On the Church & the State

Theology is no easy philosophy, it raises many different questions like how does the Christian live in a secular world, do they run for office, if so when? Likewise, the political realm has had its challenges with religion as well for example: what and how much should the gov tolerant rel? All the questions and more are very important and valid to answer. All of these questions answers could differ depending on one\’s view of God. This is why the study of God, theology is so important.
Martin Luther in his work Temporal Authority: To What Extent It Should Be Obeyed wrestles with the question of the “temporal authority and the sword it bears, [and] how to use it in a Christian manner, and to what extent men are obligated to obey it.” (Temporal Authority 1). Luther is writing this so that the Christian if he becomes the holder of an office will be able to rule and rule well by knowing how the temporal sword is to be used. One of the first points that Luther makes it established that the civil law is legitimate saying that it was established by Moses and then later reaffirmed by Christ because he did not forbid the use of the temporal sword. As Luther states, “is certain and clear enough that it is God’s will that the temporal sword and law be used for the punishment of the wicked and the protection of the upright” (Temporal Authority 3).
Having established the law as a legitimate law Luther begins to write on the law as it applies to the Christian, “…by the Spirit and by faith all Christians are so thoroughly disposed and conditioned in their very nature that they do right and keep the law better than one can teach them…[for the Christian] no laws are needed.” (Temporal Authority 4-5). The political implications to this are that the kingdom of man needs laws to restrain them of evil and injustices while the kingdom of God does not. Thus, the law is established to maintain “an outward peace” (Temporal Authority 5) between all men, both the kingdom of man and of God.
John Locke in his work A Letter Concerning Toleration also considers how the kingdom of man and God interact with one another. For example, Locke starts his work by first establishing what the temporal authority is to rule over when he writes, “The commonwealth seems to me to be a society of men constituted only for the procuring, preserving and advancing their own civil interests. Civil interests I call life, liberty, health, and indecency of body, and the possession of outward things…” (A Letter Concerning Toleration 3).
Here, Locke states that the temporal authority is only to rule over that which is temporal it, therefore, has nothing to do with the soul. So one cannot regulate the people into believing because the temporal authority deals with that which is external while religion deals with that which is internal to produce salvation.
Locke continues and begins to consider what a church is and to what powers and laws it is subject to. On the definition of a church, Locke writes, “I say it is a free and voluntary society. Nobody is born a member of any church; otherwise, the religion of parents would descend unto children by right of inheritance…” (A Letter Concerning Toleration 5). A church must be free and voluntary society because one can not be forced to believe with its end being the “public worship of God and, by means thereof, the acquisition of eternal life” (A Letter Concerning Toleration 7). Thus, the church is to deal only in matters of the soul and not so many temporal matters.
Alexis de Tocqueville in his work Democracy in America writes one how the separation of church and state in America was influenced by Christ and how that influences the morals in America. Toward the start of Tocqueville’s argument he identifies three circumstances that caused the American Democratic Republic system of Government to be successful; which are: 1) that the federal form of government which the Americans have adopted, and which enables the Union to combine the power of a great republic with the security of a small one; 2) township institutions which limit the despotism of the majority and at the same time impart to the people a taste of freedom; 3) the constitution of the judicial power which checks and direct the impulses of the majority without stopping its activity (Democracy in America 1).
From here Tocqueville builds on his argument by claiming that the Catholics in America helped to form the most democratic and most republican class. At the start of America, the American people acknowledged no other religious supremacy because they had just shaken off the authority of the Pope and did not wish to establish a religious monarchy in America by which prosecution of the Religious minority would be ramped. Shortly before Tocqueville wrote Democracy in America the Irish Catholics began to migrate into America and were the minority at the time. The Protestants had to issue with the Catholics being present in the nation, they were given the same liberties and rights that the protestants had at the time. Thus, Protestantism gave religious freedom to all and prosecuted none. As Tocqueville writes, “They constitute a minority, and all rights must be respected in order to ensure to them the free exercise of their own privileges” (Democracy in America 3).
Tocqueville then moves to write on about Christianity’s indirect influence on America’s political society. Tocqueville states that while there are innumerable sects in America they all “preach the same moral law in the name of God” (Democracy in America 4). As far as society its only concern in regards to religion is its moral code, not in whether the religion\’s doctrine is true or false; the speculative opinions of a religion are of no importance to society or its interests. Thus, Christianity does not involve itself directly with the political system; it does, however, involve itself with practical opinions that help to regulate the domestic life of individuals
Christianity brings order and the surest path to happiness in the home thus the individuals enjoy their quiet and find rest there. In turn, the Americans carry this love order into public affairs. Tocqueville contrasts this with the Europeans who are “galled by the obedience which the legislative powers of the state exact” (Democracy in America 5). So while Americans have many liberties given to them by the law to do as they see fit “religion prevents them from conceiving, and forbid them to commit, what is rash or unjust” (Democracy in America 5). Thus, the Government does not need to regulate every detail of an individual’s life because the individuals are fully able to self-regulate. “Religion is needed most in a democratic republic than in any others” (Democracy in America 7).
Tocqueville then writes on which principal causes render religion, particularly Christianity, to be powerful in America. Tocqueville identifies the main strength of Christianity as the separation of Church and State. His reasoning for this is that when religions are united with the government they have been known to “exercise sovereign power founded on terror and faith” (Democracy in America 9). When a religion allies itself with a temporal government it is heavily weakened in that it is now limited to the temporal authority rather than having sovereignty over the spiritual realm. Religion is also weakened when it allies with the temporal government because when the temporal government becomes corrupt the religion will become corrupt as well. This is part of the reason why the French government began to fail because the church allied itself with the government and the French government became corrupt and thus the church was as well.  


Part of Tocqueville’s conclusion is that in order for people to have true political freedom in must be rooted in religion, as he writes, “if [the individual is] to be free, [the individual] must believe” (Democracy in America 13). The more the people are to be self-governed the less need there is for the government. The more powerful the religion is in the nation the more freedom there will be in the nation. Thus, all these thinkers argue the relations between religion and state in regards to civil life.

