by Tom Johnston
He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. (Colossians 1:9, ESV)
Amazing, isn’t it? God the Father has delivered us from the spiritual chains of our own sin, freed us from our spiritual blindness. What amazes me more is that so many who claim Christ still walk under the sway of the dark dominion.
The previous several verses speak to the issue quite plainly:
And so, from the day we heard, we have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God. May you be strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy, giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light. (Colossians 1:9-12)
First, it seems that St. Paul considered that it was possible for us to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, in a way that is a blessing to him, in a way that bears both the fruit of the Spirit and the fruit of brining transformation to those who are yet to know Christ. To that end he prayed for his disciples in Colossae – who were confronted with heretical teaching. What he prays for is their ability to have spiritual wisdom and understanding, so that God’s will would be known. Such knowledge allowed the Colossians to live in a manner worthy of their calling in Christ. He also speaks the blessing of divine strength and power, allowing the Colossian Christians to maintain their joy as they walk in patient endurance. It seems that Paul is convinced that such discernment and empowerment was essential for the Colossians to walk effectively with Christ.
Discernment and empowerment. Interesting. Two things which it seems that the Church in the West lacks. This would explain a lot, as it seems many Christians have little ability to endure, to maintain their joy in the midst of trial and difficulty – and to stand amidst the swirl of ideas and influences in a culture dominated by the spirit of this age (2 Corinthians 4:4). This lack of wise discernment and accompanying absence of spiritual virility allows people who are positionally in the Kingdom of God to functionally be trapped in their thought patterns, attitudes and behaviors found in the dominion of darkness. Freed, but acting like slaves. Sons and daughters of the Most High God, but living like spiritual paupers. Having regained their sight, but living in a cloud of befuddling darkens. The “sins stats” in our culture bear this out – most Christians have lives which diverge little from the rest of the population. They remain as partial prisoners of self, of sin, of hell.
Like Paul we need to pray for each of us to have spiritual insight, the ability to make wise choices in every area of life. We need the Spirit’s transforming enlightenment and consequent empowerment to live a life which in its totality is an act of worship before God (Romans 12:1-2). Until people come to a deep understanding of who they are in Christ – their new-birth identity in Him, they remain heavily influenced by darkness. Where we are not renewed in our thinking and transformed in our hearts – in those areas hell can still hold dominion. This need not be.
Dozens of Christian people we know – friends, family, fellow church members – continue to walk as if they are still under the dark dominion. May God so move our hearts that we will pray for them without ceasing, that they may know the freedom which Christ has purchased for them. May God make us just bold and brave enough to go on some very necessary rescue missions, carrying on the spirit-liberating ministry of Jesus, bringing the light of God’s love, acceptance and forgiveness to darkened minds. This is the heart of the Revolution – no prisoners.
Friday, June 27, 2008
When Worlds Collide
by Mike Chong Perkinson
The Gospel of Mark paints a rather clear picture of two contrasting ways of life. Jesus sternly rebukes Peter at one point in the narrative for not thinking the things of God but of the things of men (Mark 8:33). Here we see the contrasting values set in opposition, two orientations of life: what God wills for people and what people want for themselves.
At the beginning of the journey to Jerusalem (8:22-10:52), Jesus teaches these contradictory standards to His disciples. The disciples resist the teachings at every point, but eventually come to submit to them. The journey can then be pictured as a clash of values between Jesus, who teaches what God wills for people, and the disciples who exemplify what people want for themselves. On the way to Jerusalem, Jesus prophecies three times to the disciples about his impending persecution and death (8:31-9:1; 9:30-50; 10:32-45). After each prophecy, the disciples demonstrate that do not understand the nature and depth of the prophetic word or accept his teaching. After each of these prophetic moments, Jesus takes some time to teach the disciples the values of the rule of God that underlie his words and actions.
Kingdom Values
After the first prophecy, Jesus says: “For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me and for the gospel will save it.” (8:35) After the second prophecy, Jesus says: “If anyone wants to be first, he must be the very last, and the servant of all.” (9:35) After the third prophecy, Jesus says: “And whoever wants to be first must be slave of all. For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” (10:44-45) Let me break them down for you:
1. In order to save your life you must lose it.
2. The pursuit of status is not the standard for God’s people.
3. To have power one must be a servant and relinquish the pursuit of power for oneself.
There is a sharp line of demarcation that Jesus is drawing between acquisition (saving) and relinquishing (losing). Let me explain: people who follow the world’s standards seek to acquire status and power for themselves. This way of life is motivated by fear.
