PEACE

My wife and I are members of a study group that meets weekly to examine Scripture and discuss various faith topics. The gathering is comprised mostly of longtime devoted followers of Jesus, many having served or still serving in vocational ministry. One of the more recent topics gave focus to the covenant between God and his creation.

A covenant is a special agreement comprised of obligations and benefits. It is enacted between two parties wherein one or both make promises to perform or refrain from certain actions.

The divine promise God made with his creation was revealed in stages through various events. (There is only one covenant, yet it is progressively revealed.) This special arrangement was implicitly seen in the Garden of Eden yet became implemented to his fallen creation at the time of Noah. The covenant was further established with Abraham (Genesis 12, 15, 22), defined by Moses (Deuteronomy), and refined in David (2 Samuel 7). The agreement will become fully realized at the return of Jesus Christ, the soon coming King.

The covenant’s structure was one commonly used throughout all civilizations and was familiar to everyone. Like all agreements, the promise between God and mankind began with a preamble, followed by a historical prologue, the stipulations, the blessings, the curses, and the witnesses. It ended with the oaths and the provision for periodic readings. In the Bible, Deuteronomy shows all the characteristics of a covenant.

When confronted by satan in the wilderness, Jesus cited from Deuteronomy. (Matthew 4, Luke 4) Not only was the quotation a rebuttal to the specific temptation but, by coming from this book, the devil was reminded of the covenant that assured his final defeat and doom.

How is Jesus connected to this ancient arrangement? Since salvation today is viewed through the empty tomb, most people instantly connect his association with the covenant by his death, burial, resurrection, and ascension; rightfully so. But how did Jesus connect himself to it to his family, neighbors, friends, and even enemies while here on earth – to those he came to save, to those looking to be rescued from their circumstances and situations?

For Jesus to be the long-awaited deliverer, the covenant-promised people were looking for the “Prophet” promised in Deuteronomy, the “Son of Man” promised in Daniel, and the “Messiah” (Anointed One) promised in Isaiah and Zachariah. This redeemer, described in Scripture in three ways, was the one who would bring forgiveness of sins, would end the exile from God and would bring people into a lasting freedom. The signs of God’s deliverance from exile involved a new Davidic king, a great ingathering of people, a rebuilt temple, a glorious divine presence, and the nations coming to worship God.

Jesus needed to show a clear relationship with the covenant, linking him to the Garden of Eden and the promise of Abraham. The people he had come to rescue had to recognize him as the prophet/priest/king coming from God. The crucifixion, burial, and resurrection had not yet occurred; how does he show his connection to God’s promise? May I suggest to you, with the Beatitudes – described by some as his “Kingdom Manifesto.”

Of the four gospel narrators, two refer to the Beatitudes – Luke and Matthew. They wrote to different audiences for different purposes. They may have recorded two different incidences, or the same incident seen differently. The Beatitudes was probably a recurring teaching, mentioned on many occasions at several locations, heard by numerous witnesses.

Luke was a traveling companion of Paul. His beliefs were rooted in Pauline theology. Paul’s ministry focused on the Greco-Roman world and showed Jesus as the “second Adam” (Romans, 1 Corinthians). His audience was looking for human perfection through wisdom, through philosophy (philos: “love”; Sophia: “wisdom” – “the love of wisdom”). Paul shows that true perfection only happened in the first Adam, the man initially created perfectly. If perfection is the roadway for peace and joy, then becoming associated with the second Adam, the perfect God/man, is the true answer.

Luke wrote his narrative to a Greek friend named Theophilus (Theos: “God”; philos: “love”). This may have been an invitation for all lovers of God to read his gospel narrative. Luke connects Jesus by genealogy to Adam and, like Paul, shows Israel’s Messiah as perfect. The way to wholeness is only accomplished by accepting and abiding in him.

Matthew, however, is writing to the Hebrews and connects Jesus by genealogy to Abraham. The name “Hebrews” is a better portrayal of these people than the name “Jew”. Hebrews means “those who crossed over” – not just crossing over the Red Sea but over into God’s camp, His Kingdom. The title “Jew” was given to those exiled and separated from the land of Judah after the Babylonian conquest. The name brought attention to the shame and pain associated with breaking the covenant and moving into its consequences – removal from God’s presence.

