Jesus Stories for Sunday, Feb 25
TGBC Sunday, Feb 25. Luke 8:1-25
Some Women Accompany Jesus
1 Soon afterwards he goes on through cities and villages, proclaiming and bringing the good news of the kingdom of God. The twelve were with him, 2 as well as some women who had been cured of evil spirits and infirmities: Mary, called Magdalene,
from whom seven demons had gone out,
3 and Joanna, the wife of Herod’s steward Chuza, and Susanna, and many others, who provided for them out of their resources.
The Parable of the Sower
4 When a great crowd gathered and people from town after town came to him, he said in a parable: 5 “A sower went out to sow his seed; and as he sowed, some fell on the path and was trampled on, and the birds of the air ate it up. 6 Some fell on the rock; and as it grew up, it withered for lack of moisture. 7 Some fell among thorns, and the thorns grew with it and choked it. 8 Some fell into good soil, and when it grew, it produced a hundredfold.” As he said this, he called out, “Let anyone with ears to hear listen!”
The Purpose of the Parables
9 Then his disciples asked him what this parable meant. 10 He said, “To you it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of God; but to others I speak in parables, so that
‘looking they may not perceive,
and listening they may not understand.’
The Parable of the Sower Explained
11 “Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God. 12 The ones on the path are those who have heard; then the devil comes and takes away the word from their hearts, so that they may not believe and be saved. 13 The ones on the rock are those who, when they hear the word, receive it with joy. But these have no root; they believe only for a while and in a time of testing fall away. 14 As for what fell among the thorns, these are the ones who hear; but as they go on their way, they are choked by the cares and riches and pleasures of life, and their fruit does not mature. 15 But as for that in the good soil, these are the ones who, when they hear the word, hold it fast in an honest and good heart, and bear fruit with patient endurance.
A Lamp under a Jar
16 “No one after lighting a lamp hides it under a jar, or puts it under a bed, but puts it on a lampstand, so that those who enter may see the light. 17 For nothing is hidden that will not be disclosed, nor is anything secret that will not become known and come to light. 18 Then pay attention to how you listen; for to those who have, more will be given; and from those who do not have, even what they seem to have will be taken away.”
The True Kindred of Jesus
19 Then his mother and his brothers came to him, but they could not reach him because of the crowd.
20 And he was told, “Your mother and your brothers are standing outside, wanting to see you.” 21 But he says to them, “My mother and my brothers are those who hear the word of God and do it.”
Jesus Calms a Storm
22 One day he gets into a boat with his disciples, and he says to them, “Let us go across to the other side of the lake.” So they put out, 23 and while they are sailing he falls asleep. A windstorm swept down on the lake, and the boat was filling with water, and they were in danger. 24 They go to him and wake him up, shouting, “Master, Master, we are perishing!”
And he wakes up and rebukes the wind and the raging waves; they cease, and there is a calm. 25 He says to them, “Where is your faith?” They were afraid and amazed, and said to one another, “Who then is this, that he commands even the winds and the water, and they obey him?”
Thoughts for Sunday. I converted The GB Club version to NRSV with verse numbers and section headings, and changed some of the verbs from past tense to historic present, which though common throughout Mark's gospel, is totally missed by almost all English translations though it wonderfully heightens the drama. See if you spot!
Ah, we meet Mary Magdalene, and we learn that she has been demon-possessed. Here in our 21st century we are not sure exactly what that means, but obviously it was bad; however, Mary’s “clean” now, which is good news. Those of us who believe Jesus was just as manly a human male as the rest of us have always wondered if MM was Jesus’ girlfriend, and in the rock musical “Jesus Christ Superstar” it’s quite clear that she was. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q-ChyH9RHfY However, evidence that Jesus had a wife is contrived and sham, for sensationalism, and we don’t know; but MM is mentioned often enough that she seems to have been conspicuous in the stories about Jesus that the evangelists heard, and prominent in Jesus’ own life and in his heart. Could MM have been the woman who cried at Jesus’ feet during supper at Pharisee Simon's house in yesterday’s reading? IDK and neither do you.
