March 3: “If the Bridegroom is with Them, They Cannot Fast”
♫ Music:
Day 15 - Wednesday, March 3
Title: “IF THE BRIDEGROOM IS WITH THEM, THEY CANNOT FAST”
Scripture: Mark 2:14-20
As Christ passed by, He saw Levi the son of Alphaeus sitting in the tax booth, and He said to him, “Follow Me!” And he got up and followed Him. And it happened that He was reclining at the table in his house, and many tax collectors and sinners were dining with Jesus and His disciples; for there were many of them, and they were following Him. When the scribes of the Pharisees saw that He was eating with the sinners and tax collectors, they said to His disciples, “Why is He eating and drinking with tax collectors and sinners?” And hearing this, Jesus said to them, “It is not those who are healthy who need a physician, but those who are sick; I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners.” John’s disciples and the Pharisees were fasting; and they came and said to Him, “Why do John’s disciples and the disciples of the Pharisees fast, but Your disciples do not fast?” And Jesus said to them, “While the bridegroom is with them, the attendants of the bridegroom cannot fast, can they? So long as they have the bridegroom with them, they cannot fast. But the days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast in that day.
Poetry:
Adventures In New Testament Greek—Metanoia
by Scott Cairns
Repentance, to be sure,
But of a species far
less likely to oblige
sheepish repetition.
Repentance, you’ll observe,
glibly bears the bent
of thought revisited,
and mind’s familiar stamp
—a quaint, half-hearted
doubleness that couples
all compunction with a pledge
of recurrent screw-up.
The heart’s metanoia,
on the other hand, turns
without regret, turns not
so much away, as toward,
as if the slow pilgrim
has been surprised to find
that sin is not so bad
as it is a waste of time.
CELEBRATING WITH THE BRIDEGROOM
What would it be like to follow in the way of Jesus—to befriend and love the people who were considered “sinners” by the religious leaders of his day? In Mark 2:14-20, we see how Jesus calls out to Levi, a tax collector, to be his follower. In the middle of the tax booth—the place where tax collectors were seen as traitors to their people, where they supported the Romans and were part of the oppressive system of their own corporate greed—Levi got up and left his tax booth to follow Jesus. Instantly, he was changed and invited others to meet Jesus at his house. Levi’s hospitality provided a space where other outcasts could meet and fellowship with Jesus. While Jesus sat and reclined at the table, eating and drinking, enjoying his time with people, the religious leaders looked down on Jesus’ choice of friends and followers and criticized him for not fasting. As Jesus heard the religious leaders’ criticism, he rebuked them and said, “It is not those who are healthy who need a physician, but those who are sick; I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners” (vs. 17). Jesus also said to the religious leaders that it is a time for feasting, not fasting, as the bridegroom is with them and in their presence.
In the painting by Justin O’Brien, Jesus reclines at the table and the woman demonstrates her extravagant act of devotion as she washes Jesus’ feet with her hair and perfume. Again, the condemning eyes of the religious leaders look down on this sinner who Jesus cared for and forgave. The song “Mercy Flows Free, reminds us of Jesus’ mercy and grace that is freely given to those who seek after it. He gives it to those who see their need for it—to those who are sick, to the broken, and sinners. What would it be like to see our own sickness and sin and receive the healing power of Jesus’ mercy that flows free? How does repentance happen, where we turn towards Christ and find that living in His grace is better than remaining sick in our sin, “a waste of time” as Cairns says in his poem.
What would it be like to invite others to meet Jesus, to provide a place where He can heal their sickness, bind up their wounds, forgive their sins, and celebrate His presence? What would it look like to invite the people who religious leaders may look down on—the sinners and outcasts, the traitors, the marginalized, the homeless, the undocumented immigrants, the Wall Street traders, the LGBTQ activists, the gang members, the criminals, the addicts, the alcoholics, etc.? What would it be like to invite people who were different from us to the table where Jesus invites them to eat and drink, to celebrate the love, life, mercy, and forgiveness that He freely gives?
Prayer:
Lord Jesus, we thank you for your mercy that flows free. May we receive your mercy and grace as we see the brokenness and sin in our own lives. Help us to turn towards you in our time of need, as you are the Great Physician who binds our wounds and forgives our sins. Help us to love others the way you have loved us. Help us invite others to the table to meet You and dine with You and celebrate Your love, mercy, grace, and presence.
Amen.
Grace Sangalang Ng
Buyer, Purchasing Dept.
Doctoral Student in the Talbot School of Theology
Biola University
For more information about the artwork, music, and poetry selected for this day, we have provided resources under the “About” tab located next to the “Devotional” tab
About the Artwork:
Mary Magdalene Washes the Feet of Jesus
Justin O’Brien
Date unknown
Oil on canvas
56.5 x 73.5 cm (triptych)
Private Collection
Influenced by Byzantine aesthetics, Quattrocento painting, and Flemish masters such as Dieric Bouts and Gerard David, Justin O’Brien’s work is unique in Australian art for its integration of religious imagery and symbolism in a contemporary arts practice. O’Brien’s work is characterized by elongated, stylized figures, symbolic landscapes, a bright, simple palette, and a shallow treatment of the picture plane. Over his lifetime of painting, O’Brien’s art embraced and readdressed several motifs, including moonlit figures, Mediterranean landscapes, and religious narratives. Despite his great admiration of artists Cezanne, Raphael, Pierro della Francesca, El Greco, and Duccio, O’Brien’s style and use of color has been seen as being Symbolist and Fauvist.
