Compassion and Tragedy

Hello again, my apologies for the inadvertent break again.

For the week of March 25-31 we were reading Matthew 14-15, Mark 6-7, John 5-6 and I would like to focus on Matthew 14: 10-14

And he (Herod) sent, and beheaded John in the prison. And his head was brought in a charger, and given to the damsel: and she brought it to her mother. And his disciples came, and took up the body, and buried it, and went and told Jesus.

When Jesus heard of it, he departed thence by ship into a desert place apart: and when the people had heard thereof, they followed him on foot out of the cities. And Jesus went forth, and saw a great multitude, and was moved with compassion toward them, and he healed their sick.

The bold interjection was one I inserted for clarity.

Let's take a look at what is happening here.  John the Baptist was just beheaded in prison due to a whim of Herodias (the brother of Philip) when John told Herod that he shouldn't be with her because she was married. Herodias had her daughter go dance for Herod who was so pleased that he promised her anything she wanted. Her mother Herodias had instructed her to ask for John's head.

Jesus is John's cousin, see was just told that his cousin was killed. He immediately went out on a ship and then out to the desert. Jesus is the messiah and the son of God but he is still human. He mourned for Lazarus before resurrecting  him. I believe Jesus wanted some time to mourn his cousin. He wasn't given that time. He was followed by a "great multitude" he took compassion on them and healed their sick.

I am really of two minds about this. I am upset that these people didn't respect the fact that Jesus needed a moment to himself. I am grateful that Jesus healed the sick and demonstrated that we can show compassion even when we have our own problems going on.

Even in the midst of our own tragedy, we can still show compassion to our fellow man.

Matthew: 36-42 

Then Jesus sent the multitude away, and went into the house: and his disciples came unto him, saying, Declare unto us the parable of the tares of the field.

He answered and said unto them, He that soweth the good seed is the Son of man; The field is the world; the good seed are the children of the kingdom; but the tares are the children of the wicked one; The enemy that sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the end of the world; and the reapers are the angels.  As therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire; so shall it be in the end of this world. The Son of man shall send forth his angels, and they shall gather out of his kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity; And shall cast them into a furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth.

Those who hear the word of God, bring it into there hearts and live it are the wheat. Tares are weeds. Those who reject the Word grow along side the believers. This is the world we live in. We can teach we can be the light but we can't choose for others. At the end of it all the tares will be separated from the wheat. Be the light, choose the right. No one can choose for you.

The Light of the World

Let Your Light Shine

Luke 11: 33-36

No man, when he hath lighted a candle, putteth it in a secret place, neither under a bushel, but on a candlestick, that they which come in may see the light. The light of the body is the eye: therefore when thine eye is single, thy whole body also is full of light; but when thine eye is evil, thy body also is full of darkness. Take heed therefore that the light which is in thee be not darkness.  If thy whole body therefore be full of light, having no part dark, the whole shall be full of light, as when the bright shining of a candle doth give thee light.

We are familiar with the premise here, every year for the last few years our hashtag for Christmas posts have been #LightTheWorld so the idea of being a light in the darkness is not new.  The question I am posing today is do you really understand how we are the light of the world? I can tell you my version and am happy to accept comments on what your version is.

As a light in the world our behavior and words need to match. If we say something is right then we must act on what we say. People notice behavior and they really notice when what you say doesn't match what you do. We are a light just by living our beliefs. Helping, forgiving, serving, reading and studying our scriptures, showing mercy, and even the simple act of following the word of wisdom. I have had people ask me if I am a Mormon just because they had realized I don't drink coffee (I work in a call center, I am absolutely in the minority regarding coffee).

Putting out light in a secret place or under a bushel (hiding who we are and what we believe) will not draw others to the light. Jesus goes on to say "Take heed therefore that the light which is in thee be not darkness" I am open to corrections here but I take this to be a warning to those like the Pharisees - who flaunt their good deeds and prayer in public but its all a show and not what they really believe. Doing good deeds when they don't mean them but only to gather attention. Examine your testimony, be sincere in your beliefs, and live your talk and you will be a light unto the world. 

Faith and Worth

Lessons in Faith and Worth

For the week of March 4-10th then material to study was Matthew 8-9, Mark 2-5. I read though this twice before what I wanted to study hit me. This is the story in Matthew 8: 5-13 that I have heard mentioned but never really covered. And again I have pulled out the verse numbers to make it read more like the story of a miracle that it is.

Matthew 8:5-13
And when Jesus was entered into Capernaum, there came unto him a centurion, beseeching him,  And saying, Lord, my servant lieth at home sick of the palsy,grievously tormented.

