John 14

As you start reading John 14, remember that it's right after John 13, where Jesus is telling His disciples things like: One of you is going to betray me (v. 21)... I will be with you only a little longer (v. 33)...Where I am going, you cannot come [follow] (v. 33 and again in v. 36)... Peter, before the rooster crows, you will disown me three times (v. 38). Right after this, Jesus says, Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me. Chapter 14 is a powerful text anyway, but read it in its context, trying to put yourselves into the sandals of the disciples, and the text comes alive. I am going there to prepare a place for you... [and] I will come back and take you to be with me...And I will ask the Father and He will give you another Counselor to be with you forever--the Spirit of Truth...I will not leave you as orphans... Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid. Amazing words. So often read these words in the context of our life situation, and it is well that we should take comfort in them, but usually we are not faced with the kind of grief and world shattering events that the disciples were faced with in the 24 hours to follow. If these words were spoken with that in mind, then how much more should they comfort us in our needs.

I'd like to point out a few more verses. First of all, verses 12-14. These have always struck me as odd, to be honest, but here, I think, we see the playing out of the Rabbi/talmidim idea. What is the goal of the talmid? To become like the rabbi! In my life, I find that I have a hard time mustering that kind of faith. I also have a tough time wrapping my mind around verse 14. I think it can be ripped out of context (and often is, quite badly), but notice that it is connected to verse 13: the purpose of everything that happens is so that the Son may bring glory to the Father.

Also, something that really struck me when I was learning in Israel a few years ago is the emphasis that Jesus puts on obedience. Look at verse 15: If you love me, you will obey what I command. Now I don't believe in a "works righteousness" by any stretch, but perhaps we have swung the pendulum so far the other direction that we have forgotten this very straightforward statement from the mouth of Jesus: obey.

John 13

Somehow, it is fitting that we should be discussing this passage on the eve of Christmas, our celebration of God coming to us in the flesh.

The story of the washing of feet reminds me of our Passover experience together.
The part that strikes me as I read it today is verse 12: "Do you understand what I have done for you?" Here Jesus is, the Lord of everything, the one who spoke and galaxies came into being and He came to serve. He makes it clear that the path of the Kingdom of God is lined with service, and no matter how "important" I become, I will never be able to make a galaxy, so I had better remember that my life should be lined with service, too. Have you ever gone on a service or mission trip and found yourself blessed because of that? Have you even (like me) felt guilty afterwards thinking, "Here we are to serve you guys," only to wonder if you gave as much of a blessing as you received? I think we can be assured that God does use us and work through us in those circumstances, but look at what Jesus says in verse 17: "Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them." Sometimes we get so caught up with thinking that Jesus is talking about when we get to heaven that we ignore the possibility that He might be talking about here and now also. I believe there is the promise of the blessing of heaven, but I think Jesus may also have realized that the servants receive blessing in the moment of service, too.

We tend to remember the story of Jesus identifying his betrayer by passing him the bread, but did you realize that this was also a reference to Psalm 41:9? That's remarkable!

The last part of this chapter should be read together with the first part of the next chapter, so we'll pick up there next time.

John 12

Today, I just want to highlight a few verses from this chapter:

(12:10) The chief priests wanted to kill Lazarus. I always thought this was funny, because Jesus already raised him from the dead once. I suppose they maybe thought they could kill Jesus first and then Lazarus, but that didn't exactly work out like they planned, either.

(12:25) The man who loves his life will lose it, while the man who hates [prefers less than The Kingdom] his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. In connection with this verse, there is a prayer (by Stephen Mitchell) that a colleague of mine shared with me: "Even in the midst of great pain, Lord, I praise you for that which is. I will not refuse this grief or close myself to this anguish. Let shallow men pray for ease: 'comfort us, shield us from sorrow.' I pray for whatever you send me, and I ask to receive it as your gift. You have put a joy in my heart greater than all the world's riches. I lie down trusting the darkness, for I know that even now, you are here." That is a powerful and frightening prayer.

(12:42-43) Yet at the same time many even among the leaders believed in him, but because of the Pharisees they would not sonfess their faith for fear that they would be put out of the synagogue; for they loved praise from men more than praise from God.

John 11--part 3

The fallout from Jesus' raising Lazarus from the dead. We'll see another aspect of this in chapter 12, but there is a really interesting quote by the high priest recorded in verse 50. John himself provides the commentary on the far reaching implications of the idea of Jesus dying instead of us all (substitutionary atonement). Almost certainly, that quote had more far-reaching theological weight than the high priest intended. But Passover (think Independence Day for a people under oppression) is coming, and the people are excited for Jesus to come as The King...

John 11--part 2

Okay, due to a little (okay, not little) computer problem at home, I'm going to have to update this from school for a while. Despite my blogging irregularities, my personal devotions have been alright, but regardless, I hope to finish posting on the Gospel according to John with a little more regularity.

In John 11:17, when Jesus gets there, Martha goes out to meet him and makes a statement with a broken heart: If you had been here, my brother would not have died. She follows up that question with a statement of great faith. But I know that even now God will give you whatever you ask. Was she expecting Jesus to raise her brother from the dead? I'm not sure, but it doesn't seem likely from what she tells Jesus in verse 24 (and also verse 40, later). Even so, for her response in verse 25, I think she gets an A+.

So she goes and gets Mary. Mary goes out to Jesus and falls at his feet and makes the same grief-ridden statement. Following this are some of the most moving words in scripture. Jesus knew that things were going to turn out alright (see verse 23). He knew that in 15 minutes, these same people were going to be overcome with great joy and the power and victory of God. But in that moment, Jesus Himself was deeply moved (even to tears) because the people around Him--people He loved--were hurting. See how he loved him!... Could not he who opened the eyes of the blind man have kept this man from dying?

The happy ending: (11:44) The dead man came out, his hands and feet wrapped with strips of linen, and a cloth around his face. I hope it's not irreverent for me to think this, but the picture John paints here is absolutely hilarious, and even Mary, Martha, and Lazarus must have had a laugh about it in retrospect. First of all, "the dead man came out..." ?! Second, here's this picture of him all tangled up in strips of cloth, maybe like he's in some sort of sack race, with a cloth around his face, so he can't even see where he's going. Then, as if Jesus had to tell them, Take off his grave cloths and let him go. All to the glory of God!

John 11

Wow! I just need to do a better job of keeping this up-to-date!

John 11 is so rich, that I just have to deal with it in parts. This passage is especially close to my heart, and I think you may have heard me speak in chapel on the first part of this (March 31, 2004 ring a bell?--probably not--I just checked back over my PowerPoints to see when I modified it last). As most of you know, when I was in college I had a roommate that was killed in an auto accident. John 11:21-37 was the text read at his funeral. If you have already read that passage, read it again with that set of circumstances in mind. We already know how the story in John 11 turns out, but put yourself in their sandals for a few moments. Can you hear the hurt in the questions they ask and feel the pain that caused even Jesus to shed tears?

Back to that in a few moments. As John 11 opens, Jesus is not in Jerusalem--He's not even in Judea, apparently. But Lazarus, a good friend is sick (possibly from Leprosy or its complications--if you're curious as to why that might be, ask and I'll tell you why that might be the case). His sisters, Martha and Mary, send word to Jesus, hoping to compell Him into action. But when Jesus receives word, He hangs around where He is for 2 more days. The text does not say, but I imagine someone among Jesus' followers wondering or even possibly suggesting that they leave for Bethany right away. But He doesn't leave, offering for His explanation that death will not be the end, but God will be glorified in this situation. Finally, Jesus tells His talmidim that they're heading back down to Judea. The disciples remind Jesus of what almost happened the last time He went there, but after a short discussion, including Jesus telling them that Lazarus is already dead, they agree to join Him on His journey, spurred on by Thomas "the twin" (that's what "Didymus" means), who appears to be convinced that this will be the end of the line for all of them.

