The Vineyard Church Online Bible Study

2006-03-24T08:50:00.000-08:00

The Bible and the Kingdom of God

Week 6: The Final Act-- the Kingdom and the Second Coming

Last week we saw how God judged sin on the cross, making forgiveness available to all who believe and thus taking away Satan’s greatest weapon (disarming the strongman), and through the resurrection of Christ by the Holy Spirit, he conquered the power of death (the result of sin), making new life and relationship with God available to the believer through the same Spirit. We also saw how Jesus entrusted his Church to carry out his ministry of proclaiming the good news accompanied with good deeds and acts of the Spirit’s power, thus bringing more and more of humanity into relationship with God through Christ and so under his kingdom rule. The kingdom of God is here, yet not in the exclusive sense, since wherever people are under the influence of sin, Satan’s power still lingers. So there remains a final mopping up campaign, as we shall see….

The Second Coming of Christ:

In his first coming the Son of Man (Messiah) came “disguised” (so to speak) as a humble servant (“A bruised reed he will not break and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out…” --Isaiah 42. Remember?) There is a saying that the month of “March comes in like a lion and out like a lamb.” With Jesus it’s the opposite: he came first as a lamb (the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world) and will return as a lion (the Lion of the tribe of Judah). He came to defeat Satan and break the powers of sin, sickness and death. Having accomplished this, he will indeed come again—this time as Judge and King! There will be a final great rebellion by the enemies of God (so desperate and deluded, they actually think they will defeat him). Christ will destroy Satan and all his works, and after having crushed all rebellion and judged mankind, separating the righteous from the wicked, he will at last turn the kingdom over to his Father.

I saw heaven standing open and there before me was a white horse, whose rider is called Faithful and True. With justice he judges and makes war. His eyes are like blazing fire, and on his head are many crowns. He has a name written on him that no one knows but he himself. He is dressed in a robe dipped in blood, and his name is the Word of God. The armies of heaven were following him, riding on white horses and dressed in fine linen, white and clean. Out of his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations. "He will rule them with an iron scepter." He treads the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God Almighty. On his robe and on his thigh he has this name written: KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS.
And I saw an angel standing in the sun, who cried in a loud voice to all the birds flying in midair, "Come, gather together for the great supper of God, so that you may eat the flesh of kings, generals, and mighty men, of horses and their riders, and the flesh of all people, free and slave, small and great."
Then I saw the beast and the kings of the earth and their armies gathered together to make war against the rider on the horse and his army. But the beast was captured, and with him the false prophet who had performed the miraculous signs on his behalf. With these signs he had deluded those who had received the mark of the beast and worshiped his image. The two of them were thrown alive into the fiery lake of burning sulfur. The rest of them were killed with the sword that came out of the mouth of the rider on the horse, and all the brids gorged themselves on their flesh.
(Revelation 19:11-21)

Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. Earth and sky fled from his presence, and there was no place for them. And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books. The sea gave up the dead that were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead that were in them, and each person was judged according to what he had done. Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. The lake of fire is the second death. If anyone's name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.
(Revelation 20:11-15)

But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. For since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead comes also through a man. For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive. But each in his own turn: Christ, the firstfruits; then, when he comes, those who belong to him. Then the end will come, when he hands over the kingdom to God the Father after he has destroyed all dominion, authority and power. For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. The last enemy to be destroyed is death. For he "has put everything under his feet." Now when it says that "everything" has been put under him, it is clear that this does not include God himself, who put everything under Christ. When he has done this, then the Son himself will be made subject to him who put everything under him, so that God may be all in all.
(1Corinthians 15:20-28)

New Heavens, New Earth

Having thus cleared the stage of all opposition, God will fulfill his promise of renewing creation—a heavenly city where his people will dwell in safety, joy and peace, and where he will be worshiped eternally.

Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, "Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away."
He who was seated on the throne said, "I am making everything new!" Then he said, "Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true."
He said to me: "It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. To him who is thirsty I will give to drink without cost from the spring of the water of life. He who overcomes will inherit all this, and I will be his God and he will be my son. But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars—their place will be in the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death."
One of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues came and said to me, "Come, I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb." And he carried me away in the Spirit to a mountain great and high, and showed me the Holy City, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God. It shone with the glory of God, and its brilliance was like that of a very precious jewel, like a jasper, clear as crystal. It had a great, high wall with twelve gates, and with twelve angels at the gates. On the gates were written the names of the twelve tribes of Israel. There were three gates on the east, three on the north, three on the south and three on the west. The wall of the city had twelve foundations, and on them were the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.
The angel who talked with me had a measuring rod of gold to measure the city, its gates and its walls. The city was laid out like a square, as long as it was wide. He measured the city with the rod and found it to be 12,000 stadia in length, and as wide and high as it is long. He measured its wall and it was 144 cubits thick, by man's measurement, which the angel was using. The wall was made of jasper, and the city of pure gold, as pure as glass. The foundations of the city walls were decorated with every kind of precious stone. The first foundation was jasper, the second sapphire, the third chalcedony, the fourth emerald, the fifth sardonyx, the sixth carnelian, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth chrysoprase, the eleventh jacinth, and the twelfth amethyst. The twelve gates were twelve pearls, each gate made of a single pearl. The great street of the city was of pure gold, like transparent glass.
I did not see a temple in the city, because the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple. The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and the Lamb is its lamp. The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their splendor into it. On no day will its gates ever be shut, for there will be no night there. The glory and honor of the nations will be brought into it. Nothing impure will ever enter it, nor will anyone who does what is shameful or deceitful, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb's book of life.
Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb down the middle of the great street of the city. On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations. No longer will there be any curse. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and his servants will serve him. They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. There will be no more night. They will not need the light of a lamp or the light of the sun, for the Lord God will give them light. And they will reign for ever and ever.
(Revelation 21:1-22:5)

And they all lived happily every after!

Questions to Consider:

1. Why do you think Jesus has to come a second time? Why didn't he just take care of everything the first time? (Consider: what would have become of us and the rest of humankind if he had come to judge the world the first time?)

2. Why do you think it is so important for God to give us new bodies at the Final Resurrection? Why couldn't we just be disembodied spirits floating around with wings?

3. How have you seen the clash between the two kingdoms in your life this past week? How has it manifested itself? What will be different when Jesus returns?

2006-03-24T08:18:00.000-08:00

The Bible and the Kingdom of God

Week 5: The Kingdom Already & Not Yet

Last week we began to see how in Jesus’ first coming all signs of God’s promised rule were present: forgiveness, healings, people delivered from demons or raised from the dead. All these testified that Satan’s kingdom was crumbling. God’s Kingdom had landed, and in power, bringing victory over sin, sickness and death. Yet we also saw that, though doomed to ultimate annihilation, the enemy’s power is still active, so that there are now in fact two kingdoms in conflict: one growing in strength, one struggling desperately to hang on.

The Cross: Sin Is Judged

On the Cross God poured out his wrath on a sinful mankind. The darkness and earthquake that accompanied Jesus’ death were signs of God’s wrath—remember the Day of the Lord? Yet the Son experienced it in our place. Does this mean that we will not be judged?

From the sixth hour until the ninth hour darkness came over all the land. About the ninth hour Jesus cried out in a loud voice, "Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?"—which means, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" When some of those standing there heard this, they said, "He's calling Elijah."
Immediately one of them ran and got a sponge. He filled it with wine vinegar, put it on a stick, and offered it to Jesus to drink. The rest said, "Now leave him alone. Let's see if Elijah comes to save him."
And when Jesus had cried out again in a loud voice, he gave up his spirit.
At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. The earth shook and the rocks split. The tombs broke open and the bodies of many holy people who had died were raised to life. They came out of the tombs, and after Jesus' resurrection they went into the holy city and appeared to many people.
(Matthew 27:45-53)

Jesus’ receiving our punishment means that our sin has been judged-- tried, convicted and sentenced carried out. The sin barrier between God and humanity has been torn down, allowing free access to relationship with God through Jesus. There will indeed be a final Judgment of God. If we are in Christ, however, our old sinful nature has died with him, so that this day will be for us one of glorious deliverance and vindication and not one of fear and woe. Our eternal destiny has been decided.

The Resurrection: New Life

Jesus’ rising again from the dead was the first of many (i.e., a forerunner to our own bodily resurrection at the last day). When he rose from the dead by the power of the Holy Spirit, it was with the same kind of spiritual body that we will have one day—just as he took on our mortal flesh when he became a man. In rising, because death could not hold him, he gained victory for humanity over death. This new life by the Spirit has been imparted to us, who were once spiritually dead. We are new creatures! Yet we still await the final resurrection (i.e., of our bodies). As the apostle Paul puts it, the Holy Spirit that we receive now as believers is a down payment on this ultimate, glorious promise, with the balance to follow.

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!
(2Cor 5:17)

Now it is God who has made us for this very purpose and has given us the Spirit as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come.
(2Cor 5:5)

I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us. The creation waits in eager expectation for the sons of God to be revealed. For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the glorious freedom of the children of God.
We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what he already has? But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently.
(Romans 8:18-25)

"I tell you the truth, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has crossed over from death to life. I tell you the truth, a time is coming and has now come when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God and those who hear will live. For as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son to have life in himself. And he has given him authority to judge because he is the Son of Man.
(John 5:24-27)

The Growth of the Kingdom:

In his parables Jesus demonstrates that while the Kingdom of God is indeed here in power, it has come in seed form. Though unnoticeably small and hidden, a seed is a living thing with great potential—think how many enormous things grow from tiny seedlings! God’s seed is his Word, the good news of Jesus Christ, which he plants in the soil of the human heart.

Jesus told them another parable: "The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field. But while everyone was sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and went away. When the wheat sprouted and formed heads, then the weeds also appeared.
"The owner's servants came to him and said, 'Sir, didn't you sow good seed in your field? Where then did the weeds come from?'
" 'An enemy did this,' he replied. "The servants asked him, 'Do you want us to go and pull them up?'
" 'No,' he answered, 'because while you are pulling the weeds, you may root up the wheat with them. Let both grow together until the harvest. At that time I will tell the harvesters: First collect the weeds and tie them in bundles to be burned; then gather the wheat and bring it into my barn.' "
He told them another parable: "The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. Though it is the smallest of all your seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and perch in its branches."
He told them still another parable: "The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed into a large amount of flour until it worked all through the dough."
(Matthew 13:24-33)

It’s All in Jesus:

God’s kingdom and its benefits in our lives do not come to us in a separate package. It’s all available to us in and through a person: Jesus! He is our pipeline to God’s kingdom—through relationship with him. The kingdom of God came through his presence. It is because of his presence that the Not Yet has also become the Already. And so his presence within believers (his church) makes the kingdom a present reality today.

And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life.
(1John 5:11-12)

Our task as his church is to continue his work—to bring all men, women and children into relationship with the Son of Man.

In my former book, Theophilus, I wrote about all that Jesus began to do and to teach until the day he was taken up to heaven, after giving instructions through the Holy Spirit to the apostles he had chosen. After his suffering, he showed himself to these men and gave many convincing proofs that he was alive. He appeared to them over a period of forty days and spoke about the kingdom of God. On one occasion, while he was eating with them, he gave them this command: "Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about. For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit."
So when they met together, they asked him, "Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?"
He said to them: "It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth."
After he said this, he was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid him from their sight.
They were looking intently up into the sky as he was going, when suddenly two men dressed in white stood beside them. "Men of Galilee," they said, "why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven."
(Acts 1:1-11)

The signs of the kingdom (healings, deliverance from demons, miracles, etc.) are to accompany our ministry, just as they accompanied Jesus'. They testify that God's kingdom has indeed come in power and in and through the person of Jesus Christ.

Because God's and Satan's kingdoms are in conflict, we do not always see people healed. We must await the final consumation, when Satan is destroyed and God's kingdom alone fills the earth.

Questions to Consider:

1. What role did Jesus' crucifixion play in the reassertion of God's Kingdom? What did it accomplish?

2. Jesus' resurrection is called the "firstfruits." What does this mean and why is it significant for faith?

3. What is our task as Christians as we await his return?

4. Why do we not always see people get healed when we pray?

2006-03-23T13:39:00.000-08:00

The Bible and the Kingdom of God

Week 4: Jesus and the In-breaking of the Kingdom

Last week we highlighted what the Old Testament prophets said about the Kingdom of God: that when God came to rule, he would bring…

1. A new covenant—written not on stone tablets but on the hearts of God’s people; sins would be forgiven, thus reopening unhindered relationship with the Lord.

2. Judgment both on his people and his enemies (the nations)—at the Last Judgment the dead would be raised, the righteous vindicated and the wicked condemned.

3. A new creation and harmony in nature

4. The absence of sadness and suffering

5. The direct rule of God

6. And all this would be ushered in by the Lord’s Anointed, the One who is both the Son of God and Son of Man, the divine end-time figure who would be given authority over all creation.

The Kingdom Comes in Power:

God created us to be healthy and whole and in right relationship with himself and one another. Since this is his will, his kingdom rule naturally reflects this. Jesus went about announcing the kingdom's arrival and urging people to repent and believe. Repentance (turning away from sin and back to God) and faith (putting our trust in Christ) are the doorway into God's kingdom.

At that time Jesus came from Nazareth in Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. As Jesus was coming up out of the water, he saw heaven being torn open and the Spirit descending on him like a dove. And a voice came from heaven: "You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased."
At once the Spirit sent him out into the desert, and he was in the desert forty days, being tempted by Satan. He was with the wild animals, and angels attended him.
The Calling of the First Disciples
After John was put in prison, Jesus went into Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God. "The time has come," he said. "The kingdom of God is near. Repent and believe the good news!"
(Mark 1:9-15)

John's disciples told him about all these things. Calling two of them, he sent them to the Lord to ask, "Are you the one who was to come, or should we expect someone else?"
When the men came to Jesus, they said, "John the Baptist sent us to you to ask, 'Are you the one who was to come, or should we expect someone else?' "
At that very time Jesus cured many who had diseases, sicknesses and evil spirits, and gave sight to many who were blind. So he replied to the messengers, "Go back and report to John what you have seen and heard: The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is preached to the poor. Blessed is the man who does not fall away on account of me."
(Luke 7:18-23)

Healing, Satan & Sin:

Over the past three weeks we’ve see how, because of humanity’s sin, Satan had taken the world captive into his own kingdom of depravity, sickness and death, until someone could pay the ransom, bind the strongman Satan and open the doors to let the captives go free. Before this deliverance could happen, however, the sin question had to be settled.

A few days later, when Jesus again entered Capernaum, the people heard that he had come home. So many gathered that there was no room left, not even outside the door, and he preached the word to them. Some men came, bringing to him a paralytic, carried by four of them. Since they could not get him to Jesus because of the crowd, they made an opening in the roof above Jesus and, after digging through it, lowered the mat the paralyzed man was lying on. When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, "Son, your sins are forgiven."
Now some teachers of the law were sitting there, thinking to themselves, "Why does this fellow talk like that? He's blaspheming! Who can forgive sins but God alone?"
Immediately Jesus knew in his spirit that this was what they were thinking in their hearts, and he said to them, "Why are you thinking these things? Which is easier: to say to the paralytic, 'Your sins are forgiven,' or to say, 'Get up, take your mat and walk'? But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins . . . ." He said to the paralytic, "I tell you, get up, take your mat and go home." He got up, took his mat and walked out in full view of them all. This amazed everyone and they praised God, saying, "We have never seen anything like this!"
(Mark 2:1-12)

They went to Capernaum, and when the Sabbath came, Jesus went into the synagogue and began to teach. The people were amazed at his teaching, because he taught them as one who had authority, not as the teachers of the law. Just then a man in their synagogue who was possessed by an evil spirit cried out, "What do you want with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are—the Holy One of God!"
"Be quiet!" said Jesus sternly. "Come out of him!" The evil spirit shook the man violently and came out of him with a shriek.
The people were all so amazed that they asked each other, "What is this? A new teaching—and with authority! He even gives orders to evil spirits and they obey him." News about him spread quickly over the whole region of Galilee
(Mark 1:21-28)

Jesus & the Resurrection:

In the prophecy of Daniel, at the Last Judgment the dead would be raised, the righteous rewarded with eternal life and the wicked damned to eternal torment. This would be the climax of the coming of God’s rule—before the creation could be recreated, he has to square accounts with humankind.

“…For he has set a day when he will judge the world with justice by the man he has appointed. He has given proof of this to all men by raising him from the dead."
(Acts 17:31)

On his arrival, Jesus found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb for four days. Bethany was less than two miles from Jerusalem, and many Jews had come to Martha and Mary to comfort them in the loss of their brother. When Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went out to meet him, but Mary stayed at home.
"Lord," Martha said to Jesus, "if you had been here, my brother would not have died. But I know that even now God will give you whatever you ask."
Jesus said to her, "Your brother will rise again."
Martha answered, "I know he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day."
Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?"
"Yes, Lord," she told him, "I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who was to come into the world."
(John 11:17-27)

“All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never drive away. For I have come down from heaven not to do my will but to do the will of him who sent me. And this is the will of him who sent me, that I shall lose none of all that he has given me, but raise them up at the last day. For my Father's will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day."
(John 6:37-40)

But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. For since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead comes also through a man. For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive. But each in his own turn: Christ, the firstfruits; then, when he comes, those who belong to him. Then the end will come, when he hands over the kingdom to God the Father after he has destroyed all dominion, authority and power. For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. The last enemy to be destroyed is death. For he "has put everything under his feet." Now when it says that "everything" has been put under him, it is clear that this does not include God himself, who put everything under Christ. When he has done this, then the Son himself will be made subject to him who put everything under him, so that God may be all in all…. Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed— in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed.
(1Cor 15:20-28; 51-52)

God is just: He will pay back trouble to those who trouble you and give relief to you who are troubled, and to us as well. This will happen when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven in blazing fire with his powerful angels. He will punish those who do not know God and do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. They will be punished with everlasting destruction and shut out from the presence of the Lord and from the majesty of his power on the day he comes to be glorified in his holy people and to be marveled at among all those who have believed. This includes you, because you believed our testimony to you.
(2Thess 1:6-10)

Brothers, we do not want you to be ignorant about those who fall asleep, or to grieve like the rest of men, who have no hope. We believe that Jesus died and rose again and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him. According to the Lord's own word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left till the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. Therefore encourage each other with these words.
Now, brothers, about times and dates we do not need to write to you, for you know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. While people are saying, "Peace and safety," destruction will come on them suddenly, as labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape.
(1Thess 4:13-5:3)

Questions to Consider:

1. In what ways did the Kingdom of God manifest itself in the the ministry of Jesus?

2. What role does the forgiveness of sin play in the reassertion of God's Kingdom?

3. What is the Resurrection from the dead? What role will Jesus have in that end-time event? Why is that significant for faith?

2006-03-23T13:16:00.000-08:00

The Bible and the Kingdom of God

Week 3: The Prophetic Announcement of the Kingdom

Last week we ended with the golden age of the Israelite monarchy under David and his son Solomon (c. 1000-900 BC). These kings were wholly devoted to the Lord (for the most part), and in response God blessed them materially and militarily. Under Solomon the first temple was built (it was magnificent), and the physical limits of the Israelite kingdom reached their greatest extent. This golden age was short lived, however, for immediately upon Solomon’s death Israel split into two nations: Israel (Northern Kingdom) and Judah (Southern Kingdom). The division was a judgment upon the house of David for its increasing tolerance of idolatry. Israel chose its own kings and created its own form of worship (blended with paganism), while Judah continued with the Davidic dynasty and temple worship for the next 500 years.

Firmly entrenched idolatry insured that the kings of Israel were mostly wicked, and the nation grew quickly to resemble the pagan peoples around them. God sent them prophets to warn and chastise them (e.g., Elijah, Elisha, Hosea, Amos), but they would not listen. He finally pulled the plug on them in 722 BC, using the Assyrian empire as his instrument of judgment. Thereafter, Israel ceased to exist as a nation. In the south, morally and religiously, Judah was frequently little better than her northern cousin, but the presence of the temple in Jerusalem, the occasional good king, and God’s promise to David of an everlasting dynasty, saved her from Israel’s fate, until 586 BC, when the Lord could stand it no more. The Babylonians attacked, completely destroyed the temple and deported Judah’s king and people. This exile (which lasted 70 years) was a devastating reminder that the enjoyment of God’s blessing was not guaranteed but depended upon obedience to his laws (remember the fine print of the contract?).

The Lord allowed a remnant of his people to return, but a broken Judah never regained its independence as a nation (except for a hundred year period in the 2nd-1st centuries BC under the Maccabean dynasty). So what became of the Lord’s promise to David? His promise to make the Jews a light to the nations? As the centuries progressed and Judah experienced one moral and political failure after another, the prophets made it clearer that the full blessings of the kingdom would come about not under a mere mortal king, but supernaturally through the direct intervention of God, as at the time of the exodus from Egypt. There would have to be a radical break with the corrupting influences of this world ruled by sin, sickness and Satan. What was this new kingdom to be like? It would be characterized by…

1. A new covenant with God

"This is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after that time," declares the LORD. "I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people. No longer will a man teach his neighbor, or a man his brother, saying, 'Know the LORD,' because they will all know me, from the least of them to the greatest," declares the LORD. "For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more."
(Jeremiah 31:33-34)

2. The judgment of God, deliverance for his people and a day of wrath upon his enemies

"See, I will send my messenger, who will prepare the way before me. Then suddenly the Lord you are seeking will come to his temple; the messenger of the covenant, whom you desire, will come," says the LORD Almighty. But who can endure the day of his coming? Who can stand when he appears? For he will be like a refiner's fire or a launderer's soap. He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver; he will purify the Levites and refine them like gold and silver. Then the LORD will have men who will bring offerings in righteousness, and the offerings of Judah and Jerusalem will be acceptable to the LORD, as in days gone by, as in former years. "So I will come near to you for judgment. I will be quick to testify against sorcerers, adulterers and perjurers, against those who defraud laborers of their wages, who oppress the widows and the fatherless, and deprive aliens of justice, but do not fear me," says the LORD Almighty.
(Malachi 3:1-5)

"A day of the LORD is coming when your plunder will be divided among you. I will gather all the nations to Jerusalem to fight against it; the city will be captured, the houses ransacked, and the women raped. Half of the city will go into exile, but the rest of the people will not be taken from the city. Then the LORD will go out and fight against those nations, as he fights in the day of battle. On that day his feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, east of Jerusalem, and the Mount of Olives will be split in two from east to west, forming a great valley, with half of the mountain moving north and half moving south. You will flee by my mountain valley, for it will extend to Azel. You will flee as you fled from the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah. Then the LORD my God will come, and all the holy ones with him. On that day there will be no light, no cold or frost. It will be a unique day, without daytime or nighttime—a day known to the LORD. When evening comes, there will be light. On that day living water will flow out from Jerusalem, half to the eastern sea and half to the western sea, in summer and in winter. The LORD will be king over the whole earth. On that day there will be one LORD, and his name the only name.”
(Zechariah 14:1-9)

3. A new creation, a renewed peace and harmony in nature and between man and nature

"The desert and the parched land will be glad; the wilderness will rejoice and blossom.
Like the crocus, it will burst into bloom; it will rejoice greatly and shout for joy.
The glory of Lebanon will be given to it, the splendor of Carmel and Sharon;
they will see the glory of the LORD, the splendor of our God.
Strengthen the feeble hands, steady the knees that give way;
say to those with fearful hearts, "Be strong, do not fear;
your God will come, he will come with vengeance;
with divine retribution, he will come to save you."
Then will the eyes of the blind be opened and the ears of the deaf unstopped.
Then will the lame leap like a deer, and the mute tongue shout for joy.
Water will gush forth in the wilderness and streams in the desert.
The burning sand will become a pool, the thirsty ground bubbling springs.
In the haunts where jackals once lay, grass and reeds and papyrus will grow.
And a highway will be there; it will be called the Way of Holiness.
The unclean will not journey on it; it will be for those who walk in that Way;
wicked fools will not go about on it. No lion will be there,
nor will any ferocious beast get up on it; they will not be found there.
But only the redeemed will walk there, and the ransomed of the LORD will return.
They will enter Zion with singing; everlasting joy will crown their heads.
Gladness and joy will overtake them, and sorrow and sighing will flee away.
(Isaiah 35:1-10)

"Behold, I will create new heavens and a new earth.
The former things will not be remembered, nor will they come to mind.
But be glad and rejoice forever in what I will create,
for I will create Jerusalem to be a delight and its people a joy.
I will rejoice over Jerusalem and take delight in my people;
the sound of weeping and of crying will be heard in it no more.
"Never again will there be in it an infant who lives but a few days,
or an old man who does not live out his years;
he who dies at a hundred will be thought a mere youth;
he who fails to reach a hundred will be considered accursed.
They will build houses and dwell in them; they will plant vineyards and eat their fruit.
No longer will they build houses and others live in them, or plant and others eat.
For as the days of a tree, so will be the days of my people;
my chosen ones will long enjoy the works of their hands.
They will not toil in vain or bear children doomed to misfortune;
for they will be a people blessed by the LORD, they and their descendants with them.
Before they call I will answer; while they are still speaking I will hear.
The wolf and the lamb will feed together, and the lion will eat straw like the ox,
but dust will be the serpent's food. They will neither harm nor destroy
on all my holy mountain," says the LORD.
(Isaiah 65:17-25)

4. Sadness, sickness and suffering would be gone for God’s people

"The Spirit of the Sovereign LORD is on me, because the LORD has anointed me to preach good news to the poor.
He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives
and release from darkness for the prisoners,
to proclaim the year of the LORD's favor and the day of vengeance of our God,
to comfort all who mourn, and provide for those who grieve in Zion—
to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes,
the oil of gladness instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair.
They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the LORD for the display of his splendor.
They will rebuild the ancient ruins and restore the places long devastated;
they will renew the ruined cities that have been devastated for generations.
Aliens will shepherd your flocks; foreigners will work your fields and vineyards.
And you will be called priests of the LORD, you will be named ministers of our God.
You will feed on the wealth of nations, and in their riches you will boast.
Instead of their shame my people will receive a double portion,
and instead of disgrace they will rejoice in their inheritance;
and so they will inherit a double portion in their land, and everlasting joy will be theirs.
"For I, the LORD, love justice; I hate robbery and iniquity.
In my faithfulness I will reward them and make an everlasting covenant with them.
Their descendants will be known among the nations and their offspring among the peoples.
All who see them will acknowledge that they are a people the LORD has blessed."
(Isaiah 61:1-9)

5. The Lord again would rule his people, but even more directly than before; he would be their light and sun

"Although you have been forsaken and hated, with no one traveling through,
I will make you the everlasting pride and the joy of all generations.
You will drink the milk of nations and be nursed at royal breasts.
Then you will know that I, the LORD, am your Savior, your Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob.
Instead of bronze I will bring you gold, and silver in place of iron.
Instead of wood I will bring you bronze, and iron in place of stones.
I will make peace your governor and righteousness your ruler.
No longer will violence be heard in your land, nor ruin or destruction within your borders,
but you will call your walls Salvation and your gates Praise.
The sun will no more be your light by day, nor will the brightness of the moon shine on you,
for the LORD will be your everlasting light, and your God will be your glory.
Your sun will never set again, and your moon will wane no more;
the LORD will be your everlasting light, and your days of sorrow will end.
Then will all your people be righteous and they will possess the land forever.
They are the shoot I have planted, the work of my hands, for the display of my splendor.
The least of you will become a thousand, the smallest a mighty nation.
I am the LORD; in its time I will do this swiftly."
(Isaiah 60:15-22)

6. This kingdom would be ushered in by the Anointed One of God, a King descended from David, but perfect in righteousness, wisdom, devotion to the Lord, power, humility and judgment—in short, the very offspring of God himself!

"Here is my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen one in whom I delight;
I will put my Spirit on him and he will bring justice to the nations.
He will not shout or cry out, or raise his voice in the streets.
A bruised reed he will not break, and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out.
In faithfulness he will bring forth justice; he will not falter or be discouraged
till he establishes justice on earth. In his law the islands will put their hope."
This is what God the LORD says—
he who created the heavens and stretched them out, who spread out the earth and all that comes out of it,
who gives breath to its people, and life to those who walk on it:
"I, the LORD, have called you in righteousness; I will take hold of your hand.
I will keep you and will make you to be a covenant for the people and a light for the Gentiles,
to open eyes that are blind, to free captives from prison
and to release from the dungeon those who sit in darkness.
(Isaiah 42:1-7)

"In my vision at night I looked, and there before me was one like a son of man, coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient of Days and was led into his presence. He was given authority, glory and sovereign power; all peoples, nations and men of every language worshiped him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and his kingdom is one that will never be destroyed.”
(Daniel 7:13-14)

Questions to Consider:

1. What was the source of Israel's continued moral failures? Why did their persistent sin result in such stern judgment?

2. In the midst of this judgment, how did the Lord's mercy manifest itself? Why do you think the Lord saved a remnant of his people to return from exile?

3. Why is the renewal of nature a central theme in the prophetic announcement of the Kingdom? What about sickness and suffering?

4. Why do you think the later prophecies about the kingdom put more and more emphasis on God's decisive intervention and the divine Son of Man as his agent?

2006-03-09T12:59:00.000-08:00

The Bible and the Kingdom of God

Week 2: The Kingdom in Israelite History

The LORD looked and was displeased that there was no justice.
He saw that there was no one, he was appalled that there was no one to intervene;
so his own arm worked salvation for him, and his own righteousness sustained him.
He put on righteousness as his breastplate, and the helmet of salvation on his head;
he put on the garments of vengeance and wrapped himself in zeal as in a cloak.
--Isaiah 59:15-17

Last week we ended with a passage from Isaiah 59, a dismal description of man’s total depravity and inability to break free from sin. Yet this passage ends with a note of hope: that God, seeing no one to intervene, decides to take the initiative himself. The story of God’s dealings with the nation of Israel is the story of God’s initiative in world history—sovereignly choosing an obscure people to rule as his own, through whom he would manifest his power and character, with the ultimate goal of bringing his rule to all nations.

The Covenant with Abraham & the Patriarchs:

Sometime around 1800 BC God appeared to a childless man named Abraham and freely promised him great things: 1) that his descendants would become a great nation; b) that they would inherit the whole land of Canaan (Palestine); c) that the Lord would be his God and that of his descendants; d) that all nations would be blessed through him; and e) that this covenant would last forever. Not a bad deal!

On several occasions during Abraham’s life, and those of Isaac & Jacob, his son and grandson, the Lord reaffirmed his promise in the form of a covenant, a contractual agreement common in Ancient Near Eastern culture. The term “make a covenant” literally means, “to cut an agreement,” referring to the accompanying sacrifice (or “cutting up”) of animals which sealed the deal. This was a sign that the eternal, all-powerful Lord of the universe was stooping to bind himself to a human-type of contract.

After this, the word of the LORD came to Abram in a vision: "Do not be afraid, Abram. I am your shield, your very great reward."
But Abram said, "O Sovereign LORD, what can you give me since I remain childless and the one who will inherit my estate is Eliezer of Damascus?" And Abram said, "You have given me no children; so a servant in my household will be my heir."
Then the word of the LORD came to him: "This man will not be your heir, but a son coming from your own body will be your heir." He took him outside and said, "Look up at the heavens and count the stars—if indeed you can count them." Then he said to him, "So shall your offspring be." Abram believed the LORD, and he credited it to him as righteousness.

He also said to him, "I am the LORD, who brought you out of Ur of the Chaldeans to give you this land to take possession of it."
But Abram said, "O Sovereign LORD, how can I know that I will gain possession of it?"
So the LORD said to him, "Bring me a heifer, a goat and a ram, each three years old, along with a dove and a young pigeon." Abram brought all these to him, cut them in two and arranged the halves opposite each other; the birds, however, he did not cut in half. Then birds of prey came down on the carcasses, but Abram drove them away. As the sun was setting, Abram fell into a deep sleep, and a thick and dreadful darkness came over him. Then the LORD said to him, "Know for certain that your descendants will be strangers in a country not their own, and they will be enslaved and mistreated four hundred years. But I will punish the nation they serve as slaves, and afterward they will come out with great possessions. You, however, will go to your fathers in peace and be buried at a good old age. In the fourth generation your descendants will come back here, for the sin of the Amorites has not yet reached its full measure."
When the sun had set and darkness had fallen, a smoking firepot with a blazing torch appeared and passed between the pieces. On that day the LORD made a covenant with Abram and said, "To your descendants I give this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the Euphrates--the land of the Kenites, Kenizzites, Kadmonites, Hittites, Perizzites, Rephaites, Amorites, Canaanites, Girgashites and Jebusites."
--Genesis 15

When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the LORD appeared to him and said, "I am God Almighty; walk before me and be blameless. I will confirm my covenant between me and you and will greatly increase your numbers."
Abram fell facedown, and God said to him, "As for me, this is my covenant with you: You will be the father of many nations. No longer will you be called Abram; your name will be Abraham, for I have made you a father of many nations. I will make you very fruitful; I will make nations of you, and kings will come from you. I will establish my covenant as an everlasting covenant between me and you and your descendants after you for the generations to come, to be your God and the God of your descendants after you. The whole land of Canaan, where you are now an alien, I will give as an everlasting possession to you and your descendants after you; and I will be their God."
Then God said to Abraham, "As for you, you must keep my covenant, you and your descendants after you for the generations to come. This is my covenant with you and your descendants after you, the covenant you are to keep: Every male among you shall be circumcised. You are to undergo circumcision, and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and you. For the generations to come every male among you who is eight days old must be circumcised, including those born in your household or bought with money from a foreigner—those who are not your offspring. Whether born in your household or bought with your money, they must be circumcised. My covenant in your flesh is to be an everlasting covenant. Any uncircumcised male, who has not been circumcised in the flesh, will be cut off from his people; he has broken my covenant."
God also said to Abraham, "As for Sarai your wife, you are no longer to call her Sarai; her name will be Sarah. I will bless her and will surely give you a son by her. I will bless her so that she will be the mother of nations; kings of peoples will come from her."
Abraham fell facedown; he laughed and said to himself, "Will a son be born to a man a hundred years old? Will Sarah bear a child at the age of ninety?" And Abraham said to God, "If only Ishmael might live under your blessing!"
Then God said, "Yes, but your wife Sarah will bear you a son, and you will call him Isaac. I will establish my covenant with him as an everlasting covenant for his descendants after him. And as for Ishmael, I have heard you: I will surely bless him; I will make him fruitful and will greatly increase his numbers. He will be the father of twelve rulers, and I will make him into a great nation. But my covenant I will establish with Isaac, whom Sarah will bear to you by this time next year." When he had finished speaking with Abraham, God went up from him.
On that very day Abraham took his son Ishmael and all those born in his household or bought with his money, every male in his household, and circumcised them, as God told him. Abraham was ninety-nine years old when he was circumcised, and his son Ishmael was thirteen; Abraham and his son Ishmael were both circumcised on that same day. And every male in Abraham's household, including those born in his household or bought from a foreigner, was circumcised with him.
--Genesis 17

The Exodus & The Covenant at Sinai:

Abraham and the other Patriarchs (Isaac, Jacob and his 12 sons) did not live to see the ultimate fulfillment of what God had promised them. In fact, God allowed their descendants to fall from favor in Egypt and become cruelly enslaved for 400 years. Just when things looked absolutely hopeless, he sent Moses to announce the time of deliverance. The powerful plagues inflicted on Egypt were God’s judgment on the oppressive arrogance and idolatry of the Egyptians. These as well as the climactic miracle at the Reed Sea demonstrated that he alone rules—over kings, armies, nations, nature, and every so-called “god,” and his will cannot be thwarted. God’s kingdom was on the move!

The Lord began leading his people toward the long-awaited promised land of Canaan, but before they entered, he made another covenant or contract with the whole nation at Mt. Sinai. This agreement resembles the “suzerainty treaties” common at the time. Such a treaty was an agreement made between a greater, more powerful nation and a smaller conquered nation, in which the smaller agreed to serve and cooperate with the greater in exchange for its protection and provision. Within this agreement there would be various curses and blessings (or fine print): if you obey, you’ll get X; if not, you’ll get Y.

" 'Do not make idols or set up an image or a sacred stone for yourselves, and do not place a carved stone in your land to bow down before it. I am the LORD your God.
" 'Observe my Sabbaths and have reverence for my sanctuary. I am the LORD.
" 'If you follow my decrees and are careful to obey my commands, I will send you rain in its season, and the ground will yield its crops and the trees of the field their fruit. Your threshing will continue until grape harvest and the grape harvest will continue until planting, and you will eat all the food you want and live in safety in your land.
" 'I will grant peace in the land, and you will lie down and no one will make you afraid. I will remove savage beasts from the land, and the sword will not pass through your country. You will pursue your enemies, and they will fall by the sword before you. Five of you will chase a hundred, and a hundred of you will chase ten thousand, and your enemies will fall by the sword before you.
" 'I will look on you with favor and make you fruitful and increase your numbers, and I will keep my covenant with you. You will still be eating last year's harvest when you will have to move it out to make room for the new. I will put my dwelling place among you, and I will not abhor you. I will walk among you and be your God, and you will be my people. I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of Egypt so that you would no longer be slaves to the Egyptians; I broke the bars of your yoke and enabled you to walk with heads held high.
" 'But if you will not listen to me and carry out all these commands, and if you reject my decrees and abhor my laws and fail to carry out all my commands and so violate my covenant, then I will do this to you: I will bring upon you sudden terror, wasting diseases and fever that will destroy your sight and drain away your life. You will plant seed in vain, because your enemies will eat it. I will set my face against you so that you will be defeated by your enemies; those who hate you will rule over you, and you will flee even when no one is pursuing you. '"
--Leviticus 26

It was within the context of the treaty (the Old Testament Law found in Exodus through Deuteronomy) that God freely bound himself to be Israel’s God and King (their Commander in Chief, Provider and Protector) in exchange for their exclusive worship and obedient service. God would rule his people directly, using prophets like Moses as his mouthpiece. This covenant was unique in human history. So God’s rule was established over an entire nation—at least legally, but the human heart is another matter, and so Israel’s obedience or disobedience would be the major theme in God-Israel relations for the next 1500 years.

