"But the First Shall Be Last, and the Last Shall Be First"

In Mark's Gospel, chapter 10, verses 17-31, the Holy Spirit records through Mark the account of the rich young ruler who sought to justify his reserved right to eternal life. 

When that sad encounter ended and the young man walked away grieving, Jesus says: "“How hard it will be for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God!” And the disciples were shocked that Jesus could say that! Why? Because for generations, the religious leaders and the Pharisees had taught that following the rules of the Law and the Pharisaic interpretation of the Law (known as Oral Tradition or Mishnah, which is now a part of a more broader set of interpretations called the Talmud) gives a person the right to consider themselves "good", deserving of riches/wealth, position through which gave them seated authority over others who were "less". They were taught that those people who remained poor, or who could not conceive or bring to full term a child from their womb, who were born blind or deformed, or who met with some kind of calamity - well, to them it was proof that these persons or someone in their family line had to be sinners, scorners of the Mosaic Law and the teachings of the Pharisees. (compare John 9)

Jesus repeats His statement, and adds:  "It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.”  Jesus uses hyperbole to make the point that it will be very hard for a rich person, so schooled in and adherent to the Pharisees' "prosperity gospel", to enter into God's kingdom - which would have been the expectation of those whose wealth and comfort should have confirmed their residency there. It would be like trying to fit a camel through a sewing needle! So in just one sentence, which he repeated, Jesus overturned the prosperity teachings of the Pharisees, and the expectations of the proud. 

Well, good grief Lord, who can be saved? - was the essence of the stupefied response from the disciples.

Jesus answers them, but not how they expected: “Truly I tell you, there is no one who has left house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields for my sake and for the sake of the good news [Gospel] who will not receive a hundredfold now in this age—houses, brothers and sisters, mothers and children, and fields, with persecutions—and in the age to come eternal life."  They were expecting Jesus to offer them some good-deed-doing options, but instead, Jesus continued with them as He did with the young ruler - you must be willing to be living sacrifices for me. That you will inherit a spiritual family through Me, and all of your needs would be met by Me, and your richest reward will be eternal life with Me. 

Then to add to that eye-opener, Jesus says at the very end of this account in verse 31, "But many who are first will be last, and the last will be first.” Who are the "first"? Who are the "last"? What does all of that mean?

Jesus' statement ties to the running theme here, which is, how do we perceive ourselves in the perspective of deserving God's grace and favor? (Until doing some Bible research - comparing scripture by scripture as God commands, and following a discussion of this during our regular Bible study, the Spirit has begun to bring us some understanding of this difficult statement. Some of us had been taught that this referred to the order of salvation, as if we are given some ticket to show us where we are to stand in line relative to salvation. That there would be those who would be at the head of the line and others wayyyyy in the back of the line. Thus, it was a blessing from the Holy Spirit to be corrected on this matter.)

The Pharisees' prosperity gospel teachings were - to put it in the contemporary vernacular - a "set up" as regards attaining eternal life and entering the kingdom of God. It may have given a sure "slam dunk" in the minds of those who had the accoutrements to show for their adequate to fervent adherence to the Law and those interpretations of the Law (for example, the Pharisees brought forward interpretations that would cast certain people in a very good light, deserving of honor and praise, and cast others in the role of unrepentant sinners, persons without the favor of God. Like the dozens of interpretations on how to carry out the Sabbath (for an indepth look at the interpretations, view this page on Wikipedia). By such "oral traditions" and other add-ons, the Pharisees were able to set themselves apart (and those who would closely follow their teachings) pridefully, and even exalt themselves as models of a good Jew.  

In their own determination, they set the standards that should be followed to attain to righteousness. Their "faithful" obedience to the Law and traditions rated them A-one in their own sight and estimation. Their self-righteousness gave the impression that they were of great importance, and should be followed - if you, too, wanted to be recognized as righteous. Have you ever had to experience such an attitude either in or outside of the Church? Many of us have. How did we deal with their put-downs and better-than-thou attitude? That they followed the rules that they made gave them the self-embossed rubber stamp of approval before God, their self-assurance that they were, indeed, in right standing before God. Positionally in the scheme of things, they considered themselves "first" in importance and portrayal of righteousness. Proud of their pride.

