ALIVE: Chapter 146, Petersburg University

Not laughing were the two tax collectors. They were so accustomed to having the upper hand over others that to be upended by a fish and a fisherman sullied their dignity. The short one simply said, “Fine, now take us to shore.” And the tall one added, “Immediately, I have appointments.”

Without a word, Peter picked up the oars and started rowing quickly being in agreement that they should separate as soon as possible. Little John stopped laughing and was looking at these men with deep curiosity at how they could be so dulled.

Back at the house, a young woman friend of Simon-Peter’s wife had come to visit with her twin toddlers. “Oh, I didn’t know you had visitors.” said Deborah upon entering the room full of men.

“Come in!” replied the mother-in-law.”Let me see your beautiful boys, how they have grown!” Deborah followed the old woman into the kitchen while the little boys stayed with the men who were lounging around sitting on the divans chatting with each other.

Jesus found a rare moment of silence and inserted His thoughts in it saying, “By the way, yesterday when we were walking I overheard you men arguing. What were you arguing about?” Of course He knew full well the answer, but He wanted to see who would fess up.

The men had to think for a while about what He meant. Andrew soon remembered, but didn’t say anything out of embarrassment.

At that moment, Peter and John walked into the house. John exclaimed, “You should have seen the expression on their faces when those men saw Peter open the mouth of the fish. There really were coins in there!! It was amazing!” The disciples looked over at Jesus for His reaction. But He had moved on and was more concerned about the matter at hand. They were wandering off the trail. He wanted to bring them back.

Bartholomew, suddenly remembered the argument too and said, “Nothing much; it wasn’t important.”

Jesus stood up and went over and sat down next to Bartholomew and then looked around at His men who as each man recalled the argument similarly kept quiet.

One of the toddlers crawled over to Jesus and grabbed His robe and pulled himself up to lean on His knee, then the boy craned his neck to look up as if looking up at the moon and garbled something that sounded like, “Pick me up!” Jesus looked down at the cute kid, bent over, lifted him up and sat him on His knee. Then Jesus said, “If any man would be first, he shall be last of all, and servant of all. Whosoever shall receive one of such little children in my name, receives Me: and whosoever receives Me, receives not Me, but Him Who sent Me.”

Hearing that, the disciples realized that Jesus actually knew that they had been arguing about who was greater. Peter was sure that he was first because he and and brother were first chosen, and because his house had become home base. This was further proven in Peter’s mind because he was selected to witness Jesus being illuminated on Mt. Tabor. All indications pointed Peter to himself. But he tried to be humble and not make that announcement.

Matthew was sure he should have the first seat because unlike the simple fishermen, his conversion was greater. Judas was sure he was the greatest because he was trusted with the treasury. It went on, each man inflating his ego with his thoughts.

Jesus aimed to burst all the ego-bubbles when He said, “If any man would be first, he shall be last of all, and servant of all.” A few of the bubbles managed to ascend out of reach of the arrow of His words.

Then Jesus lifted the squirming boy high off His lap which made him giggle, while his twin brother toddled from man to man like a pin ball. When the baby boy landed back on Jesus’ lap, the child looked around the room curiously, wondering why all those men were looking at him. Jesus surprised them when He announced, “Whoever receives one of such a  little child in My name, receives Me: and whosoever receives Me, receives not Me, but Him that sent Me.”

Not quite sure what Jesus meant about receiving a child in His name, John squirreled away that thought for bedtime time and suddenly remembered that he wanted to tell Jesus something very important. John said, “Teacher, the other day we saw a man casting out demons in Your Name; we made him stop because he wasn’t one of us.

Jesus replied, “You were wrong to do that. Think about it, after that man caste out demons in My name, would he be able to criticize Me? Look men, whoever is not against us is for us. Likewise, whoever helps us, gives us water or a place to sleep, My Father will reward him or her.” Hearing that, most of the disciples nodded, receiving the correction.

Then Jesus carefully lifted the squirming boy off His lap again and set him down to chase after his brother. He said, “I know some of you don’t like children, but I tell you that in heaven their angels see the face of my Father there.”

Thomas said, “Master, tell us more about heaven. Have You been there? How? When? What’s it like?”

Selecting the question He wanted most to answer, Jesus replied in an strange way. Instead of describing the physical characteristics of heaven by saying heaven was filled with golden light or that it had or didn’t have nature as Thomas wanted to know, Jesus, still thinking about His disciples going astray with their yen for greatness, replied, “Imagine a man who has a hundred sheep, and one of them goes astray, doesn’t he leave the ninety and nine, and go into the mountains, to search for the one that went astray? And if or when he finds it, he rejoices over it more than over the ninety-nine which are waiting in the pen for his return. Our Father who is in heaven doesn’t want anyone, not even this little boy here or his brother to perish.”

Thomas listened carefully to Jesus’ answer and was perplexed by it. He expected Jesus to tell him what heaven looks like, and what people or angels look like and do there. Instead Jesus forced his thoughts to go in a different direction describing the effort of loving.

Meanwhile, Jesus went back to talking about the little boys, toddling around them, giggling and fighting.

