Why One Half Is Not Enough by Amy Littler

Why One Half Is Not Enough by Amy Littler

What is the Gospel? This one essential question holds so much in the balance. Paul tells us, “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek” (Rom. 1:16). Believing in the Gospel brings salvation to everyone regardless of background or tradition. The Gospel tells us that we have the same hope of salvation as the Jews. It offers us nothing less than life and immortality (II Tim. 1:10). It is the message of Truth and salvation (Eph. 1:13), and we are commanded by Jesus to “Go into all the world and preach the Gospel to all creation” (Mark 16:15). If we claim the name of Jesus and call ourselves Christians, our primary concern must be to understand “the Gospel” as Jesus understood it. This is what following Jesus means. This is not a matter of semantics or higher level theology. Understanding the Gospel is the foundation of one’s faith. A deficient gospel or a twisted gospel will have disastrous short- and long-term effects.

Listen to Paul’s passionate concern: “I am amazed that you are so quickly deserting Him who called you by the grace of Christ, for a different gospel, which is really not another; only there are some who are disturbing you and want to distort the Gospel of Christ. But even if we, or an angel from heaven, should preach to you a gospel contrary to what we have preached to you, he is to be accursed! As we have said before, so I say again now, if any man is preaching to you a gospel contrary to what you received, he is to be accursed!” (Gal. 1:6-8).

At all costs we must avoid the wrong gospel! It cannot be about tradition or being comfortable in what we’ve always known. It must always be about the Scripture revealing to us the Truth. Let it not be said of us: “For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance with their own desires and will turn away their ears from the truth and will turn aside to myths” (II Tim. 4:3, 4).

It would be easy to find teachers telling you whatever you want to hear. But we need to cling to the words of Jesus and the rest of Scripture to find our doctrine and Gospel. The Bible gives us this warning: “See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deception, according to the tradition of men, according to the elementary principles of the world, rather than according to Christ” (Col. 2:8). Armed with the thirst for Truth, let’s see what the Bible has to say about the Gospel, the key to our ultimate destiny.

Jesus gives us a clear mission statement early on in his ministry. “I must preach the good news of the Kingdom of God to the other cities also; for I was sent for this purpose” (Luke 4:43, RSV). The word translated “good news” in the NT is the word evangelion, also translated “gospel.” It is unarguable that Jesus here defines his purpose: To preach the Gospel of the Kingdom of God.

“It may be said that the teaching of Jesus concerning the Kingdom of God represents his whole teaching. It is the main determinative subject of all his discourse.”[1]

This is radical and astonishing when one considers that the “orthodox” definition of the Gospel says nothing at all about the Kingdom that Jesus came to preach! The public has been offered a gospel based only on the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus (“DBR”) for the sins of the world. Vital as the DBR is to the Gospel it simply cannot be the whole story.

Now after John had been taken into custody, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God, and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the Kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel” (Mark 1:14, 15). Not a word about his death, at this stage.

The very first words of Jesus Christ, in Matthew, concern the Kingdom. Moreover, he equates the Gospel with believing in the Kingdom of God. Jesus’ first commandment in the book of Mark is to believe that the Kingdom of God is coming and to repent. Jesus never stopped preaching this Kingdom Gospel.

“Jesus was going throughout all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the Gospel of the Kingdom, and healing every kind of disease and every kind of sickness among the people” (Matt. 4:23).

Jesus traveled from place to place proclaiming this Good News of the coming Kingdom without a hint of his death, burial and resurrection. It is not until Matthew 16:21 that Jesus begins to teach about his death and resurrection. And when he does, the disciples don’t even believe him! How could they have been preaching the forgiveness of sin through Christ’s death yet? They could not have, because they had heard nothing about it.

In Mark 9:31 Jesus instructs his disciples about what is about to happen to him. “For he was teaching his disciples and telling them, ‘The Son of Man is to be delivered into the hands of men, and they will kill him; and when he has been killed, he will rise three days later.’” At this point, when he introduced his disciples to DBR, it still wasn’t public knowledge or part of the Gospel. Verse 32 goes on to make this clear: “But they did not understand this statement, and they were afraid to ask him.” The disciples did not understand. And again, in Luke 9:45 they did not understand. They could not have been preaching something they did not understand themselves. It was only after Jesus had been raised that they began to understand. What then did Jesus commission them to preach?

“And he sent them out to proclaim the Kingdom of God and to perform healing” (Luke 9:2). “Departing, they began going throughout the villages, preaching the Gospel and healing everywhere” (Luke 9:6). Jesus sent them out to proclaim the Kingdom of God before they knew anything about the DBR. Note: preaching the Gospel is directly connected to the Kingdom message.

One might ask: After his resurrection, did the Gospel message change from one about the Kingdom to one solely about the DBR? We find that this is not the case. “To these he also presented himself alive after his suffering, by many convincing proofs, appearing to them over period of forty days and speaking of the things concerning the Kingdom of God” (Acts 1:3). Clearly the Gospel was still centered on the Kingdom. For forty days the disciples underwent an intensive “seminar” on the Kingdom of God taught by the King himself.

“His great concern was that men would be led to make that irrevocable decision for the kingdom which would bring them into the present sphere of its saving power so that they would be prepared to enter the kingdom when it should finally come.” [2]

It would be strange to think that the very mission of Jesus would be rejected or glossed over by his personally trained disciples. A change of Gospel is the very opposite of what we see in the book of Acts. After his conversion Paul was dedicated to the same message which had preoccupied Jesus.

“He entered the synagogue and continued speaking out boldly for three months, reasoning and persuading them about the Kingdom of God” (Acts 19:8).

“The continuity between Jesus’ and Paul’s Gospel is unmistakably clear and may be traced throughout Luke’s report of the early Church: Apostolic practice is uniformly to propagate the Message about the Kingdom.” [3]

Not for a moment did Paul abandon the Gospel of the Kingdom to proclaim the Gospel of the grace of God. They are the same thing! Compare Acts 20:24 and 25: “But none of these things move me, nor do I count my life dear unto myself, so that I might finish my course with joy, and the ministry, which I have received of the Lord Jesus, to testify the Gospel of the grace of God. And now, behold, I know that all of you, among whom I have gone preaching the Kingdom of God, shall see my face no more.”

Furthermore, in verse 27, the Kingdom Gospel is called the “whole purpose of God.” Paul did not abandon his wholehearted attachment to the Gospel of the Kingdom (I Cor. 9:23). In Acts 28:23 Paul is in Rome gathering the Jews. “And he expounded the matter to them from morning till evening, testifying to the Kingdom of God and trying to convince them about Jesus both from the law of Moses and from the prophets.”

What we see after the ascension of Christ Jesus is the addition of the DBR, but never to the exclusion of the Kingdom of God. Paul preached to the Jews the Kingdom of God; they rejected it. Therefore, “this salvation of God” was then offered to the Gentiles.” [4] “This salvation of God” is the same as the Gospel of the Kingdom, which is seen in verse 30, 31:

“And he stayed two full years in his own rented quarters and was welcoming all who came to him, preaching the Kingdom of God and teaching concerning the Lord Jesus Christ with all openness, unhindered.” “The Good News about the Kingdom of God was Paul’s message for both Jews and Gentiles.” [5] This means it is also our Good News. Galatians 3:29 tells us that if we belong to Christ then we are Abraham’s descendents, and heirs to the same promises made to Abraham, i.e. the Kingdom of God.

This “two-pronged” Gospel was also preached by Philip in Acts: “But when they believed Philip preaching the good news about the Kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, they were being baptized, men and women alike” (Acts 8:12). Water baptism, the outward sign of entrance into the Christian Church, did not take place simply after they had “accepted Jesus into their heart.” Rather it was only after they believed the Gospel of the Kingdom of God and in Jesus as Messiah and King of that Kingdom and now Lord of their lives, that they could be considered Christians. Does it worry us that today’s Christianity sounds nothing like the early Church? I think it should.

The Kingdom of God Message was one that the Jews understood well. It began with the promises made to Abraham (Gen. 12:1-3) when the land was promised to him and his descendents, who include now all those who are Christ’s. The promises were built upon through the Davidic Covenant. David is promised an heir to rule on his throne forever:

“When your days are complete and you lie down with your fathers, I will raise up your descendant after you, who will come forth from you, and I will establish his Kingdom. He shall build a house for My name, and I will establish the throne of his Kingdom forever. I will be a father to him and he will be a son to Me; when he commits iniquity, I will correct him with the rod of men and the strokes of the sons of men, but My lovingkindness shall not depart from him, as I took it away from Saul, whom I removed from before you. Your house and your kingdom shall endure before Me forever; your throne shall be established forever” (II Sam. 7:12-16).

A Messiah had been promised — a King over God’s Kingdom. God would give David a royal house, kingdom and throne forever. Clearly this hasn’t happened yet, and we are now awaiting the Second Coming of our Lord Christ Jesus to finally establish this promised Kingdom. Jesus is that heir of David. He will return to be King over the whole earth (Ps. 2:8). He will resurrect the faithful to reign with him in righteousness. Eventually a New Jerusalem is going to come down out of heaven and God will dwell with His people on the earth. There will be no more war, suffering or death. God will in fact wipe away all tears from His people’s eyes (Rev. 21:2-4). The followers of Jesus will help him rule the world and the wicked will be destroyed (Rev. 2:26; I Cor. 6:2; Dan. 7:27; Rev. 5:10).

