When All is Accomplished

...I lay down My life so that I may take it again. No one has taken it away from Me, but I lay it down on My own initiative. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This commandment I received from My Father. (John 10:17-18)

Did Jesus die the Second Death? What is the Second Death? What parameters do we use to define that term? Are we willing to reexamine our assumptions about it in the light of emerging truths and new insights?

Our assumptions about just how the lost will die in the end, and particularly why they will die, makes an enormous impact on how we are willing to honestly examine our definitions of the Second Death. As long as we cling to suspicious notions about an angry, vengeful God waiting to execute people punitively to get even for the damage that sinners have caused, it will be impossible to objectively look at this issue and come up with anything outside the traditions of men and even doctrines of demons. Not until we first get on the right track about the nature of our Father in heaven can we approach this topic with new eyes to see glorious truths in this that we never imagined were possible.

While I am still learning much about this myself and want to remain open to be teachable by the right Spirit, the more I learn the more sense it makes and the more attractive God is becoming to my heart. Jesus said that if He was lifted up He would draw all to Himself. Far too long we have lifted up what I have to believe are doctrines of demons – lies about our loving God – in attempts to frighten people into what we supposed was salvation. But I am seeing more clearly that using methods of Satan in trying to work for God only distorts our views of God while failing to free us in the ways Jesus explicitly wants to do.

Jesus came to destroy the works of the devil. Those include lies and deceptions that have kept us afraid of God, believing that He has a character more reflective of Satan's character than what Jesus came to reveal. Those works also include the suffering, pain, suspicion, fear and abuse that has all resulted from living out the lies we have grown up with or embraced. The writer of Hebrews makes it very clear what the real mission of Jesus was by explaining it this way:

Therefore, since the children share in flesh and blood, He Himself likewise also partook of the same, that through death He might render powerless him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, and might free those who through fear of death were subject to slavery all their lives. (Hebrews 2:14-15)

What might we learn about the Second Death from the death of Jesus? Many have come to see that the kind of death God was talking about when He warned Adam and Eve against eating of the wrong tree in the Garden was never experienced by anyone until Jesus died. Yet at the same time there is much debate about whether the death of Jesus can be called the Second Death or not. Again, I am not wanting to revisit the issue of what model of atonement we believe, though that is a topic outside of this discussion that has great bearing on whether this will even begin to make sense or not. If we are still caught in any form of appeasement model, then all of this will simply sound like either nonsense or flagrant heresy. Right now I am only seeking to express something coming to my attention firmly within the model of salvation where Jesus and the Father are in no way in tension with each other.

I am currently reading very slowly through the crucifixion story seeking to perceive things I have never been allowed to see before because of my lifelong confusion from false models of salvation in which I was trained. Now after recent years of dramatic changes in the way I view God and His methods, I feel somewhat enabled to begin reexamining this story that has seldom made much sense to me before. And as I suspected, everything is coming up fresh and new and full of significance and new light. But I wasn't looking to discover more insights about the Second Death until yesterday when I heard something about this from a teacher that has contributed much to my current understandings of salvation. When I heard this insight it really caught my attention because if fits so perfectly into everything else I have been learning about God in recent years.

Understanding the truth about how the unsaved lose their lives in the end in parallel with how Jesus died are inextricably connected for many reasons. At the same time I have heard a number of debates as to whether or not it is right to view the death of Jesus as the Second Death. The main reason for reluctance to understand it that way is usually a definition applied to the Second Death as one from which there is no possibility of resurrection. That sounds plausible on the surface, but as I examine all four references to the Second Death, found only in the book of Revelation, I find nothing saying that there is no resurrection possible. The strongest statement that might be used to imply such a conclusion is that death and hades (the grave) are thrown into the lake of fire.

Again, this issue must be approached with openness, humility and a genuine desire to see things from God's perspective and with a healthy appreciation for the real truth about His character or all of this will sound like irrelevant speculation. If what I am saying sounds like that I would suggest you leave off reading this right now. But for those with a hunger to look further for more consistent answers that fit with everything else God has been revealing to many of us recently, I invite you to at least ponder this following proposition objectively, laying aside preconceived opinions at least temporarily.

Just for the purpose of exploring a different way of approaching this issue, let me suggest starting with Jesus as the standard of measurement or definition – the only safe example to use to unpack the definition of the Second Death. I did this years ago to look for a definition of temptation and discovered surprising insights that revolutionized my appreciation for the real nature of temptations. Now I see the similar usefulness for this issue. By taking the words and experience of Jesus and giving Him the freedom to define truth, I believe there is better potential for seeing things in new ways that are impossible when we only approach them with our perspective.

As quoted at the beginning, Jesus clearly said that no one took His life from Him (not even the Father); He was the one who would lay it down and He would be the one who would pick it back up. This alone is startling if taken seriously, for most people believe that Jesus was killed by others. And while it is true that He made Himself vulnerable to the assaults of sinful beings both human and demonic, it seems to me that if it were not for the supernatural empowerment of His human body it would have been very likely He could not have even lived past the several beatings that He suffered, at least according to many experts. The fact that He lived as long as He did, even past the trauma He endured in the garden of Gethsemane, is very likely a miracle itself.

So what is becoming clearer to me is that Jesus really meant what He said when He insisted that it would be His choice as to when He would die, not someone else's. And as I was just reading this story in the book of John, only when Jesus knew that all things had been accomplished did He then choose to give up His Spirit and allow His body to die.

I find this phrase highly significant, especially as it is linked to similar phrases from other places in this gospel. John had what seem to be many 'inside scoops' on the plan of salvation that too often go unnoticed by the majority because of their dark views of God that blind them to what was really going on with Jesus and His sacrifice. But when we are willing to challenge our assumptions and allow God to increase the light in our souls, there are many things He is eager to reveal to those hungry to know Him and see His amazing plan of redemption more clearly.

