The Dance Of Marriage

Sermon audio may be downloaded here

Ephesians 5:21 – 32

²¹ Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.

²² Wives, submit yourselves to your own husbands as you do to the Lord. ²³ For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, his body, of which he is the Savior. ²⁴ Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything.

²⁵ Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her ²⁶ to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, ²⁷ and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless. ²⁸ In this same way, husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself.²⁹ After all, no one ever hated their own body, but they feed and care for their body, just as Christ does the church— ³⁰ for we are members of his body. ³¹ “For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.” ³² This is a profound mystery—but I am talking about Christ and the church. ³³ However, each one of you also must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband.

The Bible begins with a wedding in the Garden of Eden (with the creation of Adam and Eve in the likeness of God as husband/wife). And the Bible ends with a wedding feast (the union of Christ and His church) at the new heaven and new earth. In between and throughout the Bible, the covenant relationship between Christ and His people is described as a marriage. So, when God’s people sin, the Bible doesn’t just say they’ve been ‘disobedient’ – it says they’ve been ‘unfaithful’. And when God’s people worship false gods, the Bible doesn’t just call them ‘idolatrous’ – it calls them ‘adulterous’. Why? Because the Lord is a husband, who has entered into an eternal, committed covenant relationship with any of us who will trust Him… We now belong to each other. This covenant love is the reason behind everything that happens in heaven and on earth. It is also the reason why CDPC is focusing on building strong families (and healthy marriages) in year 2013. In some profound, mysterious ways, our relationship with our spouse echoes God’s design for marriage in creation and God’s plan in redemption.

But everywhere we turn today it seems that the institution of marriage is in deep trouble. Some activists are pushing to legalize same sex marriages at a time when lots of young people no longer believe that marriage is a desirable arrangement – “I don’t need a piece of paper to love someone”. Living together without long term commitment is very common. Broken marriages carry lots of pain and hurt for all involved – both adults and children. The destructive effect of sin could also be seen within marriages. Husbands can be chauvinistic, abusive and emotionally neglect their wives to climb the corporate ladder. Wives can be overly dependent, sexually manipulative and nag their passive husbands into submission. As a result, we have serious confusion about what it means to be a husband or wife when our daughters need a clear model of what it means to be feminine and our sons need a positive vision of what it means to be masculine.

This is an opportunity for the Kingdom community of Jesus as a whole is to live out a different kind of marriage life, and to mirror another culture in our gender relationships. A culture of forgiveness, repentance and change in the midst of this brokenness… In the midst of widespread confusion, we desperately need to recover a biblical, gospel-centered vision of marriage as revealed in Ephesians 5.

Some of us in CDPC may still remember the wedding of Ken and Shirene by the beach in Penang a few years back. They are now studying in Australia to be environmentalists, learning of ways to best care for God’s creation. It was memorable because the couple started their wedding by enacting their story with God and with each other through Latin dance. They were two strong individuals and their shared passion in salsa was an ideal medium to share their stormy journey and happy destination. There was even a risky move in which Shirene trustingly fell backwards and Ken literally “saved her neck”. 

Rev Wong preached from this same passage on that day. And he observed that in Latin dance, the man is expected to lead and the woman responds best to a partner that she trusts and respects. It was a beautiful picture of the mutually enriching roles of man and woman in marriage. In his e-commentary, Pastor Soo Inn also noted that both man and woman are led by the music. The man's leadership in dancing is to help both him and his partner respond best to the music. In one sense it is the music that leads.

So marriage is like a dance. There is unity in that both man and woman move to the same rhythm and mutually help each other to follow the Divine Music. They keep in step with each other and share a common goal. Otherwise they would step on each other’s toes. Marriage is also like a dance in that both man and woman complement each other in their different roles. Sometimes, the lady would leap into the air and the man would catch her as she lands. It’s beautiful when each knows his or her unique role. So far, I haven’t seen a dance in which the guy leaps into the air, waiting for the lady to catch him. It would look a bit odd, right? In short, there is unity in diversity in the dance of marriage.

1)      Unity in Marriage (What does it mean to be one in marriage?)

2)      Diversity in Marriage (How can we celebrate our differences and complement each other in marriage?)

3)      Practical Applications (How do we practically help each other to dance with God’s music?)

Unity in Marriage

From the Ephesians passage just now, we see that the covenant between Christ and His people (the church) is the model, the pattern for our own marriage. Our marriage is a visual aid that points us to the real thing: Christ’s love for His people. So how a husband and wife should relate to each other cannot be separated from the question of how we both are to relate to God. For those among us who are single, perhaps we can gain some insights into the essence of marriage, how to go about discerning future partners and start learning some of these relationship dynamics. Come Chinese New Year, aunties may press you with questions like “Got boyfriend, ah? When are you getting married and start giving ang pow?” The only thing more important to most Asian parents than their precious children getting married is having grandchildren. But the Christian faith sees singleness as good because the kingdom of God provides the most lasting possible legacy and spiritual descendants through the gospel. Unlike Western society that is obsessed with romance and sex, we see singleness as good because our union with Christ can fulfill our deepest longings. Hopefully, there’s something here for you singles to prepare for marriage or decide if this is really something for you.

So what is marriage, anyway?

In His covenant with us, God says: “I will be your God and you will be my people. I will never leave you nor forsake you”. Marriage is also a covenant when we say to our spouse: “I will be your husband and you will be my wife. I will never leave you nor forsake you. All that I am I give to you, and all that I have I share with you.” It is something exclusive between a man and a woman and permanent for life. It is not a contract. In a contract, we say: “This is my part of the deal, I will do this and you will do that and if you do not do your part, the deal is off.” A contract is basically an agreement between two people for the purpose of protecting their rights and limiting their responsibilities. A covenant is an unconditional laying down of our rights, giving up our own agendas for the good of the other, for the happiness of the family before God.

For a Christian marriage, this covenant is made by three (not two) parties: the husband, the wife and God Himself. So before getting into any fights about ‘who’s the boss?’ in a marriage; let’s start by saying that God is the boss of our marriage. He composes the divine music that leads our dance. First of all, the basis of our unity is: We must submit to one another out of reverence for Christ (verse 21). 

Mutual submission means: husbands also need to submit to their wives just as Christ submitted Himself to suffering and death for the good of the church. The motivation for this mutual submission is out of “reverence for Christ” (5:21). “Reverence for Christ” means that we do not just blindly follow even when it means doing something contrary to Christ’s authority… To submit doesn’t mean you are inferior to the other person either. No, Christ is equal to God the Father in dignity and worth, but He willingly chose to say: “Not My will but Yours be done.” He joyfully subjects Himself and subordinates Himself to the Father. This voluntary yielding to others in love is a mark of the Christian community because we want to honor and respect Christ who is our Lord and Savior. He came to serve and not to be served. In the same way, mutual submission is a sign of obedience and reverence to Christ. It should not be seen as a sign of weakness.