In Jesus' Sermon on the Mount recorded by the Holy Spirit through Matthew in chapter 5, Jesus speaks of those principles that undergirded the Mosaic Law as originally given by Yahweh God. We are familiar with the Beatitudes topically, but do we understand what Jesus was actually teaching relative to what the Law was conveying?1/  Following the teaching of the Beatitudes, Jesus goes into the deeper meaning of certain of the commandments, indicating that God's favor was not found in shallow obedience to rules, but in relationship with Him on a personal level, in being "holy as He is holy" in mind, heart and soul. Not the "holiness" proffered by the Pharisees that amounted to self-righteousness. In that context, Jesus says, as found in verses 19-20: "Therefore, whoever breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever does them and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven."  The light is getting a little brighter now regarding the "first" and "last", maybe?

"Whoever teaches others to break the Law of God..." Jesus would also speak later and boldly of the hypocrisy of the Pharisees, and of how they had misled the people. In Matthew, chapter 23 we read of Jesus' condemnation of the scribes (those who taught the teachings of the Pharisees) and the Pharisees - who set their teachings equal to or above the Law of God. Jesus' words are damning. His judgments were also foretold by the prophet Isaiah in words God-breathed found at Isaiah 11:1-5 --

"A shoot shall come out from the stump of Jesse, and a branch shall grow out of his roots. The spirit of the LORD shall rest on him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and the fear of the LORD. His delight shall be in the fear of the LORD. He shall not judge by what his eyes see or decide by what his ears hear, but with righteousness he shall judge for the poor and decide with equity for the oppressed of the earth; he shall strike the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips he shall kill [condemnation judgment] the wicked. Righteousness shall be the belt around his waist and faithfulness the belt around his loins."

The "wicked" were those who had transgressed the Law of God and were those whom God had judged and condemned; Jesus, fully God and fully man, announces the judgment of God on those scribes and Pharisees -- as a group -- and who have - in God's sight - committed atrocities that were unforgivable (most comprehensively recorded in Matthew 23). (As scripture shows us, not all the Pharisees were condemned to eternal judgment - there were individuals who dared to not fully identify with the body of Pharisees as a whole, such as Nicodemus, Joseph of Arimathea, and later through a miraculous conversion, Saul of Tarsus, and some Pharisees per Acts 15:5) The Pharisees demanded strict obedience (see John 7:47-49 for example), to the extent that they would ban individuals from the Temple for not obeying them. Per Jesus' words in Matthew 23, the scribes' and Pharisees' hypocrisy and errant teachings made persons who followed those teachings "twice as much a child of hell" - eternal death rather than eternal life.

Within the Matthew 23rd chapter, Jesus clarifies His statement in verse 31 of Mark 10 regarding the "first" and "last". Verse 12: "All who exalt themselves will be humbled, and all who humble themselves will be exalted." Thus, as Jesus points out, the Pharisees themselves (and all who practice their ways even unto these modern times) have positioned themselves as above others, exalting themselves through pride, and were then and now by Jesus condemned. He condemns those who have throughout the centuries exalted themselves as demi-gods, positioning themselves to be the spokesperson of God or even equal to God. They place themselves (or even their denominations) first according to their self-righteousness to the detriment of all who would embrace through coersion or free will their false teachings and behaviors.  

We who have lived in the latter half of the 20th century and forward have witnessed the growing trend of such leadership in the Church - regardless of denomination. Those who will teach false doctrine with assurance to their hearers that it comes from God's mouth. Those who would call "right" their teachings which condone those things God says are "wrong". They exalt themselves even in false humility and demand obedience. They put themselves and their teachings "first" before or even in place of sacred doctrine. They put heavy demands on their people or congregations financially - chiefly for self-aggrandizement; e.g., who of their ilk will be "blessed" with the most luxurious vehicles and homes, or "build" a gleaming edifice that is supposed to bring glory to God, but who instead brag about what they have accomplished. God Himself demotes them in His eyes, while the world applauds them, and He counts those sins against the unrepentant; in His view, they are not only "last" but also condemned. 

Therefore, it is God who exalts the lowly and humble, who makes the "last" the "first", and it is God who humbles the proud and haughty, who makes the "first" the "last". 

As we consider the foregoing, we must ask ourselves as the disciples asked and ruminated on: how do we perceive ourselves in the perspective of deserving God's grace and favor? Can the grace of God be deserved? Are we in right standing with Him, or simply righteous and good in our assessment of ourselves? Ask the One who sees the heart to help with the answers. 

