Author: Jimmy Day

After converting from atheism to Christianity in my late teens and early 20s, I joined a small, Pentecostal church in Western Australia. About 20 to 30 people gathered each week. They were lovely people, and I made some good friends, but the pastor was an evangelist. One thing I’ve learned about evangelists is they make great evangelists but often lousy pastors.

The church was old-school Pentecostal, and the women wore hats and head coverings and long hair, whereas the men had short hair because that’s what the Bible clearly taught! And then, in 1979 in walks Rob Buckingham with his long blond hair, singlet and boardies, and the pastor didn’t know what to do with him! Over the next few weeks and months, the pressure was on to “cut your hair and buy a suit.” I eventually succumbed but not happily. I now realise that the pastor’s advice was based on an incorrect understanding of the Bible.

Does it really say that?

So, let’s take a look at what Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 11:

“Every man who prays or prophesies with long hair dishonours his head. But every woman who prays or prophesies with no covering of hair dishonours her head—she is just like one of the “shorn women.” If a woman has no covering, let her be for now with short hair; but since it is a disgrace for a woman to have her hair shorn or shaved, she should grow it again. A man ought not to have long hair.” [1]

In this chapter, Paul begins his instructions on orderly worship when the believers gather. [2] He starts by addressing head coverings and hair length, and it’s vital that we understand the cultural and historical background.

In the first century world, a woman’s hair was considered an object of lust, and so it was right for her to cover her head when in worship – this is still the case in some countries and cultures today but is not an issue in most western countries.

Paul’s support for women to wear head coverings was also a statement about economic equality. Wealthy women could afford elaborate hairstyles but the poorer women could not. To counter this disparity Paul suggests a custom of all women covering their heads so as not to cause the less fortunate members of the church to feel inferior – a proposal of revolutionary justice in the first-century world.

Along with head coverings, Paul also addresses hair length – long hair for women and short hair for men – just like my old church did in Western Australia. What our pastor didn’t realise, and thus didn’t teach, was that male prostitutes in Corinth identified themselves by wearing their hair long, and female prostitutes shaved their heads or had short hair. These were the so-called sacred prostitutes, employed by the Temple of Aphrodite in Corinth, who were often freed slaves that were dedicated to their gods for sacred sexual rites.

As we know from the “that is what some of you were” statement in 1 Corinthians 6, [3] there were former prostitutes in the Corinthian church. These men and women had become Christians and were thus no longer to identify with their previous immoral life. For this reason, the apostle encourages women to grow their hair long and for the men to wear their hair short. Such instructions do not apply in most situations today.

Notice also how Paul, in 1 Corinthians 11, teaches that women were encouraged to pray and prophesy in the Corinthian church, but in chapter 14 he writes, “Women should remain silent in the churches. They are not allowed to speak, but must be in submission, as the Law says. If they want to inquire about something, they should ask their own husbands at home; for it is disgraceful for a woman to speak in the church.” How do we explain this apparent contradiction?

Always check the context

On closer inspection of the context and culture of these verses, it becomes evident what the Apostle Paul was addressing. The Corinthian church was out of control, gripped with carnality, lawsuits, immorality and false teaching. People were getting drunk during the Lord’s Supper, and their church meetings were in a mess with everyone competing for a chance to use the gifts of the Holy Spirit. It’s with this in mind that these verses in 1 Corinthians are to be understood: “If they want to inquire about something, they should ask their own husbands at home.” It seems that some women in the church were asking their husbands questions during the teaching of the Word and, this too, was disrupting the worship service.

The culture in which a church finds itself also has a significant bearing on the matter. Tony Campolo says, “If the existence of women preachers created a barrier to non-Christians coming into faith, then it was right for women to refrain from being preachers.  In today’s world… keeping women out of pulpits is having a negative effect upon the propagation of the gospel throughout the outside world, and therefore the policy on the matter which was in place in the past should be set aside.” [4]

If we were to take these verses literally we would disqualify all women from any vocal ministry in the church. That would include teaching children, youth leadership, speaking at women’s meetings, being missionaries, singing in the church, praying in prayer meetings and so on. So, women ARE allowed to speak in the church! The “church” being wherever believers gather. But, as per Paul’s final words in 1 Cor. 14, “Let all things be done decently and in order.”

 

[1] 1 Cor. 11:4-7

[2] 1 Corinthians chapters 11 to 14 inclusive

[3] 1 Cor. 6:9-11

[4] 20 Hot Potatoes Christians are afraid to touch, Tony Campolo, 1988 (Page 39)

Despite the media suppression order, many of us were well aware that George Pell was found guilty on December 11th last year in a unanimous Jury decision. Pell was found guilty on five charges – one charge of sexual penetration of a child under 16 and four of indecent acts with a child. The abuse happened in the 1990s at St. Patrick’s Cathedral while Pell was Archbishop of Melbourne.

There are others who have come forward to accuse George Pell of abusing them, about whom the general public will never hear. Some victims don’t want to go public for all kinds of reasons. [1] What we know from other cases is that those who do come forward are usually just the tip of the iceberg.

George Pell is due to be sentenced on March 13th, but was taken into custody yesterday (February 27th). The offenses carry a maximum jail term of ten years. George Pell maintains his innocence and his legal team has indicated that he will appeal the conviction.

One of the boys Pell abused was just 13 at the time. The following year he turned to drug use and was diagnosed with PTSD and depression. Sadly, this young man died from a heroin overdose when he was 30. There are tens of thousands of stories like this from children and adults who have been abused by priests, ministers, teachers, and others in positions of authority for decades in many nations.

Response to Andrew Bolt

Journalist Andrew Bolt has spoken out against Pell’s conviction stating that one of Pell’s abuse victims, now dead after a heroin overdose, denied being abused by a priest when asked by his mother. Bolt also said the other victim who gave evidence in court did not speak about the incident for many years. [2] What Andrew needs to understand is that the vast majority of abuse victims NEVER come forward. The number one reason for this is the shame they feel as a result of their experience. Only one in seven female adults who were victims of sexual abuse report the abuse. It is even lower for men. Only one in ten children report sexual abuse while they are children. The recent Royal Commission found that it took on average 23 years to report child sexual abuse, and longer again for men who take an average of 27 years.

What about the victims?

I’ve closely followed the Royal Commission into institutional responses to child sexual abuse and, like most people, I’ve been horrified by what I’ve heard. In past decades we were just unaware of the extent of the harm (sexual or otherwise) perpetrated in our schools, churches, orphanages and other institutions. I am so glad these things have now been brought into the light, and many of the abusers have been found guilty and justly punished.

My heart goes out to those who have suffered abuse at the hands of those who should have been their protectors. I cannot imagine the fear faced by young children knowing they were powerless to stay safe from adults who abused them or from others who would just not listen to their cries for help.

