Friday, December 25, 2009

Birth of Christ: A Preview and Preface


Nevertheless, there will be no more gloom for those who were in distress. In the past he humbled the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, but in the future he will honor Galilee of the Gentiles, by the way of the sea, along the Jordan-The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of the shadow of death a light has dawned.

 You have enlarged the nation and increased their joy:  they rejoice before you as people rejoice at the harvest, as men rejoice when dividing the plunder. For as in the day of Midian's defeat [Read Judges 6 and 7], you have shattered  the yoke that burdens them, the bar across their shoulders, the rod of their oppressor. Every warrior's boot used in battle and every garment rolled in blood will be destined for burning, will be fuel for the fire.


For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on David's throne and over his kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and forever. The zeal of the LORD Almighty will accomplish this.  Isaiah 9:1-7


Tomorrow I will begin my own Twelve Days of Christmas. There won't be a partridge or pear tree in sight, but plenty of Angels, shepherds and Wise Men.

Have you ever considered the name of this Holiday, Christmas? What does that word mean? The "Christ" seems obvious enough, I mean we are celebrating Christ's birthday. Does "mas" mean birth? No, the word is actually two words squashed together and means "Christ's Mass".  Of course, most of we Christians associate the word Mass with the Roman Catholic Church, but then where does that come from? Does Mass simply mean a large crowd coming together for worship? No, Mass is the English equivalent of the Latin, "Ite missa est", which means, "you are dismissed." This predates the Roman Catholic Church and goes back to the early celebrations of the Lord's Supper, or Communion. Communion in those days became known as the, "Dismissal". There are two theories of the origin of this name for Communion and most likely it is combination of both for both make sense. One is that before Communion was taken, those who were not members of the group were dismissed. The other is at the end of the Communion the leader would say, "Ite missa est". Thus the word Mass actually refers to  the Lord's Supper or Communion.
The interesting thing is this ties the word Christmas when we celebrate the birth of Christ with the practice Christ instituted as remembrance of His death and resurrection.  Without that death and resurrection there would be no reason to celebrate the birth.
Of course, this birth wasn't always celebrated. To do so was once considered irreverent for such celebrations were done for Pagan Gods.  Before 273 when December 25 was settled upon, there were a number of speculations on the date. One theory put it as March 21 because it was believed that was the date when God created the Sun. I imagine the actual date varied because it was accepted the Sun had been created on the fourth day, which was Wednesday and I imagine then Christ had to be born on a Wednesday. Well, maybe, after all Christ has been called "the Man of Sorrows" and "Wednesday's Child is full of woe". But nobody really knows the actual date.
So why December 25? Well, Constantine kind of made it the official date when he gave Christianity most favored religion status and created the Holy Roman Empire in 336, but the date had become traditional as far back as 273. It was chosen as an easy transition for Pagan converts who already had big celebrations on that date. December 25 was natalis solis invicti. You can almost figure that out. Nativity or birth of the solis (sun) invicti (victorious or something similar). It actually translates as "birth of the unconquered sun". Okay, because we Christians are celebrating the birth of the real unconquered Son.
Another celebration that was popular with the Roman Soldiers also occurred on that date. This was the birthday of an Iranian god, Mithras, Sun of Righteousness".  Lot of worship of the sun in those days. people also had big festivals to the winter solstice around the same time of year. (You might view this as a predecessor to the modern religion of Global Warming.)  At any rate, we took a lot of the trappings of this holiday from ancient Pagan celebrations: "gift-giving and merrymaking from Roman Saturnalia; greenery, lights, and charity from the Roman New Year; Yule logs and various foods from Teutonic feasts" (sources: www.orlutheran.com, www.christianitytoday.com, www.scrollpublishing.com, Wikipedia).