The Jews knew the teachings of the prophets. They were waiting for the time when they would inherit the land. They were expecting the golden age.

“And behold, with the clouds of heaven one like a Son of Man was coming, and he came up to the Ancient of Days and was presented before Him. And to him was given dominion, glory and a kingdom, that all the peoples, nations and men of every language might serve him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion which will not pass away; and his kingdom is one which will not be destroyed…But the saints of the Highest One will receive the kingdom and possess the kingdom forever, for all ages to come” (Dan. 7:13, 14, 18).

This is the Kingdom of God as the Jews understood it. They were not confused in the slightest by Jesus saying, “The meek shall inherit the earth” (Matt. 5:5) or by Jesus’ model prayer, “Thy kingdom come; thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven” (Matt. 6:10). That is exactly what they were waiting for! What they did not understand was that the Messiah had to suffer before he could reign (Isa. Chaps. 52, 53). Tragically they rejected the king they had been waiting for. Luke 1:33 tells us how intimately connected Jesus was to the prophecies of the Hebrew Bible. “And he will reign over the house of Jacob forever” (2 Sam. 7:13, 16; Ps. 89:36, 37; Dan. 2:44; 7:14, 18, 27; Matt. 28:18), “and his kingdom will have no end.”

Jesus Christ died for the Kingdom so that you and I could enter it.

[1] F.C. Grant, The Gospel of the Kingdom, Biblical World 50 (1917), pp. 121-191.

[2] George E. Ladd, Crucial Questions about the Kingdom of God, Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1952, p. 173.

[3] Anthony F. Buzzard, Our Fathers Who Aren’t in Heaven, Restoration Fellowship, 1999, p. 201.

[4] George E. Ladd, The Gospel of the Kingdom, Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1959, p. 127.

[5] Ibid., p. 127.

The above post was taken from: Why One Half Is Not Enough

Divine Agency in the Scriptures by David Burge

Divine Agency in the Scriptures by David Burge

In Hebrew thought, the “first cause” is not always distinguished from “intermediate” or “secondary” causes. That is to say: The principal is not always clearly distinguished from the agent, the one commissioned to carry out an act on behalf of another. Sometimes the agent, standing for the principal, is treated as if he or she were the principal him or herself, though this is not literally so. Principal and agent remain two distinct persons but they act in complete harmony. The agent acts and speaks for his principal.

The Principle of Agency in Scripture

In the Bible there are examples of human principals using fellow humans for agents, of God as divine principal using angelic agents, and of God using human agents. This notion of principal and agent is the key to understanding the relationship between the one true God and His Son, Jesus Christ.

Human Principal and Agency in the Gospels

The concept of principal and agency can actually help us to reconcile what appear otherwise to be contradictions in the parallel accounts found in the synoptic Gospels. So in the account of Jesus healing the centurion’s servant, Matthew speaks of a conversation between the centurion himself and Jesus (Mt. 8:5-13). Luke tells us that the centurion did not in fact come personally. He sent some “Jewish elders” and then some “friends” to Jesus with his requests (Luke 7:1-10). The centurion here is the principal; the Jewish elders and the centurion’s friends are his appointed, commissioned agents. Remembering that in Hebrew thought, the principal and the agent are not always clearly distinguished, Matthew mentions only the principal (the centurion) without distinguishing the agent (the Jewish elders and friends). Luke mentions both principal and agents. To put it another way, in Matthew’s account, the elders (agents) stand for and are treated as the centurion (principal), even though this is not literally true.

Similarly, when Jesus was questioned concerning who might sit next to him in his Kingdom, Mark gives us the impression that James and John themselves personally asked whether they might sit next to Jesus in places of royal authority (Mk. 10:35-40). Matthew tells us that in fact it was the mother of Zebedee’s children who actually made the request to Jesus (Mt. 20:20-23). In this case, Matthew gives the agency (the mother), whereas Mark does not. Again, putting it the other way around, in Matthew’s account the mother (as agent) stands for and is treated as James and John (the principal), even though this is not literally true.

Divine Principal and Human Agency

YAHWEH [The LORD] told Moses that he would be “Elohim [God] to Aaron” (Ex. 4:16). He says, “I have made you Elohim to Pharaoh and your brother Aaron shall be your prophet” (Ex. 7:1). In Exodus 7:17-21 YAHWEH says: “By this you will know that I am YAHWEH: With the staff that is in my hand I will strike the water of the Nile, and it will be changed into blood. The fish in the Nile will die, and the river will stink; the Egyptians will not be able to drink its water.” YAHWEH then says to Moses, “Tell Aaron, ‘Take your staff and stretch out your hand over the waters of Egypt — over the streams and canals, over the ponds and all the reservoirs — and they will turn to blood.’” Moses and Aaron did as YAHWEH had commanded. Aaron raised his staff and struck the water of the Nile “and all the water was changed into blood.”

YAHWEH had said that He Himself would strike the waters with the staff in his own hand. Yet, it was Aaron’s hand that held the rod, and Aaron who struck the Nile. Clearly, Aaron is not God. Rather, Aaron stands as God’s agent, in the place of God. One might even say he is “God,” not literally, but in a manner of (Hebrew) speaking. One might even say in this case that God (as principal) was represented by Moses (the agent), who in turn was represented by Aaron!

Divine Principal and Angelic Agency

Genesis 18 begins by saying that “YAHWEH appeared to Abraham” (v. 1). We read that Abraham “looked up and saw three men” (v. 2). The implication is that one of the three is in a sense YAHWEH. Later it is YAHWEH who says, “I will surely return to you about this time next year” (vv. 10, 13). When the men get up to leave YAHWEH speaks yet again (v. 17). Finally, two of the angelic men turn away. As the NIV has it, “Abraham remained standing before the LORD [YAHWEH]” (v. 22). The alternative, given as a footnote, reads “but the LORD [YAHWEH] remained standing before Abraham.” It was not literally YAHWEH (the principal) who appeared to Abraham; it was an angel (His agent). As agent of YAHWEH, however, the angel is treated as YAHWEH. We know this must be so because the Bible is adamant: No one has seen God (John 1:18; 1 John 4:12; 1 Tim. 6:16). Note too that the one angel who directly represents God is worshiped as God’s agent.

When Jacob wrestled with a heavenly being, he is said to have “seen God face to face.” So Jacob is said to have wrestled with “God” (Gen. 32:24-30). However, we know from the word of YAHWEH to the prophet Hosea that Jacob in struggling against God actually wrestled with an angel (Hos. 12:3-4). Jacob did not literally wrestle with YAHWEH (the principal); it was with an angel (His agent) that he wrestled. However as the agent of YAHWEH the angel is treated as YAHWEH. Again, we know this is so because the Bible insists: No one has ever seen God (John 1:18; 1 John 4:12; 1 Tim. 6:16). So too, when Jacob, as an old man, blessed Joseph’s children he said, “May the God before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac walked, the God who has been my shepherd all my life to this day, the Angel who has delivered me from all harm — may he bless these boys” (Gen. 48:15-16). Surely, God Himself is not an angel, but the angel as His agent represented Him.

Another very clear example of this type of thinking is as follows. According to Deuteronomy 4:12 it was YAHWEH who spoke to Israel “out of the fire” to give them His Law at Sinai. It is said to be YAHWEH’s own voice that they heard. Yet several Scriptures reveal the speaker to have been an angel. Stephen says that “he [Moses] was in the assembly in the wilderness, with the angel who spoke to him on Mount Sinai” (Acts 7:38). He told the Jews, “You have received the law that was put into effect through angels, and have not obeyed it” (v. 53). Paul also says, “The law was put into effect through angels by a mediator [Moses]” (Gal. 3:19). Hebrews 2:2 only serves to confirm this point, saying that the message (the law) was “spoken by angels.” This is no contradiction. YAHWEH did not literally speak “out of the fire.” An angel spoke. However as the agent of YAHWEH the angel is treated as YAHWEH. It is as if YAHWEH actually spoke. ...

“The Angel of the Lord [YAHWEH]”

When Hagar saw the angel of YAHWEH she said, “I have now seen the one who sees me” (Gen. 16:7-14), referring to God. The angel of God said to Jacob, “I am the God of Bethel, where you anointed a pillar” (Gen 31:11-13; cf. 28:16). While it is said that “the angel of YAHWEH” appeared to Moses from within the burning bush, it was God who called to him “from within the bush” (Ex. 3:1-5). Manoah, realizing he had seen “the angel of YAHWEH,” said to his wife, “We have seen God!” (Jud. 13:20). So too, works attributed to the “angel of YAHWEH” are attributed to YAHWEH himself. The angel is said to have brought Israel out of Egypt (Ex. 3:7-8, Jud. 2:1). He is said to have sworn to give the land to the seed of Abraham (Gen. 15:18; Jud. 2:1). It was he who is said to have “cut a covenant” with Israel (Gen. 15:18; Jud. 2:1).

