Running Your Race

In a little over a month we will celebrate Halloween. Decorations are already in the stores and have been for weeks now. Homes have been decorated and are being decorated, but the meaning of the word “Halloween” has been by and large lost. The word comes from old Scottish and is a contraction for “Saints Evening”. It referred to the evening before or eve of All Saints’ Day, November 1, a Christian holiday remembering and honoring those recognized as saints in the Christian Church, as well as loved ones who have died.

I never thought of All Saints’ Day, didn’t even really know what it was until we lived in Italy and saw that on November 1st, all the stores would close, people would go to church and then make a trip out to the cemeteries to honor their loved ones who had died. In this country, we celebrate Halloween, the eve of All Saints’ Day, but don’t celebrate the holiday of All Saints’ Day, which has become just another day. But where did All Saints’ Day come from?

The early church recognized a concept from the book of Hebrews 12:1-3, which makes a reference to a great cloud of witnesses who surround those of us following Jesus. The author is referring to those he had previously mentioned in Hebrews 11, those who had demonstrated great faith, such as Moses, Abraham and Sarah, among others. The early church incorporated that concept into what has been called the Apostles’ Creed in the statement, “we believe in the communion of the saints”. That statement, refers to Hebrews 12:1-3, and became the foundation for the holiday of All Saints’ Day.

Hebrews 12:1-3 offers some encouragement to those of us who follow Jesus today. The author exhorts us to run the race set before us with endurance looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who set an example when he went to the cross. Jesus ran his race successfully; the author exhorts us to run ours successfully as well. But what is our race? Martin Luther, who on All Hallows Eve, October 31, 1517, nailed 95 propositions or thesis for debate on the the Castle Church Door in Wittenburg, taught quite a few things. However, one thing that he taught was the priesthood of all believers, taken from 1 Peter 2:9. From this Luther taught that anyone who follows Jesus can serve God through any useful vocation. In other words, not just members of the clergy, priests and pastors, have a holy calling, but anyone can serve God through their vocation, which is holy, because they are holy in Christ Jesus.

So running our race is getting up each day with the intention of serving Jesus that day no matter what our responsibilities happen to be: in the way that we speak with and interact with those we encounter, in the way that we show kindness to those around us, in the way that we seek to serve rather than to be served. We live this way, not because we have to, or because we are afraid God will punish us if we don’t, but because we have a love for Jesus and that love translates to how we love and treat those we encounter that day.

Jesus, the Savior

Jesus, the Savior, those words are a comfort to some and offensive to others. To those who recognize their need for a savior, they are comforting. To those who believe they are good as they are, they are offensive, because the concept of a savior implies they are in need of a savior. While on earth, Jesus was a controversial figure. His followers believed him to be their long awaited Messiah, who would free them from Roman rule. They were right about the Messiah part, but misunderstood the liberation from Roman rule part. Jesus’ detractors took offense at him, because he claimed to do things only God could do. He claimed to forgive sins. To the devout Jews, that was blasphemy, because claiming to have the authority to forgive sins implied that Jesus was the creator God, not merely a god, like the Roman Emperors claimed. Their offense led them to hand Jesus over to the Romans convincing the Roman governor Pilate that Jesus was a threat to Caesar.

The apostle Paul summarized Jesus by stating that to the Greeks and Romans Jesus as Savior was foolishness, because how could a crucified criminal save anyone? He couldn’t save himself. To the Jews, he was a blasphemer, even Paul himself thought so until he encountered Jesus on the road to Damascus.

Today there are many opinions about Jesus, but in what sense is he the Savior? Some people look at Jesus and conclude they don’t need a savior, because they are doing just fine. Like the devout Jews of Jesus’ day, they can’t imagine they have need of a savior. The Jewish leaders of Jesus’ day, could look at Jesus’ followers and conclude that a bunch of fishermen, a tax collector, a revolutionary certainly would all need a savior, but the devout Jews were morally upright people. They certainly did not need a savior. They followed the law. They helped those in need. Of course they were acceptable to God.

