Author: P.J. Davis

In light of the Memorial Day celebrations, I’m reposting something I initially wrote as a note for Facebook last year.  May your day be a blessed time of remembrance and rest: 

How does one think about and celebrate Memorial Day in light of the Gospel? On a day that remembers those who “gave” their lives in service to this country, how does one think about such sacrifice in light of God’s word? On the one hand, the question is a bit asinine. It’s in vogue these days to question everything, especially anything that seems too pregnant with patriotism or pro-Americanism. On the other hand, the question is exactly the sort a Christian ought to ask. Because we live as God’s people in a strange land, as sojourners whose true citizenship lies in heaven, then we ought to consider how to rightly engage the ceremonies and memorials of a passing temporal kingdom.

If it ever was “impersonal” for me, Memorial Day ceased to be so in 2007. That was the year I deployed to northern Iraq, and the names from that time stay with me; not as a burden, but certainly as a memory. They include Ryan Balmer and Matt Kuglics, two men who died in Kirkuk, Iraq on 5 Jun 07. They include Dave Weiger and Nate Schuldheiss, who both perished in November 2007 near Balad Air Base, Iraq. Finally, I also remember Derek Dobogai, an Army captain who died along with thirteen others, also nearby Kirkuk, Iraq. More than most, these names remain etched in my memory; men whose lives intersected mine in one fashion or another (albeit in relatively tangential ways), and who, ten years ago, paid the final price in service of their country.

How then do I think about such sacrifice? Not all sacrifice is inherently good. With the exception of the God-man himself, Jesus, even the most altruistic of human action finds itself corrupted by human pride. Indeed, Scripture makes it clear that sacrifice apart from the worship of God is an abomination: “The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination to the Lord, but the prayer of the upright is his delight…The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination, how much more when he brings it with evil intent!” (Proverbs 15:8, 21:27). This is strong language indeed. If wickedness encompasses anything inherently opposed to God, then how should I think about those whose “ultimate sacrifice” of their lives – even in service to their country – occurred as they stood in opposition to their Creator?

And yet, along with language like this, we also hear the Bible encouraging us to acknowledge the good even of imperfect sacrifice. We hear Jesus say things like: “Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends” – John 15:13 (Note: While this statement foreshadows Jesus’ own sacrifice a few chapters forward in John, his statement suggests something profound in any similar act of self-sacrificial love). We hear stories of the Roman centurion whose Godward philanthropy benefited the Jews (Luke 7:3-5). We may even remember the sacrifice of others gladly entered into on our behalf – like a man in southwestern Saudi Arabia sitting in an airport who once directed a clearly “fish-out-of-water” stranger (namely me) toward his flight. In short, life is complicated, particularly when one tries to understand the tangled depths of humanity and its sin nature. Praise God for his wisdom that far surpasses our own!

So then, in light of this complexity, let me offer a few thoughts on how we might think well on Memorial Day:

I can be thankful that it is not mine to judge the heart of another – Rather, I can honor and rejoice over sacrifice that is prima facie “good,” leaving the ultimate judgment of any such act to the wisdom of Jesus.

I can mourn sin that makes the sacrifice of a life necessary, even as I praise God that his justice has, and will, triumph– The fact that we have a day like Memorial Day is a somber reminder of the consequences of sin.

I can remember that even warfare can be a good, holy (dare I say it), and sanctified endeavor, particularly when undertaken by a believer in submission to King Jesus – Undoubtedly this statement requires further unpacking that I won’t attempt here. Suffice it to say, it is right and good that some should study, train, and prepare for difficult service on the battlefield, even service unto death.

I can rejoice over the ways in which the character of God shines through even in sub-standard sacrifice – Laying down one’s life on behalf of another points backward to the cross, whether the one sacrificing realizes it or not.

I can let the Memorial Day of a temporal kingdom raise to mind a cross at Golgotha – Memorial Day in the present is a shadow reminder of the cross-bound memorial God’s people will celebrate for eternity.

