Acts 1:15-17, 21-26

We've been jumping around the book of Acts and will soon leave it behind. It may be a good time to ask if this is indeed a rare glimpse into the early decades of Christianity, or something else. That there are literary elements might be a clue that this is not history. Jesus gets baptized and receives the Holy Spirit in the beginning of Luke, followers do the same in the beginning of Acts. That Spirit empowers Jesus to do miracles, just like the apostles in Acts. Healing the sick, confronting Jewish authorities, even getting executed. Seems to be a pattern.

But Acts comes after Jesus is gone, so that transition needs to be explained. The verses before these cover that with Jesus proving he is not actually dead, then ascending to heaven. Then we get one of the lists of bit characters that never quite matches up to other lists. And, an account of the death of Judas that does not match up with other accounts. Maybe that is why they skip over a few verses. Apparently twelve is an important number to maintain, maybe to match the twelve tribes, so Peter leads the group in selecting a replacement. We needed to show Peter's authority, so this was a good way to do that.

1 John 5:9-13

Alright, the second entry on this chapter, so it must be important. Eternal life, that would be important. What's not clear is if the physical world is changing into something else and those who make the transition will have eternal life, or is this granted after you are dead, in some other place. More clear, is that believing will make it clear. If you do, then the testimony will be in your heart. If not, you're a liar.

John 17:6-19

David Lose compares some of this passage to "I Am the Walrus" by Lennon and McCarthy. He also calls it "tightly woven theologizing". This follows the "farewell discourses" from previous weeks into this, the "high priestly prayer". We are getting near the end, Thursday night before the Friday crucifixion. He's not saying it's going to be easy, but prays they will work together to deal with it. In the verse immediately following these, he expands it to the whole world, and many take it to mean all time. So we get some verses that support the continuation of this church, as long as there is selfishness and feelings of scarcity, which is pretty much forever.