A Crazy Night at Choir Practice
“We’re not here to have fun! We’re here to worship the Lord!”
Those words rocked my world. I didn’t know what was wrong with what was said, but I knew it just didn’t make sense. But it sure seemed to me that a lot folks believed fun and Jesus were mutually exclusive.
The scene is the choir room in a midwestern baptist church. The names have been changed to protect people I love and respect (and some I honestly can’t remember). My best guess is this happened in 1972. Slightly after the Jurassic Period and Lindbergh crossing the Atlantic.
When Practice Becomes a Party
It was the era of Watergate, but that break-in is a misdemeanor in my mind compared to the scandal I witnessed one night at youth choir practice. Okay, we were out of control. I admit that right up front. WAY more laughing than singing.
We had been so consistently rowdy that the church thought it was a good idea to bring in some parents to keep us in line. As we did everything we could to turn this practice into a party that night, one of these bouncers attempted to keep us in line.
“We’re not here to have fun! We’re here to worship the Lord!”
A No Fun Zone?
Wait! WHAT?!? While I had never exactly found church to be Six Flags over Jesus, nobody had ever announced it was a No Fun Zone. I got up and walked out. I wasn’t giving up on Jesus but if this is what church is about, I’m out. I had no plans of ever going back.
Over the years, God wooed me back by showing me how joy and celebration are a big part of worshipping the One who has saved me. Once I began to wrap my brain around all Jesus has done, it was time to get this party started!
The Fun Police
Jesus Himself had a similar experience. No, not at youth choir practice. It happened in the wake of a big shindig in Galilee. The religious fun police call Christ and His crew on the carpet for cavorting with the wrong crowd and enjoying themselves WAY too much (Mk 2:18-22). In their minds, He and His boys aren’t taking their faith seriously enough. Instead of feasting, they should be fasting.
“We’re not here to have fun! We’re here to worship the Lord!”
In his bio of Jesus, Mark tells us that our Savior and His followers have just been the guests of honor at a party over at Levi’s place (Mk 2:13-17). The host is a local tax collector who filled his home with all sorts of rejects, losers, and outcasts so they could meet this amazing Rabbi/Carpenter from Nazareth.
Inviting the Uninvited
A group of party crashers accuses the Lord of hanging out with the local scum. Jesus responds by telling them that they just don’t get it. Those folks are EXACTLY why He’s here. His mission is to invite those who know full well they’re uninvited.
At this point, the charges against Him move to not taking God seriously enough. “Once when John’s disciples and the Pharisees were fasting, some people came to Jesus and asked, ‘Why don’t Your disciples fast like John’s disciples and the Pharisees do?’” (v18).
Feast or Fast?
In other words, the fun police are out in full force. How dare you enjoy yourselves! Wipe that smile off your face. Religion is super serious and is no place for fun. If you REALLY understood what’s at stake, you’d wouldn’t be living it up. Stop feasting and start fasting.
Mark drops the Greek word for “fast” (Gr. νηστευω/nesteuo) six times in just three verses (v18-20). As a matter of fact, this is the ONLY place it shows up in his entire Gospel.
Specifically, νηστευω/nesteuo describes going without food for religious purposes. It literally means “no eating.” But the bigger idea is to stop doing any activity in order to set your focus on God. Fasting is a way to express deep sadness, either over failure to meet God’s perfect standard or to mourn the death of a loved one.
Fasting to Focus
We see all sorts of people in the Bible avoiding food as a means to repent, seek God, and hear from Him clearly. There’s fasting in the OT (Ex 34:28; 1Sam 7:6; 2Sam 1:12; 12:16-17; 1Ki 21:27; Ez 8:21-23; Neh 1:4; Est 4:16; Ps 35:13-14; 69:10; Dan 9:3-5; Joel 2:12; Joh 3:5-8) as well as the New (Mt 6:16-18; Lk 2:37; 18:12; Acts 13:2-3; 14:23).
Let’s face it. You don’t hear a lot of folks fasting in the 21st Century. Oh, there’s plenty of people who are more than happy to tell you about their dietary restrictions. No meat. No gluten. No lactose. No thanks! The sad truth is I’m way more likely to belly up to the buffet than skip lunch to hear from the Lord.
Jesus’ Weird Cousin
Meanwhile back in Mark 2, the author tips us off about a couple of different factions of folks are currently going without food. The first group is the followers of John the Baptizer. You may remember him from the opening of this particular Gospel (Mk 1:1-11).
