Would YOU miss Him?

I have a few thoughts I wanted to get down on the figurative paper provided here in this electronic means of writing.

Last night, after a long day of working on a number of projects for my mother, scrolling through Youtube was suggested a video clip from the Tucker Carlson show.

On it, he was interviewing a cowboy hat donning man with whom I am not familiar. I believe his name is John Rich.

The thumbnail referenced the Satanic influences and demonic possessions which seem to be prevalent among us today. Naturally, a photo of Joel Osteen just HAD to be a part of it.

It’s here, again, that I believe it’s no wonder so many people are turned off to the gospel.

His rhetoric included those things which God hates (not untrue) and that God doesn’t love everyone as the “pop culture” leaders like Osteen preach (naturally, in this man’s eyes, making Osteen a “False Teacher”).

He cited Proverbs 6:19, the last in a series of 7 items the author notes which God hates

…a false witness who pours out lies
        and a person who stirs up conflict in the community.

I am not going to expand on the issue with regard to the Osteen’s of the word, the “false teachers” as these modern day Pharisees like to call them, that’s not my purpose here today.

However, I will, using this man’s own words as an opportunity to express my view on how I believe he, like those “experts” in the law back in Jesus’ day, puffed up by their own self righteous and dogmatic beliefs, missed or would today miss the Savior entirely. They are the very reason Jesus Christ was killed.

Jesus did not fit their idea of who the Messiah should be!

We have an advantage over the teachers of old, the Pharisees, the Sadducees, the proclaimed teachers of the law, the Rabbis, chief priests and so forth.

2000 years down the road, we see things from a very different perspective.

We see historically and accurately how it all played out.

They had no idea the Lord walked among them.

Why else would they utter such phrases as this;

Then a demon-possessed man, who was blind and couldn’t speak, was brought to Jesus. He healed the man so that he could both speak and see. The crowd was amazed and asked, “Could it be that Jesus is the Son of David, the Messiah?”

But when the Pharisees heard about the miracle, they said, “No wonder he can cast out demons. He gets his power from Satan, the prince of demons.” Matthew 12:22-24

Depending on the translation you get closer and closer to them actually calling him demon possessed or satanic…just like those in our modern day who, by their own beliefs and “Little Book” theology, condemn Christian teachers to hell and accuse them of being demonic in their teaching.

Like a Child

Jesus himself made it very, very clear. To follow him, to believe in him, to be saved by him, we MUST possess the heart of a child. We must be willing to believe what seemingly cannot be true. We likely will no more see Jesus Christ in the flesh in our walk on earth, as say, our childhood Easter Bunny, Santa, Rudolph, or the Tooth Fairy. We must, then, like a child, have a blind faith and trust in him and his Father, in order to truly be saved.

However, this flies in the face of man’s pride, ego, and arrogance. His self appointed wisdom and super thinker status.

This is largely WHY, in my view, the hyper-religious then, as they often do even today, missed him entirely.

It’s in this childlike faith we find salvation. It’s in that moment in time we believe in what we cannot see that we become saved by grace when we profess total blind faith in a man we hear of who was born, died on a cross, rose again, and ascended back into heaven, to some day return and usher in the eternal peace he promises.

Then, the “adults” among us come and tell us that our fantasy is all made up, they know what’s best. The religious leaders complicate it. They add concepts to it.

They pervert it. They dissuade us from it.

They work to bring us “back to reality” and away from our “fantasy” life. Back to the “Intellectual” side of life and religious thought. The one where the deep thinkers really live; and most certainly the “watered down messages” of “simpletons” like Osteen and others do NOT belong. These prideful humans in fact consider themselves in many cases the Lord God’s superior intellectually.

The one where man guides us and directs us on the true BEST way for us. The one where man spends a lot of time thinking on and advising us on who the “real” Christians are…or how our belief in the Lord is a fantasy.

In my view, these people are fools who are eating their own vomit, believing they are elected, chosen, and the all wise among us who have the corner on “smart”.