In the days of the apostle Paul as well in some traditional societies today, women were not granted full status as human persons. A Jewish man would wake up in the morning and pray: “Thank you, God, that I am not a slave, Gentile or woman”. The ancient pagan Greeks thought that only males are created directly by the gods and are given souls. If they don’t live properly, they reincarnate in the next life as women. But the Christian faith radically changes all that. In Christ, there is neither male nor female. 

The gospel subverts man-dominated systems by insisting that both female and male were made in the image of God. Therefore both are equal in dignity and intrinsic worth. Both woman and man deserve equal respect and honor. And this is rooted not in modern cultural norms but in the original design of the Creator. Matthew Henry commented about why God made Eve out of a rib from Adam like this: “She is not made out of his head to rule over him, nor out of his feet to be trampled upon by him, but out of his side to be equal with him, under his arm to be protected, and near his heart to be loved.” You don’t find anything more romantic than that in a theological commentary…

Which brings us back to the unity of marriage: The Bible says that husbands and wives are “one flesh”, they share the same body: “For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.” In v28, Paul says that husbands and wives are as integrated as a head is to a body. That’s unity. The two have become one. The implication is: you cannot pursue your own separate agendas anymore. If you do, you will only cause harm. If a head goes off in the opposite direction from the body – both will be unhappy – because they’re one. A head can’t be happy if the body is hurting and a body can’t be happy if the head’s hurting.

A few months into my marriage, this reality still hasn’t hit home. I thought that I could play computer games (Starcraft II) late into the night while Grace was sleeping in another room. As a single, nobody cares what time I go to bed. I thought my computer games had nothing to do with her sleep… You do your own thing and I do mine. Only then did I realize that after marriage, you could not now tell where she ended and where I began. We are now one. My life is now forever bound up with another person. “She is now the bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh!”

From now on, after marriage, we must pursue our joy in the joy of each other. I must seek my pleasure in the pleasure of my wife. John Piper says: “If you live for your private pleasure at the expense of your spouse, you are living against yourself and destroying your own highest joy. But if you devote yourself with all your heart to the holy joy of your spouse, you will also be living for your joy and making a marriage after the image of Christ and his church." So that’s unity in marriage… The man becomes independent of his parents and the woman becomes united with him so that they become one flesh. If you really understand that, then you cannot pursue your own individual fulfillment apart from the other. Your happiness is now in the other person. You have no joy now if it’s not a corporate joy. So work hard for your happiness by serving each other like crazy.

It also means that the essence of marriage is a commitment and a promise… that no matter what happens in life, for better or for worse, for richer or poorer, in sickness and in health, when you feel romantic attraction or not, through the years when you both will go through all sorts of changes, one thing remains: that you will be true to each other. That is the context that real intimacy, forgiveness, tenderness and spiritual growth can take place.

Diversity in Marriage

Now, is there any difference in our roles or callings or primary responsibilities as husbands and wives? Husbands and wives are both equals in marriage, but they are not exactly the same. Physically they are different, that’s obvious. But is there a difference of maleness and femaleness in our souls? Is the way we see things, the way we think and solve problems different? Diversity means that the music of our marriage should not be merely the sound of singing the same tune. It should be the combined sound of soprano and bass, alto and tenor. It means that the differences of maleness and femaleness are respected and affirmed and valued. We don’t try to compete or duplicate each other. Rather, we enrich each other with our unique qualities.

Scripture says: Wives are to submit to their husbands just as the church submits to Christ. And husbands are to love their wives just as Christ loves the church. Does that mean that husbands don’t need to submit and wives don’t need to love their husbands? Of course not! But there is a primary responsibility and unique, complementary gift that each of us brings into that dance. Some may ask: “Isn’t this just a cultural household code that the apostle Paul adopts rather than a timeless truth for everyone? After all, we now live in a modern world where this kind of traditional role is outdated”. Well, the Bible never gives specific instructions that husbands should go out to work and wives stay at home. Or wives should do the dishes and husbands are responsible to take out the cockroach... You don’t find any of specific lists of do’s and don’ts like that. Proverbs 31 even describes an ideal wife who works in real estate, investment, trading and takes care of her family. And do you know that Jesus can cook? You didn’t know that ler… (Read John 21) So we should not confuse what Paul says here with stereotypes that are culture-specific. Like men should be Rambo and women should be like Cinderella.

Having said that, it also appears that Paul’s instruction on marriage points to creation and redemption, rather than any specific culture. The key is to remember that the relationship between Christ and the church is the pattern for the relationship between husband and wife. Are Christ and the church mutually submitted? Yes, they are. But submission doesn’t mean that Christ submits to the authority of the church. Christ submits Himself to suffer and die for the good of the church. The church doesn’t die in the place of Christ, but she gladly submits by affirming His authority and following His lead. So mutual submission does not mean submitting to each other in the exact same way… There is diversity of roles in the relationship.

Similarly, the husband’s role is to take the initiative in sacrificial, loving, servant-leadership to protect and to provide while the wife’s role is to shape, affirm, encourage and nurture that leadership. Submission is her distinct calling and unique strength to help carry through his guidance according to her gifts. And we need each other’s unique gifts and strengths to complement each other. It is not a domineering headship nor is it mindless submission. What does ‘head’ mean? Well, it refers to two ideas:

1) To be ‘head’ is to be the “source” of the body. The body gets nourishment from the head (verse 29). The mouth is in the head so nourishment comes through the mouth to the body. The body also gets guidance and protection from the eyes and ears in the head. The husband is to be a source of provision, protection and guidance to the wife.

2) “Head” also implies authority. For example, we speak of the ‘head of this department’. It doesn’t mean dictatorship. It is to be exercised in Christ-like, servant leadership. Not power over, control over. But authority exercised to serve, to love and to sacrifice for the spouse. Obviously husband and wife (as one flesh) need to have conversations, planning things together in decision making. But what if you can’t agree? Don’t make a decision lor… But what if a decision has to be made? Like, where to send your child to school? You cannot afford not to make a decision and let the child stay at home. In those few, rare cases of a real impasse, let the husband accept the burden of making the final choice… even though he may, very often, choose to surrender his own preference to his wife’s where no moral issue is at stake.

There’s a classic case of a pastor who felt called to plant a church in New York but his wife refused to go. It’s too risky. It’s against her ‘nesting instincts’. So the husband (Tim Keller, by the way) said, “Alright if you don’t want to go, then we won’t go. I’m not going to force you”. But then Kathy, his wife, turned around and said: “Hey, wait a minute… What are you doing? You just let me break the tie. What’s the use of you being the man around here? If you see God calling you to do that, for God’s sake, then be a man. Break the tie.” The husband doesn’t want to take the responsibility to lead. Submission takes a lot of strength and courage. It’s not for the weak. But by deferring to him, in a most feminine way, when she says: “I will support you no matter what and I will not say “I told you so” no matter what happens” she is enabling him to do the most masculine thing he has ever done. Both are submitting to their role in the dance of marriage.  