We'll pause there and pick up tomorrow.

John 10

This passage about the sheep and the shepherd is really interesting. Remember the story I told about the 4 different flocks that came to that shelter in the desert in the Middle East. They all came at once and each of them sheltered their sheep in the same pen for the evening. The shepherds slept in the gaps in the walls so that no sheep could get out (or other animal in) without the shepherd's knowledge (think--I am the gate). In the morning, then, the shepherds stood apart from each other and took turns calling the sheep. Then the sheep sorted themselves out by listening to the shepherds' voices and following the one they recognized. The question I have to ask myself is: Am I listening to the The Shepherd enough to recognize His voice when He calls me? In verse 22, we read that Jesus was in Jerusalem at the feast of Hanukkah ("Hanukkah" is the Hebrew word for "dedication").

Funny Story

Last week, when my wife was logging onto the internet from our home computer (we still have dial-up at home--no, I don't ride a dinosaur to work everyday), our three-year-old son was sitting on her lap and took an ill-timed stab at the keyboard which changed our username and password to our account. Naturally, we had no idea what random keys he hit and since we didn't have the old username and password (yeah, should've written those down) we were stuck without internet access for a while. It's fixed now, so I'm back to blogging...sorry for the delay.

John 9

We've talked about this story in class--about how Jesus sent the man to wash in Siloam when there was almost certainly water closer--a miracle that asked for a step of faith on the part of the recipient. But look closer at the first 3 verses in this chapter. Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind? If you look at verse 34, the consensus among the religious folks seems to suggest his parents (lit. "In sins you were born, entirely!"). Even though I don't like the language, the force behind what they said to the man in verse 34 is something like, "Why, you bastard! How dare you lecture us?!" This was serious business. At any rate, the response Jesus gives in verse 3 is stunning: Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but this happened that the work of God might be displayed in his life. I still remember Tyler V.'s dad talking about this verse in particular before Tyler had his bone marrow transplant. I think this was part of the reason that I believed so strongly that God would completely heal Tyler.

But the healing is only part of the story. Most of the chapter deals with the conversations that took place after Jesus healed the man. I would like to point out that not all the religious folk were dead set against Jesus' actions. Look at verse 16. They were divided. As it turns out, this is not uncommon in Rabbinic Judaism. The man's parents chicken-out a little here, don't you think? But this man sure doesn't. He even gets himself tossed out of the synagogue for his words, but the pure simplicity of his testimony is beautiful: One thing I know. I was blind but now I see! When it boils down to it, this is, in a way, the common testimony of all who claim Jesus as Lord.

John 8

Even though the note in your Bible probably says that verses 7:53-8:11 are not included in the earliest manuscripts, people that I have talked with seem confident of this story's authenticity, even if it was originally a part of a different narrative. Look at it with me and I think you will find that it has deep Hebrew roots which argues for it's authentic setting being in first century Judaism (Jesus' world). As this story opens, the people bring before Jesus a woman caught in adultery and point out that the appropriate punishment is death. There is an interesting double standard given by the people here, since the Torah actually proscribes death for both the man and the woman caught in adultery. If she was caught in adultery, where's the guy? (see Lev. 20:10 and Deut. 22:22) They are trying to trap Jesus, but He doesn't even give them a verbal answer. Instead He writes in the dust. ?! What's He doing? I think Jesus is giving them a remez. Check out Jeremiah 17:13: O Lord, the hope of Israel, all who forsake you will be put to shame. Those who turn away from you will be written in the dust because they have forsaken the Lord, the spring of living water. Now remember that when a rabbi uses a remez, the main point is often in surrounding verses--look at Jeremiah 17:10-11. They don't get it right away, so Jesus delivers His famous line and goes down and writes in the dust again. Slowly, it begins to dawn on them what Jesus is saying, and it happens from the oldest to the youngest...very Jewish idea there. Notice also the word that is used in 8:9. At this, those who heard began to go away... Remember that the Hebrew word traslated "hear" is shema which implies not only hearing but also understanding. So they all leave and no one is left to condemn her. In case you think Jesus is going soft on sin, hear what he says in the last part of verse 11.

8:12 is especially cool when you consider that during the Feast of Tabernacles huge lamps were lit in the Temple courts.
Then Jesus gets into a big discussion about His Father. The people are all thinking Joseph and may even be questioning the moral circumstances surrounding His birth in verse 19 (think about how Jesus' birth must have looked to a human audience at that time).
Among some strong words by Jesus is a clear claim on His part to be divine in verse 58: Jesus using the phrase "I am" in reference to Himself is directly quoting the Name of God used in Exodus 3. This was as clear a claim to be God as any that He could have used--and His audience understood what He was saying which is why they were prepared to take action. Stoning would have been the appropriate action to take...except that in Jesus' case, He actually was God.

John 7

This chapter starts off with a strange little story about an interaction between Jesus and His brothers. As I think I have written before, passages like this create a problem for those who wish to deny the authenticity of the account, because it passes what's called, "the embarassment test." That is, if something is reported by Christianity that is embarassing to Christianity, then it is very likely to be true (if you're going to make something up, usually, it is to make yourself look better--not worse). So when the Gospels contain these (embarassing) verses about Jesus' close relatives not believing who He claimed to be, this is strong evidence of their authenticity and difficult to argue against. It is also interesting to note that "something" drastically, radically, and quickly changed their minds (because James, among others, is a leader of the early early church in Jerusalem). I believe that this "something" was Jesus' resurrection. This radical change in attitude is extrememly difficult to explain by those who deny the resurrection. But anyway, now I'm off topic...back to the text...Jesus' teachings at the Festival of Sukkoth. For a neat little Sukkoth story and a taste of how people in that culture still relate with each other and with God, check out the movie Ushpizin.

Remember that Sukkoth was one of the three pilgrimage festivals where every male would go up to Jerusalem. In v. 21-24, Jesus makes an argument for the command of pekuah nefesh (quality of life) being higher than Sabbath, which some of the people certainly would have agreed with, but others not.

(7:37-38) On the last and greatest day of the Feast [Sukkoth--the day was known as Hoshanna Rabbah and the ceremony of the day included an elaborate water drawing ceremony], Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, "If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him." Whether Jesus said this during or before or after the water drawing ceremony, it would have been powerful timing. For more on this ceremony, see Christ in the Feast of Tabernacles by Brickner--excellent little book.

So what "Scripture" is Jesus referring to here? First of all, living water is a symbol for the goodness and provision of God, so I think in here and in John 4, Jesus is issuing a claim to the divine, but what about the streams of living water flowing from other people? Check out Isaiah 32:1-2. This passage talks about the time of the coming of the King of Righteousness, and it is very interesting to note that in this age (the Messianic Age), the Bible contends that people will experience the goodness and provision of God (shelter, shade, refuge, living water) through other people. See the importance of community? Wow! Anyway, look at verse 40 and following. The people understood what Jesus was talking about. Not all of them believed Him (there seemed to be some confusion as to His geographical origin), but they understood the claims He was making.

John 6

The feeding of the 5000. Remember that this story reminds the Jewish people of Moses. Jesus picks up on this theme over and over again in the discourse that follows. His audiences pick up on this fact also and ask Him flat out about Moses. Jesus even hauls out "God's business card," as my pastor says ("I am..."). This clearly would have gotten his audience's attention and have had them thinking about Exodus 3:14. I encourage you to read through this again sometime, thinking about manna and Moses.

