Crossing the Line - Part 2

“Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or make the tree bad and its fruit bad, for the tree is known by its fruit. You brood of vipers! How can you speak good, when you are evil? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. The good person out of his good treasure brings forth good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure brings forth evil. I tell you, on the day of judgment people will give account for every careless word they speak, for by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.” (Matt 12:33-37)

The passage above is actually the tail end of Jesus' comments regarding the 'unforgivable sin', but I decided to include them here because there is a connection between the two passages.

Jesus' builds on his condemnation of the Pharisees by pointing out the source of the accusations they have been making against him. It is a truth he will return to on more than one occasion - what defiles us comes from inside us. Just as a bad tree cannot produce good fruit a person whose fundamental heart condition is evil cannot be a fundamentally good person. Our world view is formed by our spiritual foundation, what Jesus calls our "treasure". When this treasure is corrupted how we perceive the world around us will be shaped by that corrupted treasure. It is why the Pharisees suggested Jesus was working by the power of Satan, and it is why they come up with this next brilliant request.

Then some of the scribes and Pharisees answered him, saying, “Teacher, we wish to see a sign from you.” But he answered them, “An evil and adulterous generation seeks for a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. For just as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. The men of Nineveh will rise up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for they repented at the preaching of Jonah, and behold, something greater than Jonah is here. The queen of the South will rise up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon, and behold, something greater than Solomon is here. (Matthew 12:38-42)

On the surface, this seems like a ridiculous request. They've seen the sight restored to the blind, hearing to the deaf, demons cast out and many other miraculous events; there is a temptation to ask,"What more of a sign do you need?" And this is the take most commentators make on this passage. But I think we take this attitude because we regard this question as a separate event. But what if it is actually a part of the preceding conversation?

Let's sum up the sequence. (a) The Pharisees accuse Jesus' of casting out demons by the power of Satan. (b) Jesus' responds by pointing out that Satan can't do that because he'd be opposing himself, and the Pharisees should know this. (c) He then warns them about the danger of blaspheming the Holy Spirit and points out that this kind of thinking can only come from a heart that is inclined towards evil. (d) Then as if to punctuate Jesus' point, the Pharisee's come back with, "Give us a sign" or in a more modern vernacular "Prove it!"

I think the Pharisees request for a sign is not a failure to recognize the miracles as 'signs', but rather it is their response to Jesus declaration that only God could be empowering the miracles Jesus has been performing. If they just accept his argument on it's own merits then they also have to accept what he has said about themselves, that their motives are fundamentally evil. This of course is not an option. So they resort to an age old method of philosophical debate; they ask for proof!

In a more verbose edition of the request the Pharisees are saying, "Prove to us that what you are saying is true. Give us a sign! Your argument that Satan can't cast out Satan is an interesting one, but how do we know you're right? Maybe you're just trying to turn this argument back on itself to put us on the defensive. So... give us a sign! Prove to us that you are from God!"

If it were coming from an honest place of inquiry this would not be an outrageous request, but Jesus knows that the Pharisees are responding from fear; fear of losing their position and power. It is for this reason that it is an evil and adulterous generation that seeks for a sign. They seek signs not to prove that God is at work in the lives of men, but to prove that he is not. Those who believe require no proof; their faith is all the proof they need. It is only those who hold to a godless world view and want to see it stay that way who ask for proof.

And so Jesus offers them a sign, but not the kind of sign they were looking for. The sign of Jonah - three days and nights in the belly of the earth. He is of course referring to his death and resurrection. Those same individuals who ask for a proof they don't really want to see, will make much of the fact that Good Friday afternoon to Easter Sunday morning don't add up to three days and nights. They can't handle the idea that Jesus is simply making use of metaphor because again they are splitting hairs because they don't want to believe.

If Matthew chose the more poetic "three days and nights" to the more precise "two days, two nights and a bit" - what of it? The resurrection is not rendered null and void if it happens a few hours earlier than expected. An honest heart does not say, "Well, you are here Jesus, a few days after your death, as you promised, but the timing was off and so I have to question whether you actually came back to life at all." Such logic comes from a very empty place which is the subject of the final portion of this passage.

