The Playfulness of God and the Poison of Religion
Does the thought of Christ being “playful, funny, so human, so hopeful, so unreligious” strike you as a breath of fresh air or does it sound a little irreverent?
How have you thought of Christ?
Read John 21:1-12
The Scene: The events of the past two weeks have been something of a whirlwind of a ride, The triumphant entry into Jerusalem with palm branches waving and people shouting “Hosanna!!” then all came crashing down. Jesus, their friend and mentor, had been tortured, executed and entombed, bringing them to a very low moment in emotions. But then something fantastic happens, he rises from the dead and appears to the disciples twice and now we arrive here to this moment, not really sure where Jesus has gone off to and not really sure what to do.
So what does any self-respecting fisherman do that needs to clear their head and think do?
They go fishing!!
How does Jesus show up?
He is so casual about his appearance that even his friends do not even recognize him. Think about this for a moment Ruler of the Heavens, He could have announced his presence with radiant Glory “It is I, the Lord! Come thou unto me!” But he doesn’t. He acts kind of like a tourist who knows nothing about fishing and ask “Catch anything?”
Why do you suppose Jesus enters the scene like this?
At this moment what do you think is Jesus’ mood?
Do you remember how Jesus first encountered these men? (Luke 5:4-11)
Most Christians can tell you in detail how they met Jesus, especially if it was a dramatic encounter. This story of how they met Jesus must have been talked about many times, as guys will do, especially fishermen! Sitting around the campfire, somebody says with a smile “Peter, the look on your face was priceless” and imitating Peter’s reaction, “Go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man” and they all bust out laughing again.
Does this sound familiar? A group of guys sharing an inside joke ribbing one another?
So here they are again, three years later at their favorite fishing hole, just spent an all-nighter catching nothing when this guy walks up and asks “catch anything” setting them up for the hook, “Lay down your nets on the other side of the boat” Jesus gives them the proverbial wink, reminding them of the running gag.
The John throws a very specific detail into the story which added a beautiful touch. There were precisely 153 fish in the net.
What is up with the 153 fish?
Not a boatload, not about a hundred and half, nor was it over a gross, but it was precisely 153. Consider the circumstances, this is after the crucifixion and the resurrection; Jesus is standing on the beach and we learn there are exactly 153 fish in the net. So how did they figure this out, did they stop and make Jesus the newly risen Lord of creation, the Sustainer of their beings, He who died for them and for Whom they would gladly die wait while they counted the fish “One, two, three, four, five, six, seven…..”
Or could it of happened this way, right after breakfast, which by the way if you did not catch it Jesus prepared one of them says “well we oughta get that catch counted up,” another says, “yep,” and Jesus as he is taking his last bite of roasted Tilapia, says, “There’s a 153.”
The Poison of Religion
Read Mark 3:1-6
What!?!? Jesus healed a man on the Sabbath, and the Religious order of the day was ready to kill him!!
But Jesus as we have been told and told again is a peacemaker but as we read the Gospels we find that he is frequently embroiled in conflict, which he is usually the one who provoked it in the first place. Every one of these hostile encounters happens with very religious men and not one of the encounters involved a “pagan”.
If you approach the gospels without bias or assumptions you will find no trouble believing that religion is the enemy. Those that opposed Jesus we would consider them to be highly invested in doing religion right.
How does Satan deceive you from fulfilling God’s purpose for you?
Satan is too subtle to rely on persecution alone, his most masterful works are of deception, just ask Adam and Eve.
What if you send someone you love to school for a decade, yet they remained illiterate, or you referred them to a doctor for treatment yet they failed to treat the disease but came away worse with HIV and Gangrene, what would you conclude about the education or the doctor?
Jesus healed a man on the Sabbath and they wanted to kill him, do you really think that’s over today.
Read 1 John 4:1-3,6
Many of us pay as much attention to this as we do a preflight safety demonstration, so let’s break it down so you can see how important this advice is.
Spirit of Truth – The Holy Spirit
Spirit of Falsehood – which John calls the spirit of the antichrist.
Many deceivers have infiltrated our world animated by this spirit of falsehood.
If John did not think you would fall prey to it he would not have warned you about it. Before the ink was dry on the Gospels the early church was swimming in this stuff.
The spirit of falsehood is often a very religious spirit. How else could it sell it’s deceptions?
(talk about deceptions – witch trials, inquisition, televangelist etc ask about the “witch trials of today”)
What is it about Jesus that provokes the religious people so? Have you experienced the playfulness of Christ or the poison of religion? How so?
Read Hebrews 1:1-3
Jesus came to reveal God to us. He is the defining word on God, on what the heart of God is truly like, on what God is up to in this world, on what God is up to in your life.
To know Him as he is, to have his life, joy, love, and presence cannot be compared. A true knowledge is our greatest need and our greatest happiness. To be mistaken about him is the saddest mistake of all.
So, What is Christianity supposed to do?
Read 1 John 1:1-3 if anyone has the message use that version
What!?!? So we can experience him as they did; this intimate connection with the Father and Son. John says you can enjoy the same friendship with Jesus that he knew.
If you do not know Jesus as a person – playful, cunning, fierce, impatient with all that is religious , kind, creative, irreverent, funny; if you do not know the comfort of his presence, do not hear his voice speaking to you personally, if you do not know of his indwelling life in you, shaping your personality, healing your brokenness, enabling you to live as he did--- You have been cheated, robbed and plundered.
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