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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 Just because we have an Old Testament, it does not mean that we call it the 'Outdated Testament'.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!

October 8, 2017

10/8/2017

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​For those reading this at a time other than October of 2017, the nation at this time is still reeling after the shooting in Las Vegas. Lots of attention has been given the event, the worst mass shooting (so far) in these modern United States. 

And, perhaps, when you read this, a clear reason for the attack may have surfaced. But things like this, even though done by one person, could be considered a form of terrorism.

When I lived in Iowa, I remember hearing that terrorism could be considered something as simple as the action of a person throwing something out of their car window as they passed another person on a bicycle, done in order to scare the other person. That was called terrorism. It is something that simple.

At the heart of it, terrorism is a love for that feeling of power when someone else is made afraid. Some people would love more power. It is that simple.

And terrorism is certainly not a new thing. It seems that the wicked tenants in the parable for this Sunday are terrorists in a way (Matthew 21:33-46).

At first glance it seems like the tenants are acting like the vineyard is theirs. But when the son comes, it is obvious that they are not thinking that it is theirs. But they see, in their killing of the son, a chance to have the inheritance. 

And it is stated as a very good chance. In Luke 20, they are no so confident. They say, 'Let us kill him that the inheritance MAY be ours.' In Mark 12, they are quite confident. They say, 'Let us kill him, and the inheritance WILL be ours.' In Matthew, the confidence is the same, but it is dependent upon their action: 'Let us kill him and have his inheritance.' 

But before the action of killing the son, they were terrorists. They were killing, stoning, and beating the servants who were sent their way. It was a variety that showed their power.

Actions carry along with them, the chance to have some power. With power, there is usually the chance to create some terror. There is the chance to be in control of a situation. Some people strive for that.

God is used to people trying to be like him. That was the fault of Adam and Eve at the beginning.

The great part of that story was that he became like us. And then he died a terrible death outside the city walls. God let it all happen.

We should fear God, as the Small Catechism tells us. God could have been the ultimate terrorist. Instead he became the ultimate savior. We should fear AND LOVE God.
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