On the Prodigal Son and The Good Father

“A certain man had two sons…”: A parable about the goodness of God
Within the third Gospel, also the third book of the New Testament, the author, Luke, writes his account of the Gospel, that is the good news directly for Theophilus meaning God lover, or lover of God. The oldest traditions of the church claim Luke, a “beloved physician” (Laymon, 672), as the author of this book. Luke was a missionary, traveling companion, friend and coworker with Paul the apostle in his mission work in the region known as Asia in the time of the New Testament. Given the common themes of salvation and deliverance as well as writing style and audience, it would also seem that Luke is the author of the books of Acts, the fifth book of the New Testament. Church tradition also seems to agree and think that Luke wrote both of these canonical books.
It is likely that Luke wrote this gospel around 85 CE, however it is possible it could have been written a few years earlier. All that historians know for certain is that it is written after the destruction of the second Jewish temple in 70 CE. Luke used formal Greek language in his gospel that would have been familiar to the well-educated class of the Roman empire in the first century.
Luke is a unique gospel in several ways; his gospel was the second to last to be written with John’s Gospel the last to be written. Thus Luke could draw upon both Matthew and Mark’s gospels for his writing. He is also unique in that Luke uses oral sources from Elizabeth, the mother of John the Baptist, in the first chapter, and Mary and his families’ account of losing Jesus when he was 12 years old on their journey back home from visiting the Temple. Luke’s gospel is also unique in that Luke focuses heavily on Jesus’ parables and Jesus’ miracles of healing.  
Luke’s purpose in writing to his audience, whether one individual or a group of believers, was so that they would “know the truth concerning the things about which you have been instructed.” (Luke 1:4). That “truth” is how God’s mercy is shown in the ministry of Jesus.  Luke is a deliberate writer as evidenced by his attention to detail and storytelling ability. Examples of this abound, he has a prolong in 1:1-4 to tell the reader and audience what is to come. He then tells the story of the infancy and childhood of both Jesus and John the Baptist to show the reader the role of both of these characters and their importance to God’s mission to bring salvation to mankind (1:5-2:52). As a full grown adult, Jesus begins his final preparations for his ministry by being baptized by John and withstanding Satan’s temptations (3:1-4:13). After this, Jesus ministers to the people in Galilee, gathering and calling disciples, preaching and performing miracles and teaching (4:14-9:50).
And continues to do the same in Jerusalem with many parables shows, the goodness of God in his relationship toward the lost and the self-righteous, and teachings on the end times and the future (9:51-21:38). Finally to continue Luke’s gospel ends as Jesus sups with his disciples for the last supper, suffers, dies is buried is raised from the tomb and ascends to heaven.
Throughout all this Luke presents Jesus coming into humanity as the fulfillment of the promise of God for salvation which brings peace with God and forgiveness of sins. This paper will not focus on the literal language of the gospel of Luke but only of the meaning and message because “[to understand the text] we need to get an understanding of language but that understanding comes through language; language brings something to understanding.” (Via, 34). Thus, this essay will focus on the message and meaning of the text and not the original language of the text.
This paper will focus on Luke’s three parables found in Luke 15 which includes “the Lost Sheep”(Luke 15:3-7) and the “Lost Coin” (Luke 15:8:10) parable and finally the classically named but incorrectly named “the Prodigal Son” (Luke 15:11-32) parable.
Chapter 15 of Luke contains three different parables that scholar Joachim Jeremias states “contain the Good News itself” (Donahue, 147). Within this chapter, the reader can see Luke’s main themes of the coming of the Son of God to seek and save the lost. And within all three of the parables found in Luke 15 one can see the common theme of salvation, or rather finding that which was lost and God’s joy therein. This supports Luke main thesis of writing this gospel. This is the chapter in which Luke tells his audience of the Gospel message, which is that Jesus is the promised Christ of the Old Testament that has come into the world, humanity, to save that which has been lost.
Many modern biblical scholars are perplexed by the parables found in the gospels, leading to the producing of many different interpretations of the parables. In short, the most useful and perhaps the most acceptable understanding of a parable is, “is that short, unified story, embedded in a longer gospel narrative, that one chooses (or the tradition has chosen) for various reasons to call a parable.” (Tolbert, 17).
Moreover, as Tolbert continues, “many modern interpreters of the parables have turned their attention to the individual parable texts rather than interpreting them within the context of the total gospel or even gospel chapter in which they presently appear. [However] some scholars have purposely focused on the interrelationship between the parables and their gospel contexts in order to understand more clearly both the dynamics of the parables themselves and some of the principles underlying the construction of the gospels.” (Tolbert, 19). Thus it is wisest to consider the general context to the parable of the Prodigal Son as this paper will do in order to understand the themes and lessons Luke is trying to show the audience. However, it is not absolutely vital for understanding it.
The following is an analysis of the parables and their themes and commonalities in an attempt to find Luke’s message.
Parable of the Lost Sheep
1Now the tax collectors and sinners were all gathering around to hear Jesus. 2But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law muttered, “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.”
3Then Jesus told them this parable: 4“Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Doesn’t he leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it? 5And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders 6and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.’ 7I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent.
When trying to find the meaning in a text it is important to remember who is speaking and to whom they are speaking. Here, we see Jesus teaching to the tax collectors, sinners, the Pharisees and the teachers of the law. Names of individuals within the Bible can always tell the reader something about the individual themselves; often they are representations of their relationship to God or their purpose in the story. In the case of Jesus, Jesus’ name can tell the audience what they need to know about Jesus; his name comes from the Hebrew word Joshua meaning Yahweh is salvation or Yahweh saves as the angel explains in Matthew 1:21 “for [Jesus] will save his people from their sins.”
Thus, Luke uses the name of Jesus and no given title to emphasize that he is the one to save the Jews and gentiles from their sin, or to put in another way, to find that which has been lost. Within the synoptic gospels, the Christ uses a parable to teach the people. A parable is an extended metaphor or a brief narrative or story for didactic purposes. Thus, when Jesus speaks in a parable he is meaning to teach his audience a lesson. And one can find the lesson that Jesus wishes to show by analyzing the text itself and the audience it is addressed to.
“1Now the tax collectors and sinners were all gathering around to hear Jesus. 2But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law muttered, “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.”” Here Luke shows us who Jesus is going to talk to but moreover that they came to listen to Jesus. While on the other hand, Luke shows us in contrast in verse two that the Pharisees and the teachers of the law did not come to listen but to criticize Jesus for even being with and eating with tax collectors and sinners and not to listen to him teach. A tax collector “in the New Testament times were the Roman officialdom in Israel that had direct responsibility for collecting regular taxes, such as poll and land taxes [for the Roman officialdom].” (Buttrick, 522). Moreover, the Jewish people of the time regarded themselves as an oppressed people under the iron fist rule of the Roman militant empire. Thus, the Jews of the time viewed tax collectors as a type of traitor to their own people because they were working for the enemy, the oppressor, of the Jewish people. Thus, they were considered to be “sinners” a class of people, individuals that were considered to be dreadfully estranged from God, the sole source of all that is good.
Then there is the second group of men that are present at the teaching of Jesus in Luke 15, the Pharisees and the teachers of the law. The Pharisees were an influential party among the Jewish people during the time of Jesus given that they were the religious leaders of the Jewish religion. The main characteristic of the Pharisees was their legalism, their strict adherence to all of the 613 laws of the Old Testament. The Pharisees sought to achieve perfection of purity and purification by their strict, overbearing observance to the requirements of the Levitical code. By this the Pharisees restricted the people in their worship of God and became a bourgeois group rather than a popular movement. They restricted the worship of God to only those few, themselves, that could adhere to the law thus making everyone that wasn\’t them a “sinner” as well as anyone who willing associated with them. This is why the Pharisees mummer against Jesus saying, “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.”. It is at the comment that Jesus begins to tell them three parables directed at both general groups of listeners to show how both groups are lost and are in need of God’s salvation.
Jesus says, “ 4“Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Doesn’t he leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it? 5And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders 6and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.’ 7I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent.”
Here is the first of three parables within Luke 15 where “so distinctive of the Lucan portrait of Jesus that this part of his account has been called “the heart of the Third Gospel.” (Fitzmyer, 1071). Here we see the beginning of the heart of the third gospel with Luke’s emphasis on the theme of God’s love and mercy for sinful human beings and of Jesus’ call for repentance. Note the joy in the shepherd after he found his lost sheep, this is specially and explicitly applied to God himself in the concluding of verses of each of the first two parables when Jesus says, “‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.’ and again in the Lost Coin Parable, “‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost coin.’.
Here we see who Jesus is meant to save, those who are lost. The point of this parable is not only the shepherd\’s willingness to seek and save the lost but also his joy in finding the lost sheep. This is meant to symbolize God’s mercy toward mankind manifested in the ministry of Jesus to “sinners” who are lost. This parable shows what Jesus says himself in Luke 19:10, “the Son of Man has come to seek out and to save what was lost.”  This helps to further underscore that the parables in Luke 15 are about the seeker, or finder, and not the lost item or wayward son as the case is in the so-called “prodigal son parable”.
Jesus continues his teachings on the graciousness of God when he gives the second of three parables, “8“Or suppose a woman has ten silver coinsa and loses one. Doesn’t she light a lamp, sweep the house and search carefully until she finds it? 9And when she finds it, she calls her friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost coin.’ 10In the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.” This parable makes the same general point as the last parable but instead of a relatively wealthy shepherd the main character is a poor woman who lost one of her silver coins, a heavy loss for a poor woman. Here she serves to portray divine intent in seeking out that which was lost, again meaning sinners and represents God’s joy when they are found; much in the same way that the father in the Prodigal Son will rejoice at the return of his wayward son.
These paired parables emphasis that is is through the ministry of Jesus God’s initiative and grace are extending in boundless fashion as they pass over the defection of the sinner and seek out instead such one individual to reform. If a mere human is willing to exert so much energy to recover a small item then how much more will God himself expand on a human made in his own image. As Genesis 1:27 states, “So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them”. Here the reader can see Jesus’ rebuke of the Pharisees’ criticism of him and his company, the reason why he eats with such sinful people such outcasts.
Jesus then rebukes and teaches both groups of people in the audience in the aptly but incorrectly named “prodigal son” parable as the final parable of Luke 15 when he says, “ 11Jesus continued: “There was a man who had two sons. 12The younger one said to his father, ‘Father, give me my share of the estate.’ So he divided his property between them.
13“Not long after that, the younger son got together all he had, set off for a distant country and there squandered his wealth in wild living. 14After he had spent everything, there was a severe famine in that whole country, and he began to be in need. 15So he went and hired himself out to a citizen of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed pigs. 16He longed to fill his stomach with the pods that the pigs were eating, but no one gave him anything.
17“When he came to his senses, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired servants have food to spare, and here I am starving to death! 18I will set out and go back to my father and say to him: Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. 19I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me like one of your hired servants.’ 20So he got up and went to his father.
“But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him.
21“The son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’
22“But the father said to his servants, ‘Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. 23Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let’s have a feast and celebrate. 24For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ So they began to celebrate.
25“Meanwhile, the older son was in the field. When he came near the house, he heard music and dancing. 26So he called one of the servants and asked him what was going on. 27‘Your brother has come,’ he replied, ‘and your father has killed the fattened calf because he has him back safe and sound.’
28“The older brother became angry and refused to go in. So his father went out and pleaded with him. 29But he answered his father, ‘Look! All these years I’ve been slaving for you and never disobeyed your orders. Yet you never gave me even a young goat so I could celebrate with my friends. 30But when this son of yours who has squandered your property with prostitutes comes home, you kill the fattened calf for him!’
31“ ‘My son,’ the father said, ‘you are always with me, and everything I have is yours. 32But we had to celebrate and be glad because this brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ ”
The previous two parables are about finding what is lost and this one does as well. This “prodigal son” parable is often seen as the apex of all Jesus’ parables and has been the subject of much discussion and interpretation due to its good description of the human condition by early theologians such as Clement of Alexandria, Ambrose, Jerome, and Augustine. This parable is often considered by many to be the apex of Jesus’ parables due to the simple teachings on God’s mercy toward both the sinner and the   individual as well as its insight on the human condition.
The parable has also inspired much art such as Rembrandt’s depiction of the prodigal son’s return in Rembrandt’s famous painting The Prodigal Son as well known Catholic minister and missionary Henri J.M Nouwen states after seeing and meditating on Rembrandt’s painting for several days, “The more I spoke of the Prodigal Son, the more I came to see it as, somehow, my personal painting, the painting that contained not only the heart of the story God wants to tell me but also the heart of the story that I want to tell to God and God’s people. All of the Gospel is there… The painting has become a mysterious window through which I can step into the Kingdom of God. It is like a huge gate that allows me to move to the other side of existence… For many years I tried to get a glimpse of God by looking carefully at the varieties of human experience: loneliness and love, sorrow and joy, resentment and gratitude, war and peace. I sought to understand the ups and downs of the human soul, to discern there hunger and thirst that only a God whose name is Love could satisfy. I tried to discover the lasting beyond the temporal, the eternal beyond the temporal, the perfect love beyond all paralyzing fears, the divine consolation beyond the desolation of human anguish and agony. I tried constantly to point beyond the mortal quality of our existence to a presence larger, deeper, wider, and more beautiful than we can imagine, and to speak about that presence as a presence that can already now be seen, heard, and touched by those who are willing to believe” (Nouwen, 15-16).  
It has also led to a few interesting comments on the human condition by noted philosophers Nietzsche and, more recently, Dr. Jordan B. Peterson, the famed Canadian psychology professor at the University of Toronto in his biblical lecture series when he says this on the relationship and meaning of the father and sons, “[The prodigal son] is insuffictionally respectful to his father… and so what does the father mean [symbolically]? A father is a man, a man among men, but there’s the father as such and the spirit of the father and insofar as you have the father so you have both at the same time. You have the person of the father, that’s a man among men just like anyone other’s father but insofar as that man is your father that means that he’s something different than just another person and what he is is the incarnation of the spirit of the father and to disrespect that carelessly [the prodigal son] makes a mistake and goes and wastes [his father’s gift]. The story is laying out a danger and the danger is that maybe if your disrespectful to [the father] and you transgress the spirit of the father and if you transgress against the spirit of the father and lose the respect for the spirit of the father then that is likely to transform you into [something you don’t want to become] and that’s an interesting idea [because] it\’s particularly germane to the current cultural situation because [the father] receives intense criticism that is directed toward our culture and the patriarchal culture, so to speak, we’re constantly [abusing the idea of] the father figure. And to be careless of disrespecting the father is dangerous because you’re inhabited by the spirit of the father insofar as you’re a cultural construction which of course is something that the postmodern neo Marxists are absolutely emphatic about and to be disrespectful toward that means to undermine the very structure that makes you. Not all of what you are certainly, but a good portion of what you are insofar as you’re a socialized cultural entity. And if you pull out the foundation from underneath that what do you have left? You can hardly manage on your own, it\’s just not possible and so [the prodigal son] make this careless error about [disrespecting] the father, something like that, he does it without sufficient respect and he’s contrasted with the other son [who respects the father] and so maybe that’s what makes [the older son] strong and that’s what that story means it has something to do with respect and it\’s worthwhile to treat [the father] with respect” (Peterson, 2017).  
While there could very well be many things said on this parable in relation to the universal characteristics of life, any philosophy in regards to this parable must consider the fact that this is a Lucan text, part of the Lucan gospel, meaning that it must be seen in the light of the Lucan theme of God’s forgiveness of the lost sinner. As Jesus continues in his teachings to the crowd when he begins the “prodigal son” parable “11Jesus continued: “There was a man who had two sons.” Here, Jesus introduces the three characters of this last parable to the audience of the Tax collectors and Pharisees in Luke 15. Given this opening statement on this parable, it is Luke’s intention for the story to be about the man and his relationship with his two sons rather than just the younger, prodigal son.
Likewise, it would also be a mistake to only focus on the older son for the same reason. The father is the constant in all three acts of the parable. Act one of the parable would be the fall of the younger son in 15:11-19; act two is the return of the younger son in 15:20-24, and the third and final act is the older brother’s reactions and the father in 15:25-32. Moreover, all three acts heavily focus on the dialogue between each of the individual sons and their relation and interaction with the father. Thus, emphasizing all the more than this parable is a story about the father and his goodness to his sons rather than the younger, rebellious son alone.
Jesus continues his parable when he says, “ 12The younger one said to his father, ‘Father, give me my share of the estate.’ So he divided his property between them.” Here we have the beginning of the first act of the parable that begins with the openly disrespectful request of the younger son. This request of  ‘Father, give me my share of the estate.’ is openly disrespectful mainly due to the reason that it was customary for a father to divide his estate amongst his sons, being his heirs, upon his impending demise but not until then. Here, the younger son disrespectfully requests, for his share of the estate while the father is still in good, at the least fair, state of health. Thus, the younger son has just told his father that he wishes he were dead, or perhaps die sooner. As Snodgrass states on this parable, “The boy may not have literally wished his father dead, but his actions show that he did not really care for his father or desire a relationship with him. He wanted the father’s money, not the father.” (Snodgrass, 131).

