Bible Topics – Page 3 – What Does This Mean?

Why doesn’t John tell the story of Christmas?

Encore Post: “In the beginning was the Word…” John begins his gospel. (John 1:1) His introduction is very different from Matthew, Mark’s, and Luke’s gospels. He takes us back in time to creation itself. Where are the shepherds, the sheep, the star, the wise men, and all the details we’ve come to love? Why doesn’t the beloved disciple tell us the story? It is because John is not a biography like the ones we’re used to. (The other gospels aren’t either, but that is another story!) In fact, John tells us what he is trying to do: “Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.” (John 20:30–31)

For John, what happened in Jesus’ earthly life is less important than why. The Gospel of John tells the good news simply, profoundly, and in ways that strengthen the faith of every Christian — young and old. So, John begins at the beginning.

Jesus is the eternal Word — the λόγος (Logos) — living with God the Father forever. He is divine, God himself, the Author of Life and the Creator of all things. He is Light itself, which overcomes darkness. He came to the world, and the world did not know him. His own people did not receive him. Yet those who believe in him, he adopted as his children, not born of human will, but by the will of God.

But John does talk about Christmas — he tells us the reason for the season. The Word became flesh and lived with us. This mystery is so profound that it makes no sense in Greek philosophy. To the Greeks, spirituality is all about denying the flesh and the material world in which it lives. To them, the body is suspect and evil; the spirit is good. That God’s Word would become human is backwards. For the Jew, it is offensive to think that man could be God. Yet that is precisely what happened at Christmas.

So, the beloved disciple teaches us, if you want grace and truth, look to Jesus. Human beings have never seen God, but the only begotten God — he is from the Father and made him known. Christians are blessed because when they discover they cannot understand God, they can look to Jesus. In him, God has come to live with us and will do so now and forever.

Originally posted at What does this Mean? Blog: https://whatdoesthismean.blog

The posts in the blog What does this Mean? are now available at What does this Mean? | Rev. Robert E. Smith | Substack

Rev. Robert E. Smith
Pastor Emeritus
Fort Wayne, Indiana

The Nightmare After Christmas

Encore Post: The coming of the wise men from the east is a beloved part of the story of Christmas — even if the church doesn’t get around to celebrating it until the twelfth night of Christmas. (Stay tuned!) It really was logical for them to stop in Jerusalem. Where else would you find an infant crown prince? Yet that stop set in motion unintended events that are not so pleasant.

Herod the Great was a master politician and a loyal client of Rome. He was a master builder, rebuilding the temple in Jerusalem, constructing the port of Caesarea Maritima out of nothing, among other projects. He was also paranoid, executing anyone he thought was plotting to take his throne, including his favorite wife and several of his sons. The standard joke in Rome was that it was safer to be Herod’s pig than his son. (as a Jew, he did not eat pork) No wonder his court was upset when foreign scholars wanted to worship the newborn King of the Jews!

When the wise men were warned by God in a dream not to return to Herod, the king took no chances and ordered all young boys in Bethlehem to be executed. True to his name, Jesus’ foster father, Joseph, heeded an angel who appeared to him in a dream and took his family to Egypt. This may sound strange to us, but it was not odd during the time. Egypt was then a province of Rome, and the route there was a well-traveled and relatively safe one. Many Jews lived in Egypt, especially in Alexandria, the intellectual capital of the empire. Egypt had for centuries, been very friendly to Jews.

On the Church’s calendar, December 28th is celebrated as Holy Innocents Day. We remember the boys murdered by Herod as martyrs for Jesus, even though they did not realize it. We also remember all the children sacrificed by their parents for various reasons and dedicate ourselves to preserving the lives of infants, born and unborn.

