The Best of John Chapter Five

 

Verse one. What is the unnamed feast in chapter five? The so-called experts are divided, some thinking it is Purim, some thinking it is the Passover. Trying to find clarity by turning to the internet is, to say the least, frustrating. I must put things together for myself.

Jesus had begun his ministry in Jerusalem, as I have noted earlier, on a Passover. I made the connection between his Passover beginning and his Passover ending. After this, after having his disciples baptize for a while near John's camp, then moving North until he reaches Cana in chapter four, no other feast is mentioned until the unnamed feast.

The author named the feast “a feast of the Jews.” We know by now what the author meant when he referenced “the Jews.” He meant the religious elite, the Sanhedrin, the Pharisees, and such. If therefore, the unnamed feast was a feast of the Jews, it was one the religious order was keen to observe.

Three Jewish holidays required a man to be in Jerusalem. They were Passover, Weeks, and Tabernacles. Was it Weeks? What was Weeks? It was the interim holiday between Passover, in the spring, and Tabernacles, in the fall. Weeks was a celebration of the wheat harvest, and it took place exactly fifty weeks after the feast of the first fruits of the barley harvest at Passover. Another name for the feast of weeks is Pentecost, and it required Jewish males to travel to Jerusalem and present an offering of new grain to the Lord. It usually takes place in the last part of May or the first part of June. This information comes from https://www.gotquestions.org/Feast-of-Weeks.html.

As I have followed John in its initial chapters, I have seen that the author has taken a fairly linear approach to the beginning of Jesus' ministry. I have tried to show in these writings that one event leads almost directly into the next. I have addressed the days and hours in a numerical fashion, and I have addressed walking distances in miles and ETAs. The storyline is solid and the gaps are minimal.

Chapter five contains the incident of the impotent waiting for the stirring of the water in the sheep market pool called Bethesda. Jesus healed an impotent man on one of the five porches of the pool. That miracle occurred on a Sabbath. The “Jews” took issue with the man carrying his bed on the Sabbath. The miracle had taken place in a crowd in such a manner that no other man took note and the healed man never got the name of his benefactor. However, the man later met Jesus in the temple. What Jesus said to the man should raise eyebrows.

In verse fourteen, Jesus said to the healed man, “Behold, thou art made whole: sin no more, lest a worse thing come unto thee.” This surprising statement suggests two things. First is that Jesus was just putting 'the fear of the Lord' into the man in a manner that speaks of the psychology Jesus used with certain people. Second is that the man had been impotent as a direct result of sin which warns all of us not to take our choices so lightly. There are real consequences.

Did that man sin further? In a sense, he betrayed Jesus when he went and told the “Jews” that it was, in fact, Jesus who healed him on a Sabbath. Because of that act, whatever the personal reasons might have been, the Jews sought to kill Jesus. Their labors toward that end were also on a Sabbath. There follows to the end of the chapter the exchange between Jesus and the Jews in which Jesus basically talks them down. No stones are thrown.

The Best of Romans Chapter Ten

 

The author begins chapter ten with a fervent desire for the physical Israel, namely, that they may be saved. He acknowledges that the Jews are zealous toward God – just not according to knowledge. In this, we must judge the way they think and the beliefs they form. The author boldly states that the Jews are ignorant of the righteousness of God. Instead of knowing and submitting themselves to the righteousness of God, the Jews have tried to establish their own righteousness. The point he wants us to understand about the old testament law is that Jesus Christ is the goal that the law strives to apprehend. For every believer, Jesus Christ is the end result. If you want to be righteous, be Jesus.

The author speaks of attitude, of perception. He speaks of the difference between two kinds of righteousness. In his explanation for new testament believers, the author turns to old testament writers. Moses, for example, describes the kind of righteousness that is obtained through the keeping of the law only – that a man who does such things shall live in them. In other words, what you practice today is what you will obtain tomorrow. The author counters by describing the mindset of faith. The mind of the believer should not lift itself up in the vain attempt to bring Christ down from heaven to the level of the common man. Neither should the mind of faith seek in any way to bring Jesus back up from the grave. That is a situation that is not ours to control.

The mindset of faith, rather, takes this attitude: The Word (Jesus Christ) is alive and well in the very words we speak among ourselves – in our daily conversation. He lives in the way we think, in the way we act out our faith toward our fellow man. Lastly, he lives in the propagation of the gospel. How near is the living Christ? He is right here and right now. He and the believer are one.

Faith in Jesus Christ (that God raised him from the dead) and public open confession with the mouth, that is to say, belief and salvation, are two sides of the coin that is oneness with him. The author explains this through a scriptural quote which may be Isaiah forty-five verse seventeen. Go ahead, take a moment to look it up.

He goes on to assert that believers are found equally among the Jews and the gentiles. He asserts that one and the same God will give salvation to any believer that calls on the name of the Lord.

Based on Isaiah fifty-two verse seven, the author asked a series of four interconnected questions in verses fourteen and fifteen. First, the verse from Isaiah. “How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, that publisheth peace; that bringeth good tidings of good, that publisheth salvation; that saith unto Zion, Thy God reigneth!”

So, even the gentiles will be saved if they call upon the name of the Lord. But, how will they ever call on him if they have never believed? How will they ever believe since they have never even heard of him? Moreover, the opportunity of them hearing depends on someone preaching to them. Lastly, there will be no preacher unless he is sent.

Working this chain of logic in reverse, we see that preachers are chosen and sent. Those who preach to the gentiles are chosen expressly for that purpose. Preaching to the gentiles is as much the will of God as is preaching to the Jews. The preachers go out and the gentiles learn of God's will, of salvation and grace. Believing on God, believing in Christ, is prerequisite to calling on his name for salvation.

In verses sixteen and seventeen, the author returns to Isaiah, quoting the prophet thus, “Lord, who hath believed our report?” He claims that even among those who are chosen, who have been raised up in the law and prophets, there was a percentage who had chosen not to believe. They were disobedient, having deliberately chosen not to hear the report. They had turned a cold shoulder, a blind eye, and a deaf ear to the word. In contrast, all who call upon the name of the Lord will be saved. This is accomplished by a singular process – faith comes by hearing and hearing comes by the word of God.

The author claims that Israel should have known, in fact, there was no way they could have been ignorant of the truth. The original author of the laws they had sworn to uphold, Moses himself, said in Deuteronomy thirty-two verse twenty-one, “They have moved me to jealousy with that which is not God;” (this is God speaking of God as a concept) “they have provoked me to anger with their vanities: and I will move them to jealousy with those which are not a people; I will provoke them to anger with a foolish nation.”

And again, the author quotes from Isaiah sixty-five verse one, “I am sought of them that asked not for me; I am found of them that sought me not: I said, Behold me, behold me, unto a nation that was not called by my name.” This was said about the gentiles who hear and believe.

As for Israel, the author quotes Isaiah sixty-five verse two, “I have spread out my hands all the day unto a rebellious people, which walketh in a way that was not good,” (here, 'not good' is equivalent to 'not God') “after their own thoughts.”

