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Table Talk: How do you respond to silliness? When someone says something absurd or illogical that makes you want to roll your eyes, how do you react? Embarrassment? Annoyance? Impatience? Do any examples come to mind?
[“Table Talk” is an opening question or topic for discussion at the beginning of our time together. The intent is to help group members (around tables, with four to six at each table) build connections with each other, as well as to guide thinking in a direction related to the passage.]
Our previous discussion explored the genuine humanness of Jesus, the result of His birth to a human mother, the Virgin Mary. This week we began with the other non-divine human mentioned in the Creed, Pontius Pilate.
One writer offered an interesting perspective on the striking contrast between those two people. Pilate and Mary represent:
the two poles of human status and response to God. Mary is young, female, poor, Jewish, and-pregnant out of wedlock-socially and religiously suspect. Yet through her faith, God brings life to the world-at the cost of a sword piercing her own soul (Luke 2:35). Pontius Pilate is mature, male, wealthy; Roman, and safely wed (see Matt 27:19). Yet through his moral obtuseness, a holy and righteous one was taken to the cross and a murderer released, and through his legal concession, “the author of life was killed” (see Acts 3:13-14). Those reciting this profession of faith do well to pause and reflect on these two examples.[1]
Pilate in the Creed
Naming Mary in the Creed is understandable. She was the humble and submissive girl who accepted God’s unexpected will for her life. She was the source of His human DNA so that He was made like us (Hebrews 2:17).
But Pilate? Isn’t the important point the sacrificial death of Jesus, His propitiating work on the cross? Why mention Pilate at all?
The context of the ancient church and the formulation of the Creed is important. We are not surrounded by pagan fertility cults, each with its own “corn king who died and rose again each year. Is Christ not simply another corn king?”[2] How easy it would have been for those pagan religions to blend another version of one more corn king into their own pantheon. “Why did the Creed give such importance to dating the events to which it refers? Simply to show that these were not eternal recurring myths, as in many other religions of the time.”[3] The Creed is much more than a philosophical summary of one more mythology. Unlike the surrounding beliefs, Christianity (and the Creed) describe a very different way of understanding God. “The gospel is not just about ideas; it is about God acting, and continuing to act, in history.”[4] Pilate is the historical reference point for the Creed. He is known and documented as a figure in history.[5] Rather than a “once-upon-a-time” story, the Good News of God’s story is firmly established. “Myth became fact.”[6] Every time we repeat that line in the Creed we can be reminded of the objective truth of what we believe. The historical connection, as one person commented, gives credence to the Creed.
What’s Missing?
The Creed makes what might seem to be a surprising jump, from Mary to Pilate, from the birth of Jesus to His execution. Did the early church in forming the Creed not think His miracles, healings, and teachings were important?
As one member of our group pointed out, we need to remember what the creed was for. The Creed is a summary of the faith. Originally, it was intended to respond to specific misunderstandings and distortions about the Triune God. Those clarifications were essential in order for the earthly ministry of Jesus to be properly understood – then and now.
the life of Jesus was not a major point of contention in the second-century church, whereas more ferocious debates were waged over Jesus’s identity and his relationship to God the Father. The Apostles’ Creed, therefore, focuses on Jesus’s identity in the context of a wider narrative about God and salvation, rather than summarizing Jesus’s teaching and the achievement of his death and resurrection.[7]
By the time the Creed was being formulated, the church was beginning to recognize the canon of Scripture, including the four Gospels. Those written accounts by Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John provided the detailed accounts of Jesus’ earthly ministry and specific activities. In describing the nature of the Triune God, the Creed provided a framework for more clearly understanding the events recorded in those written reports. The life of Jesus was definitely not “just a warm-up act to Calvary or merely a catalogue of anecdotes for Sunday school lessons. We should not inadvertently forget that Jesus’s death is part of God’s kingdom… Jesus is crucified as a king.”[8] The Creed describes the nature of the God who is establishing His kingdom. The Gospels provide more detail about the nature of the kingdom: “The early Christians all believed that this new age had begun decisively with Jesus. The Kingdom was really present where he was: ‘If I by God’s finger cast out demons,’ he had said, ‘then God’s kingdom has come upon you!’ (Luke 11.20).”[9] The Gospels tell us more about the kingdom. The Creed tells us about the King.
Suffered…Crucified, Died, Buried
The historicity of the event is important, but the event of history is the main point. The significance of Pontius Pilate is that he superintended over the crucifixion.
“Crucified.” How easily we roll over the word. Not so in the ancient church. Saying the Creed for some in those early centuries may have been a chilling experience. Some of those reciting the Creed may have witnessed crucifixions, perhaps even of friends or family members. Repeating that line in the Creed would not have come easily.
The reality is that we have grown accustomed to the cross as a thing of religious art, fashionable jewelry, and theological symbolism. It might as well be the McDonald’s sign or the Apple logo. A cross on a building or on the front of a book indicates a religious brand rather than the most terrifying torture we can imagine.[10] … We are desensitized to the point that the shock and revulsion of the word crucifixion is lost on us…. nobody who ever saw a crucifixion ever thought about turning it into a piece of artwork or modeling jewelry after it.[11]
It was particularly offensive to Romans that the Christians honored as a god a person whom Roman authorities had executed as a common criminal.[12] An early example of graffiti (c. 200) illustrates the reaction to Christians’ emphasis on the cross.