Many suggest that the angel of YAHWEH is a manifestation of YAHWEH Himself. Some even suggest that the angel of YAHWEH is a pre-incarnate (pre-human) form of Jesus Christ. If you believe this—Scripture is clear on this point—we suggest that you are mistaken. The book of Hebrews makes much of the supremacy of the Son and the superiority of his ministry over that of God’s servants, the angels (1:5-14). It is because the ministry of the word in the Son is superior to theirs that it must not be neglected. If the message “spoken by angels” (see the previous section) was binding, the saving Gospel message that comes by the Son is more so (2:1-4). While the Son was “made a little lower than the heavenly beings” (Heb. 2:7, 9), the “angels” of the LXX (Gk version of the OT) (Ps. 8:4-5), he has been exalted far above them by God the Father. He who is so superior to the angels cannot himself be an angel. One of the greatest truths revealed by Hebrews (1:1-2) is that God expressly did not speak through His Son in the Old Testament times. That is because the Son was not yet living. He had not yet been brought into existence (begotten) in Mary’s womb (Matt. 1:20; Luke 1:35).

To say that the angel of YAHWEH is YAHWEH Himself is inaccurate and imprecise. The angel of YAHWEH is the agent of YAHWEH and thus stands for YAHWEH Himself. Exodus 23:20-21 makes this clear: YAHWEH says, “See, I am sending an angel ahead of you, to guard you along the way and to bring you to the place I have prepared. Pay attention to him and listen to what he says. Do not rebel against him; he will not forgive your rebellion, since my name is in him.” As YAHWEH’s chosen representative, the angel speaks whatever he is told to speak by YAHWEH. The people are to obey the angel’s voice because “my [God’s] name is in him.” That is, the angel represents God when he is sent on a mission from God.

Has Anyone Ever Seen God?

When God confirmed His covenant with Israel, it is said of Moses, Aaron, Nadab, Abihu, and the 70 elders that they “saw the God of Israel” (Ex. 24:9-11). So too, in Exodus 33:17-23, Moses is said to have seen God’s “back.” God would not allow Moses to see His face when He passed because “no man can see Me and live.” Note, in verse 20, in God’s own words, “seeing God’s face” and “seeing God” are synonymous. Seeing God’s “back” is akin to seeing “God’s glory” (Ex. 33:18, 22), which Moses did indeed see. As the writer to the Hebrews puts it, Moses “saw Him who is invisible” (Heb. 11:27). How is it then that the Bible is so clear: “No one has ever seen God”? (John 1:18; 1 John 4:12). He “lives in unapproachable light, whom no one has seen or can see” (1 Tim. 6:16). The only explanation available to us is that none of these worthies ever literally saw God. Rather they saw God’s agent, His chosen representative, who spoke with the authority of YAHWEH as though he were YAHWEH. They saw the angel of YAHWEH. In exactly the same manner Jesus said “He who has seen me has seen my Father” (John 14:9).

The Messiah as God’s Agent

There are a number of texts where titles explicitly referring to God in the Jewish Scriptures are referred to Jesus in the Christian Scriptures. Many take this as proof positive that the two are One in a Trinitarian sense, that is, two Persons in the One Essence of God. Comparing Scripture with Scripture, in line with all that has gone before, it can easily be shown that these verses teach the vital truth that YAHWEH is the principal and the Messiah is His agent. As His appointed representative Messiah stands in the place of God, but is not literally God any more than Moses, Aaron or any of the angels who stand in the place of God are literally God.

Jesus as Savior

The Jewish Scriptures are clear on this point: God is the sole Savior of Israel. YAHWEH says, “I am YAHWEH, your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior” (Is. 43:3); “apart from Me there is no savior” (Is. 43:11; cf. 45:15, 21; 49:26; 60:16; 63:8). Nevertheless, Moses, as God’s agent, is called a savior (Acts 7:35; Compare: Acts 7:27 and Ex. 2:14; 18:13). The judges, as God’s appointed agents, are also called saviors (Jud. 3:9, 15; Neh. 9:27; ...). The prophets speak of other human agents, yet future, who will save Israel (Is. 19:20, Obad. 21).

Of course the Apostles acknowledge God as their Savior also. They speak of God as “our Savior” (1 Tim. 1:1; Tit. 1:4) and as “the Savior of all men” (1 Tim. 4:10). For them “the grace of God [the Father] brings salvation” (Tit. 2:10). But in true Biblical fashion, they also refer to Jesus, God’s ultimate agent, as Savior. He was born a Savior (Luke 2:10-11) and not just the Savior of Israel but “the world” (John 4:42). “Salvation is found in no one else.” There is “no other name” than that of Jesus “by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12). They were eagerly awaiting that Savior, Jesus Christ (Phil. 3:20). This does not however prove that Jesus is the LORD God any more than the fact that Moses and the judges of Israel are called savior, makes them literally Divine. There is indeed only one ultimate Savior who is the God and Father of Jesus. Jesus is also savior as the perfect agent of the One supreme Savior. Salvation derives as Jude 25 says from “the only God” who is our principal savior “through” His agent Jesus Christ.

Jesus as Shepherd

Without doubt God is the principal “shepherd” over Israel (Gen. 49:24; Ps. 80:1; Jer. 31:10; Ezek. 34:11-16). David said, “YAHWEH is my shepherd” (Ps. 23). “We are His people, the sheep of His pasture” (Ps. 100). The prophet Isaiah agrees, saying, “He [YAHWEH] tends His flock like a shepherd” (Is. 40:11). However He shepherds His people Israel through His agents. Thus the elders of Israel were God’s appointed shepherds (2 Sam. 7:7). David himself was appointed by God to shepherd Israel (2 Sam. 5:1-3; 1 Chr. 11:1-3; Ps. 78:71). Then also a future greater “David,” the Messiah, was predicted to be God’s appointed shepherd over Israel (Ezek. 34:23-24).

Is it any wonder that Jesus, God’s ultimate agent, should refer to himself as “the good shepherd” (John 10:11, 14) or that his Apostles refer to “our Lord Jesus” as “that great shepherd of the sheep” (Heb. 13:20) and “the shepherd and overseer [bishop]” of our souls (1 Pet. 2:25). Nevertheless, this does not prove that Jesus is literally YAHWEH transmuted into flesh, any more than the fact that the elders of Israel and King David being styled shepherds of Israel proves them to be God incarnate.

Jesus as Judge

God is the principal judge of the whole earth (Gen. 18:25; 1 Sam. 2:10; 1 Chr. 16:33; Ps. 50:3-4; 67:4; 94:1-2; 96:13; 98:9); yet though it is said that God Himself is judge (Ps. 50:6) and that God Himself will bring every deed into judgment, “including every hidden thing, whether it is good or evil” (Ecc. 12:14), God has chosen and commissioned human agents as judges to execute God’s judgment throughout Israel’s history.

Comparing Scripture with Scripture we discover that Jesus, God’s ultimate agent, actually stands for God and will judge all things at the end. “He [Jesus] will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will expose the motives of men’s hearts” (1 Cor. 4:5). “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ” (2 Cor. 5:10) when he will judge “the living and the dead” (2 Tim. 4:1).

When the Son of Man comes “all the nations will be gathered before him” (Matt. 25:31-46). The Father will actually judge no one. He has “entrusted all judgment to the Son” (John 5:22-27). The Father “has set a day when He will judge the world with justice” but through the agency of “the man He has appointed” (Acts 17:31). Note that the Son does not judge in his own right but only because the Father entrusts judgment to the Son (John 5:22-27). And the Son is styled man and not God. That of course is because there is only One God, and not two!

Jesus as the Rock or Stone of Stumbling

Peter applies to Jesus the text describing the Messiah as “a stone that causes men to stumble and a rock that makes them fall” (Is. 8:14; cp. 1 Pet. 2:8). Again, remember Jesus is God’s agent. Thus when Isaiah says, “YAHWEH will be a stumbling stone,” he allows for the fact that God causes Israel to stumble over Jesus His agent. “The stone the builders rejected has become the capstone; YAHWEH has done this, and it is marvelous in our eyes” (Ps. 118:22, 23).

Jesus as the Coming One

In Isaiah 40:10 we read, “See, the Sovereign YAHWEH comes with power, and His arm rules for Him. See, His reward is with Him, and His recompense accompanies Him.” Clearly, the Sovereign YAHWEH is the Father. The phrase “His arm” may be taken to refer to Messiah (John 12:38), but “the Sovereign YAHWEH” is the coming one; it is He who brings His reward with Him. Yet the Christian Scriptures repeatedly tell us that Jesus is the coming one (Rev. 22:7, 12, 20). Our reward is with him (Rev. 22:12). This is not because Jesus is God but because Jesus as His representative stands in place of Him.

Zechariah 14:4 should be seen in this light as well. “On that day His feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, east of Jerusalem, and the Mount of Olives will be split in two from east to west, forming a great valley, with half of the mountain moving north and half moving south.” In the Jewish Scriptures “His feet” are YAHWEH’s feet. Christians believe it is Jesus who is returning to set up his Kingdom upon earth. But rather than jumping to the erroneous conclusion that Jesus is YAHWEH we should understand that, as YAHWEH’s agent, Jesus’ feet are spoken of as God’s feet in exactly the same way as Aaron’s hand is spoken of as YAHWEH’s hand (remember Ex. 7:17-19).

