The Man as the Message
I feel like I can safely say that the Old Testament prophets are the most overlooked portion of God’s word. Far too many Christians merely cherry-pick a few pretty verses here and there, mostly concerning the future birth of Christ, and set the rest aside as irrelevant, obsolete, confusing, or just plain unpleasant.
I used to be one of those Christians, of course. But at God’s calling I have dived headfirst into these texts, being led by God in an intensive study which will likely last for years to come.
…wow.
There is SO MUCH HERE. They are an endless goldmine of wisdom and poetry and crucial knowledge. Studying these ‘obsolete’ books has helped me make sense of our contemporary western world like nothing else in the Bible. They are difficult, mysterious and sometimes frightening, but they are also a map that can give us the understanding and courage we need to fight the demons of our age.
For example, the whole racism thing.
There is no verse in the Bible which condemns racial hatred in explicit and simple terms. You will not find the words, ‘Thou shalt not judge a man by the colour of his skin’ in the pages of Scripture. As such, racism has defiled the hearts of many an otherwise exemplary Christian throughout history. Even today, Christians who champion racial equality need to use passages of Scripture which heavily imply, but fall just short of, an absolute trump card which crystalizes God's hatred of racism and love of all people, everywhere.
Well, God has a trump card. An absolute knife through the heart of all racial profiling, which is waiting to be found in chapters 38 and 39 of the Book of Jeremiah.
And that knife is a man named Ebed-melech.
I feel like you might know where I'm going with this, so I'll start by giving away the ending: Ebed-melech was a black man, an Ethiopian living among the Jews in Jerusalem.
His role in the Bible is small but triumphant: after learning that the prophet Jeremiah has been wrongfully accused of treason and thrown into a cistern to die, Ebed-melech hurries to the King, fervently defends and pleads for Jeremiah, and receives permission to rescue him. He leads a rescue party and saves Jeremiah's life.
This crucial act of faith and courage alone is enough, of course. Smack-dab in the most Jewish place on earth, God used a black man to save the life of one of his most important prophets, ensuring that Jeremiah would complete the work for which God had chosen him A knife in the heart of any racism held by a disciple of God.
As always, we may also look deeper than the events themselves, and discern the messages God is implying.
When Ebed-melech is introduced in chapter 38, we learn that he is ‘an important court official.’ He is not only accepted in Jerusalem; he is also a man of considerable authority. He is trusted and respected by the king himself, to the point where he is granted immediate audience with him, and full permission to rescue Jeremiah based entirely on his own word.
When it comes to race, God is progressive.
Finally, comes the beautiful epilogue. Some time after these events at the end of chapter 39, with Jerusalem's defenses crushed under the siege of Babylon, God gives this message to Jeremiah the prophet:
“Say to Ebed-melech the Ethiopian, ‘This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel, says: I will do to this city everything I have threatened. I will send disaster, not prosperity. You will see its destruction, but I will rescue you from those you fear so much. Because you trusted me, I will give you your life as a reward. I will rescue you and keep you safe. I, the Lord, have spoken!’”
Even as his chosen people, the Jews, had brought terror, disgrace and destruction upon themselves, God gave a black Gentile a promise of deliverance, and a citation of honour which will be remembered forever.
I hope you will agree, brothers and sisters, that even without Ebed-melech’s incredible story, the false reputation of Christianity as some kind of hotbed of racial hatred is no longer to be tolerated. We in the 21st century have reached a point where demographics alone make the idea ridiculous. The Gospel is spreading all over the world among men, women and children of all races. Jesus has truly gone global like never before in history.
It is a perilous time for the western Church. But I am absolutely certain that we are right where the Good Lord wants us to be. Very soon, Christ's followers of all races will be drawn together, united in our common cause of defending goodness and virtue, and in simple thankfulness for his red blood on the cross that has set us free forever.
STUDY THE PROPHETS.
I feel like I can safely say that the Old Testament prophets are the most overlooked portion of God’s word. Far too many Christians merely cherry-pick a few pretty verses here and there, mostly concerning the future birth of Christ, and set the rest aside as irrelevant, obsolete, confusing, or just plain unpleasant.
I used to be one of those Christians, of course. But at God’s calling I have dived headfirst into these texts, being led by God in an intensive study which will likely last for years to come.
…wow.
There is SO MUCH HERE. They are an endless goldmine of wisdom and poetry and crucial knowledge. Studying these ‘obsolete’ books has helped me make sense of our contemporary western world like nothing else in the Bible. They are difficult, mysterious and sometimes frightening, but they are also a map that can give us the understanding and courage we need to fight the demons of our age.
For example, the whole racism thing.
There is no verse in the Bible which condemns racial hatred in explicit and simple terms. You will not find the words, ‘Thou shalt not judge a man by the colour of his skin’ in the pages of Scripture. As such, racism has defiled the hearts of many an otherwise exemplary Christian throughout history. Even today, Christians who champion racial equality need to use passages of Scripture which heavily imply, but fall just short of, an absolute trump card which crystalizes God's hatred of racism and love of all people, everywhere.
Well, God has a trump card. An absolute knife through the heart of all racial profiling, which is waiting to be found in chapters 38 and 39 of the Book of Jeremiah.
And that knife is a man named Ebed-melech.
I feel like you might know where I'm going with this, so I'll start by giving away the ending: Ebed-melech was a black man, an Ethiopian living among the Jews in Jerusalem.
His role in the Bible is small but triumphant: after learning that the prophet Jeremiah has been wrongfully accused of treason and thrown into a cistern to die, Ebed-melech hurries to the King, fervently defends and pleads for Jeremiah, and receives permission to rescue him. He leads a rescue party and saves Jeremiah's life.
This crucial act of faith and courage alone is enough, of course. Smack-dab in the most Jewish place on earth, God used a black man to save the life of one of his most important prophets, ensuring that Jeremiah would complete the work for which God had chosen him A knife in the heart of any racism held by a disciple of God.
As always, we may also look deeper than the events themselves, and discern the messages God is implying.
When Ebed-melech is introduced in chapter 38, we learn that he is ‘an important court official.’ He is not only accepted in Jerusalem; he is also a man of considerable authority. He is trusted and respected by the king himself, to the point where he is granted immediate audience with him, and full permission to rescue Jeremiah based entirely on his own word.
When it comes to race, God is progressive.
Finally, comes the beautiful epilogue. Some time after these events at the end of chapter 39, with Jerusalem's defenses crushed under the siege of Babylon, God gives this message to Jeremiah the prophet:
“Say to Ebed-melech the Ethiopian, ‘This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel, says: I will do to this city everything I have threatened. I will send disaster, not prosperity. You will see its destruction, but I will rescue you from those you fear so much. Because you trusted me, I will give you your life as a reward. I will rescue you and keep you safe. I, the Lord, have spoken!’”
Even as his chosen people, the Jews, had brought terror, disgrace and destruction upon themselves, God gave a black Gentile a promise of deliverance, and a citation of honour which will be remembered forever.
I hope you will agree, brothers and sisters, that even without Ebed-melech’s incredible story, the false reputation of Christianity as some kind of hotbed of racial hatred is no longer to be tolerated. We in the 21st century have reached a point where demographics alone make the idea ridiculous. The Gospel is spreading all over the world among men, women and children of all races. Jesus has truly gone global like never before in history.
It is a perilous time for the western Church. But I am absolutely certain that we are right where the Good Lord wants us to be. Very soon, Christ's followers of all races will be drawn together, united in our common cause of defending goodness and virtue, and in simple thankfulness for his red blood on the cross that has set us free forever.
STUDY THE PROPHETS.
