Bible In One Year Day 328 (Acts 7, Romans 11-12, Proverbs 27: 13-14)

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Day 328: Stephen is Martyred 

Agape Bible Study Acts 7 

Chapter 7: Stephen's Discourse in his Trial before the Sanhedrin

St. Stephen's speech to the Sanhedrin in Acts chapter 7 is the longest speech in Acts of Apostles. Some scholars have raised the objection that it seems unlikely that such a long speech could be reproduced in the text of Acts and that Luke fabricated the discourse. But other Biblical scholars have responded that Stephen's speech shows a distinctive personality behind it that is entirely different from the five kerygmatic speeches of St. Peter or the one kerygmatic discourse of St. Paul or the accounts of St. Paul's conversion experience that are also contained in the Book of Acts. The discourses attributed to these three men show distinctive qualities, each different from those of the other two men. It is possible that each speech was recorded by a scribe. Levites were trained in a special shorthand called tachygraphos.⁽²⁾ There were at least two such men within the apostolic circle who were privy to the speeches of Jesus, Peter, Stephen and Paul. According to tradition, the Apostle Matthew-Levi was a Levite and the disciple Barnabas was also a Levite (Acts 5:36). Joseph Barnabas traveled with Paul and was later replaced by men like St. Luke and others like the scribe Tertius (Rom 16:22) who became St. Paul's secretaries.

The charge of blasphemy against Stephen was a serious charge. If proved, the penalty was death by stoning. Jesus was condemned by the Sanhedrin for the same crime. At his trial, St. Stephen's discourse to the Sanhedrin is a pivotal moment in St. Luke's narrative of the history of the Church. In his survey of Israel's relationship with God, Stephen focuses on two points:

1. The Israelites have a history of rejecting God's servants: Joseph son of Jacob (7:9), Moses (7:23-29, 39-40), the prophets (7:52a), and Jesus of Nazareth "the Righteous One" (7:52b).
2. God's divine presence with His people does not depend on any one sacred site: God appeared to Abraham in Mesopotamia (7:2), God was with Joseph son of Jacob in Egypt (7:9) and God revealed Himself to Moses at Mt. Sinai (7:30-34, 38). God had the Israelites make the desert Sanctuary and later the Temple (7:44-46), but His Presence is not limited to structures "made by human hands" (7:48-50). Also see 1 Kng 8:27and Is 66:1-2).

It is Stephen's intention to show that it is God's divine plan that there is a new order that must break away from the Old Covenant Temple to fulfill the mission to take the Gospel of salvation to the world.

Stephen will make his case concerning these two points by observations

• Abraham (Acts 7:2-8)
• Joseph son of Jacob (Acts 7:9-16)
• Moses (Acts 7:17-43)
• The Jerusalem Temple (Acts 7:44-50)

He will conclude this discourse with a direct application of his observations (Acts 7:71-53).

Please notice that there are five discrepancies between St. Stephen's account and what is recorded in the Hebrew Pentateuch:

1. The quote from Genesis 12:1 in Acts 7:3 refers to an event that took place after Abraham had settled in Haran and not before (Gen 11:31-12:1).
2. Stephen says that Abraham did not leave for the Promised Land until after the death of his father which does not agree with the Hebrew text of Genesis 11:26, 32 and 12:4.
3. Stephen says that 75 Israelites made the migration into Egypt, but Genesis records that there were 70, which includes Jacob, Joseph and his two sons (Gen 46:26-27) .
4. In Acts 7:16 Stephen says that Jacob was buried at Shechem. However, Genesis 50:13 records that he was buried at Hebron in the cave Abraham purchased that was known as the tomb of Machpelah. 
5. Stephen says that the land for the tomb at Shechem was purchased by Abraham, but Genesis 33:19 and Joshua 24:32 attribute the purchase of the land at Shechem to Abraham's grandson Jacob. 

Stephen does not defend himself in his speech by denying that he has said the things for which he has been accused. Instead he defends the theology of the accusations against him and against the followers of Jesus who he presents as having legitimate reasons to teach as they do.

Acts 7:1-8 ~ Stephen's Summary of God's Covenant with the Patriarchs
In response to the charges brought against Stephen in Acts 6:13-14, the High Priest Joseph Caiaphas addresses Stephen:
1 Then the high priest asked, "Is this so?"  2 And he replied, "My brothers and fathers, listen. The God of glory appeared to our father Abraham while he was in Mesopotamia, before he had settled in Haran, 3 and said to him, Go forth from your land and from your kinsfolk to the land that I will show you.'  4 So he went forth from the land of the Chaldeans and settled in Haran. And from there, after his father died, he made him migrate to this land where you now dwell.  5 Yet he gave him no inheritance in it, not even a foot's length, but he did promise to give it to him and his descendants as a possession, even though he was childless.  6 And God spoke thus, His descendants shall be aliens in a land not their own, where they shall be enslaved and oppressed for four hundred years; 7 but I will bring judgment on the nation they serve,' God said, and after that they will come out and worship me in this place.'  8 Then he gave him the covenant of circumcision, and so he became the father of Isaac, and circumcised him on the eighth day, as Isaac did Jacob, and Jacob the twelve patriarchs." 

Stephen addresses those present in the court of the Sanhedrin respectfully as his kinsmen (as "brothers" who are equals and as "fathers" who are his superiors). 

Acts 7:2b The God of glory appeared to our father Abraham while he was in Mesopotamia, before he had settled in Haran ...
Question: What is Stephen's theological point concerning the call of Abraham?
Answer: The revelation of God to Abraham took place outside the land that became Israel in the world of the Gentiles. The God of Israel is the God of all men and women in the human family.

Stephen begins his survey of God's relationship with Israel by referring to the Patriarch Abraham who God called out of the pagan lands of Mesopotamia and out of a pagan worshiping family (Josh 24:2). He quotes from Genesis 12:1 when God called Abraham when he was living in Haran on the border of modern day Syria and Turkey (Gen 11:31-32), but Stephen identifies quote with the site of the call of Abraham in Mesopotamia which would be Ur of the Chaldeans, an event that happened years earlier (as noted in Genesis 15:7). He is correct in identifying the site of the first call Abraham received as the city of Ur on the Persian Gulf, but the passage he quotes refers to the repeat of that first call out of paganism and into the land God plans for his inheritance. This is the first discrepancy, but the point of the quote may not be where Abraham was living at the time but that God called Abraham when he was still in pagan lands and not when he had come to what will become God's holy land.

Acts 7:4-5, 8 So he went forth from the land of the Chaldeans and settled in Haran. And from there, after his father died, he made him migrate to this land where you now dwell. 5 Yet he gave him no inheritance in it, not even a foot's length, but he did promise to give it to him and his descendants as a possession, even though he was childless ...  8 Then he gave him the covenant of circumcision, and so he became the father of Isaac, and circumcised him on the eighth day, as Isaac did Jacob, and Jacob the twelve patriarchs." 

This is the second discrepancy. According to the Hebrew text, Terah was seventy years old when Abraham was born (Gen 11:26), and Abraham was seventy-five when he received the call to leave Haran (Gen 12:4). Scripture also records that Terah lived to be two hundred and five years old (Gen 11:32). Terah was therefore alive when Abraham left for Canaan and Terah lived in Haran for sixty years after Abraham's departure. 

Question: What is Stephen's point concerning God's covenant formation with Abraham, and how does what he says support the theological point he made earlier?
Answer: The theological point is that God's activity is not limited to the land the Israelites believe is God's holy land, which means God is not tied to the land upon which the Temple stands. In fact the beginning of God's relationship with the physical father of Israel took place in foreign, pagan lands, and their covenant relationship was based on the sign of circumcision and promises including the ownership of the land that were not fulfilled in Abraham's lifetime.

The promises of the Abrahamic covenant are of central importance in Luke's Gospel and in Acts as can be determined by the frequent references to Abraham and his place in salvation history (see Lk 1:55, 73; 3:8, 34; 13:16, 28; 16:22-30; 19:9; 20:37 and Acts 3:13, 25; 13:26). Stephen connects himself and his audience with the Patriarchs by calling them "our fathers" (translated in the NAB as "our ancestors") six times (Acts 7:11, 12, 19, 38, 44 and 45). But notice at the end of his discourse when Stephen attacks his audience the language changes to "your fathers" (Acts 7:51-52).

The next section of Stephen's discourse focuses on Joseph son of Jacob. He set up this part of the discourse in verse 6 by referring to God's prophecy concerning Abraham's descendants and the Egyptian phase of Israel's history (see Gen 15:13-16).

Acts 7:9-16 ~ The Rejection of Joseph and Redemption through Joseph son of Jacob
9 "And the patriarchs, jealous of Joseph, sold him into slavery in Egypt; but God was with him 10 and rescued him from all his afflictions. He granted him favor and wisdom before Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, who put him in charge of Egypt and of his entire household.  11 Then a famine and great affliction struck all Egypt and Canaan, and our ancestors could find no food; 12 but when Jacob heard that there was grain in Egypt, he sent our ancestors there a first time.  13 The second time, Joseph made himself known to his brothers, and Joseph's family became known to Pharaoh.  14 Then Joseph sent for his father Jacob, inviting him and his whole clan, seventy-five persons; 15 and Jacob went down to Egypt. And he and our ancestors died 16 and were brought back to Shechem and placed in the tomb that Abraham had purchased for a sum of money from the sons of Hamor at Shechem." 

In this part of his discourse Stephen begins to lay the groundwork for Israel's historically repeated rejection God's holy servants.
Question: What comparison can be made between the patriarchs' treatment of Joseph and the religious leaders' treatment of Jesus and His Apostles and disciples?
Answer: 

1. Like Jesus and His disciples, Joseph was God's chosen servant and yet those who professed to be obedient to God rejected God's agent because of their jealousy and persecuted them. 
2. Yet, God was with Joseph and delivered him just as He is with Jesus who He delivered from death and Jesus' disciples who He will continue to deliver from their enemies.
3. Despite their persecution, Jesus and His disciples will deliver and redeem God's people just as Joseph was able to save his kinsmen.

Notice that Stephen speaks of the double visit of Joseph's kinsmen in verses 12-13. In the first visit they do not recognize him, but he knows them. It is only later in the second visit that Joseph reveals his true identity and his kinsmen accept him and the salvation he was able to offer them. 
Question: How might this part of Stephen's discourse apply to Jesus?
Answer: In Jesus' first Advent His kinsmen, they also did not recognize His true identity. But in His Resurrection Jesus reveals His true identity, and as Jesus continues to present Himself and His gift of salvation through the teachings of His disciples, His kinsmen still have the opportunity to "recognize" Him and be saved.

Acts 7:14-15 Then Joseph sent for his father Jacob, inviting him and his whole clan, seventy-five persons; 15 and Jacob went down to Egypt.
Question: According to Genesis 46:26-27 how many men of Jacob's descendants migrated into Egypt?
Answer: Of Jacob's direct descendants, not counting the wives of Jacob's sons "numbered 66 persons, but counting Joseph, his two sons and Jacob the number was 70.

This is another apparent discrepancy that Stephen says 75 members of Jacob's family went into Egypt. According the Hebrew text the count was 70 men. However, Genesis 46:27 in the Septuagint does record that there were 75 members of Jacob's family who were in Egypt. The 75 may include daughters of Jacob (Rachel and Leah are already dead by the time the tribes migrated into Egypt); we know of at least one daughter, Dinah (Gen 34:1).

Question: How does Stephen's story of Joseph demonstrate either of the theological themes of his address?
Answer: 

1. Stephen is supporting his theological point of the historical repetition of Israel's rejected savior who still offers the possibility of future acceptance and salvation. 
2. It is obvious that God was still with His agent Joseph and the children of Israel in the land of Egypt and therefore, God's divine Presence is not limited to one place.

Acts 7:15b-16 And he and our ancestors died 16 and were brought back to Shechem and placed in the tomb that Abraham had purchased for a sum of money from the sons of Hamor at Shechem.
Question: Where does Genesis 50:12-13 record that Jacob was buried?
Answer: According to that passage, Jacob was buried at Hebron in the cave tomb of Machpelah that was purchased by Abraham from Ephron the Hittite and not at Shechem.

Both Abraham and Jacob purchased burial sites in Canaan. However, Abraham purchased his plot of land from Ephron the Hittite in Hebron (Gen 23:10-19), while Jacob bought his land from the sons of Hamor at Shechem (Gen 33:18-20). But in accordance with Jacob's death bed request in Genesis 49:31, he was buried at Abraham's burial site at Hebron (Gen 50:13) with Abraham and his wife Sarah, Isaac and his wife Rebecca and Jacob's wife Leah (Rachel was buried outside of Bethlehem). The Jewish historian/priest Flavius Josephus also records that Jacob was buried at Hebron as does the non-canonical Book of Jubilees (Joseph, Antiquities of the Jews, 2:199-200; Jubilees, 45:15; 46:9-10).  Joshua 24:32 records when the children of Israel conquered the land of Canaan that the bones of Joseph (not Jacob) were buried in Shechem in the cave bought by Jacob from the sons of Hamor. It may be that Stephen (or Luke) was confused, or there may be another reason for the discrepancy that we will discuss later. (4)

Acts 7:17-22 ~ The Israelites in Egypt and the Early Life of Moses
17 "When the time drew near for the fulfillment of the promise that God pledged to Abraham, the people had increased and become very numerous in Egypt, 18 until another king who knew nothing of Joseph came to power in Egypt.  19 He dealt shrewdly with our people and oppressed our ancestors by forcing them to expose their infants, that they might not survive.  20 At this time Moses was born, and he was extremely beautiful [beautiful to God]. For three months he was nursed in his father's house; 21 but when he was exposed, Pharaoh's daughter adopted him and brought him up as her own son.  22 Moses was educated in all the wisdom of the Egyptians and was powerful in his words and deeds." [..] literal translation, IBGE, vol. IV, page 339.

