One small step for a man .... one changed life

Not sure who may be reading this in blogsphere but I haven't been able to work on this blog for some 3 months.

At the beginning of April my wife and I went to Switzerland to visit our daughter who was working there. While at the top of Jungfraujoch I slipped and ended up in hospital in Interlaken for 5 days. All it took was one step on a slippery floor (which turned out to be ice!) and I fractured my fibula and broke my ankle in such a way that the tendon was almost detached. Two metal screws were inserted into my ankle. Tomorrow I see the orthopedic surgeon who will decide when to remove these metal screws.

This accident happened on the second day of our time in Switzerland! Having to listen to German non stop for five days I have resolved to make an effort to learn German to get it to a level so that I can use it effectively.

I was able to visit an OMF missionary friend in Zurich. My friend took me in a wheelchair to see the Grossmunster where Zwingli ministered and I have been inspired to read up more on the works of Zwingli and Bullinger.

I am reminded of a verse of Scripture that has always been special to me - Proverbs 16:9 "In his heart a man plans his course, but the LORD determines his steps".

I have been kept busy with ministry commitments and hamstrung with having to have a cast and having to walk with crutches for quite some time. I have just come back from being the last minute replacement speaker for our church camp.

I had one stimulating experience was when a visiting Indonesian New Testament scholar gave a seminar on his NT Greek/Indonesian Interlinear Bible with accompanying concordance. In referring to the parable of the rich fool he made a point about the verb in Luke 12:20 being 3rd person plural active. I had suggested to him off the top of my head that it might be a divine passive. When I did a cursory check via the internet I did discover an article that referred to 3rd person plural active used both in Hebrew and Aramaic to indicate the passive.

Has anyone got any thoughts on this?

Why was the stone moved?

In preparing for ministry this Easter I came across some previously unthought of ideas through my reading.

One is concerning the size of the rock that covered the tomb of Jesus. One source claimed that the entrance to the tomb was approximately 4-5 feet high (Peter actually went into the tomb, presumably bending over as John had to bend over to look into the tomb - John 20:3-9). This source estimated that the weight of the stone would be of the order of one and a half to two tons and that there is a variant reading to Mark 16:4 so that it reads "And when He was laid there, he (Joseph) put against the tomb a stone which twenty men could not roll away."

Is anyone aware of this variant reading? I will look further into this when I return from holidays. But I do note that Cranfield writes of this verse, "The MS. k has here quite an extensive gloss of an obviously legendary character".

Anyway, a very large stone would explain the question of the women, "Who will roll the stone away from the entrance of the tomb? "(Mark 16:3). Furthermore, it would concur with the reference of Joseph of Arimathea who was a 'member of the Council' and clearly a man of means (cf Isaiah 53:9).

Who moved the stone? Matthew 28:1-4 records that an angel of the Lord rolled back the stone. The verb apokulio is used here (also in Mark and Luke). Someone has suggested that this verb indicates that the stone had to be rolled up an incline? Anyone got any thoughts on this?

I think a more interesting question is - why was the stone moved?

We know that the resurrected body of Jesus was not bound by walls. Jesus could appear and stand among His disciples even though they had hidden themselves in a room (John 20:19ff). So imagine this scenario: On the third day the resurrected Jesus passes through the stone at the entrance of the tomb and reveals Himself to the disciples and the women. At first, they don't recognise Him but He eats in their presence as per Luke 24:36-42 and invited them to inspect His wounds as per John 20:24-28). They are eventually convinced of the resurrection. Then as reports of His resurrection begin to circle the Jewish authorities are mobilised into action. The Roman guard is asked to remove the seal and then 'roll away' the stone. But it will not be an 'empty tomb'. They will then see no body but just the grave clothes lying exactly as John has recorded it - John 20:6,7). This would then be more than ample evidence for the fact of bodily resurrection.

Why was the stone moved?

I am reminded of John 12:28 where the people around Jesus heard a voice form heaven "I have glorified it, and I will glorify it again". Jesus explained, "This voice was for your benefit, not mine" (John 12:30). I wonder if the reason the stone was moved was for the benefit of the disciples and the women. That is, so that Peter and John (and others) could see for themselves the 'empty tomb' and then, more readily, accept the reality of the resurrection when they met the resurrected Jesus. Had the stone not been rolled away would the disciples have accepted the fact of the resurrection (consider, for example, the reaction of the two that journeyed to Emmaus with Jesus)? Just a thought.

