Surely, in our quest for deeper understanding of the man Jesus and his message, something is to be learned from the people with whom he frequently came in contact. It is fair to say that these were not usually such as would have graced the finer synagogues of his day; nor, we might add, would their modern counterparts be immediately welcome in many of our ecclesial halls. This comes across rather impressively in catalogue form:

• Lepers: “And there came a leper to him, beseeching him and kneeling down to him…. ‘If thou wilt, thou canst make me clean’ ” (Mar 1:40). “The leper, in accord with the strict conditions of the law, should not have been so close. With torn garments and dishevelled hair he should have gone around crying ‘Unclean! Unclean!’ (Lev 13:44,45), and he should have dwelt alone. The stern requirements of hygiene caused the Israelites to deny their camp in the wilderness to those in this condition (Num 5:2). That the man came so close is a mark, not of callous disregard of the law, but of the supreme confidence which knew that he would do no injury to the Lord, while the Lord could, if he would, confer cleansing on him. Jesus, on his part, accepted the position without embarrassment, and acted with the same assurance. To touch a leper was to contract defilement; but for the Lord to do so was to bring cleansing without himself suffering any harm” (NMk 21).

• The Samaritan woman and her neighbors (Joh 4:1-42): Even the woman at the well recognized that the Jews customarily had no dealings with the Samaritans (v 9). To the legalistically devout this was all too literally true; the gospel record finds an exact parallel in the well-reported sayings of the rabbis: “May I never set eyes on a Samaritan!” or “May I never be thrown into company with him!” It was said that to partake of their bread was like eating swine’s flesh (A Edersheim, The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah, Vol. 1, p. 401). Most Israelites, in traveling between Judea and Galilee, went miles out of their way, circling through Perea, to avoid traversing the loathsome land of Samaria. How this gives weight by contrast to the statement of John, that Jesus “must needs go through Samaria” (v 4). Not only did Jesus disregard the traditional proscriptions of the land of the Samaritans, but also it was necessary that he go there! And necessary that he wait at the well, and necessary that he ask drink of the woman (unthinkable to a Pharisee), and necessary that he remain in their city two days (v 40) to bring to their thirsty lips the true water of life.

• The infirm man at the pool of Bethesda (Joh 5:1-9): “High on the hill of Zion the immaculately robed priests observed the temple ritual, aloof and impersonal. In the shadows of its walls the halt, the blind and the withered waited for the movement of the water” (MP 86,87). Among them was a certain man with an infirmity of 38 years’ duration (v 5). By the law such a man, if a descendant of Aaron, would be prohibited from all official duties (Lev 21:17-23). Extreme body blemishes would exclude any Israelite from the congregation of the Lord (Deu 23:1). And so the “pure and undefiled” of Israel went their way to the Temple services, oblivious of the poor, suffering scraps of humanity who clung superstitiously to the hope of healing at the pool. Where did the Master’s steps turn, upward to the beautiful ritualized service of Herod’s house, or downward to the miserable exiles of Bethesda? The true scene of his ministry was not among the subtle analysts of the law but in the midst of suffering, diseased, afflicted mankind, those who needed a redeemer.

• The harlot, “a woman in the city, which was a sinner” (Luk 7:37): So astounding was Jesus’ acceptance of this harlot’s approach and service, that his host Simon the Pharisee thought surely he could not be a prophet or else he would push her away and revile her for her sins (v 39). He knew so little of the spirit of the Saviour! Do we know more?

• The lunatic (Mar 5:1-21; Mat 8:28-34; Luk 8:26-40): Christ and his disciples came to the shore at Gergesa, on the east side of the Sea of Galilee, in Decapolis. And there met them out of the tombs a man with an unclean spirit. Here was a man expelled from all society by his condition (insanity), his appearance (nakedness), and his abode (the tombs); yet Jesus approached him, spoke to him, even bearing with his fantasies, healed him, and gave him of his own garments (an unproven suggestion, but quite probable, and filled with wonderful typical significance)! So impressed, however, were those of the neighborhood that they begged him to leave (Mar 5:17); a man who consorted with such men as “Legion” could certainly be no friend of theirs.