Originally posted at What does this Mean? Blog: https://whatdoesthismean.blog

The posts in the blog What does this Mean? are now available at What does this Mean? | Rev. Robert E. Smith | Substack

Rev. Robert E. Smith
Pastor Emeritus
Fort Wayne, Indiana

Meet John, Apostle and Evangelist

Encore Post: John, son of Zebedee, was many things. He was the youngest of Jesus’ disciples. With Peter and his brother James, he was in the inner circle of the apostles. The beloved disciple was likely the closest Jesus had to a best friend. With his father, his brother, Peter, and Andrew, they operated a successful fishing business on the Sea of Galilee. They were headquartered in Capernaum, operated several boats, and employed several assistants. An early follower of John the Baptist, John heard the last of the prophets point to Jesus as the Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world.

John had a ringside seat for the ministry of Jesus. He was present from the wedding at Cana through the ascension of Jesus into heaven. He saw all the miracles, the healings, and heard all that Jesus taught. During the Last Supper, he leaned against the side of the Lord. Unlike most of the disciples, he remained with the Lord throughout his trial and his crucifixion. To him, Jesus entrusted the care of his mother Mary. When the women who first heard the news of the Resurrection came to announce it to the disciples, he went with Peter to the empty tomb.

In the beginning, John and Peter led the church from Jerusalem. Eventually, he moved to Ephesus with Mary. There, he would live longer than all the apostles. He was never martyred, but was exiled for a while on the island of Patmos. Next to St. Paul, he wrote more of the New Testament books than anyone else. His gospel was the last of the four, written with the other three in mind. He wrote three letters and probably the Book of Revelation.

The church gives thanks to God for St. John on December 27th. Among the passages of Scripture most loved by Christians are the words given through him. “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” (John 3:16) All that he wrote was so that we might believe and, believing, might have life in his name. (John 20:31)

Originally posted at What does this Mean? Blog: https://whatdoesthismean.blog

The posts in the blog What does this Mean? are now available at What does this Mean? | Rev. Robert E. Smith | Substack

Rev. Robert E. Smith
Pastor Emeritus
Fort Wayne, Indiana

Stephen, the First Martyr

Encore Post: “You will be my martyrs (μάρτυρες),” Jesus said to his disciples just before he ascended into heaven. (Acts 1:8) A martyr is the New Testament is a witness to the good news about Jesus. All Christians are martyrs, then. The only question is how good a witness we will be.

The apostles and early disciples were very good martyrs. In fact, all the apostles except John the Evangelist (tune in tomorrow) validated their testimony with their lives, most of them through torturous, painful deaths. That is why we associate the term martyr with giving up one’s life for a cause. For a while, though, harassment was the pushback of the leaders who had seen to the crucifixion of Jesus.

All this changed with a confrontation with Stephen the Deacon. He was a Jew whose native language was Greek. The apostles had appointed him and six others to take care of the poor among them. He was very good at evangelism, so Jews who rejected Jesus as the Messiah lied about him to get him arrested. Brought before the Sanhedrin, he argued from the Scripture that Jesus was the Messiah and that they had killed him. He called on them to repent and believe the good news.

In great anger, they seized Stephen and took him outside the city and stoned him to death. Following the example of Jesus, he forgave them and gave up his spirit. Among those who witnessed the stoning and approved it was Saul of Tarsus, the man who would soon become the Apostle Paul. The church remembers Stephen as the protomartyr — the first martyr. It gives thanks to God for his life and witness on the second day of Christmas — December 26.

In today’s world, Christians are still called to witness to Jesus with their lives. Even in our own country, opposition to faith is growing, and Christians are called upon to testify to the gospel at a cost to reputation, property, and perhaps someday freedom and lives. We have the example of our Lord, Stephen, and countless martyrs to give us courage. With them numbered may we be, here and in eternity.

Originally posted at What does this Mean? Blog: https://whatdoesthismean.blog

The posts in the blog What does this Mean? are now available at What does this Mean? | Rev. Robert E. Smith | Substack

Rev. Robert E. Smith
Pastor Emeritus
Fort Wayne, Indiana

To you is Born the Savior — the Lord Christ

Encore Post: Shepherds were hardworking everyday people. To some extent, they even looked down on a bit. If you were a king, you wouldn’t send a herald to them. And yet, that was exactly what God did. He sent his Angel — his messenger — with an εὐαγγέλιον (evangelion; Gospel) to, of all people, shepherds.

