Affection

For God is my witness, how I yearn for you all with the affection of Christ Jesus. (Philippians 1:8 ESV)

As Paul writes to the Philippians he remembers their faithfulness to him and to Christ in the midst of his great trial and his heart bursts forth in emotion for them. He loves them deeply, so deeply that he invokes God as his witness.

There is a love that is commanded of us by Jesus, a love that is supposed to tell the world that we are his disciples.

A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.” (John 13:34-35 ESV)

The inevitable fruit of being a follower of Christ is a love for the other followers of Christ. Jesus commanded us to love one another. But (have you ever thought of this?) how can affection be commanded? How can emotion, genuine emotion, be worked up just through force of will? 

It can't.

Have you ever struggled with that? We are commanded to love, but how can we love when, well, we just don't feel it? How are we to obey such a command?

It gets worse. Not only are we commanded to love one another, but we are commanded to love one another with the same love with which Christ has loved us. That's a lot of love. That's the love that sent Christ to the cross to save us, to give himself up for us, to die for us. That kind of sacrificial love does not come naturally. In fact, it is against our nature. Yet, not only are we commanded to love in this way, but that is also the love that Paul has just expressed for the church at Philippi in the verse we read above:

For God is my witness, how I yearn for you all with the affection of Christ Jesus. (Philippians 1:8 ESV)

Paul loves them with the love of Christ Jesus. The Greek language is even more vivid. Paul yearned for them with the very bowels of Christ, with a deep inward yearning, the same love that sent Christ to the cross for us.

So it is possible. 

But how?

As with all spiritual things we need grace. We need the power of Christ. We need the working of the Spirit of God within us. Without this, we are doomed to fail. And here, again, the gospel carries us through. 

So what do we do? The gospel teaches us what to do. We bow our heads and confess our sin of selfishness and heartlessness. Then we ask God for mercy and grace and to change us. Then we go out and do what Jesus said, we love in action. We ask, 'What would love do?' and then we do it. Then we step back and witness how the miracle of love and grace changes people. As we witness that change in others, we will notice it in ourselves. Then, we may be able to say with Paul about our fellow believers "For God is my witness, how I yearn for you all with the affection of Christ Jesus."

Defense and Confirmation

It is right for me to feel this way about you all, because I hold you in my heart, for you are all partakers with me of grace, both in my imprisonment and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel. (Philippians 1:7 ESV)

For what is Paul in prison? There's a long answer and a short answer. The long answer is that Paul has appealed to Caesar and is awaiting his opportunity to appear before Caesar. He appealed to Caesar because he was about to be turned over to the Jews by his Roman captors. By "Jews" I mean specifically those Jewish rulers who intended to do him harm. His Roman captors likely would have turned him over as a political favor and then Paul likely would have died. Died for what? Paul would have been executed for teaching people that they did not need to keep the Law of Moses (or some such trumped up charge). The truth is, Paul was being persecuted for preaching Jesus as the Messiah. He had been held captive for nearly five years--an imprisonment spanning Acts chapters 21-28 and probably at least a year longer.

But there's a short answer. The short answer is Paul's answer. Paul is in prison, in his words, for "the defense and confirmation of the gospel."

In the Roman Empire the prevailing religion was a sort of pantheism. There were various deities who served a variety of purposes and every locale had its favorites. By far the most popular and the most official of Roman religions was Emperor worship. This one was promoted. Other religions were tolerated, however, and each and every conquered land was allowed to keep and maintain its own religion, as long as that religion did not get out of hand. Under this system the Jewish religion was a protected religion. It was not official, but it was tolerated, and allowed to exist as long as it did not rock the boat. Christianity was just another sect of the Jews and given the same protection as Judaism.

That is, until Paul. What Paul did was spread the faith to Gentiles and then adamantly declare that these Gentiles need not become Jews (circumcision, diet, culture) in order to become Christians. Now we have a problem. You see, it's getting harder and harder for Christianity to hide under the protection of the Jewish faith. It is becoming less and less "Jewish."

That's the way it is looked at by the Romans, anyway. That's not the way Paul looks at it. And before things get out of hand Paul wants to make his case before Caesar. Paul is a Roman citizen after all, and a Jew. Paul believes his faith is the true Jewish faith.

