Mark 2:18-20

Mark 2:18-20 Now John’s disciples and the Pharisees were fasting. Some people came and asked Jesus, “How is it that John’s disciples and the disciples of the Pharisees are fasting, but yours are not?” Jesus answered, “How can the guests of the bridegroom fast while he is with them? They cannot, so long as they have him with them. But the time will come when the bridegroom will be taken from them, and on that day they will fast.

Obviously a wedding is not a place to mourn. When the bridegroom is still present, the feast should continue. Jesus came to wed the church (believers) to himself. He came to give life and light to his beloved. We are the beloved. Jesus said to the Pharisees, "Why mourn, why beseech me, why pray for my presence when I am already here?" Why act as if He is in a foreign country. He told the Pharisees explicitly there will be a time when the disciples will fast, for the bridegroom will be gone for a time from their presence. And as we know in Acts 1 there was definitely a time when He was gone from their presence; there was time when they could feel or see him no more. But Jesus had told them earlier, "I must go away so that I might send the Comforter to you. He, the Comforter, will not only be in your presence, He will be in you. He will strike up a conversation with you when you least expect it." As we see happen in Act 2, "These men are not drunk, as you suppose. It’s only nine in the morning! No, this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel: “‘In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams. Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days, and they will prophesy." The Holy Spirit came to make them and us the light of the world. Jesus told his followers that they would be the salt of the earth, for they would make life good again, bringing spice, "the good news," to a sick and lifeless world.

Jesus, the bridegroom, is the light and life, and He gives his essence to his bride through the beloved presence of the Holy Spirit within us. Each of us can now carry life to a sick and dying world. We can carry life to each other. Our greetings, our hugs, our words of "I love you" should bring light and life to the recipients. We Christians should walk in the light as He is in the light as John wrote. Our conversations should be light, our walk should be light, our intimate thoughts should be light. Whenever we feel darkness growing inside us, whenever bitterness, angriness, or sinfulness is sprouting within us, we should go back to the place of "newborn" life, the cross, and say, "God, forgive me, heal my insides, make my life worth living again, bring light to the darkness of my soul. I give my life to your Spirit, to do YOUR WILL, NOT MINE." When self-serving, self-indulgent, sorry for ourselves spirits start to inhabit our souls, we should reject that self-life and ask God to energize his life within us through his Spirit. We should pray earnestly, "Oh Lord, let me hear your words not mine." And He will do exactly that, through the WORD OF GOD (the Bible), through OTHERS, and especially through HIS LIVELY SPIRIT within us.

God came to bring light to us, a sick and dying humanity. We Christians are to reveal that light through our lives. The bridegroom is with us in the form of the Spirit. Should we never fast again? No, we can fast to overcome difficult things. We can fast to repress our materialistic nature. But mainly we should rejoice. Rejoice that Jesus has come. Rejoice that He has brought us his life and light. Rejoice that we can bring this same light and life to others. Therefore, hug your children and grandchildren or your friends' children with love today. Be kind to each other. Express goodness to your enemies. Care for those who are hurting. Bring peace to the wounded and the needy. Cry with those who mourn. Rejoice with those who are rejoicing. In each loving activity, you are turning on a light. You are bringing a new light, even a newborn light, to a troubled and a dark world. Remember, the feast is on and we have a place at the banqueting table.