Ask now about the former days, long before your time, from the day God created man on the earth; ask from one end of the heavens to the other. Has anything so great as this ever happened, or has anything like it ever been heard of? Has any other people heard the voice of God speaking out of fire, as you have, and lived? Has any god ever tried to take for himself one nation out of another nation, by testings, by miraculous signs and wonders, by war, by a mighty hand and an outstretched arm, or by great and awesome deeds, like all the things the LORD your God did for you in Egypt before your very eyes?
You were shown these things so that you might know that the LORD is God; besides him there is no other. From heaven he made you hear his voice to discipline you. On earth he showed you his great fire, and you heard his words from out of the fire. Because he loved your forefathers and chose their descendants after them, he brought you out of Egypt by his Presence and his great strength, to drive out before you nations greater and stronger than you and to bring you into their land to give it to you for your inheritance, as it is today.
Acknowledge and take to heart this day that the LORD is God in heaven above and on the earth below. There is no other. Keep his decrees and commands, which I am giving you today, so that it may go well with you and your children after you and that you may live long in the land the LORD your God gives you for all time.
--Deuteronomy 4:32-40

The Conquest of Canaan & Period of the Judges:

Upon entering the land the Israelites were to begin driving out the pagan inhabitants. As God’s holy people they were not to intermarry with these other nations or to tolerate and adopt their idolatrous practices (which religious practices included worship of numerous idols, ritual prostitution, rape and sodomy, and even human sacrifice). Israel was to be God’s instrument of judgment, to cleanse the land of these things. This was no “ethnic cleansing.” Israel was not ‘superior” by race. God was using them to assert his rule over the land—and this case, his rule meant judgment on sin. The bloodshed further served as a sobering reminder to God’s chosen people that idolatry brings death: the same fate would await them if they stubbornly persisted in worshiping idols.

Hear, O Israel. You are now about to cross the Jordan to go in and dispossess nations greater and stronger than you, with large cities that have walls up to the sky. The people are strong and tall—Anakites! You know about them and have heard it said: "Who can stand up against the Anakites?" But be assured today that the LORD your God is the one who goes across ahead of you like a devouring fire. He will destroy them; he will subdue them before you. And you will drive them out and annihilate them quickly, as the LORD has promised you.
After the LORD your God has driven them out before you, do not say to yourself, "The LORD has brought me here to take possession of this land because of my righteousness." No, it is on account of the wickedness of these nations that the LORD is going to drive them out before you. It is not because of your righteousness or your integrity that you are going in to take possession of their land; but on account of the wickedness of these nations, the LORD your God will drive them out before you, to accomplish what he swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Understand, then, that it is not because of your righteousness that the LORD your God is giving you this good land to possess, for you are a stiff-necked people.
--Deuteronomy 9:1-6

Throughout this military process, the Lord, as King and Commander in Chief, promised to go before them and defeat their enemies. But Israel did not fully obey, allowing some of these peoples to remain, their practices in turn becoming stumbling blocks to God’s people. But the Lord did not give up easily. With his people now infected with pagan idolatry, he allowed surrounding nations to attack and oppress them in order that they might turn back to him. When they cried out to the Lord, he raised up strong military leaders and prophets to deliver them (called “judges”). This was the pattern for the few centuries before the time of David (c. 1300-1000 BC).

The Israelite Monarchy:

Eventually, however, Israel grew tired of trusting the Lord and his prophets and asked for a hereditary monarchy. The Lord gave them what they craved. Yet as we shall see, this change was not outside God’s will—in fact, Israel played right into his hands.

When Samuel grew old, he appointed his sons as judges for Israel. The name of his firstborn was Joel and the name of his second was Abijah, and they served at Beersheba. But his sons did not walk in his ways. They turned aside after dishonest gain and accepted bribes and perverted justice.
So all the elders of Israel gathered together and came to Samuel at Ramah. They said to him, "You are old, and your sons do not walk in your ways; now appoint a king to lead us, such as all the other nations have."
But when they said, "Give us a king to lead us," this displeased Samuel; so he prayed to the LORD. And the LORD told him: "Listen to all that the people are saying to you; it is not you they have rejected, but they have rejected me as their king. As they have done from the day I brought them up out of Egypt until this day, forsaking me and serving other gods, so they are doing to you. Now listen to them; but warn them solemnly and let them know what the king who will reign over them will do."
Samuel told all the words of the LORD to the people who were asking him for a king. He said, "This is what the king who will reign over you will do: He will take your sons and make them serve with his chariots and horses, and they will run in front of his chariots. Some he will assign to be commanders of thousands and commanders of fifties, and others to plow his ground and reap his harvest, and still others to make weapons of war and equipment for his chariots. He will take your daughters to be perfumers and cooks and bakers. He will take the best of your fields and vineyards and olive groves and give them to his attendants. He will take a tenth of your grain and of your vintage and give it to his officials and attendants. Your menservants and maidservants and the best of your cattle and donkeys he will take for his own use. He will take a tenth of your flocks, and you yourselves will become his slaves. When that day comes, you will cry out for relief from the king you have chosen, and the LORD will not answer you in that day."
But the people refused to listen to Samuel. "No!" they said. "We want a king over us. Then we will be like all the other nations, with a king to lead us and to go out before us and fight our battles."
When Samuel heard all that the people said, he repeated it before the LORD. The LORD answered, "Listen to them and give them a king." Then Samuel said to the men of Israel, "Everyone go back to his town."
--1Samuel 8

This new kingship was a break from the past: instead of ruling through his servants the prophets and the occasional military hero, the Lord would rule from heaven through an earthly representative, his “anointed one.”

Why do the nations conspire and the peoples plot in vain?
The kings of the earth take their stand and the rulers gather together
against the LORD and against his Anointed One.
"Let us break their chains," they say, "and throw off their fetters."
The One enthroned in heaven laughs; the Lord scoffs at them.
Then he rebukes them in his anger and terrifies them in his wrath, saying,
"I have installed my King on Zion, my holy hill."
I will proclaim the decree of the LORD :
He said to me, "You are my Son; today I have become your Father.
Ask of me, and I will make the nations your inheritance,
the ends of the earth your possession.
You will rule them with an iron scepter; you will dash them to pieces like pottery."
Therefore, you kings, be wise; be warned, you rulers of the earth.
Serve the LORD with fear and rejoice with trembling.
Kiss the Son, lest he be angry and you be destroyed in your way,
for his wrath can flare up in a moment.
Blessed are all who take refuge in him.
--Psalm 2

The bright side is that a good king who feared and followed the Lord and reigned justly would bring blessing on his people. The dark side: an evil king would lead them into idolatry and destruction. David and his son Solomon were examples of the former. In Solomon’s reign, especially, we see the Israelite kingship at its zenith.

Endow the king with your justice, O God, the royal son with your righteousness.
He will judge your people in righteousness, your afflicted ones with justice.
The mountains will bring prosperity to the people, the hills the fruit of righteousness.
He will defend the afflicted among the people and save the children of the needy;
he will crush the oppressor.
He will endure as long as the sun, as long as the moon, through all generations.
He will be like rain falling on a mown field, like showers watering the earth.
In his days the righteous will flourish; prosperity will abound till the moon is no more.
He will rule from sea to sea and from the River to the ends of the earth.
The desert tribes will bow before him and his enemies will lick the dust.
The kings of Tarshish and of distant shores will bring tribute to him;
the kings of Sheba and Seba will present him gifts.
All kings will bow down to him and all nations will serve him.
For he will deliver the needy who cry out, the afflicted who have no one to help.
He will take pity on the weak and the needy and save the needy from death.
He will rescue them from oppression and violence, for precious is their blood in his sight.
Long may he live! May gold from Sheba be given him.
May people ever pray for him and bless him all day long.
Let grain abound throughout the land; on the tops of the hills may it sway.
Let its fruit flourish like Lebanon; let it thrive like the grass of the field.
May his name endure forever; may it continue as long as the sun.
All nations will be blessed through him, and they will call him blessed.
Praise be to the LORD God, the God of Israel, who alone does marvelous deeds.
Praise be to his glorious name forever; may the whole earth be filled with his glory.
Amen and Amen.
--Psalm 72

Questions to Consider:

1. Why do you suppose God chose an unknown and old man like Abraham and an obscure nation like Israel through which to manifest his kingdom?

2. What is a "covenant" and why do you think God used them to make promises to Israel? What did God promise to Israel on Mt. Sinai? What did he expect in return for these blessings?

3. How did God use the Old Testament law to bring his Kingdom? What did the Israelites fail to do that caused them centuries of trouble and temptation? How did God woo his people back?

4. Why did Israel ask God for a king? How was this a manifestation of their rejection of God's rule? How did God use the new monarchy to bring his kingdom anyway?

2006-03-07T09:25:00.000-08:00

The Bible and the Kingdom of God

In this 6-week overview of key passages of Scripture, we will trace the revelation of God’s Kingdom plan from the creation, through the history of Israel, and ultimately in the coming of his Son Jesus Christ. Understanding the nature of the Kingdom is an essential key that unlocks much of Scripture, and a necessary tool for the church as we approach ministering to others. In writing this, I gratefully acknowledge the influence of Derek Morphew.

Lesson 1: The Kingdom: Definitions & the Creation

“God’s rule is eternal and universal in the sense that he is, he was and he always will be the supreme ruler of all things. He rules the heavens, the angels, the planets, nature, history and all reality, yet we do not necessarily experience his rule in our lives. The coming of the kingdom involves God’s intervention in the course of human history. His power breaks into the affairs of men, confronting the forces that withstand him and imprison people, and interrupting the normal course of society.” —Derek Morphew, Breakthrough

"All our problems result from the fact that we've rejected the government of God." --Robert Mearns

Definitions:

When I was growing up in the church, the phrase Kingdom of God conjured images of medieval castles in the air. Although I don’t recall ever hearing any particular teaching on the subject, the assumption was that God’s Kingdom was in heaven, not on earth, so we would not experience it until we died.

The biblical reality is quite different, however-- even radical! The words for kingdom used in the Old and New Testaments—Hebrew malkut (mall-KUTH) and Greek basileia (bah-sil-LAY-yah)—indicate that the biblical idea of God’s kingdom is something more active and dynamic than static. In other words, his kingdom has more to do with the act of ruling than with a particular place in time or space. God’s kingdom is his right to rule, reign and have dominion over all creation, including nature and the lives and hearts of human beings.

The Creation:

As Creator of all things, God has the right to rule and receive honor as King.

The LORD has established his throne in heaven, and his kingdom rules over all.
Praise the LORD, you his angels, you mighty ones who do his bidding, who obey his word.
Praise the LORD, all his heavenly hosts, you his servants who do his will.
Praise the LORD, all his works everywhere in his dominion. Praise the LORD, O my soul.
--Psalm 103:19-22

For God is the King of all the earth; sing to him a psalm of praise.
God reigns over the nations; God is seated on his holy throne.
The nobles of the nations assemble as the people of the God of Abraham, for the kings of the earth belong to God; he is greatly exalted.
--Psalm 47:7-9

All you have made will praise you, O LORD; your saints will extol you.
They will tell of the glory of your kingdom and speak of your might,
so that all men may know of your mighty acts and the glorious splendor of your kingdom.
Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and your dominion endures through all generations. The LORD is faithful to all his promises and loving toward all he has made
--Psalm 145:10-13

God created human beings and set them up as his “vice-regents” or governors over what he created. We were created in his "image" to reflect his nature and character on earth (his goodness, wisdom, mercy, love, etc.) and we were given freedom to govern. Yet, we were to remain ultimately under his governmental authority (that is, we were to rule in the context of obedient relationship to him-- just as a U.S. ambassador to a foreign country is given authority to represent the President and needs to stay in touch with him so as to carry out his will).

O LORD, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth!
You have set your glory above the heavens.
From the lips of children and infants you have ordained praise
because of your enemies, to silence the foe and the avenger.
When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers,
the moon and the stars, which you have set in place,
What is man that you are mindful of him,
the son of man that you care for him?
You made him a little lower than the heavenly beings
and crowned him with glory and honor.
You made him ruler over the works of your hands;
you put everything under his feet:
All flocks and herds, and the beasts of the field,
The birds of the air, and the fish of the sea,
all that swim the paths of the seas.
O LORD, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth!
--Psalm 8

Then God said, "Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, and over all the creatures that move along the ground." So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. God blessed them and said to them, "Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air and over every living creature that moves on the ground." hen God said, "I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food. 30 And to all the beasts of the earth and all the birds of the air and all the creatures that move on the ground—everything that has the breath of life in it—I give every green plant for food." And it was so. God saw all that he had made, and it was very good. And there was evening, and there was morning—the sixth day.
--Genesis 1:26-31

The LORD God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it. And the LORD God commanded the man, "You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; 17 but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die."
--Genesis 2:15-17

Although we were created to have relationship with God and to glorify him by ruling the earth justly and wisely, human beings were also given free will. (After all, love is not love, nor is obedience obedience if one is not free to choose the alternative.) We fell from our position and became corrupt when, after being tempted by Satan, we rejected dependence on God’s rule and wisdom and tried to do things our own way (sin). Sin is disobedience to God’s will and failure to live up to his standards. Because God is not only loving and merciful, but also just and holy, sin brought judgment and death into the world and a disharmony in the created order.

Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the LORD God had made. He said to the woman, "Did God really say, 'You must not eat from any tree in the garden'?"
The woman said to the serpent, "We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, but God did say, 'You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.' "
"You will not surely die," the serpent said to the woman. "For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil."
When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves.
Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the LORD God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the LORD God among the trees of the garden. But the LORD God called to the man, "Where are you?"
He answered, "I heard you in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid."
And he said, "Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree that I commanded you not to eat from?"
The man said, "The woman you put here with me—she gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate it."
Then the LORD God said to the woman, "What is this you have done?" The woman said, "The serpent deceived me, and I ate."
So the LORD God said to the serpent, "Because you have done this, "Cursed are you above all the livestock and all the wild animals! You will crawl on your belly and you will eat dust all the days of your life.
And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel."
To the woman he said, "I will greatly increase your pains in childbearing; with pain you will give birth to children. Your desire will be for your husband, and he will rule over you."
To Adam he said, "Because you listened to your wife and ate from the tree about which I commanded you, 'You must not eat of it,' "Cursed is the ground because of you; through painful toil you will eat of it all the days of your life.
It will produce thorns and thistles for you, and you will eat the plants of the field.
By the sweat of your brow you will eat your food until you return to the ground, since from it you were taken; for dust you are and to dust you will return."
Adam named his wife Eve, because she would become the mother of all the living.
The LORD God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife and clothed them. And the LORD God said, "The man has now become like one of us, knowing good and evil. He must not be allowed to reach out his hand and take also from the tree of life and eat, and live forever." So the LORD God banished him from the Garden of Eden to work the ground from which he had been taken. After he drove the man out, he placed on the east side of the Garden of Eden cherubim and a flaming sword flashing back and forth to guard the way to the tree of life.
--Genesis 3

The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men who suppress the truth by their wickedness, since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse.
For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like mortal man and birds and animals and reptiles.
Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another. They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator—who is forever praised. Amen.
Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged natural relations for unnatural ones. In the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another. Men committed indecent acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their perversion.
Furthermore, since they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, he gave them over to a depraved mind, to do what ought not to be done. They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed and depravity. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit and malice. They are gossips, slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil; they disobey their parents; they are senseless, faithless, heartless, ruthless. Although they know God's righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice them.
--Romans 1:18-32

For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God . --Romans 3:23

We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way. --Isaiah 53:6

Sin brought human beings under bondage to Satan (God’s prosecuting attorney. The names Satan in Hebrew and diabolos in Greek both mean “adversary” or “accuser,” “one who opposes or accuses in a court of law”). Satan also became our jailer, taking us captive and setting up a rival kingdom of sin, corruption, lies, strife, disease, destruction and death. He became, in effect, the “prince” or overlord of this world—like a dictator who takes over a country and begins to oppress and terrorize its citizens, holding them captive to obey his will. In Mark 3:27 Jesus likens Satan to a strong man, a powerful and greedy tyrant with many possessions, whom no one can steal from unless they are strong enough to tie him up.

The great dragon was hurled down—that ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, who leads the whole world astray. He was hurled to the earth, and his angels with him.
--Revelation 12:9

For he [God] has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
--Colossians 1:13-14

And the teachers of the law who came down from Jerusalem said, "He is possessed by Beelzebub! By the prince of demons he is driving out demons."
So Jesus called them and spoke to them in parables: "How can Satan drive out Satan? If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. If a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand. And if Satan opposes himself and is divided, he cannot stand; his end has come. In fact, no one can enter a strong man's house and carry off his possessions unless he first ties up the strong man. Then he can rob his house.
--Mark 3:22-27

As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, 2in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient.
--Ephesians 2:1-2

We know that we are children of God, and that the whole world is under the control of the evil one.
--1John 5:19

Even in the presence of sin and rebellion, however, God remains our rightful King. He did not utterly abandon his sovereign rule. He remains faithful and compassionate toward all he has made. Although, because of our free choice not to be ruled by God, human sin and the devil have been given room to wreak havoc on earth, God still rules in heaven unopposed. Yet because of the judgment brought about by sin, humankind cannot experience the fullness of God’s rule on earth and in our lives until the debt incurred by sin is paid.

The earth is the LORD's, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it.
--Psalm 24:1

The LORD upholds all those who fall and lifts up all who are bowed down.
The eyes of all look to you, and you give them their food at the proper time.
You open your hand and satisfy the desires of every living thing.
The LORD is righteous in all his ways and loving toward all he has made.
The LORD is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth.
--Psalm 145:14-18

Surely the arm of the LORD is not too short to save, nor his ear too dull to hear.
But your iniquities have separated you from your God; your sins have hidden his face from you, so that he will not hear.
For your hands are stained with blood, your fingers with guilt. Your lips have spoken lies, and your tongue mutters wicked things.
No one calls for justice; no one pleads his case with integrity. They rely on empty arguments and speak lies; they conceive trouble and give birth to evil.
--Isaiah 59:1-4

Questions to Consider:

1. Prior to this lesson, what images did the phrase "Kingdom of God" conjure in your mind? Has your understanding of this concept changed as a result of this lesson? How would you explain the idea of God's Kingdom to a friend, using just a few words?

2. Why do you think God gave human beings free will to choose to love and obey him or not?
What happened as a result of Adam's and Eve's disobedience?

3. Who is Satan and how did he gain so much power? What is the only way he can be defeated?

For further reading about the Kingdom of God, try the following books available through amazon.com:

Morphew, Derek. Breakthrough: Discovering the Kingdom. Struik, 1991
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1868230392/qid=1144261765/sr=1-1/ref=sr_1_1/103-3509480-2203023?s=books&v=glance&n=283155

Ladd, George Eldon. The Gospel of the Kingdom. Eerdmans, 1959.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0802812805/qid=1144261875/sr=2-2/ref=pd_bbs_b_2_2/103-3509480-2203023?s=books&v=glance&n=283155

2006-02-26T10:13:00.000-08:00

Romans

Lesson #17

Chapter 16:1-27

There is no doubt that the writing is Paul's, but there is some disagreement among scholars about whether chapter 16 was actually a part of his original letter to Rome or whether it was added to a copy of the letter sent to another church. Whichever was the case, it was common in those days, since papyrus scrolls were so expensive, not to waste an inch of paper. So Paul fills the extra space with numerous personal greetings and additional exhortations.

We know that Paul wrote Romans probably sometime in AD 57, while he was staying at Corinth. There are 27 personal greetings in this chapter, addressed to fellow Christians and coworkers that Paul seems to know intimately. It is unlikely, therefore, that this part of the letter was intended for Rome, where Paul had never been! Paul's letter to the Romans is often spoken of as his greatest literary work; it is the closest thing to a theological treatise that he ever wrote. In it he carefully explains the gospel of salvation by grace through faith and passionately defends his ministry to the Gentiles. It is quite possible, even likely, that he was pleased with the product and decided to send a copy to encourage his friends in Ephesus. Paul had had probably his most fruitful ministry in that pagan city during the years AD 54-56, and he may have left Aquila and Priscilla (Romans 16:3; see Acts 18:19) in charge there.

vv. 1-2-- Phoebe was evidently the one charged with delivering the letter. She was a native of Cenchrea, a harbor town not far from Corinth. Perhaps she was a merchant or had some business or other that took her to the great city of Ephesus. Paul refers to her as a "servant" (or deacon) of the church, and one who had been particularly helpful to him. Evidently, she served the church and Paul in some practical capacity. Deacons assisted pastors or overseers by handling some of the everyday tasks of the church, such as the administration of congregational funds, visitation of the sick and ministry to the poor. It was a position of some trust and respect (1Timothy 3:8-13).

vv. 3-4-- Priscilla and Aquila were Jews who had been forced to leave Rome when emperor Claudius expelled all the Jews (c. AD 50-52) because Jewish resistance against the gospel had resulted in street riots. Like Paul, they were tentmakers by trade and became among the apostle's closest and most hard-working and trusted friends. He had first met them in Corinth (Acts 18:2-3), perhaps leading them to faith in Christ, and they traveled with him on his Third Missionary Journey (AD 53-57), eventually being entrusted with carrying on the ministry in Ephesus during Paul's long absences.

v. 5-- During the first few centuries of the church, Christians rarely had their own buildings but met in private homes for worship, prayer and fellowship. The church at Ephesus was probably quite large (some estimate several thousand) but it was largely structured around the house church model-- a church made up of several hundred smaller churches. It was in this smaller, more intimate environment that believers instructed one another in discipleship, trained and equipped each other for ministry, and learned to love one another as Jesus commanded. The more private house church setting also helped the church to survive in an era of suspicion and persecution.

The fact that Paul addresses a greeting to Epenetus, his first convert in the province of Asia, is further indication that this chapter was an addendum to a copy of Romans sent to the church at Ephesus (one of the capitals of the Roman province of Asia).

vv. 6-15-- From these personal greetings we see the extent of Paul's relationships and his deep affection, especially for those who labored side by side with him for the gospel. We also see much more clearly than in most other NT books the important role women played within the local church, as well as in the spread of the gospel. There are at least 10 women whom Paul mentions by name. One (Junias in v.7) is even referred to as an "apostle." The term is not used here to refer to "one of the original 12 disciples," but in its wider sense of those early disciples, like Paul and Barnabas, who were sent out by the churches to preach the gospel and plant new churches.

vv. 16-- Paul encourages all the church to "greet one another with a holy kiss." Such an expression of intimacy may surprise us as Americans. But we must remember that a light kissing of the cheek was a common form of friendly greeting in the ancient world, as it still is in many parts of the world today. Paul certainly does not refer to the more familiar or passionate kind of kissing that we may think of. The "kiss of peace," in which members of the congregation greeted one another before they took communion together, may already have been a formal part of church liturgy in the first century. Today, many churches in America practice a similar "passing of the peace" by shaking hands and saying, "Christ be with you."

vv. 17-20-- The apostle warns them to be on guard against those who would divide the church through false teachings. He is probably referring to (1) certain "false apostles" who preached a gospel diluted with Jewish legalism (see 2Cointhians 11), or (2) those who taught a "gospel" free from all moral retraint (see Philippians 3:17-19). The early church was plagued by false teachers who preached either legalism on the one extreme or lawlessness on the other. In Ch. 14 we saw that Paul had great tolerance for individual believers who were weak in their faith and still clung to the old laws and traditions of Judaism. Yet he had no patience with certain itinerant teachers (Judaizers) who called themselves apostles and went about trying to convince new Gentile converts to be circumcised and to follow the OT law. These teachers were constantly at work, trying to upset the foundation Paul had laid with the gospel. Such was the case at Galatia, where these teachers did a great deal of damage after Paul's departure (see Galatians 1). The teachers of lawlessness, on the other hand, were most likely Gentiles who boasted that Christ had set them free from the law, and thus all sense of morality. They probably encouraged believers to eat meat sacrificed to idols and flaunted their "freedom" by living in sexual immorality and debauchery.

Such teachers as these, Paul says, are merely serving their own appetites (literally "bellies"), meaning that their motivation is to manipulate weaker Christians by sounding very smart and spiritual with the ultimate goal of controling the church for their own personal gain. This is a serious indictment, and in it we see the deep concern and exasperation Paul must have felt about these pesky, self-proclaimed "apostles" who thought they were serving God, but were really tools of Satan to destabilize the foundation of the gospel and divide the churches.

Paul probably paraphrases a saying of Jesus (see Matthew 10:16), "Be shrewd as snakes and innocent as doves." The idea is that believers need to be aware of the schemes of the devil and worldly people but not to stoop to their level. The reference to crushing Satan beneath their feet probably refers to their ultimately being able to defeat the enemy's attacks and his plans to divide them if they stay faithful to the gospel (as it was originally preached to them) and remain united to one another in love.

vv. 21-24-- Here follow the traditional greetings by Paul's co-workers, that is, those who were with him at the time he wrote the letter. They include Timothy, who was perhaps the apostle's most faithful companion and like a son (Philippians 2:19-22), and Gaius, at whose home the church in Corinth may have met. Even a certain Tertius, to whom Paul dictated the letter, gets to say hello. Erastus was the director of public works in Corinth. This fact may have been confirmed by an ancient inscription unearthed in that city in 1929: "Erastus, commissioner of public works, laid this stone at his own expense."

vv. 25-27-- Paul ends his letter with a benediction, a prayer of blessing on the recipients. This was a common feature in both Jewish and pagan letter writing of the Greco-Roman period. The apostle commits them to the care of the one true God, who is able to keep them safe by the gospel preached to them, God's secret plan first made known to the Prophets of old and now revealed, that all the nations of the world might believe in Christ and submit to God.

Questions to Consider:

1. What has been your favorite part of Romans and why?

2. What are two new things you have learned from your study of Romans? Has reading this letter changed your life in any way? If so, how?

We appreciate your feedback. If you have benefited from this study or if you have any questions or suggestions, we would love to hear from you. Please email us at stevevcf@optonline.net

Our next study will be "The Bible & the Kingdom of God." Starts April 2nd. Stay tuned!

2006-02-26T10:09:00.000-08:00

Romans

Lesson #16

Chapter 15:1-33

vv. 1-4-- Verses 1-4 conclude Paul's discussion of weak and strong faith in chapter 14. Here he speaks in an aside to those, like himself, who are strong in faith and have no qualms about exercising their freedom from the old legal restrictions. Again, the emphasis is on living a life that is other-centered, seeking what is best for one's neighbor. The apostle shows Christ as the supreme example of sacrificial love. Paul quotes Psalm 69:9, which the early church believed referred ultimately to Messiah's sufferings. All Scripture, he says, was written to instruct God's people, that they might endure and find hope in the midst of trial.

vv. 5-6-- Paul prays that the Lord would give the Roman church a spirit of unity-- not that they needed to agree on every subject, but that love would hold them fast together, despite their differences, so that they might glorify God. The unity of the churches was a topic about which Paul prayed passionately and one to which he returns again and again in his letters. It was the single most important issue on the mind of this apostle.

vv. 7-12-- As in 14:3-4 & 15, believers should accept one another, just as Christ has accepted them-- that is, freely, fully and without reservation. Jesus himself sets the example of selfless service, laying down his life even for those who rejected him. He came as a servant in order to fulfill the promises made to the Old Testament patriarchs Abraham, Isaac and Jacob: that all nations would know and glorify God. Paul employs four quotations from the OT which reveal God's intention that the Gentiles too would worship him. The "Root of Jesse" is a reference to Messiah, Son of David (Jesse was the father of King David).

v. 13-- Paul prays that God, who is the source of all hope, would fill the Roman believers with the the Spirit's power, resulting in an abundance of hope. Why does the apostle continue to emphasize hope? The central hope of the gospel is our vindication, redemption and salvation at the return of Jesus Christ-- i.e., eternal life with God. It is that hope which enables the believer to live like Christ here and now, in sacrificial love, shunning the world's favors.

vv. 14-16-- Here Paul uses rhetorical skills common to Greco-Roman letter writing. He humbly expresses his full confidence in their godliness and understanding. He wants to tread lightly and hopes he has not offended anyone. Although he is an apostle with a divine commission, he does not want to seem to be lording it over or patronizing anyone, especially a church where he has never preached and where he cannot assume to have any authority. Remember, his goal is to establish a solid relationship with the Roman church with a view to future work in Spain. He seems to apologize politely for his boldness in some parts of his discourse and wants them to know that he does not believe that they are ignorant of all Christian doctrine. In instructing them, he is merely discharging his duty as an apostle of the Lord to the Gentiles. He refers to his task of preaching to non-Jews as a "priestly" one --a divine commission whose purpose is to make the Gentiles holy before the Lord through faith in Christ. He hopes to make them, like an offering on an altar, pleasing to the Lord, having been made holy through the indwelling Spirit.

vv. 17-22-- Paul does not want to boast of anything except what God has done through his ministry, turning pagans back to God through preaching and miracles performed in the power of the Spirit. In other words, it is all God's doing. As we read the book of Acts, we see that "signs and wonders" (miracles) often accompanied Paul's preaching, just as in Christ's ministry and that of the other apostles: dramatic healings, raisings from the dead, deliverance from demons, and various other manifestations of the Holy Spirit's presence, such as the gifts of tongues, prophecy, words of knowledge, etc. These "signs" serve to authenticate the gospel message by demonstrating the power and authority of Jesus Christ (Mark 16:17-18; Hebrews 2:4).

Paul has fulfilled his commission, faithfully proclaiming the gospel all the way from Jerusalem to Illyricum (a Roman province in the Western Balkan peninsula, just across the Adriatic Sea from Italy). As a pioneer, it is his desire to preach where Christ is unknown and to avoid interfering with another apostle's work. Clearly, not everyone in the eastern half of the empire had heard the gospel, but Paul felt his work there was completed, having raised up faithful men and women who would continue to preach Christ and plant new churches. It was his desire to avoid "building on another's foundation" that has prevented him from visiting Rome, where the church was already flourishing.

vv. 23-29-- Yet now that his work in the east was winding to a close, and there were no new frontiers there to open up for the gospel, his sights were now set on the westernmost part of the empire (Spain), where he assumes the gospel has not yet reached. He therefore hopes to visit Rome on his way and, wisely, to use the church there as a base of operations for his ministry in the west. Doubtless, because of its size, the church at Rome would have had ample resources to assist Paul in this endeavor. As a Roman citizen, Paul may have known some Latin, which was the dominant language in the west, but he would need not only the prayers and resources of the Roman church, but also perhaps helpers to accompany him on his journey. Therefore, he hopes they will welcome him to stay for a while.

All these plans are in the future, however. For Paul must first complete a task he had begun years earlier-- the collection for the distressed and persecuted churches in Judea. The Gentile churches in Greece had responded generously to Paul's request that they take up a collection on behalf of their beleaguered Jewish brothers and sisters in Jerusalem and Judea. Christians there were largely poor and undergoing intense persecution from their fellow Jews. The donation would not only assist the Judean churches with badly needed funds, but also serve as a much needed sign of love and unity between Gentile and Jewish believers. In addition, the collection would be a symbol of humility and gratitude from the Gentile converts, who now share in the covenant promise of Abraham.

vv. 30-33-- Nowhere was Paul's ministry to the Gentiles more scrutinized and slandered than in Judea, where zeal for the OT law was greatest, both outside and inside the church. Unbelieving Jews would have heard false reports that he was teaching Jews everywhere to forsake the law and live like goyim! He was probably concerned also, and justly so, that the strong Judaizing element within the Judean church (those who insisted that the Gentiles must submit to the laws of Moses) would overcome the voices of moderation and reason, and his gospel and his work for unity among Jew and Gentile would be rejected. He therefore enlists the prayer support of the Roman church before he steps into what is sure to be a lions' den of controversy in Judea. He asks that they pray for the success of his mission there, safe deliverance from harm, and that God would speed him on his way to Rome and, ultimately, Spain. Paul was no Lone Ranger; he knew that he greatly needed the prayers and generosity of other believers. He also saw his ministry as a partnership: some churches prayed; some gave money; some sent helpers; some did all three.

He ends this section with a traditional Jewish blessing, followed by an Amen, a Hebrew liturgical response indicating agreement to a prayer ("may it be so").

The original letter to Rome may have ended here. What follows in chapter 16 may be an addendum which followed a copy of this letter sent to edify the church in Ephesus. But more on that later.

What did happen to Paul upon his arrival in Judea? Acts 21-28 tells us the story. Paul and his companions were received warmly by the church in Jerusalem. But unbelieving Jews who recognized Paul started a riot, resulting in his arrest. The Lord used the apostle's quick thinking and Roman citizenship to deliver him from immediate danger, but Paul soon found himself bound in chains while a succession of Roman governors tried to decide what to do with him (for over two years!). Finally, when he demanded to be tried before the emperor, as was his right as a citizen, Paul was dispatched to Rome-- in chains! The book of Acts ends with Paul's preaching in Rome while under house arrest and awaiting trial. We do not know for sure whether he ever went to Spain. What we do know is that eventually Paul was tried before emperor Nero and sentenced to death. According to a strong tradition, his remains rest below the main altar of the Basilica of St. Paul Outside the Walls in Rome.

Questions to Consider:

1. Why does Paul keep insisting that believers should live for the good of others and not simply to please themselves? What or whom does Paul point to as the supreme example of such sacrificial love?

2. For what reason or on what basis should we accept one another? Why is unity so important among Christians? (see John 13:34-35)

3. Why is hope so important for our ability to live the Christian life? What is our hope in?

4. What was Paul's ultimate reason for going to Rome? What help does he enlist from them at this point?

5. Read Acts chapters 21-28. Do you think Paul's mission to Rome was a success? Why or why not?

2006-02-19T10:52:00.000-08:00

Romans

Lesson #15

Chapter 14:1-23

In this new section (14:1-15:13), the apostle addresses an issue vital to the unity and survival of the fledgling church. In the first decade of the Christian faith (c. AD 30-40), the vast majority of believers were Jews. Most Gentiles who followed Christ had probably been previously attached to local synagogues (they were called “God-fearers”) and so were familiar with Jewish customs and rituals. As the gospel spread to the major Gentile population centers, however, more and more pagans were won to Christ. Problems arose immediately since pagans and Jews differed so greatly in regard to food, customs, and life-style.

Perhaps the most divisive and controversial battle faced by the 1st-century church was what to do with the Old Testament law. Some Jewish Christians, still zealous for the law, claimed that Gentile converts should be circumcised and made to follow the laws of Moses. In effect, they were saying, one must become a Jew first in order to be saved. (See Acts 15.) Their hard-line approach brought them into sharp dispute with the apostles Paul and Barnabas, who had already won so many Gentiles to the faith. The matter was of such great importance that a church council was convened in Jerusalem (AD 49).

The view of the apostles at the council (especially Peter and James, the Lord’s brother) was that all are saved, Jew or Gentile, by faith in the Lord Jesus, and not by following laws and customs. It was observed that God was doing a remarkable miracle among the Gentiles, and nothing should be put in their way to hinder their turning to Christ. Yet, what of the Jews, who had followed the laws of Moses for 1500 years? How could a Jew, who kept kosher food laws, have table fellowship with a Gentile, who did not? Clearly, some compromise was needed to prevent the church from splitting along racial lines.

In their official decision, the apostles asked Gentile converts to avoid certain foods that would particularly disgust their Jewish brothers and sisters, such as blood and meat that had been previously sacrificed to idols. (Such meat was sold daily in the marketplaces and was often bought by the less well to do, since it was cheaper.) Sexual immorality was also prohibited, another particularly pagan habit and one often associated with pagan temples.

In his letters, Paul often addresses this controversy, but in such a way as to make it clear that the kingdom of God is about love and unity, not laws and customs. Certainly in the Roman church, where many Jews were now returning after their banishment by the previous emperor (see Introduction), issues of circumcision, food, holy festivals, and Sabbath-keeping were a cause of friction among Jewish and Gentile Christians. Yet, while Jewish believers were allowed to keep the customs and traditions of Moses if they so wished, Paul never encouraged Gentiles to do so. It was a matter of conscience for the Jewish believer.

Disputes would also have arisen among Gentile Christians themselves, specifically in regard to meat that had been sacrificed to idols. Some may have avoided eating such meat because it was connected with the old ways of paganism. Others may have felt free to eat it, since they knew that there is only one God, and, therefore, idols are nothing.

vv. 1-4-- In his teachings, Jesus had declared all foods to be clean (Mark 7:18-19), but not all Jewish disciples felt free to follow this decree. Indeed, there was great pressure within the Jewish Christian community to remain faithful to the laws of Moses (see Galatians 2:11-14). Paul goes so far as to refer to this clinging to Old Covenant restrictions as weakness of faith. (He may also be referring to Gentile believers who abstained from eating meat that had been sacrificed to an idol because they associated it with their former practice of pagan idolatry. See 1Cor 8:7.) But he does not condemn anyone for doing so. Rather he seeks to create a bridge of love and understanding between those who keep the kosher laws and those who do not. Such “disputable matters” of practice are not central to the gospel. God alone is Judge and he accepts both the weak and strong in faith. So Christians should not judge or reject one another based on such practices.

vv. 5-8-- Some Jewish believers still kept the Saturday Sabbath laws, as well as the festivals and fast days. From the beginnings of the church in Jerusalem, Sunday had begun to replace the Sabbath as the focus of the week, for it was on that day that Jesus rose from the dead. Early Sunday morning, believers would gather together for worship, prayer, the Lord’s Supper and mutual encouragement through the Word. Because the early church believed that Jesus had fulfilled all the Old Testament ceremonial and sacrificial laws, Sabbath observance was not enforced. Yet old customs die hard, and many or perhaps most Jewish Christians still may have kept the Sabbath like their neighbors. The important thing, Paul says, is that each person be “convinced in his own mind”—that is, to be sure that one is doing the right thing. Otherwise, how can one do so with faith and a clear conscience before God? No, the one who keeps the Sabbath or a fast day or abstains from eating meat sacrificed to an idol, does so as an act of worship unto the Lord. The same for the one who does not abstain. Whatever we do, we do as unto the Lord (see 12:1).

vv. 9-12-- Christ died for those on both sides of the issue. In life or in death, we belong to the Lord. No believer has the right to judge or look down upon another. It is the Lord who will Judge each one according to his conscience. Each of us will have to give an account of our actions before the judgment seat of Christ, before whom nothing will be hidden.

vv. 13-18-- Instead of judging one another, believers should make it a habit not to do anything that might cause a fellow believer to stumble. For example, it was sinful and selfish to flaunt one’s freedom by eating or offering meat sacrificed to idols before those who are offended by the practice. Our focus should be on what will build one another up in the faith. As Paul states in 1Corinthians 8:12-13, “When you sin against your brothers in this way and wound their weak conscience, you sin against Christ. Therefore, if what I eat causes my brother to fall into sin, I will never eat meat again, so that I will not cause him to fall.” As an apostle and a Spirit-filled believer obedient to the teachings of Christ, Paul believed that “no food is unclean in itself,” for Jesus had lifted the kosher restrictions (Mark 7:18-19). In his life, death and resurrection, Jesus had fulfilled the Old Covenant law and initiated the long awaited New Covenant (see Jeremiah 31:31-34; Luke 22:20; 1Corinthians 11:25). Yet not every believer felt this free—especially the Jews, who had followed the laws of Moses for 1500 years. It was therefore a matter for the individual conscience. Believers who did feel this freedom should consider how others would view their actions and not put themselves in a position to be criticized.
Love—that which seeks to build others up, rather than merely pleasing oneself—should be the watchword. The kingdom of God is not about eating and drinking, but about living a life full of the fruit of the Spirit. It is the latter, not the former, that pleases God.

vv. 19-23-- Therefore, believers should act in such a way that will promote unity and peace in the body of Christ. To destroy this unity for the sake of such disputable matters is foolish. Yes, all foods are clean, but to insist on making an issue of it is wrong, especially if it causes another brother or sister in the Lord to falter in their faith. In such a case, it would be better not to eat anything at all that would make a brother stumble. One’s own opinion on such matters should be kept between oneself and God. If someone eats something he knows he should not eat, then he is walking in sin, not faith. It is faith in Christ that makes us right before God.

