The rules just changed
Commentary
Jonah later claimed that the reason he fled after the command of God to condemn Nineveh was he knew all along God is merciful and would forgive their sins. Is that true? How could Jonah know in advance that the Destroyer of Nations who built pillars to commemorate their atrocities would don sackcloth and ashes and repent? The rules just changed.
Although Paul’s directions are confusing he’s right about one thing -- the rules just changed. The present form of this world is passing away and we’re playing by new rules!
And after the arrest of John the Baptist the rules change again -- Jesus proclaims the Kingdom of God is on the way and in our midst at the same time, and we’re going to live by the rules of God’s Kingdom instead of the old rules of kill or be killed.
Jonah 3:1-5, 10
Much biblical energy is expended by Christians to prove that it was scientifically possible for Jonah to survive three days in the belly of a great fish. It is doubtful that the first listeners to this story worried about the science behind it. God’s miracles are not backed up by science. That’s what makes them miracles.
The real meaning is to be found in what happens after Jonah goes about God’s will. Nineveh, like many brutal regimes, boasted of their atrocities, listing the number of people brutalized and killed on public monuments and bragging about their evil deeds. Even when long gone (and the type of Hebrew used in this story suggests it was written centuries after Nineveh and Assyria were no more), Nineveh remained a frightening memory of horror and death.
Jonah did not put much energy into his task. The scripture says that it took three days to travel across Nineveh. It’s unlikely that any ancient city was 60 miles across. What this actually means is that in a city like Nineveh it took three days of meetings, greetings, and exchanges of pleasantries (and bribes) in order to conduct business there. In traveling only a day into Nineveh, Jonah is ignoring all the niceties and proclaiming a simple, unattractive message that could not possibly work -- right? Forty days and Nineveh will be destroyed.
No doubt Jonah expected to be killed for his trouble. Instead, we are shocked to learn that the rules just changed -- anyone can repent, and God will forgive anyone.
Even our enemies.
1 Corinthians 7:29-31
Some have interpreted Paul’s words in this brief selection as suggesting that since the world is coming to an end it is necessary to become celibate, step away from human emotions, and forego earning a living. Yet Paul was writing to Corinth, a major center of commerce.
Because Corinth was located on the isthmus of Greece, a tiny spit of land connecting a bulbous peninsula with the mainland of Europe, a great deal of boat traffic docked there. Those ships that were small enough were placed on wheels and dragged 30 miles to the other side to resume their journeys. Other, larger ships unloaded their cargo, which was carted overland and reloaded into another ship. This resulted in a great deal of wealth.
Christians, like everyone else, had to work and had to eat. They formed new economic communities to support each other. It’s unlikely that anyone would have quit their job -- or their marriage -- because of what Paul had to say.
It is more likely that Paul is suggesting that because the present form of this world is passing away we live by the rules of God’s kingdom now, even though others don’t. We don’t treat marriage as a system of power and oppression. We don’t engage in cutthroat business practices at the expense of others. We do not worship the idols of commerce and luxury, but work in order to live and serve each other.
The rules have just changed.
When Paul says five times that we are to live “as if not” -- as if not married, as if not mourning, as if not rejoicing, as if not engaged in business or a relationship with this world, it is not because these things are not happening. Christians must live in the world, yet not live as if this world were all there was.
Live by the rules of the Kingdom of God. But keep living. Keep loving. Keep laughing.
Mark 1:14-20
In 1861 a Union cannonball tore through the summer kitchen on Wilmer McLean’s Virginia farm during the Battle of Bull Run. It was the first major conflict of the Civil War. McLean pulled up stakes and moved to a small town known as Appomattox Court House in order to escape the madness. Three and a half years later General Lee surrendered to General Grant in Wilmer McLean’s home. McLean could truly say: “The War began in my front yard and ended in my front parlor.”
In the same way, these few verses of Mark contain the beginning and end of the gospel. On the one hand, the arrest of John the Baptist signals the opposition of the ruling class to the proclamation of the Good News. Jesus responds by proclaiming the Good News with even more clarity: God’s kingdom is “near,” in the sense that it is on the way. On the other hand, we’re living in Kingdom Time, because “near” also means it’s here, right next to us. So we’re living in both the beginning of the Good News and its fulfillment. It’s the onset of the struggle, and the struggle is already over.
