Bonhoeffer’s Discipleship Part II – Reflections (24)

 

“Christians are to remain in the world, not because of the God-given goodness of the world, nor even because of their responsibility for the course the world takes. They are to remain in the world solely for the sake of the body of the Christ who became incarnate – for the sake of the church-community. They are to remain in the world in order to engage the world in a frontal assault. Let them ‘live out their vocation in this world’ in order that their ‘unworldliness’ might become fully visible. But this can take place only through visible membership in the church-community. The world must be contradicted within the world” (pages 226 – 227).

 

From this paragraph Bonhoeffer will move into our vocational callings in daily life, but first he must write, “This can take place only through visible membership in the church-community.” That is, we can only be sustained in our individual callings as we experience koinonia within the church-community – going it alone may not be impossible, but it is close to impossible. For sure, if we cannot find koinonia close by us, then we must find it elsewhere in the communion of saints – such as in Hebrews 11.

 

I suppose I must state the obvious, “membership in the church-community” means substantive relationship in Christ, it means relationship we cannot live without – it means that we are desperate for one another for we are “members of one another” in Christ. It does not mean having our names on a membership list, it does not mean “joining” a church.

 

This does not mean that we should not have membership lists, it does not mean that we should not “join” a church, I think we have liberty in this matter and there can be sound reasons for membership on practical and spiritual levels. However, we ought not to confuse the form from the substance; we can have form without substance, it is difficult to have substance without form.

 

Regarding the latter, the life of God in us must have manifestation and that manifestation will hopefully take Biblical form…if allowed to mature, if informed by Scripture, if lived in koinonia, if not quashed by the scribes and Pharisees.

 

Regarding the former, do we truly have organic membership in local congregations, in denominations, and in those who style themselves non-denominational? I have been challenged by this as long as I can remember; the gulf between the Biblical portrayal of koinonia and our experience, at least in the West, has been wide and deep to my thinking in my generation.

 

This is not to say that we don’t have glimpses of koinonia, it isn’t to say that we don’t have shafts of light and beauty, but it is to say that this isn’t the American Christian way of life. We tend to live in isolation from those who we sit behind on Sunday mornings, we tend to not really know them, we seldom need them, and they seldom really need us.

 

If we can live without one another, we aren’t likely members of one another.

 

I suppose I could live without an arm or a leg, or even without both arms and both legs, but I’d rather not contemplate the possibility.

 

(How is it that we can experience seemingly harmonious Sunday morning gatherings, with smiles and handshakes and hugs, and yet have leadership and congregational meetings rife with discord and acrimony? Why can’t we be honest about the condition of our souls?)

We must live out our distinctive calling as the Body of Christ, as the People of God, if we are to live out our individual vocational callings – an arm, a leg, an eye ought to be attached to a body, it is to function as a member of a body. This is one reason why Discipleship has two parts, the first part focuses on our individual calling, the second on our collective calling to life together. (Paul structures Romans in a similar fashion.)

 

“They are to remain in the world solely for the sake of the body of the Christ who became incarnate – for the sake of the church-community.”

 

What might Bonhoffer mean here?

 

My sense is that we remain here to continue Christ’s Incarnational witness. We are here for the benefit of our brethren in Christ (Philippians 1:21 – 25), here to partake in filling up Christ’s sufferings (Colossians 1:24), here to participate in the perfection of the Body (Hebrews 11:40; Ephesians 4:14 – 16).

 

“They are to remain in the world in order to engage the world in a frontal assault.”

 

We are also here to witness to the people of the world and to confront the system of the world, striving in Christ to set others free from the bondage and death of the world. We are on a rescue mission on one hand, and on a mission to dismantle the world – system on the other hand; both are accomplished as we live in Christ, as we obey Him, as we overcome evil with good. Our collective witness accomplishes this, as does our individual witness – we need both, we are called to live both incarnationally.

 

Our obedience matters, it matters for the salvation of others, it matters for the protection of others. We have no life-giving witness without obedience to Jesus Christ.

 

In our current climate, I read Matthew 25:31 – 46 and wonder where our obedience is. It seems we have hidden ourselves in caves and forests and beneath rocks, lest we should be identified with Jesus Christ who gave his life for us that we might give our lives for others.

 

I read the Sermon on the Mount and wonder where our obedience is. I wonder if the Incarnation isn’t a myth, an illusion; if it is true, then where is it? If the Incarnation was true 2,000 years ago, then it must be true today – Christ lives within His Body; if so, then where is He?

 

Well, of course the Incarnation is true, of course the Body of Christ lives; the God who so loved the world that He gave His Only Begotten Son, who continues to give His Son, continues to give the Body of His Son; as Augustine teaches, as with the Head so with the Body.

 

When we wonder whether our lives matter, let us remember:

 

“Through the obedience of the One the many will be made righteous” (Romans 5:19).

 

This is the calling of the Firstborn Son, it continues as the calling of the many-membered Son.

 

Abiding Joy

 

 

“But now I come to You; and these things I speak in the world so that they may have My joy made full in themselves” (John 17:13).

 

“These things I have spoken to you so that My joy may abide in you, and that your joy may be made full” (John 15:11).

 

Jesus is speaking so that we may have the fullness of His joy abiding in us. He is speaking as He is about to be betrayed by one close to Him. He is speaking as the shadow of the Cross envelopes the Upper Room. That Jesus speaks of joy before His impending crucifixion should not surprise us, for we see that Jesus, “For the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame” (Hebrews 12:2).