And Jesus saith unto him, I will come and heal him.

The centurion answered and said, Lord, I am not worthy that thou shouldest come under my roof: but speak the word only,and my servant shall be healed. For I am a man under authority, having soldiers under me: and I say to this man, Go, and he goeth; and to another, Come, and he cometh; and to my servant, Do this, and he doeth it.

When Jesus heard it, he marvelled, and said to them that followed, Verily I say unto you, I have not found so great faith, no,not in Israel.  And I say unto you, That many shall come from the east and west, and shall sit down with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, in the kingdom of heaven.  But the children of the kingdom shall be cast out into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth. And Jesus said unto the centurion, Go thy way; and as thou hast believed, so be it done unto thee. And his servant was healed in the selfsame hour.

Both before and after this story we see other stories of Jesus healing, the man with the withered hand, the woman who touched His hem and was healed. They are all miracles and worthy of study, but I find this one remarkable for what the centurion said to Jesus.

His servant is very sick with palsy - that is a paralysis, especially that which is accompanied by involuntary tremors (thank you Google Dictionary). He asks Jesus to come and heal his servant and Jesus agrees. So far very normal, then the centurion says, "Lord I am not worthy for you to come into my home: but speak the word only, and my servant will be healed" (converted from KJV language for clarity).  He then goes on to explain that he is a leader of men. When Jesus heard the He "marvelled" I don't think He was marveling at the centurions leadership position. I believe He was impressed by the mans faith, awareness, and assessment of his standing.

This centurion had enough faith to ask for healing, and enough awareness of his own life to essential say- I am not worth for you to come into my home, but please heal my servant. I have faith that you can do this from here by saying so. Jesus then tells him that He has not found anyone with such great faith, He talks about the outer darkness which is a topic we will have to get to later - I have not received understanding about this yet. Some knowledge, but no understanding :)
Finally, Jesus tells him that as he believes so it will be done; and the servant was healed in the same hour.

The centurion knew and admitted that there were things about his life and his home that made him and it not worthy for the Lord to be in his home. He also had great faith - what does that mean for us?

We can have faith, and still do wrong. We can take action to fix our sins and wrong choice through the atonement. But how about this...are we making sure we are worthy when we go into the Lords house as well? By worthy are we praying and repenting of sins before taking the communion and doing our duties in the church? Are we praying, repenting and assessing before going to the Temple? This centurion knew there were wrong things in his life, admitted them and still had the faith to ask for a miracle of the Lord.  Wrong things in our life don't keep us from prayer, that's when we should be speaking to our Father the most.

The Bible doesn't tell us what happened to the centurion, but I like to think that this meeting with the Jesus and this miracle encouraged him to change what he need to change in his life, he certainly possessed the faith to do so.

Asking, Seeking, and Finding

Ask in Faith

As has become normal for me, the verse that spoke to me was not the topic of the week. Luckily, with Come Follow Me it doesn't have to be. Matthew 7:7-8 is one of the most well know verses in the Bible, but have you ever really thought about what it means?

Matthew 7:7-8 
Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock,and it shall be opened unto you: For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth;and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.

One of the hardest things for me to do is to ask for help, a large portion of me believes in doing it myself and only asking for help when I can't figure anything else to do. Jesus says ask, he says seek, the says knock. What do all of these have in common? It requires action on your part. You must talk the step of asking, you must actively seek (search) for what you are looking for, you must go out and knock on the door. There is a catch in this though - it is found in James.

James 1:5-6 

If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.  But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed.

You must ask, seek and knock in faith. This isn't a "I'll see if it works" this is asking and seeking with true belief that you will receive an answer.  You don't have to have the faith of a saint 

Matthew 17:20 

And Jesus said unto them, Because of your unbelief: for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you.

Don't be afraid to ask, don't be afraid to seek- reach out and knock on  the door. And do so in faith.

Hearing, Listening and Obedience

One of the first things I learned in higher education is something that I wish had been specifically taught many years before. Maybe they teach it now, I hope so. It is a very simple concept:  hearing is not listening, and listening doesn't necessarily translate into doing.  In today's world very often the words hearing and listening are used interchangeably when they are not actually the same thing.

Hearing is the physical act of hearing someone talk, listening is paying attention to what is being said. This includes comprehension and thinking actively about what is being said. Finally there is the act of doing what is said. In the secular world this is applying the knowledge, when we are talking about Heavenly Father, Jesus and the Spirit this is an act of obedience.

Luke 6:46-49 

And why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?

