Are you feeling a bit overwhelmed and powerless?
Did you vote for one guy and get the other?
Did you campaign for an initiative?
Did you have the thrill of seeing the majority of your fellow citizens supporting your initiative?
Have you since learned that those who opposed what you fought so hard to defend are filing lawsuits that will send the whole thing back to the self-serving powerbrokers who’re responsible for the whole thing in the first place?
Are some of your Friends in your Faith Community telling you to pray for those powerbrokers? Are they insisting that God is the ultimate authority and therefore supreme over all powers even those hostile to Him and what matters in His Kingdom?
Today I’ve been remembering some things that I find helpful. There’s an image that I’m recalling as I struggle with conflicting ideas surrounding the whole idea of power. You can see this image at
http://www.art.com/asp/sp-asp/_/pd--12624426/sp--A/Ecce_Homo.htm
The contrast between power and powerlessness is vivid in this painting. Jesus of Nazareth, nearly naked, and bound; surrounded by the powerful and the privileged facing a mob demanding his crucifixion – the most horrendous, barbarous method of execution every practiced by humans – is the consummate symbol of helplessness.
Yet, in that very moment, when He is clearly at the mercy of the Governor, Jesus says this to him. “My kingdom, doesn't consist of what you see around you. If it did, my followers would fight so that I wouldn't be handed over ... . But I'm not that kind of king, not the world's kind of king.” (John 18:36 THE MESSAGE)
“I’m not the world’s kind of King.”
What kind of King is He then?
For me the answer to that question is also the truth I need in the face of the powerlessness I feel today.
Wait! Don’t click me into cyberspace yet!
We, in our postmodern deference to feelings whenever faced with crucial decisions, are less and less convinced that there is such a thing as “truth.” So we run from any consideration that there might be. This poses a serious problem for any supposed Christ-follower. Jesus, Himself, said, “I am the truth.”
His “truth” stands front and center in the painting, “Ecce Homo” – “behold the man.” What He understood to be "truth" - the real meaning of things - was pitted against another "truth."
Who failed that day? Jesus or Pilate? Whose truth prevailed, His or that of the powerful in the world?
Please, put feelings aside for a moment. Jesus was crucified that day. Ironically, though, with His last breath, He claimed victory. “It is finished!” is the cry of a conqueror.
What gives here?!
What gives here is the essence of His “Other Worldly Kingdom.”
Three years before these confusing events Jesus and Satan -- the “Prince, the ultimate power of this World” -- met on another field of battle. It was a “desert place.” Jesus had been battling this enemy for 40 days. The struggle was so bitter that Jesus hadn’t taken time to eat at all during those days. What was at issue was precisely what interfaced on the porch of the Governor’s Mansion that morning in Jerusalem. Two powers toe-to-toe. How will the superior power prove Himself? At first Satan challenged one of Jesus truth claims. "If you are the Son of God," he taunted, "make bread out of the stones that are all around you." Satan's truth assumed that truly powerful men prove themselves by some sort of "power play." Jesus countered. Quoting an Old Testament document known as Deuteronomy He revealed the foundation of His truth, "Humans," He said, "do not live by bread alone. They live, too, by every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord." Jesus' life was about more than food. He lived for other-worldly things; for the higher purposes of the "Lord," the God who speaks His truth in the pages of the Hebrew Scriptures. In response, with a bit of sleight-of-hand, Jesus and the devil were transported to Jerusalem, to the highest tower of the Temple. Satan, again, heckled Him. “If you are God's Son, jump.” The Devil goaded him by quoting Psalm 91: “ ‘He has placed you in the care of angels. They will catch you so that you won't so much as stub your toe on a stone.’” Do you get the picture? Satan is insisting that Jesus prove Himself. In the Devil's world anyone powerful does spectacular things. If Jesus is really powerful he’ll prove it by demonstrating His powers. “Jesus countered with another citation from Deuteronomy: ‘Don't you dare test the Lord your God.’” He understood that the power at His disposal was not His alone. It was, in fact, the “power of God.” He refused to use God’s power, even though He’d been promised it, for His own advancement. Undeterred, “the Devil took him to the peak of a huge mountain. He gestured expansively, pointing out all the earth's kingdoms, how glorious they all were. Then he said, ‘They're yours—lock, stock, and barrel. Just go down on your knees and worship me, and they're yours.’