At the end of this passage, there is another verse that caught my attention. After this hard teaching of Jesus, He asks His talmidim, "You do not want to leave, too, do you?" Peter answered, "Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life..."

John 5

Chapter 5 starts out with an interesting story. For all the talk I've had about healing following faith, here again we have an example of Jesus not being limited by a person's lack of faith. The verse comment in my Bible underscores this idea by pointing out in verse 13 that the man didn't have any idea who Jesus was.

Notice Jesus' use of the word "hear" in the discourse from v.19 to the end of the chapter. What if Jesus was using that word with the Hebrew understanding of shema (hear and obey). I think that adds to our understanding of the passage.

John 4

The story of the Samaritan woman at the well. Note that Jesus was tired when He got there and sent His talmidim into town to get food. I bet they weren't really keen on buying food from Samaritans. But while they were gone, Jesus gets caught up in this conversation with this woman, who then brings the people of her town out to meet Him. And despite Jesus tired state, He is not in need of food because of His great joy in obedience to God's will. So Jesus stays there two more days and many Samaritans come to believe in Him. They said to the woman, "We no longer believe just because of what you said; now we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this man really is the Savior of the world."

John 3

Perhaps the one Bible verse that "everyone" knows lies in this chapter: John 3:16. The conversation with Nicodemus is well worth a read and a re-read. In verses 13 and 14, Jesus makes 2 OT references: "the Son of Man" is a reference to Daniel 7, and the part about Moses is in Numbers 21.

Then Jesus begins baptizing near where John the Baptizer is preaching and there's this interesting exchange between John and His talmidim. The verse here that just sends a quiver down my spine is verse 30: He must become greater; I must become less. That just hits me between the eyes where I am right now. Recently I have re-subscribed to the "Coach's Mandate"--a code of ethics put out by Fellowship of Christian Athletes. One of the lines is: I cannot bring glory to both Jesus and myself at the same time. That rings in my ears as I read, He must become greater; I must become less.
He must become greater; I must become less.
He must become greater; I must become less.

John 2

(2:1) On the third day a wedding took place at Cana in Galilee... Do you remember talking about details in the text? What day of the week is the third day? Why would someone want to get married on that day? (The answer is in the Text--way early in the Text. Do you remember?)

Anyway, here are Jesus and His disciples and His mother all at this wedding when the wine runs out. And here John tells us about Jesus' water into wine miracle. Actually, John calls Jesus' miracles "signs," using a Greek word different than the other Gospel writers. One commentator that I read thought that maybe John liked to use Jesus' miracles to remind his audience that this was the ushering in of the Messianic age. This one in particular might have reminded the people that in the Messianic age, among other things, wine would be abundant (see Amos 9). This is very possible.

Remember that John was writing to the church in general, but also specifically to believers in Asia Minor. In the culture of that day, there was a god of the Roman pantheon called Dionysus. He was also called Bacchus, as well as a few other names, but he was associated with (among other things) wine, drinking, and debauchery. In the stories about the Dionysus cult, there are all sorts of obscene practices, but one of the miraculous signs that supposedly happened at the center of the his cult was that the god Dionysus changed water into wine. I believe, then, that one of the purposes for John telling this story about Jesus is to make the argument that Dionysus is a fake and Jesus is the real deal. Think about that.

(2:12-19) John records two "clearings of the Temple" by Jesus. This is the first. I love verse 17 in this part. His disciples remembered that it is written: "Zeal for your house will consume me." They remembered Psalm 69! Often times I catch myself reading the Gospels and saying or thinking ill of the disciples: C'mon guys! How do you not see Who Jesus is? But then I come across this verse and I realize that the disciples may not have been every rabbi's first pick, but they knew Psalm 69 from memory, so they're up on me in that category.

John 1

Right from the get-go, we will see that John tends to write quite differently from the other Gospel writers.

(1:1-3) The use of the Greek language in these three verses is exquisite. "Bible-believing" cults (JWs and Mormons) have a really difficult time getting around John's usage of the Greek here, if they are honest with themselves. If you're really interested, I can get more into it, but I'm not sure I want to launch into a precise discussion of it now or here.

(1:14) The Word became flesh and made his dwelling [lit. "tabernacled"] among us. Use of this word (tabernacled) would call to mind the journey through the desert on the way to the Promised Land as well as the Feast of Tabernacles and everything associated with God's presence and provision for His people.

(1:37-39) So cool! I just realized this a couple weeks ago when someone was talking about this passage. And my first thought was, They did what? No way! So I had to look for myself. Sure enough, these two guys, when asked a question by Jesus, respond with...a question! Jesus: What do you want? They: Rabbi, where are you staying? Wow!!! These guys can play the game.

(1:43-51) Exceedingly cool passage. From the context of this passage, I think it is possible that Nathaniel was maybe already studying under a rabbi when Philip found him...

Luke 24

(24:1-12) The triumph! The Great Surprise! This story never gets old. I once heard that to commemorate this great act, Eastern Orthodox Christians will get together on the Saturday between Good Friday and Resurrection Day and tell their best jokes to remember the great joy and wondrous surprise it must have been for the women and the nasty surprise it must have been for the evil one (still a jerk!).


(24:13-35) I love this story as well. So these two guys are walking and Jesus comes up and walks with them. When He asks them what they're talking about, they actually stop altogether out of great despair: ...but we had hoped that he was the one who was going to redeem Israel. And I love berse 27: And beginning with Moses [Torah] and the Prophets [the rest of the OT] he explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning himself. How would you have liked to be a part of that conversation?! So they get to Emmaus, and it's late, so they invite Jesus in to eat with them (still not recognizing Him) and Jesus took bread, gave thanks, broke it and began to give it to them. Do you remember the way first-century Jews pray in giving thanks for bread? "Blessed are you, O Lord our God, Ruler of the universe, Who brings forth bread from the earth." And that's when they recognize Jesus. And just like that, He's gone. Now look at verse 33: They got up and returned at once to Jerusalem. Remember that it's late now and that Jerusalem was 7 miles away! These guys weren't going to let anything stop them from getting the good news to their friends. And when they get there, Jesus shows up again.


Last verse in Luke: And they stayed continually at the temple, praising God. Because they saw the Jesus movement not as a new religion altogether, but as an extension of Judaism. While it's true that the early church had to learn a whole lot about the fact that this message was for Gentiles also, I think that it is one of the great shames of all time that we have largely divorced our faith from its Jewish roots. Of course, I don't think we need to become Jewish to be Christian, but I do think there's alot to learn stemming from the fact that Jesus was a first-century Jew.


This is the last chapter of Luke. If you're willing, John is next...let's start next Monday. A few of you have told me that you're "behind" in the readings or whatever, and I say, "Whatever you do, don't beat yourself up over it." And certainly this is not the only way to do devotions. Quite honestly, I feel like these postings have been as much (if not more) about my growth (and my need to grow) in my walk as they have been about benefiting those who read it. I am very glad for your comments as we go along, but by no means feel bad about "missing a day or three" or "falling behind" or whatever. I'm just one man doing devotions one way out of thousands of ways it could be done, and I'm deeply grateful for your partnership along the way, but by no means do I want to communicate that it has to be done like this.

Okay, so that paragraph wasn't very clear, but I can't think of how to phrase it better
Praise God for His Word!