It’s alright to be angry

I understand the anger felt by the victims and their families. I am angry too, and so is God. The Bible continually calls upon those who follow Jesus to defend the widows and orphans, the children and the marginalised. Those who say they follow Jesus and yet use their power to abuse the powerless will ultimately suffer severe judgement. The prophet Isaiah wrote, “Woe to those who enact evil statutes and to those who constantly record unjust decisions, so as to deprive the needy of justice and rob the poor of My people of their rights, so that widows may be their spoil and that they may plunder the orphans. Now, what will you do in the day of punishment, and in the devastation which will come from afar? To whom will you flee for help?” [3]

Jesus put it this way, “But if anyone causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to stumble, it would be better for him to have a large millstone hung around his neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea.” [4]

If you’re angry with God or the church or both, I encourage you to express it in healthy ways. God is not put off by your resentment; in fact, some of the Bible’s authors strongly verbalise their anger and questions to God ~ why have you allowed this to happen to me? Where were you when I was suffering? How long are you going to wait until you help me? Why are you permitting others to hurt me? Read the Psalms, and you’ll find many of these questions and accusations from the writers, and God seems quite comfortable with people expressing themselves to him in this way. I urge you to process your feelings with God and grow closer to him as a result.

Other Considerations

Another thing that’s worth considering is that the presence of a counterfeit means that the genuine article must also exist. No one would make a counterfeit $7 note because there’s no such thing. The presence of phony and abusive priests and ministers, as tragic as that is, also points to the fact that most men and woman in these positions are not fake, they’re the real deal.

I encourage you to look for a church community that is safe, one that has proper processes and policies in place to protect all people, especially children and the vulnerable. While no church is perfect, it is possible to find a community of believers where you can grow in your faith and contribute to making the world a better place. It’s also in a community that you can find a measure of healing as well as the strength to live beyond what has happened in your past.

And if you have offended by sexually abused children (or adults) I encourage you to come forward, not only to receive justice but also to get help. The abuser has invariably been abused and there is support available.

If you are struggling, please call Lifeline on 13 11 14 or the LightFM Careline on 9583 2273.

 

 

[1] Most victims of abuse do not make themselves known. Some have already dealt with the effects of abuse on their own; others don’t want to drag all the painful memories up again. Some don’t want their identity known or don’t want to go to court. Other victims think they are the only ones who experienced abuse, and it’s not until someone else comes forward that they realise they’re not the only one. That is why we often see others claim to be victims of abuse once one person has told their story. Then there’s the very real effect of Stockholm Syndrome, where the victim develops feelings of trust or affection towards a captor.

[2] https://www.news.com.au/national/andrew-bolt-says-cardinal-george-pell-was-fasely-convicted-of-sexually-abusing-two-boys/news-story/093735c7e28d42350460f05d0aca7b00

[3] Isaiah 10:1-3

[4] Matthew 18:6

 

During the early months of Jesus’ ministry, he was seen as a teacher (Rabbi) who travelled around the Galilean countryside teaching in their synagogues. People loved Jesus right from the start. His message was fresh and insightful and often came with a demonstration of the power of God in signs, wonders, and miracles.

On one particular occasion, Jesus returned to Nazareth, the small rural town of about 400 people where he had been brought up. “On the Sabbath day, he went into the synagogue, as was his custom. He stood up to read, and the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was handed to him. Unrolling it, he found the place where it is written: ‘The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favour.’ Then he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant and sat down. The eyes of everyone in the synagogue were fastened on him. He began by saying to them, “Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing” (Luke 4:14-21).

The eyes of everyone in the synagogue were fastened on Jesus for a couple of reasons. Firstly, he was teaching them from the Scriptures, so they were focused on him and secondly, Jesus had stopped reading halfway through a sentence, and they probably wondered why.

Focus on the Good

We don’t know what Jesus taught the people that day. For whatever reason Luke didn’t deem it essential to record the sermon, just the text, and to let us know that Jesus had told the people that this 700-year-old portion of the Hebrew Bible was fulfilled in their hearing on that day!  Wow!

The fact that Jesus stopped reading the Isaiah prophecy halfway through a sentence was very profound. Those in the congregation who knew their scriptures well would have realised that Jesus didn’t complete Isaiah’s sentence: “to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favour and the day of vengeance of our God.” There’s no comma or full stop after the word “favour”.  Jesus just stopped reading, rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant and sat down.

Jesus came to declare the beginning of a period known as “the year of the Lord’s favour.” It’s worth noting that favour is spoken of as a Year whereas vengeance is a Day. These are symbolic rather than real periods, but it’s encouraging that favour lasts a long time whereas vengeance or judgement passes quickly. Jesus didn’t come to bring judgement – he warns of it as a future event, but his emphasis is on the favour, which is the good news, the gospel.

To realise more deeply what Jesus is referring to, it’s helpful to have some understanding of the Hebrew calendar. The Torah mandated a seven-year agricultural cycle for the land of Israel, something which is still observed in contemporary Judaism (Lev 25:10). Every seventh year was to be a Sabbatical year in which the land was rested. No ploughing, sowing or harvesting was to be undertaken. The fields would rest and then be ready to produce crops from the next year, and the cycle would begin again. Then every fiftieth year was to be a Year of Jubilee (or year of the Lord’s favour). It was a sacred time of freedom and celebration when everyone received back their original property, non-commercial debts were cancelled, and slaves would return home to their families. Clearly, this was very GOOD NEWS for many people.

A Modern Jubilee

In modern terms, the closest thing we have to a jubilee is an amnesty. In 1996 the Howard government responded to the Port Arthur massacre by allowing owners of illegal firearms to hand in weapons without penalty. “All up, more than 700,000 guns were removed from the community and destroyed. No other nation had ever attempted anything on this scale” (The Age). More than 50,000 guns were collected at the second amnesty in 2017. Usually possessing an illegal firearm would incur a penalty, but not during an amnesty. That’s what Jesus declared by his statement about the year of the Lord’s favour – a time when we can literally hand over all our sins, and mistakes (that would usually incur a punishment) with no questions asked and no penalty to pay. That’s the time we’re in right now – living in God’s favour; our debts have been cancelled, our sins are forgiven, and past offences are forgotten or overlooked.

The year of God’s favour is a whole new age in which God lifts his people out of their distress. If you are a follower of Jesus, you are continually living in his favour. While I was meditating on this a few days ago, the Holy Spirit impressed upon me that Bayside Church is coming into a Year of Favour – not 365 days but rather a new beginning, a fresh start. Christie and I are so excited about this. We’ve shared it with the church board and staff, and now I share it with you too. May I encourage you to draw close to your church at this time and benefit from all the Lord is doing.

I’ve always held the greatest respect for Imran Khan.  He was a fantastic cricketer and cricket captain, and well known for his philanthropic work especially building and developing the Shaukat Khanum Memorial Cancer Hospital and Research Centre; to make cancer treatment accessible to every citizen of Pakistan.