“When the unclean spirit has gone out of a person, it passes through waterless places seeking rest, but finds none. Then it says, ‘I will return to my house from which I came.’ And when it comes, it finds the house empty, swept, and put in order. Then it goes and brings with it seven other spirits more evil than itself, and they enter and dwell there, and the last state of that person is worse than the first. So also will it be with this evil generation.” (Matthew 12:43-45)

There is a saying that goes, "Nature abhors a vacuum." So, it would seem, do demons. But seriously, this entire line of conversation is summed up in this one paragraph. The entire position of the Pharisees is one borne, not out of faith in God, but out of a moral vacuum that leaves them open to all the temptations of power and position.

When one's moral code is founded only on what will maintain the status quo, or what will benefit me the most, then there is no limit to the hateful and even evil things we might say in defense of our position. Many times I have seen those desperate to defend an indefensible position dig themselves deeper and deeper until there is simply no way out.

The worst part is they often are fully aware that their position is untenable, but their fear of admitting to being wrong is so great that they will go to their deaths defending something they don't truly believe. And this I think is the greatest tradgedy of all. For when our fear of being wrong is greater than our fear of eternal damnation, then where is forgiveness to be found?

Crossing the Line

Then a demon-oppressed man who was blind and mute was brought to him, and he healed him, so that the man spoke and saw. And all the people were amazed, and said, “Can this be the Son of David?” But when the Pharisees heard it, they said, “It is only by Beelzebul, the prince of demons, that this man casts out demons.” Knowing their thoughts, he said to them, “Every kingdom divided against itself is laid waste, and no city or house divided against itself will stand. And if Satan casts out Satan, he is divided against himself. How then will his kingdom stand? And if I cast out demons by Beelzebul, by whom do your sons cast them out? Therefore they will be your judges. But if it is by the Spirit of God that I cast out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you. Or how can someone enter a strong man's house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man? Then indeed he may plunder his house. Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters. Therefore I tell you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven people, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven. And whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come. (Matthew 12:22-32 ESV)

A number of years ago I was privileged to be the regular teacher at a midweek service in my home church. It was our custom to offer prayer and counseling after the service, and one night a woman came forward who wanted very much to believe but felt she wasn’t able to because she had “committed the unforgivable sin.” As we talked over the next half-hour or so it became clear that somewhere along the line a preacher had told her that anyone involved in witchcraft was beyond the redemption offered by God. That was his interpretation of this portion of Matthew’s gospel. She had once been involved in a Lucifer worship cult and was, as a result, firmly convinced that she was beyond even God’s help. No amount of counsel to the contrary would allay her fears. She left in the same hopeless frame of mind as when she arrived.

It was this event that began my personal examination of the passage above. It is a hard thing to reconcile a gospel of God’s limitless love with the notion that there is a line that one must not cross, that it is possible to step outside of His seemingly boundless willingness to forgive.

It is for this reason that a great many preachers today will tell you that what Jesus is talking about here is dying as a non-believer. We are told that the only way to blaspheme the Holy Spirit is to reject God’s offer of salvation, because while the offer is made by God the Father, and the price for it was paid by the Son, it is by the indwelling of the Holy Spirit that the offer is fulfilled. And so the only unforgivable sin is to die without having accepted the offer of salvation and arriving in the next world without the righteousness of the Lamb to speak for you.

It is a reasonable and comfortable interpretation. But at the risk of being branded a heretic, I think it is an interpretation that may also be in error. This is an important issue so I ask your indulgence as I explain. I think this interpretation may be in error because of the last statement made by Christ in this passage: “whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come.”

There are two things to notice here: 1) “whoever speaks” is not about failing to make a decision, it is about making a statement, a proclamation, 2) “in this age” clearly indicates that the offense can be committed this side of the next world, while we are still of “this age.” These then are the characteristics of the “blasphemy” that has been committed against the Holy Spirit. The key to understanding this passage must reside in the meaning of this word.

