Hell Hath No Fury ...

There is an expression we sometimes use, most often associated with a woman rejected, or deceived.  But while we may like to convey the idea that the anger of a woman is no small thing, I believe the real fury the kingdom of Satan prefers is the mass casualties of war.  When Satan is able to convince us we need to kill each other (for whatever reason), he wins.  It does not matter which human side of the war wins, the idea that both sides participate, is a victory for Satan.  Murder has the same effect, but its victims are too limited for the kingdom of Satan.  Mass casualties works better for him.  And if, in those mass casualties you can end the lives of children, you have hit the satanic jackpot.  Ending the lives of the most innocent, the lives of those who had the most life left, is the best fury hell has to offer.

Every time hell gets to show us a glimpse of this fury, they rejoice, while we suffer and die.  When Jesus came to our world, it is only logical that He will be at His weakest as a baby.  If hell was going to make an attempt on His life, better sooner than later.  Herod had already determined to kill Him.  So there was already a human patsy to take the fall, and very willing to participate.  Herod was a jealous king; infantile, deranged, obsessed, and very unpredictable.  Herod was not much different than any jealous spouse has ever been, but regarding his kingdom and power, not the love of another person.  But what was to transpire was not just a random series of events.  It was foretold.  It was a look into the heart of evil, a look at the fury of hell, a revelation of how far Satan will go in his quest to kill the source of all love.

Normal people have rules.  Normal people, even ones who have committed murder, do not usually focus on babies as their preferred targets.  Babies hardly understand what is going on.  Only the parents are left with the pain of loss that cannot be comforted in this world.  But Satan has no human version of normality.  His kingdom has no limits defined by our sense of right and wrong.  Nothing is too far.  Nothing is ever wrong.  Killing babies for sport is just another entertainment venue in the kingdom hell would rule.  And Herod was about to distinctively prove this point, not just for us.  Not just to fulfill prophecy, but that the universe of witnesses could see this was no bluff, this was no test, this was and this is, who Satan is.  And if left to our embrace of sin, this is who we would become.

Matthew begins by setting the stage for the anger of Herod as his plans to kill Jesus will not be so easy to accomplish.  In chapter two of his Gospel beginning in verse 12 saying … “And being warned of God in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed into their own country another way.”  The Magi or kings and nobles of the East, were warned of God to return home a different way, never to return to Herod’s courts again.  Imagine the context.  They have followed a miraculous star here for hundreds or thousands of miles.  They arrive to see Jesus.  And immediately God appears to them in a dream, protecting the life of His baby Son.  Surely this is the long waited for Messiah.  But the warnings did not end here.

Matthew continues in verse 13 saying … “And when they were departed, behold, the angel of the Lord appeareth to Joseph in a dream, saying, Arise, and take the young child and his mother, and flee into Egypt, and be thou there until I bring thee word: for Herod will seek the young child to destroy him.”  The Magi leave first.  There will be no accidental witnesses to where Joseph will take his family.  Then the angel comes again to Joseph (I wonder if Joseph knew his name by now).  The angel warns them to flee into Egypt until he rescinds this warning.  Herod is bent on killing Jesus.  If Herod can find Jesus, Jesus is dead.  It will take divine protection to keep Jesus from suffering this fate whether as a baby or even as a small boy.  But what was happening was not a series of random incidents.  Even the evil of Herod was foretold, both the cause, and the effects.

Matthew continues in verse 14 saying … “When he arose, he took the young child and his mother by night, and departed into Egypt: [verse 15] And was there until the death of Herod: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying, Out of Egypt have I called my son.”  Some timelines put this sojourn to Egypt lasting about seven years.  Over this time other siblings would be born.  Even though Joseph was a carpenter by trade, the gifts of the Magi would have gone a long way towards sustaining this young family in Egypt.  They could have secured the purchase of a home (or rental of).  They could have secured food, tools, and supplies; particularly considering the young family had little to bring with them.  But Matthew again reminds his audience that the Messiah would be called out of Egypt, as Jesus was, by the prophets ages ago.

The story of Herod and aftermath continues in verse 16 saying … “Then Herod, when he saw that he was mocked of the wise men, was exceeding wroth, and sent forth, and slew all the children that were in Bethlehem, and in all the coasts thereof, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had diligently inquired of the wise men.”  Herod did to the people of Israel what Pharaoh had done so long ago.  Herod orders the death of all children (presumably male, but Matthew fails to make this distinction), two years and under.  In addition, this scripture expands the reach of Herod beyond Bethlehem to “all the coasts thereof”.  Herod was not going to make any mistakes of omission.   If Jesus was nearby He would be killed.  But even this evil was foreseen.

Matthew continues in verse 17 saying … “Then was fulfilled that which was spoken by Jeremy the prophet, saying, [verse 18] In Rama was there a voice heard, lamentation, and weeping, and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children, and would not be comforted, because they are not.”  Matthew adds the voice of the prophet Jeremiah to the growing list of Old Testament prophecies that are fulfilled in the life of Jesus Christ.  It would appear one cannot go more than 5 or 6 verses in Matthew’s Gospel without finding a reference to prophecies of the past fulfilled in the life of Jesus Christ.  Yet even the epitaph of Herod finds prophecy to fulfill.

Matthew continues in verse 19 saying … “But when Herod was dead, behold, an angel of the Lord appeareth in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, [verse 20] Saying, Arise, and take the young child and his mother, and go into the land of Israel: for they are dead which sought the young child's life.”  The Angel of the Lord, as promised, rescinds his warning of those who sought the life of young Jesus.  I should imagine there was no parade of those paying respects at the funeral of Herod.  He had killed their children.  He was probably the most hated man in all of Israel.  That comes when you kill kids.  But even in this infamy there is no place of honor for Herod in the kingdom of Satan.  Satan does not grant honor, only apathy.  Satan has no heroes, only those he would kill again and again.  Such is the fury of hell.