All the Second Coming passages in the OT are referred to God, but in the NT to Jesus. Since there is only one God, we know that Jesus cannot be God (which would make two!). The principle of agency steps in to provide a wonderfully satisfying solution to the apparent puzzle. God acts through and in His beloved Son and also in His sons.

Jesus as King of Kings, Lord of Lords, etc.

Surely, the same reasoning applies to Jesus’ being called “King of Kings and Lord of Lords” (... Rev. 17:14; Rev. 19:16), ... the first and the last (Isa. 44:6; 48:12; Rev. 1:17; Rev. 22:13), the Rock (1 Sam. 2:2; Ps. 18:2; 31:2; 89:26; Is. 17:10-11; Mt. 16:16; 1 Cor. 10:4; 1 Pet. 2:4, 6) and so on. Jesus stands in this relationship to YAHWEH not because he is YAHWEH in a literal sense, but because as God’s ultimate agent he stands for YAHWEH in a way that supersedes the status of Moses and Aaron or any of the angels, even the angel of YAHWEH, who preceded the time of Jesus.

Zechariah and the “Thirty Pieces of Silver”

Perhaps one more example will drive the point home. The prophet Zechariah [in Chapter 11], speaking about himself and recording an event in his own life, pictures his prophetic ministry as the shepherding of sheep. When he challenged the leaders of Israel to give him the wages due him, they gave him instead the price of a slave (30 pieces of silver). This surely was an insult worse than if they had not paid him at all. So YAHWEH told the prophet to throw it to the potter.

“And YAHWEH said to me, ‘Throw it to the potter, the handsome price at which they priced Me!’ So I took the thirty pieces of silver and threw them into the house of YAHWEH to the potter” (11:13). It may be that YAHWEH Himself speaks of being priced at 30 pieces of silver, but it was Zechariah who was so paid. Are we to assume that Zechariah is Almighty God? Not at all! Rather, in so pricing Zechariah YAHWEH’s agent, they thus priced YAHWEH Himself. So when Jesus was betrayed for 30 pieces of silver (Mt. 26:14-15; 27:3-10) they betrayed YAHWEH for 30 pieces of silver. We need no more conclude, therefore, that Jesus is YAHWEH in a Trinitarian sense, than we would conclude that Zechariah is YAHWEH. The Trinitarian idea of God in three Persons had not been imagined in NT times. A fine recent study by a German scholar, One or Three? by Karl-Heinz Ohlig, says, “The Trinity possesses no biblical foundation whatsoever” (p. 130).

Conclusion

A Jewish understanding of the law of agency is expressed in the dictum: “A person’s agent is regarded as the person himself.” God appointed Jesus the Messiah as His agent. As such anything he does is regarded as though the Almighty Himself did it. One trusts the principal in trusting the agent. This notion of principal and agency helps us to understand why if you do not honor the Son, you do not honor the Father (John 5:23; 15:23). By refusing to honor and love the agent you are refusing to honor and love the principal. We see in Jesus a perfect reflection of his principal. He who has seen and heard Jesus has seen and heard the Father (John 14:9, 10; 10:38). And remember that people should be able to see God and Jesus in you, since Christians are also God’s agents to bear the saving Gospel of the Kingdom to others.

The above post was taken from:

Divine Agency in the Scriptures

A COMPILATION OF POSTS PERTINENT FOR THIS SEASON!

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Was the Baby in the Manger….GOD?
By Angela

“The Christmas message rests on the staggering fact the child in the manger was—God.”
—J. I. Packer, Knowing God (InterVarsity Press, 1993).

If you could be a little fly on the wall, in most churches spread across this great nation of ours, during the Advent Season, you might hear the Pastor speak words such as these: “Welcome to our church this morning! We are celebrating that Jesus humbled himself to be born a baby. Although Jesus was God, he took on the form of man, so that he could die for our sins, so that we might be saved.” If you heard this, you might not think anything about it, and just continue on your “merry” Christmas way, celebrating the season and the birth of the Christ-Child. But, I’d like you to take a moment to ponder what we are really celebrating at this time of year.

First, we go to the Gospels. There are four gospels in our Bibles, and only two, Matthew and Luke, provide us any detail of the infamous ‘Nativity scene’ that is always portrayed in children’s Christmas programs. Listen to the actual verses and what they are telling us: “But when he (Joseph) had considered this, behold, an angel of the LORD appeared to him in a dream saying, Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife; for that which has been conceived (gennao) in her is of
the Holy Spirit.” Matthew 1:20.

The Holy Spirit, which is the same thing as “The Spirit of God” in the Old Testament, is the mind and energy behind the works and word of God. Simply speaking, the Spirit is God’s power. This power caused Mary to miraculously conceive in her womb, a baby. Conceive, or in Greek, gennao, means to be begotten – come into existence. Jesus was brought into existence by God through God’s Spirit. If Jesus was brought into existence at the moment of conception, he was clearly not existing prior to being ‘begotten.’ The Scriptures are very clear on this that Jesus is the only begotten Son of God and clearly presents the facts of exactly when he was begotten and how he was begotten and by whom he was begotten. There is no mystery in this. God lays it all out for us, clearly, simply, concisely in both Matthew and Luke.
Luke 1:35 gives us further detail on this matter: “And the angel answered and said to her, The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; and for that reason, the holy thing begotten shall be called the Son of God.” For that reason, or because of Jesus’ supernatural birth [by] the divine intervention of the Almighty God; created Jesus in the womb of Mary, and because of this, his title would be “Son of God.”

Just as God created man (Adam, the first man) in Genesis 1-2, God created Jesus in the womb of a virgin, Mary, and Jesus would later also be called the ‘last Adam.’ (I Corinthians 15:45). Look at I Corinthians 15:20-23 and Romans 5:10-15 to explain further the importance of ‘the one man
Jesus Christ’ who was a type of Adam (uniquely created by God). Adam brought sin and death into the world, but Jesus, through his obedience to God to the point of death, brought grace and eternal life.

When we celebrate the birth of Jesus, we are not celebrating the falsehood that is so prevalent today: that God came down to earth in the form of a baby! This is not found in Scripture. Jesus humbled himself, yes! But, if you read the context of this ‘humbling’, found in Philippians 2 (which is where most people substantiate this claim), it is all about the fact that Jesus was obedient to God to the point of his dying on the cross, and because of this reason, God highly exalted Jesus and gave him every authority, power, dominion, and name possible to bestow upon him! Although Jesus was born to be the King of all nations, he didn’t behave pompously and arrogantly, demanding to be served. Instead, he behaved humbly and obeyed God in every possible way, costing him his life. Jesus was then rewarded with a resurrection from the dead and eternal life, just as we too, will be rewarded with a resurrection from the dead, and the gift of eternal life.

Numbers 23:19 says, “God is not a man;”
Hosea 11:9 says, “I am God and not man,” and
Job 33:12 says
“God is greater than man.”

Jesus didn’t pre-exist as God, to humble himself to be born as a baby in the manger. To teach and believe this, is to believe in something that is contrary to the Scriptures.

We are celebrating the fact that our Messiah, the Christ, the Anointed One, the King of a coming Kingdom was born, and that he is coming back! ... Our everyday lives should be all about this, living an alert, watchful eye for his return, so we will be ready!

Let us rephrase the quote from above to read as the following:
The "Christmas" message rests on the staggering fact: the child in the manger was the Lord Messiah, who would die for our sins, be raised from the dead by the power of God, and who was exalted by God to be above every other dominion, authority and power. It rests on the good news or the gospel, that this same Jesus will return and set up an earthly Kingdom that will be everlasting, and we will reign and rule with him forever and ever. Amen.

 

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In Luke 1:32-33, the angels give us the tip off that it’s all about Jesus being the Christ, the King of an everlasting Kingdom, who will be anointed by the Spirit of God:
“He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High; and the LORD God will give him the throne of his father David; and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; and his kingdom will have no end.”

What kingdom is this referring to? The modern-day ‘church’ as some suppose? Heaven? I think it’s made very clear in Daniel 7, that this is all about a futuristic kingdom – a kingdom in the ‘age to come’ that is yet to be established, and will have no end.

Daniel 7:14 says, “And to him (the Messiah) was given dominion, glory and a kingdom, that all the peoples, nations and men of every language might serve him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion which will not pass away; and his kingdom is one which will not be destroyed.” Verse 18 says, “But the holy ones of the Highest One will receive the kingdom and possess the kingdom forever, for all ages to come.” Verse 27 goes on to say, “Then the sovereignty, the dominion, and the greatness of all the kingdoms under the whole heaven will be given to the people of the saints of the Highest One; His kingdom will be an everlasting kingdom and all the dominions will serve and obey him.”

This certainly hasn’t happened yet. But when? At Jesus’ return, it all begins to unfold. I Corinthians 15:20-28 gives us a clear and simple time line of these future events. First, Christ will come back to the earth and the dead [in Christ] will be resurrected, then Jesus must rule and reign with his holy ones (that’s us, in our new immortal, imperishable bodies!), until he has put all his enemies under his feet. Then, he will deliver the kingdom to God and Father at the very end, when the earth will be restored, and then God will be all in all, and will dwell with mankind. (Revelation 21).

