Uncategorized – What Does This Mean?

Wedding at Cana

[Fifty-Eighth in a series of posts on Bible Stories]

Encore Post:

Weddings are very joyful occasions. Everyone dresses their best. There is music, dancing, and feasting. The bride and groom are excited because their life together will soon begin. Weddings in our culture, however, differ greatly from those during Jesus’ earthly life.

Jewish weddings in first-century Galilee were seven days long, most of it eating, drinking, dancing, reciting wedding poetry — and eating. On the first day, the bride and her wedding party would walk from her house to her groom’s house. They would say their vows in his house or under a tent set up for the occasion. Then the party would begin.

Cana was a small town in Galilee, a few miles north of Nazareth. Mary, Jesus, and his disciples were invited to attend a wedding there. Mary was likely a relative or close friend of the groom’s parents. The family was likely well-off. They could afford a large wedding feast, with lots of guests and servants to cater for the event. They had six large stone jars to hold water for guests to remain ritually clean.

For one reason or another, the feast ran out of wine. Since the only drinks used in Galilee at the time were water and wine from the vineyards near Nazareth, this was a major problem. Hospitality was very important at weddings. The groom would have to be sure there was plenty to eat and drink. Running out of wine was a disaster in the making.

Jesus’ mother, Mary, asks him to take care of the problem. Jesus’ reply sounds cold in modern English, but it wasn’t cold or disrespectful then. It roughly means, “How is that our problem, Ma’am?” Yet Mary trusts Jesus will do what is necessary to solve the problem and tells the servants to do what he tells them to do.

By turning over 120 gallons of water into the finest wine, Jesus saved the couple a lot of embarrassment. More than that, He showed His mother and His disciples that He was God and cared for people in their everyday lives. The church believes that Jesus’ attendance at this wedding blessed all marriages by providing wine for the celebration. It is mentioned in every traditional wedding.

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

John the Baptist

[Fifty-sixth in a series of posts on Bible Stories]

Encore post:

Four hundred years had passed since the last prophet had spoken. Now, a new prophet had come. He dressed like the Prophet Elijah, ate the same foods Elijah ate, and preached in the same places Elijah preached.

John the Baptist had all the credentials to be the Messiah. His father was a priest descended from Aaron. His mother was related to Mary, the mother of Jesus, and so descended from King David. An angel in God’s temple announced his birth while his father offered prayers on behalf of the people. Both of his parents were very old, like Abraham and Sarah, and barren, like Hannah, the mother of Samuel. Many people wondered if he was the Messiah. But he wasn’t. As the last prophet before him predicted, he came to prepare God’s people for the Messiah.

God named him “John (God’s gift)” in the same way He named Isaac and changed Jacob’s name to Israel. The angel announced he would come in the spirit and power of Elijah, one of the greatest prophets. Yet from the start, he and his parents understood John was not the Messiah, but the one who would reveal him to the world and prepare the way.

When he baptized Jesus, John finally knew it was his cousin, Jesus. He pointed to Jesus and said, “Look! The Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world!” The Messiah had come not as a conqueror, but as the final sacrifice for the sins of the world. Now His baptism gives us the Holy Spirit, forgiveness of sins, eternal life, and salvation.

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

How did Jesus Grow Up?

[Fifty-fifth in a series of posts on Bible Stories]

Encore Post:

The Gospels give us only brief glimpses of the first thirty years of Jesus’ life. We have, of course, the Christmas story. They mention the circumcision of Jesus on the 8th day (we celebrate it on New Year’s Day). After forty days, Mary, his mother, and Joseph, his adoptive father, take him to the temple to redeem him and to purify Mary. There, they meet Simeon and Anna. Then sometime in the first two years, scholars from the east came to their house in Bethlehem, worshiped him, and gave him gold, frankincense, and myrrh. Warned by an angel, they moved to Egypt while Herod the Great vainly tried to kill him and instead slaughtered innocent boys. Within months, they moved back to Nazareth and settled there. Then, that’s it for twelve years. We hear about Jesus among the teachers in the temple, and then silence again for sixteen years!

False teachers, psychics, and prophets of other religions could not resist. They tell stories of a self-centered child animating clay pigeons, raising a child from the dead to testify that he did not shove the child off a roof, and similar things. Some say he moved to India to learn under gurus. Islam says he spoke while in the cradle. None of these things happened, but are simply stories made up to fill a vacuum they believe exists.