• The woman with the issue of blood (Mar 5:25-34): Here was another condition which, like leprosy, rendered the sufferer unclean (Lev 15:19-30). As Jesus went on his way, she pushed her timid way through the crowd: “If I may touch but his clothes, I shall be whole.” This was the reverse of the legal restriction, which should have been: ‘If I touch his garment, he will be unclean also.’ How great was her faith! She knew what manner of man Jesus was: a man who could touch the unclean, and yet remain pure; a man whose law superseded that of Moses; a man to whom mental impurity was far worse than legal defilement.

• Gentiles: Of several examples, we note here the case of the Syrophoenician woman (Mar 7:25,26; Mat 15:21-28). Coming on the heels of the Lord’s discourse about the true source of defilement (Mar 7:1-23; Mat 15:1-20), and in disregard for the traditions of the elders, this incident in which Jesus heals the daughter of the Gentile woman thus carries extra significance. Though the woman was not a Jewess, her faith exceeded by far that of Jesus’ countrymen. As in the other cases we have noted, an external condition of separation was of no consequence to him who came to save the “world” and to call sinners to repentance.

• Publicans: Two of this hated class figure prominently in the gospels: Zaccheus, “chief among the publicans” (Luk 19:2), and one of the twelve, Matthew (Mat 10:3; Luk 5:27). These servants of the Roman oppressors were held in such low esteem generally that the word “publican” had become practically synonymous with “sinner” (Mat 9:11; Mar 2:16; Luk 5:30). Yet Jesus found friends among this class; perhaps some real-life publican was the model for the Lord’s account of contrasting prayer styles, for the admonition of those who “trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others” (Luk 18:9-14). On the opposite side, we have the rabbinical attitude toward the publicans: They were excluded from being judges and witnesses in legal affairs. They were seen as a criminal race, to which Lev 20:5 applied (about those who committed “whoredom with Molech”). It was said that there never was a family which numbered a tax-collector in which all did not become such. And they were seen as so evil that it was permissible for the righteous to lie to them to protect their property from taxation (Edersheim, op cit, p 516).

• The dead (Mar 5:35-43; Joh 11:1-46; Luk 7:14): Here was the ultimate defilement, the dead body (Lev 21:1; 22:4; Num 5:2; 9:6,10); even from this Christ did not shrink. We know he could raise the dead by a word, as he did with Lazarus. But he did not hesitate to take the dead daughter of Jairus by the hand (Mar 5:41). His was the “personal touch” of sincere love. As always, it seems, the consequences of legal “uncleanness” were ignored as irrelevant beside the greater issues of his ministry. The Lord of life came near to death, partaking of mortality, bearing the burdens of those who grieved and the curse of the law, “tasting death” on behalf of all men.

By contrast with all of the above, we find the Lord, so kind and gentle on most occasions, becoming openly aggressive in censuring the moral defilement of those who were most scrupulous to avoid legal defilement. Surely, we are tempted to think, this very “religious” (even if misguided) class deserved more diplomatic treatment at his hands. But no figure of speech was too drastic for Christ to use: They were whited sepulchres, full of dead men’s bones (Mat 23:27,28; Luk 11:44); cups clean on the outside, but filled with extortion and rapacity (Mat 23:25; Luk 11:39). The reason? It may be said there are many, for the list of charges against the Pharisees is long and varied (Mat 23:3-7,16-18,25-29,34), but certainly one reason is this: that it is dangerous to find satisfaction in any physical separation from “defilement”. “I thank thee, God, that I am not as other men” (Luk 18:11) is no basis on which to build one’s faith.