Luke 23

(23:1-2) In my attempt to beat a dead horse, from what I have heard about the party of Pharisees in general, it is difficult to believe that all Pharisees (even most Pharisees?) would go along with this. Luke doesn't say here it was the Pharisees which is consistent with my argument.
Pilate we already talked about (see our Mark or Matthew discussion on the other website). While his words may sound fair, he's far from a "nice guy." His apparent desire to let Jesus off the hook may have come from something his wife said to him (check Matthew 27:19).

(23:26) As I read this verse, I was reminded of that scene from The Passion of the Christ movie. It's poetic license, of course, but when the Romans ask Simon to carry the cross in the movie, he makes this loud address to the crowd which went something like, "Just so you know, I am an innocent man carrying this cross for a guilty man." Actually that statement is profoundly false. Simon was a guilty man carrying the cross for an innocent man. And Jesus (innocent) hung on that cross for us (guilty).

After reading this, read Psalm 22 sometime. As I'm writing this, I've got a wicked-bad cough, my eye hurts, and I'm running a temperature, but reading this is perfect timing, because it's a reminder to me that all this is nothing compared to what Jesus went through for us.

(23:50) This was actually a very bold move on Joseph's part and a generous one. A tomb was a major investment in those days, since one cut in the rock could be used by one's family for generations (remember our discussion about secondary burial?). However, once a tomb had someone not from the owners family buried in it, it could not be used again. So this was a huge gift on Joseph's part--the equivalent of giving away a house, except multiply it by 10 because no one in Joseph's family (the generations after him) could use it either.

Luke 22

When I read this passage, so many thoughts come to my mind. One of them is the Passover celebration we shared as a class. Do you remember it? Reading this while thinking about that jogs so many thoughts.

Simon, Simon, Satan has asked to sift you as wheat. But I have prayerd for you, Simon, that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned back, strengthen your brothers.

Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done.

In the garden, we give Peter a hard time for denying Jesus, but as we discussed in class, do you really think Peter (22:50) thought he was going to live after taking a swing at the servant of the high priest unless Jesus intervened. I think in that moment, Peter was willing to die for who he thought Jesus was going to be. I'm certainly not excusing Peter's denial, but maybe it's more understandable in the framework of Peter's confusion as to who Jesus was.

Luke 21

Again, I'm not sure it's prudent to comment extensively on Jesus' prophetic discourse if for no other reason than several others have done such a poor job of it. But there are a few things that caught my attention as I read through the chapter:
(21:12-15 and following)--Jesus is talking to His talmidim about how they can expect persecution because of Jesus and His message through them. But look again at what He says: "This will result in your being witnesses to them." Wow! I must admit that it is awesome (and also infuriating at times) that God will put His people through undesirable things for the benefit of others' spiritual condition, even that of our enemies. But wait, there's more... "Make up your mind not to worry beforehand how you will defend yourselves. For I will give you words and wisdom that none of your adversaries will be able to resist or contradict." While I don't think this absolves us of doing our homework (see 1 Peter 3:15-16, which also talks about giving a defense in the midst of suffering), I think it is comforting to know that it's not my job to convert people, but that the Holy Spirit speaking through me can affect that change in someone's life.

Luke 20

Chief priests again asking Jesus where He got His smichah (authority). Notice again the answering a question with a question. Jesus also tells them another parable involving a vineyard (reference to Isaiah 5:1-7). The point of the parable (explained in the NIV study Bible text note) is apparently not lost on the listeners as they exclaim, "May this never be!" Notice also in verse 19 that the Pharisees are not here included in the groups of people that want to have him arrested. Notice also that from verse 39 in this chapter that apparently some of the teachers of the law were not in this group either.

As we talked about in class, 20:25 is astonishing given that several of the disciples of Jesus (and the disciples of the disciples) died because they would not hail Caesar as Lord.

Also verses 34-38 is just a brilliant response on so many levels.
In verses 41-44, Jesus is really stretching their ontological understanding of who the Messiah is. Most if not all the people who believed Jesus was the Messiah did not understand His deity also.

Now it's time to take a look back at that remez I cited last time. Luke 19:40: "I tell you," he replied, "if they keep quiet, the stones will cry out." For stones crying out, check Habakkuk 2:9-11. When will the stones cry out? Woe to him who builds his realm by unjust gain to set his nest high, to escape the clutches of ruin! You have plotted the ruin of many people shaming your own house and forfeiting your life. The stones of the wall will cry out, and the beams of the woodwork will echo it. Woe to him who builds a city with bloodshed and establishes a town by crime! So more than appreciating the accalades of the crowd, Jesus is making a point of the lack of justice by the religious establishment. Quite a powerful condemnation.

Luke 19

Zacchaeus (was a wee-little man...). We read his story here. Probably you're all at least minimally familiar with this story. But let's look at some things a little deeper. First of all, I can't say for sure, but I've always wondered why Luke takes the time to tell us what kind of tree it was Zaki climbed into: a sycamore-fig tree. It is at least interesting to note that there is a prophet associated with this kind of tree. Any guesses? That's right, it's Amos! Check Amos 7:14. Tending this kind of tree was one of Amos' two occupations before God called him to prophesy against Israel (for their mistreatment of the poor and disenfranchised). Amos' other occupation is also interesting for this passage, so perhaps Luke is trying to draw our attention to something.
(19:5) I must stay at your house today. Must! Wow.
(19:9) Today salvation has come to this house, because this man, too, is a son of Abraham. For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost. Seek and save the lost. This is a clear remez to Ezekiel 34. Read that passage sometime. It talks about how God is mad at the shepherds of Israel because they are abusing the sheep. Because of that, God is going to deal with the shepherds and HIMSELF SHEPHERD HIS PEOPLE and in doing so, seek and save the ones who are lost. So Jesus is at least hinting at His divine nature here as well rebuking the established leadership, pointing out that people like Zaki are lost because they are put on the outside by the bad shepherds. And God's not happy about it!

(19:40) There's a pretty profound remez in this verse. Can you find it? Look closely at your NIV Study Bibles (that little column between the two columns of text). What is Jesus saying?

(19:41-44) During the "Triumphal Entry" we read this powerful excerpt only here in Luke. Jesus weeps bitterly over the city (as opposed to the quiet sobbing He does at Lazarus' funeral turned party--John 11:35). The things that Jesus refers to here happened in AD 70 when the Romans laid seige to and conquered Jerusalem.

Next post: Sunday, Oct. 7

Luke 18

Several compelling parables here. The parable of the persistent widow is framed by two great verses: Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up...... "However, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?" I still find it amazing that Jesus tells us to pray this way. We talked about the parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector early on in our semester together. They went up to the temple "to pray" meaning to worship God. In the shadow of the sacrifice system, the tax collector prayed, "God, have mercy on me, a sinner." To Jesus' Jewish audience, that's really significant.

(18:22) The call to be a talmid of Jesus supercedes any and every other thing. For this man, his great wealth held him back.

(18:38-43) Again with the theme of faith leading Jesus to act with power. Given the title that this man calls Jesus ("Son of David") I'm not convinced that this man had a clear understanding of Jesus' mission. The zealots would have seen Jesus as the "Son of David" coming to kick the Romans out. Even so, this man's confession of Jesus as the Messiah, even apparently not a complete understanding is recognized by Jesus as faith. A comforting thought, indeed.

Luke 17

I'm still always struck by the story of the 10 lepers--9 of whom did not return to give thanks. But what about me? How many good things do I accept from God's hand without return of my thanks?

At the end of the chapter, another verse that warrants a second look: "Where, Lord?" they asked. He replied, "Where there is a dead body, there the vultures will gather."

