IN
THIS ISSUE
|
"THREE TIMES IN THE YEAR..." |
A number of key biblical themes are associated with the
annual festivals of Israel. The late Dwight
A. Pryor (1945-2011), founder of the Center for Judaic-Christian Studies
in Dayton, Ohio, and beloved teacher at the Church of the Messiah, liked to
summarize some of these themes with a series of English words beginning with
the letter "r": redemption (for Passover), revelation (for
Pentecost), remembrance (for the Feast of Trumpets), repentance (for the Day of
Atonement), and rejoicing (for the Feast of Tabernacles). Festival seasons are
preceded by periods of reflection (another "r" word), and the
additional theme of resurrection can be associated with more than one festival.
Celebrating
the festival days with the Church of the Messiah has been a great joy for
Sherry and me-especially the Feast of Tabernacles, the high point of each year.
We also treasure regular get-togethers with the Virtual Church at godward.org, hosted by Kenneth Westby. For
the past dozen years, Ken has graciously invited me to prepare sermons for the
Virtual Church on a number of festival days.
This
issue of Grace & Knowledge includes five articles based on messages
that I have given for "cyberservices" of
the Virtual Church in 2011 and 2012. During the Feast of Unleavened Bread in
2011, I talked about the role of faithful women in making possible the
preservation of the nation of Israel and Israel's Exodus from Egypt. My article
"Heroines
of the Exodus" contains a number of insights from Moses' Women
by Shera Aronoff Tuchman
and Sandra E. Rapoport, a book that I highly
recommend.
On
the Day of Atonement in 2011, I spoke about the symbolism of the torn temple
curtain as suggested by Matthew's Gospel, particularly Matt 27:50-54. Here my
main source was the dissertation of New Testament scholar Daniel M. Gurtner, published in the book The Torn Veil: Matthew's
Exposition of the Death of Jesus. I summarize Gurtner's
findings in the article "Interpreting
the Torn Temple Curtain."
During
the Passover season in 2012, I examined Paul's sermon at Pisidian
Antioch recorded in Acts 13. It is in this chapter that Luke shifts from
"Saul" to "Paul" in referring to the apostle
to the Gentiles. Luke's reason for making this shift may be connected to the
meaning of Paul's sermon, as I explain io
the article "Why
Luke Shifts from `Saul' to `Paul' in Acts 13." Then on Pentecost 2012,
I discussed what likely happened to Paul after his house arrest in Rome
described in Acts 28. The article "What Happened to
Paul after Acts 28" covers the hints provided by the New Testament,
history, and Christian tradition.
One
American "prophecy fad" of 2012 has been Jonathan Cahn's book The
Harbinger, which claims that Isa 9:10 contains a special message of
judgment for the post 9/11 United States. I use this book as a springboard for
a discussion of how not to interpret prophecy in the article " `The
Harbinger' and Pesher Interpretation," based on a message from the
2012 Feast of Trumpets. We hope you enjoy these articles along with the rest of
Issue 27.
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On 11 Nov 2012, 14:23.
