Jeffress Vs. Jesus

Dr. Robert Jeffress is the pastor of First Baptist Church Dallas, TX, and a strong supporter of Donald Trump. Evidently, the admiration is reciprocal, because President Trump had Jeffress preach a special sermon for him the night before his inauguration.

A few weeks before the election, Pastor Jeffress was interviewed on National Public Radio about his unabashed support for Trump. Toward the end of the conversation, Jeffress was asked how he felt about one of Max Lucado’s election-themed blog posts, in which he called Christians to restore each other's humanity and stop being mean.

This was Jeffress’ reply:

Well, first of all, I see a lot of common ground with Max Lucado. I love Max Lucado. And, you know, I've disagreed with his point of view. When I'm looking for a leader who's going to fight ISIS and keep this nation secure, I don't want some meek and mild leader or somebody who's going to turn the other cheek. I've said I want the meanest, toughest SOB I can find to protect this nation. And so that's why Trump's tone doesn't bother me. But having said that, I do agree with Max Lucado. There needs to be unity, especially in the body of Christ.

When I first read those words, several questions came to my mind such as: What should the body of Christ be looking for in a leader? Shouldn’t the head of the body of Christ, Jesus, be the leader of the Church? What should be the unifying principle that binds the body of Christ together? Shouldn’t we be unified around the cross?

I don't want to insinuate that he is not a Christian, but what seems to be going on with Pastor Jeffress is an example of 1 Corinthians 1:18, 27-28 playing itself out in our culture.

For the word of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. …  God has chosen the foolish things of the world to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to shame the things which are strong, and the base things of the world and the despised God has chosen, the things that are not, so that He may nullify the things that are.

On the cross, Jesus died for His enemies in order to reconcile them to God. On the cross, Jesus looked foolish. On the cross, Jesus looked weak. On the cross, it looked like Jesus had lost and evil had won. Yet, on the cross, Jesus displayed the great power of God.

Perhaps one of the greatest examples of 1 Corinthians 1:18 playing itself out in the New Testament happens in Matthew 16.

In the latter days of His ministry, Jesus asks the disciples who they and the crowds say that He is. It’s a good question we need to ask ourselves from time to time. Is Jesus just a good teacher? Is He just a kind fellow who shows us a nice and fanciful ideal? Or, is He God? Is He the Lord of our lives? Is He the leader whose example we must follow?

After Peter confesses that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, Jesus proceeds to tell the disciples that He must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes. He says that He must be killed and raised back up on the third day. 

Peter can’t fathom the Messiah losing like that so he says, “God forbid it, Lord! This shall never happen to You.” But Jesus immediately looked back at Peter and said, “Get behind Me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to Me; for you are not setting your mind on God’s interests, but man’s.” 

In Matthew 16, Peter views the cross as foolishness and weakness. Peter views the cross as losing because he was being deceived by the devil.

However, Jesus came to destroy the works of the devil, so He begins to reveal to Peter and the other disciples the way to overcome Satan, the way to live in victory and achieve spiritual prosperity. “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me. For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it; but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it."

Jesus elucidated to the disciples and to us the manner in which the great power of God is unleashed. Cyprian, bishop of Carthage and eventual martyr for Christ, echoed his Lord’s words in one of his many works during the third century.

The kingdom of God is not in the wisdom of the world, nor in eloquence, but in the faith of the cross. … In the first Epistle of Paul to the Corinthians: “Christ sent me to preach, not in wisdom of discourse, lest the cross of Christ should become of no effect. For the word of the cross is foolishness to those who perish; but to those who are saved it is the power of God. – Cypran 250CE, Volume 5, p. 980-981

I believe that Pastor Jeffress is attracted to Trump’s tone and approach toward evil because it appears to be powerful. However, from a kingdom of God perspective, it is weak and foolish because it is completely antithetical to the cross. Is it possible that Pastor Jeffress does not have in mind the thoughts of God, but rather is unintentionally promoting the agenda of the god of this world?