Luke 16

Wow. My apologies that it's been so long since my last post. In fact the last few have been pretty spotty here over the past few weeks. I believe this is important so I really want to commit myself to getting back into a daily routine. I'd also like to comment more on Luke 15, but rather than stop there, I'll move on and comment back to Luke 15 as we do.

Luke 16...
Jesus starts off with a strange sounding parable, huh? "The master commended the dishonest manager because he had acted shrewdly." A little shocking, don't you think? Well, I'm not sure that "being dishonest" is the point of the parable. Look at what Jesus says next: "Use worldly wealth to gain friends for yourselves, so that when it is gone you will be welcomed into eternal dwellings." Maybe the point is simply, don't hold on too tightly to worldly wealth, but use it to advance the Kingdom.
The next major parable is also a bit of a shocker. Lazarus was laid at his gate. Also worth pointing out is that the beggar is named (Lazarus) while the rich man is not. Someone once referred to this story in an article entitled, "Tripping over Lazarus." While service trips and projects to other places in the world have great value and lend a broader perspective on life, the author wondered if, on our mission to help those far away, we are "tripping over Lazarus" at our own gate. He raises an interesting point. I wonder how many people are in severe chaos within a 1 mile radius of where I live. I suspect that if I opened my eyes, the number would be stunning. Again, this is not to discount the value of service/mission trips (I would still love to hear about Shiloh's trip to Africa), but it is a striking call to keep our eyes close to home.
Also, the revelation by Jesus (v.31) that more compelling than a ghost coming back from the dead are the words of the Tanakh (Moses [the Torah] and the Prophets [the rest of the OT combined]). Wow! The power of the Text, no?

Luke 15 -- part 1

Here is a very rich chapter in the Bible. For a more complete discussion, I would refer you to a book entitled Jacob & the Prodigal by Kenneth E. Bailey--he's taught me to look at these "familiar" stories in a new light. Here's a few of his observations as I understand them:

First of all, notice that Jesus tells the parable in response to something--namely the tax collectors and "sinners" gathering around Jesus to hear Him and the Pharisees and Torah teachers mutter, "This man welcomes sinners and eats with them." This is the context of the parable, and while I'm at it, I believe that these three stories compose one parable. Notice that after the first story (lost sheep) Jesus says, "Or suppose..." clearly a continuation on the same idea. After the second story (lost coin), luke writes, "Jesus continued..." So they are not three parables, but one.

It is also clear from these parables that Jesus is casting Himself in the lead role of each parable. Interesting note here: in the psalms, God is sometimes portrayed in human terms--most often as a king. Sometimes as a Judge. But there are three portrayals of God that are more personal, one might say more tender. Do you know what they are?
Psalm 23 -- shepherd
Psalm 131 -- mother
Psalm 68 -- father
Look at those three stories again. Who are the main characters? Who is Jesus claiming to be? The boldest claim of the three is the last one, but Jesus has been building up to it with the first two by drawing those parallels from the Psalms.

Luke 14

This chapter starts off with another Sabbath healing (by touch again). I think that Jesus is also giving His interpretation of ordering the commandments here: "Pekuah Nefesh (quality of life--think 'Love your neighbor as yourself')" is more important than Sabbath laws. When a situation arises when one or the other must be broken so the other can be kept, we're to care more for the quality of life. I think that it may even be likely that some in Jesus' audience would not have pulled an ox out of a well on the Sabbath because they arranged the commandments opposite to this (I think most if not all of them would pull a son out of a well without any hesitation). But rather than argue from lesser to greater here, I think Jesus is making a point about the high importance of pekuah nefesh.
(14:12) This chapter makes me think of a book I read called The Shadow of God. It's historical fiction, but the author (Leo Sangren) captures the essence of so many time periods so accurately that it's a very compelling read. There's a chapter in there (entitled "I see") which is a fictional account of a Sadducee's interaction with a blind beggar after they have been visited by Y'shua, the itinerant rabbi. When you have time, this is a very compelling read.
(14:15) Again, verses like this as well as verse 1 of this chapter tell me that Jesus is actively engaging the Pharisees in dialogue, and they are engaging Him. Sure Jesus rips them from time to time, but they were already doing that to each other in the first century.
(14:25-35) Very challenging words. I think that the sense of the greek word here rendered "hate" is closer to "love less than" than our current understanding of the word "hate." There is a similar passage in the Mishnah that explains that if a person's rabbi and father are both being held for ransom, that person must first ransom his rabbi and then his father (unless his father is also a great teacher). The reasoning is explained this way: while the man's father gave him life in this world, a man's rabbi teaches him about how to gain eternal life (living God's way right now) and the life to come. Verses 31-33 (and possibly also verses 28-30) refer to very specific events in the reign of Herod Antipas, who was a political bungler. This clever usage by Jesus of linking His teaching to historical events no doubt made His point more prominent in the heads of His hearers.

Luke 13

First of all, I would like to let those of you scattered far and wide know that tonight we are having our first good rain storm since (I think) a Tuesday afternoon in late March (the 27th to be specific). Do you remember it? :)

Luke 13...
(13:13) This is really significant because usually when Jesus healed someone on the Sabbath, He did it with spoken words only, and not touch (because that wouldn't qualify as most people's definition of "work"), but here He's making a really bold statement about doing good on the Sabbath by healing this woman with a touch.
(13:18-21) Two scandalous images about the Kingdom of God, which I think Jesus maybe used for shock value. The first image is a stinkin' weed that farmers might spend their whole life trying to eradicate from their property (unsuccessfully). The second image is usually used to represent sin in life. But Jesus says that the Kingdom can work similarly, but for a person's good. That's really cool.
(13:31) As hard as Luke is on the Pharisees as a group, I think this verse points out the fact that the Pharisees (who didn't agree with Jesus all the time) still valued Him. I don't buy the NIV Study Bible's explanation here that the Pharisees are trying to scare Jesus away from the area. Also, "fox" is not a very nice thing to call someone in that culture. It would be like calling someone a "poser" or a "wanna-be."

Luke 12

Here is a chapter pretty tough to comment on, so I'll keep my remarks brief.

(12:13-21) This story is a great challenge and also strangely comforting all at the same time. As they say, "You can't take it with you," but that also means that it's not all that important right now. This was driven home to me just last week, when I was at a graveside service at a very large cemetery. One of the people who went with me found something surprising on the ground there: a one dollar bill--just blowing along the ground until it happened to come to rest on the grass. None of those tombstones were able to stop it or track it down or retrieve it for the people whose lives they represent. Maybe I'm not doing a very good job of communicating right now, but there's something about finding a dollar in a cemetery that really makes you stop and think...

Luke 11

(11:5-10) I almost tried this once as an experiment with some of my friends, but I kind of chickened out. I wasn't really sure that I could pull it off. Even the thought of it still brings a small (and mischievous) smile to my face.

(11:11-13) Jesus makes use of a kal v'homer (lit. "light and heavy") statement here, characterized in the first century by the phrases: "If...then how much more...?" This one sticks out to me especially as a father now. Of course I want the best for Caleb and Josiah. If that's true, then how much more does God want the best for us, His children?

(11:27-28) Interesting interplay between Jesus and the crowd.