This issue of timing is one of the running themes I see throughout the gospel of John that is very helpful for grasping the bigger picture. And seeing the life and death of Jesus from the larger perspective is vital if we are to perceive greater truths to unlock many things that keep confusing us. Here are a few links that I have observed connected with this verse:

Now before the Feast of the Passover, Jesus knowing that His hour had come that He would depart out of this world to the Father, having loved His own who were in the world, He loved them to the end. During supper, the devil having already put into the heart of Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon, to betray Him, Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into His hands, and that He had come forth from God and was going back to God... (John 13:1-3)

Judas then, having received the Roman cohort and officers from the chief priests and the Pharisees, came there with lanterns and torches and weapons. So Jesus, knowing all the things that were coming upon Him, went forth and said to them, "Whom do you seek?" (John 18:3-4)

After this, Jesus, knowing that all things had already been accomplished, to fulfill the Scripture, said, "I am thirsty." (John 19:28)

So, what does this have to do with how the lost will die the Second Death? There is much detail and context to take into account to adequately explain what I am seeing here, an to explain it all would take up far too much space here. But in short (very short), what I am starting to see as a very real possibility, given a correct understanding of the biblical definition of wrath etc., is that as the lost experience the fiery intensity of the passionate love of God (hell) – love that is the exact opposite of what they have insisted on believing about Him all of their lives – they find themselves wrestling against that reality in determined resistance. This resistance becomes so intense that it produces enormous suffering. Jesus described it as weeping and gnashing of teeth.

What is starting to emerge in my understanding is that this torture continues inside of them based on how much resistance against love they have stored up over their lifetime (see Romans 2:5) until at last in defeat, they make the final choice of their own free will that it would be better to lay down their lives in preference to accepting any more grace to keep them alive because of their intense misery of having to live in the presence of those whose spirit they find so reprehensible. (Note also that all the torment suffered in in the presence of the loving Lamb and the selfless, holy angels. Revelation 14:10)

For a number of years now after God broke through to me with the real truth about what happens in hell and captured more of my affections by doing so, I have continued to try to make sense out of more details of this event. This new perspective affirms even more what I originally discovered as well as confirming the truth about freedom that I am coming to see as one of the most central tenants of God's system of government. Satan's counterfeit system relies on force, coercion and deception to maintain control over the minds and hearts of his subjects; but God never indulges in such methods because to resort to intimidation and fear tactics like Satan uses would be to destroy the very atmosphere needed for the kind of love that is the essence of His own character. This is what the entire battle is all about – which system of living can be trusted to hold everything together in the long run.

What is becoming more and more clear to me in what I have been learning lately is that God is not the one who will execute sinners. The problem remaining however for many entertaining this new idea is how to better explain how all of this will transpire without those dark motives on God's part. I received part of my answer to this when God reminded me of something that happened many years ago when I got an actual taste of the real experience called hell. I suddenly realized that the suffering in hell actually results from an intense torment produced when one resists selfless love. God used that experience to enlighten me as to how the lost will feel tortured in the end, but not because in any way He is inflicting on them but because they have destroyed their capacity to allow His love for them to change them. That very act of resistance is what produces all of their pain and suffering.

In addition, I realized that the reason the lost suffer different lengths of time than others is because their own free will determines how long they will fight love. And that is determined in large part by how insistent and deeply entrenched they have become in the lies they cling to about the nature of God and His feelings towards them. As long as they cling to a belief in their heart that God is the problem and it is He who is at fault for their torture, they will continue to suffer. But when they let go of every last excuse and realize that to remain alive requires continuing to live in the atmosphere of pure love, both from God and from all those who are now embracing His love for them, at that point they come to freely choose to ask God to release them – hand them over (the biblical definition of our word wrath) – and God will do what is termed His strange act by respecting their choice to disconnect from Him who is the only Source of life that exists.

This gives interesting significance to the phrase John used concerning Jesus just before He gave up His own life by freely laying it down. ...all things had already been accomplished... When I apply this to the next time this kind of death shows up, the Second Death, it looks like it could again apply with stunning accuracy. God's great purpose in the plan of redemption, besides saving as many as are willing to let His love flow through them, is to fully vindicate His reputation. When this is accomplished without ever resorting to using any of Satan's alternative methods, then all things will have been fully accomplished and it will be fully seen by all that God's love is the only source of life that there is and to live apart from His love is to not live at all.

When this great plan of God is fully accomplished – and that comes about in the last solution that fully resolves every doubt and question about God's integrity forever – then it will be completely plain that God has always been consistently fair and has never once resorted to employing any of Satan's methods to accomplish His purposes. God never uses force against the will of others; God does not rely on fear or threats of punishment or artificial impositions of force to manipulate His subjects, and He does not need to for built into the natural cause and effect principles upon which everything operates He has installed all the consequences with no need for outside enforcement. God's system is all based on love and love alone, and our problem of perceiving this is because we are coming from confused backgrounds about what is real and true. It is us who are the ones in desperate need of changing how we think about God's ways of love and how life can only exist in the atmosphere of perfect freedom.

It is when this grand truth about reality is at last accepted fully by each person who has destroyed their own capacity to live in love that they finally choose eternal death instead of life. This likely will occur when, like Jesus, they finally see how God has fully accomplished all things including the vindication of the truth about His character. As every sinner including Satan Himself comes to agree fully that God is love and in Him is no darkness at all, can the controversy be finally resolved without God ever having fired a shot. This is what I think may be the real meaning of all things being accomplished in the final analysis.

Sin in its simplest explanation is distrust with all of the consequent effects of disconnecting from God, the only source of love and life. This is why sin results in death, for death is simply a label used for the absence of life. God longs for every created being to live and thrive in His love, for He entertains no animosity towards any of His children despite all accusations to the contrary by His enemies. But He also knows that freedom is the only atmosphere in which true life-giving love can exist, so for all those who demand to remain outside the parameters that govern life He gives them His respect by at last handing them over to the natural effect of their lifelong choices to be incompatible with Life.

In no way should God ever be charged with imposing punitive suffering on those who are at last lost. Letting them go is a deeply painful act for the heart of God who loves them with a passionate, everlasting kind of love that we cannot begin to even imagine. But as each of those who are lost one by one beg Him to let them die instead of living in the only atmosphere left in the universe – pure, selfless, love and care and affection – the only the loving thing left to do to respect their choice and allow them to end their suffering through choosing eternal extinction over living in the presence of Life itself. The stunning part of this for me is that when I allow the description of Jesus' death to reveal how the lost will die, I am starting to see that they too may choose to lay down their life, only they cannot take it up again like He could. Their reasons for laying it down will be very different than His, but in seeing that it is their choice and not God's it makes all the difference in the world in how we view God's part in all of this.