It should be noted that blasphemy is not a translation of the Greek, it is a transliteration. The word was adopted from the Greek with only a change in pronunciation. According to Strong’s the word is “blasphemeo blas-fay-meh'-o ; to vilify; specially, to speak impiously:--(speak) blaspheme(-er, -mously, -my), defame, rail on, revile, speak evil.” So then, even the definition of the word used by Christ would indicate that he is referring to the things being said by the Pharisees. This calls to mind his words in Mark 7:15-16, “There is nothing outside a person that by going into him can defile him, but the things that come out of a person are what defile him.”

But there seems to be more to it than simply speaking ill of the Holy Spirit. Jesus’ discourse to the Pharisees points out the flaws in the logic of their argument. He makes it clear that the notion that Beelzebul (Satan) would seek to deceive the people by casting out his own demons is ridiculous. Think about it a moment. What profit would there be for Satan in this? If he were to cast out demons, would people praise him and abandon God? Of course they wouldn’t; rather they would give God the glory for the event and Satan’s kingdom would fall even further.

It would also appear that Jesus knows the Pharisees know this (“Knowing their thoughts, he said to them”), which is what adds the incredible weight to their sin. If they know in their hearts that such healing could only come from God, by the Holy Spirit, the same Spirit that moved upon the face of the waters at the moment of creation, then why would they suggest that Satan is the one who is at work? The answer is two fold: pride and envy.

At this point the Pharisees are beginning to show their desperation. Jesus has beaten their arguments at every turn. Even those totally unversed in the scriptures can see that there is something remarkable going on, that God is doing a new thing. Indignant at the popularity of this Galilean upstart, fearing that their position of power among the people is threatened, and even facing the possibility that everything they thought they knew about the messiah is about to be proven wrong, they make a desperate ploy to preserve the status quo – they attack the very God they claim to serve.

This is the depth of the sin involved here. They know that such healing can only come from God. They know that Jesus’ interpretation of scripture is entirely valid. They know that God is at work in His ministry and something new and remarkable is about to happen. But they no longer care about what it is God wants to do! Such is their desperation, they attempt to derail God’s plan; they are willing to condemn the acts of God Almighty as works of evil rather than risk losing their position of authority or alter their own world view!

How much envy has to live in one’s heart to come to such a place? How much pride does it take to believe that your world view is more important than God’s plan for Israel? In speaking this way the Pharisees engage in the sin of Lucifer. They set themselves above God and His will, and seek to impose their own will on the universe.

But I think the true weight of their error lies in it's consequence for the innocents. Consider Jesus' words in Matthew 18: "Whoever receives one such child in my name receives me, but whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a great millstone fastened around his neck and to be drowned in the depth of the sea." Matthew 18:5-6 ESV The Pharisees denial of God's Messiah held the potential to put the salvation of others at risk. By deliberately declaring that the work being done by the Holy Spirit was being done by Beelzubul, they were running the risk of leading others astray, and Jesus' words concerning their fate are quite sobering.

So this then, I believe, is the sin that God will tolerate only so long. To simply reject His plan of salvation is one thing; to openly revile it and seek to impose your own world view when you know the truth is quite another. To continue down this path will put the salvation of others at risk and will eventually take one to a place where your heart is hardened beyond repentance. And if you have crossed the line to a place where you are no longer capable of repentance, then how can God forgive?

Understand that I am not talking about simply bad mouthing someone’s ministry here, or even being simply mistaken about what is God's plan. I’m talking about something far more sinister; something akin to setting yourself up as the arbitrator of salvation. This is about someone who knows the truth, acknowledges the reality of God’s plan, but seeks to discredit it in the eyes of others to forward their own agenda. As I said, this is a sin that rivals the sin of Lucifer. For this reason, I am convinced very few people will ever be this far away from God’s saving grace!

In fact, I doubt more than a handful of people down through the centuries could possibly be guilty of such a sin. Not that I am qualified to judge. But that said, I do not think even this group of Pharisees had crossed that line. Jesus’ words hold the flavour of a dire warning rather than a final judgment. He is letting them know, in no uncertain terms, that He knows exactly what is going on in their hearts. He is letting them know that they will not succeed, and that if they press the issue too far, the ramifications will be far greater than they might have imagined.