Luke 10--part 2

Who is my neighbor? Let's look at the context of the familiar quote from Leviticus: "Do not seek revenge or bear a grudge against one of your people, but love your neighbor as yourself. I am the LORD." So the opinion of who exactly my neighbor is ran along the continuum. Some of the more conservative Pharisees and many of the Sadducees said, "Aha! So my neighbor must be one of 'my people.' That means my neighbor is someone who is like me--a fellow Jew for sure, probably a well-off Sadducee or Pharisee." On the other end of the continuum (liberal side, now), Pharisees argued my neighbor is everyone except for three groups of people: 1. Adulterers. 2. Idolaters. 3. Samaritans (Samaritans were seen by Judeans as 'half-blood' Jews from the days of the Northern Kingdom's exile. The quarrels between the old northern kingdom and Judah intensified and in Ezra and Nehemiah, they are told they have no share in the worship of God in Jerusalem. The Samaritans for their part believed that Mt. Gerazim was the mountain God actually intended for His worship to be carried out [based on their reading of Deuteronomy]. By Jesus' time, the relations were strained in the best places and downright hostile and lethal in the worst--remember what James and John wanted to do to the Samaritan village that wouldn't welcome them? Pilgrims from Galilee would typically cross the Jordan river just south of the Sea of Galilee to avoid Samaria and then cross it again at Jericho to go up to Jerusalem. Perhaps as early as Jesus' time, there was a saying that expressed how Jews felt about Samaritans: "Not even God can love a Samaritan.") But the feeling on who my neighbor was ran the gamut. It is in this context that Jesus tells the story, "A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho... (do you remember the pictures I showed you of the road?)" He's robbed, stripped, beaten, and left half-dead. Now this is technical language here, because it means he's unclean--in which case, certain people were not going to touch him because of how they 'ranked' the commandments (see previous post). The first guy Jesus sends past him is a priest (Sadducee) who passes by on the other side. The second guy Jesus sends past him is a Levite (also a Sadducee) and he too passes by on the other side. . Stop there a second. Why did they pass by? Was it just because they're mean? I don't think so. I think it was because of how they ordered the commandments. If "touch no unclean thing" comes before "love your neighbor" then no, you don't help him. And many priests saw it this way! I'm going to go out on a limb here, but stay with me and see what you think...I think the audience expected the next guy to be a Pharisee, because he had "love your neighbor" before "touch no unclean thing" and furthermore, this beaten, naked, and robbed man fits their definition of neighbor. I think the audience was probably laughing at this guy (maybe a Sadducee or stricter Pharisee) because they think Jesus is going to tell him off by sending a righteous Pharisee down the path to help this guy.

Then came an absolute BOMBSHELL! "But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was..." I don't know if they were laughing before, but I bet you could have heard a pin drop after Jesus said "Samaritan." Jesus is totally changing the story from what they expected! I'm telling you this was shocking if not downright scandalous. And just to make sure they don't miss the part about "touch no unclean thing" being less important, the Samaritan undoes the harm done to the man: 1. Robbers went away leaving him (alone) half-dead--Samaritan took pity on him and went to him. 2. Robbers stripped him--Samaritan bandaged him 3. Robbers beat him--Samaritan poured on oil and wine 4. Robbers robbed him--Samaritan left money for his expenses with the innkeeper. Did you ever have a brother (or sister) try to annoy you by going, "touch-touch-touch-touch." Do you know what I mean? It's like Jesus is doing that here. If they weren't still in shock, the Pharisees in His audience might have found that funny, too. But that's not the point. Remember, the audience thought that it was going to be about which of the three people saw THE ROBBED MAN AS HIS NEIGHBOR. But instead, Jesus asks, "Which of these three do you think WAS A NEIGHBOR TO THE MAN who fell into the hands of robbers?" The answer Jesus is going for is, "The Samaritan is my neighbor." Look at the Text: it's like the guy can't even bring himself to say "Samaritan" so he says, "The one who had mercy on him." Jesus told him, "Go and do likewise." I think helping people who are in trouble is a great idea--a Biblical idea, even. But that is NOT what Jesus is talking about here! The question was, "Who is my neighbor? Who am I supposed to love?" The answer is, "The Samaritan" or to put the same idea differently, "my enemy." Here's the challenge for us. I'll put it like my teacher put it: Think of the person who you can't stand--the person who annoys you more than anyone else. Do you have someone in mind? Good. Jesus says, "Love that person."

Luke 10--part 1

My apologies for the long delay, but here I'd like to comment on a passage people tend to think they're more familiar with than they actually are (including me): the story of the Good Samaritan. First of all, look at the question: "What must I do to inherit eternal life?" How would you answer that question? I'd probably say, "Believe in the Lord Jesus and you'll be saved" (Acts 16:31--Paul's answer to the Philippian jailer's question, "Sirs, what must I do to be saved?"). I think that's a good answer, but notice it isn't Jesus' response: "What does the Torah say?" Notice Jesus responds with a question--how cool is that! But Jesus points him to the Torah--the Law. How does that work? The way I had looked at this passage, I figured Jesus wanted to point out that he couldn't keep the whole thing, so he'd need something else (grace). But that came from my NOT UNDERSTANDING THE ORIGINAL QUESTION. "To inherit eternal life" doesn't just mean "how do I get to heaven," it is an idiomatic expression meaning "how do I live the way God wants me to? NOW." So it's not a question about forever-after as much as it's a question about living well right now. Again, if it's a question about salvation, Jesus' responses don't make sense. Jesus points him to the Law, the guy recites Shema along with "Love your neighbor as yourself" and Jesus says, "You have answered correctly. Do this and you will LIVE [really live--God's way]." I think Jesus is talking about really living NOW.

Second thing--there were 8 great debates about the Torah in Jesus' day. Different rabbis interpreted the Torah differently and they argued feircely about their differences. One of those debates was "What is the greatest commandment?" Actually, everyone agreed on the greatest (Shema Israel...), but the disagreement about which was next most important raged. Why the discussion? Aren't they all important? Well, yes, but what if you were in a situation where you couldn't keep both commandments? Which would you keep and which would you break? For example, Exodus 20:8-12: Keep the Sabbath Holy--don't do any work on it. Exodus 23:4-5: If you see someone else's animal wondering off, take it back to him. Two commands. What if you see someone's animal wondering off on the Sabbath? Bringing it back would definitely qualify as work. So do you bring it back (keeping the second commandment and breaking the first) or do you not bring it back (keep the first commandment and break the second)? Your answer will depend on which commandment you think is more important. By the way, for those who think this Sabbath thing is passe, read Isaiah 56:1-7--the chapter that talks about Gentiles (you and me) coming to know God. Three times God talks about how important Sabbath is. Anyway, if you ask Rabbi "A" what is the most important commandment he may say something like Shema, then Sabbath, then Kosher, then touch no unclean thing, then love your neighbor as yourself,... (although you probably wouldn't get a list--that's Western--you'd probably get a series of stories/parables). Ask Rabbi "B" and he may say, Shema, then love your neighbor, then Sabbath, then touch no unclean thing, then kosher,... We're used to seeing this as cut and dried because we're at least a little familiar with Jesus' sayings, but here Jesus was entering a debate, but anyone following Jesus as closely as this guy was would have known Jesus' answer to this question, so his pals are probably laughing at him at this point for having such a nudnick question. The Text says, "He wanted to justify himself, and so he asked Jesus, 'And who is my neighbor?'" Enter another one of the great debates! To be continued in the next post...

September 9

I must apologize...yesterday, I was at a student council retreat, and tonight, I have not left myself enough time to post on all of Luke 10, and now Josiah just woke up screaming, I'm afraid I'll have to postpone my post until tomorrow.

