Stephen
Terry, Director
Facing
Opposition
Commentary
for the October 26, 2019 Sabbath School Lesson
In fact, everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ
Jesus will be persecuted, while evildoers and impostors will go from bad to
worse, deceiving and being deceived. But as for you, continue in what you have
learned and have become convinced of, because you know those from whom you
learned it. 2 Timothy 3:12-14, NIV
We readily acknowledge that every good work seems to be
opposed by evil. This principle is so foundational to our understanding as
human beings that it permeates almost every aspect of our culture, no matter
where we live, what our ethnicity is or even our religion. In fact, even those
who profess no religion seem to recognize this unending opposition. From
childhood, we are familiar with fantasy battles between "good guys"
and "bad guys." In the old western movies, we could readily see who
were good and who were not by the color of their cowboy hats, white for good
and black for bad. Although this has too often had an unfortunate influence on
race relations, when properly framed, it placed good and evil in stark contrast
with one another so that even children could clearly see the significance of
the ongoing struggle. We carry this primal understanding with us as we mature
where it colors our relationships with those around us in this same stark
manner. This has the untoward consequence of increasing our polarization from
one another. If we see ourselves as the white hats, and let's admit that most
of us do, then by definition, those who oppose us must naturally be the black
hats. But strangely, they also see themselves as white hats, and define us as
black hats because we are opposing them. So who is right?
Perhaps a better question is why are we seeing the world
only in terms of black and white? Didn't God create us with the ability to see
a marvelous spectrum of colors? What a waste it seems to then limit our vision
to such a narrow band. Who among us would be happy living in the black and
white world portrayed in early 1950s television having experienced the myriad
colors that surround us? But maybe we have progressed in our understanding to
the point that we can admit that we are not simply white hats and have an appreciation
for the greater diversity of the rainbow. Nonetheless, in spite of our
perspective about ourselves, we continue to see our opponents only as capable
of monochromatic blackness. Of course, being black hats, everything they do is
automatically suspect and detrimental to everything we hope to accomplish.
Sadly we bring this understanding into our churches, into the political arena,
into the schoolyards, and even into our homes and families where we even euphemistically
refer to certain family members as the proverbial "black sheep." Too
often, we believe this divisiveness to be so essential that when we become
Christians, we even mine the scriptures to find enough proof texts to
substantiate a claim that we are only being "biblical."
An excellent example of this is our current quarterly,
which is using the opposition experienced by Ezra and Nehemiah as a biblical
example of why we should isolate ourselves from our enemies and be ready to
fight them at the drop of our "white hats." But the contrast between
the Old Testament understanding of interpersonal relationships and the what the ministry of Jesus has to say about them is
instructive. The non-Jews who offered to help with the reconstruction of the
temple are from those families who were settled into Samaria and the
surrounding area from foreign lands after the Jews who were defeated by the
Assyrians were taken captive and exiled elsewhere. Because of where they were
settled in and around Samaria, they became known as Samaritans. Since they
practiced a syncretistic faith combining elements of Judaism with other
practices of their homelands, they were deemed unworthy of acceptance by the
Jews. But their faith may have been more pure than that of the Jews they
replaced if Ahab and Jezebel are any example of what existed before.
Why did the Jews reject their help? Our lesson reverts to the black-and-white
stereotype based on the word "enemies" or "adversaries" in
the text. However, that text was likely written as a historical account of what
had taken place over several decades, and as the relationship between the two
peoples deteriorated, it would be very simple, perhaps even expected, for the
writer to write that word back into the text based on hindsight, rather than
the foresight the lesson quarterly implies. The quarterly also goes on to
accurately indicate that the Jews equated their period of Babylonian captivity
and the destruction of the temple with their tendency to worship other gods. This
theme is found repeatedly in the Old Testament, but is it an accurate rational
for the captivity in the light of the New Testament, or even the Old? Perhaps
it is only a symptom and not the disease itself. In medicine, if we only treat
the symptoms, but the underlying disease remains, it may eventually do us in,
in spite of any symptomatic relief. In other words, the worship of other gods was
not what was destroying the Jews, but rather the reasons they did so. God, our
Creator, wants us to set aside our tendency toward selfishness and treat one
another with compassion and mercy. He expects us to be welcoming and kind to
the foreigner, the widow, the orphan, the poor, the afflicted, and even our
enemies.[i] Isaiah pointed out that
how we treat others is far more important than forms of obedient worship.[ii] Jesus echoed this
sentiment according to Matthew's gospel with his "Parable of the Sheep and
the Goats."[iii]
How does this relate to worshipping other gods? When we
prefer to remain selfish and refuse to treat others with compassion and mercy
because we have labeled them as "black hats" who are out to take
everything from us, then we do not want God to tell us that we are wrong. So we
search for other gods who have no problem with our selfishness, maybe even
making them up so that we can pretend to have a form of religion and
faithfulness when in reality we are worshipping only our own selfish desires.