All of this is likely on Paul's mind as he awaits to appeal to Caesar. To him, his day in court, his day before Nero is "for the defense and confirmation of the gospel." And he holds the Philippian believers dear in his heart, at least in part, for standing with him and helping him in this endeavor.

How far would you go for the defense and confirmation of the gospel? How important to you is the message of Christ? Would you give for its support? Would you encourage others in the work? Do you pray for those who minister the gospel and proclaim it? Is your worship gospel-centered? Do you worship? Do you tell others about Christ? What is your part in the Fellowship of the Gospel?

Today, think about the focus and direction of your life. Where are your priorities? Is your life about the good news of Christ? Then dedicate the rest of your days, however many there are, toward reorienting your life around this purpose.

Persecution

It is right for me to feel this way about you all, because I hold you in my heart, for you are all partakers with me of grace, both in my imprisonment and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel. (Philippians 1:7 ESV)

The Philippian believers have been privileged to share in Paul's grace--not grace from Paul, but the grace of God lavished upon Paul. How so?

Every good thing we have, including the gifts God has given us for ministry, are undeserved. Paul has been gifted for ministry in many ways and the Philippians, through the ministry of Paul, have been partakers of that grace. They have been blessed spiritually by the gifts God has graciously given to Paul. Now they are reciprocating that grace right back to Paul by sending him a gift by the hand of Epaphroditus. They have taken this collection to give to him to meet his needs while in prison. Now, as Paul's ministry continues, they are partakers of that grace along with him. They have sacrificed of themselves to share in his suffering. No wonder he holds them in his heart!

Grace, then, is not the only thing they have in common with Paul. They also have suffering. It is likely that Paul, here, alludes to something that is mentioned specifically later in the letter--that is that the Philippians themselves are also suffering persecution for the sake of the gospel. Persecution of the Church is starting to spread throughout the empire. While Paul is imprisoned in Rome the Christians at Philippi and elsewhere are suffering as well.

Persecution is the norm for the Church. It is not expected that the Fellowship of the Gospel should pass through this world without trials. We are on a mission for the King and we can expect the enemy to be lying in wait. Jesus himself said, "In the world ye shall have tribulation." (John 16:33 KJV) Paul said, "All that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution." (2 Tim. 3:12 KJV)

Just take a look at Church history. The Church, the true Church made up of the blood-bought people of God throughout the ages, has always faced the flames of persecution. "The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the Church," said Tertullian and he was right. There has not been a time since the apostles when Christians were not being persecuted somewhere for their faith. And that's how it should be.

Jesus calls us to follow him. He says, "Take up the cross and follow me." What does it mean to "take up the cross" if not to be willing to suffer and die if need be for his sake? Many have felt the truth of that calling in their own flesh before we came along and many more will after we have passed. It is a privilege to suffer for his cause. It is a privilege to suffer for the sake of the gospel. It is a privilege to suffer for his name's sake.

Oh, and I wish to leave you with one more thought. Back in that upper room, on the last night that Jesus had with his disciples before he was betrayed, he made them that promise that I quoted above: "In the world ye shall have tribulation." But that's not all he said. He continued with this: "But be of good cheer; I have overcome the world."

Partakers

It is right for me to feel this way about you all, because I hold you in my heart, for you are all partakers with me of grace, both in my imprisonment and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel. (Philippians 1:7 ESV)

Remember that this epistle is a thank-you letter. It was inspired by the unselfish giving of the church at Philippi to Paul while he was in prison. That generosity brought on this letter in which Paul expresses his love for them.

Paul loves the people at Philippi who are members of the church there. He holds them in his heart. There is a bond between them, not generated just by this act of generosity, but established long ago upon solid grounds, things they share, things that go far beyond geography and culture and even language. Here he elaborates on those things. Today I want us to look at the first of them. Grace.

. . . for you are all partakers with me of grace . . .

As Christians we are undeserving, wholly undeserving of anything good from God's hands. As Christians we understand that anything we receive from God is because of his goodness, not because of ours. We have earned nothing from God but death. Yet God has given us life. We have earned his curse, yet he has given us blessing. This is grace.

Paul knows something of that grace. His own testimony is one of bitter anger against Christ and his church. Paul called himself the least of the apostles, unworthy to be called an apostle, because he persecuted the church. But God, in his grace, confronted him on the road to Damascus. Instead of justice, Paul received grace.