Ok, so there’s unity and diversity in marriage… now how does that cash out practically? How do we play our part in the dance of marriage?

Well, brothers, we have a huge responsibility on our shoulders. Headship is not a privileged position of control. It is a responsibility to serve our family and lead by example. If the family bought too many things on credit, then the financial debt is ultimately our fault. If the family never reads the Bible or seldom seeks the kingdom of God, God holds us accountable. The ‘head’ must answer first. Scary huh? Sometimes, it can be so intimidating that we would often rather run away from it. But if we feel inadequate or overwhelmed, the good news is we can run to God. Our sense of helplessness can drive us to draw near and find resources from God. We need wisdom – that means we need to take God’s word more seriously than ever before. We need grace and divine strength – so we need to humble ourselves and take our prayer life more seriously than we do. We make mistakes and mess up a lot of the times – we need forgiveness, repentance and the righteousness of Christ. Marriage is a powerful means of grace to help us grow into spiritual maturity and apply the gospel in everyday life.

How do we love the woman in our life? Look at Jesus. He loved the Church and gave Himself up for her. He sacrificed Himself in her place even when she is still a sinner. Jesus gave up His rights, His resources, His freedom, His life for the sake of His Bride. And because of this self-giving love, Jesus has created a people who are radiant, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless. So husbands, you are not to love your wives just because she’s beautiful (though she is) – you are to love her in order to make her beautiful. When there is cold silence after a fight, like the way Christ loved the church, we need to die to our ego and take the first step towards reconciliation. The first step is the most painful, right? In a conflict, we are to take the initiative even when she is wrong or unlovely to bring reconciliation.

Wives – would you be happy to respect this kind of servant leadership? Sisters, when you see your husband doing his best in this role, would you use your nurturing strength, use your feminine gifts to affirm, shape, support and share in that leadership? Won’t you feel glad that he is not passive? Would you feel yourself honored and freed and secure by his caring strength? Won’t you respect him for that?

That is a profound mystery. When we do that, we get in touch with a deep part of our souls as male and female. When we do that, we imitate the dance of God in creation and the dance of Christ and His church in redemption.

Credit goes to insights from Ps Wong/Ps Soo Inn. 

Les Miserables

On 11 January 2013, the world's longest-running musical Les Misérables brings its power to the big screen with the sweeping and spectacular cinematic interpretation of Victor Hugo's epic tale. In this stunning motion-picture adaptation the much-loved songs – including 'I Dreamed a Dream', 'Bring Him Home', 'One Day More' and 'On My Own' – will be brought to a new audience by the film's international superstars including Hugh Jackman, Anne Hathaway, Russell Crowe and Amanda Seyfried.

Damaris is delighted to provide free resources for a wide range of community groups, all built around clips from the film. 

Download the leader's guide and group discussion questions from Damaris

Fresh Starts:


Hard Choices

Selangor: Bahasa Bibles and "Allah"

Please send out to your church leaders and fellow Christians for their info and prayer:

 

  Cfm Statement - Bm Bibles and Allah Word - Final 9 Jan 2013 by   David Chong Wui Howe

New blog posts on: Non-Muslims Must Not use ‘Allah’?

Rulers are looked upon as symbols of national unity. For this reason rulers or sultans normally stay above political contestations and social controversies. This would be a most appropriate posture of royal dignity...Many of us wonder why the Sultan of Selangor chooses to decree that the word ‘Allah’ is forbidden to use by any non-Muslims religion in Selangor at a time of obvious political tensions and deep social divisions in the run-up to the coming General Elections. The ruler has absolute discretion in making any decree. He can rule, but will he reign, at least in the hearts of all his subjects?

Full comments: http://libertysentinel.wordpress.com/2013/01/10/selangor-sultan-says-non-muslims-must-not-use-allah-pakatan-and-christian-federation-of-malaysia-disagree/#more-660

‘Allah’ is Substitute for Hebrew Words ēl, ĕlōah, and not for English Word ‘God’


MAIS secretary Datuk Mohd Misri Idris announced “His majesty the Selangor Sultan has made a decision and decreed that the word ‘Allah’ is a sacred word specific to Muslims and is strictly forbidden to use by any non-Muslim religion in Selangor as stated in a fatwa and gazetted on 18 February 2010.”

The ban is unprecedented and it is questionable whether a fatwa can be applied to non-Muslims. In any case, as a non-Muslim, my profession of faith cannot be determined by any human authority (whether the government or the Sultan). It is ultimately between me and my God.

Full comments:
http://www.krisispraxis.com/archives/2013/01/allah-is-substitute-for-hebrew-words-el-eloah-and-not-for-english-word-god/#more-868

The Reason for God: Where Do We Go From Here?

It's a brand new dawn, a brand new day and a brand new year. We wrapped up the Reason For God Reloaded last Sunday and embarked on something experimental, conversational for the new year. 

What if we are ready to explore what it means to put our faith in Christ? Where do we go from here?

Examine our motives: We may be conscious of need for God and some kind of spiritual help. There’s nothing wrong with that but it’s easy to approach God as a means to an end – to serve God or to get God to serve us? Virtually all of us begin our journey to God with some needs but we need to transition eventually to begin thinking: “What do I have to do to know God?”

Count the cost: Jesus is Lord of all or not Lord at all. Bono and Flannery O’Connor speak of the all-or-nothing choice before us. It changes everything about who we are, how we see and how we live.

Take Inventory: What if you are not ready to make such a big commitment? Discern the specific reasons for your reservations. Are there content issues (parts of the gospel that you don’t understand or agree with)? Coherence issues (unresolved doubts and objections)? Cost issues (something that you have to give up/commit)?

But don’t do this alone. Almost anything – new language, new skill – is best learned in a community of others who are at various stages in their own pilgrimage. Not a watertight argument, but a watertight Person. How do we connect to this Person?

Repent: It is not less than being sorry for specific sins but it means much more. It is recognizing your main sin, the sin under the rest of your sins, is your self-salvation project. We seek to be our own lord and savior through both good and bad deeds. It is confessing the things apart from God that we have been relying on for our hope, significance and security.

Believe in Christ: There’s content to faith, not merely nebulous experience. But it is much more than that. It involves personal trust. If your mind is filled with intellectual certainty that a life guard can save you but you don’t reach out and grab his hand, you are lost. Or if you are doubtful but you reach out anyway, he can still save you since he is strong enough. Don’t make the mistake of thinking you have to banish all doubts in order to meet God. Trust in Christ for your hope, significance and security. 