Just as in St. Paul's case (Acts 22:3), the biographical details of birth, upbringing and education are included in Stephen's description of Moses' early life. Stephen begins by placing the story of Moses within the context of God's prophecy to Abraham concerning the liberation of his descendants from their prophesied sojourn in Egypt (Gen 15:13-14), followed by his summary of the first chapter of the Book of Exodus concerning Moses' childhood. The comment that Moses was "beautiful" (literally "beautiful to God") is to make the case that from birth Moses had a good spirit, he was already selected as God's agent, and God's hand of protection was over him even though he was born in a foreign land.  
Question: What theological point can be made to the reference to Pharaoh's daughter?
Answer: When Moses' mother had to give him up, God arranged for a Gentile woman to rescue him. The works of God in salvation history and the people He uses to fulfill His plan are not limited to the children of Israel.

Acts 7:23-29 ~ The Israelites Reject Moses
23 "When he was forty years old, he decided to visit his kinsfolk, the Israelites.  24 When he saw one of them treated unjustly, he defended and avenged the oppressed man by striking down the Egyptian.  25 He assumed his kinsfolk would understand that God was offering them deliverance through him, but they did not understand.  26 The next day he appeared to them as they were fighting and tried to reconcile them peacefully, saying, Men, you are brothers. Why are you harming one another?' 27 Then one who was harming his neighbor pushed him aside, saying, Who appointed you ruler and judge over us?  28 Are you thinking of killing me as you killed the Egyptian yesterday?'  29 Moses fled when he heard this and settled as an alien in the land of Midian, where he became the father of two sons."

Acts 7:23 When he was forty years old, he decided to visit his kinsfolk, the Israelites. According to Scripture and tradition, Moses' life was divided into three forty-year periods: 

1. The forty years from his birth to his escape from Egypt.
2. The forty years in Midian (Ex 7:7 records that Moses was eighty years old at the time of his return to Egypt, also see Acts 7:30).
3. The forty years Moses led Israel from the Exodus liberation to his death at the border of the Promised Land at 120 years old (Dt 34:7; Acts 7:36). 

Acts 7:25, 27 He assumed his kinsfolk would understand that God was offering them deliverance through him, but they did not understand ...  27Then one who was harming his neighbor pushed him aside, saying, Who appointed you ruler and judge over us?  
This understanding of Moses in verse 25 is entirely missing in the account in Exodus, but it fits the parallel Stephen wants to make to his story of Jesus and the first rejection of Jesus by His kinsmen that is attributed to their "ignorance" by Peter in Acts 3:17. Stephen is continuing his two theological points: that God is not limited to one land and the theme of the rejected delivered. In Moses he will identify the pattern of a double rejection that can be applied to Jesus. The first rejection of Moses was prior to his life in Midian. The rejection by his kinsmen is both verbal and physical in verse 27. The words of rejection are quoted verbatim from Exodus 2:14 LXX and will be repeated again in Acts 7:35 (Johnson, page 127).

Acts 7:29 Moses fled when he heard this and settled as an alien in the land of Midian, where he became the father of two sons.  Stephen relates that Moses leaves his kinsmen and makes a life in a Gentile land where God continues to bless Moses by giving him children. 

Acts 7:30-38 ~ God sent Moses to deliver Israel
30 "Forty years later, an angel appeared to him in the desert near Mount Sinai in the flame of a burning bush.  31 When Moses saw it, he was amazed at the sign, and as he drew near to look at it, the voice of the Lord came, 32 I am the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob.' Then Moses, trembling, did not dare to look at it.  33 But the Lord said to him, Remove the sandals from your feet, for the place where you stand is holy ground.  34 I have witnessed the affliction of my people in Egypt and have heard their groaning, and I have come down to rescue them. Come now, I will send you to Egypt.'  35 This Moses, whom they had rejected with the words, Who appointed you ruler and judge?' God sent as both ruler and delivered, through the angel who appeared to him in the bush.  36 This [one] (man) led them out, performing wonders and signs in the land of Egypt, at the Red Sea, and in the desert for forty years.  37 It was this Moses who said to the Israelites, God will raise up for you, from among your own kinsfolk, a prophet like me.'  38 [This is the one] It was he who, in the assembly in the desert, was with the angel who spoke to him on Mount Sinai and with our ancestors, and he received living utterance to hand on to us." [..] literal translation,  IBGE, vol. IV, page 341.

Stephen summarizes God's call for Moses to become the savior of his people in God's visitation to Moses at Mt. Sinai in Exodus chapter 3.
Question: Notice the reference to "holy ground" in verse 33. How does this quotation from Exodus 3:5-6 support Stephen's overall argument concerning God's divine Presence and the Jerusalem Temple?
Answer: It is God's divine Presence that make a place or person holy and not the physical land or structure.

Acts 7:35-38 This Moses, whom they had rejected with the words, Who appointed you ruler and judge?' [This one] God sent as both ruler and delivered, through the angel who appeared to him in the bush.  36 This [one] (man) led them out, performing wonders and signs in the land of Egypt, at the Red Sea, and in the desert for forty years.  37 It was this Moses who said to the Israelites, God will raise up for you, from among your own kinsfolk, a prophet like me.'  38 [This is the one] It was he who, in the assembly in the desert, was with the angel who spoke to him on Mount Sinai and with our ancestors, and he received living utterance to hand on to us (underlining added).
This is a dramatic turn in Stephen's discourse. He makes three declarative statements in verses 35-39. In verses 35-38 all the statements are hinged by the five times repetition of the demonstrative pronoun "this/this one" and the three relative pronouns which all point to Moses (Johnson, page 129).

Question: Why is the first declaration particularly interesting? See Acts 3:22-23, 36, 38-39.
Answer: It matches the kerygmatic statement of Jesus' rejection and vindication by Peter in his first homily and has the same message.

We can also see the parallel of Jesus' mission to Moses' mission in that the one rejected by humans who is commissioned by God will be sent back by God but with greater power.

37 It was this Moses who said to the Israelites, God will raise up for you, from among your own kinsfolk, a prophet like me.'  This is another reference to God's prophecy to Moses that at some point in salvation history a prophet like Moses will be sent to Israel (Dt 18:17-19). In quoting this passage Stephan is pointing to Jesus to whom the same passage was applied by Peter in his Sanhedrin homily in Acts 3:22-23. Stephen is saying Jesus is the new Moses whose coming Moses prophesied and who they have also rejected.

... was with the angel who spoke to him on Mount Sinai... actually it was God who spoke to Moses on Mt. Sinai (Ex 24:12, 25:1). However, the visual form under which God appeared and spoke was often referred to as "an angel of God" or God Himself (for example Gen 16:7, 13; Ex 14:19, 24f; Num 22:22-35; Judg 6:11-18) so there is no major problem with this statement.

Acts 7:39-43 ~ Israel's Second Rejection of Moses' Leadership
39 "Our ancestors were unwilling to obey him; instead, they pushed him aside and in their hearts turned back to Egypt, 40 saying to Aaron, Make us gods who will be our leaders. As for that Moses who led us out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has happened to him.'  41 So they made a calf in those days, offered sacrifice to the idol, and reveled in the works of their hands.  42 Then God turned and handed them over to worship the host of heaven, as it is written in the book of the prophets: Did you bring me sacrifices and offerings for forty years in the desert, O house of Israel? 43 No, you took up the tent of Moloch and the star of your god Rephan, the images that you made to worship. So I shall take you into exile beyond Babylon.'" [..] literal translation,  IBGE, vol. IV, page 341.

Stephen identifies this event as the second rejection of Moses by his people. The rejection of Moses that led to the sin of the Golden Calf was not only a rejection of Moses but a rejection of God Himself and His divine plan for Israel when the Israelites were seduced by images of false gods. The quote in verse 42 from the book of the prophets refers to the combined works of the twelve Minor Prophets. The citation is from the Septuagint (LXX) translation of Amos 5:25-27 but with a few small alternations.

Question: How is the double rejection of Moses, the savior sent by God, by his kinsmen a parallel event to the rejection of Jesus as Savior and Redeemer?
Answer: First the Jews rejected Jesus as the Savior sent by God when they sent Him to be crucified, and now they continue to reject His deliverance in the Gospel message of salvation through Jesus' disciples and Apostles.

Acts 7:44-50 ~ The Question of the Dwelling-Place of God
44 "Our ancestors had the tent of testimony in the desert just as the One who spoke to Moses directed him to make it according to the pattern he had seen.  45 Our ancestors who inherited it brought it with Joshua when they dispossessed the nations that God drove out from before our ancestors, up to the time of David, 46 who found favor in the sight of God and asked that he might find a dwelling place for the house of Jacob.  47But Solomon built a house for him.  48 Yet the Most High does not dwell in houses made by human hands. As the prophet says: 49 The heavens are my throne, the earth is my footstool. What kind of house can you build for me? says the Lord, or what is to be my resting place?  50 Did not my hand make all these things?'"

The desert Sanctuary was a portable structure that was not bound to one place. The purpose of the Tabernacle was to give Israel visible proof of God's divine Presence and to teach His people about worship through the practice of a defined liturgy. In verse 49 Stephen quotes directly fromIsaiah 66:1-2 LXX with only a few modifications, like moving "says the Lord" from the end of the citation to the middle.
Question: How does Stephen use this quote to support the second part of his theological argument?
Answer: The Temple cannot be perceived as the one focal point for the worship of God. God Himself, speaking through the prophet Isaiah, said that no structure made by human hands can hold Him. God cannot be confined to one place or one people.

Stephen's second theological point that he has been building throughout his discourse is the historical and theological roots of Israel as a nation deny that the land and the Temple are required for the presence of God among His people nor is the Temple necessary for their salvation. God cannot be confined to a structure made by human hands (1 Kng 8:27; Ps 24:1-2; and Is 66:1-2). With the coming of Jesus Christ, Israel had visible proof of God's divine Presence among His people. Jesus, the rejected Savior, is the only means of Israel's salvation. Jesus Christ is the true temple of God, and the Holy Spirit filling the soul of the believer in the Sacrament of Baptism makes the Christian the dwelling place of God among mankind (see CCC 1197 and 1265). 

Acts 7:51-53 ~ Stephen's Conclusion
"You stiff-necked people, uncircumcised in heart and ears, you always oppose the Holy Spirit; you are just like your ancestors. Which of the prophets did your ancestors not persecute? They put to death those who foretold the coming of the righteous one, whose betrayers and murderers you have now become. You received the law as transmitted by angels, but you did not observe it." 
In verses 51-53 there is a shift from the third person to the second person. Stephen addresses the Jews collectively in the same language used by God and His servant Moses (Lev 26:41; Dt 10:16; 30:6; 31:27). No longer summarizing history, Stephen is now challenging his opponents directly concerning their rejection and murder of Jesus. 

Question: What accusations does he make against them?
Answer:

1. They say they love God and revere the Law, but they do not observe the Law and are in opposition to the Holy Spirit (Acts 7:51). 
2. Like their ancestors who killed the prophets who foretold the coming of Jesus, they have killed God's servant Jesus (Acts 7:52).

He presents their rejection of Jesus the Messiah as part of the historical cycle of rejection of God's servants in the history of Israel. 

Question: How are Stephen's charges against the religious authorities similar to Jesus' judgment His generation in Matthew 23:33-24:2? What was the climax of Jesus' judgment?
Answer: These are some of the same charges Jesus made against the religious leaders in Matthew 23:33-39 and 24:2 when Jesus prophesied "your house," the Temple, "will be abandoned and desolate" (Mt 23:38) and "there will not be left here a stone upon another stone that will not be thrown down" (Mt 24:2).

Acts 7:54-60 ~ The martyrdom of St. Stephen
54 When they heard this, they were infuriated, and they ground their teeth at him. 55 But he, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked up intently to heaven and saw the glory of God and Jesus standing at the right hand of God, 56 and he said, "Behold, I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God."  57 But they cried out in a loud voice, covered their ears, and rushed upon him together.  58 They threw him out of the city, and began to stone him. The witnesses laid down their cloaks at the feet of a young man named Saul.  59 As they were stoning Stephen, he called out, "Lord Jesus, receive my spirit."  60 Then he fell to his knees and cried out in a loud voice, "Lord, do not hold this sin against them"; and when he said this, he fell asleep. 

The vision of St. Stephen in prior to his martyrdom gives all believers the hope of heaven.  
When Stephen finished his discourse, he had a vision of the resurrected Jesus coming in glory; it is a vision that is a fulfillment of Daniel 7:13 and Psalms 110:1. In Jesus' trial before the Sanhedrin He alluded to these same two Old Testament passages when He said:  But from this time on the Son of Man will be seated at the right hand of the power of God (Lk 22:69), after which Jesus was condemned to death by the High Priest. Stephen affirms that prophecy Jesus made in front of them at His trial (also see Mt 26:64 and Mk 14:62). The difference is that Stephen sees Jesus "standing" instead of "seated." Perhaps Jesus is standing because He is coming for Stephen. Alluding to these same two messianic passages has the same effect on the leaders of the Sanhedrin as it did when Jesus alluded to the same passages. The members of the Sanhedrin were filled with rage. 

57 But they cried out in a loud voice, covered their ears, and rushed upon him together.  58 They threw him out of the city, and began to stone him. The witnesses laid down their cloaks at the feet of a young man named Saul.  
The members of the Sanhedrin covered their ears as a sign that they were scandalized by what they considered his blasphemy, but they also fulfilled what God told Isaiah concerning those so filled with corruption that they were incapable of hearing or seeing acts of God's holy prophet (Is 6:9-10). So infuriated were the members of the Sanhedrin that they condemned Stephen despite the fact that false witnesses were used to accuse Stephen of blasphemy (Acts 6:11, 13-14). According to the Law if it is proved that false testimony was given in a trial, the false witness is to suffer the same fate as what would have been the fate of the accused. In a death penalty case, the fate of false witnesses was death (Ex 20:16; Dt 19:16-21). These men who profess to love the Law of God were willing to break the Law by condemning Stephen with false witnesses. They are also willing to defy Roman law that denied provincial governments the authority to condemn someone to death (see Jn 18:31; only Rome had the power of life and death over the provinces they ruled). The Sanhedrin condemned Stephen to death by stoning "the punishment for blasphemy under the Law of Moses (Num 15:36; Lev 24:14). Like Jesus, Stephen is taken to an unclean place outside the city gates (Dt 17:5). Present at the execution was an officer of the court named Saul. He will soon experience his own vision of the resurrected Christ "it will be an experience that will transform this young man in to the great evangelist St. Paul. 

