Luke 7:1-23
In the hearing of the people, he entered Capernaum.
2 Now a centurion had a servant who was sick and at the point of death, who was highly valued by him. 3 When the centurion heard about Jesus, he sent to him elders of the Jews, asking him to come and heal his servant. 4 And when they came to Jesus, they pleaded with him earnestly, saying, “He is worthy to have you do this for him, 5 for he loves our nation, and he is the one who built us our synagogue.”
6 And Jesus went with them. When he was not far from the house, the centurion sent friends, saying to him, “Lord, do not trouble yourself, for I am not worthy to have you come under my roof. 7 Therefore I did not presume to come to you. But say the word, and let my servant be healed. 8 For I too am a man set under authority, with soldiers under me: and I say to one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and to another, ‘Come,’ and he comes; and to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.”
9 When Jesus heard these things, he marveled at him, and turning to the crowd that followed him, said, “I tell you, not even in Israel have I found such faith.”
10 And when those who had been sent returned to the house, they found the servant well.
11 Soon afterward he went to a town called Nain, and his disciples and a great crowd went with him.
12 As he drew near to the gate of the town, behold, a man who had died was being carried out, the only son of his mother, and she was a widow, and a considerable crowd from the town was with her. 13 And when the Lord saw her, he had compassion on her and said to her, “Do not weep.”
14 Then he came up and touched the bier, and the bearers stood still. And he said, “Young man, I say to you, arise.” 15 And the dead man sat up and began to speak, and Jesus gave him to his mother.
16 Fear seized them all, and they glorified God, saying, “A great prophet has arisen among us!” and “God has visited his people!” 17 And this report about him spread through the whole of Judea and all the surrounding country.
18 The disciples of John reported all these things to him. And John, 19 calling two of his disciples to him, sent them to the Lord, saying, “Are you the one who is to come, or shall we look for another?”
20 And when the men had come to him, they said, “John the Baptist has sent us to you, saying, ‘Are you the one who is to come, or shall we look for another?’”
21 In that hour he healed many people of diseases and plagues and evil spirits, and on many who were blind he bestowed sight.
22 And he answered them,
“Go and tell John what you have seen and heard: the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, the poor have good news preached to them. 23 And blessed is the one who is not offended by me.”
Interesting Times.
Israel is not even 100 years old.
In the 1970's, the Church you were born to, was the one you'd be buried from. Denominations were set like pillars. People would ask, "Are you are Christian?" And the reply was expected to be Baptist, Catholic, Church of Christ, Episcopalian, Methodist and Presbyterian. So looking at you, one had the idea of political, moral, social codes and maybe how you voted and how you consumed substances.
I remember one particular meal with my father, mother and one set of my 4 every-weekend-godparents. My father said to my very believing and church-going Godfather, with an open gesture, "How is it you are such a good Baptist, but really you'd shock your mother to the core if she knew that locked door is a bar." My godfather laughed and said he would at that. But his mother shouldn't worry Baptists even dance now. His mother lived in fear the family would fall to such ruin that her granddaughter would offer alcohol, of any nature, at her wedding. The dear lady passed on and the bar was open and the wedding was very lovely. When my Wonderful, wonderful, wonderful Godmother passed to Heaven far too early from cancer - she had 2,000 Baptists and others at her funeral. No one had done more wonderful things for Church than my Godmother.
And today we change denominations and the Bible Believing Churches flourish. I believe this is called voting with your feet. My sister-in-law's stepfather was a minister and he joined the Church because all week long, as a child, he loved Church. It was the most peaceful time of his life. He participated in Seminary and joined the Church during Vietnam Draft times.
The Church was the 'engine' for Social Reform. His Church saw reform as the leaders were more interested in social reform than the Divinity of Jesus. The Engine of "Social Reform" was a time of great question. Who could believe in a 'virgin' birth? Ludicrous. The Disciples couldn't even read and the New Testament was printed in 400 A.D. as Constantine needed a new thought for the Roman Empire. That Constantine wasn't even baptized until death.
And divisions in the Church made shocking news. Things like Communion served with graham crackers and honey. The announcements that Paul was not really "IN" the Holy Spirit. Easy Divorce and re-marriage. In the 1970s my step-grandfather was Pounding on the Dining Room Table for Sunday Lunch and talking about the downfall of the Church is completely related to Divorce.
Tate was right.
And then the Society thought what is wrong with the Church to not preach the Bible? And people voted with their feet. Churches with Vietnam Social Engines were being outvoted by the laity. Who the heck would say THAT about Saint Paul? One of the large denominations lost 13 million people and fell to only have 1/14th of the people.
Jesus will tell us one day about the Image from Biblical Archaeology Review looking like Caravaggio. "Forensic experts have pieced together what they perceive to be the real face of Jesus Christ, and it is not the Caucasian man with long hair that is often depicted as the Messiah."