Brian McLaren: Bad faith is based on solely unquestioned authority, pressure or coercion, arrogant and unteachable, dishonest to facts, inspires no action and is a step backward (too lazy or overwhelmed by fear of complexities, so let others make decisions for me). Good faith is humble, curious and learning, honest (free to express both doubt and confidence), grateful, active, tough (bears the costs/inconveniences), communal (others can see blind spots) and relational (if I believe there is personal God behind the universe, shouldn’t my relationship with God become the basis or context for my search for truth?). 

Faith and repentance should be done in both individually and communally. We need to seal our personal commitment through public, communal action in baptism and church. It’s risky since the church is like a vast, diverse ocean. But you can’t live the Christian life without a family of believers in which you find a place.

Trauma of Grace: Finding God is not a technique. Those who enter into a relationship with God inevitably look back and recognize that God’s grace has sought them out. The woman who prayed “God, come and find me!” instead of “God, help me find you”! 

Interfaith Forum: The End Of The World

Good morning Mr. Chairman, distinguished panelists, ladies and gentlemen. Thank you for this honor to speak before you today. Interfaith dialogues are critical to promote mutual understanding, knowledge sharing and respect in a multi-religious society like Malaysia. So I am glad that MMU Melaka has been active in promoting such forums.


Let me begin with a question: How would you react if someone came up to you on the sidewalk, waving a huge card board saying, “Repent, Repent, Doomsday is near”? I guess you might decide to run away or keep a safe distance, thinking: “How gullible are these people to believe in all these Doomsday predictions? Hmph! Another nutcase religious cult…”

I’d probably do the same thing. But then again, the end of the world doesn’t sound so crazy now that we have the technology (the know how) to destroy the earth and wipe out the entire human race many times over. We have atom bombs, hydrogen bombs and nuclear bombs. See how smart we are! If you consider the very real possibility of a nuclear holocaust, of global climate change, of earthquakes and tsunami, of disease outbreak, pollution or a giant asteroid crashing into our planet, then perhaps we are kidding ourselves to believe that our little world is immune to destruction. Contemporary movies such as Armageddon, The Day After Tomorrow, The Matrix, Resident Evil and Terminator show that we are still fascinated with various plausible end-time scenarios.

DoomsdayNow what do Christians believe about Doomsday (Hari Kiamat)? Well, in order to understand that, we need to first go back to the beginning of the world. Christians believe that this planet and everything in it (the sunsets, the oceans and mountains, the diverse ecosystem of animals and plants, and human beings with the ability to think, love and worship)… all of that is created by God, and therefore they are originally good. But the human race rebelled against the Creator. We wanted to be the boss of our lives apart from God’s way. By doing so, we have distorted the harmony in creation. Relationship with God and relationship with each other were broken. Sin is the root of suffering in the world – the injustice, corruption, discrimination and wars. So God cannot forgive our sins just like that because He is holy and righteous. Sin must not go unpunished.

So what’s the solution? Well, in spite of all that sin and darkness, God did not leave us to rot. He did not just send us prophets and messengers to teach us what is right. He came personally into the world as a human being to rescue us from sin – His name is Jesus the Messiah (or Isa Al-Masih to Arab speaking Christians). He loved us so much that He willingly died on the cross to pay for our sins. That settles the question of God’s justice so that God can now freely show mercy and forgive us. When we turn away from sin and follow Jesus as Lord, relationship with God is restored. Three days after He was dead and buried, Jesus was raised to life again and conquered the power of death. We call it: Resurrection. One day, the Bible calls it the Day of the Lord, Jesus will return to earth to judge both the living and the dead. He will destroy all that is corrupt and evil, and ushers in His kingdom, reign and rule of justice, peace and healing.

So that, in a nutshell, is God’s rescue plan. Christians call it the good news. Instead of an endless cycle of destruction and rebirth, this grand story has a beginning, a climax and an ending. History is linear: it is progressing and moving towards a purpose, an ultimate meaning and final destiny.

The Bible tells us what we need to know about the day of the Lord: “Do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you… He is giving us time, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.

But the day of the Lord will come unexpectedly like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything done in it will be laid bare.

Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming. That day will bring about the destruction of the heavens by fire, and the elements will melt in the heat. But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, where righteousness dwells.” (2 Peter chapter 3)

Let us unpack the practical things that we can learn from this Bible passage

1) Christians are skeptical of any attempt to set dates or countdown to the end of the world. Because the Bible clearly said that the day of the Lord would come unexpectedly like a thief in the night. You won’t know when to expect it. Nobody knows the date and time. Come 21 December 2012, you can sleep better.

2) When many people think of heaven, what do they have in mind? Well, from Hollywood movies and cartoon strips, a lot of people have the mistaken notion that heaven is a place where people float around in fluffy clouds, wearing white gowns with a harp in their hand and a halo on their head. The idea is to escape from this material world into that ghost-like, abstract, spiritual existence somewhere else. It creates a mentality where we withdraw from this present life and passively wait for the afterlife. “Why bother making this world into a better place to live in when we will end up in some other place?”

So we need to be careful with how we use terms like Doomsday and end of the world. What exactly do we mean by that? When the Bible says the present earth and heaven will ‘pass away,’ it does not mean that they disappear or go out of existence. It does not mean that the old car is destroyed so we need to replace it with another one. What we mean is: the same car that was destroyed is now fixed, restored, transformed, upgraded and given a complete makeover into a brand new car.

We might say, ‘The caterpillar passes away, and the butterfly emerges.’ It means that there will be such a radical change that the present condition will pass away but there is also a real continuity, a real connection to the new heaven and new earth.

Through fire, the present earth will be dissolved, refined, and purified to give rise to a future world that will be more substantial, more tangible and more solid than one we know. God did not create this material world only to abandon it. Rather, He will renew and rescue it. So Christians have every reason to care for the material world, to protect the ecosystem and to heal the sick and work for social equality and relieve the suffering of the poor and marginalized. Because our hope of eternal life is not to escape from the world. But to renew and transform it… In the meantime, while we wait for that day, we pray and work so that God’s will is done and His kingdom come on earth as it is in heaven.

3) We see lots of suffering, violence and corruption today. Much of it is caused by people’s greed: consuming and accumulating things as if they will last forever. Often we see the bad guys win and the good guys lose. And we struggle with the question of whether evil that appears so powerful can ever be defeated. Christians do not believe that good and evil are two sides of the same coin. You can’t have one without the other. Rather the day of the Lord is a promise that Jesus will return as a righteous Judge to put right all that is wrong in the world and restore all that is lost. Evil will not have the last word. It also reminds us not to build our security and significance on wealth and power because they will soon pass away. These things are temporal and provisional. The idea that there will be a final judgment is a comfort, encouragement and strength to those struggling with evil and suffering. For God promised a new world where there will be no more sorrow, pain or violence. He will wipe away every tear and restore all that is beautiful, noble and true.

