Journaling: Romans 13

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Journaling: Romans 13

How Shall We Then Live? - Part 2

November 20, 2022 • R. Scott Jarrett • Romans 13

How Shall We Then Live? Part 2

(in re: to the govt)

1. God commands every human being to respectfully obey the government (and their deputized agents) in the place where they reside or currently exist[1] (1a “in subjection” = In respectful obedience [same word as Luk 2:51]):

1.1. Earthly govts have been established by God (1b) “instituted” = Appointed [same word as Act 22:10] (Dan 2:21, 4:17, 20). This includes: 1) His earthly sacred govt of the church – Joh 18:36w/Luk 22:29 w/Heb 12:28 [w/23 = the church]w/Mat 16:16-19 w/Joh 20:21-23; See also Act 23:1-5), 2) the evil secular govts of the world (e.g., Babylon – Dan 2:37-38, 4:27, Egypt – Exo 9:16, Rome – Joh 19:11; Hence – 1Pe 2:13-17).

Examples of deputized agents: 1) secular (president, police, court judges), 2) sacred (pastors – Tit 2:15).[2]

1.2. Rebelling against earthly govts (or their deputized agents) means resisting God and incurring His judgment through them (2) “judgment” = God has authorized and empowered the secular and sacred governments to carry our His wrath against those who are disobedient to their authority and laws (3-5) “bear the sword…an avenger” = Earthly govts are the instrument through which God secures justice or vengeance (Rom 12:19). This is true for the church as well (e.g., 1Co 6:1-6 [Mat 18:15-20 w/Deu 17:6-13]; Heb 10:26-30). “for the sake of conscience” = Disobedience to God’s governing authorities brings also the consequence of a guilty conscience – which when operating properly, indicates corruption in the soul – an ailment that must be remedied otherwise it will lead to more serious sin (e.g., 1Ti 1:19).

1.3. Our respectful submission/obedience to them includes paying taxes as well as any other fees or payments they may require to support them and their work (6-7) “revenues” = Additional fees and payments serving as a revenue source for the govt (e.g., permits, licenses, customs/duties, tolls – Mat 9:9 “toll booth”). “honor” = Most likely a reference to financial honor (See Rom 12:10; 1Ti 5:17). God also sees as acceptable, governments demanding their citizens to financially support those employed by them/their deputized agents (e.g., ancient tax collectors [head and land taxes]: – Zacchaeus, Luk 19:1-10 [chief tax guy in the region of Jericho. A portion of what they collected went to their support]).

1.4. The only exception is when the governing authorities demand something that is sinful (Act 5:29).

(in re: to the Law)

2. Christianity is all about love because:

2.1. it is all about fulfilling the Law (8) “the law” = The entirety of God’s OT laws. See verse 9, “the commandments, ‘You shall not…” = The Ten Commandments. If you have the Ten Commandments then you also have the rest of the commandments since they represent what each of the ten looks like in specific cases (they are the case laws). Hence (Deu 5:31). PNTM: 1) Paul is concerned w/Christians obeying God’s Law (which means Rom 10:4 cannot mean Christians are off the hook w/regard to obedience to the Law). 2) Obeying God’s law is how we love one another (9) = Paul sees obeying God’s Law as synonymous with loving others. This is also how we love our enemies - Mat 5:44 = Not they must become our friends or we must have affections for them but we must treat them righteously/according to God’s Law - e.g., Rom 12:20).

2.2. You can’t love people without adherence to God’s laws (10) = As a logical syllogism: Premise 1) True love does no harm to others. Premise 2) The Law was established to keep us from doing harm to our neighbors. Conclusion: Love requires the Law (or the Law represents the rules for love – 1Ti 1:5-8). Consider (then) churches/Christians who reject adherence to God’s Law. They are churches refusing to love others (love w/o the Law is a non sequitur).

3. The other reason Christians need to be concerned about obeying to God’s Law is because our obedience after becoming a Christian now weighs heavily in our final assessment before God (11-12) “Besides this” = Besides obedience to the Law being necessary to loving others, it is also necessary to our salvation. The Law - or our obedience to it represents the deeds/criteria used by God on Judgment Day to determine whether or not we were faithful to the covenant (whether or not we were faithful to our vow of faithfulness [“faith”] - Rev 20:11-15 “what they had done” = Were they obedient/disobedient to God’s Law?). “the hour has come for you to wake from sleep…The night is far gone; the day is at hand” = There is no more time to waste not taking our sin seriously (being asleep in spiritual darkness – making our “10”s into “2”s; 1Pe 4:3). “salvation is nearer to us now than when we first believed” = Idiomatic way of saying, “the certainty of our salvation is being determined more now (in our day-to-day Christian lives), than when we got baptized (first believed and were justified). “cast off the works of darkness and put on the armor of light” = Our faith alone will not be enough to save us. We must also be characterized by taking action (“cast off…put on” = Aorist [continued action]) in respect to what is sinful (“works of darkness”) and what is righteous (“armor of light”).

