinced of his ability to cure those in such a situation as he was in. It was just a matter of whether Jesus would choose to or not. Jesus did choose to, and this man was cleansed from his “leprosy”. And this former “leper”, despite Jesus’ words to keep this quiet, could not hold back his public rejoicing.

Apart from the obvious faith that this man had gained, two other major factors led up to this man’s healing. The first was his level of desperation. This was no doubt due to the situation that people designated as “lepers” were placed in. They were excluded from family, community and religious life – forced to live in desolate places, on their own or together with people who had been likewise deemed “lepers”, often in degrading circumstances. They were generally feared and hated because of the supposed threat they posed. In those days [and right up into the 20^th century in the case of Hansen’s disease], conditions in the “leprosy” category were believed to be very contagious.

Such “lepers” lived in utter poverty, reliant upon charity for their survival. They had no medical support. Also, they were legally obliged to yell out “unclean, unclean” if any non-sufferers accidently were about to cross their path. This would be a life of physical, mental and emotional anguish. So, when this particular “leper” approached Jesus, he was taking the risk of doing so against the law. But “leprosy” was a calamity, and he just wanted to get his life back ... circumstances had conspired to destroy any chance for him to enjoy life or be creative or have the opportunities others took for granted.

The second factor in this leper’s healing was who Jesus was. Jesus was the God of compassion. Jesus saw this man’s condition, understood his situation, and was “moved with pity”. Jesus would be deemed ‘religiously unclean’ if he touched this man (thus setting Jesus up for more ‘pharisaic’ criticism), yet Jesus considered this irrelevant (in the face of such desperate need). Jesus could also have been viewed as ‘infected’ having touched this man. Yet Jesus, without hesitation it seems, reached out his hand and indeed touched him. [Jesus could no doubt have healed him from a distance, so by touching him was actually making a point regarding intimate contact with sufferers.]

To be even willing to touch him would be of great comfort and encouragement to this man – but because his assessment was right as to who Jesus was, he received complete healing as well. Of course he then went off on his own tangent (refer verse 45) – so you could argue that this man actually didn’t go on to become a follower (or disciple) of Jesus, because he didn’t understand what Jesus was most primarily about, and did exactly the opposite of what Jesus had counselled him to do.

Yet this possible outcome did not deter Jesus. He saw desperate need, and responded from deep within himself. Jesus was ‘gutted’, and his stomach turned by what he saw, and he could act in no other way. God’s will was for this man to be liberated from his physical and spiritual oppression. What a person like this man would do with this great gift subsequently – well that was now up to him. The physical liberation we see here leads toward a social liberation that has the potential to lead to a spiritual transformation as well.

There is another Greek word used in some of the old manuscripts that are used to translate this gospel passage into English. Where we have translated “pity” in verse 41, an alternative is “anger” ... “moved with anger”. At first these (“pity” and “anger”) might seem like opposites, yet when we consider the deep emotional place both of these feelings come from, we might recognise a connection. Jesus could have been “angry” at what life had come to be like for this man – a far cry from that original created ‘goodness’. What had happened that so badly disfigured a person physically and so deeply deprived them spiritually ... the disease itself, the social ostracism – the whole stigma of the thing! “Pity” or “anger” ... the result was the same – the beautiful touch of God’s healing.

So this is the example the gospel gives us in terms of the Jesus-like response to desperate need. Not all, probably not many, will be able to express faith themselves and come forward for help. Many innocents will suffer quietly; some under the power of abuse or addiction will feel demeaned and shamed by the situation they are in; some others will express very negative anti-social behaviour. Jesus-followers will seek to help them out, just because they too are ‘gutted’ by what they see. Yet on many occasions this will certainly test our faith to the core. In most cases it seems, our efforts won’t lead to immediate miraculous healing, but our genuine and personal touch will tend to bring ‘just what the doctor ordered’.

In the 19^th century, there was an large outbreak of “Hansen’s disease” (the worst of those conditions categorised under the general term leprosy) throughout the islands of Hawaii. Eventually the government decided to set up a leper colony on the island of Molokai, in a remote section where it was nearly impossible to escape. Sufferers were rounded up and transported by boat to Molokai (sometimes even dumped into the water a couple of hundred metres out from the shore).

“Hansen’s disease” took a shocking toll on the body and mind, and at this time had no cure nor effective treatment. Therefore, we would easily understand how such a “leper” colony would become a hopeless and degrading place. These poor people, given only the barest of necessities, had basically been left to their own devices to fend for themselves, with death being the only means of escape.

To this chaotic and degraded place came a Catholic priest from Belgium – Father Damien – in May 1873. Father Damien was not sent to Molokai, he courageously volunteered. Single-handedly, for some time, Damien fulfilled a variety of needed roles on this island – he comforted the hurting, he bandaged weeping sores, he nursed the dying, protected the weak; he built houses, churches, orphanages and hospitals; he buried the dead (hundreds and hundreds of them); Damien performed the role of both priest and community leader ... all the time desperately seeking more help to come from church and government. He grew vegetables, and sought to trade them for nails, timber and medicines that were sorely lacking. Damien on occasions also swam out to try to rescue those who were struggling to swim to the island having been sent over the side of the transport boat.