4) Some people may wonder, “Now, that all sounds very good but it’s been 2000 years and Jesus hasn’t come back yet. Why so slow, wan? How can we be sure that it will ever happen?” Well, the Bible says that God is not being slow. He has his own time table. A day is like a thousand years from the perspective of eternity. He is actually being patient with us. He is giving us time to turn away from our selfishness and be reconciled to him before Judgment Day. He does not desire for anyone to perish in their sin because it would mean eternal separation from God’s presence. Forever.

And how do we know that God’s kingdom will indeed come? Well, the evidence is found in what happened to Jesus after his death on the cross. If He stays dead, there will be no Christian movement starting in Jerusalem. But on the third day, His tomb was found empty and many eyewitnesses testified to have seen Him alive. It changes everything. His resurrection (coming back to life in a glorious, incorruptible, physical body) is a sign, an evidence and guarantee that the future kingdom has already broken into the present. It is like a seed that will grow until it covers the whole earth. It means that death will not be final. It is a foundation of hope when you are faced with the shadow of death or cancer. It is the sign that Jesus has won the decisive battle over evil, the evidence that He is indeed the Lord of the universe and has now received authority and power to judge the nations.

For Christians, the physical body is not evil in itself. It is not a prison from which our souls need to be set free. The ultimate hope of Christians is the resurrection of the body. On that great Day, those who follow Jesus as Lord and Savior will also be raised to life in an incorruptible, glorified and physical body just like Jesus. These are the ones who say: “God, I am a sinner. I cannot save myself with my religious performance, my moral achievements. When I do achieve these moral standards, I feel proud and superior to others. When I fail to do them, I feel condemned and despair. So I will not trust on my own strength, my own merits and performance. I will put my trust in what You have done on the cross for me. You accepted me freely therefore I obey. I will give my life over to You as Lord and Savior to transform me and renew me and forgive me from inside out”.

This is what Christians believe about the destiny of the world, and the destiny of our own personal stories. Thank you.

The Trial Of Jesus: His Theology, Politics and Superpowers

Download the audio sermon here

Let’s start with a quiz. What do these pictures have in common? They are all sensational trials or court cases that became hot conversation topics in mamak stalls, kopitiams all over Malaysia. While presidential candidates in other countries debate boring stuffs like “Do we want a big or small government or how to create more jobs in the economy?” we Malaysians get to be entertained by court drama full of C4 explosives, sex, lies and videotapes.

Who framed Anwar Ibrahim? Can Azlina Jailani (Lina Joy) have the freedom to change her religion? What’s the motive of Altantuya’s murder? These are trials of shadowy political intrigue and explosive theological controversy…

But when the media buzz subsides, people do tend to forget them after a few years, don’t they? After some time, they get numbed and so tired of reading the same things daily in the papers. And they move on to the next sensational hype that comes along – Gangnam Style or something like that.

In the Bible we read of another trial full of shady political drama, police brutality and theological controversy. It’s the trial of Jesus before the Jewish and Gentile authorities shortly after he was betrayed. It was a trial that made front page news in Jerusalem. Is Jesus the king of the Jews? Is he a threat to Caesar’s power? Is He the Son of God?

These questions still confront each of us today: Who do you say is this Jesus of Galilee? After more than 2000 years, people are still talking about it… Hollywood and Broadway continue to churn out movies, plays and songs surrounding these events. Every year, on Good Friday, Christians all over the world reenact the story of Jesus’ trials and rejection. They continue to remind us how and why humanity (both Jews and Gentiles) would nail Jesus to the cross. For the last few weeks, we saw how various individuals have responded to God’s calling… but today, let us take a look at those who chose the opposite and missed the boat… 1) The Jewish religious elite who were unhappy about His theology, 2) Pontius Pilate who was unimpressed with his politics and 3) Herod Antipas who was disappointed with His superpowers. People whose lives intersected with Jesus but missed the opportunity of a lifetime…

Jesus on Trial: Luke 22:66-71; 23:1-25⁶⁶ At daybreak the council of the elders of the people, both the chief priests and the teachers of the law, met together, and Jesus was led before them. ⁶⁷ “If you are the Messiah,” they said, “tell us.”Jesus answered, “If I tell you, you will not believe me, ⁶⁸ and if I asked you, you would not answer. ⁶⁹ But from now on, the Son of Man will be seated at the right hand of the mighty God.”⁷⁰ They all asked, “Are you then the Son of God?”He replied, “You say that I am.”⁷¹ Then they said, “Why do we need any more testimony? We have heard it from his own lips.”1 Then the whole assembly rose and led him off to Pilate. ² And they began to accuse him, saying, “We have found this man subverting our nation. He opposes payment of taxes to Caesar and claims to be Messiah, a king.”³ So Pilate asked Jesus, “Are you the king of the Jews?”“You have said so,” Jesus replied.⁴ Then Pilate announced to the chief priests and the crowd, “I find no basis for a charge against this man.”⁵ But they insisted, “He stirs up the people all over Judea by his teaching. He started in Galilee and has come all the way here.”⁶ On hearing this, Pilate asked if the man was a Galilean. ⁷ When he learned that Jesus was under Herod’s jurisdiction, he sent him to Herod, who was also in Jerusalem at that time.⁸ When Herod saw Jesus, he was greatly pleased, because for a long time he had been wanting to see him. From what he had heard about him, he hoped to see him perform a sign of some sort. ⁹ He plied him with many questions, but Jesus gave him no answer. ¹⁰ The chief priests and the teachers of the law were standing there, vehemently accusing him. ¹¹ Then Herod and his soldiers ridiculed and mocked him. Dressing him in an elegant robe, they sent him back to Pilate. ¹² That day Herod and Pilate became friends—before this they had been enemies.¹³ Pilate called together the chief priests, the rulers and the people, ¹⁴ and said to them, “You brought me this man as one who was inciting the people to rebellion. I have examined him in your presence and have found no basis for your charges against him. ¹⁵ Neither has Herod, for he sent him back to us; as you can see, he has done nothing to deserve death. ¹⁶ Therefore, I will punish him and then release him.” ^[17] 18 But the whole crowd shouted, “Away with this man! Release Barabbas to us!” ¹⁹ (Barabbas had been thrown into prison for an insurrection in the city, and for murder.)²⁰ Wanting to release Jesus, Pilate appealed to them again. ²¹ But they kept shouting, “Crucify him! Crucify him!”²² For the third time he spoke to them: “Why? What crime has this man committed? I have found in him no grounds for the death penalty. Therefore I will have him punished and then release him.”²³ But with loud shouts they insistently demanded that he be crucified, and their shouts prevailed. ²⁴ So Pilate decided to grant their demand. ²⁵ He released the man who had been thrown into prison for insurrection and murder, the one they asked for, and surrendered Jesus to their will.