And you consider... Human Nature doesn't Change all that much. Goes like the tide. Rise and ebb. Look at Caravaggio (Michelangelo Merisi or Amerighi). Caravaggio probably started out as a pimp because his family lost every father figure and male sibling during the plague. You'd think all the knifing, prostitution, violence would have stopped a blooming art career. Instead, Church commissions surrounded the artist genius who left 14,000 pages of arrest and person of interest history from Italian Police.
We find - Caravaggio was part of the transformation from the wooden status images of wooden painted figures without expression - to express Jesus Christ. And Caravaggio loved women. Too much. He used famous prostitutes to portray the Virgin Mary. Why? Caravaggio used models he could afford. And about 40% of the Renaissance world women were prostitutes. Women who were avoiding starvation for themselves and their families. And from time to time Caravaggio truly got in trouble for using famous actress types hookers to pose for the best and most loving, realistic mother-child paintings in Churches in Italy today.
Caravaggio outraged Italian Clerics for painting the saints in dirty clothes and dirty feet. One of the people. The truth was when you look at Caravaggio's history - he was concerned with who the saints were. He didn't want to paint Mary and Elizabeth in Velvet Renaissance Dresses with perfect curls. All these commissions were making the painter think.
Something Proverbs would be glad for a man with 14,000 police reports, a man who defended prostitutes sometimes violently. Jesus would have been interested in Caravaggio. The Painter presenting the Church with an image of the everyday person as a saint.
Matthew 16 - Who Do you Say that I Am?
But this image of Jesus persists. And in the 1970s we had Jesus in sandals and a work-shirt. Adopting pre-Renaissance art tone and wooden intonations of miracles. Flat. History. Improbable. But be polite. You know, don't you, that Pontius Pilate is a myth? And the Hittite Empire is a fantasy. The Exodus? No historical documents. Hippie Jesus with poverty and improbable stories where we politely go and visit God on Sundays. The children dress up and learn about who Matthew, Mark, Luke and John are. Psalm 23 and John 14 for funerals. 1 Corinthians 13 for weddings.
And then you have our generation.
We voted down the Social Engine. We are surrounded by Divorce and find we adore our Children. And we are consistently telling each other as we watch HBO that the culture has a problem. And yet we find as Game of Thrones goes on - the sex was a filler and now the plot is interesting because the filler is thrown out. Reddit reports a skit of a young actress telling her lines - her friend is shocked and says, "Oh no Porn!" The actress replies, "No HBO!" Her friend is so relieved....The movies are far from R rated as they almost all were in the 1980s. And the checkout counters do not have the magazines in wrappers. We hear that the internet is riddled with Porn but when you really look at research, you find the Pew Report says - ain't no one really gonna tell. So guess what? Porn on the internet is more or less a myth/guess. Look at Game of Thrones.
There was one little shining light of how often the internet is used for answering Biblical and God Questions. A Lot Actually.
I was reading the Amazon reviews today for Water Picks. The best and most favored reply was the one with numbered stages of the Review. And the number 5 answer said you don't have to run cold water in this one because the reviewer was pretty sure he'd felt "his soul leave his body for using cold water on his teeth." He received many, many helpful votes.
We have actors standing up saying please pray. To know God is to know Joy. Our President says Jews and Israel really have something we need to preserve and defend.
We find Boston is telling Martin Luther King, Jr his dream he has is alive and well. The Laity says so.
And the times are completely interesting. Israel is unearthing archaeology daily. The Head of the Louvre and the Head of the FBI testified in Antiquities that the sarcophagus of James, son of Joseph, brother of Jesus was true. It was widely mocked but the end of the 5 year trial with Israel's foremost Judge listening to The Museum of Israel broke down in tears and said it was a matter of faith.
And faith is to be treated Reverently as Hope, Faith, Joy, Propelling us all to Rise.
We no longer report the Hittite Nation was a fable. When their intact Library of Papyrus told the Bible again. Pontius Pilate is discovered in carved signs in Israel and in Roman Employment History. In fact, Roman History tells us Jesus existed and was very feared. We know Pontius Pilate wrote to Emperor Claudius of the bizarre and frightening cultural response by the multitudes to the death of Jesus. That letter is lost and is repeated as junk. Two fine historians report the Letter. The earthquake - earthquake seismology history records as well as rocks saved to show the force of the earthquake. 325 years of Empire history against Jesus and His followers.
Papyrus Salt 124 - the art world of Museum Curators has put out a video and is now reporting the lifelong works of Michelangelo, Raphael, Masaccio, Donatello, Leonardo Da Vinci as "Cartoons" as if we would adopt the usage of a questionable word as an official and new artistic word. We need the art world to learn archaeology and like Joy Behar, of the View, to apologize for choking their opinions down the throat of the paying viewer. Art is not a "Social Engine." And Politicizing beauty is very distasteful. Assuming an un-educated public in need of historical and archaeological guidance. Too many museum workers and art historians are proud of the Christian History of their objects. The Leaders of the Museums offend many. The workers see and appreciate the beauty and peace without labeling art as "Cartoon."