It is important to point out that Paul is not making a general statement here regarding the subjective nature of sin—i.e., that sin is merely a matter of conscience. Not at all. As we have pointed out, he is addressing an area of conflict regarding questions of Christian practice, specifically the role of the Jewish law (in particular kosher food laws), in the life of the believer. The issue was not one of morality but of acceptable practice. Not every believer was on the same page regarding these issues, so some compromise needed to be made for the sake of unity and peace.

Questions to Consider:

1. Why do you think it was so difficult for many early Jewish Christians to give up their kosher food laws? Why was it so difficult for Jewish and Gentile believers to fellowship? How did the early church try to ease the transition?

2. According to this chapter, what should be the guiding principle when we are faced with disagreement over matters of Christian practice?

3. Consider this possible situation: Christian friends have invited you to dinner. Wine is served with the meal. You feel strongly that Christians should set a good example to others by avoiding all alcoholic beverages. You are therefore surprised that your hosts would serve wine. Would you say anything to your hosts? Based on Paul’s teaching in this chapter, what would be the best course?

4. Suppose you are out to dinner with friends, one of whom is a recovering alcoholic. You enjoy having a beer with dinner, especially since this is a German restaurant, and it helps the digestion. What would you do and why?

2006-02-17T11:09:00.000-08:00

Romans

Lesson #14

Chapter 13:1-14

Along with Romans 12, this chapter also strongly echoes some of Jesus' essential ethical teachings. Recall that Paul is writing in the late 50s AD, perhaps a decade before any of the four Gospels were written. At first, the Lord's teachings would have circulated orally from disciple to disciple before they were written down. Paul may have learned much of what he knew about Jesus' teachings from other disciples and apostles, specifically Peter and James, with whom he spent time after his conversion (Galatians 1:18-19). The clarity and accuracy of the Lord's teachings, compared in the letters of Paul, Peter, James, John and the Gospels, demonstrate the care with which this body of teaching was preserved, all within a culture that prized and practiced the careful and accurate oral transmission of great rabbinical instruction.

vv. 1-5-- A believer should submit himself to the rule of government, wherever possible. For all authority ultimately comes from God, whether within the family structure or the state. Our Creator has ordained human government for the purpose of maintaining peace and order in a sinful world. In stating this, Paul is not claiming that every ruler, official or governing body, or the actions taken by them, are always godly or even good. Human government is run by fallen people, and so it too has been affected by sin. The point he is making is that government in itself has been created by God to promote the general welfare (1Tim 2:1-3). On the bright side, even in a corrupt and repressive regime, people still have to stop at traffic lights; murderers and thieves are punished, and it is often still safe to walk the streets, etc. Governments can be good or bad, but even a bad one is better than complete anarchy and lawlessness. God can also use good or bad government to bless or punish a nation.

Why is Paul stressing submission to authorities? Recall that Christianity was a “new religion” in the eyes of Roman officials, and was therefore suspect. Like the Jews before them, Christians were accused, ironically, of being “godless haters of mankind” or even subversive revolutionaries. The believer’s higher loyalty to Jesus as Lord may have tempted some to act arrogantly toward the Roman state, which claimed ultimate loyalty from its subjects. ("Tax this, Caesar!") It is important that believers behave themselves and act as law-abiding subjects or citizens, in order to counter such slanderous reports about the faith. Obedience to civil authority, then, is an act of obedience to God himself. One should obey, not only out of fear of punishment from that authority, but also to maintain a clear conscience and unhindered relationship toward God.

Of course, Paul is writing at a time when the empire was generally at peace, and the followers of Jesus were not yet widely persecuted simply for being “Christians.” Within a few decades, however, that situation would change dramatically, forcing believers to choose between loyalty to Caesar or to God. It is ironic that the emperor at the time of Paul's writing of Romans was the notorious Nero (emperor AD 54-68). The apostle doubtless had no illusions regarding the wickedness of this ruler, who several years later would order the executions of both Paul and Peter, as well as unleash a grisly reign of terror on the local church at Rome. Yet still Paul maintains that Christians should always obey the law of the land-- that is, of course, when it does not conflict with God’s word. In 1Tim2 he also reminds the church to pray for their rulers (that includes Nero), since it is in the best interest of all when governments function justly.

vv. 6-7-- Paul echoes Jesus’ teaching about the payment of taxes. In Mark 12:13-17 (see Bible study entry for that chapter of Mark), Jesus replies to a tricky question regarding the legitimacy of paying taxes by the people of God to a pagan power such as Rome. His answer is to “give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar, and to God what belongs to God.” In other words, whether they like it or not, it is appropriate for people to help support their government and the services from which they benefit. Though certainly corrupt, oppressive and unpopular, the Roman Empire maintained roads, sanitation, an efficient judicial system and a crack military that kept the peace. However, Jesus says, when government goes too far and assumes prerogatives (such as worship) that belong to God alone, then the believer has to make a choice to obey God, not man.

vv. 8-10-- Christians should not be debtors but should pay every outstanding obligation, the highest of which is the ongoing obligation to love one another. Paul refers to another essential teaching of Jesus (Mark 12:28-34), in which the Lord is asked which of all the commandments is the most important. Quoting from the OT law, Christ responds that the greatest command is to “love the LORD your God with all your heart, mind, soul and strength,” as well as to “love your neighbor as yourself. There are no commandments greater than these.” For Christ, as for the apostles who followed him, love for God and love for fellow man are inseparable (1John 4:20); they are simply two sides of the same coin. Every command in the laws of Moses can be summed up by one or the other. So love, as Paul says here, is the “fulfillment of the law”—that is, the original goal and intention of the OT law was to promote love between us and God or between us and our fellow human beings. Paul specifically emphasizes the latter here, since he has been talking in chs 12-13 about a Christian’s relationship with others as well as with the state.

vv. 11-14-- Paul concludes this section by reminding the church that all of these ethical admonitions should be followed with eternity in mind. It is time to “wake up” from our moral sloth and the spiritual sleepiness sin induces. For the time of Jesus’ return draws near—indeed, it draws closer every day! Here Paul may have certain parables of Christ in mind, such as that of the watchful servant (Mark 13:32-37), or the ten virgins (Matthew 25:1-13). The Christian should always live with Christ’s return (“our salvation,” v. 11) in view, putting off the old ways of sin and putting on the new ways of righteousness. The apostle particularly highlights sins of the physical body, such as drunkenness, orgies and sexual immorality, all common practices within pagan culture. He also warns against sins against the body of believers, such as dissension (infighting) and jealousy, both of which promote disunity among Christians. Disciples should not waste their time with these, but “clothe” themselves with Jesus Christ—that is, to walk in the Spirit, not in the flesh, as explained in 8:1-17.

Questions to Consider:

1. Have you ever been in trouble with the governing authorities? What happened and why? Was it because you were doing something wrong or right? What is your usual attitude toward government and authority? How might this need to change after reading this chapter? Have you thought of praying regularly for your governmental leaders?

2. Tax season is approaching. What is your attitude toward paying taxes? Ever cheated? What might you do differently this year?

3. Look at the list of Ten Commandments in Deuteronomy 5:6-21. Which of the ten would you put under the category of “loving God” and which under “loving our fellow human beings”? What does Paul mean by “Love is the fulfillment of the law”?

4. What does it mean to live each day with eternity in mind? Would you say that you live this way? Or are you inclined to let other things steal your focus? What practical steps might you take to help change your focus this week? (Ideas: starting each day with prayer and Scripture reading, stopping to pray during the afternoon or before a difficult decision, slowing down, saying grace at meals, cutting down on TV watching, taking an inventory of your life, etc.)

5. Take a look at your typical daily schedule. How many activities would you say have some “eternal value”? What could you do to help shift the balance?

2006-02-05T14:03:00.000-08:00

Romans

Lesson #13

Chapter 12:1-21

Chapter 12 begins a section of practical exhortations (chs 12-15). Having laid the theological foundation of the gospel and life in the Spirit, the author now turns to everyday application-- what that new life in Christ and its righteousness should look like in the day-to-day life of the believer. Many of Paul's letters have a similar two-part structure: proclamation (the gospel) and exhortation (practical advice for daily life), i.e., what Christ has done for us and how we should live in response. Note that Paul is very careful to show that good works and righteous living are a response to God's gift of grace in Christ and not the other way around. Good works have an important place in the life of every believer, but they are the result of redemption, never the cause. 16th-century theologian and reformer Martin Luther once remarked, "We are saved by faith alone, but not by faith that is alone"-- in other words, true faith in Christ always expresses itself in righteous behavior. After all, Jesus saved us that we might live a changed life, transformed by his grace, and conformed to the image of the Son of God.

vv. 1-2-- The therefore indicates Paul is drawing a conclusion from what has been said previously, here based on everything said in the previous 11 chapters. Since God has in every way shown himself to be merciful to us in Christ, we ought to offer ourselves in response as "living sacrifices." In contrast to a dead animal sacrifice, we place ourselves daily on God's altar and offer ourselves alive for his service, to do what pleases and glorifies him, not ourselves. This, Paul says, is our "spiritual act of worship"-- worship that involves not just outward forms or rituals, but surrender of the will, mind, body and heart. The word "spiritual" here may also mean "logical, reasonable"-- in other words, living a life of worship is the only logical response to what God has done for us. In response to Jesus' sacrifice for us, we yield our lives wholly to him and consecrate ourselves to his holy purposes. Now that we have been redeemed from death and given new life, new freedom in Christ, we no longer need to conform to the old sinful patterns of this world. Jesus has won the victory; now we need to enforce that victory in our lives.

The story is told of a sad and shaggy old bear kept for years in captivity in a small town zoo. All day long he would pace nervously six feet by six feet, for those were the dimensions of his cage. Then one day a millionaire took pity on the animal and purchased him, cage and all, planning to release the poor beast back into the wild. The bear was flown in an airplane, at great expense, then transported by helicopter to a beautiful mountainside. The wilderness was breathtaking: pinetrees everywhere, lakes and streams filled with trout-- everything a bear would love. At last, the cage was offloaded and set down in a clearing. Carefully, the door was opened, and all held their breaths waiting for the bear suddenly to spring forward and scamper into the forest. Instead, it sniffed the air but did not move. Finally, after a long time, the frustrated millionaire ordered the cage to be removed. The bear slid out, but would not venture far from where the cage had been. It just kept pacing, six feet up and six feet back, six feet up and six feet back....

Paul mentions "renewing the mind" because the mind is where this day-to-day battle is fought. It is a battle of faith. Will we believe Jesus and follow him, living in righteousness, free from the old cage of sin; or will we believe Satan and continue to pace in the old ruts, the patterns of sin that led to death. We're no longer in bondage; why live in it any more? (See 8:1-17.) The door has been unlocked for us, but the knob turns from the inside. Learning to walk in the newness of the Spirit is a process, but if we allow this transformation to take place, we will delight in the Lord's will, wondering how we could have lived any other way (cf. Ephesians 5:17)!

vv. 3-8-- Paul speaks "by the grace given" him-- that is, in the authority and gifting God has bestowed on him as an apostle-- and warns every member of the church at Rome not to think too highly of themselves. Rather, they should view themselves with reason and humility. Humility may be defined as seeing oneself as one truly is, neither greater nor less than what God has made one to be. "The measure of faith" refers to the spiritual gift(s) that the Lord has bestowed on each believer. It is pride to have an inflated sense of one's own importance; yet it is also pride to deny what God has given us. What is the reason for this warning? Imagine if each member in the church were to view themselves with this kind of sober judgment: not only would everyone be fully and happily functioning to his or her capacity, but also no one would envy or put themselves before others or jealously fight for place or recognition. For all have their place in God's family. Paul likens the church to a human body made up of many members (hands, feet, eyes, ears, etc.), and each member functions in a different capacity but for the good of the whole. None of us has all the spiritual gifts that Jesus had, but together we reflect the fullness of Christ! (For a more detailed treatment of this "body" metaphor and spiritual gifts, see 1Corinthians 12.)

Each of us has different gifts, according to God's provision. Paul here lists prophesying as among these gifts. Prophecy is the ability to hear or sense what the Lord wants to say about a particular issue or at a particular time. It is not just foretelling the future, but more often, interpreting contemporary situations from God's perspective. One who has been given a gift of prophesying, Paul urges, should practice that gift "in proportion to his faith," that is, faithfully, according to the measure of gifting given him, not more nor less. And so for all the gifts-- the apostle lists only seven, and this is by no means exhaustive. Some gifts are more supernatural (like prophecy or healing); others more practical (like hospitality and giving). But each has his or her gift to contribute toward the ministry of the church, and no one is better than anyone else. All gifts are important and necessary. So whatever one has been given, one should not bury it, but use it faithfully, and in so doing, serve the Lord.

vv. 9-13-- Here Paul begins a list of short and pithy commands or exhortations designed to encourage believers to make their faith real and practical. He starts with a definition of true love, which is not defined as warm fuzzy feelings or romantic language, but as something authentic, active, and unhypocritical-- really seeking the best for the other person, taking actions of love with a sincere heart, not just words. Christians are to "hate" anything evil by avoiding it entirely; instead, they should hold fast to and practice what is good. The church should practice "brotherly love" (Greek: philadelphia) by cultivating a corporate culture of affectionate devotion, unselfishly preferring one another above ourselves. A believer should be diligent (hard-working and zealous), not lazy and idle, but bubbling over with the Spirit, and in everything, serving others as though serving the Lord himself. A Christian should demonstrate joy that grows out of the promises we've been given in Christ, persevering in the midst of affliction and trial, and always praying. All should contribute toward the needs of those in the church who have little, so that there is equality, and also pursue hospitality (Greek, literally "love of strangers"). In every way, then, the church should have an atmosphere of authentic love, generosity, warm welcome, positive and hopeful outlook, and unselfish service.

vv. 14-16-- In regard to enemies, Christians should follow the Lord's teaching in Matthew 5:43-48, by blessing them (prayerfully seeking their welfare and speaking no evil). In no way should a believer ever return spite for spite or seek revenge. They should practice solidarity alike with those who rejoice and those who mourn-- for when one member of the body rejoices, all rejoice; when one suffers, all suffer. Again, one should not think too highly of oneself or too lowly of others. Rather, one should have the same manner of treating others, whether they are wealthy or poor-- i.e., with respect and humility.

vv. 17-21-- Believers should never return evil for evil, but always do what is right, no matter what the circumstances. One should strive to live peacefully with everyone-- although Paul admits this may not always be possible. Shun thoughts of revenge, allowing God to be the Judge, for there will be a time when God will judge the earth and avenge the blood of his people. Instead, following Proverbs 25:21-22, Paul encourages the the church to practice kindness and mercy toward those who oppose us. This proverb may be based on an old Egyptian custom in which a repentant person placed a pan of hot coals on his head and walked about as a public sign of his shame. Retaliation against our enemies gives them justification, but in showing kindness to them, we may put them to shame and hasten their repentance. In every way, Christians should never give in to the pull of evil, but endeavor to overcome evil (both in the world and in our own hearts) by consistently pursuing what is good.

Questions to Consider:

1. According to Paul, why should believers offer their lives as living sacrifices to God? What does this mean practically speaking? In what ways do you see this manifest in your own life? In what ways do you hold back from giving him everything? Why do you think this is?

2. Does your life today conform more after the pattern of the world or that of Christ? Why? In what areas could the Lord (and your fellow believers) help you change?

3. Do you tend to see yourself more highly or lowly than you really are? how do you tend to see others? Why does Paul so strongly emphasize humility and an accurate self image? What do spiritual gifts have to do with this?

4. Do you know what your spiritual gifts are? If not, we want to encourage you to plug into the church, start serving in some capacity and get into a small group, where you can begin to build relationships and serve others. It is there that the Lord will begin to show you and grow you in what he has made you for.

5. Have you recently wrestled with thoughts of revenge or resentment toward another (a neighbor, coworker or family member)? How does Paul's teaching here give you a plan of action, both in dealing with those who hurt you and your own heart attitude toward them?

2006-01-28T14:20:00.000-08:00

Romans

Lesson #12

Chapter 11:1-36

Chapter 11 forms the climax of this section of Romans (chs 9-11) in which Paul deals with the question of Israel's rejection of the gospel and her future in God's plan. Having explained and justified the Lord's actions in allowing Israel's heart to become hard and offering the gospel to Gentiles who weren't even seeking him, the author now addresses the question which doubtless everyone wanted to know: What, then, would happen to Israel? Is her seeming "rejection" by the Lord permanent and final? Paul's answer is full of compassion for his people and awe over the greatness and mercy of God's master plan.

vv. 1-2-- No, he states clearly from the start, God has "by no means" totally rejected his people. Paul himself is evidence of this: he is a Jew of Jews, who once violently persecuted the church but whom the Lord patiently and lovingly led to faith in Christ. What a great example of the kindness and mercy of God! (To read more about Paul's conversion, see Acts chs. 9 & 26; Galatians 1:13-2:21.) How could God reject the very people whom he "foreknew"? That word foreknew (see 8:29, as applied to the church) refers not only to the fact that God knew his people Israel long before they knew him (i.e., from eternity) but also to the concept that he chose them with a purpose in mind (that they might know and glorify him).

vv.3-6-- Paul again draws on Israel's past and the OT scriptures for an example, relating the story of the OT prophet Elijah (1Kings 19:1-18), in which the persecuted man of God complains that he feels like the last believer in Israel and even he is being hunted like an animal. The Lord responds confidently to Elijah that he has protected 7,000 others also who still believe and have not defiled themselves by worshiping the pagan idol Baal. Paul's point is that, true to his character, and just as in the past, God has again reserved a "remnant," a small portion of his people, who believe in Christ. So despite the Jews' rejection of Christ in general, there were those who did believe. That this remnant has been chosen by God's grace (God's unmerited favor, a gift) means that it is not because of anything they have done (not because of works), but because of God's gracious and sovereign choice. Again, as in ch. 9, God is demonstrating his nature as both just and merciful: he has given the Israelites over to their own stubborn hearts, while at the same time revealing himself to a portion of Jews whom he has chosen by grace. His action reveals his faithfulness to his promises of blessing to the patriarchs Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and even David. For while his people have been disobedient and do not deserve it, he has nevertheless remained true to his part of the bargain, saving a remnant to which he can pour out his blessing. Even when his people are unfaithful, God is still faithful to his promises.

vv. 7-10-- As in 10:2-4, the bitter irony is that Israel as a whole has missed the forest for the trees by pursuing righteousness apart from faith in Christ, but God has saved a remnant for himself (the elect, or chosen), those who receive his righteousness by faith as a free gift. What so many pious Jews worked so hard to obtain and did not receive, a small chosen Jewish remnant did-- freely by God's grace. The rest of the nation was allowed to harden in their spiritual blindness because they rejected God's way of faith. The quotations are from Isaiah 29:10 and Psalm 69:22,23. Again, Paul's point is that God has acted as he always has toward his people in the face of their stubborn apostasy. "God gave them a spirit of stupor...etc.": i.e., He steps back and gives them what they want. Israel's long history was a pattern of rejecting the Lord, followed by a time of God's patient waiting and attempts to woo his people back through the prophets; then a time of judgment, in which some calamity would befall the nation; then they would see their error and cry out to the Lord to save them, and he would restore them.

vv. 11-12-- Again Paul asks if Israel's unfaithfulness has put her beyond reach of God's redemption, and again the answer is absolutely not. Instead, the Lord has actually used his people's unbelief to accomplish what he had originally purposed beforehand: the salvation of the nations. Since Israel as a whole refused to believe in Christ and to bring the gospel to the nations, the Lord has brought the Gentiles in anyway to make his people jealous. The hope is that the blessings of the Holy Spirit poured out on Gentiles would make Israel envious, and that envy might drive them to repentance. If the Lord gives such gifts even to Gentiles, how much more are they for Israel? Thus, Jewish unbelief has actually resulted in blessing for the world-- and if this is the case, how much greater blessing will result when Israel eventually embraces Christ!

vv. 13-16-- Paul here addresses the Gentile believers at Rome directly. He was the "apostle to the Gentiles" par exellence (just as Peter was the "apostle to the Jews" ; see Galatians 2:7-8). As a Jew sent to convert Gentiles to faith in the Messiah Jesus, Paul made "much of his ministry"-- meaning not that he boasted in himself or tooted his own horn, but that he did not miss an opportunity to share before his fellow Israelites what God was doing among the pagans-- in the hope that envy might help drive at least some Jews toward Christ. In v.15 Paul repeats the point made in v.12, that if the temporary exclusion of Israel has resulted in the Gentile nations' being reconciled to God through Christ, then Israel's eventual re-inclusion will be a glorious miracle, as though someone had been raised from the dead! The metaphor of the "dough offered as firstfruits" refers to Numbers 15:17-21, in which food made from the firstfruits of the harvest was to be offered to the Lord; the portion offered in sacrifice made the rest holy as well. And so it is with Israel, who is still holy (set apart for God's purpose) because its "root" (the patriarch Abraham, etc.) was holy.

vv. 17-21-- Paul extends his branch-root metaphor, likening Israel to a cultivated olive tree. Branches have been broken off (Israel's temporary exclusion due to her unbelief) and wild olive shoots have been grafted in (the Gentiles). Because it was created to be so fruitful and long-lived, the olive tree (as well as the grapevine) was sometimes used in the OT as a symbol for the nation fo Israel (Jeremiah 11:16). The process of ingrafting Paul describes is actually the reverse of what was commonly practiced in olive tree cultivation: wild shoots were not normally grafted into a cultivated olive tree; rather, cultivated shoots were grafted into wild olive trees. The successful grafting of a wild olive shoot into a cultivated tree, therefore, would have been highly unlikely, even miraculous, showing God's sovereign power. Paul warns the Gentile believers not to boast or lord it over the unbelieving Jews. For it is by God's grace that the Gentiles (once separated from God) have been grafted into God's people. These wild shoots now enjoy the nourishment supplied by the root (the promises made to Abraham and the Patriarchs). True, natural branches were broken off so that wild ones could be grafted in, but this was not because of anything inherently good or meritorious in the wild ones. They stand by faith, not merit. Gentiles are cautioned to be humble and to walk in the fear of the Lord. For if natural branches could be broken off due to unbelief, how much more the unnatural branches! This warning must have been particularly relevant to the church at Rome, where Jewish believers were returning after the death of Claudius (see Lesson#1: Introduction), only to find a Gentile church grown up in their absence. Was there a temptation among the Gentiles in the church to lord it over the unfortunate Jews?

v. 22-24-- Gentile believers are cautioned instead to think of both God's mercy and his judgment. They have seen God's sternness in dealing with his own people, and they have witnessed his mercy on their own behalf. If the Gentiles are in Christ, it is because of God's grace. Therefore, they need to continue to walk humbly in that grace, not giving the Lord cause to be stern with them as well. God is also perfectly able to graft unbelieving Israel back into the tree, provided they turn to Christ-- for there is no other means of salvation in God's plan. There are some Christians who believe that the Lord has a separate plan of salvation for Israel, apart from Jesus Christ. No. It is clear from all Paul's letters that God has one Man and one Plan-- to unite all things in heaven and earth under one head, Jesus (See Ephesians 1:9-10). Besides, if God could successfully graft in wild olive shoots ("contrary to nature"), how much more easily can the natural ones be grafted in again.

vv. 25-27-- As elsewhere in his letters, Paul refers to the "mystery" of the gospel. The Greek word mysterion refers to a "secret," and in this context, one hidden in God's plan and revealed at the appropriate time. This secret was not totally hidden, however, for it was proclaimed by the OT prophets, but not completely understood until the time of its fulfillment. God's plan, from eternity, has been to unite all things in Christ, to make one people (the church) out of many and to unite Jew and Gentile (once enemies) both under one new name. (See Romans 16:25-26; Ephesians 1:9; 3:3-6; Colossians 1:26-27; 2:2.) Israel's hardening is temporary, awaiting the "full number" of Gentiles (those who are chosen for salvation) to come to faith in Christ. Then will come Israel's turn again. The statement "All Israel will be saved" does not necessarily mean every Jew (past, present and future), but more likely signifies the majority of the nation alive at the time before Christ's return-- a mass conversion such as the earth has never seen. Paul quotes Isaiah 59:20-21, a passage that speaks of the restoration of Israel following the devastations of the Exile (6th century BC), but the verses receive their fuller meaning when applied to Jesus Christ. It was a common rabbinical interpretative technique to see a wider, and usually messianic, application in certain OT scriptures-- the mystery of the kingdom "hinted at" in the Prophets but now fully revealed in Christ.

vv. 28-32-- Practically speaking, because of their rejection of the gospel, the Jews were accounted as "enemies" of God, but they are still beloved and chosen because of his promises to Abraham and his descendants. God's choice of Israel to be his people of the promise will not change; it will be worked out, despite their failures. The Jews' rejection of the gospel caused the apostles to offer it to the Gentiles (see Acts 13:46). So the Gentile Christians, who were once disobedient, have now received mercy because of Israel's unbelief. In the same way, the Jews too will receive mercy, for God has determined that all men should be allowed to go their own way (turned over to disobedience; see 1:24,26,28), in order that he may have mercy on them. As in ch. 1, God is not the author of sin, nor does he compel anyone to sin; rather, he allows us to have our own way, but then extends his mercy, that we might see (whether we are Jew or Gentile) that it is not because of good works or the merits of human righteousness that we are saved, but by the kindness and mercy of our God!

vv.33-36-- The following verses are called a doxology, a sort of hymn of praise to God. Like the prophets of old, Paul is so caught up in contemplating the Lord's loving kindness and the sovereign majesty and mystery of his will, that he pours out his praise here, paraphrasing similar passages from Isaiah and Job. Paul praises God for the inscrutable wisdom and majesty of his plan. Who can fathom it? Who can wrap his mind around God's? He is sovereign (unopposed and unhindered) in all he does. He even uses the rebellion of men and bends it to accomplish his will! We truly serve an awesome God!

Questions to Consider:

1. How has God used a "remnant" to fulfill his promises to Israel in the past? How is he using a remnant today?

2. How has God brought good from Israel's rejection of the gospel? How does this logically lead Paul to the conclusion that Israel will be restored to faith?

3. Are you a Jewish or Gentile believer? How does this chapter make you feel about your salvation? Grateful? Humble? Fearful? Full of praise or awe? Why?

4. What is the "mystery" of the gospel? Does contemplating God's plan of salvation for the Jews and Gentiles make you want to worship him more or less? Does it confuse you or inspire you?

5. Considering what Paul says in vv. 17-21, what do you think about the church's persecution of Jews from the middle ages down through our day? What should the church's attitude be toward unbelieving Jews? Humble? Hopeful? Merciful? Prayerful?

2006-01-26T12:21:00.000-08:00

Romans

Lesson #11

Chapter 10:1-21

vv. 1-4-- Paul addresses the Christian church at Rome as brothers. The Greek word is used generically here, in the sense of siblings, and thus includes sisters as well. His heart-felt prayer is for the salvation of all Jews. He knows firsthand that they are zealous in their pursuit of God. A Jew himself, Paul had been a Pharisee, the strictest sect of Judaism, who were fanatical in their quest for righteousness. This zeal, while commendable, was misguided, since it sought to attain righteousness by good works and obedience to the law-- in effect, trying to put God in one's debt, rather than receiving righteousnessas as a free gift of God's grace. It is Jesus Christ who is the goal and fulfillment of the Old Testament law: as the perfect man, he obeyed every righteous requirement of the law; as Messiah, he fulfilled everything the OT prophesied about him; as the Lamb of God, the ultimate once-for-all sacrifice for sins, he completed the vital ceremonial component in the OT sacrificial law. Thus, righteouness comes by faith in him alone.

vv. 5-8-- Paul quotes Moses in Leviticus 18:5, "The man who does these things [keeps these laws] will live by them [be blessed by God in keeping them]," as an example of the mindset of striving for righteousness based on works of the law. In using this verse, Paul is not saying that Moses was wrong or misinformed. For the OT law was intended as a guide and way of life for those already redeemed by the Lord, not as a way of salvation for the lost. Rather, Paul is using the verse as a Pharisee would have, to show the contrast between trying to pursue salvation based on law and that by faith. In vv.6-8 the apostle again quotes Moses (Deut 30:12,13), but this time from the point of view of faith. The idea is that salvation by grace through faith does not require great feats of human effort: we do not need to bring Christ down to earth nor up from the grave, for this has already been done for us. What we need to do is believe
In John 6 the crowd asks Jesus, "What must we do to do the works God requires?" He responds, "The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent." In their original context, Moses' words have a similar point: all that the Lord requires of his people is right there in front of them; it's not rocket science, but is readily available to those who believe.

vv. 9-11-- Probably the earliest and simplest confession of faith in the Christian church was "Jesus is Lord" (see 1Corinthians 12:3). This simple credal statement was probably used at baptisms. In saying this, the believer was affirming his or her belief that Jesus was both Savior and God. The idea of "confessing" (testifying, bearing witness) with the mouth that Jesus is Lord and believing in the heart that God indeed raised him from the dead, shows that true saving faith is both deeply personal (a matter of the heart) and also public (leads to sharing the gospel with others). Those who believe are "justified" (given right standing before God) and "saved" (in the sens of being spared from God's wrath at the Last Judgment). Paul quotes Isaiah 28:16, "Anyone who trusts in him will never be put to shame," as reference to Christ. The full quotation reads, "See, I lay a stone in Zion, a tested stone, a precious cornerstone for a sure foundation; the one who trusts will never be dismayed." The early church , based on Jesus' own teaching, believed these verses pointed to Christ, and Paul has already used them in 9:33.

vv. 12-13-- Here the apostle echoes his own words in 3:22, that there is but one God for both Jew and Gentile, a Lord who does not descriminate but welcomes any and all who come to him. The OT quotation is from Joel 2:32. In that context, the Lord promises to pour out his Spirit in the "last days," accompanied by signs and wonders in heaven and on earth. Both Jesus and the early church saw these last days (or end times) as being inaugurated in his ministry.

vv. 14-18-- Truly, God saves all who call on the name of his Son-- that is, those who believe and confess his name. Yet before they can do that, don't they first need to hear about Jesus? Unless someone is sent to preach the good news, how can they receive it. Paul here is anticipating an argument that the Jews did not have sufficient opportunity to hear the gospel. His answer is that they did. The apostle uses two quotations from the OT, one from Isaiah and another from the Psalms, to point out that the message was preached. Just as the heavens themselves cannot keep silent but must testify of the glory of God (Ps 19:4), so the gospel has gone forth to the ends of the earth. Yet his own people did not believe it (Isa 53:1).

vv. 19-21-- The ensuing three quotations are from Deuteronomy 32:21 and Isaiah 65:1,2, representing the twofold testimony of the OT Law and Prophets. Israel's history is replete with apostasy and hardness of heart, while God continually sends his servants the prophets, as well as war and oppression, to subdue his people's stubborn hearts. The Lord has used pagan nations in the past to humble Israel, and so he again has brought Gentiles to faith in Christ to make the Jews jealous. To Paul it is the old story of God, the lover of Israel, going to great lengths to woo his people back.

Some criticize the apostle for being anti-Semitic, but this charge is unfounded. As we have seen, Paul himself is a Jew, heart-broken over his people's rejection of their own Messiah. What he says, he says in love. For Paul, Israel's current hardness of heart fits the pattern of 14 centuries of disobedience and repentance, something the apostle can well identify with from his own journey from zealous oppressor of the church to its greatest advocate. If Paul is an anti-Semite, then we would have to consider Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel and the rest of the OT prophets to be the same-- those who spoke out against the nation's superficial righteousness and her rejection of God. Like Paul, they also spoke out with great anguish of heart, but also in hope that the Lord would not utterly abandon his people. Thus the stage is set for Paul's amazing message of hope and restoration for Israel in chapter 11.

Questions to Consider:

1. According to Paul, what is his heart's desire and prayer for his fellow Jews? How do you see this passion expressed in these two chapters?

2. In what way was Israel's pursuit of rightousness commendable? In what way was it misguided? What were they missing? Why was that crucial?

3. Have you been a verbal witness to the Lordship of Jesus Christ this past week? If so, how? If not, what stands in your way?

2006-01-20T13:50:00.000-08:00

Romans

Lesson #10 (chapter 9)

From the soaring heights of his affirmation of God's unshakeable grace in Christ in ch. 8, Paul suddenly plummets to earth and launches into a passionate description of Israel's calling as a nation and her current, heart-breaking apostasy. It is as if the previous discussion about how "nothing can separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus" has begged the question, "Well, then what about Israel, God's own people? What about his promises to them? Has he rejected them? How could a good God allow such a thing?"

vv. 1-3-- In this heart-rending section, Paul describes in no uncertain terms his unending sorrow and anguish over his own nation's rejection of Christ. (In saying Israel has rejected Christ, Paul is of course speaking generally, for a large percentage of the church at Rome, and elsewhere, was Jewish. Yet Christian Jews were a small minority within Judaism, the bulk of the nation having rejected Christ.) Although Paul is the "apostle to the Gentiles," he is still a Jew at heart, and therefore would be willing even to sacrifice his own salvation if it would lead to Israel's turning to Jesus. Of course, God would never cut such a deal. Paul is merely expressing the heart of a true intercessor, one who had wrestled daily and tearfully in prayer on behalf of his own people, standing in the gap between a loving God and a rebellious nation. In Exodus 32:32, following Israel's great apostasy in making a golden calf idol, Moses, too, had asked God to forgive the people's sin, or if not, that he would blot the prophet's own name out of his book instead. Thankfully, the Lord did not honor this request but firmly told Moses that he would only blot out those who had sinned against him.

vv. 4-5-- Yet Israel still has a special place in God's heart and in his plan. (When Paul speaks of the Jews as God's people, he uses the covenant name Israel, the name given to Jacob after his encounter with God in Gen.32.) They were the first to be called "My people" by the Lord. It was among them that God had stooped to build a dwelling place for his presence and to make a covenant agreement to stand by and bless his people, provided they stood by him. The patriarchs Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and his 12 sons were the first Hebrews to be called by the Lord, and he had promised to give them the land of the Canaanites and to make them a great and mighty nation. To King David he had sworn to give a lasting dynasty that would never perish. And lastly and most important, it was from this nation that the Lord had brought forth his Messiah, just as he promised.

vv. 6-13-- No, God has not failed in his promises. If we look back at Israelite history, we see clearly that not all of Abraham's descendants received the promise. For of the patriarchs' two sons, the Lord chose Isaac, not Ishmael, and Jacob, rather than Esau. It was not to the strongest or the first-born that the Lord bestowed his promise, but to the one whom he had chosen (elected) out of his own sovereign plan-- not because of anything good or bad they had done. God's plan is a mystery, and his choices are neither arbitrary nor dependent on man's puny efforts or so-called "good works." In saying, "It is not the natural children who are God's children," Paul is again making a distinction between those who are Israelites by blood and those by faith. In ch.4 he made a similar distinction between circumcision of the flesh and of the heart. It is those who walk in faith like Abraham who inherit the promise. Paul goes on to quote Genesis 25:23, "Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated," as evidence of God's sovereign choice of the younger brother over the elder. Humanly speaking, by rights, Esau, as the firstborn, should have inherited the double portion of his father's property, including any promises from God. But the Lord bestows his blessing on whomever he chooses; it is not up to man or human customs to determine. God did not literally "hate" Esau; the expression is common in Semitic languages and represents a comparison in which one is favored over the other (see Matthew 6:24).

vv. 14-18-- Here we come to one of the most difficult passages in all of Paul's letters-- not because the author's language is obscure, but because here Paul is attempting to justify the mysteries of God's will in election (his sovereign choice to save one person over another). To those who would accuse God of playing favorites or of injustice, Paul points out that no one deserves or merits salvation; it is all God's mercy. Paul quotes Exodus 33:19, "I will have mercy on whom I have mercy...," in which the Lord reveals some of his nature to Moses, stating that he is sovereign (supreme in rank and power and completely independent in his decisions). The example is given of Pharoah, king of Egypt, whose heart the Lord had hardened in order that the glory of God might be displayed over the mightiest kingdom on earth and its false gods. The more Pharoah hardened his heart, the more God displayed his power on behalf of his people Israel. This does not signify that God instilled a hard heart in Pharoah-- his heart was already deceitful and hard. Rather, God consigned him to disobedience, stepping back and turning him over to his own stubborn willfulness. (Recall in ch.1:24,26 how God, seeing humankind's sinfulness, stepped back and let them have their way. In this context, the Lord's "wrath" is defined as letting us go our own way.) Playwright Oscar Wilde once remarked that there are two tragedies in this life: not getting what you want, and getting exactly what you want, and the latter is by far the worse!

vv. 19-21-- Is this unfair? Paul asks. After all, how can anyone resist God's will?-- in which case, why does he blame us for unbelief? Paul is using a rhetorical technique in arguing both sides of the issue in order to make his point. He is not saying that human beings cannot question God. The idea is that God as Creator is not answerable to human beings; no mere creature has the right to find fault with his Creator. A potter makes whatever he likes out of clay; some vessels for beauty and some for daily use. The point is that God can do whatever he likes, for he is God. But the analogy should not be pressed too far, for God is no bully, and no one can accuse him of injustice.

vv. 22-29-- Recall from ch. 3 (vv.25-26) that God's nature is both just and merciful. Human sin puts God in a quandary, for he must judge sin, else he cannot be considered just. Yet he longs to be merciful-- hence Christ's atoning sacrifice for us on the cross. God is patient with the disobedient. He is not slow in acting; he is merciful, wanting no one to perish, but all to come to repentance (2.4). Yet God's wrath, when it falls, falls justly on the disobedient. He does this to demonstrate his justice to us, the objects of his mercy, that he is a just God who hates sin. When we see the judgment of God, how much more do we marvel at his mercy toward us! Paul quotes the prophet Hosea, from passages that originally applied to Israel as a disobedient nation, called back to obedience by the mercy of God. But here, Paul is applying this principle to believing Gentiles, who were not God's people but have now been called into covenant relationship through Christ. Here follow two more Old Testament quotations, from Isaiah, in which the Lord promises that only a small portion, of Israel will be saved from judgment and destruction. In the original passages, God, after centuries of patience and mercy, is judging Israel for her disobedience, corruption and idolatry. Yet because of his promises to the patriarchs, he preserves a remnant, lest the whole nation perish like Sodom from the earth. Do you still think God is unjust? Read on.

vv. 30-33-- Paul goes on to explain that Gentiles, who were not even looking for God's righteousness, have found it through faith in Christ. This is God's mercy: to take a people who were not his people and make them his own. Yet what of God's people Israel? Weren't they seeking God's righteousness? Yes, but most of them sought it by works of the law, that is, by trying to put God in their debt, when they should have sought it by faith. They did not see that the law was pointing to Christ all along; they failed to see the forest for the trees! The early church saw in these quotations from Isaiah (v.33) that Christ was the stone that causes many to stumble.

