No Pie in the Sky

Blogging yesterday about the Heavenly Jerusalem led me to remember my misspent youth where I would listen to many religious broadcasters. One that I remember clearly was the Rev Ike. The cadence of his voice was almost intoxicating. The alliteration was memorable. Rev Ike had learned his trade well from Pentecostal colleges. 

One line of his I will always remember:

I do not want no pie in the sky, I want my pie NOW, with ice cream on top. 

I found it hard to disagree. I am sure that the bad grammar was his choice. Thus he would probably like a portion of what I said yesterday, with an emphasis on the here and now as manifestations of the eternal. 

It even, to a degree, has biblical roots. 

As the King James version tells us in Proverbs 23:7, “As a man thinketh in his heart, so is he.” Sounds like our internal “self-talk” is important! But alas, this is an example of a doctrine based on obscure wording in the King James, that doesn’t really mean what people think it means. Here is the NIV: 

⁶ Do not eat the food of a begrudging host, 

   do not crave his delicacies; 
⁷ for he is the kind of person 
   who is always thinking about the cost. 
“Eat and drink,” he says to you, 
   but his heart is not with you. 
⁸ You will vomit up the little you have eaten 
   and will have wasted your compliments.

As you see, this passage really has nothing to do with positive thinking. (This is an example of the type of faulty Biblical interpretation used by prosperity preachers.) But there is another scripture that does relate. 

Paul in Philippians 4 tells us:

⁸ Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.

It does seem to me that what we think about on the inside will manifest itself on the outside. As Jesus said in Mark 7:

²⁰ He went on: “What comes out of a person is what defiles them. ²¹ For it is from within, out of a person’s heart, that evil thoughts come—sexual immorality, theft, murder, ²² adultery, greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance and folly. ²³ All these evils come from inside and defile a person.”

So while having a positive outlook is a good thing, it is not a magic wand that you can use to make yourself wealthy. (This concept is really a type of phony magic—“sympathetic magic,” as it is called.) Nor will sending someone like "Ike" money cause wealth to magically rub off on you. Nor is your gift to a ministry a "seed of faith" that will yield a harvest that will miraculously fill your wallet. 

I too do not want pie in the sky, I want my pie now with ice cream on top. The pie I want is not a gold plated Rolls Royce, or 15 other Rolls Royce's like the Rev Ike. The pie a-la-mode I want is this:  

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, 
   for they will be filled. 

Here is the Rev Ike himself:

The New Jerusalem

The New Jerusalem is a city described in Revelation 21 and 22. It is usually interpreted as heaven. Alas, that just does not fit the chapters. Someone asked me on a private religious forum why I list my city of residence under my name on the forum as the “New Jerusalem.” In this blog post I will explain why.

When the heavenly Jerusalem is referenced elsewhere in the Bible it is not meant to be a literal city. Here is Paul in Galatians 4:

²⁵ Now Hagar stands for Mount Sinai in Arabia and corresponds to the present city of Jerusalem, because she is in slavery with her children. ²⁶ But the Jerusalem that is above is free, and she is our mother.

Paul here is making an analogy with the present city of Jerusalem and non-Christian Jews. But Gentile (Galatians is unique in that it is primarily addressed to Gentiles) and Jewish Christians do not "dwell" in that city-even if they happen to live there. Instead they dwell in the Heavenly City. We are children of the Promise like Isaac: 

²⁸ Now you, brothers and sisters, like Isaac, are children of promise. ²⁹ At that time the son born according to the flesh persecuted the son born by the power of the Spirit. It is the same now. ³⁰ But what does Scripture say? “Get rid of the slave woman and her son, for the slave woman’s son will never share in the inheritance with the free woman’s son.” ³¹Therefore, brothers and sisters, we are not children of the slave woman, but of the free woman.

The Heavenly Jerusalem in Galatians is not a physical place. It is not even a non-physical heavenly place. It is Christians living on the earth that dwell in that heavenly city. 

Whoever wrote Hebrews had the same point in chapter 12. In this case the analogy is between Sinai and the Heavenly Jerusalem. 

