"Now the men who were holding Jesus in custody were mocking him as they beat him. They also blindfolded him and kept asking him, “Prophesy! Who is it that struck you?” And they said many other things against him, blaspheming him." (Luke 22:63–65)
Many secular writings on religion assume that Jews, Christians and Muslims, for the most part, worship the same God. This past week we learned of Muslim uprisings, the burning of the U.S. Consulate building in Libya and the deaths of several diplomats inducing the Ambassador to Libya. The spark that ignited this uprising they say is a video made in the US that mocks the prophet Muhammad. This reveals the stark difference between Christianity and Islam and the differences between our God and theirs. Despite the heavy biblical influence in Islam, its god is a distorted version of the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. You can learn everything you need to know about a god by his followers. The similarities are only cosmetic.
A few years ago there was an uprising over a Danish cartoon that ridiculed the prophet Muhammed. This also sparked a rage among many Muslims, calling for the deaths of the cartoonists. John Piper wrote a blog post at that time which is still true in this case. He wrote: "For Christ, enduring the mockery of the cross was the essence of his mission. And for a true follower of Christ enduring suffering patiently for the glory of Christ is the essence of obedience." While these mockeries are childish why do they feel the need to kill and burn in response? Christ has been mocked, ridiculed and blasphemed by wicked men for centuries, beginning with his own ministry. He was openly denounced as a fraud, as a drunk, and even demon possessed. But they failed to get a rise out of him!
"And the high priest stood up and said, “Have you no answer to make? What is it that these men testify against you?” But Jesus remained silent. And the high priest said to him, “I adjure you by the living God, tell us if you are the Christ, the Son of God.” Jesus said to him, “You have said so. But I tell you, from now on you will see the Son of Man seated at the right hand of Power and coming on the clouds of heaven.” Then the high priest tore his robes and said, “He has uttered blasphemy. What further witnesses do we need? You have now heard his blasphemy." (Matthew 26:62–65)
Notice Jesus was silent to most of the accusations. Clearly, he has no need to beat them into acknowledging who he is. The contrast is striking. Jesus does not defend himself against their negative accusations because he is secure. He feels absolutely no threat to his identity or honor. He knows the Father, and knows he is doing the Father's will. He appeared weak to human eyes, but Christ demonstrated amazing divine strength by his restraint in this moment. The only response he gave was a positive affirmation of his identity and future glory. When asked who he was, he simply told them the truth.
Notice Jesus was silent to most of the accusations. Clearly, he has no need to beat them into acknowledging who he is. The contrast is striking. Jesus does not defend himself against their negative accusations because he is secure. He feels absolutely no threat to his identity or honor. He knows the Father, and knows he is doing the Father's will. He appeared weak to human eyes, but Christ demonstrated amazing divine strength by his restraint in this moment. The only response he gave was a positive affirmation of his identity and future glory. When asked who he was, he simply told them the truth.
This is how Christians are to respond when we or our Lord is mocked. Jesus said: “Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account” (Matthew 5:11) Yes we are grieved when we hear the insults, but our response is predetermined by Jesus' response. We must know when to be silent and when to simply testify of what we know is true. A servant is not greater than his master. If this was the essence of his mission, it is the essence of ours also. Jesus accomplished redemption by subjecting himself to public mockery. But too often we forget this.
I have heard "Christians" say we (America) ought to turn those countries into a sea of glass (reference to nuclear attack) and just wipe them out. I am not saying there is no such thing as a just cause for war or military response, that's not my point here. But there is very little difference between this attitude and the attitude of the 9/11 hijackers. As Christians, we see the world differently than the average American. We know that the Good News is for all peoples, including radical Muslims who believe they are justified in killing diplomats and crashing planes into buildings. We grieve over these acts and rightly call them evil. But we know that we as Christians will be hated by the world because it hates our Savior (John 15:18). We are to love our enemies and pray for those who persecute us for the sake of Christ. (Matt. 5:44) We will not have peace on earth until the Prince of Peace comes again. Our mission is to make them ready for it and this does not include responding in like kind. We make them ready by clearly portraying before their eyes Jesus Christ as crucified. (Gal. 3:1)
Image source: www.desiringgod.org
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