Even though the fool says in is heart that there is no God, his claim is contrary not only to the facts, but his raging against the God that he says does not exist shows that he does not believe his own words.
Read the rest of the post here: The Fool’s Dilemma
In September 2013 the Huffington Post reported:
“A New York art dealer admitted Monday she took part in a 15-year scam that fooled art enthusiasts into buying more than $80 million of counterfeits imitating famous artists like Jackson Pollock and Willem de Kooning.
Glafira Rosales, 57, of Sands Point, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in Manhattan, telling Judge Katherine P. Failla that for parts of two decades she teamed with others to sell counterfeits of various expressionist artists including Pollock, Mark Rothko and Robert Motherwell.” [1]
My point in bringing up this old news story is to demonstrate the reality of fakes, and specifically how it relates to two groups of people in Matthew 27. The passage reads, “The next day, that is, after the day of Preparation, the chief priests and the Pharisees gathered before Pilate and said, “Sir, we remember how that impostor said, while he was still alive, ‘After three days I will rise.’ Therefore order the tomb to be made secure until the third day, lest his disciples go and steal him away and tell the people, ‘He has risen from the dead,’ and the last fraud will be worse than the first.” Pilate said to them, “You have a guard of soldiers. Go, make it as secure as you can.” So they went and made the tomb secure by sealing the stone and setting a guard.” (Matthew 27:62–66, ESV)
Each one makes the claim to be true. The religious leaders set themselves up against Jesus and his disciples. Even in death these men are still slinging mud. But who is the fake? Who are the imposters? In this article I want to examine each one, the chief priests and the Pharisees versus Jesus. Each one claimed to speak for God. Each one claimed to be righteous. Each one desired to have the hearts of the people follow them. But who was truly worthy? Let’s investigate.
“Sir, we remember how that impostor said, while he was still alive, ‘After three days I will rise.’” (Matthew 27:63, ESV)
Proverbs 28:1 says, “The wicked flee when no one pursues, but the righteous are bold as a lion.”Jesus had been publicly humiliated, beaten, and crucified. His disciples hid themselves and were nowhere to protest his arrest or death. Then came a request by the chief priests and Pharisees that must have seemed humorous to Pontius Pilate. He knew these men were jealous of Jesus’ ministry. He knew that this was why they forced his hand to put him to death. And now he is dead. So why are they so fearful still? They may not be fearful of Jesus himself, but they are clearly still fearful that his teaching and influence has not died with him. They are fearful that he would be remembered and that his disciples would not scatter. And I think there is added fear here. I think that in the back of their minds they are fearful that Jesus just might truly rise from the dead. The disciples seem to have forgotten Jesus many words about his resurrection, but the religious leaders did not. And he had done so many miracles that clearly showed that he had power. They even claimed that it was power from the devil himself.
And then of course, there was Lazarus. Hadn’t he died in nearby Bethany? But now he was raised from the dead by Jesus. They had plans to kill him and put him back in the grave. But if Jesus had the power to raise him, could he possibly raise himself from the dead as well? They wouldn’t wait to see. Their fear drove them.
Compare the chief priests’ and scribes’ fear to the courage of Jesus who committed himself to the Father all the way to his death on that bloody cross. Look with me at his righteous courage in the Garden of Gethsemane:
“Then Jesus went with them to a place called Gethsemane, and he said to his disciples, “Sit here, while I go over there and pray.” And taking with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, he began to be sorrowful and troubled. Then he said to them, “My soul is very sorrowful, even to death; remain here, and watch with me.” And going a little farther he fell on his face and prayed, saying, “My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will.” And he came to the disciples and found them sleeping. And he said to Peter, “So, could you not watch with me one hour? Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.” Again, for the second time, he went away and prayed, “My Father, if this cannot pass unless I drink it, your will be done.” And again he came and found them sleeping, for their eyes were heavy. So, leaving them again, he went away and prayed for the third time, saying the same words again. Then he came to the disciples and said to them, “Sleep and take your rest later on. See, the hour is at hand, and the Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. Rise, let us be going; see, my betrayer is at hand.”” (Matthew 26:36–46, ESV).
Look at his boldness as he is being arrested in vv. 55-56 of this same chapter: “At that hour Jesus said to the crowds, “Have you come out as against a robber, with swords and clubs to capture me? Day after day I sat in the temple teaching, and you did not seize me. But all this has taken place that the Scriptures of the prophets might be fulfilled.” Then all the disciples left him and fled.” (Matthew 26:55–56, ESV). Over and over again Jesus showed that he has nothing to hide. He committed himself to follow God the Father throughout his life.