¹⁸ You have not come to a mountain that can be touched and that is burning with fire; to darkness, gloom and storm; ¹⁹ to a trumpet blast or to such a voice speaking words that those who heard it begged that no further word be spoken to them, ²⁰because they could not bear what was commanded: “If even an animal touches the mountain, it must be stoned to death.”²¹ The sight was so terrifying that Moses said, “I am trembling with fear.”²² But you have come to Mount Zion, to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem. You have come to thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly, ²³ to the church of the firstborn, whose names are written in heaven. You have come to God, the Judge of all, to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, ²⁴ to Jesus the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel.

The point that the author here is making is that we have no reason to fear, and that we can approach God. The way he makes his point is that we Christians "have come" to something. And this something is explained with a series of metaphors, all to explain something that is hard for us to grasp. Note that the author does not say we will come to the heavenly Jerusalem: he says that we have come. So here the going to the city and the church are linked as one. (The word Church is being used in the nonphysical sense.)

Does this fit Revelation 21-22? Revelation 21 tells us:

² I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband.

⁹ One of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb.” 

So what is the bride of Jesus the Lamb? Jesus in the Gospels refers to himself as the bridegroom. But who is he to marry? Revelation 19 tells us that He is to marry the saints:

 7 Let us rejoice and be glad

                  and give him glory!

For the wedding of the Lamb has come,    

                  and his bride has made herself ready.

8 Fine linen, bright and clean,   

                  was given her to wear.”

(Fine linen stands for the righteous acts of God’s holy people.)

So does Revelation 21 tell us explicitly what the city represents? 

9 One of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb.” 10 And he carried me away in the Spirit to a mountain great and high, and showed me the Holy City, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God.

So we who are the bride of Christ are collectively the city—or in the city, just as we are members in the Church, collectively we are the church. Who is outside the city? 

27 Nothing impure will ever enter it, nor will anyone who does what is shameful or deceitful, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s book of life.

These people are outside the city just as such people are outside the church. 

I am not denying that there must be an ultimate home of some nature for Christians out in Eternity. But I am saying that Revelation 21-22 is not talking about this. Many Christians are so stuck in a template of a literal interpretation that they cannot see the forest for the trees. 

I can hear the objections: “But in the city there is no death!” and so on. But that is because too many of us are stuck in a western literalistic mindset. In this blog I have often called this a template. Let me give you a parallel example from John 11: 

²⁶And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Believest thou this?

I quote from the King James here as it is closer to the Greek and it makes my point. Here is the NIV makes a correct interpretation of the verse.

²⁵ Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die; ²⁶ and whoever lives by believing in me will never die. Do you believe this?”

Do we believe this? If taken literally this is obviously false, since many Christians have died. In a metaphorical way this is a deep truth, a “deep magic” to quote Aslan the Lion. I am suggesting that the parts of Revelation 21 & 22 that say these same kind of things be interpreted in the same way one must interpret John 11. 

To a degree the interpretation I am advancing here does not speak well for the church as a whole. Revelation 22 tells us that the city is to bring certain benefits to the nations. (And if the city is heaven, who are these nations?) 

1 Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb 2 down the middle of the great street of the city. On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations.

Are we healing the nations? I think not. As the Casting Crowns song puts it: 

But if we are the Body 
Why aren't His arms reaching 
Why aren't His hands healing 
Why aren't His words teaching 
And if we are the Body 
Why aren't His feet going 
Why is His love not showing them there is a way 
There is a way

Why aren't we bringing healing to the nations? Could it be that we are so heavenly minded we are no earthly good? So I tell everyone (and myself!) that I dwell in that city as a reminder that we Christians all have a calling and we need to be about it. 

The “V” Formation

There are advantages for geese to fly in a "V" formation. They can fly faster and farther. But such a pattern does have its drawbacks for humans. Where is the flock going? I remember an old joke: “We are lost, but we are making great time!”

Being a part of a group headed in the wrong direction will not be helpful to an individual goose. However, flying in a V formation does have one advantage: each goose takes a term as lead goose. Among humans this is rare. 

