In accordance with my New Year’s Resolution, this post will officially begin my devotional commentary on the Gospel of John. But we’re not going to dive into the chapters just yet. Consider this a “prequel,” or better stated, an introduction. I believe it is appropriate to go over the background information to set the scene. Yeah, it’s not absolutely necessary to know all these facts, but to quote the title of a Gordon D. Fee and Douglas Stuart book on Bible Hermeneutics, if we really want to read the Bible for all its worth, the background information can really open up our eyes to smaller details we may not have noticed. We can learn a lot more about our God and apply the Scriptures for a deeper use then.
When I would teach Bible class, I would tell my students to discover the background information, we must be like good reporters and ask the right questions. You know what I’m talking about. Those question words, like, who, whom, what, where, when, why and how. You might have noticed I included in another word: whom. And technically, the difference between “who” and “whom” is the subject and the object. But the difference is important. Let me make it short and simple for you
WHO = AUTHOR of the book
WHOM = AUDIENCE, the original one, the first readers of the book
WHEN = THE DATE the book was written
WHERE = THE LOCATION of where the book was written and where it takes place
WHAT = HISTORICAL OCCASION, or what happened to cause the author to write
WHY = THE PURPOSE of the author writing to the audience
HOW = THE STRUCTURE, which could be an outline or writing methods
All 7 pieces are key to understanding the basic background information for any book of the Bible. For the Gospels, there needs to be another key aspect to look at. There’s no question word that would cover it, but if there is a non-question word, it would be PORTRAYAL, which is how the Gospel book portrays the character of Jesus. It could technically be a combination of the purpose and the structure, for the portrayal will be seen in both of them. We’ll talk more about it when we get to it. So which one shall we start off with? Well, if you remember your elementary English/Literature class, the setting of the story is where and when it happened. So let’s start with the setting, since the setting will place the characters in context.
THE LOCATION WHERE the Gospel of John was written was most likely Ephesus, but other scholars have suggested Alexandria and Antioch. But what’s more important than where the book was written is where the stories in the book take place. Most of the synoptic books simply show a steady path from Galilee to Samaria, to Judea, and then more specifically Jerusalem for the Passion Week. But John’s Gospel is not as simple as that. John has Jesus all over the place. For example, on top of having Jesus in Galilee, Samaria and Judea, he has Jesus in areas east of the Jordan River, such as Perea and Decapolis. And sometimes he’ll even be more specific on locations than the other Gospel writers are. Where Matthew, Mark, or Luke will just say what region Jesus is in, John will give the specific town. John will also spend more time in some regions that the other Gospel writers have. Whereas the synoptic gospel writers show Jesus mostly in Galilee, John has Jesus mostly in Judea, or more specifically, Jerusalem.
THE DATE WHEN the Gospel of John was written was between 85 to 95 A.D. Some scholars have tried to place the Gospel of John before 70 A.D. because one would assume that John would mention the Destruction of the Temple or the Fall of Jerusalem if the book was written after these events. While John does not explicitly mention these events, it doesn’t necessarily mean they didn’t happen. Someone could argue that they did happen because John does focus a lot on the time that Jesus and His Disciples were in Jerusalem, and John also includes much dialogue about the temple. John may not explicitly record, “And this was in fulfillment of the prophecy that the temple would be destroyed and the city would fall,” but mentioning both the city and the temple implicitly gives almost a spooky irony to its fate. So it has to be after 70 A.D. It can’t be later than 95 A.D. because John is believed to have died in 98 A.D. But let’s not linger any more on the debate of the date, but instead accept 85-95 AD as the date, and discuss its importance.
The date does have great significance. Being written in the late 80s or early 90s, the Gospel of John is the last Gospel to be written. It is safe to say that Matthew and Luke have been written for at least 5 years and Mark for at least 20 years. Each of those gospels have been floating around to several churches in the Roman Empire. So John is well aware that the Christians in these churches know well the more famous stories of Jesus, like the feeding of the 5,000 and the calming of the storm. So instead of repeating them in synoptic gospel like Matthew, Mark and Luke did, John will write a supplemental gospel. What is a supplemental gospel? For that, we must talk about how John structured his Gospel book. But we don’t have quite enough information yet. The structure won’t make any sense until we know whom the audience was, what was the historical occasion that caused John to write was, or why John chose the purpose He did. But before we get to that, let’s talk about this John man whose name I keep throwing around.
THE AUTHOR WHO wrote the book was John, just like the title of the book tells us. But there are quite a few Johns. No, this is not John, also known as Mark. If you read the post I made in December, we already talked about him. No, this is not John, the father of Peter. No, this is not the John in Acts 4:8 who is in the family of the high priests. And this is definitely not John the Baptist, the son of Zechariah, the second cousin of Jesus. This is John, the son of Zebedee, the first cousin of Jesus. And with that last statement, you got two facts about his family history. Let me throw in a third: his brother was James (and there’s 4 men named James in the Bible, but that’s a different discussion for a different day). John started out his life in the family trade of fishing with his father Zebedee and his brother James. Everyone knows John and James were disciples of Jesus, but not everyone remembers that John and James were first disciples of John the Baptist. Being disciples of John the Baptist, they were probably baptized by John the Baptist and they probably listened carefully to his preaching about repentance and the coming Messiah. Yet their following wasn’t too serious, as it seems like they followed him on the side and stayed focus on their job trade. This seems also true of being disciples to Jesus. When John points the two of them out to Jesus Christ in John 1, they follow him a bit and even acknowledged Jesus as a Rabbi, but then they went back to fishing. It wasn’t until Matthew 4 that Jesus needs to call them to follow to get through their thick skulls to stay with him longer. John, along with his brother James and Peter, were among the 3 disciples in the inner circle of disciples, who were the closest of Jesus, perhaps because they were the first ones called to be disciples. They got to see special events, like the raising of Jairus’s daughter, the transfiguration, and they got to be closer to Jesus in Gethsemane. John seems to go a bit further in and say he was the closest of even the three of them, calling himself in his Gospel book, “the disciple whom Jesus loved.” A lot of people have brought criticism towards John and the inspiration of this book, claiming it’s falsely representing Jesus showing favoritism. But all 4 Gospels clearly show Jesus had the inner group of Peter, James and John, and no one criticizes those books for that. Instead, I like to say that really shows us the humanity side of the inspiration of the Scriptures. Remember, the Scriptures were written by men just as much as they were written by God, and it can be seen through the different books and different authors. The title is merely showing John’s flavor in his writing. We’ll talk more about that “flavor” in the structure, but let’s go back to the inner circle of 3. This inner circle of 3 will stay tight until the end. When we see John in Acts, he’ll always be with Peter. From Acts, John will go on to write this Gospel book, 3 epistles, and he’ll write the apocalyptic book of Revelation when he exiled to Patmos. There are other small details I could go through, but we’ll hit them when we actually read through the book.
THE AUDIENCE WHOM John originally intended was Christians. Yes, Christians. Not a certain gender, race, ethnic group, culture or religion, but Christians This is interesting because John is considered a evangelistic book, or a good book to use to evangelize, or share the gospel message. While I do believe this is true, I do believe this book is more intended for discipleship reasons. Many of the reasons I will talk about in the structure, but one reason I will hit on I already mentioned in the date. This Gospel book was one of the last Gospel books written. John assumes that the reader has already read or heard about the stories of Jesus from that book. So John also assumes (and some would say this is a big assumption) that through reading or hearing those stories, you have made a decision to follow Jesus and have become a Christian (seriously, John believes the gospel message is so powerful it will do that). Once again, John knows the reader knows the popular stories. So he will leave most of them out (unless they pertain to his message) and put in new stories, which will only be beneficial for someone who wants to continue and advance his or her faith. Now if you remember, Matthew is written to Jews, Mark is written to Romans, and Luke is written to Greeks. John is well aware that the converts to Christianity are not only Jews, but Roman, Greek and other Gentiles. So John is going to reach out to those 3 main groups in the same way the synoptic authors did. We’ll talk more about that in the structure, but first you have to wonder, “Why would John write a Gospel for Christians if they already know the stories of Jesus, the gospel message, and they are already saved?” That will be answered next, in the historical occasion.
THE HISTORICAL OCCASION is WHAT was happening in that setting that caused the author (John) to write his book. The best way to explain this is to use Family Guy (who would ever think Family Guy could be used in a commentary, devotional or Bible introduction?) In an episode of Family Guy, Peter Griffin invents his own religion of Happy Days-ism, where the Fonz is worshipped. The rest of the Griffin family tries to get Peter to stop, but only the dog Brian is successful. How is he successful? To loosely quote him, he tells Peter, “Whenever a new religion becomes popular, copycats always follow,” and he brings in copycats to take Peter’s congregation away (for example, Brian brings in Gavin McCloud to lead the parishioners to Love Boat-ism). Well, it was true 2000 years earlier. Even though Christianity was still a minority and still facing persecution, it was growing in popularity. With growth like that, copycats jumped on board to make Christian-like cults to get people to join. The biggest one was Gnosticism, a cult which name comes from the Greek word gnosko, which means “to know.” Gnosticism combined two popular beliefs systems of the day: Christianity and Greek philosophy. The popular Greek philosophy of the day was that the body was bad, but the spirit/soul was good. Let me simplify that for you. Body = Bad, Soul/Spirit = Good. So the goal in Gnosticism was to free your soul from your body. Your first reaction might be, “Well, that’s easy, just commit suicide!” which might be followed by your second reaction, “Well, that’s stupid, a religion that convinces you to commit suicide.” But it’s not that easy, and they thought up a way that wasn’t stupid to them. You had to find a way to free your soul from your body while your body was alive. You couldn’t just commit suicide, for if you died before you figured out how to free your soul, your soul would be eternally stuck in your body. After all, a dead body is useless for anything, so there’s no way your spirit could find a way out. So how do you free your soul from your body? By learning a secret knowledge (hence the name Gnosticism). This where the Christianity side of Gnosticism steps in. The Gnostics believed that Jesus knew this secret knowledge. Jesus learned this secret knowledge and taught His disciples this secret knowledge. Now, of course, if you ask them, Jesus taught the secret knowledge, well, in secret, to his disciples. And the synoptic Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke only record the public teachings of Jesus. So if you want to use those books to learn the secret knowledge, you have read into the text deeper. You have to take everything Jesus says as a metaphor, with some kind of symbolic meaning (in Bible hermeneutics, we call this the allegorical approach to the Scriptures). Some Gnostics were even going as far writing their own gospels, claiming that they were from people close to Jesus, like Thomas, Judas and Mary, who heard this secret knowledge being taught by Jesus when they were in secret meetings. But the real kicker is what they claimed about Jesus and His being. To be the ultimate example to humans on how to use this secret knowledge to free your soul from your body, Jesus was only human. They believed that Jesus was not God at all, but just a human. Furthermore, they believe when Jesus died on the cross, He freed his soul from his body. Therefore, they believe it was only in spirit Jesus raised from the dead. You can already see two big contradictions from true Christianity. Christianity believes Jesus is fully God and fully man, while Gnosticism believes Jesus was only a man who ultimately achieved perfection by being a body-less spirit on earth. Christianity believes Christ’s resurrection was a bodily one, but Gnosticism says it was only a spirit resurrection. The differences are huge, and they are confusing the people. Some Christians are having doubts, while other Christians are going to Gnosticism, believing it’s the true faith. A Christian’s faith is not meant to be an unsteady one. John doesn’t want Christians to convert to Gnosticism. In fact, he wants Christians to avoid Gnosticism. John doesn’t want Christians to be shaky or unsteady in their beliefs. He doesn’t want them to doubt or question their faith. He wants to believe. After all, the word “believe” appears 98 times in the book. John has to take down Gnosticism.
THE PURPOSE is WHY John wrote the book. You’re probably thinking, “He just explained it! John had to take down Gnosticism. That’s why he wrote it.” Yes, John did have to take down Gnosticism, and he did use this book to do it, but last time I checked, I’m pretty sure Gnosticism doesn’t exist anymore, and if does, it’s a very small minority that has no power in the world (although some people still insist on reading the Bible allegorically, as they did). So what’s the purpose for the Gospel of John today? When an author writes a book of the Bible, he’s not only thinking about his immediate audience, but also thinking about a bigger, grander audience. So he needs to express a truth that’s meaningful to them, too. So what truth is John going to teach us that will applicable everywhere for all time, and will also take down Gnosticism?
When it comes to 4 Gospels, we need to look out for an important piece that we wouldn’t look at with other books of the Bible. Have you ever wondered, “Why do we have 4 Gospel accounts? Wouldn’t it just be better with 1? After all, if there are 4 Gospel accounts, we have to worry about contradictions. If there was only 1 Gospel account, we wouldn’t have to worry about this.” The reason there are 4 Gospel accounts is to show 4 perspectives of Jesus. Each Gospel has a different perspective, and each perspective is a perspective for a different people group. Matthew is a perspective for Jews, Mark is a perspective for Romans, and Luke is a perspective for Greeks. Each different perspective gives us a different portrayal of Jesus, yet each portrayal is a true one. Matthew portrays Jesus as the Messiah for the Jews. Luke portrays Jesus as the Perfect [Son of] Man for the Greeks. Mark portrays Jesus as a suffering servant to show the upside kingdom to the Romans. So what’s John going to portray Jesus as? For the portrayal is an important part of the purpose. Lucky for us, John gives us a verse we can call a “theme verse” for our purpose and our portrayal of Jesus. It’s John 20:31.
John 20:31-
“But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.”
Ah, there it is. It doesn’t get any more explicit than that. While in I do strongly believe in the inspiration of the Bible, I don’t think we should simply say, “Well, the Bible says that’s the purpose, and since the Bible is God’s Word, God is saying that’s the purpose. End of discussion.” Let’s look into why it’s right in saying this is the purpose. Some key words and key phrases I see in this verse is “Believe,” “Christ” and “Son of God.” Let’s start with the last one and go backwards.
