Jesus could have given up on the Jewish leaders and others who missed the point, so to speak. He could’ve said, “Well, since they don’t get it, forget about them.” Interestingly enough, Jesus insists on revealing himself once again. Furthermore, at this time, Jesus takes his “I AM” statement to a whole new level. At this time, Jesus actually moves to the level of the very essence of his “I AM.” When Jesus says “I AM,” he is not simply using trivial words to introduce himself. He is not actually answering a trivial question because someone asked his name. Instead, Jesus was revealing the most powerful and ancient realities about Him – Jesus is Yahweh. In other words, to say that he was “I AM,” Jesus was intentionally using the letters God used to identify or, should I say,  reveal Himself to Moses and the Israelites in Exodus 3:14: “I AM who I AM.” When Jesus asserts,”…I am who I claim to be” (v. 24), he is saying that he is the God who existed before the foundation of the world. He is the God of Abraham, Jacob, and Isaac. He is the God of the Old and New Testaments. He is the God who transcends time and human history. He is the creator and sustainer of all things. He is the alpha and omega (the beginning and the end). He is the God who is uncontainable, indescribable, and uncontrollable. Yet, after Jesus implies all of these mind-blowing realities of who he is, people, once again, asked, “Who are you?” (v. 25).

Why didn’t they realize that they were in the presence of the one who is the Creator of all things? Some might be quick to judge and think that these people should know better. After all, some of them were part of the religious crowd present in the temple. Before we are quick to judge the crowd and religious leaders in this story, I believe missing God is a chronic problem of any human being.

Why do we miss God? Because of our sinful human nature. King David in Psalm 51:5 put it this way,

“For I was born a sinner—yes, from the moment my mother conceived me” (NLT).

Our sinful human nature kicks in whether we have just stepped in or have been in church for our entire lives.  One of the many things our human nature does from the beginning is we want to be in control of everything – including God.

Our human nature often creates an image of who God is and how He should act and do things. Therefore, it causes us to be blind and miss God even if we are in church (temple) everyday. Human nature causes us to miss the fact that God is uncontainable, uncontrollable, and indescribable. The question is how much are we missing God in our lives because we want to be in charge of our lives and in charge of who God is and how he should act?

Jesus’ tirelessness persists with the Jewish leaders. He comes to the climax of his revelation not only saying “I AM” Yahweh (the God of all ages) but also pointing them (us) to the cross. Jesus, God Himself, points the way for the people who don’t get it because he is God “The Great I AM.” The great “I AM” does not give up on us even when we ignore and give up on Him time and again. Jesus points them (us) to the cross because “The Great I AM” is a God who left his glory, became human, dwelt among us, died but rose again to be in close relationship with us. Jesus Himself as “the Great I AM” points them (us) to the cross because at the cross we have to give up control. It is at the cross that we move from belonging to this world to the world above. It is at the cross that the “Great I AM” sets us free from our addictions. It is at the cross that broken relationships are mended. It is at the cross that we are healed in our body, soul, and spirit. It is at the cross that we leave our pride and presumption of telling God how and when He should move. It is at the cross that we meet God, our sins are forgiven, and there is no more condemnation upon us.

Listening to someone’s iPod in order to get to know him/her! Crazy idea, huh? Here’s another idea for you. How about if we were  invited to listen to Jesus’ iPod? No, Jesus didn’t have an actual iPod. But the Bible actually tells us a lot of things about Jesus that we could explore. But what I would like for us to do is to listen to what Jesus has to say about himself through his iPod called “Jesus’ I AM statements” found in the Gospel of John.

There are number of I AM statements that Jesus uses to reveal Himself and that are registered in the Gospel of John. Each one of them reveals powerful truths about the person of Jesus Christ. One of them is found on John 14:6, “I am the way and the truth and the life…” John 14:6.

