THE PARSON'S PRAYER.
I DO NOT ASK
THAT CROWDS MAY THRONG THE TEMPLE,
THAT STANDING ROOM BE PRICED,
I ONLY ASKED THAT AS I VOICE THE MESSAGE,
THEY MAY SEE CHRIST.
I DO NOT ASK
FOR CHUCHLY POMP OR PAGEANT
OR MUSIC SUCH AS WEALTH ALONE CAN BUY,
I ONLY ASK THAT AS I VOICE THE MESSAGE,
HE MAY BE NIGH!
I DO NOT ASK
THAT MEN MAY SING MY PRAISES
OR HEADLINES SPREAD MY NAME ABROAD,
I ONLY PRAY THAT AS I VOICE THE MESSAGE,
HEARTS MY FIND GOD!
I DO NOT ASK
FOR EARTHLY PLACE OR LAUREL
OR OF THIS WORLD'S DISTINCTIONS ANY PART
I ONLY ASK WHEN I HAVE VOICE THE MESSAGE
MY SAVIOR'S HEART!
Ra R.S CUSHMAN.
Tuesday, August 8, 2017
Forgiveness and Community. [LUKE. 17:1-:10]
THE GOSPEL MESSAGE FOR TODAY IS A COLLECTION OF 4 APHORISMS. ATTIBUTED TO JESUS ABOUT FORGIVENESS AND FAITH.
WHEN THE COVENTRY CATHEDDRAL IN ENGALAND WAS BLITZED NOVEMBER 1940, DURING WORLD WAR II AND DETROYED BY FIRE, A LARGE NUMBER OF NAILS FROM MEDIEVAL TIMES WAS FOUND IN THE RUBBLE. MANY OF THESE WERE GATHERED AND MADE INTO SILVER PLATED CROSSES. ONE OF THESE IS SET UP ON AN ALTAR IN THR RUINS OF THE OLD CATHEDRAL. BEHIND IT IS A CHARRED CROSS, AND WRITTEN ON THE WALL BEHIND THAT, THE WORDS, "FATHER FORGIVE." MANY LITTLE CROSSES OF NAILS HAVE BEEN SENT TO CHURCHES IN OTHE COUNTRIES WHICH HAD PARTICIPATED IN THE WAR. THE COVENTRY CROSS AND EXPERIENCE HAD BECOME A SYBOL OF FORGIVENESS, AND NEW LIFE OF RECONCILIATION. I FIRST LEARNED OF THIS WHEN I READ THE BOOK FROM AUGSBURG, 'FIRE IN COVENTRY," TO FIND HELP IN UNDERSTANDING THE LIFE OF FORGIVENESS. IT IS THE EXCITING NEWS OF LIFE FROM DEATH.: OF RENEWAL AND THE LIFE AND FAITH OF ALL CONGREGATIONS, THROUGH THEIR EXPERIENCE, BECAUSE WE MUST BELIEVE THAT WE IN OUR LIFE, IN OUR TIME, ARE TO LIVE BY FORGIVENESS, WHICH IS THE GOOD NEWS: FORGIVENESS,FAITH AND RECONCILIATION; WITH GOD. OUR NEIGHBOR AND WITH OUR SURROUNDINGS. OVER THE LAST FEW TEXTS FOR THE MONTH, LIKE ALL GOOD NEWS TEXT, ARE THERE TO REINFORCE THIS CENTRAL ACT OF GOD AND TO INVITE OUR RESPONSE.
SOMETIMES WE SEE IT FROM THE PERSPECTIVE OF GOD WHO TAKES THE INITIATIVE AND SHOWS HIS LOVE AND CARE FOR US. AMEN!
SOMETIMES WE SPEAK IN TERMS OF GOD'S DEED IN JESUS CHRIST; HOW LIFE, WORDS, HIS DEATH AND RESURRECTION, HIS PRESENSE IN OUR MIDST AND HIS PROMISES AT THE CENTER. SOMETIMES WE SPEAK ABOUT IT IN TERMS OF GOD'S DEED IN JESUS CHRIST; HOW HIS LIFE, WORDS, DEATH AND RESURRECTION, HIS PRESENSE IN OUR MIDST AND HIS PROMISES ARE AT THE CENTER. SOME TIMES WE SPEAK OF IT FROM THE HUMAN VIEW OF FRUSTRATIONS AND IMPATIENCE ABOUT INJUSTICES OF LIFE WE SEE EVERYWHERE THROUGH THE EVENING NEWS; UNRIGHTED OR UNFORGIVEN WRONGS; THE SUFFERING OF THE INNOCENT.
SOMETIMES WE SPEAK OF IT IN PSYCHOLOGICAL TERMS, , LIKE A NORMAL VS ABNORMAL SINNER; GUILT COMPLEXES AND SCARS; HIDDEN HOSTILITIES; THE DIFFICULTES IN DEALING WITH THE PROPER PROBLEM. RATHER THAN IMAGINED OR DISTORTED MISDEEDS. WHEN IS SIN A SICKNESS, AND WHEN IS FORGIVENESS A HEALING?
SOMETIMES IT IS THE POIGNANT STORY WE HEAR OR THE KNOWLEDGE OF SOMEONE NEAR US THAT DEMONSTRATES THE INTENSE FEELINGS INVOLVED IN FORGIVENESS AND RECOCILIATION.
LUKE SEVEN TELLS THE STORY OF THE WOMEN IDENIFIED SIMPLY AS A SINNER WHO POURED OINTMENT ON JESUS FEET, KISSED THEM, AND WIPED THEM WITH HER HAIR. JESUS SAYS SHE LOVES MUCH BECAUSE SHE HAS BEEN FORGIVEN MUCH.
HAVE YOU EVER HEARD VERSIONS OF THE STORY OF THE MAN WHO WRONGED HIS FAMILY AND SOCIETY AND WAS RIGHTFULLY SENTENCED TO PRISON. WILLING TO BOW OUT OF THE LIFE OF HIS FAMILY WHOM HE HAD CAUSED SO MUCH PAIN HE WROTE TO HIS WIFE THAT IF SHE WAS READY TO FORGIVE HIM AND RECIEVE HIM BACK SHE SHOULD HANG A WHITE CLOTH ON A TREE THEY BOTH REMEMBERED, (ONE WELL KNOWN VISION TIE A YELLOW RIBBON AROUND THE TREE).
THE BIBLE IS NOTHING MORE THAN THE STORY OF FORGIVENESS SEEN FROM A THOUSAND PERSPECTIVES, SOMETIMES INDIVIDUAL, SOMETIMES CORPORATE, SOMETIMES LONG INVOLVED SITUATIONS THAT END HAPPILY, SOMETIMES TRAGIC
CONCLUSIONS. THEIR IS AN OLD TESTAMENT LESSON WHICH SPEAKS OF THE IMPATIENT CRY OF HABAKKUK WHO FINDS THE LONG DELAYED RIGHTING OF WRONG INTOLERABLE. IN DIALOG WITH GOD TAKEN FROM THE FIRST TWO CHAPTERS OF THE BOOK, HABAKKUK RECIEVES A DOUBLE ANSWER: "JUSTICE WILL SURELY COME; THE RIGHTEOUS SHALL LIVE BY FAITH."