So how does this affect the definition of the Second Death as one from which no resurrection is possible? First, I can't find that definition in the Bible. However, something Jesus said gives me a very strong clue as to why it is very possible that Jesus indeed died the Second Death and yet was resurrected while the lost die the Second Death and never live again. Note the passage at the beginning of this and think about it carefully. The difference between Jesus and everyone else is that Jesus is both human and divine, and He is the resurrection Himself. It is true that Jesus laid down His human body in death and even surrendered His divinity in total submission to His Father's will in the grave. But because Jesus in His divine nature never actually died (for that would be impossible), then when God informed Him that He was free to rise again,, Jesus Himself acted with His own power to take up His human life again, though with a glorified human body this time.

But here is where the significant difference shows up between Jesus and all others who die the Second Death. No one else has the power to raise themselves again like Jesus, so they hopelessly remain dead for eternity. And the only reason that Jesus did not do the same is for at least two reasons: He was completely innocent of any offense or sin that might be 'legally' used to keep Him in the grave, and He had internal power (even though fully surrendered to His Father) to reverse His condition after death, unlike any others who will at last die that same kind of death.

This not only gives me compelling insights about the death of the wicked, but even more importantly urges me to appreciate much more the potential each one of us has to enter fully into the experience described as being in Christ. The New Testament is full of glorious insights about the privilege offered to every one of us to live in Christ and thus to also participate in the power of His resurrection. But that is a compelling topic that must wait for more time and space than what I allow myself right here.

Why Ask Why?

"Why do you question Me? Question those who have heard what I spoke to them; they know what I said."

"If I have spoken wrongly, testify of the wrong; but if rightly, why do you strike Me?" (John 18:21, 23)

One of the most intense questions that so often emerges when a crisis strikes is the 'why' question. We are all familiar with them of course and likely find ourselves asking them either openly or secretly deep in our hearts. But the 'why' questions are unavoidable if we are in touch with reality and have any sense of fairness in our souls.

I have been thinking about this for some time and am coming to believe that every 'why' question can be traced back to a single root – is God really fair or not? I know that many would deny that their questions may have anything at all to do with God, but I am convinced that if examined long enough and honestly enough that every question along this line eventually ends up inferring that the ultimate Originator of everything is to blame for all the pain, suffering, confusion and evil that we experience.

Ever since our psyche was infected with lies about God that resulted in what we call our sinful nature, we feel compelled to ask the 'why' questions. We may piously avoid verbalizing them or we might suppress them for a time, but I sense that deep inside, our natural reaction to look for someone to blame for the unfairness, injustice and tragedies that we are exposed to is unavoidable. This was the reaction of our first original parents when God showed up to sort things out after they sinned. Both of them immediately began to blame someone else for their problems and nothing has changed much since then. Now our distorted idea of justice assumes that someone must be blamed and punished for all the bad things going on while at the same time we naturally try to avoid any personal responsibility for our own part in all this dysfunction.

We gravitate in this direction because our hearts are certain that God must be at least somewhat like what He has been represented to be by His enemy; as stern, harsh, severe, waiting to punish violators of His rules and eager to blame us for our problems. We are afraid of the accusations and threats we are sure emanate from His throne against all who don't cooperate with His way of doing things, so we instantly try to shift the attention somewhere else to avoid the expected punishments. We are also very doubtful about how forgiving He really is because we have been led to believe that He takes great offense over our mistakes and violations of His laws and holds onto those offenses until we do enough repentance, confession and/or any other number of requirements to induce Him to let go of the grudges we are sure He is holding against us. But all of these opinions are actually a mirage, foreign to what is really going on from the perspective of heaven.

Jesus had no such delusions about God's heart towards humanity. Jesus had a clear view of the real truth of how God feels towards sinners and He reflected that consistently all throughout His life on earth in all His dealings with those with whom He came in contact. The clearest demonstration of this attitude of God towards sinners took place in the events that transpired just before His death on the cross. The verses above occurred while Jesus was being confronted by an extremely corrupt high priest during His illegal trial in which justice of any kind was markedly absent. Yet these 'why' questions Jesus posed did not reflect the same motives that would likely be present if we found ourselves in those sorts of circumstances. When Jesus asked 'why', He had something distinctly different in mind than what motivates most of our 'why' questions. But that will be hard to grasp until we first challenge our assumptions about how Jesus was feeling during these experiences of ill-treatment and extreme abuse.

It is all too easy to project our own natural reactions into this story when we read of how Jesus acted under injustice. But to do so is to guarantee false conclusions about what the cross of Jesus truly revealed. It is impossible to understand this revelation of God's true character and feelings towards sinners as long as we project sinner's motives and perspectives into the story and assume that Jesus had similar reactions to what we would have. Only as we come to separate our natural impulses and reactions from what Jesus was actually feeling – motives consistent with all the rest of His life and all of His teachings about the Kingdom of Heaven – can we begin to discern better what was really going on in this story. But when we do begin to discern the truth here, it in turn will enormously change both the way we see God as well as the way we see our own circumstances that prompt us to ask 'why'.

As I have already pointed out, we ask our 'why' questions generally from intense questions about the fairness of God when everything is obviously unfair. Our 'why' questions also involve wondering why God does not utilize some of His infinite power to prevent or stop suffering, pain, evil and injustice. Our mistaken beliefs about justice based on the dualistic system we inherited from the Tree of Good and Evil has led us not so much to question why evil people suffer – we assume that is generally fair; but we very much question why apparently good people or innocent victims seem to go unaided, undefended and unprotected from horrible evils, abuse, exploitation, suffering and tragic deaths. At times like this we can't help but wonder why a professedly 'good God' doesn't stand up and simply use His advantage of superior force to alter situations so 'justice' can prevail.

