Significance of the Cross
All Christians, all around the world, wholeheartedly affirm this statement: The death and resurrection of Jesus has given us life. Without Jesus’ willing participation in his death, we would have nothing—no relationship with God, no forgiveness of sins, no reason for hope for the future. The cross is the beginning of everything important for us, and we remind ourselves of this every time we take the Lord’s supper, giving thanks to God for Jesus’ sacrifice for us. Jesus was the great martyr, the Lamb of God, the great sacrifice, the one that made all sacrifices obsolete. Jesus is the author and completer of our faith.
The Cross did not end with Jesus
But there is a mystery about the cross in the New Testament. It is clear that although Jesus suffered for us, the suffering of the church did not end. If anything, the church has suffered more than Jesus did himself. Stephen was martyred, forgiving his murderers. The church was scattered abroad. Paul suffered three stonings, many beatings, shipwrecks and much more. What is more, Paul dared to write down what would be considered blasphemy by most Christians today—“I rejoice in my sufferings for you and I am completing what was lacking in Christ’s suffering” (Colossians 1:24). For some reason, Paul did not consider the cross to be the end of the sacrificial work done for others. Yes, Jesus began the work and he is the authority of his people, but, somehow, there is still salvation work to be done. The cross is not yet complete.
Living out the Cross
Although in our modern theologies, this passage of Paul may seem to be a mystery—and the clear meaning of it has been denied by many—yet in Jesus’ teachings, it is clear. Jesus himself said, “If anyone wishes to come after me, let him deny himself, take up his cross daily and follow me.” The cross was not supposed to simply be the “work of Christ” and then honored from a distance for centuries after. Rather, the cross that Jesus himself carried was a way of life for anyone who claimed to be a Christian. To follow Jesus is to carry the cross. Therefore the only true Christian is a believer in cruciformity—one who believes in and lives out the way of the cross in their lives.
The Atonement and Cruciformity
Does living out the cross deny the work of Christ? Not at all. The main purpose of the death and resurrection of Jesus is to establish the kingdom of God (Romans 14:9). To allow various peoples of the earth to be forgiven of their sins, be released from their captivity and to become the one people of God that will be welcome in God’s kingdom. But will anyone and everyone be accepted? Although the salvation of Jesus is offered to everyone equally, it is also true that most people will reject the offer and only a few will receive it. Why is this? Because of the condition of faith. Because everyone who enters the kingdom of God must have faith.
Believing and faith
But what is faith? The Christian minimalists will point to the multitude of verses that claim eternal life or salvation for everyone who “believes” in Jesus, which they understand as a basic cognitive acceptance of Jesus’ death for all or Jesus’ deity. However the translations “believe” or “belief” for the Greek words “pistis” or “pisteuo” in most contexts of the New Testament only communicates a partial understanding of the word. To “believe” in many of these contexts require obedience, surrender, complete devotion and endurance through suffering. Cognitive activity is only one small part of the whole that is communicated by “pistis”, which is why many translations also use the word “faith” or “having faith” as a more complete translation than “believing.”
Paul and Faith
Paul has especially been mistranslated. In Galatians, the book primarily looked to as teaching what Protestants understand to be “salvation by faith”, that understanding is gained from chapters 2 and 3 which uses the phrase “faith in Christ Jesus” to speak about the basis of receiving God’s promises. However, a literal Greek translation would then be “of Christ Jesus.” This shift is significant, because what it shows is that Paul was not seeing the salvation of God based in a cognitive understanding of who Jesus is or what he did, but of having the same faith that Jesus did. And in Galatians 2:20, that faith is described as one by which Jesus “loved me and gave himself for me.” As can be seen throughout Galatians, Romans and the Corinthian epistles, Paul understood faith as being not just an intellectual belief, but as a whole life, which begins at baptism, is fleshed out by love of others in the church, and has an ethical component, at the heart of which is sacrificial love.
The paradigm of Jesus
The Christian faith, therefore, is not just a simple belief, but it is the very basis by which Jesus himself sacrificed himself on the cross. There are seven main components of faith, all of which Jesus displayed—in his life and especially on the cross— and both Jesus and the writers of the New Testament:
1. Devotion to God alone
The follower of Jesus not to be involved in worshipping or serving other powers or gods or authorities apart from God and his Son Jesus Christ. Some good things, such as the Mosaic Law or money can be substituted for God or for Jesus, but our love needs to be focused on God alone.
2. Obedience to God through Jesus’ words
To show devotion to God as the one true King of the universe is also to obey him in all things. Jesus is God’s one Teacher, and no one else presents God’s truth as purely as he. Therefore, however one may interpret Moses or Paul or other teachers, we are to obey the commands of Jesus as the clearest understanding of God’s commands.
3. Trusting that God will fulfill his promises
Many of God’s promises have not been fulfilled, and this tears down God’s reputation. The true people of God, however, firmly hold to God’s promises and know that they will be fulfilled in His time. They not only believe this in their head, but they act on the promise, relying on what they cannot yet see.
4. Boldly speaking the truth of Jesus
The disciple of Jesus speaks of the truth of Jesus and announces it in every appropriate circumstance, and sometimes in inappropriate ones. The disciple of Jesus will speak the truth of Jesus, no matter what the consequences, even if they have the possibility of being harmed for it.
5. Inclusive, sacrificial love
The follower of Jesus to do good to everyone, not just those we like or are part of the “in group”. And in loving others, we are to sacrifice our comfort levels and at times our own person for others.
6. Humility
The follower of Jesus is to lower himself or herself to a lower status than others, doing work for others even to the degree as being seen as a slave for other’s sake.
7. Endurance through trials
Faith is not just a one time act, but it is facing a great difficulty and acting in pure trust of God through the difficulty.
The Christian Life
Thus, to be “saved by faith” is not just agreeing with an idea, but it is a life to be lived. It is not only a doctrine, but it is an ethic. The ones who truly are followers of Jesus are not only those who proclaim Jesus name, but also live out the principles of his life. Salvation is not given to those who give lip-service, but those who provide real service—real actions—of devotion to God alone and of love for everyone.
Saturday, November 17, 2007
How To Treat A Worldly Government
What to recognize about governments
The government is appointed by God
Every government only gains its authority from God—even evil governments. Although governments may misuse or even abuse their authority, the authority itself comes from God. Thus, we need to respect the authority of the government, no matter who is using it. (John 20:11)
The government represents God
The government is meant to do some of God’s work on earth—specifically, to punish those who do evil and to reward those who do good. This does not mean that the government is God’s servant, necessarily. Satan also punishes the evil at God’s bidding, but he is not an obedient servant of God. But ideally, the government does God’s will. (Romans 13:1)
The government will be judged by God
Men do not have the right to judge governments. Even as a government’s authority and work has been given to it by God, so it is God who evaluates and determines the fate of governments. Often, God is patient and willing to wait for change. But some governments will be destroyed by God immediately: specifically those treat the needy badly and those who do much unnecessary violence. (Psalm 82)
There is only one truly godly government
The only government that has been appointed, approved and having passed testing by God is the kingdom of God, led by Jesus. No other government can call themselves approved by God. Nor can any other government call itself truly “Christian.” (John 18:36)
What not to do
Resist them when they do injustice against you
We do not resist authorities, but we are supposed to submit to them. We don’t need to complain against them, hate them or speak evil against them. Instead, if a government does us wrong, we pray about it and ask God for justice. (Matthew 5:39)
Judge them for not following the laws or principles of God’s kingdom.
Although the governments represent God, they do not understand the principles of God, except in the most general notions. And so it is not our job to judge them or condemn them for what they do not know. We can inform them of what God says, but it is God’s right to judge them and to punish them if they were inadequate. (I Corinthians 5:9-10)
Rebel against the authorities
We don’t need to do evil to the government. If the government is to be fought against, then we can pray for God to judge them, according to his will.
(Romans 13:2)
Obey them when they tell you to disobey the principles of Jesus.
We must take care to always place God and God’s will in our lives above the government’s will and desire. We submit to governments in all things except when they tell us to disregard the teachings of Jesus and the apostles. (Acts 4:19)
What to do
Give honor to whom honor is due
Government officials require that we speak politely to them, with the proper titles. Whatever honor is expected, we should give it. (Romans 13:7)
Pay taxes when you are required to
All governments require us to pay taxes to them. Even if you feel that the government isn’t representing you or doing what you think is right, you still have to pay the taxes that they demand of you. (Romans 13:7)
Pray for the leadership
We need to pray for government officials so that we will show respect for the officials, and also so God will direct the authorities to have wisdom to create a society of peace, so the church can do what God is directing them to do. (I Timothy 2:1-2)
Submit to authorities, even when you come to harm
We are to submit to authorities, even if they do evil, even if they irritate us, even if they harm us. This is how we show that we are fully submitted to God and will do good, even if others do us evil. (I Peter 2:13-24)
Obey all laws, unless they tell you to disobey God
Since the governments have the authority of God and act for God, we need to obey them. Even if you think the law is wrong or unjust, obey it. The only time we disobey, is if they tell us to disobey God. (Colossians 3:22)
Do good to those who do harm to you
When government officials do harm to us, we are to respond with blessings and prayers for their benefit. We do not curse them or abuse them, but instead do what we can to benefit them. (Romans 12:17-21)
Warn them away from God’s judgement by encouraging them to repent
If governmental officials do evil in God’s sight—especially if they are enacting unnecessary violence or harming the needy—they need to be warned that God will judge them unless they repent. (Ezekiel 33:9)
What you don’t have to do
Participate in the government
Many feel that it is one’s civic duty to vote in governmental elections, sign appropriate petitions or to participate in neighborhood meetings. However, since we, as Christians, belong to the kingdom of God, we should focus our attention on participating with God’s people, not a secular government. (James 4:4)
Agree with any particular politics or politician
Some Christians feel that a certain politics is the only real Christian choice, or that a certain politician is the “godly candidate.” However, we do not need to support any policy, politics or candidate. Rather, we need to focus on policies and decisions within the church and among those who represent Jesus. (Ephesians 4:17-19)
Call the nation we live in “our country”
The nation of all those who follow Jesus is not the one they were born in or the one they live in—it is the kingdom of God. And the kingdom of God has no king but God and no lord but Jesus and no realm on the earth. The non-godly government we live in the midst of is not “our” country. It is the country we live in . Our nation is only the kingdom of God. (II Corinthians 6:14-18)
Protest injustices
The ungodly governments of this world will do unjust and evil things sometimes. We do not need to protest them, although we might warn them what God will do in response. Some might choose to protest, and receive what persecution comes with gladness. But it is not necessary. However, when some in the church who represent God does open evil, then we need to respond. (I Corinthians 5:9-11)
Honor government leaders, but focus on God’s will among God’s people.
The government is appointed by God
Every government only gains its authority from God—even evil governments. Although governments may misuse or even abuse their authority, the authority itself comes from God. Thus, we need to respect the authority of the government, no matter who is using it. (John 20:11)
The government represents God
The government is meant to do some of God’s work on earth—specifically, to punish those who do evil and to reward those who do good. This does not mean that the government is God’s servant, necessarily. Satan also punishes the evil at God’s bidding, but he is not an obedient servant of God. But ideally, the government does God’s will. (Romans 13:1)
The government will be judged by God
Men do not have the right to judge governments. Even as a government’s authority and work has been given to it by God, so it is God who evaluates and determines the fate of governments. Often, God is patient and willing to wait for change. But some governments will be destroyed by God immediately: specifically those treat the needy badly and those who do much unnecessary violence. (Psalm 82)
There is only one truly godly government
The only government that has been appointed, approved and having passed testing by God is the kingdom of God, led by Jesus. No other government can call themselves approved by God. Nor can any other government call itself truly “Christian.” (John 18:36)
What not to do
Resist them when they do injustice against you
We do not resist authorities, but we are supposed to submit to them. We don’t need to complain against them, hate them or speak evil against them. Instead, if a government does us wrong, we pray about it and ask God for justice. (Matthew 5:39)
Judge them for not following the laws or principles of God’s kingdom.
Although the governments represent God, they do not understand the principles of God, except in the most general notions. And so it is not our job to judge them or condemn them for what they do not know. We can inform them of what God says, but it is God’s right to judge them and to punish them if they were inadequate. (I Corinthians 5:9-10)
Rebel against the authorities
We don’t need to do evil to the government. If the government is to be fought against, then we can pray for God to judge them, according to his will.
(Romans 13:2)
Obey them when they tell you to disobey the principles of Jesus.
We must take care to always place God and God’s will in our lives above the government’s will and desire. We submit to governments in all things except when they tell us to disregard the teachings of Jesus and the apostles. (Acts 4:19)
What to do
Give honor to whom honor is due
Government officials require that we speak politely to them, with the proper titles. Whatever honor is expected, we should give it. (Romans 13:7)
Pay taxes when you are required to
All governments require us to pay taxes to them. Even if you feel that the government isn’t representing you or doing what you think is right, you still have to pay the taxes that they demand of you. (Romans 13:7)
Pray for the leadership
We need to pray for government officials so that we will show respect for the officials, and also so God will direct the authorities to have wisdom to create a society of peace, so the church can do what God is directing them to do. (I Timothy 2:1-2)
Submit to authorities, even when you come to harm
We are to submit to authorities, even if they do evil, even if they irritate us, even if they harm us. This is how we show that we are fully submitted to God and will do good, even if others do us evil. (I Peter 2:13-24)
Obey all laws, unless they tell you to disobey God
Since the governments have the authority of God and act for God, we need to obey them. Even if you think the law is wrong or unjust, obey it. The only time we disobey, is if they tell us to disobey God. (Colossians 3:22)
Do good to those who do harm to you
When government officials do harm to us, we are to respond with blessings and prayers for their benefit. We do not curse them or abuse them, but instead do what we can to benefit them. (Romans 12:17-21)
Warn them away from God’s judgement by encouraging them to repent
If governmental officials do evil in God’s sight—especially if they are enacting unnecessary violence or harming the needy—they need to be warned that God will judge them unless they repent. (Ezekiel 33:9)
What you don’t have to do
Participate in the government
Many feel that it is one’s civic duty to vote in governmental elections, sign appropriate petitions or to participate in neighborhood meetings. However, since we, as Christians, belong to the kingdom of God, we should focus our attention on participating with God’s people, not a secular government. (James 4:4)
Agree with any particular politics or politician
Some Christians feel that a certain politics is the only real Christian choice, or that a certain politician is the “godly candidate.” However, we do not need to support any policy, politics or candidate. Rather, we need to focus on policies and decisions within the church and among those who represent Jesus. (Ephesians 4:17-19)
Call the nation we live in “our country”
The nation of all those who follow Jesus is not the one they were born in or the one they live in—it is the kingdom of God. And the kingdom of God has no king but God and no lord but Jesus and no realm on the earth. The non-godly government we live in the midst of is not “our” country. It is the country we live in . Our nation is only the kingdom of God. (II Corinthians 6:14-18)
Protest injustices
The ungodly governments of this world will do unjust and evil things sometimes. We do not need to protest them, although we might warn them what God will do in response. Some might choose to protest, and receive what persecution comes with gladness. But it is not necessary. However, when some in the church who represent God does open evil, then we need to respond. (I Corinthians 5:9-11)
Honor government leaders, but focus on God’s will among God’s people.
Tuesday, September 18, 2007
Psalm 22, Jesus and the Anawim
For the overseer; According to "The Deer of the Dawn"; A Psalm of David
This is a psalm that is spoken of as being David’s. However, we do not know if it was written by David himself, speaking of one of his times of failure, a psalmist trying to write like David, or a descendent of David. We do know, however, that it is not just speaking of David. It is speaking of whoever finds him or herself in a situation that is described. In the Christian tradition, this psalm is most often related to the death of Jesus. In fact, the description of Jesus’ death in the gospels is closely related to this psalm, beyond all other passages in the Old Testament. This is probably the best prophetic description of Jesus’ death there is.
My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?
Why are you so distant from delivering me; from my roar?
My God, I cry by day but You do not answer.
By night and there is no rest.
The psalm begins with a complaint to God. The psalmist is in terrible trouble, and continues to cry out to God, but hears nothing from Him. The psalmist is not claiming that God has forsaken him because the psalmist isn’t experiencing a mystical sense of God—rather, he is proclaiming God’s rejection of him because God hasn’t helped him yet. The psalmist is in dire circumstances, being attacked unjustly and God is just doing nothing.
This passage is one of the most famous in the psalms because of Jesus’ declaring the same expression as he was on the cross (Mark 15:34). Some claim that Jesus is declaring his separation from God due to his “becoming sin”. However, the only way that Jesus “became sin” is the same way the psalmist did—he was unjustly hated and destroyed by his fellows. Those who should have honored him, shamed, hated and abused him. He was declared sinful despite his evidence. And, like the psalmist, while Jesus was on the cross, God did nothing. He allowed the evil death sentence be carried out.
Yet You are the Holy One
Enthroned on the praises of Israel.
Our ancestors trusted in You
They trusted and You delivered them
They cried out to You and escaped;
They trusted in You and were not disappointed.
Here, the psalmist remembers the stories of his forefathers in the past. The ancients, such as Jacob, Joseph and Moses, were often in dire circumstances, such as the psalmist, and God was there for them. They waited on God, trusted in Him, and prayed to God—and then God answered. The psalmist then is implying—you did it for them, why not me? If you are the God of deliverance, why haven’t I been delivered?
But I am a worm and not a man
A reproach of men and despised by the people.
All who see me, mock me;
Sneer with the lip and shake with the head.
"Commit yourself to Yahweh-- let Him deliver Him;
Let Him save Him because He cares for him."
The psalmist then answers his own question—he is not delivered because he has been completely rejected by his fellows. The very people who have been delivered by God—they are the ones who have rejected this poor man. He is being so thoroughly rejected by God’s people that he can no longer even call himself human—now he is an insignificant, disgusting, worm. No one would say a good word to him. Everyone who sees him makes fun of him. They know that he claims Yahweh to be his savior—“So” they say, “why isn’t Yahweh delivering you? If God really cared that much about you, then shouldn’t you already be delivered?”
Even so was Jesus rejected and mocked like this. It was God’s own people, given the authority of God to judge sinners among the people, who claimed that Jesus was a blasphemer—claiming to be one who sits next to the throne of God. Crucifixion itself was the indication of the curse of God, and everyone who walked by was to participate in this cursing. The rulers of God’s people came to Jesus and, knowing that the power of God flowed through him, said, “If God’s power is with you, why hasn’t He saved you? Why don’t you come down, by God’s power? Obviously, you are the one cursed by God.” (Matthew 27:42-43; Mark 15:36) Even though Jesus was innocent.
Yet you brought me out from the womb,
Made me secure at my mother's breasts.
From birth I was cast into Your care;
You have been my God from my mother's womb.
Do not be far from me, for trouble is near
And there is no one to help.
The psalmist reminds God now that Yahweh had selected the psalmist, even from birth. The psalmist asks for God’s help now, because the psalmist has depended on Yahweh his whole life, even before he was weaned. Again, the psalmist is wondering why God has left him in this persecution, although he doesn’t deserve it.
Mighty bulls surround me
The mighty of Bashan have encircled me.
They open their mouths against me
Like a tearing, roaring lion.
Now the psalmist returns back to his troubles, speaking of his oppressors. He compares them to bulls—Basham bulls, which were the strongest, most ferocious of the land. He also compares them to lions. These are animals that gore and kill— they are both mutilators. The psalmist is feeling torn apart by his enemies. It is not enough for them to kill him—no, they have to tear his flesh apart, bit by bit, torturing him over a period of time.
This is more literally what happened to Jesus. First he was beat, then he was whipped—with bits of his flesh being torn off of his body. Then he was crucified. Crucifixion is about killing, but more than that, it is lengthening the death as long as possible over an entire day. Crucifixion is death by asphyxiation—slowly cutting off oxegon until the victim, exhausted, ultimately allows himself to be strangled by his own body, unable to pull himself up to breathe anymore.
I am poured out like water;
All my bones give way
My heart is like wax;
Melting within me.
My strength is dried up like a potsherd;
My tongue cleaves to my palate;
You lay me in the dust of death.
The psalmist speaks poetically of his personal experience. He is so fearful, he is emotionally poured out, unable to keep his composure. He trembles and collapses. He is literally dried up, completely dehydrated, because of his fear. His tongue sticks to the roof of his mouth. And he knows this is it—he’s dead.