Matthew continues in verse 21 saying … “And he arose, and took the young child and his mother, and came into the land of Israel. [verse 22] But when he heard that Archelaus did reign in Judaea in the room of his father Herod, he was afraid to go thither: notwithstanding, being warned of God in a dream, he turned aside into the parts of Galilee: [verse 23] And he came and dwelt in a city called Nazareth: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophets, He shall be called a Nazarene.”  Even the unplanned responses are chronicled in prophecy.  Joseph was to return to Bethlehem, but fear kept him from doing so.  Joseph who had so often heard the voice of the Angel of the Lord, as they return, loses trust in that voice and turns aside to Galilee, to Nazareth to be precise.

This was not God’s intended plan, but it is what Joseph did.  What might have been different for Jesus if He had returned to Bethlehem.  Would His acceptance by the leaders of the religion been better if Jesus had been closer, and a full-time resident of the City of David?  The Angel did not instruct Joseph to do as he did, fear caused that action.  It was unplanned, even from the perspective of Joseph.  But it was still prophesied about and cited by Matthew.  Fleeing to Egypt was a result of the fury of hell.  Returning and winding up in Nazareth was a response of fear.  How often do we respond in fear, no matter the assurances of our God?  How often do those responses wind up making our lives worse, instead of better?

This was to end the Gospel of the Hebrews regarding the topic of early years of Jesus.  As Matthew would continue writing, he would jump ahead to the ministry of John the Baptist.  Much is lost to us of these formative years.  We assume Jesus kept His hair in the style of the Nazarene’s.  We assume He was taken to Passover every year.  We know about His encounter with the Temple Priests when He was twelve years old.  But Matthew covers none of this.  Perhaps because these events were not as prominent in prior prophecies.  Perhaps Matthew was more interested in tying the Old with the New, and stories of the childhood of Jesus would not facilitate that goal as well.  In any case the Gospel of the Hebrews was nowhere near an end …

 

Three Beasts [part one] - The Woman and the Dragon ...

John, the beloved apostle of Christ, was given revelations of Jesus in a prophetic forum, steeped in symbolism, but with a singular purpose … to see us redeemed, remade, and reconciled to God.  Throughout the book of his revelations, we have seen our redemption in every message, every warning, and every interpretation.  To find our salvation, is to find ourselves relying upon Jesus Christ.  It is He alone who is able to save us from ourselves.  It is He alone who offers us the gift of perfection, the gift that would transform who we are, into the creations He intends us to be, creations who love others and not themselves.  These messages show the supremacy of Christ, and point out our NEED of a savior outside of ourselves, to save us from the chains of self-service that we have embraced.  We are unable to free ourselves, we NEED someone to free us.  We are the enemy that needs to be remade from scratch, reborn into a new way of thinking, a new way of loving that leads us into harmony with His laws and His goals.

It is our dependence, our submission, our humility in how we perceive ourselves that can lead us to look to Christ to find our salvation.  While we think of ourselves as independent, without need, self-sufficient, that we avoid Christ and look for salvation in the mirror.  John begins his next revelation with the imagery of a woman.  Before we consider the details of this next revelation, consider why God might have revealed to us the imagery of a woman.  In John’s day, women were NOT self-sufficient.  Women depended on men, whether fathers, or husbands, or sons to own property, to be fed, to be protected and provided for.  A woman in John’s day was NOT a warrior, a leader, a general, someone who would wage war and defeat enemies.  A woman’s only weapon, and perhaps her greatest, was found in her ability to love, to support, to care for, to nurture her family, and those who she loved.  It is this characteristic that made her indispensable.  It did not matter that she was not the “breadwinner”.  It did not matter that she would be ill equipped or trained to defend her estate from marauders or fierce some creatures.  She was the prize, the pearls of greatest value that must at all costs be protected, defended, and provided for.  Her love was the gift that was so important, it was valued more than a man’s own life, for without it, life was of little consequence.

In this context, John begins in chapter 12 of revelations in verse one saying … “And there appeared a great wonder in heaven; a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars:”  A woman is revealed here, she has imagery of the sun, the moon, and 12 stars.  These images were revealed long ago, in a prophetic dream that Joseph had.  His parents were the sun and moon, the 12 stars were he and his brothers.  This dream is given only 3 generations into the lineage of Abraham, just after God has established his covenant promise with Jacob, now Israel, to have the special relationship with them of being their God, and they to be His people.  The children of Israel would now represent His people, His followers, and in our modern vernacular, His church.  This woman may well represent a dependent creature whose value is found in her choice to love.  She is a follower, who is dependent on a higher power to be preserved.  She does not lead, she follows.  Her love and choice to love, is her greatest possession and gift she offers freely.  The children of Israel had a special relationship with God because they chose it to be so.  They were His chosen because they chose to follow Him, our only God.  The first group of followers, His first church, was composed as it is today, by those who choose to follow Him.