I think also this is why we are commanded not to judge others but only the condition of our own hearts. Because it is the passing of judgment on the works of others, especially when our opinions are more our own than founded in God's word, that will start us on such a path.

Until next time... Shalom

Using or Receiving?

If you watch enough news video from the Middle East, you will eventually see an interesting custom play out. Some people, immediately after speaking a particular name (often George Bush) will emphatically spit on the ground before they continue with their sentence. The thinking behind this custom is: This person is so vile and repugnant to me I want to get the bad taste left by saying their name out of my mouth immediately. It is a most vile comment on an individual, reserved only for those for whom the individual feels the greatest hatred.

As Jesus passed on from there, He saw a man named Matthew sitting at the tax office. And He said to him, “Follow Me.” So he arose and followed Him. (Matthew 9:9)

It doesn't take a lot of research to discover that, in Jesus' day, this spitting custom was widely practiced whenever anyone said the word nagas or in Greek telones - tax-collector! Only lepers were given a wider swath than the tax-collector. This was largely due to the fact that most tax-collectors were regarded as traitors, Jews who, for financial reasons (they got a commission on the money they collected), decided to cooperate with the Roman occupiers of Israel. In the first century Jewish mindset, the only thing more remarkable than Jesus asking Matthew to follow him is the fact that Matthew left his tax booth and followed!

Now it happened, as Jesus sat at the table in the house, that behold, many tax collectors and sinners came and sat down with Him and His disciples. And when the Pharisees saw it, they said to His disciples, “Why does your Teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?” When Jesus heard that, He said to them, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. But go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy and not sacrifice.’ For I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance.” - (Matthew 9:10-13 NKJV)

The Pharisees, as usual, have a valid point to make when they ask why Jesus is keeping company with people who engage in sin as part of their lifestyle, even their livelihood. The Old Testament admonition not to follow the crowd into evil (Exodus 23:2 ) and the declaration that "sinners will not stand in the congregation of the righteous" (Psalm 45:6-7 ) were, in their minds, validation for creating a social barrier between the two groups. This is the danger of legalism in Christian practice.

Righteous practices are supposed to be expressions of the love for and of God that resides within us. But all too often they can become an end in themselves, with no foundation in love or even faith, but rather just an expression of our own self importance as we strive to prove to ourselves and others that we are more religious. It was this trap the Pharisees had fallen into.

Jesus however, sought to turn this idea on its head. He fully understood that the righteousness and justice of God is not complete unless it also incorporates His love and compassion. This Son of David, who had never sinned in his life, never-the-less understood the cry of David's repentant heart when he declared "Restore to me the joy of your salvation... Then I will teach transgressors of your ways, and sinners will return to you." (Psalm 51:12-13 )

What appeals to me most about this exchange though, is the subtlety of his comment. I'm sure his declaration that the righteous would have no need of his ministry would have massaged the egos of the Pharisees. I can picture them thinking to themselves, " Oh! All right then, that makes sense. We are righteous and good in God's eyes, so it's no wonder he ignores us and talks to them. They certainly do need someone to show them the error of their ways. But it is a lost cause however, so better him than me." The irony is, of course, Jesus didn't consider them righteous at all. Jesus understood that the lowliest sinners who throws themselves upon the mercy of God is closer to the Kingdom of Heaven than the self-declared righteous will ever be.

This is the point behind his quotation of Hosea 6:6, "I desire mercy and not sacrifice." The Pharisees considered their interpretation of the scriptures as being a sacrifice that all people should make to demonstrate their obedience to God. Their zero-tolerance philosophy served only to make themselves look good; it did nothing to draw those who had fallen by the wayside back into the embrace of God's love. Jesus' ministry is not about keeping people out of the Kingdom, it is about welcoming them in.

And while it doesn't seem so on the surface, Jesus words to John's disciples are part of this same exchange.

