Bible Tuesdays for the 4th Sunday of Easter, 2016

Acts 9:36-43

36 Now in Joppa there was a disciple whose name was Tabitha, which in Greek is Dorcas.[a] She was devoted to good works and acts of charity.37 At that time she became ill and died. When they had washed her, they laid her in a room upstairs. 38 Since Lydda was near Joppa, the disciples, who heard that Peter was there, sent two men to him with the request, “Please come to us without delay.” 39 So Peter got up and went with them; and when he arrived, they took him to the room upstairs. All the widows stood beside him, weeping and showing tunics and other clothing that Dorcas had made while she was with them. 40 Peter put all of them outside, and then he knelt down and prayed. He turned to the body and said, “Tabitha, get up.” Then she opened her eyes, and seeing Peter, she sat up. 41 He gave her his hand and helped her up. Then calling the saints and widows, he showed her to be alive. 42 This became known throughout Joppa, and many believed in the Lord. 43 Meanwhile he stayed in Joppa for some time with a certain Simon, a tanner.

Throughout the gospel of Luke and the book of Acts, Luke refers to both men and women as “disciples”. In the above passage, the first verse give us a perfect example of this. Note also that we see an example of a person who has two names: Tabitha and Dorcas. Why two names? Tabitha is the Aramaic version and Dorcas is the Greek version of the same name.

Saul/Paul is another example: Saul is Hebrew and Paul is Greek.

Jewish death and burial custom at the time of Jesus dictated the dead would be washed and laid out on a bed for one day of wake/visitation. The body would be entombed within 24 hours of death but the visitation, called “Sitting Shiva”, would continue for seven days. This passage of Acts adds a little more detail to these customs: handiwork of the diseased is also put on display.

How difficult it must have been for Peter to raise Tabitha from the dead. How long did he kneel in prayer before he had the nerve to trust God with actually bringing someone back to life before his eyes?! Sure, Peter had seen the resurrected Jesus, but that was Jesus, whom Peter had seen raise several people from the dead; so why not God raise Jesus? But this was different. Peter was just a regular guy and this was just a regularly lady. Yet, in the presence of Peter, God raised her from the dead.

Psalm 23

The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.
2 He makes me lie down in green pastures;
he leads me beside still waters;[a] 3 he restores my soul.[b] He leads me in right paths[c] for his name’s sake.

4 Even though I walk through the darkest valley,[d] I fear no evil;
for you are with me;
your rod and your staff—
they comfort me.

5 You prepare a table before me
in the presence of my enemies;
you anoint my head with oil;
my cup overflows.
6 Surely[e] goodness and mercy[f] shall follow me
all the days of my life,
and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord
my whole life long.[g]

In the teachings and prophecies of the Hebrew Scriptures (aka: Old Testament), God declares that the kings of Israel were to be His shepherds. God was the flock creator and owner, and the kings were to serve God as shepherd. This psalm was written by King David during his reign. The first line of this psalm codifies King David’s understand of God’s relationship with him. “The LORD is my shepherd.” The psalm that follows is addressed both to others and to God, describing the marvelous qualities of God’s shepherding King David.

Revelation 7:9-17

After this I looked, and there was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, robed in white, with palm branches in their hands. They cried out in a loud voice, saying, “Salvation belongs to our God who is seated on the throne, and to the Lamb!” And all the angels stood around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures, and they fell on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, singing, “Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might be to our God forever and ever! Amen.”

Then one of the elders addressed me, saying, “Who are these, robed in white, and where have they come from?” I said to him, “Sir, you are the one that knows.” Then he said to me, “These are they who have come out of the great ordeal; they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. For this reason they are before the throne of God, and worship him day and night within his temple, and the one who is seated on the throne will shelter them. They will hunger no more, and thirst no more; the sun will not strike them, nor any scorching heat; for the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd, and he will guide them to springs of the water of life, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.”

Continuing last week’s throne room scene, John of Potmos now views citizens of heaven. Not limited to 144,000, the folks in heaven are described as a great multitude that no one could count. They are not limited to Jews, or Jews who believe Jesus is Messiah and God. No, John of Potmos sees folks in heaven from “every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages…robed in white with palm branches in their hands.” They are robed in white to signify their purity after the blood of the lamb has made them clean. They carry palm branches signifying their martyrdom. John is being shown those who have suffered and died at the hands of enemies of God, whom the lamb now shelters and protects. Heaven is not filled with only Lutherans or only Catholics or only Jihadi Muslims and their fabled virgins, but all whom God makes pure through the sacrifice of Christ.

John 10:22-40

At that time the festival of the Dedication took place in Jerusalem. It was winter, and Jesus was walking in the temple, in the portico of Solomon. So the Jews gathered around him and said to him, “How long will you keep us in suspense? If you are the Messiah, tell us plainly.” Jesus answered, “I have told you, and you do not believe. The works that I do in my Father’s name testify to me; but you do not believe, because you do not belong to my sheep. My sheep hear my voice. I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish. No one will snatch them out of my hand. What my Father has given me is greater than all else, and no one can snatch it out of the Father’s hand. The Father and I are one.” The Jews took up stones again to stone him. Jesus replied, “I have shown you many good works from the Father. For which of these are you going to stone me?” The Jews answered, “It is not for a good work that we are going to stone you, but for blasphemy, because you, though only a human being, are making yourself God.” Jesus answered, “Is it not written in your law, ‘I said, you are gods’? If those to whom the word of God came were called ‘gods’ —and the scripture cannot be annulled— can you say that the one whom the Father has sanctified and sent into the world is blaspheming because I said, ‘I am God’s Son’? If I am not doing the works of my Father, then do not believe me. But if I do them, even though you do not believe me, believe the works, so that you may know and understand that the Father is in me and I am in the Father.”

Then they tried to arrest him again, but he escaped from their hands. He went away again across the Jordan to the place where John had been baptizing earlier, and he remained there.

The Festival of the Dedication is another name for Chanukah/Hanukah. In the gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke, Jesus only does ministry for one year, culminating in his celebration of Passover with the disciples, subsequent arrest, execution, and resurrection. In the gospel of John, Jesus does ministry for three years and goes to Jerusalem three times. This is Jesus’ first visit to Jerusalem which falls during Chanukah.

The gospel writer of John refers to Jewish leaders in Jerusalem as “the Jews”. In this gospel, the term “the Jews” should not be understood to refer to all Jewish people, but only to Jerusalem religious leaders. Therefore, the scene in this gospel pericope should be read as Jerusalem religious leaders swarm Jesus with accusations while he is in the Temple for the holiday worship. They are bullying Jesus, trying to coerce him into saying something for which they can nail him. Jesus responds by double binding them. They do not believe the truth about Jesus because they do not recognize God when they see Him. They are not God’s people because they do not believe Jesus. Caught in this bind, which they believe is not the truth but a horrendous heresy, they attempt to stone Jesus. Even as they attempt to kill him, still Jesus pleads with them to believe in the miracles/signs/works that he has done so that they might see and know God. Instead, the Jews drive God from their presence.