Thus we must hold in tension the sovereignty of God and personal responsibility. "God's rejection of Israel was not arbitrary but was based on Israel's rejection of God's way of gaining righteousness (by faith)" (NIV Study Bible, p.1721). God is sovereign; yet human beings are not puppets. We are responsible for our own failure to live up to God's standards. Yet no one can come to Christ unless God, through the Holy Spirit, opens his eyes (John 6:44). None of us merits salvation. God in his eternal wisdom and the mystery of his will, has chosen some to receive mercy unto eternal life and leaves others to their own disobedience. If we are saved, we have only God to thank. If we are lost, we have only ourselves to blame.

Ultimately, God's will is a mystery. As finite human beings we can never hope to wrap our minds around his. Yet, if we are tempted to feel God is unjust, we have only to look at his Word, and at his mercy in Jesus Christ. There we see that he is without fault, perfectly just and fair, patient, loving, kind and wondrously merciful and generous!

Paul's teaching here has tempted some to go too far in determining who is chosen and who is not. The Lord never gave us that authority. We do not know anyone's heart or what may happen in the future. Paul himself was an unlikely candidate for salvation, a hardened Pharisee who persecuted the church, but then God had mercy on him and transformed him by the grace of Christ.

Yet has Israel been rejected beyond hope, beyond redemption? Is her hardening permanent? By no means, as we shall see.

Questions to Consider:

1. Read Ephesians 1:3-14. What does Paul have to say about God's gift of salvation in Christ? When were we chosen and why? For what purpose? Should this make us proud or humble?

2. Have you ever wondered angrily why God permits certain things in this world? Have you ever been tempted to accuse God of being unjust or unfair? How do you think Paul would answer that question, based on his arguments in ch.9?

3. How do God's qualities as both just and merciful manifest themselves in his sovereign choice to "harden" some and to show mercy to others?

4. Ultimately, what was the reason for Israel's hardening? What did she stumble over?

2006-01-01T09:54:00.000-08:00

Romans

Lesson 9 (chapter 8)

Section IV (cont’d)

D. Life in the Spirit (8:1-17)

8:1-4-- Here is another “therefore,” signaling that Paul is drawing a conclusion from what has been said previously (especially in chs. 6-7). The glorious good news is that now, through Jesus, believers are no longer under the condemnation of God’s law. For the power of sin at work in us, as described in 7:23, has been broken by the life-giving Holy Spirit, which has been bestowed on the believer through Jesus Christ. The law was not able to justify sinners, but Jesus has done it through his atoning death on the cross. So our sin has been judged according to the law; in Christ’s physical body the death sentence has been pronounced and carried out. We are now dead to sin and alive to God through the Holy Spirit. We need not live in sin any longer; we are to live following the dictates of the Spirit. How do we live in this victory?

vv.5-8-- Christ has won the victory for us; it’s now a matter of what will control our minds. Paul now elaborates on his theme in ch.6 (how we count ourselves dead to sin). The word “mind” used in this passage (Gk phronema) does not necessarily refer to the brain as an organ; it has the sense of a “mindset” or “focus,” what we pursue or strive after. Whose side will we take in this battle? With whom will we agree—the flesh or the Spirit? When we were under the control of sin, our thoughts, aspirations, goals were under its influence. Now, however, by yielding to the Holy Spirit at work within us, we are to focus on God’s will, what we know is true and good (see Romans 12:1-2; Colossians 3:1-17). We have said that justification involves our standing before God (being declared holy), while sanctification is a process whereby we are made holy in thought, word and deed, after the pattern of Christ. Sanctification involves our cooperation, and therefore it may be said that Christ’s victory over sin is made effective in us as we, by faith, yield our thoughts and wills to the Spirit. We cannot make ourselves holy, as Paul has spent the last 7 chapters proving, nor can we ever hope to please God on our own. But by surrendering ourselves to the Spirit, who now lives in us, we can begin to walk in the truth of the new life Christ has won for us. This is the meaning of that which Jeremiah prophesied in regard to the new covenant which the Lord would make with his people: “It will not be like the covenant I made with their forefathers [i.e. the laws of Moses]…. I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts” (Jer. 31:31-34). God is not only with us, he is in us! Let us therefore yield to him.

vv.9-11—Paul is making the connection that the Spirit of God and that of Christ are one and the same, and that this Spirit is given to all those who believe. The apostle is acknowledging the full divinity of Christ here. In Christian doctrine, God is a “Trinity,” one God in three distinct persons—Father, Son and Holy Spirit-- each one equally God. It is the Holy Spirit, the third person of the Trinity, that gives us new spiritual life by imparting the life of Christ to us. Or in other words, Christ lives in us through the indwelling Spirit of God, who takes what is Christ’s and gives it to us (cf. John 14:16-18). Since we now have Christ in us, our sinful nature (here again represented by “body” v. 10; cf. 6:6) has been crucified (“dead”), but we have his resurrection (new spiritual) life; we are made alive again spiritually. On Easter morning, God the Father raised Jesus to life through the power of his Holy Spirit. Since that same Spirit now lives in us, we know with certainty that, even though we may die before Jesus’ return, God can and will raise our bodies up, too, at the Last Judgment.

(Note: Regarding our sanctification, Paul is not saying that a sinless perfection is attainable in this life. For as long as we live in this sin-corrupted flesh, even our best deeds are tainted. The difference is that we need no longer allow sin to constrain us, for the Spirit enables us both to fight and win.)

vv.12-17-- It is still possible for the believer to live according to the sinful nature, if he obeys its dictates. But the truth is, we need not. Paul is emphatic that those who do so will die (not inherit eternal life). We owe the flesh nothing; we need not be controlled by it any longer. Our “obligation” is now to Christ, to live according to the Spirit, in righteousness—for this Christ died. Those who, by the power of the Holy Spirit within them, are able to overcome the patterns and temptations of the old nature, truly demonstrate that they have been adopted as children (“sons”) of God. Indeed, we have been “adopted” into God’s family. The Spirit given to us does not bring condemnation and anxious fear, but peace and confidence— he testifies that we are no longer objects of wrath, but God’s beloved children (cf. 5:5 & notes). So we are able to call God our Father (Abba is Aramaic for “Daddy,” a term of intimacy and affection. It is this intimate word that Jesus used in addressing his heavenly Father and ours. It was not a term used by the Jews in addressing God directly. Thus Jesus’ employing it so frequently in his teaching underscores his unique relationship with God, one that he wants his followers to share [see Mk 14:36; Lk 11:2; Matt 6]). If we are God’s children, then we are also his heirs, destined to inherit his blessing and riches, which Jesus will share with us. In this sense Christ is not only our Lord but our brother and “co-heir” as well! Yet if we are to inherit a share in Christ’s heavenly glory, we must also share some of his earthly suffering (cf. 2Tim. 2:8-13). It’s a package deal—and oh, how much energy we spend trying to escape from the latter! We live currently in a tension between two kingdoms: Satan’s, which is doomed to perish, and God’s, which is present but not yet fully realized. Our flesh will still want to follow the former (that’s why we’re getting new bodies!). But spiritually, we belong to the new creation, so we must follow the Spirit.

E. Assurance of Eternal Life (8:18-39)

vv.18-21-- Paul was a man of tremendous anointing and intimacy with God, but he also suffered greatly, for he walked in Christ’s path. Yet the apostle encourages us that our sufferings are “present” (i.e. “for now,” not destined to last long) and nothing in comparison to the glory we will share for eternity with Christ. Creation itself (the earth, stars, plants, animals, etc.) can hardly wait for this moment—when we will put on our new glorious resurrection bodies. As his representatives on earth, Adam and Eve were given governorship over God‘s creation. When they fell, the creation too became subject to sin and its effects (death and decay; see God’s curse in Genesis 3:17-19), and it has suffered with us to this day. The “frustration” or “futility” Paul refers to is that, because of this curse, creation is not able properly to fulfill its purpose. God’s cursing creation was not intended as the last word, however, for he did so in the expectation (here “hope” in the sense of a plan or goal) that one would come (Christ, the offspring of the woman [Gen 3:15]) who would liberate both humanity and creation. After the Last Judgment, God will renew not only our bodies, but creation as well. There will be a new heaven and a new earth—free from bondage to death and decay (cf. Isaiah 65:17; Rev. 21).

vv.22-25-- In Mk 13:8 Jesus describes certain natural disasters as but the beginning of “birthpangs” (traumas signifying that something great is about to be born). In Rabbinic writings, the “birthpangs of Messiah” are those cataclysmic events that herald the coming of God’s anointed. Like us, creation wants this age of suffering and pain to be over with. Our own bodies and souls also groan, “How long, O Lord?!” Indeed, God saved us with this end (our resurrection) in view. The “firstfruits of the Spirit” refers to the abiding presence of the Holy Spirit given to us as a downpayment or foretaste of what is to come (cf. Eph 1:14). For we have indeed been adopted, but our identity as God’s children is not yet fully manifest; it waits to be revealed at Jesus’ coming. If we already had what we hope for, Paul encourages us, then hope is unnecessary. But since our hope is not yet realized, we must wait with patient longing.

vv.26-27-- The Holy Spirit within us also assists us in this waiting by interceding (praying to God) for us with prayers that go deeper than mere words. Some see in these verses a reference to the gift of tongues, but the connection is not clear. More likely, Paul refers more generally to human weakness in the face of prayer: the task of praying for the coming consummation of God’s kingdom is greater than our abilities; it is a prayer that goes beyond words. Even our best prayers fall sadly short. Only the Spirit himself, who knows God’s mind, can intercede for us with any true accuracy and effectiveness, mixing our poorer efforts with his perfection. Certainly, the gift of tongues could be included as part of this.

vv.28-30—It is not clear from the language whether Paul means to say “all things work together for the good…” or “he [God] works all things together for the good….” Nevertheless, the central point is the same. For the One who saved us is sovereignly at work in us and in our circumstances to see to it that we inherit the prize. God’s sovereignty (i.e. his supreme power) is such that even the actions of the rebellious must ultimately serve his will. Thus, he not only helps us in our difficulties, but he does so in such a way as to cause his will for us to triumph, thereby gaining glory over all the work of the enemy. We who believe have been “called” according to his particular plan. God “foreknew” us not in the sense that he knew something ahead of time. Since he is eternal, he dwells above and beyond time. Time is not linear to him; it is as a single moment (“With the Lord, a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day” 2Ptr 3:8). He chose us, and therefore knew us, before the creation of the world (cf. Eph 1:4-5; 2Tim 1:9-10). This is called election (from Latin for “choosing”). Predestination refers to God’s plan or goal for those whom he has chosen. This plan is that we become fully sanctified (made holy), conforming to the image of Christ. God created men and women to be in his image (to reflect his qualities; Gen 1:26-27). That image has been defaced by sin. Enter Jesus as the perfect man, in the image of God (cf. Col 1:15; Heb 1:3). In him and through relationship with him, God’s image is restored in us (our sanctification). This is a process that will be completed at Christ’s coming (1Jn 3:2). God’s plan is that his Son would not be alone in enjoying the blessings and privileges of “sonship,” but that Jesus might be the firstborn or eldest son, the Head of a great multitude of God’s children. But in everything Jesus is pre-eminent (cf. Col 1:18). Paul does not mean to say that we shall share Christ’s divine nature and attributes; Jesus is the Son of God and always has been, and as such he enjoys a unique relationship with the Father. We are God’s children, Christ’s brothers and sisters by adoption in and through Christ. Chosen before time, we have now been “called” or “summoned” within the matrix of human history. God calls us out, summoning us forth, from the vast pool of humanity (cf. Gal 1:15). There is a 5-fold chain in Paul’s salvation process: chosen→ predestined → called → justified → glorified. Our glorification will come in its fullness at our resurrection, when, with new bodies, we will share in the Son’s glory. Yet in one sense, the glorification has already begun in the sanctification process (our being conformed after Christ’s image). It may also be said that we are glorified in as much as Christ is now glorified, at the Father’s right hand, and we are in Christ (“[God] seated us with him [Christ] in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus,” Eph 2:6).

vv.31-34—Paul now asks, rhetorically, how we can respond to such a lavish gift? What follows is in effect a fitting conclusion to this section, as well as to the argument of the letter up to this point. “This” (v.31) refers to the past six chapters (3-8). God is certainly “for us”—one of Paul’s understatements!—(Gk. lit. “on our side,” not in the sense of one who is a mere ally, but as one who, as Lord, is mercifully and lovingly disposed to help us). Paul does not say that no one is against us. Surely, he had many enemies. Yet we have none that we need fear, since God is an army of One (cf. Ps 56:9,11). The point of this passage, through v. 39, is that though we may suffer grievously (as Paul certainly did), our enemies cannot snatch us from God’s hands. That God “did not spare his own Son” echoes the story of Abraham’s sacrifice of Isaac (Gen 22:12,16). Like Abraham, God has not withheld even his most precious possession from us. The comparison serves to underscore, from a human standpoint, the costliness of God’s sacrifice. Paul’s argument here is similar to that in 5:9-10: since God has already done the most costly thing (surrendering his Son unto death on our behalf), we can be certain he will not let us down in anything but will provide all that is necessary for our salvation (i.e., Christ has done it; the rest are details). Since God is the Supreme Judge and it is he who has provided for our release, who can condemn us? It matters not if people or Satan himself attacks or slanders us. The Son of God is at the Father’s right hand (the place of favor and privilege) and has his ear, making intercession for us! Indeed, the one who died for us has now been declared “Lord” and given all authority in heaven and earth by the Father. It’s sure good to know people in high places!

vv.35-39— Paul asks another rhetorical question: Can anything or anyone ever come between us and such a loving Savior? The most harrowing trials and difficulties of life are nothing in comparison to God’s power and faithfulness. Persecution, danger, violence, poverty, hunger, even martyrdom—Paul had experienced all of these, save the last (and that too would come). He quotes Ps 44:22 to demonstrate that such trials have always followed God’s people down through the ages. Rabbis applied this Scripture to the martyrs who gave their lives for God. At times it may seem like we are ducks in a shooting gallery and God is very quiet about it. Paul addresses this question in one of the most sublime and often quoted passages in Scripture (vv.37-39), so simple yet beautiful in its supreme confidence in the grace given to us in Christ. Paul begins his answer with a “But” (translated in the NIV as “No”): on the contrary, he says, even though these things happen, indeed not only in spite of them but in the very experiencing of them, we are more than conquerors (Gk lit. “super-overcomers”). Our victory is more than complete; it’s overwhelming-- not through mere moral courage, perseverance or sheer grit on our part, but through the power and promise that are in Jesus Christ. Not so much because we cling to him, but because he holds so tightly onto us. Why? Because he has chosen us, predestined us, called, justified and glorified us. Convinced of this, Paul is completely certain (there is no doubt; the matter is settled in his mind) that nothing can snatch us from God’s hands. For much of the Old Testament period, death was thought of as the great separator of God and man (cf. Psalms 6:5; 88:5); the dead were cut off from his presence and care. Paul attacks this greatest of fears first: death cannot separate us from God’s providential care nor his plan and destiny for us. And if death cannot, then surely neither can anything in this life. Paul mentions “demons” (Gk lit. “rulers”) and “powers.” These somewhat obscure references probably indicate categories of powerful demonic beings, who work behind the scenes in the “heavenly realms,” and whose hierarchical authority probably extends over larger areas (even whole nations). In his great passage on spiritual warfare Eph 6:10-18, Paul refers to these invisible and formidable enemies using the same language. We do not know with any precision what they are, but it is enough to know that no spiritual or cosmic power, whether good or evil, can separate us from Christ. In Col.2:5 and Eph 1:21, Paul states that Jesus has disarmed and triumphed over these demonic forces through his cross and resurrection. In referring to “height” and “depth” the apostle is perhaps speaking spacially of places impossible for man to conquer—the highest height and the deepest depth, or maybe even heaven and hell themselves. This may be a reference to Ps 139:8, in which David marvels that no place is beyond God’s reach and the scope of his presence. Lest he has left anything out, Paul concludes this list with the addition “anything else in all creation.” Thus, the list is meant to be all-encompassing: nothing that exists can separate us from God’s love that has come to us through the mediation of Christ—NOTHING!

Thus ends the first half of Romans. In the second half Paul will share his understanding of God’s providential plan and place for Israel in salvation history (chs. 9-11). He will also render 4 chapters of practical advice on how Christians are to conduct themselves in both the church and the world (chs. 12-15).

Questions to Consider:

1. According to Paul, why is there no condemnation for those who are in Christ? How did Christ achieve this and what did his death mean for us?

2. What is the result of setting one's mind on the sinful nature? What is the result of setting one's mind on the Holy Spirit? Compare with Galatians 5:16-26.

3. According to vv. 9-17, what does it mean for us that we have the Holy Spirit living in us?

4. In what ways are our human struggles with sin made manifest in nature? What conclusion does all creation look and yearn for?

5. What is God's purpose or destiny for us? How does Christ's sacrifice on our behalf give us hope for the future and for the trials we experience? What does it mean that "we are more than conquerors"?

6. How would you use this chapter to encourage a friend who is struggling with sin? How about a friend who is going through a painful ordeal at home or at work? Or a friend who is suffering from a terminal illness?

2006-01-01T09:53:00.000-08:00

Romans

Lesson 8 (ch. 7)

Section IV cont’d:

C. Freedom from the law’s condemnation (ch.7)

7:1-3-- Paul directs his attention to the believer’s freedom from the condemnation of the law—God’s law, that is, not man’s. In 6:14 he stated that “sin shall not be your master, because you are not under law but under grace.” In this chapter he clarifies this doctrine lest there be any misunderstanding. Paul’s statement that he is addressing those who “know the law” probably refers to the fact that even the Gentiles within the church had some familiarity with Old Testament law. (Recall that at the date of the writing of Romans, there were no written Gospels. The only Scriptures used by the churches were the Greek translation of the books of the Hebrew Old Testament.) He gives an illustration from everyday life: a wife is bound by law in marriage to her husband until he dies. At his death, she is free to marry again, but not before (because of the laws against adultery).

vv.4-6—In the same way, through Christ’s death, we too have died to the law. Since Jesus died for us, in God’s eyes we have died and so paid sin’s penalty under the law. So we are no longer bound to the law (no longer under its condemnation). We no longer serve the law as our husband in the sense of our futile efforts to try to measure up to its demands. We serve Christ; we are united with him. He is our husband, so that our lives now glorify God. We no longer serve the sinful nature, resulting in death; we serve the Spirit of God, resulting in eternal life. Here again Paul contrasts the “old way” of legalism (represented by the written law, which had no power to impart righteousness), and the “new way” of the indwelling Holy Spirit. Exactly what this looks like he will develop further in ch. 8. Our having been “in the flesh” (v.5) refers to our having once been controlled by our sinful nature. Paul often uses the word “flesh” in this sense: it is a synecdoche, a word that represents a larger idea with which it is associated (e.g. “the pen is mightier than the sword,” where “pen” and “sword” are instruments representing writing and fighting respectively). Here the “flesh” stands for our fallen nature, since sin so often uses our bodies to accomplish its ends. In referring to the law as the “written code” (v.6), or more literally “the letter,” Paul means not so much the law itself but our approach to it or misapplication of it (i.e., our trying to fulfill it in our own strength). Remember Jesus’ parable of the Pharisee and Tax-collector in Luke 18.

vv.7-12-- In ch. 6 he described how the believer has died to sin. In this chapter he shows how we have died to the law. Lest the reader make the faulty inference that the law must therefore be evil, Paul returns to the idea he formed in ch. 5: that on the contrary, the purpose of the law was to convict us of sin and show us our need for a savior. The law was intended to lead us to life. It was not the law’s fault that sin “seized the opportunity” to rebel even further, resulting in death. It is as if sin saw its dominion threatened and dug its heels in further. The law itself is holy. In saying that “sin deceived me,” Paul uses language reminiscent of Adam’s and Eve’s fall in Genesis 3. Like the serpent in that story, sin exploited the law’s purpose (to protect man) and turned it around to make it an instrument of condemnation.

v.13— If the law resulted in our condemnation and death, then is the law to blame for our death? No. Death is the result of sin. The law merely exposes sin because it is God’s holy standard; it does not directly produce sin or death. It shows us that we are utterly corrupt and powerless.

vv.14-20-- In this passage Paul articulates the despair of the sinner who recognizes that he is powerless to do good, even if he wants to. Something inside him (the sinful nature) keeps derailing him from God’s way. As the prophet Jeremiah says, “The heart is deceitful beyond all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?” (17:9). Note that Paul is not just talking about “sins” in the sense of individual acts of disobedience, but “Sin” in the sense of a spiritual force of rebellion within human nature over which one is absolutely powerless.

vv.21-25-- Paul contrasts God’s law, which we may know in our minds or consciences, and the “law” (principle) of sin at work in our fleshly nature. We may know God’s law in our heads, agreeing that it is good and right and even desiring to do it. Yet when it comes down to doing it, we find we are bound to follow sin, like a horse that stubbornly wants to follow the familiar path, no matter how hard you tug on the reigns. Our powerlessness, now illuminated by the law, makes us wretched indeed. Is there any hope? Can anyone save us? Yes, Paul affirms, God has mercifully made a way through Jesus Christ. The way is now paved for the next section in Paul’s argument (ch. 8).

In reading vv. 14-15, the question arises, of whom is Paul speaking? Certainly, in using the first person singular (“I”) he includes himself. But is that his life before or after conversion? This has been a matter of debate for 2000 years. Most likely Paul is speaking on behalf of all human beings everywhere; Christian or non-Christian, all struggle with sin. In using “I” he identifies with our human condition. Yet God has given us the victory through Jesus Christ.

Questions to Consider

1. According to Paul, in what way have we "died to the law"? How is that possible?

2. What was God's intention in giving the law? How does sin try to use the law to destroy us?

3. Can you relate to the struggle Paul describes in vv. 14-20? In what ways? In what areas did you struggle most before you were a Christian? In what areas do you struggle now?

4. What is the solution to this struggle, according to this chapter?

2005-12-15T07:37:00.000-08:00

Romans

Lesson #7 (Romans 6)

Section IV Cont’d:

B. Freedom from bondage to sin (ch. 6)

In chs. 3-5 Paul explains how God has provided for our redemption and justification. In the next 3 chapters, he will outline his doctrine of “sanctification”—the process by which the believer grows to maturity in Christ. He will do this in three parts: how we are freed from sin’s tyranny (ch 6) and the law’s condemnation (ch 7), as well as how we are to live our lives in the power of the Holy Spirit (ch 8). Whereas justification deals with our legal standing before God the Judge, sanctification has to do with our subsequent moral transformation (a changed life and behavior).

6:1-4-- Paul here begins to answer the charge leveled against him by his opponents: specifically, that the doctrine of justification by faith leads to moral license (presumptuous and out-of-control behavior). Recall that some Jewish Christians opposed Gentile inclusion in the church unless they were required to follow the laws of Moses and customs of Judaism. They had only to point to certain heretical splinter groups (called “antinomians” or “lawless ones”) attached to the church who practiced immorality under the guise of “freedom in Christ.” (See 3:8 & notes.) In response Paul demonstrates that the only logical and ethical response to his salvation doctrine is righteous, not immoral, behavior. In baptism the believer identifies himself with Christ’s death on the cross as well as his resurrection (symbolized in going under and coming up from the water). The Christian’s old “life” (if we can call such death life)-- that is, the old sinful nature—has been buried with Christ. Jesus’ new resurrection life is then imparted to the believer, a new spiritual nature (or a spiritual rebirth, being born again by the Spirit; cf John 3). The Christian now owes sin no allegiance; he need not obey its dictates. Once in Christ, it is not that the believer cannot or will never sin again; he is not freed from the possibility but rather the necessity. Baptism is an outward sign or symbol of the inner spiritual transformation that has taken place at conversion (when we first believe in Christ). In the first few decades of the church, baptism usually closely followed conversion, so that here Paul speaks of faith and baptism as one event.

vv.5-7—Although we have a new spiritual life, we still await the final consummation: our new resurrection bodies. Our union with Christ’s death assures us of this hope. But we are already united with his resurrection in the spiritual sense of our having received new spiritual life, his life (cf. Gal 2:20—“I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God who loved me and gave himself for me.”) If someone dies, he is no longer a slave to sin, because he is dead. Paul uses the terms “old self” and “body of sin” synonymously to refer to our old sinful nature. For the believer, this old self has been crucified, put to death, so that it can no longer enslave us.

vv.8-10-- Faith in Christ means we have died to the old nature and received his life in its place. Just as in the creation, when God breathed spiritual life into Adam (Gen 2:7), so through Christ we receive a new infusion of life from God. Jesus has defeated death, breaking forever its connection with sin. His resurrection is a first fruits of God’s new creation. Although as God’s sacrifice for sin, Jesus came under sin and its punishment (death), he cannot die again nor be under sin’s power. What he did, he did once for all. He now lives forever to glorify God the Father.

vv.11-14—As the first step toward victory over sin in our everyday life, we are to consider ourselves dead to sin and alive to God. As believers we are said to be “in Christ” (a term Paul uses frequently in his letters) since we have died and been raised to new life with him; his life is now in us and we are his. As a next step, we are not to let sin have its old tyrannical sway over us. In short, we are to become what we are already before God—i.e., righteous. Finally, we are not to give ourselves, our bodies in service to sin but to God. Paul is using the language of temple sacrifice. We are to offer ourselves to God’s service. We are not under law, not in the sense that we are without restraint or God’s principles to guide us, but in that we are no longer condemned by the law. Recall that the law had no power to help the sinner resist sin—so that we ended up being condemned by the law. But the grace of Christ does help us resist sin.

vv.15-18-- Again Paul returns to the subject of the Christian’s freedom. We have been freed from sin’s power not so that we may fall into it again. Rather we are now free, not to disobey, but to obey God. It is their wholehearted obedience to the gospel that has set them free. They are now “slaves” (in the sense of willing servants) to God and his righteousness. One must serve one master or the other, but not both.

vv.19-23—Paul admits that his slave metaphor is imperfect since we are not enslaved to God in the same way that we were enslaved to sin. Now we willingly give our selves to him, body and soul. But the metaphor is useful in illustrating the point. The old life of sin resulted in only shame and death. One reaps (or harvests) what one sows (or plants)—see Gal 6:7-10. If one sows to sin, one reaps death. If one sows to righteousness by yielding oneself to God, then one reaps holiness and eternal life. Or, to use another metaphor, Paul contrasts two kinds of servitude. If one works for sin as a master, the wages are death. No matter how hard one works, the pay is the same—death! If we turn to God as our master, we receive the free gift of eternal life. Note the difference between the wages of death, the futile wages for which one works, and the free gift of life, which cannot be earned but must be received.

Questions to Consider

1. How does Paul answer his critics who claim that his doctrine of salvation by faith results in unrestrained sin?

2. What does water baptism represent? What have we been united with? As believers in Christ, what should our relationship be with our former life of sin? How do resisting sin and offering ourselves daily to God work together?

3. How does Paul answer those false teachers who claim that since we are under grace, we are free to sin? What was the reward of being a slave to sin? What does it mean to be a "slave to righteousness"? What is the reward?

4. Are you walking in freedom today? Or is there some area of your life that continues to keep you in bondage? How might the truth of this chapter help you in your struggle with sin?

2005-12-15T07:09:00.000-08:00

Romans

Lesson #6 (Romans 5)

Section IV-- More good news: the results of this righteousness (5:1-8:39)

A. Peace with God (ch. 5)

5:1-5-- Paul now begins to address the church as “we” (those who believe in Christ and have been justified). Significantly, this pronoun would include both Jews and Gentiles—righteousness by faith has created a new people of God. The word therefore is always a significant transition which indicates a movement of thought from facts to a conclusion. The conclusion is based on the argument that precedes it. Paul affirms that the first result of this free gift of righteousness based on faith is (1) peace with God. In chs 1-2 he demonstrated how all humanity is under God’s wrath because of sin. Through Jesus’ sacrifice on the Cross, however, this wrath has been satisfied, in the case of those who believe, thus making a new relationship with God possible. We are no longer at war with our Creator; through Christ we are reconciled to God. By our trusting in what Jesus has done for us, we have also been given (2) access (right of approach) to God’s grace (his favor), which allows us to stand before him as righteous. The image is one of being led into the very presence of the King because of our connection with Christ (it’s not what you know; it’s whom you know!). And not only that, we have (3) a new standing before the King—not merely as criminals who have gotten off, but as his favored children. A further result is (4) the hope of God’s glory: that is, when we stand before his judgment seat on the Last Day, we will not experience condemnation, but rather an invitation to share Jesus’ eternal and glorified relationship with the Father. We will receive new, beautiful resurrection bodies, just like Jesus’, that won’t wear out or die, and we will live forever in his presence, as favored sons and daughters. In the New Testament, this expectation of the resurrection is the chief hope of the gospel, because in it we share in the full blessings of the renewal of all things—a new paradise. We also have (5) joy in suffering. Our hope is meant to bring us great joy, even now—especially in the midst of suffering. For we know that our inheritance is a heavenly one. Suffering causes us to cling more tightly to that promise which we cannot yet see, and so, over time, we develop perseverance. Continued perseverance results in a character (Gk lit. “testedness,” “refined character”) that is unwavering and godly, consistent, faithful. And a steady character confirms and strengthens the hope that we have, giving us even more joy. In other words, we walk by faith (what we know to be true of God), not by sight (the circumstances around us; cf. 2Cor 5:7). Circumstances may lie; God does not. The more we walk by faith, the more “faith-ful” we become and thus, the more full of faith and joy. Another result of our faith in Christ is the (6) love of God through the presence of (7) the Holy Spirit in our lives. Paul concludes that the hope we have is made even more real to us because God has given us a generous down-payment, a foretaste of that which is to come (cf. Eph 1:13,14). God actually dwells with us! The Holy Spirit testifies in our hearts (our inner being) that he is true and that he loves us. This Spirit also encourages us and intercedes for us on an ongoing basis. Thus, God’s love is “poured out” on us (consistently and lavishly) in our lives today, and we know and experience something of what it means to be beloved children of God. Yet this is only a relatively small portion of our heavenly inheritance to come. When we are sick and the Spirit heals us, when we are dejected and he comforts us, when we are in need and he provides-- these are but a tiny sample of that blessing that will be ours in eternity.

vv.6-8-- To give further evidence of the unfailing nature of God’s love, Paul goes on to say that the amazing thing about God’s love is that Jesus died for us while we were still in bondage to sin—when we could do nothing to help ourselves—indeed, when we were not even searching for him! This is no “God helps those that help themselves”—for God helped us while we were still helpless. In the human realm, it’s almost unheard of that someone would lay down his life for a godly person—let alone an enemy--although someone might possibly die for a “benefactor” (Gk
“good man”). But God showed the depth of his love for us by sending his most precious possession, his Son, to die in our place—while we were still in our sins! How great is that?

vv.9-11-- So if Jesus went so far as to give his life for sinners, so that we might be brought into right relationship with God, surely we will not be condemned when we stand before God at the Judgment—else why did Jesus die? If Christ has done such a difficult thing, how much more will he save us, whom he has now made righteous, from God’s wrath on the Last Day. We have been reconciled to God: Jesus has brought a rebellious humanity and a holy Creator together again. This is a cause for celebration.

vv.12-14-- Paul now addresses all of humanity, not just the church, in demonstrating how Christ’s death and resurrection have forever and radically changed the course of human history. He draws a contrast between Adam, the first sinner, and Christ, the first sinless man. When Adam and Eve sinned, rebelling against God’s command, sin and its penalty (death) entered into the world. Sin acted like a poison tainting every generation that followed, and so all were subject to death. True, the law was not given until the time of Moses, thousands of years later, so one could say that people were not as aware of sin (one does not notice how out of alignment a wall is until a plumb-line is used; yet it is none the less out of alignment. Ignorance of the law is no excuse.)

vv.15-19—Just as all humanity died because of Adam’s one act of disobedience, so Jesus’ act of obedience (his sacrifice) is able to make all righteous again. God’s wrath on humanity was a just penalty, but the righteousness that comes through faith in Christ is a lavish (overflowing) gift. The judgment on Adam was the result of one sin; the grace of Jesus Christ takes on the sins of the whole world, from beginning to end! Death has reigned since Adam’s fall; those who believe in Christ will reign eternally with him in his kingdom. So Adam = death; Jesus = life.

vv.20-21—In 3:20 Paul stated that the law did not have the power to make us righteous before God; rather, like a mirror, it all the more clearly shows us our sin and our need of a Savior. Here he begins to elaborate on this theme: that when the Lord gave the law to Israel, it is as if sin really sprang into action. For through the law, not only was sin exposed for what it was, but our sinful nature was also incited to further rebellion (see 7:7-25). To sin in ignorance is bad; to sin knowingly is worse. Thus through the law, our utter powerlessness and depravity were revealed. For example: Let’s say you have a bad habit of gossiping with your tongue (sin). You are not aware of it until a friend (the law) confronts you on it. You have hurt his feelings. You feel deeply ashamed and sorry. Now you are aware of it and you begin to see more and more how much gossip is a part of the way you speak. You try to stop, but you cannot. It seems to have a power of its own. The more you try to apply will power, the more you see that you are powerless over this sin. It’s as if it spews out from some rebellious well deep inside you. It doesn’t get better, only worse. You need help! According to Paul, the good news is that while the law caused the awareness of sin to increase, God in his mercy had something else up his sleeve—his Son Jesus Christ. So whereas sin increased, so did God’s mercy, by securing our forgiveness through the Cross. Cool, huh?

Questions to Consider

1. According to this chapter, what 7 things result from the free gift of God's salvation by faith in Christ? Do you find these things in your life today-- are you walking in them?

2. Why is it so significant that Christ died for us while we were still in our sins? What does this tell us about God? About our own ability to save ourselves?

3. What point is Paul trying to make in vv.9-11? How should Christ's sacrifice on the cross affect your assurance of salvation? Do you have that assurance?

4. What does Adam represent in this chapter? What was the effect of the law? How does Paul contrast Adam with Christ?

2005-12-07T11:57:00.000-08:00

Romans

Lesson #5 (Romans 4)

Section III- The good news (cont’d)

B. Received by Faith (cont’d)

4:1-3-- To support his argument, Paul now reaches back into the Hebrew Scriptures and Israelite history to demonstrate further that justification comes (and has always come) by faith. He goes straight to the root itself: Genesis, the first book of the Bible, and to the father of the nation of Israel, the patriarch Abraham. This man lived four centuries before the law was given to Moses on Mt. Sinai. And did Abraham boast of his good works? No, not before God. Yet surely he was a righteous man. Yes, but the Scripture states clearly that God attributed righteousness to him, not because of any individual merit, but because he simply believed God (trusted in God’s goodness and faithfulness to his promise). Paul quotes Genesis 15, in which the patriarch, now in his eighties, complains to the Lord that he still has no son. Years before, God had promised to make Abraham into a mighty nation (Gen 12:1-3). Yet still he remained childless. The Lord reconfirms his promise with an oath and a sign, and Abraham is satisfied, taking God at his word. The Lord then considers him (a Hebrew bookkeeping term, literally, “credited to his account”) to be righteous. The patriarch now has God’s righteousness, not his own, in his heavenly account!

vv.4-8-- In Jewish rabbinical writings, it was commonly believed that Abraham’s faith was a meritorious act that somehow obligated God to the nation of Israel. Yet, if his righteousness were on the basis of good works, the Scriptures would not have used the words “credited as righteousness” in relation to his faith. Abraham is merely the receiver of a promise, one freely given. When a man works for something, his pay is given to him as an obligation, not a gift. Yet Abraham’s right standing before God was a gift. As a Jewish rabbi, Paul is going out on a limb here by inferring that even Father Abraham himself was a sinner in need of grace. It is not that Abraham was without “good works” in the human sense, but he did not trust in these but in the Lord, who alone can justify a person. Paul now jumps 800 years later to another great patriarch in Israel’s history, King David, who writes in Psalm 32 of the “blessedness” (good fortune, happiness) of the man whose sins the Lord has forgiven. Here again, it is God’s mercy (grace, a free gift) and not human righteousness that is exalted. The context of the psalm is one of complete weakness, vulnerability and reliance on God. Both Abraham and David were, to the Jews and God-fearing Gentiles, mighty and righteous men of God, heroes of the Jewish faith. Thus, in quoting them, Paul is making a strong case: i.e., if these great men were justified by faith, then how much more we sinners.

vv.9-12-- Paul now goes on to prove through the Scriptures that this righteousness by faith is available to both circumcised and uncircumcised alike. For Abraham was declared righteous (Gen 15) before he was given the command to circumcise all the males in his household (Gen 17). As Paul has already stated in ch.2, the rite of circumcision had no power in itself to make a man righteous. Circumcision, then, was a sign of participation in the promise (covenant) given to Abraham and a visible reminder of God’s faithfulness—like the “seal” on an official document which testifies to its authenticity (i.e., this one belongs to God, who is faithful to do all he has promised). This faithfulness would include, as in Abraham’s case, God’s power to make righteous those who believe, and so circumcision may be considered a “seal” of righteousness. So then Abraham is the role model (father) of faith for those who believe God’s promise in Christ, whether circumcised (Jew) or uncircumcised (Gentile).

vv.13-15-- Therefore, it was not the law that made Abraham and his heirs eligible to receive God’s promise of blessing. That law was given 400 years later! If righteousness came through the law, then no one could receive this promise. For, as already demonstrated, no one can be righteous enough, so the law brings only wrath.

vv.16-17— God’s promise of salvation thus comes to those who by faith, relying on God, believe and receive it as a free gift. The Lord promised to make Abraham the “father of many nations” (Gen 17:5). Indeed, his descendants include not only Israel, but the nations of Edom (Esau) and Ishmael as well. But ultimately, this promise was (and is being) more fully realized through the Gentiles’ coming to faith in Christ. Abraham is the “father” of those who are justified by faith, for he trusted God to fulfill his promise, even though he was an elderly man and both he and his wife physically past childbearing (see below). This is the God who created the universe from nothing and who can even resurrect the dead!

vv.18-25-- Although, speaking naturally, he was beyond hope of having children, Abraham believed God instead of the facts. Indeed, he was 100 years old and his wife 90 when the Lord began fulfilling the promise and their son was born! Thus does the Lord gain glory over all human effort and unbelief. He does not need our weak abilities; rather he is looking for those who, like this patriarch, will simply and stubbornly believe him. The analogy between Abraham’s childlessness and righteousness is clear: human righteousness is futile; God alone can declare the sinner righteous. Abraham’s faith was in both God’s ability and reliability. This faith was further tested when the Lord ordered him to sacrifice this child of the promise (see Gen 22). He obeyed and was willing to give up what his eye could see, in favor of what he knew God would ultimately give. When Isaac was spared at the last minute, it was as if his father were receiving him back from the dead (cf. Heb 11:19). Similarly, Christ was crucified and buried, and with him all the hopes of his disciples. Then on the third day, he was raised to life and his true glory revealed. Our faith is in that same God, who surrendered his Son to the Cross as a sin offering, and raised him from the dead that we might be justified. By his sacrificial death, Jesus paid the price for our sins, and by his rising again and ascending to the right hand of God the Father, he conquered death and made salvation available to all who believe. For Paul, the Old Testament story of Abraham is meant to encourage us and strengthen our faith in Christ. For God has demonstrated his “power to do what he had promised”: to justify sinners through faith, as well as to do the impossible in raising us from the dead—“the God who gives life to the dead and calls things that are not as though they were.”