Matthew does not portray Jesus as the second Adam but as the “second Moses”. Matthew’s narrative focuses on five sermons, connecting Jesus to the Torah. The first sermon is referred to as “The Sermon on the Mount” (Matthew 5, 6, 7) – the “Genesis” teaching. Jesus starts the “beginning” sermon with the Beatitudes: “Blessed are the poor in spirit….” (Matthew 5) The liberator brings his audience back to Deuteronomy, the blessings and curses of Mount Gerizim and Mount Ebal. (Chapters 27-28)

When Matthew gives the Beatitudes, he only gives the blessings. The Hebrews had been living under the curses for centuries. Jesus announces that he is the Messiah who is restoring the blessings to those who cross over into God’s kingdom. They are no longer exiled from the Lord.

Matthew presents the covenant curses (“woes”) at the opening of the final sermon, known as “The Olivet Discourse” (Matthew 23, 24, 25) – the “Deuteronomy” teaching. Before foretelling the end-times, he denounces falsehood, shallow religion, pompousness, and predator behavior. Woes are pronounced to those who, by their behavior, show themselves as choosing to remain in exile.

Luke presents the Beatitudes in the actual covenant format, combining blessings with woes. (Luke 6) The Gentile converts were familiar with the Hebrew ways but were not fully engaged in the history, culture, customs, and covenant of Israel. But, by their connection with Israel’s Messiah, the Greco-Roman believer could benefit from the promises given to the Hebrews. By embracing Jesus, they would cross over and place themselves under the only covenant that fully liberates people.

Matthew restores the Hebrews to the blessings; Luke introduces the Gentiles to the promises. Both groups experience newfound freedom and become bound together by a common and single covenant with God.

When it comes to salvation, most of the attention is given to the forgiveness of sins. Why is that important? What is meant by sins being forgiven? Is it just for a warm fuzzy feeling and a clean conscience? No, it ends a person’s exile from God. Jesus is saying, “You’re pardoned, and your exile is done!” Welcome home!

What does exile look like? What identifies an exile experience? When you read about the exilic event in 2 Kings, 2 Chronicles, Daniel, Ezra, Esther, and Nehemiah, it is associated with shame, humiliation, defeat, hate, anger, suffering, fear, turmoil, pain, trouble, agony – things regularly faced by people today. The person (the Prophet, Son of Man, Messiah) the Hebrews were looking for came to the hopeless exiles and announced that their sins were forgiven. The guilt that caused the exile and the torment associated with the exile has ended and been replaced with peace.

I regularly spend time at the Garden Tomb in Jerusalem. Every morning, before the gate is opened for guests, the community members come together for worship, prayer, and Scripture reading, followed with a brief devotional thought. One morning, the Deputy Director had an early appointment and was unable to oversee the gathering. He asked me to lead the session.

In my brief devotional comment, I asked the question, “If you were asked to describe salvation in one word, what word would you use?” The community members expressed words that gave attention to love and forgiveness. But the word used by Jesus and Paul was “peace”, a word communicating the end of exile and estrangement from God.

Jesus said, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.” (John 14:27 ESV)

Paul wrote, “He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent. For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross.” (Colossians 1:15–20 ESV)

Everlasting peace (peace with God, with others, and with ourselves) is what Jesus gives to those who bow at his cross and recognize him as the Peacemaker. In a world still alienated from God, seemingly crazy and messed-up, peace is available by sins being forgiven. The hostility of exile (pain or suffering or shame) is behind you through Jesus the Anointed.

Recognize him as your Lord and come home. Leave your exile, abide in him, and gain the peace only he provides.

[A brief footnote: Currently, in Israel, many orthodox Jews do not believe the exile has ended, which started in 587 BC under Babylon, followed by Persia, Greece, Rome, and then the dispersion. They see the return of Jews to Palestine, occurring in 1948, as accomplished by the efforts of Zionist, not done by the anointed divine deliverer. Today, a Davidic king is not ruling, the temple is not built, and the nations are not rushing to Jerusalem to worship God. Consequently, modern Israel is not a fulfillment of biblical prophecy, though it may be one step closer to the outcome. They have yet to recognize Jesus as the Davidic king, or his followers as the Temple in which the Spirit dwells, or the nations gathering to worship God by their proclaiming the message of salvation. Pray for them to gain a clear revelation from Scripture of Jesus the Anointed so they, like you, can gain their release and find freedom from their exile.]

GOD'S STORY

“The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.” (Genesis 1:2, ESV)

Life is a story, comprised of the heavenly realm and the earthly realm. What is God’s story, how does Jesus contribute to the story, and why is the Spirit a critical part of the story? To comprehend God’s story, knowing a portion of my story may help – the story of preparing for ministry.

