To My Teacher, Pastor and Beloved Friend

Dr. Robert L. Lindsey, March 1980 (photo: Kurt Ben-Joseph).

For me it is a great honor and privilege to write a brief word in remembrance of my teacher, pastor and beloved friend, Dr. Bob Lindsey. His circle of dedicated disciples and his great accomplishments bear witness to the greatness of the man more than meager words of praise.

Dr. Lindsey was a creative scholar, who gave of himself to people in need. As a scholar, he loved the words of Jesus. He proved that Jesus spoke Hebrew. He solved the synoptic problem by discovering the Markan Cross-Factor and examining the linguistic evidence of the text. He demonstrated that Luke was the first of our synoptic Gospels and that Mark reworded the materials he received from Luke and other sources. Mark subsequently influenced Matthew, who followed his wording. Though Matthew employed Mark, he also possessed Luke’s source(s) for Jesus’ life. Especially in texts unparalleled in Mark, the Hebrew roots of Jesus’ teachings flow from Matthew. Luke and Matthew, therefore, provide us with the most authentic portrayal of Jesus’ life and teachings.