John continues in verse 2 … “And she being with child cried, travailing in birth, and pained to be delivered.”  The woman seen by John is pregnant and in labor.  The Messiah was to be born of this woman.  The long awaited Desire of Ages was to come through this church, this group of followers who trace their choice to follow through the generations all the way back to Israel, and to Abraham.  But there were others in this lineage of the chosen who did not share Abraham’s bloodline.  Ruth was a Moabitess and grandmother of David.  The prostitute in the wall of Jericho who was spared with her family for helping the spies of Joshua escape unharmed joined in this lineage as well.   Even Uriah the Hittite’s wife Bathsheba was forgiven of her part in adultery and the murder of her innocent husband and became the mother of Solomon.  Whether from Egypt (Joseph’s wife and lineage), or Moab through Ruth, or Canaan through the woman in the wall of Jericho, or a Hittite like Uriah, many others were part of the Woman revealed to John who now stood ready to give birth.  Not all were of the bloodline of Christ, but all of them made the same choice to follow the one True God.  And all looked forward to the coming of the Messiah, the Son of Man, to see the restoration of the world occur.  The church of God has always been open to any who would choose it.

John continues in verse 3 … “And there appeared another wonder in heaven; and behold a great red dragon, having seven heads and ten horns, and seven crowns upon his heads.”  The second set of imagery begins with a dragon.  A dragon has long been considered the top of the food chain in the animal kingdom.  Even man takes his risk when confronting the mythical dragon; unarmed, man is no contest for him.  A dragon is not a subservient creature.  He does not bow to anyone.  He is filled with pride, and one could consider it is rightfully so.  What other creature has skin of armor, teeth like spears, an ability to fly, and breathes consuming fire upon anything in its path?  A dragon kills and conquers by nature.  Its enemies only find rest while it sleeps.  And in this case, sleep is not on the agenda.  This dragon has seven heads with seven crowns, as well as ten horns.  The imagery could be applied to kingdoms united in one purpose.  Given the evil imagery, the purpose would likely not be a good one, but an evil one, to follow the nature of the dragon.

John continues in verse 4 … “And his tail drew the third part of the stars of heaven, and did cast them to the earth: and the dragon stood before the woman which was ready to be delivered, for to devour her child as soon as it was born.”  In case it was not clear already, the casting of one third of the stars of heaven down to earth had only one historical interpretation.  It identifies this creature as Lucifer, now Satan.  Satan’s war with God did not end with his first negative encounter with the power of God.  He now waited to kill the Messiah and insure that the mission of our redemption never sees the light of day.  He waits to kill the baby before it can become a man.  So king Herod gives orders to slay every child under the age of two in Bethlehem in order to see the Messiah die at birth.  Many die, but not the Christ.  At every turn in His earthly ministry the work of the dragon is to see Him fail at our redemption.  The nature of every temptation has a similar theme … “it does not have to be this hard, there is an easier way to see man redeemed”.  All He need do is use His power selfishly, or simply make a gesture of humility to Satan’s ownership of the world.  Or perhaps He might just not let Himself be killed, wounded might be enough.  No reason to go all the way to death by choice, instead find an easier alternative.  Satan’s temptations always look like the easier way.  Since Satan missed killing Him at birth, he must find another way to defeat the Christ.

John continues in verse 5 … “And she brought forth a man child, who was to rule all nations with a rod of iron: and her child was caught up unto God, and to his throne.”  The man child who was to rule all nations with rod of iron was the Messiah, the Christ.  His destiny was to be our only true King.  Only recently was John shown the vision of the seventh trumpet sounding where the declaration of Christ taking up the power He has to rule all nations is time to begin.  The Messiah came.  He was not killed at birth.  He performed the mission of our redemption.  He lived a life of pure unselfish love to serve others and never Himself.  He showed us the model of the character of God, and the government of heaven.  And He lived this way unto death, even the torture and death of the cross.  Love knows no limitations.  Love will go all the way to the grave to see us redeemed.  Love will pay any price for us.  And Love did pay our price.  The price paid, the Messiah ascends to the Throne of God, to His Father’s side.  Our judgment never in question, our verdict was always guilty, but now our punishment has been taken upon Himself, and we will not have to endure it.  He already has.  The dragon is frustrated again, his attempts at killing Christ or thwarting His mission has failed.

John continues in verse 6 … “And the woman fled into the wilderness, where she hath a place prepared of God, that they should feed her there a thousand two hundred and threescore days.”  1260 days, 42 months, 3.5 years, a time – times – and a half, the same prophetic time period used already in this book is again enumerated specifically.  These time periods all add up to 1260 days using the Jewish Calendar, and using the day for a year principle equal 1260 years.  There is not a series of different time periods of this duration, so it is reasonable to assume the time period in question is the same one referenced in different ways throughout this book.  In this context, the woman is forced to flee into the wilderness.  A woman does not flee for no reason.  The dragon remains none too happy with her and it is for this reason she is forced to flee.  But she is NOT left unattended.  She is led to a place in the wilderness where she will be preserved by God throughout the length of the dark ages.  While the horseman of death rides, while the fourth seal is opened, while queen Jezebel attempts at restraining the word of God from the people, while the official Church is nearly dead, while the woes of the conflict between Islam and Catholicism bring blood to the world in the name of God – the woman or church or true followers of God are preserved.  Small groups like the Waldensians who preserve the word of God for the coming of the printing press remain hidden and preserved.  And the seeds of the reformation are sown.

John continues in verse 7 … “And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels, [verse 8] And prevailed not; neither was their place found any more in heaven.”  There is no interruption present in the thinking of John, or in the sequence of events he is revealing to us.  The woman is forced into the wilderness.  And THEN, there was a war in heaven.  There is no indication here that this is flashback in time to before our world began.  There is nothing to indicate this is a momentary pause in the story.  In point of fact, Michael and his angels are said to be fighting “the dragon” and his angels.  Lucifer is in dragon form and likeness.  He has only recently sought to kill the man child as soon as it was born.  He failed.  The woman flees.  And NOW there is seen a war in heaven. 

