A state of denial (Acts 4)

Puppet rulers are not usually known for their courage or piety. The last Sultan of the Ottoman Empire, for example, was willing to surrender most of his country to foreigners, as long as his own palaces were untouched. The political rulers of Israel during this period were mostly Sadducees, a people who denied such things as the resurrection of the dead, and angels.[1] Let's look again into that ancient era, through the open window of İncil.

Act 4:1 Kâhinler, tapınak koruyucularının komutanı ve Sadukiler, halka seslenmekte olan Petrus'la Yuhanna'nın üzerine yürüdüler.
Act 4:2 Çünkü onların halka öğretmelerine ve İsa'yı örnek göstererek ölülerin dirileceğini söylemelerine çok kızmışlardı.

The chapter begins with the rulers in an uproar. Verse 2 shows why:

• Çünkü onların halka öğretmelerine -- Because / they / to the people / taught
  
• ve İsa'yı örnek göstererek ölülerin dirileceğini söylemelerine -- and / with Jesus / case / demonstration / from the dead / resurrection / they were telling
  
• çok kızmışlardı -- very / angry they are said to have been. (-mış-, you'll recall, indicates that the action is reported, rather than personally seen.)
  

The resurrection had obviously happened. The rulers had earlier bribed the gaurds at the garden tomb to say that they'd fallen asleep. Miracles were now being done in the Name of the Resurrected One. Yet, people who know that they do not occupy their positions on the basis of their own merits have a strong talent for denying the obvious. No one wants to admit that he's a puppet, a quisling.[2] An affirmative-action hire.

Yet all of us inherit the efforts of those who have gone before us. All of us are prone to self-delusion. I pray we may have mercy to live gratefully, and leave more behind us than we took out of life.

______________

[1] That is why they were "sad, you see!"

[2] A Mr. Quisling was the puppet ruler of Norway during that nation's time of occupation by the Nazis. His name has become a noun

One bright day in the middle of the night (Acts 3)

The Hellenistic mind writhed in misery when confronted with paradoxes. Lovers of this kind of rationalism have a great deal of trouble with religious realities. That "enlightenment" thinker Thomas Jefferson wrote about

... the flames in which their oracle ... consumed the poor Servetus, because he could not find in his Euclid the proposition which has demonstrated that three are one, and one is three ...

Yet something in us enjoys paradoxes. The world is too big, too amazing, too unruly, to cram into the confines of our paradigms. Pi does not equal 3.0. Paradoxes often form the heart of jokes and humor, those virtues that make life in a tragic world a delight. For example:

One bright day in the middle of the night,
Two dead boys got up to fight.
Back to back they faced each other,
Drew their swords and shot each other.
A deaf policeman heard the noise,
And came and caught the two dead boys.
If you don't believe this lie is true,
Then ask the blind man, he saw it too!

In Acts 3, we see a time in the life of our people when they had the leisure to walk to the temple day after day at 3:00 for the time of formal prayer. In medieval Europe, people would stop what they were doing and pray where they were when the bells rang. Muslims have a "window" of time during which they find a quiet room, face Mecca, and recite the set prayers for the hour. They do this five times a day. Somehow, though, the apostles, at least Peter and John, don't have jobs to go to. As they walk into the temple, they heal a beggar, and preach a sermon to the astonished onlookers.

A sermon loaded with paradoxes.

Act 3:12 Bunu gören Petrus halka şöyle seslendi: "Ey İsrailliler, buna neden şaştınız? Neden gözlerinizi dikmiş bize bakıyorsunuz? Kendi gücümüz ya da dindarlığımızla bu adamın yürümesini sağlamışız gibi...!
Act 3:13 İbrahim'in, İshak'ın ve Yakup'un Tanrısı, atalarımızın Tanrısı, Kulu İsa'yı yüceltti. Siz O'nu ele verdiniz. Pilatus O'nu serbest bırakmaya karar verdiği halde, siz O'nu Pilatus'un önünde reddettiniz.
Act 3:14 Kutsal ve adil Olan'ı reddedip bir katilin salıverilmesini istediniz.
Act 3:15 Siz Yaşam Önderi'ni öldürdünüz, ama Tanrı O'nu ölümden diriltti. Biz bunun tanıklarıyız.
Act 3:16 Gördüğünüz ve tanıdığınız bu adam, İsa'nın adı sayesinde, O'nun adına olan imanla sapasağlam oldu. Hepinizin gözü önünde onu tam sağlığa kavuşturan, İsa'nın aracılığıyla etkin olan imandır.

