After writing about Stephen Miller’s speech at the memorial service for Charlie Kirk I have been pondering the idea, the metaphors and the reality of dragons or a dragon. Originally, I wrote about Miller’s words and their pagan-like essence when he insisted that the killing of Kirk had, “awakened a dragon in those who cared about Kirk and his mission. He spoke “You have no idea the dragon you have awakened,” Miller goes on to speak of how that will cause him and Kirk’s followers to fight for the West and save the Republic.
A commenter on my blog took exception to my words “The book of Revelation filled with metaphors speaks of a dragon. His war isn’t good, he attempts to kill Jesus, he lives in rage and gives his power to a despotic being—he ends in hell.”
And yes, that is both the biblical and often Western understanding of the dragon—a vile creature, greedy and seeking the death of others. Think of Saint George killing the dragon, of the boy Eustace in C. S. Lewis’ book, The Voyage of the Dawn Treader who falls asleep on a pile of gold belonging to a dead dragon and becomes a dragon. Only the Lion, Aslan, can wash him clean of the horrific skin and scales of a dragon. The first battle of a man with a dragon occurs in Beowulf, an early mythic western story.
But the commenter is right. There are other versions of dragons, ones that might be more familiar to Miller who is Jewish. At least, probably, the New Testament image of a dragon might be new to Miller, and yet Jewish people often read the N.T. Still, even the Hebrew Bible has images of dragons which biblically simply mean serpent and/or monster.
But yes, the dragons of the East, of Asia, are not considered evil, but wise and/or strong warriors—a creature to absorb or emulate. And there is another image that belongs to both the East and West through paganism, some “New Age,” mostly what is called tantric and the supposed kundalini (serpent) which is thought by eastern religious adherents to lie at the base of the spine and must be awakened. It is generally awakened by different technics, usually sex, directed away from fulfillment toward opening one to a deeper consciousness. But now, supposedly, more expansive than just Kundalini is “dragon kundalini” which is supposed to lead to a more universal consciousness. So yes, there is supposedly a dragon within.
But there are several truths that go beyond any of this. There, biblically speaking, is only one dragon, serpent/monster who also goes by the moniker lucifer or Satan. (All other dragons are fairy tales, untruthful fairy tales—I am thinking of Tolkien’s On Fairy Stories, where he calls the story of Jesus a true fairy story.) The image of Lucifer in Genesis is as a serpent, a deceiver. And while in Revelation he is pictured as a great dragon ready to devour the God-man Jesus; he is also pictured as one who brings other ugly, terrifying monsters on the scene giving them his power. He is also pictured as defeated. Defeated by a cross as Jesus brings many children to glory.
Lucifer is defeated by the death and resurrection of Jesus. And he is defeated by the martyrs (witnesses) of Jesus.
After these things I looked and behold a great multitude which no one could count, from every nation and all tribes and peoples and tongues standing before the throne and before the lamb, clothed in white robes, and palm branches were in their hands; and they cry out with a loud voice, saying, salvation to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb. Rev 7”9-10
Perhaps no one can save the West, particularly not someone who is metaphorically or otherwise counting on an awakened dragon. If we are overcome by a man who longs to rule and brings us down beneath a democracy—whose only desire is toward himself. If we are overcome by those whose desires bend towards power and false religion that ignores the way of the cross there is still that kingdom that is forever—not of this world but eternal—full of God’s love and forgiveness.
I did not intend for this to be a part of my new small
series on the persecuted church but as I began to write I realized it would be.
Sometime after Hitler came to power, in 1934, pastor Paul Schneider,
the first Confessing Church martyr officiated at a funeral for a young man of
the Hitler Youth. It was supposed to be a Christian funeral. During the rite a
deputy of the Hitler Youth spoke of fate gathering him to his fathers and said
the young man, “had now crossed over into the storm of Horst Wessel.” This was
said twice and Schneider protested because this was a Christian ceremony. In a
letter to his superintendent he wrote, “I protest. This is a church ceremony,
and as a Protestant pastor I am responsible for the pure teaching of the Holy Scriptures.”[i]
This led to Schneider’s first arrest. He would be arrested several
times, lose his churches, be beaten in prison and finally poisoned to death.
But what is the storm of Horst Wessel. And who is he.