In all, the author makes a good case for anyone who is in the category of 'whosoever will.' See Revelation twenty-two verse seventeen. See Mark eight verse thirty-four. The author expands on his argument in chapter eleven.

The Best of John Chapter Four

 

Verse one of chapter four must be read (if you wish to understand it) in a certain way. This is how: first read John 3:25 and 26 then immediately follow by reading John 4:1. In this way, we may clearly see just the issue of the quarrelsome Pharisees (A.K.A. “the Jews”) finding out that Jesus baptized in the same area and how people were turning to him. In other words, people were leaving the Baptist, whom the Pharisees addressed as 'Rabbi', and were flocking to Jesus, whom the Pharisees addressed as 'Rabbi'.

Look closely at the important details. The author addressed Jesus as 'the Lord'. This tells of an author who has written his account after the fact – after an opinion has fully formed. Then, we see that Jesus got wind of the Pharisees. He knew that they knew. For the moment, I will lay aside whether he just knew by his Son of God powers or whether he was informed. Instead, I wish to think about his reason for leaving when he found out.

Jesus saw the approach of a storm. So, was he trying simply to avoid the hassle of dealing with combative and confrontational Pharisees? Did Jesus decide to leave in consideration of his cousin John? Here is another important detail. According to the author, Jesus did not baptize. His disciples baptized. We find that in verse two. In all likelihood, this was a critical time in the early training of his disciples. Jesus was teaching them, supervising their initial efforts. I think that when he knew the Pharisees were aware of his presence and actions, and he was certain they would come and interrupt the training of his disciples, he packed up the operation for that reason.

Things we must consider about the march are, one, the Jews had a longstanding bigotry against Samaria and Samaritans. It was a good bet that the Pharisees would not follow. Two, the march from an area near Jerusalem, in Judaea, to Sychar, (Aschar) in Samaria, was on the order of thirty or forty miles. The trip would have taken two or three days.

We find Jesus stopping to sit at Jacob's well at the sixth hour. There are, believe it or not, two interpretations of when the sixth hour could have been. It could have been 6 AM according to Roman time or noon according to Hebrew time. On the meeting between the woman and Jesus at Jacob's well, I will leave much unsaid. There are church sermons for that. There are, however, a few points I wish to touch on.

Jesus stopped to sit on the well. He was tired. His disciples had gone on to “the city to buy meat.” Two things occur to me in reading this. One is that the disciples had money that someone had to provide. Two is that the well seems more attached to a “city” than most scholars think. They suppose the well to have been approachable by way of extended suburbs.

A point is made in this narrative about Jesus being “a Jew.” I bring this up for a reason. History of the area saw early Israelites transported to Babylon, being supplanted by Babylonian people, as was the custom of the time. Samaritans were a people of mixed race as well as mixed religion. They were easily identifiable as such by the purebloods of the southern third of the nation. The upper third of the nation suffered the same fate and became a people of mixed race with a more lax take on religious practice than those of the south. As such, the Galileans were also easily identifiable.

Jesus was a Galilean. The exchange at the well shows me two things. A Samaritan woman identifies herself with the descendants of Jacob – in other words, she claims to be an Israelite, or Hebrew, by choice. Then, there is the fact that she calls an easily identifiable Galilean a Jew. At this point, I am reminded of the language of the author. So far in the initial chapters of this gospel, the author uses the term “Jews” to reference the religious elite (Pharisees, etc.) of the southern third. Is the fact that Jesus is here called a Jew not a misidentification but rather a hint that he is identifiable as a Rabbi?

This woman also takes a wild guess that Jesus might be a prophet. Prophets and Rabbis were different creatures altogether. While prophets were singular individuals imbued with the power and knowledge of God through direct contact, Rabbis were associated with the religious governance of the nation by the Sanhedrin, Pharisees, Sadducees, and a whole slew of legalistic Doctors of the law.

The thing about Rabbis is that they dressed liked Rabbis. I pulled this conjecture from Christianity Stack Exchange: 'It seems from Mt 9:20, 14:36, Mk 6:56 that Jesus may have worn the same kind of fringes or tassels (tzitziyot), similarly commanded in the Law, albeit presumably his were not as long as those of the Pharisees.'

Notes on John four verses twenty through twenty-four. The woman tells Jesus “our fathers worshiped in this mountain; and ye say, that in Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship.” This statement sets a limited contrast. She has already identified herself with the children of Israel and she has already identified Jesus as a “Jew” rather than a Galilean. Her statement here adds yet more support to both identifications.

More than this, the answer Jesus gives in verse twenty-one validates her identification with Jacob. Jesus, although he says in verse twenty-two, “Ye worship ye know not what,” nevertheless, asserts in verse twenty-one that she and her people worship the “Father.” He says to her, “believe me, the hour cometh when ye shall neither in this mountain nor yet at Jerusalem, worship the Father.”

In that he told her, “Ye worship ye know not what,” I think he referenced a less articulate, less disciplined approach to worship.

When Jesus says, “we know what we worship; for salvation is of the Jews,” one's first impression might well be that of nationalistic pride issuing from the lips of the Lord. But notice two things: Jesus said “we” and “of the Jews.” Clearly, Jesus was a Galilean. Yet, it appears that he is, in fact, identifying with the Jews. His identification is not with the race of Jews, but rather, it is with the body of those who adhere to the law of God. Jesus is pretty much saying, 'Yes, I am one of those guys.'

Easily identified by anyone as “a Jew,” and called “Rabbi” by religious leaders – we should sit up and actually take notice; the language is plain. Jesus was no rogue teacher outside of the religious order, but one of the order's staunchest advocates of God's law. It is also plain that the complaint Jesus most often leveled against the body of governing religious leaders was that they did not take the law as seriously as they should.

Finally, Jesus explains the deal about God in verses twenty-three and twenty-four. “God is a spirit.” God is a spirit who seeks people who will worship him “in spirit.” Jesus tells this, not to an expert, but to a layperson. Did the woman understand what a spirit is? Do we? This particular point is important for it touches on the very nature of God, and in no less degree, the very nature of man. For a person to be able to worship in spirit, he or she must have spirit to work with. Jesus called God a spirit, but he also said we know (not 'who' but) what we worship. God is a what; God is a spirit. That 'what' must be a part of a person's total makeup and able to connect.

In order to worship God, we must call upon the same 'what' inside of ourselves – the same 'God' inside of ourselves. Jesus also said that we must worship God in 'truth.' Did not Jesus say, “I am the truth?” In a broader sense, however, what we are looking at is a contrast. It is a contrast within the nature of man.

On the one hand, there is spirit. On the other hand, there is truth. There is a certain undeniable fact about the abilities of man – in other words, what we are able to do. We can achieve a thing only by the two routes that are available to us. We can think and/or communicate about something and we can actually perform the thought or communication. What it all comes down to is that a man has a mind (spirit) and a man has all that he can be and do (truth.)