However, Jesus pointed out the problem. To enter the Kingdom of God one’s righteousness needed to surpass that of the Pharisees, the devout Jews. When his disciples heard those words, they were dumbfounded. The Pharisees were the cream of the moral crop in their eyes. If they could not enter the Kingdom of God, then no one could. However, one individual surpassed the morality of the Pharisees, Jesus himself. Many people today, as did the devout Jews of Jesus’ day, as well as even the disciples, assumed that one’s own morality was the standard to enter into God’s Kingdom. Jesus’ message, the Gospel, declares that they are all wrong. This is where Jesus is the Savior. He offers to save mankind from the tyranny of self. Human morality is insufficient to enter into God’s Kingdom, because no matter how good, how generous, how moral a person is, human morality is always tainted by selfishness. That selfishness declares that my morality is good enough.

So what is the solution? We are told to humble ourselves before God, admit our need for Jesus as our Savior and let him change our heart from being focused on ourselves to being transformed in our thoughts and emotions to what God desires for us and others. On a number of occasions, the New Testament speaks of Jesus’ followers as being “in Christ”. This is how the New Testament writers could refer to Jesus’ followers, not as Christians, but as saints, holy ones. Today, the term “saint” refers to a select group of individuals who were extraordinary in their devotion. However, in the New Testament it was used for all followers of Jesus. How could Paul make that reference? He did so, because any follower of Jesus receives as a gift the holiness of Jesus; he or she is “in Christ”. Jesus saves us from ourselves and includes us in his goodness, his morality, hhis holiness, which opens the Kingdom of God to us.

Partnership With God

One of the big questions that all Christians need to answer is how to live. According to the New Testament, the believer belongs to Christ Jesus, because they are bought and paid for with Jesus’ death on the cross. Jesus told all those he called to follow him. But what does this mean? How does a Christian live these principles out? How does a Christian follow Jesus?

One theologian, George Eldon Ladd, in discussing Paul’s theology, refers to the tension between the indicative and the imperative. What does he mean by that? Ladd used these two grammatical terms, “indicative” and “imperative” to describe the Christian life. Grammatically they refer to what are called “moods” or types of speech. When speaking in the indicative (mood), a person is giving factual information. The sky is blue; that apple is red. However, when speaking in the imperative (mood), we are referring to what should happen, often in the form of commands. Stop running; do your homework; eat your vegetables. What Ladd means by the tension between the indicative and the imperative is the tension between what the New Testament says about the Christian, the indicative and how the Christian should live, the imperative. The indicative are statements of fact about the believer in and follower of Jesus. A believer is a new creation in Christ, the old has passed away, the new has come (2 Corinthians 5:17). Believers are a holy people (1 Corinthians 1:2, 30). Believers have been justified by God and have peace with Him (Romans 5:1). These are just a few examples of what Ladd says is the indicative. They are the present reality of all those who believe in Jesus and confess him as Lord.

However, because all these things are true, there are responsibilities to live according to what God has done for us. This is the imperative. Believers are to present themselves to God as living sacrifices, holy and acceptable, not conforming to the world (Romans 12:1-2). Believers are to cleanse themselves of everything that could defile them (2 Corinthians 7:1). They are to be filled with the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 5:18). They are to bring every thought captive to Christ (2 Corinthians 10:5). Christians are to work out their salvation in fear and trembling (Philippians 2:12). These are the Christian’s responsibility, the imperative, because of what Jesus had done for and in them.

To use Ladd’s terminology, the indicative and the imperative reflect a partnership between God and the believer. Through Jesus, God has accomplished certain truths for the Christian. In response the Christian has a responsibility to live according to those truths.

Throughout the New Testament, Paul does two things. He describes who the Christian is, the indicative, and how the Christian is to live because of who he is, the imperative. Since we have been given such a great gift, we have the responsibility to use that gift well. Paul at times refers to eternal life we have been given as an inheritance. One who receives an inheritance from a loved one should use that inheritance wisely, because his love for that person governs how he will administer that inherited gift. Jesus tells us that love is the foundation of God’s law. It is love for our savior which motivates us to live in a certain manner which gives honor and glory to Jesus and to God. When we receive a promotion at work, certain benefits are given: a new job title, a raise in pay, however there are also increased responsibilities, we are expected to do, because of the position we now hold. The Christian life is similar to receiving a promotion from God. He declares new things about us and gives us new responsibilities in order to fulfill our promotion.

Throughout the history of the Christian Church multitudes have lived extraordinary lives out of dedication to live out what Jesus has done for them. It is not fear of punishment that motivated them or now motivates us, but it is love and gratitude for what Jesus has done and the position to which he has elevated us. Paul reminds us that every believer is seated in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus (Ephesians 2:6). The question remains, how will we live out the responsibilities of having received such a high and privileged position?

