Stephen
Terry, Director
Epilogue:
Knowing Jesus and His Word
Commentary
for the December 28, 2024, Sabbath School Lesson
"He is not here; he has risen! Remember how he told you,
while he was still with you in Galilee:" Luke
24:6, NIV
At Christmas time the entire
world makes note of the baby born in a manger to save humanity. But when they
come to the manger, they find the baby is not there, for he has risen. They
come to find him beside the Jordan River where John baptized him, but he is not
there, for he has risen. They wander the wilderness, searching for the places
where Jesus withstood the powerful temptations of the evil one. But he is not there,
for he has risen. They search for the mount where he preached to the crowds
about love and trust in God, but he is not there, for he has risen. They search
for the very spots where he healed the leprous, the crippled, the blind, and
the possessed. But he is not there, for he has risen. They search for the place
where he called the temple his father's house, even though those who ran the
temple denied him and plotted to kill him, but he is not there, for he has
risen. With guilt and shame, they climb to the place where he bled out his life
on a rude cross, vowing they would have treated him differently. But they are
too late, for he is not there, he has risen. At last, catching up to him now
that he is dead, they come to the tomb that held him, but he is not there, for
he has risen.
For a brief moment surrounded by
millennia of darkness, a bright light shone in this world. That light delivered
all the brightness humanity could handle and then some. While for those who had
dwelt in darkness for so long, it represented hope and promise, for those who
claimed they already had the light, it overshadowed them, and it represented a
loss of the control they believed they had over the people and the temple. In
an ancient rendition of prosperity theology, they believed that their power and
prosperity were evidences of God's favor and therefore endorsements by God
himself of their theology. Rather than seeing the humility of Job as evidence
of God's favor, they see that favor demonstrated in Job's wealth, pointing out
how much wealthier God made him in the end. They worship the wealth of Solomon
without understanding the humility and faithfulness of his father David. They want
to call down fire and brimstone on Nineveh, but like Jonah, sit fuming when God
denies them that opportunity. Convinced they are more righteous about justice
than God himself, they deny the mercy and compassion that flow from the throne
of grace. That compassion sent a tiny baby to endure over his life all the
calumny and disrespect that humanity could throw at him. His was a mostly vain
effort to reignite that love that once existed between humanity and their
creator. Humanity walked away long ago, but God still hopes that we will tire
of the pain and suffering our choices bring and come back to love and the relationship
where it thrived.
Little has changed over the past
two thousand years. Today, the Bible continues to be the most unread best
seller in history. We live in a society that claims to be a Christian culture without
the slightest idea of what it means to be a follower of Christ. There is not
one person on the face of the earth that Jesus did not give his life for. But
we exclude communists, socialists, nazis, gays, transgenders, immigrants, ethnicities
other than our own, city dwellers, rural folks, old people, young people. In
other words, we exclude anyone who is not us and how we define ourselves.
Anything or anyone who is different is suspect and therefore likely not a Christian.
Sorry, Jesus, but had we been there, we would not have welcomed Judas into the
fold, so sad for you that you did. We figured out that if we turn the other
cheek and they hit us again, we are then free to retaliate in kind with even
more force until they come to recognize our strength and therefore our superior
religion as well. After all, it was not a bunch of peaceniks that conquered the
Roman Empire for Christ. We still appeal to that kind of power when we claim
the right to dominate the world because we are a Christian nation destined to
rule and build empire as divinely endorsed by how successful it has been. We
shall avoid mentioning the fall of the Christian Byzantine Empire to a Muslim
caliphate or the successes of several Asian empires at resisting and even
overrunning and destroying Christian kingdoms.
We tend to see Christianity as a
manifest destiny to rule others, citing Cortez defeating the heathen Aztecs, or
Pizarro the Incas of Peru as divine endorsement of that destiny. They forget
how often the European continent shook with warfare over different competing
visions of Christianity. Catholics, Huguenots, Calvinists, Anabaptists, Church
of England, and several others all fought each other as the sprinkling of
pagans in their midst dwindled to insignificance. Even today, the Great Schism
between the Eastern Church and the Church of Rome has not healed. Toleration has
mostly replaced open warfare, but one can still feel the iciness between the
different denominations.
It all boils down to one thing.
As Christians we refuse to allow that any other theological perspective has validity
save our own. For most of us who lack the power to enforce those convictions,
this is more of an annoyance than a problem. But when backed by the power of enforcement,
people are made to choose sides in conflicts that
otherwise would mean little to them to secure their livelihood and even their
right to exist should the controlling power become strong enough to destroy
lives with impunity. We see this attitude in the treatment of dissenters within
most denominations. If employed by the church, they are fired by the church. If
housed by the church, they are evicted by the church. If they have a family,
they are encouraged to think of the harm to their family by opposing the
church. There is a reason why Jesus was never employed by the temple and was a
homeless itinerant (Luke
9:58), never having a wife or children. This left him free to speak as the
Spirit guided him. Too many ministers do not realize today that in seeking a
ministerial career, they are bartering away their freedom under the Spirit for
a poorer trade than received by those who sold Manhattan Island to the Dutch. Their
income, their family, and their future all become hostages to an indifferent
church willing to sacrifice whatever is necessary to maintain control, even the
lives of its own wherever it has the power to do so.
So, what is the answer? Jesus
gave us a good model by being with the synagogue but not of the synagogue. When
he saw the errors perpetuated by those in power, he did not buy into them. When
challenged by power, he spoke truth to it, pointing out the errors so long advanced
by the religious leaders that those errors had become the default truth. In
modern Christianity we have the official truth, and we have the actual truth.
Those who study theology and as a result question what their denomination holds
true are confronted, suppressed, defrocked, if possible, fired, and if
sufficient control exists, cast out of their denomination. This can strike
terror in the families of those who remain and suppress any desire to speak out
against such abusive behavior. Full tuition for my alma mater, Walla Walla
University is now over $180,000
full cost to obtain a theology degree in four years. Even with average
costs after financial aid, it is still just under $100,000. Many
graduate, heavily in debt. If they are not employed by
a conference, there is little that a bachelor's degree in theology can provide for
employment outside the denomination. Also, conferences make clear they prefer
to hire married theology graduates.
It is not hard to imagine the
tremendous leverage this gives the church over these newly minted ministers.
They have a heavy debt load to carry, some of it is owed to the university, and
should they lose their job, the university is not hesitant to immediately turn
the account over to a collection agency. Grace and compassion are not good
business models. Newlywed parents often bring newly birthed babies with them. More
leverage for the leadership to demand there be no questioning of dogma or lines
of ecclesiastical authority. Since most young ministers do not have a place to
live, they may find themselves in a parsonage or receiving a rental allowance,
either of which can be instantly terminated for theological
questions deemed out of order. How different the situation of the minister
today is from what was modeled by Jesus and practiced by the early church.
I would encourage anyone who is considering
a ministerial career to count the cost and decide whether you choose to serve
Christ freely or serve the church for an income. Those who confuse serving
Christ with serving for an income may find that Jesus is not there, for he has
risen. Over commitment to church leadership can put one on the road to Damascus
where change, even though clearly evidenced, can be hard. Even without a family
and with the ability to support himself in a trade, it still took Paul years to
recover. How much more so for those without those advantages?