And, a few words:

• buna neden şaştınız? -- at this / why / you are astonished ?
  
• Neden gözlerinizi dikmiş bize bakıyorsunuz? -- Why / your eyes / fixed / on us / you are staring?
  
• Kutsal ve adil Olan'ı reddedip bir katilin salıverilmesini istediniz. -- The holy / and / the just / One / you betraied / a / villain / to be delivered / you wanted.
  
• Siz Yaşam Önderi'ni öldürdünüz, ama Tanrı O'nu ölümden diriltti. -- You / of Life / the Lord / you killed, / but / God / Him / from the dead / raised.
  

If Jesus was indeed the Lord of Life, the Ambassador from heaven, then ignoring him is the dealiest mistake any man, or nation, can make. Israel did not get away with this faux pas. I rather doubt we will, either (speaking as a US citizen).

The King and His Law (Acts 2)

We are approaching the Jewish festival of Shavuot, which commemorates the day when God gave the ten commandments to the world -- and to us. For a chuckle, follow this link.

The King has the right to lay down the law for his subjects. His Kingdom is one where the lives, properties, families, and reputations of His people are valued, and deemed worthy of protection.

Several times in sacred writ, when God assumes His earthly throne, it's amid flames. When Moses erected the tabernacle, for example, fire fell from heaven to defend the honor of the throne. When Solomon consecrated the temple, again, heavenly fire appeared.

As Peter told the astonished crowd on the day of Pentecost,

Act 2:32 Tanrı, İsa'yı ölümden diriltti ve biz hepimiz bunun tanıklarıyız.
Act 2:33 O, Tanrı'nın sağına yüceltilmiş, vaat edilen Kutsal Ruh'u Baba'dan almış ve şimdi gördüğünüz ve işittiğiniz gibi, bu Ruh'u üzerimize dökmüştür.

Jesus, raised from the dead, ascended into heaven, and sitting enthroned. Taking up residence among His people. Reversing the effect of the Tower of Babel, by empowering his people to make their message clear to all those around them, despite barriers of language or nationality.

Charles Wesley had an experience with divine regenerating grace on Pentecost Sunday, and wrote a Pentecost Carol to commemorate the day, and his experience. Every Methodist reader will recognize it!

O for a thousand tongues to sing
My great redeemer's praise,
The glories of my God and King,
The triumphs of His grace.

My gracious Master and my God,
Assist me to proclaim,
To spread thro' all the earth abroad,
The honors of Thy name.

Jesus the name that charms our fears,
That bids our sorrows cease.
'Tis music in the sinner's ears,
'Tis life and health, and peace.

He breaks the pow'r of canceled sin,
He sets the pris'ner free;
His blood can make the foulest clean;
His blood availed for me.

Hear him ye deaf; His praise, ye dumb,
Your loosened tongues employ;
Ye blind behold your Savior come;
And leap, ye lame, for joy.

Here's a youtube performance.

Oh, for a thousand Turks to sing ...

The stupidest question in the Bible. (Acts 1:6)

John Calvin said that this question had more theological errors in it than words:

Act 1:6 Elçiler bir araya geldiklerinde İsa'ya şunu sordular: "Ya Rab, İsrail'e egemenliği şimdi mi geri vereceksin?"

A few words:

• Ya Rab -- O, Lord? [1]
  
• İsrail'e egemenliği -- to Israel / the kingdom (think hegemony -- both derived from Greek)
  
• şimdi -- now
  
• mi geri vereceksin -- question mark / restoration / you will give
  

Let me insert an essay I wrote some 11 years ago!

The Stupidest Question in the Bible

It is hard to imagine a death more cruel than crucifixion. In order to breathe, the victim pulls himself up on spiked wrists, freeing his diaphram for the moment it takes to exhale, then sags back down again until the need for oxygen overcomes the excruciating pain of movement.

It is hard to imagine a regime more vicious than that of Rome, where the emperor fed his pet fish the flesh of costly educated slaves, where human beings slaughtered one another in arenas for the amusement of crowds, where madmen were adored as gods, as saviors.

It is hard to imagine a repudiation more total than that of the mobs in Jerusalem who begged the Romans to execute their messiah, screaming "Crucify! Crucify!"

It is hard to imagine a pledge of allegiance more clear than that of the same people crying out "We have no king but Caeser."

It is hard to imagine a prophecy less ambiguous than the verdict Jesus delivered, saying, "The kingdom shall be taken from you, and given to a nation that brings forth the fruits thereof."

