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showing the world how wrong it is
Seems to be a preoccupation of religion these days. Let me show you how wrong the world is about sin, righteousness, and judgment. Let me show you how wrong the world is about abortion and gay marriage, and evolution and climate change and on and on and on it goes….. The three-fold preoccupation of much religious discourse it seems: what is the worst of sin, the pinnacle of righteousness, the certainty of judgment? If we can only be clear on these, we will be right, orthodox, faithful. When the Spirit comes, surely he will show the world how wrong it is. How wrong they are. But will it turn out as we expect?
Jesus was surrounded by religious critics. He seems to have them primarily in mind when he uses the phrase, “the world.” As though there is something characteristically “of this world” with religion. As if there is something so very secular about religion in one of its classic manifestations.
“And when he [the Paraclete, the Comforter] comes, he will show the world how wrong it was, about sin, and about who was in the right, and about judgment: about sin: in that they refuse to believe in me; about who was in the right: in that I am going to the Father and you will see me no more; about judgment: in that the prince of this world is already condemned.” (John 16: 8-11)
upside down to see right-side up
There he goes again, turning things upside down to make them right-side up. He and his disciples have been under intense scrutiny. The critical eye of religion has been on them: glaring, staring, baring their error. The world has been at work on them, doing what the world does best: accusing, condemning, judging good and evil.
So it is better for his disciples if he goes, because until he goes the Spirit will not come; the Paraclete, the Comforter, the Advocate, the one who comes alongside them to defend them against the world in orthodox garb–one of the world’s favorite costumes.
The Spirit will show the world how wrong it is concerning sin: that the Word was among them, but understood him not; that Scripture testified concerning him, but they were so sure of their Scriptural mastery that they refused to come to him, “that they refuse to believe in me.” This is sin: this the mark that is in the process of being missed and when we miss this, we’ve missed what sin is, even when we’re sure we know what it is in others.
The Spirit will show the world how wrong it is concerning who was in the right: that he who is to be condemned for heresy, will be raised from the hertic’s grave and then ascended to God’s right hand in vindication of all he said and did and is; that the world in its favorite disguise is shown to be wrong about him, “that I am going to the Father and you will see me no more.” This is righteousness: that he alone is in the right and everything and everyone is in the wrong until it and they align to him.
The Spirit will show the world how wrong it is concerning judgment: that the accuser, the condemner, the snake who convinced us it is ours to eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, that we can be like God, knowing good and evil with certainty and clarity and confidence, enough to render our rulings, is himself accused, condemned and ruled to be wrong, “that the Prince of this world is already condemned.” This is the judgment: that the accuser is condemned already as are we when we sit in his seat of judgment.
Until we feel the blood rushing to our heads, we’re not seeing the world as Jesus sees the world.
Tags: faithful, hot-button issues, Jesus, judgment, orthodox, paraclete, righteousness, sin
May 25th, 2009 at 7:28 pm
Ken- Keep turning this thing Upside Down.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uFjnit1wyus
Who’s to say
What’s impossible
Well they forgot
This world keeps spinning
And with each new day
I can feel a change in everything
And as the surface breaks reflections fade
But in some ways they remain the same
And as my mind begins to spread its wings
There’s no stopping curiosity
I want to turn the whole thing upside down
I’ll find the things they say just can’t be found
I’ll share this love I find with everyone
We’ll sing and dance to Mother Nature’s songs
I don’t want this feeling to go away
May 25th, 2009 at 11:09 pm
God has given you a special gift:). There are very few people who can see this. Great blog. I actually had an interesting conversation (turned into a blog) with another Christian over viewing the world as Jesus did. Love first, then teach rather than the other way around. For some christians it is easier to point the figure at the world even though we all fall short of God’s glory. There unfortunately are very few people who grasp this concept even though Jesus would view it much differently. Of course the world is wrong in many aspects, but as Jesus did, we can still love those in this world.
