Draw near.

"When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain; and after he sat down, the disciples came to him. He began to speak, and taught them..."

(Matthew 5:1-2)

Sometimes when I read the Bible, deep spiritual truths jump off the page at me. I'm moved by some insight that carries a depth of honesty that I know I'll be able to hold on to. And then there's today...

I was reading Matthew 5. Jesus, in the midst of a great crowd, goes up a mountain (this is the infamous "Sermon on the Mount" part of the Gospels). Matthew tells us, after after he sat down, the disciples came to him." So my mind started wondering... why'd the disciples wait until Jesus sat down to come to him? Were they following that far behind? Did they not know where he was heading? Did they have to keep an "appropriate distance" from the master when he traveled? Or did they just have to hang around with Jesus until he came to a "teaching moment," and they realized this was it?

Actually, now that I think of it, I remember hearing that in the synagogue, someone would read the Scriptures (the Torah)... and then the rabbi would sit down to teach. There was no standing up in a pulpit, like we Christian pastors do today. So maybe Jesus was simply "assuming the position" of a teacher here. Which meant both his disciples and the rest of the crowds would know it's time to listen & learn?

So I started wondering how my role as a pastor who stands to teach every week fits into this story/learning. And then it hit me. I'm not supposed to be comparing myself to Jesus (duh!?!). I'm supposed to be connected to the disciples. When do I draw near to wisdom? When do I know something is about to share something of significance? When do I draw near to Jesus? Well, when I'm scripture journaling, of course. I come to that expecting to hear something from God. And when I'm in a small group talking about spiritual things (I'm always inspired by what others share). And in worship on Sundays (not only through the message, but also the prayers, songs, liturgy, etc.). Whenever I see an opportunity for learning God's wisdom & inspiration, I need to be like the disciples and draw near.

(Well what do you know... maybe there was some deep spiritual truth in this after all!?!)