Our great disappointment was in misperceiving the earth to be the sanctuary that would be cleansed at the end of this period of time.  But perhaps what was truly cleansed was never our world, but the actual true sanctuary in heaven.  It was cleansed from the presence and war of the dragon and his angels against Michael and his angels.  This scripture says that “neither was their place found any more in heaven” from the end of this war forward.  That may well represent a single final cleansing of the Sanctuary the scriptures foretold.  Further evidence this was not a flashback is related in the story of Job, when a meeting (presumably in heaven) occurs where God asks … “Have you considered my servant Job”?  If this war refers to the original war in heaven, why would Lucifer be permitted to be there to hear the question from God regarding the character and life of Job?  But if this war occurs at the end of the 1260 years, it might make more sense that this final assault on heaven itself results in there being no more a place for the dragon or his angels in heaven ever again.  Perhaps the simplicity of one final desperate attempt by the dragon to take over God’s city and temple that is thwarted by Michael and His angels, does in fact represent the cleansing of the Sanctuary foretold in scripture.

John continues in verse 9 … “And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.”  Again John reiterates, that Satan lost.  He was not just defeated, but he was cast out.  His entire army was cast out.  Their destination was the only home left to them where sin was still present in the universe, our world, our earth.  But the even greater message is told in verse 10 as John continues … “And I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night.”  The accuser of our brethren is cast down.  This is the result of the war.  Up until now, he has accused us in front of God as this scripture relays both “day and night”.  Satan has relentlessly accused us before God up until now, until this war is fought and lost.  But now, he has been cast out.  Again, if this war were prior to our creation, there would have been no opportunity to accuse us both day and night before God.  But in this sequence of events, the dragon attempts an insurrection and is cast out of heaven.  No more will he be able to accuse us.

The best news in all of this book so far (and that bar is constantly being raised) is the initial part of this declaration … “Now is come salvation”.  Salvation and strength, and His kingdom are come.  The power of His Christ is come.  It is happening now.  Our judgment, our trial, our court case, our prosecutor have all been put away.  It is over, and what follows, is our Salvation.  We are to be saved through His strength.  We are to be members of His kingdom.  By His power it is so.  And there will be rest in heaven from the relentless accusations of Satan against the people of God.  He has been defeated and cast out.  All that remains now is our Salvation, by the power of His love.  Judgment is done.

John continues to describe how this has occurred in verse 11 … “And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death.”  We overcame NOT of our own strength, or actions, or will, or even motives.  We overcame by the blood of the Lamb.  It is Jesus Christ who transforms us and gives us a testimony of real change, of real life, and of real love for others and not ourselves.  It is Jesus Christ and the blood of the Lamb that has seen us become new creations.  It is the transformation of Jesus Christ in our lives, that leads us to hate who we were and look forward only to what we are to become.  We want our old lives to die, and our new ones to begin.  In a spiritual sense, we wish to take up our cross, and follow Him.  We wish our carnal nature to be put to death, and our loving nature to be created and reborn in us.  This transformation is so complete in the life of one saved by Jesus Christ, that they are even willing to die physically to preserve it.  The testimony of those saved by Jesus Christ, whether Martyrs of the dark ages, or converts of the present age rings true and the same for all time – Jesus Saves.  Our new lives are the only ones worth living.  The brevity of time we spend in this sin sick world is of little consequence, its only value is to share in the mission of pointing others to the same source of saving, redeeming, transforming love, that of Jesus Christ alone.  The Blood of the Lamb truly does save us from ourselves and our slavery to serve self.  And the declaration John hears begins with the beautiful word … “Now”!!

John continues in verse 12 … “Therefore rejoice, ye heavens, and ye that dwell in them. Woe to the inhabiters of the earth and of the sea! for the devil is come down unto you, having great wrath, because he knoweth that he hath but a short time.”  The devil being cast out of heaven now takes on an urgency he would not have felt 6000 years earlier.  He knows our judgment is at an end.  He knows our Salvation has arrived.  He sees the power of Christ alive in those who choose to follow Him, in the woman who represents His church.  Satan has been defeated in heaven and cast out.  His time is nearly done. And his anger has reached a pinnacle.  The “woe” we are warned about, is not to underestimate his hatred of God, and any who would be redeemed of God, and transformed by God.  The only recourse Satan has to inflict pain upon God is through the torture of those who God loves, namely us.  So in cruelest irony, Satan inspires man to kill man in the name of our loving God.  He inspires fundamentalism and extremism in the same easy prey, and teaches them to kill those infidels who do not share their conviction and beliefs.  Satan replaces love with hate in the heart of even those who call themselves Christians.  Under the guise of “purity”, Satan would purge the church of Christ with the sword.  Instead of healing those wounded by sin, Satan would inspire Christians to kill the wounded, cast them out, and show them only hate instead of unconditional love.  Love would draw them to transformation, but hate will keep them away from it.  So Satan unleashes his woes, not so much on the world of unbelievers, but on those who are in the process of choosing to be saved from themselves.