Personally, I feel December 25 would have been closer to the conception than the birth of Jesus. Why? The major events surrounding Jesus generally correspond to the Jewish holidays. His death was at Passover, the Holy Spirit came on Pentecost, etc. I believe His birth may have corresponded to one of the fall feasts, Yon Kippur perhaps. We also know shepherds were in the fields around Bethlehem at the time and that would be odd for December, but not in September. By October, however, shepherds would be bringing their sheep out of the fields into more protective environs before winter set in.
Jesus was six months younger than his cousin, John the Baptist. I believe there is good reason to think John was born around Passover, "the Elijah who is expected each Passover".  If Passover fell in March of that year, then Jesus would have been born in September. Counting back nine months would have put the conception in December.
Anyway, Here are some things you need to know if you read my next twelve posts:




This is more than just the Scripture text of Christ's birth. The four Gospels are harmonized as a narrative with a number an annotations to explain the time and the stories behind the story. Passages in the narrative are color coded on this manner:

OLD TESTAMENT, MATTHEW, MARK, LUKE and JOHN
The words of Christ are in Red.
Text in BLACK is non-scriptural interjections or alternate translation.
The Scriptural texts used come from the New International Version.
Some redundancy has been edited out of the narrative.
About the color-coding: there has been a traditional assignment of colors to represent key aspects of Scripture. Blue represents prophecy, brown represents temporal blessings, red represents salvation and green represents the Holy Spirit.
The four Gospels also address four aspects of Jesus Christ in their thematic approach to His life.  Matthew is His Kingship, Mark is He as Servant, Luke is He as Savior and John addresses His Deity.
I have tried to match the colors to the Gospel and attribute. However, I chose to use orange for Luke (Savior and salvation) in order to reserve red for the Words of Christ.
I use Blue for the Old Testament quotes because, in most cases where they apply to the Gospels, they are prophetic.

I hope you will enjoy this and find it informational. It will begin tomorrow with the pre-incarnate Christ and some background on the changes in the 400 years between the Old and New Testaments.
Meanwhile, I wish all my readers a very Merry Christmas and God's blessings in the New Year.


Your servant for Christ, Larry



Illustration: "Angels Announcing the Birth of Christ to the Shepherds" by Govert Teunisz Flinck, 1639

Saturday, November 28, 2009

The Heavier the Cross, the Stronger the Shoulders by Rachel King



These are all warning markers—danger!—in our history books, written down so that we don't repeat their mistakes. Our positions in the story are parallel—they at the beginning, we at the end—and we are just as capable of messing it up as they were. Don't be so naive and self-confident. You're not exempt. You could fall flat on your face as easily as anyone else. Forget about self-confidence; it's useless. Cultivate God-confidence.
No test or temptation that comes your way is beyond the course of what others have had to face. All you need to remember is that God will never let you down; he'll never let you be pushed past your limit; he'll always be there to help you come through it. 1 Corinthians 10:11-13 (The Message)



For the first time, I am welcoming a guest writer to “Night Writing in the Morning Light. This article submitted to me by Rachel King seems apropos to our current little series on depression. Hopefully Ms King will appear occasionally at this site with her perspective. Below is some information about Rachel taken from the site for which she writes regularly as well a brief blurb of that site’s purpose.


       "Ms. King recently graduated from the University of Houston and has experience in the print journalism world. She was involved in many different Christian organizations while attending college. She uses this to her advantage while researching and producing Christian material for this website. Ms. King focus is to provide adequate and reliable information to the Christian community at large. Her hobbies include being active in her church community, knitting and watching a good movie.


       "Christian Universities is devoted to providing Christian students who are considering attending an online Christian university with an explanation of their choices and reviews of the costs and benefits."


The Heavier the Cross, the Stronger the Shoulders
by
Rachel King


Being human means we must undergo pain and suffering; no one goes through life with just positive experiences alone, and in fact, some of us endure more trials and tribulations than others. If we ask the question Why, we would have no answer. How do we know why certain people are chosen to suffer while others are not? The Bible tells us that God has a reason for everything that happens, that it is all part of his greater plan. So when something bad happens, perhaps you were chosen to be at the receiving end because:


·      God knows that you are strong enough to bear it. He has given you a cross that your shoulders can carry. If someone else with a weaker mentality had suffered this trouble, they would have broken down under the strain. Remember, the heavier the cross, the stronger the shoulders that God has chosen to bear it.