The Mystery of God

When we think of the word “mystery” we may think of a type of story,book or movie. Typically, we refer to a mystery as something that is unknown or difficult to understand, even beyond understanding. However, when the word “mystery” appears in the New Testament, particularly in Paul’s letters something very different is meant.

In the New Testament, Paul tied the concept of mystery to revelation and to the Gospel Paul preached (Romans 16:25-26). Paul explained that previously this mystery had not been revealed and was hidden, but in the Gospel it had been revealed. Paul used the term, mystery, to indicate something that had been previously unknown, even unimaginable, that now has become known.

What was the mystery that had been revealed? Paul explained that it was the salvation message in the Gospel. To the Greeks and the Jews, Jesus who had been crucified as a criminal could in no way be understood as Savior. The Savior/Messiah could not ever have been humiliated in such a manner. The Jews, even Jesus’ disciples, were expecting him to come as a conquering king and overcome their enemies, the Romans. To the Romans it was absurd to think that a criminal that they had crucified could ever be a savior. After all, if he could not save himself from the power of Rome, how could he save or help anyone else? However, this is the mystery that Paul declared had been revealed. God had orchestrated the salvation of mankind through the death and humiliation of his son. A concept that was utter foolishness to the “might makes right” of the ancient world. It is why the Gospel was foolishness to the Greeks and blasphemy to the Jews. Nevertheless, Paul wrote that through Jesus God has brought forth a new man from believing Gentiles and Jews. This mystery, that had never been revealed before was now being proclaimed through Paul and the other apostles’ message. The proof that what Paul and the other apostles said was true was the resurrection and the empty tomb, which neither the Jews nor the Romans could explain.

So when Paul referred to a mystery in his writings, he was not referring to something that was currently unknown, but something that had been made known. Previously it had been unknown, but through the Gospel it was now known and revealed.

From time to time, it’s helpful to reflect on the unusual ways God works in the world. Two thousand years ago no one could have imagined that God would bring victory and salvation through the humiliating death of Jesus. It was so unusual, that even the disciples had trouble accepting that Jesus was truly alive after his resurrection. Matthew commented in the final words of his Gospel, that prior to Jesus giving the Great Commission the eleven disciples gathered and worshiped Jesus, but some still doubted (Matthew 28:17). This was forty days after Jesus’ resurrection and after numerous physical appearances of Jesus. The ways of God are so utterly unbelievable that we cannot even imagine them before God acts, but after the fact we ask ourselves why we didn’t see it before. To many now Jesus’ death on the cross does not seem to be that big of a problem to overcome, but for the early Christians it was of utmost importance to explain. It doesn’t seem so mysterious because we have gotten used to what God did. However, keeping in mind what God has done in the past, we should not be surprised when we discover the unusual solutions God has for overcoming the obstacles in our life.

Jesus’ Ascension

Jesus’ ascension as recorded in the Gospels and Acts 1, is often an overlooked event of Jesus’ life. His death and resurrection are celebrated on Good Friday and Easter. The coming of the Holy Spirit is remembered at Pentecost, but what happened ten days before Pentecost is often overlooked and therefore its significance is neglected as well. What is the significance of Jesus’ ascension?

The simple answer is that Jesus’ ascension explains where Jesus is now and why he is not physically present upon earth. While that is true there is more to it, which Peter alluded to in his sermon ten days after Jesus’ ascension after the Holy Spirit’s arrival at Pentecost. Peter connected Jesus’ current exalted state at the right hand of God to David’s prophecy found in Psalm 110. “The LORD said to my Lord: ‘Sit at my right hand, until I make your enemies your footstool.’” Peter saw Jesus’ ascension to the right hand of God the Father as a fulfillment of what David had prophesied one thousand years earlier. From this Peter declared that God had made the crucified Jesus both Lord and Christ (Messiah). While Jesus had been the Messiah while on earth, his role was that of the suffering servant in fulfillment of Isaiah 53. Now Peter declares that Jesus is currently fulfilling the role of Messiah as the fulfillment of the promised Davidic King, the descendant of David who would reign in eternity. Peter declared at Pentecost that the Messianic Age had come, not in its fullest sense, but it had come with the fulfillment of Joel’s prophecy of the Lord pouring out his Spirit upon all His people.