Have a blessed Easter!

Easter and God's plan

At our evening service on Sunday we sang the following contemporary song composed by Bryson Smith who ministers at the Presbyterian church in Dubbo, Central NSW, Australia:

At God's perfect timing
Christ died for fallen man
He wore a crown of thorns
Nails driven through His hands
Christ willingly endured it
To death He chose to go
He broke His body for us
Shed blood to make us whole

Nothing can I boast in
My life is scared with sin
My works are filthy rags
No merit can I bring
Yet mercy filled Christ's heart
Love took Him to the tree
It's grace alone which saves me
Christ's blood that sets me free

So, if I am boasting
I'll speak of my disgrace
For my weak self displays
The power of God's grace
Christ's Spirit works within me
In weakness He is strong
So I look to my Saviour
To safely bring me home

Many great biblical themes are alluded to in this great Christian song:

The first stanza contains a clear reference to Galatians 4:4 and God's plan for the salvation of men and women from Garden to Garden. The shedding of blood is a clear reference to Hebrews 9:22 and other NT passages which see the perfect sacrifice of Christ on the cross as a fulfillment of the OT sacrificial system to provide forgiveness, wholeness and reconciliation with God.

The second stanza has a reference to Isaiah 64:6 and affirms that righteousness is only found in Jesus who sets us free from the bondage of sin. Significantly, in the line 'love took Him to the tree' there is a reference to Galatians 3:13 which, in turn refers to Deuteronomy 21:23. Another clear link between the new covenant and the old covenant.

The third stanza refers to "Christ's Spirit works within me" and in so doing refers to the farewell discourse of John 14-16 with respect to 'going' of Christ and the 'coming' of another Paraclete. The presence of the Spirit in the life and ministry of Jesus and in the life of the believer is evidence that the kingdom of God is here (Acts 2:17-21). But the kingdom of God is yet to come as we look to our Saviour "to safely bring me home" - that is, back to the Garden. All of this is by God's grace according to His plan.

What a great Christian song set to great music!

Genealogies

In Australia it has has become the thing to trace one's genealogy all the way back, if possible, to the First Fleet which landed in Sydney Cove in 1788. Genealogies play a reasonably significant role in the Old Testament. Nehemiah has quite extensive genealogies. Both Matthew and Luke record genealogies of Jesus. This blog is concerned with God's plan for the salvation of men and women from garden to garden. That is from Eden to Paradise. The word 'edan' is the Javanese word for 'madness' or 'insanity'. There is only meaning in life and wholeness when we are part of God's plan from garden to garden.

The genealogy of Jesus emphasises that, down to every detail, everything is according to God's plan. The following are some inciteful thoughts about the genealogy of Jesus in Matthew taken from WJ Dumbrell's forthcoming book on the Synoptics and Acts (with permission from the author):

What are the names of five women doing in this genealogy? They seem to be carefully planned interruptions to its rhythm, revealing critical events and persons in the history of Israel. In each case, their inclusion averts a great threat to the fulfilment of God’s promise of a Messiah. There was also the stigma of illegitimacy about some of the births. Two of the five were suspected prostitutes (Tamar and Rahab) and one was an adulteress (Bathsheba), while stigma attached to Mary as well. The first four were all Gentiles but all five women entered into the messianic line in extraordinary ways!

Various explanations of their purpose in the line have been offered namely: God uses the humble and lowly in his total control of history. They indicate universality in a Gospel that will end on a universal note. There was something irregular or extraordinary in the backgrounds of these women, but they acted as God’s instruments to further his purposes for Israel. All of them, however, are dislocations within a normal genealogy and they prepare the reader for the most offensive dislocation of all - the virgin birth of Jesus in v. 16. Matthew's point, however in this carefully selected genealogical list, seems to be that in the strangest and most unexpected way, God had endorsed the promised line of Israel. We may imply from this that the life and ministry of Jesus will take Israel into totally new and unanticipated directions.

Signs of the times

Just led a Bible Study group on Mark 13 to a group of people from a culture with a strong understanding of a coming judgment day. The clear warnings about false christs and false prophets serve to emphasise the importance of rightly handling the Word of God and proclaiming the whole counsel to God to prepare God's people for the resurgence of false teaching prior to the parousia.