Then the disciples of John came to Him, saying, “Why do we and the Pharisees fast often,but Your disciples do not fast?” And Jesus said to them, “Can the friends of the bridegroom mourn as long as the bridegroom is with them? But the days will come when the bridegroom will be taken away from them, and then they will fast. No one puts a piece of unshrunk cloth on an old garment; for the patch pulls away from the garment, and the tear is made worse. Nor do they put new wine into old wineskins, or else the wineskins break, the wine is spilled, and the wineskins are ruined. But they put new wine into new wineskins, and both are preserved. (Matthew 9:14-17 NKJV)

Have you ever noticed that in this question John's disciples group themselves in with the Pharisees? "We and the Pharisees fast often.." A strange comment from the disciples of a prophet who had challenged the validity of the Pharisees repentance. (Luke 3:7-9 ) It demonstrates just how ingrained the idea of pious acts equating with righteousness was in their culture. With the metaphors of the cloth and the wineskins, Jesus tries to help them understand that if the Kingdom that is coming is going to take hold, then the old way of thinking about the Word of God must be set aside. His words must be examined with fresh spiritual eyes, better enabling them to see the truth of God for what it really is rather than for what they had been told it was for generations.

In his essay An Experiment in Criticism, C.S. Lewis makes an interesting observation about the nature of reading. He observes that there are two kinds of reading. In the first kind we read a book so that we can "use" it. We are looking to endorse or enhance our own existing world view. The second is when we read a book to "receive" the message that the author is trying to convey. As an avid cyclist I like his explanation of the difference...

"The one [receiving]... is like being taken for a bicycle ride by a man who may know the roads we have never yet explored. The other [using] is like adding one of those little motor attachments to our own bicycle and then going for one of our familiar rides."

This is what happens to all too many of us when it comes to the Word of God. It happened to the Pharisees. They "used" the Law of Moses to their own ends, interpreting it to shore the social/political structure they thought was best for them and for Israel. Jesus recognized that, in truth, it was good for neither and sought to teach people how to "receive" the Word once again by receiving Him - the Word made flesh.

I challenge you, dear readers, to examine your own hearts and ask yourself, "Do I believe what the Holy Scriptures say? or do I believe what I have been told they say?" Ask yourself, and be as honest as you can be, "When I read the Holy Scriptures, am I looking to "receive" the message God has for me, or to "use" it to support my own theology?"

Until next time... Shalom.

Jesus and the Leper

In the movie Philadelphia, Andrew (played by Tom Hanks) who is stricken with AIDS says, "Look. I'm no different from everyone else who has this disease: I'm not guilty, I'm not innocent. I'm just trying to survive."

This same line could well have been delivered by the man whom Jesus meets in the next passage of Matthew's gospel. Having finished his sermon Jesus goes out into the towns and villages of Judea to continue spreading His message, "The Kingdom of Heaven is at hand."

When He had come down from the mountain, great multitudes followed Him. And behold, a leper came and worshiped Him, saying, “Lord, if You are willing, You can make me clean.” Then Jesus put out His hand and touched him, saying, “I am willing; be cleansed.” Immediately his leprosy was cleansed. And Jesus said to him, “See that you tell no one; but go your way, show yourself to the priest, and offer the gift that Moses commanded, as a testimony to them.” Matthew 8:1-4 (NKJV)

As usual, there is more here than meets the 21st century eye. This man was a leper - unclean. The word holds a connotation that we can only imagine. In Jesus' day such people we not just openly shunned, they were feared. Mothers with babies took them up in their arms and ran, others covered their faces for fear of contamination, full-grown men ran in terror, while others would throw stones to drive the lepers from their midst.

The storyteller in me wonders how this man managed to get so close to Jesus. It is likely he took advantage of the pressing crowd, their attention focused on the remarkable teacher, each of them vying for his attention to the point where they were oblivious to the others around them. I picture him standing near some bushes at the back of the crowd listening to this man as he delivered his midrash, hearing words that held out some vague hope that this was no ordinary rabbi.

As he approaches he bends low touching his head to the ground in front of Jesus. We can infer this from the verb 'worship' used to describe the lepers approach. His words confirm the inference as he makes it clear he understands that all the authority lies with the teacher, "Lord, if you are willing..." His fate is not his to control, the disease took that from him. Other people told him he was a leper, other people told him he could no longer live with his family or even sleep in the towns and villages; ever since the disease came upon him, his fate, indeed his very survival has lain in the hands of other people. Leprosy has taught him humility in a way nothing else could.