 

As we ponder John 15:11 and John 17:13 (see also 16:20 – 22), I hope we recognize, once again, the unity of John chapters 13 – 17; this is a tightly woven tapestry that calls us to stand back and meditate, allowing its patterns to penetrate our hearts and minds and souls, calling us to enter into it and inviting us to allow it to enter into us.

 

Jesus speaks not simply of joy, but of the fullness of joy, a joy that is completed and perfected – God desires no less for us in Christ, He promises no less. Jesus speaks not just of joy, but of His joy abiding in us, living in us, taking up its dwelling in us. In Christ Jesus we have abiding joy. Joy is our Way of Life. We see the theme of abiding throughout the Upper Room, the Holy Spirit abides in us, the Father abides in us, Jesus abides in us, we abide in the Vine, the joy of Jesus abides in us – abiding is a motif of the Upper Room tapestry.

 

Jesus’ promise to us is, “No one will take your joy away from you” (John 16:22).

 

Just as the love of God abides in us, so the joy of God abides in us. I am reminded of Zephaniah 3:17, of God exulting over us with joy, rejoicing over us with shouts of joy. Can we be quiet long enough to hear God singing and shouting? Will we allow Him into our churches with that kind of behavior? Will we know Him in the quietness of His love?

 

The joy of Christ within us is a state of being, just as the love of God within us is a state of being. It is possible to sing and dance and shout and play music, but never really know the joy of Christ, for the joy of Christ is a state of being, for God is joy just as God is love.  It is also possible to know inexpressible joy in the depths of inexpressible quiet, and in the midst of inexpressible sorrow and suffering (see again Hebrews 12:2).

 

We may express the joy of Christ in many ways, offering God’s joy in Christ back to Him in worship, sharing it with others – both quietly and exuberantly – and drawing on it as we pass through fire and flood.

 

Love, peace, hope, faith, joy; these are all elements of our state of being in Jesus Christ, they are all His…they come from Him, they abide in us, we return them to Him, we share them with others as we are Christ’s Presence on the earth.

 

Jesus speaks so that we may have His joy, that we may find joy in His Word. Do we? When we read the Bible, are we encountering Jesus Christ and His joy? Is the joy of Christ abiding in us as His Word abides in us?

 

As you ponder the Upper Room (John 13 – 17), where are you encountering joy?

 

Is it in Jesus washing our feet so that we may wash the feet of others?

 

Is it in loving others as Jesus loves us, laying down our lives for our brothers and sisters?

 

Is it finding that place in Christ that He has prepared for us, as He comes to us from the Father?

 

Is it in the coming of the Holy Spirit to abide in us?

 

Is it as the Father and Son come to make their home in us?

 

Is it abiding in the Vine?

 

Is it in realizing that our Father has given us to Jesus Christ and that we are secure in Jesus?

 

Is it in knowing that Christ sends us just as the Father sent Him?

 

Is it in the knowledge that the Father loves us even as He loves His Firstborn Son, Jesus Christ?

 

Where are we finding joy in the Word of Jesus?

 

How is the joy of Jesus abiding in us as our Way of Life?

 

Please do not misunderstand me, I love music and I love Biblically-grounded lyrics and I love singing soft and I love singing loud, and I love quite music by which to meditate and pray; but the joy of Christ Jesus is a state of being, it can be expressed in action, but it need not be external action since it is an inward Way of Life. In fact, there is a sense in which we can have singing and shouting and dancing that is not seen with the natural eye, for it occurs within our hearts and minds and souls and spirits…it never ceases. Sometimes we may be playing the drums and symbols in our hearts, other times a gentle flute. We may be sitting in a chair in a doctor’s waiting room while playing the tambourine and dancing in our souls…and praying for those around us.

 

Paul writes of “singing and making melody with your heart to the Lord” (Ephesians 5:19). What are we playing in our hearts? What melodies are flowing from our innermost beings? Yes, yes, there may indeed be times when our outward actions rekindle the embers on the hearth of our hearts, but surely this is not to be our way of life, for Jesus is our Way of Life and His joy has become our joy, his joy abides within us.

 

How is the joy of Jesus being completed and perfected within us…today?

 

If I were to knock on your door this evening, would you answer me with a song of joy?

 

The Mystery of Perdition – Part 3

 

 

“Not one of them perished but the son of perdition” (John 17:12).

 

In the previous reflection I wrote that the Biblical picture of perdition defies our understanding and is beyond our comprehension. I am deeply thankful for this, for we are the children of God, we are not God, and our dear heavenly Father wants the best for us; because He is our Abba, He protects us. His protection includes guarding us from knowledge that would poison us, warp us, and damage us. We do not have the capacity to know some things, perhaps many things; when I write “capacity” I include the ability to not be damaged by knowing and seeing certain things.

 

As it is, much of humanity already encounters evil on an unspeakable scale, those of us who live in relative safety often ignore this. Even within our own borders, within our own cities and towns and rural areas, there can be unspeakable evil in myriad forms.

 

There are those who have encountered evil and have no wish to know any more about it, then there are those who haven’t encountered evil and tend to treat it as a theological or philosophical plaything, then there are those who have encountered evil and desperately desire to escape it, and then there are those who have sold themselves to evil.

 

The sons and daughters of God are called, in Christ, to deliver others from evil (Isaiah 61:1 – 3). This means that those who have no desire to know anything more of evil nevertheless continue to confront it as it ravages humanity. I think of Doctors Without Borders, who place themselves in the midst of the evil of war and genocide in order to save others, even though they may suffer and die in the attempt – this should be a convicting example to the Western church.