He’s Jesus’ weird cousin who wears a lot of leather and eats a lot of bugs. God commands John to get the world ready for the arrival of the Messiah. Suddenly, he’s the hot new thing that everybody wants to see. But John leverages his popularity in order to point to the true Star of the show, the Lamb of God.
The Baptizer’s behind Bars
While they’re related, John and Jesus are VERY different. The Baptizer lives more like a somber monk than his fun loving cousin. John is known for fasting while the Lord has earned a rep as the life of the party (Mt 11:18-19; Lk 7:33-38).
Chances are John wouldn’t have been caught dead at Levi’s big blowout even if he was able to go. But he’s not available due to a previous engagement. You see, the Baptizer is behind bars (Mk 1:14). His followers would have every reason to fast and pray for their leader’s release from the slammer. Spoiler alert: he doesn’t (Mt 14:1-12; Mk 6:14-29).
Hangry?
Maybe John’s crew is freaking out because Jesus should be focused on getting their guy out of the joint rather than having fun at parties. If You REALLY cared about Your cousin,You’d stop feasting and stop fasting like the rest of us!!
Makes you wonder if John’s boys are just a wee bit hangry. That’s when you’re so hungry you get angry. It’s like the Snickers commercials. The ones where people aren’t themselves when they’re hungry. Munching on a candy bar transforms them from a grumpy Steve Buscemi or Roseanne Barr back into their kinder, gentler selves.
Chances are, you’ve fasted for a medical test or procedure. Ever noticed that’s EXACTLY when everybody around you is eating a cheeseburger? And why do they call it a “fast” when time seems to stand still? Whatever reason for their fast, John’s disciples are understandably cranky when Christ doesn’t seem to care.
Taking It up a Notch
But they’re not the only ones skipping meals at the moment. The Pharisees are also fasting at the time. Most of us immediately see them as the bad guys in the story of Jesus. But back in the day, these boys are the religious superstars of first century Judaism.
Nobody but nobody is as fanatical about keeping God’s rules than the Pharisees. How fanatical? They tithe from of their spice rack (Mt 23:23: Lk 11:42)! While God only commands one fast a year at Yom Kippur (Lev 16:29-31; 23:27), the Pharisees took it up a notch. To show everybody just how serious they are, they actually fast TWICE A WEEK (Lk 18:9-14)!
Image Management
You see, the Pharisees are ALL about image management. They want the world to see just how pious and holy they are. Their Facebook and Instagram feeds are nothing but prayer meetings, church services, and mission trips.
That’s fine but honestly God really doesn’t give a hot hoot about what we look like on the outside. He cares deeply about what’s going on inside our hearts. He’s NOT impressed with our phony fasting. Matter of fact, it REALLY ticks Him off.
Don’t believe me? Buckle your biblical seat belt and see what He tells the prophet Isaiah (Is 58:3-7). I’ll wait right here humming the Final Jeopardy music. Oh, you’re back. Any questions?
Jesus’ Forty-Day Fast
Don’t make the mistake of thinking Jesus always feasts and never fasts. The Gospel writers tell us He did it at least one time. And it was BIG time. We’re talking forty days…IN THE DESERT IN THE FACE OF THE DEVIL (Mk 1:12-13; Mt 4:2; Lk 4:2-4)!
And when He did, our Savior fasted it in private. He didn’t call a news conference or announce it on social media. He didn’t try to grab the spotlight so He could make a run at the top spot in the power rankings of the pious (Mt 6:16-18).
You can bet the farm that if this is a time for scripturally mandated fasting, Jesus would be fasting. But He’s not. And neither are His followers. It’s all about timing. There’s no doubt there are times to be serious. But never miss a moment to celebrate.
The Wedding Reception
As He so often does, the Lord flips the script on His critics and turns this into a teachable moment. In the process, He drops three mini-parables. Little stories with a big impact. One about a wedding reception. A second about patching holes in your clothes. A third about the best way to package your pinot noir.
First, you don’t start skipping meals when you’re heading to the wedding reception. “Jesus replied, ‘Do wedding guests fast while celebrating with the groom? Of course not. They can’t fast while the groom is with them’” (v19). Christ tells His critics to forget the fast and start the feast!
God as the Groom
This is Jesus’ not-so-subtle way of saying He’s the One God has promised to send to save our eternal bacon. For a couple of thousand years, Old Testament prophets compare God to a “bridegroom rejoices over his bride” (Is 62:4, 5).
God tells a guy named Hosea that He’s totally committed to His chosen people like best hubby you could ever imagine. “I will make you My wife forever, showing you righteousness and justice, unfailing love and compassion. I will be faithful to you and make you Mine, and you will finally know Me as the LORD” (Hos 2:19-20).