Questions to Consider

1. What figures from Israel's past does Paul use to prove that salvation has always been based on faith, not works? Why these men? How do we know that they were justified by faith?

2. How does Paul demonstrate that salvation by grace through faith is also for the gentiles as well as the Jews? What is his line of reasoning?

3. Why is the story of Abraham's & Sarah's childlessness a good metaphor for salvation by grace through faith?

We are very interested in how many people, if any, participate in this online Bible study on a regular basis. If you do, please let us know by emailing us at stevevcf@optonline.net

2005-11-29T12:55:00.000-08:00

Romans

Lesson #4 (Romans 3)

Section II (Cont’d)

B. Sin even among the Jews (2:1-3:8) (cont’d)

3:1-2—Although he will go into more detail about this issue in chapter 9, here Paul asks an important question: if both Jew and Gentile are in bondage to sin, and if merely possessing the law or circumcision is no guarantee of righteousness before God, then is there any advantage at all in being a Jew? What’s the point of Israel’s being God’s chosen people? First, Paul says, the Jews have been entrusted as stewards of God’s revealed Word (the Mosaic law and prophetic writings). This responsibility would include their carefully preserving the Scriptures and treating them as holy, both in obeying them and teaching pagans to do so as well. This is both an honor and a privilege.

vv.3-4—While some Jews have responded to the gospel, the majority have not. Yet the hardness of some does not mean that God has broken his promise of salvation to Israel. For he is always just and fair. The fault is not God’s. The quotation here is from Psalm 51:4 (David’s great psalm of repentance), in which King David confesses his sin to the Lord, acknowledging that it is serious and that God is justified in judging him (i.e., you are right, and I am wrong).

vv.5-8—Paul now proceeds to answer the questions of some who might complain that God is unjust in judging the sinner. If, for example, human sin contrasted with God’s righteousness makes him appear even more holy and so brings him glory, why does he still judge us? This is a “human argument” (i.e., human reasoning in its self-justification and limited capacity to comprehend the ways of God). But if the Lord were even in the slightest measure unjust, he would not be in the position to be Judge. Some of Paul’s Jewish detractors had accused the apostle of spreading a pernicious doctrine of lawlessness and license: if our sin caused God to send his Son so that we might be forgiven, then let us sin all the more so that his grace may really flow! “You see,“ they said, “that’s where his doctrine of justification by faith leads!” Some Gentiles had in fact been led astray by false, supposedly “Christian” teachers (called Gnostics) who claimed that since human beings could produce nothing good anyway, it did not matter what they did. But Paul had never said such a thing and he condemns those who pervert the gospel in this way, using it as a license to sin. God will judge them accordingly.

C. Sin in all people (3:9-20)

vv.9-18-- In conclusion Paul maintains that all people, whether Jew or Gentile, are enslaved to sin. He now strings together quotations from the Old Testament (especially the Psalms) which testify to humanity’s sinful condition. The Lord looks back and forth across the earth for anyone who will seek him, but no one does. All are utterly corrupt—every single one! They are sinful in both word and deed; no one fears God. Sin is like a poison seeping from their hearts and spewing from their lips. Only darkness and uncleanness dwell within. They defile and destroy everything they touch. It is a very bleak picture of human righteousness that Paul paints—unredeemed humanity separated from God.

vv. 19-20-- Since the Scriptures (law) were given to the Jews, and the preceding quotations are from the Scriptures, God meant that this indictment of sin should apply to Jews as well and not merely to the Gentiles. In other words, Paul states, if “no one is righteous [before God], not even one,” then no one can be justified by observing the law, neither Jew nor Gentile. Rather, the law exposes and convicts us of our sin; it does not give us the power to overcome sin. The law places before us God’s holy standards. In our futile efforts to fulfill them, we realize just how sinful we are. This teaching is what the leaders of the Protestant Reformation called the “first use of the law”: i.e., to convict us of sin, to show us our powerlessness and our need for a Savior. This idea is important if the Old Testament law is to have any place or purpose in the lives of Christians. The law prepares us for salvation.

Section III-- The good news: God’s gift of righteousness through faith (3:21-5:21)

A. Through Christ (3:21-26)

vv.21-24-- Having rested his case against a thoroughly corrupt humanity and having exploded any illusion of justification by works of the law, Paul now proceeds to his presentation of the gospel. The good news is that despite man’s depravity, God has now revealed a way for us to have right standing before him. Although it is a righteousness “apart from [the Jewish] law,” the Law and Prophets (Hebrew Scriptures) nevertheless foretold its coming. Therefore it is in full continuity with and the fulfillment of God’s salvation plan for Israel and the Gentile nations. It is a righteousness that comes “from God” himself, not from man’s efforts, and is made available to all who believe (put their trust) in God’s Son, Jesus Christ. Just as all have sinned, both Jew and Gentile, and stand guilty before God, now all may be made righteous by the same free gift. “Redemption” refers to the act of regaining possessions through the payment of a debt. As Redeemer, Christ has paid the outstanding debt (death and eternal judgment) incurred by our sin, thus securing our release.

vv.25-26-- God the Father has offered his own Son as a blood sacrifice. Under Jewish law (and to a certain extent in pagan religions), the shedding of blood represented the life of the guilty party, given to appease the Deity (or god) offended by sin. Instead of the life of the offender, however, an innocent victim (usually an animal) could be offered, thus substituting life for life. The sacrifice made “atonement” for (appeased) or satisfied the debt. Such was God’s merciful provision for sin under Old Testament law. Yet this was merely a temporary dispensation, for at some point these sins would have to be judged and the offender punished. God is both just and merciful, holy and compassionate. Human sin therefore presented a heart-rending problem. The sacrificial system instituted by Moses thus “bought time” until Christ should come, at which point God’s wrath was poured out and human sin was judged. Through the crucifixion his justice was satisfied—yet also his mercy, for it was the Son of God who stood in our place, a sacrifice acceptable to God! For the one who believes in Christ, God’s wrath has been satisfied and the sinner declared innocent—for Another has confessed to the crime and borne the penalty!

B. Received by Faith (3:27-4:25)

vv.27-28-- In a later letter to the Ephesian church, Paul writes, “It is by grace you have been saved, through faith, not because of works, so that no one can boast” (Eph 2:8,9). Here, too, he concludes that it is has been sufficiently demonstrated that it is impossible for human beings to claim any righteousness through works of the law. There are no grounds for human boasting or glorying in one’s achievement, as though God owed us anything. As implied in v. 19, every mouth will be silent before such a righteous God. For it is not by fulfilling the law that one becomes righteous-- not by human effort--but by fulfilling the “law of faith.” As Paul will go on to explain in chs 4 & 9, there is a deeper and older law (or principle), one that predates the commandments given Moses on Sinai: that of justification by faith. God demonstrated it in the case of Abraham, but his descendants (the Jews of Paul’s day) missed the mark in pursuing righteousness by works of the law (cf 9:30-33).

vv.29-30-- As every Jew would admit, there is only one God, who is God of both Jews and Gentiles. That means, as a God of mercy and grace, he is merciful and gracious to all. Paul is in no way denying Israel’s special position in the plan of salvation. Yet through Christ, God has opened a way for all men to be justified by faith

v.31-- Does Paul mean to overturn the law? On the contrary, the Hebrew Scriptures (law and prophets) themselves testify that justification comes by faith. And in this doctrine alone one sees the law rightly as God intended it (i.e., it shows us our sin and leads us to Christ). Thus Paul’s teaching is not something out of left field, but entirely consistent with the whole of Scripture.

Questions to consider:

1. According to Paul, what advantage is there in being a Jew? Has God utterly foresaken his chosen people because of their unbelief?

2. What were Paul's detractors claiming? (v.8). Why was such a claim utterly false and a perversion of the gospel?

3. How does Paul use the Psalms to demonstrate that both Jews and gentiles are alike under bondage to sin? How does he use them to conclude that no one can be justified by keeping the OT law? What then is the purpose of the law?

4. How then can we be made righteous before God? In what way did Christ's sacrifice satisfy both God's justice and his mercy? In what way(s) does Paul's gospel "uphold the law" instead of nullifying it (v.31)?

2005-11-29T12:42:00.000-08:00

Romans

Lesson #3 (Romans 2)

Section II (Cont’d)

A. Sin even among the Jews (2:1-3:8)

v.1-- Note that Paul now switches from “they” (Gentiles) to “you” (singular). The person he addresses would be an imaginary individual who may have been cheering him on in his denunciation of Gentile practices but who now is about to have the mirror turned on himself. Here Paul is using a Greek literary convention called diatribe, which consists of an imagined dialogue with one’s opponent. Nevertheless, his argument reflects real situations and disputes within the Christian community at Rome and elsewhere. This imaginary opponent would have been a Jew, for the apostle now turns his attention from the sins of Gentiles to those of Jews. In his two-fold indictment (1:18-3:20), Paul makes the case that all humankind, both Jew and Gentile, is under bondage to sin. In the eyes of the pagan world, Jews had a reputation for having a superior attitude. Certainly, their refusal to participate in pagan rites and morality would have been interpreted in a negative way (in the Graeco-Roman view, a stubborn unwillingness to “fit in” was a serious moral fault, and Jews were therefore unjustly labeled as “haters of mankind”). But Paul also seems to be targeting an area of controversy within the Roman church itself: exiled Jews who had recently returned to Rome after the death of emperor Claudius would have found a church substantially different (wholly Gentile!) from the one they had left. It must have been a bitter pill. Were Jewish believers now separating themselves from their Gentile brethren or at least casting dispersions upon their practices (i.e. not following Jewish customs)? Were Gentile Christians rejecting Jews as superstitious and legalistic? If he is to succeed in making his case for justification by grace through faith, Paul must level the playing field, demonstrating there is no innate moral superiority in being racially Jewish or Gentile. For the sins listed in 1:29-31 were, in Paul’s view, prevalent also among Jews.

vv.2-3— Here Paul must have the teachings of Christ in mind: “Do not judge or you too will be judged”; “With the measure you use, it will be measured to you”; and “First take the plank out of your own eye” (Matt 7:1,2,5). The basic idea underlying both Paul’s and Jesus’ words is that since all have sinned, all are in like need of God’s mercy. No one is in a position to judge another; our own sin disqualifies us from condemning others. To condemn another is to condemn oneself. All people are totally helpless in the face of sin and dependent on God for salvation. In 1st-century popular Jewish thinking, the Jews’ special covenant relationship with the Lord somehow shielded them from judgment. Paul is dismantling this claim. If anything, the special revelation given to Israel entails a greater accountability.

v.4—The reason God has not judged them already is not because they are “better”, but because he is patient and kind, not wanting anyone to perish. Such kindness is meant to bear fruit in their lives-- repentance not arrogance—that they might live a changed life, rather than continuing in the same sins. Paul is calling for a little humility here on the part of the Jewish believers.

vv.5-8-- God has appointed a time when he will judge the world in righteousness, and all men will be called to account. Those who demonstrate repentance through their actions will be spared judgment, but those who persist in evil will bear God’s ultimate wrath. (Note this end-time wrath at the Last Day differs from that which is poured out now [v.18]. God’s current wrath is but a warning of that which is to come!)

vv.9-11-- Be they Jew or Gentile, every evildoer will be judged, and those who seek after good will be rewarded. Neither Jew nor Gentile will receive special treatment. Ironically, just as they receive the priority in hearing the gospel, so the Jews will be the first to be judged. (We are doubtless getting a special and detailed glimpse of the argument Paul may have used in his preaching in synagogues throughout his missionary journeys. No wonder he incurred so much hatred from some of his own people!) Paul’s teaching is completely consistent with that of Jesus, who made his own people jealous by prophesying that they will find righteous Gentiles eating at the table of God’s kingdom, while they themselves have been shut out (Matt 8:11,12). Israel was chosen that they might bear fruit, but if they show contempt for God’s generosity and do not live up to the light they have been given, they too will be cut off.

vv.12-16— God is both just and fair. Those who do not know God’s law (the Gentiles) will be judged according to the light they have been given. The Jews, who know the law, will be judged according to its standards. The issue is not whether or not one knows the law, but what one has done with what one knows. (Note: It may seem that Paul is building the opposite case, one of works righteousness. Consistent with the teaching of the OT and Jesus [Matt 16:27], the apostle states that all will be judged on the basis of what they have done. True. Yet the punchline he is coming to is that, given all this, no one is righteousness enough to inherit eternal life, for no one lives up to the light he has been given nor can he do anything good enough to merit salvation! Therefore, all stand in need of Christ.) The Creator has placed in every human being a conscience or basic sense of right or wrong that testifies to the truth, thus creating peace or guilt in our hearts. Indeed, Gentiles who do not know the written law of Moses confirm that there is a basic unwritten law in their consciences when they do acts of righteousness, or when they feel guilty about something. “That day” refers to the Last Judgment which will be convened by Jesus himself, who as Son of Man has been given this authority by the Father (cf. John 5:22; Acts 17:31).

vv.17-20—“If you call yourself a Jew.” Paul begins closing in, casting doubt on whether a Jew is really a Jew in the spiritual sense if a Jew in name only. Being a Jew involves many blessings and privileges, as Paul lists here. It is not those who know the law who are righteous, however, but those who do it. In the same vein, both Jesus and John the Baptist rebuked the Jews for relying on their ancestry (Abraham) rather than true repentance (Matt 3:8,9; John 8:37-47). Jesus went so far as to say that the true children of Abraham are those who hear his voice and follow him as Messiah; those who sought to kill him showed themselves to be children of the devil.

vv.21-24-- In his Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5 (“You have heard it said,… but I say,….”), Jesus intensifies the requirements of the law to demonstrate that sin is indeed a disease that begins in the human heart. God never intended the law to be concerned only with superficial behavior (as was the focus of the Pharisees). Here Paul gives a similar argument. A Jew may consider himself righteous under the law and look down on others because he has not broken a commandment in the external sense (stealing, adultery, idolatry). But the law was meant to go deeper, to cut through the human heart to expose its true wickedness, rebellion, perversity and powerlessness over sin. The adultery and theft Paul speaks of are those of the heart (cf. Matt 15-17-20). The Greek verb for “robbing temples” can also mean “commit sacrilege.” Robbing treasure from a pagan temple was a serious but common crime in the Graeco-Roman world. Jews would probably not have been involved in such things, unless they received or sold merchandise that had been stolen. Therefore, Paul probably refers more figuratively to “robbing God” in the sense of being sacrilegious, profaning the Sabbath, failure to give due glory to God, or withholding tithes and offerings. Because of their failure to live up to God’s law and to fear him as holy, Israel has in effect blasphemed his name before the Gentiles—contrary to their divine calling. Thus, just as the Gentiles have failed to live up to the revelation of God in nature, so the Jews have rebelled against his revelation in the law of Moses.

vv.25-27-- Circumcision for the Jew was meant to be an external sign of an inward consecration to the Lord (i.e., this one belongs to God). It was intended to accompany a life of worship, service and obedience to the Lord. While far from worthless, it had no power to save or justify in itself. Those who keep the law, though they be uncircumcised, have circumcision credited to them, since they are fulfilling its purpose. Paul may be referring to those Gentile God-fearers who attended Jewish synagogues and worshiped the Lord, but who stopped short of becoming proselytes in the fullest sense, a status that required circumcision (an act considered barbarous by Gentiles). Like Jesus, Paul infers that such righteous Gentiles will rise at the Last Judgment and condemn the law-breaker (Cf. Matt 12:41,42).

vv.28-29— One’s Jewishness and circumcision are confirmed by a changed heart and life. External righteousness pleases men, but God looks upon the heart. Jeremiah prophesied that the Lord would establish a new covenant for Israel, in which the law would be written on people’s hearts (Jer 31:31-34). This new covenant came through Jesus’ blood (Lk 22:20).

One can only imagine how these passages would have been received in Rome. Yet in this scathing indictment of his own people, Paul stands in the tradition of Old Testament prophets such as Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, as well as John the Baptist, and of course Jesus, all of whom rebuked their generations in no uncertain terms for the superficiality of their righteousness. If Paul’s is a hard message, it is meant to provoke Jews to jealousy, that they would rend their hearts in preparation for God’s kingdom. It is not one of ultimate condemnation but of hope and love. For the call to be God’s people is a high one indeed. While the Jews’ status as God’s chosen people entails no innate moral superiority, it does involve certain advantages and blessings, which will be discussed in the next chapter.

Questions to Consider

1. What does this chapter have to say about judging others? How is this similar to what Jesus says in Matthew 7:1-5? According to Paul, toward what is God's kindness intended to lead us?
What effects has his mercy had on your life?

2. According to this chapter, on what basis will God judge people? Who specifically will judge us? (see v.16). Why is that significant for the argument Paul is building?

3. What was circumcision a sign of? (see Genesis 17). According to Paul, what determines one's true Jewishness? How is this similar to the teaching of John the Baptist (see Matthew 3:7-10) and the OT prophets? (see Jeremiah 4:4).

We are very interested in how may people, if any, read this Online Bible Study on a regular basis. If you do, please let us know by sending us an email: stevevcf@optonline.net

2005-11-15T10:45:00.000-08:00

Romans

Lesson #2 (Romans 1)

Section I: Opening (1:1-17)

In the Graeco-Roman world, as in ours, letters had an accepted or standard structure, which often varied in complexity, but usually included an identification of the author, the recipient, and a standard greeting, sometimes followed by a blessing or prayer of thanksgiving to the gods; then the body of the letter, concluded by a final salutation. (For example: “Marcus Titus Livius, to Cornelius Porcius Gracchus, greetings! May the gods grant you health…etc.) Although written in Greek, Paul’s letters have a definite Jewish flavor with their expanded blessings and benedictions. No two are exactly alike, as he adapted his style to the purpose at hand and the relationship he had with the recipients.

A. Address & Salutation (1:1-7)

v.1--Paul opens humbly by identifying himself as first and foremost a “servant” (lit. “slave”) of Christ Jesus. Yet he is also an “apostle” (fr. Gk apostolos, a special envoy sent with authority in the place of an important official), not by choice or human appointment, but by God’s sovereign call. Paul wants them to know that he is writing not as a private individual or as a mere gifted teacher; his authority comes not from man, but directly from God himself. He has been “set apart” or consecrated by God with a special commission to preach the gospel (lit. “good news”).

vv.2-4—What good news? That which God promised through the Old Testament prophets and has now fulfilled in his Son Jesus. In his earthly life Jesus came in human flesh as the Anointed One, the descendant of King David, as the prophets foretold. Yet this is not the whole story. For after his unprecedented resurrection from the dead, he was exalted to the right hand of God as Lord and Savior, titles reserved for God alone, thus revealing his divine nature and position as Son of God.

vv.5-6—Paul uses the editorial “we” to state that Jesus has given him a special calling to preach salvation to all Gentiles (non-Jews). Faith and obedience are intertwined, since God calls us to believe, and in believing we are obedient. In John 6:28-29 someone asks Jesus, "What must we do to do the works God requires?" Jesus reponds, "The work God requires is this: believe in the One he has sent." Our faith also leads to obedience since our Savior is also our Lord and Master, and naturally, we want to live lives pleasing to him. The Roman Christians have been likewise called to be in relationship with Christ as God’s own people, and as Gentiles they are among those to whom Paul has been sent. He is not lording it over them but merely fulfilling his commission.

v.7—His recipients are here identified as those in Rome. As believers, they are beloved of God and called to be saints (lit. “holy” or “set apart”). This “call” to holiness is no mere invitation; it is the power of God to reach out and bring lost souls into his kingdom and make them holy. (This is sometimes called “effectual calling,” since God’s call also has the power to accomplish what it is sent to do.) These phrases echo the Old Testament designations of Israel as a holy nation, God’s own people (Deut 7:6; 10:15). In using these words, Paul embarks upon a theme that will run throughout the next 8 chapters: who are the true people of God? Now comes the usual blessing: the grace and peace of God upon them. “Grace” (Gk charis) refers to God’s unmerited love or favor, and “peace” here may be that blessing that comes from reconciliation with God through Christ. Thus we have in this simple blessing a summation of the letter itself.

B. Thanksgiving & Occasion (1:8-15)

v.8—Paul often begins his letters with a thanksgiving to God for his recipients’ faith. This was a common convention in Greco-Roman letter writing (e.g. "I thank the gods Apollo and Athena when I remember your kindnesses to me and your hospitality....") News of the Roman church had evidently reached everywhere (i.e., there are now even believers in Rome itself!). His thanks is “through” Christ, since Jesus stands as the one Mediator between God and his church.

vv.9-10—God himself will testify that Paul has been faithful in praying for them, even though he has never met them. For some time he has longed to visit but has been unable to leave his duties in the east. Now, however, it seems that God may be about to make this trip a reality.

vv.11-12—As an apostle concerned for the welfare of all the church, he desires to come to them to impart a spiritual blessing that will build them up. Yet he wisely acknowledges that the blessing will be mutual. Paul is being tactful as well as humble here, since the Roman church was founded by others and it has never been under his direct oversight.

vv.13-15—Paul assures them that his desire to visit is not new. Were there some in the church who felt slighted that he had never written to them before now? The phrase “other Gentiles” confirms that the church at Rome was predominantly Gentile. He is bound by his commission to preach to all the non-Jewish nations. “Greeks” refers to those Gentiles who spoke the Greek language and shared a common Graeco-Roman culture. “Non-Greek” (Gk. barbaroi, “barbarians”—the word is onomatopoeic and refers to the strange sounds uttered by these non-Greek-speaking foreigners, “Bar, bar, bar”). In short, all the Gentile world.

C. The Theme of the Letter (1:16-17)

v. 16-- Paul has no shame about such a calling, since he firmly believes in the power and purpose of the gospel to bring all who believe into a saving relationship with God. In the New Testament “salvation” (Gk lit. “deliverance” [from harm]) refers to forgiveness and deliverance from God’s wrath in this life and also at the Last Judgment, as well as eternal life, which begins now through the indwelling Holy Spirit and is completed by a resurrected body at Jesus’ second coming. This salvation is indeed for everyone, but the Jews have been given priority, since they are the original bearers of God’s promise (see chs 9-11). The word of God, his will as revealed in his laws, and the revelation of his glory, the temple worship, prophecies, and the Messiah himself, all came to the Jews first. Such privileges were not given to Israel because of any superiority or merit, but because of God’s sovereign choice to reveal his kingdom first through one nation, and then to the whole earth. Indeed, this was Paul’s procedure in every city: to preach the good news to the Jews first, then to the Gentiles. In saying this, the apostle is making a significant statement to a Gentile majority about the special place of Israel in salvation history. He will go into further detail about this in chapters 9-11.

v.17-- The gospel offers the believer God’s “righteousness”—a right standing before God. The term is a legal one referring to a judge’s decision to declare a defendant innocent (to “justify” or “declare righteous”). This language is used more frequently in Romans than in all of Paul’s other letters combined. And it is here that he sets forth the theme of Romans. For it is a righteousness that comes not through work or merit, but freely as a gift to those who believe-- through faith alone! Faith (Gk. pistis) implies “trust,” that like Abraham, we believe what God has said and both receive and trust what he offers (see ch. 4). The quotation is from the OT prophet Habakkuk. Here, as elsewhere in Romans, Paul reaches back into the Jewish Scriptures to show the continuity of the theme of righteousness by faith. The point for Habakkuk, as for Paul, is one of absolute trust and reliance on the Lord rather than human effort. “Faith alone” (Lat. Sola fides!) became the rally cry of the Protestant Reformation in the 16th century.

Section II: The Bad News—the unrighteousness of humankind due to sin (1:18-3:20)

Verses 16-17 are a sneak preview of what is to come. Yet before Paul can give us the good news, he must first share with us the bad: that humankind, both Jew and Gentile, is hopelessly in the throes of sin.

A. Sin among the Gentiles (1:18-32)

vv.18-20-- In the Old Testament God’s wrath is usually spoken of as something reserved for a future time of judgment (i.e. the Day of Wrath). But here Paul demonstrates that God’s judgment has already begun to be poured out in some measure upon all humankind because of sin. This wrath is not a sudden burst of anger, but an abandonment of the godless to their sins (i.e., You want it? Go for it!). People have grown wicked because they are godless, having separated themselves from the only source of goodness and life. They are without excuse, since from the beginning of creation an invisible God has revealed himself (who he is and what he is like) through what he has made (nature, the cosmos, man’s conscience). For example, can you believe that many people think the world was an accident? Doesn’t the complexity and perfection of everything around us testify to a creative intelligence behind it all? Paul is speaking particularly to Gentiles in vv.18-32, since he refers to God’s self-revelation in creation (as opposed to the Jewish law), as well as to the practices of idolatry and sexual perversions (both common to pagan culture).

vv.21-23-- Although everything in them and around them says otherwise, they have stubbornly refused to acknowledge their Creator—not even a thank you. And the more they persist in this line, the more foolish and blind they become. Human beings (like the Greeks) boast of their wisdom; yet they worship blocks of wood or stone made in the likeness of themselves or animals. Note the repetition of the pattern “they exchanged… he gave them over” in the following verses. The idea is that since they should know better, their sin in inexcusable, and therefore God’s judgment is justified. Thus, the sin of humankind is not ignorance but suppression of the truth!

vv.24-25-- In judgment God allows sin to run its course—in the hope that our utter depravity and the suffering it causes might lead us to cry out to him. Thus, even in his wrath there is mercy. Yet the gentiles have continually traded a majestic and immortal God and his truth for worthless things. Utter foolishness. Total deception!

vv.26-27-- Sin manifests itself in shameful and degrading behaviors, such as homosexuality, a practice condemned in the Old Testament law (Lev 18). Such sexual sins abounded in the pagan culture of Paul’s day. (The Graeco-Roman world exalted pederasty to the level of heterosexual love.) The “due penalty” may refer to the guilt and shame such acts bring, or the eternal punishment that awaits those who practice them.

vv.28-32-- Here Paul gives vent to express the full depravity of man. The lists of individual sins are the fruit of the same spiritual sickness—separation from God. Yet even the threat of eternal punishment does not deter humanity from its reckless course. Instead, they spur one another on to more and greater evil.

Questions to Consider

1. Where does Paul's authority come from? What is Paul's commission? Why does he want to come to Rome? Why is he not ashamed of his calling as an apostle?

2. According to Paul, in what ways is God's wrath particularly manifest among human beings? Why are they without excuse? What is the great sin of humanity?

3. What is idolatry? How does it lead to more and more sin? In what ways might all of the world's problems be traced to idolatry? Is there idolatry present in your life today? Explain.

4. Can you relate to the plight of fallen humanity as described in Chaper 1? In what ways? If you are a disciple of Jesus, how is your life different from what it used to be? In what areas do you still struggle? Why do you think that is? In what ways might those areas of struggle be linked to idolatry or lies about God? How can the truth of the gospel help you to conquer those areas?

We always welcome your questions and feedback about the content and format of this site. Please send questions or comments to stevevcf@optonline.net

2005-11-10T12:03:00.000-08:00

Romans

Lesson #1

Introduction

Often called the "Epistle of faith" and Paul’s greatest literary achievement, Romans has for 2000 years formed the backbone of the church’s understanding of salvation by grace through faith. Time and again in the course of Christian history, it has liberated the minds of men, brought them back to an essential re-understanding of the gospel of Jesus Christ, and touched off spiritual revolutions. (St. Augustine, Martin Luther and John Wesley all three testified to a dramatic conversion while reading this powerful document!) To understand Romans, therefore, is to grasp the radical and life-giving gospel at its very core, "a righteousness that is by faith from first to last." In writing this, I gratefully acknowledge the influence of C.E.B. Cranfield and his quintessential commentary on the Greek text of Romans (ICC).

Background: Setting the Stage

The Letters of the New Testament

To a great extent, all the books of the Bible can be considered to be "occasional" documents--that is, they were written at a specific time in history, by a specific author, for a specific community and for a specific purpose. This is especially true of the letters (or "epistles’, fr. Gk epistole, "letter") of the New Testament. Paul’s letters, for example, were not just theological tracts meant for mass distribution. Instead, the apostle employs theology for the purpose at hand: to correct, encourage or inform Christians within a particular community at a particular time in history.

Now in saying this, we do not at all mean that the books of the Bible have nothing to speak to us today--quite the contrary! But in order to interpret the Scriptures correctly and apply them to our lives today, we must know something of the author’s original intent (i.e. what did it mean to the original audience?). Words gain their meaning from their context. In short, we must ask, "Who, what, when, where and why?" Who is the author and when did he write? Whom is he writing to and why is he writing (what’s going on)? And what is he trying to get across or accomplish? Because we are dealing with ancient documents (the Bible), these questions are not always easy to answer, but they do affect the meaning of the text.

Let’s try to see if we can answer some of those questions in the case of Paul’s Letter to the Romans. In our search we will use information contained in Romans, the Book of Acts, and Paul’s other letters, as well as archaeology and other ancient sources.

Author, Date and Situation

The author of Romans is indisputably the apostle Paul. Originally Saul Paulos of Tarsus, he was a Jew born in the Roman province of Cilicia in southern Asia Minor (now Turkey). Although born a Roman citizen and no doubt exposed to Greek philosophy and customs, he spent a great part of his youth in Jerusalem as a disciple of the Pharisees, the strictest religious sect within Judaism (see Galatians 1;13,14; Acts 22:3,4; 26:5). The Pharisees were known for their zealous and meticulous following of the laws of Moses, as interpreted by the rabbis. Their tendency to cling stubbornly to the most minute of their traditions while forgetting the true heart of the Law (love, justice, mercy, humility, repentance) often brought them into sharp dispute with Jesus and his disciples (see Matthew chs. 12 & 23). The hardened religious spirit of many of their leaders caused them to consider Jesus a threat almost from the beginning of his ministry, and for that reason they frequently sought to undermine his popularity, if not to destroy him outright.

Among the Pharisees, Saul Paulos was viewed as a promising young prodigy, zealous to maintain the purity of the law and the traditions of the fathers. After Jesus’ death and resurrection (about A.D. 33), Saul began persecuting the fledgling church in a futile attempt to root out the "heresy" before it spread far beyond Judea. It was on one such mission to Damascus that he had a vision of the risen Jesus on the road. So powerful was this encounter, that Saul was both converted and commissioned by the Lord as an apostle "to carry [Jesus’] name before the Gentiles and their kings and before the people of Israel" (Acts 9:15). Never one to waste time, Saul now poured all that religious zeal into his newfound faith. The church, not to mention the Pharisees and chief priests, were only dumbfounded to hear reports of this former Pharisee of Pharisees and enemy of the church now preaching the gospel openly in the synagogues and marketplaces!

Saul, who later went by his Roman name of Paulos, worked even harder than the original 12 apostles, planting churches throughout the eastern Mediterranean. In each place his approach was first to deliver the gospel to the Jews, if any, and then to the Gentiles (non-Jews). With the former, he could doubtless draw on his vast knowledge of the Jewish law, and with the latter, his familiarity with Greek philosophy and customs. He was in every way a Jew to the Jew and a Gentile to the Gentile.

When and why did Paul write his letter to the church at Rome, so far away from his sphere of influence? It was in or about A.D 57, toward the end of what has been called his Third Missionary Tour, that he spent several months in Greece before returning to Jerusalem. It was probably in Corinth that Paul wrote this letter (in Rom 15:23,24 he mentions his host Gaius [see 1Cor 1:14], as well as Erastus, a public official in that city [2Tim 4:20]). It came at a critical turning point in his ministry. Why?

Paul was every bit the pioneer or trail-blazer. For some time he had been feeling that he had completed his work in the eastern part of the Mediterranean. In every city and town he had visited, he had made it a priority to recruit, train and deploy new leaders. Others where now at work carrying on where he left off (Rom 15:23,24). There was also an urgency about the gospel message. He now felt led by the Holy Spirit to bring the gospel further, to Spain, at the western limit of the Roman empire. While there was already a thriving church (or churches) at Rome, Paul wished to visit the capital of the empire in order to establish a support base for his mission operations further west. Yet there remained one important task for him to complete in the east.

He was about to go to Jerusalem, after an absence of many years, to deliver to the embattled church there a large sum of money, donated by the Gentile churches of Greece (Rom 15:25-27). The donation was more than mere financial assistance to the beleaguered and poor churches in Palestine. To Paul it represented a gift of brotherly love and of humility and gratitude to God-- from Gentile believers to their Jewish brothers in Jerusalem. He hoped it (and he) would be well received. The past 20 years had seen the church embroiled in an often white-hot debate between a certain faction within the Jewish churches (Judaizers) who demanded that Gentile converts be commanded to keep the laws of Moses (including circumcision and dietary regulations) and those such as Paul who protested that one need not become a Jew in order to be saved.

For Paul the church were a people of the promised New Covenant, not the Old. Christ died for Gentiles as well as Jews, bringing down the wall of separation between them-- as well as between slave and free, male and female, cultured Greek and barbarian (Gal 3:26-29). All who believed were now fellow heirs of the promise given to Abraham. While certainly there was continuity between the two covenants, the apostle stubbornly maintained his position that salvation comes through faith in Jesus and not through external customs. His stance enraged many who then sought to undermine his authority in the churches he had established. One can imagine that in Jerusalem, the center of Judaism and a hotbed of zealousness for the law, Paul’s name was often cursed. His doctrine of justification through faith was called a "boast." While not yielding his position, he must have prayed that the financial offering might serve as a humble offering of peace and love from the Gentiles to the struggling Jewish churches.

Once having fulfilled this last dangerous commission, Paul would then be free to go to Rome to prepare for his mission to Spain. But had his reputation as a "destroyer of Judaism" preceded him there? If he was to succeed in Spain, he would need the Roman church firmly behind him. Would he be well received? While in Greece, he took the opportunity to put his controversial doctrine down on paper and sent it ahead of him to Rome. The letter would serve as a sort of resume of what he really believed and taught and what they could expect from him.

In Romans Paul writes to a church that was thriving but had not yet received apostolic teaching or oversight. Such a situation required great tact. How could he assert his authority and doctrine while not offending? In this letter we also see Paul at his most impressive as a theologian. His 20 years of contending for the gospel are distilled into passages that are often jarring in their bluntness, perplexing in their depth, reassuring in their practicality, or soaring in their sublimity. Romans is the closest thing to a theological dissertation or manifesto that Paul ever wrote. Yet we must not forget that it is at the same time a letter of introduction. In it he asks the Roman Christians for their partnership in prayer, because his impending trip to Jerusalem, he knows, will be fraught with dangers. Through their intercessions, God will see him safely through it and ultimately to their city.

As it happened, Paul did at last reach Rome, three years later. Although the church in Jerusalem received him warmly, they were deeply concerned for his safety--and justly so. While visiting the temple, he was recognized by a group of unbelieving Jews who had opposed him in the province of Asia. In the uproar Paul was arrested and held under guard for over two years, while the Roman authorities puzzled over what to do with such a controversial character. When at last he appealed to the emperor (as was his right as a Roman citizen), Paul was indeed sent to Rome--but as a prisoner awaiting trial (read Acts chs 21-28). Whether he ever made his journey to Spain is a matter for speculation. One tradition states that after two years of house arrest, the apostle was tried and executed by the emperor Nero. Another claims that he was acquitted and released, thereafter going to Spain, but later arrested again, brought back to Rome and put to death.

The Church in Rome

Christianity in the Roman capital probably dates from the earliest days of the church. Tradition claims it was founded by those very Jewish visitors from Rome who heard Peter preach on Pentecost (Acts 2:10). But this may not have been the case. Christian merchants and soldiers carried the good news with them wherever they went. The Roman world was then at peace, albeit an enforced peace (pax Romana), and travel and communication throughout the empire had never been better. As the commercial hub of a vast empire, it makes sense that Rome would have been exposed to the gospel at an early date. Whatever the date of its founding, the church probably developed around a certain faction within the Jewish community, as it had elsewhere. The first Roman Christians were therefore Jews, and the first church might have met in a synagogue.

The Christian community at Rome was also, at first, a Greek-speaking one. Although Latin was the dominant language in the west, Greek was the lingua franca (common language) of the empire, as well as that of the hordes of immigrants (including Jews) who flooded the city. It was of these aliens, rather than of Roman citizens, that the first church there was mostly comprised. Greek would have also been the one common bond (other than Christ) that held this diverse community together. In writing in Greek, then, Paul is writing in their own language.

