May the light of the Liberator guide your path, grounding you in truth and love.
Jesus went on with his disciples to the villages of Caesarea Philippi; and on the way he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that I am?” And they answered him, “John the Baptist; and others, Elijah; and still others, one of the prophets.” He asked them, “But who do you say that I am?” Peter answered him, “You are the Messiah.” And he sternly ordered them not to tell anyone about him.
Then he began to teach them that the Son of Man must undergo great suffering and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes and be killed and, after three days, rise again. He said all this quite openly. And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. But turning and looking at his disciples, he rebuked Peter and said, “Get behind me, Satan! For you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things.”
May the light of the Liberator guide your path, grounding you in truth and love.
The Church’s Identity and Mission
Peter was the one Jesus said he would build his church upon. Maybe this is a warning to the church never to allow anything to get in the way of God’s guidance and their given identity. Church institutions are vital to the service of the universal church, for connection, community, and a reminder of intrinsic belonging. They remain relevant and vital until their mission becomes bigger than the one they propose to follow and they begin to protect their purported rights. Jesus did not fight to prevent persecution or rejection, and neither did he want Peter and his church to go there. Jesus wanted us liberated from any form of identity war. All are made in the likeness of God. That’s all we need to know.
The Threat to Tradition
Like these times, the tribal laws and traditions of Jesus’ time were threatened by none other than liberation from them. It is a dark day for anyone who feels their created world of influence is falling apart when their life’s meaning can no longer be propped up, protected, or defended by a misguided tribal theology or philosophy—a deeply ingrained way of being that may have misled and unintentionally misinformed others. Deep regret follows when we discover we’ve inflicted our theology, philosophy, or laws on those around us from a place of influence.
The Cost of Misguided Influence
Consider Joshua Harris, who pastored a megachurch in Maryland and wrote a bestseller called Kissing Dating Goodbye. After instructing teens and families that premarital sex could be prevented by not dating, and that dating was a precursor to divorce, he recanted his teachings 17 years later. By then, those teens had their own families and spoke out about the harm done. Harris’s desire to change the world had given him a platform and created a megachurch. When did it come tumbling down? When it affected his own life. When he and his wife decided to no longer be married and remain friends. In the evangelical world, Joshua was attacked not for his message but for his divorce. He eventually left the God he believed in. I assume Joshua Harris’s intentions were good. So were Peter’s.
Jesus’ Suffering and Rejection
Jesus told his followers he would undergo great suffering, be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, be killed, and then, after three days, rise again. For this contemplative moment, let’s leave off the part about rising after three days and reflect on the suffering, rejection, and being murdered.
Why would Jesus say this to the disciples? Most commentaries suggest he was predicting these events because they were preordained. We want to believe there was a prophetic purpose in his suffering. Maybe it’s to help us wrap our minds around his horrific murder. One explanation for his words to the disciples is that it happened because God the Father said it had to happen ahead of time. It was part of God’s story, and we demanded it, so we accept it.
The Humanity of Jesus
Jesus becomes just a willing victim. I don’t want to debate this because it simply doesn’t matter to me whether he knew it proved Jesus was in cahoots with God. I want to look at Jesus’s human experience at that time and try to understand the culture and what he was up against. He surely knew his words were dangerous and his methods unorthodox. Jesus had no illusions concerning the disturbances he was causing. His claims were perilous because they were creating freedom for people to live and move and have their being. His words of healing liberated them from their physical, religious, and political ideas—the three things his enemies wanted to control.
Let’s get our eyes out of the clouds of Christianity for just a minute and see into his humanity. I think if we do this just for a moment, we can see what Jesus was up against. Like you and I talking as close friends bound by many experiences, he is talking to his intimate friends. They had been through a lot together and certainly would be in denial about the potential loss of their friend. Wouldn’t we all? But the writing was on the wall. How many times did they escape the hands of their enemies? Perhaps they thought this would continue this way till they would get social security and hang up their sandals. After all, they were following a man who did miracles. Jesus is helping them to face his humanity. Death was inevitable.
Jesus’ True Mission
Jesus reminded them that being the Son of God meant he answered only to the Divine One as Father. The authority of rulers and elders didn’t go beyond courtyards and courthouses. Jesus took his marching orders from something other than political and religious structures. Being willing to do something about it, even if it meant his demise, reflected the love for his neighbors. His message was compelling to anyone who would receive it. This message was bigger than the man Jesus, as we know even today.
Perhaps Jesus knew he was more valuable to humanity dead than alive. He once said, “It is necessary I leave that the Spirit come.” He did nothing but what his Father in heaven guided him toward. Perhaps we should consider this method: Do nothing but what Jesus instructed. Love the Lord with all your heart, mind, and strength, and love your neighbor as yourself. Otherwise, your self-made righteousness may produce a mega-following.
