Action Journal Nearly in Action

It's simple. Disciples are given the opportunity to make more disciples.

Drawn by God. Saved by Christ. Filled with the Spirit. The body of Christ, the Church, the priesthood of believers have this beautiful mission - love others as Christ loves us. Christ reconciled us to Him and as ambassadors of reconciliation we direct others to Christ and draw them into our families and extended families on mission.

This doesn't always start in our homes does it? We come to Christ at the strangest times and in the weirdest most unexpected places right? Coffee shops, funerals, next to the toilet after a long night. God calls and gives us the grace to respond to Jesus' incarnate work and it doesn't matter where or how.

a great disciple and partner on mission

But when this call changes us in every place but the home (the most intimate) it's a problem. Our spouses don't see a broken, forgiven, regenerate husband, wife, mother or father. Our neighbors might. Our coworkers see a change. Our local church body is in awe and spurs us onward. But do our kids feel the new creation. Is that same grace spilling over onto our family. Is our spouse held tight by us in love and forgiveness the way we are in Christ's arms?

Let's be careful not to draw families on mission independently of one another in every area of life but to let our individual gifts and missions be an overflow of a discipling rhythm in the home.

After Moses personally engaged YHVH on the mountain he called Israel to a great mission. A great rhythm of life. Read more in Deuteronomy 6:4-9 about the family discipleship rhythm designed to create nation in love with their Redeemer.

my little partner on mission
and apparently stung by a bee...

I'm excited. We've received a final draft of the Journal and are pretty pumped to share this rhythm with others. No, as disciples we're not prompted to shutter up our families in the house to keep safe from the big bad world. That's ridiculous.

On the other extreme, if we're all engaged in the body and even on mission outside of the home and never worshipping, partying and serving together as a family then as parents we're missing out on discipling those entrusted to us directly from the Lord first and foremost. Our children then miss out on how a family lives and breathes the Word.

So go and create your own Action Journal. If you need a hand then pick up A Family on Mission Action Journal when it's out later this month!

John's Story 5:16-30

Without changing keys Jesus is once again going to sing the same song of simple belief. Only this time, belief is tangled up in the midst of a dialogue Jesus having on His claim of equality with God.


In fact, let's note 5 of these claims right here. Jesus is equal with God in:

1. person  :17-18
2. works  :19-20
3. power and sovereignty  :21
4. judgement  :22
5. His honor  :23

Text /

Equal in Person  :17-18

As he's being persecuted by some of the Jewish leaders, instead of bowing down and resigning to their authority Jesus' claims of oneness with God the Father only become more clear and direct.

'My Father is always at work...and I, too, am working.'

Just as my own son is one with me in name, blood and lineage - Jesus, as God incarnate, is proclaiming is oneness in personhood with God in heaven. Remember, if we've seen Jesus, we've seen the Father.


Side Note: Persecution for Breaking the Sabbath.
Jesus was working on the Sabbath, a legal day of rest. Jesus' push back was multifaceted:

• Genesis 1 'bara' - create in sustained action, ongoing. So even the Lords instituted day of rest was an act on His part as well as the Colossians 1 reality that Jesus was continuously holding all things together - even on the Sabbath.
• Jesus stated 'My Father is always at work' - there it is. God is at work.
• Mark 2:27-28  Sabbath was designed for mans sake, not to be lorded over man, but offered to him.
• Matthew 15:1-9 'Why do you break the command of God for the sake of your tradition?' A different context to be sure, but the heart is the same. The Pharisees were glad to create rules for their sake ignoring the Lords very Word in the meantime.

Equal in Works  :19-20
Again, in the midst of an assassination plot against Him, Jesus continues on proclaiming his equality in divinity with God the Father regarding His works, signs and wonders.

'I tell you the truth, the Son can do nothing by Himself; He can do only what He sees His Father doing...'

Incredible. And even in this aspect of their relationship Love is yet at the core (:20). Isn't this a demonstration as well that the very character of God the Father is found in Jesus the Son? The two are so divinely united that the Fathers love for Jesus eternally overflows into the world (3:16-17).