John continues in verse 13 … “And when the dragon saw that he was cast unto the earth, he persecuted the woman which brought forth the man child. [verse 14] And to the woman were given two wings of a great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness, into her place, where she is nourished for a time, and times, and half a time, from the face of the serpent.”  Satan the dragon continues to pursue the true followers of Christ.  He has not accepted defeat, but instead only escalated his attacks.  But the woman is preserved for a time (one year, or 360 days), times (two years or 720 days) and a half a time (or 6months equal to 180 days) … adding up to 1260 days.  Those who remained faithful to Christ, who comprised the woman Church who alone was led and preserved and protected by Christ, were at war with the dragon.  He would have won without the preservation of God.  This is point we modern Christians hate to acknowledge.  In a contest of man against Satan, man loses.  We do NOT win.  We lose, every single time.  It is for this truth, that we need not fight.  It is for this truth, that our Christ never loses.  When we let God fight the dragon, the dragon loses every single time.  We are saved from ourselves by Christ, not the man in the mirror.

John continues in verse 15 … “And the serpent cast out of his mouth water as a flood after the woman, that he might cause her to be carried away of the flood. [verse 16] And the earth helped the woman, and the earth opened her mouth, and swallowed up the flood which the dragon cast out of his mouth.”  The best way to thwart the truth of Christ is to dilute it with other ideas.  So the dragon sends a flood of people, ideas, and doctrines to carry away the woman from the source of the pure truth of Jesus Christ.  We do not have one church now.  We have “n” number of denominations all claiming to be the One church of Jesus Christ.  If he could not constrain Christianity with the iron fist of Catholicism united with the power of the state, then he would dilute Christianity with an innumerable number of doctrines subtly yet distinctly different from one another, so as to lead one group of believers to despise another for their lack of clarity on a given point of scripture.  The evidence that we are truly His followers, in that we “love one another” fades against our desire to preserve our pure doctrines against the false teachings of our contemporaries.

The earth opens her mouth and swallows up the flood, in that the people could not completely overwhelm the truth.  Europe expanded its population and ideas to the Americas.  Those seeking religious freedom found a new place to travel to where it would be harder to be oppressed.  But the diluting effects of the flood remain in place for us today.  In every faith, in every denomination who claims to follow Christianity, the same struggle remains.  Do we look to find salvation by the works of our hands, or do we trust our invisible God to fulfill His promise to change us from the inside out should we let Him?  Do we look to find truth in the person of Jesus Christ, or like our Pharisee forefathers, do we trust our own interpretations of the Word to be the only ones of merit?  Do we show unconditional love to others, or do we abhor their presence in our midst for the knowledge of what sins they still cling to?  The flood has not abated.  The dragon has not resigned.  The dilution of the pure truth of Jesus Christ can find its solace in well-meaning studies of the word.  Those who use scripture as a weapon of condemnation will find themselves wholly on the side of the dragon.  Those who love others to the throne of grace, by the transforming power of Jesus Christ alive in their lives, share the mission of the Lamb in the redemption of the world.  Only when led by Christ, by love, by the goal of redemption, can scripture ever be rightly understood.  Christ is more important than our interpretations of the word.  Love is more important.  For God is Love.

John continues in verse 17 … “And the dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.”  Note that the dragon remains angry with the church who follow God.  His flood has not fully succeeded.  Despite his best efforts, there are those who remain loyal to the idea that Jesus Christ can truly save us from ourselves. There remain those who recognize the goal of our salvation is to be remade in harmony with the law of God, not to disregard it.  To keep the commandments of God in spirit and in truth, we must be transformed by the power of Jesus Christ to be made in harmony with the law.  This is something we simply cannot do for ourselves.  The vanity of our attempts at keeping the law absent our transformation is a tool the dragon uses to discourage and dishearten us as he points out our failures again and again.  Those who attempt to keep the law without Christ know they fail repeatedly.  It is our condition.  It is our nature.  It is what we must be reborn to see change.

But those who have been transformed by the power and love of Jesus Christ, those who have allowed Him to remake them, to kill their carnal nature and give rebirth to a spiritual one – these have a testimony that WILL NOT remain silent.  These keep the law because they cannot imagine life any other way.  These understand the law to be a basis of learning how to love others and to love God from which the love of others originates.  These do more than give lip service to a list of do’s and don’ts scribbled in the book of Exodus, instead they embrace the law of love for others in how they live, how they speak, and what they do.  They appear like magnets, drawing others to the foot of the cross, because the love within them is irresistible.  It is these remnant, these few, these transformed souls in EVERY church, in EVERY walk of life, in EVERY nation, kindred, tongue and people who the dragon seeks to find and destroy.  If allowed to live unmolested, just these remnant few would change the entire world in a very short order.

The power of a life transformed by Christ, carries such a heavy influence on every soul it touches.  People are drawn to this kind of love.  They cannot imagine it.  They cannot understand it.  They only know, they must have more of it.  They WANT to find its source.  They develop within themselves a reason and motive to change into people like they bear witness of.  They too want what we have.  They too want to live in a way that brings this kind of joy, this kind of love, this kind of unique method of living.  In this transformational power of Jesus Christ is rooted the true and ONLY draw of Christianity.  It is this simple truth the dragon sought to dilute with his flood.  If he can keep us away from the transformation Christ offers us, he can win.  But when we turn our hearts and minds over to Christ, when we are remade from the inside out, we become imbued with power of the Holy Spirit, and God will NOT be stopped.  It is not our power, but His that shines to the world.  It is not our love, but His that draws the hearts of mankind.  It is not our miracles, but His power working through our broken tools that brings life to those in need.  The outpouring of the latter rain becomes a phenomenon the world has yet to witness.  It is this Salvation, John hears declared in the halls of heaven.  And despite his war against it, the dragon is cast out.  It is NOW when His strength is to see us remade by the Blood of the Lamb, and our Salvation from ourselves seen completed.

But two more beasts were yet to be named and more revelations were to come …

 

 

New Life ...

