By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat and wept,
When we remembered Zion.
On the willows here, we hung our harps,
For there our captors required of us songs,
And our tormentors, mirth, saying,
“Sing us one of the songs of Zion.”
How could we sing the Lord’s song in a foreign land?
If I forget you, O Jerusalem, let my right hand wither!
Let my tongue cleave to the roof of my mouth,
If I do not remember you,
If I do not set Jerusalem above my highest joy!
Psalm 137:1-6
Thus sang the Jewish exiles in Babylon, captives of King Nebuchadnezzar, nearly six centuries before the coming of Christ. Many of them had become adjusted to the life style of the Babylonians but others could not forget Judea and the temple which was the center of their covenant community.
It was true that in Babylon, unlike Jerusalem, there was much wealth and water was plentiful. There was also the impressive Babylonian temple that towered high above the mud huts of the Babylonian people. On feast days there was the international market, the temple, with merchants from India, Persia, Arabia, Syria and possibly Egypt. Each of these brought merchandise of rare quality.
Still, the hearts of the Jewish exiles daily watched the sun move toward the western horizon, sinking over the Arabian Desert to rise over their beloved Israel. There they had been forced to leave there homes…homes that were their fondest memories even though they were much more humble than the homes of the Neo-Babylonians.
In Jerusalem now there was neither temple nor king. The Hebrew kings had failed, the magnificent temple of Solomon had been destroyed by the invading Neo-Babylonians and the Jews, some with fish hooks in their noses, has been led away to Babylon and exile.
After Nebuchadnezzar, several Neo-Babylonian kings had ruled over the exiles to second and third generations. To the east of the kingdom of Neo-Babylonia, there arose the kingdom of Persia under King Cyrus who soon became world famous as a great warrior and conqueror. The power of Neo-Babylonia began to wane. Cyrus would soon capture the Neo-Babylonian capital and Babylon’s fate was sealed.
The Old Testament book of Isaiah calls Cyrus “God’s anointed.” (Isaiah 45:1). Isaiah records the capture of Persia by Cyrus and his subsequent permission of the exiles to return to their home land. A remnant returned but most had roots too deep and memories of the homeland too short. They preferred to remain in Babylon. Those who did return took with them the synagogue and the Hebraistic culture that had developed during their captivity as they struggled to retain their identity and the worship of Jehovah in a strange land. We meet their descendants in the New Testament, especially the Gospels and the Book of Acts where they are identified as “Hebraists.”
It is in Isaiah, chapter 45, verse 1, that King Cyrus of Persia is called “God’s anointed.” The Hebrew word for an anointed person is mashiah, translated as christos in Greek. Our English “Messiah” is derived from the Hebrew Mashiah as “Christ” is derived from christos. The anointment was a ceremony at which divine authority was bestowed on the anointed person. In ancient Israel kings (e.g. I Kings 19:16), possibly patriarchs (Psalm 105:15), a messianic prince (Daniel 9:25), and even a foreign king (Isaiah 45:1) were anointed. These “messiahs” were each given divine authority to do God’s will. In the case of King Cyrus, he did God’s will by allowing the Jewish exiles to return to Judea. In a sense, then, a messiah may be called the servant of God.
The book of Isaiah records references to both the messiah and the servant. Israel is called servant in Isaiah 41:8, 9. Servant appears in the next chapter, 42:1, 3, and this servant is to bring forth justice to all races (not nations in any political sense). Israel is identified as God’s servant again in other passages in Isaiah (e.g. Isa. 44:1, 2, 26; 48:20 et al) that seem to indicate Israel was particularly favored as God’s chosen servant for the purpose of proclaiming God’s salvation to other races, a purpose they seldom remembered and finally forgot altogether. An Israeli guide in Palestine once told me that the Jewish mistreatment of 50,000 Palestinian Arab refugees was in fulfillment of the Jews’ responsibility to bless the nations of the world!
Beginning in Isaiah 49:5, there appears a servant with the apparent mission of restoring Israel. Then the servant, who may be regarded as an individual person, appears in Isaiah 50:10; 52:13 and 53:11. This servant is seen to suffer much in bearing the sins of many in order to bring the news of God’s salvation to the world.
