Saturday, October 23, 2010

Week 43: Luke 7 - 24

This week we'll finish the Gospel according to Luke, with an easy-to-remember '3 chapters per day' reading schedule:

* Weekend: Luke 7 - 9
* Monday: Luke 10 - 12
* Tuesday: Luke 13 - 15
* Wednesday: Luke 16 - 18
* Thursday: Luke 19 - 21
* Friday: Luke 22 - 24

As Chuck already mentioned last week, the gospel according to Luke is part 1 of a 2-part series, the book of Acts being part 2. Luke was a physician and, as such, his writings are very detailed. In chapter 1 verse 3 he mentions: "Therefore, since I myself have carefully investigated everything from the beginning, it seemed good also to me to write an orderly account for you...". Note the words 'carefully investigated' and 'orderly'. Luke had investigated for himself that the accounts concerning Jesus were true and trustworthy. This is tremendous evidence for the Christian faith. These stories are not fabricated fables or nicely constructed novels, but trustworthy eyewitness accounts.

When you read these accounts, I encourage you to take God's advice in Luke 9:35 to heart: "This is my Son, whom I have chosen; listen to him." We have to listen to Jesus when speaks to us through his word. In your Bible, underline Jesus' sayings that speak to you. Here are a number of versus that speak to me:

"If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me" [9:23]

"See to it, then, that the light within in you is not darkness. Therefore, if your whole body is full of light, and no part of it dark, it will be completely lighted, as when the light of a lamp shines on you." [11:35,36]

"Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; a man's life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions." [12:15]

"But seek his kingdom, and these things will be given to you as well." [12:31]

"Make every effort to enter through the narrow door, because many, I tell you, will try to enter and will not be able to." [13:24]

"I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent." [15:7]

In the gospels, we often see Jesus as a teacher. He taught his disciples, and he still teaches us today through the accurate accounts written down by Luke and other gospel writers. Take his teachings to heart. Meditate on them and let them transform your life.

Dick

Friday, October 15, 2010

Week 42: Mark 4 - Luke 6

This week's reading takes us into the middle of the Synoptic Tradition. The Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke share many similarities because each of these writers drew from the same oral and written sources.

The Gospel accounts that we have in our Bibles were compiled and written between AD 65 and 85, which means that the first generation of Jesus' followers relied on a robust oral tradition and short written stories. (In fact, the first New Testament book, James, did not come into existence until about AD 50.) The Synoptic Tradition drew together these oral and written stories, which came from eyewitness accounts of the Apostles and others closely associated with Jesus.

The early church fathers were united in their conviction that Matthew, a former tax collector and one of the twelve Apostles, was the author of the Gospel that occurs first in the New Testament. Interestingly, Matthew drew much of his material from the Gospel of Mark, which was written by Barnabas' cousin, John Mark, around AD 65.

New Testament scholars are in general agreement that Mark's Gospel was the first of the three synoptic Gospels and that both Matthew (written in the 70s) and Luke (also written in the 70s) drew liberally from Mark's material. That Matthew, himself an eyewitness of Jesus' life and ministry, would rely so heavily on Mark's account has caused some scholars to question whether Matthew actually wrote the Gospel bearing his name. One answer is that Matthew agreed with Mark's account and, while adding his own unique touches, sought to present a united apostolic witness. Luke was not an eyewitness, so no scholars question whether he wrote his Gospel on the basis of his reliance on other sources.

Matthew developed his Gospel for a Jewish audience. His main goal was to demonstrate that Jesus was their long-awaited Messiah. He did this by (1) highlighting Jesus' family ties with Israel's greatest King and messianic archetype, King David, and (2) showing how many key events in Jesus' life were prefigured and prophesied in the Old Testament.

Mark was in Rome when he produced his Gospel. He sought to comfort his fellow Christians in Rome during a period of severe persecution, which went from AD 64 to 67. He emphasized that suffering was an integral part of Jesus' life and plays a key role in forging true faithfulness in the lives of Jesus' followers. References to suffering and discipleship occur throughout this Gospel (see 1:12, 13; 3:22, 30; 8:34-38;10:30, 33, 34, 45; 13:8, 11-13). Bishop Papias, an early church leader who wrote in the first half of the second century, quoted an earlier source, possibly the Apostle John, saying that Mark relied heavily on the Apostle Peter as he compiled his Gospel.

