In Numbers 21, we read one of the more surprising rescue stories of Israel. The people rebelled, serpents bit them, many died, and Moses prayed for the nation. Then the LORD said:
“Make a fiery serpent, and set it on a pole; and everyone who is bitten, when he sees it, shall live.” (Numbers 21:8)
So Moses made a bronze snake, lifted it high, and those who looked endured. That bronze image was, in its moment, a divinely-given means of deliverance. It was not magical in itself, but God created it as a sign: repent, look, live.
Later, however, we read in 2 Kings 18:4 that King Hezekiah destroyed that very bronze serpent — called Nehushtan — because the people had begun to burn incense to it. What was once a tool became an idol.
The bronze serpent was not a fetish. It was not meant to become the object of worship. It was a “look and live” sign. The serpent foreshadowed later realities (as Jesus himself referenced in John 3:14–15) — the lifted-up Christ, who brings healing, life, and redemption.
The key is: God ordains means, for his purposes, in his time. A means is good so long as it points away from itself and points to him.
But the bronze serpent became a problem. 2 Kings 18:4 states:
“…for up to that time, the Israelites had been burning incense to it. It was called Nehushtan.”
What changed? The people stopped seeing the object as the means. They began venerating the object. They burned incense. They worshipped the serpent. The means became the end. The sign became the substance. The action became the object of trust.
Thus, we see a pattern:
1. A god-ordained symbol becomes a comfortable habit.
2. A god-ordained tradition becomes a barrier to biblical truth.
3. A god-ordained means becomes the substitute for the true end.
If we’re not cautious, the very things God uses to bless our faith become traps in our devotion.
What does this look like in our context today?
Perhaps a worship style, a ministry program, a church tradition — originally given to serve — becomes the thing we cling to, rather than Christ.
Perhaps a past experience of God becomes the standard prize rather than the person of God.
Perhaps a helpful symbol, like a cross on a necklace, becomes the locus of our trust.
When the object of our faith becomes anything but the living God, we drift into idolatry. And idolatry is not just bowing to carved images; it is anything that takes God’s place in our hearts (see Romans 1). To serve the created rather than the Creator is to become idolaters (Romans 1:25).
Hezekiah’s act of breaking the bronze serpent is a striking image. It’s not destruction for destruction’s sake: it is obedience to the Lord’s re-ordering of worship. The object itself had done its job — it had served its day — and now it hindered the true worship of the living God.
We, too, must ask: Are there “bronze serpents” in our lives? Things once used by God that now stand between us and God. Things we trust in, cling to, bow down to — though they were only meant to lead us to Christ.
Therefore, be thankful for the means God has given. Use them. But never worship them. When they become a wall rather than a window to God, they must go.
The gospel is always about Christ, not our methods. Always about faith, not form. Always about the living God, not our comforts.
The Lifted Serpent and the Lifted Savior
Jesus said of this ancient event:
“Just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up…” (John 3:14)
The bronze serpent pointed to Christ on the cross. The serpent on the pole drew the dying, the wounded, the bitten — and when they looked, they lived. Christ on the cross draws sinners, wounded by sin, and grants eternal life by his work. The serpent was never the object of worship — Christ is.
Let us, therefore, live by faith in Christ, not in our symbols. Let us worship God in spirit and truth (John 4:24). Let us tear down our idols — even those born of good intentions — that none may stand between us and the one true God.
Conclusion
The story of Nehushtan is a sober warning and a hopeful message. A warning: that the means can become the idol; a hopeful message: that Christ is the true object, the true end, the living hope. May our hearts hold fast to him — not the bronze snakes of our past, but the Living God who grants life by faith.
Martin Luther, a Catholic monk(1483-1546), known for beginning the Protestant Reformation (largely why so many of us in the West aren’t Catholic), spoke out against the Catholic church’s abuses of the time. He wrote the popular 95 Theses, pointing out the corruption of the church and government. Nearly 500 years later, he was respected, so by Michael King Sr. that he changed his and his son’s names to Martin Luther King Sr. and Martin Luther King Jr., who was also strongly influenced by the writings of Martin Luther.
The same Martin Luther was extremely anti-semetic, especially in his later years. He wrote “On the Jews and Their Lies,” in which he called for the destruction of the homes and synagogues of the race of people he called “envenomed worms.” These later teachings influenced and were used by Adolf Hitler to promote the extiction of the Jewish people.
The teachings of one man were, centuries later, used to change the lives of millions for the better. And that same man influenced an evil that murdered millions and brought the world to its second war.
The Bible is clear on the power of words. We’ve all experienced the pain and destruction of someone’s verbal assault and, conversely, the nourishment and liberation of someone’s kind and wise words. In the end, our words have power-they can build up or break down, heal or harm. Once spoken, they can not be taken back. So choose them wisely, and let them reflect the respect and integrity you stand for. Be careful of the words you speak.
