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A Sabbath Day's Journey

By: Rev. Paul Landgraf
What is a Sabbath day's journey? First of all, it is a Jewish expression. We measure distances in meters or yards. The Jews had a certain distance that they could walk on Saturday before it would be considered work. So their synagogues that they went to on Saturday could not be very far away. The word appears only in Acts 1:12 and indicates a distance of about three-quarters of a mile.

With that in mind, I think it is important to remember the origins of Christianity. Just because we have an Old Testament, it does not mean that we call it the 'Outdated Testament'. Much of the Old Testament has a literary structure that we are not aware of because of our modern emphasis on chapter and verse divisions. Within many of these blogs, I try to get the reader to see a bigger picture, a larger perspective that often includes the Old Testament and the environment that was present when the New Testament was seeing the Light of the day.

Second, a Sabbath day's journey is intentionally short. These 'journeys' with a text, almost always one of the three readings for that Sunday, are deliberately brief discussions. This blog was never designed to be a comprehensive look at any text. Sometimes a specific word is studied in detail. But, as a whole, a blog entry, by itself, is meant to be quite brief.

Finally, since the term 'Sabbath day's journey' appears in Acts, it is meant to appeal to a wide variety of people. This blog is meant for those who cannot come on Sunday mornings. And it is also for those who do come on Sunday mornings but would also like a further study of the text. It is also for those who live somewhere else in the world (besides Drake and Freedom, Missouri, USA) and would simply like a further study of the text. It was meant to get these different groups of people to start thinking about the biblical texts. Part of the reason for this blog is that I am not able to have a bible class on Sunday mornings with either congregation, and so, to have a blog like this seemed like a good idea. I hope it is helpful for you, in whatever situation you may be.

Any feedback would be greatly appreciated. And thank you for taking the time to read this!

November 27th, 2016

11/27/2016

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This Sunday marks the beginning of the church year, not the calendar year. There's a big difference. And the gospel text is the entrance of Jesus into Jerusalem, not him as a little baby who grows up by the end of the year.

The church does things differently from the world, and that's a good thing--since the world is so sinful. Jesus comes into Jerusalem on a donkey, not a horse. There's a big difference. And it's not even his own donkey; he borrows it.

He also ends up borrowing a place to have the Last Supper. The prisoner Barabbas--who is called "notorious" in Matthew's account (the word means "outstanding" when it's used in a good sense)--goes free; and Jesus, who committed no wrong, takes his place as it were. And it's also a borrowed tomb.

Also unique to Matthew's account are the two stories that are laid out and that are being told "to this day (Matthew 28:15)" --the story that Jesus was stolen from the tomb, and the actual account that he appears briefly both to the women and then to the disciples. That's obviously a big difference as well!

In a way, Jesus' way makes no sense. If God is behind it, why doesn't his way work out with a bit more power? Why doesn't it work out a bit more orderly or consistently? Why doesn't it work out at least a bit more nicely for One who is called the Son of God?!
Why questions are usually asked when people can observe a situation from the safe position. When people are really in trouble, they usually don't bother asking those kinds of questions.
​
People in deep trouble just receive the things that come to them as wonderful gifts, and they make the most use of them that they can. And they usually enjoy being saved.
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November 20th, 2016

11/20/2016

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​This is the time where we get close to the end of the church year, and that certainly changes our perspective. We tend to plan as though things will continue to be as they are for a while. But that is certainly not the case.

Today people think that the early Christians all thought that Jesus was coming back quite soon. And while that certainly was a thought among some early Christians, it wasn't what everyone was thinking.

Jesus' perspective in the Gospel according to Luke is slightly different than the rest, and in that account Jesus says that the end would not come immediately.

That certainly fits with the progression and advancement that comes with the book of Acts. The disciples didn't just sit in Jerusalem and wait for Jesus to come back.

All the things that Jesus has mentioned about the sun being darkened, all those things have already happened. And so the end could happen literally any day.

It could be today, and that's a good reminder.

We're not in charge. And that's a good thing.
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November 13th, 2016

11/13/2016

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​This is the time where we get close to the end of the church year, and that certainly changes our perspective. We tend to plan as though things will continue to be as they are for a while. But that is certainly not the case.

Today people think that the early Christians all thought that Jesus was coming back quite soon. And while that certainly was a thought among some early Christians, it wasn't what everyone was thinking.

Jesus' perspective in the Gospel according to Luke is slightly different than the rest, and in that account Jesus says that the end would not come immediately.

That certainly fits with the progression and advancement that comes with the book of Acts. The disciples didn't just sit in Jerusalem and wait for Jesus to come back.

All the things that Jesus has mentioned about the sun being darkened, all those things have already happened. And so the end could happen literally any day.

It could be today, and that's a good reminder.

We're not in charge. And that's a good thing.
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November 6th, 2016

11/6/2016

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​This is one of those Sundays where the verb 'to bless' has a critical role. And that, in itself, is a good reminder. In the end, it's God, the Lord of heaven and earth, who defines what that word means. God blesses in the way that he wants to bless.

Someone might point out that there are times when someone could be said to be blessing God, but that structure and its greater context doesn't put the focus on the person doing it. It is critical, though, to understand and believe what God is able to do. God is still the focus, whether we bless God or God blesses us.

The word 'mercy' is almost like blessing. Mercy implies showing compassion in some way. A blessing is more general, but that's not a bad thing. It also ultimately depends on a gracious and compassionate God. But how that blessing looks DOES NOT MATTER.

That's why Jesus can say things like, "Blessed are the poor in spirit." You wouldn't think that anything great will come to them. You might even considered them to be accursed. But you're not in charge.

It's extremely comforting to know that God is in charge of words like blessing ... holiness ... and forgiveness.

And it's just as comforting to know that he gives them out in special places and in special ways.

And it can take just a Sabbath Day's journey to get there.

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