Dual Citizenship, Part 2

One of the first places we see the kingdom of God is in the Book of Daniel. Daniel is a strange book – full of visions and prophetic diatribes. But it remains one the most influential books in the Old Testament. Why? Because Jesus referred to it a bunch of times. For example, the term “Son of Man” (Jesus’ own name for himself) comes from Daniel chapter 7. And Jesus refers back to Daniel’s understanding of God’s kingdom when he talks in parables like the one we just read. In the second chapter of Daniel, the prophet describes the kingdom of God for us. The King of Babylon, Nebuchadnezzar, had a dream that disturbed him deeply. He called all his sorcerers and wise men together and ask them to tell him the interpretation. They said, “Sure. Tell us the dream.”  But Nebuchadnezzar expected them to tell him the dream and its meaning without any clues at all. They said, “Uhhh…we can’t do that.” Nebuchadnezzar got really angry and ordered the execution of all the wise men.

 In steps Daniel. He tells the king not to kill all his subjects and that he’ll tell him the dream and interpret it, too. Pretty gutsy thing to do. And that’s exactly what Daniel did under the power of the Holy Spirit. In his dream, Nebuchadnezzar saw a statue of a man composed of layers of gold, silver, bronze, iron and clay. Now, prophecy buffs spend a lot of time deciphering the nations represented in that statue. But the important part comes after that. Daniel said that in the dream next to the statue a rock was cut from a mountain, but it was not cut by human hands. That rock struck the statue and smashed it into powder. The rock lands on the ground and begins to grow into a mountain and fills the entire earth. And here’s what Daniel says: “The God of heaven will set up a kingdom that will never be destroyed or conquered. It will crush all these kingdoms into nothingness, and it will stand forever.” In other words, nations will rise and fall. Some will be more impressive than others, but the kingdom of God will always reign. Its growth is slow but certain. And the fact that human hands did not create it means that it is supernatural in its essence. We are not to build our own kingdom. We are to embrace the kingdom of God.

The gospels are full of references to the kingdom of God –what it looks like and how we enter into it.  I chose this parable of the yeast because it is so simple but it tells us so much about how God works in our world. And once we know how God works, we can join him on his terms. We get this backwards sometimes, we assume that we have a good idea (and usually it is) and so we spend countless amounts of energy attempting to make it a reality. And that’s where we miss it. There is no shortage of “good” ideas. But there is a shortage of people willing to look past a good idea to a God idea – the idea that furthers God’s kingdom in the way he wants it advanced. Sometimes, those kingdom ideas look vastly different from what we consider a “successful” ministry opportunity. And that’s why it’s vital to understand Jesus’ words in the parable of the yeast.

Okay – so on to the text itself. Once again, what Jesus says seems very simple almost boring to modern readers…but let’s unpack the background and we’ll see that Jesus (as usual) is saying something humorous and outrageous to his listeners. There are some things happening here that make this story unusual. The woman in this story is not your average woman. Here’s why. Though making bread was stereotypically considered female work, she is doing it with more stereotypically male energy. We’re not talking about a couple of loaves of bread for dinner here. She’s a professional baker – a male-oriented profession at the time. Let me translate the measurements she uses. “Three measures of flour” (in Greek, a sata) is approximately a bushel of flour. That may not mean anything to you. But 128 cups of flour might. And I know that 16 five-pound bags of flour certainly will!  To make that much bread you would need to add around 40 cups of water. Mixed together, this woman was kneading over 100 pounds of dough!

Why is that important? Because the imagery that Jesus uses here is absolutely ridiculous. And he knew that – that’s why he used it. The “kingdom of God” depicted as 100 pounds of raw dough before it rises, reinforces the fact that we can’t do much with that amount of anything. And that’s the point. The kingdom of God is bigger than us. It smashes national interests and political wrangling underneath the weight of what really counts in this life: those things that impact eternity. And like the yeast in this parable, the impact of the Holy Spirit goes much further than what any group of people can do in their own strength. 

What Can We Know About Heaven and Hell?

