Read Mark 2:18-22.
Jesus had a way of confusing people. In this passage, people came to Jesus perplexed because he and his followers didn’t seem too engaged in the discipline of fasting like other religious leaders.
And, as usual, Jesus answers questions with stories. “When you are at a wedding, do you skimp on the cake and wine? No, you feast while the bride and bridegroom are with you.” “No one cuts up a fine silk scarf to patch old work clothes.” “Do you put your new wine in cracked bottles?”
What is he saying? I think he was pointing out the tendency that some of us have to get so caught up in rituals or disciplines or rules that we miss the fresh, new presence of God in our midst.
Can you imagine engaging in some tired old religious ritual to the point where you miss Jesus standing there?
Can you imagine being so focused on doing the same old things that you don’t hear God whispering some new truth to you?
Jesus seems to want us to know that discipline and ritual have their place in faith…but not if they cause us to miss the new, exciting, breathtaking things God is doing in our midst.
God, in fasting and prayer and ritual, let our eyes always be open to you. Amen
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I think that one of the main reasons that I joined our church was the feeling of seeing "new, exciting, breathtaking things" that God was and is doing here. I praise God for His work in and through each one of us!
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