Story of Lazarus

Hello Everyone

Last week we began a discussion of the story of Lazarus in John chapter 11. Here are some images and a bit of the background information we shared.

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This is an amazing view -- you are Lazarus!



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Vincent Van Gogh appears to have depicted himself as Lazarus in this painting -- he rendered when he was a patient in a mental hospital.



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This painting adds an interesting character -- note the father-like person at Lazarus' head.



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Lazarus is a derivation of the Hebrew name "Eliazar", which means "God heals". This seems a fitting name for a person destined to experience a kind of healing only God can provide.

Lazarus' sister, Mary, is the same one who, earlier in the book of John, anoints Jesus' feet with perfume; according to the story, in anticipation of Jesus' burial.

In his response to Martha, Jesus expresses a particular kind of indignation -- the word in question refers, literally, to a horse snorting. One commentator interprets this as Jesus' anger toward death -- that it is an inappropriate thing, not part of God's will. Of interest -- the same commentator refers to Jesus' attitude toward the money changers and livestock sellers in the temple, the gospel story for Sunday's sermon, as being the same kind of indignation toward something that is contrary to God's design and will.

This is a story rich with John's themes -- we see in the tale references to light and dark, death and life, and Jesus' full humanity and full divinity, as well as a typical misunderstanding of all these points.

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This Sunday we will focus on application of this story to our own lives.

Please remember that, in two weeks, St. Paul's will participate in "Face to Faith Sunday", with grown ups invited to join children and youth for their classes that day. This should be a really fun event and we hope, if you haven't signed up to visit a young peoples' class you might think about doing that this coming Sunday.

Thanks for being in this class! Laura and I are always blessed by our study, how much we learn each week, and for the Christ-like love and care you show for one another.

Dan and Laura

Healing of the Official's Son

Hello everyone!

Thanks for a good conversation on Sunday, working through John 4:43 ff, Jesus' healing of a desperate father's son.

Some good basic questions came up about this story -- here's a shot at some answers.

First, who or what exactly was the "court official", the father in the story? It didn't seem clear if he was a Jew or a Roman, a soldier or a courtier. Well I looked this up in my Interpreter's Bible Commentary. This source explains that it is probably safe to assume the man was an official in King Herod's service, and that it would not be inconsistent to assume that he was a centurion, a commander of a hundred soldiers. I think IBC makes this connection because this story is a variation on a story told in Matthew 8:5-13 and Luke 7:1-10, where the man in question is clearly identified as a military officer.

Second, doesn't this story sound familiar? Aren't there similar stories in the synoptic (Matthew, Mark, Luke) gospels? The answer is yes, there are similar stories. As I was doing a quick scan in my own mind on Sunday morning I thought of one where Jesus did actually attend to a father's sick daughter -- this is the account of the healing of Jairus' daughter in Mark 5/Luke 8. But memory failed me a bit in thinking Jairus was a Roman -- he was in fact a Jewish leader and official. Eric was correct in thinking, in the other accounts of the healing of a Roman official's charge, that Jesus did not accompany the man, but gave the order from a distance, which was accepted.

If you read the accounts in Matthew and Luke, one of the assumptions we floated is made explicit: that the man in question is so used to giving orders, and receiving them, that he readily accepts Jesus' authority. This also lends credence to the assumption that he served in the military in some fashion. The Matthew and Luke versions differ in a couple of ways from John's account -- in both of those Jesus offers to go with the officer, but the soldier explains that it is not necessary, for the reasons just stated. To this Jesus declares he hasn't found that kind of faith in all of Israel. Also, the sick person in Matthew and Luke is not the officer's son, but a boy, or a servant.

Well, we continued our discussion and shared some interesting insights about how we might expect God to heal. That Jesus kept a low profile, even to the point of anonymity, may be a unique perspective presented in John's gospel. In the synoptics, by contrast, Jesus performs miracles and healings publicly and in person. John makes the point that Jesus does have miraculous power, but it is more important to recognize who he is -- and Jesus does not trust people to gain this insight if they are looking for the spectacle of miracles. So in both of the first "signs" in John, Jesus acts in such a way that only those who are really paying attention, and have an inclination to recognize and believe in him, will see. We discussed this in light of the psychology of presenting healing as spectacle -- that it might seem more authentic if healing is put in the context of obvious rituals, fervent prayers, and stoking the fires of emotion in other ways. Interesting that John doesn't go there. So the challenge is to know Jesus, and experience miracles as a function of having a real relationship with him. In other words, the relationship comes first; if faith is based on witnessing or experiencing a miracle, the foundation is by nature weak. Since John is my favorite gospel I tend to agree. What do you think?