Since August this year, Imran Khan has been Prime Minister of Pakistan, with a focus on making the country a humanitarian state that seeks to elevate the standards of living of the less fortunate and where everyone is equal under the law.  His Party aims to create a welfare state that gives attention to education, health, and employment. It promotes freedom of thought and works against religious discrimination – and that’s why what Imran Khan said last week is confusing.

While addressing a conference in Islamabad on the birthday anniversary of Prophet Muhammad on Tuesday, he said, “Moses got some mention, but Jesus Christ has no mention in human history.” [1] Khan’s statement is concerning for a couple of reasons. Firstly, it works against his party’s platform of working against religious discrimination and secondly, it’s completely false.

Inconsistent With Reality

Pakistan’s strict Blasphemy Laws have recently been in the news again highlighted by the case of Asia Bibi, “a Christian woman from a Punjab village who in 2010 got into an altercation with some Muslim women and was later accused by them of having blasphemed.”[2]  She’s now been acquitted but is in hiding for fear of her life.

Pakistan is the fifth worst persecuting nation in the world and is “the most violent country for Christians. Islamic extremists attack churches.  Christians are abducted, forced to marry Muslims and even killed for their faith. Many are forced into hiding. The government doesn’t usually intervene.”[3]  Surely Imran Khan’s statement about Jesus will do nothing to help the already desperate challenges faced by Christians in Pakistan.

Jesus in History

Imran Khan’s assertion that Jesus Christ has no mention in human history is completely false.  First Century historian, Josephus, wrote of Jesus in his Jewish Antiquities in AD 93, “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 both 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.”[4]

The Roman historian Cornelius Tacitus alludes to the death of Christ, “Christus [Christ], the founder of the name [Christian], was put to death by Pontius Pilate, procurator of Judea in the reign of Tiberius” (Annals XV: 44).

Suetonius, the Roman historian and court official during the reign of Emperor Hadrian wrote in his Life of Claudius: “As the Jews were making constant disturbances at the instigation of Chrestus [Christ], he expelled them from Rome” (Life of Claudius 25.4).

Tallus was a secular historian who, in AD52, wrote a history of the Eastern Mediterranean from the Trojan War to his own time. The document no longer exists but other writers like Julius Africanus, who wrote around AD221, quoted it. He cites Tallus’ comments about the darkness that enveloped the land during the late afternoon hours when Jesus died on the cross. Julius wrote: “Tallus, in the third book of his histories, explains away this darkness as an eclipse of the sun unreasonably, as it seems to me (unreasonably of course, because a solar eclipse could not take place at the time of the full moon, and it was at the season of the Paschal full moon that Christ died)” (Julius Africanus, Chronography, 18.1).

Mara Bar-Serapion was a stoic Syrian philosopher who wrote a letter from prison to his son about AD70. He compares Jesus to the philosophers Socrates and Pythagoras.

Lucian, the Greek satirist in the latter half of the 2nd century, spoke scornfully of Christ and the Christians but never argued that Jesus didn’t exist. “The Christians, you know, worship a man to this day the distinguished personage who introduced their novel rites, and was crucified on that account …” (The Death of Peregrine, 11-13).

The Babylonian Talmud states: “It has been taught: On the eve of Passover they hanged Yeshu [Jesus]…they hanged him on the eve of Passover.”  Hanged is another way of referring to a crucifixion (Luke 23:39 and Galatians 3:13).

Add to all this the recent discovery of hand-struck coins minted sometime between 33-47AD which have images and depictions of Jesus Christ – many which correlates to popular Biblical events including Jesus healing the blind man, Jesus raising Jairus’ daughter from the dead and Jesus being bound and dragged on His way to Pontius Pilate.

There are plenty of mentions of Jesus Christ in human history.  Imran Khan could not have been more wrong.  Islam’s Holy Scriptures also attest to the existence of Jesus,

“in the 114 chapters of the Quran … Jesus (Isa) is mentioned directly and indirectly 187 times in 93 verses.”[5]

I hope that Imran Khan will correct his false statement, but I won’t be holding my breath. In the meantime, please remember the precious Christians of Pakistan, pray for them and pray for their persecutors too.

 

[1] https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/pakistan/pakistan-pm-imran-khan-stirs-controversy-over-jesus/articleshow/66754025.cms?from=mdr

[2] https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-35910331

[3] https://www.opendoors.org.au/persecuted-christians/world-watch-list/

[4] https://baysidechurch.com.au/jesus-a-really-historical-person/

[5] https://baysidechurch.com.au/jesus-in-the-quran/

 

 

There’s no doubt that members of the Bali Nine were guilty.  Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran were both given the death sentence, Renee Lawrence received twenty years and the rest are serving life.  Andrew and Myuran were executed just after midnight on 29 April 2015.

For my wife Christie and I (and many others) it’s still hard to believe that our dear friends are no longer with us.  However, we are encouraged by their legacy that lives on in the continuance of the projects they pioneered, as well as the lives of hundreds of people they helped rehabilitate.  This legacy is beautifully portrayed in a new book, The Pastor and the Painter by Cindy Wockner,[1] and also by the movie, Guilty, which chronicles Myuran’s final 72 hours.[2]

Guilty will be screened in cinemas across Australia on 10 October, The World Day Against the Death Penalty, to raise awareness of the plight of those on death row and the suffering that is inflicted on their families. [3]

Speaking for the Voiceless 

Both Andrew and Myuran were fiercely opposed to the death penalty and asked their family and friends to continue to advocate against it.  That is why Christie and I keep speaking out whenever we have the opportunity to do so.  The 16th World Day Against the Death Penalty on 10 October “aims at raising awareness on the inhumane living conditions of people sentenced to death,” and rightly so.[4]

Death row prisoners experience solitary confinement in the United States and overcrowded conditions in many African and Asian countries.  “Very often, death row prisoners become human beings on which the society does not invest anymore, as if, even before being executed, they were no longer alive, they were no longer considered as human beings.”[5]

By the end of last year, at least 21,919 people were known to be on death row.  Many of these people were sentenced at trials that didn’t meet international “Fair Trial” standards.  This included extraction of confessions through torture and other forms of ill-treatment and so capital punishment isn’t just a matter of being tough on crime as some suggest, it’s an issue of gross abuses of human rights.