“I am the way…” is a statement with powerful implications not only in John 14: 6 but throughout the Gospel of John.  I believe one of the implications of “I am the way…” statement  is found in John 10: 1 – 16.

i-Way! Jesus speaks in a context in which spiritual blindness, lack of understanding, and chaos seem to be dominant themes. In fact, in the whole Gospel of John, the same themes of blindness, lack of understanding, and chaos are prevalent. Jesus reveals himself through his words (statements), miraculous signs, and wonders yet a number of people didn’t quite get it.  It is in this environment of chaos, misunderstanding, and blindness that Jesus uses specific words to reveal himself once again. Interestingly enough, despite the themes being chaos and blindness, Jesus neither talks about the gift of sight nor about light in chapter 10. Jesus talks about a gate (door, way). Moreover, Jesus talks about listening and voice. After indicating that He is the gatekeeper of his flock, Jesus asserts,

“After he has gathered his own flock, he walks ahead of them, and they follow him because they know his voice” (v. 4).

I wondered: why did Jesus talk about listening and voice instead of sight and light in this situation of blindness and chaos? Perhaps, Jesus missed the boat when answering to the situation. Perhaps, he ran out of illustrations when trying to reveal Himself. Perhaps, John mixed up the story of blindness and chaos with the story of listening and voice. Or, perhaps, Jesus’ words reflect one of the most powerful realities of Jesus’ revelation about himself. Perhaps, John 10: 1 – 16 reflects one of the most powerful realities of Jesus as the way. The reality is that Jesus is the God of Genesis 1:2 when the earth was formless and empty and darkness covered the deep waters. It reflects the powerful reality that Jesus is the God who spoke in Genesis and continues to speak in the midst of darkness (blindness) and chaos. Perhaps, Jesus mentioned listening and voice because, while in this world, blindness and chaos are always going to be difficult realities of our life.

What are some of the voices speaking chaos and darkness into our life right now? Job loss, broken relationships, loss of high self-esteem, depression, addiction, anxiety…

Jesus implies that there are voices trying to keep us in chaos and darkness. Actually, Jesus implies that the voice that causes confusion and misunderstanding (a deceiving voice) is the voice of the one who comes with the purpose to, “…steal and kill and destroy” (v. 10). You see, I am not blaming everything on the Devil. But the reality is, while here on this earth, we live in a broken world.

Until this earth comes into full redemption, there are many broken situations that the enemy takes advantage of to speak darkness and chaos. He takes advantage of our own brokenness and sinfulness to steal, kill, and destroy. The lack of peace, turmoil, words that kill a dream and/or our high self-esteem, words that destroy relationships, gossiping, and unforgiveness. These are the words of darkness and chaos and are not from the One who is the Way. What are some of the voices that are stealing, killing, and destroying our lives today?

Jesus implies that the voices that cause chaos and blindness (darkness) place us in a box. Those voices want to convince us that we are stuck in chaos and blindness (darkness). But Jesus implies, however, that chaos and darkness shouldn’t prevent us from walking in life. More importantly, it shouldn’t prevent us from listening to the voice of the one who is the Way.

“They won’t follow a stranger; they will run from him because they don’t know his voice…I have other sheep, too, are not in this sheepfold. I must bring them also. They will listen to my voice, and there will be one flock with one shepherd” (v. 5; 16).

People didn’t understand what Jesus was revealing about himself.  The story says that he explained it again. Furthermore, Jesus implies that his voice will lead us to good pastures,

“Yes, I am the gate [way]. Those who come in through me will be saved. They will come and go freely and will find good pastures” (v. 9).

i-Way! Jesus didn’t promise that the voices of darkness and chaos would stop. But, as we listen to his voice, he promised to offer good pastures in the midst of darkness and chaos. Jesus implies, if there are voices whose purpose is to steal, kill, and destroy, there is His voice as the God who speaks in the midst of chaos and darkness saying, “’Let there be light,’ and there was light” (Genesis 1:3). Moreover, there is His voice as the good Shepherd. The One whom,

“Even when I walk through the darkest valley, I will not be afraid [fear no evil], for you are close beside me. Your rod and your staff protect and comfort me” (Psalm 23:4).

What are the voices that causing darkness and chaos in our lives?

Today is the day that we must learn how to run in the midst of chaos and darkness into the arms of the One who is the Way.

The Bible is one of the most popular books in the world. Actually, statistics show that the Bible tops the best seller list every year. World sales of the Bible are more than 100 million every year. Impressive numbers, huh?