When people speak of Christianity, it is often described exclusively as either a religion or a relationship. Those who argue that it’s purely a relationship oftentimes see religion as a negative thing, at least for Christianity. Religion is typically seen as a stiff set of rules held by stiff people wearing their stiffclothes holding their stiff noses in the air as they judge the sinners around them. The Christianity-is-a-relationship crowd tends to place emphasis on love, acceptance, and freedom. On the other hand, the ones who see it as a religion seem to have a more encompassing view of what Christianity is, in my opinion. Yes, it is love and acceptance and freedom. But it also includes structure, rules, and some of the less feel-good aspects like “the wrath of God.”
However, those in the relationship crowd aren’t very different from those in the religion crowd when it all boils down to it. Think about what a relationship is, whether it be between spouses, friends, family, or employees/employers. There are rules, whether spoken or unspoken, written or unwritten, that govern whether the relationship is going to be healthy or not. A healthy relationship has boundaries. One or all parties involved understand that there are certain things that they shouldn’t do if they want to continue in harmony with the other participant(s). A husband knows that certain things will make his wife legitimately unhappy and that other things will bring her happiness and security. Some things may have more bearing on the trajectory of the marriage than others. A cheating spouse is more at risk of causing the marriage to end than a spouse who forgets to take out the trash. Or, in an employee/employer relationship, stealing time is more detrimental than stealing a pen or paperclip. Either way, it’s understood that no matter the relationship, there is typically a strict set of do’s and don’ts if you want the relationship to last. I feel that perhaps, more often than not, those who adhere to a strict mindset of Christianity being a relationship and not a religion want to do away with the religious aspect because they don’t think it’s should be about rules. To this, I agree. It shouldn’t be about rules. It should be about the object that we want to have a relationship with. I didn’t marry my wife for it to be about rules, but I did get married knowing that there are rules that I would have to abide by if I want the marriage to work. Some rules are universal, like don’t cheat. Some rules are more specific to the relationship because of the individuals involved. My wife doesn’t like her steak well done, so I know not to let it cook on the grill for longer than she would like. If I messed up the steak once or twice, she’ll forgive me, but if I do it every time, she may feel as if I don’t care or am doing it out of spite.
The problem with some in the religious crowd is that it has become about rules. The relationship has been completely dismissed for a checklist. Usually, it is a checklist of negatives. Don’t smoke, don’t drink, don’t wear that, don’t say that, don’t go there, don’t watch that. It can easily become (or at least be seen as) a joyless list of impossible commands to appease a joyless and angry God. Many people would rather do without such stringency.
So people do away with the “religion” and its rules. Relationship feels better. It comforts. It brings peace. It brings freedom. It lifts up and encourages. Some say they’re not religious but are “spiritual.” There are various reasons one may claim to be spiritual, but one of the reasons is often a rejection of the rigidity of religion. Some even go further and reject it all together. (Sadly, some people who reject religion aren’t very good at relationships either. They want the security that either may bring but they also want the freedom that makes neither an option. You can’t live as a single person and expect a happy marriage. You can’t be employed but live as though you have no job.)
I feel that what’s missing on both sides is a true understanding of what Christianity is supposed to be. It’s both a religion and a relationship. Merriam-Webster defines religion as “a personal set or institutionalized system of religious attitudes, beliefs, and practices.” Britannica sites religion as: human beings’ relation to that which they regard as holy, sacred, absolute, spiritual, divine, or worthy of special reverence. Both definitions, along with any other I could find, describe what Christianity is. However, that’s like looking at a book and describing it by giving the definition of a book.
Christianity is so much more.
In the New Testament of the Bible, Jesus is often seen rebuking the religious leaders of his day (this fact is frequently used as proof that our faith isn’t a religion). But like the religious leaders in Jesus’ time and those in modern times, the religion is weaponized. The Pharisees and Saducees used the Jewish religion and its rules hypocritically. They misunderstood what the law was given for. One such example was when Jesus healed a blind man on the Sabbath. According to the “rules,” no work was supposed to be done on the Sabbath. This law was (and still is) a good law because it requires rest. Any hard worker understands that sometimes you have to be made to take a breather. Don’t work yourself so that you don’t get time to enjoy yourself and your loved ones. Take a day to enjoy the fruits of your labor. Take this day as a day to gather and worship God. Instead, the religious leaders made it another burden on the people. When Jesus healed the blind man on the Sabbath, he was chastised. John 9 tells us,
“They brought to the Pharisees the man who had been blind. Now on the day which Jesus had made the mud and opened the man’s eyes was the Sabbath…Some of the Pharisees said ‘This man is not from God, for he does not keep the the Sabbath.’” (verses 13-16 NIV).
While the Pharisees knew the letter of the law, Jesus understood the spirit of the law. The rule concerning the Sabbath kept someone from lifting burdens on that day. Jesus freed a man from his burden that day.