13“Not long after that, the younger son got together all he had, set off for a distant country and there squandered his wealth in wild living.” Here, Luke emphasizes the younger son’s disrespect toward the father; not only did the younger son demand his share of the estate but then abandons his father, who was likely old and would need others to assist in caring for him, but moreover, wastes his new estate by squandering it in wild living far away from house and home. “Not long after that…” it is unclear as to why the younger son waited at all to leave or for how long he waited. This helps to emphasize how parables are not pictures but only extended metaphors for teaching purposes. Likewise, it is unclear as to what Luke means by “wild living” but given that Luke states the younger son “squandered” his wealth we the audience can only assume that the wealth was wasted.
“14After he had spent everything, there was a severe famine in that whole country, and he began to be in need. 15So he went and hired himself out to a citizen of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed pigs. 16He longed to fill his stomach with the pods that the pigs were eating, but no one gave him anything.” Here we see Luke painting the contrast between the son’s inheritance of the estate and the present, downward, degradation and desperation state. Scott’s commentary puts it, “In the final [verse], the son is reduced to wanting to eat the pigs’ food. This makes him like an animal so that he abandons even his humanity. His degradation must now be at an end.” (Scott, 115). The younger son is without food, family or tribe, and he seems to have lost his humanity. Jordan Peterson might very well be correct in correlating disrespectfulness toward the father and becoming something one does not wish to become.
17“When he came to his senses, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired servants have food to spare, and here I am starving to death! 18I will set out and go back to my father and say to him: Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. 19I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me like one of your hired servants.’ 20 So he got up and went to his father.” “When he came to his senses…” This suggests that the younger son recognized his mistake, his sin, and wished to repent of, meaning to turn from, his   behavior. The younger son sees his situation in only legal terms as evidenced by him planning to plead for the position of hired servant and not plead to be restored to sonship. He believes he can earn at least some of the favor of his father that he betrayed. Recognizing that he has sinned against heaven and his father by dishonoring his father thereby breaking the fourth commandment of “Honor your father and mother” found in Exodus 20:12. The movement of the younger son in verse 20 is noteworthy. “So he got up,…” which suggests that the parable is about to change direction from a downward spiral and tragedy to be reversed and perhaps even suggests that he might be restored by the father.
“But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him.
21“The son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’
22“But the father said to his servants, ‘Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. 23Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let’s have a feast and celebrate. 24For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ So they began to celebrate.
Again in the second part of verse 20, the movement of the father must be noted. Here is the full proof needed to see that the younger son will be restored by the father to sonship. During this time it would have been considered dishonorable for a patriarch to run to anything, let alone a wayward son. And the father not only runs to his son but also hugs and kisses him, these being signs of forgiveness. It can even be inferred by the second part of verse 20 that the father had been waiting on the lookout for the return of his son, perhaps even knowing that he would return home someday. However, that is somewhat speculative given that it is not found directly in the text.
21“The son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’ The son, even after his father has shown his acceptance of him, still insists on attempting to earn his way back into the father’s favor, but the father cuts him off before he can finish his speech. The father as the main character and point to the story is now back in the center of the stage and demands one of his servants to carry out his orders “Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet.” This not only emphasizes his main role and control in the story but also emphasizing the restoration of the younger son back into sonship.
As stated previously, Luke is an intentional writer; the robe, ring, and sandals are symbols for the younger son’s restoration. The robe is a symbol of authority, the ring is likely a signet ring so that the son can now act with the father’s authority, and the sandals were worn by free people. So not only is the son restored as a son, but he is also made free.
23Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let’s have a feast and celebrate. 24For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ So they began to celebrate. Continuing his control and the main role of the story the good father makes his prodigal son an object of honor and joy as he commands a celebration for his returned son. 24For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ This verse helps to emphasise how that which is lost represents an individual in a state of sin and being found represents being restored, or made new.  It is important to note that the father uses the language of “…dead and is alive again…” in a figurative sense of the adjective nekros that is also found in Luke 9:60. It is figurative in that it is either meant to mean “thought to be dead” (because he was no longer part of-of the father’s household [familia]) or morally “dead” (because of his dissolute life). “Life” would then mean either life in the family or spiritual life (that of a reformed penitent). (Fitzmyer, 1090).

25“Meanwhile, the older son was in the field. When he came into the house, he heard music and dancing. 26So he called one of the servants and asked him what was going on. 27‘Your brother has come,’ he replied, ‘and your father has killed the fattened calf because he has him back safe and sound.’  In verse 25 the reader can see another return, this time from the older son. To further the contrast of the two sons this son was working in the field for his father. Later, in a few verses, we will see that he does not work in the field as a loving son caring for his elderly father but rather as a worker, a slave laboring for wages from the father. The fattened calf would have been the most valuable animal the family would have possessed. This helps to underscore the joy of the father at the return of his wayward son along with the music and dancing that was occurring as well.
28“The older brother became angry and refused to go in. So his father went out and pleaded with him. 29But he answered his father, ‘Look! All these years I’ve been slaving for you and never disobeyed your orders. Yet you never gave me even a young goat so I could celebrate with my friends. 30But when this son of yours who has squandered your property with prostitutes comes home, you kill the fattened calf for him!’” At verse 28 the reader sees and is moreover shocked at the older brother’s reaction to the celebration and how the good father was gracious to him as well, wishing him to join in the celebration. We see at verse 29 that the older son was, in much the same vein of his younger brother, not actually wanting the father himself but merely working for the father’s gifts. Thus, in this parable, there are two wayward sons, the younger being wayward in action the older being wayward in the heart. The older son still doesn\’t accept that his younger brother is restored to sonship by referring to him as “this son of yours” (30) rather than “my brother”. The father’s response to both sons is the point of the parable, as he says, “31“ ‘My son,’ the father said, ‘you are always with me, and everything I have is yours. 32But we had to celebrate and be glad because this brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ ” Notice that the older son’s reaction or response is not recorded while we do know the full story of the younger son. But that knowledge distracts from the main point of Luke’s writing about the good father “who had two sons”.  
Thus, this parable is not solely about the younger son’s rebellion and his return nor is it about the older son’s rebellion but it is about the goodness of the father toward both sons. Both sons were disobedient in their own right, one in action and the other in the heart. This parable represents God the Father’s goodness in dealing with both the sinners and the self-righteous Pharisees who are present at the time of this teaching. The sinners in the audience would have identified with the younger son and the Pharisees with the older son because the sinners would have been rebellious in action and the Pharisees in the heart by way of their self-righteousness.
Therefore, naming this parable “the parable of the prodigal son” is incorrect and should be titled the “parable of the good father” given that it shows how God deals with both the wayward sinner and the self-righteous sinner. Thus, given the “prodigal son” parable and its context the reader can see that Luke’s purpose in writing this was to first to emphasize the compassion of God, which is one of the main features of Jesus’ ministry and message. The context for the “prodigal son” is important in that the reader can better understand the parable by seeing the similarities in all three of the parables in Luke 15. Similarities such as the joy of the seeker when the lost item is found and the value of the lost item to the seeker. The second purpose is that it is an invitation to rejoice, as seen in verses 23-24, over the redemption of the lost sinner, and lastly to defend Jesus’ association with the sinners. The parable’s incomplete ending serves to function as an invitation for the audience to take the same attitude toward sinners as the father does toward the prodigal son.





Citations
Scott, Bernard Brandon. Hear Then the Parable: a Commentary on the Parables of Jesus. Fortress Press, 1990.
Via , Dan Otto. The Parables: Their Literary and Existential Dimension. Fortress Press, 1967
Metzger, Bruce M., and Herbert G. May. The Oxford Annotated Bible with the Apocrypha. Oxford University Press, 1965.
Tolbert, Mary Ann. Perspectives on the Parables: an Approach to Multiple Interpretations. Fortress Press, 1979.
Buttrick, George Arthur, editor. The Interpreter\’s Dictionary of the Bible. Vol. 4, Abingdon Press, 1962.
Donahue, , John R. The Gospel in Parable . Fortress Press, 1989.
Fitzmyer,, Joseph A., translator. The Anchor Bible: The Gospel According to Luke. Second ed., vol. 28A 28A, Doubleday and Company, Inc., 1985.
Nouwen, Henri J. M. The Return of the Prodigal Son: a Story of Homecoming. Darton, Longman & Todd, 2006.
Peterson, Jordan B. “Walking with God: Noah and the Flood.” Lecture, 19 Aug. 2017.
Snodgrass, Klyne. Stories with Intent: A Comprehensive Guide to the Parables of Jesus. William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2008.


Scott, Bernard Brandon. Hear Then the Parable: a Commentary on the Parables of Jesus. Fortress Press, 1990.

John 18

Pray 
Read the text
  • 18:1-6
What made Jesus so bold in His proclamation of Himself? 
Love. He loved us, His Church, enough to die for us. He, therefore, boldly went to proclaim should love. 

Why do you think the soldiers were so shocked at Jesus’ proclamation?
One man’s boldness vs a legion of trained soldiers. I would likewise be shocked at one man’s boldness. 

Ok. So we talked about Jesus and His bold. Let\’s move to talk about Peter’s boldness/bravery.

  • 18:7-11
I have always found this to be one of the most strange scenes in all the gospels. 
Why would John include something so detailed/inconsequential to the overall story? 

Why do y’all think Peter attacked the priest\’s servant? 
I’m not sure why Peter would attack the priests servant out of all people; maybe he was the easiest target. But its clear by his actions Peter was brave/bold. 

18:11
Jesus rebukes Peter for his “bravery”. Why? 
Because Jesus is going to the cross to pay for our sins and He doesn’t want Peter to interfere with His mission/purpose. 

How would you define bravery/boldness?
Acting in the face of fear.

So Jesus was bold/brave in going to the cross. How would you define bravery biblically?
Trusting in the sovereignty/plan of God in spite of your fear.

What’s “the cup” Jesus is referring to/What\’s that mean?
“the cup” in OT is associated with suffering and judgment (Isaiah 51:17,22 Jer. 25:15).

  • 18:12-14
John here seems to remind the reader of his previous writings on Caiaphas.

  • 18:15-18
18:15
Take a guess at who this “other disciple” is.
John. Obviously; given that he hasn’t referred to himself directly/by name ever in his writing. 

“known to the high priest”
If this other disciple is indeed John it’s interesting that John makes note of his own origin here. I wonder how much influence the priestly class had on John, and on his writings in particular. Maybe his particular upbringing is what caused his gospel to be so unique in its style and content. 

18:19-20
What do y’all think of Jesus\’ response here?
He answers wisely. Jewish courts did not actually allow the accused to answer for themselves. Only witnesses could testify. First, those for the accused would be called on to answer questions, then those against then a decision would be reached. Jesus here challenges the legality/legitimacy of His trial. 

Let\’s say that you were called up right now to trial to speak of Jesus and His teaching, what would you say of Him?

18:25-27
Interesting how quick Peter’s zealotry for Jesus fades. Why do y’all think Peter denies Jesus here?
It would seem Peter distanced himself from Jesus and therefore grew weaker in faith/less reliant on Jesus. “followed, stood, brought in, standing and warming himself.”

What does this passage show on the human heart?
It shows it’s darkness, weakness, faithlessness and it shows our need for God to keep us and cleanse/change our hearts. 

So Jesus previously established that He died for His friends and that Peter is His friend. 
What’s it say about Jesus that He would die for someone like Peter? 
It shows His love. 

18:28
Why didn’t the Jews go into the Governor’s HQ?
Because they didn\’t want to be defiled. 

But why were they going to the Governors in the first place?
To try and have Jesus killed. 

So what\’s that say of the Jews here?
It shows their heart. Passover was a week-long event in which one needed to remain clean/pure for the whole week to partake in the feast. To enter into a pagan house was to be defiled. 
The Jews paid attention to the letter of the law but not the spirit/They paid attention to the details of religion but not the object of religion itself-God. 

So what kind of religion/faith does God want us to have?
God wants hearts that want Him. 

Have y’all ever read the Apostle’s Creed? 

It says: 

I believe in God, the Father almighty,
creator of heaven and earth.
I believe in Jesus Christ, God\’s only Son, our Lord,
who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,
born of the Virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate, (emphasis added)
was crucified, died, and was buried;
he descended to the dead.
On the third day he rose again;
he ascended into heaven,
he is seated at the right hand of the Father,
and he will come to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy Catholic Church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and the life everlasting. Amen. 

