“To whom shall I speak and give warning that they may hear? Behold, their ears are closed, and they cannot listen. Behold, the word of the Lord has become a reproach to them they have no delight in it.” (Jeremiah 6:10)
Props: Coffee and rolls
Every home gets to set their own rules. Some are strange. Some are stringent. Some are strident. Some are just plain goofy.
Ever been in a home with a white carpet? I bet you were required to take off your shoes before entering.
Ever been in a home with all the furniture covered in heavy plastic? You don’t know where to sit, if you should sit, and why you weren’t worthy enough of a guest for the plastic to come off before your arrival.
Ever been in a home where everything was so perfectly positioned and laid out, where there was not one speck of dust anywhere and everything gleamed, so that you were afraid to breathe?
[Hand out the coffee and rolls. Some people will no doubt start feeling uncomfortable having coffee and cake in the sanctuary.]
While we’re having our breakfast here, let’s have a little music. I want you to listen to this.
[Play something from Bach or Beethoven or something similar or something from a rock band ---your choice.]
Beautiful, right?
Music is like life. It needs a little chaos. If it’s too orderly, too neat, too tidy, it doesn’t work. It needs passion, and emotion, and upheaval. Sometimes soft, sometimes loud, sometimes slow, sometimes fast. It has pauses, pit stops, both harmony and dissonance. Beethoven was one of the greatest composers in history. Other composers, like Schubert, wanted to hear Beethoven on their deathbeds. Beethoven’s funeral procession in Vienna in 1827 was estimated variously at 10-20000 people. Sometimes one suspects that the reason why Beethoven was such a great composer was precisely because he was deaf and didn’t have to listen to all the bad music of his day.
When Beethoven composed his Fifth Symphony, he deliberately wrote in a surprise loud note every so often, just so that people would be jolted out of their expectations, so that the element of surprise would stir them in their seats and shake them up a bit.
I think some of you are already shaken up this morning, having cake and coffee in the sanctuary. [Or, if this is nothing unusual for your church, talk about how many churches have ushers that are more aggressive in keeping food and liquids out of the sanctuary than they are welcoming people to church.] It’s something we just don’t do, do we? Eat in the sanctuary? Well, why not? Does the church exist to keep our carpet clean? Or does the carpet exist to keep the church in ministry? Is our carpet in ministry and mission or isn’t it? Aren’t our fellowships, our relationships, our relaxing together this morning over our communal “table” more important than keeping the rug immaculately clean?
The Pharisees said NO! Jesus said, YES!
When we think of church, and when we think of religion, we think of order and organization, right and wrong, black and white, this and that, do and don’t. And we often think of God as being the orderly one and evil being disorganized, chaotic, and disruptive. The Messiah is supposed to bring a message, not a mess; message, not messiness. But the Messiah tells a different story. According to Jesus, the Holy Spirit is the disruptive one! The Holy Spirit shakes things up, stirs up the waters, and turns lives upside down. Healing and restoration are messy.
Think for a moment about Pentecost. We’re still in the Pentecost season, but often we don’t think much about Pentecost except for one Sunday a year. But the Holy Spirit’s presence is an all-year-round experience! We are to “keep Pentecost” like we “keep Lent” or “keep Advent.” In the scripture story today, it’s the Holy Spirit at play in Jesus, the Messiah, that wields and yields the tremendous healing and grace given to all those following him in the crowd that day.
Listen to Jesus’ story again, as Matthew tells it! [Read the story again or part of it.]
In the story, we have a turf war going on. It’s the Pharisees vs Jesus. The audience is the crowd! The sheep are in the pasture, and both the shepherd and the wolf are calling to the sheep to follow!
The Pharisees are orderly fellows. They follow 613 commandments, not to mention a huge assortment of supplemental rules and regulations that they avidly place upon all of the people in the community. These rules, from hand-washing to regulating different spoons for milk and meat, include some and exclude others. Do this at the right time. Do that in the right way. Pray certain prayers. Dress certain ways. Eat like this. The Pharisees enforced so many laws that it was virtually impossible for most people to abide by all of them consistently much less perfectly. They reveled in their own perfection. And they judged harshly anyone who didn’t live up to their imposed ideals.
Sound like anyone you know?