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Here is the context of that passage: Jesus was earlier arrested and put on trial before the high priest on that very night.. But why would you hold a trial in the middle of the night? It was not lawful according to Jewish laws (Mishnah). It looks and smells like a kangaroo court. It is a mock trial in which the principles of law and justice are ignored or perverted. So at the first sign of dawn, they quickly brought him to stand on trial before the Sanhedrin (something like the Jewish parliament) to give an appearance of legitimacy to the decisions reached the night before. And the Gospel of Luke picked up the action from there in the passage we have just read.

The religious leaders all asked, “If you are the Messiah, tell us.” Are you the Christ? And by the way, “Christ” is not Jesus’ last name like Bond is the last name of James Bond: “Hi! My name is Christ, Jesus Christ…Nice to meet you Mr Christ.”  No, it is actually a title…

They are asking: Are you the Promised One? Many first-century Jews were expecting a Messiah who would pick up the sword and ride out to destroy their Roman enemies. Are you this kind of Messiah?

Jesus answered, “If I tell you, you will not believe me, and if I asked you, you would not answer. But from now on, the Son of Man will be seated at the right hand of the mighty God.”

This is not the first showdown Jesus had with the chief priests and experts of the law. In Luke 20, Jesus was questioned: Who gave you the right to do those things you do? Jesus was healing people and saying things like: “Your sins are forgiven”. But in those days, you can only get that sort of assurance after going to the temple and offer animal sacrifices to the priests and so on. But here he was: offering forgiveness of sins without going through the temple rituals. Jesus is not-so-subtly claiming for Himself what only God can say and do. Instead of going to the temple to meet God, people are encountering God in Jesus. Amazing, isn’t it?

To make things worse, when the triumphant king returns to the city from battle, he is supposed to be cheered on by people and ushered into the temple where the priests would bless and receive him… but here was King Jesus, after His triumphal entry into Jerusalem just earlier that week, (accompanied by shouts of Hosanna! Hosanna!) He went into the temple and symbolically cleansed it, giving a prophetic rebuke against the greed and violence of the temple administration. “You guys have made God’s house of prayer into a den of robbers (or a den of revolutionaries.)” He overturned the money changer’s tables and disrupted the sacrifice system. It’s an act of judgment. There are sinful idols of greed, corruption and violence in God’s own house that would bring down divine judgment and like in the days of Jeremiah, the temple itself would soon be desolated. And indeed, this is fulfilled later in AD 70 when the Roman army burnt it to the ground.

From then on, Jesus’ fate is sealed. The temple priests wanted him dead. It’s one thing to teach veiled parables to people. It’s quite another to cleanse the temple. It’s one thing to criticize politicians with twitters or facebook. It’s quite another to camp out at Dataran Merdeka or burn a flag. Symbolic actions speak louder than words. For the temple priests, this is like someone trying to issue passports at the IOI mall without going through the Immigration office. So it’s a rhetorical question: “Who do you think you are? Who authorized you to do things like that? You are bypassing the temple…You are leading people astray with your teachings.”

How did Jesus answer them? He said: “Let me ask you another question – John’s baptism. Is it from heaven or from men?” John the Baptist was the forerunner who paved the way for Jesus’ own ministry. Is his work from God or man? So they discussed among themselves: “If we say it’s from God, then why don’t we listen to him? If we say it’s from man, then we get into trouble because the people saw John as a prophet.” So they squirm their way out by saying: “I don’t know.” It’s the politically correct thing to say. So Jesus replied: “Ok fine. Since you don’t want to answer me, neither will I answer your question.”

That’s why when they ask if Jesus was the Christ, his answer was: If I tell you, you will not believe me, and if I asked you, you would not answer. Are you really interested to know the truth? Can you handle it? Or are you just asking from ulterior motives? It’s not truth you want. And I wonder if the Lord is asking some tough questions about our own priorities and commitments today. About the place He occupies in our lives? Is His kingdom agenda an optional add-on to our pursuit of the Malaysian dream? And can we honestly answer His searching questions or do we also play games with Him?    

This time round, it seems like the religious leaders finally had the upper hand. They managed to arrest him in secret, but they needed an excuse to justify killing him: “Are you the Anointed One, the Chosen One of God that will restore the kingdom of Israel? Are you then the Son of God?”

Generally the Jews did not expect the Christ to be divine or God incarnate. 

But Jesus amplified the meaning of the Messiah by identifying himself as the Son of Man: “From now on, the Son of Man will be seated at the right hand of the mighty God.” What does he mean? These experts of the Torah know the Bible inside out and they would have known what the Son of Man means from Daniel 7. For modern readers, this may need some unpacking .

Here’s the background: In 167 BC, the king of Syria called Antiochus Epiphanes persecuted the Jews who refused to accept Greek culture. Some Jews (called the Maccabees) took up weapons and fought a successful war against his empire. They longed for divine judgment against all oppressive empires past, present and future. In the book of Daniel, the empires of Babylon, Persia, Macedonia and Rome are associated with chaos and horrible monstrous beasts.

In that vision, a heavenly trial was held before God’s throne against all these major empires. The kingdom of Antiochus IV was described as an arrogant mini-horn. But these beastly kingdoms will be replaced by the Son of Man. Daniel 7:13-14 – ““In my vision at night I looked, and there before me was one like a son of man, coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient of Days and was led into his presence. He was given authority, glory and sovereign power; all nations and peoples of every language worshiped him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and his kingdom is one that will never be destroyed.”

The oppressive empires are symbolized by beasts but the kingdom of God will be given to this heavenly figure called the Son of Man. Daniel 7 is a liberating vision that the beastly kingdoms that oppressed the people of God throughout the centuries will be judged and overturned by the Son of Man, who will establish an everlasting kingdom.

So when Jesus claims to be the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of God, coming on the clouds of heaven and judging the entire world, He is saying that all authority belongs to Him to judge… and He stands above all imperialistic kingdoms. When you take all that He says and does together, it is impossible to miss Jesus’ outrageous claim to be equal with God Himself. In Him, we find forgiveness of sins that only the temple offers. Judging the world is God’s job description but Jesus claims it for himself. To make such a claim, Jesus must be either mad, bad or God incarnate.  

No wonder the Jewish leaders said, “Why do we need any more testimony? We have heard it from His own lips. That’s blasphemy... a crime punishable by death.” They have finally found a reason to justify killing Him. Here’s the irony: The Judge of the world stands judged by the world. And the judges themselves will one day be judged.   

