29 "But immediately after the tribulation of those days THE SUN WILL BE DARKENED, AND THE MOON WILL NOT GIVE ITS LIGHT, AND THE STARS WILL FALL from the sky, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken.
30 "And then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the SON OF MAN COMING ON THE CLOUDS OF THE SKY with power and great glory.
31 "And He will send forth His angels with A GREAT TRUMPET and THEY WILL GATHER TOGETHER His elect from the four winds, from one end of the sky to the other."
Timing
I don't have any intention to bring up the whole pre-, mid-, or post-tribulation rapture issue all the time, but since this blog employs the verse-by-verse study method, and the part of Matthew we've been in lately talks about End Times events a lot, this topic has been coming up a lot. But there's also plenty we can talk about regarding this passage that doesn't depend on our individual views of when the rapture will happen. :-) So I'll briefly address that first, then move on to other topics.
One of the passages most commonly used in support of the pre-trib view is 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18. And yet, the return of Christ described in that passage seems to exactly mirror what is referenced here in Matthew (the sound of the trumpet, meeting in the sky, etc.), which is directly identified as happening after the Tribulation.
Additionally, consider that the entirety of Matthew 24 so far has traced out, in detail, the events of the End Times. If there were a pre-tribulation rapture, I would personally assume that Jesus would have mentioned it in His timetable.
Implications
The insane astronomical events and bending of physics mentioned in this passage get me really excited. I suppose I enjoy the idea of God displaying how powerful He is that undeniably. And it marks the massive transition to a new heaven and new earth (Revelation 21:1).
Not only will these events make it clear to every human that there is a God, but His sign in the sky will make it clear that He is God...and most will realize with terror that they have not been serving Him.I'm not going to engage in speculation about what this sign might look like or how it might take place, but its no-denying-it nature is important to realize - it is the end.
But for the saved, the new heaven and new earth and Christ's glorious return mark the end of persecution and suffering, and the beginning of utter paradise and ruling with Christ (Revelation 21-22).
Many believers often wonder how much longer God will put up with this world before He ushers in the end, given how messed up this world is. But we must remember that this only evidences His astounding mercy toward humanity - He is giving people still more time to repent. 2 Peter 3:9: "The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance."
Taking that a step further, those who are aware of the rampant persecution of the Church sometimes wonder how long God will endure His children being slaughtered before bringing about the end. But I recently heard Francis Chan (in a different context than persecution) succinctly summarize a key theological truth - God's grace to us is not just forgiving us, but rather His grace to us is making us more like Him. Persecution is one of the many trials that serve to make believers more like Christ, so it is not as if putting off the End Times grants mercy to unbelievers but not believers - it's grace to both categories, in two different ways.
Application
Normally I might find it hard to derive an easy application from this passage, but since it's New Year's Day, one comes to mind easily.
At the beginning of the year, many people make resolutions or goals that are clearly defined, perfect for marking off a checklist, controllable, and life-on-this-earth-centric. But I would encourage you to not get so wrapped up in all these plans that you lose an eternal perspective. Not only could the End Times start at any moment, thereby making any plans we have made pointless, but more importantly, God has a list of plans for you this year, and they may match, contradict, complement, or supersede what you have planned for yourself - and the only way to find out what His plans are is to stay tapped into His Spirit and constantly keep the Kingdom in mind.
1 Jesus came out from the temple and was going away when His disciples came up to point out the temple buildings to Him.
2 And He said to them, "Do you not see all these things? Truly I say to you, not one stone here will be left upon another, which will not be torn down."
3 As He was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, "Tell us, when will these things happen, and what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?"
4 And Jesus answered and said to them, "See to it that no one misleads you.
5 "For many will come in My name, saying, 'I am the Christ,' and will mislead many.
6 "You will be hearing of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not frightened, for those things must take place, but that is not yet the end.
7 "For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and in various places there will be famines and earthquakes.
8 "But all these things are merely the beginning of birth pangs.
9 "Then they will deliver you to tribulation, and will kill you, and you will be hated by all nations because of My name.
10 "At that time many will fall away and will betray one another and hate one another.
11 "Many false prophets will arise and will mislead many.
12 "Because lawlessness is increased, most people's love will grow cold.
13 "But the one who endures to the end, he will be saved.
14 "This gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all the nations, and then the end will come."
The Temple
(Image believed to be one of the stones from the Temple! "To the Trumpeting Place" by Talmoryair. Wikipedia. Public Domain in the United States.)
The prophecy of the Temple's destruction was fulfilled only a few decades later, in 70 AD.
This event certainly had significance for the Jews at the time - it was another step, like the veil of the Holy of Holies tearing in two at Christ's death (Matthew 27:51), demonstrating that Judaism was no longer the way to serve God, and that His dwelling place on Earth was no longer a physical building, but in His followers themselves (1 Corinthians 3:16).
But the disciples' questions about the End Times show that they picked up on some apocalyptic significance, as well. This gets into kind of the mind-bending principle that even though we classify the "End Times" as the 7-year Tribulation of Revelation that is yet to come, the "End Times" basically actually started in Acts. For example, the prophecy of the indwelling of the Holy Spirit identified as fulfilled in Acts 2:16-21 is also End Times in nature. But what's significant about the Temple's destruction in terms of the End Times is that it marked a critical event in Roman persecution of the Jews - and of Christians, who were considered a Jewish cult by the Romans. This corresponds with the fact that, throughout history, Christians around the world have been persecuted - something that will intensify more and more as we get closer to the Tribulation.
Brief Elements
How are the false Christs manifested? Well, in 20th century America we have certainly seen some famous cult leaders literally claim to be Christ and amass followings, and I believe we may see a lot more of that as it gets even closer to the Tribulation. But we've also seen people presenting false Christs - such as in the "Christian" cults of Mormonism and the Jehovah's Witnesses, who preach a Jesus and a Gospel totally different than the true ones. And, there have been other religions such as Islam to develop and gain popularity that offer a different identity of God - another type of false Christ.