When we celebrate Easter, Pentecost, as well as communion, we often look back and remember what Jesus accomplished for us, as well we should. However the ascension of Jesus also reminds us of the present Jesus, who is a reigning King, Lord and Christ. It reminds us of what God is now accomplishing on earth, the second part of David’s prophecy in Psalm 110:1, “until I make your enemies your footstool.” Jesus is reigning now, the Kingdom of God is present on earth, but the fullness of Jesus’ reign has not yet been accomplished. The fact that God is making Jesus’ enemies a footstool during this present time reveals the reality that Jesus’ followers now experience as well as why there are tribulations on earth as Jesus said (John 16:33).

The Message of the Gospel

The disciples’ proclamation, Jesus is alive, shocked their listeners in Jerusalem. They backed that statement up with the fact that Jesus’ tomb was empty even though guards sent by the Jewish authorities secured it. Obviously, the empty tomb caused innumerable difficulties for those authorities, so much so that they spread the story that the disciples had stolen the body. Of course, they had to get the guards to say that they had fallen asleep. The guards’ story begs the question of how they knew it was the disciples who stole the body if they had been asleep. A question the authorities didn’t even try to answer. The disciples also backed up their claim of Jesus being alive with powerful works, similar to what Jesus had done. They healed a man of forty years, lame from birth, claiming the power of Jesus’ name. Again the Jewish authorities had no answer for what the disciples’ proclaimed; they could only resort to failed attempts of intimidation.

However, while the message of Jesus is alive was powerful, the disciples meant more by their declaration that Jesus had been raised to life. On that Sunday morning when an angel descended to remove the stone from the tomb, causing the guards to faint in fear, the tomb was already empty. He removed the stone and met the arriving women to invite them into the tomb to see that it was empty. Jesus, however, didn’t need the stone removed to emerge from the tomb, because when he took on new life, he didn’t take on the same type of life he had before. Jesus’ resurrection was unique in comparison to other resurrections that had taken place before. The official’s daughter, the widow’s son, Lazarus all aged and died at some later date. Their bodies’ were subject to the same physical laws as before, but not Jesus. While Jesus could consume food and had a physical body so that the disciples could touch and see his crucified hands and feet, as well as his pierced side, he could also appear and disappear at will. He did not need a door to enter a locked room. Such ability frightened the disciples at first, until Jesus demonstrated that he wasn’t a ghost. In other words, Jesus experienced a physical, bodily resurrection, not merely a spiritual one, but his body was not the same. He had experienced a metamorphosis. Like a caterpillar spins a chrysalis and emerges as a butterfly, Jesus was laid in the chrysalis of the tomb and emerge several day later transformed into a new physical life.

While we may not grasp the prophetic significance of this, the disciples did. They began declaring not only that Jesus was alive, but also the resurrection from the dead. The Jews understood their meaning, because their rabbis had taught them about the eventual resurrection from the dead. Martha outside her brother’s tomb had referred to it, as the resurrection on the last day, to which Jesus declared that he was the resurrection and the life (John 11:24-25). Of course, not all the Jews believed as Martha did, some known as the Sadducees denied this belief. They came to Jesus and asked about a woman who had been married to seven brothers, all of whom died. They asked to whom she would be married at the resurrection. Jesus pointed out their error. He declared to them that at the resurrection, their would be a new type of life, similar to the angels, in which there would be no marriage. He confirmed this by reminding that God is the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Therefore He is the God of the living not the dead (Matthew 22:29-33). After Peter and John healed the lame man, we read that the Sadducees were greatly annoyed, because the disciples were declaring in Jesus the resurrection from the dead (Acts 4:1-3). They were so annoyed that they arrested Peter and John. Why were the Sadducees so annoyed? There is nothing more annoying to an educated person than to be proven incorrect by an uneducated one. In fact later, we read that the disciples Peter and John were uneducated, literally illiterate (Acts 4:13). The disciples were proclaiming Jesus’ resurrection, but also the initial fulfillment of the prophesied resurrection from the dead. Jesus’ resurrection was another demonstration of the arrival of the Kingdom of God. Later Paul would explain to the Corinthians that Jesus was the first fruits of the prophesied resurrection (1 Corinthians 15:20).