These are expert theologians who spent their whole lives studying the Scriptures. Yet they fail to come to the One that all the Scriptures prophecy about to receive eternal life. These are the guardians of the temple, who perform prayers, burn incense and offer sacrifices day in day out. And yet they abused their powers, they are greedy for money, perverted justice and murdered the Reality of which the temple is but a shadow. The temple is not a bad thing; it is a true signpost pointing to God. It is where heaven and earth meet. But they are looking so hard at the temple itself that they miss out on the Reality to whom it is pointing. They are so obsessed by the signpost and they cannot see the true Temple in whom God dwells in bodily form. And when that happens, religion becomes idolatry... 

Friends: Reading the Bible is wonderful, but Bible knowledge in itself should not be mistaken for a real, living relationship with Christ. Theology should fuel our worship, not replace it. Great music is a blessing and a gift from God… but when the music fades and all is stripped away, it’s all about Jesus isn’t it? So is everything we say or do in church, our activities and ministries, they are all precious things but they are not ultimate things. They are means of grace showing us the way to the Real thing… to the person of Jesus Christ. In the new heaven and new earth, there will be no temple because Christ is the true temple. We come to Jesus to meet God where we find grace, forgiveness, reconciliation, peace… With His presence at the center, our music and learning and service all comes to life. Apart from Him, everything gets distorted and falls apart.

Now, the Jewish leaders found an excuse to kill Jesus but there is one small problem. They don’t have the legal power to pass the death sentence. Only the Roman authorities have the right to do that. So they must cook up a story to get Pontius Pilate the governor to do it. But there is another problem: Pilate doesn’t really care about their religious beliefs or theology. He’s not interested in what the Scriptures say about the Messiah. He won’t bother with their opinions about the temple or anything.

So they accused Jesus of something else: “We have found this man subverting our nation. He opposes payment of taxes to Caesar and claims to be Messiah, a king.”

If Jesus is a political threat to Caesar, now that’s something else. Then he must be put to death for the sake of Roman peace (pax romana). If Jesus was questioned for his theology before the Sanhedrin, now he is tried for his politics before Gentile rulers.

There was a naughty boy who went around asking other kids this question: “Hey, does your mother know that you are stupid?” I don’t know if anyone ever tried to give him an answer. It’s more likely that he got into a fight right after that. Because how would you answer a tricky question like that? No matter what you say: A straightforward yes or no means that you have already accepted the underlying assumption loaded behind the question: that you’re stupid.

Maybe some questions do not deserve an answer. 

We find similar loaded questions being thrown at Jesus when He was tried before Pontius Pilate.

 Pilate sarcastically asked Him, “Are you the king of the Jews?”

“You have said so,” Jesus replied.

In the Broadway musical, Jesus Christ Superstar, which is a distortion in many ways but still quite interesting to see how modern culture looks at Christ, there is a song sung by the Pilate character:

Oh so this is Jesus Christ, I am really quite surprised
You look so small - not a king at all
We all know that you are news - but are you king
King of the Jews?

In the play, the Jesus character replied: That's what you say. But that sounds too negative. It sounds like a denial. The NKJV translates it as: “You rightly say that I am”. But literally, in Greek, it actually reads: “You say”. It’s a qualified yes, but why did Jesus give such a vague, ambiguous reply?  

Well, it’s probably because Pilate’s question is like that naughty boy’s question. It comes loaded with so many dangerous assumptions: “Are you the king of the Jews? What’s your politics, Jesus? What kind of revolution are you starting? Are you political or non-political?”

And Jesus did not give a simple, direct answer. You say.

If He answers “yes”, it means that he is a political king just like Caesar or Herod. The kind of king that rules with coercion from above, control over, power on top of people. If He answers “no”, it means that he is apolitical. He’s just interested in your private spirituality but denies any claim to be the Lord of every area, every dimension, every corner of our lives.

That sounds like the kind of questions faced by the Malaysian church today, doesn’t it? The mother of all elections is coming soon. The war drums are beating. Are you for BN or Pakatan? And it is tempting to fall into the trap of partisanship – “preach it, pastor, use the pulpit to tell people to vote for Ajib Ko or vote against Ajib Ko.” Or the other extreme is to say that the church is totally apolitical. “We don’t bother about public issues, we just want to attend church and be spiritual (being ‘spiritual’ here is defined as I don’t care about what happens out in the world).”

What then is the politics of Jesus? Is he a king? Yes, but not that kind of king. His kingdom is not built by coercion from above, by control over, power on top of people. It is the kingdom of God. It is the power of humility that comes under people to lift them up. It’s the power to give up control, to die to self and to serve. It is the power of the cross… the power of love and sacrifice.

In the Gospel of John account, Jesus says to Pilate: “My kingdom is not of this world. If it were, my servants would fight to prevent my arrest by the Jewish leaders. But now my kingdom is from another place. You say that I am a king. In fact, the reason I was born and came into the world is to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to me.”

Jesus confronts Pilate’s false pretensions, unmasking them for what they really are: “You don’t have any power over me unless it is given by God.” As Eugene Yapp wrote: “Earthly thrones are merely provisional and temporal and subjected to the higher claims of God” Pilate misses the boat because he thinks of greatness in terms of coercive power, the power to make people do things for you. The high and mighty thought Jesus was weak because he won’t live and die for the power they seek. For Pilate, everything is power play… “What is truth?” Truth is a form of control. But actually everything (including politics) boils down to faith. Where do you put your trust? Is your faith in the sovereign God or faith in being in control? Is your security found in Christ or being in power?

If politics is your idol, then you pin all your hope on your policies and your favorite politicians to win and call the shots. You’d be devastated when they lose. You will despair, drop out and plan to leave the country or demonize those whom you disagree with. You will polarize the nation.

In one sense, Jesus is no threat to Caesar. He was falsely accused of opposing taxes to Rome. Actually Jesus told them to give to Caesar what is Caesar’s. Give the coin that carries the image of Caesar to Caesar. But in another sense, Jesus is a radical challenge to Caesar. Give to God what belongs to God. Give your whole being to Him because you are image-bearers of God. You are made in His likeness. You belong to Him. Pay your taxes to Caesar, but don’t sell your soul to him. Offer your heart and mind and body (your ultimate allegiance) to God.

And Pilate knew that Jesus is not the violent rebel type like Barabbas who would terrorize the countryside and be a threat to peace. “I find no basis for a charge against this man.” But instead of doing the right thing, he taichi to Herod Antipas: “He’s from Galilee, that’s under Herod’s territory. Let him decide”. He tried to wash his hands and pass the bucket like politicians often do. But every Sunday, Christians all over the world confess their faith like this: “I believe in God the Father, Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth: And in Jesus Christ, his only begotten Son, our Lord: Who was conceived by the Holy Ghost, born of the Virgin Mary: Suffered under Pontius Pilate; was crucified, dead and buried: He descended into hell: The third day he rose again from the dead”. That’s how history would judge him. His name is famous for all the wrong reasons.