Jesus on the other hand is somewhat disorderly. So was John the Baptist, whom Jesus defended in our last discussion. He loved to feast and drink instead of fasting. He loved to hang with “unclean” people. He forgave people who should have been excluded. He even had the gall to say he was forgiving sins in the first place! Only God could do that! He ate with unwashed hands. He broke the Sabbath laws. He vanquished demons . . . on the wrong days.
Then there were those HUGE disorderly groups of people who followed him everywhere he went. No one wanted to listen to the outlining of the orderly rules of the Pharisees, ever since Jesus with his disorderly crew began stirring things up!
Religion has become CHAOS since this Jesus guy showed up!!
The Holy Spirit is not your orderly, impassive, unruffled, keep-everything-the-same kind of God! The Holy Spirit makes things messy! Stirs the pot! Challenges the status quo! The Holy Spirit messes up your life. It you want an orderly, safe, predictable life, don’t follow Jesus.
There’s a line in the movie “Moonstruck” in which the main character says. “Love doesn’t make things neat and tidy, and perfect. Love messes everything up.”
Jesus messes everything up. Jesus is the greatest disturber of the peace who ever lived and lives. If Jesus is not disturbing your life, troubling your mind, making your categories untidy, then maybe it’s not Jesus. Resurrection life is not about living a moral life or a good life or a regulated life. Resurrection life is about receiving a gift that changes all of life–the gift of life through death, the gift of grace greater than any evil.
Jesus didn’t come to change the world by changing the expression on the face of humanity. Jesus came to change the world by changing the heart of humanity. That’s open-heart surgery. That’s blood on the floor. Jesus shakes things up! He cuts and he heals. He messes up the best plans and the most guarded goals. And the worst thing you can do? “Demonize” the work of the Holy Spirit!
Are you a Pharisee? Or a Jesus follower? Some of us who say we are Jesus followers, are really Pharisees at heart. We may need what Peter Haas calls a “Pharisectomy,” or in the subtitle to his 2012 book, “How to Joyfully Remove Your Inner Pharisee and other Religiously Transmitted Diseases.”
If your life –or your church—is tidy and organized and perfectly in place; if your church is doing the same things and the same ways they were doing them for decades, then you may need a “pharisectomy.” Where and when is the Spirit free to move?
“We have always done it this way.” These are what we call the 7 “last” words of the church. An alternate version is “We never did it that way before.” When your life changes for the better, you no longer have a full plate. You have an overflowing platter. When the church changes for the better, no church has a full plate. Every church has an overflowing platter that spills all over the floor.
A church more interested in pleasing itself and what it likes instead of pleasing God---what kind of church is that?! A church that values pleasing people IN the church instead of reaching people OUTSIDE the church----what kind of church is that?
The news Jesus wants to tell us is….the church does not exist for itself. This is classic Pharisee-ism. The church exists to be the redeeming, healing voice of the Holy Spirit. The voice that unlocks mute voices of those unheard, and the voice that opens eyes that could not see.
What does your “house” look like? Is it tidy and untouched, draped in plastic protection? Or is it “messy” with the love and change of the Holy Spirit’s movement?
Jesus tells us in the scripture today that too “tidy” a house is an invitation for evil to move in and take up residence. When your focus is on the “neatness” of your house, and not on the people within it, bad things can happen!
The church is about people. The church is about relationships. The church is about spending time with people who need Jesus’ love and grace the most! The moment we fall into attacks, and judgments, and name-calling, and worst of all, calling the changing, challenging work of the Holy Spirit-–wrong, then that is the moment that we have failed our mission as disciples of Jesus.
Jesus says, you are either with him or against him. If you are with him, you can expect lots of things that make you uncomfortable and challenge your preconceptions of “the ways things ‘should’ be.” If you are with him, you can expect to make some enemies. There are plenty of “Pharisees” out there who love “rules” more than Jesus, who love their regs more than they love their Redeemer. They need a what? A “Pharisectomy.”
Let’s join together in a true Love Feast. Let’s enjoy this time of coffee and cake, celebrate the relationships we share in this body of Christ, and then resolve to make more of them throughout our neighborhoods. This is a time of feasting and celebration!! For we are in God’s house. Jesus is the host. And he says to all his guests, “Welcome to the feast.”
Disciples of Jesus –is the Lord in this house?
The Lord is in the house!!!
