It took a year to read the Bible, then almost 9 months to read the Apocrypha. Now, I'm going to try to offer reflections on the Narrative Lectionary. But, I won't be posting daily--at least, for a while.

Wednesday, February 8, 2017

Criticism, a Reflection on Luke Luke 7:28-35

According to Luke (28:29-30), by not being  baptized by John, the Pharisees and the lawyers had rejected God's purpose for them. How has our understanding of baptism changed?

Two interpretations for v. 31-32. The first is that Jesus is quoted as comparing the people of his generation as being like children who refused to respond to adults and who refused to be empathetic to suffering. Would Jesus have a similar or dissimilar attitude to modern churchgoers? The second interpretation is that the reference is to a children's game of playing like they were at a wedding or a funeral but some children would just refuse to play along (Good as New, by John Henson, and by Sharon Ringe in her commentary of Luke.

v. 32 John was criticized for his pious behavior. Jesus was criticized for doing the opposite.

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