Lutheran Elder

'A cold coming we had of it,
Just the worst time of the year
For the journey, and such a long journey:
The ways deep and the weather sharp,
The very dead of winter.'
And the camels galled, sore-footed, refractory,
Lying down in the melting snow.
There were times we regretted
The summer palaces on slopes, the terraces,
And the silken girls bringing sherbet.
Then the camel men cursing and grumbling
And running away, and wanting their liquor and women,
And the night-fires going out, and the lack of shelters,
And the cities hostile and the towns unfriendly
And the villages dirty and charging high prices:
A hard time we had of it.
At the end we preferred to travel all night,
Sleeping in snatches,
With the voices singing in our ears, saying
That this was all folly.

Then at dawn we came down to a temperate valley,
Wet, below the snow line, smelling of vegetation;
With a running stream and a water-mill beating the darkness,
And three trees on the low sky,
And an old white horse galloped away in the meadow.
Then we came to a tavern with vine-leaves over the lintel,
Six hands at an open door dicing for pieces of silver,
And feet kicking the empty wine-skins,
But there was no information, and so we continued
And arrived at evening, not a moment too soon
Finding the place; it was (you may say) satisfactory

All this was a long time ago, I remember,
And I would do it again, but set down
This set down
This: were we led all that way for
Birth or Death? There was a Birth, certainly,
We had evidence and no doubt. I had seen birth and death,
But had thought they were different; this Birth was
Hard and bitter agony for us, like Death, our death,
We returned to our places, these Kingdoms,
But no longer at ease here, in the old dispensation,
With an alien people clutching their gods.
I should be glad of another death.

    -- T. S. Eliot

If you followed The Plan last year, you completed reading through the entire Bible in one year.   If you started, but didn't finish, don't be discouraged - you can start again... or pick up where you left off.  Just keep reading. 

It will change your life.

One thing I find amazing is what happens to those that we have been reading about in the New Testament writings.   Titus, Silas, and the Apostle John seem to die naturally (and I can't find anything definitive on the deaths of Apollos, Epaphras, or Aquila & Priscilla).

But the rest of these apostolic workers die horrible deaths as a direct result of their faith and their commitment to spreading the gospel message:

• James (brother of John) is beheaded by Herod in A.D.42.  This is the only such account recorded in the Gospels (Acts 12:2).

• James (the Just, the half-brother of Jesus) is stoned to death by a mob in Jerusalem after appearing before the Sanhedrin.

• Paul is beheaded in A.D. 67 along the Ostiense Way just outside the gates of Rome.   St. Paul's Basilica now stands on that spot.

• Peter is crucified, head downward at his own request, in Rome in A.D. 67.   The site of his crucifixion is marked with a pagan obelisk from Nero's garden, said to be the last thing Peter saw.

• Andrew (Peter's brother) spread the Gospel to Russia and was crucified in Patras (Greece).

• Luke (Paul's disciple and author of the Gospel of Luke) is crucified with Andrew.

• Nathanael (Bartholomew) travels to Armenia where he is tortured to death with flaying knives (reportedly signing hymns throughout the torture). 

• Philip is put to death by a Roman Proconsul in Asia Minor after he converts the Proconsuls wife to Christianity.

• Matthew (Levi) is killed with a spear spreading the Gospel in Ethiopia.

• Matthais (who replaced Judas Iscariot) preaches in Asia Minor and Syria, where he is burned to death.

• Thomas (Didymus) is stabbed to death by Brahmin priests in Mylaproe India in A.D. 72.

• Simon the Zealot and Judas (Thaddeus) are torn apart by a Persian mob in A.D. 79.

• James (son of Alphaeus) spreads the gospel to Persia where he is stoned to death at the age of 94.

• Barnabas is stoned death outside of a synagogue in Salamis, Cyprus.  John Mark is a witness.

• John Mark travels to Alexandria, enrages a mob and is dragged by his neck through the streets until he is dead.

• Timothy is stoned to death by a mob in Ephesus after preaching the gospel at a pagan ceremony.

• Titus dies on the island of Crete.

• Silas dies in Northern Greece (Macedonia) after spreading the gospel message to Rhodes.

• John dies in Ephesus of natural causes at the age of 100 in A.D. 98.

So what should we make of this? 

