Message from JOHN HOULETTE

LIGHT UP THE DARKNESS

   Good morning.   

   I am very thrilled and humbled to speak at ICCS today as the De La Cours have been good friends over the years and Pastor Stan and I have shared a deep mentoring relationship.  I am currently the director of Three Stream Ministries, which provides care to Japanese pastors and their wives through coaching, counseling, retreats and ministry tools.  I have written a booklet called Stillness Tools, in Japanese, which is available as a PDF in English if you are interested. 

   We have just participated in that wonderful ordinance called the Lord’s Supper, reflecting on all that Jesus did for us on the cross and his powerful invitation to remembrance. From this event, I would like to think together with you about the metaphor of darkness and light.

   Let’s pray.

2 COR. 4:6-7 6 For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” made His light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.7 But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us.

6「光が、やみの中から輝き出よ」と言われた神は、私たちの心を照らし、キリストの御顔にある神の栄光を知る知識を輝かせてくださったのです。7 私たちは、この宝を、土の器の中に入れているのです。それは、この測り知れない力が神のものであって、私たちから出たものでないことが明らかにされるためです。

FLASH OF LIGHT 4, 6

   I have a question for you.  How many of you have an earthquake evacuation kit?  Do you have one of these? (flash light)  some are battery operated, some are hand cranked. It is very important when power goes out to see where you are and to avoid danger and find safety.  As a child, I grew up loving flashlights.  My dad built my sister’s a nice dollhouse in the backyard and by the time I was in elementary school my friends and I had turned it into a fort.  We would camp out in the summers and use flash lights to scare each other, putting the flashlight under our chins and making weird noises, or using the light for hand puppet shows.

   We are just finishing the ‘illumination season’ in Japan, this year highlighted by the Sky Tree light up.  After that we have had department store ‘sparkling sales’.

   These images of light remind of romance and great shopping deals!

   The Bible is full of many contrasts, and one of them is light and darkness.

   Light appears 244 times, darkness 174 in the English Standard Version.  It is major theme in the Scriptures.

   Let’s look at some of them.

A.               Concerning the nature of God.

GEN 1:3 And God said, "Let there be light," and there was light.

1JOHN 1:5 This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.

B.               Concerning Jesus birth

People in times of Isaiah

Is. 9:2The people who walked in darkness  have seen a great light;  those who dwelt in a land

of deep darkness,  on them has light shined. 

Shepherds, outcasts of society, first worshipped the Lord, led by the light.

LUKE 2:8-9 And in the same region there were shepherds out in the field,

keeping watch over their flock by night. 9 And an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with fear.

Magi, followed a star to worship him.

MATT 2:1-2 Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the east came to Jerusalem, 2 saying, "Where is he who has been born king of the Jews? For we saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him."

B.  Light and Darkness during the Earthly Life of Christ.

JOHN 1:4-5 In him was life, and the life was the light of men. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

JOHN 3:19 And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their deeds were evil.

JOHN 8:12 Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, "I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life."

C.  Darkness on the cross

LUKE 23:44 It was now about the sixth hour, and there was darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour, Jesus literally becoming sin for us was depicted in supernatural darkness.

D.  Invitation to live in the light.

1PET 2:9 But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.

1JOHN 1:7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin. 

E.  The spiritual battle of darkness and light.

2 Cor 4:3-2 And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled only to those who are perishing. 2 In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.

·       Sometimes, we prefer the darkness to light.

·       Walking in light, truth is evident, which makes it easier to relate to others.

·       The cost of our sins meant total identification with darkness for Jesus.

·       God calls us out of the darkness into the light.

·       Jesus gives us light to live.

·       Seeing the light of Christ is a spiritual dynamic.

·       Some church traditions encourage the lighting of candles for healing and prayer.  It is a symbol of bringing light into the darkness of our problems. 

II.  FACE TIME WITH JESUS  v. 6

No, I am not talking about Jesus on Facebook, but the practice of seeking his face.