 

It is important to recall that we were all once dead in our sins and were “by nature the children of wrath” (Ephesians 2:1 – 3), lest we become judgmental and not merciful. “You were formerly darkness, but now you are Light in the Lord” (Eph. 5:8).

 

Jesus told a group of people, “You are of your father the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father” (John 8:44).

 

Jude writes of those who have been “marked out for condemnation,” “clouds without water,” “for whom the black darkness has been reserved forever.”

 

In 2 Thessalonians we read of the “mystery of lawlessness,” and of “the lawless one” (2 Thess. 2.7 – 8).

 

We see glimpses of unspeakable evil in the Bible, yet the Bible does not major on evil but on righteousness and love and mercy. In Jesus Christ, we see that God has overcome, and is overcoming, evil with good. Unspeakable evil is overcome by incomprehensive good in Jesus Christ.

 

We must not deny the existence of evil, and we must not abandon those imprisoned within it; the “gates of hell shall not overpower” the Church of Jesus Christ (Mt. 16:18), and greater is He who is in us, than he who is in the world (1 John 4:4). Yet, our strength is not in looking into the abyss and the ways of evil, it is not by being occupied with the mystery of lawlessness and perdition, but by knowing Jesus, especially in community. Our warfare is primarily engaged in as a people, we need one another in Christ – we need the support, encouragement, and security of the Body of Christ.

 

However, when we live in a land with an individualistic ethos, such as the United States, in which we are pretty much on our own – within and without the church – our conflict with evil can be especially challenging – isolation is a constant enemy (we can be among people yet still be isolated).  

 

(Bonhoeffer recognized the great need, the necessity, for “life together” as darkness enveloped his nation and the church in his nation.)

 

The lawless one is defeated by the appearance of the Lord, the enemy is always defeated by the Lord’s coming – coming into our lives, into the lives of others, making His appearance (2 Thess. 2:8). Darkness is always overcome by Light.

 

2 Thessalonians Chapter Two is a passage for every generation, including our own. The deception and “deluding influences” rampant in the world and the professing church are exponential…many of which purport to be Christian. This passage demonstrates what it looks like when the “son of perdition” and the “mystery of lawlessness” are let loose in the world.

 

We can “see” these things, we can sense and even understand some of their patterns and dynamics…but our eyes must always be on Jesus, always on Jesus, for we are “hidden with Christ in God” (Colossians 3:1 – 4; see 1 John 3:1 – 3 and its juxtaposition with 3:4 – 5; see Hebrews 12:1 – 3).

 

Our calling is to show Jesus to others, to be His Presence in the world in the midst of unspeakable evil. Do we recognize that the Sermon on the Mount includes the call to overcome evil with good so “that we may be children of our Father in heaven” (Mt. 5:45)?

 

I do not understand much about “You are of your father the devil” or of what Jude writes of those who have been “marked out for condemnation…clouds without water…for whom the black darkness has been reserved forever.” But I know enough to know that these things are a terrible mystery. Our Father reveals enough to us to protect us, to warn us, and to help us help others; He also hides enough to protect us, mindful of our frailty.

 

I am thankful that perdition is a mystery, that whatever the “mystery of lawlessness” is that it is a mystery I do not need to fully understand…for what I do know is bad enough, it is enough of a burden.

 

Christ Jesus is our Rock and Refuge; He is our Good Shepherd protecting us; we have much to be thankful for…Jesus will lose none whom the Father has given Him.

 

 

The Mystery of Perdition – Part 2

 

 

JN 17:12 While I was with them, I protected them and kept them safe by that name you gave me. None has been lost except the one doomed to destruction so that Scripture would be fulfilled.

 

2TH 2:1 Concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered to him, we ask you, brothers, 2 not to become easily unsettled or alarmed by some prophecy, report or letter supposed to have come from us, saying that the day of the Lord has already come. 3 Don't let anyone deceive you in any way, for that day will not come until the rebellion occurs and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the man doomed to destruction. 4 He will oppose and will exalt himself over everything that is called God or is worshiped, so that he sets himself up in God's temple, proclaiming himself to be God.

 

               In John 17:12 Jesus refers to Judas with a specific term, in the NIV it is the one doomed to destruction. Other English versions translate this phrase the son of perdition or son of destruction – and indeed the word son is exactly what the Greek text says. So Jesus is referring to Judas as the son or child of perdition or destruction. What does this mean? A look at Paul’s passage in 2 Thessalonians may help us to understand this phrase.

 

               In 2 Thessalonians Chapter Two Paul is dealing with, in part, the personification of Satan and Satan’s opposition to the Church of Jesus Christ. In describing the man of lawlessness, or who the Apostle John refers to as the antichrist, Paul uses the very same term that Jesus uses with respect to Judas; the man doomed to destruction (NIV), the son of destruction, the son of perdition (other English versions).

 

               Once again we are confronted with the association of Judas Iscariot with the devil or Satan, and now also with the spirit and persona of the antichrist – to the point where Paul and Jesus use the same term to describe both Judas and the antichrist. Considering this clear association it is unlikely that the “remorse” we read about in the Gospel of Matthew is a remorse of true repentance, for the Biblical picture of Satan and the antichrist presents no such picture – see Revelation 19:20-21; 20:10. While we may not understand any of what really went on within Judas Iscariot, anymore than we can say that we understand what went on with Satan that led to his rebellion against God; we can say in both instances that the Biblical picture ends in perdition, in an abyss that defies our understanding and which is beyond our comprehension.

