John 5:21-29 (Gospel Reading for Sunday November 22nd 2009)
I would have to be honest and say that I have REALLY struggled with this passage. I looked at it for several days leading up to my deadline for posting the weekly gospel reflection and it remained all just too hard. I could not get a handle on any part of this passage to allow me to get started. Not the first time I might add that I have had difficulty trying to work out what John is on about in his Gospel account!
(I did however keep coming back to the very last verse of the reading. A face value view suggests that we could be distracted into thinking of it as a proof text for good works … “those who have done good will rise to live, and those who have done evil will rise to be condemned” … but we know that not to be the case from many other cross references. Note also the clear statement to the contrary from Jesus in the same passage just a few verses earlier (v24). So, because I didn’t want to get side-tracked into a one-sided salvation debate, which it seems in hindsight is not the main point of the passage, I wanted to persist with a search for some other insights.)
If we use the old rule of first establishing the broader context, a couple of interesting and helpful pointers emerge. Jesus had just completed a controversial healing of the man at Bethesda ON THE SABBATH and further, a statement from Jesus to the Jewish leaders which implies his EQUALITY WITH GOD (see verse 18).
After a bit more digging and rattling around, what came to mind for me was the saying … “MAY AS WELL BE HUNG FOR A SHEEP AS FOR A LAMB.” Or, Jesus did not want to be (literally) nailed for just breaking the Sabbath! Jesus not only justified his disregard of the Old Testament thinking about the Sabbath, but he gave the Jewish leaders a whole new level of reason for angering them.
It seems that in this passage we have one of the very profound statements in John’s Gospel. It gives answer to any one who is ready to accept Jesus as a good bloke, great teacher and super role model, but has difficulty going the all important next step of accepting his claim to be God (and the associated implications of that.) What unfolds is a whole host of reasons why we should honour the Son (or why Jesus is God).
What does this have to say to us as leaders in Lutheran Schools? Other than restating the obvious … a reminder to us about who Jesus is, and the implications of that, I am wondering if it is not also a warning about a watered down approach to the God stuff? I am conscious of the fact that “spirituality” is an in word and that it can be a comfortable word for people to use when they can’t come to us the G word or the J word (God or Jesus). Hence a reminder to us as we strive to help people connect with a God who is relevant for us in the 21st Century, to not in the end allow the God-ness of Jesus to be downplayed. Jesus … more than just a good bloke!
People and children often say things like, they all think I do it, so I might as well do it. The teacher expects me to do the wrong thing so I might as well do the wrong thing. Sometimes we pass judgement on others without first giving them the benefit of the doubt.
ReplyDeleteHey I'm not good at this it was just a quick reflection may not make sense to anyone.
Hey ... thanks for making a comment. It is certainly not a question of being good at it ... who's judging anyway? Great to have someone make a spontaneous contribution. Thanks
ReplyDeleteIf the Father has entrusted all judgement to the Son, then in line with allowing Scripture to interpret Scripture (and John to interpret John), those that have done good are those that are sanctified by Christ's sacrifice, since all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. The tension between Jesus as our Judge on the Father's behalf and Jesus our Saviour is developed throughout John, serving to underscore the impact of God himself, judge of humankind, taking that judgement and our sin upon himself. This is grace! Amazing, mysterious love in action!
ReplyDeleteWe need to explicity show such tensions to our children. The mysteries of God and the tension between law and Gospel are at the very heart of life and we dare not beat around the bush avoiding the G or J word, lest we lead them astray. Lutheran schools exist to spread this Gospel message in truth and purity.
True spirituality necessarily involves the Holy Spirit. All other 'spirituality' is just part of that inbuilt human longing for God that humans try and deal with themselves.