As we talked about in the historical occasion, it was of the utmost importance John portrays Jesus as the Son of God. The Gnostic’s powerful voice was claiming Jesus was not God, and it was throwing true followers of Jesus into confusion, causing some to doubt and even lose faith. John had to stop this destruction the Gnostic doctrine was causing. I may have listed this key phrase last, but it’s definitely not least. Actually, I think it’s the most important. Why? Tell me, what do you think of when you hear the phrase “Son of God”? I bet you pay more attention to the word “son” than the word “God.” You might think this is nitpicky, but it’s not. When the Bible says Jesus is the Son of God, it’s also saying Jesus is God the Son. That’s not just a re-ordering of the words, but it has a big implication, in both the ancient context and the modern context. Let’s start with the older context, the ancient context. In the polytheistic religions of the ancient world, gods could indeed have children. They could have children either with goddesses or human women. If the god had a child with a human woman, the son would still be considered a god (or daughter a goddess), but it was a demigod, or half-god, half-human. This god was considered 50% divine and 50% human. All its strengths would be credited to its divinity, but all its weaknesses would be blamed on its humanity. I wouldn’t be surprised if at first people were claiming Jesus was 50% god and 50% man, and the apostles had to go around correcting that, teaching that Jesus was 100% God and 100% man. A god could also have a child through a goddess, and in that case, it would be considered 100% god, but still it would be considered a lesser god, or a minor god, nowhere near the glory and majesty of his parents. I think that’s the one that modern day people would struggle with the most. This past Christmas season, I was in church and we singing the famous Christmas carol “Come All Ye Faithful.” While singing, I noticed the line, “Son of God, begotten, not created.” At first chuckled a bit, thinking to myself, “Way to make sure you’re theologically covered on all sides,” but after thinking more, I realized we don’t always realize this. We do sometimes think Jesus was birthed from God. This is theological mess. First, it says that Jesus is not as eternal as God the Father, which means he does have a beginning, and would ultimately deny Him His deity. But Jesus is eternal, both eternally past and eternally future. Second, if Jesus was just God’s offspring and not God himself, it would mean God the creator has not been on earth since the creation. It would almost sound like God thought of Himself as so holy that he did not want to deal with sinful man. So God sent down the next best thing: His Son Jesus. No, that’s not true either. Jesus was God incarnate, walking on earth, among the people He created, no matter how sinful. Jesus was not a lesser God, or a minor God, but was God just as much as His Father. We have to remember that when we see “Son of God” we must also see “God the Son.” Simply put: Son of God = God the Son. Maybe another way to put it is the relationship between Yahweh and Jesus was the same relationship between a Father and Son. But both are the same God, the One God, the Only God. (John 1:14,18).
The second word is “Christ.” I’m not going to dwell on this one too long because I’ll talk more about it in the structure (yeah, I know I keep saying that, but I seriously am!). All you have to know is John was a Jew, so John knew how to communicate to Jews. Also, I wouldn’t be surprised if a majority of Christians at this point in time were Jews, so it would make sense that John is trying to connect to a majority of Christians. This will be helpful to remember when critics will claim that John is being anti-Semitic in calling out the Jews as the enemies of Jesus. Why would a Jew who is writing to Jews call Jews evil? Another thing I will note is that I believe a careful inspection of Old Testament prophecies will reveal that the Messiah, or the Christ, was to be divine in nature. So proving Jesus is the Christ is also proving Jesus is the Son of God.
And then there’s the word “believe.” In that verse alone, 2 forms of the root word “believe” appears twice: “believe” and “believing.” If we were to count up all the times the noun “belief” and the verb “believe” are used in the 21 chapters of John, we’d have 98 occurrences. Obviously we can see the action John is calling us to: believe. If you’re still following me so far, you’re probably wondering, “How can you call this a discipleship book and not an evangelistic book? Aren’t Christians already believing?” Well, I’m not denying that this book can be used as an evangelistic tool. In fact, by the end of this, I’ll show you how to use it as an evangelistic tool. But I don’t think it’s any more evangelistic that the other Gospel accounts. As you were thinking, I’ll repeat it again. We clearly established Christians as the audience. And you’re right, Christians do already believe. But I learned something while reading the Holman Concise Bible Commentary. According to the Holman Concise Bible Commentary, the first Greek form most commonly translated, “you may believe” can also be translated “you may continue to believe.” I do believe this would make sense in light of the historical occasion. Many Christians, although they still believe Jesus was the perfect man who died for their sins and rose again, are giving up believing on a divine Jesus being God. John clearly is presenting evidence to show that it is logical and rational to believe Jesus is God. So the Christians can continue believing Jesus is God. They don’t have to doubt. With that in mind, we can write out a purpose with all the information above in one statement.
John wrote the book of John to persuade Christians to continue believing Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God.
THE STRUCTURE is HOW John wrote the book to get his message or his purpose across. Short review: The message or the purpose John is trying to get across is that Christians need to believe that Jesus is the Son God AKA God the Son.
Let’s start with what I promised you first all the way back at the date. John is supplemental Gospel, unlike Matthew, Mark and Luke, which are synoptic Gospel. What’s the difference? The difference is in the name. The word synoptic is the adjective forms of synopsis, which is a synonym of the word summary. The Gospel books of Matthew, Mark and Luke simply summarize the stories of Jesus, which are picked and chosen based on how they will answer the purpose of the Gospel book. Through these summaries, the author assumes the reader will be able to pick up the message the author is trying to convey. John’s Gospel is not like this. John’s Gospel is a supplemental Gospel. You might know the word supplemental if you have ever had a book with supplemental pages in it. You might know that the supplemental pages give extra information or extra detail to the book. Well, that’s exactly what John is trying to do. Remember when we talked about the date and the audience, I told you John assumes that the reader has already read the other Gospel accounts and is well acquainted with the stories, especially the popular ones, like Jesus feeding the 5,000 or Jesus calming the storm. So first, John will leave at many stories that the synoptic Gospels have in them. For example, John leaves out many important stories, such as the birth, baptism, temptation, and transfiguration of Jesus. Another good example is John only has 7 miracles, and from the other gospel accounts (and John 20:30!), we know Jesus performed more than 7 miracles (it also could be noted that none of these 7 miracles are casting out demons). Second, John will use the space he made omitting stories to put in new stories. In fact, 85% of John is unique and cannot be found in any other Gospel narrative. Third, in both new stories and old stories, John will give more details. For example, John will not only tell us about the Feeding of 5,000, but will tell you what resulted after the feeding of the 5,000. Another good example is the Lord’s Supper. Each synoptic Gospel author will only have 1 chapter on that Maundy Thursday, and it mostly talks about the Passover meal. John will spend 5 chapters in the Upper Room where the Last Supper is taking place, making sure to carefully record every word of Christ’s last instructions before He dies.
Speaking of detail, you’ll find John, writing a supplemental gospel, will be more keen on details. He will give names that previously weren’t given. From John, we learn the man whose ear got cut off by Peter was named Malchus. On that note, it will seem that John will “pick on people” by zeroing them out in certain stories. For example, where the synoptic gospels all the disciples doubted the resurrected Jesus, John’s Gospel will point out Thomas as the doubter. Another good example is when the woman poured perfume on the feet of Jesus. The synoptic gospels that tell this story will say all the disciples will indignant about this move. Yet John only records Judas Iscariot complaining about it. This is no reason to say the Gospel accounts contradict one another. For the first example, all the disciples did doubt Jesus rose from the dead, but one by one, each disciple came to faith, and Thomas was the last one to do so. For the second example, all the disciples were indignant about the woman pouring the perfume on the feet of Jesus, but they kept their thoughts to themselves or they grumbled to one another quietly; only Judas Iscariot had to guts to speak what was on everyone’s mind. If anything, John is using a good story writing device: character development. By pinning certain action to certain people, instead of a group of people, we can see if the disciple is static or if he dynamically changes, and if he does change, does he change for the better or for the worse? And it’s not all bad. For example, in the feeding of the 5,000, Andrew is credited for finding the boy with 2 fishes and 5 loaves. And the ultimate example is when John calls himself the “disciple whom Jesus loved.” Once again, this is not to show John lifting himself above the other disciples. It is merely tells us that Jesus had an inner circle of 3 disciples, and of those 3, John might have been the closest. And once again, it’s all for the purpose of character development. Reading John, we can see the relationship John had with Jesus. And if it really is John trying to lift himself above the other disciples, it’s John’s humanity in writing the Scriptures
Another note to make on the structure goes back to the audience whom John wrote his book to. Remember John wrote to Christians. Being Christian does not hold you to a certain race, nationality or ethnic group. Actually, the Christian audience is made up of people of all kinds of tribes and nations. But if I had to pick the top 3, I would say it’s probably the Jews, the Romans and the Greeks (and yes, in that order). That list of 3 should sound familiar. Oh yeah! It’s the 3 audiences the other 3 Gospels are written to. Matthew is written to Jews, Mark is written to Romans, and Luke is written to Greeks. Each of those Gospel authors knew their audience and knew how to structure their book to appease to each audience. Matthew used Old Testament Scriptures for the Jews. Mark used miracles to appease to the Romans. Luke used parables to attract the Greeks. John is well aware Christians from all 3 of these groups are reading his book. So he uses similar pieces for his Gospel. For the Jews, John uses Old Testament Scriptures. For the Romans, John remembers to include 7 miracles. When it comes to the Greeks, John does not use parables as Luke does (in fact, there are no parables in John), but uses long discourses and lectures of logic and reasoning, which would also attract the Greek thinkers. John’s Gospel appeals to Jewish Christians, Roman Christians and Greek Christians, and all of them get the message that Jesus is the Christ and the Son of God.
One last note on the structure. When John narrates his book, he’s not doing it from the third person, as the synoptic Gospel writers will. John will do it from his perspective. Thus, John will include his own commentary in the narration of the book. Besides the books of 1 & 2 Chronicles, this is the only God-inspired commentary we have.
Let me close by showing you how to use this Gospel book as an evangelistic tool, just as I promised, but I’m showing it to not just for the sake of showing you, but to outline how my devotional commentary will go. Here’s what you do to evangelize to someone the gospel using the book of John. First, give the person a copy of the book of John. Next, have the person read through the book of John. Then, have the person answer these 3 questions…
1. Who does Jesus claim He is?
2. Who does those pro-Jesus, or for Jesus, claim Jesus is?
3. Who does those anti-Jesus, or against Jesus, claim Jesus is?
Now as you can guess, based on what we talked about the purpose, the answer is “The Son of God.” But truthfully, there are only a couple explicit instances of where this happens. So what you would need to do is give a hint. For a hint, give them two verses from the Bible. No, not John 3:16 and John 20:31. That’s not a hint; that’s giving away the answer. Instead, give them Exodus 3:13-14.
Exodus 3:13-14-
13 Moses said to God, “Suppose I go to the Israelites and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ Then what shall I tell them?” 14 God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: ‘I AM has sent me to you.’ ”
Now you’re probably thinking to yourself, “Why are we giving them a couple verses from Exodus? They’re not even from the same testament!” Note what God says his name is: “I AM.” In the book of John, Jesus makes 7 I AM statements. And when Jesus makes those 7 I AM statements, the Jewish audience is immediately thinking about this Exodus passage and is making the connection. Every time Jesus says “I am,” He is making the claim He is God. I hope you will join me in finding all these claims.
Showing posts with label devotional. Show all posts
Showing posts with label devotional. Show all posts
Monday, January 02, 2012
Monday, December 26, 2011
Mark: A Story About a Suffering Servant
Before the fall, the group of guys in my small group got to together to decide what book we should study for the fall and the spring preceding it. We had done an Old Testament book before, so we were looking for a New Testament book to study. I threw out the book of John as a possibility. My reason (beside it being next year’s material for quizzing) was that I realized most of the Gospel stories I knew from heart were from the synoptic Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke, and that I did not know too many details of the supplementary Gospel of John. All the guys liked this idea, but one of them thought that the 21 chapters of John would be enough to cover only about 21 weeks, not 36 weeks. He suggested that, since John is the last Gospel (in both position in the New Testament and date written), we should start our Gospel study with Mark, the shortest and earliest written Gospel. At first, I wasn’t as on board with this idea. I had studied the book of Mark intensely for quizzing in 2003 and I was pretty sure I knew about it. But everyone else was on board with it, so I went along with it. And I’m glad I did. The last time I took a good look at Mark was when I was in 8th grade. Since then, I have gone through 4 semesters of Bible class at a Mennonite High School, and 4 years of Bible college. Both experiences have greatly improved my Bible study skills. With those skills, I noticed things about Mark I did not notice before in 8th grade. Sadly, my small group was unable to complete our Bible study on Mark, for reasons that will within the confidentiality borders of my small group. But I have stayed true to reading Mark, and I would like to share what I have learned.
Mark is indeed the shortest Gospel account, only 16 chapters long. Mark is also a synoptic gospel, meaning it is just summarizing the events of the life and ministry of Jesus. Both of these make sense if we take into consideration the date the book of Mark was written. The book Mark was written somewhere between 55 and 66 AD, making it the first Gospel account written down. Before this book was written, the only New Testament Scriptures out there were epistles from Paul and perhaps a few general epistles. Stories about Jesus were simply passed down by oral tradition, by word of mouth. With that in mind, it was important to get something written down about Jesus. So when Mark wrote his gospel, he wasn’t into details. Mark wanted, as the famous saying goes, “just the facts,” and it’s apparently throughout this short gospel. Take the temptation of Jesus’ for example. Matthew and Luke go into great detail about what happened during those 40 days of temptation. Mark simply says, “Jesus was tempted, and when he passed the temptations, angels served him.”