So, what were Jesus’ first thirty years really like? We don’t know precisely, other than that it was perfectly normal. He grew up as the son of a faithful Jewish craftsman. He learned his father’s trade and lived a kind of middle-class life. Likely, they worked to build the nearby capital of Herod Antipas, called Sepphoris. He would have studied the Torah, learned Hebrew, observed all the customs of the law, and studied under rabbis. He likely spoke Koine Greek and learned about Greek and Roman culture. He grew up so normally that no one who knew him could imagine him as God. Luke sums it up: “Jesus increased in wisdom and in stature and in favor with God and man.” (Luke 2:52)

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 Wise Men Worship Jesus

[Fifty-First in a series of posts on Bible Stories]

Encore Post:

The Wise Men were scholars in Babylon, in Iraq today. One thing they studied was astrology. They saw a star that told them that a king would be born in Israel. So they went to see Him. They did not arrive on Christmas Eve at all, but a few months to a year afterward. They found Mary and Jesus at home in a house.

There are lots of theories as to what the Star of Bethlehem actually was. Some scholars think it was a conjunction of Jupiter and Saturn, which appeared to approach each other in the sky three times around the time Jesus was born. Others point to the conjunction of Jupiter and Venus, which occurred about the same time. Also suggested have been comets, novas, and other signs in the sky. Any of these would inspire ancients who believed in astrology to go visit the newborn king. It may not have been any of these. Christian scholars have pointed out that God was quite capable of creating a star to use solely for the birth of His Son.

Assuming a newborn King of the Jews would be in King Herod’s palace, it made sense to visit him. What they didn’t know is that, in the last few months of his life, Herod was very paranoid. He was known to kill viciously anyone, including his wife and his sons, whom he thought were planning his overthrow. So, then, when the angel warned the wise men not to go back to Herod, it was a very good thing.

Even though tradition says there were three Wise Men (think: We Three Kings of Orient are), no one knows how many came. Matthew doesn’t number them. Perhaps it is because they presented Jesus with three royal gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.

They were the first Gentiles to realize who Jesus was and to worship Him. The church celebrates the coming of the Wise Men on the twelfth and last night of the season of Christmas.

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

Mary and Elizabeth

[Forty-Eighth in a series of posts on Bible Stories]

Blog Post:

At first glance, Mary and Elizabeth do not seem to have much in common — other than King David as their common ancestor. Mary was a very young woman, barely out of childhood. Elizabeth was very old and had no children. Mary lived on the outskirts of the Holy Land, out in a small town in Galilee. Elizabeth is at the center of Jewish life, the wife of a priest, living in the bedroom communities of Jerusalem. It is clear that the women knew of each other, but not that they knew each other. Elizabeth’s pregnancy is an obvious blessing from God. Everyone knew her to have been barren until old age, like mother Sarah. Mary was a teenager pregnant outside of marriage. Likely, everyone assumed Joseph was a bit too eager and frowned upon it.

One thing is sure. A prompt visit to a distant relative was a wise thing —it allowed the community a chance to calm down about something they didn’t approve of. So imagine the joy of yet another miracle. The Holy Spirit filled Elizabeth. The baby John the Baptist, still in her womb, recognized the presence of the Messiah, still in her cousin’s womb, and leaped for joy. Elizabeth suddenly knew the whole truth — that God had become a man in the womb of her young relative. Mary was the God Bearer, the Mother of God. God had kept his promise — the Messiah had come to save His people from their sin.

Mary responded to Elizabeth with thanksgiving to God. She sings the first song in Luke’s musical. Called the Magnificat, which we sing in Vespers services. In this song, she marvels that God has so richly blessed a poor girl. She remains with Elizabeth for three months.

The early church fathers saw something special in the faith of these two women. Both of them believed what God revealed to them from the very start. Their husbands, Zechariah and Joseph, at first doubted. In the end, all four of them firmly trusted in God, who finally came to save — and did so through two very unlikely women, neither of whom should have conceived, one very young and one very old.

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

Ezra: The Scribe and Priest

The man we know as Ezra is the first to be identified as both a scribe and a priest. Ezra was a descendant of Aaron, and he can be considered the High Priest. The term scribe appears to imply that Ezra had royal administrative duties in addition to his priestly duties. Ezra knew the Torah of Moses extremely well, and he was sent to impose the Law of Moses once again in Jerusalem. Artaxerxes vested him with the authority to return to Jerusalem likely around 458 BC. I am working under the assumption that Ezra and Nehemiah were somewhat contemporaneous, as the two books suggest. Some other scholars want to see Ezra return later under the reign of Artaxerxes II (398 BC).