4. Two major keys to obeying God’s Law are:

4.1. the avoidance of all those things/activities that impair our thinking, inflame our feelings or corrupt our wills (13) “Let us walk properly as in the daytime” = Let us live lives characterized by obedience to God’s Law which oncludes the avoidance of the three things/activities established in Paul’s three couplets: 1) impaired thinking: “orgies” = Most likely not a reference not to sexual parties but popular Roman (or pagan) religious services often conducted at night and involving the use of alcohol to produce estatic forms of worship similar to modern day Pentecostal services (trance like chanting, unintelligible speech, chaotic bodily movement and occasional vomiting).[3] Hence Paul’s coupling of this word (“orgies”) with “drunkenness.” Access to the spiritual realm was believed to be achieved through impairment of one’s mind (Pro 23:33; Pro 31:4-7). Examples of other things to avoid that impair thinking: Dependency on opioids, marijuana, lack of sleep. All have been shown to not only impair thinking, but possibly lead to long-term thinking problems (shrinking of the brain, dementia, Alzheimer’s disease). How impaired thinking leads to sin/disobedience: you won’t obey what you don’t understand or think incorrectly about (Isa 5:13; Jer 4:22; Mat 13:15 “dull” = impaired; Eph 4:17-18). 2) inflamed feelings: “not in sexual immorality” = Avoidance of all things related to or encouraging this capital crime. IOW: avoiding those things that inflame our feelings – most especially those things which are sexual in nature (e.g., entertaining sexual thoughts, viewing or listening to sexually- stimulating media: movies, music etc). Inflammation w/respect to our feelings is most common among those who obey their feelings – i.e., those not avoiding “sensuality” (2Pe 2:18 [NAS] “by fleshly desires, by sensuality” [apposition]; Gal 5:19. = Sensuality is a sin). Sociological studies show that sensuality (life det’d by our feelings) or the constant inflammation of our feelings – even when not specifically related to sexual things – more than often leads in the direction of sexual acts (e.g., gluttony stimulates sexual drive)[4]. This is true even among the animal kingdom – creatures who live completely based on their feelings (e.g., food supply determines sexual activity/birth rates). Hence the reason Peter compares such people (those living according to their feelings) to animals (2Pe 2:10 w/12). How then to avoid inflaming our feelings and the sexual immorality/disobedience that follows: Practice self-control/stop saying “yes” to your flesh in the little things (Act 24:25; Luk 16:10). Also, get rid of your addictions (anything that you will sin to keep is an addiction – e.g., drugs, alcohol, food, video games). By nature, all addictions inflame the feelings/identify us as people enslaved to our feelings. 3) corrupted wills: “quarreling and jealousy” = According to James, jealousy is a main cause of quarreling/sinful fighting (Jam 4:1 w/3:16; See Mat 27:18). The spark however, setting this doomed sequence of disobedient behavior in motion is a corrupted will: the fulfillment of your will (or way) is more important that God’s will or way. Your main mission/motive in life is self not God (Jam 4:2-3). Adopting this as our life’s mission/motive is diametrically opposed to God’s prescribed purpose and laws: everything for the advancement of His glory and kingdom (Rom 11:36). Corrupted wills also happen to those Christians whose loyalties/mission is divided (“one foot in the world, one in the church”). Only those putting God first in their mission and motives are His friends (Jam 4:4 w/8 “Draw near to God” = Make Him your main mission/motive in living). Notice putting God first (versus possessing selfish or corrupted wills) requires the removal of two things: 1) the removal of sinful habits/deeds (“cleanse your hands you sinners = Hands a metaphor for deeds), 2) the removal of doubt w/respect to God and His Word (“purify your hearts, you double-minded” = Hearts are a metaphor for our wills, double-minded a reference to doubts – See Jam 1:8). In summary, you will possess a corrupted will (one not fully committed to God) as long as you hold on to sinful habits and doubts. Example of a sinful habit to avoid that is associated w/both doubt and disobedience: You do not schedule counseling/call pastor to resolve your doubts, to help you find the answers in God’s Word. Removing doubts is a part of renewing our minds (Rom 12:2; Eph 4:23).

4.2. the replication of the person of Jesus in the person of us (14) “put on” [ἐνδύω = to clothe or completely cover – Mat 22:11; Mar 1:6; Luk 24:49] = To replicate – or produce a close copy – captures this idea when the garment/clothing is the person of Jesus. The fact that we (or our person) are wrapped in His person however means that this replicate will carry the unique aspect of seeing not simply a living example of Christ, but what His person looks like when embodied and expressed in the unique person that God has made each of us. It means not the loss of our identity, but seeing to it that our identity is shaped exclusively by Jesus. Hence the reason the followers of Jesus are called “Christians” (Literally, “little christs”). This then is the other necessary key to obeying God’s Law – or conquering what stands in its way – the “flesh” or the gratification of our “desires.” Our job is to be the full-time understudies of Jesus (in theater, an understudy is someone who studies every aspect of another actor so as to function as their replacement). A great place to start in our endeavor to become Jesus’ replicate/understudy: In all things, WWJD?

[1] By government is meant: any entity demonstrating sovereignty or the infrastructure and ability to consistently enforce its laws in the face of local or foreign opposition. This definition of government represents a “biblical hybrid” of modern understandings or criteria of govt recognition (e.g., Montevideo Convention, Declarative Theory of Statehood). The most significant difference between modern views and the biblical record would be the fact that God sees (and has appointed) as legitimate even those governments whose current occupation and control of a particular territory is not approved of by its population or former occupying government (e.g., Israel under Babylon or Rome).