And it is The Apostles’ Creed, sometimes titled the Apostolic Creed or the Symbol of the Apostles, is an early statement of Christian belief—a creed/“symbol”. It is widely used by a number of denominations for various use in many Western Churches. Because of the early origin of its original form, it does not address some Christological issues defined in the Nicene creed.. It thus says nothing explicitly about the divinity of Jesus or Holy Spirit. Nor does it address many other theological questions which became objects of dispute centuries later.
The earliest known mention of the expression “Apostles’ Creed” occurs in a letter of AD 390 and it is widely accepted that under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit each of the 12 Apostles contributed an article to the twelve articles of the creed. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apostles%27_Creed) 
I bring all this up to ask the question: Why, of all people, is Pilate mentioned in our Creed?
Because Pilate functions as the public authority who is in the position of judgment to vindicate or condemn Jesus. He could’ve freed Jesus but didn’t and condemned Him to be crucified and die and be buried. Thus, he is mentioned in our creed as a real, historical, public governing figure because he condemned a real, historical, public savior. 
Another question on Creeds: What Creed do you confess?/What is your creed?
“Not creed but Jesus” “We don’t need creeds” B*******. 
Creeds are merely summations of what the Church believes. Please note I say “Church” not you; an individual. 
9 But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. – 1 Peter 2:9 
A nation. Not Island, property, or state but Nation. No Christian is his own island. If you are called out of the world and into the Church; you can’t survive or grow on your own for even the Christ had Disciples. You are a Christian. One who upholds a legacy and a community that reaches across space/the world and throughout time. By creeds you are connected to the Church past, Church present and Church future. You are not an Island. Seek out and know your own beliefs. 
  • 18:33-40
18:36
What do y’all think Jesus is talking about here?
His sovereignty over this situation. 
18:38
“What is truth?” How would y’all answer that question?
Truth is that which corresponds to reality as perceived by God. Because God sees/knows reality best/better than us all. 
18:40
Heres a part of the story of Jesus that I never understand: Why does the crowd choose Barabbas over Jesus?
Perhaps because they didn\’t want the truth. 

John 17

Pray
Read the Text
Intro to John 17:

    Perhaps y\’all are aware of the “Lord’s Prayer” in Matt. 6:9-13 but that section of scripture is a prayer taught to the disciples by Jesus as a pattern for their prayers. John, here, records what is truly the Lord’s Prayer. There is very little is recorded in regards to the content of Jesus’ prayers; thus this is a particular portion of scripture that deserves its due diligence. 
    This is also a transition chapter from the very end of Jesus\’ public ministry and the start of His fulfillment in the role of accomplishing redemption. 

In many ways, this chapter also serves as a summation of John’s Gospel with themes like: 
  1. Jesus\’ obedience to the Father
  1. The glorification of His Father through his death
  1. The revelation of God in Jesus
  2. The gathering of the disciples out of the world
  3. Their mission to the world
  4. Their unity modeled/rooted in the unity of the Father and the Son 
  5. The believer’s final destiny in the presence of the Father and Son.
  • 17:1-5
Jesus\’ prayer for Himself

-17:1 
    It’s worth noting within the chapter the titles/names of God that Jesus uses here. 
Father (4): 17:1, 5, 21, 24
The only true God (1): 17:3
Holy Father (1): 17:11
Righteous Father (1): 17:25

    Why do y’all think that Jesus used these names of God in particular before going to the cross? Rather than, “Loving father” or “God of all comfort”?
    Very likely it would be because God’s exclusivity, Fatherhood to Jesus, Holiness & Righteousness were about to be shown to the world on full display upon his crucifixion. Jesus is foreshadowing this. 

    Notice particularly, that in Jesus\’ prayer for Himself He calls upon God’s “Fatherhood” no less than 5 times. 
    In Jesus\’ hour of greatest suffering, He leads upon the intimacy between Him and God to strengthen Him the most. Our Earthly fathers no doubt failed us at some point within our time under their care Jesus knew that His Father would never fail Him and that this suffering/trial He was about to endure was not only to the design and benefit of Himself but to God the Father and to all whom the Father gave Him (IE the Church). 
    Let us, likewise, be quick to call upon our Father in suffering. 

-17:2
    According to this verse, what benefit do we have by being given to Jesus by God?
    Eternal life. Forgiveness. Redemption. 

    Does this verse say anything about how we contributed to our salvation?
    No. Therefore, salvation is truly a gift of God by His grace alone and not our works/merits. 

-17:3
    What is Jesus\’ definition of eternal life according to this verse?
    Knowing God. In essence, it is participation in the life of Jesus within every believer. 

    Out of curiosity, how would you define/explain eternal life to an unbeliever if they asked? 
    [Let them answer]

-17:4
    The work Jesus was sent to do was, obviously, to grant/give eternal life to those whom the Father gave Him. [you may talk about what it means for the Father to grant Jesus ability “to give eternal life to all whom the Father gave him” should you so chose.]

-17:5
    “before the world existed.” “before the foundation of the world” (17:24). 
    It\’s interesting that Jesus should link His glory in the presence of the trinity to the Father’s love for Jesus and therefore the believers before the foundation of the world. 
    In essence, our salvation is founded on the intimacy/love between all 3 heads of the Trinity. 
17:6-19
Jesus\’ prayer for the disciples

-17:7
    A callback to one of the disciples in John 16:29-30

-17:11
    “I am no longer in the world” So sure was His death and departure back to God that Jesus treated His departure as an already accomplished fact. He prayed here for His disciples because they would have to face the world’s temptation and hatred without his immediate presence and protection. Based upon the eternal nature of immutable God (“name”), he prayed for the eternal security of those who believed and that they would be unified just as the Trinity is unified. Our confidence lays in the mercy of God; not in ourselves. 

    Do y’all fear death? 
    It is a sobering, awesome [I mean “awesome” literally. IE “full of awe”] thing. But the Lord did not fear His death because He knew God and knew that His friends, their lives, and their salvation were in His Father’s eternal hands. Likewise, your lives and salvation are in the Father’s hands; you need not to worry or be fearful of death for on the other side of eternity is what you have longingly waited for. 

    Application: Take a moment tonight [or at the end of lesson] to soberly thing of your death. To quote the psalmist, “teach me to number my days that I should know you, God.”

    “keep them in your name, which you have given me, that they may be one, even as we are one.”
    Whats Jesus pray for the disciples here?

What\’shats it mean for the disciples to be one?
    One, as in unified, in the truth of God, love of God, faith in God. 

    It\’s worth noting that most of those who wish to do away with denominations will refer to this verse; saying that Jesus was praying for us to be unified in how we exercise the truth of the scripture (IE how we worship). We know from James that the prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective. And I’d hate to think that, somehow, Jesus-who is the most righteous person of all- still hasn’t had His prayer answered. We are to be united in Spirit and truth first and foremost.  

-17:12
    “the son of destruction” Who is Jesus talking about?
    Judas. 

    Why Judas?
    So that the scripture might be fulfilled. And I think Jesus is referring to Psalm 41:10, particularly verse 9 where David writes, “Even my close friend in whom I         trusted, who are my bread, has lifted his heel against me.” Because Jesus quotes this verse in John 13:18. 

    But wait, Jesus just said in verse, “…Father keep them in your name, which you have given me…” So why did Judas fall away? 
    Answer: God gave us/believers to Jesus. Jesus prayed that those given to Him would not fall away. Therefore, Judas was not given to Jesus and thus, fell away.  

    So having established that Judas did not believe let\’s talk about how we should believe/how we should not believe like Judas?

-John 1:11-13
    According to verse 12, how do we become children of God?
    By believing in Him. 
    And how do we believe in Him? 
    We receive Him. 
    What\’s it mean to receive Him?
    To believe in Him. “Him” as in nothing more and nothing less than what He has revealed Himself to be to us. 
    And how do we know all that He is for us?
    Diligent study of His word and delight/love for Him. 
    
-John 17:14
    What are yall\’s thoughts on the Christian monstera, “we in are in the world but not of it”?
    [let them answer]
    Ok given what we just said let\’s look at 17:18. What’s Jesus saying about the disciples here?
    That we’re sent into the world. 
    So in light of 17:18, its not just a matter of being “in the world” but, moreover, being sent into it. So in reality, its “not of, but sent into the world” 

    What\’s it mean that the disciples, and therefore us, are sent into the world?
    God sent Jesus into the world and Jesus, therefore, sends us. God sent Jesus to grant eternal life to all who believe. We are to merely tell of this great salvation to sinners by a merciful God. 

    If someone were to come up and ask you, “why should I convert to Christianity?” what would your response be to them?
    [Let them answer. Feel free to push them further on this question or ask a lot of followup questions as well]

-17:17-19
    Let\’s talk about 17:19, what does it mean that Jesus sanctified/consecrated Himself?
    He set Himself apart for holy service to God. IE He was totally set apart to do the Father’s will. 
    And why did Jesus set Himself apart? 
    So that we would also be set apart for the will of God. Jesus died to have redemption accomplished and, in His death, He also brought the application of His redemption to believers. 
    Jesus not only died for the believer’s sins but also that the believer could live a life for God. Jesus died so that the believer could be made more and more holy to prepare them for heaven one day. Moreover, Jesus died to guarantee the security of your salvation; likewise, He also died to guarantee you sanctification/consecration also.   
-17:20-26
Jesus\’ prayer for all the NT believers who will form the Church. 

    In this last section, Jesus prays for you, dear believer. If any portion of scripture should have your ears perk up its this one. 

-17:20
So all that Jesus just prayed for His disciples/the 11 just in the previous section also applies to you. 

-17:21 
    It strikes me as odd that of all the things that Jesus prayed for its that the world is to see our one-ness/unity and believe that because of that unity the Christ came from God. 

    Why do you think Jesus prayed that of all possible things? 
    Perhaps as a testament to His power or to His truthfulness or reality. 

    Given Jesus\’ prayer here, does the world see us, and our actions, and recognize that we are in God? 
    [Let them answer. Feel free to push them further on this question or ask a lot of followup questions as well].

-17:22
    What was Jesus\’ glory that was given to Him?
    His suffering and death. 
    For what reason did Jesus give us His glory?    
    “so that they may be one even as we are one” It would seem our suffering for God creates unity amongst the Church. Why do yall think that is?
    [Let them answer]

-17:23-24
    “perfectly one” The idea here is that they may be brought together in the same spiritual life around he truth that saves. And here we also see God’s particular love     for His people when Jesus says, “…and loved them even as you loved me” and, “…because you loved me before the foundation of the world.” 
    
    So with the particular love that God has for Jesus that same love is now given to us. As the Trinitarian members are eternal so it is their love for one another. And, given this verse, so is God’s love for His Church; He has never not loved her and He will never stop loving her. 
    [Potential application: At the end of the lesson, consider spending some time meditating on the eternal love God has for the Church]

-17:26
    How does Jesus “continue” to make God known?
    He will make God known through the work on the cross that He is about to do. 
    But notice Jesus says, “I will continue” with the love that the Father has for Him and by Jesus being “in them”

    Jesus works in you even now to make God known.  

John 16

Read
Pray

John 16
  • 16:1-4

16:1
What has Jesus been saying to His disciples?
John 15. 

What\’s it mean to “fall away”?
In its original Greek, it means to “be led into sin”.

So what was one main point to take away from John 15 that would keep us from falling away? 
15:12-15 Jesus died for His friends. We are His friends. Therefore Jesus died for us. Would Jesus betray His friends? No of course not. IE Jesus bought us and He will keep us even in persecution. 

And how do His teachings keep us from falling away?/How do His teachings have an effect on us in persecution?
15:4 We remember them. 

It\’s interesting to me that Jesus says “remember” not “refer” to them. Why do y’all think Jesus told us to remember His teaching on Definite atonement/the Gospel?

Probably because we won’t have access to a physical bible. 
We will have no choice but to remember/refer to the word written on our hearts. As the Psalmist wrote “Blessed is the one who does not walk in step with the wicked or stand in the way that sinners take or sit in the company of mockers, but whose delight is in the law of the Lord, and who meditates on his law day and night” (Psalm 1:1-2). 

Turn to Psalm 119 for a few minutes. The Psalmist writes, “How can a young person stay on the path of purity? By living according to your word. I seek you with all my heart; do not let me stray from your commands. I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you” (Psalm 119:9-11). 