So, who is the fraud? Who is the imposter? Is it Jesus or is it this gang of false teachers? You decide!
“Sir, we remember how that impostor said, while he was still alive, ‘After three days I will rise.’ Therefore order the tomb to be made secure until the third day, lest his disciples go and steal him away and tell the people, ‘He has risen from the dead,’ and the last fraud will be worse than the first.’” (Matthew 27:63–64, ESV)
This time, let us start with Jesus in this comparison. In verses 63-64, the chief priests and Pharisees refer to Jesus’ words. They call them lies. They call him an imposter and his disciples are thieves and liars–ready to steal his body to promote his lies.
But Jesus’ words are only lies and deceit if they don’t prove to be true. Jesus would be a liar and a deceiver if he didn’t rise from the dead as he claimed he would. He would be a false prophet. He would not be all that he claimed. And notice the reference to his first fraud in verse 64? What was that? It was his claim to be the Messiah! The chief priests and scribes are telling Pilate that Jesus claimed to be the Messiah and he actually was able to fool people into believing him. But to them, his death proved that it was a lie. Now, if the disciples stole the body the people would be fooled again. They would think he had actually risen from the dead.
But Jesus had never been shown to be anything but 100% truthful. He was never shown to have lied, ever. He was never shown in any way to have sinned, ever. And you know that they checked with everyone to dig up some dirt. But nothing. Jesus was always truthful. Look at their claim a little closer. Notice that they have heard of Jesus’ claim to rise from the dead. If you go back and check all of the times that Jesus spoke of his death and resurrection, he did it secretly, only before his disciples. When he did speak of it openly, he did so with veiled references.
For example, look at Matt 26:61 where it says, “This man said, ‘I am able to destroy the temple of God, and to rebuild it in three days.’” (Matthew 26:61, ESV). Notice the claim. Did the chief priests and scribes know he was referring to his death and resurrection? If they did, they didn’t say anything at the trial. And the only other times Jesus spoke to these men about his resurrection was when they asked for a sign to prove he was the Messiah. Do you remember his answer? The only sign they would receive was the sign of Jonah, three days in the belly of the fish. That’s a veiled reference to his death and resurrection.
Perhaps Judas told them. Judas, the one they had bribed to betray Jesus. You see, everywhere we turn we find evidence of their deception and duplicity. What had Jesus said of them? Look at John 8:39-47. Again Jesus’ truthfulness shines against the darkness of their souls. He called them out not only as liars, but as murderers. And he connected them to their father–Satan.
Who was the imposter and fraud? Was it the Son of Man who has never been proven to ever have sinned or spoken any lies, or these religious leaders who are implicated in bribery, lying, murder, coercion and blasphemy?
“Pilate said to them, ‘You have a guard of soldiers. Go, make it as secure as you can.’ So they went and made the tomb secure by sealing the stone and setting a guard.” (Matthew 27:65–66, ESV)
Once again, let’s begin with the chief priests and Pharisees in our comparison to find out who is the fraud and who is genuine. The chief priests and Pharisees are the most powerful men in Judaism at the time. But notice that they need to go before Pilate to ask for soldiers and permission. They must have hated doing this because they hated Rome. Pilate was a constant reminder to the Jews that they were not truly a free people, but were subjects of Caesar. And they needed his permission for any military action, as we see here. And we also see their weakness in what they are doing. In John 20:19 we find the disciples hiding behind locked doors for fear of their lives. But the Jews put up Roman soldiers and a seal of Rome in addition to the large stone door, to stop these supposed grave-robbers.
There is no hint that they are trusting God in this. As a matter of fact, these men never seem to seek for power from God to accomplish their goals. They only know human force. Which isn’t surprising since they are carnal in their thinking. So, they do their human best. “Go make it as secure as you can” are Pilate’s words. And they do. They put a seal on the door of the tomb. They set Roman guards on a rotation. How would Galilean peasants get through that?
Like thread exposed to fire, that’s what this was to Jesus. A Roman seal and a couple of guards? Was this a joke? Every human being on earth could have pressed against that rock and it wouldn’t have made a difference. If Jesus was sent from God as the Messiah-King, and if he could conquer death by rising again from the dead, how could a sword or spear stop him? Jesus can’t be stopped. Not then and not now!!
