Category: Zacchaeus

Possessions and Eternal Life: A study of the conversation between Jesus Christ and the rich man (Part 1)

Fr Dr Saji K Mathew4 Comments

This blog is about the conversation between Jesus and a rich man inquiring about eternal life as reported in Matthew 19:16-21; Mark 10:17-22; and Luke 18:18-23.

The primary focus of this blog on Matthew 19:21 and Mark 10:22 which states that the man was shocked and went away grieving, for he had ‘many possessions’. The Greek word for possession means property, land, estate and so on. Webster dictionary defines possession as having control (over something).

The man in the above scenario is obviously rich and had many possessions. In legal terms possession is a title of ownership with full liberty to exercise the right over someone or something. For the purpose of this study I identify three types of possessions as discussed below:

  1. Inherited possession: Inheritance could be defined as an extension of the past. For instance, we inherit many biological characteristics (even diseases as modern science identifies) from our parents. These are genealogical in nature as it is through the genes that such characteristics and traits are transferred. In my previous blog I discussed in detail about generational curses which is relevant in this context as well. In Psalms 51: 5 King David grieves about been conceived in sin. This clearly means that no one is born in this world without sin and everyone (by default) inherits sin, because of the fall of Adam and Eve. Jesus Christ is the only exception to this inheritance as Mary was conceived by Holy Spirit, and hence born without sin. Through Adam and Eve humanity has inherited sin as a possession. Lord looks up from heaven for an exception to this inheritance but finds none (Psalms 14:2-3). Job (15: 14-16) in his righteous spirit admits that no one is pure but in a sinful state. By inheritance one is legally the natural heir of a possession. Saint Paul figures this out that one is by nature children of wrath which means sinner by nature (Ephesians 2:3). We can see this in the nature of Cain that he inherited the spirit of deception (Genesis 4:7) which was passed on from Satan to Adam through Eve Genesis 3: 4-6; 1 John 3:12). In Romans 5:12 Saint Paul reinstates the nature of sin as being inherited that even though sin entered through one man, Adam, death, as the wages of sin (Romans 6:23)  spread to all because all have sinned. This shows that sin has spread across the generation due to one man, Adam. No one can deny the fact that we are sinners or we have inherited sins. 1 John 1:8 says ‘If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves…’ and as stated above deception belongs to Satan.

 On the contrary, the rich man tried to justify himself that he had been righteous by following the commandments since his youth. The Greek word for youth actually means the entire former part of the age commencing from birth. This means that the rich man was trying to deny that he has inherited sin. Instead he was just relying on his memory only which dates only so much back.   We should know that Jesus knows not only our present, but our past and future as well, in the light of Hebrews 13:8– ‘Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever’.

 It is important for us to know how curse is inherited. At the outset please be informed that unless we open the gate demons cannot enter inside our lives. The moment we commit a sin we enter into a legal agreement with demons by means of which they obtain the right to enter and dwell in us.  In other words, by committing a sin we rebel against and detach from God and link with Satan. In this way, a sinner is possessed by demonic forces. This demonic possession continues down the genealogical line until the covenant is broken- and the only way to get ransomed is through the precious blood of Christ (see 1 Peter 1:19).

 The rich man in this text certainly had possessions as it says he was rich. His material possession does not seem to be genuine and honest as we could make out from Jesus’ stand against it. Please note Zacchaeus was also rich but his possessions were mostly acquired by fraudulent means (Luke 19:8). This denotes that he simultaneously had demonic possessions. By announcing to give away his wealth Zacchaeus denounces the possessions which withheld him from eternal life, and is delivered from his sinful possession through salvation (see Luke 19:9). It is interesting to note that Zacchaeus did neither ask for eternal life nor was told what to do, but was still granted. Whereas the rich man asked for eternal and was clearly told what to do but still failed to follow Jesus.

It was very important in the life of Zacchaeus to give away his wealth as his wealth entailed demonic possession. James 5:4 states that the cries of the deprived and oppressed have reached the ears of the Lord of hosts. Now, who knows how the ancestors of the rich man have accumulated wealth. In the case of Zacchaeus we clearly know that the wealth was inappropriately amassed.