He was a soldier in the German army who was shot and became
a mythical creation of the paganized Nazis. They used his death to unite their rallies
and turn their followers as much as possible away from their Christian faith. Goebbels
speaks of Wessel’s immortalization. The
storm of Horst Wessel was meant to evoke a pagan eternity earned by Germanic patriotism.
Goebbels, Hitler’s chief propagandist, used this idea in at least two of his
speeches. He began the myth with a speech, Raise High the Flag,
the first part of a poem written by Wessel.
The author of Paul Schneider writes:
National Socialism wanted to
introduce its worldview to the German people openly but it did so surreptitiously
because it knew it was incompatible with a biblically based faith. Its “national”
faith was not permitted to know anything about the “full reality of sin so
deeply rooted in the heart and life of man” because it alone felt chosen to set
the standard and did not tolerate any critical discussion.
This can be seen in many of Goebbels’ and other Nazi
speeches and writings. There was always the righteous, (the Nazis) and the despicable
(all others who rejected Nazism). It is constantly there as here in an early
Nazi speech; The Storm is Coming:
You, men, women, and comrades, are
the bearers, witnesses, builders, and finishers of this unique people’s
uprising. Our policies have not been popular. We have served the truth, and
only the truth. For twelve years, they have insulted and outlawed and slandered
and persecuted us. Now that we are standing at the doorway to power, Marxist
lies have joined with bourgeois weakness to fight us. Were we only a party like
all the rest, we would collapse under the offensive of our opponents. But we
are a people’s movement. That is our good fortune. Here and everywhere else in
the land, the red shining Swastika flag flies over people of all camps,
parties, classes, occupations, and religious confessions. Our opponents laughed
at us in the past, but they laugh no longer.
You men and women standing before
me, a hundred or two hundred thousand in number, with heads high, upright,
proud, and brave, the carriers of Germany’s future, in your eyes it is written:
We think no longer in terms of
class. We are not workers or middle class. We are not first of all Protestants
or Catholics. We do not ask about ancestry or class. Together we share the
words of the poet:
“People, rise up, and storm, break
loose!” …
So our dead comrade Horst Wessel
wrote, and we are fulfilling his prophesy. The others may lie, slander, and
pour their scorn on us — their political days are numbered.
Adolf Hitler is knocking at the
gates of power, and in his fist are joined the fists of millions of workers and
farmers. The time of shame and disgrace is nearly over.
You are the witnesses, the
builders, the will-bearers of our idea and our worldview.
So this is the pattern; (1)a great need, (2)a hero to lift up,
(3) enemies who are worthless, (4)the righteous who are the builders. This is
the Fascist’s method of propaganda. But it came up against biblical truth which
declares all humanity sinners and only one solution the death and resurrection of
Jesus Christ who gifts humanity with mercy, forgiveness and rather than immortalization,
eternal life and bodily resurrection.
As I have placed the suffering church in contrast to a
despotic government in my last posting, The
Historical Suffering Church: Its Image, Its Faith Extending Over Our Tomorrows:,
I will place this image of a suffering pastor and a despotic government beside
a government official who now pushes the same propaganda. Stephen Miller, President
Trump’s deputy chief, speaking at the memorial service for Charlie Kirk, uses,
often the same words and concepts as Goebbels.
The image of storm is often used in Nazi speeches—Miller—"The
storm whispers to the warrior that you cannot withstand my strength and the
warrior whispers back I am the storm.” He then calls Erika Kirk the storm, but
hardly; she is the forgiving Christian. The praise of the hero; Miller’s
speech, “You thought you could kill Charlie Kirk. You have made him an immortal.”
The praise of the Nazi followers is often wrapped up in the
title builders, “You are the witnesses, the builders, the will-bearers of our
idea and our worldview.” Miller, “We are the ones who build, we are the ones
who create, we are the ones who lift up humanity.”
There is always the enemy in the Nazi propaganda, for Miller
that is also true:
You have nothing, you are nothing,
you are wickedness, you are jealousy, you are envy. You are hatred, you are
nothing, you can build nothing, you can produce nothing, you can create nothing.
