Easter 6A
Acts 17:22-31 with John DeMuth
Psalm 66:8-20, Richard Bruxvoort Colligan, Psalmimmersion.com, @pomopsalmist, Patreon
1 Peter 3:13-22, Casey Fitzgerald, faithandwonder.com, storydivine.com
Psalm 66:8-20, Richard Bruxvoort Colligan, Psalmimmersion.com, @pomopsalmist, Patreon
Musician, The Steel Wheels, “Riverside” from from their album Live at Goose Creek, Twitter:@thesteelwheels, YouTube, Facebook, www.thesteelwheels.com
John 14:15-21
Initial Thoughts
Continuation from last week
Bible Study
Love of Jesus = Keeping his commandments
Keeping Commandments = love one another John 13:34 (even unto death, 15:13)
This passage bookended by “Keep my commandments”
This is not a stern, finger-wagging sort of “Do as I say.” It is, in fact, the opposite of “Do as I say, not as I do,” which plagues so much parenting and preaching.
What Jesus said and what Jesus were enmeshed. This is part of the meaning of the “Word made flesh.”
“To love Jesus is to keep his commandments; to keep Jesus’ commandments is to love him.” (Gail O’Day, New Interpreter’s Bible Commentary, v. IX. p. 747)
Recall prologue - “In the beginning was the Word (logos)... And the logos was made flesh” -- Jesus and the Word are inseparable
Presence of God after Jesus’ death
Paraclete has many translations
NRSV = Advocate (or Helper)
NIV = Counselor
CEB = Companion
NASB = Helper
The Message = Friend
KJV = Comforter
Spirit and Jesus comparisons
“Both Jesus and the Paraclete are sent from God (14:16; cf. 3:17, 34; 14:26; 15:26), are rejected by the world (14:17; cf. 1:10; 7:7; 15:18), are known by Jesus' followers (14:17; cf. 10:14), and represent "the truth" (14:17; cf. 1:14, 17; 8:45; 14:6).” Richard Manly Adams Jr., Feasting on the Word: Year A, Volume 2: Lent through Eastertide.
The reception of the Spirit is contingent on loving Jesus which is evidenced by keeping Jesus’ commandments. If we do not love Jesus, if we do not keep Jesus’ commandments- can we truly receive the Spirit?
Spirit of Truth - “The work of the Paraclete is thus to keep the truth of Jesus present to the world after Jesus’ departure.” (O’Day, p. 747)
The answer to Pilate’s later question - Jesus is the truth, the Spirit is the truth
14:18 “I will not leave you orphaned”
Disciples without masters were often called “orphans” (O’ Day)
“His promise to return thus immediately counters any possible perception of Jesus’ death as his abandonment of his own.” (O’ Day, p. 748)
Abandoned disciples would find another master. Disciples of a master that was crucified would be shamed, and eager to find another master.
The Spirit though, is not replacing Jesus as the master. Instead, “The Spirit will disclose the truth about Jesus' life, death, and resurrection, but will not replicate these events. After Jesus' return to the Father, the Spirit remains with the disciples; but this does not mean the Spirit replaces Jesus. Rather, the Spirit discloses the presence of the risen Jesus and his Father to the community of faith.” (Craig Koester in Working Preacher)
Unity through love:
Jesus lives - we live
God is in Jesus who is in us
Those who keep Jesus’ commandments love Jesus
Love of Jesus = Love of God = Love of Jesus
Jesus is revealed in love
Paraclete is the embodiment of divine love which is the true foundation of being and reveals Jesus and God
What does it mean that love swept over the chaos to create light, life and goodness (Genesis 1:2)?
What does it mean that love filled humanity to give us life (Gen. 2:7, cf. Ezekiel 37:9-10)
Is it any surprise that in order to fully live we must love? (Mark 12:28-31)
More double talk
As always in John, seeing and knowing have double meaning.
Those that “see” are the ones that obey.
