West Los Angeles College (out-of-state, off-campus)

We will have our regular weekly meeting this afternoon at 12:30pm on Google Meet; please DM us for a link! We will pray, encourage one another, and continue our study in the Gospel of John. Here is a recap of our recent studies. I Have Conquered the World | John 16:12-33 Jesus would soon pray and then afterward be delivered into the hands of the authorities. What words of Jesus would be left to ring in the ears of the eleven disciples? ?I have conquered the world.? The ?disciple whom Jesus loved,? known as John, either John ben Zebedee (the Apostle), or John the Elder, wrote his recollections of his experiences with Jesus so that those who hear or read would believe Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and would find eternal life in His name (cf. John 20:31). Jesus knew His time to suffer, die, be raised, and ascend to the Father was coming very soon (John 13:31-32); His disciples did not, and throughout John 13:1-17:26, Jesus sought to prepare them for what was about to occur. And so Jesus washed the feet of His disciples, and explained to them how they should follow His example and humbly serve one another (John 13:1-17). Jesus spoke of His imminent betrayal and sent Judas Iscariot out in John 13:18-30. Jesus, focusing on the eleven remaining disciples, would then begin a discourse in John 13:31 which would conclude with His ?High Priestly Prayer? in John 17:1-26. He began this discourse by emphasizing how God would be glorified in the Son of Man, and it was for them to love one another as He had loved them (John 13:31-35). They could not yet go where He was going, but He went to prepare a place for them: less about spatial distance, and more about relational distance, for Jesus would suffer and die to reconcile them to God, and would not leave them as orphans but give them the Spirit of God (John 14:1-31). Jesus illustrated His relationship with the disciples in terms of a vine and its branches (John 15:1-8). Jesus welcomed the disciples as His friends for whom He would suffer and die (John 15:9-17). The disciples would experience hostility and persecution in the world (John 15:18-16:11). Jesus would now conclude this extensive discourse with John 16:12-33. Jesus had many other things which He wanted to teach His disciples, but they could not yet receive them; He assured His disciples how the Spirit of truth would guide them into all truth (John 16:12-13). The Spirit would not speak by His own authority, but would speak whatever He would hear from the Father and the Son; in this way He would glorify Jesus (John 16:13-15). We can get an idea of what Jesus intended by considering all the things which He commanded and taught the disciples by means of the Spirit in the Acts of the Apostles: how the Gospel would be proclaimed, the ingathering of Gentiles, etc. But at this particular moment, they would have no framework in which to understand such things. They would have to see the work of God in Christ play out in His death, resurrection, and ascension. So it remains in our lives of faith. Certain things we can only come to appreciate and value after we gain a certain level of understanding and/or experience. There are some things we think we know at a given moment, but only truly come to appreciate better and more deeply after time and experience. But should we expect the Spirit to make known to us things which those before us did not know or understand? We must remember Jesus was speaking to His eleven disciples and gave these promises to assure them how they would come to a fuller understanding of all Jesus wanted to say to them. Jesus would provide this revelation by means of His Spirit to those disciples in His good time. We have no good reason to believe anything needs to be added to the witness regarding Jesus? life, death, resurrection, ascension, lordship, and imminent return beyond what already was made known by the Apostles through the Spirit. Jesus then reiterated a statement He had made to many times before, but now with an addition: the disciples would not see Jesus any longer in a little while, but after a little while would see Him again (John 16:16; cf. John 7:33, 12:35, 13:33, 14:19). We hear again from the disciples for the first time since John 14:22; they are flustered and confused by Jesus? statement, yet none has the temerity to directly ask Him about it (John 16:17-18). Jesus well perceived their anxiety, and expanded somewhat on His statement: they would lament and mourn, but the world would rejoice, but their sadness would turn into joy (John 16:20). Jesus compared the situation to a woman giving birth: she has great suffering and pain during labor, but after she is given her child, the joy of that experience overwhelms the memory of the pain and suffering she has just experienced (John 16:21). Jesus quoted Isaiah 66:14 regarding that moment: the disciples would first have sorrow, but then they would see Him again, and they would have joy which could not be taken from them (John 16:22). They would not ask Jesus for anything at that moment (as time would tell, out of stupefied astonishment), but the Father would give them whatever they asked for in Jesus? name (John 16:23-24). Jesus understood His language was not the clearest; in the future, He would speak plainly about the Father (John 16:25). The Father Himself loved the disciples since they loved Jesus and believed in Him (John 16:26-27). Jesus came from the Father and entered into the world; He was going to leave the world and return to the Father (John 16:28, which can be understood in terms of Jesus as the Heavenly Stranger). The disciples grabbed ahold of Jesus final statement: they could understand how He could return from whence He had come, and they confess how Jesus knew everything, had no need to have anyone ask Him anything, and had come from God (John 16:29-30). Jesus proved incredulous: did they really believe (John 16:31)? He prophesied their imminent dispersal, leaving Jesus alone (John 16:32). Yet Jesus was not truly alone, since the Father was with Him (John 16:32). He then provided His final statement: He spoke such things so they might have peace in Him; they would have trouble and suffering in the world, but they should take courage, for Jesus conquered the world (John 16:33). Jesus thus forecast how the next few days would go. Today we have the benefit of knowing what was about to take place; Jesus? disciples did not. A lot can change in a forty-eight-hour period, and you can get yourself in a world of hurt and trouble within that period of time. The disciples would experience profound sadness and then unbelievable joy; perhaps some of Jesus? former words would have come to mind during these moments to strengthen and sustain them. But their suffering and anguish could not compare to what Jesus was about to experience. The eleven would all scatter as it had been prophesied; and, in truth, it was for their own good, for doubtless there could have been crosses waiting for them as well if they stood with Jesus. They would suffer for His Name in due time. Yet, as Jesus powerfully affirmed, He would not really be alone. The Father would always be with Him. He could do no other and remain one God in perichoretic relational unity. Some have become far too enamored with a particular mechanism of atonement and have extended it beyond all reason, suggesting Jesus was alienated from the Father while on the cross. When Jesus cried out about being forsaken, He appealed not merely to Psalm 22:1, but all of Psalm 22:1-31 (cf. Matthew 27:46); it well spoke to what He felt, but God had not actually abandoned Jesus in that moment. In becoming our sin offering, Jesus would be made most holy, not abominably defiled (2 Corinthians 5:21; cf. Leviticus 6:24-30). Jesus would indeed suffer greatly, but in doing so, He would conquer the world. He would suffer evil without responding in kind; by thus absorbing the evil, He overcame it, and would be vindicated in His resurrection! John 16:33 represented the conclusion of the discourse between Jesus and the eleven disciples. John 17:1-26 would feature Jesus? ?High Priestly Prayer?; in John 18:1, narrative action would resume, leading to Jesus? betrayal, suffering, death, and resurrection. Thus the last words of Jesus? instruction which would ring in the ears of His disciples was John 16:33, and we can also gain much from them. In Christ the world can never really be a comfortable place. We will have trial and tribulation here. But we can take courage because Jesus has conquered the world. And we can overcome in and with Him if we suffer with Him so we might be glorified with Him (cf. Romans 8:17-39). May we take courage in Christ and obtain the victory in Him! Ethan R. Longhenry

We are so glad to have seen many of you yesterday at Club Rush! We will be meeting this afternoon as usual at 12:30pm via Google Meet. Please DM us for the link! Here is a recap of our study in John 15:1-17 in the Gospel of John. The Vine and His Friends | John 15:1-17 The ?disciple whom Jesus loved,? known as John, either John ben Zebedee (the Apostle), or John the Elder, wrote his recollections of his experiences with Jesus so that those who hear or read would believe Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and would find eternal life in His name (cf. John 20:31). Jesus knew His time to suffer, die, be raised, and ascend to the Father was coming very soon (John 13:31-32); His disciples did not, and throughout John 13:1-17:26, Jesus sought to prepare them for what was about to occur. And so Jesus washed the feet of His disciples, and explained to them how they should follow His example and humbly serve one another (John 13:1-17). Jesus spoke of His imminent betrayal and sent Judas Iscariot out in John 13:18-30. Jesus, focusing on the eleven remaining disciples, would then begin a discourse in John 13:31 which would conclude with His ?High Priestly Prayer? in John 17:1-26. He began this discourse by emphasizing how God would be glorified in the Son of Man, and it was for them to love one another as He had loved them (John 13:31-35). They could not yet go where He was going, but He went to prepare a place for them: less about spatial distance, and more about relational distance, for Jesus would suffer and die to reconcile them to God, and would not leave them as orphans but give them the Spirit of God (John 14:1-31) Some have suggested a slight contextual shift with Jesus? final word to depart from their present location in John 14:31; some have gone so far as to suggest John 14:31 was the original conclusion of the discourse, with John 15:1-16:33 added as a second discourse. Nevertheless, Jesus? themes in what follows well illustrated and advanced what He had said beforehand. We do best to consider John 13:32-16:33 as one coherent discourse, with John 14:31 perhaps suggesting the beginning of the movement from the upper room toward the Garden of Gethsemane. Jesus thus continued His discourse by setting forth the illustration of the (grape) vine, speaking of Himself as the Vine, the disciples as the branches, and the Father as the Gardener (John 15:1-8). The Father cuts off every unproductive branch which does not remain in Jesus and burns it in the fire; He prunes productive branches so they might bear more fruit (John 15:2, 6). Jesus assured the present disciples they would not suffer that fate, for they had been cleansed by the word Jesus spoke to them (John 15:3). Jesus underscored the force of the illustration: as branches can only produce fruit while remaining connected to the vine, so they must remain in Jesus, for apart from Jesus they could do nothing (John 15:4-5). Those who remain in Jesus, and the word of Jesus remains in them, can ask Jesus, and it will be done for them, for God is glorified when Jesus? disciples bear fruit and prove their discipleship (John 15:6-7). Grape vines, and the wine produced from the grapes of the vine, were prevalent throughout Galilee and Judea, and the harvesting and stomping of the grapes would have been communal activities. To this end the disciples would have been very familiar with viticulture, and Jesus? illustration would have made sense to them. Grape vines very much require such continual maintenance if they would produce high quality and a high yield of grapes. Speaking of the people of God in terms of grape vines had beforehand involved judgment: Isaiah?s ?Song of the Vineyard? in Isaiah 5:1-7 and Jesus? ?update? in Matthew 21:33-46; likewise, the judgments regarding drinking the unmixed cup of the wine of God?s wrath (cf. Jeremiah 25:15-17, Revelation 14:10, 16:19). But wine would also be enjoyed as part of the eschatological banquet feast on the final day (e.g. Revelation 19:6-9). Jesus? illustration of the vine and the branches dovetails nicely with this last image: Christians jointly participate in the faith in God in Christ through His Spirit, demonstrating their discipleship by walking according to the Spirit and bearing fruit, all of which is empowered by God in Christ, and that fruit will be ?harvested? and enjoyed as part of the celebrations of the victory on the final day. In a highly individualistic world which desires to celebrate individual achievement and looks askance on expectations of communal authority or life, Jesus? illustration of the vine provides a needed reminder for Christians regarding who they should be and how they persevere. The faith will not be well advanced by our own unaided efforts; apart from Jesus we can do nothing. We are not to see ourselves as ?lone rangers? who have pulled ourselves up by our bootstraps; we instead are branches of the Vine, submitting to Jesus in all things, actively and consciously depending upon Him and His strength and direction, and enduring whatever pruning in discipline God requires of us in order to prove more faithful and productive in the Kingdom of His Son. Jesus then returned to what was likely His most prominent theme throughout this final discourse: encouraging the disciples to love one another as He had loved them (John 15:9-17; cf. John 13:31-35). Jesus has loved the disciples as the Father had loved Him: they should thus remain in His love by obeying His commandments, as Jesus obeyed the Father?s commandments and remained in His love; all of this should be done so Jesus? joy would be in them, and their joy would be made complete (John 15:9-11). What was Jesus? commandment they should observe? To love one another as Jesus had loved them (John 15:12, 17). Jesus powerfully affirmed how no greater love existed than to lay down one?s life for one?s friends (John 15:13). Jesus then spoke of the disciples as His friends if they do what He commanded them: they were no longer as slaves, not understanding what the master is doing, but are friends, since Jesus made known to them all He heard from His Father (John 15:14-15). They did not choose Jesus; Jesus chose them to go and bear fruit, and the Father would give them that for which they asked (John 15:16). In this way Jesus welcomed the disciples, and all of His disciples, to consider themselves as friends of God in Christ. There are still ways in which it is good to consider ourselves as servants/slaves of Christ, as the Apostles considered themselves in Philippians 1:1, James 1:1, 2 Peter 1:1, and even John himself in Revelation 1:1: believers are not entitled to their standing, but do well to humbly serve God in Christ and consider doing so as their duty (e.g. Luke 17:7-10). Furthermore, the humility and shame which attends to calling oneself a ?slave of Christ? remains precisely the point. Yet in terms of relational distance and standing, the Apostles consistently speak of God as Father and believers as brothers and sisters in Christ for good reason (e.g. Romans 8:12-17, Ephesians 2:19). Christians as friends of Jesus represents a similar metaphorical framework: we have been brought in to share in the life of the household of God and should maintain a deeply intimate and strong connection with Jesus. Jesus can be the ?friend who sticks closer than a brother? of Proverbs 18:24 if we let Him be, and we should be that kind of friend for God in Christ and for fellow believers. In declaring the disciples as His friends, Jesus has brought to completion the hospitality of the ?Heavenly Stranger.? The ?Heavenly Stranger? is a theme we can discern throughout John?s Gospel: consider how many times Jesus has spoken of Himself as having come from the Father and is not from below, and how He expected to return to His Father (e.g. John 16:28). The goal of hospitality (Greek philoxenos, ?love of stranger?) in antiquity was to turn strangers into friends through welcome into one?s home and relational growth through shared meals and space. Thus John well indicted the world in John 1:10-11: the world should have welcomed Jesus the ?Heavenly Stranger,? taken Him in, learned from Him, and become His friend, but it would not. Instead, John has set forth an ironic profound reversal if we will perceive it: the Stranger shows hospitality to make His ?hosts? His friends. Jesus, the ?Heavenly Stranger,? provides a feast of Himself for His disciples, and He later washed their feet, a standard form of displaying hospitality, shared space with His disciples, and thus was able to turn such ?strangers? into His friends (John 6:1-71, 13:1-15:17). But those who accept the hospitality of the ?Heavenly Stranger? and become His friends would then incur the hostility of the world which would not welcome or accept Him: an ominous foreshadowing of the warnings which Jesus would go on to provide in John 15:18-16:11. While we have gained much from considering the disciples as the friends of the ?Heavenly Stranger? in John 15:9-17, we should always give pride of place to Jesus? particular emphasis throughout not only this passage, but in fact the whole discourse: Christians should love one another as Jesus has loved them. Jesus has constantly encouraged His disciples to obey His commandments; He even tied their standing in Him to that obedience. But what was His commandment? To love one another as Jesus had loved them. To remain in the love of God in Christ, one must live in and by the love of God in Christ. Jesus thus does not make appeal to some kind of authoritarian-style checklist paradigm of obedience and faithfulness: throughout this passage, to obey Jesus? command involves to love one another as Jesus has loved us. Love is central and cannot be overemphasized. We unfortunately must make note of the abominable and pervasive distortion and perversion of Jesus? powerful message in John 15:13: nation-states have constantly taken this powerful message and have harnessed it to ?bless? and ?sanctify? those who have died as part of military action. Jesus laid down His life for His friends, His disciples (cf. 1 John 3:16): He suffered evil and did not respond in kind. Jesus did not even attempt to respond in kind, as those do who fight in a military context. Jesus was testifying regarding what the love of God in Christ requires: a love so sacrificial it will give of itself before it takes from others. Nations will continue to make war on other nations, and in those wars, people seek to kill lest they get killed, and those who are killed suffer thus because they were killed before they could kill. God may be acting in and among those nations in these endeavors, but they are not acting according to the standards of what God has made known in Christ. We can understand the desire to recognize those who have lost their lives in military campaigns for a given people, but they did not die like Jesus died according to how Jesus died and for a similar end, and we should not easily suffer the bastardization of the Gospel to this end. Jesus, the ?Heavenly Stranger,? suffered hostility from the world; as He would soon discuss, how much more will the friends of the ?Heavenly Stranger? likewise suffer? Christians should love one another as Jesus has loved them because they cannot ultimately rely on anyone else. Christians loving like Jesus, nourished and sustained in God in Christ through the Spirit, presents the most powerful testimony and witness regarding what God has accomplished in Christ; it goes far beyond anything we can well argue. Such love has always proven counter-cultural, and always will. May we love one another as Jesus has loved us, remain connected to Jesus our Vine, and bear witness to how profoundly we have been shaped by our friendship with Jesus the ?Heavenly Stranger? to all who will see and hear! Ethan R. Longhenry

We hope you have enjoyed a great fall semester. Today we'll be enjoying a club luncheon at Westfield Culver City. We look forward to re-starting our meetings and studies in January and the spring! Here is a recap of our Bible study in the Gospel of John. The Way to the Father?s House | John 14:1-31 The ?disciple whom Jesus loved,? known as John, either John ben Zebedee (the Apostle), or John the Elder, wrote his recollections of his experiences with Jesus so that those who hear or read would believe Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and would find eternal life in His name (cf. John 20:31). The moment at which the Son of Man would be glorified, and God in Him, had arrived (John 13:31-32): Judas had just departed to betray Jesus; soon Jesus would be arrested, tried, abused, executed, but raised from the dead on the third day. Jesus well understood these things, but His disciples did not. Everything Jesus would say and do in John 13:1-17:26 was designed to prepare His disciples for these events and what would come afterward. To this end, in John 13:1-17, Jesus washed the feet of His disciples, and explained to them how they should follow His example and humbly serve one another. Jesus spoke of His imminent betrayal and sent Judas Iscariot out in John 13:18-30. Jesus, focusing on the eleven remaining disciples, would then begin a discourse in John 13:31 which would conclude with His ?High Priestly Prayer? in John 17:1-26. He began this discourse by emphasizing how God would be glorified in the Son of Man, and it was for them to love one another as He had loved them (John 13:31-35). Jesus had also told His disciples they could not go where He was going just yet, and such caused consternation among them (John 13:33, 36-38). In John 14:1-31, Jesus would try to provide comfort and assurance to His disciples regarding His departure and its implications. Jesus? discourse in John 14:1-31 has often been distorted and misconstrued on account of decontextualized applications and an unhealthy focus on the imagery to the neglect of its meaning. Jesus will speak of going away, coming back, being the Way, etc., and many have understood these statements in spatial ways. While Jesus would indeed physically depart from the earth and ascend to the Father in heaven, we seriously misunderstand Jesus? meaning and intention if we understand Him as speaking about bridging spatial distance. Throughout John 14:1-31 Jesus? focus was much more on relational distance. At this point in John?s Gospel, Jesus has not yet died or been raised from the dead; the work of reconciliation which Jesus would accomplish in His death and resurrection remain in the future. While Jesus was also preparing His disciples for the period after His death and resurrection, He remained primarily focused on reassuring them in the face of what He was about to experience. We may brusquely dismiss concern about what the disciples might do between His arrest and His resurrection by wondering what really could happen over that roughly forty-eight-hour period. But you can get yourself in a lot of trouble in forty-eight hours, and so assuredly could the disciples. Jesus? concerns remained well placed. There is no contextual transition or shift from John 13:36-38 to John 14:1-31. Jesus could tell His disciples were troubled by His imminent departure. So He spoke to encourage them: believe in the Father and Jesus; there are many dwelling places in the Father?s house, and Jesus was going to prepare a place for the disciples, so they could be where He was, and they would know the way to get there (John 14:1-4). When we read John 14:1-4 we can understand why many would understand Jesus? words according to spatial distance. So much has been made of what the King James Version translated as ?mansions? in John 14:2: the Greek word monai is well translated as ?rooms? or ?dwelling places,? and ironically such is what ?mansions? originally meant in English (derived from Latin manere, ?to remain?). Christians read about ?mansions? in John 14:2 and began imagining them as fancy houses in heaven; they then began describing fancy houses on earth as ?mansions,? and so people today now associate ?mansions? with fancy houses, and read that back into what Jesus said in John 14:2. Yet, as Jesus will continually demonstrate as the discourse continues, the distance bridged is not spatial as much as relational. To this day we associate ?household? both with a dwelling place and as joint participation within a family structure, and such is what Jesus intended for us to understand here. Yes, Jesus would physically suffer, die, be raised from the dead, and would ascend to the Father; in so doing, He would allow us to be reconciled to God so we might be able to be adopted as sons and daughters of God (cf. Romans 8:1-17). Therefore, in this way, Jesus spoke of what He was about to do and explained what it meant in terms of the relationship the disciples could have with God. Jesus affirmed the disciples knew the way He was going in John 14:4, but Thomas was not nearly as sure: they did not know where He was going, so how could they know the way to where He was going (John 14:5)? Jesus? response has become infamous: He is the Way, the Truth, and the Life; there is no other way to the Father than through Jesus (John 14:6). To know and see Jesus is to know and have seen the Father (John 14:7). While Thomas, no doubt, continued to think spatially, Jesus redirected them to think relationally. We should not underemphasize how Jesus is the Truth and the Life; nevertheless, in context, the emphasis is rightly placed on how Jesus is the Way. The faith in Christ would even be known as The Way according to Acts 24:14, and for good reason: the faith was embodied in Jesus, and if we would glorify and honor God in Christ, we must follow Him in His ways. Then as now we closely associate living with a journey, and so we frequently use journeying metaphors to understand how we live. The Hebrews author would speak of Jesus as the pioneer of the faith, blazing the trail all of us should follow after Him (cf. Hebrews 2:10). If we want to find room in the Father?s house, we can only get there by following the Way; thus, if we want to share in the life of God, we can only do so through submitting to and following Jesus in all He has told us to think, feel, say, and do. The claim Jesus is the only way to God the Father has struck many in the world as arrogant and presumptuous. If it were said by anyone else, such a response would be understandable and appropriate. But if Jesus is who He says He is, the statement is inescapably true. Jesus has claimed to be God in the flesh; if we have seen Jesus, we have come to understand the essential characteristics and attributes of God. Any other characteristics and attributes would not truly be of God or Jesus, and therefore could not lead you to God. Thus, where other forms of philosophical, religious, or spiritual forms of instruction or understanding remain consistent with what God has made known in Christ, we can find something praiseworthy in them. Yet wherever any other philosophical, religious, or spiritual forms of instruction or understanding are inconsistent with what God has made known in Christ, such cannot well and accurately represent reality or a means of understanding God in truth. Philip did not quite understand: he asked Jesus to show them the Father, and they would be content (John 14:8). Jesus responded, perhaps with some frustration (and understandably so), wondering if he had been with Jesus for so long without really understanding Him: how could he ask to see the Father when those who have seen Jesus have seen the Father (John 14:9)? Did he not believe the Father was in Jesus as Jesus was in the Father, and He was doing the Father?s works (John 14:10)? Even if he did not believe that, Philip should at least believe in the works Jesus had done (John 14:11). Jesus then took the opportunity to continue reassuring and encouraging His disciples: if they believed, they would do even greater miraculous things than what Jesus had done, since He was going to the Father (John 14:12). He assured them He would do whatever they asked the Father in His name (John 14:13-14). If they loved Jesus, they would do His commandments, and Jesus would ask the Father to send them the Parakletos, the ?Paraclete,? the Advocate or Comforter, the Spirit of truth, who would reside with the disciples (John 14:15-17). In this way Jesus would not abandon His disciples as orphans: He would come to them, and they would then know Jesus was in the Father, and they were in Jesus and Jesus was in them (John 14:18-20). Jesus re-affirmed and re-emphasized how those who have and obey His commandments loves Jesus, and Jesus and the Father will love them, and Jesus will come to them (John 14:21). Jesus thus promised the coming of the Holy Spirit to His disciples as a form of comfort, assurance, and as an advocate. Even though Jesus would physically remain in heaven after His ascension, the Spirit would come and dwell within and among the disciples, and by means of the Spirit God in Christ would abide and remain with the disciples if they persevered in His commandments. Judas ? not Iscariot, the other Judas ? then asked Jesus an understandable follow-up question: how would Jesus reveal Himself to the disciples but not the world (John 14:22)? Jesus did not seem flustered by this question, but His response may not have been what anyone was expecting: He reaffirmed how those who love Jesus will obey His word, the Father will love them, and the Father and Son will ?take up residence? with them, but those who do not love Jesus will not obey His words, which really belong to the Father (John 14:23-24). The word for ?residence? in John 14:23 is Greek mone, the same word as used for ?dwelling places? in John 14:2, and the only times the word is used in the Greek New Testament. This association confirms how Jesus has not been speaking of spatial matters, but relational. Jesus suffered and died so we might be forgiven of our sins and reconciled to God. Jesus was raised from the dead and ascended to the Father to be glorified and honored with all authority and power in His Kingdom. God would then send the promised Holy Spirit to dwell in and among the disciples and all those who would believe in Jesus and obey Him through their proclamation. By means of the Spirit, God would dwell in and among His people in Christ. The Greeks had a word to describe mutual interpenetration without loss of distinctive identity: perichoresis. God maintains perichoretic relational unity within Himself: such is how He can be the One in Three, and Three in One, so perfectly One we speak of God as a singularity, yet manifest in three Persons (cf. John 17:20-23, etc.). Thus Jesus has spoken of how the Father is ?in? Him and He is ?in? the Father in John 14:20; and through what He has accomplished and by means of His Spirit, God in Christ would maintain perichoretic relational unity with us as believers in Him. Such is why Jesus again re-assured the disciples: He had taught them all of these things while with them, but the Advocate would come and teach them all things and remind them of all the things Jesus had taught them (John 14:25-26). He would leave them with a peace which was unlike peace in the world, and so they should not lose heart (John 14:27). They really should be glad Jesus was going to be with the Father, for the Father was greater than He (John 14:28). Jesus had thus spoken in advance so they might believe when it would take place (John 14:29). Before long the ?ruler of this world,? most likely Satan, would be coming; he really had no power over Jesus, since Jesus was doing what the Father had commanded Him (John 14:30-31). While much of what Jesus said to the eleven disciples that night would have direct applications to believers afterward, John 14:26 was a promise more specifically to the eleven from which we benefit as a result. None of us were alive to see and hear Jesus; therefore, the Spirit cannot bring to our remembrance what Jesus taught us as He could, and did, for the eleven disciples. Yet the promise can assure us what we hear from the apostolic testimony remains accurate and faithful: on their own, people are liable to forget a lot of what they have been taught, but we can be assured the Spirit brought to the remembrance of the Apostles what Jesus had taught them, and therefore their testimony which we have received in Scripture remains faithful. Jesus told His disciples to get up and go from where they were in John 14:31. In John 18:1, John the Evangelist suggested Jesus went out across the Kidron after He had spoken all of those things. Perhaps Jesus continued speaking while they made preparation to walk; perhaps the discourse continued while they walked until they reached the Kidron. Regardless, John 14:31 represents only a mild disruption, for Jesus would continue according to the same themes in John 15:1 and following. Jesus intended to comfort and re-assure His eleven disciples in John 14:1-31, and as those who believe in their witness, we can draw great comfort and assurance from His message as well. Jesus suffered, died, was raised again in power, ascended to the Father, was made Lord and Christ and given an eternal Kingdom, and now reigns from heaven. Yet Jesus has not abandoned us as orphans: He has reconciled us to God so we might share in His life and truth forever. He has given us of His Spirit so we might share in relational unity with God as God shares in relational unity within Himself. Yet we can only share in such hope and promise if we abide in Jesus as the Way and love Him and do His commandments. May we find eternal life in the house of God by means of Jesus, take comfort in the Advocate, and share in God?s relational unity now and forevermore in Christ through the Spirit! Ethan R. Longhenry