I remember a cartoon that had a big effect on me.  The cartoon begins with geese in a V formation. The second panel shows the lead goose going in a different direction than the rest. The third panel of the cartoon shows a panicked and frantic leader goose apart from "his" flock. The final panel shows the leader goose back in front of the V.

Leaders can be trapped by the system too. A desire to serve can be corrupted to a desire for position. Money is often involved. 

Prophets are never popular. John the Baptist was beheaded. Jeremiah was dumped in a septic tank. In 2 Chron 24 the Prophet Zachariah was murdered:

⁹ Although the LORD sent prophets to the people to bring them back to him, and though they testified against them, they would not listen.

 ²⁰ Then the Spirit of God came on Zechariah son of Jehoiada the priest. He stood before the people and said, “This is what God says: ‘Why do you disobey the LORD’s commands? You will not prosper. Because you have forsaken the LORD, he has forsaken you.’”

 ²¹ But they plotted against him, and by order of the king they stoned him to death in the courtyard of the LORD’s temple. ²² King Joash did not remember the kindness Zechariah’s father Jehoiada had shown him but killed his son, who said as he lay dying, “May the LORD see this and call you to account.”

Leaders trapped by the system will inevitably end up acting this way. Although in modern times, no murder is committed—just character assassination and the like. 

Jesus in Matt 5 talks about this kind of "murder."

²¹ “You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, ‘You shall not murder, and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.’ ²² But I tell you that anyone who is angry with a brother or sister will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says to a brother or sister, ‘Raca,’ is answerable to the court. And anyone who says, ‘You fool!’ will be in danger of the fire of hell.

A true leader will lead, not follow the wishes of the people if the people are wrong. This may mean in political terms that one is not electable. Unpalatable truths are still truths. Ron Paul comes to my mind as I write. 

In the religious arena a pastor should never preach a doctrine because he is “expected” to, if he does not believe it. 

Of course the easiest person to deceive is oneself. While obviously a person needs to live, and Paul makes it clear that one can "live" upon the gospel by receiving donations from those who are served, there is a danger when one's livelihood depends on toeing the doctrinal line. A preacher can be in the same position that a politician faces in the next election. Unpopular positions leads to loss of income.  

If you speak hard truths, you are going to be called names. Count on it. Things like "You are not really a Republican" or "Are you really a part of the Church?" or “You are not a Christian" or "You are crazy." Or the final put down: "You are anti-American." 

Yes this means you will be called a fool, as Jesus said. But as he also said, try not to be the one doing the name calling. Of course there are times this is unavoidable (See Matt 23). If you care about what other people think you are headed down the wrong road. These comments say more about them than about you. 

One final word of warning: if you decide to go down the path of true leadership, do not be a jerk about it. In other words just because others are a jerk, there is no reason for you to be. Turn the other cheek as Jesus advised in Matthew 5:

⁴³ “You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ ⁴⁴ But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, ⁴⁵ that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. ⁴⁶ If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? ⁴⁷ And if you greet only your own people, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that? ⁴⁸Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.

I have not been very good at this, but I can do better. I have a new motto for the Prophecy Podcast that is in line with what I have been saying today:

"One should either write ruthlessly what one believes to be the truth, or else shut up." (Arthur Koestler)

I hope you will speak the truth, but understand that doing this has a cost. 

I have been referencing Ron Dart and his history on the issues of Leadership. to download a message he gave on these issues in 1979 click here. 

He Is Just a Man

I talked Friday about the fact that if we are of the world we will be corrupted by that world. Micro-compromises build up slowly over the years. Eventually we do not even notice the compromises anymore. This is particularly evident in the religious world. No one starts out saying to themselves, "There is a lot of money in religion, I want to get some of it for myself." Almost no one anyway: Ron Hubbard the founder of Scientology told his buddies just that in the years he was a Science Fiction writer before he became a cult leader. Joseph Smith fits in that category as well, he was a fake right from the beginning. 