I can be thankful for the ways in which sacrifice accomplishes the sovereign purpose of God – God works through sacrifice, often despite the mindset of the one sacrificing. I am thankful that no life is wasted in the unfolding of God’s sovereign purpose for his creation.

I can be thankful for the way in which sacrifices recalled on Memorial Day served to restrain evil – Flawed though they were, the sacrifices I remember on Memorial Day – certainly those noted above – served to restrain great evil. For that I am thankful.

Yes, Memorial Day is a complicated holiday, and our celebration of it must be similarly complicated. But nonetheless it is a day worthy of note, because what it calls to mind is worthy of honor. So, I honor and am grateful for the sacrifice of men like Ryan Balmer, Matt Kuglics, Dave Weiger, Nate Schuldheiss, and Derek Dobogai. May their families this season find the comfort of salvation in the Prince of Peace.

 

A friend of mine and I were talking today about his 5-month old son and the ever-present lack of rest in their household at the moment.  Like most infants, this budding man has yet to learn the obedience and the discipline of sleep.  Sure, sleep is “natural” to a point, but not all that natural.  If you’ve ever cared for a young child, you understand this point quite well.  Children aren’t born knowing how to sleep through the night.  It’s something that is learned, especially through the first baby-steps of parental discipline.

As we talked, it struck me…Learning to “rest” is the first act of obedient discipleship in response to God – in response to how he has created our bodies to work; in response to the authorities he has placed in our lives; in response to his sovereign care and keeping.  The first step of submitting our wills begins as an “unthinking” (I say that tongue-in-cheek) infant who learns to rest through the night.  Ironically, learning to “rest” is also, essentially, the last and greatest act of obedient discipleship to God.  We learn to rest through adulthood, into old age, and even into death itself – to rest in God’s justifying and sanctifying work on our behalf; to rest in God’s plan for each day; to rest in God’s sovereign ordination of each stage in our life, come what may.  We begin life learning to rest, and we end life learning to rest.  I suppose this shouldn’t be any great surprise. After all, Adam and Eve’s rebellion against God was a defiant act of “doing” when they should have been “resting.”

In a manner of speaking then, discipleship in the footsteps of Jesus means learning to love and embrace Psalm 46:10 – Be still, and know that I am God.  I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!

 Oh Lord, teach me to rest!

Jesus Was God Long Before Nicaea!: Another Cool Point from Archaeology 

Did you know that the earliest Christians worshipped Jesus as God?  Did you know that they did so long before the “church,” at the Council of Nicaea in A.D. 325, first formally articulated its view as to Jesus’ divinity? I realize my opening sentence here might sound like an elementary statement to many (particularly since we see such worship clearly demonstrated in the New Testament), but one skeptical charge against Christianity suggests that the church didn’t view Jesus as God until nearly 300 years after its founding.  Recently I watched episode #3 of “Digging for Truth,” a half-hour program created by the Associates for Biblical Research.  The first segment of this episode discusses a mosaic uncovered in Israel that clearly demonstrates Christians’ pre-Nicaea understanding of Jesus as God.  Take nine minutes and watch this (see link above).  I think you’ll be edified by the experience.

Of all the various “issue-based” conversations current in the broader evangelical church in America today, it seems that race, racism, and racial equality remain front-and-center.  For instance, this year’s Evangelical Free Church in America (EFCA) Theology Conference had much to say about these issues.  To the degree that I’ve observed, listened to, or participated in the conversation surrounding race, I’ve found it difficult to engage well.  Beyond the fact that I certainly wrestle with my own sin, human-finitude, and blind-spots, I also wrestle with frustration over the way in which discussion often proceeds.  I won’t try to unpack here all of what I mean by “frustration.”  If you’re curious, let’s talk in person.  Instead, what I’d like to do is point you to a very helpful summary article by Kevin DeYoung, posted this morning on the Gospel Coalition website: “Racial Reconciliation: What We (Mostly, Almost) All Agree On, and What We (Likely) Still Don’t Agree On.”  I really appreciate how DeYoung reviews and frames the multiple issues and questions at stake.  His approach helps me to better articulate some of my frustration for the way in which the conversation seems to flow at times.  It also encourages me that my concerns and questions are not mine alone.  Finally, DeYoung does an excellent job of reminding me that questions of race, racism, racial equality, and racial reconciliation are real, important, and pertinent to the church at this moment in history.  I wonder what Jesus is doing by leading us, his flock, into this conversation at this point in time.  What is he preparing us for?  How do we need to strengthen relationships, tear down walls, and build bridges for work that lies ahead?