Next, the passage mentions rampant wars, famines, and earthquakes. There are two ways to look at this: (1) that these will intensify as the world gets closer to the End, and (2) that they will accomplish the "agenda" of the End Times. It seems to me that both have turned out. For example, we've had two world wars in the past century, and major natural disasters certainly seem to be escalating (although I don't have statistics on that). But as for the second way, the End Times are all about demonstrating judgment and bringing people (with emphasis on the Jews) to repentance. We can certainly see how wars and disasters throughout history could be used to accomplish these objectives.
But let's take a moment to step back and look at what Jesus said about how we should react to seeing these things:
We are to not fear. We need to remember that even if the world is consumed by war, if natural disasters shatter our nations, and if people seek to kill us because of our faith, that God is still in control. Easier said than done, obviously, but if we train our minds to remember that God is in control when "little" things go wrong in our lives now, it will be a far more natural reaction when the sky starts to fall.
We are to keep it all in perspective - there are so many "birth pangs" leading up to the "actual" End that we shouldn't freak out that "The End is nigh!" every time a flood happens or some country threatens to nuke the world. That doesn't mean that we shouldn't be psychologically prepared for the possibility of the End Times occurring during our lives, or that we shouldn't actively engage in staying attentive to world events and comparing them with Biblical prophecy, but it does mean we shouldn't go crazy. That only makes people think that Christians are all morons when the End doesn't happen right away - and that can prevent them from coming to Christ themselves.
We need to stay resolute in our faith. More on that directly below.
The Great Apostasy
We Americans are disgustingly unaware of the persecution of our brothers and sisters around the globe, but frankly, outside of the Western World, it's quite rampant. And there are certainly many cases where people renounce their faith because of the persecution. Persecution of Americans has already started on small scales - Christian businesses have been fined for refusing to provide abortion pills to their employees, and we can get fired, suspended from school, and even arrested for "hate speech" for speaking God's Truth. But one day, probably sooner than many people think, global persecution of the Church will arrive - and that includes America. If the authorities showed up at your door today ready to cart you off to prison on the charge of being a Christian - would you proclaim your faith in Him? If the punishment were death - would you still proclaim your faith in Him? We can all flippantly say, "Well, yeah, of course" - that's easy because we don't really think that will happen. But think it through - right now. Vividly imagine that scenario. Picture the handcuffs. Picture the prison. Picture the beatings. Picture the noose, the electric chair, the firing squad.Then ask yourself again: Would you claim Him, or deny Him?
But there's another thing still that drives people to fall away, an evil strong and active in the West right now: apathy. The Church is lukewarm, claiming Christ but not living it out. It accepts fornication, freely uses God's Name in vain, and is lazy, encouraging Christians and "Christians" to pursue their own lives with God on the side, rather than making every education choice, career choice, and relationship choice centered on Him. Because lawlessness is increased, most people's love will grow cold. Evil and apathy are rampant, and the Western Church clings to the abominable lie that we have a "right" to a "normal life" - and that "God understands" this. Friends, that is evil. If a person couldn't look at a random day of your life and tell that you are not just a "Christian" in the American sense of the word, but that you passionately believe it with every fiber of your being, something is wrong.
We cannot stay strong for Christ on auto-pilot - it is a daily war against the flesh, the evils of this world, and Satan's forces. There can be no resting from it until the day we are called home.
The Gospel to All Nations
One of the prerequisites to the literal, official End is for every nation to hear the Gospel. I can't locate exact information at this time, but last I heard, all we have left is a few pockets in Asia and Eurasia. In other words: It's almost fulfilled!
But this brings up another important issue: What about the people who have never heard the Gospel - how is it "fair" that they go to hell when they've never had a chance to get saved? Well, even though God likes to use us to spread His Good News (primarily for our sake, I believe, as it gives us a purpose and helps us mature in our faith), it's not as if He's limited to only using human words to bring people into a saving relationship with Him. Romans 1:20 explains that God reveals the Truth about Himself through nature, and elsewhere Scripture makes clear that if someone is truly seeking God, He will reveal Himself to them, no matter if a missionary is around. In fact, there have been multiple cases in the Middle East where Muslims have sought the True God, and God revealed Himself to them in dreams. There will indeed be people from every tongue and tribe and nation from throughout history in Paradise.
What, then, is the point of the Gospel being verbally preached to all nations before the End can come? I believe it's largely symbolic - that God's purpose for the world has been accomplished completely, at long last.
Any comments you'd like to add - insight, thoughts, further Scripture references?
Or any questions about this passage (or anything about the Bible or Christianity) you'd like to ask?
Then leave a comment below. :-) Or you can e-mail me questions, if you prefer.
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Today we continue a long stretch in Matthew that features a verbal showdown between Jesus and the Jewish religious elite.
The Scripture
15 Then the Pharisees went and plotted together on how they might trap Him in what He said.
16 And they sent their disciples to Him, along with the Herodians, saying, "Teacher, we know that You are truthful and teach the way of God in truth, and defer to no one; for You are not partial to any.
17 "Tell us then, what do You think? Is it lawful to give a poll-tax to Caesar, or not?"
18 But Jesus perceived their malice, and said, "Why are you testing Me, you hypocrites?
19 "Show Me the coin used for the poll-tax." And they brought Him a denarius.
20 "And He said to them, "Whose likeness and inscription is this?"
21 They said to Him, "Caesar's." Then He said to them, "Then render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's; and to God the things that are God's."
22 And hearing this, they were amazed, and leaving Him, they went away.
The Question
The religious elite had been trying to trap Jesus for a long time by getting Him to answer difficult questions, convinced that no matter how He answered, He was sure to alienate one group or another (it just never worked out for them). But this time, they upped the ante: They brought in the Herodians.
The Herodians were Jews who totally went along with Roman oppression - they betrayed their people and made friends with Roman politicians. Before, they had put Jesus in situations where an answer could make Him lose favor with certain groups of Jews. But here, an answer could make Him either lose favor with all true Jews - or be turned in for treason by the Herodians and be executed. Either way, the religious elite would win on a massive scale.
