Apathy Costs

There is none so gullible as the pew*,
Our apathy aided in our demise;
How silent we were while the carpers few
Wrested control; our work is paralyzed!
We raised no outcry as heroes went down,
And none when treasured beliefs were belied;
We yawned as false rumors were passed around:
"He doesn't believe the Bible!" was cried!
The rebels knew well how Baptists to gull---
That charge was enough; no proof was supplied;
Chosen voters were told which ones to cull;
Legalists won, the Convention to guide!
Southern Baptists were split, our input void,
When dissidents our unity destroyed!

Until 1979 the Southern Baptist Convention contained the largest number of Protestant Christians in America. In that year at the annual meeting in Houston the "fundamentalists" succeeded in electing their chosen candidate President. They had been working to overcome the traditional process of governance, which, in their opinion, had become too "liberal". The attack began in 1965, and the battle raged on until 1995, when the "moderates" (a code word for liberal) gave up. By then many individual members had sought and joined other denominational or independent Bible churches or quit churches, disgusted at the way fundamentalists controlled the mission boards, seminary trustees, college boards and other institutions. They adopted creeds and required missionaries and faculty members to solemnly swear to follow them, fired many dedicated administrators and faculty on trumped charges, and brought ridicule upon the Convention for boycotting DisneyWorld and declaring women subservient to men.

The reason they targeted the Presidency was because it was his privilege to nominate members to all boards and committees. When they succeeded in gaining the office, they began appointing like-minded members to those positions. It wasn't long until they had overhauled all boards. They caused the Women's Missionary Union to sever relations with the Convention. They established policies forbidding women and homosexual pastors in member churches, frowned upon the doctrine of the priesthood of every believer, supporting instead pastor-run churches. Any denominational employee who believed that the earth was older than 7,000 years, or that entertained the idea that evolution may have been God's way of creating man was in danger of being accused of unbelief in the Bible.

The method they used to gain supremacy was simple. Convention rules permits each church 10 "messengers" as voting delegates to each annual meeting. Most have difficulty in finding enough messengers to attend, for laypersons pay their own expenses; volunteers have to be solicited. The rebels canvassed church memberships and asked (by telephone) those willing to vote for the fundamentalist candidate to get their names on their church delegations. By 1979 they succeeded in getting the majority of delegates and were victorious.

Jesus' First Miracle?

There was no good, or eternal, reason
For Jesus to turn water into wine;
His doing of miracles was out of season,
And perhaps a mis-use of pow'r divine!
Protesting, "My time has not yet come",
He acceded to His mother Mary's behest---
E'en though His ministry had not begun---
As any good son would, for "Mom knows best"!
His aiding the wedding hosts in this way
Might have been amiss, as one seeking praise;
If so, the guilt is hers; what son says "Nay"
When mom puts him on stage and curtains raise?
But He only acted as we must do:
Showing love to others, and we should, too!

"When the wine was gone, Jesus' mother said to him, 'They have no more wine." 'Dear woman, why do you involve me?" Jesus replied. 'My time has not yet come.' His mother said to the servants, 'Do whatever he tells you.' Nearby stood six stone water jars, the kind used by the Jews for ceremonial washing, each holding from twenty to thirty gallons. Jesus told the servants, 'Fill the jars with water'; so they filled them with water. Then he told them, 'Now draw some out and take it to the master of the banquet.' They did so, and the master of the banquet tasted the water that had been turned into wine. ... the master said, 'You have saved the best till now.'" (John 2:3-10)

John writes that this was Jesus' first miracle. I cannot help from wondering about the unknown details of the Savior's upbringing---the childhood and years from 12 to 30. He had younger brothers and sisters, and there must have been others His age in the village of Nazareth; what did they do in times when away from adult supervision? Was Jesus ever tempted to use His supernatural power to astound His peers? The Qur'an, holy book of Islam, contains a story about Jesus as a youngster carving a wooden bird and giving it life; several watched it fly away. Knowing my own childhood experiences, I know that if I had been the Son of God with the powers Jesus possessed, I could not have ignored the many tenptations to astound my chums; I don't believe, however, that Jesus carved a bird and made it live; or that He did any other petty carnival magic acts. Even this miracle of turning water into wine borders on incredibility, for what does it add to His eternal purpose for incarnating Himself?