The Sabbath had ended while Jesus had rested from His work of our salvation lying in the tomb.  Even in death, the precepts of the law had been maintained.  But with the Sabbath over, and the first day of the week arriving, it was time to resume His work, and go about the business of our redemption.  The darkness was now to give way to a light as bright as the noon day sun.  Angels were sent from the throne of God, angels who had SO longed to intervene to protect their Lord from making the sacrifice He made for love of us.  These angels were now given leave to go before the Roman company who had been assigned to guard the tomb of Christ and roll away the stone, breaking the Roman seal, and preparing the way of the Lord’s awakening.  There would be no resistance.  Mere mortal killing machines trained and hardened in battle, brought up to believe in the reality of gods of war, watched in unison at these beings of light moving the giant stone as if it were a pebble in front of them.  The angels they saw had no fear at all, and seemed bent on reclaiming the dead man in this tomb.  No salary was worth a fight with supernatural beings of strength they could barely comprehend.  They watched, but could not resist.  They bore witness, and knew the penalty for failure, but unlike the Jews, they were unwilling to take on the God of the universe in a dispute.

Then the Roman company from their centurion to their lowliest foot soldier saw the impossible become possible.  The dead man awoke and walked out of His tomb in front of them all.  Many were sure to have recognized Him from the proceedings that they took place in just days earlier.  Some might have woven the crown of thorns; others might have struck Him and mocked Him asking Him to prove His divinity to them.  Still others might have helped drive the nails into His hands, or put the spear through His side.  It is likely these men would have been assigned this heretofore seemingly meaningless grave guard duty, both due to the convenience of Pilate, and to the designs of our God.  For you see, these men were to bear witness to the rebirth of new life.  Their requests for proof of the divinity of Christ were to be answered, in a way they least expected.  Their witness was not designed to be punitive to them.  Christ did not emerge from His grave bent on revenge on these who stood before Him.  He did not come out with sword in hand, nor give the attending angels a command to unleash their fury upon these wicked men.  Generally in a war, this was the custom.  The Romans knew what defeat looked like.  They had seen it in the faces of their enemies.  They knew the losing side lost their lives and their freedom.  And now facing these angels, and their Lord who had returned from death itself – it was the Roman company on the losing side of this war against evil.   But death was not to be their fate.  Like us, Christ was still and only keenly interested in their redemption.  He had just paid the penalty of their sins and ours.  Now was not a time to kill a “former” enemy, but instead to reveal the power of love, and the rebirth of new life.

Each soldier present was to bear witness that death could be overcome by the power of God.  Death was slave to the love of Christ.  Death would not be the permanent condition we find ourselves in.  We can be reborn.  We can come back to life, the life of love Christ intends to give us NOW, and at the end of all things.  New life is to be His gift.  He brings it with Him as He emerges from the grave.  He does not look upon those who wounded Him with hatred, but instead with love and peace, and charity.  The gaze of His eyes, melts the hearts of men who have known only killing, hatred, and the sure knowledge of a certain violent and early death.  The most hardened among them, now see themselves and the deeds they have done in the light of Truth, and the light of His love.  They, like us, recognize the enormity of the pain they have directly caused this Lord because of the deeds we all do by intent.  They, like us, know they deserve death and the pain that precedes it.  But they, like us, see no revenge or anger or punishment in His eyes, instead they see only the most burning love and care and concern, and desire to heal, revive, and resurrect them into a new life.

 Where in any other circumstance, a failure of a mission this size, would have resulted in a mass desertion and exodus to flee for their lives.  In any other circumstance, if they had been taken by surprise by a Jewish mob and had failed at their mission, they would have faced certain death by their masters and commanders.  But not here, not now.  Instead they return to Pilate to bear witness to what they have seen.  And Pilate KNOWS they are telling the truth.  For He too has born witness of the Truth.  He now agonizes over his own role in the condemnation of the son of the only God.  He now shares their collective grief over his acquiescence to the Jewish religious leadership in condemning innocent and divine blood to a death, even if it was only short lived.  He knew before; this was wrong.  He knew before; a God stood before him.  And now 100 soldiers speak in unison and without inconsistency about the arrival of dead bearing new life into the world.  His soldiers are all accounted for; none were killed by this God upon His awakening.  The angels took no revenge.  This was unexpected.  This was different.  The testimony of the soldiers was of the love in the eyes of Christ.  There was a complete absence of hate, a complete absence of malice, a complete absence of self.  The risen God seemed only to long to ease the pain and guilt of this company of men.  Not only for their recent atrocities committed against God Himself, but for the entirety of their lives unto this point.  Christ wanted to free them from their past.  Like us, He wanted to bring the freedom that love offers, and the new life that is the hallmark of this freedom from the past.  He brings us freedom from the people who we have become.

The soldiers face no death sentence for their failure.  Pilate will take no further steps to make the priests happy and continue a war against God.  Pilate instead releases His men and looks to ponder the meaning of the response of love against all the hate he has witnessed.  The priests however, now fully realizing they have lost everything, STILL cling to their desire to maintain religious power over the people.  So they attempt to bribe the soldiers with silver and gold to keep them from talking, or if they speak, to lie and say the followers of Christ simply stole his body in the night.  But their attempts at bribery are misguided.  To admit that kind of failure would be to invite a death sentence for sure.  To wallow in the ways of death, and lies of the past, is to only embrace death.  But the Truth is liberating.  The Truth was believed by Pilate, and could not even be denied by the priests.  The Truth presented the opportunity for something new in their future.  Each of them now had reason to seek out more about this new Truth.  Each of them now wondered how their own lives might be irrevocably altered by their encounter with God.  These men would now take a story into the world and plant seeds with many that would be harvested by the power of His Holy Spirit in later days.  Rome itself would be altered.  Rome itself would be changed.  Rome itself would see love bring a new life.

