On Line Bible Study - For the week January 18-24, 2010
Lesson 423
13"Don't collect any more than you are required to," he told them.
Luke 3: 10"What should we do then?" the crowd asked. 11John answered, "The man with two tunics should share with him who has none, and the one who has food should do the same."
12Tax collectors also came to be baptized. "Teacher," they asked, "what should we do?"13"Don't collect any more than you are required to," he told them.
14Then some soldiers asked him, "And what should we do?" He replied, "Don't extort money and don't accuse people falsely—be content with your pay."
The difference between Matthew and Luke with regard to the description of John "welcoming" and baptizing the crowds is significant. In Matthew (Lesson 300) we are told it was Pharisees and Sadducees that came out, and John greeted them with the words: You brood of vipers ... In Luke, we are told it was "crowds" - with no designation regarding religious standing or status. In both gospels the message begins in the same way - Produce fruit in keeping with repentance ... But then, Luke digresses.
The crowds have a question for him: What should we do?
Perhaps some have seen the movie Rudy. Based on a true story of a young man who is neither scholastically nor athletically gifted, but who desperately wanted to go to Notre Dame and play football, after much hard work - both academically and physically, he finally gets in to the school, and the football coach lets him practice with the team. No one worked harder, longer, or gave as much of himself as did Rudy. But he never got to play ... until the last play of the last game of his college career, when against the coach's best efforts and intentions, the whole team and the entire Notre Dame student body was shouting his name, trying to force the coach's hand: Rudy! Rudy! Rudy! The coach had no choice but to put him in the game. As he is running out onto the field, Rudy was shouting: What do I do? Where should I go? What do I do?
The crowds have heard the message, and now they are looking for specific ways to "walk the talk" - What should we do?
Luke 3:8 tells us there is no point depending on our ancestry. What your grandmother believed doesn't count for you. And in the following verse John lets the listeners know that time is short: The ax is at the root of the trees ... It's now or never. If you are not producing fruit, not only are you cut down; you are cast into the fire. There are certainly eschatological - or "end-time" implications to this; but even if the Lord does not quickly return, the point is that we are making decisions that have an impact on our eternal fate. And this sets the stage for the question the crowds ask: What should we do?
Scholar Darrell Bock points out the following: John's reply is exceedingly practical. He does not call the crowd to his ascetic lifestyle, nor does he call for a commitment to a series of ritual religious acts, nor does he point to the sacrifices associated with the Jewish faith. Rather, he points to meeting the needs of others.
We might say that this practical response to the message reveals a great deal about what is in the human heart.
Tax collectors ask the same question. Taxes in the Roman Empire were an extremely complicated affair (and today is any different?). Darrell Bock explains: There were different ranks of collectors, and there were different taxes to collect. Wealthy individual would gain the right to collect, and then farm out the responsibility to "vendors" who would go out, collect the tax, and add a percentage to compensate them for their time. The system of multiple collectors, with various "surcharges" was most unpopular. John does not question the system of taxation; his advice to the tax collectors is as straight forward as his counsel to the crowds - Don't collect more than what people are required to pay.
Finally, "soldiers" ask the same question. We believe these are "Jewish" soldiers - perhaps those who provide protection for the tax collectors, a kind of Judean Police. John offers three responses:
Rudy got himself to the line of scrimmage - Notre Dame playing defense - and when the ball was snapped, he broke through the line, found the guy with the ball, and tackled him hard for a significant loss.
We know what to do. With joy, generosity and faith, let's get busy and do it!
The difference between Matthew and Luke with regard to the description of John "welcoming" and baptizing the crowds is significant. In Matthew (Lesson 300) we are told it was Pharisees and Sadducees that came out, and John greeted them with the words: You brood of vipers ... In Luke, we are told it was "crowds" - with no designation regarding religious standing or status. In both gospels the message begins in the same way - Produce fruit in keeping with repentance ... But then, Luke digresses.
The crowds have a question for him: What should we do?
Perhaps some have seen the movie Rudy. Based on a true story of a young man who is neither scholastically nor athletically gifted, but who desperately wanted to go to Notre Dame and play football, after much hard work - both academically and physically, he finally gets in to the school, and the football coach lets him practice with the team. No one worked harder, longer, or gave as much of himself as did Rudy. But he never got to play ... until the last play of the last game of his college career, when against the coach's best efforts and intentions, the whole team and the entire Notre Dame student body was shouting his name, trying to force the coach's hand: Rudy! Rudy! Rudy! The coach had no choice but to put him in the game. As he is running out onto the field, Rudy was shouting: What do I do? Where should I go? What do I do?
The crowds have heard the message, and now they are looking for specific ways to "walk the talk" - What should we do?
Luke 3:8 tells us there is no point depending on our ancestry. What your grandmother believed doesn't count for you. And in the following verse John lets the listeners know that time is short: The ax is at the root of the trees ... It's now or never. If you are not producing fruit, not only are you cut down; you are cast into the fire. There are certainly eschatological - or "end-time" implications to this; but even if the Lord does not quickly return, the point is that we are making decisions that have an impact on our eternal fate. And this sets the stage for the question the crowds ask: What should we do?
Scholar Darrell Bock points out the following: John's reply is exceedingly practical. He does not call the crowd to his ascetic lifestyle, nor does he call for a commitment to a series of ritual religious acts, nor does he point to the sacrifices associated with the Jewish faith. Rather, he points to meeting the needs of others.
We might say that this practical response to the message reveals a great deal about what is in the human heart.
Tax collectors ask the same question. Taxes in the Roman Empire were an extremely complicated affair (and today is any different?). Darrell Bock explains: There were different ranks of collectors, and there were different taxes to collect. Wealthy individual would gain the right to collect, and then farm out the responsibility to "vendors" who would go out, collect the tax, and add a percentage to compensate them for their time. The system of multiple collectors, with various "surcharges" was most unpopular. John does not question the system of taxation; his advice to the tax collectors is as straight forward as his counsel to the crowds - Don't collect more than what people are required to pay.
Finally, "soldiers" ask the same question. We believe these are "Jewish" soldiers - perhaps those who provide protection for the tax collectors, a kind of Judean Police. John offers three responses:
- Don't extort money. The Greek may mean something akin to: Don't shake people down!
- Don't accuse people falsely. Don't be an 'informant', lying about others to make yourself look good. Don't intimidate people with your power or position.
- Be content with your pay. The language used here is often used with reference to the military - be content with the provisions given to you.
Rudy got himself to the line of scrimmage - Notre Dame playing defense - and when the ball was snapped, he broke through the line, found the guy with the ball, and tackled him hard for a significant loss.
We know what to do. With joy, generosity and faith, let's get busy and do it!
posted by Mark D at 1:41 PM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home