Dear Theophilus,
That is an interesting little story
that you have related. It’s easy for me
to sit and judge the other nine lepers, but I’m sure there are many times where
I have not given adequate gratitude for some task that has been performed on my
behalf. I find it fascinating that Jesus
doesn’t publicly rebuke the other nine more than he does. If I was Jesus, I’d be tempted to rescind
their healing just to show them that I was really in charge, but Jesus doesn’t
do that. I’d guess that he was saddened
by their decision to go on with their lives and show no interest in Jesus, but
he still let that loving action stand.
It’s all so interesting to me—I’m so accustomed to having to earn the
love of others that the freely given love of Jesus demonstrated over and over
again leaves me speechless.
Of course, just as I think I’m
getting a full vision of who Jesus was and what his ministry was like, I
discover teachings like the ones I am about to reveal to you. These mess with my head, Theophilus—they leave
me spinning and questioning everything.
Sometimes, if I’m being honest, I wonder if Jesus had it all
together. I know that you will say that
it all will make sense in the end, and that’s great for the end, but right here
in the middle, I’ll just confess that I struggle to keep up with Jesus. I wish you were the one relating this to me
so that you could explain it all, but I will do my best to relate this to
you. Please correct any errors upon
which you stumble.
I know that I’m not the only one
with questions. The disciples had
questions, the crowd had questions, the Pharisees had questions. Everyone has questions for Jesus—even after
he answers the questions, that usually only leads to more questions, or perhaps
to the same question asked all over again because the answer was over the head
of the asker. Most of this stuff is so
new and extraordinary that it seems impossible for the human mind to
grasp. The Pharisees asked Jesus once
when God’s kingdom would come, and the answer surely confounded them as well as
anyone else who might have been nearby.
He told them that God’s kingdom wouldn’t come along with observable
signs. There wouldn’t be anyone running
around identifying it for everyone else, pointing and shouting to make it
clear. Instead, he tells them that God’s
kingdom is already present within them.
I can picture the Pharisees, looking from Jesus to one another and then
down to their chests, confused at how the kingdom could get in there and they wouldn’t
notice. I would wear the same blank
expression I’m sure they had!
From there, he turned to the
disciples and continued, telling them that they will have great desires to see
the days of the Son of Man, although they won’t be able to do so. Others will tempt them to run off and chase after
them, crying out that they have found them, but Jesus tells them not to
follow. Jesus then points to the sky and
tells them that the Son of Man will be easily identified, just as lightning
illuminates the entire night sky—it will be that clear! But Jesus warns the disciples that it will
not come without a cost—the present generation will reject the Son of Man and
lead him to suffering first. Just as the
world was busy with their own affairs in the days of Noah, Jesus says, and just
as the world was busy with business in the days of Lot, it will be like that
when the Son of Man is revealed. He
tells them that those in the house don’t need to rush back into the house to
grab their things, and those out in the fields shouldn’t hurry back
either. He then references Lot’s wife,
Theophilus, and I’ll need your help on interpreting that!
To further confuse us, Jesus says
that the one who is able to keep their life will be the one who loses it, just
as the one who tries to keep their life will lose it. Friend, I can’t flip that sentence around
enough times in my head to have it be clear!
He closes by telling them that when
that time comes, two people may be together and one will be taken while the
other remains.
The first question that came to
their mind at the end of this, or at least the first question they could
vocalize, is “Where?” To this, though,
Jesus still doesn’t give them a straight answer—he tells them that the vultures
gather around the dead bodies.
That’s not a great image to close
with, but that’s the information I have, Theophilus. I will say this did not keep me up late at
night—I was so confused when I received it that I feel straight asleep once my
head hit the pillow. This is all a
mystery to me, and considering that it’s already wrapped up in an even greater
mystery, I hope you can make some sense of it for me!
Sincerely,
Luke
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