It is hard to imagine a question more stupid than the one a mercifully anonymous disciple asked in Acts 1:6: "Lord, wilt thou at this time restore the Kingdom to Israel?" Go figure. Asking the King who had just been repudiated and crucified if He would, as a fitting recompense, now make the repudiating and crucifying apostates the top dogs of the world. Do I detect a disconnect? A lapse of sanity? Or, just the power of presuppositions to shape our thinking despite the evidence?

It is hard to imagine a response more gracious than the one Jesus gave: "It is not for you, O men of Galilee, to know the times and the seasons which the Father hath in His sole disposition; but ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you, and ye shall be my witnesses in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and unto the uttermost parts of the earth."

Only the man who was also God could turn the stupidest, most insolent question in the Bible into words of empowerment; "Folks, what happens to people X, Y, or Z is none of your business; but do I ever have a job for YOU!"

Consider a parallel example. In John 22, Peter asked Jesus, "What shall this man do?" Retorted Jesus, "If I want him to hang around until I come back, what business is that of yours? YOU follow me!" Jesus then told Peter more than he'd asked for about his own personal future -- being bound and led to execution.

Savor the pun used by that lover of words and word play, Paul. In I Tim., Paul explained that younger widows should not retire at church expense, because they often stopped being busy, and became busybodies. (In my own life, I tend to be most upset about what others are doing when I am least faithful and diligent in my own calling!)

When we put all this together, what conclusions can we come to? Perhaps, worrying about the future of an anti-Christian socialist state in the middle east is a waste of time. Perhaps, worrying about imaginary conspiracies is even worse. Assuming that the devil's people have the world by the tail provides an excuse for personal mediocrity. Fascination with conspiracies does not, however, glorify the sovereign God, who considers nations to be drops in the bucket, small dust on the scales.

The experience of God's people over the last three generations will provide amusement to future generations, when they are not grieving the patrimony we wasted. In the name of "prophecy teaching," fundamentalists gave up prophetic teaching. In 1973, while the people at Grace, Talbot, and Dallas Theological Seminary were refining and re-drawing their multi-colored maps of the future, and playing the latest game of "name the antichrist," the Supreme Court of the United States legalized human sacrifice. The silence of the Christian response was deafening -- until God used the Catholic part of His family to prophetically denounce the abortion holocaust.

Is the Word of God a tool of divination? A sanctified ouija board? A source for speculation about safely remote events? Or, does it have something to tell each of us about our own personal destinies? A wise man said, "God will never whisper the meaning of your life into another man's ear." Could the aspirations we cherish in our secret hearts point to our predestined assignments? The spheres of action where we can hope to "do exploits?"

Suppose God's word equips us for excellence in myriad personal callings? If that is the case, then a technical writer would learn from Leviticus to use redundant explanations, to spell out each step each time, in order to minimize page turning. He would read Numbers as a military commander's database, and learn how to format information for maximum usefulness. His technical manuals would have a reference section, and a case study/tutorial; an "Old Testament" containing the principles, and a "New Testament" showing how they are lived out.

A geologist could learn from Genesis that geological processes are far faster than he'd been taught. Although the great god Chaos might need billions of years to create an ordered universe by accident, the purposeful God of the Bible could do it all in six enumerated 24 hour days. And then, re-arrange the face of the earth with a global flood. Given this information, the godly geologist would not be surprised by confirming events at Mount Saint Helens.

What other vocations is God interested in? Let me put it this way: what has God called YOU to do? Will you turn to His word for information on how to do it better? Or for hallucinatory thrill rides through an imaginary future?

O Lord, show me how to make my life count for You!

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[1] O is vocative. Use it when trying to attract the attention of the party you are speaking to. When Winston Churchill was asked to provide the vocative case Latin noun for table ("O Table!"), he realized that he would never be an educated man! Oh is an intensifier, providing additional emphasis to the following word. Oh, no. Too much information!

second and third chances (John 21)

In one of the most humiliating moments of his life, Peter found himself inside the courtyard of the temple. After violently resisting[1] the arrest of Jesus in the garden of Gethsemane, Peter followed the mob at a discrete distance. At the courtyard, a disciple "who was known to the High Priest"[2] spoke to the gatekeeper and secured admission for Peter. He's inside, it's a chilly night, folks are jostling one another around a charcoal fire -- and someone recognizes the interloper as one of the condemned man's associates. Three times, Peter denies the association. Then, three things happened:

• The cock crows
• Jesus looks at Peter
• Peter remembers our Lord's prophecy that Peter would deny him three times.
  