IN MATTERS OF LIFE, ALMOST OVERWHELMING REAL -LIFE SITUATION, THE ONLY WAY TO SURVIVE, TO LIVE, IS TO HOLD FAST TO THE CENTER LIFE OF GOD.
DANIEL MADE THE SAME POINT WITH A DREAM OF AN IMAGE. IT HAD A GOLDEN HEAD, SILVER CHEST, BRONZE TORSO, IRON LEGS, THIS REPRESENTED FOUR ANCIENT KINGDOMS, BUT IT COULD BE CRUSHED WITH A HUGE STONE! IT IS NOT A MATTER OF INTENSITY OF OUR FAITH BUT THE GOD OF OUR FAITH, THE GOD OF ABRAHAM, Isaac, JACOB, THAT IS WHY FORGIVENESS IS POSSIBLE. YOU MUST HAVE FAITH IN THE ONE WHO SPEAKS THE WORDS, " I FORGIVE YOU.," OR IT IS OF LITTLE COMFORT.
YOU PERHAPS REMEMBER WHAT IT IS LIKE TO GO TO SOMEONE YOU FEAR WHEN YOU HAVE BEEN CAUGHT. A SCHOOL PRINCIPAL, A JUDGE, A STORE OWNER WHEN YOU TOOK A CANDY BAR, AT TIMES YOUR OWN PARENTS. IT IS NOT THE SAME THING. AS GOING TO ONE WHOM IS LOVING AND CARING, AND FORGIVING!
WHEN THE COVENTRY CATHEDDRAL IN ENGALAND WAS BLITZED NOVEMBER 1940, DURING WORLD WAR II AND DETROYED BY FIRE, A LARGE NUMBER OF NAILS FROM MEDIEVAL TIMES WAS FOUND IN THE RUBBLE. MANY OF THESE WERE GATHERED AND MADE INTO SILVER PLATED CROSSES. ONE OF THESE IS SET UP ON AN ALTAR IN THR RUINS OF THE OLD CATHEDRAL. BEHIND IT IS A CHARRED CROSS, AND WRITTEN ON THE WALL BEHIND THAT, THE WORDS, "FATHER FORGIVE." MANY LITTLE CROSSES OF NAILS HAVE BEEN SENT TO CHURCHES IN OTHE COUNTRIES WHICH HAD PARTICIPATED IN THE WAR. THE COVENTRY CROSS AND EXPERIENCE HAD BECOME A SYBOL OF FORGIVENESS, AND NEW LIFE OF RECONCILIATION. I FIRST LEARNED OF THIS WHEN I READ THE BOOK FROM AUGSBURG, 'FIRE IN COVENTRY," TO FIND HELP IN UNDERSTANDING THE LIFE OF FORGIVENESS. IT IS THE EXCITING NEWS OF LIFE FROM DEATH.: OF RENEWAL AND THE LIFE AND FAITH OF ALL CONGREGATIONS, THROUGH THEIR EXPERIENCE, BECAUSE WE MUST BELIEVE THAT WE IN OUR LIFE, IN OUR TIME, ARE TO LIVE BY FORGIVENESS, WHICH IS THE GOOD NEWS: FORGIVENESS,FAITH AND RECONCILIATION; WITH GOD. OUR NEIGHBOR AND WITH OUR SURROUNDINGS. OVER THE LAST FEW TEXTS FOR THE MONTH, LIKE ALL GOOD NEWS TEXT, ARE THERE TO REINFORCE THIS CENTRAL ACT OF GOD AND TO INVITE OUR RESPONSE.
SOMETIMES WE SEE IT FROM THE PERSPECTIVE OF GOD WHO TAKES THE INITIATIVE AND SHOWS HIS LOVE AND CARE FOR US. AMEN!
SOMETIMES WE SPEAK IN TERMS OF GOD'S DEED IN JESUS CHRIST; HOW LIFE, WORDS, HIS DEATH AND RESURRECTION, HIS PRESENSE IN OUR MIDST AND HIS PROMISES AT THE CENTER. SOMETIMES WE SPEAK ABOUT IT IN TERMS OF GOD'S DEED IN JESUS CHRIST; HOW HIS LIFE, WORDS, DEATH AND RESURRECTION, HIS PRESENSE IN OUR MIDST AND HIS PROMISES ARE AT THE CENTER. SOME TIMES WE SPEAK OF IT FROM THE HUMAN VIEW OF FRUSTRATIONS AND IMPATIENCE ABOUT INJUSTICES OF LIFE WE SEE EVERYWHERE THROUGH THE EVENING NEWS; UNRIGHTED OR UNFORGIVEN WRONGS; THE SUFFERING OF THE INNOCENT.
SOMETIMES WE SPEAK OF IT IN PSYCHOLOGICAL TERMS, , LIKE A NORMAL VS ABNORMAL SINNER; GUILT COMPLEXES AND SCARS; HIDDEN HOSTILITIES; THE DIFFICULTES IN DEALING WITH THE PROPER PROBLEM. RATHER THAN IMAGINED OR DISTORTED MISDEEDS. WHEN IS SIN A SICKNESS, AND WHEN IS FORGIVENESS A HEALING?
SOMETIMES IT IS THE POIGNANT STORY WE HEAR OR THE KNOWLEDGE OF SOMEONE NEAR US THAT DEMONSTRATES THE INTENSE FEELINGS INVOLVED IN FORGIVENESS AND RECOCILIATION.
LUKE SEVEN TELLS THE STORY OF THE WOMEN IDENIFIED SIMPLY AS A SINNER WHO POURED OINTMENT ON JESUS FEET, KISSED THEM, AND WIPED THEM WITH HER HAIR. JESUS SAYS SHE LOVES MUCH BECAUSE SHE HAS BEEN FORGIVEN MUCH.
HAVE YOU EVER HEARD VERSIONS OF THE STORY OF THE MAN WHO WRONGED HIS FAMILY AND SOCIETY AND WAS RIGHTFULLY SENTENCED TO PRISON. WILLING TO BOW OUT OF THE LIFE OF HIS FAMILY WHOM HE HAD CAUSED SO MUCH PAIN HE WROTE TO HIS WIFE THAT IF SHE WAS READY TO FORGIVE HIM AND RECIEVE HIM BACK SHE SHOULD HANG A WHITE CLOTH ON A TREE THEY BOTH REMEMBERED, (ONE WELL KNOWN VISION TIE A YELLOW RIBBON AROUND THE TREE).