May 26th, 2009 at 10:33 am
Back in California one of my mountain biking buddies was a black and white, right or wrong, left or right, conservative or liberal, types of Christian. Often as we huffed and puffed up the trails we would debate issues loudly, catch our breath again and keep at it. He was real insecure with my Christianity because it was not in line with his world view. He constantly tried to save me and would use his Evangelism Explosion lines on me all the time. Often quoting scripture about making “ritcheous judgements” and all his judgements were ritcheous. When I told him that my basis for my Christian belief was to follow Jesus and live and strive to live as closly to the way Jesus lived. To approach each situation asking the question “what would Jesus do?” His answer, “but you can’t live like Jesus because you aren’t Jesus.” To me I don’t think the goal is to be Jesus, but to strive to live our lives following his path.
May 26th, 2009 at 11:48 am
You might say that lostness, powerlessness, moral degradation, and spiritual impoverishment and confusion make others more lovable. Not less.
May 26th, 2009 at 12:03 pm
In light of Ken’s intro, what are we to make of the many times you hear the word ‘repent’ in the gospels?
Doesn’t repent imply a change in direction? Doesn’t a call to change directions imply that your current direction is wrong?
Aren’t we as believers called to model this change on direction to the ‘world’. (I don’t think you can limit Jesus’ use to ‘the world’ term to just the religious elite, it applies to the common wisdom of a particular society when it is in conflict with Godly principles.)
So isn’t then, showing the world where it may be going against God’s will at least part of our call?
May 26th, 2009 at 3:00 pm
joao asks great questions! if you read the gospels and study the context of Jesus’ call to repent, it is usually a call to Israel to repent, and specifically for Israel to find a new way (the way of Jesus) to be Israel (light to the world, etc.)…the focus is inclusive of personal sins (repent of your personal sins) but even more it’s a call to repent, to change course, to stop going the way Israel is currently going (eg violent resistance against rome, etc) which will only lead to disaster. N.T. Wright is great on this and it’s worth a read. Also, check out the context in John 16 for JEsus’s use of “the world”–who did he have in mind, in particular, given the context? i’m drawing out this sense of “the world” because it is often missing in our interpretation–not to deny that there is a broader application such as you suggest.
May 26th, 2009 at 5:37 pm
are there many (or any) instances of Jesus correcting “the world” of its errors beyond the corrections he brings to Israel/Israel’s leadership/Israel’s religious leaders? seems like he has opportunities when speaking about Caesar in reference to taxes, or when he’s face to face with Pilate, or when he’s speaking to the centurion, etc. But I’m hard pressed to recall much by way of pointing out the errors of the wider (non-Jewish) world. Clearly, the beatitudes reflect a completely different approach to life than the pagan approach, and he certainly doesn’t condone the wider world’s corrupt or mark-missing practices. anyway, maybe there are examples, but they just aren’t coming to mind readily.
May 26th, 2009 at 9:20 pm
joao, you’re asking the right questions, because ken is telling you left is right and right is wrong. but he wants to sell books, and controversy sells. read the new testament. listen to jesus, paul, john, peter. their spirituality encompassed personal morality as well as national identity. if you want the world to like you, follow ken. jesus’s path doesn’t win popularity contests. or sell lots of books.
May 26th, 2009 at 9:51 pm
I’m just glad someone took that enigmatic passage and expounded on it in a way that makes sense out of it.
Having gotten good sense out of it though, I don’t see how this blog isn’t an example of the problem it laments. Isn’t this “Let me show you how wrong Christians are about….”?
If we grant that Jesus was saying this to the Jews then, Ken is quite right to say that the Spirit must be saying it to the Church now. Therefore he is saying it to us. But we’re not talking about it here as if it applies to us. Just to those other Christians. I am convinced that we will never see the change of heart we’re longing for in the Church unless we identify ourselves with our brothers and sisters in the same way we’ve been talking about identifying with ‘the world.’
I must recognize that Jesus is convicting ME about sin, ME about who is in the right and ME about judgment. It is from that place of personal, unfeigned conviction that I may, some time, find myself in a position to speak to another Christian with the mercy that disables defensiveness and makes his repentance possible.
May 26th, 2009 at 9:53 pm
Wasn’t it John Wesley who said that people aren’t ready to receive the gospel until they have a clear understanding of their sin and need of a savior? Following Jesus begins with an acknowledgement that we need him, doesn’t it? And don’t we need him because we are sinners? “…whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” Doesn’t an invitation to receive Jesus include an explanation of why we need to receive him? If not, why not?