59 As they were stoning Stephen, he called out, "Lord Jesus, receive my spirit."  60 Then he fell to his knees and cried out in a loud voice, "Lord, do not hold this sin against them"; and when he said this, he fell asleep.  
Those false witnesses in Acts 6:13-14 are the ones who laid their cloaks at Saul/Paul's feet and began to stone Stephen. According to the Law those who witnessed against the one condemned in a death-penalty trial are the commanded to cast the first stones in an execution by stoning (Dt 17:7). 

Stephen entrusts his spirit to his Lord and Savior just as Jesus did in His last words from the Cross before His death when He said Father, into your hands I commend my spirit (Lk 23:46); and then Stephen cries out words of mercy for his murderers just as Jesus did from the Cross when He said: Father, forgive them for they know not what they do (Lk 23:34). Then "he fell asleep." Christians understood that death was not permanent ""falling asleep" was the term that came to be used for the time between physical death and entrance into eternal life and/or the period between physical death and the bodily resurrection of the dead at the Second Advent of Christ (1 Cor 15:6, 18; 1 Thes 4:13, 15; 2 Pt 3:4).

Thus, the parallels between Stephen's martyrdom and Jesus' Passion are complete:

	Jesus	Stephen
His opponents could not withstand his wisdom.	No one was able to answer him a word, nor from that day on did anyone dare to ask him any more questions (Mt 22:46). And they no longer dared to ask him anything (Lk 20:40). Also Mt 22:46; Mk 12:17; Lk 20:19, 26, 40.	... but they could not withstand the wisdom and the spirit with which he spoke (Acts 6:10).
His enemies conspired against him to arrest him.	For the chief priests and the Pharisees had given orders that if anyone knew where he was, he should inform them, so they might arrest him (Jn 11:57). Also Mt 26:3-4; Mk 14:1; Lk 22:2; Jn 11:47-53, 57.	They stirred up the people, the elders, and the scribes, accosted him, seized him, and brought him before the Sanhedrin (Acts 6:12).
They brought forward false witnesses.	The chief priests and the entire Sanhedrin kept trying to obtain false testimony against Jesus ... (Mt 26:59). Also Mt 26:59-62;Mk 14:56-57.	They presented false witnesses who testified ...(Acts 6:13).
The charge of blasphemy was made against him.	He has blasphemed! What further need have we of witnesses? You have now heard the blasphemy ... (Mt 26:65-66). Also Mt 26:65-66; Mk 14:56-57; 64.	Then they instigated some men to say, "We have heard him speaking blasphemous words against Moses and God" (Acts 6:11).
There was a petition of mercy for the executioners.	Then Jesus said, "Father, forgive them, they know not what they do" (Lk 23:34).	Then he fell to his knees and cried out in a loud voice, "Lord, do not hold this sin against them ... (Acts 7:60).
He asked God to take his spirit.	Jesus cried out in a loud voice, "Father, into your hands I commend my spirit" (Lk 23:46).	As they were stoning Stephen, he called out, "Lord Jesus, receive my spirit" (Acts 7:59)
Michal E. Hunt Copyright © 2012

There is no more complete answer as to why a just God allows the innocent to suffer than the answer that is offered up to humanity in the saving work of Jesus Christ. In addressing the question of human suffering and reflecting on this mystery, John Paul II wrote: Christ has opened His suffering to man ... Man, discovering through faith the redemptive suffering of Christ, also discovers in it his own sufferings; he rediscovers them through faith, enriched with a new content and meaning (Salvifici Doloris, 20). Stephen was the first Christian martyr. He was buried by devout brother Christians who mourned his death (8:2).⁽³⁾

How can the discrepancies in Stephen's discourse that do not agree with the traditions recorded in the HebrewTorah of Moses be explained? Is it possible that Stephen is not relating traditions of the Israelites but traditions of the Samaritans? It has been suggested by some scholars that Stephen was a Samaritan. If he was a Samaritan it would explain why he said that Abraham didn't leave Haran until after Terah's death. According to the Samaritan text of Genesis 11:32, Terah died when he was one hundred and forty-five years old which would make his death in the same year that Abraham left for Canaan. It was either a textual error in the Samaritan Torah or an intentional editorial correction so that Abraham was not a bad son who abandoned an aged father. Then, according to Stephen, Abraham was buried at Shechem. We know that the five pagan peoples who became the Samaritans (2 Kng 17:6, 24-33), altered the text of the Torah/Pentateuch when they adopted the worship of Yahweh from the exiled Israelites of the Northern Kingdom in the late 8^th century BC; for example the Torah adopted from the Northern Kingdom read that the site of God's Temple was to be on Mt. Gerizim and not Jerusalem and that Abraham was buried at Shechem in Samaria and not Hebron in the Southern Kingdom of Judah and its Jerusalem Temple. If Stephen was raised on the Samaritan Torah, it would be the tradition he would refer to. It may also explain the anti-Temple tone of verses 47-50 and the flow of the narrative to the spread of the Gospel to Samaria in the following chapters. 

St. Stephen's discourse is a pivotal moment in salvation history. Like Moses, Stephen makes the accusation that they are a people only circumcised in body and not in their hearts (Dt 10:16). Once again Jesus, "the Righteous One" (7:52) has been presented to the religious leaders of Israel, and once again they, the "uncircumcised in heart and ears" who "oppose the Holy Spirit" (7:51) like their fathers, have rejected Jesus the promised Messiah sent by God. Ironically in their injustice to God's servant St. Stephen, their rejection of his witness to Israel's deliverer Jesus Christ, and their murder of Stephen who is another of God's holy prophets, they will have opened the door of salvation to the wider world of the Gentiles and closed the door to limiting the worship of God to the Jerusalem Temple. The next step in the marching orders Jesus gave the Apostles at His Ascension is about to be fulfilled (Acts 1:8). Events like this gave rise to the saying "the blood of the martyrs becomes the seeds of faith for the growth of the Church."
The tomb of St. Stephen is located beneath the Church of St. Stephen outside the walls of Jerusalem.⁽⁴⁾

Agape Bible Study Romans 11 -12 

Please read Romans 11:1-10: The Faithful Remnant of Israel Set Aside by Grace

"1 What I am saying is this: is it possible that God abandoned his people? Out of the question!  I too am an Israelite, descended from Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin. 2 God never abandoned his own people to whom, ages ago, he had given recognition.  Do you not remember what Scripture says about Elijah and how he made a complaint to God against Israel:  3 Lord, they have put your prophets to the sword, torn down your altars.  I am the only one left, and now they want to kill me?  4 And what was the prophetic answer given?  I have spared for myself seven thousand men that have not bent the knee to Baal.  5  In the same way, then, in our own time, there is a remnant, set aside by grace.  6 And since it is by grace, it cannot now be by good actions, or grace would not be grace at all!  7 What follows?  Israel failed to find what it was seeking; only those who were chosen found it and the rest had their minds hardened; 8 just as it says in Scripture: God has infused them with a spirit of lethargy; until today they have not eyes to see or ears to hear.  9 David too says: 10 May their own table prove a trap for them, a pitfall and a snare; let that be their retribution.  May their eyes grow so dim they cannot see, and their backs be bent for ever."

 

This is the third time Paul has used the phrase, "is it possible" to form a rhetorical question:

• Romans 10:18: "is it possible they have not heard"
• Romans 10:19: "is it possible that Israel did not understand"
• Romans 11:1: "is it possible that God abandoned his people"

 

The first two times Paul used the phrase to introduce a denunciation of Israel but now he uses it as an announcement of Yahweh's faithfulness to His Covenant people and their promise of salvation.  With the exception of a faithful remnant Israel has reject her Messiah and therefore salvation but Israel remains God's Chosen People and the preservation of the faithful remnant is God's pledge of Israel's future restoration.

 

Question: Paul 3^rd "is it possible" is the prelude to what rhetorical question?

Answer: "has God abandoned his people?"  

 

Paul is providing another Old Testament quote by citing Psalms 44 for a second time [see 44:9 in Romans 11:1]: Psalms 44:2"Yet now you have abandoned and humiliated us, you no longer take the field with our armies, you leave us to fall back before the enemy, those who hate us plunder us at will [verses 9-10]."  This Psalm contains a verse previously quoted by Paul in Romans 8:36 where he cited verse 22 when writing of the persecution and suffering.  The entire passage from Psalms 44 is a lament to Yahweh during a period of persecution and suffering for the covenant people as David struggled as God's anointed to lead the Chosen People:

• Psalm 44:2-9: Reminding God of His past favors to Israel for which the community has been grateful
• Psalm 44:10-17: Cries out that God has abandoned His people to defeat and humiliation
• Psalm 44:18-23: The community pledges loyalty and is unaware of any violation of the Covenant
• Psalm 44:24-27: A cry of the community for redemption in their struggle to remain faithful amid God's divine silence.

The psalm ends with the anguished cry "Awake! Why do you sleep, O Lord?  Rise up!  Do not reject us forever!  Why do you hide your face; why forget our pain and misery?  We are bowed down to the ground; our bodies are pressed to the earth.  Rise up, help us!  Redeem us as your love demands." This has certainly been the cry of the Israel that has been cut off from the New Covenant in Christ down through the centuries'an Israel without a Temple and without a homeland until 1947.

 

Psalm 44 anticipates the lament of Judah after the destruction of Jerusalem and Solomon's Temple in 587/6BC as recorded in the Book of Lamentation.  In that great catastrophe Israel suffered defeat and exile, yet God had not abandoned His people.  Through His holy Prophet Jeremiah God promised restoration of His Chosen People in the great passage found in Jeremiah 31:31-34 which, after the prophecies of suffering, destruction, and continued exile, Yahweh promises the restoration of both Israel and Judah as well as the formation of a New Covenant. Then in Jeremiah 31:37 Yahweh promises: "Were the heavens above ever to be measured, the foundations of the earth below ever to be fathomed, then I too would reject the whole race of Israel for all that they have done, Yahweh declares." In this passage Yahweh affirms that no matter how unfaithful Israel becomes He will never abandoned them or His promises made to them.

[also see Deuteronomy 4:25-28 curse of dispersal; see Deuteronomy 4: 29-31 = promise of restoration].

 

It is from the assurance of such Biblical passages that Paul can answer his own rhetorical question in Romans 11:1 with an emphatic "Out of the question!"

Question: Despite Paul's role as a Christian Apostle how does he identify himself at the end of verse 1?

Answer: As an Israelite [a member of one of the 12 tribes of Israel], as a descendant of Abraham, and as a member of the tribe of Benjamin.  Paul is both an Israelite [from one of the 12 tribes of Israel] and a Jew [from the nation of Judah].  Paul can still boast of his heritage as one of the "Chosen People." 

 

Question: Paul proudly mentions his patrimony in the Tribe of Benjamin.  What had been this tribe's role in the history of the Chosen People and in the Kingdoms of Israel and Judah?  See Numbers 1:36; Deuteronomy 33:12; 1 Samuel 9:14-16; 11:15; 1 Kings 12:21-23; 2 Chronicles 11:1.  

Answer: Benjamin was the least populous of the 12 Tribes. The first king to rule a united Israel was Saul of the tribe of Benjamin.  The Tribe of Benjamin remained loyal to the descendants of King David and was the only tribe to unite with Judah to form the Southern Kingdom of Judah.  In the blessings of the tribes by Moses before his death Moses speaks favorably of Benjamin: "Beloved of Yahweh, he rests trustfully near him.  The Most High protects him day after day and dwells between his hillsides."

 

Paul's point in his argument is that he intimately understands God's dealings with Israel because he is part of Israel through descent and training and he knows personally from his own faith journey that God is patient and merciful has not rejected the physical descendants of Abraham and Jacob/Israel.   The link to the physical descent of the "promise seed" will become crucial in his argument in this part of his letter.  He and other Jewish Christians are proof that God has not abandoned His people Israel who have been favored by His grace to establish the New Covenant Church of Jesus the Messiah.

 

In Romans 11:2-4 Paul will offer Scriptural proof of God's continuing faithfulness in times that may even seem hopeless to man's perception of events.  Paul answers his question with a quote from 1 Samuel 12:22: "Yahweh, for the sake of his great name, will not desert his people, for it has pleased Yahweh to make you His people." The New American translation renders this passage: "For the sake of his own great name the LORD will not abandon his people, since the LORD himself chose to make you his people." Then Paul offers in evidence to support his argument, God's revelation to the Prophet Elijah in 1 Kings 19:10, 14.

 

Please read 1 Kings 18:1-19:18.  

King Ahab of Israel [874-853BC] and his Queen, Jezebel, daughter of the King of Sidon, abandoned Yahweh to worshipped false gods.  When criticized by the prophets of Yahweh they set about to systemically exterminating Yahweh's covenant representatives.  Finally only the Prophet Elijah was left to stand against Israel immersed in the sins of idolatry and apostasy and to stand up for Yahweh as the One True God.  In a showdown with the priests of Baal on Mt. Carmel, Elijah emerges victorious but his victory has placed his life in jeopardy again and the prophet feels that all of Israel has abandoned the true faith while he stands alone on the side of God.  In despair he asks God to take his life [1 Kings 19:4].  In His mercy God takes Elijah on a journey of spiritual renewal to Mt. Sinai, the scene of the establishment of Israel's covenant with Yahweh, but Elijah cries out in despair:  "I am full of jealous zeal for Yahweh, God Sabaoth, because the Israelites have abandoned your covenant, have torn down your altars and put your prophets to the sword.  I am the only one left and now they want to kill me [1 Kings 19:14]." This is the passage Paul quotes in Romans 11:3.

 

Question: How does Elijah's cry compare to the deep emotions the Jewish Christians are feeling concerning their brothers "in the flesh" and their rejection by these "brothers"?

Answer: They also feel alone in their struggle to serve Christ in the New Covenant'abandoned by their "brothers" Israel.