For dogs surround me
A band of wicked close me in;
They pierced my hands and feet;
I count all my bones
They look, they stare at me.
They divide up my clothes among them
And cast lots for my garments.
And why is the psalmist in this terrible state? Because of his enemies—the so-called “people of God” who are prepared to destroy him. They are closing in, surrounding him, prepared to attack him like a pack of dogs. They have attacked him—beginning with his hands and feet, but it is certain that they do not stop there. Because of the suffering they have already caused him, he can see all of his ribs. They have taken his clothes from him and divide them amongst themselves. So there he is—naked, wounded, tortured, and shamed. So what can be done for him? Will he be delivered by God? Or is God in agreement with the attackers? What will be done? To find out the end, we have to read the rest of the psalm—which we will do next time.
But what has all this to do with Jesus death? What meaning do we get of Jesus’ death in this passage? Jesus’ death was not an attack from God, to pour out God’s wrath on mankind’s sin. Rather, Jesus’ death has to do with human sin and judgment—the fact that people attack the innocent if they get in the way of their own plans or ambitions. But with Jesus, we have a conclusion to the story. Jesus didn’t just die because we were sinners and more focused on the world’s ambition than God’s desire. He died to be resurrected—to establish a new kingdom, a new people, who would be focused on God’s power than on worldly power or pleasure. People who experienced God’s deliverance and are ready to depend on Him for their life—even like the psalmist.
But You O Yahweh, be not distant.
My strength, hasten to my aid.
Deliver my life from the sword
My only life from the dogs power.
Save me from the lion's mouth,
From the horns of the wild oxen deliver me.
The psalmist now, in the most dire of circumstances, cries out to God. Up until this point in the psalm, the psalmist has not actually asked God for help. He complained to God that God hadn’t saved him yet, but he has not asked for help. Now the psalmist is direct in his request. He knows that no one can save him but God. God is his knight on shining armor, his Dudley Doright, coming to save him in the last minute. Before in the psalm, the psalmists enemies are describes as dogs—because they are encircling him—as a lion—because they attack with intent to kill—and as bulls—because of their mauling him. Now he is asking God to deliver him from these three creatures.
I will proclaim Your name to my brothers;
In the midst of the assembly, I will praise you.
You who fear Yahweh, praise Him!
All you descendents of Jacob, honor Him!
And stand in awe of Him, all you descendents of Israel.
For He has not spurn or abhor the plight of the anawim
He did not hide His face from him
When he cried out to Him for help, He listened.
From you comes my praise in the great assembly;
I shall pay my vows before those who fear Him.
If God delivers him, the psalmist makes a promise—he will glorify God before his people. Obviously, it is not all of God’s people attacking the psalmist. Perhaps only a select group of leaders. But God always leaves a remnant of people who truly love him and worship him. This remnant is whom the psalmist is really family with—the anawim. The anawim are those who have faced terrible troubles, but still trusted in God through them. Perhaps his own family rejected him, but God has given him one who really love and serve God. And among these people, the anawim will declare his deliverance. They will not be left in the midst of these enemies—delivered to death and torture. No, they will be delivered by God, and able to proclaim God’s true nature.
God is not the God of forsaking—He is the God of deliverance. God pays attention to the innocent and abused, the anawim. He does not leave them alone. Sure, it may seem that God has left the anawim alone for a period of time, but in the end God will save them and punish the ones who destroy his innocent people. The anawim cry out to God, and expect his deliverance. And so, when the deliverance comes, they give praise to God’s name, who acted for them!
The anawim will eat and be satisfied;
Those who seek Him will praise Yahweh
May your hearts live forever!
These anawim are the true people of God. Yes, they all go through terrible circumstances at times. They are persecuted, they suffer, they are hated, they are torn apart—but God delivers them. And after that deliverance, God gives abundance. They have abundant food, and they are able to praise God. Only those who have experienced deliverance can praise. Only those who gain their hearts desire express joy. And this joy isn’t just for a period of time—it is eternal. The people of God—those who are destroyed by the evil, but stick with God throughout the ordeal—will be kept alive by God forever, secure and safe.
This is the promise of Jesus. Not eternal life for everyone who claims Jesus or who loves God. Rather, eternal life for those who suffer and stick with God (Mark 8:34-37; Mark 13:13). God will resurrect those who died suffering for Him. And they will have joy in place of suffering, communion instead of hatred, exaltation instead of humiliation.
All the ends of the earth take note and turn to Yahweh;
The clans of the nations bow down to You.
For the kingdom is Yahweh's
And he rules over the nations.
Not only is this promise for those among Israel, but it is for all who love God, no matter what nation they are of. All peoples will have an opportunity to love God, serve him, and receive of his salvation. They, too, were abused by God’s people and so they will be delivered, if only they trust in Him. And God will give the opportunity.
Jesus, through his suffering, opened up the kingdom of God. The kingdom of God is not just for those born in the nation of Israel. Many immigrants, many hopeless of all the nations, will be welcomed into God’s people and given an opportunity to live for Him.
All who wallow in the ashes of the earth will eat and bow down;
All who go down to the dust will kneel before Him;
Even he who cannot keep his life alive.
The anawim, however—those who were humiliated and abused because they stayed with God—they are God’s special people. They cannot help themselves, so God will help them. God is there for them and will keep them alive for all time because they worshipped Him in their terror, their destruction, their death. God loves them and keeps them forever.
Their descendents will serve Him;
It will be told of Yahweh to future generations.
And they will come and declare his righteousness
To a people not yet born that He does act.
Not only do these whom God love, the anawim, have a special place before God, but so do their children. The descendents of the anawim will make a new people. This new people will go from generation to generation, praising God for what He has done for their forefathers. They will all remember God’s deliverance, praise him for it, and God’s name will be declared to all the world for the sake of His deliverance.
So, although Psalm 22 begins as a complaint, it ends as a hymn in praise of God’s deliverance. Because God is the God of the anawim, God is the God of deliverance. God is always ready to act, the psalmist declares, and even in the face of death, he proclaims God’s power and love. This is why Jesus quoted Psalm 22 on the cross. Not because he was declaring God’s rejection of him. Just the opposite. He was proclaiming his unity with the anawim, and their resurrection and the beginning of God’s kingdom. Although he only stated a line—as much as he could state during his time of oxygen deprivation—he was referring to the whole. Not just the complaint of the anawim, but the promise of deliverance due to the suffering for the sake of God.
This is a psalm that is spoken of as being David’s. However, we do not know if it was written by David himself, speaking of one of his times of failure, a psalmist trying to write like David, or a descendent of David. We do know, however, that it is not just speaking of David. It is speaking of whoever finds him or herself in a situation that is described. In the Christian tradition, this psalm is most often related to the death of Jesus. In fact, the description of Jesus’ death in the gospels is closely related to this psalm, beyond all other passages in the Old Testament. This is probably the best prophetic description of Jesus’ death there is.
My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?
Why are you so distant from delivering me; from my roar?
My God, I cry by day but You do not answer.
By night and there is no rest.
The psalm begins with a complaint to God. The psalmist is in terrible trouble, and continues to cry out to God, but hears nothing from Him. The psalmist is not claiming that God has forsaken him because the psalmist isn’t experiencing a mystical sense of God—rather, he is proclaiming God’s rejection of him because God hasn’t helped him yet. The psalmist is in dire circumstances, being attacked unjustly and God is just doing nothing.
This passage is one of the most famous in the psalms because of Jesus’ declaring the same expression as he was on the cross (Mark 15:34). Some claim that Jesus is declaring his separation from God due to his “becoming sin”. However, the only way that Jesus “became sin” is the same way the psalmist did—he was unjustly hated and destroyed by his fellows. Those who should have honored him, shamed, hated and abused him. He was declared sinful despite his evidence. And, like the psalmist, while Jesus was on the cross, God did nothing. He allowed the evil death sentence be carried out.
Yet You are the Holy One
Enthroned on the praises of Israel.
Our ancestors trusted in You
They trusted and You delivered them
They cried out to You and escaped;
They trusted in You and were not disappointed.
Here, the psalmist remembers the stories of his forefathers in the past. The ancients, such as Jacob, Joseph and Moses, were often in dire circumstances, such as the psalmist, and God was there for them. They waited on God, trusted in Him, and prayed to God—and then God answered. The psalmist then is implying—you did it for them, why not me? If you are the God of deliverance, why haven’t I been delivered?
But I am a worm and not a man
A reproach of men and despised by the people.
All who see me, mock me;
Sneer with the lip and shake with the head.
"Commit yourself to Yahweh-- let Him deliver Him;
Let Him save Him because He cares for him."
The psalmist then answers his own question—he is not delivered because he has been completely rejected by his fellows. The very people who have been delivered by God—they are the ones who have rejected this poor man. He is being so thoroughly rejected by God’s people that he can no longer even call himself human—now he is an insignificant, disgusting, worm. No one would say a good word to him. Everyone who sees him makes fun of him. They know that he claims Yahweh to be his savior—“So” they say, “why isn’t Yahweh delivering you? If God really cared that much about you, then shouldn’t you already be delivered?”
Even so was Jesus rejected and mocked like this. It was God’s own people, given the authority of God to judge sinners among the people, who claimed that Jesus was a blasphemer—claiming to be one who sits next to the throne of God. Crucifixion itself was the indication of the curse of God, and everyone who walked by was to participate in this cursing. The rulers of God’s people came to Jesus and, knowing that the power of God flowed through him, said, “If God’s power is with you, why hasn’t He saved you? Why don’t you come down, by God’s power? Obviously, you are the one cursed by God.” (Matthew 27:42-43; Mark 15:36) Even though Jesus was innocent.
Yet you brought me out from the womb,
Made me secure at my mother's breasts.
From birth I was cast into Your care;
You have been my God from my mother's womb.
Do not be far from me, for trouble is near
And there is no one to help.
The psalmist reminds God now that Yahweh had selected the psalmist, even from birth. The psalmist asks for God’s help now, because the psalmist has depended on Yahweh his whole life, even before he was weaned. Again, the psalmist is wondering why God has left him in this persecution, although he doesn’t deserve it.
Mighty bulls surround me
The mighty of Bashan have encircled me.
They open their mouths against me
Like a tearing, roaring lion.
Now the psalmist returns back to his troubles, speaking of his oppressors. He compares them to bulls—Basham bulls, which were the strongest, most ferocious of the land. He also compares them to lions. These are animals that gore and kill— they are both mutilators. The psalmist is feeling torn apart by his enemies. It is not enough for them to kill him—no, they have to tear his flesh apart, bit by bit, torturing him over a period of time.
This is more literally what happened to Jesus. First he was beat, then he was whipped—with bits of his flesh being torn off of his body. Then he was crucified. Crucifixion is about killing, but more than that, it is lengthening the death as long as possible over an entire day. Crucifixion is death by asphyxiation—slowly cutting off oxegon until the victim, exhausted, ultimately allows himself to be strangled by his own body, unable to pull himself up to breathe anymore.
I am poured out like water;
All my bones give way
My heart is like wax;
Melting within me.
My strength is dried up like a potsherd;
My tongue cleaves to my palate;
You lay me in the dust of death.
The psalmist speaks poetically of his personal experience. He is so fearful, he is emotionally poured out, unable to keep his composure. He trembles and collapses. He is literally dried up, completely dehydrated, because of his fear. His tongue sticks to the roof of his mouth. And he knows this is it—he’s dead.
For dogs surround me
A band of wicked close me in;
They pierced my hands and feet;
I count all my bones
They look, they stare at me.
They divide up my clothes among them
And cast lots for my garments.
And why is the psalmist in this terrible state? Because of his enemies—the so-called “people of God” who are prepared to destroy him. They are closing in, surrounding him, prepared to attack him like a pack of dogs. They have attacked him—beginning with his hands and feet, but it is certain that they do not stop there. Because of the suffering they have already caused him, he can see all of his ribs. They have taken his clothes from him and divide them amongst themselves. So there he is—naked, wounded, tortured, and shamed. So what can be done for him? Will he be delivered by God? Or is God in agreement with the attackers? What will be done? To find out the end, we have to read the rest of the psalm—which we will do next time.
But what has all this to do with Jesus death? What meaning do we get of Jesus’ death in this passage? Jesus’ death was not an attack from God, to pour out God’s wrath on mankind’s sin. Rather, Jesus’ death has to do with human sin and judgment—the fact that people attack the innocent if they get in the way of their own plans or ambitions. But with Jesus, we have a conclusion to the story. Jesus didn’t just die because we were sinners and more focused on the world’s ambition than God’s desire. He died to be resurrected—to establish a new kingdom, a new people, who would be focused on God’s power than on worldly power or pleasure. People who experienced God’s deliverance and are ready to depend on Him for their life—even like the psalmist.
But You O Yahweh, be not distant.
My strength, hasten to my aid.
Deliver my life from the sword
My only life from the dogs power.
Save me from the lion's mouth,
From the horns of the wild oxen deliver me.
The psalmist now, in the most dire of circumstances, cries out to God. Up until this point in the psalm, the psalmist has not actually asked God for help. He complained to God that God hadn’t saved him yet, but he has not asked for help. Now the psalmist is direct in his request. He knows that no one can save him but God. God is his knight on shining armor, his Dudley Doright, coming to save him in the last minute. Before in the psalm, the psalmists enemies are describes as dogs—because they are encircling him—as a lion—because they attack with intent to kill—and as bulls—because of their mauling him. Now he is asking God to deliver him from these three creatures.
I will proclaim Your name to my brothers;
In the midst of the assembly, I will praise you.
You who fear Yahweh, praise Him!
All you descendents of Jacob, honor Him!
And stand in awe of Him, all you descendents of Israel.
For He has not spurn or abhor the plight of the anawim
He did not hide His face from him
When he cried out to Him for help, He listened.
From you comes my praise in the great assembly;
I shall pay my vows before those who fear Him.
If God delivers him, the psalmist makes a promise—he will glorify God before his people. Obviously, it is not all of God’s people attacking the psalmist. Perhaps only a select group of leaders. But God always leaves a remnant of people who truly love him and worship him. This remnant is whom the psalmist is really family with—the anawim. The anawim are those who have faced terrible troubles, but still trusted in God through them. Perhaps his own family rejected him, but God has given him one who really love and serve God. And among these people, the anawim will declare his deliverance. They will not be left in the midst of these enemies—delivered to death and torture. No, they will be delivered by God, and able to proclaim God’s true nature.
God is not the God of forsaking—He is the God of deliverance. God pays attention to the innocent and abused, the anawim. He does not leave them alone. Sure, it may seem that God has left the anawim alone for a period of time, but in the end God will save them and punish the ones who destroy his innocent people. The anawim cry out to God, and expect his deliverance. And so, when the deliverance comes, they give praise to God’s name, who acted for them!
The anawim will eat and be satisfied;
Those who seek Him will praise Yahweh
May your hearts live forever!
These anawim are the true people of God. Yes, they all go through terrible circumstances at times. They are persecuted, they suffer, they are hated, they are torn apart—but God delivers them. And after that deliverance, God gives abundance. They have abundant food, and they are able to praise God. Only those who have experienced deliverance can praise. Only those who gain their hearts desire express joy. And this joy isn’t just for a period of time—it is eternal. The people of God—those who are destroyed by the evil, but stick with God throughout the ordeal—will be kept alive by God forever, secure and safe.
This is the promise of Jesus. Not eternal life for everyone who claims Jesus or who loves God. Rather, eternal life for those who suffer and stick with God (Mark 8:34-37; Mark 13:13). God will resurrect those who died suffering for Him. And they will have joy in place of suffering, communion instead of hatred, exaltation instead of humiliation.
All the ends of the earth take note and turn to Yahweh;
The clans of the nations bow down to You.
For the kingdom is Yahweh's
And he rules over the nations.
Not only is this promise for those among Israel, but it is for all who love God, no matter what nation they are of. All peoples will have an opportunity to love God, serve him, and receive of his salvation. They, too, were abused by God’s people and so they will be delivered, if only they trust in Him. And God will give the opportunity.
Jesus, through his suffering, opened up the kingdom of God. The kingdom of God is not just for those born in the nation of Israel. Many immigrants, many hopeless of all the nations, will be welcomed into God’s people and given an opportunity to live for Him.
All who wallow in the ashes of the earth will eat and bow down;
All who go down to the dust will kneel before Him;
Even he who cannot keep his life alive.
The anawim, however—those who were humiliated and abused because they stayed with God—they are God’s special people. They cannot help themselves, so God will help them. God is there for them and will keep them alive for all time because they worshipped Him in their terror, their destruction, their death. God loves them and keeps them forever.
Their descendents will serve Him;
It will be told of Yahweh to future generations.
And they will come and declare his righteousness
To a people not yet born that He does act.
Not only do these whom God love, the anawim, have a special place before God, but so do their children. The descendents of the anawim will make a new people. This new people will go from generation to generation, praising God for what He has done for their forefathers. They will all remember God’s deliverance, praise him for it, and God’s name will be declared to all the world for the sake of His deliverance.
So, although Psalm 22 begins as a complaint, it ends as a hymn in praise of God’s deliverance. Because God is the God of the anawim, God is the God of deliverance. God is always ready to act, the psalmist declares, and even in the face of death, he proclaims God’s power and love. This is why Jesus quoted Psalm 22 on the cross. Not because he was declaring God’s rejection of him. Just the opposite. He was proclaiming his unity with the anawim, and their resurrection and the beginning of God’s kingdom. Although he only stated a line—as much as he could state during his time of oxygen deprivation—he was referring to the whole. Not just the complaint of the anawim, but the promise of deliverance due to the suffering for the sake of God.
The Fortunate Few
How fortunate are the anguished due to poverty because they will rule God’s kingdom!
How fortunate are the sorrowful, because God will cheer them up.
How fortunate are the lowly, because God will give them the earth.
How fortunate are those who desperately desire justice, because they will get just what they want.
How fortunate are those who act in compassion, for God will be compassionate to them.
How fortunate are those single-minded on God, for they will see Him.
How fortunate are the creators of peaceful communities, for God will make them rulers.
How fortunate are the sufferers for righteousness, because they will rule God’s kingdom!
How fortunate you are when your enemies verbally abuse you and do and speak evil against you because you follow me. When that happens, you are like the prophets of the past who suffered for their message they received from God. Even as they are now rewarded by God, so will you be. So when you are persecuted for me, be happy about what you will receive—jump up and down in joy and praise God!
You are essential for the world. But if you lose the basic qualities that make you important, you cannot regain them. You will be useless, cast out of God’s kingdom and trampled.
You are God’s glory and truth in the world. You are the kingdom of God to come, and you cannot be hidden. Nor should you be hidden—God’s glory should be displayed, not hidden. So display the true righteousness of God before everyone, so that people will see your acts of God and so glorify the Father.
Could You Hum the Tune?
It seems familiar, but the words just aren’t quite right… That’s right. You know it, but it is certainly stated in a different way—the above is the first part of the Sermon on the Mount: The Beatitudes, the salt of the earth and the city on the hill. Many people complain, “But what about the words we’re familiar with? The poor in spirit? Hunger and thirsting for righteousness? The pure in heart? The salt of the earth? Why change it?” I am not interested in taking anything away from the words that you are familiar with. Rather, I want to lay out just what they mean in context. After all, what does “poor in spirit” really mean? Or the “pure in heart”? Frankly, what does “blessed” mean? Let’s examine the context and see if we can find it out.
Lucky Bloke!
First of all, the term “blessed.” In the Greek, it literally means “happy” and its root in Hebrew literally means “to walk straight”. However, in most contexts this phrase means, “You lucky dog!” It means that the person is fortunate, is lucky in some way. This doesn’t mean that they are blessed by “luck”. All of the promises Jesus offers are actually blessings that God would grant. So the object of Jesus acclaim is the lucky receiver of God’s grace, God’s blessing, the good fortune that comes directly from God.
What kind of rewards are these folks promised? The coming kingdom of God. Of having all of their needs met. Of being in a close relationship with God. Of being content with their lot. This is really good stuff, these promises. Especially if you don’t have your needs met—and who does?