As Paul, the writer of 1 Corinthians proves in his testimony, it is the cross, not a mean SOB, that truly has the power to transform evil into good in the world. It is the cross that turns hate-filled terrorists into love-driven missionaries. And I realize that may sound like nonsense to some, but it is the wisdom and power of God. 

An American Boogeyman

When the first plane collided into the World Trade Center, I was at my parents’ house getting ready to leave for my Koine Greek class at Houston Baptist University. I couldn’t believe what was happening, and rage began to flood my heart. The anger only intensified when I learned my professor hadn’t cancelled class.

We were soon told that Islamic terrorists were to blame and I can remember telling my dad, “We need to blow those Middle Eastern folks off the face of the earth.” That’s not the kind of talk that should come out of a Christianity major’s mouth, but in that moment, I wasn’t thinking like a Christian. I was thinking like an American. 

America loves war. It’s been documented that as long as the USA has existed, there have only been a total of 21 years when we haven’t been fighting with someone somewhere.

Because America loves war, America needs a boogeyman. A boogeyman is anything or anyone we are told is a threat to our God-given right to experiencing the American dream. America not only needs boogeymen, but loves them because they give us a reason to actualize the violence we fantasize about. They give us a reason to come together. Boogeymen give us a reason to believe in the cause of America again and make sacrifices for the State, whom we view as our practical provider and protector.

Various boogeymen throughout America’s history have included the Native Americans, the British, African Americans, Fascists, Communists, drug dealers, Democrats and Republicans. Over the last decade-and-a-half, the main boogeyman that has supposedly been threatening the freedoms of America has been radical Islam.

Newly elected President Donald Trump reignited Americans’ fear and hatred of radical Muslims in his inaugural address. 

"We will seek friendship and goodwill with the nations of the world -- but we do so with the understanding that it is the right of all nations to put their own interests first. We do not seek to impose our way of life on anyone, but rather to let it shine as an example for everyone to follow. We will reinforce old alliances and form new ones -- and unite the civilized world against Radical Islamic Terrorism, which we will eradicate completely from the face of the Earth."

President Trump is clearly seeking to annihilate the people who believe in radical Islam. When you try to destroy an ideology by destroying the people who adhere to that ideology, history proves that these endeavors generally fail. Attempting to destroy a philosophy or an ideal through violence releases the seeds of martyrdom, which only causes that movement to spread.

Don’t get me wrong, though. Like all belief systems that set themselves up against the gospel of the kingdom of God, I do not think that Islam is a good or even neutral thing. It needs to be confronted. However, according to the Scriptures, the way Christians fight against evil is diametrically opposed to the methods of worldly warfare. It is also exceedingly more effective.

For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh, for the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but divinely powerful for the destruction of fortresses. – 2 Corinthians 10:3-4

Before you neuter these divinely inspired words or think Paul to be naïve, take a moment to read this account of the way Christians powerfully fought against terrorism in the third century.

The adversary had leapt forth to disturb the camp of Christ with violent terror; but, with the same impetuosity with which he had come, he was beaten back and conquered. … But when beaten back … he perceived that the soldiers of Christ are now watching, and stand sober and armed for the battle; that they cannot be conquered, but that they can die; and that by this very fact they are invincible, that they do not fear death; that they do not in turn assail their assailants, since it is not lawful for the innocent even to kill the guilty; but that they readily deliver up both their lives and their blood. … Let us be urgent, with constant groanings and frequent prayers. For these are our heavenly arms, which make us to stand fast and bravely to persevere. These are the spiritual defenses and divine weapons which defend us. – Cyprian 250CE, Volume 5, p. 622-623 [CD-ROM]

I don’t think it’s fair to call the Christians of the first three centuries pacifists. They were fearless and passionate warriors. However, because they belonged to a kingdom that is not of this world, the method of their warfare was otherworldly. Instead of firing arrows at their assailants, they called upon the name of the Lord. Instead of attacking and killing their enemies, they blessed and loved them into friends. Instead of mirroring evil with evil, they overcame evil with good and destroyed the works of the devil.

