In preparing this weeks blog I read some interesting facts I wanted to pass on to you in the Pew. Some books of the NT always garner a certain amount of discussion as to who wrote the book. Some of the writers are known beyond a doubt but Hebrews is one that has been caught up in the “who wrote it” thing. We can study that debate at a different time. But….. someone did have for me the best answer.

Origen made a famous remark: ‘who wrote the Letter to the Hebrews only God knows for certain’. (c. 185–c. 254), Christian scholar and theologian, probably born in Alexandria, Egypt. His most well-known work was the Hexapla, an edition of the Old Testament with six or more parallel versions.)

I like that and find it acceptable, a verbal point in a discussion in which I would lack the credentials to participate. We also read that no one really knew, lots of speculation as to the author but the book was well-loved and often read. It remained on the edge as to its inclusion in the NT due to this uncertainty. It gained that inclusion by being included on the list of the books written by Paul. Sometimes you will hear people argue that the number was fourteen, now you know why they do that. Moving past this here is an excerpt from William Barclay’s Daily Bible Study.

“To us, the author must remain a voice and nothing more; but we can be thankful to God for the work of this great nameless individual who wrote with incomparable skill and beauty about the Jesus who is the way to reality and the way to God.” ( Barclay, Daily Bible Study- Hebrews, Pages 10-11)

There is an urgent message in the Gospel that the years have diminished due to the demands and the influence of secular society. This message of salvation which came from the lips of our Lord has of lately become victim of our, we Christians to be exact, having a casual attitude to a gift we dare not neglect.

From Hebrews 2:1-4,
Hebrews 2:1–4
We must, therefore, with very special intensity pay attention to the things that we have heard. For, if the word which was spoken through the medium of the angels proved itself to be certified as valid, and if every transgression and disobedience of it received its just recompense, how shall we escape if we neglect so great a salvation, a salvation of such a kind that it had its origin in the words of the Lord, and was then guaranteed to us by those who had heard it from his lips, while God himself added his own witness to it by signs and wonders and manifold deeds of power, and by giving us each a share of the Holy Spirit, according as he willed it?

If we accept the theory of God’s truth being brought by the angels and ignored by people, ( Ten Commandments ) which brought punishment if broken, does it not magnify the importance of the revelation coming from the Son? The words spoken by Jesus Christ and to which God himself added his own “witness by signs, and wonders and manifold deeds of power”. With this salvation comes the blessing that Jesus Christ has broken down every barrier and opened a direct way for us to God. There are so many distractions today that the unique, “church first”, of us old timers is lost in a rush to fit into today’s list of must do’s. A massive re-arranging of changing priorities has lessened the place of the church in our society. I am not one of those doomsday advocates but I do believe we are allowing ourselves to drift into sin, which each day and each new priority we are pushed further and further from God. When we drift from our Christian beliefs we are then open to transgression and disobedience, which then leads to our refusal to hear God’s word or see his glory in others who have done a good work.

Our Christian faith is unique, it comes to us through the very voice of God, which comes to us in Jesus Christ. It must be transmitted to other people through those of us who know him. There is one other thing to be considered. The undeniable fact is that the effectiveness of Christian truth, the words spoke by God through His Son, does make bad people good.

“The theologian James Denney used to say, the ultimate object of Christianity is to make bad people good; and the proof of real Christianity is the fact that it can change the lives of individuals. The moral miracles of Christianity are still plain for all to see.”

It may well be fashionable in our world today to take a more casual attitude toward church, worship and relaxing the words of the Gospel to be more in line with societies expectations. This casual and neglectful attitude places us in danger of fulfilling our duty to God, the church and the lost. I pray that you may find your path to the good way, that it might be your Damascus road.

Thanks for being here in the Pew this week. Next week we will not publish but come back April 8th. I have a confession to make….. Life is Good

jk

This week we will look at another book in the New Testament that does not get a whole lot of attention. Here we get a chance to see Paul in the mode of a mentor and Titus learning the ropes so to speak. We do not know much about of the work of Titus. We do know that he was a Gentile who Paul took to Jerusalem with him. The new attitude in the church at that time and the Gospel itself allowed him with the agreement of the Jerusalem Council to not require circumcision. We know that he was a hard worker in the missionary field and Paul left him in Crete to finish the work he had begun there. Paul writes to counsel Titus concerning the work he had left him to do. Paul is very specific in his instructions. For those of us in the Pew this little letter is not one of the better known books, nor one we would ordinarily spend time with. Paul strongly believed that for a church to grow the people had to mature in the faith. He believed that three things were important and were the purpose of his Apostleship. The presence of and promotion of faith, knowledge and hope, the balance of which should be sought in all preaching and pastoral instruction. This being a blog we will not attempt to do a commentary, there being a great number of those out there already. Just a few points that make this book qualify for inclusion in my little gems, often overlooked and little read books of the Bible. Paul had some habits, if you will, that were common to him when summoning one of his followers to a task. The first four verses of Titus are a good example of those.