Interestingly enough, some don’t ever read the Bible and just use it as a decoration. Others approach the Bible as a historical book. There are some who don’t like to read because they were taught to approach the Bible out of obligation. There are still others who approach and read the Bible for knowledge. They want to show how much they know about the Bible. I mean knowing the Bible is not a bad thing at all. The problems begin, however, when the Bible becomes a weapon to show knowledge or people use the Bible as weapon and start beating others up to prove their point.

There are a number of passages in the Bible that talk about the Bible. One of the passages (stories) comes from the prophet Jeremiah. It is through this man who was rejected by his local community and even by his own family that God speaks a crucial word about His own Word (the Scripture) in Jeremiah 31: 31 – 34. Jeremiah 31: 31 – 34 is a passage that many theologians and historians define as the Gospel before the Gospels. Furthermore, it is a passage that does not directly refer to the Bible yet I believe it captures the very essence of God’s word.

Israel (the house of Judah) is going through times of judgment and destruction because they broke their covenant with God. In other words, God chose the Israelites to be His people. He chose them not because they necessarily had it all together. On the contrary, the Israelites were, perhaps, one of the most stubborn and disobedient people ever (very much like many of us). God chose them out of His mercy and grace. There was nothing that they could have done to deserve being chosen by God. God chose the Israelites and made certain promises requiring certain behavior from His people in return. For example, God made a covenant with Noah (Not to destroy the earth again), Abraham (Father of many nations), Isaac, Jacob (uncountable descendents), Moses (to make the children of Israel special possession among all people), etc. Especially in the situation with Moses, God gave His laws (Ten Commandments) through Moses as guidelines for blessings. Not guidelines to get rid of problems but guidelines to live emotionally, physically, and spiritually healthier. The problem is the people of Israel not only couldn’t fully obey the laws but they couldn’t fulfill their part of the covenant either.  In the situation with the prophet Jeremiah, the people of Israel seemed to have reached the climax of disobedience of God’s law and covenant with Him. It is in this situation that God tells them about the law He gave and covenant(s) He made with them.

One of the things that is interesting though is God didn’t approach the people of Israel saying that they had to read the law more often (God’s word). Neither did God approach the situation saying that they were to memorize each verse of the law. But God talks about the law (scripture) from the standpoint of relationship. God spoke through Jeremiah using the powerful image of a husband who loves His wife so much and who deeply desires to be in close relationship with her.

I don’t know your approach to the Bible. Perhaps, you have learned that the more you read and acquire knowledge of the Bible, the better you will be. Again, there is nothing wrong with you knowing different parts of the Bible. The problem is when knowledge becomes a weapon to prove my point.  Perhaps, your perspective of the Bible is that it is a tedious book that you have to read out of obligation. If you don’t, you will be punished. Again, I don’t know how you approach the Bible. But the one thing I know, the spiritual discipline of reflection on the Word (Bible) is not a religious obligation. Neither is it necessarily knowledge to prove your point. But reflection on the Word (Bible) is about a God who is so passionate about us and a God who deeply desires to be in close relationship with us like a passionate husband who deeply loves his wife.

God gave His word (Scripture) to see His people living an emotionally, spiritually, and physically healthier life. God gave His law (Word-Scripture) to reveal Himself and be in close relationship with His people. Most important, God gave His Word to reach the heart of His unique creation – human beings. Through the prophet Jeremiah, God tells the Israelites that He will write His instructions deep within them, He will write them on their hearts (v. 33).

God could have asked how often the Israelites read the law (Bible) so that He could relate to them. Better yet, God could have said that the essence of His Word (Scripture) was given so that the Israelites would make an extra effort and strive to obey His laws. Instead, God tells His people that His laws (Scriptures) are a matter of the heart. Because when God’s laws (Scripture) reach the heart, reflection of the word of God is no longer about obligation and knowledge but it is about transformation.

John Ortberg asserts, “Both human experience and the Bible teach that increased knowledge—even knowledge of the Scriptures—does not automatically produce transformed people” (188).