 

Question: In Romans 11:4 Paul quotes Yahweh's prophetic answer to Elijah from 1 Kings 19:19.  How does the citing of this Old Testament text become a word of hope for Jewish Christians?  

Answer: Yahweh assures Elijah that he will bring judgment on the people of Israel for abandoning His covenant [1 Kings 19:15-17], and then God promises there will be a faithful remnant that will be preserved in the coming destruction: "But I shall spare seven thousand in Israel; all the knees that have not bent before Baal, all the mouths that have not kissed him." The Jewish Christians can take hope from God's words to Elijah.  Even though they cannot see why their brothers have failed to embrace the New Covenant in Christ they can be assured that God has a divine plan'just as in Elijah's time, God has permitted the present unbelief of Israel to work toward the mysterious fulfillment of His plan, which is in this case to bring the salvation of Jesus Christ to humanity.  

 

Note: The number 7 thousand is more significant spiritual than numerically.  7 is one of the "perfect" numbers in Scripture and it is the number of God the Holy Spirit.  In this passage the number 7 multiplied into an abundance [times 1000 which is an abundance of "perfection of order"] probably indicates the "perfect" number of the faithful according to God's divine plan [see the document "The Significance of Numbers in Scripture" in the Documents section].

 

Question: In Elijah's time God preserved a faithful remnant to serve Him.  Who is that faithful remnant in Paul's time and how are they called?  See Romans 11:5

Answer: The Jewish Christians are those "in our own time.... a remnant set aside by grace" [Romans 11:5] and the prophesized remnant of Zechariah 13:9. [Also see these passages for Scripture on the theme of the holy remnant: 2 Kings 19:4, 30-31; 

Ezra 3:8; 9:8; Isaiah 10:20-22; 11:11, 16; 37:31-32; 46:3; Jeremiah 23:3; 31:7; 42:1-2; Ezekiel 14:22; Hosea 3:4-5; Micah 2:12; 4:7; 5:1-3; Zephaniah 2:7; 3:11-13; Haggai 1:12-15; Zechariah 8:6-8, 12-13; 13:7-9]. 

 

Question:  Will this faithful remnant of New Covenant believers have to endure suffering and hardship just as other faithful remnants of God's Covenant people down through Salvation History?  

Answer: Yes, first from their Jewish brethren and later from an organized persecution orchestrated by the Roman Empire that began in 64AD and ended in 313AD.  This persecution against God's people was first prophesized in Genesis 3:15 in the enmity between the "seed of the woman" and the "seed of the serpent", and is the persecution again prophesized by John in Revelation 12:17: "Then the dragon was enraged with the woman and went away to make war on the rest of her children, who obey God's commandments and have in themselves the witness of Jesus."

 

Question: In Romans 11:6 to what does Paul attribute this faithful remnant's call to obedience to Yahweh and His plan of salvation?

Answer: Their response to grace.  The fact that the Jewish Christian's position as the faithful remnant of Israel stemmed from their response to grace excludes any suggestion that they pursued righteousness through the Law of Moses thereby earning this special place. See CCC# 1997; 1999; 2011.

 

Question: In Romans 11:7 what is it that Israel was seeking?  See Romans 9:30-31

Answer: Israel sought righteousness'a condition of "rightness" with God which is the basis of salvation.  

 

Question: Who is it who found this right relationship with God?  

Answer: The faithful remnant of Israel who responded to God's grace as His chosen elect of the New Covenant in Christ Jesus.

 

Question: Why did the majority of Israel not respond to this grace?

Answer: God hardened their minds as He hardened the heart of Pharaoh in the first Exodus.  Jesus mission was to lead the second exodus'the exodus out of sin and death and into the Gates of Eternity in Heaven.

 

Romans 11:7-9  "7 What follows?  Israel failed to find what it was seeking; only those who were chosen found it and the rest had their minds hardened; 

The "hardening" of Israel's minds recalls the prophecy of Isaiah 6:10-11 when Isaiah was commissioned to go to the Northern Kingdom of Israel to call the people to repentance but was also warned by Yahweh, "Go, and say to this people, 'Listen and listen, but never understand!  Look and look, but never perceive!'  Make this people's heart coarse, make their ears dull, shut their eyes tight, or they will use their eyes to see, use their ears to hear, use their heart to understand, and change their ways and be healed.'"  In Isaiah's day the people did not head Isaiah's call to repentance.  His preaching was met by disbelief and indifference.  God did not desire this response, but He foresaw it and incorporated it into His divine plan just as He foresaw Pharaoh's hard heart and incorporated that man's arrogance and stubborn nature into His divine plan for the deliverance of the children of Israel so too now does Israel's hardness of heart become part of the plan for the deliverance of the Gentiles.  This same Isaiah passage is quoted in the New Testament by Jesus in Matthew 13:13-15 when He explains why He teaches in parables, "The reason I talk to them in parables is that they look without seeing and listen without hearing or understanding. So in their case what was spoken by the prophet Isaiah is being fulfilled: 'Listen and listen, but never understand!  Look and look, but never perceive! This people's heart has grown coarse, their ears dulled, they have shut their eyes tight."  Jesus' point was that the Jews who rejected Him exhibited a deliberate insensibility which was both the cause and the explanation of their stubbornness to resist the truth and which resulted in God's withdrawal of grace  [also see John 12:40; Acts 28:26-27].    

 

8 just as it says in Scripture: God has infused them with a spirit of lethargy; until today they have not eyes to see or ears to hear.  9 David too says: 10 May their own table prove a trap for them, a pitfall and a snare; let that be their retribution.  May their eyes grow so dim they cannot see, and their backs be bent for ever."

Paul links together three Old Testament passages from the Septuagint: Deuteronomy 29:3 with Isaiah 29:10 closely followed by a Psalm he attributes to David in Psalms69:23-24:

• Isaiah 29:10: "For Yahweh has infused your will a spirit of lethargy, he has closed your eyes, he has veiled your heads."
• Deuteronomy 29:3: "But until today Yahweh has not given you a heart to understand, eyes to see, or ears to hear."
• Psalm 69:22-23: "May their own table prove a trap for them, and their abundance a snare; may their eyes grow so dim that they cannot see, all their muscles lose their strength."  

 

It is Paul's contention that just as the Northern Kingdom was in a self-inflicted stupor when Isaiah and the other prophets preached to them about coming to repentance or facing God's judgment so too was Israel/Judah in a self-inflicted stupor and did not see the miracles worked in the name of God the Son, nor hear the message of the Gospel of salvation.  And then he quotes a passage from David's lament to God for deliverance from personal betrayal and suffering with a plea for justice for his enemies.  

 

It is interesting that Psalm 69:22-23 is immediately followed by the significant verses 24-25'verse 25 is quoted by St. Peter in Acts 1:20 when he applied this verse to Judas the betrayer after which Peter leads the Apostles in choosing a successor for Judas.  Peter advises the Apostles, "Now in the Book of Psalm it says: 'Reduce his encampment to ruin and leave his tent unoccupied." It is significant that two Judas' were chosen to be Apostles'both named after Judah, physical father of the tribe of Judah: Judas son of James and Judas Iscariot the traitor.  Both men can represent Judah as a whole'one man following Jesus with sincerity and love recognizing and accepting Him as Messiah and Savior and the other Judah rejected Jesus and sought his own path.  In quoting this passage Paul seems to be calling for judgment on those who have rejected the Messiah but as in the case of the Northern Kingdom Paul wants a judgment that leads to redemption of the whole people.  

 

Several years earlier writing on this very subject of the closed minds of the Jews Paul had written to the Church in Corinth, "With a hope like this, we can speak with complete fearlessness; not like Moses who put a veil over his face so that the Israelites should not watch the end of what was transitory.  But their minds were closed; indeed, until this very day, the same veil remains over the reading of the Old Testament: it is not lifted, for only in Christ is it done away with.  As it is, to this day, whenever Moses is read, their hearts are covered with a veil, and this veil will not be taken away till they turn to the Lord.  Now this Lord is the Spirit and where the Spirit of the Lord is there is freedom.  And all of us, with our unveiled faces like mirrors reflecting the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the image that we reflect in brighter and brighter glory; this is the working of the Lord who is the Spirit." 2 Corinthians 3:12-18.  

 

In this Corinthians passage Paul is referring to an event in Exodus 34:30 when Moses' face, after being in the presence of Yahweh, reflected the glory of God.  The children of Israel were awed by the phenomenon of God's glory being reflected on the face of Moses and this reflected glory added to his stature among the people.  But God's reflected glory on Moses was transitory and to hide the fact that it faded when he was not in God's presence Moses covered his face with a veil.  This transitory character of the glory of God upon His covenant mediator shows, according to St. Paul, the imperfect transitory nature of the Old Covenant as compared to the infused divine image of Christ in the New Covenant believer in whom God's glory is no longer transitory but which comes from the indwelling light of the Holy Spirit and reveals the Christian as an increasingly faithful image of God in the person of the Son.  For those who continue in the Old Covenant their minds are darkened and the light of the Gospel is not revealed to them so long as their minds remain closed.  But for the Christian, their hearts and minds have been opened.  As Paul continues in 2 Corinthians 4:6, "It is God who said, 'Let light shine out of darkness,' that has shone into our hearts to enlighten them with the knowledge of God's glory, the glory on the face of Christ." [also see 2 Corinthians 2:12-18].

 

Please read Romans 11:11-15: The Future Restoration of Israel

"11 What I am saying is this: Was this stumbling to lead to their final downfall?  Out of the question!  On the contrary, their failure has brought salvation for the Gentiles, in order to stir them to envy.  12 And if their fall has proved a great gain to the world, and their loss has proved a great gain to the Gentiles'how much greater a gain will come when all is restored to them!  13 Let me say then to you Gentiles that, as far as I am an apostle to the Gentiles, I take pride in this work of service; 14 and I want  it to be the means of rousing to envy the people who are my own blood-relations and so of saving some of them.  15 Since their rejection meant the reconciliation of the world, do you know what their acceptance will mean?  Nothing less than life from the dead!" 

 

Question: In verse 11 Paul is asking was it God's intention when He allowed Israel to stumble over the "stumbling stone" that is Christ [see Matthew 21:42; Mark 12:10; Luke 20:17-18; Romans 9:32-33; Acts 4:11; 1 Corinthians 1:23; Ephesians 2:20;1 Peter 2:2-8; Isaiah 8:14; 28:16;  Daniel 2:35, 44-45; Zechariah 3:1-10], that their fall should be irredeemable?  How does Paul answer his own rhetorical question?  

Answer: His answer is that their "stumbling" has brought salvation to the Gentiles!

Question: And what is the desired effect of Yahweh's salvation being given to the Gentiles?

Answer: It is interesting that Paul will repeat the word envy or jealously [arouse to jealousy/ envy = parazeloo] 3 times in Romans 10:19; 11:12; and 11:14 as a key to understanding God's plan that at first veiled the minds of the Israelites and will later bring them to salvation. The Gospel of salvation will stir them to envy the riches of the blessings of the New Covenant people and that they too will be stirred to accept through grace the salvation of Jesus Christ,  the "stone" that was prophesied by Daniel: "In those days the God of heaven  will set up a kingdom which will never be destroyed, and this kingdom will not pass into the hands of another race; it will shatter and absorb all the previous kingdoms and itself last for ever'just as you saw a stone, untouched by hand, break away from the mountain [Old Covenant /Temple] and reduce iron, bronze, earthenware, silver and gold to powder."  Through God's design Israel has stumbled, and yet the Israelites are still the Chosen People through the holy 'remnant" who functions in God's plan the as Israel's representative, as the nucleus of the universal Church, and as the pledge of God's promise of the future restoration of all Israel [see Isaiah's promise in 4:3-6].

 

Question: In Romans 11:12 Paul writes that Israel's loss is:

1. a great gain to the world
2. a great gain for the Gentiles
3. a great gain for Israelites when they are restored [literal = "the fullness of them"]

Why?

Answer: 

1. Israel's renunciation of the Messiah forces the faithful remnant to carry the Gospel message of salvation to the world'thereby fulfilling the world-wide blessing promised to Abraham beginning in Genesis 12:3
2. The gain of the Gentiles is the wealth of their inheritance'the rich inheritance in which they have come to share in what was formerly solely the inheritance of Israel'knowledge of the One True God and the hope of salvation.  Carrying the Gospel message to the world brings the Gentile nations back into covenant with God as children of His holy universal family, the Catholic Church.  
3. The 10 tribes who were scattered among the Gentile nations'the lost Israel, are now to be fully restored to their place of destiny as children of God in the universal Church!  This is what the prophets promised from the time of the exile of the 10 Northern tribes beginning with the first of the exiles out of the Galilee with the tribes of Zebulum and Naphtali taken into captivity in 732 BC.  It was for this reason that Jesus began His ministry to restore Israel in this very area where the loss of Israel began [see Matthew 4:12-16; Isaiah 8:23-9:1].

 

It is Paul's belief in the promises of God made through His holy prophets that gives him the confidence to make this claim!  The prophet Isaiah prophesized the fulfillment of the world-wide blessing and the ingathering of the nations in Isaiah 66:18, "I am coming to gather every nation and every language.  They will come to witness my glory."

 

Question: What are some of the other prophecies that promise reunification of both the Northern Kingdom of Israel [also referred to as Ephraim] and the Southern Kingdom of Judah?  Hint: see Isaiah 11:10-16; 66:18-24; Ezekiel 34:11-16; 36:24-27; 37:26-28; Hosea 2:21-25; Amos 9:11-15; Micah 5:1-4 (Incarnation & Pentecost linked to Revelation 12:17).