 

               Beyond the above there are at least three Old Testament prophecies of Judas Iscariot, Psalm 41:9, which Jesus quotes in John 13:18; Psalm 69:25 and 109:8 which are both quoted by the Apostles in Acts 1:20. And then we have the words of Jesus about Judas in Matthew 26:24, “…but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would have been good for that man if he had not been born.” Perhaps all we need do in reading about the remorse of Judas in Matthew 27:3 is to look back to what Jesus said about Judas in Matthew 26:24 – perhaps Matthew did not intend to leave us with any question about the irrevocability of Judas’s betrayal?

 

               There are many mysteries in the Scriptures, things that we can dimly see but which we cannot fully understand; as much as we would like to engage in speculation, speculation is generally unprofitable and diverts our attention from the Biblical text with its focus on Jesus Christ, God’s love for humanity, and the offer of redemption that is extended to us through the Cross and Resurrection.

 

               What can we learn from Judas? The first thing is in the words of Jesus, “Therefore when he [Judas] had gone out, Jesus said, ‘Now is the Son of Man glorified, and God is glorified in Him,’” John 13:31. God uses persecution and betrayal in our lives to transform us into His image and to be glorified in us. If we are going to know Christ in the fellowship of His sufferings (Phil. 3:10) it will likely mean that we experience betrayal. We are called to allow the most painful experiences in life to be the means by which we are transformed into the image of Christ and the means by which God is glorified within us.

 

               The second thing we can learn is the heinousness of sin and the consequences of alignment with Satan. We are not engaged in a religious game; the Gospel is a matter of eternal life versus eternal death. What we believe matters, how we live matters, and our faithfulness to Christ matters. There is a lot we may not know about Judas Iscariot; but we should give heed to what we do know.

 

 

The Mystery of Perdition – Part 1

 

 

“Not one of them perished but the son of perdition, so that the Scripture would be fulfilled” (John 17:12).

 

I want to consider this passage in two ways, first thinking about Judas and then pondering the idea of “perdition.”

 

In 2009 I was leading my congregation through the Upper Room on Sunday mornings, and when I came to John 17:12 and Judas Iscariot, I prepared what follows as a handout for folks to take home and study. I hope it is helpful.

 

Judas Iscariot

Staying Within the Biblical Text

By: Bob Withers

September 25, 2009

 

                    Our time in the Upper Room with Jesus in September and October can only scratch the surface of John Chapters 13 – 17. Due to time limitations, there are some threads of these chapters that we’ll be unable to touch on at all; one of which is Judas Iscariot.

               As we’ll see below, the Bible does not tell us a lot about Judas Iscariot (not to be confused with another Apostle named Judas), but that is the case with most of the Apostles, and in one sense this shouldn’t be a surprise because the Gospels are about Jesus Christ and not about us or anyone else. Of the twelve original Apostles we know more about Peter from the Gospels and the Book of Acts than anyone else, and next to Peter we know more about John than anyone else – but beyond those two Apostles our information is pretty scanty and in some instances nonexistent.

               Concerning Judas Iscariot, of the four Gospel writers John tells us more than Matthew, Mark and Luke; the Book of Acts (also written by Luke) also refers to Judas (in the first chapter) – but John is where we get more of a glimpse of Judas than anywhere else…and yet it is only a glimpse.

               The temptation with just getting a glimpse of something is to read more into it than we ought to and to build an image or teaching which may not be there at all; it is a temptation that most of us, including me, find hard to resist!

               The temptation with getting a glimpse of Judas is that we want to find some way to understand why he betrayed Jesus. Why did he do it? What was he thinking? What was he feeling? Perhaps he wanted the best for Jesus and just went about it the wrong way? Maybe he repented after he saw the consequences of his actions and asked for forgiveness? Isn’t there some way we can turn Judas into a sympathetic figure?

               The challenge in asking these questions is to stay within the Biblical text – a difficult challenge with almost any Biblical text; but perhaps a particular challenge with a tough subject like Judas Iscariot.

               Below are the key New Testament passages referring to Judas Iscariot, I have not included passages from Mark or Luke because they parallel those in Matthew and John – what do these passages teach us?

 

               JN 6:70 Then Jesus replied, "Have I not chosen you, the Twelve? Yet one of you is a devil!" 71 (He meant Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot, who, though one of the Twelve, was later to betray him.)

 

               The word “devil” means “slanderer” and whether or not Jesus means that Judas is a slanderer as opposed to being possessed or influenced by the devil at that particular time, the fact that Jesus uses this particular word forms an association with Judas and the evil one, known as the devil or Satan.

 

   JN 12:4 But one of his disciples, Judas Iscariot, who was later to betray him, objected, 5 "Why wasn't this perfume sold and the money given to the poor? It was worth a year's wages." 6 He did not say this because he cared about the poor but because he was a thief; as keeper of the money bag, he used to help himself to what was put into it.

 

          Here is another glimpse. We are told that Judas was a thief and we are shown that Judas was also a liar and a deceiver. In John 10:10 Jesus teaches that the thief (referring to the devil) comes to steal, to kill and to destroy. In John 6:44 Jesus also teaches that the devil is a murderer, a liar, and in fact “the father of lies”. So once again we have association occurring with Judas and Satan.

 

               The following passage in John Chapter 13 occurs in the Upper Room:

 

  JN 13:2 The evening meal was being served, and the devil had already prompted Judas Iscariot, son of Simon, to betray Jesus.

