The Blood
Commentary
One of the interesting things about blood, as it is presented in the New Testament, is the fact that, for other religious groups surrounding the Jews, blood was a symbol for death; for the Jews, blood was the symbol for life. Start off at such widely disparate places and you are bound to wind up in widely disparate places.
Take time to dig through stories and references that have to do with blood in the Hebrew Scriptures. Watch as blood is treated with special deference and meaning. Blood cleanses and makes things white, although it is red. One has to be careful to listen for the theological underpinnings of what is written.
When these points are missed we begin to say strange things about blood, and to make people wonder what we are talking about.
Just keep your mind on that small but essential difference, and remember that, among the Jews, blood is always considered theologically, and you will find the matter much easier to deal with.
Be careful when you hear people consider the blood of Christ as if it is his death that atones for our sins. One is led up many blind theological alleys. Remember, he gives his life. Check it out; he says so himself in John 10.
OUTLINE I
The Spirit Vs the spirit
Ephesians 5:15-20
Introduction: There is a lot of talk about matters of the spirit these days. On every hand, we hear a call to matters spiritual, to become a spiritual people, a people of the spirit, a people in whom the spirit dwells. Charismatics manage to make some of us imagine that we have missed something. You will remember that the same kind of thing was going on in the church at Corinth. Take time to reread that material again and to gain some sense of PaulÕs response. Then note that here the writer manages to point out the difference between the spirit and the Spirit.
A. The spirit. (Little Òs.Ó) As a sometimes observer, I am convinced that much of what I see going on in the church these days is a case of spiritual nerves. People are worked up into an emotional frenzy, are afflicted by some special case of gassy heartburn, or led to imagine that, because they seem a bit more gifted than others, they have some special Òin" with the powers of heaven.
B. The Spirit. (Capital ÒS.Ó) It seems to me that the author means to contrast these matters. Here matters of the Spirit (of God) are compared with matters of the spirit (alcoholic) for clarityÕs sake.
The point is made that we are not to mistake emotionalism for spiritualism. This is not a put-down for emotions. Rather, a reminder that the whole person is involved in the matter of religious experience.
Conclusion: Remind your congregation that they are not necessarily ÒintoÓ Pentecost just because they are emoting. Rather remind them that verse 19, a picture of a congregation at worship, is indeed a picture of a congregation that is spiritually alive.
OUTLINE II
Reinterpreting the Word
John 6:51-58
Introduction: Can you imagine the confusion that must have surrounded the matter of sacrifice in the early church? The Jews came with their special understanding that their God had made provisions for sacrifices as a way of reconciling matters between men and God. Pagans came with their understanding that somehow the spirit of the god came into the worshiper if one was washed in the blood of the sacrifice. The mysteries, which were quite strong at the time of the writing of the book of John, didnÕt help with their secret dramas and their fertility rites. The new Christian fellowship had its hands full, trying to avoid becoming identified with one of these. Reread the record of PaulÕs visit to Athens. The real problem was that Paul was understood to be presenting a new mystery that showed Jesus as a masculine god and the resurrection as the feminine counterpart. It is in comparison with such a situation that the writer of the Gospel of John rewrites for a Greek readership and must make his points.
A. Flesh. Remember, by now the matter of the death and resurrection has been part of the life and faith of the church for over eighty years. Surely those in the church are not going to be misled by some pagan or literal interpretation of these words.
B. Blood. The same thinking applies to the matter of the blood. By this time the church is aware of the deeper spiritual meanings associated with the gift of the body and the blood, understandings that run all the way from the first report in 1 Corinthians 11 to that in John.
Conclusion: Remind the congregation that the early church understood the gift of the body and blood as the gift of sustenance for the body of Christ, the church. That is still available for the church of today.
Take time to dig through stories and references that have to do with blood in the Hebrew Scriptures. Watch as blood is treated with special deference and meaning. Blood cleanses and makes things white, although it is red. One has to be careful to listen for the theological underpinnings of what is written.
When these points are missed we begin to say strange things about blood, and to make people wonder what we are talking about.
Just keep your mind on that small but essential difference, and remember that, among the Jews, blood is always considered theologically, and you will find the matter much easier to deal with.
Be careful when you hear people consider the blood of Christ as if it is his death that atones for our sins. One is led up many blind theological alleys. Remember, he gives his life. Check it out; he says so himself in John 10.
OUTLINE I
The Spirit Vs the spirit
Ephesians 5:15-20
Introduction: There is a lot of talk about matters of the spirit these days. On every hand, we hear a call to matters spiritual, to become a spiritual people, a people of the spirit, a people in whom the spirit dwells. Charismatics manage to make some of us imagine that we have missed something. You will remember that the same kind of thing was going on in the church at Corinth. Take time to reread that material again and to gain some sense of PaulÕs response. Then note that here the writer manages to point out the difference between the spirit and the Spirit.
A. The spirit. (Little Òs.Ó) As a sometimes observer, I am convinced that much of what I see going on in the church these days is a case of spiritual nerves. People are worked up into an emotional frenzy, are afflicted by some special case of gassy heartburn, or led to imagine that, because they seem a bit more gifted than others, they have some special Òin" with the powers of heaven.
B. The Spirit. (Capital ÒS.Ó) It seems to me that the author means to contrast these matters. Here matters of the Spirit (of God) are compared with matters of the spirit (alcoholic) for clarityÕs sake.
The point is made that we are not to mistake emotionalism for spiritualism. This is not a put-down for emotions. Rather, a reminder that the whole person is involved in the matter of religious experience.
Conclusion: Remind your congregation that they are not necessarily ÒintoÓ Pentecost just because they are emoting. Rather remind them that verse 19, a picture of a congregation at worship, is indeed a picture of a congregation that is spiritually alive.
OUTLINE II
Reinterpreting the Word
John 6:51-58
Introduction: Can you imagine the confusion that must have surrounded the matter of sacrifice in the early church? The Jews came with their special understanding that their God had made provisions for sacrifices as a way of reconciling matters between men and God. Pagans came with their understanding that somehow the spirit of the god came into the worshiper if one was washed in the blood of the sacrifice. The mysteries, which were quite strong at the time of the writing of the book of John, didnÕt help with their secret dramas and their fertility rites. The new Christian fellowship had its hands full, trying to avoid becoming identified with one of these. Reread the record of PaulÕs visit to Athens. The real problem was that Paul was understood to be presenting a new mystery that showed Jesus as a masculine god and the resurrection as the feminine counterpart. It is in comparison with such a situation that the writer of the Gospel of John rewrites for a Greek readership and must make his points.
A. Flesh. Remember, by now the matter of the death and resurrection has been part of the life and faith of the church for over eighty years. Surely those in the church are not going to be misled by some pagan or literal interpretation of these words.
B. Blood. The same thinking applies to the matter of the blood. By this time the church is aware of the deeper spiritual meanings associated with the gift of the body and the blood, understandings that run all the way from the first report in 1 Corinthians 11 to that in John.
Conclusion: Remind the congregation that the early church understood the gift of the body and blood as the gift of sustenance for the body of Christ, the church. That is still available for the church of today.