To go about preoccupied with the “sins” of others, ever mindful of how their shortcomings may reflect upon us by association, is to fight a “paper tiger”, while the true enemy goes free. “Let a man examine himself” (1Co 11:28). Those things which are outside the man cannot defile him, but that which comes out of the man, from a self-righteous heart, defiles the man (Mar 7:18,20).

How far are we really removed from the foolish prejudices and traditions of the Pharisees? Have we altogether reversed Christ’s standards, downplaying his emphasis on moral defilement — in a slow drift into the world’s thinking — and seeking to cover our inadequacies by an undue concern for legal “defilement”? We vicariously associate, through television and other media, with the worst the “world” has to offer by way of movie “stars”, sports “heroes”, and rock musicians; and, unconsciously perhaps, we absorb the spirit of this licentious and materialistic age. Then we dress in our finest clothes and drive our new automobiles to places of worship on Sunday morning, where we meticulously draw our “skirts” about us and withhold the Bread and Wine from someone who is just slightly too “sinful” or not quite well enough “informed” for our standards (‘We thank thee, Lord, that we are not like these other men’), and somehow we feel that in this we are doing God service.

We must be careful that the means by which all believers are commanded to remember the Lord’s death until he returns does not become a ritual, with supposed efficacy in the object itself, by which we establish our “purity” in a negative sense. “Negative holiness” can save no man. Neither can the proximity of a “sinner”, even one so close as to partake of the same cup, endanger our “fellowship” with one who was ever and always the friend of “sinners”, who embraced lepers and lunatics, harlots and dead bodies — yet in the best sense was still “holy, harmless, and undefiled” (Heb 7:26).

An exhortation delivered on the final day of an American Bible School.

“And when the cloud was taken up from the tabernacle, then after that the children of Israel journeyed… at the commandment of the Lord the children of Israel journeyed” (Num 9:17,18).

Brothers and sisters, for this past week we have been resting and refreshing ourselves in the presence of the Lord. We have pitched our tents together as the camp of Israel in this place. But now, as we knew it would, the time has finally come for us to go. The “cloud” has been taken up from the tabernacle, and once more we must begin our journey.

How often have we heard it said, “Oh, if only the Bible School could go on forever!” If only we just didn’t have to leave here, but could remain in this quiet, secluded place indefinitely.

Peter’s Dilemma

Peter said much the same thing one time. Once he climbed a mountain with Jesus, and there he beheld him speaking with Moses and Elijah. Peter was overcome with emotion:

“Master, it is good for us to be here!” And he was right!

This week we have stood on the “mountain” with Jesus and the Apostle Paul and Elijah and Joshua the captain of Israel. And it has been good for us to be here with Jesus, to catch a glimpse of the glory that is his, and that will be Peter’s and Paul’s and ours also.

But it would not have been good for Peter and James and John to build three tabernacles and camp indefinitely on that mountain. There was work to do, down on the plains. They had to come down from the mountain, to leave that private place of sweet fellowship with God, and to go out into the world again.

If Peter had remained on that mountain, contemplating that glorious vision, the Jews assembled at Jerusalem would never have heard his words, “Repent and be baptized!”

If Peter had remained on that mountain, the lame man would have lain daily at the gate of the Temple until he died, never having felt the powerful hand of healing.

If Peter had remained on that mountain, Cornelius and his house would never have heard the gospel call, and the door of hope would never have been flung open to the Gentiles.

Why We Must Leave

Brothers, and sisters, if we all remained here, how many of our families and friends would never have a chance to enjoy the same privilege that we have had this week, this “feast of fat things”? How good it would be, not that we remain here, but rather that we leave here with a firm resolve that, if Christ remain away, we will try our best to bring someone new back to this wonderful place next year!!

And there is another reason why we cannot remain on this spiritual “mountain”, why we cannot continue to pitch our tents in peace around the tabernacle of the Lord: Peter had to come down off the mountain in order to follow Jesus in the way. He had to leave that wonderful retreat in order to fail, and in that failure to find greater strength through the forgiveness of sins that only his Master could provide. Peter had to go back into the world before he could meet the resurrected Christ, before he could be a partaker of his Lord’s sufferings so that he might be a partaker of his glory.