THE BIBLE IS NOTHING MORE THAN THE STORY OF FORGIVENESS SEEN FROM A THOUSAND PERSPECTIVES, SOMETIMES INDIVIDUAL, SOMETIMES CORPORATE, SOMETIMES LONG INVOLVED SITUATIONS THAT END HAPPILY, SOMETIMES TRAGIC
CONCLUSIONS. THEIR IS AN OLD TESTAMENT LESSON WHICH SPEAKS OF THE IMPATIENT CRY OF HABAKKUK WHO FINDS THE LONG DELAYED RIGHTING OF WRONG INTOLERABLE. IN DIALOG WITH GOD TAKEN FROM THE FIRST TWO CHAPTERS OF THE BOOK, HABAKKUK RECIEVES A DOUBLE ANSWER: "JUSTICE WILL SURELY COME; THE RIGHTEOUS SHALL LIVE BY FAITH."
IN MATTERS OF LIFE, ALMOST OVERWHELMING REAL -LIFE SITUATION, THE ONLY WAY TO SURVIVE, TO LIVE, IS TO HOLD FAST TO THE CENTER LIFE OF GOD.
DANIEL MADE THE SAME POINT WITH A DREAM OF AN IMAGE. IT HAD A GOLDEN HEAD, SILVER CHEST, BRONZE TORSO, IRON LEGS, THIS REPRESENTED FOUR ANCIENT KINGDOMS, BUT IT COULD BE CRUSHED WITH A HUGE STONE! IT IS NOT A MATTER OF INTENSITY OF OUR FAITH BUT THE GOD OF OUR FAITH, THE GOD OF ABRAHAM, Isaac, JACOB, THAT IS WHY FORGIVENESS IS POSSIBLE. YOU MUST HAVE FAITH IN THE ONE WHO SPEAKS THE WORDS, " I FORGIVE YOU.," OR IT IS OF LITTLE COMFORT.
YOU PERHAPS REMEMBER WHAT IT IS LIKE TO GO TO SOMEONE YOU FEAR WHEN YOU HAVE BEEN CAUGHT. A SCHOOL PRINCIPAL, A JUDGE, A STORE OWNER WHEN YOU TOOK A CANDY BAR, AT TIMES YOUR OWN PARENTS. IT IS NOT THE SAME THING. AS GOING TO ONE WHOM IS LOVING AND CARING, AND FORGIVING!
Saturday, August 5, 2017
The SIXTH CHAPTER OF ST.JOHN
LET US LOOK IMMEDIATELY AT THE GOSPEL STORY ST. JOHN TELLS US HOW OUR LORD HAD JUST WORKED TWO SPECTACULAR MIRACLES; HE HAD FED A GREAT MULTITUDE CONTAINING FIVE THOUSAND MEN AND HE HAD WALKED ON THE WATER OF THE SEA OF GALILEE AND QUELLED A STORM. HAVING RETURNED TO CPHARNAUM, HE WAS SOUGHT OUT BY THE JEWS, WHO IMMEDIATELY ASKED, "MASTER, WHEN DIDST THOU MAKE THY WAY HERE?" OUR LORD FULLY AWARE OF THEIR INSINCERITY, REPLIED: " IF YOU ARE LOOKING FOR ME NOW, IT IS NOT BECAUSE OF THE MIRACLES YOU HAVE SEEN; IT IS BECAUSE YOU WERE FED WITH LOAVES, AND HAD YOUR FILL." AND HE WENT ON TO DEMAND THEIR FAITH: THIS IS THE SERVICE THAT GOD ASKS OF YOU, TO BELIEVE IN THE MAN WHOM HE HAS SENT. " THEY REPLIED BY DEMANDING A SIGN. MOSES HAD GIVEN MANNA IN THE DESERT, COULD JESUS DO SOMETHING COMPARABLE TO ASSERT HIS SUPERIORITY? HE REPLIED:THE BREAD THAT COMES FROM HEAVEN IS GIVEN ONLY BY THE FATHER. IT IS I WHO AM THE BREAD OF LIFE, HE WHO COMES TO ME WILL NEVER BE HUNGRY, HE WHO HAS FAITH IN ME WILL NEVER KNOW THIRST." AFTER THIS THEY PARTED, BUT THERE MUST HAVE BEEN A GREAT DEAL OF DISCUSSION ABOUT WHAT JESUS SAID.
DESIROUS OF HEARING HIM FURTHER, THEY INVITED HIM TO EXPLAIN HIS TEACHING IN THE SYNAGOGUE. THERE HE EXPOUNDED IT IN A MANNER WHICH LEFT NO DOUBT AS TO HIS MEANING: " BELIEVE IN ME WHEN I TELL YOU THIS: THE MAN WHO HAS FAITH IN ME ENJOYS ETERNAL LIFE. IT IS I WHO IS THE BREAD OF LIFE., YOUR FATHERS WHO ATE MANNA IN THE DESERT, DIED NONE THE LESS; THE BREAD WHICH COMES DOWN FROM HEAVEN. IF ANYONE EATS OF THIS BREAD, HE SHALL LIVE FFOREVER.. AND NOW, WHAT IS THIS BREAD WHICH I AM GOING TO GIVE? IT IS MY FLESH, GIVEN FOR THE LIFE OF THE WORLD."
IMMEDIATELY THERE WAS AN UPROAR. THE JEWS REALIZE THAT THIS AT LEAST WAS INCAPABLE OF A METAPHORIAL EXPLANATION AND SO, WITH PERFECT LOGIC, THEY ASKED: "HOW CAN THIS MAN GIVES US HIS FLESH TO EAT?" JESUS ANSWERED CLEARLY AND EMPHATICALLY: "BELIEVE IN ME WHEN I TELL YOU THIS: YOU CAN HAVE NO LIFE IN YOURSELVES, UNLESS YOU EAT OF THE SON OF MAN, AND DRINK HIS BLOOD. THE MAN WHO EATS MY FLESH AND DRINKS MY BLOOD, LIVES CONTINUALLY IN ME. AND I IN HIM. AS I LIVE BECAUSE OF THE FATHER, THE LIVING FATHER WHO HAS SENT ME, SO HE WHO EATS ME WILL LIVE, INN HIS TURN, BECAUSE OF ME. SUCH IS THE BREAD WHICH HAS COME DOWN FROM HEAVEN; IT IS NOT WHAT IT WAS WITH YOUR FATHERS , WHO ATE MANNA AND DIED ANY WAY.
THE MAN WHO EATS THIS BREAD WILL LIVE ETERNALLY.
DESIROUS OF HEARING HIM FURTHER, THEY INVITED HIM TO EXPLAIN HIS TEACHING IN THE SYNAGOGUE. THERE HE EXPOUNDED IT IN A MANNER WHICH LEFT NO DOUBT AS TO HIS MEANING: " BELIEVE IN ME WHEN I TELL YOU THIS: THE MAN WHO HAS FAITH IN ME ENJOYS ETERNAL LIFE. IT IS I WHO IS THE BREAD OF LIFE., YOUR FATHERS WHO ATE MANNA IN THE DESERT, DIED NONE THE LESS; THE BREAD WHICH COMES DOWN FROM HEAVEN. IF ANYONE EATS OF THIS BREAD, HE SHALL LIVE FFOREVER.. AND NOW, WHAT IS THIS BREAD WHICH I AM GOING TO GIVE? IT IS MY FLESH, GIVEN FOR THE LIFE OF THE WORLD."
