4/19/17
The earliest Christians followed a Jewish tradition of pausing to pray, preferably together, first thing in the morning, about mid morning, at noon, about mid afternoon, and in the evening. “Just a Note” posts are brief observations made from Scripture readings not related to a lectionary. If I have one to post, it normally appears about 9:00 in the morning, at “the hour of prayer.”
The fourth Gospel closes with a subscript. In John 21:24-25, there’s a claim to the author’s reliability as an eyewitness. This witness saw the things which are reported in the Gospel. He saw many other things, but chose not to write them all. Rather, he selected those things which would bear witness to Jesus’ identity and his work.
Sometimes people complain that the biblical Gospels are not reliable because they are different from one another. They record different events. Sometimes those events are not recorded in strictly chronological order. Sometimes the same event is recorded in several accounts but there are different details emphasized. No doubt it is difficult to record the most important events of someone’s life and work. Choosing what to focus on must be a challenge.
The Gospels present themselves as true testimony. We should recall that they were written and published in a time when there were living eyewitnesses to part or all of what is told. We don’t find contradictory evidence from the first century. We don’t find them as a matter of debate. We simply find these accounts. They seem quite reliable in all the non-controversial things they say. It stands to reason that we would accept the more controversial statements as well. The Bible regularly shows itself to be trustworthy.
If this brief meditation was helpful to you, I hope you will check out the other materials on our website at www.WittenbergCoMo.com and consider supporting us.
The earliest Christians followed a Jewish tradition of pausing to pray, preferably together, first thing in the morning, about mid morning, at noon, about mid afternoon, and in the evening. “Just a Note” posts are brief observations made from Scripture readings not related to a lectionary. If I have one to post, it normally appears about 9:00 in the morning, at “the hour of prayer.”
The fourth Gospel closes with a subscript. In John 21:24-25, there’s a claim to the author’s reliability as an eyewitness. This witness saw the things which are reported in the Gospel. He saw many other things, but chose not to write them all. Rather, he selected those things which would bear witness to Jesus’ identity and his work.
Sometimes people complain that the biblical Gospels are not reliable because they are different from one another. They record different events. Sometimes those events are not recorded in strictly chronological order. Sometimes the same event is recorded in several accounts but there are different details emphasized. No doubt it is difficult to record the most important events of someone’s life and work. Choosing what to focus on must be a challenge.
The Gospels present themselves as true testimony. We should recall that they were written and published in a time when there were living eyewitnesses to part or all of what is told. We don’t find contradictory evidence from the first century. We don’t find them as a matter of debate. We simply find these accounts. They seem quite reliable in all the non-controversial things they say. It stands to reason that we would accept the more controversial statements as well. The Bible regularly shows itself to be trustworthy.
If this brief meditation was helpful to you, I hope you will check out the other materials on our website at www.WittenbergCoMo.com and consider supporting us.
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