·      God trusts that you have the courage and strength to solve the problem and get past it. He has given you the tools needed to meet troubles head on and tackle them without batting an eyelid. He has made you a shrewd, mature and clever person who knows how to solve problems and get past them.


·      Troubles make us stronger people; they condition us to be able to take the ups with the downs and the rough with the smooth; and they teach us to take things in their stride instead of being affected by trials.


·      They bring us closer to God. It’s a sad but true fact of life that we think of God and become closer to Him only when we’re affected by troubles. We hardly ever pray when we’re happy and satisfied with life, even to offer gratitude and praise the Lord. So perhaps a small setback is just what you need to renew your relationship with God.


·      This setback is just a stepping-stone to achieving greater things. When I had to undergo knee surgery, little did I know that it was the foundation for me gaining stronger legs and a slimmer body. All the physical therapy in the gym to get my knee flexible and mobile again made me reduce my weight significantly and completely changed the way I looked. So in essence, my torn ligament was a blessing in disguise, a blessing I had to wait a year to realize.


So the next time you feel a problem is insurmountable, just close your eyes and pray for strength to accept and solve it, and you can rest assured God will show you a way out. After all, if He has led you to it, believe that He will lead you out of it too.
 
By-line:
This guest post is contributed by Rachel King, who writes on the topic of Online Christian Universities . Rachel welcomes your comments at her email address: r.king8383@rediffmail.com.

Sunday, November 15, 2009

MORNING AFTER THE NIGHT BEFORE




SECTIONS


Part I      --    First Things
Part II     --   Afflictions
Part III   --   Christian
Part IV   --   Depression
Part V    --    Speculations (About Martha & Mary
Part VI   --   Last Things

PART I -- FIRST THINGS

Wednesday, October 21, 2009

We the People...and This Here Person


[This is a piece I wrote that appeared on another Website back in 1999. It seemed befitting to reprint it here.]




“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.”

I thought it might be well to mention that this site supports free speech.  Apparently this kind of statement upsets some folk.  I refer anyone upset by the idea that someone supports free speech to the quote at the beginning of this eruption.  It is the first amendment of the Constitution of the United States, and it may just be the most important few words in that document.
For anyone who drifts by here who does get upset when they read that this site supports freedom of speech and begins to conjure an assault upon their tender eyes from a sty of vile language, or perverted sexual images, or manic outlines for reaping violence against people, places and things, be assured one will not find such here. This site would be rated PG at worst.
I would say this site would not contain comments or words that are offensive to anyone except it is impossible for anyone to make that claim.  There is always someone, somewhere who is offended by the most innocuous statement or interprets a comment wrongly and takes offense.  I can’t prevent this from happening anymore than anyone else can, unless I were to say nothing at all and present blank pages to the world, and if that were to be happening, then we would know there is no more freedom of speech.
If I ever write something that offends, I hope you will take the time to examine why it offends you.  I can assure it wasn’t intended to offend.  Everything expressed on these pages is opinion, and you can agree, disagree or be indifferent to it, but you shouldn’t take it personally.  If something does offend, well frankly you have a right to be offended!  If you give up your right to be offended, then the rest of us must give up the right to speak freely, and once that happens the rest of our freedoms will also soon be surrendered.
Remember, when you open someone’s site and you read something that truly offends you...you don’t have to go back there anymore!  But you should at least consider what the person is saying, should form some ideas why it offended you, should form some ideas of why you disagree, should form some ideas about why you are right in your thinking and they are wrong.  And if you are concerned about the reaction of children to any content, for gosh sake discuss it with your children and make it clear to them what is wrong with it.
There use to be a quote: “I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it. This was a paraphrase of a statement written by the Frenchman Voltaire to a M. le Riche: “Monsieur l’Abbé, I detest what you write, but I would give my life to make it possible for you to continue to write.”  The truth is once we begin to decide we can put limitations on what can be said, we have destroyed freedom of speech.
I would also say, so what if someone writes a diatribe of invective against a people, a race or a religion?  Doesn’t that say more about that speaker then those spoken against?  The object must be to cut through the emotional reaction to words and cool them off with logical argument against such ideas.  If the ideas expressed are that of my enemy, I would still rather know this is my enemy and this is what she or he thinks, then to have my enemy banned from my view where they are busy planting verbal daggers in my back. 
Freedom of speech is our right by the Constitution.  It is the way we have to express ideas, good or bad, and place them in open debate.  It is the one weapon we all have to protect our other freedoms, and it is the power of such a freedom that makes many groups, and politicians, and others wish to limit speech and dictate what is proper to say.  You may hate what someone says, but when someone can speak against you, and you can speak against him or her, then you know for a while you are still free and safe.   When you must guard your expressions and avoid certain subjects is when you are in danger. 
There is reason to feel in danger today.

