April 14, 2006
Dear Resurrection Family,
Today we commemorate the event we have been studying these last few weeks we mark the trial, humiliation, torment and crucifixion of Jesus. This day is called, "Good Friday" only in the light of the resurrection. In that light what happened on Good Friday becomes the central saving act of God in the history of our world. Apart from the resurrection it would only have been a terrible tragedy.
I want to encourage you to stop by sometime today to the Prayer Vigil taking place in the Wesley Covenant Chapel. Come and stay as long as you like most stay about 20 minutes. We have devotional material for you, as well as a list of your fellow members to pray for (we will pray for all 13,800 members by name today) as well as prayer concern cards. In addition we invite you simply to pause to reflect upon the cross and to pray to the Lord, remembering what he has done for you. I believe you will find this meaningful and an appropriate way to mark Christ's death. Stop by any time up to 10:00 pm this evening.
Here's what I'll cover in today's e-mail:
1. Watch The Passion of the Christ Tonight in our Sanctuary
2. Best Choices for Seats and Parking on Easter
3. What to Make of the Gospel of Judas
1. Watch The Passion of the Christ Tonight in our Sanctuary
Tonight at 7:00 pm we will show Mel Gibson's The Passion of the Christ in our Sanctuary, in observance of Good Friday. If you plan to attend please arrive about 10 minutes early. This is an R rated film for its graphic violence. We hoped to get the less violent re-cut but it was unavailable. I would be cautious about bringing small children I feel comfortable most kids 13 and up could see the film, but as parents you will have to decide what is appropriate for your children. This is a very graphic film. I will give a brief introduction to the film, highlighting things to look for, and then at the conclusion I will give a prayer and invitation. You may want to plan to join the Prayer Vigil in progress following the film I am certain it would be meaningful for you to do so, and an appropriate way to "unpack" the film.
2. Best Choices for Seats and Parking on Easter
Easter is going to be a very exciting and inspiring day of worship here at the church. I thought I'd give you a brief rundown of the relative crowdedness of the various services. Some will have plenty of room and some are likely to be over capacity. So, here's what I think:
Saturday:
4:00 pm - Good choice, especially for families with children I believe there will be good seats available and good parking as it is the first service for the day. The Children's Choir will be singing and we'll have special kids packs with crayons, kid's bulletins and other materials for children to take home with them.
6:00 pm Contemporary Worship last year this was our most crowded service of the weekend with 3,700 in attendance (our Sanctuary seats 3,200)
7:55 pm A new service for us to alleviate the overcrowding at 6:00 pm Youth Choir and Orchestra will play, the only Easter service with Holy Communion, the youth choir will conclude the service by leading us in the Hallelujah Chorus. This should be a great service and the best parking and seating of the Saturday services.
Sunday:
7:30 am Full Choir and Orchestra, awesome worship, best seats and parking of the morning services. Same services as 9:00 and 11:00 am without as many people.
9:00 am The service, along with 11:00 am, most of our visitors come to on Easter. Beautiful but likely to be crowded.
9:15 am In the Student Center Contemporary Easter Music led by our Student Band (they are awesome!) and Lance singing the special music. I will preach via video screen but all else is live. Led by Pastor Russell and Pastor Molly, it will give you a glimpse of what we'll do at Resurrection West later this year. If you arrive for 9:00 am and the service is full, we'll direct you to this service as our overflow, but our hope is that many of you will choose this service to make room for others in the Sanctuary. I'll join you at the end of the service for the benediction and greeting time.
11:00 am Our most crowded morning service, along with 9:00 am. Beautiful and inspiring but very full. Choir and Orchestra will lead.
11:15 am Same as 9:15 am above. Many of our Resurrection West folks plan on worshiping together in this service it will form a kind of "first" worship service for the new congregation one that will be remembered at Resurrection West for years to come. All are welcome at this service it is not just for Resurrection West folks. Again, my sermon will be via video. I'll be in at the end of the service to give the benediction live and to greet those present.
5:00 pm This is our least crowded service for Easter weekend. Last year the Sanctuary was only half full for this service but the service itself was awesome. Again Lance and the band and choir will provide music, I'll preach and we'll have a terrific time of worship.
The above is only a guide to help you somehow the Holy Spirit works things out each Easter and we get just the right number of people in the right places to hold everyone. This is such an exciting day for worship and I know you will be blessed!
