Biblios Hokku - John

"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God."
John 1:1

Right from the beginning, the Gospel of John pulls no punches. This is all about telling the world that Jesus was more than just a good man, or even the Messiah. He was GOD! There are no parables told in this gospel, and only seven miracles appear. Instead, it is full of what Jesus said about himself. There are a number of "I AM" statements: "I am the bread of life", "I am the good shepherd", "I am the way, the truth and the life"

JOHN
In the beginning-
There before Heaven or Earth.
This is who I AM.

Go visit all the chapters here.

Biblios Hokku - Luke

The Gospel of Luke is a unique Gospel. Luke is (probably) the only Gentile writer in the New Testament. Luke includes in his account words spoken by Jesus as a child, and many parables not found elsewhere. It appears from the introduction that Luke studied and researched the stories told about Jesus, and probably used Mark as one of many sources.

The Gospel is focused on showing that Jesus was a saviour for all people, both Jew and Gentile. Stories of salvation being extended to all are prevalent. The book ends with Jesus going up to Heaven, however it foreshadows the coming of the Spirit, and the book of Acts is considered by many to be a continuation of the Gospel, also written by Luke, showing how Jesus' life lead to the growth of the early Church.

LUKE
Salvation for all,
Through his great mercy and love.
So much more to come.

Read the rest of the Gospels, as well as the Old Testament, here.

Biblios Hokku - Mark

So yesterday we featured a haiku about the Gospel of Matthew.

Today we go onto Mark.

Mark is very different from Matthew. It is a shorter, faster Gospel, and appears to address a Gentile audience. It presents Jesus as a suffering saviour, and reminds us of his Sonship. It shows that as Christians not only will we suffer, but that suffering is a pathway to a new life. That we can't avoid it, and still follow Christ.

MARK
A man of sorrow.
Our salvation bought by blood.
“Follow me, and live.”

As always, you can find all the piece here.

Biblios Hokku - Matthew

For those of you who have only started reading my blog recently, or were not paying attention last year, I have an insane project called Biblios Hokku, where I convert the whole Bible to Haiku. One book at a time. In order.

I told you it was insane.

So last year I finished the Old Testament, and this year I am starting on the new.

If you want to catch up, go here. Every Haiku written so far is in one place.

I am starting on the Gospels now, and they are hard. All four books tell the same story, so how do you capture their individual 'flavour'?

Tell me after I am finished.

As requested, I am only publishing one a day, so you can meditate on the words before the next one.

So what makes Matthew different?

Matthew is a very Jewish Gospel. It aims at showing, among other things, how Jesus was the Messiah, and how his life and death were a fulfilment of the centuries-old prophecies. It is the only Gospel to use the phrase "Kingdom of Heaven" and to focus on Jesus as King as well as Messiah.

MATTHEW
A King from Heaven.
The long-awaited saviour.
JESUS is his name.