A.              The Marriage Mirror.

   After 32 years of marriage, I have learned that we figuratively give our spouses a mirror.  We allow our them to face the mirror towards us so that we can see ourselves for who we really are when we are listening to them.  We give each other permission to observe, comment and constructively encourage while we look at ourselves.  We show the mirror lovingly, in warm hues rather than in cold, blinding truth, so as not to shock or devastate each other!  Our response to seeing ourselves as reflected back to us by our spouses, is a key to a healthy marriage.  It is a humility builder!

        B.         The  Knowledge Mirror:  Reflecting God’s glory.

   The text here also speaks to us about a mirror, but a two dimensional one.

6 For God, who said, "Let light shine out of darkness," has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

   The gospel of the cross shows the dark and evil of our sin, but also the brightness and power of the love of God in Christ.  Love always trumps sin. 

   We are more than conquerors through him who loved us.

   Yet, there is another reflection.  When we become Christ followers we have a light inside which allows us to see Christ, and when we do that, we see the glory of God. 

   How do we see Christ? 

·       By inviting him into our daily lives.

·       By reading the Bible.

·       Through the Lord’s Supper.  Remember his broken body and shed blood. It is a glorious invitation to partake in the feast that celebrates salvation bought and paid for by Jesus at the cross.

When we come here, we see two tings:  the ugliness of our sin and the abundant riches of God’s grace and mercy. 

·       By responding to his invitations. Come, be, follow, seek, knock, ask….

·       By living as though he is with us.

By living in the  “light in the dark” principle:  “My light shines brightly for believers who trust me in the dark.”  Jesus Calling, Sarah Young.

Running Guam marathon, star gazing at Tadami.

·       By focusing on right responses rather than right circumstances

PS 112:4 Light dawns in the darkness for the upright;  he is gracious, merciful, and righteous. 

·       PS 112:7 He is not afraid of bad news;  his heart is firm, trusting in the LORD. 

III.                    BROKENNESS 101

7 But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us.

   How do we live out the Lord’s Supper?  By carrying the treasure of salvation, Christ’s life in us, in brokenness.

·       Jars of clay.  Broken vessels.  Built to reveal God in us and that he is our power source.

·       Pain-intimacy-power-influence.  Terry Walling. 

CONCLUSION.

1.              Are you ‘in the dark,’ in life?

2.              How will you walk in the light today?

3.              Are you willing to walk with someone else, listen and help carry their burden?

It Takes Just One Touch ふれるだけで

It Takes Just One Touch  ふれるだけで  Luke 8:43-48 

The situation is set up for us in two verses. 

Doctor Luke is a medical person so naturally he’d be interested in the history of the lady in question. This was written AFTER the fact so he can put into his story certain facts that give it clarity that was lost to the witnesses of the incident at the time. 

The first verse gives us the situation and the second gives us the solution. And a woman was there who had been subject to bleeding for 12 years, but no one could heal her  Easy in; easy out.  So much NOT like real life! 

This lady had a bleeding that not only took a toll on her physically but in every way possible.  We know from Biblical study that a woman who is bleeding during her monthly period is ceremonially unclean for a short time: she cannot enter the Temple. 

She is also separated from family during that time.  She can’t really cook for anyone nor can she be physically with anyone.  She can’t be intimate with her husband.  She must keep clear of all contact with cooking containers, people and society UNTIL her purification period has finished. 

In her case, it was not just for one week but for 12 long years!

She had spent all she had on medical care.  From Mark’s account, Mark 5: ^26. She had suffered a great deal under the care of many doctors and had spent all she had, yet instead of getting better she grew worse. She was taken advantage of in every way possible.

Today, in most of the world, medical care is just not there for the people.  I have heard stories in some countries that a family or even one person would have to travel hundreds of miles to see a Nurse and even further to see a Doctor.  Women would start ON FOOT for the clinic weeks before the due date so that she’d be there for the birth of their 7th child.

       SHE’D WALK THE WHOLE WAY BY HERSELF. 

Many times they could not afford the medical treatment so they would find alternative methods…like ancient remedies of a mixture of wine and rubber alum _used to keep cucumbers fresh—colorless salt that at one ounce is toxic to humans and has killed people. 

Or additional ingredients might be garden crocuses or onions.  But these attempts had all failed. And the doctors just took her money until it was all gone!