And the children of Israel had to resume their wilderness trek if they, and their children, and their children’s children were to have any hope of reaching the Promised Land with Joshua.

Disciples of Christ are not made by sitting in the peaceful shade, but by struggling along the “rugged pathway”. Here, in this place, we may be well-instructed. But only out there, in the bustle and turmoil and frustrations of the world about us, can we become by experience true disciples. Only out there can we begin to put into practice, and to prove the efficacy of, the lessons we have learned this week.

And, besides, why shouldn’t we continue our journey? … because, for all we know, just over the next hill, or around the next bend, we might find ourselves in the presence of Christ, in God’s Kingdom. “The Bridegroom cometh”; we must go out to meet him!!

“The Lord is my Shepherd “

We read that God “made His own people to go forth like sheep, and guided them in the wilderness like a flock… and led them on safely, so that they feared not” (Psa 78:52,53). His pillar of cloud and fire led them on through a dangerous land, and through treacherous enemies, on their way toward the Kingdom. It is here and now, as we prepare to leave this place of peace and spiritual plenty, and resume our “wilderness journey”, that the familiar words of Psalm 23 can be to us most meaningful:

“The Lord is my shepherd…”

not just “our” shepherd collectively, but “mine” individually. Each one of us might say these words. Wherever I go, He will be there to guide me. Though all men forsake me, “and days are dark and friends are few”, yet the Lord will shepherd me. And even when I stumble and fall — especially then — He will be there to lift me up and set my feet on the path.

“I shall not want…”

True, I may lack many things that I would naturally desire, but I will lack nothing that I really need for my spiritual development. All things have been provided for my salvation, and even the lack of some things have been designed by God for my ultimate benefit (Rom 8:28). And though I have “nothing” now, as the world might count treasure, yet in Paul’s words “I possess all things” because the Lord of heaven and earth is my Shepherd, my Guide and my Savior.

“He maketh me to lie down in green pastures; He leadeth me beside the still waters; He restoreth my soul…”

Here we have rested and drunk of still waters; our “soul”, our “inner man” has been refreshed and strengthened. But now we must stand again. Now we must follow Christ in the path of righteousness. Now we must walk through the valley of the shadow of death, so that we can learn to trust in God rather than ourselves, and so that we can (as did Paul) rejoice in deliverances past, present, and future (2Co 1:9,10). When our problems are small, then we are scarcely even conscious of our need for a Savior. But when those problems, and the doubts and fears that accompany them, mount up in our lives… then we can seek — and find!! — a Savior who will bless us abundantly above all we might ever imagine. Then he will be a Savior who is as great as our trials, who delights to bless us in a myriad of ways, and whose strength finds perfection only along side our weakness.

If our lives were altogether pleasant… if there were never trials, or illnesses, or pain, or failure, or death… would we still desire the Kingdom? Why should we? It follows therefore that God tries us because He loves us. It is the mercy of God that leads us out of our idleness and into the valley of tears. For it is there only, in the “world”, that we can truly find God. It is through “tribulation” — trial, pressure, stress — that we must enter the Kingdom (Acts 14:22). These “stresses” and “pressures” are the “rod” and “staff” of the Divine Shepherd, which discipline and even “hurt” us, yet at the same time strengthen and direct us in the right paths. And thereby are we “comforted”.

Even in the dreary wilderness, with the “wild beasts”, our Shepherd prepares us a table, as He did for our fathers who came out of Egypt — causing waters to run down like rivers and raining down manna from heaven (Psalm 78:16,24). We must not complain or doubt. We must never ask, as did they, “Can God provide a table in this wilderness?” (v 19). He can, and He does! Here before us on this table are the emblems of a body dedicated and blood poured out. Here as sheep we feed on the pasture provided by the Good Shepherd. And even while the beasts of prey circle menacingly, and the shadows lengthen, we are fed in hope, the words echoing in our ears:

“Fear not, little flock, it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.”

