THE FACE-CLOTH AND THE LINEN WRAPPINGS

   

John 20:3–7: So Peter and the other disciple [John] went forth, and they were going to the tomb. The two were running together; and the other disciple ran ahead faster than Peter and came to the tomb first; and stooping and looking in, he saw the linen wrappings lying there; but he did not go in. And so Simon Peter also came, following him, and entered the tomb; and he saw the linen wrappings lying there, and the face-cloth which had been on His head, not lying with the linen wrappings, but rolled up in a place by itself.

In the course of my reading of a Grantchester mystery story, an excerpt of the Easter sermon by the Anglican Vicar Sydney Chambers caught my attention.

Sidney was determined that his parishioners should share the joy and redemption of Easter, and took, as a symbol of his sermon, the image of the cloth left in the cave1 where Jesus had lain. It had been folded rather than thrown away, Sidney told his congregation, a sign, according to custom of the time, that he would return, to the table, to the meal and to the communion between God and man.

“We are Easter people,” he told the parishioners of Grantchester. “This is not one day out of three hundred and sixty-five, but the mainspring of our faith. We carry the Easter message each day of our lives, lives in which the pain of the Cross and the suffering of humanity are followed by the uncomprehended magnitude of the Resurrection.”2

The Face-Cloth

There are two things, in light of Biblical truth, to note about John 20:7. First, the ‘cloth’ which Chambers mentioned is noted in our translation under consideration as ‘the face-cloth.’ In the King James translation it is referred to as “the napkin, that was about His head.” The Greek word for face-cloth is soudarion and is found only 4 times in the New Testament. It comes from the Latin word sudarium meaning “sweat cloth” used for wiping off facial perspiration3 very much like what we know as a handkerchief. Two times it is used in this sense in Luke’s writings—Luke 19:20; Acts 19:12.

The two other times, John employs the word as a burial face-cloth. In John 11:44, Lazarus’ face was “wrapped around with a cloth (soudarion)” and in our passage, John 20:7. From the description of Lazarus’ burial it appears that a face-cloth was also wrapped around the head of Our Lord when He was placed in the tomb.

Second, even though Peter saw the same thing as John, “the linen wrappings lying” (vv. 5&6), Peter also saw that the face-cloth was “not lying with the linen wrappings” (v.7)—specifying the position of the face-cloth as having been4 “rolled up in a place by itself.” The Greek word for rolled up can mean either “to twist, roll up or wrap around.”5 There must be some reason that John drew attention to this particular detail. Notice that he does not state who rolled up the face-cloth.

From the Grantchester novel, the Vicar Chambers made an inference to a Jewish dining “custom of the time,” which alleged that when the master was through eating he would wad up the napkin and leave it on the table. But if he folded the napkin and laid it next to his plate, this was a sign that he intended to return. The fact of the matter is that there is no Jewish custom so described.6 It is a legend which attempts to create an exaggerated meaning for the “rolled up” face-cloth.

Nevertheless, there is a supernatural explanation that is more plausible: that John was indicating that the face-cloth was still in the same condition as it had been ‘rolled’ on Our Lord’s face, implying that at the moment of Jesus’s resurrection, He came right out of the burial linens and the face-cloth, not needing to personally tend to His burial garments. Dr. Merrill Tenney explains:

This means the headcloth [face-cloth] still retained the shape [and] the contour of Jesus’ head had given it and that it was still separated from the other wrappings by a space that suggested the distance between the neck of the deceased and the upper chest, where the wrappings of the body would have begun.7

After all, if Our Lord in His resurrection body could appear to His disciples while the doors were shut (John 20:19) then He surely could pass through grave clothes without disturbing how they were position on His body. 

Resurrection Promise

There is an element of truth in the Vicar Chambers’ Easter sermon: Jesus Christ will return at His Second Coming (Revelation 19:1-16) to set up His 1000 year reign on the earth. But for the His believers today, Paul instructs us to be:

Looking for the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Christ Jesus (Titus 2:13)

This blessed ‘hope’ is our confident expectation that He will return for us, the Body of Christ. The Apostle Paul describes this event, known as the Rapture8 of the Church:

For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we shall always be with the Lord. (1 Thessalonians 4:16–17)

The Rapture of living believers will “occur just prior to the beginning of the Tribulation”9 period and fulfills the promise that Jesus “rescues us from the wrath to come” (1 Thessalonians 1:10; cf. Revelation 3:10). Paul says we should “comfort one another with these words” (1 Thessalonians 4:18) and the assurance He gave on the eve of His death:

“In My Father’s house are many dwelling places; if it were not so, I would have told you; for I go to prepare a place for you. If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself, that where I am, there you may be also.” (John 14:2–3)

This is the culmination of our eternal life established by His Resurrection—by the power and magnitude of His resurrection, He was able to promise: “Because I live, you will live also” (John 14:19b).