Father Damien went there for a stint of a few months, but finished up staying 16 years – dying there of Hansen’s disease related ailments at the age of 49. Ultimately Damien would become Saint Damien on October 11^th 2009 (ironically exactly the same day I was ordained by the Baptist Union of Victoria). This, like other awards he gained in his own lifetime, were worthy recognitions of Damien’s work. However, when it comes to picking up one’s cross and following Jesus, Damien said that, “The Lord decorated me with his own particular cross – leprosy”, a cross Damien had to bear in serving others, and also later in his own body.

An Endless Feast (Mark 6:30-44)

I had the pleasure today of taking the 5th birthday celebration service for the Village fellowship at the Tarneit Skies Retirement Village. Below is the message I gave.

Jesus wanted to have some quiet time alone with his disciples. They had all been pretty busy on God’s mission, so a little rest and reflection and refreshment would always be a good idea. So off they went in a boat over to what is described as a “deserted place”. The trouble was ... they had been seen and recognised, and we have read about the hundreds and thousands from all the towns gathering as a crowd when the boat containing Jesus and his disciples arrived.

Now other people in this situation might well have told this big crowd where to go, for they really did need their rest and recuperation – and this really was a bit of a bother. However, we now read what is a really telling comment (in verse 34) which tells us a lot about God ... “As [Jesus] went ashore, he saw a great crowd – and [Jesus] had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd”.

[If you refer to Psalm 23, you can see there many benefits that a shepherd provides for his sheep - resources, refreshment, peace, restoration, guidance, protection, comfort, safety, a sense of home ... a place of belonging, acceptance and value.]

At least two things to consider here. Jesus represents here how God feels about people who are lost, or lack direction, or who are so uncertain in their lives that they will race after every new possibility to give them some hope or purpose ... Jesus has “compassion” on them. As “sheep” need a “shepherd” to guide them and keep them from harm, human beings need a completely reliable point of reference for the conduct of their lives. This is because many are weary and fragile from the journey, and vulnerable to life’s pressures, and could easily take the wrong track.

Secondly, Jesus also is teaching us how we should feel about the “sheep” amongst us who lack a “shepherd”. As we have already considered, there are many needy people, who for a wide variety of reasons, struggle in life. The “compassion” Jesus brings, and models for us, is a deep gut reaction filled with disappointment, love, and a longing for justice and freedom. From this position of heart-felt concern, Jesus would not be able to turn the crowd away!

So enraptured by Jesus’ teaching that day were this crowd, that all of a sudden there was a realisation that the hour was late. Jesus was not inclined to agree with his disciples about sending the crowd away into surrounding villages to get some food from there. It would seem that the hospitality on offer from God had not been fully explored yet. They had received some teaching, but God’s hospitality is far broader than that – it is holistic and touches all parts of life.

This raised an obvious problem though ... an apparent lack of resources. Where would the food come from? Sometimes when faced with dramatic need, the resources we have on offer seem so few (and so limited). The disciples (refer verse 37) thought that the task was impossible! But is there a greater source we can call upon? Are our resources always to be calculated purely from what we can see and touch? When Jesus was faced with a lack of resources on the ground, the outcome was actually an ‘endless feast’!

We would know that five loaves of bread and two fish would have no chance of feeding five thousand hungry men with their wives and families. Yet when they were distributed, and everyone had enough, there were twelve full baskets left over. What had happened? Jesus had looked up to heaven in prayerful trust, blessing the loaves and fish and breaking them up in the firm hope that they would be enough, and then gave all the pieces to his disciples for distribution.

Simply put, God provides the resources to meet the needs of the crowd. Yet Jesus did utilise the personal human touch by getting the disciples to be involved in the distribution. On a global scale, we know that the poverty endured within so many nations and so many communities, is due to a lack of proper distribution and also a lack of committed consideration, rather than any lack of generosity of God. We can scarcely blame God when we have abrogated our responsibility concerning caring for the earth.

It will be the followers of Jesus who sense God’s attitude of compassion to all people everywhere, and take up their responsibility to make a positive difference. And in doing so, in total reliance upon God to bring forth a wide variety of resources through which to get the job done, we will participate in what can only be described as an ‘endless feast of blessing’. People will come to know Jesus, the One who can introduce them to Creator God, give them the Holy Spirit, and address each and every one of their needs and aspirations.

Something that started modestly five years ago, and is currently celebrating its fifth birthday, has the potential to touch at least five thousand in the years to come. For what happens here, can become of great benefit on a much broader scale across this residential community, and around the local Tarneit community, and right across all the families represented here.