A place that has to be believed to be seen

Again the Jews were divided because of these words. Many of them were saying, "He has a demon and is out of his mind. Why listen to him?" Others were saying, "These are not the words of one who has a demon. Can a demon open the eyes of the blind?" At that time the festival of the Dedication took place in Jerusalem. It was winter, and Jesus was walking in the temple, in the portico of Solomon. So the Jews gathered around him and said to him, "How long will you keep us in suspense? If you are the Messiah, tell us plainly."

Jesus answered, "I have told you, and you do not believe. The works that I do in my Father's name testify to me; but you do not believe, because you do not belong to my sheep. My sheep hear my voice. I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish. No one will snatch them out of my hand. What my Father has given me is greater than all else, and no one can snatch it out of the Father's hand. The Father and I are one." The Jews took up stones again to stone him. Jesus replied, "I have shown you many good works from the Father. For which of these are you going to stone me?"

The Jews answered, "It is not for a good work that we are going to stone you, but for blasphemy, because you, though only a human being, are making yourself God."

Jesus answered, "Is it not written in your law, "I said, you are gods'? If those to whom the word of God came were called "gods'—and the scripture cannot be annulled—can you say that the one whom the Father has sanctified and sent into the world is blaspheming because I said, "I am God's Son'? If I am not doing the works of my Father, then do not believe me. But if I do them, even though you do not believe me, believe the works, so that you may know and understand that the Father is in me and I am in the Father."

Then they tried to arrest him again, but he escaped from their hands. He went away again across the Jordan to the place where John had been baptizing earlier, and he remained there. Many came to him, and they were saying, "John performed no sign, but everything that John said about this man was true." And many believed in him there.

- John 10:19-42

It must have been so frustrating for Jesus to hold out a vision of God’s love that was so liberating and watch so many people reject it. We have a very hard time believing God could love us so much! Yet, as Jesus says, nobody can snatch his sheep from his hand. In spite of everything, Jesus always held out a vision of hope. We’re nearing the end. Walk on, Jesus—walk on.

Music for Holy Week is here.

All of this can be yours ...

“Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. He fasted forty days and forty nights, and afterwards he was famished. The tempter came and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread.” But he answered, “It is written, “One does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’” Then the devil took him to the holy city and placed him on the pinnacle of the temple, saying to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down; for it is written, “He will command his angels concerning you,’ and “On their hands they will bear you up, so that you will not dash your foot against a stone.’” Jesus said to him, “Again it is written, “Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’” Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor; and he said to him, “All these I will give you, if you will fall down and worship me.” Jesus said to him, “Away with you, Satan! for it is written, ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve only him.’” Then the devil left him, and suddenly angels came and waited on him.

– Matthew 4:1-11

“All of this, all of this can be yours/ Just give me what I want and no one gets hurt.”

– U2, “Vertigo”

Sometimes we think we can see it all. We climb to the heights and take it all in. Perspective. A lot of perspective. In the words of one of the members of the fictitious rock group Spinal Tap, while standing at the grave of Elvis Presley, “It’s too much f---in’ perspective.”

Whenever we think we can see the whole picture, we start to get big ideas. If only we could get this group of people to do this, and that group of people to do that, everything would work much better around here. So we gain power and authority, and we seek to carry out our ideas. Politicians do this all the time. People with lots of money do this sometimes without even realizing it.

But if we don’t approach such responsibility humbly, our overabundance of perspective will defeat us … and those we are trying to help. Jesus could have fed not only himself, but the entire world. He could have proven to everyone that he was divine. He could have made all the nations bow down to his awesome power.

But he didn’t. Instead, he went to the seashore and called out to a few fishermen—nobodies, really. I like to think he chose his disciples at random, because he trusted that God’s grace would make these people exactly the right people, over time. Rather than coming among us at a time when mass communication could have made him a superstar, Jesus showed up in a backwater district of the Roman Empire, taught radical new ideas, and healed people. That was enough to plant the seed that is still growing today. And even then, the history of Christianity is littered with unintended consequences!

No matter how much perspective we think we have, we never have the entire picture. That’s not to say that we shouldn’t dream big and accomplish big, important things in the world. But we must always remember that the things we do aren’t meant to satisfy our own need for power and control. Next time we find ourselves at a great height, looking out over the world and seeing how everything connects, let’s not fool ourselves. We have a lot of perspective, but not that much. Let’s not give in to the temptation.

Here’s U2 with “Vertigo.”