Except that our God is infinitely wise, and cannot be trapped by human schemes.
I find it very interesting that Jesus continually answered the religious elite through their many tests. Let's glance at 1 Chronicles 16:24 for a moment, an idea that pops up time and time again in the Old Testament:
Tell of His glory among the nations, His wonderful deeds among all the peoples.
Our God doesn't need validation - His self-confidence is not in a state of loss when people don't recognize His glory. Rather, Old Testament instruction like this is primarily for the sake of those nations - because God loves those people, and eagerly desires them to come to repentance and faith in Him.
In the exact same way, in today's passage, it's not like Jesus felt some drive to answer the religious elite to convince them or show off to them (His revelation of His glory to the unbelievers will occur at the very end of time). Rather, I see His continued answers as for the sake of the crowd - displaying His incomprehensible wisdom as a way to demonstrate His deity to them, to give them evidence that He is indeed Messiah.
In addition, His answer explains an important lesson ...
The Answer
If you're familiar with the Bible but haven't really examined this passage before, then 1 Corinthians 10:26 (or Psalm 24:1, which it quotes) may have popped into your head as an objection:
For the earth is the Lord's, and all it contains.
The problem with that reasoning is that the coin didn't stop being God's when a Jew gave it to Caesar - because everything that Caesar owned was God's. ;-) But actually, this is completely unrelated to the point I see Jesus making.
We arrive at an enormous paradox that every Christian must work out in their own lives: Every single aspect of our lives should be centered around Christ and eternity, and yet, we live under a covenant of freedom in which we don't have to worry about legalism and rules inhibiting our functioning. In this case, going along with an occupying force's demand for taxes was not a sin - it was suffering, a suffering that would have been made worse by refusing to comply.
Now, that can't be applied across the board. For example, we can't deny Christ even when our lives are at risk (see Matthew 10:32-33). For me, it kind of makes sense that there's a distinction between my stuff (because it's just that - stuff) and myself. But we are not provided with a list of rules about what we can do and cannot do in situations like these. The key is to continually strive after God. If we "practice" seeking, discerning, and following God's will now, in the little things, then we'll have the answers we need for the big things when they present themselves.
As Bible teacher Ron Daniel points out, the denarius was made in Caesar's image, but we are made in God's image (Genesis 1:27); therefore, what God wants us to give to Him is ourselves. Sometimes this can indeed include our stuff (see Acts 2:44-45), but not in a legalistic sense.
Does this all seem a bit theoretical, hard to put into practice? Let's think about a situation we had here in America just a few years ago: There was an uproar over mandatory American tax dollars funding abortions. Is that deplorable? Absolutely - it is not possible to state how much so. But that evil is not our doing, just as the atrocities committed by the Roman Empire were not the doing of the Jews who paid taxes. It's the exact same. The Romans would have seized their money and thrown the Jews in jail if they had not paid, so it would have made no difference. Taxation is a very different situation from, say, German Christians who hid Jews in their homes during the Holocaust - because that did make a difference.
Again, don't read any of this as absolutes - situations like this are complex, so the only way to get an "answer" for what to do in a given situation is to actively seek God's will.
So, what can we do as we're trapped in a world so evil? Live our lives for Christ every minute of every day. Because Christ wants us.
[S]o that you will prove yourselves to be blameless and innocent, children of God above reproach in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among who you appear as lights in the world, holding fast to the word of life. - Philippians 3:15-16a
How do you wrestle with making sense of paradoxical situations like this?
New Post Schedule (since life is settling into a routine again): Definitely one each weekend, and usually one each mid-week, as well.
Is it Biblical to defend yourself if you're attacked? I say YES - but (1) this answer kind of changes in the specific situation of persecution, and (2) we must always still love and forgive the attacker. Now, let's dive into the Scriptures and explore this issue.
The Most Commonly Slung Passages in This Debate
Let's start with one of the most often cited verses when this issue is brought up, Matthew 5:38-9: "You have heard that it was said, 'AN EYE FOR AN EYE, AND A TOOTH FOR A TOOTH.' But I say to you, do not resist an evil person; but whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also." The problem with applying this verse to modern self-defense is that, while slapping someone in the face may count as physical assault in American culture, in Jewish culture at the time of the New Testament (and in many other cultures throughout history), slapping someone in the face was just an insult. Furthermore, if you read the entire passage for this verse as context, none of the examples have to do with physical danger; the theme that emerges is that even when someone does something unjust to you (in this passage, the examples are insulting you with that slap, suing you in court, and the Roman government demanding extra work from you [kind of like a physical tax]), you are not to retaliate. Now, if - and I mean IF - other Scripture established the notion that this principle also applied to someone trying to murder your or rape you or beat you to a bloody pulp so they could steal your wallet, this passage would be highly relevant. But since I don't believe Scripture does that (as I will demonstrate with Scripture throughout this post), this verse simply doesn't apply to the specific issue at hand: self-defense from a physical attack.
Another passage that pops up frequently in debates about this topic is Luke 22:35-38: "And He said to them, 'When I sent you out without money belt and bag and sandals, you did not lack anything, did you?' They said, 'No, nothing.' And He said to them, 'But now, whoever has a money belt is to take it along, likewise also a bag, and whoever has no sword is to sell his coat and buy one. For I tell you that this which is written must be fulfilled in Me, "AND HE WAS NUMBERED WITH THE TRANSGRESSORS"; for that which refers to Me has its fulfillment.' They said, 'Lord, look, here are two swords.' And He said to them, 'It is enough.'" [Notice that this is a reversal of Jesus's command to the disciples found in Matthew 10:5-14, Mark 6:7-13, and Luke 10:1-12 - because the situation had changed from Jesus's initial ministry to the Jews to worldwide evangelism in a world where Jesus had been crucified.] Proponents of both sides of this issue actually use this passage to support their polar-opposite positions! I'll simply say that this is what I see in it:
This issue is all about BALANCE.