*Photo from henryherz.com (The Misty Montes)
Based on the Story Lectionary
Major Text
Matthew’s Witness to Jesus accused of beelzebul (9:27-9:38 and 12:15-12:50)
Minor Text
Exodus 7-11: The Egyptians Do Not Heed Moses’ and Aaron’s Miracles
1 Samuel 16-19: The Story of David, Goliath, and Saul’s Vendetta
2 Kings 1: The Story of Ahaziah’s Bid to Baalzebub in Samaria
Psalm 1: Do not follow the wicked
Psalm 37: do not fret about the wicked
Psalm 151 (Septuagint): David’s deed
Psalm 9: God’s justice
Psalm 115: Glory to God
Psalms 11 and 96, and 97: The Lord’s righteousness
Isaiah 11: The Root of Jesse and the Coming Restoration
Isaiah 42: The Lord’s Servant in Whom God’s Spirit Dwells
Mark’s Witness to Jesus accused of beelzebul (3:20-3:35)
Luke’s Witness to Jesus accused of beelzebul (11:14-11:36 AND 8:19-21)
John’s Witness to Jesus as Lord (5:18-5:47)
Acts 7: Stephen’s Speech about Loyalty to Jesus and his Subsequent Stoning
Matthew’s Witness
[After Jesus began healing on the Sabbath, forgiving sins, and casting out demons], the Pharisees went out and conspired against him. When Jesus became aware of this, he departed.
Many crowds followed him, and he cured all of them, and he ordered them not to make him known. This was to fulfill what had been spoken through the prophet Isaiah:
“Here is my servant, whom I have chosen, my beloved,
With whom my soul is well pleased. I will put my Spirit upon him,
And he will proclaim justice to the Gentiles. He will not wrangle or
Cry aloud, nor will anyone hear his voice in the streets. He will not
Break a bruised reed or quench a smoldering wick until he brings
Justice to victory. And in his name the Gentiles will hope.” [Isaiah 42:1-13]**
Then they brought to him a demoniac who was blind and mute, and he cured him, so that the one who had been mute could speak and see.
All the crowds were amazed and said, “Can this be the Son of David?”
But when the Pharisees heard it, they said, “It is only by Beelzebul, the ruler of demons, that this fellow casts out the demons.”
He knew what they were thinking and said to them, “Every kingdom divided against itself is laid waste, and no city or house divided against itself will stand. If Satan casts out Satan, he is divided against himself; how then will his kingdom stand? If I cast out demons by Beelzebul, by whom do your own exorcists cast them out? Therefore they will be your judges. But…if it is by the Spirit of God that I cast out demons, then the kingdom of God has come to you.
Or how can one enter a strong man’s house and plunder his property, without first tying up the strong man? Then indeed the house can be plundered.
Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters. Therefore I tell you, people will be forgiven for every sin and blasphemy, but blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven. Whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come.”
“Either make the tree good, and its fruit good, or make the tree bad, and its fruit bad; for the tree is known by its fruit.
You brood of vipers! How can you speak good things, when you are evil? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. The good person brings good things out of a good treasure, and the evil person brings evil things out of an evil treasure. I tell you, on the day of judgment you will have to give an account for every careless word you utter; for by your words you will be justified, and by your words, you will be condemned.”
Then some of the scribes and Pharisees said to him, “Rabbi, we would like to see a sign from you.”
But he answered them, “An evil and adulterous generation asks for a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. For just as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the sea monster, so for three days and three nights the Son of Man will be in the heart of the earth. The people of Nineveh will rise up at judgment with this generation and condemn it, because they repented at the proclamation of Jonah. And see, something greater than Jonah is here! The queen of the South will rise up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it, because she came from the ends of the earth to listen to the wisdom of Solomon. And see, something greater than Solomon is here!”
“When the unclean spirit has gone out of a person, it wanders through waterless regions looking for a resting place, but it finds none. Then it says, ‘I will return to my house from which I came.’ When it comes, it finds it empty, swept, and put in order. Then it goes and brings along seven other spirits more evil than itself, and they enter and live there; and the last state of that person is worse than the first. So will it be also with this evil generation.”
While he was still speaking to the crowds, his mother and his brothers were standing outside, wanting to speak to him. Someone told him, “Look, your mother and your brothers are standing outside, wanting to speak to him. Someone told him, “Look, your mother and your brothers are standing outside, wanting to speak to you.”