The book that Ezra wrote offers a bit of history of the rebuilding of the temple, which took place before Ezra arrived in Jerusalem. The first chapters deal with the people who were part of the first wave of returning exiles. Ezra highlights the work of Zerubbabel, Joshua the High Priest, and the prophets Haggai and Zechariah, who spur the people on in rebuilding the Temple of the Lord.

The interesting thing about this temple, however, was that unlike the Temple of Solomon or the Tabernacle in the days of Moses, Ezra never writes about the glory cloud coming and settling upon this new temple. This, in my opinion, tells the people and others that the true temple of God was yet to come, and we see the fulfillment of the temple in the flesh and blood of Jesus Christ, the only Son of the Father.

It is not until the seventh chapter of the book that we see Ezra come onto the scene in Jerusalem. As I said above, Ezra is known to King Artaxerxes as the priest and “scribe of the Law of the God of heaven.” Artaxerxes desires Ezra to go and continue in the work of serving the Lord in Jerusalem in the temple that Cyrus decreed could be built at the end of 2nd Chronicles, and relayed again in the book of Ezra through one of the many copied letters which certify YHWH’s promise of a remnant to return and worship in Judah (Jerusalem). This promised remnant plays a tremendous role in the promised Messiah being born in Bethlehem. As the exiles return and have the altar and foundation of the temple constructed, they celebrate the pilgrimage feasts of Passover and the Feast of Booths, which are held with great joy before and after Ezra comes. We should also assume that other High Days of the Israelite worship calendar are also celebrated, such as the solemn day of Yom Kippur, though it is not mentioned by name.

The book speaks a lot about bringing more items back to the temple for use, but the ninth chapter turns to a problem that Ezra encounters with the people settled in Jerusalem. The Jews had intermarried with the surrounding nations. The book highlights nations and peoples who should have been destroyed in the days of Joshua’s conquest. The remedy that Ezra orders is for the men to leave their wives and families. He orders this because the history of Israel was full of situations where Israel was led away from following the LORD by the daughters of foreign nations.

While this may sound extremely harsh, and it is, we must consider this from the theological perspective for a moment. The people of Israel were called to be pure, set apart for the Lord. Their earthly marriages were to reflect this greater reality and their relationship with the Lord. Paul in the New Testament also speaks about the great difficulties that come from being married to an unbeliever. We should heed the warnings that are presented both in Ezra and again in the New Testament about the estate of marriage and not enter into it lightly.

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. Jacob Hercamp
Christ Lutheran Church
Noblesville, IN

The Babylonian Captivity

The Babylonian Exile was a turning point in the history of God’s people. From the conquest of the land under Joshua until the fall of Jerusalem, the people of Judah enjoyed some measure of independence. Yet instead of serving the Lord, they repeatedly worshiped the gods of Canaan, ignored His law, and turned away from Him.

Because God loved His people, He remained patient with them. He sent prophets to warn them and call them back to His Word. Occasionally a righteous king like Hezekiah or Josiah would arise, and Judah would return to the Lord for a time — but never for long.

The kings who followed Josiah were as wicked as Josiah’s father. Because of their rebellion, God allowed first the Egyptians and then the Babylonians to bring Judah under their control. Rather than repent, Judah’s kings and people sinned even more. So the Lord began to remove His protection and allowed Babylon to impose a series of exiles.

So God removed His presence — the cloud of glory — from the Holy of Holies. The Babylonians captured the city, destroyed the temple, and carried the people away.

The Babylonians carried out three major deportations before Jerusalem finally fell:

In 605 BC, Nebuchadnezzar defeated Egypt at Carchemish and made Judah a vassal state. He carried off the first group of exiles, including young nobles such as Daniel and his companions.

In 597 BC, after Jehoiakim and Jehoiachin rebelled, Babylon returned. Nebuchadnezzar deported the king, the royal family, soldiers, craftsmen, and many leaders of Judah.

In 586 BC, after a two‑year siege, Jerusalem fell. The Babylonians destroyed the temple, burned the city, massacred much of the population, and carried the survivors into exile.

Just as the Prophet Jeremiah had foretold, the exile would last seventy years.

Yet God did not forsake them. He sent prophets to them throughout the exile. In Babylon, the people learned their lesson. They built the first synagogues, devoted themselves to God’s law, and began to shape the form of Judaism that continues to this day. As God promised through Jeremiah, after seventy years, the Persians conquered Babylon and sent the exiles home

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

Samson

Encore Post: Samson’s mother was unable to have children until God came to visit her and her husband Manoah. He came in the form of the Angel of the Lord. Many Christians believe this messenger is the Son of God appearing to people. The Angel always speaks as if He is God. Yet the people who see Him do not die, as unholy people do when they see God. God promised she would have a son. He was to be a Nazirite, a man who never cut his hair or drank wine. These were signs that Samson was to be fully dedicated to God.

