Today's Scripture Reading (December 2, 2023): Mark 1
We sometimes make two statements
that are actually in conflict with each other. The first is to speak about the
separation of church and state. The idea is that, at least in our society,
there is a division between religion and politics. The political structure is designed
not to influence the nation's religious system, nor is the religious system supposed
to affect the political establishment. In some ways, it was how Israel was governed,
with the ruling class divided between the King and the High Priest. But Israel
was also a theocracy as both the High Priest and the King were supposed to
yield to the will of God. In our culture, the separation of church and state is
supposed to protect people of faith from being forced to do things against their
belief systems and to keep the religious structure from pushing a belief system
on agnostics and atheists. Please don't get mad at me, but in the United States,
the overturning of Roe vs Wade is actually proof that the system isn't working
because religious beliefs are being forced on the non-religious. I get why, but
the demise of Roe vs. Wade might have some scary effects on society for those
who hold to Christian beliefs because if the separation of church and state can
be broken in one direction, it can also be broken in the other direction.
But we also argue that Christianity
is not a religion but a relationship. The separation of church and state describes
a society where faith and political beliefs are kept separate. Still, the
comment that Christianity is not a religion but a relationship indicates that Christianity
is actually a political system. Relationship is the hallmark of a political
system, not a religious one. Whenever we discuss, decide, or test our
relationships, we are delving into the realm of politics and not the confines
of faith.
John was put in prison. The reason
behind the imprisonment was that John was threatening the political environment
in Israel. I have mentioned that I think it is possible that John was brought
up in the Essene community. The Essenes had separated themselves from Jerusalem
and the nation of Judah because they believed the society had become corrupt,
which was a political judgment.
Whether or not John was connected
with the Essene community, his teachings shared the same concerns as the
Essenes. And John's call was a political one, calling the people away from the corruption
and back to an Israel as God had designed it to be.
But the reality was that John and
the Essenes were only one political voice trying to be heard in the first
century. As
Jesus walked the dusty roads of the area, it was the politics of Rome that
dominated. The emperors declared
themselves to be gods, and political questions started to develop. Why would the only living and true God allow
us to go through this? God, what is it
that you want? Is there something that
we are doing wrong? Have we done
something against you? Are you judging
us? YOU ARE GOD!
To answer this question, political factions started to develop inside
of Israel. The Zealots said that the answer to the question was military. The Zealots
believed that Israel was oppressed by Rome because the nation was passive and
cowardly. If Israel would just have the courage
to rise up and rebel against the infidels from Rome, God would give them victory.
Israel needed to slit a few Roman throats and violently oppose the occupation. Then
God will provide them with power, just like he gave strength to the shepherd
boy, David, and gave him victory over the giant, Goliath. And if the rhetoric
sounds familiar, it is. The political descendants of the zealots are still
alive and well in the Middle East; they simply go by different names.
A second political party opposed the Zealots. They believed that the Zealots were only
going to get them all killed. It is
better to work with Rome; to survive, Israel needed to cooperate, support, and play
the game Rome wanted to play. This group
was known as the Herodians because they were supporters of Rome's puppet ruler,
Herod.
A third political group, the Sadducees, supported the Herodians. The
Sadducees were a wealthy traditional political group in Israel. This group
believed only in what they could touch and feel. Heaven was a fool's gamble;
nothing existed beyond your senses, and the path to be traveled in life was
whatever it was that allowed you to live.
The Essenes were a fourth political group that opposed the Sadducees,
Herodians, and Zealots. Their solution was simple. The only way to please God was to leave the
corrupt political system and live in an alternate desert society. Society was terminally ill, and there was no
way back for it; there was no cure that could be offered. Those who wanted to
please God needed to reject society and leave.
But by far, the most popular political party of Jesus's day was a group
known as the Pharisees. These were good,
clean-living men who lived by the rules of God.
They not only taught others how to live, but the Pharisees lived out
God's laws in a way that the average person never could. The Pharisees believed that the political
problems of Israel would never be solved by violence and could never be solved
through cooperation with Herod and Rome. A complete withdrawal from society
would never solve Israel's problems. Israel's problems would only be solved if
people would take God and His directives seriously. The Lord would send His Messiah only if Israel
would be purer and would follow the rules more rigorously. If only there were less sin and more holiness.
What Israel needed was fewer prostitutes, drunks, and Roman sympathizers so
that it could be filled with more righteous people. Sin was the reason that Rome ruled over
Israel.
In this political landscape, Jesus began to preach the Good News. But
the Good News was not an unknown term before Jesus started sharing his message
with the people. It was the name used for political announcements by the Roman
Emperors. One piece of Good News is
chiseled in stone.
Divine Augustus
Caesar, son of God, ruler over the land and sea, the benefactor and savior of
the whole world, has brought you peace.
Can you imagine the stir Jesus created as he started his ministry in
Israel, saying, listen to me; let me proclaim the good news to you. Immediately,
listeners would understand that this Rabbi intended to do something about the
political landscape.
And so, they would listen to his words, trying to decipher with which
group the Rabbi had allied himself. "I tell you, do not resist an evil person. If anyone slaps you
on the right cheek, turn to them the other cheek also" (Matthew
5:39). "If anyone forces
you to go one mile, go with them two miles" (Matthew 5:41). Go
beyond, choose the higher. Those weren't the words of a Zealot. He talks about the Kingdom of
God, not the Kingdom of Rome, so he can't be a Herodian. He says that even the
Pharisees aren't good enough for the Kingdom of God, so he can't be a Pharisee.
He eats and drinks with tax collectors and prostitutes. He seems to enjoy the company of sinners, so
He can't be an Essene. Jesus didn't match any of the political groups. And the question everyone asked, but for which
no one had an answer, was simply this: Jesus, who are you?
Tomorrow's Scripture Reading: Luke 3
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