“In a little while” can refer to both coming time between death and resurrection as well as time between resurrection and second coming.
Thoughts and Questions
“To love another person is to see the face of God.” Victor Hugo, Les Miserables.
What are the ways an Advocate can still function in society? Court of law, healthcare, human resources, social worker. Always, the advocate is working on behalf of the one in need. How is the Holy Spirit like an Advocate? How is that troubling to people who think they “have it all together,” or in a culture that values self-sufficiency above all?
The Message puts it: “In just a little while the world will no longer see me, but you're going to see me because I am alive and you're about to come alive. “
What does it feel like to know you’re “about to come alive.” What kind of anticipation does that create? What could it mean to the church to know that we “are about to come alive”
Transitive (if a=b and b=c, then a=c) not transactional
Acts 17:22-31
Initial Thoughts
Obviously, some important parts about Saul have been skipped. Last week he was holding coats while people stoned Stephen. Can’t assume people know that this is the same guy. Maybe it’s not important, but if you preached last week on Acts, it should probably be mentioned.
Bible Study
Literary Context
Begin the study no later than 17:1. Read of Paul’s exploits and methods in Thessalonica and Berea.
Driven out of Thessalonica, then they follow him and get him out of Beroea
Acts 17:21 (CEB) “All the Athenians as well as the foreigners who live in Athens used to spend their time doing nothing but talking about or listening to the newest thing.)
Consider extending the reading to include the reaction, to verse 34
Quick Philosophy Review
Epicurean - Happiness is the primary aim of life. This occurs through the two-fold path of pleasures in moderation and the avoidance of pain.
Stoic - teaches the development of self-control and fortitude as a means of overcoming destructive emotions in order to develop clear judgment and inner calm and the ultimate goal of freedom from suffering
Athens is the heart of intellectualism.
Paul’s Appeal
“Paul, formed in Torah sensibilities, is rightly greatly disturbed by the idolatry all around him, but now he will do something absolutely stunning and marvelously productive with his outrage. He will not turn away from the idolaters, but go to them. This is what the gospel demands = a reaching toward and reaching out.” (WIllie James Jennings, Belief: A Theological Commentary on the Bible: Acts, p. 176)
Starts with the positive - to relate to audience
To the “very religious.’ In other words, they have many gods, many temples, many rituals. They are the opposite of today’s ‘Spiritual, but not religious,’ and yet at the same time in the same family. They partake of the spiritual flavor of the culture, but are not interested/able to name a core belief beyond ‘The Unknown God.’
The Unknown God is a catch-all, or spiritual insurance policy, leaving open the possibility that there are gods that they have not yet named.
Truthfully, philosophers paid little attention to the gods. “The reality, of course, was that , although few Greek thinkers - including the Stoics - actually denied the traditional objects of religious devotion, these deities were often relegated to the sidelines of philosophical inquiry as being all but irrelevant… One thinks of our own society, in which belief in God always ranks high in the polls, but appears to be less important in the living of daily life” (Texts for Preaching, Year A, p. 302)
Moves to what is held in common
“Creator”
Does not appeal to Scripture (it would be meaningless to a people who does not know Scripture)
The natural world is one in which we all live, and can hold in common
The nature of God
Holy - separate - “not served by human hands”
Life giver
Relationship started - God calls us into relationship with one another (nations) and with God (search for God).
Search for God is the reason for the appeal to the “Unknown God”
Appeals to their own culture, and quotes the poet “We are his offspring.”
This is a similar tack that has been taken with Judaism. Jews were the offspring of Abraham, and thus a chosen people.
Moves from this to the condemnation of idols, which foolishly try to contain the God that is in all of Creation.
Commonality of all humanity/siblinghood of people.
Makes the leap to Resurrection
Resurrection of Jesus is the sign that what he said matters.
Judgment of Jesus is the final movement, and the reason people should “change their hearts and minds.”
Jesus is the culmination of all philosophies because of the Resurrection.