Jesus tells a parable. We’ve heard it explained and preached so many times that we wonder why the disciples didn’t “get it,” but they didn’t. We like to speak of the desirability of transparency, and this parable was completely opaque to them, so Jesus explains it, makes it perfectly clear. What is not so clear is why Jesus says, “To you it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of God; but to others I speak in parables, so that
‘looking they may not perceive,
and listening they may not understand,’” which is perplexing and seems cruel. Luke and Matthew get this from what Mark heard and wrote down. Jesus’ words that may come from the Call of Isaiah at 6:9, He (the Lord) said, "Go, and tell this people: 'Keep on listening, but do not perceive; Keep on looking, but do not understand.' 10 Render the hearts of this people insensitive, Their ears dull, And their eyes dim, Otherwise they might see with their eyes, Hear with their ears, Understand with their hearts, And return and be healed.” I wonder if that is “resigned sarcasm” that the people are so obtuse they will never “get it”? What do you think?
In the part after the lamp under a jar - - to those who have more will be given; and those who have little, what little they do have will be taken away - - doesn’t obviously fit with the proverb about the lamp. Maybe Jesus is saying that the disciples already know the way into the kingdom, their job is to show others (i.e., be the lamp?), but I don't think so. Or maybe he is saying that those who “see” will inherit the kingdom while those who are “blind” to God’s expectations will not. The only thing that’s clear is that Jesus often reverses everything, turning our human expectations and wisdom inside out and upside down.
Jesus’ relatives: Luke omits Mark saying that Jesus’ relatives have come to get him because they think he’s lost his mind, setting up Luke's version to simply mean that Jesus’ true relatives are not his blood kin but his disciples; which could include you and me.
Calming the storm - - scholars call this a nature miracle. I enjoy the story and like to visualize the Creating Word, for momentary convenience while he’s on the scene as with his other works of power, reversing Created Order, or again bringing order out of Chaos (“Let there be …”, except that Jesus as the Creating Word is not Luke’s (nor Mark’s 70 AD) theology, but Gospel John’s a generation later. So how does Jesus do this? Again, dynamis, God’s power in him, eh?
And the disciples’ question remains unanswered, “who is this?” (which is more central and critical throughout Mark’s gospel, where Luke got the story, than here for Luke). Who is this?
twellerpc@gmail.com
Top pic: Chipo Chung as Mary Magdalene in Jesus Christ Superstar
Some Women Accompany Jesus
1 Soon afterwards he goes on through cities and villages, proclaiming and bringing the good news of the kingdom of God. The twelve were with him, 2 as well as some women who had been cured of evil spirits and infirmities: Mary, called Magdalene,
from whom seven demons had gone out,
3 and Joanna, the wife of Herod’s steward Chuza, and Susanna, and many others, who provided for them out of their resources.
The Parable of the Sower
4 When a great crowd gathered and people from town after town came to him, he said in a parable: 5 “A sower went out to sow his seed; and as he sowed, some fell on the path and was trampled on, and the birds of the air ate it up. 6 Some fell on the rock; and as it grew up, it withered for lack of moisture. 7 Some fell among thorns, and the thorns grew with it and choked it. 8 Some fell into good soil, and when it grew, it produced a hundredfold.” As he said this, he called out, “Let anyone with ears to hear listen!”
The Purpose of the Parables
9 Then his disciples asked him what this parable meant. 10 He said, “To you it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of God; but to others I speak in parables, so that
‘looking they may not perceive,
and listening they may not understand.’
The Parable of the Sower Explained
11 “Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God. 12 The ones on the path are those who have heard; then the devil comes and takes away the word from their hearts, so that they may not believe and be saved. 13 The ones on the rock are those who, when they hear the word, receive it with joy. But these have no root; they believe only for a while and in a time of testing fall away. 14 As for what fell among the thorns, these are the ones who hear; but as they go on their way, they are choked by the cares and riches and pleasures of life, and their fruit does not mature. 15 But as for that in the good soil, these are the ones who, when they hear the word, hold it fast in an honest and good heart, and bear fruit with patient endurance.
A Lamp under a Jar
16 “No one after lighting a lamp hides it under a jar, or puts it under a bed, but puts it on a lampstand, so that those who enter may see the light. 17 For nothing is hidden that will not be disclosed, nor is anything secret that will not become known and come to light. 18 Then pay attention to how you listen; for to those who have, more will be given; and from those who do not have, even what they seem to have will be taken away.”