Paul, in writing to Timothy, his protégé, warned him of this spirit of
selfishness and stated it would be especially manifest prior to the Parousia.[iv] In the United States,
this affliction is pronounced. We build bigger and more opulent homes with each
passing generation. We are no longer happy with one vehicle as our ancestors
might have been, but require several, often one for each member of the
household who has attained the age to legally drive one. We accumulate so many
material goods that even our garages, originally constructed to house our
vehicles, are so full that our cars and trucks can no longer find shelter from the
elements there. Much of the world sees all this and thinks this is what it
means to be an American, and since Americans often claim we are a Christian
nation, they see the Christian faith as a path to wealth and power. By our
example we have created a golden idol, worshipped by those who have little or
nothing, that is very foreign to the example of Jesus. As if that was not
enough, we fund a massive military to ensure that those who have nothing can
rarely, if ever, have access to the dragon's horde we vigilantly protect from
the deprived masses that we should feel compassion for. If forced to share, we
might not be able to own those vacation cabins, those luxury boats and jet skis
we roar over the water with each summer. We might no longer have the Christmas
trees dwarfed by the massive mound of gifts surrounding them. Trees ironically set
up in memory of Jesus, who did not even have a place to lay his head.[v]
The problem with Ezra and Nehemiah is that we use them
to exacerbate our selfishness. It is an example of turning our backs on our
enemies and excluding them from the blessings we claim to have received from
God. That same God says that he blesses both the good and the evil[vi] and therefore shows more
compassion than we do. Sadly, they excluded their "enemies'" offer of
help in order to build a temple that a few hundred years later would be
destroyed anyway, precisely because the Jews could not accept the idea of compassion
toward others. Rather than humbly submit to the idea of a compassionate, loving
God, they preferred the god of harshness, judgment, vengeance and retribution
that they believed would rid them of the Romans who ruled their country. Those
Jews would have fully understood the god of materialism worshipped by so many
Americans today. In fact, their descendants, who renounce the idea of a
messianic Jesus, are among our staunchest allies.
Ironically, there are those today, who like Ezra and
Nehemiah, believe that the reconstruction of the temple in Jerusalem is the key
to bringing the Messiah. While the Jews may expect it to be his initial
appearance and Christians expect it to be the Parousia, they nonetheless share
a common cause in regards to the temple's restoration. Some have felt that the
recent relocation of the United States Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem was a
step toward that end. The Jews own Jerusalem and the United States has the wealth to make it happen. However, this is more
reminiscent of the arrogant trust in the Tower of Babel[vii] than of the selfless
sacrifice of Christ. Maybe it is time we begin to question the form of the
faith we profess. Should it be based on power and control backed by wealth and
might intended to enforce compliance with the dictates of hierarchy, or should
it be founded upon the compassionate and merciful example of Jesus? If we
choose to worship a god of vengeance, who will support our selfishness, we
should remember the example of Sodom and where that kind of faith leads.
Ezekiel tells us, "Now this was the sin of your sister Sodom: She and her
daughters were arrogant, overfed and unconcerned; they did not help the poor
and needy." (Ezekiel 16:49) We in the United States have the privilege of
being stewards of much of the world's wealth. When the Parousia does eventually
take place will we be found faithful, or will we be guilty of abusing others to
benefit ourselves. Jesus warns us about this[viii] specifically in the context
of the Parousia, leaving us little excuse for our selfishness in the days that
lead to that great event.
However, this is not a legal matter, where we are told
what to do and we obediently do it in order to be righteous. It is a heart
matter. If as Peter says, we repent and are baptized, we will receive the gift
of the Holy Spirit.[ix]
The Holy Spirit will then give us a new heart in harmony with the compassionate
character of God.[x]
It is that new, merciful heart that will lead us to love others as God loves
them, even our enemies. Then our example will testify to the truth that God is
not interested in dwelling in temples of wood and stone, but within the hearts
of men and women, lighting the world with love and compassion. That light,
composed of a broad spectrum of colors, has little in common with the black-and-white
world of Ezra and Nehemiah. Perhaps this is why Jesus never quoted from these
two books and Ezra is not even mentioned in the New Testament. The only quote attributed
to Nehemiah is done so in the Bible cross reference footnotes to John 6:31[xi] and is not referring to a
quote by Jesus, but by his opponents and linguistically refers more accurately
and directly to Exodus 16.[xii] Maybe then we can more safely
find in Jesus a better example of how we are to relate to others than in the
books of Ezra and Nehemiah.
