Good stuff, Tim!! That reading about the sneaky snake accountant underling… I think the key lies in the 8th verse where it says that the big boss “commended” him for his shrewdness. The Greek word, if you chase its parts down, finally comes to mean “applause”.
I can see Jesus not only telling the parable but also living it out through applauding. Except it’s a slow clap applause with a knowledgeable and sarcastic grin. The sneaky snake underling knows he has been caught. It’s like a person standing at the judgement seat seeing plainly that a life must be lived through honest integrity and a knowledge that this life is not everything there is. At that point, at that junctional hinge, the rest of the story fits nicely with the beginning of the parable. I love this substack. Thank you for filling our days with interesting spiritual food.
Great article. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this. I have had a thought on what you said about Paul’s letter where he states “I do not permit a woman to teach or to exercise authority over a man”. It’s interesting because we see in Judges 4 that there was Deborah who was elected as a judge and established as a prophet over Israel by God.
I think the important implication is he says “I”. There are points he makes that he says are not binding commandments of the Lord. He says so in 1Corinthians 7:6 “I say this as a concession, not as a command.” I interpret this as there are things that Paul personally believes or experienced, that apply for his ministry or certain situations for Christians.
He was preaching as an evangelist to previous unbelievers, so it’s possible that his messages were taken with that perspective in mind. Maybe he has seen or experienced things in his ministry that led to this particular understanding.
I agree with you that Paul shows a different perspective in other passages. He sets up Lydia as the apparent leader of a house church in Phillipi, and speaks of women among his missionary "yoke fellows.". Still, most New Testament church leadership is male, in particular the apostolic office. Challenging issues which various traditions continue to sort out.
Thank you for connecting. Will look forward to visiting your Substack. God bless and prosper your witness!
On women: I remember the promises which were made about how wonderful things would happen for the Church once all orders of ministries were opened to us. The problem with that was that the movement went hand in hand with the movement that denied any differences between the sexes under any circumstances, and now the one that denies the sexes even exist. I conclude that the apostles and early church fathers were rightly guided by the Holy Spirit.
It's hard to deny the slippery slope, isn't it? And your last point is significant. We ignored the Christians closest in time and place to the Lord's earthly ministry and teaching.
I do think that we ignore their witness at our peril. This is not about clothing styles or what occupations people pursue in their daily lives. Our creation as male or female and our basic roles in the human family and the church family are not merely cultural artifacts. We remain the same kind of humans as the ones Jesus preached to in his earthly life.
Awesome insight, Milton. Thanks for chasing down that verb! Yes, the missing piece is Jesus' personal presence in not only telling but inflecting and acting out the story.
Good stuff, Tim!! That reading about the sneaky snake accountant underling… I think the key lies in the 8th verse where it says that the big boss “commended” him for his shrewdness. The Greek word, if you chase its parts down, finally comes to mean “applause”.
I can see Jesus not only telling the parable but also living it out through applauding. Except it’s a slow clap applause with a knowledgeable and sarcastic grin. The sneaky snake underling knows he has been caught. It’s like a person standing at the judgement seat seeing plainly that a life must be lived through honest integrity and a knowledge that this life is not everything there is. At that point, at that junctional hinge, the rest of the story fits nicely with the beginning of the parable. I love this substack. Thank you for filling our days with interesting spiritual food.
Excellent!
Great article. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this. I have had a thought on what you said about Paul’s letter where he states “I do not permit a woman to teach or to exercise authority over a man”. It’s interesting because we see in Judges 4 that there was Deborah who was elected as a judge and established as a prophet over Israel by God.
I think the important implication is he says “I”. There are points he makes that he says are not binding commandments of the Lord. He says so in 1Corinthians 7:6 “I say this as a concession, not as a command.” I interpret this as there are things that Paul personally believes or experienced, that apply for his ministry or certain situations for Christians.
He was preaching as an evangelist to previous unbelievers, so it’s possible that his messages were taken with that perspective in mind. Maybe he has seen or experienced things in his ministry that led to this particular understanding.
Let me know what you think.
Thanks again for the article!
I agree with you that Paul shows a different perspective in other passages. He sets up Lydia as the apparent leader of a house church in Phillipi, and speaks of women among his missionary "yoke fellows.". Still, most New Testament church leadership is male, in particular the apostolic office. Challenging issues which various traditions continue to sort out.
Thank you for connecting. Will look forward to visiting your Substack. God bless and prosper your witness!
Thank you for the response and likewise. I’ll keep an eye out for yours as well
On women: I remember the promises which were made about how wonderful things would happen for the Church once all orders of ministries were opened to us. The problem with that was that the movement went hand in hand with the movement that denied any differences between the sexes under any circumstances, and now the one that denies the sexes even exist. I conclude that the apostles and early church fathers were rightly guided by the Holy Spirit.
It's hard to deny the slippery slope, isn't it? And your last point is significant. We ignored the Christians closest in time and place to the Lord's earthly ministry and teaching.
I do think that we ignore their witness at our peril. This is not about clothing styles or what occupations people pursue in their daily lives. Our creation as male or female and our basic roles in the human family and the church family are not merely cultural artifacts. We remain the same kind of humans as the ones Jesus preached to in his earthly life.
We got into trouble thinking ourselves somehow superior to them.
Awesome insight, Milton. Thanks for chasing down that verb! Yes, the missing piece is Jesus' personal presence in not only telling but inflecting and acting out the story.