 

We certainly have a divine way to break the generational curses.  Isiah (53:5) says ‘by his stripes we are healed’. Since Jesus is there for us today and forever we ought to be aware that He keeps a tab on our activities. This means that we do have the opportunity to break away and come out from our generational curses- and it is only through the blood of Christ (1 John 1:9), which cleanses us from all sins/unrighteousness. By ‘all sins/unrighteousness’ it means ‘irrespective of past, present or future. This realistic claim also has evidence in the prophecy of Ezekiel (18:14-20) where it says that if the son decides not to follow the sins of his father but walks in righteousness he is promised to be rewarded. Therefore, if we repent our sins as well as the sins of our ancestors we receive deliverance, as promised by God (Leviticus 26:40). We see this in action when Nehemiah prayed and God responded favorably (Nehemiah-7).

It is possible that we may not have heard of or aware of our generational curses. However, our ignorance does not absolve us from those curses. More importantly, even if a person of latter generation resolves to lead a righteous life in God, s/he is prone to be overpowered by the demons within as they have not been cast out. This is where the importance of fellowship and ministry comes. James 5:15-16 should be read in light of this. Besides, Jesus commissioned his disciples to cast out the demons (Mark 3:15). Thus, there are three steps to come out fully from the clutches of curses: 1. Repent our sins, 2. Get the demons cast out (deliverance), and 3. Accept the body and blood of Christ.

Please note, in terms of generational curses, parents are like a protective umbrella for their children. They are responsible for protecting their children from the attack of demons by providing spiritual guidance and protection (see Proverbs 22:6). On the contrary, if the parents get involved in sinful activities they are destroying the protective covering of their kids, as well as passing on the demons to the next generation- thereby being cursed.

By the holy and precious blood of Jesus Christ.

                                                                                                                              to be continued…………….

Jesus: the first fruit

Fr Dr Saji K Mathew4 Comments

The punishment of fig tree by Jesus is one of the miracles that many people struggle to understand. Mark (11:13) states that “it was not the season for figs”. Therefore, what Jesus did could be argued as against ‘natural justice’, and unrighteous. However, we should be aware that God’s righteousness and the righteousness of this world are different as pointed out by Jesus in Matthew 5:20.

This blog is a meditation on the cursing of fig tree by Jesus as reported in the gospels of Matthew (21:18-22) and Mark (11: 12-20).

Jesus was hungry:

The very thought of hunger connects us to a condition in our stomach as empty or the need for filling. However, we should know that there are two types of hunger, of that of the body called physical hunger, and that of the spirit called the spiritual hunger. In John 4:34, Jesus contrasts the spiritual food against worldly food as ‘fulfilling God’s will and accomplishing God’s work’. Again, in John 6:27, Jesus instructs to ‘work for food that endures to eternal life rather than for food that spoils.

Jesus’ primary mission on earth was to fulfill the will of His Father (John 6:38; 4:34). And, we realise through His words and deeds that Jesus was extremely keen and committed to it, up until the last minute on the cross. As the creation is expected to respond to Jesus’ mission, it is obvious that any non-performers will be removed.  For example, when the bridegroom came only those virgins who were ready went in with him while the rest were ignored (Matthew 25:10). Similarly, the fig tree was a non-performer for it could not produce any fruit when the Lord came. Jesus said, every branch that does not bear fruits will be removed (John 15:2).

Jesus: the lord of seasons

Rather than depending on the seasons, the fig tree should have submitted itself to the Lord of seasons to produce fruits. Moreover, the tree tried to cheat the creator by covering itself with leaves (Mark 11:13). If the season was not for fruits, neither was it for leaves. Reading through Mark 11:13 we can gather that seeing plenty of leaves on the tree Jesus walked towards it hoping to see at least one fruit. This is a lesson for us. At many a times we exhibit ourselves as spiritual outwardly, but in essence we are not.

Jesus may not have approached the fig tree intending to collect a bag full of fruits. Apparently, Jesus, like anyone else should have known that it was not the season of figs. Therefore, in all probability Jesus approached the fig tree hoping to pluck a pre-season first ripe fruit. This argument could be substantiated with references from the Old Testament. For instance, Hosea 9:10 compare Israel to the first fruit on the fig tree, in its first season. Similarly, Micah 7:1 prophetically states that ‘there is no first-ripe fig for which I hunger’.

Jesus: the first fruit

Those who are familiar with farming would know that there appears a fruit before the bulk of them appears at the full season. This first fruit is an excitement to the farmer and a hope towards enjoying more fruits from the tree later. Further, as is mentioned in Isaiah 28:4, this first fruit is an immediate grab. This first fruit is a lead for other fruits to follow. The chosen race of God, Israel was considered as the first fruit as per Jeremiah 2:3. But, we know how Israel drifted away from God. Hence, Jesus Christ became the first fruit for us to follow (1 Corinthians 15:23).

