The New Testament in 90 Days

As we enter Chapter 16 of Revelation, what I notice most is not just the plagues, but the fact that it seems that no matter what plagues are unleashed on the earth, people do not repent.  (This reminds me of the story of the Pharaoh and the people of Israel in Egypt.  God sends many plagues, and yet Pharaoh does not repent.  It also reminds me that the book of Revelation was written during a time of great persecution, and was written for a people who were being persecuted.) (Although I do think Christians have some challenges in the United States, as there are more people who do are hostile to the church or just apathetic, I define persecution in times of imprisonment, abuse and being killed for being confessing faith.) We are nearing the end of the Book of Revelation, and I can't say that I'm unhappy about that.  It's hard to read, for a number of reasons:  1)  the symbolism, some of which is pretty easy to follow, some of which is impossible to discer...

In Chapter 10, the scene shifts to heaven again, and the most awesome angel imaginable appears on the scene.  John is not allowed to record what he hears from the roaring of the voice of the angel.  And he orders John to eat the scroll, and he finds it both bitter and sweet, like the Word of God contains both promises and commands, both comfort and judgment. This section of scripture is filled with strange and fearsome images.  We're no longer talking about famines and wars and plagues, but both worship and wars in heaven.  There are beasts and dragons.  So it's obvious that all of this is symbolic, not literal.  What are these visions about? In Chapter eleven a temple is being measured, and there are prophets.  Many people think this refers to the literal rebuilding of the temple.  other believe the the measuring and rebuilding of the temple refers to the growth of the church, until the end of the age.  Prophets will come who will testif...

In chapter seven, we switch, and again we see visions of heaven.  There are the 144,000 (okay, this is not a literal number, but it is 12 X 12 X 1000, which is a way of saying the fullness of those who will be saved -- and remember that 12 is the number of the tribes of Israel and of the disciples). And again, there is worshipping.  Especially the people who are worshipping are those who have come through persecution. Chapter seven closes with a promise:  "He will wipe away every tear from their eyes." (Remember this.) But back on earth, the seventh seal is broken, and things begin to happen that no one prays for and no one hopes will happen.  Seven trumpets are ready to be blown and each will unleash a new plague on the earth.  The first four plages have to do with things that will happen in creation, and the last three will be plagues on the people.  And incredibly, the plagues do have something to do with the incense, the prayers of the saints. ...

So, in Revelation, chapter 4, we start getting into the nitty-gritty of John's vision.  (One of my friends says that she's not sure what John was smoking, and yes, what he sees is strange, but...) Please note that the vision begins in heaven, not earth.  When we think of the book of Revelation and its visions of destruction, it's important to remember that there are other, alternating visions as well:  visions of worship, visions of the throne of the Lamb.  Those visions are just as important as the other ones (perhaps more so). So the scene opens with the throne of God (and seven of all sorts of things again).  If you can close your eyes and imagine, it's not only strange, but awesome, with a rainbow like an emerald, and a sea of glass.  There are creatures worshipping around the throne, and they are singing "Holy, Holy, Holy" (sound familiar?).  Many of our hymns come from the book of Revelation. In chapter 5 there is a scroll to be opened, and n...

The Book of Revelation (notice the singular) elicits strong reactions -- some people are absolutely fascinated by this book:  its strangeness, the visions and the violence.  Maybe it's the fact that it seems like a code they have to crack is what hooks them; perhaps it's the idea that this book holds keys (sort of like Nostradamus) to the end of the world There are others that think that it's the last book of of the Bible for a reason.  It is the last book they are interested in reading.  A few years ago when I offered a course in Revelation to our adult forum during the adult study, a few extra people showed up, just because it was the Revelation.  But one of our Bible presenters, a retired pastor and great theologian, asked me, "Why are we studying THAT?" Yet, here we are, and I hope that along the way we can clear up a few misconceptions about that book.  There are things to be decoded in it, and there are things that (contrary to what you may have h...

