Its honestly pretty amazing that it was over so quickly. I have been at this challenge for 16 weeks now. I wont like and say that I have read every single day, but I have always caught up at the end of the week. And what is amazing is that I have 36 weeks to go. What is even more amazing about this is that I will go another 36 weeks without reading a direct account of the life of the founder of the faith. I will not read the story of his birth, the story of his death, or the story of his resurrection again. And just how little space the story of this remarkable man's life takes up in the bible as a whole is strange to me. And generally speaking, I want to know so much more. So here are some reflections and thoughts after finishing these stories.
Jesus lead a truly remarkable life. - Whoever this man was, he was, he has become the most influential man of all time. Perhaps no man or woman in history has the legacy, the popularity, or the misconceptions surrounding them as Jesus of Nazareth. As for me, I believe that the majority of these events happened, one way or another. For instance, there is a lot of scholarship around the idea the the sermon on the mount was actually a collection of teachings by Jesus, and that that actual sermon didn't happen but the words are authentic. But I believe Jesus rose from the dead for the forgiveness of sins, and I think I believe in the miracles he performed. Hard Time Picturing the Stories For some reason I want to know what he looked like. One of the major issues I had reading the gospel is that I can be a visual reader. I make pictures in my head about the scene and the people playing their parts. I feel like through most of the gospel, I got none of this. I cant pretend that I am an expert on the landscape of ancient Jerusalem, and not being able to see the scene in my mind's eye with the clarity that I am used to messed with me throughout the gospels. With that said, the lack of a mental image at times did two things for me. - The first was allow real human emotions to come through. There are scenes where you can feel the disappointment in Jesus's voice when talking to the disciples, the quick responses to religious officials and the bewilderment of those men that heard the radical teachings of Christ, and the passion and deed sadness of the death of a son and of a friend. The deaths of Lazarus and of Jesus are perhaps the two most powerful stories in scripture, and when the authors decided to get away from some of the repetitive language, the story exploded off the page. - The second is simplify a complex story. The word choices, repetitive nature of story telling devices, and made the stories easy to follow, and the readers were not dragged down into the weeds of extensive plot lines, subplots, and literary excess. I want to know what I's supposed to do with the differences I see in the gospels. - What am I supposed to make of the places where the gospels differ in their telling. Did events that are only told in one gospel works of fiction, or just something that the others didn't find important enough to add? I find this part of the study of the bible fascinating and a conversation that has to be had. As for what it means, I do not know. John was probably my least favorite Gospel - I might make some people mad with this take because I know that many people love this Gospel. When compared to the other Gospels, the difference in tone is so apparent that I feel like I lost Jesus and his teachings and could only hear the authors understanding and thoughts regarding Christ. That isn't to say that I disliked it. There are many stories from John who are perhaps the most popular in all of Christianity and for good reason. It just wasn't my favorite and stood in stark contrast to the others. Finally - this was quite the journey. And truthfully I am a little nervous for what is to come. What if I read the prophets and their prophecies don't match what I think I have read about Jesus? That could shake my entire foundation. Or what if I get to Paul and am just floored by his teachings relative to the teachings of Jesus? Whatever comes next, I look forward to seeing God's word acted out in the people of the the bible. And I look forward to sharing my thoughts with you.
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As I make my way though the stories of Jesus's life, I am struck by the wide variety in
the stories. So far, I am all the way though Matthew, Mark, and Luke (as well as part of the way through John) and I am surprised at the wide variation in the Jesus narrative. Take the Birth of Jesus for instance. This event is covered only in two Gospels (Matthew and Luke), but that is about all these gospels have in common. For example, "where were Joseph and Mary from? Luke says Nazaeth and they went to Bethlehem to register for a Roman census and Jesus happened to be born while they were there, but Matthew has them living in a house in Bethlehem. And Jesus is two years old when the wise men visit him at their house. "* These kinds of little inconsistencies are consistent in the bible, from the conception to the resurrection. And while the resurrection happens in all four Gospels, the accounts of the events that follow vary wildly. All of these, that is, except for one important point. In all four narratives, it is the women who are first entrusted with the good news of Christ's resurrection. As the story goes, Mary Magdalene , Mary the mother of James, and Salome went to the tomb to anoint the body of Christ. What they found, shocked and terrified them. Instead of the darkness of death, they were met with an empty tomb and an angel explaining to them that the man they loved and followed was risen. These women were instructed to share this good news with the disciples in the first sharing of the good news. And what makes this story even more miraculous to