I’ve heard a lot of sermons on heaven and hell. Too many I think. But I have noticed something interesting in the last few years: the detailed accuracy with which people describe both eternal places. Preachers seem to know everything about heaven and hell. Particularly hell. And that strikes me as strange for a couple of reasons.

First, the New Testament language about heaven is pretty vague. Certainly not up to our Western standards of rational detailed analysis. Most heavenly images are taken from Revelation which is clearly a book of symbols and Jewish apocalyptic imagery. Plus we have various experts describing heaven in detail for us, even down to what kind of house we get and what types of jobs will be waiting for us. Honestly, despite the popularity of Randy Alcorn’s book, most of that is conjecture. Peacefulness, joy, and comfort certainly describe it, but most people understand that golden streets and crystal seas are illustrations for something truly indescribable. People are okay with a preacher saying, “I don’t know everything about heaven, but I know it’s gonna be good!”

What’s more fascinating is the painstaking detail in which hell is described. Eternal torment involving fire, pain, and torture. According to most evangelial views of hell, people have the rest of eternity to sit around on fire and think about the bad things they did. Okay, that’s a little sarcastic there, but honestly hell is used more often in altar calls than heaven is. Some people, just in my questioning of the standard image of hell are getting nervous reading this right now. But what’s so strange about that is just how ambiguous the Bible is about the afterlife. People are satisfied to know that God has prepared somewhere for them in heaven and that puts their lack of detail at ease. But hell is a different story. In fact, the more detailed you can be, the better chance of scaring someone into salvation.

But really, hell is even more ambiguous than heaven. The Old Testament uses the word sheol to describe the afterlife – a word that means “grave” and little more. The Jews were relatively unconcerned about the afterlife, fully content to focus on what they could do in the present life to honor God. The New Testament seems to be more exact. But a closer look shows that there’s still much to debate. Jesus describes some ideas about it, but never really gives us details. He compares it to a local garbage dump (Gehenna) and talks about worms. And there’s more. The Greek word (aiōnios) generally used to describe the fire of hell is translated in as “eternal” – a period of time.  But in other places, the same word is used to describe an act of permanence of destruction – a state of quality. So, traditionalists say that it means eternal fire while conditionalists say it means permanent destruction (death) of the wicked. But the truth is that aiōnios and its Hebrew counterpart (olam) speak of things that all come to an end: the Passover, Caleb’s inheritance, Solomon’s Temple, and Gehazi’s leprosy. It’s just not that simple – the word means both. Similarly, traditionalists say that “gnashing of teeth” describes the torment of sinners in hell. But the ancient use found in the Old Testament assigned “gnashing of teeth” to someone about to destroy another – in the conditionalist’s case: God. So what does that mean to us today?  Honestly, it doesn’t tell us much.  And that’s the point I’m making. The same verses are used by people who believe different things about hell. And, surprisingly, I’m okay with that.

Why can we leave the details of heaven alone yet be compelled to extract every detail about hell? Because hell helps preachers out. Descriptions of hell illicit responses from people and, if used just right, can increase altar call numbers. But in doing that, I think we miss the point. When I told someone the other night that the gospel is not about them not going to hell, they looked at me strangely. They simply had never thought that there might be something beyond “fire insurance” and a list of do’s and don’ts to the gospel. The Bible shrouds the afterlife in ambiguity for a very important reason: so we won’t be tempted to bribe people into the Kingdom of God using either heaven or hell. If that’s what made you decide to be a Christian, then great. But intimacy with God lies beyond such ”survival of the fittest” techniques of evangelism. The gospel is about falling in love with a God who has already declared his unconquerable love for you.

Why Oprah Just Might Be the Antichrist…

For all you wonderful people who think Barack Obama might be the Antichrist…

I taught a small group on end times beliefs about four years ago. During our examination of Revelation, we inevitably stumbled upon the passages believed to describe the Antichrist. Immediately questions arose: who is he? When will he come? Will he start the tribulation? Will Christians be raptured before then? Boy, could I feel a headache coming on! I’ve said in this post how much I hate popular forms of eschatology for this exact reason. So, this time around, I decided to have a little fun:

“Oh, the Antichrist is already here.”

“What!! Who is it?”