IMMEDIATELY THERE WAS AN UPROAR. THE JEWS REALIZE THAT THIS AT LEAST WAS INCAPABLE OF A METAPHORIAL EXPLANATION AND SO, WITH PERFECT LOGIC, THEY ASKED: "HOW CAN THIS MAN GIVES US HIS FLESH TO EAT?" JESUS ANSWERED CLEARLY AND EMPHATICALLY: "BELIEVE IN ME WHEN I TELL YOU THIS: YOU CAN HAVE NO LIFE IN YOURSELVES, UNLESS YOU EAT OF THE SON OF MAN, AND DRINK HIS BLOOD. THE MAN WHO EATS MY FLESH AND DRINKS MY BLOOD, LIVES CONTINUALLY IN ME. AND I IN HIM. AS I LIVE BECAUSE OF THE FATHER, THE LIVING FATHER WHO HAS SENT ME, SO HE WHO EATS ME WILL LIVE, INN HIS TURN, BECAUSE OF ME. SUCH IS THE BREAD WHICH HAS COME DOWN FROM HEAVEN; IT IS NOT WHAT IT WAS WITH YOUR FATHERS , WHO ATE MANNA AND DIED ANY WAY.
THE MAN WHO EATS THIS BREAD WILL LIVE ETERNALLY.
Friday, August 4, 2017
'" TO SOLVE THE RIDDLE OF GOD'" John 1: 1-18..
FEW WORDS IN SCRIPTURE HAVE GRIPPED THE HUMAN MIND WITH THE POWER OF THE OPENING LINES OF THE FOURTH GOSPEL:
INTHE BEGINNING WAS THE WORD
AND THE WORD WAS WITH GOD
AND THE WORD WAS GOD.
THESE WORDS ARE SO MAGICAL, THE WESTERN CHURCH USED THEM FOR CENTURIES AS A BLESSING FOR THE SICK AND FOR NEWLY BAPIZED CHILDREN. IT WAS EVEN PLACED ON AMULETS AND HUNG AROUND THE NECK TO PROTECT ONE FROM SICKNESS. LIKE ALL HUMAM WORDS,, THEY ARE MEANT TO BEAR A MESSAGE, AND THAT MESSAGE BECOMES CLEAR, ONLY AT THE END OF THIS PASSAGE: NO ONE HAS EVER SEEN GOD;
IT IS GOD THE ONLY SON, EVER AT THE FATHER'S SIDE.
WHO HAS REVEALED HIM.
JESUS CHRIST HAS SOLVED THE RIDDLE OF GOD. RIDDLES ARE NOT SIMPLLY CHILDISH JOKES. THEY HAVE A LONG HISTORY IN HUMANITY'S QUEST TO UNDERSTAND THE WORLD. HAVE YOU HEARD OF THE "RIDDLE OF THE SPINX?"
THE ANCIENT GREEKS TOLD OF A MONSTER WHICH CAME TO THE CITY EACH YEAR WITH A RIDDLE. "WHAT SPEAKS WITH ONE VOICE, BUT WALKS ON FOUR LEGS,TWO LEGS AND ON THREE LEGS?" AND HOBBLES WITH A CANE WHEN OLD. BY ANSWERING THE RIDDLE HE SAVED THE CITY.
WE STILL USE THE IDEA IN THIS SERIOUS SENSE WHEN WE TALK ABOUT THE "RIDDLE OF LIFE.," OR THE RIDDLE OF SUFFERING." FOR MANY PEOPLE GOD IS A RIDDLE. THEY WOULD POSE THE QUESTION LIKE THIS: IF THERE IS A GOD, WHY DO THE INNOCENT SUFFER? WHY IS THERE SO MUCH PAIN AND SORROW IN THE WORLD; OR THEY ASK, WHY DOES GOD ASK SO MUCH OF US, WHEN HE DIDNT CREATE US PERFECT IN THE FIRST PLACE?" WE OUGHT TO TAKE THESE QUESTIONS SERIOUSLY, BECAUSE THEY REMIND US THAT THE EVIL, BECOMES AN ACUTE PROBLEM WHEN WE DARE TALK ABOUT LOVING GOD. WE BARELY HAVE TIME TO HEAR THE ANGELS SING ABOUT "PEACE ON EARTH." BEFORE WE ARE REMINDED THAT PEOPLE LIKE STEPHEN WERE STONED FOR THEIR CHRISTIAN FAITH BY THE EXISTANCE OF EVIL, BY A KING WHO SO FEARED THE COMING OF CHRIST THAT HE KILLED ALL THE CHILDREN UNDER TWO YEARS OF AGE. FOR A CHRISTIAN, THEN, THE RIDDLE WOULD BE:" WHAT KIND OF A GOD WOULD LET HIMSELF AND HIS FOLLOWERS BE PUSHED AROUND BY A HARD CRUEL WORLD?
WE ARE NOT THE FIRST ONES TO PUZZLE OVER THIS QUESTION. THE GOSPEL LESSON FOR TODAY REMINDS US THAT CONFUSION AND MISUNDERSTANDING HAVE CLOUDED THE GOOD NEWS OF GOD FROM THE BEGINNING. " HE WAS IN THE WORLD AND THE WORLD KNEW HIM NOT," SAYS OUR TEXT." HE CAME TO HIS OWN HOME, HIS OWN PEOPLE RECEIVED HIM NOT."
THE REST OF THE BOOK OF JOHN REPEATEDLY CALLS ATTENTION TO THE FACT THAT PEOPLE MISUNDERSTOOD JESUS-FROM NICODEMUS ASKING " HOW CAN A MAN BE BORN AGAIN WHEN HE IS OLD? " TO PILATE IMPATIENTLY SNAPPING, " WHAT IS TRUTH?"
