tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-56597075421413476812024-02-20T14:30:51.825-08:00High Road KokkoExploring the beauty of walking in God's KingdomBruce Kokkohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04379200226297077294noreply@blogger.comBlogger139125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5659707542141347681.post-74575047559377908472014-05-15T19:50:00.000-07:002014-05-15T19:50:21.270-07:00The Ziggurat"<i>And she's buying a stairway to heaven.</i>" (J. Patrick and R. Plant, 1970)<br />
<br />
Much can probably be conjectured about the meaning of Led Zeppelin's famous song. Certainly the line above speaks to the woman's conceit in believing she can bring heaven to earth; and this by constructing a ziggurat, or stairway connecting heaven and earth.<br />
<br />
Her conceit is not unique to her, though. It was the original conceit of humankind that resulted in the separation of humankind from the Creator--that is, Death. The conceit was and still is heaven can be attained by trusting in creation instead of God. The lie Satan proffered to Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden was just that: You will become god by trusting in yourself.<br />
<br />
It was also the conceit behind one of the most famous of ziggurats, the tower of Babel (Gen. 11:1-9). The people banded together to bring heaven to earth by constructing a tower touching heaven. This tower was a ziggurat, which they believed would allow them to bring heaven to earth.<br />
<br />
God wants heaven to be brought to earth; this was His purpose in creation; heaven and earth would be His dwelling place with His image bearers (humankind) in an eternal relationship of holy love (Gen. 1:26-2:1-3). God's purpose in creation was to establish a kingdom for Himself. Humankind loused this up because of their aforementioned conceit. Nevertheless, God will realize His purposes; God will bring heaven to earth. But He must be the one who constructs the ziggurat. God must do it; it is impossible for human beings.<br />
<br />
We see this prophesied in a dream of Jacob:<br />
<br />
"<i>He reached a certain place where he decided to camp because the sun had gone down. He took one of the stones and placed it near his head. Then he fell asleep in that place and had a dream. He saw a stairway erected on the earth with its top reaching to the heavens. The angels were going up and coming down it and the Lord stood at the top. He said, 'I am the Lord, the God of your grandfather, Abraham and the God of your father Isaac. I will give to you and your descendants the ground you are lying on. Your descendants will be like the dust of the earth, and you will spread out to the west, east, north and south. All the families of the earth will pronounce blessings on one another using your name and that of your descendants. I am with you! I will protect you wherever you go and will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have done what I promised you!' Then Jacob woke up and thought, </i>surely the Lord is in this place, but I did not realize it!<i> He was afraid and said, 'What an awesome place this is! This is nothing else than the house of God! This is the gate of heaven!</i>" (Gen. 28:11-17 [NET])<br />
<br />
God would of course partially fulfill this by a covenant with the nation of Israel (the new name God would give Jacob at Peniel [Gen. 32:22-32]) through their exodus from Egypt, wondering in the wilderness, entering the Promised land, and the construction of the Temple, where God would dwell with them.<br />
<br />
But God would completely fulfill His promise and restore His kingdom through the living ziggurat--through the person who would come out of Israel. That person would be God Himself entering into Human history:<br />
<br />
<i>And the Word became flesh and dwelled among us, and we saw His glory, glory as the only begotten and unique one from the Father, full of grace and truth.</i> (John 14)<br />
<br />
God has restored His kingdom through His son, Jesus the Christ, so that through Christ we see God and consequently know Him and are known by Him, which is to dwell together no longer in a fixed place, but in the totality of heaven and earth made one in Christ.<br />
<br />
Jesus is the ziggurat through whom God brings heaven to earth. Indeed, this is what Jesus meant when he told Nathanael,<br />
<br />
"<i>Because I said to you that I saw you beneath the fig tree, you are believing? You will see greater things than these." And Jesus said to him, "Truly, truly, I say to you</i> [you is plural, here] <i>you will see the heavens having opened up and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man.</i>" (John 1:50-51)<br />
<br />
<br />Bruce Kokkohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04379200226297077294noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5659707542141347681.post-72992913177733260132014-05-07T15:08:00.001-07:002014-05-07T15:08:47.922-07:00The OddityIt was an odd thing--something for Ripley's. Everyone thought so. Both young and old and all those in between would stop and stare and wonder. It stood bravely upright against the push of humanity from all sides--a silent yet colorful contradiction to the concrete, asphalt, grime, and litter that was the legacy of a race in lethal pursuit of ambition. "How could it be?" someone would say. Another pointed out weeds sometime grow out of a crack in the pavement, as if to remind us of our delusions of beauty. Yet another would clarify, "This is no weed. And there is no crack, either. It has just come up as if it had pushed itself through the cement from somewhere deep below." Everyone nodded in agreement, secretly enthralled by the loveliness shining before them they had been taught long ago couldn't happen. Some looked up and all around for a camera or other evidence of a hoax. Others brought themselves close and sniffed in a fragrance of indescribable splendor. Still others gently touched the pedals, delighted to discover their softness exceeded their promise. There were those, too, disquieted by the phenomenon. "It's not natural!" someone opined in thinly veiled trepidation. Many gave the flower a wide berth, suspecting it had been cleverly placed there to lure them into something. The oracle remained steadfast in all its resplendent colors, day after day through inclement weather and sun. The bloom never closed at night; and even gave off its own special light. It became a place for people to come together. A happening where those who came with food or wisdom liberally shared with those who did not. Those who couldn't recall the last time they had smiled, grinned and pointed. Faces that for eons had mingled in nonrecognition, became as kin. Before long the laughter and chatter around the flower challenged the din of industry that seemed to sulk. The tints and hues of grays and blacks and soiled whites soon grew unbearable. Slabs were cut away, and trees and planters and fountains installed. Gardens rose up alongside places that made light the revelry and camaraderie. And then it happened.<br />
<br />
Song birds arrived and nested in the burgeoning trees, filling the air with a palette of melodies rivaled only by the creatures' varied colors. It was an odd thing--something for Ripley's. Everyone thought so. Bruce Kokkohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04379200226297077294noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5659707542141347681.post-10739464425994477112014-04-20T18:09:00.000-07:002014-04-20T18:09:12.156-07:00The MirrorI had a dream the other night. I dreamed I was bouldering. The place was a collage of various wilderness areas I have frequented over the years (you know how dreams are). It was a hot day; I could hear the locust, and the sun beat down on me through the otherwise still, dry air. I could smell the sage. It's funny how one remember smells. It was like being in Grand Junction again, hunting for fossils with my dad. Except now, I was very much alone--not lonely or distressed--just by myself. A large bird flew overhead and disappeared in the burning light marking the noon Colorado blue sky. I looked away to navigate the next pile of rock, placed there to make the way forward both cerebrally and physically demanding-- of that I was most certain. I could feel the sandstone roughening my hands and scraping my knees as I puzzled out the best path.<br />
<br />
After climbing like this for what seemed a long time (probably only a second or two of real time), I came upon a cleft in the rocks. It appeared to be an entrance to a cave. Because it was large enough for me to fit through, I clambered my way in . From my original vantage point, it seemed quite dark beyond the opening; but the inner chamber I soon found myself was actually well lit. I looked up and all around, and everywhere was solid rock, yet the room was bright as day. Looking down I saw in the center of the stone cell, a pool of water. The liquid was pure and placid. It had all the appearance of a polished sheet of aquamarine glass that had been perfectly fitted within the hole in the rock floor. I crouched down for closer examination.<br />
<br />
I looked at my reflection in the glassy water. It was a perfect rendering. I could see every mark, wrinkle, and blemish in my aging face with unusual--and I must say--depressing clarity and resolution. My life was recounted in the image peering up at me. I saw in that visage an entire history--not the history of Wells but my own. It began with the scar left on my cheek when I was four years old and tried to shave with my dad's razor. It progressed on from there. Each new degradation marring what once had been a baby face, bore witness to the reality of entropy and a long life of worries, fears, self-doubt, selfish choices, lost opportunities, and qualified successes. I shuddered as I gazed into the face of disappointment.<br />
<br />
When I could no longer bear the truth, I reached down and scambled the water. The image didn't fragment or distort as one might predict, but transformed. Even though I had done violence to the watery mirror, the surface held perfectly calm. My hand was wet, and there were water stains on the walls of the rocky basin that hadn't been there before, but the pool itself remained unmoved. Only the image had changed.<br />
<br />
I saw myself. I studied the new image intently, not believing what I saw. It was me. But the scars were gone. The worry and pain and anger and sadness and hopelessness had all vanished. The decrepit twilight of late autumn had suddenly turned to the dawn of early spring. The features of the old man shining back at me from the crystalline mirror had been smoothed and sculpted and shaped and polished into a paradox of youthful vigor. An inexhaustible vitality glistened in those peaceful blue eyes, and a fathomless joy gently turned up those tender lips in a smile. And although the room around me was encased in rock, a soft breeze tousled the hair about the face of that image. I knew it to be the spirit of freedom.<br />
<br />
He is risen! He is risen, indeed.<br />
<br />
Bruce Kokkohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04379200226297077294noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5659707542141347681.post-90012731957401948622014-04-14T14:23:00.001-07:002014-04-14T14:23:55.750-07:00Christ Fulfills the Law-Part 3<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">5) Blessed
(Happy) are the merciful because they will receive mercy.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">We have
already learned how mercy is the response that flows from the humility of one
poor in spirit. But we just saw how
mercy also requires sacrifice on our part.
This should illustrate for us how we cannot draw hard and fast lines
between the first four beatitudes nuanced as they tend to be in humility and
these last four nuanced by sacrifice.
Humility and sacrifice are inextricably tied together--hence my spinning
purple sphere illustration.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The best way
to illustrate the sacrifice of mercy is forgiveness. We all each and every day need to forgive
someone or be forgiven; forgiveness is almost as much a part of living as
breathing. We all must forgive because God
has forgiven us. To refuse to forgive others often is pure arrogance on our part because,
despite what we might say to the contrary, when we don’t forgive others we
really believe God was obligated to forgive us.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The other
necessary component of forgiveness is the sacrificial part that is mercy. One doesn’t really forgive anybody without
also being merciful towards them. And
such mercy means one will have to give up something or many things, whether it be
his time, his inconvenience, his reputation, his property, his money, his right
to be right, and his right to be vindicated.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">People often
tell me I must forgive him or her but I don’t have to forget. This is the world’s wisdom, not God’s. It is not letting go of oneself to God, but
seeking one’s own benefit. It isn’t
being poor in spirit, or mourning with Christ, or being meek, or hungering
after righteousness. It is, in fact,
selfish-ambition and conceit and not the servant’s heart of humility and
sacrifice bound together in love. If we
stand in Christ we will forgive regardless of the cost to us, because God
forgives us the same way.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Relationships
can only be restored if there is forgiveness, but repentance is also
needed. I must forgive someone who has
wronged me without demanding any form of recompense, even their admission of
guilt and apology. (I understand this is a hard teaching. You must understand that what Christ has
called us to is all difficult because it is contrary to the world’s wisdom that
has been hard wired into us because of the fall.) We forgive others with no
strings attached; otherwise, we haven’t really forgiven them. But the relationship will only be restored if
the other person repents. You cannot
have a holy relationship with someone who fails to admit his or her
transgression. This is true in even
simple scenarios. For example, one would
be foolish to give an employee access to the till after she pilfered it without
remorse. You forgive by giving her another
duty if possible, but you don’t trust her with the money until she comes to
believe she was wrong to steal. On the
other hand, if she repents, then you give her her original job back, because
such mercy leads to a restored relationship.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">If we are not
merciful in the way I’ve described, we will never receive mercy. The reason is simple. We won’t receive mercy because if we are
unwilling to be merciful, we don’t really believe we need it, or we believe we
were somehow owed it. Here we clearly
see how if we are not humble (poor in spirit) we also will not sacrifice. There is a more sinister reason for being
unmerciful; and that is in our heart of hearts we don’t really believe God has
forgiven us, or anybody, for that matter.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">6) Blessed
(Happy) are those who are pure in heart because they will see God.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">John tells
us in his first epistle,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">See how great a love the Father has
given to you, so that we are called children of God, and so we are. For this reason, the world does not know us,
because it does not know Him. Beloved, we are now children of God, and it was
not yet revealed what we will be. We
know whenever it appears, we will be like Him, because we will see Him just as He
is. And everyone who has this hope in him
or her purifies him or herself, just as He is pure.</span></i><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> (I John 3:1-3)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">We learn
from this the ultimate end of Christ’s work in us is purity—holiness. We cannot stand in the kingdom of God without
being holy, because God is holy.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">John also
teaches us we must be purifying ourselves.
And as we said at the beginning of this lesson we do this by remembering
who we are in Christ by doing what His spirit instructs us to do through the
grace of wisdom, strength, and forgiveness the spirit provides. All of which is to say faith is active not
passive.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Faith that
makes us holy is also sacrificial, just as Paul teaches us,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Therefore I exhort you, brothers and
sisters, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a sacrifice – alive,
holy, and pleasing to God – which is your reasonable service. <a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="Ro_12:2"></a>Do
not be conformed to this present world, but be transformed by the renewing of
your mind, so that you may test and approve what is the will of God – what is
good and well-pleasing and perfect.</span></i><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> (Rom. 12:1-2)[NET] <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The
sacrifice begins with a willingness on our part to change how we think. One of the most crucial ways we do this is
laying out our motives before God. It is
easy—I mean effortless and slick—for us to think we are doing something good
for others, when in reality we are only doing it out of selfish-ambition. If our motives are wrong, we are not
pure—regardless of what we might be doing.
Paul also tells us if our thinking isn’t right (faulty motives) we will
not hear God’s will. Furthermore, I
cannot love God, which is my acceptable worship, unless I am a living
sacrifice. I cannot love God if I still
love myself more than God and therefore others.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">It takes sacrifice on our part to become holy. This sacrifice begins and ends in loving God
with all our heart, mind, soul, and strength and loving our neighbor as our
self. We should see in this that all we
have been talking about as the tension of mercy and justice is driven by and
towards ultimate fulfillment in the perfect tension of love and holiness that
defines the eternal state of God’s kingdom, because it is the nature of Christ. This tension of love and holiness is in fact
the law fulfilled in Christ, which is why I spent so much time at the beginning
of this lesson discussing it (Part 1). Putting it another way, because we stand in
Christ’s kingdom today and at the same time we also live in the fallen world,
our nature in Christ is the perfect tension of love and holiness that we
practice in the fallen world as the perfect tension of mercy and justice. And in so doing, we make ourselves pure.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">We can
summarize this beatitude with a reading from the book of Hebrews:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Pursue peace with everyone, and
holiness, for without it no one will see the Lord.</span></i> (Heb. 12:14)
[NET]<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Crisp and
clean and no caffeine!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">7) Blessed
(Happy) are the peacemakers for they will be called the sons of God.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">We have spent
mucho time on this subject in previous lessons.
Suffice it to say our Lord Jesus the Christ, the son of God, always
pursued peace all the way to the cross and then beyond. Of course, Jesus does, because His kingdom is
perfect peace—perfect Shalom—because, contrary to popular belief, peace means
perfect justice, which is perfect holiness bound up in perfect love. And all of this is the righteousness that
comes from God. If we claim to be
followers of Christ, then we will be peacemakers and therefore sons of God. And as we have discussed previously, such
peacemaking demands sacrifice, even--dare I say it?--sacrifice unto death.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">8) Blessed
(Happy) are those who have been persecuted on account of righteousness because
the kingdom of heaven is theirs.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">If we stand
in the kingdom of God, which means we are Christ followers with all that
entails, we will be persecuted. The
perfect tense, “have been persecuted,” means we will be persecuted and that
persecution will leave its marks on us.
When we stand before God He will see those marks and know we have been
standing in Christ all along (I am speaking in human terms; of course, God
knows whether or not we stand in Christ).
The point is if we stand in Christ we will sacrifice ourselves to
persecution.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Jesus then expands
upon this last beatitude:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">You are blessed (Happy) people
whenever liars revile you and persecute you and speak every evil against you on
account of Me. Rejoice and be full of
joy because your reward is great in the heavens; for in the same way they
persecuted the prophets who came before you.</span></i><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> (Matt. 5:11,12)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Firstly,
Jesus is telling us something about what happiness really is. The world thinks it is having everything
going the way we want so we are perpetually on an emotional high—all smiles and
giggles. If that is so, why is it so
many famous people who got it all by the world’s standards are so broken in
their relationships and have to medicate themselves? No, happiness is a state of mind; it is an
inner peace that comes with finally knowing oneself because we love Christ. Dr.
Ratzinger, in response to those who say the beatitudes are really only sour
grapes, explains beautifully what I mean:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> “<i>In a
word, the true morality of Christianity is love. And love does admittedly run
counter to self-seeking—it is an exodus out of oneself, and yet this is
preciously the way in which Man comes to himself.</i>”<span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><a href="file:///C:/Users/bruce/Documents/bruce's%20stuff/Gospel%20of%20the%20Christ/Part%2011%20The%20Beatitudes%20Auxiliary.docx#_ftn1" name="_ftnref1" title="">[1]</a></span></span><a href="file:///C:/Users/bruce/Documents/bruce's%20stuff/Gospel%20of%20the%20Christ/Part%2011%20The%20Beatitudes%20Auxiliary.docx#_ftn1" name="_ftnref1" title=""><!--[endif]--></a></span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><br /></span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Secondly,
because true happiness is standing in Christ, we are indeed happy when we are
persecuted for righteousness sake. This
does not mean we can expect to be happy if we were persecuted because of our
own sake. If you are persecuted because
of your sin, you certainly cannot rejoice in that; no, in that case it is time
to repent.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Thirdly,
Jesus locates Himself as to what He means by “for righteousness sake”; He
teaches us the latter is synonymous with “for My sake”.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Fourthly,
Jesus said our reward is great in the heavens, not that heaven is our
reward. The beatitudes are not
prescriptions for how to get to heaven, but descriptions of one who is standing
in God’s kingdom today. The beatitudes
describe the nature of the heart of one standing in Christ in terms of that
person’s present status in the kingdom (e.g., I am poor in spirit, so I am in
the kingdom). Our status in God’s
kingdom doesn’t change, but there will be bonuses, as it were, when God
consummates His kingdom in the future<a href="file:///C:/Users/bruce/Documents/bruce's%20stuff/Gospel%20of%20the%20Christ/Part%2011%20The%20Beatitudes%20Auxiliary.docx#_ftn2" name="_ftnref2" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[2]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>.
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Conclusion<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The eight
beatitudes begin with our status being the kingdom of God and end with the same
status. The first beatitude strongly
emphasizes humility; the last beatitude strongly emphasizes sacrifice. To be in Christ is to have through Him His
nature of humility and sacrifice motivated by love. Jesus describes His nature we have in Him as
the beatitudes. Because Jesus came as a
servant, these beatitudes define a servant’s heart. I have vividly pictured this servant’s heart
as like a spinning, purple orb generated conceptually as a coin bearing
sacrifice on one side and humility on the other that has been spun and is kept
spinning by love. I also defined Christ’s
nature theologically as walking in the perfect tension of love and holiness. All that these are and all that result from
them—justice, holy relationships, peace, the fulfilled Law, and so on—is collectively the
kingdom of God centered in Christ; it is, in fact, the righteousness that comes
from God. Indeed, Christ fulfills the Law.</span><br />
<div>
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<hr align="left" size="1" width="33%" />
<!--[endif]-->
<br />
<div id="ftn1">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/bruce/Documents/bruce's%20stuff/Gospel%20of%20the%20Christ/Part%2011%20The%20Beatitudes%20Auxiliary.docx#_ftnref1" name="_ftn1" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> J.
Ratzinger, “Jesus of Nazareth: Baptism to the Transfiguration” Image Press, New
York (2007): p. 99.</div>
</div>
<div id="ftn2">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/bruce/Documents/bruce's%20stuff/Gospel%20of%20the%20Christ/Part%2011%20The%20Beatitudes%20Auxiliary.docx#_ftnref2" name="_ftn2" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[2]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> B.
Witherington, “<i>Matthew</i>” Smyth and
Helwys, Macon, GA, (2006): p. 123.</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
Bruce Kokkohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04379200226297077294noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5659707542141347681.post-10631499756791541732014-04-07T18:42:00.000-07:002014-04-07T18:42:20.190-07:00Christ Fulfills the Law-Part 2<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Unlike Moses
who only gave us the Law, Jesus came to be the Law for us and this because in
Christ we can know the Father<a href="file:///C:/Users/bruce/Documents/bruce's%20stuff/Gospel%20of%20the%20Christ/Part%2011%20The%20Beatitudes%20Auxiliary.docx#_ftn1" name="_ftnref1" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>. Christ has perfectly fulfilled the Law so
that in Him we too can fulfill the law and this through holy love. John explains this nicely for us in his first
epistle:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Beloved, I am not writing a new
command to you, but the old commandment which you were having from the
beginning; the old commandment is the word that you heard. Again, I am writing
a new commandment to you, that is true in Jesus and in you, because the
darkness is passing away and the genuine light is already shining. The one who
claims to be in the light and hates his brother is still in the darkness. The one who loves his brother remains in the
light and no reason to sin is in him. But the one who hates his brother is in
the darkness and is walking in the darkness and does not see where he is going,
because the darkness has blinded his eyes.</span></i><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> (I John 2:7-11)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Therefore,
Jesus is not burdening us with a new set of commandments, but freeing us to
fully apprehend the old commandments. He
frees us first by dying on the cross and being raised to eternal life in order
to put to death sin and death (what John means by darkness) that had for us
irrevocably broken our relationship with God, so that we can once again stand
with God in the relationship He created us for, by standing in the risen Christ
who is king, Lord, and Master—that is, by standing in the kingdom of God. And by so standing in Christ—a restored
relationship with God--we are free to fulfill the law through love and
establish, sustain, flourish, and forever enjoy righteous relationships with
each other. We are freed this way
because Jesus enlivens His holy love within us through the indwelling of the
Holy Spirit.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Standing in
Christ, which as I said is tantamount to standing in the kingdom of God, we are
truly happy (blessed). And this
happiness (blessing) prevails within us by faith in Christ to make it real to
us by doing what His spirit tells us through the grace of wisdom, strength, and
forgiveness His spirit provides. Putting
it another way, we are truly happy when we take on the nature of Christ by
faith. And this nature is the perfect
fusion of humility and sacrifice motivated by love. In short, it is the beatitudes.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I’m fond of
describing the kingdom nature, or servant’s heart, as a coin on which one side
is painted red and the other side is painted blue<a href="file:///C:/Users/bruce/Documents/bruce's%20stuff/Gospel%20of%20the%20Christ/Part%2011%20The%20Beatitudes%20Auxiliary.docx#_ftn2" name="_ftnref2" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[2]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>. The colors symbolize sacrifice and humility,
respectively. Now imagine taking this
coin and spinning it. See how it becomes
a purple sphere. Yes, there it is; it is
the heart of Christ and therefore the heart of His servant-- one who follows
Christ—one who truly dwells with God in God’s kingdom—one who lives in Christ
by faith—one who is a Christian. But
what is the force the starts the coin spinning and then keeps it spinning? The force is love. The nature we have in Christ is the perfect
melding of humility and sacrifice motivated by love.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Jesus
describes eight beatitudes in the gospel according to Matthew. There are other beatitudes in the scriptures,
of course, but these concisely convey the servant’s heart. If you look carefully you can see how the
first four are nuanced toward humility, and the last four towards
sacrifice. We don’t want to draw solid
lines of division here, because one can easily discover many transpositions. But I find the nuances help us to appreciate fully
how these beatitudes describe the heart of Christ, and therefore the heart of
his disciples. We can loosely split the
eight beatitudes in the following way:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><u>Humility</u></b>: Be Poor in Spirit, Be One Who Mourns, Be Meek, and Be Hungry and Thirsty for Righteousness.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><u>Sacrifice:</u></b> Be Merciful, Be Pure in Heart, Be a Peacemaker, and Be Patient in Persecution </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
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<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Let’s take
each beatitude one by one.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">1) Blessed (happy) are the poor in spirit
because the kingdom of heaven is theirs.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">To be poor
in Spirit is to be humble in the purest sense.