But these folks aren’t just lucky because they are getting good stuff in the future. Also, they are essential to the present. Jesus says that these folks are essential for the world as it is. Without these folks, the world is lacking something necessary for survival. These people of God are like your daily nutrition intake—without them, the world would starve spiritually. The world would be empty, lifeless, hopeless, merciless.
The Uncommon Christian
So just who are these important folks? Essential for life today, and the recipients of tomorrow’s hope? Jesus describes them in detail. First, let’s find out what Jesus thinks are the basics of discipleship. If we are going to follow Jesus, what should we look like?
Pure in heart—We should be ready not just to look good on Sundays, to claim to believe the right things and to avoid the really bad sins that makes us bad people. Actually, Jesus wants us to be inwardly right with God—confessing our sin and devoted to God in all of our ways. Our prayer and religious deeds are just outward show, but we sincerely are seeking a relationship with God.
Merciful—Jesus expects us to be compassionate as He was compassionate on earth. His disciples need to be loving to everyone, even those who bug us! He wants us ready to help anyone and everyone in need, even when inconvenient.
Peacemakers—Jesus expects us to be active in reconciling people to God, to each other and to life. He expect us to be a part of creating a society that is just and right with God, even if that society has to be apart from the world.
We don’t see many Christians like this today. But the church keeps producing folks like this, and these are the heart of the church—heck, they are the heart of the entire world! And they will receive God’s promises for the future.
The Big Surprise
But in the Beatitudes, we are still skipping one part—the most amazing, fantastic, mind-blowing concept of Jesus. He saved it for the very beginning of his teaching, to emphasize its importance. Nevertheless, it is something we have a hard time getting a grasp of. These lucky folks, these fortunate few, these salt-of-the-earth, these essential daily vitamins are also the rejects of society.
Poor in spirit—These are the ones who are anguished due to their poverty, and suffer greatly because of their lack of normal life.
Mourning— These are those who have suffered great loss and so mourn due to it.
Meek— These are the ones who have nothing in this life to depend on and don’t have a leg to stand on to get justice in their lives.
Hungering and Thirsting for Justice— These are the ones who are desperately seeking justice because all they have received is injustice and rejection.
Persecuted— These are the ones who have been rejected and hated and beaten and despised and treated as outcasts.
Why are these great folks treated so poorly? Why do they suffer so? Some of them suffer because they just aren’t accepted. But most of them aren’t accepted because they stand with Jesus. Because they insist on being right with God in their heart more than their social standing. Because they insist on being merciful, even when it hurts themselves. Because to reconcile people when they want to continue in hatred is dangerous and a hated profession. Because the one who talks about Jesus is readily accepted—but the one who acts like Jesus is easily rejected.
No Big Surprise
Although we have great shock at first that the very folks God accepts are those the world rejects, we shouldn’t be surprised. After all, look at who God chooses:
He chose Noah who was rejected by his neighbors because he did what God told him to.
He chose Abraham, but only after Abraham set aside the inheritance of his father’s house.
He chose Joseph, but the man had to suffer hatred, slavery, jail time and people forgetting him before he received God’s promise.
He chose the children of Israel, but they had to endure years of slavery and genocide and desert-wandering before they were ready for God’s promise.
He chose David, but the future king had to be threatened and chased all over the wilderness before he received God’s promise.
He chose Jeremiah and Ezekiel, but they had to be ignored and rejected their whole lives, only to not receive the promise.
He chose Jesus, who had to be condemned, judged and crucified before he was vindicated.
Honesty, if we look at the Bible as a whole, we can finally understand that God’s people always have to face the worst difficulties before receiving what God has in store for them. In Hebrew there is a special name for these folks—people who suffer rejection and poverty, but still expect God to deliver them—they are called Anawim. God has always—without exception—given his promise of blessing to the Anawim. And it is the Anawim who are God’s chosen.
Psalm 22:24—God has not abhorred the oppression of the Anawim, nor has he hidden his face from them; But when they cried to Him for help, he listened to them.
I Samuel 2:8—He raises the poor from the dust; He lifts the needy from the ash heap to make them sit with nobels.
Psalm 37: 11—The Anawim will receive the land and live in abundant prosperity
God has always focused on the needy who live for him, and He always will.
So how should we treat God’s special chosen? How should we treat the homeless who are standing with God? How should we act toward the working poor, crying out to God for justice? We should treat them as God does—with honor, with respect, with assistance. We should listen not only to their needs, but their counsel. After all, how we treat these folks is how we will be treated on the final day!
How fortunate are the sorrowful, because God will cheer them up.
How fortunate are the lowly, because God will give them the earth.
How fortunate are those who desperately desire justice, because they will get just what they want.
How fortunate are those who act in compassion, for God will be compassionate to them.
How fortunate are those single-minded on God, for they will see Him.
How fortunate are the creators of peaceful communities, for God will make them rulers.
How fortunate are the sufferers for righteousness, because they will rule God’s kingdom!
How fortunate you are when your enemies verbally abuse you and do and speak evil against you because you follow me. When that happens, you are like the prophets of the past who suffered for their message they received from God. Even as they are now rewarded by God, so will you be. So when you are persecuted for me, be happy about what you will receive—jump up and down in joy and praise God!
You are essential for the world. But if you lose the basic qualities that make you important, you cannot regain them. You will be useless, cast out of God’s kingdom and trampled.
You are God’s glory and truth in the world. You are the kingdom of God to come, and you cannot be hidden. Nor should you be hidden—God’s glory should be displayed, not hidden. So display the true righteousness of God before everyone, so that people will see your acts of God and so glorify the Father.
Could You Hum the Tune?
It seems familiar, but the words just aren’t quite right… That’s right. You know it, but it is certainly stated in a different way—the above is the first part of the Sermon on the Mount: The Beatitudes, the salt of the earth and the city on the hill. Many people complain, “But what about the words we’re familiar with? The poor in spirit? Hunger and thirsting for righteousness? The pure in heart? The salt of the earth? Why change it?” I am not interested in taking anything away from the words that you are familiar with. Rather, I want to lay out just what they mean in context. After all, what does “poor in spirit” really mean? Or the “pure in heart”? Frankly, what does “blessed” mean? Let’s examine the context and see if we can find it out.
Lucky Bloke!
First of all, the term “blessed.” In the Greek, it literally means “happy” and its root in Hebrew literally means “to walk straight”. However, in most contexts this phrase means, “You lucky dog!” It means that the person is fortunate, is lucky in some way. This doesn’t mean that they are blessed by “luck”. All of the promises Jesus offers are actually blessings that God would grant. So the object of Jesus acclaim is the lucky receiver of God’s grace, God’s blessing, the good fortune that comes directly from God.
What kind of rewards are these folks promised? The coming kingdom of God. Of having all of their needs met. Of being in a close relationship with God. Of being content with their lot. This is really good stuff, these promises. Especially if you don’t have your needs met—and who does?
But these folks aren’t just lucky because they are getting good stuff in the future. Also, they are essential to the present. Jesus says that these folks are essential for the world as it is. Without these folks, the world is lacking something necessary for survival. These people of God are like your daily nutrition intake—without them, the world would starve spiritually. The world would be empty, lifeless, hopeless, merciless.
The Uncommon Christian
So just who are these important folks? Essential for life today, and the recipients of tomorrow’s hope? Jesus describes them in detail. First, let’s find out what Jesus thinks are the basics of discipleship. If we are going to follow Jesus, what should we look like?
Pure in heart—We should be ready not just to look good on Sundays, to claim to believe the right things and to avoid the really bad sins that makes us bad people. Actually, Jesus wants us to be inwardly right with God—confessing our sin and devoted to God in all of our ways. Our prayer and religious deeds are just outward show, but we sincerely are seeking a relationship with God.
Merciful—Jesus expects us to be compassionate as He was compassionate on earth. His disciples need to be loving to everyone, even those who bug us! He wants us ready to help anyone and everyone in need, even when inconvenient.
Peacemakers—Jesus expects us to be active in reconciling people to God, to each other and to life. He expect us to be a part of creating a society that is just and right with God, even if that society has to be apart from the world.
We don’t see many Christians like this today. But the church keeps producing folks like this, and these are the heart of the church—heck, they are the heart of the entire world! And they will receive God’s promises for the future.
The Big Surprise
But in the Beatitudes, we are still skipping one part—the most amazing, fantastic, mind-blowing concept of Jesus. He saved it for the very beginning of his teaching, to emphasize its importance. Nevertheless, it is something we have a hard time getting a grasp of. These lucky folks, these fortunate few, these salt-of-the-earth, these essential daily vitamins are also the rejects of society.
Poor in spirit—These are the ones who are anguished due to their poverty, and suffer greatly because of their lack of normal life.
Mourning— These are those who have suffered great loss and so mourn due to it.
Meek— These are the ones who have nothing in this life to depend on and don’t have a leg to stand on to get justice in their lives.
Hungering and Thirsting for Justice— These are the ones who are desperately seeking justice because all they have received is injustice and rejection.
Persecuted— These are the ones who have been rejected and hated and beaten and despised and treated as outcasts.
Why are these great folks treated so poorly? Why do they suffer so? Some of them suffer because they just aren’t accepted. But most of them aren’t accepted because they stand with Jesus. Because they insist on being right with God in their heart more than their social standing. Because they insist on being merciful, even when it hurts themselves. Because to reconcile people when they want to continue in hatred is dangerous and a hated profession. Because the one who talks about Jesus is readily accepted—but the one who acts like Jesus is easily rejected.
No Big Surprise
Although we have great shock at first that the very folks God accepts are those the world rejects, we shouldn’t be surprised. After all, look at who God chooses:
He chose Noah who was rejected by his neighbors because he did what God told him to.
He chose Abraham, but only after Abraham set aside the inheritance of his father’s house.
He chose Joseph, but the man had to suffer hatred, slavery, jail time and people forgetting him before he received God’s promise.
He chose the children of Israel, but they had to endure years of slavery and genocide and desert-wandering before they were ready for God’s promise.
He chose David, but the future king had to be threatened and chased all over the wilderness before he received God’s promise.
He chose Jeremiah and Ezekiel, but they had to be ignored and rejected their whole lives, only to not receive the promise.
He chose Jesus, who had to be condemned, judged and crucified before he was vindicated.
Honesty, if we look at the Bible as a whole, we can finally understand that God’s people always have to face the worst difficulties before receiving what God has in store for them. In Hebrew there is a special name for these folks—people who suffer rejection and poverty, but still expect God to deliver them—they are called Anawim. God has always—without exception—given his promise of blessing to the Anawim. And it is the Anawim who are God’s chosen.
Psalm 22:24—God has not abhorred the oppression of the Anawim, nor has he hidden his face from them; But when they cried to Him for help, he listened to them.
I Samuel 2:8—He raises the poor from the dust; He lifts the needy from the ash heap to make them sit with nobels.
Psalm 37: 11—The Anawim will receive the land and live in abundant prosperity
God has always focused on the needy who live for him, and He always will.
So how should we treat God’s special chosen? How should we treat the homeless who are standing with God? How should we act toward the working poor, crying out to God for justice? We should treat them as God does—with honor, with respect, with assistance. We should listen not only to their needs, but their counsel. After all, how we treat these folks is how we will be treated on the final day!
Basic Theology
A Bible professor approached Jesus, wishing to test his teaching. He asked, “Teacher, what should I do to obtain God’s life that never ends?” Jesus said, “What does it say in the Bible? How do you understand it?” The professor answered, “You will love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your strength and all your mind. And you will love your neighbor as yourself.” Jesus, impressed, replied, “This is correct. Live this out, and eternal life is yours.” But knowing he had not lived this out—and had no intention to—but wishing to justify himself, he said to Jesus, “But, really, who is my neighbor?” Jesus sighed and responded, “There was a man traveling from Washington D.C. to New York and some terrorists kidnapped him, stripped his clothes off and beat him half to death, leaving by the side of the road, helpless. Now it so happened that a Mennonite pastor passed by, and he saw him. But, thinking he was a homeless bum, he ignored him and went on his way. Then a Baptist worship leader drove by the same spot, but since he was in a hurry to make it on time to his worship service, he also ignored him and made it to the service on time. Then a Muslim drove by and saw the man laying on the side of the road. Compassion welled up in his heart and he stopped, got out his first aid kit, covered his wounds, put him in his car (getting blood all over the new seats) and drove him to the hospital. There he told the doctor, “If he doesn’t have any insurance, here’s my credit card number—just take it from my account.’ Now,” Jesus concluded, “Which of these was the neighbor to man attacked by terrorists?” The professor said, “The M- the one who had compassion on him.” Jesus smiled and looked him in the eye, “Now you do the same.”
Do terrorists and Muslims really belong in this story?
Actually, they do! The Greek word “lestes” is often translated “robber.” But it actually means one who uses violence to achieve economic or political change, so one might translate it either as “revolutionary” or, possibly, “terrorist.” The Samaritans, on the other hand, are those who were similar to Jews—they worshipped the same God and had many of the same stories. But they had different centers of worship and they considered each other heretics. So if the original Jewish victim became an American Christian, who would the Samaritan be but a faithful Muslim? As far as D.C. and New York for Jerusalem and Jericho… well, that might be stretching it a bit.
The Th- Word
At some point or another, everyone has to deal with theology. It sounds scary (especially if you’ve heard of such words as dispensationalism and superlapsarian), but really its pretty simple—theology is just what we can say about God. Of course, Jesus then had a lot to say about theology. But whenever he wanted to get to the basics, to talk about what is most important to God and most important about our relationship with God, he gets back to these two commands: Love God and love your neighbor. That’s as basic as it gets.
Just Do It
But whenever any professor of theology or dogmatician tries to talk about theology, they do it on very different terms. They always speak of “a doctrine statement” or a “confession of faith”. They emphasize what it is we believe about God. And that’s fine, as far as it goes. But whenever Jesus spoke about theology, he spoke about action and relationship. Either he is speaking about what God does for us or what we do for God. Even his most basic statement “God is spirit” is followed by a command, “And those who worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.” (John 4:24). According to Jesus, God isn’t just someone who sits in heaven—he’s a person who interacts with his people, “God with us.” And we aren’t to be people who observe God like we would a tv screen—we are to be active participants with our theology. If we just believe about God in our head, that isn’t enough—we’ve got to have faith in our hands and feet. And so Jesus talked about a faith that is enacted in obedience and an obedience that is informed by faith. Just like sex and conception, you can’t have one without the other.
Two Relationships of Theology
So when Jesus tells us about theology, he says that in every aspect of it, there are two relationships. Theology, he says, isn’t something that happens in our head, it is a connection between (at least) two beings. First, there is the relationship between the human and God. And this relationship is defined by “love”, so whatever else you can say about this relationship, it is supposed to be positive, and not simply duty-based. Yes, we already know that there is obedience involved—after all, Jesus gave us commands—but the relationship behind these commands aren’t just that of slave to master. Rather, we are to have a positive relationship with God, one in which we both benefit from the process.
The second relationship is that between human and human. This is what is really odd. I mean, Jesus is speaking about theology—what we can say about God—and the very thing that Jesus puts in there is our relationship with other people. What do other people have to do with God? Well, two things. First of all, God is very concerned about people. I mean, He made them, and he gave them the earth to rule (Psalm 8). And he claims to love them all (John 3:16). Also, in this command, God is trying to help us PUT God into every relationship. Jesus is saying, “in your relationship with your neighbor, God is commanding it to be benefitial.” Thus, the relationship between human and human becomes theological, because God is forcing himself into that relationship (Ah, I know people like that…)
But what we need to realize in this basic of theology, is that Jesus is putting God and other human beings in everything we do religiously, theologically and spiritually. We cannot have a spirituality without God, according to Jesus. And we cannot have a faith without other people. If we claim to be doing something for God and it does not benefit others, then we do not have Jesus’ faith. Even so, if we attempt to do something for others and do not include God, then we do not have Jesus’ faith. Jesus’ theology is completely balanced between these two relationships—all has to do with both God and other people. To exclude one is to exclude true spirituality.
What is love of neighbor?
Well, we’d like to say more about loving God, but our teaching here by Jesus doesn’t give us any more than that it is love and it is God and well, that’s all that’s said. But the rest of the passage does talk quite a bit more about the love of neighbor. What exactly does it say?
Love of Neighbor isn’t exclusive
The professor wanted to exclude from the command everyone he didn’t like. Maybe he wanted to exclude heretics, or those who didn’t live in his country, or sinners or folks who did him wrong. But when Jesus asked his question, he made the professor answer that it was the Muslim—the heretic, the sinner, the foreigner, the persecutor—who was the neighbor. This means that if he was a neighbor, then EVERYONE is a neighbor, without exception. So the command involves every single human relationship we are in, without exception.
Love of Neighbor is demanded
Secondly, in Jesus’ story, he gave examples of two “good Christians” who didn’t follow the love of one’s neighbor. Thus, in Jesus’ story, although these people had a certain kind of faith, it wasn’t the kind that God was looking for. Their faith was practical and very pious, but it was wrong-headed. Because they thought that the love of God excluded them from the love of neighbor, then they were okay was NOT okay for God. God demands that the people who love Him also love those around them.
Love of Neighbor is compassion
The word that most defines the love of one’s neighbor is “compassion”. The Greek word for this is “splachna” which literally means “the feeling in your guts.” In other words, love is the gut-wrenching feeling you get when you see someone who is in need. To love someone is to recognize their need and to have compassion for it. No matter how evil they are, no matter how wrong-headed, compassion prevails in our attitude towards another.
Love of Neighbor is practical benefit
Lastly, when Jesus spoke about loving one’s neighbor, he was saying that the love was practical. The Muslim didn’t just pray a positive prayer for the man lying on the road. He didn’t just think good thoughts. Rather, he went out of his way to help him out in whatever way he could. He sacrificed his plans, his money and his vehicle to assist the stranger in need. Love doesn’t just stay in the heart (or the guts), but it gets out the pocketbook and gets dirty. Without being of practical benefit, it isn’t really love.
To have right faith is to present a benefit to everyone you meet
Do terrorists and Muslims really belong in this story?
Actually, they do! The Greek word “lestes” is often translated “robber.” But it actually means one who uses violence to achieve economic or political change, so one might translate it either as “revolutionary” or, possibly, “terrorist.” The Samaritans, on the other hand, are those who were similar to Jews—they worshipped the same God and had many of the same stories. But they had different centers of worship and they considered each other heretics. So if the original Jewish victim became an American Christian, who would the Samaritan be but a faithful Muslim? As far as D.C. and New York for Jerusalem and Jericho… well, that might be stretching it a bit.
The Th- Word
At some point or another, everyone has to deal with theology. It sounds scary (especially if you’ve heard of such words as dispensationalism and superlapsarian), but really its pretty simple—theology is just what we can say about God. Of course, Jesus then had a lot to say about theology. But whenever he wanted to get to the basics, to talk about what is most important to God and most important about our relationship with God, he gets back to these two commands: Love God and love your neighbor. That’s as basic as it gets.
Just Do It
But whenever any professor of theology or dogmatician tries to talk about theology, they do it on very different terms. They always speak of “a doctrine statement” or a “confession of faith”. They emphasize what it is we believe about God. And that’s fine, as far as it goes. But whenever Jesus spoke about theology, he spoke about action and relationship. Either he is speaking about what God does for us or what we do for God. Even his most basic statement “God is spirit” is followed by a command, “And those who worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.” (John 4:24). According to Jesus, God isn’t just someone who sits in heaven—he’s a person who interacts with his people, “God with us.” And we aren’t to be people who observe God like we would a tv screen—we are to be active participants with our theology. If we just believe about God in our head, that isn’t enough—we’ve got to have faith in our hands and feet. And so Jesus talked about a faith that is enacted in obedience and an obedience that is informed by faith. Just like sex and conception, you can’t have one without the other.
Two Relationships of Theology
So when Jesus tells us about theology, he says that in every aspect of it, there are two relationships. Theology, he says, isn’t something that happens in our head, it is a connection between (at least) two beings. First, there is the relationship between the human and God. And this relationship is defined by “love”, so whatever else you can say about this relationship, it is supposed to be positive, and not simply duty-based. Yes, we already know that there is obedience involved—after all, Jesus gave us commands—but the relationship behind these commands aren’t just that of slave to master. Rather, we are to have a positive relationship with God, one in which we both benefit from the process.