 

1/  For those who may be interested: I have written up in a separate blog post series in the form of a regular Bible study some lessons that were shared with the youth a while back on the Beatitudes. The study goes a bit further past what was shared with the youth, as it helps to highlight the principles undergirding the Mosaic Law that Jesus exposited on in His Sermon on the Mount.

Special Mid-Summer 3-Night Series on Hard Sayings of the Bible (Answers to Questions 1 and 2)

The participants in the discussions were asked to consider the questions individually and share thoughts with others. We were also asked not to judge or criticize a person's response, nor declare the person's response wrong (if doctrinally very wrong, then gently suggest another way to look at the matter). We are all learning and will hopefully continue to do so until we are translated. Look to the Holy Spirit for final say.

 July Study Moderator's Answers -- Questions 1 and 2

1.    Ezekiel 3:1-20 - Do you believe in the above statement? How do you reconcile the popular saying “Once saved always saved”?  in reference to the second half of verse 20?
-Important to understand context. And the context of this chapter in Ezekiel is two-fold. But first, a brief background on the prophet Ezekiel and his mission: a prophet to the exiled Jewish people now living in Babylonia along the river Chebar in a settlement called Tel-abib. These Jews were those who had been captured and taken from Judah when the Babylonian armies under King Nebuchadnezzer had laid siege on Judah and Jerusalem, destroying much of what was familiar.

The context of the Jewish culture and belief system during that era still had elements of the Mosaic law structure, however, given their now foreign surroundings, keeping kosher so to speak, i.e., strict adherence to the original ceremonial system has been altered. Yet, for many who survived the Babylonian conquest, they were torn as to why their Protector God subjected them to such extreme circumstances. Some held to the tradition that said if you ‘faithfully’ obey the ten commandments and the body of laws contained in the Old Covenant, you could consider yourself a righteous person. The legal system promised blessings for obedience. (similar to what some Christians believe today) Many would begin to worship the blessings and nationalistic identity instead of Elohim Yahweh. They worshiped Gentile gods and often mixed such worship practices with those iterated in the Law of Moses. They’re unfaithfulness and rejection of Yahweh led to God’s punishment of Israel and Judah at the hands of the Assyrians and Babylonians – foreign empires that God used as a rod - as the covenant warned against. (see Deuteronomy 27 and 28)

Ezekiel’s prophetic ministry was both a “forth-telling” and a “foretelling” of messages from the LORD of hosts to the exiled Jews. Where we are in the third chapter, Ezekiel has been charged by God with forth-telling the many sins that led up to the Jewish defeat and exile. Ezekiel had lost his wife some time before this mission, yet God warned, commanded Ezekiel not to mourn for her, as a way of showing what God’s relationship with Israel and Judah had become, i.e., so broken that God no longer mourned for His people as they experienced the consequences of their rebellion. In his humanity, Ezekiel was very challenged in this complex role. As you see when you read verses 1-21 of chapter 3. He was overwhelmed in contemplating what His God was calling him to (v. 15), the way He called him, and how this mission was to happen. It was a lot. So, he just sat there among the residents of Tel-abib for seven days stunned, paralyzed by the emotional and psychological rollercoaster he was on. Until God arouses him once again with the words beginning in verse 17 where He frankly and graphically explains what God is calling him to do.

As noted above, the “righteousness” was the perceived “right” keeping of the Ten Commandments and all of the Law – a perfect standard which, in reality, was one that no one could achieve, yet, keeping those that they did keep gave them a feeling of being right before God. (see Jesus’ encounter with the rich young ruler who was certain of his righteousness in keeping of some of the commandments – Matt. 16:19-22; Mark 10:17-22; Luke 18:18-23. Also see Jesus’ statement on righteousness – Matthew 5:19-20.) Confirmation of their perceived righteousness was when God would bless them with a good harvest, rain, children, etc. and forgive them their misdeeds. To turn from their “righteousness” was intentionally breaking the laws and commands. The role of a prophet or priest was that of speaking God’s truth to the offender or “telling forth”, admonishing them to repent and return to God’s ways. Their repentance could bring forgiveness from God and reposition them from law breaker to law keeper. However, the Mosaic Law could not give them eternal life (Prov. 19:16 as do other passages notes that obedience to God gives us a good life and may bless us with a long life (“so that it may go well with you”). but eternal life was not promised under the law, as Paul shows in Romans 7 and Galatians 3:21, but it was to act as a disciplinarian until Christ came.