Saturday, October 3, 2009

Dad




When I was a boy in my father's house,
still tender, and an only child of my mother,

he taught me and said,

"Lay hold of my words with all your heart;
keep my commands and you will live. Proverbs 4:3-4

Well, maybe not.

They only commands I can remember my dad ever telling me to lay hold of were these: "Don't get an 'F' and don't get a girl in trouble."

Perhaps not a lot of guidence, yet as I consider it, fairly good advice. Making an effort to never fail and avoiding the disasters of immoral sex are not that bad a credo for success in life, at least from a purely secular viewpoint.

Although relations between my father and I were strained when I was a child, I look at my father with a great deal of admiration today. He had his flaws, but in many ways he is a good role model and he always provided. Given his own tough start in life that is saying a lot.

He was born in 1918. We are celebrating his 91st birthday this weekend.

In the first picture in this post, my dad is the boy on the far left, the one with his mother's arm about him. His youngest brother, Francy, is the blond boy next to him. His other younger brother is on the right in front of their father, Benjamin
Franklin Meredith III. His father had about a half-dozen years left to live when this photo was taken. Everyone else in the photo is now deceased, except my dad.

My father left school after sixth grade. He had missed some schooling because they thought he had Tubercolousous as a child. They were wrong, he didn't. Then as he began in Jurior high, he decided he had enough of books and teachers and he quit. he became a poster boy for a bad example. He would wander down and loiter on a bridge near the school. One day a teacher pointed him out and told the class to "take a good look at a fellow who would never amount to anything".

My dad was cursed from the beginning. His grandfather owned a lot of property where they lived and several houses in the county seat of West Chester. he also had a farm and a general store. My father was named for his Grandfather, William Wilson Meredith. It didn't help. His grandparents hated him from day one.

My father's mother, Florence, worked for the family. She married his father in 1918. He was 19, she was 27. My father was already conceived at the time of the marriage. His grandparents resented Florence, claiming she seduced the boy, that she was a golddigger and they took their anger out on my dad, although a
newborn has no responsibility in the choices of those who created him.

When my father was 18, his own dad died of pneimonia, as did his maternal Grandfather and his Grand Uncle. All three died within a couple of weeks of each other. My dad went into the CCC (Civilian Conservation Corps) in order to support his mother and two brothers. There was little support or encouragement coming from his paternal grandparents. His Grandmother tried to prevent him from doing this. "You aren't joining the CCC. That's for nobody but ne'er-do-wells and niggers." [I debated using that word, but I don't believe in hiding realities for the sake of sensibilities. This is a quote and reflects both the mean attitude of my dad's grandparents toward him and the prejudices of those times.]





My dad spent time in the CCC and worked on the Skyline Drive in Virginia. The money he made went back to his mother. She and his brothers lived in a home owned by his grandfather in Modina, Pennsylvania on a street then called Meredith Row. (Now called Meredith Court it is made no more upscale by the name change.)







My dad met my mother on a blind date to an amusement park. They obviously hit it off. My mother lived in Whitford with her parents. My dad would walk the ten miles from his home to hers to visit. he would often stay for supper and sometimes sleep on their porch overnight before hiking back to Modina.

I don't think they were a bad looking couple. (I once had a head of hair like that, too.)


