Introducing the Pastoral Epistles – The Ideal Meets the Real

1 Timothy 1:1-2 (ESV)
Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by command of God our Saviour and of Christ Jesus our hope,

2 To Timothy, my true child in the faith:

Grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.

The gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John) tell the story of Jesus, his life and ministry, and his central message of the coming Kingdom of God. He taught that the Kingdom had come, was near, was indeed among the people he taught. He spoke of a Great Reversal, where the rich would be humbled, the oppressed set free, the last made first, rulers removed, sinners forgiven, and blind see. He taught people to live the truth and life of the Kingdom now, in this life. He promised that the Great Reversal would permeate the world like a yeast would dough, grow over the empire like weeds through the sidewalk, tearing it's deadness down by the life of Spirit-filled communities of justice.

In his death and resurrection, he planted the life of God in the heart of humanity, by grace offering a free invitation into this new Kingdom to everyone, everywhere, regardless of any background or origin of any kind.

Acts tells the story of the first steps of this living community. They wrestle with how to share their abundant life with the diverse crowds that joined their numbers. In their practice, the ideal of the Kingdom that Jesus taught met the reality of life lived in resistance to empire as it was around them, and the spirit of empire in which they had always lived by habit. In the collision of Jesus' universal, eternal, and highly ideal declaration of Kingdom Come with the temporal, complicated, unusual, and unexpected life lived in diverse community the members of community were changed. In both conflict and cooperation, the Holy Spirit among them used every circumstance to further grow them individually and as a community toward the fulfillment of Jesus' Kingdom promises.

The Kingdom had come. People shared everything they had with reckless generosity. Poor people were fed, taught, and equipped in community to be free. The very economy and power structures of empire and religion were confronted and sometimes dismantled by the influence of the growing communities.

But the Kingdom is also still yet to be. The teachings of Jesus are universal, but the diversity of these early Kingdom communities meant there were differences in understanding and application of these commands. The members of community still had habits and expectations from their previous lives in bondage to the spirit of empire. Selfishness and pride sometimes led to conflict. These communities still lived (and today, still live) in a world where the empires and powers have influence and control. Resistance was (and is) difficult at best. At worst, it leads to persecution by the powers of the world.

As the ideal of the promised Coming Kingdom meets the reality of practical demonstration now, every community had to wrestle with how they each would best demonstrate the gospel in their context. These communities were called churches, which means a gathering. The practice of Kingdom life was called the Way. Members of these communities were called Followers of the way, or Christians, after Christ, which means Messiah, or chosen one. Letters were written between the churches, especially by the apostles (which means sent ones), the people who travelled between the churches and beyond to plant new ones. These letters were called epistles.

The diversity in backgrounds within the churches is matched by a diversity of gifts administered by the Holy Spirit within its members. At its best, every member of the community is enabled to give according to their unique gift and calling. Every member contributes to the whole, each supplying to others the ability to all operate to their full function as parts of a body all contribute to the healthy function of a whole person.

Since every church was unique in its cultural context, membership, and gifting, the epistles (the letters to the churches) each dealt with very specific issues unique to each gathering. While Jesus' teaching were universally true and applicable, not every instruction to every church was necessarily so. What may have been assumed in one church may be a sharp controversy in another. As such, the epistles must be interpreted carefully according to their cultural context and intention.

Among the epistles, Romans and Hebrews both stand out as very broad and thorough in the scope of their messages. Romans, an epistle of Paul,  has a very thorough and complete theology of salvation (called soteriology). Paul wrote this letter to a church he'd never visited, so he started from scratch and grew a well formed story of the gospel for the Romans. Much of the New Testament is seen through the theology of Romans, once called the grand cathedral of Christian doctrine. Hebrews has a well formed Christology, a study of the person of Jesus the Messiah. It also traces the history of Covenant from the beginning of Hebrew scripture until the Kingdom age.

Most of these epistles are addressed to a church or churches of a region. Church members would read the letters to the community, probably in full, and the gatherings would then wrestle in word and deed over how to put the instructions into practice. Letters would be copied and distributed widely, so the best opportunity could be given for a wide audience to benefit. Over time and practice, certain books would be recognized by the churches as especially helpful for teaching doctrine or instructing practical community life. These are the books that remain in the New Testament today.

Along with apostles (sent ones), who taught widely and planted churches, the pastoral gift was also given to equip the church communities to function as Jesus had taught. Pastors in the early church served as community organizers and equippers of the body, seeking the best for all members and helping each member find their place in the whole. Pastors became the servants to all, giving their life to preach for, serve, and love their communities.

The communities were multiplying so quickly that many pastors were still themselves young in the faith. Three of the New Testament epistles are addressed to two specific pastors, both of whom had served with Paul, to whom the letters are attributed. 1 and 2 Timothy are addressed to Timothy, the young Greek man who served with Paul on his second missionary journey (Acts 16). Much of both of these letters encourage young Timothy to be bold in his ministry, and not to be timid though he may be young or inexperienced. Timothy pastors in a church in Ephesus, to whom Paul also wrote the highly poetic and beautiful book of Ephesians. Titus is probably more confident in his ministry, as Paul's letter to him is far more direct and to the point, and dispenses with the strong fatherly encouragements of the Timothy letters.

