The
Open Door Class at Southwest Central Church of Christ continues its study of John’s gospel based on a book:
Collegeville, MN: The
Liturgical Press, 1984.
Sunday was
the third time I have taught this term. I was privileged to do the Prologue and
had a short notice substitution for the healing of the nobleman's son. (John 4:45-54) This preparation is my first time to have had access to Ellis’s book and
some accused me of agreeing to teach just so I could have the book for a week.
There is a smidgen of truth in that accusation.
When a
librarian gets her mitts on a book, she approaches it a bit differently than
the average bear. She reads all the publication info, and the cataloging in
process info, and reads (or at least glances at) all the para-textual materials
in the front and back of the book. She reads the entire table of contents and
the introduction and may even scan the index and bibliography before turning to
the section that she’s referencing and using in her lesson preparation. During
this process, I learned something interesting:
Dr.
Ellis dedicates his book to John Gerhard, S.J. and in the preface notes:
“It is based on Gerhard’s
discovery, and in all that pertains to the architectonic structure of the
Gospel it is totally indebted to him.”
Gerhard,John J.: The Miraculous Parallelisms of John. Orlando Truth Inc. 2006 (probably a
reprint edition)
This link offers more information about the author and the publication of his book and notes
a 1993 publication date. Obviously, Dr. Ellis had read Gerhard's work as early as 1984. The study of parallelism in the gospel of John and the publication of
this book is the culmination of his life’s work. Gerhard’s work was undertaken
in support of the objections of Pope Benedict XVI (while he was still Cardinal
Ratzinger) to historical-critical exegesis and his rejection of Rudolf’s Bultmann’s The Gospel of John: A Commentary,
written
in 1941 translated into English in 1971 as the standard reference for Johannine
scholarship.
In
January when the Open Door class began this study, copies of Ellis’s book were
rare and expensive but this week I found and ordered reasonably priced
($25-$35) copies of both books. Anyone who is teaching or has a more than devotional interest in reading the gospel of John should have access to either Ellis's or Gerhard's books. The above titles link to Amazon.
Following
are my study notes for a section of the Farewell Discourse of Jesus as told by
John, the beloved apostle:
The
Farewell Discourse (John 13:1 – 17:26) is section
18 of Gerhard/Ellis’s outline and corresponds to section 4: Jesus’ "discourse at night" to Nicodemus upon eternal life, discipleship, water, and Spirit. Ellis p. 14
Ellis
asserts that The Farewell Discourse offers “instructions on the nature of
discipleship and the use of authority in the church." p. 209
{Once again, I ask this questions: Why have
the churches of Christ chosen to use Acts and the Pauline epistles (almost
exclusively) as our ecclesial model(s) rather than the writings of John?}
The
synoptic gospels also address these topics of discipleship and authority:
Mark 8:31 – 10:52
Matthew 5-7; 10; 18:23-25
Luke 9:51 – 19:44
- as an example of the genre of farewell discourse by a dying rabbi. “Little children” v. 13:33 is the form of address for such a discourse as is the questions and answer structure,
- as a treatise on the gap created by Jesus’ departure and the unexpected delay of his return and its effect on John’s original readers in the late first century community undergoing persecution, i.e. Bultmann's historical-critical exegesis, and
- as a text that is structured by the rules of parallelism.
Our
primary approach to the gospel in this study has been the third with a bit of
historical-critical since our regular teacher is Caleb McDaniel, a historian.
The structure of the Farewell Discourse
(John 13:1 – 17:26)
A 13:1-32
hour,
love, mission of disciples, glorification
B 13:33 – 14:31
Jesus going away, Paraclete, ask in my name, peace
C 15:1-25
the true vine
B’ 15:26 – 16:33
Jesus going away, Paraclete, ask in my name, peace
A’ 17:1-26
hour,
glorification, mission of the disciples, love
Ellis p. 210 ff.
We
looked at section A with some A’ last week.
Today
we examine section B, John 13:33 – 14:31 with a nod to B’ which are also
structured using the typical parallelism of this gospel with the key ideas of
Jesus
going away, Paraclete, ask in my name, peace and the parallel structure:
a 13:33 – 14:4
Jesus
going away, love command, dwelling
b 14:5-14 life,
I AM in the father,
ask in my name
c 14:15-17 Jesus
will ask,
Paraclete
b’ 14:18-20 life,
I AM in my father,
ask in my name
a’ 14:21 – 3:1
love command, dwelling, Jesus going
away
Jesus as “Replacement” for Jewish Law and
life
- a new covenant based a new understanding of Torah, and
- a new sort of prayer.
The new commandment in this final discourse is love to the end or love one
another as I have loved and is found in the following scriptures: 13:1-2,
13:15, 13:34, 15:12, 15:13, and 17:23
You shall not take
vengeance or bear any grudge against the sons of your own people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself:
I am the LORD.
The 19th
chapter of Leviticus is to some degree a restatement of the Law in that these
verses recall the second half of the Ten Commandments. The key ideas in this
Leviticus passage include peace offerings, harvest and vineyards, care of the
poor, fruit, truth telling. These key ideas are also key ideas of the Final
Discourse, especially the section which we will study next week: C I Am the Vine
When
Jesus offers his new commandment of love, he also announces the fulfillment
of Jeremiah
31:31 ff.