May 26th, 2009 at 11:27 pm
Humphreys,
I have been under Ken as a pastor for some 14 years (wow, that long!) and though some of these blog entries are challenging and disturbing to me, as far as I can see, there isn’t an ulterior motive to sell books.
I see Ken’s heart as one that is in love with Jesus and is tackling some difficult issues with a goal to really see the heart of Jesus in these times.
Also, this church has been a source of much healing in my life, so I give it the benefit of the doubt.
Yes, I am uncomfortable with some of the possible directions these ideas may take our church believe me in that I will not support any church in a direction I am convinced is not from God.
But some of the issues mentioned here are worthy of discussion and Jesus did offend many of the then accepted religious norms of the day.
So I will keep following this blog and take part in the conversation.
May 26th, 2009 at 11:39 pm
Jesse,
I would hope Jesus’ message of repentance would apply to more than just the Jewish nation.
I always thought of His message being universal.
I certainly do not consider myself Jewish nor a member of Israel (a mostly secular state) so I would be wasting my time in following Jesus if His message was only to Jews.
May 27th, 2009 at 2:21 am
Some of you talk as if making moral judgment is the narrow path and loving people is the broad path. I submit that it is much easier to judge than it is to love. Sure, if you take the “world’s” definition of love—i.e. tolerate and live and let live— then love is easier. But that is not the Bible’s definition of love. “Lay down your life for another” kind of love, now that’s not so easy. Then apply it to your enemy, not just your neighbor and you’re talking about a very challenging proposition (not the kind of proposition that tends to sell books these days…btw).
Of course people need to be convicted of their sin before they can really receive that gospel. But what sin do they need to be convicted of? If the greatest commandment is to love God with everything you are and the second to love your neighbor as yourself, then I would submit the primary sin to be convicted of is the breaking of these commandments…i.e. failing to love God and neighbor adequately.
So the big question is: what does it mean to love God? This is where I submit that Ken hits the nail on the head. To love God is to follow Jesus. To believe in Him, which in the Gospel of John meant far more than mental assent. It meant to turn your heart and life toward Him in every way…which is in line with what it means to repent…not just turn away from sin but more importantly to turn toward Jesus…to adopt His way of living. Jesus spent a whole lot more time encouraging and healing and blessing and feeding than He did judging.
But He did judge, so shouldn’t we? He did indeed. But hear what he tells the Pharisees in John 5:22-23a “Moreover, the Father judges no one, but has entrusted all judgment to the Son, that all may honor the Son just as they honor the Father.” The way I figure it, if the Father has given up the responsibility to judge over to Jesus, then I don’t have to worry about it myself. If it’s good enough for God the Father to trust Jesus with all judgment, then its good enough for me.
Certainly as I abide in Jesus, the Holy Spirit will enable me to judge (i.e. discern) things, even make judgment about people. But the real test comes after that…what will I do? Will I try to take for myself the authority that God the Father has given to Jesus and act out that judgment for myself? What would that look like? How did Jesus enact judgment? Oh wait. He didn’t, at least not yet. For now, the example he gives is humble service and obedience, unto to death, even death on the cross.
So yes, we’re called to judge…and to set an example of personal morality, but the example Jesus gave of personal morality in the face of judgment is sacrificial love. To judge and then not love is the broad path to destruction.
May 27th, 2009 at 10:05 am
this upside down surprise is absolutely my hope. i sometimes wander the paths of complexity to consider overlapping communities that i belong to…i am a follower and student of Jesus, and as such, part of the “church” in the sense that Jesus and the nicene creed meant (btw, loved your talk on this at cincy, ken!); i also associate with a local expression of church…and all of that is all well and good. but i am also an american citizen. i share in the wealth and rights of america. yet, at the same time, i also share in the mis-deeds and short-comings of my american community. so, i feel the tension. the tension of being a part of something that has gone wrong, even if my primary identity is Christ, and him crucified and raised from the dead. so, while Christ is my touchstone, does anyone else wrestle with this corporate aspect of their life? and doesn’t all this “showing the world how wrong it is” go against Jesus’ work of not condemning but saving the world, and laying down our rights (even unto death) and implementing what Jesus began just as He did through suffering love? i don’t ask this tritely, because i wrestle with these issues. being involved in fighting against human trafficking has caused me to see how hard it is to do justice and still love mercy, not to mention walking humbly with God…
May 27th, 2009 at 4:20 pm
Ken, I believe that you were referring to Jesus when you said:
“This is righteousness: that he alone is in the right and everything and everyone is in the wrong until it and they align to him.”
