“Don’t you see that nothing that enters a person from the outside can defile them? For it doesn’t go into their heart but into their stomach, and then out of the body.”-Mark 7:18b

We know that Jesus wants us to agree with him when he speaks about what can defile a person. But to do so seems to go against everything we have learned about modern hygiene. Jesus’ casual dismissal of our purity laws makes this a difficult saying. We are very careful about what goes into our bodies because we are convinced that certain hidden agents will not depart our bodies without achieving some nefarious purpose. So, beyond ignoring this passage or rejecting modern hygiene, how do we apply it to our lives?

From our earliest days, we have been told we should wash our hands before we eat. Recent history has only reinforced this lesson. Purell hand sanitizer was introduced to the market in 1988 and became a household name during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. To this day, restaurants and families have added hand sanitizer to the list of basic items necessary for life. Not only that, but it is now good manners to sneeze (if you have to sneeze at all) in your sneezing cubital fossa.1 It isn’t a good time for Jesus to come along with such a casual dismissal of external defiling agents. Some explanation, an apologetics of Jesus and germs, seems necessary.2

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I was in the steam room the other day, contemplating Jesus’ statement and modern purity laws. It dawned on me that I was one of four bald men sweating together in a hot, wet room in a bid to rid ourselves of excess fat. Steam rooms were a part of Roman life in Jesus’ day. They are still very common today. But is this health regimen truly hygienic for us modern folk? Then it dawned on me that people in Jesus’ day were wholly unaware of our modern approach to health. Antonie van Leeuwenhoek first observed bacteria in 1683, more than 1,500 years after Roman steamrooms and our quote from Scripture. However, Jesus’ people did have purity laws of their own, and Jesus’ words were offensive to them as well.

For example (warning: the following Scriptures could be disturbing to some readers):

• The priest is to examine the sore on the skin, and if the hair in the sore has turned white and the sore appears to be more than skin deep, it is a defiling skin disease. -Leviticus 13:13a

• “Anyone the man with a discharge touches without rinsing his hands with water must wash their clothes and bathe with water, and they will be unclean till evening.” -Leviticus 15: 11

A clash between the hygiene laws of Jesus’ day and the practice of his disciples started the story in Mark 7:

The Pharisees and some of the teachers of the law who had come from Jerusalem gathered around Jesus and saw some of his disciples eating food with hands that were defiled, that is, unwashed. (The Pharisees and all the Jews do not eat unless they give their hands a ceremonial washing, holding to the tradition of the elders. When they come from the marketplace they do not eat unless they wash. And they observe many other traditions, such as the washing of cups, pitchers and kettles.) So the Pharisees and teachers of the law asked Jesus, “Why don’t your disciples live according to the tradition of the elders instead of eating their food with defiled hands?” -Mark 7:1-5

My predicament remained as I walked out of the steam room. Jesus’ words seemed like a computer virus to both ancient and contemporary hygene. A computer virus is a computer program usually disguised as an innocuous program or file that produces copies of itself and inserts them into other programs to corrupt the system or destroy data. Jesus’ words are threatening to us Pharisees, ancient and modern. Yet, surprising to us and our modern hygiene, Jesus is perturbed by their question:

He replied, “Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you hypocrites…” -Mark 7:6

Then I considered another definition of a virus. It turns out that some viruses are good. Bacteriophages, for example, are viruses that target and kill harmful bacteria. More to our point, certain viruses support the microbiome, facilitating the breakdown of organic matter and enhancing digestion and immune function. Could Jesus’ virus fight off “harmful bacteria” and support good health?

This makes sense of the remainder of our passage in Mark 7. Jesus continues:

“Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you hypocrites; as it is written:

“‘These people honor me with their lips,
but their hearts are far from me.
They worship me in vain;
their teachings are merely human rules.’

You have let go of the commands of God and are holding on to human traditions.”

-Mark 7:6-7.

So what viral problem is Jesus attacking in this story? What commands are being subverted? He doesn’t have an issue with washed hands, cups, or pitchers. His concern is the way purity laws like the washing of hands prioritize physical well-being over purity of heart. Jesus calls his followers to prioritize clean hearts.

After he had left the crowd and entered the house, his disciples asked him about this parable. “Are you so dull?” he asked. “Don’t you see that nothing that enters a person from the outside can defile them? For it doesn’t go into their heart but into their stomach, and then out of the body.” (In saying this, Jesus declared all foods clean.)

He went on: “What comes out of a person is what defiles them. For it is from within, out of a person’s heart, that evil thoughts come—sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance and folly. All these evils come from inside and defile a person. -Mark 7:14b-23

Hygiene, both ancient and modern, is a legitimate concern. But Jesus is concerned about far weightier things; the health of our hearts.

So, assuming you wash your hands before eating, how is your spiritual hygiene?