Paul knows them, too, and how they are recipients of grace. One of the members of that church there had ordered Paul beaten unlawfully. Opposing Paul and the gospel this man had tried to silence Paul. And yet just a few hours later this man had come falling down before Paul, trembling, and asking how he could be saved.

Grace. Amazing grace. It is what every Christian has in common. We are unworthy sinners who, if left alone, would lead lives in total opposition to God. Yet we were not left alone. God intervened.

For this reason alone, one stranger can meet another and within just a few minutes there is a bond between them that the world knows nothing about. They are immediately allies. There is an immediate love. It is because they are Christians and they know what it is to experience grace.

Have you been forgiven? Then you know that grace. It is impossible for those who have experienced grace not to love others who are partakers of that grace as well. No wonder Paul held them in his heart. If you have been given grace then give grace freely. If you have been loved undeservedly, then love others in spite of the fact they are undeserving as well. After all, we are partakers of grace.

That Day

And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ. (Philippians 1:6 ESV)

Every dog has its day, they say, and so even the worst of us experience successes and good days. Have you ever had one of those days? A day that you wish would never end? A perfect day, or a special day when something unbelievable happened and you just basked in awe about how good life could be?

If you have, then you are blessed. One popular song put it this way:

I'm never gonna look back,
Whoa, never gonna give it up,
No, please don't wake me now
Woo-oo-oo-oo-oo, woo-oo-oo-oo-oo
This is gonna be the best day of my life . . .*

We can appreciate the joy of life and the feeling the songwriter and artist were expressing above, but . . .

. . . not all days are like those days, are they? Some days are bad and sometimes the bad days seem like they will never stop coming. Sometimes life just seems like there are many more bad days than good ones. Perhaps you are in a place like that now.

In one sense the bad days are there for a reason. They are meant to teach us to appreciate the good ones when they come along. But if this is so, then what are the good days for?

Good days are gifts of God. Good days are unmerited favor from God's hand intended to make us look up, to look to him from whom every good gift comes. Good days all point forward to that day--the day alluded to in that verse we quoted above. The day of Jesus Christ.

That day is coming and that day, for us who are in Christ, will be the greatest day there ever was or ever could be. That is the day when our redemption is complete. That is the day when we are completely remade into what God intended for us in the first place. That day is the day when all that was lost in Adam will be restored in Christ. That is the day when we will experience fully all the riches and blessings earned by Christ Jesus on our behalf. That day is our day of Jubilee.

That day is coming and make no mistake about it--in Christ, we were intended for that day. 

Do you struggle with sin? Do you struggle with doubt? Do you struggle with disease? Or loneliness? Has life been a struggle or do you find yourself in a struggle right now? Understand that today, this day, is not the day for which we are ultimately intended. There is coming a better day. That day.

So lift up your heads, my friends, your redemption draweth nigh.

*Best Day of My Life by American Authors

Author and Finisher

And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ. (Philippians 1:6 ESV)

The Holy Spirit cannot be seen. His work of regeneration cannot be put under a microscope and studied. It is like the wind. 

Jesus said so himself:

"The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.” (John 3:8 ESV)

We cannot see the wind, can we? But we can tell when it is there because we can see its effects. We can feel it. We can hear it. We can see what it does. God's grace operates the same way within his people. We cannot see the Spirit of God, but we can certainly see what he does. He works in us and he changes us. He gives us new appetites and desires. He produces faith in us. He works repentance in us. God's grace always evidences itself in some way.

And Paul remembers that grace at work in the Philippian church. He was there when God began his gracious work in them. Paul was a part of it. He witnessed it first-hand. He was there when the Spirit of God opened the heart of Lydia that she might receive the things that were spoken by the Apostle. He was there when the jailor came falling down on his knees, trembling, and said, "Sirs, what must I do to be saved?" He himself had baptized many of them. He had seen them changed. He had seen them grow in grace.

What has God done in your life? Was there a time when you came to Christ, trembling, believing? Was there a time when you felt sick in your very soul for your sin and rebellion against God? Was there a time that you remember when spiritual desires were first stirred up in your soul? That kind of thing doesn't come naturally. That's a work of the Spirit of God. That's how God begins his work in us. And if you have that, you can have the assurance that Paul spoke of about the Philippians. If there is an ounce of goodness in you, genuine goodness, it did not come from you. It came from God. He has begun a good work in you. And if he has begun a good work in you, then he is still working in you.