[2] In respect to the pastor’s authority, disciple of the Apostle John, friend of Jesus’ mother Mary and early church father Ignatius writes, "It is fitting that you should run together in accordance with the will of the bishop (anointed pastor) who by God's appointment rules over you…He that refuses to assemble with the church [for the judgment of the bishop] has condemned himself. Let us be careful then not to set ourselves in opposition to the bishop, in order that we may be subject to God…Beloved, be careful to be subject to the bishop and the presbyters [other elders]. For he that is subject to these is subject to Christ, who has appointed them; but he that is disobedient to them is disobedient to Christ Jesus. He that does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him. For he that does not yield to his superiors is self-confident, quarrelsome and proud. God resists the proud. And the proud have greatly transgressed. The Lord says to the priests, 'He that hears you, hears Me; and he that hears Me, hears the Father that sent Me. He who despises you, despises Me; and he that despises Me, despises Him who sent Me…We ought to receive everyone whom the Master of the house sends to be over His household as we would do Him who sent him. It is manifest therefore, that we should look upon the bishop even as we look upon the Lord Himself…It is becoming therefore, that you also should be obedient to your bishop, and contradict him in nothing; for it is a fearful thing to contradict any such person. For no one does [by such conduct] deceive him that is visible, but does in reality seek to mock Him who is invisible. And every such act has respect not to man, but God."

[3] For example see “Why Roman Orgies Weren’t Really A

Thing” by Spencer McDaniel (talesoftimesforgotten.com)

[4] For example, “Female sexual behavior is inhibited by short-and long-term food restriction” (Gill, C.J. and Rissman, E.F.; Physiology and Behavior)