When God gives rules, they are to help us. To keep us from trouble. Sometimes, the trouble is unknown to us. Rules aside, the Bible is full of relational statements. God desires all who he created in his image (that’s all humans) to be his sons and daughters. But as I mentioned earlier, to have a healthy relationship with anyone, there are expressed boundaries set by one or more parties. God himself has expressed what his boundaries are. He has said that there are things we ought to do and things we ought not do. The goal isn’t in the oughts and ought nots. The goal is the object of our affection. That object is God. The all-knowing lover of our souls knows what benefits us and what hurts us even when we don’t. Just because something feels good doesn’t mean it’s beneficial in the long run, just like one may use maladaptive coping mechanisms to deal with stress, but in the end, it leads to more hurt.
James 1:15 ESV Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death.
So I’ll end this by saying that yes, the Christian faith is a religion, technically. The goal, however, is relationship. It is what God desires to have with us. It is the reason Jesus came and died: so that we may be reconciled into right relationship with him when we have strayed. But for us to stray means that there was a breach in the relationship. We sometimes walk away by doing what God has expressed displeases him. In the same way, many of us have had failed relationships because we or the other party did something that had negative repercussions on the bond. If we continue, the bond can be severed forever. Likewise, if we continue in ways that displease God, we are severing our bond. One day, it’ll be too late to reconcile.
Let me preface this by saying that I have no official training in psychology, psychiatry, counseling, or mental health. What I am about to write is purely based on my experience with human nature in my 40-plus years of living. It is not intended to be a substitute for actual biblical counsel or clinical help. Therefore, take this blog with a grain of salt.
Jesus with Martha and Mary by Gustave Dore
In recent decades, there has been an uptick in diagnoses in anxiety among those of us in the West. Even for those of us who haven’t been clinically diagnosed, there seems to be an underlying anxiety that pervades our everyday lives. While there are multiple angles from which we can approach the problem of anxiety, I believe one very real reason is our unending busyness.
The reason I call it “unending busyness” is that even in our relaxing, we remain busy. Our minds are constantly being stimulated when we should be truly at rest. We’ve become so accustomed to noise and chaos that we even need noise to help us sleep.
I believe since the advent of personal electronic entertainment; we have slowly begun to lose our personal mental peace. What started off as a handful of channels of broadcast television that we had to wait to watch when we got home or maybe saw as we shopped in a department store, then grew into more channels with cable and even more with satellite. With the convenience of the remote control, we could easily flip between hundreds of channels without having to get up. This instantly gave us access to all kinds of news, sports, shows, and movies at the push of a button. Then came the option to have a TV that showed one channel in a little box inside the picture of a separate channel.
We then move to having personal computers and the internet in our homes. So now, on one device, we have hundreds of TV channels, and on another device, we have an untold number of websites we can access. During this time, most computers had to be plugged into the 1 phone line of the house to access the internet. We went from needing to go to the library and search through countless books in order to do that research paper for school, to being able to Yahoo or Google whatever we wanted to know and having the results in a few seconds.
Since the time televisions made their way into our homes, we saw the invention of the grocery store, the interstate system, dishwasher appliances, the microwave, and all kinds of “instant” foods. This made wait times for almost anything in life much shorter than ever in human history and made life more effortless.
Enter the smartphone in the mid-2000s. Now, we have access to the internet, movies, and an interactive phone book in the palm of our hands. Not only that, but all members of the household also tend to have their own smartphones. There used to be one tv, one computer, and one phone line for multiple people, and everyone had to wait their turn. Now, there’s no need to wait. We don’t have to wait on letters from loved ones across the country or even across the world because we can DM them and get an instant response. We sit down after a hard day of work, and instead of letting our minds relax, we bombard it with news feeds and reels and images of more stuff we want to buy that we don’t need. We see other people post their personal drama, or we see other people post their vacations, which we wish we could be on because they look so peaceful (not knowing the anxiety they endured to get there).
Basically, our need to wait on things in life has dwindled drastically. We can get most of what we need or want with very little wait, if any. While I can appreciate all these things (I am using a smartphone to type this blog, BTW), life doesn’t really work that way. We feel like it does because of everything I mentioned above and some things I’m sure I failed to mention.
Because of the “instant” life we’ve become accustomed to over the past several decades, we think everything should be instant. We want to become healthy, but we don’t want to diet and exercise to get those results. That takes time, usually months and often years. And since it takes too much time, we choose not to do it, or we give up after a couple of weeks of seeing no results or we’d rather take diet pills instead. We want to get good grades, but we don’t want to sacrifice the time to sit and study the material. We don’t want to read books. We want to watch the 10-minute YouTube video about it. (We actually don’t want to watch the 10-minute YouTube video about it. We want to watch the 30-second TikTok video about it.) We want to be financially secure, but we don’t want to save and invest to have that financial freedom when we get older. We want big houses and nice cars early in life. We want the higher pay on our jobs without having to put in the long hours and move up the ladder (I’m not saying we shouldn’t all be paid a fair wage, but I do believe the wage should be commensurate with the amount of skill and training it takes to do the job).