Equal in Power & Sovereignty  :21
In the OT we see God at work as it pertains to life and death in pretty wild ways:

- Elijah 2 Kings 2
- The boy restored 2 Kings 4:32-35

Just as the Father has absolute sovereignty over life and death, Jesus does so as well. Just as the Father has authority over eternal life and death, Jesus does so as well.

'Just as the Father...even so the Son gives life to whom He is pleased to give it.'

In chapter 4 we read about the healing of the officials son, a physical saving. Before that in chapter 4 we read about the spiritual / eternal saving of the woman at the well. Jesus is sovereign in line with the Father over life and death.

Salvation is a gift entirely produced by the Lord. In chapter 6 we'll see just how gritty He is regarding His death on the cross and our belief in Him for life. However, here we simply catch the flavor that Jesus alone gives life, not of our own accord, not of the Law, not of a family tradition, not a parents will, not of series of works...Jesus gives - we receive.


Equal in Judgement  :22
So Jesus also sits on the throne of judgement. All judgement. Eternal judgement. That all will bow down before the Living God is true (Philippians 2) - but that all with be bowing before the Father and the Son is Jesus' point here. He and Father are one in authority to Judge - what's more God has entrusted this duty with Jesus, His Son.

'the Father judges no one, but has entrusted all judgement to the Son'

Jesus goes on to qualify this, that just as the Father has / is life, Jesus also has life in Himself 'And [God] has given Him authority to judge because He is the Son of Man' (:26-27).

Jesus, as the Author and Sustainer of Life, has full authority to offer judgement on those who seeking eternal life (:28-29).

'I judge only as I hear, and my judgement is just, for I seek not to please myself but Him Who sent Me' (:30).

Because Jesus judges based on the Truth of Truth Himself, on the very character of the Father, on the host and source of creation, on the very law and fabric of Life - His judgement is Just. Jesus is not a good man with limited culturally relevant justifications. He is Eternal God who sees the moral end as the clearly as the beginning and holds creation to that standard.


Equal in Honor  :23
Is it possible to glorify God and ignore Jesus? To be a worshipper and not worship Jesus and yet know God the Father? Is it possible to call God by any other name, to call Jesus a mere prophet or wise man etc. and honor the Creator?

'that all may honor the Son just as they honor the Father. He who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father, who sent Him.'

Praising God and bypassing Jesus doesn't honor the very one you might be intending to worship. If you were to mock my own son I would take personal offense. On the same line, if you were to honor my son I would take great pleasure, I would be honored both in the gift itself, but also in my relationship with honorable son who I love dearly.

There are branches of the Body of Christ who focus more deeply on knowing 'God' - there are others who focus on Jesus to the detriment of the Father and the Spirit - and there are those so engaged in being filled by the Spirit that Jesus and the Father are merely foundational realities - some branches even focus on the Church or the Patriarchs or post-NT church fathers and leaders.

To know Jesus is the know the Father. To know the Father truly is to engage Jesus. To engage the Father and the Son is to be filled with the Spirit to their glory.


Personalize /
'I tell you the truth, whoever hears my word and believes Him who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has crossed over from death to life...the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God and those who hear will live.'

Belief.

1. How are you engaging John's Story of Jesus up to this point? Are you continuing to filter the Gospel through your worldview OR are you engaging the Word as a Divine Text on His terms?

2. What about the equality of Jesus with the Father intrigues you? surprises you? confuses you? frustrates you? Why?

3. What is God teaching you anew in this passage? What are you going to do about it?

4. Pray. Talk with God the Father through Jesus the mediator and ask Him to continue to bring divine clarity in truth. To put your doubts and questions in proper place on your journey in Him.

Read MacArthur Study Bible #1587 regarding Equality. 

The Internal Debate of the Family on Mission

So I'm pretty excited about the Family on Mission Action Journal coming out next month. I thought I'd take a minute and share some thoughts on the making of the journal.

I've had this internal debate going on for months now regarding the making and sharing of this journal. It began as an overflow of the discovery process with my wife on what it looks like for the Christ-centered family (our family) to live out Gospel truth together.

Leaning into 3dm's Up / IN / OUT discipleship rhythm we've been worshipping, learning, playing and serving on purpose in our home, neighborhood and network. Creating and taking opportunities as they come.

In the past few years we've come to realize that while each individual believer is gifted by the Spirit to serve the body and engage the world differently, the Apostle Paul really engages this teaching, as a family unit we're designed to live a Christ-centered rhythm together in ways no other space can replicate.