John, in his gospel, was unaware of these events.  Perhaps he had been busy moving Mary, the mother of Jesus, into his home after the burial.  Perhaps he had been a while getting to the upper room to seek sanctuary from the anger of the priests and leaders.  It was not John, nor any of the others, who would first go to attend to their buried Lord.  Instead it was Mary Magdalene.  The former prostitute and now ardent disciple herself, would find no shame in seeking to attend her fallen Lord.  Mary knew that a company of rough and vile men awaited her at the grave site.  But Mary had spent a lifetime dealing with rough and vile men.  She imagined she could handle herself well enough to do what needed to be done in checking on her Lord.  But John records in his gospel in chapter 20 in verse one … “The first day of the week cometh Mary Magdalene early, when it was yet dark, unto the sepulchre, and seeth the stone taken away from the sepulchre. [verse 2] Then she runneth, and cometh to Simon Peter, and to the other disciple, whom Jesus loved, and saith unto them, They have taken away the Lord out of the sepulchre, and we know not where they have laid him.”  Notice Mary did not enter the tomb.  Instead, expecting to find a company of 100 Roman soldiers, she finds none.  Expecting to find a great stone and unbroken Roman seal upon the tomb, the stone has been moved and the seal has been broken.  She immediately assumes, the Romans must have moved Him in the early hours.  She assumes He has been stolen and who knows what they are doing to Him now.  So she runs to tell the others the bad news.

John writes out the response he and Peter had to the news of Mary beginning in verse 3 … “Peter therefore went forth, and that other disciple, and came to the sepulchre. [verse 4] So they ran both together: and the other disciple did outrun Peter, and came first to the sepulchre. [verse 5] And he stooping down, and looking in, saw the linen clothes lying; yet went he not in.”  The adrenal glands of John kicked in to overdrive and he simply out runs Peter to get to the tomb.  But they are not so hyped up as to overcome his fears about encountering the dead, and so John stops at the door of the tomb.  That was close enough for him at the moment.  He continues in verse 6 … “Then cometh Simon Peter following him, and went into the sepulchre, and seeth the linen clothes lie, [verse 7] And the napkin, that was about his head, not lying with the linen clothes, but wrapped together in a place by itself. [verse 8] Then went in also that other disciple, which came first to the sepulchre, and he saw, and believed. [verse 9] For as yet they knew not the scripture, that he must rise again from the dead. [verse 10] Then the disciples went away again unto their own home.”  Notice again, when Peter arrives he sees the grave clothes folded and laid nearly inside the tomb.  John now enters and confirms what Peter has found, no body, and grave clothes folded neatly.  At this point both disciples believe what Mary has said, they have taken His body, and they have no idea where He is now.  The thought of resurrection has still not entered their minds.  And they have missed the obvious clue – if the Romans had taken Him, why would they be so careful as to fold the grave clothes and leave them neatly behind?  The Romans after all, had torn his clothing into 4 parts, and threw dice for His cloak.  Romans were least of all, clean and neat.  But in any case, what was clear, was that Christ was no longer in this tomb.

Given this new turn of events, the disciples are all more depressed than ever.  Peter and John return to their homes, but Mary is so heartbroken she does not even have the energy to do that.  Instead she can move no further, she can take no more, her grief is just too much, and she slinks down to the ground, right where she is and begins to weep.  She sobs for the sadness at the separation from her Lord, the source of life and love.  This is a pain that Christ knows all too well Himself.  For upon the cross, while carrying the stain of our sins upon Him, He too was forced to be separated from His Father for the first time in the history of the universe.  That separation broke His heart and killed Him.  So Christ knows what Mary is feeling.  Despite the universal importance of His mission of our redemption, of even Mary’s redemption, He must delay His work and see to the needs of the former prostitute who lies weeping without shame upon the ground in front of His empty tomb.  So with the universe still hanging in the balance, Christ MAKES time for Mary.  Nothing is more important to Christ than the object of His love and affection, even when the needs of the many seem more important to us, the needs of the one were what His love was all about.  Were we to see it rightly, we would share His priorities and attend to the one sheep in need, with Him in this effort, not waiting for Him to return to the ninety nine.

John records in verse 11 … “But Mary stood without at the sepulchre weeping: and as she wept, she stooped down, and looked into the sepulchre, [verse 12] And seeth two angels in white sitting, the one at the head, and the other at the feet, where the body of Jesus had lain. [verse 13] And they say unto her, Woman, why weepest thou? She saith unto them, Because they have taken away my Lord, and I know not where they have laid him.”  Angels were first dispatched to see to the needs of Mary, and when she sees them she reveals her grief is still founded on the idea that Christ remains dead, and has simply been moved to a place she is unable to find.  Mary again is missing the obvious in front of her.  She is conversing with two angels in an empty tomb.  But her grief is clouding her judgment and her sadness is overwhelming her reason.  John continues in verse 14 … “And when she had thus said, she turned herself back, and saw Jesus standing, and knew not that it was Jesus. [verse 15] Jesus saith unto her, Woman, why weepest thou? whom seekest thou? She, supposing him to be the gardener, saith unto him, Sir, if thou have borne him hence, tell me where thou hast laid him, and I will take him away.”  She is so grief struck that she does not recognize Jesus though He is standing right in front of her.  She is so overcome with her own beliefs that even upon hearing his voice she thinks He is the gardener, not her Lord.  Sometimes when we become so certain of our scriptural understandings and beliefs in our doctrines, we too are unable to perceive the Lord when He is right in front of us.  We become so dogmatic that we miss His voice, miss the clues, miss the angels, and see only what we believe that denies us the access to the God we profess to follow.  Like Mary we are distracted and overcome by what we think.