The early Christians were not naïve. They knew exactly what they were doing. And by the end of the third century, despite Christianity being an illegal religion, 1/10^th of the people in the Roman Empire followed the kingdom way of Jesus Christ. They radically changed the religious landscape of the world by loving their enemies without any qualifications, just like their Lord did on the cross.

So please, fellow Christian, do not be deceived. Radical Islam is not the boogeyman. President Trump is not the boogeyman. Neither Democrats nor Republicans are the boogeyman.

When we pause to think like Christians, we remember that Satan is the real boogeyman; he is our adversary. Satan is the ruler of all the kingdoms of this world, the father of lies who deceives the whole world, and he delights in the destruction of the image of God. But those who follow Jesus will overcome him by the blood of the lamb and the word of their testimony, for they will not love their lives even when faced with death.

The Five “We Wills”

Early in my childhood, my parents took our family to the circus. I had a great time, but the thing that impressed me the most was seeing performers stand on the seats of moving bicycles.

Of course, the next day I pulled out my trusty BMX and gave it a shot. Peddling up some momentum, in a crouched position I cautiously put one foot on the seat, and then the other. Surprised I had made it that far, I decided to stand up and shout, “I’m the king of the world!”

Face… meet concrete. Thank goodness the dentist was able to fit me into his schedule and give me a new front tooth.

Whenever I tell that story, people always quote the same Bible verse to me, “Pride goes before a fall.” It’s true, though. Pride does serve as a forerunner to destruction because the Bible says that God Himself opposes the proud.

“God is opposed to the proud, but gives grace to the humble.” … Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, and spend a year there and engage in business and make a profit.” Yet you do not know what your life will be like tomorrow. You are just a vapor that appears for a little while and then vanishes away. Instead, you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we will live and also do this or that.” But as it is, you boast in your arrogance; all such boasting is evil. – James 4:6, 13-16

The word ‘opposed’ is an ancient military term, which pictures an army assuming a specific battle-array position to attack an enemy force. James says that God is not messing around about pride. When He sees it, He gets ready to throw down, and God never loses a fight.

A classic example of this God versus pride dynamic is found in Isaiah 14, a passage known as the five ‘I wills’ of Lucifer.

Take up this taunt against the king of Babylon, and say … “How you have fallen from heaven, O star of the morning, son of the dawn! You have been cut down to the earth, you who have weakened the nations! But you said in your heart, ‘I will ascend to heaven; I will raise my throne above the stars of God, and I will sit on the mount of assembly in the recesses of the north. I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High.’ Nevertheless you will be thrust down to Sheol, to the recesses of the pit.” – Isaiah 14:12-15

In Isaiah 14, the king of Babylon is described as being analogous to the devil. And just as the divine rebel was cast down and humiliated because of his treacherous pride, Isaiah declares that the same fate will befall the pompous king of Babylon.

When the President of the United States of America ended his inauguration speech, he did so in an eerily similar fashion as the king of Babylon’s boast against God. President Trump, however, used five ‘we wills’. Some have argued that the use of the word ‘we’ is a clear mark of humility, but the mere usage of a first person plural pronoun means nothing. What matters is what he said ‘we’ can and will do.

Please read his closing remarks from the speech:

When America is united, America is totally unstoppable. … No challenge can match the heart and fight and spirit of America. … We stand at the birth of a new millennium, ready to unlock the mysteries of space, to free the Earth from the miseries of disease, and to harness the energies, industries and technologies of tomorrow. A new national pride will stir our souls, lift our sights, and heal our divisions. … Your voice, your hopes, and your dreams, will define our American destiny. And your courage and goodness and love will forever guide us along the way. Together, We Will Make America Strong Again. We Will Make America Wealthy Again. We Will Make America Proud Again. We Will Make America Safe Again. And, Yes, together, We Will Make America Great Again. Thank you, God Bless You, And God Bless America.