He always established what was he own right to speak and laying down the foundations of the gospel. He is an Apostle with a mixture of humility and pride. His whole life and being had been submitted to his to serving. He considered himself a slave of God which is in turn serving Christ. He chose the title of slave of God which gave him the right to take his place in the succession of past great prophets who served God. He wanted Titus to understand that if he was to be a messenger of Jesus Christ he must become a slave to God’s will in his life. It was not his own mental abilities or moral strengths that gave him authority, it was the authority of Christ, for whom he spoke.

He wished for Titus to know that the message of an Apostle is grounded on the hope of eternal life. The Christian gospel does not offer an intellectual creed, not even a moral code. It offers life through Jesus Christ. He shares with Titus that it is his duty to awaken faith in men and women. A faith which has as its foundation absolute trust in God. When we live our life in that kind of trust, we can then attend to our duty of offering others the opportunity to welcome God into their lives.

It will be Titus’ duty to also equip others with knowledge. To be sure our faith may not only be a response of our heart but it also must rule our minds. Emotion is an ever-changing thing but our Christian life must be a process of loving Christ more and more every day. The result of this faith and knowledge will lead us to living a truly Christ centered religious life. As I wrote earlier Paul was very direct and to the point. The letter continues on with Paul conveying to Titus the importance of rectifying any short comings of the new Church in Crete. Paul writes to Titus what Elders must not be and then follows up with guidelines to Titus, what Elders must be. Paul warns Titus of the false teachers of Crete, He even goes so far as to list one by one the characteristics that describe these false teachers.

All this and we have read through only the first eleven verses! There is no need to go any further to make my point. Point being, as a layman in the pew I know of no better example of the character of the Apostle Paul, his intent and unquestioned love and obedience to his calling than that which is stated in his own written words, in the very first chapter and verse of Titus. He proudly states that he is … the slave of God and the envoy of Jesus Christ.

Can we say that about our lives as we live them in these days? Titus is a letter that all the Church should read. It is as applicable today for us as individuals and I believe the church as a whole. Are we truly…the slave of God and the envoy of Jesus Christ.

Life is Good,

jk

This weeks reference materials: Commentaries : Adam Clark / William Barclay

He was 18 1/2 years old and more than just a cat. He was my daughter’s constant companion through some tough times and into the best of times, neither Wookie or Amy ever gave up on each other or what life sent their way. Wookie and Amy traveled all over East Tennessee as she grew in her chosen profession and to hear Amy tell it, until they reached the city of guitars and hockey pucks….Nashville Tennessee. He was never caged, Sitting beside her on road trips with only his leash and seat belt on. It was a match made in heaven….appropriately so because God created all living things and he loves all the animals just as he does us.

God loves life, God is life and there are many examples of different animals in the Bible. To mention a few, there are sheep, dogs, lions, deers, doves, eagles, fish, rams, bulls, snakes, rats, pigs, and many more. We all know the story of Noah, the ark and God’s instructions to Noah regarding the animals of the earth. Animal cruelty is a sin the Bible tells me so!

3. Proverbs 12:10 A righteous man has regard for the life of his animal, But even the compassion of the wicked is cruel.

4. Proverbs 27:23 Know the state of your flocks, and put your heart into caring for your herds.

God cares about animals.Improbable you say, or just, maybe I never thought of it that way.

Psalm 36:5-7 Your unfailing love, O LORD, is as vast as the heavens; your faithfulness reaches beyond the clouds. Your righteousness is like the mighty mountains, your justice like the ocean depths. You care for people and animals alike, O LORD. How precious is your unfailing love, O God! All humanity finds shelter in the shadow of your wings.

Matthew 6:25-27 Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink, or about your body, what you will wear. Isn’t there more to life than food and more to the body than clothing? Look at the birds in the sky: They do not sow, or reap, or gather into barns, yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Aren’t you more valuable than they are? And which of you by worrying can add even one hour to his life?

Psalm 147:7-9 Sing unto the Lord with thanksgiving; sing praise upon the harp unto our God: Who covereth the heaven with clouds, who prepareth rain for the earth, who maketh grass to grow upon the mountains. He giveth to the beast his food, and to the young ravens which cry.