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3. What to Make of the Gospel of Judas
Over the last week much has been written in the press and several television programs aired about the Gospel of Judas. I've had a number of people ask me what I thought about this. I read the Gospel of Judas this week, as well as some of the information published about it on the National Geographic website. While it makes sensational press, it does not shed much light on the Bible or Judas Iscariot. What it does teach us is second century Gnostic expressions of Christianity. What follows are a few thoughts on this subject. If you are interested in more information, read on...
I have read a number of books and essays on the subject of New Testament apocrypha (writings from the first couple of centuries of Christianity, which were considered sacred by some, or purport to be written by biblical figures, but which are not a part of our New Testament), as well as some of the source material itself. There seem to be three categories of writings known broadly as the New Testament apocrypha. 1. There are those writings, which were written by leaders of the early church, who were so closely associated with the apostles that their writings were considered for possible inclusion in the New Testament. These texts are readily available in collections of the Early Church Fathers you can read them at www.iclnet.org/pub/resources/christian-history.html and elsewhere on the web (among those considered for inclusion in the New Testament by some in the early church were I Clement, The Didache, The Shepherd of Hermas, and The Epistle of Barnabas). 2. Then there were those writings created by second and third century Christians popular writings which few seem to have taken seriously but which tried to "fill in the gaps" in information concerning Jesus. These are legendary stories about Jesus' childhood, or stories about Mary and Joseph (the Infancy Gospel of James is the most famous). They are often interesting to read, but were never considered for possible inclusion in the New Testament. 3. A third category are those books produced by Christians who were outside of the mainstream of Christianity, among which were the sect of Christians we today call the "Gnostics." The Gospel of Judas is one of these books.
It is difficult to nail down precisely what Gnostics believed some seemed to hold beliefs very much like what we know of as orthodox or mainstream Christianity, though with some very unique philosophical ideas. Others held views very different from the Christianity we know. Some believed there were two gods a more ominous god who created the material world and imprisoned our souls in our bodies here and a good god who sought to set us free from this material world, delivering our souls to his eternal realm. Often, there was a belief in a wide variety of spirit beings who, like angels and demons, either helped you make the journey to release from the material realm, or kept you stuck in this world. Secret knowledge or revelations from the divine beings were the keys to release. This secret knowledge was often conveyed through stories using biblical characters as the revealer of these truths. Not even those sympathetic to Gnosticism believe the Gnostic books were written by their purported authors or that they are revelations from them.
The Gnostic literature is clearly quite different from the biblical gospels and epistles. It is more esoteric, more difficult to understand, and reflects a different worldview. It often uses biblical characters as the spokespersons for its interpretations and ideas, but these characters say things very different from what they said in the New Testament. Those in the mainstream of Christianity in the second and third centuries wrote against these views and why they believed these Gnostic views were a distortion of the true Christian gospel.
It was in response to these challenges to the Christian faith (not only from Gnostics but others as well) that the Creeds were developed and the New Testament books were clearly delineated. The fact that the bishops, across virtually the entire Roman world, came to a consensus about the issues of Christian belief and authoritative writings points to the fact that from the time of the apostles there was a stream of Christianity that was considered normative, and there were other streams that diverged from this norm. Ultimately, Gnosticism was deemed to offer false truths that conflicted with the gospel of Jesus.
The Gospel of Judas, written 100+ years after the time of Judas, is a fascinating find and an interesting read. You can download and read the entire English text at www9.nationalgeographic.com/lostgospel/_pdf/GospelofJudas.pdf. As you read it, compare its style and its message to the gospels, which were written between A.D. 60 and 90 Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. You'll notice it is a very different type of book with very different ideas. It makes me even more grateful for the simplicity and the power of our New Testament gospels. The book teaches us about Gnosticism in the second century, but in terms of shedding light on Judas and his relationship to Jesus, I don't believe it offers us anything of substance. If you are interested in knowing more about Judas, go back and do your own study of Judas in the gospels you'll find an interesting picture of this man.
For another view of the Gospel of Judas you might find interesting, check out Albert Mohler's comments at www.albertmohler.com/commentary_read.php?cdate=2006-04-07
That's it for now my prayer is you will discover the power and joy of Easter this weekend as we consider the significance of Christ's resurrection for our lives today.
Adam Hamilton