Was Jesus Ever Bullied?

This fall, I have the pleasure of working with a handful of fifth- and sixth-grade boys on a Boy Scout course entitled “God and Church.”  The course focuses on who Jesus is, what the church is about, and how we can plug in to the life and ministry of the church through worship and service.  So far, I have really enjoyed the time I’ve been able to spend with these boys and their parents on a weekly basis!

At our last meeting, we were talking about how much like us Jesus is – that is, how he is fully human and experienced things just like we do.  (The next session is about how Jesus is fully divine:  we believe both!)  During the course of our conversation, one of the boys asked me a very insightful question:

“Was Jesus ever bullied?”

photo by Eddie~S

That question made me stop and think for a while.  We often talk about how Jesus was tempted in every way, like we are, but never sinned (Hebrews 4:15).  We remember how Jesus was tempted by Satan in the wilderness (Matthew 4:1-11).  We remember how Jesus had real human emotions like anger (John 2:12-22), sorrow (John 11:32-37), love (Mark 10:17-21), and many others.  But was Jesus ever bullied?

We don’t know much about his childhood; just a couple of stories survive about those years, and none of them apply to this particular issue.  So we can’t say for sure that Jesus was bullied as a child.  But certainly there were occasions when Jesus as an adult was ignored, made fun of, or treated unfairly by other people:

  • During his ministry, Jesus’s own family – his very own mother and brothers – thought he was crazy and out of his mind.  (Can you imagine?  At least his mother Mary should have known better!)  They tried to make him keep quiet, stop teaching, and stop performing miracles.  He responded by reminding everyone that obeying God’s will is his highest priority.  (See Mark 3:20-35.)
  • Jesus instructed his followers to expect to be hated by others because of their belief in him.  Being a Christ-follower makes a person subject to the ridicule of other people, just as it did for Jesus himself and all the prophets of God before him.  Jesus responded to the world’s hatred of him by speaking the truth, trusting in God, and remaining faithful to his calling.  (See Luke 6:22-23, Matthew 24:9-10, and John 15:18-27.)
  • When Jesus had been sentenced to die by crucifixion, he was flogged mercilessly and was handed over to the Roman guards.  They stripped his clothes away and began to mock him:  they put a royal robe over his bleeding shoulders, and they made a royal crown – made of thorns, not gold – and forced it on his head.  They made fun of him, spat on him, and hit him on the head over and over again.  He responded by not saying a word through the whole affair.  (See Matthew 27:24-31.)
  • Even while he was hanging on the cross, in his final moments, Jesus was mocked by the soldiers, bystanders, and other criminals.  All were saying that if he really was the King of the Jews, why didn’t he save himself?  Jesus responded by asking God to forgive those who were hurting him and by speaking kindly to a dying man who asked Jesus to remember him.  (See Luke 23:33-43.)

“Was Jesus ever bullied?”  I think the answer is “absolutely, yes” – even if bullying looks slightly different today.  Many young people today are bullied in school and in other places, for many kinds of reasons.  This is an awful truth, and we as people of faith must stand up against bullies on behalf of the children in our community.

Jesus understands that terrible experience, too, on a personal level.  What’s more, he shows us all how we should respond:  by trusting in God, by remembering the truth about who we are as God’s children, and by relying on his strength for every day’s challenges.

–Pastor David

Revelation: Why It’s Important

This fall, our Sunday evening adult Bible study is focusing on the book of Revelation.  We are three weeks into the study, and let me tell you this:  I am really excited about this book and about your interest in it!  We have had strong attendance and good conversations in these first few sessions.  Just a reminder – it’s not too late to jump into this study!  We will gather in the Fellowship Hall every Sunday evening at 6pm, usually for 90 minutes or two hours, to study this complicated book together.

image © Kristina Gehrmann, www.mondhase.de

So why am I so excited about this?  Why is this book so important?  As someone said to me recently, “We have enough trouble understanding and following the other 65 books of the Bible… why all the interest in the last book?”  I see at least three reasons for us to invest in a study of this book during this season.

  1. Revelation is part of Scripture.  It forms part of the Christian canon, those books that we understand to be inspired by God and useful for instruction, training, discipline, and guidance.  This book tells us something particular about the salvation work of Jesus Christ, and as a result we should learn from our Lord through it.  This book was important to the first few generations of Christians, so by studying it (and them) we increase our connection with the work of God throughout the centuries.
  2. Revelation informed our movement’s history.  The Church of God reformation movement, of which we are a part, developed a unique self-understanding early in its existence (in the early 20th century).  This self-understanding was very closely tied to a particular interpretation of the book of Revelation.  We don’t hold to that understanding any more, but by studying Revelation we can learn more about who we were – and we can ask who we should be instead.
  3. Revelation gets us talking about the future.  Many believers today, including some of us, have deep-seated fears and questions about what lies ahead in the future.  Are we in the “end times”?  Is the return of Christ near?  What about the “signs and wonders” that we see?  By studying Revelation – and what it meant to its original audience, who asked similar questions – we will discover the word of hope that God has for his people in this book.  This will directly impact how we approach our own situation in the world.

The book of Revelation is a confusing, controversial, divisive book of scripture.  But we should not be afraid of it; instead, with a mixture of boldness and humility, we will learn from it together in the weeks that lie ahead.  I hope you are as excited about this as I am!  And if you have not yet come on a Sunday evening, I hope you feel welcome to try it out!

–Pastor David

“Jesus Makes All Sad Things Untrue”
photo by Paul Nicholson

I enjoy reading church signs.   When I drive from place to place, I watch for churches, because the words on a roadside marquee often tell quite a bit about what’s important to a church.  Sometimes a church (like ours) will give a preview of the coming Sunday’s sermon; other churches will advertise upcoming events and programs.  Frequently, a church will put an encouraging phrase on its sign, and these are often the most interesting to me.