The spirit of America? The Bible tells us to not readily accept every spirit, but rather to test them since not every spirit comes from God. And before you totally write me off, claiming that it’s absurd to insinuate that there is an actual spirit of America, pause with me and reflect on what the Scriptures might have to say on the matter.

Knowing that the book of Daniel says there were angelic principalities called the Prince of Persia and the Prince of Greece, I wonder what it was that drove thousands of Ephesians to shout in unison for two hours, “Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!” If it’s possible that there was a territorial angelic spirit over the area of Ephesus that led people to be hostile to the simple words of Christ, isn’t it possible the same dynamic is happening here?

So, let’s briefly test this spirit of America using the words we just read from President Trump’s speech.

Is America truly unstoppable and all-powerful? Is America what ushers in the New Millennium? Is America able to rid the world all disease forever? Who or what does the spirit of America tell us to put our confidence in? Does the spirit of America glorify the Lord God Jesus Christ, or the god of us?

We Will. We Will. We Will. We Will. We Will.

What ever happened to God’s will? There’s not much room left for God when we’re so full of ourselves.

Beating our chests with shouts of our grandiosity won’t open the floodgates of heaven, but it will lead to spectacularly painful face-plants. God doesn’t bless pride; He never has and never will. God blesses humility.

We need to rediscover our roots. We need to go back to a time when Christianity was truly great… when it couldn’t care less about the affairs of the State, but would relinquish anything for the kingdom of God. We need to get on our knees in repentance of our pride, and plead not for America to be great again (whatever that means), but for the glory of God to be great in the Church again.

Let us do all those things which pertain to holiness, avoiding all evil-speaking, all abominable and impure embraces, together with all drunkenness ... all abominable lusts, detestable adultery, and repulsive pride. “For God,” says [the Scripture], “resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble.” … Let our praise be in God and not of ourselves; for God hates those that commend themselves. Let testimony to our good deeds be borne by others. … Arrogance, and audacity belong to those that are accursed of God; but moderation, humility, and meekness to such as are blessed by Him. – Clement of Rome 95CE, Volume 1, p. 25-26 [CD-ROM]

Winning and Losing: America and the Kingdom of God

I hate losing. I really do. Just ask my wife or anyone who’s played board games or sports with me. The competitive monster reared its ugly head again recently when a couple ministry buddies and I were playing NBA Jam on Super Nintendo. I woke up my friend’s baby screaming about losing on a buzzer-beating, game-winning, underhanded full-court shot.

I know. I have a problem. But maybe I’m just a product of my culture. Americans are obsessed with winning. It’s one of the main reasons why athletes inject illegal substances into their bodies and parents lose their minds when their kids do poorly in church recreation leagues. It was also a driving force behind countless Americans’ decision to either vote for Trump or Clinton, even though they found many of both candidates' character traits reprehensible.

During President Trump’s God and country-laden inauguration, he confidently declared, “America will start winning again, winning like never before.” To many, this proclamation was like music to the ears. However, it’s imperative that we analyze Trump’s ‘winning’ strategy through a biblical lens before getting swept away in the Christianish momentum like so many believers did in the early fourth century with Constantine.

Though there are many statements from his speech I could draw from, I’m going to examine three that I consider particularly striking.

“From this day forward, a new vision will govern our land. From this day forward, it's going to be only America first — America first. … We will seek friendship and goodwill with the nations of the world. But we do so with the understanding that it is the right of all nations to put their own interests first. We do not seek to impose our way of life on anyone but rather to let it shine as an example. We will shine for everyone to follow.”

What President Trump said sounds good for citizens of a country who feel their taxes and resources have been unjustly and unnecessarily used to lift up other people groups instead of blessing the citizens and infrastructures here at home. But how do the values of the kingdom of God compare or contrast to his statements?  