But how does the kingdom politics of Jesus apply to us today? For some of us, there is a call to social activism. When we do this we join hands with Malaysians of all races and religions to pursue our common good. In the coming general elections, we all have a responsibility to vote, and vote wisely for a clean, just and fair government. I’d be casting my vote in Ipoh Timur and you don’t need to be a rocket scientist to know that I’d be voting Rocket. As a Christian I don’t need to hide my personal conviction that absolute power corrupts absolutely so we must have strong checks and balances in government. I don’t want a monopoly in the Parliament.

At the same time, the church as a whole cannot be partisan to any political platform. So I would draw the line and not use the pulpit to formally support to anyone. We need to maintain a prophetic distance to be free to challenge the powers-that-be with God’s word. In Christ, there is neither Pakatan nor Barisan, ok… If my brother or sister who worships with me is from Gerakan or MCA, I need to reach out across the divide and see how can we find common ground and work together for the good of the rakyat. So we don’t put too much faith on election results to make this country a better place. Whoever wins or loses, life still goes on… that’s not where my ultimate hope lies. We are in the world but not of the world.   

More importantly (yes there is something more important than election results), as followers of Jesus, our politics should be shaped by the cross. It is the power to be humble, to serve, to give up control so that others may have life. In this community here, we must be who we are (the body of Christ) and model the values we want to see in society.

Among other things, it means we should embody the way of Jesus by becoming
- a community where all people are welcomed and embraced regardless of sex, ethnicity or class

- servant leaders who are not self-serving, quietly serving the poor around us

- free from the corrupting love of money
- reaching out to the weak and marginalized in our midst

- a church where people find healing, justice and mercy.

Won’t you like to be part of a community like that? The revolution Jesus is starting is a mustard seed group of people that brings reconciliation and hope and real transformation in His name. That’s the kind of revival we should pray for in Malaysia. By giving up his power to serve others, Jesus is the most influential king who ever lived.   

So Pilate taichi to Herod and as we will see, Herod tachi back… They were not the best of friends. There was once Pilate was so insensitive or arrogant he installed shields bearing the image of Caesar in Herod’s palace. So the Jews went to the streets in protest because it is deemed offensive and idolatrous. But Pilate did not want to lose face so he ignored them. And Herod had to write a letter to Tiberius Caesar and Pilate got rebuked and forced to take the shields away. On another occasion (we don’t know why) Pilate suppressed and killed some Galileans while they were in the temple, making sacrifices.

But that day, they became friends. The enemy of my enemy is my friend, perhaps? Herod was greatly pleased to see Jesus. For a long time, he wanted to meet this miracle worker after hearing so much about him. Now Pilate sent him over for an audience.

There’s a Herod song in the Jesus Christ Superstar musical that sums up his frivolous attitudes:

“Jesus, I am overjoyed to meet you face to face. You're quite famous all over the place. Healing cripples, raising from the dead. At least, that's what they all said.So, you are the Christ, you're the great Jesus Christ. Prove to me that you're divine; change my water into wine. That's all you need do, then I'll know it's all true. So, you are the Christ, you're the great Jesus Christ. Prove to me that you're no fool; walk across my swimming pool. Feed my household with this bread. You can do it on your head.”

He’s not interested to hear what Jesus had to say. He just wanted to see him perform some miraculous signs or magic tricks to entertain him. He asked Jesus many questions, but Jesus gave him no answer. Some questions do not deserve an answer.

For biblical faith is not a circus. Sad but true, many people have a lot in common with Herod when it comes to Christ. They are very curious with the spectacular, the sounds and lights, the signs and wonders. They may even be interested in some intellectual stuff. However, they do not have a saving faith in Christ. When a decision has to be made between following Christ and one’s own self interests, they act just like Herod. They may demand a miracle, ask some interesting questions but when it costs something, when they have to pay the price of obedience, they will mock and scorn at the truth. How deep or shallow is our own faith? Are we more impressed with the spectacular than with simple, quiet but costly obedience?   

One of my favorite singers, Chris Rice, has a song about a young boy who was obsessed with magic tricks but as he grew up, he realized that:

The only way to really change
Is simple choices everyday
Obey the Spirit-whisper in my soul
With the help of God, a little time
Can change a heart, renew a mind
Without a magic wand, God will work a miracle...

And Jesus does not put on his miracles for a show. He would not turn stones into bread even when He was starving in the desert. He opened the eyes of the blind. He cleansed the lepers and raised the dead to meet the relieve the suffering of others. But that was not His only reason. Jesus’ miracles had a deeper meaning. Signs and wonders are clues that he was indeed the Messiah, the Christ, the Son of God, the Son of Man. They are evidence that God’s future kingdom is breaking into the here and now, the present world in which we live. 

Herod wants miracles, he wants something spectacular; but Jesus will not layan (entertain) him.

Or maybe He did perform a miracle, after all? By his silence, by choosing not to defend himself, Jesus was preparing for the greatest sign and wonder that we will ever know. It’s a miracle greater than parting the Red Sea. But it was not something Herod would expect.

Jesus is going to the cross to accomplish the plan of salvation. He will go to the cross suffer and die for our sins, to die the death that we deserve for breaking God’s holy law, and then three days later, He will conquer death by being raised to life again. Herod will get the sign that he wanted: the resurrection proves that Jesus is indeed the Son of God, the promised Messiah. But he is too blind to see it.

Friends: do you see? We are like Barabbas – thrown into prison, found guilty for our rebellion against God and waiting for our death sentence. The payment for sin is spiritual and physical death. But Jesus had done no crime. He was innocent and without sin. He didn’t deserve to be crucified.

We hear the crowd kept shouting “Crucify Him! Crucify Him!” The door is opened and we are pushed to stand before the cross. But our chains fell off. We have been set free. The guard says, “You have been released. You are free to go”.

What’s going on here? Why am I being released?

Because Jesus carried my cross… He was crucified on our behalf. Jesus is not just a victim of injustice. He’s in control throughout to carry out God’s plan to save the sinners just like us. 

Behold the Man upon a cross,

My sin upon His shoulders

Ashamed I hear my mocking voice,

Call out among the scoffers

It was my sin that left Him there

Until it was accomplished

His dying breath has brought me life

I know that it is finished

The sinless Son of God took upon Himself the guilt and wrath that we deserve because of his breathtaking love. He died that we might be alive in Him. And He lived again that we might die to sin. Won’t you give your life completely to Him today and call him your Savior, Lord and Friend? Let us pray.