The Shepherd's Apprentice

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April 15

Then [Jesus] said to Thomas,
"Put your finger here and see my hands.
Reach out your hand and put it in my side.
Do not doubt but believe."
John 20:27

Another friend asked a question ... "In John 20:17 Jesus tells Mary Magdalene not to touch him because he had not ascended yet to the Father. Then eight days (vs 26 & 27) Jesus invites Thomas to touch his wounds and stick his hand into the side wound. I find this confusing."

I love the questions! Keep them coming! In fact, the question was so good, I thought I'd share my two cents worth with all of you. I said ...

I don't have my Greek New Testament with me, so I can't answer it definitively from the Greek (I'm such a phenomenal Greek scholar anyway!), but here's what I think ...

The King James and about a third of the translations render the passage with Mary Magdalene (v. 17) as some form of "touch me not" or "don't touch me." The majority of the translations, however -- approximately two-third -- render it more like "do not hold on to me." In fact, in helping understand this passage, I like the CBJ version best: Jesus says, "Stop holding on to me."

Spiritually that's the difference between Mary Magdalene's touching -- or not -- and Thomas's. Thomas needed to touch to believe. Mary Magdalene, on the other hand, needed to let go of the physical touching to have a belief that would carry her for the rest of her life (and through all the challenges of being a first-century, persecuted disciple).

The question is: Do you, like Thomas, need some physical proof ... or some physical healing ... or some physical answer ... in order to believe? Or do you, like Mary Magdalene need to quit holding out for a physical answer and just start trusting even more?
Great question!

In Christ's Love,
a guy who always needs to
let go and let God!

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April 14

... creation waits with eager longing
for the revealing of the children of God;
for creation itself will be set free from its bondage to decay
and will obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God
Romans 8:20-21

"I don't like that word," a friend said. What word? "Bondage!"

Like most of us, this friend has escaped from a few corners of grief, pain, and bondage in her life and is actively trying to encourage others to escape their bondage too! Therefore, she says, "I don't like it that our Sunday morning confession often says, 'We confess that we are in bondage to sin and cannot free ourselves.'" She passionately and accurately says, "Because of Christ, aren't we free already?! Couldn't we say instead that 'We confess that we WERE in bondage to sin.'"

"The past tense works," I said. "BUT as much as you dislike the word 'bondage,' the present tense works too. We are BOTH free from sin ... AND in continual bondage to sin. We are BOTH hopeless on our own AND simultaneously victorious through Christ who is continually conquering our sin. Yes, Jesus -- past tense -- broke the chains on the cross BUT he must also -- present tense -- continue to break the chains in my life. Therefore, I must not complacently rely on a past tense victory, BUT continually claim and make real in the present tense this gift. My sin is defeated, BUT I must continue to defeat it.

Read our verse for today one more time, because it points in even one more direction: Past means it has been accomplished -- yeah God! Present means it is continually being accomplished -- thank you, Jesus! And future means that "creation waits with eager longing for the [eventual] revealing of the children of God; for [one day,] creation itself will be set free from its bondage to decay and will obtain the [final] freedom of the glory of the children of God."

In Christ's Love,
a free slave

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April 13

Therefore the Lord waits to be gracious to you ...
Blessed are those who wait for him.
Isaiah 30:18

There are two meanings for "wait" in this passage.

The first "wait" often comes with a desperate cry: We have wants. We have needs. We have hurts. We crave immediate help. Why does the Lord "wait"? The second "wait" is very different. It is like being a fine "waiter" in a fine restaurant. The waiter's whole goal is to attend to and serve. The point of this whole passage, therefore, is: "Sometimes God waits until we wait -- until we attend to and serve."

Now, I don't recommend that you feed that line to friend in a crisis who's waiting, hoping, pleading for God to act. Rather it's one of those thoughts that's best to contemplate on a saner day; indeed, it's one of those truths that may just prepare us for a harder day.

So what does ... "wait for [God]" mean for you today?

Here's what it means right now for me. One of my favorite newer songs has this refrain, "Strength will rise as we wait upon the Lord." Next time I hear that song, I'm going to imagine that it's a call for me to be a waiter in a fine restaurant. My number one job today is to attend to God like he's my only guest at my only table. I don't want to constantly butt in and be a nuisance to him -- ever had a waiter like that? -- rather, I want to quietly wait ... and lovingly sense ... and faithfully attend to the King's every need.

In Christ's Love,
a guy who wants a big tip
(Jesus said, "Whoever is faithful in a very little,
is faithful also in much ..." Luke 16:5-15)


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