It is a complete and unqualified realization of our helplessness:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="poetry" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<i><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Certainly you do not want a
sacrifice, or else I would offer it; <o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
<div class="poetry" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<i><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">you do not desire a burnt
sacrifice. <o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
<div class="poetry" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="Ps_51:17"></a><i><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The
sacrifices God desires are a humble spirit – <o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
<div class="poetry" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<i><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">O God, a humble and repentant
heart you will not reject.</span></i><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> (Ps
51:16-17) [NET]<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">To be poor
in Spirit is a complete and ongoing repudiation of our misplaced trust that
constituted our rebellion. This is why
there is no incompatibility between Luke’s statement of this beatitude in a
material sense<a href="file:///C:/Users/bruce/Documents/bruce's%20stuff/Gospel%20of%20the%20Christ/Part%2011%20The%20Beatitudes%20Auxiliary.docx#_ftn3" name="_ftnref3" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[3]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
and Matthew’s in the spiritual sense.
The issue is trust; it is the lesson we learned from the encounter
between the rich man and Jesus. To walk
in God’s kingdom we give up any hope of finding security in the human heart or
its institutions. We must surrender
ourselves totally to Christ; there is no blessing (no happiness) outside of
this poverty of spirit. If we are to
enter the kingdom of God, we must trust God with a childlike trust:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">And Jesus said, “Truly I say to you.
Unless you turn around and become like children, you will absolutely not enter
into the kingdom of Heaven!”</span></i><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> (Matt. 18:3)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">This holistic
trust is, of course, faith that is the perfect, unbroken triangle of belief,
trust, and obedience. In the first volume of his three volume series on Jesus
of Nazareth, Dr. Ratzinger captures the essence of people living by such faith:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">“<i>These are people who know that their poverty
also has an interior dimension; they are lovers who simply want to let God
bestow His gifts upon them and thereby live in harmony with God’s nature and
word.</i>”<span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><a href="file:///C:/Users/bruce/Documents/bruce's%20stuff/Gospel%20of%20the%20Christ/Part%2011%20The%20Beatitudes%20Auxiliary.docx#_ftn4" name="_ftnref4" title="">[4]</a></span></span><a href="file:///C:/Users/bruce/Documents/bruce's%20stuff/Gospel%20of%20the%20Christ/Part%2011%20The%20Beatitudes%20Auxiliary.docx#_ftn4" name="_ftnref4" title=""><!--[endif]--></a></span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><br /></span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">To be poor
in spirit is humility, but this humility is not the kind mustered up in order
to get what we want by invoking pity in someone. Neither is this humility a
means some people use to exalt themselves over others, such as the Pharisee in
Jesus’ parable:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">“<i>Two men ascended into the Temple in order to
pray, one was a Pharisee and the other was a tax collector. The Pharisee standing prayed about himself
these things: ‘God, I thank you because I am not even as the rest of the
people, swindlers, evil doers, adulterers, or even as this tax collector; I
fast twice a week; I tithe a tenth of everything I possess.</i>” (Luke
18:10-12)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">To be humble
as one poor in the spirit is to be stripped of all pretense of
self-sufficiency. It is the recognition
of one’s own powerlessness and lifelessness.
To be poor in spirit is to expose the lie that one is or ever could be a
god unto oneself. To be poor in spirit
is to finally grasp in the depth of humility one’s certain need of God’s
salvation. Indeed such humility wakes you up to the reality of you tumbling end
over end in a freefall into a bottomless abyss, where the ever increasing speed
of your descent blurs the features of the living passing beyond your reach. To be poor in spirit is the humility of the
tax collector:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The tax collector standing far away
(from the Pharisee), did not want to raise his eyes toward heaven, but beat his
chest saying, “God, forgive me the sinner!</span></i><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">” (Luke 18:13)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">To be poor
in spirit is Jesus telling Satan, “Man does not live by bread alone, but by the
word of God!” And “You will worship the Lord your God and will serve only Him!”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">To be poor
in spirit is Jesus washing His disciples’ feet.
It is Jesus alone with the flames of the second death looming ever
nearer, praying to the Father, “Not my will, but your will be done.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">To be poor
in spirit is Jesus,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Who being in the form of God, did not
consider equality with God the thing to be grasped. But He emptied Himself by
taking the form of a servant, becoming in the likeness of humankind, and after
being found as a man in appearance, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient
until death, even death on the cross.</span></i><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> (Phil. 2:6-8)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">To be poor
in spirit is the humility of being the last of all and the servant of all. Yes, to be poor in the Spirit is to be the
greatest in the kingdom of God.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">2) Blessed
(Happy) are those who mourn because they will be comforted.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Mourning in
the Greek is in the present or continuous form.
This means it should be always present in our minds. I don’t mean we must always walk around
hidden beneath hooded cloaks, reciting lamentations. No, to be in a constant state of mourning is
the humility of knowing the present world is not the way it should be—it is not
the right order of things—because of the rebellion of humankind against God. When someone asked G.K. Chesterton what he
thought was biggest cause of all the troubles in the world, he replied, “I am.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">When Jesus
arrived to raise Lazarus from the dead he was met by Martha and Mary in
separate occasions and mildly rebuked for not having come sooner to save
Lazarus. It is informative at this point
to note that Jesus did not get angry at them for their impertinence, even
though He knew he was about to bring Lazarus back to life and had tarried for
good reason. God always wants us to be
honest with Him—to come to Him as we are.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">What we also learn from this story is Jesus saw how everyone was mourning at
the death of Lazarus, even now after four days in the grave. And even though Jesus knew everything would
be alright, the Bible tells us He wept.
Why? Because Jesus mourned with a
humility that said none of this should be.
Death was not what God intended for His image-bearers. The torment of loss and the anxiety of fear
that so grips our world are the sole result of our rebellion. Unless we grasp
this as a deep humility by rehearsing its truth every day, we will become
complacent. Unless we mourn in this way,
we will soon forget our own and sole culpability in the fall of God’s creation, and
return to trusting in ourselves and our human institutions. And in so doing, we will trivialize the
corruption and violence in the world; we will come to accept death as a useful
tool, and even a happy end; when in reality death is the source of all evil in
this world, because it separates us from God.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">When we
embrace mourning in this way, we can be truly comforted, because the humility it
engenders turns us back to God for our life.
A good example of this for us is Peter after he denied knowing Jesus
three times. St. Paul teaches us,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">For sadness as intended by God
produces a repentance that leads to salvation, leaving no regret, but worldly
sadness brings about death.</span></i><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> (II Cor. 7:10) [NET]<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The mourning
the fallen world knows is grief without hope.
It is mourning that either leads to suicide, as it did for Judas
Iscariot, or virtual suicide, where people kill themselves in vain pursuits and
dissipation. Otherwise, it leads to
contempt that slowly kills both the mourner and those around him or her. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">But if we mourn from a depth of humility, we will turn back to God for comfort that, as John
Chrysostum observed, goes beyond just forgiveness but is an abundant
consolation<a href="file:///C:/Users/bruce/Documents/bruce's%20stuff/Gospel%20of%20the%20Christ/Part%2011%20The%20Beatitudes%20Auxiliary.docx#_ftn5" name="_ftnref5" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[5]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">3)</span><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Blessed (Happy) are the meek for they will
inherit the earth.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Dr. Ratzinger explains that the Greek
word <i>praus</i> means meek or gentle, and
is a translation in the OT of the Hebrew word, <i>anawim</i>, which refers to God’s poor; we see a connection, then,
between the first Beatitude and this, the third<a href="file:///C:/Users/bruce/Documents/bruce's%20stuff/Gospel%20of%20the%20Christ/Part%2011%20The%20Beatitudes%20Auxiliary.docx#_ftn6" name="_ftnref6" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[6]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>. A meek person in the sense Jesus is meaning
here is the poster child of humility; he or she is a living example of what
means to be poor in spirit.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Meekness and
gentleness does not mean cowardly or spineless.
Meekness takes great courage because a meek person seeks to restore
justice with the weapons of God’s kingdom, which are mercy, forgiveness, and
sacrifice, and not the weapons of the world. James said,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Who is wise and understanding among
you? By his good conduct he should show his works done in the gentleness that
wisdom brings.</span></i><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">
(James 3:13) [NET]<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">And such wisdom seems futile to a world that
believes power only resides in the sword.
Well, of course God’s wisdom would seem this way, because the world is
not poor in spirit, and it mourns with hopeless despair. The world subsists on its arrogance. But the meek in Christ are living abundantly
in humility.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">A meek
person knows who he or she is in Christ.
Christ is perfect meekness. He
announced the arrival of His kingdom riding on a donkey, not with political
rancor or with the din of war drums and the rattle of armor and swords. He willingly
ushered in His kingdom by being nailed to a cross--bleeding, beaten, cursed and
spat upon--even though there was no sin in Him.
Christ cared deeply for God’s creation and lost humanity and He went
about saving it through the only means it could be saved: through the mercy of
God’s wisdom that is love, forgiveness, and sacrifice. So that at the height of the world’s contempt
and cocky self-vindication, Jesus still prayed from the cross, “Father, forgive
them, for they don’t know what they do.”
We who claim to be followers of Christ can be no less meek, because a
servant is not greater than his/her master; and a student is not greater than
his/her teacher.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Jesus tells
us that it is the meek who shall inherit the earth. The meek stand in the God’s
wisdom; they act to bring His justice through the gentle methods of His wisdom;
they seek God’s justice instead of their own, and endure the harsh rebuke—even
death--from the world that has a vested interest to remain in its
darkness. The meek in its sincere and
deep humility knows that the quick fix and seemly expedient measures proffered
by the world are nothing more than a thinly veiled conceit and
selfish-ambition. The meek person trusts
in the Lord even when it seems to be ineffective. And the Lord says it is such meek people who
will inherit the earth because they are walking now in sync with the world God
created to be, not the rogue world born out of rebellion. It is for the meek as the Psalmist says,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="poetry" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<i>Trust in the Lord and do what is right!<o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="poetry" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<i>Settle in the land and maintain your integrity! <o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="poetry" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="Ps_37:4"></a><i>Then you will take delight in the Lord,<o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="poetry" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<i>and he will answer your prayers.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="poetry" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="Ps_37:5"></a><i>Commit your future to the Lord! <o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="poetry" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<i>Trust in him, and he will act on your behalf.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="poetry" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="Ps_37:6"></a><i>He will vindicate you in broad daylight,<o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="poetry" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<i>and publicly defend your just cause. <o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="poetry" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="Ps_37:7"></a><i>Wait patiently for the Lord! <o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="poetry" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<i>Wait confidently for him!<o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="poetry" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<i>Do not fret over the apparent success of a sinner, <o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="poetry" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<i>a man who carries out wicked schemes!<o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="poetry" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="Ps_37:8"></a><i>Do not be angry and frustrated! <o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="poetry" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<i>Do not fret! That only leads to trouble!<o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="poetry" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="Ps_37:9"></a><i>Wicked men</i><a href="mk:@MSITStore:C:\Program%20Files%20(x86)\NET%20Bible\NETBible2009.chm::/netbible/psa37_notes.htm#3715" target="note_pane"><i><sup>15</sup></i></a><i> will be wiped out, <o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="poetry" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<i>but those who rely on the Lord are the ones who will possess the land. <o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="poetry" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="Ps_37:10"></a><i>Evil men will soon disappear; <o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="poetry" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<i>you will stare at the spot where they once were, but they will be gone.
<o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="poetry" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="Ps_37:11"></a><i>But the oppressed will possess the land<o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="poetry" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<i>and enjoy great prosperity.</i> (Ps 37:3-11) [NET]</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The fact the
Lord promises we shall inherit the earth, means God is interested in restoring
all creation, not just His image-bearers.
Our salvation is not only a private one, but a necessary part of God’s
whole redemptive plan. The humility of
the meek recognizes it is not about me but God reconciling the world to Himself,
to be the place where He dwells with His image-bearers in perfect justice,
bound together in love. And this kingdom is the seamless union of the physical
and spiritual realms.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">4) Blessed
(Happy) are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness because they will be
satisfied.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">First of
all, the Greek words for hungering and thirsting are in present or continuous
forms, so Jesus means we must always be hungering and thirsting after
righteousness without ceasing.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Righteousness
was the term in the OT referring to fidelity to Torah—that is, to observe the
right path shown by God (i.e., the 10 Words).
I have already spent a lot of time at the beginning of this lesson
explaining how only in Christ is this righteousness fulfilled (See Part 1). We hunger and thirst for righteousness by faith
in Christ.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">It is a
mistake to think of righteousness as only a right standing with God, even
though it is that. We first must have a
right standing with God, because only in that restored relationship can all the
rest of what righteousness is can be fulfilled.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Therefore
hungering and thirsting after righteousness is for each of us individually to
stand totally in Christ. But because the
kingdom is about restored relationships, each of us is seeking that others
would find their way to stand in Christ. This means we must model for them this
righteousness we have in Christ in all our relationships. Therefore to hunger and thirst after
righteousness is to seek Christ to transform us so that we love with a holy
love that leads to justice. This
requires a deep humility on our part because none of this righteousness is due
to anything we have done, but the outcome of what God is doing through Christ;
so we must not treat the world as if this isn’t true; to do so is not humility,
but a spiritualized arrogance and therefore unrighteous. To hunger and thirst after righteousness is
also, then, to seek the restoration of others in Christ by extending to them
the same mercy Christ has extended to us—to love others as Christ has loved us.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">As we have
learned together, mercy is love acting in justice and for justice. We extend
mercy to the lost by lifting them out of the unjust state they find
themselves. And when they see this
justice in love they begin to understand their own sinfulness. An excellent example of this is the work the
Wheaton Bible Church has been doing in West Chicago. There are there apartment complexes of Latin
immigrants, and because of their impoverished condition there was a
rise in gang activity and a steep dropout rate among the children. People from Wheaton Church forsook their own
middle/upper middle class lifestyles and moved into these apartments and
ministered to the tenants there by tutoring children, providing job and
marriage counseling and medical services.
The result has been the children are going back to school, gang violence
has declined, and two services for the Latins have formed at Wheaton Bible Church
to accommodate the influx of new believers.
Those Christians at Wheaton hungered and thirsted after righteousness by
bringing justice (moving the wrong order to right order) by extending mercy to
the lost, with the result relationships are being restored along with the
fallout of justice—just as Jesus promised would happen when we continually
hunger and thirst after righteousness: we will be satisfied.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I would like
to add one more thing before moving on.
We should also see from the Wheaton example how John Chrysostom was
right in his perspective on this beatitude.
He said that hungering and thirsting for righteousness is turning away
from coveting wealth, property, and the accumulation of worldly prosperity<a href="file:///C:/Users/bruce/Documents/bruce's%20stuff/Gospel%20of%20the%20Christ/Part%2011%20The%20Beatitudes%20Auxiliary.docx#_ftn7" name="_ftnref7" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[7]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>. Jesus will validate this later in the Sermon
on the Mount:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> “<i>But
seek first the kingdom of God and its righteousness, and all these things </i>[the
things we need]<i> will be added unto you.</i>” (Matt. 6:33)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">My point is
the main reason we don’t extend mercy to the fallen world, and perhaps devise
whole theologies to justify our inaction, is because deep down we are
unwillingly to part with the possessions and wealth we believe to be our
security and comfort. This misplaced
trust is unrighteous; so our unwillingness to be merciful to those who don’t
deserve our mercy is not to hunger and to thirst after righteousness.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div>
<!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><br clear="all" />
<hr align="left" size="1" width="33%" />
<!--[endif]-->
<div id="ftn1">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/bruce/Documents/bruce's%20stuff/Gospel%20of%20the%20Christ/Part%2011%20The%20Beatitudes%20Auxiliary.docx#_ftnref1" name="_ftn1" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> I
believe this is what John means to communicate in the climax of the prolog of
his gospel account: Moses brought us the skeleton (the Law), but Jesus made it
alive by fitting it with the flesh of grace and truth because only in Him is the Father revealed to us (John 1:17,18).</div>
</div>
<div id="ftn2">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/bruce/Documents/bruce's%20stuff/Gospel%20of%20the%20Christ/Part%2011%20The%20Beatitudes%20Auxiliary.docx#_ftnref2" name="_ftn2" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[2]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> B.
J. Kokko, "<i>A Final Word on LOVE</i>" Kindle e-Book (2011): p. 108.</div>
</div>
<div id="ftn3">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/bruce/Documents/bruce's%20stuff/Gospel%20of%20the%20Christ/Part%2011%20The%20Beatitudes%20Auxiliary.docx#_ftnref3" name="_ftn3" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[3]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Luke 6:20 reads, <i>Blessed are the poor
because yours is the kingdom of God</i>.</div>
</div>
<div id="ftn4">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/bruce/Documents/bruce's%20stuff/Gospel%20of%20the%20Christ/Part%2011%20The%20Beatitudes%20Auxiliary.docx#_ftnref4" name="_ftn4" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[4]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> J.
Ratzinger, “Jesus of Nazareth: Baptism to the Transfiguration” Image Press, New
York (2007): p. 76.</div>
</div>
<div id="ftn5">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/bruce/Documents/bruce's%20stuff/Gospel%20of%20the%20Christ/Part%2011%20The%20Beatitudes%20Auxiliary.docx#_ftnref5" name="_ftn5" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[5]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Chrysostom, Homily XV (Matt. V. 1-16), 4.</div>
</div>
<div id="ftn6">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/bruce/Documents/bruce's%20stuff/Gospel%20of%20the%20Christ/Part%2011%20The%20Beatitudes%20Auxiliary.docx#_ftnref6" name="_ftn6" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[6]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> J.
Ratzinger, “Jesus of Nazareth: Baptism to the Transfiguration” Image Press, New
York (2007): p. 80.</div>
</div>
<div id="ftn7">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/bruce/Documents/bruce's%20stuff/Gospel%20of%20the%20Christ/Part%2011%20The%20Beatitudes%20Auxiliary.docx#_ftnref7" name="_ftn7" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[7]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Chrysostom, Homily XV (Matt. V. 1-16), 6.</div>
</div>
</div>
Bruce Kokkohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04379200226297077294noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5659707542141347681.post-54415430433520098662014-04-02T15:36:00.000-07:002014-04-02T15:36:01.430-07:00Christ Fulfills the Law- Part 1<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The second
temple Jews saw upholding Torah as the expression of wisdom and righteousness.
But the issue is what this wisdom must be based on. Matthew places the Sermon on the Mount near
the front of his gospel account because a primary objective of his is to show
Jesus as the Messiah—the personification of God’s wisdom—God with us.<span class="MsoFootnoteReference">.</span> All
of which is to say Jesus claims Himself to be the basis of wisdom. The Torah, then, is fulfilled in Christ.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Jesus ascended
the mount to proclaim this perfect wisdom to His disciples, which of course
includes you and me, as a clear nod to Moses ascending Mount Sinai to receive
the Law, or Elijah receiving instruction from God on the mountain. What we will hear from our Lord is
counter-intuitive and contradictory to conventional wisdom. Of course it is, because it is wisdom of the
Kingdom of God, not of the Kingdom of fallen humankind. Witherington sees Jesus’ wisdom statements
for the new relationship God has with His image-bearers in His kingdom (</span>B.
Witherington, “<i>Matthew</i>” Smyth and
Helwys, Macon, GA, (2006)<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">.) I agree as long as we understand this
relationship as new in the sense of a restored relationship in Christ.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">We will
discover as we listen to Jesus, He is fulfilling the essential Law, not all
that came to be the Torah. Many of the
Laws of the old covenant were necessary for keeping some order in Israel
coexisting in a violent, pagan world—that is, they were judicial laws. Such laws will vanish; others will be recast
into the essential Law, which is what I believe to be the Ten Words (Ten
Commandments). It is this essential law
Jesus ultimately fulfills. And we will
see what this means as the wisdom of Christ is unfolded before us in the Sermon
on the Mount (Matt. 5-7).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">In verse 2 of
chapter 5 we see what seems to be a peculiar description we might take as
simply an archaic expression: “<i>He opened
His mouth and taught them saying….</i>”
But it isn’t. Matthew is
contrasting here wisdom Christ taught through miracles and through His silence
(e.g., before Pilate) with wisdom He is about speak to us. John Chrysostum in his homily on this passage
of Matthew further explains that Matthew connects Jesus’ acts of healing with
His verbal teaching to demonstrate God’s concern for both the spiritual and
physical aspects of His creation (</span>Chrysostom, Homily XV (Matt. V. 1,2),
1.). <span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> God is restoring all of creation, not just
individuals.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Jesus now
lays out the eight so-called beatitudes. Let’s step back again and view the
magnificent forest and gradually hike our way in to examine these beatitudes in
detail.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The Sermon
on the Mount is the Kingdom ethos. It
isn’t a new set of commandments, but the fulfillment of the old set of
commandments—specifically, the Ten Words.