What is the significance of this message? With his resurrection Jesus introduced the type of physical life that all believers will experience one day. It also revealed that the Kingdom power of God has invaded the present evil age and revealed another aspect of the Kingdom of God present on earth. That type of life can be experienced in part by Jesus’ followers now, which Jesus referred to several times. To Nicodemus, he called it being born again (John 3:3). Later to his disciples Jesus referred to the abundant life (John 10:10). This type of life is characterized by what Paul referred to as the fruit of the Spirit, in contrast to the fruit of the flesh (Galatians 5:19-22). This life Paul explained was live with the Holy Spirit and is referred to as eternal life. While there will be in the future a resurrection from the dead, the follower of Jesus can now live in communion with the Holy Spirit and begin to experience the life to which Jesus referred.

Jesus, Son of God

The number of books written about Jesus presenting him as a legend, an unknown historical figure or the divine Son of God, reveals that he is one of, if not the most fascinating individual in human history. However, you don’t need to go beyond the four gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John to come to the same conclusion. The more you consider Jesus in light of the Greco-Roman-Judaeo culture in which Jesus lived in the first century, he becomes even more interesting. As we saw in one of my recent posts, Jesus used for himself the phrase “Son of Man” a relatively common expression God used when speaking about or to men. Prophetically it was also used in Daniel to refer to an apocalyptic figure whom Daniel saw in one of his visions. As we saw in that post, Jesus was primarily the only one who used that term for himself. After his death and resurrection, the church began referring to Jesus as “Son of God”.

The phrase “son of God” was used in a variety of ways in Scripture. Adam was a son of God, as Seth was a son of Adam. As a result of creation, men are referred to as sons of God. In Psalm 2 an individual is identified as God’s Son who will establish his kingdom upon the earth. The phrase is also used of Christians, who are sons by means of adoption. In the Gospels, the phrase is also used of Jesus. At Jesus’ baptism the voice from heaven identified him as God’s Son. At his temptation, Satan tempted Jesus to prove that he was God’s Son. In Matthew 11:25-27, Jesus spoke of how the Son knows and reveals the Father, calling his followers to himself so that they can find rest. While the term Son of God in the Gospels does not necessarily imply deity, John identifies Jesus as God’s Son as the pre-existent logos (1 John 1:1-4; John 1:1-14). In the first century culture, the term Son of God was also used of Roman Emperors and Egyptian Pharaohs. In that sense the term referred to those who were uniquely blessed to rule and in that way represented God. When the Roman Centurion saw how Jesus died, he recognized Jesus as the Son of God (Matthew 27:54; Mark 15:39). However, this usage may not refer to deity, as much as Jesus’ innocence as mentioned in Luke’s gospel (Luke 23:47).

Contrary to Jesus himself, the early church dropped the use of Son of Man and referred to Jesus as the Son of God, implying as John did Jesus’ deity. One of the questions the writers of the New Testament and the early church had to address was how could a divine Son of God be put to death in such a humiliating way. Their response was that Jesus gave his life as a ransom (Mark 10:45). In the first century a ransom was paid to free servants, meaning that a ransom was paid to free those who had lost control of their lives. The church father Origin developed the idea that Jesus’ death was a ransom paid to the devil, an idea that became quite prevalent in the church during the first millennium. However, the New Testament does not reveal anything further about to whom the ransom was paid, just that Jesus’ life was a ransom. Others within the early church questioned the deity of Jesus and that the phrase Son of God implied deity. This question was debated in the early church for the first 300 years. Arius surmised that Jesus was not truly God, but a being like God and generated by God. His views were condemned at the Council of Nicea, which defined Jesus as having the same essence or substance of God the Father.

The phrase used in the New Testament, Son of God, refers to not only deity but also connects with the covenant promises of God to his people. The concept of Son of God, implies that God is Father and links to the Kingdom springing from the old covenant relationship with Israel, when God called Israel as his first-born. When Israel became faithless, the father-son relationship continued with the faithful remnant of Israel, who turn to Jesus. While some liberal theologians teach of the universal fatherhood of God, Jesus only referred to God as His Father and the Father of His followers. You enter into a father-son relationship with God through a relationship with Jesus the messianic Son.

No matter what title you may attach to Jesus: Messiah, Son of Man, Son of David, Son of God, the one thing that Jesus made clear was that in order to enter into a father-child relationship with God you must enter through Jesus himself.