The local Church offers so much opportunity for personal discovery of these gifts that Dad can minister to the body regularly in a different spaces than Mom. Mom and daughter never have to cross paths in between the women and student ministries. Father and son can be engaged in totally separate multi-evening weekly events and never really share a 1x1 meal engaging in healthy Kairos moments together.

So as my wife and I have been discovering and recreating a healthier family rhythm I've been wrestling with whether or not I'm qualified as a healthy and maturing father, husband and disciple of Christ to offer my understanding of the Biblical call to live on mission as a family with others. It's a humble position to be in to ask another to engage in a particular rhythm of mission that I'm personally convicted about. It's one thing to attempt to live it out in my home and quite another to invite others to invest in a resource that I have invested in.

So while some days I feel like a failure and other days victorious in my walk - this internal debate is healthy as it propels me to desire Christlike maturity as developed and defined by Scripture. It's unhealthy in that it causes me to negatively compare myself with other mature believers which stunts my ability to see clearly the simple nature of sharing Truth that the Spirit has shared with me.

'Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sin psalms, hymns and spiritual sons with gratitude in your hearts to God. And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.' - Colossians 3:15-17

That said, the Family on Mission Action Journal is on its way. The debate is nearly over. Peace and Word are doing their work and Thankfulness is the result.

It's a resource. A tool. An opportunity to propel our families toward discovering a healthy rhythm of life together as long as your season of parents and children share space under one roof - your roof.

Dwell in the word.
Sing together.
Serve together.
Pray together.
Eat together.
Play together.
Commune together.

This Action Journal is a way of taking the most practical elements of engaging Christ and His call to engage the our families and those closest to us together and tossing them on our dinner tables to discuss, pray about and creatively engage in our home and in our neighborhoods.

And I'm incredibly excited to hear your family stories on mission.

Which events, activities, passages, experiences, spaces and moments open doors for you and your family to engage the muddy waters of lifestyle disciplemaking.

Let discipleship be an overflow of your family life - not an added element of volunteerism in your weekly endeavors!

January 2015 Book Release / A Family on Mission Action Journal

A Family on Mission Action Journal  /  Coming January 2015

Check out my first forthcoming Action Journal dedicated to fostering intentional family life in Christ together. Get active on purpose and regularly at that! Next Year (January 2015) order a copy for your family - and one for each of the families in your Missional Community. Get active together one day at a time.

Live UP / Live IN / Live OUT  This rhythm of life as a family dedicated to growing in Christ personally and together AND engaging Jesus' call to make disciples who make disciples is a wild adventure. On our journey to engage our neighbors and network with the Gospel together as a family we need a little encouragement from time to time.

Journey together through UP - IN - OUT adventures, journal about the events, the people involved, the work of the Spirit and the fruit you'll be praying about for future relationship and mission.

Being missional as a disciple of Christ is most rewarding when it's the overflow of our Deuteronomy 6:4-9 family life rhythm. It's most fruitful when it leads to discipling relationships both inside and outside the home.

Are you enjoying the call of Christ right here in your home?

A Family on Mission Action Journal / The Next Absolutely Unprofessional Publication coming January 2015.

How Was Your Christmas?

I've been asking this question the past couple of days as I run into people I haven't seen in a bit. I don't even know what I mean by it if I'm honest.

Family dynamics.
Party schedule.
Gift reception.
Financial peace.
Experience the spirit of the season.
Overeating.
General enjoyment of the kids, wife and time together.

Deep in my gut I'm also wondering how the person is engaging Jesus in this season. How celebrating the incarnational birth of Immanuel has impacted their heart, soul, mind and body here and now.

It's the other side of the pre-Christmas question: Are you ready for Christmas? It depends, what are talking about?

If you had asked me that in regards to gifts? Yes.
In regards to scheduling? Yes.
In regards to enjoying the family? Yes.
In regards to decorations? Yes.
In regards to peace and low stress? Yes.
In regards to worshiping Jesus?

Yes.

Paul challenged the body of believers to examine their own hearts and minds before engaging in the bread and the cup. Catch that? Before a Christ-follower is to eat a hunk of bread and take a shot of wine we're challenged to spiritually engage Jesus on His terms (1 Cor 11:27-31).