Six months after graduating from High School, I began my enlistment in the US Air Force. After serving overseas on the island of Okinawa, the last two years were spent stationed near the Black Hills of South Dakota. While praying at a church altar during a Sunday evening service, I sensed a beckoning call to prepare for vocational ministry. The church pastor encouraged me to start considering a Bible college to attend. I made two inquiries: The alma mater of the pastor, and a college close to my hometown in Washington. The pastor’s institution never replied but the school nearest my home accepted my application.

After being discharged from military service in December, my wife and I moved to the Pacific Northwest to prepare for ministry. Classes started in January, so to graduate with my classmates required completing the program in 3½ years. Our first child was born a month after starting college and our second child during the summer months between the Junior/Senior years. After a June graduation, we moved to Montana for our first ministry assignment.

As a married student, my involvement with other classmates was mainly in the classroom, library, and chapel. I was uncertain about what kind of ministry to prepare for, so I asked several ministerial students what they were planning to do. They mostly spoke of becoming a pastor, majoring in Biblical Studies, and minoring in Pastoral Theology. After reviewing these two programs in the academic catalog, neither seemed to fit my sense of purpose. While assessing other programs, I discovered one entitled, “Religion and Philosophy”, which lined up with my hopes and aspirations. After declaring this as my major, I selected “Speaking and Preaching” as my minor (a better title may have been “Communication”; it included studies in listening, interpretive reading, and group discussion).

The Religion and Philosophy major required the classes in the Biblical Studies program plus church history, logic theory, ancient philosophy, historical theology, and two years, instead of one, of language study (New Testament Greek). The first year of Greek involved learning the linguistic structure. The end of the first year and the entire second year included translating four New Testament books, primarily to understand the four main writing styles used within the Roman Empire during the first century.

After completing the language study, I looked for a translation that was like my version of Mark, Ephesians, James, and 1 John. The New American Standard Version (NASV) was almost word for word with my own efforts and became my study Bible.

The work of translating involves textual criticism. Phrase structure and word selection must be personally determined – such as, should the word “steadfastness” or “endurance” be used (2 Peter 1:6); is the word “grasped” or “exploited” a better fit (Philippians 2:6); is the word “despising” or “ignoring” more appropriate for the context (Hebrews 12:2)? No matter how translators attempt to remain neutral, their theological platform influences their phraseology and word usage.

The Bible translations used in most churches are good, yet every translation has strengths and weaknesses. The NASV is recognized by scholars to be the most literal, but the sentence structure is sometimes awkward, causing needless difficulty remembering Scripture. The English Standard Version (ESV) is much more functional for memorization.

The New International Version (NIV) is an extremely popular translation, interpreted by a consortium of evangelical theologians. Yet, some phrases and words lean heavily toward Calvinism, favoring TULIP terminology. If someone considers reform theology as having some serious inconsistencies, the NIV becomes uncomfortable for study purposes.

A favorite college course for ministerial students is Systematic Theology. This manner of study is designed to establish beliefs by the declarations of Scripture and create clear-cut rules for faith and practice. The organized concepts are to come from the didactic (teaching) books, such as Romans, and not the historical (narrative) books, such as Acts. Yet, the combination of both the teaching and historical books are required for gaining a clear picture of God; they flow harmoniously together.

The first two chapters of the Old Testament, written by Moses, uses teaching and narrative to give a more accurate revelation of God’s nature. Genesis 1 (the first creation story) reveals God as the Hebrew Elohim, the majestic God. The beautiful poem is not a scientific treatise but teaches that God made everything out of nothing by verbal commands. Creation is also revealed as done in an orderly fashion, with the Almighty doing everything methodically, completely, and perfectly.

Genesis 2 (the second creation story) shows God as the Hebrew YHWH, the personal LORD. The name was mentioned only once a year on the Day of Atonement, in the Holy of Holies, by the High Priest – the holiest day, in the holiest place, by the holiest person. The correct pronunciation of the name is not entirely certain. YHWH was so revered that it was considered inappropriate to record the full spelling – vowels were omitted. The pronunciation evolved by adding the first letter from God’s other names recorded in Scripture – Adonai (Lord) and Elohim (God). The result was a two-syllable word: YHWH became Yahweh (LORD).

