The way of imagination

“Would that all the Lord’s people were prophets and that the Lord would put his spirit on them!” (Numbers 11.29) “If you who are evil know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!” (Luke 11.13)        Jesus and the disciples continue to journey towards Jerusalem.   As chapter 11 of his Gospel opens, Luke, as he often does, shows Jesus at prayer (11.1; cf. 6.12; 9.28).   The disciples ask Jesus to teach them how to pray, and Jesus proceeds to give them the “Lord’s Prayer” (11.2-4; cf. Mt. 6.9-13).   Jesus then continues, exhorting the disciples to be persistent as they pray – ask, seek, knock – in order to receive…the Holy Spirit (11.5-13)!   It is striking that Jesus speaks of the Spirit as being the “objective” of the disciples’ prayer-life .   However, in the context of Luke-Acts, it makes perfect sense.   Taken as a whole,...

  "Which of these three, do you think, was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of the robbers?”  He said, “The one who showed him mercy.” Jesus said to him, “Go and do likewise.” (Luke 10.36-37)      Jesus and the disciples continue to journey towards Jerusalem.  Jesus’ mission was, simply put,  the kingdom of God .  And yet, Jesus’ vision of the kingdom didn’t square with any of the other visions on offer.  Jesus’ vision was one of compassion and mercy, of peace and wholeness (= “shalom”).  Through Jesus, the kingdom of God was indeed present (cf. Lk. 11.20, 17.20-21), albeit subtly (Lk. 13.18-21).  Only those with “healthy eyes” could see it (Lk. 11.33-36).      In Luke chapter 10, we find a whimsical exchange between a “scribe” and Jesus.  This expert in the law of Moses wants to “test” Jesus, i.e. to put him on the spot and see whether he knows his stuff.  The scribe asks, “What must I do to in...

  “At that very time there were some present who told Jesus about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices. He asked them, “Do you think that because these Galileans suffered in this way they were worse sinners than all other Galileans? No, I tell you, but unless you repent you will all perish as they did.” (Luke 13.1-3)      Jesus and the disciples continue to journey towards Jerusalem.   Jesus’ teaching has a harsh, prophetic tone; indeed, the notion of repentance is emphasized.   What precisely is Jesus calling his contemporaries to repent of ?      Jesus’ mission was, simply put, the kingdom of God .   And yet, Jesus’ vision of the kingdom didn’t square with any of the other visions on offer.   Jesus was constantly clashing with the Pharisees over questions of law-observance (e.g. Lk. 5.17-26; 11.37-54); unlike the Zealots, Jesus advocated non-violence and love of enemy (Lk. 6.27...

  “Once Jesus was asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God was coming, and he answered, “The kingdom of God is not coming with things that can be observed, nor will they say, ‘Look, here it is!’ or ‘There it is!’ For, in fact, the kingdom of God is among you.” (Luke 17.20-21)      Jesus and the disciples continue to journey towards Jerusalem.   Jesus’ teaching has a harsh, prophetic tone; indeed, the notion of repentance is emphasized.   The motif of repentance fits within the overall theme of Jesus’ teaching – namely, the kingdom of God.   Israel’s hope was that Yahweh would reign over his people, perhaps through a Messiah and, through this “anointed king”, rule all the nations of the world (cf. Ps. 2).   There would be one God, one world, one kingdom (needless to say, whichever empire happened to be oppressing the people of God when Yahweh decided to establish his kingdom would be dealt with…).   Every sect within Ju...

  “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore ask the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest. Go on your way; I am sending you out like lambs into the midst of wolves.” (Luke 10.2-3)      Jesus and the disciples continue to journey towards Jerusalem.   Jesus has been identified as the Messiah, God’s anointed king (Lk. 9.20).   The (true) king of Israel now conducts a “royal tour”, seemingly intent on visiting every village between Capernaum and the capital.   Jesus, who is doomed to die in Jerusalem, is concerned to “gather in the harvest”, i.e. to prepare the people of God against the day of judgment which looms on the horizon (cf. Lk. 10.12-14).   Jesus is on a prophetic mission, which resembles that of Elijah (cp. Lk. 9.61-62 with 1 Kings 19.19-21).   Once again, he enrolls his followers – 72 this time – to participate in his work of healing and proclaiming the kingdom.   The role of t...

  “When the days drew near for him to be taken up, Jesus set his face to go to Jerusalem.” (Luke 9.51)      Destination: Jerusalem.   Once more, it’s time to take to the road.   Today is Ash Wednesday, which signals the start of the 40-day season of Lent which will prepare us to celebrate Easter.   In chapter 9 of Luke’s Gospel, Jesus embarks on a journey which will culminate in his arrival, in chapter 19, in Jerusalem on Palm Sunday.   This section of Luke is called the “travel narrative”.   What gives this narrative its potency is the fact that we know Jesus is travelling towards the national capital with a dark purpose – his face “is set”.   Indeed, a few verses earlier, Jesus tried to prepare the apostles for the fate that awaits him (cf. Lk. 9.44-45).   Moving backward again, we find Jesus on a mountain-top, conversing with two prophetic figures from ancient times – Moses and Elijah (Lk. 9.28-36).   As if that’s not...