In the spring of 1947, in an ancient ruin of Qumran on the northeast shore of the Dead Sea, several ancient scrolls were discovered. Among these “Dead Sea Scrolls” were many Biblical and non-Biblical manuscripts dating roughly to the time of Jesus. One of these, The Discipline Scroll or Order of the Community is dated from approximately 100 B.C. and contains rules and regulations for the community of Qumran. According to this document, the community seems to have consisted of believers in the orthodox doctrine and practice of the Mosaic law who were preparing the way of the Lord, the Messiah, to come (cp. Isaiah 40:3). The leader of this community was called “the teacher of righteousness.” Under his leadership the members of the community believed that they stood on the threshold of the Endzeit, the end time.
In Numbers 24:17 is this poetic expression:
A star shall come forth out of Jacob,
And a scepter shall rise out of Israel,
It shall crush the forehead of Moab,
And break down the children of Seth.
Ancient rabbis thought this star was the Messiah. In the New Testament Apocalypse, Jesus Himself is identified as this star (Rev. 22:16 cp. Matthew 2:2, 7, 9, 10). So Rabbi Akiva ben Joseph, who inspired Bar Koziba to lead the Jewish rebellion against Rome during the second century A.D., changed his name to Bar Kochba (son of the star), due to the rabbinic identification of the star with the Messiah. The rebels against Rome believed Bar Kochba was indeed the Christ.
Second only to the Old Testament in importance as Jewish literature is the Talmud. This writing contains a treatise called Sanhedrin, signifying the Jewish Supreme Court. The tractate is the chief depository of Jewish criminal law. It also contains several references to the coming Messiah. The question repeatedly raised is “when the Messiah is to come.” Some of the answers contained are:
1) when even the smallest nation ceases to have any power over Israel,
2) when there are found no conceited men in Israel,
3) when all (foreign) judges and officers are gone from Israel,
4) when a generation becomes altogether righteous or altogether wicked, etc.
These discourses are followed by the story of a rabbi called Joshua ben Levi. He is said to have met the Prophet Elijah standing at the tomb of another famous rabbi, Simon ben Johai. Joshua ben Levi asked Elijah, “When does the Messiah come?” Elijah’s answer was, “Go and ask him.” Ben Levi then asked, “Where is he?” Elijah replied, “At the entrance of the town.” So Rabbi Joshua ben Levi went there and found the Messiah and asked him just when he might come. The Messiah’s answer was, “Today.” Ben Levi waited all day, but the Messiah never came. He then went back to Elijah and complained that the Messiah had lied. Prophet Elijah smiled and said: “No, He did not lie. He only quoted from Psalm 95:7” This verse says, “For He is our God, and we are the people of His pasture, and the sheep of His hand. Today, if you will listen to His voice!” It means that Messiah will surely come, the day all people listen to the voice of God.”
We have thus far considered the Messianic hope of Israel from the Old Testament and other Jewish sources. We have seen that Hebraic Jewish Messianic hope becomes prominent whenever there is a political or religious crisis. Many rabbis thought that if the Jews faithfully obeyed the Laws of God, this would prepare the way for the Messiah; but this never in fact happened. The political revolts of the Zealots only succeeded locally and temporarily. There were the Pharisees, the Sadducees, the Essenes, and other smaller sects; and Judaism was about to lose its integrity under the impact of Roman authority. Then Jesus came!
Jesus did not claim to be the founder of a new religion. In fact, the Gospel records do not show Him even using the word. He said that He came “to fulfill the Law and the Prophets (Matthew 7:12)”. He said He came “that they might have life and have it more abundantly (John 10:10)”. He said He did not come to be served but to serve and to give His life as a ransom for many (Matthew 20:28; Mark 10:45). In this way He identified Himself with the servant foretold by Isaiah. This servant of God was called the Messiah, the Anointed One (Matthew 1:16; 16:16; Mark 8:29; Luke 2:11, etc.). In this way, the Messiah and the Servant in the New Testament coalesce in the person of the man, Jesus of Nazareth.
