Persecution as litmus test
This week is on Matthew 22:33-36:
In calling the self-righteous people snakes and a family of snakes, Jesus is linking them to Satan, who is also referred to as a serpent. When he describes their actions and attitudes, it makes sense. They're seeking glory for themselves. They're embezzling. They're destroying lives and killing people. Satan came to steal, kill, and destroy, and these people are basically running his errands for him unawares.
Elsewhere Jesus tells them that their father is Satan, not God, so it's not the first time he says this, but I like his prophetic name-calling here. People naturally respond with fear and revulsion when they see a snake, as they should when they encounter a self-righteous leader like these teachers of the law and Pharisees. It's both an insult and a warning. On the one hand he's telling these people that they're slithering vermin, deserving an inglorious death, and on the other he's telling everyone else to flee from people like them.
Imagine being one of those people though. Maybe you've made Christianity your career, or maybe you just think you're pretty good at it. You're used to everyone telling you how great you are, how spiritual, how righteous, and so on. You believe it wholly. But now someone truly holy appears, someone whose opinion matters, and he instead tells you that you're a tool of the devil. What a shock! Do you accept it, internalize it, and change for the better? Or do you block it out, get offended, and go on the attack?
The devil seeks to be worshiped, and believes he's worthy of it, same as these sorts of people. He steals from God's people, and believes he's entitled to it, the same as these teachers of the law. He attacks and shames, and kills, the righteous, because they make him look bad, same as these Pharisees kill the prophets. So, looking at the fruit of someone's life, you can guess which side they're on.
Jesus sends righteous people into the world as a sort of test to show where evil people are. They're good people doing good work, but they are still attacked by these evil people. The fact that they are attacked and don't fight back shows that they are innocent. And the fact that the evil people attack them, who are innocent, shows that they are evil.
It's a more reliable measurement than simply asking them. How many righteous people are aware enough of their righteousness to realize it? And how many evil people realize they're evil? And how many bystanders recognize when someone is innocent or when they are evil? So Jesus gives us a way to see it through persecution.
If you're out trying to silence dissenters, punish your enemies, and remove the competition, you're the bad guy, no matter how well-credentialed you are and no matter how many people like you. If you're not fighting back, and people are still moving to silence your voice, disrupt your life, and destroy what you've worked for, then you're probably doing the right thing, no matter how many people may hate you.
Examine yourself on this. The gospels don't contain story after story about the Pharisees and teachers of the law just so that we can look down our noses at them. They're stories about where seemingly good men fail. If we seem good to ourselves, consider that the same could be said of Satan. Ask God for his opinion and listen when he gives it. Which team are you scoring goals for? It may not be the one whose jersey you're wearing.
“You snakes! You brood of vipers! How will you escape being condemned to hell? Therefore I am sending you prophets and sages and teachers. Some of them you will kill and crucify; others you will flog in your synagogues and pursue from town to town. And so upon you will come all the righteous blood that has been shed on earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah son of Berekiah, whom you murdered between the temple and the altar. Truly I tell you, all this will come on this generation.Jesus is addressing the self-righteous religious leaders. He calls them snakes and then goes on to describe their works and the punishment awaiting them. The name he has for them, and their works both point to where their true master is and whose team they're on.
In calling the self-righteous people snakes and a family of snakes, Jesus is linking them to Satan, who is also referred to as a serpent. When he describes their actions and attitudes, it makes sense. They're seeking glory for themselves. They're embezzling. They're destroying lives and killing people. Satan came to steal, kill, and destroy, and these people are basically running his errands for him unawares.
Elsewhere Jesus tells them that their father is Satan, not God, so it's not the first time he says this, but I like his prophetic name-calling here. People naturally respond with fear and revulsion when they see a snake, as they should when they encounter a self-righteous leader like these teachers of the law and Pharisees. It's both an insult and a warning. On the one hand he's telling these people that they're slithering vermin, deserving an inglorious death, and on the other he's telling everyone else to flee from people like them.
Imagine being one of those people though. Maybe you've made Christianity your career, or maybe you just think you're pretty good at it. You're used to everyone telling you how great you are, how spiritual, how righteous, and so on. You believe it wholly. But now someone truly holy appears, someone whose opinion matters, and he instead tells you that you're a tool of the devil. What a shock! Do you accept it, internalize it, and change for the better? Or do you block it out, get offended, and go on the attack?
The devil seeks to be worshiped, and believes he's worthy of it, same as these sorts of people. He steals from God's people, and believes he's entitled to it, the same as these teachers of the law. He attacks and shames, and kills, the righteous, because they make him look bad, same as these Pharisees kill the prophets. So, looking at the fruit of someone's life, you can guess which side they're on.
Jesus sends righteous people into the world as a sort of test to show where evil people are. They're good people doing good work, but they are still attacked by these evil people. The fact that they are attacked and don't fight back shows that they are innocent. And the fact that the evil people attack them, who are innocent, shows that they are evil.
It's a more reliable measurement than simply asking them. How many righteous people are aware enough of their righteousness to realize it? And how many evil people realize they're evil? And how many bystanders recognize when someone is innocent or when they are evil? So Jesus gives us a way to see it through persecution.
If you're out trying to silence dissenters, punish your enemies, and remove the competition, you're the bad guy, no matter how well-credentialed you are and no matter how many people like you. If you're not fighting back, and people are still moving to silence your voice, disrupt your life, and destroy what you've worked for, then you're probably doing the right thing, no matter how many people may hate you.
Examine yourself on this. The gospels don't contain story after story about the Pharisees and teachers of the law just so that we can look down our noses at them. They're stories about where seemingly good men fail. If we seem good to ourselves, consider that the same could be said of Satan. Ask God for his opinion and listen when he gives it. Which team are you scoring goals for? It may not be the one whose jersey you're wearing.
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