AND YET THE ANSWER TO THE RIDDLE WAS THERE. THAT'S THE WAY IT IS WITH GOOD RIDDLES. WHEN YOU UNDERSTAND THE QUESTION, YOU ALREADY HAVE THE ANSWER. THE RIDDLE OF GOD IS A LOT LIKE THAT.ONCE WE GRASP THE KEY WORD,
QUESTONS ABOUT HIS POWER AND HIS WILL CAN BE ANSWERED. THE TEXT FOR TODAY SAYS THAT JESUS IS THAT KEY WORD; AND THE WORD BECAME FLESH AND DWELT AMONG US. WHEN WE TRY TO SOLVE THE RIDDLE OF GOD, IF WE TRY TO SOLVE THE RIDDLE OF GOD FROM ANY OTHER STARTING POINT, WE RUN INTO A DEAD END. THAT'S WHAT JESUS MEANT WHEN HE SAID,"NO ONE COMES TO THE FATHER, BUT BY ME.." HOW DOES JESUS SOLVE THE RIDDLE? HE SHOWS HOW GOD'S POWER DIFFERS FROM OUR USUAL CONCEPT OF POWER. JESUS RESURRECTION ILLUSTRATES HOW GOD'S POWER WORKS. IT DOES NOT ELIMATE DEATH. IT SIMPLY TAKES AWAY DEATH'S FINALITY. AND THAT'S THE WAY HE DEALT WITH SIN TOO. HE TOOK IT UPON HIMSELF AND USED IT, IN THE CROSS, AS A MEANS OF BREAKING SIN'S HOLD ON THE WORLD SO JESUS BECOMES THE KEY TO UNDERSTANDING WHAT A LOVING GOD CAN DO FOR A SUFFERING AND SINFUL WORLD
RECENTLY A DEAR FRIEND OF OURS (PASTOR BOB FROM CALIF) SENT HIS MONTHLY LETTER, AND THIS IS THE RIGHT TIME TO PASS IT ON. IT STARTS OUT, RECENTLY; "I COMPLETED A NOVEL ENTITLED. " A SKELETON" IN GO'D'S CLOSET BY PAUL. MAIER." IT RAISES THE QUESTION AS TO WHAT WOULD HAPPEN IF THE BONES OF JESUS WERE DISCOVERED. WHILE THE CHRISTIAN WORLD IS PLUNGED INTO CHAOS, AN ARCHEOLOGIST RISKS HIS REPUTATION, AND EVEN HIS LIFE TO DETERMINE IF THIS IS TRUTH OR A HOAX. ( I WON'T GIVE AWAY THE REST OF THE STORY, IN CASE YOU WOULD LIKE TO FIND OUT FOR YOURSELF!).
ALTHOUGH IT IS A NOVEL, THIS BRINGS TO LIGHT A VERY IMPORTANT POINT!:) THE BODLY RESURRECTION IS CRUCIAL TO THE CHRISTIAN FAITH. FOR ALMOST 2000 YEARS, PEOPLE HAVE BEEN TRYING TO DISPROVE THE RESURECTION AND THEREBY DISCREDIT CHRISTANITY . ALL HAVE FAILED.
INTERESTINGLY, IN MANY CASES, THE OPPOSITE HAS HAPPENED. JAMES, THE HALF BROTHER OF JESUS WENT FROM THINKING JESUS WAS CRAZY, TO PROCLAIMING THE GOSPEL AS THE HEAD OF THE JERUSALEM CHURCH, AFTER ENCOUNTING THE RISEN CHRIST. PAUL WENT FROM PERSECUTOR OF CHRISTIANS TO MISSIONARY TO THE ROMAN WORLD.FOR THE SAME REASON. (FOR MORE ON THIS SEE, 1CORINTHIANS 15)
THE SAME THING IS TRUE IN RECENT TIMES. IN MID-18th CENTURY, TWO STUDENTS AT OXFORD UNIVERSITY BECAME PROMINENT LEADERS IN BRITAIN, SET OUT TO PROVE, AMONG OTHER THINGS,THAT JESUS NEVER ROSE FROM THE DEAD.THEY CAME TO THE CONCLUSION THAT CHRISTIANITY WAS TRUE, AND BOTH BECAME CHRISTIANS. IN THE 1930'S, A JOURNALISTS NAMED FRANK MORRISON, WHO DOUBTED ANY MIRACULOUS ELEMENTS IN THE GOSPELS, SET OUT TO WRITE A B00K STRIPPING THE LIFE OF JESUS OF ANYTHING THAT WOULD INDICATE THAT HE WAS MORE THEN A GOOD TEACHER. HE ENDED UP WRITING ONE OF THE MOST ABLE DEFENCES OF THE RESURRECTION OF CHRIST.WHO MOVED THE STONE?" C.S. LEWIS,CAMBRIDGE, SCHOLAR, AUTHOR, AND A ONE TIME ATHIEST WAS COVERTED TO CHRISTIANITY ON THE BASIS OF WHAT HE CONSIDERED COMPELLING EVIDENCE.MERE CHRISTISNITY WAS THE RESULT. THE RESULT WAS TOLD TO US BY JOHN (14:19). "BECAUSE I LIVE,YOU WILL LIVE ALSO." 0UR RESPONSE SHOULD BE THE SAME ACCLAMAION THAT PAUL MADE( IN 1 CORINTHIANS 15-57).... "BUT THANKS BE TO GOD! HE GIVES US VICTORY THROUGH OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST."
INTHE BEGINNING WAS THE WORD
AND THE WORD WAS WITH GOD
AND THE WORD WAS GOD.
THESE WORDS ARE SO MAGICAL, THE WESTERN CHURCH USED THEM FOR CENTURIES AS A BLESSING FOR THE SICK AND FOR NEWLY BAPIZED CHILDREN. IT WAS EVEN PLACED ON AMULETS AND HUNG AROUND THE NECK TO PROTECT ONE FROM SICKNESS. LIKE ALL HUMAM WORDS,, THEY ARE MEANT TO BEAR A MESSAGE, AND THAT MESSAGE BECOMES CLEAR, ONLY AT THE END OF THIS PASSAGE: NO ONE HAS EVER SEEN GOD;
IT IS GOD THE ONLY SON, EVER AT THE FATHER'S SIDE.
WHO HAS REVEALED HIM.
JESUS CHRIST HAS SOLVED THE RIDDLE OF GOD. RIDDLES ARE NOT SIMPLLY CHILDISH JOKES. THEY HAVE A LONG HISTORY IN HUMANITY'S QUEST TO UNDERSTAND THE WORLD. HAVE YOU HEARD OF THE "RIDDLE OF THE SPINX?"
THE ANCIENT GREEKS TOLD OF A MONSTER WHICH CAME TO THE CITY EACH YEAR WITH A RIDDLE. "WHAT SPEAKS WITH ONE VOICE, BUT WALKS ON FOUR LEGS,TWO LEGS AND ON THREE LEGS?" AND HOBBLES WITH A CANE WHEN OLD. BY ANSWERING THE RIDDLE HE SAVED THE CITY.