Let’s talk a little bit more about the man Mark. Most of what we know from Mark does not come from the book of Mark, but mostly from the book of Acts. Mark was a companion of Paul and Barnabas on a missionary. Mark, however, was an unreliable man, as he left part way through. Thus, when Barnabas wanted to bring along Mark again for the next missionary trip, Paul and Barnabas got in a fight over whether taking Mark was a good idea. Paul and Barnabas split, but Barnabas stayed faithful to Mark, bringing Mark with him to wherever he ministered. I could go on and tell you more about Mark, such as his mother’s name was Mary, he was a cousin to Barnabas, or that he was like a son to Peter, but none of that would really help our understanding of how the man Mark connects to the book Mark. What do think might help, I would have to take from traditional interpretations and modern interpretations. In Mark 14:51-52, Mark inserts a little story about a man wearing nothing but a linen cloth flees naked when Jesus is arrested. One might think, “That’s an odd tidbit to insert in this story. Why does Mark do it when no other Gospel writer mention it?” Some people have suggested that Mark is talking about himself, that the man running away naked is Mark. This would place Mark at the arrest. Why do I find this significant? Jesus did call 12 disciples, but these 12 disciples were not the only ones following Jesus around. There was a larger group of people who regularly followed Jesus wherever he would go. The number cut down greatly in John 6:66, and by the time we get to the book of Acts, we find out the number of Christ’s followers post-resurrection numbered around 120. I would be surprised, and I do believe, Mark was probably one of these 120 followers of Jesus, who might have witnessed Jesus speaking and performing miracles when Jesus was in the public sector. In fact, a tradition dating back to the 500s AD would not only verify me, but would also say that Mark was one of the 72 Jesus sent out to minister in Luke 10. Now to be fair and represent the other side, some scholars say there is no proof for any of this, since the earliest proof of Mark’s appearances is in Acts. They would say most of Mark’s information about Jesus and his ministry from what Peter witnessed. I do agree that Mark did get a lot of information from Peter, as a lot of the book of Mark tells stories about the closeness in the relationship between Jesus and Peter that only Peter could talk about. But if I were to add one last piece to that, and I know this argument is weak because it is merely from logic, but don’t you think God would want the first Gospel account to come from someone who witnessed Jesus more directly? One more key feature I will note is Mark’s name, or rather his full name. His full name is John Mark. John is a Jewish name. Mark is a Roman name. Thus, one can conclude Mark most likely is both Jewish and Roman, just like Paul. The other option would be Mark is from a Jewish family that were slaves to a Roman family and his family took on the last name of his Roman masters. Either way, Mark has Roman ties.
So naturally the audience for the book of Mark is Romans. Let me remind you about the Roman people, although you may not need a lot of reminding if you simply remember what you learned about them in middle school or high school (or maybe even college). The Romans are the power of the western world. They have conquered all the land around the Mediterranean Sea, including the remnants of the Egyptian and Greek Empire, the Germanic tribes and the Anglo-Saxans (English, Welsh, Scottish, etc.). Remember that Israel/Judah is not an independent, free nation. The land belongs to the Romans, ruled by the half-Jew and half-Roman King Herod, overseen by Roman Governor Pontius Pilate. In fact, all the ethnic groups the Romans have conquered have rulers that have been put in place by the greater Roman government. The Roman government has allowed the people to keep their religions, culture, traditions and holidays (as long as they are not against the Romans), but they have to submit to the Roman government and they have to pay taxes. The Romans know they have authority and they exercise it over the people they conquer. So with that mind, what do you think the most important thing is to the Romans? Power and authority. In fact, in their minds, power = authority. Actually, I can throw a third word in there: strength. Power comes in strength. Authority comes in strength. Power = strength = authority. It’s obvious if you think about it. Think about when you learned about the Caesars in history class, or even think back to reading Julius Caesar in English or Literature class. If your father was the Caesar, you were not guaranteed to be the next emperor, even if you were the firstborn son. When Julius Caesar was assinated, both Brutus and Cassius fought Julius Caesar’s son Octavius/Augustus to be the next emperor of Rome. If you wanted to be the next emperor of Rome, you had to fight for it. You had to gain followers by proving your strength, and then fight off any opposition. The last man standing, the strongest man, became the emperor. So if Mark wants to win any Romans over to Christianity, he’s got to show Jesus has strength, power and authority, to show Jesus is worth following, and that is emperor/king material.
Now usually at this part I would state the purpose of the book of Mark, and then show you through an outline of the book how Mark answers the purpose. But I’m not going to do that this time, so you can see how great of a story Mark’s gospel account is. Instead, I’m going to highlight some parts of Mark’s Gospel narrative that will eventually point to Mark’s purpose. As I go through them, and as you may be led to actually read them, think of yourself as a Roman person during the height of the Roman empire, reading this story. You’re looking for Jesus to be strong, powerful and authoritative. If you are a Roman, what are you thinking as you read this narrative? What are you feeling, or how are you emotionally reacting to parts of this Gospel account?
Mark wastes no time showing the authority and power Jesus has. At first, Jesus displays his authority simply by teaching. His message is simple: repent and receive the good news that the kingdom of God is here! As simple as this message is, it has captivated everyone who hears. His words alone have authority. But actions speak louder than words, so we need some action to verify these words. Mark wastes no time showing exciting action in his gospel story. As soon as Mark 1:21-27, Jesus begins preaching and a man with a demon comes to Jesus, and Jesus drives the demon out of the man. The people see the power behind the message Jesus is preaching and they make that connection from words to action immediately. Also in chapter 1, Mark records Jesus getting rid of a fever in Simon Peter’s mother-in-law and a man with leprosy, as well as many other sickness and demon possessions. Already with the first chapter, the Roman reader sees that Jesus has the power and strength to cure people of any sickness and even cast out demons. The demon possession would stick out, showing Jesus has power over the spiritual realm.
Mark chapter 2 opens with the famous story of Jesus healing the paralyzed man on a mat. Here, the authority of Jesus is shown twice, when Jesus first forgives the man’s sins, and then gives him the power to walk. Jesus poses the question, “Which is easier to say: to the paralyzed man, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or ‘Get up, take your mat and walk’?” The one bear testimony to the other. Since the paralyzed man can walk, the observers and readers know the man’s sins are forgiven. Jesus is shown to have power over both physical ailments and the spiritual ailment of sin. After this incident of forgiving sins, the Pharisees and Sadducees are looking at Jesus in a different light. They are questioning him more, and it’s not always to learn more. Some of them are trying to trap him, accuse him, or bring judgment down on him. The rest of chapter 2 is the Pharisees and Sadducees questioning Jesus in both his teaching and actions. Yet none of these questions or accusations phase Jesus. He knows what he is teaching is right and fully stands behind it as right. Furthermore, when Jesus is questioned about Old Testament teachings, like fasting and the Sabbath he shows that he has authority above both of those practices. Once again, Jesus is a teacher with authority. This slides right into chapter 3, and in chapter 3, the reader starts to see the results. All this power and strength is attracting a crowd. People are literally coming from all over to see Jesus. There are so many people Jesus is being crowded and pushed around. From this large crowd, Jesus picks out 12 to be his inner circle, his disciples, who will follow his every move and learn from him. Jesus has a large following, which shows his authority. Even his family is starting to pay closer attention to him.
A majority of Mark chapter 4 is Jesus speaking in parables. Once again, this shows the authority of Jesus in His teaching. It takes great wisdom to teach a parable with perfect meaning; only a smart teacher could do this. Jesus demonstrates he knows what he is teaching by teaching with various stories. But the big sign of strength comes at the conclusion of the chapter, with the famous story of Jesus calming the story. In addition to power, strength and authority over sickness, injury, demon possession and sin, we can add nature to the list. Chapter 5 adds another key element to the list. After another demon exorcism is performed, Jesus brings the daughter of Jairus, the synagogue leader, back to life. Now Jesus has strength and power over sickness, injury, sin, demons and death! Chapter 6 continues to show Christ’s power over nature by walking on water and splitting up food to feed over 5,000 men, not including women and children! But maybe more intriguing is that when Jesus sends out his 12 disciples, they have the same power and authority Jesus has. A Roman reader might be attracted by this: following Jesus gives you power!
This will repeat from chapter 7 to chapter 10, with more miracles showing the power of Jesus, speficially with blindness, deafness and muteness. This is no coincidence that there is so many miracles in the book of Mark. If Mark is trying to show great strength and power, there is no greater strength and power than a miracle, and Mark shows that Jesus just doesn’t do a few miracles, but many miracles. If there is something I would point out with the miracles in this section, as well as the miracles in the first seven chapters. If you read through it, you might see the word “immediately” a lot. The book of Mark uses the word “immediately” more than any other book of the Bible. “Immediately” is one of the most repeated words in the book of Mark. Mark is saying something here. It’s not like Jesus laid hands on the sick and they eventually got better or progressively got better. Immediately, instantly, Jesus brought full healing. Now that’s power!
Now remember I encouraged you to read through this book as a Roman reader. So far, what’s your response to Jesus as a Roman reader after reading the first 10 chapters of Mark? What are you thinking? What are you feeling? A Roman reader, you’d probably be thinking, “Wow, this Jesus guy is so strong and so powerful! He has power over physical nature as well as the spiritual realm. This man would be the perfect leader. He fed people numbering over 5,000 and over 4,000, so he could solve world hunger. He healed the sick, the blind, the deaf, the mute, and the lepers. He’s better than any doctor, so we’d never need a doctor again. He can even heal us spiritually of our sin. No one opposing him can stand up to him. No one is stronger or more powerful than he is!” Now if I asked the Roman reader, “How do you think the last 6 chapters will end the story?” After a little bit of pondering, the Roman might have a few predictions. Perhaps Jesus, with his following, will kick the Romans out of Judah and reclaim Jerusalem for the Jews. Maybe Jesus will also kick the Romans out Galilee, Samaria and Idumea as well to reunite Israel as one. Or maybe even march up to Rome and claim himself the next Roman emperor! It wouldn’t be too far-fetched in the Roman mind. After all, that’s what all the Roman emperors did. Once they proved their strength and power, and once they got a large following, they would march up to Rome with their followers and claim the throne for themselves. Well, let’s see how it turns out (and remember, this is the only Gospel narrative that the 1st century Roman has).
Chapter 11 is looking good for the uprising. Jesus enters Jerusalem like a king, with a parade and people cheering. The shouts of the people crying, “Blessing is the coming of the kingdom of our father David’ even has the Jewish people thinking the same as the Roman Christian: here comes the new kingdom and the reign of a new king. But what’s got the Roman reader excited is when Jesus clears out the temple. It shows Jesus moving to action in order to do what is right. Jesus is using his strength and power to also show authority. Even the cursing of the fig tree demonstrates the authority of Jesus. Jesus won’t put up crap with anyone or anything that disagrees with him. At the end of chapter 11, his authority is brought into full question. While the chief priests, teachers of the law and elders fail to recognize it, Jesus hints that his power is greater than any earthly power. His power is from above. So far, so good for uprising.
But then comes chapter 14, and it all goes downhill from there. Starting in verse 32, we see a tired, troubled, distressed, depressed Jesus minding his own business and then comes trouble. In 14:43, Judas leads a mob of people with swords and clubs. They have not come to peacefully ask Jesus questions. They have come to arrest him. Once again, remember your imagining yourself as the Roman reader. You, as a Roman, are probably thinking along the same lines of Simon the Zealot. You’re thinking, “Now’s your chance, Jesus! Tell all your disciples to get their swords and clubs and fight! Use your divine power to call down nature, angels or demons to attack your foes! We’ll first take down the Jewish leaders that oppose you, then we’ll take down the Roman leaders that oppose and you’ll be the next king of the Jews!” But that’s not what Jesus does. In fact, when a disciple (other Gospel accounts credit it to Peter) does attempt to fight back with violence, Jesus rebukes both sides for even entertaining the thought.
In Literature terms, we call this point the climax. In Literature, the climax is when the dramatic tension is at the highest and the story dramatically changes from this point out. Clearly Mark 14:43-51 is the climax of the book of Mark. The building tension in the first 13 chapters of Mark show that as Jesus builds his authority by displaying his strength and power, opposition tries to flex its power and authority to lower the power and authority of Jesus. The more Jesus rises up, the more the religious leaders are trying to push Jesus down. This all happens with the first 13 chapters, and by chapter 14, someone has got to come out on time. Like I said, in the Roman mindset, the Roman reader is expecting Jesus the one to come out on top. After all, Jesus has clearly demonstrated He is the more powerful one. But the story changes as Jesus no longer is the more powerful one. His enemies are, and to make matters worse, it looks like Jesus is the weakest.
How does Jesus look like the weakest? It gets worse from here. Jesus is brought before the Sanhedrin, and even though Jesus is right, he is declared guilty and beaten. He is handed over to Pilate. Pilate questions Jesus, but Jesus remains silent. Since Jesus does not defend himself, he is flogged then sentenced to death. Soldiers then mock him and torture him. Then he is crucified. Chapter 15 ends with Jesus, clearly dead, buried in a tomb. The Roman reader sits there, eyes wide, jaw dropped, in utter shock. No, it’s not over the way Jesus was treated. Those methods were common methods that Romans used on foreign criminals. Any Roman was use to that. The Roman reader is shocked because after seeing Jesus display his strength, his power and his authority, he doesn’t use any of it. In fact, it makes Jesus look the opposite: weak and powerless. Jesus submits to the mocking, the false accusations, the spitting, the beatings, the flogging and all the other kinds of torturing. Finally, the ultimate submission is when Jesus gives up his life on one of the most painful execution devices in the history of man. If I was a Roman reader, I might want to close this book (or scroll, I guess) in disgust after reading chapter 15. I don’t want to even glance at Mark chapter 16 (besides the fact that the second half of chapter 16 might have been written a couple centuries later). I’m guessing that Mark 16 is some kind of epilogue that concludes the book by saying the Roman leaders then executed the 12 disciples, thus ending the Christianity movement. As a Roman, I’m starting to believe this book is just Roman propaganda to show that not even a religious terrorist can thwart the Roman Empire. Well, let’s play along and pretend this is the case. After reading those 15 chapters of Mark, I slam the book shut, mad at how it ended, and walk away.
But I just can’t get my mind of this book. As a Roman, it baffles me why someone with so much strength and so much power would willingly not use it and get pushed. If he wanted to, he could have called his disciples and followers to defend him, and they would have defended him to the death. If he wanted to, he could have called down legions of angels to counter attack. Or even by his own strength, he could have taken them on single handedly. Yet he didn’t choose any of those options. Why didn’t he? This is puzzling your Roman mind so much that you can’t concentrate and you’re scatterbrained. The Jesus in chapters 14 and 15 does not seem like the same Jesus the 13 chapters before…or does it?