Verses twenty-five through thirty-eight. There are two things of note in these verses. The first thing is the woman being convinced that Jesus was the Christ. The second thing is the truth that Jesus taught his returning disciples.

The disciples returned to find Jesus talking to a Samaritan woman. This raised red flags in their general predispositions toward those people, but they were not bold enough to say, 'Hey, what are you doing? She's a Samaritan.' The disciples returned just as Jesus told the woman he was the Christ. Maybe they caught it, maybe not, but someone remembered it and wrote it down.

When Jesus turned his attention to the returning disciples, the woman slipped away to run to town and tell her immediate peers about Jesus. On this point, I would like to draw the reader's attention to facts mostly overlooked. The woman was excited enough about meeting Jesus that she left her waterpot to fetch her friends. Such items were not disposable as our items are today. They were hard-won and guarded.

There were, basically two conversations at play, one with the woman while the disciples went to town and another with the disciples while the woman went to town and return with townsfolk in tow. Judging the respective lengths of the two conversations should give us a fair idea as to the walking distance between town and well.

They had walked a long way to get to the well. Jesus was tired. The disciples begged him to rest and eat. He told them he was sustained by the doing of God's will and his own keen interest in finishing the work. He taught them a lesson, a truth, while the woman left and returned.

He told them not to have a limited view as in the harvest being a ways off, or a limited view as in only paying attention to the immediate field. He told them to take a broader view. Others had already labored and there were already other fields ready for harvest.

Let's take a reverse-order look at verses thirty-five through thirty-seven. Verse thirty-seven: “And herein is that saying true, One soweth, and another reapeth.” Does the word 'One' reference “him that sent me” from verse thirty-four? Verse thirty-six: “And he that reapeth receiveth wages, and gathereth fruit unto life eternal; that both he that soweth and he that reapeth may rejoice together.” Does Jesus refer to himself and people like him as sowers and disciples as reapers?

The reaper gets two things out of reaping (and we are still thinking about the will and work of God;) the reaper gets wages and the reaper gets fruit. The fruit is 'unto' life eternal – it is directional as in a process. Fruit builds toward a goal. What are the wages? Are they different from the goal? If the goal is in the future, are the wages for present maintenance?

Verse thirty-five: “Say not ye, There are yet four months, and then cometh harvest? behold, I say unto you, lift up your eyes, and look upon the fields; for they are white already to harvest.” Jesus challenges the notion that there is still time. The four months is a reference to spring wheat which is cut down before the season of autumn, around July. The point he makes is that other people have sown other fields – look up, they are everywhere.

The saying, “One soweth, and another reapeth,” must have been a common and localized saying as I could not find it in the Old Testament. As for the expression, “rejoice together,” I am mindful of Psalms 104:15, “And wine that maketh glad the heart of man, and oil to make his face to shine, and bread which strengtheneth man's heart.” On that same note of rejoicing together, I am mindful of Matthew 26:29, “But I say unto you, I will not drink henceforth of this fruit of the vine, until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father's kingdom.”

Back to the Samaritan woman. She was a member of a society largely shunned by the Jews, yet, they also looked for the coming Messiah. They don't impress me as the kind of people who worshiped other gods or resorted to groves to sacrifice children on pagan alters – they, like the Jews, believed in the God of their fathers and awaited the coming Christ. The woman did not have to say much to the men in town to pique their interest, to get them all to run out to the well.

So the Samaritans believed that Jesus was the Messiah. They just ran out, listened a bit – and, Bam! – they believed. Why did the Jews and the Galileans have such a hard time believing? Jesus stayed in that town for two days, but the author failed to write anything said or done by him during his stay. Did he stay with the Samaritans who believed? Where did he put up his disciples?

After his stay, Jesus and his disciples go to Cana, in Galilee, where the author reminds us that Jesus performed his first miracle. The author was counting miracles. He recounts the second miracle.

Two cities are mentioned in the story of the second miracle. Those cities are Cana and Capernaum. The distance between these two cities is roughly twenty-five miles. The nobleman who came to see Jesus, having wealth, would have traveled in a mode of ease. Rather than walk, I think he would have ridden a mule or horse or gone in an animal-drawn cart.

Here, I wish to consider the travel time between the two cities. Time is recorded. Between the time of the meeting and the time where servants brought news of the son's recovery, about a day had passed. The nobleman, at the time of his conversation with his servants, counted the hours since Jesus told him his son was alright. That was on the previous day at the seventh hour. He, basically, began his return journey at the seventh hour.

Ellicott's commentary for English readers gives this, “These Jews, as all Jews, meant by the “seventh hour” the seventh from sunrise, what we should call one o’clock. After sunset the same evening they would have commenced a new day (comp. Excursus F.), and this seventh hour would be to them as one o’clock the day before, or the seventh hour yesterday. We have thus an interval of five or six hours between the words spoken by our Lord and their confirmation by the servants.”

It appears that the nobleman, most likely, met with Jesus at around 1 in the afternoon and met with his servants some five or six hours later.

The Best of Romans Chapter Nine

 

Now, let us move on to Chapter Nine. Take note of verse one. When you really look at the words of the author, you must genuinely ask, 'how might these things be?' The author claims to 'tell the truth in Christ.' How, exactly, does that work? How does one know such a thing? Anyone can think or believe that they are telling the truth. For many people, if they feel a thing strongly, they claim it to be true. Yet, the author of Romans is not just claiming to tell the truth, he makes the claim that the truth he tells is in Christ.

The thing we know about this author is that he never physically met Jesus in the flesh. He never sat with the apostles and listened to the man speak. His experience with Christ is more of a paranormal event. As to the truth of what the man Jesus taught, the author would have had only two channels for informational input. The first channel would necessarily be what he heard second-hand. He would have received this information from the original apostles or from those who were there at sermons and other events. The second channel would be a direct spiritual connection.

In any event, the truth is not just the truth, it is the truth in Christ. Compare the expression of this author to what Jesus said in John 8:28, Then said Jesus unto them, “When ye have lifted up the Son of man, then shall ye know that I am he, and that I do nothing of myself; but as my Father hath taught me, I speak these things.” Let us assume for the sake of this argument, therefore, that the author 'only saying' what Jesus said to the author is the same as Jesus 'only saying' what God said to him.

Moreover, the author wants it to be known that he is not just making this stuff up. He feels certain of the verity of the message he relays and is, himself, assuaged by his own conscience in the Holy Ghost. Let it be noted that if the conscience is “in” the Holy Ghost, the two are not separate or far removed. What we must see is that the Holy Spirit is an active agent within the mind of the author – an open conduit through which the truth may pass from Christ to the author.

Verses two through five: The author's sorrow is conveyed, in verse two, in relation to his conscience. Here, the author's conscience burns. It is a source of grief. His deep and continuing sorrow may point to a sense of guilt for all the brothers and sisters who died by his hand. They were not only brothers and sisters in Christ but in the flesh as well. They were Israelites, like himself, but he may have felt that they were more worthy of their connection to God than was he. Yes, he was their kin but he was also a Roman – a matter which may have made him feel distanced from them. The author, we might assume, lived with a daily sense of personal shame.