China continues to be the world’s worst executioner where thousands of people are thought to be killed every year. Apart from China, 84% of executions last year were carried out in four countries: Iran, Saudi Arabia, Iraq and Pakistan.  “Across Asia Pacific, the death penalty was extensively used for offences that did not meet the threshold of the “most serious crimes”, going against international law.” [6]

Why I Stand Against It

And so, for these and other reasons I will continue to advocate against the death penalty:

  • It is irreversible: it carries the risk of executing someone who is innocent.
  • It is unfair: it is used disproportionately against the poor, people with intellectual or mental disabilities and minority groups; and denies any possibility of rehabilitation. It also punishes the innocent families of those killed.
  • It is ineffective: it does not act as a deterrent. For example, Indonesia’s drug problem is getting worse in spite of its executions.[7]
  • It is costly: in western countries like the USA, it is cheaper to keep someone in jail for the rest of their life than to have them executed.

I’m so proud of the Australian government’s initiative to abolish the death penalty worldwide.  “Australia opposes the death penalty in all circumstances for all people.  We support the universal abolition of the death penalty and are committed to pursuing this goal through all the avenues available to us.” [8]

If you want to make a difference, take some time to read Australia’s Strategy for Abolition of the Death Penalty, and contact your local Federal Member to thank them for their stand on this issue.  I also encourage you to book into GUILTY on October 10th at either Village Cinema Southland, or Village Cinema Karingal.  At the Southland screening, I’ll be interviewing Julian McMahon and Christie Buckingham before the film starts.

 

[1] https://www.hachette.com.au/cindy-wockner/the-pastor-and-the-painter

[2] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-fG9LsQRCv4

[3] https://au.demand.film/guilty/

[4] http://www.worldcoalition.org/worldday.html

[5] Ibid

[6] https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2018/04/death-penalty-facts-and-figures-2017/

[7] https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/article/2120688/why-indonesias-drugs-problem-getting-worse-despite-shoot-sight-orders-and

[8] https://dfat.gov.au/international-relations/themes/human-rights/Pages/australias-strategy-for-abolition-of-the-death-penalty.aspx

 

WARNING: Please be advised that this blog contains quotes with explicit language.  

Dear Ariana,

I know that I’m not in your target audience but, because I’m the dad of three daughters I kinda am.  My eldest girls, Paris and Gigi, loved you as Cat Valentine on Victorious and so, being a great dad, I would sit and watch it with them.  They were 11 and eight at the time, and they adored you.  Our youngest was just a baby in 2009, but she’s now ten, and you’re a hero to her.  She loves your music, and herein lies the problem.

Ariana, you’ve achieved your fame (and accompanying fortune) on the back of adoring young female fans.  So, what’s the deal with the new album, Sweetener?  There’s very little that’s sweet about it.  Trinity, our youngest, was hanging out for your new album but, when it was released, we found that all but one track was marked “explicit” – as if there isn’t enough of that sort of stuff on the pop charts already.  Twenty-eight of the current Top 50 songs in Australia are explicit, and many of the others contain themes that are unsuitable for a 10-year-old to be exposed to.  Children’s innocence lasts for such a short period of time, why do we want to rob them of this amazing time in their lives?

Your current hit, Breathin’, is one of those 28 explicit songs in the charts.  The content of the song seems like an honest cry for help from someone who’s feeling overwhelmed by the stresses of life. So why include the line, “How do I know if this shit’s fabricated?”  Why not “stuff?” It starts with ‘s’ and has one syllable and wouldn’t detract from your song or its message.  But Breathin’ is tame compared to some of the other songs:

  • Blazed is about being high on drugs and is just one of the songs including drug references.
  • God is a woman is about a woman who’s going to “make love” to a guy “the way I like it, how I want it.” The boy will confess he’s been so blessed by the amazing sex that he will come to believe that God is a woman.
  • Sweetener is a graphic description of oral sex.
  • Everytime is about a girl who’s in an unhealthy, addictive relationship. She keeps leaving but always goes back to him, “Why, oh why does God keep bringing me back to you?” The song also includes references to drug and alcohol abuse.
  • Better off: “Let’s put them topics to bed and go fuck on the roof, just to say that we did it.”
  • Goodnight n go: “Lately, all I want is you on top of me. You know where your hands should be.”
  • The light is coming: “Ah, gonna break that shit down … can’t let an f-boy eff up my nice vibes.”

Ariana, you seem like a lovely person. The compassion you showed following the Manchester bombing was stunning.  I’ve admired you and your talent for many years, and I’ve been happy with my girls being “Arianators.”  But not anymore.  While my two eldest daughters are no longer in your target audience, my ten-year-old is.  She and I talked about your new album, and she was really disappointed when I told her it was all explicit.  She failed to understand why you needed to do that – and so do I.  It’s like Miley Cyrus 2.0.  You’ve let your young fans down.

I realise it’s too late to change your current album, but can I respectfully ask you to contemplate this plea from a dad who loves his daughters and wants to protect them (and other children) from the darker side of life for as long as possible?  Please consider your young fans who have made you famous, wealthy and influential and care enough to use these things to make the world a better place.

Kind regards,

Rob

 

It was just a couple of months ago when Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton said: “Australians must guard against compassion towards refugees as it could undo the government’s hard-fought success in discouraging people smugglers.” [1]  I believe Mr Dutton’s statement reflects a faulty logic.  If the boats were going to start again because of compassion, they would have started when asylum seekers moved to the United States, or when kindness was finally shown to people who were in desperate need of medical help.  The boat turn back policy seems quite sufficient to stop those who are attempting to smuggle drugs, weapons and people.

I have never viewed compassion as something I need to guard myself against.  Compassion is required for the people held in Nauru, PNG, and other detention centres.  People sometimes ask how a holocaust could happen.  It’s quite simple – demonise a group of people making them “the problem” or somehow “less than human”.  From there it’s easy to treat them without compassion, in fact, we’d need to guard against compassion.  Such is the case for the asylum seekers held in Australian detention centres because we all know they are “boat people”, “economic refugees”, or “terrorists” who are trying to subvert our way of life.

What about children?

Right now, there are several children on Nauru who are severely or critically unwell.  Some of them are self-harming and suicidal.  Consider:

  • A 12-year-old girl who was taken to Nauru hospital after attempting to set herself on fire, an incident that was witnessed by other children. She has made multiple attempts recently to end her life.  Several adults have also set themselves on fire on Nauru, one fatally, and some children have attempted to kill themselves by that method. [2]
  • Or the 17-year-old girl who is being treated inside the regional processing centre after refusing all food, fluid and medical treatment. Three doctors have diagnosed her with a major depressive disorder and “resignation syndrome”.[3] A person who knows the girl said she had previously been one of the brightest and most articulate of the refugee children.  “Before she got sick, she was the best-performing student. She had a dream to be a doctor in Australia and to help others. Now, she is on food-and-fluid refusal and begging to die as death is better than Nauru.” [4]
  • Then there is the 12-year-old boy who had been refusing to eat for 20 days and was finally flown to Brisbane last Tuesday. The boy weighed 36kg and is unable to stand.  His mother and sister are being held in detention in Brisbane but are allowed to visit him.
  • There’s a 14-year-old boy with muscle wastage so severe he may never walk normally again.
  • And a two-year-old child whose parents are too unwell to care for him.