My dad was 5 foot 11 and had a very muscular build in his youth. My mom was 5 foot 2, with eyes of blue and auburn red hair.


Between 1936 and 1938, David O. Selznick conducted a nationwide search for a "fresh face" to play Scarlett O'Hara in the film "Gone with the Wind". I imagine it was more a publicity stunt than a serious talent
search, but my mother was one of the hundreds of young women interviewed. My mother would have been 16 to 18 years old at the time. I don't have a phot of her at the time. I do have one at age 15.

My mom and dad married on her birthday in 1940. (I came a year and a week later.)


Tuesday, April 28, 2009

Christian: Two - Politically Incorrect is being...

Blessed are you when men hate you, when they exclude you and insult you and reject your name as evil, because of the Son of Man. "Rejoice in that day and leap for joy, because great is your reward in heaven. For that is how their fathers treated the prophets...Woe to you when all men speak well of you, for that is how their fathers treated the false prophets. Luke 6:22-23, 26  

You were running a good race. Who cut in on you and kept you from obeying the truth? That kind of persuasion does not come from the one who calls you. "A little yeast works through the whole batch of dough." I am confident in the Lord that you will take no other view. The one who is throwing you into confusion will pay the penalty, whoever he may be. Brothers, if I am still preaching circumcision, why am I still being persecuted? In that case the offense of the cross has been abolished.  Galatians 5:7-11 

"Aaaah-chooo!"

"God bless."

"Here we go."

"What do you mean?"

"Waving your Bible in my face trying to save me."

"I was just being polite."

"Yeah, then what's that you're holding?"

"My Bible, but I wasn't waving it anywhere. I'm going to church."

"Oh yeah, off to your (bleeping) holier-than-thou club."

"Why don't you come with me?"

"See there you go. (Bleeping) trying to tell me how to live."

"No, I just thought if you came you might see it isn't what you think. Maybe you would even enjoy it."

"Don't you go judging me and telling me what I should enjoy. Hey, I don't need that (bleep)." 

"I wasn't jodging you or telling you to do anything. I just wanted you to see what we really believe"

"Bull(bleep).  You want to believe that stuff, fine, but just keep it the (bleep) to yourself."

"I can't and still claim to be Christian."

"Hey, nobody has a right protalyzing people all the time."

"Such as which polital candidate to vote for?"   

"That's different."

"No, it really isn't. It's just a far more intrusive prostalyzing for a particular viewpoint of lesser inport"

"Go to Hell!"

"No, I won't."

"Yeah, but you wish I would."

"I didn't say that."

"But you think it. Your so full of hate you want anyone who disagrees with you to go to Hell."

"Christians full of hate can't be Christians. Actually  



 "You (bleeping) intolerant, narrow-minded (bleep). I'll see you in hell."

"No, you won't. But I truly hope I'll see you elsewhere."

"Oh, come on. 


I hear quite often how Christians are intolerant. In their mind this intolerance is defined as holding to our belief that the only way to God is through Jesus Christ. But holding strongly to a certain belief is not being intolerant. I don't think these people really know the definition of the word:

Intolerant - (a.) unwilling to grant equal freedom of expression especially in religious matters; (b.) unwilling to grant or share social, political, or professional rights: bigoted. [Merriam-Webster Dictionary]

Intolerant - 1. refusal to accept differences: unwillingness or refusal to accept people who are different from you, or views, beliefs, or lifestyles that differ from your own. [Encarta)






Sunday, March 15, 2009

John the Baptist's Fashion and Diet Tips

I added some additional informtion to my Harmony and am also posting it here.  This answers some questions I was asked in the comments, as well. LEM 

Perhaps we should talk about John’s appearance and diet here.  I have seen several artists’ renderings of John the Baptist and some present a character out of the Flintstones, a Neanderthal of a man in a brief costume of fur. All he needs is a thick club resting on his shoulder and he could be Ally Oop.  It others and some films, he is presented in an unruly long beard and a great bush of untamed hair as if performing a Wild man of Borneo act in the circus sideshow. Why would throngs of people come out to be baptized by such a creature? They’d more likely flee the other way thinking him possessed.