It seems obvious that he sees himself and his Israelite kinsmen as somewhat separate and he states, without reserve, that if it were possible, he would gladly give up his own salvation for their good. They were the ones, after all, who bore the glory of the 'chosen of God'. To them pertained not only both covenants but adoption as well. In that they were called to serve God, they were blessed. To only the Israelites were given the laws of God and to them, also, were given the promises. The fathers of the nation, the patriarchs, Moses, Abraham, etc – they were their fathers. Finally, it was to none but the flesh and blood Israelites that Christ came as Messiah. Christ is over all and blessed by God forever.

At the end of verse five, the author makes the utterance, “Amen.” The word means 'so be it.' This would be akin to the proclamation, 'Hear! Hear!' It would be like saying, 'I couldn't agree more' or 'the feeling is mutual.' All of these expressions are used to show acceptance of a situation or truth.

Verses six through thirteen: Who are the Israelites? These verses give us a sense of who the author is referring to. He had just put forth that, for their sake, he would offer his own redemption. Why would he say such a thing? Some of his Israelite brothers and sisters, according to the flesh, who were people he supposed to be deeper into the issues just listed, seemed, for all intents and purposes, bereft of the salvation that was offered to the 'chosen' through the Son of God. It was almost as if the word of God had been ineffective. He thinks there is another answer to the matter.

The author makes a statement that is altogether surprising. In verse six, the author states that not all Israelites are Israelites, among the chosen of God may be found the non-chosen. How strange. If they all hail from the same forefathers, the fathers of Israel, how could they not be Israel?

He claims that being the seed of Abraham is no guarantee that all of them are the children. He asserts that there is an addendum to be considered. That is, namely, “in Isaac shall thy seed be called.” Such a claim begs investigation.

I submit this reference from Stackexchange for clarification: 'Concerned about what may be inferred from his lament [v.1-5], his anguish over Israel's rejection of the promised Savior, the Apostle hastens to declare that there has been no failure; God's promises have indeed been effective and do remain: this word has not failed. Some Jews have believed, and what is more, some Gentiles, too. These believers constitute the real Israel. Not all of those who are biological descendants of Abraham deserve the name - only those who have put their faith in Christ and are thus "a new creature", "the Israel of God" (Galatians 6:16) Not all the fleshly sons of Abraham are his children, "his seed"; take, for example, the children of the bondwoman and Keturah, whom he had married after Sarah's death (Genesis 16:15; 25:1-4). But, as the Apostle reminds us, it was "in Isaac" that Abraham's "seed should be called" (Genesis 21:12; Hebrews 11:18). This does not mean, however, that fleshly descent from Isaac is the guarantee of being "counted for the seed" [cf. Galatians 3:26,29]. This new understanding of "the seed" had been foretold by the Psalmist, when he put these words in the mouth of the Man, the Anointed or Christ: "But I have been appointed king by Him on Zion His holy mountain ... The Lord said unto me, Thou art my Son, this day I have begotten thee. Ask of me, and I will give thee the nations [LXX: τὰ ἔθνη, "the Gentiles"] for thine inheritance" [Psalm 2:6-8].*'

*Dmitry Royster, St. Paul's Epistle to the Romans (St. Vladimir's Seminary Press, 2008), pp.234-235.*

When we think of the word 'called,' must we understand it to mean 'named?' Here, I am reminded of the word of Christ in Matthew 22:14, “For many are called, but few are chosen.” We see the chosen people of God, among whom, both physically and spiritually, many are not the chosen and, on the other hand, we see that many are called, some from Isaac, to whom was the promise. God provided a sacrifice for Isaac so that Isaac was saved from death. Through the power of the Holy Ghost, Isaac blessed Jacob over Esau.

So then, the children of flesh are not the children of God, who is spirit, but, rather, the children of promise are the children of God. Even though the whole thing about the chosen nation of God had been set in motion and played out as it did, men taking possession by their own will, God's election was still the center of God's overall plan. I see, in connection to God's election, a strong connection to faith and spirituality.

In physical and national terms, the twelve tribes of Israel came through Jacob. God favored Jacob. Salvation offered to Israel through the Messiah was a salvation offered to a small percentage of Abraham. Even here, salvation is reserved, through election, for those of the faith. Is faith in Christ at all on the order of Jacob's faith? What was Jacob's faith? Jacob had the faith to wrestle an angel of God all night, to endure physical damage, all for a blessing. Jacob went the distance, his faith endured.

The blessing that Jacob received was that he became Israel. I think the Israel of God are those who become Israel through enduring faith.

Verses fourteen through eighteen: Can we accuse a righteous God of unrighteousness? No. Many try but their failing is that they do not realize how high above us all God truly is. They try to bring God down to their level so they can make claims such as 'a loving God would not do thus and thus.' God is spirit. God has his own agenda. Just because he loves us and is willing to go to extra pains to make us his own – that in no way entails that we will have our way. God will have mercy on whom he will have mercy, as he told Moses, God will have compassion on those of his own choosing.

The fact is, no man, by his wanting it so or by working really hard to make it so, can replace the will of God with his own will. It just won't happen. It will always be God's choice, and rightly so, who will receive his mercy and compassion. It will always be God's choice, and rightly so, whose heart is hardened, as in the case of Pharaoh. It will always be God's choice, and rightly so, whose life is destroyed so that the power and mercy of God's choosing may be made known through them, as in the case of the blind beggar that Jesus healed.

The fact is, if God were on our level, he would be as powerless as we are. The fact that God has power should clue us in on how things work. God is above. He creates and manipulates energy and matter. He creates and manipulates angelic beings of more power than we can imagine. God has created mankind and set the parameters by which our lives play out. Existence runs on autopilot, obeying pre-existent rules. We may not change those rules. Our reality can be a beautiful thing – like a colored image meticulously colored inside the lines. It is only in our pride that we give ourselves more choices than we actually have.

Verses nineteen through twenty-four: Of all the people on Earth, there is 'one lump' – we are all lumped together. We come from the same source, without difference. Like a potter working with clay, God may choose to create some lives for one purpose and some lives for another purpose. That is within his power and jurisdiction. Like the pots, we may only be what we are made to be. Our complaints are so much wasted breath. What foolishness it is to think we might work against God's will! What foolishness it is to ask, why would God make me this way and still find fault if I am unable to resist His will?

It is God's choice. If he deliberately makes some of us cracked and worthy to be destroyed, we will be destroyed. As to being cracked, our best course is to hope He might fill us. Though we leak through our cracks, there is still the possibility of mercy in that we may be patched. As pots go, some may be attractive and whole to be filled with water. Some may be plain and rough but suitable for potting plants – and in this, a slow leak works to the advantage of the plant in that the water does not sour. Not all pots are filled with the same thing – but consider for a moment the treasure of the Dead Sea Scrolls; consider the pots and jars that were so filled. They were not honored until they were cracked open and the treasure set free.