As for Mary, I don't find it impossible to believe that she was not much more
perfect than other human mothers that she could resist showing off her son's incredible powers. The miraculous turning of 150 gallons of water into wine at a huge wedding banquet in Cana would spread all over Galilee, and she could bask in the reflected glory of her son's feat for life. After all, the text of the total scripture passage indicates that the wedding guests had drunk all the wine furnished, and were on the verge of intoxication already; the additional wine could only put them further into drunkeness. This may have been the custom in those days, but it is certain that this miracle doesn't rise to the level of healing the 10 lepers or restoring sight to the blind.

The Apostles' Callng

How little they knew, when He made the call,
The price they would pay, or where He would lead;
But they followed Him, to stand or to fall,
Through both storm and peace, with much and with need@
Did the twelve walk away from kith* and kin,
Wives and offspring abandoned on their own?
Were others called that Jesus did not win,
For refusing to leave loved ones alone?
When His own tried to curtail His gospel spread,
He revealed for us how we should respond;
Let nothing delay the lost being fed;
Keep your eyes fixed on the life beyond!
Eleven were faithful until the end;
Only one failed his calling to attend!

*kith = friends

"As Jesus was walking beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon called Peter, and his brother Andrew. They were casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen. 'Come, follow me,' Jesus said, 'and I will make you fishers of men.' At once they left their nets and followed him. Going on from there, he saw two other brothers, James son of Zebedee and his brother John. They were in a boat with their father Zebedee, preparing their nets. Jesus called them, and immediately rhey left their boat and their father and followed him." (Mattew 4:18-22)

"When Jesus was still talking to the crowd, his mother and brothers stood outside, wanting to speak to him. Someone told Jesus, 'Your mother and brothers are standing outside, wanting to speak to you.' He replied to him, 'Who is my mother, and who are my brothers?' Pointing to his disciples, he said, 'Here are my mother and my brothers. For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven, is my brother and sister and mother.'" (Matthew 12:46-50)

It seems a little amazing that these four men (in the first scripture above) answered the call of Jesus at once, not pausing to make arrangements for the care of there possessions or families. So it was to be for the other eight apostles. Nothing is said in the Bible about any of them leaving His side for the next 3 years, except that they all were in Peter's home for teaching at times. And Peter did have a wife, for his mother-in-law was healed by Jesus. After Jesus was crucified, resurrected, and arose to heaven, 11 of the 12 went into full-time missionary service to various places in the Roman Empire and beyond; all 11 died as martyrs. What was the attraction of this unknown Jesus that motivated these men to respond to the call of the Savior? Perhaps the Holy Spirit was already at work before He called them.

Jesus' mother Mary and His half-brothers were concerned that He was a bit "off His rocker" and would be killed by the Pharisees or be harmed by His living in the open country; at any rate they made a trip to intervene while He was preaching, probably hoping to talk some "sense" into Him and bring Him back home. When informed that they were outside and wanted to talk with Him, while He was addressing a crowded housefull, Jesus "snubbed" them by declaring that His believers' "feeding" or teaching was more important. Isn't that what we are commanded to do? In Matthew 22:34-40, He declared that the most important thing for us is to put our love of God above everyone and everything else, even our own families! He demonstrated that we must not let anything in this world interfere or curtail our mission of service to God. We must adopt a "next-world" view toward everything we do in this present world.

The triune God: The Son XI

Of all events ever, none counted more
Than the trial that night of the Son of God;
Never was justice misapplied so sore,
Nor false evidence from witnesses prod!
Had the world known, it would have paused tp pray,
When the high priest asked, "Are you Yahweh's son?"
Bold came Christ's answer, "It is as you say."
With those words His farce of a trial was done!
Now was salvation offered free to all,
The old covenant supplanted by new;
Accepting Christ Lord atones for man's fall
And redeems both the Gentile and the Jew!
Jesus died that day, as He came to do;
When He returns, He will convert the Jew*!