And so he comes to Jesus, humble, broken by the hand that life has dealt him. And yet, there is a spark of hope. A spark fanned into life by the words he heard on the hillside. No doubt he's heard others make grandiose claims of prophet-hood before, no one would blame him for a small voice of doubt echoing in the back of his mind. Still he comes, not really knowing what to expect, and he gets the unexpected. Jesus touches him.

I tell you a truth; though the scriptures do not record it, at the moment that Jesus touched the leper the crowd gathered around him, large or small, would have gasped and recoiled as one man. Fear and shock would have grasped them by the throat and stolen their breath away. For two reasons: one - Jesus, this rabbi of unimagined authority and eloquence, has broken the law of Moses, two - and this is the more shocking - would now be considered unclean - as much an outcast as the leper himself.

Leviticus 5 makes it clear that in this act Jesus takes on the sin and guilt that made this man unclean to begin with. For all his words of the coming of the Gospel Kingdom he has now performed the one act that would prevent that kingdom from ever coming to fruition. No one would ever follow a leper in search of spiritual fulfillment, Yehweh would never chose a man carrying the guilt of sin to usher in His kingdom. In this one moment Jesus has seemingly undone everything his midrash hoped to accomplish. And in the next moment the unexpected happens again.

The laws of physics tell us that heat only travels in one direction, from its source to a place where it does not exist. Heat moves from the warm place to the cold place, cold does not move the other way. In Jesus' world the laws of spiritual physics work the same way. The curse only moves in one direction, from the unclean to afflict the clean. And yet, miraculously, when Jesus touches the leper the forces of nature themselves are turned on their heads and cleanliness moves in to displace that which is unclean. The lesions that covered the man's face, arms and hands fade from view, leaving only clean, healthy skin in their place. The revulsion of the crowd is halted in mid-gasp leaving them staring in a state of utter amazement.

Shocked, amazed, elated, the former leper himself stands there not knowing what to do next. So Jesus tells him, “See that you tell no one; but go your way, show yourself to the priest, and offer the gift that Moses commanded, as a testimony to them.” The rabbi who moments ago broke the law of Moses, tearing the fabric of reality in the process, now tells this man to honour that same law. His words on the hillside come back to our consciousness, "Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill." (Matt. 5:17)

The priests, the pharisees, and the scribes, all desired the same thing as did Jesus; to see the kingdom of Yehweh manifested in reality on earth. But these three groups took a very different view of how that might come to pass than the Galilean preacher. While they focused on Leviticus 13, and how those who are unclean should be cast out of the Kingdom, Jesus sought to fulfill the promise of Leviticus 14, and see the unclean made whole and reconciled back into the kingdom. Where their approach brings condemnation, Jesus brings life!

All through the Midrash on the Hillside Jesus turned conventional thinking about the Law and God's kingdom on its head, seeking to fulfill its spirit and intent, rather than just focus on observing the letter of the law. This first encounter with Jesus among the people demonstrates that his physical ministry will be no different.

Until next time ... Shalom.

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Exploring the Kingdom Gospel - episode 14
Photo credit: MSNBC
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The Golden Rule - Matthew 7:12-29

In the Kingdom of Id the Golden Rule states, "He who has the Gold Makes the rules!". In the Gospel Kingdom things are a little different.

Therefore, whatever you want men to do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets. (New King James Version)

With this oft-quoted phrase we reach the end of the "Kingdom Midrash", the Sermon on the Mount. We know it is the beginning of Jesus summation by the presence of one simple word - therefore. In the tradition of this rabbinic teaching style, we can take this one word to mean "keeping everything I have just said in mind, consider this... do unto others as you would have them do unto you."

For the last three chapters Jesus has been seeking to turn the world on its head. Time after time he has taken the basic truths of past teachers of the Torah and revolutionized their meaning by taking things up to the next level. Should we assume he is doing any less here? What then does it mean, this simple, seemingly obvious phrase that so many take for granted.