“The days are coming,” declares
the Lord, “when I will make a new covenant… I will put my law in their
minds and write it on their hearts… they will know me…”
Bobbie
pointed out that at its very heart the new covenant is one of peace.
Ellis
agrees:
Peace “embraces light, truth, joy,
and eternal life” Ellis p. 224
The Covenant of Peace is described in
Ezekiel 37:26 in these words:
The new covenant offers a
realized eschatology. Ellis notes: The “Christian
who possess this gift [peace] already possesses eternal life even during this
life.”
Finally
when Jesus asserts in 14:6: “I
AM the way, I AM the truth, and I AM the life,” his use
of these three Torah words calls out the fulfillment of all Torah in the person
of Jesus. (add Hebrew)
Ellis
offers an alternate translation: “I AM the true way of life...” which echoes
14:6b No one comes but by me and 10:9
the door of the sheepfold. His
translation will also support my claim that Jesus’ I AM fulfills and stands in
the place of Torah, e.g. Psalm 1 & 2.
A New Kind of Prayer: “Ask in my name” John 14:13-14
Matthew 7:7-8; 18:19; 21:22
Mark 11:24
Luke 11:9
Jesus’
prayers, which he instructs his disciples to emulate, begin: “Our Father…” “My Father…”
“Father…” It is a far more intimate relationship.
Such
prayer is made possible by the unity of
Jesus and the Father and by the unity of Jesus and his disciples. In his
commentary on v. 14:10b, Ellis says “the unity of Jesus and the Father is a
unity in words and in works.” See also 10:37-38
The
unity of Jesus and the Father as having the same nature is not emphasized in
this text but is implied. Other verses from John address this unity: 1:1;
5:16-18; 8:58, 10:30-38; 20:28-30
14:20 “In that day you will know I AM in my father..." which is repeated in
14:10 – 11 but
adds "you in me"
Ellis asserts that 17:21-24 affirms that resurrection life is union with the
father.
{An aside: 14:11
“Believe me… for the sake of the works themselves.” is a troubling point since earlier in John's gospel Jesus
criticized the Jews who wanted “signs.” Ellis maintains that these works reveal (as do the signs that Jews
demanded but did not understand) the unity of the Father and Jesus which
the disciples “know” and “believe.” The “signs” in the earlier chapters pointed
in the same direction but the response of the Jews was rejection and
persecution of Jesus. Again, Ellis asserts that these signs and works (and
particularly the washing feet in the opening section of the Final Discourse and
the “love to the end” which is the cross) are the mutual work of both God and
Jesus.}
Jesus
teaches that, in unity with him, the disciples will have a part in the
continued working of God and Jesus and that they will in fact do even greater works.
These greater works will bear much fruit. This section resonates with that new
covenant of peace which allows the nations to know God.
14:12
Greater Works 17:6-8, 18-23
15:5
Much fruit
The
class noted that in this section of Jesus offers a commissioning as
powerful as The Great Commission of the synoptic gospels.
Paraclete
the central point of the Chiastic structure of this section of the Final Discourse.
c 14:15-17 the sending of the Paraclete
Jesus’
sending of the Paraclete seals the new covenant, enables the disciples to obey
the new commandment, and creates unity which fulfills the commission. Some
words should never be translated. My favorite example is of course from the Psalms: "checed" often translated "the steadfast love of the Lord." "Paraclete"
is another such word and it appears only in Johannine Literature, here in this
passage and in I John.
It is
not the same word used by other New Testament writers for the Holy Spirit which
derives from "pneuma" meaning breath, wind, spirit. John
does not use the phrase “Holy Spirit” although he does use “Spirit of Truth.”
"Pneuma" has to do with breath and life; it may be that it is a human thing that
comes from God. "Paraclete" means “come along side” and in extra-biblical sources (the only ones available to us since this word is unique to John) is primarily used in legal courtroom settings. I heard a sermon once where “defense attorney” was offered as a translation of Paraclete.
{It might be interesting to compare "Paraclete" with "helpmeet" from Genesis. That Hebrew word, used to describe "the woman," is used most commonly for God who is "the helpmeet" of Israel. At its root the word has the idea of "standing beside" as in twin towers that support a structure and as in two warriers who stand back to back in battle.}
Here is
a link offering more detail about the use of Spirit and Paraclete in Johannine Literature.
Ellis
and I agree that the best means of teasing out the meaning of the word is
looking at what these verses say about the Paraclete.
The
meaning of
Paraclete/advocate/comforter/consoler/counselor as defined by what the Paraclete does in John 14:1-17, 26; 5:26-27; and 16:11-14:
- Comes only when Jesus goes away
- Remains with and teaches the disciples
- Advocates/speaks for the disciples in times of trial
- Witnesses to Jesus and continues His
- Is “another” like Jesus which makes Jesus a "Paraclete"
- Comes as Jesus will come
- Is known by the disciples
- Opposes the world as Jesus opposes the world
The
Paraclete “is everything Jesus is and by his coming will fill the gap caused by
Jesus’ departure…” Ellis p. 222
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