me is the marginalized status women had in the time of Jesus. And yet, it is with these women that God entrusted this sacred mission. I am joyful that I worship a God who can use all kinds of people for his wonderful purposes. The God I worship is a God of the powerless of the oppressed. He loves all, and cares not for your status or your position in society; he calls to all regardless. And as you can imagine, the 12 disciples who had been there to witness all of Jesus's miracles and teachings , did not believe these women sent by God to share the good news. There are several takeaways that I find important and contemporary. The first is that this seems to me to be one of just many examples of scripture that support women's role in the priesthood. I grew up with a openly gay female priest, and I would listen to her impassioned sermons every Sunday growing up. She was a remarkable woman of true faith, and an inspiration on how to walk with Christ. God has used women for extremely important tasks throughout scripture, and it is a shame to me that there are denominations of Christianity that still deny this position to women who would like it. When reading these teachings, I am also reminded of the recent tension in our society. How different groups of people are reaching out and attempting to share how they feel in this great country. These people are trying to show us what it is like to be oppressed in this nation, and what it is like to be forgotten; a feeling I am sure that the Mary's knew well. I am able to imagine the frustration these women felt while trying to share a story they know as truth, and having it fall on deaf ears. To me, these verses challenge me to listen. To hear Gods truth from all places. From the pulpits, on the streets, in the classrooms, and even on the sidelines of football fields. It is my job to listen for God's own people crying out against injustice in this world, and recognize that I serve a god who uses all of creation to achieve his kingdom on earth. It was Gods will that these people pass along his good news, and may we all be so willing to answer the call. *http://www.cnjonlinehosting.com/historyandspirituality/2007/12/22/two-different-stories-of-jesus-birth/ ![]() There are many different way people in the world view Jesus. I would first argue that Jesus is perhaps the most famous person to ever live. The bible is the best selling book of all time, and it is impossible to overstate just how much the teachings of Jesus and Christian culture impact our western society. Christian culture seeps into every issue in our political world, our athletics, our national holidays, our pop culture figures, and (perhaps most importantly) the minds of most people in this world. Even for those who do not practice a faith, it is hard to go through ones day without hearing some reference to Jesus. There are Christian churches in most towns in America I believe you would be hard pressed to find a person who does not know someone in their lives who considers themselves a follower of Jesus. The reason I bring this up because it is important for us to try and separate who Jesus was as a person, teacher, and God's Christ from the popular societal viewpoints that so often define Jesus inside and outside the church. Some of these views, such as the warm cuddly Jesus who gives out hugs and rainbows, are scripturally inaccurate but feel good to think about in times of trail and difficulty in our own lives. Others view Jesus through their own political ideologies. I know I fall victim to this occasionally. It has always been a mystery why it is so mind-blowing to people when I tell them that I lean left because I am a Christian. I have have always felt that it is my Christian values that lead me to support social justice, peace, and unconditional love for all of God's creation. With that said, I recognize that others believe that Jesus better represents the values of the right, and it is sad to me that it seems that our culture has accepted Jesus as a figure specific to conservative America. However, the viewpoint that I have gained greater respect for in my readings in the last two weeks is Jesus the radical. The Jesus I see in scripture unapologetically changes not only an entire religion, but the entire world forever. The examples are endless, and reading the old testament has given me a whole new appreciation for the politics and history Jesus fought against every day when spreading the wisdom of God. Jesus changed fundamental teachings such as an eye for an eye. He changed the entire necessity for sacrifices to the lord and undermined an entire political and religious system in the process. He broke bread with outsiders and was unashamed of those who were sick or in sin. He led groups of many people (the bible says thousands would sometimes follow him to hear him preach) all with different agendas and goals. And in the end, he was executed as a political rebel and a danger to Rome. When I read the Old Testament, Jesus appears to me in a whole new light. This is a radical, God among us with instructions on how to treat each other that must have seemed insane at the time, and have lasted until the moment you are reading this and beyond. And whats crazy is that sometimes, these teachings seem crazy to me even now. But perhaps the life Jesus lived is yet another profound example of what human beings can do with the help of God. For when he is with you, what can stand against you? Takeaways from Mathew, the first gospel
Matthew is the first gospel of the bible, an the first one I have read for this challenge. I finished it up last week and there a few takeaways that I felt were useful for the big picture conversation about Jesus.
Not Peace, But a Sword: What Does Jesus Want From Me?34 “Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth; I have not come to bring peace, but a sword.