 

 

Among the early extra-biblical historical sources that mention Jesus Christ, a particularly fascinating example is a reference in the writings of the 1^st century Jewish historian, Flavius Josephus (Note: Josephus was a hesitant leader in the A.D. 66-70 Jewish uprising against Roman rule.  In A.D. 67, the Romans defeated forces under Josephus in Galilee, whereupon this former military man wisely changed careers.  He eventually became a historian sympathetic to his captors.  The work I reference below is my source for all the biographical details in this post):

“Now, there was about this time Jesus, a wise man, if it be lawful to call him a man, for he was a doer of wonderful works – a teacher of such men as receive the truth with pleasure.  He drew over to him many of the Jews, and many of the Gentiles.  He was [the] Christ; and when Pilate, at the suggestion of the principal men amongst us, had condemned him to the cross, those that loved him at the first did not forsake him, for he appeared to them alive again the third day, as the divine prophets had foretold these and ten thousand other wonderful things concerning him; and the tribe of Christians, so named from him, are not extinct to this day.” [Antiquities 18.3.3, in William Whiston, trans., The Works of Josephus (Peabody, MA: Hendrickson, 1987), 480.]

This one paragraph provides a stunning account of what Josephus (who was not a Christian) knew concerning Jesus.  Consider this:

1. Josephus knew the bare facts of the Gospel – Jesus lived, Jesus died, Jesus lived again.

 

2. Josephus, by recording the basic storyline in an uncontested manner, confirms the historical context that we read in the Gospels – 1) Jesus undertook a public ministry that gathered Jews and Gentiles alike; 2) Pontius Pilate crucified Jesus at the instigation of the Jewish leaders.

 

3. Josephus understood the Christian witness of Jesus as God’s Messiah and the fulfiller of Old Testament prophecy.

 

4. Josephus apparently knew that Jesus’ followers believed him to be more than a mere man (Note: Observe this historian’s caveat, “if it be lawful to call him a man”). Notice how a non-Christian reflects the Christian belief concerning Jesus’ divinity long before the Nicene Creeds of A.D. 325 and A.D. 383.

 

5. Josephus knew of accounts concerning Jesus’ miracles.

 

6. Josephus attests to the fact that Jesus’ message was not exclusive to Jews only. Indeed, the transcultural applicability of the Gospel is a prominent theme in the New Testament (see the Gospel of Luke for instance).

 

In other words, Josephus knew much of Christian truth even before, or right as, the New Testament coalesced into its eventual canonical form.  This suggests acute awareness by Josephus both of Christian oral tradition, and Christian writings.  Perhaps the fact that he lived his writing days in Rome gave Josephus (who died circa A.D. 100) access to much of what became the finalized Bible.  Certainly, he learned a great deal from the witness of Christians in the Roman church.

Regardless of how he learned what he learned, this one paragraph from Josephus is a remarkable witness to what the Christian church believed about Jesus from its very beginning!

He is risen!  He is risen indeed!

Today’s post notes three compelling points from biblical archeology:

To begin, I highly encourage you to spend 12 minutes of your day watching this YouTube video regarding the prophet Isaiah: “Archeological Proof of the Prophet Isaiah?”  In short, it seems highly likely that excavators in Jerusalem uncovered archeological evidence of Isaiah and his role during the reign of King Hezekiah.