We are given permission to provide for and defend ourselves because we are living in a very, very dangerous world (i.e. we are living among transgressors).
But we are still, above all else, to go out among the world and preach the Gospel - the sword (weapon) is one tool to help us carry out that mission (by keeping us alive), but our focus, our purpose, and our intent is to serve Christ above all else - that's made explicit by what He's referring to in referencing His previous instructions upon sending them out. The sword is not the main point of this passage, so when examining that one facet, we must keep the main point in mind.
From the entirety of Scripture, we find that we are to both act ourselves and depend on God fully. When you are unable to (in this case) take measures to defend yourself, trusting God to protect you demonstrates admirable faith - but if you refuse to because you "trust" God to protect you, that very well could be putting God to the test (see Matthew 4:5-7), and His plan might be to not protect someone who treats His providence so flippantly. Yes, God can protect anyone even if they are an unarmed cripple against an army of a million, but they way He chooses to protect someone in a given situation very well may be to use human beings, even that human being trained or armed or whatever, to bring about that protection. (Psalm 18:34)
We are NOT to engage in "Holy War" (see John 18:36). Defending your own life or the life of another is totally different from going out and threatening to kill people if they don't "convert." Additionally, "Holy War" is pointless - you simply cannot force someone to come to genuine faith in a loving God by holding a gun to their head. It's stupid, it's pointless, and it's utterly evil.
Finally, I want to address why Jesus said, "It is enough." My personal interpretation is that He was saying those two swords were enough for that specific situation they found themselves in at that moment (Gethsemane), because (1) obviously, they didn't exactly have time to go buy more right then, (2) evidenced by the fact that they yanked out swords the instant He said that, the disciples apparently got a bit freaked out and were preparing for a conflict right then, and (3) branching off of that, Jesus did not intend Gethsemane to turn into a battlefield because being crucified was His very purpose for coming to Earth.
Scattered Examples
More potentially applicable material can be found in Ephesians 5:25-33, which lists off how husbands should treat their wives, including "Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and also gave Himself up for her...So husbands ought also to love their own wives as their own bodies." In this, it seems to say that husbands should be willing to die to protect their wives (and, given the culture in which that was written, it was not meaning in the context of joining the military). Consider that defending your family is an issue that pops up frequently in American discussions of self-defense.
In the Old Testament, the books of Ezra and Nehemiah (in which the captive Israelites are rebuilding Jerusalem and its temple) provide examples of how, in a non-war context, men arm themselves to defend themselves and their families from persecutors.
This latter case is where I believe the common Biblical warning of "Live by the sword, die by the sword" comes into play: If you have a warrior mentality that prompts you to defend others, you won't necessarily receive supernatural protection - your calling, which you are willingly following, may be to give your life for others. It's Biblically identified as a noble sacrifice. So don't confuse the line "Live by the sword, die by the sword" (which is used in multiple contexts, as are other Biblical sayings) as always being a bad thing.
So What About Persecution?
There definitely needs to be made a distinction between fighting back against a murderer and a persecutor - i.e., why they're attacking you: because of your faith, or for some other reason.
Biblically, I don't see any reason at all why you can't defend yourself in a non-persecution situation (in fact, I see some indications that you are definitely allowed to). But, as for situations involving persecution, I can understand why there's a debate.
I mean, because the New Covenant changed the rules of how we are to relate to unbelievers, Old Testament examples don't hold much weight in this case. And there isn't a single New Testament example of a Christian fighting against persecutors (fleeing, yes, but not engaging in combat with a persecutor). And, we know that persecution is good for the Church because the examples of the saints (by willingly bearing persecution by loving the persecutors and not fearing death) are so powerful.
So, when it comes to persecution, I won't tell you that you can't defend yourself, but I won't tell you that you can, either. Study this issue out for yourself, and follow the leading of the Holy Spirit.
What are your musings and insights on this issue? Share your thoughts by leaving a comment.
20 Then He warned the disciples that they should tell no one that He was the Christ.
21 From that time Jesus began to show His disciples that He must go to Jerusalem, and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised up on the third day.
22 Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him, saying, "God forbid it, Lord! This shall never happen to You."
23 But He turned and said to Peter, "Get behind Me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to Me; for you are not setting your mind on God's interests, but man's."
There's actually a lot of material packed into these four short verses. Let's start with Jesus's command to the disciples that they - to whom He had just affirmed that He was the Christ - not tell anyone His true identity. I want to make it very clear that this was a very temporary command, and the opposite is true today. As you may recall, Matthew 10:32-33 tells us, "Therefore everyone who confesses Me before men, I will also confess him before My Father who is in heaven. But whoever denies Me before men, I will also deny him before My Father who is in heaven." Denying Jesus - denying that He is your Lord - means that you are rejecting His salvation. It is a conscious decision to deny your faith in Christ because (for example) someone who hates Christians is holding a gun to your head, or your loved one's head, and you decide that physical life is more important than God. Do not misunderstand that the same situation appears here in this passage - it's not an exception, because there are no exceptions. His command to the disciples (a specific group of people at a specific time) did not contradict that because He had not yet revealed Himself publically as the Christ. But now He has - that's the difference. Additionally, the disciples were still quite literally risking their lives to follow Him, and by travelling aroud with Him, that act was a very public declaration that they believed in Him.
Next, let's look at what happened right before Peter responded. We all know that Jesus was tortured, murdered, and rose from the dead, so the bluntness doesn't shock us, but try to imagine what it was like to be there. These men were going to lose thier best friend and their Prophet. They'd also just realized He was the Christ, so they probably getting excited over the prophecies they expected Him to fulfill immediately about throwing off the Jews' oppressors and reigning with an everlasting kingdom of peace (which He won't fulfill until the End, after the Tribulation) - and then He tells them He's going to die a brutal death. Shock, sorrow, rage, and fear must have all boiled within them.