What comfort there is, what encouragement, in these words! They keep in our minds the beautiful vision of our destination. The cloud has been taken up from the tabernacle. Let us arise! Let us pack our bags and gather our children about us. Let us renew our journey through the wilderness.

Out of 25 occurrences of “nephele”, all but three plainly mean the Cloud of the Shekinah Glory. The student should work his way through the entire list. Acts 1:9 and 1Th 4:17 are specially instructive.

But there are three of the twenty-five which do not so readily conform to this general usage:

In 2Pe 2:17, false teachers are referred to as “clouds carried with a tempest”. Jud 1:12 (ref to the above) calls them “clouds without water”. In each of these instances the Shekinah Glory idea is not out of sight. Here were men claiming divine authority for their message (as Ezekiel with his Eze 1), but in fact they were not borne along by the Holy Spirit (2Pe 1:19) but by a tempest, sweeping them away to their own destruction. Differently, Jude’s “clouds without water” implies that these men brought no true Holy Spirit blessing.

But what is to be said about the words of Jesus?: “When ye see a cloud rise out of the west, straightway ye say, There cometh a shower; and so it is.” Besides the simple literal meaning, a commonplace experience in the Holy Land, Jesus may have meant allusion to the Holy of Holies at the western end of the sanctuary enclosure (cp Psa 103:12) — the Shekinah Glory of God appearing there would be the certain herald of heavenly blessing: “a shower”.

It is important to observe that the “so great cloud of witnesses” (Heb 12:1), referring to the multitude of the faithful in Heb 11, uses a different word: “nephos”. Thus, it is not permissible to use this passage to interpret 1Th 4:17.

Author: Paul

Time: AD 61

Summary: The letter to Colosse was written in response to heresy that had been brought to Paul’s attention. The major errors that had crept into the church seemed to have been: (1) the exaltation of angels or other “elemental spirits”; (2) the emphasis on ascetic or liturgical practices thought to produce spirituality; and (3) claims to a special knowledge beyond that found in the Gospel of Christ. Paul states that these are philosophies based on human tradition and are therefore worthless. He teaches love, humility, submission to authority, and finally prayer to establish a believer in the wisdom of God.

Key verse: “See, to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the basic principles of this world rather than on Christ” (Col 2:8).

Outline

1. Introduction: Col 1:1-14
2. The supremacy of Christ: Col 1:15-23

3. Paul’s labor for the church: Col 1:24 — 2:7
4. Freedom from human regulations through life with Christ: Col 2:8-23

5. Rules for holy living: Col 3:1 – 4:6

6. Final greetings: Col 4:7-18

Rather than concluding that ‘the judgment’ cannot be taken literally (because of time constraints), perhaps the meaning of time will be collapsed around the Lord’s return. Thus, the descriptions of the judgment can still be taken on a literal level. For example, we are taught that we must each appear personally before the Lord Jesus at the judgment, and have some kind of two-way dialogue with him (Rom 14:10; 1Co 4:5; 2Co 5:10; 2Ti 4:1). If we must each appear personally before the Lord Jesus, we have two options: (1) Either time is collapsed so that we all appear before Christ individually — in what might seem to outsiders to be the merest moment of time, or (2) We appear before him in real time, in which case there must be some kind of queue, and a period of several months at least. (Some have suggested a number of years — up to 40! — for such an individual judgment.) This “judgment in real time” creates many Biblical and practical problems: ie, (1) where will thousands of waiting responsible be housed, and fed?; (2) will they be “mortal”, or in danger of dying again?; (3) will they be able to sin?; (4) will they be able to repent?… to pray?…; etc.

Thus “judgment in real time” ought to be rejected in favor of the idea that the meaning of time will be collapsed at the Lord’s coming.