Royal proclamations of Good News announced the victory over enemies, the birth of a royal heir, and the beginning of the reign of a new king. Often the messenger is also a legatus — an ambassador — with the authority of the ruler to organize a grand celebration. He could free captives, cancel debts, suspend taxes, sponsor games, and the like. This Gospel is unlike any other. “Good news of great joy for all the people,” the angel announced the birth of God’s own son in David’s hometown of Bethlehem. He is the Lord Christ, who would save his people from their sins.

The Christmas gospel is very good news indeed. God the Father, our Savior, reveals his kindness and love for people in it. He sent Jesus, our Savior, to save us because of his mercy, not because of the good deeds we have done. Jesus poured out the Holy Spirit, our Savior, on us, who washed away our sins in Holy Baptism and regenerated our hearts. We are justified by the grace of the Holy Trinity, so that we may be made heirs of eternal life, being justified by his grace.

So, great joy comes to us at Christmas. Not only the song of a legion of angels, but eager shepherds also rushed to see the Savior and the mother who treasured it all in her heart. God has broken into our world and changed things forever. We have an inexpressible joy, for we know God keeps his promises. And so it is our hope. Many blessings are awaiting us in Heaven, where Jesus is preparing a place for us. We have seen a great light and nothing can ever take that from us.

Originally posted at What does this Mean? Blog: https://whatdoesthismean.blog

The posts in the blog What does this Mean? are now available at What does this Mean? | Rev. Robert E. Smith | Substack

Rev. Robert E. Smith
Pastor Emeritus
Fort Wayne, Indiana

Silent Night, Holy Night

Encore Post: On Christmas Eve of 1818, two hundred and eleven years ago today, Joseph Mohr, the Catholic priest of a small parish in Oberndorf, Austria, learned that the organ was out of order and not available for mass that evening. A few years earlier, he had composed a poem meditating on the birth of Jesus. The times were very hard for his parishioners. Austria and all of Europe were still recovering from the wars of Napoleon, which were followed by a famine caused by a very cold year and crop failures. He did not want to disappoint them. He asked his organist and friend, Franz Gruber, to set it to music for the guitar.

The quiet tune and simple words struck a chord in people’s hearts. Traveling choir troupes soon picked up the song and spread it. The beloved carol has found a place now in Christmas worldwide. During the dark days of World War I, during a spontaneous Christmas truce, both sides joined in singing the carol together.

Like most poetry, the song takes some poetic liberties. Jesus probably did not have golden hair, as the German originally sings. A stable is not likely to have been very quiet, and Scripture does not tell us what time of day Mary gave birth. Yet it captures, as most carols do, the simple truths. In a rural, working town, in the far corner of a client kingdom of the Roman Empire, is where God Himself became a man, born of a simple, young woman.

Jesus Christ, the eternally begotten Son of God, and by the greatest mystery of them all, true man, born of the Virgin Mary, is our Lord. He redeemed us, not with silver or gold, but with his holy and precious blood and innocent suffering and death. We are now his own and live in his kingdom. When God sees us, he sees Jesus. When we see Jesus, we see God.

So we sing this Christmas lullaby and go to sleep in peace, even in the midst of our turbulent world, filled as it is with sorrow, trouble, grief, and death. Sleep in peace, children of God. Rest merry. Christ was born to save us all from Satan’s power when we had gone astray. He has destroyed death and crushed the serpent’s head. You will live with him forever.

Originally posted at What does this Mean? Blog: https://whatdoesthismean.blog

The posts in the blog What does this Mean? are now available at What does this Mean? | Rev. Robert E. Smith | Substack

Rev. Robert E. Smith
Pastor Emeritus
Fort Wayne, Indiana

O Adonai, My Lord

Encore Post: O Adonai and Ruler of the House of Israel, who appeared to Moses in the burning bush and gave him the Law on Sinai, come with an outstretched arm and redeem us.