The Law is to God’s kingdom as the skeleton is to the body, in that the
Law provides the necessary infrastructure and shape for the Kingdom of God; the
Law describes what right order (justice) looks like and must be because God who
is holy created His kingdom for His good pleasure as a place to dwell with His
image-bearers—and God does not change. I
say this lest we might think the Law is a capricious thing, subject to change
by an act of congress.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The law is a
necessary but not sufficient foundation for the kingdom of God. If left alone, the skeleton remains nothing
except a sculpted inanimate collection of minerals. The skeleton only comes alive when covered
with flesh infused with living consciousness.
In the same way, the Law is fulfilled when it is animated by love. The law fulfilled by love is the necessary
and sufficient foundation of God’s kingdom, for only relationships built on
this foundation will be genuine (holy) and therefore thrive. And the kingdom of God is all about holy
relationships.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The right
order or infrastructure of the Kingdom as described by the Law is necessary for
holy relationships to form, flourish, and be forever sustained. The right order is necessary for true love to
flow between God and His image-bearers and therefore between the
image-bearers. In more profound terms,
the kingdom of God is the holy community created to share in the eternal
community of the Trinity. Because God is
relational, it was His good pleasure to create relational beings to become a
community with Him (Note: </span>We must not make the mistake of suggesting God
had to create the cosmos in order to in some way complete Himself. God is totally autonomous; neither His
character nor his being is contingent on anything outside of Himself)<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">.
And all of us who stand together with God in His kingdom are blessed.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Let us
digress for a moment and think about this adjective, blessed. We shall see it is how Jesus introduces each
beatitude. Are we to understand blessed
as a method of entering His kingdom, or only some future reward awaiting those
who will enter His kingdom? No, even if in
their respective senses they are true, they don’t adequately define blessed as
it is used in the beatitudes. The Greek word <i>makarios</i> translated blessed also means happy. We who stand in God’s kingdom are certainly
blessed, because it is God’s sole accomplishment as an act of His inexpressible
love. But it is also true happiness for
us who stand in His kingdom. The fallen
world has been on an unending carrot chase for happiness, trying every
conceivable means to satisfy a hunger they fail to understand can only be sated
by the Kingdom relationships we were created for. We can and only will be happy in God’s
kingdom; this is Truth.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Blessed or
happy describes the inner wholeness we have as kingdom dwellers, both now and when
God consummates His kingdom. This blessed
(happy) condition is not mere abstraction, but even now should manifest itself
in the outward actions marking His kingdom dwellers. Putting it another way, this blessing is an
inner heart condition that expresses itself in holy relationships. What Jesus will unpack for us with the Sermon
on the Mount as His beatitudes is beautifully summarized in Proverbs 3:3-4:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Do not let truth and mercy leave you;
bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart. Then you will find favor and good
understanding, in the sight of God and people</span></i><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">. [NET]<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">True
blessing and the happiness we all seek is only found in the restored
relationships of God’s kingdom. And this
is not something we earn, or a reward, but as you shall see, a transformation
we have only in Christ.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">There is a
paradox in this relationship of love with this infrastructure illustrated for
us by the Law. Unless the love is
flowing in righteous (holy) relationships—that is, relationships circumscribed
by the Law—the Law, itself, will be forsaken; it is only through love the Law
is ever truly obeyed. To use our
skeleton analogy, the skeleton is kept alive through the blood flowing through
it from the flesh it gives shape. Likewise,
the Law is vitalized by love. But even
as the living skeleton manufacturers the blood cells that will return to keep
the skeleton alive, the Law provides the boundaries of love. For it is as Paul said, <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Owe nothing to anyone except the debt
to love each other; for the one loving others has fulfilled the Law. For the edicts, you shall not commit
adultery, you shall not murder, you shall not steal, you shall not covet, and
if any other commandment, are summarized by this principle in this way: Love
your neighbor as yourself. Love does not
work out bad for a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfillment of the Law.</span></i><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> (Rom. 13:8-10)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">It is a
mistake, then, to view Christianity—walking in Christ’s kingdom—being a Christ
follower—from a legal perspective only.
This was the mistake Israel made.
They thought the Torah could be obeyed by holding to a standard of the
Law (e.g., the Sabbath requirements).
But this approach ultimately crippled or outright destroyed
relationships. This is a main theme of
Jesus’ pronouncement of seven woes upon the Scribes and Pharisees recorded in
Matthew 23:13-36. Let’s consider just a
few to hopefully drive the point home.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">“<i>Woe to you, Scribes and Pharisees,
hypocrites, because you shut out the Kingdom of Heaven from before the people;
for you are not entering the Kingdom nor are you letting those who are entering
to enter. Woe to you, Scribes and
Pharisees, hypocrites, because you go around the sea and the desert in order to
make a single convert, and whenever it happens, you make him twice a son of
hell than you.</i>”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">In the
fourth Woe Jesus explains how this happens.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">“<i>Woe to you, Scribes and Pharisees,
hypocrites, because you give a tenth of the mint and the dill and the cumin,
and forget the weightier things of the Law: the justice, the mercy, and the
faithfulness. You must do the latter
things and not forget the former things.
Blind guides, who strain out the gnat but who swallow the camel.</i>”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Returning to
our analogy, then, if one attempts to keep the skeleton alive by depleting the
flesh—such as, say, limiting the diet to only those foods that will build
bones--one ends up killing both.
Likewise, if we try to keep the Law without love, or love without the
Law, we lose both. And this is exactly
the fate of our fallen world.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Jesus
teaches us the basis of the Law is love—that is, the law is fulfilled by love. What this looks like is what has come to be
called the beatitudes fleshed out in the Sermon on the Mount. Jesus ascended the
mountain to reveal the Law—not a new law, but a fulfilled law. Indeed, it is the law God demanded from the
very beginning. Jesus reveals to us the
law of God’s kingdom, or as I called it earlier, the kingdom ethos. And every dweller of God’s kingdom will
perfectly conform to this Law because Christ perfectly conformed to it.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div>
<div id="ftn1">
</div>
</div>
Bruce Kokkohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04379200226297077294noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5659707542141347681.post-48108180824221135932014-03-19T16:33:00.000-07:002014-03-19T16:33:12.839-07:00Jesus and the Rich Man- Part 3<div class="MsoNormal">
What Jesus demanded of the rich man, Jesus' disciples, and all of us who want to be followers of Christ is a difficult teaching; for this reason, the rich man walked away
downcast. Jesus tells us how hard it is
to enter the kingdom of heaven, particularly for the wealthy. Jesus uses the eye of the needle analogy to
make His point clear. (By the way, the eye of the needle is just that, not the
gate in Jerusalem, which didn’t exist in Jesus’ day.)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The issue here is trust, not money. Jesus was no Marxist. Money is not inherently evil. Money has its purposes, even in bringing
about justice, as we have seen in what Jesus demanded of the rich man. We also see this in Jesus’ parable of the
unfaithful manager (Luke 16:1-14). Money is not evil; but the evil is putting one's trust in money. This is why Jesus, teaches us,<br />
<br />
<i>"No servant is able to serve two masters; for either he/she will hate one and love the other, or he/she will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money."</i> (Luke 16:13)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
No, the problem with all of us is a misplaced trust. We all want to be our own god, but deep down
we know we are hopelessly fallible, so we attempt to protect ourselves from our
own fallibility by amassing wealth, which is essentially power. In short, we put our trust in wealth, instead
of God. But as we see with the rich man,
wealth doesn’t engender mercy and love; instead it hinders it, because by
trusting in wealth, we possess it. And
such possessiveness always leads to hate, in the end.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The rich
man will have to do some serious soul-searching. It just isn’t easy to trust Jesus to the
extent we willingly cut all the lifelines by which we have secured ourselves—or
so we have deluded ourselves to believe. This begins to dawn on Jesus’ disciples. “<i>How
can anyone be saved?</i>” First, if the
rich aren’t saved--indeed, it is more difficult for them to be saved because of
their wealth--and everyone always believed their wealth was evidence of God’s
favor, what hope is there for anyone?
Second, if dwelling in the kingdom of God demands goodness, and goodness
can only be attained through an unconditional trust in Jesus—a trust really
beyond us because of our inherent fear—how can anyone be saved?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Jesus
explains that it is impossible in the presence of man (i.e., trusting in human wisdom, methods, and institutions), but all things are possible in the presence of God (i.e., standing in the kingdom of God, in Christ). And God achieves this through His
son, Jesus the Christ. This is the
gospel. Jesus is king and is offering
his kingdom to us. He is king because he
overcame death on the cross; Jesus is alive!
And the kingdom has come for us because, through His death on the cross,
forgiveness is possible with our repentance, which is dying with Him; and
because He lives, eternal life is possible by living through Him; and because of Him, goodness
to dwell with God is possible through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. These three define what it means to dwell in
the kingdom of God, and fundamentally involves a trust. Hence, we are truly justified only by faith
alone. The basis of the kingdom of God
is faith, not the Law, because only by faith can we act justly, love mercy, and
walk humbly before God.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
We learn with the rich man, then, that the kingdom of God is
based on Goodness, defined as the tension of mercy and justice that can only be
achieved through the joining of ourselves with Christ. In short,</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b>As
dwellers of the Kingdom of God we must trust God unconditionally by
surrendering ourselves completely to our Lord, Master, King Jesus.</b></div>
Bruce Kokkohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04379200226297077294noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5659707542141347681.post-35681057080192749642014-03-12T16:27:00.001-07:002014-03-12T16:27:36.784-07:00Jesus and the Rich Man- Part 2<div class="MsoNormal">
Okay, now to the interesting issue around the term
Good. The Rich man calls Jesus, “Good
Teacher”—again the Rich man is not being disingenuous, here—and Jesus quickly
parries with, “<i>Why do you call me
Good? No one is good except one, namely, God.</i>” Wow!
Why did Jesus say this?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Firstly, Jesus wanted the rich man to cool his jets, and
consider what he is really asking.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Second, Jesus is making a clear declaration of the
fundamental nature of God. If God is
Good, in fact the definition of Good, and therefore the only true embodiment of
Good, then if His kingdom will ultimately be where God dwells with us, the
basis of that Kingdom must be Good. In
other words Jesus has already answered the Rich man’s question: “There ain’t
nothing you can do, because only God is Good.”
As we shall see, Jesus doesn’t leave the Rich man there, nor does He leave
Jesus’ disciples there; but we must understand that this whole encounter pivots
on the concept of Good.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Another reason for
pointing out that only God is Good is so the rich man and all of us can see how
incredible God truly is—can you say, I can only fall at His feet? Despite all of the state of depravity we are
all in that places an insurmountable chasm between us and God, because of His
infinite Goodness, God still reveals Himself to us through His son, Jesus the
Christ. The Bible talks about the how
God is completely unapproachable and shrouded in darkness—not evil, disorder,
or chaos, but infinite incomprehensibility.
Yet this infinite God has revealed Himself to us, and opened His eternal
kingdom to us through His son. All
because God is Good. Reflect back on a
key prophecy concerning Jesus and you will begin to understand the extent of
His goodness:</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“<i>The Lord your God will
raise up for you a prophet like me from among you – from your fellow
Israelites; you must listen to him. <a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="De_18:16"></a>This accords with
what happened at Horeb in the day of the assembly. You asked the Lord your God:
“Please do not make us hear the voice of the Lord our God any more or see this
great fire any more lest we die.” <a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="De_18:17"></a>The Lord then said to
me, “What they have said is good. <a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="De_18:18"></a>I will raise up a
prophet like you for them from among their fellow Israelites. I will put my
words in his mouth and he will speak to them whatever I command. <a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="De_18:19"></a>I will personally hold responsible anyone who then pays no
attention to the words that prophet speaks in my name.</i>” (Deut. 18:15-19) [NET]</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
By telling the rich man only God is Good, it might help him
see how really audacious his question is, and how the Good God is to reveal himself
to him and then open His kingdom to him and the rest of us. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Having, as I am suggesting, pivoted the
discussion on Good, Jesus will now explain what that means for the Rich man,
Jesus’ disciples, and all of us who would be dwellers of His kingdom.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Jesus begins with laying out five of the ten words –what we
call the ten commandments—that God gave Moses.
Jesus also adds a prohibition against cheating one’s neighbor. I don’t know why, but I suspect it’s because so
many rich people in His time (and ours) got there through cheating their neighbor (e.g.,
Matthew, or Zacchaeus). Jesus does this
to show that the kingdom operates in terms of justice. We have unfortunately come to understand
justice in the distributive sense-- that is, everyone is paid their due either
good or bad. But this is not
justice. Justice really speaks to a
right order. The world and God’s kingdom
were created to operate in a right order.
As part of this overall right order is the right order of His image
bearers—us human beings. The right order must start with a proper
relationship with God (yet another reason for bringing up that only God is
Good) so we can then effectively relate with each other. The five Words specifically speak to “love
your neighbor as yourself.” The
unmentioned first four Words speak to “Love the Lord God with all your soul,
mind and strength.” The point to be
understood here is justice provides the framework by which love operates. Love is not love if it attempts to operate
autonomously from justice. True love must act from
justice. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
On the other hand, as we shall soon see, justice cannot be
devoid of love. Christ begins with the five
Words because that is where God began with Israel. The Law provides a picture of what the more
abstract yet critical aspect of God’s kingdom life is. Justice is like the frame of the house, while
love is what fills in and populates the house.
The kingdom of heaven is not just a matter of a series of negative
commands: don’t do this and don’t do that.
This was the fatal error of the man who buried his one talent. Who, speaking to his returning master, said,
“I know you are a hard man….” What did
Jesus tell us happened to that man? It
was the basis the Pharisees established.
It is also the extreme legalism by which some Christians try to operate. We must act in justice, but justice is not
the complete story. Justice is an
essential but not sufficient aspect of the kingdom.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The rich man tells Jesus he has faithfully obeyed these
rules—that is, in the negative sense of not breaking prohibitions, he has
walked in the kingdom. And Jesus doesn’t
argue with him. In fact, it says Jesus
loved him. Clearly, Jesus saw a
malleable heart in this rich man, and had compassion on him.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
But justice alone doesn’t cut it. The kingdom is not only about avoiding
things, it is about positive actions. It
is about doing something. So Jesus tells
the rich man he lacks one other thing: “<i>go
sell all you have, give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven.</i>” This is love acting in justice; indeed, it is
love acting for justice; it is mercy!
Jesus is saying that the kingdom is grounded in justice but is completed
through the action of love that is mercy.
You cannot have love without justice or visa versa, without losing
both. Very quickly and succinctly Jesus
lays out the basis of the kingdom of God as being justice and mercy in tension. We see this echoed in His response to the
Pharisees in Matt. 12:7 and 23:23.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
In this time when the kingdom of God has not yet been
completed, but stands alongside the kingdom of darkness, the concept of justice
and mercy will operate (when the kingdom has fully come, we will no longer
speak of justice and mercy, only love in tension with holiness). We as kingdom dwellers are to be a light in
this world; we are to move things from a disordered state (i.e., unjust state)
to the right ordered state (i.e., just state), and we do this by acting
mercifully—that is, by holy love. The
greatest mistake I see today in the church is the attempt to bring about
justice by imposing justice on a world unable to practice it. No, God brought us to a state of justice,
through the singular act of mercy on the cross—we love because God first loved
us. This is what I think St. Paul meant writing in
Romans 2:1-4:</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“<i>Therefore you are
without excuse, whoever you are, when you judge someone else. For on whatever
grounds you judge another, you condemn yourself, because you who judge practice
the same things. <a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="Ro_2:2"></a>Now we know that God’s judgment is in accordance
with truth against those who practice such things. <a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="Ro_2:3"></a>And do
you think, whoever you are, when you judge those who practice such things and
yet do them yourself, that you will escape God’s judgment? <a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="Ro_2:4"></a>Or
do you have contempt for the wealth of his kindness, forbearance, and patience,
and yet do not know that God’s kindness leads you to repentance?</i>” [NET]</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Therefore, Jesus is telling the rich man that while it is
right and proper that he has acted justly, it must be coupled with mercy. Because the rich man has been given much, God
expects him to give much as a proper expression of mercy. And this mercy, which is love, will work to
bring justice—the right order—back to the world, so sinners might see the
contrast, and the revelation can lead them to consider their own sinfulness
(unjust state). Such is what it means to
be a dweller of God’s kingdom.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Ah, but one piece is still missing; and it is the critical
piece. Jesus said after all of this, “<i>Then come and follow me.</i>” There it is.
Because only God is good, and good demands this tension of
mercy/justice, then the only way we can remain in God’s kingdom is to live through Jesus—that is, trusting Him by completely surrendering ourselves
to Him. We will develop this more later.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
See what Jesus has done here. Only God is good. To walk in His kingdom where He dwells with
us means we must be good, which is to live squarely within the tension of mercy and
justice. But that can only happen if we
live through Jesus—walk unconditionally with Jesus by trusting Him by
surrendering ourselves utterly to Him.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Where have we seen this definition of Good before? We find it in Micah 6:8:</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i>He has
showed you, O man, what is good. And
what does the Lord require of you? To
act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.</i>[NET]</div>
<br />Bruce Kokkohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04379200226297077294noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5659707542141347681.post-12695292089928627792014-03-05T15:34:00.000-08:002014-03-05T15:34:15.334-08:00Jesus and the Rich Man-Part 1Several of the Gospel accounts record an incident between Jesus and a rich man. Here is Mark's rendition of the event.<br />
<br />
<i>And after Jesus went out onto the road, a man ran up to Him and after dropping to his knees before Jesus, the man asked Jesus,"Good teacher, what shall I do in order to inherit eternal life?" Jesus said to the man, "Why do you call me Good? No one is Good except one, namely, God. You know the commandments. You shall not murder. You shall not commit adultery. You shall not steal. You shall not give false testimony. You shall not cheat someone. Honor your father and your mother." The man said to Jesus, "Teacher, I have kept all of these things since my youth." When Jesus looked upon the man, he loved him and said to him, "You lack one thing. <b>Go</b>, sell as much as you have and give it to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven, and <b>come</b>, follow Me. Because he was saddened by Jesus' answer, the man went away grieving; for he possessed great wealth. And after looking around, Jesus said to His disciples, "How difficult it will be for the rich entering into the kingdom of God." Those disciples were astonished by Jesus' words. Jesus again answered and said to them, "Children, how difficult it is to enter into the kingdom of God. It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle, than for a wealthy person to enter into the kingdom of God. Those disciples were flabbergasted, so they said to one another, "Who, then, is able to be saved!?" After fixing His eyes on them, Jesus said, In the presence of humankind it is impossible, but not in the presence of God. For everything is possible in the presence of God."</i> (Mark 10:17-27) [the emboldened words are my emphasis]<br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
The first observation to make is how the Rich man approached
Jesus. He threw himself down on his
knees before Jesus. In first century
Jewish culture, a rich person was seen as one favored by God. This will become even more important later; but consider how this rich, well dressed highly respected man humbled himself
before this poor itinerate Rabbi. Why
would he do that? Perhaps he had been
there where Jesus had taught and healed, so he was overwhelmed by Jesus’
authority. Perhaps there was a divine
presence to Jesus that would bring people to a state of awe and worship in His
company. Certainly, many people did respond
to Jesus this way. Even Jesus’ enemies
were amazed by Him. Maybe it was a bit
of all of that that humbled this rich man before Christ. But this man was definitely not like so many
others; he genuinely sought an answer from the Lord; he wasn’t there to trap
Jesus. And he was confident Jesus knew the answer. The man didn’t humble himself in order to
stroke Jesus as the lawyers and scribes did when they approached Jesus with “we
know you are a man of God….” Jesus,
Himself, saw this rich man as a genuine seeker of truth. This is why the scripture tells us that Jesus
looked at the man and loved Him.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Before we say anything more about this poignant encounter,
we need to answer for ourselves if we approach Jesus the same way as this man
did. I suspect we don’t. Why?
Well, perhaps we have never really encountered Jesus; instead we have
encountered ideas, doctrines, tales, examples, and whatever about Him, and it
all felt so good that we joined the club.
Perhaps we did at one point genuinely meet Jesus, but the encounter
simply settled for us our eternal destiny, so after pocketing our
get-out-of-jail-free card, we proceeded trippingly along with our life,
relegating Jesus to a picture on the wall, a song on the radio, a society of
Christians, or a patriotism. We might be
quite passionate about our causes, yet the presence of Jesus evokes hardly a
response from us anymore. Perhaps you
daily fall at Jesus’ feet as did that rich man did. You, at least will understand the message Jesus
would have all of us hear in this account:</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b>As dwellers of the
Kingdom of God we must trust God unconditionally by surrendering ourselves
completely to our Lord, Master, King Jesus.<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><br /></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The rich man calls Jesus, Good Teacher (I’ll come back to
this in a minute), and asks Him what he (the rich Man) must do to inherit
eternal life. It would do well for us to
understand what the rich Man is asking.
He is not asking how he can go to heaven and live forever. The Greek translated as eternal life is literally “lasting for an age life”.