Acts: Signs You Are Part of a Genuine Jesus Movement

October 22, 2023 • R. Scott Jarrett • Acts

Acts stands for “Acts of the Apostles.” IOW: What the apostles did, endured or experienced as God used them to spearhead the first genuine Jesus movement after His death and ascension back to heaven. Given the purpose of Scripture, those actions and events can be considered the signs of when such a movement is taking place today. In broad strokes, they are the following: 1. The gospel message being preached will have teeth. 1.1. Two things are meant by this figure of speech: 1.1.1. the message wb offensive not only to the world, but also the majority of those claiming to follow God (e.g., the Jews of Jesus’ day; Evangelical Christians) (Act 7:51-54) = Like the messages preached by the former prophets, Stephen’s gospel was offensive to the majority of those already believing themselves to be the followers of God (the Jews of Jesus’ day; popular Christianity) (Act 17:6 “upset the world”, Act 28:22 “it is spoken against everywhere”). Most people (pagans and “Christians”) will hate the gospel of a genuine Jesus movement. 1.1.2. salvation would not be free and easy – or something you get for nothing (with no strings attached). It would instead require sacred vows of loyalty to Jesus and a life of faithfulness to God’s Laws (Act 2:38): 1) “repent” = Commit to practicing obedience to God’s Laws (which means putting off/turning from the practice of sin) (Luk 3:3 [notice, like faith, repentance is also necessary to the forgiveness of sins], 4-14 = IOW: Practice the Law in all things, this is what it means/looks like to repent (Isa 40:3-8 “word of our God” [i.e., God’s Law]) = Eternal preservation/salvation will require clearing out of our lives all lawlessness and clinging to God’s Law as preached (esp. at the time of His Messiah) (Isa 42:1-4, 51:4-5). Notice this message (or offer of salvation) also applies to the “nations” – people other than the Jews (Isa 55:1-7 w/56:1-8)[1]. That by repentance is meant commitment to obeying God’s Law is also supported by other passages in the book of Acts (Act 21:21-24) = Paul would have refused James’ request if the version of Christianity he had converted to did not view obedience to the Law as necessary; (Act 24:14-15 w/25:8) = Likewise, Paul could not say these things if the version of Christianity he had converted to did not view the Law as necessary; (Act 17:11) = The Bereans would have found Paul’s gospel to be false if it ignored obedience to God’s Law since this was the central message of the OT Scriptures they were using to validate his message. 2) “each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins” = Notice, this too (baptism) is necessary for salvation (or the forgiveness of sins). According to Peter’s first epistle, baptism represents a sacred vow of loyalty to Jesus (1Pe 3:21 “an appeal [Lit., a vow or pledge of loyalty] to God [in exchange for] a good conscience [i.e., forgiveness] through the resurrection of Jesus Christ [the person whose blood is the source of our forgiveness]”). This vow of loyalty is also picked up in the word faith [Grk., pistis = loyalty]. Examples from Acts (Act 3:16 “faith in His name”) = A common ancient idiom referring to a person’s loyalty to another (usually a person more powerful or of higher status than themselves); (Act 20:21 “repentance toward God and faith in our Lord Jesus Christ”) = Not only is the aforementioned idiom expressed, but this time the word “faith” is used as the substitute for baptism. Instead of Peter’s former gospel combination of repentance and baptism, it is repentance and faith – demonstrating faith to be both a suitable synonym for baptism and another term communicating vows of loyalty. 1.2. Why a gospel requiring such things was (and continues to be) so offensive to those outside a genuine Jesus’ movement = Because the gospel preached by the majority of those claiming to follow God has always been a gospel which requires no such loyalty or commitment. True now and true also in Jesus’ day. The rebellious Jews were the first Evangelicals. They too believed in a FAG (Jer 6:14-19; Luk 3:8 w/Joh 8:39). 1.3. A gospel causing this kind of offense among the majority was prophesied as central to the genuine Jesus movement (Luk 2:34-35 w/Mat 10:16-39) = The people Jesus is calling “wolves” - who will do these awful things, wb the majority of those claiming to follow God and blood family. 2. The gospel message is powerfully and irrefutably proven from the Scriptures. 1.1. (Act 18:24-28 “powerfully refuted…demonstrating by the Scriptures”) = Proving by powerful argument and irrefutable Scriptural evidence (“demonstrating”, Luk 17:14). 1.2. (Act 1.17:1-3, 8:4, 19, 19:8 “synagogue”) = Jewish place of worship where scrolls containing all the OT Scriptures would be found. Though Paul [ml] possessed some books (e.g., Pentateuch – 2Ti 4:13), it would have been almost impossible to his missionary endeavors to carry everything. Hence therefore the common practice of going to the synagogue to evangelize. (“explaining and giving evidence”, “reasoning”) = The employment of logic and facts to make an argument. In this case, the logic and facts established by the Scriptures. (“persuading”) = Irrefutably proving. 