WE STILL USE THE IDEA IN THIS SERIOUS SENSE WHEN WE TALK ABOUT THE "RIDDLE OF LIFE.," OR THE RIDDLE OF SUFFERING." FOR MANY PEOPLE GOD IS A RIDDLE. THEY WOULD POSE THE QUESTION LIKE THIS: IF THERE IS A GOD, WHY DO THE INNOCENT SUFFER? WHY IS THERE SO MUCH PAIN AND SORROW IN THE WORLD; OR THEY ASK, WHY DOES GOD ASK SO MUCH OF US, WHEN HE DIDNT CREATE US PERFECT IN THE FIRST PLACE?" WE OUGHT TO TAKE THESE QUESTIONS SERIOUSLY, BECAUSE THEY REMIND US THAT THE EVIL, BECOMES AN ACUTE PROBLEM WHEN WE DARE TALK ABOUT LOVING GOD. WE BARELY HAVE TIME TO HEAR THE ANGELS SING ABOUT "PEACE ON EARTH." BEFORE WE ARE REMINDED THAT PEOPLE LIKE STEPHEN WERE STONED FOR THEIR CHRISTIAN FAITH BY THE EXISTANCE OF EVIL, BY A KING WHO SO FEARED THE COMING OF CHRIST THAT HE KILLED ALL THE CHILDREN UNDER TWO YEARS OF AGE. FOR A CHRISTIAN, THEN, THE RIDDLE WOULD BE:" WHAT KIND OF A GOD WOULD LET HIMSELF AND HIS FOLLOWERS BE PUSHED AROUND BY A HARD CRUEL WORLD?
WE ARE NOT THE FIRST ONES TO PUZZLE OVER THIS QUESTION. THE GOSPEL LESSON FOR TODAY REMINDS US THAT CONFUSION AND MISUNDERSTANDING HAVE CLOUDED THE GOOD NEWS OF GOD FROM THE BEGINNING. " HE WAS IN THE WORLD AND THE WORLD KNEW HIM NOT," SAYS OUR TEXT." HE CAME TO HIS OWN HOME, HIS OWN PEOPLE RECEIVED HIM NOT."
THE REST OF THE BOOK OF JOHN REPEATEDLY CALLS ATTENTION TO THE FACT THAT PEOPLE MISUNDERSTOOD JESUS-FROM NICODEMUS ASKING " HOW CAN A MAN BE BORN AGAIN WHEN HE IS OLD? " TO PILATE IMPATIENTLY SNAPPING, " WHAT IS TRUTH?"
AND YET THE ANSWER TO THE RIDDLE WAS THERE. THAT'S THE WAY IT IS WITH GOOD RIDDLES. WHEN YOU UNDERSTAND THE QUESTION, YOU ALREADY HAVE THE ANSWER. THE RIDDLE OF GOD IS A LOT LIKE THAT.ONCE WE GRASP THE KEY WORD,
QUESTONS ABOUT HIS POWER AND HIS WILL CAN BE ANSWERED. THE TEXT FOR TODAY SAYS THAT JESUS IS THAT KEY WORD; AND THE WORD BECAME FLESH AND DWELT AMONG US. WHEN WE TRY TO SOLVE THE RIDDLE OF GOD, IF WE TRY TO SOLVE THE RIDDLE OF GOD FROM ANY OTHER STARTING POINT, WE RUN INTO A DEAD END. THAT'S WHAT JESUS MEANT WHEN HE SAID,"NO ONE COMES TO THE FATHER, BUT BY ME.." HOW DOES JESUS SOLVE THE RIDDLE? HE SHOWS HOW GOD'S POWER DIFFERS FROM OUR USUAL CONCEPT OF POWER. JESUS RESURRECTION ILLUSTRATES HOW GOD'S POWER WORKS. IT DOES NOT ELIMATE DEATH. IT SIMPLY TAKES AWAY DEATH'S FINALITY. AND THAT'S THE WAY HE DEALT WITH SIN TOO. HE TOOK IT UPON HIMSELF AND USED IT, IN THE CROSS, AS A MEANS OF BREAKING SIN'S HOLD ON THE WORLD SO JESUS BECOMES THE KEY TO UNDERSTANDING WHAT A LOVING GOD CAN DO FOR A SUFFERING AND SINFUL WORLD
RECENTLY A DEAR FRIEND OF OURS (PASTOR BOB FROM CALIF) SENT HIS MONTHLY LETTER, AND THIS IS THE RIGHT TIME TO PASS IT ON. IT STARTS OUT, RECENTLY; "I COMPLETED A NOVEL ENTITLED. " A SKELETON" IN GO'D'S CLOSET BY PAUL. MAIER." IT RAISES THE QUESTION AS TO WHAT WOULD HAPPEN IF THE BONES OF JESUS WERE DISCOVERED. WHILE THE CHRISTIAN WORLD IS PLUNGED INTO CHAOS, AN ARCHEOLOGIST RISKS HIS REPUTATION, AND EVEN HIS LIFE TO DETERMINE IF THIS IS TRUTH OR A HOAX. ( I WON'T GIVE AWAY THE REST OF THE STORY, IN CASE YOU WOULD LIKE TO FIND OUT FOR YOURSELF!).
ALTHOUGH IT IS A NOVEL, THIS BRINGS TO LIGHT A VERY IMPORTANT POINT!:) THE BODLY RESURRECTION IS CRUCIAL TO THE CHRISTIAN FAITH. FOR ALMOST 2000 YEARS, PEOPLE HAVE BEEN TRYING TO DISPROVE THE RESURECTION AND THEREBY DISCREDIT CHRISTANITY . ALL HAVE FAILED.
INTERESTINGLY, IN MANY CASES, THE OPPOSITE HAS HAPPENED. JAMES, THE HALF BROTHER OF JESUS WENT FROM THINKING JESUS WAS CRAZY, TO PROCLAIMING THE GOSPEL AS THE HEAD OF THE JERUSALEM CHURCH, AFTER ENCOUNTING THE RISEN CHRIST. PAUL WENT FROM PERSECUTOR OF CHRISTIANS TO MISSIONARY TO THE ROMAN WORLD.FOR THE SAME REASON. (FOR MORE ON THIS SEE, 1CORINTHIANS 15)
THE SAME THING IS TRUE IN RECENT TIMES. IN MID-18th CENTURY, TWO STUDENTS AT OXFORD UNIVERSITY BECAME PROMINENT LEADERS IN BRITAIN, SET OUT TO PROVE, AMONG OTHER THINGS,THAT JESUS NEVER ROSE FROM THE DEAD.THEY CAME TO THE CONCLUSION THAT CHRISTIANITY WAS TRUE, AND BOTH BECAME CHRISTIANS. IN THE 1930'S, A JOURNALISTS NAMED FRANK MORRISON, WHO DOUBTED ANY MIRACULOUS ELEMENTS IN THE GOSPELS, SET OUT TO WRITE A B00K STRIPPING THE LIFE OF JESUS OF ANYTHING THAT WOULD INDICATE THAT HE WAS MORE THEN A GOOD TEACHER. HE ENDED UP WRITING ONE OF THE MOST ABLE DEFENCES OF THE RESURRECTION OF CHRIST.WHO MOVED THE STONE?" C.S. LEWIS,CAMBRIDGE, SCHOLAR, AUTHOR, AND A ONE TIME ATHIEST WAS COVERTED TO CHRISTIANITY ON THE BASIS OF WHAT HE CONSIDERED COMPELLING EVIDENCE.MERE CHRISTISNITY WAS THE RESULT. THE RESULT WAS TOLD TO US BY JOHN (14:19). "BECAUSE I LIVE,YOU WILL LIVE ALSO." 0UR RESPONSE SHOULD BE THE SAME ACCLAMAION THAT PAUL MADE( IN 1 CORINTHIANS 15-57).... "BUT THANKS BE TO GOD! HE GIVES US VICTORY THROUGH OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST."