It is the same construction used in Dan. 12:2, Matt 25:46, John 3:16,
John 6:27, etc. and is always translated eternal life. What the Rich Jewish man and all 2<sup>nd</sup>
temple Jews were looking for was the new age where Israel has been restored,
their enemies vanquished and God dwells with them and rules forever. The Pharisees believed all the past saints
would be resurrected and in this new kingdom there will be unending life. Therefore the rich man wanted to be sure he
did everything he could to make sure he would be in that kingdom when it
came--that is, be a true son of Abraham.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The problem was not in the Jewish understanding of the
promised kingdom, but what the basis of that kingdom would be and when the
kingdom would actually come. If we are
to understand Jesus’ response in this encounter, we need to step back and
consider how we look at the kingdom of God. </div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
In many respects, as Western Christians we have ignored what
Jesus spoke of more often than any other thing except calling Himself the Son
of Man—that is, the Kingdom of God, or as Matthew renders it, the Kingdom of heaven. Cutting to the chase, this kingdom of heaven
is not a future disembodied condition of eternal bliss that we all have to look
forward to because we said the sinner’s prayer; rather it is the place we all
live today—juxtaposed on this fallen world—where Jesus is King, Lord,
Master—if we have truly believed in Him, as evinced by belief, trust, and
action (obedience)—that is, if we love Jesus.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Yes, this is salvation, and yes, someday it will come to
completion, when death and its Sin have been annihilated. But the kingdom has already come. Jesus said, “<i>I tell you the truth, some who are standing here will not taste death before
they see the kingdom of God come in power.</i>”
And it came when Jesus died on the cross and was raised to life; and
Jesus has ascended to the right hand of God, where He is our King, master,
Lord. We cannot separate the kingdom of God and the
cross. The kingdom of God, then, is both
now and not yet, because the kingdom of heaven is Christ.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
If the final condition of eternal life is really identical in the two
perspectives of the kingdom, why make a big deal of it? Because if we see heaven as simply some
reward awaiting us after death instead of a kingdom that Jesus expects us to
dwell, TODAY, then it is easy to view our life as a waiting game, where we want
to experience the least amount of discomfort and hassles. Putting it another way, we end up laying out
our own ground rules of the kingdom—this time because we really fail to see it
as a present reality—instead of seeking God’s basis of His kingdom, which is complete
surrender to Jesus the Christ.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The gospel is not “how we get saved” or “how we
get to heaven”—although those certainly are important ramifications of the
Gospel—but Jesus is King! Good News!
God’s kingdom has come! This should
change the way we live in this world, and Jesus will point out to the rich man
it changes how he must live in this world, too.</div>
Bruce Kokkohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04379200226297077294noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5659707542141347681.post-36062128499800941812014-02-23T15:37:00.000-08:002014-02-23T17:48:53.537-08:00The Vengeance of God<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The primary objective
of this blog is to present the beauty of the Gospel of Christ in as many different
ways and perspectives I can. In most installments
I have held to a positive path, although a few times I have ventured off into darker
territories. Recently, in so many words
I was gently accused of being too saccharine regarding God’s holiness. Specifically the person didn’t agree with my non-face
value definition of the vengeance of God. In the person's opinion, I was downgrading its clear meaning in order to pander
the modern sensibilities.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">If anyone thinks
I believe there will be no final judgment by God by which He will bring His full
vengeance to bear on all unbelievers, let me state as clearly as I can: this is
<u>not</u> my position, at all. All
those who resolutely choose to remain outside of Christ’s kingdom will suffer the
full brunt of God’s wrath, just as John succinctly states in his gospel,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">“<i>The one believing into the Son has eternal
life; the one disobeying (disbelieving) the Son will not see life, but the
wrath of God remains upon him/her.</i>” (John 3:36)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Allow me to
digress for a moment to make a Greek comment. The Greek reader of the above passage
would understand that implicit to the Greek word, <i>απειθεω</i>, which means “I disobey” or “I rebel,” is the meaning, “I
disbelieve”. Hence, I put both disobeying
and disbelieving in the translation to help us English readers fully grasp what
John is trying to communicate. We all rebel against or disobey God because we
don’t believe Him—we don’t trust Him.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">When we look
afresh at those New Testament passages referring to God’s judgment variously
translated, vengeance, punishment, repayment, and judgment, except for Romans
13 that describes God authorizing human governments to execute retributive
judgment as a means of preventing chaos in human societies, all the other passages in
one way or another focus on three truths,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">1) Vengeance/retribution/judgment is God’s to
do, not for us to do. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">2) God’s
retribution will occur at final judgment, and<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">3) The basis
of this final judgment will be whether the person stands by faith in Christ or
not—that is, obeys the Gospel or not, which is tantamount to standing or not
standing in the kingdom of God by faith.
John clearly teaches us this basis for God’s judgment:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">“<i>For in this way God loved the world, so that
He gave His one and only unique Son, in order that everyone who is believing
into Him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God didn’t send the Son away into the world
in order to judge the world, but so that the world is saved through Him. The one who is believing into Him is not
judged. But the one not believing has
been judged already, because he/she has not believed into the name of the one,
only, and unique Son of God.</i>” (John 3:16-18)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">It is true
the Bible and these New Testament passages concerning God’s judgment often
speak about how God will ultimately judge us according to our deeds
(works). But we must understand this
from a kingdom perspective; otherwise we will be in danger of lapsing into a
works based justification. To put it
simply, if we are truly standing in God’s kingdom by standing in Christ it will
be evidenced by our good works; if we stubbornly stand outside God’s kingdom,
it will be evidenced by our evil works.
For this reason John completes in this way the passage we just read:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">“<i>This is The Judgment, that the light has
come into the world and people loved the darkness more than the light; for
their deeds were evil. For everyone who
is practicing evil hates the light and does not come toward the light so that
his/her deeds are not exposed. But the one doing the truth comes toward the
light, so that it is revealed that his/her deeds have been done in God.</i>”
(John 3:19-21)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">God will
base His judgment on whether or not we are standing in Christ by faith, and
therefore God will judge us according to our works. In other words, our works validate where we
have placed out faith. But it is our
faith in Christ alone that saves us, not our works.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The reason
the kingdom of God has become the basis of judgment is because God had entered
into the middle of human history in order to deal with the problem of Sin and
Death by placing His full wrath for the Sin of the world upon His one, only,
and unique Son, Jesus the Christ. And
because Jesus overcame death by being raised to eternal life and ascended to
the right hand of the Father, Jesus is King, the source of all life, so that in
Him and Him alone is salvation.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Now, I see at
least three essential responses to the good news of the Gospel of the Christ: <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">1)</span><span style="font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal;"> </span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">We are to be God’s agents of mercy in
the world, not agents of His wrath , because<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">2) By bringing mercy to the lost souls
we necessarily bring kingdom justice, which is right order from wrong order,
not tit for tat.</span><br />
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> 3) Because God dealt with the Sin of the
world once and for all in Jesus the Christ, it is through Christ God’s justice
can enter the world; it is through Christ God is reconciling the world to Himself. And we as Christ followers are joint ministers
in this reconciliation (II Cor. 5).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">We must not
import our notions of vengeance into God.
God is not vengeful in the way we are anymore than He is jealous or
angry as we are prone to be. God
exhibits all such emotions entirely for our benefit and indeed the benefit of
the entire cosmos. Yes, God’s wrath,
jealousy, and anger flow out of His deep love for us and His creation. It is
through these emotions God hopes to wake us up to our folly and turn back to
Him, who is the sole source of life and the wisdom to live it, by warning us of
the horrors that are the certain alternative because God is holy--indeed, horrors
so terrible there are no words to express them; for this reason, God uses the
imagery of emotions and their manifestations we can all understand.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">On the other
hand, our jealousy and our anger and the vengeance they precipitate within us
is 99.99% self-serving (there are rare exceptions to this, but even in those cases
right motives usually degrade into self-interest); therefore our jealousy,
anger, and vengeance are Sin; they flow from our hate, not love. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">When God
metes out retribution on the Day of Judgment, He will not do so to get even
with anyone or anything; no, His judgment will finalize perfect justice, which
is right order, peace—Shalom. We see what
I mean described in the book of Hebrews as God once again shaking the heavens
and the earth:<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="bodytext">
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=5659707542141347681" name="Heb_12:14"></a><i><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Pursue peace with everyone, and holiness, for
without it no one will see the Lord. <a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=5659707542141347681" name="Heb_12:15"></a>See to it that no
one comes short of the grace of God, that no one be like a bitter root springing up and causing trouble, and through him many become
defiled. <a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=5659707542141347681" name="Heb_12:16"></a>And see to it that no one becomes an immoral
or godless person like Esau, who sold
his own birthright for a single meal. <a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=5659707542141347681" name="Heb_12:17"></a>For you
know that later when he wanted to inherit the blessing, he was rejected, for he
found no opportunity for repentance, although he sought the blessing with
tears. <a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=5659707542141347681" name="Heb_12:18"></a>For you have not come to something that can be
touched, to a burning fire and darkness and gloom and a whirlwind <a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=5659707542141347681" name="Heb_12:19"></a>and the blast of a trumpet and a voice uttering words such
that those who heard begged to hear no more. For they could not bear what was
commanded: “<b>If even an animal
touches the mountain</b>, <b>it
must be stoned</b>.” In fact, the scene was so terrifying that Moses
said, “<b>I shudder with fear</b>.”
But you have come to Mount Zion, the city of the living God, the heavenly
Jerusalem, and to myriads of angels, to the assembly <a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=5659707542141347681" name="Heb_12:23"></a>and
congregation of the firstborn, who are enrolled in heaven, and to God, the
judge of all, and to the spirits of the righteous, who have been made perfect, <a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=5659707542141347681" name="Heb_12:24"></a>and to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and to the
sprinkled blood that speaks of something better than Abel’s does. <o:p></o:p></span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></i></div>
<div class="bodytext">
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=5659707542141347681" name="Heb_12:25"></a><i><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Take care not to refuse the one who is
speaking! For if they did not escape when they refused the one who warned them
on earth, how much less shall we, if we reject the one who warns from heaven? <a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=5659707542141347681" name="Heb_12:26"></a>Then his voice shook the earth, but now he has promised, “<b>I will once more shake not only the earth
but heaven too</b>.” Now this phrase “<b>once more</b>” indicates the removal of what is shaken, that is,
of created things, so that what is unshaken may remain. <a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=5659707542141347681" name="Heb_12:28"></a>So
since we are receiving an unshakable kingdom, let us give thanks, and through
this let us offer worship pleasing to God in devotion and awe. <a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=5659707542141347681" name="Heb_12:29"></a>For our <b>God is
indeed a devouring fire</b>.</span></i><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> (Heb. 12:14-28)
[NET]<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">There is, of
course, much to unpack here. But for
now, listen to the Holy Spirit admonishing us to be like Christ and promote
mercy and justice, not bitterness and revenge.
Abel’s blood cried out from the ground for justice and retribution. But the blood of Christ is far better,
because it has brought true justice through love and forgiveness. In the end, God will shake out everything not
conforming to the blood of Christ—that is, God will shake out everything
seeking redemption through creation instead of God. The world wants its pound of flesh; God wants
a humble, sacrificial, and faithful life.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Now, I do
concede many of the passages I found in my search speak of how people who wrong
us will be paid back by God for their persecutions. Note again though, this is something God will
do, not something we are to do. Instead,
we are to be like our Lord and not retaliate against evil done to us, just as
Peter teaches us in his first epistle:<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="bodytext">
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=5659707542141347681" name="1Pe_2:13"></a><i><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Be subject to every human institution for the
Lord’s sake, whether to a king as supreme <a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=5659707542141347681" name="1Pe_2:14"></a>or to
governors as those he commissions to punish wrongdoers and praise those who do
good. <a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=5659707542141347681" name="1Pe_2:15"></a>For God wants you to silence the ignorance of
foolish people by doing good. <a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=5659707542141347681" name="1Pe_2:16"></a>Live as free people, not
using your freedom as a pretext for evil, but as God’s slaves. Honor all
people, love the family of believers, fear God, honor the king.<o:p></o:p></span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></i></div>
<div class="bodytext">
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=5659707542141347681" name="1Pe_2:18"></a><i><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Slaves, be subject to your masters with all
reverence, not only to those who are good and gentle, but also to those who are
perverse. <a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=5659707542141347681" name="1Pe_2:19"></a>For this finds God’s favor, if because of
conscience toward God someone endures hardships in suffering unjustly. <a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=5659707542141347681" name="1Pe_2:20"></a>For what credit is it if you sin and are mistreated and
endure it? But if you do good and suffer and so endure, this finds favor with
God. For to this you were called, since Christ also suffered for you, leaving
an example for you to follow in his steps. <a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=5659707542141347681" name="1Pe_2:22"></a>He <b>committed no</b> sin <b>nor was deceit found in his mouth</b>.
When he was maligned, he did not answer back; when he suffered, he threatened
no retaliation, but committed himself to God who judges justly. <a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=5659707542141347681" name="1Pe_2:24"></a>He <b>himself bore
our sins</b> in his body on the tree, that we may cease from sinning and
live for righteousness. <b>By </b>his
<b>wounds</b> <b>you were healed</b>. <a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=5659707542141347681" name="1Pe_2:25"></a>For you were <b>going
astray like sheep</b> but now you have turned back to the shepherd and
guardian of your souls.</span></i><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> (I Peter
2:13-15) [NET]<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Peter is
telling us to silence the world by doing good, which is to be merciful and
promote kingdom justice through love and forgiveness—to be such, in Peter’s
words , “<i>because of conscience towards
God</i>”-- instead of perpetuating the world’s methods of retaliation and
vengeance. And he explains we can do
this because we are a free people in Christ.
We don’t need to be justified by anyone, because we have been justified
in Christ; we don’t need to vindicate our reputations, because our good
reputations are established and made secure in Christ; and we don’t need
retribution, because God from His vantage point of perfect holy love will repay
on the Day of Judgment.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">From the book
of Romans we can learn why only the stance of forgiveness and love we are
called to in Christ will make possible kingdom justice. Paul teaches us,<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">If possible, so far as it depends on
you, live peaceably with all people. Do not avenge yourselves, dear friends,
but give place to God’s wrath, for it is written, “<b>Vengeance is mine</b>, <b>I
will repay</b>,” says the Lord. <a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=5659707542141347681" name="Ro_12:20"></a>Rather, <b>if your enemy is hungry</b>, <b>feed him; if he is thirsty, give him a
drink; for in doing this you will be heaping burning coals on his head</b>.
Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.</span></i><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> (Rom. 12:18-21) [NET]<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">By not
retaliating against someone for the evil he/she has done, he/she can see
something quite different has come into the world; he/she might then begin to
recognize the Sin in his/her life, and perhaps turn and be saved. Our stance of love and forgiveness not only
restores to order the material things of life (e.g., alleviating hunger and
quenching thirst), but makes possible the restoration of relationships in holy
love. And all of this constitutes
kingdom justice.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">On the other
hand, retaliation breeds contempt and further retaliations. By following the world’s concept of justice,
we fail to bring order out of disorder--far from it! Our retaliations only cause more disorder,
which is injustice. By failing to leave
judgment in God’s hands, we actually undermine His work of reconciling the
world to Himself.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Therefore, we need to view this “payback
language” we read in the many New Testament passages discussing the vengeance
of God by what it is meant to communicate to us—mainly this: that God clearly
sees our suffering for His righteousness sake; that our suffering totally matters
to God; and that we can and must endure our suffering in the real hope that in
the end all we are suffering for—namely, the Kingdom of God-- will come to completion,
as God has promised, and will last forever and forever, because everything opposing
it —that is, everything unjust-- will be permanently destroyed by the certain
vengeance of God.</span></div>
Bruce Kokkohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04379200226297077294noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5659707542141347681.post-60562634605730918982014-02-10T18:50:00.000-08:002014-02-11T07:26:52.818-08:00Live Boldly!<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: 13.5pt;">My pastor, Dr. Leavins, made the title proclamation during his
sermon yesterday morning as one response to the beautiful truth of the Gospel
of the Christ. "Live boldly!" I like that; although those
who know me well would likely be surprised to hear me say this. My life
has hardly been one of someone who likes to take risks. Indeed, in my earlier
days the few times I stuck my neck out always resulted in nearly losing my
head. Consequently, I have developed the oft times annoying habit of over
analyzing things in the hopes of making sure the landing from any possible
outcome would be a smooth one; as you might predict, my plane rarely left
the hanger.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: 13.5pt;">In more recent times, because God has given me a deeper and richer
understanding of His love, and because I see His love so evident in my
beautiful wife, Sara, I have felt more at ease to live boldly--not necessarily
by taking more risks in the traditional sense of the word, but opening myself
up to experiences that in the past would have certainly caused despair or
embarrassment. An example is musical performance.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: 13.5pt;">When Dr. Leavins spoke about living boldly I immediately thought of
a conversation I had had with a colleague about a recent concert he had
performed. He and another colleague performed the first movement of the
Bach double violin concerto. It is a difficult piece, and they did a
wonderful job. However, my friend told me he has played it much better
before and since. "It's just that when you get in front of all those
people...." Boy, could I relate. It dawned on me this morning
that performance anxiety is a perfect metaphor for the kinds of things keeping
us from living boldly; and the solution to performance anxiety is a great
picture of what it is like walking in Christ, which is the beauty of His Gospel.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: 13.5pt;">The best remedy to performance anxiety is to play out. When
we don't play out, usually out of the fear of making a mistake (and I'm
assuming we have prepared well prior to the performance) we actually will make
many mistakes. But the worst mistake we will make is not wrong notes, or
losing our place, or even missed notes, the worst mistake we make when holding
back is sounding unmusical. The audience will forgive a few glitches here
and there if the playing is musical; it is the musicality that carries the
listener into rapture, not technical perfection. The only way to play
musically is to let the music play itself--let it sing, mistakes and all—to play
out.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: 13.5pt;">Now, obviously the best performance is one that is both
technically spot on and beautifully musical. Even though this is true, it
doesn't negate the necessity of playing out. The more times we play out,
the more times are performances will be musical, and therefore the less often we
will make technical errors. Musicality not only moves the audience, it
inspires the performer, also. And this inspiration relaxes the player,
which in turn frees her to remain in full control of both her micro and macro
motor responses, and listen better to intonation in order to make adjustments
practically transparent to the audience. By playing boldly, the performer
does the best justice to the music she is trying to communicate.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: 13.5pt;">God has made it very clear that there is only one way we must live
in order to experience full, meaningful, purposeful, peaceful, and eternal
life. He has also made it clear we will
only find such life in Him. We must surrender ourselves to Him completely if we
want to perfectly play the music He created us to play. The trouble is we
believe we can do it on our own--that we can find this wisdom in ourselves or
in creation. We really cannot do this, so we don't play out; we don't
live boldly. And consequently, we sin and the music we make is discordant
and ugly.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: 13.5pt;">You might argue at this point that most sinful behavior happens
with people who live boldly. It only appears this way. The reason
we don't live boldly for God is because we either are afraid of His punishment
or because we don't care, at all. The former case is like the player who
holds back in fear the audience's wrath; because she believes the audience
expects perfection--especially if they paid for the ticket. And they do.
So, as I said before, she holds back, because she is more concerned with
how she will be received than the music, and therefore almost always disappoints
the listeners.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: 13.5pt;">The other response is to play the way we want and not care, at
all. Yes, we play out; but in order to
be outrageous. We may claim it as art
and free expression, but it is really just as self-serving as the person who
holds back. We titillate and sensationalize
as a cover to our own ineptness, or our own poor self-concept. In short, we act out in fear.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: 13.5pt;">I speak in broad terms here, fully aware of the complexities of
human nature. Nevertheless, people don’t
live boldly, in the sense Dr. Leavins means, out of fear of being exposed as the
charlatans they know themselves deep down to be. This is the tragedy of the fall of
humankind. We all insist we can be our
own gods, and then run in terror at the prospect. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: 13.5pt;">Okay, so what exactly does Dr. Leavins mean by living boldly. To live boldly is to live in freedom. Not freedom as in reckless abandonment; I
have already covered that. No, by
freedom, he means freedom from fear.
This happens when we let ourselves go in Christ—to live boldly so the true
life God has created for our place in the cosmos will bloom and multiply. We live boldly even though well aware of the
perfection God demands, because we know such life is only found in Christ, and
He has proved Himself faithful to fulfill this life in and through us, and has
forgiven our mistakes. It is exactly
like a musician who plays out confidently because she realizes by playing for
the music’s sake, the music ultimately plays itself. And in the same way that when we let the
music play, we actually make less and less technical errors, when we surrender
ourselves to Christ, we find we conform more and more to God’s standard of holy
love. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: 13.5pt;">God’s standards haven’t changed, any more than standards of good
music have. It’s just that when we focus
on the expectations of good music we invariably focus on our own capabilities
and quickly impair ourselves by fear.
And when we focus on the standards of God instead of Christ, we look to
our own resources and fail to meet those standards, every time.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: 13.5pt;">There is a great irony in this we must not miss. When we surrender ourselves completely over
to living in Christ, we don’t lose ourselves.
Quite the contrary, as with music allowed to sing freely, both the
listener and the performer are edified and inspired, when we look to God alone for
life, He gives it back to us, making us participants together with Him, which
is what true life actually is. We are
not lost in Christ, but perfected in Him.
This is what it means to be free in Christ, just as Saint Paul taught
us,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: 13.5pt;">“<i>For freedom Christ has set us free; stand (in this freedom),
then, and don’t again be entangled by the yoke of slavery.</i>” (Gal. 5:1)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: 13.5pt;">This is the beauty of the Gospel of the
Christ. God, because of His unfathomable
love for us, even though we rejected Him, has made it possible for us to be
free from our self-imposed shackles of fear and to finally and truly live
boldly.</span></div>
Bruce Kokkohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04379200226297077294noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5659707542141347681.post-70192205834556043292014-02-02T11:18:00.000-08:002014-02-02T11:18:48.316-08:00Eeternal Life- A Picture Part 2<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[Here is the conlcusion of last week's story.....]</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">I reassessed my reactions to my friend’s
experiences, and came to the conclusion I had overreacted. No doubt, I had allowed myself to be caught
up in the success of my experiment, which clouded my objectivity. I felt confident I would be able to explain
his observations without having to invoke the supernatural. By the time we met again, I would have
reasonable hypotheses to discuss; I couldn’t be sure, but I suspected that my
friend would have reevaluated his own impressions by then and would be ready to
hear my theories.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center; text-indent: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">*****<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">When we met again a few weeks later, my friend
was a different person. He appeared
settled. The nervous agitation that
characterized the great scientist I knew before had been displaced by a kind of
confident resolve. He remained a man on
a mission, but the desperation was gone.
My friend affected an enthusiasm neither fanatical nor careless, but
what I can only describe as a sober joyfulness.
I have never encountered such a disposition before, which isn’t saying
much because I don’t get out that often.
I was happy for my friend; the change suited him. But I started to feel uncomfortable, because I
began to desire what he had.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“So,” I said brusquely, handing my friend a
mug of coffee and sitting across from him.
“Will you now tell me the third meaning?”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“Of course, dear friend.” He took what I perceived to be an
interminably long drink of his coffee.
“It is love.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“Oh, love,” I said.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“Yes, exactly.