However, we are not an “Easter people.” But more meaningful, we are a “Resurrection People” 365 days a year and that is the mainspring and driving force of our faith.

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[1] The garden tomb was an actual above ground cave.

[2] Runcie, James (2012). Sidney Chambers and the Shadow of Death. New York: Bloomsbury, pp. 205-206.

[3] Arndt, W., Gingrich, F. W., Danker, F. W., & Bauer, W. (1979). A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, p. 759.

[4] The force of the Greek Perfect Passive Participle

[5] Zodhiates, S. (2000). The Complete Word Study Dictionary: New Testament. Chattanooga, TN: AMG Publishers, G1794.

[6] https://www.truthorfiction.com/folded-napkin/ [Retrieved March 26, 2024]

[7] Tenney, Merrill C. (1981). The Expositor’s Bible Commentary (Gaebelein, Frank E., Gen. Ed), Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 9.188.

[8] The term “rapture” comes from the Latin verb rapere from the Latin Vulgate translation of the Bible and is translated “will be caught up” in 1 Thessalonians 4:17. It literally means a “snatching away or a catching up.” MacDonald, W. (1995). Believer’s Bible Commentary: Old and New Testaments (A. Farstad, Ed.). Nashville: Thomas Nelson, p. 2038.

[9] Ryrie, C.C. (1995) The Ryrie Study Bible: Expanded Edition, NASB, Chicago, IL: Moody Press, p. 1909 note.

 

© 2024 David M. Rossi
 

LIGHT AND DARKNESS - 1 JOHN 1:5

Verse 5: This is the message we have heard from Him and proclaim to you, that God is light, and in Him is no darkness at all. (ESV)

 John now reflects upon a particular message that “we have heard” from the ultimate source of Him, Jesus Christ, that “God is light.” However, there is no recorded discourse of Our Lord stating precisely that God is light. This is the outcome of John, inspired by the Holy Spirit using his deductive reasoning when he declared the deity of Christ—“the Word was God” (John 1:1)—with Jesus’ declaration, “I am the light of the world” (John 8:12). This verse is the essential link in understanding the character of Jesus Christ and the Scriptural basis for the believers’ authentic fellowship with Him.

What follows is evidence of John’s obedience to the instruction the apostles received from Our Lord:

“What I tell you in the darkness, speak in the light; and what you hear whispered in your ear, proclaim upon the housetops.” (Matthew 10:27)

Light and Darkness

Light as we know it is emanated from a source: the sun, a lamp, a fire. And conversely, darkness is devoid of any of these sources of light. But there is a supernatural light that God can radiate without the aid of a physical source—from His glorious nature. Prior to God’s creation of “the two great lights” (Genesis 1:16), the sun and moon, God declared in Genesis 1:3: “Let there be light”; and there was light—a light that must have come from “some fixed light source outside the earth.”1

Examining John’s use of the word light, we learn that it is used figuratively of holiness and purity.2 That God is holy is His essential essence means that His character is separated from that which is evil—darkness. Isaiah supports this fact when he heard the Seraphim calling out: “Holy, Holy, Holy, is the Lord of hosts, the whole earth is full of His glory” (Isaiah 6:3; cf. Revelation 4:8). Ryrie asserts that “The threefold repetition means that God is uniquely holy.”3 And what still holds true today is the Old Testament decrees that the Apostle Peter reminds us of: “You shall be holy, for I am holy” (1 Peter 1:15-16; cf. Leviticus 11:44).

Darkness is also used figuratively here as the opposite of holiness—that which is evil and “emblematic of sin, as a condition of moral or spiritual depravity.”4 John is adamant in his assertion that in God there is absolutely no darkness. This is brought out by a literal translation of the Greek: “And darkness in Him does not exist, not even one bit.”5 The Apostle Paul explains this could not be said about ourselves prior to salvation.

