The Other Side

This week the Desperation Church community will be going out and delivering food to the poor and actually inviting them to come to our homes for a warm meal at Christmas time (next month on Dec. 27th). This has raised a number of eyebrows and some of the comments we've gotten have ranged from, "Man, this is awesome!"... to "What if we invite strangers in and they steal something from us?"


When Jesus arrived at the other side in the region of the Gadarenes, two demon-possessed men coming from the tombs met Him.… The demons begged Jesus, “If you drive us out, send us into the herd of pigs.” He said to them, “Go!” So they came out and went into the pigs, and the whole herd rushed down the steep bank into the lake and died in the water. Matthew 8:28, 31-32


The Sea of Galilee was an area known in Jesus’ day as the Decapolis. Today part of Israel, this area on the east side of the Sea was, in the first century, a Roman league of ten cities (Decapolis = ‘ten cities’). Greek, and later Roman, soldiers were given property there as a reward for service.

Perhaps somewhat surprisingly, Jesus makes several visits to what the Jews called “the other side.” On one of his visits, he encounters one (Mark & Luke) or two (Matthew) demon-possessed men. What must have been a terrifying scene for his disciples becomes almost comical in the gospels, as he commands the demons out of the man and into a herd of pigs. The pigs promptly run down an embankment (there are no steep cliffs there) and drown themselves in the Sea. The fact that this is a Gentile territory explains the presence of pigs, which you wouldn’t find in Israel. They may have even been the sacred animals of the Roman temples in this area. That the demons send the pigs into the sea is fitting, since it was considered to be the abode of Satan — they were going home!

Another event that happens in the Decapolis was the feeding of the 4000, not to be confused with the feeding of the 5000. Mark sets up a deliberate comparison between the two miracles which only makes sense if you know where they took place. When Jesus fed the 5000 (Mark 6), he was in Israel. Afterwards, the disciples picked up 12 baskets of leftovers, a significant number reminding Jews of the 12 tribes of Israel, as if Jesus was saying, “I am the bread of life, sufficient for all Israel.” When he repeats the miracle for 4000 (Mark 8), He is in the Decapolis. Afterwards, the disciples pick up 7 basketfuls. When the Israelites first came into the land, they drove out 7 Gentile nations, many of them in this general area. So Jesus seems to be saying, “I am the bread of life, also sufficient for all the Gentiles.”

Paying attention to where Jesus was in His daily encounters with people gives us a better idea of the radicalness of His Message. We too, are called to go to 'the other side' and feed those who are hungry. What's the other side? It's the place where people are that aren't like you. It's the place where people are that make you feel uncomfortable. Jesus was all about ministering to His own people, as we should be. But He also was all about going to the 'other side' and bringing them the Bread of Life as well. Perhaps we too should be willing to get out of our comfort zones and out from walls of our churches and see what amazing things the Lord can do?

A big 'thank you' to Lois Tverberg, who's book I'm reading currently. Her insight into the Hebrew Scriptures has been so exciting to me. Most of this information comes from her book, "Sitting At The Feet Of Our Rabbi Jesus".

Bite That Off and Chew On It For A While!

"The only Thing worth holding onto... is holding onto me".

I just heard this line sung by Jeremy Camp in a song off his newest album.

It is rocking me.

The rest of the song is fine,... but this line... wow.

"The only Thing worth holding onto... is holding onto me".

Selah

For Posterity's Sake

Psalm 37:35-40
"I have seen a wicked, violent man spreading himself like a luxuriant tree in its native soil.
Then he passed away, and lo, he was no more; I sought for him, but he could not be found.
Mark the blameless man, and behold the upright; For the man of peace will have a posterity.
But transgressors will be altogether destroyed; The posterity of the wicked will be cut off.
But the salvation of the righteous is from the Lord; He is their strength in time of trouble.
The Lord helps them and delivers them; He delivers them from the wicked and saves them, because they take refuge in Him."


What is life all about? Who are we to look up to as an example? Who are to be our heroes? Our culture exalts the ones with the most wealth, the most power, the ones with the most fame... regardless of how it came to them. Yet, if we are patient and stick around long enough, it seems we become witnesses of these very ones falling from grace, being soon forgotten... and simply being 'no more'. What exactly is the legacy that they leave?


My son, Caleb, has one of those red-laser pointer thingys. He likes to hide in another room (or across the worship center!) and point that thing at my chest while I'm talking to someone. They start snickering and giggling... and pretty soon I realize that I need to introduce my son to the wonders of duct tape once again (that was a joke, please don't call DFS). He's obviously using that laser-pointer for something that it was never intended for. It is meant to be a tool used in lectures to direct an audience's attention to the speaker's main points. It was originally found only on certain types of guns and used for the purpose of targeting something. In both cases, it's purpose is to 'mark' something.


We are admonished to keep an eye on the lives of others in this passage, to literally 'mark' them. The writer speaks of how he watched a bad, violent man who was successful in life, but when he died, he was no more - simply forgotten. However, when we watch the blameless, upright and peaceful man we'll find a very different story. He'll have something called "posterity". "Mark the blameless man, and behold the upright; For the man of peace will have posterity" (Psalm 37:37).

• The dictionary says that "posterity" is a noun meaning: 'Generations or time to come. The body of descendants from an ancestor.'

The idea of 'posterity' is what I'll call a 'legacy'. It is something that a person hands down to the next generation when they die. However, it is really more than that because 'posterity' speaks of more than something, it speaks of the very people themselves!

Let me re-set this: We are to 'mark' those (watch them, look up to them) that are blameless, upright, and peaceful, because THEY are the ones that, rather than just fade away, will leave a lasting legacy, which is the people that carry on their righteous way of living.

We are a culture of hero worshippers. And the heroes we choose to lift up and 'mark' are all too often undeserving. They exemplify greed, materialism, lust, and selfishness. This passage in Psalm 37 ends by stating that those we should be watching are ultimately the ones that "take refuge in God". In other words, they may not be perfect, wealthy, or even have all their 'stuff' together, yet "He is their strength in time of trouble".


Do you know someone like that? Maybe they aren't the perfect picture of 'success', as far as this world might define it. However, they live lives of total dependence upon God. They are peaceful. They are upright. They are simple, but they are blameless. If you are lucky enough to be around someone like that, then point your laser at them. Mark them. Watch them. Do it for posterity's sake. Keep your eye on them... understanding that you too are being watched.

I look down... I see a red dot... I realize that my son has marked me.

What will I pass on?

What will I leave him?

What's important today?