Here is the anti-Christian attack on Christianity too often
used by Miller. Taking MAGA’s supposed Lineage all the way back to Athens and
Rome he places their humanity and goodness in a racial context which eliminates
the other. He adds righteousness to them because of their supposed lack of
sinfulness. He glorifies what is sinful and so shuts them out of the Kingdom of
God for the sake of the kingdom of man. At this funeral he shuts the door on
Christian faith never mentioning it—yes, he mentions angels whose tears put
fire into the hearts of the supposed righteous ones. That is unbiblical but
also borders on the edge of paganism as does his words of awaking a dragon in
them—in MAGA—in those who follow Trump. “you have no idea of the dragon you have
awakened, you have no idea how determined we will be to save this civilization,
to save the west, to save this republic …”
The book of Revelation filled with metaphors speaks of a
dragon. His war isn’t good, he attempts to kill Jesus, he lives in rage and
gives his power to a despotic being—he ends in hell.
The Christian, those who pray to always put Jesus above any
worldly ruler, needs no propaganda in its cruder form, they have the Holy
Scriptures—the Word of God, the promises of God.
Therefore if you have been raised up with Christ, keep
seeking the things above, where is Christ is seated at the right hand of God.
Set your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on the earth. For
you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ who is our
life is revealed then you also will be revealed with Him in glory. (Colossians
3: 1-4.)
[i] Rudolf
Wentorf, Paul Schneider: Witness of Buchenwald, (Vancouver: Regent
College Publishing 2008) 152-153.
I am beginning a small series looking at the various forms of the historical Church and their experiences of persecution as it is fomented by its relation to the secular culture and governments of their time. This may include a rising unfaithfulness in the midst of persecution. I will not put these events necessarily in a historical sequence because I am more interested in the interplay of Christianity, state, and culture rather than the rise and fall of nations. And I am also interested in how the faithfulness of the Church produces in the end, sadly, the antagonism of state and culture.
I am starting with the Anabaptists simply because I was thinking about some of their music when I felt this would be an exploration that would be helpful in these days.
The Anabaptist were mostly in Switzerland and Germany and were undoubtedly the most persecuted members of the Reformation. As, William R. Estep, author of The Anabaptist Story, writes “Martyrdom became an Anabaptist hallmark.” It was such a hallmark that they have a hymnbook covering most of their sufferings. This was printed in 1564 but also there is the Martyrs Mirror published in 1660 which is still used by the Amish and Mennonites. I will place one of their hymns at the end of this post.
The persecution of the Anabaptist came about for several reasons. It was of course a time when religious freedom was not generally considered. And the Anabaptist had no king, ruler or pope to protect them. All of the state churches as well as governments persecuted them. One of the reasons is something that has happened too often in church history; true Christians being accused of the crimes of other religious groups. One of the more radical groups, a militant group, took over a town, took power and instituted polygyny. They were eventually overcome by military forces and destroyed but too often the Anabaptist were thought to adhere to the teachings of the militant group.
The Anabaptist had several distinctive beliefs that rankled other Christians of their day. They did not believe in infant baptism or that communion consisted of the true body and blood of Jesus. (Reformed theology did accept infant baptism.) Beyond this and probably more importantly the Anabaptist were pacifist and believed in living in community. This did not necessarily mean that they lived as a commune all owning the same property. But they did share a great deal and attempted to live separately from others.
While they attempted to live as law abiders their preaching was too often considered against the law. And much like in Islamic countries and autocratic countries like China, Russia and North Korea today, even in secret meetings they were sought out and arrested.
Estep gives an account of the fate of one of the preachers Michael Sattler:
Michael Sattler shall be committed to the executioner. The later shall take him to the square and first cut off his tongue, and there forge him fast to a wagon and there with glowing iron tongs twice tear pieces from his body, then on the way to the site of execution five times more as above and then burn his body to powder as an arch-heretic.
Different Anabaptist groups would form mainly the Amish, the Mennonites and the Hutterites. They would spread to many countries including Russia and North and South America. It was in Germany during the Nazi years that some of their past Christian endurance would be tested. In Germany where their concerns about social evil and pacifism, their sense of Christian community, came in deep conflict with the Nazi officials.
It was the Hutterites in particular who came into conflict with the Nazis. Some of the other groups of Anabaptist like other German citizens felt that Hitler was bringing morality to Germany and did not oppose him. Pastor Martin Niemöller at first also thought Hitler was bringing morality to Germany since he had promised to protect Christianity—of course a lie. But Niemöller became Hitler’s adversary and was his personal prisoner for eight years.