We'd love to see you at our next meeting today at 12:30pm online! DM us for link. Here is a recap of our study in John 13:1-30. Service and Betrayal | John 13:1-30 The ?disciple whom Jesus loved,? known as John, either John ben Zebedee (the Apostle), or John the Elder, wrote his recollections of his experiences with Jesus so that those who hear or read would believe Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and would find eternal life in His name (cf. John 20:31). In John 13:1-3, John the Evangelist heightened the drama as he began to describe Jesus? final supper with His disciples and His final exhortations to them. The evening meal before the Passover was ongoing; Jesus knew how all things were in motion which would lead to His suffering, death, resurrection, and ascension: He had loved His disciples to the end, exemplified in all which had been narrated in John 1:1-12:50; He knew He would soon be departing to be with His Father; Satan had already put into Judas Iscariot?s heart to betray Jesus. Everything which has taken place so far was leading to this moment. We do well to understand this intense framing in terms of all which will transpire between John 13:4-17:26: at this pivotal moment, just before everything goes down, Jesus would provide His final instruction to His disciples before His departure. We can tell how much of an impact it made on John the Evangelist, since His narration of these events represents a significant portion of his Gospel. Yet we can also profitably understand the intense framing of John 13:1-3 as appropriately emphasizing and intensifying what Jesus was about to do for His disciples: as everything was in motion, and it was all going down, Jesus got up in the middle of the dinner, prepared Himself appropriately, and then began washing the feet of His disciples (John 13:4-5). John the Evangelist focused on Simon Peter?s reaction in John 13:6-10: Peter asked Jesus if He would wash his feet; Jesus explained Peter would not understand now, but would later; Peter protested and refused; Jesus told him he had no share in Jesus if Jesus did not wash his feet; Peter then wanted Jesus to wash his whole body. It has been common to interpret Peter?s behavior at this moment in terms of his propensity toward impetuousness: first Peter did not want Jesus to wash his feet at all, and then, all of a sudden, Peter wants a full bath! But we perhaps do better to understand Peter?s reactions as perhaps more outward and forceful than the other disciples, but no less in the minds of those other disciples, and as well representing the social implications within the context. In the ancient world it was a custom to have one?s feet washed as part of being welcomed into a home. Ancient people wore sandals or went barefoot; to this day feet can get very dirty if we walk around in sandals all day, and it would have been all the worse in the ancient world when most people would throw out their effluent onto the streets. Foot washing was not a glamorous work: it would normally be reserved for those with the least social status, a slave whenever possible, and even then, the slave with the least standing in the household. To this end, Jesus? behavior would have been very troubling and uncomfortable for the disciples. Jesus had gotten up in the middle of the dinner to wash feet; this itself was unexpected, since normally feet would have been washed when the guests would have arrived for dinner. We would not be wrong in assuming they had already had their feet washed earlier; that Jesus would do it again would indicate some kind of deliberate ritual or didactic purpose. Peter may be impetuous, but if nothing else, Peter was always quite aware of the difference in standing between himself and Jesus; Peter knew very well how it was Peter who should be washing Jesus? feet, not vice versa, and such is why he strongly protested against Jesus washing his feet (cf. Luke 5:1-10). We can easily imagine Peter only reluctantly allowing Jesus to wash his feet after Jesus had thrown down the gauntlet, no doubt feeling very uncomfortable at this violation of every norm and status surrounding foot washing. To this end perhaps Peter wanted Jesus to wash his head and his hands as a way of blunting the shame; perhaps, in his mind, it would have been less shameful for Jesus to wash him thoroughly than just having his feet washed. Or perhaps Peter reconciled himself to the action by thinking Jesus was providing a purifying cleansing, and thus wanted to be more fully cleansed. Either way, John the Evangelist has significantly slowed down the timing and pacing of the narrative so his audience might ?sit? in the same awkwardness and discomfort in which the disciples sat. Jesus would not wash Peter fully, because just like a person whose feet only were dirty and thus only washes their feet, they were clean, but not all of them; John the Evangelist then added the comment of how Jesus thus spoke regarding the one who was about to betray Him (John 13:10-11). We would be unwise to read too much into Jesus? statement of how the disciples were ?clean?: He was speaking about their relationships with Him. It is worth pointing out here how in John?s narration, Judas remained at the dinner at this time, and would only leave after a few moments (cf. John 13:26-30). Thus John strongly implied Jesus washed Judas Iscariot?s feet. Jesus washed Judas Iscariot?s feet while each of them knew what was about to take place: Judas at least already had the idea of betraying Jesus, if not having already made provisional contact and plans to do so; Jesus knew what Judas was going to do (cf. Luke 22:3-6, John 13:2, 11). And Jesus washed Judas? feet anyway. There is no more compelling example of Jesus? love, humility, and faithful service than such an act. It also helps to explain how bitterly the betrayal must have felt not only to Jesus but to Judas? fellow disciples. Jesus afterward dressed Himself again and returned to the table and explained what had just happened: they called Him Teacher and Lord, and did so correctly, and He just washed their feet; if He, their Teacher and Lord, washed their feet, then they should wash one another?s feet and follow the example Jesus gave them, and they would be blessed if they did so (John 13:12-17). Ever since many have aspired to follow Jesus? example literally, and some may find some benefit in going about literally washing the feet of others. Yet just as Jesus? act of foot washing in the middle of the meal was most likely more performative than functional, as a didactic ritual experience, so this kind of foot washing in an assembly context would prove a bit more performative than functional. Paul speaking of worthy widows as having ?washed the feet of the saints? in 1 Timothy 5:10 would further reinforce the premise: perhaps those widows actually did wash the feet of fellow Christians, but such would not be the only way they would serve their fellow Christians, and what proved virtuous about the washing of feet was not in the washing of the feet but in its act of service. Jesus? point, which John the Evangelist made incredibly explicit and thus worthy of our emphasis, was for Christians to serve fellow Christians and others. Not only should Christians serve fellow Christians and others, but they should be willing to do the kinds of acts of service which are generally associated with those of lower social standing without grumbling. There is no job or task which is ?beneath? the Christian; if our Lord and Savior washed feet, we have no right presuming we are ?too good? for or ?above? any given act of service. John the Evangelist thus presented part of the story of Jesus? final dinner with His disciples in John 13:1-17 to powerfully and viscerally emphasize the importance of Christian love and humility exemplified in acts of service. Jesus washed feet; go and serve others: it would be hard to make the point as powerfully and succinctly as this. If Christians find anything about the practice of this example challenging and difficult, such is their own problem rooted in an unwise and ungodly sense of arrogance and pride. Yet Jesus? instruction was not for all of them. Quoting Psalm 41:9, and distressed in spirit, Jesus confessed how one of the disciples would betray Him in John 13:18-21. The hearer or reader has been well prepared for this moment since John the Evangelist has taken every opportunity to remind the hearer or reader how Judas Iscariot would betray Jesus. But the disciples themselves were not as prepared for this moment. Jesus said these things in advance so the disciples would understand how it had all been foretold and they would believe He was and is the Christ. Judas? betrayal did not mean God in Christ had to readjust and go with Plan B or Plan C; Judas? betrayal, and all it would unleash, was in fact Plan A and had always been Plan A (John 13:19; cf. Acts 2:23). Those who accept those Jesus sends accepts Jesus and the Father who sent Jesus; such is why we accept the apostolic witness regarding Jesus and should continue to put confidence in the message of what God accomplished in Christ as faithfully proclaimed through what has been made known by the Spirit in the witness of Scripture (John 13:20). The hearer or reader of John?s Gospel is neither shocked nor surprised by Jesus? confession of His imminent betrayal; John the Evangelist has taken every possible opportunity to remind the hearer or reader of how Judas Iscariot would betray Jesus. Yet at this point in the narrative John implicitly confessed how none of this was immediately obvious at any time beforehand. After Jesus declared one of the disciples would betray Him, John did not say, ?and everyone looked at Judas Iscariot.? Instead, John reported how the disciples looked at each other, unsure about who would do so. For the first time in the narrative, John spoke of himself as the ?disciple whom Jesus loved,? as one reclining at the privileged position next to Jesus; this may well indicate John was the host, or family of the host, of the whole dinner (John 13:23). This detail was given to explain how and why Simon Peter gestured to John to be the one to ask Jesus of whom He spoke (John 13:24). That Peter would ask John to do it should be telling: was it not normally Peter who would be the one to say or ask what everyone else was thinking? Peter had no desire to be the one who asked lest suspicion fall upon him; perhaps this is why John described himself here as the ?disciple whom Jesus loved,? as having a sufficiently close relationship to be more above and beyond suspicion. John then asked Jesus, and Jesus identified the disciple by giving him a piece of bread dipped in the dish; He gave it to Judas Iscariot and told him to do quickly what he was about to do (John 13:25-27). John the Evangelist also provided further editorial commentary: at the time no one understood why Jesus spoke thus to Judas; the disciples thought He was telling Judas to go and buy what was needed for the feast or to give something to the poor since he was the treasurer (John 13:28-29). Judas went out immediately afterward; John indicated it happened at night (John 13:30). Christians are understandably tempted to demonize Judas Iscariot, and we mean this in a very concrete way: we want to turn him into a kind of demon. We have continually noted how John the Evangelist displayed the sting of the betrayal with every editorial comment he made at every possible point at which the narrative provided him an opportunity to do so. Yet we must understand why the betrayal hurt so badly: Judas Iscariot was a full disciple of Jesus, as much a disciple of Jesus as Peter or John or Andrew or anyone else. For that matter, Judas would not be the only disciple betraying Jesus that night; Peter would deny Jesus three times, and the rest of the disciples would have likely done the same had they been in Peter?s predicament (cf. John 13:38, 18:15-18, 25-27). We all want to understand why, and we can all look at various possibilities and reasons for why Judas betrayed Jesus. But we do ourselves a disservice if we look for those reasons in order to try to tell ourselves how we would never do anything of the sort and we would never betray Jesus. We desperately want Judas Iscariot to be a terrible human being so we do not have to consider the prospect of how we might be the ones to betray Jesus in some way or another. But if Judas Iscariot was a full disciple, as he was, and it was not immediately obvious to the other eleven disciples that Judas would be the one to betray Jesus, as it turned out, and if Jesus did not treat Judas Iscariot any differently even knowing he would be the one to betray Him, as He did not, then the possibility remains that any disciple might betray Jesus, as is indeed the case. We are all more like Judas Iscariot than any of us would like to be. If it had always been obvious Judas Iscariot would betray Jesus, it might have been easier for John the Evangelist to countenance and stomach; its very unexpected nature goes a long way to explain the depth of the bitterness John the Evangelist felt about the whole matter. We can only imagine what was going through the mind of Judas Iscariot. We can view this scene as a sort of ?anti-communion.? Of the four Gospel accounts, only John the Evangelist passed over the establishment of the Lord?s Supper in silence; he likely knew how it was well attested in the other Gospels and wanted instead to focus on Jesus? foot washing example which the other Evangelists had passed over. But Jesus giving the bread dipped in the dish to Judas Iscariot represented the closest thing to it in John?s account. In no way is Jesus giving Judas Iscariot the Eucharist/Communion/the Lord?s Supper; instead, after Jesus gave Judas Iscariot the bread dipped in the dish and Judas ate it, John related how Satan entered into Judas (John 13:27). Those who would suggest Satan took control of Judas at this point go well beyond what the textual evidence would allow; likewise those who would suggest a contradiction between John 13:27 and John 13:2, as if what John is narrating as a series of actions cannot involve dynamic movement from thought/preparation to action. Instead we suggest John the Evangelist characterized the moment as ?anti-communion.? In the Lord?s Supper, Christians eat the bread and the fruit of the vine as the body and blood of Jesus to share in His life; when Judas Iscariot ate the bread dipped in the dish, he went out to betray the body and blood of Jesus to death. Christians call the Lord?s Supper ?communion? because partaking of the body and blood of Jesus represents their shared participation in Jesus, as if Jesus is in them (cf. 1 Corinthians 10:16-17); when Judas Iscariot ate the bread dipped in the dish, he alienated himself from Jesus, and instead was sharing in participation with Satan, who thus ?entered? him. In the Lord?s Supper observed on Sundays, Christians celebrate the death of Christ on the day of His resurrection to honor eternal life; when Judas Iscariot ate the bread dipped in the dish, he committed himself, however unconsciously, to bring death to Jesus and ultimately himself. From this point on, Jesus would speak to the eleven in ways to bring them in to share in life (cf. John 13:31-17:26); by giving Judas Iscariot the bread dipped in the dish, Jesus in a real way cast Judas Iscariot out, and he was handed over to Satan to do his diabolical deed. Thus John the Evangelist described Jesus? act of service and announced His betrayal in dramatically powerful ways. As Christians we do well to imagine ourselves as participants in these moments, to consider how our Lord and Teacher has served us, and thus how we should serve one another, and how each and every one of us has it within ourselves to betray Jesus. We do well to thus consider ourselves so that we may commit more fully to Jesus, to share in communion with Him in the Lord?s Supper and through our thoughts, feelings, and actions on a daily basis, and to make sure we never are given the ?bread dipped in the dish,? to share in an ?anti-communion? which casts us out to the Evil One and to be alienated from life and light. May we faithfully serve God in Christ through the Spirit and share in eternal life in Him! Ethan R. Longhenry

Have a great summer! We plan on meeting once a month during the summer and will let you know more soon! A recap of our study in the Gospel of John: Lazarus | John 11:1-57 The ?disciple whom Jesus loved,? known as John, either John the brother of Zebedee (the Apostle), or John the Elder, was writing his recollections of his experiences with Jesus so that those who hear or read would believe Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and would find eternal life in His name (cf. John 20:31). He began by speaking of the Word of God, the Creator, the life and light of men, who took on flesh and dwelt among us as Jesus of Nazareth (John 1:1-18). He then described the calling of the first disciples, Jesus? first sign at the wedding in Cana, the events which took place while Jesus was present at the Passover in Jerusalem, and Jesus? return to Galilee via Samaria (John 1:19-4:54). John the Evangelist then set forth Jesus? healing of a lame man at Bethesda and the storm of controversy it engendered, Jesus? feeding of the five thousand, and His challenging description of Himself as the Bread of Life (John 5:1-6:71). John the Evangelist then described a long series of engagements and instructions of Jesus around Jerusalem during the Feast of Tabernacles, featuring the healing of the blind man and Jesus? teachings as the Light of the world and the Good Shepherd (John 7:1-10:21). Jesus would echo similar teachings and again identify Himself with God while teaching during the Feast of the Dedication, or Hanukkah (John 10:22-42). According to John 10:40, Jesus had retreated to the Decapolis region across the Jordan River from Judea; we imagine He was still within this region when the events of John 11 began to unfold. John the Evangelist introduced his audience to Lazarus, Mary, and Martha, and did so with a bit of forecasting: they lived in Bethany, and Mary would be the same Mary who would anoint Jesus in John 12:1-8. We have confidence these are the same Mary and Martha spoken of in Luke 10:38-42. Lazarus had become very sick, and Mary and Martha had sent word to Jesus regarding this fact (John 12:1-3). John the Evangelist informed his audience how Jesus loved Lazarus, Mary, and Martha (John 12:5); certainly Jesus loved His disciples and the world and everything, but John was attempting to convey significant intimacy in the relationship between Jesus, Lazarus, Mary, and Martha: they were very close friends, and such will go a long way to explain the ways in which Mary and Martha speak with Jesus throughout these events. Despite hearing the news of Lazarus? illness, Jesus did not immediately return to Judea. He waited for a couple of days, and then informed His disciples they would be returning to Judea (John 12:4-7). The disciples did not understand: Judea had become dangerous territory (John 12:8). Jesus taught them about working while it was light and suggested Lazarus had gone to sleep and He needed to go wake him up (John 12:9-11). Jesus was speaking of the sleep of death and awaking in resuscitation, but the disciples thought He meant actual sleep, and suggested Lazarus would wake up on his own (John 12:12-13). Jesus clarified the situation: Lazarus was dead, and Jesus was glad to have not been there, so they might believe (John 12:14-15). Thomas, perhaps sarcastically or sardonically, encouraged his fellow disciples to go with Jesus to Judea and die with Him (John 12:16): a bit of a premonition, for life would never be the same for any of those involved on account of what they would go on to experience in Judea and Jerusalem. By the time Jesus arrived in Bethany of Judea, Lazarus had not only died but also had been buried for four days (John 11:17). John the Evangelist provided additional context: Bethany was not far from Jerusalem, so there had been many Jewish people who came out to grieve with and console Martha and Mary (John 11:18-19). Martha went out to meet Jesus when He arrived with an accusation and some hope: if He had come earlier, Lazarus would not have died; nevertheless, God would grant whatever Jesus would ask of Him (John 11:20-22). Jesus assured Martha her brother would live again; Martha expressed her confidence of Lazarus obtaining the resurrection of life on the final day (John 11:23-24). Martha?s confession in John 11:24 is notable as an affirmation of the understanding of resurrection common in Second Temple Judaism. We do well to remember how there was nothing written in the Hebrew Bible which would automatically and obviously expect the Messiah to die and be raised from the dead as the firstfruits of the resurrection long before the final day; this would become evident through what God accomplished in Jesus and then in what He made known through the Spirit (cf. 1 Corinthians 15:1-58). Daniel 12:2 provided the most explicit confidence in the resurrection, and as Martha confessed, it spoke of the raising of everyone on the final day. Thus we must never interpret Luke 10:38-42 in any way which would disparage Martha?s understanding of religious matters; she has a good handle on the Hebrew Bible as well understood at the time. Furthermore, John the Evangelist worked diligently to present both Martha and Mary as friends of Jesus who had great hope and confidence in Him yet were not automatically expecting Jesus to immediately resuscitate Lazarus from death. Jesus then affirmed for Martha how He was the resurrection and the life, and how those who believe in Him will live even if they die, and those who live and believe in Him will never die; Martha affirmed she believed as much, and also how Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God who came into the world (John 11:25-27). Thus Martha well believed in Jesus, but even then did not have a full understanding of all such implies. Martha then called for Mary, telling her privately how Jesus was asking for her (John 11:28). Mary went out to Jesus; the crowds followed her, imagining she was going to mourn at Lazarus? tomb (John 11:29-31). Mary repeated the same accusation as had her sister Martha, and continued weeping (John 11:32). Jesus began to be significantly emotionally affected by the outpouring of grief He perceived from Martha, Mary, and the crowds. He asked to see the tomb, and He wept (John 11:33-35). The people understood His grief as a testimony of His love for Lazarus, yet they wondered if He could have done something about it since He gave sight to the blind man (John 11:36-37). They arrived at the tomb (John 11:38). John the Evangelist informed his audience the tomb was a cave with a stone in front of it in order to explain why Jesus asked for the stone to be taken away (John 11:38-39). The land of Judea is not large and there has never been a lot of room for tombs and whatnot; in the days of Second Temple Judaism, the Jewish people would often carve out a tomb in the rock faces around towns and villages. They would lay a recently dead relative upon the main bier within the tomb, and would return after a year or so in order to retrieve the bones. They would then place those bones in a box we call an ossuary, and would often keep the ossuaries of many family members on the ground or in caches within the tomb. It is quite likely that we have discovered the ossuary of Joseph Caiaphas who will be spoken of in John 11:49. After Jesus told them to take away the stone, Martha warned Jesus how the body had been buried for four days, and the stench of decomposition would be present (John 11:39). Jesus intimated to her how she would see the glory of God if she believed (John 11:40). Jesus then uttered a performative prayer to His Father for the benefit of the crowd (John 11:41-42). Jesus cried out for Lazarus to come out, and behold: Lazarus came out, his hands and feet tied in cloth along with a cloth around his face, and Jesus commanded for some to remove those bindings (John 11:43-44). While we could speak of Jesus having raised Lazarus from the dead, we generally speak of it as a resuscitation to make a distinction between Lazarus? ?resurrection,? in which he was brought back to life but would die again, and the resurrection Jesus would experience, in which He was brought back to life to never die again (cf. Romans 6:1-11). Nevertheless, it was the most significant miracle and sign which Jesus would accomplish in His ministry in the Gospel of John, and many who were there to experience it believed in Jesus (John 11:45). Others, however, brought word to the Pharisees about what Jesus had done, and they summoned the Sanhedrin (John 11:46-47). The chief priests and Pharisees addressed the Sanhedrin: Jesus was performing many signs. If they allowed Jesus to keep doing these kinds of things, everyone would believe in Him (John 11:47-48). At perhaps no other place in his Gospel did John the Evangelist prove more ironic than in this circumstance, for indeed; the point was for people to believe Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, because of these signs which He was accomplishing! But for the chief priests and Pharisees it represented a danger: they were convinced the Romans would come and take away their place and their nation (John 11:48). ?Their place? is generally and best understood as the Temple, but it would also not be wrong to perceive how the chief priests and Pharisees understood Jesus and His work to be a threat to their position and standing among the people. We can understand their logic: if word gets out to the Romans that the King of the Jews has come, and the people all believe Jesus is the King of the Jews, He might well give an order, and war against the Romans would ensue, and might lead to their ultimate disadvantage. The ultimate irony, however, is that forty years later, the Romans would come and take away their place and their nation, and the judgment was secured precisely because they had rejected Jesus as their Messiah, and the people would choose Barabbas and the way of insurrection against Rome instead. At this point Caiaphas, High Priest in the year 30, stood up and spoke: they knew nothing, for it was more expedient for one person to die on behalf of the people than for the whole nation to perish (John 11:49-50). John the Evangelist reported how Caiaphas ?prophesied? this statement of Jesus dying for the Jewish nation and in fact for all people, thus strongly suggesting the Holy Spirit inspired him to do so (John 11:51-52). We are left to conclude the Spirit would remain present with the person serving as High Priest no matter how odious said person would otherwise be. The ultimate point, however, is that Caiaphas gave the Sanhedrin the justification and reason for wanting to put Jesus to death: as a scapegoat to allay Roman apprehensions and fears, and so that the position and standing of the Temple and thus the chief priests and Sadducees would not be challenged, as well as the standing of the Pharisees as religious authorities among the people (John 11:53). On account of this Jesus did not walk in Judea publicly but withdrew to an area called Ephraim (John 11:54). The Passover was again drawing near, and Jewish people from around the region and the known world were going up to Jerusalem (John 11:55). The people were looking for Jesus while standing in the Temple courts, and the chief priests and Pharisees had made it known anyone who knew where Jesus was should report as much to them (John 11:56-57). Thus John the Evangelist concluded by setting the scene for the rest of his Gospel, foreshadowing the final days of Jesus and His ultimate betrayal by Judas Iscariot. The resuscitation of Lazarus remains a potent sign of Jesus? authority and power, and the response to this miracle said much about the condition and quality of the hearts of the various types of Jewish people of the day. Jesus indeed is the resurrection and the life, and all who believe and live in Him live and are sustained by this hope. May we trust in the Lord Jesus and obtain the resurrection of life in Him! Ethan R. Longhenry