It strikes me as implausible that so many would suffer brutal deaths for a fraud.  That the earliest Christian believed what they said about Jesus is obvious. And remember, many of them were eye witnesses

For me it is obvious that the spread of the gospel and the ongoing work of these first Christians met aggressive, violent opposition.   And while we do not fear an angry mob dragging us into the streets because of our faith, we shouldn't be surprised when our faith meets opposition in the world.  Knowing what is right is easy.  Doing what is right is hard.   And the world will work against you when your try.

You see, we are not called to a life of ease or even a life free of conflict.  We are called to serve Christ.

So keep reading.  Pray daily prayers of thanksgiving.  And find a way to serve - in your home, in your church, and in your community. 

And remember these words from Paul's letter to the church at Colosse:

Let the message about Christ, in all its richness, fill your lives. Teach and counsel each other with all the wisdom he gives. Sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs to God with thankful hearts. And whatever you do or say, do it as a representative of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through him to God the Father.

Blessings.

Congratulations!  If you are following The Plan you have completed reading through the entire Bible in one year.  More on this later....

In our narrative, Paul has been imprisoned and taken to Caesarea under heavy guard.  It is the summer of 59 A.D.   He will spend two year imprisoned there.

About a year after his imprisonment the governor in Caesarea (Felix) is replaced by Festus.   Paul’s case is re-opened and he exercises his right as a Roman citizen to appeal to the Emperor.  Paul departs for Rome in the custody of a Roman centurion – Julius.   He is accompanied by Luke and Aristarchus.   They sail to Sidon, then to Cyprus, then to Myra.  The ship they are on is wrecked and they put ashore at Malta.   This is where Paul spends the three winter months waiting for sailing conditions to become more favorable.

It is during this timeframe (the late 50’s, early 60’s) when Mark writes his Gospel from Rome based primarily on Peter’s account.  In Antioch during this same period Matthew writes his Gospel. 

And when Paul and Luke reach Rome, Luke will pen his Gospel and Paul will be placed under house arrest.  Paul invites the Jewish leaders in Rome to hear his message, which they do.   Some are persuaded and other reject his message.   Paul then declares that he will preach to the gentiles.   For the next two years Paul continues his work in Rome while under house arrest. 

During this time he receives word of troubles in the church at Colosse, including divisions among the believers and acceptance of false teachers who are undermining the gospel.  Epaphras travels to Rome to get instruction from Paul on how to address these issues.  He stops by Philippi on the way and relates some troubles they are having as well.  And along the way, Epaphras runs into Onesimus (Philemon’s slave) who has run away and stolen money from Philemon, and brings him to Rome with him.

Paul writes his letters to the Colossians, to Philemon, and to the Ephesians while under house arrest in Rome.

He dispatches Luke to Philippi.  Epaphras recovers from his illness and travels to Philippi as well.   Although he plans on traveling to Philippi when he is released, Paul feels he must address the continuing issues there (persecution by pagans, agitation by Jewish missionaries, and infighting).   He writes his Letter to the Philippians in the Spring of 62 A.D.  It is the last letter to a church that Paul will write.

Back in Jerusalem, Porcius Festus (the Roman governor) dies.   The high priest (Ananus) uses this opportunity to convene the Sanhedrin and try James (the Lord’s half-brother).   He is brought to the top of the temple, thrown off of it and stoned to death.

It is now 63 A.D.  Peter and Silas are traveling near the Black Sea.  Paul has been released and travels to Spain, but plants no churches there.  He travels to Crete. meets Titus, and addresses the false teaching in those churches.  In Ephesus they are experiencing the same issue.  So Paul travels there and meets with Timothy.  They excommunicate two men from the church there.  Paul leaves Timothy in Ephesus and travels to meet with the churches in Troas and then Philippi. 

Despite Paul’s visit and Timothy’s presence, the problems in the Ephesian church deepen.  False teachings are rampant, including corrupting the creation story and merging it with with Roman pagan beliefs.  (These teachings include ideas that will be associated with Gnosticism in the 2nd century).  Timothy is struggling to address these issues when Paul writes him a letter - this is the letter we know as 1 Timothy.  Shortly after receiving this letter Timothy is jailed in Ephesus.

It is now the summer of 64 A.D.  A fire rages through Rome and the Roman Christians are being harassed because of it.  Some of the Jewish believers begin re-attending the synagogue to avoid persecution.  It is at this time that the Book of Hebrews is written. The author is unknown (thought to be Silas or Barnabas) but it is intended to encourage the Jewish believers to remain strong in the gospel message.  