With all of that in mind, based on his later behavior, Peter probably felt protective - vowing willingness to risk his life fighting to defend his Teacher from capture. That's noble on the surface. But underneath, there is a radical amount of pride and selfishness. It reveals that he thought he knew better than God, wanted something whether it was God's will or not, and thought he could "protect" God, thereby doing something tor God that God couldn't do Himself! You can see the foolishness of that type of thinking with his logically unsound utterance, "God forbid it, Lord!" Yes, Peter's reaction was understandable, given the circumstances, but it was still deeply sinful.
So what did Jesus mean when He said, "Get behind me, Satan!"? Was Peter actually possessed by Satan? I highly doubt it. We know that Satan possessed Judas at different times, but as I have mentioned before, it is my personal belief that a believer would have to fall pretty dang far away from the Lord to be "possession material." But that doesn't mean that we can't open the door to demonic influence (such as increased temptation) by thinking about things we shouldn't, exposing ourselves to media we shouldn't, or giving in to our fleshly nature...and I think that's what's going on here - Peter is not possessed by Satan, but he is acting "in the spirit of Satan" - being rebellious, prideful, and selfish exactly as Satan is (Isaiah 14:12-14, Ezekiel 28:12-18), and not banishing the devil's temptations. Jesus is pointing out the source and character of Peter's reaction.
Finally, we see Jesus mention Peter's response being a "stumbling block" to Him. This is a very minor point, but when you read of a "stumbling block" in Scripture, don't assume that it refers automatically or exclusively to a temptation - it can, as it appears to here, mean something more along the lines of <anything that is a hindrance to someone's walk, even if it's just something like a distraction that keeps them from "quiet time" with God or, as here, waste ministry time on something that shouldn't be an issue>.
Bombshell Two: "You Guys Need to Die, Too."
24 Then Jesus said to His disciples, "If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me.
25 "For whoever sishes to save his life will lose it; but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it.
26 "For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?
27 "For the Son of Man is going to come in the glory of His Father with His angels, and WILL THEN REPAY EVERY MAN ACCORDING TO HIS DEEDS.
28 "Truly I say to you, there are some of those who are standing here who will not taste death until they see the Son of Man coming in His kingdom."
Those of you who know a bit about history may recognize the painting at the left - it's Peter being crucified, which happened long after Jesus. It's a stirring reminder that each and every one of us are called to the same...not necessarily literal martyrdom for our faith, but plenty of other forms of "dying to self." We may be called to be rejected by our friends and our families. We may be called to be fired from our jobs for our faith or to give up everything we own. We may be called to give up a life-long dream (career, marriage, whatever) and pursue the path God has planned for us. We may be called to move to another country, or yes, even to die. Each of us is called to do whatever God asks of us, with no looking back. Christianity is not about feeling better about yourself and being blessed - it's a battle for the souls of mankind.
Os Guiness said, "Calling is the truth that God calls us to himself so decisively that everything we are, everything we do, and everything we have is invested with a special devotion, dynamism, and direction lived out as a response to his summons and service."
Please do not misunderstand me - this is not about salvation by works. This isn't a matter of doing good things to somehow "earn" salvation of improve God's opinion of you - those things are impossible, and they both hinge on the faulty assumption that the purpose of salvation is to get into heaven. It's not. The purpose of salvation is to make us like Christ. So of course we are called to live like He did - suffering and all.
Anything we have to give up or suffer on this earth is a mere speck compared to what basking in the glory of Christ will be like - spending eternity in unending fellowship with our Savior. The apostles understood what living and dying for Christ meant on a far deeper level than any of us in the American church could ever imagine - and clearly they saw their "investment" as worth it. We should believe the testimony of their lives.
As Jesus promised in this passage, at least one man there, John, did see Christ returning - in a vision of the End of Days. Perhaps some of the others had similar, unrecorded experiences much like Stephen where Christ supported them with visions of what they would behold if only they endured. Just the same, Christ will give us the strength to endure whatever "crosses" He asks us to carry. It won't be easy (or else it wouldn't be a cross), but He will support us. I forget who it was who said, "The cross bears those who bear the cross."
Please, believers, make time today to spend time alone with God and ask Him what your cross to bear is. And then be faithful in bearing it.
And if you do not yet know Christ as your Savior, click here to learn how in English or here to learn how in your own language.
Questions for You
Have you ever had a time in your life when you thought you knew better than God, only to later see the wisdom of His plan?
What cross(es) do you bear today? What cross(es) have you had to bear in the past?
Anything else you'd like to add or ask? Leave it in the comments section. :-)
Giving Credit Where It's Due
Image Number One: Matthew Illustration courtesy of Sweet Publishing. Used by permission.
Image Number Two: Crucifixion of St. Peter, by Carvaggio. Wikipedia. {{PD-1923}} Public domain in the United States.
24 "A disciple is not above his teacher, nor a slave above his master.
25 "It is enough for the disciple that he become like his teacher, and the slave like his master. If they have called the head of the house Beelzebul, how much more will they malign the members of his household!
26 "Therefore do not fear them, for there is nothing concealed that will not be revealed, or hidden that will not be known.
27 "What I tell you in the darkness, speak in the light; and what you hear whispered in your ear, proclaim upon the housetops.
28 "Do not fear those who kill the body but are unable to kill the soul; but rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.
29 "Are not two sparrows sold for a cent? And yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father.
30 "But the very hairs of your head are numbered.
31 "So do not fear; you are more valuable than many sparrows."
Let's move chronologically this time. With Jesus's first couple of sentances in this passage, it's like, "What's His point...?" But let's look at context: immediately before (see previous post) and after, He's talking about persecution. So what Jesus means is, we're not going to suffer differently than He already has - and keeping this in mind will help us endure suffering.
Now, what's "Beelzebul" got to do with that, and doesn't the part about "how much more" will they do the same to us contradict what He just said? Well, Beelzebul is another name for Satan - the worst of the worst in the spiritual realm. It takes a lot of gumption and certainty to call someone something absolutely terrible, but less so to call someone something just bad. So what I think Jesus is saying here is, they've already called Him the worst thing imaginable - so it will be easy for them to call us, His followers, bad things as well, such as saying that our spiritual gifts and empowerment by the Holy Spirit come from demons. So, this is a warning: When you try to do good, people will say you have bad motives, sources, etc.