Jesus' refusal was curt: ‘Beat it, Satan!’ He backed his rebuke with a third quotation from Deuteronomy: ‘Worship the Lord your God, and only him. Serve him with absolute single-heartedness.’" (Matthew 4: 5 – 10 THE MESSAGE) Jesus lived that “truth.” He did serve God with “absolute single-heartedness.” The ultimate authority in this “Other Worldly Kingdom,” is God the Father. Jesus would not misuse that authority selfishly. He would give absolute, single-hearted loyalty to His Father no matter what happened. So, that dreadful day, beaten until he could no longer be recognized; in pain so severe no language could describe it; humiliated and ridiculed like no one else ever was or ever would be, He trusted His Father with His destiny.
Do you remember the outcome? Whose truth was proven superior that day?
Saul “Paul” of Tarsus describes it all in detail.
"Though He – Jesus – was God, He did not think of equality with God as something to cling to.
Instead, He gave up his divine privileges;He took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being.
When He appeared in human form, He humbled himself in obedience to God and died a criminal’s death on a cross.
Therefore, God elevated Him to the place of highest honor and gave Him the name above all other names, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord,to the glory of God the Father.” (Philippians 2: 5 – 11 New Living Translation)
This is the “truth” that answers the question of our powerlessness today!
Christ-followers, we are citizens of a Kingdom of a different sort. “The kingdom of God, Jesus explained, does not come with signs to be observed or with visible display, nor will people say, ‘Look! Here (it is)!’ or, ‘See, (it is) there!’ For behold, the kingdom of God is within you (in your hearts) and among you (surrounding you).” (Luke 17: 20 & 21 Amplified) Furthermore, “In this world the kings and great men lord it over their people, yet they are called ‘friends of the people.’ But among you it will be different. Those who are the greatest among you should take the lowest rank, and the leader should be like a servant. Who is more important, the one who sits at the table or the one who serves? The one who sits at the table, of course. But not here! For I am among you as one who serves.” (Luke 22: 25 – 27 New Living Translation)
We are powerless by design. Citizens of Christ’s other-worldly Kingdom are, by nature, sacrificial servants. We must, Paul wrote, “have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had.” (Philippians 2:5) With Jesus as our Master, we Christ-followers will walk into every situation of life in just the same way He walked. We’ll live ordinary lives. Maybe not as carpenters, but as everyday people who are reliable, always show up, give whatever they do their best shot, lookin’ out for the other guy, especially the underdog, taking time to insure that the people we hang out with sense their worth, and always lending a helping hand. We’ll tell folks the truth even when they misunderstand and reject us because of it. The first person in our lives will be our King who just happens to be our Father, “the one in the Heavens around us.” And it will be evident, to all who observe our day-to-day lives, that He’s really our King. There’ll be an undeniable confidence in our stride, regardless of what’s going on. We’ll have an uncanny resilience. And those who’re paying any attention at all will know that our strength is supernatural. It’s not natural for humans to be like that. Especially when practicing Christ’s sacrificial love is costing them everything.
The irony is that the power of such love is undeniable. The man half-naked on the porch that day in downtown Jerusalem is the victor. He, “the Son of Man will be – is – seated in the place of power at God’s right hand.” (Luke 22: 69 New Living Translation) His representatives, like Himself, are suffering servants. In the First Century their sacrificial love overturned a great empire. They did not need an alliance with the “prince of this world” any more than their Master did. They were rarely spectacular about anything they did. Spectacles maybe, but rarely celebrities. Subsequent generations of Christ-followers graced the lifescape of Centuries with a nobility, generosity, and creativity that lead to one of the most exceptional epochs in human history. To this very day, suffering notwithstanding, they are, as one great man described them, people “who have been made new by Jesus Christ, and in whom what they want to do and what they ought to do are one and the same thing ... Spirit-lead people who are the happiest, most lovable, and most creative people in the world.” (Sam Shoemaker)
People like this are never “powerless”! They’re too busy making the most of every breath of life they’ve been given; sharing with folks they love a joy they find even in their travail!