It was not Adam and Eve who went looking for God after the fall. God went looking for them. It was not Abram who went out on his own into the land of Canaan calling for God. No, God called Abram out of Ur of the Chaldees, out of idolatry, to go to a land which God would show him. The people of the world never got together and sent a letter or petition to God asking him to come down and save them. It was God who became flesh and dwelt among us. Far from receiving him gladly we took him and crucified him. It has always been God who has been the initiator in our salvation. It was the Holy Spirit through the Church and through a vision who sent Paul into Macedonia. It was by God's hand that they found themselves down by a riverside on the Sabbath hearing Christ preached by Paul and his band. It was the Spirit of God who opened the heart of Lydia to believe the things that Paul was saying. God, God, God. That is what Paul is saying. Salvation is of the Lord. It is Jesus who is the author of our faith and Jesus who will be the finisher of it.

Today, as you go throughout your day, rest in the confidence that if God has begun a good work in you, then he will surely finish it.

Assurance

And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ. (Philippians 1:6 ESV)

Paul's joy at the thought of the Philippians being participants in the fellowship of the gospel leads him to make an emphatic statement. He is sure. He is certain. He is convinced that his fellows in the gospel will be with him in that fellowship until the culmination of Christ's redemptive work. How can he be so sure? After all, they are human. They are fallible. Paul, of all people, knows the weakness of human flesh. It is Paul who has spelled out for us, in his epistles, the doctrines of human depravity and original sin.

as it is written: “None is righteous, no, not one; no one understands; no one seeks for God. All have turned aside; together they have become worthless; no one does good, not even one.” (Romans 3:10-12 ESV) 

for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, (Romans 3:23 ESV) 

For as in Adam all die, . . . (1 Corinthians 15:22 ESV)

So if the Philippians are incapable of saving themselves, how can Paul be sure that those same Philippians will be fully and finally saved at the day of Christ? Or, to put it another way, how can he be sure that when "the roll is called up yonder" they'll be there?

And make no mistake. Paul is assured of their salvation. He is confident. He is certain. He says so quite clearly.

The answer to the question is simple. The work is not theirs. The work is God's. Salvation is God's work from beginning to end. It is all of grace.

Like you, I am very human. I have often begun projects that I never finished. Sometimes I get tired of a project. Sometimes I decide a project is more trouble than it's worth. Sometimes I fail to count the cost. Sometimes I just lose interest. Sometimes I find I am simply unable to complete a task.

But not God. God is not a man that he should change his mind. He never makes an error in judgment. He never has to re-think anything. He never lacks what it takes to finish. When he starts something you can be sure it is worth starting and If it is worth starting it is worth finishing.

So if God has begun a work of grace in you, he will complete it. He always does what he intends.

all the inhabitants of the earth are accounted as nothing,  

and he does according to his will among the host of heaven  

and among the inhabitants of the earth;  

and none can stay his hand  

or say to him, "What have you done?” 

(Daniel 4:35 ESV)

Paul said that to assure them. We need to be reminded that God is faithful--even when we are not. Has God begun a good work in you? Then trust him that he will not let you go.

Gospel

because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now. (Philippians 1:5 ESV)

Gospel. What a magnificent and strange word. Gospel. What does it mean?

In our language 'gospel' conjures up various images. Sometimes it is used as a synonym for truth. Sometimes it signifies a genre of music. Sometimes it is borrowed and used to describe a particular theme or message that a person may have, as in "The congressman made an appearance at the parade preaching his gospel of tax cuts and laissez faire economics."

But in the Greek-speaking world the word 'gospel' had a different meaning. In its simplest sense it meant "good news". Often it meant a particular good news announced publicly and affecting many people. For example, the birth of Caesar was heralded as gospel, or good news, to the world. 

In the same way, we see the angels herald the good news of the birth of Jesus in Luke's Gospel.