Verse 26 is a tad cryptic, as well, but it becomes clear when considered in context. We don't have to enter into the scarry world of persecution blind; God's not going to keep criticaly information from us. He will provide us with the faith, fortitude, and understanding necessary to endure. 1 Corinthians 10:13 tells us, "No temptation has overtaken you but such as is common to man; and God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will provide the way of escape also [escape from falling into sin, not escape from persecution], so that you will be able to endure it." I fully believe that this verse applies to persecution as well, as giving in to persecution and denying Christ is not only a sin, but a crtically dangerous one as we will soon see.
Next, we read the bit about proclaiming to the world what God has taught us each individually. This fits into the passage because it is the perfect picture of how we would act if we truly lived without any fear. Think about it: Why do people avoid sharing the Gospel with others? Because they're afraid of being rejected, made fun of, ostracized, persecuted (whether physically or something like losing their job or getting bad grades in a class), losing a friend, and messing up. Key word there: afraid. A life without any fear is the ultimate ability to share God's love - and the ultimate goal for us.
Now, in verse 28, we see a rare threat of hell. We're so used to God bringing us to Him through His love - probably because this is what is preached, because it sounds nicer so it makes the preachers more popular. But there's a balance here - we shouldn't view God as a scary, evil dictator constantly threatening us with eternal torment, but neither should we view Him as some peace-loving hippie who will let us get by with anything. And, in the context of persecution, think of this: love can sometimes trump fear, but a greater fear always trumps a lesser fear. In this, the threat is actually incredibly helpful.
And immediately after this threat, Jesus once again reminds us of His never-ending love for us. He uses the example of the most worthless animal (a pair of sparrows cost a penney in Israel at that time; for a modern reference, think of something like a pet goldfish), and says that He even cares enough about them to keep track of when they live and die. And think about the hair on your head: the number of hairs you have is completely irrelevant to you, but He knows the precise number of hairs every person in the entire world has! That is how much He cares about us! With this in mind, it becomes crystal clear that even when we are terrified, we can rest assured that He is watching, and He is in control. Nothing outside of His will can happen to us on His watch, and He is always watching.
Our God Is a Warrior
32 "Therefore everyone who confesses Me before men, I will also confess him before My Father who is in heaven.
33 "But whoever denies Me before men, I will also deny him before My Father who is in heaven.
34 "Do not think that I came to bring peace on the earth; I did not come to bring peace, but a sword.
35 "For I came to SET A MAN AGAINST HIS FATHER, AND A DAUGHTER AGAINST HER MOTHER, AND A DAUGHTER-IN-LAW AGAINST HER MOTHER-IN-LAW;
36 and A MAN'S ENEMIES WILL BE THE MEMBERS OF HIS HOUSEHOLD.
37 "He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me; and he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me.
38 "And he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me.
39 "He who has found his life will lose it, and he who has lsot his life for My sake will find it."
There's not much I can add to this passage, because Jesus states everything quite bluntly - and with good reason: The more bluntly He says it, the harder it is for us to find (false) ways around it! There's a lot of hard-to-swallow stuff in here.
First up, denying Christ - even if you live amidst persecution and are threatened with torture and death - is not an option. It is that serious. If you say, "I am not a Christian," it doens't matter whether or not you meant it - you meant it, whether you accept that or not.There is no such thing as a "closet" Christian.
A couple of quick thoughts about denying Christ... First, there are many ways to "deny" Christ - the way we act, what we say (or do not say), etc. These are not necessarily as serious, because we repent of these sins (and we don't want to wander into saved-by-works territory!), but I just think any un-Christ-like act is a form of denial. Am I being clear here, or just confusing and making it sound worse than it is? ;-) Second, if you've denied Christ once and have now returned to Him and openly acknowledge your faith, it's not like you're screwed for life - this is not a "you screw up once, you're done - no second chances" kind of deal. Remember - Peter did the same thing! You can follow his saga from warning that he would deny Christ to restoration aftwerward in Mark 14:29-30,John 18:12-27,20:1-8,21:1-4,21:7-8,and 21:15-17.
Alright, so Jesus didn't come to bring peace? Isn't He the Prince of Peace? Yes, but those Messainic prophesies are for at the End of Time, after the war for the souls of mankind is completed. And that's just it - the world is a spiritual warzone. When there's conflict, war must come before peace is arrived at - and that holds true in the spiritual realm, as well.
We see a repeat of the concept of families being split apart from our last study. This happens in wordly wars, too - perhaps most notoriously, in the American Civil War. Jesus states quite frankly that we have to love Him more than our families - that is, if your spouse, or child, or whoever is closest to you said, "You have to choose between me and Jesus," you'd better pick Jesus. Seriously, imagine that scenio for a moment. It is a terribly hard thing to accept, but it's true. If we are to follow Jesus, we have to be willing to give up anything and do whatever He says, whenever He says - that is what taking up our cross entails.
Let's look at verse 39: "He who has found his life will lose it, but he who has lost his life for My sake will find it." This is not saying that you have to be martyred to go to heaven; losing your life means giving up your claim to your life for Christ - this "cross" for you may mean a career, or a relationship, or a location, or whatever. When we are willing to surrender any aspect of this life for Jesus, we will find that the eternal life awaiting us is totally worth it.
Questions for You
When you have been suffering (even something not remotely related to persecution), has it helped you to remember that Jesus has experienced physical and emotional pain as well, as can understand your suffering? How does realizing how very much He cares for you (think of the sparrows and hair) change your outlook on life - and your actions?
What has God taught you that you need to proclaim to the world? What does taking up your cross look like for you? What examples can you think of as "little" denials?
Share these, and any other questions and comments, by leaving a comment below. :-)
Giving Credit Where It's Due
Image Number One: Tibetan Snowfinch by John Gould and Henry C. Richter. Wikimedia Commons.{{PD-old}} Public domain in the European Union. {{PD-1923}} Public domain in the United States.