Did you vote for one guy and get the other?
Did you campaign for an initiative?
Did you have the thrill of seeing the majority of your fellow citizens supporting your initiative?
Have you since learned that those who opposed what you fought so hard to defend are filing lawsuits that will send the whole thing back to the self-serving powerbrokers who’re responsible for the whole thing in the first place?
Are some of your Friends in your Faith Community telling you to pray for those powerbrokers? Are they insisting that God is the ultimate authority and therefore supreme over all powers even those hostile to Him and what matters in His Kingdom?
Today I’ve been remembering some things that I find helpful. There’s an image that I’m recalling as I struggle with conflicting ideas surrounding the whole idea of power. You can see this image at
http://www.art.com/asp/sp-asp/_/pd--12624426/sp--A/Ecce_Homo.htm
The contrast between power and powerlessness is vivid in this painting. Jesus of Nazareth, nearly naked, and bound; surrounded by the powerful and the privileged facing a mob demanding his crucifixion – the most horrendous, barbarous method of execution every practiced by humans – is the consummate symbol of helplessness.
Yet, in that very moment, when He is clearly at the mercy of the Governor, Jesus says this to him. “My kingdom, doesn't consist of what you see around you. If it did, my followers would fight so that I wouldn't be handed over ... . But I'm not that kind of king, not the world's kind of king.” (John 18:36 THE MESSAGE)
“I’m not the world’s kind of King.”
What kind of King is He then?
For me the answer to that question is also the truth I need in the face of the powerlessness I feel today.
Wait! Don’t click me into cyberspace yet!
We, in our postmodern deference to feelings whenever faced with crucial decisions, are less and less convinced that there is such a thing as “truth.” So we run from any consideration that there might be. This poses a serious problem for any supposed Christ-follower. Jesus, Himself, said, “I am the truth.”
His “truth” stands front and center in the painting, “Ecce Homo” – “behold the man.” What He understood to be "truth" - the real meaning of things - was pitted against another "truth."
Who failed that day? Jesus or Pilate? Whose truth prevailed, His or that of the powerful in the world?
Please, put feelings aside for a moment. Jesus was crucified that day. Ironically, though, with His last breath, He claimed victory. “It is finished!” is the cry of a conqueror.
What gives here?!
What gives here is the essence of His “Other Worldly Kingdom.”
Three years before these confusing events Jesus and Satan -- the “Prince, the ultimate power of this World” -- met on another field of battle. It was a “desert place.” Jesus had been battling this enemy for 40 days. The struggle was so bitter that Jesus hadn’t taken time to eat at all during those days. What was at issue was precisely what interfaced on the porch of the Governor’s Mansion that morning in Jerusalem. Two powers toe-to-toe. How will the superior power prove Himself? At first Satan challenged one of Jesus truth claims. "If you are the Son of God," he taunted, "make bread out of the stones that are all around you." Satan's truth assumed that truly powerful men prove themselves by some sort of "power play." Jesus countered. Quoting an Old Testament document known as Deuteronomy He revealed the foundation of His truth, "Humans," He said, "do not live by bread alone. They live, too, by every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord." Jesus' life was about more than food. He lived for other-worldly things; for the higher purposes of the "Lord," the God who speaks His truth in the pages of the Hebrew Scriptures. In response, with a bit of sleight-of-hand, Jesus and the devil were transported to Jerusalem, to the highest tower of the Temple. Satan, again, heckled Him. “If you are God's Son, jump.” The Devil goaded him by quoting Psalm 91: “ ‘He has placed you in the care of angels. They will catch you so that you won't so much as stub your toe on a stone.’” Do you get the picture? Satan is insisting that Jesus prove Himself. In the Devil's world anyone powerful does spectacular things. If Jesus is really powerful he’ll prove it by demonstrating His powers. “Jesus countered with another citation from Deuteronomy: ‘Don't you dare test the Lord your God.’” He understood that the power at His disposal was not His alone. It was, in fact, the “power of God.” He refused to use God’s power, even though He’d been promised it, for His own advancement. Undeterred, “the Devil took him to the peak of a huge mountain. He gestured expansively, pointing out all the earth's kingdoms, how glorious they all were. Then he said, ‘They're yours—lock, stock, and barrel. Just go down on your knees and worship me, and they're yours.’
