It was 20 minutes into lunch. The three Morgansville high school seniors Stephen, Sara and Josh were munching away on their lunches when their friend Timothy came running into the school cafeteria all excited. He seemed to have something very important and urgent to tell his three compadres.
“Hey guys, Hey guys, Hey guys! You won’t believe what I just found out! You know Jessica Smyth and John Donathan...” he said with wide eyes and out of breath. His three friends looked at each other as if they were wondering what was going on. They then looked back at Timothy and with a curious shaking of their heads they indicated: “Yes! What about them?”
“It’s official” Timothy announced and not very privately; he now has the undivided attention of the whole cafeteria.
“...they are officially going out!” Timothy announced, with excited wide eyes and in an out of breath tone. Then the whole room got quiet. Timothy’s three friends looked at each other with perplexed looks; and then off in a corner of the cafeteria he saw and heard a group of student’s snickering; and then, with a mouth full of apple Stephen said: “Uh, ya, where have you been? That’s old news! They’ve been dating for 3 months!”
This little short story is designed to illustrate two things: 1) There are things in life that should be common knowledge, but isn’t. 2) Those things should be common knowledge because they are, like the relationship between the two fictional characters Jessica and John, ‘old news’. This story of course is fictional, but there is a parallel story that is very much real.
The disciple John documents a conversation between Jesus and a Pharisee named Nicodemus; this conversation can be found in his gospel account located in John 3:1-21. Nicodemus states that he recognizes Jesus being “...a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the signs [He was] doing if God were not with [him]” - John 3:2. To this Jesus replies:
“Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again.” - John 3:3
Being perplexed by Jesus’ response Nicodemus inquires about what it means to be ‘born again’ (cf. John 3:4). Jesus clarifies his words with ever more ambiguous talk about flesh giving birth to flesh and spirit giving birth to spirit, confusing Nicodemus all that more. Jesus then responds:
“You are Israel’s teacher, ... and do you not understand these things?” - John 3:10
Jesus seems to believe that since Nicodemus was a Pharisee that his teaching should be common knowledge for him, but it wasn’t. What should be common knowledge? What did Jesus mean by flesh giving birth to flesh and spirit giving birth to spirit? Alluding to Adam, the apostle Paul teaches that the Adam became a physical being, but also the bringer of death (cf. Romans 5:12); but Jesus who is being referred to as the second Adam brought life. Adam is physical but Jesus is spiritual (cf. 1 Corinthians 15:45-48). So when Jesus states that “[flesh] gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to [spirit]” (cf. John 3:6) he is alluding to the theology of condemnation vs. salvation. One thing that should be common knowledge for the likes of a teacher in Old Testament Jewish theology is if Jesus is just a teacher from God, and not God i.e. spirit, but who had entered into his creation (cf. Philippians 2:6-8) then he wouldn’t be able to save people from the consequences of sin. In sum Jesus teaching states that sinful flesh gives birth to sinful flesh, but the healing power of the remedy can fix this problem and that power is not flesh but spirit. Jesus physically entered his creation to sacrifice the consequences of sin on this physical earth (cf. Romans 8:22) but also to reunite him his creation (cf. John 1:3) with him. And it s this theology that is ‘old news’; and for someone who is supposed to be schooled in Jewish theology this should be obvious; this theology precedes the Salvation message, i.e. the Gospel that 21st century Christians are commissioned to give (cf. Mathew 28:19, 1 Corinthians 15:3-4). In sum the Christian’s good news message is much older than 2000 years old; the message Jesus commissioned us to give was planned out before this universe came on the scene (cf. Romans 8:29).
What Old Testament scripture should have ran through this Jewish scholar’s brain when Jesus gave his discussion? Well, there are plenty of passages, however it is important to note that the Christian message is comparable to a puzzle. The big picture is scene when all relevant passages are assembled. So let’s start to assemble this puzzle.
“So the Lord God said to the serpent, “Because you have done this,“Cursed are you above all livestock and all wild animals! You will crawl on your belly and you will eat dust all the days of your life. And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers;he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.” - Genesis 3:14-15
This passage is the first stroke of the picture that we are beginning to paint. God informs the serpent that the woman’s off spring will be his greatest nemesis.
The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you, from your fellow Israelites.” - Deuteronomy 18:15
God will bring someone greater than Moses.
“I will give you shepherds after my own heart, who will lead you with knowledge and understanding.” - Jeremiah 3:15
God promises to bring shepherds after his own heart. Up to this point there has been only one man in their current history who endowed the title “man after God’s own heart”: David (cf. 1 Samuel 13:14). However there is another man who is endowed with a similar title; this man is in the Jewish people’s history: Jesus (cf. John 10:11). And the list goes on, including with famous passages like Isaiah 9:6 and chapter 53 which predict Jesus birth and death; Malachi 5:2 is in reference to Jesus birth place; and in Jeremiah 31:31-34 God sheds light on his plans to conclude his covenant with his people and begin a new one; a covenant where his laws will be written on people’s hearts and in their minds and accessible for everyone. David refers to Jesus’ last words on the cross (cf. Psalms 22:1 [cf. Matthew 27:46]) and his portrayal via Judas is found in Psalms 69:25, 109:8; and so on.
By themselves these verses can be ambiguous however when put together they paint a picture of the good news, that Jesus commissioned Christians in the first century and to us in the 21st century to give. The message that Jesus died for sin, was buried and rose according to Scripture (cf. 1 Corinthians 15:3-4). So the message of salvation and condemnation wasn’t born 2000 years ago; Christianity, that is followers of Christ, the man who before any of the Jewish patriarchs existed, he existed (cf. John 8:58, 17:5) wasn’t birthed in the first century; Christianity, formerly known as ‘The Way’ (cf. Acts 9:2) is as old as creation itself. The good news of Christ is objectively old news.
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