Luke wrote his Gospel for one man, Theophilus, whose name means "lover of God." He calls him, "Most excellent Theophilus" (1:3), which likely indicates that he was a person of wealth and prominence or perhaps a high-ranking Roman official. However, even though the book is addressed to a single individual, Luke clearly developed his Gospel with a wider audience in mind. He uniquely underscored such key themes as salvation's being available to Gentiles as well as Jews, the important role that women played in Jesus' life, the work and influence of the Holy Spirit, Jesus' practice of prayer, his concern for the poor, his affection for sinners, and his frequent use of the title, "Son of Man." Luke's Gospel is Volume One of a two-volume series. The book of Acts is his Volume Two.

This week's reading is as follows:
* Weekend: Mark 4-7
* Monday: Mark 8-10
* Tuesday: Mark 11-13
* Wednesday: Mark 14-16
* Thursday: Luke 1-2
* Friday: Luke 3-6

Some of Jesus' teachings are difficult to understand, so don't get frustrated if you aren't able to grasp everything he says. When you come upon a hard saying, relax, keep reading, and know that God will meet you in his word and give you what you need to know that day.

Seasoned readers of Scripture are forever delighted at what new things God reveals each time they read the Bible, knowing that the book they hold in their hands is a gift that the first generation of Christ followers lived without.

Have a great week!

Faithfully,
Chuck

Monday, October 11, 2010

Week 41- Matthew 11 through Mark 3

Here is the reading plan for the week:

*Weekend: Matthew 11-13
*Monday: Matthew 14-18
*Tuesday: Matthew 19-23
*Wednesday: Matthew 24-25
*Thursday: Matthew 26-28
*Friday: Mark 1-3

There is a saying that the Bible is the story of salvation. The Old Testament details how flawed we are as people and how we are in need of a Savior. The New Testament is the coming of that Savior, His atonement for the sins of all human beings- past, present and future- and the reward for living in faith.

If you participated in the New Testament Challenge last fall, you are no doubt very familiar with the readings from here on through the end of the year. But please continue to be diligent in your reading. God has something to say to us each time we open our Bibles. That passage you dismissed last year as just another sentence may be the passage that you need to hear today to get through a certain obstacle.

Jesus has many things to say this week on a variety of topics: Why we should follow Him (11:28-30), divorce (19:1-12), the importance of money (19:16-30) and paying taxes ((22:15-22) among others.

It is extremely difficult to unpack this book in a short blog posting, so I will wrap it up here with this: Chapter 22, verses 34-40 sum up how we as Christians should live. Life is about relationships- not rules- and these specifics are about as clear as they could ever be...

Have a great week reading!!!

-Mike

Friday, October 1, 2010

Week 40: Zechariah 12 to Mathew 10

Believe it or not, but this week we will finish the Old Testament (OT) and start the New Testament (NT)!! This is a major accomplishment, not only because the OT is more than 3 times as long as the NT, but also because parts of the OT are less familiar for most of us.

This week's reading plan is as follows:

* Weekend: Zechariah 12 - 14
* Monday: Malachi 1 - 2
* Tuesday: Malachi 3
* Wednesday: Matthew 1 - 4
* Thursday: Matthew 5 - 7
* Friday: Matthew 8 - 10

The last few chapters of Zechariah contain a number of interesting prophesies regarding both Jesus, as well as the end-times, when the Day of the LORD will come. Many of the prophesies in Revelation are related to these prophesies here at the end of Zechariah, which emphasizes once again the unity of OT and NT.

The book of Malachi is the last book of the so-called Minor Prophets, and it is also the last book of the Old Testament. Parts of this book form an interesting dialogue with rhetorical questions, see for example Chapter 1:7, 2:17, 3-14. The central theme of the book is God's covenant with the priests and the people. God accuses his people of doubting the covenant, and He calls for repentance. Chapter 3 versus 6-12 contain a challenge for all of us regarding our money and faithfully giving a portion back to Him of what He has so faithfully given us.

The last couple versus talk about the return of Elijah. Jesus later interprets that by saying those verses refer to John the Baptist, who was a prophet in the spirit of Elijah.

After the book of Malachi was written, God was silent for about 400 years, i.e., He didn't speak through any prophets for a long period of time. This is sometimes referred to as the 'silent time', almost like the 'dark ages' of the Old Testament. God was silent for a long time, but He didn't sit still... He was preparing the world for the coming of the promised Messiah, our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

The New Testament tells us all about this Messiah, starting with Matthew. More on that next week!

In Him,

Dick