God Is Good

Many people misunderstand God. How we understand God, impacts how we both view Him and how we deal with life. Jesus revealed a forgotten aspect of who God is. In the Old Testament, the Jews understood God to be Lord who maintained a holy distance from them. They could not approach him. Even in the temple the Holy of Holies was off limits to them except for one person once a year, on the Day of Atonement. This holy distance tended to create a fear reaction in the people toward the Lord God. However, when Jesus arrived, he began to reveal a different aspect of God. Jesus spoke of God as Father, his Father and the disciples’ Father. Curiously Jesus never referred to God as “our Father”, indicating that his relationship with God the Father was different than the disciples’ relationship with Him. When he taught the disciples’ to pray “Our Father”, he did not include himself in “our”, but referred to the disciples praying to God as “Our Father”. (For more on God as Father, see my book, “Outrageous Prayer”, chapter 2. See the link below.)

Jesus went on to describe the kindness of God toward his followers. He would take care of them and give them what they needed. He would not give them a stone, if they asked for a loaf of bread or a snake if they asked for a fish. In this way, Jesus’ disciples were to respond to God the Father as children, God’s children. He was a Father who rejoiced when he reconnected with those children who had wandered away as portrayed in the Parable of the Prodigal Son, when the father ran to the son and embraced him when he returned. He accepted the son back into the family and celebrated his return, even though the son requested to be made a servant. This parable reveals the affection that God has for those who follow Jesus.

Although God was revealed in the Old Testament as Father; he told David that David’s son, Solomon, would be like a son to God himself. This prophecy was ultimately fulfilled in Jesus. However, the predominant understanding of God was that he was Lord and Judge, creating a respectful fear in the Jewish people, that at times bordered on holy terror. So much so that they would not even pronounce God’s name, because it was too holy for them to say out loud. With this perspective of God it was difficult for them to perceive God as good, because their fear kept getting in the way. Even today, many people perceive God as being angry and focus on God’s wrath. This perspective came out in Jonathan Edward’s famous sermon “Sinners in the hands of an angry God”. People came to God out of fear of the fiery pits of hell. However, this perspective loses much of what Jesus revealed about God as a merciful, kind and loving Father.

If you believe that God is angry with you then your view of life will be controlled by fear of that anger and a negative outlook on life. You expect God to punish you for any and every mistake you have made, your sins. You tend to view life from a pessimistic perspective. Life can become very much like children growing up in an abusive home. However, if we take Jesus’ at his word, yes God is displeased with sin, but he is overwhelmingly good. While he will correct his children, he does so for their good. God, as Father, desires to have relationship with his children, in the same way parents today delight in their own children and grandchildren. This was the mission of Jesus, to bring God’s children back into relationship with God the Father. It is why the curtain in the temple was torn in two when Jesus died so that the way back to God’s own presence was open again.

However, once you are convinced that God is good pessimism becomes optimism. While you may face difficulties, you deal with them from a position of hope, not fear of the future. Jesus told us we would face difficulties in his world, but we are to take courage, because Jesus has overcome the world. Why did Jesus overcome the world, because God is good.

Citizenship

While we were living in Italy two of our sons were born there. Growing up some would tell one or the other that they could not be president because they were not born in the United States. That statement reflected a misunderstanding of our Constitution, because our Constitution requires the President to be a naturally born citizen, as opposed to a naturalized citizen. My grandmother was a naturalized citizen, because she was born in Canada to Canadian parents and moved here when she was 13, then she went through the naturalization process to become a US citizen. Constitutionally my grandmother could never have been elected to the presidency, because she was not a naturally born citizen. However, our two sons were born in Italy to American citizens. They have an Italian birth certificate and a document from the State Department declaring them to be naturally born US citizens, born Overseas. Likewise, they are not Italian citizens, because Italy requires Italian parentage for citizenship, while Donelle and I are American citizens.

When I think of what Paul wrote to the Philippians that we are citizens of heaven (Philippians 3:20), I am reminded of our two sons when we lived in Italy. Neither of them had ever physically set foot in the United States, but yet they were citizens with all the rights and privileges of a US citizen. Likewise, those of us who love and follow Jesus are citizens of heaven even though we have never physically been there. However, according to Paul, we are seated in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus (Ephesians 2:6), speaking of our identity and connection with Jesus and therefore our spiritual presence in Jesus in the heavenly places. We are citizens of heaven not because we were born there, but because we were born again in Christ Jesus, so that our family identity was transferred from Adam to Jesus according to Paul in Romans 5:12-15. Likewise, our sons, are citizens of the US not because they were born in this country, but because they are our sons. We are citizens of heaven because we belong to Jesus, therefore his citizenship is transferred to us who love and follow him.

