The Second Temple period of Judaism began with a paradigmatic experience and a fundamental question. The experience was “defeat followed by restoration, loss of political standing and exile from the land, then recovery of politics and renewed possession of the land.”  

The Second Temple period of Judaism began with a paradigmatic experience and a fundamental question. The experience was “defeat followed by restoration, loss of political standing and exile from the land, then recovery of politics and renewed possession of the land.”¹? Specifically, the Jewish people experienced the destruction of the first temple, exile and diaspora in 586 B.C. then a return to the land accompanied by the rebuilding of the temple.² The fundamental question that followed such an experience was “What had happened?”³ To which the formation of the Jewish canon under the guidance of the priests gave the answer in the form of the Pentateuch. The priestly Pentateuch explained who Israel was, their relationship to the land, and the land and Israel’s relationship to God. The Temple was the key to these answers as it was shown in the Pentateuch as the “center of life.”⁴ From the Temple came the way in which Jews were to identify themselves by separating themselves from others in cultic, moral and ethical practices.⁵ All other sects of Judaism would draw from these answers in some way thus making the Torah normative.

The Second Temple period spanned a great deal of Judaic history and it is sufficient to simply note that, through this period, Judaism experienced various political and military conflicts (Persian, Greek and Roman) which led them back to the answers of the priestly Pentateuch. This period also experienced the development of various sects of Judaism such as the Pharisees, Sadducees, scribes, sages and Essene to name a few.⁶? Each of these forms of Judaism continued to draw from the priestly Pentateuch but emphasizing different parts of the answers given.

There were also developments in education which produced a couple of the groups in Judaism. In the later part of the Second Temple period (2^nd century B.C.), the Second Commonwealth of Judea was established and the leaders of the state where a pair (zugot) which led the Sanhedrin.⁷ This dual rule lasted until the early part of the 1^st century A.D. The last zugot, Hillel and Shammai, where the most well known of the Sanhedrin leaders and would be included in the Mishnah’s list of “rabbi”.⁸?  Hillel and Shammai produced two groups of followers or disciples which studied their interpretation of Torah.  At the end of this period, the Pharisees came out of the school of Hillel and the Sadducees came from the school of Shammai.  The educational developments of rabbi and disciple with development of an oral tradition of teaching called the “tanna” would be the means by which the faith of Judiasm would sustain the fall of the 2nd Temple. The Second Temple period ended in 70 A.D. with the destruction of the Temple by Roman forces.

Just as Second Temple Judaism started with a paradigmatic experience and a fundamental question, so it ended. The end of the period came with the destruction of the 2^nd Temple which, as noted above, had been central to Judaism. The fundamental question remained “What had happened?”  To this question would come the counterpart of the priestly answers of the Pentateuch. Jacob Neusner describes it this way:

It emerged as a Judaism in which each of the elements of the Judaism of Temple and cult would find a counterpart: (1) in place of the Temple, the holy people, in whom holiness endured even outside of the cult, as the Pharisees had taught; (2) in place of the priesthood, the sage, the holy man qualified by learning, as the scribes had taught; (3) in place of sacrifices of the altar, the holy way of life expressed through the carrying out of religious duties (mitzvot, “commandments”), and acts of kindness and grace beyond those commanded (maasim tovim, “good deeds”), and, above all, through studying the Torah.⁹?

These counterparts were the development of Rabbinic Judaism which emerged after the destruction of the 2^nd Temple. It is important to restate that Rabbinic Judaism did not begin with the destruction of the 2^nd Temple but rather emerged out of the ashes.¹⁰ It was the Pharisees and scribes, with their emphasis on the Torah and living the Torah, which preserved and emerged as the principle shapers of Rabbinic Judaism.

Following from the overview of the crisis of identity and way of life for the Jews during Second Temple Judaism and Rabbinic Judaism, it can be observed that the educational developments are integral to the developments of the faith. So learning from the developments of these two educational periods in the context of the story of Judaism can help contemporary Christianity. For as 21^st Century Christianity stands in the ashes of “Christendom”, we are asking an old question “What happened?”  If we have eyes to see and ears to hear then we might be able to glean, from the transition of these two periods, truths that can help us navigate our own crisis of identity and way of life, today.