The second relationship is that between human and human. This is what is really odd. I mean, Jesus is speaking about theology—what we can say about God—and the very thing that Jesus puts in there is our relationship with other people. What do other people have to do with God? Well, two things. First of all, God is very concerned about people. I mean, He made them, and he gave them the earth to rule (Psalm 8). And he claims to love them all (John 3:16). Also, in this command, God is trying to help us PUT God into every relationship. Jesus is saying, “in your relationship with your neighbor, God is commanding it to be benefitial.” Thus, the relationship between human and human becomes theological, because God is forcing himself into that relationship (Ah, I know people like that…)
But what we need to realize in this basic of theology, is that Jesus is putting God and other human beings in everything we do religiously, theologically and spiritually. We cannot have a spirituality without God, according to Jesus. And we cannot have a faith without other people. If we claim to be doing something for God and it does not benefit others, then we do not have Jesus’ faith. Even so, if we attempt to do something for others and do not include God, then we do not have Jesus’ faith. Jesus’ theology is completely balanced between these two relationships—all has to do with both God and other people. To exclude one is to exclude true spirituality.
What is love of neighbor?
Well, we’d like to say more about loving God, but our teaching here by Jesus doesn’t give us any more than that it is love and it is God and well, that’s all that’s said. But the rest of the passage does talk quite a bit more about the love of neighbor. What exactly does it say?
Love of Neighbor isn’t exclusive
The professor wanted to exclude from the command everyone he didn’t like. Maybe he wanted to exclude heretics, or those who didn’t live in his country, or sinners or folks who did him wrong. But when Jesus asked his question, he made the professor answer that it was the Muslim—the heretic, the sinner, the foreigner, the persecutor—who was the neighbor. This means that if he was a neighbor, then EVERYONE is a neighbor, without exception. So the command involves every single human relationship we are in, without exception.
Love of Neighbor is demanded
Secondly, in Jesus’ story, he gave examples of two “good Christians” who didn’t follow the love of one’s neighbor. Thus, in Jesus’ story, although these people had a certain kind of faith, it wasn’t the kind that God was looking for. Their faith was practical and very pious, but it was wrong-headed. Because they thought that the love of God excluded them from the love of neighbor, then they were okay was NOT okay for God. God demands that the people who love Him also love those around them.
Love of Neighbor is compassion
The word that most defines the love of one’s neighbor is “compassion”. The Greek word for this is “splachna” which literally means “the feeling in your guts.” In other words, love is the gut-wrenching feeling you get when you see someone who is in need. To love someone is to recognize their need and to have compassion for it. No matter how evil they are, no matter how wrong-headed, compassion prevails in our attitude towards another.
Love of Neighbor is practical benefit
Lastly, when Jesus spoke about loving one’s neighbor, he was saying that the love was practical. The Muslim didn’t just pray a positive prayer for the man lying on the road. He didn’t just think good thoughts. Rather, he went out of his way to help him out in whatever way he could. He sacrificed his plans, his money and his vehicle to assist the stranger in need. Love doesn’t just stay in the heart (or the guts), but it gets out the pocketbook and gets dirty. Without being of practical benefit, it isn’t really love.
To have right faith is to present a benefit to everyone you meet
Monday, June 25, 2007
Re-Mythologyzing the Bible
Part I: Introduction
Demythologizing the Bible
The idea of de-mythologizing the Bible originates in the enlightenment, especially in the acceptance of many Christians the assumptions of David Hume, the anti-Christian philosopher. David Hume declared that miracles were not possible because they, by definition, were outside the natural order of things and there could be nothing outside the natural order. But many Christians, including Thomas Jefferson, were not ready to surrender their faith in God and Jesus. So they began to separate the religious from the supernatural, while still retaining the “core” of religious belief, whatever they considered that to be. Some held that religion had an ethical core, others that it had a historical core, while others considered that religion had a revolutionary core. This core, they philosophized, could be retained, while the rest of that which they considered to be intellectually empty could be jettisoned without harm to the basis of religion itself.
Some thinkers, such as Freud and Marx considered the foundation of religion to be fundamentally mythological, and thus unnecessary, but there are many thinkers, even to this day, that want to retain the “basic principles” of religion, while separating out that which is untenable. Some theologians that have this as a basis for their studies are Marcus Borg, John Crossan, Walter Wink and Denny Weaver.
The Bible is an Ancient Text
It is difficult to bring the Bible into the modern world. Some wish interpret the Bible in a manner to sacrifice their intellectual honesty and objectivity, wishing to maintain their traditional understanding of the Bible in spite of what the modern world accepts as foundationally true. Others wish to compromise the basic worldview of the Bible in order to interpret the basic “principles” that can still be accepted in the world today.
What I would like to propose is that fundamentally the Bible is an ancient text and that it is best understood in its original context, and that principles of the Bible could only be understood if the basic worldview of the Bible is held intact. This does not mean, necessarily, that the traditional interpreters of the Bible have the basic worldview of the Bible correct. Rather, it needs to be explored what the worldview of the ancient world is, and how the Bible interprets that worldview.
Both the conservative interpretation and the attempts to demythologize the Bible run into the foundational error of dealing with any text—ancient or modern: Taking the text out of its original worldview context and placing it into a context where the text itself is simply nonsense. To make the text nonsense is a good interpretive move for most students of the Bible, because it gives them more freedom to place the text in a convenient way into a modern worldview. But it doesn’t allow the text to speak for itself, within its own understanding.
Part II: The Physical World and the Spirit World
The Worlds of the Pagan
The Bible was not written in a world which believed in a single, omnipotent Cause of all things, distant but ultimately behind the actions of all things. This God is a creation of thousands of years of theology and intellectual philosophizing with the likes of Plato, Aristotle, Augustine, and Calvin. The world of the Bible, whether we are speaking of the time of Moses (about 1500 BC), all the way to the time of the late New Testament (about 100 AD), the primary worldview of the world was what we now would call “pagan”.
For the pagan, there are two universes that are active and interact—the physical world, where humans live and the spirit world, where the spirits or gods live. These two worlds are independent, but the spirit world is more powerful and ultimately rules over the physical world. At times, the powers of the spirit world acts upon the physical world, but according to the rules of the spirit world. Thus, they can manipulate winds and oceans; they can appear and disappear at will and instantly travel great distances. And they can effect humans in strange ways, such as causing illness, insanity, strange speech, prophecy, dreams or visions of the spirit world. In the pagan worldview, these are “miracles” or interactions in the physical world by the beings of the spirit world.
This worldview is decidedly mythological and in opposition to the assumptions of the enlightenment. A human embracing reason accepts the physical world as the primary one, and any spirits being distant from the physical world. Some consider the spirit world to be operating in the physical world, but only through the laws of the physical world, not using actions that would be commonly termed “miracles.”
Does the Bible support Mythological Events?
Not only does the Bible share this part of the pagan worldview, but much of the apologetic in the Bible actually is defending this point of view. “The fool has said in his heart there is no god,” says the Psalmist (Psalm 14:1 and Psalm 53:1). The context, however, is not about an ancient atheist, but one who claims that one can do what one pleases because the spirit world is too distant to enact judgment. In the first half of the book of Exodus, Pharaoh denies that Yahweh, an unknown god, could possibly be more powerful than he, the god of Egypt. As the drama unfolds, Yahweh shows that he is not distant or powerless in comparison to Pharaoh’s meager spiritual powers. The famous prophecy of Emmanuel and the virgin in Isaiah 6 is not so much about a child born to a virgin as a demonstration of God’s nearness to the everyday events of his people. Elisha asks God to open the eyes of his servant so he could see the forces of the spirit world interacting on an army of attackers (II Kings 6). The people listening to Jesus was amazed at his teaching because it was accompanied by intervention from the spirit world (Mark 1:24-27). Jesus himself said that the exorcisms he performed were evidence of God’s intervention through Jesus (Luke 11:20). In the book of Acts, there are two events in a Jewish and a pagan court that are based on the assumption that the spirit world had indeed interacted with the physical world (Acts 3 and Acts 16).
The interaction between the spirit world and the physical world, and the fact that the spirit world is, in some ways, more powerful than the physical world is not only a presupposition of the Bible, but it is taught directly in both narrative and proclamation form. To deny miracles is to deny a basic understanding of the Bible as a whole. These miracles are not presented as symbols or ideals, but as real events that indicate God’s nearness to his people.
Not only is the supernatural presented as a principle of the spirit world’s workings, but the presence of miracles is presented in the New Testament as a foundational part of the Christian community:
“Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do, he will do also; and greater works than these he will do; because I go to the Father.” John 14:12
"Behold, I have given you authority to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing will injure you.” Luke 10:19
"And as you go, preach, saying, 'The kingdom of heaven is at hand.' Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, cast out demons. Freely you received, freely give.” Matthew 10:7-8
These statements of Jesus, and Paul in agreement (in Galatians 2 and I Corinthians 12-14) speak of supernatural acts as being fundamental to the evidence that God is at work in the church.
Theologically, the teaching of the Bible is that miracles display the nearness of God. Without such miracles, there is no clear evidence of God’s presence.
What about the morality of the Bible?
If the supernatural is a significant part of the Bible, yet still, some say, it could be separated from the ethical viewpoint of the Bible. Intellectually, one might not accept the supernatural, but still hold to the morality stated in the Bible.
First let us examine this. There are two most important ethical teachings that provide the foundation for all other ethical statements: the Mosaic law and Jesus’ teachings. The Mosaic Law is a covenant presented by God as the laws of his people. Clearly ethical, yet this law is not presented as general ethics, or “this is the best way for any human to live.” Rather the communication is given “This is how I want you to live because I delivered you out of Egypt.” In other words, the basis of their obedience isn’t ethical, but on the basis of God, a being of the spirit world, acting on the physical world.
They obey God because his action of deliverance made them his possession— e.g. Exodus 20:2; Leviiticus 11:44; 19:36; 25:53-55;26:13
They obey God because of God’s continuing presence and action—e.g. Deuteronomy 23:14
They obey God because of his direct actions of blessing for their obedience—e.g. Ex. 22:23-24; Leviticus 26:14-44
They obey God because of his direct actions of cursing for their disobedience—e.g. Exodus 23:24-28; Leviticus 26:3-1
Thus, God’s law is given because he is present and he is acting among them. Were it not for God’s continuing presence, the law would be unnecessary. But because He was still acting among them—in other words, still doing supernatural events—then the ethical principles are necessary.
Morality in the Gospels
And then we have the gospels. Jesus’ teaching at first seems to be positive ethical principles that any people would do well to act in accordance with. Thus, theoretically, they could be separated from any supernatural act and just lived out. But, interestingly enough, Jesus is always connecting his ethical principles to a significant supernatural act—the eschaton, or the day of judgment. Jesus is referring to his principles as being significant, not for one’s present life today, or for one’s community today, but for the day when God comes to enact his will upon the earth and to transfer the leadership of earth’s authority to his appointed ruler. In fact, many of the ethical principles Jesus states are nonsense except in a context of a resurrection and God’s rule over the earth:
Jesus says that the poor are blessed because they have a supernatural blessing in the future.
Jesus says that his disciples are to rejoice in persecution because of it is a guarantee of supernatural blessing from God
Jesus says that faith in tribulation is a positive thing because of the supernatural blessing in the future. (Mark 13:13)
Acceptance of evil acts from authorities is good because God will take action against them (Romans 12)
Forgiveness is a positive act not for itself but because to not forgive negates God’s forgiveness (Matthew 18)
Judgment is an unacceptable because it enacts God’s direct judgment. (Matthew 7:1)
Thus, all of the main ethical principles in the Bible are actually intertwined with supernatural acts. In fact, almost every significant principle in the Bible is involved with the actions of the spirit world upon the physical world. In other words, Marx and Freud were correct, the basic principle of Biblical religion is mythological.
Part III: Plurality of Gods or Powers
The gods of the Pagan Worldview
The mythological pagan worldview was not limited to a spirit world and a physical world. It also spoke of the spirits that interacted on the earth. Many of these spirits are called “gods” indicating their status as ruler, possibly over other spirits, or possibly over parts of the physical world. These gods act in an anthropomorphic way, reacting with human emotion and foibles such as jealousy, resentment, lust, anger, hatred, and vengeance.
Many of these gods rule over natural phenomena such as rivers, oceans and winds. Other gods, some of the most powerful ones, rule over nations of humans. These gods battle each other for prominence. Sometimes one god is in the most exalted position over the other gods and sometimes another. On a human level, usually this prominent position is indicated by which nation conquers other ones. For instance, should Babylon and Ugarit fight, the battle is not just between two armies, but between Marduk and Baal. Should Babylon win, that indicates that Marduk is the champion and ruler over Baal.
The Bible affirms the existence of a multiplicity of gods
The Bible often speaks of Yahweh being God, the exalted, the highest. But the highest over what? He is the highest among all the gods in heaven (Exodus 15:11; Exodus 18:11; Psalm 86:8; Psalm 96:4-5; II Chronicles 2:5; Deut. 10:17; Joshua 22:22; Psalm 84:7; Psalm 95:3; Psalm 97:9; Psalm 135:5; Psalm 136:2; Daniel 2:47; Daniel 11:36). When the other gods are spoken of, they are not mentioned as non-existent, or as lowly, insignificant beings. Rather, they are spoken of as powerful and as rivals of Yahweh himself.
These gods have a number of titles—Sons of God (Job 1; Genesis 6; Psalm 29:1); angels (Genesis 19:1; Psalm 148:2); spirits (Zechariah 6:5; Luke 10:20); idols (I Chronicles 16:26; Psalm 97:7); demons (Deuteronomy 32:17; Psalm 106:37); and stars (Daniel 8:10-11; Isaiah 13:10). These gods are powerful, but their power is insignificant in comparison with Yahweh, who made heavens and earth (Jeremiah 10:11). The nations were separated into their number by the number of these gods, and the gods rule over these nations (Deuteronomy 32:8; Daniel 10:1-13). The gods are constantly under Yahweh’s authority, and he can affirm or put down the place of any god or human ruler (I Samuel 2:1-8; Psalm 82; Luke 1:51-54).
What about the oneness of God?
At this point, the theologically astute Christian would be concerned, especially at the use of the term, “gods”. After all, we have all been taught that there is but one God, and that there is no other god in the heavens. And some of us remember such verses as I Corinthians 8:4, “There is no such thing as an idol in the world and there is no god but One” and Jeremiah 10:14, “The idols, there is no life in them.”
The Scriptures do make it clear that the idols of stone and wood did not actually exist as living entities, but were only objects made by human hands. However, they also say that there are powers, gods that exist behind the idols, and that these are real. In Isaiah 19:1 says, “The idols will tremble at his presence” and Paul himself says in I Corinthians 10:20, “The things to which the Gentiles sacrifice, they sacrifice to demons and I do not want you to be fellowshipers with demons.”
And as far as Yahweh/God being the only God, we are all familiar with the common passage in Deuteronomy, “Hear O Israel, Yahweh is God, Yahweh is One.” The term “one” has a literal meaning as Yahweh being singular. This could be related to the fact that many gods, including Baal and Zeus, are often worshiped as their manifestations in different places but Yahweh is not to be worshiped as a plurality, one manifestation in one place and another in another place, but he is to be singular, always worshipped as the same God. Colloquially, the term “one” also has the meaning of “alone” or “first”. Thus, this passage would mean what is stated many times in Scripture—that Yahweh is the first among all the lower powers, and that no other power would ever replace Him. Yahweh is alone in his place as the exalted ruler of heaven and earth and no power can threaten or come against him.
In no place in Scripture does this mean that there are not other god-like powers in heaven that act independently from Yahweh. Yahweh is the most powerful of the powers, and he reigns over them as king, but other angels, demons, spirits, powers and principalities exist in heaven along with Yahweh (Luke 1; Matthew 13:39; Matthew 18:10; Mark 1:27; Ephesians 6:12). Yahweh is the emperor among many god-like beings, and in this sense, He is Alone, He is Singular, He is One.
Yahweh and all the gods are anthropomorphic
All the gods, including Yahweh, are understood by human terms, such as king, ruler, principlality, etc. For example, we have the many visions of Yahweh on his throne as the most high king over all (Isaiah 6; Ezekiel 1-2; Revelation 4). And in I Kings 22:19-23 there is the vision of Michiah the prophet who saw Yahweh as a king over his council of spirits and he commands a lying spirit to deceive Ahab, so that he would be destroyed. Sacrifice is understood as a gift that is given to a ruler—human or divine—in order to obtain favor (Malachi 1:7-9). A covenant is a contract establishing patronage between a superior ruler, such as an emperor or a god, to a lesser ruler. A prayer is simple the formal request of a powerful being, such as a king or a god to do a favor to a less powerful being. Righteousness is the ability to stand before a ruler without offending him. Sin is an action which makes one unacceptable to a certain king or god.
But not only is the manner of rulership anthropomorphic but even in the ways they act are very human. Yahweh becomes furious, He changes his mind, he has love toward his adopted children (Exodus 32; Psalm 103). But in many ways God’s character is higher than any human character. Humans are characterized by faithlessness, but God is never faithless, he never breaks his promises. Humans reject forgiveness and mercy, but God never forsakes forgiveness and mercy, except to the unmerciful. Human provision, even by rulers, is limited and paltry, but God’s provision is ample, and without limit. (II Timothy 2:23; Matthew 18; Matthew 6:25-34). Thus, so God can be compared to humanity in many ways, his positive characteristics exceed human characteristics, unlike normal pagan deities.
Yahweh is involved in battles with other gods
Yahweh battles against other gods and these battles are often displayed in human battles between nations. (Zephaniah 2:11; Exodus 12:12; Numbers 33:4; Jeremiah 46:25.) As one example of a battle between Yahweh and another god, let us look at II Kings 18-19; II Chronicles 32; Isaiah 36-37 (all three passages tell the same story). Jerusalem is surrounded by the armies of Assyria; the lord of Assyria claims that his power is greater than that of any other gods, including Yahweh; The lord of Assyria is killed while worshipping his god, Nisroch. Jerusalem is delivered and the arrogance of Assyria is humbled.
The Bible affirms that battles indicate superiority, especially when the human element indicates the warfare should go the other way. For example, Abraham’s 300 slaves defeated the armies of five kings in Genesis 14; and Gideon’s 300 warriors defeated the uncountable army in Judges 7. In each of these battles, the lack of numbers indicates that it is Yahweh’s victory over the other kings and their gods. However, at times Israel is the one who is defeated, even God’s chosen city, Jerusalem. If Israel is defeated, rather than indicate the defeat of Yahweh, it indicates Yahweh’s judgment on Israel. (Ezekiel 36:17-21; II Kings 23:26-27). No matter what event, the Jewish people always affirmed Yahweh’s superiority over other gods.
The fact is, the Bible is permeated with multiple descriptions of him dealing with other gods, from his battle with Leviathan before the seven-day creation (Psalm 72) to the final defeat of Satan in Revelation 20. This literature is not, for the most part, described as a metaphor, but a description as to how the spirit world actually works. This is the “working palate” of the prophets, which they do not describe as metaphor, but as the ways of spirits in the spirit world. The necessity of the prophets in ancient times was to relate to humans how the spirit world effected them with their various gods and powers. The ancient Hebrew prophets, the prophets of the canon, only proved themselves to be exceptional in the fact that they always affirmed Yahweh’s superiority over other gods, no matter what the human circumstances. They would affirm that the spirit world works differently than the physical world, but it is necessary at times for humans to understand the workings of the spirit world in order to establish their own world correctly (e.g. Genesis 41; I Kings 22; Acts 11:28).
The reality of the Bible is that mythology rests behind all of the major themes and theology of Scripture, and to appreciate the theological nuances of any of the Bible, we must understand the mythological background of it all.
Part IV: How should we deal with “myth” in the Bible?
Do away with myth, we do away with theology
Since almost every principle in the Bible is based on the spirit world interfering with the physical world and with the various gods that interfere with human rule, then we must recognize that the principles we hold dear to in the Bible must be rejected if we reject their mythological basis.