What is the significance of all this in the twenty first century A.D.? We live in another day of crisis. Man has become too proud of earthly knowledge, material wealth and his own accomplishments. We tend to forget that the environment about which we are increasingly concerned is God’s own creation. Indeed, we prefer to forget God Himself! This is a day for our rededication of ourselves to the Christ who gave Himself to reconcile us to the God we have forgotten.
Jesus said: “He who finds his life will lose it, and he who loses his life for my sake will find it (Matthew 10:39; Mark 8:35; Luke 9:24).” It cannot be mere coincidence that we find ourselves controlled by the use of human will. We have exchanged the commands of God for the majority rule of a materialistic democracy that daily becomes more and more characterized by Socialism. Our identity as “one nation under God” tends more and more to give way to uncontrolled humanism with bullets, bombs, drugs and machines. We have deluded ourselves into believing that, because the Soviet Union has collapsed, we no longer live in the shadow of a mushroom cloud. More dangerous than all the bombs and rockets is the danger of losing our lives in our greed, by polluting God’s air and water and squandering finite natural resources.
It is time for God’s people, the church to take up the cross of Jesus and follow Him; practicing His self denial along with God’s justice and righteousness here and now. It is time to give ourselves for the betterment of others rather than for the amassing of things. It is time for Christians, especially in the United States, to stop “standing for anything” and start standing up for Someone. It is time to be more concerned for being correct by God’s standards rather than politically correct by popular standards, or lack of standards. We need to abandon the flesh pots and temples of Babylon and return to the house of God.
Christians have a Messiah. His name is Jesus. We need to stop apologizing for our faith and begin to live by it. It is our God given task to establish and maintain His
kingdom here on earth as the servants of human society and members of God’s household.
• I am indebted to Dr. Toyozo Nakarai for clarifying for me the central truth contained in this writing.
CRG
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
Monday, February 16, 2009
The Church is Constitutionally One
We found, in the first two segments of this trilogy that, as declared by Thomas Campbell in The Declaration and Address, the church found in the New Testament is essentially and intentionally one. Its essential nature is defined by fellowship . It is intentionally one as both the fulfillment and the fulfilling agency of God’s reconciling work in Christ. In this segment, we will examine Campbell’s assertion that the church is constitutionally one.
To say that the church is constitutionally one is to say that its oneness was expressed in its form as ordained and appointed by God. This foundational truth is expressed by the apostle Paul in Ephesians 4:1-6: “I am calling you therefore. . . to walk worthily of the calling with which you were called, with all humility and gentleness, with long suffering, bearing one another up, in love being eager to keep the unity of the spirit in the bond of peace: one body and one Spirit, just as also you were called in one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all Who is over all and through all and in all” (Author’s translation).
The unity described here is organic oneness. The theme, “body of Christ” is prominent in Paul’s discussions of the church throughout his epistles. In I Corinthians 12:14-27 he underscores the truth that the unit in Christian unity is the individual believer: “… you are Christ’s body, and individually members of it.”
Paul prefaces his appeal for the maintenance of unity with a call for a Christian attitude and life style, that are the quintessence of genuine Christian character. The Greek, haxios, worthily, is a picture word depicting the returning of a coin to the mint for weighing. It was common practice to shave precious metal off of coins. Eventually one could accumulate a significant amount of gold of silver. , Roman coins were circulated back to the mint and weighed in a balance in order to insure full value.
Paul encourages us to be “full value Christians” in our attitude toward one another for the sake of unity. A full measure of Christian character requires “all humility.” Such an attitude is the opposite of the “pride of life” which John identifies as one of the “things of the world” ( I John 2:16).
Genuineness includes longsuffering. Some complained about the time consumed in Mel Gibson’s The Passion of Christ by scenes depicting the brutal prelude to Jesus’ crucifixion. They said it detracted from the film’s message. Actually, Gibson’s portrayal was mild compared to what happened historically in putting a prisoner on a Roman cross. Historians estimate that about forty percent of those sentenced to crucifixion died before they reached the cross.