That is why our connection to heaven is dependent upon Jesus, not on our behavior. You don’t become a naturally born US citizen by behavior, but by a connection to your parents. Likewise, you don’t obtain heaven by your behavior, but by your connection to Jesus. Having said that, loving and following Jesus will result in transformed behavior, just like our love for our parents will influence our behavior as well. This being the case, for those of us who love Jesus, we are actually foreigners living on earth, because our citizenship is elsewhere, just like when we lived in Italy, where we were categorized as foreigners (stranieri). I find it significant for me to remember that truth as I go about my daily affairs and activities living as a Kingdom citizen while dwelling in the United States.

Jesus, Son of Man

Jesus’ title for himself was not Son of God, nor was it Messiah, but he used a rather common phrase from the Old Testament, “Son of Man” found 193 times in the Old Testament. Virtually all of the usages translate literally the phrase from Hebrew “Son of Adam”. Psalm 144:3 is different and translates the Hebrew for “Son of mortal man”. Over 80 times the phrase “Son of man” is used; God’s title for the prophet Ezekiel. In Daniel 7:13 occurs another outlier, where “Son of man” translates the Hebrew “son of a human”. In Daniel’s vision he saw one like a son of man to refer to a human, heavenly being who went to the ancient of days and would come and rule upon the earth. The Old Testament understanding of “son of man”, was that it referred to a man, a human person. Only Daniel 7:13 added an apocalyptic understanding of the term. At the time of Jesus it was not a term in common usage. It is also interesting that the early church did not continue to use the title Son of Man for Jesus as Jesus did but preferred to refer to him as the Son of God. Jesus was the only one to use that title to refer to himself and he used it frequently with several different connotations.

So the question arises why did Jesus use this phrase to refer to himself, when he could have used other titles such as Son of David, Son of God or Messiah? Concerning those alternate titles, Jesus didn’t refer to himself as Messiah or the similar title Son of David, because those terms were so closely tied in the people’s minds with a Davidic warrior king. Although those titles were accurate for Jesus, their connotations would mislead the people into thinking Jesus had come to be a political king like David or a Roman Caesar. During the triumphal entry, the people referred to Jesus as the Son of David, thinking he had come to overthrow the Romans, like the Maccabees had defeated the Greek rulers several hundred years before. The Jewish leaders succeeded in portraying Jesus in this political light before Pilate leading to his execution. Jesus also avoided using the title Son of God, which the early church picked up, probably because it emphasized his divinity. It would also have confused him with the Roman Emperors and other ancient rulers who portrayed themselves as a Son of God. Jesus used the Old Testament term Son of Man as a human man, and Daniel as a human heavenly being and infused new meaning to them. He was a human man who brought the heavenly authority to earth to forgive sins. When he healed the paralytic, he told him that his sins were forgiven. When the religious leaders objected to Jesus declaring sins forgiven, he told them that they would know the Son of Man had authority to forgiven sins, then he commanded the paralytic to take up his mat and walk. The man’s doing so underscored Jesus’ authority, as Son of Man to forgive sins, something that only God could do. Although he had heavenly origins, on earth the Son of Man had no place to lay his head. The Son of Man had come to give his life as a ransom for mankind’s sins, but one day he would come as a heavenly judge. To his disciples he revealed that, yes, he the Son of Man was the Messiah, but a Messiah not as they and their contemporaries expected. By use of the Son of Man, Jesus redefined the disciples understanding of the Messiah.

Jesus’ choice of that title demonstrated his comprehension of his contemporaries as he sought to clarify his human and heavenly role, so that they would not confuse him with their own misunderstanding of the Messiah. The gospels reveal that even the disciples had difficulty understanding Jesus’ duel role as suffering servant and victorious conqueror of sin. Even today, we continue to ponder and debate this person, Jesus, who walked upon the earth, taught men and women such as ourselves, suffered and died so that we might receive forgiveness for our foibles and failures before God and live in fellowship with God and fellow man, rather than in fear and animosity. Even today, Jesus is often misunderstood when cultural definitions of him color and distort how Scripture presents him.