Even now, she believes perhaps the gardener moved Christ, or at least might have some idea about where the Romans might have taken Him.  John continues in verse 16 … “Jesus saith unto her, Mary. She turned herself, and saith unto him, Rabboni; which is to say, Master.”  Jesus does for Mary, what He must do for ALL of us; He breaks through her stubborn thinking and calls her out by name.  He reveals Himself to her, despite what she believes, despite what she is so sure is the truth, and instead reveals the Truth of Himself to her.  He undoes her entire belief system in a single instant, and reveals to her that New Life is found only within Himself.  The entire sacrificial system and its meaning to Mary is at an end in that instant.  The debates of the Pharisees who spend a lifetime considering the meaning of a given passage of scripture pales in comparison to an instant in front of the living God.  We need not be scholars to experience Christ, in fact, it might be a detriment to think ourselves so wise in the ways of the scriptures.  Better to be Mary, overcome with sadness at the thought of separation from Christ, and as such given a personal revelation of Jesus Himself.  Jesus calls Mary out of the history of her beliefs, and instills within her the only truth that matters, Himself.  Jesus reveals to Mary and us, that salvation is found in Him alone.  He must be our leader.  He must be the cornerstone of our beliefs.  He must bring to us the new life, if new life is what we are to experience.

But then John reveals how much Jesus cares for the needs of just one woman who seeks Him with the entirety of her being.  Jesus proceeds to tell her in verse 17 … “Jesus saith unto her, Touch me not; for I am not yet ascended to my Father: but go to my brethren, and say unto them, I ascend unto my Father, and your Father; and to my God, and your God. [verse 18] Mary Magdalene came and told the disciples that she had seen the Lord, and that he had spoken these things unto her.”  Jesus reveals to her, that He has delayed the very work of our salvation to make time to see her and comfort her.  She must not touch Him as yet, because He can carry no stain of our sin before He sees if His sacrifice was enough for our redemption with His Father.  Even though He is unsure if because of carrying our sins He may never again be fully reunited with His Father, He still pauses to see to the needs of just one aching soul.  Instead, He bids her to tell the disciples the incredibly good news of salvation and new life He brings.  He is ALIVE. 

The first gospel commission is given not to men, but to a woman, a woman who had formerly been known as the greatest of sinners, a woman who before had been possessed of demons, and known of many a lustful man.  This woman’s former life was as bad as it gets.  But not her new life.  Her new life was to begin with a direct calling and mission and message from the Son of God Himself, to His most ardent followers.  Mary was to be the first one to carry the gospel to the church itself.  Mary was to be the messenger to those who would later call themselves leaders.  Mary would minister to them.  Mary would be first to lead them.  Mary would attempt to inspire hope in them with the Truth of Jesus Christ.  Christ did not send Mary to His followers because she was a woman, but because she was there, she cared, and she ached to see Him again.  She was willing.  She was faithful.  She obeyed.  And neither did Christ discriminate against her because she was a woman.  Debate over – our sex and our past has nothing to do with our fitness to minister for Christ.  When we are called to new life – ALL can serve as He wishes.

And Mary did as Jesus asked.  She returned to the others and began to share the good news.  But the men she ministered to, held to their own stubborn beliefs.  They would not be convinced by the emotional ramblings of a woman with such a checkered past.  They instead would cling to the grief they held on to.  They would refuse to be made free by the truth of the gospel which Mary would share.  It was not that these men did not hear her testimony; it was that they refused to believe it in their own hearts.  Had they been willing to hear the message of the Lord from the vessel He had sent, there would have been no need for Christ to personally appear to confirm the truth of what Mary had relayed.  But men, then and now, are stubborn.  Men refuse to believe that a woman could be called upon by God to deliver so important a truth.  Further, even today, we believe that the misdeeds a person has engaged in disqualify them from being a vessel of messages of truth.  We associate the person with the message, instead of separating the truth of what they say from the weaknesses of their lives.  Mary was speaking the truth given to her by Christ Himself.  She could not undo what she was, but through Christ, she was called to be something else.  She delivered His message; that He was ascending to His God and their God.  He was ascending to His Father and their Father.  We were being elevated to be considered family with God Himself.  This was incredible news, both then and now, yet men would not hear it from the mouth of a woman.

100 Roman soldiers knew the truth.  Mary had heard the most incredible message from the mouth of Christ Himself.  101 people had seen the risen Lord, alive and walking among us.  The first fruits of His kingdom had given the message of His divinity throughout Jerusalem for 3 days.  The priests knew the truth.  Pilate knew the truth.  But those men who SHOULD have known the truth, and been the first to embrace it, were not convinced by the testimony of others.  They would not hear the message of the one who God had called to take them the good news.  Instead, like the Pharisees, and like us, they clung to their own understanding of scriptures, and what they had witnessed, and refused to accept the testimony of another on the topic.  They, like us, judged the messenger as unworthy, and so refused to accept the truth Christ was trying to share with them and bring them joy in the process.  They, like us, had preconceptions about the roles of women and men when it comes to the preaching and teaching of the gospel.  As such the one who was willing, and the one who was chosen, was ignored by those who thought themselves as leaders and not followers.  They chose to cling to their sadness instead.  So like He had done for Mary, Christ would now need to wipe away the preconceptions of His own followers, and reveal to them, as to us, the Truth of Himself …