The Guest List

My Friends,

I hope that you will be inspired by this week's blogs. I am not sure that I can even approach the level of insight that Pastor Sam shared on Sunday, but those of you who know me surely know that I'm crazy enough to try.

Let's start this week with the cast of characters. We don't know the complete guest list for the party, but we have a few persons' names:

Mary. Mary had been commended by Jesus in a previous setting for her choice to sit at the feet of Jesus, hearing His word and learning of Him and from Him (Luke 10:38-42).

Martha. Martha, in the moments before seeing her brother raised from the dead, received a most profound teaching from the lips of Jesus: "I am the Resurrection and the Life" (John 11:21-27).

Lazarus. Lazarus, by virtue of having been raised from the dead, was not only identified with Christ, but also considered to be enough of a threat that the Pharisees were plotting to kill both Lazarus and Jesus (John 12:9-11; special thanks here to Pastor Sam, who shared this point with me and my husband after the second service).

Simon the Leper. During the sermon, Pastor Sam noted that Simon had to have been healed by Jesus- persons with active leprosy were required to live outside of the city, and certainly would not have been in a position to host a party. The host of the party, and the location of his home, are evidences of healing. Perhaps we would do better to say "Simon who had been a leper" (see Leviticus 13:1-46).

John. The beloved disciple, who some scholars believe was the youngest of Jesus's disciples. He was part of the "inner circle" of three disciples who were closest to Jesus (the others being Peter and James) and the writer of John 12 (where we read his assessment of what happened at the party).

Judas Iscariot. The disciple of Jesus who was responsible for the finances (John 12:6).

As we look at this list, we can ask some questions:

-What has Jesus done for me? Healing? Teaching?
-Is He welcome in my home?
-How would Jesus describe me? A learner? A worshipper? A thief?

Tomorrow we'll consider Mary's actions at the party.