So we memorize/remember Jesus teaching for endurance in persecution. But is that the only reason to memorize/meditate on scripture?

Of course not. Psalm 119 the Psalmist memorized, hide the word, within his heart…but for what purpose/what effect does hiding the word have in our hearts? 
To keep him from sin, yes. But moreover, to not even want to sin against God. “that I might not sin against you” it\’s not that he doesn’t sin, but that he doesn’t want to even desire sin within his heart. Hiding the word within us changes the very desires of our heart. 

What sort of scriptures should we be memorizing/hiding in our hearts?
119:9 “How can a young man keep his way pure?” The implication being that he struggled with purity, he needed wisdom/guidance on the matter of purity. 

With that in mind, I ask this:

What is your ensnaring sin? What are your struggles?
You can white-knuckle your way through a fight all day long, fine. But ultimately the desires of your heart remain the same- that is, they are sinful and against the Lord God. But the Lord Himself is most gracious toward sinners, He did not separate His own Son for you then; now that you have been brought into the fold of the Church how much more will He fight for the desires of your heart. Jesus in Matthew says that out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, greed. James writes that “When tempted, no one should say, “God is tempting me.” Our God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; but each person is tempted when they are dragged away by their own evil desire and enticed. Then after desire has conceived, it has given birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death” (James 1:13-15). 

At best, you have mere seconds (if even that much time) to fight off your sinful desires before they are conceived. Sin, in all its forms, is your enemy and it desires to master you. Far be it from us, the body of Christ, to even wink at sin, let alone be a friend it, for it is the very thing that made the death of Jesus (our friend John 15:13) necessary on our behalf. Let us not dishonor our friend, indeed our very best friend, by befriending our enemy but destroying sin and, moreover, even the desire thereof within our hearts that we might have a superior desire/delight that truly satisfies-God. 

Thus, hide the word within your heart, meditate on it day and night to overcome temptation now and so that you might endure persecution. 
Overcome the mere wavelets of temptation now so that you might stand against the tsunami of persecution later. 
  • 16:5-15

16:5-8

16:5
That is the disciples are not concerned with where Jesus is going/they still don’t get it. Jesus knows this because the disciples are overcome with sorrow (16:6). 

16:6
So why were the disciples full of sorrow?
Because Jesus was going away. 

16:7 
Why did Jesus go away/why did He leave the disciples? 
Jesus goes away to send the Helper and it is to their advantage that He does this. 

So in what way is Jesus going away to send the Holy Spirit to their advantage?
Or how does the Holy Spirit benefit the disciples? 
The Holy Spirit applies the work of redemption of Jesus to our lives. 
From creation to redemption the work of God is Trinitarian in every dimension. The Father planned the way of redemption, the Son executed/accomplished redemption, the Spirit applies the redemption to our lives IE enables us to live godly/God-pleasing lives. 

16:8-11
So what does the Holy Spirit do in these verses? 
Convicts the world of its sin because they don’t believe in Jesus, Righteousness because Jesus is going to the Father, Judgement because Satan is judged. 

What\’s all that mean?
It would seem that Jesus is talking about the work of the Holy Spirit in the lives of the believers/IE the application of Jesus\’ redemptive work. 
So Jesus convicts the world of its sin on the cross, of His righteousness because He released His Spirit to the Father and Judged Satan by defanging him of his accusatory power over the believer. 

So in the application of redemption: The Holy Spirit convicts us of our sin and drives us to Jesus (15:26) and Jesus in His redemptive work points us to the Father by giving Him the honor/glory.

16:12-15
Here it would seem that Jesus is speaking more on the subject of the working of the Holy Spirit. 
What are yall\’s thoughts on it?

16:13
“All truth” meaning that the Holy Spirit is to give us all truth necessary in order to bear witness and bring glory to Jesus.
  • 16:16-24
16:16-19
What do y\’all think Jesus is talking about? 
The Death and Resurrection, clearly. 

It\’s worth noting, look at who the disciples asked about Jesus and his words. Each other. We should be swift to go to God in matters of His own teaching rather than rushing to man. 

16:20-22
It\’s interesting that Jesus said that Him going away is “to the advantage” of the disciples and yet they are to lament/be sorrowful at the death of Jesus. 

While our text talks about Suffering and its relation to God allow me to ask this question: Do y’all agree with the monstera “God will never give you more than you can bear”? Why our why not?

I said yes He does give more than we can, ear; but He never more than we have to take. If you can handle “it” on your own what need is there for God in your life? The weight of our sin crushed us into damnation apart from God; so yes God does give more than we can handle but never more than we have to take. 

By that, I mean that it was to the disciple\’s advantage that Jesus should suffer and die so that they would have an ever-present, full joy. Likewise, whatever suffering we experience in this life is never more than is necessary for us to take in order for God to do His work in us. This is also likewise of a birth; yes pain is necessary for birthing but no more than what is necessary in order to receive the joy of a new little life. 

16:22
John Piper, one of only a few of my living mentors, had this to say on this verse, “God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in him. Therefore, since glorifying God is the main goal of the universe and your life, be relentless and unwavering in fighting for joy in God. This is your lifelong vocation.
And here is a wonderful note to close on: since God is sovereign, he guarantees the triumph of your joy in the end. In the text from the Gospel of John that was read at the beginning, Jesus said to the disciples who were about to lose him in death and get him back at his resurrection, “So also you have sorrow now, but I will see you again, and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy from you” (John 16:22).
No one. It is invincible. Full. Solid. Eternal. No one will take this joy from you. God is our exceeding joy. And he cannot fail.” (https://www.desiringgod.org/messages/no-one-will-take-your-joy-from-you) 

16:24
Where is our joy?
                        “No one will take your joy from you” (16:22)
“Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full” (16:24)

It seems our joy is not in God, ourselves or even in what we receive from God but in our access or personal knowing of God/our friendship with Him. And as I’ve previously stated, Jesus is not one to betray His friends to betray His own promises He brought you, He’ll keep you, therefore, your joy in God is secure because that\’s what Jesus purchased for you with His bloodshed. 
  • 16:25-33
16:29-31
A table is by itself neither good nor bad. But it is the legs below the surface of the table that make the table good, able to hold weight and withstand pressure, or bad, falling when light pressure is applied. The theology undergirding our belief matters because what we believe and the reasons why we believe matter; without proper reason for our beliefs we are no better than the “spiritual but not religious” crowd. 
The disciples here believed because they thought Jesus knew all things and, therefore, came from God. Jesus does not want us to believe in Him because He is full of knowledge but because of He in His totality/fullness is worthy of our belief in Him. The disciples built their beliefs in Jesus on bad theology and therefore fell. Let this serve as a warning to us for an urgent study of the bible and the masters who have been before us.  

16:38
Why do we have peace in Jesus?
Because He bought us. 

Why do we have tribulation in the world?
Because the world hates us because of Jesus. 

And why are we to have courage/take heart?
Because Jesus overcame/conquered the world

What\’s it mean that Jesus overcame the world? 

The Jesus defeated the world, flesh, Satan upon His death on the cross. The “evil triune” (if you will) now has no power/authority over the believer. If the Jesus was able to overcome even evil as great as these then we are to have courage in the face of evil/persecution likewise because we are called to follow Jesus and this is what Jesus did.  

John 12

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12:1-8
  • 12:1
So here is the last week of Jesus ministry and this chapter is the completion of His public teachings. 

  • 12:2
A dinner no doubt in Jesus honor and thanks for raising Lazarus. 

  • 12:3
Why would Mary anoint Jesus feet with oil? Why did she do that?

She anointed His feet, His lowest point, and cleansed Him with her hair, her highest point. His most dirty point. And her most clean point. 
So we’re about to see a contrast with Judas here in a few verses. 
But John here is saying how worthy of honor/praise Jesus is to these people and therefore us as well. Mary honored Him for raising Lazarus. We honor Him for raising us likewise. 
So the implication is even the “least” part of Jesus is still worthy of our best/highest. 
Mary matched the worth of Jesus here in here honoring of Him because it was Him that was her most valued treasure, not the oil. 
“The house was filled…” true worship of Jesus is never private. True honoring of Jesus is very public, overwhelming. 
He honor/worthiness is too much to just be confident to one room, one area of our lives. 
He, He alone, will have all our praise. 

  • 12:4-8
So why did Judas object to this use of the perfume really?

He\’s a thief. Lover of money. Judas seems to have valued/loved money more than Jesus. Or, perhaps, desired money over desiring the honoring of Jesus. Notice, like I said, the contrast between Mary and Judas. 

What did Judas’ love/valuing of money led to?
his betrayal of Jesus. 
John here tells us 2 things: 1) the perfume was pricey ($25G) 2) and that Judas would betray Jesus. Given his objection here I find it likely that John is telling us Judas betrays Jesus because of Money.  

Does anyone know the end of Judas’ story?
He kills himself. Hanging. The perfume was worth 25G and he sold Jesus for 1G. His desire for money killed him. 

The natural implication and application of this: Be very cautious for even the desire for money, let alone the love of it. So even the desire for money can quickly turn suicidal. 

  • 12:6
John tells us about Judas’ motives.
Notice, John tells his real motives. 
Here, we have our first explain of virtue signaling. Always be wearying of those who signal their own virtue; they are usually deceivers of some king. 
However, there is a proper kind of virtue signaling. Guesses? 
Being light on a hill perhaps. Our virtue-signaling should not lead to our own glory but to God’s alone. 
That is: Look how great God is thru me. NOT Look how great I, in my virtue, am. 

  • 12:7
Here we have Jesus\’ response to Judas. It seems there are 3 things Jesus says here: 
  1. Leave Mary alone. The “it” here is hard to interrupt because it could refer to the perfume she uses or the value of Jesus she holds. I think Jesus is saying “Judas doesn’t interfere with her love/value of me because of your greed” due to John seeming to contrast both characters and their affections here. 
  1. Interestingly enough we have a promise here: We will always have the poor with us. This doesn’t mean we shouldn’t serve/love the poor even tho we will never eliminate it but that there will always be more of God’s work to do everywhere we go and that we should allow God to work in us to effect true change in people\’s lives and not to affect social change. 
  2. “you don’t always have me” therefore treasure and enjoy my presence while you can. 
  • 12:9-11
Lazarus was both a light in a dark place to draw people to Jesus but also a lighthouse pushing others away from Jesus. 
But Lazarus is not held responsible for other’s reaction to him/his light but only that he kept shining till he can no more. 
Application: we are not responsible for how people respond to our light/truth but just to shine/tell as much and as often as possible. 

12:12-26
  • 12:12-13
The Jews accept their king; they use palm branches to symbolize Jesus quick coming victory over Israel’s enemies. 
Except that\’s not what happens. They think He is a military king. 
But Jesus will be much too meek/lowly of a king for them

  • 12:14-15
Their King rides in on a donkey. Not too glorious at all. 
Keep in mind Jesus\’ lowliness as we continue in this chapter; it’ll be relevant again later. 

  • 12:16-19
Notice the parallels here and with 12:9-11. People were going to Lazuras (12:9)- People are going to Jesus (12:18). Pharisees wish to kill Lazarus to retain power (12:10)-Pharisees wish to kill Jesus to retain power (11:53/12:19). & again in 12:18-19 the crowd positively response to Jesus like they did Lazarus in 12:9 and the Pharisees negatively response to both L & Jesus (12:10, 12:19). This, of course, acts as a foreshadow; IE much in the same way Lazarus resurrected so will Jesus.  

  • 12:19 
“the world” a curious chose of words. The Jew leaders seem to have a case of doublespeak a lot. 
“The world” when they said it probably just met a mass of people. But here John adds another layer to their statement when Greeks come to Jesus. 