Better still, if Satan can convince them/us we know more than God (the next logical step in some cases), we know better than God, we are smarter than God, God is a construct of man’s need for a crutch, we are further and further removed from God and his son Jesus Christ in our mind. We then live life by our own standards, our own meaning, on our own selfish terms.

Our childlike trust is eroded and we become angry and bitter, hating God or even the concept of him.

After all, we are man now. No more childish thinking and belief in some kind of Santa Clause type entity. No. We make our own way because we are that damn smart.

A Conversation Twisted

In John 14 and then 15, Jesus is having a conversation with his disciples. This set of chapters records the conversation and in it, I want to again reference something the cowboy hat man referenced as well as write a personal take of my own.

First, my take on an issue.

Many, I believe, have taken and twisted John 15:16 (and others like it) to warrant and affirm their belief that God has an elect that is chosen; some chosen to eternity, others chosen to hell. Not all are chosen to be a “real Christian”. Few are according to some professing Christians.

These self appointed “real believers” take the following verse (one of many) to affirm their “elect” status.

“You didn’t choose me. I chose you. I appointed you to go and produce lasting fruit, so that the Father will give you whatever you ask for, using my name. “ John 15:16

In MY VIEW this verse is used by many Christians out of context.

This is in spite of the fact that the most famous verse in all of scripture directly contradicts this- say it with me now

“For this is how God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.  God sent his Son into the world not to judge the world, but to save the world through him.” John 3:16 (and 17 for good measure)

God loves the world. Everyone. All of us. He gave his son to EVERYONE meaning that EVERYONE is given the choice to accept or reject it. Not some, not a few, not, as they like to call themselves, the “elect”. Everyone is given the opportunity and because God is our model of love, and love in a relationship respects a human being’s “NO, I do NOT want a relationship with you”, he also gives us a choice to tell him, as we, if healthy, give others the choice to say, “Piss Off, I want nothing to do with you”.

In these 2 chapters, John is recording a conversation between Jesus and his disciples.

Jesus, here, is answering 2 of his disciples questions directly. Phillip and Judas.

In verse 16 he is affirming that HE chose them.

It’s important to understand the literal context here and to NOT apply some grander meaning to it. At least, this is how I see it.

Parents often sought out a Rabbi for their child with the hopes their child would be accepted; not unlike, say, a professional football team for their college star to play.

There was a certain prestige if select Rabbi’s would say yes as parents attempted to choose the Rabbi for their child.

Parents wanted the best. They looked at the most famous. They were not unlike many parents today who search for and attempt to choose the BEST schools for their kid.

That’s what makes this so profound.

Jesus was NOT accepted by the leadership then. IN NO WAY did they hold him in esteem and consider him the best there is, was and ever will be.

He was scorned, insulted, and mocked.

He was called demonic, remember? By the highest of the high, those who the world viewed as the super thinkers.

That’s why the conversation with Phillip, Judas and the rest is so meaningful and to me, insightful.

“You didn’t choose me…” (because it made no sense…no one in their right mind would choose JESUS to be their Rabbi)

“I chose you…” ( the exact OPPOSITE of all they knew and understood at the time ).

Jesus was talking directly to and about his relationship to them, with them, and as their teacher.

This, in my view, was not some grander, more profound statement that would apply infinitely to the following generations as if God was saying to mankind, “I choose you and reject others”.

No, he was saying to them, I have chosen the 12 of you to be my disciples and through you the church will take over the earth and Satan’s kingdom will fall.

Because of the work you do after I am gone, because I have chosen you, the church will be founded, and the battle for man’s heart will be won.

Because I CHOSE YOU, in the future, mankind can then decide to CHOOSE ME.

This was and is a literal statement to them that has been taken, perverted and twisted, and now used to support religious dogmatic rhetoric.

The Persecution-My final thought today

In the Tucker interview the cowboy hat man talked about how Jesus told his disciples that if they follow him, they will be persecuted.

(The guest was on a tirade about the weakness of the church in America and how American Christians are weak and would give up the Lord, like Judas, in an instant if their lives were on the line)

In this, he and I agree to some degree. I watched this happen in real time during the Corona Virus madness. While lives were not sacrificed directly, the church too readily bowed to what was clearly, at least to me, an attempt by evil to subject man to authoritarian rule world wide.

