The Mileses

Paul and Olena Miles with Grace Abroad Ministries

missiology

The Plot Thickens: Gleanings from the Arrest of John the Baptist

It is not until Herod Antipas arrests John the Baptist that Jesus proclaims the message of repentance. This is a key point in understanding the distinction between Christ’s call to individuals to believe for eternal life and His call to Israel to repent for the establishment of the kingdom. John MacArthur supposes:

He was urging Nicodemus to repent. And He was calling Nicodemus to believe in Him as the Savior who would be lifted up so that whoever believes might be saved.
In other words, ‘Repent and believe in the Gospel’ (Mk. 1:15) was Jesus’ appeal to Nicodemus.1

The Gospel of John never uses the word, “repent.” It is the only book in the Bible with the expressed purpose of evangelism (John 20:30-31), so there is no need for John to mention repentance. Bringing repentance into the Gospel of John is a maneuver to advocate for Lordship Salvation, which reckons saving faith to include works.

The shortcomings of works-based faith are abundant,2 but that is a discussion for another day. MacArthur cites Mark 1:15, “Repent, and believe in the gospel” (μετανοεῖτε καὶ πιστεύετε ἐν τῷ εὐαγγελίῳ) as being the call with Nicodemus. This transfer fails exegetically as Matthew writes, “Now when Jesus heard that John had been put in prison, He departed to Galilee… From that time Jesus began to preach and to say, ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand’” (Matt 4:12, 17) and the Gospel of John clearly says of John the Baptist that during the Nicodemus conversation, “John had not yet been thrown into prison” (John 3:24). Repentance is related to “the gospel of the kingdom” (τὸ εὐαγγέλιον τῆς βασιλείας Matt 9:35) while faith is all that is necessary for that which Paul calls “the gospel of your salvation” (τὸ εὐαγγέλιον τῆς σωτηρίας ὑμῶν Eph 1:13). It is not until much later in the Gospel of Matthew, after the kingdom offer has been rescinded, that Jesus begins to explain His death, burial, and resurrection, but even this is rejected and misunderstood by His disciples (Matt 16:21-23; 17:22-23; 20:18-19). While the gospel of the kingdom in Mark 1:15 is good news that through repentance the kingdom will enter the world, the gospel of salvation is good news that through faith an individual can enter the kingdom (John 3:3).3

When Christ and His disciples pass through Samaria on the way to Galilee, they stop in Sychar for evangelism apart from the kingdom offer. John Chrystostom believes that in accordance with the custom of the day, Samaritans could have dealings with the Jews, but the Jews could not have dealings with the Samaritans,4 so the fact that these Jews would stop in Samaria is remarkable in and of itself. Sychar is waiting for the Messiah (John 4:25, 28-30), but never is there a mention of the kingdom. Instead of associating the Messiah with the kingdom, the believers say, “we know that this is indeed the Christ, the Savior of the world” (John 4:42b). The precise wording at the end of John 4:42 according to the Textus Receptus is ὁ σωτὴρ τοῦ κόσμου ὁ χριστός, “the Savior of the world, the Christ.” Within the context of John, the word κόσμος has already occurred 10 times (John 1:9, 10, 29; 3:16, 17, 19) to emphasize the Savior’s effectiveness for all of humanity. The comment in 4:25, Οἶδα ὅτι Μεσσίας ἔρχεται, ὁ λεγόμενος χριστός “I know that Messiah is coming (the One called ‘Christ’)” repeats the equivalence of Christ and Messiah as in John 1:41. Zane Hodges comments that “it is noteworthy that these non-Jewish believers explicitly express the universal scope of Jesus’ saving power (see 17:2).”5 Rather than focusing on what the Messiah means for Israel, the Samaritan mindset is focused more on the global implication of the coming Messiah. He is not just the coming King for Israel, but He is the Savior of everyone, Samaritans included. These two roles are related and fulfilled by the same Messiah, but they are quite distinct in their applications. The Messiah’s role as Savior of the world demands that the disciples carry the gospel of salvation to the Samaritans, while the Messiah’s role as the Davidic King in the coming kingdom has the burden of urging Israel to repentance so long as the kingdom is at hand.

In contrast to the Samaritan woman and her city, Nicodemus is Jewish. He is in Jerusalem (John 2:23-3:1), he is a Pharisee who certainly knows John’s testimony (John 1:19-34), and he has already accepted that Jesus was ἀπὸ θεοῦ “from God” and that ὁ θεὸς μετ’ αὐτοῦ “God was with Him” (John 3:2). Nicodemus understands the kingdom offer and that Jesus is the Messiah making this offer, but instead of discussing His offer to bring the kingdom, Jesus uses the anticipated kingdom to change the topic to why Nicodemus would not be able to enter, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God” (John 3:3b). The most important question that any individual has ever struggled with is the question of who Jesus is. Because Nicodemus has not yet trusted in Christ alone for eternal life, Jesus shifts the discussion to the gospel of salvation and John records it in accordance with his purpose.