In despair over her loneliness and worsening condition, she hopes that an unorthodox- unconventional- approach—a stealthy touching of Jesus, will change her fate.  That is why she came up from behind Him.  Contact with His garment, either the edge or the tassels hanging from them, may bring her instant healing. 

That was her goal. 彼女の目標Touch the hem of His garment. 主の着物のすそに触れる  and Life Happens!

She was sick and tired of being ill.  Weakness was taking her.  Her effort works, but it brings her more than she bargained for. She is not permitted to retain secrecy.

Picture the situation.  Many dozens of people pushing and shoving trying to get close and yes, even touch Jesus. 

You have been to a sale in a department store and you want to get that special item…you push and shove and you dig your heels into the carpet to get a better hold on the table.  You are being touched by at least 7-10 people.  One touch is as obvious as any other. 

And you say: “Who just touched me?”

A rock star is in a crowd of fans and says: “Who just took my picture?”

Strange, right?  It could be anyone! 

They all denied it!  Peter—again fast to say something says: “Master, really?  The people here are ALL crowding around us and pressing against You, and You want to know who touched You?”

Listen to the reply Jesus gives: “Someone touched Me; I know that power has gone out from Me.”

It wasn’t the regular ‘touch ya’ kind of touch…this had meaning. 

This was something else…and He knew this kind of touch…it was a touch of FAITH!”   A touch of FAITH! 信仰によりふれる

We all have been through some hard times in life.  Some seem to go through more hard times than others but it is common for us to see some pain and heart ache.  Some have experienced some pain for years.  Some of them will never show the strain it has on them: they seem so well cared for.  They hide it and that is not bad to do!

Some, on the other hand, tell everyone about the problems they go through.  You hear them on plane rides…my pain, my liver… 

Each of us has our way of dealing with issues we face.  Each one has a way to work through the pain.  Some do it better than others but we all are in the same boat: life is hard.

Yet, with this woman, she was seeking a way out of her problem, which is a very good thing to do. 

Luke does not tell us if her family was there to help—it sounds like they were not.  She was alone…in her pain…money going out the window…the bleeding kept flowing…getting weaker day after day. 

Going to sleep at night HOPING the bleeding would be stopped when she awoke but, as soon as reality fell on her in the morning, she realized that she was still bleeding---for 12 years!

Physically broken and wishing for a cure by morning.  I can’t imagine being in their shoes.  People like Joni Erikson ジョニ·エリクソン多田の話  & Nick Vujicic ニック・ヴュージシック の物語 have had times like that. 

Illustration: As a teenager, Joni Erickson Tada enjoyed riding horses, hiking, tennis, and swimming.  On July 30, 1967, she dove into Chesapeake Bay after misjudging the shallowness of the water.  She suffered a fracture between the fourth and fifth cervical levels and became a quadriplegic, paralyzed from the shoulders down.

During her two years of rehabilitation, according to her autobiography, she experienced anger, depression, suicidal thoughts, and religious doubts. However, Tada learned to paint with a brush between her teeth, and began selling her artwork. To date, she has written over forty books, recorded several musical albums, starred in an autobiographical movie of her life, and is an advocate for disabled people.

I heard her speak here in Japan a few years ago.  She would dream of being healed and was disappointed not to be handicapped when she woke up.  I think that would be a normal dream!  She also sought out Jesus.  She and some of her friends went to a number of healing services and sought that healing.  She prayed—others prayed.  And then, she was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2010!  She emerged successfully from cancer surgery and has a positive forecast.  Jesus touched her.  Still with the handicap but free.

Same with Kanae Miyahara’s new husband, Nick Vujicic—born without arms or legs. He is married and he surfs (here with a young lady who had a shark bit off her arm) and plays golf and swims and this couple are having a baby later this year!

Our lady in today’s passage was very much desperate.   My life is over! 

I am amazed that she had not taken her own life.   She must have thought about it—maybe? 

But she held on to life for 12 years of this bleeding saying now, “If only I could touch His hem!  I know I could be healed!” "きっと直ると考えていた".  How could she know that or even had a wish for that kind of healing?