The Roman church had been dealt a setback in about A.D. 49 under the emperor Claudius. Apparently, the gospel had begun to cause no little stir among the Jewish community, as it had throughout the empire. There were riots in the streets, with the result that Claudius, in typical Roman fashion, expelled all the Jews, Christian or not, from the city (Acts 18:2; also Suetonius, Claudius 25.2). Aquila and Priscilla, a Jewish couple who later became Paul’s companions in Corinth and Ephesus, had been forced to leave Rome at this time. With this Jewish emigration the Gentile minority within the church now found themselves in charge and without meeting places. It may have been at this point that "house churches" began popping up in Rome (Rom 16:5).

Sometime after the death of Claudius in A.D 54 (three years before Paul’s letter), Jews may have begun to return to the capital in great numbers. At this point there may have been, at the very least, some friction and uneasiness. For the church they were returning to was no longer "theirs"; it had grown up without them, along more Gentile than Jewish lines. What must this have looked like? Were their divisions? Unfortunately, we do not know, but the situation must have required some troubleshooting.

Doubtless, Paul had heard reports and he was aware of the problems being experienced by the Roman church. Interestingly, they were the very problems being experienced by most churches, problems he, as a Jew to the Jew and Gentile to the Gentiles, was uniquely suited to address. What was to be the relationship between Jewish and Gentile believers? Were the Jews still the chosen people? Was it better to be one than another? Who should have precedence? How could they get along, let alone eat together? What was the place of the Jewish Law in the life of a believer? Were good works and obedience to Jewish customs necessary for salvation? How could one be sure of salvation? What was most important? Faith? The Law? How was one to live the Christian life? These were the questions that doubtless ran through the minds of the Christian community at Rome. They were also questions that Paul himself, as a Jew with a God-given commission to reach the Gentiles with the gospel, had wrestled with for over 20 years.

Structure of the Letter

I. Opening (1:1-17)
A. Address and salutation (1:1-7)
B. Thanksgiving and occasion (1:8-15)
C. The theme of the letter (1:16-17)

II. The bad news: the unrighteousness of mankind due to sin (1:18-3:20)
Sin among the Gentiles (1:18-32)
Even among the Jews (2:1-3:8)
In all people (3:9-20)

III. The good news: God’s gift of righteousness through faith (3:21-5:21)
Through Christ (3:21-26)
Received by faith (3:27-4:25)

IV. More good news: the results of this righteousness (5:1-8:39)
A. Peace with God (ch 5)
B. Freedom from bondage to sin (ch 6)
C. Freedom from bondage to the law (ch 7)
D. Life in the Spirit (8:1-17)
E. Assurance of eternal life (8:18-39)

V. Israel, the Chosen Nation (9:1-11:36)
A. God’s sovereign choice (9:1-29)
B. Why Israel rejected (9:30-10:21)
C. Rejection not final, God’s mercy (ch 11)

VI. The Christian’s Behavior (12:1-15:13)
A. In the church (ch 12)
B. In the world (ch 13)
C. Among weak and strong believers (14:1-15:13)

VII. Closing Remarks (15:14-33)

VIII. Personal greetings (ch 16)

The Life and Letters of Saul (Paul)*

A.D. 5 Birth of Saul
27 Jesus begins public ministry
30 Jesus crucified and resurrected
Pentecost
33 Stephen martyred
Saul begins persecuting the church (Acts 7-8)
Saul converted (Acts 9)
35-38 Saul in Arabia & Damascus (Gal 1)
38 Visits Jerusalem, meets apostles
38-43 Ministry in Syria & Cilicia
Ministry in Syrian Antioch (Acts 11)
Visits Jerusalem
46-48 First Missionary Journey (Acts 13-14)
48/49 Galatians written
49/50 Council at Jerusalem (Acts 15)
50-52 Second Missionary Journey (Acts 15-18)
51/52 1&2Thessalonians written
52 Returns to Jerusalem & Syrian Antioch (Acts 18)
53-57 Third Missionary Journey (Acts 18-21)
55 1&2 Corinthians written
57 Romans written
57-59 Arrested in Jerusalem, imprisonment in Caesarea (Acts 21-26)
59 Voyage to Rome & shipwreck
60-62 House arrest in Rome (Acts 28), writes prison epistles: Ephesians, Colossians, Philemon, Philippians, 1&2Timothy, and Titus
62 Trial and execution? OR Acquitted, goes to Spain? Then returns to the east?
67-68 Second imprisonment & execution in Rome? writes 1&2Timothy?

*All dates are approximate

Questions to Consider

1. In what way are the letters of the New Testament considered "occasional" documents? Why is this important for our understanding and interpreting them?

2. What task did Paul have to accomplish before coming to Rome? What were his long-range plans? What part did he hope the Roman church would play in accomplishing that vision?

3. What was the Roman church like (Jewish, Gentile, Roman, immigrant, rich, poor, etc.)? What was Paul's relationship, if any, with this church?

4. What did Paul hope to accomplish through this letter? Why was tact required?

5. Why would Paul's presentation of his gospel in this letter be of particular interest to the church at Rome? What struggles were they having? Why was the gospel Paul preached so controversial?

6. What was it about Paul's background that made him specially qualified to address the problems the Roman church was experiencing?

We always welcome your questions and feedback about the content and format of this site. Please send questions or comments to stevevcf@optonline.net

2005-11-03T12:32:00.000-08:00

Gospel of Mark

Lesson #17

Section 7: The Resurrection (16:1-20)

Jesus Risen from the Dead (1-8)

vv.1-3— Technically, the Sabbath was over on Saturday evening, but the women waited for daylight of the next day. (Who wants to go walking in a cemetery at night?) Mark makes note that this is the first day of the week (Sunday) and names the women again, since it is important that Jesus’ resurrection occurs on a specific day, a particular time in human history, and the revelation is made to specific people. The eyewitnesses were not nameless people but were well known among the disciples. Sunday would soon replace the Jewish Sabbath as the holiest of days for the church. It is no accident that Jesus’ resurrection occurs on this day, since his rising is a kind of first fruits of the resurrection that awaits the world. It is the first day of the new creation! The future has broken into the present! Christ was the first to rise, and we shall one day follow him and be made like him (cf. 1Cor 15). The women are the same followers of Jesus mentioned as being present at the crucifixion (15:40-41) and the burial (15:47). They knew he had died; they had touched his body and seen it placed in the tomb and the entrance sealed. Since the burial had been done hurriedly, Jesus’ body had probably not been anointed properly, so they bring spices (aromatic oils) for that purpose (these oils were usually poured over the head of the deceased to counter the smell of decomposition). They were not expecting to find an empty tomb. The stone in front of the tomb would have been a round stone slab of tremendous weight, fitted into a sloping groove which allowed it to be rolled into place. Moving it back up the slope would require the strength of several men. Apparently, in planning their journey, the women had not taken this matter into account.

vv.4-7-- Arriving at the tomb, however, they find the stone already rolled aside. The effort that would have been required to move the stone adds weight to the evidence of Jesus’ miraculous rising. A Jewish tomb consisted of an antechamber and an inner burial chamber about 7x7x7 ft, accessible through a low entrance about 2 ft high. Thus they would have had to stoop over to look inside (cf. Jn 20:5). The young man in white is obviously an angel. He is evidently the same heavenly messenger who rolled back the stone (see Mt 28:2). Angelic visitations in the Bible usually provoke fear. He encourages the women not to be afraid, however, and announces that Jesus has risen. He invites them to look for themselves at the stone slab where the body had been laid so that they might tell the other disciples. Without this revelation from God’s messenger, the women would have been simply confronted with the mystery of an empty tomb. That the tomb was empty was an indisputable fact, which even early detractors had to deal with (cf Mt 28:13ff). The angel particularly mentions Peter for two reasons: 1) despite his denial of Christ, in God’s eyes he is still the leader of the twelve, and 2) he of all the disciples perhaps needed most to hear the good news lest he be totally overwhelmed by grief and shame. This is a personal word of good news for Peter that he has been forgiven! The angel reminds them of Jesus’ promise in 14:28 that he would see them again after his resurrection, meeting them in some prearranged location (Matthew 28:16 says it was a mountain, perhaps a spot where they used to meet frequently. Could it be the same mountainside where he first called the twelve in Mk 3:13? That would be a fitting location from which to recommission them.) The angel emphasizes that all this has happened in accordance with what Jesus had already told them—i.e., everything has happened according to plan; God has been in sovereign control of these events.

v.8—Overwhelmed with fear at these unprecedented miracles, the women run off. Where they go first is not clear, although it is possible that they did not go immediately to the disciples. They probably expected not to be believed (Lk 24:11) since under Jewish law, women were ineligible as witnesses. (If the church had wanted to make these events up, they would not have chosen women as their primary witnesses. This fact lends additional credibility to the story.) They speak to no one on the way, since they might be thought insane or could be apprehended by the authorities if word got out. They were certainly dazed as well as terrified from the supernatural encounter. Also, since resurrection is associated with the Last Judgment, they might have expected that the end of the world had come. At any rate, it is fitting that these three women should be the first message bearers of this new gospel, since they had been with Jesus from his Galilean ministry and had stood by him at the cross. The revelation given to them is an example of the status and dignity given to women by Jesus and, to a sometimes greater or lesser extent, by the early church. It is also in keeping with the Lord’s concern for the poor and disenfranchised: the last shall be first!

Note: Oddly, Mark’s original Gospel seems to end here. The earliest and most reliable manuscripts do not include verses 9-20, which are in a different style and seem to have been added at a later point (2nd century?). They appear to be a condensation of the other Gospel accounts and apostolic traditions about Jesus’ post-resurrection appearances. There is also another shorter, alternate ending after v.8 which appears in some later manuscripts: “But they reported briefly to Peter and those with him all they had been told. And after this Jesus himself sent out by means of them, from east to west, the sacred and imperishable proclamation of eternal life.” Both Matthew and Luke, who use 95% of Mark’s material as the core of their Gospels, write their own resurrection narratives, which leads us to conclude that they had no Marcan material to base them on and used other reliable sources and eyewitness accounts. Both alternative endings of Mark were probably attempts to round off the Gospel’s somewhat jagged conclusion. There are several theories about the ending of Mark’s Gospel:

1) The original ending was longer but the concluding verses containing Jesus’ resurrection appearances were lost (perhaps in the fire that destroyed so much of Rome in A.D. 64 or at a later date). Is it possible, however, that the church would have been so careless with such a document, since it would have been widely copied almost immediately? Is Mark’s ending preserved partially in Matthew’s account of Jesus’ appearance on the mountain in Galilee?

2) Mark’s longer ending was found to be unsatisfactory and was therefore replaced. But is it likely that Peter, the first disciple and an eyewitness to all these events, would have provided unsatisfactory material for the ending to his gospel, or that the church would have rejected it?

3) A longer ending was never written. Events of the persecution under Nero (A.D.64) caused pandemonium within the Christian community at Rome. Peter was martyred, and the church urged Mark to flee for his life. Yet could not Mark have finished it at a later date? Did something happen to Mark (death or martyrdom) that prevented his finishing it?

4) Mark intended to end his Gospel at this point. Perhaps Peter used to preach this way, leaving his hearers with a big question mark: will you believe? The Holy Spirit would do the rest. This theory is possible, but Peter had so many stories to tell about his resurrected Lord, would he not have handed these down? Perhaps it was Mark’s idea to end it here, since faith needed nothing further. The ending does seem jagged to us, in the light of the resurrection accounts of the other three Gospel writers. Yet, recall that Mark’s was the first Gospel; he is inventing a new form. Such an ending is indeed dramatic and thought provoking, causing one to leap with faith or at least to search one’s soul. Perhaps, also, the outbreak of persecution in Rome made any further storytelling too dangerous to put into writing. Mark therefore ends his story with a knowing wink to the suffering church: the world sees only an empty tomb, but faith sees more. It is enough to give them courage for the fate that awaits them. Will they, like the women, be too fearful to tell the story?

Jesus Appears & Commissions the Disciples (9-20)

The following verses, though added a century or more later by another author, are nevertheless a compilation of apostolic tradition and are therefore reliable.

v.9-11—This account of Jesus’ first appearance to Mary of Magdala agrees with John’s Gospel (20:1-18). Apparently, the three women had gone to the tomb and seen the angel and no Jesus. They returned to the disciples, who, being men, thought this was foolish women’s talk. Peter and John run to investigate and find the tomb empty as they had said. Mary Magdalene had returned with them and she bumps into Jesus in the garden.

vv.12-13—These verses agree with Luke’s report of Jesus’ appearance to two disciples on the road to Emmaus outside Jerusalem (Lk 24:13ff).

vv.14-18—Jesus appears later to the disciples while they are gathered together for a meal. This account agrees with both Luke and John. Matthew tells the story of Jesus’ subsequent appearance in Galilee. Jesus’ rebuking the disciples for their stubborn unbelief, even after all that he and others had told them, is consistent with all three other Gospel accounts. He commissions them to preach the gospel to all the world, to baptize believers as a sign of redemption. The gospel is now for the nations as well as Israel. Rejection of the gospel will result in eternal damnation. Believers will continue Jesus’ ministry of testifying to the reality of God’s kingdom by doing the works that he did: casting out demons, speaking in unknown tongues, healing the sick. They will also be miraculously delivered from poison and snakebites (such miracles were not uncommon in the early church. Cf. Acts 28:3ff.)

vv.19-20-- Jesus now ascends, in accord with Matthew and Luke’s accounts, and takes his place at the Father’s right hand, as he prophesied to Caiaphas in 14:62. The church age now begins with the disciples’ going forth with the gospel throughout the Roman world. The Spirit works through them as he did with Jesus. These miracles are called “signs” since they give concrete reality to the kingdom of God. Jesus proclaimed and taught that the kingdom of God had come, but he also demonstrated this with acts of power. We are commissioned to do the same.

The reality of the resurrection is essential to the church, since without it, Jesus might have been thought to be just another in a long line of martyred prophets. All four Gospels agree that Jesus’ arrest and execution caused his followers to scatter, heartbroken and disillusioned, fearing for their lives. It is his rising again on the third day, however, that breathes new life into the disciples as a movement and gives them boldness to preach the good news of eternal life in his name.

The question of what happened to the ending of Mark’s Gospel may never be answered. Whether or not he intended it to end at v.8, however, the absence of Jesus’ post-resurrection appearances, as well as the lack of a Bethlehem birth narrative, clearly added impetus to the writing of the other Gospels in the decades that followed. Although some may have been dissatisfied with Mark’s final product, criticizing his poor grammar, chronology, or omissions, there is no doubt that his efforts were truly groundbreaking. He was the first to attempt to set boldly in writing the “greatest story ever told” in its full sweep. There are a youthful enthusiasm and an immediacy and freshness of detail in this Gospel which are somewhat obscured in Matthew and Luke. These later Gospel writers, in fact, pay him the highest compliment: they use his work as the basis for their own. If it was Mark’s purpose merely to set in writing the essential teachings of Simon Peter, the chief apostle, he has far transcended his goal. What is more, he has woven a timeless tapestry that combines both theology, drama, and the storyteller’s art. For this, and much more, the church is forever in his debt.

For more information about the meaning and reality of Jesus' resurrection, see my blog entries for March 22 & 24, 2005. Click on the following link and scroll down to the March 22 & 24 entries: http://panzagloba.blogspot.com/2005_03_01_panzagloba_archive.html

Questions to Consider

1. What specific details of the Resurrection story add to its credibility? How would you defend the reality of Jesus' resurrection to someone who asked about it?

2. Why did Jesus have to rise from the dead? Why was this necessary? What did his resurrection accomplish? What did it symbolize? What did it inaugurate?

3. Why do you think Mark's original Gospel ends at v. 8? Do you think this is a fitting ending? Was it done on purpose? Why or why not?

4. What is your favorite part of Mark's Gospel and why? What are two things you have learned from this study?

Stay tuned next week when we'll start our study of Paul's Letter to the Romans!

We welcome your questions and feedback about the content and format of this site. Please send feedback to stevevcf@optonline.net

Thank You!

2005-11-01T11:20:00.000-08:00

Gospel of Mark

Lesson #16

Section 6 (Passion Narrative) cont.

Jesus before Pilate (15:1-15)

v.1-According to Jewish legal custom (which was usually very merciful), it was not permissible to try, convict and execute a criminal on the same day-- let alone on a holy day! But there was a loophole in the case of particularly reprehensible criminals in order to make an edifying example to the nation. Although the Sanhedrin had already condemned Jesus, under Roman occupation they did not have the power to carry out the death sentence. The right to execute criminals was the carefully guarded prerogative of the Roman magistracy. Thus the case will have to be retried under Roman law, with the governor either confirming or overturning the Sanhedrin’s verdict. Now the charge will have to be one of high treason, since blasphemy was not a punishable crime under Roman law. So the Jewish leaders will have to convince Pilate that Jesus is an enemy of the state. Since the working day of a Roman official began at daylight, the Sanhedrin had to work through the night to have its case ready to present to the governor at first light. Remember, too, that the following trial would probably have been conducted using interpreters.

v.2--Pontius Pilatus, Roman governor (praefectus) of Judea from A.D. 26 to 36, was notorious for his ruthless handling of insurrectionists--even by Roman standards. In Luke 13:1, Jesus refers to certain Galileans whose blood was mingled with their sacrifices (they were probably rebels whom Pilate struck down while they were offering sacrifices in the temple). Throughout his 10 year rule, Pilate never understood the depth of Jewish nationalism and religious sensitivity, and usually opted for force over negotiation. His callousness and cruelty ultimately caused greater unrest and made him such a stench to the Jews that they appealed to the governor of Syria (Pilate’s superior) to have him recalled. Upon hearing the long list of charges, an embarrassed Rome not only recalled Pilate but also, according to tradition, exiled him to Gaul (now France), where he later committed suicide. Although the prefect’s official residence was in Caesarea on the coast, Pilate would have been in Jerusalem at the time of the Passover in order to make sure that peace was kept. The chief priests accuse Jesus of claiming to be a king, and he admits the charge, although the kingdom he speaks of is not of this world. Taking one look at this simple teacher from Galilee, Pilate is not threatened. He probably sees Jesus as yet another Jewish “prophet,” a zealous yokel and teller of stories, but not a serious threat to Roman might.

vv.3-5-- According to Luke (23:2), the “many things” of which they accuse Jesus include “subverting” the nation (i.e. fomenting rebellion) and opposing Roman taxation. They are of course making these things up, as they well know, in order to play upon Pilate’s insecurity. While it is true that Jesus has attracted a large following, he has never posed a political threat. Jesus, the Lamb of God, maintains his silence (Isaiah 53:7). If he offers no defense, according to Roman law, Pilate will have to pronounce him guilty.

vv.6-11-- It was the custom of the Roman governors to release a prisoner of the people’s choice in order to appease the crowds during Passover. Knowing that Jesus is probably innocent, Pilate attempts to appeal to the people and get Jesus off by using this tactic, instead of merely reversing the Sanhedrin’s verdict. Why does Pilate seem so intent on sparing Jesus, since humanitarian interests seem so inconsistent with the governor’s character? Pilate hated the Jews and despised their leaders. It was obvious to him that the Sanhedrin was not concerned for the safety of the Roman state, and their vehemence to get Jesus convicted revealed an ulterior motive. He was certainly aware that he was being used and so he decided to do what he could to thwart their purpose and embarrass them before the people. Pilate knew that Jesus’ popularity with the crowds made him a thorn in the side of the Jewish leaders, who jealously guarded their own position and authority. What he does not count on, however, is the crowd’s rejection of the Galilean. He was blind to the possibility that when given the choice this patriotic people would opt for a “freedom fighter” instead of the candidate he, a Roman, put forward. If he had foreseen this, he would not have turned Jesus over for the people’s decision. Nothing more is known of Barabbas, nor is it clear which uprising he participated in (since there were many during Pilate’s term). He probably belonged to the party of the Zealots, who wanted to overthrow Roman rule through a popular uprising.. Since it was early in the morning, the mob assembled at the governor’s palace was probably not very respectable. How the chief priests stirred up the crowd to call for Barabbas’ release is not clear. Perhaps they paid certain individuals to out-shout the crowd, playing upon the people’s nationalism. Whatever the case, there must certainly have been demonic forces at work amid the chaos.

vv.12-14-- Even more perplexing to Pilate is the crowd’s vehement response that Jesus should be punished with the fullest rigor of the law-- crucifixion, the cruelest and most degrading death possible! Crucifixion, the Roman instrument of torture and death, was reserved for slaves and the basest criminals who were not Roman citizens. The victim was fastened to a cross-shaped frame with heavy iron spikes driven through the wrists and heel bones. Death was agonizingly slow and painful, sometimes requiring 2 or 3 days. If life still lingered, the victim’s legs were broken in order to hasten death. Our word excruciating comes from this form of punishment. To a Jew public exposure of an executed person branded him accursed by God (Deut 21:23).

v.15-- By law, Pilate has to have a formal charge before sentence can be carried out. Fearful that the crowd is getting out of control, however, (and any disorder would reflect on his administration), Pilate buckles under pressure and agrees to Jesus' execution-- a grave miscarriage of Roman “justice.” Matthew (27:24) tells us that the governor washed his hands before the crowd as a sign of his own innocence in the matter. This is of course hypocrisy, for as governor he is responsible to see that “justice be done, even if the heavens themselves should fall” (a Roman proverb). Expediency, however, rather than justice and a respect for human life, seems to be the priority here. Once again, Jesus is officially sentenced to die as King of the Jews, for this is the Father’s will.

Soldiers Mock Jesus (15:16-20)

v. 16-- The Praetorium was the governor’s residence, where justice was administered and soldiers quartered. While in Jerusalem Pilate made old Herod the Great’s former palace his headquarters. Flogging was a brutal (and often fatal) ordeal. The Romans used a whip (flagellum) made of strands of leather on which bits of bone or metal were tied so as to tear into the flesh. Under Jewish law, flogging was limited to 40 lashes (39 in practice). But there was no such limit for the Romans. Therefore it was not unusual for victims to be flogged to death.

vv.17-20-- Being an occupying force in a hostile environment, the soldiers probably had plenty of pent up resentment, which they were only too glad to unleash on this so-called “King of the Jews.” The purple robe might have been a military cloak whose color suggested royalty. Scripturally speaking, thorns are a symbol of the curse of Adam (Gen 3:18), which Jesus is now bearing for all mankind.

Jesus Crucified (15:21-32)

v. 21-Simon was probably a Greek-speaking Jew from Cyrene, a Roman colony in N Africa (modern day Libya). He may have been living in Jerusalem or perhaps he had come for the feast. That he and his family later became Christians seems to be indicated by the mentioning of his two sons, who may have been known to the church of Rome. Under Roman occupation, a Jew could be pressed into performing even the most menial service at any time. Jesus refers to this in Matthew 5:41 (“If someone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles”). Normally, the condemned man was forced to carry his own cross, a beam weighing 30 or 40 pounds. John (19:17) makes it clear that Jesus did so, but he probably collapsed on the way, having been weakened by flogging. The soldiers then ordered Simon, a bystander, to carry it.

vv.22-23-- It was both the Jewish and Roman practice to execute criminals outside the inhabited parts of the city. Golgotha (Aramaic, lit. “Place of the Skull”) was a spot just outside the city wall. It may have gotten its name from some unusual rock formation at the sight, or from its being a place of death. Modern archaeology confirms the tradition that the site had previously been a stone quarry, no longer in use by Jesus' day. Remember, "The stone the builders rejected has become the capstone" (Psalm 118:22) Myrrh is an aromatic resin used in perfume, as well as in preparing the bodies of the dead (Mk 16:1; Jn 19:39). It was also a narcotic used to deaden pain. Apparently, Jewish women used to offer the condemned man a last drink of wine mixed with myrrh to help with the pain (in accordance with Prov 31:6,7). But Jesus refuses it, obediently prepared to drink the cup of God’s wrath to the leas, the full punishment that is due us.

v.24--It was the accepted right of the executioner’s squad to claim any remaining possessions of the victim. Jesus normally wore both under and outer garments, sandals, a belt and a head covering. As we have seen, so many of the details of Jesus’ arrest, trial, and execution occurred in fulfillment of OT prophecies. See Psalm 22:18 and v.34 note below.

vv.25-28--Jesus was crucified at 9AM, Roman time (i.e. the third hour from daybreak). It was customary to write the charges against the condemned on a wooden board, which was carried before him to the place of execution, whereupon it was fixed to the cross above his head. John says that the charge “King of the Jews” was written in three languages, Latin, Greek and Aramaic, that all might understand. Robbery was not a capital offense under Roman law, so the other two criminals may have also been murderers or insurrectionists. In the suffering servant song of Isa 53 (v.12) the Servant is “numbered with the transgressors.”

vv.29-32-- Even to the end, the leaders cynically ask for a sign. Again they bring up Jesus’ claim, “Destroy this temple and I will raise it in three days” (John 2:19-21). Ironically, the sign is unfolding right in front of them, for the temple of his body, though destroyed, will rise again in three days! There is also irony in the chief priests’ comment that "he saved others but cannot save himself '--that is precisely the point! Jesus dies so that sinners may live.

Jesus’ Death (15:33-41)

v.33- “The sixth to the ninth hour” means noon to 3PM. Darkness, as we have seen is a common OT theme of judgment, associated with God's wrath. But here the Father is pouring out his wrath on the Son in our place! That means, for the believer, judgment for sin has already occurred. Thus Jesus’ death causes a cosmic repercussion.

v. 34--Here, Jesus quotes Ps 22:1. This has been called the “cry of dereliction,” as the Son of God is feeling the full horror of what he had begun to experience in Gethsemane: the sinner’s separation from God. In Jewish practice, the citation of the first verse implies the entire psalm. This psalm, written by David, speaks of the anointed one's being rejected, betrayed, mocked, surrounded by enemies, pierced in the hands and feet, and having his clothes divided. Jesus fulfills all these. The psalm is not one merely of death and betrayal, however; it is also one of victory. For the anointed one will ultimately be vindicated by the Almighty with the result that the whole world will turn to God! (Ps 22:26-31).

vv.35-36--The bystanders mistake the Hebrew Eloi (“my God”) for Eliyah (Elijah).It was a common belief that Elijah the OT prophet would come in critical times of need to rescue the righteous. The drink offered to Jesus is the soured wine, a thirst-quenching beverage, enjoyed by soldiers and laborers. This fulfills another of David’s psalms of suffering, “They put gall in my food and gave me vinegar for my thirst” (Ps 69:21).

v.37--Jesus Christ was not murdered; he voluntarily gave up his life. This is demonstrated by his unusual death. A crucified man normally lingered for a few days in agonizing pain, at last lapsing into unconsciousness. By contrast, Jesus’ death came relatively quickly. He cries out in a loud voice. Where did this strength come from? According to Luke and John, his last words were “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit!” and “It is finished!” These are cries of pain mixed with victory: the obedient Son has faithfully completed his assigned task and is returning home. John adds that Jesus “bowed his head and gave up his spirit” (Jn 19:30). His death is an act of the will, a surrender, for no mortal man could take his life. As he says in John’s Gospel, “The reason my Father loves me is that I lay down my life--only to take it up again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down and authority to take it up again. This command I received from my Father” (Jn 10:17,18).

v.38-- At the moment of his death, the curtain in the temple was rent in two, fully from top to bottom. This is the very curtain which barred entrance into the Most Holy Place, where God’s glory dwelt. Formerly, only the Jewish high priest could enter into that sacred place, and only once a year on the Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur) to make an annual atonement for the sins of the nation. Now, Jesus’ atoning death has paid the price for sin, allowing the repentant sinner access to God’s presence. Jesus, God’s Great High Priest, has entered into the Holy of Holies on our behalf. (See Hebrews 9.) This is a new day of atonement for a New Covenant. The early church also saw in this sign a warning of the impending destruction of the temple and the replacement of the Old Testament sacrificial system.

v.39--A Roman centurion was commander over 100 men. He was there to keep order during the crucifixion. Hearing Jesus’ final cry and seeing the strength and dignity with which he died, this Gentile is deeply awed. He had probably seen hundreds of executions. No one ever died like this before. Perhaps he too knew the Galilean to be innocent, and the unusual circumstances of Jesus’ death confirm it. Does the centurion fully understand the meaning of his confession, “Surely this man was the Son of God?” Perhaps, like Peter in ch. 8:29, it is by the Holy Spirit alone that he is able to make this spontaneous statement while not comprehending all its ramifications. Together with 1.1 (“the gospel about Jesus Christ, the Son of God”) and 8:29, his words provide a Christological frame to begin and end the story of Jesus’ earthly ministry: remember that the main point of Mark’s Gospel is to demonstrate that Jesus is the Son of God. The confession has now moved from Jew to Gentile, for it is Jesus’ death that makes possible Gentile admission into the new Israel. It may also have been significant to the Roman church (at whose request Mark is writing this Gospel) that the confession is now on the lips of a Roman soldier. It is ironic that the Cross should bring this man to faith, since the Messiah’s dying in such a way has always been a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles (1Cor 1:23). Remember how many times Jesus taught his disciples "that the Son of Man must suffer and be killed and on the third day be raised to life." It is only when gazing upon the cross that the true meaning of Jesus' identity and mission become clear: the Messiah Son of David is also the Suffering Servant who gives his life as a ransom for sinners. This time Messiah comes to suffer and reunite sinners to God; next time he will come to judge the world.

vv.40-41--Mary Magdalene (her name means “from Magdala,” a town in Galilee). Luke (8:2) tells us that Jesus had cast 7 demons from her. It is not clear who the other Mary is (although her sons may have been known to the early church). Salome may be Zebedee’s wife, the mother of James and John (cf. Mt 27:56). These women had probably cooked for the disciples and cared for their other practical needs. It is important that these women are present, since they add eyewitness testimony to these key events in the Passion Narrative.

Jesus’ Burial (15:42-47)

v. 42-- The Jewish Sabbath, the day of rest, began on Friday at sundown. “Preparation Day” was the day preceding, when cooking and other tasks could be done ahead of time. Since it was now late afternoon, it became urgent to get Jesus’ body taken down and buried, for this had to be done before sundown (Deut 21:23).

v.43-47--Arimathea was a village in the hill country 20 miles NW of Jerusalem. Joseph was a wealthy man (Mt 27:57) and a member of the Sanhedrin who had not consented to their decision. He was a follower of Jesus, but secretly, out of fear (Jn 19:38). It took courage, however, to go to Pilate to claim the body. Normally, only a family member could make such a request. Pilate’s surprise at Jesus’ early demise is further evidence for the unusual circumstances of his death. It was the customary burial practice among the Jews first to wash the body, then to wrap it tightly in clean strips of cloth smeared with spices. In a garden nearby there was an empty tomb that had never been used (Lk 23:53; Jn 19:41). This would have been a cave cut out of the rock, consisting of an antechamber and one or more burial chambers. The body was laid on a slab cut parallel to the wall. Recall that the area of Golgotha had formerly been a rock quarry. The finest tombs had round stones which were rolled in a sloping groove to seal the entrance. Thus rolling the stone into place would not have been difficult-- but moving it back! Matthew tells us that it in fact belonged to Joseph (Mt 27:60)-- thus fulfilling Isa 53:9, “He was assigned a grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death.”--for only the rich could afford such a tomb. Mark, along with the other Gospel writers, makes it clear that the two Marys saw the exact place where Jesus was laid. In other words, they did not make a mistake and go to the wrong tomb on Sunday morning!

Questions to Consider

1. What kind of pressures and problems was Pilate facing when Jesus stood before him accused? How should Pilate have acted, according to Roman justice?

2. The incident of Barabbas' release is significant on more than one level. What does it say about what kind of savior people were looking for? What does it say about what we sinners owe to Jesus?

3. A popular question is "Who killed Jesus?" What do you think? (When criticized that his film "The Passion" portrayed the Jewish leaders in a bad light, Mel Gibson reponded by saying that in the scene of the crucifixion there is a close up of a soldier's hands driving the spike into Jesus' wrist. The hands that hold the mallet and spike are actually Gibson's own. What do you think Gibson means by this?)

4. What is the biblical significance of the crown of thorns? What was the temple curtain and what did it represent? Why was it torn in two at the moment of Jesus' death? Read Hebrews 9. How does this cast more light on the significance of Christ's sacrifice?

5. Read Psalms 22 & 69, and also Isaiah 53. How many connections can you make between these OT passages and Jesus' crucifixion?

2005-10-27T13:59:00.000-07:00

Gospel of Mark

Lesson #15

Section 6: The Passion Narrative (14:1-15:47)

Jesus Anointed at Bethany (14:1-11)

v.1-2- Passover (in Hebrew Pesach), also known as the Feast of Unleavened Bread, was the first and greatest of all the Jewish festivals. Commanded by the Lord in Exodus 12, it commemorates the Hebrew slaves’ liberation from bondage in Egypt, when the angel of death "passed over" the Israelite homes and spared their first born. Central to the meal was the lamb, whose blood had been smeared over their doorposts as a sign of protection. The Passover meal was followed by seven more days of celebration, during which they were required to eat flat bread made without yeast, in remembrance of the Hebrew’s hurried flight from Egypt. All the males were required by law to celebrate the Passover meal within the walls of Jerusalem. The Sanhedrin were desperately struggling to find some way to dispose of Jesus, but they hesitated from doing this during the festival, since Jesus was still popular among the people and the holiday crowds were already growing in the city (some estimates say that during Passover Jerusalem swelled from 50,000 to over 250,000 people). The possibility of mob violence was always a concern (hence the Roman custom of appeasing the mobs by releasing a prisoner of their choice, see 15:6).

vv.3-4-Recall that Jesus is staying in Bethany. Nothing is known of this Simon the leper, except that he must have been a former leper, probably having been healed by Jesus. In his Gospel John tells us that it is Mary of Bethany, sister of Martha and Lazarus, who anoints Jesus and also wipes his feet with her hair. In Luke 10:13 this same Mary sits at the Lord’s feet, listening with rapt attention while her sister buzzes about the house resentfully preparing the meal. This act, then, seems in keeping with what we know of Mary’s devotion and sensitive spirit. In the homes of the wealthy, it was customary to anoint the head of a guest with perfume. Nard (or spikenard) was a fragrant ointment. Imported from India, it had to be sealed in alabaster jars and was very costly. The seal on the long neck of the jar would be broken only on a very special occasion, such as the receiving of an honored guest. John also tells us that the jar held about a half-liter of ointment. So the fragrance, which filled the house, must have been overpowering (see Jn 12)!

vv.5-9--Some of the other guests object to this act of extravagance, however, since the perfume was worth about 300 denarii (about a year’s wages!). If she wanted to be generous, why didn’t she sell it and give the money to the poor? It was customary to give something to the poor on the evening of Passover. But Jesus rebukes them and instead commends the woman. For her action was really a prophetic one: she is anointing him for burial. Did Mary understand what she was doing? Was she merely expressing her love and devotion? Or had she heard and taken to heart that Jesus was going to die and she grieved deeply? Either way, this perfume was probably her most costly possession- perhaps it was an heirloom she was saving as part of her dowry. As with the widow and her 2 pennies, here we have another example of extravagant love and total consecration of self. He promises that this act of love will be told all over the world (and it has been!).

vv.10-11-Mark tells us that it is at this juncture that Judas, one of the twelve disciples, decides to betray Jesus and goes to the chief priests to make arrangements. According to John (11:57), the Sanhedrin had by this time put out a warrant for Jesus’ arrest. Anyone who knew his whereabouts was to report it. Thus he could not go about in public. Judas promised to provide them with the opportunity they were looking for to arrest Jesus quietly--an unexpected opportunity, for they had resolved not to do this during the feast. But it was God’s will to have the Messiah’s death coincide with the Passover, for Jesus is the "Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world" (Jn 1:29). Why did Judas do it? His motives are not clear. It has been proposed that he was impatient: that he had sympathies with the Zealots (who wanted to overthrow the Roman government and effectively force God’s kingdom to come) and wished to force Jesus’ hand, thinking the arrest would compel the Messiah to reveal himself and establish the kingdom. Others say that he was growing disillusioned with Jesus’ ministry and methods, and fearing they were doomed, he betrayed his Master in order to save himself. Or was it greed? John (12:6) says that Judas was really a thief. He had been given charge over the group’s money purse, which was probably used for expenses and the poor, and regularly helped himself to whatever was in it. Had the temple leaders tempted him previously with an offer of money? We do not know. At any rate, it seems his weak character could no longer stand up to the devil’s voice. Evil does not have to make sense, however. It is clear that Jesus knew Judas’ character from the beginning (Jn 6:64), that this was the "one doomed to destruction so that Scripture would be fulfilled" (Jn 17:12). Still, any predestination on God’s part does not negate personal responsibility and free will on Judas’.

The Last Supper (14:12-26)

vv.12-16- Passover began at sundown on the 15th Nisan (March-April). That afternoon, the lambs used in the meal were sacrificed. (The lamb served as a reminder that God had substituted the life of this innocent animal so that the Hebrew children might live. The sacrificial system of the Old Testament was based on substitutionary atonement, that is, in the Lord’s mercy he allows something else to die in place of the sinner.) Luke 22:8 records that Jesus sent Peter and John to make arrangements for the Passover meal. It was the custom, due to the influx of so many pilgrims during the feast, that if anyone in Jerusalem had a room available for use, they should give it to a visiting Jew. It appears that Jesus, through the Spirit, knew of just such a room. He sends the disciples on this secret errand (for he wanted to keep his location a secret), and they find things just as he describes (as with the donkey’s colt in ch. 11).

vv.17-21-- In Near Eastern culture to eat with someone is a sign of peace and good will. It was therefore the height of hypocrisy and betrayal for Judas to be present at the meal. In this was fulfilled Psalm 41:9, "Even my close friend, whom I trusted, he who shared my bread has lifted up his heal against me." Jesus was going willingly to his death in order that Scripture (the Father’s plan) might be fulfilled, but that did not justify Judas’ betrayal. He was still responsible for his actions and would suffer the consequences of betraying the Son of God.

v.22-- Mark does not record the whole Passover celebration (or seder) here, but we see glimpses of it that are key to our understanding of Jesus’ mission. Traditionally, the lamb and other dishes were served first, with the head of the household describing how each dish related to Israel’s experience in Egypt. The bread was described as "the bread of affliction which our fathers ate in the land of Egypt. Let everyone who hungers come and eat; let everyone who is needy come and eat the Passover meal." Then he gave thanks for the bread; it was broken and the pieces distributed to each one. Here Jesus is reinterpreting the significance of the meal in the light of what he is about to suffer by adding, "This is my body."

vv.23-24--There were also four cups passed. This was the third, the cup of thanksgiving (from which we get our word eucharist), over which was spoken this blessing: "May the All-merciful One make us worthy of the days of the Messiah and of the life of the world to come. He brings the salvation of his king. He shows covenant-faithfulness to his Anointed, to David and his seed forever. He makes peace in his heavenly places. May he secure peace for us and for all Israel." Jesus adds that this cup of redemption now represents his poured out blood. Just as the Old Covenant of Law through Moses was ratified with the sprinkling of blood (Ex 24:6-8), so will be the New Covenant, promised in Jeremiah 31:31ff-- a covenant of the forgiveness of sins, written on the hearts of believers. It is this that Jesus came to establish through his sacrificial death on the Cross.

v.25--He now vows never to touch wine again until God’s kingdom is established in its fullness and he sits at table with his followers at the Messianic banquet. In effect, Jesus abstains from partaking in the fourth cup. This was the cup of consummation, which speaks of God’s promise to take his people home. This cup’s fulfillment must await the right time. We now live in the time between these two cups of promise, redemption and consummation (Jesus’ first and second comings).

v.26-It was customary to end the meal with the singing of the second half of the Hallel (praise), Psalms 115-118. We have already seen the messianic significance of Ps. 118 in ch. 11 ("the stone the builders rejected…" and "blessed is he who comes…"). It is no coincidence that Jesus ends the meal with these words on his lips. Thus, this final Passover which Jesus eats with his disciples is one of fulfillment-- a new Passover, which believers down through the centuries would continue to celebrate in remembrance, thanks and expectation. Messiah has come, the One to whom all the law and writings point; redemption has come through his sacrificial death, but the final consummation of the kingdom must wait.