I read these stories and find it so hard to guard against compassion, but I’m trying hard Mr Dutton, I really am!  This week, Buzzfeed released the personal testimonies of one child and two young adult detainees on Nauru. I encourage you to listen to their stories and share them with others.[5]

What about families?

The descriptions of families being torn apart and devastated are heart-wrenching. For example, an air ambulance arrived on Nauru recently to take a gravely ill 15-year-old refugee boy to Taiwan.  After protests from his family (about being separated, possibly permanently) and concerns over his fitness to fly, the plane left without a patient.  International Health & Medical Services (IHMS) staff have made frequent requests for the boy to be moved to a place where higher-level care is available.  The Australian Border Force maintains the boy and his family have refused treatment, citing the plane being turned away at the cost of more than $100,000.  If you were in this family’s position, what would you do? I would feel devastated if one of my children were seriously ill and was being moved to a developing country without Christie and myself; a country where she wouldn’t know anyone and wouldn’t understand the language. But there I am getting all compassionate again.

What about the cost?

This year at least 14 legal challenges have been brought before the federal court seeking immediate orders that children be moved from Nauru to a place where higher-level care is available, almost invariably Australia.  The government has opposed each challenge, but each has been successful: every case has either been conceded by the government at the courthouse door or resulted in an order from the bench that children be moved immediately, a process that is costing hundreds of thousands of dollars all in the name of guarding against compassion.

These are just a few examples of the extreme suffering being experienced by the 117 children (and their families) still on Nauru, and all but a handful have already been recognised as legitimate refugees.  Our government should be very concerned about the upcoming Pacific Islands Forum beginning on September 1. “The Australian and Nauru governments are going to extraordinary efforts to cover up the abuse of refugees and asylum seekers on Nauru.  Demolishing the tents and providing new cars to drive around in, won’t hide the reality of the abuse that Nauru is now internationally identified with.” [6]

I hope the media representatives that get to Nauru to cover the Forum will also be allowed to report honestly on the devastating plight of asylum seekers.  May they NOT guard against compassion.

Please join Christie and me in advocating to get the Kids off Nauru.  Go to Kids Off Nauru to find out how you can make a difference, and use #kidsoffnauru in all social media posts.  Thank you for your compassion.

 

[1] https://www.sbs.com.au/news/compassion-can-undo-efforts-against-people-smugglers-dutton?cid=newsapp:socialshare:copylink

[2] https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2018/aug/23/nauru-self-harm-contagion-as-12-year-old-refugee-tries-to-set-herself-alight

[3] Children suffering resignation syndrome effectively withdraw from life – refusing to eat, drink, toilet, leave their beds, speak, or even open their eyes. They are sometimes completely unresponsive to stimuli. Resignation syndrome is a very serious state of withdrawal that traumatised children can go through when they are “overwhelmed by stress.”

[4] https://www.buzzfeed.com/lanesainty/australias-child-refugees-are-being-diagnosed-with-swedens?utm_term=.rf2qvVoW0#.oq4YNDa3p

[5] https://www.buzzfeed.com/lanesainty/young-refugees-nauru-mental-health-crisis?utm_source=dynamic&utm_campaign=bfsharetwitter&utm_term=.xdoa6xQjX#.jkB2kZ0vB

[6] https://www.sbs.com.au/news/mouldy-nauru-tents-replaced-ahead-of-pacific-islands-forum-in-cover-up-refugee-activists

 

 

It’s a question that’s as old as the Christian faith itself: Can I lose my salvation?  It’s a good question and one which I believe is asked out of one of the most profound human needs, the need for security.

Various opinions have been offered over the centuries in an answer.  The French Theologian and Pastor, John Calvin (1509-64) and subsequent generations of his followers taught a doctrine known as, “The perseverance of the saints.”  The Westminster Confession of Faith states it as follows: “They whom God hath accepted in his Beloved, effectually called and sanctified by his Spirit, can neither totally nor finally fall away from the state of grace: but shall certainly persevere therein to the end, and be eternally saved.”

Calvin died, but his teachings lived on, and in 1591 Jacobus Arminius (a Dutch theologian and pastor) began a long process by which he attempted to reform Calvinism – a process which was continued by his followers after his death in 1609.  Part of the attempted reformation of Calvin’s teachings included his views on unconditional eternal security.  Today, “Can I lose my salvation?” continues to be a question that Christians wrestle with and disagree over.  It’s a question people often ask me at Bayside Church.

I believe this question comes from a wrong understanding of salvation, where people see it as an event rather than a process.  If I join a gym and workout once am I, once fit always fit?  I wish :).  We understand that in any area of life we need to exercise discipline and effort not just to maintain but also to grow and develop; it’s the same with salvation.

The Bible speaks of salvation concerning the past, the present, and the future.  Consider these verses:

Ephesians 2:5, “it is by grace you have been saved.”

Philippians 2:12, “continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling.”

Romans 5:9, “Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God’s wrath through him.”

In His Great Commission, Jesus instructs his followers to make disciples, not just decisions.  I believe there is often too much emphasis on getting people “saved” by “making a decision” and “saying a prayer.”  While all of this is a good start, we are in danger of communicating to people that, once they’ve said the prayer, they are saved, all is good, and they can now go on living life as they always have.  Becoming a disciple or follower of Jesus, on the other hand, is a lifelong commitment.  Eugene Peterson refers to it as, “A long obedience in the same direction.” [1]

The word “disciple” comes from the Greek word “mathetes” from which the English word mathematics derives.  Mathetes refers to “mental effort needed to think something through.” [2] In other words, before you choose to become a follower of Jesus, it is vital that you count the cost, diligently thinking through the ramifications, and then making a decision that will affect the rest of your life.  When we make that kind of choice, the risen Jesus will continually intercede for us. “Therefore, he is able to save completely those who come to God through him.” [3] At Jesus’ Second Coming the salvation he started in us through his life, death and resurrection will finally be completed as he ushers us into eternity.

Can I lose my salvation?  It’s a good question and one which I believe is asked out of one of the most genuine human needs, the need for security.  I consider that we’re secure in Christ: “For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” [4]

The lost son that Jesus spoke of in his parable in Luke 15 was wayward for a time but eventually returned to his father.  At no stage did he ever cease being his father’s son.  His straying broke their fellowship, but not their relationship.  While I believe a follower of Jesus should live a life that is worthy of, and pleasing to God, He also understands and makes provision for our wanderings and imperfections – that’s the beauty of grace!  Followers of Jesus should rest and relax in God’s love, mercy, and grace.