Second, last Sunday I had the chance to preach from Luke 3:1-6.  If you’d like, you can listen to the sermon here.  Interestingly, in verses 1-2a of chapter 3, Luke gives his readers a substantive list of historical figures.  Two of those mentioned are Pontius Pilate, the Roman prefect (or governor) of Judea at the time of Jesus’ public ministry, and Caiaphas, the Jewish high priest during the same period.  I find it fascinating that both figures appear in the archeological record outside of the Bible itself:

Every so often, the music and the lyrics of a song combine to make it truly powerful.  Every so often, Hollywood comes up with something that is truly remarkable.  Lately, I think both have happened…

Though I haven’t seen the movie (and don’t really want to), I’ve been profoundly struck by the song “From Now On,” part of the current film, The Greatest Showman.  Regardless of what you think about the movie (assuming you’ve seen it), the song has a merit all its own.  Perhaps without realizing it, “From Now On” reflects deep, life-changing truth.  In fact, it’s a song of repentance.  Let me see if I can demonstrate what I mean by walking through the lyrics, combined with a bit of commentary:

___________________________________

I saw the sun begin to dim, and felt that winter wind blow cold

A man learns who is there for him when the glitter fades and the walls won’t hold

Cause from then, rubble, what remains can only be what’s true

If all was lost, there’s more I gained, cause it led me back to you

(Here’s a man faced with the apparent ruins of his life.  And yet, amidst the crumbled edifice of worldly success, there’s something still standing…something worth far more than everything he thinks he has lost…and it’s a person.)

 

From now on, these eyes will not be blinded by the light

From now on, what’s waited till tomorrow starts tonight…tonight

Let this promise in me start like an anthem from in my heart

From now on…from now on

(Faced with truth, our singer responds with new resolve.  In fact, he responds with repentance.  Repentance means to turn around – to turn away from one orientation, from one goal, from one way of life, from a false god – and to head in the opposite direction.  Notice how pressing this repentance feels to our singer.  It can’t wait until tomorrow.  Repentance starts right now.  This is what we call a moment of conversion.  Notice also, this repentance can’t be merely superficial.  In order to be real, it must begin from the heart.)

 

I drink champagne with kings and queens, the politicians praise my name

But those were someone else’s dreams, the pitfalls of a man I became

For years and years, I chased their cheers, the crazy speed of always needing more

But when I stop and see you here, I remember who all this was for

(With this stanza, we hear more about the false gods who previously dominated our singer’s life.  It all looked good for the moment, but hob-knobbing with royalty and powerbrokers proved hollow and fruitless.  In fact, this man realizes that the life he so longed for was nothing but a pitfall, even a deadly addiction.  What a stunning moment of realization!)   

 

And from now on, these eyes will not be blinded by the light

From now on, what’s waited till tomorrow starts tonight…it starts tonight

And let this promise in me start like an anthem in my heart

From now on…from now on…from now on

(Once again, we hear an expression of commitment, a resolve to walk anew from this moment forward.  It is, if anything, an even stronger expression of newness than the first time around.)

 

[Joined by the choir]

And we will come back home

And we will come back home

Home, again

(As our singer repents, his heart swells, such that his voice alone can no longer give full expression to what’s inside.  Rather, he needs an entire choir to join him.  As they together sing, the theme moves from repentance itself to the beautiful end of repentance, namely home). 

 

From now on…Yes

___________________________________

Hugh Jackman and an accompanying group of singers repeat and revisit these lyrics, beautifully melding them together, all the while carried through on the wings of wonderful music.  I highly recommend paying the $1.99 it will cost you to purchase “From Now On” via I-Tunes.  Additionally, take six minutes and watch this YouTube account of a practice session during the song’s making.  I can’t help but think that the life, the vibrancy, the joy you see in the video reflects people whose hearts are responding to a vision of repentance; to the God-given joy of repentance…even if they don’t know it…even if they see it from a distance.  They’re tasting a little of the freedom that lies on the other side of repentance, and it’s infectiously intoxicating.