Tuesday, August 1, 2017
OF THE CONJUGAL UNION AS [ INSTITUTED AND BLESSED BY GOD]. BY ST. AUGUSTINE
; But we for our part, have no manner of doubt.That to increase and multiply and replenish the earth in virtue of the blessing of God, is a gift of God. instituted from the beginning before man sinned, When he created them male and female- In other words, two sexes manifestly distinct, and it was this work of God on which his blessings was pronounced. For sooner had scripture, "Male and female created He them, then it immediately continues," But we for that the apostle admonishes all husbands to love their own wives in particular! "and God blessed them" and God said unto them, increase and multiply and replenish the earth, and subdue it," and all these things may not unsuitably be interpreted in a spiritual sense, yet Male female cannot be understood of two things in one male
if there were in him one thing which rules, another which is ruled. But it is quite clear that they were created Male and female with bodies, of different sexes, for the very purpose of begetting offspring, and so increasing, Multiplying, and replenishing the earth; and it is great folly to oppose so plain a fact. It was not of the spirit which commands and the body obeys, nor of the rational soul which rules and the irrational desire which is ruled, nor of contemplative virtue which is supreme and the active which is subject, nor of the understanding of the mind and sene of the body, but plainly of the matrimonial union by which sexes are mutually bound together, that our Lord, when asked whether it was lawful for any cause to put away one's wife (for on account of the hardness of the hearts of the Israelites Moses permitted a bill of divorcement to be given)., answered and said, " Have you not read that he which made them in the beginning made them male and female,and said, For this cause shall a man leave Father and Mother, and shall cleave to his wife, and they twain shall be one flesh. What, therefore, God has joined together, Let not man out asunder. It is certain, then that from the first men were created, as we see, and know them to be now, of two sexes, male and female and that they are called one, either on account of the matrimonial union, or on account of the origin of the women, who was created from the side of man. And it is by this original example which God himself instituted.
By St. Augustine Died 430.
if there were in him one thing which rules, another which is ruled. But it is quite clear that they were created Male and female with bodies, of different sexes, for the very purpose of begetting offspring, and so increasing, Multiplying, and replenishing the earth; and it is great folly to oppose so plain a fact. It was not of the spirit which commands and the body obeys, nor of the rational soul which rules and the irrational desire which is ruled, nor of contemplative virtue which is supreme and the active which is subject, nor of the understanding of the mind and sene of the body, but plainly of the matrimonial union by which sexes are mutually bound together, that our Lord, when asked whether it was lawful for any cause to put away one's wife (for on account of the hardness of the hearts of the Israelites Moses permitted a bill of divorcement to be given)., answered and said, " Have you not read that he which made them in the beginning made them male and female,and said, For this cause shall a man leave Father and Mother, and shall cleave to his wife, and they twain shall be one flesh. What, therefore, God has joined together, Let not man out asunder. It is certain, then that from the first men were created, as we see, and know them to be now, of two sexes, male and female and that they are called one, either on account of the matrimonial union, or on account of the origin of the women, who was created from the side of man. And it is by this original example which God himself instituted.
By St. Augustine Died 430.
Friday, July 28, 2017
LEAVES OF GOLD.
"SANDALPHON"
Have you read in the Talmud of old,
in the legends the Rabbis have told.
Of the limitless realms of the air,
Have you read it--the marvelous story
Of Sandalphon, The Angel of Glory,
Sandalphon, the Angel of Prayer?
How erect, at the outer most gates
Of the City Celestial he waits,
With his feet on the ladder of light.
That, crowded with angels unnumbered
By Jacob was seen as he slumbered.
Alone in the desert at night?
But Serene in the rapturous throng.
Unmoved by the rush of the song,
With eyes unimpassioned and slow
Among the dead angels, the deathless
Sandalphon stands listening breathless
to sounds that ascend from below:-
And he gathers the prayers as he stands,
And they change into flowers in his
Hands,
Into garlands of purple and red;
And beneath the great arch of the portal,
Through the streets of the City Immortal
Is wafted the fragrance they shed.
When I look from my window at night,
And the welkin above is all white,
All throbbing and panting with stars,
Among them Majestic is standing
Sandalphon the angel, expanding
his pinions in nebulous bars.
And the legend, I feel, is a part
Of the hunger and thirst of the heart,
The frenzy and fire of the brain.
That grasps at the fruitage forbidden,
The golden pomegranates of Eden,
To quiet its fever and pain.
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow.
"Possessions"
Vain Glory- A little while ago, I stood by the grave of the old Napoleon- a magnificent tomb of gilt and gold, fit almost for a dead deity- and gazed upon the sarcophagus of rare and nameless marble.
where rest at last the ashes of a restless man. I Leaned over the balustrade and thought about the career of the greatest soldier of the modern world.
I saw him walking upon the banks of the Seine, contemplating suicide. I saw him at Toulon-I saw him putting down the mob in the streets of Paris- I saw him at the head of the army of Italy-I saw him crossing the bridge of Lodi with the tricolor in his hand- I saw him in Egypt in the shadows of the pyramids- I saw him conquer the Alps and mingle the eagle of France with the eagles of the crags.
I saw him at Marengo-at Ulm and Austerlitz.
I saw him in Russia, where the infantry of the snow and the cavalry of the wild blast scattered his legions like winter's withered leaves. I saw him at Leipsic in defeat and disaster- driven by a million bayonets back upon Paris- clutched like a wild beast.- banished to Elba. I saw him escape and retake an Empire by the force of his genius. I saw him upon the frightful field of Waterloo, where chance and fate combined to wreck the fortunes of their former king. And I saw him St. Helena, with his hands crossed behind him, gazing out upon the sad and solemn sea.
I thought of the orphans and widows he had made- and the tears that had been shed for his glory, and of the only women who ever loved him, pushed from his heart by the cold hand of ambition. And I said I would have rather been French peasant and worn wooden shoes. I would of have gone down to
the tongue- less silence of the dreamless dust, than to have been that imperial impersonation of force and murder, known as Napoleon the Great. Robert G. Ingersoll.
Have you read in the Talmud of old,
in the legends the Rabbis have told.
Of the limitless realms of the air,
Have you read it--the marvelous story
Of Sandalphon, The Angel of Glory,
Sandalphon, the Angel of Prayer?
How erect, at the outer most gates
Of the City Celestial he waits,
With his feet on the ladder of light.