The longsuffering of Christ serves as a challenge to the genuineness of those whom He instructed to take up their own crosses. It involves more than putting up with unpleasant people. We are to bear one another up in love, to “bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ” (Galatians 6:2).
Burton Coffman points out what is involved; “having an attitude that grants them [other members of the body] the same ‘right to belong’ which he claims for himself.”
In the little town which is home to the small congregation that lured me out of “retirement” some years ago, there are eight small ,struggling congregations. Four of them have roots in the Stone/Campbell movement and two other denominations are represented by two congregations each. It’s a friendly little town. They work together, send their kids to the same school and enjoy the same neighborhood activities
. . . until Sunday comes. Then they hide from one another in their separate church buildings and refuse to allow anyone the “right to belong” until he/she jumps through their institutional hoop. . If the church is ever to rise above the sectarianism that divides it, the “right to belong” is an absolute must.
Paul directs us to “be eager to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.” He then tells us what constitutes that bond: one body, one Spirit, one hope, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father. In the Greek text of verses 4-6, no verb is expressed. Paul doesn’t say there is, or there ought to be. Rather in staccato sequence he enumerates the requisites that constitute the unity of the church.
W.O. Carver wrote; “Paul grounds his call for unity upon a sevenfold ideal and factual foundation. The whole Christian experience and movement are based on these fundamental, factual elements.”
One body! one fellowship recognizing no distinctions of race, culture, or religion; no economic caste system, no gender bias. “There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free man, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus” ( Galatians 3:28). Understanding the cross in light of the resurrection, “… the love of Christ constrains us… Therefore from now on we recognize no one according to the flesh…if anyone is in Christ he is a new kind of creature; the old things passed away…” (II Corinthians 5:14-17 - author’s translation).
One Spirit! In the New Testament, any body that was inhabited by more than one spirit was considered to be demon possessed. Since the church is he body of Christ, this is unthinkable. Every member receives the same (one) Holy Spirit at baptism.
One hope! In Ephesians 1:18, Paul prays that “ you may know what is the hope of His calling…” The hope to which he refers is not what we hope to get out of being Christians. No one should minimize our precious hope of heaven, nor the positive, hopeful outlook that His love engenders. However, when Paul uses the word elpis, hope, in the Ephesian letter, he goes far beyond the self centered attitude that brings people to the church only because of what they hope to gain from it.
W.O. Carver’s commentary on Ephesians is entitled, The Glory of God In The Christian Calling. In it, Dr. Carver shows the purpose of God fulfilled in human life as the stewardship of the church. That’s the “one hope of your calling.” .
One Lord! Our democratic culture has a hard time comprehending the concept expressed in “Lord.” John Adams was limited to a single term as president of the United States because his political opponents promoted the erroneous notion that he, wanted to establish an American monarchy.
The Biblical understanding of “Lord” is probably best illustrated in Jesus’ statement, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth…” ( Matthew 28:18). God doesn’t call committee meetings or take opinion polls. He gives commands. The Lordship of Christ is a vital aspect of the constitution of the church as a single body.
One Faith! When my brother arrived in Lackland Airforce base for basic training, he went through a processing procedure. He answered questions asked by the Lieutenant responsible for obtaining biographical information. When they came to the question marked “Religion,” he was asked, “Protestant, Catholic or Jew.” My brother replied, “neither!” “So…” the interviewer said, “you are an atheist?” My brother answered, “No. I’m a Christian.” Oh,” said the lieutenant, “ are you a Catholic or a Protestant.?” To which my brother replied, “Neither… just a Christian.” Eventually the officer wrote “Christian” on the form. He was probably the first man to go through Airforce basics with “Christian” stamped on his dog tags.
A primary reason for the division that has plagued the church for centuries is our insistence on hyphenating the one faith with denominational names.
One baptism! Coffman points out that “. . . seven baptisms are mentioned in the New Testament. ‘One baptism’ here means there is only one as pertains to the Christian life. There can be no escape from the conclusion that this is the baptism of the Great Commission. . .”