And so with that backdrop we come to verses 18-20. God instructs Ezekiel on admonishing the ‘righteous’ – that a prophet or priest or anyone called to witness to others on God’s account who fails to warn a ‘righteous’ person about their sin, and they die/perish as a result, then the person – whether it be prophet, priest, or one who has been given the commandment to love one another – that person shall be accountable for the death of the ‘righteous’ person.

The righteous person – one who perceives him/herself to be right because of being a standard-keeping, legally responsible in their own eyes child of God, does not simply by the term ‘righteous’ has received the guarantee of eternal life with Christ. Jesus says in Matthew 7 such persons would come to Him in the judgment and say, “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven. ²² On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ ²³ Then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; go away from me, you who behave lawlessly.” Such a person may do “works”, even good works, and justify those works as deserving of salvation, but the One who reads hearts will determine if there are works of faith- works that emanate from a heart full of desire to serve their Heavenly Father and that are submitted to Him and His will. So it is important to read the context of some passages to identify what is the righteousness that is being claimed compared to a saving faith. No such thing as “saving works”.

 

2.    Does Genesis 22:12 contradict God’s omniscience – His all-knowing ability?
So this is one with which I struggled for years. Some Bible scholars explain this by saying that God chose not to know what Abraham was going to do. Which sounded a little sketchy, but for a minute it sounded good since God is powerful. Some others say that of course God knew, but Abraham did not know, and so God was really saying that “now you, Abraham, know that you fear God…”. That sounded a little more reasonable, but there were still gaps in that premise because a reader would have to assume that God switched the awareness from Himself to Abraham. Even though it was thin ground I tried to stand on that one and it just did not set well with me. Like walking across a floor with a partially rotted subfloor, I anticipated that under a brighter light that explanation would also fail.  But God! I was listening to a minister and reading and re-reading the passage a few times. Notice verses 10-12: “¹⁰ Then Abraham reached out his hand and took the knife to kill his son. ¹¹ But the Angel of the Lord called to him from heaven and said, “Abraham, Abraham!” And he said, “Here I am.” ¹² He said, “Do not lay your hand on the boy or do anything to him, for now I know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your son, your only son, from me.”  The Angel that God had appointed for this event is the one who did not have foreknowledge, was not all-knowing. It was he who did not know what the outcome of Abraham’s obedience would be; compare verses 1-2 where God speaks directly to Abraham. Further along the chapter beginning at verse 15, we see the same Angel speaking and identifying at that juncture that he was repeating what the Lord had instructed him post-sacrifice; verse 15 says that the Angel of the Lord  called to Abraham from heaven, this time, adding the phrase “says/declares (KJV “saith”) the Lord … Therefore, the answer is “no” for the reasons noted above. Plus, doesn’t understanding this truth reaffirm your faith in the Lord’s omniscience and sovereignty?!!

 

Blessed Are Those Who Are Persecuted for Righteousness’ Sake, for Theirs Is The Kingdom of Heaven

 

Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. There is a popular “church” teaching that when we become followers of Christ, we have a rosy path before us. That we can expect material goods and wealth because we are now “Christian”. But, do you know that Jesus says just the opposite to those who would follow Him? ¹⁸“If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you. ¹⁹ If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.” (John 15:18-19) This hatred may look like name calling, denial of certain provisions or kindness, verbal assaults and threats, even physical assaults and attack on property. (I have personally experienced a number of these; on one occasion, when I and some high schoolers from church were sharing the Gospel on Good Friday, we came under verbal attack!) It may be direct persecution on our bodies by satan in an attempt to limit our ability to praise and worship God and to distract us from our mission. 

Do we withhold our identity as a follower of Christ because we are embarrassed, or think we will be called names? Look at what Jesus tells us in Mark 8:38: “Those who are ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of them the Son of Man will also be ashamed when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.” 

Zowie! God implores us to turn to Him in times of trouble – look at what the Bible says about praying to God when we are facing trials: Psalm 56:1-4, Psalm 57:1-3, Psalm119:84-87, Psalm 142:6, John 15:20; there are many more!  God has given us not just His Spirit, but also spiritual armor to protect our souls, because the devil and his agents are seeking to destroy our faith and relationship with Jesus. As a follower of Christ indwelt by God’s Holy Spirit, we are already walking in eternity with God; we are already experiencing in a very tangible way, the kingdom of heaven because the Spirit of God, at work in us to build God’s kingdom, fills us, protects our souls, hearts and minds, we are sharing with Christ in our sufferings, and draws us closer to Jesus. Jesus, knowing in advance that we all face some version of suffering for His name, passionately prayed to His Father to protect us, most importantly to protect our faith and trust in Him, so that we may endure. As those who suffer for His namesake, we then fully identify with God’s kingdom, knowing we are secure in His grace and power. 