And the angel said to them, “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. (Luke 2:10-11 ESV)

We open our Bibles to the New Testament and the first book we encounter is The Gospel According to Matthew. What follows, of course, is an account of the life of Jesus. Next come Mark, Luke, and John--all gospels. So in our earliest encounter with the word 'gospel' in the New Testament we find it to be the good news about Jesus Christ and all that his coming into the world entails.

While the word certainly denotes more than just that, I want us to focus on that aspect of it today. (Later, as we progress through the book of Philippians, we will have opportunity to look more closely at other aspects of the word.) And I want us to remember what it was that gave Paul joy in Philippians 1:4,5--namely that the Philippians had been partners with him, fellows in the gospel. They were participants in the good news of Jesus Christ.

Are you? Are you a part of this rag-tag band of followers, the fellowship of the gospel? Do you belong to Christ? Have your sins been forgiven? Are you a believer? If you aren't, then I want to encourage you to keep reading. I want to encourage you to "taste and see that the LORD is good.*" If you are, then rejoice. Christ Jesus has come into the world to save sinners. He has come to seek and to save that which was lost. He has come to redeem the world. He has come to renew all that was ruined in Adam. He has come to set things right. He has come looking for you.

*Psalm 34:8

Fellowship

For your fellowship in the gospel from the first day until now; (Philippians 1:5 KJV)

Fellowship. It's a word that conjures up good times, friendship, camaraderie. But there's an older sense of the word that is being utilized by the King James translators, and that is the sense we are going to look at. It is the sense of partnership.

 

The best way I can think of to describe this use of the word is in J. R. R. Tolkien's novel The Fellowship of the Ring. If you've read that book (or seen the movie) you'll know that the ring is not something the people gathered around for food and conversation the way Baptists do once a month in the 'fellowship hall' of the church. No, the fellowship of the ring was the group of adventurers who volunteered to go on the quest to destroy the ring. They were putting their lives on the line for a mutual goal, a mutual purpose, a purpose for which they pledged themselves. And this is the sense of the word that the King James translators were thinking of when they chose to use it in Philippians 1:5.

For your fellowship in the gospel from the first day until now; (Philippians 1:5 KJV)

The ESV translators chose to render it this way:

because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now. (Philippians 1:5 ESV)

We are partners in gospel ministry. We are the Fellowship of the Gospel.

You're probably thinking, gospel ministry, that's for preachers. That's for pastors. That's for professional clergy. While that may be our thinking, that's not biblical thinking. Paul thought of himself as belonging to a fellowship of the gospel, partnered together with all the saints, all the members of that universal church of the firstborn (Heb. 12). We are members of an exclusive club, called out of the world, united to Christ by faith, committed to the proclamation of the gospel. 

It is the gospel which we have embraced and the gospel to which we are committed, for the gospel is the hope of the world.

So the thing that brings Paul joy as he remembers the saints at Philippi, as he thanks God for them, as he prays for them, is that they are a part of the great fellowship of the gospel. They are partners in gospel ministry. They have embraced that for which they were embraced by Christ. Their heart is Paul's heart--it is glorifying God through the gospel.

Where is your heart? To what are you dedicated? What is your part? What is your role in the fellowship? What have you pledged? Where is your joy? Is it in proclaiming the good news of Jesus Christ? That he came to save sinners? That he lived the life we could not live and died the death that we deserved to die? That he rose again from the dead that we might be justified before God? That he's coming again to make all things new?

Today, every day, be about the gospel. Live it. Love it. Proclaim it. Find your niche, your role in the church, your place in the fellowship of the gospel.

Joy

I thank my God in all my remembrance of you, always in every prayer of mine for you all making my prayer with joy, (Philippians 1:3-4 ESV)

Paul has had the Philippians on his mind. He has thought of them and he has thanked God for them.

He has done this before and now, as he receives their gift from the hands of Epaphroditus, he does so again. He is thankful for their gift and for the evident grace of God in them.

There is a progression that takes place here. He remembers them. In remembering them he is thankful for them--both for God allowing him to minister to them, and also for the reciprocity of their ministry back to him in his time of need. He is thankful because he sees God's hand in all of it. In everything he sees God. And so it is that his thoughts turn naturally to prayer. He prays for them.

". . . always in every prayer of mine for you all making my prayer with joy."

