Luke 3: 23-38

Now when Jesus began his work he was about thirty years old, the son,
as people thought, of Joseph….

son of Heli, son of Matthat, son of Levi, son of Melchi, son of Jannai, son of Joseph, son of Mattathiah, son of Amos, son of Nahum, son of Esli, son of Naggai, son of Maath, son of Mattathiah, son of Semein, son of Josech, son of Joda, son of Johanan, son of Rhesa, son of Zerubbabel, son of Shealtiel, son of Neri, son of Melchi, son of Addi, son of Cosam, son of Elmadam, son or Er, son of Joshua, son of Eliezeer, son of Jorim, son of Matthat, son of Levi, son of Symeon, son of Judah, son of Joseph, son of Jonam, son of Eliabim, son of Melea, son of Menna, son of Mattatha, son of Nathan, son of David, son of Jesse, son of Obed, son of Boaz, son of Salmon, son of Nahshon, son of Amminadab, son of Arni, son of Hezron, son of Perez, son of Judah, son of Jacob, son of Isaac, son of Abraham, son of Terah, son of Nahor, son of Serug, son of Reu, son of Peleg, son of Eber, son of Shelah, son of Cainan, son of Arpachshad, son of Shem, son of Noah, son of Lamech, son of Methuselah, son of Enoch, son of Jared, son of Mahalaleel, son of Cainan, son of Enosh, son of Seth, son of Adam, son of God.

Son of: Why was this list important to Luke? *

Thoughts on seeing the whole picture – Donna Ross

Tracing our own DNA back into the distant past has become possible in the 21st century, and millions of people are now doing just that. People who were adopted as children are discovering their birth parents; people who thought they knew their family history are discovering facts (and secrets) they never knew. We may read Jesus’ genealogy and think, “Who really cares?” But the Jews cared very much, and it turns out that we do, too.

How odd, though, that knowing our own DNA (99.9% of which we share with every human on earth) can lead us to concentrate on the .1% (our own particular ancestors) without remembering that we are all connected.

*Son of:

Matthew’s gospel begins by tracing ancestry back to Abraham (see Matthew 1:2f), but Luke traces it all the way back to Adam, the ancestor of all human beings. Luke’s story of Jesus links him to every person on earth, not just to his Jewish ancestors.

Baptism of Jesus – Jay Bonnell, 20th c.

Luke 3:21-22

During a general baptism of the people, when Jesus too had been baptized and was praying, heaven opened and the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form like a dove; and there came a voice from heaven, “Thou art my Son, my Beloved; on thee my favor rests.”

Dove: How is the Holy Spirit like a dove?

Thoughts on seeing the whole picture – Donna Ross

How does the Holy Spirit work?

From the gospel writers to artists through the centuries, the Holy Spirit has always been portrayed as a dove. The dove, however, is always and only a metaphor. No words, no images can ever fully convey how the Spirit works.

In the Temple, when Jesus was twelve years old, the question may have first alighted: What did God have in mind for him? That’s how the Spirit begins to work in us (stirring within us, planting questions in our minds).

In Nazareth, as Jesus grew up, the ideas may have shifted in his mind: Where was God leading him? That’s how the Spirit continues its work in us (in conversation with our traditions and communities, our new experiences and new ideas).

In the Jordan, as Jesus rose out of the waters, the immensity of God’s call must have filled his mind, and pointed him towards his future ministry. That’s how the Spirit continues its work in us (hinting at the shape of things to come).

Sometimes, in moments we will never forget, we also are fully aware of the Spirit descending, even resting on us — like a dove returning to her nest, making her home in our hearts.

That’s how the Spirit works.

Dove:

A dove settles lightly wherever it chooses to rest. The Holy Spirit also settles lightly upon us, calling our attention but never forcing us. At his Last Supper (see John 14:16f and John 16:12f), Jesus will use these words to describe how the Holy Spirit works: abides in us; makes a home in us; reveals Jesus to us; reminds us; teaches us; guides us; reveals the truth to us; gives us peace.

Baptized with fire, Luke 3: 16

Luke 3:15-20

The people were on tiptoe of expectation, all wondering about John, whether perhaps he was the Messiah. But he spoke out and said to them all, “I baptize you with water; but there is one to come who is mightier than I. I am not fit to unfasten his shoes. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire. His shovel is ready in his hand, to winnow his threshing-floor and gather the wheat into his granary; but he will burn the chaff on a fire that can never go out.”

In this and in many other ways John made his appeal to the people and announced the good news. But Prince Herod, when he was rebuked by John over the affair of his brother’s wife Herodias and for his other misdeeds, added to them all by shutting John up in prison.

Fire: What did John mean by “fire”?

Thoughts on seeing the whole picture – Donna Ross

John stands in the waters of the Jordan River, but instead of pointing to the flowing waters he evokes images of fire.

What is someone, standing undecided on the river bank, to think of these images? There is the fire of judgment, an image of eternal damnation as widespread in our own time as it was in John’s. There is the fire of engagement, which points us in new directions and empowers us to see in new ways.

If we see only one of these images, we will miss the whole picture.

Fire:

John uses two contrasting images of fire — the destructive fire of judgment: “He will burn the chaff on a fire that can never go out” (Luke 3:17); and the empowering fire of the Holy Spirit: “He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire (3:16).