The word Yahweh gives attention to “the One who is”, his personal nature. Genesis 2 is a detailed narration of when the holy Lord God created the first man and woman. He is portrayed as personally shaping, forming, and breathing life into his image and likeness.

Through two creation stories, Moses introduces God majestically and personally, creating both by verbal commands (Genesis 1), and by intimate touch (Genesis 2). Using both instruction and narration the divine story begins, with the opening scene located in the Garden of Eden – the Lord God created a perfect dwelling place, a civilization of cooperation, but mankind chose a culture of competition, and everyone now lives with the consequence.

Scripture is more than a life roadmap, or a lifetime instruction manual, or a lifestyle handbook; it is God’s story, a beautiful drama, a five-act play – Creation, Choice, Consequence, Covenant, Coming King – with the encore of a New Creation. The production moves from the Garden of Eden (Genesis 2) to the renewed Garden of Eden called the New Jerusalem (Revelation 22). To add suspense to the drama, God appears in the flesh at the end of Act 4 and personally introduces the concluding Act – “Your Kingdom come, your will be done, in earth as it is in heaven.” Today, we are living in the Last Scene of the Final Act, the eve of His imminent return. Gaining a clear understanding of God involves his relationship with heaven and earth, from creation to new creation, with Jesus Christ in the middle.

A few years ago, I came across a translation of John 1 (a historical narrative’s explanation of creation) that interprets the opening lines with a clearer focus. The NASV & ESV reads: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.”  One translation expresses the narrative this way: “Before time itself was measured, the Voice was speaking. The Voice was and is God.” (The Voice Bible)

The literal rendering of the Greek word “logos” is “word”, but words are how we communicate, and we communicate with the voice. The voice is the act of speaking, involving both sides of communication, what is spoken and what is heard. A voice is distinct and personal, bridging the gap between the sender and the receiver. The voice distinguishes people from one another. By the Word, God is definitively speaking and revealing himself to those willing to listen.

Merge John 1 with Hebrews 1 (a teaching letter’s interpretation of creation). Very similar to the NASV, the ESV reads: “Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world.” Another translation better captures the essence of the passage: “Throughout our history God has spoken to our ancestors by his prophets in many different ways. The revelation he gave them was only a fragment at a time, building one truth upon another. But to us living in these last days, God now speaks to us openly in the language of ‘Son,’ the appointed heir of everything, for through him God created the panorama of all things and all time.” (The Passion Translation)

We speak to one another in English; God speaks to his creation in “Son”. Jesus is the voice accurately communicating the powerful activity of the living God.

John and Hebrews (narration and instruction) challenges the notion that faith in God can be reduced to rules or doctrines that can be merely believed or dismissed and not lived out in Christ. Systematic theology has value in understanding God’s aspirations but only when abiding alongside, and in close proximity to, story theology. When disengaged from story theology, systematic theology ends up deficient, defacing the majestic and personal God. Comprehending God’s nature requires the blending of teaching and history – declared truth and portrayed truth.

Studying Scripture is not just learning facts about faith and organizing them into a reasonable outline. A living faith in God is about knowing his story – “its plot, the characters, the protagonist, the villains, the struggle and the resolution; it is knowing the church’s place and our own place, within that story, the ongoing divine drama.” (N. T. Wright)

When anyone attempts to establish their life merely by decrees, proclamations, and laws, they fail to achieve what God intended; namely, to listen and abide in the Son, be led and walk in the Spirit, and reflect and reveal the living, breathing, pulsating, creating God. Scripture helps you recognize his voice, so you can increasingly and progressively fulfill your specific role in his story as it unfolds and expands.

“The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.” (Genesis 1:2) Everything orbits around the Spirit of God resting over his creation, especially those who abide in the Son of God, displaying his mirror image. Followers of Jesus are to be dynamically engaged by the power of the Spirit in the last scene of his amazing five-act drama, which is enriched with a glorious finale.

A classic song of the church written by Fanny Crosby includes the resounding chorus: “Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, let the earth hear His voice! Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, let the people rejoice! O come to the Father through Jesus the Son, and give Him the glory, great things He hath done.” (To God Be the Glory).

The older way of representing God involves standing with two tablets in your hand, declaring to others holy directives and pronouncements (Exodus 20). The newer way includes kneeling with a towel in your hand, cleansing others by the holy touch of grace (John 13). Through speaking and kneeling, give a true and clear narrative of God’s majestic and personal story.

Adhere to his voice, live in the Spirit, and, within the circumstances and situations of life, be an ongoing, resounding story of praise to God.