As my understanding of the real definition of 'justice' and many other word concepts have dramatically altered over recent years, so too has my ability to see the cross radically different than ever before. Now I am beginning to see things completely different taking place in this exposé of the real truth about God and what is going on with sin like I have never seen before. Now I better appreciate why the most innocent Person in the history of mankind willingly allowed the most wicked and evil men and even demons to assault and exploit Him with anything and everything they could invent to try to induce Jesus to even for a moment feel resentful or want revenge.

I am starting to believe that one of the most important passages in the entire Bible is the observation by Peter that more explicitly explains the real issues at the cross that humanity has missed for centuries. It is the key that unlocks the real truth of the revelation of God's character that Jesus came to reveal and that Satan has done everything to obscure. It exposes the real truth about what transpired between God's goodness and Satan's evil as they faced off at the cross of Christ.

Christ never committed any sin. He never spoke deceitfully. Although he was abused, he never tried to get even, when he suffered, he threatened no retaliation, but left everything to the one who judges fairly.

One of the main issues exposed at the cross was to address the very questions we can't help but feel every time we encounter injustice and insane evil. Our questions about God's fairness and His seeming unwillingness to tap into His supreme power to intervene in the behalf of victims are met at the cross. But if we don't comprehend why Jesus did what He did there, or why He asked His own 'why' questions, we will remain confused about the stupendous answers inherent in the revelation of the cross. As long as we in the slightest way assume that God was somehow complicit in the evil Jesus suffered, we remain infected with the lies of the enemy and continue to block the truth of the cross from entering our own hearts. Only as we begin to grasp what Peter saw so clearly, the truth that radically transformed Peter himself, can we begin to experience the real power of the gospel.

So if Jesus was not asking 'why' in the same way we would likely express it under similar circumstances, what was going on in Him heart when He confronted those abusing Him with His direct questions as to why they were treating Him the way they were?

When Jesus asked Caiaphas His 'why' question and when He then asked the the officer who struck Him on the face 'why' he had hit Him, Jesus was not asking in a spirit of resentment as we often so easily assume. Keeping Peter's comment clearly in mind as we read this will prove to be extremely instructive. Yet I have not been able to see this until very recently and only then because for many years God has been cleaning out myriads of lies in my own thinking about what really took place at the cross as well as revealing to my heart the real truth about how He feels about me. As the dark cloud of deception and misinformation about God is slowly dissipating, I am beginning to see startling truths emerging from the fog that are life-changing and exciting. Now I long to see much more truth, for the real truth about God is so dramatic that it has power to neutralize all my fear and to answer all the questions that have defied answers for most of my life.

As I now see Jesus being consistent in these circumstances with His attitude from all of His previous ministry, I can begin to discern that His 'why' question to Caiaphas came from a motive of deep desire to awaken a different spirit within that wicked high priest in one last attempt to draw him back from horrific natural consequences that he would be sure to experience if he proceeded on the path he was traveling by the decisions he was making. Caiaphas still had opportunity to change direction and be saved from being complicit in high treason against the King of the Universe by murdering the Son of God. Jesus wanted to save this man from Satan's grasp just as much as He wanted to save Mary and everyone else. It was in this context that Jesus asked him to examine his motives and methods.

Likewise, when the officer struck Jesus in the face for allegedly disrespecting the high priest, Jesus question highlighted the fact that all of the proceedings taking place there were completely illegitimate as far as justice was concerned. It is totally unfair to punish anyone without cause, and the supposed cause for slapping Jesus in the face was a complete fabrication in the minds of jealous men hungry for power and with no concern for justice. Jesus was pointing out that they needed to reconsider their course of action. He was exposing the stark contrast between His humble, truthful demeanor and their flagrant violations of all standards of behavior and justice.

Jesus also wanted to inject an awareness of true reality into the midst of what was quickly becoming surreal in this mock trial. They were attempting to find a way to kill Jesus without having their own corruption exposed. Yet in every advancing step the pure innocence of Jesus in contrast to their own vile characters was only becoming more and more obvious. Justice demanded that a person being accused be given the right to have a number of witnesses give first-hand testimony to corroborate or dispute the charges against them. But in this case the hatred of His enemies was so intense that they were willing to resort to any deception or fraud to accomplish their diabolical passion to exterminate the witness of Jesus in God's favor.

Yet in spite of all this glaring injustice, Jesus never failed to keep acting like Himself; He never resorted to deception or self-defense as they sought to force Him to do. Instead, Jesus knew that all of this was meant to expose all the lies of the enemy as the real truth about God's good character was to be exposed amidst the deepest darkness produced by Satan's fraudulent system.

God's system of operating in contrast to Satan's counterfeit system was represented in Eden by the Tree of Life. When the two systems faced off in the most titanic battle for legitimacy during these hours leading up to the cross, Jesus again represented God's system as only life-giving as the ultimate Light-bearer. Ironically His arch-enemy leading that fierce attack against Him in this grand miscarriage of justice had formerly been known as Lucifer, the Light-bearer in heaven. There is indication that Christ and Lucifer shared very similar positions covering the very throne of the Highest before Lucifer parted ways from Christ and turned myriads of angels sour against the loving government of the Father.

Lucifer's growing intense jealousy of Christ in heaven becomes dramatically exposed as they face off once again in the most dramatic event in all of history. Lucifer's charges over the true nature and character of God came to fruition when he exploited his advantage over Jesus as a human being. This caused Satan, the great accuser of God and Christ, to insanely attack Jesus by every means possible in a desperate attempt to induce Him to entertain in the slightest way some motive that Satan had insisted was lurking in the heart of God. If Satan could get Jesus as God's representative to indulge even for a moment to embrace any of Satan's motives, he could claim that his charges against God were vindicated and he would leverage this to convince the universe that his accusations were true.

The test on Jesus was far more close and severe than any of us can even begin to imagine. The problem has long been however, that what we have long assumed Jesus was tested over has misled us into actually reinforcing lies of Satan about God rather than exposing the truth about God that Jesus came to reveal. The early Christians had a real appreciation of this core truth which is what gave them such irresistible power as they spread the gospel about God to a hungry, hurting world. But a few hundred years after the cross Satan once again masked over this stunning revelation of God in Jesus with myriads of new lies about Him, so now we are left once again in the deep darkness of misapprehensions and fears about how God feels about sinners.