For at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light (for the fruit of light is found in all that is good and right and true). (Ephesians 5:8–9 ESV)

Who is the arbiter of what is holy and evil—light and darkness? For the answer to this we cannot rely upon human viewpoint. Our culture today is driven by the philosophy of secular humanism and refuses to advocate a clear distinction between that which is holy or evil. Instead, we turn to the source of absolute truth: the Word of Life. Scripture is God’s Word and the final objective authority in determining what is holy and righteous.

Mankind Loves Darkness

The reason our culture subjectively declines to make a distinction on moral issues was declared by Our Lord as the premise for His coming:

“This is the judgment, that the Light has come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the Light, for their deeds were evil. For everyone who does evil hates the Light, and does not come to the Light for fear that his deeds will be exposed.” (John 3:19–20)

The world of mankind lies in the domain of darkness, rebellious towards God, even though He has made a way of escaping the judgment for their unbelief and their hatred of the Light. For those who have believed in Jesus Christ, the Light of the world, the Apostle Paul explains exactly what God has provided:

In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace. (Ephesians 1:7)

And thus, Paul states: For He rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son (Colossians 1:13). This domain of darkness describes how “the whole world lies in the power of the evil one [Satan]” (1 John 5:19). Paul states that Satan is the god of this world and that he: “has blinded the minds of the unbelieving so that they might not see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ who is the image of God” (2 Corinthians 4:4).

This is the motivation for John’s command to believers to avoid the source of the unholy evil of darkness:

Do not love the world nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world. (1 John 2:15–16)

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[1] Ryrie, C. C. (1995). Ryrie Study Bible: New American Standard Bible, 1995 Update. Chicago: Moody Press, p. 4 note.

[2] Unger, M. F. (1988). Light, In The New Unger’s Bible Dictionary (Harrison, R. K., Vos, H. F., Barber, C. J., Eds.). Chicago: Moody Press.

[3] Ryrie, p. 1057 note.

[4] Vine, W. E., Unger, M. F., & White, W., Jr. (1996). Vine’s Complete Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words. Nashville, TN: T. Nelson, 2.144–145.

[5] Wuest, K. S. (1997). Wuest’s Word Studies from the Greek New Testament. Grand Rapids MI: Eerdmans, 13.100.

 

© 2024 David M. Rossi

 

MANKIND AND THEIR PETS: A POSTSCRIPT

God made the beasts of the earth after their kind, and the cattle after their kind, and everything that creeps on the ground after its kind; and God saw that it was good. (Genesis 1:25)

People choose to adopt all sorts of pets: dogs, cats, birds, rabbits, fish, snakes and even ferrets. Some people couldn’t care less about owning a pet—to this I say: “To each their own prerogative.” They will obviously never know the joys (and heartaches) involved in sharing time, nurturing God’s creatures.

Speaking from experience, my wife and I have had an assortment of pets throughout our 40 years of marriage. We have had 6 cats, 4 dogs, 4 parakeets and a few ‘flushable’ fish. Only a few times had any of these varied species overlapped in our domicile.

The most recent members of our household are two Springer Spaniel brothers that we adopted from the Marion County Animal Shelter in 2008. They were only 3 months old and had been abused. With a ‘little’ arm twisting—from my wife, grand-daughter, Annika, and niece, Tabatha—we became pet owners of two wonderful jumping, wrestling, biting puppies.

We gave them royal names: Baron von Waggerschmidt (AKA: Waggs, or Wagger Baggins) and Fu Dogchu (AKA: Chewey or Chew-boy). They were welcomed into our home by a seven-year old calico, Pickles. Needless to say she was not in the least bit impressed. But they eventually got along: she taught them how to groom and they taught her how to get off our laps. Unfortunately, our Pickles entered eternity just a few years later.

What our cat could not do for them, we did. Like the daily rations of food and water, walks in the yard or park, baths and clippings, and constant attention. It also included providing the medicines and preventative measures for warding off fleas and ticks.

For the past 16 years we never once really thought there would be any interruption in our care for our boys. Until 5 years ago our Waggs came down with a mysterious illness that even the doctor could not determine its cause. He was simple deteriorating from pain pill to pain pill. We made the decision 3 years ago to relieve him of his misery, allowing the vet to mercifully let him sleep the eternal sleep. He was a great dog and will be missed and remembered.