Image Nubmer Two: Battle of Fort Fisher by Kurz and Allison. Wikimedia Commons.{{PD-US}} Public domain in the United States.
5 These twelve Jesus sent out after instructing them: "Don not go in the way of the Gentiles, and do not enter any city of the Samaritans;
6 but rather go to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.
7 "And as you go, preach, saying, 'The kingdom of heaven is at hand.'
8 "Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, cast out demons. Freely you received, freely give.
9 "Do not acquire gold, or silver, or copper for your money belts,
10 or a bag for your journey, or even two coats, or sandals, or a staff; for the worker is worthy of his support.
11 "And whatever city or village you enter, inquire who is worthy in it, and stay at his house until you leave that city.
12 "As you enter the house, give it your greeting.
13 "If the house is worthy, give it your blessing of peace. But if it is not worthy, take back your blessing of peace.
14 "Wheover does not receive you, nor heed your words, as you go out of that house or that city, shake the dust off your feet.
15 "Truly I say to you, it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgement than for that city."
Okay, so why did Jesus tell His disciples to only minister to the Jews? Is this some sort or racist favoritism? Not at all - it's just that the Jews had been following God for centuries, and the Messiah was promised to them, so it is fully appropriate that He would come to them first. This was only temporary - Jesus sent them to spread the Gospel to all people after His resurrection, and He repeatedly made exceptions for individual Gentiles (non-Jews), such as when He healed the Roman centurion's servant and exorcised the Canaanite woman's daughter. Also bear in mind that, as Luke 12:42-48 explains in detail, "From everyone who has been given much [spiritually], much will be required." Because the Jews had more reason to anticipate the Messiah's coming (thus His coming to them first), they would also be dealt with more severly for rejecting Him (like in verse 15, when Jesus compares their sin to that of the two most notoriously sinful Gentile cities which God destroyed in His judgement in the Old Testament). There are two applications here for us: (1) God loves all of us the same - including Jews and Gentiles, and (2) We also ought to realize that the blessings and "spiritual advantages" (like living in a country where we don't get arrested and executed for owning a Bible) mean we're expected to do more with them!
Related to this is how Jesus instructs them to handle their money and supplies. While they are among the Jews - the people who were supposed to be God's people - the people they preached to were supposed to support them. But He later reverses this, telling them that when they go out among the Gentiles, they are to bring money and their own supplies. Christians are supposed to support other ministering Christians, but we should never expect unbelievers or new believers to do the same - that is why so many think that Christianity is a sham and the clergy does it just to make money! Paul purposefully didn't ask for financial support from those he ministered to on a coupleof occasions, as well.
The stuff about healing and casting out demons and raising the dead is super exciting...but did you notice how Jesus mentions sharing the Good News before he rattles these off? Yes, God has given us the power to do all this stuff (dependent upon His will and our faith, of course), but remember Luke 10:20, "Nevertheless do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are recorded in heaven." So, we have here in these verses a reminder of some things we've learned from Matthew's Gospel so far: (1) We do have the power to do miraculous stuff, just like Jesus, (2) We need to minister to both people's spiritual and physical needs, and (3) Miraculous power is amazing, but God's salvation is even more so, so we need to keep this hierarchy of importance in perspective.
Now, what's going on with that blessing bit? We don't exactly talk about blessings and curses much in the American Church. On one hand, we know that words aren't magic - God cannot be forced into pouring out blessings or curses on people just because of some special phrase we say. But, He has created some system we can't fully understand where His followers' words have some degree of power - or else why would He instruct the disciples to take back their blessing if it was found to be undeserved? (For more to confuse you on how blessings and curses do and do not work, check out the story of Balaam...lots to think about there.) But there is something in these verses that is easy to grasp and applies universally: Did you notice how Jesus instructs them to give the blessing before they find out what kind of person is there? We are to assume the best of people, and act kind and lovingly toward them from the start, instead of waiting to find out if they "deserve" it.
The Not-So-Encouraging Part
16 "Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves; so be shrewd as serpents and innocent as doves.
17 "But beware of men, for they will hand you over to the courts and scourge you in their synagogues;
18 and you will even be brought before governors and kings for My sake, as a testimony to them and to the Gentiles.
19 "But when they hand you over, do not worry about how or what you are to say; for it will be given you in that hour what you are to say.
20 "For it is not you who speak, but it is the Spirit of your Father who speaks in you."
21 "Brother will betray brother to death, and a father his child; and children will rise up against parents and cause them to be put to death.
22 "You will be hated by all because of My name, but it is the one who has endured to the end who will be saved.
23 "But whenenever they perseucte you in one city, flee to the next; for truly I say to you, you will not finish goring through the cities of Israel until the Son of Man comes.
The verse about being shrewd as serpents and innocent as doves is quite famous. I love how John Eldredge explains it in his book Beautiful Outlaw: <We like the innocent as doves part; that sounds nice. Very Sunday school. But that first bit - hold on now. Shrewd as snakes?When you hear someone say, "He's such a snake," do you think, Oh - what a fine Christian? The things Jesus says. Let's get the religious drapery off this. A dove and a snake. Surely they remember the dove descending on Jesus. As for the snake metaphor - these Jews would have connected instantly to the serpent in the Garden. Be as holy as the Spirt and be as cunning as Satan. You want us to do what?! Jesus is saying, "Look, this is a very dangerous world." The disciples glance at one another, thinking, Right. We've got the Son of God on our side. "I mean it," he continues. "Take this seriously. I'm sending you into the Congo with a butter knife. You are easy pickings. You must be holy and you must be cunning.>
When we give our lives to Christ, we are willfully accepting that Satan has now put a bounty on our heads. Consider what 1 Timothy 3:12 has to say: "Indeed, all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted." John 15:19-20a echoes, "If you were of the world, the world would love its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, because of this the world hates you. Remember the word that I said to you, 'A slave is not greater than his master.' If they persectued Me, they will also persecute you..." Jesus elsewhere instructs His disciples to obtain weapons to defend themselves with, and in this passage, He tells them to use their brains and flee if necessary.