1.3. Jesus preached the same way (Luk 24:27 w/32 “our hearts burning within us”) = Idiomatic phrase indicating the presence of strong conviction where there had once been doubt. Jesus’ demonstrably proved from the OT Scriptures that the gospel message He had preached (most esp., that the Christ would need to suffer and die) was true. 1.4. Point not to miss: the gospel of a genuine Jesus movement doesn’t just claim its message is irrefutable, but proves it from the Scriptures in such a way that it leaves its opponents w/o a valid rebuttal (in re: to ordained men, Tit 1:9-11 silenced” = their mouths made shut/stopped). 3. Because what is being preached as the gospel is both offensive and irrefutable, those rejecting its message (including those within the majority) will employ slander and shady tactics to shut the preachers up. 2.1. (Act 6:7-13 “cope with the wisdom”) = Refute his arguments from Scripture. Jesus promised to give His preachers this kind of wisdom (Luk 21:15). (“secretly induced men to say...put forward false witnesses”) = Employed slander and shady tactics to shut Stephen up bc (once more) they couldn’t refute him. 2.2. (Act 9:22-23 “plotted” [20:3 “plot…formed by the Jews”, 19 “plots of the Jews”]; See also 23:12-15 “conspiracy”) = Shady tactics. In this case, the shady tactic of condemning someone w/o giving them the opportunity to defend their actions or beliefs (e.g., a kangaroo court). God’s Law forbids such shady tactics (Exo 23:1 w/Deu 19:15; Hence Joh 7:51). Even the pagan Romans viewed such behavior as shady and illegal (Act 19:21-28 w/35-42; See also Act 23:30, *25:16). 2.3. Because they could not refute their gospel, the Jews called the Christians a cult (“sect”) so that others would view them with suspicion. 2.4. Another common (shady) tactic of those who are unable to refute the preachers in a genuine Jesus movement is to slanderously attack their personal character. This they also do, in the hopes of scaring others out of listening to them (Act 24:5 “deceivers…pest”) = Translates as “scoffer” in the OT. It refers to a wicked person who boldly condemns those who are right as though they were wrong. (“dissension”) = Insurrection (against God). See also Paul’s words in (2Co 6:8 “regarded as deceivers”) = Imposters. 2.5. Jesus’ character and intentions were likewise attacked by those who were unsuccessful in attacking what He preached (Mat 11:19 “gluttonous man and a drunkard” [Notice they condemned JtB also- v18]; Joh 8:41 “fornication” = Implying that Jesus was a bastard child; See also v48). 2.6. It is for these reason that both Jesus and Paul were confident that those part of a genuine Jesus movement will experience hatred and persecution from others (including once more, those a part of the majority followers of God) (again, Mat 10:22; See also Joh 15:18-21; Act 14:22). 4. The church will possess real authority. 4.1. The fact that Acts speaks of those being baptized as receiving forgiveness of sins means there is real power in this sacrament. Another text that speaks of baptism as the place where we are forgiven - or our sins are washed away, is (Act 22:16). 4.2. Seeing that the church (or her elders) were the only ones able to carry out this powerful act (Act 8:12, 35-38 = Philip was an elder in the Jerusalem church [Act 6:1-6], 9:18 = Ananias was the elder at the church in Damscus, 10:46-48 = Peter as an apostle/elder of the Jerusalem church, 16:14-15, 31-33 = Paul was an apostle/elder in the church at Antioch) means that the church possessed real spiritual authority – the authority (or power) to “bind and loose”, just as Jesus had promised (Mat 16:17-19; Joh 20:21-23). 4.3. That those churches associated w/a genuine Jesus movement possess real spiritual authority is also supported by the church’s exclusive ability to: 1) determine who received this authority from the HS (Act 8:15-19, 14:23; Act 20:28) = Notice it mentions the HS [or His authority and power] in conjunction w/ the elders at Ephesus (“the HS made you overseers…to “guard…oversee [and] shepherd” the church), 2) to pronounce and secure divine judgment in relation to the disobedient in the church (Act 5:1-11) = Notice again, the mention of the HS w/respect to the elders. When Ananias and Sapphira lie to the elders, they are viewed as lying to the HS. 4.4. As a final note, it should be mentioned that Acts also indicates that false churches and their leaders – or those not part of a genuine Jesus movement, will not possess such authority – and as a result, not be able to keep the demons out of their covenant communities (Act 19:11-16 w/Mat 16:18-19). CLOSING CONTEMPLATION: Many have claimed that their church is (or has been a part of) a genuine Jesus movement. If the present study’s findings are correct, how many churches truly are (or were)? What about us? Is what has been discussed today, what we see or have experienced in this church? If so, welcome to a genuine Jesus movement. [1] Scholars believe Acts to be the fulfillment of these chapters in Isaiah. See David W. Pao’s Acts and the Isaianic New Exodus