I mentioned the interstate system earlier. In older cars, there used to be a designation at the 55 mph maker on the speedometer. That’s because the speed limit on America’s interstates used to be 55. Now, speed limits are 65, 70, and even 80 in some states. As Brooks said in The Shawshank Redemption, “The world went and got itself in a big d**n hurry.” If anything takes a minute or even a second longer than we think it should, we lose our minds.
So, this is what happens: You drive 10 miles an hour over the speed limit on the way to work, getting upset at the person in front of you actually going the speed limit. You’re irritable because you fell asleep with YouTube playing on your phone and America’s Got Talent on the TV at the same time, not letting our minds rest from the constant distraction. But, YouTube was really playing in a corner of the phone, and you got lost in the comments section of the latest political fiasco. Now you get to your understaffed place of work where you’re doing the jobs of 3 other people. Wait, Kevin called in again? He always calls in sick on payday! Ok, now you’re doing the job of 4 people. And of course, you remembered it was payday. You’ve been looking forward to payday since the day after last payday because you’ve accumulated way more expenses than your grandparents had. They were content with their one tv and one house phone and 2-bedroom house for a family of 5. Now, it’s after work, you’re tired, and you drive home 20 miles over the speed limit, knowing there’s a chance of getting pulled over by the police. Just the thought creates more unnecessary anxiety. Oh well, it’s just another stressor you’re willing to live with just for your ride to be over quicker. And of course, you’re thinking about all the responsibilities you have when you get home. Does any of that sound familiar?
As an adult, it seems that time flies by faster with each passing year. When we were growing up, time seemed to pass so slowly. But I think that possibly creates another kind of anxiety in children. They, too, are used to the fast paced instantaneous way of life, but at the same time, they have to wait for everything. Wait to be given permission. Wait till after dinner. Wait till they’re older. Wait till summer. Wait until the adults stop talking. The younger a child is, the less they understand the concept of time. The younger they are, the more they want whatever they want NOW. Yet our society and modern technology has somewhat enabled that they can, in fact, have it now. Whatever “it” may be. And we wonder why teenagers think we’re out of touch with reality if they’re told to wait till marriage to express one of their strongest and natural desires.
Therefore, I believe our desire to make things more convenient for us has caused us to become impatient. In our impatience, we have lost the ability to sit still, truly still. We have created too many distractions. With our distractions, we have become entirely too busy. We have become so accustomed to the chaos of busyness that our rest is seldom truly restful. And when we are truly resting, we are bored, fidgety, and needing something to stimulate us. Our anxiety never really leaves us.
I’m not saying that there aren’t truly people who suffer from very real anxiety due to perhaps chemical imbalance. Some types of anxiety may truly need medication to be helped. But I believe some anxiety can be helped, even possibly cured, if we choose to intentionally create times of quiet, times of reflection, of prayer, of meditation in our lives. What if we set our clocks for 10 or 15 minutes earlier and have that time dedicated to prayer and meditation? I’m not talking about praying while scrolling Instagram or Facebook. I’m not talking about meditation with the TV on in the background. Or what if on our commute to work, we turned the radio off and sat and listened quietly to what God has been trying to tell us? What if we made time during our lunch break to find a quiet place at work and catch up on some reading? What if we got home from work and made it a point to spend quality time with our families and acted as if there were no smartphones? What if we turned off the screens 30 minutes before bed so our brains could truly wind down? What if we chose to live more simply? What if you set timers on your favorite apps and/or video games in order to have quiet time? Look at your life and ask yourself what you could do to intentionally make peaceful moments every day in your life, however your life may look.
The main question is, what if we truly sought after God? What if we chased after God the way we chase after things? If you live a very busy life, putting away some distractions may be very hard to do at first. It may take some time to create a new normal. However, peace comes intentionally. Being still enough to hear God’s voice comes with intentionality because we may never hear it through all the noise. Understand that it may take some time, but anything good worth having is worth pursuing.
Read: Psalm 46:10, Philippians 4:6, Matthew 6:25-34, Luke 10:38-42
Earlier today, I read a well written article on a popular Christian website. The name of the website escapes me, though. The name of the article is the same as this blogs title. The conclusion of the article was basically “Yes. God cares.”
Without going into the details of the article (mainly because I can’t remember), I will touch on some reasons that I believe their conclusion was correct, but I will give one reason that I believe they missed altogether.
One often quoted “Bible verse” that’s not found in the Bible is “Come as you are.” Yes, this verse is not in the Bible. However, the concept is. The Gospel message itself is that you bring your sinful, broken self to God and He makes you into a new creature. He changes your heart and conforms you into the image of his Son. So basically we don’t fix ourselves before we come to God. We can’t. We come to God as we are and let him do the changing to us.
In the context of how we dress for church, the phrase “come as you are” is used quite often. The article I mentioned above touches on this phrase. What I think they left out is that, if we are truly saved, we come as we are but we aren’t supposed to stay as we are. When God changes our hearts, even the way we dress may change. And if the way we used to dress was immodest then it is my strong conviction that how one dresses would change also.