These three letters are commonly called the Pastoral Epistles. In them we find some of the most specific and practical instructions for the organization and administration of church community life of any of the writing of the New Testament. In them, Jesus' broad and universal promises and instructions about the Kingdom of God meet the most immediate, practical, and specific application in the present world. The ideal becomes real.

As we read the instructions of the pastoral letters, we are equipped to also practice the abundance and justice and love of Kingdom life in our communities in their cultural contexts today.

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These are the repeated messages emphasized in the pastoral epistles of 1 and 2 Timothy and Titus:

1 – Preach good doctrine.
Remember what you’ve been taught.
Use the gifts you’ve been given and the tools you’ve been trained in.
Study the Bible and know it.
Preach often.
Preach Jesus.
Preach the gospel.

2 – Practice good doctrine.
Be a good example of a Jesus follower.
Have integrity.
Do not give anyone an excuse to question your teaching.
Teach people proper application of the doctrine they learn.

3 – Do not be caught up in quarrels with false teachers.
Teach the truth humbly, boldly, continuously, and gently.
Correct wrong teaching.
Warn divisive people to stop being divisive.
Do not associate with those who insist on continuing to quarrel and be divisive.

4 – Recognize, train, and help people develop their gifts.
Teach others to be teachers that teach teachers.
Do not minister alone.
Expect integrity from those who teach in church.
 

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The pastoral letters, and all the epistles, should be read as following after the book of Acts, as Acts follows the Gospels. In other words, the Gospel, the Good News of freedom and justice and love and the Kingdom of God are central. This is the most important thing. Paul himself says this many times in his letters to Timothy and Titus. In Acts, the church takes its first steps in applying the message of freedom in community. The pastoral letters give practical instruction to pastors for how to demonstrate the teachings of Jesus and the truth of the gospel in their churches. Therefore, these letters reveal as much or more about the process of discerning that practical application as it gives us practical advice today. Also, our context and culture may make some of the advice irrelevant to us. 1 Timothy 5 is mostly about taking care of widows, of which there are none in our church. So these books also reveal much about the practical concerns that faced the early church.

Our job is to discern and practice the gospel in our context. The pastoral letters teach us to keep the gospel central. The examples of instruction in the letters help us see how we too can practically demonstrate the good news of the Kingdom in our context today. Whether we find the instructions within these pages helpful or irrelevant, the principles point to Jesus, and our mandate remains the same to discover how our churches may best honour Jesus and walk in faith.

A motley crew waits in unity for their Coming King - Acts 1

(Click here to read Acts 1)

Acts 1:1-5 (ESV)

In the first book, O Theophilus, I have dealt with all that Jesus began to do and teach, 2 until the day when he was taken up, after he had given commands through the Holy Spirit to the apostles whom he had chosen. 3  He presented himself alive to them after his suffering by many proofs, appearing to them during forty days and speaking about the kingdom of God.

4 And while staying with them he ordered them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of the Father, which, he said, “you heard from me; 5 for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.”

With a quick introduction, Luke thrusts us back into the middle of the story of Jesus that he began in his first book, the gospel which bears his name. From the last verse of Luke to the first of Acts, this Greek doctor does not spare a moment to continue exactly where he left off.

Luke's gospel was a careful and researched account of the life, ministry, execution, and resurrection of Jesus. His aim is to convince an educated and powerful audience from Rome that this man and his followers live and preach the truth of the coming Kingdom of God. Jesus' preached of a Great Reversal, when rulers will be brought down and the humble exalted. He called his message Good News for the poor. He said that in God's Kingdom the last would be first and the first, last. Luke writes in the New Testament's highest and most intentional Greek prose of this under-educated working class man from rural Galilee, traveling with a small group of disciples to Jerusalem. On the way, the doctor reports stories of the sick miraculously healed and the hungry miraculously fed as Jesus and the disciples announce the Kingdom.

Luke writes to “most excellent Theophilus” (Luke 1:1), giving him a title reserved for high ranking Romans in military or government. To Theophilus he recounts the story of Jesus' execution as an insurrectionist at the hands of the empire, and his resurrection from the dead soon after. There would be no doubt in the mind of a Roman ruler that crucifixion was permanent. Rome knew very well how to kill, and make sure those they killed were dead. If what Luke said was true, than Jesus held a power even greater than Rome, and the story of his life and the ministry of those following him was worth researching.

Acts 1:6-11 (ESV)

6 So when they had come together, they asked him, “Lord, will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?” 7 He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or seasons that the Father has fixed by his own authority. 8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” 9 And when he had said these things, as they were looking on, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight. 10 And while they were gazing into heaven as he went, behold, two men stood by them in white robes, 11 and said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into heaven? This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.”

Jesus commissions his disciples as witnesses of his death and resurrection. The book of Acts is the story of their continued ministry as they spread the Good News that the Kingdom has now come. The Great Reversal has begun. Jesus has defeated death, the final enemy, and now sits as King over all other authority. He is the final judge, and will return to consummate the Kingdom on earth, turning all things to right as he had preached and lived among the poor and lost and oppressed of Palestine.

Acts 1:8 - But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.

They were filled with the power of the Holy Spirit, demonstrated in signs, wonders, and healings, just as Jesus was and did. These demonstrations of real Kingdom life confirmed the truth of their witness.

The first twelve were called Apostles, and had been chosen by Jesus during his ministry, as told in Luke 6. Acts shares how the Apostles were effective in carrying out the ministry God gave them. “Apostles” is Greek for “sent ones”, and they were indeed sent from Jerusalem all over their world, their message carrying them to distant courts before the highest levels of government where they would have opportunity to proclaim the warning that the world was now under new management.