But to the one who had told him this, Jesus replied, “Who is my mother, and who are my brothers?” And pointing to his disciples, he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers! For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother.”
Mark’s Witness
Jesus departed with his disciples to the sea, and a great multitude from Galilee followed him; hearing all that he was doing, they came to him in great numbers from Judea, Jerusalem, Idumea, beyond the Jordan, and the region around Tyre and Sidon.
He told his disciples to have a boat ready for him because of the crowd, so that they would not crush him; for he had cured many, so that all who had diseases pressed upon him to touch him.
Whenever the unclean spirits saw him, the fell down before him and shouted, “You are the Son of God!” But he sternly ordered them not to make him known.
[In Mark’s version, Jesus appoints the twelve before coming back down the mountain again.]
Then he went home; and the crowd came together again, so that they could not even eat.
When his family heard it, they went out to restrain him, for people were saying, “He has gone out of his mind.”
And the scribes who came down from Jerusalem said, “He has demons.”
And he called them to him, and spoke to them in parables, “How can Satan cast out Satan? If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. And if a house is divided against itself, that house will not be able to stand. And if Satan has risen up against himself and is divided, he cannot stand, but his end has come. But no one can enter a strong man’s house and plunder his property without first typing up the strong man; then indeed the house can be plundered.
Truly I tell you, people will be forgiven for their sins and whatever blasphemies they utter; but whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit can never have forgiveness, but is guilty of an eternal sin” --for they had said, “He has an unclean spirit.”
Then his mother and his brothers came; and standing outside, they sent to him and call him. A crowd was sitting around him; and they said to him, “Your mother and your brothers and sisters are outside, asking for you.” And he replied, “Who are my mother and my brothers?” And looking at those who sat around him, he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers! Whoever does the will of God is my brother and sister and mother.”
Luke’s Witness
[Luke’s witness comes much later in Jesus ministry; however the story is obviously similar enough, so that it most likely is the same occurrence. Luke leaves out the part about Jesus’ family coming to hinder him. Luke mentions this earlier in his gospel out of that context. And he includes a warning against the Pharisees.]
**Note: This passage from Isaiah was also quoted at Jesus’ baptism. Gentiles here means anyone not in right standing with God –Jews included.
Image Exegesis: Do you need a Pharisectomy?
"But My people did not listen to My voice, and Israel did not obey Me. So I gave them over to the stubbornness of their heart, to walk in their own devices. Oh that My people would listen to Me, that Israel would walk in My ways!” (Psalm 81)
“But they continually mocked the messengers of God, despised His words and scoffed at His prophets, until the wrath of the LORD arose against His people, until there was no remedy.” (2 Chronicles 36)
“Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God; for no one can do these signs that you do apart from the presence of God.” (Nicodemus, Pharisee and Leaders of the Jews in John 3:1-2)
In the scriptural story of the showdown between Jesus and the Pharisees, all of the rifts between them that have been bubbling under the surface come to a head and boil over in front of a huge crowd that has assembled to petition Jesus for healing. This is purposeful on the part of the Pharisees. They are more than worried at this point. The crowds are increasing --so much so that Jesus himself has a boat nearby, in case the crowds get out of hand, and he begins to be smothered within them. He is healing everyone he encounters, teaching them, forgiving them their sins, and bringing them back into the fold. He is calling himself the Messiah, the Son of God with the authority and the power of the Holy Spirit, and he is thwarting their rules and decorum. He is leading the people in another direction. And now, they are listening to him, and ignoring the Pharisees’ attempts to keep them in line, to keep order in the synagogues and in society. And he keeps getting the best of them. So, they start the low blows.
Remember when you were in school and you didn’t know how to get the best of a guy who just was smarter than you and seemed to be utterly perfect? You attacked his hair or criticized his car or tried to discredit what he said as nonsense, since you really didn’t have a competing argument. That’s pretty much what’s going on here. But they make the grave mistake of foolishness –Jesus informs them that in attacking Jesus’ authority, they end up insulting the Holy Spirit itself! Bad news for them! They’ve just called God “beelzebul.” So the ones who are the idolaters and heretics are….the Pharisees themselves!
