the central message

About 11 years ago I wrote the following essay at the end of a year of seminary classes on the New Testament, just thought I would share.

The question
Is there a central message to the New Testament, what is it, what has God done, what do believers do, how is there diversity and unity in the New Testament?

Central Message: Central Man
I would like to say that the central message of the New Testament would be something like love, I like love, I am big on love, and many times I see a church that does not love.  But that is not the central message, in fact most of the New Testament isn't about love at all, at least not directly.

My next thought would be to say something like, the central message is the Kingdom of God, after all Jesus’ ministry was about the Kingdom, Paul’s letters were about unity in the Kingdom, and if Revelation isn't about the Kingdom I don’t know what is.  But even that is too narrow.  The Kingdom of God is deeply rooted in the New Testament mainly because the New Testament is about one man who sacrificed all to give all to all. (My, that’s a lot of alls.)

The central message is Jesus as Christ.  If Christ is not the message, then what is the point?  Why did the disciples die martyrs deaths?  Why did Paul radically shift from Christian killer, to Christian creator?  Why did John have visions of horsemen and beasts?  There is no New Testament without Jesus, merely OT2.
From John telling us that Jesus was ‘in the beginning’ to Revelation’s proclamation that ‘I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End, the First and the Last’ the New Testament in a Jesus story.  It is about love and the Kingdom, it is about grace, and faith, it is about God and us, it is a Jesus story.

God movement: moving God
Depending on who you were to ask, God’s actions may be very different.  If you speak to someone who believes that Jesus is God, then God did everything that Jesus did, and does everything that the Holy Spirit does, to them God is everywhere and in everything.  If you were to ask someone who thinks that Jesus is the Son of God, emphasis on the son, then they might say that God sent His son to win back His people and save His creation.

What he didn't do, was come to start a new religion, nor did he come to cause division.  There are others who would say that Jesus was just a man, and the God didn't do anything, if he even exists.  There are others, probably the majority, which would say that they just don’t know.  They are not sure if the Bible is all that inspired, that Jesus seems like a pie in the sky idea, and that the Trinity is just some mumbo jumbo.  These people, while well-meaning, are merely confused about the irrationality of the New Testament.  After all they are good people and they don’t understand what God is, let alone why he would have to come down here to die for them.  In the end God does, or does not do, exactly what we let him do, some of us he saves, some of us he doesn’t, at the very least he sent Jesus to show us that there is a choice.

Believer movement: snail Christians
What do believers do?  I don’t know.  Believe and you will be saved.  Saved by grace.  By faith, and not by works, so that no one can boast.  Maybe we do nothing, it depends, again, on who you ask.   There is so much diversity in understanding of these 27 books that you can’t really answer that too succinctly.  Many people would say that as long as you don’t commit the sins that Paul lists in Romans 1:18-32.  Others say that you have to live your life according to  Romans 12-15.  Or maybe believers should live their lives by Jesus’ sermon on the Mount, by loving thy enemy, being salt and light, doing good to please God, not judging, and walking the narrow path.  Then again, maybe all we do is live by ‘Jesus’ faith.’

Unity? Diversity?: amazingly so
One may wonder why there can be the diversity that is found in the New Testament, some may think that if Jesus is the central message, then how can diversity exist, but that is the wrong question.  Diversity is a natural occurrence when the story is about a man, we ask many questions of people, especially extraordinary people.

The amazing thing about the New Testament is not that it has diversity, but rather that is has unity.  Take the gospels for instance, the stories diverge on occasion, depending on the book certain things are left out, and certain things are different.  But does it matter whether Jesus healed one or two men whose demons are hurled into a group of pigs?  No, it doesn't  what matters is that all four gospels show Jesus healing and raising people from the dead, and feeding thousands with just a little fish and bread.  That unity is amazing.  The fact that common subject matter (606 verses of a possible 661 of Mark used by Matthew, 350 used by Luke); wording (51% of time when Matthew uses Mark it is exact, Luke 53%); prime order (follow sequence; when one departs the other stays); agreement within the synoptics occur at such a high rate it is amazing.

We need only look to our own short American history to find occurrences where people writing about the same person vastly differ on the aspects of their lives, just ask a group of average people whether or not George Washington ever chopped down a cherry tree.  The places where diversity do exist within the New Testament, in particular the letters of Paul, many times we forget that there is an evolution of thought and that some letters were not meant to be seen by all Christians.

An ending, a new beginning
That is the same title I used for the conclusion of my Jesus Paper last semester, I would still agree to the fact that every new beginning comes from some other beginning’s end (thanks Tonic).  That is what today is, a new beginning’s end and a new beginning.  While the New Testament classes may be over the learning never stops, the understanding never ceases, and lives continue moving.  Jesus is the central message of the New Testament, but is he the central message of the church, of this school, of these students?  Let us hope so, and continue to try to make it so.

The New Testament is a Jesus story, and we are the next chapter.

Peace and Love,
Pastor K