バイブルクラスが行われました

Bible class on Saturday June 25th 2016

今日のバイブルクラスは５名の出席でした。

学びの個所は前回に引き続きルカ１３章後半１８節からの" The Way to
God"神の国への道という部分です。

普段親しんでいる日本語の聖書でも「からし種のたとえ」とそれに続く「パン種のたとえ」から始まりましすが、The Messageではからし種ではなくpine nut・松の実になっています。またその松の実が大木に成長し、その上に巣をつくる鳥は、具体的にeagles・鷲となっています。

やはりアメリカの国鳥である鷲イコール鳥なのでしょうか。

加えてイエスの語り口調も「何に似ているか？」という受け身的な表現ではなく、通常名詞であるpicture（絵・写真）を動詞的に用いて「神の国を描こう・あらわそう」と能動的に述べられています。

この個所の神の国のたとえは、同時にイエスの復活、そして昇天後の教会の勃興と発展を予言しているという解釈もあるようですが、このすぐ後に続くイエスに対する質問「神の国に入れる人は少ないのか？」に対する回答としての決め台詞、「先のものが後になり、後のものが先になる」のところでは、This is the Great Reversal: the last in
line put at the head of the line, and the so-called first ending up last."「これは大逆転・どんでん返しだ...」という応答を返し、神の国を求めようとする態度に緊張感と真剣さを緩めさせないイエスの姿勢が見て取れるように思いました。

 

また今日の集会に定例メンバーから、イエスの誕生から成長期・福音伝道・受難・復活昇天の時間軸と４福音書の記述個所がわかり易く"見える化"された英文資料が提供されました。

それによるといま学んでいる個所の時間軸はイエス生涯最後の冬の季節に在り、エルサレムと十字架がすぐそこまで迫っていることがよくわかりました。

次回も変則で７月９日（土）午後３時に開催いたします。

 

Luke 13The Message (MSG)

The Way to God

18-19 Then he said, "How can I picture
God's kingdom for you? What kind of story can I use? It's like a pine
nut that a man plants in his front yard. It grows into a huge pine tree
with thick branches, and eagles build nests in it."

20-21 He tried again. "How can I picture
God's kingdom? It's like yeast that a woman works into enough dough for
three loaves of bread--and waits while the dough rises."

22 He went on teaching from town to
village, village to town, but keeping on a steady course toward Jerusalem.

23-25 A bystander said, "Master, will only
a few be saved?"

He said, "Whether few or many is none of
your business. Put your mind on your life with God. The way to life--to God!--is
vigorous and requires your total attention. A lot of you are going to assume
that you'll sit down to God's salvation banquet just because you've been
hanging around the neighborhood all your lives. Well, one day you're going to
be banging on the door, wanting to get in, but you'll find the door locked and
the Master saying, 'Sorry, you're not on my guest list.'

26-27 "You'll protest, 'But we've known you
all our lives!' only to be interrupted with his abrupt, 'Your kind of knowing
can hardly be called knowing. You don't know the first thing about me.'

28-30 "That's when you'll find yourselves
out in the cold, strangers to grace. You'll watch Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and
all the prophets march into God's kingdom. You'll watch outsiders stream in
from east, west, north, and south and sit down at the table of God's kingdom.
And all the time you'll be outside looking in--and wondering what happened. This
is the Great Reversal: the last in line put at the head of the line, and the so-called
first ending up last."

31 Just then some Pharisees came up and
said, "Run for your life! Herod's on the hunt. He's out to kill you!"

32-35 Jesus said, "Tell that fox that I've
no time for him right now. Today and tomorrow I'm busy clearing out the demons
and healing the sick; the third day I'm wrapping things up. Besides, it's not
proper for a prophet to come to a bad end outside Jerusalem.

Jerusalem, Jerusalem, killer of prophets,

       
abuser of the messengers of God!

How often I've longed to gather your
children,

       
gather your children like a hen,

Her brood safe under her wings--

       
but you refused and turned away!

And now it's too late: You won't see me
again

       
until the day you say,

   
'Blessed is he

   
who comes in

   
the name of God.'"