12:27-36
  • 12:20-21
“Greeks” presumably God-fearing Greeks who couldn’t worship with Israel because they did not undergo the full reception into the Jewish religion. Having come to “worship at the feast” they re restricted tot he temples outer courtyard, reserved for Gentiles.
Interesting that John in this chapter emphasizes Israel’s rejection of Jesus but emphasizes the “worlds” acceptance of Him. Paul later writes about this when he says “for there is no Jew or Gentile but all are one in Jesus” God is now dealing with the world once more. God hasn’t dealt with the world since Genesis 11 and at 12 deals exclusively with Israel. He now broadens His scope of Love once more to the world/to all peoples. 

  • 12:22
Notice whenever you read of Andrew that he always busy brings others to Jesus. 
Also, “Philip” who was a Jew like the rest of the apostles, his name is Greek and his hometown, Bethsaida in Galilee, is populated by many Gentiles and Jews. Thus, the Greeks approach him to seek counsel with Jesus. 

  • 12:23-26
Notice that John doesn’t state the where or how of what Jesus says here. 
The text doesn’t make it obvious if Jesus said these things to the Greeks directly or not. 
John seems to exclusively underscore the “what” of Jesus\’ teachings and the “why” of those that reject and accept Him not so much the “where” or “how” details of His ministry. 
The Greeks requested to see/meet Jesus. And Jesus, if He speaks to them, how to truly see Him here. 

  • 12:23
“has come” present tense. Before now, Jesus had been speaking in the future tense. 
“glorified” Jesus\’ glory was in obedience to the Father. Likewise, our glory and honor are found in obedience in our everyday lives to God. 

  • 12:24
In order to benefit from grain, it must die. If it remains alone it is of no value. Because when it dies it brings fruit. In His death there is life. In our life there is death. God makes certain that Jesus\’ death bore fruit. He didn’t die to make salvation possible. He died to give salvation to His people/Elect/Church. 
Jesus\’ worthy/value is found in his suffering/death. If He only came and gave us His teachings they are torturous to us. Because even if we wanted to follow them we’d still be damned.
“bears much fruit” The believers/those who have had their sins against a holy God wiped away are this fruit. 

  • 12:25-26
If you have no part of Jesus now you won’t have any of Him later. If you don’t live like Jesus now you will not live here or later at all. 
IE, those who are absorbed by self-protection and interests of life on Earth will encounter ruin, while those set free by Jesus\’ grace to lay down their physical lives receive eternal life. It is in service of Jesus that the truth of this statement is experienced. 

  1. The wheat must die and dying is hard. The seed must die so it bears fruit. If you want fruit unto eternal life then die. 
  2. Jesus calls us to hate our lived in this world. So hate your life to keep it to eternal life.
  3. Jesus calls us to follow Him to His death. Follow Him to death and be with Him/in His presence forever
  4. Be a servant to Him and God will honor you. 

  • 12:27-28
Jesus was troubled not because the Romans were about to beat Him up. But because He was about to fulfill His purpose and take on the wrath of Holy Father in the place of sinners. Nevertheless, He accepts His role and reasserts His commitment to the Father’s will and glory. 

  • 12:29
What does the word sound like to you? 
“I have glorified it” at the raising of Lazarus. And now He will glorify it again in Resurrection. God is committed to glorifying Himself in everything. He lives for His glory, so we likewise. God glorifies Himself in Jesus\’ death by:
  1. Judging the world in Jesus and not His sheep. So there is no condemnation for His sheep. 
  2. Casting out the ruler of this world-Satan. Thus, Satan is defanged/can’t accuse the Sheep anymore because Jesus took away our sin 
  3. Drawing His sheep to Himself, from every tribe (all His elect)
  4. Shining as a light in the world. God is revealed thru Jesus and His work as supremely valuable over all else.

  • 12:31
“judgment” by His coming death, Jesus will end the power of sin over mankind, judging and condemning it. 

“ruler of this world” Satan is a usurper and has power in fact, but not by right. He is the head of sinners and the world’s sinful structures, but the Lord is sovereign even over Him, and Satan exercises authority over God’s enemies only to the extent that God allows him. 

“cast out” The death of Jesus deprives Satan of grounds to accuse believers in God’s heavenly law court and curtails his power to deceive and dominate humanity. 

  • 12:32
Jesus and His cross exert a universal attraction to all people of all nations by which they can be saved. “all” meaning all kinds of peoples without distinction.

  • 12:36 
God is glorified in our everyday lives. 

  • 12:37-43
We’ve discussed before on why people didn’t believe in Jesus. John here is going to tell us why. 
God gave them the savior they needed, but not the one they wanted. This savior was too lowly. No high and mighty like they wanted. God planned their blinding by sending a messiah that they would not accept. They didn’t want His meekness, teachings or divinity. He gave what they needed not wanted (like any good Father would). He gave them exactly what would drive them to their hardness of heart. 

  • 12:41
“saw his glory” Isaiah received a vision of the glory of the enthroned God (Is. 6:1) and prophesied about the Suffering Servant (Is. 52:13-53:21. The “Him” of whom Isaiah spoke and whose glory Isaiah saw was none other than the reincarnate Word. 
Love of the glory of man kills our love of the glory of God. Its the root to all unbelief. They loved themselves and their pride, therefore, they refused to be despised by them and refused to go and follow Jesus to a cross. 

12:44-50
  • 12:44
“believes in Me” The close relation of Jesus with the Father is stressed in 3 respects: to believe in Jesus is to believe in the Father, to see Jesus is to see the Father (12:45) to hear Jesus is to hear the Father (12:50). On the other hand, rejection of Jesus and His words is also a rejection of the Father and His words. This rejection results in a judgment, although the leading purpose of Jesus\’ incarnation is the salvation of His won and to the condemnation of those who don’t believe. 

Here John does re-establishes where Jesus is or whom He speaks to. But I’m not sure it matters. Because here is the summation of Jesus\’ public ministry. 

Jesus here states that He is here to fulfill God’s plan/agenda not His own. God sent Jesus to suffer and die for His church. We know God thru Jesus, we know Jesus thru His word. We are saved/have eternal life thru His word. Jesus ends His public ministry with the importance of the Gospel and His word. This text and all of scripture and all of Jesus\’ ministry point to the cross where He will die for His Church.  

John 11

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So here is our last chapter in John before John spends basically 2/3s of his gospel in the last week of Jesus’ life. And John seems to really set up Jesus\’ last week with this chapter concluding on the plot to kill Jesus. 

We’re gonna be talking about love, death and glory, and prayer

11:1 
The village of Bethany is only 2 miles from Jerusalem, where Lazarus is. 

11:2
I’m not sure why exactly John here chooses to skip ahead and tell us a snapshot of John 12. But he does and we’ll cover that more next week. 

11:3 
I find 2 things interesting here: 
1) They sent for Him/the sisters didn’t go to Him. 
2) They didn’t plainly ask of Him their request to heal their brother. 
Now I have no doubt that the sisters wanted to be with their brother to comfort him but our time with the Lord is always our best spent time. Within our reach there is a God who knows us, loves us, and, as we’ll see here in a few verses; treasures us. Let us not make the same mistake the sisters made; let us be quick to prayer and bold in our requests to Him. 

Do y’all find it hard to pray? 
Do you enjoy prayer? 
How are we to pray? 
Spurgeon, “Prayer is a never-failing resort; it is sure to be a blessing with it. Even apart from the answer to our supplication, the exercise of Prayer is healthy to the person engaged in it.” 

11:4 
Notice the Lord’ response to the sister’s, indirect/roundabout, request. 
The illness isn’t even about Lazarus but about God. 
here, I think we see the true end/purpose to prayer/to making requests to God. 
Prayer is not so that we would be happy and satisfied but that God is glorified. 
Prayer is not about God serving you but the radical mindset of you serving God. 

Is that the mindset of prayer y’all have? It\’s not allowed, rarely even the one I have. The Lord seems to condemn that mindset here. 
What do y’all pray for when you do?
The end of prayer is to honor God. 

How is God honored in Prayer? God has blessed the ends, that is the salvation of souls, but also the means that is preaching the word and prayer. God is honored in prayer by being God! God to us, God in our lives, in our schools, homes, church and more. We do more work, more for the kingdom in prayer than in preaching. Make prayer sweet to our souls oh God! 

So, the purpose of this illness sins the end of Lazarus’ life but because of the glory of God so that the son’s glory may be shown through it. 

11;5-6
Well, that\’s one hell of a way to show love. Jesus loved Mary & Martha so He purposefully stayed put. In short, the Lord seems to have allowed Lazarus\’ dead to happen when He could have stopped it. 
Why? 
How do we respond when God says no to a request? 
“Oh God, why have you forsaken me!” It may seem that way but the text says this is simply not so. In love, the Lord said “no”. 
Idk why we go through all the things we do. But at some level, the answer for suffering is “God’s love”. “well that\’s not much of an answer” yes it is. The Lord\’s love is the best answer. what are the alternatives? Nihilism? 
We don\’t understand the complete “why” to God’s ’No” but we know that the “no” is said in love and that good enough for me. Maybe it ain\’t for Y\’all. In which case, keep praying until it is good enough for you. 

Because He showed His love to them, and us, by denying their request for healing. 
Because love is doing what\’s best for the other person. So it was better for them to have their brother die and see Jesus\’ glory shown to them than for L to be healed. 
The most loving thing we can do for others is to show them God’s glory.

11:7-10
meaning what?
12 hrs of sunlight to work in farming culture. Jesus is saying that He still has work to do. The day isn\’t finished. Night/His death haste come. Thus, by this statement, we know that Lazarus is apart of Jesus\’ work. 
IE Jesus is saying, \”The time appointed to me by God for working is not yet elapsed; as long as it lasts, no one can do anything to me; but when it shall have come to an end, I shall fall into the hands of my enemies, like him who walks in the night, and who stumbles, because he is without light.\”
By saying this, Jesus sets aside the anxiety of His disciples by directing their attention to the fact that, His time is not yet expired, He is safe from danger, and by reminding them (John 11:10) that He must make use of the time given to Him before it comes to an end. 

11:11-16
Typical disciple behavior: Hearing but not listening/understanding. 
v. 15
“for your sake” the raising of Lazarus is a foreshadow of the raising of Jesus. So if the disciple sees L being raised then they’ll believe Jesus when He says that He must be lifted up and go to the father. Moreover, Jesus is glad because he rejoices in us and our belief in Him/our true life in Him more than just our heart beating. 
v.16 
It seems based on this verse, the disciples weren’t cowards, per sa, they just didn’t see what was to come. That is, they still thought of Jesus as their “warrior messiah”. They expected to be made generals for Jesus in His coming war; not citizens of heaven or sons of God the father. 

11:17-20
v. 19
a brief note on consoling: What do you say when consoling someone? nothing. mourn with those who mourn. say nothing. just be there for them.

v. 20 given 11:32 why did Mary not go see Jesus upon His arrive in Bethany? 
It would seem she was angry at God/Jesus for not saving Lazarus life. So often we get hung up on “what could’ve been” or the classic “why does God do XYZ and not 123” 
Be very careful in that thinking when in suffering. Often when one asks the question of “why does God do ___?” they are not asking genuinely but selfishly but they believe their way was/is better than God’s and therefore they are idolators.

11:21-27
Notice the difference in Martha and Mary’s reaction to Jesus\’ arrival to them (11:32).
Do y’all think Martha here, in 11:21-22, is a confession or an accusation? 
Confession is clearly given 11:22. She still had trust in Jesus regardless of her deep loss. 
She whats she saying here in 21-22. 
If you are of God, Jesus, then this must also be of God. 

Whats it means that Jesus is the resurrection and the life?
In Jesus, there is power over death. He holds the keys to life and death. He is the power of life itself. 

Tho we die biologically if we are believers in Jesus then we can’t die. Our biological death doesn’t disturb the living personal existence in God. We have the life of Jesus in us; it\’s eternal. Nothing can destroy the life that God gave to us. 