And your reaction is why I never considered it while the woman was
showing me around heaven, even though love was clearly evident in everything I
had seen. It should have been obvious,
but I was blinded by my own skepticism of love.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“Heaven?”
I asked.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“Yes, heaven.
Although I should have called it what it really is. The kingdom of heaven. By itself, the term <i>heaven</i> has acquired silly connotations over the centuries. Any thinking person should rightly dismiss
the idea as meaningless fluff. As usual,
though, the reality tears through all of our preconceived and childish notions,
and first surprises us, next inspires us, and finally satisfies us.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“So it would appear. And I suppose you are proposing this love you
speak of to be of the same fiber, in that it must transcend all the inane
school girl renditions of the term.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“People throw love around as they would a
fifty cent baseball. Yet they have no
clue as to what it really means.” My
friend paused for another sip from his mug.
“And why should they?”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“Perfectly reasonable. Love is an illusion. The world is a tormented place of pain and
death. It wouldn’t be this way if love were
governing the universe,” I pursued.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“You just proved yourself wrong.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“I don’t think so. Love would never produce the world we live
in.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“You could never make such an argument without
love as a reference. In fact, it would
never cross your mind. You are making
arguments about justice that can only exist in a world actually fashioned by
love.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“It is in the genes. Altruism is a natural instinct for survival
of the species. It’s known that ants
will sacrifice their lives for the sake of the colony.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“It is one thing to sacrifice one’s life for
the sake of one’s clan, it is quite another to sacrifice one’s life for the
sake of another’s clan—especially if doing so potentially enables the other’s
clan to conquer your clan. But that is
just the kind of love I am talking about.
It cannot be explained by nature.
The kind of instinct you are talking about has no concept of such
love. A lion will eat another animal,
even its own young; it is what lions do.
For the time being, anyway.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“Yet no one recognizes this love,” I quipped.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“Ironically, no. The world we bequeathed to ourselves we
predicated on the single inalienable principle of self-interest. In insisting on loving ourselves first, we
ended up hating everyone, including ourselves.
For us, I’m afraid, love has become at best a parody of what it truly
is, and at worst a weapon of our hatred.
It is our hate that is behind the pain and death you rightly
characterize our world, not love.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">How could I argue with him? I had long ago happily abandoned any pursuit
of love for the safety of the ordered and predictable world of science. People never much liked me, and I didn’t much
like them. I was beginning to wonder if
I had made a horrible error--not so much by what he argued but by what I
witnessed in him. The weight of those
new observations weakened my carefully prepared hypotheses. As his encounters with the future were
irrefutable fact, so too were the changes I saw in my friend. I knew him well as he was, and he had clearly
changed. One can debate ideas all day
long, but one cannot easily refute objective data.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“Okay, tell me about this love,” I said.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“By and for love, God created us in the first
place. And it is by and for that same
love He has restored us to His original purpose, which is the kingdom of
heaven, where all is as it should be because it must be so because God is
God. God does not change. There is only one right order of things
because there can only be one right order of things.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“The place you visited,” I interjected.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“Yes, but not just the physical entities, the
spiritual also—the collective state of being.
And what empowers and supports and drives that state is love. God’s love.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“The critically important point for us to
grasp, and probably the element we have all been most blind to is the fact that
love only exists—I mean, is only complete--in the right order of things, and
the right order is only maintained by love.
Everyone wants to create their own order, and love and be loved
according to that order—to be accepted on their own terms. But this cannot be. God created the universe to operate by only
one right order, and we only truly love when we love in complete compliance
with that right order. And it is no more
unloving for me to say this than when a father tells his child not to jump off
a five hundred foot cliff. Unless we
rigorously hold in tension love and order—God’s love, God’s order—we lose them
both. And when that happens there is
certain death and the pain and suffering it brings.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“How can you be certain?” <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“Because as an extreme act of love, God became
flesh and dwelled among us, even though we despised Him and actively worked
against His love. His Son Jesus, both
perfect man and perfect God became a servant to us by overcoming death for us,
because the death we brought on ourselves has blinded us to the right order of
things and, therefore, kept us from the full power of God’s love, so we
couldn’t overcome death on our own.
God’s son, even though perfect and innocent, died for us, and by the
inscrutable power of His love, God raised him to life. It is because Jesus lives that we can be
certain, dear friend.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“I know now this is why I shouted ‘Christ’s
alive!’ as I came back through the time portal.
And it is by living in the living Christ that we can live again forever
in the kingdom of heaven intended all along as the ineffable expression and
purpose of God’s love. We live because
we love God and each other completely and purely. This is His glory. And for this reason He is to be praised and
worshipped forever—just as the multitudes were singing all around me. Oh, how I long to be with them again, knowing
what I know now.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“It seems that you have somehow found your way
to peace. How did you do that? What did you do?” I asked.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“It’s God who has done it. I simply believe that God will not forsake
His love and only in Him will I find it, not in me or others or the world we
have created for ourselves. I trust He
will be faithful to His promise to hold me secure in His love and fulfill the
purpose for which he had created me. And
I live my life in accordance with this trust.
In short, I love God the Father of all by trusting Jesus Christ His son,
and this by doing all, by the power of his love given to me through His Spirit,
which His love demands and necessarily demands because this is how He has loved
me.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“I must think about this. We will talk about this again, my
friend. I assure you, we will talk
again.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center; text-indent: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">*****<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">I haven’t fulfilled that promise, and it is
doubtful I ever will because I believe him.
I have been given a short-cut to paradise, and I am determined to take
it. And why shouldn’t I? If you are reading this diary, you will know
that I never found a convincing answer to that question.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">I have returned my time portal to the original settings used for my
friend’s trip, and programmed in a killer virus. Five minutes after I pass through the portal,
it will permanently and irretrievably dismantle itself. I have also shredded and burned my
notebooks. All that will remain of my
experiments is the book you have in your hands and the memories my friend
carries with him. Perhaps you will find
it too fantastic to believe. I
understand. But I hope you will find the
faith to believe so that some day we can meet together over coffee to discuss
it in the kingdom of the living God.</span></div>
Bruce Kokkohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04379200226297077294noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5659707542141347681.post-24206845588599146942014-01-27T15:19:00.000-08:002014-01-27T15:19:57.376-08:00Eternal Life--A PictureOne of my readers admonished me to paint a picture of eternal life. It seems a reasonable request, now that I have had the last two weeks to offer a Biblical perspective on the subject. Fortunately for me I have already painted such a picture in one of my short stories found in my recent collection, <i>Seven Stories</i>. Thus, to honor my reader's request, I will post the story here in two parts. It is definitely the most philosophical/theological of my stories, so hopefully you will find it both thought-provoking and entertaining.<br />
<br />
<b><u>A Lesson in Time</u></b><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“You know what kind of a state I was in. I was tired.
The world was tired; I was tired of having to explain why the world was
tired. I know it sounds self-important
for me to say that. You probably thought
so then; maybe you still do.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">I should, at this point, insert a footnote to
this conversation that ensued after completion of my experiment, which I am
recording herein in its entirety. As it stood at the time, despite the fact
that I loved my friend, I felt he might have been losing his grip. It wasn’t that he wasn’t a caring person,
because he was and is—certainly one of the most caring people I have
known. Although he was a scientist, he
had begun to court religion. He saw this
huge mountain standing between humanity and true peace; and he was growing more
and more dubious of the ability of science to break down this mountain. Certainly peace is a noble ambition, and I
could hardly fault him for searching for it; but I could not help but think
zeal such as his came perilously close to becoming pathological. I thought my friend had managed to maintain
equilibrium, but sometimes I feared for him—that he might crumble under the
pressure of all the troubles of our race.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">At the end of the experiment he returned in a
state of serenity quite atypical of him.
I worried that the stress of the experiment had been too much, and I was
witnessing the euphoria of madness. I
was wrong.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“I didn’t mean to sound that way. I know I’m
no better than anyone else. It seemed
like everywhere I turned, though, people were saying two plus two equals five.
I would insist that two plus two equals four.
And immediately the burden would be on me to prove it. I would try my best to do so, and the
response I would invariably hear would be, ‘You’re too narrow.’ Or ‘Yeah,
but--’ Or ‘You’re too idealistic.’ Or ‘You have your values and I have mine.’
Or ‘Ah, but I’ve found the way to make it equal to five,’ and every other
excuse one might expect to find from people desperate for something they could
not put their finger on. I was fed up
with it. Everyone wants a free ride to
paradise. I’m telling you; I felt like
Elijah sitting beneath the tree whimpering to God, ‘Woe is me, there is no one
left who would follow you. I’m the only one and I just want to die.’ Pathetic? Yes. Heartfelt? I think so. True? No. Elijah was tired, too.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“Fatigue definitely clouds one’s
perspectives,” I said, not entirely sure of what he was talking about.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“Yes, but rest wasn’t cutting it for me
anymore. If anything it made matters
worse. I needed to get away. So when you told me of your time machine--”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“Portal,” I interrupted.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“When you told me of your time portal, I was
intrigued. People just had to change
eventually. Somewhere up ahead the
madness had to stop and people would come to their senses. And if they didn’t, then I’d know for sure
that I’m the delusional one, after all. I figured if your experiment worked it
didn’t matter what I might find out. The way I saw it, in any event, I could
stop all the ruminating and finally get a decent night’s sleep.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“And my experiment worked!” I said.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“Yes, my friend, it worked beautifully.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“So tell me.” I sat forward in my chair. “What
happened? What did you discover?”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“A total mystery, I might as well have been an
alien from another planet. Virtually everything I first saw there was
unrecognizable. Well, that’s not quite true. I did know what everything was,
but they made no sense in context. It was like the time my brother showed me an
advanced math text of his. I read the
first paragraph and I knew the meaning of absolutely every word, yet the
paragraph made no sense—pure gibberish, leastwise to me. The future world you had sent me was just
like that.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“Had things changed that much in a century?” I
asked.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“You know how stories usually depict the
future. Either they import their own
cultural setting into the new world and then touch it up a bit with a little
imagined advanced technology, or they paint the future in a kind of a stark
geometric austerity--you know--with the cold colorless lines of perfected efficiency—the
author’s vision of idealistic order, which always seems to be soulless; it’s a
curious thing. But in the real future,
the world where you had sent me, neither prognosis proved even remotely
correct.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“Somewhere during the passing of that blip of
time, human culture had diverged at a ninety degree angle from either the reaction
or progression portrayed in our mythologies.
It almost seems pointless for me to try and describe it to you—such as
when I asked my father to tell me about the war and he said he wouldn’t attempt
it, because I couldn’t understand. I’m
afraid you won’t understand; I fear I may have too few reference points by
which to guide you. Then again, perhaps
what I saw will explain itself. In any event, what it looked like is not all
that important. What I need you to grasp
is what it meant.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“Go on,” I said.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“I must have stuck out like a sore thumb, yet
no one seemed to care I was there. Fact
was they seemed oblivious to each other.
Everyone walked around everyone else, but no one walked together. Each person seemed locked in his or her own
intent and space without ever intersecting another’s personal bubble. In one
sense their movement seemed random; yet clearly there was purpose in it. From time to time a person would stop and a
tinted plane would appear, pass in front of the person and both would dissolve
away. Another person might, moments
later, pass over the very same space and simply move on. As near as I could tell, however, everyone
eventually came to a spot from which they would then disappear as I
described. For this reason, I surmised
there was nothing of what we would call vehicles. Everyone of that seemingly detached populace
only walked—some appearing, some vanishing in the manner I have already
related. I watched all those comings and
goings while I was resting beneath a tree that stood in one square of a vast
crystalline grid.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“Grid?” I asked.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“Yes, that’s exactly what it was. And the flat checkered plane appeared to
extend out indefinitely—every so often spotted, however, with various plant
specimens from our old world, such as the tree I sat under. I saw no sun. I guessed I was inside a huge
dome of some kind. The vivid blue sky,
or ceiling, somehow illumined the entire plane.
There were no buildings, or benches, or fountains, or statuary, or any
manufactured thing that I could see--only, as I said, periodic intrusions of
nature. And the light shining on the
plants, even though sparsely laid out—leastwise, it appeared so to me—turned
the entire crystalline field into a veritable garden of color and forms,
without hindering anybody’s movement or obscuring the squares everyone
apparently needed to move around on. The
effect had so much depth that I’m still not sure if in reality it wasn’t a vast
dense garden.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“I didn’t know what to do. I had hoped to find some answers, optimistic—as
I said—for a better world, and if not, at least resignation. I was fairly certain I would feel out of
place. But I never expected it to be
like some kind of an out-of-body experience.
In frustration I said to no one, ‘good grief.’ I said it out loud, just as I am saying it to
you now—quiet, more of a sigh than anything else. Yet, one of the persons stopped and looked at
me. It was a beautiful woman—perfect in form and stature, like an artist might
create on a canvas. The ideal female.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“Her eyes were filled with compassion. I heard, ‘Are you sad?’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“Mind you, I didn’t exactly hear this because
the sound sort of formed within my head, rather than received audibly through
my ears. And her words didn’t form
emotionless like some automated voice, either, but were filled with warmth and
genuine concern. I didn’t at all get the
impression that she was only curious or just trying to be sociable.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">I answered her verbally, ‘Not sad, just
frustrated.’ Not totally honest.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“She said—that is, telepathed--if that is a verb--‘That’s
sadness.’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“‘I suppose it is,’ I told her. ‘I’m too tired to argue the point.’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“So she says, ‘Sadness has many forms. Sadness is despair, it is loss and
frustration, fear and want, hopelessness, loneliness, sickness--’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“‘I get it,’ I interrupted. ‘You are quite right. I am sad.’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“To which she replied, ‘You are a stranger,
here, then.’ Notice she wasn’t asking
but telling me this.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“‘Well, of course, isn’t it obvious?” I
retorted.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“She replied by saying, ‘Yes, your sadness
tells me you are.’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“’Pointing out our attire, I said, ‘I mean,
look at you and look at me.’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“But she said, ‘Yes, I am happy and you are
sad.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“‘No, no,’ I said. “Our appearance—our
dress—is different.’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“‘I only see your heart.’ She said this
tenderly: ‘I only see your heart.’—just like that. And then she added, ‘You are your heart.’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“So I asked her, ‘And your heart is happy?’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“Her reply was, ‘Yes, every heart here is
happy. Look!’ She turned and swept her hand before the
teaming populace moving to and fro and in and out upon the vast grid. All I could see was what I described before:
a sea of moving dispassionate humanity.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“‘I don’t understand,’ I blurted. ‘Can this be happiness? You say they are happy. But why should I believe you? Look at our race—leastwise, I think you are
human.’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“And she says, ‘You are right in saying so.’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“I would then make my point. I said, ‘Human
beings, the humans of which I count myself, are social creatures. They are persons. They touch, they caress, they talk, they
laugh, they cry and, yes, they push and pull and argue and fight—they confront
and they turn away. What has happened to
us? What has possessed us? How can you call this bleak existence of
yours, happiness? I’ve come all this
way, hoping to find that things would be different, that, I supposed, there
would at last be happiness, only to find out that if this is happiness, then
only a fool would want to be happy.’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“All she would say to that was, ‘You are sad.’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“So I told her, ‘At least it’s an honest
emotion, not this anesthetized state.
Can’t you see how everyone here is disenfranchised? There is no passion, no warmth that I can see. How can you call this happiness? Have you been drugged?’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“She answered by explaining, ‘You are sad
because you don’t understand. You speak
as a mere man, we speak as authentic humans.
We know who we are and what we are and why we are. Each of us knows the other the same way--happiness.’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“‘But no one talks to each other,’ I
complained.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“Her response to that was, ‘It only appears so
because we are one.’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“So I asked her, ‘In what way are you one?’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“She answered, ‘Many purposes make up a single
purpose. Many meanings are one
meaning. Does your foot talk with your
eyes, or your hands with your nose? Yet
they all understand each other and each responds to the needs of the other, for
each one has its own name. And together
the purpose of the body is done. This is
one meaning from all those separate meanings—one purpose in many.’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“But I said, ‘Where I come from, to be a mere cog
in a machine is demeaning.’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“So she says, ‘You are sad because you want
both society and solitude at the same time.’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“I didn’t know what to say to that, so I said,
‘No, I must have my own name or I can’t be happy.’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“‘Your meaning is your name,’ she says. ‘You
want a name. We have two names.’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“I argued that they still cannot be unique
because many must have the same meaning.
I reminded her that she had so much as said so.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“She then explained to me that we have been
built into a tower not unlike the one spoken of in the Shepherd of Hermas. Each of us is a stone. Some stones are for the walls, others for the
foundation, some for the windows, some for the floors, some are decorative, and
others are hidden. But each has been
perfectly hewn for its place, and each place is necessary. You can see that
many stones may have the same function.
Regardless, each stone is unique.
The decorative stones might be mottled, or veined with quartz, others
might be precious stones, and some might be granite. Structural stones might serve the foundation,
others the walls, and some the roof.
Each is as highly valued as the next for the perfection of the house.
And all priceless because each has a name. She said that was the first meaning
she spoke of. And that we each have a
unique name for this meaning. And
everyone knows that name.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“Shepherd of Hermas?” I asked.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“Beats me.
I asked her, ‘You spoke of two names.
Does that mean there is another purpose?’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“She said, ‘Each of us has a meaning known
only to us and God. The name He has
given each of us for this purpose is a secret name known only to the bearer and
the Creator. And this meaning was in the
mind of Him when only He is.’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“Naturally, I asked her to tell me about this
meaning and purpose.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“But she said, ‘I cannot, except to say that
it is an eternal purpose ordained by God for Him in each creature, who knows
God, for the pleasure of God. When we
know our names and He calls us by our name, only then are we happy. Do you understand?’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> “By
this point my head was swimming, so I asked her, ‘If we are one with Him and,
if I follow you, each other, can we really possess a unique name? For that matter, if I am united with you and
all these people, can I or you or any one of them be distinct?’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> “Listen
and tell me if what she said next doesn’t change your perspective forever. Her
answer shot through me like a round from a high powered rifle. Listen to what
she said. She said, ‘Unity doesn’t dissolve distinction. Unity creates distinction. Without unity, everything is the same.’”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">He sat back and stared at me. “What did I tell
you?”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">True, I hadn’t thought of it before then. The idea that we only discover our true self
when we relinquish it for the purpose of a god and others was certainly an
alien idea to me. And we are only true
individuals—that is, distinct—when we know and act according to our true self
in the context of some collective purpose.
Her proposition was earth-shatteringly simple and, at the same time,
very elusive.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">For a long moment I fidgeted with my pen while
he stared at me as if I were a computer and he could watch the binary code
processing. I finally looked him in his
eyes when I believed I had grasped her proposition that when we each pursue our
own purpose, we destroy unity with each other and we all become carbon copies
of each other. I suppose this was meant
to account for the fact we are frantic, angry, directionless, grasping,
possessive, isolated beings—people in a crowd, yet completely alone.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">I thought about how monochromatic our world is
in all its self-interest. And for the
first time, I actually felt something like grief for my race. But what I told my friend was, “I don’t
know. To suggest that transcending self
is the only way of finding self seems way too simple. It’s not the way it
works.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">I struggled with my friend’s report. What he had discovered was unexpected;
another empire had not suddenly burst on the scene; a new political system
hadn’t imposed itself on the world; it wasn’t communism; it wasn’t a one world
government; it wasn’t a system of any kind.
It was a state of being. It was, for the lack of a better term, heaven. But how could that be? Heaven isn’t rational. It couldn’t be an evolved state; a hundred
years wasn’t long enough for that.
Science couldn’t accommodate the facts; yet I was confronted with the
inerrancy of my own science. It was my
invention, carefully constructed and tested over many years of painstaking
experimentation. What it revealed was
the future, as it will be. This was
fact; there could be no doubt about it.
I didn’t want to believe the results, but I had no choice but to believe
them.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“Was there color in this world of hers? Was
what you had seen there vibrant beyond anything you have ever seen before? Tell me. I must know.” <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“I cannot even begin to tell you,” he
said. “Are you okay, my friend?”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“If it’s true, then my life has been a sham.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“Exactly my thought. And I tried to tell her this. I told her, ‘I’ve been wrong to think I could
find happiness by distinguishing myself from others. I see that now. I suspect it is why I’m so tired. Why I just
want to stop running.’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“She answered me with a voice full of mercy,
‘Yes, you are sad because you don’t know your names.’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“I asked her, ‘And these names are my
purposes?’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“She told me, ‘Each name is the meaning for
which you have your existence. You are
right in what you say.’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“‘Where can I find them?’ I asked.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“She replied, ‘You find them in God not in
yourself. There is the meaning for all
of our existence—the first meaning I spoke of. Meaning unique to you or me or
to each person who knows God—that secret purpose. And the meaning uniting them
all.’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“Of course, I asked her if I could know this
third meaning.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“And did she tell you?” I asked impatiently.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“She said, ‘Come, take my hand and we shall
see.’</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">"She extended her hand and we
walked onto the grid. Her touch was
soft, gentle, and warm. I thought of my
dear wife and how much I missed her.
Suddenly we were surrounded by space.
No, it was more like we were suspended in space. Not black space, but--for lack of a better
way to describe it—a dimensionless region of light bursting and dissipating,
forming and un-forming in a show of brilliant colors and shapes and vapors
and—how can I explain it to you, my dear friend, how can I have you comprehend
the beauty of it? Except to say that it
was far greater than you could hope or imagine.
Any attempt to create it in your mind will fall hopelessly short. With that I am certain.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“In the next instant we stood together in a
lush meadow that was super-real in every respect to the most beautiful place I ever
experienced on earth—you know what I mean, earth prior to its future. Everywhere I turned, my eyes were dazzled by
the color and purity of the grass, trees, plants, animals, the crystalline
water of a lake that lapped up onto a narrow beach near our feet, the mountains
that loomed in the distance, and the sky—that vibrant sunless blue sky that
lighted it all. All of it took my breath away, and so serene—such a gentle
quietness, I have never felt such peace.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“The entire scene seemed to resonate—not just
visually, but sonically, as well. I wish
you could hear such melodies, my friend.