5.  Teaching Location – Teens don’t like to go outside on hills as much as they like to hang out in obscure locations like basements, renovated houses, skate parks, paint ball fields, or gymnasiums.

4.    Questions – He would probably start his teaching time with a question, which almost always will get [...]]]>

5.  Teaching Location – Teens don’t like to go outside on hills as much as they like to hang out in obscure locations like basements, renovated houses, skate parks, paint ball fields, or gymnasiums.

4.    Questions – He would probably start his teaching time with a question, which almost always will get blank stares from teens.  I don’t know if he would be able to recover from the silence.

3.    Sermon Illustrations – He would loose them the first time he dropped an agriculture illustration in a message.  It is hard to get them back once you loose them.

2.    Stories – Teens have a short attention span and selective hearing.  When Jesus dropped a sweet story on them, he might mean one thing but all they hear is “10 virgins with some old school lamps”.

1.    Action-Reflection – Jesus would lead his disciples to engage others then ask them questions about their experience.  This is great for teens but I just don’t know if Jesus would be able to handle the kid who, during the reflection time, is still asking “What was I supposed to do again?”

Cleansed in chaotic water
Lost

Promised in covenant
Afraid

Restored in exodus
Wander

Settled in promised land
War

Ruled for safety
Idolatry

Rebuked in love
Exiled

Returned in hope
Crushed

God appears in man
Healed

Transformed in gathering
Eikons of God
Created in wholeness
Broken

Cleansed in chaotic water
Lost

Promised in covenant
Afraid

Restored in exodus
Wander

Settled in promised land
War

Ruled for safety
Idolatry

Rebuked in love
Exiled

Returned in hope
Crushed

God appears in man
Healed

Transformed in gathering
Disunity

Living in hope
Eikons of God

This one scene sums up my [...]]]> Being More

Leaning up against the towering wooden playground fort, I looked dead center into Joe’s eyes and emphatically said, “Yeah-huh! She kissed me twice and said she hated you.” Joe quickly leaped from the swing and declared, “Well, she kissed me three times and said you’re a poophead.”

This one scene sums up my boyhood friendship with Joe. Both of us built a fantastical world in which we were the hero, the Don Juan, and the genius. In short, we yearned to be Superman and attempted to convince each other that that desire was reality. We were masterful deceivers because, Joe and I were anything but Superman. We were chubby, goofy, and a little slow in class. Yet, our hearts demanded that we be more than what we were, and our collective imagination convinced us we were.

Demands of Leadership

The sad fact is that when I became a youth leader in my early twenties, I found my world hadn’t changed much from my boyhood days. I was still not the Superman I dreamed of becoming. I was chubby, goofy, and a little slow in life. The hardest reality to swallow was that the demand to be more was still present.

The difference between my youth and my entrance into youth ministry was that I no longer had any illusions of who I was. To be sure, the demand to be more was still there, but the origin of the demand moved from myself to the people I served. The senior pastor wanted me to be a competent administrator who created precise budgets, clear and frequent ministry reports, was fiscally responsible, and was an excellent event planner. The church leaders wanted me to be serious at meetings, reverent during services, and comical in the foyer. The parents wanted me to be inspiring and relevant to their children. The youth wanted me to be a good friend, easygoing, not long-winded but interesting, and fun to be around. These people wanted me to be more than I was.

In my youthful zeal to give all for the sake of the call, I attempted to meet the demands and expectations of my faith community. I worked long hours. I scoured the Internet for jokes to tell in the foyer and during youth services. I looked for inspiring nuggets of insight in Scripture, not for my own soul, but for the youth and parents who desired me to be wise. And I became the ‘yes’ man for any and all requests. As I met the initial demands of the crowd, the requests came more frequently. Every youth group leader knows the onslaughts of requests in ministry are relentless. Quickly, my eager yeses turned to emphatic yeah-huhs as I began the hard work of convincing myself that I could do more and be more.