Therefore, though we will face difficulties because we follow Christ, we do not shrink back from being a Christ follower because we know we have already been saved for an inexplicable life beyond our humanity. No one can take that reality from us. The persecution can have the purpose of building our faith and trust in God, in rejoicing because we become enjoined in a remarkable and special way to Christ and His sufferings. We will find and know God in a unique way through suffering! And in the midst of our suffering, we can bow before God in grateful thanksgiving because we have the confirmation that we are Christ’s and in Christ.

 

Explore

This beatitude and the last one are tough to deal with because very few, if any, of us want to be taken out of our comfort zone. We want people to like us, and treat us fairly. We don’t want anything ‘negative’ to happen to us just because we are Christian. Consider these things:

·        For right now - and only God knows how long this will continue, the U.S. is one of few countries where you can live and not experience the kind of harsh persecution that our fellow brothers and sisters in over 85% of the countries of the world are experiencing because they name the name of Christ. Our trials are more subtle – just like they were for the Israelites when Balaam enticed them with sexual immorality and idolatry. Many who profess belief in Christ in the ‘western’ world are succumbing to the enticement; many Christians obey culture instead of God, breaking the first commandment. They call good what God has called sinful. Have you found that to be true; if so, in what ways? If you do not think that is true, why?

·        In this paper’s opening it says that “There is a popular “church” teaching that when we become followers of Christ, we have a rosy path before us. That we can expect material goods and wealth because we are now “Christian”. What do you think about that?

 

·        Have you been made aware of the harsh persecutions taking place around the world? How do you feel when you hear about, read, or see reports of such persecutions?  

·        What is it about God’s kingdom that would make you desire to endure pain and trials for Christ’s name? How easy would that be for you? (hint, re-read the Psalms above that David prayed to God)



Bonus: "Guilty"  -- Newsboys  (theme song from movie God's Not Dead 2); "Even If" - Mercy Me; "Don't Wait Til the Battle is Over - Shout Now!" - Walter Hawkins and the Love Center Choir

Blessed Are Those Who Hunger and Thirst For Righteousness, For They Will Be Filled

 

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. Sometimes preachers may use this phrase to support their prosperity gospel, a false teaching that promises material riches once you become a Christian. Or, you may have heard people quote only a portion of it – Blessed are those who hunger and thirst…for they will be filled. They distort Jesus’ words to mean that all poor people will be blessed with an abundance of food and drink because they are poor. Such teaching has misled thousands![i]  I am going to safely assume that the majority of those who read this write-up have known true, deep physical hunger – a kind of physical hunger and thirst that has long hoped for any food and water, and will desperately eat dirt and non-potable water to satisfy the pain of hunger and thirst. Some of the people Jesus spoke to on the Mount were physically hungry and thirsty so, no doubt, their ears perked up when Jesus made that statement. Some of them may have been present when Jesus fed the 5,000. 

As a single mother early into my wage-earning season, I knew a physical hunger that I had never experienced before: my earnings did not go far, and no matter how frugal I was, it was very difficult financially to put nutritious meals on the table everyday after paying rent, and transportation to work. So I chose to not eat dinner many nights so that my children would have leftovers to eat the rest of the week. I would sometimes walk the 3 or 4 miles to get to the city where I could get on the bus to work without paying the additional toll for riding into the city from out of state. It would be more than a year or so before I could get financially steady enough to be able to afford a continued stock pantry and refrigerator. 

But was this the hunger and thirst Jesus was speaking about? No, for Jesus says: “who hunger and thirst for righteousness.” Have you ever wanted to go somewhere or do something so much that you could “taste” it? That’s the level of hunger and thirst Jesus is figuratively talking about. What does hungering and thirsting for righteousness mean? In the Bible righteousness refers to God’s justice and His supreme knowledge, standard, and character of what is right; God’s Righteousness is also called Jesus Christ! Jesus’ primary concern for His listeners was spiritual; He was focused on the heart, mind, and soul of His hearers. They had been so oppressed for so long by the legal demands of the teachers of the Old Law that God’s righteousness was muted. And then the Roman authorities were even more oppressive, discriminatory, grossly unfair, and considered the Jewish people to be of less value. The people needed Jesus to tell them about God and His righteousness and justice – His goodness, His love, and so revive in them the stories of their forefathers who were faithful to that God. Having that hunger and thirst stirred up in them would give them a strong desire to know the God Jesus preached, the one King David sang about all the time. 