O Adonai, et dux domus Israel, qui Moysi in igne flammae rubi apparuisti, et ei in Sina legem dedisti, veni ad redimendum nos in brachio extento.

Moses was minding his father-in-law’s business — his sheep — when he saw a bush on fire that did not burn up. When he went up to see what was happening, the Angel of the Lord (the pre-incarnate Son of God himself) spoke with him from the bush. He commissioned Moses to free the people of Israel from slavery in Egypt. Doing everything he could to avoid the subject, Moses asked for the Name of God. “I am who I am,” the Messiah replied. (Exodus 3) That name we pronounce Yahweh. It is spelled with four consonants in Hebrew — יהוה (YHWH). After the Babylonian exile, the Jewish people decided not to pronounce that name so it could not be taken in vain. Instead, they said, “Adonai” which means “my Lord.” Wherever the Angel of the Lord appears in the Old Testament, this name is given to him. He revealed God’s law to Moses on this same spot after the Exodus.

Because the Messiah is God, there is nothing he cannot do. He loved his people, Israel, so he sent Moses to free them. He displayed his power to free them with plagues and miracles, including the parting of the Red Sea. Later, the Scriptures would describe it as his outstretched arm.

The prayer calls on the Messiah to come and redeem us, which he did. This time, the miracle was not raw power, but the power of God himself paying the price of our salvation — not with silver or gold, but with his own blood. He himself became the sacrifice of our sin, paying its price in full.

One day, he will come again in glory to redeem the world once and for all, defeating death, sin, and the devil. On that day, his outstretched arm will restore all things and bring all to his throne. There, all will confess Jesus Christ as Lord to the glory of God the Father.

O come, O come, Thou Lord of might,
Who to Thy tribes on Sinai’s height
In ancient times didst give the Law
In cloud and majesty and awe.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to thee, O Israel!
— Lutheran Service Book 357, Stanza Three

Originally posted at What does this Mean? Blog: https://whatdoesthismean.blog

The posts in the blog What does this Mean? are now available at What does this Mean? | Rev. Robert E. Smith | Substack

Rev. Robert E. Smith
Pastor Emeritus
Fort Wayne, Indiana

Last Things #13: Come, Lord Jesus, Come!

[Twenty-Second in a series of posts on Last Things] Encore Post: They were ordinary days. The seaside resort of Pompeii was bustling with the daily activities of the luxurious retreat for the most affluent Romans, who escaped the pressures of the imperial capital of ancient Rome. That is, until Mount Vesuvius buried it in ash for 1700 years. It was a lazy Sunday morning in Hawaii, slower than usual for a navy base — until Japanese bombs shattered Pearl Harbor that December 7, 1941. On a bright, lovely September morning, a pastor drove from downtown Fort Wayne, practicing a sermon for chapel on the first regular day of classes for Concordia Theological Seminary in Fort Wayne — a sermon he rewrote on the ride in as he learned airplanes had destroyed the Twin Towers in New York City that September 11, 2001. Life was normal — until the world changed.

On another ordinary day, when people will go about their daily lives as usual, eating, drinking, marrying, working in the field and in businesses, Jesus will return from Heaven. (Matthew 24:37-41) He will appear in the sky with the angel armies of Heaven and the souls of his people with him. Every eye will see him. He will send his angels to gather both those who are saved to meet him and the damned to be judged. ( Matthew 13:41, 49, Matthew 24:30-31) There will be no rapture, where Christ appears secretly to claim his own and leave the world in tribulation. This notion comes from a misunderstanding of the dispensationalists.