Nothing in her past shows us that such was the case.  12 years is a long time to live with a serious problem.  She was getting weaker by the day.  Now, she hears that Jesus is coming into her village.  She talks herself into going to see Him.  She could not walk up to Him as that would be against her Jewish teaching.  She could not approach a man she had not known.  She could walk behind Him and reach out and touch His garment. 

Would that be enough? 

In the past and in the encounters Jesus had with healing, He would touch the sick or dead person—or at least speak to them.  Here, she alone wanted to be the one who could touch—because of her unclean condition.  She still—after all that has gone on in her—was aware of her station in her society.  She was a cast off.  Someone no one would want to associate with.

So, she reached out and … Mark 5: ²⁷… touched His cloak, ²⁸ because she thought, “If I just touch His clothes, I will be healed.” ²⁹ Immediately her bleeding stopped and she felt in her body that she was freed from her suffering.

She knew—she felt the difference.  She was no longer held in Death’s grasp.  She KNEW she was freed from her 12 years of suffering!

How would you have felt? 

You got this pain and you wish it would go away.  You got this situation—this person who bothers you—a debt that is too big to pay off—a deed you suffer over and   … & it goes away.  

Not there any more!  Gone! You would be glad?  Happy?  Excited?!

And Jesus stopped and said: “WHO TOUCHED ME?”  There was a touch of Faith and a touch of Grace.  He knew someone with Faith had touched Him.  No question there.  But who was it? 

That person needed to come forward!       Why?

When Jesus does something for you, it is a very good idea NOT to keep that a secret.  It is time to broadcast it.  Tell others.  It is very much like when He touched you and you found your sins forgiven. 

You KNEW it was gone—それは消えていた！this guilt of sin.  You knew inside of your heart that you were set free. 

You knew but sometimes forget, that you no longer need to worry over your past.  Jesus took care of that by sending it away as far as the East is from the West.  Gone from His sight and gone from His memory—never to remember it ever again!  That is the Cross of Jesus!

That is from His side and that is the side that really matters!

But Jesus senses things most of us cannot sense.  His timing is different from others'.  He is able to deal with many realities at once. 

At this point He knows that someone who had come near to Him had done more than get a glimpse of Him.  His Spirit had ministered to them.  He knows that power has gone out from Him. 

And now He asks who it was. She comes forward and tells it all. 

In the presence of all the people, she told why she had touched Him and how she had been instantly healed.

God gets the Glory!  神は栄光を得る！

And then---even more wonderful than what just happened, Jesus says: ⁴⁸ Then He said to her, “Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace.”

Other translations say it a little different and I like it so here goes: From The Message: ⁴⁸ Jesus said, “Daughter, you took a risk trusting Me, and now you’re healed and whole. Live well, live blessed!”

Complete Jewish Bible ⁴⁸ He said to her, “My daughter, your trust has saved you; go in peace.”

J.B. Phillips⁴⁸ “Daughter,” said Jesus, “It is your faith that has healed you—go in peace.”

Amplified Bible⁴⁸ And He said to her, Daughter, your faith (your confidence and trust in Me) has made you well! Go (enter) into peace (untroubled, undisturbed well-being).

That is the result of a Touch of Jesus.  イエスがふれる

To have the Jesus Touch, you can enter into a rest with great confidence.  To have the Jesus Touch, your confidence and trust would be in the ONLY ONE who could touch such a bleeding woman and bring healing.  

In response Jesus issues a simple commendation: " Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace.”  He makes her faith an example, timid as it was.  The one with faith does not need to fear approaching Jesus and His authority.  He is accessible and available.  Both the woman's faith and her testimony are commended in Jesus' response. 

Faith trusts in God's ability to meet our needs by His power.  God honors such faith.  Do you have that kind of faith?

To make matters worse, now a man from Jairus's home shows up to announce that it is too late.  With this next on-going story, Jesus is the ONLY one with the authority to bring someone back from the dead.  Before this incident with the bleeding woman, a request for Jesus was made to help with a dying daughter. 

Imagine this: Jesus stops to heal a woman of a nonfatal condition, and as He delays, a young life of Jairus’ daughter is snuffed out.  Where is justice in that?  