35 For I have come to set a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law; 36 and one’s foes will be members of one’s own household. 37 Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me; 38 and whoever does not take up the cross and follow me is not worthy of me. 39 Those who find their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will find it. What the hell am I supposed to do with this verse. It doesn't seem to fit. It isn't the Jesus you think you know, and it doesn't make you feel warm and fuzzy inside. Instead, it challenges everything you think you know about about love, about family, and about sacrifice. Those of you who know me, know that family is one of, if not the most important things in my life. I have three siblings who I am extremely close with (my brother is a grade below me, and my sisters are both in middle school) and parents who I truly believe could not have done a better job raising a child. And I am supposed to love God more than I love them? My parents are wonderful people. I would go as far as to saw the best people I have ever known. My father is my hero and role model. I strive to live up to the man and the father that he has exampled to myself and my siblings. I remember distinctly growing up how he would drive me to all my baseball tournaments. We would get up at 6 AM (even after a full week of work or travel for my Dad) and listen to Hootie and the Blowfish while driving through McDonald's to get our ceremonial pregame McGriddle. He was always at my games, and even though I know that he traveled while I was a kid (and still does to this day), I don't remember that as part of my upbringing because of the effort that he put in when he was around. He is amazing in his kindness, and seemingly endless in his wisdom. And I am supposed to love Jesus more than him? My mother is an intellectual. She is a woman of exceptionally high spirit and has an incredible grasp of practical sense. She has been a guiding compass in this world for myself as long as I can remember. She gives great advice and seems to be able to predict the future in ways that I wouldn't believe had I not experienced them first hand. We can talk on the phone for hours about the most recent Broadway show, or the latest news on the TV, or really any little thing in my life. She is more invested in my success than any person I have ever met. And I am supposed to love Jesus more than her? What about my brother? A fearless dreamer and a visionary; who sees the absolute best in me and my talents. Who loves me for who I am, regardless of the mistakes I make. Who holds myself to a higher standard than even myself and who helps to fuel my creative spirit. Or my sisters? Who love me in the purest way possible. Who look up to me and even take my advice when I give it to them. Who are sad when I leave, and so welcoming and excited when I am able to come home. Am I supposed to love Jesus more than them? What of my girlfriend? My potential future children? Their potential children? My Potential nieces and nephews? My friends? And even myself? Am I supposed to love Jesus more than all of this? The answer is yes. I am asked to love him more. This is the challenge of Jesus in this verse. He teaches that those who love him more than all people or things in this life will find eternal life in him. The problem with that is I'm not sure if I can. I can not imagine loving someone as much as I love these people. I don't believe I have the faith of Abraham to be willing to sacrifice my son purely on the word of God. I don't even know if I have the courage of the apostles to follow the son of God across the land to our almost certain deaths. I don't know if I could die for my faith. Hell, I struggle with doubt often even without a gun to my head or a knife to my throat. But here is what I believe. At the end of the day, God created the world. One way or another, he created all the things I have in my life. My family, my girlfriend, my friends, and the people who have made my blessed life what it is. And for that, I love God dearly. Because who among the world is as blessed as God has chosen to make me? Isn't this Supposed to be Easy Once reading the Gospel, I was immediately challenged by the teachings of Jesus in Mathew. This was honesty not what I was expecting, and I'm not 100% sure why. Its not that I thought Jesus was soft, quite the opposite. But I was stunned at some of the initial teachings in Mathew. There are a few I'd like to discuss briefly.
Concerning Divorce: Jesus comes out really strongly against divorce in this text, going as far to say that the only acceptable reason for a separation is "unchastity" (a women who was not a virgin before her wedding). In my reading, it seems to heavily imply that only the man has the power to end a marriage. To Top it all off, the final shocking aspect of this passage is that Jesus says that women who are divorced commit adultery and those who marry a divorced women also commit adultery. With divorce being such a prevalent and sometimes necessary situation in society today, my own values currently stand at odds with this teaching. How am supposed to explain to a women in an abusive marriage that not only are they unable to end the marriage, but would be committing a sin if they do. Marriage is not something to be taken lightly and this verse emphasizes that. However, this teaching is something I struggle with for sure. Expanded Definition of Adultery A second teaching that I find challenging is what Jesus says about adultery. Jesus teaches that not only does adultery consist of sexual conduct outside of marriage, but that a man has committed adultery in his heart with every women he has lusted after. To me, this doesn't leave much grey area, and seems to suggest that I have committed adultery with every women I have ever had the hots for. Perhaps there is some grey area regarding whether or not you are married or in a relationship and having these thoughts verses being single and thinking about these things. But it is a teaching that expresses the value of extreme mental and sexual self control and not something I expected Jesus to comment on. Love For Enemies and Golden Rule The final text I'll comment on today is the idea of loving your enemies and treating all people how you would want to be treated yourself. These values are at the core of Christian teachings, yet they are often the most challenging to do, and we often fall short. It is easy to love those we already love. It is much more difficult to find love, forgiveness, and compassion for those we hate. What makes this more difficult is that Jesus put no limits on this commandment. It extends to the likes of terrorists, sinners, the sick, the mentally ill, the violent, the evil, and the people who have done us personal wrong. It is this challenge that makes following in the path of Jesus so difficult. |
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