I decided to follow Jesus when I was 19 but, after a few months, I drifted away and, for the next two years, I didn’t live the life of a Jesus follower.  During that time, I regularly felt the tug of the Holy Spirit on my heart, calling me home.  I eventually came back and once again committed my life to following Jesus.  Since that time, I’ve engaged in “A long obedience in the same direction,” but that doesn’t mean my life has been without mistakes, failures, and straying. During these times I continue to sense that gentle tug, and the relentless love of God constantly drawing me back.  I rest in God’s eternal security because, “I know whom I have believed, and am convinced that he is able to guard what I have entrusted to him until that day.” [5]

 

[1] https://www.amazon.com.au/Long-Obedience-Direction-Eugene-Peterson/dp/0830822577

[2] https://bibliaparalela.com/greek/3101.htm

[3] Hebrews 7:25

[4] Romans 8:38-39

[5] 2 Timothy 1:12

Have you ever felt utterly overwhelmed by all the needs around you? I certainly have!  Whether they are needs in your family, church, this nation or other countries, it’s easy to be overcome by the seemingly endless ways that you can help others.  This is often compounded by a Christian worldview which encourages us to help those in need. So, who should we support?

Firstly, realise that you can’t help everyone, that you can’t meet every need – but that doesn’t mean you do nothing.  Jesus demonstrated this when he visited the pool of Bethesda in Jerusalem. At this pool “a great number of disabled people used to lie—the blind, the lame, the paralysed.”  [1] By the time John wrote his gospel, there were no disabled people left at the pool. The reason for that is not known, maybe Jesus eventually healed them all, or perhaps the use of the area was changed over time.  The Bible tells us that Jesus visited this pool once, attended to one man who’d been an invalid for 38 years, and left.  The inference in the story is that Jesus took pity on him because he had been unwell for so long.  But what about all the others?  Jesus could have met every need but, for whatever reason, he chose not to.  Maybe he was giving us a life lesson that we should not feel duty-bound to meet every demand we encounter.

“You can’t meet every need – but that doesn’t mean you do nothing!”  I’ve been gripped by this truth for many years.  It’s easy to see the massive problems and be immobilised by them.  You can’t help every homeless person in Australia, but what can you do?   You can’t help every orphan in Africa, but what can you do?  It was this line of thinking that caused us to start a Forever Home in Johannesburg (through Acres of Love [2]) over a decade ago.  There are an estimated 3.7 million orphans in South Africa. I’d love to help them all but I can’t, but that doesn’t mean I do nothing. We have led our church to support well over a dozen of these children. Some have been adopted into loving families, some have grown up and gained a good education and employment. Others are still in our home and doing so well.  We’ve been able to give them a future and a hope. We’ve made a difference to them.

Secondly, recognise you can do so much more when you work in a community with others.  This year, I participated in Sleep at the G with 25 others from Bayside Church.  Through one night of slight discomfort we were able to raise $33,660 for Melbourne City Mission’s work with homeless people.  I could have done it on my own, but it was so much better working with others. We had fun, we got to know each other better and came to a deeper understanding of some of the challenges faced by homeless people in our city.  The author of Hebrews was correct when he said, “Let us think of ways to motivate one another to acts of love and good works.” [3]

Next, have a clear understanding of what you are passionate about as well as the way God has gifted you.  If you don’t have a clear vision, you will spread yourself (and your resources) too thinly.  Over the years, we’ve had some people join Bayside Church from other churches and they BYO Missionary with them.  They then tried to get us to buy into their missionary and support them. I did this a couple of times, but it didn’t go well as it didn’t align with our vision.  As a younger leader, I felt obliged to help, probably because of an unsanctified desire to please people.  These days I’m not such a pushover.  I have a clear vision of who and when to help because “You can’t meet every need.”

I also prefer to help through people I know and trust.  Individuals I speak with, especially those outside the church, want to help others but they are not sure how to help or who to support, and they want to make sure the money they give gets to those they give it to.  So, it’s best to help others either through people you know or organisations you trust.  Last week we heard from a friend in Indonesia that her staff members in Lombok were all homeless because of the earthquake.  Right now, all of these people are living in her back garden because they have nowhere else to go.  She mentioned to us that she wanted to raise $5,000 to repair and rebuild their homes, and so we brought the need to our church community.  Last weekend, all of the gold coin donations at our coffee cart, plus the sale of Brownie’s (made by a church member) raised $3,060.20.  The money was sent to our friend today, and we know that these funds will be used 100% to help those it’s been given for.

Always connect wisdom to compassion. There are those who prey on kind-hearted people and make up stories to get money. We have a policy at Bayside Church never to hand out cash, and we only help those from the broader community who have been referred by a reputable social welfare organisation. You can’t meet every need, but do your best to make sure those you do help are genuine.  As Jesus said, “be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves.” [4]

Finally, don’t forget to look after yourself; applying your own facemask before you help others with theirs.  Compassion fatigue is a real risk to those who are kind.  You can spend so much time and energy caring for others that you neglect yourself.  The apostle Paul put it this way, “Don’t look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too.”  [5] But taking an interest in others doesn’t mean you ignore your own interests. There’s a difference between selfishness and selflessness.  American humourist Sam Levenson said, “As you grow older, you will discover that you have two hands, one for helping yourself, the other for helping others.” It’s wise advice.

 

[1] John 5:4

[2] https://acresoflove.org

[3] Hebrews 10:24

[4] Matthew 10:16

[5] Philippians 2:4

 

History reveals that Christianity rarely flourishes when it has the power.  Consider the first few hundred years of the church’s existence.  The Book of Acts tells of a church that exploded in growth especially when persecution scattered the believers.  “The spread of the Christian church in its earliest centuries is one of the most amazing phenomena in all of human history.” [1] The church was on the edges of society and took up Jesus’ mandate to love and serve those who were also marginalised.

Justin Martyr, an early Christian theologian, wrote to Emperor Antoninus Pius describing Christians as follows: “We formerly rejoiced in uncleanness of life, but now love only chastity; before we used the magic arts, but now dedicate ourselves to the true and unbegotten God; before we loved money and possessions more than anything, but now we share what we have and to everyone who is in need; before we hated one another and killed one another and would not eat with those of another race, but now since the manifestation of Christ, we have come to a common life and pray for our enemies and try to win over those who hate us without just cause.”

Christians met together in close-knit communities and lived out their faith in their daily lives.  They were known for their honesty and integrity in business dealings, care & prayer for the sick, and for looking after widows and orphans.  By the year 250 A.D., Christians were feeding more than 1,500 of the hungry and destitute in Rome every day.

Emperor Julian (“the Apostate”), who was no friend of the Christian faith, said that Christianity “has been specially advanced through the loving service rendered to strangers and through their care of the burial of the dead. It is a scandal that there is not a single Jew who is a beggar and that the [Christians] care not only for their own poor but for ours as well; while those who belong to us look in vain for the help we should render them.”