Peter gives up whatever hare-brained schemes he'd been entertaining, flees the premises, and weeps bitterly.

In today's reading, for some reason Peter and company have gone back to their hometown, and their earlier occupation. Once again, they see the risen Jesus Christ on the shore in the light of early dawn. Jesus is catering breakfast for these men who have been working all night. After the meal, Peter and Jesus have an interesting conversation:

Joh 21:15 Yemekten sonra İsa, Simun Petrus'a, "Yuhanna oğlu Simun, beni bunlardan daha çok seviyor musun?" diye sordu. Petrus, "Evet, ya Rab" dedi, "Seni sevdiğimi bilirsin." İsa ona, "Kuzularımı otlat" dedi.
Joh 21:16 İkinci kez yine ona, "Yuhanna oğlu Simun, beni seviyor musun?" diye sordu. O da, "Evet, ya Rab, seni sevdiğimi bilirsin" dedi. İsa ona, "Koyunlarımı güt" dedi.
Joh 21:17 Üçüncü kez ona, "Yuhanna oğlu Simun, beni seviyor musun?" diye sordu. Petrus kendisine üçüncü kez, "Beni seviyor musun?" diye sormasına üzüldü. "Ya Rab, sen her şeyi bilirsin, seni sevdiğimi de bilirsin" dedi. İsa ona, "Koyunlarımı otlat" dedi.

Let's look at a few words:

• Yemekten sonra -- Than eating / after. Turkish frequently tacks the "ablative" (away from) ending onto an infinitive verb, in this case yemek (to eat), to describe relationships.
  
• beni bunlardan daha çok seviyor musun -- me / than these / more / much / loving / do you?
  
• Kuzularımı otlat -- my lambs / feed

Turkish, like English, uses the same verb for love in all three questions. In the Greek, however, the conversation goes more like this:

Peter, do you love me? ( ἀγαπᾷς με; )
Lord, you know I'm your friend. (φιλῶ σε )
Peter, do you love me?
Lord, you know I'm your friend.
Peter, are you my friend?
Lord, you know all things, you know I'm your friend.

After three denials, Peter had the opportunity to make three affirmations. Thank God for second chances.

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[1] Since Peter sliced off the servant's right ear, he was evidently a left-handed man trying to whack off the guy's head. A few years ago, when Peter's alleged tomb in Rome was investigated by archeologists, the skeleton they examined was that of a strongly-built left-handed man.

[2] There is some evidence in his writings that John was of a priestly family, and was thoroughly acquainted with the rituals and the routines of the Temple. OTOH, the only disciple who we are told in scripture had personal dealings with the High Priest was -- Judas. Who did, we know, make at least one return visit to return the blood money.

Behind locked doors (John 20)

Japan chased the Christian missionaries out of the country in the 17th century. The local Christians developed a three-man cell structure that included the candidate for baptism, his sponsor, and the baptizer. They endured for four centuries, until two America planes, manned by Christian crews, obliterated the two major Christian strongholds in Japan, Hiroshima and Nagasaki. In seconds, our team was able to do more than the massed political opposition of the Japanese warlords had achieved in centuries. Not one of our prouder moments.

China chased the Christian missionaries out of the country in 1945. At that time, there were a few tens of thousands of Chinese Christians. Against all expectations, however, the persecuted church multiplied, quietly, under the radar, and vigorously. Some estimates assert that more than 100 million Chinese now follow Jesus of Nazareth rather than Karl of Marx. Christians leaders meet behind closed doors for worship, prayer, and training. Dozens may rent an apartment, hire a cook, and spend a month indoors absorbing intensified instruction.

After our Lord's crucifixion, his disciples had reasons for being nervous. They were still waiting "for the other shoe to drop," for word from the One who was dead, but had risen from the dead. They hid out behind locked doors for a week.

Joh 20:19 Haftanın o ilk günü akşam olunca, öğrencilerin Yahudi yetkililerden korkusu nedeniyle bulundukları yerin kapıları kapalıyken İsa geldi, ortalarında durup, "Size esenlik olsun!" dedi.
Joh 20:20 Bunu söyledikten sonra onlara ellerini ve böğrünü gösterdi. Öğrenciler Rab'bi görünce sevindiler.
Joh 20:21 İsa yine onlara, "Size esenlik olsun!" dedi. "Baba beni gönderdiği gibi, ben de sizi gönderiyorum."
Joh 20:22 Bunu söyledikten sonra onların üzerine üfleyerek, "Kutsal Ruh'u alın!" dedi.
Joh 20:23 "Kimin günahlarını bağışlarsanız, bağışlanmış olur; kimin günahlarını bağışlamazsanız, bağışlanmamış kalır."