11:27 Lord help us to believe

11:28-37
v. 28 If I had more time maybe I could’ve developed a theology on grief here, but I don’t. But I will say that it seems, the Lord doesn’t let His ppl sorrow for long. For Martha, she rushed to the sweet presence of Jesus. Mary seems to have a need to be called out by the Lord. She was angry with her Lord, not understanding why He let this tragedy come upon her when He could’ve so easily prevented it. God is most gracious to us even when we are not so to Him. 

30
It would seem that this family was well known/respected in the community; thus the Jews consoling Mary. Friends are good in distress but we must first rush to God in trouble before a friend. A friend may help. But God can help all the more and heal our wounds and troubled hearts. 

33-34
Do y’all think that Mary here is confessing or accusing Jesus?
It would seem to be an accusation. As if her faith was shaken perhaps even destroyed at seeing the tragedy of death and seeing the lack of action on her Messiah’s part. Overcome with sorrow she falls at His feet no longer having the strength to stand, endure such a deep wound. 
But the Christ wasn’t stoic in His response to His friend. 
“deeply moved” this is an interesting translation. The greek here suggests something closer to “irate” than deeply moved. Why do y’all think the Jesus, knowing what He was about to do anyhow, was irate/moved?
Here, Jesus is witness to His true enemy Death. Death was here and won overwhelmingly. He loved them more than they could know because of that was hurt all the more than they knew. 
34
this pain must now end! His glory must now be revealed. “come and see” We are told in the psalms to “come and taste (that is to see/know) that the Lord is good. Here, Christ comes and sees the ugliness/bitterness of death and sin. 
35
the shortest verse of the bible. But one of the sweetest. As Spurgeon put it, “A savior who did not cry is unworthy to wipe away my tears”. We have a great comfort in a glorious, weeping savior. Burn this verse upon your minds and hearts and take comfort in it. 

38-44

38-40
Here, we have a perfect description of us. We, dead men in sin were called out of black darkness by the words of Jesus at the appointed time and raised to life by Him. No odor, no sin could keep Him from us. He chose us and He raised us in His great love. And in our raising to the life God is glorified. 

41-42
Here is an interesting prayer. Jesus tells them, and us, why all this happened. 

43
Loud voice doesn’t cover it. Screaming, hardly holding in His rage against sin and the pain it brought any longer. He repeats the pattern of creation when His Father spoken creation into existence. And in much the same way, God spoke and so it was. 
If any verse should break a grammatical rule it is this. All caps and a \”!\”
44
His life is returned. He has risen. But there\’s a problem: Lazarus is still in bondage, he cannot do, to go/move, to even see His savior. And so the Jesus commands “free Him”. What good it would\’ve been had the Jesus raised Him and not freed Him. But He did and us also! We are free to do to move and see all the good things God has done, is doing and will do for us. 

45-57
45-48
So what are the Jews concerned about here? 
Not truth but power. Pragmatism not praise of their Savior. They wanted civility, not Christ. 

54-57
Jesus didn’t come to make men happy/feel good. He came was uncivil in His proclamation of God and His plan of salvation. Are we likewise?

Application: 
How are we to then live in light of this text?
Remembering God in suffering. Knowing He suffers with us. 


Uncivility for the gospel.  

John 10

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This chapter is divided into 3 sections: the good shepherd discourse (10:1-21), the discourse with the new (22-38) and a closing section (39-42) The chapter is unified by the themes that Jesus is Lord, Israel’s shepherd, that He is one with the Father and that His saving activity absolutely secures the protection of the who are His. 

So let\’s focus on 10:1-21 first.
So we have a lot to talk about tonight. I\’m gonna throw a couple different topics around like perseverance of the Saints, a bit about how to properly read scripture and also apologetics AND I think we may see John’s first use of fully intentional use of contrast in this chapter and we’ll talk about how that the Hebrews loved to really use it to drive home the story. So just ask to stop me and ask questions if Y\’all need answers. 

So, how many of y’all have worked on a farm? With sheep?

Ok. So we now know that our way of shepherding is way different than Israel’s way of shepherding. For starters, there\’s no sheepdog in this story. 
So for this chapter context is crucial, especially cultural context, in order to properly understand what Jesus is saying. 

Let\’s start with defining our terms: 
Sheepfold: A fenced enclosure with one entrance where a whole community (town) would keep their sheep when they weren’t gracing. Thieves and predators could climb over the fence to steal or kill the sheep if left unguarded. 
“enters by the door” The shepherd doesn’t need to climb over but is admitted by the watchman, if there was a guard, or by merely opening the pin and then calling out each individual sheep to attend to them. 

Since we talked about Israel dirt last time lets talk about something way more interesting. Let\’s talk about Israel trees.
Sheep pens would’ve been made out of thorns, from thorn bushes, and Cypress and hardwood. So the sheep pen here represents the world/fallen humanity. But it also points back to Jesus in that Jesus took the sin of the world and the curse of sin (His crown of thorns) on His shoulders upon His death.
As an early Catholic put it, \”An old legend makes out that the Cross was made of “Palm of Victory,” “Cedar of Incorruption,” and “Olive for Royal and Priestly Unction.” And in a Latin verse, we are told: The foot of the Cross is Cedar, The Palm holds back the hands, Th’ tall Cypress holds the body, The Olive in joy is inscribed.”
I just thought was super cool and wanted to share that symbolizes with Y\’all. Never stop asking questions about the word/always hunger for God.

So now that we got our basic terms down let\’s dig into this a little more.
10:3 What\’s this verse mean? (the shepherd knows his sheep by name and the sheep recognize their shepherd’s voice and come to him. This is a vivid image of how God has marked some ppl to be his in the midst of fallen humanity). 
Jesus, the shepherd, called out to us, His sheep, by our name and led us out the world (Because that\’s what I think the sheepfold represents). 
Do y’all know what the word “Church” means in Greek? It means called out ones. 
That\’s what the Church really is; those that have been called out and believe in Jesus. 
Now Jesus here says that He “leads [his sheep] out” in what way does Jesus lead us? He is our leader by example. He set the perfect example of righteousness/right living in the everyday presence of God. 

So the shepherd: 1) enters by the door 2) the sheep hear his voice 3) He calls them out by name 4) the sheep follow him because we know His voice. 
Sheep: Their shepherd enters by the door 2) hear his voice 3) The shepherd calls the sheep and they follow him because they know his voice. 4) the sheep won\’t follow a stranger but flee because they don’t know the voice of a stranger. 

(10:4
Electing grace is also effective grace: Jesus, who knows the sheep, reveals himself to them in such a way that they will respond. He doesn\’t force them to follow Him but through the work of regeneration He makes them willing).

10:5
This comforting promise doesn’t exclude the need to warn believers against false/deceitful teachers.

10:7
Jesus changes the metaphor from shepherd to door. Jesus is the one through whom eternal life is received. This “I am” phrase here continues the series of 7 such expressions in this gospel. 

10:8
This doesn’t refer to OT prophets sent by God but to the long ling of Israel\’s corrupt leaders (kings, priests and now the Pharisees) who God indicted as negligent and explosive shepherds in Jer. 23. 

10:7-10
So here, Jesus is being to explain this figure of speech by saying how he is the door and the shepherd. 

Now, this is a little hard text to interrupt because the question is who is the thief? And that\’s the question I present now who do y’all think the thief of 10:10 is?

Our interruption can go one of two ways 1) the thieves could be the Pharisees Which I think it is. 2) we could go w modern orthodoxy and say the thief is Satan. 

I think its the Pharisees given the near context of Ch. 9 and the Pharisees were there teaching the ppl before Jesus and we know from 9:41 that the Pharisees failed in their job of teaching the ppl about God and His Messiah because Jesus they’re guilty of a failure of duty remains on them. So given that Jesus just condemned the Pharisees for their failure in duty I think 10:10 is about them and NOT satan given the context. Moreover, the Pharisees wanted to steal Jesus\’ glory for themselves/or steal His following, they wanted to kill Jesus because of His ministry and they wanted to destroy His work. 

(10:9
‘go in and out” sheep come into the fold for safety and go out under their shepherd’s guidance for pasture. Jesus invokes imagery of ps 23.) 

10:11
In what way did Jesus lay down his life for his sheep?
The Christ Himself was sent by God to pay for the just punishment of the sin of mankind so that we could know and be with God once again all because He loved His sheep. 
Jesus GAVE His life. He didn’t risk his life. He gives His life, enduring death on behalf of the sinner. This is intimated in the name “lamb of God” declared by the Baptist and other statements of Jesus as well. 
(for the sheep
this sacrifice is for the sheep. It\’s for those whom the Father has given him/the elect. it is they who through the death of Jesus on their behalf will be justified and enjoy fellowship w, God.) 
Notice in this chapter how Jesus describes us/His followers as “sheep”. What do y’all think the implications for that are?

10:12
So here Jesus contrasts his good shepherding with a hired hand, someone who isn’t a good shepherd because he is afraid of the wolves. But Jesus the good shepherd died to protect his sheep from the wolves. 

Here He contrasts His sacrificial service with the cowardly abandonment of the sheep by those controlled by self-interest. Thieves steal the sheep, hirelings abandon the sheep, but Jesus lays down His life for the sheep. 

Who do yall think the hired hand might be? Peter/disciples probably. 
Who does y’all think the wolves might be? An enemy of God, at least. Probably the Pharisees because they wanted to kill Jesus. Also “the thief” and “the wolf” seems to correlate to one another. 

10:13
I think John here many be using contrast to speak on how much Jesus loves His sheep/followers. “cares nothing” the implication being that Jesus defended His sheep and therefore loved/cared for them absolutely and eternally. 

10:14
This is placed in parallel with the intimacy between the Father and the Son. It\’s clear that “know” here, as so often in scripture, means more than having a mental grasp; it includes personal understanding and a commitment of will. 

10:16
Who are these other sheep not of this fold? 
Gentiles. Because “not of this fold” meaning He speaks to Jews. So what\’s a “not Jew”? A gentile. Thus, Jesus is the savior of the whole world, not just the jews. 

1:18
Often in theological circles the topic of “who killed Jesus the Jews or Romans?” Here, and elsewhere Jesus claims that He laid His own life down and therefore picked it back up again. Why does it matter if Jesus rose again or not?
Resurrection is what comforts Jesus as the Christ because that\’s what He said he would do, it also affirmed that His word/teaching is true. Moreover, His resurrect is symbolic of us being raised to life, that is given new life, by God as well. If Jesus didn’t rise from the dead then we have no eternal life. But he did and therefore we do and we know that He is true. 

read 10:22-42

10:24
This is funny because He has been telling them that He is the Christ all along. Have y’all read ps 23? It states the Lord is my shepherd. Here is another case where Jesus proves himself, God and Messiah. But, again, He was not the Christ they expected and maybe didn’t even want. 
There is a thread of thought with “cultural Christians”, if you will, that they can have some of Christ but not all of Jesus. As Paul states later “they knew God but didn’t honor Him as God for they were futile in their thinking”. It is absolutely necessary to have and desire all of Christ for salvation. You must have all of Christ or you will have none of Him. 

10:26
They have closed their eyes to clear evidence. “Because…not my sheep” only those who are Jesus\’, whom the Father has given Him, come to faith. Others are so blinded by their sinful prejudice that they refuse to believe. only the regenerate who have been “born again” believe. 

10:27
His sheep listen to Jesus, they follow him. These believers show renewal in the new direction and commitment of their lives. 

10:28
The Lord gives his sheep the endless life of fellowship with God. He protects them from pressing according to the infallibility of divine grace and He allows no one to snatch them from His hand. The saints persevere because God preserves them. The sheep are not able to snatch themselves out of God’s hand because the divine shepherd will keep all of His true sheep from eternally straying. 

10:29
Whats this verse mean?
Here we have what is referred to have the doctrine of Perseverance of the Saints; in essence, it means that God redeemed us and therefore keeps us to the end. Once one has saving faith/salvation it will not be lost because it is an eternal life/salvation. Nothing can change that, not you or your sin can nullify your salvation because it is God who is responsible for it from start to finish. The hand of the Shepherd is also the father’s hand, and the supreme power of God is the inmate guarantee of the sheep’s safety. 
Do y’all agree with this? Why or why not?