If we are to treat others as we would expect to be treated, then maybe the question we first need to ask is how do we expect to be treated? Jesus has been telling us that we are citizens of the Heavenly Kingdom. That the restoration of earth as God had intended it to be is not in some far off distant future but is happening right here where we are, right now. If then we are members of that kingdom and the Kingdom is at hand, then it would follow that we are being called to treat those around us as if they too are part of the kingdom and the full restoration of the earth is a reality, for on the spiritual plane - it is!

Little wonder then that Jesus follows this call with the following advice...

Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. Narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.

For to truly treat everyone around us in such a manner will prove hard work indeed - straight forward, but hard. Hardest of all it means that we can no longer just write off those we don't agree with as being beyond hope because the spirit of God does not reside within them, for we are called to treat them as ourselves! To treat them as we would those who are anointed of God for a higher calling. Jesus has taught us that no one in the kingdom is to be written off, that even the least of us is to be held in high regard because of the price that has been paid for their redemption. Such treatment leaves no room for judgment, no room for abandonment, only room for love and understanding as we ourselves would desire to be loved and understood.

And if this is the case, then the Golden Rule also calls for us to be extremely careful in the choosing of our leaders...

Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves. You will know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes from thorn bushes or figs from thistles? Even so, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Therefore by their fruits you will know them.

A number of years ago a good friend of mine invited a pair of young Mormon gentlemen into his home when they arrived at his door. I fully expected him to set about fully dissecting their theology and leaving them in a heap. He didn't. Instead he listened to what they had to say, answered their questions truthfully, asked a few of his own and warmly invited them back to enjoy his hospitality any time they chose. After they left I asked him why he didn't show them the error of their ways. His reply was, "Because that wouldn't be very loving." That was not what he would want them to do to him.

I have come to understand that this more than anything else defines Christian leadership. It is not about who can one-up the opponents of the kingdom, racking up points on the debating scoreboard. It's not about name calling, and branding as 'evil' any who disagree with God's moral code. It is about who can best follow Christ's example, winning over the enemies of the kingdom with love and compassion; giving this simple phrase more than just lip service.

Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’

Those who honour Christ with their mouths only will discover all too soon the true meaning of these words. And even in this we cannot allow ourselves to depart from the narrow path. If we were less than genuine in our walk what would we want the response of others to be? Ponder this for more than a moment and it becomes apparent why Jesus said judgment is God's purview and God's alone. We are not equipped to properly handle the task. Only those without sin can cast the first stone.

Therefore whoever hears these sayings of Mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the rock: and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it did not fall, for it was founded on the rock. “But everyone who hears these sayings of Mine, and does not do them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand: and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it fell. And great was its fall.

The word appears again... "bearing all this in mind", consider these two men. The solid foundation of the Christian life is found in one place and one place only - obedience. The love of Christ, that is, grace alone has bought for us our citizenship in the Gospel Kingdom, but life in the kingdom finds fulfillment in obedience; "he who hears these sayings of mine, and does them."

The Kingdom Midrash is complete. Jesus walks down the mount leaving behind him a people stunned not so much by the content of his words, but by their impact. They are astonished by the authenticity of his voice and manner, the authority with which he speaks. His wonders and miracles do not factor into their response, because there have not yet been any signs and wonders. But that is about to change.

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Exploring the Kingdom Gospel - episode 14
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Distractions to Faith

We mentioned last time that there were other distractions to faith than just wealth. Distractions that not only interfere with our own relationship to God but with the relationships between citizens of the Gospel kingdom.

Judgment

"Judge not, that you be not judged. For with what judgment you judge, you will be judged; and with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you. And why do you look at the speck in your brother's eye, but do not consider the plank in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me remove the speck from your eye'; and look, a plank is in your own eye? Hypocrite! First remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's eye." Matthew 7:1-5 NKJV

As God led the Israelites out of Egypt he commanded them over and over again to always remember their experience in Egypt, and never allow their children to forget it either. This was not because God was in favour of harbouring a grudge, but because there was a vital lesson to be learned in the remembrance.