“In mentioning the resurrection, Paul risks rejection by his audience. They may agree to a created world and to our common humanity, but there is no possible ‘natural theology’ evidence for an assertion of the resurrection. Appeals to reason and to observation of the national world can only be taken so far in the proclamation of the gospel. Eventually revelation must be invoked and the scandal of faith to reason and experience must be made plain” (Will Willimon, Interpretation: Acts, p. 144)
This is where he loses many, some want to discuss it more, and some believe.
These are the expected results even today.
Ridicule
Discuss more
Believe
“Christian proclamation is not to be judged merely by its success in winning an approving response. Where the Word is faithfully preached, some believe, some mock.” (Willimon, p. 144)
Should churches be judged merely by their success in winning an approving response?
I (Robb) am deeply suspicious of two things;
Attempts to “prove” Christianity (The Case for Christ)
When Christianity becomes popular.
Thoughts and Questions
What are the dominant philosophies of today? Conservative Christianity, Secular humanism, Spiritual but not religious, Neo-Nationalism. In the marketplace of ideas, where does Jesus crucified and resurrected fit? What is the nature of the repentance that the Resurrected Christ calls us to?
“The God whom Paul proclaims is not just another option for human devotion, not an accommodating God content to be one of many. The God who sent the Christ is still the Holy One of Israel, a jealous deity without rivals, an exclusive lover who tolerates no competition - money, sex, philosophical ideals, institutions - who fiercely judges all idols made by hands or minds of men.” (Willimon, p. 144-45)
Paul was a master of tailoring his argument to his audience. He did this through getting to know his audience. He leveraged something of his identity - Learned Jew, Roman citizen - and used it to engage an audience. He also took time in places to learn them. He engaged them for some period of time, and spoke to people in the marketplace before making this speech. In this speech, he never uses the word “Jesus.” He doesn’t use jargon like prophets, sin, Christ, or crucified. He speaks to them in their language, but at the same time does not shy away from the true scandal - or place of power - Resurrection. How do our testimonies reflect this
Is our reliance on Scripture dooming the Church to irrelevance? For a people that does not hold onto the authority of Scripture, appealing to the authority of Scripture seems wasteful. Instead of relying on the authority of Scripture, the preacher’s first task may be to convince people of the need for Scripture in the first place.
A teen once asked me, during Bible study, “Why do we even bother with the Bible?”
I was not ready for a good response because I was acting under the assumption that the Bible mattered - one that this teen did not hold.
Do we, in the church, continue to seek out God or are we convinced at we have found God?
Are our churches shrines to the God we created in our own image? Do they keep us from going out and seeking God who first seeks us?
1 Peter 3:18-22
Bible Study
Historical Context:
Probably not written by Peter, but clearly debated
“The author wants his audience to understand who they are in relationship to the OT people of God, and he wants them to remain faithful to Christ in the face of pressures to conform to the larger world’s social and religious values.” (Common English Study Bible notes on 1 Peter, p. 461 NT).
Literary Context
Themes of 1 Peter (according to Common English Study Bible)
Living honorably and ethically in spite of hostility from unbelievers, especially verbal hostility
The return of Jesus as a basis for Christian hope.
Continuity between the audience of primarily gentile believers and the Israel of old.
How the community should treat each other, with an emphasis on love and unity.
2:11-3:7 includes some of more troubling parts of the Bible, especially in dealing with submission.
3:8-17 shifts to the theme to treating one another with love.
The household codes are to be seen through the dual lens of cultural context and verses 8-17.
Includes encouragement for those who are suffering because of their faith
Suffering
Addresses suffering as a result of Christian living. Not a sweeping generalization of all suffering.
“It is clear however, that the suffering mentioned in the text is not meaningless anguish that comes to victims of accidents and natural disasters, to sufferers from birth defects and cancerous cells, unavoidable tragedies against which there is no immunity. The suffering here is caused by the specific reaction of others to one’s doing what is good. It is suffering one could avoid by choosing not to swim against the stream. Furthermore, it is to be distinguished from the just suffering that is the punishment for doing wrong” (Charles Cousar, Texts for Preaching, year B, p. 197).