About the Artist:
Justin O’Brien (1917–1996) was one of the major Australian artists of his generation. During the Second World War, he served in Palestine and Greece before being captured and interned in Athens and then in Poland. In 1944 he was among a group of prisoners of war sent to Barcelona in exchange for German prisoners and soon after returned to Australia to be demobilized. During captivity, O’Brien studied and was inspired by the Byzantine art of the countries in which he was held, and this influenced his own art practice. The images he managed to paint in Poland, with materials supplied by the Red Cross, formed the nucleus of his first Australian exhibition, held in Sydney with another ex-prisoner, Jesse Martin. The Byzantine influence, which gave his early work individuality and style, also informed his mature painting. After the war he taught at Cranbrook School, before moving to Rome in 1967. He returned to Australia with exhibitions every two years. O’Brien’s work is represented in state and university collections throughout Australia and in the National Gallery of Australia, as well as the Vatican Museum of Contemporary Art in Rome. In 1987 the National Gallery of Victoria curated a major retrospective exhibition of his work. https://www.artgallery.nsw.gov.au/exhibitions/justin-obrien/
https://www.portrait.gov.au/people/justin-obrien-1917
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Justin_O%27Brien
https://www.daao.org.au/bio/justin-obrien/biography/
About the Music:
“Mercy Flows Free” from the album Christ Has Triumphed
Lyrics:
There is a table
A banquet prepared
Filling the hungry with the richest of fare
Sweet to the taste, a delight to the eyes
Laid for the poor
Abundance of Life
A body was broken
A fountain of blood poured out
Washing away our sin
Bringing us peace
He was crushed by the will of his Father
For his enemies
Now justice is served and mercy flows free
Come without money
Come and lay down your pride
Wash in the blood
That is sweeter than wine
Sit at the feast
Prepared for his bride
Perfumed with the fragrant promise of life
Mercy flows free
Come taste and see
Mercy flows free
From the loving tree
Jesus said “Come to the table.
“Come take and eat,
“And as you do, remember me.”
So take all he offers
And join in the song
Sung through creation eternity long
Raise up a glass
In your Saviour’s name
Praise to the Lamb for sinners slain
About the Composer:
Alex Kneen lives in Gastonia, North Carolina, with her husband David, and her two sons, Rowan and Bastion. She is a member of Exodus Church, where she serves as a Deacon of Worship, teaches Bibles studies, and speaks at retreats. Kneen is also working toward her master’s degree in Theological Studies at Reformed Theological Seminary in Charlotte, North Carolina. Between family, school, music, and teaching, she enjoys good coffee with friends, reading in quiet places, and wandering in the mountains.
https://www.soulinparaphrase.com/about-alex
https://theexoduschurch.org/about/leadership/
About the Performers:
Alex Kneen and Exodus Music
Exodus Music practices and proclaims the reality that God alone is supreme. Their music is historically informed, God-centered, and always seeking to connect to our context in a fresh, relevant manner.
https://theexoduschurch.org/music/
About the Poet:
Scott Cairns (b. 1954) is an American poet, memoirist, and essayist. Cairns earned a B.A. from Western Washington University; an M.A. from Hollins University; an M.F.A. from Bowling Green State University; and a Ph.D. from the University of Utah. Cairns has served on the faculties of Kansas State University, Westminster College, University of North Texas, Old Dominion University, and University of Missouri. While at the University of North Texas, he served as editor of the American Literary Review. Cairns is the author of eight collections of poetry, one collection of translations of Christian mystics, one spiritual memoir, and a book-length essay on suffering. He also co-edited The Sacred Place, an anthology of poetry, fiction, and nonfiction, with Scott Olsen. Dr. Cairns is currently the program director of Seattle Pacific University’s M.F.A. in Creative Writing program.
https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poets/scott-cairns
https://imagejournal.org/artist/scott-cairns/
About the Devotion Author:
Grace Sangalang Ng
Buyer, Purchasing Dept.
Doctoral Student at Talbot School of Theology
Biola University
Grace Sangalang Ng is a researcher, pursuing her Ph.D. in educational studies at Talbot School of Theology at Biola University. Her research interests include the integration between theological, psychological, and sociological aspects of honor and shame. Her publication in Christian Higher Education, “Exploring How Shame Affects Asian Americans in the Classroom,” explores the various attributes of shame and its effects in educational psychology. In addition, she has presented several papers at the Evangelical Theological Society annual meetings on Asian-American theology. Ng is currently working as a buyer at Biola University, with an interest in strategic sourcing and bringing efficiency through best business practices in academia. She has earned two master’s degrees in Bible Exposition and in Spiritual Formation from Talbot School of Theology at Biola University.