Don’t trouble the Master, the girl has died… 

People were crying and were set to mourn for a while.  Professional criers were there and people said, “She is dead!”  Sometimes the majority is wrong.  Jesus tells the child to arise.  Like the only son of the widow of Nain, the daughter rises to life as her soul returned.  Immediately Jesus requests that she be given food.  Amazement grips the parents.

 Jairus' invitation to Jesus to heal, an act of faith, had revealed that Jesus had power over death as well as sickness.  Jesus urges silence, even though what He has done was obvious.  His goal is not to become a traveling Palestinian miracle show.  His ministry is not about such displays of power and of honor, but about what they represent.  He knows that miracles would become the major interest, not new life and the basic issue of who it is who can heal a woman and raise a young girl from the dead.  

Jesus has taught a major lesson: faith means understanding that Jesus has the power to deliver life and that his timing and sovereignty can be respected.  

All Jairus' earlier pain and frustration have been transformed into a new perspective that merges faith with Jesus' authority.  他の女の子は死んだ..しかし.

In fact, this is the lesson of all four miracles of Luke 8:22-56: God's power is absolute.  Death is not the chief end of humans.      

 Trusting and knowing God is the chief end! 信頼して、神を知ることは最高の終わりだ！

The end of the story is that Jesus knew about the bleeding and He knew that the delay in coming to the ‘rescue’ of the daughter would lead to death of that child but He went to her home any way. 

Why: To show and to prove His authority. 

The lady who bled waited 12 years for healing—for a touch of Jesus. The young girl—maybe 12 years old as well, waited in death for His saving touch.  

Are you waiting for something like that? Are you waiting for Him to touch your life, your situation, your pain, and your relationship? All in His timing, all in His time.  Question is: can you wait for His touch?  Trust Him.  He will never let you down!

Greed: What is it good for? 欲:それは何に良いのですか？

Greed: What is it good for?  欲:それは何に良いのですか？

Key: vs 21  “…rich toward God.” 神に向かって豊か。

Besides world peace, what other issue do Believers deal with on a daily basis?  I would guess this topic of the lack of growth in the Spiritual Life would come somewhere on top.  What hinders our Spiritual growth?

Greed and the symptoms of greed are things that bring an end to Spiritual growth.  Greed also brings families down.  Business and even governments are shaken when greed enters the situation. 

In our PARABLE today, Jesus was invited to take part in a family dispute that He avoids like the plague.  Rather than taking sides with this man, Jesus gives a strong warning about greed. 

¹³ Someone in the crowd said to Him, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.”

¹⁴ Jesus replied, “Man, who appointed Me a judge or an arbiter between you?” ¹⁵ Then He said to them, “Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; a man’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.”

¹⁶ And He told them this parable: “The ground of a certain rich man produced a good crop. ¹⁷ He thought to himself, ‘What shall I do? I have no place to store my crops.’

¹⁸ “Then he said, ‘This is what I’ll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. ¹⁹ And I’ll say to myself, “You have plenty of good things laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry.”’

²⁰ “But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?’

²¹ “This is how it will be with anyone who stores up things for himself but is not rich toward God.”

Inheritance and the arguments over the estate are often the topic of many family’s harder times. It is real sickness and I will make up the disease’s name; “possessionitis” and it is found infecting the hearts and lives of many.  Greed and the pursuit of possessions, as Jesus saw it, was one of THE most dangerous diseases that attacks our Spiritual walk. This hindrance damages Spirituality itself.

Especially today, the call for owning the biggest, newest items is readily available to us.  How do we make a break with this disease and find Spiritual Wellness?  Jesus’ teaching on this point is most clear.

As in most if not all of the parables, the person in question is nameless (the Prodigal Son, the unrighteous Servant). This man is set up as a ‘type’ of a person. 

The man in question was not seeking an arbitrator or a go-between but an advocate or supporter on his behalf.  “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.” 先生。私と遺産を分けるように私の兄弟に話してください。」と言った。 Jesus is not fooled nor is He forced into a family feud.  He sees a deeper issue: the danger of greed.  And Jesus takes this situation to teach a very basic and important teaching in the form of a parable.  Parable: meaning  “moral story that points to a deeper meaning.”  He says—much to the man’s undoing—“Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; a man’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.”