Jesus wants them to know that now that the Groom has arrived, it’s time to get this party started! He clearly takes fun seriously. VERY seriously. Don’t believe me? His very first miracle was turning several barrels of water into fine wine in order to keep a wedding reception going (Jn 2:6-11).
The Heavenly Hootenanny
And once Christ makes His final comeback, He’s inviting all of His followers to the ultimate heavenly hootenanny. It should come as no surprise that it’s a wedding reception (Rev 19:6-9). That’s the Lord’s point to the party poopers. There’s a time and place for fasting. This is neither the time nor the place. Once God is in the house, stop the fast and start the feast.
Grieving the Son of God
Christ does admit there’s a day on the calendar when set aside for sadness. “But someday the groom will be taken away from them, and then they will fast” (v20). He’s dropping a VERY strong hint at what’s about to go down. His betrayal, arrest, torture, murder, and burial. When that happens, you can bet His boys will fast and mourn.
Since that has happened, shouldn’t WE still grieve that the Son of God is gone? Absolutely not! Since He came strolling out of the cemetery on Sunday, the mourning period for His death lasted for just three days!!
A Command So Nice He Says It Twice
The Apostle Paul tells Jesus’ followers in Rome not to be sad but celebrate. When we trust in what He has done for us, His life becomes our life. He lived the perfect life of obedience we should have lived. He died the bloody death for our sin we should have died. And He rose to a jaw dropping new life that we don’t deserve (Rom 6:4-5)!
So why do so many Christians walk around like they’re headed for their own crucifixion? Once again, our man Paul says stop being so stinking sad! “Always be full of joy in the Lord. I say it again—rejoice!” (Phil 4:4). It’s a command so nice, he says it twice!! And don’t try to tell me the man from Tarsus doesn’t know hard times. Dude, he wrote that from prison!!
The Gospel is NOT an Upgrade
Back in Mark, Jesus moves from a mini-parable about the party to mini-parable about a patch. “Besides, who would patch old clothing with new cloth? For the new patch would shrink and rip away from the old cloth, leaving an even bigger tear than before” (v21).
He’s letting us know that the Gospel for knowing God isn’t simply fixing a couple of bugs with the way we did it before. I love how Mike Lee puts it. Jesus brings a new system that is NOT just a better version. It’s NOT simply an upgrade! In other words, trusting in Christ is NOT Old Testament 2.0.
Oh, you can be sure there’s plenty about the coming Messiah all throughout the Hebrew Bible. After all, He IS THE Hero of THE Story! The writers of the OT are continually dropping hints, clues, shadows, prophecies, and predictions of the One who is to come. But once Jesus arrives, He blows out what came before by fulfilling God’s perfect standard for us (Mt 5:17).
Box Wine without the Box
Mini-parable number three is also about how the crusty old religious system can’t hope to contain the explosive power of God’s grace. This time Jesus uses the picture of packaging wine. Starting to see why He’s the life of the party? “And no one puts new win into old wineskins. For the wine would burst the wineskins, and the wine and the skins would both be lost. New wine calls for new wineskins” (v22).
In the First Century, people didn’t make wine in big barrels but put grape juice into smaller animal skins. Goat skins to be exact. Kinda like box wine without the box. Instead of the plastic bag, it’s a goat skin. Pretty sure you won’t find one of those on the shelf at your local Walmart.
Mentos and Diet Coke
As the juice fermented, the pressure would build and the hides would expand. Once it was stretched out, the skin would lose its elasticity. The wineskin is a one-and-done. You don’t rinse it out and reuse it again. You’re asking for a big mess. Better have the club soda and OxyClean handy.
In the same way, Jesus totally blows apart the old Jewish belief system. He opens the party up to anyone and everyone who places their trust in Him. He transforms God’s Kingdom into a whole lot more than a Hebrew house party. Even non-Jews are encouraged and welcome. Just try pouring THAT into an old wineskin. You probably ought to step back. And you thought dropping a Mento in a Diet Coke was cool!
We ARE Here to Have Fun!
One thing is for sure. Jesus takes fun very seriously. So much so that He commands it. Stop the fast! Start the feast! He invites us to the party and ensures that He’ll keep it going. His Gospel is no upgrade. Trying to cram His grace into the old system is only going to make you made and make a mess.
The bottom line is we ARE here to have fun! And there’s not better way to do that than worshipping the Lord!
©2017
Jay Jennings
No comments:
Post a Comment