Gratefully what I am starting to see today is a new leaking out of the intense glory of God as prophesied in the first few verses of Revelation 18. Once again the real truth about God will be fully exposed to a skeptical world embracing lies about Him largely enforced by the dogmas of religion. People everywhere are beginning to awaken to the Holy Spirit's promptings to reexamine the testimony of the Word and are coming alive as they discover that religion has misled them and the real truth of Jesus is far more glorious than they ever dared to imagine.

Seeing this true glory is the effective answer to our 'why' questions, for as we begin to see that God is radically different than what we have always assumed Him to be, our questions are seen as based on invalid assumptions behind our questions. As we see Jesus fully cognizant of His unlimited access to infinite power, yet never using it to force God's will on anyone even in the most desperate of situations to avoid any amount of pain or suffering to Himself, we can begin to see that God will never use His power the way Satan has led us to think He does. Rather, we can begin to see that the real power of God is in His agape love that fiercely protects the freedom of every individual to choose for themselves whom they will follow and obey without any coercion on His part.

Satan never charged that he had more raw power than God. Many suppose that the war between good and evil is over who is the strongest and which side can enforce their ways over the lives of sinners. No, the battle is not over which side has more power to coerce people to follow their way, but rather which system is the right way to live together. Our real choice is between Satan's system based on fear, force, intimidation, laws, deception and self-indulgence or God's self-sacrificing system of perfect agape love, harmony, peace, natural principles and total respect for the right of every being to chose their own way. God's system is superior, but in the meantime it seems to be weak, too mamby-pamby for those addicted to the drug of power. But in these last days it will become clear that though love may be crushed and maligned and discredited more than ever before, love truly is the greatest power.

That is the message of the cross that must be seen undiluted by the lies and insinuations of Satan. It is time to turn away from all other inferences about it involving an offended Deity needing to be appeased. God is love and light and in Him is no darkness at all. When this becomes clear in our hearts, then our 'why' questions can be transformed into humble trust in the only One who is truly fair. Jesus demonstrated this attitude when in the midst of the most extreme unfairness He refused to incriminate His Father but trusted His heart fully even when all the evidence screamed it wasn't so.

He left everything to the one who judges fairly. (1 Peter 2:23)

Of Guns and Swords

Simon Peter then, having a sword.... (John 18:10)

What a statement. What a reality check. What a warning.

What God has been revealing to me over the past thirty years about Himself and His ways alerts me to the importance of this phrase. And in the context of other things emerging in this passage, this is even more significant.

Shortly before these events transpired in the garden, Jesus had engaged in an interchange with His disciples about swords. He spoke some of the most confusing and cryptic words He had ever used which has caused many to misunderstand His intentions to this very day. (see Luke 22:36) But if there was any doubt as to what Jesus had in mind when He told His disciples to buy a sword if they didn't have one, this passage ought to serve to diffuse such mistaken thinking.

The sad stories of God's people all throughout history repeatedly demonstrates the mistakes we can make when we embrace beliefs in a violent, self-defensive God instead of the real truth about the God of pure agape love. The Jews of Jesus' day were immersed in such diabolical opinions about God and all the disciples were infected with this same virus. The reason there already were two physical swords in the possession of the disciples in a day when weapons were illegal under the Roman occupation, was because they so fervently believed in deliverance by a Messiah who would rely on methods of violence. Just as today, people back then cherished hopes of salvation assuming that God will resort to violence and physical abuse when necessary to accomplish His purposes. Peter was no exception.

There is much debate in the united States today about the right to have weapons. There are many valid and compelling arguments on both sides of this debate, and it is hard at times to refrain from becoming sucked into the fray. But the example and teachings of Jesus must serve as our gold standard of truth if we are to find the straight and narrow path that Jesus said leads to heaven. This path is shunned, scorned and discredited by the vast majority of professed Christians and unbelievers alike. But it still remains the only path of truth that will lead us in the process of true salvation. This path is the same one Jesus followed in every detail of His life. If we want to know the only path to life we have to make the life of Jesus our highest priority for study and emulation, not any other example including Peter.

This verse goes on to say that because Peter had a sword that he drew it out of its sheath and began lashing out with it. This reminds me of the terrible choice his ancestors made long before just after their Red Sea deliverance from Egypt. They were suddenly confronted with a choice about how they were going to relate to God's promises to them. Just after their incredible deliverance from the greatest army in the entire world just hours before, they discovered that many of the armaments of that military machine had suddenly become available to them as bodies of thousands of dead soldiers washed up on the beach. And although the Bible does not detail the particulars of that event, it is clear from the context that they were facing one of the most direction-changing temptations they had ever faced.

God had promised to deliver them from the hands of their oppressors and bring them into a land filled with abundance, all at His own initiative. What He asked of His people simply was their implicit trust that He could handle anything that might threaten them. By starting out with the dispensing of the world's greatest military machine focused on taking revenge on them for escaping the power of their slave-masters, God had proven Himself more than capable of protecting them and providing for all of their needs. But what He needed most but could not force from them was their cooperation with His plans and methods to save them. He longed for them to trust Him in every area of their lives, to rejoice in His passionate love over them and to rest in His loving care and protection. But they rejected His ways and refused to enter into His rest (see Hebrews 3 and 4).

We all know the sad history of their repeated choices all throughout their years in the desert. About the only consistency they practiced was to complain over and over again, to doubt the goodness of God, the power of God, the kindness of God and to complain about and rebel against anyone who did believe and trust in Him. They retained a slave mentality and the mindset of Egypt where force, fear, intimidation and all the other principles of Satan's counterfeit system had been honed to professional levels. All they could bring themselves to believe in was reliance on force to take care of themselves, for they felt that in the end no one else could really be trusted to look out for their interests.

With that kind of mentality, when presented with the choice of whether to bury the dead soldiers along with all their weapons or to scavenge all they could get from the rotting corpses on the beach, they chose the latter and armed themselves to the teeth in preparation for defending themselves from any future threats instead of trusting in the God who had just single-handedly saved them from the greatest threat of force the world had to offer in their day. They greedily snapped up the swords and shields and spears of their enemies and then put their confidence in their own abilities to defend themselves instead of believing the words of God promising them supernatural entrance into the promised land.