This kingdom we are looking for will be a time of justice, righteousness and peace. This king of the kingdom we are looking for will be coming back to the earth. This king is the Lord Messiah Jesus. As we celebrate this Advent season, we not only celebrate his birth (the first coming), but his second coming, when God’s word will be fulfilled and accomplished through His only begotten Son.

Ron Walters recently sent out an email devotional from crosswalk.com and he wrote what is so prevalently heard in churches today,

“It was little ol’ Bethlehem, but it was big enough. The omnipresent God had no problems fitting in. It was quite a contrast trading the throne room of heaven for a stable, angels for cattle, hallelujahs for a lullaby. Bethlehem had its share of visitors, but never one like this. The prophets had given the pieces of the puzzle, but at first glance they didn’t seem to fit. The Alpha and Omega was born. The Ancient of Days had the skin of a newborn. The same voice which spoke the creation into being had the familiar ring of baby-talk. A child was born of a virgin. Never before had The Eternal become so tiny, the Almighty become so helpless. He had out-muscled Pharaoh’s army, now he was held in Mary’s arms. The eyes that see the beginning to the end, could hardly open. The God who never slumbers was now fast asleep. Angels were dispatched to spread the word. First stop–a group of shepherds. It was just one sentence, only one verse, 19 small words, “For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, which is Christ the Lord.”

 

“The Ancient of Days” did not have the skin of a newborn!!

In fact, Daniel 7:13 gives us a clear visualization of the Son of Man
(Jesus, the Messiah) being presented to the Ancient of Days, and God giving Jesus dominion and glory and a kingdom in verse 14. Nothing so eloquently describes this relationship between God and His Christ and the hope of the Kingdom that will have no end in the age to come, in which we, too will possess (Daniel 7:18).

This Advent Season is NOT a celebration of the birth of a God-Man or an “Ancient of Days talking baby talk”;
but the celebration of the supernatural, miraculous, unique birth of Jesus by God’s power, who created the “last Adam” when He begat Jesus. Jesus was and still is a man, who has been given the title of “Son of God” just like Adam was given that title, in Luke 3:38, “... Adam, the Son of God.”

We, too, are sons (and daughters!). Based on Galatians 4:7, we are sons, and heirs to the promise made to Abraham, heirs of the world (Gal. 3:29; Romans 4:13).

God provided for us, through Jesus, a Savior for our sins, which gives us entrance into the kingdom in the age to come, to inherit the gift of eternal life. God has saved us, through the shedding of Jesus’ sacrificial blood (Jesus is called the “Lamb of God” in Scripture also). This King,
Lord Messiah Jesus will return to the earth and establish his God and Father’s kingdom, without end, in which we will take part and reign with him and live for eternity.

It’s a beautiful story of Redemption. Restoration. And has a very happy ending, if we accept this good news, repent of our sins, and be baptized, then live an obedient life of faith in Jesus.

Let us celebrate the Advent of our King! It is indeed something to celebrate and look forward to with great anticipation! As John pens in Revelation 22:20, “Come, Lord Jesus!”

...

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The above 2 posts were taken from:

Was the Baby in the Manger….God? (part 1)

Was the Baby in the Manger….God? (part 2)

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Some Thoughts About Incarnation and Resurrection
By Keith

Christmas is the time of year when Christians celebrate the birth of Christ. Never mind all the tradition and commercial baggage that the holiday has acquired over the years, or the fact that Jesus was probably not even born in December; it is still recognized as one of the holiest days on the Christian calendar. We talk about the Christmas “spirit” which is a spirit of peace and love, and we give gifts to one another in remembrance of the greatest gift ever given, the gift that God gave to the world – His Son. Now I’m all for peace and love and the giving of gifts… that’s a good thing; but at the same time, I’m concerned that the real meaning and impact of the Christmas story is lost in all the hype of the Christmas holiday.

It seems to me that religious tradition and retail business have joined forces to mask the real story of Christmas – the one the Bible actually teaches. When one carefully reads the accounts of Jesus' birth in the Scripture it becomes obvious that many liberties have been taken to embellish the story. Commercialism hasn’t embellished it, but religious tradition has certainly done so.

It is an interesting fact that, aside from Matthew and Luke and a few Old Testament prophecies, neither the birth of Christ nor any details of his birth are mentioned anywhere else in Scripture. The birth event is a given. In fact, there is no clear record of any Christian group celebrating the birth of Christ before around the 4th century CE. Interesting, to say the least. Of course his birth is an important fact of history, but the central tenet of the Christian faith is that God raised Jesus from the dead! The resurrection of Christ is the foundation of Christianity. Paul said,

“For I passed on to you as of first importance what I also received — that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures, and that he was buried, and that he was raised on the third day according to the scriptures ...

Now if Christ is being preached as raised from the dead ... And if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is futile and your faith is empty ...

For if the dead are not raised, then not even Christ has been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is useless; you are still in your sins. Furthermore, those who have fallen asleep in Christ have also perished. For if only in this life we have hope in Christ, we should be pitied more than anyone. But now Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. For since death came through a man,the resurrection of the dead also came through a man."
-- 1 Cor 15:3-21 (NET)

The 4th – 5th centuries were a turning point for Christianity. At that time the creeds were formulated, demanding belief in the deity of Christ as a requirement for salvation. Today, the Christian Church celebrates the Christmas story, telling about how Christ was born, but beneath the plain words of Scripture lies the teaching that his birth was not really a birth at all, but an “incarnation”. I question whether most ordinary Christians even understand what “incarnation” means! Literally, it is “enfleshment” – the taking on of human flesh. The whole idea of pre-existence comes into play here. Now, rather than a savior being “born” we have a being who always existed as God, entered the womb of a young girl and became a human, literally wrapping himself in human flesh. It's interesting that Paul did not include this in his list of things of "first importance."
Certainly, if the incarnation were a true Biblical fact, it would be of great importance!

I don’t mean to be crude in the use of this artwork, but when I finally got my head out of the sand I didn’t like what I saw! I realize that I had been misled. How foolish I felt, not to have discovered the simple truth before! I pray that somehow, God will use me, use this blog, to help others get their heads out of the sand as well.

 

 I like what the the authors of “One God and One Lord” write in a footnote on page 369 of their book.

"The reader can decide for himself which of the following sounds more logical and scriptural:
a) God Himself became a man, coming down to earth from heaven to do a job. He is treated poorly while trying to do the job, and is killed. He then raises Himself from the dead and goes back to where He came from, declaring Himself victorious.
b) God created a human being, whom God prepared and commissioned to do a job. The man comes from a humble, earthly origin, is treated poorly and killed. Because he did such a good job, however, God raised him from the dead and promoted him to an exalted position in heaven."

The incarnation has led us away from the resurrection, in so far as vital Christian doctrine is concerned.
Even John Knox, one of the reformers, warned:

“the more fully the logic of pre-existence is allowed to work itself out in the story [of Jesus], the less important the [his] resurrection is bound to become.”

There is no better, no more beautiful, way to tell the story of Jesus’ birth than is given in the pages of holy Scripture. There is no need to embellish the truth as God gave it. I don't wish to stop celebrating Christmas, I simply think it should be understood accurately!

And when I hear from Christian leaders that the incarnation is of primary importance to the Christian faith, I cringe.

The central point of the Christian faith is NOT that God became a man to save man from his sin; but that God commissioned a man who died and was buried, whom God raised from the dead as the "firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep", and by whom we also might obtain immortality, through faith in him. (1 Cor 15:20-21)

This is the Christian hope! Jesus lived a sinless life and was obedient to death and God raised him from the dead, exalting him to the highest place of honor, making him both Lord and Christ. (Phil 2:8-11; Acts 2:36) Through his death, atonement for our sin has been made, and by faith, we will also live as he now lives.

He truly is, as James Moffatt puts it, our “divine hero”!

“For a child has been born to us, a son has been given to us; the royal dignity he wears, and this the title that he bears –
A wonder of a counselor, a divine hero, a father for all time, a peaceful prince!”
 – Isaiah 9:6 (Moffatt)

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The above post was taken from:

Some Thoughts About Incarnation and Resurrection

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Interpreting Jesus’ Birth
By Sean

 

Interpretation #1:
From eternity past the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit existed as a community of one, perfect in love, harmony, and joy. In the enternal counsels of this triune God the plan of salvation for the yet-to-be-created human race was decreed. The only question was who would go. Overwhelmed with self-sacrificial love, the Son volunteered to humble himself by uniting humanity to his divinity, veiling his deity by taking on human flesh. Two thousand years ago, this salvation plan was carried out by the second person of the Trinity. He entered the virgin womb of Mary and suddenly she became pregnant with God the Son. He was perfect God and perfect man, not half divine and half human like Hercules, but fully God and fully man in a totally unique way. This incredible event is called the incarnation—the moment when God became man for our salvation. In fact, the cross is not really the most important event for redemption, the incarnation is. For without the humbling act of God giving up his divine prerogatives to condescend to the lowly state of a first century Palestinian Jew, the cross would mean nothing. Thus, in the grand scheme of things, the incarnation is the premier event that brought God to man so that man could be reconciled with God.