*As used here, "Jew" means descendants of Jacob.

"The chief priests and the whole Sanhedrin were looking for false evidence against Jesus, so that they could put him to death. But they did not find any, though many false witnesses came forward. Finally two came forward and declared, 'This fellow said, I am able to destroy the temple of God and rebuild it in three days.' Then the high priest stood up and said to Jesus, 'Are you going to answer? What is the testimony that these men are bringing against you?' But Jesus remained silent. The high priest said to him, 'I charge you under oath to the living God: Tell me if you are the Christ [Messiah], the son of God.' 'Yes, it is as you say.' Jesus replied. 'But I say to all of you: In the future you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Mighty One and coming on the clouds of heaven.' Then the high priest tore his clothes and said, 'He has spoken blasphemy." (Matthew 26:59-65) [ Brackets added]

On the Thursday night that Jesus was arrested, He was convicted of blasphemy by the Sanhedrin, the religious/political group that supervised Israel under the Roman occupiers. Conviction of blasphemy incurred the penalty of death in the Mosaic Law. He was found guilty falsely, because the two witnesses twisted His words; He was speaking of His body as the temple of God, telling His followers that if He was slain, He would be resurrected within three days; and He was.

The significant point of the trial came when the high priest asked Him point blank if He was the Son of God. Jesus answered in the affirmative, boldly asserting that He was. It was not blasphemy, because He was telling the truth; these leaders of Israel were spiritually dulled to the truth (See Isaiah 6:9-10). Their Bible, the Old Testment, contained 340 prophecies about the coming Messiah, and Jesus fulfilled every one of them. They had no excuse for failing to recognize Him. Jesus called Himself the "Son of Man" deliberately, because in Daniel 7:33 that title was used for the Messiah.

This trial and its verdict signify the cancellation of the old covenant between God and Israel and the installation of the new covenant between God and all people. Salvation is offered free to all the world, including Israel, by belief in Jesus as the Christ. Jesus promised the Jews that when He returns to earth, He will remove the dulled insight, and it is prophesied that the remnant of Jews left at that time will be converted to Him.

Discord Within The Church

Though all believe it, error is ne'er truth,
Nor is the unknown any the less hid;
The Lord makes not a mansion of a booth,
If many men desire, and so Him bid!
We can see through the glass but darkly yet;
Our faith, though great, can't the unseen reveal;
A misplaced belief sorrow can beget,
As much as that fueled by too little zeal!
The tent of faith is large enough for all;
None is called his pet creed impose throughout;
Satan lurks within, his lies to install;
Wars in churches repel lost souls without!
Let new converts mature in faith and grace,
Before intrachurch feuds they have to face!

"'Do not judhe or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge, others, you will be judged, and with the same measure you use, it will be measured to you. Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother's eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye?'" (Matthew 7:1-3)

The scripture passage above quotes Jesus' Sermon on the Mount in just one command, but there are many more that He gives throughout the gospels; other commands for Christians are contained in the Bible, and we need to study and practice them to remain in the love of God. The reason is that Christians are directed to "crucify" or banish the human nature traits with which we are born, putting in their places the "fruit of the Spirit" listed by Paul in Galations 5. This "born again" or "new life" nature must be developed by each new Christian; it is not magically installed when first we accept Christ and become a church member. At that point we are entering a fellowship of believers, none of which has reached perfection; in fact, many have made no progress at all in eliminating their pride, jealousy, selfish ambition for power, and other worldly tendencies they possessed before accepting Jesus. Is it any wonder there are so many squabbles, disagreements, power-seekers, cliques, etc., in every church? These are congregations made up of the same people we encounter on the highways, in workplaces, and society in general; they have not succeeded in eliminating the unChristlike traits, but they should be working on eliminating them.