It is good for us to get our mind off of ourselves and our own concerns and put it on others. It is too easy to be self-absorbed. Let me encourage you to put your thoughts elsewhere today. Think about how God has worked in your life and how he is working right now. Think about the people in your life each day, people whom God has placed in your path, and pray for them. Think about their needs. Think about their spiritual needs. Ask God to bless them. Ask God to give them all the spiritual blessings available to them in Christ Jesus.

This is what Paul did. Can you see him? Sitting in prison, chained to a guard. No liberty. No sunlight. No good food. No good air. Nothing. And yet he has joy.

Isn't that amazing? Paul tells them that in his plight, his imprisonment, his time of persecution and doubt, he has joy. And so can we, no matter what conditions or circumstances we find ourselves in.

So why not try it? Put your mind on others. See them. See God's hand in their lives. Pray for them.

And see if that doesn't change your outlook on things. See if that doesn't help you to recognize that we are not the center of the universe, that, in fact, the center of the universe is God and what he is doing is far more important than anything else. I promise that when you become focused on that, and on what God is doing in the lives of others, and in longing to see him glorified in everyone around you, then you will know something of that joy that Paul talks about when he says, ". . . making my prayer with joy."

Privilege

I thank my God in all my remembrance of you, (Philippians 1:3 ESV)

The most wonderful story ever told is the story of redemption. It is contained in the Bible--all throughout the Bible. In fact, it can be said that redemption is the very theme of the Bible. Or, more accurately, the glory of God in redemption is the theme of the Bible. The story begins in early Genesis and climaxes at Calvary where our redemption was accomplished, where Jesus reconciled us back to himself--and creation along with us.

For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross. And you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, he has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death, in order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before him, (Colossians 1:19-22 ESV)

But the story does not end there. All of the redeemed have not yet been reclaimed. Creation has yet to be renewed. All that was lost in Adam has yet to be restored. And so Christ marches on in the world through us, through his Church, commissioned to proclaim his gospel, commissioned to pass on his teaching until Christ returns. The Bible is the saga of redemption. But the story does not end with the apostles.

The saga of redemption continues.

You and I have our part in the story.

What a privilege that is! No wonder Paul is so thankful! God does not need us. God needs no one. God could certainly do his work without us. Understand that when God uses a human vessel to accomplish his purposes he is using a flawed vessel, a marred vessel, a broken vessel. When God uses us it is not because we are useful. No. When God uses us he is doing it the hard way. It would be easier (not that anything God does is hard for him, but follow me on this) for God to use anything else other than us to carry out his endeavors. That's because the whole universe obeys his voice and we don't. We are self-willed. We are sinful. 

So when God uses us, in spite of us, to carry out his work of redemption in the world we should feel like the most unworthy people who ever lived. Because we are. And yet God uses us anyway.

What a privilege! Though we have tried our best sometimes to throw our lives away and waste them on vanity and emptiness he has stooped to allow us to have our small part in the greatest work ever accomplished. He has used us to further his work of redemption.

That's how Paul feels as he sits in prison and remembers the Philippians. He thinks of them and smiles. They are tokens of God's grace toward him. Who is he that God should use him to do that?

No wonder he is thankful. No wonder he thanks God on every remembrance of them. Thank you. Thank you, God. Thank you, Jesus. You have given our lives meaning. You have allowed us the privilege of having a part in this great work, this great story of redemption. We will sing your praises for eternity.

At Synagogue With Jesus / Part 2

Note: In the previous post I mentioned the priest who enters and leads the congregation in the benedictory prayers. This would have been a member of the Levitical priesthood. In our service I had the priest also lead the congregation in the Shema, then being seated and replaced by Jairus who was the ruler of the synagogue of Capernaum in Jesus's day. Jairus, then, would have continued the service. However, according to some ancient sources, the priest may have only led the benedictory prayers and one of the rulers of the synagogue may have replaced him at that point to lead in the Shema and beyond.

Jairus ascends the platform as we watch. He walks now, not to the lectern to face the congregation, but rather toward the ark at the innermost part of the room. He faces it and begins pronouncing the eulogies. Here is the first:

"Blessed be the Lord our God and the God of our fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob; the great, the mighty, and the terrible God; the Most High God, who shows mercy and kindness, Who creates all things, Who remembers the gracious promises to the fathers, and brings a Savior to their children's children, for his own Name's sake, in love. O King, Helper, Savior, and Shield! Blessed are You, O Jehovah, the Shield of Abraham."

