The Wise Men and The Unknown God: A Spiritual Journey from the East to the West by Mathew P. John

Author:Mathew P. John [John, Mathew P.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9780830781010
Barnesnoble:
Publisher: MATHEW P JOHN
Published: 2017-06-07T16:00:00+00:00

THE EMPTIED GOD

“Christ Jesus, who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself … Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death,

even death on a cross.”

Philippians 2: 5-8

I am an avid fan of Bono, the lead singer of the legendary band U2. I admire not only what he does, but also who he is. What captivates me the most is not his musical talent (impressive as it is); it is his uncanny ability to frame complex theological insights into everyday language. Listen to the following comments he once made to an interviewer:

Christ says: No. I’m not saying I’m a teacher. Don’t call me teacher. I’m not saying I’m a prophet. I’m saying: “I’m the Messiah.” I’m saying: “I am God incarnate.” . . . So what you’re left with is: either Christ was who He said He was—the Messiah—or a complete nutcase. This man was strapping himself to a bomb, and had “King of the Jews” on his head, and, as they were putting him up on the Cross, was going: OK, martyrdom, here we go. Bring on the pain!243

As absurd as it sounds, I am amused by his rendering of C. S. Lewis’ famous “trilemma theory” with such simplicity and levity.244 If Jesus is not Lord, he is either a liar or lunatic. If he is not God, he is either bad or mad. If Christ is not worthy of worship, he is worthy of no respect.

Jesus is a paradox, much like a rock star who preaches theology in the mosh pit.

“Who do people say the son of man is?” Jesus asked his disciples once.245

He often described himself by that title—the “son of man,” a term in contemporary language that may sound something like “average Joe.”246

Jesus was not born a prince like Buddha; neither was he a warrior like Muhammad. Statistically speaking, his life seemed just as insignificant as most of us who live on this planet. He was born into a working class family in an obscure village, and lived most of his life as a blue-collar construction worker. He did not even have formal education, and most of his acquaintances were uncultured country folks or social misfits—fishermen, tax collectors, prostitutes, and the like.

The founder of the largest religion in the world was truly an average Joe.

His disciples couldn’t help but notice, however, that there was something special about their Master. Unlike the other teachers who speculated on abstract theories, he spoke about absolute truths with clarity and authority. He also performed many signs and wonders in front of their eyes. More importantly, his mother told them that she conceived him without any human contact. If that is the case, he must have been something more than just another man.

Some of the bizarre statements Jesus made about himself also stood out in their minds. A group of Jews were once bragging about how proud they were of their patriarch Abraham.

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