Verses twenty-five through thirty-three: In ending the chapter, the author refers to two of the old testament prophets. As God said through the prophet Hosea, “I will call them my people, which were not my people; and her beloved, which was not beloved. And it shall come to pass, that in the place where it was said unto them, Ye are not my people; there shall they be called the children of the living God.” Let us look closer. The Jewish people were the chosen people of God, the beloved of the spirit (her.) The division was between the chosen and all the rest, the gentile peoples of the world. As Jesus said in John 10:16, “And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd.”

To what place does Hosea refer?

Adam Clarke Commentary: And it shall come to pass, etc. - These quotations are taken out of Hosea 1:10, where (immediately after God had rejected the ten tribes, or kingdom of Israel, Hosea 1:9, then saith God, Call his name Lo-ammi; for ye are not my people, and I will not be your God), he adds, yet the number of the children of Israel shall be as the sand of the sea, which cannot be measured nor numbered: and it shall come to pass, that in the place in which it was said unto them, Ye are not my people; there it shall be said unto them, Ye are the sons of the living God. As if he had said: The decrease of numbers in the Church, by God's utterly taking away the ten tribes, ( Hosea 1:6;), shall be well supplied by what shall afterwards come to pass, by calling the Gentiles into it. They, the rejected Jews, which had been the people of God, should become a Lo-ammi - not my people. On the contrary, they, the Gentiles, who had been a Lo-ammi - not my people, should become the children of the living God. Again, Hosea 2:23: I will sow her (the Jewish Church) unto me in the earth, (alluding probably to the dispersion of the Jews over all the Roman empire; which proved a fruitful cause of preparing the Gentiles for the reception of the Gospel), and, or moreover, I will have mercy upon her, the body of the believing Gentiles, that had not obtained mercy. See Taylor.

The place is Palestine. The place is Northern Israel and the lost ten tribes that are mentioned in the letters of the new testament. As is said in James 1:1, for instance, “James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, to the twelve tribes which are scattered abroad, greeting.”

As God said through Isaiah, “Though the number of the children of Israel be as the sand of the sea, a remnant shall be saved: for he will finish the work, and cut it short in righteousness; because a short work will the Lord make upon the earth. Except the Lord of Sabaoth had left us a seed, we had been as Sodoma, and been made like unto Gomorrha.”

To what does 'the Lord of Sabaoth' refer? It refers to the old testament title, 'the Lord of Hosts.' It is important, here, that we know exactly what the hosts of heaven are. They are the armies of God; they are destoying angels. The reference to Sodom and Gomorrha is stark. They were completely destoyed. None survived except for Lot and his family – and even among the survivors, not all survived but the wife was also destroyed so that only three came out.

Like as with Sodom and Gomorrha, the destruction and dispersal of the ten northern tribes of Israel was almost complete. Like as with Lot and his two daughters, a seed was left. That seed of the Ten Tribes was planted among the gentile nations where it grew and flourished. Yet, after all was said and done, they were as much gentile as the nations they were dispersed in.

The author of the book of Romans comes, then, to the differentiation between the people of God, the remaining southern tribes, and those who, in the book of Hosea, were declared to be not the people of God. It is the differentiation between the Jews and the Gentiles. The author makes the point that the Gentiles will be called the children of the living God through faith in his son Jesus Christ. They will be the spiritual Jews, the new elect or chosen of God. They will not replace the physical elect (there shall be one fold, and one shepherd) but will be added to the Jews. This, according to Hosea, will take place in the same physical area where they were rejected.

Faith trumps the law where the physical Jews fail in the matter of legalisms. The law had become their own works and they had rejected the cornerstone that was the son of God. All of the faithful build upon the cornerstone but to the unfaithful that cornerstone becomes a stumbling stone and a rock of offense.

The Best of John Chapter Three

 

Verses one through twenty-one. It was on the night of the feast day, or a night shortly thereafter, that a fellow Rabbi came to Jesus and they had a long discussion, seemingly apart from the disciples. It is as if the first twenty-one verses wrap up the 'first segment' of the Jesus story. They seem more or less contiguous – presenting Jesus in a transition from his private life to his public life.

Question: did Jesus have a scribe who followed him, recording even his private talks?

So at the end of the first segment, Jesus converses with a fellow Rabbi who hails Jesus as a Rabbi. Their conversation seems relaxed, unhurried, and comfortably familiar. Perhaps Nicodemus had been a mentor of sorts and was now paying a final call in that station before Jesus launched his career.

The questions, statements, and responses of Nicodemus can be viewed as those of a man testing rather than seeking knowledge. One last practice round, as it were.

It is important to look closely at the wording. Speaking not just for himself, Nicodemus said, “we know that thou art a teacher come from God,” siting irrefutable proof. Who was the “we” that Nicodemus referred to? Was it the other Rabbis, the Sanhedrin?

When Jesus said to Nicodemus, “Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God,” did he really mean to say, 'a man cannot truly know the kingdom of God until he is born again?'

Was Jesus really telling Nicodemus things he did not know, or was the meeting more sociable, cordial, and conversational?

Was Jesus a close associate who was striking out in an unexpected direction? Was the entire posture of the priesthood something like, “are you really going to take such a contradictory stand? After all we've done for you?!”

Were the things that Jesus said to Nicodemus, in a nutshell, a model of his coming ministry?

These are the points that Jesus raised in his conversation with Nicodemus:

1. to see the kingdom of God, a man must be born again (born of the spirit.)

   Meaning: To start over or take a new direction; to graduate to or add a new level to one's learning, abilities, personality, and character. Add a new level, tier, orientation to one's experience.

   Thoughts: I think Jesus was saying we must be like him. He was, in fact, both of the flesh and the spirit but his orientation proved the greater of the two to be the spirit.

2. Jesus clarified, or fine-tuned, his first statement by saying a man must be born both of water and of the spirit.

   Meaning: As the water breaks in physical birth, so must the spirit break in spiritual birth.

   Thoughts: In setting the physical birth of a man in contrast with his spiritual birth, a natural symbolism was referred to. In human understanding, water has to do with physical birth in only two regards: they are, namely, the nourishing water sack that carries us to that point and the fact that the human body is composed of roughly 70% water. Certain parallels must be employed when attempting to visualize spiritual birth – these would be a spiritual medium that carries us to the point of our spiritual birth and a concept of our spiritual constitution.

3. Jesus supplied a basis for his statement by adding what is born of the flesh is flesh and what is born of spirit is spirit.

   Meaning: One life is comprised of two aspects that function in concert. Of the two aspects, only one may determine the overall quality and character of that life.

   Thoughts: In speaking of physical and spiritual births, both of which the life of Jesus exemplified, this was said in Luke 1:35, “The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee, therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God.”

4. Jesus indicated the importance of spirit over water by explaining that the spiritually born have an unseen power that the level of Nicodemus' understanding (the worldly and legalistic religious mindset of the Sanhedrin) did not completely fathom.