I have learned that there is no perfect church by working as staff member and just belonging to many as a member. A lot of us, including staff, are shocked by the pettiness of many members in offending others or in being offended, so that many drop out of church, either to look for one more suited to their expectations, or to quit going to church completely. I hope, by writing this type of blog, to prepare someone to expect less perfection from other Christians. It is not that God is pleased at imperfection; He certainly is not; He knows that not one of us is ever going to reach His standard of protection. That is why we say that salvation is not something that anyone can ever deserve through his own efforts: It is given by God's grace. In heaven, we will be perfect, because God will put the finishing touches to our characters for us. That is what grace is: God's undeserved gift.

Every Pastor's Prayer

Dear Lord: Protect her from scoffers without,
Who seek to divide the church and her Groom;
Warm the cold hearts of her members who doubt
The road her leaders choose to heav'n's room!
Let carpers know how Satan does employ
Members to worm rotten with inner strife;
Show them the carnage their whispers convoy,
Slashing unknowing with the devil's knife!
More grace is wasted fighting fires in church
Than in harvesting fields white with the lost;
Many are left when the Christians besmirch
By dissension 'neath the sign of the cross!
May the world see love between Christ's own sheep,
Not the infighting they so often keeo!

"As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my Father's commands and remain in his love. ... My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you." (John 15:9-12)

And so at last I am telling you how to remain in the love of Jesus. To do so, we must keep His commands. What are His commands? My poems and comments, 384 of them so far, in every word give His commands to us who are Christian; this was His last command to the apostles, and maybe the most important. It is, to love each other. Newcomers into memberships of many churches walk into the middle of intrachurch squabbles between older members who have not yet learned what it means to 'love each other'. In my own denomination, Southern Baptists, we have just emerged from a 30-year battle between so-called 'fundamentalists' and 'moderates'. The fundamentalists won, but at what cost? How many non-believers are still lost because we were too engaged in warfare among ourselves to show love for each other? How many Baptists are now not going to any church? And how many have changed to other Christian groups? To make the problem worst for Christ, the battle was led by Baptist preachers, and it was a power-grab. Most of those in the pews never understood what their pastors were fighting about. The methods used by the winners were carbon copies of the methods used in politics hatched in 'smoke-filled rooms'; they set a terrible example for Christians everywhere.

Christianity has received persecution from world society since Jesus came. However, the church as a whole has not only survived, but it has grown to number 2.5 billion members today. The persecution in the first 3 centuries came mostly from the governments of the Roman Empire and the Judaists from which Jesus emerged. Despite the persecution, Christianity not only survived; by 325 A. D., it had become the official religion of the Empire. As for the Judaists, they still exist, but to be saved, each one must accept Jesus as Lord. Evidence from those earliest centuries highlights the fact that everywhere Christianity spread because non-believers saw how much they loved one another. Our problem today is that intrachurch power wars are so visible to the outside world, and it repels people rather than attracting them. We need to love each other and keep His other commands as well.

The Triune God: The Son X

Israel disobeted God so very much,
He dulled the leaders' spiritual insight;
They took God for their own, a private crutch,
Got puffed up on their standing in His sight!
He didn't want them to accept His Son,
For Jesus would be claimed completely theirs,
Gentiles unwelcomed, lest extra rites done;
Non-Jews, if saved at all, second-class heirs!
So God broke His covenant with the Jew;
Jesus died for all races on the cross;
Israel, to be saved, must accept Him, too,
The blood of the Son was the final cost!
Some Jews were saved by God's election;
Now, they must believe, without exception!

"He said, 'Go and tell this people; Be ever hearing, but never understanding; be ever seeing, but never perceiving. Make the heart of this people calloused; make their ears dull and close their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts, and turn and be healed.'" (Isaiah 6:8-10)

Isaiah was a Jewish prophet who lived 700 years before the birth of Jesus, the promised Messiah. God sent him to Israel with the message above, because He had been disobeyed too much by them. Of course, God had known since before man was created that the nation He chose to be one of priests who would become a blessing to the whole world by producing its Savior would fail to keep their end of the covenant. He also knew that this could be expected from all men; he was a weak vessel and could not live a pure, sinless life; it was going to be required for God Himself to come to earth in the flesh, taking upon Himself the sins of mankind, shedding His blood to pay the wages of men's sins. Israel had become puffed up, considering God to be for them alone, and looking down upon all Gentiles. (Gentiles means all races other than Jewish.) God withdrew from His covenant with Israel and made a new covenant that provides salvation for anyone living in the world, upon the condition of sincere belief in Jesus as the Son of God. Because the hearts of most Jews were dulled by the judgment of God, when the Messiah came )Jesus), they rejected Him and had Him crucified.