Who had righteous courage, who spoke unvarnished truth and who demonstrated heavenly power? The chief priests and Pharisees claimed to have these virtues, but they didn’t.
Jesus does. He is righteously courageous like the Lion of Judah, the Lamb of God who has taken away the sin of the world. He is unvarnished truth. Jesus is the TRUTH. HE embodies truth. Heavenly power. The grave could not stop him. He conquered sin on that cross. And he did it for us. So, who is the imposter and fraud? Clearly it was not Jesus! Rejoice, rejoice, O saints! Rejoice in Jesus our risen Lord!
[1] http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/09/17/glafira-rosales_n_3940559.html; accessed Nov. 29, 2013
“So when Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went and met him, but Mary remained seated in the house. Martha said to Jesus, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. But even now I know that whatever you ask from God, God will give you.” Jesus said to her, “Your brother will rise again.” Martha said to him, “I know that he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day.” Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?” She said to him, “Yes, Lord; I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who is coming into the world.” John 11:20–27
The glory of God and the love of God are not in conflict with one another. Some theologians try to pit one against the other saying that the sovereignty of God (intimately tied to His glory) cannot override His love for humanity., and therefore the love of God willingly overrides His sovereignty so that God actually submits to the will of His creatures.
John 11 is an interesting test of this idea. In verses 4-6 it says, “But when Jesus heard it he said, “This illness does not lead to death. It is for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it.” Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. So, when he heard that Lazarus was ill, he stayed two days longer in the place where he was.”]
In these verses we have the glory of God shown in His sovereign decision to allow the life of Lazarus to be overcome by death, with the divine purpose of God being glorified through His resurrection of Lazarus. To some Christians and many unbelievers, this is unthinkable—even monstrous. But this is because the unregenerate mind and the immature Christian mind attribute all discomfort, pain, trial, and even death, as only evil and that the only good that comes is from the avoidance of these things.
But the pain and suffering that occurs in this world is only a small part of the much bigger picture. And not only this, but the pain and suffering as well as the joy unspeakable that are available to humanity either through grace or denial of the offer of salvation are infinite. The present world and its pains and joys are only a small sampling of a greater reality that all of humanity shall experience personally one day.
Jesus, looking beyond the suffering and eventual death of His friend Lazarus knows that a greater lesson needs to be grasped and through the truth He will bring glory to His Father.
So, instead of rushing to the scene to be at His friend’s side, Jesus stayed two days longer to assure His disciples that Lazarus was dead and buried by the time they reached Bethany.
This means that when we are tempted to cry out “Why?” In our trials, we must not push aside the glory of God and begin to question the love of God. The Lord’s mind is vast and His plans are more infinitely complex that we can know or imagine; therefore we must never doubt His love.
Mary and Martha were correct in placing all of their hope in Jesus’ power to heal their brother. The issue was simply timing. Jesus could have healed Lazarus while he was sick (Jn 11:21-27, 32); or immediately after he had died; or long after he died in the future Day of resurrection (v. 24).
The sisters had hoped that the healing would be before his death, but after he had died, they found some comfort in the future resurrection when he would be raised from the dead.
But Jesus gave them immediate resurrection while also pointing them to the reality of the greater day of resurrection that they would still need to look forward to and hope in. We too must cling to this very same hope even without our own personal experience with an immediate healing or resurrection. Jesus proved to Mary and Martha, and by extension to us as well, that He is able to raise the dead—because He raised Lazarus from the dead, and He rose from the grave by His own power.
So the next time you find yourself doubting God’s love or not understanding how such pain could bring God glory, remember Lazarus. You might never understand God’s reasoning, but you must know this—God desires to be glorified and His love for us is infinite. Both are true and both are never super versed by His perfect plans.
“Our Lord attracted sinners because He was different. They drew near to Him because they felt that there was something different about Him. And the world should see us to be different. This idea that you are going to win people to the Christian faith by showing them that after-all you are remarkably like them, is theologically and psychologically a profound blunder.”—D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones
Read the rest here: Examining the Fallacy that Being Like the World Will Attract The Worldly to Christ
Back when I was a child, one of the most popular things to play on in the playground was a merry-go-round that kids would climb on and spin around until you would get dizzy. To make extra exciting, we would sometimes throw sand on it to make it slippery, and then everyone would climb on and we would have one person run around spinning it as fast as they could. The centrifugal force mixed with the slippery sand-covered deck would cause any unfortunate soul with a weak grip to be flung off of that merry-go-round. Last one left holding on was the winner. What fun!