“It’s Oprah Winfrey.” 

“WHAT!!”

Then I took them to the only  place in the Bible where the term “antichrist” is mentioned: the epistles of John, specifically 1 John 2:18-19. What I love about these two verses is the fact that John says there were many antichrists who had come – most of them were part of the church at that time before they left it. So, if John is using the term correctly, we must assume that “antichrist” does not mean “Antichrist” in the popular sense of one rival messiah sent to deceive the world. So what does it mean?

Well, “Christ” means “Messiah” – that’s obvious enough. It’s the “anti-” part that we get wrong. We assume that “anti-” means “in opposition to” or “antagonistic” – like anti-abortion. But it doesn’t. In means “in place of,” “instead of,”or “substitutionary.” So, “antichrist” means “in place of Christ.” 1 John 2:22 goes even further by saying that anyone who denies not only the Son, but also the Father, is acting as an antichrist.

So, why Oprah? Well, it actually doesn’t have anything to do with Eckhart Tolle. It has to do with Oprah’s power and cultural influence. Like most media figures, Oprah often establishes her influence outside of Christianity and many people look to her for answers about life’s deeper issues. She’s one of the most popular and well-recognized individuals in our nation and often serves as a cultural substitute where spiritual issues are concerned.

In that sense anything can be antichrist – government officials, sports figures, musicians, teachers, world leaders, philosophers, and even preachers. Any person that others may substitute for Christ is, in some sense, antichrist. That list includes Bill Clinton and Ronald Reagan. And it could include John McCain just as much as Barack Obama. That doesn’t necessarily mean they are wrong or unworthy of admiration. But I think it’s safe to say that they aren’t God. And to subsitute them for God inapproriate.

In most cases, the problem is not with the “Oprahs” of the world but with those who substitute their wisdom for a deep relationship with God. Notice that John didn’t write to the “antichrists” of his time, but rather to the people who gave them undue authority and influence. And that’s the key. Anyone can warn about the “Antichrist” of the Left Behind Series, but what are we doing about those who give to others the influence that only Christ should have? People succumb to “antichristism” when Jesus is their savior in doctrine but in matters of life, Oprah (or anyone else) is their lord. The only time people look for substitutes is when what they have isn’t satisfying their deeper needs. Don’t blame Oprah, people. We Christians alone share the burden for “wandering” spiritual seekers. It just so happens that Oprah has a some spiritual advice for people now. But, for her followers, her cultural influence eclipsed the practical aspects of Christianity long ago. Eckhart Tolle just made Christians stand up and take notice.

The Most Irritating Theological Topic of All Time? Eschatology.

End times beliefs are the single most annoying topic in the entire world. Hands down. Luckily some of the recent hype has cooled off since the last book in the Left Behind Series. Part of my irritation with end times scenarios has to do with that fact that everybody became an end times expert after reading a dozen or so fiction books…oh yeah, and then Kirk Cameron made a movie. And that pretty much placed Tim LaHaye in line for apostolic succession.

I don’t believe in the dispensational model. At all. In fact, I can’t stand it. It’s silly. For two reasons, really. First, dispensationalism is a comprehensive theology of which end times beliefs are a part. But its founder, John Nelson Darby, was so obsessed with end times beliefs, that he approached theology backwards starting with apocalyptic/end times passages and made everything else in the Bible fit his predetermined model. So, to adhere to that end times scenario - including the rapture, tribulation, and whole Antichrist/Israel treaty thing – you have to adopt the rest of dispensationalism’s model for all previous church eras as well. Otherwise, the whole system collapses. I can’t do that because I’m a charismatic. According to Dispensationalists, the gifts of the Spirit passed away as part of the early postbiblical dispensation – one of several failed dispensations. They adhere to the “scaffolding model” which teaches that the gifts of the Spirit passed from existence once the church became established and the canon was closed. 500 million Pentecostals prove that the scaffolding model is inaccurate everyday. If you don’t agree with the scaffolding model then you can’t believe the Left Behind Series either. Sorry, folks. Well, you can, but at least know that the thinking behind the model denies the present possibility of spiritual gifts.