After watching them for a few moments, He said, “Whoever causes one of these little ones that believe on Me to stumble, it would be better for him if a great millstone were hung around his neck, and then he was thrown into the sea.” One of the little boys collapsed onto his bottom,  and twisting himself onto all fours, crawled over to Thomas. The toddler looked up to be picked up to escape his oncoming brother. Thomas looked down and smiled at the boy who was begging him with his expression and grunts, so he picked him up and sat him on his own lap.

Once the boy was settled on his lap, looking around at all the men, Thomas went back to listening to Jesus telling them more about heaven.

At that moment Deborah and Peter’s wife entered the room. “Oh! I’m so sorry. I hope the boys didn’t disturb you gentlemen.” Turning to her friend, Deborah said, “We really must go. Thank you my dear for the advice. I don’t know what I would do without you.” She lifted her little boy off Thomas lap, and nestled him on her hip, while she went to grab the other boy’s hand. Peter’s wife said, “Let me walk a ways with you to help with little Ari. I need some fresh air.” And she went and caught the other toddler who was giggling and trying to escape the woman’s grasp.

Finally the two women with wiggling boys in their strong arms walked past Jesus and the other men to the door and left the holy classroom. Deborah intentionally did not acknowledge Jesus, even knowing that He was the wonder worker she had heard so much about. She sensed that He deserved privacy and normalcy, and didn’t want to impose on that. Nevertheless, walking passed Him nonchalantly she felt an inexplicable sweetness and joy unlike anything she had sensed before, or ever again as much as she tried and tried to conjure it up in quiet moments before sleep.  All she could do was remember the unfading memory of the feeling, but she never experienced it again, even when she saw Jesus surrounded by a crowd in public. The truth was that that feeling was Jesus’ expression of gratitude to her.

After the women and boys departed, Jesus stood up and with His back to the door continued His lesson by saying, “If your hand causes you to stumble, cut it off: it is good for you to enter into life in heaven maimed, rather than having both hands with you when you go to hell, into the unquenchable fire.”

Several disciples looked down at their hands and wondered what those hands could do to send them to hell. Steal? Hit innocent people? Can hands operate on their own volition? No. It was obvious with only a little contemplation to know that a person’s own will can lead to misusing their bodies, even a part of it, and how that is self-damning.

Jesus wanted His men, and through them, the world to know that with the same mastery of their own will, with discipline, a person can rule over every part of his or her body, and that discipline had far reaching effects.

He continued, “And if your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off: it is better to enter into life in heaven hopping on one foot rather than being cast into hell with both feet. Thomas imagined heaven as filled with people without hands and feet and shivered.

And if your eye cause you to stumble, cast it out: it is good for you to enter into the kingdom of God with one eye, rather than having two eyes to be cast into hell; where their worm does not die, and the fire is not quenched.”

As often as Andrew had witnessed the power of Jesus in healing, and walking on water, or calming the wind and sea, the thought of a person casting out his own eyes was shocking. Could He really mean that? Who could do that? Then again, to be made aware of the far reaching, albeit eternal, consequences of indulging in what one knows is wrong, well such a realization castes a spotlight on the volition of the soul that fleeting moments hide.

How much power and authority each free human being, made in the image and likeness of the all powerful Creator God has, over himself or herself? With eyes fixed on the choice of destination and not weakening by the attraction of the indulgences of this world, each of the disciples and indeed the species of humankind freely chooses life or death. Being master over one’s body is the first step, crawling, toddling, walking, running and finally….dancing to the real place that hellfire cannot grab.

Andrew popped out of his rumination to hear Jesus say, “Every one will be salted with fire.”

Andrew heard that strange phrase, “salted with fire”. And wondered if that juxtaposition of useful and painful was key to surviving, even benefitting by the pains of life.

Jesus continued to speak through Andrew’s mental wandering and wondering. “Salt is good: but if the salt has lost its saltness, how can it be useful? Have salt in yourselves, and be at peace one with another. If your brother sins against, go, show him his fault between you and him alone: if he hears you, you have gained your brother. But if he doesn’t, take with you one or two friends, that at the mouth of two witnesses or three, every word may be established. And if he refuses to hear them, tell it unto the rabbi: and if he refuses to hear the rabbi also, let him be unto you as a foreigner who is unaware of the majesty and existence of God. Hear this truth, Whatever you will bind on earth will be bound in heaven; and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.”

Andrew interpreted that to mean that he should be vividly aware of his power and authority as a human being, and use them well, not to harm himself or others, but to live the immortal life here and now, to be and to become a citizen of the peaceful, joyful immortal world that Jesus had spoken of as the kingdom of God, and heaven. Then Andrew thought, if only everyone, not even just Jews, could listen to these teachings and heed them, well, that must be heaven on earth. Andrew imagined a new kind of synagogue where people of like mind and ambition and effort gathered to leave the world that is suffused with evil, hatred, malice, greed and the like, to leave that if only for a while, but frequently, to heed all of these teachings, these descriptions of heaven and live every day in this new way together. Andrew wondered if that was possible and how it could come about. He thought that they needed to make it happen.