Whosoever cometh to me, and heareth my sayings, and doeth them, I will shew you to whom he is like: He is like a man which built an house, and digged deep, and laid the foundation on a rock: and when the flood arose, the stream beat vehemently upon that house, and could not shake it: for it was founded upon a rock. But he that heareth, and doeth not, is like a man that without a foundation built an house upon the earth; against which the stream did beat vehemently, and immediately it fell; and the ruin of that house was great.

I don't know if it a change in common usage or a translation aspect (remember these words originally come from Aramaic and Greek). Either way it seems to me that the word hearing here is referring to both aspects hearing and listening.

When we heard the word of the Lord we become responsible for doing what we have been instructed to do. You may recognize these verses as the inspiration for the children's hymn about  The Wise Man and the Foolish Man. It is worth a look again as an adult. We not only have to have a strong faith to build upon our rock but we must act on the knowledge and faith. We are responsible for doing what we have been taught. The rains and the floods will come, if we have acted on what we have been taught we will be the wise man whose house stood firm.

And that leads right back into the first statement Jesus made: "Why do you call me Lord and not do the things I say?"

Wrath of the Rightous

Sin of Wrath versus Righteous Wrath

In the last blog post I covered temptation and sin in the temptation of Jesus in the desert. I also touched on the Seven Deadly Sins which are a teaching of the Catholic church and 3 of those sins were identifiable in the temptation of Jesus.

Jesus teaching is most often identifiable with the themes of love, tolerance, and forgiveness which makes the scene in the second chapter of John versus 13-16 even more shocking to read. 

John 2:13-16

And the Jews’ passover was at hand, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem, And found in the temple those that sold oxen and sheep and doves, and the changers of money sitting:  And when he had made a scourge of small cords, he drove them all out of the temple, and the sheep, and the oxen; and poured out the changers’ money, and overthrew the tables; And said unto them that sold doves, Take these things hence; make not my Father’s house an house of merchandise.

This brings up the question of what does the Bible, the Book of Mormon and the Prophets say about anger and wrath? I found a some teachings on anger and I these are the ones that I think answer the question the most.

John 3:36 He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him.

Wrath is something that God can and will express (see Garden of Eden, Sodom and Gomorrah, the Flood)

Lynn G. Robbins, General Conference April 1998 

"He damages and often destroys families within the walls of their own homes. His strategy is to stir up anger between family members. Satan is the “father of contention, and he stirreth up the hearts of men to contend with anger, one with another” (3 Ne. 11:29; emphasis added). The verb stir sounds like a recipe for disaster: Put tempers on medium heat, stir in a few choice words, and bring to a boil; continue stirring until thick; cool off; let feelings chill for several days; serve cold; lots of leftovers.

A cunning part of his strategy is to dissociate anger from agency, making us believe that we are victims of an emotion that we cannot control. We hear, “I lost my temper.” Losing one’s temper is an interesting choice of words that has become a widely used idiom. To “lose something” implies “not meaning to,” “accidental,” “involuntary,” “not responsible”—careless perhaps but “not responsible.”

“He made me mad.” This is another phrase we hear, also implying lack of control or agency. This is a myth that must be debunked. No one makes us mad. Others don’t make us angry. There is no force involved. Becoming angry is a conscious choice, a decision; therefore, we can make the choice not to become angry. We choose!"

We can choose how we react, we can choose not to react in anger. We can choose to take a deep breath and react in love, we can choose to take a walk, go to the gym or any other way to get control and not say hateful things that we don't mean to people we love...or do even worse.

Matthew 5:22 But I say unto you, That whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment: and whosoever shall say to his brother, Raca, shall be in danger of the council: but whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall be in danger of hell fire.

We are commanded to forgive and to be slow to anger. That does not mean being an doormat and as Matthew says we should not be angry without a cause. There must be a valid reason to be angry..and even then we need to control our anger and not let it control us.

Gordon B Hinkley, General Conference October 2007

Anger may be justified in some circumstances. The scriptures tell us that Jesus drove the moneychangers from the temple, saying, “My house shall be called the house of prayer; but ye have made it a den of thieves” (Matthew 21:13).

But even this was spoken more as a rebuke than as an outburst of uncontrolled anger.

Finally, what started this topic. Jesus had a justified anger and the men who had turned his Fathers house into a marketplace populated by thieves. Jesus drove them out of the temple, but he did not chase them down, he did not swear vengeance. He just fixed the situation. He rebuked them.

Anger and wrath must be avoided when possible, controlled when not. I highly recommend reading both of these talks in full. Anger is an emotion, it is not a sin. Sin follows when we don't control it, when we let it control us.