Holy Layers bat man!

Alright I am going to get a little technical but only a little technical. In preparing for a Bible study for a class I chose the readings for next week. In doing so it forced me to begin wrestling with the Gospel.

What do we have? A layer cake

We have the use of the prophet Isaiah. Isaiah (potentially second Isaiah, a writer writing some time in the "spirit" of the original prophet) is "forthtelling" to the Israelites that God is still very much with them.

On top of that is the "real" history that occured that saw the man Jesus become born and the man John go out to the wilderness to proclaim that the Jews must repent and return to God. To repent is to turn around. In that time there was the Roman elected high priest Annaias, followed by the High Priest at Jesus' trial, death and ressurection, Caiaphus. They were the Religious Priests who held sway in Palestine. Palestine was an occupied land. The rule was the emporer but he sent Pontious Pilate to govern. Pilate oversaw Roman rule in Jerusalem and was involved with the Trial. His job was to try and maintain order, by force if neccessary, over a people who were not to thrilled that gentiles held sway in the land that God had given the Jews. Enter Jesus in Galilee...a political nobody. Yet he was born and lived in an era of Herod the tetrarch. A cruel leader who was the son of Herod the Great.

On top of that enter the writer of Luke Acts who believes that Jesus is no man but the Messiah. Son of God who was sent to proclaim the Jubilee and whose death and resurrection was the very good news that was the salvation of all who believed. He not only see's the man Jesus as the very same Son of God but understands (some 70-90 years later)that John the Baptist was sent to proclaim Jesus as Messiah. To make it more interesting the writer also see's that Isaiah who thought he was speaking to the faithful of his day was actually referring to Jesus. In light of this he inserts Isaiah 40 to reveal the Lord who was to come and make all ways strait was Jesus Christ. To make it even more interesting we not only get a historical reference but are also reminded of the Spiritual story of John's father Zechariah who because he did not buy all the Angel Gabriel had told him, could not speak, until the spirit released his tongue to confirm that Jesus cousin John should actually be named John.

Wait there is more...

On top of this layer lies those who prepared the Lectionary to prepare for Advent. They chose this Gospel Lesson to remind and elicit a congregation to the Mini Lent of Advent which is to induce a type of longing in which we Christians prepare for Christmas. It is dark and we await for the coming of light.

How am I supposed to compete with that. Here I come the top layer in this spiritual/histoical layer cake filled with my own thoughts and experience of Christ. Which of course has been influenced and developed by all the preceeding layers but also the Holy Spirit who is not even contained in the writings.

Its enough to make one fall down. In fact I think I will.