A celebration festival in honor of Christ's birth isn't found in Scripture - but the amount of space dedicated to recalling His coming gives weight to such a worthy party. Communion honors His death and resurrection and our place in Him. Christmas honors His birth and His place over us.

So, were you ready for Christmas? How did your Christmas go?

Did you examine your heart and it's focus on Him and overflow of His love in this season?
Did you examine your mind and your understanding and awareness of His Messianic Nature as the God-man?
Did you examine your body, your actions and engage in a divine level of self-control and service in loving your family, friends and neighbors?
Did you examine your soul and it's intermingling with the Spirit of the Living God in and about you?

How was your Christmas? Whether it was good or not may not have to depend on your family dysfunction, gifts or lack thereof, favorite foods, smells, church services and feelings. This isn't a new concept but maybe the Christians Christmas experience ought to depend on how we honored Christ this season? If Isaiah the Prophet can find hope and peace in a coming Messiah he didn't know, how much more can the disciple of Jesus enjoy His birth in all we do know.

How was your Christmas attitude?

Read Philippians 2:1-13 and engage this God this Christmas 

John's Story: 5:1-15

Do you want to get well?

Text / 

5:7 The Mans Response

Ever been asked an incredibly simple but overtly personal question? That's how I see the question above. Jesus asks this ill man if he would like to be healthy, whole. How would you respond?

'No one helps me into the pool and others cut in front of me when I do try to get in and that angel from heaven doesn't show up very often...'

I'm not even sure these are excuses. There's no reason to give an excuse here. Maybe if Jesus asked, 'Why aren't you well yet?' then maybe these would be worthwhile but not here. Yes or No? After 38 years of being ill do you want to be well?

Possible Explanations for the Mans Response:

1. R.C. Sproul sees Jesus question as a possible warning to the man, "Jesus' question likely was intended to warn him that being healed would bring radical life changes. There would be no more handouts, no more assistance. Instead, he would have to be productive. He would have to function in a society."
2. Towns notes, "When one waits a long time for a miracle or answer to prayer, discouragement grows, and with it unblief begins to develop." Maybe he was simply beginning to doubt that healing was even an option.
3. I wonder if the man simply wasn't prepared for an actual opportunity to be healed. His condition was very real, his desire to be healed abounding, but his lack of awareness of Rabbi Jesus and quite possibly never having truly witnessed a miracle may have left him with his guard down.
4. What if he was still engaged in whatever sin put him in that position? If this is the case then there's no way to give Jesus a straight answer. His heart and mind were not free of guilt.

Excuses Image taken from Towns pg#49

5:8-9 'Get up! Pick up your mat and walk.'

Whatever the case, Jesus knew of the mans condition and had sovereignly planned a healing. Some translations say Jesus 'learned' of the mans condition. Others stress more directly that Jesus 'knew'. John often demonstrates Jesus' ability to divinely know information (1:47-49).

Jesus knew the condition.

Jesus knew the man.

Jesus knew his heart.

Jesus knew his reaction to healing.

Jesus knew the Jewish leaders response.

Jesus knew the intended purpose of not only this healing, but his coming offer of eternal healing for all.

In Genesis 1 we see God speaking creation into existence. The same power and production Christ used in creation (Colossians 1) He uses here. The Words of God are full of power, they're living and active (Heb. 4)

After the healing Jesus disappears. The man can't or doesn't find Him and so he has no idea who it was that healed him. I wonder if he cares? He seems to just go on about his day. Maybe he's overwhelmed. Maybe Jesus simply left too quickly. Maybe he's excited to run off and hug his family and friends.

Regardless, Jesus finds him later on and leaves him with a serious warning, "See, you are well again. Stop sinning or something worse may happen to you."

Again, the mans response is strange. He knows the Jews are upset with him about breaking their law (not The Law, as they have attached way too much to the original Text in Exodus 20:8-11) but he goes to them and makes sure they know who actually commanded him to walk (break the law). Why? He was just healed, not only do the Jewish leaders miss the miracle, but the man himself is yet shifting the focus and 'blame' away from himself and onto this Rabbi.