Answer: Please read Ezekiel 37:1-28

Some other key prophecies of reunification:

• The reunification of the nation of Israel by the 8^th century prophet Isaiah: "That day, the root of Jesse, standing as a signal for the peoples, will be sought out by the nations and its home will be glorious.  When that day comes, the Lord will raise his hand a second time to ransom the remnant of his people, those still left, from Assyria, from Egypt, from Pathros, Cush and Elam, from Shinar, Hamath and the islands [coasts] of the Sea.  He will hoist a signal for the nations and assemble the outcasts of Israel; he will gather the scattered people of Judah from the four corners of the earth.  Then Ephraim's jealousy will cease and Judah's enemies be suppressed.   Ephraim will no longer be jealous of Judah nor Judah any longer hostile to Ephraim... [...].   Isaiah 11:10-13

 

• "For I shall take you from among the nations and gather you back from all the countries, and bring you home to you own country.  I shall pour clean water over you and you will be cleansed; I shall cleanse you of all your filth and of all your foul idols.  I shall give you a new heart, and put a new spirit in you; I shall remove the heart of stone from your bodies and give you a heart of flesh instead.  I shall put my spirit in you, and make you keep my laws and respect and practice my judgments." Ezekiel 36:24-27

 

• The prophecy of Israel and Judah being reunited as one kingdom by the 6^th century Prophet Ezekiel: "David my servant is to be their prince for ever.  I shall make a covenant of peace with them, an eternal covenant with them.  I shall resettle them and make them grow; I shall set my sanctuary among them for ever.  I shall make my home above them; I shall be their God, and they will be my people.  And the nations will know that I am Yahweh the sanctifier of Israel, when my sanctuary is with them forever." Ezekiel 37:26-28

 

In Romans 11:13-15 Paul speaks of his pride in being an Apostle to the Gentiles.

Question: If Paul is only the Apostle to the Gentiles why should be feel so strongly about the fulfillment of these prophecies?  How do they relate to him personally?  Hint: see Acts 9:10-15.

Answer: The reunification of Israel as a Covenant people is Paul's mission.  When Paul suffered in blindness and repentance in Damascus after his conversion experience, God told Ananias concerning Paul: "Go, for this man is my chosen instrument to bring my name before Gentiles and kings and before the people of Israel."  God didn't say "Judah"'Paul's mission is to bring the lost tribes of Israel back into the covenant family by bring them in from the Gentile peoples in whom their blood has been mixed down through the centuries.  

 

Question: How is it that Paul hopes to stir his Israelite brothers to envy [Romans 11:14-15]?  What comparison is he making with this stirring to envy and acceptance of the Messiah?

Answer: He is comparing the ingathering of the lost tribes into the New Covenant with the resurrection from the dead.  But what he means by this comparison is not so clear.  He may be comparing the resurrection of the spiritually dead Israel to their rebirth in baptism of new life in Christ for those who carry the blood of Abraham even unknowingly in Gentile nations with Jesus' first resurrection [see Romans 6:4], or he may be saying that the conversion of Israel will be such a miracle that it can only be compared with the Final Resurrection at the end of time.

 

Please read Romans 11:16-24: Israel is the Root from which flourishes the New Covenant Church

"16 When the firstfruits are made holy, so is the whole batch; and if the root is holy, so are the branches. 17  Now suppose that some branches were broken off, and you are wild olive, grafted among the rest to share with the others the rich sap of the olive tree; 18 then is it not for you to consider yourself superior to the other branches; and if you start feeling proud, think: it is not you that sustain the root, but the root that sustains you.       19 You will say, 'Branches were broken off on purpose for me to be grafted in.'   True;        20 they through their unbelief were broken off, and you are established through your faith.  So it is not pride that you should have, but fear: 21 if God did not spare the natural branches, he might not spare you either.  22 Remember God's severity as well as his goodness: his severity to those who fell, and his goodness to you as long as you persevere in it; if not, you to will be cut off.  23 And they, if they do not persevere in their unbelief, will be grafted in; for it is within the power of God to graft them back again. 24 After all, if you, cut off from what was by nature a wild olive, could then be grafted unnaturally on to a cultivated olive, how much easier will it be for them, the branches that naturally belong there to be grafted on to the olive tree which is their own."

 

Romans 11:16"When the firstfruits are made holy, so is the whole batch"  

God's people were to be holy in all aspects of their lives'including what they ate.  The very first gain of the barley harvest and the wheat harvest was to be brought to the Temple and blessed by the Priests in order for the whole harvest to be holy and also the grain that would be ground to make their dough for bread.  

 

Question: Consult the chart on the Seven Sacred Feasts of the Old Covenant in the Charts section of Agape Bible Study.  What are the two Holy Days of obligation of the Old Covenant in which the barley and wheat harvests are first blessed?

Answer: The Feast of Firstfruits during the Holy Week of Passover and Unleavened Bread and the Feast of Weeks, also called Pentecost came 50 days later.

 

Question: What significant New Covenant event occurred during the Feast of Firstfruits during Jesus' final Passover week and what significant event occurred 50 days later?   See the chart on the Seven Sacred Feasts of the Old Covenant.

Answer: Jesus arose from the dead on the morning of the Feast of Firstfruits and God the Holy Spirit filled and indwelled the New Covenant Church on the Feast of Weeks/Pentecost 50 days later.

 

Through the spiritual fulfillment of these two Old Covenant holy days, Jesus became the firstfruits of the resurrection to new life and thereafter all who followed Him to resurrection through baptism would be made holy because He is holy.  In the same way, the sanctification of the Church at Pentecost by the Holy Spirit assured the sanctification of the rest of the "harvest" of souls and the Holy Spirit's sanctification of the "bread" of the Eucharist from which these resurrected children of God would receive nourishment on their journey of faith.

 

This verse also points toward the future conversion of Israel [see Romans 11:11-15].  In this sense the "holy batch" or firstfruits is the firstfruits of Israel'the holy remnant upon whom God the Holy Spirit descended on the Feast of Weeks/Pentecost'the wheat harvest.  These "firstfruits" of holiness are a reliable sign that the whole of the Old Covenant people will be made holy in the harvest of believers.   The unbelieving part of Israel still retains a solidarity with this holy firstfruits of Christianity who was wholly Israel.  The faithful remnant causes the rest to share to some extent in its holiness just as a handful of yeast dough expands the whole batch.  This spiritual unity is foreshadowed in the requirements of the firstfruits of the bread under the Old Covenant requirement in Numbers 15:17-21: "Yahweh spoke to Moses and said, 'Speak to the Israelites and say: 'When you have entered the country to which I am bringing you, you will set a portion aside for Yahweh when you eat that country's bread.  You will set one cake aside as the first fruits of your dough; you will set this offering aside like the one set aside from your threshing.  For all future generations you will set a portion of your dough aside for Yahweh." The portion set aside from the threshing was the portion presented at the Temple for the 2 feast days that foreshadowed the Resurrection and the Second Great Pentecost, but the cake set aside is also the "firstfruits" of the holy remnant of Jewish Christians.

 

Romans 11:16-17:"16 and if the root is holy, so are the branches." 17  Now suppose that some branches were broken off, and you are wild olive, grafted among the rest to share with the others the rich sap of the olive tree;

The prophets of Israel often compared the nation in full communion with Yahweh to a fruitful olive or fig tree or a fruitful vineyard but the when the Covenant people fall away from God the nation becomes a barren tree only yielding diseased fruit and only good for the trash heap.  Read Isaiah 5:1-2; 27:2-5; Psalm 80:8-11, 14-16; Jeremiah 2:21; 11:16-19; 6:9 (remnant); 8:13; Ezekiel 15:1-8; 17:1-10; 19:10-14; Hosea 9:16-10:1; 14:6; Matthew 21:18-19; Mark 11:12-14; 20-24; Luke 13:6-9.  

Question: In this imagery, if Israel is the tree/vine then what are the "roots" of the Old Covenant nation of Israel?

Answer: The fathers/patriarchs.  

The individual Israelites in this imagery are represented by the branches that are nourished by the sap from the healthy roots which God Himself has sanctified by divine election through the Covenant bond.

 

But now in the New Covenant our nourishment comes from what was prophesied to flourish from the stump that was Jesse: 'A shoot will spring from the stock of Jesse, a new shoot [netzer = branch] will grow from his roots.  On him will rest the spirit of Yahweh..."Isaiah 11:1-2a

Question: Who is the Branch from the stock of Jesse?  Hint: see 1 Samuel 16:1; Matthew 1:1-16.

Answer: Jesus of Nazareth, descendant of King David, son of Jesse of Bethlehem, born in the Jesse's town of Bethlehem but raised in Nazareth, which is entomologically lined to the Hebrew word netzer = branch or shoot.

Question:   How do the branches of the New Covenant "tree" remain healthy?  Hint: John 15:1-8.  What is the "sap" that gives nourishment to the New Covenant?

Answer: Christians must "remain" in Christ who is the True Vine. The Holy Spirit is the sap that feeds the branches that bear good fruit = 7 gifts of the Holy Spirit [Isaiah 11:1-2]; the 12 fruits of the Spirit [Galatians 5:22-23]; and the Most Holy Eucharist.

 

In Romans 11:17 Paul writes of broken off branches and grafted branches.

Question: Who are the broken branches, who are the branches that remain in place, and who are the grafted in wild olive branches?

Answer: Individual Jews who have not accepted the Gospel of salvation are the broken branches while Jewish Christians are the branches that remain in tact.  The wild olive branches grafted in are the Gentile Christians.

 

The grafting that Paul is writing about involves a practice of grafting a branch of a wild olive tree on to an old stump which seems contrary to normal horticulture where the branch of a fruitful old tree is grafted on to the trunk of a vigorous new tree.  However, we have the testimony of Columella, a 1^st century AD contemporary of St. Paul, that " a green slip taken from a wild olive tree", was fit tightly into a cut made into the trunk of an old olive tree [see Anchor Bible Commentary, Romans, page 615].  This is an important distinction because Paul clearly intends us to understand that the original stump is still standing therefore "the rest to share with the others the rich sap of the olive tree..." In other words, Gentile Christians now draw their strength from the vitality of the Jewish Christians who have become the bearers of the sap of the New Covenant in Christ!  The Old is not destroyed'it forms the continued rooted foundation for the New.  Israel is still at the heart of the Covenant because the Church becomes the New Israel.  This is why Paul told the mixed congregation that they are all Jews in Romans chapter 2.

 

Catechism of the Catholic Church  # 60: "The people descended from Abraham would be the trustees of the promise made to the patriarchs, the chosen people, called to prepare for that day when God would gather all his children into the unity of the Church.  They would be the root onto which the Gentiles would be grafted, once they came to believe."

 

Question: In Romans 11:18 & 21 Paul gives what warning to the Gentile Christians?

Answer: He warns them not to be smug because they have been "grafted in" to the Covenant at the expense of the Jews who have not come to faith in Jesus, because judgment can also fall upon them if they stray from the covenant and they too can be "cut off."  What has happened to the unbelieving Jews needs to be a warning to Gentile Christians and their response should be compassion and a zeal to restore to God's covenant family the older brothers and sisters.  He reminds the Gentile Christians that they do not support the "root", the root/ Jewish Christians, supports them!  

 

In quoting from Romans 11:12-26 the Catechism of the Catholic Church records in # 674: "The glorious Messiah's coming is suspended at every moment of history until his recognition by 'all Israel,' for 'a hardening has come upon part of Israel' in their 'unbelief' toward Jesus.  St. Peter says to the Jews of Jerusalem after Pentecost: 'Repent therefore, and turn again, that your sins may be blotted out, that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord, and that he may send the Christ appointed for you, Jesus, whom heaven must receive until the time for establishing all that God spoke by the mouth of his holy prophets from of old.'  St. Paul echoes him: 'For if their rejection means the reconciliation of the world, what will their acceptance mean but life from the dead?'  The 'full inclusion' of the Jews in the Messiah's salvation, in the wake of the 'full number of the Gentiles', will enable the People of God to achieve 'the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ', in which God may be all in all."

 

Please read Romans 11:25-32: The Revelation of the Mystery of Salvation

"25 I want you to be quite certain, brothers, of this mystery, to save you from congratulating yourselves on your own good sense: part of Israel had its mind hardened, but only until the Gentiles have wholly come in;26  and this is how all Israel will be saved.  As Scripture says: 'From Zion will come the Redeemer, he will remove godlessness from Jacob.  27 And this will be my covenant with them, when I take their sins away.' 28 As regards the Gospel, they are enemies, but for your sake; but as regards those who are God's choice, they are still well loved for the sake of their ancestors. 

 29 There is no change of mind on God's part about the gifts he has made or of his choice.  30 Just as you were in the past disobedient to God but now you have been shown mercy, through their disobedience; 31 so in the same way they are disobedient now, so that through the mercy shown to you they too will receive mercy. 32  God has imprisoned all human beings in their own disobedience only to show mercy to them all."

 

Question: What is the mystery Paul alludes to in this passage?  Hint: read Ephesians 2:11-3:13

Answer: The Mystery of the Reconciliation of Jews and Gentiles with each other and with God: "The mystery, as it is now revealed in the Spirit to his holy apostles and prophets, was unknown to humanity in previous generations: that the Gentiles now have the same inheritance and form the same Body and enjoy the same promise in Christ Jesus through the Gospel." Ephesians 3:5-6

 

In Romans 11:25 Paul quotes Proverbs 3:7, "Do not congratulate yourself on your own wisdom, fear Yahweh and turn your back on evil..." This is another warning against the sins of pride and arrogance for the Gentile Christians.

 

Paul returns to the subject of a "hardening" of part of Israel just as God allowed the Egyptian Pharaoh's heart/mind to be hardened as part of God's divine plan: "part of Israel had its mind hardened, but only until the Gentiles have wholly come in;26  and this is how all Israel will be saved.  As Scripture says: 'From Zion will come the Redeemer, he will remove godlessness from Jacob.  27 And this will be my covenant with them, when I take their sins away.' Paul is quoting from Isaiah 59:20-21: "Then for Zion will come a redeemer, for those who stop rebelling in Jacob, declares Yahweh.  'For my part, this is my covenant with them, says Yahweh.  My spirit with which I endowed you, and my words that I have put in your mouth, will not leave your mouth, or the mouths of your children, or the mouths of your children's children, says Yahweh, henceforth and for ever.'"