Secondly, a literal interpretation of apocalyptic texts is inaccurate. Alas, I must side with Reformists in this regard (but maybe for different reasons). I am an Amillenialist. I like Kim Riddlebarger. God help us all. My reasons for adopting this postition have little to do with Augustine’s symbolic reading of revelation. He was following the lead of his mentor Ambrose of Milan and the Alexandrian school. So, even though those guys were using Greek allegorical interpretation for the book of Revelation, they got the interpretation right by accident. This is becasue, it’s not Greek allegory that unpacks Revelation; it’s Hebrew apocalyptic imagery. Generally, the same conclusions were reached but a very different way of getting there. Revelation, Daniel, and all the other prophetic books in the Bible hinge upon Hebrew apocalyptic interpretation. So the Jewish writers were being symbolic too, just not in the same way as Augustine. That makes for huge holes in the dispensational model. The apocalyptic context of those prophetic books is completely lost in that end times model. Let me give you two examples.

In Matthew 24, dispensationalists believe Jesus was talking about a great tribulation at the end of time. However, if we look back to the first century context, he was obviously referring to the destruction of the Jewish Temple in 70 CE. How do we know that? Well for one, he states that “where the dead body is, the eagles will gather together.” Strange huh? What does that have to do with the Temple? A lot. The rabbis of Jesus’s time had a saying: “Where the carcass lies the vultures will gather.” Similar to what Jesus says. They basically meant, “where there’s smoke there’s fire or what goes around comes around.” But Jesus substitutes a particular bird: the eagle. Why? Because the eagle was the national military symbol for Rome. Who destroyed the Temple? The Romans. Hello!! A bunch of other little clues in that passage point us to 70 CE as well. Either way, the prediction was miraculous. Jesus’s prophecy didn’t have to be 2000 years away in order to be amazing. That’s the beauty of the whole passage. He predicted something unforseen but within a time frame so that the majority of his followers would recognize its fulfillment. Now that’s incredicble. When was the last time you predicted 40 years into the future?

And then there’s that whole Daniel 9 thing. Dispensational end times models hinge on vv. 24-27. That model requires you to place a gap or chonological break in time between vv. 26 and 27. Is there any indication that there should be a gap between those verses? No. Dispensationalists have to insert it. Sorry. I can’t do that. The original context works just fine. The scripture gives no indication that 2000+ years must pass between those two verses. Therefore, the interpretation of Revelation that hinges upon that gap in Daniel cannot be valid.

So how do you interpret Revelation? Well, the book is made up of “echoes” that allude to other parts of the Bible. Those echoes interpret the book for you – that’s the code. Here are some examples: the seven Spirits in Revelation 1:4 echo Isaiah 11:2. For the description of Jesus in 1:12-16, see the echoes in Ezekiel 43:1-3 and Psalm 24:7-10. Who is that white horseman in 6:2? Go read Psalm 45. Want to know about New Jerusalem? Don’t ask your local millennial expert - Isaiah already wrote about it in 60:14. Even some of the echoes are in the New Testament: check out Revelation 21:4 against 2 Corinthians 7:10 and 5:17. See there, now you know what that means, too. Revelation is a book of a thousand echoes to retell the story of Christ’s triumph.

Why do people get so excited about end times beliefs? I think it’s because Christianity sometimes isn’t what we hoped it would be. It’s not that exciting, so we dream up a fanciful ending and write books about it. I also think if we’re honest we have to admit that we like the idea of people getting what’s coming to them: “Oh, you wanna treat me badly? Just wait until the tribulation, buddy. Then we’ll see who’s right.” The problem is that persecuted Sudanese Christians already think they are living through the great tribulation right now. What about them?

God is not busy planning events to coincide with the tenth book of the Left Behind Series. That distracts from our present responsibilities of Christian service. God is here to be present with all of us now. And a responsible view of eschatology places him in the here and now, fully capable of meeting our every need and fellowshipping with each of us. Wanna taste heaven? Spend some time basking in the presence of the Holy Spirit and worshipping God with all your heart. I guarantee you that you’ll taste heaven.

 Wanna read a good book? Go read Richard Kyle’s The Last Days Are Here Again.