We welcome you to our weekly meeting and studies on Wednesdays at 12:30pm! DM us for the link. I AM, the Light of the World | John 8:12-59 The ?disciple whom Jesus loved,? known as John, either John the brother of Zebedee, the Apostle, or John the Elder, was writing his recollections of his experiences with Jesus so that those who hear or read would believe Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and would find eternal life in His name (cf. John 20:31). He began by speaking of the Word of God, the Creator, the life and light of men, who took on flesh and dwelt among us as Jesus of Nazareth (John 1:1-18). He then described the calling of the first disciples, Jesus? first sign at the wedding in Cana, the events which took place while Jesus was present at the Passover in Jerusalem, and Jesus? return to Galilee via Samaria (John 1:19-4:54). John the Evangelist then set forth Jesus? healing of a lame man at Bethesda and the storm of controversy it engendered, Jesus? feeding of the five thousand, and His challenging description of Himself as the Bread of Life (John 5:1-6:71). John the Evangelist then related narratives regarding Jesus at the Feast of Tabernacles (or Feast of Booths; Sukkot) in Jerusalem, featuring Jesus? instruction and the thoughts and feelings of the crowds and Jewish authorities (John 7:1-52). For many textual critical and literary reasons, we have concluded the pericope adulterae, the story of Jesus and the woman caught in adultery, of John 7:53-8:11 was not originally written by John, let alone at this point in the Gospel narrative. We therefore conclude John the Evangelist wrote a continuous narrative of events at the Feast of Tabernacles in John 7:1-52 and John 8:12-10:21. In this view, immediately after the Pharisees chastise Nicodemus (John 7:50-52), Jesus declared before them how He was the light of the world; those who follow Him would never walk in darkness but would always enjoy the light of life (John 8:12). The Pharisees objected to His claim on technical grounds: He bore witness of Himself, and so His witness was invalid (John 8:13). While Jesus had previously confessed self-witness would not be valid (cf. John 5:30-37), at this point He owned up to it: Jesus knew His testimony was valid because He knew where He came from and where He was going, and His judgment, when He judges, was not of Himself but of His Father (John 8:14-16). Jesus appealed to the Law declaring the importance of two or more witnesses and declared Himself and His Father as witnesses (John 8:17-18; cf. Deuteronomy 17:6). In so doing Jesus devastated any appeal or argument to a modalistic view of the Godhead, for Jesus manifestly understood Himself and His Father as distinct persons. The Pharisees asked regarding His Father; Jesus declared they knew neither Him nor His Father, for if they knew Him, they would know His Father (John 8:19). John the Evangelist then informed us how Jesus taught these things near the offering box in the Temple courts, and no one seized Him yet because His time had not yet arrived (John 8:20). Jesus again affirmed how He would soon leave them; they would look for Him but not find Him, and would die in their sins (John 8:21). Jewish religious leaders speculated regarding His meaning, wondering if He were going to kill Himself (John 8:22). Jesus indicted them as being from below, while He came from above; unless they properly confessed Jesus, they would die in their sins (John 8:23-24). They asked Him who He was; He said He had indicated as much from the beginning (John 8:25). There was much more to be said, and when they would lift up the Son of Man, they should know who Jesus was and how He did the will of His Father, who has not abandoned Him and would not do so (John 8:26-29). John the Evangelist?s audience has the benefit of understanding how all these things would play out, an advantage not given to those present when Jesus thus spoke. The confusion of the Jewish people, to some degree, remains quite understandable. Nevertheless, some did believe in Jesus based on what He had been teaching (John 8:30). Jesus then focused His message on these ?believers,? and presented to them a message which remains quite familiar to us today, and in its decontextualized form remains quite the encouragement: if you follow Jesus? teachings, you are His disciples, you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free (John 8:31-32). We might take great assurance and comfort in the hope of finding liberation in the truth. But such is not the way the ?believing? Jewish people felt! They were deeply offended: they were children of Abraham, and had never been enslaved to anyone; so how could Jesus offer them freedom (John 8:33)? We will overlook the awkward ?detail? of the slavery while in Egypt; ?slavery? here was most assuredly understood by all involved in a spiritual sense, for Jesus would go on to explain how those who practice sin are slaves of sin (John 8:34). Slaves do not have standing in the household, but the Son does; thus, if the Son liberates them, they would be truly free (John 8:35-36). Jesus was quite aware of their genetic descent from Abraham; yet they want to kill Jesus because His teaching was not progressing among them (John 8:37). Jesus taught what He saw from the Father; these Israelites needed to accomplish it (John 8:38). These ?believing? Jewish people again protested: Abraham was their father (John 8:39). Jesus soberly pointed out how if Abraham were truly their father, they would act like he did, but they want to kill Jesus because He told them the truth of God, which Abraham would not do; but they were doing the deeds of the one who was their father (John 8:39-41). The ?believers? protested further: they were not born of sexually deviant behavior; God was their Father (John 8:41). Jesus pressed on: if God were their Father, they would love Jesus, since He had come from God by God?s initiative (John 8:42). They could not understand because they did not accept His teaching (John 8:43). In truth their father was the Devil, he who was a murderer from the beginning, in whom there is no truth; a liar and the father of lies (John 8:44). They do not believe Him even though He told them the truth (John 8:45). He invited anyone to indict Him of sin and wondered why they did not believe He was telling them the truth (John 8:46). Those who really belong to God listen to His words and do them; they were not listening because they did not really belong to God (John 8:47). We do well to again emphasize Jesus? audience: these are not heckling, unbelieving Jewish religious authorities. Jesus was speaking to those who ?believed? in Him based on what He had been saying (John 8:30-31). We have kept ?believers? in quotations because Jesus was demonstrating to them how they really did not believe. They thought they believed; they could see something in Jesus, but Jesus knew the ultimate end. Yes, indeed, Jesus? words were provocations; it would be intolerable for the elect, the chosen people of God, to see themselves as children of the Evil One. Nevertheless, Jesus? logic remains airtight: if He truly is who He said He was, and whom these Jewish people theoretically believe He was, their imminent rejection of Him for saying such things demonstrated how they really did not accept Him or His authority. The people asked if they were right to say Jesus was a demon-possessed Samaritan; Jesus denied it, instead affirming His desire to honor the Father whom they were dishonoring (John 8:48-50). Jesus confessed how those who obeyed His teaching would never see death (John 8:51). The people seemed affirmed in their belief about Jesus as possessed by a demon: Abraham and the prophets died, but those who obey Jesus would never taste death? Who did Jesus think He was (John 8:52-53)? Jesus again confessed how self-glorification was worthless; He was glorified by the very Father whom they professed as their God (John 8:54). They did not know Him, but Jesus did know Him; if Jesus denied as much, He would be a liar as they were (John 8:55). Jesus told them Abraham rejoiced to see His day and was glad (John 8:56). Was Jesus suggesting Abraham knew the Gospel during his life, or was Jesus intimating how Abraham was in God?s presence and able to rejoice in the blessings which would reach their fulfillment in Jesus? While we cannot be certain of this, we can perceive how the Jewish people understood Him: they wondered how Jesus, not yet fifty years old, could have seen Abraham (John 8:57). And then Jesus confessed it: before Abraham was, ego eimi, ?I am? (John 8:58). What Jesus meant by such a statement can be understood by the response of the people: they picked up stones with which to stone Him (John 8:59). In so doing they affirmed what Jesus had proleptically declared: they sought to kill Him (cf. John 8:37, 40). They felt justified in trying to kill Him because, in their estimation, He spoke in blasphemous ways. I AM was the name YHWH gave to Moses to tell Israel in Exodus 3:14; when Jesus said I AM before Abraham was, He was confessing His pre-incarnate existence as the Logos, as God the Son, and thus identified Himself as and with God. And so those Jewish people who ?believed? in Jesus, in a very short time, had picked up stones with which to stone Him. Jesus certainly was not using any kind of accommodative method with these ?believers.? He challenged them directly and sharply regarding some of their most cherished beliefs about themselves and their relationship with God. We do well to remember how almost anyone and everyone prove fine with Jesus when what they think and feel aligns with what Jesus said and did. The true test of belief comes in those matters wherein Jesus taught and did things which challenge and question fundamental aspects and ideas about ourselves. In those circumstances, can we find the humility and wisdom to subject ourselves under the Lordship of Jesus, or will we protest and cling to what we vainly imagine to be true about ourselves? Jesus seemed to be in quite the predicament: in the Temple courts with a bunch of angry people looking to execute Him. Yet John the Evangelist informed us how Jesus ?was hidden from them? and was able to leave the Temple area (John 8:59). Perhaps Jesus was rendered invisible in some way; perhaps His visage was changed; maybe it featured something else; but most assuredly Jesus? escape was miraculous. This was not the first time Jesus was thus able to escape a mortal predicament, and doubtless it was because His time had not yet come. Jesus very famously makes many ?I am? statements in the Gospel of John, and they are all worth deep consideration. Jesus is the light of the world indeed. Yet Jesus is also the I AM, Immanuel, YHWH in the flesh. May we truly believe in Jesus, faithfully serve Him, and overcome death in the resurrection of life through Him! Ethan R. Longhenry

We continue to meet online on Wednesdays at 12:30pm to encourage one another and continue our studies in the Gospel of John. Students and staff are welcome! The recap of our study in John 7:1-52 is now available. Jesus at the Feast of Tabernacles | John 7:1-52 The ?disciple whom Jesus loved,? known as John, either John the brother of Zebedee, the Apostle, or John the Elder, was writing his recollections of his experiences with Jesus so that those who hear or read would believe Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and would find eternal life in His name (cf. John 20:31). He began by speaking of the Word of God, the Creator, the life and light of men, who took on flesh and dwelt among us as Jesus of Nazareth (John 1:1-18). He then described the calling of the first disciples, Jesus? first sign at the wedding in Cana, the events which took place while Jesus was present at the Passover in Jerusalem, and Jesus? return to Galilee via Samaria (John 1:19-4:54). John the Evangelist then set forth Jesus? healing of a lame man at Bethesda and the storm of controversy it engendered, Jesus? feeding of the five thousand, and His challenging description of Himself as the Bread of Life (John 5:1-6:71). Jesus? healing at Bethesda would stand behind all of the events and interactions John described in John 7:1-52. Jesus stayed in Galilee and not in Judea because the religious authorities sought to kill Him because of it (John 7:1). The time had come for the Feast of Tabernacles, or Feast of Booths (Sukkot; John 7:2). The Feast of Tabernacles was established in Leviticus 23:33-44 and Deuteronomy 16:13-17 as a week-long celebration of the harvest in the middle of the seventh month, thus around October, six months from the Passover. Israelites were to erect tents in the fields and live in them for the week; the Feast of Booths was one of the three feasts at which every man was to appear before YHWH (cf. Deuteronomy 16:16). It was also one of the appointed feasts at which the Torah, or Law, was to be read before the people (Deuteronomy 31:9-13). Many of Jesus? teachings and behaviors would directly relate to activities going on during the Feast of Tabernacles. Jesus? brothers challenged Him to go up to Jerusalem for the Feast of Tabernacles: if You are really the Messiah, go and prove it; John the Evangelist informed us His brothers did not believe in Him at this point (John 7:3-5). Jesus? brothers were also mentioned in Matthew 13:55 and its parallel passages; they are identified as James, Joseph, Simon, and Judas. The Greek term involved does suggest they are Jesus? half-brothers, later children of Joseph and Mary; Matthew declared Joseph did not ?know? Mary ?until? she gave birth to Jesus (Matthew 1:25), and despite later hagiography, there would be no reason to expect a Second Temple Jewish couple to not have children, and there was no sin or transgression in it. This would be the one and only time John would mention Jesus? brothers; Jesus would appear to James in His resurrection, His siblings would be gathered with the disciples in the upper room between His ascension and the day of Pentecost, and James and Jude (=Judas) would become of some reputation in the church and write letters preserved in the New Testament (cf. Acts 1:14, 1 Corinthians 15:7, Galatians 2:9, James, Jude). We do not know exactly at which point His family would fully believe in Him, but it must be between these events and His resurrection. Jesus told His brothers His time had not yet come; the world hated Jesus because He testified about the evil of its deeds, but it did not hate them (John 7:6-8). Jesus thus stayed behind in Galilee while His brothers went up to Jerusalem for the Feast of Booths; later Jesus would Himself go, but secretly (John 7:9-10). Even if Jesus were not publicly apparent, His presence was still felt in Jerusalem. The Jewish leaders wanted to know where He was; the people spoke amongst themselves about Him, with some saying He was a good man, and others suggesting He was deceiving the people; but none dare speak publicly on account of the Jewish authorities (John 7:11-13). During the middle of the feast, while the people celebrated the drawing of water to pour onto the altar in the Temple, Jesus went up and began to teach there (John 7:14). The Jewish leaders were astonished at His understanding since He was not formally rabbinically trained (John 7:15). Jesus identified the One who sent Him as the Source of His understanding; those who would want to do God?s will would perceive it in His teaching (John 7:16-18). Jesus then asked if Moses gave them the Law, condemned them all as not actually keeping the Law, and then asked why they wanted to kill Jesus (John 7:19). The people did not understand what He was attempting to frame; they said He had a demon and asked who wanted to kill Him (John 7:20). Jesus then appealed to Leviticus 12:3: a male Jewish child was to be circumcised on the eighth day, even if that day were a Sabbath, and yet none of the people considered that a violation of the Sabbath; yet Jesus was being condemned for healing on a Sabbath (John 7:21-23). He then encouraged them to judge not by appearances but by proper judgment (John 7:24). Thus Jesus identified moments in which divine imperatives may come into conflict, and exhorted His followers to practice proper discernment to understand how to best glorify God in those situations. Throughout John 7:1-52, John the Evangelist presented much of the chatter among the people regarding Jesus. Some wondered how He could be publicly teaching; did the authorities recognize Him as the Christ? And yet they knew from where He came, and they imagined they would not know from where the Messiah would come (John 7:25-27). The people do seem to know of Micah 5:2, and so the question likely has little to do with geographical origins. Jesus cried out, affirming they knew from where He had come, but they did not know the One who sent Jesus, but Jesus indeed knew Him (John 7:28-29). This kind of shocking declaration ? the people of God did not know God! ? engendered opposition, and people tried to seize Jesus, yet proved unable to do so, because His time had not yet come (John 7:30). We would not be wrong to see some kind of supernatural protection over Jesus at this point. Nevertheless, many in the crowd believed in Jesus: they wondered if Messiah could do more miracles than the things Jesus was doing (John 7:31). This was too much for the Jewish religious establishment: the chief priests and Pharisees, not exactly friends, sent officials to arrest Jesus (John 7:32). Jesus informed everyone how He would not be with them for much longer; He would return to the One who sent Him; they would look for Him but not find Him (John 7:33-34). The hearer and reader understand what Jesus means, but those in the moment could, and did, not: they wondered if He meant He would go to the Jewish Diaspora, or perhaps even preach among the Greek speaking Gentiles (John 7:35-36). On the last and greatest day of the Feast of Tabernacles, Jesus cried out for all who were thirsty to come to Him and drink, evoking Isaiah 58:11 and similar passages which suggest rivers of living water would flow within the believer (John 7:37-38). His teaching was without a doubt associated with the celebration of the drawing of water; living water was generally understood as flowing water, as opposed to stagnant water. John the Evangelist did not want to leave the hearer or reader in doubt: he associated Jesus? teaching with the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, which had not yet taken place since Jesus had not yet been glorified (John 7:39). Thus we do well to understand much of what Jesus taught regarding living water with the presence of the Spirit (e.g. John 4:1-42). Some in the crowds confessed Jesus as the Prophet; perhaps the Mosaic prophet of Deuteronomy 18:15-18, but more likely the Elijah who would come before the Day of YHWH; others in the crowd confessed Jesus as the Messiah, the Christ, the King of Israel; but still others pointed out the Scripture in Micah 5:2 and how the Christ would come from Bethlehem, not Galilee; and so the crowd was divided (John 7:40-43). John the Evangelist never spoke of the circumstances surrounding Jesus? birth; we have no reason to believe he would cast aspersions on Matthew?s or Luke?s narratives, but this moment would have provided a great opportunity to editorialize about Jesus? origins. Perhaps the issue of origin was about more than mere birth: Jesus may have been born in Bethlehem, but no one would confuse Him for a Bethlehemite; He was raised a Galilean in Nazareth. No one laid a hand on Jesus. Those officers sent to arrest Him returned to the chief priests and Pharisees empty-handed (John 7:44-45). When asked what happened, they declared how no one had ever spoken like Jesus (John 7:46). The Pharisees contemptuously asked if they had been deceived as well; after all, none among the religious authorities accepted Jesus? claims; the only ones who did so were part of the rabble, the unenlightened, whom the religious authorities deemed accursed (John 7:47-49). When Nicodemus raised a slight objection, asking if it were right to judge a man under the Law without giving him a hearing, they derided him, asking if he also were a Galilean, and to search the Scriptures to see no prophet comes from Galilee (John 7:50-52). Matthew considered Jesus? ministry in Galilee as a fulfillment of Isaiah 9:1-2 (cf. Matthew 4:12-17), but the statement was really a dismissive proof-text. The religious authorities had little to gain and much to lose if Jesus were the Christ, and most would not condescend to hear or heed Him. This tends to become a difficulty in any religious institution, organization, or tradition: the learned can easily imagine themselves as the more enlightened and hold those with less understanding in contempt. Christians do well to consider whether they are acting more like the disciples of Jesus or more like the chief priests and Pharisees in terms of their perspective on fellow believers. The Feast of Tabernacles was drawing to a close; Jesus had taught the people again, and controversy was yet again stoked. Thanks be to God for Jesus the Christ, and may we all come to Jesus and receive the living water of the Spirit from Him! Ethan R. Longhenry

As the fall 2023 semester soon comes to an end, we welcome you to our holiday get-together and feast at Winlock Lounge in HLRC at 11:30am today! Here is a recap of our recent studies in John. Healing at Bethesda | John 5:1-47 The ?disciple whom Jesus loved,? known as John, either John the brother of Zebedee, the Apostle, or John the Elder, was writing his recollections of his experiences with Jesus so that those who hear or read would believe Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and would find eternal life in His name (cf. John 20:31). He began by speaking of the Word of God, the Creator, the life and light of men, who took on flesh and dwelt among us as Jesus of Nazareth (John 1:1-18). He then described the calling of the first disciples, Jesus? first sign at the wedding in Cana, the events which took place while Jesus was present at the Passover in Jerusalem, and Jesus? return to Galilee via Samaria (John 1:19-4:54). Arguments have been advanced which would suggest an inversion of John 5:1-47 and John 6:1-71: according to this reading, the events of John 6:1-71 would follow the healing in Galilee in John 4:46-54, and then John 5:1-47 would follow Jesus? ?Bread of life? discourse, and continue on with Jesus returning to Galilee and then Jerusalem for the Feast of Booths in John 7:1-52. Admittedly this framework would relieve certain tensions within the text: the description of Jesus going to the other side of the Sea of Galilee in John 6:1 only makes sense if Jesus is already in Galilee, which is the case in John 4:46-54 but not in John 5:1-47; likewise, the reference to the ?one miracle? in John 7:21 comports best with the healing at Bethesda in John 5:1-16. We will continue to consider the Gospel of John in the canonical order in which it has been delivered to us, but offer this for consideration. According to John the Evangelist, Jesus returned to Jerusalem for an unnamed feast (John 5:1). He described the pool which was near the Sheep Gate in Jerusalem: the best reading of the text for the Aramaic name is ?Bethzatha,? but ?Bethesda? is the variant by which the place has become most commonly known (John 5:2). One can travel to Jerusalem today and visit the location of the pool at Bethesda at which the events of John 5:1-16 took place. John reported the presence of many disabled and ill people at the pool of Bethesda (John 5:3). John 5:4 was not recorded in the earliest and best manuscripts; it is most likely a later addition, which may be uninspired but yet still useful, explaining how it was believed an angel of God would stir the water, and the first person to stand in the water once stirred would be healed. John then introduced us to a man who had been disabled for thirty-eight years (John 5:5): Jesus asked if he wanted to be well, and he explained how he had no one to assist him in getting into the water once stirred (John 5:6-7, thus demonstrating the reason for the explanation in John 5:4). Jesus told him to pick up his mat and walk, and he did so and was healed (John 5:8-9). John the Evangelist then reported what would become the most controversial aspect of what had just happened: this healing took place on a Sabbath (John 5:9b). Jewish leaders, upon seeing the healed man carrying his mat, chastised him for thus laboring on the Sabbath; the man explained how the One who healed him told him to do so (John 5:10-11). The Jewish leaders wanted to know who had said and done these things, but the man did not know (John 5:12-13). Later, in the Temple, Jesus found the man and exhorted him to avoid sinning any more lest something worse befall him (John 5:14). Many have flippantly made associations between various forms of disability or illness and sin or transgressions; we do well to note how the Biblical record about such associations is mixed and we should be careful in drawing any specific conclusions about any given person and what they might be enduring. The man would go and tell the Jewish authorities how it was Jesus who had made him well, and they began persecuting Jesus for doing so on the Sabbath (John 5:15-16). It is at this point in which Jesus made a statement which was accurate yet quite inflammatory, and would become the basis for the rest of the discourse in John 5:18-47: So [Jesus] told [the Jewish authorities], ?My Father is working until now, and I too am working? (John 5:17). In this way Jesus proved quite unrepentant for having worked on the Sabbath, and the Jewish authorities rightly perceived how Jesus made Himself out to be equal with God by calling God His Father (John 5:18). John the Evangelist then recorded Jesus? instruction to the Jewish authorities and all who would hear in John 5:19-47. In John 5:19-29 Jesus connected His work of healing and thus giving life to the Father who gives life: the Son can only do what He has seen the Father do, and the Father loves the Son and will show Him, and everyone, even greater deeds which will astound and amaze. The Father raises the dead and gives them life and gives the Son authority to judge so they will honor the Son in the name of the Father: thus the Son will judge and the Son will give life as He wishes. To this end those who believe Jesus? message and the Father will cross from death to life and have life. The day will come when all in the tombs will hear the voice of the Son of God and will come out: the righteous to eternal life, and wicked to eternal condemnation. In this way Jesus associated His work of healing with His authority to judge and of the day of the resurrection. Jesus certainly evoked Daniel 12:2 in John 5:28-29; we note well how those ?in the tombs? will hear His voice, affirming the reanimation/reconstitution of the physical body in the resurrection, and that there will be a ?resurrection of condemnation?, since otherwise we would have reason to conclude the day of resurrection would only come for the righteous in Christ. In John 5:30-47 Jesus attested to the witness of John the Baptist, the deeds Jesus did in the name of the Father, the Father Himself, the Scriptures, and Moses. Witness, or testimony, has always proved important and significant in affirming or rejecting anyone?s claims about truth and reality. Under the Law nothing was to be established by only one witness; legally something could only be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses (Deuteronomy 19:15). Thus it was a valid question to ask: on what basis could Jesus establish the validity and veracity of what He was saying? Jesus said He had the right and standing to judge because He did not seek His own purposes, but the purposes of the Father who had sent Him (John 5:30). If He testified about Himself, His testimony would not be true; thus Jesus would appeal to other witnesses (John 5:31). Jesus first appealed to the witness of John the Baptist who had testified to the truth (John 5:32-35). Yet Jesus has even greater witness than John the Baptist: the deeds He was doing in the name of the Father bore witness how the Father sent Him (John 5:36). The Father also testified about Jesus (John 5:37). The Jewish authorities and people took their election and standing before God quite seriously. YHWH had spoken to their ancestors. Yet Jesus devastated their pretense: none of them had heard the Father?s voice or had seen Him at any time, and they do not have the Word of God abiding in them, since they rejected the One whom the Father had sent (John 5:37-38). Jesus recognized how they studied the Scriptures and imagined they had life because of them, yet, according to Jesus, those same Scriptures testified about Jesus, and they will not turn to Him for life (John 5:39-40). Jesus pointed out the double standard: they would accept others who came in the name of God, and they accepted the praise of others, while Jesus would not accept the praise of others and they rejected Him even though He had come in the name of the Father; thus the love of God was not in them (John 5:41-44). Jesus would not be their accuser before God, but Moses (John 5:45): Moses had written about Jesus, and if they really believed Moses, they would heed Jesus (John 5:46-47). Jesus? instruction would certainly not assuage the hostility of the Jewish authorities; quite the contrary. His message was bold, pointed, and sharp, deeply and strongly challenging many of the core beliefs and presuppositions of the Jewish authorities and people. Discourses like these should remind everyone how there cannot be any kind of middle ground about Jesus: either He is who He says He is, and we all do best to submit ourselves to Him, or He was severely deluded and/or a most unholy, blasphemous liar. It has always proven easier to hurl invective and heap condemnation on those who bring forth an unsettling and controversial message than to check oneself to see if the message might have merit. The Jewish authorities would not stop persecuting Jesus until they had Him killed even though all He said and did testified to His relationship with His Father. What if Jesus had something similar to say to us? Would we prove willing to check ourselves or would we want to have Him killed as well? May we fully submit ourselves to the Father and the Son and obtain the resurrection of life in Him! Ethan R. Longhenry