The early Christians were often scorned and ridiculed.  They had no government approval, political power or official support but they lived out the Gospel, the Good News about Jesus Christ and, by the end of the First Century, there were an estimated one million believers in the Roman Empire.  Christianity continued to grow throughout the next two centuries as it started to get more organised; something that became necessary once Christians realised the Second Coming of Christ was not as imminent as the apostles believed it would be.

But everything started to change for the church in 312 A.D. when Constantine and his troops marched towards Rome to do battle with Maxentius.  Constantine’s army was smaller than that of his opponent, and so he sought divine help.  The historian Eusebius wrote, “So, he sought his father’s God in prayer, pleading for him to tell him who he was and to stretch forth his hand to help him. As he prayed (it was a little after noon), Constantine had an absorbing vision. He saw the sign of the cross emblazoned across the sky and the words “In hoc signo vinces,” “In this sign, you will win.”  Constantine was struck with amazement, along with his whole army (which also witnessed the miracle). That night in his sleep it was confirmed: this was the Christ of God he was dealing with.  Constantine accepted the vision. He adopted the sign. He had the cross inscribed on his soldiers’ armour. He went into battle. Even though his forces were outnumbered, he won.” [2]

The irony of this was that a pacifist Christian Church would receive its right to exist through a political and military conquest; and it would never be the same again.  Constantine eventually made Christianity the official religion of the Roman Empire. Unbelievers flooded into the church, but many did not convert, choosing instead to bring their pagan practices into the Church. Being a Christian was now the fashionable thing to do.  The church became diluted in spiritual power as its prestige increased and, with political power, the church became the oppressor as much as it had been the oppressed.  For the next one thousand years, the world entered the Dark Ages which included the Crusades and the Inquisitions (the latter not entirely ending until the 20th century).

In the 1930s Germany was a “Christian” country, and what a disaster that turned out to be. Two-thirds were protestant and one-third Catholic, and the church, by and large, supported Hitler.  We often wonder how a Holocaust can happen; one way is when the church finds itself in bed with politics and demonising groups of people.  Jesus told His first followers that all power was given to Him, and He was empowering them to “go and make disciples of all the nations.” [3] He didn’t tell them to Christianise countries, nor to lobby governments to enforce morality. Jesus’ way is subtler; the inward transformation of individuals who desire to work together in a community and manifest heaven on earth in their everyday lives.

The one thing we learn from history is that we rarely learn from history.  Some churches, church leaders, and Christians are still hell-bent on political power mongering and the Gospel is always the loser.  Consider the recent survey in the USA showing 14% of Christians have left their churches since the last election because of their clergy being too political, especially by endorsing Donald Trump. [4] In the United States, almost a billion dollars is spent every year by so-called Christian organisations on lobbying politicians.  The same takes places in Australia albeit on a much smaller budget.  One can only wonder at the impact that money would have if it were used to help the poor, to spread the true gospel of Jesus, and to speak out for those who have no voice as the Bible asks us to: “Speak out on behalf of the voiceless, and for the rights of all who are vulnerable.  Speak out in order to judge with righteousness and to defend the needy and the poor.” [5]

Whenever the church tries to get its way through political power, the Gospel message always gets drowned out.  In fact, the only countries where Christianity is still growing is where the church and Christians work humbly, and sometimes secretly, on the margins of society; like Nepal, China, and the UAE. [6] Most of these countries are in Asia and Africa and many in Muslim majority nations.  In 2015, mission organisation Operation World named Iran as having the fastest growing evangelical population in the world, with an estimated annual growth of 19.6 percent. [7] In North America, Europe, and Australia the church is shrinking.  In these countries, the church’s position on ethical and moral issues is well known, but people don’t understand the gospel message because it’s been drowned out by all the other things they hear from us.  This needs to change!  People need to discover the gospel, the good news about Jesus Christ.

Richard Rohr sums all this up so well, “Christians are usually sincere and well-intentioned people until you get to any real issues of ego, control, power, money, pleasure, and security. Then they tend to be pretty much like everybody else. We’re often given a bogus version of the Gospel, some fast-food religion, without any deep transformation of the self; and the result has been the spiritual disaster of “Christian” countries that tend to be as consumer-oriented, proud, warlike, racist, class-conscious, and addictive as everybody else-and often more so, I’m afraid.” [8] Confronting words and sadly true.

 

[1] https://www.christianity.com/church/church-history/timeline/1-300/the-spread-of-the-early-church-11629561.html

[2] https://www.christianity.com/church/church-history/timeline/301-600/constantine-11629643.html

[3] Matthew 28:19

[4] https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/monkey-cage/wp/2017/04/11/yes-many-voters-left-their-congregations-over-trump-so-what-else-is-new/?noredirect=on&utm_term=.67201ab554bd

[5] Proverbs 31:8-9

[6] https://www.christiantoday.com/article/which-country-has-the-fastest-growing-church-in-the-world/95924.htm

[7] https://discipleallnations.wordpress.com/2013/08/25/the-top-20-countries-where-christianity-is-growing-the-fastest/

[8] Richard Rohr, Breathing Underwater

 

We hear a lot these days about political correctness, a term that was popularised by a 1990 article in the New York Times by Richard Berstein.  It was initially a term coined by the far-left but has, in more recent times, been adopted by the conservative right to speak against “policies, behaviour, and speech codes that the speaker or the writer regarded as being the imposition of a liberal orthodoxy.” [1] These people on the far-right use the words politically correct (or PC, or the PC Brigade) as a form of insult. They dislike words such as tolerance and love, even though they’re Bible words, and they’re always at war with culture.

Now, of course, we can take any good thing too far, and I’m not suggesting that we become a ‘Nanny State’ where every word has to be policed, but it’s helpful to remind ourselves what it really means to be politically correct and what the Christian response should be to political correctness.  The dictionary defines it as follows, “the avoidance of forms of expression or action that are perceived to exclude, marginalize, or insult groups of people who are socially disadvantaged or discriminated against.”  [2] It sounds to me like that’s an excellent definition of what it means to live out the Christian faith!

If you’re a Christian (or even if you’re not), do you want your words and actions to exclude, marginalise or insult people who are already on the edges of society?  Would you want to increase the pain they already experience because of social disadvantage? Does your faith lead you to discriminate against others? If it does, it’s probably time to re-examine your beliefs.

The above definition of political correctness leads me to think about the life of Jesus.  At the start of His ministry, Jesus quoted the prophet Isaiah to define and communicate the nature of His ministry amongst people. Remember, Jesus is God in human form, so when we look at Jesus, His life, His words and His actions, we see what God is really like.

Jesus read, “The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor.  He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favour.” [3] To the first century Hebrew mind “the poor” were those who existed on the margins of society and thus excluded from the social and religious communities because of either gender, age, poverty, disability, or impurity.  Sounds familiar, doesn’t it?  Jesus avoided forms of expression or action that excluded, marginalised or insulted people who were already socially disadvantaged or discriminated against.  Jesus was politically correct!  In fact, the only people He regularly offended were the people who weren’t excluded – those who held and abused religious or political power.