The new covenant opened the doors of heaven to every human being. Jesus established Christianity, which spreads churches over the whole world. This means that salvation is for the Jewish people also, but to receive it, they must accept Jesus as the Messiah. When Jesus returns to earth the second time, He will remove the spiritual dullness that has lasted 2700 years, and the people of Israel will respond with a great awakening (See Zechariah 13:1).

The Triune God: The Son IX

Little did Thief A know of His preaching,
Or His miracles, ere this day of pain;
He had always scoffed at divine teaching,
Living off fruits of his ill-gotten gain!
But watching Jesus drag His heavy cross,
Whipped when He fell, yet mute, upward He toiled;
The thieves spat on, cursed, insults they did toss
At their guards; not He, though newly blood-soiled!
Huge nails pierced Him---there was still no outcry;
Thief A thought, This must be that Peomised One,
The rabbi said was coming down from On High,
Ne's my only chance, or my life is done!
"Jesus!" he cried, "Please remember me, pray!"
"You'll be with me in Paradise today!"

A lot of critics have ridiculed the story of the thief who died with Jesus on the cross, the one who asked the Son to remember him. Some say he couldn't be saved because he wasn't baptized. Some have said that the word "Paradise" does not refer to heaven. Some say he has done no good works. None of these is valid. The sole requirement for salvation is to believe sincerely in Jesus as being who He said He was---the Son of God. Baptism and other "works" are not required; besides, this man's story has been told millions of times through the years to dying people, many of whom have been saved by it; I don't believe there is any greater good deed than that. Some have tried to debunk his salvation on the grounds that a person in his no-hope situation will snatch at any thread to save their lives, that he wasn't sincere, Well, if Jesus is who He claimed to be, He knew the man's heart; when He answered him affirmatively, you can be sure the thief was sincere.

Finally, some have criticized the redemption on the grounds that he couldn't have known Him well enough to have faith in Him. Imagine having such a rinside seat as his, watching Jesus labor up the steep hill with His own cross, receiving scourging, without complaining; the thief had a wonderful education in the character of a man undergoing such treatment.

It is a dubious honor at best---to be crucified alongside the Savior of the world ---but these two thieves were very lucky, perhaps the luckiest men who ever lived. By having the companion in horror that they had, both had the opportunity to achieve eternal life; that one did is remarkable indeed.

One final note: When we say that Jesus "died on the cross", we don't mean that God died; we mean that His human flesh died, as ours will also die physically. By His resurrection, though, we mean that His physical flesh came back to life in a perfect body, so that we have the same hope. Each of us has a soul that does not die; it leaves the body at death and goes immediately to heaven to be with Jesus; it will be reunited with its new body when Jesus returns to earth/

The Triune God: The Son viii

"Simon Peter, do you truly love me?"
Jesus asked. "Lord, you know that I love you,"
Came the answer, alongside Galilee.
"Take care of my sheep is whar you must do."
Peter was hurt because the Son asked him thrice;
"You know all things; you know that I love you!"
But three times he'd disowned Jesus, not twice;
And the Lord wanted to be affirmed true!
"What of John?" asked Peter, jealous a bit;
Answered the Son, "What matters John to you?
If he lives till I return, what is it
To you? You must do what you must do!"
A rumor began that John would not die
Till Jesus returned, but it proved a lie!

The day-by-day scenario of the 40 days that Jesus remained on earth after He resurrected is not determined with certainty, but John 21 describes the Son meeting with His apostles at the Sea of Galilee after the Sunday of resurrection but before their waiting in the upper room for the Holy Spirit after His ascension (See Acts 2). Peter had decided to go fishing, perhaps for good, and most of the 11 went with him. They had fished all night without success and were wearily rowing to shore when they saw a man there cooking fish over a small fire. John recognized the Lord who, I believe, had come to Galilee to restore Peter to leadership and rejuvenate His followers.