Today, our Chewey has been experiencing the difficulties of old age, 16 years is very old for a Springer Spaniel. So he too will be placed in the compassionate hands of the Creator. He will be greatly missed and remembered always.

  On Waggs’ death bed I whispered to him that God takes care of all of His creatures. I know he probably didn’t know what I was saying. For Chewey, I will whisper the same, except he won’t hear me since he lost his hearing a few years ago. Yet I am confident that since the creatures of God’s were pronounced as “very good” (Genesis 1:31) then they must be very good even after death.

Where do they go after death? I do not know, the Scripture really doesn’t say. Will our pets be in heaven? Again, I do not know, the Scriptures are silent. Will there be animals in heaven? The apostle John provides a hint in Revelation 19:11:

“And I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse, and He who sat on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He judges and wages war.” (Revelation 19:11)

Notice: A white horse comes out of heaven carrying the Lord Jesus Christ! This is not meant to be symbolism, as is common in the Book of Revelation.

But that is not all, armies will follow him on white horses:

 “And the armies which are in heaven, clothed in fine linen, white and clean, were following Him on white horses.” (Revelation 19:14)

Does this mean our pets will be in heaven? Not necessarily, we will just have to wait and see.

But all of this speculating about our pets calls to mind God’s original intention of mankind’s relationship with His creatures. For Scripture does speak of this:

Then the Lord God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone; I will make him a helper suitable for him.” Out of the ground the Lord God formed every beast of the field and every bird of the sky, and brought them to the man to see what he would call them; and whatever the man called a living creature, that was its name. The man gave names to all the cattle, and to the birds of the sky, and to every beast of the field, but for Adam there was not found a helper suitable for him. (Genesis 2:18–20)

Adam was given the tremendous task of naming all of the living creatures which God had made. But more than that, Adam was given dominion (rule) over all the living creatures:

Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; and let them rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over the cattle and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” (Genesis 1:26)

John MacArthur points out:

This defined man’s unique relation to creation. Man was God’s representative in ruling over the creation. The command to rule separated him from the rest of living creation and defined his relationship as above the rest of creation (cf. Psalm 8:6–8).1

Therefore, since man was created in the image of his Creator and man has been given administration over God’s creation, than it stands to reason that we should emulate the same manner of care for His creatures as He would.

So when it comes to our pets our responsibility is to provide all that is necessary for their livelihood—a caring environment; food and shelter; medication (when needed); compassion (i.e. mourning their loss). When we neglect our responsibility we fail to demonstrate the love the Creator has for His creatures.

 

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Sincere thanks to Randy Kantzer, Susie Tesmer and the staff of Kantzer Veterinary Clinic of Marion, Ohio for their professional and expert care!

 

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[1] MacArthur, J. F., Jr. (2006). The MacArthur Study Bible: New American Standard Bible. Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Publishers, Genesis 1:26–28.

 

© 2024 David M. Rossi

OUR JOY MADE COMPLETE - 1 JOHN 1:4

Verse 4: These things we write, so that our joy may be made complete.

What John means by ‘these things’ is the entirety of this epistle, not just what he has written in the previous 3 verses concerning Christology—the doctrine of Jesus Christ. This epistle contains many doctrinal teachings that are designed to instruct believers on how to live this life of faith: fellowship (1:7); the love of God (2:5); abiding in Christ (2:24); antichrist (2:18,22; 4:3); brotherly love (3:11-12; 4:7); the world (2:15; 5:4); prayer (3:21-22); and sin, discussed in every chapter. These Biblical truths are what John means by ‘these things.’

Joy Complete

Now John presents a second purpose for writing his epistle: that our joy may be made complete. The phrase ‘made complete’ denotes to make perfect or to accomplish an objective.1 The Greek stresses not only the completed state of joy but that it continues to remain full2 and not sporadically exhibited throughout the believers’ life.