Jesus Predicts Peter’s Denial (14:27-31)

vv.27-28-On their way back to the Mount of Olives, Jesus warns them that they will all disassociate themselves from him as he goes through his last trial. "Fall away" (Gk skandalizomai, from which we get our word scandal) refers literally to stumbling over something, and thus being offended. The stumbling block (skandalon) here will be the Cross, for despite Jesus’ persistent warnings and teachings, the disciples still cannot fathom a Messiah who suffers and dies. There is no condemnation in his words, however; they are spoken with sadness but also with compassion and comfort. After their apostasy and his death, he will see them again in Galilee (Matthew 28:16 tells us that he had arranged to meet them on a particular mountain). Their scattering is in fulfillment of what is written in Zechariah 13:7. The context of this prophecy is the opening of a "fountain" of cleansing for the house of David and Jerusalem, as well as a judgment and scattering of Israel, during which two-thirds of the nation will die, and the remainder will be refined like gold. Here Jesus is making reference to the new redemption offered through his blood and the coming destruction and diaspora (scattering) of the Jewish nation of ch. 13. These events must occur in order that a new people of God may be created.

vv.29-31-With typical bravado, Peter steps forward to protest that such will never be the case, at least with him. Jesus solemnly prophesies that Peter will deny him before the sun has risen (cockcrow). But Peter and the others will not hear of it. They still don’t understand that all that the Scriptures say of Messiah must be fulfilled.

Agony in Gethsemane (14:32-42)

vv.32-34-- Located on the Mt. of Olives, Gethsemane (lit. "olive oil press") was an olive grove where oil was manufactured. It was probably part of a larger estate. Jesus had perhaps met there frequently with his disciples as a quiet place of prayer or teaching (with permission from the owner, of course). Thus Judas’ familiarity with the place enabled him to lead the guards to Jesus. As on other occasions of great importance, he takes Peter, James and John with him as he turns aside to pray. Ironically, these three had all claimed that they would stick with Jesus and share his fate (14:31; 10:38,39) but even here they fail the test. The tremendous weight of sorrow that Jesus feels here is not merely physical anxiety over his impending suffering; it is also the result of the spiritual darkness that has begun to envelop him, as the Father at last lifts his hand of protection from the Son so that Scripture may be fulfilled. It was no small act of power for the divine Son of Man to lay down his life (cf. Jn 18:4-6). What must the angels have thought when they were told to stand aside and allow Jesus to be taken? It has also been proposed that Jesus is beginning to feel here the transference of the sin of the world onto his shoulders-- a colossal burden! Heretofore, he has experienced intimate and uninterrupted fellowship with the Father. Now, he who knew no sin is made to be sin on our behalf (1Cor 5:21). Thus, he has begun to experience man’s sin in the full horror of its separation from God.

vv.35-36-Having commanded the three to keep watch (i.e. to pray vigilantly for him), in agony he moves away to pray, but within earshot of the three, for his words are recorded here. He addresses God as Abba, the Aramaic word for "Papa," the more intimate form of "Father." This is Jesus’ last and greatest temptation. The "cup" here, as in 10:38, is a symbol for the cup of God’s wrath on mankind which he must drink to the leas. Here Satan tries to dissuade him from going to the cross, to cause him to plead for some other way. Jesus expresses his dilemma honestly, but his ultimate resolve is submission to the Father’s will. Imagine the intensity of the spiritual warfare going on at this moment!

vv.37-38-Turning back to his disciples, he finds them sleeping. They have failed to take heed to his warning to "watch!" (cf. 13:35-37) and have succumbed to the flesh. He rouses them to pray. But they fail to understand the urgency of the moment, that this is a time for warfare. Has Satan also put a spirit of stupor on them? Would you put it past him?

vv.39-42-Jesus returns two more times to find them in the same condition. By the third time it is too late; his enemies are upon him.

Jesus Arrested (14:43-52)

vv.43-49-- The Sanhedrin has sent a crowd of men armed with swords or clubs, obviously fearing resistance from Jesus’ followers. They are led to the spot by Judas who identifies Jesus by kissing him-- more hypocrisy! Jesus offers them no resistance, however, for this is his hour. Frightened, one of the disciples--John identifies him as Peter--attacks the high priest’s servant (named Malchus, Jn 18:10). Jesus rebukes the mob for their cowardice in bringing weapons against him. What are they afraid of? Has he ever advocated or incited violence? Has he preached rebellion that they treat him like a common criminal? No, they are without excuse. Their motives come from the devil. But it is the Father’s will to deliver him over to them--that alone is the reason that they are able to apprehend him (cf. Jn 19:11). Recall Isaiah 53, "he was numbered with the transgressors," and "like a lamb…he opened not his mouth."

vv.50-52-In accordance with Jesus’ prediction, all his followers run for their lives. The crowd grabs one unidentified young man by his garment, but he breaks free and runs away naked, leaving his clothing behind. Since Mark is the only Gospel writer to include this odd detail, some historians, going back to the early church, identify the young man as the author of the Gospel himself (who would have been a young man at this time). It is an intriguing possibility, although there is no hard evidence for this. Whoever he was, it may be that this incident is meant to be a fulfillment of Amos 2:16-- in the context of God’s judgment on Israel, "Even the bravest warriors will flee naked on that day." So even the stoutest of heart deserted Jesus. He was entirely alone.

Before the Sanhedrin (14:53-65)

vv.53-59-- Arrested, Jesus is brought before the Sanhedrin, presided over by the high priest Joseph Caiaphas. He served as high priest from A.D. 18-37. The appointment of high priests was the prerogative of the Roman governor, who always received a tidy sum of money in exchange--thus usually making the high priest’s term of office only a few years. The fact that Caiaphas served so long does not speak well for him as a human being. A Sadduccee from the wealthy ruling class, he was not popular with the people, but the Romans doubtless appreciated his ruthlessness. Peter somehow finds himself standing outside the proceedings--but at a safe distance--doubtless anxious over the outcome. The "trial" must have been chaotic and frustrating, since no one could come up with anything concrete against Jesus. No charge of sinning or breaking the law could be found--for obvious reasons. Since any testimony had to be established by two or more witnesses, it was impossible to make even a false accusation stick. The charge of threatening to destroy the temple is actually based on a misinterpretation of something Jesus did say. In Jn 2:19, after he has cleansed the temple, the leaders demand a sign to prove on what authority he does these things. He responds, "Destroy this temple and I will raise it again in three days." The "temple" he refers to, John explains, was his body, which, though crucified, would rise again in three days. The authorities took him literally, however, and doubtless filed away this threat for use later. Still, however, amid the confusion and fury of the trial proceedings, they cannot make even this charge stick. "As the lamb before its shearers is silent" (Isa 53), so Jesus answers not a word. It is clear that Jesus must be convicted on higher charges, and indeed, ironically, the only reason that can be found is his confessing to be the Messiah.

vv.60-65-- Obviously frustrated at their incompetence and Jesus’ silence, Caiaphas takes over the interrogation himself and goes in for the kill. So far, for the past three years of his ministry, Jesus has made no direct admission of his identity. The moment has come, however, for Messiah to be revealed-- and rejected, for he is the Suffering Servant, the Lamb God has provided to take on the sin of the world. To the high priest’s direct question, he answers "I am"--an unmistakable use of God’s ineffable name (Ex 3:13,14). He then goes further to reveal himself also as Daniel’s Son of Man who will come to judge the world. The trap has at last snapped shut, and Caiaphas tears his clothes, a traditional sign of sorrow and indignation. The charge is now blasphemy: Jesus, the prophet from Galilee has made himself out to be the Son of God. Under OT law, the charge of blasphemy could refer to anything that dishonored God’s name and majesty, and the penalty was stoning. Under Roman occupation, the Sanhedrin had been allowed to exercise its judgments in matters of Jewish law and religion, but capital offenses had to be submitted to the governor, for obvious reasons. Thus a formal conviction would be issued and the prisoner handed over to Roman justice. Their spitting at Jesus would represent their public disgust and rejection of his blasphemy. The blindfolding and command to prophesy were probably meant to lend further proof to the charges, since it was widely held among the rabbis that the real Messiah would be able to discern by smell alone without the aid of sight or hearing ("He will not judge by what he sees with his eyes or decide by what he hears with his ears" Isa. 11:3). Jesus does not submit to this test, however.

Peter Disowns Jesus (14:66-72)

vv. 66-72-- Meanwhile in the outer courtyard, Peter has been accused of being one of Jesus’ followers. He denies this twice. A third time he is accused, since his Galilean accent gives him away. Galilean Jews where notorious for their pronunciation. This time he invokes a curse on himself and swears he is not one of Jesus’ band. At that moment, he hears a rooster crowing, for it is probably near daybreak. Remembering Jesus’ words, he weeps tragically. How God deals with those whom he determines to use, breaking them of any pride, self-will and self-sufficiency! Like the apostle Paul, Peter was one who would later be given great gifts for ministry and leadership--he would see the Spirit use him to do amazing miracles to build and strengthen the young church. Yet, for the rest of his life, he also lived with the humbling realization of who he really was apart from Jesus. His failure here doubtless made him able to connect with the average Christian, struggling in his faith.

Questions to Consider

1. What seemed so extravagant about Mary of Bethany's use of the perfume? Why was her act also so appropriate? What does her example teach us about worship?

2. On the natural or human level, what do you think motivated Judas to betray Jesus? What about the supernatural level?

3. How does Jesus' last supper with his disciples follow the traditional Passover seder meal? In what ways does Jesus reinterpret it (how is it different)? Why is this significant?

4. What happened to the disciples at Jesus' arrest? How is this ironic in view of James' and John's request in Mark 10:38-39? What motivated Peter to deny Christ? Knowing what you know about Peter, in what ways do you think God may have used this failure in Peter's life? How might it have been both an encouragement and a warning to the church (see 13:35)?

5. After three years of shying away from messianic titles, why do you think Jesus chose this opportunity (v.62) to reveal his identity to the high priest?

2005-10-13T11:18:00.000-07:00

Gospel of Mark

Lesson #14

Section 5 cont.

Signs of the End of the Age (13:1-31)

vv.1-2-- This was the second temple, rebuilt initially in the 6th century B.C. after the destruction of the first temple by the Babylonians. This second structure, built rather quickly by the Jews returning from exile, had been of necessity smaller and simpler in design than the original grand edifice of Solomon. In 19 B.C. King Herod the Great, feeling it did not measure up to its former glory (and his own) and wanting to win a name for himself in the hearts of his subjects, who hated him, undertook a project of major reconstruction and expansion in the classical style. He added imposing dimensions to the sanctuary and outer courts, as well as numerous porticos, colonnades and dazzling decoration. The building was done with massive and ornately carved blocks of white stone (many measuring 37 X 12 X 18 ft!) and much gold overlay, so that from a great distance the massive complex positively sparkled. Construction on the outer buildings continued through Jesus’ day (see Jn 2:20) and was not complete until A.D. 64 (ironically, only six years before it was entirely destroyed!). To worshiper or tourist, the temple complex must have seemed breathtakingly beautiful, a heaven on earth, as well as an impregnable fortress against time. Even pagan authors remarked about its beauty, noting it as one of the architectural wonders of the world. Jesus’ response to the disciples’ oohs and ahs, however, is one of doom and destruction. That God would allow such a magnificent and holy place built to his glory to be destroyed (let alone that anyone could) must have been unthinkable. The Jerusalem temple had always been the navel of Israel, a symbol of God’s abiding presence and his covenant of faithfulness with his chosen nation. The Lord had promised to dwell among his people and to deliver them from their enemies-- if they would follow his laws. “We are safe, as long as the Lord’s temple is here,” they thought. To think otherwise was blasphemy. As so often happened in Israel’s history, the majority of people were looking to the outward forms of religion to save them, forms that looked like godliness but did not touch the heart. God does not delight in mere ceremony but in humility, repentance, mercy and faith. Now, he had sent them his kingdom in the person of his Son, but they did not want it. So, just as six centuries before, he must warn them of the temple’s impending destruction. This second destruction of the temple occurred 40 years later in A.D. 70.

vv.3-4-- The disciples must have been confused and shaken by Jesus’ remark, but only later do they ask him about it. They seem to understand that this prophecy of destruction had something to do with the consummation of the kingdom and they want to know when it will occur. Jesus is sitting with them on the Mt. of Olives, east of the city, which commanded an imposing view of the glorious temple. This mountain figures prominently in Zechariah 14 as the place from which God will judge Israel’s enemies on the dreadful Day of the Lord. In Ezekiel 9-11, it is the place where the Lord’s glory rests after departing from the temple, thus leaving both temple and city vulnerable to attack from her enemies. Jesus’ revelation that follows is often called the Olivet Discourse. Given on the Mt. of Olives, it is the longest of Jesus’ teachings in Mark. It is also a mini-apocalypse since it has much in common with apocalyptic literature (prophecy about the end times), such as that in the Book of Daniel.

vv.5-8-- Jesus warns them repeatedly that such times will require caution and discernment on the part of the faithful. They must be careful not to misread events. False Messiah’s will rise up and gather many followers by playing upon people’s fear and claiming that the end has come. (Josephus, the Jewish historian who lived during that time, tells us that this in fact did happen.) There will be numerous wars and natural disasters. (There were numerous famines, including an empire-wide one, during the reign of emperor Claudius [AD 41-54; see Acts 11:28]). They are not to be afraid, however, for the end of the world is not yet—these things must take place first, but the consummation of God’s kingdom awaits the right time. Birth pangs are a fitting image as something painful and dangerous that precedes a blessed event, but they are not the event itself. Between AD 62-66, disturbances within the empire and growing unrest in Palestine must have convinced many that the end was coming. Recall that the Roman church itself went through a harrowing persecution under Nero in AD 64, during which both Peter and Paul may have been martyred and many Christians were burned, crucified or torn by beasts in the arena as enemies of the state. To the Christian community, it must have seemed like the end of the world. Here Mark underscores Jesus’ prophecy lest they be lead astray into panic or a false interpretation of events.

vv.9-11-- It will be a time of persecution for the faithful, who will bear testimony to the truth before various authorities. Just as Jesus was brought before the Jewish Council and the Roman governor, so will his faithful followers be persecuted by authorities both religious and secular. (Look at the persecution of the apostles in the book of Acts.) The good news of the kingdom, however, must first be presented to every nation (literally, every ethnic group) before the end will come. So they should not pull back or be diverted from their task of spreading the gospel. The kingdom cannot be consummated until this condition is fulfilled. No persecution can stop it. Nor should they fear to speak, but depend entirely upon the Lord for wisdom, for the Holy Spirit will speak through them.

vv.12-13-- It will be a time of ruthlessness and treachery as people forsake natural relationships—some to save their own skins, others out of hatred for God and the gospel. Those who bear Jesus’ name and testify to the truth will be hated for it, just as he was hated, but they must persevere in faith and not lose heart. They must fear God, not man. They will be saved in the end— saved, that is, in the ultimate sense of being vindicated before God’s bar of justice, although they may lose their lives.

vv.14-16-- In the accumulation of these traumatic events, matters will come to a head. Jesus quotes Daniel’s prophecy about “the abomination of desolation” (See Dan 9:27; 11:31), which refers to a horrifying sacrilege committed in the temple by a pagan prince. This may have been fulfilled initially when in 168 B.C. the Syrian king Antiochus IV marched on Jerusalem, put a stop to the temple sacrifices and erected an altar of Zeus, upon which he sacrificed swine. (The Jewish festival of Dedication, called Chanukah, commemorates the rededication of the temple following that desecration.) Jesus prophesies about a similar sacrilege that was to come, one so appalling that it would cause God to reject his sanctuary. It is clear that Mark, writing his Gospel some 35 or more years later, intended the Christian community in Rome to identify this event (“let the reader understand”). The actual rendering of the text is more likely, “When you see the abomination of desolation standing where he does not belong.” They were to take no concern for personal belongings, for immediate flight will be necessary to escape God’s judgment that will come upon the nation as a result of this blasphemous treatment of the holy place. Only the mountains will be a safe refuge from the wrath that will be poured out over all Judea. What was this sacrilege? Again, Josephus may shed some light. In A.D. 66 Jewish resentment against Roman abuses broke out in open revolt. The Jewish forces were made up of followers of the Zealot party (agitators for the violent overthrow of Roman rule). Although they won some initial victories and declared the nation free, it became clear to all that it was just a matter of time before Rome sent a large enough army to squash the rebellion. By the year 68 the desperate Zealot forces were occupying the temple stronghold, executing those whom they deemed traitors within the temple and allowing brigands and murderers to enter the Most Holy Place. The last straw came when, in a mock ceremony, they invested a clown named Phanni as high priest! The Jerusalem church would surely have recognized these events as the sacrilege Jesus warned about. The early church historian Eusebius tells us that, having been warned by this prophecy, Christians in Jerusalem fled to Pella, a city in the mountains of Perea, east of Judea. Once they left, the judgment of God fell upon Jerusalem. A massive Roman force landed under the command of the emperor’s own son Titus, and the inhabitants of Jerusalem found themselves trapped. Hundreds of thousands died of starvation and some were reduced to cannibalism from the famine that accompanied the siege. There were other horrible acts of violence and desperation within the city, until finally in the year 70, Titus broke through the city wall. The city was torched and those who were still alive were slaughtered unmercifully. Josephus states that over a million Jews died in the war or its aftermath. The Roman troops, entering the temple, set it ablaze also, apparently against Titus’ orders. After its destruction, however, Titus ordered its buildings leveled to the ground. Its stones were greedily pried apart to retrieve the gold that had melted in the fire. Thus were Jesus’ words in v.2 literally fulfilled.

vv.17-20—Jesus expresses sorrow and compassion for pregnant and nursing mothers who will find flight difficult (is he also referring to those women who, according to historians, actually ate their own young or denied them milk during the famine?). The disciples are to pray that their flight will not occur during the winter, when the rain-swollen rivers would make travel treacherous. These traumatic events will be unparalleled in history, but in mercy God will bring an end to them, lest even his disciples perish. He refers to them as “the elect,” “chosen” by God. Surely, these words would have given confidence and comfort to the church that a God who loves them was ultimately in control.

vv.21-23-- Even with all these harrowing calamities, the end is still not yet. Again, Jesus warns, false prophets and Messiahs will come claiming to be sent by God. But the disciples should not be deceived or deterred from their flight, for the Son of Man will not come in that way again, performing miracles. Indeed, the Lord will not allow his chosen ones to be deceived. But they must be on guard, using his words as a template for interpreting these treacherous times.

vv.24-27-- Now there is a shift in Jesus’ prophecy away from the judgment of Israel toward the actual events of the end. It is not clear how much time will pass between the destruction and persecutions of vv.3-23 and the actual consummation of the kingdom. But it is clear that he is making a distinction between the two. In the former verses he warns them, when they see these events, not to be deceived into thinking that the end has come. Instead they are to occupy themselves by spreading the gospel. Now, however, in the time after this distress, he counsels them to stand watch, always on the ready for the ultimate coming of the Son of Man. Following Joel and other OT prophets, Jesus warns that the end will be ushered in by catastrophes of cosmic proportions, common symbols of the coming world judgment or Day of the Lord. A darkened sun is frequently associated with God’s wrath (cf. Isa 13:10; note also the darkness that accompanied Jesus’ crucifixion, Mk 15:33). When he comes again it will be as the Son of Man in Daniel 7:13, in clouds of glory and great power, accompanied by hosts of angels, who will harvest the earth, gathering all the elect, both living and dead. This is the only reference in Mark to the "rapture" of believers (cf. 1Thess 4:13-5:3).

vv.28-31-- We’ve already noted in ch. 12 that the Mt. Of Olives was known for its many fig trees, which would have begun to produce leaves at this time. Jesus again turns to this familiar tree for another object lesson about predicting the events described in vv.3-23. If one is watching for the signs of fulfillment, one will recognize that judgment is coming. It will be obvious. Jesus states that some of his generation will still be alive to see these events. Indeed, within 40 years (30 to 70 A.D.), all these events had taken place. Clearly, he is referring then to the judgment on Israel and not to the Second Coming. Why then does Mark place this saying here instead of before v. 24? Well, with hindsight, we would have placed it there, but 2000 years ago the church believed that Christ’s coming was not far off. And if it was not far off then, how much closer is it today!

Being Watchful (13:32-37)

vv.32-37— Mark concludes the section by returning to Jesus’ prophecies about the coming of the Son of Man. Unlike the coming of the former judgment, which will be plain to see, his coming is a secret, known only to God the Father. The church must therefore stay alert (i.e. faithful, walking in righteousness) as a servant awaits the return of his master and wants him to find him at his duty. This theme of watchfulness (the rooster’s crowing and the sleeping mentioned in v.35,36) will be illustrated in ch. 14 during Jesus’ agony in the garden and Peter’s subsequent denial. The section ends with the ominous command to “Watch!” What irony! One can almost imagine Peter telling these stories, humbly setting the scene for his own failure and betrayal of the Master!

In saying that vv.3-23 have been fulfilled in the events of the four decades following Jesus, it is not meant that they have no meaning for us today, for truly, they set the pattern of the church’s persecution and missionary activity throughout the ages. The pattern is that of Christ himself who, though persecuted and betrayed, stayed faithful to the end. The events of the Jewish War of A.D. 66-70 are a sobering reminder of the responsibility we have as God’s elect. One merely needs to look at the archaeology of Jerusalem today to witness how thorough the destruction was (and that the temple has never been rebuilt). As Paul warns any Gentile believer who is given to arrogance, “If God did not spare the natural branches, he will not spare you either” (Ro 11:21). His judgment on the nation of Israel was not the last word, however, for in both Old and New Testaments we have the prophetic promise of restoration. Just as Jewish believers formed the nucleus of the emerging church, so will they be its crown in the last days (Ro 11:25-32).

Although the 1st century church saw in the events of A.D. 68-70 a literal fulfillment of Jesus’ prophecy, Paul also states emphatically that the end of the world will not come until the “man of lawlessness is revealed,” the antichrist who will set himself up as a god in the Lord’s temple (2Thess 2:4). This leads us to believe that there will be another, ultimate “abomination of desolation” and a further level of fulfillment to Christ’s words.

We now live in the last days, the age between these two crises of judgment, that which fell upon the chosen Jewish nation in A.D. 70 and that which is to fall upon the world. The end will not come, however, until the gospel has been preached to all nations. The world is a great deal larger than it was perceived to be in the 1st century, and there are many more ethnic groups to be reached. But each day the number grows smaller. Therefore, keep watch.

Questions to Consider

1. What was Jesus' prophecy concerning the Jerusalem temple? How and when was it fulfilled? Why did such destruction come upon the nation? (see Luke 19:41-44). Why were the Jews the first to suffer this judgment? (see Romans 2:9-10) Why is judgment on the rest of the nations delayed? What si God waiting for? (see Mark 13:10)

2. What did the "abomination that causes desolation" originally refer to? (see Daniel 9:27;11:31;12:11) To what does Jesus refer in using the expression? How was that fulfilled? Will there be another fulfillment of these words? (see 2Thessalonians 2).

3. As we are waiting for Jesus' return, what should we be doing? (see Matthew 25) Jesus said the end will not come until the gospel is preached to every ethnic group. How is that different from "every nation"? What should we be doing about this?

4. Does this chapter give you hope? Does it scare you? Why?

5. Why do you think that even Jesus does not know the exact day and hour of his coming? How would you respond then to someone who claimed to have computed the exact day according to Bible prophecy?

2005-10-07T08:11:00.000-07:00

Gospel of Mark

Lesson # 13

Section 5 cont'd.

Parable of the Tenants (12:1-12)

vv.1-8--The nation of Israel is similarly compared to a vineyard in Isa 5:1-7. There the Lord himself plants and tenderly cares for the vineyard, expecting it to yield good fruit, but it produces only bad. Thus, he will take away its protection, allowing it to be pillaged and overgrown with weeds. A similar fate is implied for Jerusalem and the nation as a whole, because they did not repent at the proper time. Under OT law, the enjoyment of God’s blessing and gifts were contingent upon obedience. The story of the tenants is an outline of the nation’s history: rejecting the prophets sent to them. The point of the parable is that the owner has been patient, doing all he could do. Now that they have rejected his last and most precious emissary, he is justified in bringing judgment.

vv.10-12—Jesus ends the story with a quotation from Ps 118:22,23, another passage which had messianic implications in rabbinical tradition. The inference is that Messiah, though rejected by men, will be ultimately vindicated and glorified by God. Defeat turned into triumph by the power of God. A capstone crowns the topmost layer of a wall. Literally, the Psalm probably refers to a story of a block of stone rejected as unsuitable by the builders of Solomon’s sanctuary (10th century B.C.) but which was later used as the keystone of the entrance porch. Jesus’ meaning does not escape them, for as religious leaders they were sometimes referred to as the nation’s “builders.” Outraged, they would seize him then and there but they fear a violent reaction from the crowd, who are hanging on his words. Though champing at the bit, the demonic forces arrayed against him must await the Father’s timing. For in reality, no one can take the life of the Son of God; he must lay it down as a sin offering. (An interesting historical note: Archaeologists have discovered that the traditional site of the crucifixion had been an ancient rock quarry, which by Jesus’ day had been abandoned and used by the Romans as a place of execution. This evidence adds another layer of meaning to Jesus’ prophetic use of Ps 118:22,23. “We considered him stricken by God… but he was pierced for our transgressions…and though the Lord makes his life a guilt offering, he will see his offspring and the will of the Lord will prosper in his hand”—Isa 53.)

Paying Taxes to Caesar (12:13-17)

v.13—“They” refers to the Sanhedrin (Jewish High Council), who were trying to find some way of condemning Jesus, either under God’s law or Roman. Here they send a party of Pharisees and Herodians. The latter were supporters of the Herodian dynasty (the Herods), a puppet government loyal to Rome. So it is ironic that the Pharisees, of all people, would be willing to associate themselves with them. Such an alliance shows how desperate the religious hierarchy was to dispose of Jesus.

v.14-15—Their question is preceded by flattery, intended to encourage Jesus to be completely honest, so he will fall into the trap. Since everyone knows his honesty, he should not fear to speak plainly on this issue of taxation. Roman taxation was a hot button, deeply resented by most Jews, who saw it as a great indignity imposed by a foreign power. It was a reminder of their captivity as a nation, as well as an affront to God’s law, since the emperor was considered divine and his coins had graven images! In asking Jesus to answer either yes or no, they are offering him a Catch-22. If he says yes, he will be considered a traitor to his nation and just another a creature of Rome in the eyes of the people. If he says no, the Herodians will surely report this to the Roman authorities who will arrest him for sedition. Instead, Jesus asks for a denarius, the small silver Roman coin used to pay the tax. He knows what the coin looks like and what it says, and so does everyone else, but he wishes to use it as an object lesson.

vv.16-17—The denarius then in circulation had a portrait of the emperor on one side, with the inscription “Tiberius Caesar Son of the Divine Augustus.” On the other side it proclaimed the emperor as “Great High Priest.” All Roman coinage was considered the property of the emperor, so Jesus is stating a fact that the coin is indeed Caesar’s. But he is also saying more than that. Human government is instituted by God to promote the general welfare of all. The roads, armies, commerce and public services from which we derive benefit must be maintained. Therefore, there are duties we have toward the state which do not infringe on our duties toward God. It is within the prerogative of government to tax its people— (even in Israelite history, God’s people paid taxes under their own kings). Yet in the history of humankind, it is so often the tendency of government to overreach itself, taking on some attributes of divinity and demanding from its citizens what should be given to God alone. Such was the case in Jesus’ day. Yes, Jesus is saying, pay your taxes to Rome, but worship God alone. No authority but God has the right to demand your worship. Perhaps there is also a touch of irony in his response as well. If the coin’s blasphemous image and titles offend, why not send it back where it came from? Why hold onto it? Hmmm, could it be the love of money? Okay, next batter up!

The Sadducees & the Resurrection (12:18-27)

v.18—Among the various religious sects in 1st century Judaism, the Sadducees must have been a rather grim lot. Little is actually known about them, for none of their written records survive. They had their origins among the priesthood and aristocracy of the Hasmonean (Maccabeean or pre-Roman) period of the 2nd century B.C. They were the elite and powerful, as opposed to the Pharisees, who were popular among the masses. In Jesus’ day they were a small, despised but powerful minority in that they controlled the high priesthood as well as a majority among the Jewish aristocracy and the Sanhedrin (Jewish High Council). For these reasons their interests were more political than religious, and they knew how to stay in power, having survived a century of upheavals under Roman occupation. In their position of wealth and power, they had much to gain by appeasing the Romans and keeping the nation at peace. Therefore, any popular movement was seen as a major threat to be squelched unmercifully (cf. John 11:48-50). They were well-known for their ruthlessness and rudeness. Doctrinally, their beliefs were more hyper-conservative than those of the Pharisees, and they doubtless saw themselves as the guardians of the pure faith against the “innovations” of their opponents. They held that the 5 Books of Moses (Genesis through Deuteronomy) alone were authoritative, rejected the Oral Law of the Pharisees as non-binding, and did not believe in the resurrection of the dead, the immortality of the soul, or the existence of angels or demons (cf. Acts 23:8). In these stances they were hostilely opposed to the Pharisees.

vv.19-23—The law of Moses they refer to is called “levirate marriage” (Deut 25:5-10), which required the brother of a deceased man to marry his widow if he died without a male heir. The law was designed to keep property from reverting outside the family line and to protect widows from destitution. It was common in rabbinical circles to ridicule an opponent’s doctrine by proposing a case which reduced it to absurdity. The Sadducees’ point here is that the Pharisaic belief in the resurrection and afterlife would conflict with Mosaic law. Chaos would ensue in the hereafter if each of the brothers had been obedient to the law and married the widow.

vv.24-27—Jesus goes beyond merely answering their argument, however; he goes right to the source of the problem-- unbelief. The Sadduceean scribes prided themselves on their ability to interpret the law correctly. Yet they not only failed to understand their own Scriptures, but their God was also very small. The resurrection is no mere continuation of this life, Jesus says; it is a new order of existence. People will not marry; God and communion with God will be the focus, as with the angels. Remember that the Sadducees did not accept the OT prophetic and historical writings as authoritative, thus sealing themselves off from most of the references to the resurrection. So Jesus deliberately chooses a quotation (Ex 3:6) from the Pentateuch (5 Books of Moses), which they accepted. His interpretation of the verse, while perhaps strange to us, is done in accordance with 1st century rabbinical methods. Note that the Lord says to Moses, “I AM the God of…,” not “I was [their God].” If he is still their God, then Abraham, Isaac and Jacob must be alive. Being the patriarch’s God also involved more than just worship; it meant being their deliverer, sustainer, and protector. God had entered into a covenant relationship with these men and with the nation of Israel—a covenant of faithfulness to be their Savior in all adversity. If he was able to deliver them through every hardship in life but unable to rescue them in death, how could he be their "God" in the true sense of the word? The Sadducees’ denial of the resurrection, therefore, made God into a liar.

The Greatest Commandment (12:28-34)

v.28-- Attracted by the wisdom of Jesus’ answers, one rabbi ventures forward to inquire of him in earnest. Perhaps the Lord’s responses have awakened in the man a hunger for eternal life. Debate over which were the “greater and lesser” (more important and less important) of God's commands was common among the rabbis. This teacher wants to know what Jesus thinks.

vv.29-31-- Jesus quotes Deut 6:4,5 and Lev 19:18 as summarizing God’s law. Note that love for God and neighbor are linked together inseparably, the latter growing out of the former. They begin with an inner orientation of surrender and abandonment to God. So obedience to the law involves more than sacrifice and mere outward show. It is a matter of the heart, where all man’s problems begin. This union between love for God and fellow man is a consistent theme throughout the New Testament (cf. Ro 13:8,9; Gal 5:14; 1Jn 4:7,8).

vv.32-34-- The man agrees with Jesus, recognizing that love is superior to ceremony. Jesus commends him, encouraging him to stay on that track and to keep seeking the kingdom of God. Jesus’ response to the man’s question effectively pours cold water on the whole inquisition so that, frustrated, Jesus’ enemies retreat in silence. They cannot refute such a teacher. They must find another way to defeat him.

Christ the Son of David? (12:35-40)

vv.35-37—Still teaching the crowds in the temple courts, Jesus now turns his attention to the common expectations concerning the Messiah, as Son of David. Again, most Jews were expecting an earthly ruler from the line of David who would reunite and restore the biblical kingdom of Israel. In asking, “How is it that the teachers of the law say that the Christ is the son of David?” Jesus is not refuting the assertion of Messiah's Davidic ancestry but rather giving its true interpretation (i.e. what does it really mean?) and provoking reflection. Quoting Ps 110:1, a messianic passage, he asks how it can be reconciled that Messiah is both David’s son and Lord? The question involves the mystery of the incarnation, of a Messiah who is both man and God. Jesus in effect challenges the people to look beyond their current expectations to something wider and greater. Even David himself prophesies that the One who comes after him will be greater. The kingdom which Messiah will reestablish is not man’s but God’s. Already Jesus is pointing to his post-resurrection exaltation at the right hand of God.

vv.38-40-- The crowds delight in Jesus’ silencing the teachers of the law. He then begins to warn the people against the hypocrisy of such men. Ordained teachers of the law wore white linen robes that reached to the feet and distinguished them from ordinary people. They were addressed with great respect (“Teacher,” ‘Father,” “Master”) and people rose when they passed. They were usually given the seats of honor at gatherings. Because they were not allowed to receive money for their services, it became incumbent on the people to support them. Indeed, it was seen as an act of piety to extend hospitality to a rabbi and to contribute toward his maintenance. Many pious souls offered their homes and income at the disposal of these men—including widows who had little to live on. Jesus does not condemn this form of charity but rather the smug attitude of the rabbis who lapped it all up and did little to actually help people. Their focus should have been the care and shepherding of the sheep, not their own bellies and reputations. They will have a rude awakening on the day of judgment.

The Widow’s Offering (12:41-44)

vv.41-44-- The purpose of this episode is to contrast the false, outward show of piety practiced by the teachers of the law with the wholehearted devotion and utter consecration of the poor widow. There were 13 trumpet-shaped receptacles in the Court of the Women for worshipers to deposit their offerings as they entered the temple. The woman offers 2 lepta, the smallest coins in circulation. For the sake of his Roman audience, Mark explains their value as a fraction of a Roman quadrans—a tiny amount. Jesus prefaces his remark by swearing with an Amen (translated here “I tell you the truth”)—what he is about to say is absolutely true and vitally important. The woman is an example of the kind of love and radical abandonment that Jesus has been talking about. Her gift is the greater for she held nothing back, putting her full trust in the Lord!

Questions to Consider

1. To whom is the Parable of the Vineyard addressed? What does Jesus mean by it and why did it get the religious leaders angry? What is the significance of Jesus' quoting Psalm 118:22,23? What would the religious leaders have understood by this reference?

2. Why was the alliance between the Pharisees and Herodians an odd one? What were they out to accomplish and why? Why was taxation such a dangerous topic and their question a Catch-22? What is Jesus' answer? How does he avoid the trap and still answer the question with great wisdom? How do you feel about paying taxes? Ever cheated? According the Jesus, what is the right of government? What are it limitations?

3. What is the resurrection from the dead? Who were the Sadducees and why did they not believe in the resurrection? How does Jesus use one of their own sacred texts to silence them?
Why is marriage not an issue at the resurrection?

4. According to Jesus, what are the two greatest commandments in the OT? How are they related? Why is love the beginning and focus of the law? How would Jesus define love?

5. How is Jesus' teaching on the widow's offering a good lesson on giving? What is his point? How does your giving record (church, charities, personal benevolence, etc.) compare with the widow's?

2005-10-07T07:28:00.000-07:00

Gospel of Mark

Lesson # 12

Section 5: In Jerusalem (11:1-13:37)

Jerusalem at last! Jesus’ arrival in the holy city marks a new section in Mark’s Gospel. From this point all subsequent events will occur in and around Jerusalem. Unlike John’s account (in which most of the Lord’s ministry centers around Jerusalem), there are no healings or deliverances recorded here. Mark is concerned with Jesus’ prophetic ministry in the Jewish capital and his confrontation by the religious authorities, incidents that will set in motion the events of the Passion Narrative (chs. 14-15). It is as if Jesus, having at last arrived at his destination and the endpoint of his ministry, now pulls out the stops; there is no longer a concern for the secrecy of his identity. We hold our breath; the air in the capital is charged with tension and expectation, for we are no longer in Galilee, Toto! Jerusalem is a simmering cauldron of religious zeal mixed with hypocrisy, seething political resentments, fear, treachery, power, corruption and compromise —all of this fueled by demonic powers just waiting for the opportunity to revenge themselves on Jesus and thereby stop the terrifying progress of God’s kingdom.