 「どんな貪欲にも注意して、よく警戒しなさい。なぜなら、いくら豊かな人でも、その人のいのちは財産にあるのではないからです。

Jesus was not just thinking of this man’s personal problems but a problem facing us all.  One is hoarding: In an issue of a International Journal,  a team of researchers found that about 15 percent of older adults with depression had "severe compulsive hoarding behaviors," while just 2 to 5 percent of non-depressed older adults are hoarders. 

“The One With The Most Toys Wins” "ほとんどのおもちゃとともに死んだものが勝つ”

Jacob was a man who had worked all his life, saved all his money, and was a real miser. Just before he died, he said to his wife…"When I die, I want you to take all my money and put it in the casket with me. I want to take my money to the afterlife with me."

So he got his wife to promise him, with all of her heart, that when he died, she would put all of the money into the casket with him.

Well, he died.

He was stretched out in the casket, his wife was sitting there – dressed in black, and a friend was sitting next to her. When they finished the ceremony, and just before the undertakers got ready to close the casket, the wife said, “Wait just a moment!"

She had a small metal box with her; she came over with the box and put it in the casket. Then the undertakers locked the casket down and they rolled it away.

So her friend said, "I know you were not foolish enough to put all that money in there with your husband."

The loyal wife replied, "Listen, I’m a Christian. I cannot go back on my word. I promised him that I was going to put that money into the casket with him."

"You mean to tell me you put that money in the casket with him!?!?!?"

"I sure did," said the wife. “I got it all together, put it into my banking account, and wrote him a check…. If he can cash it, then he can spend it!"

The problem with possessions and mostly with the drive to obtain them--is that the person becomes a hostage to his desires. We are made to serve the Living God.  Once possessions become our main focus, we follow the dead.  Greed is sometimes called IDOLATRY in some texts (Col 3:5 Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry.  コロサイ人への手紙3:5 ですから、地上のからだの諸部分、すなわち、不品行、汚れ、情欲、悪い欲、そしてむさぼりを殺してしまいなさい。このむさぼりが、そのまま偶像礼拝なのです。; Eph 5:3 But among you there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed, because these are improper for God’s holy people. エペソ人への手紙5:3  あなたがたの間では、聖徒にふさわしく、不品行も、どんな汚れも、またむさぼりも、口にすることさえいけません。).  False worship involves bowing down before something that is not worthy of honor—and that can’t deliver life’s true meaning.  The pursuit of wealth is the pursuit of false religion.  You can die out there!

Some are driven by buying things and by possessing things.  Always looking for the sale—that is not a problem in itself—but for this man in our parable, it cost him his life.  Buying something just because you can afford it might not be the best use of your money.  IF you had $2.93 million, would you buy a Bugatti…made of gold?  Or buy a house in Texas that is selling for only $19 million?  But it does not have to be expensive things—but also practical things like a storehouse to keep your harvest.  Some say they want to take their wealth with them.  We have an expression in the US: You will never see a hearse (霊柩車/mortuary transport vehicle) pulling a U-Haul.

The man in our parable was fortunate to have had a bumper crop and he was impressed.  And what the man does next is both good and proper.  He wants to care for what he has and not waste it so he plans to build storage areas to hold this bumper crop.  These measures were both good and prudent.  (Joseph in Egypt did much the same thing.) That was not the problem.  The problem comes from within his heart.  His rational philosophy and desire that results from this decision are the main concern.

He really owns the crop.  It is his.  In no uncertain terms, he points that out with such statements as of what “I” will do. He speaks about “my” fruit.  “My” barn, “my” goods”, and “my” soul.  Jesus does not condemn wealth as such, but its use or misuse.  How DO we use what God has entrusted to us?  Is being generous our habit?  Or does compassion take a back seat to personal desires?

He is concerned with self-interest only.  Nothing is spoken of the needs of others.  Nor an awareness of responsibility to others.  There is only self-interest.  “Mine, mine, my!”