Also, did you notice the 'again' (:14)? So prior to the 38 years of infirmity this man was healthy and active and productive. Something about his choices, his co-mission of a particular sin or lifestyle of sinning set him on his back for 38 years.

Which leads me to a pretty important question.

Is suffering a response to sin? That is, is a believers suffering always directly related to sin, either conscious committal of a sin or the omission of a precept? Or worse a sin one isn't even aware of in their life? Is suffering always the result of sin?

I was in a service one Sunday visiting a local church when this concept repeatedly came up. The speaker hammered the notion that God only blesses, he does not cause suffering. If anyone in the audience were experiencing suffering then sin is at the root and they are distant from the Lord.

Terrifyingly unbiblical. Imagine how many people churchgoers live under the invisible hammer of God without experience the Truth about suffering.

Scripture teaches that suffering is a part of the human condition. Yes it exists because of sin but in Gods economy it is:

• the consequence of sin (natural and intentional) (John 5:1-15)
• The consequences of a broken world (Luke 13:1-9)
• the means to challenge and grow the believer (Heb. 12:6)
• the response of the world towards believers, persecution (John 15:20)
• the byproduct of the divine meeting the flesh, sanctification occurring in imperfect bodies

Paul said that "it has been granted to you (Philippians, and you and I) on behalf of Christ not only to believe on him, but also to suffer for him," (Phil 1:29-30). The original audience were experiencing many of the same struggles Paul had and he was encouraging them to carry on well, that God the Father knew and intended belief and suffering to go hand in hand for our benefit and His Glory.

Many, many, many believers today are experiencing the very same struggles Paul had. Many others are experiencing different forms of pain, struggle, suffering, conflict, persecution etc.

Side Notes /

Feast of the Jews: Which one? John doesn't say but Passover, The Feast of Tabernacles and The Feast of Dedication are options. Most leave out the Passover as John tends to specify this feast as it plays an important role in Jesus' interaction with the Jews and His temple.

Pool of Bethesda 'house of mercy': near the Sheep Gate on the North side of Jerusalem. Thoughts on this pool:

• animals were cleansed here prior to being sacrificed at the temple
• healing waters: minerals giving the pool a reddish hue and believed to have healing attributes
• healing waters: angel stirs the water providing divine healing to few (not in the earliest manuscripts)
• natural spring within that would turn the waters and gave the impression of angelic healing
• archaeologists have noted later Roman attachments to this pool regarding health and healing as well

Personalize /

How do you respond to suffering? Do you hold unbiblical concepts of suffering?

In your suffering do you discern what is the result of your sin, persecution, others sin, challenge, natural brokenness in the body, character discipline, faith stretching, etc?

How do you respond to answered prayer or miracle in your life? Do you respond with gratefullness and joy? Do these cause you to worship and glorify God, boasting in Him all the more? OR do you wonder why God didn't respond differently? Do you lack contentment in His work and response no matter how great? Is God's work in you ever good enough for you honor Him?

The sick man experienced physical healing and yet seemed to miss out on the spiritual healing Jesus was truly offering. How many Christ followers are missing out on true healing of the heart and mind and focusing too much on the physical healing of the body and surroundings?

I challenge you to point out 3 things today that you are thankful for. 3 things that God has worked in and about you that you must simply and humbly honor Him in response.

John, Elmer Towns #48-49.

MacArthur Study Bible #1586-1587.

John, RC Sproul ebook, #1085.

John's Story 4

Places of worship and water are wildly important aspects of faith. In fact, nearly every system of faith puts emphasis on the location of a god, its residence or place of worship and interaction in the tangible world such as temples, altars, universities, labs, volcanoes and mountains.

As well water is a symbol of either life or death - running water such as rivers or natural springs signify health, purity, spiritual interaction with man (libations, baptism etc.), while stagnant pools of water are both physically dangerous and spiritually symbolic of death.

Text / John 4:1-30 Living Water

At the end of her conversation with Jesus the Samaritan woman left her water jar behind as she went to share the Living Water with her community. This is a great ending to a strange interaction. I wonder how man of us leave behind our old buckets after meeting the Creator.