I know that anytime the topic is brought up most people immediately think about how some women show up to church. Mine does. However, in no way should this apply to women only. While women may wear skirts or dresses that are too short, men might wear shirts or pants that are too tight.
I’m often told by the older saints that the “church mothers” or ushers would place a small blanket over the exposed legs or shoulders of younger ladies that they feel are dressed immodestly for church. I think there was a time where we expected the older folks in church to hold the younger believers accountable. But now we sneer at anyone who tries to tell us that what we’re doing or what we’re wearing might not be appropriate, even in church. We think no one can judge us but God. We have to remember, though, that “Do not judge” is not a stand-alone verse. Judging rightly is a command stated over and over in Scripture. But are we to judge those who aren’t believers? The Apostle Paul says in 1 Corinthians 5:12, “For what have I to do with judging outsiders? Is it not those inside the church whom you are to judge?” The outsiders he mentioned here are unbelievers. Paul is saying not to hold unbelievers to the same standard of Christians.
So maybe an unbeliever or a new believer comes through the church doors wearing something we deem immodest. What do we do as believers? First let’s look inward. As my mom used to tell me “If I point one finger at you I have 3 more pointing back at me.” Scripture says in Matthew, chapter 7, “first pull the plank out of your own eye so that you may see clearly to get the speck out of your brothers eye.”
Second, we should ask ourselves if what we claim to be immodest is just tradition mistaken as God’s word. Is it a woman wearing pants? Does the Bible forbid women to wear pants when there were no pants in the Bible? Is it that a man is wearing shorts and sandals? Is that immodest or just not how we think people should dress in church? Is someone wearing jeans when you think they’re supposed to have on a suit immodest? Are any of these examples inappropriate for church? Not really but if it bothers the wearers conscience then, for him, it is. No one should go against their conscience (Romans 14:23). On the other hand, some articles of clothing are inappropriate for church. If an individual is showing too much skin or can barely sit or walk up stairs because they’re afraid of exposing something, it might be a bit much for church. If your clothing is so tight that it leaves little to the imagination, then it’s probably best you leave it at home. If the clothing is so flashy that you’re getting all the attention, maybe save it for another occasion. The focus during church service should be on God, not ourselves.
Going back to the title, the subject is “we”. Who is the “we” in the title? “Churchgoers” one may say. Well, in every attempt to find the original article that I read with that title, I see many Christian websites have articles with the same title. So, to me, the “we” is not just churchgoers but believers. To me asking the question if God cares what we wear to church is akin to asking if God cares how we act, talk, dress, and think in any situation. The answer is emphatically yes!
For the Christian, according to Martin Luther, there are two kinds of righteousness. There is coram Deo and coram mundo. Coram Deo is our righteousness before God. Coram mundo is our righteousness before man, like how we treat each other. As we gather on Sunday, Wednesday, Saturday, or whenever we gather with the saints, we should dress and speak and act in a way that does not cause stumbling to other believers. Our Christian life is not only for our benefit but it should be for the benefit of those within our sphere of influence and for the edification of the Church body. I would dare say that there is no true Christian independence. We’re all in this together.
The way we dress is also a reflection of our coram Deo. To live coram Deo is to live one’s entire life in the presence of God, under the authority of God, to the glory of God. The way we dress, act, speak, and think should always give glory to God. If God has truly changed who we are then the way we think and act will reflect who we are in him. The moon reflects the light it gets from the sun. In the same way the Christian should reflect the light it gets from God. Like the moon, the Christian has no light in and of itself. The moon gives testimony to the existence of the sun. The Christian should likewise give testimony to the existence of God. If there is no change in the life of the Christian from his or her former self or a change in the life of the Christian from the unsaved world around them, then they aren’t giving glory to God. And if they aren’t reflecting the light of God then, perhaps the light of God is not in them.
In conclusion, the problem with the “come as you are” mentality, is that as a Christian, we are not supposed to stay as we are. We are supposed to change from the person we used to be. There is supposed to be an obvious difference in the person we were and the person we are in Christ. There is supposed to be an abundant difference in unbelievers and believers. At times that means our wardrobe changes also. So let us look up, out, and in. During service, as we gather to worship The Most High God (up), let us come in reverence. Let us not forget He is holy and commands us to be holy as He is holy. Let us also do what is in our power to not cause our fellow believers (out) to stumble. Lastly, let us look and judge ourselves (in) first before we tell or suggest anyone else change how they come to worship God. Remember, man looks at the outward appearance, but God looks at the heart (1 Samuel 16:7).
———
P.S.
Grace. We all need to show each other grace. Even in judgement, we have to extend grace. We extend grace because we have been shown the grace of God. If a brother or sister in Christ needs correction, we should be graceful about it. Likewise, we should be graceful in receiving correction. Sometimes God uses God’s people to do God’s work.