The Hutterites, under the leadership of Aberhard Arnold used all of there distinctive beliefs to continue as citizens of Germany but would eventually fail.
They schooled their children in their own community, they tried to avoid military service for the young men, they took in strangers, farmed and sold much of their produce to their surrounding community. At first, they attempted to continue this by appealing to German officials, trying to convert them to what they called the way of love. When at one point they were raided they baked their oppressors a cake. Another time, differently, behind a closed door, they threw documents into a stove so there would be no proof that they had ever spoken against the Nazis.
The important point here is that they never gave away their own principles nor their Lord who they served rather than worldly leaders. But one by one, as it too often happens in totalitarian regimes, the Hutterites’ lives and principles were attacked and their property destroyed.
They needed Hutterite teachers and had to tell outsiders to no longer send strangers to their door. As they began to lose their property and looked, quietly, for property in Switzerland and then eventually, carefully, stealthily, began to move across the border. They did not go all at once and two men spent some time in prison but not for long. Their community in Germany was gone but they would eventually emigrate to the UK and then to South America.
Much of what I have been writing comes from a history on the Aberhard Arnold, Burderdhof site. There is a series of articles there dealing with their history in that time. It begins:
“It is inherent in imitatio, in being Christlike, that we are ready for imprisonment and death,” Eberhard Arnold told members of the Rhön Bruderhof in March 1933. It was two days after Adolf Hitler’s address to the Reichstag and granting himself complete power, the moment Germany passed the point of no return to become a Nazi dictatorship. Eberhard spoke to his community about the challenges National Socialism would create for them as a result of their commitment to Jesus’ way of peace. Indeed, the fate of the entire Bruderhof in the years 1933–1937 serves as an example of Christian resistance and witness in this era of state violence.
The pacifism of the early Anabaptist movement was a core principle of the Bruderhof's identity. This meant that from the very beginning they distanced themselves from the regime, which quickly revealed its brutal, violent nature. The community members were also firmly opposed to the National Socialist racial principles. The Bruderhof thus stood in decisive opposition to National Socialist ideologies and expressed this antagonism in clear terms.”
Some of the experiences of the Hutterites can be acknowledged as helpful for Christians in any totalitarian setting. While the Hutterites did not suffer all that the Confessing Church, the White Rose, Corrie Ten Boon and others suffered they did lose much yet faithfully stood their ground in the faith. As scenarios changed, they keep on finding ways to stay together and hold to their faith. As so many experienced in that time they experienced communities and individuals who took no real notice of the evil happening around them leading to a sense of isolation but still they clung to each other and to the Lord—the best that history can write about anyone they were faithful to each other and to Christ.
[1]https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hymnal I don’t
usually use Wikipedia for endnotes but this one is so interesting that others
may want to read it.
[1] Estep
gives three references for this quote far to long to add to a blog post, but
the quote is well referenced—it is historical.
Recently I had a friend comment on one of my Facebook postings eventually using heavy conspiracy loaded language. Something about busloads of Chinese men crossing the border. babies being beheaded, nails in people, and “an evil, globalist, agenda that’s marching forward.” I have been deeply troubled by this, partly for the well-being of the friend and partly because this kind of fear-laden worldview based on other’s lies can lead to real awful consequences.
People who live in a world of dark fearful unreality invented by liars may eventually become part of great evil. Here I am thinking of a diminishing QAnon or even a large segment of MAGA. If refugees who are not criminals can be torn away from family, sometimes beaten, held in terrible conditions and members of these two groups, QAnon and MAGA, can find excuses or even applaud, they have lost at least a part of their humanity.
The same can be said of Christian Nationalism whose unreality is the loss of the biblical understanding of living under the cross rather than seeking worldly power. I read a statement by a member of X who had begun to form this question about those who were yielding to untruthful concepts.
“My opposition to Christian nationalism in the form in which it is promoted by some circles is NOT a resistance to Christian principles in public spheres, or to the Kingdom of Christ coming to earth. It is because of the persons who would be implementing it. This week, I was called "Anti-Christ" by one of its proponents for my view. Imagine, if you will, what would be done by that person to people like me if they had the authority to implement their views. Then imagine what would happen to you when you (inevitably) disagreed.”