They were filled with faith and boldness, fully convinced of what God had called them to do, and then doing it, no matter what the circumstances or consequences may be.

They were very well educated in the scripture and in their doctrinal arguments. They were always very willing and very prepared to reason with people about the things they believed, and had many scriptures and arguments to back up their statements. They were good enough at arguing and expounding scripture to see some convinced of their message.

They placed the call of God and the gospel at higher priority and higher authority than all else.

These first followers would go to their death in resistance to the oppressive and violent religious and political powers of their day. They believes wholly in what the said of Jesus' return from the grave, and the hope of his return to earth to judge every power and authority within or without who had ever deigned to place its name above his.

Acts 1:12-14 (ESV)

12 Then they returned to Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet, which is near Jerusalem, a Sabbath day's journey away. 13 And when they had entered, they went up to the upper room, where they were staying, Peter and John and James and Andrew, Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew, James the son of Alphaeus and Simon the Zealot and Judas the son of James. 14 All these with one accord were devoting themselves to prayer, together with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and his brothers.

In this upper room were the one hundred twenty disciples of Jesus, a mixed multitude of family and neighbours, strangers and long-time believers, apostles and converts, women and men, all waiting as they had been instructed. They were in unity, believing and acting together toward one purpose. They were in prayer, considering and submitting to the will of the King and his direction before they moved.

In the upper room, they remember Judas, one of the closest to Jesus who betrayed him to Rome. Judas had died by his own hand. The remaining apostles choose from the disciples someone to replace him. This they do by lot, something like drawing straws or flipping a coin. We needn't take this as an example of how to discern the will of God. This small company had not yet received the Holy Spirit, through whom they discern and follow God's will throughout the rest of the book. But what we do see is a total submission to God. This community acted not according to the decisions or authority of one among them, or even a council among them. They all desired freely to follow God's will, and submitted wholly to their King.

And they wouldn't be waiting much longer.

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v3 – Jesus was seen alive by people who could give testimony.

v5 – The Holy Spirit

v6 – The Kingdom of Heaven

v8 – We minister in the power of the Holy Spirit.

v11 – The Bible clearly teaches a second coming of Christ, literal and bodily.

v26 – A strange way for Christians to determine God’s leading. They had not received the Holy Spirit.

(Click here to read Acts 1)

Ain't No Grave – Jesus' Resurrection - Luke 24

(Click here to read Luke 24)

Luke 24:1-9 (ESV)

But on the first day of the week, at early dawn, they went to the tomb, taking the spices they had prepared. 2 And they found the stone rolled away from the tomb, 3 but when they went in they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. 4 While they were perplexed about this, behold, two men stood by them in dazzling apparel. 5 And as they were frightened and bowed their faces to the ground, the men said to them, “Why do you seek the living among the dead? 6 He is not here, but has risen. Remember how he told you, while he was still in Galilee, 7  that the Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men and be crucified and on the third day rise.” 8 And they remembered his words, 9 and returning from the tomb they told all these things to the eleven and to all the rest.

Jesus was born in poverty away from home, displaced by the whim of the empire. He was born in Bethlehem, David's city, where the Old Testament prophesied the Messiah would be born. But he didn't stay a baby. He was raised the son of a carpenter in the rural, multi-ethnic region of Galilee as scripture had also said of Messiah. But he didn't stay in Galilee. Just as the Old Testament said Messiah would, Jesus traveled and taught the people a message of Good News for the poor, freedom for the captive and the oppressed, and sight for the blind. He healed the sick, fed the hungry, and cast out demons. The crowds followed him. But his ministry didn't last forever, and his disciples didn't always remain with him.

Jesus was executed by the Roman empire for insurrection, though he was found innocent and had committed no crime, just as scripture had said, and just as Jesus himself had told his disciples. But he didn't stay dead.

On the third day, Jesus came back from the dead, defeating the final enemy, and humanity's most common enemy. Death was the curse of sin, but this sinless one had overcome it. Humankind was set free, and the law no longer stood between them and God. From then on, the law could be written upon their hearts, just as scripture had said. The life of the Holy Spirit could now live inside of humankind, and the Kingdom of God birthed from within to change the entire world from the grave to the sky.

Jesus' disciples did not yet understand their part in the unfolding of an ancient story. Jesus was at the centre of history. His life, death, and promised resurrection were far more than the local revolution they'd dreamed of. The result would change them and their world in a far deeper and more permanent way than they could imagine. This was ancient promises fulfilled, and new promises for a better hope for the rest of time.

When two disciples were sharing their grief on the road to Emmaus, they did not recognize the stranger that began waling with them. When he asked why they were so downcast, and their shared of the violent and dramatic loss of their friend and Rabbi, he opened their eyes to the greater story.

Luke 24:25-26 (ESV)

25 And he said to them, “O foolish ones, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken! 26  Was it not necessary that the Christ should suffer these things and enter into his glory?” 27 And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself.

This last chapter of Luke is not the end of the story. Luke continues into his next book, Acts, without missing a moment. Jesus has fulfilled the promises made by the prophets and by himself. But those promises are Good News of the Kingdom to travel far beyond Galilee or even Jerusalem. This is a story and a message for all humanity, one that means freedom and justice for anyone, anywhere who would leave the chains of the old empire behind them. These disciples will carry on, with the authority of an ancient story and an eternal future.