   Meaning: There is a truth about spirituality and the spiritually-born that may be explained but which has no empirical evidence.

   Thoughts: Those who, like Jesus, are born of the Holy Ghost and power of the Highest may be explained as a wind – a wind goes where it goes and does what it does; a wind is not tied to the ground but is freer, higher, even while in connection to and being a part of the whole. The wind may be heard and felt but one cannot see it. There is no physical evidence one may point to. The truth of it is the same truth as that of the spoken words of a message. One may hear it and receive it and explain it but they will never be able to draw a picture of it or take a photograph of it. The only proof of the invisible spiritual power and presence of God is, itself invisible, spiritual, powerful.

5. Jesus stated that a Master of Israel should know these things.

   Meaning: The message of the Law and Prophets, which the Masters of Israel based their authority in, explained everything that Jesus purported to be true.

   Thoughts: If a learned Master of the Law and Prophets was smart enough to read the scriptures, his understanding was open enough to see all of it's truths. He was, therefore, without excuse. If he said he could see it all, yet turned a blind eye to certain parts of it, his seeing was incomplete, his sight was blindness.

6. Jesus stated that the things the Masters of Israel should know were only the basics. They were “earthly things” – a foundation of worldly knowledge prerequisite to the acceptance of spiritual knowledge.

   Meaning: A composite being, both spiritual and worldly, may become a Master of spiritual truths that apply only to the composite state. These truths are the basic tenets upon which are built higher spiritual truths. One must master the basics before one may graduate to the higher levels.

   Thoughts: What we know of spirit and spiritual truths is at the basic level. We know the things that apply to us mortals and our physical condition. What we know of these truths must be couched in parables, illustrations, parallels, examples, visual aids, etc. Until we can fully grasp these basic truths, the higher spiritual truths will remain out of reach. In other words, if the Masters of “A” cannot fully fathom, receive and embrace “A”, there is no hope they will ever level up to “B”.

7. Jesus informed Nicodemus that he was not the only one to espouse such doctrine when he said, “We speak that we do know, and testify that we have seen; and ye receive not our witness.”

   Meaning: The spiritual beliefs of Jesus were not limited to Jesus.

   Thoughts: This verse may reference a faction to which Jesus aligned his thinking, or of which Jesus authored. He may have been speaking of other local or worldwide individuals. He may have been obliquely referencing other historical spiritual advocates, or he may have admitted that other spiritual leaders, like himself, walked the Earth.

8. Speaking on the points of the faction of Nicodemus believing that Jesus was a teacher who came from God, able to perform miracles, and of the basic tenets of the law which should have been fully understood and implemented by the religious leaders, Jesus explained to Nicodemus that, as one standing in the future and revealing the past, “No man hath ascended up to heaven, but he that came down from heaven, even the Son of man which is in heaven. And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up: that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life. For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. He that believeth on him is not condemned, but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved. But he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God.”

   Meaning: Multiple items that express, in a nutshell, the purpose, truth, and mission of Jesus.

   Thoughts: As Jesus spoke to Nicodemus, sitting physically before him, he was speaking from his position in Heaven. Jesus was there, is there, always has been and always will be at the right hand of God. That is the complete circuit of truth. No man ever has or ever will ascend to Heaven (and that must include Enoch), but when a man is born again – that is, born of the spirit – then that spirit that is in him is Jesus, and it is Jesus who ascends to Heaven. The sole purpose and mission of Jesus coming into the world and of men being born anew is that God should not lose what is his. When Moses made and erected the brass serpent, it was in response to the many deaths throughout the whole people. The brass serpent was a focal point for faith in God and also for the individual's choice for God. As Jesus often said, 'your faith has made you whole'. Jesus one-upped what Moses did – he took it to a higher-level where the flesh was not saved but the spirit was. Jesus' sole purpose was to bring the faith that saves into the world. This 'light in a dark world' was both the person and message of Christ. Eternal life is for the spirit. People are spinning in a vicious cycle that ends in both physical and spiritual death. The mission's aim is to set men on a new path whereby the spirit is saved. Faith or spiritual rebirth is the point where men hitch a ride on a different cycle – one that does not end but goes round and round. Men are already on the wheel that ends in death – there is no need for judgment or condemnation – their choice of wheel is their condemnation. They know the light has been proffered – but they must make a deliberate choice for it or continue to perish. Instead, men seek validation of the choices they have already made. They wish not to be shown up or proven wrong, rather, they desire a pat on the back. They will not bring their choices up against the light because they are not only harmful to other individuals, they are anti-spiritual, anti-Jesus, anti-God. A choice in favor of the light, of Jesus, of God – wipes clean the slate of wrong-doing and right deeds are chosen and practiced. These are spiritual deeds that do not validate the individual so much as Christ in the individual.

Verses twenty-two through thirty-six. These are important, though usually downplayed points. The first and most important point is that Jesus began his public ministry as a Baptist. For a while, Jesus and his disciples remained in the land of Judaea. Jesus tarried with 'them', and baptized those people who came to him.

The online Encyclopaedia Britannica has this to say about the land of Judaea: Judaea, also spelled Judea, or Judah, Hebrew Yehudaḥ, the southernmost of the three traditional divisions of ancient Palestine; the other two were Galilee in the north and Samaria in the center. No clearly marked boundary divided Judaea from Samaria, but the town of Beersheba was traditionally the southernmost limit. The region presents a variety of geographic features, but the real core of Judaea was the upper hill country, known as Har Yehuda (“Hills of Judaea”), extending south from the region of Bethel (at present-day Ramallah) to Beersheba and including the area of Jerusalem, Bethlehem, and Hebron.

The second most important point is that John was still baptizing when Jesus was baptizing. John baptized in Aenon, near Salim.

Bibleatlas.org/aenon.htm offers this about the location of Aenon: Now from John 3:22, 23, it appears that both Jesus and John were baptizing in Judea and their proximity to each other gave occasion to the remarks recorded in the 25th verse.

The third important point is that both John and Jesus baptizing in the same general location was an issue for some. More precisely, the question arose between John's disciples and the Jews – the Jews referencing religious leaders and doctors of the law. This latter group may have included priests, Rabbis, and members of the Sanhedrin. What is more important than the conversation that brought them to question John is the fact that, as with Jesus, this esteemed latter group addressed John by the title 'Rabbi'.

The issue that came up between the disciples of John and the Jews was that of 'purifying'. The Jews were a clean people. They were obsessed with ceremonial purification. This obsession went as far as how much water could be used in a Mikvah and what water source was permissible. This might explain, somewhat, why there were so many 'Jews' in attendance at the baptisms of John. The Jews who brought up the purification issue with the disciples of John were the same group found questioning John earlier, before Jesus was baptized.

Finally, the arguments and language used in the answers John gave is clear evidence that John and Jesus had been in communication about the core mission. They were both Rabbis and of the same faction. John was satisfied in the part he had played and was resigned that his part was coming to an end. Many of the same elements found in John's answers to the ritual and ceremonial purification issue may be found in the conversation between Jesus and Nicodemus, but there is one curious statement that stands out from the rest – it is “He that has the bride is the bridegroom.”