I don’t know your perception of or your approach to the Bible. As mentioned earlier, you might know nothing and have no desire to know anything that the Bible contains. You might use the Bible as decoration on your bookshelf. Perhaps, you perceive the Bible as a tedious book that you have to read out of obligation. Or, perhaps, you were taught to read the Bible to accumulate knowledge and to prove your point.  I must say that the reflection on the Word (Bible) is not about religious obligation. It is not about accumulating knowledge in order to prove your point. But the reflection on the Word is about a passionate God who deeply desires to be in close relationship with us. A God who desires to reveal Himself time and again. A God who wants to see us living a life that is emotionally, physically, and spiritually healthier. Reflecting on the word is about the heart. Because when God’s Word (Scriptures) reaches our heart, we experience transformation.

When: February 6 (Saturday)

Time: 7:00 – 9:00pm

Where: Connection Point Cafe located right across from auditorium # 6 at AMC Theater (Mayfair Mall)

Let’s say you have never heard or read this Psalm before, what are the first images that come to mind? Well, the first image that comes to my mind is of someone who is grateful and joyful. Moreover, I would say that this person is so thankful for everything that God has done that he/she is honestly expressing his/her excitement. Right? Well, yes and no. The Psalmist in Psalm 126 is living in an unhappy time of his people’s history. Some say that Psalm 126 is a lament. They say that what the Psalmist does is to re-tell what he read and/or heard about the Golden age of his people, Israel. They say that the Psalmist laments as he re-tells and remembers when everything was going well for Israel. They say it is a lament…But I believe what the Psalmist is saying in Psalm 126 is beyond lament. To me, what the Psalmist does is forecast a new golden age in which there will be shouts of joy again. More precisely, what the Psalmist does is sacrificially give a shout of thanksgiving for the circumstances that are not happening.
When it comes to being thankful, sometimes society, culture, and even the church can cause us to go with the flow. Literally, there is peer pressure for us to pretend to be thankful when we don’t feel thankful. What the Psalmist does in Psalm 126 is not pretend that he is thankful.  But it is what I call sacrifices of thanks. The Psalmist painfully and sacrificially portrays an exciting and joyful moment in the life of Israel. You might call him delusional. Well, I call the Psalmist’s attitude divine insanity.
The Psalmist heard what people said about the Golden age of Israel. In other words, his divine insanity partially comes from remembering that if God did great things in the past, He is powerful enough to continue to do great things in the future despite the present circumstances. You see, his thanksgiving is based on what God has already shown He is capable of doing. Also, the Psalmist’s divine insanity comes from God’s promises to His people. Through the prophets, God promised that despite apparently hopeless and not so joyful circumstances, He will produce joy and peace, “You will live in joy and peace. The mountains and hills will burst into song, and the trees of the field will clap their hands! Where once there were thorns, cypress trees will grow” Isaiah 55: 12 – 13.

The Psalmist does not portray this divine-insane picture of joy and excitement in the midst of dryness and desolation based on human optimism and positive thinking. Neither does he portray such a scenario because he is being pressured to say nice words to please his people. But I believe the Psalmist portrays a joyful and exciting scenario in the midst of desolation based on the promises of God. The promises of God are not disposable. Once used, they cannot happen again. But the promises of God are very much a part of God’s essence – His promises remain forever.

The Psalmist deals with two sharp realities. He deals with the unseen reality of God who did great things in the past and He can do it again. But the second part of Psalm 126 portrays the sharp reality of what the Psalmist can see (that is tangible). The dry reality of the unfertile soil,
“Restore our fortunes, Lord, as streams renew the desert. Those who plant in tears will harvest with shouts of joy. They weep as they go to plant their seed, but they sing as they return with the harvest” (Psalm 126: 4 – 6).