The Danger of Cult Mentality
The very reason Jesus has the following he does today is not because of the way he lived but because of the way he died and rose. We seem to be more protective of his holiness than his authenticity. Instead, we create tribes and cults in our image of Jesus and hold just as tightly to purity gospels like Joshua Harris did. Just like the Scribes and Elders and Peter wanted to do, many defend their tribes and cults against any threat. Jesus was a cult buster. Peter didn’t want to hear Jesus say he would be rejected, tortured, and die. Peter wanted to fight to defend Jesus and their “church.” But Jesus didn’t want to be a cult leader.
Cult Traits: A Warning
Here are three cult traits paraphrased from Psych historian Dr. Robert Lifton:
Milieu Control: Control of information and communication, stating everything else is a grave, untrustworthy threat to their existence. Eventually, this develops into control of an individual emotionally and intellectually. Jesus asked them what they thought of him. He didn’t threaten them to believe. They called him the liberator.
Mystical Manipulation: The orchestrated elevation of a leader or leaders intentionally to demonstrate their authority and enhance their capacity “to reinterpret events, scripture, and experiences as they wish.” Jesus wasn’t reinterpreting events. He was calling them back to the origin of events that had been reinterpreted. He reminded them of their intrinsic worth and belonging that was lost in a world of manipulation and control.
Doctrine Over Person: Contrary questioning or experiences are denied or reinterpreted to fit the ideology of the group. Jesus wasn’t about doctrine but about relationship and experience. He opened minds and hearts to the beauty within them—the imago Dei.
The Call to Authenticity
When we look at Jesus’s humanity, the culture of that time, and the words he spoke, we can see what we are up against in our own culture as well. Jesus was telling people that they were enough. Knowing you are enough produces the desire to live an authentic life. We are called to authenticity. Someone once said, “What if we would stop trying to be like Jesus and focus on living our lives as authentically as Jesus did?”
Religious institutions, businesses, and influencers all struggle with identity. They must maintain the image they’ve created or that has been projected on them, and they live in an ongoing image management strategy. Just ask a social media influencer. But Jesus did not do that. But we do, and we do it to Jesus. The image of Jesus is defended when he himself did not defend his image. Jesus asked the disciples, “Who do they say that I am?” They listed the many comparisons of spiritual influencers. Jesus asks, “Who do you say that I am?”
The True Identity of Jesus
Peter answers, “You are the Messiah, the Liberator.” Peter didn’t compare him to the others, and he didn’t declare him the greatest of all time now and forever. Even Jesus told them once, “You will do greater things than I.” Why? Because there is no comparison with the mystery called God that Jesus followed. Imago Dei. We all were made in God’s image. All were made in God’s image. So, we can say God is enough, right?! Aren’t we enough?
The Dangers of Image Management
In our culture, the greatest likeness brings in the most dollars, and the more money, the greater the image. College sports has figured this out. Athletes are now able to negotiate the value of their likeness. It’s called an NIL contract, short for Name, Image, and Likeness. An “NIL” refers to the way athletes can receive compensation using the leverage of their image.
Perhaps this is fine for athletes, but it wasn’t for Jesus or his church. Here is what author Stephen Mattson said in Sojourners Magazine in 2014:
“This is what happens when we ignore God — or simply try to make God more marketable: Jesus becomes a product. The Gospel becomes a promotional tool. Parishioners become customers. Pastors become celebrities. Sermons become propaganda. Churches become businesses. Denominations become institutions. Faith becomes a religion, which eventually becomes an empire.”
Instead of striving to be a place for divine communion where disciples praise and worship, churches become infatuated with accommodation — making people comfortable, happy, entertained, safe, and content. Contrarily, churches can go to the opposite extreme and remove any hint of joy, encouragement, comfort, and inspiration. Instead, they choose to implement fear, guilt, shame, and
other abusive tactics to legalistically manipulate people into “loving” God.”
The Question of Identity
Now, let’s revisit the question Jesus asked the disciples about his NIL. Jesus asked, “Who do they say I am, and what say you?” Peter didn’t answer with an NIL term. He answered, “You are the Messiah!” You are my liberator.
I read in AA writings somewhere a person in recovery said, “I don’t know who the rescuer is, but I know I was not him. And I may not know who I am, but I know that I am the one who was rescued.”
Maybe we need to use the words of Jesus: “Get thee behind me, Satan,” and any voice that says my identity needs to be defended, protected, or promoted to be enough. All are made in the likeness of God!
Amen
Wednesday Respite is a 30-min contemplative service of scripture, prayer, music and a Spirited Touchpoint by Henry Rojas, spiritual director at Spirit in the Desert.
Touchpoint is a reflection on where God’s story touches our life story. It is a short homily based on a biblical story of people in the Old and New Testaments and their relationship with God. Our spiritual ancestors’ experience of God’s grace connects with our lives in the present and our relationship with the Divine. Previous Touchpoints are available as PDFs or on SoundCloud.
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