Numbers 16:36-18:32
This covenant of salt thing is quite interesting, especially considering that Jesus calls us the salt (and light) of the world. I’m undecided as to whether or not Jesus could have been referring to this slightly obscure passage in Numbers as I have never heard anyone make the link but, there is something in it that I think has a bit of a kick. This covenant of salt was between the Lord and Aaron’s family and confirmed that all gifts that were set apart for the Lord would be made available as gifts to Aaron and his sons and daughters (I’m not sure what Aaron’s wife did wrong but that, I suspect, is a different story). God’s incredibly generous principle is therefore established that holy offerings to him should be given as a regular share to the Aaronites. Now, I suspect you will say I am going too far but you could say that Jesus’ declaration that his followers are the salt of the earth is an assertion that his followers are the embodiment of holy offerings to God and that he is giving them as a regular share to all the people of the world (Jesus always extended promises to Israel to the whole of humanity). I actually think that is quite cool. Whether or not you think Jesus was referencing this particular covenant, you have got to admit that it is pretty cool that God was so willing to give away all that he had to the people that he had made.
Luke 5:17-32
What did Jesus mean when he said “Your sins are forgiven” to the paralysed man? I guess you could say that the man’s paralysis must have been caused by his sin and therefore the root to his healing was to receive forgiveness. You could say that... but I would have to disagree with you. I think that we often have far too narrow an understanding of sin, thinking it is constrained to failures in personal morality such as greed or lust. When Jesus talks about sin here, and later when he says that he is calling “sinners to repentance”, I think that he has a hefty, broad understanding of sin in mind. When Jesus talks about sin I think he means the whole smorgasbord of pain, idolatry and suffering that epitomised life in exile from God. I think that when Jesus talks about calling sinners to repentance he is not talking just about them no longer coveting their neighbour’s ass but rather he is talking about them walking out of exile and into the newly-available promised land, into the Kingdom of God. This is important as it sets the tone for how we should be calling sinners to repentance. This call is not a nitpicking, slightly irritating moan at people not to commit acts of sin but rather is a beckoning, a welcoming of lost, distraught and wounded people into the kingdom of God where they can find hope, intimacy, healing and holiness. It is a remarkable call and one that will fill people with awe and praise of God.
Psalm 37:10-20
The more I read the old testament, and the psalms in particular, the more I realise that Jesus was like a 1st century Jewish Hip-hop artist sampling everyone else’s work and blending it together into a new, banging, totally whack tune. The meek will inherit the land wiki-wiki-wawa