 

Today "Zion" is identified as a national symbol of modern Israel but in sacred Scripture "Zion" is a symbol of Israel as a redeemed Covenant people in communion with God.  Zion is united symbolically with the Garden of Eden, which according to the sacred Oral Tradition of the Jews, was located on a mountain. As a redeemed people God had created the Old Covenant Church to bring His people back to Eden and to restored communion with Him.  But when Israel/Judah rejected the Messiah, it was no longer a "holy mountain" but had become "a mountain of destruction" against whom God's wrath had turned just as He had in 587/6BC, Jeremiah 51:25 "I am setting myself against you, mountain of destruction, Yahweh declares, destroyer of the whole world! I shall reach out my hand for you and send you tumbling from the crags and make you a burnt-out-mountain."  However, holy Zion lived on.  Through the faithful remnant of Israel embodied in the Apostles and disciples of Jesus the Messiah, Mt. Zion has become the New Covenant Israel'the universal Church'the holy mountain to whom the whole earth would come for the Gospel message of salvation.  This is John's vision of the Church in Revelation chapter 14 and it is what the inspired writer of the Book of Hebrews wrote about in Hebrews 12:22-28.

 

Question: According to the Isaiah 59:20-21 passage quoted by Paul, for whom does the Redeemer come and what is Zion in Isaiah's passage?  With what does Paul identify Zion?

Answer: For those who are not in rebellion against God.  Zion was identified with the Old Covenant Church but with the coming of Christ, Zion is identified with the New Covenant Church.

• The promise of a future Zion of the holy remnant: "That day'declares Yahweh'I shall gather in the lame and bring together the strays and those whom I have treated harshly.  From the footsore I shall make a remnant, and from the far-flung a mighty nation.  And Yahweh will reign over them on Mount Zion thenceforth and forever."  Micah 4:6-7
• Zion as the New Covenant Church: "But what you have come to is Mount Zion and the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem where millions of angels have gathered for the festival, with the whole Church of first-born sons, enrolled as citizens of heaven."  Hebrews 12:22

 

Question: What are the "words" placed in their mouths and the mouths of their descendants?  

Answer: The Holy Spirit, entrusted with the "words" of Christ which are the teachings of the Church will be living and active for all generations.

 

And then quoting from Isaiah 27:9 Paul writes, 27 And this will be my covenant with them, when I take their sins away.'  Isaiah 27:9: "For that is how Jacob's guilt will be forgiven, such will be the result of renouncing his sin, when all the altar-stones have been smashed to pieces like lumps of chalk, when the sacred poles and incense-altars stand no longer."

Question: What is meant by "Jacob"?  

Answer: Israel

 

Once again Paul is used the context of the Old Testament passage to support his teaching.  Isaiah 27:2-5 speaks symbolically of Israel as Yahweh's beloved vineyard which He has protected and nourished.  Verses 6-11 speak of both pardon and punishment for the Covenant people: "Now, this is a people that does not understand, and so its Maker will not take pity on it, he who formed it will not show it any mercy." [Isaiah 27:11].  And then in verses 12-13 God promises forgiveness and restoration for Israel: "When that day comes, Yahweh will start his threshing from the course of the River to the Torrent of Egypt, and you will be gathered one by one, Israelites!  When that day comes, the great ram's horn will be sounded, and those lost in Assyria will come, and those banished to Egypt, and they will worship Yahweh on the holy mountain in Jerusalem." The "threshing" refers to the "harvest of souls" and Paul uses this passage to support his teaching that Israel, scattered among the Gentile nations, will be harvested into God's threshing floor of the New Covenant universal Church.  In the Old Testament "threshing floor" was a code word for the harvest of soul for judgment and for the Temple in Jerusalem which was built upon a threshing floor [see 2 Chronicles 2:1-3]

 

 Romans 11:28-29 pulls in two opposite directions: the enemies and the beloved; the Gospel and the ancestors [or the present and the past].  In this present age of the Gospel of Jesus Christ some of the Jews, who have rejected the salvation offered to them in the Gospel, have become enemies of God and of the Christians.  God has permitted this reversal while the Gentiles are being harvested into His great threshing floor, the universal Church, but the gifts and the covenants with God are irrevocable and He is still faithful to the promises He made to their ancestors: "There is no change of mind on Gods part about the gifts he has made or his choice.  Here we have the tension between the two great stages of Salvation History: Election and Gospel.

 

Then Paul writes in verses 30-32: 30 Just as you were in the past disobedient to God but now you have been shown mercy, through their disobedience; 31 so in the same way they are disobedient now, so that through the mercy shown to you they too will receive mercy. 32 God has imprisoned all human beings in their own disobedience only to show mercy to them all."

Question: Who is Paul addressing in this passage?

Answer: The Gentile Christians.  

Paul is admonishing the Christians to remember that they sin just as the Jews sin'they are equal in that regard. But just as God has shown mercy to the Gentiles to bring them to salvation through Israel's rejection so too He will show mercy to the Jews.  This verse is similar to what Paul taught in Galatians 3:21-22: Is the Law contrary, then, to God's promises?  Out of the question!  If the Law that was given had been capable of giving life, then certainly saving justice would have come from the Law. As it is, Scripture makes no exception when it says that sin is master everywhere; so the promise can be given only by faith in Jesus Christ to those who have this faith."  Just as God's love and mercy was extended to the Gentiles who were outside the Covenant so too must the Christians'Jews and Gentiles as one Covenant people'extend this mercy and love to exiled Israel because Christ is their only means of salvation and because we, as the younger brothers  are bound to our Father's promise to Israel, the elder son of the covenant: "For Yahweh your God is a merciful God and will not desert or destroy you or forget the covenant which he made on oath with your ancestors."   Deuteronomy 4:31

 

The Catechism of the Catholic Church expresses the understanding of our commitment in  # 674: "The glorious Messiah's coming is suspended at every moment of history until his recognition by 'all Israel,' for 'a hardening has come upon part of Israel' in their 'unbelief' toward Jesus.  St. Peter says to the Jews of Jerusalem after Pentecost:  'Repent therefore, and turn again, that your sins may be blotted out, that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord, and that he may send the Christ appointed for you, Jesus, whom heaven must received until the time for establishing all that God spoke by the mouth of his holy prophets from of old.'  St. Paul echoes him: 'For if their rejection means the reconciliation of the world, what will their acceptance mean but life from the dead?'  The 'full inclusion' of the Jews in the Messiah's salvation, in wake of 'the full number of the Gentiles,' will enable the People of God to achieve 'the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ,' in which 'God may be all in all." 

 

Please read the conclusion of Paul's address concerning the destiny of Israel in Romans 11:33-36: Hymn to God's Mercy and Wisdom

"33 How rich and deep are the wisdom and the knowledge of God!  We cannot reach to the root of his decisions or his ways.  Who has ever known the mind of the Lord?  Who has ever been his adviser?  Who has given anything to him, so that his presents come only as a debt returned?  Everything there is comes from him and is caused by him and exists for him.  To him be glory for ever! Amen."

 

After the 4 times repetition of "mercy" of Romans 11:30-32, Paul breaks into a hymn extolling God's mercy and wisdom.  This moving hymn of praise to God's mercy and wisdom forms a conclusion to this section of Paul's letter concerning the salvation of all Israel.  The hymn falls into a 3 part division: 

1. Opening exclamation of praise: verse 33
2. Scriptural rhetorical questions: verses 34-35
3. Concluding doxology: verse 36

 

Paul begins with acknowledging that God's "wisdom and knowledge" are beyond the grasp of human understanding by combining Psalms 139:6 and 17a into one line.  Paul may be reflecting on the mysterious plan in which God's election of Israel as His Chosen People has worked to bring the estranged Gentiles within the scope of God plan of eternal salvation.  In the second part of the hymn Paul quotes from the Septuagint Isaiah 40:13 and perhaps from Job 35:7 in a set of 3 rhetorical questions:  Who has ever known the mind of the Lord?  Who has ever been his adviser?  Who has given anything to him, so that his presents come only as a debt returned?  The Isaiah passage in the New Jerusalem reads: "Who directed the spirit of Yahweh, what counselor could have instructed him?" In 1 Corinthians 2:16 Paul quotes the same passage and provides the answer: "For: who has ever known the mind of the Lord?  Who has ever been his adviser?  But we are those who have the mind of Christ." 

 

The second is a reference to Job 35:7: "If you are upright, what do you give him, what benefit does he receive at your hands?" In other words, no one can anticipate God's acts of mercy and grace.  He does not depend on humanity to dispense these gifts but He does invite humanity to partake of the richness of His favor through our response to faith but not as a payment for services or "a debt returned." 

Romans 11:36: Everything there is comes from him and is caused by him and exists for him.  To him be glory for ever! Amen." 

Question: In the final doxology of the prayer Paul acknowledges God in what 3 ways?

Answer: He acknowledges God as the Creator, the Sustainer, and the Goal of everything that exists.  All creation is absolutely dependent on God. Everything comes from Him'Israel's prerogatives as the Chosen People, Israel's hardening of mind concerning the Messiah and the election of the Gentile nations to the New Covenant graces.  All peoples'in fact all the earth and the cosmos are destined to glorify Him.

 

It seems fitting to close Paul's discourse on the salvation of all Israel with a section from Pope Benedict XVI's homily on Mark 3:13-16 from March 15^th, 2006:

 "I now reread the central passage: "He went up the mountain and summoned those whom he wanted and they came to him. He appointed twelve (whom he also named apostles) that they might be with him and he might send them forth to preach and to have authority to drive out demons: He appointed the twelve " (Mark 3:13-16; cf. Matthew 10:1-4; Luke 6:12-16).  In the place of the revelation, 'the mountain,' with an initiative that manifests absolute awareness and determination, Jesus constitutes the twelve so that they might be witnesses and heralds with him of the arrival of the Kingdom of God. There is no room for doubt concerning the historical character of this call, not only because of the antiquity and multiplicity of testimonies but also because of the simple fact that the name of the apostle Judas, the traitor, appears despite the difficulties that including his name could imply for the incipient community. The number 12, which evidently refers to the 12 tribes of Israel, reveals the meaning of the prophetic-symbolic action implied in the new initiative of founding the holy people again. After the downfall of the system of the 12 tribes, Israel awaited the reconstruction of this system as a sign of the arrival of the eschatological time (this can be read in the conclusion of the Book of Ezekiel 37:15-19; 39:23-29; 40-48). 
By choosing the twelve, introducing them into a communion of life with him and making them sharers in the same mission of announcing the Kingdom with words and deeds (cf. Mark 6:7-13; Matthew 10:5-8; Luke 9:1-6; 6:13), Jesus wants to say that the definitive time has arrived; the time for rebuilding God's people, the people of the 12 tribes, which is now converted into a universal people, his Church."

The Vatican, March 15^th, 2006: Pope Benedict XVI's Wednesday homily on the Gospel reading from Mark 3:13-16:

 

The Old Covenant of Sinai was transformed and fulfilled into the New Covenant in the blood of Jesus Christ, but it is still the same corporate family bond that makes a certain unified people the chosen Covenant people of the One True God.  There are not two covenants nor are there two covenant peoples.  There is one Covenant and one Covenant people who are descendants of Abraham but now that descent is both physical and spiritual and the blood tie that binds these people to Yahweh is not just the blood of Abraham and Sarah nor is it the sacrifice of the bull at Sinai when the blood was sprinkled on the people and on the altar of Yahweh with a hyssop branch, but it is the blood of the Lamb of God that binds this family bond and it is the hyssop branch of the Cross that closed the Old Covenant Passover and opened the side of the Savior to cover all of mankind with the abundant blood of the Eucharist and the water of baptism.  Just as the covenant with Abraham was renewed and carried forward by Isaac and later through Jacob so now the Christians of the new covenant are heirs of the promise of the old covenant in the New Covenant in the blood of Jesus of Nazareth'the true Davidic King of the New Kingdom of Israel'the universal Kingdom of Heaven on earth'the Catholic Church.

 Please read Romans 12:1-2: The Definition of Worship for the Christian

"1 I urge you, then, brothers, remembering the mercies of God, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, dedicated and acceptable to God; that is the kind of worship for you, as sensible people.  2 Do not model your behavior on the contemporary world, but let the renewing of your minds transform you, so that you may discern for yourselves what is the will of God' what is is good and acceptable and mature."  

 

In Romans 6:11-13 Paul urged the Roman community to let holiness and not sin be the guide for their lives: "In the same way, you must see yourselves as being dead to sin but alive for God in Christ Jesus. That is why you must not allow sin to reign over your mortal bodies and make you obey their desires; or give any parts of your bodies over to sin to be used as instruments of evil.  Instead, give yourselves to God, as people brought to life from the dead, and give every part of your bodies to God to be instruments of uprightness..." 

 

In this part of his letter Paul summons the Roman community to a pattern of Christian life that is responsive to the teaching of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  Mercy/ compassion is the key word in this opening verse, for mercy is what defines God's universal plan of salvation.  It is in the faithful response to this call of "living in the spirit" that the Christian will fully experience God's mercy.  Now in Romans 12:1 Paul defines the necessity for that life of holiness in terms of each Christian offering his and her life as a sacrifice acceptable to God'a holy living sacrifice.

Question: Today as in the distant past private worship has always been defined as giving adoration and praise to God but how was public worship defined under the previous covenants from Adam to Abraham to Sinai?  See Genesis 8:20-21; 22:1-5; Leviticus 17:10-12; Hebrews 9:22.

Answer: Public worship in the Old Testament is most often defined in the terms of blood sacrifice for the purpose of reestablishing communion with God.  The animal was killed'its blood was separated from its body and both the body and blood of the sacrificial victim was offered, either as a whole burnt offering with the blood poured out on the Altar or as a sacrifice that was shared with God, the blood being poured out, the fat being burned and the flesh eaten either by the priests or by the offerer.

 

Question: How does Paul identify the principal difference between the animal sacrifice of the previous covenants and the New Covenant sacrifice?

Answer: In the previous covenants the animals offered in sacrifice were dead but the "living" sacrifices of the New Testament are uniquely alive because of Christ's resurrection.  Jesus' sacrifice on Calvary is represented on the altar as an on-going and ever present sacrifice of the gloried living Jesus Christ and we offer our lives in sacrifice with Christ living in us'offering a sacrifice that carries with it the gift of eternal life.