About a year later Emperor Nero will initiate a brutal persecution of Christians throughout the empire.   This will last for three years. 

Paul receives word from Titus that the churches in Crete are struggling and writes the Letter to Titus.  The letter is delivered by Apollos and Zenas.  

Paul then travels to Nicopolis and plants a church there over the winter.   While travelling to Ephesus Paul is arrested and taken back to Rome and imprisoned.   He is not under house arrest, but is imprisoned in the harsh Mamertine dungeon.  

While Nero’s persecutions continue, rumors of war begin to spread in Palestine.  Many of the churches there begin to migrate to Asia Minor.  Philip relocates to Hierapolis.  The Apostle John moves to Ephesus and joins Timothy.  John works with Timothy to fight the false teachings and false teachers among the churches in Asia Minor.  It is here that he writes his Gospel.   He also writes the letter known as 1 John to the Churches in Asia Minor, the letter known as 2 John to a local church, and the letter known as 3 John to Gaius (one of the apostolic workers). 

The persecutions have reached the churches along the Black Sea where Peter and Silas had been working.  As elsewhere, the believers are reverting to their pagan lifestyle and in some cases are rebelling against local authorities.  Peter writes a letter to these churches known as 1 Peter.

In the spring a 66 A.D. the Jews revolt against Rome.  This begins in Judea and spreads throughout Palestine.  It is a brutal war between Jewish revolutionaries and Roman soldiers, chronicled by Flavius Josephus.   In Rome the church has dwindled due to the persecutions.   Paul remains in prison and most of his supporters have disappeared.   Luke visits Paul in prison.  Paul writes the letter known as 2 Timothy.  Like Paul, Peter knows that his life is in jeopardy.  He writes a final letter of encouragement to the Churches along the Black Sea – known to us as 2 Peter. 

It is now the summer of 67 A.D. and Nero’s persecution of the Christians is at its height.   Paul is beheaded in Rome.  At about this same time Peter is arrested, scourged, and crucified.  Andrew (Peter’s brother) is crucified in Greece.  Luke is crucified with him.  Bartholomew is beaten and crucified in Armenia.  John Mark travels to Alexandria, enrages a mob and is dragged by his neck through the streets until he is dead. 

Jude writes the Letter of Jude.   He sees it as fulfilling the predictions that Peter made in his second letter.

In 70 A.D.  the Emperor Domitian sends the Apostle John into exile on the Island of Patmos.  He is sentenced to labor in the mines there.   It is on the Island of Patmos that John writes the Book of Revelations.  

Blessings!

Pray!

If you are following The Plan you are reading through the final chapters of the New Testament today.  

In our narrative Paul has completed two of his missionary journey’s.  He is now in Antioch.  The year is 54 A.D.

In Ephesus, Priscilla and Aquila are working as tentmakers and visiting the synagogue there when Apollos arrives.   Apollos is a Greek Jew from Alexandria.  He is well educated and very good orator - they convince him to visit the church in Corinth.

When Apollos visits Corinth he addresses both the Jews in the synagogue (the one that harshly rebuked Paul) as well as the believers in the church.  The Corinthians are impressed with Apollos.  Shortly after Apollos departs Corinth, Barnabas arrives.   Then Peter visits Corinth and performs some healings in the city.  Rather than strengthening and unifying the believers in Corinth, this string of visitors begins to divide the believers in Corinth.   Some declare themselves followers of Paul, others followers of Peter, others followers of Apollos, and others claim to follow Christ and not men.

Paul departs Antioch for Ephesus, stopping by the Galatian churches on the way and picking up Timothy from Lystra.  He is making his way towards Ephesus because he believes he has been called to train leaders just as Christ trained the Apostles, and he will do this in Ephesus.

Ephesus is a free Greek city and is very large (200,000+).  It is considered the New York City of Asia Minor – a center of commerce, politics, and religion.  One of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World – The Temple of Artemis – is located in Ephesus.

When Paul shows up in Ephesus he has six apostolic workers with him – Titus, Timothy, Gaius, Sopater, Aristarchus, and Secundus.  Another twelve disciples of John the Baptist arrive and Paul baptizes them.  Along with Priscilla and Aquila, these men make up the newly planted church in Ephesus.