Sometimes, Ken, you forget to define your terms! The phrase, “in the wrong”, could mean:
1. bad, evil, wicked, sinful, immoral, iniquitous, reprehensible, crooked.
-OR-
2. inaccurate, incorrect, erroneous, false, untrue, mistaken.
So which of the above best defines what you meant to say when you said that “everything and everyone is in the wrong until it and they align to him.”?
May 27th, 2009 at 4:45 pm
Superb post, Ken! That interpretation/application never occurred to me before.
And a superb comment, Bob (do you also have a blog? I’d like to hear more!).
May 27th, 2009 at 5:31 pm
The preoccupation of this blog is showing the church how wrong it is.
May 27th, 2009 at 6:01 pm
jesse, jesus came to the lost sheep of israel, not to “the world.” so we shouldn’t expect he would offer many words directed at gentiles. paul was an apostle to the gentiles, and we can frequently find him condemning pagan practices and immoral behavior in the early church.
May 27th, 2009 at 6:10 pm
jesse, why do you suppose jesus said that the world will hate us? because we love them and reserve judgment only for other believers? i think not. if you’re not offending the world (and also loving it) you’re not following jesus. if the world loves you, what are you ommitting from your message?
May 27th, 2009 at 11:45 pm
Humphreys
I like your last post.
That thought came from Jesus’s mouth. Despite His love, which we all have much to learn from, He was hated…enough to be condemned to death and most of the apostles after Him.
So I see your point that if the church is loved by the world (those who do not accept Jesus), then there is something missing.
Of course, we must ensure that the reason for any hatred is due to Jesus changing our lives and not the common sense of self righteousness and judgment that religious folk tend to fall into.
May 28th, 2009 at 8:08 am
i think, quite possibly, you guys are living out ken’s point to this post by ganging up on jesse to tell him how wrong he is (and possibly missing both ken’s point and jesse’s as well)
repent for the kingdom of god is at hand…
May 28th, 2009 at 8:14 am
Seems like the people who hated Jesus were the righteous, the God-fearing, Scripture-studying, religious elite of Isreal. These people regarded Jesus’s love for sinners as a scandal, something not to be tolerated. Jesus offended the religious leaders of Isreal because he partied with sinners and was blasphemous, calling himself the son of God. He frightened the religious elite because he challanged their power and authority over the people and because he challanged their theory of morality and their understanding of God’s character. He turned all of their thinking upside down, and they hated him for it. They hated him because he told them that they should love their neighbors and their enemies. They hated him because he showed them in parable after parable, in healing after healing, that they had gotten God and righteousness wrong. They hated him because he showed them a God who most loved the poor, the oppressed, and the sinners, not the pious and the reputable.
May 28th, 2009 at 9:00 am
Humphreys comment 18: yes, these distinctions you make are important to understand the words of Scripture–who was jesus speaking to in Jn 16, what was his frame of reference to the world, and how does that apply in our setting? Seems to me it’s a word for us in our religious community setting, speaking to the dynamics that emerge out of our in-house Christian community context….yes, and Paul’s words mean to be understood in light of the mission he was on, introducing the gospel of Jesus in a paganism that was nearly spent, the Jesus movement a very small minority voice…important similarities and important differences in the context of Jesus and Paul (from each other) and from our own context. Why Jesus gave us the Spirit to lead us into all the truth and made sure he communicated his ruling emphasis in his reading of the bible–love. We sit with the text, open to the Spirit, searching for love….
