Break Open the Word

The Second Sunday of Advent, 10 December 2017 Isaiah 40:1-11 Psalm 85:1-2, 8-13 II Peter 3:8-15a St. Mark 1:1-8 Background: Nazirite The nazirite was someone who was “separated” or “consecrated to YHWH. Vows were made by these individuals and they were to practice certain abstentions from certain foods, such as: wine, vinegar made from wine, grapes and raisins, and nothing that contained any trace of grapes. They were also not allowed to cut their hair (as with Samson), nor could they suffer and contact with a dead body or a grave.   In making their vow certain offerings needed to be made: a burnt offering of lamb, a sin offering of an ewe, and the peace offering of a ram, along with grain and drink offerings. The vows were either for a set period of time, or represented a permanent state (again, as with Samson). Both men and women could make the nazirite vow. John the Baptist seems to meet the definitions of this commitment, but the Gospels do not expli...

The First Sunday of Advent, 3 December 2017 Isaiah 64:1-9 Psalm 80:1-7, 16-18 I Corinthians 1:3-9 St. Mark 13:24-37 Background: Apocalyptic Often the message of the prophets has mistaken as apocalyptic literature. There really is quite a difference. The prophetic work was a message from God to that certain time in which it was spoken, a call to repentance or righteousness. Apocalyptic literature often looked to the future and used weighted symbols in speaking of what was to come. Some of the prophets were known to have written in this genre, but not all of their work can be assigned to it. Joel, Zechariah, and some chapters in Isaiah (24-27, 33) along with the book of Daniel could be classified as apocalyptic.   Thus it is known in the Hebrew Scriptures as well as in the literature of the Christian New Testament. The development of true apocalyptic can be seen in Jeremiah and Ezekiel as well, and reaches its fullest form in Daniel, and in a series of non-...