Psalm 145:8-10 The LORD is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and rich in love. The LORD is good to all; he has compassion on all he has made. All your works praise you, LORD; your faithful people extol you.

Take the time to visit the web address listed here for a great read, biblically based, about God and the animals of creation. ( http://biblereasons.com/animals/)

Amy gave Wookie every moment of her time possible to care and comfort him in his last days. To me and not just because she is my daughter, Amy learned a lesson and taught us a lesson. We can all be nice when we want to but compassion for that which God has created, well thats a God thing. Compassion is caring and doing without conditions or limits. God loves us without conditions and for eternity and yes, God loves Wookie.

Thanks for coming by the Pew this week,

Life is Good

jk

 Reference Material 😦 http://biblereasons.com/animals/)

I have shared with you how much I admire and respect the many books and commentaries that are available to those of us in the Pew in this digital age. When I study or read these books and various commentaries, they are like a flashlight, brightly illuminating the words on the page, and leading me down a path of better understanding. One such set of books is a favorite of mine and today I would like to shine a little light on them. “The New Interpreter’s Bible.” The books of the Bible provide a rich and diverse subject matter, and I looked at several this week but Hebrews stayed on my mind. Didn’t know why until I pulled volume xii of the NIB off the shelf. Grab your flashlight and follow me as we read through the introduction to the“Book of Hebrews.” The information I am sharing is from the NIB’s introduction to the book of Hebrews. I have taken the liberty to reduce it to a more conversational manner.

Never considered that ones growth in faith could grow out of and be sustained by a conversation between the church and its Bible. Never even thought that reading my Bible might be considered as having a conversation but it is a refreshing and pleasing thought. We, who read and study the Bible, generation after generation, pass on our collective beliefs that make the relationships that define the Christian faith. To be sure there are other voices, even those that weren’t invited that also become part of the conclusions reached. We would like to believe that those conclusions reached were weighted in context by the Christian community and the Book. Not everyone in the community will have equal input and in some cases none at all. The NIB points out that not every book in the Bible participates equally in the conversation with the church. There is the caveat of the church’s willingness or ability to hear it, Hebrews being an example of this. It is not the least read, but it is about halfway out of the 66 books in popularity. It would be misleading to say the book of Hebrews has been left out of these conversations, it has not. The church has called on Hebrews many times, most commonly for a benediction at many church assemblies.

Hebrews 13: 20-21.²⁰ Now may the God of peace, who through the blood of the eternal covenant brought back from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great Shepherd of the sheep,²¹ equip you with everything good for doing his will, and may he work in us what is pleasing to him, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.

No need to cover all that is here in this introduction so if you will allow me, I will just wander through lifting a few things here and there. It is noted that the author of Hebrews has great skill in the use of the Greek language, more than any other New Testament writer. It is worth noting that there are some stunning facts worth sharing here. The NIB notes not only the skill in the use of language but that within this book we find “the finest example of homiletical rhetoric available to us from the first century CE.” (volume xii page 4 NIB) The skill and the use of old testament writings in this New Testament writing create a well deserved but not often expressed appreciation for the book of Hebrews. This next tidbit would have never come to my mind. Let’s be plain here, this kind of depth of study is not a common factor or trait of those of us in the Pew. One difficulty that this book has, its name! The Gospels, Acts and Paul are for the most part familiar ground for us in the pew. The placement of Hebrews near the end of the NT is sometimes read as a value judgment. There is yet another interesting observation in this introduction from NIB. Galatians, Corinthians and Philippians are seen as geographical designations and once there we find ourselves to be more alike the people there than different.

Hebrews, well that is not a geographical term, “it is ethnic, and ethnic distances are more complex, more difficult to negotiate, requiring more energy than some people are willing to expend.”(NIB page 4)

I have simply wanted to share with you the wealth of information available to us in the Pew that enriches our discernment of the Gospel as written. These are great times for us ordinary folks to gain insight into the extraordinary wealth of information available to us. That said, let’s finish this and save our batteries till next time we leave the pew.

There is much more contained in this “Introduction To Hebrews” but please consider this. For those who would use Hebrews to teach or preach, this book does little to dissolve the distance between it and the Church. There are not many “lessons for today” to be found in the text. Perhaps these might be some of the reasons that the “conversation” between Hebrews and the Church is not more intense.  I hope you have enjoyed this little detour from the ordinary this week. One more thing…..I could never have afforded the complete set of The New Interpreter’s BIBLE myself. They were given to me by a former Pastor of mine, The Rev. Tim Paul. I will be forever grateful for such a kindness.

God Bless, Life is Good

jk