Introducing our FREE 1 month Devotional! It’s based on our God’s Attributes poster that can be found and also downloaded for free. We pray this devotional not only informs but draws each reader closer to their Creator. Don’t forget to share it with others!
I’m not sure where to begin here. I guess I’ll start by saying that, growing up, I never considered the color of Jesus to ever be an issue. I would see pictures of Jesus on paintings and in illustrated Bibles. I was given some Bible study books when I was a child and would see perhaps most of the depictions of Bible characters looking “European”, except for a few Old Testament characters and the Ethiopian eunuch in Acts. But then I would see elsewhere, depictions of Black Jesus mainly in Black churches. I was never confused by either image. I guess I just figured for someone who lived 2000 years ago (before life-like paintings and photos), everyone was just guessing what He looked like. No harm, no foul. His color isn’t the most important thing about him anyway. Right? To me a Jew from the ancient Middle East probably looked, well like a modern Middle Eastern man. I was 8 or 9 when Operation Desert Storm happened and I remember thinking that most Bible people, Jesus included, probably looked like the people of Kuwait or Saudi Arabia.
Then as I got older I realized that the color of Jesus is a real stumbling block to a LOT of people. Some believe He is White. Some believe He is Black. Some even go to the lengths of giving God the Father one of the two skin tones. I don’t know if this is mainly an American problem. I’ve seen pictures of Asian Jesus as well but I have a feeling its not that much of a divisive issue in Asian countries as it is here in the U.S. I don’t know. It seems that different cultures like to represent Jesus as being like them in appearance. Maybe it makes Him more relatable. Maybe it was done in ignorance.
Some of us feel as though “White Jesus” was forced on to my ancestors in order to see “Master” as being closer to God. Or closer to the image of God. And because of the evil in men’s hearts, I can’t say that some slave owners didn’t do that exact thing. However, physical depictions of Jesus aren’t inspired and infallible. You can’t go to the ancient Greek or Hebrew texts and find a drawing of any person. There are some limited descriptions of certain people. Like David who was handsome and “ruddy” (the same red complexion given to Esau) 1 Samuel 16:12, Genesis 25:25. In Numbers 12 Miriam and Aaron were upset Moses’ wife was an Ethiopian (what I always assumed was the first fight over an interracial marriage). The point is that no one is really described in great detail how they look.
But, then there are those people who say that we can know Jesus was Black because of the description in Revelation 1:15 “And his feet like unto fine brass, as if they burned in a furnace; and his voice as the sound of many waters.” I’ve heard the explanation, “Who else has feet the color of burned brass? Definitely not them White Jews!” However, just one verse before that it says “His head and his hairs were white like wool, as white as snow; and his eyes were as a flame of fire.” So, is this saying Jesus is white? Well, it said His head and hairs are white, but His feet were like brass. What color is Jesus?
First, I would like to point out that the Book of the Revelation is full of imagery. Symbolic imagery. Four chapters later Jesus is described as a “Lamb as it had been slain, having seven horns and seven eyes.” Ok, well that’s obviously symbolic right? Well, I believe His depiction in chapter 1 is obviously symbolic or metaphoric also. Especially given how it describes His eyes and voice. And in verse 16 of chapter 1, He has a sharp, two-edged sword coming out of His mouth. It’s all imagery.
What does the Bible say about white hair? In Proverbs 16, it says wisdom and old age. Again, I’ve heard the objection, “But it says His hair was like wool. Who has hair like that?” It’s talking about the color, not texture.
In the Torah, bronze was used in the tabernacle for the laver (for cleansing) and the alter (for sacrifice). The Greek words here can be used to describe how bright and shining they are like if the metal is still in the furnace or if it is highly polished. His eyes are as fire, shining light in the darkness. His face which the scripture says was like sun, as though the intensity is too much to bear. The sword that came out of His mouth pierces and cuts. Hebrews 4:12 states, “For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are naked and open to the eyes of Him to whom we must give account.“
There is also a description of who we believe to be the Son of God in the prophetic Book of Daniel. Chapter 10:5-6, “I lifted my eyes and looked, and behold, a certain man clothed in linen, whose waist was girded with gold of Uphaz! His body was like beryl, His face like the appearance of lightning, His eyes like torches of fire, His arms and feet like burnished bronze in color, and the sound of His words like the voice of a multitude.” Here we see similar descriptions. A face too bright to look at, eyes like fire, a voice so loud, arms and feet like burnished bronze. The “burnished” in the Hebrew means brightened or polished. Now, a simple Google search will show what burnished bronze looks like. And when compared to human skin it is very much non-white. So here, you may have an argument that the man Daniel was describing was a “Black” man. Or a sun kissed Middle Easterner. People didn’t spend a whole lot of time inside.
But what does it mean that His body was like beryl? Beryl can come in many different color variations: red, pink, aquamarine, emerald green, golden. But, it’s always translucent. The book of Daniel is full of imagery like the Book of Revelation, like his vision of the four beasts in chapter 7 and the king’s vision of the statue that represented four kingdoms in chapter 2. Remember that biblical visions and dreams usually are symbolic in nature.