A brilliant exchange, this story is worth reading just for the wit and table-turning. Like a play-yard fight, the people are gathered round. But it’s clear who they support. Rumors have been going around (most likely passed by the Pharisees themselves) that Jesus has gone mad and is acting crazy, and even his family, embarrassed by the din, comes to try to get him to stop. But Jesus is on a roll! He lashes back at all of them, pulling his followers close and skillfully putting the Pharisees in their place. His miracles have convinced the crowd. His verbal assault has silenced his colleagues. They can’t argue with him. He always seems to win. Incensed, they depart, but only to begin cooking up plots to trap him and get rid of him.
What makes the Pharisees’ accusations even more atrocious (gasp) is that some of them, if not all of them in their hearts knew Jesus’ power came from the Holy Spirit, that he was the one sent of God. Nicodemus himself (though one of the Pharisees who obviously admired Jesus) confessed that knowledge to him directly. But the more his actions flew in the face of their control and their sense of what was “right” and “wrong,” the more they hardened their hearts to him –and to God. Jesus’ accusations to them and their rejection of him are sharp and laser-focused, prophetic, and harsh. In rejecting him, they have committed the unforgivable sin! With that statement, he has definitely won the crowd!
Jesus makes clear, you are either with him, or against him. There is no grey area when it comes to loyalty to God. With him, all is forgiven. Against him, nothing. Whatever “evil” retorts come his way, are graves duly dug by the spear-throwers.
The metaphors in this story by the sea are clever and powerful. In addition, the exchange between Jesus and the Pharisees is a brilliant chiasmus. From beelzebul to the mute and blind man, to the house, to Jonah, to demons and demoniacs, tree and fruit, vipers, and family, the metaphors all speak to the character and loyalties of one’s heart.
Beelzebul (spelled also Beelzebub and Baalzebub in various scriptures) was the Philistine god of healing. Literally the name Beelzebub meant Lord of the Flies or in Arabic “flymaster”, because he would supposedly lure the flies away from someone, so that healing could occur. The flies were a symbol or metaphor of illness. Baalzebub of Ekron was worshiped on mountains and frequently known as the Lord of the Mountain. He was also fond of fermented drink. The Pharisees were insulting Jesus on a number of levels, not just that his “healing” was not of God, but obviously that included a hit on Jesus’ love of wine and food, as well as his love for the mountains and the sea along the coast, where he made his home and centered his ministry. Additionally, the Philistines were coastal people who loved the sea and dwelled in the area where Jesus loved to hang out –ancient southern Palestine, the area that was later known as the fallen northern kingdom. Ekron was about 25 miles from Jerusalem. In fact, the word Palestine, named by the Romans in the 2nd century came from the “Philistines” who inhabited Judea. In fact, we know that some Israelites were corrupted by the cult of Baalzebub and practiced some of their pagan rituals.
The Philistines were Israel’s arch enemy in former times. They were sea people who dominated the most of the land of Canaan from Sinai to Galilee particularly along the coast in the time of Samson and Samuel. Their language was thought to be semitic. But they seemed to disappear as a people somewhere during the Babylonian and Persian Empires. Goliath of the story of David and Goliath was a Philistine. Similar to the gospel story, David was also called “evil” for thinking he could overcome Goliath. And while God was with David and he began to be successful in every endeavor, meanwhile King Saul did everything in his power to kill him, out of jealousy and ire. Jesus, as the “Messiah in the line of David” finds himself in similar circumstances, as the authorities come after him, even as God is with him. “Can this be the Son of David?” the people ask? The Pharisees jump quickly to divert that line of thinking!
The spelling of beelzebul some have supposed to be a further insult, “Lord of dung,” a possible allusion that in our language might mean something like “he’s full of ****!” They were accusing Jesus of being cuckoo, off his rocker, out of his mind in la-la land. The growing anger and attacks by the Pharisees seemed however to fuel the devotion of Jesus’ followers. Although perhaps many didn’t know what to believe about “who” he was, they did know he had miraculous healing power, and the ill and handicapped flocked from miles around to try to touch his robe. Jesus’ popularity was growing with the people, even while decreasing with the Pharisees.