 

   JN 13:26 Jesus answered, "It is the one to whom I will give this piece of bread when I have dipped it in the dish." Then, dipping the piece of bread, he gave it to Judas Iscariot, son of Simon. 27 As soon as Judas took the bread, Satan entered into him.

 

               In 13:2 we see that Judas had already moved to betray Jesus; see also Matthew 26:14; Mark 14:10; Luke 22:3.

               In 13:26 – 27 we see something akin to a consummation of relationship between Judas and Satan – though the exact nature of what we’re reading is hard to grasp. Without a doubt a line of demarcation is crossed with the words, “As soon as Judas took the bread, Satan entered into him”.

 

   MT 27:3 When Judas, who had betrayed him, saw that Jesus was condemned, he was seized with remorse and returned the thirty silver coins to the chief priests and the elders. 4 "I have sinned," he said, "for I have betrayed innocent blood." "What is that to us?" they replied. "That's your responsibility." 5 So Judas threw the money into the temple and left. Then he went away and hanged himself.

 

             Here is another glimpse of Judas, which without a full Biblical context could be open to different interpretations. Could this mean that Judas came to God in repentance, asked forgiveness, and was forgiven? This is a fair and reasonable question. Of course we all know that remorse can take many forms, from true repentance and confession and seeking forgiveness; to being sorry for being caught. Remorse coming from a recognition of sin, a recognition of wrongdoing, does not in and of itself mean that it is remorse leading to repentance. Are there other Biblical passages that might throw light on this question: Did Judas turn to God in repentance?

 

We will pick this up in the next post....

Bonhoeffer’s Discipleship Part II – Reflections (23)

 

 

“Paul addresses Christians rather than the authorities [Romans 13], but he does this certainly not because the way this world is ordered is so good, but because its good or bad qualities are irrelevant compared to the only thing that is truly important, namely, that the church-community submit and live according to God’s will. Paul does not intend to instruct the Christian community about the tasks of those in authority, but instead only deals with the tasks of the Christian community toward authority” (page 224).

 

Let’s remind ourselves that the chapter in Discipleship which we are considering is The Visible Church-Community. Bonhoeffer is writing about the “space” that the church-community occupies in the world and what we ought to look like, how we ought to live as God’s People.

 

The “we” is critical here because this is about “us” and not about “me.” Yes, of course it is about me in the sense that I am a member of the visible church-community but the operative issue, the critical testimony, is how we as the Body of Christ live and stand in the world, including in our posture toward worldly authority.

 

“The framework for all of what Paul has to say regarding authority is summed up in his introductory admonition: “Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good” (Rom. 12:21). The passage on authority does not deal with the question whether a given authority is good or evil; its concern is that Christians should overcome all evil” (page 225).

 

If Bonhoeffer’s understanding of Paul in Romans 13 is true, then we ought to take what he writes seriously, and if we take it seriously we ought to question the mindset of American Christians with regard to government and politics and so-called worldviews – for are we not (American Christians) engaged in a perpetual critique of and involvement in political activities?

 

When Bonhoeffer writes, “The passage on authority [Romans 13] does not deal with the question whether a given authority is good or evil,” we can restate his perspective by saying, “We ought not to be critiquing worldly authority, we ought to be evaluating ourselves, the church-community. Are we truly the City set on a hill? Are we distinct from the political, national, economic, and social movements of the surrounding culture? Are we overcoming evil with good?”

 

Bonhoeffer is not writing about what earthly government ought to look like, but what we, the People of God, ought to look like, for we are called to occupy a distinct space on earth, we do not share space with the governments and authorities of this present age, we represent a kingdom not of this world, not of this age; our citizenship is in heaven; we maintain our own space.

 

Do we take our cues from the news and the rulers (and want to be rulers) of this age, rather than from the Word of God and our Lord Jesus Christ?

 

Are we living in the community of Christ and affirming one another in Him as we wear the white robes of His righteousness, or do we live in communities of red, blue, and purple?

 

Are we affirming that we are a transcendent community without borders in Christ, or do we define ourselves in terms of national, economic, social, ethnic, and racial identity?

 

Let us again consider what Bonhoeffer says, “Its [government’s] good or bad qualities are irrelevant compared to the only thing that is truly important, namely, that the church-community submit and live according to God’s will… The passage on authority [Romans 13] does not deal with the question whether a given authority is good or evil; its concern is that Christians should overcome all evil.”

 

In a forthcoming reflection Bonhoeffer will speak to conflict between the governments of the world and the church-community, a conflict that occurs when we are faithful to Christ and which, I think, is inevitable. As I have written elsewhere, the Son of Man has no where to lay His Head in this world, this is true of the Only Begotten Son and it is true of the many-membered Son, it is true of the church-community. The lap of Delilah has many forms, it is clothed in many colors, she will do all she can to seduce us. O dear friends, let us not forget that Babylon deals in “the souls of men” (Rev. 18:13).

 

Please allow me to make two observations as we wrestle with Romans 13 and Bonhoeffer. The first is that it is quite difficult to be faithful to Christ, to be wedded to Him (2 Cor. 11:1 – 3), and live in the United States. (I focus on America because this is where I live and because most of my readers are American, however, this is also true for my international brothers and sisters – we all have this challenge.)

 

We have allowed politics, current events, culture wars, worldviews, economics, and nationalism to mold our souls…not to mention what Francis Schaffer termed “personal peace and affluence.” This is what we talk about, it is what we think about, it is what rules our emotions, it defines what we love and hate, it colors relationships, and it has invaded congregational life.

 

We have exchanged the Head of the Body for the talking heads of media and politics, and rather than be conformed to the image of Jesus Christ we are now conformed to the image of worldly “leaders.”

