Buddhist Catholic Contemplative Evangelical General Christian Hindu Jewish Latter-day Saint Muslim New Visions Progressive Christian

Beliefs

Topics

Columnists

Resource Library

Research Tools

Video

Podcasts

Thought Readers

Faith In Media Tracker

Newsletters

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Follow Patheos

Home
Latter-day Saint
New Testament Notes 186-190

New Testament Notes 186-190

Last updated on: April 8, 2019 at 10:28 pm by Dan Peterson

New Testament Notes 186-190 2019-04-08T22:28:29-06:00 Dan Peterson

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

“The Importunate Neighbour,” by William Holman Hunt (1894)

Luke 11:5-8

Following on his presentation of “The Lord’s Prayer,” and leading into a promise that God will respond to prayer, Jesus offers a very human portrait of a person who will grant another’s request, if not because he’s feeling benevolent at least because the petitioner has been insistent and he wants him to go away.

It’s actually pretty funny, and — despite our long-standing habit of reading the scriptures with grim solemnity — I suspect that it was received that way by his original ancient audience.

Depiction of Christ as the “Good Shepherd” on a sarcophagus from the late second century.

(Photograph by Sailko, Wikimedia CC)

Luke 11:9-13

Compare Matthew 7:7-11; John 14:13-14; 15:7; 16:24

In this passage, Jesus encourages disciples to pray.

If ordinary mortal fathers are often inclined to grant the requests of their children, God — whose goodness is perfect, rather than, like ours, partial and occasional and constrained by changeable moods — will be much more inclined to do so.

“Christ Healing the Sick” (Rembrandt etching, ca. 1646-1650)

Luke 11:14-23

Compare Matthew 12:22-30; Mark 3:22-27; John 7:20; 8:48, 52; 10:20

That some accused Christ of being in league with Satan says little about him. Rather, it’s a tribute to the power of at least some human beings to call evil good, and good evil.

There is, in other words, nobody so kind, good, charitable, honest, well-intentioned, self-effacing, and sincere but what at least someone, somewhere, will condemn and hate him or her.

No, it’s not fair.

But this world is like that.

If Jesus himself couldn’t escape being pronounced Satanic — or, in modern, more secular terms, evil — nobody can. When such treatment befalls us lesser mortals, we should, with his precedent in mind, simply do our very best and move on. That’s much easier said than done, though.

“The Abyss of Hell” by Sandro Botticelli, ca. 1485, who was clearly inspired by Dante
(Wikimedia Commons public domain image)

Luke 11:24-28

Compare Matthew 12:43-45

This is a very striking passage.

On one level, we see it fulfilled all the time. People who return to the sins that they had once forsaken often sink lower than they had been before. They surrender. They give themselves over to the “dark side.”

Relapsing addicts not infrequently die. Relapsing dieters binge.

Some apostates — I don’t say all — become more hostile and more vicious than those who’ve never accepted the Gospel and never taken covenants upon themselves.

I see it illustrated daily.

It’s very human. It’s also very, very sad.

Uncategorized

Previous Post

April 8, 2019

"The Mormon as Magus," Part One

Next Post

April 9, 2019 “The Mormon as Magus,” Part Two

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Uncategorized

Select a Month October 2026 September 2026 August 2026 July 2026 June 2026 May 2026 April 2026 March 2026 February 2026 January 2026 December 2025 November 2025 October 2025 September 2025 August 2025 July 2025 June 2025 May 2025 April 2025 March 2025 February 2025 January 2025 December 2024 November 2024 October 2024 September 2024 August 2024 July 2024 June 2024 May 2024 April 2024 March 2024 February 2024 January 2024 December 2023 November 2023 October 2023 September 2023 August 2023 July 2023 June 2023 May 2023 April 2023 March 2023 February 2023 January 2023 December 2022 November 2022 October 2022 September 2022 August 2022 July 2022 June 2022 May 2022 April 2022 March 2022 February 2022 January 2022 December 2021 November 2021 October 2021 September 2021 August 2021 July 2021 June 2021 May 2021 April 2021 March 2021 February 2021 January 2021 December 2020 November 2020 October 2020 September 2020 August 2020 July 2020 June 2020 May 2020 April 2020 March 2020 February 2020 January 2020 December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 September 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 March 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 March 2014 August 2013 February 2012

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

Which chapter in Proverbs describes detailed work habits of the ant?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Proverbs 31 Proverbs 6 Proverbs 2 Proverbs 24