In the Bible there is a story about a person who had that happen to her: Do you know the story of the Samaritan woman at the well? You’ve got to read it! It is in John 4, verses 1-30, and 39-42. The dialogue is priceless! Jesus intentionally happens to be there when she came to the well to draw water. She was not with the ‘cool group’ – many of the women of the town would not associate with her because of her lifestyle. After Jesus speaks to her and tells her about her life to her face, instead of being insulted, she felt amazed to be in the presence of a prophet like Him! Jesus turned her daily trek to fetch water into an epiphany of sorts for her, for she, along with others in the Samaritan town, were eagerly awaiting the arrival of the foretold Messiah – The One Who is to Come. When Jesus reveals Himself to her, her hunger and thirst for an encounter with the long foretold Messiah is sated; she is in awe that such as He would reveal Himself to such as her! So much so that she runs back to town, leaving her water jar – a valuable piece of property, to tell her friends that she has met The Messiah. Have you ever been that excited to hear Jesus' words? Have you ever been that excited about something that you stopped everything you were doing in order to tell someone what just happened?  She hungered and thirst to see and know God’s righteousness both in the flesh and in deliverance. She got both. She was more than sated, she was filled to overflowing. She would now never need to “thirst” again.


Explore

1.     Asking the question again: Have you ever been as excited as the Samaritan woman about something amazing that caused you to stop everything you were doing in order to tell someone what just happened? What was it and who did you tell?

2.     Do we know what it feels like to deeply hunger and thirst for God and His justice or righteousness (in the Bible the words 'justice' and 'righteousness' are used interchangeably)? Why do you answer that way?

3.     Jesus tells the Samaritan woman that He is the well of Living Water; in the book of Revelation, He provides saving waters (see Revelation 21:6 and Revelation 22:17). Have you ever heard before about Jesus being Living Water and/or providing saving waters? What do you think about that?

4.     Have you ever personally experienced Jesus as Living Water or Water of Life? If so, were you “filled to overflowing”?  

[i] [i]One of the Church's duties is to help others in distress when and where it can. Compare James 1:27.
 

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Bonus - "Jireh" - by Maverick City; "O Come to the Altar," Trey McLaughlin and SOZ 

Our Jealous God

"Do not worship any other god, for the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God."
(Exodus 34:14)

As humans, we often experience a jealousy that is tainted with an unreasonable and suffocating expression of emotion by another over our self/person. Or, we may be the one who obsesses to a level of madness that grips us like a spell that cannot be broken. We have read about so-called 'love' relationships where a partner says he or she loves the other but it is a selfish, obsessive driving emotion that seeks to control and dominate in such a way that it edges onto or crosses the border of sanity. While we would like to think that this is 'love' at its most passionate expression, it is not. The One who created love says this about what true love is: "Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails." (1 Corinthians 13:4-8a)

Too often, this jealous madness that is obsessed with controlling and dominating the other person results in harm to the other and/or to those perceived to be encroaching on the jealous one's turf - a harm that potentially becomes deadly. The song of the jealous is, "if I can't have you no one will." 

I have been in such a relationship. 

My then husband more than once threatened my life at gunpoint and took our children hundreds of miles away as leverage. When a person is victimized to such an extent, you experience your own type of madness; your reasoning becomes warped. You walk in fear and shame - especially when the outbursts and threats become public and/or on your job. I was asked to leave my employment because of the risk to other employees. I felt like less than nothing at that point. While he claimed to be religious, and put on a religious face when attending services or around members of the church, his obsessive jealousy and need for control over me was exhibited behind closed doors. He had no fear of God in his heart. His kidnapping of the children, and unrelenting search to find me after I escaped his terror shattered every aspect of my life, estranged me from my family as I did not want to put them in jeopardy. Yet, ironically, they would distance themselves from me because of the shame I had brought on them, as I became known in all our circles as the one being chased from place to place by a crazed husband.  One day he found a way to contact me because he had won the lottery but, due to state law, had to share it with me as we were still legally married. I bargained with him for the children, telling him to keep the money and let me have the children. He signed them over to me for money. We fled immediately hundreds of miles in the other direction. Jealousy clothed with the label of  "Love" was spiritually, emotionally, and psychologically damaging so much so that only a merciful God could repair what was broken, distorted, and restore my scarred my relationship with Him. He had to teach me to forgive. He had to teach me perfect love.