 

Bonhoeffer’s teaching on Romans 13 is nearly impossible for us to accept, we have reason after reason why it does not apply to us, why Bonhoeffer and Scripture must be wrong.

 

Let us remember dear friends, that the early Christians were not so much persecuted because they worshipped Jesus, but rather because they would not also worship the Emperor, they would not participate in the Imperial Cult.  Christians who belonged to guilds in order to practice their trades and earn a living for their families, were not expelled because they worshipped Jesus, but rather because they would not also worship the patron idols of the guilds. Economic and social hardship was not an excuse for disobedience in the Early Church.  

 

I have been in churches and small groups which were so politicized that anyone with an alternate political viewpoint, including the perspective that we ought to follow Jesus Christ and Him alone as citizens of heaven, was not welcome…and I have observed worse than I have experienced.

 

To follow what the Bible teaches can be very hard and it can be quite lonely. The way is straight, the gate is narrow…there is only One Way, one color of robe in Christ. For sure when we have encouragement from other brothers and sisters we are strengthened, even to know just a few others in the koinonia of the Trinity makes a significant difference; but there are times, such as with Nehemiah, when there are few building the wall of the City – if so, we must accept that and remain faithful to Christ and His Temple, His Kingdom, His Church.

 

The second observation is that in order to see the full import of Romans 13 that we should consider its context. Romans 13 is placed within a portrayal of the visible church-community. This portrayal begins in Romans 12 and extends into Romans 16 (or we might say that it begins in Romans 9, but for our purposes it is simpler to begin in Romans 12).

 

There is a sense in which Paul speaks to us as individuals in chapters 1 – 8, writing of justification, sanctification, sonship, and reconciliation. Then in chapters 12 – 16 (or 9 – 16) he speaks about the Body that is a result of chapters 1 – 8. In other words, in light of our redemption as set forth in chapters 1 – 8, how should we live together in Christ? The answer is in the second part of the letter to the Romans.

 

Chapter 12 begins with us offering ourselves as living sacrifices, and then we see the result of that in the balance of the chapter – living as the visible church-community.

 

Why then the shift from the visible church-community in Chapter 12, to our relationship to worldly authority in 13:1 – 7? Why this seeming interruption?

 

I think a facet of the answer is that there are two kingdoms on the earth, God’s kingdom and man’s kingdom. Since Paul is writing about the visible Kingdom of God, he will acknowledge the other kingdom in time and space, the kingdom of man (which nevertheless operates under the ultimate authority and control of God – a mystery indeed!). Just as government and power politics and military might permeate our lives today, so it was in ancient times under Rome – and this was especially true in the city of Rome where the recipients of Paul’s letter lived.

 

No doubt living in the city of power, near the center of gravity, had the same temptations in Rome 2,000 years ago as living in America has today, as living in a state capital has, as living in proximity to Washington, D.C. has – the closer one is to the center of power the greater the potential seduction and intoxication (this is true of national government, and it is true of a local PTA). There is a temptation to “play the game” that everyone else is playing who are enmeshed in the world’s system.

 

In other words, Paul is saying, “As you live as the visible church-community under the authority of Jesus Christ, be aware of another entity on earth. Here is how you should view that other entity, here is how you should critique yourselves in relation to that other entity, the governments of this world. You live in the seat of international power, the city of Rome, don’t get caught up in what Rome does, focus on how you are to live in Christ.”

 

We would do well to recall what Paul writes at the beginning of his letter, “I am a debtor both to Greeks and barbarians, both to the wise and to the foolish. So, for my part, I am eager to preach the gospel to you also who are in Rome. For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek” (Romans 1:14 – 16).  

 

This, my friends, is our Great Commission (Matthew 28:16 – 20; 2 Timothy 4:1 – 5). Paul desires to go to Rome to preach Jesus Christ and Him crucified (1 Cor. 2:1 – 5); this was Paul’s mission; it is our mission. The visible church-community that Paul writes to is “in the world but not of the world” (John 17:13 – 18).

 

This was true of Jesus, it was true of Paul, it is true of you, and it is true of me…it is true of “us” in Christ.

Guarding And Keeping In The Name

 

“Keep them in Your name, the name which You have given Me…I was keeping them in Your name which You have given Me; and I guarded them” (John 17:11 – 12).

 

Jesus keeps us in the Name which He has manifested to us (17:6). We see this manifestation in John 1:14, “The Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.” There is a sense in which this glory is the Name, for the Name is the essence, the Nature, and in His Name is His glory.

 

How is Jesus keeping us in the Name that the Father has given Him? There are many facets to this, many dimensions of glory, who can see it all? What do you think, what do you see?

 

His mercy, His grace, His patience, His forgiveness, His sacrificial and self-giving love. His kindness. His justice and holiness. His defeat of the enemy of our souls. The Cross, for does not the Cross radiate the Name, the Nature of God?

 

Jesus clothes us in our Father’s Name, He calls us into the Father’s Nature. To abide in the Vine is to abide in the Nature and Name of God, to draw our life from Him, to know His blood flowing through our veins, to eat of His flesh and drink of His blood (John 6:53).

 

O friends, we can say the name “Jesus,” we can repeat, “In the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit,” but this does not mean we know the Name Jesus, it does not mean we know the Name of God, for to know the Name is to know the Nature, to taste and eat and drink and partake of our Father (2 Peter 1:4). To declare the Name to others means to be as Jesus Christ, to live and act and speak and think and feel as Jesus toward others, to love others, to care for them; to allow the Father to give us to others as He has given His only begotten Son to the world.