Those are questions rattling around in my heart and mind lately. I was once, when in the PC (USA) writing about their antisemitism and the LGBT community’s insistence on changing the denomination’s adherence to biblical standards on marriage, accused of hatred. I never hated and still do not. Now I am being accused of hateful speech because I am writing and posting about the mistreatment of refugees. And I feel somewhat like Stetler; the question needs to be asked- if all of these people living in their unrealities become the leaders, and many of them are already, what will finally be their treatment toward those who disagree.
I have already written a great deal about MAGA people who consider themselves prophets and supposedly with God speaking through them are
prophesying prison and death for many who disagree with both Trump and his followers.
But here is my greatest concern, that those who have followed Jesus for so long and have been faithful are being seduced by the lies and that this is changing them pulling them away from their faithfulness. Pulling them away from truthfulness and I am concerned, too soon from the One who is Truth. The many leaders, including religious leaders, who are telling lies to God’s people, either political lies or religious lies, are hurting God’s people, hurting the sheep of His pasture.
To keep walking amid darkness is soul deadening. Some have already found imaginary enemies to hate and desire their death or imprisonment. Some are imagining enemies who control the world and are forgetting the real enemy of their soul that goes about seeking the destruction of their soul and the destruction of the Church. God has a command in His word about the conspiracies circulating in Isaiah’s day:
“You are not to say it is a conspiracy! In regard to all that this people call a conspiracy. And you are not to fear what they fear or be in dread of it. It is the Lord of Hosts whom you should regard as holy. And He shall be your fear, and He shall be your dread. And He shall become a sanctuary.” (Isaiah 8:12-a14)
Isaiah goes on to speak of God’s judgement on Israel but finally in verse 9:2 is the promise of light—the true light. “The people that walk in darkness will see a great light; those who live in a dark land, the light will shine on them.” This is the light that we need now and our walk in that light does not include harassing and hurting strangers. It does include speaking the truth, both of His gospel of salvation and its effect on our love and care for others.
This is a slight rewrite of a post I wrote in 2008 while still in the Presbyterian Church USA. My thoughts are now mostly refocused on a different idolatry in the Church- that is the worship of nation, power and ethnicity. But mainly I am concerned for the comfort, joy and faithfulness of those seeking purpose and courage in the midst of a frightful time. My favorite book by C.S. Lewis is the last one in his sci-fi trilogy, That Hideous Strength. It pictures perfectly, I think a society moving toward authoritarianism and the church gathered together with both weakness and faithfulness within that society.
In the book That Hideous Strength, C. S. Lewis describes a group of people who, in one way or another, have become refugees from their own homes. They are taken under the wings of the Director whose name is Ransom. They are living in the presence of evil as they watch a group of diabolical utopians tear apart their familiar world, a small but ancient college town.
The beauty of this story is that the gathered people live as a family expecting to do great things in the presence of great evil. But the most important thing they do is follow the directions of the Director whether that is doing kitchen or garden duty or running risky errands for Ransom. In the end it is the wizard, Merlin and all the powers of heaven that confront and destroy the evil as those in Ransom’s house simply watch with some wonder.
The Church in the world, the ancient city of God, those gathered under the care of Jesus often face evil and faithlessness. But it is faithfulness and obedience that is required. The words of Holy Scripture are His directions.
“But you, beloved ought to remember the words that were spoken beforehand by the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ, that they were saying to you, ‘In the last time there will be mockers, following after their own ungodly lusts.’ These are the ones who cause divisions, worldly-minded, devoid of the Spirit. But you, beloved, building yourselves up on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves in the love of God, waiting anxiously for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to eternal life. And have mercy on some, who are doubting; save others, snatching them out of the fire; and on some have mercy with fear, hating even the garment polluted by the flesh.
Now to Him who is able to keep you from stumbling, and to make you stand in the presence of His glory blameless with great joy, to the only God our savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion and authority, before all time and now and forever. Amen. (Jude 17-25)
Adding to this, idolatry in the Church, I understand that there is some division among Christians in the United States over ICE's (really the Trump administration's) treatment of refugees. Many catholic and protestants protest, but too many charismatic and evangelical Christians are either aloof to or are in agreement with ICE's treatment. And it should be pointed out that in some cases the charismatics such as Paula White are prosperity Christians and have moved either to the outer ring of mere Christianity or have moved far beyond the fold of Christ proclaiming that they will become little Christs.