 

Interpretation #2:
Throughout all of human history, from the instant God promised to defeat the serpent through a descendant of Eve, God has been working to bring his plan into fruition. A millennium before Christ a Jewish king was promised that one of his descendants would rule over Israel forever. God promised King David that he [would] father this descendant who then [would be] both a son of David and a son of God. Generation after generation, Jewish women of Davidic ancestry hoped that they might be the one to give birth to the Messiah. Then, two thousand years ago, a Jewish teenager from a tiny village in northern Galilee was visited by the angel Gabriel. She was informed that she would have a son through a divine miracle. This child would be great; he would be called the son of the Most High; he would rule over Jacob on the throne of David forever. In the face of suffering a scandalous reputation, Mary, a model believer for all subsequent generations, said, “May it be done to me according to your word.” In fact, Joseph, Mary’s fiancé, nearly broke the engagement off when he found out that she was pregnant, that is, until an angel intervened to confirm what she had said. Thus, the Davidic King was born—the one who would be anointed to rule Israel, and through Israel to bless all of the nations; the one who would set right the whole series of wrongs that had begun with Adam; the one who would voluntarily give up his own righteous life on behalf of others who did not deserve it.
Finally, at long last, the Messiah, Jesus of Nazareth, was born.

 

Which story will you be thinking about this holiday season? Though most Christians have no difficulty in combining these two descriptions of Jesus’ birth, we would do well to recognize that the two have different origins. One derives its content from the theologically complex propositions of Christian philosophers which were developed many years after the New Testament had been completed. The other is taken directly from the Scriptures. If the former is correct it necessarily casts a long shadow upon the latter and it effectively eclipses the simplicity and elegance of the historical facts about Jesus. Whereas the first version extols the self-sacrificial act of God the Son who existed apart from and prior to humanity, the second focuses on how God carried out his plans within time by working within the human race.

In the first, the message is that humanity is a depraved and helpless species in need of alien salvation.
The second conveys the idea that God is able to save mankind through a man, which thereby gives dignity and hope to all humans. In fact, from the point of view of the second account, Jesus is a new Adam—a new humanity—who succeeds where the former had failed. He gives the human race hope that, with God’s help, we can overcome sin and death.

God does not throw up his hands in frustration and say to himself,
“I guess I’ll just have to go down there and do it myself,” instead, God looks down and says “these people are made in my image, they are worth saving, and I have a plan to work through human frailty to save them all.” Thus, through the weakness of human flesh God brought about salvation in and through the quintessential man who willingly resisted the temptation to rebel and instead humbly obeyed his Father to the uttermost. Our Lord could have sinned, he could have fallen prey to the deceptiveness of the Serpent, he could have grasped for equality with God, he could have esteemed his own life too precious to lay down; he could have chosen to exert his royal authority to rule over the world as a co-ruler with the god of this age; he could have called legions of angels to protect him from torture and death at the hands of twisted men; he could have come off the cross in a staggering demonstration of his innocence; but he did not. This miracle man consistently and tirelessly walked the narrow path that his Father had set for him.

Hallelujah! Praise to God who loved so much that he gave his only begotten son. Praise to Jesus who loved so much that he obeyed his God to his last strained breath. It is a beautiful story, a story too easily lost when overlaid with mythology and too easily cheapened with an indestructible God in the guise of human flesh.

May God give us courage to share the Bible’s real story with others who have been duped into substituting the flashy counterfeit for what really happened.

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 The above post was taken from:

Interpreting Jesus’ Birth

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The Bewildering, Contradictory Claims as to What the Bible Teaches

The Bewildering, Contradictory Claims

as to What the Bible Teaches

The Bible reader who sincerely desires to discover the will of God, to understand what God has revealed in Scripture, is faced with a daunting task. A veritable jungle of differing teachings confronts him as he considers the thousands of denominational options available in the "church marketplace."

It is hard for us who produce Focus on the Kingdom to believe the Bible is responsible for such a smorgasbord of conflicting points of view. About 10%, probably, of first-century Jews and Gentiles were literate. They relied on what they heard preached and taught by word of mouth. Certainly the Hebrew Scriptures were read weekly in the synagogue, and the intrepid Paul was believed, by virtue of his extraordinary apostolic office, to be writing Scripture (2 Pet. 3:16). But does the Scripture present its teachings so poorly and unclearly as to warrant the amazing fragmentation we find today?

Denominations are testimony to the appearance of distinct denominational leaders, who invite their followers to distance themselves from other Christian groups, in the interest of promoting the "correct" understanding of God’s will in Scripture. At your door are earnest Jehovah’s Witnesses claiming to possess a unique point of view vested in the Watchtower organization (Awake magazine). Adherents believe the Watchtower to be God’s only genuine promoter of divine truth. Twenty million Seventh-Day Adventists, holding in high regard their founder Ellen G. White’s vision ... Roman Catholics see in the Pope an infallible guide to truth. The Pope is thought to be the sole authorized successor to the apostle Peter. Their elaborate system of veneration of Mary as intercessor in heaven offers comfort to millions who strongly believe that Mary, "the mother of God," aids them in their daily struggles.

Believers in conditional immortality are convinced about what they hold is plain scriptural teaching, that Mary and all the dead are currently unconscious, sleeping the sleep of death (Ps. 13:3; Ecc. 9:5, 10), until they awake in the future resurrection (Dan. 12:2; Luke 14:14). The dead then will reemerge as whole persons, wakened from their sleep of death, only when the seventh trumpet sounds at Jesus’ return (Rev. 11:15-18).

...

Mormons are no less enthusiastic about their conviction that their prophet Joseph Smith was the vehicle of extra revelation, in addition to the Bible, ... So called "non-denominational" churches are not really that. They claim no label like "Baptist" or "Methodist" but their belief system is very similar to any of the fundamentalist churches, such as Baptists. They sometimes insist that the King James Bible is the only reliable testimony to the will of God. Pentecostals are discontent with what they see in the various denominations ...

An umbrella teaching common to many of the groups so far mentioned is the conviction that the real badge of authenticity is the belief that the God of the Bible and the universe is a triune Being, a Godhead known as the Trinity. This ancient teaching held in common by both Protestants and Roman Catholics finds in the Bible Jesus’ claim to "be God," a full member of the Deity who is one essence in three Persons.

But Jehovah’s Witnesses are vigorous opponents of this Trinitarian idea of God and door to door promote the teaching that Jesus was originally the archangel Michael. This view of Jesus sets them apart from their fellow non-Trinitarians, the United Pentecostal Church, who claim that the Father and the Son are the same one God, a single Person. Their understanding is known as the "Oneness" view of God.

Within the so-called Bible churches there are differences of "interpretation" about the future destiny of Christians. Held in common, however, is the conviction that the "wicked" are now being and will continue to be tormented consciously forever and ever. ...

The New Testament is clear in its disapproval of the major denominational differences we have outlined. "I wish above all things," Paul wrote to the Corinthian believers, "that you all say the same thing, that you be perfectly united in one mind and one judgment" (1 Cor. 1:10). Jesus had prayed that his followers all be "one," as Father and Son are one in harmonious agreement (John 17:11). What became of that prayer? It seems not to accord with the patent absence of unity within Christendom. Thousands of Christian groupings, all separately labeled, meet in isolation from differing forms of the faith, and maintain a sense of coherence by concentrating on what makes them different from other denominations.

What sense can we make of all this? Some of us found ourselves disenchanted with the denominational affiliation into which we were born. We were thus launched on a fascinating journey of faith as we tried to sort out the myriad differences found in the various groups claiming Jesus’ name. Trinity or non-Trinity? The dead in heaven and hell now, or resting unconscious in their graves? Could Jesus return at any moment and remove the faithful from the earth in a secret pretribulation rapture, or will Jesus return just once to resurrect the dead and inaugurate his Kingdom on earth? Or will the Kingdom not be on earth at all, but rather in a celestial location? And what is the Gospel? With the past 50 years behind me, in which I have been privileged for many years to teach in a small Bible college, I present the following suggestions as to where the truth lies. Readers are urged to ponder these important issues.

Who is God? Is the answer to this question really so fearfully complex? ... Suppose for a moment that Truth resides in a few clear, plain and simple propositions. Suppose that it was the avoidance of the plain and simple Bible propositions which led inevitably to confusion and diversity.

Try this for a supremely beautiful and easy statement defining God: “You, Father,” Jesus said, “are the only one who is truly God” (John 17:3).

Can anyone else be “truly God,” if the Father of Jesus is “the only one who is truly God”? The Greek of the Bible gives us these lucid words: The Father is the “MONOS [only, unique] alethinos [true, genuine] THEOS [God].”

Do you see here the roots of our English word “monotheism,” which summarizes the fundamental appeal of the Bible to avoid any God but the one true God?

Look again. Who did Jesus believe was that “one true God” of monotheism? Plainly and conclusively it was his Father who is “the only one [monos] who is truly God [theos].”

Do you need an army of learned linguists to help you grasp this sublime statement of Jesus? “The Father is the only one who is truly God.”

Jesus makes this statement in the context of his definitive statement about “eternal life.” “Eternal life is this: that they believe in you [Father] as the only one who is truly God” (John 17:3).