We welcome you to our weekly meeting on Google Meet every Wednesday from 12:30 to 1:30pm! We continue in our study in John. This is our recap of the past couple of studies. ---------- The First Passover | John 2:13-4:3 The ?disciple whom Jesus loved,? known as John, either John the brother of Zebedee, the Apostle, or John the Elder, was writing his recollections of his experiences with Jesus so that those who hear or read would believe Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and would find eternal life in His name (cf. John 20:31). He began by speaking of the Word of God, the Creator, the life and light of men, who took on flesh and dwelt among us as Jesus of Nazareth (John 1:1-18). He then described the calling of the first disciples and Jesus? first sign at the wedding in Cana (John 1:19-2:12). John the Evangelist would continue by chronicling some of the events which took place while Jesus attended the Passover in Jerusalem (John 2:13-4:3). As would be expected during the Passover festival, Jesus entered the Temple complex. John related how Jesus was greatly distressed at how the Temple had become a marketplace; He made a whip of cords and drove the merchants of animals and money changers out of the Temple (John 2:13-16). We do well to note how John never suggested Jesus actually used the whip of cords to hit any animal or person. What, exactly, is Jesus up to in the Temple cleansing of John 2:13-16? Throughout its existence the Second Temple was never only the place to go in order to serve YHWH; it had always been a place with many administrative and mercantile functions. The merchants were not in the holy place but in a court farther away, and their services did prove necessary. A traveler from Galilee or parts beyond would not want to bring an animal for sacrifice across that distance, and travelers would be carrying Roman money which would need exchanging for the Temple shekel. In the Synoptic Gospel accounts Jesus cleanses the Temple during His final week and evokes Jeremiah 7:11, calling it a den of robbers, and thus rendering judgment on the Second Temple as YHWH did the First Temple in the days of Jeremiah (cf. Matthew 21:12-17); yet John placed the event toward the beginning of Jesus? ministry and without the overt political connotations. Many imagine Jesus was enraged at the oppressive costs of the animals or the exchange rate, yet such is completely speculative. The only hint John provided is what the disciples remembered: the prophecy of Psalm 69:9, how zeal for YHWH?s house would consume Him (John 2:17). We do best to understand Jesus? cleansing of the Temple as a ritual sign act which demonstrated the close association between the Father and the Son. The Jewish leaders recognized what Jesus was doing and why and thus asked Him for a sign which would bear witness to His authority (John 2:18). Jesus challenged them to tear down this temple and He would raise it again in three days (John 2:19). The Jewish leaders were incredulous: Herod the Great had begun his great renovation of the Second Temple in around 19 BCE. By the present moment in 27 CE it had been under construction for forty-six years; it would only be finished in 63, and would be destroyed seven years later (cf. John 2:20). No doubt this kind of statement would become the basis of the false accusations against Jesus at His trial (cf. Mark 14:58). But Jesus did not refer to the Second Temple; He spoke of the temple of His body, and His disciples remembered this when He arose from the dead and they believed (John 2:21-22). A temple is the place in which it is believed a deity dwells or maintains its presence. YHWH demonstrated His presence among His people in former times by the Cloud of Presence in the Tabernacle and in the First Temple (cf. Exodus 40:34-35, 1 Kings 8:10-11). In a vision Ezekiel saw YHWH?s Presence depart from the First Temple, and it was destroyed soon afterward (cf. Ezekiel 10:1-22). Yet the Cloud of Presence, also known as the shekinah, did not return when the Second Temple was built; the Most Holy Place of the Temple was infamously completely empty. We cannot but keep this in mind when considering John?s testimony about Jesus in the Temple, for in Jesus the Presence of YHWH had returned and had testified against Jewish practices in the Temple. According to John the Evangelist, many believed in Jesus during that Passover, but He would not entrust Himself to the people, because He knew what people were all about (John 2:23-25). One such, perhaps, is a Pharisee of the Sanhedrin named Nicodemus, who comes to visit Jesus at night (John 3:1). He seemed to come at night to speak to Jesus without as much fear of retaliation from other Jewish authorities and likely to gain further instruction. Nicodemus proved more fair-minded than many of the religious authorities like him: he recognized God was with Jesus because no one could do the things Jesus was doing if God were not with Him (John 3:2). In contrast, fellow Pharisees would blaspheme the Spirit of God by suggesting Jesus did miracles by the power of Satan (cf. Matthew 12:22-32). Jesus would then attempt to teach Nicodemus, yet the conversation ends up in a farce. Jesus warned Nicodemus: only by being born anothen could anyone see the Kingdom, or Reign, of God (John 3:3). Anothen, in Greek, can mean ?again? or ?from above?; Jesus has both in mind when speaking with Nicodemus. Thus Jesus would testify regarding the ?second birth,? the need for belief and baptism which attends it in order to share in the coming Reign of God, and a more spiritually and less physically understood allegiance and association; Nicodemus could not understand it (John 3:3-12). Jesus, the Son of Man, could testify about spiritual things from above, since He had descended from above, and would ascend again one day; as Moses lifted up the serpent to provide healing for Israel in Numbers 21:5-9, so the Son of Man would need to be lifted up so those who believe in Him might share in life eternal (John 3:13-15). ?Son of Man? is a Hebrew idiom to describe a human being (cf. Psalm 8:4); yet a Pharisee like Nicodemus, who would know his Prophets and Writings well, would understand Jesus as speaking of the ?one like a son of man? who would stand before the Ancient of Days to receive a Kingdom without end (cf. Daniel 7:13-14). Thus Jesus would have to be lifted up in His ascension to receive the Kingdom from His Father; but to be able to ascend Jesus would have to be lifted up in His resurrection from the dead; and His death would come from having been lifted up on the cross: and so Jesus thus evoked all He would undergo by making reference to Moses and the serpent in the Wilderness. Jesus thus testified regarding who He was, what He was about, and the basis on which He could thus speak to Nicodemus about what God was accomplishing through Him. In John 3:16-21 John the Evangelist provided no contextual break, and so it is quite possible John was relating Jesus? direct speech to Nicodemus; but it is also possible John has begun making his own commentary as he did in John 1:1-18. God has loved the world by giving of His only beloved Son so all who believe in Him might have eternal life (John 3:16). Jesus did not come into the world to condemn it but to save it (John 3:17); if God wanted to condemn everyone, He would have not needed any further justification, for we have all sinned and fallen short of His glory. Far too many people imagine God in Christ watches in wait to catch people in their sin to condemn them; it is Satan who does that. In Christ God is doing all He can to save people! Those who entrust themselves to Jesus are not condemned; those who deny Him are already condemned in their unbelief, having turned away from the light in Christ because it exposed the wickedness of what they did (John 3:18-20). But those who practice truth are drawn to the light of God in Christ to demonstrate their deeds are done in God (John 3:21). According to John the Evangelist, Jesus then left Jerusalem for the Judean wilderness near the Jordan River, and was baptizing people (John 3:22). John the Baptist was across the Jordan at Aenon near Salim and was baptizing there, having not yet been imprisoned by Herod Antipas (John 3:23). The Baptist?s disciples informed him of how Jesus was also baptizing, and many had come to Him for baptism; John the Baptist then spoke of Jesus as the Bridegroom and himself as the friend of the Bridegroom, and he took great joy in how Jesus was becoming greater and he comparatively lesser (John 3:24-30). As with John 3:16-21, so with John 3:31-36: perhaps John the Baptist continued his response, or perhaps John has taken over and provided commentary. The One who came from heaven, Jesus, maintains superior testimony to those who are of the earth and can provide only earthly testimony (John 3:31). None may accept His testimony, but He will speak God?s words since God sent Him to do so; the Father loved the Son and gave Him authority over all things (John 3:32-35). The one who entrusts him or herself to Jesus the Son has eternal life, but those who reject the Son have God?s wrath upon them (John 3:36). The Pharisees would learn of Jesus? great success at the Jordan River and how His disciples were baptizing more people than John the Baptist and his associates; thus Jesus departed from Judea to return to Galilee (John 4:1-3). John the Evangelist thus recorded the first Passover of Jesus? ministry, and in so doing set forth, in word and deed, the purposes of God in Christ. YHWH was fulfilling His promises and had returned to His people. Those who entrusted themselves to God in Christ could be born again in Him to obtain eternal life. But those who rejected God in Christ would be judged, condemned, and experience the wrath of God. May we be born again from above in God in Christ through the Spirit and obtain eternal life in Him! Ethan R. Longhenry

John and the Word | John 1:1-18 He had experienced astounding, amazing, and wonderful things. His time on earth was growing short; perhaps encouraged by those who honored him, but certainly prompted by the Spirit of God, he would record his witness so many more might gain insight from his experiences. Who is he? He did not come out and explicitly name himself. He identified himself as ?the disciple whom Jesus loved? (John 20:20-24). Christian tradition considers this disciple to be ?John.? ?John? is a common name in Second Temple Judaism: there is John the Baptizer, who came before Jesus; John ben Zebedee, brother of James, an Apostle; and early Christians also spoke of ?John the Elder.? Our author is generally associated with either John ben Zebedee or John the Elder. Peter and this ?disciple whom Jesus loved? were the ones who ran to the tomb when Mary Magdalene reported it empty (cf. John 20:2-8). In the book of Acts Luke recorded how Peter and John ben Zebedee would visit the Temple together (cf. Acts 3:1): thus, John ben Zebedee might be the ?disciple whom Jesus loved.? Papias of Hierapolis, who lived from 60 to 130, considered John the Elder the author of the Gospel and Letters of John as well as Revelation. Good arguments, therefore, can be made for either. Whichever John wrote this Gospel did so as an eyewitness of these events which so transformed him, and he wrote so that people who heard it might believe Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and would have life in His name (John 20:31). Where did John decide to begin his Gospel? Naturally, he chose the beginning; yet not the beginning we might imagine. John began before the beginning with the Word (Greek Logos). The Word was in the beginning; the Word was with God; the Word was God; all things were created by and through Him; the Word was life; the Word was the light of mankind (John 1:1-4). There was no end of philosophical speculation regarding the Logos in the first century world, but John was no philosopher. John was attempting to communicate the profound mystery which he had encountered. The Scriptures testified to how God made all things by speaking them into existence (Genesis 1:1-2:3); the Psalmist provided confidence such was no mere rhetorical flight of fancy (Psalm 33:6-9). Moses had told Israel how YHWH had fed them with manna so they might learn how people do not live by bread alone but by everything which proceeds from the mouth of God (Deuteronomy 8:3). Thus we can understand John?s witness in John 1:1-4. By what means did God create all things? Through speaking His Word. What provided life for every created thing? God?s Word. What created thing sustains all life? The energy which comes from light. And so the Word of God is life and light. The beginning of John?s Gospel, therefore, is the beginning of all things, the beginning of the revealing of God, for his Gospel testified to this Word who created and spoke all such things. John will continually evoke these themes throughout his Gospel. We speak of light as a source of energy but also light as a source of illumination, or understanding; its contrast, darkness, would bring death, and would represent a source of confusion and ignorance. The story of humanity might lead one to conclude that the forces of darkness have overcome the light; but John testified to the contrary. The light of the Word has shined in the darkness, but the darkness has not overcome it (John 1:5). John then introduced his first witness. God sent a man, John (the Baptizer); he testified regarding the Light to come (John 1:6). He readily confessed he was not the light; he wanted people to be ready to believe in the true Light who was coming to give light to all (John 1:7-9). John then lamented how this Light, the Word, came into the world which had been created through Him, yet it did not recognize Him (John 1:10). For that matter, He had even come to His own people, the Jewish people, the people of God, did not receive Him (John 1:11). Yet John had experienced and knew the promise: those who received Him by believing in Him were granted the right to become children of God, not by genealogy, parentage, or any other human means, but by God (John 1:12-13). John then simply declared the most profound expression of this great mystery: this Word ? the Means of creation, the Life, the Light ? became flesh and dwelt, or ?tabernacled,? among mankind. John and those who were with him saw His glory, the glory of the One and Only Son of God, full of grace and truth, who had come from the Father (John 1:14). How could it be? How can the magnitude of divinity be confined to a human body? We do not know; we likely cannot know. Yet our inability to know does not mean it did not happen. The Incarnation of the Son of God thus remains one of the most profound mysteries and essential tenets of the Christian faith. The Word becoming flesh (as Jesus of Nazareth, whom John will not identify by name until John 1:17) truly is the miracle which leads to all other miracles, as C.S. Lewis attested. Unless Jesus was born, He could not die; if He could not die, He could not be raised from the dead. Everything Jesus will do flowed from His Incarnation. John?s language remains quite deliberately chosen and maintains a powerful effect. In the Wilderness YHWH made provision for Israel to create and erect a tent, known as the Tabernacle; in the Tabernacle YHWH would maintain His Presence among His people Israel (cf. Exodus 40:34-38). The Tabernacle was retired when the Temple of Solomon was built (cf. 1 Kings 8:1-11), and the Presence of God remained in that Temple until it departed in the days of Ezekiel (cf. Ezekiel 10:1-22). After the exile the Jewish people returned and built another Temple, yet no one ever testified they saw the Presence of God return to it. Yet YHWH did return to Israel as He had promised; He did so by taking on flesh and tabernacling among them as Jesus of Nazareth! John and his associates perceived His glory. They experienced the power and majesty of God working through Him. They had every confidence in His promise that they would receive the glory of God if they remained faithful to Him (cf. Romans 8:17-18). John then returned to the testimony of John the Baptizer, for he spoke of how the One who would come after him was greater than him because He existed before him (John 1:15). Ostensibly John waited until here to provide this testimony because it would be otherwise difficult to understand how the One who came after the Baptizer had existed before him. John then testified how he, his associates, and likely his audience had received all kinds of gifts, grace upon grace, from His fullness (John 1:15). The Law came through Moses; grace and truth came from this Word made flesh, whom John now names as Jesus Christ (John 1:16). ?Christ? is Jesus? title: the Anointed One, the king. It is not as if grace and truth were entirely absent from the Law of Moses, or that in Christ there are no commandments. Instead John spoke of framing and emphasis: Israel had been given the Torah and the Torah defined the covenant between God and Israel, but now our lives in faith are defined by Jesus. Gifts come through Jesus; Jesus is the embodiment of the truth. John then confessed how no human had ever seen God (John 1:18). No human being has ever perceived the fullness of God with any of the five explicit senses, nor could anyone. Yet John testified how Jesus, the Word made flesh, who is God and in fellowship with the Father, has made God known (John 1:18). Thus John concluded what is deemed the ?prologue? of his Gospel. He has set the tone and the framework for all which would then be related. We can understand how and why John was completely transformed by his experience of Jesus of Nazareth. He had encountered God in the flesh, communicating all the relevant characteristics of God, the embodiment of the means by which God created and sustained all things. John had heard the words of God as his ancestors had heard for untold generations; but John would then be able to experience the embodiment of God?s Word and could share in Him and follow after Him. And now he invites all of us to learn of Jesus, the Word made flesh, so we might also share in Him, follow after Him, and find life in His name! Ethan R. Longhenry

Our members enjoyed a fun lunch at Olive Garden today during our spring break. We'll be back online for the rest of the semester starting next Wednesday.

We meet on Wednesdays from 12:30-1:30pm on Google Meet for prayer, encouragement, consideration of spiritual questions, and study. We look forward to seeing you! DM for more information.

SUNSET Global EXHIBITION BY ARTIST MICHAEL ARATA A solo exhibit- Michael Arata. SUNSET Artist reception, June 20, 7:30-8:30 pm. 670 Andalusia Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90065 (also known as Kite Hill) You are invited to my largest most inclusive and extensive installation work to date. This artwork commemorates the 2024 Summer solstice. Fence seating provided.

The online show at Equity Gallery exhibition will be extended to April 30,2020.. Links below. To learn more about the exhibition and the participating artists, click here To see the extended exhibition, visit our Online Showroom For our intimate limited exhibition, visit our Artsy profile "Men Shopping ( David Hockney and friend)" "Men Shopping1"

Freeze Frame . 2019

What is it? Where is it? Why is it? A place you have never been , never touched, never heard, never smelled, never tasted, never seen. Abstract works sourced in a sense of place at The Neutra Institute Museum of Silver Lake, curated by Dulce Stein. 2379 Glendale Blvd, Silver Lake Gallery Hours: Noon to 4:00 pm Friday, Saturday, and Sunday OPENING RECEPTION SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 21, 2019 6:00 to 9:00 pm Carl Heinz Peter Hess Colin Irwin @Yvonne Jongeling Flora Kao Debbie Y. J. Lin Maureen Maki Gurdon Miller Roderick Smith M.K. Stam Olesya Volk Todd Westover Michael Arata Nancy Armitage Diane Behrens Stephanie Rose Bird Cat Chiu Phillips Mary Clark-Camargo Aleka Corwin Karen Duckles Natalie Egnatchik Gwen Freeman C. Michael Frey Rebeca Guerrero " Purgatory Committee Meeting ( to see who moves up"

Faculty show assembled by Molly Barnes. April May 2019. Tetsuji Aono, Doug Bleckner, Douge Harvey, MA Peers, Gary Willoughby, David DiMichele, Michael Arata. Gallery hours - Monday - Friday 10am-4pm. Photos: Michael Arata Composite painting with Nervous Crowd 1 and Nervous Crowd 3

This is one element from the Michael Arata installation "Pet Spaces and Killer Rainbows" included in the ME Candy exhibit at The Pasadena Armory for the Arts. Opens today - Dec 22. Reception- Jan 5 2019 Curated by Newtown Arts.

REMEMBRANCE: Celebrating DAY OF THE DEAD @ THE SOUTHWEST MUSEUM. Opening Reception: Nov 3, 2-4pm- Closing Reception: Dec 8, 4-6pm Nov 3- Dec 8. 2018 PARTICIPATING ARTISTS Gloria E. Alvarez, Michael Arata, Ron Baca, Elizabeth Bailey, Zoe Blaq, Nzingha Camara, Art Carrillo, Larry Caveney, Joanne Chase-Mattillo, Mary Clark-Camargo, Vanessa Cobarrubias, Carol Colin, Cris Coloni, Crying Bear, Raoul de la Sota, Ruth DeNicola, Jaydee Dizon, Leo Eguiarte, James Faulkner, Nicholas Fedak II, Kathi Flood, Gwen Freeman, Scott Froschauer, Simone Gad, Sophia Gasparian, Leslie K. Gray, Rebeca Guerro, Betty Wan Hamada, S.P. Harper, Cidne Hart, Peter Hess, Colin Irwin, Kristen Johannesen, Flora Koa, Linda Kaye, Leah Knecht, Andy Ledesma, Jiazhen Li, Gloria Lujan-Whitney, Cecilia Marmol, Margarita Medina, Rene Fisher-Mims, Mi Vida Boutique, Karen Neubert, Yeu Q Nguyen, Avital Oehler, Lillian Pennypacker, Beth Peterson, Michael Possert Jr., Eva Rabin, Sandi ?Mama? Romero, Ginette Rondeau, Sara Siegel Nurinda, Suzanne Siegel, Sarah Stone, Stormie Art, Nirali Thakker, Melly Troches, Suzette Vidal, Olesya Volk, Dr. Patricia Jessup- Woodlin, Nancy Young

This week in WLAC.edu/Westweek... MON-THURS: Clothing Drive and Adult Ed Virtual Open House TUES: WHM Event Author / Poetry Slam Star THURS: Explore Landscaping & Climate Careers INFO SESSIONS: Computer Science, Dental/Orthodontic Assisting and Paralegal . Want to graduate this Spring? Petition by April 18 to have your name in the graduation program . Transfer News: This week online and in-person CSULA - Next Steps After Admissions; CSULB Engineering & Nursing, CalArts, Grand Canyon U.

#FridayFeature?.#WestLACollege basketball alumna Zhane Carter?s nonprofit, Love for the Streets, has provided meals to the unhoused on Skid Row since 2021. She was recently profiled in the LA Sentinel. ?Born and raised in South Central Los Angeles, Carter earned associate degrees in behavioral science and liberal arts from West Los Angeles College before completing a bachelor?s degree in sociology at California State University, Dominguez Hills. She has been involved in humanitarian work since childhood, believing in direct action over financial incentives?she continues to operate on her terms, cooking meals at her mother?s house before making the long drive to Skid Row, a routine she follows daily.??for more information or to make a donation, visit Instagram.com/LoveForTheStreets_inc/

This week in WLAC.edu/Westweek... Want 1 more class to finish faster? 8-week classes start April 14. SO MUCH ON TUESDAY! Overcoming Self-Criticism Workshop, Puente Career Panel, Meet Your Microforest THURS: Grocery Giveaways, Climate Conversations w/ LA Times Reporter INFO SESSIONS: Computer Science & Game Design, Dental/Orthodontic Assisting ATHLETICS: Baseball v Compton . WLAC Climate Center accepting application for paid summer internships. All majors welcome

Planning to graduate this June? It doesn't happen automatically. You must file a graduation petition.

It's that time!