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance… -Hebrews 12:1a

Many authors lead people deeper into Christianity through definitions, arguments, and testimony. The book I’m writing helps the reader delve deeper into God’s grace by another method. This approach is taking far longer than a sermon or a straightforward explanation. Yet I persevere in this somewhat unusual method because I believe it has the potential to “make good happen.”

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Perseverance is required in writing, but it is also essential for following Jesus. We need a better understanding of it so we can live it out. But how do we do that?

• We could look up all the passages in the Bible that use the word.

• We could look up the meaning in the dictionary.

• Or we could follow the method I use in my book: pursuing a profound understanding of perseverance through quotes, metaphors, and stories that encourage further exploration.

I am presently reading three authors who used a similar, contrarian method in their writing 650, 123, and 84 years ago. Like the biblical tree firmly planted in streams of water1, their stories, devotional writing, and biography bear fruit today. Three quotes in particular stimulated my twentieth-century mind. I believe they will inspire you as well.

The first one is from Charles Dickens. There are so many wonderful little nuggets of wisdom in his descriptions, and this quote, more of a passing thought in his story, jumped out at me.

“Ideas, like ghosts (according to the common notion of ghosts), must be spoken to a little before they will explain themselves…” -Charles Dickens, Dombey and Son, 1848.

The Danish philosopher, Søren Kierkegaard, agrees with Dickens. Most people know him as an existentialist philosopher. Yet he was a very committed follower of Jesus who longed to help others go deeper in their faith. One of his deep devotional works has the wonderful title, Purity of Heart is to Will One Thing. The introductory description tells us that he wrote the book for people to take their time and slowly contemplate its questions and ideas. His goal, explained through metaphor, caught my eye:

“…Christian swimmers…long to keep one foot on the bottom. Kierkegaard sought to draw them out into water that is 70,000 fathoms deep, where life depends not upon half-measures, but upon faith.”

-Søren Kierkegaard, Purity of Heart is to Will One Thing, 1938, p.xiii

Allowing the tide of faith to draw me out to sea is a consistent challenge as I persevere in my journey with Jesus.

Finally, G.K. Chesterton describes the impact that the author of The Canterbury Tales (published in 1476) had on his home country, indeed on all human history.

“There was never a man who was more of a Maker (poet) than Chaucer. He made a national language; he came very near to making a nation. At least without him it would probably never have been either so fine a language or so great a nation. Shakespeare and Milton were the greatest sons of their country; but Chaucer was the Father of his Country, rather in the style of George Washington. And apart from all of that, he made something that has altered all Europe more than the Newspaper: the Novel. He was a novelist when there were no novels. I mean by the novel the narrative that is not primarily an anecdote or an allegory, but is valued because of the almost accidental variety of actual human characters.” -Chaucer by G.K. Chesterton, 1903, p.5.

Geoffrey Chaucer wrote his book between 1387 and 1400. It was published decades after his death. The Canterbury Tales and their impact are a case study in perseverance.

I have to add one bonus quote from Dickens. Dombey and Son beautifully describes the relationship between Florence Dombey and her sickly younger brother Paul. Paul, as the heir of the family business, is thrown into the deep end of learning. The boarding school requirements overwhelm him. So, his sister buys her own copies of his books and sets to learning them so she can help him catch up on his lessons. Dickens captures the true source of all such perseverance, whether as a pastor, an author, or a good member of your family. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do:

“…Florence sat down at night to track Paul’s footsteps through the thorny ways of learning, and being possessed of a naturally quick and sound capacity, and taught by that most wonderful of masters, love, it was not long before she gained upon Paul’s heels, and caught and passed him.” p.177 Dickens

You can’t teach an old dog new tricks. -John Heyward, 1546.

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I’d been a part of the Presbyterian Church (USA) for decades when it happened. A parable of Jesus and a worship song got together in my mind and formed a new calling. Rather than continuing as a pastor of a congregation or a missionary to another land as I had been, I was sent out like the shepherd seeking the 100th sheep1 with nothing more than the lyrics of the song “Oceans” by Hillsong.

You call me out upon the waters

The great unknown, where feet may fail

And there I find You in the mystery

In oceans deep, my faith will stand.

It wasn’t just an idea popping into my head. It was something that arrived from the outside, and it brought tears to this old dog’s eyes. It’s tough to go against centuries-old wisdom, but when following Jesus, you can’t let a saying get in the way. Now that I am some years along this “ocean path,” I can state, with confidence, that an old dog can learn new tricks, at least when it comes to Jesus. I am living proof!

Not that it has been easy. Working outside of the institutional church has been challenging. After all, I’ve been a part of the Presbyterian Church (USA) for my entire professional life. And though I continue to be supported by the PC(USA), adapting to work beyond the support of congregational structures has been difficult. At first it felt like freedom. Then it felt like a problem. The freedom threatened my entire way of validating myself.