Luke 9

I'd like to share with you a neat little bit of cultural context I found in the Bible commentary I consult first (JNT Commentary). In 9:5, Jesus tells his talmidim that if people in a town do not welcome them, shake the dust off your feet when you leave their town as a testimony against them. In the first century, as it turns out, "Jews would often shake the ritually impure dust of a Gentile city from their feet upon leaving it and returning to the land of Israel." The secondary, symbolic effect was to demonstrate to those in the Gentile city that they had no fellowship with Israel. You can imagine the shock that a first century Jew might have if someone did that outside their city because the message is: because you refuse the Kingdom of God, you have refused to be a part of the true Israel.
Also, look at 9:14. I had read over this verse many, many times before I grasped some more significance in there. Why is Luke telling us specifically that Jesus is dividing the people into groups of 50? Well, the answer is that someone else in the Bible divided people into groups of 50. Who was it? Moses! So again, because of the prophecy in Deuteronomy 18:15, if Jesus really is the Messiah, then he ought to remind us of Moses occasionally.
9:35 -- When the Messiah comes, it was said, all three parts of the Tanakh (Old Testament) will testify to His coming. The voice from heaven says, "This is my Son, whom I have chosen, listen to Him." Psalm 2:7, Isaiah 42:1, Deuteronomy 18:15. Game. Set. Match. (That's for you, Cristina.)
9:54 -- Just kind of a funny observation here...notice that it's James and John who ask Jesus if they can call down fire on this city to destroy it. What nickname had Jesus given them, do you remember? Sons of Thunder! (Calling down fire from heaven?! Sons of Thunder, indeed.) Although here it's misplaced, these guys must have had some intense passion.

Luke 8

Lots of really interesting stories in this chapter, but many of them I have already commented on in their parallel accounts, especially the sick woman touching Jesus' tzitzit. But I would like to point out a cool thing in the story about the demon-possessed man. Remember that the people thought of the Sea of Galilee as the symbol of the Abyss--entry into utter chaos (which was why the disciples were so terrified of drowning in it). The demons even refer to the Abyss (8:31) when they're right there. In fact, they beg Jesus not to send them there. Here's the funny part (how Jesus is always in control of the situation): the demons see the pigs and ask Jesus' permission to go into the pigs instead. But when they do so, where do the pigs take them? Right into the Abyss! Don't tell me that's not funny; you know it is. Then the people come out and see the guy in his right mind and with clothes on, and they were afraid and asked Him to leave. So Jesus goes to the land of the expelled (land of the 7 nations driven out before Joshua and the Israelites), He expells the demons, and then He himself is expelled by the inhabitants of the land. That's interesting at least. But we're not done with this other guy yet. He asks to come with Jesus, but Jesus says no, and instead of telling him to be quiet, Jesus asks him to tell others what God has done for him. The next time Jesus comes through this area, there's a group of believers here--perhaps started by this one man. That's very cool.

As I wrap this up, I feel compelled to tell you that Tyler--the little boy who had a bone marrow transplant (we were introduced to his family toward the end of the last school year)--took a turn for the worse these past few days and in fact went to be with Jesus earlier today. Of course, this is really hard on Tyler's family, so please keep them in your prayers. I, too, am writing this with a heavy heart tonight. One of the first things I thought of was the verse we highlighted yesterday: (7:13) When the Lord saw her, His heart went out to her... Pray with me that the Lord holds Tyler's family close to Him through these next days, weeks, months...

Luke 7

In the first century, the relationship between Jews and Romans was not generally one of good will. But here we have an astonishing example of the opposite. These elders of the Jews "pleaded earnestly with him" to heal the centurion's servant. Notice that the basis for this good will is action on the part of the centurion ("he built our synagogue"). The most common use of love in the Bible is associated with action of some sort. Very incredible faith story, too.
Nain is close to Nazareth, and you've probably heard this story before somewhere along the line, but read verse 13 again: When the Lord saw her, his heart went out to her and he said, "Don't cry." His heart broke for this woman and it compelled Him to action.
For a detailed discussion of the dialogue between Jesus and John's talmidim, check what we posted on Matthew 11. Actually, I think I commented on it in the post on Matthew 14, but you'll find the parallel passage in Matthew 11. Notice that this account records Jesus not only talking about the blind receiving sight, etc., but Jesus also heals a bunch of people standing right there to emphasize his point and drive home the remez.
The story about being at Simon's house is quite convicting, but let me point out something that we tend to read right over: look again at verses 39-40: in verse 39, Simon says something to himself (maybe outloud under his breath, but he apparently never intended for Jesus to hear it, so it may have really been an internal conversation--literally to himself). And in verse 40, Jesus answered him... What?! Jesus just entered (and answered) this guy's internal conversation. Are you kidding me?! Wow!

Luke 6

Just a few thoughts on this pretty straight forward chapter:
(6:12) What a lot is packed into this verse! Look at what The Rabbi does for His talmidim! When I read this, I am forced to ask myself when the last time was that I "went to bat" for my talmidim with this kind of intensity.
(6:23) "Leap for joy" at persecution? Wow. I was just watching the end of a movie you may have heard of called Braveheart. I do not wish to spoil the ending for those of you who haven't seen it, and I realize that William Wallace had some standards other than the Christian life, but after Jesus on the cross (who of course showed us what this looks like), this is the picture I have of "leaping for joy" and finishing well.
(6:27-42) Wow! Some hard words (but important words) to live up to.
(6:40) As we talked about in class, in this verse (especially the second part) is the heart of the rabbi-talmid relationship.

Luke 5

In a way, I don't like to harp on something, but look at the first part of chapter 5 again. What are the people (including Jesus) doing? STANDING and LISTENING TO THE WORD OF GOD. After that, Jesus got in a boat and SAT DOWN to teach the people. I really think there's a whole new level of respect and awe for the Text of God's Word that I'm not sure we have captured.... Anyway, fishermen--remember that this is significant because of Jeremiah 16:16, where the LORD declares that He will send for many fishermen and they will catch them [His people]. Now this (in Jeremiah) is a broader reference to coming judgment, but Jesus reapplies it here to call His disciples. Look at the wording Jesus uses in Luke 5:10. Very similar. Think about the claim that Jesus is making here--in Jeremiah, it isn't simply God's messenger or emissary that calls the fishermen, it is GOD HIMSELF doing the calling!

Look at 5:13. This poor fellow has leprosy bad. According to the Torah, he can't touch anyone nor can anyone touch him without becoming unclean. That's how a world in chaos works--the unclean makes the clean unclean (read that again if you have to). The amazing thing here is not merely that Jesus heals the man, but that Jesus heals the man BY TOUCHING HIM! Because in the Messianic era, this is how the world is supposed to work--the clean makes the unclean clean. Remember our lesson on the riverbed? Jesus doesn't just offer to pray real hard for him, He enters into his chaos and offers him shalom.

(5:17-26) I'm not sure I have a whole lot to add to this story, but a number of reminders come to mind...the effort of the paralytic's friends to go through the roof..."When Jesus saw their faith..." Tommy, Jonathan, and Luke getting banged up going through our roof...
I would like to point out verse 26 again... EVERYONE was amazed and gave praise to God (even those who were skeptical at the beginning).

"The old wine is better." My NIV study Bible says that "Jesus was indicating the reluctance of some people to change from their traditional religious ways and try the gospel." I'm not sure that I quite agree with this take on this passage, but right now I haven't got anything a whole lot better, so maybe I should look into it more.