W.O. Carver wrote, “The only reference other than that of water baptism that would be tolerable [in this text], ‘baptism in the Holy Spirit.’ is excluded here because the Spirit’s place is already introduced as the second of the fundamental Ones.”
“One God and Father of all, Who is over all and through all and in all!” “One God” is the seminal truth of the gospel.
The unity constituted by these seven factual elements is an organic oneness. Such unity is clearly understood by what it is not as much as by what it is. It is not unanimity; absolute conformity of opinion codified into a creed. It is not uniformity; complete similarity of expression and method. It is not union; oneness of ecclesiastical affiliation. .
To realize the “unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace” what is needed is the “worthy walk” implored by the apostle, the active determination to maintain the unity of the Spirit and an acceptance of Paul’s seven factual elements as constituting that bond. Paul has identified the constituting elements of the church’s essential and intentional oneness. The recognition and practice of these seven elements that make up the bond of peace is all that is necessary to the accomplishment of Paul’s plea and Jesus’ prayer for those who believe in Him to all be one in order that the world may believe that the Father has sent Him.
Our post-modern world, with its hunger for relationships in a world disconnected by the technology that connects it, is waiting to be won by a church that is essentially, intentionally and constitutionally one!
To say that the church is constitutionally one is to say that its oneness was expressed in its form as ordained and appointed by God. This foundational truth is expressed by the apostle Paul in Ephesians 4:1-6: “I am calling you therefore. . . to walk worthily of the calling with which you were called, with all humility and gentleness, with long suffering, bearing one another up, in love being eager to keep the unity of the spirit in the bond of peace: one body and one Spirit, just as also you were called in one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all Who is over all and through all and in all” (Author’s translation).
The unity described here is organic oneness. The theme, “body of Christ” is prominent in Paul’s discussions of the church throughout his epistles. In I Corinthians 12:14-27 he underscores the truth that the unit in Christian unity is the individual believer: “… you are Christ’s body, and individually members of it.”
Paul prefaces his appeal for the maintenance of unity with a call for a Christian attitude and life style, that are the quintessence of genuine Christian character. The Greek, haxios, worthily, is a picture word depicting the returning of a coin to the mint for weighing. It was common practice to shave precious metal off of coins. Eventually one could accumulate a significant amount of gold of silver. , Roman coins were circulated back to the mint and weighed in a balance in order to insure full value.
Paul encourages us to be “full value Christians” in our attitude toward one another for the sake of unity. A full measure of Christian character requires “all humility.” Such an attitude is the opposite of the “pride of life” which John identifies as one of the “things of the world” ( I John 2:16).
Genuineness includes longsuffering. Some complained about the time consumed in Mel Gibson’s The Passion of Christ by scenes depicting the brutal prelude to Jesus’ crucifixion. They said it detracted from the film’s message. Actually, Gibson’s portrayal was mild compared to what happened historically in putting a prisoner on a Roman cross. Historians estimate that about forty percent of those sentenced to crucifixion died before they reached the cross.
The longsuffering of Christ serves as a challenge to the genuineness of those whom He instructed to take up their own crosses. It involves more than putting up with unpleasant people. We are to bear one another up in love, to “bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ” (Galatians 6:2).
Burton Coffman points out what is involved; “having an attitude that grants them [other members of the body] the same ‘right to belong’ which he claims for himself.”
In the little town which is home to the small congregation that lured me out of “retirement” some years ago, there are eight small ,struggling congregations. Four of them have roots in the Stone/Campbell movement and two other denominations are represented by two congregations each. It’s a friendly little town. They work together, send their kids to the same school and enjoy the same neighborhood activities
. . . until Sunday comes. Then they hide from one another in their separate church buildings and refuse to allow anyone the “right to belong” until he/she jumps through their institutional hoop. . If the church is ever to rise above the sectarianism that divides it, the “right to belong” is an absolute must.
Paul directs us to “be eager to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.” He then tells us what constitutes that bond: one body, one Spirit, one hope, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father. In the Greek text of verses 4-6, no verb is expressed. Paul doesn’t say there is, or there ought to be. Rather in staccato sequence he enumerates the requisites that constitute the unity of the church.