In just a few years, Jesus’ disciples would experience the empowering fire of the Spirit. Luke writes in the second volume of his story: “When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place. And suddenly from heaven there came a sound like the rush of a violent wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. Divided tongues, as of fire, appeared among them, and a tongue rested on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other languages, as the Spirit gave them ability.” (see Acts 2:1-4)

“Master, what are we to do?”  Luke 3:12

Luke 3:7-14

Crowds of people came out to be baptized by John, and he said to them: “You vipers’ brood! Who warned you to escape from the coming retribution? Then prove your repentance by the fruit it bears; and do not begin saying to yourselves, “We have Abraham for our father.” I tell you that God can make children for Abraham out of these stones here. Already the axe is laid to the roots of the trees; and every tree that fails to produce good fruit is cut down and thrown on the fire.”

The people asked John, “Then what are we to do?” He replied, “The man with two shirts must share with him who has none, and anyone who has food must do the same.” Among those who came to be baptized were tax-gatherers, and they said to him, “Master, what are we to do?” He told them, “Exact no more than the assessment.” Soldiers on service also asked him, “And what of us?” To them he said, “No bullying; no blackmail; make do with your pay!”

Repentance: What is the word in Luke’s original text? *

Thoughts on seeing the whole picture – Donna Ross

The poor, as Jesus will tell his disciples, are with us always (see Mark 14:7). Since the poor are all around us, does Jesus mean we should walk by them without seeing them? Should we make a practice of helping at least one poor person on our way to our own work? Should we try to stop for every poor person? Or should we stop to look, not just at one person or several, but at the whole picture, and commit ourselves to working with others to make adequate space for everyone in our world?

* Repentance:

In Biblical Hebrew, the idea of repentance is represented by two verbs: שוב (shuv, to return) and נחם (nacham, to feel sorrow). In New Testament Greek, the word is μετάνοια (metanoia). Metanoia combines ‘meta’ (beyond, after), with ‘noia’ (to perceive, to think). Metanoia is therefore not just sorrow and a plea for forgiveness; it is primarily a change of consciousness. Only a new way of thinking will lead us into a new way of acting.

John the Baptist – El Greco, 16th c.

Luke 3: 1-6

In the fifteenth year of the Emperor Tiberias, when Pontius Pilate was governor of Judaea, when Herod was prince of Galilee, Herod’s brother Philip prince of Ituraea and Trachonitis, and Lysanias prince of Abilene, during the high-priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas, the word of God came to John son of Zechariah in the wilderness. And John went all over the Jordan valley proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins, as it is written in the book of the prophecies of Isaiah:

A voice crying aloud in the wilderness, “Prepare a way for the Lord; clear a straight path for him. Every ravine shall be filled in, and every mountain and hill leveled; the corners shall be straightened, and the rough ways made smooth; and all people shall see God’s deliverance.” Isaiah 40:3-5

Baptism: Was there baptism before John the Baptist? *

Thoughts on seeing the whole picture – Donna Ross

In a time of great social unrest, political turmoil, and desperate poverty alongside extreme wealth – a time not unlike our own time – John the Baptist comes with a renewed vision of life with God and neighbor. But to see that vision, all the obstacles need to be removed.

To clearly see the possibilities of a room, all the old furniture must be cleared away. What small things am I so used to that I can’t see past them to the bigger picture?

* Baptism:

In John the Baptist’s time the Essenes, an ascetic Jewish sect who had retreated to the desert, practiced daily ritual bathing; but ritual bathing was also quite common for ordinary Jews.

Natural lakes and rivers were regarded as the most desirable places for ritual bathing; but a cistern, a fountain, or a ritual bath (a mikveh) was also permitted. Archaeologists have discovered many ancient mikva’ot in Jerusalem – near synagogues and public places, but also in private homes.

The Law required ritual bathing whenever a person became unclean (see Leviticus 15); and by the time of John the Baptist ritual bathing had also become a traditional practice before entering the Jerusalem Temple. In Israel and throughout the Roman Empire, ritual bathing was also the final step for everyone converting to Judaism.

John the Baptist seems to have connected the ancient Jewish practice of ritual cleansing to his own call to baptism for the forgiveness of sins.

By the time of the early church, baptism was required for new Christians – now just as a sign of ritual cleansing, but as a sign of a person’s acceptance of Jesus as Messiah and Lord. (See Acts 8:36)

Jesus and his parents return from the Temple
Rembrandt, 1654

Luke 2:41-52

Now it was the practice of Jesus’ parents to go to Jerusalem every year for the Passover festival; and when he was twelve, they made the pilgrimage as usual.

When the festive season was over and they started for home, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem.  His parents did not know of this; but thinking that he was with the party they journeyed on for a whole day, and only then did they begin looking for him among their friends and relatives.  As they could not find him they returned to Jerusalem to look for him; and after three days they found him sitting in the Temple surrounded by the teachers, listening to them and putting questions; and all who heard him were amazed at his intelligence and the answers he gave.

His parents were astonished to see him there, and his mother said to him, “My son, why have you treated us like this? Your father and I have been searching for you in great anxiety.”  “What made you search?” he said.  “Did you not know that I was bound to be in my Father’s house?”  But they did not understand what he meant.

Then he went back with them to Nazareth, and continued to be under their authority; his mother treasured up all these things in her heart.

And as Jesus grew up he advanced in wisdom and in divine and human favor.

Pilgrimage: Why did people go on an annual pilgrimage to Jerusalem? *

* Pilgrimage

As today’s Muslims hope to journey to Mecca at least once in their lives, so in Jesus’ day all Jews hoped to journey to Jerusalem to celebrate the Passover.
All adult male Jews who lived within fifteen miles of Jerusalem were required to attend the Passover at the Temple, and those who lived farther away often made the pilgrimage as well.

A Jewish boy became a man when he was twelve years old, and so at twelve Jesus joined the caravan going to Jerusalem from Nazareth in Galilee.