But this is another issue with multiple sides (most things in the Bible seem to be like that...). Sometimes, God allows us to be persecuted because that will give us an opportunity to share the Gospel - or even just be an example of how passionately we really do believe in Jesus (that's where the "innocent as doves" part comes in!)- in ways we would not otherwise be able to. If persecution allowed the Early Church to personally interact with Roman rulers - the rulers of the world - then what other influential people could God have in the works for us to witness to today? In these cases, we are not even to plan a speech to defend ourselves, but just to let God speak through us. How can we tell if we should flee or take a stand? By simply listening to the Holy Spirit and acting as He leads. There's also a tangential application here - in day-to-day interactions, such as sharing the Gospel with a friend, sometimes we should plan our "moves" ahead, and sometimes just let the Holy Spirit lead the application (this has happened to me) - and again, the only way to tell when to do what is to head the Holy Spirit's leading.
Finally, we see that the Gospel is so offensive that it can even turn families against each other - to the point that they will turn each other in for execution! There is simply no middle ground when it comes to following Christ. If the world hates us, that means we're either doing something terribly wrong or entirely right.
Have you ever felt put off by Christians expecting payment from unbelievers, or emphasizing the financial aspect far too much? How can we be both "shrewd as serpents and innocent as doves"? What has following Christ cost you?
Image Number Two: The Christian Martyrs' Last Prayer by Jean-Leon Gerome, commissioned by William T. Walters. Wikimedia Commons.Used by permission. Public domain worldwide.
Welcome, everyone, to our final tour of spiritual gifts!I hope you’ve enjoyed it, and that it’s perhaps shed some light on what spiritual gifts you have.Let’s dive right in. :-)
Evangelism
This spiritual gift is mentioned in Ephesians 4:11 in the middle of one of the classical spiritual gift lists:
And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers.
Here’s a case where the Greek gets a little fun.Evangelist is the word euagelistes, but its root is euaggelion.Euaggelion is generally translated “gospel,” but it literally means “good news.”Now, euagelistes doesn’t translate at all well into English, so we sort of describe it as “spreader of the gospel.”But if you want to translate it as literally as possible, evangelist means “gospel-er” or “good news-er.”Do you see the difference here – how spreading the gospel is not just something an evangelist does, but an actual part of who they are?
This latter point is emphasized in Acts 21:8:
And on the next day we departed and came to Caesarea; and entering the house of Philip the evangelist, who was one of the seven, we stayed with him.
He is “Philip-the-evangelist”, not “Philip…who evangelizes”.
This is a critical point to grasp, because we are all commanded to share the gospel with others (for example, Mark 16:15).But, it comes more naturally to some then to others – to these people, the gospel just exudes out of them, it’s like they can’t stop themselves from proclaiming Christ’s love.And they’re also quite successful in bringing others to Christ.
Missionary
Being a missionary is another one of those alleged gifts that some people believe is a distinct gift, and others believe is just an extension of evangelism.Let’s look at Ephesians 3:4-8 on this issue:
4 And by referring to this, when you read you can understand my insight into the mystery of Christ, 5 which in other generations was not made known to the sons of men, as it has now been revealed to His holy apostles and prophets in the Spirit; 6 to be specific, that the Gentiles are fellow members of the body, and fellow partakers of the promise of Christ Jesus through the gospel, 7 of which I was made a minister, according to the gift of God’s grace which was given to me according to the working of His power. 8 To me, the very least of all saints, this grace was given, to preach to the Gentiles the unfathomable riches of Christ,
Now, some people would look at the word “gift” in verse seven and think that’s proof that missionary work is a spiritual gift.The flaw with this, however, is that it’s a totally different Greek word than the one also translated gift in Romans 12 and 1 Corinthians 12 (dorea versus charisma).
However, we also must remember what we’ve discussed a few times before – that a spiritual gift is simply some special ability God has given you to advance His kingdom.Does missionary work fit this description?…Yes.
But that still doesn’t tell us if it’s an individual gift or simply an extension of evangelism.Personally, I don’t think it matters – as long as we recognize that missionaries receive special empowerment and a special calling from God to go and preach His word in foreign lands.
Martyrdom
Martyrdom is another case where its status as a spiritual gift is subject to debate, but it seems a little more clear-cut to me than missionary work.Let’s look at where it’s found in 1 Corinthians 13 (I’ll type all the other spiritual gifts listed in bold):
1 If I speak with the tongues of men and of angels but do not have love, I have become a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. 2 And if I have the gift of prophecy, and know all mysteries and all knowledge; and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. 3 And if I give all my possessions to feed the poor, and if I deliver my body to be burned, but do not have love, it profits me nothing.
Do you see why martyrdom is considered by some to be a spiritual gift?Literally every other item on the list is specifically recognized as a spiritual gift, so the seemingly logical conclusion is that martyrdom is also a spiritual gift.Let’s look at one more verse to help us with this debate:
1 Corinthians 10:13
No temptation has overtaken you but such as is common to man; and God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will provide the way of escape also, that you may be able to endure it.
From this verse, we see that if God calls us to do something we cannot resist (such as denying Christ while being tortured), He will give spiritual strength so that we can resist.That is, He will give us a special spiritual power to do something to bring Him glory.
From these two pieces of evidence, it seems to me that martyrdom is a spiritual gift.Aside from its official classification, however, we have to encouragement of knowing that if there comes a time in our life when we are faced with death for our faith, Christ will give us the strength to not deny Him.
Talk to me! :-)
Well, that wraps up our survey of spiritual gifts.Is there anything particular you learned from our studies?What spiritual gifts do you have (or think you have)?
Join us Wednesday as we start a verse-by-verse study of the Gospel of Matthew.I’m excited; are you? :-) I'm also planning to do a revamp of the blog this coming Friday (making it look "prettier" and easier to use), so let me know if there are any improvements you can think of. ^_^