This week at WLAC.edu/News/Westweek... The MicroForest Planting is coming up! TUES: FAFSA Workshop, THURS: Hidden Figures Screening, Grocery Giveaway, Baseball v Mission INFO SESSIONS: Pharmacy Tech, Help Applying for Paid Summer Internships GRADUATING IN JUNE? Time to file your grad petition

Spotlighting African American faculty this #BlackHistoryMonth...Marni Smith is shaping future teachers as a Professor of Child Development and Teacher Education at #WestLACollege. Prof. Smith joined West in 2017, and her passion for student-centered education reflects the lasting legacy of educators who are always bringing fresh experiences and perspectives to their work. When she?s not teaching, she is exploring the world through her love of travel or cozying up to spooky films. . ?My teachers were great positive influences in my life. My middle school English teacher was probably the reason I became a rapper." - Kendrick Lamar, Pulitzer Prize Winning Rapper

Spotlighting African American faculty this #BlackHistoryMonth...Professor Chantel Grayson is the newest Real Estate instructor at #WestLACollege . As a long-time real estate broker and author, Prof. Grayson draws from her vast experiences to bring real world knowledge to the in-person and online classroom. She is also an accomplished entertainment entrepreneur who co-founded the award-winning internet radio station God's House of Hip Hop Radio (GH3 Radio). . "Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world." ? Nelson Mandela

Mon, Feb 24: Phone outage continues... OUR APOLOGIES: Per AT&T, the College is experiencing problems with our phone system due to a copper cable theft, which has impacted phone services around our area. They are working to resolve the issue. Updates will be posted at WLAC.edu . Service outage began 2/20/2025

Alumni Roni Hayden, also known as Ronnett Shadon, has always been interested in using experiences from her challenging childhood to smooth the way for others and to uplift them. She has done so through the arts, as an inspirational speaker, and working for community organizations. Additionally, Roni is the founder of Womb 2 Worthy. Their mission ?is to break the cycle of pain by empowering adult daughters to heal and thrive. Through personalized re-parenting guidance and nurturing self-worth, we offer a path to self-sufficiency and interdependence.? In addition to being a social and supportive community, activities include interactive workshops, group coaching, and wellness events designed to ignite healing and growth. Roni credits West with being a place where she could stabilize her life; explore professional directions; and develop her organizing, writing and entrepreneurial skills. #GoWestGoFar

#FridayFeature ...Congratulations to #WestLACollege computer science student HENRIQUE SERTAO who was one of the first students to be honored in the new "LACCD Student of the Week" program. Since being honored, Henrique passed the CompTIA Security+ exam and was hired as an IT Support Specialist. Despite having worked in Information Technology in Brazil for over 10 years, Henrique found it challenging to be a competitive candidate for hire in Los Angeles in his field. After being laid-off from a help desk position, he decided to enroll at West to earn multiple IT and Cyber Security certifications. In addition to the training, Sertao was also pleased to learn that the program provides vouchers for him to take the certification exams. The program even provided him with a loaner laptop and he can access free WiFi through the college library. / West has long catered to non-traditional age students seeking to ?level-up? in their current career or who want to change career paths. The Information Technology, Business, Paralegal and Film / TV Production programs are particularly popular for these students. #GoWestGoFar

This week in WLAC.edu/News/Westweek Express Counseling Mon - Thur TUES: Club Rush + In N Out WED: About Pharmacy Tech THUR: Paid Summer Internships for WLAC Students, Succeed in Your Online Class FEB 14-17: Holiday Sign up for Planetary Parade & Microforest Planting Day

FACT: Over two billion people around the world celebrate the Lunar New Year. Happy Lunar New Year from #westlacollege

#WestLACollege #Wildcats have one of the few female collegiate players on their roster. Check her out in this Spectrum News 1 SoCal profile #LuisaGauci #GoWestGoFar

West Los College Baseball Fundraiser. Come out and support this great team ??

Congratulations to Tampa Bay Rays call up Johnny Davis, West LA Baseball Alumni Johnny Lewis Davis Born: 4/26/1990 in Compton, CA Draft: 2013, Milwaukee Brewers, Round: 22, Overall Pick: 662 College: West Los Angeles JC, CA Debut: 9/11/2019 Year AB R H HR RBI SB AVG 2019 Stats. 1 1 1 0 0 0 1.000 MLB Career Stats 1 1 1 0 0. 0 1.000

39 Days to Opening Day Gentlemen...!!! We have two things in common with all other teams; TIME & RECORD! What we do with our TIME will directly effect our RECORD! Do every thing...."On Purpose With Purpose" --Justin Su'a ?Perseverance is the hard work you do after you get tired of doing the hard work you already did.?--Newt Gingrich

West LA College Alumnus Rodney McCray "WHAT WALL?!" Game Speed, Nothing Drops, I don't hit, you don't hit!

Hello Facebook Friends & Families: Introducing our New & OFFICIAL West LA College Baseball Facebook Page. This page will feature events, news, schedules, scores, stats and interesting facts on current and former West LA College Baseball Oilers (1976-1987) & Wildcats (2008-present). We will also post several archived and personal photos to try and identify as many players as possible. Please help us find your teammates so we can create an All-Time WLAC Baseball Roster. GO WEST?!!!

Hey there West Los Angeles College baseball alum! Do you know anyone in this picture? If so, please tag them and let them know that we've launched the OFFICIAL West LA College baseball page!

Need a group study room? You can now reserve one! https://wlac.libcal.com/reserve/studyrooms

You can download two free audiobooks from SyncYA this week! https://www.audiobooksync.com/

The #WestLosAngelesCollegeLibrary is closed through April 5th and will re-open Saturday, April 6th. Happy Cesar Chavez Day! Happy spring break!

View from the Library at #WestLosAngelesCollege. Study break anyone?

What kind of twisted ideology is this?!

There's still time to enroll in these two short-term classes!

The Library is closed but will re-open Monday, June 11th. Our hours through August 19th will be: Monday - Thursday, 9am -5pm. Happy summer!

Attention DACA students! For more info, contact West's Dream Center at 310-287-4310 or dreamcenter@wlac.edu.

Happy spring break! The Library reopens Monday, April 9, at 7:30am.

Learn to research like a rock star! Cite like a superstar! Enroll in Library Science 101.

Monday evening Andrea Hinton led the Wildcats with 22 points, in a 77-73 loss at Rio Hondo. The Wildcats travel to Glendale to take in the Vaqueros today at 5 pm.

Support h Squad

Enjoy the highlights from the 2021 West Los Angeles College Women?s Basketball team bonding event. It was a great day for the players and coaching staff to spend quality time together! #Family

Oh Yes... We?re Ready!

West LA @ Bakersfield 5pm Men @7pm #GoWest.GoFar.

Business Trip Complete. Justice Walters (Westchester HS) leads West LA with 17 points and 11 rebounds in a 57-53 win at Citrus. All Conference sophomore, CeCe Delph (Fairfax HS) added 11 points and 10 rebounds. West LA returns home Saturday 1/18 to face LA Valley College. Game time 1 pm.

Game Time!

Its about that time.

The West Way

#14 West LA vs. #13 College of the Canyons for Mt. SAC Tip Off Consolation Championship 11a

Great overview!

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Wildcats, join us for our 1st Fall blood drive on campus in front of the library (HLRC) and MSA quad on September 18th from 10-4 PM. Below will be the link where you will be able to schedule yourself for a timeframe to donate: https://www.redcrossblood.org/give.html/drive-results?dt=WB:PL:DR&ed=09%2F20%2F2018&order=DATE&range=10&sd=09%2F07%2F2018&zipSponsor=WestLACollege Spread the word to meet our goal and save lives. ????

Christan Club BBQ turned up at West LA. Go Wildcats!!????

Join in on the fun! come one, come all!!??

Wlac Christian Club/ ASO is having a Spring Chill & Grill

Wlac Black Student Union is on the move!! ??

Wlac supports DACA. Come out to help your Future stay BRIGHT!!!??????hello classmates the date of this workshop had been changed to April 25th, 2018??Save the Date??

Let's join hands and save the Earth. The Earth is something we all have in common. WLAC is ECO TASTIC..???????YEY!!!

Happy Birthday To Suzy a very important part WLAC ASO ??????????????????

Very Proud to be apart of the ASO Team our Advisor Celene B, President Stacy P. and Vice President Mauricio C. Washington DC West Wildcats. The Business!!

Wlac in the District of Columbia, Washington DC we are Advocating for Community Colleges. ASO has got our students at West LA...????

Wlac Christian Club celebrating"Club Rush" Spring 2018....

New Workshops for April and May!

Share with your students, free Amazon prime, just don't forget to cancel after a year, otherwise $$.

ISP-Hub!! The engine for international student support at WEST!!!!

New 2015-1016 West Guide available now! Copies at International Student Office (SS Bldg 4th floor) and at International Student Hub in A9

INTERNATIONAL STUDENT HUB (A9) *** Sixth WEEK EVENTS at the HUB*** (M) Mar.13th ? (Th) Mar.16th

Mardi Gras Mixer Invitation Come join the first International Student HUB mixer for the SPRING 2017 semester: MARDI GRAS theme! Find out how Americans enjoy this festive holiday around the U.S.A! Refreshments will be served! Come ready to wear a costume and participate in some Mardi Gras themed activities! A9 INTL Student HUB Tuesday February 28, 2017 2-4pm

International Student Hub Second Week Events!

Dear International Student: Please come and join us the welcome and welcome back event. You could meet more international students & International Student Ambassadors (West LA College Faculty & Staff). Date: Wednesday, February 15th, 2017 Time: 12:45pm ? 3:00pm Location: HLRC 4th Floor Look forward to seeing you!

Hello international student, We invite you to our information session on F-1 visa, OPT, CPT, different types of U.S. visas, Permanent Residency and US Citizenship. It's on November 30, 2016(Wednesday), from 2:30 to 3:30pm in HLRC 2nd floor, room 218. We look forward to seeing you!

We look forward to meeting today at 12:30pm online for prayer, encouragement, and continuing our study in the Gospel of John. We'd love to have you; please DM us for the link! Here is a recap of our recent studies in John 15:18-16:11. Hatred of the World | John 15:18-16:11 The world did not show appropriate hospitality to Jesus, the Heavenly Stranger. Jesus instead welcomed those who would accept Him and made them His friends. By becoming a friend of the Heavenly Stranger, one becomes a stranger to the world. The ?disciple whom Jesus loved,? known as John, either John ben Zebedee (the Apostle), or John the Elder, wrote his recollections of his experiences with Jesus so that those who hear or read would believe Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and would find eternal life in His name (cf. John 20:31). Jesus knew His time to suffer, die, be raised, and ascend to the Father was coming very soon (John 13:31-32); His disciples did not, and throughout John 13:1-17:26, Jesus sought to prepare them for what was about to occur. And so Jesus washed the feet of His disciples, and explained to them how they should follow His example and humbly serve one another (John 13:1-17). Jesus spoke of His imminent betrayal and sent Judas Iscariot out in John 13:18-30. Jesus, focusing on the eleven remaining disciples, would then begin a discourse in John 13:31 which would conclude with His ?High Priestly Prayer? in John 17:1-26. He began this discourse by emphasizing how God would be glorified in the Son of Man, and it was for them to love one another as He had loved them (John 13:31-35). They could not yet go where He was going, but He went to prepare a place for them: less about spatial distance, and more about relational distance, for Jesus would suffer and die to reconcile them to God, and would not leave them as orphans but give them the Spirit of God (John 14:1-31). Jesus illustrated His relationship with the disciples in terms of a vine and its branches (John 15:1-8). Jesus strongly reiterated His core theme: the disciples needed to love one another as Jesus had loved them (John 15:9-17). In the midst of doing so He called the disciples His friends, for no greater love exists than to lay down one?s life for one?s friends (John 15:13-15). The disciples would need to love one another as Jesus loved them, at least in part, because of what they were about to experience, and for which Jesus began to prepare them in John 15:18-16:11. If the disciples would experience the world?s hatred, they should know Jesus experienced it first (John 15:18). The hostility has been engendered by their election in Christ out of the world, and thus they no longer belong to the world or its ways (John 15:19). Jesus had told them before how a slave is not greater than his master (cf. John 13:16): if they persecute Jesus, they will persecute His disciples; if they obey Jesus? word, they will obey the word which the disciples would preach (John 15:20). Jesus then explained why this would come to be: those in the world do not know the Father who sent Him (John 15:21). They would not be guilty of sin if Jesus had not come to speak to them; now they have no excuse (John 15:22). They saw what Jesus did in the name of His Father, and by rejecting Him they testify to their hatred of the Son and the Father, just as it had been predicted and prophesied (John 15:23-25; cf. Psalm 35:19, 69:4; Jesus continued to use an ?expanded? definition of ?the law? to include all the written Scriptures, as also in John 10:34). Jesus then assured His disciples: the Advocate (Greek parakletos, the ?Paraclete?), the Spirit of truth who would proceed from the Father, would testify about Jesus, and the disciples would also testify since they had been with Jesus since the beginning of His ministry (John 15:26-27). Jesus further explained Himself and His words: He was preparing them for what they would encounter and experience so they would not fall away in the moment of crisis and trial (John 16:1). The disciples would be put out of the synagogue (John 16:2): this would not only involve alienation from the religious life among fellow Israelites, but would most likely have also involved ostracization from fellow Jewish people. In fact, Jesus warned, some would think they were offering service to God by killing Jesus? disciples (John 16:2)! Jesus then expressed the profoundly sad irony of it all: in so doing they would prove how they did not really and truly know the God in whose service they were doing these things (John 16:3). How tragic to cause such pain, suffering, and violence, and all motivated by misguided zeal! But why would Jesus wait until this point to tell them these things? Jesus did not set forth a ?bait and switch?; instead, He had been with them from the beginning, and thus He would absorb and suffer the hostility and persecution of the Jewish authorities and people (John 16:4). But He was now going back to the One who sent Him, and so He was preparing them for what they would be about to endure (John 16:4-5). The disciples were not asking Him where he was going; instead, they were deeply saddened in heart because of His departure (John 16:5-6). Jesus thus encouraged them: it was actually better for Jesus to depart so the Advocate would come to them, for He could not come to them until after Jesus departed and sent Him to them (John 16:7). Jesus assured the disciples regarding how the Spirit would indict and judge the world regarding sin, righteousness, and judgment: they did not believe in Him, Jesus would have been made Lord and Christ in His death, resurrection, and ascension, and as a result, the ?ruler of this world,? Satan and his minions will have been condemned (John 16:8-11). This would be the message the disciples would proclaim by means of the Spirit, and God in Christ would thus judge Israel and all people on account of it. We can find many of the same themes from John 15:18-16:11 in Matthew 10:1-42: the commission to go and bear witness regarding the Kingdom of God in Christ; preparation for experiencing hostility and persecution from fellow Jewish people, and the ultimate confidence in what they would say and do by means of the Spirit. Jesus was right to prepare the disciples for this kind of hostility. The Acts of the Apostles bears witness to the hostility the disciples would suffer from the Sanhedrin in Jerusalem, King Herod Agrippa I, and Jewish people in Jerusalem and throughout the Diaspora: imprisonment, beatings, civic agitations, and even executions. The disciples would be cast out of synagogues; Saul of Tarsus was not alone among Jewish people in believing he was zealous for the customs of Moses by persecuting Christians unto death (cf. Acts 7:58, 8:1, 9:1-2). There would have been many times during which the disciples would have been given reason to remember Jesus? words to them as recorded in John 15:18-16:11, and they no doubt provided the encouragement and strength to persevere. Their suffering was not evidence of God?s abandonment or their transgressions; instead, they were found worthy to suffer for the Name, and glorified God in it (e.g. Acts 5:41). But what about believers in Christ today? We have not been with Jesus ?from the beginning.? Most believers today come from among the nations, and thus would not be liable to be cast out of the synagogue. Nevertheless, we can take similar encouragement and strength from Jesus? words. We should be prepared to endure hostility from people in the world who resist God and His purposes in Jesus. Plenty of people remain who reject the witness of God in Christ and will treat those who proclaim Jesus poorly. To this very day, some people think they are giving service to God by killing disciples of Jesus. They testify to their ignorance regarding the God of heaven. As always in John?s writings, ?the world? does not refer to the material creation per se. Birds, rocks, and trees do not prove inimical to Jesus or His people; being human is not the problem. The problem involves all those people who are deceived by the ?ruler of this world? into living according to their various passions and who therefore reject and resist the testimony of the deeds and words of God in Christ. We should also keep in mind how Jesus began His exhortation: ?if the world hates you? (John 15:18). In the first century, Judaism and Christianity were both faiths featuring a small minority of the population in the Roman Empire and the greater world, surrounded by people who found their dedication to one God as disruptive to the good health and order of society. To many Jewish people, Christianity represented the abandonment of the customs of Moses. Today we live in the shadow of Christendom, for better and for worse. Principles of the Christian faith have made significant impressions on many societies and cultures, especially in the Western world. Following Jesus in the West in the early twenty-first century does not come with the same social and cultural stigmas and intrinsic hostility as it did in the first century. Christians today often have some anxiety regarding persecution: they feel they are not sufficiently faithful to Jesus because they are not suffering as their ancestors in the faith did. Unfortunately, some Christians will develop a kind of martyr complex: they go out and speak and act in harsh and sharp ways among unbelievers, and when unbelievers respond in kind, they go away feeling justified because they suffered ?persecution? in Jesus? name. God in Christ is not glorified by His servants acting like jerks; if we manifest the works of the flesh and are treated like people who manifest the works of the flesh, we have obtained our just deserts and have given Gentiles reason to blaspheme (cf. Romans 2:24, 1 Peter 2:20). But there are there still times and ways in which we will experience hostility among people in the world by our faithful witness to the ways of God in Christ through the Spirit, even in the Western world of the twenty-first century, from people in general as well as the authorities. But it does not necessarily have to look as sharp and stark as it does in John 15:18-16:11. We are often tempted to associate ?the world? with those in unbelief: the pagans in ancient times, and secularists and others today. Such people are indeed in ?the world,? but we should note how Jesus? primary concern in John 15:18-16:11 are Israelites according to the flesh, the people who should be the people of God. Roman authorities would not be casting disciples of Christ out of synagogues; Jewish authorities and people would. Jesus did not speak and perform signs and wonders primarily before pagans; He did so before Israelites. While there were no Christians yet when Jesus spoke to the disciples in John 15:18-16:11, we should not be surprised when the hatred, hostility, and persecution we experience comes from people who profess to believe in Jesus as Lord and to be His followers. In fact, we may experience more hostility from fellow ?believers? than we might from ?godless secularists?! No one enjoys suffering hostility, persecution, and suffering. But Christians should be well prepared for it and maintain their confidence in what God has accomplished in Christ. Jesus is the Way, the Truth, and the Life, and they killed Him; what, then, will they do to those who follow Jesus as the Way, the Truth, and the Life (cf. John 14:6)? Hostility and persecution often tell us more about others than about us, for people thus tell on themselves in terms of their relationship with God based on how they treat us. All these things are not evidence God has abandoned us; quite the contrary! God in Christ has sent and given of His Spirit, and we maintain our confidence in the testimony of the Spirit and of the disciples who were with Jesus from the beginning. It will be through tribulation we enter the Kingdom of God (cf. Acts 14:22); we can only reach Zion through, and not around, Calvary. May we continue to entrust ourselves to God in Christ through the Spirit no matter what we might experience, and thus obtain the resurrection of life! Ethan R. Longhenry

We look forward to meeting you at Club Rush today on the Graduation Lawn behind the Student Services Building from 11:30-1:30 TODAY! Please stop by and learn about what we are about and how we can encourage and serve you!

We hope the fall semester is ending well for you! We continue to meet at 12:30pm online on Wednesdays for Bible study and encouragement. Please DM us for the link! Here is a recap of our study in the Gospel of John. Love One Another As I Have Loved You | John 13:31-38 The ?disciple whom Jesus loved,? known as John, either John ben Zebedee (the Apostle), or John the Elder, wrote his recollections of his experiences with Jesus so that those who hear or read would believe Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and would find eternal life in His name (cf. John 20:31). The moment at which the Son of Man would be glorified, and God in Him, had arrived (John 13:31-32): Judas had just departed to betray Jesus; soon Jesus would be arrested, tried, abused, executed, but raised from the dead on the third day. Jesus well understood these things, but His disciples did not. Everything Jesus would say and do in John 13:1-17:26 was designed to prepare His disciples for these events and what would come afterward. To this end, in John 13:1-17, Jesus washed the feet of His disciples, and explained to them how they should follow His example and humbly serve one another. Jesus spoke of His imminent betrayal and sent Judas Iscariot out in John 13:18-30. Jesus would then focus His attention on His eleven remaining disciples (and perhaps a few others present). John 13:31 begins a continual discourse which will close with the ?High Priestly Prayer? of John 17:1-26, with only a mild interruption of sorts in John 14:31. Jesus immediately set the tone for this pronounced discourse: the time had come for God to be glorified in the Son of Man and to glorify Him (John 13:31-32). As Jesus had previously said to the Jewish religious leaders in John 7:33-34, so now His disciples: where Jesus was going, they could not come (John 13:33). In all of these ways Jesus forecast His imminent suffering, death, and resurrection, and ultimately His ascension and lordship; He then wanted to set forth the core lesson which He wanted His disciples to understand: He gave them a new commandment to love one another as He had loved them, and all would know they are His disciples if they have love for one another (John 13:34-35). John the Evangelist was profoundly struck by this instruction from Jesus; it echoed again in 1 John 2:7-11. There John well played with the ?new old? commandment, for the exhortation to love one another can be found in Leviticus 19:18. The ?new? part of the commandment can be found in the qualification: ?as I have loved you.? Jesus? sacrificial love for His people represents the new standard for the love Christians must embody for one another. John?s exquisite discourses on love in 1 John 3:11-18, 4:7-21 were designed to exhort Christians to love one another. John was right to be profoundly affected by this instruction from Jesus. We all likewise should be moved by it. Far too often Christians speak and act as if they should be known as Christians by what they profess, by the sign outside the building in which they assemble, by their socio-political stances, by the jewelry they wear, or by many other things. Instead, Jesus expected Christians to be known as such, as Jesus? followers, if they have love for one another. As the Apostle Paul would later attest, all the ?righteousness? and benevolence in the world, or all exercise of spiritual power, are for naught if they are not motivated by and grounded in love (1 Corinthians 13:1-3). The most polished marketing and promotions with the greatest aesthetic and vibe along with the ability to set the right mood and with polished music and speaking produce nothing if those involved do not love one another as Jesus has loved them. Many delude themselves into thinking most find Christianity unattractive because of secular entanglements and enticements; unfortunately, most find Christianity unattractive because far too many who profess Christ do not love one another, let alone anyone else, as He commanded them. Jesus of Nazareth remains a compelling figure in the early twenty-first century; our challenges often come from our own deficiencies in well embodying Him and everything He is about. While John the Evangelist was profoundly affected by Jesus? instruction in John 13:34-35, we are immediately given reason to wonder how much of an effect it had on others. Simon Peter asked a question which seems to indicate he was preoccupied with what Jesus had said before in John 13:33: he wanted to know where Jesus was going (John 13:36). Jesus told Peter he could not follow Him now but would follow Him later (John 13:36). Peter protested, wondering why he could not follow now, and asserted he would even lay his life down for Jesus (John 13:37). Jesus responded, perhaps with not a little incredulity, asking if Peter would really lay down his life for Jesus, and prophesied how Peter would deny Jesus three times on that very night (John 13:38; cf. John 18:15-18, 25-27). We all go through a phase during which we often castigate the disciples for their failings and weaknesses; we can easily see Peter here at his most impetuous, making grandiose proclamations while shrinking away at the first hint of difficulty. Yet as we continue to walk in and with the Lord Jesus, life and experience humbles us and we are better able to see ourselves in the disciples. We should remember how Simon Peter often proved representative of the whole; he would be the one to say what the rest of the disciples were thinking. Peter?s faith here would normally be commendable: he wanted to be wherever Jesus was, and he did not want to be without Jesus. We can, and will, have reason to cast some aspersions on the full integrity of Peter?s commitment to Jesus when he will deny Him three times, but we also have to give some consideration for the work of God?s providence in these matters. If Peter had boldly affirmed his association with Jesus, there would have been another cross for him as well; same with the rest of the male disciples. The real lesson we should take away from Jesus? and Peter?s interaction in John 13:36-38 centers on trust and timing. Imagine if Peter did not try to stay close to Jesus during His arrest and trial: he would not have been put in the position of denying Jesus. If Peter had only really internalized what Jesus had told him in John 13:33-36: if Peter was really listening to Jesus and truly following His instruction, he would not have tried to physically follow Jesus in His trial, for Peter could not yet go where Jesus was going. Sometimes the hardest lesson we must learn as Christians is ?not yet.? God works powerfully according to His purposes in His good time; sometimes we can get in God?s way when we think we need to get involved and act when it is not really our time and place to act. For Peter and the other disciples to truly follow Jesus, they would have to accept they could not actually follow Him just yet. The time would come when Peter would go where Jesus was going: tradition would speak of Peter dying in Rome by upside down crucifixion in the 60s. Peter and the disciples had zeal and enthusiasm, but they desperately needed to trust in Jesus? experience and wisdom. We could learn much from them. Thus Jesus began His great concluding discourse with His disciples, emphasizing the importance of loving one another as Jesus had loved them. They would follow Jesus to where He was going, but not just yet. May we love one another as Jesus has loved us, faithfully serving Jesus as we wait upon Him, and share in eternal life through Him! Ethan R. Longhenry