Should we be rid of the myth in the Bible, we must be rid of each of these theologies:
· If God accomplishes no resurrection, then we should not expect any kind of deliverance from Him (I Corinthians 15)
· If supernatural beings apart from God do not exist, then the powers and principalities language in Paul is meaningless, not demythologized, since it is described in Scripture as “non-human”; not carnal; not fleshly. (Ephesians 6:12 and II Corinthians 10:4)
· If there is no actual judgment by God, then there is no reason to live out the moral principles of Jesus (Luke 6:37-38).
· If there are no miracles, then there is no evidence that the preaching of the apostles is anything more than a deluded philosophy (I Cor. 15; Acts 3; II Corinthians 12:12)
· If Jesus did no miracle, then there is no authority from God for the gospel (Matthew 12:28: John 5:36)
If there is no supernatural, no myth, then the Bible is “myth” in a different sense of the word—untrue, a bunch of fairy tales, fit only for the immature. If there are no powers apart from God Most High, then the Bible is not the source for such a god, because the Bible affirms the pagan concept of many gods, just under the authority of One God, Yahweh. If we say we believe in the Bible, then we must accept the “myth” of the Bible. If we deny the mythological parts of Scripture, we deny the Bible itself.
To Believe In the Bible is to Believe in “Myth”
Does this mean that we have to accept the story of Midas having donkey ears and of Athena jumping whole out of Zeus’ head? No. Do we even necessarily have to believe that Jonah really spent three days in a sea monster and a young earth and the whole of creation made in seven days—not necessarily, although we should allow the possibility of it. But if we say we “believe” in the Bible, then we have to accept the Bible’s presuppositions. That miracles—by which we mean the spirit world interfering in our physical world—do occur, even if not frequently. We must allow that in the spirit world are great powers that can, and sometimes do, affect our lives. That they can be objects of fear and reverence. But we must also acknowledge that the God of Jesus, Yahweh, is more powerful than them all, and so we need not fear them if we are in Jesus.
But not only must we believe in this “myth”, but we also must live it out. The New Testament is clear that those who are followers of Jesus are not only to live the ethical life of Jesus, but we also need to be living in the spiritual authority of Jesus. This means that we can use the power of Jesus to make changes in the spiritual world that will effect our own.
We should expect to be able to do miracles (John 14:11-12; Mark 16:17-18)
We should expect that there are spiritual forces that attempt to do us and others’ harm (Luke 22:31-32; I Peter 5:8)
We should expect to be able to take a stand against these spiritual beings (Ephesians 6:13; James 4:7)
We should see sacrifice and even martyrdom as a spiritual force which accomplishes good if done in the way of Jesus (Mark 8:34-37; Revelation 12:10-11)
We should be able to allow evil authorities to be judged by God, and not undermined by humans (Romans 12:19-21; Matthew 5:38-41)
We should trust that God is going to help us, according to His will, and not have to defend ourselves by human means (II Corinthians 10:4; Matthew 26:53)
We should do mercy and forgive and not judge, recognizing that God’s judgment is more important than temporary human justice (Luke 6:36-38)
We should be pure in our lives, recognizing that God will not hear our prayers unless we do (Psalm 15; Matthew 5:8)
To believe in the Bible is to live out the ancient mythological worldview every day.
Demythologizing the Bible
The idea of de-mythologizing the Bible originates in the enlightenment, especially in the acceptance of many Christians the assumptions of David Hume, the anti-Christian philosopher. David Hume declared that miracles were not possible because they, by definition, were outside the natural order of things and there could be nothing outside the natural order. But many Christians, including Thomas Jefferson, were not ready to surrender their faith in God and Jesus. So they began to separate the religious from the supernatural, while still retaining the “core” of religious belief, whatever they considered that to be. Some held that religion had an ethical core, others that it had a historical core, while others considered that religion had a revolutionary core. This core, they philosophized, could be retained, while the rest of that which they considered to be intellectually empty could be jettisoned without harm to the basis of religion itself.
Some thinkers, such as Freud and Marx considered the foundation of religion to be fundamentally mythological, and thus unnecessary, but there are many thinkers, even to this day, that want to retain the “basic principles” of religion, while separating out that which is untenable. Some theologians that have this as a basis for their studies are Marcus Borg, John Crossan, Walter Wink and Denny Weaver.
The Bible is an Ancient Text
It is difficult to bring the Bible into the modern world. Some wish interpret the Bible in a manner to sacrifice their intellectual honesty and objectivity, wishing to maintain their traditional understanding of the Bible in spite of what the modern world accepts as foundationally true. Others wish to compromise the basic worldview of the Bible in order to interpret the basic “principles” that can still be accepted in the world today.
What I would like to propose is that fundamentally the Bible is an ancient text and that it is best understood in its original context, and that principles of the Bible could only be understood if the basic worldview of the Bible is held intact. This does not mean, necessarily, that the traditional interpreters of the Bible have the basic worldview of the Bible correct. Rather, it needs to be explored what the worldview of the ancient world is, and how the Bible interprets that worldview.
Both the conservative interpretation and the attempts to demythologize the Bible run into the foundational error of dealing with any text—ancient or modern: Taking the text out of its original worldview context and placing it into a context where the text itself is simply nonsense. To make the text nonsense is a good interpretive move for most students of the Bible, because it gives them more freedom to place the text in a convenient way into a modern worldview. But it doesn’t allow the text to speak for itself, within its own understanding.
Part II: The Physical World and the Spirit World
The Worlds of the Pagan
The Bible was not written in a world which believed in a single, omnipotent Cause of all things, distant but ultimately behind the actions of all things. This God is a creation of thousands of years of theology and intellectual philosophizing with the likes of Plato, Aristotle, Augustine, and Calvin. The world of the Bible, whether we are speaking of the time of Moses (about 1500 BC), all the way to the time of the late New Testament (about 100 AD), the primary worldview of the world was what we now would call “pagan”.
For the pagan, there are two universes that are active and interact—the physical world, where humans live and the spirit world, where the spirits or gods live. These two worlds are independent, but the spirit world is more powerful and ultimately rules over the physical world. At times, the powers of the spirit world acts upon the physical world, but according to the rules of the spirit world. Thus, they can manipulate winds and oceans; they can appear and disappear at will and instantly travel great distances. And they can effect humans in strange ways, such as causing illness, insanity, strange speech, prophecy, dreams or visions of the spirit world. In the pagan worldview, these are “miracles” or interactions in the physical world by the beings of the spirit world.
This worldview is decidedly mythological and in opposition to the assumptions of the enlightenment. A human embracing reason accepts the physical world as the primary one, and any spirits being distant from the physical world. Some consider the spirit world to be operating in the physical world, but only through the laws of the physical world, not using actions that would be commonly termed “miracles.”
Does the Bible support Mythological Events?
Not only does the Bible share this part of the pagan worldview, but much of the apologetic in the Bible actually is defending this point of view. “The fool has said in his heart there is no god,” says the Psalmist (Psalm 14:1 and Psalm 53:1). The context, however, is not about an ancient atheist, but one who claims that one can do what one pleases because the spirit world is too distant to enact judgment. In the first half of the book of Exodus, Pharaoh denies that Yahweh, an unknown god, could possibly be more powerful than he, the god of Egypt. As the drama unfolds, Yahweh shows that he is not distant or powerless in comparison to Pharaoh’s meager spiritual powers. The famous prophecy of Emmanuel and the virgin in Isaiah 6 is not so much about a child born to a virgin as a demonstration of God’s nearness to the everyday events of his people. Elisha asks God to open the eyes of his servant so he could see the forces of the spirit world interacting on an army of attackers (II Kings 6). The people listening to Jesus was amazed at his teaching because it was accompanied by intervention from the spirit world (Mark 1:24-27). Jesus himself said that the exorcisms he performed were evidence of God’s intervention through Jesus (Luke 11:20). In the book of Acts, there are two events in a Jewish and a pagan court that are based on the assumption that the spirit world had indeed interacted with the physical world (Acts 3 and Acts 16).
The interaction between the spirit world and the physical world, and the fact that the spirit world is, in some ways, more powerful than the physical world is not only a presupposition of the Bible, but it is taught directly in both narrative and proclamation form. To deny miracles is to deny a basic understanding of the Bible as a whole. These miracles are not presented as symbols or ideals, but as real events that indicate God’s nearness to his people.
Not only is the supernatural presented as a principle of the spirit world’s workings, but the presence of miracles is presented in the New Testament as a foundational part of the Christian community:
“Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do, he will do also; and greater works than these he will do; because I go to the Father.” John 14:12
"Behold, I have given you authority to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing will injure you.” Luke 10:19
"And as you go, preach, saying, 'The kingdom of heaven is at hand.' Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, cast out demons. Freely you received, freely give.” Matthew 10:7-8
These statements of Jesus, and Paul in agreement (in Galatians 2 and I Corinthians 12-14) speak of supernatural acts as being fundamental to the evidence that God is at work in the church.
Theologically, the teaching of the Bible is that miracles display the nearness of God. Without such miracles, there is no clear evidence of God’s presence.
What about the morality of the Bible?
If the supernatural is a significant part of the Bible, yet still, some say, it could be separated from the ethical viewpoint of the Bible. Intellectually, one might not accept the supernatural, but still hold to the morality stated in the Bible.
First let us examine this. There are two most important ethical teachings that provide the foundation for all other ethical statements: the Mosaic law and Jesus’ teachings. The Mosaic Law is a covenant presented by God as the laws of his people. Clearly ethical, yet this law is not presented as general ethics, or “this is the best way for any human to live.” Rather the communication is given “This is how I want you to live because I delivered you out of Egypt.” In other words, the basis of their obedience isn’t ethical, but on the basis of God, a being of the spirit world, acting on the physical world.
They obey God because his action of deliverance made them his possession— e.g. Exodus 20:2; Leviiticus 11:44; 19:36; 25:53-55;26:13
They obey God because of God’s continuing presence and action—e.g. Deuteronomy 23:14
They obey God because of his direct actions of blessing for their obedience—e.g. Ex. 22:23-24; Leviticus 26:14-44
They obey God because of his direct actions of cursing for their disobedience—e.g. Exodus 23:24-28; Leviticus 26:3-1
Thus, God’s law is given because he is present and he is acting among them. Were it not for God’s continuing presence, the law would be unnecessary. But because He was still acting among them—in other words, still doing supernatural events—then the ethical principles are necessary.
Morality in the Gospels
And then we have the gospels. Jesus’ teaching at first seems to be positive ethical principles that any people would do well to act in accordance with. Thus, theoretically, they could be separated from any supernatural act and just lived out. But, interestingly enough, Jesus is always connecting his ethical principles to a significant supernatural act—the eschaton, or the day of judgment. Jesus is referring to his principles as being significant, not for one’s present life today, or for one’s community today, but for the day when God comes to enact his will upon the earth and to transfer the leadership of earth’s authority to his appointed ruler. In fact, many of the ethical principles Jesus states are nonsense except in a context of a resurrection and God’s rule over the earth:
Jesus says that the poor are blessed because they have a supernatural blessing in the future.
Jesus says that his disciples are to rejoice in persecution because of it is a guarantee of supernatural blessing from God
Jesus says that faith in tribulation is a positive thing because of the supernatural blessing in the future. (Mark 13:13)
Acceptance of evil acts from authorities is good because God will take action against them (Romans 12)
Forgiveness is a positive act not for itself but because to not forgive negates God’s forgiveness (Matthew 18)
Judgment is an unacceptable because it enacts God’s direct judgment. (Matthew 7:1)
Thus, all of the main ethical principles in the Bible are actually intertwined with supernatural acts. In fact, almost every significant principle in the Bible is involved with the actions of the spirit world upon the physical world. In other words, Marx and Freud were correct, the basic principle of Biblical religion is mythological.
Part III: Plurality of Gods or Powers
The gods of the Pagan Worldview
The mythological pagan worldview was not limited to a spirit world and a physical world. It also spoke of the spirits that interacted on the earth. Many of these spirits are called “gods” indicating their status as ruler, possibly over other spirits, or possibly over parts of the physical world. These gods act in an anthropomorphic way, reacting with human emotion and foibles such as jealousy, resentment, lust, anger, hatred, and vengeance.
Many of these gods rule over natural phenomena such as rivers, oceans and winds. Other gods, some of the most powerful ones, rule over nations of humans. These gods battle each other for prominence. Sometimes one god is in the most exalted position over the other gods and sometimes another. On a human level, usually this prominent position is indicated by which nation conquers other ones. For instance, should Babylon and Ugarit fight, the battle is not just between two armies, but between Marduk and Baal. Should Babylon win, that indicates that Marduk is the champion and ruler over Baal.
The Bible affirms the existence of a multiplicity of gods
The Bible often speaks of Yahweh being God, the exalted, the highest. But the highest over what? He is the highest among all the gods in heaven (Exodus 15:11; Exodus 18:11; Psalm 86:8; Psalm 96:4-5; II Chronicles 2:5; Deut. 10:17; Joshua 22:22; Psalm 84:7; Psalm 95:3; Psalm 97:9; Psalm 135:5; Psalm 136:2; Daniel 2:47; Daniel 11:36). When the other gods are spoken of, they are not mentioned as non-existent, or as lowly, insignificant beings. Rather, they are spoken of as powerful and as rivals of Yahweh himself.
These gods have a number of titles—Sons of God (Job 1; Genesis 6; Psalm 29:1); angels (Genesis 19:1; Psalm 148:2); spirits (Zechariah 6:5; Luke 10:20); idols (I Chronicles 16:26; Psalm 97:7); demons (Deuteronomy 32:17; Psalm 106:37); and stars (Daniel 8:10-11; Isaiah 13:10). These gods are powerful, but their power is insignificant in comparison with Yahweh, who made heavens and earth (Jeremiah 10:11). The nations were separated into their number by the number of these gods, and the gods rule over these nations (Deuteronomy 32:8; Daniel 10:1-13). The gods are constantly under Yahweh’s authority, and he can affirm or put down the place of any god or human ruler (I Samuel 2:1-8; Psalm 82; Luke 1:51-54).
What about the oneness of God?
At this point, the theologically astute Christian would be concerned, especially at the use of the term, “gods”. After all, we have all been taught that there is but one God, and that there is no other god in the heavens. And some of us remember such verses as I Corinthians 8:4, “There is no such thing as an idol in the world and there is no god but One” and Jeremiah 10:14, “The idols, there is no life in them.”
The Scriptures do make it clear that the idols of stone and wood did not actually exist as living entities, but were only objects made by human hands. However, they also say that there are powers, gods that exist behind the idols, and that these are real. In Isaiah 19:1 says, “The idols will tremble at his presence” and Paul himself says in I Corinthians 10:20, “The things to which the Gentiles sacrifice, they sacrifice to demons and I do not want you to be fellowshipers with demons.”
And as far as Yahweh/God being the only God, we are all familiar with the common passage in Deuteronomy, “Hear O Israel, Yahweh is God, Yahweh is One.” The term “one” has a literal meaning as Yahweh being singular. This could be related to the fact that many gods, including Baal and Zeus, are often worshiped as their manifestations in different places but Yahweh is not to be worshiped as a plurality, one manifestation in one place and another in another place, but he is to be singular, always worshipped as the same God. Colloquially, the term “one” also has the meaning of “alone” or “first”. Thus, this passage would mean what is stated many times in Scripture—that Yahweh is the first among all the lower powers, and that no other power would ever replace Him. Yahweh is alone in his place as the exalted ruler of heaven and earth and no power can threaten or come against him.
In no place in Scripture does this mean that there are not other god-like powers in heaven that act independently from Yahweh. Yahweh is the most powerful of the powers, and he reigns over them as king, but other angels, demons, spirits, powers and principalities exist in heaven along with Yahweh (Luke 1; Matthew 13:39; Matthew 18:10; Mark 1:27; Ephesians 6:12). Yahweh is the emperor among many god-like beings, and in this sense, He is Alone, He is Singular, He is One.
Yahweh and all the gods are anthropomorphic
All the gods, including Yahweh, are understood by human terms, such as king, ruler, principlality, etc. For example, we have the many visions of Yahweh on his throne as the most high king over all (Isaiah 6; Ezekiel 1-2; Revelation 4). And in I Kings 22:19-23 there is the vision of Michiah the prophet who saw Yahweh as a king over his council of spirits and he commands a lying spirit to deceive Ahab, so that he would be destroyed. Sacrifice is understood as a gift that is given to a ruler—human or divine—in order to obtain favor (Malachi 1:7-9). A covenant is a contract establishing patronage between a superior ruler, such as an emperor or a god, to a lesser ruler. A prayer is simple the formal request of a powerful being, such as a king or a god to do a favor to a less powerful being. Righteousness is the ability to stand before a ruler without offending him. Sin is an action which makes one unacceptable to a certain king or god.
But not only is the manner of rulership anthropomorphic but even in the ways they act are very human. Yahweh becomes furious, He changes his mind, he has love toward his adopted children (Exodus 32; Psalm 103). But in many ways God’s character is higher than any human character. Humans are characterized by faithlessness, but God is never faithless, he never breaks his promises. Humans reject forgiveness and mercy, but God never forsakes forgiveness and mercy, except to the unmerciful. Human provision, even by rulers, is limited and paltry, but God’s provision is ample, and without limit. (II Timothy 2:23; Matthew 18; Matthew 6:25-34). Thus, so God can be compared to humanity in many ways, his positive characteristics exceed human characteristics, unlike normal pagan deities.
Yahweh is involved in battles with other gods
Yahweh battles against other gods and these battles are often displayed in human battles between nations. (Zephaniah 2:11; Exodus 12:12; Numbers 33:4; Jeremiah 46:25.) As one example of a battle between Yahweh and another god, let us look at II Kings 18-19; II Chronicles 32; Isaiah 36-37 (all three passages tell the same story). Jerusalem is surrounded by the armies of Assyria; the lord of Assyria claims that his power is greater than that of any other gods, including Yahweh; The lord of Assyria is killed while worshipping his god, Nisroch. Jerusalem is delivered and the arrogance of Assyria is humbled.
The Bible affirms that battles indicate superiority, especially when the human element indicates the warfare should go the other way. For example, Abraham’s 300 slaves defeated the armies of five kings in Genesis 14; and Gideon’s 300 warriors defeated the uncountable army in Judges 7. In each of these battles, the lack of numbers indicates that it is Yahweh’s victory over the other kings and their gods. However, at times Israel is the one who is defeated, even God’s chosen city, Jerusalem. If Israel is defeated, rather than indicate the defeat of Yahweh, it indicates Yahweh’s judgment on Israel. (Ezekiel 36:17-21; II Kings 23:26-27). No matter what event, the Jewish people always affirmed Yahweh’s superiority over other gods.
The fact is, the Bible is permeated with multiple descriptions of him dealing with other gods, from his battle with Leviathan before the seven-day creation (Psalm 72) to the final defeat of Satan in Revelation 20. This literature is not, for the most part, described as a metaphor, but a description as to how the spirit world actually works. This is the “working palate” of the prophets, which they do not describe as metaphor, but as the ways of spirits in the spirit world. The necessity of the prophets in ancient times was to relate to humans how the spirit world effected them with their various gods and powers. The ancient Hebrew prophets, the prophets of the canon, only proved themselves to be exceptional in the fact that they always affirmed Yahweh’s superiority over other gods, no matter what the human circumstances. They would affirm that the spirit world works differently than the physical world, but it is necessary at times for humans to understand the workings of the spirit world in order to establish their own world correctly (e.g. Genesis 41; I Kings 22; Acts 11:28).
The reality of the Bible is that mythology rests behind all of the major themes and theology of Scripture, and to appreciate the theological nuances of any of the Bible, we must understand the mythological background of it all.
Part IV: How should we deal with “myth” in the Bible?
Do away with myth, we do away with theology
Since almost every principle in the Bible is based on the spirit world interfering with the physical world and with the various gods that interfere with human rule, then we must recognize that the principles we hold dear to in the Bible must be rejected if we reject their mythological basis.
Should we be rid of the myth in the Bible, we must be rid of each of these theologies:
· If God accomplishes no resurrection, then we should not expect any kind of deliverance from Him (I Corinthians 15)
· If supernatural beings apart from God do not exist, then the powers and principalities language in Paul is meaningless, not demythologized, since it is described in Scripture as “non-human”; not carnal; not fleshly. (Ephesians 6:12 and II Corinthians 10:4)
· If there is no actual judgment by God, then there is no reason to live out the moral principles of Jesus (Luke 6:37-38).