(adapted from The Gospel of Mark by Frank Ramirez [Brethren Press, 1996], p. 10)
Although Paul’s directions are confusing he’s right about one thing -- the rules just changed. The present form of this world is passing away and we’re playing by new rules!
And after the arrest of John the Baptist the rules change again -- Jesus proclaims the Kingdom of God is on the way and in our midst at the same time, and we’re going to live by the rules of God’s Kingdom instead of the old rules of kill or be killed.
Jonah 3:1-5, 10
Much biblical energy is expended by Christians to prove that it was scientifically possible for Jonah to survive three days in the belly of a great fish. It is doubtful that the first listeners to this story worried about the science behind it. God’s miracles are not backed up by science. That’s what makes them miracles.
The real meaning is to be found in what happens after Jonah goes about God’s will. Nineveh, like many brutal regimes, boasted of their atrocities, listing the number of people brutalized and killed on public monuments and bragging about their evil deeds. Even when long gone (and the type of Hebrew used in this story suggests it was written centuries after Nineveh and Assyria were no more), Nineveh remained a frightening memory of horror and death.
Jonah did not put much energy into his task. The scripture says that it took three days to travel across Nineveh. It’s unlikely that any ancient city was 60 miles across. What this actually means is that in a city like Nineveh it took three days of meetings, greetings, and exchanges of pleasantries (and bribes) in order to conduct business there. In traveling only a day into Nineveh, Jonah is ignoring all the niceties and proclaiming a simple, unattractive message that could not possibly work -- right? Forty days and Nineveh will be destroyed.
No doubt Jonah expected to be killed for his trouble. Instead, we are shocked to learn that the rules just changed -- anyone can repent, and God will forgive anyone.
Even our enemies.
1 Corinthians 7:29-31
Some have interpreted Paul’s words in this brief selection as suggesting that since the world is coming to an end it is necessary to become celibate, step away from human emotions, and forego earning a living. Yet Paul was writing to Corinth, a major center of commerce.
Because Corinth was located on the isthmus of Greece, a tiny spit of land connecting a bulbous peninsula with the mainland of Europe, a great deal of boat traffic docked there. Those ships that were small enough were placed on wheels and dragged 30 miles to the other side to resume their journeys. Other, larger ships unloaded their cargo, which was carted overland and reloaded into another ship. This resulted in a great deal of wealth.
Christians, like everyone else, had to work and had to eat. They formed new economic communities to support each other. It’s unlikely that anyone would have quit their job -- or their marriage -- because of what Paul had to say.
It is more likely that Paul is suggesting that because the present form of this world is passing away we live by the rules of God’s kingdom now, even though others don’t. We don’t treat marriage as a system of power and oppression. We don’t engage in cutthroat business practices at the expense of others. We do not worship the idols of commerce and luxury, but work in order to live and serve each other.
The rules have just changed.
When Paul says five times that we are to live “as if not” -- as if not married, as if not mourning, as if not rejoicing, as if not engaged in business or a relationship with this world, it is not because these things are not happening. Christians must live in the world, yet not live as if this world were all there was.
Live by the rules of the Kingdom of God. But keep living. Keep loving. Keep laughing.
Mark 1:14-20
In 1861 a Union cannonball tore through the summer kitchen on Wilmer McLean’s Virginia farm during the Battle of Bull Run. It was the first major conflict of the Civil War. McLean pulled up stakes and moved to a small town known as Appomattox Court House in order to escape the madness. Three and a half years later General Lee surrendered to General Grant in Wilmer McLean’s home. McLean could truly say: “The War began in my front yard and ended in my front parlor.”
In the same way, these few verses of Mark contain the beginning and end of the gospel. On the one hand, the arrest of John the Baptist signals the opposition of the ruling class to the proclamation of the Good News. Jesus responds by proclaiming the Good News with even more clarity: God’s kingdom is “near,” in the sense that it is on the way. On the other hand, we’re living in Kingdom Time, because “near” also means it’s here, right next to us. So we’re living in both the beginning of the Good News and its fulfillment. It’s the onset of the struggle, and the struggle is already over.
(adapted from The Gospel of Mark by Frank Ramirez [Brethren Press, 1996], p. 10)