Scripture simply says he wore clothing made of camel hair and a leather belt around his waist. His clothing has been wove from camel hair didn’t necessarily have to look much different from what others wore.  Some Bible historians believe he wore a simple robe similar to and recognized as that worn by many Old Testament Prophets, for indeed, he was the last of these.

I rather imagine John was pretty clean; after all, he spent most of his day in water. His hair and beard may have been kept smoothed down by that element. Besides, nowhere in scripture does it say he was anymore hairy than anyone else. Some suppose he was a Nazirite because Gabriel had told Zechariah, “He is never to take wine or other fermented drink”.  But it is never said a razor will never touch his head. John MacArthur is one who claims he was a Nazirite, but nowhere in Scripture does it say John took such a vow. He may have had a well-trimmed beard and been bald for all we really know.

PORTION OF THE NAZIRITE VOW

1 The LORD said to Moses, 2 "Speak to the Israelites and say to them: 'If a man or woman wants to make a special vow, a vow of separation to the LORD as a Nazirite, 3 he must abstain from wine and other fermented drink and must not drink vinegar made from wine or from other fermented drink. He must not drink grape juice or eat grapes or raisins. 4 As long as he is a Nazirite, he must not eat anything that comes from the grapevine, not even the seeds or skins.

 5 " 'During the entire period of his vow of separation no razor may be used on his head. He must be holy until the period of his separation to the LORD is over; he must let the hair of his head grow long. 6 Throughout the period of his separation to the LORD he must not go near a dead body. 7 Even if his own father or mother or brother or sister dies, he must not make himself ceremonially unclean on account of them, because the symbol of his separation to God is on his head. Numbers 6:1-7

 

The other question about John concerns that Breakfast of Champions, locusts and wild honey.

We probably have no difficulty with the honey part. Honey is one of our oldest known foods, being mentioned as such as far back as 2100 BC; that’s BC, folks. Honey is “an organic, natural sugar alternative with no additives that is easy on the stomach, adapts to all cooking processes, and has an indefinite shelf-life.”

John the Baptist is living in the wilderness and is going to eat what is available and plentiful there. Grasshoppers or Locust (there is a difference, but most people wouldn’t make the distinction*** on seeing one, nor do the Gospel writers necessarily make one and translations sometimes say grasshoppers) are a common food in certain regions of the world. John probably found them delicious when sweetened by honey. The word translated as locust is “akris”.

 

Akris: a locust, particularly that species which especially infests oriental

 countries, stripping fields and trees. Numberless swarms of them almost every spring are carried by the wind from Arabia into Palestine, and having devastated that country, migrate to regions farther north, until they perish by falling into the sea. The Orientals accustomed to feed upon locusts, either raw or roasted and seasoned with salt (or prepared in other ways), and the Israelites also were permitted to eat them.

 

There are, however, some winged creatures that walk on all fours that you may eat:

 those that have jointed legs for hopping on the ground. Of these you may eat any kind of locust, katydid, cricket or grasshopper. But all other winged creatures that have four legs you are to detest. Leviticus 11:21-23

This all seems pretty clear, so why any question?

 There are some who argue the word “Akris” was really “enkris”.  This mistake seems unlikely given the number of preserved Septuagint text and all the many scholars who have translated and studied it. Surely, they would have picked up this error. Enkris means, “cake”. There was a Greek delicacy called Enkris, but John was in the desert, not it an Athens’ Starbucks having his latte and enkris.

Others argue what John was eating the fruit of the Locust Tree. This is an evergreen tree that grows as high as fifty feet and in the spring produces a huge quantity of pods called Carob. These pods are sweet inside (lot of sweet piling up here with the honey). In some parts of the East, these pods are called “St. John’s Bread” and people there believe this is what John the Baptist ate. And Carobs are dried and used as food for both cattle and people.