Jesus the Master Rabbi’s shattering proposition about the Father as “the only one who is truly God” (John 17:3) has the potential to cause the denominational barriers to tumble. It has enormous power to engage the interest of Muslims and Jews and Christians and move them to enter into a new and meaningful dialogue. At present these three huge world religions are at loggerheads over the definition of how many and who God is.

When the creed of Jesus expressed in John 17:3 is taken to heart and the evident departure from it represented by the strange notion of a tri-personal God is seen as a foreign and unwanted perversion of Jesus’ simple definition of the true God, the road to a greater unity will be open.

With God defined by John 17:3 and by thousands and thousands of singular personal pronouns designating Him as a single Person, we advise that attention be paid to the question, Who then is Jesus? Luke 1:35 provides the supremely easy and definitive account of how, why and when Jesus is the Son of God. He is uniquely Son of God, certainly not because he is incomprehensibly also God — but precisely because of the miraculous new creation effected by God, the Father, in the womb of Mary. Luke 1:35, strategically placed by Luke, the historian-theologian, at the beginning of his two-volume theological treatise (Luke and Acts), has the potential for destroying long-standing confusion and division about Jesus. Expressly because of the miracle in Mary, Jesus is the Son of God. No further definition is required. This marvelous verse can claim to be a “control text” for the whole New Testament. The miracle in Mary brings the Son into existence. He was therefore not in existence before.

With God and Jesus His Son defined, it remains to define the Gospel, the heart of the saving Christian message. Where better and more appropriate to search for the right definition of the Gospel than in the words of Jesus, as he opened his evangelistic mission? Yet this obvious approach to defining Jesus’ master Gospel term “Kingdom” is not the approach taken by churches in general! Plainly and clearly Jesus opened his ministry by commanding us to “believe on the basis [en] of the Gospel about Kingdom of God” (Mark 1:14-15). Jesus’ urgent appeal is directed to the whole human race from the Great Commission, when Christianity as defined by Jesus was to go to the whole world, until Jesus comes back (Matt. 28:19-20). The great commission commands us all to change our minds, or “repent and believe the Gospel of the Kingdom of God” (Mark 1:14-15).

With equally plain and simple language Jesus declared that the whole rationale for his ministry was “to preach the Gospel of the Kingdom of God: that is the reason I was commissioned” (Luke 4:43). Is that hard? Surely not. It remains only to define the Kingdom, with Jesus’ own sayings, as that renewed society which he will introduce worldwide at his return in the future. For this he urged us to pray, “May Your Kingdom come” (not “May Your Kingdom spread!”). Certainly not just “May Your kingdom rule in my heart,” which immediately obscures the real and concrete meaning of “Kingdom” as a literal and future government. The Kingdom, according to Jesus, is that revolutionary world government which the Messiah will inaugurate at his Second Coming, to be prepared for in advance with all urgency.

Yes, of course the Kingdom of God Gospel, which in obedience to Jesus we are commanded to believe and obey, means a changed lifestyle now and until the end of our lives. We are to “walk” (the Bible’s Christian living word) in obedience to Jesus’ and “Jesus-in-Paul’s” teaching. But the word Kingdom is largely and predominantly — and especially in the fundamental accounts of the Gospel given by Matthew, Mark and Luke — not a Kingdom in the heart, not “enthroning Jesus in the heart,” but nearly always the future new world order of which Christians are now heirs, “waiting for the Kingdom of God,” as was Joseph of Arimathea (Mark 15:43).

... Joseph was a disciple (Matt. 27:57). But Joseph did not confuse the term Kingdom of God by making it a synonym for the Christian life now. He was still waiting for the Kingdom of God, after the historical ministry of Jesus was finished. Had Joseph missed the Kingdom? Of course not. He defined the Kingdom, as did Jesus almost invariably, as the Kingdom to be inaugurated at his future coming. The thief on the cross as a good disciple also thought of the Kingdom as future at the Second Coming (Luke 23:42).

Definitions of the Christian Gospel fail if they do not start with the Kingdom statements in the words of Jesus. “The Kingdom of God was at hand,” on the horizon, and calling for urgent action on our part. The Kingdom of God describes a time in the future when Jesus will again eat and drink with the disciples (Luke 22:18). The Kingdom of God is the Kingdom in which the resurrected Abraham, Isaac and Jacob will reappear to receive the promised inheritance they have never gained (Matt. 8:11). The Kingdom of God is still “about to come,” Jesus said, “when you see all these things happening,” the final events predicted in Luke 21 (see v. 31). The Kingdom of God is the great event of future judgment and salvation when the decision of God, in Christ, will exclude or include us in the Kingdom. The Kingdom of God is not to be implemented worldwide until the nobleman Jesus returns from heaven (Luke 19:11-27).

What will it mean to be “in the Kingdom”? Reducing the Kingdom teaching to “the good life now” destroys the primary meaning of Kingdom in the words of Jesus, as the Kingdom which will be given to the little flock (Luke 12:32). That is not a “Kingdom in the heart.” It is a new political order on earth replacing all present nation-states at the last trumpet (Rev. 11:15-18).

The Kingdom of God in that passage begins not now but in the future. Christians are heirs of the Kingdom now, as they prepare for it with urgency, living in the energizing hope of its appearance when Jesus comes back. That Kingdom is defined firstly by the prophets of Israel in the Hebrew Bible, and most notably in the prophet Daniel who defines the Kingdom as one which will be “under the whole heaven” (7:27), not in heaven! When the Kingdom comes, which is the center of all good Christian prayer: “May Your Kingdom come,” the saints of all the ages will function as co-rulers with Jesus (Dan. 7:18, 22, 27, RSV). The leading Christians, the apostles, will “sit on 12 thrones to administer the restored tribes of Israel” (see Matt. 19:28). The same promise reoccurs in Luke 22:28-30 where it is made the essence of the New Covenant. Jesus shed his blood to bring that Kingdom covenant into force. “Just as my Father has covenanted to give me a Kingdom, so I covenant with you to give you the Kingdom, and you will be seated on thrones to administer the twelve tribes of Israel.”

This promised Kingdom, the heart of the Christian Gospel, guarantees the believers “power over the nations” (Rev. 2:26) which they certainly do not have now. Christians are to be rewarded with positions of authority in that Kingdom and “they will sit with Jesus in his throne,” the throne of David to be restored in the land.

Paul warned Christians against the error of thinking that they were already functioning as kings: “You are already satisfied; you have already grown rich; you have become kings without us! Indeed, I wish that you had become kings, so that we also might become kings with you” (1 Cor. 4:8).

The principal and fundamental meaning of “Kingdom” in the recorded teaching of Jesus is not an “ethical” standard in the heart now. It is not an interiorized Kingdom. It is nearly always (98% of the Kingdom texts) the Kingdom of the future, dependent on the future binding of Satan “so that he can no longer deceive the nations” (Rev. 20:3), a brand new state of affairs. The relationship of Christians to the Kingdom is that they are invited to be that royal family, privileged, through testing and trial now, who will assist Jesus in “fixing” the world on a grand and blessed scale when the Kingdom comes. Unless this primary definition of Kingdom is clear to the minds of churchgoers, the Gospel of the Kingdom, the Christian saving Gospel, is not firmly established. In traditional and popular preaching that all-important royal Kingdom of Jesus and of the Father has been waffled away into some vague hope of “heaven when I die.”

With that alien concept, based on the false teaching that we have “immortal souls” which must either fly off bodiless at death to heaven or be tortured forever in a subterranean hellfire, the Gospel of the Kingdom is muddled and confused.

...

Defining the Kingdom, starting with Jesus, will do much to unite the fragmented denominations, provided they first come into line with Jesus’ unitary monotheism so beautifully declared in John 17:3. And provided Jesus is presented as the Messiah and Savior, not a visitor from outer space. God did not become a man; God became a Father when the miracle of the procreation of the Son of God occurred in the womb of his mother (Luke 1:35; Matt. 1:18, 20; Ps. 2:7; 2 Sam. 7:14).

The biblical definition of God, Jesus and the Gospel has been damaged for millennia, since the second century, by the regrettable influx of pagan philosophy. “Heaven as a resort for souls” has replaced the real, concrete Kingdom of God coming on earth when Jesus returns. Christian destiny is missing from most current preaching.

This leaves churches as “disaster areas” needing urgent reform, as they return to the simple basics of Jesus’ and Paul’s Gospel about the Kingdom (Mark 1:14-15; Luke 4:43; Matt. 24:14) which is identical with the Gospel of grace (Acts 20:24-25; 28:30-31).

We may take courage and comfort from the warning words of leading New Testament scholar Bishop Tom Wright, who deplores the mindless attitude towards biblical truth so evident in churches. Listen to Wright’s searing criticism and penetrating analysis of the “mess we are in,” marked by the evident fragmentation of Christian denominationalism:

Wright observes:

“Traditionally, of course, we suppose that Christianity teaches about a heaven above, to which the saved or blessed go, and a hell below, for the wicked and impenitent. This is still assumed by many both inside and outside the church, as the official line which they may or may not accept.”