Simple Speech

Jesus knows the power of both pride and the demands of the crowd. They were a part of the temptations that he faced in the desert and all the way to the cross. He spends a great amount of time teaching his disciples about these temptations because he knows how toxic these two can become to relationships with others. So Jesus gives the disciples a practice to help them navigate these temptations and their relationships with others in order to be faithful to their call to follow him. In Matthew 5:33-37, Jesus instructs his disciples to stop using emphatic and exaggerated responses with people. The source of such responses, Jesus says, is evil. These responses are evil because they take us away from who God has created us to be. My emphatic ‘yeah-huh’ was giving into the sin of pride because I believed that I could be someone other than who God created me to be. No matter how much I wanted to be that person and no matter how much my church demanded me to be that person, God wanted me to embrace the goodness of how I was created.

That’s why Jesus instructs us to simply say ‘yes’ or ‘no’—to practice simple speech. The practice of simple speech heals our relationship with God, self, and others. When we practice simple speech, we are embracing our need for God and affirming the goodness of who he created us to be. If we simply state what we can and can’t do for others, they learn who we are and what they can expect from us. Practicing simple speech also allows us to embrace who we are and to have realistic expectations for ourselves. Eugene Peterson sums up the goal of simple speech like this: “If you’re content to be simply yourself, you will become more than yourself” (Luke 18:14, The Message).

Jesus instructs you to say yes to who you are. Say yes to being a human who is deeply in need of God’s grace every single minute. Say no to doing everything by yourself. Say yes to the requests that lead you deeper into loving God and loving others. Say no to the requests that take you away from that goal. Say yes to who you are even if it means you’re chubby, goofy, and slow. Simply embrace your gifts and limitations by the power of God’s grace, and God will use you to be grace to others.

Download a practice guide for “Simple Speech” here.

Post compliments of Barefoot Ministries

We participate in the means of grace, the faithful discipleship of Jesus,
in order, by the power of the Holy Spirit, to become means of grace,
the agents of God’s reconciliation, in and for our world.
[...]]]>

Follow me and I will make you fishers of men.
-Jesus

We participate in the means of grace, the faithful discipleship of Jesus,
in order, by the power of the Holy Spirit, to become means of grace,
the agents of God’s reconciliation, in and for our world.
- Dean Blevins & Mark Maddix

The Way

A common phrase that appears in the Gospels is “on the way.” It’s a clue to the hearers of the story that what’s taking place is a part of the way of following Jesus. Matthew begins immediately with the magi on the way to witness and worship the King of the Jews (Matt. 2:9). Toward the end of Matthew, it would be the women followers of Jesus on the way to be the first witnesses of the resurrected Lord (Matt. 28:11). In Mark, we find the disciples arguing about their position within Jesus’ kingdom on the way (Mark 9:34). We also see Jesus asking the disciples “Who do you say that I am?” as they were on the way (Mark 8:27). Later, Jesus is teaching about the greatest commandment as he was on his way (Mark 10:17). Luke has a whole travel narrative, fragmented as it is, where Jesus is pictured teaching on his way from Galilee to Jerusalem (Luke 9:51-19:27). John mixes no words by putting on Jesus’ lips the revelation, “I am the Way” (John 14:6) It’s no wonder that one of the first self given names of Jesus’ followers post resurrection was “those of the Way” (Acts 9:2; 19:9, 23; 22:4; 24:14, 22).

Amongst all the diversity of the writers of the New Testament, they agree on at least two points about what it means to be people of The Way. Chief among these is the universal lordship of Jesus. They all agree that Jesus is the one we are to pattern our whole lives after and the one who all people are to pattern their lives. There is not one dimension to life that the lordship of Jesus does not touch. In one of the most radical articulations of this reality, Paul quotes a hymn of the early church confessing that “at the name of Jesus, every knee shall bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” (Phil. 2:10-11). The second point of agreement among the New Testament writers is that being people of The Way means we are now participants of God’s salvation activity in the world. In other words, we are now agents of restoration for the missio Dei. The apostle Paul uses the Old Testament language of election to emphasize this reality (IThes 1:4, Romans 9-11). Andy Johnson comments, “The language of “election/electing/elect” occurs throughout the OT to refer to God’s choosing Israel for God’s redemptive purposes, i.e., for the missio Dei [1].” Thus, following the Lordship of Jesus and participating in the missio Dei are two common features of being people of The Way in the New Testament.