Now, of course this song isn’t perfect…it’s still far too “me” centric – “A man learns who is there for him when the glitter fades…”  But, nonetheless, this work of art goes a long way down the road of biblical truth.  It paints the majestic picture of a man awakening to his real need, responding in repentance, and looking forward to the peace of home.  If you are familiar with the Bible’s grand narrative of creation, fall, redemption, and restoration, then you’ll know why such a storyline in song rings so powerfully.  What this song encapsulates – albeit in a shadow-like fashion – is the beginnings of the Gospel.  There’s one key figure missing, and that’s God himself.  God the Father, who ordains a moment of utter brokenness in order to awaken his child to their sin and need; God the Son, whose life, death on the cross, and resurrection makes forgiveness of sin and repentance possible; God the Holy Spirit, who brings us to the point of singing such an anthem as this; God, who in his Triune unity, even now prepares a final home for those who, by grace through faith, follow Jesus Christ.

I don’t know if Hollywood understood what it was doing with such a song, but “From Now On” is a wonderful invitation.  It’s a wonderful invitation to come and discover the truth at which the song so powerfully hints.  Perhaps in this season of Lent (a season often associated with repentance) you might accept the invitation, repent of the cheers you chase, and discover in God’s Word the person who remains standing amid the rubble of your life…his name is Jesus.

One of the blogs I subscribe to recently included a post that quoted this excerpt from an article in Crux (a Catholic magazine that you can find here):

Fourth, the Vatican also understands that China is rich with missionary potential, though it sometimes seems to struggle to know what to do about it.

Many experts regard China as the world’s last truly competitive spiritual marketplace. No matter what happens, Christianity in some form almost certainly will remain the majority faith in Europe and North America, Hinduism will be the majority in India, Islam the majority in the Middle East, and Africa will be divided between Islam and Christianity with significant pockets of indigenous religious practice. [Note: The original article does not bold this last sentence.  That is my doing.]

Now, to be fair, I understand (I think) what the author means by his last sentence.  And yet, still I want to stand up and shout, “No!”  Are we really ready to surrender Europe and North America to the half-baked, Gospel-less “Christianity” that too often passes as the “majority faith.”  Are we ready to turn over India to Hinduism (or its close cousin, Buddhism), the Middle East to Islam, and large swaths of Africa to a mix of Islam, animism, and the ridiculous “Prosperity Gospel.”  Regardless of one’s view concerning eschatology, the true Gospel imperative expressed in passages like Matthew 28:18-20 is clear, and it is militant (in the best of senses).  We are to make disciples of Jesus from those of every nation (i.e. people group).  There is no part of the world that we can, or should, cede to the ravages of Satan.  While I can be charitable as to the larger intent of this author, I find his manner of expression wonderfully provoking.  God forbid that we, Jesus’ church, should ever conclude that anything other than total surrender to Christ will ever finally characterize a portion of this globe.

One final thought.  I’m encouraged in my response to the excerpt above by this realization: In God’s providence, the false religions that seem so dominant now may someday, even before Jesus returns, become only relics of history.  Where are the once dominant gods of the Egyptians, the Assyrians, the Babylonians, or the Canaanite peoples of present day Israel?  They’re now nothing more than artifacts, buried in the sand for archaeologists to discover, or languishing in ancient texts for anthropologists or philologists to study (and yes, such study can be a very good undertaking).  Indeed, you can travel to any number of museums around the world and look with interest at the worthless idols that once held such sway over the hearts and minds of human beings like you and me.

Why would we assume that Islam, or Hinduism, or Buddhism, or any other “ism” will not one day walk the same road as these derelict religious systems?  Remember, prior to about 500 B.C., there was no such thing as Buddhism.  Muhammad didn’t come along until the 600’s A.D.  Even the amorphous Hinduism, despite a long oral tradition, didn’t exist in any written form until probably the third century B.C. at the earliest.¹   My point is this: The false religious systems raised up against the knowledge of God that we contend with now did not always exist.  They are only the latest manifestation of humanity’s response to Satan’s age-old deceitful temptation: “Did God really say…”

 

1. I’m helped on the point concerning Hinduism by a quick look at the much maligned (as an academic source) Wikipedia entry on the Rig Veda, and, somewhat more “appropriately,” by Bradley K. Hawkins’ Asian Religions: An Illustrated Introduction.