They came to Capernaum; and when He was in the house, He began to question them, “What were you discussing on the way?” But they kept silent, for on the way they had discussed with one another which of them was the greatest. Sitting down, He called the twelve and said to them, “If anyone wants to be first, he shall be last of all and servant of all.” – Mark 9:33-35

Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves; do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others. Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus. – Philippians 2:3-5

There’s quite a distinction between the two views, wouldn’t you say? Let’s move on to the second statement from Trump’s address.

“At the bedrock of our politics will be a total allegiance to the United States of America and through our loyalty to our country, we will rediscover our loyalty to each other.”

Metaphorically speaking, a ‘bedrock’ refers to the fundamental principles on which something is based. Therefore, Trump said that everything he is planning to do in office is going to be established through complete and total loyalty and allegiance to the USA. Not 50%, not 80%, absolute allegiance. And only through total allegiance to the USA can we truly become loyal to each other. What does King Jesus have to say about that?

Do not think that I came to bring peace on the earth; I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I came to set a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law; and a man’s enemies will be the members of his household. He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me; and he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me. – Matthew 10:34-38

One of the scribes came and heard them arguing, and recognizing that He had answered them well, asked Him, “What commandment is the foremost of all?” Jesus answered, “The foremost is, ‘Hear, O Israel! The Lord our God is one Lord; and you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.’ The second is this, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.” – Mark 12:28-31

Jesus is not okay with coming in second place to your wife, job or country. Being the Lord of heaven and earth, He rightly demands absolute allegiance. And, King Jesus says that only by being totally devoted to Him can we begin to love one another as ourselves.

Finally, let’s look at the third, and perhaps most egregious statement from President Trump’s inauguration speech.

“Our country will thrive and prosper again. We stand at the birth of a new millennium, ready to unlock the mysteries of space, to free the Earth from the miseries of disease, and to harness the energies, industries and technologies of tomorrow. A new national pride will stir our souls, lift our sights, and heal our divisions.”

Um… who is supposed to usher in a new millennial age and then completely eradicate disease forever? Oh yeah, I remember reading about that in Revelation and it’s not a US President. It’s God Almighty. Someone is coming dangerously close to sounding like a blaspheming Führer.

Though you may not think so, I’m not interested in bashing the President. We should pray for him. I’m interested in advancing the kingdom of God and watching over His sheep.

Satan is crafty, and we should be mindful of the fact that the biggest threats that he has posed to the Church have not come from outside, but inside our ranks. The persecutions that Emperors Nero, Domitian and Valerian inflicted upon the faithful actually served to spread the gospel like wildfire.

The greatest threat to Christianity in the first three hundred years was Gnosticism… a group that claimed to be Christian, yet often lived quite licentious lifestyles without feeling the need to repent. Go to heaven and live like a heathen? Their philosophy tickled the ears of countless shallow believers, and Satan’s ruse ravaged the Church.

We must stay vigilant and filter all things through Jesus’ life and words. We must neither let a lust of winning nor a fear of losing in worldly matters govern our decisions. We need to be more like the faithful early Christians who gave everything to win the prize that really matters. So may we be inspired by their allegiance to the kingdom of God and run the race marked out for us with enduring loyalty to the true King!

The tortured stood more brave than the torturers; and the limbs, beaten and torn as they were, overcame the hooks that bent and tore them. The scourge, often repeated with all its rage, could not conquer invincible faith, even although the membrane which enclosed the entrails were broken, and it was no longer the limbs but the wounds of the servants of God that were tortured. … How great, how acceptable to the eyes of God in the allegiance and devotion of His soldiers! As it is written in the Psalms, when the Holy Spirit at once speaks to us and warns us: “Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of His saints.” … This is the struggle of our faith in which we engage, in which we conquer, in which we are crowned. This is the struggle which the blessed Apostle Paul has shown to us, in which it behooves us to run and to attain the crown of glory. “Do you not know,” he says, “that they which run in a race all run, but one receives the prize? So run that you may win.” – Cyprian 250CE, Volume 5, p. 511-512 [CD-ROM]