· If there are no miracles, then there is no evidence that the preaching of the apostles is anything more than a deluded philosophy (I Cor. 15; Acts 3; II Corinthians 12:12)
· If Jesus did no miracle, then there is no authority from God for the gospel (Matthew 12:28: John 5:36)
If there is no supernatural, no myth, then the Bible is “myth” in a different sense of the word—untrue, a bunch of fairy tales, fit only for the immature. If there are no powers apart from God Most High, then the Bible is not the source for such a god, because the Bible affirms the pagan concept of many gods, just under the authority of One God, Yahweh. If we say we believe in the Bible, then we must accept the “myth” of the Bible. If we deny the mythological parts of Scripture, we deny the Bible itself.
To Believe In the Bible is to Believe in “Myth”
Does this mean that we have to accept the story of Midas having donkey ears and of Athena jumping whole out of Zeus’ head? No. Do we even necessarily have to believe that Jonah really spent three days in a sea monster and a young earth and the whole of creation made in seven days—not necessarily, although we should allow the possibility of it. But if we say we “believe” in the Bible, then we have to accept the Bible’s presuppositions. That miracles—by which we mean the spirit world interfering in our physical world—do occur, even if not frequently. We must allow that in the spirit world are great powers that can, and sometimes do, affect our lives. That they can be objects of fear and reverence. But we must also acknowledge that the God of Jesus, Yahweh, is more powerful than them all, and so we need not fear them if we are in Jesus.
But not only must we believe in this “myth”, but we also must live it out. The New Testament is clear that those who are followers of Jesus are not only to live the ethical life of Jesus, but we also need to be living in the spiritual authority of Jesus. This means that we can use the power of Jesus to make changes in the spiritual world that will effect our own.
We should expect to be able to do miracles (John 14:11-12; Mark 16:17-18)
We should expect that there are spiritual forces that attempt to do us and others’ harm (Luke 22:31-32; I Peter 5:8)
We should expect to be able to take a stand against these spiritual beings (Ephesians 6:13; James 4:7)
We should see sacrifice and even martyrdom as a spiritual force which accomplishes good if done in the way of Jesus (Mark 8:34-37; Revelation 12:10-11)
We should be able to allow evil authorities to be judged by God, and not undermined by humans (Romans 12:19-21; Matthew 5:38-41)
We should trust that God is going to help us, according to His will, and not have to defend ourselves by human means (II Corinthians 10:4; Matthew 26:53)
We should do mercy and forgive and not judge, recognizing that God’s judgment is more important than temporary human justice (Luke 6:36-38)
We should be pure in our lives, recognizing that God will not hear our prayers unless we do (Psalm 15; Matthew 5:8)
To believe in the Bible is to live out the ancient mythological worldview every day.
Thursday, June 21, 2007
Introducing Evil Powers
Yahweh—“God of gods”
Heavenly Powers Earthly Powers
Leviathan
Rebellious powers, including,
Darkness
The Sea/Yom
Waters
Sun—ruler of day
Moon and stars—rulers of night------------------------------------Priests of the
Sun, moon and stars
Satan/Devil/Beelzebul/God of this age--------Leviathan
Death/Sheol/The Destroyer
Evil Spirits/demons
National Powers/gods (E.g. Prince of Persia; King of Tyre;
Baal, Ra, Ashereth, mammon, etc) -------------Ã “The nations”
Evil Spirits /demons governments,
Religious leaders,teachers,
spouses, fathers
What are evil powers?
These are authorities in heaven that have rule over certain areas with two distinctives: they try to punish or harm human beings and they have at one time or another rebelled against Yahweh, God of gods (John 8:44; Job 1; Revelation 12:7-8). Since Yahweh has given reign of the earth to humans—rather than them— these powers hate humans and attempt to circumvent Yahweh’s plan and will (Psalm 8). However, despite their bad intentions, these powers are still under submission to Yahweh and must do as He says or else they will lose their positions and be destroyed (Psalm 82; . In the end, it says in Scripture, they will lose their positions when Yahweh is ready to depose them.
Who is Leviathan?
He is the ancient serpent who fought against Yahweh with the darkness and the waters before the events in Genesis 1 (Psalm 74:12-17). Although Leviathan has been tamed by Yahweh, he is still dangerous and a threat (Job 41:1-34). On the final day, Leviathan will be killed (Isaiah 27:1). Leviathan might be the same as Satan (Revelation 12).
Who are the rebellious powers?
There are many lesser powers who fought Yahweh with Leviathan and who are still very dangerous—the sea (called Yom by name), the darkness and the waters. In Genesis 1, Yahweh is punishing the waters and the darkness for their participation in Leviathan’s rebellion. They remain in strict submission to Yahweh and do as he commands (Psalm 77:15-20; Psalm 18:9-15). However, they are fundamentally still rebellious and they will be destroyed on the last day (Revelation 21:1, 22:5).
What about the sun, moon and stars?
In the Bible, these lights stand for powers in heaven that rule over the day and night (Genesis 1; Psalm 136:9). These powers are evil and they smite humans (Psalm 121:6). They are punished for their unrighteous activity on earth (Joel 3:15) and will eventually be lowered and exiled (Isaiah 24:23; Isaiah 60:19-20)
Who is Satan?
“Satan” is not a name, but a position in God’s heavenly realm. “Satan” translated means “Accuser” or, possibly, “Prosecutor”. The Satan is the one who has the job of accusing people of their sins. Satan from the beginning hated human beings and wanted to destroy them, probably because humans hold the authority that Satan himself wanted to have (John 8:44). Satan’s plan to murder humans is this: first he lies to them that sin before Yahweh will grant them peace and exaltation (Genesis 3, John 8:44). Thus he is called “the devil” or “the liar.” If the human doesn’t believe Satan’s lies, then Satan causes difficulties or problems to come to the human to encourage him to find his salvation in someone other than Yahweh (Job 1-2; Mark 4:16-17). For this reason, Satan is called “the tester” (Matthew 4:3; I Thessalonians 3:5) Then, when the human is caught in sin, Satan accuses the human of sin before Yahweh (Revelation 12:10). In this way, he gets Yahweh to punish His own appointed rulers. Satan is also the ruler of his realm, and so he is called the “god of this age”—for his realm includes death and the whole of humanity (Hebrews 2:14). He is also identified with Leviathan in Scripture (Rev. 12:9)
In what way is Death a power?
Death is both a realm and a ruler. Sheol or “the pit” are the names of the realm where the dead dwell and Death/Sheol or the Destroyer is the name of the power that rules over it. Anyone who sins or rebels against Yahweh in any way is condemned to live in Sheol, and (almost) everyone who dies goes there (Psalm 9:17; Job 24:19). This means that all of humanity, every member of which has rebelled against Yahweh at one point or another, is under the rule of Death (Romans 5:12-14). Death is also allowed to punish nations or cities that rebel against Yahweh. He is the Destroyer who went through Egypt, taking all of their firstborn (Exodus 12:23). On the last day, death, an enemy of God, will be destroyed (I Corinthians 15:26; Rev. 20:14)
In what way is Sin a power?
Sin is an act of rebellion in opposition to God’s rule. But there are also powers of sin that control people because they have sinned (Romans 5:12-14). These powers of sin are demons and they have the right to rule and to punish any human who sins. They do this under submission of the power of Death, who eventually will take the human under their control. The powers of sin inflict the human with misery, both earthly and spiritual as punishment for their sin—including some sicknesses, some afflictions, some mental health disorders and some attacks by other nations (Luke 13:16; Mark 9:17-18).
How are the national gods evil?
The national powers or gods (explained in part 1) are evil because: a. They allow—even encourage— humans to worship them. b. They act in excessive violence toward their people and other nations; c. They attempt to take control over what is not their right; and d. They allow their human counterparts to rule unjustly against the poor or righteous. These national gods will be destroyed one by one according to their sins and in the end they will all be destroyed.
Who are the nations?
The nations are anyone unfaithful to Yahweh that wields authority over others. It could be a national ruler, a city ruler, a religious ruler or a family ruler. These rulers are appointed by God and rightfully uses the authority they have (Romans 13:1-5). However, in the end, they will be punished by Yahweh if they harm the poor or the righteous unjustly. (Psalm 82) In the meantime, Yahweh allows Satan and the national gods to use the nations to fight, control and destroy any who sin—whether another nation, a criminal, a disobedient child, etc. Yahweh also hands his people over to the nations if his people are in sin (Judges 2). Yahweh punishes these rulers if they fail to acknowledge Him or if they oppress those whom they rule over (Daniel 4:19-27; Acts 12:19-23)
How are we to respond to the evil powers?
1. We do not disrespect their authority
Jude 8-10—Those who disrespect angelic authority—even evil powers—are called false teachers.
2. Outside of Jesus, we are powerless against their authority
Acts 19:13-16. There is no authority over any power apart from Jesus, who grants us authority over the powers of heaven and earth. (Matthew 28:19-20; Luke 10:19)
3. We resist any evil spiritual authority
When a spirit in the realm of Satan attempts to attack us, if we have Jesus’ authority, we can resist them—that is, rebel against their authority. They have no authority over us if we are in Jesus. (I John 2:13-14; Ephesians 6:11-13). We are not to place ourselves under the authority of an evil one in any way.
4. We do not rebel against human authority in any way
We are not to rebel against human beings whom Yahweh rightfully appointed us to honor and obey. Only if a human ruler tells us to do something opposed to the will of God can we refuse to submit to them. Otherwise, if we disobey a human ruler, we are disobeying God’s rightful authority. (Matthew 5:38-42; Romans 13:1-7)
5. We can plunder the possessions of evil spiritual powers.
Genesis 1:28; Mark 3:27. We are to take possession of the earth from the evil ones. Should there be people in agony under the oppression of evil spirits, we are to set them free by the authority and power of Jesus. Luke 10:19.
6. The evil one will attack us with all the resources at his disposal.
While under submission to Jesus we can command the evil spirits, we cannot do so with the human counterparts submitting to evil spirits. Satan will use all he has to attack us. If we are susceptible to evil spirits he will attack us that way. If not, then he will attack us through humans—our families or authorities. If we fight against Satan, he will attack us and try to kill us. (Rev. 12:17; Matthew 10:25:34-38)
Heavenly Powers Earthly Powers
Leviathan
Rebellious powers, including,
Darkness
The Sea/Yom
Waters
Sun—ruler of day
Moon and stars—rulers of night------------------------------------Priests of the
Sun, moon and stars
Satan/Devil/Beelzebul/God of this age--------Leviathan
Death/Sheol/The Destroyer
Evil Spirits/demons
National Powers/gods (E.g. Prince of Persia; King of Tyre;
Baal, Ra, Ashereth, mammon, etc) -------------Ã “The nations”
Evil Spirits /demons governments,
Religious leaders,teachers,
spouses, fathers
What are evil powers?
These are authorities in heaven that have rule over certain areas with two distinctives: they try to punish or harm human beings and they have at one time or another rebelled against Yahweh, God of gods (John 8:44; Job 1; Revelation 12:7-8). Since Yahweh has given reign of the earth to humans—rather than them— these powers hate humans and attempt to circumvent Yahweh’s plan and will (Psalm 8). However, despite their bad intentions, these powers are still under submission to Yahweh and must do as He says or else they will lose their positions and be destroyed (Psalm 82; . In the end, it says in Scripture, they will lose their positions when Yahweh is ready to depose them.
Who is Leviathan?
He is the ancient serpent who fought against Yahweh with the darkness and the waters before the events in Genesis 1 (Psalm 74:12-17). Although Leviathan has been tamed by Yahweh, he is still dangerous and a threat (Job 41:1-34). On the final day, Leviathan will be killed (Isaiah 27:1). Leviathan might be the same as Satan (Revelation 12).
Who are the rebellious powers?
There are many lesser powers who fought Yahweh with Leviathan and who are still very dangerous—the sea (called Yom by name), the darkness and the waters. In Genesis 1, Yahweh is punishing the waters and the darkness for their participation in Leviathan’s rebellion. They remain in strict submission to Yahweh and do as he commands (Psalm 77:15-20; Psalm 18:9-15). However, they are fundamentally still rebellious and they will be destroyed on the last day (Revelation 21:1, 22:5).
What about the sun, moon and stars?
In the Bible, these lights stand for powers in heaven that rule over the day and night (Genesis 1; Psalm 136:9). These powers are evil and they smite humans (Psalm 121:6). They are punished for their unrighteous activity on earth (Joel 3:15) and will eventually be lowered and exiled (Isaiah 24:23; Isaiah 60:19-20)
Who is Satan?
“Satan” is not a name, but a position in God’s heavenly realm. “Satan” translated means “Accuser” or, possibly, “Prosecutor”. The Satan is the one who has the job of accusing people of their sins. Satan from the beginning hated human beings and wanted to destroy them, probably because humans hold the authority that Satan himself wanted to have (John 8:44). Satan’s plan to murder humans is this: first he lies to them that sin before Yahweh will grant them peace and exaltation (Genesis 3, John 8:44). Thus he is called “the devil” or “the liar.” If the human doesn’t believe Satan’s lies, then Satan causes difficulties or problems to come to the human to encourage him to find his salvation in someone other than Yahweh (Job 1-2; Mark 4:16-17). For this reason, Satan is called “the tester” (Matthew 4:3; I Thessalonians 3:5) Then, when the human is caught in sin, Satan accuses the human of sin before Yahweh (Revelation 12:10). In this way, he gets Yahweh to punish His own appointed rulers. Satan is also the ruler of his realm, and so he is called the “god of this age”—for his realm includes death and the whole of humanity (Hebrews 2:14). He is also identified with Leviathan in Scripture (Rev. 12:9)
In what way is Death a power?
Death is both a realm and a ruler. Sheol or “the pit” are the names of the realm where the dead dwell and Death/Sheol or the Destroyer is the name of the power that rules over it. Anyone who sins or rebels against Yahweh in any way is condemned to live in Sheol, and (almost) everyone who dies goes there (Psalm 9:17; Job 24:19). This means that all of humanity, every member of which has rebelled against Yahweh at one point or another, is under the rule of Death (Romans 5:12-14). Death is also allowed to punish nations or cities that rebel against Yahweh. He is the Destroyer who went through Egypt, taking all of their firstborn (Exodus 12:23). On the last day, death, an enemy of God, will be destroyed (I Corinthians 15:26; Rev. 20:14)
In what way is Sin a power?
Sin is an act of rebellion in opposition to God’s rule. But there are also powers of sin that control people because they have sinned (Romans 5:12-14). These powers of sin are demons and they have the right to rule and to punish any human who sins. They do this under submission of the power of Death, who eventually will take the human under their control. The powers of sin inflict the human with misery, both earthly and spiritual as punishment for their sin—including some sicknesses, some afflictions, some mental health disorders and some attacks by other nations (Luke 13:16; Mark 9:17-18).
How are the national gods evil?
The national powers or gods (explained in part 1) are evil because: a. They allow—even encourage— humans to worship them. b. They act in excessive violence toward their people and other nations; c. They attempt to take control over what is not their right; and d. They allow their human counterparts to rule unjustly against the poor or righteous. These national gods will be destroyed one by one according to their sins and in the end they will all be destroyed.
Who are the nations?
The nations are anyone unfaithful to Yahweh that wields authority over others. It could be a national ruler, a city ruler, a religious ruler or a family ruler. These rulers are appointed by God and rightfully uses the authority they have (Romans 13:1-5). However, in the end, they will be punished by Yahweh if they harm the poor or the righteous unjustly. (Psalm 82) In the meantime, Yahweh allows Satan and the national gods to use the nations to fight, control and destroy any who sin—whether another nation, a criminal, a disobedient child, etc. Yahweh also hands his people over to the nations if his people are in sin (Judges 2). Yahweh punishes these rulers if they fail to acknowledge Him or if they oppress those whom they rule over (Daniel 4:19-27; Acts 12:19-23)
How are we to respond to the evil powers?
1. We do not disrespect their authority
Jude 8-10—Those who disrespect angelic authority—even evil powers—are called false teachers.
2. Outside of Jesus, we are powerless against their authority
Acts 19:13-16. There is no authority over any power apart from Jesus, who grants us authority over the powers of heaven and earth. (Matthew 28:19-20; Luke 10:19)
3. We resist any evil spiritual authority
When a spirit in the realm of Satan attempts to attack us, if we have Jesus’ authority, we can resist them—that is, rebel against their authority. They have no authority over us if we are in Jesus. (I John 2:13-14; Ephesians 6:11-13). We are not to place ourselves under the authority of an evil one in any way.
4. We do not rebel against human authority in any way
We are not to rebel against human beings whom Yahweh rightfully appointed us to honor and obey. Only if a human ruler tells us to do something opposed to the will of God can we refuse to submit to them. Otherwise, if we disobey a human ruler, we are disobeying God’s rightful authority. (Matthew 5:38-42; Romans 13:1-7)
5. We can plunder the possessions of evil spiritual powers.
Genesis 1:28; Mark 3:27. We are to take possession of the earth from the evil ones. Should there be people in agony under the oppression of evil spirits, we are to set them free by the authority and power of Jesus. Luke 10:19.
6. The evil one will attack us with all the resources at his disposal.
While under submission to Jesus we can command the evil spirits, we cannot do so with the human counterparts submitting to evil spirits. Satan will use all he has to attack us. If we are susceptible to evil spirits he will attack us that way. If not, then he will attack us through humans—our families or authorities. If we fight against Satan, he will attack us and try to kill us. (Rev. 12:17; Matthew 10:25:34-38)
Introducing the Powers
Introduction to Powers
Yahweh—God of Gods—God the Father
Powers in heaven Powers in Earth
Council of gods/Sons of God
Angels over realms
National gods -----------------------------------------------Ã Emperors
Messengers/Spirits Kings/Princes
Elders/Shepherds
Fathers
Humanity
Realm of Land
Realm of Sea
Realm of Air
1. Who are the powers?
They are people who have power and authority over a certain realm. Some (like an Emperor) have power over a vast realm with other rulers under him. Some (like a father over his family) have limited authority, but they still have authority over some.
2. What are heavenly powers?
These are powers who cannot be seen because they exist on a “spiritual” level. They may appear on earth at times, but they usually make their authority felt, but rarely seen—like the wind. (Ephesians 6:2; I Peter 3:22)
3. Who is Yahweh?
Yahweh is who we call “God” today. Yahweh how he revealed himself to Israel and it is what he calls his name, as opposed to “God” or “Most High” or various other names which are only titles or descriptions. He is called the “God of gods” because He is the greatest authority over all the powers—heaven and earth. He is called “One” because there is no one next to him in power and authority. He is called “Father” because he is the great authority over all. (Exodus 3:13-15; Deut. 10:17; Joshua 22:22; Psalm 84:7; Psalm 95:3; Psalm 97:9; Psalm 135:5; Psalm 136:2; Daniel 2:47; Daniel 11:36)
4. What are angels?
The word “angel” is a general term for heavenly powers. It literally means “messenger”, which determines the common use that Yahweh has for the powers to men. However, angels do more than just give messages—they can command over an army, over a human body, over winds and rivers (Joshua 5:13-15; Luke 1:19-20; Daniel 10:10-14; Revelation 9:1-3; 13-15). Again, each angel has realms of authority and they have control over that realm to rule justly. These powers are also called “spirits”, “gods”, “sons of god”, “elements”, and “powers” in Scripture .
5. What are earthly powers?
These are the powers of governments and rulers that we are familiar with. Today, presidents, prime ministers, generals, corporate executives, archbishops are all powers with a realm over which they rule. A homeowner is a power with authority over his realm, although other authorities rule over him or her. Even so, all the powers on earth have a realm over which they rule, but they are also ruled over. Even the greatest power on earth is ruled over by a heavenly power.
6. What are “sons of God”?
“Son of God” has various meanings, but the root meaning is an authority who is answerable directly to Yahweh himself. Thus there are many angelic powers who are called “sons of God” (such as in Job 1:6) and a few human rulers are called “sons of God” because their rulership is under God himself (such as in II Samuel 7:14).