Luke 4

There's alot here, but I want to spend some serious time talking about the middle section here: Jesus teaching in the synagogue at Nazareth. First, what is a synagogue? It's something that the Jewish people brought back with them from the exile. When the Temple was destroyed in 586 BC, there could be no more proper sacrifices. This caused a religious crisis among those who wanted to remain distinctively Jewish. What binds them as a people if there is not a Temple with a sacrifice system. So they came together in groups and built buildings like community centers. Their primary function was religious convocation (Sabbaths and Holy Days), but they were also used in education, juciary, and "town hall" functions. Even when the temple was rebuilt by Zerubbabel, the synagogues continued to be meeting places for worship ("prayer"--remember?). By Jesus' time, the synagogues probably followed a lectionary, which means that there would be a prescribed reading from Torah as well as from the Prophets and Writings established long in advance. There would also be a list of those who would be reading the passages (and then might comment on them) long ahead of time. So apparently Jesus is on the list in the synagogue in Nazareth. Well, what about Nazareth? The people that lived here are the ones who took the idea of synagogue very seriously--they were passionate and charismatic in worship and this caused the Judeans to look down on them somewhat. But they were proud of their heritage. Most scholars believe that Nazareth is related to the word netzer meaning "shoot" or "branch" (check Isaiah 11:1-3). They were related to the tribe of Judah even though they were geographically located in Galilee, and they believed themselves to be the Lord's people even to the extent that they believed the Messiah would come from among them. Even though they weren't doing weird things, they were thought of almost as cultish by other Jews (check the number of times someone says, "Can anything good come out of Nazareth?!"). Now let's go to the text: Luke 4:14-15 -- Jesus is doing amazing things and word is getting around and then (:16) He goes to Nazareth, where He was raised. Picture growing up in a small town where someone, one of "your own" becomes a major league baseball player and eventually the MVP for the team that wins the World Series. And then he makes a stop back at this small ville where he grew up. Multiply the emotions in that picture by about 20 and you have something like the feel for Jesus returning to Nazareth. And it's His turn to read (by the way, notice that He STANDS to read the Words of God (:16) and after He reads, he SITS DOWN (:20) to teach). And the scripture portion for the day turns out to be about Him! That right there is pretty cool in itself, that God would orchestrate those things to communicate to His people. But back to the story: they are hanging on His every word and He says, "Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing." And the crowd goes wild! I'm telling you that this is exactly what they wanted to hear! They're ecstatic! But Jesus isn't done. Jesus talks a bit about Elijah, and apparently this crowd that was so excited a few minutes ago is ready to kill him (:29). Why the big change? The answer, I think, is in rabbinic tradition. This tradition talks about Elijah. The rabbis said that the reason Elijah didn't do any miracles in Israel was because the Israelites thought they had it made simply because they were descendants of Abraham. There was no passionate faith. No intense persistence after God's will. No true repentance. No path-walking. So when Jesus brings Elijah into the picture, He's calling the Nazarenes out. He's telling them not to rely merely on who they are for their salvation. He's saying that you'd better get out there and live like God wants you to--repent and walk the path. And because those people had so much pride in who they were, they missed out on the Kingdom. It is interesting to note that Jesus never goes back to Nazareth after this incident. So what about us? Are we relying heavily on the fact that we grew up with Godly parents or in a Christian school? These are certainly things to be thankful for, but we can't enter the Kingdom of Heaven riding on our parents' coat tails. Are we taking our faith seriously? Is there true repentence? Is there a return to the path?

Luke 3

Chapter 3 opens with the historical setting for John's and Jesus' ministries. Luke gives us a little more detailed account of John's teaching in the desert--notice the religious folks, the tax collectors, and the Roman soldiers right next to each other in the text. Chapter 3 also includes another genealogy of Jesus, like Matthew 1. But upon inspection, this one is different in a few ways. Matthew 1 starts with Abraham and goes forward to Jesus while Luke 3 starts with Jesus and goes all the way back to Adam. A closer look also reveals that there are some different names in this genealogy, most notably from Jesus to David. The explanation that seems most reasonable to me is the one offered in the NIV Study Bible: Matthew follows Joseph's line (Jesus' legal line) while Luke follows Mary's line (Jesus' biological line). If you look closely at the wording in each genealogy, you can see that each author has something special he wants to communicate about Jesus, and this explanation seems to fit well.

Luke 2

Whenever I read this chapter, I always have to read the first part twice (second time slowly) or I find myself not really hearing the words of this chapter (I hate to use the phrase, but perhaps this is a casualty of "perceived overfamiliarity"--we're not actually overfamiliar with this passage, but we think we are because we had to memorize it in church school or we watch "A Charlie Brown Christmas" every year).
Here are some observations to perhaps freshen it up again:
(2:1) Caesar Augustus--the other person in the area who claimed to be the son of god (prophets fortold his coming; he was said to usher in the age of peace; of him it was said, "there is no other name under heaven by which men can be saved;" his birth was even fortold by a cosmic event in the heavens--sound familiar?).
(2:8) The shepherds were probably kids--possibly a group of girls.
(2:24) The offering brought by Joseph and Mary tells me that they are not well-off financially speaking (check Lev. 12:8).
(2:29-32) "Simeon's song." This passage is really beautiful. When I was in college (go Calvin!) we sang a very beautiful musical arrangement of this passage. But what I remember most is that right in the middle of our first time through, the director stopped us after the words, "a light for revelation to the Gentiles." He stopped the music and said, "Folks, that's us! That's us! God has opened the way of salvation for us! No matter how often we sing this song, never forget that marvelous truth!" Needless to say, that's left quite an impression on me.
(2:46) Look at what Jesus was doing in the temple: "asking them questions."
(2:52) a great mystery: "And Jesus grew in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men."

Luke 1

This is actually the longest chapter in Luke, so if you can hang with me here, you'll be all set. But in Luke 1, let's start off with Zechariah--a priest. Do you remember the discussions we had about the who the priests were in Jesus' time? Most of them Saduccees, and many of those (at least the chief priests and the high priest) were corrupt. So Luke makes sure to point out not only that Zechariah was a priest, but also that he and his wife were "upright in the sight of the God." Anyway, Zechariah was chosen to be the one to offer incense inside the Temple. There were 24 courses (groups) of a thousand priests each serving twice a year for one week each time. To offer incence in the Temple was something that a priest could never be chosen to do his whole life--I think Luke wants us to realize that God is doing something amazing here, and He is "loading the dice" in preparation for it.
Next, when Zechariah is in the Temple, an angel appears before him and, among other things, quotes Malachi. Twice. It is interesting to note that chronologically speaking, this is the first Biblically recorded communication between God and His people since the days of the Old Testament. What was the previous recorded communication? Malachi! So the very last thing God talks about in the Old Testament is the very first thing He brings up in the New Testament!
Well, Gabriel's next assignment is to deliver some shocking news to a girl (think high school freshman) named Mary (Miriam). She (like Zechariah) has some pretty severe concerns, but unlike Zechariah, apparently her heart condition is a little more receptive to God's will (v.38).
Take another moment to read "Mary's Song" in verses 46-55.
The next passage is also pretty cool. Remember, Zechariah still can't talk, but apparently people thought he couldn't hear either (see vs. 62)! Then Zechariah gives the name and begins to speak, and God has caught His people's attention (vs. 65-66).

Same discussion...new place

Hopefully, the link from my website took you here. I'm not yet sure how to get the conversations we already had started over here, but maybe we came to a little break in the action so perhaps that's not our primary concern at this point (but if anybody has any ideas, I'd love to hear them). I would like to continue to dig into the gospels with you, and by my count, Luke is next. Luke has 24 chapters, so let's plan on one a day. If it has to be different from that, I'll try my best to let you know in advance. So let's start with Luke 1 on August 30. Sound good?