 But I don’t think John was out there harvesting and drying Carobs, I think he was catching and nibbling the insect, perhaps roasted with a little salt or eaten raw with a dab of honey.  There is nowhere in the Septuagint where Akris means pod or anything other than the insect. When you read the Bible, stick to the simplest exclamation. Why make this a cause for vegetarianism?

There is nothing in the statement that “his food was locust and wild honey” that precludes John eating other things. At the time of his ministry he was pretty busy and these things were handy and easy to prepare. Growing up he probably ate the traditional kosher meals of his parents and even as an adult might have had occasion to supplement his regular limited diet. And since John would have been very exact in trying to obey God in all things, he surely took part in the required Ceremonies and Feasts. And eaten the Passover lamb. So, lets focus more on his purpose and his ministry than his mealtimes.

***It is very common for people in my area to call the cicada, locust and to call actual locust, grasshoppers, since locust and grasshoppers look very similar. A cicada does not resemble either much, though.

Friday, March 13, 2009

Seeking Harmony in Life through Harmonizing Words



SUNDAY, JANUARY 4, 2009


John the Baptist Prepares the Way

Matthew 3:1-6Mark 1:1-6Luke 3:1-6John 1:6-8


Perhaps some recall, in the beginning of the year I said one of my resolutions was to create my own Harmony of the Gospels in a translation I prefer. I try to also add some history and commentary as I go.  I have slowly been working on it. I have just gotten up to John the Baptist's ministry. I added the first part on John coming to the wilderness the other day. 

You will see on my Night Writing in the Morning Light Blog a Blurb to the right showing the last update. However, the latest will say "two months ago" and above you see a date of January 4.

This entry was not posted to my Harmony on that date.  I am backdating the posts so the narrative shows chronologically with the Scripture on my Harmony Blog, so the latest post always shows the earliest post date.  Just thought I'd confuse everyone). Maybe as I go I will also post each new entry here as well.

  Anyway, here was the first post on John appearing:



Judea spring of 26 A.D.


The beginning of the gospel about Jesus Christ, the Son of God, in the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar[Tiberius Claudius Nero BC42-AD37]-—when Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea [AD 26-36 Died AD39],, Herod [Antipas] tetrarch of Galilee [BC 4-AD 39 Died AD39],, his brother Philip tetrarch of Iturea and Traconitis[BC 4-AD 34 Died AD34], and Lysanias tetrarch of Abilene[AD 29 – see Note 1] — during the high priesthood of Annas[AD 6-15, President Sanhedrin AD15-66] and [Joseph, son of Annas, see note 2] Caiaphas, [AD18-37] the word of God came to John son of Zechariah],  in the desert.

 

Note 1.  An inscription was found on a temple from the time of Tiberius (the Roman emperor from 14 - 37 AD), which named Lysanias as the Tetrach of Abila near Damascus, just as Luke has written.

The temple inscription reads:

Huper tes ton kurion Se[baston] soterias kai tou sum[pantos] auton oikou, Numphaios Ae[tou] Lusianiou tetrarchou apele[utheors] ten odon ktisas k.t.l

Translation:

"For the salvation of the August lords and of all their household, Nymphaeus, freedman of Eagle Lysanias tetrarch established this street and other things."

The reference to August lords is a joint title given only to the emperor Tiberius (son of Augustus) and his mother Livia (widow of Augustus). This reference establishes the date of the inscription to between A.D. 14 and 29. The year 14 was the year of Tiberius' accession and the year 29 was the year of Livia's death.

Therefore the 15th year of Tiberius is the year 29 A.D., and it lies within the reign of the August lords. This evidence supports Luke's reference that Lysanias was a tetrarch around the time of John the Baptist (29 A.D.).

Note 2.  Annas, who’s name means "The grace of Jehovah" was the son of Seth and appointed high priest of the Jews in 6 A.D in his 37th year. He was high priest from 6 to 15 A.D. but as long as he lived he was the virtual head of the priestly party in Jerusalem. He was chosen to the high priesthood by Quirinius, the imperial governor of Syria; obliged to give way to Ismael by Valerius Gratus, procurator of Judaea, in the beginning of Tiberius' reign, 14 A.D. Eleazar, the son of Annas, followed Ismael; then Simon; then Joseph Caiaphas, son-in-law of Annas (John 18:13).