There is little doubt that people, in general, were turning to Jesus rather than John. Fewer people were found in John's camp – possibly fewer disciples. John had to 'decrease' and Jesus had to 'increase'. John knew that Jesus was the son of God. In verse four, he said, “God giveth not the Spirit by measure unto him.” This is possibly an oblique hint that all the rest of us have the same Spirit but by measure. To take the logic one step further, all non-believers who deliberately reject God and Jesus (the light), do so by rejecting the light of the son of God that has been placed in them by measure.

The Best of Romans Chapter Eight

 

Notes on verses one through four: The parameters of differentiation between the law and grace are stark. Within those demarcations, how, then, is the righteousness of the law brought about? The law is weak because of the flesh, subject to the instabilities of the passions, and the ultimate futility of death. How does the author, a man of self-confessed captivity to the law of sin present in his members, hope to support his argument?

He has laid the foundation of two laws. One is the law of sin. Two is the law of grace. The law of sin is not the sin of the law but, rather, the sin of the flesh. It is the weakness of the body and the instability of the passions. Where the law fails because of the weakness of the body, the law of grace prevails because of the strength of the renewed mind. Where the flesh was a clenched fist pounding against the door of the law, the renewed mind was and is a key – a perfect fit for the lock that opens the law – for a law that the author conceded was actually spiritual. By spiritual, I take the author to mean mental.

A man can choose one of two paths through life. That is collectively termed his 'walk.' He can choose the walk of the flesh or the walk of the spirit. Either choice is an affiliation to a particular proclivity. To be affiliated to the flesh is a reactionary attempt to stave off the painful, hampering, and disagreeable intrusions of one's present predicament. To be affiliated to the spirit is a broader approach that recognizes a planned path in full acceptance of losses and suffering in the course of realizing a higher moral goal.

In other words, it is commendable to align oneself with Christ and to affiliate oneself to the Christ-like mindset. There may be losses and suffering but the goal is worth it. To follow the Christ-like mindset, that is, to walk after the spirit rather than the flesh, by which spirit we should understand to mean the spirit or mindset of life, overrides the machinations of the mortal passions, the weakness of the flesh, and the ultimate futility that after everything, we die anyway. We altogether bypass the condemnation that is inherent to that path.

The law, which is spiritual, failed because of the weakness of the flesh. I might also say it this way: the law, which is of the mind, failed because of the weakness of the flesh. There is no confidence in following that path. The flesh, the passions, neither can affect the success of the law – only the spirit, the mind can bring about the successful application of the law. And, no – not just any mind, a renewed mind, a mind that has overcome the pull of the flesh and passions, a mind like that of Christ.

In answer to the failure of the law because of sinful flesh, God sent his son into the world to represent sinful flesh and, thus by his death for sin, judge all failing of spiritual law. With the matter of failing the law through weakness of the flesh set aside, all those who follow the Christ-like mindset of life were and are in a position to realize the righteousness of the law.

Notes on verses five through eight: The evidence. That which is on a person's heart, by which I mean, the things that fill his or her mind, will also be found on the lips. For example, a history professor will take every opportunity to speak about history. All of his words and efforts are bent around the mindset that is filled with love and admiration for history – like iron filings are bent around a magnet.

The added parameter. Those with a worldly mindset mind the things of the world, the facts and figures, the self-limiting standards, the passions, the body. Only being concerned with that small and unfulfilling aspect of our whole existence brings turmoil. Those who walk after the mind seek and find additional aspects of our existence. Instead of limitation, turmoil, and death, those who walk after the mind find liberation, peace, and life.

A limited mindset simply cannot reach the escape velocity needed to please God. The worldly-minded are trapped within a self-imposed circuit of futility and disappointing tokens. I see it as akin to Esau, who sold his birthright for a bowl of gruel. He made his choice. Likewise, the mind of the world chooses the world and despises all else. The carnal mind chooses to be the enemy of God, chooses to reject the righteousness of the law of God. These minds are adamant in their decisions and can be understood in those heard to say, “I would rather die than do such and such.”

Notes on verses nine through fifteen: How it works. If the mind of God is alive and well inside of you, you are “in the Spirit” not “in the flesh.” Any person found without the mind of Christ, that person has no connection to Christ. The title of 'Christian' is empty and vain for all people who do not harbor the “Spirit of Christ.” However, if you do have the same mind as Christ, this how it will play out for you. Because of sin, the body is dead; the instabilities of the passions and the futility of ultimate demise still apply but the Spirit within you, the mind of Christ, is life because of righteousness.

That is not to say that you will drag about the heavy burden of a lifeless corpse as if shackled with ball and chain. The same God who raised Jesus from the dead will quicken your mortal bodies by the Spirit, that is to say by the mind that is in you. If the mind of God is alive and well in you and if the mind of Christ is alive and well in you, that Spirit will affect the flesh and the world around you. Let us take a look at the word 'quicken.' Merriam-Webster gives us these definitions of the word quicken: to make alive, to revive, to stimulate, to kindle, to enter a phase of active growth and development, to shine more brightly.

As many as are led by the Spirit of God, that is to say, as many as follow the mind of God – who are people who employ the thoughts of God in their thinking – these may genuinely claim to be the children of God. This Spirit does not lead one back around to the bondage once known, nor should we fear again the flesh and its passions or deeds. Through the mind of God, you have risen above and beyond such things. You have placed the body and its deeds on a back burner, you have left death to its own devices for this is no longer your arena. You owe nothing to the flesh but everything to the new mind. Your new mind, your new center, is the mind of an adopted child of God. Your new mind is the mind of Christ which reverences God – as does Christ – as one's Father.

Notes on verses sixteen and seventeen: As to the fact that we are the children of God, the author makes this claim: “The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit.” What does it mean to bear witness? I found these definitions: attestation of a fact or event, testimony, personal knowledge of something. Notice, also, that the author duplicates the word spirit, marking a differentiation within a union. There is the big spirit and the little spirit; there is the Spirit with a capital letter and our spirits in lower case.

It is the big Spirit that bears witness. That bearing of witness is not an isolated fact but one in union with our own smaller spirits. The attestation, the testimony, the personal knowledge – all are presented within the framework of a close relationship. Basically, the big Mind and the little mind have joined, have wed, have become one. The personal knowledge is a shared attribute equal in either case. What our minds are sure of, we know through our relationship, and from a quality of sameness, with the greater mind. Likewise, the higher minds of God and of Christ are assured and strengthened in our lower case upgrades.

What is that quality of sameness of which I speak? It is exactly the same mind. There is the upper case Mind of Christ and all the little lower case minds of Christ. For any of us to be a child of God, we must share in the Mind of the Son of God. When we share that mind, we share, also, the mind of the heir of God; our quality of sameness makes us joint-heirs with Christ – but there is one precondition. For any of us to share in Christ's glorification as son and heir, we must first share in his burden. We must begin with the taking up of similar crosses and sufferings. It is the whole nine yards or nothing; we must take the bad with the good.