Here’s my thought however related to this.

In John 14 and 15 Jesus references a lot of the impending persecution. He talks about the persecution and rejection to come with which they must be prepared to endure.

Here’s the very interesting part to me.

If you read through these two chapters take note…

All of the persecution Jesus experienced, the crucifixion he suffered, was at the hands of who?

The religious teachers!

Those who were the super righteous; pure in their own eyes. Those “whitewashed tombs” as the Lord labeled them.

“What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs—beautiful on the outside but filled on the inside with dead people’s bones and all sorts of impurity. Outwardly you look like righteous people, but inwardly your hearts are filled with hypocrisy and lawlessness.” Matthew 23:27-28

The theologians, the scholars, those in high places who used their authority to control the masses too ignorant to know; who didn’t have a reference to which they could point. No. They had to trust these people to dissect and teach the laws to them. In essence they were discouraged to think on their own.

In fact, the more complicated the better. In keeping it complicated, the big dogs could keep the masses under their thumb. (Man is funny this way. Across the span of time…humankind has shown a strong propensity toward exerting dominance and control over his fellow man).

Jesus turned all of this on it’s ear.

He exposed them for who they were.

They missed him.

They called him demonic. He was too “simple”. He didn’t follow their protocol. Sound familiar?

As such they persecuted him to death.

Interesting, then, to me, it seems that many among the super thinkers today, condemning so many Christians accuse them of the very same things Jesus was accused of.

False Teacher

When the Temple guards returned without having arrested Jesus, the leading priests and Pharisees demanded, “Why didn’t you bring him in?”

We have never heard anyone speak like this!” the guards responded.

“Have you been led astray, too?” the Pharisees mocked. “Is there a single one of us rulers or Pharisees who believes in him? This foolish crowd follows him, but they are ignorant of the law. God’s curse is on them!” John 7:45-47

Demonic

The people retorted, “You Samaritan devil! Didn’t we say all along that you were possessed by a demon?”

“No,” Jesus said, “I have no demon in me. For I honor my Father—and you dishonor me. And though I have no wish to glorify myself, God is going to glorify me. He is the true judge.  I tell you the truth, anyone who obeys my teaching will never die!”

The people said, “Now we know you are possessed by a demon. Even Abraham and the prophets died, but you say, ‘Anyone who obeys my teaching will never die!’ Are you greater than our father Abraham? He died, and so did the prophets. Who do you think you are?” John 8:48-52

Demon Possessed

But the teachers of religious law who had arrived from Jerusalem said, “He’s possessed by Satan, the prince of demons. That’s where he gets the power to cast out demons.” Mark 3:22

Blasphemer

But some of the teachers of religious law who were sitting there thought to themselves, “What is he saying? This is blasphemy! Only God can forgive sins!” Mark 2:6-7

Heretical

“But this I confess unto thee, that after the way which they call heresy, so worship I the God of my fathers, believing all things which are written in the law and in the prophets:” Acts 24:14 (Paul speaking to Felix after being accused by Tertullus, a lawyer hired by the Sanhedrin, “they” being the teachers of the law, the scribes, and Sanhedrin)

As you can see here, those “experts” and super religious among them missed the Savior entirely.

In no way am I here trying to put ANY present day believer or teacher in Jesus’ class, I am here to say that I do believe many among the professed family of Christ, the self proclaimed “real Christians” in many ways strike exact parallels to those in Jesus time responsible for his ultimate death.

And just like those then, so many are blinded by their own self righteousness. They have cast themselves, through their “superior thinking”, as experts helping to expose alllllllll the false prophets and false teachers among us sending us straight to the gates of hell through their errant teachings for those of us who listen to them.

It’s no wonder so many people today are turned off to the Lord and finding salvation and peace with God through Jesus Christ.

Who would want to be a part of such a self righteous and demonstrably hypocritical group of humans?

I sure don’t.

That’s what I think this morning.

-rob out