Luke's Greek audience was not interested in a religion that had just entered the scene. As he closes this chapter of the story and begins the next, he makes it clear that following Jesus is not a new path, but one with a history that stretches to before the height of ancient Egypt. The promise of Messiah had been given thousands of years before, to a faithful man and his wife in the ancient Near East. The Heavenly Father of whom Jesus preached had redeemed and restored his people again and again through the rise and fall of mighty empires. This continuing story was not the Good News for freedom for everyone from every empire, and even from judgment and death.

Jesus appeared to his disciples again, all together, as they gathered in a house together. To assure them of his real, physical resurrection, he shared food with them. Jesus' message in Luke has been real, practical, and measurable since the beginning. This resurrection changed nothing. The Kingdom was now inaugurated, and his followers were now able to get to the business of putting the real Kingdom into real action.

Luke 24:44-48 (ESV)

44 Then he said to them, “These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you, that everything written about me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled.” 45 Then he opened their minds to understand the Scriptures, 46 and said to them, “Thus it is written, that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead, 47 and that repentance and forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem. 48  You are witnesses of these things.

Judgment had been fully paid. Religious law had been satisfied. The empire had been defeated. Even death had been overcome.

The Great Reversal had just begun.

Luke 24:49-53 (ESV)

49 And behold, I am sending the promise of my Father upon you. But stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high.”

50 Then he led them out as far as Bethany, and lifting up his hands he blessed them. 51 While he blessed them, he parted from them and was carried up into heaven. 52 And they worshipped him and returned to Jerusalem with great joy, 53 and were continually in the temple blessing God.

This is the end of the age of sin and empire, but not the end of the story.

This is the beginning of the age of the Kingdom of God, but not its fulfillment.

The seed was planted. God would now work it through the whole of the world. Jesus is King.

Crucifixion as an Insurrectionist, In the Place of an Insurrectionist - Luke 23 – Jesus' Final Week part 5

(Click here to read Luke 23)

Luke 23:18-25 (ESV)
18  But they all cried out together, “Away with this man, and release to us Barabbas”— 19 a man who had been thrown into prison for an insurrection started in the city and for murder. 20 Pilate addressed them once more, desiring to release Jesus, 21 but they kept shouting, “Crucify, crucify him!” 22 A third time he said to them, “Why, what evil has he done? I have found in him no guilt deserving death. I will therefore punish and release him.” 23 But they were urgent, demanding with loud cries that he should be crucified. And their voices prevailed. 24 So Pilate decided that their demand should be granted. 25 He released the man who had been thrown into prison for insurrection and murder, for whom they asked, but he delivered Jesus over to their will.

Jesus was tried and crucified as an insurrectionist by the empire of Rome. Luke records his short ministry before his crucifixion as beginning in his hometown of Galilee, followed by choosing twelve disciples to carry on his ministry after he is gone. He called them apostles, which means “sent ones”. From Galilee he traveled toward Jerusalem with the apostles gathering crowds of followers who would listen to him teach, and receive miraculous healing and provision.

The crowds grew and began to follow him across the country toward Jerusalem. He preached about the Kingdom of God, announcing the coming of a Great Reversal toward true justice that would begin with the Living Spirit of God planted inside a human spirit, resulting in a change in their very being, toward a change in their actions, and a change in the world. In this Great Reversal rulers and kings would come down, and be replaced by the meek and humble. The last will be first, and the first last. The oppressed will be set free. Scoundrels would be forgiven.

His message was revolutionary both in action and consequence, yet he never spoke a word of insurrection or violence. In fact, his method of resistance was peaceful and active. He taught and practiced love for enemies, offering a cup of cold water to one set fire by hatred.

His teaching and his life turned religion and politics both on their head, removing the possibility of control and corruption. All become equal in this new Kingdom in both their skullduggery and their salvation. There is only one King, and he sets his people free.

The religious and political elite of his realm of influence were both threatened by his message. Still, the true power of oppression, the empire of Rome, took very little notice. Jesus was arrested and tried as a heretic by his own people, but if he was going to receive any punishment for these crimes, it would have to be at the hand of Rome.

Rome executed criminals who they perceived as a threat to the empire. Crucifixion in particular was reserved for non-citizens of Rome who participated in or conspired toward insurrection. Jesus' life and teaching may have been revolutionary in a certain sense, but to die at Rome's hands, Rome would have to be

convinced he was a threat.

Luke 23:1-5 (ESV)

Then the whole company of them arose and brought him before Pilate. 2 And they began to accuse him, saying, “We found this man misleading our nation and forbidding us to give tribute to Caesar, and saying that he himself is Christ, a king.” 3  And Pilate asked him, “Are you the King of the Jews?” And he answered him, “You have said so.” 4 Then Pilate said to the chief priests and the crowds, “I find no guilt in this man.” 5 But they were urgent, saying, “He stirs up the people, teaching throughout all Judea, from Galilee even to this place.”

This “King of the Jews” as Jesus willingly identified himself was a rural, working class man of little education and no credentials by the standards of Rome. The empire couldn't have possibly conceived of such a man being an actual threat, no matter how popular he may have been to the discontented crowds. With a short term and practical vision, Pilate may have appreciated this mystic who taught the crowds not to become violent. The very values of the empire that Jesus preached against were the things that made them blind to Jesus as any threat.