7. What is the “council of God”?
This is a group of heavenly powers that answer directly to Yahweh, report to Him and take their direction from Him. This council might also make suggestions or give him counsel, but what Yahweh determines is unanswerable. (Psalm 82; 89:6-7; Jeremiah 23:18, 22)
8. What are “national gods”?
Over each distinct group of humanity, there is a god who rules over them. It is this power that is truly in charge of a nation or ethnic group. The human power—king or president or whatever—only rules under the authority of the national god, whether he or she recognizes that power or not. “When the Most High gave to the nations their inheritance, when he separated the sons of men, he fixed the bounds of the peoples according to the number of the sons of God.” Deuteronomy 32:8 (See also, Deut. 12:2; Deut. 12:30; Deut. 29:18; Josh 23:7; II Sam 7:23; I Kings 11:2)
9. How should we respond to the powers?
a. With fear. (Daniel 10:5-12; Luke 1:11-13)
Powers are powerful and otherworldly. They are nothing to treat lightly or casually. These powers have the power of life and death in them and many of them have power over mankind. When a man sees a heavenly power, his first impulse is to quake with fear or worship the being. These are beings who it is natural for us to fear. If we have nothing to fear from them, they will tell us so, but otherwise there may be much to fear.
b. With reverence (Jude 1:8-11)
These powers, even the evil ones, have authority given to them by Yahweh, the God of gods Himself. We cannot take authority into our own hands nor can we command powers as if they were animals. We are to be respectful to all powers and to acknowledge the authority they do have.
c. Not with worship (Revelation 22:8-9)
We are not to worship any of the lesser gods or offer them slave-service. We are under the authority of Yahweh himself through his Son Jesus Christ. Other gods are to be respected, but not worshipped or bowed down to. We reserve all worship to Yahweh himself.
d. With boldness. (Luke 10:18-20; Ephesians 6:12-13)
When we are dealing with powers that have overstepped their authority—an evil spirit that has entered into our realm, for instance—we can boldly command that power to leave because they are doing what they are not allowed to do.
e. With care (Matthew 12:43-45; Acts 19:13-16)
We cannot command any and every power that have a right to do what they are doing. If an evil spirit has control over a person because that person invited that spirit into their realm, it is very difficult to command that spirit to leave. Only the one who is the ruler of that realm can do so. If a national power is doing evil, they have the power to do evil over their realm and we cannot stop it by commanding it to go. If we overstep our authority, then it is we, ourselves, who will be hurt or cast out.
Yahweh—God of Gods—God the Father
Powers in heaven Powers in Earth
Council of gods/Sons of God
Angels over realms
National gods -----------------------------------------------Ã Emperors
Messengers/Spirits Kings/Princes
Elders/Shepherds
Fathers
Humanity
Realm of Land
Realm of Sea
Realm of Air
1. Who are the powers?
They are people who have power and authority over a certain realm. Some (like an Emperor) have power over a vast realm with other rulers under him. Some (like a father over his family) have limited authority, but they still have authority over some.
2. What are heavenly powers?
These are powers who cannot be seen because they exist on a “spiritual” level. They may appear on earth at times, but they usually make their authority felt, but rarely seen—like the wind. (Ephesians 6:2; I Peter 3:22)
3. Who is Yahweh?
Yahweh is who we call “God” today. Yahweh how he revealed himself to Israel and it is what he calls his name, as opposed to “God” or “Most High” or various other names which are only titles or descriptions. He is called the “God of gods” because He is the greatest authority over all the powers—heaven and earth. He is called “One” because there is no one next to him in power and authority. He is called “Father” because he is the great authority over all. (Exodus 3:13-15; Deut. 10:17; Joshua 22:22; Psalm 84:7; Psalm 95:3; Psalm 97:9; Psalm 135:5; Psalm 136:2; Daniel 2:47; Daniel 11:36)
4. What are angels?
The word “angel” is a general term for heavenly powers. It literally means “messenger”, which determines the common use that Yahweh has for the powers to men. However, angels do more than just give messages—they can command over an army, over a human body, over winds and rivers (Joshua 5:13-15; Luke 1:19-20; Daniel 10:10-14; Revelation 9:1-3; 13-15). Again, each angel has realms of authority and they have control over that realm to rule justly. These powers are also called “spirits”, “gods”, “sons of god”, “elements”, and “powers” in Scripture .
5. What are earthly powers?
These are the powers of governments and rulers that we are familiar with. Today, presidents, prime ministers, generals, corporate executives, archbishops are all powers with a realm over which they rule. A homeowner is a power with authority over his realm, although other authorities rule over him or her. Even so, all the powers on earth have a realm over which they rule, but they are also ruled over. Even the greatest power on earth is ruled over by a heavenly power.
6. What are “sons of God”?
“Son of God” has various meanings, but the root meaning is an authority who is answerable directly to Yahweh himself. Thus there are many angelic powers who are called “sons of God” (such as in Job 1:6) and a few human rulers are called “sons of God” because their rulership is under God himself (such as in II Samuel 7:14).
7. What is the “council of God”?
This is a group of heavenly powers that answer directly to Yahweh, report to Him and take their direction from Him. This council might also make suggestions or give him counsel, but what Yahweh determines is unanswerable. (Psalm 82; 89:6-7; Jeremiah 23:18, 22)
8. What are “national gods”?
Over each distinct group of humanity, there is a god who rules over them. It is this power that is truly in charge of a nation or ethnic group. The human power—king or president or whatever—only rules under the authority of the national god, whether he or she recognizes that power or not. “When the Most High gave to the nations their inheritance, when he separated the sons of men, he fixed the bounds of the peoples according to the number of the sons of God.” Deuteronomy 32:8 (See also, Deut. 12:2; Deut. 12:30; Deut. 29:18; Josh 23:7; II Sam 7:23; I Kings 11:2)
9. How should we respond to the powers?
a. With fear. (Daniel 10:5-12; Luke 1:11-13)
Powers are powerful and otherworldly. They are nothing to treat lightly or casually. These powers have the power of life and death in them and many of them have power over mankind. When a man sees a heavenly power, his first impulse is to quake with fear or worship the being. These are beings who it is natural for us to fear. If we have nothing to fear from them, they will tell us so, but otherwise there may be much to fear.
b. With reverence (Jude 1:8-11)
These powers, even the evil ones, have authority given to them by Yahweh, the God of gods Himself. We cannot take authority into our own hands nor can we command powers as if they were animals. We are to be respectful to all powers and to acknowledge the authority they do have.
c. Not with worship (Revelation 22:8-9)
We are not to worship any of the lesser gods or offer them slave-service. We are under the authority of Yahweh himself through his Son Jesus Christ. Other gods are to be respected, but not worshipped or bowed down to. We reserve all worship to Yahweh himself.
d. With boldness. (Luke 10:18-20; Ephesians 6:12-13)
When we are dealing with powers that have overstepped their authority—an evil spirit that has entered into our realm, for instance—we can boldly command that power to leave because they are doing what they are not allowed to do.
e. With care (Matthew 12:43-45; Acts 19:13-16)
We cannot command any and every power that have a right to do what they are doing. If an evil spirit has control over a person because that person invited that spirit into their realm, it is very difficult to command that spirit to leave. Only the one who is the ruler of that realm can do so. If a national power is doing evil, they have the power to do evil over their realm and we cannot stop it by commanding it to go. If we overstep our authority, then it is we, ourselves, who will be hurt or cast out.
Suffering For Fun and Profit
It is a fact that I do not share often that I grew up in Orange County, California. The OC. The beach, the multinational corporations, the malls. According to fictional media, the center of wealth and decedent lifestyles. Mind you, me and my friends teenage lives didn’t look much like the lives of the kids on the TV show or the movie named after my home county, but there is no doubt that I grew up privileged and a bit spoiled. Heck, I didn’t know any better, and as I became a Christian, I saw that wealth was a proper result of living a right life in Jesus. Every man and woman I knew who lived in Christ lived successful, beautiful, powerful existences. That was just to be expected if one lived in Jesus and was responsible and worked hard.
That was before I went to India. I went there to go to a mission school, and what a schooling I received. I spent six months in Calcutta and Bangladesh. Calcutta, at the time I lived there, had a population of 12 million people with a million of them living on the street, washing themselves under pumps in the street, picking through garbage heaps, holding half-dead infants. Bangladesh is considered the largest, poorest country in the world, having a mostly rural population half the size of the U.S. in a country the size of Wisconsin. I saw people in poverty, but learned from my caretakers not to give, not to even look at beggars, or else I would be taken advantage of.
I returned to Orange County on Christmas Day—a religious holiday covered in a veneer of materialism and decadence. I spent many nights awake at night, wondering how God could allow Orange County and Calcutta to both exist. It seems so unbelievably unjust when held side by side. And my own response in the midst of poverty was disgusting—selfishness, not “wanting to be taken advantage of” when poverty and death surrounded me. But what is to be my response to poverty? How should I respond to suffering and poverty, given that I have so many resources, so much?
I could have responded in guilt, and much of the time I did. I could have responded with apathy, and treat the poor as if their poverty is their own fault, or the fault of their nations. I could have responded to this contradiction in the earth by becoming an activist, to make the world a more just place. But as I looked to Jesus for my answers, I realized that what Jesus was actually asking me to do is to live the life of the cross.
We look to Jesus for our salvation and trust in God that through Jesus we will be delivered from sin, Satan and death. Praise God for the deliverance we have through his death on the cross! May the cross be proclaimed from the lowest parts of the earth to the highest point in heaven!
But in our proclamation of the salvation to be found in the cross of Jesus, we have forgotten the teaching of Jesus about the cross. The cross is not just something that we look at, believe in and admire from a distance. Rather, the cross is something for us to carry. Jesus said, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me. For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and the gospel's will save it.” (Mark 8:34-35)
The gospel is not a “feel good” religion. The source of the gospel is Jesus himself, and he himself determines what the gospel consists of. And Jesus himself declared the gospel to be the accepting of suffering and poverty—not only for himself, but for everyone who wishes to receive his salvation.
If we desire to partake in the salvation of Jesus, the cross is not just an option—it is a requirement. To lose our lives, to deny ourselves is not just something for the super-powerful saint, but for the everyday disciple of Jesus. If we do not follow him, we do not have salvation.
Poverty is not just an option.
The cross of Jesus is to accept a lifestyle of what many call “inadequate living” or poverty. Poverty is not just an option. Rather, it is an essential requirement of the gospel. To accept the gospel, one must renounce ones own riches and possessions for the sake of the kingdom of God, for the sake of the needy.
What does Jesus say?
The poor of this world will receive God’s kingdom.
“Blessed are you disciples who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of heaven.” Luke 6:20
“God chose the poor of this world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom which He promised to those who love Him.” James 2:5
No one can be a disciple unless he renounces all of his possessions.
“Let’s say that a king is going to meet another king in battle. The lesser king has ten thousand men and the greater king has twenty thousand. Wouldn’t the lesser king send a delegation to the greater king for terms of surrender—giving up out of his storehouse what he has? Even so, no one can be my disciple unless he renounces all of his possessions.” Luke 14:31-33.
If you give what you have to the poor, you will have treasure in heaven.
“Do not treasure up treasure on earth, but treasure up treasure in heaven.” Matthew 6:19-20
“Sell your possessions and give to the poor and so make for yourselves a treasure in heaven.” Luke 12:33
One will gain the kingdom of heaven only by selling what he has and giving it away.
“The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure hidden in a field. A man found it and hid it again. Then he sold everything he had in order to buy that field in order to gain joy.” Matthew 13:44
He who renounces a normal life for the sake of Jesus will gain more than what he left and eternal life.
“There is no one who has left house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or farms, for My sake and for the gospel's sake, but that he will receive a hundred times as much now in the present age. He will receive houses and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and farms— along with persecutions. And in the age to come he will receive eternal life.” Mark 10:29-30
The one who renounces their possessions for the sake of the gospel will have their provisions met by God.
“Do not worry about your life— what you will eat or what you will drink. Do not worry about your body—what you will put on. Look at the birds of the air, that they do not farm, nor harvest nor store up food, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not worth much more than they?” Matthew 6:25-26
If we are to follow Jesus, we must renounce our riches and possessions and surrender them to those who have needs. If we do not do so, we do not have the salvation of Jesus. This is a result of our faith, not just a nice thing to do. This is fulfilling the word of Jesus.
Suffering is not just an option.
The New Testament is clear about the place of suffering in the Christian life. If one is not suffering persecutions, tribulations, testings or opposition because they are following Jesus, then that one is not truly following Jesus. The one who does not suffer does not receive the kingdom of God.
What do Jesus and the apostles say?
Those who are persecuted will gain God’s kingdom.
“Blessed are you when men hate you and insult you and slander you and separate themselves from you for the sake of the Son of Man. Be glad in that day and leap for your reward will be great in heaven.” Luke 6:22-23
“Blessed are those who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” Matthew 5:10
“But woe to you when all men speak well of you, for so did their fathers treat the false prophets.” Luke 6:26
If we are followers of Jesus, we will receive the sufferings he suffered
“A disciple is not greater than his teacher, nor is a slave greater than his master. It is enough for the disciple to be like his teacher. If they have called the head of the household “Satan,” then how much more will they slander those who live in the house!” Matthew 10:24-25
“If you patiently endure suffering for doing what is right, you have favor with God. For the purpose of suffering like this you have been called, since Christ also suffered for you, and thus he left an example for you to follow in his steps.” I Peter 2:20-21
It was Jesus’ purpose that his followers suffer opposition
“Do not think that I came to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace to you, but a sword will be held against you. I came to set a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law; and a man's enemies will be the members of his household.” Matthew 10:34-36
The one who hates his life and suffers for Jesus will gain eternal life.
Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit. He who loves his life loses it, and he who hates his life in this world will keep it to life eternal. John 12:24-25
We will not gain the benefits of the salvation of Jesus without suffering.
“We will not enter the kingdom of heaven except through many trials.” Acts 14 22
“Everyone who desires to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.” II Timothy 3:12
“The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, heirs also, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him so that we may also be glorified with Him.” Romans 8:16-17
Suffering is not an option. If we do not suffer for the sake of Jesus and the gospel, then it shows that we are not true followers of Jesus. If we do not truly follow Jesus, then we will not gain the kingdom of heaven or be called children of God.
In the parable of the sower, Jesus indicates two areas that we will fall away from the gospel of God: If we do not endure under suffering, and if we focus on the things and worries of this world (Mark 4:14-20). These are the two areas that have also captured the church of the United States. We want to do everything we can to avoid suffering—even if it means that we must compromise the gospel. “God will forgive me” we say, and than we move on spending our lives focused on vanquishing pain instead of loving one another. We desire comforts and pleasures, at almost any cost. If others around us do not have their needs met, that doesn’t matter. What is more important is that we have our entertainments, comforts and securities.
We have forsaken the gospel for the things of this world. How can we think that we will gain the kingdom of God? How can we think that Jesus is pleased with our lives devoid of sacrifice or love?
What kind of poverty and suffering?
Not every kind of poverty or suffering will be blessed by God. Not everyone who is poor will be welcomed into the kingdom. Nor does every poor man represent Jesus. Those who are poor because of their own laziness are not blessed. Those who are poor because of drug use or mental illness are not blessed. Not even all of those who surrender their possessions to the poor will be saved. Only certain kinds of renouncing and poverty will be blessed.
Not all of those who suffer will gain God’s kingdom. Not everyone who is sick will gain the blessing of God. Not everyone suffering from war, famine or hate crimes will gain God’s favor. Those who suffer because they are taking vengeance are suffering rightly, and gain no blessing from God. Those who suffer because they have done wrong are not to be praised. Those who suffer because they are teaching that which is apart from the teaching of Jesus gain no favor from God.
So what kind of poverty and suffering do gain favor with God? There are three kinds of poverty or suffering that follow the way of Jesus;
1. The renouncing of all that we have for the sake of Jesus, the kingdom of God and the gospel.
If we are to follow Jesus, the Lord requires that we place everything that we have at his disposal for his use. Jesus does not just require a tithe of our income. Nor does he seek out the occasional love offering. Rather, what he wants is total surrender. Jesus wants everything we have to be put at his disposal—every relationship, every bit of our time, every possession we have, every bit of our knowledge, every authority we have, all of our money, all of our energies. All of these are to be surrendered to Jesus for use in the kingdom of God. Some of these things are to be of no use for him—some of our relationships will have to be severed, some of our possessions will have to be sold, some of our ambitions will have to be laid aside, some of us will have to quit our jobs. There is nothing left for the world. There is nothing left for sin. Other things can be transferred to his use: our money can be used for his kingdom, our goals can be for building up his people, our energies can be used for obeying him. But whatever we have, whatever we are, all goes to Jesus. Nothing left for selfish ambition. Nothing left for our pleasures. All for Jesus. In this way, we are poor. In this way, we truly suffer. For there is nothing left for ourselves.
This is the way of salvation. This is the way of the cross.
2. The consequences of loving others.
Jesus did not come to earth for himself, but to surrender himself for the sake of others. Even so, we are commanded to do the same (Mark 10: 43-45). We live not for ourselves, but for the sake of others. This self-giving love has consequences. For the sake of love, Jesus lost his privacy, Jesus had to run away to pray. Jesus was ostracized and slandered because he wanted to seek those who were lost. And finally, he suffered shame and loss of his life for the sake of his love for the world. We are to act as Jesus did. We are to surrender our possessions and money for the needy. We are to lower ourselves and make as nothing our worldly ambitions so we can life others up. We are to attach ourselves to the undesirables of the world in order to draw them to Jesus. We are to not do harm to anyone, not even to those who harm us. The result of love is suffering. The result of giving for the sake of love is having nothing left.
This is the way of salvation. This is the way of the cross.
3. Opposition because of holding to the gospel of Jesus.
When we understand what the gospel really says and teach that gospel to others, there will be opposition. Few want to hear that Jesus is the only way. Few want to hear that their sin leads to death. Few can abide the way of the cross. The way of the gospel is narrow—few there are that can follow it. And those who chose not to follow the whole gospel will be opposed to those who proclaim it as the only way of salvation. In some cases, the advocates of the gospel will be hated by those who reject the gospel. Sometimes they will be called heretics or servants of Satan. Sometimes they will be sued or have their possessions taken from them. Sometimes they will have violence done against them. Nevertheless, the follower of Jesus will boldly proclaim the gospel, neglecting their own care or well-being for the sake of the kingdom of God. The result of proclaiming the gospel is suffering. The result of living for Jesus is the stripping away of all that we have.This is the way of salvation. This is the way of the cross.
How do we enter into Jesus’ salvation?
We must be practical and realistic. The salvation of Jesus is not just something to think about, something to debate. It is something one lives—fully and completely or not at all. Jesus didn’t tell his disciples to debate the merits of the gospel or to argue on the finer points of it. He told them, “follow me.” He told them, “Deny yourself and take up your cross.” This is not just in the mind, in the attitude—it is lived or it is nothing. Here are some steps to help you live out the way of Jesus as a lifestyle of salvation:
1. Confess Jesus as your Lord and example
Romans 10:9-10; Matthew 10:24-25,32-34
Publicly confess Jesus as your Lord. As Lord, you will do all you can to obey him and he will be your Teacher, Master and Model. In all ways give him priority in your life.
2. Ask for the Spirit to assist you in the way of the cross.
Luke 11:11-13; Mark 14:38; Romans 8:26
We cannot accept the cross on our own. Rather, our desires reject the idea of the cross; our lives find the path of poverty and salvation repugnant. Seek the Lord for the Spirit of God, who will help us in our weaknesses. If we ask persistantly for the Spirit, God will give him to us, who desires only to give us that which is good.
3. Place God’s kingdom and righteousness first in your life
Matthew 6:33
Jesus’ priority is to have more people following his gospel and living out his righteousness. Dedicate yourself to desiring what Jesus desires and to dedicate yourself to living out the gospel of Jesus.
4. Renounce anything that is blocking you doing God’s will.
Matthew 18:7-9
If there is anything you have control of that is obviously standing in the way of you obeying Jesus, be rid of it as quickly as possible. It could be a person, it could be an item, it could be a habit you have. Whatever it is—be rid of it as soon as possible. Allow Jesus to rule you completely. Let nothing in that will interrupt your devotion to him.
5. Consider others’ and their needs as more important than yourself
Philippians 2:3-4; Matthew 7:12
Jesus said that to fulfill his commands, you need to place yourself at other’s disposal. If someone is in need, look to see if you can meet that need. Their need might just be to have someone to listen to, it might be to guide them to Jesus, or it might be to give them some food or clothing. Be open to the opportunities circumstances allow you to be loving to others, To give to their needs.