Being a people of The Way is depicted throughout the New Testament as this rich multidimensional reorientation in life. Matthew depicts it as a reconstitution of the people of Israel in a Moses like figure standing on a mountain proclaiming with authority of Torah that penetrates to our hearts and extends out to all creation. Mark emphasizes the faith and folly of those on the way to the cross. In Luke & Acts, being people of The Way is a continuation of God’s salvation activity and is marked by worship, proclamation, teaching, service, and fellowship. John takes great pain to show The Way as a “faithing” people who follow Jesus through the cross and on into resurrection. Paul confesses that the people of the The Way are elected by God to be imitators of Christ in their life together. Finally the Revelator paints the picture of a diverse group of communities, who stand under the physical oppression and economic pressures of empire, and remain faithful to The Way.

The Barefoot Team has put together one more year of $5 Training events.  The big announcement this year is that our good friend Mark  Oestreicher (www.whyismarko.com) will be leading the workshops in 5 cities in the U.S. and Canada.  Watch Marko’s introduction to the workshops then jump [...]]]> Hey friends!

The Barefoot Team has put together one more year of $5 Training events.  The big announcement this year is that our good friend Mark  Oestreicher (www.whyismarko.com) will be leading the workshops in 5 cities in the U.S. and Canada.  Watch Marko’s introduction to the workshops then jump over to the site and register in a city near you!

Missional.

It’s a buzzword to some. Some call it the latest fad in Christian culture. And some believe it to be a signifier of the redemption of the church in the West.

What’s your stance on the M-Word?

Michael Frost, vice principal of Morling College and the founding director of [...]]]>

Missional.

It’s a buzzword to some. Some call it the latest fad in Christian culture. And some believe it to be a signifier of the redemption of the church in the West.

What’s your stance on the M-Word?

Michael Frost, vice principal of Morling College and the founding director of the Tinsley Institute, confesses that he has taken part in the spreading of what has become a buzzword. Instead of throwing away the word, which he began using with the modifier emerging over a decade ago, he chose to write a book to clarify and sharpen what he intends to communicate when he talks about the missional church. In short he states, “When I use the M-word, I’m doing so to describe the wholesale and thorough reorientation of the church around mission.”

He sees the emergence of several “not-quite-missional” writers and pastors who use the term but don’t share his intended use of the word. It is in reaction against these folks that Frost wrote “The Road to Missional.” He states, “And so for those concerned that they might have been inoculated against the missional, I humbly present this small guidebook–a list of indicators that will highlight when the missional paradigm hasn’t been fully adopted.” Thus Frost provides a good introduction into the missional church movement and a clarification to anyone who doesn’t see the revolutionary proposal being worked out by those on the road to missional.

Chapter 1

If mission is the same as evangelism, you might be a “not-yet-missional.”

Frost, primarily through the work of missiologist David Bosch, clarifies that mission is alerting people to the universal reign of God. Mission is first and foremost the missio Dei and that church is caught up in it by the power of the Spirit. He explains that evangelism, along with social justice, are part of mission. He goes on to present 6 out of 12 of Bosch’s historical positions that the church has taken on the relation between evangelism and social justice. Then Frost suggests that the missional approach is to take the position that evangelism and social justice are essentially connected and neither are to be prioritized above the other.

Chapter 2

If evangelism is primarily a presentation of the plan of salvation, you might be a “not-yet-missional.”

Frost does an exegetical overview of some New Testament text that reveal that the proclamation of the Gospel was never an explanation of the way of salvation or four spiritual laws. Instead he explains that the NT gospel presentations are always a description of the historical events surrounding Jesus which reveal him to be God’s messiah of Israel. The missional indicator is if this form of presentation is intertwined in the demonstration of the lordship of Jesus by a community. Frost’s illustration at the end of the chapter indicates this way will result in a slow evangelism.

Chapter 3

If church membership is the goal, you might be a “not-yet-missional.”

Frost takes aim at the worst expression of the attractional church in this chapter. He begins by recounting stories of churches who gave away extravagant prizes to those who attended. He explains that this reduces people to objects because people are reduced to attendance numbers. In these churches, the ultimate goal for those attracted to the church becomes membership. All of these are symptoms of the consumer church.  Frost, following the work of Bryan Stone, presents the logic of martyria as the missional indicator in contrast to the logic of production embodied in the consumer church. He explores the Gospel of John to demonstrate how the logic of witness is modeled by the Triune God. Again Frost invokes Bosch and states, “the church’s mission is to bear witness to the universal reign of God through Christ.”