In contrast, people who follow Jesus’ standards receive the blessings of the Kingdom and are willing to relinquish life, status, and power in order to bring the good news of the Kingdom to others. This way of life is only made possible by faith and is motivated by love. It is through the empowering of the Holy Spirit that we find such a life possible. Mark portrays in rather dramatic fashion that only two ways of life are possible: “saving one’s life out of fear” or “losing one’s life for others.” The characteristics for these two opposing modes of life can be stated as follows in this diagram:
Jesus embodies “what God wills for people.” He brings healing, drives out the demonic, forgives sin, and ultimately dies for the mission. In stark contrast we find the religious leaders, who exemplify “what people want for themselves.” They are afraid of losing their position and aggrandize themselves at the expense of the people. The disciples, in Mark’s narrative, are caught in the middle and vacillate between the two positions. The dissonance they feel is due to their struggle in following Jesus to promote the good news of the Kingdom of God or following Jesus to acquire status and power for themselves.
May we become a people that are motivated by love and not by fear. May we choose to reject our human need to acquire status, reputation, and power for ourselves and give our lives to the One who gave His life for us so that His life, healing and salvation would shine through us, the Church, His Bride.
The Gospel of Mark paints a rather clear picture of two contrasting ways of life. Jesus sternly rebukes Peter at one point in the narrative for not thinking the things of God but of the things of men (Mark 8:33). Here we see the contrasting values set in opposition, two orientations of life: what God wills for people and what people want for themselves.
At the beginning of the journey to Jerusalem (8:22-10:52), Jesus teaches these contradictory standards to His disciples. The disciples resist the teachings at every point, but eventually come to submit to them. The journey can then be pictured as a clash of values between Jesus, who teaches what God wills for people, and the disciples who exemplify what people want for themselves. On the way to Jerusalem, Jesus prophecies three times to the disciples about his impending persecution and death (8:31-9:1; 9:30-50; 10:32-45). After each prophecy, the disciples demonstrate that do not understand the nature and depth of the prophetic word or accept his teaching. After each of these prophetic moments, Jesus takes some time to teach the disciples the values of the rule of God that underlie his words and actions.
Kingdom Values
After the first prophecy, Jesus says: “For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me and for the gospel will save it.” (8:35) After the second prophecy, Jesus says: “If anyone wants to be first, he must be the very last, and the servant of all.” (9:35) After the third prophecy, Jesus says: “And whoever wants to be first must be slave of all. For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” (10:44-45) Let me break them down for you:
1. In order to save your life you must lose it.
2. The pursuit of status is not the standard for God’s people.
3. To have power one must be a servant and relinquish the pursuit of power for oneself.
There is a sharp line of demarcation that Jesus is drawing between acquisition (saving) and relinquishing (losing). Let me explain: people who follow the world’s standards seek to acquire status and power for themselves. This way of life is motivated by fear.
In contrast, people who follow Jesus’ standards receive the blessings of the Kingdom and are willing to relinquish life, status, and power in order to bring the good news of the Kingdom to others. This way of life is only made possible by faith and is motivated by love. It is through the empowering of the Holy Spirit that we find such a life possible. Mark portrays in rather dramatic fashion that only two ways of life are possible: “saving one’s life out of fear” or “losing one’s life for others.” The characteristics for these two opposing modes of life can be stated as follows in this diagram:
Jesus embodies “what God wills for people.” He brings healing, drives out the demonic, forgives sin, and ultimately dies for the mission. In stark contrast we find the religious leaders, who exemplify “what people want for themselves.” They are afraid of losing their position and aggrandize themselves at the expense of the people. The disciples, in Mark’s narrative, are caught in the middle and vacillate between the two positions. The dissonance they feel is due to their struggle in following Jesus to promote the good news of the Kingdom of God or following Jesus to acquire status and power for themselves.
May we become a people that are motivated by love and not by fear. May we choose to reject our human need to acquire status, reputation, and power for ourselves and give our lives to the One who gave His life for us so that His life, healing and salvation would shine through us, the Church, His Bride.
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