Now you’re Roman mind is thinking back to those first 13 chapters. You’re thinking not about the miracles themselves, but why Jesus performed the miracles. Did He do it to show how strong He was? No. Did He do it to display his power? No. Jesus seems very humble over the experiences. Did Jesus do it to exercise his authority over people? No. The more you think about it, while Jesus gave a general calling to follow him and receive the gospel message, people came to him on their own. So why did he perform his miracles? He was serving the people. He did it for the people in need, not himself. At the most, you could say he did it to win people over to his cause, the kingdom of God, but really that’s for the people’s benefit as much as his own. Every time Jesus healed, he healed to serve the people. And when you think about it, Jesus technically submitted his power to the people to serve them. Think about it. Think about Jesus feeding the 5,000 in Mark 6. In Mark 6:30-32, Jesus and his disciples are trying to run away from the crowd to get some rest. But when Jesus sees how lost they are and how desperate they are for him, he denies himself the rest to serve the people in teaching them. In Mark 5, Jesus is on his way to heal the daughter of Jairus, the synagogue ruler. When another comes along who needs healing just as much as the little girl, Jesus stops to minister to her. Yet Jesus keeps his promise to Jairus, even it takes raising her from death. Both times Jesus submits. Time after time in the Mark Gospel, Jesus is pulled out of his way to heal someone, but Jesus never complains. Every time, he submits. His strength is not meant to be used to gain power for himself for selfish reasons. His strength is suppose to be used to help others.
And it all finally hits you when you remember two important passages: Mark 10:42-45 and Mark 8:34-38. Good old Roman you quickly skimmed over those parts because it seemed like boring teaching and you wanted to get back to action. Yet Christ’s words recorded in Mark 10:42-45 and Mark 8:34-38 linger in your head over and over. Let’s take a careful look over these 2 passages specifically. We’ll go in that order, even though it’s not in chronological order.
Mark 10:42-45-
42 Jesus called them together and said, “You know that those who are regarded as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. 43 Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, 44 and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all. 45 For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
We’re starting out with these verse because most scholars acknowledge theses verses (more specifically, verse 45) as the theme verse of the book. It would make sense, considering it’s so explicit to the point. It is almost like Jesus is talking directly to the Roman reader. If I may paraphrase, it’s like he’s saying, “I know how your Gentile (or Roman) culture works. You think that being high and powerful means you’re the greatest. But that’s not the way to go, especially if you’re Christians. Rather, if you want to be lord and master, be the servant and the slave. If you want to be strong, be weak. If you want to be powerful, be powerless.” Why? Because Jesus did. As verse 45 clearly states, Jesus did not come to rule in authority, but to be a servant and a slave to the people. The reader can see how Jesus was a servant and a slave to the people up to this point, and as (s)he finishes reading, it is still evident Jesus is being a servant and slave.
See, when it comes to the 4 Gospel books of the Bible, with every book, the reader has to ask the question, “How is Jesus being portrayed in this book?” In Matthew, Jesus is portrayed as the Messiah. In Luke, Jesus is portrayed as the Perfect [Son of] Man. In John, Jesus is portrayed about as the Son of God. So what about Mark? How is Mark portraying Jesus? In the book of Mark, Jesus is portrayed as the suffering servant. How did we get suffering servant? Mark chapters 1 to 13 show the servant part, as Jesus serves the people in need. Mark chapters 14 and 15 show the suffering part, as Jesus is willing to go through whatever pain it takes to pay the ransom of sin. The follow-up question everyone must ask is, “So what does that mean in light of the audience?” because that will reveal the purpose. So why does Mark need to show Romans that Jesus is a suffering servant? I thought we’d want to Jesus as a strong, powerful, authoritative leader, like they want. Well, the book does do that. Jesus does have that. But Jesus is also setting an example, and the example is that even if we have those powers, they are not to be used for selfish gain. Instead, they are to be used in servanthood towards others. So this leads us to our second passage, the application passage. But before we go on, let me conclude this first passage with an explicit, written out purpose for the book of Mark.
Mark wrote the book of Mark to persuade the Romans that Christians are not to seek after strength, power or authority, but are called to submit as suffering servants, just like Jesus did.
Mark 8:34-38-
34 Then he called the crowd to him along with his disciples and said: “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. 35 For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me and for the gospel will save it. 36 What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, yet forfeit his soul? 37 Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul? 38 If anyone is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when he comes in his Father’s glory with the holy angels.”
Mark 10:45 might be the theme verse to cover all the book of Mark, but if I had to pick out a key verse for application of this book, it would be Mark 8:34-38. This drives it home to us. But first, let me connect back to Mark 10:45. Jesus never asked us to do anything he didn’t do on earth. While on earth, Jesus was a suffering servant. While on earth, Jesus gave up his life to pay the ransom for our sins. And now in Mark 8:34-38, Jesus directly calls us to do the same. Jesus did deny himself. It was never about himself while Jesus was on earth. It was about His Father first, then the people. Jesus literally took up the cross, giving up his life for us. Now we’re called to do the same. We are called to deny ourselves. To deny ourselves means to deny your dreams, your ambitions, your pride, your self-worth. It means it’s no longer about the self, but rather it’s all about God. Taking up your cross means to be willing to take up whatever suffering Jesus took, whether it be lighter or heavier. It could mean rejection from society, being mocked, being ridiculed. It could even mean real persecution and martyrdom. Finally, following him means giving up everything in your life and giving your life to God. This might seem extreme, but Jesus provides good reason. It’s the true way to save your soul. Trying to save your soul by your own strength, your own power or your own authority will just cause you to lose it. Even trying to save your soul through worldly strength, power and authority will cause you to lose it, too. Jesus calls us to give up all strength, all power and all authority and give it to him. And then we will truly find out being under his strength, power and authority is so much better.
And now if you’re still thinking you’re a Roman, and you’re still thinking like a Roman, you finally understand that Jesus was has power and authority, not in his strength over physical nature, the spiritual realm or over death and disease, but rather because he served His Father God and the people out of love. Jesus did stay true until the end. But wait, it’s not the end, is it? You forgot all about chapter 16! Maybe chapter 16 isn’t as bad as you think. You’re now ready to sit down and read it.
Interesting enough, Mark chapter 16 opens with women wondering who will be strong enough to roll away the heavy stone (there it is again, strength). But when they get there, they find the stone rolled away, and a really shiny man wearing really shiny white clothes. He reports that Jesus is not here, but has risen! They are given orders to tell Peter and the disciples to go to Galilee and meet Jesus there. Verse 8 concludes with the women running away, telling no one, out fear. Now this is where the debate enters. The earliest manuscripts we can find of Mark 16:9-20 do not appear until a couple centuries after Mark has written. Some scholars have questioned this, and have suggested the rest of Mark may have been added a couple centuries after first manuscript by summing up the other 3 Gospels. I can understand their argument, but I would disagree only because of the abrupt ending if Mark 16:8 was the true ending. If it is the true ending, Mark ends with the women running away scared, not mentioning a peep. If the story were to end this way, then the disciples never hear Jesus rose from the dead, and thus no one goes up to Galilee to see the resurrected Jesus. But we know different from the other Gospel accounts. I do believe Mark 16:9-20 is the original ending, despite not finding an older manuscript. It gives full closure to Mark’s story by giving other appearances of the risen Jesus. It is consistant with Mark’s writing as some of the accounts of the alive Jesus are quick, short summaries. But more importantly, we need Mark 16:9-20 to show the Roman reader the really grand conclusion to the book. Jesus tells the disciples to go continue the ministry He started, and if they do, the signs and miracles will accompany them. After that, Jesus raises into heaven, and he is seated at the right hand of the Father, which means Jesus is the one in charge, Jesus truly has authority and power. And sure enough, the disciples do go preach the simple gospel message of Jesus Christ, and they got the power Jesus has.
I hope you did read this whole thing, despite it being long. But this does show you that while some people would not suggest the Bible as a good storyteller, I would sharply disagree. Mark knew how to tell the true story of Jesus Christ in an exciting way that would grip his intended audience. But more importantly, I hope you got the moral of the story that Mark was trying to preach. I hope you too are persuaded to be a suffering servant, just like Jesus was.
Mark is indeed the shortest Gospel account, only 16 chapters long. Mark is also a synoptic gospel, meaning it is just summarizing the events of the life and ministry of Jesus. Both of these make sense if we take into consideration the date the book of Mark was written. The book Mark was written somewhere between 55 and 66 AD, making it the first Gospel account written down. Before this book was written, the only New Testament Scriptures out there were epistles from Paul and perhaps a few general epistles. Stories about Jesus were simply passed down by oral tradition, by word of mouth. With that in mind, it was important to get something written down about Jesus. So when Mark wrote his gospel, he wasn’t into details. Mark wanted, as the famous saying goes, “just the facts,” and it’s apparently throughout this short gospel. Take the temptation of Jesus’ for example. Matthew and Luke go into great detail about what happened during those 40 days of temptation. Mark simply says, “Jesus was tempted, and when he passed the temptations, angels served him.”
Let’s talk a little bit more about the man Mark. Most of what we know from Mark does not come from the book of Mark, but mostly from the book of Acts. Mark was a companion of Paul and Barnabas on a missionary. Mark, however, was an unreliable man, as he left part way through. Thus, when Barnabas wanted to bring along Mark again for the next missionary trip, Paul and Barnabas got in a fight over whether taking Mark was a good idea. Paul and Barnabas split, but Barnabas stayed faithful to Mark, bringing Mark with him to wherever he ministered. I could go on and tell you more about Mark, such as his mother’s name was Mary, he was a cousin to Barnabas, or that he was like a son to Peter, but none of that would really help our understanding of how the man Mark connects to the book Mark. What do think might help, I would have to take from traditional interpretations and modern interpretations. In Mark 14:51-52, Mark inserts a little story about a man wearing nothing but a linen cloth flees naked when Jesus is arrested. One might think, “That’s an odd tidbit to insert in this story. Why does Mark do it when no other Gospel writer mention it?” Some people have suggested that Mark is talking about himself, that the man running away naked is Mark. This would place Mark at the arrest. Why do I find this significant? Jesus did call 12 disciples, but these 12 disciples were not the only ones following Jesus around. There was a larger group of people who regularly followed Jesus wherever he would go. The number cut down greatly in John 6:66, and by the time we get to the book of Acts, we find out the number of Christ’s followers post-resurrection numbered around 120. I would be surprised, and I do believe, Mark was probably one of these 120 followers of Jesus, who might have witnessed Jesus speaking and performing miracles when Jesus was in the public sector. In fact, a tradition dating back to the 500s AD would not only verify me, but would also say that Mark was one of the 72 Jesus sent out to minister in Luke 10. Now to be fair and represent the other side, some scholars say there is no proof for any of this, since the earliest proof of Mark’s appearances is in Acts. They would say most of Mark’s information about Jesus and his ministry from what Peter witnessed. I do agree that Mark did get a lot of information from Peter, as a lot of the book of Mark tells stories about the closeness in the relationship between Jesus and Peter that only Peter could talk about. But if I were to add one last piece to that, and I know this argument is weak because it is merely from logic, but don’t you think God would want the first Gospel account to come from someone who witnessed Jesus more directly? One more key feature I will note is Mark’s name, or rather his full name. His full name is John Mark. John is a Jewish name. Mark is a Roman name. Thus, one can conclude Mark most likely is both Jewish and Roman, just like Paul. The other option would be Mark is from a Jewish family that were slaves to a Roman family and his family took on the last name of his Roman masters. Either way, Mark has Roman ties.
So naturally the audience for the book of Mark is Romans. Let me remind you about the Roman people, although you may not need a lot of reminding if you simply remember what you learned about them in middle school or high school (or maybe even college). The Romans are the power of the western world. They have conquered all the land around the Mediterranean Sea, including the remnants of the Egyptian and Greek Empire, the Germanic tribes and the Anglo-Saxans (English, Welsh, Scottish, etc.). Remember that Israel/Judah is not an independent, free nation. The land belongs to the Romans, ruled by the half-Jew and half-Roman King Herod, overseen by Roman Governor Pontius Pilate. In fact, all the ethnic groups the Romans have conquered have rulers that have been put in place by the greater Roman government. The Roman government has allowed the people to keep their religions, culture, traditions and holidays (as long as they are not against the Romans), but they have to submit to the Roman government and they have to pay taxes. The Romans know they have authority and they exercise it over the people they conquer. So with that mind, what do you think the most important thing is to the Romans? Power and authority. In fact, in their minds, power = authority. Actually, I can throw a third word in there: strength. Power comes in strength. Authority comes in strength. Power = strength = authority. It’s obvious if you think about it. Think about when you learned about the Caesars in history class, or even think back to reading Julius Caesar in English or Literature class. If your father was the Caesar, you were not guaranteed to be the next emperor, even if you were the firstborn son. When Julius Caesar was assinated, both Brutus and Cassius fought Julius Caesar’s son Octavius/Augustus to be the next emperor of Rome. If you wanted to be the next emperor of Rome, you had to fight for it. You had to gain followers by proving your strength, and then fight off any opposition. The last man standing, the strongest man, became the emperor. So if Mark wants to win any Romans over to Christianity, he’s got to show Jesus has strength, power and authority, to show Jesus is worth following, and that is emperor/king material.
Now usually at this part I would state the purpose of the book of Mark, and then show you through an outline of the book how Mark answers the purpose. But I’m not going to do that this time, so you can see how great of a story Mark’s gospel account is. Instead, I’m going to highlight some parts of Mark’s Gospel narrative that will eventually point to Mark’s purpose. As I go through them, and as you may be led to actually read them, think of yourself as a Roman person during the height of the Roman empire, reading this story. You’re looking for Jesus to be strong, powerful and authoritative. If you are a Roman, what are you thinking as you read this narrative? What are you feeling, or how are you emotionally reacting to parts of this Gospel account?
Mark wastes no time showing the authority and power Jesus has. At first, Jesus displays his authority simply by teaching. His message is simple: repent and receive the good news that the kingdom of God is here! As simple as this message is, it has captivated everyone who hears. His words alone have authority. But actions speak louder than words, so we need some action to verify these words. Mark wastes no time showing exciting action in his gospel story. As soon as Mark 1:21-27, Jesus begins preaching and a man with a demon comes to Jesus, and Jesus drives the demon out of the man. The people see the power behind the message Jesus is preaching and they make that connection from words to action immediately. Also in chapter 1, Mark records Jesus getting rid of a fever in Simon Peter’s mother-in-law and a man with leprosy, as well as many other sickness and demon possessions. Already with the first chapter, the Roman reader sees that Jesus has the power and strength to cure people of any sickness and even cast out demons. The demon possession would stick out, showing Jesus has power over the spiritual realm.