For next week, Laura will be your facilitator, as I will be away in Portland on Conference business. Laura would like to move into small group discussion of last week's text, John 4:43 - end of chapter, concerning the healing of the official's son. So give some thought to our four questions and be ready for small group phase, answering four questions:

1. What does this story tell me about me?
2. What does this story tell me about God?
3. What does this story tell me about my relationship with God?
4. What will I do?

God bless you all & see you soon!

Dan & Laura

The Woman at the Well

Hi everyone!

We hope you've had a fine, God-blessed week.

Thanks very much to Greg Peters for leading class two weeks past, in part one of discussion of the story about Jesus meeting the woman at the well in John chapter 4:1-42.

We wrapped up our sharing on that passage last week . . . lots of reflections about our personal willingness to step out of our comfort zones to be with people who may appear unacceptable in some way, as Jesus did in leading the disciples straight through the heart of Samaria. How to sum it up? Well, something at the core is that Jesus was all about relationships, not outward appearances or style. It holds true as a challenge in relating to people, and in relating to God, who desires us to be "true" worshippers, worshipping in "Spirit and in truth". In human encounters, we can share our own truth effectively only if we really care about the other person and have a real relationship with them, as Jesus established with the woman at the well. In our relationship with God, our place and style of worship are what is on the outside; it's what's happening as we relate to God in worship that is of importance.

For this week, remember we are finishing chapter 4 and moving into the first part of chapter 5, two stories of healings. Please read John 4:43-54, Jesus' healing of a roman official's son, and John 5:1-15, the healing of a disabled person at the Pool of Bethesda.

We hope to see you Sunday!

God bless

Dan and Laura

The Wedding at Cana

On January 4 and 11 we discussed John 2:1-11, where Jesus attended a wedding, turning water into wine. We shared amusement in reading between the lines about Jesus' relationship with his mother, and the general comic tone of the story, where most people do not know what is happening or how the wedding is saved by the replenishing of the all-important wine.

This story has a clear gnostic tone, in that many people do not know who Jesus is, even though he is in their very midst. Yet in this sign John reports that his disciples perceive, to some degree, Jesus' nature, and believe. We also observed that, though they may be enlightened at the moment, they will be in the dark again in the future!

Wine is a powerful symbol of the kingdom of God, so running out at a wedding would have been more than inconvenient -- it could be seen as a withdrawal of God's blessing on the couple.

As we sought to apply the Scripture to our lives, one of the main ideas concerns our illusion of control over many of our affairs. So the hope of being able to let go of that control is encouraging, knowing that God in Christ is with us . . . if things go awry, perhaps it is part of God's plan; or simply an opportunity for Jesus to reveal himself to us, as well.

For January 18, please read ahead in John, completing chapter 2 and 3. We will focus on Jesus' encounter with Nicodemus, and also take a look ahead to be sure we are planning to cover books and sections of the New Testament that are of interest to the class. We have also suggested that we might go ahead and plan to meet through next year to provide more time and ease to cover the New Testament, rather than rush through by the end of May this year.

Baptism according to John

Hello Class!

Here is a summary of recent class activity, and a preview of the coming weeks!

On Sunday, December 7 we began a rich conversation about baptism, with a view through John's "lense".

John's Gospel, at the outset, makes a particular point of distinguishing between John the Baptist's ministry and Jesus'. This may be because there remained confusion about John's identity and mission. We read several passages that highlighted this issue:

Beginning with John 1:22-34, we saw that John describes the Holy Spirit descending upon Jesus in the form of a dove, and remaining there . . . but there is no mention that John the Baptist performed Jesus' baptism. In the synoptic Gospels, by contrast, Jesus receives water baptism from John. It is likely that, by not depicting Jesus being baptized by his cousin, a clear distinction between them is established, and Jesus' preeminence made clear.

In Acts 19:1-7 we read of an encounter with "disciples" who had only been baptized in John's baptism, not Jesus', which is interpreted, in line with John's Gospel, as a 'baptism in the Holy Spirit". After these followers of Jesus learned of this, they received this baptism through the laying on of hands. This supports the idea that, among some early Christians, there needed to be a clear distinction made between the ministry of John (a baptism in water to express repentance) and the ministry of Jesus (a baptism in the Holy Spirit for the purpose of empowerment).