The strange and wonderful yet ephemeral strains of that music awakened
and nourished my soul like nothing ever has.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“I saw some people sitting amongst some
Siberian tigers. One cuddled a little
cub in his arms while another was wrestling playfully with the mother. I marveled at the gentleness of the powerful
creatures and the obvious intimacy between them and their human
caretakers. I also saw other people
picking fruit from trees that sagged under the weight of their produce, large
and succulent and plentiful.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“A small and colorful bird flitted around my
hostess before perching on her wrist, where it began feeding on some grain in
the palm of her hand while she was gently stroking its tiny head. Don’t ask me where the grain came from
because I couldn’t say. I will tell you
that I observed no fear or timidity in the frail animal. The tender moment
brought tears to my eyes.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“I turned and watched others herding some elk
into the high country. My hostess seemed
to sense in my eyes the question forming in my mind and explained that those
creatures thrive through their regular pilgrimages up to the high meadows to
graze and back again to the valley.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“‘The grass is good either here or there, but
their life is perfected through the ritual,’ she explained.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“I asked her if this is the meaning she spoke
of.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“She smiled sweetly and answered, ‘Come, I
have one more place for you to know.’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“The scene morphed into a bright light. And as
my eyes adjusted to that intense light, a thunderous song filled my ears:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">‘Holy, Holy, Holy<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Is God, Lord
Almighty,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Who is and was
and is to come.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Glory, Glory,
Glory<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">To the Lamb that
was slain<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The Word that is<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">From everlasting
to everlasting!’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Majesty, honor,
praise<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">To the Great
Testimony<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Who is a lamp to
Mankind<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Power to live without
end.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Holy, Holy, Holy<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">To the Father,
Lord of all.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">By Whom all that
was not<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Lives and has its
being.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Glory, Glory,
Glory<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">To the Great I AM<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Who is One in
Three<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">And Three in One<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">God of gods<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Lord of lords<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">King of kings<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Hallowed be His
Name<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Both now and
forever.’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“Those words sang from the mouths of masses of
people all around me. The number of
which was beyond counting. And their
individual forms appeared to shimmer in the light and sound—distinguishable one
moment and obscured the next. Some have talked about quantum-senses. Do you think it possible?”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“Well,” I stammered.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“Believe me it is. At least I have no other way of explaining
what I had felt there. I heard the
light, smelled the colors and saw the sounds at the same time as sensing all of
those things in the usual manner. What
should have been chaos and a cacophony of stimuli all converged into perfect
harmony. What should have been a sensory overload was pure serenity. My eyes shouldn’t have been able to stand the
brightness of the light of that place, like many suns. Instead, the light soothed my eyes. There was no need to shut them or even
squint. Nor did I want to for fear of
missing even a second of the splendor going on around me. The din should have shattered my eardrums, but
the sound fell gently on my ears like the choruses of those clear summer nights
I remember so well growing up in Northern Canada.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“The scene or vision was full of
contradictions like these. But what I
cannot explain at all was the deep sense of freedom that had washed over me
like the warm surf of the south pacific.
I had felt liberated not only from the obvious burdens we all talk
about, such as mortality or worry or fear; but freed in remote parts of my
being that, up until then, I didn’t even know existed, let alone needed
liberating. It was like the doors of
hidden vaults deep within my soul had been opened and this black tar oozed
out. What I can only describe as a chronic
ache that has been throbbing throughout my life, which I must have from the
beginning subconsciously repressed, briefly flared like a shrieking demon and
then vanished.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“I looked down to see if I was standing on
ground because I became overwhelmed by a sense of weightlessness. Now, don’t misunderstand me. I don’t think what I am trying to convey was
in any way physical, but I can’t explain it in any other terms. No, what I then came to realize was how
heavy, dull, clumsy and trapped my life has always been. I thought of the best day of my life--”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“You mean when you won <i>the prize</i>?” I asked.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“Yes, you remember the time. My wife and I were in perfect health then and
we had no more financial burdens. Our
life had reached that pinnacle of human achievement. We had scaled the mountain of the American
dream and had planted our flag squarely on its summit. ‘It doesn’t get any better than this!’ I
think we boasted at the time. But it was
such a lie. Because what came after
that? Did I know? I ask you; do you know what will come after this great
invention of yours? Let me tell you. I don’t think I had blinked twice before I
asked myself, <i>what next</i>? That single query betrayed the absurdity of
it all. And I had never seen it until I
stood there enveloped by all the Glory of this place beyond your portal.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“I finally understood the meaning of true
completeness—what I can only call, because language fails me, free freedom. By
that I don't mean the Bohemian freedom of Rousseau and his ilk, but freedom in
which all one's moral obligations are satisfied because one is inherently perfect
without thinking about it. For, as you
know, if you have to think about it, you aren't perfect, and you're not freely
free. But there I was freely free, my
friend; there I was...or at least I sensed what it must be like.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“Mind you, my hostess explained none of this
to me. She didn’t have to. All that I am trying desperately to relate to
you about the meaning of what I experienced there was totally self-evident. I suddenly realized that an invisible tutor
had been teaching me the whole time.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“Who?” I asked.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“I don’t know….It must have been God. Who else could it have been? Whoever it was, neither my tutor nor my
hostess had answered my question. I still didn’t know what this third meaning
was. I had this sickening feeling that
the answer was all around me, but I was just too dense to see it.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“‘I still don’t understand,’ I told her,
pleading. ‘Perhaps if you showed me more, I will see what this third meaning
is.’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“‘She answered, ‘These sights are all you can
understand now, but there are infinite more to experience and infinite time to
experience them. You and I and all of
these,’--she again swept her hand before the multitude--‘are beings. Do you
understand?’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“‘Yes,’ I replied, ‘We have all been created
by Him whom we worship.’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“She said, ‘You are right in saying so. But only God is absolute being. It is for and by this third meaning that we
live on and on into everlasting and everlasting--that we would move ever closer
to absolute being, without, of course, ever reaching it. This is eternal life. And in it the three purposes are achieved.’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“‘I think I understand,’ I said. ‘Please tell me. What is this third meaning?’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“She refused to tell me. Instead she says, ‘This is not yet your
time. You have been given a rare gift,
but you must go back.’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“For the first time I understood what Samuel
must have felt after being ushered back into the world by the witch of
Endor. I didn’t want to go back. But I had no choice.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“I thought it strange that you backed your way
through the portal,” I said. “Did she
force you in some way?”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“No, it was more as if I was dragged. Anyway, she didn’t push me. How much time do you think transpires, you
know, actual time---either there or here--how much time actually passes when
someone steps through your portal?”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“You probably couldn’t measure it. Essentially zero time. I don’t think it is really a proper question,
anyway. Why do you ask?”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“They say a dream only lasts a few
seconds. Yet so much actually happens in
a dream that it appears it has lasted the whole night.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“Yes, that is the conventional thinking on the
subject,” I said.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“Well, as I passed through the portal back to
the present I was assailed by voices—voices of doubt. They all seemed to be saying, in one way or
another, ‘Don’t believe it! It’s all been
an illusion created by your mind.’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“I started to argue with the voices. ‘You’re
wrong!’ I said. ‘I know my own mind. I know the difference between reality and
fiction—sleep and consciousness.’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“But they rejoined, ‘You’re waking up now!
It’s only been a dream—a silly sentimental dream—the imaginings of
children. Be a man! Don’t be a fool. Progress has only ever been made because men
have asserted themselves over others.
Nothing is ever accomplished by considering first the needs of others.’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“‘No, no, no!’ I shouted. ‘So little has ever
been accomplished because everyone strives for themselves. I know this now. I won’t listen to your lies any longer. You lie, you lie!’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“Then with even greater venom the voices
struck back, ‘You delude yourself, for there is no example of what you describe
in the history of the world. No such
force operates in the universe. You
lie! And it’s the worst of lies because
you deceive yourself!’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“I shouted, if not screamed--perhaps more to
drown out my own feelings of doubt than from a solid conviction--‘It does
exist! It does exist! I know that it does.
It must or nothing makes any sense.
Christ’s alive! There is a third meaning. The third meaning has always
been operating. We’ve been blind to it.
I’ve been blind to it, but it is there.
It is working! I say it again,
Christ’s alive!’ I don’t even know why I
said ‘Christ’s alive’. The words just
came out.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“The voices hissed, ‘You don’t know what you
are talking about. There is no third
meaning. Nothing exists without a name.
And it has no name or it would have been given you! It’s all weakness. The only strength in the universe is Self!
The I’s have it. The I’s have it. The
I’s have it.’ The voices would not
relent. They kept on chanting louder and
louder, ‘The I’s have it!’”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“But you seemed so calm when you came through
the portal,” I interrupted. “I didn’t
notice any agitation in you, none whatsoever—no terror. How could that be? I would have been an absolute wreck if I were
you.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“I heard her voice.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“You mean the person you visited?”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“Yes, I heard her voice. Over all that vicious taunting, her voice
rose up. It was sweet just as it had
been before. And it wasn’t threatened. That’s what intrigued me about it. You might predict she should cry out something
in worried tones, as if she didn’t intervene quickly, I would succumb. There were no frantic or desperate overtones
to her voice. Her words were those of a
person who need not defend them. It was
that confidence, the likes of which I have never known, that convinced me of
their truth. She told me what it
is. She told me the name of the third
meaning. And when I heard it, all the
shouting ceased. That’s why I was and
still am so calm.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“So tell me, man, what is it? What is the third meaning?” I implored.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">He wouldn’t say. He only smiled
dreamily as if in shock. The full impact
of his vision must have washed over him without warning like a tsunami after an
earthquake. He begged my pardon and left
me to ponder all he had related.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[To be continued next week.......]</span>Bruce Kokkohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04379200226297077294noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5659707542141347681.post-14044322593703127102014-01-21T18:26:00.000-08:002014-01-21T20:59:22.080-08:00Eternal Life is a Place<div>
Eternal life is a place. It is a place where heaven and earth join without losing their identities. To look upon this place and call it beautiful would be an understatement, because it is Beauty. This place does not absorb self; but there self becomes true Self. And there these true Selves, because they are true, freely and perfectly express themselves in never-ending and ever-unfolding opportunities as they bask in the light of perfect wisdom that is love. This place therefore is Peace, the Sabbath rest--Shalom. This place is eternal life, because it is the kingdom of God Himself Who dwells there forever; for God is I AM.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
The Lord revealed glimpses of this place to the apostle John. Here is what John experienced.<br />
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
"<i>And I saw a new heaven and a new earth. For the first heaven and the first earth were gone and the sea was no more. And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God, prepared like a bride who has been adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice coming from the throne declaring, 'Behold! The place where God dwells is with people. And God will dwell with people and people will be a people belonging to God; and God Himself will be with people, and will be their God; and God will wipe away every tear from the eyes of people, and death will be no more, nor will there be suffering, nor weeping, nor toil; it will be no more because the first things were gone.</i>'</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
"<i>And the One who sits upon the throne declared, 'Behold! I make all things new!' and then He said, 'Write it down, because these words are trustworthy and true.' And He said to me, 'It is done. I am the alpha and the omega, the beginning and the end. I will give to those who thirst from the stream of the water of life as a free gift. The one who overcomes will inherit these things and I will be his or her God, and he or she shall be my son or my daughter.</i>'" (Rev. 21:1-7)</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
One thing I have come to understand from reading the works of N.T. Wright--although, I cannot tell you exactly where at this moment--is heaven has been poorly portrayed to the world as a future disembodied state of people sitting in clouds strumming harps. No, the place Jesus promised us who resolutely stand in Him by faith is His kingdom where God dwells with us. It is the fulfillment of God's original creation purpose (Gen. 1:27-31; Ps. 8). It is one reason why the resurrection of Jesus matters; He was not raised to a purely spiritual state, but to a new physicality encompassing both the spiritual and the physical in the way God intended for it to be. And it would be this way because God created the universe to be His kingdom where He dwells with His image-bearers--humankind. It is therefore why John was shown a new heaven and a new earth; not just a heaven only, but both the heaven and earth have been restored. And God is the one who has accomplished it through His son, Jesus the Christ.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
The young rich ruler who approached Jesus with the question, "<i>Good Teacher, what will I do so that I will inherit eternal life?</i>" (Mark 10:17b) certainly understood eternal life to be the place that is God's kingdom. Every good Jewish person did, for they all knew what is written in Psalm 92:12-15:</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
"<i>The godly grow like a palm tree; they grow high like a cedar in Lebanon. Planted in the Lord's house, they grow in the courts of our God. They bear fruit even when they are old; they are filled with vitality and have many leaves. So they proclaim that upright is the Lord, my rocky summit, and there is no injustice in Him.</i>" [NET]</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
For God's kingdom, read "God's house, courts of our God" and for eternal life, read "cedar of Lebanon, vitality, many leaves."</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
It is also why when Jesus a little later explained to His disciples how difficult it is for the rich to find the eternal life the rich ruler was looking for, Jesus spoke in terms of God's kingdom:</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
"<i>Children, how difficult it is to enter into the Kingdom of God.</i>" (Mark 10: 24b)</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Indeed, it is impossible for us. But God in His faithfulness has done it for us through His son, Jesus the Christ. This is why He told John in John's vision (above), "<i>'Behold! I make all things new!' and then He said, 'Write it down, because these words are trustworthy and true.' And He said to me, 'It is done.'"</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
If through these few arguments we still fail to see that eternal life is a place, the Lord Himself makes the connection in the vision He gave John of God's kingdom. The source of life resides in God's kingdom: <i>I will give to those who thirst from the stream of the water of life as a free gift.</i> This is figurative of the fact we live in Christ because He lives--that is, through Christ we stand in the necessary intimate relationship with God Who is the source of life. I say <i>necessary</i> because outside of God there can be no life. And this eternal life comes to us as we stand in Christ through the Holy Spirit Who indwells us like an eternal spring of living water:<br />
<br />
"<i>Whoever drinks from the water I will give to him or her, will absolutely not thirst into the age, but the water that I will give to him or her will become in him or her a well of water springing up into eternal life." (John 4:14)</i><br />
<br />
And,<br />
<br />
"<i>Jesus had stood up on the last and greatest day of the feast and cried out saying, "If anyone is thirsty, let that one come to Me and drink. The one who is believing in(to) Me, just as the scripture said, rivers of living water will flow out from within him/her. Jesus said this concerning the Spirit that those who believe in(to) Him were about to receive. For the Spirit was not yet (given), because Jesus was not yet glorified.</i>" (John 7:37-39). </div>
<div>
<i><br /></i></div>
<div>
We also learn from John's vision there are no tears or suffering of any kind in eternal life. God has promised it, and He is faithful. It is useful to think about why this should be the case. The suffering in this world stems from our desire to promote ourselves over others. We do this because we have believed the lie we told ourselves that we can discover our true selves by exerting ourselves over others. But we will never find our true self until we completely let it go in Christ. Jesus said,</div>
<div>
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"<i>The one who finds his/her life (soul) will lose it, and the one who loses his/her life (soul) on account of Me will find it.</i>" (Matt. 10:39)</div>
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But we don't do this, and for this reason there is great weeping, terror, suffering, and toil in our world.</div>
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I was tempted to translate "toil" in John's vision (above) as something of the order "arduous and frustrating labor." The reason is because we will do work in God's kingdom, and it will be the work that naturally flows out of our true selves and therefore rewarding and invigorating, not a burden. This is contrary to the work we do in the present world; work in this world is toil, because it is froth with strife, disappointments, injustice, competition, defeat, and pain. Well of course it is, because it flows from a caricature of our true self, and we are using it often as a means of discovering who our true self is. But imagine what work would become if all of that went away, and each of us operated as he or she was created to be in the kingdom, unfettered by ignorance, jealousy, empire building, and so on. So it shall be in God's kingdom, where love binds us together in perfect justice (right order).</div>
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When I see what man has accomplished in the pursuit of science, I am amazed and tell people we shouldn't run away from scientific endeavors and discovery by vilifying or fearing science. If God created us to be His vice regents over creation--and He did--then we will necessarily be about the work of understanding creation. Indeed, we who have been created to fill this role in God's kingdom will be working to this end in God's kingdom forever because creation is infinitely complex. But we won't be as the scientists of this world who, despite all their protestations of being purely objective, are really out to make a name for themselves over their peers at all costs. This is why we are reading about so much falsification of data these days, and the incessant infighting in academia. No, in God's kingdom the work of discovery will flow from love rather than selfish-ambition and conceit. Our self won't disappear--indeed, it will prevail in perfect concert with all other selves--but Self will no longer concern us.</div>
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In God's kingdom we will know our true selves and live accordingly through the power of God's love working in us. There will no longer be tears in God's kingdom, but much to do.</div>
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Finally, the Lord tells John all those who overcome will inherit their place in God's kingdom. To overcome is to love as God loves by obeying Him in holiness. This is of course impossible on our own, because again we look to ourselves for the answers that can only come from God. This is why Christ came, so that in Him we can love in holiness through His love and holiness; we act perfectly rightly because we do so through Christ's perfect righteousness that comes to us through the indwelling of His spirit when we fully repent of ourselves and the world's methods and wholly entrust ourselves to Christ in His love by faith. The apostle John explains it this way,</div>
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"<i>Because everything that has been born from God overcomes the world; and this is the victory that is overcoming the world, our faith. Who is the one overcoming the world if not the one who is believing </i>[unrelentingly putting his/her whole trust in Christ alone and living accordingly]<i> that Jesus is the son of God?</i>" I John 5:4,5</div>
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The answer is no one. </div>
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God in His unfathomable love for us has restored His kingdom by taking on flesh and entering into human history to mend the broken relationship between Himself and His image-bearers--humankind; The relationship was broken because His image bearers thought they could find and hold life in themselves and turned their backs to the only source of life and died. Jesus entered this death by dying ignominiously on the cross, was buried, but on the third day was raised through the power of God's love to eternal life, and exalted to the right hand of God to reign forever as king over God's kingdom. And this kingdom is forever. Now those of us who turn to Christ by faith will live through His life, and therefore live forever together with God in His kingdom.</div>
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And what a beautiful place this eternal life is.</div>
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Bruce Kokkohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04379200226297077294noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5659707542141347681.post-81697347974749045652014-01-12T19:07:00.000-08:002014-01-12T19:07:05.692-08:00Eternal LifeSome people I know don't much like the idea of eternal life. They don't because they see eternal life as a never-ending continuation of the present life with all its fear, pain, misery, strife, struggle, sin and all the rest of the difficulties that in their sum total simply don't make all the "good" things worthwhile. Others who might find their way around such a perspective see eternal life as an ultimately dull affair. Somehow they got the idea from someone at some point in their lives that eternal life is a future state otherwise called heaven where people will sit around on clouds strumming harps. And I have to admit these visions of eternal life are--well--bleak. Certainly they are not much to aspire to. Fortunately, they are also quite wrong.<br />
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Joseph Ratzinger explained in volume 2 of his Jesus of Nazareth series that eternal life comes through recognition and faith. As we shall see, these are closely tied together. What Dr. Ratzinger meant by recognition was in the Old Testament sense:<br />
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"'<i>Eternal life' is gained through 'recognition', presupposing here the Old Testament concept of recognition: recognition that creates communion; it is union of being with the one recognized.</i>" (J. Ratzinger, <i>Jesus of Nazareth Holy Week: From the Entrance Into Jerusalem to the Resurrection</i>. Ignatius Press, San Francisco: 2011, p. 83.)<br />
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The dude's brilliant! The reason we have such a bleak view of eternal life is because we have united ourselves with a being we have come to recognize as the source of life. And it is with this being we have been communing. The being which I speak is in the broad sense creation, but is in all truth ourselves. Life to us is hard, miserable, and barely sustainable because we seek it through our own resources, which is to seek it in creation. But creation is an unforgiving place. To try to tame it requires we strive to advance ourselves over others, which as I said, ultimately translates to us communing with ourselves to find life. And this is a sordid business--with all its slight of hand, deal making, and power grabbing--which only makes the already merciless jungle of creation a place to escape; the being we have come to recognize in the way Dr. Ratzinger means at best brings to us only a poor caricature of life, a life, in fact, that causes us to long for death.<br />
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The problem isn't Dr. Ratzinger got it wrong; no, the problem is who or what we recognize as the source of life; and it ain't ourselves; such a notion is a big fat lie we long ago duped ourselves in believing to be truth. No, in his very next breath, Dr. Ratzinger tells us the answer,<br />
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"<i>But of course the key to life is not </i>any kind of recognition<i>, but to 'know you the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.</i>'" (Ibid. p. 83)<br />
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Dr. Ratzinger quotes Jesus as recorded in John 17:3 here. The being we must recognize, the being therefore with whom we must commune if we want true life is not creation but our creator. And we so recognize our Creator as we surrender ourselves fully by faith in His one, only, unique Son, Jesus the Christ.<br />
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Why Jesus? Because God has taken on flesh and entered into human history as a supreme act of re-creation by bringing order out of the chaos that has resulted from us turning away from God and looking to ourselves for life and therefore dying a complete death. God again speaks life into this lifeless rebellion that we now are: "Let there be light!" But this time He as His very Word came to dwell among us and take away death by dying to its fullest fury on the cross, buried and on the third day raised to life everlasting. So that in His Son, Jesus Christ, who is this Word, we can finally recognize God, and stand in Him by faith, and live. Not live a shadow of the reality of life, but true life in all its infinite grandeur, beauty, and love.<br />
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We recognize God--our Creator--in Christ because He came from God and has been exalted to sit now at the right hand of God. And we commune with Christ by faith, which is to surrender ourselves in trust completely to Christ. And He is worthy of our trust because He is the personification of God's wisdom to truly live and because He lives.<br />
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In his Gospel account, John writes:<br />
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"<i>Everything was created by Him, and apart from Him not one thing was created. What has been created was life in Him, and the life was the light of humanity; and the light is shining in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome/understand it.</i>" (John 1: 3-5)<br />