So what do we take away from this idea of Living Water? Teacher Gary DeLashmutt notes 4 points:

1. Living Water is Essential for spiritual life: this Living Water is symbolic of Gods Holy Spirit indwelling our own bodies to know Him.
2. Living Water is Available in Abundance:
• phrear :11 - physical, man-made well or shaft
• pege :14 - fountain or well, associated with spiritual depths
3. Jesus is the Source of Living Water: He alone has authority to dispense the Holy Spirit.
4. Living Water is a Gift: whoever asks receives, not earned but given.

Later on in chapter 7 we see Jesus calling out to the masses at the closing of the Feast of Tabernacles, "If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink."

So thousands of people are crowded around the ritualistic procession of the Priests carrying a pitcher of water from the Pool of Siloam back to the altar as an offering to the Lord. Tradition. Physical symbolism. Familiarity. Holy Ritualism. And Jesus calling it an absolute waste of time. Jesus claiming that only HE can offer such forgiving and living water.

Jesus, a Jewish Rabbi, alone, speaking with a woman, a Samaritan woman, a woman living a lifestyle against Gods design - this is an interaction between God and man that now, through Christ, happens to each one of us. God directly and graciously personally connecting with us in our sin with a desire to pull our hearts and minds back to Him and away from our relationships with people and things that will never bring Living Water.

Text / John 4:19-26 Place of Worship

Location, location, location! It's just as important in the Spiritual world as it is in the physical. However, Jesus blows our understanding of this out of the water.

Historical Background on Mt. Gerazim: After the Assyrians took over the Northern Kingdom of Israel in 722bce they brought in various cultures and religions to populate the area. In the 4th century bce, Manasseh, the high priest in Jerusalem, was challenged to divorce his foreign wife or be expelled. Sanballat the Samaritan leader and father of Nikaso, Manasseh's wife, promised the high priest his own temple of the lord, land and power if he would only remain with Nikaso. Manasseh agreed.

Side Note: Both Manasseh and the Samaritan woman Jesus interacted with were placing higher regard on physical fulfillment in their intimate relationships than on their Lord and Creators desire, design and Glory. Somethings in the human condition don't change right? How often do you put sex, money, longings, desires, personal fulfillment and self-esteem before the call of Jesus?

By the time Jesus arrived to meet the woman at the well the temple on Mt. Gerazim had been destroyed by the Jews over 100 years before. The rift between the Jews and Samaritans went pretty deep I would say.

Jesus wasn't worried about rifts. Jesus wasn't interested in temples.

"A time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth...God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and truth." 4:23-24

spirit - pneuma: principle life-giving source, contrasted with the body, symbolic of the heart: the seat of emotion and affection, more than physical action or rite.

truth - aletheia: reality, fact, actual state of affairs - symbolic of the opposite of darkness, evil, partial knowledge in the shadows.

Jesus is beginning to proclaim the drastic change in mans understanding of worship. We naturally desire an object, a location, a ritual, a rite of passage or worthy activity...And here Jesus is proclaiming that the only worthy act of worship is to believe with our hearts, in the depth of a renewed spirit by The Spirit and in actual, knowable truth, specifically Truth about this Living Water in Himself, the Savior and Reconcillor to God the Father!

What does this mean?

You and I no longer have to wait to worship God on a mountain or in a temple or around the mouth of a volcano tossing cows and wild boars into in order to appease his anger.

Nope. We worship God through worshipping Christ and just where you are in spirit and in truth. In genuine heart adoration and knowledge of the truth in our minds.

Challenge /

Have you taken a sip of this Living Water? Have your, like Nicodemus in chapter 3, been born again? This isn't a catch phrase form hippy Jesus movements. This isn't cultish ritualism. This is actual and honest engagement with the God of the Universe on His terms and for your sake.

What personal, traditional, religious, mental, physical, emotional, spiritual temples do you need to tear down in order to actually, intimately, spiritually connect with God? What Truths in Scripture do you need to unpack and build life upon in order to worship Jesus as He has designed?

Come to Him with a pleading heart in the manner of the Official who sought Jesus' presence for his sons healing (4:43-54) but come with the knowledge that Jesus can heal even apart from His physical presence. He is active here and now in ways we cannot yet see.

Gary DeLashmutt 2012 John Series @ Xenos.org

Mt Gerazim notes from Archaeological Study Bible

Comments on the role of water from The Oxford Dictionary of the Jewish Religion