It’s also important to note that even those who followed Jesus during His earthly ministry didn’t recognize Him after His resurrection (John 20:14-15; Luke 24:16).
The point is I don’t believe either depiction of Jesus describes His color. And if it does, I don’t believe that we should get so hung up on it that it distracts and divides us. No matter what, any physical depiction you’ve seen that is supposed to be Jesus is inaccurate. No one really knows what He looked like. At this point I’m almost willing to side with my Reformed brothers and say that all depictions of Jesus are violations of the 2nd Commandment. So much emphasis is being placed on what He looked like instead of what He did, it’s becoming idolatry.
I don’t need Jesus to look like me. The goal is to look like Him.
As for me, I shall behold Your face in righteousness; I will be satisfied with Your likeness when I awake. – Psalm 17:15
While listening to Philip de Courcy on his radio program yesterday, I listened to him talk about the resurrection of man. He briefly mentioned cremation and it reminded me of something that I’ve thought of many times throughout my life. Can a Christian get cremated? And by “can” I mean does Christian doctrine teach against it? And since I don’t want to commit the argumentum ex silentio fallacy, I don’t seek to argue that if scripture is silent on it then it is permissible.
So let’s start by asking if scripture does in fact explicitly permit or condemn cremation. The answer to that is no. Nowhere in the Bible is cremation prohibited or permitted. The only instance where cremation seems to be mentioned is in 1 Samuel 31: All the valiant men arose and traveled all night, and took the body of Saul and the bodies of his sons from the wall of Beth Shan; and they came to Jabesh and burned them there. Then they took their bones and buried them under the tamarisk tree at Jabesh, and fasted seven days.(verses 12-13) However, in modern forms of cremation the body is burned and the bones are ground into powder. This powder is what we call the “ashes”. So King Saul and his sons weren’t really cremated, per se.
Growing up, I always thought cremation was a bit of a taboo or just flat out wrong in Christianity. I’m not sure if it actually was taboo or if it was just my own perception. Especially as a child, the idea seemed a bit “hellish”. But, with the many articles on Christianity and cremation circling around the internet, I don’t suppose I was the only one thinking this.
One reason I thought it was wrong is because of the resurrection of the saints during the end times. I thought that good Christians should be buried as long as it is feasible to do so. But as I grew and learned in knowledge a few things came to mind.
1. If God can create man from dust then He can resurrect man from dust. He did say in Genesis that we would return to dust.
2. Many Christians haven’t had the opportunity to be buried. Some have been persecuted and torn apart by lions. Some have been lost at sea decaying in water and the marine life eating their remains. Some have been burned at the stake for their beliefs. John Huss, a Czech theologian, was burned at the stake and his ashes scattered in the Rhine river to prevent his followers from burying him. John Wycliffe (whose early English translation of the New Testament paved way for William Tyndale’s first full English Bible) had his remains exhumed from his grave, his bones burned to ashes and thrown into the river all because his writings were considered heretical. What about these people at the resurrection? The particles that made up their bodies are now so far separated that it would seem impossible that they could get pulled back together. But we must remember what Jesus said in Matthew 19:26,”…with God nothing is impossible.”
3. There’s also the fact that the Bible doesn’t just say that the saved will be resurrected. Acts 24:15, “having a hope in God, which these men themselves accept, that there will be a resurrection of both the just and the unjust.” John 5:28-29, “Do not marvel at this; for the hour is coming in which all who are in the graves will hear His voice and come forth—those who have done good, to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil, to the resurrection of condemnation.” And even that the seas themselves will give up their dead (Revelation 20:13).
Therefore, my reasoning was false as to why I thought Christians shouldn’t be cremated. A God that spoke the world into existence can easily form new resurrected bodies. No matter what state the remains of the believer (and nonbeliever) are in, God will assemble.
Does this mean that cremation is a viable option for believers? Well, where scripture is silent, we let the Holy Spirit guide our conscience. Sometimes it would be a better financial choice since the average cremation can be around 90% cheaper than the average funeral. It’s something that should be discussed with loved ones and prayed about earnestly.
“In the beginning was the word and the word was with God and the word was God.” John 1:1
During the early church, there was a dispute about the ontology of Jesus Christ. Is Jesus the same essence as God or is he of a similar essence? These two schools of thought divided those who wished to be faithful to what was revealed in scripture about the Redeemer. They used the Greek words ὁμοούσιος (homoousios) and ὁμοιοούσιος (homoiusios) to describe thier respective views.
Homo-ousios – that the Father and the Son are of the same essence. “Homo” meaning same. “Usia” meaning essence, or being.
Homoi-usious – that the Father and the Son are of similar essense. “Homoi” meaning similar.