The division has begun to grow where some evangelicals are more concerned with faithfulness to President Trump than to the Lord of the Church. It isn't that they are not concerned with faithfulness it is just that they have become so concerned with political power (for some good causes of course) that Jesus has been overshadowed. They have forgotten the Kingdom and the Power is His.
Karl Barth in his day certainly saw the Church bow down to a leader and wrote:
"Along with the external oppression of the Church she can be summoned to consider that God is at liberty to take away the light of the Gospel, if we do not want to have it otherwise. Even as He once removed the 'candlestick' from the North African Church, which was as much the Church of St. Augustine as the German Church is that of Luther. It would then be fruitless and a silly thing to fight, by means of the instruments of Church-politics, against the sign given us in maybe one last moment in which all that mattered would be to cry aloud unto God, in the presence of this certainly fearful signal, that He might not be altogether weary of His rule amidst the great disloyalty of modern German Christianity [American Christianity] and 'Churchianity,' and that He might be disposed to make us more loyal to His Word, by means of His Word, than we and our fathers [and mothers] have been."
Nonetheless there is joy, comfort, and peace in faithfulness and obedience to only one Lord, love for one another, care for those misused, the needy, the refugee, the troubled, even the rebel.
Today, in the United States, some are unaware of where we are living. Concerns over the killing of unborn children, the sadness that biblical marriage is pushed aside in so many ways, not just in the gay community but the many who forgo marriage and simply live together or go from pardner-to-pardner troubles many and should. But there is a deeper darkness spreading among us. A chilling darkness that places us very near the gates of hell. Christ loved us and died for us even when we are sinners—we have forgotten the love and compassion of our Lord. We have forgotten kindness.
When my husband began his journey downward with Alzheimer’s I did not understand at first his new world. My ignorance too often caused problems. I encouraged him to watch movies and television with me. I had just ordered a movie that as a ten-year-old had begun my journey to Jesus. The movie QuoVadis is the story of the early Roman Christians and their horrific persecution. As we watched, one of the first big scenes was of Nero’s wife performing a huge pagan rite. My husband got very angry, “this isn’t a Christian movie,” he said. I had to turn it off he didn’t understand the sitting.
One of the next things we watched was a news program on PBS. There was a segment about how the pythons were taking over the Everglades in Florida. As they showed the huge pythons my husband jumped out of his chair, hid behind it and started throwing pillows at the TV. And then I knew his world was now so different then mine. I needed to protect him from the horrors that frightened him although to me they were not horrors. And such is our world today. Because we belong to a loving, compassionate, forgiving Savior we cannot ignore the pain of the strangers in our midst.
They are experiencing horrors that we can only see or read about.
Yes, some are criminals but most are not. They are being nabbed and carried off to such places as Alligator Alcatraz where both alligators and pythons which roam the outskirts of their prison are not just images on a video. (Every time I have read or seen videos of this detention center, I think of my husband hiding behind his chair.) I hear Trump laughing that the prisoners if they try to escape will need to learn how to zig-zag when running. And Laura Loomer, Trump's confident, suggesting that now the alligators will have at least 65 million dinners. There are 65 million Hispanics in the United States.
And what I’m trying to say, to write, is that we are living amid the beginning of terrible times. We can live as though nothing’s wrong; we can live as though all of these strangers deserve what is happening to them. But God’s laws and God’s love is greater than any nation and his word is filled with admonitions to care for the stranger, the needy.
There is a beautiful scene in the movie Quo Vadis where Peter leaving Rome is stopped by words from Jesus telling him to go back to Rome, “my people in Rome have need of thee.” He will go and die with the Christians in the arena. I believe the Lord wants his people in the United States to care about those who are truly being kidnapped off of the streets, farms and churches and sent away. At least speak up and pray.