So much like so many today: I did it my way!  It was not only a song sung by Frank Sinatra but also a major belief held by so many in the world today.  Up by my own bootstraps!  It was MY idea. I earned it!   “And I’ll say to myself, “You have plenty of good things laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry.” 「たましいよ。これから先何年分もいっぱい物がためられた。さあ、安心して、食べて、飲んで、楽しめ。」 Wrong answer.  This is true hedonism (a seeking of pleasure for pleasure sake, --快楽主義) was very much alive in his thoughts and life style.  Don’t care about others.  The man at the beginning of this story with the question that got this started was concerned about an inheritance he wanted…the man in the parable was also only concerned for himself.

From all sorts of social communities around the world comes the recognition that using the creation for strictly selfish ends is a distortion.  The Bible also teaches that.  We are to be diligent caregivers with what we have around us.

Man is concerned for today and tomorrow, but God has another account to render: this man was about to join the dead.  God sees the man as a fool—strong words but here it fits very well.  He shows the man’s blindness in judging life’s priorities. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry. さあ、安心して、食べて、飲んで、楽しめ。」His soul is being weighed on the scales of life and he comes up short.  Once he passes over into death, all the storehouses he had would count for nothing. He, when he was alive, points to his wealth as important but in death, it is empty.  He had all the toys and he looses the game. 

The parable ends with a question: who will get what you have prepared for yourself? 『愚か者。おまえのたましいは、今夜おまえから取り去られる。そうしたら、おまえが用意した物は、いったいだれのものになるのか。』 In death, only worms will enjoy what is left.  How have we prepared for our exit?  Letting those we love -KNOW of our love.  Make provision for the family—as much as possible—for that departure.  We will need to visit this again at another time. Take care of those you love!

Which brings the final statement right home for us when He says: ²¹ “This is how it will be with anyone who stores up things for himself but is not rich toward God.” 21 自分のためにたくわえても、神の前に富まない者はこのとおりです。」The key here is being rich toward God. 神に向かって豊か。What does that look like?

Looking to the One who called you in the first place.  What did He call you to do?  Follow Him. 彼に従ってください And? Obey Him. 彼に従う And?  Make disciples of others. 彼のために人々を弟子としなさい  So, how are you doing?  A storage unit built up around you to insulate you from harm?  We cannot afford to only eat and drink and make merry but to help others around us.  We cannot afford spiritually to be the fool who only has concerns for his own needs and comfort.

The parable comes to an end but His teaching continues.  My Bible’s headline reads: DO NOT WORRY.  When it comes to what we have in life—how much we make and what is done with it—we are not to worry.  Life is much more that our worries.  Putting on the cloak of worry will only make your life heavier.  But, some of us really like to worry!  We might feel it is our spiritual gift.  Believe me, worry is not a gift.  ²³ Life is more than food, and the body more than clothes.

“True wealth is the ability to let go of your possessions.” "真の富は自分の持ち物を手放す能力です。"  A balance is necessary.  And as we come to a balance, we are to learn about life from two different sources. How ravens live and how lilies grow. に目を向けるカラス と ユリ  Ravens depend on the Creator for all they need.  God feeds them.  Jesus teaches that we are more valuable than birds and that God loves and cares for us much more.  And to consider how the flowers grow and how God cares for them.

 Jesus speaks to us all when He calls us out with “O you of little faith!” which brings us to the close and the antidote for greed 欲.

THE CROSS: 十字架：A reality of Grace. 恵みの真実Jesus shows us how to really live. He shows us how to die.  His act of Love: dying for our sins, is the most un-greedful act ever committed.  The Father knows what we need and has given that in the Person of Jesus.  We are to But seek His kingdom, and these things will be given to you as well.  What things: LIFE it self!

The end of it is this: a time of reflection; 黙想：what is my attitude toward what God has given me?  What around me is unnecessary or superfluous?  Are these things really mine to do with what I want? Am I a faithful steward? Do I give? Am I generous? Am I a hoarder?  Do I take what’s been given to me and store it up for myself?  What steps will I need to take today to seek His Kingdom first? 最初に主彼の王国を求めるために、今日どのような手順が必要でしょうか？ Pray with me.

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Please read ahead: 

Next week's text--Luke 8:43-48. See you next Sunday at ICCS!