May 28th, 2009 at 12:12 pm
steven, i don’t see anyone ganging up on anyone. i’m assuming we’re all adults here and can tolerate pointed questions and challenges. (i’ll admit to some snarky-ness in my earlier posts though). ken’s reply in #23 is good. i think what’s getting missed in a lot of the posts i read here is that jesus’ message is directed to jewish people who knew god, knew the scriptures, were trying to be “righteous,” but were going about it the wrong way (or at least not in a complete way). if jesus came to preach to the gentile nations, people who didn’t know god, denied god’s existence, people who couldn’t give a lick about the scriptures, people who were arrogant and thought they were the pinnacle of creation…don’t you suppose his message might have sounded a little different? would jesus possibly have sounded a lot more like paul? unless you really think that an overemphasis on purity laws and discontent with a pagan, oppressive government are really the key things our society is struggling with. you simply can’t take jesus’ words and emphasis out of context and call it “jesus brand spirituality.” (if jesus said “don’t judge” to the pharisees, then that must be his command to a society in which the very act of making judgments about others is scorned?) that’s why the entire canon of scripture is so important. it gives us a variety of contexts to see how god relates to different kinds of people.
May 28th, 2009 at 3:16 pm
Notbell.
Based on your description, the persecution of Christians would have ended with the dimise of Jerusalem’s Temple and the scattering of the Jews.
As I understand history, Christians are being persecuted to this day.
I do agree, however, that the jews did persecute Christians, they just were not the only ones.
May 28th, 2009 at 5:15 pm
“…inside you are filthy—full of greed and wickedness…but you ignore justice and the love of God…love to sit in the seats of honor in the synagogues and receive respectful greetings as you walk in the marketplaces…you are like hidden graves in a field. People walk over them without knowing the corruption they are stepping on…you crush people with unbearable religious demands, and you never lift a finger to ease the burden.”
“As a result, this generation will be held responsible for the murder of all God’s prophets from the creation of the world—from the murder of Abel to the murder of Zechariah, who was killed between the altar and the sanctuary. Yes, it will certainly be charged against this generation. “What sorrow awaits you experts in religious law! For you remove the key to knowledge from the people. You don’t enter the Kingdom yourselves, and you prevent others from entering.”
Jesus
Pharisees; it seems everyone has figured out it is someone else and not them. Jesus rebuked and challenged the religious rulers in Israel, and now it seems we have given ourselves the same authority. How easy it is to point the finger at others that claim Christ, saying to yourself you are not like them, and call them Pharisees. And if the other group doesn’t accept your views, they are “the world in orthodox garb–one of the world’s favorite costumes.” So, what does love have to do with any of this?
May 29th, 2009 at 1:48 am
Thanks Bob (#14) and Notbell (#23) for your comments….they really resonated with me.
Brian- I think the questions you pose are worth some pondering and good discussion and I will openly say that I have struggled with this faith method over the last few years. This prescribed method of coming to faith in Jesus is one that was presented to me back on Oct. 23, 2000 when I was taken through the Four Spiritual Laws. In my current walk, I think I ask the question more of Who is the gospel? (Answer: Jesus) rather than What is the gospel?
I also view the salvation message as on opportunity for humanity to engage in the restoration process (i.e. Thy kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven) going on right now between God and His creation. It may all just be semantics at this point, but I have seen my capacity and desire to love the world grow as my perspective has shifted.
May 29th, 2009 at 9:02 am
Gem,
I don’t think your critique is fair. At least not for me. I came from a fairly fundamentalist background. Reading “Extreme Righteousness” a few years ago really got me thinking.
That I and the tribe I had spent so much time defending were so very much like the Pharisees.
It was a self-critical turning point.
I bet many of those reading and contributing to Ken’s threads have similar experiences.
May 29th, 2009 at 9:49 am
Mark, yes, that could be interpreted in ways I didn’t intend. All human beings participate in different ways in truth, have truth, express truth, are true [and we're all a frustrating admixture of true and not true]
May 29th, 2009 at 9:53 am
gem, thanks for your couple of recent comments. It helps me to understand how this blog is landing on you. I’m pondering a couple of blog posts in response: one on my sense of what American evangelicals are doing well [what I love about us] and a follow up on the harm that I sense is being done by our movement as a whole. My assumption is that about 20% of what I say is wrong; I just don’t know what 20%. I’m also more of an extravert in my processing and I use this blog to see what I think.