For Jesus, the words from Isaiah weren’t just a Bible quote, they were “truth to be lived” – something He embodied as He walked amongst people.  Over and over, as you read about the life of Jesus in the Gospels, you see a man who was full of kindness for the excluded.

That’s how Jesus started His ministry, and He practiced what He preached until He was crucified. He then commissioned His Church, His followers, Christians, you and me to follow His example by feeding the hungry and thirsty, offering hospitality to the stranger or foreigner, clothing the naked, looking after the sick and visiting prisoners.  These are the things we will give an account of to Him in the future. [4]

Frequently the church is seen as protecting its own self-interests rather than looking out for the interests of others.  That’s why we hear some Christian people complain about political correctness as if it’s an enemy. I think it’s tragic that we have to be reminded to be kind and inclusive towards people who are often socially disadvantaged or discriminated against.  But as Jesus said, “it is true that the children of this world are shrewder in dealing with the world around them than are the children of the light.” [5] It’s a sad indictment on some of the church that this statement is still valid.

Paul, the apostle, summarised the entire Bible in one statement, “love does no harm to a neighbour. Therefore, love is the fulfillment of the law.” [6] Now that sounds like political correctness to me!

 

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Political_correctness#1980s_and_1990s

[2] www.dictionary.com

[3] Luke 4:18-19 (Cf. Isaiah 61:1-2a)

[4] The Parable of the sheep and the goats (Matthew 25:31-46)

[5] Luke 16:8

[6] Romans 13:10

A few weeks ago, I taught a vital message at Bayside Church titled, “Is the Bible really true?”  I encourage you to listen to the podcast. [1] In this message, I teach that the Bible contains many different kinds of truth ~ truth as fact, truth as meaning and truth as life.  In other words, there are some things in the Bible that, while not factually accurate, are full of meaning. Jesus’ parables are a good example of this.

I believe Paul’s statements in Romans 13:1-7 fall into the category of “Truth as meaning” rather than “Truth as fact.”  If “there is no authority except that which God has established,” we seem to be in deep trouble.  Consider Hitler’s government for example.  Adolf Hitler was Chancellor (and then Fuhrer) of Germany from 1933 to 1945 during which time his reign of terror included the well-known Holocaust of six million Jews.  In addition, Hitler was directly responsible for the murder of “more than five million non-Jews including Gypsies, Jehovah’s Witnesses, homosexuals, blacks, the physically and mentally disabled, political opponents of the Nazis, dissenting clergy, resistance fighters, prisoners of war, Slavic peoples, and many individuals from the artistic communities whose opinions and works Hitler condemned.” [2] Notice the reference to dissenting clergy.  This infers that there were some clergy, and Christians, who did not dissent and were thus complicit in the slaughter of millions. But did the dissenters disobey God and His Word so clearly spelled out in Romans 13?

In the 1930s Germany was a Christian nation. Two-thirds were protestant and one-third Catholic.  Jews accounted for less than 1% of the population.  And yet the Christian community was by and large complicit with Hitler, being persuaded by the Nazi Party’s statement on “positive Christianity” which read: “We demand the freedom of all religious confessions in the state, insofar as they do not jeopardize the state’s existence or conflict with the manners and moral sentiments of the Germanic race.”  [3]

In July 1933, Hitler’s first year in power, a German pastor, Joachim Hossenfelder, preached a sermon in Berlin’s most important church – the Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church. His text was Romans 13:1-7 and he reminded the congregation of the importance of obedience to those in authority because “The authorities that exist have been established by God.”  This appeal to the Bible as “Truth as fact” led much of the Christian church to either support Hitler or not to resist him.  This same appeal to Romans 13 was used to back the slave trade and apartheid.  It is still used in support of capital punishment, and was recently quoted by US Attorney General Jeff Sessions to justify the Trump Administration’s immigration policy of separating children from their families.

A few verses later in Romans chapter 13 Paul wrote, “The commandments…are summed up in this one command: “Love your neighbour as yourself.” Love does no harm to a neighbour. Therefore, love is the fulfillment of the law.” [4] Love does not condone torture and murder, it doesn’t imprison and starve, and it doesn’t separate children from their parents. True Christian love does no harm to anyone.  So, let me say this loud and clear…

Any time the Bible is used to justify the mistreatment of people in any shape or form, the interpretation of the Scripture is wrong!

So, what is Romans 13 all about?  When we interpret it as “Truth as meaning” rather than “Truth as fact” all becomes clear. The apostle was speaking directly into the political climate of his day.  Emperor Claudius, who was in office from A.D. 41 to 54, ordered all Jews to leave Rome around A.D. 51.  According to the Roman historian Suetonius, Claudius expelled the Jews from Rome because they were rioting on account of someone named Chrestus (Christ) – apparently referring to disputes between Christian and non-Christian Jews.  Luke mentions this historical fact in Acts 18:2, “Claudius had ordered all Jews to leave Rome.”  Claudius allowed the Jews to return around January A.D. 53, and four years later (A.D. 57) Paul wrote his letter to the Roman church while he was spending three months in Corinth.

It’s with this historical backdrop that we can understand what Paul meant by what he wrote in Romans 13.  Nero was now in power, and Paul encouraged the church not to unnerve the political authorities with any more disputes with non-Christian Jews in case they were all ejected once more from Rome.  If this happened, it would have an adverse outcome for the church and the Gospel in the City of Rome, and so Paul encouraged the Roman Christians to do the right thing and not to rebel.  He also taught them to pay their taxes and live lives of respect and honour.

Whilst this encouragement generally holds true today, Romans 13 is not to be used as a justification to mistreat people or to say and do nothing in the case of government injustice.  Christian people are to obey the laws of the land unless they contradict God’s laws.  We are to pray for our government leaders, and respectfully challenge them when they act in a way that brings harm to others.  As Charles Colson wrote many years ago, “If truth retreats, tyranny advances.”

 

 

[1] https://baysidechurch.com.au/message/is-the-bible-really-true-ps-rob-buckingham/

[2] https://www.socialstudies.org/sites/default/files/publications/se/5906/590606.html

[3] The Nazi Party’s statement on “positive Christianity” Article 24 of the 1920 Nazi Party Platform: “We demand the freedom of all religious confessions in the state, insofar as they do not jeopardize the state’s existence or conflict with the manners and moral sentiments of the Germanic race. The Party as such upholds the point of view of a positive Christianity without tying itself confessionally to any one confession. It combats the Jewish-materialistic spirit at home and abroad and is convinced that a permanent recovery of our people can only be achieved from within on the basis of the common good before individual good.”

[4] Romans 13:9-10