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I encourage you dear reader to repent of yourself and creation as your source of life and return to your Creator by trusting only in Christ and His power to live. The life you think you have found in yourself, is really death--it will never deliver what you long for. The life you will find in Christ is an infinite beauty and peace God created for you to have with Him forever, today! For indeed, God is the God of the living, not the dead.Bruce Kokkohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04379200226297077294noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5659707542141347681.post-25923912993295010682014-01-02T14:59:00.000-08:002014-01-02T14:59:04.188-08:00You Can Do It!A good friend of mine and I try to meet every week over coffee. Lately we have been studying Paul's First Letter to the Church in Corinth (actually, it was probably his third letter; the first two have been lost). It is perhaps notable to see the many similarities between Corinth and the current changing landscape of America. Corinth was a despotic town of vice and corruption. I can only imagine how some of the groups decrying the decaying morals of present America would have responded to the state of Corinth in Paul's day. It wouldn't have been pretty; but let's face it, Corinth was not a pretty place--at least, in ethical and moral terms.<br />
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Paul tells the Corinthian church something we all need to understand:<br />
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"<i>Or don't you understand that those who are unrighteous will not inherit God's kingdom? Don't be deceived! Neither sexually immoral persons, nor idol worshipers, nor adulterers, nor effeminate (men), nor pederasts, nor thieves, nor greedy persons, not drunkards, not treacherous persons, not swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God.</i>" (I Cor. 6:9,10).<br />
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Sound familiar? And all of that and more was being openly practiced in Corinth. Indeed, some had been those kind before they came to believe in Christ; for Paul adds, "<i>And some of you were these things;</i>" (I Cor. 6:11a). Sadly, some of these young Christians continued to cling to their old manners. We know this because one reason Paul was writing to his fledgling church was to admonish them for the incest being practiced with impunity, for brothers (by brothers I mean as such in the Lord) cheating brothers, for brothers suing brothers, for dissensions because of personality cults and, no doubt, accompanying differences in doctrines, for prostitution and all the rest of the garbage happening within the church.<br />
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Now, in the flavor of the king's response during the attempted wedding in Monty Python's, <i>Holy Grail</i>, I will quickly interject, "What is all this depressing discussion of sin and corruption? Bruce's blog is supposed to be a happy occasion." I will cut to the chase.<br />
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Even though Paul is absolutely correct in warning us that all those who practice these nasty behaviors will not enter into God's kingdom of peace and eternal life--it won't happen--Paul doesn't however do what we might expect him to do at this point, which is to start to lay out a bunch of dos and don'ts--you know, a long list of rules. He doesn't do that because it wouldn't work. Let's be honest, just because someone tells you not to do something--even if they give you ample reason--never stopped you from doing it. So where does this leave us? The good news of the Gospel of Christ, of course!<br />
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Notice what Paul does appeal to:<br />
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"<i>But you were washed, you were made holy (sanctified), you were acquitted [i.e., forgiven] in the name of the Lord, Jesus Christ, and by the spirit of our God!</i>" (I Cor. 6:11b)<br />
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Why does he do this? Because by reminding them whom they are in Christ they will keep their eyes on Christ and begin to live through the power of Christ's righteousness instead of their own. You see, if Paul laid out a hunk of rules, this would most likely result in his listeners turning to themselves for the wherewithal to follow the rules, dooming them to failure; because none of us can or will obey the rules; it's just not in us to do so; but it is in Christ. So it is by his righteousness and not our own that we will succeed in doing right (being just). And if we fail we will repent and be forgiven. This is the good news of the Gospel. In Christ, YOU CAN DO IT!<br />
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<br />Bruce Kokkohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04379200226297077294noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5659707542141347681.post-52209775609047444932013-12-26T16:59:00.002-08:002013-12-26T16:59:48.366-08:00Three Lessons From Professional HockeyThose who know me, know I don't much like professional hockey. The reason is the same for why I don't like any blood sport: it is barbaric to place money and entertainment before life--particularly human life. Professional hockey is a classic example of this; it is not about tactics and skillful playing, but brawling, bloodletting, and indirectly, killing.<br />
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In a recent edition of Lab Reporter (of all sources), Ashley Peterson discusses the rising cases of brain damage among pro hockey players (<b>Lab Reporter</b> 2013 (4), 32-33). These brain injuries, which usually don't manifest until years after they first occurred and are not detectable with current technology, often result in premature death. Case in point is the recent demise of Derek Boogaard at the tender age of 28 years.<br />
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I'm not here to rant against blood sports, though. Ashley's expose on the state of professional hockey affords three glimpses into the human condition. We can learn three lessons about ourselves from the discussions around the problems stemming from violence in hockey. It is these problems I want to briefly address here because they clearly illustrate why we all need a Savior.<br />
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First of all, fallen humanity thrives on what it sees as power. Even though faced with mounting evidence of the lethal ramifications of aggression in hockey, the promoters are reluctant to completely do away with the fighting. As Ashley reports,<br />
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"<i>However, as long as rough action sells tickets, a major change to totally eliminate fighting in the NHL may still be a ways off.</i>"<br />
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You see, even though we all talk about the value of human life, tolerance, peace, and all such noble causes, we secretly value power more. Money is power. And if we are not making money at the expense of human life, we are doling it out so we can vicariously beat up those in our lives we want to see bloodied--if not killed; indeed, it is becoming less and less satisfying for people to pay others to burn their personal effigies for them; this is why we are hearing of more and more cases of post-game violence among the spectators. Blood sports are and have always been a legal outlet for our hate. This present world believes hate is power. The incentive of hate is death or the threat of death; and the currency of hate is money.<br />
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Therefore, people value power because they see power as both a means to promote hate and to protect themselves from hate. They want to promote hate--although they deny this--because it is hoped this will produce more power for themselves. They want protection, because to be king-of-the-hill ultimately comes down to survival. And if they lack the innate gifts to achieve such power on their own, they buy it.<br />
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Secondly, we easily blind ourselves to the clear facts in order to get what we want, which is, of course, power (see above). I laughed aloud when I read in Ashley's article,<br />
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"<i>Specifically, researchers presented new findings in support of the elimination of fighting</i> [i.e., in hockey]<i>, suggesting that repeated punches to the head can cause the most serious injury. While there is still no irrefutable evidence that fighting results in brain damage, many experts continue to press the issue.</i>"<br />
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Really? Do we really need insurmountable evidence before we believe hitting someone repeatedly in the head will cause brain damage? Are we really that stupid? Of course we are; but it is a self-imposed stupidity for the sake of power; and for this reason we will always question the data, no matter how irrefutable it might be. Fallen humanity is--despite its protestations to the contrary--comprised of liars. And sadly, these liars have long ago believed their own lies.<br />
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Finally, we discover we cannot really protect ourselves from ourselves. Ashley points out the fact that recent NHL legislation against blindside checks actually resulted in more concussions. Furthermore--as I suspect we have been seeing in Pro football--implementing better protective gear actually emboldens the players to take more risks, which means more aggression. Rules and armor will never overcome our thirst for power. Truly, it has been said by someone, "Necessity is the mother of invention."<br />
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The last point locates the core of the fallen human condition: the human heart. All I have discussed here flows from a heart of selfish-ambition and conceit. For this reason, all the analyses, good intentions, and legislation will never bring peace to our world. Until the human heart is changed to see what true power is and then act in it, we will continue to slit each other's throats, and congratulate ourselves in the process.<br />
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We will never possess such changed hearts until we completely surrender ourselves to our Creator; because only He knows what real power is and can give us the wisdom to possess it. The true power which I speak is love.<br />
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God's answer to the human condition was for Himself to take on humanity as His son, Jesus the Christ, walk among us in perfect love, and take upon Himself, as an act of true love, all the so-called power this world can muster in defense and validation of itself, and sacrificially die. But then prove the world's power to be powerless against the true power of love, by raising Jesus to eternal life as transformed humanity; so that now, if we surrender ourselves completely by faith to the living Christ, we will possess His heart of love as He lives within us by His spirit; we will become transformed humanity together in Christ and live forever in the power of his love, which is true lasting peace.<br />
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"<i>For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on His shoulders. And He will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of His government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on David's throne and over His kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and forever. The zeal of the Lord Almighty will accomplish this."</i> (Is. 9:6-7) [NIV]<br />
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Through three lessons from the NHL we have found ourselves severely wanting; and therefore from them we hopefully come to see our need for our Savior, Jesus the Christ, who is God with us.<br />
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<br />Bruce Kokkohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04379200226297077294noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5659707542141347681.post-91124203534017148332013-12-09T19:46:00.000-08:002013-12-12T05:20:26.795-08:00Why am I so tired? (Part 2)[Please don't read the following unless you have read the preceding post.]<br />
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We become tired any time we do anything, because work requires energy. Not all fatigue defeats us, though. When we work hard at something flowing from our inherent strengths, the fatigue we feel actually exhilarates us.<br />
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My friend wasn't speaking of this kind of fatigue, however. He wants more than anything to strive for his Lord Jesus, yet frequently finds himself feeling defeated at the end of the day. This is why he asked me, "Why am I so tired?"<br />
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There are, of course, many reasons one could address in answering my friend's dilemma, but I would like to suggest three common reasons for the demoralizing fatigue my friend so desperately wants to overcome.<br />
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Firstly, when we walk with Christ we can often become burdened down with guilt. We are well aware of the fact we all too often fall short of Holy-Love; and we worry we are rapidly using up the grace God has allotted us. Consequently, we begin wringing our hands, pace, and fret that God will drop us from His roster unless we straighten up and fly right. We work even harder to make up for our infractions, and fail again. Before long we are exhausted and defeated under a heavy weight of guilt.<br />
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This guilt-based fatigue happens because we have misunderstood the Gospel of Christ. Jesus took on all our guilt--past, present, and future--and paid for it once and for all by dying on the cross. There is no longer any condemnation for anyone who is in Christ. We are forgiven when we stand in Christ by faith. There is no limit to the mercy He will afford us. Yes, we will fail; and yes, God's Spirit within us will help us recognize our failures--not to discourage or shame us, but to awaken us to the new life we have in Christ. Instead of becoming defeated by guilt, we become invigorated by the wisdom we gain through our failures, because our eyes see more clearly in the light of God's forgiveness. Truly, in Christ we are freed from the burden of guilt.<br />
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Secondly, we tend to exhaust ourselves by constantly second-guessing, modifying, mitigating, or down-right ignoring what the Holy Spirit tells us to do; instead of simply obeying by the grace He provides, we labor to find loop holes to the Spirit's simple instructions. The fatigue I am talking about here is of the same ilk as experienced when we tell a lie and don't fess up. The first lie soon begets a second and then a third, and we find ourselves embroiled in a complex chess game of manipulations, intrigues, and moves and counter-moves; just trying to keep it all spinning wears us out. In the same way, when we override the Spirit's direction, we collapse under a heavy load of consequences; and our futile attempts to manage these consequences to our best advantage quickly incapacitates us.<br />
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Christ frees us from the burden of trying to figure it all out for ourselves--to find wisdom on our own. God's sight is always 20/20; we simply don't have the wherewithal to craft lenses thick enough to correct for our lack of wisdom. Jesus frees us by lighting our path; we now see through His eyes. All we have to do is to trust Him by stepping where He tells us to step.<br />
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Thirdly, we tend to defeat ourselves by thinking walking with Christ is the same as keeping some grand New Year's resolution to ourselves. We tell ourselves, "I've got to be like Jesus," so we proceed to lay out our stratagems,disciplines, and rules. Unfortunately, we soon find ourselves defeated by our inherent inadequacies.<br />
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The good news of the Gospel of Christ is it is God who does and must change us. No longer are we fettered by our weaknesses, but we are being renewed in the perfect adequacy of Christ. In ourselves we only find tortuous paths to death; in Christ we find life, and life to the fullest. God is transforming us as we drink from the well of the eternal spring of Holy-Love gushing within us through His Holy Spirit.<br />
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There is an inescapable fatigue in following Christ, but it need not defeat us. The fatigue I mean comes from persecution. Persecution is resistance to the Truth of Christ; and we encounter persecution both from within and from outside of ourselves. To suggest this persecution isn't exhausting would be a lie. But the truth of the gospel of Christ is Jesus suffered every persecution we face, and even the ultimate persecution of death by crucifixion.<br />
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In Christ, then, we are freed from having to bear this persecution alone. In the same way Jesus upheld Peter back to the boat through the torrent raging around them in the middle of the lake, He will uphold us through the terrors of this life. And in the same way Jesus quelled the storm after returning Peter safely to the boat, the day is coming when Jesus will bring eternal Shalom for all who are standing in Him. This hope is a sure comfort in our afflictions.<br />
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My friend asked me what this all looks like practically. Certainly when we can, we should read the Scriptures, which is God's revelation to us. We should also not forsake His assembly; God often brings His wisdom, comfort, and strength through our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ. We also need to find designated times to engage in focused prayer to God. All these things must be done. But there are times in life when we simply don't have access to them. The beauty of the Gospel of Christ is Jesus is always within us. Therefore we can and should be always chatting with our Lord; in work or play or anytime, we need to be talking with God as an active listener--thanking Him, questioning Him, seeking guidance from Him in everything, and celebrating the fallout of His love both to us and to others. It is as the Holy Spirit teaches us through St. Paul:<br />
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"<i>Always rejoice, pray without ceasing, and in everything give thanks; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus.</i>" (I Thess. 5:16-18)<br />
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In this way we are no longer taxed by the demands of Holy-Love because we are already entrusting ourselves fully to the sure power of Christ. We find rest as we continually stand in Christ's righteousness. And the fatigue we experience no longer defeats us but invigorates us as we confidently pursue God's purposes for us.<br />
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What Paul says next summarizes this present post much better than I can:<br />
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"<i>Don't extinguish the Spirit, do not treat prophecies with contempt. But examine all things; hold fast to what is good. Stay away from every form of evil. And may the God of peace Himself make you completely holy and may your spirit and soul and body be kept entirely blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. He who calls you is trustworthy, and he will in fact do this.</i>" (I Thess. 5:19-24)[NET].Bruce Kokkohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04379200226297077294noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5659707542141347681.post-47076456629647024992013-12-05T19:15:00.000-08:002013-12-06T04:55:35.968-08:00Why am I so tired? (Part 1)The Sermon on the Mount is the Law fulfilled in Christ. Jesus perfectly practiced both the letter of the Law and the purpose/meaning the letter of the Law points to. The purpose/meaning behind the Law is like the flesh covering the bones; it is love filling and energizing holiness and being energized by holiness. It is God's righteousness.<br />
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What we must understand is unless we conform to this fulfilled Law--this righteousness of God--we absolutely will not stand in God's Kingdom. Jesus teaches us very clearly,<br />
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"<i>For I say to you</i> (plural)<i>, unless your righteousness far exceeds that of the Scribes and Pharisees, you </i>(plural)<i> will absolutely not enter into the kingdom of the heavens.</i>" (Matt. 5:20)<br />
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If we understand righteousness as obeying the Law according to any standard outside of Love, we are neither standing with Christ in God's kingdom, nor will we ever so stand with Him in God's glory. The Law of which Jesus speaks is the ten commandments; because the ten commandments are the necessary but not sufficient measure of the Law of God's righteousness that is love. For the Holy Spirit teaches us through the Apostle John,<br />
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"<i>The one claiming, 'I have known Him,' and is not obeying His commandments, is a liar, and the Truth is not in him or her. But whoever obeys His word, truly the love of God has been perfected in him or her, by this we know that we are in Him.</i>" (I John 2:4-5)<br />
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Therefore, Jesus unpacks Holy-Love (my concise term for the compass of fulfilled Law) for us through His Sermon on the Mount (Matt. 5-7). The latter serves to illustrate for us who dwell with Him in His kingdom (i.e., His disciples) what the Holy-Love looks like. Because Jesus perfectly conformed to Holy-Love, we too can conform to Holy-Love if we live in Christ. Not only can we conform to Holy-Love in Christ, we absolutely must do so; otherwise, we are not truly walking with Christ in His kingdom, TODAY--that is, we are not true Christians. <br />
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Immediately upon hearing this, our first reaction is God has given us an even harder set of rules than before to try to follow, and we become exhausted before we even start; we quickly feel defeated. A fellow parishioner approached me recently explaining he understands the mandate of Holy-Love but is worn out by what it requires in practice. "Why am I so tired?" he asked me.<br />
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I can relate. But I also know this fatigue my friend is experiencing doesn't seem to jibe with what Jesus would later teach,<br />
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"<i>Come to Me everyone who is toiling and has been loaded down, and I will give you </i>(plural)<i> rest. Take up my yoke upon you </i>(plural)<i> and learn from me, because I am gentle and humble in heart, and you </i>(plural)<i> will find rest for your souls; For My yoke is good--kindly--not pressing, and My burden is light.</i>" (Matt. 11:28-30)<br />
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Does Jesus contradict Himself? By no means, and this is good news for us.<br />
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The yoke of a Rabbi was his example for how to fulfill God's righteousness; and a Rabbi's disciples would do absolutely everything their Rabbi did, to the letter--that is, they would be yoked to their Rabbi. Jesus' yoke is the final word on fulfilling God's righteousness (above). And even though Holy-Love appears daunting--and it is, because it runs counter to everything this world holds dear--Holy-Love is nevertheless the only way to the peace of God that is Shalom--the perfect rest of God's kingdom; Jesus promises us this is true. And we can go to the bank on Jesus' promises.<br />
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The reason He promises His yoke is light lies at the heart of the Gospel of Christ--the Good News for all who are believing in Him. Next week, I will answer my friend's impassioned question by explaining what I mean by this. For now, I think I have given us quite enough to chaw on.<br />
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See you next week.<br />
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<br />Bruce Kokkohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04379200226297077294noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5659707542141347681.post-65719659363349976062013-11-25T14:52:00.000-08:002013-11-25T14:52:20.346-08:00The Legend of Tom TurkeyThere was this bird. He was big as birds come, and quite a lot smarter than most would give him credit. He wasn't much to look at, though. Some might say he was born old--not in the precocious sense or in terms of wisdom, just in the prunish way an old man would appear after living out his eighty years in Death Valley. The bird's name was Tom.<br />
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Tom didn't live alone. Actually, he lived among quite a large flock. Trouble was, old Tom felt quite alone. The other birds ignored him; nothing Tom did seemed to alter this sad situation, either. It got so bad Tom concluded he had an image problem, and he decided to do something about it.<br />
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Being the brightest bulb of the bunch, Tom tried to gain notoriety through his strengths. He set up an old pail he found lying around, stood up on it, cleared his throat, and read his paper on the quantum implications of farm life. No one listened and no one cared; before long, old Tom was really alone.<br />
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Undeterred, Tom tore his tee-shirt, lit up a cigarette butt Farmer Brown had dropped on the ground, and yelled through the wire to the girl on the other side, "STELLA!" She promptly closed the window.<br />
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Next, Tom started listening to Bing Crosby records; and after fashioning a pipe from a corn cob, he began crooning to the chics. I can't tell you their reaction, because this blog is G-rated.<br />
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Then one afternoon Farmer Brown came on the scene carrying an ax. Tom thought the only way to impress the gang is if he acted tough. So Tom courageously approached the surprised Farmer Brown and with his best bravado, said, "You talking to me? I say, are YOU talking to me?" Tom looked around to see if this would finally cause everyone to notice him; but it didn't. The onlookers just went on with their fowl business. Tom didn't have much time to regret this, because Farmer Brown called Tom's bluff. The next day at about two o'clock--after the football game had ended--the Brown family lined the dinner table and gave Tom the respect he had long sought in life. Only now, when is was too late to do Tom any good, did those gathered around Tom shout in one accord, "Oh, what a magnificent bird!"<br />
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The moral of this tale is it's hard to soar like a turkey in a yard full of chickens.<br />
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Happy Thanksgiving.Bruce Kokkohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04379200226297077294noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5659707542141347681.post-31556978442524908212013-11-17T18:24:00.001-08:002013-11-17T18:24:40.420-08:00Out of CreationThis week I experienced a conflation (i.e., fusing--sorry, I need to get out more often) of three media inputs (two books and a movie). I just finished Gerald Schroeder's <i>The Science of God</i>. This is an excellent book for anyone who wants to understand the proper relationships between science and the Bible. Dr. Schroeder does a bang up job of explaining difficult scientific concepts to the uninitiated--a rare talent, indeed. He goes a long way to show how neither the Bible nor science can prove the existence of God; but shows how the more science learns, the more difficult it becomes for it to deny the existence of God. Dr. Schroeder does an excellent job of exegesis of the first chapter of Genesis, which alone is worth the price of the book. And even though I concur with much of Schroeder's theology, I find him stumbling over the stumbling stone of Christ. It may not be his intention, but after reading his book, I came away with the feeling that if humankind studies the universe long enough, humankind will find the Shalom with God--that is, justice will eventually come with our understanding of creation. Putting it another way, my impression is Dr. Schroeder is suggesting--and I could be misinterpreting him--we can find peace through creation.<br />
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I got to thinking about this because of something Dr. Wolterstorff said in his book <i>Journey Toward Justice</i>, which I had finished before reading Dr. Schroeder's book and therefore is the second member of my three media conflation. As if commenting on what I believe Dr. Schroeder was advocating, here is what Dr. Wolterstorff said,<br />
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"<i>Fundamental to modernity is a blending and secularizing of the story lines of Scripture in such a way that there is thought to be good ground within the natural order for expecting that society will someday be liberated from injustice and we will all flourish until we die full of years. A few scientists have even speculated that a technology will eventually be discovered that halts aging, thereby eliminating death due to old age. Those who successfully dodge fatal accidents will retain the vigor, the agility, the curiosity,the libido, of a twenty-five-year-old.</i><br />
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<i>This is optimism grounded in creation, not hope grounded in God.</i>" [N. P. Wolterstorff, <i>Journey Toward Justice</i>. Baker Academic (2013), p. 235.]<br />
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He is absolutely correct. It is true we lack knowledge, or more importantly, we lack wisdom needed to bring Shalom. But we cannot find this wisdom in creation because to believe so assumes the problem is only our ignorance; it's not. There is something more fundamental blocking Shalom than just our ignorance. Here is where the third source of input to my week came in.<br />
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Every so often my wife and I hold a 50's Sci-Fi movie night at our home. She usually purchases theatre style boxed candies such as Milk Duds, Junior Mints, and the like. She also pops popping corn and doles it out to the guests in miniature pop corn containers reminiscent of the day. We always start with a Loonie Toons cartoon, and then watch the main feature. Well, this weekend we had friends over for a double-feature. We began with Porky Pig and Daffy Duck in <i>The Ducksters</i> and followed up with <i>The Thing</i> and <i>Forbidden Planet</i>. It was after watching <i>Forbidden Planet</i> this present blog came together--the conflation I have been alluding to.<br />