May 29th, 2009 at 2:56 pm
Eric, I was raised fundamentalist Baptist. Jesus somehow had mercy on me, and I have been on the charismatic magical mystery tour for the last 20 years. While it what easy for me to be critical of my religious roots, I found that judging the past and people with the knowledge I had today, produced nothing good in me. Over the years I have found judgmental people in many different religious settings, “spirit filled”, liberal, and conservative. I have never been comfortable equating those that profess faith in Christ with the Pharisees and Sadducees of Jesus’ day.
I am amazed at those that think they have a corner on the Holy Spirit, Jesus, and the truth. I am even more amazed when those that claim special awareness of his Spirit and love, are so quick to critique there fellow brothers and sisters in Christ. If we are truly calling others Pharisees, then as Jesus said, we are also saying, “You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father’s desire. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies.”
Ken, thanks for your gentle response.
May 30th, 2009 at 8:37 am
I see the Pharisee of Pharisees drenched in love and driven by compassion saying, “My heart is filled with bitter sorrow and unending grief for my people, my Jewish brothers and sisters. I would be willing to be forever cursed—cut off from Christ!—if that would save them.” Here is Paul, willing to suffer for others if it would save them. He is compelled by the love of Jesus and experiencing bitter sorrow and unending grief for those who are trying to kill him. Willing to be cursed and die for the religious people who hate him…sounds like Jesus to me. I guess if we have this heart and consider ourselves the least of all Christians, we would begin to understand his love for everyone both in and outside of religion.
May 30th, 2009 at 11:25 am
gem, well said! The Pharisees often get a bad rap; Jesus was harshest in his criticism of them because, I suspect, they were, of the various religious parties of the day, the closet to his heart. Like C.S. Lewis says, the sharpest disagreements are often between groups that hold the most in common.
May 30th, 2009 at 5:25 pm
I wonder why we are so disputatious. Down through the millenia. God-lovers. Christian. Jewish. Muslim. Buddhist. Hindu. Agnostic. Atheist. Communist. Republican. Democrat. Libertarian. Doesn’t matter. We’re all obnoxious. All taken up with our ideas. Our loves. All of us seeking…. Seeking what? Justification? Righteousness? Is that all? What a silly idea!
May 30th, 2009 at 9:10 pm
Ken, when you get the time, don’t forget to answer the questions which have been posed to you on these pages over the last few weeks…
And when you posit a suspicion about the heart of Jesus, don’t forget to back up what you are saying with evidence from the scriptures, evidence that causes you to suspect that the Pharisees “were, of the various religious parties of the day, the closet to his heart.”
Thanks.
May 31st, 2009 at 11:05 pm
Ken,
I wonder if you would mind commenting, or pointing me to where you have commented, on the Cornelius-Van-Til/Francis Schaeffer way many of us have been brought up to see the world and its clash of worldviews.
Is it proper to see the philosophical, religious, and ideological marketplace as a clash between:
a) the “Christian worldview” — which is arguably based on total submission to God (manifested through total submission to a literal inerrantist view of the Biblical text) versus a group of “anti-Christian worldviews” that are all rooted in man’s ill-fated quest for autonomy from God?
and
b) a worldview that arguably puts “God at the center of all things” (but is really just one view of God) versus a host of “humanistic” worldviews that put “man at the center of all things.”
I think that these concepts — and these concepts are powerful ways of looking at things — are very much behind the typical Evangelical urge to show the world how wrong it is.
But IMO, this way of looking at the world frequently leads Evangelicals to falsely and unfairly caricaturize the world about them.
IMO, extreme sensitivity to anything one might perceive as “humanism,” i.e., putting “man at the center” has led many (not all) to so demote man that he is essentially stripped of made-in-the-image-of-God dignity, to the point where the Second Commandment (love neighbor) has been distorted into the antithesis of the First (love God).
June 1st, 2009 at 11:58 am
Eric, You got it! I’ll put it in the post cue.