"The stranger who dwells among you shall be to you as one born among you, and you shall love him as yourself; for you were strangers in the land of Egypt: I am the LORD your God." Leviticus 19:34 NKJV

Xenophobia, the fear of strangers, was a basic life-skill in the time of Moses. People distrusted strangers because in many parts of the area resources were scarce and there was always the fear that someone would try to take what little you had. But God wanted the Israelites to operate by a different set of rules. He intended for them to set a new standard for human behaviour. The concept is simple, "You know what it is like to be oppressed, to be trapped in a land not your own, at the mercy of others. Therefore, remember this and treat the strangers in your midst the way you wish you had been treated in Egypt."

Jesus' teaching here in Matthew follows the same line of thinking. We know what it is like to be judged for our sins. We know the separation that takes place when others decide that we are to be condemned. But, as usual, Jesus kicks it up a notch. He tells his followers that when they judge others they are setting the standard by which they themselves will be judged.

And when that judgment is made they too shall be found wanting because ultimately the reason we are so eager to find the speck in our brother's eye is because it helps us to ignore the plank in our own. We know all too well who we really are, and the one small comfort the world affords us is the knowledge that others are just as bad or worse than we are. If they are not, then we have nothing left but our own guilt.

And so children of Abraham, Jew and Christian alike, have no excuse when it comes to how they treat other people. We have no righteous leg to stand on, and no matter how we have lived our lives it does not give us the right to heap judgment upon others. When we do we become focused on punishment instead of the forgiveness.

Stubbornness

"Do not give what is holy to the dogs; nor cast your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you in pieces." Matthew 7:6 NKJV

Though stubbornness in the heart of the believer is certainly a detriment to faith, it is not our stubbornness that Jesus refers to here. It is the stubbornness of others. There is a tendency in the life of the believer to take on the responsibility for the salvation of our family and friends. We convince ourselves that if we find just the right argument, just the right sermon tape, just the right book or CD that the spiritual light bulb will come on and they will walk out of the darkness.

There's only one problem... it's not our job!

The citizens of the gospel kingdom are to be a witness for the love of God and the work of Christ to be sure, but the task of convicting the individual of their need for God has fallen to the Holy Spirit, for the Holy Spirit is far better suited to the task and far better equipped for it.

So... am I suggesting we just give up on our friends and family and write them off as hopeless? Of course not! But at the same time we must take Jesus' advice from earlier in the midrash and cease to worry! They are in God's hands and all too often our continuing will only drive them further away, or worse yet, they will turn on us (and the Gospel) and trample us underfoot.

It isn't only the members of our families that distract us. All too often we are distracted by the need to defend the faith itself. There are those in this world who will never believe and have devoted themselves to tearing down the kingdom. They declare such things as: there is no God, Jesus was just a man, science holds all the answers, etc. We perceive them as being a threat to the Kingdom and apply ourselves to countering their arguments and tearing down their reputations.

Trying to defend the Kingdom is a distraction because the Kingdom does not require us to defend its existence. The Kingdom has and will come into existence according to the will of God, and it is God who will defend it.

There is a role for us however, and that role is to spread the Kingdom. And we do this by obeying the commandments that Jesus gave us. We do it by upholding the articles of the Kingdom Manifesto found at the beginning of the midrash back in chapter 5.

Blessed are the poor in spirit, For theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are those who mourn, For they shall be comforted.
Blessed are the meek, For they shall inherit the earth.
Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, For they shall be filled.
Blessed are the merciful, For they shall obtain mercy.
Blessed are the pure in heart, For they shall see God.
Blessed are the peacemakers, For they shall be called sons of God.
Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, For theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

It is by manifesting these ideals in our homes and in our neighbourhoods that the Gospel Kingdom grows and flourishes. Comforting those who morn, feeding the hungry and thirsty, exhibiting mercy, keeping our hearts pure. These actions will speak in the defence and promotion of the kingdom far louder than any words. And it is from these actions that we are distracted by the things Jesus warns us against. However noble the task may seem, if it keeps us from living out the principles of the Kingdom it is a distraction.

There is one more thing that distracts us – timidity. We'll look at it next time.


Shalom