 

Question: Before the Sinai Covenant worship took place wherever God manifested Himself and an altar was built [Genesis 12:17; 28:12-19], but with the establishment of the Sinai Covenant where was worship confined?  See Exodus 25:8-9; 1 Kings 8:10

Answer: At first at God's Tabernacle and later at the Temple in Jerusalem.  Both the desert Tabernacle, which traveled with the Covenant people, and the Temple in Jerusalem were places where God's presence was with His people and the only place of legitimate worship of Yahweh.  

Question: The woman of Samaria in John chapter 4 had a discussion with Jesus concerning the place of legitimate worship of Yahweh. What did she suggest and what was Jesus' response to her?  See John 4:20-22.

Answer: She suggested that there was no difference whether her people worshipped Yahweh on Mt. Gerizim or the Jews worshipped in Jerusalem [verse 20], but Jesus corrected her when He said: "Believe me, woman, the hour is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem.  Your worship what you do not know, we worship what we do know; for salvation comes from the Jews."

Question:  After the Resurrection of Christ did this place of established worship change and why?  What did Jesus tell the woman of Samaria about this change in John 4:23-24 and what did He mean?  

Answer:  Jesus told the woman "But the hour is coming'indeed is already here'when true worshippers will worship the Father in spirit and truth: that is the kind of worshipper the Father seeks.  God is spirit and those who worship must worship in spirit and truth."  We worship in the "spirit" because it is God the Holy Spirit who makes the baptized believer a new creature'reborn into the family of God [see John 3:5].  God dwelling in the believer makes the believer's body the new Temple of the God.  He [the Holy Spirit] is also the inspiring foundation and principle of the new worship of God in the New Covenant in Christ.  This new worship is in "truth" because it is now the only worship that conforms to the conditions of worship revealed by God the Father through God the Son.  The early Church Father Origen wrote, "Paul says that the sacrifice is living because it has eternal life in it, which is Christ.  Elsewhere he says, 'We always carry in the body the death of Jesus so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our bodies.'  He calls it holy because the Holy Spirit dwells in it, as he says elsewhere: 'Do you not know that you are God's temple and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?'"  Commentary on the Epistle to the Romans, Origen [quoting 2 Corinthians 4:10 and 1 Corinthians 3:16]

 

Question: Paul states in Romans 12:1 that to offer ourselves as living sacrifices is the only kind of worship for Christians as "sensible people."  How is it that believers are to be "sensible" in worshipping God?  Hint: read 1 Samuel 15:22-23; and Psalm 51:16-17; Hosea 6:6; Amos 5:21

Answer: Christ has defined for us in the Gospels what it means to worship [John 4:23-24] "in the spirit" and to live "life in the spirit."  To offer oneself totally to God is not a new concept.  In the Old Testament the prophet Samuel, King David and the prophets Hosea and Amos wrote of what was true "worship" for God:

• 1 Samuel 15:22-23: Is Yahweh pleased by burnt offerings and sacrifices or by obedience to Yahweh's voice?  Truly, obedience is better than sacrifice, submissiveness than the fat of rams.  Rebellion is a sin of sorcery, presumption a crime of idolatry!"
• Psalm 51:16-17: "Sacrifice gives you no pleasure, burnt offering you do not desire.  Sacrifice to God is a broken spirit, a broken, contrite heart you never scorn."
• Hosea 6:6: ...for faithful love is what pleases me, not sacrifice; knowledge of God, not burnt offerings."
• Amos 5:21-24: "I hate, I scorn your festivals, I take no pleasure in your solemn assemblies.  Whey you bring me burnt offerings...your oblations, I do not accept them and I do not look at your communion sacrifices of fat cattle.  Spare me the din of your chanting; let me hear none of your strumming on lyres, but let justice flow like water and uprightness like a never-failing stream!"

 

Question: Under the Old Covenant submission and obedience of the believer had to be united with the offering of animal sacrifice.  But were Old Covenant believers equipped to provide their lives as perfect "living" sacrifices?

Answer: Neither animal sacrifice nor the sacrifice of the lives of individual believers could be perfect enough under the old order [see Psalms 14:1; Romans 3:9-10].  No animal could be perfect enough and no matter how hard one tried to live a life of perfect righteousness under the Law of Moses, perfection was incomplete because there was no filling and indwelling of the Holy Spirit in the lives of Old Covenant believers'they were still under the dominion of sin [Romans 6:8-13].  Even so, God expected the best each individual could give from the heart and from love not from ritual or rote performance.  The same is of course true for New Covenant believers.  Even though we can, through the power of God the Holy Spirit, offer a living sacrifice that is acceptable because of a life transformed by grace, we must remember that the offering of that living sacrifice much be a perfect sacrifice sanctified by grace through the power of the sacraments in order for our living sacrifice to be clothed with the righteousness of Jesus Christ.  This is why we cannot receive communion if we are not in a state of grace.  Simple following the rituals of our faith are not enough now as they were not enough under the Old Covenant. The result of true worship as defined for Christians under the New Covenant is through the acceptable sacrifice; both Christ's living sacrifice and our own living sacrifice, which has the power to reestablish communion with the Most Holy Trinity in a unity of spirit that comes from circumcised hearts infused with the living presence of the Christ.  

 

St. John Chrysostom identified the necessity of living in a state of grace to insure the perfection of our personal living sacrifice: "How is the body to become a sacrifice?  Let the eye look on no evil thing, and it has already become a sacrifice.  Let the tongue say nothing filthy, and it has become an offering.  Let your hand do nothing evil, and it has become a whole burnt offering.  But even this is not enough, for we must have good works also.  The hand must do alms, the mouth must bless those who curse it, and the ears must find time to listen to the reading of Scripture.  Sacrifice allows of no unclean thing.  It is the first fruits of all other actions." St. John Chrysostom, Homilies on Romans 20.  [Also see CCC# 571; 1076; 1362-72; 2031; definition of worship CCC page 904: "Worship: Adoration and honor given to God, which is the first act of the virtue of religion (2096).  Public worship is given to God in the Church by the celebration of the Paschal Mystery of Christ in the liturgy (1067)."]

 

Therefore, we must be ever mindful that in the celebration of the Mass once the prayer over the gifts is spoken and the priest, with his hands extended greets us with the words, "The Lord be with you" and we respond in unison, "And also with you", that the moment to prepare for the gift of our personal living sacrifice is upon us.  The priest then invites us with uplifted hands to offer the holy and living sacrifice of our lives with the words "Life up your hearts" recalling the words of the Book ofLamentations 3:41, "Let us stretch out our hearts and hands to God in heaven"; and we respond with uplifted hands and a cry from the heart, "We lift them up to the Lord."  It is at this moment that each of us prepares to offer himself or herself in a state of grace to the Lord'in Scripture one's heart symbolizes all that one thinks, feels, and believes'the total sum of a person.  In the heavenly hymn of the Holy, Holy, Holy of the Sanctus we ready ourselves to stand as a living sacrifice before the throne of God when heavenly and earthly worship will soon be joined in the words of the Consecration.  As the Mass progresses we wait in joyous anticipation for the words of invitation when the priest speaks words that closely repeat the words used by John the Baptist in John 1:29 when he introduced Jesus to the crowds on the shore of the Jordan River: "This is the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world" and recalling the Lord's Supper when He first offered the faithful His Body and Blood the priest adds, " Happy are those who are called to his supper"; followed by our response which closely echoes the words of the Roman centurion at Capernaum in Matthew 8:8: "Lord, I am not worthy that you should enter under my roof, but only say the word and my soul shall be healed."  Then, having fully examined our conscience, having repented our venial sins in the Penitential Rite, we process forward clothed in the bridal garment of grace as a perfect living sacrifice offered in love to the Savior as we receive Him in the most holy and intimate union of the Eucharist.  We would not dare to go forward to offer an imperfect sacrifice of ourselves'tainted with sin, for to do so would bring God's condemnation upon us [see 1 Corinthians 11:26-32].  The Eucharist is a sacrificial union of the Bride, who is the Church and the Bridegroom, Christ'each given in a perfect unity of love and sacrifice.  

 

Pope Pius XII's instruction to the faithful concerning this most personal offering of the Bride who is the Church to the Bridegroom who is Christ wrote, "If the oblation whereby the faithful in this Sacrifice offer the divine victim to the heavenly Father is to produce its full effect [...] they must also offer themselves as victim, desiring intensely to make themselves as like as possible to Jesus Christ who suffered so much, and offering themselves as a spiritual victim with and through the High Priest himself." Pius XII, Mediator Dei, 25 [see CCC# 2099; 2100].

 

Question: In Romans 12:2 Paul gives two commands; what are they?

Answer: Paul writes, 

1.      Do not model your behavior on the contemporary world, but 

2.      let the renewing of your minds transform you

Our rejection of the standards of the world and our submission to the principles of holiness laid out in Jesus' Sermon on the Mount is what defines our living sacrifice'it is the way we model our behavior that is opposed to the behavioral norm of the "world of the flesh."  However, this refusal to conform to the world's norm may bring ridicule and persecution.   

 

Question: In Romans 8:29 how did Paul tell the Christians of Rome they must conform in order to live "life in the Spirit"?

Answer: The Romans and all Christians are called "to be molded to the pattern of his Son" or as the New American Bible translates this verse "to be conformed to the image of his Son"–in other words, we must all live "in imitation of Christ".  

 

Question: Does this mean to live only in the image of His resurrected life?  Hint: see Romans 8:17

Answer: No, it also means to live in imitation of His mercy, His forgiveness, and His suffering as Paul wrote in 8:17, "And if we are children, then we are heirs, heirs of God and joint-heirs with Christ, provided that we share his suffering, so as to share his glory."

 

In verse 1 Paul advises the Romans that their worship should be "sensible" or rational and now in verse 2 he urges them to "let the renewing of your minds transform you, so that you may discern for yourselves what is the will of God'what is good and acceptable and mature."  In living a life of sacrificial consecration believers must discern what it is God requires of them.  It is the obligation of all Christians to seek the will of God in their lives but how does one begin the process of discernment? Do we discern by "faith alone" or through both faith and reason?

Question: What is the importance of both faith and reason in the life of the Christian?  Hint: see CCC# 156-159.

Answer: Faith most certainly must come first but there is no opposition between faith and reason.  God has not only given man the gift of faith but also the gift of reason and intellect.  If intellect is not applied to faith one cannot mature in one's relationship with the Lord. However, what is perceived as reason cannot contradict the teachings of faith as laid down in Scripture and the teachings of the Magisterium.  When guided by the Church faith perfects intellect.  As Saint Augustine wrote: "I believe in order to understand; and I understand, the better to believe."  If Christian faith remains "a blind impulse of the mind" [CCC # 156], Christian growth cannot mature.  It is necessary to have knowledge and understanding of the teachings of Christ in order to discern the will of God in the life of the believer.  This is why Jesus gave us mother Church'like all mothers it is her duty to teach and guide and to raise up children who will grow to maturity in righteousness and faith.

 

Question: What should be the process of discerning the will of God in our lives?  See 2 Corinthians 13:5-9; Galatians 6:15; Phil 1:9-11; Hebrews 5:11-14; Ephesians 5:8-20.

Answer: You cannot discern God's will for your life if sin has a hold on you.  The Christian must discern God's will clothed in the garment of grace, committed to prayer and seeking to determine the gifts the Holy Spirit He has given to the individual believer.  As in any gift, the genuine value of the gift is only realized in the useful application of what has been given.

 

Please read Romans 12:3-8: Instruction on Discerning and Using the Gifts of the Spirit Within the Community

"3 And through the grace that I have been given, I say this to every one of you: never pride yourself on being better than you really are, but think of yourself dispassionately, recognizing that God has given to each one his measure of faith.  4 Just as each of us has various parts in one body, and the parts do not all have the same function: 5 in the same way, all of us, though there are so many of us, make up one body in Christ, and as different parts we are all jointed to one another.  6 Then since the gifts that we have differ according to the grace that was given to each of us: 7 if it is a gift of prophecy, we should prophesy as much as our faith tells us; 8 if it is a gift of practical service, let us devote ourselves to serving; if it is teaching, to teaching; if it is encouraging, to encouraging.  When you give, you should give generously from the heart; if you are put in charge, you must be conscientious; if you do works of mercy, let it be because you enjoy doing them.  9 Let love be without any pretense.  Avoid what is evil; stick to what is good.  10 In brotherly love let your feelings of deep affection for one another come to expression and regard others as more important then yourself.  11 In the service of the Lord, work not half-heartedly but with conscientiousness and an eager spirit.  12 Be joyful in hope, persevere in hardship; keep praying regularly; 13 share with any of God's holy people who are in need; look for opportunities to be hospitable.  "  

 

St. Paul now begins a teaching on the practical application of spiritual gifts.  He wants the community to understand that the sharing of spiritual gifts within the Church ensures the community's life in fidelity and fruitfulness and that these gift should be shared without any envy or jealousy concerning what gifts certain individuals within the community have received.

 

"I say this to every one of you: never pride yourself on being better than you really are, but think of yourself dispassionately, recognizing that God has given to each one his measure of faith."  

Question: Paul begins his instruction by warning the community to guard what spiritual virtue that is most threatened by pride?

Answer: Their humility.

Question: What warnings does the inspired author of Proverbs give concerning the sin of pride?  See Proverbs 16:5, 18, & 19. 

Answer: The sin of pride incurs God's divine punishment.

Question: What did Paul have to say about the virtue of humility in Philippians 2:3-5 and in 1 Corinthians 10:24?

Answer:

• 1 Corinthians 10:24: "Nobody should be looking for selfish advantage, but everybody for someone else's."
• Philippians 2:3-5: "Nothing is to be done out of jealousy or vanity; instead, out of humility of mind everyone should give preference to others, everyone pursuing not selfish interests but those of others.  Make your own the mind of Christ Jesus."

 

Question: What is the key verse in Jesus' teaching on the virtue of humility in Luke 18:9-14?