Jealousy that leads to strong desire to control and manipulate others is a product of our sinful nature that we inherited from Adam. God created humankind in His image; our sin mars that image, damages our personhoods, minds, souls, bodies. Sin destroys relationship with God. Our inherited sin - aided and abetted by the evil one and the moral and spiritual darkness of his evil world system - impairs our ability to perfectly express anger or jealousy. We have no pure starting point within our natural selves to provide the perfect expression of such powerful emotion. Our human anger and jealousy has no righteousness attached to it because it emanates from a place of damage and brokeness. Within our human power, we cannot even love as we ought. Within our natural selves, this lack is a critical and chronic disability that is also self-deceiving - it permeates all we do. Because our natural selves suffer in that way, when we come across a scripture like the Exodus passage quoted above, or Deuteronomy 4:24, or 1 Corinthians 10:22, we are challenged in our sin-shaped hearts and minds to understand this jealousy of God - which is a perfect expression and sovereign right.

To be honest, from a spiritual standpoint, I know for a certainty that God's jealousy is beyond my comprehension. There was a time when that lack of 'sight' was a struggle because I lived by logic. Logic can sometimes get in the way of faith, as I had to learn. Awareness of God those aspects and attributes of God's character that I cannot fully comprehend is a reason to rejoice because why would I want a God I can control and manipulate? No, instead of dampening my faith, I more and more desire for it to be stronger so that even though I cannot comprehend every iota of knowledge about our Almighty God, my growing faith becomes growing trust in Him, gratitude for His perfect jealousy over what belongs to Him. That includes me.

How must we look at this part of God's character from a Biblical viewpoint - how He has revealed Himself in scripture?

• God's perfect jealousy is based in His holiness. He is Adonai ha'Elohim Hakkadosh - the Lord the Holy One. As sinful humans, we are unable to fully grasp the Holiness of God. It is like asking a person blind from birth to describe the sunrise or sunset, or the colors of the rainbow. -Joshua 24:19; 1 Samuel 2:2
• God's perfect jealousy is based in His justice - no jurist in the flesh can render up decisions in their repertoire of law and principle that can compare to the depths of God's justice. He is Yahweh Tsidkenu - LORD our Righteousness and Elohei Misphat (God of Just/Righteous Law). His law is perfect, His judgments are always right. -Deuteronomy 10:17-19; Isaiah 5:16
• God's perfect jealousy is based in His being El Olam - the Everlasting God. the Ever-Present God Who Dwells in the Eternal Present. He owns time. As owner and Creator of time, God has the sole right to use it as He sees fit. -Psalm 90; Colossians 1:15-17
• God's perfect jealousy is based in His being a Creator God, Elohim, The Hashem - the Great I AM WHO I AM. God owns all that He created, He has invested in us beyond our comprehension. He is our El Shaddai - our All-Sufficient Sustainer God. He has always been the Potter to our being the clay - what say do we have in what He does? -Exodus 3:14; Romans 9:20-22; Psalm 104
• God's perfect jealousy is based in His Almighty Power and Wisdom. There is no God of Power like our God. His Wisdom exceeds all the brightest 'geniuses' ever born all together. In His perfect expression of jealousy for His people, God will execute His wrath against those who desire to harm them.  -Daniel 2:20; Jeremiah 10:6; Revelation 1:7-8; Jeremiah 51:15
• God's perfect jealousy is based in His perfect love - a covenant love (Hesed) that is also sacrificial (Ahavah, Agape).  -Psalm 103:17; John 3:16-17; 1 John 4:9-10  This is not a love that we can grasp because that was destroyed by Adam's sin in us: we cannot grasp it nor express it in our human capacity. We must let the Holy Spirit create within us the love reflective of God.
• Finally (at least on this list instant), God's perfect jealousy is based in His Sovereignty. He owns all things. He controls the heavens and the earth, yet He has given His created beings the freedom to choose between His Sovereignty or theirs. (And we so deceive ourselves into thinking our choice of self-lordship is going to have a different result than it had for a perfect man and woman.) He is the author of all things, the beginning and the end, the first and the last. We cannot live for a moment if God removed all oxygen from us, and yet we presume to know better than He. As Sovereign, God has the right to act, choose, give or take away, create or destroy. This perfect rightness can often ring unfair in a nonbeliever's ear, for he or she has never known a righteous, perfect Creator and Owner; his or her experience and knowledge, or lack thereof, cannot bring him or her to comprehend that kind of Sovereignty that emanates from the love described above. He has the right to set destinies, to save whom He chooses, and allow the hearts of others to harden against Him. This question of Sovereignty has been raised against God for eons, and this challenge is eloquently described in Isaiah 40-44 and elsewhere in God's testimony as recorded in Isaiah. The book opens with a declaration of Sovereignty in chapter 1 of Isaiah where the LORD God describes the wickedness and rebellion of the people against His Lordship, in verses 23-24 He says: "Your princes are rebels and companions of thieves. Everyone loves a bribe and runs after gifts. They do not defend the orphan, and the widow’s cause does not come before them. Therefore says the Sovereign, the Lord of hosts, the Mighty One of Israel: Ah, I will pour out my wrath on my enemies, and avenge myself on my foes!" God our Sovereign reserves the exclusive, absolute right to be worshiped - on this point there is no gray area. -Psalm 8:1, 9; Daniel 4:2-3; 1 Timothy 6:15; Psalm 24:1-2; Isaiah 66:1; Deuteronomy 5:9; Deuteronomy 10:20; Romans 1:18-25  