Let's look at one sentence:

• Size esenlik olsun! -- To you / peace, wholeness, health / may be!
  
• Baba beni gönderdiği gibi, ben de sizi gönderiyorum. -- The Father / me / sent / as, / I / also / you / am sending.

The Catholic cathedral in Nagasaki that was used as an aiming point by the American bombing crew has been rebuilt from its ruins. Chinese rulers "look the other way" when local Christians demonstrate ethical business practices and help their neighbors to prosper. The frightened, hiding, demoralized disciples launched a movement that has transformed the world.

The One who appeared among the barricaded disciples is stil the One who has the last laugh[1] when hostile rulers run amuck.[2]

_______

[1] "He who laughs last, laughs best" is an old English proverb, about the how easily temporary humiliation can be reversed. Or, as a more recent wit explained, "He who laughts last, didn't get the joke."

[2] amuck / amok is one of the very few Malay words that entered the English vernacular. It's always used with the English verb "to run."

Who's in charge, here? (John 19)

Reza Aslan, American Iranian Muslim and thoughtful writer, knows where the bodies are buried. His book How to Win A Cosmic War has unkind things to say about 20th century Jihadis, 11th century Crusaders, and first century Zeolots. The Zealots were a particularly nasty and thuggish group, who felt they had carte blanche[1] to assassinate anyone they viewed as a collaborator with the Roman occupiers.[2] The folks in power in Palestine were determined to maintain civil order, no matter who they had to throw under the bus[3]. The Zealots were just as passionately committed to civil disorder, since they viewed the rulers as idols for destruction. Then, there's the guy who's trying to stay on top of the situation, trick-riding on several wild horses, Pontius Pilate. Let's look into the trial of Jesus again:

Joh 19:10 Pilatus, "Benimle konuşmayacak mısın?" dedi. "Seni salıvermeye de, çarmıha germeye de yetkim olduğunu bilmiyor musun?"
Joh 19:11 İsa, "Sana gökten verilmeseydi, benim üzerimde hiçbir yetkin olmazdı" diye karşılık verdi. "Bu nedenle beni sana teslim edenin günahı daha büyüktür."
Joh 19:12 Bunun üzerine Pilatus İsa'yı salıvermek istedi. Ama Yahudiler, "Bu adamı salıverirsen, Sezar'ın dostu değilsin!" diye bağrıştılar. "Kral olduğunu ileri süren herkes Sezar'a karşı gelmiş olur."
Joh 19:13 Pilatus bu sözleri işitince İsa'yı dışarı çıkardı. Taş Döşeme İbranice'de* Gabbata denilen yerde yargı kürsüsüne oturdu.
Joh 19:14 Fısıh Bayramı'na* Hazırlık Günü'ydü. Saat on iki sularıydı. Pilatus Yahudiler'e, "İşte, sizin Kralınız!" dedi.
Joh 19:15 Onlar, "Yok et O'nu! Yok et, çarmıha ger!" diye bağrıştılar. Pilatus, "Kralınızı mı çarmıha gereyim?" diye sordu. Başkâhinler, "Sezar'dan başka kralımız yok!" karşılığını verdiler.

Let's look at two sentences:

• Bu adamı salıverirsen, Sezar'ın dostu değilsin! -- This / man / if you release, / of Caesar / a friend / you are not!
  
• Sezar'dan başka kralımız yok! -- than Caesar / other / our king / there is not!
  

The rulers of Israel knew which side their bread was buttered on. [4] Canadians describe their relationship with the United States as "being in bed with an elephant." Superpower problems tend to become everyone else's problems. "If the US sneezes, the world catches pneumonia." Rome was the power in power, and, as the rulers of Israel hastened to remind Pilate, power trumps justice.

__________

[1] Carte blanche (French: white paper) refers to the idea that one has permission to do anything necessary to achieve a stated goal.

[2] Our Lord's twelve disciples included one named Philip, after the fther of the Greek guy who'd subjugated Israel several centuries earlier, and imposed Hellenic culture upon them. Another, Simon, was a Zealot. One who was apparenty at home in the pagan culture, and one who was its sworn enemy.

[3] American version of the Russian idiom "to throw to the wolves."

[4] Idiomatic expression -- cynical assertion that the party described knows how to further his own interests, regardless of personal honor or other loyalties.