I had to confront the previously hidden fact that my sense of worth came from my posture within the institutional church. Over the first few years of my pastoral work, I learned that I wouldn’t be the pastoral version of a superstar. Leading from the pulpit of a megachurch was not my path. Instead, I had found a place working from the margins of the institution, generating new ideas to overcome the systemic problems causing church decline, and, at least I thought, leading the denomination to renewal. This approach allowed me to build a resume of church development, of mid-level denominational work, of coaching and consultancy that made me feel like I was doing something that mattered.

Once I followed my new calling, however, stepping out “upon the waters” in search of the 100th sheep, it became painfully obvious that my system of validation was limiting. My way of doing ministry had ruled out many, even the majority, of people on the planet who are far from going to church. It kept me from seeing many simple ways, unencumbered by denominational responsibilities, I could build relationships with those very people. With this realization, I began to fear that this old dog couldn’t learn new tricks.

The saying began its life in 1523 as a morsel of wisdom from a book on animal husbandry. The phrase emphasized a literal observation: a dog learns best when young. If it doesn’t learn obedience early, it will comply only with difficulty later. Over time, the saying became a common perception about humans; a metaphorical generalization of what some younger people experienced with some adults, stubborn and set in their ways.

The truth is that many older adults continue to learn throughout their lives. I continue to work through my fear and adapt to my new calling. Most of my energy at this point is going into my second book. It is the first time I have written historical fiction, so there is much to learn about this new challenge every day. I am thankful that Jesus is calling this old dog to learn so many new tricks.

If you are an “old dog,” what new trick can you learn today?

If you are a “young dog,” what new thing is God challenging you to learn today?

For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counsellor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the greatness of his government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on David’s throne and over his kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and for ever. The zeal of the Lord Almighty will accomplish this. -Isaiah 9:6-7

Today’s radicals aren’t radical enough for Jesus. “Repent, for the kingdom of God is at hand” may sound old school and conservative to our ears. But the concept of the a new way of living and being is at the center of Jesus’ message. After a deep dive into all the verses of the Bible where Jesus used that term, it’s clear that his message is far more radical than our radicals’. The contrast between the two boils down to one difference. Jesus does not trust human power to bring lasting justice and peace.

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Underneath the protests and prognostications of today’s radicals on the left and right is the opposite assumption: the just and peaceful world we long for comes about through force of will.

This assumption becomes visible in the variety of activities they call righteous: speaking out, organizing, taking action. These “virtuous” acts are fueled by spreading increasing impatience with the way things are, proclaiming an ever more dramatic condemnation of those presently in positions of power, and a deepening urgency to do whatever it takes to bring social change.

This is where a serious problem arises with this radical approach: what is to be done with recalcitrant people standing in the way of their goal? Bumper sticker slogans like “Silence is violence” and “If it’s going to be it’s up to me” only exacerbate the problem.

Jesus pointed out this problem more than a thousand years earlier:

Then the men stepped forward, seized Jesus and arrested him. With that, one of Jesus’ companions reached for his sword, drew it out and struck the servant of the high priest, cutting off his ear. ‘Put your sword back in its place,’ Jesus said to him, ‘for all who draw the sword will die by the sword. -Matthew 26:50b-52

This radical approach has been tried again and again, across languages, cultures, and generations. None of them solved the problem without extreme violence.

The French Revolution, for example, sought new political structures to represent the will of the people. With the slogan “Liberté, égalité, fraternité” (‘liberty, equality, fraternity’) they used protests and uprisings to force through their demands and bring about their better world. 16,000 French citizens and neighbors who disagreed with their vision met the sharp edge of the guillotine.

Jesus’ words, shaped by centuries of radical history, have given rise to the well-known phrase: “Violence begets violence.”

Maybe that has something to do with why Simon the Zealot joined Jesus band of disciples. The Zealots were a radical group in Jesus’ day that promoted the violent overthrow of their Roman oppressors. Simon must have realized the Zealot cause wasn’t radical enough.

Jesus’ more radical agenda values preparation for dramatic social change. But since this change doesn’t come through our own will or power the associated virtues and actions are radically different. We do not need to bring in the kingdom through our own power because the kingdom has already broken into our world through Jesus. Instead, we await the day when Jesus’ way of life becomes the only way of life; according to God’s timing. We don’t know when this will happen, and this changes everything about being radical for the kingdom.