So Jesus was sent to the Roman authority in charge of Galileans, mocked and abused, and similarly excused to return to Pilate. He was then presented back to the crowd by an incredulous Pilate, who was certain that this man was innocent.

13 Pilate then called together the chief priests and the rulers and the people, 14 and said to them, “You brought me this man as one who was misleading the people. And after examining him before you, behold, I did not find this man guilty of any of your charges against him. 15 Neither did Herod, for he sent him back to us. Look, nothing deserving death has been done by him. 16  I will therefore punish and release him.”

Luke 23:18-25 (ESV)

18  But they all cried out together, “Away with this man, and release to us Barabbas”— 19 a man who had been thrown into prison for an insurrection started in the city and for murder. 20 Pilate addressed them once more, desiring to release Jesus, 21 but they kept shouting, “Crucify, crucify him!” 22 A third time he said to them, “Why, what evil has he done? I have found in him no guilt deserving death. I will therefore punish and release him.” 23 But they were urgent, demanding with loud cries that he should be crucified. And their voices prevailed. 24 So Pilate decided that their demand should be granted. 25 He released the man who had been thrown into prison for insurrection and murder, for whom they asked, but he delivered Jesus over to their will.

Pilate was a shrewd leader. Like every oppressive empire that wishes to stay in power, an image of compliance with the will of the people is necessary to keep the forces of discontent at bay. Pilate had a practice of granting amnesty to a prisoner every Passover, the religious holiday the people were celebrating at the time of Jesus' trial.

But the people did not want the “King” released to them. They called for Barabbas, the insurrectionist. Barabbas was likely a Zealot – one of the Jews who wanted to overthrow the Roman empire. Zealots attacked Roman travelers and stole from them to redistribute wealth, like Robin Hood, or a pirate. He probably wasn't a drooling, crazy idiot as popular movies (such as Passion of the Christ) suggest. He was probably very intelligent, and maybe even a folk hero.

Barabbas' Freedom = Freedom to decide for yourself what is right or wrong outside of any authority, and do as you please. You are your own Lord and King. You are Master of your domain.

Barabbas sought to be free from the yoke of Rome by the very same values and methods by which Rome oppressed.

Jesus' freedom was different. Jesus taught a freedom that lived for others, that loved enemies, that gave from one's abundance for those who had less. Jesus taught to give to all who ask, even those who would never repay. He taught mercy for those that would betray us. Jesus' freedom was one that began inside a person, and was then offered to everyone with whom that person came to interact. This was a freedom that took no control of another by violence or manipulation, whether that person was an equal, an oppressor, or a vulnerable person in need.

Jesus sought, lived, and offered freedom of the entire person, physically, mentally, spiritually, politically, and otherwise, by the exact opposite values and methods of the corrupt and violent Roman empire.

Luke 4:18-19 (ESV)

18  “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
    because he has anointed me
    to proclaim good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives
    and recovering of sight to the blind,
     to set at liberty those who are oppressed,
19  to proclaim the year of the Lord's favour.”

Galatians 5:1 (ESV)

For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery.

So, if Jesus is King offering freedom, how is it that he is about to die?

Philippians 2:5-11 (ESV)

5  Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, 6  who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, 7 but made himself nothing, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. 8 And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. 9  Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, 10 so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Barabbas' is the temptation of the fruit in the garden of Eden, that we get to decide good and evil for ourselves. We decide for ourselves what’s right and wrong for us with no outside authority. We are our own Lord and King. We can be like God.

And when we seek such “freedom” at the expense of others, we are Barabbas. And we are not truly free. We want to fight for our freedom. We are terrorists in our own world, fighting for our rights, fighting to get all that is owed to us, scrambling to be God. This is everything that religion is about, from Buddhism to Moralism to Atheistic Naturalism.

The Kingdom of Heaven requires us to say, as Douglas Coupland:

My secret is that I need God--that I am sick and can no longer make it alone. I need God to help me give, because I no longer seem to be capable of giving; to help me be kind, as I no longer seem capable of kindness; to help me love, as I seem beyond being able to love.

-Life after God

Jesus was perfect, and he was made sin for us. We can ONLY receive freedom as a gift. It isn’t owed to us. We don’t need to ask for our wages earned. God is dispensing a gift. All it costs is everything, but Christ already paid for it.

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Jesus was executed that day between to other insurrectionists. Three men hung on crosses, each with a hope that the world could be different than it was. Two received the consequences of their violence., and would never see the changed they hoped for. Jesus' went to the grave to plant the seed of the Kingdom and true change in the world.

Jesus died on the cross as he had lived, resisting the power of the empire within and without as he spoke forgiveness for all the injustice he was served, and submitted his life to his Father in heaven.

Luke 23:34, 46 (ESV)

34 And Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.” And they cast lots to divide his garments.

46 Then Jesus, calling out with a loud voice, said, “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit!” And having said this he breathed his last.

