Cued by the traditional interpretations of the Church, let us be alert to the various messages that these living words continue to speak, in continuity with how they were heard by the apostles, to whom Jesus originally explained them. This will include being prepared for the cutting operation of the word of God, as it pierces our hearts and lays bare our disease so that we can be healed. Controversies Some of the parables that Jesus told were highly controversial in their original context: the most obvious example is the parable of the vineyard (Mark 12:112; Luke 20:919), which Jesus aimed at the Jewish leaders, who perceived that he had spoken the parable against them (Mark 12:12; Luke 20:19). But there are also stories about Jesus that move towards controversy; in terms of the gospels as a whole, they provide the suspense that direct us towards Jesus crucifixion. One trap inherent in hearing such s

Isnt that just terrible!). The preface to Johns Gospel stands as a constant reminder that the controversy stories speak to the human condition: in that cosmic context, the phrase He came to His own, and His own did not receive Him, can never be restricted to refer to the Jewish or first-century people. Israels role, instead, is to show up close what we are all like, as though there were a magnifying glass over humanity. And, of course,

After all, the apostles, as Jews, were his own, and to as many as received him, He gave the power to become the children of God. The controversies, then, show Gods modus operandi in dealing with us, the intransigent and hostile, and serve to highlight his truth and his mercy. Essential Orthodox Christian Beliefs 124 Notes The Shape of Controversy A significant controversy story about Jesus, that reflects the first major controversy faced by the Church after Pentecost, is recorded in Matthew 15:111, and more extensively in Mark 7:123. We have noted this passage already in terms of its application to later problems, but lets consider here how it unfolds as an argumentative passage. Jesus debate is held specifically with the Pharisees and is so important that some of the players are scribes (scholars) of Torah who have come down from Jerusalem to check the teaching and practice of this new rabbi and his followers. The shape of the controversy is most easi

This basic shape challenge, counter-challenge, discussion, and proclamation is filled out in Marks version, which also explains, for the purpose of his Gentile readers (including us), some of the particulars of Torah and how it was understood in Jesus day. Many manuscripts of Mark, as we have seen, also explicitly link this controversy with the problem encountered later by the early Church regarding the eating of kosher food (Acts 15): So He declared all food clean (7:19). From Matthew, we derive the drama, and see the Gospel at logger-heads with what had morphed into a cancerous Pharisaic tradition; from Mark, we understand through Jesus willingness to chall