Along with the disciples who felt they had to defend themselves when push came to shove, Christians today still are addicted to notions that God expects His children to arm themselves with weapons of the enemy to defend themselves and their families if things get too threatening. How many scenarios have I heard where people try to justify their ownership of guns, making up typical stories where they become the hero by shooting an intruder or someone threatening to rape their daughter. All the while in real life these scenarios almost never work out the way imagined. The intended defenders more often than not become the victims, but worse yet the reputation of God is repeatedly damaged as those claiming to believe in His love refuse to live and love the way Jesus lived but instead take up the sword like Peter demonstrated so uselessly.

One may argue in circles trying to get around why Jesus did not resort to force in this story, but such attempts usually only betray a heart that is not yet converted just as Peter was not yet converted. Peter was very confident that he was the most loyal disciple of Jesus, that he would fight side by side all the way to death if necessary to defend his best Friend. But the problem was that Peter had not yet embraced the real truth about the nature of the kingdom that Jesus had brought to this earth. Peter was not interested in loving enemies instead of attacking them, and like the Israelites of his own ancestry, when given the chance he chose to turn to violence and trust in weapons as his option of choice when under duress instead of allowing God to reveal His true character in contrast to the weapons and techniques of His enemies.

What I find very compelling in this passage that is in stark contrast to this record of Peter relying on force and weaponry to protect himself and his allies, the methods and attitude of Jesus under the very same circumstances was so opposite. A careful examination of the context reveals compelling insights.

So Jesus, knowing all the things that were coming upon Him, went forth and said to them, "Whom do you seek?" (John 18:4)

This phrase is directly linked back to just a few hours before when John clearly says in chapter 13 that Jesus was fully aware of everything taking place around Him both in the material world and in the supernatural realms. Yet having full knowledge of all the dangers, intrigue, plots and cluelessness of even His own disciples as well as His own enormous superiority, in this context He chose to serve most humbly each of His disciples by washing their dirty feet. Thus Jesus demonstrated the infinite humility of the most powerful God of the universe who only longed for them to see His true goodness and kindness rather than focusing on all that was going wrong. By serving with greatest humility the very disciple who was becoming his worst enemy, Jesus exposed to the extreme the real truth about what it means to be a follower of the ways of God.

It says here again that Jesus was still fully aware of all that was transpiring around Him, yet knowing all of this as well as knowing all the supernatural resources He had to potentially defend Himself, He consciously chose to submit to all the evil that would come not only on Him but potentially on any who might choose to identify themselves with Him as loyal followers.

Lest we miss the significance of this story, let me point out here that the passage as translated in English tends to smooth over something highly significant. In verse 5, verse 6 and in verse 8, Jesus actually uses a name that all the Jews recognized as the most sacred name of the Almighty God of the universe to identify Himself as the one they had come to arrest – the great I AM! In most translations of the Bible it is difficult to see this because it is linked to some other word like He, as in, I am He. But that last word is not in the original text which strongly implies that He simply said, I AM.

This helps to explain why after the second time He identified Himself as the I AM of all history and creation, the evil mob led by Judas who had come to accomplish their evil plans for Him, fell powerless to the ground. No human had suddenly knocked them over, and Peter had not even started his attempts at violence. The sheer truth of who Jesus really was became the overwhelming force that caused the powers of darkness to fall back involuntarily in the presence of infinite power and truth. But even then, Jesus only allowed this to happen momentarily, not for the purpose of defending Himself but to make it explicitly clear the true identity of the One they were about to violate, abuse, shame and finally crucify. They could never plead ignorance that they did not know what they were doing or who they were up against. It became crystal clear in that event to everyone involved that they were fighting against God Himself and so they were without any excuse for their continued rebellion against His love for them.

In the middle of all this commotion and increasing danger, Jesus insisted on the full freedom of all involved to make their own choices as to who's side they would choose to be on. Judas and the mob along with the Roman soldiers chose to pursue their intentions to carry out the diabolical plans of the demons and enemies of Jesus. But Jesus wanted to make sure His other disciples knew that they had a choice to either stay identified with Him or could choose to turn and run away. He did not command anyone but made it very clear that He would protect their right to choose for themselves what they wanted to do in this time of crisis. As for Himself, He conveyed to His accusers that He was completely vulnerable and harmless and they could do anything they might want to do with Him even though He has just revealed that He had access to infinitely more resources and power than they could even begin to imagine. During this time it is also recorded that Jesus told them that if He chose to, He could commission legions of powerful angels to come to His defense if that was the way the kingdom of heaven operated. But the whole purpose for this hour was to expose the stark contrast between the methods and beliefs of the counterfeit system invented by Satan to the ways of heaven that were so different from the ways of this world.

We are still faced with this same divisive truth today. What are we going to believe about God and the nature of His kingdom? Are we going to continue to parrot lies of the enemy that God will not allow His plans to be defeated but will resort to force when He desires? That issue was settled completely at the cross of Jesus. Yet Christians today have been duped into believing that the cross of Christ proved the very opposite, that God was exacting punishment upon His Son through the violence of His enemies to vent God's wrath against sinners. How diabolical Satan's insinuations are and how massively effective they have become in deceiving nearly the whole world yet again.

Increasingly we are going to be faced with these very same confrontations forcing us to reveal what we really believe about God and how our beliefs will work out in our actions and reactions under pressure. Jesus gave us a brilliantly clear revelation of the actual truth about how God will act under violence and threats; Peter gave us an alternative demonstration of another option and belief about the ways of God. Likewise, everyone else in that story revealed their own versions of how to act when faced with a crisis. How will we react when forced to choose what we actually believe about the use of violence?

If there ever was a time when God would have resorted to violence to protect Himself, it would have been when God Himself in the vulnerable person of His Son Jesus Christ was threatened, abused, tortured and finally murdered in a most inhumane and unjust way. But tragically most people prefer the lies of Satan in assuming that next time God shows up that somehow He is going to suddenly change roles and this time reek vengeance, retribution and violence against all who have rejected His salvation or hurt His chosen people. But contrary to all the vivid descriptions of such thinking defended by Scripture proof texts, a careful examination of of God's Word using Jesus as the sole reliable filter through which we interpret all the rest of Scripture renders a very different picture of God.