While preparation for a better world continues to be a value, impatience and urgent action are replaced by virtues like long-suffering, patience, and perseverance. For example, when Jesus’ disciples express an urgent desire for his kingdom to come, he tells them the following story:

‘At that time the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. Five of them were foolish and five were wise. The foolish ones took their lamps but did not take any oil with them. The wise ones, however, took oil in jars along with their lamps. The bridegroom was a long time in coming, and they all became drowsy and fell asleep. ‘At midnight the cry rang out: “Here’s the bridegroom! Come out to meet him!” ‘Then all the virgins woke up and trimmed their lamps. The foolish ones said to the wise, “Give us some of your oil; our lamps are going out.” ‘“No,” they replied, “there may not be enough for both us and you. Instead, go to those who sell oil and buy some for yourselves.”‘But while they were on their way to buy the oil, the bridegroom arrived. The virgins who were ready went in with him to the wedding banquet. And the door was shut. ‘Later the others also came. “Lord, Lord,” they said, “open the door for us!”‘But he replied, “Truly I tell you, I don’t know you.” ‘Therefore keep watch, because you do not know the day or the hour. -Matthew 25:1-13

This approach is more radical because it solves the problem of recalcitrant people. Everyone is invited to enter. Yet the Bible recognizes that many will choose not to. People who disagree with his kingdom are not pushed aside, forcefully converted, or neutralized. Jesus did not respond with anger and violence to those who chose not to participate in the kingdom he proclaimed. Instead, he showed deep sadness for the results of their decision.

Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you, how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you were not willing. Look, your house is left to you desolate. For I tell you, you will not see me again until you say, “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.”

-Matthew 23:37-39

Those who follow the kingdom and those who do not will continue to live together until the day we are waiting for arrives.

Jesus told them another parable: ‘The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field. But while everyone was sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and went away. When the wheat sprouted and formed ears, then the weeds also appeared. ‘The owner’s servants came to him and said, “Sir, didn’t you sow good seed in your field? Where then did the weeds come from?”‘“An enemy did this,” he replied. ‘The servants asked him, “Do you want us to go and pull them up?”‘“No,” he answered, “because while you are pulling up the weeds, you may uproot the wheat with them. Let both grow together until the harvest. At that time I will tell the harvesters: first collect the weeds and tie them in bundles to be burned; then gather the wheat and bring it into my barn.”’ -Matthew 13:24-30

In this “in-between time,” forgiveness, love, and eternal citizenship in the kingdom are offered to all who choose to repent and believe. As Richard Bauckham wrote, “To know and to refuse this extravagant generosity of God is to exclude oneself from the kingdom. The judgment is really self-imposed.”

On the day Jesus’ kingdom becomes all, his legitimate authority will be acknowledged by everyone; those who chose to follow and those who did not. In the meantime, Jesus’ followers should live their lives as he did:

In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus: who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature[b] of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death – even death on a cross! Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. -Philippians 2:5-11

This is a truly radical agenda. As G.K. Chesterton once said, “The Christian ideal hasn’t been tried and found wanting; it has been found difficult and left untried.”

Jesus said, ‘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.’ -John 18:36

Today, many people on the left and the right consider themselves radicals. The word seems to mean taking the views of left or right to a new extreme. These radicals offer a daily dose of their rhetoric, going so far that radical left and right share common beliefs, as horseshoe theory argues. No matter how far they go, however, they aren’t radical enough for followers of Jesus.

Jesus offered his version of radical long before the Neo-cons or the Democratic Socialists. During his lifetime, people certainly experienced his authority.

All the people were amazed and said to each other, ‘What words these are! With authority and power he gives orders to impure spirits, and they come out!’ And the news about him spread throughout the surrounding area. -Luke 4:36-37

Yet as the end of his life approached, Jesus had the opportunity to confront the oppressive world power that had caused so much pain to his people. His radical path was quite unexpected.

Pilate then went back inside the palace, summoned Jesus and asked him, ‘Are you the king of the Jews?’…Jesus said, ‘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 are a king, then!’ said Pilate. Jesus answered, ‘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.’ ‘What is truth?’ retorted Pilate. With this he went out again to the Jews gathered there and said, ‘I find no basis for a charge against him. -John 18:33-38

Shortly after this meeting, contrary to what Pilate had said, Jesus was beaten and crucified. And yet, as we saw in the last post, Jesus proved to be influential over the ensuing years, decades, centuries, and even millennia. This staying power alone gives Jesus kingdom an authority far beyond today’s radical movements.

It is this very interaction with Pilate that offers us a deeper understanding of Jesus and his kingdom. A closer reading of the Bible shows that he used his authority to proclaim a far more radical kingdom than we imagine.

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Like many revolutionaries in our day, Jesus’ kingdom invites in everyone who is pushed to the margins of society.

Looking at his disciples, he said: ‘Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God. Blessed are you who hunger now, for you will be satisfied. Blessed are you who weep now, for you will laugh. Blessed are you when people hate you, when they exclude you and insult you and reject your name as evil, because of the Son of Man. ‘Rejoice in that day and leap for joy, because great is your reward in heaven. -Luke 6:20-23a

But his kingdom is more radical still. Karl Marx believed that history is driven by conflict. His “kingdom” will come about, then, through directing the conflict in the right direction; the lower classes need to rise up and overthrow the capitalist system. Jesus also acknowledged conflict and violence. But rather than normalizing and taking control over who conflicts with whom, Jesus absorbed conflict into himself to make possible his kingdom of inclusion and peace.

