Obeying Jesus in the face of Judgement
Dr Andy Affections is vicar of St Andrew's, Burgess Hill in Due west Sussex, and has only published an intriguing bookThe Jesus Y'all Really Didn't Know, exploring the importance of sentence and obedience in the education of Jesus in the gospels. I asked Andy nigh the book and the issues that it raises.
IP: You talk about the prominence of sentence in the didactics of Jesus as an 'elephant in the room'. What was it that led you to find this? How prominent do you think judgement is in the gospels?
AA: The first fourth dimension it struck me was nigh the beginning of my ordained ministry. About fifty curates were asked during a preparation session how many had preached on judgment in the terminal three years, and only 3 of us put up our easily. From so on, I began to find how readily people preach on the God's love and how easily people gloss over his judgment—which is interesting as Jesus spoke often about the coming judgment. For case, the gospel of Matthew has Jesus talk of this judgment in 20 out of 28 chapters.
By dissimilarity, nowhere does Matthew'due south gospel specifically mention the love God shows united states of america. In fact, neither practise Mark or Luke. Simply John talks specifically of the love God has for u.s.. The basic plot of all iv gospels is the phone call to repentance and following Jesus in the light of the coming judgment – simply simply John explicitly makes the love God has for us central to the plot of the gospel.
IP: Rob Bell was perhaps the most widely read proponent of the idea that Jesus mostly taught about love, not sentence. What practise yous retrieve Bell gets wrong in his reading of the gospels?
AA: Lots! One example is his endeavor to re-read Matt 25:46 as not existence "eternal penalization" only a "period of correction" in which people could still repent afterwards death and enter eternal life. This seems to be key to his argument that honey wins over judgment in the terminate. He claims that "age" (Greek aiōn) refers to a "particular intensity of experience that transcends fourth dimension" and that "punishment" (Greek kolasis) means "correction" as the term was originally used of pruning. And so, he argues, Jesus did not speak of "eternal punishment" but of this "period of correction" afterward expiry in which people could apologize.
Simply neither aiōnnor kolasismean the things Bong suggests anywhere else in the Bible or the Apocrypha. The Jewish biblical tradition on which Jesus draws never used these terms in this way, so it is wholly unlikely that Jesus was talking of "an intense period of correction". He was talking of eternal penalization. If nosotros fear judgment, I think the question we need to ask is not "how tin I try to make these texts mean something different?" but "can I trust that the God of all justice tin can judge the world fairly?" – and I think God can.
IP: You describe the thought that Jesus brings united states of america God'due south love and grace, but makes no demands on us, every bit a 'comforting myth that simply is not true'. What is the evidence from the gospels that Jesus was actually a 'teacher like Moses' who didn't just dice for our sins but taught us how to live in obedience?
AA: The parable of the wise and foolish builder captures it well: "everyone who hears these words of mine and doesthem volition be like a wise human … and everyone who hears these words of mine and does non practicethem will be like a foolish man …" (Matt vii:24-6). The words Jesus refers to are his teachings – not least in the Sermon on the Mountain which finishes with this parable. Jesus makes information technology clear that he is not so much interested in our knowinghis words but in our doinghis words. And he does need everything from us:"if anyone wants to follow me, permit them deny themselves and take upwards their cross and follow me" (Mark 8:34). Jesus asks for our all.
But Jesus does not simply tell us what to practice, he personally commits to teaching us how to live. He said to his disciples and says to united states all "take my yoke (which means 'my education') upon yous and learn from me" (Matt 11:29). He does non heap moral burdens on us and leave us to struggle on our ain. He promises to be with u.s.a. throughout our lives, every day, helping u.s. to live his way. That is 1 of the many reasons why prayer and Bible reading are and then vital.
IP: It is often claimed that Jesus disregarded the law. Is that true?
AA: No. One of the really interesting things virtually this projection was going through every text in Matthew where Jesus speaks of the law or is said to condone the law. When you look into it, Jesus does not exercise this once. For example: Jesus did not break sabbath law. The law does not forbid healing on the sabbath. Nor does the constabulary forbid plucking the odd ear of corn, so he did not justify his disciples breaking the sabbath constabulary. What Jesus did exercise in both these instances was to propose that there was no need to obey the traditions that the Pharisees had added to the law.
What is more, Jesus obeyed the constabulary even in small details. For case, he wore garments with fringes as instructed in the constabulary (Deut 22:12, mentioned in Matt 9.20, 14.36, Mark 6.56 and Luke 8.44). But this should come as no surprise, since his primal teachings "love God, love your neighbour" come from the constabulary (Matt 22:34-30; Lev 19:18; Deut five:16-20). Fifty-fifty his declaring foods clean did non break kosherrules but only declared that foods eaten with unwashed hands were clean, equally Matthew makes articulate (Matt xv:20). If you call back nearly it, it makes no sense at all to say that Jesus replaces the law with beloved (as some people practise) considering his teaching to dearest God and our neighbors as ourselves comes from the law.
IP: Is the combination of law and grace that we find in the teaching of Jesus also present in Paul?