On another occasion, a believing centurion has a sick servant (Matt 8:5-13; Luke 7:1-10). Jesus calls him a believer who will be in the kingdom (Matt 8:10-11) and it is evident that he is a Gentile because Jesus says that he has not found anyone of such great faith οὐδὲ ἐν τῷ Ἰσραὴλ “not even in Israel” and He contrasts him to υἱοὶ τῆς βασιλείας “sons of the kingdom,” referring to Israel. This Gentile centurion loves Israel and has even built a synagogue (Luke 7:5). He even has a voice among the elders and they are even willing to go to Jesus in the centurion’s name.6 Whether these leaders are in a sincere minority or if their interest in Jesus was purely for the service of the centurion, Capernaum remained unrepentant; indeed, Jesus later pronounces the woe upon Capernaum, “if the mighty works which were done in you had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day” (Matt 11:23b). This is an interesting sight for the Jewish Messianic Kingdom; while the average Gentile grasps the sleeve of an average Jewish man, saying, “Let us go with you, for we have heard that God is with you” (Zech 8:23b), and while some Jews are cast εἰς τὸ σκότος τὸ ἐξώτερον “into the outer darkness” (Matt 8:12),7 there are be faithful Gentiles from all directions who are rewarded with the opportunity to sit and fellowship8 with the Jewish patriarchs, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, in the kingdom of heaven.9

Christ’s offer of eternal life through faith is not unique to His ministry. It is a message that believers should be proclaiming to unbelievers even today. A message to proclaim to believers is the offer of rewards in the coming kingdom. Christ’s offer of the kingdom through national repentance is special and unique to first century Israel. God in the flesh offering the kingdom and verifying the offer with miracles is unlike anything that the Christian could hope to declare today. Likewise, the rejection of the offer of eternal life continues today, but the rejection of the kingdom offer ceases with the eventual withdrawal of the kingdom offer after the final rejection of the Messiah’s offer, which occurs when Israel’s leadership commits the blasphemy of the Holy Spirit.

Three Conferences That We Recommend

We had to come to America for paperwork and since being here, we’ve had opportunities to visit some excellent Bible conferences. As missionaries, we are able to travel more freely throughout an American year than most pastors are, so I have narrowed down a list of three conferences that I recommend attending (though we personally go to more than these when we are Stateside).[Read More]

Theological Survey: Was Bingo the Dog… or the Farmer?

We all know the song:

There was a farmer who had a dog,
and Bingo was his name-o.
B-I-N-G-O
B-I-N-G-O
B-I-N-G-O
And Bingo was his name-o.

The question is, “Whose name is Bingo?” Is it the dog or the farmer? We asked theologians of different traditions for their answers.[Read More]

Church Growth Patty Cake: An Allegory

Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.” (John 14:6)

Him we preach, warning every man and teaching every man in all wisdom, that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus. (Col 1:28)

And the things that you have heard from me among many witnesses, commit these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also. (2 Tim 2:2)

To my Islamic brother here from Italy, I would say I’m not really interested in inter-faith dialogue; I’m interested in inter-faith projects… we brought in three imams, we brought in three Catholic priests, we brought in three evangelical pastors, and we brought in three Rabbis and we said, “What can we do about AIDS?” And we started on some common ground on those issues; what can we do that we all care about? (Rick Warren)1

It is the middle of the third quarter at the Home Team Football Stadium. The score is tied at 32 and the audience is tense as it could be anyone’s game at this point. Perhaps a new strategy could tip the odds in Home Team’s favor.

Away Team has the ball. The center snaps, the quarterback tries to pitch the ball to the halfback but Outside Linebacker clobbers him into a fumble, which Safety recovers and runs in for a touchdown followed by a successful extra point. High-fives abound as the scoreboard now reads 39-32. There is a kickoff and Home Team is back on defense.

In Home Team’s huddle, the players discuss devising a new strategy. “Wow! That was great!” says Cornerback. “Did you see all of the high-fives? It feels so good to give high-fives. And look at the scoreboard. We’re winning! Isn’t it interesting that the more successful we are, the more high-fives we give? Maybe we need to adjust our strategy to focus more on high-fives.”

Safety responds, “I agree that high-fives are nice, but let’s not forget that the reason for the high-fives was that Outside Linebacker caused a fumble and I scored a touchdown. If we can keep this up, then high-fives will be inevitable.”

Defensive End says, “I like what Cornerback is saying. I tell you what, on the next play, everyone will do the normal thing, but he and I will high-five each other the whole time. Let’s see how that goes.”

Away Team tries for a pass, but does not succeed. Back in the huddle, Defensive End and Cornerback are excited.