The foregoing is but a glimpse into the perfect holiness and righteousness of the Only True God, a perfection that is expressed through a jealousy that we cannot understand, but which acts in agape love - a sacrificial love - for those who love God and are called according to His purpose. He desires the best for His people, and places a guardrail and hedge of jealousy around them. He has vowed to never leave nor forsake them, to not let them be snatched from His hand by the enemy. God's people are His possession because He created them to become His people through the poured-out sacrificial blood of Jesus. (Ephesians 1:6-7; Ephesians 2:12-14)

Our God of love, of Might, our Wise and All Knowing God wants our complete devotion - He deserves it! He is jealous for it! When our God Incarnate - the Son of God - walked on this earth, He constantly spoke to and taught such allegiance to God. "You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind." That we can serve only One master; that our God supplies all our needs when we put Him first in our lives. His beloved Sermon on the Mount overflows with admonition of relationship with God and how He would have us live. (Matthew 5-7) The parable of the prodigal recorded in Luke 15:11-32 illustrates God's love for us - that He does not force us into relationship with Him, that He is forgiving beyond our capacity to understand, that He desires our heart worship - our whole lives to be lived in Him and with Him; that to do so brings an inner joy unimaginable. His final earthly hours were filled with prayer and pleadings for all who would believe and obey, whose hearts were to be tied to His and to the Father, who would be one with Him and with the Father. (John 14 to 17) In Matthew 10, we hear Christ's strong implication of God's sovereign right of worship and devotion - His jealousy over His human creation - without using the word jealous. He spoke to the desire of the Father for our worship to be exclusive - not divided among other interests or gods. Christ's very presence as God in human form was to begin the gathering of those whom the Father, in His sovereign will, would set aside for salvation: His coming would set a sword, a plumb line, a line in the sand to separate those who would receive Christ and thus receive the Father and those who would choose to be their own lord or to worship the devil (as noted in scripture above - there are only 2 masters: God and the devil). He would anoint and appoint those that the Father would choose to serve Him and to carry out the work He began. In His last week on earth He foretold that there would come a time when He would, in God's righteous jealousy, His perfect love demonstrated, return for those whom He had chosen, who love Him with all their whole heart, mind, and soul, whose lives are committed to Him and are awaiting His return. That He would make known to all in an astounding set of events and acts His fierce love for those who love Him. (Matthew 24-25) O what a God! Isn't He wonderful! -Isaiah 25:19; Psalm 9:1.

Hallelujah! Praise our Jealous God who loves us with a fierce love of protection, of blessing, of provision of all things good and enduring. Who loves us forever and will never abandon those He loves. Who walks with us and lives in us. May we all cling to Him in this life and rejoice in His glorious and righteous jealousy in the life to come. Amen.