Acts 1

November 5, 2023 • R. Scott Jarrett • Acts 1

1. Important people can help us advance the Kingdom (1; “Theophilus” – See Luk 1:3 “most excellent Theophilus” = Title reserved for those with high social status, power or influence [Act 23:26, 24:3, 26:26]. Given that Luke’s audience was much larger than just Theophilus, strongly implies the mention of his name was for the purpose of adding extra validity - and therefore readership, to his writings – possibly to those in the Jewish community. Luke was a Gentile and therefore would have carried no respect in the Jewish community. Such an assumption infers that Theo was an important and highly respected Jew.). 2. Jesus did not go back to heaven until equipping His Church w/: 1) authority: He passed the mantle of Holy Spirit authority [anointing] to His “chosen” leaders (2, “after He had by the Holy Spirit given orders [or “charge” – Mar 13:34] to the apostles”, Joh 20:21-23). 2) assurance: He proved He was alive after His death (3, “many convincing proofs” = Evidence that removes doubt – e.g., Joh 20:17 [Mary Magdalene hugged Him], 20, 24-29 [Apostles saw/touched His wounds], 21:12-15 [Peter and other apostles ate breakfast w/Him]; “over a period of forty days” = Most likely the time when more than 500 people also witnessed Jesus alive after His death -1Co 15:6). 3) ability: He provided His disciples w/instructions for receiving the promised indwelling Holy Spirit for empowerment (4-8). 3. There is an ascending and descending gift of the Holy Spirit: 1) ascending = anointing (2; Joh 20:21-23 = Jesus gives the HS just before He ascends back to heaven), 2) descending = indwelling (4-5, 8; Eph 4:7-11; “measure” = indwelling - or indwelling and anointing; “When He ascended…He gave [aorist = tense stressing association more than indicating time]” = Christ’s HS anointing is associated w/His ascension; “descended” = On Pentecost to give the indwelling Spirit; v11 = The anointed offices today [“evangelist” = NT priest who plants churches/missionary, “pastor-teacher” = NT priest; See Isa 66:21]). 4. Being faithful as Jesus’ “witnesses” in the midst of persecution/trials is: 1) necessary to being empowered by the indwelling Holy Spirit (4-8 w/Luk 3:16-17 w/Mar 9:43-50 “salted by fire” = Tested by fire [or fiery trials] (Lev 2:13 “with all your offerings you shall offer salt”)[1]. Jesus went through the same process – Luk 3:21-22, 4:1-14. In this light consider also Paul’s words in Act 20:22-24 w/14:22; we are born [again] w/power that can only be released thru the trials that come thru witnessing). 2) the reason most Christians never experience empowerment from the indwelling Spirit -- because they avoid witnessing for Jesus and the persecution/trials it often brings! Point NOT to miss: empowering is for the purpose of witnessing in the midst of persecution/trials which means if you avoid witnessing in these situations, you avoid being empowered (12-26 = The apostles are praying [w/ the expectation of] empowerment [12-14] bc they are planning to witness [15-26] to the same hostile Jews who killed Jesus[2]; See similar in [4:29-30]). 5. Jesus’ return will feel a lot like a science fiction movie, an alien invasion and episode from “Law And Order” (9-11 w/1Th 4:15-17 [Mat 24:29-31] and 2Th 1:7-8 [Psa 149; Joh 5:28-29; Mat 13:40-43]; In the end, everyone will have their day in God’s court and some of us wb called to testify against others– Rev 20:11-15; Heb 13:17; 1Co 6:2-3). 6. The geographical place of Jesus’ ascent will also be the geographical place of His return (11-12 w/Zec 14:1-14, 9). 7. The standard by which to measure any church is its divinely inspired prototype: the church started by Jesus, the church of the apostles, the Jerusalem church which was small and filled with a lot of personal family members (versus large and filled with a lot of strangers) [3] (13-15; As it re: to being small: “one hundred and twenty persons” = Very small in comparison to the crowds that once followed Jesus [e.g., Luk 9:12-14]; As it re: to being filled w/family members: “Judas” = Jesus’ [half] brother, apostle and author of Jude, “Mary the mother of Jesus, …with His brothers.” = This list would include James – the future senior pastor of the church, as well as Joses and Simon. His sisters were [ml] also in attendance [Mar 6:3]; According to Scripture and tradition [e.g., Clement of Alexandria], most of the “eleven” were married and had at least one child [e.g., Mat 8:14; 1Co 9:5; e.g., Peter’s daughter was named Petronilla]. More than likely then, 30-40 [or 25-33%] of the 120 persons were family members. As it re: to remaining small: though experiencing times of great expansion (Act 2:41, 4:4, 5:14), they were short lived. Persecution forced most of the church’s new members to seek shelter in churches outside of Jerusalem (e.g., Act 8:4). As a result, the Jerusalem church remained one of the smallest for the majority of her first century existence (hence Act 11:28-30; Rom 15:25-26; 1Co 16:2-3).[4] 8. The apostles believed that insurrection – condemning or coming against the authority of those anointed to sacred office in the church was blasphemy of the Holy Spirit, the unforgiveable sin and apostasy (16-20 w/Mat 26:14 w/Joh 12:1-8; “Let his homestead be made desolate and let no one dwell in it” [See the full context of Psa 69:22-28] = Let them become apostate; For blasphemy against the HS as insurrection against the anointed in the covenant community, see Mat 12:32 w/Num 15:30-31, 16:1-3; also Psa 105:15). 9. The qualifications for being in the anointed sacred office of apostle make clear that anyone claiming that office today is a false teacher (21-22 w/25 “apostleship”). 10. The congregation is the one deciding who gets anointed/ordained (15-16 w/23 [“they” = the congregation] – 26 [“added” = voted in by the congregation]; See also Act 6:1-6 [“the whole congregation…chose”; That they were choosing for the purpose of anointing/ordaining – i.e., that these were elders/pastors is confirmed by the fact these individuals had the authority/ability to baptize – e.g., Act 8:38]; OT ref. to congregational choosing for anointing – 1Ch 29:20-22). 11. Casting lots (sortition or selection by lottery) is a divine way to preserve equity in situations where there is no explicit counsel from God [His Word] (23-26 = Lots were cast to determine the duties of the priests. Joseph and Mattias were [ml] elders in their church [Luk 1:9 and 1Ch 24:1-5, 31, 25:8, 26:13-16] e.g., also [clothing] Mat 27:31; [land] Num 26:55; Jos 18:6; [sacrifices] Lev 16:8; in re: to it being divinely attended [revealing God’s will] – Pro 16:33 [e.g., Urim and Thummin – Exo 28:30]). [1] “The reference to ritual sacrifice (Lev 2:13) would be fairly evident to the first readers of Mark. The argument has a coherence deeper than catchwords: Since undisciplined disciples risk the fire of gehenna at the last judgment, the hardships the disciple will undergo now are disciplines like the fire of a sacrificial offering that purifies, or like salt which stings but is preservative in its effect. Jesus on his way to Jerusalem is the supreme example of the sacrificial offerings ‘salted with fire.’ His sacrificial death is not to shield disciples from costly obedience, but rather show them the way: ‘For every one (meaning every disciple) will be salted with fire.’ Disciples whose lives are not characterized by rigorous self-discipline [and bold witness] are like flavorless salt. They have lost the sharpness which sets them apart from their environment and constitutes their usefulness.” – Lamar Williamson Jr. (Mark) [2] Since both were required holidays and the cost of travel was steep, the Jews who travelled to Jerusalem to observe Passover, would often stay until Pentecost. As such, the Jews who witnessed Jesus’ death are still in town. [3] The are several good reasons for referring to the Jerusalem church as prototypical: 1) it is the specific church Jesus is referring to when making His “church promises” to Peter (Mat 16:17-19), 2) it is the church to which all the other first century churches looked for instruction/ruling on orthodoxy and orthopraxy (e.g., Gal 2:1-2; Act 15:1-29; 1Co 11:16 = The unity of practice among the “churches of God” on this issue was no doubt due to the fact that it came from their mother, the church at Jerusalem). [4] According to ancient church historian Eusebius, the Jerusalem church relocated to the city of Pella just before the city’s fall to the Romans in 70 A.D. It did so however without its two leaders, James (the brother of Jesus) and Peter who stayed behind and perished during the siege. At this point, most of the apostles were also dead and the church’s former members permanently dispersed to other locations. Though the city itself would continue to play a significant role in the world’s politics and religion, her church remained small and struggled to exist.