I’ve been thinking a lot recently about how we as Christians should react to leaders who are authoritarian—who cause hurt to the vulnerable. I’ve been thinking about this because I keep grieving over the horror stories I have posted on my Facebook page—stories of those immigrants, some citizens of the United States, some in the process of becoming citizens, some who have lived here for years but are not citizens like the dreamers, they have been harshly, sometimes violently, even illegally arrested by ICE. And this leads me to a man Jesus referred to as a fox.
In the book of Luke, the Pharisees tell Jesus he should leave the area he is in because Herod (Antipas) is going to kill him. Jesus tells them, “Go and tell that fox, ‘Behold, I cast out demons and perform cures today and tomorrow, and the third day I reach my goal. Nevertheless, I must journey on today and tomorrow and the next day, for it cannot be that a prophet would perish outside of Jerusalem.” Jesus goes on to grieve over Jerusalem and warn them of their loss.
How has Jesus characterized Herod, a king, a wicked one, and why. Leon Morris in his Tyndale commentary on Luke writes:
The fox was used by the Jews as a symbol of a sly man, but more often for an insignificant or worthless one (SB). It was sometimes a symbol of destructiveness. T.W. Manson says , “To call Herod ‘that fox’ is as much as to say he is neither a great man nor a straight man; he has neither majesty nor honour.’ The expression is thus contemptuous. Herod is the only person Jesus is recorded as having treated with contempt.
This picture of Herod is also an explanation of why Jesus used the term fox. Morris reminds his readers that when Jesus during his trial was sent to Herod, he never spoke a word to him. Herod was not worthy of Jesus words. Herod was a man who simply encased himself in pride and offered up human life if it bettered his life. He allowed John the Baptist to be beheaded for the sake of not losing face with his dinner guests. He had James killed and was ready to kill Peter because he found it pleased the Jews. He allowed the people listening to his speech to praise him as a god and was judged by God.
In this case Jesus is not only the Savior, the Redeemer, as usual he is the model. In this interaction Jesus simply outlines His planned actions, healing, casting out demons and going forward with the purpose his Father had given him, to suffer and die at Jerusalem. Herod has no meaning, no part, good or bad in Jesus’ holy calling. Just continue on with the Father’s plans but be honest about the adversary.
On the other hand, Jesus faced the religious authorities with truth. The truth of their sinfulness and their needs. They burdened their people, they changed the word of God with tradition, they failed to grasp who Jesus was. But Jesus didn’t treat them with contempt—he named them but with truthful names that spoke to their sin and their need to repent. They were empty tombs full of dead men’s bones, they were greedy and wanted power and wealth. Jesus cared for them, contended with them, pled with them, brought some of them to faith in himself. His response to them was not different then his response to all who are hard hearted against the redemptive work of God.
When they attempted to maim or kill Jesus he simply disappeared out of their reach and went on toward his calling.
Jesus’ disciples had to also come to terms with how they should respond to authoritarian rulers and leaders. Their first confrontation was with religious authoritarian leaders. They were told to no longer preach in Jesus’ name—to no longer preach the reality of His death and resurrection. Two things here, in preaching the gospel it was necessary to speak of those who had wickedly and foolishly killed Jesus. And authoritarians do not like to hear of their own sins, just the sins of others. They do not like to see the goodness and righteousness that is gifted to Jesus’ followers.
So, what is the disciple’s answer to those who demanded their silence concerning Jesus?
But Peter and John answered and said to them, “Whether it is right in the sight of God to give heed to you rather than to God, you be the judge; for we cannot stop speaking about what we have seen and heard.” (Acts 4:19-20)
The disciples made three important points here: not only would they obey God rather than these leaders but would place on the leaders the burden of decerning how people should act when God’s authority is attacked. Thirdly when knowledge of truth is seen and known we are compelled to speak out about it. More importantly when it is knowledge that concerns the truth of who Jesus is and what He calls His followers to, whether that is speaking of salvation or helping the needy we must speak truth.
Undoubtedly the strongest words in the New Testament concerning Christians and their obedience to authority comes from Paul in the book of Romans:
Every person is to be in subjection to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those which exist are established by God. Therefore, whoever resists authority has opposed the ordinance of God; and they who have opposed will receive condemnation upon themselves.
For rulers are not a cause of fear for good behavior, but for evil. Do you want to have no fear of authority? Do what is good and you will have praise of the same; for it is a minister of God to you for good. But if you do what is evil, be afraid; for it does not bear the sword for nothing; for it is a minister of God, an avenger who brings wrath on the one who practices evil.