Paul stays in Ephesus for two years – working as a tent maker in the mornings, preaching the gospel, and training others for apostolic work.   The Jews of Ephesus have rejected Paul’s message, but the church there continues to grow.  One convert is named Philemon, who is a wealthy man from the town of Colosse.   At the end of the two years, Paul sends his apostolic workers throughout the region.  These men plant churches – many of them are the churches referenced in the first few chapters of Revelations.

While in Ephesus, Paul is visited by many believers from Corinth – Apollos, Chloe, Stephanas, and others.  The church in Corinth continues to fracture and revert to their previous lifestyles – sexual immorality, theft, idol worship, etc…   In early 55 A.D. Paul writes a letter to the Corinthians that we know as 1 Corinthians.

At about this time, Emperor Claudius dies and is succeeded by Nero, who lifts the ban on the Jews in Rome.  Paul sends Aquila and Priscilla back to Rome (remember, the fled Rome to Corinth six years earlier).   Along with Aquila and Priscilla, Paul transplants several other gentile and Jewish believers to Rome.   They plant a church in Rome.

As Paul is organizing all of this, Timothy returns from Corinth with news that they have ignored his letter to them.  He travels to Corinth himself, but he is humiliated by some of the believers there who openly reject his apostolic authority.  He returns to Ephesus dejected.

When Paul returns to Ephesus, he finds the city is in rebellion against him.  The church had become so successful that the tradesmen trafficking in idols have seen their business decline.  They organize protests against Paul and the Church.  It is so intense that Paul refers to them as “wild beasts.”  Paul departs Ephesus for Troas (ahead of the mob again), but leaves behind a strong and growing church.  He also receives word that one of his followers (Epaphras) has planted a church in Colosse.

Paul plants a church in Troas, then moves on the the Macedonian churches (Berea, Philippi, Thessalonica).   He encounters Titus, who shares mixed news from Corinth.  they have disciplined the men who opposed him so harshly and taken Paul’s letter to heart, but other believers have visited the church and are undermining the gospel that Paul shared with them (again).  Paul then pens another letter to the Corinthian church that we know as 2 Corinthians.  

After traveling north to Dalmatia, Paul visits Corinth for a third time.  He spends most of the Winter of 57 A.D. at Corinth.  It is here that he receives word from Priscilla and Aquila about the Roman church.  Visitors from all over the world are being exposed to the gospel message and taking it with them.  Priscilla and Aquila ask Paul to pen a letter containing the full gospel message for the visitors that come to Rome.    It is in the winter of 57 A.D. from Corinth that Paul writes the Letter to the Romans.

Paul departs Corinth for Philippi, picks up Luke, then sails for Troas.  He meets the elders from Ephesus in Miletus, then makes his way to Tyre, where they spend a week in one of the churches planted as a result of the persecution following Stephen’s martyrdom.

Paul then departs for Caesarea and stays with Philip the evangelist (the one who met the Ethiopian eunuch).   Paul is intent on visiting Jerusalem.  Agabus (who prophesied about the famine 12 years earlier) visits Paul and prophesies that he will be imprisoned in Jerusalem.   Paul, Luke, and eight of his apostolic workers leave for Jerusalem anyway.

While in Jerusalem, Paul is received by Mnason and visits James (the Lords half-brother).   But he is accused by the Jews in Jerusalem of teaching against the Law of Moses and taking gentiles into the temple.  A mob seizes him and beats him.  The Roman Tribune – Claudias Lysias – hears of this, dispatches troops, grabs Paul, and throws him in jail (again).   Because he is a Roman citizen he is not flogged, but is forced to stand trial before the Sanhedrin.   His arguments divide the Sanhedrin and the trial ends with no conclusion.   But a plot is hatched to kill Paul (again).  This time 40 Jews bind themselves in a pact towards this end.   the Roman commander hears of this and removes Paul to Caesarea under heavy guard.

Blessings.

Keep reading.

Pray.

If you are following The Plan you are reading through the last chapters of the New Testament today. 

Most of the epistles of the New Testament are focused on Paul’s missionary journey’s – tracing how the story of Jesus spread throughout the world and the opposition that arose -  both from outside and inside the “church.”  In all these travels we get a sense of not only what we believe as Christians, but how we should live out our Christian life.