In general what happens is the religious leader is corrupted by the process. I talked to Ron Dart one time about why he did not expand into TV evangelism. He said he thought about it but decided the necessary steps were not worth the cost. In particular he was referring to fundraising, as TV is very expensive. He had written an unpublished book about TV evangelism and fundraising techniques, so he knew how it was done. He was afraid that the money would require him to shift his focus from helping people to raising money. He did not want his Christian Educational Ministries to become Christian Fundraising Ministries. The risk was that he would become what he hated. 

Years earlier I had tried to talk Ron into forming a denomination. I was not happy with the denomination I was in and was looking for another. He refused. Having been at the center of two failed denominations earlier in his ministry (I was still in one of them), he saw no reason to repeat those same mistakes. He was right and I was wrong. 

The reason I was wrong was that I did not understand that when you institute a hierarchy you are on dangerous ground. Nothing wrong with a chain of command, but it is difficult for those higher in a religious food chain to not think of themselves "higher than they ought." This is actually fed by those "below" in the hierarchy. They expect the ones above them in the hierarchy to be better than them. They are not. With the exception of astronauts floating without gravity, all of us put on our pants one leg at a time. 

I heard a story about one church in my tradition (which consists of many denominations.) As you entered the church there was a huge photo of a "great" religious leader of the past. It was the very first thing you saw as you entered. It showed how that church venerated that man. Understand that our tradition does not allow any standard religious symbols, pictures, or icons of any kind. Yet when you enter, there is this man. Totally symbolically inappropriate. I was told they later moved it to the side, but as far as I know it is still there. 

In Ancient Rome a victorious leader would receive a parade through the city of Rome. The General would receive the wild adoration of the crowd as he rode along. A slave was supposedly (this story may be apocryphal) assigned to ride in his chariot and whisper in his ear, "Respice te, hominem te memento" ("Look behind you, remember you are only a man"). Religious leaders need that slave whispering in their ear. 

While modern Hero Worship does not go to the extent of ancient Rome, especially in a church setting, we have our modern equivalents, like a ticker tape parade. 

So my advice is that when you are in church and hear this kind of praise or emphasis on one individual, think to yourself,  "Respice te, hominem te memento" ("Look behind you, remember you are only a man"). Your next step might be to find another church. 

I have been referencing Ron Dart and his history on the issues of Leadership. to download a message he gave on these issues in 1979 click here. 

Religious Questions Part II

I wish that reporters who do not have any training or aptitude for religion would not blog or write about it. Continuing in yesterday's blog here is a question that Keller wants to ask Bachman:

You have said that watching the film series “How Should We Then Live?” by the evangelist Francis Schaeffer was a life-altering event for you. That series stresses the “inerrancy” — the literal truth — of the Bible. Do you believe the Bible consists of literal truths, or that it is to be taken more metaphorically?

This is blatant equivocation. He is using the word “literal” in two different ways at once. And he does not understand “inerrancy.”

Inerrancy is the idea that the Bible as written in the original manuscripts is without error. It has nothing to do with the method of interpretation of any particular scripture as to whether it is poetry, proverb, or prose. You can believe in inerrancy, as I do not BTW, and advocate a metaphorical interpretation of scripture, depending on context. In fact dominionists (a position that Keller seems to want to tar and feather every Christian politician with, at least the Republican ones,) often do not use a literal hermeneutic. Dominionists are often preterists who view the book of Revelation as not a literal vision, but a symbolic vision, as I do myself, although I am not a full preterist. 

Keller's question is unanswerable because it contains false assumptions. I believe the Bible is accurate and truthful, but I have no problem with the Bible sometimes using metaphor, simile, and poetry to make its point. These two issues are not related. Keller should get educated on religious matters or stick to other topics.

****** 

As I thought Keller has an agenda. This quote shows how he thinks about religion:

If a candidate for president said he believed that space aliens dwell among us, would that affect your willingness to vote for him? Personally, I might not disqualify him out of hand; one out of three Americans believe we have had Visitors and, hey, who knows? But I would certainly want to ask a few questions. Like, where does he get his information? Does he talk to the aliens? Do they have an economic plan?

Yet when it comes to the religious beliefs of our would-be presidents, we are a little squeamish about probing too aggressively.

Comparing belief in the Bible to belief in space aliens shows his true thoughts, the elimination of religion and religious people from the public square.