But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near by the blood of Christ. For he himself is our peace, who has made the two groups one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility, by setting aside in his flesh the law with its commands and regulations. His purpose was to create in himself one new humanity out of the two, thus making peace, and in one body to reconcile both of them to God through the cross, by which he put to death their hostility. He came and preached peace to you who were far away and peace to those who were near. For through him we both have access to the Father by one Spirit. -Ephesians 2:13-18

Since Jesus absorbed into himself the violence of human history, his kingdom appears as an invitation to accept his death as a gift so that we may be forgiven and healed. This is an invitation every human being is free to choose.

Since citizenship in Jesus’ kingdom comes through forgiveness and healing, his community is radically free to pursue something far beyond self-promotion.

In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus: who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death – even death on a cross! -Philippians 2:5-8

We, as citizens, are free to serve others in humility through obedience to God - even if this leads to our own death. As we do this, our lives are sustained, not by our own struggle for power and resources, but through God’s fatherly provision:

So do not worry, saying, “What shall we eat?” or “What shall we drink?” or “What shall we wear?” For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. -Matthew 6:31-33

We can live in a radically new way:

Therefore if you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any common sharing in the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and of one mind. Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others. -Philippians 2:1-4

Jesus’ path, relying on God’s forgiveness and dependent upon God for provision, is too weak and slow. It doesn’t seem radical enough. The opposite is actually true. Jesus’ kingdom is much more radical. It is also the most beautiful.

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son. This is the verdict: light has come into the world, but people loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that their deeds will be exposed. But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what they have done has been done in the sight of God.

-John 3:16-21

Dare to join the beauty. Be a Jesus-radical. Make good happen.

‘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 worshipped him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and his kingdom is one that will never be destroyed. -Daniel 7:13-14

Every generation longs for a better world. In our twenties and thirties, the dream feels within our reach. All we have to do is give it our all. In our forties and fifties, a chasm forms between our dreams and our responsibilities. By our sixties and seventies, we long, not for the fantastic future of our youth but the good old days of our nostalgic past. Our desire for good far outstrips our ability to make good happen.

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The deeper view of Jesus, afforded by Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, reveals a man journeying this well-worn path. He is in his late twenties and early thirties when he proclaims a better kingdom. He died before reaching his forties and fifties.

Yet, according to those who knew him best, he was prepared for his early death. For example, Jesus told his disciples:

He then began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests and the teachers of the law, and that he must be killed…. -Mark 8:31a

Not only that, but he reinterpreted his death. It would not be the end of a dream but a step in the coming of the kingdom.

‘The Son of Man is going to be delivered into the hands of men. They will kill him, and after three days he will rise.’ -Mark 9:31b

After Jesus’ death, his followers continued to share his vision with others. Many of them were killed in their fifties and sixties. Yet Jesus’ dream of a better world continued. When he died, his followers numbered in the 100s. By the time John of Patmos died in about AD 95, the number of Christians had grown to at least 10,000. Again, Jesus had prepared his followers for this.

‘This is what the kingdom of God is like. A man scatters seed on the ground. Night and day, whether he sleeps or gets up, the seed sprouts and grows, though he does not know how. -Mark 4: 26b-27

Since Jesus’ time on earth, his kingdom has been:

• attacked: “From the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven has been subjected to violence, and violent people have been raiding it.” -Matthew 11:12

• betrayed: You will be betrayed even by parents, brothers and sisters, relatives and friends, and they will put some of you to death. Everyone will hate you because of me. But not a hair of your head will perish. Stand firm, and you will win life. -Luke 21:16-19

• manipulated: At that time if anyone says to you, “Look, here is the Messiah!” or, “There he is!” do not believe it. For false messiahs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and wonders to deceive… -Matthew 24:23-24a

• and distorted: Even from your own number men will arise and distort the truth in order to draw away disciples after them. -Acts 20:30

Yet today, 31% of humanity, or 2.6 billion people on the planet, claim an experience with Jesus’ kingdom:

What shall we say the kingdom of God is like, or what parable shall we use to describe it? It is like a mustard seed, which is the smallest of all seeds on earth. Yet when planted, it grows and becomes the largest of all garden plants, with such big branches that the birds can perch in its shade.’ -Mark 4:30b-32.

As Richard Bauckham puts it in his book Jesus: A Very Short Introduction, Jesus is “…undoubtedly the best known and most influential human person in world history.”1 His kingdom is unique in its ability to find a place in so many diverse cultural contexts.

How did his kingdom succeed when so many other dreams fail?

In a word, legitimacy.

The nature of Jesus’ authority will be the subject of our next post.

For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross. -Colossians 1:19-20

The question “Who is God?” is most clearly answered by a deepened knowledge of Jesus. This was the conclusion of our previous post. How, then, do we get to know Jesus?