John 16:4ff and 20:19-23 describe the work of the Holy Spirit -- the effect for believers of the "baptism in the Holy Spirit". These effects include comfort, advocacy, a leading into the fuller truth about Christ, peace, and the awesome responsibility to forgive sins.

This week, December 14:

Please review the passages listed above. We will divide into small groups to discuss these portions of Scripture.

On December 21 we will have an activity to summarize what we have studied this fall.

No class on December 28!

On January 4 we will resume our study of the Gospel of John with the story of the wedding at Cana (chapter 2).

As usual, these notes are posted for you and others at www.stpaulpastor.blogspot.com.

God bless & we hope to see you Sunday!

Dan and Laura

Preview to John the "Maverick" Gospel

Hello Everyone

Last week we continued our discussion of hermeneutics and Bible study. Thanks for a good, robust conversation. It's great to be in a group of folks who, though we have various ways of relating to Scripture, none the less unite in our love of Christ and hunger for his guidance. This is Church! We ARE the Body.

OK here's what's up next! By consensus we'll crack open the book sometimes described as "The Maverick Gospel". Which is the Gospel According to John. No, not John McCain, but I just thought of that and find it amusing! Now that's a good way to remember that the Book of John really is unique among the four gospels in the New Testament. As we get into the book I think we'll readily see why.

Some features of John to watch for:

* John often takes time to explain what an incident or teaching means -- keep an eye out for what seem like "interpretive interludes". For me it's kind of like the story is like a movie, and the scene freezes or fades while a narrator explains what just happened.

* John describes Jesus' miraculous acts as "signs", not miracles. This is very important. Also note there will seven "signs", and that all of these, except for the feeding of the multitude, are unique to John.

* The themes of light and dark, and of recognizing Jesus or not recognizing him, are linked.

* John himself is never distinctly identified in the book; he is referred to, generally, as "the disciple whom Jesus loved".

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To get started, please read and ponder chapter 1:1-14, the "prologue" to John. After a short introduction to the book we'll get in small groups and discuss this part using our four guiding questions:
1. What does this Scripture tell me about me
2. What does this Scripture tell me about God
3. What does this Scripture tell me about my relationship with God
4. What will I do?

As always, these notes from class are saved at our class blog, www.stpaulpastor.blogspot.com

Blessings to you all & hope to see you Sunday, 10:00 a.m. in the parlor.

Dan & Laura

Dr. Hermen Eutic

Hi everyone

Great to be with you last Sunday. For those who missed -- we had 18 present, started and ended with prayer and sharing, and began a conversation based on the article Four Concepts for Reference, archived in this blog Thursday September 20 2007.

We talked a good deal about the relationship of "fact" and "truth" in understanding the Bible. The general drift is that what we are most interested in is "truth" in the sense of meaning -- what God is saying to us, and how to apply this to our lives.

I enjoyed our opening community builder -- sharing about the place we lived when we were ten years old, and a significant experience had in that time and place. This connected with the beginning of our discussion, identifying that our different backgrounds have a bearing on what we understand the Bible to be, and how we read and interpret it. To that end I suggested the image of glasses -- that as we all have different prescriptions (and some lucky ones none!) we all "see" the Bible a little bit differently. In assuming this we also assume that we can learn by seeing through each other's "lenses"; though it is vital to understand our own lenses and how they influence our reading of Scripture. We also learned a fancy word, 'hermeneutic', which is a 'principal of interpretation' . . . what we're talking about is that we all have one, and they vary quite a bit from person to person.

We left off at the beginning of the second paragraph of the article; we'll pick up with some discussion of the concepts of "mythos" and "logos".

We'll aim to finish this conceptual discussion on Sunday, then move on to more Bible study!

Hope to see you all this Sunday, November 16. BTW it's "Bible Presentation Sunday", where 3rd and 9th graders and few others will receive wonderful study Bibles -- those are the ones that have been on the counter eavesdropping on our class the last few weeks. So please send prayers of blessing on those books as they soon will, we hope, touch the lives of some of our children and youth.

We appreciate you! Thanks for being in this class and being such a blessing to us.

Dan and Laura