Indeed, it seems that the whole process of resurrection, gathering, judgment and immortalization may take place in a split second, although it will seem far longer. If we could break this split second into real time, there would be: (a) emergence from the grave, (b) judgment involving a period of time, (c) then the righteous being grouped at Christ’s right hand, and (d) finally they would all be immortalized together.

“Come… inherit the Kingdom” is spoken to the whole group of sheep; we will be immortalized together, at the same time. If we are all judged individually in real time, this is impossible. Some would be immortalized months or years before others.

This collapsing of time at the Lord’s return would explain why “the resurrection” is sometimes used as a description of the whole process of resurrection, judgment and immortality. This was how Paul saw it (Rom 8:11; 1Co 15:42-44,52; Heb 11:35). Likewise he saw the trumpet blast as the signal of both the call to judgment (1Th 4:17) and also the moment of glorification (1Co 15:52).

A collapsing of time would also mean that the place of judgment is irrelevant. There are practical problems with the idea of judgment either in Jerusalem or Sinai. If it all happens in real time, Christ would come, raise the responsible dead, take us to (perhaps) Jerusalem, assemble us there for several months or years, and one by one grant us immortality. There seems no space for this in the Biblical description of events on the Last Days. Christ comes with the saints to save Israel from their enemies. Unless there is a secret coming of Christ to gather and judge the saints, after which he is revealed to the world, then this just isn’t possible. And the idea of a secret coming of the Lord of glory just cannot be reconciled with the clear descriptions of his coming in the New Testament. The coming of Christ in glory with the saints to establish the Kingdom is the coming of Christ.

Depending how one reads the Heb text of Zec 14:6,7, this idea of collapsed time at the Lord’s return is Biblical: “It shall come to pass in that day, that it shall not be clear in some places, and dark in other places of the world; but the day shall be one, in the knowledge of the LORD, not day, nor night… at evening time it shall be light” (AV mg).

This collapsing of time would also explain why it is impossible to construct a chronology of events in real time for the coming of Christ; the various prophecies of the Last Days just don’t seem to fit together in chronological sequence. If indeed time is collapsed, this would enable all these prophecies to come true, but not in real time. The events around Christ’s return were prefigured by those at the time of Joshua’s conquest of the land. Some of the records of his campaigns require a huge amount to have been achieved by his soldiers within a short time. “The sun stood still” may well mean that time was collapsed (Jos 10:12,13; cp Isa 28:21).

To appreciate God’s timeless perspective is one of the fundamental battles of faith; what God said has happened (our redemption is the supreme example). The ‘gap’ between His fiat and its fulfillment is only a perception of time-bound mortals. In the Kingdom, eternal life will be life without time, without these ‘gaps’, rather than life that ‘lasts’ for unending time. Understandably, given our nature, we tend to see the events of the Lord’s coming, and the Kingdom itself, from a far-too-real time-perspective. We find it hard to escape the paradigm of time, and therefore we often attempt to force God’s timeless revelation (e.g., concerning the events associated with the judgment) into our time-bound view.

An interesting possible corroboration is found in the KJV of Rev 10:6,7, where the mighty angel of God stands upon the sea and the earth and swears that “there should be time no longer (the NIV reads: ‘no more delay’)… but… the mystery of God should be finished.” And Peter, when speaking of the time leading up to the return of Christ, tells us, “With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day” (2Pe 3:8). Even now, our standard references of time are meaningless to God, because He supersedes time! In the words of Isaiah, He “inhabiteth eternity” (Isa 57:15, KJV). How much more evident will it be to us in the future when Christ returns, that God and His family exist above and outside and beyond the reach of time!

So… as a side point: it might be noted that, for the glorified saints, the reward will not only be living forever, but also escaping time altogether!

[This article is a follow-up to one written by AH, which appeared in The Christadelphian Watchman (edited by GB and NF), Sept 1995 (see Article, Judgment seat, unresolved problem).It includes correspondence from DH, originally published under “Judgment seat: a response” in The Watchman, Nov 1995 — as well as additional thoughts by GB.]