Mark chapter 2 opens with the famous story of Jesus healing the paralyzed man on a mat. Here, the authority of Jesus is shown twice, when Jesus first forgives the man’s sins, and then gives him the power to walk. Jesus poses the question, “Which is easier to say: to the paralyzed man, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or ‘Get up, take your mat and walk’?” The one bear testimony to the other. Since the paralyzed man can walk, the observers and readers know the man’s sins are forgiven. Jesus is shown to have power over both physical ailments and the spiritual ailment of sin. After this incident of forgiving sins, the Pharisees and Sadducees are looking at Jesus in a different light. They are questioning him more, and it’s not always to learn more. Some of them are trying to trap him, accuse him, or bring judgment down on him. The rest of chapter 2 is the Pharisees and Sadducees questioning Jesus in both his teaching and actions. Yet none of these questions or accusations phase Jesus. He knows what he is teaching is right and fully stands behind it as right. Furthermore, when Jesus is questioned about Old Testament teachings, like fasting and the Sabbath he shows that he has authority above both of those practices. Once again, Jesus is a teacher with authority. This slides right into chapter 3, and in chapter 3, the reader starts to see the results. All this power and strength is attracting a crowd. People are literally coming from all over to see Jesus. There are so many people Jesus is being crowded and pushed around. From this large crowd, Jesus picks out 12 to be his inner circle, his disciples, who will follow his every move and learn from him. Jesus has a large following, which shows his authority. Even his family is starting to pay closer attention to him.
A majority of Mark chapter 4 is Jesus speaking in parables. Once again, this shows the authority of Jesus in His teaching. It takes great wisdom to teach a parable with perfect meaning; only a smart teacher could do this. Jesus demonstrates he knows what he is teaching by teaching with various stories. But the big sign of strength comes at the conclusion of the chapter, with the famous story of Jesus calming the story. In addition to power, strength and authority over sickness, injury, demon possession and sin, we can add nature to the list. Chapter 5 adds another key element to the list. After another demon exorcism is performed, Jesus brings the daughter of Jairus, the synagogue leader, back to life. Now Jesus has strength and power over sickness, injury, sin, demons and death! Chapter 6 continues to show Christ’s power over nature by walking on water and splitting up food to feed over 5,000 men, not including women and children! But maybe more intriguing is that when Jesus sends out his 12 disciples, they have the same power and authority Jesus has. A Roman reader might be attracted by this: following Jesus gives you power!
This will repeat from chapter 7 to chapter 10, with more miracles showing the power of Jesus, speficially with blindness, deafness and muteness. This is no coincidence that there is so many miracles in the book of Mark. If Mark is trying to show great strength and power, there is no greater strength and power than a miracle, and Mark shows that Jesus just doesn’t do a few miracles, but many miracles. If there is something I would point out with the miracles in this section, as well as the miracles in the first seven chapters. If you read through it, you might see the word “immediately” a lot. The book of Mark uses the word “immediately” more than any other book of the Bible. “Immediately” is one of the most repeated words in the book of Mark. Mark is saying something here. It’s not like Jesus laid hands on the sick and they eventually got better or progressively got better. Immediately, instantly, Jesus brought full healing. Now that’s power!
Now remember I encouraged you to read through this book as a Roman reader. So far, what’s your response to Jesus as a Roman reader after reading the first 10 chapters of Mark? What are you thinking? What are you feeling? A Roman reader, you’d probably be thinking, “Wow, this Jesus guy is so strong and so powerful! He has power over physical nature as well as the spiritual realm. This man would be the perfect leader. He fed people numbering over 5,000 and over 4,000, so he could solve world hunger. He healed the sick, the blind, the deaf, the mute, and the lepers. He’s better than any doctor, so we’d never need a doctor again. He can even heal us spiritually of our sin. No one opposing him can stand up to him. No one is stronger or more powerful than he is!” Now if I asked the Roman reader, “How do you think the last 6 chapters will end the story?” After a little bit of pondering, the Roman might have a few predictions. Perhaps Jesus, with his following, will kick the Romans out of Judah and reclaim Jerusalem for the Jews. Maybe Jesus will also kick the Romans out Galilee, Samaria and Idumea as well to reunite Israel as one. Or maybe even march up to Rome and claim himself the next Roman emperor! It wouldn’t be too far-fetched in the Roman mind. After all, that’s what all the Roman emperors did. Once they proved their strength and power, and once they got a large following, they would march up to Rome with their followers and claim the throne for themselves. Well, let’s see how it turns out (and remember, this is the only Gospel narrative that the 1st century Roman has).
Chapter 11 is looking good for the uprising. Jesus enters Jerusalem like a king, with a parade and people cheering. The shouts of the people crying, “Blessing is the coming of the kingdom of our father David’ even has the Jewish people thinking the same as the Roman Christian: here comes the new kingdom and the reign of a new king. But what’s got the Roman reader excited is when Jesus clears out the temple. It shows Jesus moving to action in order to do what is right. Jesus is using his strength and power to also show authority. Even the cursing of the fig tree demonstrates the authority of Jesus. Jesus won’t put up crap with anyone or anything that disagrees with him. At the end of chapter 11, his authority is brought into full question. While the chief priests, teachers of the law and elders fail to recognize it, Jesus hints that his power is greater than any earthly power. His power is from above. So far, so good for uprising.
But then comes chapter 14, and it all goes downhill from there. Starting in verse 32, we see a tired, troubled, distressed, depressed Jesus minding his own business and then comes trouble. In 14:43, Judas leads a mob of people with swords and clubs. They have not come to peacefully ask Jesus questions. They have come to arrest him. Once again, remember your imagining yourself as the Roman reader. You, as a Roman, are probably thinking along the same lines of Simon the Zealot. You’re thinking, “Now’s your chance, Jesus! Tell all your disciples to get their swords and clubs and fight! Use your divine power to call down nature, angels or demons to attack your foes! We’ll first take down the Jewish leaders that oppose you, then we’ll take down the Roman leaders that oppose and you’ll be the next king of the Jews!” But that’s not what Jesus does. In fact, when a disciple (other Gospel accounts credit it to Peter) does attempt to fight back with violence, Jesus rebukes both sides for even entertaining the thought.
In Literature terms, we call this point the climax. In Literature, the climax is when the dramatic tension is at the highest and the story dramatically changes from this point out. Clearly Mark 14:43-51 is the climax of the book of Mark. The building tension in the first 13 chapters of Mark show that as Jesus builds his authority by displaying his strength and power, opposition tries to flex its power and authority to lower the power and authority of Jesus. The more Jesus rises up, the more the religious leaders are trying to push Jesus down. This all happens with the first 13 chapters, and by chapter 14, someone has got to come out on time. Like I said, in the Roman mindset, the Roman reader is expecting Jesus the one to come out on top. After all, Jesus has clearly demonstrated He is the more powerful one. But the story changes as Jesus no longer is the more powerful one. His enemies are, and to make matters worse, it looks like Jesus is the weakest.
How does Jesus look like the weakest? It gets worse from here. Jesus is brought before the Sanhedrin, and even though Jesus is right, he is declared guilty and beaten. He is handed over to Pilate. Pilate questions Jesus, but Jesus remains silent. Since Jesus does not defend himself, he is flogged then sentenced to death. Soldiers then mock him and torture him. Then he is crucified. Chapter 15 ends with Jesus, clearly dead, buried in a tomb. The Roman reader sits there, eyes wide, jaw dropped, in utter shock. No, it’s not over the way Jesus was treated. Those methods were common methods that Romans used on foreign criminals. Any Roman was use to that. The Roman reader is shocked because after seeing Jesus display his strength, his power and his authority, he doesn’t use any of it. In fact, it makes Jesus look the opposite: weak and powerless. Jesus submits to the mocking, the false accusations, the spitting, the beatings, the flogging and all the other kinds of torturing. Finally, the ultimate submission is when Jesus gives up his life on one of the most painful execution devices in the history of man. If I was a Roman reader, I might want to close this book (or scroll, I guess) in disgust after reading chapter 15. I don’t want to even glance at Mark chapter 16 (besides the fact that the second half of chapter 16 might have been written a couple centuries later). I’m guessing that Mark 16 is some kind of epilogue that concludes the book by saying the Roman leaders then executed the 12 disciples, thus ending the Christianity movement. As a Roman, I’m starting to believe this book is just Roman propaganda to show that not even a religious terrorist can thwart the Roman Empire. Well, let’s play along and pretend this is the case. After reading those 15 chapters of Mark, I slam the book shut, mad at how it ended, and walk away.
But I just can’t get my mind of this book. As a Roman, it baffles me why someone with so much strength and so much power would willingly not use it and get pushed. If he wanted to, he could have called his disciples and followers to defend him, and they would have defended him to the death. If he wanted to, he could have called down legions of angels to counter attack. Or even by his own strength, he could have taken them on single handedly. Yet he didn’t choose any of those options. Why didn’t he? This is puzzling your Roman mind so much that you can’t concentrate and you’re scatterbrained. The Jesus in chapters 14 and 15 does not seem like the same Jesus the 13 chapters before…or does it?
Now you’re Roman mind is thinking back to those first 13 chapters. You’re thinking not about the miracles themselves, but why Jesus performed the miracles. Did He do it to show how strong He was? No. Did He do it to display his power? No. Jesus seems very humble over the experiences. Did Jesus do it to exercise his authority over people? No. The more you think about it, while Jesus gave a general calling to follow him and receive the gospel message, people came to him on their own. So why did he perform his miracles? He was serving the people. He did it for the people in need, not himself. At the most, you could say he did it to win people over to his cause, the kingdom of God, but really that’s for the people’s benefit as much as his own. Every time Jesus healed, he healed to serve the people. And when you think about it, Jesus technically submitted his power to the people to serve them. Think about it. Think about Jesus feeding the 5,000 in Mark 6. In Mark 6:30-32, Jesus and his disciples are trying to run away from the crowd to get some rest. But when Jesus sees how lost they are and how desperate they are for him, he denies himself the rest to serve the people in teaching them. In Mark 5, Jesus is on his way to heal the daughter of Jairus, the synagogue ruler. When another comes along who needs healing just as much as the little girl, Jesus stops to minister to her. Yet Jesus keeps his promise to Jairus, even it takes raising her from death. Both times Jesus submits. Time after time in the Mark Gospel, Jesus is pulled out of his way to heal someone, but Jesus never complains. Every time, he submits. His strength is not meant to be used to gain power for himself for selfish reasons. His strength is suppose to be used to help others.
And it all finally hits you when you remember two important passages: Mark 10:42-45 and Mark 8:34-38. Good old Roman you quickly skimmed over those parts because it seemed like boring teaching and you wanted to get back to action. Yet Christ’s words recorded in Mark 10:42-45 and Mark 8:34-38 linger in your head over and over. Let’s take a careful look over these 2 passages specifically. We’ll go in that order, even though it’s not in chronological order.
Mark 10:42-45-
42 Jesus called them together and said, “You know that those who are regarded as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. 43 Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, 44 and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all. 45 For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
We’re starting out with these verse because most scholars acknowledge theses verses (more specifically, verse 45) as the theme verse of the book. It would make sense, considering it’s so explicit to the point. It is almost like Jesus is talking directly to the Roman reader. If I may paraphrase, it’s like he’s saying, “I know how your Gentile (or Roman) culture works. You think that being high and powerful means you’re the greatest. But that’s not the way to go, especially if you’re Christians. Rather, if you want to be lord and master, be the servant and the slave. If you want to be strong, be weak. If you want to be powerful, be powerless.” Why? Because Jesus did. As verse 45 clearly states, Jesus did not come to rule in authority, but to be a servant and a slave to the people. The reader can see how Jesus was a servant and a slave to the people up to this point, and as (s)he finishes reading, it is still evident Jesus is being a servant and slave.
See, when it comes to the 4 Gospel books of the Bible, with every book, the reader has to ask the question, “How is Jesus being portrayed in this book?” In Matthew, Jesus is portrayed as the Messiah. In Luke, Jesus is portrayed as the Perfect [Son of] Man. In John, Jesus is portrayed about as the Son of God. So what about Mark? How is Mark portraying Jesus? In the book of Mark, Jesus is portrayed as the suffering servant. How did we get suffering servant? Mark chapters 1 to 13 show the servant part, as Jesus serves the people in need. Mark chapters 14 and 15 show the suffering part, as Jesus is willing to go through whatever pain it takes to pay the ransom of sin. The follow-up question everyone must ask is, “So what does that mean in light of the audience?” because that will reveal the purpose. So why does Mark need to show Romans that Jesus is a suffering servant? I thought we’d want to Jesus as a strong, powerful, authoritative leader, like they want. Well, the book does do that. Jesus does have that. But Jesus is also setting an example, and the example is that even if we have those powers, they are not to be used for selfish gain. Instead, they are to be used in servanthood towards others. So this leads us to our second passage, the application passage. But before we go on, let me conclude this first passage with an explicit, written out purpose for the book of Mark.
Mark wrote the book of Mark to persuade the Romans that Christians are not to seek after strength, power or authority, but are called to submit as suffering servants, just like Jesus did.
Mark 8:34-38-
34 Then he called the crowd to him along with his disciples and said: “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. 35 For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me and for the gospel will save it. 36 What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, yet forfeit his soul? 37 Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul? 38 If anyone is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when he comes in his Father’s glory with the holy angels.”