As the two, Jesus and Peter, were walking along the shore that day, the Son asked His chief apostle three times if Peter loved Him. Each time He was answered in the affirmative, and Jesus told him each time to "Feed my sheep". Believers have always been called "sheep" by Jesus, because sheep need a shepherd. They happen to be exceedingly dumb and thoughtless, unable to care for themselves. Jesus called Himself the shepherd; He left His apostles as undershepherds for followers. Today the pastor of a church is often referred to as the "undershepherd". In asking Peter three times if he loved Him, Jesus was reaffirming Peter's loyalty and restoring him to leadership. because the disciple had denied Him 3 times the night Jesus was arrested. In effect, He was reaffirming the apostles in their role and mission of spreading the gospel. As a result, they all returned to the ministry, which began in Jerusalem on Pentecost (See Acts 2).

All of them died as martyrs of Jesus. Even so, by 325 A. D., Christianity had spread over the known world by then and been adopted as the official religion of the Roman Empire. Peter died in 64 A. D., being crucified upside down by the Romans at his request. John lived the longest, until 103 A. D., dying imprisoned on the Isle of Patmos, just offshore from Ephesus, where he had served as pastor. He took care of Mary, the mother of Jesus, as he was asked to do from Jesus on the cross.

The Triue God: The Son VII

He denied knowing Him, but he was there---
The others fled for their lives from stark fear;
Peter was outside in the fire's flaming glare;
He couldn't see the trial, but he stayed near.
When the third challenged him, he fiercely swore,
To make the devial sound much more real;
At that moment Jesus came out the door;
His eyes pierced Peter, his bravado to steal!
Simon knew that the Son knew what he had done;
Instead of accusing, His look was sad;
Bitter tears seeped from eyes that ne'er had none;
A rooster crowed, sooner than it e'er had!
Peter melted away to hide his grief;
His cowardice was beyond his belief!

"Then Jesus told them, 'This very night you will all fall away on account of me, for it is written: I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock will be scattered. But after I have risen, I will go ahead of you into Galilee.' Peter replied, 'Even if all fall away on account of you, I never will.' 'I tell you the truth,' Jesus answered, 'this very night , before the rooster crows, you will disown me three times.' But Peter declared, 'Even if I have to die with you, I will never disown you.' And all the other disciples said the same." (Matthew 26:31-35)

At the Last Supper Jesus told the disciples they would all fall away, quoting a prophecy from Zechariah 13. Peter, in his typical impetuous manner, denied that he would fall away, but Jesus said that before the rooster crowed he would disown Him 3 times. You see this taking place exactly as foretold in the poem. However, Peter did stay near Jesus after He was arrested, but the others did flee into hiding immediately after the arrest. The disowning did happen at the home of Caiaphas, the high priest, where a travesty of a trial took place; Peter did flee and wept bitterly at his cowardice (See Matthew 26:69-75). After that, only one apostle attended the crucifiction; that was young John. From the cross, Jesus gave His mother to John for custody. Evidently Joseph was dead by that time. Jesus had brothers and sisters; one of them, James, became pastor of the first church in the world in Jerusalem. None attended the crucifiction that we know of. All the apostles were martyred preaching the gospel; John lived until 103 A. D., dying in prison on the Isle of Patmos, near Ephesus, the church he pastored and where Mary lived until her death.

Peter recovered and was restored to leadership of the apostles by Jesus (See John 21). He was much moe mature after this and a bold, confident leader. The close followers of Jesus during His ministry, including the apostles, numbered about 120. They waited together in a large upper room until Jesus appeared to them after His resurrection. He was in His new spiritual body; He appeared by walking through the wall. The scars of the nails and the spear that He received on the cross were already healed. He met with them several times and was seen by more than 500 persons over 40 days, after which He ascended to heaven. He became Christ, meaning anointed King of the universe with all authority and power. Jesus is God.