Like those Westerners who seek a greater understanding of God through popular books, many who seek to know Jesus follow the same strategy. Again, far too many of these writers are searching, not for God, not for Jesus, but to validate their views by retelling the story of Jesus in a way that supports their own interests and ideas. It would be far better to find a scholar who begins with the content of the gospels and draws out key themes. This would prepare us for a deeper reading of the earliest sources contemporary with Jesus’ life: Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.

That is what Dr. Richard Bauckham, senior scholar of theology and New Testament at Ridley Hall, Cambridge, does in his book “Jesus: A Very Short Introduction”. Bauckham himself tells us that his approach to Jesus is a contextual telling of the story of Jesus, interpreting the Gospels as ancient history. The gospels offer us insight into the ways Jesus was experienced by his contemporaries and how their lives were affected by him.

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There are many insights about Jesus in his book, but let’s look at two key questions of Bauckham:

1. How would you summarize Jesus’ message for humanity?

2. How did Jesus bring this message to us?

Let’s look at what the Bible says in response to the first question. (Next week we will go deeper with Jesus by focusing on the second question.)

We’ll focus on the biblical answer to the first question. Then, next week we will continue to go deeper with Jesus by shifting to the gospel’s answer to the second question.

Here are several ways you could sum up his message according to the Scriptures:

a) One of the parables, for example, the good Samaritan (Luke 10:25-37)1

b) Jesus’ boiling down the law to love the Lord your God and love your neighbor as yourself. (Matthew 22:35a-40) 2

c) Jesus died for us. (John 3:16-17)3

d) Something else?

Bauckham’s response, in one word, is “kingdom.” Jesus brought the kingdom to humanity.

Jesus lived in a time when “kingdom” was the central institution of power, not the stuff of Cinderella stories. In fact, his people were under the oppressive kingdom of the mighty Roman Empire. The Romans offended the Jewish people daily with their actions, including:

• violating the sanctity of the Temple,

• taxing the people of Israel in a system primarily beneficial to Romans and the local Jewish elites who supported them,

• believing the success of the empire was due to their pagan gods.

Sure, Israel had a half-Jewish king, but Herod was little more than a Roman stooge. They could remember the freedom and pride of their own Davidic Kingdom, and they longed for its return. Not only this, but they had a long-running promise that God would use them, someday, to acknowledge the God of Israel as the true and only God. It seemed obvious to many that the next step in fulfilling their purpose was to overthrow their oppressors and regain their independent kingdom.

Yet none of these political and religious struggles swayed Jesus from his own calling. He, like John the Baptist, paid little attention to Roman rule. But he did speak often of the Kingdom. In fact, both Mark and Matthew summarize Jesus’ preaching in the phrase “The kingdom…has come near.”

So, let’s dive a bit deeper into the concept of the Kingdom of God. The term, used by Jesus, is not about a castle surrounded by a moat and accessed by a drawbridge. It wasn’t synonymous with the physical kingdom of Israel. It wasn’t really about a physical location at all. Instead, as Bauckham reminds us, the activity of God in the gospels is a way of life; a way of life that has broken into human life:

• Jesus went into Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God. ‘The time has come,’ he said. ‘The kingdom of God has come near. Repent and believe the good news!’ -Mark 1:14b-15

If it isn’t physical, then how do we recognize it when we see it?

• Once, on being asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, - Jesus replied, “The coming of the kingdom of God is not something that can be observed, nor will people say, ‘Here it is,’ or ‘There it is,’ - because the kingdom of God is in your midst.” -Luke 17:20-21

It isn’t something we look for in the future. It is already here.

• From that time on Jesus began to preach, ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.’ -Matthew 4:17

Not only that, but Jesus himself experienced it. And it energized and guided his ministry. For example:

• At that time Jesus, full of joy through the Holy Spirit, said, ‘I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children. Yes, Father, for this is what you were pleased to do. -Luke 10:21.

• People were bringing little children to Jesus for him to place his hands on them, but the disciples rebuked them. When Jesus saw this, he was indignant. He said to them, ‘Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. -Mark 10:13-14.

Is there, then, a place for us in this kingdom? It seems so. This kingdom’s surprising population is not just children. Speaking to church leaders, Jesus said:

• Jesus said to them, ‘Truly I tell you, the tax collectors and the prostitutes are entering the kingdom of God ahead of you. -Matthew 21:31

So, how do we enter this kingdom? We can enter when we are ready to radically change our lives.

• Jesus replied, ‘Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again. -John 3:3

• “How can someone be born when they are old?” Nicodemus asked. “Surely they cannot enter a second time into their mother’s womb to be born!” Jesus answered, “Very truly I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless they are born of water and the Spirit. Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. You should not be surprised at my saying, ‘You must be born again.’ The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.” -John 3:4-8

With just this focus on the kingdom of God other passages and parables come together. Jesus’ teaching on the Good Samaritan has that radical inclusion that his words about children, tax collectors, and prostitutes in the kingdom have. John 3:16 speaks of God’s ultimate act, through Jesus, to give us entry into the kingdom. And Jesus’ summary of the law defines what matters most to the kingdom.