And all the people respond, "Amen." Then Jairus continues:

"You, O Lord, are mighty for ever; You, who make alive the dead, are mighty to save. In your mercy You preserve the living; You bring to life the dead; in Your abundant pity you bear up those who fall, and heal those who are diseased, and loose those who are bound, and fulfill your faithful word to those who sleep in the dust. Who is like unto You, Lord of strength, and who can be compared to You, Who kills and makes alive, and causes salvation to spring forth? And faithful are You to give life unto the dead. Blessed be You, Jehovah, Who brings the dead to life!"

Again, the congregation responds, "Amen." Jairus speaks again:

"You are holy, and Your Name is holy; and the holy ones praise You every day. Selah! Blessed are You, Jehovah God, the Holy One!"

The congregation again responds with an "amen."

Note:  At this point stop and consider the passage in Luke 4 where Jesus begins his public ministry in the synagogue at Nazareth where he grew up.  Luke records that the scrolls were brought to Jesus and that Jesus read a passage from Isaiah and then preached a sermon.  We are not yet that far into our service here, but Edersheim points out that often, when a guest reader and teacher (like Jesus would have been that day in Nazareth) was present, that many times he also would have been the one to pronounce the eulogies recorded above.  Luke 4 is just one instance in Jesus's ministry.  The gospels record that it was Jesus's practice to teach and preach in all the synagogues.  Now go back up to those three eulogies above and read them again, this time imagining that it is Jesus himself who is repeating them to the congregation.  He, himself, is the fulfillment of and answer to those prayers!  It's amazing when you think about it.  Only to have been there!

Now Jairus turns and faces the congregation and an invitation is extended for members of the congregation to come forward and offer their own prayers.  The respondents would only have been men who were properly clothed and it is unclear whether the prayers would have been pre-written or offered extemporaneously.  At any rate, this may have gone on awhile.  Note Jesus's warnings about the Pharisees in Mark 12 and other places when he mentions how for "a pretense (they) make long prayers."  This would have been the time for that.

When this is finished, Jairus steps forward again, faces the ark, and offers this:

"Take gracious pleasure, O Jehovah our God, in Your people Israel, and in their prayers.  Accept the burnt-offerings of Israel, and their prayers, with Your good pleasure; and may the services of Your people Israel be ever acceptable unto You. And oh that our eyes may see it, as You turn in mercy to Zion!  Blessed be You, O Jehovah, Who restores his Shechinah to Zion!"

And all the people respond, "Amen."  Then again:

"We praise You, because You are Jehovah our God, and the God of our fathers, for ever and ever.  You are the Rock of our life, the Shield of our salvation, from generation to generation.  We laud you, and declare Your praise for our lives which are kept within your hand, and for our souls which are committed unto You, and for Your wonders which are with us every day, and Your wondrous deeds and Your goodnesses, which are at all seasons--evening, morning, and mid-day.  You gracious One, Whose compassions never end; You pitying One, Whose grace never ceases--for ever do we put our trust in You!  And for all this Your Name, O our King, be blessed and extolled always, for ever and ever!  And all living bless You--Selah--and praise Your Name in truth, O God, our Salvation and our Help.  Blessed are You, Jehovah; Your Name is the gracious One, to whom praise is due."

"Amen," from the congregation.  Then, finally:

"Oh bestow on Your people Israel great peace, for ever; for You are King and Lord of all peace, and it is good in Your eyes to bless Your people Israel with praise at all times and in every hour.  Blessed are You, Jehovah, Who blesses His people Israel with peace."

Again, the congregation agrees with an "amen."

Next comes the meat and potatoes of the service and we shall describe that in a subsequent post.  But before we do that, stop and consider how full of praise are the prayers and how God-centered the focus thus far has been.  Keep in mind that this is not Scripture.  In other words, in the synagogue service we do not find God's exact commands for how a worship service should be conducted.  We are simply observing how it was done by others who lived at a time of great tragedy and yet of expectancy.  Note how Messianic the prayers are.  How do our prayers compare?  How similar or how different is the focus?  Is that necessarily good or not?  Could our prayers and our worship be more pleasing to God?  Should we be open to that?