The Pharisees were determined to try to sway the crowd by instilling fear –that perhaps their healing was performed not by God, but by beelzebul, which they called a “prince of demons.” Recognizing their attack on the helpless who needed to be cleansed and brought back to God, Jesus attacked back full force, defending his lambs, and demonizing instead the Pharisees themselves. Did they turn the people against Jesus? Perhaps a few. But we can guess not many. In a sense, Jesus was the savior of the underdog, and there were plenty of them who entirely believed in him, or at least caught on quickly to what the Pharisees (those authorities who had banished them from “sanctioned” Judaism for one reason or another) were up to.
When the Pharisees couldn’t sway the crowd this way, they then demanded a “sign.” The crowd already had their signs –the healing of all of them. They most likely couldn’t care less why the Pharisees wanted another one. And Jesus answers with another metaphor –the only sign they’ll get is the Sign of Jonah.**
In the story, the man’s voice was muted by a demon; his eyes blinded by the same. The metaphor of the “voice” is powerful in this story, as the “voice” of the people is released and freed by Jesus’ healing power (by the power of the Holy Spirit). Their voice had been muted by the rules and sanctions of the Pharisees (the Shammai School who was in charge at that time in the Sanhedrin). Stifled by a system that would not allow them a voice, they now healed could be a part of everything, even a “voice” that would support Jesus’ teachings over the strict exclusionary teachings of the synagogues and the temple. Additionally, their eyes were opened to the injustice of their place in society, and the forgiving grace of God who meant to restore them and bring them into “garden” salvation. The “blind” and the “mute” now see the truth. Whereas the Pharisees become the true blind who speak with a “forked” tongue.
“To whom shall I speak and give warning that they may hear? Behold the
Ears are closed and they cannot listen. Behold the word of the Lord has become
A reproach to them; they have no delight in it.” (Jeremiah 6:10)
Isaiah’s prophecy is being fulfilled. The blind see, the mute speak, the deaf hear, the lame walk. Except those who deny the Holy Spirit itself!
Jesus’ term “vipers” for the Pharisees is no mistake. It’s a reference to the garden and their “evil” intent. It’s also a slam, because they are the ones who will be banned and thrown out from the garden that the people are being welcomed into. Vipers are also poisonous. Their “venom” that they are spewing is being crushed by the Son of God. Just as Moses lifted the snake upon the pole/staff, so Jesus will overcome these vipers who seek to challenge God!
The sign of Jonah is a call for repentance to an evil generation. Those who repent will be saved. Jonah who survived an ordeal within the depths of the sea rises up to proclaim God’s judgment. And the Ninevites repent! The Queen of the South likewise who listened to Solomon. Jesus is defending the people who are believing in him, listening to him, coming to him, repenting and returning to God and to faith. For them, his resurrection will be a victory. For others who deny God, a tragedy.
Jesus is laser sharp with the Pharisees who have dared to challenge his authority. They have challenged the work of the Holy Spirit. And for that, he declares them cursed! Blasphemy is the worst sin that you can do in Jesus’ day. While the Pharisees accuse him, he reasons with them, and says basically, “but if you’re wrong, then you’re damned!” “You are the blasphemers who have called God’s work the work of baalzebul.”
And the battle begins. The shepherd and the wolves are vying for the sheep!
The entrance of Jesus’ family must have been a hard blow to the Messiah. Supportive of him initially, he has now embarrassed them. Rumors are circulating that he’s lost his marbles. He’s flying in the face of tradition, insulting his colleagues, breaking the Sabbath, eating with sinners, declaring himself the Son of God, and going about forgiving sins. What’s a mother to do!?
When Jesus declares his followers his family, he unites them, strengthens his bond with them, and obviously weakens his bond with his family. It’s a rift that would haunt him until his time on the cross.
Jesus final warning, he uses the metaphor of the “house.” The house is a common metaphor for the soul/heart. If one’s heart is too tidy, too orderly, but without the passion of the Holy Spirit, it becomes a barren and desert-like place. The metaphor of water is the metaphor for the presence of the Holy Spirit that dwells within a person who “walks with God.” To fill your “house” with Jesus means that your life will be far from orderly and regulated. It will be filled with passion, surprise, joy, change, healing, and metaphorphosis. Jesus IS the ultimate healer. To deny Jesus is to deny the Holy Spirit, to deny God. Jesus, the Son, has triumphed.
What spirit will you allow into your life? Into your heart? To dwell within your soul? You are either with him or without him.
**See our exegesis of the Sign of Jonah in the Story Sermon page of preachthestory.com.