“A remarkable example arrived in the mail not long ago, a book, apparently a bestseller by Maria Shriver, the present first lady of California, who is married to Arnold Schwarzenegger and whose uncle was John F. Kennedy. The book is called What’s Heaven? and is aimed at children, with lots of large pictures of fluffy clouds in blue skies. Each page of text has one sentence in extra large type, making the basic message of the book crystal clear. Heaven, says Shriver, is ‘somewhere you believe in…It’s a beautiful place where you can sit on soft clouds and talk to other people who are there. At night you can sit next to the stars, which are the brightest of any in the universe…If you are good throughout your life, then you get to go to heaven…When your life is finished here on earth God sends angels down to take you up to Heaven to be with Him there…And Grandma is alive in me….Most important she taught me to believe in me…She is in a safe place with the stars, with God and the angels…She is watching over us from up there…I want you to know [says the heroine to her great-grandma] that even though you are no longer here, your spirit will always be alive in me.’”

Wright comments on this amazing piece of misleading information offered by the authoress of What’s Heaven? “This is more or less exactly what millions of people in the Western world have come to believe, to accept as truth and to teach their children.” Bishop Wright was sent the book, he says, by a friend who said appropriately, “I hope you find this awful book helpful in what not to say.”

Wright then elaborates his point: “Many Christians grow up assuming that whenever the New Testament speaks of heaven it refers to the place to which the saved will go after death. In Matthew’s gospel, Jesus’ sayings in the other gospels about the kingdom of God are rendered as ‘kingdom of heaven.’ Since many read Matthew first, when they find Jesus talking about ‘entering the Kingdom of heaven,’ they have their assumptions confirmed, and they suppose that Jesus is indeed talking about how to go to heaven when you die, which is certainly not what either Jesus or Matthew had in mind. Many mental pictures have grown up around this and are now assumed to be what the Bible teaches or what Christians believe. But the language of heaven in the New Testament doesn’t work that way.”

Wright then adds: “God’s Kingdom in the preaching of Jesus refers not to postmortem destiny, not to our escape from this world into another one, but to God’s sovereign rule coming ‘on earth as it is in heaven.’

The roots of the misunderstanding go very deep, not least into the residual Platonism [paganism] that has infected whole swaths of Christian thinking and has misled people into supposing that Christians are meant to devalue this present world and our present bodies and regard them as shabby or shameful…In the book of Revelation we find not ransomed souls making their way to a disembodied heaven, but rather the new Jerusalem coming down from heaven to earth, uniting the two in a lasting embrace.”

Bishop Wright has hit upon one element of the disaster which is fragmented denominational Christianity. He notes that “most Christians today, I fear, never think about this from one year to the next.” They are indeed trapped in a mindless, non-Berean state of mind. The status quo, what we learned in church, is accepted as real and true, when it is no more than a mishmash of Platonic paganism, buttressed by a few Bible verses twisted or torn from their context. No wonder, then, that many who do take the trouble to think for themselves come to realize that “heaven as traditionally pictured looks insufferably boring — sitting on clouds and playing harps all the time.” [1]

...

The New Testament warns on page after page that false belief is a deadly threat. Paul foresaw trouble looming large on the horizon. With power-packed words he indicts all failure to be constantly alert, lest we fall prey to nonsense camouflaged as saving truth: In 2 Timothy 4:1-4, the apostle speaking for Jesus said: “I solemnly charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by his appearing and his Kingdom: preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort, with great patience and instruction. For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires, and will turn away their ears from the truth and will turn aside to myths.”

“Heaven in the Bible is nowhere the destination of the dying,” declared another Cambridge scholar. When “Kingdom,” “God” and “Son of God” regain their biblical definitions churches may expect a healthy unity to emerge. While we avoid the definitions of these master-terms given by Jesus and Paul, we may expect business as usual, and a stifling dullness which keeps church members under the iron fist of popular biblical misunderstanding of God, Jesus and their coming Kingdom in a renewed earth. “Unless you accept the Kingdom of God as a little child, you will not enter it,” Jesus said (Luke 18:17), reflecting his infectious delight in the Gospel about the Kingdom, for which he preached and died. The summary of his Kingdom work is given us in those amazing statements of Revelation 5:9-10: “And they sang a new song, saying, ‘Worthy are you [Jesus] to take the book and to break its seals; for you were slain, and purchased for God with your blood men and women from every tribe and tongue and people and nation. You have made them to be a kingdom and priests to our God; and they will reign upon the earth.”

The primary meaning of Kingdom remains the Kingdom of Messiah’s expectation, for which believers of all nations are to prepare now in view of the royal office promised to them. Salvation in that future Kingdom depends as Hebrews 5:9 states on our present obedience to Jesus who “became to all those who obey him the source of eternal salvation.” His first and programmatic command is “Repent and believe the Gospel of the Kingdom of God,” and of course, “define the Kingdom as I do in my scores of Kingdom sayings!”

[1] Surprised by Hope, pp. 17, 18.

Taken from: November, 2009 edition of Focus on the Kingdom magazine

Rejecting Jesus While Claiming to Accept Him

Rejecting Jesus While Claiming to Accept Him

Some who claim to be students of the Bible and want to attach themselves to Jesus resist the easy biblical teaching about the Christian destiny. There is a way of hiding oneself from Jesus while claiming to relate to him! It is done like this:

One turns a blind eye to the primary teachings of Jesus found, three times over, in Matthew, Mark and Luke. This exercise is a form of self-deception, in the interests of maintaining views which have not been learned from the Bible. Jesus declared the Christian destiny when he pronounced this beautiful and simple blessing on the meek (his true followers): "They are going to have the earth as their inheritance" (Matt. 5:5). As if this crystal clear promise were not enough (the same promise for the faithful is presented often in the Old Testament, five times in Ps. 37), Jesus repeated his teaching about our future in Revelation 5:10. The faithful of all the nations (the international "Israel of God," Gal. 6:16) are going to "rule on the earth." All the popular language about "going to heaven" either at death or at a pre-tribulation rapture or later, falsifies the straightforward teaching of Jesus. It also denies Jesus his own Second Coming.

Yes, Jesus is going to return to this earth and live here! That is the whole point of the Second Coming, which is not a "drive-by" event. The Second Coming of Jesus is denied if one believes that Jesus is going to "visit" and then go back to heaven! It is equally denied by so-called Preterism which claims that Jesus returned in AD 70.

It is part of the unreformed legacy of the Reformation to ignore the teachings of Jesus as laid out in Matthew, Mark and Luke. This threefold repetition is there for a purpose. God knew that professed believers would risk ignoring His Son, and his words, of whom He said, "This is My Son…listen to him" (Matt. 17:5; Luke 9:35). That admonition is forgotten when Matthew 5:5 and Revelation 5:10 are disregarded in the interests of a cherished doctrine about "heaven."

Jesus said nothing about heaven in connection with the Christian future. Jesus will descend from heaven and meet the saints in the air (1 Thess. 4:13-18). The saints will escort Jesus to the earth, his own destination. Jesus is now in heaven preparing our future places in the Kingdom of God on earth (John 14:2-3). He will then return to the earth in a single Second Coming (there is no PRE-tribulation rapture in the Bible), and the faithful believers of all the ages will rule with him "on the earth." The meek are not going to heaven; they are going to inherit the earth. If you want to be in heaven at the second coming, you will not find Jesus there! Jehovah’s witnesses, for all their talk of the Kingdom, still do not understand that immortal saints are going to be with Jesus on the renewed earth.

If one is going to argue for the truth of Jesus, start by making your point from the recorded teachings of Jesus in Matthew, Mark and Luke. Then support them also from John and the rest of the Bible. On no account ignore Jesus by ignoring his words! There is no more effective way of deceiving oneself. Of course, one may have to swim against the tide of "popular" tradition, but obeying and believing Jesus and his teachings is always the first priority (Heb. 5:9; John 3:36; 1 Tim. 6:3; 2 John 9).

Some readers are still having difficulty with Psalm 110:1. Jesus loved that verse and so should we. There is no reason for any confusion. The verse reads, "The LORD said to my lord."

"The LORD" is the Hebrew "Yahweh" and the second lord (my lord) is adoni (pronounced "adonee"). Note carefully that that second lord in the Hebrew is the word ADONI. It is not, repeat not, the word Adonai. Adonai is another title for Yahweh. If the second lord were ADONAI, then Yahweh would be speaking to ADONAI. This would present a horrifying error: conversation between God and God! [i.e. 2 Gods!?!]

There is really no excuse for not knowing that the second lord in Psalm 110:1 is not ADONAI (Lord God). At least if one cannot read Hebrew it is presumptuous to repeat, as some correspondents persist in doing, the popular error that YHVH was speaking to ADONAI! He was not. The Hebrew text does not read ADONAI in Psalm 110:1.

Readers surely know that there is only one God in the Bible, not two. YHVH is the One God and He speaks in prophecy in Psalm 110:1 to the Lord Messiah, adoni, "my lord." Adoni in all of its 195 occurrences never means GOD. It always designates a person who is not God. If you cannot read the Hebrew for yourself, consult a rabbi or other good source. ... Adoni is never a title for God. ...

Taken from:

October, 2009 edition of Focus on the Kingdom magazine