Jesus explicitly told Peter that those who resort to relying on force will themselves meet the same methods used back against them. Then Jesus said to him, "Put your sword back into its place; for all those who take up the sword shall perish by the sword." (Matthew 26:52) This principle is one that Jesus spoke of previously when He put is this way:

Do not judge so that you will not be judged. For in the way you judge, you will be judged; and by your standard of measure, it will be measured to you. (Matthew 7:1-2)

And He was saying to them, "Take care what you listen to. By your standard of measure it will be measured to you; and more will be given you besides." (Mark 4:24)

When we resort to the weapons of the enemy to defend either ourselves or even the cause of God, we have moved away from the kingdom of heaven principles and have infected ourselves with the virus of reliance on power, fear and other counterfeit methods of the enemy. In this war it is highly dangerous to ever take up the methods or weapons of the adversary, for those things are all contaminated with infectious diseases that will lead us into the paths of death and ruin our testimony on God's behalf.

Only the ways of God as revealed explicitly in the life and teachings of Jesus are safe to rely on to further the advancement of God's purposes. Only in taking up our cross, denying ourselves and following in the ways of Jesus can we remain secure in the paths of righteousness for His name's sake. Although choosing that path may result in personal harm to ourselves and those around us, we must continue to remember that the priorities of heaven are very different than our intuitive priorities and we have to trust our Commander who has all the keys necessary to deliver everyone who implicitly trusts in Him, even from the bondage of death itself.

Contrary to popular assumptions, our battle does not revolve around whether or not we get hurt, whether or not we live or die or whether we can successfully protect our families or friends from getting hurt. The big problem with our thinking is that we have made out the war between good and evil to be a struggle revolving around our own personal performance or comfort. By failing to see that the battle is actually over God's reputation and instead, making it out to be all about ourselves, we have been deceived by all sorts of false assumptions about how the kingdom of heaven operates or is advanced. This battle is not about us or our sins or perfection but is about whether God can be trusted or not. Peter had to learn that lesson along with all the other disciples. But when they finally grasped the real truth about Jesus later on, they became irrepressible in their passion to follow the example of their beloved Friend and Savior who had shown them the stunning truth about what God is really like.

I want that kind of full conversion myself. I want to have these truths soak in more permanently into my own psyche, to embrace them deeper in my own heart so that my reactions under threats will look more like the gentleness and glory of Jesus instead of reflecting the typical reactions of self-defense that are so natural for me now. I want far greater faith in the protection of God whether or not that protection includes my physical well-being or not. I want to be so connected at the heart level to the heart of God as revealed in Jesus Christ that He can begin to demonstrate through me what was seen in the kindness, compassion, forgiveness and love revealed in this story of Jesus.

Who Dunnit

Now Judas also, who was betraying Him, knew the place, for Jesus had often met there with His disciples. (John 18:2)

As I began reading this morning in John where I have been soaking for quite a long time now, I noticed an alternative reading in this verse that caught my attention. As a substitute for this phrase betraying Him, it can just as easily read handing Him over. That alerted me that very possibly the Greek word used here is the same word that has become very familiar to me in recent years as the definition given in Romans for the wrath of God. When I looked it up that is just what I found.

Now, this produces some rather interesting questions as I again reviewed the verses that use this Greek word. Just who was it that handed over Jesus to be crucified? According to this verse Judas is the one to blame, and most people tend to agree with that assessment. And while many would not necessarily associate the betrayal by Judas in handing over Jesus to His enemies as a demonstration of wrath, from the Bible's perspective that is just what he did. Paul in Romans 1 makes it quite clear that the way wrath is revealed is in the act of handing people over.

For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who suppress the truth in unrighteousness, because that which is known about God is evident within them; for God made it evident to them. (Romans 1:18-19)

Therefore God gave them over in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, so that their bodies would be dishonored among them. (Romans 1:24)

For this reason God gave them over to degrading passions; for their women exchanged the natural function for that which is unnatural, (Romans 1:26)

And just as they did not see fit to acknowledge God any longer, God gave them over to a depraved mind, to do those things which are not proper, (Romans 1:28)

So far it appears that Judas was acting in wrath by giving Jesus over, or in other words, betraying Him to be killed in exchange for 30 pieces of silver for himself. That takes a really sick mind, but that is just what selfishness – the essence of sin – does to all of us. But there is more to this story. Paul has even more to say about just who was involved in handing over Jesus to death, and it can come as a surprise to many to find out who might be found as an accomplice with Judas in handing over Jesus to death. In each of these verses I have highlighted the phrase that is used for the Greek word translated both as betrayed or in various other wordings as handing someone over.

For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus in the night in which He was betrayed took bread; (1 Corinthians 11:23)

Now not for his sake only was it written that it was credited to him, but for our sake also, to whom it will be credited, as those who believe in Him who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead, He who was delivered over because of our transgressions, and was raised because of our justification. (Romans 4:23-25)

He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him over for us all, how will He not also with Him freely give us all things? (Romans 8:32)

Remember that each of these references uses the very same Greek word that describes what Judas did to Jesus as well as how heaven defines what wrath is. But now it starts to look like God Himself was involved in some way in this handing over of Jesus to death. Was the Father an accomplice with Judas? If so, how can Judas be held in contempt while God is not? Or maybe we secretly do hold God in contempt and fear and possibly even view Him as having a character that cannot be completely trusted. Many have come to loath the reputation of Judas, but maybe some of our darker beliefs about God are reflective of the character of Judas without our realizing what has taken place. But there is more.

I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me. (Galatians 2:20)

Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children; and walk in love, just as Christ also loved you and gave Himself up for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God as a fragrant aroma. (Ephesians 5:1-2)

Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself up for her, (Ephesians 5:25)

Now it is getting really complicated. Not only is Judas to blame and then God the Father becomes implicated in His being handed over, but now the Bible tells us that Jesus Himself was involved in this 'betrayal.' Did Jesus betray Himself into the hands of His enemies? Did God compel Judas to carry out this act of betrayal as Calvinists would have us believe, insisting that some people are just meant to be lost from the very start and have no choice in their own actions of evil? This brings up the long-debated question of who hardened Pharaoh's heart way back in Egypt. What is really going on here?