Mark 10:45 might be the theme verse to cover all the book of Mark, but if I had to pick out a key verse for application of this book, it would be Mark 8:34-38. This drives it home to us. But first, let me connect back to Mark 10:45. Jesus never asked us to do anything he didn’t do on earth. While on earth, Jesus was a suffering servant. While on earth, Jesus gave up his life to pay the ransom for our sins. And now in Mark 8:34-38, Jesus directly calls us to do the same. Jesus did deny himself. It was never about himself while Jesus was on earth. It was about His Father first, then the people. Jesus literally took up the cross, giving up his life for us. Now we’re called to do the same. We are called to deny ourselves. To deny ourselves means to deny your dreams, your ambitions, your pride, your self-worth. It means it’s no longer about the self, but rather it’s all about God. Taking up your cross means to be willing to take up whatever suffering Jesus took, whether it be lighter or heavier. It could mean rejection from society, being mocked, being ridiculed. It could even mean real persecution and martyrdom. Finally, following him means giving up everything in your life and giving your life to God. This might seem extreme, but Jesus provides good reason. It’s the true way to save your soul. Trying to save your soul by your own strength, your own power or your own authority will just cause you to lose it. Even trying to save your soul through worldly strength, power and authority will cause you to lose it, too. Jesus calls us to give up all strength, all power and all authority and give it to him. And then we will truly find out being under his strength, power and authority is so much better.
And now if you’re still thinking you’re a Roman, and you’re still thinking like a Roman, you finally understand that Jesus was has power and authority, not in his strength over physical nature, the spiritual realm or over death and disease, but rather because he served His Father God and the people out of love. Jesus did stay true until the end. But wait, it’s not the end, is it? You forgot all about chapter 16! Maybe chapter 16 isn’t as bad as you think. You’re now ready to sit down and read it.
Interesting enough, Mark chapter 16 opens with women wondering who will be strong enough to roll away the heavy stone (there it is again, strength). But when they get there, they find the stone rolled away, and a really shiny man wearing really shiny white clothes. He reports that Jesus is not here, but has risen! They are given orders to tell Peter and the disciples to go to Galilee and meet Jesus there. Verse 8 concludes with the women running away, telling no one, out fear. Now this is where the debate enters. The earliest manuscripts we can find of Mark 16:9-20 do not appear until a couple centuries after Mark has written. Some scholars have questioned this, and have suggested the rest of Mark may have been added a couple centuries after first manuscript by summing up the other 3 Gospels. I can understand their argument, but I would disagree only because of the abrupt ending if Mark 16:8 was the true ending. If it is the true ending, Mark ends with the women running away scared, not mentioning a peep. If the story were to end this way, then the disciples never hear Jesus rose from the dead, and thus no one goes up to Galilee to see the resurrected Jesus. But we know different from the other Gospel accounts. I do believe Mark 16:9-20 is the original ending, despite not finding an older manuscript. It gives full closure to Mark’s story by giving other appearances of the risen Jesus. It is consistant with Mark’s writing as some of the accounts of the alive Jesus are quick, short summaries. But more importantly, we need Mark 16:9-20 to show the Roman reader the really grand conclusion to the book. Jesus tells the disciples to go continue the ministry He started, and if they do, the signs and miracles will accompany them. After that, Jesus raises into heaven, and he is seated at the right hand of the Father, which means Jesus is the one in charge, Jesus truly has authority and power. And sure enough, the disciples do go preach the simple gospel message of Jesus Christ, and they got the power Jesus has.
I hope you did read this whole thing, despite it being long. But this does show you that while some people would not suggest the Bible as a good storyteller, I would sharply disagree. Mark knew how to tell the true story of Jesus Christ in an exciting way that would grip his intended audience. But more importantly, I hope you got the moral of the story that Mark was trying to preach. I hope you too are persuaded to be a suffering servant, just like Jesus was.
Thursday, November 24, 2011
A Thanksgiving Devotional
Wow, I realized I have not posting anything on here for a year. So I wanted to post something before the year ended. So with this being Thanksgiving, let me share a Thanksgiving devotional I wrote for the Conestoga Youth Group a couple years ago. It's a good one to share.
In my senior of high school, for Faith Walk class, my teacher assigned us to write 100 Blessings we were thankful for in our devotionals. One of my classmates said to him, "What?! 100 Blessings?! Are you crazy?!" My teacher replied, "You're right...110 Blessings." My classmate was shocked even more. "You want us to think up and write down 110 blessings?! That's insane!" My teacher responded, "Yeah, I guess you're right...make that 120 blessing." My classmate was about to object a third time, but the rest of his classmates quickly shut him up before it became 130. Truthfully, I was as shocked as everyone else was. I wasn't sure I could write up 120 Blessings I was thankful either. But sure enough, my teacher knew it was possible, and I did record on paper 120 blessings I was thankful for (click anywhere where it says "120 blessings to read it!). Yeah, sometimes it felt like I was nitpicking, but it really got me thinking about specific things (or people) I was thankful for, and why I was so thankful for these blessings. And it's a good thing. After all, the Bible calls for us to be thankful for all our blessings.
While there are many verses that use the term "thanks," "give thanks" or "thanksgiving," if I had to pick a theme verse for Thanksgiving, I would pick Ephesians 5:20- "always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ." Now, I'm a student of Greek, and to be a student of Greek, you have to be able to notice the grammatical structure of the sentence, like the subject, the direct object, the indirect object, the verb, and the prepositional, and so on. So let's break down this verse in the same way. What is the subject of the verse, or who is perfoming the action? We, as Christians, are. What is the verb, or what are we doing? Giving thanks. What is the direct object, or what are we giving our thanks for? All things. What is the indirect object, or to whom are we giving our thanks for all things? God the Father. What's the adverb, which tells us when are we to give thanks? Always. And what's the prepositional phrase, which says why we are to give thanks? Because of Jesus Christ.
I once heard somebody paraphrase this verse like this: “Every Christian must give thanks to God for everything in every circumstance in all times”? And I think it's a good paraphrase and a good interpretation. A more literal translation of Colossians 3:17 and 1 Thessalonians 5:18 would agree with it. Colossians 3:17 says,"And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him." 1 Thessalonians 5:18 tells us, "Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus." When we think of commandments, we usually think of the Old Testament, like the 10 Commandments. But there are commandments in the New Testament, and giving thanks is one of them. God has truly given us so much, in light of our condition. What condition is that? We're fallen sinners, living lives rebellious towards God. Our lives should be living hells. Yet every now and then, we get bits of heaven. Nobody would ever give things to someone who purposely annoying them or pissing them off. Yet God does, out of his preverant grace. So would it hurt to give thanks every now and then for these little things?
I know sometimes it's easy to give thanks, and sometimes it's hard to give thanks. It's easy to give thanks when we've gone so long without something, and then, all of a sudden, we get it. But sometimes it's hard to be thankful when we see what others have and then see we don't have it. Instead of being thankful, we replace a thankful attitude with a jealous one. We watched "reality shows" of celebrities, and we wish we were wearing the latest fashions like they were, wearing the shinest jewelry like they were, and driving the coolest cars as they were. Shouldn't we be thankful for the clothese on our back and the car that gets us from Point A to Point B safely? I know these kinds of things use to make me jealous instead of thankful, too, but then I read some shocking statistics that changed my attitude. I hope they do the same for you. Just consider the basic necessities you need for life...
FOOD: It is estimated that 800 million people in the world suffer from hunger of malnutrion. 15 million of these 800 million will die from their starvation. If you are well-fed, you are in the top third of the world population. You would be considered "upper class"
WATER: 20% of the world does not have safe drinking water
MONEY: 3 billion people in the world live on $2 a day. 1.3 billion people live on $1 a day, or less.
HOME: 100-200 million people in the world are homeless.
CAR: Only 8% of people in the world have a car. If you have car, you are in the top 8%
COMPUTER: Only 1% of people in the world have a computer. If you have a computer, you are in the top 1% of the world.
PHONE: Only 17% of people in the world have a phone, and only .1% have a cell phone.
This wasn't meant to guilt you. This wasn't meant to call you to live a simpler lifestyle (although if it does, more power to you). This was meant to show you how fortunate you are for owning any of these things and how it calls for being thankful for these things. So you can't eat out weekly or can't expensive seafood. At least you can eat, which 2/3 of the world can't. So you have to drink water out of the tap instead of buying water bottles. At least you can drink that water. So you work at minimum wage. In some places of the world, minimum wage is 25 cents an hour, not $7.25. Now minimum wage doesn't look so bad. So maybe you wish you had a bigger house, with bigger bedrooms or a bigger kitchen. But you're more fortunate than those living in tents or cardboard boxes. Give thanks for that. So your car is over 10 years old or has more than 100,000 miles on it. If it runs, you should be thankful, for many people don't have that option. Be thankful if you are the top 1% of the world that owns a computer, even if it's not a fast computer. Be thankful if you're the top .1% of the world that has a cell phone, even if your cell phone is not an iPhone or any other smart phone.
And this is where it gets personal. I am only working for $9 an hour. And when I pay tithes, taxes, rent, electricity, internet, car insurance, and gas, I only have $35 left for food...for the week. So needless to say I am use to ramen for lunch and mac and cheese for dinner...every day. My car is 10 years old and over 133,333 miles. I sometimes feel like I am the only one who still has a feature [cell] phone because everyone else has a smart [cell] phone. Some people might not complain about this. But when I realize some people can't afford to live on their own, can't afford to have electricity, can't afford a car (whether that be the payment, the insurance or the gas), or can't afford a cell phone, I give thanks to God that I do have these things. And more recently, I have become extremely thankful that my girlfriend and her grandmother have been gracious enough to feed me a more balance dinner with more variety.
And once Thanksgiving is done, we start preparing for Christmas, and things flip-flop. We go from being thankful to wanting. And it leads me to question, "How can we keep this attitude of thankfulness through a time where people want?" I pray that we can find the answer, and once we do, we immediately act upon it.
In my senior of high school, for Faith Walk class, my teacher assigned us to write 100 Blessings we were thankful for in our devotionals. One of my classmates said to him, "What?! 100 Blessings?! Are you crazy?!" My teacher replied, "You're right...110 Blessings." My classmate was shocked even more. "You want us to think up and write down 110 blessings?! That's insane!" My teacher responded, "Yeah, I guess you're right...make that 120 blessing." My classmate was about to object a third time, but the rest of his classmates quickly shut him up before it became 130. Truthfully, I was as shocked as everyone else was. I wasn't sure I could write up 120 Blessings I was thankful either. But sure enough, my teacher knew it was possible, and I did record on paper 120 blessings I was thankful for (click anywhere where it says "120 blessings to read it!). Yeah, sometimes it felt like I was nitpicking, but it really got me thinking about specific things (or people) I was thankful for, and why I was so thankful for these blessings. And it's a good thing. After all, the Bible calls for us to be thankful for all our blessings.
While there are many verses that use the term "thanks," "give thanks" or "thanksgiving," if I had to pick a theme verse for Thanksgiving, I would pick Ephesians 5:20- "always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ." Now, I'm a student of Greek, and to be a student of Greek, you have to be able to notice the grammatical structure of the sentence, like the subject, the direct object, the indirect object, the verb, and the prepositional, and so on. So let's break down this verse in the same way. What is the subject of the verse, or who is perfoming the action? We, as Christians, are. What is the verb, or what are we doing? Giving thanks. What is the direct object, or what are we giving our thanks for? All things. What is the indirect object, or to whom are we giving our thanks for all things? God the Father. What's the adverb, which tells us when are we to give thanks? Always. And what's the prepositional phrase, which says why we are to give thanks? Because of Jesus Christ.
I once heard somebody paraphrase this verse like this: “Every Christian must give thanks to God for everything in every circumstance in all times”? And I think it's a good paraphrase and a good interpretation. A more literal translation of Colossians 3:17 and 1 Thessalonians 5:18 would agree with it. Colossians 3:17 says,"And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him." 1 Thessalonians 5:18 tells us, "Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus." When we think of commandments, we usually think of the Old Testament, like the 10 Commandments. But there are commandments in the New Testament, and giving thanks is one of them. God has truly given us so much, in light of our condition. What condition is that? We're fallen sinners, living lives rebellious towards God. Our lives should be living hells. Yet every now and then, we get bits of heaven. Nobody would ever give things to someone who purposely annoying them or pissing them off. Yet God does, out of his preverant grace. So would it hurt to give thanks every now and then for these little things?
I know sometimes it's easy to give thanks, and sometimes it's hard to give thanks. It's easy to give thanks when we've gone so long without something, and then, all of a sudden, we get it. But sometimes it's hard to be thankful when we see what others have and then see we don't have it. Instead of being thankful, we replace a thankful attitude with a jealous one. We watched "reality shows" of celebrities, and we wish we were wearing the latest fashions like they were, wearing the shinest jewelry like they were, and driving the coolest cars as they were. Shouldn't we be thankful for the clothese on our back and the car that gets us from Point A to Point B safely? I know these kinds of things use to make me jealous instead of thankful, too, but then I read some shocking statistics that changed my attitude. I hope they do the same for you. Just consider the basic necessities you need for life...
FOOD: It is estimated that 800 million people in the world suffer from hunger of malnutrion. 15 million of these 800 million will die from their starvation. If you are well-fed, you are in the top third of the world population. You would be considered "upper class"
WATER: 20% of the world does not have safe drinking water
MONEY: 3 billion people in the world live on $2 a day. 1.3 billion people live on $1 a day, or less.
HOME: 100-200 million people in the world are homeless.
CAR: Only 8% of people in the world have a car. If you have car, you are in the top 8%
COMPUTER: Only 1% of people in the world have a computer. If you have a computer, you are in the top 1% of the world.
PHONE: Only 17% of people in the world have a phone, and only .1% have a cell phone.
This wasn't meant to guilt you. This wasn't meant to call you to live a simpler lifestyle (although if it does, more power to you). This was meant to show you how fortunate you are for owning any of these things and how it calls for being thankful for these things. So you can't eat out weekly or can't expensive seafood. At least you can eat, which 2/3 of the world can't. So you have to drink water out of the tap instead of buying water bottles. At least you can drink that water. So you work at minimum wage. In some places of the world, minimum wage is 25 cents an hour, not $7.25. Now minimum wage doesn't look so bad. So maybe you wish you had a bigger house, with bigger bedrooms or a bigger kitchen. But you're more fortunate than those living in tents or cardboard boxes. Give thanks for that. So your car is over 10 years old or has more than 100,000 miles on it. If it runs, you should be thankful, for many people don't have that option. Be thankful if you are the top 1% of the world that owns a computer, even if it's not a fast computer. Be thankful if you're the top .1% of the world that has a cell phone, even if your cell phone is not an iPhone or any other smart phone.