 

To pray in the name of Jesus means so much more than saying, “In the name of Jesus.” Many people say these words but do not actually pray in His Name. How can we pray in His Name when our hearts are filled with hate and vitriol and unforgiveness and animosity? This is impossible. For sure there is an authority in the name of Jesus, but it is an authority given to those living in His Name, in Sonship, in familial relationship. Conversely, there are those who may speak a prayer but who may not conclude it with the words, “In the name of Jesus,” for whatever reason, but they may be truly praying in His Name, in His Nature…they may truly be praying in unity with the Trinity.

 

Praying in the Name is not a verbal formula, it is a holy way of life. Being kept and guarded in the Name which the Father has given means that we have been called into the koinonia of the Trinity, into the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, into the depths of eternity in Christ, as the Body of Christ, as the many-membered Son.

 

Being kept and guarded in the Name means, “That they may be one even as We are” (John 17:11). This anticipates 17:21 – 26, the depths of the Holy of Holies, our unity with the Trinity and with one another in the Trinity. Note the conclusion of Jesus’ prayer: “I have made Your Name known to them, and will make it known, so that the love with which You loved Me may be in them, and I in them” (17:26).

 

Living in the Name of Jesus means that we care “for the least of these” (Matthew 25:40), it means that we seek unity in the Body of Christ (Ephesians 4:1 – 16), it means that we avoid the poison of the world-system (1 John 2:15 – 17; 2 Corinthians 6:14 – 7:1), it means that we love the unlovable and touch the untouchable.

 

Knowing the Name of Jesus, being kept in the Name of Jesus, means that we are people of the Beatitudes; poor in spirit, mourning for the brokenness of both ourselves and those around us – and comforting others. It means that we hunger and thirst for righteousness, on behalf of ourselves and others. Living in the Name of Jesus means that we live lives of mercy, and that we seek purity of heart in order to love God and others.

 

Living in the Name of Jesus certainly means that we seek to fulfill our calling as peacemakers in a world of political, economic, social, cultural, and national warfare. If the result of this is ostracization and persecution, then living in the Name means that we rejoice with gladness, for our reward is great in heaven. Since the Prince of Peace was crucified, let us rejoice in our fellowship in His sufferings (Phil. 3:10).

 

Living in the Name of Jesus means that we give our lives for one another (John 15:12 – 13; 1 John 3:16) and that we give our lives for the world (John 3:16).

 

The name Jesus is our calling, our destiny – to live in Name and to know the Name living within us (Galatians 2:20).

 

Even as Jesus keeps us in His Name, the Name which the Father has given Him, we can learn in Him to keep others, to guard others – for Jesus has given His Name to us, and as the Body of Christ, with His Name upon us and within us, we guard one another and we call the world to know Him.

 

As we overcome, Jesus says that He will write the Name of His God on us, and the Name of the City of His God, and His own Name (Revelation 3:12). When we follow the Lamb wherever He goes, the Name of the Father and of the Lamb is written within us (Rev. 14:1).

 

O yes, we are indeed kept and guarded in the Name of God, Jesus…kept from eternity past into eternity present and forward into eternity future.

 

“The LORD is your keeper; the LORD is your shade on your right hand. The sun will not smite you by day, nor the moon by night. The LORD will keep you from all evil; He will keep your soul. The LORD will keep your going out and your coming in from this time forth and forever” (Psalm 121:5 – 8).

 

As our Father keeps in us Christ, we are called to keep others in Him as His Body. We do this by manifesting His Name, by being the Presence of Christ to one another and the world, by being broken bread and poured out wine.

 

Shall we live in the Name of Jesus today?

Bonhoeffer’s Discipleship Part II – Reflections (22)

 

 

Beginning on page 222, Bonhoeffer turns our attention to Romans 13 and the church-community’s relation to worldly authority. I will highlight some passages, hoping that you will read Bonhoeffer’s full treatment. As we’ve seen by now, Bonhoeffer’s density can only be fully appreciated by direct interaction with him. As with the Bible, my job is to point us to the text, to seek Jesus in the text, and to seek the text in Jesus.

 

“Christians must not be drawn upward, toward those who hold power and authority. Instead, their calling is to remain below” (page 222).

 

Forgive me, but I must ask the obvious question, What do we see today in the professing church in the United States? Do we see elements of the church, leaders of the church, gravitating upward to the centers of power? Political, economic, social, marketing, power? Religious power? (What some have termed the Christian – Industrial Complex, but I think there must be a better term than “industrial”.)

 

Do we see “Christian” leaders and their followers aligning themselves with worldly powers to the point where they are virtually indistinguishable from those powers and movements and agendas?

 

Have we forgotten that those who ride the Beast will be devoured by the Beast (Revelation 17:3, 16)?

 

Have we forgotten that Jesus said to Pilate, who was an extension of Rome’s authority, “My kingdom is not of this world” (John 19:36)?

 

Have our hearts and minds lost sight of the great Biblical principle that the Kingdom of God and its servants are on a different trajectory than the kingdoms of this world and that the servant-leaders of God’s Kingdom are called to serve the church-community, to be ambassadors of Christ, and to be juxtaposed to the leaders of the world, rather than identified with them? (See Psalm 2, Daniel 2, Hebrews 11 – 12, Revelation).

 

Let me share a little secret, the world has been able to do with us what it could not do with Jesus. In John 2:23 – 25 many were superficially believing in Jesus and wanted Him to trust them, but He would not do it for He knew what was in the heart of mankind (appearances can be deceiving!). Then in John 6:15, after a miracle of loaves and fishes, the people wanted to make Jesus king; His response was to withdraw Himself from them.