That, crowded with angels unnumbered
By Jacob was seen as he slumbered.
Alone in the desert at night?
But Serene in the rapturous throng.
Unmoved by the rush of the song,
With eyes unimpassioned and slow
Among the dead angels, the deathless
Sandalphon stands listening breathless
to sounds that ascend from below:-
And he gathers the prayers as he stands,
And they change into flowers in his
Hands,
Into garlands of purple and red;
And beneath the great arch of the portal,
Through the streets of the City Immortal
Is wafted the fragrance they shed.
When I look from my window at night,
And the welkin above is all white,
All throbbing and panting with stars,
Among them Majestic is standing
Sandalphon the angel, expanding
his pinions in nebulous bars.
And the legend, I feel, is a part
Of the hunger and thirst of the heart,
The frenzy and fire of the brain.
That grasps at the fruitage forbidden,
The golden pomegranates of Eden,
To quiet its fever and pain.
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow.
"Possessions"
Vain Glory- A little while ago, I stood by the grave of the old Napoleon- a magnificent tomb of gilt and gold, fit almost for a dead deity- and gazed upon the sarcophagus of rare and nameless marble.
where rest at last the ashes of a restless man. I Leaned over the balustrade and thought about the career of the greatest soldier of the modern world.
I saw him walking upon the banks of the Seine, contemplating suicide. I saw him at Toulon-I saw him putting down the mob in the streets of Paris- I saw him at the head of the army of Italy-I saw him crossing the bridge of Lodi with the tricolor in his hand- I saw him in Egypt in the shadows of the pyramids- I saw him conquer the Alps and mingle the eagle of France with the eagles of the crags.
I saw him at Marengo-at Ulm and Austerlitz.
I saw him in Russia, where the infantry of the snow and the cavalry of the wild blast scattered his legions like winter's withered leaves. I saw him at Leipsic in defeat and disaster- driven by a million bayonets back upon Paris- clutched like a wild beast.- banished to Elba. I saw him escape and retake an Empire by the force of his genius. I saw him upon the frightful field of Waterloo, where chance and fate combined to wreck the fortunes of their former king. And I saw him St. Helena, with his hands crossed behind him, gazing out upon the sad and solemn sea.
I thought of the orphans and widows he had made- and the tears that had been shed for his glory, and of the only women who ever loved him, pushed from his heart by the cold hand of ambition. And I said I would have rather been French peasant and worn wooden shoes. I would of have gone down to
the tongue- less silence of the dreamless dust, than to have been that imperial impersonation of force and murder, known as Napoleon the Great. Robert G. Ingersoll.
Gospel according to Luke. [Advent of the Savior.]
The authorship of the third gospel has been attributed Luke, the friend of Paul, by the whole Christian church through out the ages.. The tradition can be traced back to without interruption to the middle of the second century, and nothing has been found in the records of the early church to indicate that the book was ever ascribed to any other writer. The internal evidence is in harmony with this objective testimony. Luke's name does not appear in the gospel., and it appears only three times in the New Testament. Paul alone mention Luke, and in doing so he throws some light on him. He was a physician (Col iv,14), and that implies he was a man of culture and education. His literary culture appears in the classical preface to the gospel (i 1- 4), in which he follows the Greek historians. Traces of his medical knowledge appear throughout the book. see iv.23,38, v.12, viii.43, xxii.44. He seems to have been a gentile, for he is not included in the list of those " who are of the circumcision" Col.iv 10,11. He was one of Paul's fellow- workers (Phm24), and the only companion the apostle had during his last imprisonment in Rome just before his martyrdom (2Tim.iv.11). Luke also was the author of Acts. The book is addressed to a private Christian called Theophilus (i 1-4), who must have been someone of prominence, but is otherwise unknown. It was intended for a wide circle of readers, and the fact that 'Theophilus" is a Greek name would indicate Luke had in mind, the Greeks of the Roman world. They were the people among whom Paul's missionary labours were carried on. His Gospel presents Jesus as the ideal man and as savior of all classes of men. Here we see him pass through all stages of a normal human life. He is seen touching human life on all sides, entering the domestic life of the people. Luke writes as a historian. It begins in the days of Herod, the king of Judea. It mentions the imperial decree that brought Joseph and Mary from Galilee to Bethlehem. In the course of the story Luke pays careful attention to dates, and marks of time. When he begins the account of the Lord's public ministry, he notes the years of the reigning Caesar and the age of Jesus., and takes a survey of the civil and religious rulers, who were specially concerned with Palestine. Luke makes clear that the sympathy of Jesus went out especially to the poor, who compose the vast Majority of mankind, and to women, on whom both Jews and gentiles in that ancient world looked down. The universal gospel which Paul preached would give Luke the basis for the portrait that he draws of the Savior, and his own calling as " the beloved Physician. From here on it is easier for me to give an outline of the contents of Luke:
"Advent of a Savior" I. 5-ii 52.
The Savior's preparation for His ministry. iii.1 iv. 13
a) preaching John the Baptist: 3:1-20).
b) the baptism of Jesus (iii 21,22).
c) The lineage of Jesus ( iii 23-28)
d). iv. 1-13). temptation of Jesus.
THE Ministry in GALILEE. iv. 14-ix. 50.
a. up to call of the first disciples iv. 14-44)
b. The call of the first disciples. to the choice of the Twelve (v.1-v1.11)
c. From the choice of the Twelve to their first mission. (vi. 12-viii 56).
d From the mission of the Twelve to the departure from Galilee (ix. 1-50).
The journey to Jerusalem. ( ix.-xix28).
a. The first stage of the journey (ix 51-xiii.21).
b .The second stage of the journey (xiii 22- xvii.10).
c. The third stage of the Journey (xvii11-xix.28).
The ministry in Jerusalem. xix.-xxi. 38
a. The entry into Jerusalem and the cleansing of the temple. (xix.29-48).
b. Teaching daily in temple (xx.1-xxi. 4)
c. Foretelling the destruction of the temple (xxi.5-38).
The departure of the Savior.xxii.1-xxiv.53
a. The final preparations (xxii.1-13).
b. The last supper (xxii.14-38).
c. The agony and the betrayal (xxii.39-53).
d. The Jewish trial (xxii. 14-38).
e. The Roman trial (xxiii. 1-25).
f. The crucifixion (xxiii. 50-56).
h. The resurrection morning (xxiv. 1-12).
I. The risen Lord (xxiv. 44-53).
j. The farewell instructions (xxiv.44-53).
Luke begins his gospel with a simple and modest introduction, finely phrased, which tells of the care he took to secure fullness and accuracy for his narrative. and of the end he had in view. His purpose was to set forth the historical foundation of the Christian faith.
Many have taken in hand. This statement is the only positive information we possess about written records lying behind the synoptic Gospels. These narratives have all perished. Those things which are most surely believed; Luke distinguishes himself from eyewitnesses , but claims to have a thorough investigation:most excellent Theophilus,
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