We are back for the 2024 Fall Semester! We look forward to seeing you TODAY at Club Rush from 11:30a-1:30p on campus. We continue meeting online Wednesdays at 12:30pm for Bible study and encouragement. We hope to see you there! Here is a recap of our recent studies in the Gospel of John. The Hour Has Come | John 12:1-50 The ?disciple whom Jesus loved,? known as John, either John the brother of Zebedee (the Apostle), or John the Elder, was writing his recollections of his experiences with Jesus so that those who hear or read would believe Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and would find eternal life in His name (cf. John 20:31). He began by speaking of the Word of God, the Creator, the life and light of men, who took on flesh and dwelt among us as Jesus of Nazareth (John 1:1-18). He then described the calling of the first disciples, Jesus? first sign at the wedding in Cana, the events which took place while Jesus was present at the Passover in Jerusalem, and Jesus? return to Galilee via Samaria (John 1:19-4:54). John the Evangelist then set forth Jesus? healing of a lame man at Bethesda and the storm of controversy it engendered, Jesus? feeding of the five thousand, and His challenging description of Himself as the Bread of Life (John 5:1-6:71). John the Evangelist then described a long series of engagements and instructions of Jesus around Jerusalem during the Feast of Tabernacles, featuring the healing of the blind man and Jesus? teachings as the Light of the world and the Good Shepherd (John 7:1-10:21). Jesus would echo similar teachings and again identify Himself with God while teaching during the Feast of the Dedication, or Hanukkah (John 10:22-42). Jesus would raise His friend Lazarus from the dead, a notable sign proclaimed throughout Jerusalem and Judea, and the basis on which the religious authorities looked for an opportunity to have Jesus killed (John 11:1-57). John the Evangelist then related the story he had anticipated in John 11:2: six days before the Passover, while Jesus was a guest in the house of Lazarus, Martha, and Mary, Mary anointed Jesus? feet with expensive oil and wiped His feet with her hair (John 12:1-3). In John?s telling of the story, Judas Iscariot was scandalized by the experience, asking why the oil was not sold for three hundred denarii and the proceeds given to the poor; a denarius was about a day?s wage for a laborer, so we can understand the expense of the gift in terms of about ten months of a living wage (John 12:4-5). John the Evangelist took the opportunity to explain Judas Iscariot was not concerned for the poor; instead, he was the treasurer and was embezzling funds, and thus looking for more funds to embezzle (John 12:5-6). John the Evangelist really has it out for Judas Iscariot; we can almost feel the visceral emotional response registered in his commentary. Such represents the sting of the betrayal; none of these things were apparent at the time to anyone but Jesus, since in John 13:21-29 the disciples were perplexed when Jesus indicated one of them would betray Him, and thought Jesus was telling Judas to go give something to the poor when He told him to do quickly what he was about to do. Thus the disciples did not automatically recognize Judas Iscariot would be the betrayer in their midst. In his narration John the Evangelist went out his way to point out Judas Iscariot?s nature and perfidy. Therefore we must be careful lest we make this kind of experience and moment more about Judas Iscariot than it deserves. Sure, Judas Iscariot has ulterior motives for his questioning of Jesus; yet in the parallel Gospel accounts of Matthew 26:6-13 and Mark 14:3-9, the disciples as a whole ask the same question as Judas Iscariot. Thus Judas was not asking just on his own initiative; he gave voice to the concern of all the disciples. Jesus told them to leave her alone, for she was anointing Him for the day of His burial; they would always have the poor, but they would not always have Jesus around (John 12:7-8). Matthew and Mark?s accounts suggest a similar tenor but also want to emphasize how Mary?s deed would be remembered and proclaimed as part of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, as we are demonstrating and displaying right now. In this way Jesus foretold of His imminent death and departure from the disciples. Unfortunately, Jesus? statement about the poor has been distorted and used as a blunt instrument to condemn the poor: the poor will always be around, so why bother doing much to alleviate their condition? And yet Jesus? statement intended the opposite of this commonly drawn inference; He was quoting from Deuteronomy 15:11, and certainly intended its conclusion: There will never cease to be some poor people in the land; therefore, I am commanding you to make sure you open your hand to your fellow Israelites who are needy and poor in your land. Jesus was therefore not commending a lack of concern about the poor. Instead, Jesus wanted to remind the disciples how monomaniacal focus on one aspect of the mission can lead to a distortion of the mission. Yes, there will always be the poor; there will be opportunities to help the poor, and they should be helped. But they would not always have Jesus; it thus was not wrong for Mary to use the oil in her love, service, and dedication to the Lord Jesus. John the Evangelist then ominously reported how the chief priests planned to kill not only Jesus but also Lazarus since so many were coming to see him and believing in Jesus (John 12:9-11). Lazarus will again be mentioned in John 12:17 in reference to when Jesus resuscitated him from the dead, but otherwise will never be mentioned again in the Scriptures. Since the chief priests proved successful in having Jesus put to death, we would not be wrong to presume they had Lazarus killed as well. The next day Jesus entered Jerusalem according to the traditions we now know as Palm Sunday: Israelites took branches of palm trees and went out to meet Jesus, crying out hosannas to the king of Israel (John 12:12-13). Jesus found a young donkey on which to sit to fulfill the prophecy of Zechariah 9:9; John the Evangelist commented on how the disciples did not understand as much then, but would later (John 12:14-16). Testimony about Jesus resuscitating Lazarus was made, and crowds went out to meet him; the Pharisees lamented to one another how they could do nothing since the world was running after Jesus (John 12:17-19). Thus John the Evangelist narrated Jesus? triumphal entry, and we are to understand the moment as triumphant for Jesus. He is the King of Israel coming to establish the Reign of God in Jerusalem, just as the prophets had foretold. The people were hailing Him as this King of Israel, and eagerly looked forward to Him taking on the throne of His father David. We can imagine Pilate and a contingent of Roman soldiers entering Jerusalem at the same time, very much concerned about the same thing, but for different reasons: they had come to maintain order and violently suppress any such messianic fervor. We do well to consider the profound ironies presented by John the Evangelist in this text and its framing: as he would relate in his Gospel, Jesus would indeed prove to be the King of Israel establishing God?s reign, but not in the way anyone would have expected. Those who were now hailing Him as the Messiah would soon be crying out to crucify Him. Jesus? hour had come but was not yet complete. Some Greeks had come to prostrate before God during Passover (John 12:20); they are likely proselytes or God-fearers. They approached Philip and wanted to see Jesus; Philip and Andrew went to Jesus to speak to Him (John 12:22). Jesus? response provided no indication of whether He actually saw these Greeks or not; it is possible they were nowhere near Him, but it is also possible they have come with Philip and Andrew and heard Jesus? discourse. In response to Philip and Andrew, and to all His disciples, in the hearing of the crowd, Jesus set forth His final discourse before the crowds in John 12:23-36, 44-50. Jesus declared His hour had come: the Son of Man would be glorified (John 12:23, 27). A kernel of wheat must fall into the ground and ?die? so it might produce much grain; those who love their lives destroy it, but the one who hates his life in this world would gain it (John 12:24-25). Those who would serve Jesus must follow Him; where Jesus was, so would be those who serve Him; those who serve Jesus will be honored by the Father (John 12:26). In this way Jesus proclaimed His suffering and death and set the expectation of how His disciples would have to suffer and not love their lives even to death. He spoke of death and resurrection as a way of bearing fruit. We should not understand Jesus? declaration about ?hating life? absolutely, as if we should detest and abhor the gift of life God has given us, but in terms of loving less: if we seek after self-preservation, we will lose our lives and salvation; we can only truly gain life in Christ by proving willing to suffer and even die for the cause and purposes of God in Christ in His Kingdom. John the Evangelist will reinforce continually how Jesus expected His disciples to follow in His path, and His path included the agony and suffering of His betrayal, passion, and death. On account of these things Jesus was distressed, but He understood He could not be delivered from this hour (John 12:27). Jesus asked the Father to glorify His name, and He spoke from heaven glorifying it; some reported they heard thunder, others the voice of an angel (John 12:28-29). Jesus assured the crowds: God?s voice spoke for their benefit, not His, because the time had come for judgment of the world and the ruler of the world, Satan, would be driven out (John 12:30-31). When Jesus would be lifted up, He would draw people to Himself; John the Evangelist bore witness of how Jesus thus spoke of how Jesus would die, but we would also not be wrong to see evocations of Jesus? resurrection and ascension in being lifted up (John 12:32-33). The crowd was a bit confused; from many passages, perhaps especially Psalm 89:35-27, the Israelites expected the Christ would remain forever, and so how could Jesus act as if the Son of Man would be lifted up, and who was this Son of Man anyhow (John 12:34)? Jesus did not provide a direct answer; at this point not even His own disciples understood how it would all work out, and so the crowds would definitely not have the capacity for understanding. Instead Jesus urged them to walk in the light while the light remained with them lest the darkness overtake them; they could not know where they are going when walking in darkness; they should believe in the light while the light remained with them to become sons of light (John 12:35-36). Jesus would later shout out how those who believe in Jesus really believe in the Father who sent Jesus, and those who see Jesus see the Father who sent Him (John 12:44-45). Jesus had come as light into the world so those who believe in Him would not dwell in darkness (John 12:46). Jesus was not at that time going to judge those who did not obey Jesus? words; He had come to save and not judge the world (John 12:47). On the final day, however, the words Jesus had spoken would be the basis of judgment for those who rejected Him (John 12:48). Jesus again reinforced how He did not speak on His own authority, but that of His Father; the Father?s command is eternal life, and so Jesus spoke according to what the Father told Him (John 12:49-50). After this Jesus hid Himself from the people (John 12:36b); according to John the Evangelist, Jesus thus concluded His ministry among the people; the rest of the Gospel of John will feature Jesus? discourses with His disciples, His betrayal, suffering, death, and resurrection (John 13:1-21:25). In John 12:37-43 John the Evangelist provided commentary to sum up and conclude Jesus? ministry as presented in John 1:35-12:50: Jesus bore witness with miraculous signs, yet the people did not believe in Him, which fulfilled the words of Isaiah in Isaiah 6:10, 53:1 (John 12:37-41). And yet many among the various Jewish authorities did believe in Him, but did not confess Him publicly in fear of the Pharisees lest they be put out of the synagogue; John derided such ones as loving the praise of men more than praise from God (John 12:42-43). Thus John the Evangelist presented his eyewitness testimony regarding Jesus? ministry among the people in John 1:35-12:50. May we believe in Jesus as the Christ, become sons of light, and prove willing to suffer with Him so we might be glorified in Him! Ethan R. Longhenry

The semester is almost done, but we are still meeting weekly on Wednesdays at 12:30 for encouragement and study! DM us for links. We recap our recent studies in the Gospel of John. The Shepherd Who Gives Sight | John 9:1-10:21 The ?disciple whom Jesus loved,? known as John, either John the brother of Zebedee (the Apostle), or John the Elder, was writing his recollections of his experiences with Jesus so that those who hear or read would believe Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and would find eternal life in His name (cf. John 20:31). He began by speaking of the Word of God, the Creator, the life and light of men, who took on flesh and dwelt among us as Jesus of Nazareth (John 1:1-18). He then described the calling of the first disciples, Jesus? first sign at the wedding in Cana, the events which took place while Jesus was present at the Passover in Jerusalem, and Jesus? return to Galilee via Samaria (John 1:19-4:54). John the Evangelist then set forth Jesus? healing of a lame man at Bethesda and the storm of controversy it engendered, Jesus? feeding of the five thousand, and His challenging description of Himself as the Bread of Life (John 5:1-6:71). John the Evangelist has been relating narratives regarding Jesus at the Feast of Tabernacles (or Feast of Booths; Sukkot) in Jerusalem, featuring Jesus? instruction and the thoughts and feelings of the crowds and Jewish authorities, ultimately leading up to a desire to stone Jesus for blasphemy (John 7:1-52, 8:12-59). For many textual critical and literary reasons, we have reason to believe the pericope adulterae, the story of Jesus and the woman caught in adultery, of John 7:53-8:11 was not originally written by John, let alone would have taken place at this point in the Gospel narrative. We therefore conclude John the Evangelist wrote a continuous narrative of events at the Feast of Tabernacles in John 7:1-52 and John 8:12-10:21. While we have a tendency to disconnect the narratives of John 9:1-41 and John 10:1-21 from the events of John 7:1-52, 8:12-59, and even disconnect them from each other, John the Evangelist presented them as all part of one continuous literary unit. In John?s narration, Jesus has gone back and forth with the Jewish people and religious authorities in John 7:1-52, 8:12-30 and then spoke specifically to the Jewish people who believed in Him in John 8:31-59; having miraculously escaped those who would have executed Him, Jesus left the Temple area with His disciples, and walked by a man who had been born blind (John 9:1). Jesus? disciples asked who had sinned, he or his parents, which led to his blindness; Jesus responded it was so that the acts of God might be revealed through him (John 9:2-3). The disciples reflect the standard prejudice and presumption regarding disability deriving from specific sins; we should not develop a theology of disability from either Jesus? disciples or, for that matter, Jesus? specific response in this particular circumstance. Jesus re-affirmed how He was the Light of the world and needed to do the works of God while the day remained (John 9:4-5; cf. John 8:12). He then spat on the ground, made mud, put it on the blind man?s eyes, and told him to wash in the pool of Siloam; the blind man did so and was able to see (John 9:6-7). The people responded, wondering if he indeed was the man who was blind and had formerly begged; some recognized him as such, but others did not think so; he did not shrink away from confessing who he was and had been (John 9:8-9). They asked him about what happened and he relayed the story (John 9:10-12). The people decided to bring the man to stand before the Pharisees since an astonishing miracle had taken place (John 9:13). John the Evangelist then informed us this healing took place on a Sabbath (John 9:14); many of the Pharisees thus considered Jesus? making mud on the ground as work and thus deemed Him a transgressor of God?s law, entirely missing the miraculous on account of this detail, but some did experience the cognitive dissonance and wondered how a sinner could do something like this (John 9:15-16). They asked the formerly blind man what he thought; he confessed Jesus as a prophet (John 9:17). The Pharisees refused to believe his testimony and summoned his parents; they affirmed him as their son and that he was blind, but said nothing about how he gained sight (John 9:18-21). John the Evangelist explained their reticence: the Pharisees had agreed to put out of the synagogue anyone who confessed Jesus as the Christ (John 9:22-23). To be put out of the synagogue meant to be alienated and isolated from the Jewish community, and it would not be as if the Gentiles would welcome them with open arms. Many commentators believe John is retrojecting the situation of his later community onto this event; we have no reason to believe the religious authorities would not have thus leveraged their power at the time. The Pharisees brought the formerly blind man back in and chastised him: they knew Jesus was a sinner, and he should glorify God; they were Moses? disciples, but he was a disciple of Jesus, and they do not know where He came from (John 9:24-25, 29). The formerly blind man stood against them sharply: God did not listen to sinners, but Jesus had done a miracle which had never before been done according to the witness of the Scriptures. If Jesus were not from God He could do nothing (John 9:26, 30-33). The Pharisees had no patience for such a rebuke: they denounced him as born entirely in his sins, and yet he would presume to teach them (John 9:34)? We will have reason in a moment to comment on the irony of this statement; sufficient for the moment is to recognize how the Pharisees have revealed who they are in their response. The Pharisees cast the man out. Jesus found him and asked what he thought of the Son of Man (John 9:35). The man asked Jesus about who the Son of Man might be, and Jesus confessed Himself as the Son of Man (John 9:36-37). The formerly blind man confessed his belief and prostrated before Jesus; Jesus said He came into the world so the blind might see and those who see might become blind (John 9:38-39). The Pharisees, perceiving the challenge, asked Him if they were blind; He told them they would not be guilty of sin if they were blind, but because they presumed to see, their sin remained (John 9:40-41). John the Evangelist laid the irony on thickly: the blind saw, but those who believed they saw proved blind. Those who were ?born in sin? found forgiveness, but those who presumed themselves to be holy were in transgression. Appropriate critiques about making caricatures and strawmen out of the Pharisees are important and should be heeded; nevertheless, it is always a temptation of those with religious zeal to think too highly of their own righteousness and inappropriately prove sanctimonious toward those with less formal accreditation or standing. We tend to end the story there, but John did not: in his narrative, Jesus immediately continued on by speaking of Himself parabolically as the Door of the sheepfold and the Good Shepherd of the sheep (John 10:1-21). The world of shepherding and sheep would have been familiar to Jesus and to everyone in His audience. Sheep were important for their meat, milk, and wool; nevertheless, sheep are very dumb creatures. They require a lot of assistance, direction, maintenance, and protection. Shepherds would spend a lot of time with the sheep and would be dedicated to them. They would know their individual sheep. Sheep heed the specific voice and call of their shepherd; even when flocks are mixed, with a call or sound the sheep will appropriately separate out and follow their respective shepherds. Bears, lions, and wolves would find sheep an easy meal; other people might be tempted to steal sheep. Shepherds thus had to direct sheep to find appropriate pasturage and water, and would be kept in sheepfolds to provide some protection during the night. The shepherd would use the door (or gate) of the sheepfold; those who would come to rob and steal would try to enter another way. Such was the story Jesus told about the sheep, the sheepfold, and the shepherd in John 10:1-18. The people would have understood the referents, but they did not understand what Jesus meant by it all (John 10:6). Jesus attempted to explain. He was the Door of the sheepfold, for the others who came and claimed to be the Messiah were really thieves and robbers, and the sheep, the people of God in Christ, did not listen to them. Those who go out through Jesus find salvation and ?pasturage?; going after others leads to exploitation and oppression, but Jesus came to give abundant life. Jesus is the Good Shepherd of the sheep, who would lay down His life for the sheep. Hired hands would abandon the sheep if it proved too costly; the wolves, or the false Messiahs or religious authorities, would then come in to devour the sheep, God?s people. Jesus had sheep in other sheepfolds He would gather to Himself. But He knew His sheep, and they knew Him; He would lay down His life for them, and take it back up again, according to the commandment of His Father (John 10:1-18). Jesus was by no means the first person to speak of Israel and leadership in terms of sheep and shepherding. Moses and David had been shepherds when God called them to lead His people (Exodus 3:1-6, 1 Samuel 6:11-13). The prophets would denounce the nobility and prophets of Israel as shepherds devouring the flock; yet YHWH promised He would return and personally shepherd Israel His sheep (cf. Ezekiel 34:1-31). We should definitely pick up on the textual association between Jesus, the I AM before Abraham, and Jesus the Good Shepherd, YHWH who had returned to personally shepherd His sheep (John 8:58, 10:11). How He would lay down His life for the sheep, and take it back up again, would become manifest in its good time. The people did not quite know what to do with everything which had transpired (John 10:19). Some continued to be convinced Jesus was demon possessed and insane, and asked how anyone else could listen to Him (John 10:20; cf. John 8:48, 52). But others denied His words could come from a demon, and asked how anyone possessed by a demon could give sight to a blind man (John 10:21). Thus John the Evangelist ended his narratives about Jesus at the Feast of Tabernacles. As Israel celebrated the gifts of light, food, water, and life during the Feast of Tabernacles, thus Jesus demonstrated how He was the Light of the world, giving sight and wisdom, providing pasturage and fountains of living water for those who believe in Him. He proclaimed Himself the Son of Man and God the Son and made attestation by doing a thing no prophet before had ever done, but was prophesied regarding the Messiah: He gave sight to a blind man. The people remained as divided as ever: plenty found reason to dismiss Him as demon-possessed and insane, and while no one could make complete sense of what He was teaching, others could not dismiss Him so easily or glibly. May we well recognize Jesus as our Shepherd, the Light of the world, giving life through His sacrifice, and share in life in Him! Ethan R. Longhenry