6. Make of list of all of your resources and surrender them to your Lord, Jesus.
Luke 14:26-33
Jesus warned us that we ought to recognize what the cost of following him would be if we were to follow him. Let us literally “count the cost”—make a list of everything you have, including relationships, time, income, possessions, etc. For some of us this might take some time. Then, for every item on the list, surrender it to your Lord, Jesus and ask him what he would have you do with that resource.
7. Listen to the Spirit to determine what to do with each item on the list.
John 14:26; Matthew 6:33
The Spirit will remind you of the teaching of Jesus and give you help in applying it to your life in every case. Allow the Lord to guide you to use your resources in accordance with placing the kingdom of God first.
8. Be bold in proclaiming the full gospel of Jesus
Mark 8:38; Acts 4:29-31
Do not be ashamed of God’s true gospel as taught and lived by Jesus. Pray that the Lord might give you boldness to speak of Jesus alone—with no one else beside him. Pray that you may stand with Paul to proclaim the foolishness of the cross—both the cross that Jesus bore himself and the cross that we need to bear for his sake.
What are the benefits of suffering in the way of Jesus?
Approval of God
We will be allowed in God’s presence, like the prophets of old who had approval of God. Our prayers will be heard and we will be God’s children. (Luke 6:22-23; Romans 8:16-17)
Moral Strength
To suffer is not only profit for us, but it builds up godly character in us, if we accept it as a positive thing from God, in faith, and we will gain more future reward. (James 1:2-4; Romans 5:3-4; Hebrews 10:32-12:11)
Kingdom of God
God will give us rulership in the coming kingdom, he will give us his Spirit, he will give us authority, he will give us the whole earth. (Matthew 5:3, 5-6, 11-12; Luke 11:13)
Deliverance by God
God only gives deliverance to those who need it—this is the secret of the cross. If we suffer, we need deliverance by God, and he will deliver us personally. (Luke 18:1-8; Mark 8:34-36; Mark 13:13)
Ministry of God
The true teachers of God have suffered and sacrificed and will deliver the people of God. The false teachers are in it for themselves, for the money, for what they can get out of it. (Matthew 10; I Timothy 6:3-5; II Timothy 3:1-12; Colossians 1:14)
Riches in God
The ones who sacrifice everything for Jesus will receive everything they need in this world, and in the next they will have great wealth. (Mark 10:20-30; Luke 12:22-34; Proverbs 28:27; 19:17)
Joy
Even as Jesus died for the joy he would receive, everyone who suffers or mourns in Jesus will laugh and have great joy, both now and in the next life. (Hebrews 12:2-11; Luke 6:21-23; Matthew 5:4)
My Solution is Jesus’ Solution
In the end, Jesus’ way of defeating poverty and suffering is to suffer and be poor. If we do so, then God will grant us the benefits of the righteous who are poor. In this way, the world will change. Only through incarnational suffering and poverty will God cause the world to be a different place. But we must accept this on ourselves. We must accept the suffering of the unjust, give our prized possessions to the poor—even if they don’t deserve it, or are taking advantage of us. If we live out poverty in Jesus, we can show Jesus to the poor. If we live out suffering in Jesus, we can show the world what Jesus’ suffering is like. We must surrender our lives and take on the sacrifice of Jesus. In this way, justice will be done by the only One who can create justice.
“Take, Lord, all my liberty. Receive my memory, my understanding and my whole will. Whatever I have and possess, you have given to me; to you I will restore it wholly and to your will I surrender it for my direction. Give me the love of you only, with your grace am I rich enough, nor do I ask for anything beside. Dearest Lord, teach me to be generous. Teach me to serve thee as thou deservest: to give and not count the cost; to struggle and not to heed the wounds; to toil and not to seek reward save that of knowing that I do thy will, O God." -Ignatius Loyola
That was before I went to India. I went there to go to a mission school, and what a schooling I received. I spent six months in Calcutta and Bangladesh. Calcutta, at the time I lived there, had a population of 12 million people with a million of them living on the street, washing themselves under pumps in the street, picking through garbage heaps, holding half-dead infants. Bangladesh is considered the largest, poorest country in the world, having a mostly rural population half the size of the U.S. in a country the size of Wisconsin. I saw people in poverty, but learned from my caretakers not to give, not to even look at beggars, or else I would be taken advantage of.
I returned to Orange County on Christmas Day—a religious holiday covered in a veneer of materialism and decadence. I spent many nights awake at night, wondering how God could allow Orange County and Calcutta to both exist. It seems so unbelievably unjust when held side by side. And my own response in the midst of poverty was disgusting—selfishness, not “wanting to be taken advantage of” when poverty and death surrounded me. But what is to be my response to poverty? How should I respond to suffering and poverty, given that I have so many resources, so much?
I could have responded in guilt, and much of the time I did. I could have responded with apathy, and treat the poor as if their poverty is their own fault, or the fault of their nations. I could have responded to this contradiction in the earth by becoming an activist, to make the world a more just place. But as I looked to Jesus for my answers, I realized that what Jesus was actually asking me to do is to live the life of the cross.
We look to Jesus for our salvation and trust in God that through Jesus we will be delivered from sin, Satan and death. Praise God for the deliverance we have through his death on the cross! May the cross be proclaimed from the lowest parts of the earth to the highest point in heaven!
But in our proclamation of the salvation to be found in the cross of Jesus, we have forgotten the teaching of Jesus about the cross. The cross is not just something that we look at, believe in and admire from a distance. Rather, the cross is something for us to carry. Jesus said, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me. For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and the gospel's will save it.” (Mark 8:34-35)
The gospel is not a “feel good” religion. The source of the gospel is Jesus himself, and he himself determines what the gospel consists of. And Jesus himself declared the gospel to be the accepting of suffering and poverty—not only for himself, but for everyone who wishes to receive his salvation.
If we desire to partake in the salvation of Jesus, the cross is not just an option—it is a requirement. To lose our lives, to deny ourselves is not just something for the super-powerful saint, but for the everyday disciple of Jesus. If we do not follow him, we do not have salvation.
Poverty is not just an option.
The cross of Jesus is to accept a lifestyle of what many call “inadequate living” or poverty. Poverty is not just an option. Rather, it is an essential requirement of the gospel. To accept the gospel, one must renounce ones own riches and possessions for the sake of the kingdom of God, for the sake of the needy.
What does Jesus say?
The poor of this world will receive God’s kingdom.
“Blessed are you disciples who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of heaven.” Luke 6:20
“God chose the poor of this world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom which He promised to those who love Him.” James 2:5
No one can be a disciple unless he renounces all of his possessions.
“Let’s say that a king is going to meet another king in battle. The lesser king has ten thousand men and the greater king has twenty thousand. Wouldn’t the lesser king send a delegation to the greater king for terms of surrender—giving up out of his storehouse what he has? Even so, no one can be my disciple unless he renounces all of his possessions.” Luke 14:31-33.
If you give what you have to the poor, you will have treasure in heaven.
“Do not treasure up treasure on earth, but treasure up treasure in heaven.” Matthew 6:19-20
“Sell your possessions and give to the poor and so make for yourselves a treasure in heaven.” Luke 12:33
One will gain the kingdom of heaven only by selling what he has and giving it away.
“The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure hidden in a field. A man found it and hid it again. Then he sold everything he had in order to buy that field in order to gain joy.” Matthew 13:44
He who renounces a normal life for the sake of Jesus will gain more than what he left and eternal life.
“There is no one who has left house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or farms, for My sake and for the gospel's sake, but that he will receive a hundred times as much now in the present age. He will receive houses and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and farms— along with persecutions. And in the age to come he will receive eternal life.” Mark 10:29-30
The one who renounces their possessions for the sake of the gospel will have their provisions met by God.
“Do not worry about your life— what you will eat or what you will drink. Do not worry about your body—what you will put on. Look at the birds of the air, that they do not farm, nor harvest nor store up food, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not worth much more than they?” Matthew 6:25-26
If we are to follow Jesus, we must renounce our riches and possessions and surrender them to those who have needs. If we do not do so, we do not have the salvation of Jesus. This is a result of our faith, not just a nice thing to do. This is fulfilling the word of Jesus.
Suffering is not just an option.
The New Testament is clear about the place of suffering in the Christian life. If one is not suffering persecutions, tribulations, testings or opposition because they are following Jesus, then that one is not truly following Jesus. The one who does not suffer does not receive the kingdom of God.
What do Jesus and the apostles say?
Those who are persecuted will gain God’s kingdom.
“Blessed are you when men hate you and insult you and slander you and separate themselves from you for the sake of the Son of Man. Be glad in that day and leap for your reward will be great in heaven.” Luke 6:22-23
“Blessed are those who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” Matthew 5:10
“But woe to you when all men speak well of you, for so did their fathers treat the false prophets.” Luke 6:26
If we are followers of Jesus, we will receive the sufferings he suffered
“A disciple is not greater than his teacher, nor is a slave greater than his master. It is enough for the disciple to be like his teacher. If they have called the head of the household “Satan,” then how much more will they slander those who live in the house!” Matthew 10:24-25
“If you patiently endure suffering for doing what is right, you have favor with God. For the purpose of suffering like this you have been called, since Christ also suffered for you, and thus he left an example for you to follow in his steps.” I Peter 2:20-21
It was Jesus’ purpose that his followers suffer opposition
“Do not think that I came to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace to you, but a sword will be held against you. I came to set a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law; and a man's enemies will be the members of his household.” Matthew 10:34-36
The one who hates his life and suffers for Jesus will gain eternal life.
Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit. He who loves his life loses it, and he who hates his life in this world will keep it to life eternal. John 12:24-25
We will not gain the benefits of the salvation of Jesus without suffering.
“We will not enter the kingdom of heaven except through many trials.” Acts 14 22
“Everyone who desires to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.” II Timothy 3:12
“The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, heirs also, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him so that we may also be glorified with Him.” Romans 8:16-17
Suffering is not an option. If we do not suffer for the sake of Jesus and the gospel, then it shows that we are not true followers of Jesus. If we do not truly follow Jesus, then we will not gain the kingdom of heaven or be called children of God.
In the parable of the sower, Jesus indicates two areas that we will fall away from the gospel of God: If we do not endure under suffering, and if we focus on the things and worries of this world (Mark 4:14-20). These are the two areas that have also captured the church of the United States. We want to do everything we can to avoid suffering—even if it means that we must compromise the gospel. “God will forgive me” we say, and than we move on spending our lives focused on vanquishing pain instead of loving one another. We desire comforts and pleasures, at almost any cost. If others around us do not have their needs met, that doesn’t matter. What is more important is that we have our entertainments, comforts and securities.
We have forsaken the gospel for the things of this world. How can we think that we will gain the kingdom of God? How can we think that Jesus is pleased with our lives devoid of sacrifice or love?
What kind of poverty and suffering?
Not every kind of poverty or suffering will be blessed by God. Not everyone who is poor will be welcomed into the kingdom. Nor does every poor man represent Jesus. Those who are poor because of their own laziness are not blessed. Those who are poor because of drug use or mental illness are not blessed. Not even all of those who surrender their possessions to the poor will be saved. Only certain kinds of renouncing and poverty will be blessed.
Not all of those who suffer will gain God’s kingdom. Not everyone who is sick will gain the blessing of God. Not everyone suffering from war, famine or hate crimes will gain God’s favor. Those who suffer because they are taking vengeance are suffering rightly, and gain no blessing from God. Those who suffer because they have done wrong are not to be praised. Those who suffer because they are teaching that which is apart from the teaching of Jesus gain no favor from God.
So what kind of poverty and suffering do gain favor with God? There are three kinds of poverty or suffering that follow the way of Jesus;
1. The renouncing of all that we have for the sake of Jesus, the kingdom of God and the gospel.
If we are to follow Jesus, the Lord requires that we place everything that we have at his disposal for his use. Jesus does not just require a tithe of our income. Nor does he seek out the occasional love offering. Rather, what he wants is total surrender. Jesus wants everything we have to be put at his disposal—every relationship, every bit of our time, every possession we have, every bit of our knowledge, every authority we have, all of our money, all of our energies. All of these are to be surrendered to Jesus for use in the kingdom of God. Some of these things are to be of no use for him—some of our relationships will have to be severed, some of our possessions will have to be sold, some of our ambitions will have to be laid aside, some of us will have to quit our jobs. There is nothing left for the world. There is nothing left for sin. Other things can be transferred to his use: our money can be used for his kingdom, our goals can be for building up his people, our energies can be used for obeying him. But whatever we have, whatever we are, all goes to Jesus. Nothing left for selfish ambition. Nothing left for our pleasures. All for Jesus. In this way, we are poor. In this way, we truly suffer. For there is nothing left for ourselves.
This is the way of salvation. This is the way of the cross.
2. The consequences of loving others.
Jesus did not come to earth for himself, but to surrender himself for the sake of others. Even so, we are commanded to do the same (Mark 10: 43-45). We live not for ourselves, but for the sake of others. This self-giving love has consequences. For the sake of love, Jesus lost his privacy, Jesus had to run away to pray. Jesus was ostracized and slandered because he wanted to seek those who were lost. And finally, he suffered shame and loss of his life for the sake of his love for the world. We are to act as Jesus did. We are to surrender our possessions and money for the needy. We are to lower ourselves and make as nothing our worldly ambitions so we can life others up. We are to attach ourselves to the undesirables of the world in order to draw them to Jesus. We are to not do harm to anyone, not even to those who harm us. The result of love is suffering. The result of giving for the sake of love is having nothing left.
This is the way of salvation. This is the way of the cross.
3. Opposition because of holding to the gospel of Jesus.
When we understand what the gospel really says and teach that gospel to others, there will be opposition. Few want to hear that Jesus is the only way. Few want to hear that their sin leads to death. Few can abide the way of the cross. The way of the gospel is narrow—few there are that can follow it. And those who chose not to follow the whole gospel will be opposed to those who proclaim it as the only way of salvation. In some cases, the advocates of the gospel will be hated by those who reject the gospel. Sometimes they will be called heretics or servants of Satan. Sometimes they will be sued or have their possessions taken from them. Sometimes they will have violence done against them. Nevertheless, the follower of Jesus will boldly proclaim the gospel, neglecting their own care or well-being for the sake of the kingdom of God. The result of proclaiming the gospel is suffering. The result of living for Jesus is the stripping away of all that we have.This is the way of salvation. This is the way of the cross.
How do we enter into Jesus’ salvation?
We must be practical and realistic. The salvation of Jesus is not just something to think about, something to debate. It is something one lives—fully and completely or not at all. Jesus didn’t tell his disciples to debate the merits of the gospel or to argue on the finer points of it. He told them, “follow me.” He told them, “Deny yourself and take up your cross.” This is not just in the mind, in the attitude—it is lived or it is nothing. Here are some steps to help you live out the way of Jesus as a lifestyle of salvation:
1. Confess Jesus as your Lord and example
Romans 10:9-10; Matthew 10:24-25,32-34
Publicly confess Jesus as your Lord. As Lord, you will do all you can to obey him and he will be your Teacher, Master and Model. In all ways give him priority in your life.
2. Ask for the Spirit to assist you in the way of the cross.
Luke 11:11-13; Mark 14:38; Romans 8:26
We cannot accept the cross on our own. Rather, our desires reject the idea of the cross; our lives find the path of poverty and salvation repugnant. Seek the Lord for the Spirit of God, who will help us in our weaknesses. If we ask persistantly for the Spirit, God will give him to us, who desires only to give us that which is good.
3. Place God’s kingdom and righteousness first in your life
Matthew 6:33
Jesus’ priority is to have more people following his gospel and living out his righteousness. Dedicate yourself to desiring what Jesus desires and to dedicate yourself to living out the gospel of Jesus.
4. Renounce anything that is blocking you doing God’s will.
Matthew 18:7-9
If there is anything you have control of that is obviously standing in the way of you obeying Jesus, be rid of it as quickly as possible. It could be a person, it could be an item, it could be a habit you have. Whatever it is—be rid of it as soon as possible. Allow Jesus to rule you completely. Let nothing in that will interrupt your devotion to him.
5. Consider others’ and their needs as more important than yourself
Philippians 2:3-4; Matthew 7:12
Jesus said that to fulfill his commands, you need to place yourself at other’s disposal. If someone is in need, look to see if you can meet that need. Their need might just be to have someone to listen to, it might be to guide them to Jesus, or it might be to give them some food or clothing. Be open to the opportunities circumstances allow you to be loving to others, To give to their needs.
6. Make of list of all of your resources and surrender them to your Lord, Jesus.
Luke 14:26-33
Jesus warned us that we ought to recognize what the cost of following him would be if we were to follow him. Let us literally “count the cost”—make a list of everything you have, including relationships, time, income, possessions, etc. For some of us this might take some time. Then, for every item on the list, surrender it to your Lord, Jesus and ask him what he would have you do with that resource.
7. Listen to the Spirit to determine what to do with each item on the list.
John 14:26; Matthew 6:33
The Spirit will remind you of the teaching of Jesus and give you help in applying it to your life in every case. Allow the Lord to guide you to use your resources in accordance with placing the kingdom of God first.
8. Be bold in proclaiming the full gospel of Jesus
Mark 8:38; Acts 4:29-31
Do not be ashamed of God’s true gospel as taught and lived by Jesus. Pray that the Lord might give you boldness to speak of Jesus alone—with no one else beside him. Pray that you may stand with Paul to proclaim the foolishness of the cross—both the cross that Jesus bore himself and the cross that we need to bear for his sake.
What are the benefits of suffering in the way of Jesus?
Approval of God
We will be allowed in God’s presence, like the prophets of old who had approval of God. Our prayers will be heard and we will be God’s children. (Luke 6:22-23; Romans 8:16-17)
Moral Strength
To suffer is not only profit for us, but it builds up godly character in us, if we accept it as a positive thing from God, in faith, and we will gain more future reward. (James 1:2-4; Romans 5:3-4; Hebrews 10:32-12:11)
Kingdom of God
God will give us rulership in the coming kingdom, he will give us his Spirit, he will give us authority, he will give us the whole earth. (Matthew 5:3, 5-6, 11-12; Luke 11:13)
Deliverance by God
God only gives deliverance to those who need it—this is the secret of the cross. If we suffer, we need deliverance by God, and he will deliver us personally. (Luke 18:1-8; Mark 8:34-36; Mark 13:13)
Ministry of God
The true teachers of God have suffered and sacrificed and will deliver the people of God. The false teachers are in it for themselves, for the money, for what they can get out of it. (Matthew 10; I Timothy 6:3-5; II Timothy 3:1-12; Colossians 1:14)
Riches in God
The ones who sacrifice everything for Jesus will receive everything they need in this world, and in the next they will have great wealth. (Mark 10:20-30; Luke 12:22-34; Proverbs 28:27; 19:17)
Joy
Even as Jesus died for the joy he would receive, everyone who suffers or mourns in Jesus will laugh and have great joy, both now and in the next life. (Hebrews 12:2-11; Luke 6:21-23; Matthew 5:4)
My Solution is Jesus’ Solution
In the end, Jesus’ way of defeating poverty and suffering is to suffer and be poor. If we do so, then God will grant us the benefits of the righteous who are poor. In this way, the world will change. Only through incarnational suffering and poverty will God cause the world to be a different place. But we must accept this on ourselves. We must accept the suffering of the unjust, give our prized possessions to the poor—even if they don’t deserve it, or are taking advantage of us. If we live out poverty in Jesus, we can show Jesus to the poor. If we live out suffering in Jesus, we can show the world what Jesus’ suffering is like. We must surrender our lives and take on the sacrifice of Jesus. In this way, justice will be done by the only One who can create justice.
“Take, Lord, all my liberty. Receive my memory, my understanding and my whole will. Whatever I have and possess, you have given to me; to you I will restore it wholly and to your will I surrender it for my direction. Give me the love of you only, with your grace am I rich enough, nor do I ask for anything beside. Dearest Lord, teach me to be generous. Teach me to serve thee as thou deservest: to give and not count the cost; to struggle and not to heed the wounds; to toil and not to seek reward save that of knowing that I do thy will, O God." -Ignatius Loyola
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