Whenever we deal with two different and sharp realities, our tendency is to gravitate towards one or the other. What is interesting about the Psalmist is he does not use the unseen reality as a denial of his dry and immediate reality. Neither he dwells in the dryness of his immediate circumstance. Instead, he seems to merge the unseen with what he can see (with what is tangible). It is as if, by him thankfully and joyfully saying that the unseen reality of God can and will do great things, causes the heavens to kiss the earth. It is not that the process changes things drastically and immediately. But the process of thanking for what he does not see seems to promote healing and hope within him in the midst of a dry and unfertile soil.
While spending time with Psalm 126, I thought about my own life. I thought about how much I feel that the situation around me represents this dry and unfertile soil on which the Psalmist finds himself. Furthermore, I thought about what I know what God has done in my life in the past. I know that He has filled my life with laughter and with joy. I know He did in the past and He can do it again. I know that His promises are not disposable but remain forever. Despite all of that, I must confess that I quite often find it very difficult to connect the reality of what God can and will do (promises) with the dry streams of my life. Have you ever felt that way? Have you ever felt that your reality is too painful and too dry for you to portray a joyful and exciting scenario of what God can and will do?
If so, I must say that you and I are in the same boat. Don’t feel that you are the only one. Since we are in this together, I have a suggestion. I want us to think about something that, in our immediate reality, seems to be dry and unfertile (e.g. marriage, job, relationship with God and others, etc). Then I want us to apply what the Psalmist implies in Psalm 126. I want us to sacrificially offer thanksgiving for what is to come in our immediate reality…As we do so, I believe He will start a process of healing and restoration in our immediate reality.

Have you ever had a flashback about a good moment in your life? The Psalmist seems to have had flashbacks about times when he was really thankful. No, it is not good to live life based on flashbacks. Yet, when we face emotional and spiritual dehydration, isn’t it good to think about times when everything seemed to be nice and fine? When impossible times come and we feel we cannot go on, isn’t it good to remember the good times? Perhaps, the Psalmist is saying that God gave us the skills and capacity to remember so that we can go on during hard times. He gave us the capacity to remember that things are not always dry and lifeless. Perhaps, your marathon is getting harder and harder. Today might be a good time to remember the good old times. Don’t dwell on the dryness of the situation.
The other realistic aspect of this thank you note brought up in v. 4 is that there are times that we don’t feel so thankful. The Psalmist implies that the best he can do is to dream about and/or have flashbacks about times he was thankful. The Psalmist does not try to pretend by saying that he is thankful when he is not. Perhaps, he is teaching us that in this marathon called life, we don’t have to pretend to God. We can tell God how it is. Actually, pretending before others but especially before God causes us to be even more emotionally and spiritually dehydrated
The Psalmist seems to be convinced that the way to go in this marathon called life is to quit pretending. So much so, that the rest of psalm 42 becomes a back and forth of the ups and downs of life. He affirms,
“Why am I discouraged? Why is my heart so sad? I will put my hope in God! I will praise him again my Savior and my God!” (v. 5).
The Psalmist repeats time and again the same idea of being discouraged, and then he puts his hope in God all the way to the very end of the psalm (v. 11).
In a very poetic manner, the Psalmist seems to be saying that this marathon called life is filled with both encouraging and not so encouraging moments. We have moments when we feel thankful and moments when we don’t feel so thankful. The key is not to deny that we go through moments of spiritual and emotional dehydration. The key is not to pretend that we are thankful when we don’t feel so thankful. But the Psalmist implies that the key to cross the finish line is to maintain the rhythm during this marathon called life.
The problem many times is we spend most of our lives trying to get rid of the moments that are not so encouraging. We try to get rid of moments when we are not so thankful and remember only the ones when thanks can be given. The psalmist reminds us that, in this marathon called life, in the rhythm of discouraging and low moments we can find the presence of God as much as in high moments. The apostle Paul portrays the reality of the rhythm of life.  In the letter he writes to the Corinthians, he says,
“…that I was caught up to paradise and heard things so astounding that they cannot be expressed in words, things no human are allowed to tell [4]…I take pleasure in my weaknesses, and in the insults, hardships, persecutions, and troubles that I suffer for Christ. For when I am weak, then I am strong [10]”  (II Corinthians 12:4; 10)
How is your rhythm in this marathon called life? Do you feel spiritually and emotionally dehydrated? As thanksgiving is approaching, you might not feel that thankful. Perhaps, through Psalm 42, God is telling, “Don’t pretend.” Perhaps, He is reminding us that He never designed us to be sprinters but to be marathoners. And as such, we will constantly have ups and downs, encouraging and discouraging moments, and moments when the joy of being thankful seems to be very far away. Perhaps, He reminds us that He designed us to make stops and get refreshed. Perhaps, He is reminding us that the low and discouraging moments were well designed for us to be as close to Him as the high and encouraging moments of life. He reminds us that He always there with cup of fresh water that will keep us going one extra mile…