The True Kindred of Jesus
19 Then his mother and his brothers came to him, but they could not reach him because of the crowd.
Jesus Calms a Storm
22 One day he gets into a boat with his disciples, and he says to them, “Let us go across to the other side of the lake.” So they put out, 23 and while they are sailing he falls asleep. A windstorm swept down on the lake, and the boat was filling with water, and they were in danger. 24 They go to him and wake him up, shouting, “Master, Master, we are perishing!”
And he wakes up and rebukes the wind and the raging waves; they cease, and there is a calm. 25 He says to them, “Where is your faith?” They were afraid and amazed, and said to one another, “Who then is this, that he commands even the winds and the water, and they obey him?”
Thoughts for Sunday. I converted The GB Club version to NRSV with verse numbers and section headings, and changed some of the verbs from past tense to historic present, which though common throughout Mark's gospel, is totally missed by almost all English translations though it wonderfully heightens the drama. See if you spot!
Ah, we meet Mary Magdalene, and we learn that she has been demon-possessed. Here in our 21st century we are not sure exactly what that means, but obviously it was bad; however, Mary’s “clean” now, which is good news. Those of us who believe Jesus was just as manly a human male as the rest of us have always wondered if MM was Jesus’ girlfriend, and in the rock musical “Jesus Christ Superstar” it’s quite clear that she was. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q-ChyH9RHfY However, evidence that Jesus had a wife is contrived and sham, for sensationalism, and we don’t know; but MM is mentioned often enough that she seems to have been conspicuous in the stories about Jesus that the evangelists heard, and prominent in Jesus’ own life and in his heart. Could MM have been the woman who cried at Jesus’ feet during supper at Pharisee Simon's house in yesterday’s reading? IDK and neither do you.
Jesus tells a parable. We’ve heard it explained and preached so many times that we wonder why the disciples didn’t “get it,” but they didn’t. We like to speak of the desirability of transparency, and this parable was completely opaque to them, so Jesus explains it, makes it perfectly clear. What is not so clear is why Jesus says, “To you it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of God; but to others I speak in parables, so that
‘looking they may not perceive,
and listening they may not understand,’” which is perplexing and seems cruel. Luke and Matthew get this from what Mark heard and wrote down. Jesus’ words that may come from the Call of Isaiah at 6:9, He (the Lord) said, "Go, and tell this people: 'Keep on listening, but do not perceive; Keep on looking, but do not understand.' 10 Render the hearts of this people insensitive, Their ears dull, And their eyes dim, Otherwise they might see with their eyes, Hear with their ears, Understand with their hearts, And return and be healed.” I wonder if that is “resigned sarcasm” that the people are so obtuse they will never “get it”? What do you think?
In the part after the lamp under a jar - - to those who have more will be given; and those who have little, what little they do have will be taken away - - doesn’t obviously fit with the proverb about the lamp. Maybe Jesus is saying that the disciples already know the way into the kingdom, their job is to show others (i.e., be the lamp?), but I don't think so. Or maybe he is saying that those who “see” will inherit the kingdom while those who are “blind” to God’s expectations will not. The only thing that’s clear is that Jesus often reverses everything, turning our human expectations and wisdom inside out and upside down.
Jesus’ relatives: Luke omits Mark saying that Jesus’ relatives have come to get him because they think he’s lost his mind, setting up Luke's version to simply mean that Jesus’ true relatives are not his blood kin but his disciples; which could include you and me.
Calming the storm - - scholars call this a nature miracle. I enjoy the story and like to visualize the Creating Word, for momentary convenience while he’s on the scene as with his other works of power, reversing Created Order, or again bringing order out of Chaos (“Let there be …”, except that Jesus as the Creating Word is not Luke’s (nor Mark’s 70 AD) theology, but Gospel John’s a generation later. So how does Jesus do this? Again, dynamis, God’s power in him, eh?
And the disciples’ question remains unanswered, “who is this?” (which is more central and critical throughout Mark’s gospel, where Luke got the story, than here for Luke). Who is this?
twellerpc@gmail.com
Top pic: Chipo Chung as Mary Magdalene in Jesus Christ Superstar