Notes for  1 August 2020

One of the strongest temptations of the believer is the absolutization of his experience of the relationship with God: God acts so and so with me, gives me this and that, and it doesn’t happen otherwise, because God is the same for all. Apostle Paul objects: although God is the same, but the gifts, the services and the actions are different, because God is infinite, inexhaustible and bountiful. it is very important for all of us not to try (mentally) to limit God in His possibilities, but to humbly recognize His liberty and with gratitude identify His good gifts and actions in what is unexpected and unusual to us.

Herod’s reaction to John’s rebukes is commonplace. How unpleasant it is to have some preacher spoil one’s mood and intrude into one’s private life. It would be better if he did not exist at all. Yet even Herod, who allowed himself a great deal and paid little heed to anyone, did not dare kill John because he feared the people. This is hardly surprising: many who try to appear “tough” and flaunt their ruthlessness are inwardly weak, saturated with hidden fears and insecurities. Inner instability, the desire to show off before his guests, and at the same time dependence on the “public opinion” of those gathered at the feast first made Herod swear a rash oath and then consent to murder. By rejecting the preaching of John the Baptist, Herod rejected the opportunity to repent of his sins and then multiplied them. Now he must spend the rest of his life in fear. Fear is Herod’s first reaction when he hears the news of Christ’s preaching. Thinking that John has risen from the dead, Herod is mistaken, yet there is a grain of truth in his misguided fears. For the One whom he took for the risen John truly does bring Resurrection. Even though he was steeped in evil, Herod sensed the invincibility of good.

The crucifixion and death of Jesus are not merely a moment in His biography; therefore the account of this event is not simply one of the stories about His life. It is testimony. Several times the evangelist points to witnesses of the execution: the beloved disciple, Mary, the other women, and the one who “has testified,” whose “testimony is true.” John wants to take us to the place of the crucifixion so that we too may stand with him at the cross, confirming the truthfulness of his account to the other disciples. Why is this testimony needed, and why the quotations from the Law and the prophets? Do we really doubt that a Man who lived two thousand years ago died? Of course not. John's testimony, then, is not testimony to a death, but testimony to a victory accomplished...