Papyrus 46 is 300 Three Hundred Intact Chapters of the New Testament. The debate is on the verbs - are they 1st Century or 2nd Century? Either way, the Disciple John was alive and reporting his view the Gospels were all true.
Which brings us back to the Gospel today.
Jesus is doing things that only the faithful will believe. Son of David. Yes, even the mocking reports available today in Scotland from the actual Sadducean Council Talmud records record - Son of David. They accuse Jesus of sorcery for the signs. Falsely report his night trial as heralded for a month. Letters record with horror the 2 million who showed up after His death in the Temple and report the healing as accurate.
Godspell was cute, but it was far from accurate. The Disciples on the Road to Emmaus report "All of Israel Knows." This is factual from the first day Jesus began His ministry. All 2,000 of Capernaum showed up to hear what a man healing "them all" had to say. Multitudes of women were brave to face Good Friday. The men worried they would be like Simon carrying the cross.
This one portion of Luke 7 explains:
The Jews - the elders - showed up to make a team with Jesus and Roman officials. The political climate is fraught with Isaiah 7 - intense power and money in Rome has swept into Judea and put a non-Davidic on the throne. The Essenes report the Holy Spirit has left the Temple as Herod marries his sister-in-law and puts his own hand-picked into the Temple. Even the small Capernaum is feeling the pull of this.
Speaking of Isaiah 7, we learn the family of Jesus is known to be hardworking land-owners. They will have a cow and work so hard cheese and butter and curds are made. They will grow grapes and make wine. They will have a donkey. In fact, the Gospels show Joseph to be so lucrative - Joseph is able to sell and leave Israel for Egypt to decide like a business man if he will return to Nazareth or Jerusalem. An intelligent foster father looking at the politics of his world. It's Mary who records any resentment of money. And the Sadducean Council confirms her genealogy of Luke 3 as they speculate on the woman who was seen to be the mother of a fine and loving family. This is a family of hard workers. Who have enough to be comfortable and do the work. Eusebius, the bishop of Caesarea is a credible, world renown historian, giving his own eyewitness confirmation of the standing of the Family of Nieces and Nephews with many family built,-as customary, Jewish Family Dwellings. This faith and hard work has carried the family forth into the 4th Century.
Joseph is a Carpenter.
When you see what was built in Nazareth, you are not speaking of sweet little chairs. Joseph easily would have built stone houses to exist for 500 years and Commercial buildings. This man was in Trade. He is remembered. His family is known. All the way to the Sadducean Council. Immensely wealthy like the Romans? No. Merely a pillar of Judaism. Joseph was such a fine catch, Mary's family is seriously mad at her for showing up pregnant. It's recorded Joseph shows up in Nazareth to take her to Bethlehem - Joseph was very probably from Jerusalem - as the son of kings.
Jesus running around in filthy clothes. Near the Sea of Galilee? And all the women who supported Jesus. Probably not. Do not carry an extra tunic - yes - and the women of Israel turn out in huge numbers of support for the Son of God who routinely includes and talks to women. Rethink this. Jesus is not a hippie. Jesus is Jesus. Kosher is about cleansing. Even Roman guards fight for the clothes of Jesus.
Jesus reports correctly he has no home. His home is in Nazareth. But Jesus is wearing a rare Chifton without seams. Jesus easily finds a rare horse and a donkey for Palm Sunday. Jesus is the Christ. The Son of God. And when Jesus raises the widow of Nain's son - see the Divinity. Jesus is at the gate of Nain. A place of honor. Jesus is with a huge crowd - they are going to remember Jesus has raised the dead from merely touching the bier.
Our Jesus is God and our God has announced with full Godly sized Crowd and Force "THE DEAD LIVE" because Jesus is leading not just the multitudes but the millenniums to the Salvation of God Himself - He wants to save the World. Because our God reports Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow in Genesis 1, 2 and Proverbs 8 - God sees His Creation as Good and the heart of mankind is seen into and seen as delight.
What about Jesus as a peasant? Doubtful. Jesus was unusual in that He looked at hearts. And when Jesus forms His Disciples He chooses Peter and Andrew as having the best house and prosperous fisherman of Capernaum. Simon a Zealot - a looked down-upon figure for rejecting Romans. John and James - their father is a pillar in the Synagogue. Judas an accountant. And a well-to-do thug accountant as Tax man - Matthew. John the Baptist is a Priest's Son. Jesus is seen as poor because He put God first. But Jesus was well taken care of as He worked incredibly hard at His Ministry. Jesus embraced all the classes. This is our God. God of all.
What is the Cost of the Cross to you? Proclaim the Light of the World - Jesus as God.
Live as the Saved of God helping the people given to you. Live with Truth and Mercy. The Goodness of our Amazing God. Jesus is God. God, Himself is for us. We will live with the Goodness of God for us. In our bones, body, mind and soul.
Amen in Wonderful and Living Jesus Christ.
♔ Lord Jesus Saves! †
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