And this is where it gets personal. I am only working for $9 an hour. And when I pay tithes, taxes, rent, electricity, internet, car insurance, and gas, I only have $35 left for food...for the week. So needless to say I am use to ramen for lunch and mac and cheese for dinner...every day. My car is 10 years old and over 133,333 miles. I sometimes feel like I am the only one who still has a feature [cell] phone because everyone else has a smart [cell] phone. Some people might not complain about this. But when I realize some people can't afford to live on their own, can't afford to have electricity, can't afford a car (whether that be the payment, the insurance or the gas), or can't afford a cell phone, I give thanks to God that I do have these things. And more recently, I have become extremely thankful that my girlfriend and her grandmother have been gracious enough to feed me a more balance dinner with more variety.
And once Thanksgiving is done, we start preparing for Christmas, and things flip-flop. We go from being thankful to wanting. And it leads me to question, "How can we keep this attitude of thankfulness through a time where people want?" I pray that we can find the answer, and once we do, we immediately act upon it.
Sunday, December 24, 2006
Joy: The Fourth Week of Advent
But the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people." -Luke 2:10
When we think of joy, we think of a synonym of happiness. Sometimes we may think of joy has an extreme, hyper happiness. The dictionary would probably agree with that. But think joy can be beyond that. You can be joyful without always being estatic.
True joy is contagiuos. Being joyful causes those around you to be joyful. The angels and the shepards in the Christmas story demonstrate this. The angels presented the the birth of Jesus with great joy. The angels were so joyful, the shepherds had to see for themselves what the commotion was for. After seeing the newborn Jesus, they to went out to everyone to tell the news, probably in the same joy. The Messiah who was promised to save the people was finally here!
In today's modern world, we see Christmas not as much as a joyful time, but a happy time. Tis the season to be jolly. Yet it isn't always true for everyone. We call them Grinches or Scrooges. I like to call them Charlie Browns. People are hard on them, but I'm not. They're probably like that because they aren't seeing the true joy or love from the real Christmas. That's the biggest way we can know the difference between the two. While commericial Christmas gives us temporary happiness, the things we get will eventually no longer make us happy, just in enough time for Valentine's Day. The joy will get from the true meaning of Christmas lasts all year round. Happiness is temporary, joy is forever. The Santa Claus we base commericial Christmas on is was temporary. Santa is based on St. Nicholas, who was born, sinned, then died. The true Christmas celebrates the birth of Jesus, who always was, and always will be. God was never born and we never die. Even when we was born, he wouldn't die, even when killed. He would resurrect and be living again. How joyful we can now be now knowing we can be reconciled with God through the offering of His Son!
When everyone remembers the true meaning of Christmas, we gain a sense of hope, peace, love and joy. It's been a wonderful advent season, and now I am prepared for Christmas more than ever. May Christmas be meaningful for all of you.
Merry Christmas everyone!
"Hark the Harold Angels sing, glory to the newborn king...."
When we think of joy, we think of a synonym of happiness. Sometimes we may think of joy has an extreme, hyper happiness. The dictionary would probably agree with that. But think joy can be beyond that. You can be joyful without always being estatic.
True joy is contagiuos. Being joyful causes those around you to be joyful. The angels and the shepards in the Christmas story demonstrate this. The angels presented the the birth of Jesus with great joy. The angels were so joyful, the shepherds had to see for themselves what the commotion was for. After seeing the newborn Jesus, they to went out to everyone to tell the news, probably in the same joy. The Messiah who was promised to save the people was finally here!
In today's modern world, we see Christmas not as much as a joyful time, but a happy time. Tis the season to be jolly. Yet it isn't always true for everyone. We call them Grinches or Scrooges. I like to call them Charlie Browns. People are hard on them, but I'm not. They're probably like that because they aren't seeing the true joy or love from the real Christmas. That's the biggest way we can know the difference between the two. While commericial Christmas gives us temporary happiness, the things we get will eventually no longer make us happy, just in enough time for Valentine's Day. The joy will get from the true meaning of Christmas lasts all year round. Happiness is temporary, joy is forever. The Santa Claus we base commericial Christmas on is was temporary. Santa is based on St. Nicholas, who was born, sinned, then died. The true Christmas celebrates the birth of Jesus, who always was, and always will be. God was never born and we never die. Even when we was born, he wouldn't die, even when killed. He would resurrect and be living again. How joyful we can now be now knowing we can be reconciled with God through the offering of His Son!
When everyone remembers the true meaning of Christmas, we gain a sense of hope, peace, love and joy. It's been a wonderful advent season, and now I am prepared for Christmas more than ever. May Christmas be meaningful for all of you.
Merry Christmas everyone!
"Hark the Harold Angels sing, glory to the newborn king...."
Sunday, December 17, 2006
Love: The Third week of advent
"And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love."-1 Corinthians 13:13
It was hard narrowing all 700 verses with love in it down to one. I chose this one, from the most favorite chapter to be read at weddings, 1 Corinthians 13 (which is known as the love chapter). I like this because it mentions 2 of the 4 advent candles. I think perhaps they should replace one of the other 2 with faith, or faith a 5th week of advent. Faith does prepare us for Christmas just as much as the others.
Love prepares our hearts for Christmas. To truly understand Christmas, we must understand love. First, we know God is love (1 John 4:8). Therefore, we can conclude everything God has done for His people is out of love. We know God loved His Son Jesus. He said at His Son's Baptism and Transfiguration. John 3:16 is the most famous Bible verse. The beginning of it tells us why the Lord gave us His Son. "For Go so loved the world..." We learn from the Bible that the greatest show of love is to give up his life for friends (John 15:13). That's why Jesus died on the cross. God the Father loved God the Son, but he also loved His people. That's why the Father and the Son allowed the Son of God to be crucified. As Richard J. Foster said in his book The Celebration of Discipline, "Love, not anger brought Jesus to the cross." The Son of Man died for us out of love.
Comparing the Christmas story to advent themes, I see love in Mary, the mother of Jesus. Just like our parents love us, their children, Mary loved her child, Jesus. She probably cared for it, wanting to make it comfortable, and not in pain or discomfort. She probably wanted to hold it and not let go. As she held it, she could only guess of how this little boy would be the messiah. Oh, if she only knew. I'm reminded of the song "Mary, did you know?" The songs talks about the baby growing up, performing miracles, and becoming Lord over all. But it doesn't mention anything about Christ's death. Did Mary know how He would die on this cruel earth? Did Gabriel tell her something like:
"On the night of the Passover, your son will be betrayed by one of his closest follwers and friends. He will lead a crowd, who just earlier that week was cheering and praising the enterance of your son into the capital. Most of the crowd will be chief priests and the teachers of the law, who are just jealous of his popularity, and his knowledge of how they aren't pure and perfect. Really, they feel threatened by him. He will be put on trial in front of 3 men. They will condemn him to death and will turn him over to the Gentiles to be mocked and flogged and crucified, arguably the worst execution method in all history. Furthermore, he will refuse any pain killers. The worst, you'll be there to witness every minute of the suffering of the child you will bear for the Lord."
Probably Gabriel told her nothing of that sort. If the angel did, Mary will have been an emotional basket case. She would have cried at the annunciation of Jesus's birth, the birth, when she lost him at the age of 12, when he decided to leave to begin his ministry at the age of 30. No mother wants to outlive her child, know how her child will die, nor wants her child to suffer through it. But although Mary would witness her son's violent death, if she only knew what was going to happen next: a victorious resurrection. Jesus knew everything that was going to happen, but still went through with it. Now that is love.
When we understand Christ's love, we reflect why we should love. Jesus told us in John 13:34&35, "A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another." We must love because we can be identified as followers of Jesus because we love. We should love year round, but when Christmas comes, we must really love. How do we do this? During Christmas, we usually show love by giving. But I think we've missed this. We only give to our family and friends. But's God's love is to everyone, not just our family and friends. Sometimes by giving love to others, especially in public, we can rob others of the feeling of the love of Christmas. I realized this as we watched Charlie Brown Christmas yet another year. He wasn't feeling Christmast because of the commericialism of Christmas. The love commericial Christmas tells of is receiving love through the Christmas cards and presents one gets from family friends. If our family and friends love us, they will give us things. Reverse is true, too. We believe if we truly love our friends and family, we must get them presents. We're giving, just like Jesus commanded, but I think we're missing the point. We should be giving for more than just "love" (which isn't even true love, it's the fuzzy feeling love). So how do we separate ourselves as Christians from the worldly Christmas? We got to get out of the cycle of giving out of fuzzy love, and we can do this by getting back to the true love of Christmas. We got to get together, talk this over, and realize our friendship won't change whether or not we get gifts or not. If it means no one giving or getting gifts, so be it. We also must be giving gifts to others beyond family and friends. These means presents for the poor, authority, strangers, unpopular, unliked and the hated enemies. People we wouldn't give to normally. They're the ones who feel the lack of love during Christmas. It's not only important that we give to them, but we must give equally to them as everyone else. Then not only will we be giving the true love of Christmas, we will be reaping it back to ourselves. We will be living the life of love Christ set an example for us to live.
OFFICIAL Countdown to the first quizmatch of 2007:
33 days, 18 hours, 22 minutes
It was hard narrowing all 700 verses with love in it down to one. I chose this one, from the most favorite chapter to be read at weddings, 1 Corinthians 13 (which is known as the love chapter). I like this because it mentions 2 of the 4 advent candles. I think perhaps they should replace one of the other 2 with faith, or faith a 5th week of advent. Faith does prepare us for Christmas just as much as the others.
Love prepares our hearts for Christmas. To truly understand Christmas, we must understand love. First, we know God is love (1 John 4:8). Therefore, we can conclude everything God has done for His people is out of love. We know God loved His Son Jesus. He said at His Son's Baptism and Transfiguration. John 3:16 is the most famous Bible verse. The beginning of it tells us why the Lord gave us His Son. "For Go so loved the world..." We learn from the Bible that the greatest show of love is to give up his life for friends (John 15:13). That's why Jesus died on the cross. God the Father loved God the Son, but he also loved His people. That's why the Father and the Son allowed the Son of God to be crucified. As Richard J. Foster said in his book The Celebration of Discipline, "Love, not anger brought Jesus to the cross." The Son of Man died for us out of love.
Comparing the Christmas story to advent themes, I see love in Mary, the mother of Jesus. Just like our parents love us, their children, Mary loved her child, Jesus. She probably cared for it, wanting to make it comfortable, and not in pain or discomfort. She probably wanted to hold it and not let go. As she held it, she could only guess of how this little boy would be the messiah. Oh, if she only knew. I'm reminded of the song "Mary, did you know?" The songs talks about the baby growing up, performing miracles, and becoming Lord over all. But it doesn't mention anything about Christ's death. Did Mary know how He would die on this cruel earth? Did Gabriel tell her something like:
"On the night of the Passover, your son will be betrayed by one of his closest follwers and friends. He will lead a crowd, who just earlier that week was cheering and praising the enterance of your son into the capital. Most of the crowd will be chief priests and the teachers of the law, who are just jealous of his popularity, and his knowledge of how they aren't pure and perfect. Really, they feel threatened by him. He will be put on trial in front of 3 men. They will condemn him to death and will turn him over to the Gentiles to be mocked and flogged and crucified, arguably the worst execution method in all history. Furthermore, he will refuse any pain killers. The worst, you'll be there to witness every minute of the suffering of the child you will bear for the Lord."
Probably Gabriel told her nothing of that sort. If the angel did, Mary will have been an emotional basket case. She would have cried at the annunciation of Jesus's birth, the birth, when she lost him at the age of 12, when he decided to leave to begin his ministry at the age of 30. No mother wants to outlive her child, know how her child will die, nor wants her child to suffer through it. But although Mary would witness her son's violent death, if she only knew what was going to happen next: a victorious resurrection. Jesus knew everything that was going to happen, but still went through with it. Now that is love.
When we understand Christ's love, we reflect why we should love. Jesus told us in John 13:34&35, "A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another." We must love because we can be identified as followers of Jesus because we love. We should love year round, but when Christmas comes, we must really love. How do we do this? During Christmas, we usually show love by giving. But I think we've missed this. We only give to our family and friends. But's God's love is to everyone, not just our family and friends. Sometimes by giving love to others, especially in public, we can rob others of the feeling of the love of Christmas. I realized this as we watched Charlie Brown Christmas yet another year. He wasn't feeling Christmast because of the commericialism of Christmas. The love commericial Christmas tells of is receiving love through the Christmas cards and presents one gets from family friends. If our family and friends love us, they will give us things. Reverse is true, too. We believe if we truly love our friends and family, we must get them presents. We're giving, just like Jesus commanded, but I think we're missing the point. We should be giving for more than just "love" (which isn't even true love, it's the fuzzy feeling love). So how do we separate ourselves as Christians from the worldly Christmas? We got to get out of the cycle of giving out of fuzzy love, and we can do this by getting back to the true love of Christmas. We got to get together, talk this over, and realize our friendship won't change whether or not we get gifts or not. If it means no one giving or getting gifts, so be it. We also must be giving gifts to others beyond family and friends. These means presents for the poor, authority, strangers, unpopular, unliked and the hated enemies. People we wouldn't give to normally. They're the ones who feel the lack of love during Christmas. It's not only important that we give to them, but we must give equally to them as everyone else. Then not only will we be giving the true love of Christmas, we will be reaping it back to ourselves. We will be living the life of love Christ set an example for us to live.