Luke 23:26-56 (ESV)

26  And as they led him away, they seized one Simon of Cyrene, who was coming in from the country, and laid on him the cross, to carry it behind Jesus. 27 And there followed him a great multitude of the people and of women who were mourning and lamenting for him. 28 But turning to them Jesus said, “Daughters of Jerusalem, do not weep for me, but weep for yourselves and for your children. 29 For behold, the days are coming when they will say, ‘Blessed are the barren and the wombs that never bore and the breasts that never nursed!’ 30  Then they will begin to say to the mountains, ‘Fall on us’, and to the hills, ‘Cover us.’ 31 For if they do these things when the wood is green, what will happen when it is dry?”
32  Two others, who were criminals, were led away to be put to death with him. 33  And when they came to the place that is called The Skull, there they crucified him, and the criminals, one on his right and one on his left. 34 And Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.” And they cast lots to divide his garments. 35 And the people stood by, watching, but the rulers scoffed at him, saying, “He saved others; let him save himself, if he is the Christ of God, his Chosen One!” 36 The soldiers also mocked him, coming up and offering him sour wine 37 and saying, “If you are the King of the Jews, save yourself!” 38  There was also an inscription over him, “This is the King of the Jews.”
39  One of the criminals who were hanged railed at him, saying, “Are you not the Christ? Save yourself and us!” 40 But the other rebuked him, saying, “Do you not fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation? 41 And we indeed justly, for we are receiving the due reward of our deeds; but this man has done nothing wrong.” 42 And he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.” 43 And he said to him, “Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise.”
44  It was now about the sixth hour, and there was darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour, 45 while the sun's light failed. And the curtain of the temple was torn in two. 46 Then Jesus, calling out with a loud voice, said, “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit!” And having said this he breathed his last. 47 Now when the centurion saw what had taken place, he praised God, saying, “Certainly this man was innocent!” 48 And all the crowds that had assembled for this spectacle, when they saw what had taken place, returned home beating their breasts. 49 And all his acquaintances and the women who had followed him from Galilee stood at a distance watching these things.



50  Now there was a man named Joseph, from the Jewish town of Arimathea. He was a member of the council, a good and righteous man, 51 who had not consented to their decision and action; and he was looking for the kingdom of God. 52 This man went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. 53 Then he took it down and wrapped it in a linen shroud and laid him in a tomb cut in stone, where no one had ever yet been laid. 54 It was the day of Preparation, and the Sabbath was beginning. 55  The women who had come with him from Galilee followed and saw the tomb and how his body was laid. 56 Then they returned and prepared spices and ointments.
On the Sabbath they rested according to the commandment.

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v3 – Jesus claims to be King of the Jews.

v14 – Jesus was not inciting a rebellion.

v19 – Barabbas had been sentenced for insurrection, and the people wanted his release.

v46 – His last prayer is submission and surrender.

Denial, Betrayal, Arrest, and Covenant - Luke 22 – Jesus' Final Week part 4

(Click here to read Luke 22)

Luke 22:19-23 (ESV)

 ¹⁹  And he took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” ²⁰ And likewise the cup after they had eaten, saying, “This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood. ²¹  But behold, the hand of him who betrays me is with me on the table. ²² For the Son of Man goes as it has been determined, but woe to that man by whom he is betrayed!” ²³ And they began to question one another, which of them it could be who was going to do this.

Betrayal hangs heavy in the air at the Last Supper. On this night, Jesus has been betrayed by one of his inner circle, and one of his very closest friends will deny even knowing him. He shares the table with both of them tonight.

Tonight, he will be arrested. He will be tried at morning as a heretic and an insurrectionist, both crimes punishable by death.

For a few days, Jesus has confined his activities to the public courtyard of the temple, surrounded by crowds of his followers. He had entered the city less than a week before, to the praise of the people as they called him Messiah, the Chosen one, while he was riding a donkey. He and the crowds went from the gate to the temple, where Jesus overturned and overtook the courtyard from the corrupt moneychangers and businesses that were taking advantage of faithful pilgrims (Luke 19).

(Click here to see notes on Jesus' dramatic entrance to the city)

At night, he went alone to the Mount of Olives, arriving back at the temple early in the morning to join the camp of misfits and teach about the Kingdom of God (Luke 20-21). The authorities have increased surveillance and pressure, hoping to trap him into saying something violent or revolutionary so they could have him removed by Rome (Luke 19:47-48, 20:21, 26, 22:2).

Luke 22:1-2 (ESV)

Now the Feast of Unleavened Bread drew near, which is called the Passover. ² And the chief priests and the scribes were seeking how to put him to death, for they feared the people.

They couldn't remove Jesus legitimately, and the critical mass of supporters surrounding him would have been witness if they tried. If they were going to hang onto their corrupt control, they would have to act clandestinely.

Luke 22:3-6 (ESV)
³  Then Satan entered into Judas called Iscariot, who was of the number of the twelve. ⁴ He went away and conferred with the chief priests and officers how he might betray him to them. ⁵ And they were glad, and agreed to give him money. ⁶ So he consented and sought an opportunity to betray him to them in the absence of a crowd.

Evidence suggests that Jesus knew of Judas' betrayal. Certainly he knew that his teaching and his life were to lead to his death. He predicted his death twice in chapter 9 (vv22 and 44), and once right before entering the city (Luke 18:32-33), saying explicitly that he would die at the hands of the Roman empire.

Betrayal, Denial, and Loss

When he has his two closest disciples leave the courtyard to prepare the Passover for them to share together, he does so with great care and secrecy (vv7-13). It seems like he has been making plans in secret to leave the temple courts and share this last significant meal with his disciples. By keeping it a secret, he also kept it from Judas. The Last Supper was a surprise party for his disciples, but one with great sober intention.