The Triune God: The Son VI

He washed their feet to show us how to serve,
Sharing humble love with friends and foe both;
Where did Judas find the gall and nerve
To betray Jesus? He must have been loth!
Of it, Peter, rashly, was having none,
Till Jesus said, to stay with me, you must;
"Then wash my hands and head!" he told the Son,
Acceding just as fast, he showed his trust!
"The hour of my death is nearly at hand,"
Sad, said Jesus. "Soon you will not see me.
Woe to him who betrays the Son of Man;
He would be better not ever to be!"
When Jesus said this, Judas slipped away;
On his dread errand, the Son to betray!

After nearly 3 years living with the Son, Judas, one of the 12 apostles, for 30 pieces of silver, led the guards of Caiaphas, the high priest of Israel, to Jesus and the apostles in the Garden of Gethsemane, kissing Him on the cheek to show which one He was. What motivated him to do such a thing? Whatever it was, his actions afterward showed that he bitterly grieved over what he had done. He went to the priests and offered to return the silver. When they would not take it, he threw it at their feet and went and hanged himself, They used the money to buy a Potter's Field, in which to bury Judas and other poor. The question of whether Judas was saved to heaven has been debated without an answer. When we consider the words of Jesus about woe to the betrayer, it would seem impossible for Judas to be in heaven.

The incident of washing the apostles' feet occurred at the Last Supper on Thursday evening before the Friday of the Passover in 32 A. D. when Jesus was crucified. The Son told the apostles to wash one another's feet to show humility and to love one another. Many other important things were taught. Jesus introduced the Eucharist (the Lord's Supper) and told the apostles to do it in remembrance of Him. It is an important sacrament in the Christian church. "Eucharist" is Greek for "thanksgiving". We are to joyfully give thanks for salvation, for it is done in remembrance of Him who has forgiven our sins and restored our right to enter heaven. When you consider that if Jesus had not come to earth and died for us, we would still be headed for hell; plus, that Jesus was resurrected from the dead, giving us assurance that we, too, will be resurrected, we have good reasons to be joyful and thankful.

No matter what Judas' motive in betraying Jesus, he must have felt qualms when he looked down at this innocent Lamb of God as He washed Judas' feet. He did not commit suicide afterward out of fear of the other apostles coming after him for revenge or restitution, for Jesus had taught the very opposite---gentleness and turning the other cheek. He must have repented of his terrible sin. The other apostles ran off and hid themselves, for fear that their own lives would be forfeit. Peter went close enough to the trial at the home of the high priest, but when accosted as a Galilean, he denied knowing Jesus three times. John summoned enough courage to appear at the crucifiction scene; the others didn't show themselves until Sunday morning, when they learned of Jesus' resurrection. Jesus appeared to them in His new spiritual body several times for the next 40 days, after which He ascended back to heaven.

The Triune God: The Son V

The Son and Satan each had a huge goal---
Satan wanted to rule in place of God;
While Jesus would redeem each human soul.
In his third tempt, Satan went for the rod!
He "took" the Son to a high mountain top;
Showed all nations and peoples on earth;
"These all can belong to you, if you drop
To your knees; worship me, for all you;'re worth."
Tempted a bit may have been another,
But not our Lord! "Get thee away from me!
We must worship God, never some other!
Satan left, and for a time let Him be.
Jesus withstood, while Adam and Eve fell;
They brought death; He life, making all things well!

"For since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead comes also from a man. For as in Adam all die, so in Christ [Jesus] all will be made alive." (1 Corinthians 15:21-22) [Brackets added]

"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life." (John 3:16)

"You [Lucifer/Satan] said in your heart, 'I will ascend to heaven, I will raise my throne above the stars of God; I will sit enthroned on the mount of assembly, on the utmost height of the sacred mountain." (Isaiah 14:13) [Brackets added]

These scriptures highlight the significance of the failure of Satan to induce Jesus to commit sin described in Matthew 4. They should be considered along with Genesis 3, the account of Satan's success in inducing Adam and Eve to commit sin. The fact that Jesus, a man, withstood and remained sinless, repairs the damage incurred by Adam, also a man, who fell into sin. The entire conflict between God and Satan over mankind is hinged upon these two events. Because Adam and Eve sinned, physical death and spiritual death (condemnation to hell) came to all men and women; because Jesus withstood from sin, a way for man to escape physical and spiritual death was provided by Jesus voluntarily suffering man's punishment by His physical death on the cross.