10:30 
This doctrine is held up by the Trinity; if Jesus were not divine then we have no salvation but He is God in flesh, therefore, He did secure our salvation. This is also why doctrine/the teachings we believe matters; Jesus has shared the same being, essence, and mission of God. 

And I only bring that because in past history certain ppl have tried to use this verse to say that Jesus is not a separate person/2nd member of God but simply God. and even in modern times the Mormons and JWs try to proclaim the same thing even the Jews of whom Jesus was speaking to knew this well as we are about to see. 

10:33
Given this verse even they knew that Jesus was equating Himself with God and there was not a Mormon insight. 
And here\’s the sad part about this episode right here: The Jews, here, have all the right puzzle pieces they just put them in the wrong order. It wasn’t a man making Himself like God but God making Himself like a man. As St. Augustine put it “God made Himself man so that Man could be like God” That is like God in his action, His holiness and righteousness, and true love. 

Now, before we continue and I think we’ve discussed this once before but what does it mean to be made in the image of God (Gen 2)?
We are made in the image of God. That is we have the ability to act like God much, in the same way, has He reasons or executes judgment or lives righteously. 
and I only bring that up because of the next few verses. 

10:34-39
Ok. What do y’all think this passage might mean?
Let look at the scripture Jesus is referring to Ps 82:6.
Ok. so given the original context to that verse what do y’all think Jesus is talking about?
In essence, Jesus is saying that given the “judges/gods” of old and how they could be called ‘gods” then how much more is it ok for the Son of God to be called God. 
So He makes an agreement form the lessor to the greater. 
I only bring up all of that because “new agers” will take this text outta context and say that their belief is the same as Jesus/is justified. 
“new agers” are those who believe that God is within us and we need to use certain magic and rituals to unlock this god within and that if everyone did unlock god then a new age of peace would come. They are nothing more than Satanic tyrants masked as lovers of peace and goodwill. 

10:40-42
The Baptist didn\’t see many of the fruits of his ministry but his ministry still had a great impact. We must do likewise because that\’s what we\’re called to do by God and He will supply our needs. We don\’t need to see the fruit of our ministry but only of our walk with God. 

Application: 
How do we apply this text to our lives?
study the NT intently to defend it. 

peace in the faith knowing that God bought us and kept us.  

John 9

Pray
Read

So tonight we’re gonna be talking about suffering and the symbolism of the gospel in this story with the blind man. 

9:2
So from the get-go, we have a serious problem that the disciples have just set up a “false dichotomy” about the reason for this man to be blind. It wasn’t because he or his parents sinned. Many 1st century Jews believed, like Job’s friends, that every temporal misfortune was God’s punishment for some sin. According to this view either the parents sinned or the child sinned in the womb. But Jesus offers the 3rd option and dismisses their claim.

Let’s talk about suffering for a minute. So Jesus is about to state that their claim is incorrect. Let\’s make sure we understand a bit on why it\’s wrong. 
So, let\’s go over the basics a bit. 
Have y’all ever felt that you were suffering because God was punishing you? What made you think that way?
Was that an accurate view of God? If not, what made you change your mind?
If God, why suffering? 
Is our suffering punishment for our sin? God is a God of grace and does whatever He pleases. So no. But generally suffering is caused by Sin. Moreover, Jesus was perfect and suffered so clearly not all suffering is going to be a result of our sin/a 1:1 ratio. 

Ok. Now let\’s understand the real reason for suffering. 

9:3
So what\’s the point of our suffering? 
The Christian’s sufferings, like the blind man and Job, are for God’s glory through our refinement/sanctification. Tho God’s purpose is not always presently known to us, but we have God’s assurance that His purpose is good because He is good and all He does is good. And because God brings good through our suffering it gives meaning to our suffering and that meaning helps us to endure suffering and the trials of life. 

9:4-5
what do y’all think this verse means? Because I had to talk to my grandma to figure this one out a bit. 
Jesus and His disciple must do the work of God, preach the good news, while Jesus is still alive/before His crucifixion, for that the meaning of “day” since Jesus is light of the world. And “night” is when the “light” is taken away/when Jesus is dead when the disciples will be scattered. 

9:6-12
Ok so here’s where our gospel symbolism starts to come in. 

Quick question: Does anyone\’s translation use the word “clay” instead of “mud”? if yes: teach a bit on creator/creation and how the cross re-creates/gives new life. 

So Jesus used mud to give this man sight when He could’ve just spoken to him or touched him. 
Would anyone like to take a guess at why Jesus might have used mud?

Jesus used the cross, that is something worldly/gross/undesirable, to redeem/save us from God’s wrath because of our sin AND having been saved from God’s wrath we can see God clearly now/no longer distorted by Sin. 
In much the same way Jesus gave this man sight: He used worldly/literally of the earth/gross/undesirable to give to this man what he couldn’t do/earn on His own. 
No matter how hard he may have tried/wanted he couldn’t have regained his sight. So Jesus acted upon him and gave him his sight. He couldn’t cure his own blindness anymore than the sinner can cure their sin. 
Jesus was then, and is now, the only way to be washed/forgiven of our sin. 
(Nothing gives man life and sight to us like the dying savior.) 
Prior to Jesus, we are poor, needy, blind beggars. But now, by God’s grace, we’re just needy beggars to clinging to the Savior. 

9:7 
Washing not only expresses the man’s faith and completes his physical healing but it also symbolizes spiritual cleansing. 
“Sent” John explains the meaning of the pool’s name to help readers who do not know Hebrew to see the connection between this water and Jesus, IE the one sent by God the Father. 

9:12
As the story develops, the healed man moves forward in the path of faith. Here, he does not know who Jesus is, later he asserts that Jesus is a prophet (v. 17). Later still he raises doubts about the accusation that Jesus is a sinner (v. 25) and finally, after meeting Jesus again he acknowledges that Jesus is the son go God and worships him. These steps of faith illustrate what the author of the gospel wants his reader to do as well. 

9:16
Instead of being grateful for this supernatural work of God’s grace, the Pharisees begin to haggle about the observance of the Sabbath. Their concern is specifically about their traditional interpretation of what the 4th commandment requires. Not one of the actions involved (spitting, making mud, healing). is forbidden by the law. Rather than question their own understanding of the law, they reject Jesus and His ministry. Obstinate unbelief has blinded them spiritually despite their clear physical eyesight (v. 39). 

9:18-23
An inquiry with the blind man’s parents establishes the reality of his blindness and the cure. 

9:22
The parents were controlled by fear of the Jews/of man. How joyous they must have been to see their own son see but how quickly our joy in God and His work can be snuffed out by fear of others/concerns of this world. 

9:24-34
A second investigation with the healed man brings no new facts to light, but the investigators\’ position is hardened. The Pharisees call Jesus a “sinner” (v 24) whose origin is unknown (v29) and they excommunicate the man whose replies only irritate them (v27). The man’s replies are to the point: the man born blind has been healed, and “God doesn’t hear sinners”, His interrogators claim to be ignorant of where Jesus has come from though they have denied that he has come from God. 

9:32
the man is correct-there is no previous record in the biblical history of the granting of sight to one born blind. 

9:35-38
In this 2nd encounter with Jesus, the healed man’s faith moves from general confidence in Jesus godly mission to a joyful acceptance of Him as Messiah worthy to be worshipped. 

9:39-41
Here Jesus brings to light the impact of His coming: those who falsely imagine they have special insight into the things of God become blind opponents of God’s ways,  and those who seem less informed are able to see when the HS of God opens their eyes and leads them to faith. When ppl are spiritually blind though physically sighted, the truth that their eyes take in is not perceived by their hearts. 

So how do we keep our “spiritual sight” and not grow blind to God? 

We keep a living faith, devoted to God in love for Him.  

John 8:31-59

8:31-38
What do y’all notice about this passage?

What does it mean to “abide” in Jesus\’ words? 8:31

What\’s it mean to be a disciple of Jesus? 8:31

What is the truth? And How do we know the truth? v32
He is the truth and His teachings are true. Holding to the teaching of Jesus leads one to the truth that sets a person free from slavery to sin. Salvation is not obtained by mere intellectual knowledge but by a vital relationship with Jesus and a commitment to the truth, He has revealed. 

What does the truth set us free from? v32
Jesus brought our salvation and in doing so our freedom. Idk if y’all are struggling with sin right now or not (probably are) but Jesus already purchased your freedom with His death. Fighting for your victory over sin is senseless because it\’s already brought. You need only stand, to be, in the victory Jesus purchased. You need only to cling to Jesus.
In Jesus, we have a real/true freedom where we can now desire/chose to follow Jesus.  

v33 
The Jews were slaves in Egypt in Exodus and slaves to Babylon so I don\’t know what they’re talking about here. Unless they are being 100% literal; in which case the Jesus is showing the full scope of His ministry and their far too narrow scope of what they thought His ministry should be. 

v36 
The Son brought our salvation for us and in doing so brought our freedom. In Jesus there is freedom. How contrasty this is to the world’s message to us!
True freedom is in serving God; fulfilling the purposes of those specially created in God’s image. Sin deprives us of this fulfillment because sin clouds our minds degrades our feelings. and enslaves our wills. This bondage to sin is referred to as “total depravity” and its only remedy is the grace of God in spiritual rebirth. 

8:39-47
v39 what works did Abraham do?
Abraham was obedient to God’s direction even when it was painful for him. Jesus\’ audience claimed to be Abraham\’s descendants but Jesus shows they aren’t like their ancestor in the essential matter of obedience. True sonship is not defined by biology but by obedience. 

40 
Abraham told truth as heard from God? 

v41 
again I\’m confused because they just said Abraham was their father and now they’re saying God. I\’m not sure what this rebuttal means. 

v44. 
Let\’s talk about the devil. What do y’all know about him? and Who is he?
Who is the devil according to this verse?

Murder: Who did he murder? Mankind by deceiving us and bringing death? Cain and Abel?
why/how is he the father of lies? Genesis 3:4
Among all the sins that could be mentioned as characteristic of Satan, murder and lying are singled our. Lying because it\’s the direct opposite of the truth (the central point of this passage) and murder because Jesus\’ opponents desire to kill Jesus. At the original temptation, Satan’s contradiction of God’s prohibition and its threat violated truth and brought death. Satan contrasts sharply with Jesus who is truth and life and giver of life. (10:10, 18).

v46 
No one can convict Jesus of sin because He is free of all sin. doing always what pleases the father. 

8:48-59
v48 An insult could try to imply Jesus being born outta wedlock 

v49 
Father honoring and not self-glorifying. 2 opposites of what a demon possession would look like. He refers to this matter to God’s judgment. 

v51 
Death, as eternal separation from fellowship with God, is the judicial punishment for sin (Rom 6). Since Jesus died as the substitute for His ppl those who belong to Him are freed from the penalty of sin because Jesus endured it for them. 

v53 
I wonder if this is a part of what makes the resurrection so great. All prophets died and stayed dead. Jesus rose. 

V56 
Who is Abraham? and How did Abraham see Jesus\’ day?

Abraham saw Jesus\’ day as he embraced in faith many promises given to him by God. Promises that demanded the coming of Jesus to be fulfilled. Since the context of the discussion has been Satan as a murderer and Jesus as one whose death delivers from death, it may have special reference to God’s providing the ram as a substitute when Ab was prepared to sacrifice Isaac. This statement shows clearly that even in OT times believers were saved through faith in Jesus who was presented to them in the shadows and types given by God to reveal His redemptive plan. (Heb 10:1-18).

v58 
what does Jesus mean when He says” I am”? Its a callback to Exodus 3:14.
    What does God mean when He says “I am who I am”? God is self exist and eternal. God is God. He is sovereign overall. Constant, never changing. 
    In that statement Jesus equalities Himself to God saying that He is God and therefore constant, eternal etc.

It’s particularly interesting that Jesus quotes this because He is the new Moses, a freer/deliver of His ppl from bondage and Moses is a symbol for the Jesus in that way.