Jesus knew he was in danger, and his secrecy suggests he knew he was in danger by his close friend. His hours were numbered. His words at this event were going to be some of the most important he would ever speak to his disciples. He made sure they would not be disturbed, at least long enough to share this final meal.

In Luke 15 (see notes), Jesus told the story of a Father betrayed by his son. Such a loss is far more complicated than even a death. In his story, this father willingly received his wretched son back, forgiving him entirely for what he'd done.

Jesus knew the bitterness of betrayal. He felt the napalm burn of being attacked and abandoned utterly by one for whom he gave his ministry. Judas was a friend. Jesus had crowds around him, but only twelve that he shared with as he shared with Judas. Thousands would have probably loved to have the access that Judas had. And Judas was not always a traitor. Luke 6 says that Jesus picked his closest twelve after a night in prayer, and describes Judas the one who would “become a traitor” (6:12-13,16).

After sharing the Passover meal with his disciples, he prophesies to Peter, one of his closest, that the rooster would not crow for morning until Peter had denied him three times (vv31-34). Later, after his arrest, his friend is recognized in the courtyard where he is held prisoner. Peter had an accent, as Jesus would also have had, that set him apart as being from the multi-ethnic and low-income neighbourhood of Galilee. Peter is recognized in the dark by his accent, three times by other strangers waiting by the fire. He adamantly denies ever knowing his closest and dearest friend (vv54-62).

Trials could only legally happen during the hours of daylight. When the rooster crows, Jesus is led out of the house for his trial, and locks eyes with his comrade. Peter remembers what Jesus had said at Supper, and his heart breaks. Verse 62 says he wept bitterly.

Betrayal and denial are bitter. Jesus had said to his disciples that to follow him would mean to deny themselves.

Luke 9:23-26 (ESV)
 ²³ And he said to all, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. ²⁴ For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it. ²⁵  For what does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses or forfeits himself? ²⁶ For whoever is ashamed of me and of my words, of him will the Son of Man be ashamed when he comes in his glory and the glory of the Father and of the holy angels.

On this night, to avoid a cross, Peter denies his Lord, and leaves him to die alone.

Luke 22:61-62 (ESV)
 ⁶¹ And the Lord turned and looked at Peter. And Peter remembered the saying of the Lord, how he had said to him, “Before the cock crows today, you will deny me three times.” ⁶² And he went out and wept bitterly.

(see more notes on Luke 9)

Jesus has traveled with these twelve from Galilee to Jerusalem, preaching of the Kingdom of God. He has repeatedly described this Kingdom as an upside-down one, a Kingdom completely contrary to the values of the empire. He says that the message of the empire is good news to the poor (Luke 4), and that in it the first will be last, and the last, first.

It is these men who were closest to Jesus during that journey, who now respond to news of his suffering and betrayal with an argument over which of them would be greatest. This is not the first time they've had this argument. The first time this argument is recorded in Luke was right at the very beginning of their calling with Jesus, also right after he told them he was to die.

Luke 9:46-48 (ESV)
⁴⁶  An argument arose among them as to which of them was the greatest. ⁴⁷ But Jesus, knowing the reasoning of their hearts, took a child and put him by his side ⁴⁸ and said to them, “Whoever receives this child in my name receives me, and whoever receives me receives him who sent me. For he who is least among all of you is the one who is great.”

On the night he is to be betrayed and arrested, Jesus patiently describes the radical nature of this different Kingdom to the people who should have understood it best.

Later that night, as Jesus asks for their comforting company and prayer during deep agony (v44), these men will prefer to sleep (vv45-46). What could possibly encourage Jesus to continue his path to execution, when it seems his message of a different Kingdom has been so badly misunderstood or forgotten?

The Last Supper

Luke 22:14-16 (ESV)
 ¹⁴  And when the hour came, he reclined at table, and the apostles with him. ¹⁵ And he said to them, “I have earnestly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. ¹⁶ For I tell you I will not eat it until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God.”

This Supper with his disciples and what it represents is what makes the difference between Jesus' message of a Kingdom as a utopian idea, and the Kingdom of God as a present reality.

The meal they shared was the Passover. In this holy annual meal, the Jewish people remember their slavery in Egypt, from which they were dramatically rescued by God through Moses. God judged their oppressors with ten plagues that utterly destroyed their empire, and made a mockery of their idols. On their last night in Egypt, the Israelite families followed Moses' instructions to kill a lamb for their meal that night, and brush the blood of the lamb on the doors of their houses. They were to eat the lamb with bread made without yeast. That night, when the angel of the Lord came to kill the firstborn sons of Egypt, it would pass over the doors with blood, and they would be spared. By this judgment, Egypt relented when they would not from any other plague. Israel was released from slavery.

From Egypt, the new nation of Israel traveled to a mountain where they received the law, the covenant terms they would follow that showed they were God's people. In the covenant, God required a dedication of all the firstborn sons of Israel, saying that by the Passover, he had rescued them and therefore made them his own. Israelites would kill a lamb when they broke the laws of the covenant, and the blood of the innocent animal would pay for their sin.

But Jesus presented the Passover differently.

Luke 22:17-20 (ESV)
 ¹⁷ And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he said, “Take this, and divide it among yourselves. ¹⁸  For I tell you that from now on I will not drink of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes.” ¹⁹  And he took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” ²⁰ And likewise the cup after they had eaten, saying, “This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood.