Answer: "For everyone who raises himself up will be humbled, but anyone who humbles himself will be raised up." A heart that remains in a state of grace through the repentance of sins is a humble heart. The Lord resists the proud and boastful but gives His grace to one who possesses a contrite and humble heart: Both Sts. Peter and James quote Proverbs 3:34 concerning the special grace of God which is disposed to the humble:

• 1 Peter 5:5: "Humility towards one another must be the garment you all wear constantly, because God opposes the proud but accords his favor to the humble."
• James 4:6: "But he has given us an even greater grace, as Scripture says: God opposes the proud but he accords his favor to the humble."  

Also see CCC# 2559 humility in prayer; #2546 on humility as poverty of spirit.

 

" but think of yourself dispassionately, recognizing that God has given to each one his measure of faith." Paul urges the Romans to discern their spiritual gifts.  In verses 6-8 Paul identifies "gifts" or "charisms" as divine graces which are granted by the Holy Spirit according to our spiritual maturity. Each Christian has different spiritual gifts which are meant to be exercised together with the gifts of other Christians so that these gifts work to strengthen and benefit the fruitfulness of the Church as a whole. The use of the Greek word "charis", meaning the grace or favor of God and the active use of that grace in the "charisma" or the way in which the gift [charis] of God is active in others, is a word introduced by Paul into Christian theology.  These "gifts" are given to the various "limbs" [Christians] within the One "Body of Christ" which is the Church.

 

Question: In Romans 12:6-8 Paul lists several gifts and the function of each gift.  How many gifts does he list and how do those gifts serve the Church?

Answer: Paul lists 7 gifts and 7 functions or effects of the gift:

 

GIFT	SERVICE
1. prophecy	Inspired preaching to build up faith within the community
2. practical service	In the exercise of necessary services/ ministries that promote the Church
3. teaching	To provide the faithful with right teaching to understand the faith
4. encouraging or exhortation	To promote ethical teaching and practice within the community
5. almsgiving	Generously given to support the Church and her ministries
6. position of authority	To conscientiously and humbly provide resources and leadership in serve to the faith community
7. acts of mercy	Bringing relief to the unfortunate with a cheerfulness of spirit that relieves the recipient of embarrassment through understanding that performing the service on their behalf is a privilege of love.

 

Paul writes of some of these same gifts in 1 Corinthians 12:4-11 where he begins his list of spiritual gifts with the instruction: "There are many different gifts, but it is always the same Spirit; there are many different ways of serving, but it is always the same Lord.  There are many different forms of activity, but in everybody it is the same God who is at work in them all.  The particular manifestation of the Spirit granted to each one is to be used for the general good." Please turn to 1 Corinthians 12:4-11and read the entire passage.  

 

Returning to Paul's list of spiritual gifts in Romans 12:6-7: 

1. Prophecy: Paul lists "prophecy" as the first of the gifts.  He is probably not  referring to the gift of predicting the future but rather to the first mission of the prophet which is to speak the words of God to the people, inspiring them to live in fellowship with God [see 1 Corinthians 12:10, 28; 13:2; 14:1, 3-6, 24, 39; and 1 Timothy 4:14]. According to the literal translation this gift is to be used in "according to the analogy of faith".  The Greek word analogia means "right relationship, proportion".  In other words, all inspired preaching must agree with the teachings of Christ and His earthly representative, the Church.  If certain preaching does not agree, it is not inspired by the Holy Spirit.
2. Practical Service: Paul uses the Greek word diakonia, meaning "service".  It is the word from which comes our English word "deacon".  Paul may be referring to those who serve in a specific ministry, as our deacons serve today, or he may have in mind all ministries that serve to build up the faith community.  Paul applied this same term to his own ministry in Romans 11:13 and used the term in the same way in 1 Corinthians 12:5; 2 Corinthians 4:1; 11:8; Colossians 4:17; and Ephesians 4:12.  
3. Teaching: In the Greek a  ho didaskon is "the one who gives instruction".  Paul uses this term for one who gives instruction in the interpretation of sacred Scripture or in catechesis [see 1 Corinthians 14:19 and Galatians 6:6].
4. Exhortation:  Paul is using the Greek word paraklesis and is probably referring to one who guides the members of the Church in their communal life by encouraging or teaching ethical behavior or is living in the example of ethical behavior [see 1 Thessalonians 5:11; Philippians 2:1; and Hebrews 13:22].  
5. Almsgiving: The Greek word metadidonai describes one who contributes to charity, sharing from his private wealth [see Luke 3:11; Ephesians 4:28].  Such a person, when giving from the heart without hope of recognition or thanks, gives motivated by the Holy Spirit and contributes to the well being of individuals in need within the Church and to the Church as a whole.   Such a person judges genuine "wealth" in spiritual terms and not in monetary terms.

6.  Authority: The literal Greek word used in the 6^th charism is ho proistamenos, meaning "the one standing at the head", or a leader who presides or directs.  This person would be one to whom the Spirit has given the gift of wisdom and leadership to guide the community in its various ministries and functions.

7.   Mercy: The seventh position is ho eleon, in the Greek, "the one who performs acts of mercy".  Paul probably intents this gift to include all acts of mercy including caring for the sick, burying the dead, etc.  However, he cautions that this gift should be accompanied by cheerfulness.  If this gift doesn't come from a heart of love which receives joy from serving God through serving brothers and sisters who are in need of God's mercy then the charism is not genuine.

In all these gifts, the spirit in which the gifts are carried out is as important as the acts themselves.

 

Question: Works of mercy are works of charity in which we extend the love and mercy of God to others.  What are the Spiritual and Corporal works of mercy according to the teachings of Christ and His Church?  Hint: see Matthew 6:2-4; 25:31-46; Luke 3:11; 11:41 James 2:15-16; Catechism CCC# 2447.

Answer: Teaching, consoling, advising, forgiving, bearing wrongs without retaliation, and comforting the sorrowful are spiritual works of mercy.  The corporal works of mercy include feeding the hungry, giving shelter to the homeless, clothing the naked, visiting the sick, visiting those in prisons, and burying the dead.

Question: Is this extension of God's love and mercy to others only a New Covenant teaching?  What does the Old Testament say on this subject?  Hint: see Deuteronomy 14:29; Psalm 41:1; Ben Sirach (Ecclesiasticus) 7:32-36 [36-40 in some translations].

Answer: The teaching is exactly the same.  God is unchanged from all time and eternity.  The God of the Old Testament is the God of the New.  To deny this theological truth is to fall into the heresy of Marcion the 2^nd century Gnostic who maintained that the God of the Old Testament was not the God of the New. 

 

Paul completes his instruction on how Christians should respond to each other with this sound advice establishing love as the rule of life within the Church:

9 Let love be without any pretense.  Avoid what is evil; stick to what is good.  10 In brotherly love let your feelings of deep affection for one another come to expression and regard others as more important then yourself.  11 In the service of the Lord, work not half-heartedly but with conscientiousness and an eager spirit.  12 Be joyful in hope, persevere in hardship; keep praying regularly; 13 share with any of God's holy people who are in need; look for opportunities to be hospitable. "

 

  In Romans 5:1-11 and in 8:31-39, Paul wrote of our love for God and God's love for us using the Greek word for spiritual love, agape.  You will remember this is one of the Greek words to which Christians gave a uniquely Christian character.  Agape to the Christian expresses the same kind of self-sacrificial love with which Christ loved each of us'a love expressed most deeply in His Passion and death on the Cross.  But now in this passage Paul is writing of "agape/love" expressed as agape anypokritos, which literally translates as "genuine love" or "sincere love"'and expressing the distinctive self-sacrificial character of Christian love as a rule of life within the faith community'a love that is not passive but vital and active! [Note: This same phrase, agape anypokritos, is used by Paul in 2 Corinthians 6:6 and By St. Peter in 1 Peter 1:22].

 

Question: On the subject of love with the community what did St. John teach in 1 John 4:19-21 and how does it relate to Paul's teaching?  

Answer: "Let us love then, because he first loved us.  Anyone who says 'I love God' and hates his brother, is a liar, since no one who fails to love the brother whom he can see can love God whom he has not seen.  Indeed this is the commandment we have received from him, that whoever loves God, must also love his brother." The key to living in harmony in the faith community and to serve God in carrying the Gospel of salvation to the world is found in our ability to love.  Unless we love and offer service to our "brothers", both within and outside the Church, whose needs we can see, how can we serve God with humble hearts who we cannot see?  

Question: St Paul urges us to "look for opportunities to be hospitable".   What did Paul say about being hospitable in Hebrews 13:1-2 and what does Abraham's experience in Genesis 18:2ff suggest to us? 

Answer:  You may have the opportunity to offer hospitality to angels.  What could seem like an inconvenience can be a blessing in disguise.

 

In Romans  12:3-13 Paul addressed the Christian's works and gifts operating within the faith community but now he will address the Christian's obligation of love and service which must extend to those within and outside of the Church.  As in the previous passage, Paul's advice is both practical and challenging.

Please read Romans 12:14-21: Instruction in Living the Christian Life Expressed in Love

"14 Bless your persecutors; never curse them, bless them.  15 Rejoice with others when they rejoice, and be sad with those in sorrow.  16 Give the same consideration to all others alike.  Pay no regard to social standing, but meet humble people on their own terms.  Do not congratulate yourself on your own wisdom.  17 Never pay back evil with evil, but bear in mind the ideals that all regard with respect.  18 As much as if possible, and to the utmost of your ability, be at peace with everyone.  19 Never try to get revenge: leave that, my dear friends, to the Retribution.  As Scripture says: Vengeance is mine'I will pay them back, the Lord promises.  20 And more: If your enemy is hungry, give him something to eat; if thirsty, something to drink.  By this, you will be heaping red-hot coals on his head.  21 Do not be mastered by evil, but master evil with good."

 

Paul begins this section of his letter with what seems to be a near impossible command:"14 Bless your persecutors; never curse them, bless them."  

Question: How is it possible for us to fulfill this command?  What did Jesus teach on this subject?  Hint: see Matthew 5:43-44; Luke 6:27, 35.

Answer: Jesus' teaching is clear: we are called to love our enemies for the sake of God's merciful love for us.

 

Question: What is the very practical advice Paul gives concerning those who rejoice and those who suffer in Romans 12:15?

Answer: His advice is an example of actions speaking louder than words.  Especially in the case of someone who is experiencing grief'what words can we offer if we haven't experienced the same form of suffering?  In those cases it is better to offer our tears and our prayers. Paul's advice reminds me of St. Francis of Assisi's instructions on preaching the Gospel: "Preach the Gospel always and when absolutely necessary, use words."

 

Question: What is the focus of Paul's instruction in verse 16?

Answer: To always be yourself, offering the same consideration and courtesy to each person regardless of his social standing or lack of standing.  In this regard Jesus stands as our model.  Even His family was concerned about the company He was keeping when He ate with tax collectors and sinners but He was taking the impure and transforming them by the force of His holiness.  This is the same example we must follow.  We are not to be conformed to those in sin with whom we come in contact but by treating them with the same respect and consideration we treat others we are to show them the light of Christ living in their lives.

 

In dealing with those of evil intent Paul's instructions are equally difficult!"17 Never pay back evil with evil, but bear in mind the ideals that all regard with respect. 18 As much as if possible, and to the utmost of your ability, be at peace with everyone.  19 Never try to get revenge: leave that, my dear friends, to the Retribution.  As Scripture says: Vengeance is mine'I will pay them back, the Lord promises.  20 And more: If your enemy is hungry, give him something to eat; if thirsty, something to drink.  By this, you will be heaping red-hot coals on his head."   

 

In the literal translation Paul begins this sentence with the address: "Beloved!"'possibly to strengthen the force of his appeal to Christians in a request that he knows is very difficult and even unnatural apart from Christian teaching.

Question: What is the day of "retribution" ?  The Day of Judgment.

Question: According to St. Paul how does a Christian take vengeance on an enemy?

Answer: By doing good.  

 

Paul is quoting from Proverbs 25:21-22 in his reference to giving your enemy something to eat and drink and pouring on his head "red hot coals", If your enemy is hungry, give him something to eat; if thirsty, something to drink.  By this you will be heaping red-hot coals on his head, and Yahweh will reward you."  In other words, if you have behaved properly by extending your forgiveness to your enemy you will be rewarded by God, but if your enemy does not respond to your act of kindness he will face Yahweh's judgment.  The hot-coals imagery is also a symbol for repentance [see Isaiah 6:6-7].  One's kindness should have the desired result of bringing the one who has sinned against you to repentance, which is why we are commanded to pray for our enemies.  The desired result is always repentance working toward restoration of fellowship with God and ultimate salvation.

 

Question: If, however, the sinner does not come to repentance what will be his fate?

Answer: God's justice.  In every case God is the ultimate judge because only He can judge impartially.  We cannot see the human heart but God can and that is why judgment must rest with Him.

 

In some cases it may only be possible to offer love to one's enemy if one remembers that no matter how much that person has hurt you or those you love that Jesus loved this person enough to die for him/her on the Cross.  If Christ can love your enemy then for the sake of Christ and His sacrifice on the Cross for you'offer your enemy the love of Jesus Christ expressed in His Passion and suffering for the salvation of both of you.

 

Paul ends this section of instruction by reminding the Christian that God's goodness and mercy are more powerful than sin and evil  "21 Do not be mastered by evil, but master evil with good."  Christ has defeated sin and death on the Cross but the enemy still persists in his weakened condition to tempt man into sin and exposing man to evil.  This condition will continue as long as we are in the world.  But we must remember that Christians are a powerful force for good in the world to resist and contain evil as long as we are willing to engage in the battle.  It is when Christians loose their will to take a stand and fight that evil can grow'the sin of abortion is a good example.  The majority of the Christian community allowed the legalization of abortion with barely a whimper of protest.  If we are to living in "imitation of Christ" we must rise up'taking up our crosses united to His Cross and join the battle against evil in the world.

 

"'He that follows Me, walks not in darkness,' said the Lord.  These are the words of Christ, by which we are admonished, how we ought to imitate His life and manners, if we would truly be enlightened, and delivered from all blindness of heart.  Let therefore our chief endeavor be, to meditate upon the life of Jesus Christ." The Imitation of Christ, Thomas a Kempis,  1380-1471