Now at first glance it may seem that the difference in the two is nonessential banter. Why would there be division about such a seemingly trivial concept? Well, those that accepted the homoousian christology believed that the other camp was downplaying or outright denying the divinity of Christ. That the Theos and Logos described in John 1 are of the same essence and to describe them as anything else would be to describe someone else other than the Christ of Scripture.
Arius, a third century Lybian theologian believed in similar-substance-christology. Arius did not believe, however, that his view went against the teachings of scripture. Nor did his christology start with him. He learned from Lucian of Antioch. In a letter to another theologian known as Alexander, he called Jesus “a creature of God.” Making God the Father the creator of everything else including the Son and Holy Spirit. Therefore, according to those of the homoousion christology, God does not save but one of His creations does. Making Arianism seem to be too close to donetism, that Jesus is only a man.
Now this seems to coinside with John 3:16 that says Jesus is the “only begotten son.” The Greek here is μονογενής (monogenēs) meaning basically the single of its kind. This is important because if Jesus was of similar essence then He would not be of the same kind as His Father.
Arius, in his letter to Eusibius of Nicomedia, says of Jesus, “…the Son is not unbegotten, nor in any way part of the unbegotten; and that he does not derive his subsistence from any matter; but that by his own will and counsel he has subsisted before time and before ages as perfect as God, only begotten and unchangeable, and that before he was begotten, or created, or purposed, or established, he was not. For he was not unbegotten. We are persecuted because we say that the Son has a beginning but that God is without beginning.”
The Nicene Creed describes the Son as “God of God, Light of Light, true God of true God, begotten but not made…” Now I am not placing any creed above Scripture. However, those in the Council of Nicea (A.D. 325) thought it vital to settle this debate. That Scripture made it plain that Jesus and God are one (John 10:30).
Tradition has it that one member that attended the council was even so impassioned that he slaps an Arian, perhpas even Arius himself. This attendee was none other than Saint Nicholas of Myra, the same St. Nicholas we see around Christmas time.
——————————–
Now, I’ve heard the argument, “what about Colossians 1:15 that states that Jesus is the first born of all creation? How can He be of the same essence as the Father?” I believe that instead of using the word “of” here, “over” would have been better as used in the New King James Version, NIV, and the CSB.
Colossians 1:15-18 states, “He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things have been created through Him and for Him. He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together. He is also head of the body, the church; and He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that He Himself will come to have first place in everything.
” (NASB). We see here that He has made EVERYTHING. All that was created has been created by Jesus Christ. As John 1:3 says, “…apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being.” Making Jesus outside of creation and not a thing created.
While I can’t say that the New Living Translation is the best or even my favorite translation, I think it excellently words Colossians 1:5 this way, “Christ is the visible image of the invisible God. He existed before anything was created and is supreme over all creation.” In other words it’s Christ’s preeminence over creation that this verse is talking about.
In conclusion, I believe homoousia better describes our Lord as revealed in the Bible. Not homoi-.
Further reading: John 5:18, John 8:24, John 8:58, John 10:30-33, John 20:28, Colossians 2:9, Hebrews 1:8
Often times in our day to day interactions we hear someone say something that sounds like it’s from the Bible or even hear something we’ve read or heard in church knowing it’s from the Bible. Therefore, we don’t put much thought into the validity of the quote and we’ll affirm it with a hearty “Amen.”
And, too often, I’ll hear something and I think to myself “that’s not what that means.” Usually, the person speaking isn’t trying to be careless or malicious with their use of scripture. It’s usually just being spoken from ignorance. So, I’ve decided to write about one of the often quoted yet misused scripture quotes that we hear thrown about. One that I’ve even misused in the past:
Philippians 4:13 ” I can do all things through Christ “
We see this verse used on athletic clothing and sports banners. We say it before big tests. We say it when beginning our work week at a place we’d rather not work. We use it as a self affirmation when going to job interviews. It has become a Christian mantra for completing any daunting task.
At first the verse seems pretty upfront and plain. However, there’s a simple principle one can remember when using Bible verses, “Never read a Bible verse.” This means that all verses are surrounded by other verses and chapters and all verses should be read and used in context with the complete message in which it was stated.
So what does this verse really mean? Let’s look at the immediate context.
Philippians 4:10-14“But I rejoiced in the Lord greatly that now at last your care for me has flourished again; though you surely did care, but you lacked opportunity. Not that I speak in regard to need, for I have learned in whatever state I am, to be content: I know how to be abased, and I know how to abound. Everywhere and in all things I have learned both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. Nevertheless you have done well that you shared in my distress.“
Paul, the writer of Philippians had been through great distress during his travels proclaiming the Gospel to the Gentiles. But these times were full of beatings, stonings, prison, and shipwrecks (2 Corinthians 11:25). It is likely that Paul during his earlier days came from a place of affluence. Paul knew what it was like to have and to have not.
What Paul wants the reader to know here is that because of the power of Christ he can be content in all situations. No matter what he is facing he knows Who is ultimately in control.
As he said earlier in the chapter, “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.”
Theologetics.org 