Jesus was offering a New Covenant. This Covenant would not be bought by the blood of lambs, or the strict adherence to a moral law. Jesus was offering himself as the innocent lamb. His life, lived entirely as the law code required, was given for the payment of any law broken by his disciples.

He sat at a table with those that would betray him to death, that would abandon him to grief, that would deny him in shame. And before any of it is to occur, he forgives it all completely. His death wasn't a strategy for overturning Rome. It wasn't a great example for his disciples to follow, though by living life according to his teaching, they would. His death was a gift, a gift of freedom from the Old Covenant. He fulfilled it entirely. It was done.

And so, this was a new Passover. Judgment for their wrongdoing, misunderstandings, or downright treachery, even that very evening, could be completely forgiven. All Jesus had been preaching about the Kingdom of God up until this day could be made possible because of the holy and righteous hearts he could now give to all those who would receive it.

And he offered, not because it was deserved, or earned, or even asked for. He gave it because of love.

The Kingdom of God in the hearts of these and the rest of his disciples would turn the empire upside down. It would turn religion upside down. People as wholly freed as they would be, free to live without fear of judgment or punishment or even death, were people who really could and would live according to the Justice and generosity that Jesus had taught.

And these would be lives set free from all bondage, as Israel had been set free from Egypt. These were lives purchased, every one, by the King of kings. There is no higher judge to call them guilty when this one calls them innocent. There is no other King that could demand honour when this one receives the highest honour.

These are lives freely able to receive the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of God inside of them, the living seed of the Kingdom of God that changes the world from the grave to the sky.

Jesus' Arrest

Before leaving the upper room, Jesus told the disciples to be prepared to live their lives of freedom and resistance. He assures them that what is about to happen, his arrest and execution as an insurrectionist, must occur according to God's plan. He tells them that it will be the fulfillment of scripture (vv35-38). Though they may not understand, this surely would have been a comfort later.

He takes them to the Mount of Olives, where he had spent his nights during the last week of occupation and teaching at the temple (see notes). He prays with such anguish that he sweats blood. He asks God to let the cup pass from him, but also says he will submit to his will (v42).

Here it says that an angel came to strengthen him (v43). In the other synoptic gospels, this happens during Jesus' temptation in the wilderness, but not here (Matthew 4:11, Mark 1:15). Luke does not record angels ministering to him at his temptation. Only in Luke does it record this event happening here. This may have been the Last Temptation, “the opportune” time recorded in Luke 4:13.

Jesus is arrested in the middle of the night, at the Mount of Olives, by a crowd led by his friend, Judas. A disciple strikes a man with a sword in retaliation. Jesus tells him to stop, and heals the man immediately after (vv49-51). The purpose of his death and the message of the Kingdom of God could not be confused by violent rebellion. Jesus confronts the tactics of the aggressors come to arrest him by pointing that they had to arrest him at night when he was alone, by deception and conspiracy. They were not willing to arrest him in front of the people who were with him in the courtyard of the temple. This was corruption. They knew it, and so did he, and he called it what it was (vv52-53). He similarly pointed out Judas' betrayal when he arrived (vv47-48).

Luke 12:3-4 (ESV)

² Nothing is covered up that will not be revealed, or hidden that will not be known. ³ Therefore whatever you have said in the dark shall be heard in the light, and what you have whispered in private rooms shall be proclaimed on the housetops.

Jesus is taken away to a secure location until he can be legally tried in the daylight. He is mocked, beaten, and abused. At first light, he is finally asked a question in a mockery of justice that sought to have him incriminate himself.

To the most pointed question of whether he was the Son of God, he answered more clearly than he ever had before this point by his own confession.

He told the counsel he was the Son of God.

This was enough for him to be worthy of death by the law of Moses. The verdict in this court was clear. But under Roman occupation, no one could pronounce or carry out a death sentence without a conviction by Rome. For this, they would have to prove he was a revolutionary.

This they were prepared to do.

But what was heresy to the counsel was Good News for the Kingdom of God. It was exactly this event that would inaugurate the planting of the Kingdom in the hearts of all those who would receive it. And it was this reason, that Jesus is divine, that the Holy Spirit could be offered as a gift to everyone who would receive the power of God inside them to live as Citizens of the Upside Down Kingdom of Heaven.

Luke 22:63-71 (ESV)

⁶³  Now the men who were holding Jesus in custody were mocking him as they beat him. ⁶⁴  They also blindfolded him and kept asking him, “Prophesy! Who is it that struck you?” ⁶⁵ And they said many other things against him, blaspheming him.

⁶⁶  When day came, the assembly of the elders of the people gathered together, both chief priests and scribes. And they led him away to their council, and they said, ⁶⁷  “If you are the Christ, tell us.” But he said to them, “If I tell you, you will not believe, ⁶⁸ and if I ask you, you will not answer. ⁶⁹ But from now on the Son of Man shall be seated at the right hand of the power of God.” ⁷⁰ So they all said, “Are you the Son of God, then?” And he said to them, “You say that I am.” ⁷¹ Then they said, “What further testimony do we need? We have heard it ourselves from his own lips.”

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vv23-24 – These two verses together seem almost absurd. Jesus just said that someone would betray him and his blood would be poured out. They change subjects to wondering which of them is best without a breath.

v52 – Jesus was NOT leading a rebellion – implied

v70 – Jesus claims to be the Son of God.