Samson was the second-last judge of Israel, one of the leaders God raised up to defeat their enemies. He was from the tribe of Dan and lived in their southern territory near Jerusalem and bordering Philistine cities. The Philistines were moving into their territory peacefully and intermarrying with God’s people, threatening to absorb them. God would use Samson’s disobedient nature to provoke conflict with the Philistines and lead to eventually defeating them.

God gave Samson miraculous strength. He would use it to defeat wild beasts and repeatedly kill Philistines. He desired a Philistine woman for his wife. During the wedding, he made a bet with some Philistines, who cheated to win. Samson killed thirty Philistines to repay the bet. This escalated into one reprisal after another.

Samson’s downfall came when he fell in love with another gentile woman, Delilah. The Philistines bribed her to try and learn the secret of his strength so they could defeat him. Three times he lied to her and defeated the Philistines who came for him. The fourth time he told her it was in his hair, which by his Nazirite vow, he was to keep uncut. This time his strength left him. In captivity, when his hair regrew, he prayed that he would have his strength back to defeat the Philistines one more time. God granted it, and Samson pulled down the pillars of the temple of the Philistine god, killing them and himself.

Samson isn’t the kind of role model we want our children to follow. He was violent, mean, and vindictive. He was the kind of man you didn’t cross. Samson, in spite of his sinfulness, relied on God for his strength. For this reason, God used him to defeat the Philistines. Even after Samson’s vow was broken, Samson remembered to turn to God for strength.

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

David Anointed King

[Twenty-Eighth in a series of posts on Bible Stories]

Encore Post:

In ancient times, people poured oil on themselves for various purposes, including as perfume, medicine, and to signify that something or someone was dedicated to serving God. Doing this was called anointing.

Anointing was a part of the ceremonies to make a king the ruler of Israel or a priest to serve God in performing sacrifices. The word “Messiah” comes from the Hebrew word that means “anointed one.” It was translated into Greek as “Christ.”

Before Jesus was called “Messiah,” the title pointed to another anointed one: David. When God chose him to be king, the prophet Samuel anointed him with oil—not simply to crown him, but to mark him out as someone set apart for God’s purpose. Though David was the youngest son, overlooked by others, God saw his heart. That moment of anointing wasn’t about politics or ceremony; it was about calling. From then on, David became the pattern—a king with flaws, yet deeply loved by God—through whom the promise of the true Messiah would come.

As the prophets God sent to Israel predicted more and more about the coming of Jesus, they began to use these words as the title for God’s Son. When the prophet Nathan promised that a descendant of David would be the Messiah, they also came to call this promised savior “The Son of David.”

Jesus is the Messiah promised. He did not come to be served, but to serve others and give his life for us. In this way, he truly is the man after God’s own heart.

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

David and Saul

[Twenty-Seventh in a series of posts on Bible Stories]

Encore Post:

David was a good man. He was a soldier who defended his king and his country. The people loved him and loved King Saul because of him. Prince Jonathan was his best friend. Princess Michal loved him and married him.

Yet King Saul was jealous of him. Like most kings, he was afraid of anyone who might take his kingdom from him. Because Saul saw David as a threat, he missed out on the good things a loyal and talented son-in-law could bring him. So, Saul tried to kill David. Jonathan and Michal warn David and help him escape Saul’s grasp. The future king seeks Samuel, and together they hide in the wild areas near Bethlehem. For a while, he hid in various Philistine cities and eventually returned to caves near Bethlehem. Members of his family and four hundred fighting men gathered with him there.

Soon, Saul would send an army to look for David and eventually led them. They played a cat-and-mouse game for some time. Twice, David snuck into Saul’s camp and took a personal item from him. Each time, he would display the item to Saul in the morning to prove his loyalty. Eventually, Saul gave up the effort to catch David and went after the Philistines. Saul, Jonathan, and most of Saul’s sons died in battle with them.

David would have been justified in taking the throne from Saul. No one would blame him if he killed Saul. But David loved God and Saul. He remained loyal until the day Saul and Jonathan died. Even when he had chances to kill Saul, he spared the king. After their deaths, he assumed the throne of Israel. For the rest of his life, he protected the disabled son of Jonathan.

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