Happy spring break, West LA College students and staff! We're out enjoying a club luncheon today, but will be back next week with our regularly scheduled online meeting at 12:30pm on Wednesday to encourage one another and continue our study in the Gospel of John. A recap of our study in John 7:53-8:11 is below. The Pericope Adulterae It is one of the most well-known stories about Jesus during His ministry, and yet, as far as we can tell, it has no real true ?home? in any of the Gospels. The story involves Jesus and the woman caught in adultery found in modern Bibles in John 7:53-8:11, known also as the pericope adulterae: the Bible extract about the adulterous woman. Christians devoted to textual criticism of the Biblical text, even from antiquity, recognized the difficulty with the pericope adulterae. Many of the earliest commentators on the Gospel of John, including Origen, John Chrysostom, Cyril of Alexandria, and Theodore of Mopsuestia, provide no commentary whatsoever on the passage, strongly suggesting it was not present in the copies of the Gospel of John they were reading. Jerome spoke of how many of the Greek and Latin copies of the Gospel of John included the pericope, as if its inclusion was not the default in most manuscripts (cf. Against the Pelagians 2.17). The textual evidence as it has been preserved for us bears similar witness. The passage is omitted in manuscripts ?? 66,75 ? B L N T W ? ? ? 0141 0211 33 565 1241; A and C do not fully preserve that part of John, but measurements seem to indicate there would not have been room for the pericope in them based on the size of the missing sections. D M and Latin texts do preserve the pericope. Some other manuscripts, like E S ?, contain part or the whole of the pericope but with asterisks or obeli indicating the copyist?s understanding of its disputed nature. Furthermore, the pericope is present in other manuscripts but in different places in the Gospels: 225 after John 7:36, {115} after John 8:12, ?1 as an ?appendix? to the Gospel after John 21:25, and in f13 after Luke 21:38, as well as the corrector of 1333 placing it as an ?appendix? to the Gospel of Luke after Luke 24:53. Such involves a lot of technical terms from the discipline of New Testament textual criticism; in short, most of the earliest attestations of the Gospel of John from the papyri of the 3rd century, ?uncial? manuscripts of the 4th and 5th centuries, and even many of the later ?minuscule? manuscripts do not record the pericope at all, and some which have it but placed elsewhere, further reinforcing the textual difficulties. On account of these textual critical issues, ancient and modern, as well as additional literary factors, most scholars and commentators do not believe John the Evangelist wrote the pericope adulterae, John 7:53-8:11. According to this understanding, in order to appreciate the flow of the narrative as presented by John the Evangelist, the reader should proceed from John 7:52 to John 8:12; thus John 8:12-59 represents additional discourses of Jesus with the Pharisees, other Jewish leaders, and the Judeans who believed in Him on the final day of the Feast of Tabernacles (or Booths; Sukkot). This exercise can provide additional attestation to John 7:53-8:11 as a later insertion, since the narrative flows much better when John 8:12-59 is properly considered with John 7:37-52. What, then, should we say about this pericope adulterae? While most scholars and commentators do not believe it was written by John the Evangelist, most nevertheless believe the pericope preserves an authentic story involving Jesus, scribes and Pharisees, an adulterous woman, and a crowd of Jewish people in Jerusalem. There were, no doubt, all kinds of such stories circulating in the days of Jesus, the Apostles, and in early Christianity; the pericope adulterae was written down and preserved, and perhaps attached to the end of the Gospel of Luke and/or John as a sort of ?appendix.? People later decided to attempt to find the best place to insert the story into the Gospel narrative: someone who might have seen it attached to Luke felt it worked best after Jesus? discourse on Jerusalem in Luke 21:38, but the person who perhaps saw it attached to John placed it as John 7:53-8:11 since Jesus is in Jerusalem throughout John 7:10-8:59, and the latter?s copy of the Gospels was clearly better reflected in later manuscripts. On account of all these things we do well to consider the pericope adulterae as an authentic and inspired recollection of the story as written. Yet we know nothing else about its context other than its location in the Temple in Jerusalem (John 8:2). John the Evangelist never used the term ?scribe? to speak of any of the Jewish authorities as Matthew, Mark, and Luke do (John 8:3); despite its current placement, therefore, the pericope might be more associated with the Synoptic traditions than Johannine. In the Synoptic Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke, most of Jesus? experiences on the Mount of Olives and in the Temple center on the final week of His life, and thus perhaps the events of the pericope took place at that time; its placement after Luke 21:38, therefore, might not be terribly off in terms of timeframe. Yet all of the suggestions from this evidence should give us pause about considering it either part of John the Evangelist?s narrative or as taking place around the time of the Feast of Tabernacles in the second year of Jesus? ministry. It is perhaps the textual critic who inserted the pericope adulterae who adapted the existing narrative by sending everyone home, with Jesus going to the Mount of Olives, and then having everyone return to the courts of the Temple the next morning (John 7:53-8:2). The pericope itself really got going with Jesus teaching the people in the Temple courts: while He did so, scribes and Pharisees brought in a woman who had been caught committing adultery in flagrante ? in the very act of doing so (John 8:3-4). They presented her before Jesus, declaring the Law of Moses commanded such women to be stoned to death, and asked Jesus what He would say about it (John 8:5). The narrator of the pericope affirmed the woman had been caught committing adultery, but also how the scribes and Pharisees were trying to trap Jesus so they might bring charges against Him (John 8:3, 6). The narrator related how Jesus then bent over and began writing on the ground with His finger (John 8:6). The scribes and Pharisees persisted in their line of questioning; Jesus finally stood up and declared how whoever among them who was without sin could cast the first stone at her (John 8:7). While He returned to writing on the ground with His finger, the scribes, Pharisees, and crowd ostensibly remained in awkward silence; the oldest among them began to file away, followed, again ostensibly, by the younger, until only the accused woman and Jesus remained (John 8:8-9). Jesus stood up and asked her where everyone had gone and if any had condemned her; she responded, ?no one, Lord? (John 8:10-11). Jesus then told her He did not condemn her either, and told her to depart, yet to sin no more (John 8:11). In this way the pericope adulterae ended, and seemingly without any real attempt to ?smooth over? the transition back into John the Evangelist?s narrative in John 8:12ff. The pericope adulterae might be short and without a lot of context, but it remains endlessly dynamic and fascinating with many subtle twists and turns which we do well to address and consider. We know the scribes and Pharisees do not act in good faith but look for a reason to accuse Jesus. Even beyond this, however, what they want to do proves problematic. The scribes and Pharisees claim to have caught the woman in flagrante, which begs the question: where is the man with whom she was committing adultery? The Law of Moses did not actually demand stoning as the means of execution for those caught in adultery in Leviticus 20:10 and Deuteronomy 22:22-24, just that they be executed; but of greater importance was the commandment for both of them to be stoned. Thus, does the Law really demand for ?such women? to be stoned, as the scribes and Pharisees allege (John 8:5)? It would be misogynist, unjust, and a miscarriage of justice to compel the woman to submit to capital punishment while the equally culpable man got off free. Jesus? response indicated a far greater concern than this particular technical concern, but it should disabuse us for any sympathy we might be tempted to have for the scribes and the Pharisees. They are not really concerned for fulfillment of the Law and its demands for justice and righteousness; the woman was being used as a pawn in their crusade against Jesus, which rendered their behavior as all the more reprehensible. What was Jesus writing on the ground in John 8:6, 8? Everyone wants to know! It is possible to interpret the narrator?s use of Greek katagrapho, ?writing,? as more specifically as ?writing an accusation? based on the context; manuscripts U 264 700 preserve a scribal addition of ?the sins of all of them? in John 8:6 or John 8:8, so many in antiquity already considered this option quite valid. While it remains possible Jesus? spoken words alone were enough to convict the members of the crowd of their guilt, one can also imagine at least one person who would have proven quite self-righteous and who would thus take it upon him or herself to begin the stoning. But if Jesus was indeed writing out the sins of the crowd, or perhaps some verse of the Torah which they all would have violated in some way at some time (e.g. love your neighbor as yourself, Leviticus 19:18), such self-righteousness would have proven shameful. We cannot possibly know what precisely Jesus was writing, but we would not be wrong to associate it with the immediate context of the events and as having some bearing on the ultimate result of the entire pericope. Yet Jesus? treatment of the woman remains the most compelling about the pericope adulterae. At no point did He, or anyone else, dispute the legitimacy of the accusation, nor did He or anyone else downplay its severity or the punishment as declared in the Law. Yet such remains the ultimate irony of the whole pericope: Jesus is without guilt, and thus had the right and standing to cast the first stone (cf. Hebrews 4:15). Yet He did not condemn the adulterous woman. Jesus would have been entirely just, and in the right, if He told the scribes and Pharisees to go and seize the adulterous man and have them both executed. Having the woman and the man executed would satisfy justice and righteousness, but neither could then be saved. Jesus had told Nicodemus in John 3:16-17 how the Father did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but for the world to be saved through Him. He demonstrated as much in the case of the adulterous woman. Jesus? treatment of the adulterous woman should therefore resonate with all of those who would claim to be His disciples. Sinners sin; sinners were sinning in the first century, and sinners in the twenty-first century continue to sin. Sin remains an affront to God and His holiness and righteousness; sin denigrates our humanity and leads to our hurt and injury. In certain circumstances among God?s people, with sufficient evidence from two or three witnesses, the people of God may be compelled to disassociate from a so-called Christian who would persist in sin and/or false teachings (cf. Romans 16:17-19, 1 Corinthians 5:1-13). When the final day comes, Jesus will judge everyone on the basis of what they have done, and those who persisted in disobedience will be condemned (cf. Matthew 25:31-46, Romans 2:5-11). Indeed, at no point should the people of God commend, excuse, or justify sin: Jesus did tell the woman to go and sin no more, after all. But it is not our place to judge and condemn people (cf. Matthew 7:1-4, James 4:11-12). We have all sinned and fallen short of the glory of God; therefore, who among us has the right to pick up a stone to judge and condemn anyone else? The One who does have that right will ultimately judge, but we have not yet arrived at that day. Jesus? mission remains the same today as it was when He spoke with Nicodemus: He came not to condemn the world, but to save it. Even if someone were to deny the authenticity of the pericope adulterae, or if it had never existed, if we were to imagine such a scenario in which scheming Jewish authorities hauled a pawn up before Him and asked Him what they should do about her, what other kind of response would we imagine might come from Jesus other than the one given in the pericope? It absolutely sounds like how Jesus would handle that kind of situation. And even though John the Evangelist most likely did not write the pericope adulterae, John?s portrayal of Jesus well aligns with Jesus in the pericope. We thus do well to heed the lessons of the pericope adulterae: go and sin no more, but remember how we have all sinned and fallen short of the glory of God, seek to direct those who sin to Jesus for healing and repentance, leaving final judgment to Him. Whenever we prove more zealous for the execution of justice and righteousness than the Lord Himself, we actually do the work of the Adversary and Accuser, forgetting how much we depend on God?s grace, and how liable we would otherwise be to similar punishment. May we faithfully serve God in Christ and encourage everyone to follow Him so we might all obtain the resurrection of life! Ethan R. Longhenry

We would like to welcome all students to the Christian Club in this 2024 spring semester! We continue to meet virtually on Wednesdays at 12:30pm to encourage one another and continue our study in the Gospel of John. Please DM us for the link! Here is a recap of our studies in John 6:1-71. ------ Jesus, the Bread of Life | John 6:1-71 The ?disciple whom Jesus loved,? known as John, either John the brother of Zebedee, the Apostle, or John the Elder, was writing his recollections of his experiences with Jesus so that those who hear or read would believe Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and would find eternal life in His name (cf. John 20:31). He began by speaking of the Word of God, the Creator, the life and light of men, who took on flesh and dwelt among us as Jesus of Nazareth (John 1:1-18). He then described the calling of the first disciples, Jesus? first sign at the wedding in Cana, the events which took place while Jesus was present at the Passover in Jerusalem, and Jesus? return to Galilee via Samaria (John 1:19-4:54). Perhaps the events John would describe in John 6:1-71 also take place while Jesus was in Galilee at this time; canonically, Jesus would return again to Jerusalem and heal a lame man on the Sabbath at Bethesda, teaching about the judgment and resurrection to come and witness regarding Himself in John 5:1-47, and then ostensibly returned to Galilee before then crossing to the other side in John 6:1. John related Jesus? feeding of the five thousand, an event also narrated by the other three evangelists (John 6:1-15; cf. Matthew 14:13-21, Mark 6:30-44, Luke 9:10-17). The other evangelists related the story in terms of Jesus withdrawing while the disciples went out and fulfilled their commission and when He was informed of the death of John the Baptist; according to John the Evangelist, the Passover was near (John 6:4). Many had gathered to hear Jesus preach and to receive healing from Him; He then asked His disciples how they could provide food for so many, and Philip could not imagine how two hundred denarii would have been enough for all of them (a denarius was a day?s wage, so imagine around eight months of a living wage; John 6:1-7). Andrew identified a boy who had five barley loaves and two fish; Jesus exhorted all to sit down, and He gave thanks and then distributed the loaves and fish to everyone?s satisfaction, and twelve baskets of leftover bread pieces were collected (more than which existed originally; John 6:8-13). The Jewish people perceived the miracle they had experienced, and they confessed Jesus as the Prophet whom Moses promised would come to them in Deuteronomy 18:15 (John 6:14). They would have seized Him and made Him the king of their desires, the Davidic king who would restore the ?halcyon days? of the Israelite Empire of the 10th century BCE; as opposed to accepting this fate, He withdrew from them, for such was not the will of the Father (John 6:15). At evening the disciples prepared to return to Capernaum, and so they set off in a boat; the sea became quite rough; they saw a figure in the distance and became afraid (John 6:16-19). Jesus spoke to them and assured them it was He, walking across the water in rough seas; when He got into the boat, they had immediately arrived in Capernaum (John 6:20-21). The Jewish people looked all over for Jesus and eventually found Him in the synagogue in Capernaum (John 6:22-25. 59). Jesus discerned their motivations: they did not want to see signs but to eat bread, so He told them to work not for food which perishes but the imperishable food the Son of Man would give them (John 6:26-27). After they asked Him what they would need to do, Jesus told them God?s work was to believe in the One whom God had sent (John 6:28-29). The Jewish people then asked for a sign so they might believe in Him (ostensibly having forgotten about the bread they just ate, or deeming such insufficient), appealing to how their ancestors ate manna in the wilderness as attested in Psalm 78:24 (John 6:30-31). Jesus exhorted them to understand how the Father was giving them the true bread from heaven; such Bread is the One who came down to give life to the world (John 6:32-33). The Jewish people said they wanted this bread always (John 6:34), yet perhaps not after Jesus? explanation: He is the bread of life (John 6:35). Jesus affirmed how those who come to Him will never be hungry or thirsty; yet they had seen Him and did not believe (John 6:35-36). Jesus made theological sense of all this: those whom the Father gives to the Son will receive life, for it is the Father?s will for all who would receive life to come and accept Jesus who would raise them up on the last day (John 6:37-40). Those Jewish people who were hostile to Jesus grumbled about His teaching, presuming they knew Him since He was the son of Joseph (John 6:38-42); He discerned this and re-affirmed His instruction: none could come to Jesus unless the Father would draw them, and such would be raised on the last day (John 6:43-44). As attested in Isaiah 54:13, all would be taught by God, and those who learn from the Father come to Jesus; at this point in the narrative John hastened to add a parenthetical comment re-affirming how only the Son has seen the Father lest any imagined otherwise (John 6:45-46). Jesus then expanded on His primary theme: He is the Bread of life (John 6:47-48). Those who ate manna in the wilderness died; those who eat the living bread, Jesus? flesh, would live forever (John 6:49-51). The idea of eating Jesus? flesh indeed provoked quite the response from those hostile to Jesus, wondering incredulously how this might be so (John 6:52). Jesus doubled down: only those who eat the flesh and drink the blood of the Son of Man can have life in themselves, for His flesh and blood are true food and drink, and He would reside in those who eat His flesh and drink His blood, and they would reside in Him; as Jesus lived because of the Father, those who consume Him will live because of Him for eternity (John 6:53-58). Many have directly connected Jesus? instruction in John 6:47-58 with the Lord?s Supper, or Eucharist, and for understandable reasons. Yet we would diminish the force of Jesus? instruction if we simply conclude He referred to the Lord?s Supper; Jesus has a more profound reference in mind, one which would later animate and give power to the Lord?s Supper. Behind and underneath the whole narrative in John 6:1-59 lay Deuteronomy 8:3: So he humbled you by making you hungry and then feeding you with unfamiliar manna. He did this to teach you that humankind cannot live by bread alone, but also by everything that comes from YHWH?s mouth. According to the mutual understanding of Israel?s heritage and Scripture, Jesus and all the Jewish people listening to Him would recognize the need to be sustained by that which proceeded from the mouth of YHWH. Creative power came from YHWH speaking (cf. Psalm 33:6-9); Israel rightly perceived life in the Word of YHWH. And according to John the Evangelist, the Word of YHWH by means of which all things were created and had life became flesh and dwelt among us as Jesus of Nazareth (John 1:1-14, 18). Such is how Jesus could be the Bread of life; He is the embodiment of the Word of God, and only in that Word can anyone find true and enduring life. Jesus? flesh and blood were the embodiment of the Word of YHWH, and so people must consume His flesh and blood if they would share in relational unity with God and find eternal life in Him. The Lord?s Supper embodies and exemplifies the consumption of the body and blood of Jesus and our joint participation in Him (cf. 1 Corinthians 10:16-17); yet our consumption of Jesus, the Word of God, must go well beyond the Lord?s Supper. We must find life sustenance from all which Jesus said and did and go and do likewise! We can understand, however, why many of the Jewish people present would have found Jesus? instruction difficult to stomach. Such distaste went beyond those who were hostile or indifferent toward Jesus; even many of those who were His disciples proved offended at it (John 6:60). Jesus did not exactly work to assuage their concerns or fears: if they could not accept this, how could they endure seeing the ascension of the Son of Man (John 6:61-62)? Jesus affirmed His words as spirit and life; those who could not accept them did not really believe in Him; thus Jesus re-affirmed how only those whom the Father allowed would come to Jesus (John 6:63-65). Many disciples no longer followed Jesus after this (John 6:66). For a moment it is worth stepping back and looking at the whole episode: at the beginning a multitude followed after Jesus; when He fed them bread, the people were glad to pursue Him. Yet once He taught difficult things, the people abandoned Him as did many of His disciples. Jesus did not accommodate His message to make it more palatable, for what else could be said? The people, and even many of His disciples, could not imagine how Jesus? instruction could be true. They remained blinded by the god of this world and could not perceive the light of God in Christ (cf. 2 Corinthians 4:3-6). Jesus then turned to the Twelve, thus named as such for the first time in John?s Gospel, and asked if they wanted to turn away as well (John 6:67). Peter?s response on behalf of the Twelve in John 6:68-69 is notable: Simon Peter answered him, ?Lord, to whom would we go? You have the words of eternal life. We have come to believe and to know that you are the Holy One of God!? Note well what Peter did not say: he did not say they fully understood. He did not say he had his knife and fork ready to dig into eating the Son of Man! He did not say what Jesus taught was simple or easy. Instead, Peter exemplified the kind of faith which all who would come to Jesus and receive life in Him must have: Jesus has the words of eternal life. Jesus is the Holy One of God. Thus, where else can we go? Most of us trust far more based on our knowledge and agreement than we would care to admit. Such was the way of the disciples who abandoned Jesus at this moment. They believed Jesus was the Christ as long as what He said and did were broadly in alignment with their understanding. Then Jesus crossed ?the line?: the point at which confidence in Him would demand significant challenges to what they accepted or were willing to accept. They affirmed their trust in what they knew and understood and thus abandoned Jesus. What Peter confessed was true faith: the Twelve did not fully understand, and perhaps even did not fully agree. But they prioritized who Jesus was and what they had experienced regarding Him over their understanding and/or agreement. They proved willing to subject themselves to Him and to accept what they found challenging or impossible to understand. At some point in our lives we will come to ?the line?: faithfulness to Jesus would require us to go beyond what we believe to be accurate and true. We will then reveal who we are at that point: either we reject Jesus or seek to make Him in our own image to continue to accept what we believe to be accurate and true and thus abandon Jesus in truth, or we remember Jesus has the words of eternal life and is the Holy One of God, and we continue to trust despite our misgivings and lack of comprehension. Jesus did not respond as we would perhaps have imagined. He confessed how He had chosen them, and yet also confessed how one of them was a devil (John 6:70). John the Evangelist did not want any of his readers to be in any kind of doubt: he had already parenthetically remarked how Jesus had already known who did not really believe in Him, and who would betray Him in John 6:64, and in John 6:71 John identified Judas ben Simon Iscariot as the one who would betray Jesus. John truly has it out for Judas; from John we will later learn of Judas? embezzlement from the common treasury (cf. John 12:4-6), so that most of the demonization of Judas comes from John. It is certainly notable how John continued to experience the pain of Judas? betrayal so many years after it happened; nevertheless, we should not allow his embittered characterizations, which reflect understanding of these events after the fact, to color Judas? standing as a disciple. When Jesus made it known to the Twelve how one of them would betray Him, it is not as if everyone then immediately looked at Judas Iscariot; each wondered if it could be him or his companion (cf. John 13:22). Thus Judas Iscariot looked and acted like every other disciple. We should not even assume Judas did not really believe in Jesus; while the profit motive was certainly in mind for Judas, he might well have acted as he did in order to force the issue and catalyze the great confrontation which would lead to Jesus inaugurating the Reign of God. In truth, Judas? betrayal did indeed catalyze that great confrontation which led to Jesus inaugurating the Reign of God, but it happened through His suffering, death, and resurrection, not glory over the Roman host. By common confession, Judas did not expect his betrayal to actually lead to Jesus? death (cf. Matthew 27:3-4); he probably imagined Jesus would yet again escape the authorities as He always had before. Yet consider Jesus throughout this whole experience: from the moment of selection until the bitter end, He knew Judas would betray Him. And yet Jesus never treated him any differently from any of the other disciples. He loved Judas; He taught Judas; He watched while Judas would proclaim the Name of the One whom he would later betray. Jesus knew Judas was the snake throughout and yet still held him close. Judas was not the only disciple who would prove to be a satan, or adversary, to Jesus; Simon Peter himself would tempt Jesus away from suffering and would later deny any association with Him (cf. Matthew 16:21-23, John 18:15-27). Both Judas and Simon Peter would come to grief; Judas? grief was worldly and led him to kill himself, but Simon Peter exhibited godly grief and turned back to Jesus and was restored by Him (cf. John 21:15-19). Thus all of us must choose whether we will take our grief from sin and immerse ourselves in it to the point of death or turn away from it to find healing in Jesus. Thus Jesus is the Bread of life. Not everything about Jesus is easy to accept or maintain; but if we truly want life, and to share in it abundantly and eternally, we must consume Jesus the Word of God and find life in Him. Yes, that will include and involve the Lord?s Supper on the first day of the week. But it must be much more than that: we must conform ourselves to His image, speaking and acting as He spoke and acted, if we would truly find life in the embodied Word of God. May we find sustenance in the words of life which Jesus spoke and embodied, and dwell with Him forevermore! Ethan R. Longhenry

We welcome you to our weekly online gatherings on Wednesdays from 12:30-1:30pm! We continue to study in the Gospel of John. This is a recapitulation of our recent studies. Jesus in Samaria and Galilee | John 4:4-54 The ?disciple whom Jesus loved,? known as John, either John the brother of Zebedee, the Apostle, or John the Elder, was writing his recollections of his experiences with Jesus so that those who hear or read would believe Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and would find eternal life in His name (cf. John 20:31). He began by speaking of the Word of God, the Creator, the life and light of men, who took on flesh and dwelt among us as Jesus of Nazareth (John 1:1-18). He then described the calling of the first disciples, Jesus? first sign at the wedding in Cana, and the events which took place while Jesus was present at the Passover in Jerusalem (John 1:19-4:3). The Passover and the Feast of the Unleavened Bread had concluded and so it was about time to return to Galilee. Yet Jesus and His disciples travel by means of an unexpected itinerary: they did not cross the Jordan and swing through the Decapolis, but traveled directly north through Samaria (John 4:4). They came to Sychar, a Samaritan town which featured a well Jacob the patriarch had dug (John 4:5). In former times Samaria had been the capital of the northern Kingdom of Israel. After the Assyrians conquered Samaria, they exiled the Israelites to Assyria and introduced people from other parts of the Neo-Assyrian Empire into the land of Israel which would heretofore be known as Samaria, and its people Samaritans (cf. 2 Kings 17:6, 24-41). The Samaritans would not deny some such heritage but also claimed to be descendants of the ten tribes of Israel; the Jewish people held the Samaritans in contempt and did not consider them Israelites at all, thus animating the power of Jesus? parable of the good Samaritan; John the Evangelist understated the situation when he said Jewish people have no dealings with Samaritans (John 4:9). Jesus, however, traveled through Samaria and engaged with Samaritans; as we consider Jesus in Samaria, we should do so while remembering the prophetic hope of the restoration of Israel. Jesus sat at the well at Sychar while His disciples went to buy food; a Samaritan woman came to draw water in the middle of the day and He engaged her in conversation (John 4:6-26). As in John 3:3-7 with ?again? or ?from above,? so in John 4:7-15 and ?living water?: most of the time ?living water? was understood as running water, as the Samaritan woman understood Jesus, but He was speaking of the Spirit and the gift of eternal life which He could provide. Jesus demonstrated His prophetic standing and knowledge by ascertaining how many times she had been married and how she was now cohabiting with a man (John 4:16-18); it proves easy to castigate her for her situation, but we do well to wonder whether she was more exploited and oppressed than scandalously libidinous. She perceived Jesus was some kind of prophet, and so she asked Him about one of the controversies between the Jewish people and the Samaritans: should they go to prostrate before God on the mountain on which they stood or in Jerusalem (John 4:19-20)? Jesus did maintain an ethnic boundary: the Samaritans are ignorant of the One whom they serve, but salvation is of the Jews; nevertheless, Jesus was overall less interested in settling Jewish vs. Samaritan disputes and appealed to the radical transformation which would soon take place. Jesus was God in the flesh; thus the ?place? to bow down before God was not going to be on a mountain somewhere, but wherever Jesus was. The Father was seeking people to prostrate before Him in spirit and in truth (John 4:21-24). The woman expected the Messiah; Jesus confessed to her how He was the Messiah (John 4:25). The disciples returned and were not a little scandalized. They did not dare ask Jesus what He was doing (John 4:27). In her astonishment and wonder the woman left her water jar and ran into Sychar, telling everyone to come out to see and hear Jesus, a Man who had told her all she had ever done (John 4:28-29). The disciples wanted Jesus to eat, but He told them He had food regarding which they did not understand (John 4:30-32). The disciples wondered who had brought Jesus food; Jesus explained how His food was to do the work of the Father who had sent Him (John 4:33-34). Jesus again drew associations between the natural world and the work of God: they perceived how the harvest for crops would be in four months, but in terms of the work of God, the fields were white for harvest, and they would go out and reap where they had not sown and would rejoice (John 4:35-39). Meanwhile, the inhabitants of Sychar heeded the words of the woman, came out to Jesus, and invited Him to stay, which He did for two days (John 4:39-40). They confessed they had also come to believe in Jesus as the Christ, not merely based on her testimony, but based on what they saw and heard (John 4:41-42). Jesus then returned to Galilee (John 4:43). John the Evangelist first provided commentary on how Jesus testified how a prophet has no honor in His home country, but then recognized how the Galileans had welcomed Jesus because they had gone down to the Passover feast and had seen His work there (John 4:44-45). Perhaps John hinted at what was made more explicit in the Synoptic Gospels, how Jesus was better received in other parts of Galilee but not in Nazareth itself (e.g. Luke 4:16-30). Yet perhaps we do better to understand John as making a contrast between the Samaritans who so readily believed and these Galileans who would ultimately prove more recalcitrant: a galling comparison indeed for any Israelite! As always, we do well to remember how John himself would confess all the books of the world could not contain all the things which Jesus had done (John 21:25): John has selected seven miraculous signs upon which to focus, of which the second took place in Cana in Galilee in John 4:46-54. The son of a royal official in Capernaum was sick; his father would have been some kind of official for Herod Antipas (John 4:46). The royal official went to Cana and begged Jesus to heal his son; Jesus responded by declaring how the people would not believe unless they saw signs and wonders (John 4:47-48). The official kept begging Jesus to come with him; Jesus did not go with him but told him to go home, for his child would live (John 4:49-50). He went home and discovered his son had recovered; he inquired and ascertained that the fever broke the moment Jesus had declared he would live; he and his household believed in Jesus (John 4:51-54). Thus Jesus continued His ministry in His return from Jerusalem through Samaria to Galilee. Salvation might be of the Jewish people, but in Jesus it would spread well beyond the Jewish people. Jesus may have been dishonored among His own people, but many others have come in humble faith confessing Him as Lord and Christ. May we come to Jesus and through Him obtain living water to go out into the harvest and ultimately share in the resurrection of life! Ethan R. Longhenry