Recently, I passed by a church with this saying on its sign:  “Jesus Makes All Sad Things Untrue.”  In all fairness, I did not call or stop in at this church to ask what the sign meant.  So I don’t know how the church’s pastor has explained this statement or what the church people think of it.  But I wonder… does Jesus really make all sad things untrue?

Jesus certainly doesn’t make all our painful experiences unimportant.  No, life is hard – sometimes quite hard – and God never promised us that belief in him would turn into a carefree life.  In my own devotional Bible reading, I am going through the book of Job.  Often, I am struck by how human Job’s emotions are.  He experienced incredible loss and suffering, and if I were in his shoes, I might say words similar to his.  Faith is no magic rescue from hardship, even though our painful experiences can be redeemed by God to make us whole, strong, and able to help others through similar situations.

Jesus certainly doesn’t make our problems suddenly disappear.  If a loved one passes away, there is no going back; this sad thing will always be true.  If someone in our family or community experiences abuse or neglect of any form, a relationship with Jesus may not immediately fix everything.  If you are struggling to pay the bills and keep the lights on, God has promised that he will provide for all your needs (2 Corinthians 9:8), but you probably won’t win the lottery next week after praying about it.  Our problems are our own, and often they are very, very true.

So what could this sign mean?  Here are a few ideas:

  • Jesus can correct our self-image.  You may not like who you are; you may not think you are valuable to anyone or to God.  Jesus makes that sad thing untrue!
  • Jesus can provide hope.  You may not feel like the future is worth living for.  Jesus makes that sad thing untrue!
  • Jesus can help us love and be loved.  You may feel very alone, even if you are around people all the time.  Jesus makes that sad thing untrue!

Following Jesus is about redemption, hope, and transformation of life.  What sad things in your life can Jesus make untrue?

–Pastor David

Just a Few More Days…
photo by estherase

Can you remember Christmas when you were a child?  What was it like?  Did you have certain traditions that still are meaningful for you?  Do you have memories of waiting for the special day?

Of course, not everyone has pleasant memories of Christmases in the past.  But hopefully you do – and if you’re like me, many of your childhood memories revolve around one thing:  presents!  I remember seeing gifts under the tree and wondering just what might be inside the packages.  Visiting grandparents gave me another round of this sense of expectation, too – more gifts to open and to share!

Here we are, just a few days before Christmas.  The level of anticipation and expectation is rising every moment for today’s children (and some adults, to be fair).  Why don’t we experience that kind of excitement during the rest of our lives?

One of the hymns of our faith, “I’ll Fly Away,” expresses this feeling as it relates to our hope for life beyond the grave:

Some glad morning when this life is o’er, I’ll fly away.

To a home on God’s celestial shore, I’ll fly away.

Chances are, you know the tune to that song.  In fact, you might be singing it to yourself right now.  Christians love to sing this song (and songs like it) because of its catchy tune, its upbeat tempo, and its message of hope.  We live as people of hope, who believe that God will bring about a brighter tomorrow, who trust that Jesus will return, will raise his people up, and will live with them in glory forever.

Isn’t it hard to live with a sense of anticipation that Jesus’s return will happen soon?  I think it’s certainly harder for Christians to live in expectation of that time than it is for children to live in expectation of Christmas morning.  Christmas is a regular, predictable event, but the return of Christ is mysterious, unknown, perhaps distant.  Yet this is part and parcel of our faith as followers of Christ:  that his return is imminent, that we may see him in our lifetime, that the time is drawing near.

Just a few more weary days and then I’ll fly away.

To a land where joy shall never end, I’ll fly away.

Friends, live with expectation!  Watch for signs of anticipation in the youngest among us, and learn from their example.  We are people of hope!  We are people who expect Christ’s return!  We are people who are waiting just a few more days!

–Pastor David

Advent: Celebrating What’s Coming
photo by Per Ola Wiberg ~ Powi

Take a few moments today to read Luke 1:5-25, and pay special attention to the character named Zechariah, a priest belonging to a specific division of priests.  Luke gives him the honor of being the first person in this gospel to receive a visit from God – specifically, from Gabriel, an angel of the Lord.  What a tremendous interruption to an otherwise normal worship service!

Who could blame Zechariah for doubting that he and his wife Elizabeth would have a child in their old age?  After all, his ancestors Abraham and Sarah had just as much trouble believing God’s same promise to them.  Yet in order to emphasize the message and the truth of God’s promise, the angel told Zechariah that he would not be able to speak for the duration of Elizabeth’s pregnancy.

Can you imagine what the next several months might have been like for Zechariah?  This goes against what we normally experience in the season of Advent!  At this time of year, people are usually filled with excitement, expectation, hope, and other positive emotions – whether it’s about opening presents, visiting family, eating a good Christmas dinner, participating in a Christmas Eve candlelight service, or another of the blessings of this season.  But Zechariah had to spend significant time – more than a month! – silently waiting the fulfillment of God’s promise: that his son would soon “make ready a people prepared for the Lord” (vs. 17 NIV).

Can you imagine Zechariah’s growing excitement as he watched Elizabeth grow more and more pregnant in the months that followed?

Culturally speaking (and within the church), we have only one month to celebrate Advent, the coming of our Lord.  We may not be struck silent by an angel of God for this entire season, but our challenge is the same.  We are called to wait eagerly, with anticipation, for the coming of the Christ child.  The greatest event in human history – God himself being born as a human baby – is an event that changed the world.  What better way to celebrate Christmas than to spend the preceding month as Zechariah did his wife’s pregnancy:  with ever increasing joy, hope, excitement, and anticipation of this long-awaited birth of our Savior!

–Pastor David