Jesus suffered even though he was faithful - he suffering is an example and through his life, death and resurrection (i.e. how he lived and died) all others will be measured - radical claim.
By suffering for faithfulness, we are living out our connection to Jesus.
Flood and Baptism
“Spirits in Prison”
“It is likely that 1 Peter is alluding here to an interpretation of Genesis 6:1-4 developed by Enoch and other apocryphal authors. These writers taught that the sons of God who intermarried with human women provoked humans to rebel against God and to attack each other. The violence unleashed by these evil powers prompted God to flood the world and imprison the rebellious angels. In 1 Peter, these disobedient angels are the imprisoned powers to whom Christ makes a proclamation. Does Christ proclaim judgment, or an opportunity to repent? The author does not say, turning instead to God’s concern for human beings.” (Judith Jones, Working Preacher)
“The legend of Gen. 6:2 concerning the angels who mated with human women and who were responsible for corrupting the human race had undergone considerable elaboration by the first century. Jude 6 and 2 Peter 2:9 allude to the tradition of imprisonment of these angels, Gnostic mythology considers them to be the cosmic powers that keep humankind imprisoned. The Savior’s triumphant ascent destroys the foundation of their rule.” (Pheme Perkins, Interpretation: First and Second Peter, James, and Jude, p. 65)
Flood is typically seen as God’s wrath punishing the world. Instead, Peter sees the ark as God’s act saving humanity.
God saved the righteous in the midst of the waters, just as Jesus saves the unrighteous in the water.
“1 Peter appears to think of the ‘spirits’ as human rather than fallen angels, since they are described as those who once were disobedient, when the Lord was patient during the time of Noah. Divine patience typically refers to a delay in punishment that sin deserves. As an example applied to the Gentiles who were completely cut of from God prior to their conversion, patience refers to God’s tolerance of their former ignorance. Rather than exploit the common parallel between the flood and divine judgment, 1 Peter exploits a different typology, the flood referes to the waters of baptism.” Pheme Perkins, Interpretation: First and Second Peter, James, and Jude, p. 65)
Thoughts and Questions
Preaching thought - is the church willing to suffer or even die for the sake of justice and love?
“For us, just as for the first-century Christians to whom the author of 1 Peter was writing, today’s passage speaks an important word. No government, corporation, or employer is ultimate. No oppressive system is greater than the power of God. If we suffer because we work for justice, if we are publicly shamed for doing what is right, we can be sure that our lives are in God’s hands, and God will have the last word. Christ walks with us in our suffering. Christ has already won the victory. Our task is to remain faithful and wait for God’s triumph to be revealed to the world.” (Judith Jones, Working Preacher)
Baptism binds us to the life, death, resurrection, and exaltation of Christ. All the submission language needs to be seen through this lens - that ultimately we are all equally bound to Christ and Christ’s glory.
“As an introduction to the season of Lent, the passage echoes dramatic highlights in the story of salvation. The passion, resurrection, and exaltation of Christ demonstrates God’s triumph over the powers of the universe. The cosmic reach of that salvation extends back to the beginnings of humankind at the time of the flood.” Pheme Perkins, Interpretation: A Bible Commentary for Teaching and Preaching: First and Second Peter, James, and Jude, p. 65)
THANK YOU FOR LISTENING AND GET IN TOUCH:
Thanks to our Psalms correspondent, Richard Bruxvoort Colligan (psalmimmersion.com, @pomopsalmist). Thank you to Scott Fletcher for our voice bumpers, Dick Dale and the Del Tones for our Theme music (“Misirlou”), Nicolai Heidlas (“Sunday Morning”, "Real Ride" and “Summertime”) and Paul and Storm for our closing music (“Oh No”).