Certainly implicating both God and Jesus in this situation by using the very same Greek word referring to the very same event should raise a lot of compelling questions in the mind of any person interested in uncovering truth rather than blindly accepting pronouncements of religion. But a lot also has to do with our motives for asking tough questions. I have come to appreciate that God is never afraid of us asking tough questions. In fact, I am becoming more and more confident that God very likely gets quite excited when we begin to ask honest, sincere questions for which we have no good answers, for it means we are finally switching on parts of our brain that have for too long been kept off-line because of fears that God, or some other religious authority, might get upset if we asked for better explanations.

Yet another aspect comes into play here. Maybe because of our incessant emphasis on everything being couched in a legal setting we have been led to ask many of the wrong questions to start with. If we assume that our problem with God and our perspective about these stories in the Bible are all about keeping rules as being the most important thing in our relationship to God, and we live in constant fear of Him while trying to avoid punishment for disobeying rules, then most likely we are going to feel compelled to look for who is to blame whenever anything goes wrong. That is what I long assumed, for that is all I knew growing up. But over recent years it is becoming more and more evident to me that God is far more interested in drawing me into a wholistic, safe, intimate relationship with Himself, and bringing me into alignment with the principles of reality that I was designed to live under is just part of accomplishing that goal.

The closer I come to seeing the real truth of the purpose of the cross of Christ, the less concerned I am about who is to blame. Instead, I find more interest in what that demonstration is revealing about what God is actually like. For if His main purpose in sending His Son to this earth, as Jesus stated, was to reveal the truth about the passionate love of the Father's heart for His children rather than appeasing His supposed anger or paying off some debt that we incurred by offending Him, then I am not interested in where to place blame. But I am interested in finding out why so many seem to have been involved in handing over Jesus to die.

For God, who said, "Light shall shine out of darkness," is the One who has shone in our hearts to give the Light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ. But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, so that the surpassing greatness of the power will be of God and not from ourselves; we are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not despairing; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying about in the body the dying of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body. For we who live are constantly being delivered over to death for Jesus' sake, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh. (2 Corinthians 4:6-11)

These words remind me a great deal of the profound insights I keep seeing emerge in my close examination of the book of First John. In the very beginning of that book John seems to be so filled with passion to share the incredible truth that exploded on this planet with anyone who is listening and willing to open their minds. He uses the term light over and over as this is the core issue of the gospel.

John and the other disciples were privileged to live in direct contact with the very expression of Eternal Life in the person of Jesus, the Son of the Almighty God of the universe. They were able to put their hands on Him, to live in very close, intimate fellowship with Him for a number of years and to see God up close and personal. Sadly most of that time they had little clue as to what they were privileged to have happening to them; but when they later looked back and realized what they had not seen previously, their excitement begin to know no bounds and they rocked the world with the truth that God is radically different than anyone had ever thought or had imagined Him to be up to that point.

...and the life was manifested, and we have seen and testify and proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and was manifested to us-- what we have seen and heard we proclaim to you also, so that you too may have fellowship with us; and indeed our fellowship is with the Father, and with His Son Jesus Christ. (1 John 1:2-3)

The more I contemplate the truth as it is in Jesus, especially in these writings of one of His very best friends John, the more clear it is to me that what John and Jesus and God all want more than anything else is for us to enter into fellowship with them. After I became aware of the true definition of joy according to the way our nervous system and brain are designed, this made even more sense to me and explains why John and Jesus both focused on this word so frequently. Fellowship and joy are inescapably intertwined with each other and cannot be separated. Joy is what we feel when someone is glad to be with us. That is why fellowship and intimacy are such a central part of the message of the gospel, for as we come to learn the real truth about God's goodness in contrast to all the lies we have assumed about Him for so long, we can begin to enter into the joy of the Lord, a joy that gives us strength like no other source or experience.

These things we write, so that our joy may be made complete. (1 John 1:4)

Let me share just one more reference that I found that uses the same Greek word we have been looking at that is often translated gave him over. There is one more kind of giving over that Jesus did besides giving Himself to die to expose the real truth about God's passionate love for all of His children. And it is vitally important that all who desire to follow in His steps come to learn how to give themselves over similarly if they want to overcome the temptations inherent in facing persecution and death as Jesus did.

For you have been called for this purpose, since Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example for you to follow in His steps, WHO COMMITTED NO SIN, NOR WAS ANY DECEIT FOUND IN HIS MOUTH; and while being reviled, He did not revile in return; while suffering, He uttered no threats, but kept entrusting Himself to Him who judges righteously; (1 Peter 2:21-23)

This is in my opinion comes from one of the most compelling passages in Scripture. The more I become aware of the real truth about why Jesus came to die, to be handed over for our sakes, the more sense these words of Peter make to my own heart. But in addition this verse alerts me to the real core of the gospel. For the gospel is not at all about providing an escape from an angry deity waiting to inflict severe punishments on all those who refuse to obey or conform to his demands. No, no! Jesus came to show us that God is exactly the opposite of what He has been made out to be by both enemies and friends alike unfortunately.

What I see now more clearly than ever in this exclamation by Peter is a God who can be trusted so much more than anyone has ever given Him credit before in history. I have come to see that the core issue of the war between good and evil is not about keeping rules but rather is over the contention by Satan that God is not fair and cannot be fully trusted. Without trust it is impossible to live in harmony with anyone, and that is a serious problem when the person we cannot live in harmony with is the only source of life that exists.

This was the central issue that Jesus came to address when He became a human to show us what God is really like in contrast to all the lies we believe about Him. Jesus came to show us the revelation that God will never resort to violence against His enemies, will never hold a grudge or desire revenge. Peter finally got that truth, but sadly most Christians today overlook these words and miss the profound implications of them because they still cling to dark views of God inherited from the father of lies and that have been passed down through centuries of false religion.

This is the message we have heard from Him and announce to you, that God is Light, and in Him there is no darkness at all. If we say that we have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth; but if we walk in the Light as He Himself is in the Light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin. (1 John 1:5-7)