W.O. Carver wrote; “Paul grounds his call for unity upon a sevenfold ideal and factual foundation. The whole Christian experience and movement are based on these fundamental, factual elements.”
One body! one fellowship recognizing no distinctions of race, culture, or religion; no economic caste system, no gender bias. “There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free man, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus” ( Galatians 3:28). Understanding the cross in light of the resurrection, “… the love of Christ constrains us… Therefore from now on we recognize no one according to the flesh…if anyone is in Christ he is a new kind of creature; the old things passed away…” (II Corinthians 5:14-17 - author’s translation).
One Spirit! In the New Testament, any body that was inhabited by more than one spirit was considered to be demon possessed. Since the church is he body of Christ, this is unthinkable. Every member receives the same (one) Holy Spirit at baptism.
One hope! In Ephesians 1:18, Paul prays that “ you may know what is the hope of His calling…” The hope to which he refers is not what we hope to get out of being Christians. No one should minimize our precious hope of heaven, nor the positive, hopeful outlook that His love engenders. However, when Paul uses the word elpis, hope, in the Ephesian letter, he goes far beyond the self centered attitude that brings people to the church only because of what they hope to gain from it.
W.O. Carver’s commentary on Ephesians is entitled, The Glory of God In The Christian Calling. In it, Dr. Carver shows the purpose of God fulfilled in human life as the stewardship of the church. That’s the “one hope of your calling.” .
One Lord! Our democratic culture has a hard time comprehending the concept expressed in “Lord.” John Adams was limited to a single term as president of the United States because his political opponents promoted the erroneous notion that he, wanted to establish an American monarchy.
The Biblical understanding of “Lord” is probably best illustrated in Jesus’ statement, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth…” ( Matthew 28:18). God doesn’t call committee meetings or take opinion polls. He gives commands. The Lordship of Christ is a vital aspect of the constitution of the church as a single body.
One Faith! When my brother arrived in Lackland Airforce base for basic training, he went through a processing procedure. He answered questions asked by the Lieutenant responsible for obtaining biographical information. When they came to the question marked “Religion,” he was asked, “Protestant, Catholic or Jew.” My brother replied, “neither!” “So…” the interviewer said, “you are an atheist?” My brother answered, “No. I’m a Christian.” Oh,” said the lieutenant, “ are you a Catholic or a Protestant.?” To which my brother replied, “Neither… just a Christian.” Eventually the officer wrote “Christian” on the form. He was probably the first man to go through Airforce basics with “Christian” stamped on his dog tags.
A primary reason for the division that has plagued the church for centuries is our insistence on hyphenating the one faith with denominational names.
One baptism! Coffman points out that “. . . seven baptisms are mentioned in the New Testament. ‘One baptism’ here means there is only one as pertains to the Christian life. There can be no escape from the conclusion that this is the baptism of the Great Commission. . .”
W.O. Carver wrote, “The only reference other than that of water baptism that would be tolerable [in this text], ‘baptism in the Holy Spirit.’ is excluded here because the Spirit’s place is already introduced as the second of the fundamental Ones.”
“One God and Father of all, Who is over all and through all and in all!” “One God” is the seminal truth of the gospel.
The unity constituted by these seven factual elements is an organic oneness. Such unity is clearly understood by what it is not as much as by what it is. It is not unanimity; absolute conformity of opinion codified into a creed. It is not uniformity; complete similarity of expression and method. It is not union; oneness of ecclesiastical affiliation. .
To realize the “unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace” what is needed is the “worthy walk” implored by the apostle, the active determination to maintain the unity of the Spirit and an acceptance of Paul’s seven factual elements as constituting that bond. Paul has identified the constituting elements of the church’s essential and intentional oneness. The recognition and practice of these seven elements that make up the bond of peace is all that is necessary to the accomplishment of Paul’s plea and Jesus’ prayer for those who believe in Him to all be one in order that the world may believe that the Father has sent Him.
Our post-modern world, with its hunger for relationships in a world disconnected by the technology that connects it, is waiting to be won by a church that is essentially, intentionally and constitutionally one!
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