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The story-line of <i>Forbidden Planet</i> is the discovery of a planet once occupied by the Krell. The Krell had lived millions of years prior to the time of the story and had evolved their society over a couple of million years through technological and scientific advancement into a state of Shalom. However, when they looked to eliminate all instrumentality from their existence (i.e., operate purely mentally) they rediscovered the truth that despite all their advancement there still remained deep in the core of their psyche, the id. The id is of course the remnant of animal barbarism left over from their evolution from the primitive--or so says Freud. For this reason the Krell ended up destroying themselves, leaving only a powerful yet powerless technology for posterity.<br />
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The story of the Krell steers us to the fundamental barrier I mentioned above. The barrier is the fact--despite popular belief to the contrary--humankind is not basically good, rather humankind is basically evil. But this evil did not arise in us because of our primitive roots; even Dr. Schroeder asserts this fact by recognizing that humankind differs from their ancestors by virtue of the fact that God breathed His image into them. No, humankind became evil because it chose to disengage itself from God who is the only source of goodness because only He is good. The hubris of Adam and Eve was they could be good--that is, they could muster up the wisdom to keep Shalom--from within themselves--from creation.<br />
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Do you hear what I heard from these three seemingly disparate pieces of media? Evil entered into humankind and therefore into the world because we believed we could find wisdom through creation! The revelation shines a whole new light on what Paul meant in his letter to the Romans:<br />
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"<i>For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes--His eternal power and divine nature--have been clearly seen, because they are understood through what has been made. So people are without excuse. For although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God or give Him thanks, but became futile in their thoughts and their senseless hearts were darkened. Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for an image resembling mortal human beings or birds or four-footed animals or reptiles.</i>" [Rom. 1:18-23 (NET)]<br />
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And justice continues to elude us because we continue to believe we will find Shalom through creation; it just isn't so, because such wisdom only resides in God.<br />
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Our only hope to Shalom we all seek is to reestablish the intimate relationship with God we were created to have and indeed must therefore have to truly live, which is Shalom. And only God could make this possible for us because our evil blinds us to the truth. And God has accomplished this through His son Jesus the Christ. Failure to recognize this final and absolutely necessary piece to the puzzle of restored humankind is the stumbling block I mentioned earlier.<br />
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If we want to find the wisdom Dr. Schroeder recognizes we need, we must as Dr. Wolterstorff so beautifully explains move out of creation, because we are inherently evil as the Krell learned too late for their civilization. To find Shalom we must leap out of creation and into the loving arms of Jesus--into the new creation that is His eternal kingdom.<br />
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Bruce Kokkohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04379200226297077294noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5659707542141347681.post-64100048970720559732013-11-10T15:28:00.000-08:002013-11-10T15:28:37.685-08:00Should We Forgive an Unrepentant Person?I am finishing up Nicholas P. Wolterstorff's freshly minted book, <i>Journey Toward Justice</i>. It has been a challenging book for me--particularly in the categories of rights and forgiveness. For this reason it is a good book, and certainly one I would recommend.<br />
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Professor Wolterstorff addresses an issue near and dear to all of us who care anything about relationships, I think; the topic is forgiveness. I broached this subject in my own book, <i>A Final Word on LOVE</i>, so I was interested in his perspective, especially in light of the broader context of justice.<br />
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We all think about forgiveness frequently because life unfortunately is made up of events leading to either our need to forgive someone, or our need to be forgiven. Some of us will harbor bitterness towards others, and that is that. What Wolterstorff or I have to say on the matter will likely matter little to those of that persuasion. But the rest of us see a value to forgiveness--if only a self-interested one--that is, we know bitterness eats the embittered soul alive; and forgiveness is a good vaccine against such cancer.<br />
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As a Christian, I know God fully expects me to forgive others. Indeed, Jesus leaves no room in this:<br />
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"<i>For if you forgive people their trespasses, your Father in Heaven will also forgive you. If you don't forgive people (their trespasses), neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.</i>" [Matt. 6:14,15]<br />
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The Greek construction here is quite emphatic. Jesus is saying if the front end statement (protasis) is true (i.e., if you forgive others...) then the end statement (apodosis) will always be the case (God will forgive you). The corollary is therefore also emphatically meant: If I don't forgive others, then God will not forgive me.<br />
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Wolterstorff would stand on this; yet he and many others I know also believe you cannot, nor should not forgive someone who hasn't repented. He quotes Luke 17:3-4 as showing even Jesus invoking repentance as a necessary condition for our decision to forgive someone. He argues that even though Jesus clearly teaches us to love our enemies and do good to those who persecute us and do not repay evil for evil but evil with good, Jesus never teaches us to forgive our enemy. Wolterstorff further argues God doesn't forgive us if we don't repent--that is, the necessary but not sufficient condition of receiving God's forgiveness is our repentance.<br />
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In practical terms, Wolterstorff believes if we forgive someone who doesn't repent, we are in effect saying his or her immoral action against us isn't really immoral; in fact, it doesn't matter, at all. Wolterstorff says the following of forgiving Hurbert, who has refused to repent of his deed against him:<br />
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"<i>I submit that this is both to demean myself and to insult Hubert by refusing to treat him and what he did with full moral seriousness.</i>" [N.P. Wolterstorff <i>Journey Toward Justice</i>. Baker Academic (2013): p. 215]<br />
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I must confess, the good Professor almost had me convinced. But I cannot accept his argument. I cannot because I do not think any human being can love his enemy without forgiving his enemy. An enemy is an enemy because they wrong us and continue to do so with no remorse. How can anyone love such a person without forgiving him, when love requires fundamentally to treat the other person for his good because of his inherent worth (i.e., Wolterstorff's proper definition of human rights)--irrespective of his actions and disposition? I ask again: How can we repay his evil with good, if we haven't forgiven him? After all, forgivenness is to let go any obligation the other person might own us. How can we possibility love someone while still holding an account against the person?<br />
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I suppose it is theoretically possible for a person to pigeon-hole his complaints against someone, so he or she can treat the person as if those complaints don't really exist, and therefore love the other person without forgiving him. But such a thing just doesn't jibe with what I know of human nature. If I don't forgive someone, I will be embittered towards the person. I may be able to keep my bitterness in check by not beating him up, or slashing his tires, but I will harbor bitterness against him. The problem is our understanding of the love God calls us to. Love is not only avoiding hurting the person in some outward sense, but in any sense. And harboring bitterness--whether acted upon, or not--is hurting the person and therefore not loving the person. This is what Jesus meant when He equated murder with anger (Matt. 5:21-26). Certainly it is wrong to murder someone; yet if we harbor unresolved anger (unforgiveness) toward someone we will eventually murder them, either physically, emotionally, or politically; and therefore if we cling to our unforgiveness, we have already murdered our offenders. Bitterness is an unavoidable consequence of not forgiving someone. And bitterness is contrary to love.<br />
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The present world system sees the only way for people to face their actions is to force them to live the consequences of their actions. Therefore, if I forgive an unrepentant person--so the argument goes--he or she will not have to live the consequences of his or her actions (i.e., whatever our unforgiveness delivers the offender). This makes sense to us because we are children of this world system; its logic is hardwired into us. But God is calling us to His kingdom system. And even though it may seem counter-intuitive, the only real hope of our offenders coming to face their offenses is if they see true love expressed to them--regardless of their current disposition. This is how Jesus brought us to see our Sin; Jesus loved us with the supreme act of mercy and forgiveness by dying on the cross--even though He was perfectly innocent.<br />
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If I follow the world's method, I submit the offender will rarely if ever come to face his or her own demons because he or she will be too preoccupied with either taking revenge against me for my unforgiveness, or proving why he or she had been justified in wronging me in the first place. But, if I respond according to the methods of God's kingdom, the offender has a good chance of seeing his or her faults, and--guess what--will likely come to repentance. Not always, of course. But I don't love someone only because I expect or demand the right response, rather because I hope for the right response--this is the real beauty and promise of God's kingdom. Besides, I am not responsible with what an unrepentant offender does or does not do with my forgiveness; that is between him or her and God.<br />
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Therefore, I must always forgive people, regardless of whether they are repentant or not.<br />
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<br />Bruce Kokkohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04379200226297077294noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5659707542141347681.post-72484181727608772772013-11-04T18:50:00.000-08:002013-11-04T20:33:00.468-08:00A Birdseye ViewI love to look at aerial photos of marathons. You might think I feel this way because I'm inspired by a mass of humanity striving towards a goal. I suppose I should, but that's not the reason. Besides, it's a race; so even though they are in mass moving toward a prize, they are competing with each other--not exactly a model of cooperative human achievement. However, I suppose at any given race there are those whose sole objective is to win at all costs, and those running to prove something to themselves or others who might be watching them, and those who are running simply to give meaning to all the long hours of exercise and training. For most people involved, the marathon is a social event and therefore a good picture of the human community. This is good, and I doff my hat to them, but it is not what it is about these birds eye view glimpses of these meets that captures my imagination.<br />
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What I think about when looking at these pictures is how each one of those dots of color is a person. And as such, each one comes with his or her own life. Each one has dreams, ambitions, loves, hates, fears, pasts, secrets, hurts, gifts, joys, and heartaches. All of them have sandwiched themselves together--perhaps for the first and last time--and then separate according to ability. At the end of the day, most will have crossed the finished line. The winner will carry his or her reward home; the rest will mark off the experience with a joy of accomplishment, a bested time, or a charlie horse. And some had earlier dropped out along the way. But flying high above them, I don't know them or their outcomes; I only see tiny figurines. And I marvel how this is only a small sampling of the human race--past, present, and future. I'm struck by an indescribable sense of wonder.<br />
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There is, of course, another perspective of this spectacle. I'm reminded of the scene in the movie <i>The Third Man</i>, where Harry Lime is talking with his best friend while riding in a gondola on a Ferris wheel. Harry's friend had learned of Lime's nefarious activities of killing little children through a black marketing scam. Lime justifies himself by asking his friend if he had the chance to make ten or twenty thousand dollars, but it would mean some of those dots moving around below would have to disappear, wouldn't he do it? Therefore some people looking at the same aerial photo I am don't see persons, they see opportunities to advance themselves. The grim truth is even if they were to come face to face with some of those dots, they will still see them as objects. How else can you explain the long history of exploitation, murder, and betrayal?<br />
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Fortunately for all of us, God does not see us this way. The really amazing thing about looking at that aerial picture is it is in one sense exactly how God sees us. God sees us as a collective--as a community--and smiles broadly because He created us to be a community with Him; this is what is meant by the kingdom of God. It is the wonderful gift of Christ that we can be a community of people who love each other--mutually supporting each other for the benefit of the other so the created purpose of God's kingdom is accomplished. God wants His kingdom to be unified, and has accomplished this in Christ--such a picture of beauty for us to contemplate.<br />
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Yet God is not only interested in the collective; God cherishes each individual as if each one were the only one. When God looks down and sees the sea of dots, He sees persons. And not only does He see them as persons, He knows each one of those dots intimately in every way, even much more than the persons know themselves. And this knowledge is not just analytical on God's part, but the result of a deep abiding investment of love for each person because He has ascribed great worth to each of them. This is perhaps the most beautiful thing of all: "what is man that you are mindful of him..." says the Psalmist. Do you now begin to understand how much God loves you?<br />
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Even though from God's birds eye view you might think you are but a mere speck to Him. Think again; you are a precious child He longs to embrace with love that is life forever. Bruce Kokkohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04379200226297077294noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5659707542141347681.post-21995802124157585882013-10-28T15:27:00.001-07:002013-10-28T15:27:37.380-07:00Who's the Greatest? (Part 3)<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 13.5pt;">Coming on the heels of the passages from Mark's Gospel account we
discussed last week is a decidedly enigmatic set of statements from Jesus.
It reads as follows:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;">"Everyone will be salted by fire. Salt is good; but
if salt becomes unsalty, by what way will you season it? Have salt in
yourselves and be at peace with each other."</span></i><span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"> </span></span><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;">[Mark 9:49-50]<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 13.5pt;">You can easily see how perplexing these comments are.
Barclay </span><span style="font-size: 17.77777862548828px;">suggested</span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 13.5pt;"> in his,</span><span class="apple-converted-space" style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 13.5pt;"> </span><i style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 13.5pt;">Daily
Study Bible Series: The Gospel of Mark</i><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 13.5pt;">. Westminster Press (1956): p. 241, this was an example of pithy sayings of Jesus the gospel writers
would record out of context as a means of remembering them. I disagree.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 13.5pt;">The passage is difficult to grasp if one fails to see its connection with
the passage preceding it. What we have here is Jesus' summary statement
to the whole discussion answering the question, "Who's the
greatest?"--at least that is how Mark is using it.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 115%;">I must first explain a minor translation
challenge before elaborating what I mean by the last paragraph (now stay with me
a moment; it won't be pretty). The word translated "fire" is in
the dative case without any preceding preposition. Consequently, the translator, knowing the many ways the dative functions in Greek, must decide what preposition the writer intended. In the present situation, most people translate
it as I did as "by fire" or "with fire." But the 19th century Jewish Christian, </span><span style="font-size: 17.77777862548828px; line-height: 20px;">Alfred Edersheim, in his book, <i>The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah</i>. Hendrickson (2000): p. 557,</span><span style="font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 115%;"> translated it, "for
fire." The usual translation is the means or agent by which the
salting is done, whereas Edersheim's translation is the reason the salting is
done. So which is it? Do you care?</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 115%;">Both ways of understanding fire are possible. What we will discover is by taking both paths we end up in the same destination more enriched than were we to chose one path over the other. This is the beauty of the Greek language and God's word.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 115%;">Edersheim's translation captures a practice every Jewish listener of Jesus' day would have understood. Before a burnt sacrifice was offered to God, both the body of the animal and the wood fueling the fire to consume the animal had to be first salted. From this vantage point, then, Jesus is using "fire" to represent a sacrifice--more specifically, an acceptable sacrifice.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 115%;">In his letter to the Romans, Saint Paul defines what it means to be an acceptable sacrifice:</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 115%;">"<i>I urge you therefore, brothers and sisters, by the mercy of God to present your bodies as a living, sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God--your acceptable worship; and don't conform to this age, but be transformed by the renewing of the mind so that you prove what is the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God.</i>" [Rom. 12:1-2]</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 115%;">We are to be living sacrifices to God, where are acceptable worship--service--comes through a renewing of our minds--that is, a fundamental change in the way we view the world. This change of mind starts with a purification of ourselves in purpose, motives, and thought--the whole person; this so we can effectively love others by seeking their spiritual and physical good for their sake and God's, in even the simplest ways; and this is done without harboring prejudices or divisions--something we easily do to elevate ourselves over others. In short, we become the least of all and the servant of all. Only when we become such people are we salted, and we are an acceptable sacrifice for God. Because only in this salted condition does God's love flow in justice that is true peace.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 115%;">The more common translation sees fire as the means by which we are salted. The listener would have easily understood this allusion because, for example, precious metals are purified by melting them in a fire, so the impurities (dross) can be easily poured off. From this perspective, then, Jesus is teaching us that to become salted--to be salt--we must be purified as by fire.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 115%;">In the first century, salt was a precious and therefore expensive commodity. Salt was used to preserve foods, and was seen as a nutrient. We become like salt to the world only when we listen to and yield to the Holy Spirit working in each of us who stand in Christ in God's kingdom.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 115%;">The Holy Spirit will move us away from all those things causing us to sin (disobey God)--those attitudes and ideas we use to promote ourselves at the expense of others, and the selfish-ambition keeping us from truly loving others in even the simplest ways. In short, the Holy Spirit is purifying us with the fire of grace so we will become the least of all and the servant of all, which is to be real salt to this world.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 115%;">This purification by the Holy Spirit will, like fire, be hot and painful--that is, it will necessarily entail suffering. The reason is everything the Spirit is transforming us into is in direct contradiction of how the world thinks and operates. The world strives for the single goal of being the greatest by wielding the most power. For this reason, we who strive for Christ's principle of greatness will experience resistance both from within ourselves and from outside ourselves; indeed, we will be hated, and such hate will incur suffering.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 115%;">Even though the present world doesn't recognize it, and even violently opposes the idea, the world will not find peace outside the kingdom of God. We who stand in God's kingdom in Christ are His salt to this dark and confused world. We nourish and bring preservation by being living sacrifices, which is to become the least of all and the servant of all. If we cave in and hold onto the world's principles (i.e., conform to this age) in order to save ourselves, we lose our saltiness. This is what Jesus means by "<i>if salt becomes unsalty, by what way will you season it?</i>" And Jesus tells us elsewhere such vapid salt will be thrown out to be trampled under people's feet (see Matt. 5:13).</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 115%;">Therefore, my dear readers, let's stand in God's kingdom in Christ by submitting ourselves wholly to His grace through the power of His Holy Spirit working within us, and become the least of all and the servant of all. Only then shall we be at peace with each other. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>Bruce Kokkohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04379200226297077294noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5659707542141347681.post-50248823031948476052013-10-20T15:17:00.001-07:002013-10-20T15:17:55.292-07:00Who's the Greatest? (Part 2)Last week I proposed our reluctance to see others with an uncompromised compassion is because we are all trying to answer a question much more important to us: "Who's the greatest?" I neglected to point out we also believe we know the answer; it is either a) I am! or b) I need to be be! Both to our detriment and the detriment of others, this is the real question and real answer we all pose in all our relationships--from those most intimate to us to those most remote to us.<br />
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As I have said hundreds of times on this site, God has made restored relationships--first with Him and then consequentially with each other--possible in Christ. I question if we can fully comprehend what these restored relationships are if we don't see others with an uncompromised compassion. As long as I see others from the perspective of how they might advance me or hinder me, I am really only interested in the question of who's the greatest, and answering it summarily with a resounding, "I am!"<br />
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Jesus who is the source of all wisdom, God incarnate, and therefore the only one who can guide us into and perfectly arbitrate restored relationships, He tells us the greatest is the least of all and the servant of all (Mark 9:35). Let's read further in this passage from the Gospel account of Mark and learn what Jesus means by this.<br />
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<i>And taking a child, Jesus made the child stand in their midst, and after embracing the child Jesus said to them, "Whoever receives a child such as this in My name, receives Me. And whoever receives Me does not receive Me but the one who sent Me.</i>" [Mark 9: 36-37]<br />
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Because children were nothing much more than possessions equivalent to slaves in the first century, Jesus' admonition would have been astonishing to those listening--to say the least. The greatest therefore in the Kingdom of Heaven (i.e., "in My name") is one who refuses to cling to social prejudices, but who treats every person, either those who can repay or those who cannot, with equal love, which means to promote the other's welfare over his/her own--even if it doesn't advantage the one doing the promoting. In this way we are truly receiving God because He has loved us the same way.<br />
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<i>The disciple, John, says to Jesus, "Teacher, we saw someone casting out demons in your name and we forbid him, because he wasn't following us. Jesus said, "Don't forbid him. For no one who does a miracle in my name is one who will soon be able to speak evil of Me. For whoever is not against us, is for us.</i>" [Mark 9: 38-40]<br />
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A person who is greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven will not promote or maintain divisions. From the time we are children until we die, we humans love our cliques, clubs, and Parties. We seem to find great power through our exclusionism. The most grievous example of this are the walls that we maintain between our own brothers and sisters in Christ (i.e., sectarianism). But one piece of the great news of the Gospel is God has broken down all the dividing walls of humankind in Christ. His kingdom is open to all without distinction who surrender themselves completely in faith to Jesus the Christ.<br />
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"<i>For whoever gives to you a cup of water to drink in (My) name because you are of Christ, truly I tell you, that one will absolutely not lose his/her reward.</i>" [Mark 9:41]<br />
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The greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven are those who maintain right relationships in even the simplest ways. I see in this simple parable of Jesus a role reversal in order to communicate a universal principle. Jesus did this with the parable of the Good Samaritan to communicate we are all neighbors and therefore we must treat all as we would like to be treated. In a similar vein, we need to treat our brothers and sisters in God's kingdom as if the entire kingdom rides on even the slightest gesture of kindness; because--guess what?-- it does. A mitigated love ceases to be love God is trying to create in us, but quickly reverts to self-interest.<br />
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"<i>And whoever might cause one of these little ones who are believing in Me to stumble (sin), it is better for him/her if a mule-driven-mill-stone is placed around his/her throat instead, and has been cast into the sea.</i>" [Mark 9: 42]<br />
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The greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven is one who seeks first the benefits and spiritual prosperity of another person for the sake of God and that other person. It is a sad truth that our neglect, exploitation, or inordinate burdening of another person leaves us owning some of the sin that person might fall into because of this. The very foundation of the Kingdom of God is relationships, first between us and God, and then with each other. As Jesus' image of a mill stone around a person's neck illustrates, God takes these relationships very seriously. When we advantage ourselves at the expense of another person, it is as if we tear the very fabric of God's kingdom.<br />
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"<i>If your hand might cause you to sin, cut it off; it is better to enter into life maimed, than to depart, </i><i>having both hands, </i><i>into Gehenna--into unquenchable fire. And if your foot might cause you to sin, cut it off; it is better to enter into life lame, than, </i><i>having two feet,</i><i> to be thrown into Gehenna. And if your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out; it is better to enter into the Kingdom of God one-eyed, than, having two eyes, to be thrown into Gehenna, where their worm doesn't die and the fire isn't extinguished.</i>" [Mark 9:43-48]<br />
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The greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven is the one who purifies him/herself. If our leg is gangrenous, we have the doctor cut it off because we would rather live lame, than to die whole. At its most basic level Jesus is telling us the one who is least of all and the servant of all loves him/herself by eliminating everything and anything from his or her life--whether good or bad--that might cause him or her to sin, which is to disobey God. The illustration Jesus employs here of a hand, foot, and eye speaks to the extreme by which we strive to purify ourselves--not a literal injunction.<br />
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I see also by Jesus' choice of body parts an intended completeness of purification. It is all too easy to cherry-pick those parts of our life we think God wants us to purify, and then ignore all the rest. We might then purify the part we have identified with the intensity basic to Jesus' parable (above), but still miss the comprehensiveness also intended with the parable. What do you think? I suggest the hand, foot, and eye are types for the purpose, motives, and thoughts of a person. These three things capture the whole person; they are therefore interrelated, and so must all be subjected to Christ. For, indeed, to purify ourselves is to completely surrender ourselves in faith to Christ.<br />
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<br />Bruce Kokkohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04379200226297077294noreply@blogger.com0