Paul goes on to write of obeying for the sake of the authority’s wrath but also because of your own conscience’s sake. He adds to this the need to be obedient by paying taxes.
I add the statement about taxes because I want to take a bit of a rabbit trail in order to come back and seek more clarity on the word of God. During my years of writing about some racists groups who were called Identity because they thought the white races were ancestors of ancient Israel and the Jews were literal children of Satan I discovered that they did not legally marry or pay taxes. They had clearly divorced themselves from the government by not participating in any civil requirement. They considered the government illegal calling it ZOG—Zionist Occupation Government.
This is exactly what is happening with the extreme right, they do not consider the government legit and wish to rid themselves of what they call the establishment or the deep state. So, considering the word of God and its admonishment to be in subjection to the authorities there is a need for obedience. And yet there are nuances because obedience to God is the greater obedience.
And there is another part of this admonition, a description of the main duty of the authority. That is that the ruler bears toward the law breaker God’s wrath. But and this is very important, the Christian is not under God’s wrath. In exegeting these passages F.F. Bruce in the Tyndale commentary on Romans writes:
For the sake of conscience. The Christian has a higher motivation for obeying the ruler than the unpleasantness of the consequences of disobedience, the Christian knows that such obedience is in accordance with God’s will, and by rendering it will preserve a good conscience in relation to God.
What must be added to this is that a law or action, given by an authority which requires disobedience to God must be disobeyed in order to also preserve a good conscience in relation to God. This is where the two kingdoms split, one earthly, one pervasive of both heaven and earth, eternal, and the Christian is placed in a worrisome position. When to obey and when not to obey.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer suffered this decision. A pacifist he joined the military since some top generals were against Hitler and were actually helping Jews flee Germany—for this crime Bonhoeffer was arrested. He was martyred but it is still unknown whether it was because he was part of the plot to kill Hitler or simply because he was part of the plot to work against Hitler. But nonetheless he suffered these questions of obedience as many others have throughout history.
So, here are several of my thoughts on Christian obedience to authoritarian leaders. Jesus is the first example. Jesus in the midst of lies, oppressiveness and persecutions continued on obedient to his Father—nothing deterred Him from the purposes of God, the redemption of sinners. In fact, the Scripture states that it was with joy he continued. (Hebrews 12:2) In living through this he ignored the one, that fox, who gave no meaning either bad or good to his purpose. He contended and pled with those opposed to Him, speaking truth because evil in humanity must be addressed not hidden, not ignored. Speak truth for the sake of both victim and the oppressor.
Jesus did not call for an army of angels available to him but endured His calling of suffering. (Matthew 26:53)
The disciples were obedient when it was necessary, but disobedient when ordered to not preach about Jesus. They also spoke the truth unafraid to name evil when necessary. The first martyr Stephen called his listeners stiff necked and uncircumcised in heart and always resisting the Holy Spirit. (Acts: 7:51) Paul when attempting to explain the gospel to the proconsul Sergius Paulus but was being thwarted by a magician accused him of being full of deceit and fraud and called him son of the devil, and enemy of all unrighteousness. (Acts 13: 6-11)
Also the disciples refused to be unlawfully misused by authorities. When Paul and Silas were beaten and thrown into prison and the authorities discovered they were Romans fearfully told the jailer to have them leave. But Paul insisted that instead they come themselves and release them:
“They have beaten us in public without trial, men who are Romans, and have thrown us into prison; and now they are sending us away secretly? No indeed! But let them come themselves and bring us out.” (Acts 16: 37)
Biblical truths allow us to speak truth about evil, to point out unlawfulness used against victims, to attempt to draw evil doers away from their lifestyles, their hunger for power, their greed and abusiveness. And since we are all sinners, we must turn that speech towards ourselves as well.
And while we cannot obey orders that cause us to disobey God, we must obey orders that do not cause evil to others. This is the final understanding of our actions and attitudes toward authoritarian leaders, we are a people living under the cross. Speak the truth, do not be afraid to name evil, but pray for and plead with those who hurt the vulnerable. Attempt to protect and speak up for the vulnerable. Go on, with joy, following the One who has called you to this moment. Trust in the Lord Jesus Christ.