It is now the summer of 50 A.D. Paul is moved to visit the churches that he and Barnabas planted in Galatia, but there is a disagreement between them over John Mark.   They go their separate ways – Paul takes Silas with him to Galatia and Barnabas takes John Mark to Cyprus.

When Paul and Silas get to Lystra they decide to take Timothy along with them (Timothy had witnessed Paul’s stoning 2 years prior).   Paul then circumcises Timothy, which is strange considering the quarrel the churches of Antioch and Jerusalem just had over the circumcision.

They travel to Troas, which is a fairly large Roman colony on the Aegean coastline some 800 miles away.  In Troas, Luke shows up and joins the three men (it is now Paul, Silas, Timothy and Luke, for those keeping score).   It is also in Troas that Paul receives a vision to go to Greece.   So they do.

They start in Philippi, across the Aegean from Troas, which is a Roman garrison town and the principal city in Macedonia.  It is heavily Latinized and there is no synagogue.  Paul preaches about Christ to the Jewish women of the town and Lydia is converted.  She is Paul’s first convert in Europe.   It is in Philippi that a slave girl possessed by a “pythonic” spirit follows them around, mocking them.  Paul drives the spirit out of the girl, which upsets her owners.   Paul and Silas are then drug before the praetors and both Paul and Silas are beaten with birch rods (again) and thrown in jail.  During the night an earthquake shakes the jail, the jailor is converted and the next morning the praetors realize that Paul and Silas are both Roman citizens and release them.  They leave behind Luke and a newly planted church in Philippi.

Paul, Silas, and Timothy then depart for Thessalonica.  Thessalonica is not a Roman colony but a free Greek city.,  It is also the largest city in Northern Greece – as many as 200,000 people live there.  The men preach about Christ in the synagogue of Thessalonica several times and convert Jason, who then opens his home to the men and the new church.   It is in Thessalonica that Paul runs out of money and begins mending tents.    The church grows, the non-believing Jews conspire against them, and Paul and Silas depart just ahead of the mob (again).  They leave behind Timothy and a newly planted church in Thessalonica.

Paul and Silas depart for Berea, which is a fertile, wealthy farming region.   Timothy rejoins Paul and Silas in Berea and they preach in the synagogue, producing several converts.   Some of the non-believing Jews from Thessalonica discover the men in Berea and stir up opposition to them.  Paul flees for Athens and leaves Silas and Timothy behind – as well as a newly planted church in Berea.

Paul arrives in Athens alone.  Athens is a free Greek city and is teeming with idols and pagan altars.  Silas and Timothy rejoin Paul, but he sends Silas to Philippi and Timothy back to Thessalonica.  Paul preaches in the synagogue and in the marketplace.   He engages the philosophers at “Mars Hill"  and claims Jesus as the “Unknown God.”  There are only a few converts in Athens (one named Dionysus).   No church is planted in Athens.

Paul departs for Corinth, a Roman colony which is the capital of Southern Greece.  Corinth is a large city (up to 100,000 people live there), has a robust slave market and is known for sexual immorality.   Paul meets two tentmakers who were expelled from Rome by Emperor Claudius – Aquila and Priscilla.   They begin making tents together as Paul preaches in the synagogue.    The Jews of Corinth oppose him harshly, so he leaves the synagogue and preaches to the gentiles.  

At this time Timothy arrives with news from Thessalonica.   The church there is being persecuted and some of the believers are returning to their old lifestyle - one filled with pagan beliefs and fornication.   Paul writes 1 Thessalonians.

Paul’s preaching is successful among the gentiles – he has several converts and plants a church in Corinth.  Most of the believers are uneducated and poor.   While Paul is still in Corinth he receives word that the church in Thessalonica has misunderstood some of his first letter to them.  Some believe that the “day of the lord” is at hand and are abandoning their obligations.  He writes 2 Thessalonians.

The church in Corinth si growing rapidly and the non-believing Jews there now conspire against Paul and bring him before a tribunal.  The local governor (Gallio) dismisses it.   After some time Paul leaves Corinth – but leaves behind  a newly planted church.   He sails for Ephesus with Aquila and Priscilla and then proceeds alone to Antioch by way of Caesarea.   Timothy returns to Lystra.  Silas returns to Jerusalem.

Paul’s second Journey is complete.  It took 2 years and he planted 4 churches.

Blessings.

Keep Reading.

Pray.