As mentioned above, what happened to Israel as the fruit producing tree, resulting in the imposition of God’s curse?

The fallen trees

In the Garden of Eden we see that instead of behaving like a responsible creation, the tree allowed Satan to succeed in convincing Eve followed by Adam to defy God’s advice (Genesis 3). If an animal (serpent in the Garden of Eden) could speak and convince a human being, the tree as God’s creation could desist Eve from disobeying God’s commandment. This may sound illogical but remember, first of all, trees do have life and they do respond to various environmental effects. Secondly, in the book of Jonah (chapter 4) we see how the plant responded to God’s plan in order to teach a lesson to the prophet. I will explain how trees respond with some examples later in this blog.

In the book of Jeremiah we read that the trees provided shade for the Israelites to commit adultery. The situation became so grave that God tells Jeremiah that every tree has facilitated to Israel’s adultery (Jeremiah 3:6). Israel lay down under every spreading tree as a prostitute (Jeremiah 2:20; 3:13). God charged Israel through Hosea (4:13) of burning incense to idols under oak, poplar and terebinth, as the shades were found pleasant.

In both the above paragraphs we see that instead of producing fruits for God, the trees produced fruits for Satan. Israel ate those fruits and got lost in demonic indulgences. Jesus said, “……a tree is known by its fruit, for men do not gather figs from thorns……” (Luke 6:44). Moreover, it is important that the tree produces the right fruit (see Isaiah 5:2).

Coming back to the focus of this blog, three issues are identified:

  1. The tree tried to cheat Jesus by covering itself with leaves and not having the first fruit ready for its creator. Jesus criticized the Pharisees for the sharp contrast between their external and internal self (see Matthew 23:1-39 & Luke 11:37-54). Pharisees tried to command respect for themselves through their dressings (Matthew 23:5) and public display of faith (Luke 20:47). We come across such people and organisations including parishes and congregations where the focus is on the display of faith without essentially containing it. For example, purity is preached but not practiced; faith is blown out without conviction. It is sad to see buildings and mansions as parallels to the tower of Babel replacing pillars of faith. God’s children are distracted and misguided by external glories; and it appears that the age of Pharisees and Scribes have returned.
  2. The tree could have produced a fruit as it’s companions did (a spiritual comparison) in Luke 17:6 & 19:4 as follows:

In Luke 17:6 we see the sycamore fig tree as ever ready to respond to the faith of disciples. Jesus, pointing to this fig tree, assures the disciples that if they have faith, this fig tree will uproot itself and move off. We see here the willingness and acceptance of the promise which the fig’s creator made in its presence. Thus, in the assurance of Jesus, we see a projected interaction of faith between human beings and vegetation. This faith interaction applies to human-animal relationship as well, as we read in the book of Daniel where the lions responded to Daniel’s faith by remaining friendly (Daniel 6:22).

Similarly, in Luke 19:4, the sycamore tree plays a friendly role of supporting a sinner named Zacchaeus to view Jesus from its branches. Because of the tree Zacchaeus could see Jesus and Jesus Zacchaeus. This eventually led to Zaccheus’ conversion. What better fruit could this fig tree produce than saving a soul and his whole family? Here again we can credit the fig tree as a facilitator of faith.

  1. As discussed above, we read in the book of Jeremiah that the trees facilitated God’s children to commit adultery by courting with foreign gods and idol worships. The people of Israel did this under every tree of the land. This was in opposition to the purpose of God for the entire vegetation. For instance, we read in Psalm 104:14 that God causes the grass to grow for the cattle, and vegetation for the labor of man, so that he may bring forth food from the earth. It is apparent from this verse that the purpose of vegetation is to bring forth fruit. This primary responsibility was found missing when the Lord visited the fig tree (Matthew 21:19; Mark 11:13). Jesus indeed had warned prior to this incident using a parable that a man could not find any fruit when he went to a fig tree planted in his vineyard (Luke 13:6). Jesus further warned that such trees will be destroyed, pointing towards the judgement day.

Let us therefore…….    

            ……..commit ourselves into the hands of our Lord so that he may fill us with Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit will help us to produce the best fruit for God. Let us recollect how Holy Spirit came on Mother Mary and enabled her to produce the best fruit the world has ever witnessed, Jesus Christ. He is our Lord and Savior. Amen.