Jesus' refusal was curt: ‘Beat it, Satan!’ He backed his rebuke with a third quotation from Deuteronomy: ‘Worship the Lord your God, and only him. Serve him with absolute single-heartedness.’" (Matthew 4: 5 – 10 THE MESSAGE) Jesus lived that “truth.” He did serve God with “absolute single-heartedness.” The ultimate authority in this “Other Worldly Kingdom,” is God the Father. Jesus would not misuse that authority selfishly. He would give absolute, single-hearted loyalty to His Father no matter what happened. So, that dreadful day, beaten until he could no longer be recognized; in pain so severe no language could describe it; humiliated and ridiculed like no one else ever was or ever would be, He trusted His Father with His destiny.
Do you remember the outcome? Whose truth was proven superior that day?
Saul “Paul” of Tarsus describes it all in detail.
"Though He – Jesus – was God, He did not think of equality with God as something to cling to.
Instead, He gave up his divine privileges;He took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being.
When He appeared in human form, He humbled himself in obedience to God and died a criminal’s death on a cross.
Therefore, God elevated Him to the place of highest honor and gave Him the name above all other names, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord,to the glory of God the Father.” (Philippians 2: 5 – 11 New Living Translation)
This is the “truth” that answers the question of our powerlessness today!
Christ-followers, we are citizens of a Kingdom of a different sort. “The kingdom of God, Jesus explained, does not come with signs to be observed or with visible display, nor will people say, ‘Look! Here (it is)!’ or, ‘See, (it is) there!’ For behold, the kingdom of God is within you (in your hearts) and among you (surrounding you).” (Luke 17: 20 & 21 Amplified) Furthermore, “In this world the kings and great men lord it over their people, yet they are called ‘friends of the people.’ But among you it will be different. Those who are the greatest among you should take the lowest rank, and the leader should be like a servant. Who is more important, the one who sits at the table or the one who serves? The one who sits at the table, of course. But not here! For I am among you as one who serves.” (Luke 22: 25 – 27 New Living Translation)
We are powerless by design. Citizens of Christ’s other-worldly Kingdom are, by nature, sacrificial servants. We must, Paul wrote, “have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had.” (Philippians 2:5) With Jesus as our Master, we Christ-followers will walk into every situation of life in just the same way He walked. We’ll live ordinary lives. Maybe not as carpenters, but as everyday people who are reliable, always show up, give whatever they do their best shot, lookin’ out for the other guy, especially the underdog, taking time to insure that the people we hang out with sense their worth, and always lending a helping hand. We’ll tell folks the truth even when they misunderstand and reject us because of it. The first person in our lives will be our King who just happens to be our Father, “the one in the Heavens around us.” And it will be evident, to all who observe our day-to-day lives, that He’s really our King. There’ll be an undeniable confidence in our stride, regardless of what’s going on. We’ll have an uncanny resilience. And those who’re paying any attention at all will know that our strength is supernatural. It’s not natural for humans to be like that. Especially when practicing Christ’s sacrificial love is costing them everything.
The irony is that the power of such love is undeniable. The man half-naked on the porch that day in downtown Jerusalem is the victor. He, “the Son of Man will be – is – seated in the place of power at God’s right hand.” (Luke 22: 69 New Living Translation) His representatives, like Himself, are suffering servants. In the First Century their sacrificial love overturned a great empire. They did not need an alliance with the “prince of this world” any more than their Master did. They were rarely spectacular about anything they did. Spectacles maybe, but rarely celebrities. Subsequent generations of Christ-followers graced the lifescape of Centuries with a nobility, generosity, and creativity that lead to one of the most exceptional epochs in human history. To this very day, suffering notwithstanding, they are, as one great man described them, people “who have been made new by Jesus Christ, and in whom what they want to do and what they ought to do are one and the same thing ... Spirit-lead people who are the happiest, most lovable, and most creative people in the world.” (Sam Shoemaker)
People like this are never “powerless”! They’re too busy making the most of every breath of life they’ve been given; sharing with folks they love a joy they find even in their travail!
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