AA: Yep, but to answer the question biblically we need to change information technology. The Bible does non talk of "law and grace" so much as "grace and police". God showed grace in liberating his people from slavery in Egypt, then he taught them to alive in grace and freedom past giving them the law. God promised to bear witness grace to his sinful people by taking them out of exile in Babylon, so to write the police force on their hearts so that they could live in freedom and justice.
Jesus called people to repentance, to plough away from their sins, and so to live equally he taught them. Paul wrote of Christ dying for our sin and our dying to our sin so we should put away our former sinful ways and alive God'south mode. Grace always comes first. God frees united states from slavery, injustice and the power of sin. But grace does not stop at liberation or forgiveness. Grace continues in our learning to live in grace, dear, justice and holiness. That is the work of the Spirit in us.
IP: Y'all note 'five words that every Christian should learn'. What do you remember are the lessons here for the education ministry of the Church, and the discipleship of Christians?
AA: I think we need to go real. The 5 words are taken from the great commission (Matt 20:18-twenty)—authority, teach, obey, control and judgment ("end of the ages" is when Jesus comes once more to guess). Jesus instructs his disciples to teach the nations to obey everything he has allowable. This may not have the "experience" many people in gimmicky churches prefer as we like to make our ain lifestyle choices. But Jesus' educational activity does not really leave us that option in areas of life about which he teaches. He assumes he has dominance and if we are going to call ourselves his disciples, we demand to admit his authority and live accordingly.
We also demand to get real with each other. Jesus has an amazing vision of a church where people acknowledge their faults in humility, and in grace help each other to grow. Sadly, I have come across too many churches where nosotros practise not open to each other, acknowledge our frailty and sin, and accept help from each other in our weakness and vulnerability so that nosotros can all grow in holiness and love. I long to encounter churches grow as communities where broken people experience safe to share vulnerability and observe themselves growing in love and graphic symbol as Jesus teaches us all how to live.
IP: How does Jesus' call to obedience bear on the states pastorally? Y'all share at the starting time some painful episodes in your ain story; surely those who have been injure need to know the compassion of Jesus, rather than his demands?
AA: Yes, and not quite. Yous allude to my sharing in the book that I was sexually abused as a cathedral chorister. Certainly this was painful, and for many years I avoided even thinking well-nigh information technology. But that experience formed in me wrong ways of thinking about myself and wrong expectations, none of which were life-giving. They needed changing if I was to learn to live a more fulfilling life – to live anything like the life God created me to live. They were never going to change without being challenged. My own experience in prayer and reflecting on Scripture over a number of years was that Jesus showed me his love by putting his finger on what needed irresolute and giving me the strength to stride into new ways of living by the power of his Spirit.
The initial step came during prayer in Republic of bolivia (while my nana was praying for me in Cardiff and had a vision of me stepping out of a cage). Other steps came through facing up to Scriptures, through prophecy and in prayer. But every step of the way – sometimes in tears – I knew that Jesus was surrounding me with his honey, even when taking those steps unnerved me. I have learned that Jesus' demands come from his compassion, that his service is perfect liberty. Merely this we tin only acquire from experience, from letting Jesus teach each one of u.s. the joy of obedience.
IP: It has frequently been observed that the church needs to offering expert news, rather than tell people how sinful they are. How exercise your findings hither affect the way nosotros communicate the person of Jesus to those outside?
Exterior? Who said annihilation almost education people outside the church building? Like I said earlier, grace comes commencement. When we know the love of Jesus in his dying for us, and when nosotros have given our lives wholeheartedly to him – so we begin to learn how to live his manner. How tin we learn from the loving Lord Jesus who longs to re-order our lives in grace if we do not know that Jesus? And we cannot know Jesus apart from accepting his forgiveness of our sins and giving our lives wholly over to him. When we do, he changes us. As we worship, share fellowship, read his Word and pray together, Jesus makes his presence as our instructor felt among us by changing and growing us in love and holiness. When that happens, information technology does brand an impression on people because they come across the deviation. Now that difference, when and where it happens, really does communicate the person of Jesus to those outside the church building equally they see that something is happening (even if they try to explain it differently: "merely surely you're but really nice people" rather than "your Jesus really is amazing").
Sadly, too many of the states are settling for inexpensive grace – the try to possess forgiveness without being open to Jesus irresolute our lives and characters. Worse still, we pursue "worshiptainment" – finding the most professionally produced worship services in the hope that their amazing performances volition quench our spiritual thirst. Nosotros confuse spirituality with aesthetics. Likewise frequently this just creates an addiction to aesthetic experience which does not notice fulfilment because nosotros take turned our focus abroad from Jesus past making an idol of "worship". I think we have a lot of hard work ahead of us every bit contemporary western churches to become back on track. But none of this fazes Jesus who waits patiently and invites united states of america to take his yoke upon ourselves and learn from him – and it is there we find rest for our souls.
IP: Thanks very much for your time Andy!
Andy Angel is vicar of St Andrew's, Burgess Colina. He trained for Christian ministry after teaching in secondary schools for ten years. He spent four years in parish ministry in Dartford before preparation others for Christian ministry in the South Eastward (at SEITE) and more than recently at St John's college, Nottingham where he was the Vice Principal and taught New Testament. He has written books on angels, praying through times of suffering and the second coming.
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