Whose Lives Matter?

I do not often write about current events, but the country has gotten focused once again on a tragedy. A policeman killed an arrested, handcuffed African American man. My only hope is that it was a stupid stunt, and not malicious, and intentional. But I can't climb inside the man's head.

And the black community is enraged. There are protests. There are riots.

I understand the anger. Many are calling this a sign that African Americans do not matter. Hence the BLM slogan.

As a follower of Jesus, how do I respond?

Scripture says that Jesus died for the whole world. He died for the Roman soldier, who put the nails in his hands. He died for the Jewish leaders, who turned him over to Pilate. He died for Judas Iscariot. He died for the arrested man. He died for the policeman. He died as an expression of his love for people. 

And if God loves you, you matter. There is a saying in some religious circles: "If you were the only person to sin, Jesus would have died for you . . . alone." And if God loves you, you matter.

So, black lives do matter. And white lives, brown lives, yellow lives -- and even blue lives -- all matter. And if they matter to God, they should also matter to God's family.

The media, of course, is focusing on the sensational. Fires, rock throwing. beatings, tear gas, and looting. The ignore the good, showing up among the bad. Like the 6 black men in Louisville, surrounding, and protecting, one lone white cop. Black men and white men shaking hands, hugging, praying together.

How should God's people respond? To quote Martin Luther King Jr:

"Darkness cannot drive out darkness. Only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate. Only love can do that."

The Challenge

Early in Jesus’ ministry, one of the Jewish leaders came to Jesus secretly, after dark. His primary question was: when would God’s kingdom be established? Like a lot of Jews, he read his Bible, and he saw Messiah as Reigning King … and missed Messiah as Suffering Servant.

So, Jesus told him, unless he was born a second time, he would not see the Kingdom of God. There are two kinds of life. There is physical life. There is spiritual life. The physical can only reproduce the physical. And only the Holy Spirit can give spiritual life.

People are estranged from God, cut off due to sin. Jesus reminded the leader of a time in Israel’s past, where they rebelled against God. And God sent poisonous snakes among them. But Moses made a bronze snake, and hung it on a pole. Anyone, who was bitten, could look to this “snake on a stick” and God would heal them. There was no medicinal value, or healing properties, in the snake. There was only God’s promise that this would work.

So, because of God’s great love for people, he allowed his son to get hung on a pole. Everyone who looks to the Son, like Israel looked to the snake, will be redeemed from God’s punishment. When we accept what Jesus did for us, and choose allegiance to be followers, we are redeemed from God’s judgment, justified, brought into God’s family, and our spiritual DNA is reseeded. We become new, and different. We have moved from the dark to the light.

Because a person’s inner core now agrees with God’s design, he begins to live in a new way. Some people have a radical metamorphosis. (Caterpillar to butterfly.) Some, because of early decisions, and experiences, are profoundly changed, but don’t look so different on the outside. (Moth to butterfly.)  And some, because of early decisions, and experiences, are accepted by Father, Son, and Spirit, but have more difficulty changing lifestyles.

Just, because a person does not look like a butterfly on the outside, does not mean that he\she is not a butterfly. Yes, it is certainly true that they may not be. But, they may be staying in the cocoon longer than others.

I am encouraging all of us to be a little more patient, and kind, with someone, who is more broken from his life experiences, and not expressing Father’s character very well, but whom Father loves just as much as you and I, and who Jesus died for, just as he did for you and I.

The Ascension

In Jesus' final days on earth, he made an appearance to his disciples. He let them touch him. He showed them the scars on his hands. He ate some fish. All of this to assure them, he was not a dream, or a disembodied spirit.

Then, he told them that everything, that had happened, was foretold by prophets: his birth, his ministry, his death, and his resurrection.

Now, every person needed to hear that, if any person chose to change their thinking, decide that God had a better way to think, feel, speak, and act, choose to follow God's way -- give allegiance to the God of creation -- there was forgiveness of sins ... past, present, and future. There was a cancellation of the punishment of sin ... past, present, and future. That person would become part of God's family, and God would begin re-working their lives, so they would live as he had originally designed them to live.

The disciples were not responsible to proclaim this message to everyone. But they were responsible to begin the process. And they were responsible to pass the mission onto those, who choose to follow Jesus. So, each person, who gives his allegiance to Jesus, has a part in advancing his mission, like running in a relay race.

This mission we advance: God is seeking to rebuild his family, by making people, who rebel against him, his children. He wants them to know, to understand, and to experience his love. Those people need only to live in agreement with what God says. Living in agreement with God's word brings love, joy, peace, and all good things.

Jesus, and his disciples, went out of the city, spent time in prayer, and then, he was lifted up, and went back to his Father ... and our Father. The disciples worshiped, and rejoiced.