What is this joy that John is referring to? The Apostle Paul states that joy is a fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22), meaning that it originates from the Holy Spirit, Who enables us to demonstrate the joy of our relationship with God. It is displayed by the “inner happiness, enthusiasm, and animated thinking”3 of the believer filled with the knowledge of God’s Word and thus empowered by the Holy Spirit (Romans 15:13). For the believer, true spiritual joy is not meant to be a psychologically induced or a contrived ecstatic emotion. Dr. L.S. Chafer notes:

Exhibiting the same general characteristics as love, likewise divine joy can neither be increased nor decreased by the command of the human will, and equally certain is the evidence that such joy cannot be imitated.4

John seems to be contradicting the Apostle Paul who maintained that “in Him you have been made complete” (Colossians 2:10, emphasis added). The distinction is that Paul is specifying the believer’s eternal position in Christ at the moment of believing in Him for salvation. By clarification, John is referring to joy as a quality of the Christian after salvation that can be made complete; emphasizing that joy is an essential aspect of our fellowship with God.

There is an expression about successful athletes, entertainers or professionals that they have the “complete package.” This means that they are the best in their field and have acquired and applied all the skills necessary to be an expert in their field of endeavors. There is a sense in which a believer is considered incomplete if they lack joy. What can be said for certain is that believers who are lacking joy indicate that they are incomplete, that they do not have the “complete package,” and do not take seriously their fellowship with the Father and with His Son.

Genuine Demonstration of Joy

The objective of the Christians’ joy is the genuine response of gratitude for God’s provisions—eternal and earthly. John notes in particular “that our joy may be made complete” suggesting that this is a possibility and not an assured thing. However, our joy can be made complete, but only if we progress and grow by studying His word and applying His principles in our daily lives. The Apostle Paul stated this in Romans 15:13: “may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing.” Paul was not inferring to believing for salvation, but believing the doctrines of His word. The infusion of God’s truths in the believers’ conscience is the enabling power for the expression of joy to become evidenced in the mature believer.

Genuine joy is generated by the realization in one’s soul that the event observed or a situation undergone conforms to a doctrinal truth. Sometimes the reaction may be apparent with tears, laughter or cheering upon seeing God working in one’s own life or in the lives of others. But more often joy is observed by a person’s steady mood—even when all about them seems chaotic, that “deep down there is joy”5 that the believer is sharing with God.

The Apostle Paul declares when the believer is to express joy with a double command: “Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice!” (Philippians 4:4; cf. 1 Thessalonians 5:16). The Greek word for ‘rejoice’ is the root word for joy and means to be joyful. Just to be clear, Paul commands that we are to be joyful always—this means that the mood and expression of our lives is to be the exact opposite of gloominess, despair or miserable. We who are believers in Jesus Christ should be responding with joy to the fact that we possess the very eternal life of God, Who has bestowed us with every spiritual blessing (Ephesians 1:3).

But take into account the extreme case which James presents: “Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials” (James 1:2). Human nature is inclined to deplore challenging situations, sometimes expressing doom and gloom. Now this doesn’t mean that in the midst of a tragedy (illness, death, etc.) that we are to jump up and click our heels and yell “Hallelujah!” But God anticipates that our spiritual growth will enable us to endure any and all obstacles. By concentrating on God’s wisdom we can understand and overcome the testing that comes in our lives. What James tells us is something we should already know: “Knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance.” (James 1:3)

In Conclusion

 James is stating that by a genuine demonstration of joy—just as John aspires for the believer—we are able to endure the trials and testing of life and thus we “may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing” (James 1:4). This perfect and permanent joy that John aspires for us is a repeating of Our Lord’s desire for us:

“These things I have spoken to you so that My joy may be in you, and that your joy may be made full.” (John 15:11)

 We can rest assured of the Lord Jesus’ promise that this joy of ours, made complete, that “no one will take your joy away from you” (John 16:22).

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[1] Zodhiates, S. (2000). The Complete Word Study Dictionary: New Testament. Chattanooga, TN: AMG Publishers, G4137.

[2] Robertson, A. T. (1933). Word Pictures in the New Testament. Nashville, TN: Broadman Press, 6.206.

[3] Thieme, R.B., Jr. (2022). Thieme’s Bible Doctrine Dictionary, Houston, TX: R.B. Thieme, Jr., Bible Ministries, p. 152.

[4] Chafer, Lewis Sperry (1976). Systematic Theology, Dallas, TX: Dallas Seminary Press, 6.205.

[5] Barnhouse, Donald Grey (1994). “God’s Glory”, In Romans, Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 4.3.15.

 © 2024 David M. Rossi