Notes on verses eighteen through twenty-two: Sufferings and glory. Embrace the birth pangs of your own elevation. The things we suffer, quite frankly, hurt like hell. None of it is easy. Yet, all of our broken bones, scrapes, and scars, all of our dashed hopes and disappointments will inevitably make us who we are meant to be.

The creature we are. We have an earnest expectation that is core to our very nature. We expect greatness. We strive to be more than what we are at present; we eagerly look forward to and even work toward a higher better self. None of us wants to be found at our lowest state, yet, here we are. Many, I repeat, many have been the failings of mankind. We are like the dumb caterpillar, blissfully munching away on a small plant, leaving a trail of pellets that begs the question: is this all we will ever do?

We are the creature, yet, the creature is change. We spin our cocoons in earnest expectation of a real transformation. Some of us seem colorful and decorated while others of us seem hairy and vile, yet, one fact unites all of us – we are change. We are smack dab in the middle of a grand process. Despite our personal ignorance, something is going to change in us. Not all of us but in each of us willing to spin our cocoon. Spinning a cocoon leaves us vulnerable but we suffer willingly for the hope of wings.

What is a creature – according to the author? Anything that affects our present condition, anything that affects us with adversity, suffering, struggling. In verses thirty-eight and thirty-nine, the author gives us a shortlist of creatures. We see that we are not the only ones; we suspect, also, that all creatures are change and immersed in the grand process of change. The list includes events and operations such as life and death. It includes higher creatures such as angels. It includes constructs such as principalities and powers. It includes the forces of time and space, past and present. It includes all the intangibles that we suspect but cannot prove.

Those of us who know and believe, hope for, struggle to achieve, and can hardly wait for the liberating glory of what we shall become – are the children of God. All of existence is bound to this grand process. We are small, we men and women. We are not the main attraction, just a very very small part of the bigger picture. However, our hope for the change to come is as big as the big picture. All of existence is the process – some still at the munching stage, blissful and blind, some beginning to spin. All of existence groans and travails to give birth to the higher and the better.

Notes on verses twenty-three through twenty-seven: All of existence, the grand process of change, itself, is mirrored in each of us individually. We groan within ourselves with fervent desire for both body and soul to reach their proper destinations together. We hope to be adopted into the Kingdom Family through Jesus Christ the son of the King and the heir of the Kingdom. More than just the adoption of the spirit, we expect, by the same faith, to receive the redemption of our bodies. Every aspect of our being waits patiently for the one-up. As the spirit shall be in all respects a more capable spirit, in turn, the body it will inhabit must necessarily be a more capable vehicle.

To be saved from our low estate, we must first hope for salvation. We know our disease, we see the cure – but the cure is not present. It is promised to the hopeful, to the patient. So, we believe and we wait. We place ourselves advantageously to receive the cure. We can not see it but it is promised. We hope for a thing we cannot see but, on the other hand, if we could see it, we would stop hoping. We would stop waiting patiently and we would reach out and take it. From the aspect of hope, it is either on its way or it is in our hand.

While we wait in hope, not seeing the thing that is promised, our minds assist and bolster our infirmities – and they are many. We are unsure and confused. While we are sure of the general direction we should take, every step along the road we walk is new territory, unfamiliar territory. We have no manual to go by. If we knew, we might ask for this help or that help along the way but, that is the problem, we just don't know. Our small minds are not complete – they only wait to be complete. In the meantime, the big mind, of which our minds are only small aspects, asks on our behalf for all that we need to make the journey of hope.

There is a real connection between the big mind and the one who searches and knows all minds. It is a true connection and a viable connection for one reason: the big mind, the Holy Spirit, prays for us and intercedes for us, not according to our wills or even according to the will of the Holy Mind but according to the will of God. The will of God is the one condition that must always be met for there to be any forward movement. No action comes without the will of God. Jesus always met the will of God and in his physical body he walked on water, raised the dead, healed the sick, cast out demons, and overcame his own bodily demise.

Notes on verses twenty-eight through thirty-one: Fragile, uncertain, fighting the constraints of a reckless nature – just what is it that we think we know? Our small spirits get this from the big spirit – we are the ones who love God. We love the Father with the love of a Jesus. We are the ones whom God called, not according to our need but according to his own purpose. He knew us from the beginning; he knew us completely, and from the beginning, he assigned each of us a definite and fixed final end – that all of us who love God should be conformed into the image of Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son, whose destiny was to be the first fruit of many just like himself.

For this reason, we are sure that all things in our lives, including the hard parts, work together for our ultimate good. We know that since he fixed our personal destinies, he also called us to them. Since it was God's call, he also justified each one of us, making us fit and right for that personal destiny. We know that the justified are also glorified along with the Son of God. We know that God did all of this according to his own will and by his own power. He took care of everything. So, what is there left to say about the matter? We must admit that if God is for us, the matter is settled in advance. No one can alter the will of God.

Notes on verses thirty-two through thirty-nine: As authors go, the guy who wrote this book is comprehensive in his ruminations, touching some points more than once. He ends up merging many points into a whole. In reaching the end of this chapter, we see the author expand upon the justification of the elect. Who, exactly, is he painting a portrait of? It is the person the world deems to be weak, ineffective, foolish; the beaten, the hopeless, the prey. We may be all of that, yet, I take note that the author sees all of that about us – and more. He sees the part the world cannot.

No one can lay a charge against God's elect, no one can condemn those whom God has lifted above condemnation. It was the almighty who justified his elect and, in setting the parameters of his work, He spared no effort, took no shortcut. He delivered up his only begotten son for our justification. In that regard, it is also through that only begotten son of God that God shall freely give his elect all things.

All complaints, all condemnations, all charges, and pointing fingers aimed at the elect fail to reach us. They break themselves against the protective wall that is Christ. It was Christ that died – and more – it was Christ that rose from the grave, ascended to heaven, and is now at the right hand of God pleading our case.

Can anyone or anything undo that complete work? No. Not tribulation, persecution, distress, the sword, or peril, neither famine nor nakedness. It is written in Psalms forty-four verse twenty-two, “Yea, for thy sake are we killed all the day long; we are counted as sheep for the slaughter. ” We cannot deny the fact that persecutions of Godly men and women continue into our modern era. Be that as it may, we are not weak, we are not beaten, we are not foolish, hopeless, or ineffective. Rather, through the love of God which is in His son Jesus Christ, we conquer the world as a whole. Paint us victorious.

From such a complete and all-encompassing love, the world may not separate us. No power or being has the ability to remove the arms that are wrapped around us – not the powers or principalities of the world, not things past or present, not even the unknown future. Time, itself, may not wear away that Holy embrace. Whether in height or depth, there is no measurement or standard greater than the will of God. The lives and deaths we endure are like waves against the beach. The waves may get bigger, they may rage but, in the end, there will always be a beach where the waves fall short. Not even angels, in all their might and wisdom, have power against the certain will of God.