As the two commands of loving God and neighbor are the backbone of the law upon which all the others hang, so the theme of the kingdom, a new way of life available to us in Jesus, is the backbone upon which Jesus’ other teachings come together.

Next week we will look at this new way of life in more detail and discuss what gave Jesus the right to proclaim such a radical thing during his ministry on earth.

In the past God spoke to our ancestors through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son…. -Hebrews 1:1-2a

Who is God?

Some turn to scholarly authors for answers. Many of these writers try to answer the question of God by synthesizing opinions of various religions. This is a real challenge given the incredible variety of responses given by the world’s religions. For example:

• Muslims refer to God by the name Allah when asserting that God is tawhid, or radically one and cannot be divided.

• For Hindus, the ultimate reality is an impersonal force underlying all things. The gods, like Vishnu, Parvati, and Shiva, are a pantheon representing ultimate reality, which they call Brahman.

• Buddhism shifts the question completely as the search for a creator God becomes a search for personal enlightenment and the escape from human suffering.

Pulling such disparate ideas together into one definition of God seems insurmountable. Indeed, every writer I have heard of fails. Rather than offering their reader a helpful answer to the question, they provide a retelling of the story of God which promotes their own modern, secular opinion on the matter. It is far better to seek our answer by diving deeper into one of the many answers.

Christianity offers an answer to the question is different from all of the options above.

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Christianity acknowledges the challenge of understanding the true nature of God. Unlike Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, or secular opinion, however, Christianity tells us to turn to Jesus if we want to know more about God.

No one has ever seen God, but the one and only Son, who is himself God and is in the closest relationship with the Father, has made him known. -John 1:18

The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. -Hebrews 1:3a

We proclaim to you what we have seen and heard, so that you also may have fellowship with us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ. -1 John 1:3

For Christians, then, the question of God is most clearly answered by a deepened knowledge of Jesus.

Richard Bauckham, senior scholar of theology and New Testament at Ridley Hall, Cambridge, argues that the four gospels of the Bible, Matthew, Mark, Luke and John are “substantially reliable sources for knowing quite a lot about Jesus.”1 The four gospels give us “…more than one angle on a complex figure.”2 Despite being thousands of years old, these ancient texts give insight into the way that Jesus’ contemporaries experienced him. They also illustrate how knowing him affected their lives. Dr. Bauckham’s book “Jesus: A Very Short Introduction” 3 is not a story of Bauckham’s view of God. It is an overview of the meaning and interpretation of the people who knew Jesus in the first century. His approach is so helpful to a deepened understanding of Jesus that I am preparing a summary of the book in next week’s Substack post.

Here are some introductory statements from Bauckham’s book to get us started:

• Jesus is “…undoubtedly the best known and most influential human person in world history.”4

• Jesus is unique in his crossing of countries and cultures. “…no other figure has so extensively crossed the cultural divisions of humanity and found a place in so many diverse cultural contexts.”5

• Jesus has crossed the boundaries of religion. He is found in the Quran and is interpreted favorably in Hinduism and Buddhism.

• Jesus crosses the genres of media: “No other figure has inspired so much art, literature, music and even film.” 6

• Jesus is the focus of two billion of our contemporaries’ relationship with God and an essential guide to their way of life.

Given such facts then, says Dr. Bauckham, learning about Jesus from the four gospels of the Bible “…seems to me a kind of knowledge of Jesus that is well worth having, whatever we choose to do with it.”7

More next week!

I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. To the thirsty I will give water without cost from the spring of the water of life. -Revelation 21:6b

I thought I knew what naan was. The perfect complement to an Indian meal, an unleavened flat bread whose impact can be heightened with a wonderful zing of garlic. But when I ordered naan as an appetizer at the Otium, a Los Angeles restaurant, I experienced the next level. This naan had no garlic option - no extra zing was needed. It was soft, puffy, buttery, and flavorful in a way that is difficult to explain. It looked like the naan I was used to eating. But it was something more.

I don’t have the words to describe it to you, and calling it naan doesn’t do it justice. The best I can do is to tell you that it was like naan, only better.

This delightful confusion awaits us on our journey with Jesus.

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The word “like” is used more than 50 times in the book of Revelation. The author of this book of the Bible is trying to share his vision of the future. When it comes to describing the destination that awaits us in our journey with Jesus, he doesn’t have the words. The experience was more than anything he had experienced in life. So the best he could do is to compare the future world of humanity to things that he and his reader have experienced.