John 3:16 tells how Jesus loved all people so much that He gave His own life so that if a man or woman believes in Him, that person will be resurrected from the grave and live forever in a wonderful place. Isaiah 14:13 relates the great pride of Lucifer (renamed Satan) that induced him to make war on God by deceiving them to sin and being condemned to spend eternity in a terrible place of torment. If Jesus had bowed to him on that mountain-top, it would have given him victory in his treason. 1 Corinthians 15:21-22 gives Paul's very clear explanation of how Jesus corrected the damage incurred by Adam---because of Jesus, any human being can live forever in paradise, a free gift from God. What should we do in return for this invaluable gift? Why, we should believe in Him and love Him, like He asks.

The Triune God: The Son IV

Leaping from the temple roof at hugh noon,
In full view of many hundred Jews;
Angels wafting Him softly down; could soon
Jump start Jesus' crusade spreading good news!
That's just how Satan next tempted God's Son,
Quoting scripture, "Angels will care for you!"*
Jesus parried fast, not to be outdone,
"Testing God unneeded, no one can do!"**
To go to the temple Satan desired;
The Son acquiesced, for His mission's sake;
All weakness gone, for this duel, He's affired,
Knowing the import its outcome would make!
He would use Godly pow'r only to heal,
Not this victory over Satan steal!

*Paraphrase of Psalm 91:11-12
**Paraphrase of Deuteronomy 6:16

The second temptation Satan tried on the Son was again challenging His pride in proving He was the Son of God, and it was a lot more inducive than turning a stone into bread; It was to jump from the roof of the temple in Jerusalem to the outer court among hundreds of Jews surrounded by real and visible angels. By so doing, He would gain an immediate status and notoriety among the religious leadership of Israel; they could hardly deny His claim to be the Messiah after a stunt like that (See Matthew 4). This time the devil quoted scripture, showing he knows the Bible verbatim as well as Jesus, but He was having none of that carnival stunt. How they got from the desert to the temple 50 miles away is not given; Matthew says Satan "took" Him there. I doubt if Jesus would allow the devil to take Him anywhere; they both used their own supernatural powers. We'll be able to do things like that in our new bodies in heaven.

You would think that the healing miracles Jesus performed in public would have been sufficient proof of His Messiahship, but the stubborn religious leaders were accustomed to fake messiahs and their fake miracles; they determined to kill the Son early in His ministry, and nothing would change their minds. The real reason Jesus did not accept the devil's challenge, however, is that, again, it would have been sinful for Him. He answered Satan's scripture with scripture, which tells everyone it is a sin "to test" God. For example, God will forgive all your sins, past and future, if you sincerely repent and ask Him to forgive you. After doing this, it is plausible that you would be tempted to sin again, on the knowledge that He has already forgiven you. That is "putting God to the test", and it is definitely wrong for you to continue sinning deliberately; you must exert all your will power to eliminate doing the old sins after He has forgiven you.

There is another reason that Jesus did not resort to spectacular feats of supernatural power to convince Israel to accept Him. It is that He did not want them to accept Him during this first coming. I know that sounds sacriligious, but remember Israel looked down on all Gentiles because God had already done so much for them. They considered that God was theirs and no one else's. Big signs at the temple doors warned Gentiles not to enter the temple or they would be killed. God, however, is God of the whole world; He had already decided to dull Jewish spiritual insight so they would not recognize Jesus when He came (See Isaiah 6:9-10). That's why Jesus taught in parables---so that without spiritual insight they would not understand the truth. Jesus promised us that He would return, and God told Isaiah that He would restore Jewish insight on His Second coming.