The Triumphal Entry (11:1-11)

v.1--Bethphage and Bethany were two small villages situated on the Mount of Olives just east of the city. Ironically, Bethphage means “house of unripe figs” in Aramaic (see v.13). Bethany was the home of Jesus’ friends Lazarus, Mary and Martha, with whom he probably stayed (v.11).

vv.2-6— The “colt” was a young donkey. Because of their hardiness in the hot, dry climate, donkeys were used as beasts of burden in Palestine. They were used widely among the poor and were more common than horses, which were mostly associated with war (hence, the donkey’s association with peace). Jesus’ directions to the two disciples concerning the colt are prophetic, for they find things just as he told them. That the donkey has never been ridden is consonant with scriptural laws regarding animals used for sacred purposes (cf. Num 19:2; Deut 21:3). The untying of the colt is Jesus’ deliberate fulfillment of Gen 49:11 (Jacob’s prophetic blessing of Judah: “The scepter will not depart from Judah, nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet, until he comes to whom it belongs and the obedience of the nations is his. He will tether his donkey to a vine, his colt to the choicest branch; he will wash his garments in wine, his robes in the blood of grapes”). The common reference to Messiah as “the one who is coming” may owe it’s origin to these verses, which were interpreted messianically by Jesus’ day. In untethering the animal, he makes a prophetic declaration about his identity! Zech 9:9,10, another Messianic passage, is also in view: “Rejoice greatly, O Daughter of Zion! Shout, Daughter of Jerusalem! See, your king comes to you, righteous and having salvation, gentle and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey. I will take away the chariot from Ephraim, and the war-horses from Jerusalem, and the battle bow will be broken. He will proclaim peace to the nations. His rule will extend from sea to sea and from the River to the ends of the earth.” In fulfilling these prophecies, Jesus, the Messiah/Servant of God humbly offers the olive branch of peace and blessing (the kingdom of God) to Israel. Yet it is an offer that ultimately is refused.

vv.7-10—The crowd’s enthusiasm is more spontaneous than organized. It is doubtful that they fully understand the messianic significance of what they are doing. They may be simply caught up in the excitement of the moment. Even the twelve disciples do not comprehend the prophetic meaning of this event (cf. John 11:16). It was common for pilgrims going up to the holy city for the festivals to carry branches, cheer and chant certain psalms upon making the final ascent into Jerusalem. Strewing their garments over Jesus’ path is a sign of respect shown to royalty (cf. 2Ki 9:12ff). Their chants are taken from Psalm 118, part of the Great Hallel (Psalms 113-118) used liturgically at the feasts of Passover and Tabernacles. “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord” was also used as a common greeting among pilgrims at the feasts. The rabbis, however, interpreted this scripture (Ps 118:25) messianically (i.e. “he who comes”). Luke (19:39) indicates that there were strong objections from the Pharisees (fearful of the implications) about the crowd’s application of this verse to Jesus.

v.11— Jesus' looking around the temple upon his arrival is not the mere action of a tourist; it has the air of a royal inspection. (Cf. v.15ff) Recall that in Malachi 3:1ff, after the coming of the prophetic messenger, the Lord himself comes suddenly to his temple to purify it, cleansing those who serve there, that what is offered may be pleasing to him. The moment has come. God has landed to bring either blessing or judgment!

The Cleansing of the Temple (11:12-19)

vv.12-14—The cursing of the fig tree at first glance may puzzle us. Why does Jesus wish to harm a poor tree? It was April, and the first figs did not ripen until May or June. Surely, he must have known this. The act is prophetic, however, for the fig tree stands for the nation of Israel and its leaders, who, in general, have not recognized the time of Messiah’s coming. The fig tree’s broad and abundant leaves provided a good source of shade in hot Palestine, and its sweet fruit had many uses. The saying “each man under his own vine and fig tree” was associated with the blessing and abundance of God’s coming kingdom (cf. Micah 4:4). Instead of repentance, however, the nation as a whole has responded with unbelief and hardness of heart. Yielding fruit is an OT symbol of the righteousness God expects from his chosen people, as well as repentance in response to his prophetic word (cf. 12:2, also Mt 23:37-39). Yet they have produced neither. They might have religious display (plenty of leaves) but no true piety. In Micah 7:1ff the prophet laments that the godly are no more; he can find no righteous man, like one who finds no fruit on the vine or any of the “early figs” he craves.

vv.15-18-- Back in the temple Jesus engages in a deliberate fulfillment of Malachi 3. At issue is not the necessity of changing money nor the selling of animals for sacrifice. The common coinage of the empire contained Roman titles and images considered blasphemous to the Jews and had to be exchanged for the acceptable “sanctuary ½ shekel” in order to pay the annual temple tax required under Jewish law (Ex 30:11-16). Most visitors to the feasts also traveled long distances, and the law permitted them to purchase sacrificial animals in Jerusalem. The problem was that this trade was taking place in the Court of the Gentiles, the outermost court of the temple designated as a place of worship for non-Jews, who were prohibited from entering any further. The business transacted there was also probably quite lucrative, with merchants charging high prices, taking advantage of visitors who had to buy animals there. This big business was all authorized and overseen by the Sanhedrin (were some of its more prominent members skimming something off the top?). This kind of “robbery” defiled the sanctity and purpose of the place, becoming a stumbling block to Gentiles who were seeking the Lord and a place of worship. Jesus quotes verses from Isaiah 56 (which promises that God-fearing Gentiles will be included as part of Israel) and Jeremiah 7 (which prophesies the destruction of the temple). The meaning of these verses, as well as the messianic act of cleansing the temple, was surely not lost on the temple hierarchy. Jesus was certainly not making friends in high places. To them he had just sealed his own doom.

In John’s Gospel the temple cleansing is placed at the beginning rather than the end of Jesus’ three-year ministry (Jn 2:12ff). Given the discrepancy in chronology, there is wide argument whether there were actually two such episodes in Jesus’ ministry, or whether John or Mark is incorrect. Looking at John’s chronology, the cleansing occurs during the first of several visits to the holy city during the 3–year period. These visits, each coinciding with one of the major Jewish festivals, would have been in keeping with both OT law and common piety. We have already seen how Mark has arranged the stories in his Gospel to make a straighter path for Jesus from his early ministry in Galilee and outlying areas, to Jerusalem and the Cross. This may also have been the very way Peter himself preached. We have also mentioned Papias’ quoting John as affirming the veracity of Mark’s Gospel while stipulating that its order of events was not exactly chronological. Thus, it seems likely that John’s order may be correct, while Mark has taken more artistic license in his arrangement to highlight the centrality of the Cross. Recall also that in oral traditions, stories and events are often organized around similar themes or places as an aid to memory. Mark’s Gentile audience would not have been concerned how often Jesus visited Jerusalem.

The Withered Fig Tree (11:20-25)

vv.20-25—Seeing the fig tree withered from the ground up, the disciples marvel. While not explaining the exact meaning of the sign, Jesus takes the opportunity to instruct them on believing prayer. Why are they so surprised? Didn’t he curse the tree? He tells them that they too will see their prayers answered—if they discard their unbelief. The mountain he speaks of was the Mt. of Olives, and the sea, the Dead Sea, which is visible from the site. How far are we to take this promise? Certainly, this is no carte blanche for selfish or irresponsible prayers. One must be praying in accordance with the will of God (cf. 1Jn 5:14-15). But the focus here is that unbelief is a major obstacle to answered prayer. The disciple is to live in confidence that a loving heavenly Father hears and answers. As with healing, therefore, faith (representing confidence in the Lord’s covenant relationship) is the medium for the power of God to move. Another obstacle is unforgiveness. The question arises, does our forgiving others merit the Lord’s forgiving us? Certainly not. The issue is one of obedience and fruitfulness. As the Lord has forgiven us, we too must forgive others. Unforgiveness has no place in the life of a disciple. Harboring unforgiveness grieves the Spirit of God and hinders his work in and through us. God’s forgiveness is not merited; it is freely given. We are to do likewise. One cannot hoard this forgiveness for oneself; it must be given away. Disobedience in this area shows ingratitude for the gift and brings the Lord’s discipline and, eventually, judgment. (For an illustration of this principle, see the parable of the unmerciful steward in Matt 18:21-35).

Jesus’ Authority Questioned (11:27-33)

vv.27-33-- The delegation of priests, elders and scribes is representative of the Sanhedrin (Jewish High Council) and has probably been sent officially to get Jesus’ answer to the question of his authority. Perhaps this was to gather further evidence for a trial. Would he entrap himself further? Since his actions over the past 2 days have been messianic in nature, they want to know who he says he is. Who has authorized him to do these things? God? Thus far, he has made no public declaration of his identity. Their question is a trap: if he says the Messiah, they will certainly bring him to trial on a charge of blasphemy; if he say anyone less, they can discredit his ministry, for only the Messiah could do these things a get away with it. Answering a question with a question was a common form of rabbinical debate. Ironically, Jesus makes his answer depend completely on theirs: on whose authority did John the Baptist perform his ministry? John prepared the way for Jesus by calling for the nation to repent. If they rejected the messenger, they will also reject the Messiah. Proud and fearful of committing themselves either way, they decline to answer. There is no way out for them; they are self-condemned. They can only be silent.

Questions to Consider

1. What was Jesus doing by using a donkey to enter the city? What did this symbolize? What did it fulfill, and why is that important? What other OT prophecies are fulfilled in Ch. 11?

2. Why did Jesus curse the fig tree? What was the significance of this act and its timing?

3. Up to this point Jesus has been careful to hide his identity (remember the Messianic Secret?). Why? Why do you think he reveals himself now? What is the significance of his "cleansing" the temple (clearing out the merchants)? Why did he do this and what did this act fulfill?

4. What lesson for the disciples does Jesus draw from the cursing of the fig tree? When you pray, do you ask with a believing heart? Why or why not? Read James 1:6-7. Why is faith important to prayer?

5. Why do the chief priests (etc.) ask Jesus for his credentials (vv.27-28)? Why does he refuse to answer them? Why was John the Baptist's ministry so important to understanding and receiving Jesus' own?

2005-09-28T10:18:00.000-07:00

Gospel of Mark

Lesson #11

Section 4: Ministry in Judea & Perea (10:1-52)

Mark’s account of Jesus’ ministry in Galilee has ended. From now on the story moves swiftly toward its climax in Jerusalem. A common thread in this chapter is the hardness of the human heart.

Teaching on Divorce (10:1-12)

v.1-- Jesus travels to Judea, the region south of Galilee and Samaria, which was roughly the equivalent to the OT kingdom of Judah. The region "across the Jordan" means the kingdom of Perea, east of Judah, where John the Baptist had ministered, been imprisoned and beheaded. It was part of Herod Antipas’ territory. The crowd’s coming to hear Jesus means that he has resumed his public ministry.

v.2-The Pharisees’ question has hostile intent. Jesus is again within King Herod’s jurisdiction. (Remember that Herod's wife Herodias had been the wife of his brother Philip, who was still alive!) The question of divorce and remarriage was a dangerous topic that had cost John the Baptist his head. Again, Jesus’ enemies are trying to trap him into saying something inflammatory that could precipitate his arrest and possible execution. Divorce was permitted under OT law. The question hotly debated by the rabbis was the proper grounds for divorce based on the interpretation of Deut 24:1 (which permitted divorce if "something indecent" was found in the wife). Some followed the more conservative school of Shammai, who interpreted "something indecent" as referring to marital unfaithfulness or some serious moral failure. The more liberal school of Hillel took a broader view, holding that anything "displeasing" could be legal grounds for divorce (e.g. even if the wife burned the food). Unlike Matthew, however, Mark does not refer to this debate since he is writing mostly to Gentiles (see Mt 19:3).

v.3-In asking what Moses commanded, Jesus is highlighting the fact that Moses never instituted divorce or commanded anything other than its regulation to prevent further immorality and the destitution of women. Divorce was man's idea, not God's. The commands Jesus refers to are in the Genesis passages (vv.7-8).

v.5-Jesus tells them that in acknowledging divorce, Moses was merely making an accommodation to human weakness and trying to regulate the practice of a sinful society; divorce was never God’s intention. Moses was not trying to make divorce acceptable but to reduce the hardships occasioned by it, especially for women (who without a certificate, could never remarry). Matthew (19:9) includes the provision for marital unfaithfulness, since for Jewish Christians following the law, this would have been problematic. Mark, writing for Gentiles, does not.

vv.6-9- It is fitting that Jesus harkens back to Genesis, since the Kingdom of God involves not a mere reforming of society, but the renewing of creation under God’s rule. These passages describe in bold letters how the Lord created marriage to be a blessing that unites male and female in a creative union of spirit that cannot be dissolved by a divorce certificate. So Jesus’ answer is that the OT Law neither sanctioned nor encouraged divorce but merely permitted it as the lesser of two evils. At issue is the hardness of heart that occasions divorce. Remember that Jesus is speaking to a society where men only were permitted to divorce.

vv.10-12-His pronouncement with its far-reaching ramifications must have thrown the disciples into confusion, for they later ask him to explain. He replies bluntly: since the purpose of divorce is to make room for remarriage, its effect is to lead either party to commit adultery. Interpreting this teaching for Gentile Romans, for whom divorce was practiced by both sexes, Mark mentions the case of women initiating divorce. This is a hard teaching, then and now. Jesus is calling his disciples to a higher accountability and standard of holiness ( cf Mt 5:17-48). In Jewish Messianic expectation, Messiah would come to open their eyes to the correct interpretation of the law in accordance with God’s original intention. Here, as elsewhere, Jesus is doing just that. The problem goes beyond mere interpretation; it lies in the sinful heart of man. If we want to be under the rule of God’s kingdom, we need a complete heart transplant!

Let the Little Children Come (10:13-16)

vv.13-16-- Parents are bringing their children to Jesus to be blessed. The disciples are resentful since their Master is an important man (and, by association, so are they). Jesus is deeply grieved at their attitude; once again, they are hindering "little ones" from coming into the kingdom, a sin already described as very serious (9:42). Jesus takes the opportunity to use children as another object lesson on humility and the kingdom of God. The kingdom is open to those who, like little children, recognize their need, their weakness and utter dependence on God. It is "received" as a free gift; it cannot be earned. In effect, Jesus is rebuking his disciples that they are in danger of missing the kingdom; if they want to be under it, they need to repent and change their whole attitude and orientation-- becoming small instead of great, for God resists the proud and exalts the humble.

A Rich Young Man (10:17-31)

v.17-19-- Luke (Lk 18:18) describes this man as a "ruler," perhaps a court official.
Matthew (Mt 19:20) says he was "young." He had probably been born to wealth and privilege and had never known anything else. Jesus’ response is not bringing into question his own goodness but the man’s (and any man’s for that matter). God alone can make us righteous. As in the preceding passage, the kingdom is not given on the basis of human merit. It cannot be earned as the young man assumes; it must be received. He must be totally reliant on God. In his reply Jesus mentions all 6 commandments that deal with wrong attitudes and actions toward one’s fellow man (Ex 20:12-17). As we shall see, it is no mistake that he omits those dealing with idolatry (e.g. "You shall have no other gods before me" Ex 20:3).

vv.20-22--The man sincerely believes that he has conformed to the law; yet he must feel something lacking, some inadequacy, or else why the question? Truly, in some way he is seeking God’s kingdom. Jesus is touched by his sincerity, and in compassion, he identifies the problem: idolatry. The young man’s wealth and position have so tied him to this world, he cannot take hold of the world to come. The treasure of the kingdom is a heavenly one, stored there for us, not on earth. Those that seek it have renounced their rights to worldly wealth, rank and comforts in order that they might gain something far greater and lasting. Jesus’ command effectively shows the man that he cannot possess both kingdoms; he must choose. Now he finds he is at war with himself, and this makes him miserable. For when push comes to shove, he is unable to surrender joyfully. He finds he loves this world too much. Even for this earnest and "righteous" man, material possessions stand in the way of radical obedience to Christ and his cause. It is not clear what happens to this young man. Does he ever win the battle? The purpose of the story is to leave us with an unsettling question mark. What would we do?

vv.23-27-Jesus takes this sad opportunity to point out that the more we possess the harder our choice will be to forsake the world and follow him. Those who heap up treasure on earth will find their hearts divided and ultimately they must choose between this world and eternity (cf. Mt 6:19-21). Again, one cannot take hold of the life to come while clinging to this one. The disciples are shocked at the implications. In popular Judaism, and indeed in the OT itself, riches can be viewed as the blessing of God upon the righteous. If then even the rich are not able to be saved, then who can? Jesus underscores that he did not say "cannot," but rather that it is very difficult. At the same time, anything is possible with God. The image of a fully loaded camel (the largest animal in Palestine) passing through such a tiny opening is meant to be ludicrous and humanly impossible. Indeed, it is God alone that makes salvation possible; it is not on the basis of any human merit.

vv.28-31--Peter, speaking on behalf of the others, then wants to know what reward is coming to them, since they have indeed left wife, family, home and property to follow him. In effect, what is "treasure in heaven"? (v.21). Typically, he is thinking of the honors before he fully understands the cost. Nevertheless, Jesus responds with a solemn oath (one of many "Amen sayings," variously translated as "I tell you the truth," or "Truly [or verily] I say to you," which have the effect of an oath or promise). The point he makes is that a disciple cannot outgive God. Those who in faith and expectation forsake these relationships in order to put the kingdom first can expect the Lord to provide much more for them in this life. Those who give up family, for example, will receive God’s family. Those who leave their homes will receive God’s hospitality wherever they go. Here there is the idea that in the community of God’s kingdom people, everyone belongs to one another, and no one possesses anything except that it be a blessing to others. Our generous Lord takes nothing away from us that he does not intend to restore in a new and glorious way. Yet overshadowing this image of abundance is the shadow of the cross ("persecutions," v.30). The community of the redeemed will be a suffering community. These trials are there to remind them, lest they forget, that this world is passing away, and their true treasure is in heaven. The Lord spreads a banquet for us, but it is often mixed with ashes. The bitter taste reminds us that this is merely a foretaste of the true banquet we shall eat at the second coming of the Son of Man.

On Toward Jerusalem (10:32-34)

vv.32-34-Jesus now sets out with a will toward Jerusalem, walking at the head of his band. The astonishment and fear of his followers may be from a fearful expectation: here at last is the moment of truth: the King goes to claim his crown. And what will the outcome be, seeing that so many oppose him? Bloody? Glorious? What role will the disciples play in this final act? Again, he takes the Twelve aside to clarify what is to take place. For the first time he mentions the role of the Gentiles (Romans) and their mockery (v.34). Once again, the disciples are silent, still unaware of the meaning of his prophetic words. If he is to die, what hope is there for them? And what does he mean "rise from the dead"? Surely, these questions must have filled their minds.

The Request of James & John (10:35-45)

vv.35-37-- Like the similar passage in 9:33-37, this one too follows Jesus’ pronouncement of his impending death and resurrection. Both reveal how obtuse and spiritually out of tune the disciples still are with Jesus’ mission. They are again thinking only of what honors should accrue to them as Jesus’ close friends. It is a mark of brazen confidence that they expect Jesus to agree to their request before he knows what it is. Wisely, he foresees the trap. That James and John come to him privately in this way before his final entrance into the holy city shows remarkable ambition: did they want to get the jump on the others? When the rest of the Twelve hear of it, they are outraged (v.41), perhaps also at themselves, since they may have been contemplating the same thing. To sit at the right and left hand of a monarch were the two highest places of honor.

vv.38-40-Jesus responds that they still do not understand what it means to follow him. They have not fully counted the cost. His "cup" and "baptism" are veiled references to his impending suffering and death on the cross (cf. Lk 12:50). The true follower must expect the same. Do they understand this? The two answer rather precipitously, yes they are. Jesus prophesies that they will indeed share in his sufferings, but the honor of place at his right and left is something the Father alone can bestow. His prerogatives are limited by his submission to his Father.

vv.42-45-Human pride dies hard. Here again, even at this late juncture, Jesus must give another lesson to his disciples on kingdom humility and true greatness. In God’s kingdom, true greatness lies in humble service, in putting the needs of others first, and ultimately, in laying down one’s life for others. Jesus turns all human ambition, power and pride of place on their heads. The greatest is the one who is willing to become the least for the sake of others. The Son of Man himself sets the example with his own sacrificial death. As a King, he could have demanded service; instead, he came as a servant, not only to friends who would eventually betray him, but also to those who hated him and would abuse and kill him. In Jesus himself, therefore, lies the most eloquent definition of true greatness. Note also how for the 4th time Jesus refers to himself as Son of Man, rather than Messiah, in the context of his suffering (cf. 8:31;9:31;10:33. See also note on 8:31).

Blind Bartimaeus Healed (10:46-52)

vv.46-47- This incident is the last healing miracle recorded by Mark. Jericho, a city about 15 miles NE of Jerusalem. It was customary for beggars to sit outside the gates of the city where they could beg alms from traffic entering and leaving. The blind man is evidently aware of Jesus’ Davidic lineage, and there may be a hint of Messianic expectation in his cry--at the least, Jesus was for him a mighty prophet of the house of David.

vv.48-50-That the rebukes of passersby only incite Bartimaeus to try harder to get Jesus’ attention reveals his faith: he was convinced that Jesus could heal his sight, and tenaciously, he would not let go of the dream.

vv.51-52-Note the irony in how Jesus asks the same question he asks of James and John in v.36. The two situations are quite different. Perhaps Mark (or Peter) is taking a swipe at worldly ambition, making the point that those who enter the kingdom of God are those who acknowledge their need and humbly receive it by faith. Again, here we have an example of one whose faith has resulted in healing (cf. 5:34 and note). The man responds to this healing by joyfully following Jesus, presumably to Jerusalem, where perhaps he might have offered a sacrifice of thanksgiving for his healing, in keeping with OT law.

In this last passage we have Jesus addressed as Son of David, a Messianic title, for the first time in Mark’s Gospel. It is fitting that this incident should be placed here, just before Jesus’ entrance into the holy city in ch. 11. For it is there alone, in the final week of his life and in the shadow of his crucifixion, that he allows his Messiahship to be revealed publicly and shouted aloud. It is also no accident that the story which precedes his triumphal entry is one of healing from blindness: at last the world will see who he really is (cf. Note on 8:24-25). Yet it is only in the context of his death and resurrection that his true identity as Messiah can be defined. For as both Jesus and Mark have so often taken pains to explain, the Messiah/Son of David/Son of Man is also the Suffering Servant.

Questions to Consider

1. Given Jesus' location during this chapter, why do you think the Pharisees asked him his opinion on divorce? Did the Old Testament institute divorce or merely regulate it? Why?According to Jesus, why did God permit divorce? What is God's original intention for marriage? What does divorce lead to usually? To whom is Jesus speaking when he speaks of divorce and adultery (v.10)? Why does Jesus make such a high standard for his disciples?

2. What does it mean to "receive the kingdom of God like a little child"?

3. Why do you think the rich young man approached Jesus-- what was he thirsting for? What was Jesus' motivation in saying, "No one is good but God alone? (v.18). What was at the root of the young man's problem? Do worldly things distract you from pursuing Jesus and his kingdom? If so, what can you do about it?

4. Why do you think James and John made such a request of Jesus (v.37)? Why is it ironic, given what Jesus had just said in vv. 33-34? What does true leadership and true greatness look like in the kingdom of God?

5. The crowd thought blind Bartimaeus was merely annoying. What did he do that caused Jesus to commend him for his "faith"? Why is persistence such an important part of faith? Why does it please the Lord? Are you persistent when you ask the Lord for something in prayer or do you tend to give up easily? Why?

2005-09-16T09:56:00.000-07:00

Gospel of Mark

Lesson #10

Section 3 cont.: Among the Gentiles

The Transfiguration (9:1-13)

v.1—The meaning of this prophecy might have been forever enigmatic if it had not been for what follows. Jesus prophesies that there are individuals present who shall see his glory before they die (“taste death”). Six days later, having led them up a high mountain (perhaps nearby Mt. Hermon?), Jesus makes just such a revelation to his three closest disciples, Peter, James and John.

vv.3-4—The disciples are given a priceless preview of the glory of the Son of Man, as he will be at his second coming. The whiteness of his garments surpasses all earthly whiteness, revealing his absolute purity and holiness, and recalling that of the Ancient of Days (God) in Daniel 7:9. Present are Moses and Elijah, the one representing the Old Testament law, the other the prophets, both which testify to the coming of the Messiah. The phrase “the Law and the Prophets” was used frequently to refer to the books of the Old Testament in general. Thus, in the appearance of these two figures with Jesus, we have the law and prophets giving their stamp of approval to his Messiahship. As the end-time restorer of all things (Mal. 4), Elijah is the prophet who readies God’s people for the great Day of the Lord. His presence, then, may also be a signal that the end-times are now here.

vv.5-6—Peter’s comment may seem an odd non-sequitur. This vision may have occurred during the Jewish festival of Sukkoth (Booths), during which the Jews were required to live in huts made of branches as a reminder of their wanderings in the desert of Sinai (Leviticus 23:33-43). It was customary during this festival to invite guests to the home for a meal, including (ceremonially but not seriously) such past notable personages as Moses, Abraham, David and the other Patriarchs. Did Peter expect the prophets to camp there among them? As we learn, the glorious revelation has made the disciples dazed and disoriented. Of course, it might have been more appropriate to have said nothing, but Peter was by nature impulsive. As inevitably happens when God’s presence is strong, as it must have been on this occasion, human speech and thinking (even movements) become somewhat short-circuited. When immortal, eternal God meets mortal, sinful man there is what is called “eschatological tension.”

vv.7—The appearance of the cloud of glory is in keeping with Old Testament descriptions of the divine presence, which dwells among his people to protect and guide. Such a cloud was present with the Israelites during their flight from Egypt and at the giving of the law on Mt. Sinai (Ex 13:21; 19:16; 34:5), as well as at the dedication of both the tabernacle and first temple (Ex 40:34; 2Chr 7:1). As at Jesus’ baptism, the Father speaks from heaven affirming his Son’s identity and mission. The Father’s words, “Listen to him!,” spoken in the presence of Moses and Elijah, assure us that Jesus is the fulfillment of the Old Testament promises and the one we must now listen to. (In the Messianic passage of Dt 18:15,19, Moses states that the people must “listen to” the prophet whom God will send, lest they be cut off. See also Acts 3:22-23.)

vv.9-10— Again, concerned for the secrecy of his mission, Jesus orders them to tell no one about this astounding revelation—until, that is, he has risen from the dead. This exception is the first of its kind and it sheds more light on the reasons for the Messianic Secret: now, more than ever, he is resolutely committed to fulfilling his mission in Jerusalem (i.e. the cross), and nothing must deter him. The disciples are confused about the meaning of “rising from the dead.” As Jews they would certainly have been familiar with the doctrine of the resurrection of the righteous dead on the Last Day. But their limited view of the end times did not include a dying and rising Messiah.

vv. 11-13-- The appearance of Elijah on the mountain must have sparked discussion among the three about this prophet’s place in end-time events. Wasn’t he supposed to come before the Messiah? Jesus answers yes, indeed; in fact, he has already come, but people did not have eyes to see it, and the wicked have thought themselves victorious in disposing of him. The reference is of course to John the Baptist. Jesus names him as the Elijah figure prophesied by Malachi. Just as Elijah was persecuted by a weak-willed ruler (Ahab) and his wicked queen (Jezebel, who plotted his death), so John suffered at the hands of Herod and Herodias. And if they did so to John/Elijah, how much more so to Messiah! Therefore, it should not be surprising that the Son of Man should suffer and be rejected.

A Boy with an Evil Spirit (9:14-32)

v.14-Apparently, Jesus, Peter, James and John had arranged to meet the rest of the disciples in or around Caesarea Philippi. The other disciples have been keeping busy preaching and ministering to the crowds. Their failure to cast out this particular demon, however, has brought them into sharp dispute with certain rabbis who opposed Jesus’ ministry and who were doubtless using the occasion to discredit both his ability and authority to do such things. (In Galilee certain rabbis accused Jesus of using demons to cast out demons. See 3:22. Either way, they wanted to discredit him.)

vv.17-18-Traditionally, the boy’s symptoms have been linked to some form of epilepsy. Whether or not this is so, it is clear in this case that the cause is demonic in nature. Demons often mimic actual diseases; they do this in order to hide their presence, especially to the Western rational-material mindset.

v.19-Jesus upbraids the disciples for their lack of faith: they are hard of heart and slow to believe, just like the rest of their generation. He also perhaps expresses his frustration that there is so little time left to him with which to convince them. Apparently, after so many successes, the resistance of this demon has caught the disciples off guard and exposed their underlying unbelief and lack of persistence. Resistance from the enemy exposes our unbelief. If they really believed in the power of Jesus’ name and mission, they would have prayed for wisdom and persevered in prayer until the demon released the boy.

v.20-As in previous demonic encounters, Jesus’ presence brings an immediate reaction. Terrified, the evil spirit manifests itself, doing the only thing it knows how to do-- tormenting the boy and frightening the onlookers. Here again we have a power encounter between the two kingdoms of God and Satan, with Jesus showing his superior power and his authority to free people from the enemy’s grip.

v.21- It is not immediately clear why Jesus asks this question. Is it in order to gather more information about the case (which he often does)? Or is it an expression of compassion and anger for the extreme suffering endured by the boy and his family (i.e. how long have you all had to put up with this?)?

v.22-Satan is a destroyer; his tactics are to deceive, corrupt, steal and ultimately kill humankind made in God’s image. By this time, following the disciple’s failed attempts at deliverance, the father’s faith is waning. Demons like to put on a show to intimidate us; the more spectacular the manifestation, the more we are prone to think, "My goodness I can never defeat this one!" This is part of Satan’s deceptive strategy to take the wind out of our faith-sail.

vv.23-24-Jesus turns the tables on the man’s challenge: the limit is not with God’s power but with man’s faith. It’s not Jesus’ authority that is on trial here. The issue is how much room will we give him to work. For the one who does not doubt, nothing is impossible! What an awesome statement! How often do we blame God for our circumstances, instead of accepting them as a challenge to deeper faith, an opportunity for the Lord to show himself mighty? We limit God with our unbelief. The man responds humbly: his voice probably cracking with years of grief and discouragement, he states his desire and willingness to believe more, but he knows his faith is weak and needs God’s help.

v.25-Jesus wants to get rid of this demon before a larger crowd gathers (see Messianic secret). Note how brief are Jesus’ encounters with demons. He does not engage them in lengthy discussion, nor give them opportunity to speak (other than name, rank and serial number) or to perform their antics. Neither does he revile or abuse them, but simply "rebukes" them (i.e. tells them to stop their behavior), and identifying them by name, firmly commands them to leave. He also orders the demon never to enter the boy again. This is important, for demons are always looking for a resting place. They are also very legalistic and literal-minded, looking for any loophole (i.e. "you told me to leave but you never said I couldn’t come back").

v.26-Apparently, the delivered boy lay so still and at peace that many assumed the ordeal had killed him. Such fearful unbelief, nurtured by centuries of suffering!

vv.28-29-Humbled by their failure to cast out this demon, the disciples ask Jesus what his secret is. He replies that there are different kinds of demons, and this kind is usually resistant to initial commands. It takes prayer (some later manuscripts of Mark say, "prayer and fasting") to overcome it. The victory in these cases is won first in the prayer closet. Jesus may also mean that it takes a lifestyle of prayer (i.e. intimate relationship with God) to walk in the faith and anointing required to do battle against such evil forces. Perhaps the disciples had been so busy with ministering, or even a little too in awe of their own authority and success, that they forgot where the power was coming from. The gift to heal and deliver was not resident in themselves or in their control; it came through utter and constant reliance upon God. Jesus himself spent many hours a day in prayer; his power flowed from his intimate relationship with the Father.

vv.30-32-- Jesus passes through Galilee incognito in order that he might spend more time with his disciples. He also wishes to avoid further public ministry there which might result in embroilments with religious or government authorities (or even arrest) and delay his going to Jerusalem (and the Cross). As his mission draws to a close, with the cross looming on the horizon, he again tries to prepare them, prophesying about his impending death and resurrection. But they are too blinded by worldly things and expectations to understand and too afraid to ask.
What follows is a string or chain of sayings, some of which may have perhaps been given on different occasions, but which connect together by common themes or word associations. Such was the common practice among rabbinical students as an aid to memorizing different teachings. Can you see how all these fit together? A unifying theme is the radical nature or cost of true discipleship.

Who Is the Greatest? (9:33-37)

vv.33-34-- "The house" probably refers to Peter & Andrew’s house (see 1:29), which they have been using as a home base in Galilee. (The ruins of a 4th century church have been unearthed in Capernaum. They rest on top of a small 1st-century fisherman’s cottage on the lake’s shore. Early Christian graffiti indicate that the site was probably used as a house church, and perhaps later a shrine. Could this be Peter’s house, which later became a church?) Jesus already knows what their discussion was about, but the disciples are too embarrassed to mention it. Ironically, Mark juxtaposes this episode with the Lord’s previous teaching on his death and resurrection. While Jesus is preparing to die for the sins of the world, they are squabbling about who is the greatest of the 12. Thus Mark (Peter?) paints a wryly comic portrait of the disciples (and the world) in their failure to grasp the meaning of Jesus’ mission. They are expecting Jesus to be crowned king in Jerusalem, and themselves to be swept into high office on his coattails.

v.35-Jesus sits, the traditional teaching posture of a rabbi instructing his disciples or a congregation. This gives weight and gravity to what he is about to declare. In kingdom fashion he inverts the common worldly expectations regarding leadership and authority. True greatness is based on service not power, and he, the Son of Man, with his sacrificial death, sets the first example. This must have been a radical saying, for in the 1st century, servants were not unionized; they did not go home at 5pm and they had no pension plan. They did the dirty work, such as washing the feet of their masters, and they had to put others’ needs first.

vv.36-37-The child (Gk paidion) would have been about 2-4 yrs old. Using the child as an object lesson, he goes on, as elsewhere, to link greatness in the kingdom of God with becoming like a little child. In New Testament times, children were not taken seriously or respected as individuals; they had no rights and were at the bottom of the pecking order. The child here may stand for all those who are weak, disenfranchised, poor or in need of our help. Thus, Jesus is saying that the first will be last and the last first. The world may shove the weak aside, but we are to honor and spend time ministering to them, for in doing so we honor and minister to Christ.

Who Is For & Against Us? (9:38-41)

vv.38-41-The disciples were again so inflated with their own position of importance next to Jesus, that they completely lost sight of the bigger picture. They perhaps thought they were protecting Jesus, while they were really jealously guarding their own places, keeping the kingdom to themselves. They had failed to cast out one demon; now they were forbidding anyone else from doing it! Whose side were they on? How could anyone who does a miracle in Jesus’ name turn around and blaspheme him? Jesus’ heart is inclusive, not exclusive, wide enough to welcome anyone: whether an apostle or one who merely gives them aid. In doing an act of kindness for a servant of the Lord, a person allies himself with the kingdom cause and also ministers to Jesus himself. He will therefore share in the apostle’s reward. Does this offend us as too generous? Such is the Father’s heart.

Dealing with Sin (9:42-50)

v.42-"The little ones" or "least ones" probably refers to the preceding verse rather than to children: i.e. those whose faith is perhaps small and who can do only small acts of kindness. Vv. 41-42 are probably part of the same saying. The idea is that the Servant-Messiah came not to crush a bruised reed or snuff out a smoldering wick (Isa 42:3), but to encourage and nourish faith wherever he finds it. Sinful human nature wants to exclude the outsiders from the insiders. Jesus’ heart says, How can we get them to come in? A frightening penalty awaits those who put stumbling blocks before the weak. The image of the millstone is meant to be a graphic reminder to the disciples. Such punishment was actually practiced by the Romans on more than one occasion.

vv.43,45,47-48-- Here, Jesus is requiring his disciples to be ruthless toward the sin in their own lives, including anything that would cause them to stumble themselves. Jesus is not recommending self-mutilation, however. In the language of Palestine, the hand, foot and eye stand for sinful behaviors associated with those parts of the body (e.g. perhaps stealing, adultery, quarreling, lust, etc.). The contrast is between going without in this life versus going without in eternity. Better to deny oneself in this life, than to be denied salvation in the life to come. Again, the point is not denial of all earthly pleasures, but rather of those which cause us to lose our spiritual focus or lead us into sin. The word for "hell" (Gk geenna) comes from the Aramaic Gehenna (Valley of Hinnom), a valley SW of Jerusalem where garbage and the bodies of criminals were burned. The continual stench and fire there, as well as other atrocities and curses associated with the place (2Chron 28:3; 33:6; 2Ki 23:10; Jer 7:30-33), made the name synonymous with the final abode of the damned, i.e. "hell." The quote from Isaiah 66:24 likewise refers to a place of eternal punishment for God’s enemies.

v.49- This is probably a separate saying, placed here to connect the images that precede and follow (fire and salt). In the Old Testament the temple sacrifices had to be accompanied by salt, a sign of God’s covenant, which made the sacrifice acceptable to God. As living sacrifices, the disciples too must be "seasoned" with trial and hardship ("fire"), which purge away self and the fleshly nature. Why this saying here? Recall that the church at Rome had undergone, or was then undergoing, a fiery persecution under Emperor Nero (A.D. 64; see Background note; also 1Ptr 1:7; 4:12).

v.50-Salt was a necessity of life that added flavor and also preserved food from spoilage. Salt from the Dead Sea, especially, was full of impurities which caused it to grow stale and lose its flavor if allowed to sit. Jesus is here likening the disciple’s role on earth to salt: as living testimonies that will guide the world to salvation. If radical allegiance to Jesus and the gospel are lost (through careless or worldly living, for example), the disciple becomes useless for the kingdom. Jesus further links this radical quality with unity and love among the church (cf. John 13:35).

Questions to Consider:

1. What did Jesus mean by "...some standing here will not taste death before they see the kingdom of God come with power" (v.1)? How was this prophecy fulfilled?

2. What did the presence of Moses and Elijah on the mountain represent? How did Peter's silly question about building shelters make sense in the light of the Feast of Sukkoth?

3. According to Jesus, what figure had fulfilled the OT prophecies about Elijah's coming? Compare 2Kings 1:8 and Mark 1:6. What other things do the two prophets have in common?

4. Why do you think the disciples were unable to cast out the demon from the boy? What did Jesus mean by "this kind can come out only by prayer"? Why is prayer important when one is doing the ministry of God's kingdom? How is your prayer life? Do you have a set time each day to spend with your heavenly Father? If not, what changes could you make to establish such a time?

5. According to Jesus, what does it take to be considered "great" in the kingdom of God?

6. What did Jesus mean by "If your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out..."? Is there anything in your life right now that causes you to sin, stumble, waste time or take you focus off of Jesus? What actions or precautions might you take to prevent being unnecessarily tempted? (Examples: A woman who found she was wasting too much time watching TV cancelled her cable service; another got rid of her TV set! One man who is regularly tempted with internet pornography decided to put a block on his computer; another established an accountability relationship with a Christian brother; still another got rid of his internet connection entirely!