“Wow! We were able to high-five each other twelve times and Away Team didn’t move a single inch!”

“That would be because Away Team didn’t catch the ball. Haven’t you ever read the Rule Book?”

“Oh, don’t worry about that. We can’t keep going by some old Rule Book, especially if we have a new way to do things that clearly works! Come join us, Outside Linebacker.”

They line back up, but this time after the ball is in motion, Outside Linebacker joins Defensive End and Cornerback in high-fiving each other while the rest of Home Team is left to fend for themselves. Away Team takes advantage of the weakness and runs the ball past the high-fivers. Safety manages to tackle the carrier after a 15-yard loss. First down.

“What happened?”

“We only did 10 high fives this time, where were you, Outside Linebacker?”

“We need another adjustment. It takes two people to high five and if we have three, then we will end up getting in each other’s way. Let’s bring in more people to do high-fives, but this time we will stand in a circle and concentrate on each other instead of the read of the game. Let’s try singing ‘Patty Cake’ to keep the rhythm going.”

“Wait, wait, wait,” interrupts Safety, “you are departing from the Rule Book. Let’s play this game the right way as we always have. The Rules say that at the end of the game, it is the scoreboard that matters, not high-fives.”

Cornerback responds, “You know, Safety, you are such a hypocrite. You yourself admitted to enjoying high-fives and now you want to prevent others from enjoying them. I think that if you search your feelings, then you would know that you can’t take this Rule Book literally. But don’t take my word for it: after the last play, I overheard some guys from Away Team say that they were glad that we are doing the high fives. It’s bad enough that you choose some silly Rule Book over your feelings and your own teammates even, but here is outside confirmation that our way is better.”

Home Team returns to the line of scrimmage and upon the hike of the ball, the left defensive tackle and guard join in the group high-fives as Away Team carries the ball into the end zone without a scratch. The Away Team fans rejoice as their team runs in a two-pointer.

The score is now 39-40.

There is confusion on the Home Team sideline as the defense delivers their news to the rest of the team. “It was great! Do you hear all of that cheering? We high-fived 63 times!”

Right Guard asks, “What are you talking about?”

“Oh, we don’t go by the Rule Book anymore. We play Patty Cake now. Here, have some Kool-Aid.”

Left Offensive Tackle takes the squirt bottle and after taking a drink says, “Oh that sounds awesome! I read some of the Rule Book back in High School. It was a drag. This new system sounds much better. I mean, it’s working, right? Let’s do it!”

As the game continues, more and more players from Home Team join the movement to play Patty Cake as the others play football around them. What started as an extreme idea by a defensive Cornerback slowly eats away at the entire left. Then the center. Then slowly into the right. The Right Guard and the Safety, formerly the protector of the ball and the last line of defense, are now seen as a fundamentalist minority that is hung up on some silly old Rule Book.

It is now the fourth quarter. The scoreboard reads 39-236, but Home Team boasts of 2,378 high-fives. Both Away Team and Home Team’s Patty Cake circle are equally convinced that they are winning. If success is measured by an organization’s ability to achieve its own goals, then one could say that they are both winning. But, then again, if success is measured by a Rule Book that is supreme, then Home Team is going to look silly at the end of the game when only the scoreboard is considered.

Fortunately, the minority members of Home Team who persevere will finally be recognized. It will not be pleasant in the meantime, but the more bitter it is now, the sweeter it will be then.

Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may obtain it. (1 Cor 9:24)

Mormonproof your worldview like a Berean

In the not-too-distant past, I have had some theological exchanges with representatives from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS) and the Church of the Almighty God. You are probably familiar with LDS; that’s the group that adheres to the Book of Mormon, which they believe contains information that’s additional to the Old and New Testament. The Church of the Almighty God, also known as the Eastern Lightning Movement, is a bit more obscure to Westerners. In 1989, a woman named Yang Xiangbin entered the House Church Movement scene in China and claimed to be Christ, the incarnate God. In the following years, she delivered some messages that the Church of the Almighty God accepts as authoritative. These “utterances” have been compiled into a book called The Word Appears in the Flesh.
[Read More]

Book Review: So The Next Generation Will Know

Here is a stark reality: if we do not consciously equip young Christians with a biblical worldview, they will unconsciously absorb the ideas of today’s culture. (pg. 76)

Those who know my story will know that I came out of the 90s/2000s American youth group culture that was characterized by apostasy en masse. It wasn’t until my early 20s, when I started studying apologetics from the inside of a jail cell that I came to my senses about Christianity. One book in particular that stands out among those that helped me return to Christianity was More than a Carpenter by Josh McDowell, which was later updated by his son, Sean McDowell. So, when I saw that Sean had co-written a book specifically about “Preparing Young Christians for a Challenging World,” and was looking for reviewers, I volunteered with enthusiasm.
[Read More]