 

Later, when Jesus is before Pilate, Pilate says to Him, “You do not speak to me? Do you not know that I have authority to release You, and I have authority to crucify You?”  In other words, Pilate was attempting to use his authority over life and death to force Jesus to do what he, the power of Rome, wanted Him to do – in this instance answer Rome’s questions.

 

In light of the above, consider that Christians in the United States seek the approval of the world, and think it great success when we are embraced and applauded by the world. The more popular we are, especially among those in power, the more we rejoice in our “witness,” foolishly trusting ourselves to a system which is determined to destroy us. Do we forget that Balaam taught Moab that the way to destroy Israel was seduction, both sexual and religious? Promiscuity has many forms, including economic and political.

 

We foolishly think that the Pilates of this world have something good to give us, having been seduced by promises, photo ops, the intoxication of proximity to power – we no longer have the fortitude or love for Jesus and His Cross to say, “My kingdom is not of this world. I belong to the King of kings and Lord of lords, Jesus Christ.”

 

As I think about this, it seems to me that we have been setup for this by our cultivation of celebrity Christianity. We have exchanged knowing the Bible and cultivating a deep relationship with Jesus Christ for celebrity worship. The celebrities can be Christian sports and entertainment figures (including within the “Christian” music industry…and it certainly is an industry), they can be in business, and they can especially be in the church world; pastors, authors (Christian publishing creates, hypes, and anoints its own celebrities $$$); radio, television, and social media “stars,” and make no mistake, they are stars. Our center of gravity has shifted from Jesus and the Bible to a many-headed beast such as we see in Revelation.

 

I am reminded of a “church plant” in a town we used to live. The “pastor,” if he can be termed that, advertised his church (I cannot call it Christ’s church) with two-page centerfold ads in the newspaper. These ads had four prominent features. The first feature was this person touted the fact that he had belonged to the same church, prior to arriving in our town, as a nationally known Christian leader who had a long-running radio program and who was also a best-selling author.

 

He didn’t say that he knew this leader. He didn’t say that he and this leader served together. All that this pastor advertised was that he and this leader attended the same church. What the advertising was supposed to accomplish was to associate the pastor and his church plant with the name of the nationally – know leader. This association was advertised again and again and again, the fact that it really didn’t mean anything substantive didn’t matter, its sole purpose was to associate the church plant with the national leader.

 

Well, I should retract the statement that it didn’t mean anything substantive, of course it did. It meant that the reader of the advertising ought to beware of attending this church for it was being built on deception.

 

The second prominent element of this pastor’s advertising was a steady stream of regional sports celebrities who would give their testimony during Sunday services. Now don’t get me wrong, I am all for people giving their testimonies for the glory of Christ. I am all for well – known folks giving their testimony in outreach. However, the context of these testimonies and advertising was that of a self-promoting “pastor” who was building a “church” with himself as the celebrity head.

 

I am hesitant to mention elements three and four of the advertising because it is not my intention to identify this pastor or his church – and to be clear, this advertising was ongoing, week after week, month after month. While it is unlikely anyone reading this will know to whom I am referring, some readers may figure it out, especially with elements three and four, though I have seen photos of other churches with these items – they must be great marketing images.

 

Three mammoth crosses were erected on the church grounds which could be seen for miles, yes miles. These crosses were referred to in the advertising. The crosses were the largest and highest crosses I suppose I’ve ever seen.

 

Adjacent to the crosses were American flags, while they were not as tall as the crosses, they were also oversized and prominent.

 

Now consider the composite message. Come to this church with this pastor who once attended the same church as a nationally known leader with a leading radio program and who is the author of dozens of books, come and see a Christian sports celebrity give his testimony, come to the church in the region that has the huge crosses and flags and participate as a Christian patriot. As we all know, the bigger the crosses the better the church, the bigger the national flags the better the church. Better yet, when a church has both big crosses and big flags you’ve hit the religious jackpot – you have arrived at the City of God!

 

This was an advertising campaign whose message was, “You’ve been to the rest, now come to the best.” There was nothing about Jesus Christ in the relentless message, nothing about the humble Man from Galilee. The advertising worked, and I suppose it kept on working. We do not really want to associate with the humble…yes?

 

“Christians must not be drawn upward, toward those who hold power and authority. Instead, their calling is to remain below” (page 222).

 

What was true of the above example, is true of us today on a national scale, we are drawn upward, toward the center of celebrity gravity, not downward, as servants of Christ who wash the feet of others, who love our neighbors, who bless our enemies, who touch the untouchable and love the unlovable, who go “outside the camp bearing His reproach.”

 

Bonhoeffer lived in a vortex of nationalism which was engulfing the professing church. To stand against it was to invite, to guarantee, marginalization, persecution, and possible execution. There is nothing quite as intoxicating as being in proximity to power; religious, political, economic, entertainment, sports; you can fill in the blank. However there is one thing that will dwarf this intoxication, one thing that will protect us, one thing that will keep us in our senses, and that is the Christ of the Cross and the Cross of Christ, so that we may say with Paul:

 

“I am crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me” (Galatians 2:20).

 

“But may it never be that I would boast, except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, though which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world” (Galatians 6:14).

What the world could not do with Jesus, what the political and religious world could not do to Jesus, it is doing to us. 

 

The Lord willing, we’ll return to Bonhoeffer and Romans 13 in our next reflection.