The Resurrection

Good Friday is the pivot point of the universe. Because the Crucifixion happened on Good Friday. Jesus paid the price for all mankind. Jesus redeemed all people, and the Father began re-building his family.

But it wasn't until Easter that the impact began to be felt by people.

Early Sunday morning, women, who had been following Jesus, gathered spices, and went to the tomb to prepare the body for burial. They couldn't do it before, because it was the beginning of the Sabbath. (To honor the dead, or break God's law -- as they had been taught it.)

But, when they reached the tomb, the stone was rolled away. And two "men," in a bright light, stood there, and told the women: "Go tell his disciples, that he has risen, as he said he would."

And Jesus appeared to various groups:

• To Mary Magdalene.
• To the rest of the women at the tomb.
• To the disciples, without Thomas.
• To the disciples, with Thomas.
• To two disciples on the road to Emmaus.
• To 500 people.
• To the disciples, while they were fishing.
• To the disciples at the Ascension.

Scripture does not always give numbers. It said 500 at one time. It said there were 120 gathered at Pentecost, and they received the Holy Spirit. So, disciples could mean the Twelve, or it could be a group of more people.

The disciples, who fled and hid in fear after the crucifixion, who denied they knew Jesus:

• They boldly stood in a public place, and proclaimed Jesus. 3000 gave their allegiance to Jesus.
• They went to the temple, and healed a man, who had been crippled from birth, in a very public way. And 2000 more gave their allegiance to Jesus.
• They stood in front of the same Jewish leaders, who handed Jesus to Pilate, and proclaimed that Jesus was God's Promised One.
• And, of the Twelve, who all ran for their lives, when Jesus was arrested, only one died of old age. The rest were all martyred, because of their stand for Jesus.

The Resurrection changed these men forever -- not in anyway minimizing the Helper, Advocate, Teacher, Enabler, that Father sent to them. And sends to each one of us. It is God's Spirit in each person's heart, that enables them to walk in obedience.

Perhaps, it is the Resurrection that gives people a handhold on faith, enabling all of the inner man to live in agreement, and to allow the Spirit to flow through a man, and be part of impacting the world.

The Crucifiction

The Jews turned him over to Pilate. And Pilate turned him over to his soldiers. And the soldiers crucified him.

And during his time on the cross, Jesus demonstrated he had a different heart than normal people. Most people would focus on their present condition. Jesus took time to focus on:

• His mother, who he gave to John to care for her.
• One of the other thieves, who he assured was now in his family.
• The soldiers, and Jews, responsible for his death, to forgive them, and ask his Father to forgive them. 

If you are a follower of Jesus, if you have given him your allegiance, you recognize this day, that Jesus died, as the focal point of all history.

The punishment for the sin of all mankind fell on Jesus. He bore the punishment for those who give him allegiance. He bore the punishment of those who would never give him allegiance.

Father would re-boot his family making project. The way is open to reconciliation, to justification, to redemption, and to adoption.

The Holy Spirit moves closer to reclaiming mankind, marking and guaranteeing who God's children are. Filling the depths of his children's heart with his grace, his love, and his empowering. 

His followers did not realize it, but nothing in the cosmos would ever be the same. But they would soon.

The Arrest

After dinner, Jesus led the disciples to a garden to pray. Judas, knowing about the garden, also led soldiers there to arrest Jesus.

Peter took a sword, and attacked one of the servants, cutting off his ear. Jesus ordered Peter to stop, and healed the servant’s ear. Then, the soldiers took Jesus, and led him to the High Priest. And after he had questioned Jesus, he sent him to Pilate.

And after being questioned by Pilate, Pilate saw that he was innocent, and sought to have him released. But the Jews objected. So, Pilate had him flogged, and sought to have him released again. But when the Jews continued to object, in order to avoid a riot, Pilate gave Jesus to the soldiers to be crucified.

After his one act of bravado, Peter grew afraid. He denied he even knew Jesus three times. We will all find ourselves in Peter’s shoes at one time, or another. And we may succeed to stand up for him. And we may fail. But we should all be encouraged by Peter, because Jesus gave him another chance. And Peter made good use of that chance. God used him to bring the first 3000 members of his new family to him. He challenged the Sanhedrin. He brought the first Gentile, non-Jewish, people into God’s family.

God is the God pf second chances. And probably third, and fourth, chances.

I don’t think God gets excited when people are overcome by their failure, and feelings of guilt. If such feelings lead people to seek him, choose allegiance, and become part of his family, that’s good. But, being wrapped up in guilt means our focus is not where it should be. He wants our focus to be on:

• Love – service, sharing his love and good news, encouragement.
• Prayer – worship, praise, for blind eyes to see, for workers, healing.
• Thanksgiving – sonship, salvation, provision, God’s positive activity.