Acts 2

November 12, 2023 • R. Scott Jarrett • Acts 2

1. The Christian Pentecost should be viewed as Sinai 2.0. given: 1) the sacred holiday of Pentecost (Shavout - Feast of Weeks, Exo 34:22) represented not only a celebration of God’s bountiful giving of physical food (or harvest), but also spiritual food since according to Jewish tradition, Pentecost was the day Israel received the Law from God at Sinai (Hag Matan Torateinu – The Festival of the Giving of Torah[1]) (1, “Pentecost…they were all together in one place”[2]). 2) the parallels that exist between Sinai and the Christian Pentecost: (Exo 19:16-18 w/20:1, 18) = Fire and awe (“fire…people trembled”) accompanying the presence of God speaking about His mighty deeds and Law (“God spoke all these words, saying, ‘I am the LORD your God Who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery’”) which all the people experienced/heard (“All the people perceived”). (Act 2:2-12) = Fire and awe (“fire…They were amazed and astonished…they all continued in amazement and great perplexity”) accompanying the presence of God (“the Holy Spirit”) speaking about His mighty deeds and Law (“speaking of the mighty deeds of God”) which all the people experienced/heard (vv5-11).[3] 3) like the Christian Pentecost, Sinai also shares the association of people receiving the Spirit (Act 2:4 and Num 11:16-17 [this event takes place immediately following the Sinai event – Num 10:11-13]). 4) Luke’s mention of the Pentecost event as “fulfillment” (1, “When the day of Pentecost had come”) = Literally, “in complete fulfillment of the day of Pentecost” (Grk., en ho hemera pentakostay sumplay-ra-oe = In sum/complete fulfillment). Luke seems to be indicating that something started in the past (i.e., Sinai) has now come to completion (at Pentecost).[4] 5) What follows the Christian Pentecost is the receiving of the “new” Law (the Law as transformed in application and/or semantic range by Jesus) (42, “the apostles’ teaching”). 2. The “other tongues” – or tongues given by the Spirit to the early church, were human languages unknown to their speakers (versus a non-human language unknown to the speakers – e.g., an angelic language [Pentecostal version of speaking in tongues]) [5] (4-6, “tongues” [Grk., glossa = human language, Rev 14:6], “hearing them speak in his own language” – See also again, vv8-11)[6]. 3. Without the proper biblical framework, acts of God (or obedience to God) have been known to be misinterpreted as the behavior of fools or false teachers (12-13; “full of sweet wine”) = Drunk early in the morning, the behavior of fools (14-15). Drunkenness during the day was also associated w/many pagan religions who believed alcohol (or the creation of ecstatic states) was a means to connecting w/deity (e.g., early Christians were accused of being cannibals [for eating their Lord] and guilty of incest [bc they married their brothers and sisters]; we are accused of being works based/trying to earn our salvation or unaware of what Scripture teaches about salvation by faith [bc we teach salvation also requires obedience]). 4. Prophesy always involves the miraculous but not always new words – or predictions about the future (16-18, “prophesy”) = Peter is identifying their miraculous speech as the fulfillment of the first portion of Joel 2:28-32 (i.e., the portion re: to prophecy). Yet the content of their speech was itself not miraculous. Once more, they were “speaking (only) of the mighty deeds of God” – referring to those deeds done by God in the past. How then does this qualify as prophecy? The content of most prophecy is not miraculous; it neither speaks about anything new nor predicts anything still future. For speech to qualify as prophetic only two things are necessary: 1) speech in agreement w/God’s existing words (Deu 13:1-11, 18:20), 2) speech accompanied by something miraculous (2Co 12:12; Deu 13:1-2, 18:21-22)—which in the early church’s case, was the ability to speak the various foreign languages of those present at Pentecost w/o knowing them beforehand. 5. Peter’s divinely inspired interpretation of Joel 2:28 as “And it shall be in the last days (versus how it was communicated in the original text, “And it shall come about after this”): 1) indicates that the Christian Pentecost/IPO of the indwelling Spirit is not only the beginning of new words/NT canon from God but also the final millennia before Christ’s return and Judgment Day (17-18 = Gifts of the Spirit necessary to new words from God [“prophesy…visions…dreams” = The indication of new words from God/NT canon], 19-20 = Signs that will immediately precede Jesus’ return [Mat 24:29-31]). 2) provides further evidence that Jesus’ return will be in the very near future (17, “last days” = Plural or referring to more than one day which in Jewish tradition, each day represents a thousand years of redemptive history [2Pe 3:8] and Messiah returns on the last day, the Sabbath [or at the end of 6,000 years]. At the time of Jesus’ earthly ministry, we were already somewhere in the range of 4,000 years – which means the “days” (or millennia) being referred to by Peter can be no more than two. That puts Jesus’ return somewhere around 2033 [or two thousand years after the Christian Pentecost which took place in 33 A.D.]. In this light, consider Jesus’ words in Joh 9:4). 3) should create greater urgency (in us) to be faithful and productive for His kingdom (Mat 25:14-30) – most especially in witnessing to the truth and saving others (Peter’s [Joel’s] point in v21. Once we reach the last days, there is no time to waste; again Joh 9:4, also Pro 11:30). 6. The indwelling (or empowering of the) Spirit is given for the purpose of: 1) witness in persecution (Chapter one: witnesses on fire in the fire) (1:8). 2) new Scripture (2:17, again, “prophesy…visions…dreams”). 3) judgment (most esp. in the covenant community – 18, “prophesy” [all God’s people] = Judgment is a form of prophecy [e.g., Eze 23:36]; The NC indwelling Spirit is the new version of Num 11:17, hence Mat 18:15 = Every member judging/holding other members accountable/responsible for preserving justice/confronting sin as the first step in congregational justice/discipline). 7. What God wants the Jews to know about Jesus: 1) He was from God (22; Joh 3:2). 