Today we're just getting 3 short letters:  two by "John" one by "Jude."  The letters are so short, there aren't even chapters.  Just a few short verses in each one.  Both 2nd and 3rd John seem to be written to individuals, one to a noblewoman and her children, the other to Gaius.  I'm a little suspicious (might I say) about the noblewoman.  perhaps the reference is to a congregation, as often churches are referred to in the famine.  Just a thought. In both cases, the theme of loving one another continues in both of these short letters.  s well, the letter writer wants to warn of people who don't believe that Jesus really came "in the flesh."  She teachers of the time believe that Jesus  only "seemed" to be human, and therefore could not have really suffered or died, either. Third John also wants to commend on leader and criticize another. Both positive community habits (the habits of love) and warnings about false teachers and...

John's letter ends with these words:  Keep yourselves from idols. It's an intriguing way to end.  He hasn't said anything at all about idols in the letter, until this last sentence.  And there are those that say that John leaves the most important thing until last. What do you think? In the meantime, John continues to talk about love.  "Love one another, for love is of God.  Everyone who does not love does not know God, for God is love."  The letter writer makes the case that those who do not love their brother or sister (who they can see) cannot possibly love God, who they cannot see.  In fact, we love God BY loving our brothers and sisters. The letter writer also talks about testing spirits to see if they are from God.  The test is simple:  do the prophets confess that Jesus has come in the flesh or not?  If so, they are from God.  If not, they are not. The other thing I notice, reading this letter again and again, is th...

Love one another.  This is one of the themes of the first letter of John.  Perhaps it is the ONLY theme of this letter.  Whether or not the "John" of this letter is the same as the "John" of the gospel, some of the themes are the same:  Abide in me as I abide in you;  Love one another as I have loved you.  The gospel and the letters of John are members of the same community of faith.  Some scholars have named it:  "The community of the beloved disciple."  So it makes sense that Love is one of the over-arching themes of both the gospel and the epistles. This short letter says the same thing over and over, and in different ways.  Some of the most well-known scripture passages in the Bible are in 1st John.  Lutherans will recognize verses from the opening chapter as part of their confession of sin:  "If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us."  What does this have to do with "Love one anothe...

Chapter 19 should be the last chapter.  But it isn't.  Death should be the end of the story of Jesus.  But it isn't. When Jesus is crucified, John records three different words from the cross:  "Woman, here is your son.  Here is your mother."  (to his mother and the beloved disciple).  Then, "I Thirst."  And finally, 'It is finished."  What do you suppose these three words mean?  What is the significance?  Do these words remind of of other words of Jesus? One of the mysteries of the gospel of John is:  Who is the beloved disciple?  Most people believe that the beloved disciple is John himself.  A few have thought it might be Lazarus, his friend.  There are some who even think it might have been Judas.  What do you think? After Jesus' crucifixion, Joseph of Arimathea provides a tomb for Jesus' body.  And the stone is rolled in front of the tomb, and that should be the end of it. But it isn't. ...

"For God So Loved the World..." says John 3:16, but in John 17, when Jesus prays, I really get the feeling not of Jesus' love for the world, but the separation between the disciples and the world.  Jesus isn't praying for the world, but only of the disciples; he's not asking on behalf of the world, but only on behalf of his disciples. I'll be honest, there's something jarring about this, something that sounds exclusive and protective.  Perhaps these words come out of the true experience of persecution.  Jesus knows his disciples are going to be persecuted by (ahem) the world (even the world that he loves!), so he's praying for his disciples to endure. And, I'll be blunt, it sounds a little like Jesus doesn't mind if the rest of the world goes to hell, as long as his disciples are preserved all right.  But what about "God so loved the world?" Perhaps the word "World" has more than one meaning for John -- sometimes the w...