He hears voices guiding the transition from our present to the future that sound like trumpets, rushing waters, thunder, and the roar of a lion. He experiences the fall of the old way of life with the sun turning black “like a sackcloth made of goat hair.” The deconstruction of dysfunctional institutions looks “something like a huge mountain, all ablaze, being thrown into the sea.” All of these likes prepare for his vision of the new home where we will live with God forever.

…the Holy City, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God. It shone with the glory of God, and its brilliance was like that of a very precious jewel, like a jasper, clear as crystal.

-Revelation 15: 10b-11

His descriptions are vivid and beautiful. Yet when we see it for ourselves, it will far outshine anything we have seen or tasted. No additional zing will be necessary.

Yet there are next levels we can experience in our present lives as well. The naan I had been used to eating was good. Many of us are satisfied with the experience of faith we have today. But, just as there was next-level naan waiting for me right in my own hometown of Los Angeles, there are vibrant new levels of faith within our reach in the here and now.

I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago was caught up to the third heaven. Whether it was in the body or out of the body I do not know – God knows…this man was caught up to paradise and heard inexpressible things, things that no one is permitted to tell.

-Romans 12:2, 3b-4

In the passage above, Paul uses the third person to share his experience of next-level spirituality. Surely such experiences aren’t meant for Paul alone. There are new spiritual experiences available to all of us. We simply need to put ourselves in a position to experience them.

I didn’t expect to experience next-level naan at Otium. It was a surprise. But I had to position myself to find it by going to the restaurant and ordering it. In the same way, Jesus-followers have to put themselves in a position to experience the next level of their spiritual life. Daily prayer, worship, and Bible reading are core practices in this regard. Go deeper with each of these in your own life. But that’s not all. There are many other practices that Christians, over the 2,000 years since Jesus, have also found helpful. If you want to explore these, you can begin with Richard Foster’s book “A Celebration of Discipline.” Look through his descriptions and pick a practice that catches your eye. Try it regularly over a few months while praying that God would take you to the next level that God has in store for you.

The author of Revelation has shown us the beauty that awaits us at the end of our journey with Jesus. Paul has shown us that we don’t have to wait to experience more now. There is an “Otium naan” waiting for each one of us. Let’s go deeper with Jesus and find out what our next level is all about!

The path of the righteous is like the morning sun, shining ever brighter till the full light of day. -Proverbs 4:18

When the members of the Sanhedrin heard this, they were furious and gnashed their teeth at him. But Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, looked up to heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God. ‘Look,’ he said, ‘I see heaven open and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.’

At this they covered their ears and, yel…

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“Jesus Christ.”

Christianity is too familiar to Westerners. The above quote is common among English speakers. The meaning, however, depends entirely on context. First, it can refer to the person who lived in the first century. Second, when used in songs of worship, it expresses love and commitment. Finally, though few dare criticize Jesus himself, ano…

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• what catches your a…

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Have you ever thought about your soul, can it be saved? Or perhaps you think that when you are dead, you just stay in your grave. Is God just a thought within your head or is he a part of you? Is Christ just a name that you read in the book when you were in school?

…

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Jesus called out with a loud voice, ‘Father, into your hands I commit my spirit.’ When he had said this, he breathed his last.

Jesus chose to cite the Psalms for his final words on the cross. In Luke 23:46, he shouts a phrase from Psalm 31:5, which he must have read and recited over and over, which expressed his life, not just his death: “Father, into yo…

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The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. -John 1:14

Have you ever wondered why Michelangelo’s Moses has horns on his head? Why do some Biblical manuscripts feature unicorns? And why does Matthew 27:46 quote words of Jesus in Aramaic, then tell us what they mean in Greek, with that explanation then translated into English in our Bibles? All …

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And he said to me, “Son of man, eat what is before you, eat this scroll; then go and speak to the people of Israel.” So I opened my mouth, and he gave me the scroll to eat. Then he said to me, “Son of man, eat this scroll I am giving you and fill your stomach with it.” So I ate it, and it tasted as sweet as honey in my mouth. …

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The beginning of wisdom is this: Get wisdom. Though it cost all you have, get understanding. -Proverbs 4:7

A few days before our recent trip to Tuscany, I was feeling wonderfully self-satisfied. I was preparing for our adventure by packing, getting an international dri…

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“...the ‘strange world’ within the Bible is indeed a ‘strange new world,’ seemingly far outdated and yet peculiarly fresh, arresting, and life-giving.” -Karl Barth 1

As I mentioned in my previous post, my wife and I are on a long-planned journey to Italy. One of the things I love about travel is the opportunity to explore new worlds. The people of T…

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“Christianity summoned proud pagans to face torture and death out of loyalty to a Jewish villager who had been executed by Rome.”1

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I love quot…

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The beginning of wisdom is this: get wisdom. Though it cost all you have, get understanding. -Proverbs 4:7

My wife and I are on a long-planned journey to Italy (an adventure I am certain will be part of future posts!). Given the lack of time at my desk over the next few weeks,…

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