2) God’s plan was to deliver Him to the Jews as the (truly) propitiatory sacrifice for their sins (23a; The animal sacrifices were neither sufficient nor penal [i.e., the lambs were not punished]– Rom 3:25; Heb 10:4; Consider also the example of Isaac [God was not punishing him or Abe] or the prophesy of the High Priest [Joh 11:50-51]). 3) The Jews treated Jesus as though He were a criminal (23b). 4) God still treated Jesus’ death as propitiation for Israel’s sin, hence the reason death could not keep Him/He was resurrected (i.e., He was victorious – Rom 4:25) (24; Heb 9:15-16). 5) Jesus’ resurrection and role as Messiah (the “Christ”) was prophesied by David (25-32). 6) Jesus is now in heaven where God has exalted and confirmed Jesus’s role not only as His earthly king (“Christ”), but the divine King of heaven and earth (“Lord”) (33-36), 7) God is holding the Jews personally responsible for Jesus’ mistreatment and death (23, 36). 8. Peter uses the three most relevant pieces of evidence to validate a person and their message to prove that Jesus was who He claimed to be: 1) their public body of work (22; Act 26:26). 2) the Scripture (25-31). 3) personal (eyewitness) testimony (32). 9. One of the ways to know that you have been a faithful witness causing conviction in others, is that those receiving the message will either be “pierced to the heart” which leads to salvation (37) or “cut to the quick” which leads to persecution (5:33, 7:54, 10:39). 10. We are saved and regenerated in the waters of baptism (37-41, “be baptized…for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit…Be saved [thru repentance and baptism]...So then, those who had received his word were baptized…and…there were added [to salvation] about three thousand souls”). That by the word, “added” Luke means salvation is confirmed by (v47 “adding to their number…those…being saved”; 1Pe 3:21). 11. The Bible teaches infant baptism: 1) All the essential ingredients found in the phrase, (39, “For this promise is for you and for your children and for all who are far off”) are also found in God’s promise to Abraham in Gen 17:7-13 (“children” = infants [v12], “this promise is for you and your children” [7, 10, “you and your descendants after you”], “for all those [children] who are far off [in the future]” [13 “everlasting covenant”]). 2) for the entirety of Israel’s redemptive history, infants were granted this special favor by God (i.e., they were automatic members of the covenant). Hardly would any Jew have found what Peter was preaching as good news if such special favor was no longer part of the deal (i.e., they were in under the OC, but now [under the NC], they need to be old enough to understand and give consent). 3) to remove God’ special favor toward infants (in this respect) would be a violation of God original and “everlasting” promise (hence the reason, baptism is identified as the new form of circumcision [Col 2:11]– God is keeping His promise!). 12. The first true Christians were continually devoting themselves to practicing the very things the world and popular religion (which is only popular b/c it has adopted many of the convictions of the world) has always found controversial or outright rejected: 1) new understandings (of old teachings) (42, “the apostles’ teaching [on the new application/understanding of the OT/Law]). 2) seeking confirmation from God (not popular opinion) for what they believed (43, “wonders and signs” = Confirmation that what was being taught was from God. Such signs and miracles were needed given the absence of the NT canon [what we use today to confirm the teaching]). 3) treating those in the covenant community more like family than blood family (42, “fellowship” [Grk., koinoenia]) = The idea of family or sharing and becoming one in re to: our resources/care (44-45), our beliefs, convictions and perspective (46a), our personal life (transparency) (46b, “and breaking bread from house to house” = Devoted themselves to time together outside the Temple for the purpose of sharing their personal lives), loyalty (“breaking bread from house to house, they were taking their meals together with gladness and sincerity of heart” = Joyfully sharing a meal w/others was an ancient indicator of your loyalty to them), happiness and blessings (47). 4) signs with real spiritual power (sacraments v. ordinances) (41, “baptized” w/47 “adding…those being saved”; 42, “breaking of bread” w/Joh 13:10 w/Joh 6:54). [1] Tradition also speaks of this as the day that Ruth – a Gentile, placed herself under the yoke of the Law. [2] During Pentecost, it was customary for ancient Jews to gather in one place, stay up all night learning Torah, and remembering their vows of obedience to God’s commands (See “Shavout – The Holiday of the Giving of the Torah” - http://chabad.org) [3] The famous Jewish philosopher, Philo’s words, “Then from the midst of the fire that streamed from heaven there sounded forth to their utter amazement a voice, for the flame became the articulate speech in the language familiar to the audience” were not spoken about Christian Pentecost, but Sinai. [4] “Luke uses an odd phrase to introduce this event, literally ‘in the fulfillment of the day of Pentecost,” but clearly from what follows [is not the fulfillment of that specific day since] the day was yet young.’” – C.K. Barrett (Acts Vol. 1) [5] Jewish tradition records that the language of angels is the same language God used to create the world, Hebrew (Jub 12:26). It is also this language that (Jewish) tradition teaches was preserved by Michael the archangel for those descendants of Noah in the line of Abraham after the splitting of the languages during the Tower of Babel incident (Apend. Of Naph. 8:4-6). Of further interest, the word “Hebrew” in Hebrew (eev’riyt) is a derivation of the Hebrew word for covenant (beriyt). Put another way, Hebrew was the language of covenant (or those in/remaining in covenant with God). [6] “The Greek syntax, surely dictates that the phrase ‘in his own language’ must go with the word ‘speaking’ not ‘hearing,’ in v6. They heard them speaking in their own languages.” – Ben Witherington (The Acts of the Apostles A Socio-Rhetorical Commentary)