In the time of Christ high priests were appointed and removed at the command of the Roman governors. Although removed from office, Annas' power and influence was so great that five of his sons, as well as his son-in-law Caiaphas and his grandson Matthias, also became high priests. Years afterward he lost the high priesthood, but even then he was popularly considered as still in office and was called "high priest"; even after Pentecost his name appears first in the list of priestly leaders:

Acts 4:5-7 "And it came to pass, on the next day, that their rulers, elders, and scribes, as well as Annas the high priest, Caiaphas, John, and Alexander, and as many as were of the family of the high priest, were gathered together at Jerusalem. "

In John 18:19, 22 the high priest is undoubtedly Annas, although in vs. 13 and 24 Caiaphas is mentioned as the high priest. Annas is referred to in connection with the beginning of John the Baptist's ministry, which took place 
"in the high-priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas" (Luke 3:2 ), as though father and son-in-law were joint holders of the office.

It seems clear that due to his ability and force of character he was virtually high priest, although Caiaphas had the title. When Jesus was arrested, He was first brought before Annas (John 18:13). It was apparently Annas who questioned Him about His disciples and His teaching, and who gave orders to one of the officers standing by to strike Jesus with his hand (18:19-22). After the questioning, he sent Jesus "bound" to Caiaphas.

John 18:19-24 "The high priest then asked Jesus about His disciples and His doctrine. Jesus answered him, "I spoke openly to the world. I always taught in synagogues and in the temple, where the Jews always meet, and in secret I have said nothing. Why do you ask Me? Ask those who have heard Me what I said to them. Indeed they know what I said." And when He had said these things, one of the officers who stood by struck Jesus with the palm of his hand, saying, "Do You answer the high priest like that?" Jesus answered him, "If I have spoken evil, bear witness of the evil; but if well, why do you strike Me?" Then Annas sent Him bound to Caiaphas the high priest."

He was undoubtedly the ruling voice in the council that condemned Jesus, although nothing is said about his part in the proceedings that followed the preliminary questioning. He was present at the meeting of the Sanhedrin before which Peter and John defended themselves for preaching the Gospel of the Resurrection (Acts 4:6).

Annas is called "high priest," Caiaphas, John, and Alexander are called "of his kindred." He lived to old age, and he had five sons apointed as high priests.
 http://www.bible-history.com/HighPriests/NTHIGHPRIESTSAnnas.htm

 

 

 

In those days John the Baptist came, preaching in the Desert of Judea and saying, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near." This is he who was spoken of through the prophet Isaiah. As it is written in the book of the words of Isaiah the prophet:

 

"I will send my messenger ahead of you, who will prepare your way A voice of one calling in the desert, 'Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for him.

Every valley shall be filled in, every mountain and hill made low. The crooked roads shall become straight, the rough ways smooth. And all mankind will see God's salvation.'

1 Comfort, comfort my people, says your God.

2 Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and proclaim to her 
that her hard service has been completed, 
that her sin has been paid for, 
that she has received from the LORD's hand 
double for all her sins.

3 A voice of one calling: "In the desert prepare 
the way for the LORD; make straight in the wilderness a highway for our God.

4 Every valley shall be raised up, every mountain and hill made low; the rough ground shall become level, the rugged places a plain.

5 And the glory of the LORD will be revealed, 
and all mankind together will see it. For the mouth of the LORD has spoken." Isaiah 40: 1-5


There came a man who was sent from God; his name was John and so John came. He went into all the country around the Jordan, baptizing in the desert region and preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. He came as a witness to testify concerning that light, so that through him all men might believe. He himself was not the light; he came only as a witness to the light.

John wore clothing made of camel's hair, with a leather belt around his waist, and his food was locusts and wild honey.

People went out to him from Jerusalem and all the people of Jerusalem went out to him, and all Judea, the whole Judean countryside, and the whole region of the Jordan. Confessing their sins, they were baptized by him in the Jordan River.