This is a large section of scripture (four chapters), and it is made up of Jesus' final teachings before his crucifixion.  He is with them in the upper room.  It is the night when he will share a meal with them for the last time.  But John does not spend any time on this meal.  Instead, he tells of something else Jesus did:  an object lesson. Jesus washes his disciples feet. Though we no longer wash feet as a matter of hospitality, it was a common occurrence in New Testament times.  A good host would provide his guests an opportunity to wash their feet when they entered his home.  (If you recall in Luke 7, Jesus chides Simon the Pharisee for not doing this.)  However, the host would NEVER wash feet himself.  He would send a servant to do that. So Peter's shock when Jesus himself washes their feet.  But this is the lesson, "Love one another as I have loved you."  And what kind of love does Jesus show?  Servant love. For ...

After Jesus heals the man born blind, he has an extended teaching where he calls himself both the Gate and the Good Shepherd.  He is the Good Shepherd who leads people out to good pasture and leads people in to the safe refuge.  This has probably become one of the most well-known images of Jesus from the scriptures, even though most of us urban people no longer have a clear idea about what shepherds do, or how they care for their sheep.  Still, the metaphor sticks.  In fact, clergy have often been regarded as "shepherds" too, of a sort:  the word "Pastor" means shepherd.  (In my first call in rural South Dakota, the people regularly said they thought of their pastor as their shepherd.) Jesus as shepherd calls his own by name -- but not just to gather them in.  He also leads them out.  But out where?  For what reason?  Where are Jesus and his sheep going? There are many places in John's gospel where he calls people by name.  In J...

In John chapter 7, Jesus goes to Jerusalem (again), although notice he tries to go secretly.  Even now, he realizes that he is not safe in Jerusalem.  As in the other gospels, when he teaches, he's accused of having a demon.  His answer is slightly different:  he simply says that he only teaches what he hears fro the Father, and he only does what he is told by the Father.  As Jesus teaches, people are divided.  Some are in awe of him, and others are angry and already want to get rid of him. Chapter 7 has that wonderful verse, "Rivers of living waters will flow out from within him (Jesus.)"  Jesus cites this as a prophecy about himself, and about the Spirit. You notice that the very familiar story of the woman caught in adultery is not considered by some to be authentic.  But there are so many wonderful details in the story:  Jesus writing in the sand, the men ready to throw stones.  What do you think Jesus could have been writing? ...

The story of the Samaritan woman takes up most of John chapter 4, except a brief digression after Jesus leaves the village, but before we hear the results of the woman's evangelism (she is very successful; we could take lessons from her).  The digression has to do with the disciples trying to get Jesus to eat something, and Jesus telling them that he has food they don't know about.  (This is John's Gospel, and we KNOW that he doesn't literally mean bread; it's spiritual food; it's a METAPHOR.)  As well (and it almost seems tacked on_ there's the story about the healing of the royal official's son at the very end of chapter 4.  It is Jesus' second sign (count the signs in John; he calls them signs instead of miracles) and the idea is that the moment Jesus said the son was healed, he was healed, even though Jesus was far away at the time.  But Jesus is the Word, and when the word is spoken, healing happens. Chapter 5 includes the healing at the pool ...

I have to like the version of the New Testament I'm reading right now (Common English Bible), if only because this first section of John is written as if it were a poem -- which, of course, it is.  It's not a miracle story, it's not a parable, it's not a genealogy, it's a poem, and it's meant to evoke the first chapter of Genesis (in the beginning, God created the heavens...) which, truth be told, has some poetic qualities itself.  If not poetic, at least some liturgical qualities.  "In the beginning was the Word, and the word was with God, and the Word was God."  How this can be words cannot fully express, but John tries to share the beauty of the eternal One who walked with us, lived with us, suffered and died... in these few opening words. He then opens up his stories about Jesus' ministry, beginning (of course) with John the Baptist, but telling it at a slightly different angle.  Jesus being baptized is mostly a parenthesis (yes, it did happe...