We played that game before we understood the ideas related to physics, or had ever heard of centrifugal force. We just knew that if you go fast enough in a circle (as in carnival rides) you get pulled away from the center. It’s fun to think about these things, but they also remind me of what Paul wrote to the Colossians about Jesus Christ, the sustainer of the universe.
“And He [Christ] is before all things, and in Him all things hold together. (Col. 1:17)
This means that Jesus has priority and primacy. “He is before all things” means that Jesus existed before anything was made. He existed before the universe began (John 1:1-2; 1John 1:1). He existed before Abraham, father of the Jews (John 8:58; Ex. 3:14). This is shown in Col. 1:17 when it says that “He is before all things,” not he was before all things. This isn’t poor grammar, but points to the eternality of Jesus Christ. This can also be clearly seen in the references to Jesus in Revelation (e.g. Rev. 22:13).
Jesus Christ is not only the Creator of all of creation, but he is the sustainer of it all as well. Hebrews 1:3 says “He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power.”
The mighty power of Jesus which created the world with a word so that the universe leapt into existence, also is the same word that continuously since the creation sustains the universe by the same power.
The power of Jesus Christ is staggering when looked at in this way. Compare the fact that on the cross, not only could he have called down a legion of angels to save him, but he could have withheld his sustaining power from the universe and it would have all ended.
Even science is at a loss to explain how the universe is held together. Scientists don’t understand how the nucleus of an atom holds together. In describing the phenomenon, they call it “The Strong Nuclear force.” Here is how scientists from the Astrophysics Group of the Lawrence Berkeley National Lab describe it:
“The Strong Nuclear Force (also referred to as the strong force) is one of the four basic forces in nature (the others being gravity, the electromagnetic force, and the weak nuclear force). As its name implies, it is the strongest of the four. However, it also has the shortest range, meaning that particles must be extremely close before its effects are felt. Its main job is to hold together the subatomic particles of the nucleus (protons, which carry a positive charge, and neutrons, which carry no charge. These particles are collectively called nucleons). As most people learn in their science education, like charges repel (+ +, or – -), and unlike charges attract (+ -).”
We as Christians know who made and sustains the Strong Nuclear Force, gravity, the electromagnetic force and the weak nuclear force—Jesus Christ.
Consider what 2Peter 3:5-7, 10 says:
“For they deliberately overlook this fact, that the heavens existed long ago, and the earth was formed out of water and through water by the word of God, and that by means of these the world that then existed was deluged with water and perished. But by the same word the heavens and earth that now exist are stored up for fire, being kept until the day of judgment and destruction of the ungodly. …But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, and then the heavens will pass away with a roar, and the heavenly bodies will be burned up and dissolved, and the earth and the works that are done on it will be exposed.”
Did you catch the emphasis on the effect of the Word of God in those verses?
By God’s word the world was formed.
By God’s word the world was flooded.
By God’s word the world will be destroyed.
All the Lord has to do is remove his sustaining hand from this universe and all of creation will cease!
George Gamow, one of the founders of the Big Bang theory of the origin of the universe wrote, “The fact that we live in a world in which practically every object is a potential nuclear explosive, without being blown to bits, is due to the extreme difficulties that attend the starting of a nuclear reaction.”
Gamow, recognizes the power of the Strong Nuclear force that keeps all of us alive.
Think of what will happen when the Lord who made the force removes his hand! John MacArthur writes, “Jesus must be God. He made the universe, existed outside and before it and preserves it.”
Let’s put ourselves in the shoes of the Colossian believers for a minute. They were being pursued, on one hand, by those who denied the deity of Jesus Christ. Paul set out to demolish that idea and leave them no other alternative than to see that Jesus is God.
On the other hand, they were also being influence by Jewish influences that said that Jehovah God was the creator of the universe and that he is to be worshipped, not Jesus. Paul, likewise demolishes the idea that Jesus is anything other than God himself.
Yes, God made the universe and God sustains it, and yes God is to be worshipped. But God has been revealed in his Son Jesus Christ. To worship God while denying His Son is unacceptable.
Colossians widens our understanding of Jesus Christ. We begin to see a glimpse of Who it was when John saw the risen Lord in Rev. 1:10-18. May God give us greater insight into the glories of Christ, or Lord.
Always Reforming 