You're always welcome at our online meetings on Wednesdays at 12:30pm! DM us for meeting link. Below is a recap of our last two studies. From Bethany to Cana | John 1:19-2:12 The ?disciple whom Jesus loved,? known as John, either John the brother of Zebedee, the Apostle, or John the Elder, was writing his recollections of his experiences with Jesus so that those who hear or read would believe Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and would find eternal life in His name (cf. John 20:31). He began by speaking of the Word of God, the Creator, the life and light of men, who took on flesh and dwelt among us as Jesus of Nazareth (John 1:1-18). John the Evangelist had spoken of John the Baptist as one sent by God to testify regarding the light and the One who was greater than he (cf. John 1:6-8, 15). John the Evangelist then set forth John the Baptist?s testimony (John 1:19-28). In Bethany beyond the Jordan, where John the Baptist was doing his baptizing, the Jewish leaders asked John whether he was the Christ, Elijah, or the prophet; John denied it all; instead, John would only affirm himself as the voice shouting in the wilderness to prepare the way of the Lord, the fulfillment of Isaiah 40:3 (John 1:19-24). Jesus Himself would later consider John to be the Elijah to come, just as the angel Gabriel had predicted John would come as the Elijah to fulfill the word of YHWH in Malachi 4:5-6 (Matthew 11:7-15, Luke 1:11-18). Jesus? and Gabriel?s testimony are enough to prove the case; perhaps it was not revealed to John that he was Elijah. The Jewish religious leaders wanted to understand why John was baptizing if he was not the Christ, Elijah, or the prophet, and it was a good question. Jewish people of the Second Temple Period valued ritual washings highly; the places for such ritual washings, known as mikva?ot, can be found in all kinds of dwellings of this period. A baptism of repentance, however, was not something commanded or even spoken of as part of the Law of Moses or a ritual in Judaism. John baptized because God told him to do so; it would symbolically represent repentance, a changing of the hearts and minds of the people; he looked forward to One coming of whom he was unworthy to even untie His sandal (John 1:25-28). The next day John the Baptist saw Jesus walking toward him; John then testified to Jesus as the Lamb of God who would take away the sin of the world (John 1:29). Lambs were not the standard offering as sin offerings, but the lamb was the offering made for the Passover which led to the liberation of the Israelites from Egyptian bondage (Exodus 12:1-27). It was revealed to John how Jesus would thus be sacrificed to liberate the creation from its bondage of sin. John testified regarding how he had come believe Jesus was the Chosen One of God: God had told him the One whom he baptized upon whom the Spirit would descend like a dove would be the One who would baptize with the Holy Spirit; lo and behold, when John baptized Jesus, the Spirit descended upon Him (John 1:30-34). Thus John the Evangelist did not directly narrate the story of Jesus? baptism, but provided John?s testimony regarding that baptism. Furthermore, according to John, Jesus was baptized by the will of God as a sign to John to confirm who He was. The day after that John the Baptist was standing with two of his disciples, and Jesus again walked by him. John again spoke of Jesus as the Lamb of God, and those two disciples began following Jesus (John 1:35-37). John the Evangelist would then narrate the call of some of the disciples in a whimsical way. One of the disciples was Andrew, brother of Simon; the other disciple is left unmentioned, but since we are reading this story as part of the witness of John the Evangelist, we have reason to assume he is that other disciple. They ask where Jesus is staying, and He said they would see; they stayed with Him for a while, and Andrew then went out to find his brother Simon and told him they had found the Messiah of God (John 1:36-41). Andrew brought Simon to Jesus, and Jesus named him Peter (John 1:42). The next day Jesus intended to go to Galilee. He saw Philip and called him to follow. Philip found his friend Nathanael and told him how he had found the One whom Moses and the prophets had written: Jesus of Nazareth (John 1:43-45). Nazareth was a very small village in rural Galilee; Nathanael thus asked if any good thing could come out of Nazareth, and Philip told him to come and see (John 1:46). When Jesus saw Nathanael approaching, He spoke of him as an Israelite in whom there was no guile: that is, he has no filter, and said what he thought (John 1:47). Nathanael wondered how Jesus could know who he is; Jesus said he saw Nathanael under the fig tree before Philip called him (and thus, ostensibly, gave indication He knew exactly what Nathanael had said; John 1:48). Nathanael immediately confessed Jesus as the Son of God, the King of Israel; Jesus responded he would see greater things than these, and then evoked Jacob?s ladder, saying they would see heaven opened up and angels ascending and descending on the Son of Man, thus foretelling His death, resurrection, and ascension (John 1:49-51). ?On the third day,? an idiom indicating a few days later, Jesus and His disciples had made it to Galilee and attending a wedding to which they were invited (John 2:1-2). Jewish weddings were extravagant affairs hosted by the groom?s family and which would last for many days. The host family, however, experienced a scandal: the wine had run out. While we might experience such a situation as embarrassing because of poor planning, the host family would be experiencing it as a shameful demonstration of poverty. Jesus? mother Mary was at the wedding, and sufficiently well-known to the host family to be able to give commands to the slaves; she told Jesus they were out of wine (John 2:3). Jesus asked her what she wanted from Him, for His time had not yet come; she knew who was His Father and what He could do, but He had not yet begun His active ministry (John 2:4). Mary knew her Son would honor her subliminal request, and told the slaves to do whatever Jesus told them to do (John 2:5). Jesus told them to fill to the brink with water six stone jars of purification: they would be ritually clean, and by virtue of their purpose, would have only held water (John 2:6-8). When the head steward of the wedding tasted the wine, he summoned the host family: for understandable reasons hosts begin feasts with the best wine and reserve wine of lower quality for later after everyone?s taste buds had been dulled; yet the host family had kept the best wine until later (John 2:9-10)! John the Evangelist identified Jesus? turning the water to wine as His first miraculous sign, and His disciples thus believed in Him (John 2:11). Jesus spent some time with His mother and disciples in Capernaum (John 2:12). Jesus? first miraculous sign at the wedding in Cana has caused a lot of difficulties for many who profess to follow Jesus. They have a hard time understanding how Jesus could have done such a thing and enabled people getting drunk. They thus imagine to themselves Jesus would have not really turned the water into wine but alcohol-free grape juice. Such represents a complete misunderstanding of ancient practice and Jesus? purposes. Greek oinos means alcoholic wine by default; there are some uses of the term to describe grape juice in the process of becoming wine, but such a context is explicitly identified when speaking of oinos in that way. Both Jewish and Greco-Roman people consumed wine in prodigious amounts; it was the standard beverage of the time. They would have consumed wine cut with water; to consume wine uncut was considered barbaric. No one at the wedding in Cana would have understood Jesus? behavior as enabling drunkenness or dissipation. Instead, they understood what was at stake. If there was no more wine, there was no more wedding feast. The host family would be shamed and the marriage of the young couple would begin under inauspicious circumstances. By turning the water into wine, Jesus allowed the party to continue. Jesus made much of celebration and festival. When the Pharisees asked Jesus? disciples why they did not fast, Jesus told them they could not fast while the Bridegroom was present (cf. Matthew 9:14-15). Jesus spoke of His return as the Bridegroom entering the wedding feast (Matthew 25:1-13). One of the seven blessings in Revelation come to those invited to the wedding banquet of the Lamb, which, as we can see from John 1:29, 36, is Jesus (Revelation 19:7, 9). Many in cold, dour, and sterile contexts imagine Jesus to be cold, dour, and without much joy; such is entirely inconsistent with the portrayal of Jesus in the Scriptures. Jesus is the Life of the party. Jesus? first miracle in John?s Gospel kept the party going. There are indeed circumstances which call for lamentation, mourning, and bitterness; but there are also circumstances which call for excitement, joy, and celebration. Jesus well navigated both; but we do well to never forget Jesus lived, died, was raised, reigns, and will return in order to throw a huge party, and understand Him appropriately. Thus John the Evangelist narrated how Jesus had gone from Bethany to Cana and the beginning of His active ministry in Israel. May we follow Jesus so we might be able to celebrate with Him for all eternity! Ethan R. Longhenry

Welcome back, students! We are looking forward to another great school year as the West LA College Christian Club - your ASO approved club for Christians or anyone interested in learning more about Christianity to encourage one another. We continue to meet online via Google Meet on Wednesdays from 12:30-1:30pm. We will spend time checking in with one another and pray for one another and for all prayer requests. We will also spend time in our meetings studying the Gospel of John so we can better learn about what God has done in Jesus Christ. We hope to see you soon!

It's been a fantastic club rush! Diane, Kaleab, and Ethan have been very busy at our table!

We look forward to seeing you at Club Rush on campus on Thursday from 12-2pm! We continue to meet on Wednesdays on Google Meet from 12:30-1:30pm. We'd love to see you! DM us for more information.

Here is the link to my interview with Doug Harvey and his essay on ARATALAND. And the link to the Artillery Magazine where it was re published, and picked up By Gordy Grundy for ArtReportToday.com. https://lessart.wordpress.com/2021/04/15/arata-tat-tat/ Artillery Link- https://artillerymag.com/arata-tat-tat/ The exhibit is closed now so everyone can have a peaceful nights rest.

Happy New Year, I'm Sharing an evite with you for a group show I'm participating in at the Equity gallery in the lower east side of Manhattan. So, if you happen to live there of be visiting I welcome you to stop by for the art work and bright conversation. January 15th ? February 9th, 2020, Equity Gallery, 245 Broome Street, New York, NY 10002 Opening Reception: Wednesday, January 15th, 6 PM-8 PM Gallery Hours: Wednesday ? Friday, 11 AM - 6 PM and Saturday and Sunday, 12 PM - 6 PM Best, Michael Arata

Freeze Frame exhibition at Avenue 50 Studio in Highland Park, Los Angeles. Closing reception December 7th 2019 1-4PM

Let Me Eat Cake, Too!! We?re coming back for seconds!!!! VIP Preview Reception June 20th 6-9pm (open to the public) On view during the Blue Roof Studios Arts Festival June 22nd Closing reception July 13 3-5pm Blue Roof Studios is located at 7329 S Broadway Ave. Los Angeles CA 90003 https://www.blueroofstudios.org/

"Me Candy" reception: Jan 5 7-9 pm Curated by Newtown arts. Best place to take a selfie this week!! @ Pasadena Armory for the Arts.

You Are Invited. ME CANDY_ Michael Arata, Austyn de Lugo, Megan Maniago, Peter Hess, Greg Jezewski, Robyn Sanford, and Natasa Stearns. Presented by Newtown Arts.org. Interactive installations designed for selfies @ Pasadena Armory for the Arts. Opens- Dec 22 Reception- Jan 5 2019.

art and an unusual look through the lens.

TUES, MAR 25 @ NOON: Hear from Yesika Salgado on the role of poetry in promoting Mental Health. Salgado is a Salvadore?a born in LA and a notable presence in the poetry scene, having authored three books. Her writing was recently highlighted in the LA Times. Additionally, she is a internationally celebrated advocate for body positivity. ...Complimentary lunch for the first 40 attendees ...15 books by Salgado will be raffled Sponsored by: WLAC Health & Wellness and WLAC ASO DETAILS IN WLAC.edu/Westweek

Game design careers start at West LA College, your community college. There's still time to join the next session launching April 14. Our new Essentials of Video Game Programming Certificate is just 6 classes and equips students for entry-level jobs and internships in the vibrant video games industry. Learn programming languages including C# and C++ in conjunction with game engines such as Unity and Unreal Engine while building and testing original game designs individually and in teams...get started at WLAC.edu/IAmReady

#FridayFeature... Congratulations to #WestLACollege Honors Transfer students Aylan Rosales, Jeanine Torres, and Charles "Spenser" Wilson for making it to the semifinalist round of the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation Undergraduate Transfer Scholarship. Finalists will be announced in May. This is the second consecutive year that Honors Transfer students have been semifinalists. Last year's students went on to receive the scholarships. The JKC scholarship awards as much as $55,000 per year for two to three years to complete a bachelor?s degree. Semifinalists were chosen from a pool of more than 1,600 applicants and attend 212 community colleges in 43 states. Final selections will be announced in May.

This week in WLAC.edu/Westweek... - If you've got a 2.0 GPA or better, you may be eligible for the Osher Scholarship - ASO Leaders Wanted - Graduating in June? You need to file a grad petition . TUES: FAFSA Workshop; Tool for Research Papers; Baseball WED: Let's Move - Group Exercise; Platica: Feelings and Emotions INFO SESSIONS: Game Development; Pharmacy Tech

#FeatureFriday...Due to health issues, Zain said she did not have the opportunity to be the best student she could be in high school. At #WestLACollege, she has gained momentum and is on a pre-med track with the goal of becoming an ER doctor one day. By starting at West, Zain is not only saving thousands on tuition, she's getting opportunities she couldn't have imagined like being invited to present at an Honor Transfer Conference in her Freshman year.

Spotlighting African American faculty this #BlackHistoryMonth...Ronnie Felder is a dedicated Academic Counselor at #WestLACollege. He was inspired to pursue his career because of his own poor experience with an academic counselor. Ronnie is passionate about ensuring students receive the guidance and support they need to positively change the trajectory of their lives. Committed to empowerment in education, he strives to help students navigate their academic journeys with confidence. Outside of counseling, Ronnie is also a talented freelance bass guitarist and car enthusiast who was featured on an episode of MTV?s Pimp My Ride! . "None of us got where we are solely by pulling ourselves up by our bootstraps. We got here because somebody ? a parent, a teacher, an Ivy League crony or a few nuns ? bent down and helped us pick up our boots." ? Thurgood Marshall, 1st Black Supreme Court Justice

Spotlighting African American faculty this #BlackHistoryMonth...Math Professor Jeremy Jankans understands that representation in education matters and that Black educators provide students with role models who inspire confidence, ambition, and pride. Professor Jankans strives to not only teaching math but also incorporate practical financial literacy into his lessons. His commitment to empowering students through education helps bridge gaps and build a brighter future for all. . "One of the first lessons that I learned growing up was the fact that education gives you options." ? Dr. Bernard Harris, 1st Black American to walk in space

Spotlighting African American faculty this #BlackHistoryMonth...#WestLACollege Computer Science Info Tech Professor Bill Williams? students benefit from his years of experience in the aerospace industry in both the technical and hiring arenas. In 2024, he received the Black Engineer of the Year (BEYA), Science Spectrum Trailblazer award for his implementation of key information technologies at the Aerospace Corporation. In his role as Director of Information Technology (IT), he provided technical leadership and direction for enterprise monitoring services, data center operations, and contract service management for technical tasks. . ?Education is the passport to the future, for tomorrow belongs to those who prepare for it today.? - Malcom X

This week in WLAC.edu/Westweek ... Black History Month events: BSU Open House, Paint & Sip, Healing Circle MON: Art Internship Info TUES: FAFSA Workshop, 1st Gen College Student Survival Guide THUR: Grocery Giveaway FRI: Planetary Parade Become the next LACCD Student Trustee; Club Meetings; Plant the Microforest

This week in WLAC.edu/Westweek GAMERS Wanted. There is a new club in town. CAREER Center News. TUES Succeed in Online Classes; Finding Hope in Climate Chaos; About Paid Internships for WLAC Students WED Basketball vs Citrus FEB 24 LA County Art Internships

Welcome - or Welcome Back! Information booths are stationed in front of the Student Services Building (SSB) and on Wildcat Walkway on the top tier of campus should you need assistance. The staff in the Welcome Center (TLC 1st Floor) and the Learning Center (Library 1st Floor are also available to assist you. Helpful information including where to grab a bite, parking and events can be found at WLAC.edu/News/Westweek

This week at WLAC.edu/News/Westweek... Spring semester starts Feb. 10 COMING SOON: Club Rush, Express Counseling, FASFA Workshop, Grocery Giveaway and, Planetary Parade Viewing ATHLETICS: Congratulations to our Wildcats for earning a Department GPA of 3.02 this past Fall. INFO SESSIONS: Aviation Tech (Feb 4) and Computer Science (Feb 8)

Know when and where to direct your attention!!!

Great Luau fundraiser today with these great baseball players! They worked very hard preparing/ serving dinner and entertaining the crowd. Along with the clean up crew! Well done team! ?????? Anyone have photos send to coach Su?a so we can post.

Tampa Ray?s Mental Coach , Justin Su?a , giving WLAC Baseball team some great mental tips. ??

Study Hall Is In Session. The Teacher Speaks. Minute 1:50-2:25 Recognize and appreciate those how inspire(d) you (family, friends, teammates, coaches) Minute 2:37-3:02 Leave a legacy and a standard for others to follow (thank an alumnus) Minute 3:20-3:40 Where are you at 5:30am? (put in the work) Minute 3:47-4:40 Family (greatest support system) Minute 4:50-5:37 It's all about the journey (work the process) not the dream (destination) It take years and years to be an overnight success Minute 5:42 Mamba Out! (Thanks for the memories) Do The Homework: Understand/Learn, Study/Practice, Retain/Review & Apply/Execute Go Wildcats!

2017 Wildcats Who Transferred to 4-Year Schools 1 Altamirano, Christian - Cal State Dominguez Hills 2 Anderson, Kaleyl - Huntington University (IN) 3 Choe, John - San Francisco State 4 Craddolph, Grant - Cal State LA 5 Dixon, Gary - Bellevue University (NE) 6 Elliott, Jacob - San Francisco State 7 Garcia, Jesse - Antelope Valley University 8 Hirota, Roy - La Verne University 9 Hutchinson, Humter - US Marines 10 James, Jaelin - San Francisco State 11 Latiolait, Mathew - Cal State LA 12 McElroy, Harrison - University of Arizona 13 Ounjian, Nicolas - UC San Diego 14 Tipton, Miles - George Washing Univ (DC) 15 Vasquez, Ricky - Huntington University (IN)

WLAC Alums who played in the Major Leagues Ryan Sherriff: Cardinals (active MLB) Jorge Pedre: Royals, Cubs Jim Vatcher: Phillies, Braves, Padres Rodney McCray: White Sox, Mets Jeff Dedmon: Braves, Indians Mike Chris: Tigers, Giants

Pease help identify WLAC?s version of the 1927 Yankees?.. 1979 Team Picture: FRONT ROW: #20 Neil Glickman (coach), #37 Steve Eberhard, #5 Kevin Boyce, #6 Del Pond, #27 Jesse Placentia, #12 Mickey Campos, #11 Ray Cooper, #19 Erez Borowsky, #3 Matt Amido, #7 Lonnie Pascal, #10 Leonard Marino; SECOND ROW: #30 Ken Medlock (coach), #22 Robert Cronkite, #25 Jeff Dedmon, #21 Steve Evans, Chris Chavez (behind #12), Mike Hamer (behind #11), #15 Jeff Rose, #33 Steve Whalen, #2 Artie Harris (Head Coach); TOP ROW: #4 Donald Freeman, #9 Greg Hanen, #24 Clint Jasmin, #14 Roger Hill, #16 Lee Wenzel, #32 Allen Black, #23 Clarence Thomas.

You're almost through finals week! https://memeshappen.com/media/created/You-can-DO-it-meme-18134.jpg

The #WestLosAngelesCollege Library is open late for finals!

The Library will have extended hours for finals!

Isn't #WestLosAngelesCollege a lovely campus?

One of the joys of coming to #WestLosAngelesCollege every day.

There's still time to register for Library Science 101 at #WestLosAngelesCollege!

Library workshop TODAY at 1pm!!! Learn to use library databases like ProQuest to find scholarly articles for your papers!

Extended hours at the #WestLosAngelesCollege Library for pre-finals and finals weeks!

It's that time of year again! Download 2 free audiobooks per week for FREE! https://audiobooksync.com/2018-sync-titles/

Did you know West offers late start classes? Just email Prof. Stern for an add code!

Thinking of taking an online class? Learn how to be a successful online student!

I have reached 100 followers! Thank you for your continued support. I could not have done it without each of you. ??????

It?s GREAT to be back! ?????????? #StrongerTogether

?Let?s take down SANTA MONICA COLLEGE!! ???????

?Road Trip!? GAME READY!! ?West LA @ Bakersfield ? ?#GoWest.GoFar.? ?Compete Complete!?

West vs. LA Valley @1pm Men?s game @3pm #GoWest.GoFar.

It?s Our Time! West LA at Citrus College 5 pm

After the November 9th game against Mira Costa at West LA. Both players and Coaches celebrated the birthday ?? of Diamond Williams (Gary, IN.). Happy Birthday, Diamond! From your Wildcat Family!!

Power 106 Celebrity game Thursday September 19th Doors open at 5pm for Frat vs. Everybody

West LA College Women?s Basketball (Ranked #12 in Southern California) dismantled Santa Monica College, 74-42. Heyavin Johnson?s 19 led the way for WEST. Lauren Jones added 18, including 5 three-pointers! West is currently in 1st place in the WSC-South!

The Wildcats hit the road this past weekend to participate in the Cuesta College tournament, held in San Luis Obispo. West LA improved to 8-4, with a win in the Championship game against Cuesta College. Audrina Villela (Carson HS), was named the tournament?s MVP. Villela knocked down a 3 pointer with 3.3 remaining in the 4th quarter to seal the victory in the Wildcats 1st round game against Allan Hancock. The 5?7 sophomore followed that performance with games of 12 (American River) and 20 points (Cuesta College), respectively for West. Up next for the Wildcats is LA Trade Tech (6-1) on December 7th, at the Los Angeles Valley College Tournament.

Excellent article!

There is always hope

Free conference!!!

"Go West, Go Far" We went West, We are going Far!!????????????

At the end of each semester ASO = Associated student organization, we give our students at West a break game day was a success

All you Thristy Students come out on Thursdays. Wlac ASO. Has Free Robek

West LA Trio at UCLA. Watch out we are moving. Higer Education!! Stomp

L??k whats happening at West the Best, Movie Night featuring free Snacks. Take a date and dont be late. S??you there!!!??

Lets go West Lets go far" listen all you Wildcats. Election Day at West is here. Its time to chose your student Government officals. This will be done democratically (TBA) the Dates are starting Monday April 23 to April 30th ending at 11:59pm. Dont forget go online and cast your Votes. Instructions will be emailed to you. Dont forget every vote counts?

Let's go "West" Lets go Far! College is the reward for surviving High School. Get involved??????????

ASO suports out future College students at WLAC Child Development Center Baskets for the kids Yey!!!!

Bonding & working in Washington DC was very resourceful made WLAC ASO stronger??

WLAC Washington DC ASO Leadeship Conference. A beautiful city??

Welcome to Spring 2018 Aso Sponsoring "Club Rush" come and join in on the fun!! "Go West, Go Far"

Thoughts?

Welcome to the West LA IMC

Hello all international students, here is the new schedule for this coming fall semester. Welcome to our A9 building office! see you here!

Please come to our Transfer, Graduation & Summer Vacation Celebration on next week, May 24th!

INTERNATIONAL STUDENT HUB Fifth WEEK EVENTS at the HUB (M) Mar.6th ? (Th) Mar.9th

Dear International Students, Please join us next Wednesday, February 22th, for an important event where you can get information about your health insurance. We will talk about healthcare and what you need to do if you get sick.

Are you concerned and/or confused about the recent United States imposed travel ban? Are you wondering how it might affect you as an international student? There is a special meeting just for you to openly talk about this current event!

We had the Thanksgiving celebration for all the international students in the West Los Angeles College. The new President, James M. Limbaugh, faculty, staff and many students came to the big celebration. Hope to see you on next time!