Chapter 4

If pietism is the paradigm for the Christian life, you might be a “not-yet-missional.”

Frost takes up the issue of the nature of Christian life and discipleship. Through a satirical story, he reveals a form of piety that assumes personal innocence of the believer and suspicion of unbelievers (83). Against such a view of the Christian life, Frost holds up the cruciform metaphor and paradigm as the missional indicator of discipleship. He states, “The not-yet-missional train their members to be pious. The missional train their members to be life-givers, transformed by the death of Jesus.”

Chapter 5

If missional is about changing the church, you might be a “not-yet-missional.”

Frost spends the majority of this chapter not detailing the problem of the “not-yet” but imagining the indicators of shalom for the world. Restoration of relationships, justice reestablished for all, and beauty rediscovered and ignited throughout the world are the basis of a world transforming picture that Frost connects with the reign of God. The missional indicator is that the transformation of the world becomes the horizon of our participation in the mission of God.

Chapter 6

If you miss the importance of incarnational missions, you might be a “not-yet-missional.”

Frost marks incarnational missions as valuing proximity, presence, passion, and prevenience in the way of Jesus. Proximity is taking seriously that our immediate neighborhood is where we are sent to alert people to the reign of God. Presence, passion and prevenience are renamed categories developed by missiologist Ross Langmead. Presence is about following Christ as more than an example but embodying love in the way of Jesus in our neighborhood. Passion is sharing in the deep desire of Christ for the world. Prevenience is continual commitment to move out toward the world like God. Frost finishes the chapter with suggestions on how to engage in incarnational missions.

Conclusion

It sums up the book in a creative way that I’ll leave it to you to read and enjoy.

One of the challenges that I’ve run into in teaching the story of God is that some teenagers don’t explicitly know the elements of a story.  Now I know you don’t have to know the technical aspects of story in order for a story to be meaningful.  Yet, there is a restriction [...]]]>  

One of the challenges that I’ve run into in teaching the story of God is that some teenagers don’t explicitly know the elements of a story.  Now I know you don’t have to know the technical aspects of story in order for a story to be meaningful.  Yet, there is a restriction to the level of discernment that we can do if we don’t know how to “play” with a story.  I recognize this when my 22-month-old son plays with his blocks.  He knows that they connect together.  Yet, he doesn’t know the technical pieces of making a steady structure.  He joyously stacks one block on top of another until finally the blocks all crumble.  He’s a good builder but a horrible architect.

So it is with some teens and story.  They know that stories are meaningful but they share story after story not knowing what distinguishes a good story from a great story.  Ultimately this shows up in the telling of their own story.  They add in more detail then they know what to do and chase down rabbit holes.  All the while the meaning of their life story seems to evade them.

Here is a link to a simple chart and set of graphics I use to help teach the story of God to teens.  An exercise that I’ve used along with these illustrations is to ask teens to plot their life story along the plot line.  What typically follows is a discussion about how the conflict/s in our lives are resolved and how that compares to the grand conflict that all creation is experiencing.

In this video, Dean talks about two big pieces of discipleship from a Wesleyan perspective.  First he describes the three elements of discipleship as formation, discernment, and transformation.  This is derived from Dean’s doctoral work in interpreting John Wesley’s approach to discipleship for our contemporary context.  This approach is integrated with Dean’s years [...]]]>

In this video, Dean talks about two big pieces of discipleship from a Wesleyan perspective.  First he describes the three elements of discipleship as formation, discernment, and transformation.  This is derived from Dean’s doctoral work in interpreting John Wesley’s approach to discipleship for our contemporary context.  This approach is integrated with Dean’s years of experience as a person who disciples others in the way of Jesus.  The second element Dean presents is a definition on discipleship which is unpacked in the book, Discovering Discipleship.  Dean explains that discipleship is the practice of the means of grace in order to become a means of grace for God.

My own personal journey has been tremendously impacted by Dean’s articulation and practice of discipleship.  I admit to everyone that I’ve not been able to get past his impact on me.  I also admit that much of my practice of discipleship is really just working out what Dean has taught me.

I encourage every pastor to pick up and read Discovering Discipleship.