OFFICIAL Countdown to the first quizmatch of 2007:
33 days, 18 hours, 22 minutes
Sunday, December 10, 2006
Peace: The Second Week of Advent
Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests." -Luke 2:13,14
I could take this post and spend the whole time raving about how our God is favoring peace, not war, then go into the whole non-violent resistant, pacifist thing. I could use the 274 times peace is mentioned in the Bible to verify, but I'm not going to. Maybe a short, tame one at the end, but I reall want to focus it on something else we can all agree on. Peace is much more than the opposite of war. I learned this as our Sunday School had classes on the topic of peace. It was a DVD series, with class discussion in it. The program had a definition of peace that cirriculated throughout the lessons-
"Peace is when everything is the best it can be." -PeaceDVD (www.peacedvd.com)
Of course, I couldn't say it right, and everytime I tried, I pretty much quoted a popular praise song. I would say, "Peace is when everything is as it should be." If you didin't recognize it, it comes from the praise song "Blessed be the Name." But it comes down being the same thing? If the world was as it should be, as God intened it, without sin, then everything would be at the best. That's peace. We see a peace in the garden of Eden. The garden is peaceful because everything was as God planned, nothing wrong or out of place. Adam and Eve walked with God. They were at peace with their maker. When Satan came in and Eve fell to his temptation, that peace was gone. When God promised them a messiah, not only was he providing a way to get out of the sin, but a promise of restoring the peace. Isn't that what Jesus did coming to earth? That's what the angels meant when they were talking to the shepherds in Luke 2:14. The hymn "Hark! The Herald Angels Sing" rewords it when it says "Peace on earth, and mercy mild, God and sinners reconcile."
Remember, when the Israelites could come into God's presense, it was not peaceful. First, there were several preparations one had to go through to be able enter the Lord's presense, from cermonial washing to performing sacrifices to wearing the right thing. Even when they could go in, it was was enter, do your business, and exit. No tarrying. It was very hard. Perhaps the man entering the Holy of Holies were in great fear doing his job. God was seen as the boss, not a friend. One wrong move, and you were gone. But as this Christmas season comes, remember that the child born would eventually die on the cross, splitting the heavy curtain dividing God from His people. God was saying, "No more of this bossy business stuff. Let's be personal. Let's become friends. Let's talk." God gives us the oppurtunity to have that peaceful relationship with him again. How much more perfect will it become when we have it in the new Heaven and the new Earth!
The characters in the Christmas story that show peace have to be Mary. Mary had a big assignment. Based on we know of culture back in the time of the New Testament, Mary was probably between the ages of 12 to 17! I don't think any of the girls around my age I know would want the responsibility. On top of that, Mary was engaged, not married. Being pregnant and not married was a dangerous situation. Mary could be punished for that from just being disgraced to being stoned to death. Mary must have been freaked out. But God's messenger Gabriel put Mary at peace with that. That's another gift God gives us in this gift giving season: a peace of mind. Not a piece of His mind, a peace of mind. The Holy Spirit relaxes us when deep down inside we want to panic. Just as the children's song tells us, it is the peace that passes all understanding. It doesn't make sense to be peacefully calm, when we really want to be tense.
As I was writing my Christmas cards, I came across one that said "Peace on Earth." Christmas is the one time of the year we wish we could stop all military combat and have world peace. We think it's unlikely to happen, but it did happen. On December 25, 1914, in the midst of World War I, the German and British soldiers stopped fighting and took up what is now known as "The Christmas Truce" (Google it if you don't believe me). The troops ceased to fight and celebrated the birth of Christ. The men met in the middle of no-man's land. Banners was made, carols were sung, gifts were exchanged between countries, and a friendly game of soccer was played. Some scholars are doubters of this; they say the event demonstrates at this point of time the war was still not taken seriously. But I think it was. The men realized that both sides had Christians who celebrated the holiday. They were united for a while as God's children. The next day, the fighting resumed. Wouldn't that be great, to do it again? For one day, especially a day where it is promoted to have no fighting but a time of peace? Not just war, but any kind of fighting. No homocides, no bar fights, no bullying. And to continue that, why can't we have it for more than a day? Why can't stop fighting between neighbors and nations all year round? It would be our way of helping the Lord restore that peace that he intended.
I could take this post and spend the whole time raving about how our God is favoring peace, not war, then go into the whole non-violent resistant, pacifist thing. I could use the 274 times peace is mentioned in the Bible to verify, but I'm not going to. Maybe a short, tame one at the end, but I reall want to focus it on something else we can all agree on. Peace is much more than the opposite of war. I learned this as our Sunday School had classes on the topic of peace. It was a DVD series, with class discussion in it. The program had a definition of peace that cirriculated throughout the lessons-
"Peace is when everything is the best it can be." -PeaceDVD (www.peacedvd.com)
Of course, I couldn't say it right, and everytime I tried, I pretty much quoted a popular praise song. I would say, "Peace is when everything is as it should be." If you didin't recognize it, it comes from the praise song "Blessed be the Name." But it comes down being the same thing? If the world was as it should be, as God intened it, without sin, then everything would be at the best. That's peace. We see a peace in the garden of Eden. The garden is peaceful because everything was as God planned, nothing wrong or out of place. Adam and Eve walked with God. They were at peace with their maker. When Satan came in and Eve fell to his temptation, that peace was gone. When God promised them a messiah, not only was he providing a way to get out of the sin, but a promise of restoring the peace. Isn't that what Jesus did coming to earth? That's what the angels meant when they were talking to the shepherds in Luke 2:14. The hymn "Hark! The Herald Angels Sing" rewords it when it says "Peace on earth, and mercy mild, God and sinners reconcile."
Remember, when the Israelites could come into God's presense, it was not peaceful. First, there were several preparations one had to go through to be able enter the Lord's presense, from cermonial washing to performing sacrifices to wearing the right thing. Even when they could go in, it was was enter, do your business, and exit. No tarrying. It was very hard. Perhaps the man entering the Holy of Holies were in great fear doing his job. God was seen as the boss, not a friend. One wrong move, and you were gone. But as this Christmas season comes, remember that the child born would eventually die on the cross, splitting the heavy curtain dividing God from His people. God was saying, "No more of this bossy business stuff. Let's be personal. Let's become friends. Let's talk." God gives us the oppurtunity to have that peaceful relationship with him again. How much more perfect will it become when we have it in the new Heaven and the new Earth!
The characters in the Christmas story that show peace have to be Mary. Mary had a big assignment. Based on we know of culture back in the time of the New Testament, Mary was probably between the ages of 12 to 17! I don't think any of the girls around my age I know would want the responsibility. On top of that, Mary was engaged, not married. Being pregnant and not married was a dangerous situation. Mary could be punished for that from just being disgraced to being stoned to death. Mary must have been freaked out. But God's messenger Gabriel put Mary at peace with that. That's another gift God gives us in this gift giving season: a peace of mind. Not a piece of His mind, a peace of mind. The Holy Spirit relaxes us when deep down inside we want to panic. Just as the children's song tells us, it is the peace that passes all understanding. It doesn't make sense to be peacefully calm, when we really want to be tense.
As I was writing my Christmas cards, I came across one that said "Peace on Earth." Christmas is the one time of the year we wish we could stop all military combat and have world peace. We think it's unlikely to happen, but it did happen. On December 25, 1914, in the midst of World War I, the German and British soldiers stopped fighting and took up what is now known as "The Christmas Truce" (Google it if you don't believe me). The troops ceased to fight and celebrated the birth of Christ. The men met in the middle of no-man's land. Banners was made, carols were sung, gifts were exchanged between countries, and a friendly game of soccer was played. Some scholars are doubters of this; they say the event demonstrates at this point of time the war was still not taken seriously. But I think it was. The men realized that both sides had Christians who celebrated the holiday. They were united for a while as God's children. The next day, the fighting resumed. Wouldn't that be great, to do it again? For one day, especially a day where it is promoted to have no fighting but a time of peace? Not just war, but any kind of fighting. No homocides, no bar fights, no bullying. And to continue that, why can't we have it for more than a day? Why can't stop fighting between neighbors and nations all year round? It would be our way of helping the Lord restore that peace that he intended.
Sunday, December 03, 2006
Hope: 1st week of Advent
I noticed how in the pas I always just complain about how commericial Christmas has become and how the holiday is depressing for the less social. Well, I know how much you people don't like me complaining. I know I haven't said anything to change it. I thought of a way to do this, and the way I came up was to prepare the mind for a spiritual Christmas. Come to think of that, advent does that. Many of today's churches don't focus on advent. Only the more "traditional" churches do. Both my church and my school are focusing on the pre-birth scripture (Luke 1). That's cool, but I think Advent gives a better mindset to prepare us on the ultimate Christmas gift: Jesus Christ. Here are my thoughts on the advent theme of the week.
"David said about him: 'I saw the Lord always before me. Because he is at my right hand, I will not be shaken. Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices; my body also will live in hope, because you will not abandon me to the grave, nor will you let your Holy One see decay. You have made known to me the paths of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence." -Acts 2:25-28
This one of th 174 verses mentioning hope in it. One of the books of the Bible where hope is dominant is Job. The man who lost everything still had hope. I thought back of what could be the first instance of hope. I guess the earliest instance could be right after the fall. Adam and Eve must been pretty hopeful that the messiah God promised would come rescue them from the hard labor they now had to do in the sinful world. But you really don't see it in Genesis. Most of the time, they are more consentrated on starting a great nation. Enoch was the only one proclaiming about the Messiah. It wasn't until Israel went through a series of on conquerers and rescuers that they wanted a rescuer that could deliever them permantently: the Messiah.
During the opening years of A.D., there was a bit enflared feeling of the returning messiah. The radical Zealots wanted the Romans out. The flare of hope must have been strong. I would guess that just like now, their were expecting him to come out of the sky, or someone, who was a high leader or very spiritual, to get a diving calling while doing a spiritual ritual to lead his people in revolution. If this was so, how much more Mary must have been suprised with the news. The Messiah was now going to be a baby, growing to a small child, growing to a teenager, and finally becoming an adult. On top of that, he would come out of the humble home of a carpender. If word got around, people would lose hope. "Oh great, the one Messiah God sends is a nobody."
The passage above is actually Simon Peter quoting a Psalm. Peter explains that David in this Psalm was talking about the Messiah, Jesus. David says his body now lives in hope. Since Jesus died on the cross, how much hope he has given us for a happy ending! I think if I was living in Old Testament atonement, I would always be worried. Did I do the right amount of sacrifices to cover up my sins? Did I cover all my sins? I did it all correctly, right? No sense of being sure. But now, with Christ as the perfect sacrifice, we can be 100% that all who call on the Name of the Lord shall be saved from their sin. What hope we have in Christ that will have a better life.
Let's go back to the first arrival of Christ. Think about the mindset of the few who knew the baby Jesus would be the Messiah. There's Mary, Joseph, the shepherds, the magi (which are not necesarily 3 in number). As they gazed upon the infant, they must've needed hope. It looked like any other infant, just in a low and humble surrounding. How could we be sure this is it? Maybe they wanted to say, "That's it?" Imagine the shepherds following the directions of the angels, or the magi, following the star. Maybe they were expecting a palace. But what they didn't get that. Not even the inns would have a room for the upcoming Messiah. Heck, maybe Joseph even tried that! "Don't you understand? My wife is giving birth to the Messiah! You're turning down the Savior of the World!" But I think God had placed His Son's birth in a lowly place so even the lowest would relate. I believe that if Jesus had been born in 21st century world, his would have been born in an alley, lying in a barrel or a shopping cart. Now even the homeless can relate to Jesus, and have hope in being rewarded in heaven. So whoever you are, high or low, rich or poor, popular or unpopular, you can put all your hopes in Jesus.
"David said about him: 'I saw the Lord always before me. Because he is at my right hand, I will not be shaken. Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices; my body also will live in hope, because you will not abandon me to the grave, nor will you let your Holy One see decay. You have made known to me the paths of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence." -Acts 2:25-28
This one of th 174 verses mentioning hope in it. One of the books of the Bible where hope is dominant is Job. The man who lost everything still had hope. I thought back of what could be the first instance of hope. I guess the earliest instance could be right after the fall. Adam and Eve must been pretty hopeful that the messiah God promised would come rescue them from the hard labor they now had to do in the sinful world. But you really don't see it in Genesis. Most of the time, they are more consentrated on starting a great nation. Enoch was the only one proclaiming about the Messiah. It wasn't until Israel went through a series of on conquerers and rescuers that they wanted a rescuer that could deliever them permantently: the Messiah.
During the opening years of A.D., there was a bit enflared feeling of the returning messiah. The radical Zealots wanted the Romans out. The flare of hope must have been strong. I would guess that just like now, their were expecting him to come out of the sky, or someone, who was a high leader or very spiritual, to get a diving calling while doing a spiritual ritual to lead his people in revolution. If this was so, how much more Mary must have been suprised with the news. The Messiah was now going to be a baby, growing to a small child, growing to a teenager, and finally becoming an adult. On top of that, he would come out of the humble home of a carpender. If word got around, people would lose hope. "Oh great, the one Messiah God sends is a nobody."
The passage above is actually Simon Peter quoting a Psalm. Peter explains that David in this Psalm was talking about the Messiah, Jesus. David says his body now lives in hope. Since Jesus died on the cross, how much hope he has given us for a happy ending! I think if I was living in Old Testament atonement, I would always be worried. Did I do the right amount of sacrifices to cover up my sins? Did I cover all my sins? I did it all correctly, right? No sense of being sure. But now, with Christ as the perfect sacrifice, we can be 100% that all who call on the Name of the Lord shall be saved from their sin. What hope we have in Christ that will have a better life.
Let's go back to the first arrival of Christ. Think about the mindset of the few who knew the baby Jesus would be the Messiah. There's Mary, Joseph, the shepherds, the magi (which are not necesarily 3 in number). As they gazed upon the infant, they must've needed hope. It looked like any other infant, just in a low and humble surrounding. How could we be sure this is it? Maybe they wanted to say, "That's it?" Imagine the shepherds following the directions of the angels, or the magi, following the star. Maybe they were expecting a palace. But what they didn't get that. Not even the inns would have a room for the upcoming Messiah. Heck, maybe Joseph even tried that! "Don't you understand? My wife is giving birth to the Messiah! You're turning down the Savior of the World!" But I think God had placed His Son's birth in a lowly place so even the lowest would relate. I believe that if Jesus had been born in 21st century world, his would have been born in an alley, lying in a barrel or a shopping cart. Now even the homeless can relate to Jesus, and have hope in being rewarded in heaven. So whoever you are, high or low, rich or poor, popular or unpopular, you can put all your hopes in Jesus.
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A History of the Bible Quizzing Invitational Tournament Format
The format of the ACC/AMEC Bible Quizzing season has always remained consistent. Coordinator Fred Hertzler splits the total quiz teams into ...
