When Jesus stood before Pilate, he claimed that his kingdom was not of this world otherwise his boys would have shown up and whipped the Romans really good. The word “world” he used refers to the way the world thinks and operates. It would take more time than I’m inclined to give to describe all the ways the world system was running in his day, but the one that matters here is the quest for power and wealth. The primary religious groups he knew were aligned with theological and political views that threw them at each other like wild animals in a fight to the death. Indeed, the chant of the crowd that helped murder him, claimed their allegiance was to God and Caesar. This created tension between the two, of course, so the theologians worked hard to make sure that what God said was unsaid in a way that sounded spiritual. The Bible readers among you may remember Jesus on the mountain repeatedly said, “”You have heard it was said by them of old … but I say …” He was simply peeling away the justifications people used to hold onto the idea of God without taking him at his word. He was doing the same thing when Pilate tried to place him in the contest of kingdoms. Jesus quietly pointed out that if he was playing Pilate’s game, then he would use Pilate’s methods. But the kingdom he was building was of spirit and truth located in the human heart, so they weren’t going to have a fight.
Christianity of the biblical kind, recognized this as it carried out its witness within the “cosmos” of their everyday lives, but with faithfulness to the kingdom of God. That version made fidelity to Jesus its chief virtue regardless of the political landscapes. Later on, John reemphasized this foundational truth in his little letter where he said, “Love not the world neither the things of the world …” He went on to point out that those who were true Christ followers were actually followers of his teachings. This is a word repeatedly given by some of the other writers as well. Of course, it goes back to Jesus himself: “If you love me, keep my instructions.” So, the bottom line for authentic Christianity is doing what he said and says. Except, apparently he lied.
The contemporary church of our day has become one of the contestants in a battle of kingdoms in this cosmos. Somehow, it okay to dismiss most of what Jesus explicitly taught if a preacher or prophet can find just cause in the name of a higher spiritual truth or because it’s the last days or because there’s a need for a lot of money to fund some kind of ministry. I stand in amazement at the number of leaders boldly sacrificing simple fidelity to the things Jesus plainly taught. There used to be a day that when a preacher boy would do that, he’d at least say something like, “I know the Bible says, but …” and look a little embarrassed. These days, it’s just raw and done with great pride as though disobeying Jesus is a mark of spiritual advancement.
I’ve lived long enough to understand my generation asked the wrong question. We wanted to know how to grow a church. We learned all the sociological principles and marketing strategies and hitched them to celebrity preachers backed by flashy music and light shows. We addicted our congregations to adrenaline and eventually to politics. If an old guy muttered we were doing it wrong, we’d spout out, “Those opposing what God is doing today are the leaders of what God did yesterday.” And somewhere along the way, we made Jesus a liar. Folk listening to us must assume that Jesus lied about all that loving, praying, forgiving, serving, and enduring stuff. And it must be okay because by the measurements the world uses, we’re looking good.
We should have asked what the gospel was. Our versions have him tucked safely out of the way either in heaven or nailed to a cross or mired in our favorite theologian’s word swamp so he can’t show up and mess up our productions. Meanwhile, those perishing in their versions of cosmos look vainly in our direction for a better way. They even buy copies of our Book and ask why we aren’t doing Jesus’ stuff. They’re pretty sure his way sounds like a shot at a redemptive kingdom where all the fighting, hate, and greed of their cosmos is replaced with something good for their souls. It’s no wonder they think we’re nuts exchanging our birthright for a mess of cosmos pottage excused by our cute bumper stickers telling everyone we’re not perfect – just forgiven.
Every time I have a conversation with these folks, I think how nice it would be if the church actually experienced a true revival. Not one of those flashy things where somebody gets a bestseller or star billing at the next prophetic conference or a large crowd with cameras rolling as they preach or a place at the microphone at some political rally. Nope. Just one of those simple affairs where we take a deep breath and set out to live faithfully doing those simple things he taught and in the process, proving that there is a different kingdom and Jesus isn’t a liar
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