At that time, Jesus will break the seal of the grave forever. All people will rise from the dead in the great resurrection of the dead. All souls will be reunited with their bodies, and Christ’s own will be transformed to be just like him. (1 Thessalonians 4:14-17) As great dread has been put in this day, it is for Christians the most joyful day of all, even with the next event — the Last Judgment — coming. For the goal of the suffering, death, and resurrection of our Lord is this day, when all is made right, we are restored to his image, and we will shine like the stars in his kingdom. So, the Church has always prayed: Come, Lord Jesus, come!

Originally posted at What does this Mean? Blog: https://whatdoesthismean.blog

The posts in the blog What does this Mean? are now available at What does this Mean? | Rev. Robert E. Smith | Substack

Rev. Robert E. Smith

Pastoral Emeritus

Fort Wayne, Indiana

At Just the Right Time

[Nineteenth in a series of posts on Last Things]Encore Post: Time is a funny thing. We use clocks that measure the vibrations of atoms, coordinated with telescopes to record their passage with great precision and consistency from place to place, transmit them to us via computers, satellites, radio, television, and other digital signals, and synchronize our clocks with them. We barely notice that time is a human thing — except on leap years or when we change our clocks twice a year or move from time zone to time zone.

Time is how we record the changes we notice more and more each year of life. Time passes quickly. When you are a child, an hour drags on forever. As an adult, it passes before you realize it. What is important, our culture has noticed, is not time itself, but what you do with it. It has become our new currency. We would sooner write a check than hang out.

The Greek of the New Testament uses two different words for time. καιρός (Cairos) translates roughly “the right time.” χρόνος (Chronos) is about the passage of time, minute after minute, hour after hour, year after year. Seasons like Advent, days like Christmas and New Year’s Day are χρόνος, times that we plan for, come and go, forming a part of the rhythm of life. That Christmas when you opened your first present is καιρός

The fullness of time when God sent his son, born of a virgin, is God’s καιρός (Galatians 4:4-5). His acts and plans unfolded slowly, one building on another, leading to just that right time. The next big καιρός is the Second Advent, when time itself will come to an end in God’s eternal life with his people.

The persons, events, and institutions leading to that first right time, the incarnation, life, suffering, death, resurrection, and ascension of Immanuel — God-with-us — were called by the Early Church the praeparatio Evangelii (The Preparation of the Gospel).

Originally posted at What does this Mean? Blog: https://whatdoesthismean.blog

The posts in the blog What does this Mean? are now available at What does this Mean? | Rev. Robert E. Smith | Substack

Rev. Robert E. Smith

Pastor Emeritus

Fort Wayne, Indiana

Philip and the Ethiopian Eunuch

[One-Hundredth in a series of posts on Bible Stories] Encore Post: The Holy Spirit sent Deacon Philip to meet a eunuch in the service of Candice of Ethiopia, the mother of the reigning king. In Ethiopian society, she took care of the day-to-day duties of the kingdom. Ethiopians believe she was the descendant of the Queen of Sheba and King Solomon. Many believe they are Jewish.

Eunuchs served as assistants to the royal family. They were often castrated so that they could be trusted to guard royal or noble women and provide physical care to kings and emperors. This man appears to have been the treasurer of Candice. He is devout and has been to worship at the temple in Jerusalem. On his way home, the man is reading Isaiah 53, a detailed prophecy of the suffering and death of the Messiah. Puzzled by it, he invited Philip to explain the text to him. With this opening, Philip tells the man the good news that Jesus is the man Isaiah prophesied. The man responded by asking to be baptized. When the Holy Spirit took Philip away, he rejoiced that salvation had come to him.

This new Christian became, in turn, the evangelist who brought the gospel to Ethiopia. A strong Eastern Orthodox church was born and grew there. Called the Coptic Church, its members still thrive in Muslim Egypt to this day. This man was the first of many Christians to believe in Christ on the continent of Africa.

Originally posted at What does this Mean? Blog: https://whatdoesthismean.blog

The posts in the blog What does this Mean? are now available at What does this Mean? | Rev. Robert E. Smith | Substack

Rev. Robert E. Smith

Pastor Emeritus

Fort Wayne, Indiana