“To the left is a man raising his hand in adoration, in worship or prayer. To his side, rising above him, is a second man suspended from a cross. … What distinguishes him from any other crucified criminal is that while he has the body of a man, he has the head of a donkey. The inscription says, ‘Alexamenos sebetai theon,’ ‘Alexamenos worships his God.’ … This graffiti is a mockery of Alexamenos, an ancient Christian, and a mockery of a God who would die the shameful death of a criminal.”[13]
We looked at Paul’s comments in 1 Corinthians 1:17-31 where the apostle describes the foolishness of the cross. Several comments on the passage noted the structure of Paul’s argument, the repeated contrasts, such as preaching the cross versus cleverness, weakness and power, as well as the continuing theme of foolishness and wisdom. The logical construction “For…but…” occurs several times for emphasis. While Paul is criticizing “wisdom” and “cleverness” he is using logic and persuasive argument to make his point. Formatting the passage in an outline form illustrates the flow of his thinking. Clearly Paul is not against the use of reasoning and perceptive thinking. He wants us to use our minds while recognizing the limitations of our thinking.
We considered what Paul’s state of mind might have been as he wrote this passage. One suggestion was that he was very aware of the weightiness of what he was saying. Surrounded by a culture that misunderstood, mocked, and eventually persecuted believers, understanding the centrality of the cross was crucial. Paul had much to say in those few verses about foolishness and wisdom, both from God’s perspective and man’s perspective. We imagined Paul using quotation marks:
God’s “foolishness” is wisdom; man’s “wisdom” is foolishness.
The cross failed to fit the expectations of either Jews or Gentiles. Jews looked for signs, and the Messiah being “nailed up on a stake of wood”[14] (to use a phrase from C. S. Lewis) was certainly not what they expected. In fact, because of a verse in Deuteronomy 21:23 (“he who is hanged is accursed of God”) crucifixion eliminated all credibility of Jesus in their minds. Gentiles (Greeks and all other non-Jews) preferred philosophical arguments and rhetoric, but no fancy language could make the brutal execution of a Christ on a cross sound like anything but foolishness. We considered who Paul might have been warning against, who was causing the problem among the Corinthian Christians? Those who pride themselves on their own wisdom and cleverness would find the story of the cross very unappealing. The quotation from Isaiah 29:14 may give additional insight. Just before that verse, God describes the problem with “wisdom”: “This people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.” That was probably a wider problem in the Corinthian church. Earlier in the same chapter, Paul has stern things to say about factions, following one’s favorite teacher, listening to the version of the Gospel that was most appealing. This passage, describing the foolishness of the cross, is a direct response to that tendency among the Corinthians. Their interest in “wisdom” and clever speech may have produced lip-service. They needed to be reminded of the harsh, “foolish” message of the cross to draw their hearts close to God.
The Cross Today
It is not uncommon today to see sports figures and entertainers and other public figures prominently wearing a cross prominently. Whatever the significance of the fashion statement, it is clear that the cross no longer carries the same sense of foolishness or shame, at least not when made of precious metals. Is there any parallel between our experience and what Paul wrote, what Alexamenos experienced, what the ancient church said in the Creed? At some level, our faith is still seen as foolishness: “For critics of Christianity, whether they are Jewish or Greek, ancient or postmodern, the cross is the epitome of religion gone crazy.”[15] One person asked what it might mean to be the “epitome of religion gone crazy,” and another responded with the paraphrase of the attitude toward the cross: “That’s the craziest thing I ever heard!”
Perhaps most of us have not been the target of mockery quite like Alexamenos, but the idea of the cross is still an offense to many: “The idea that God inflicts a judicial penalty on Jesus for the sins of others as the grounds for salvation has prompted a flurry of derisive criticism.”[16] That criticism often takes the form of statements like, “The God I worship would never….” No matter how that sentence ends, it reveals the speaker’s desire to redefine the Gospel message to more personally satisfying terms, in softer, gentler language. (That sounds disturbingly similar to the attitude of the Corinthians in deciding which speakers to listen to.)
The foolishness of the cross takes another turn in parts of our culture: “according to a radical feminist critique of the atonement, “Christianity is an abusive theology that glorifies suffering. . . . Is it any wonder that there is so much abuse in modern society when the predominant image of theology is of ‘divine child abuse’?”[17] God is made the responsible cause for the atrocity of child abuse. We may shake our heads, but this is the foolishness of the cross in our postmodern culture.
The Pattern of the Cross
Jesus made the alarming statement that following Him means taking up a cross. Whatever chilling effect that image had on His followers in the first century, the impact on us has all but disappeared. The ancient church probably understood that call much better.
“While quite cognizant of the shame and scandal of the crucifixion in the surrounding culture, the church’s project, if we can speak coherently of one, was to proclaim the good news of the cross of Jesus and to live out the pattern of the cross in their own lives.”[18]
What does that look like for us? One person described a story of Christians who served in areas of plague and disease, certainly a “foolish” choice in the thinking of most people. Another member of our group suggested an example closer to home: approaching people who “don’t look like us.” He added, “and even when they may be a little scary or smelly.” The foolishness of the cross can motivate us to actions that seem foolish or risky or simply stupid in our security-obsessed society. Another participant commented on a friend whose tattoos and demeanor usually repel others. Befriending someone that others ignore or avoid risks the embarrassment or scandal that marks the pattern of the cross.
Another opportunity for “living out the pattern of the cross” is found in our lives almost daily. Peter illustrates the “pattern” or example of the cross from the experience of Jesus. Peter’s admonition is as foolish today as the cross was in the first-century:
“But if when you do what is right and suffer for it you patiently endure it, this finds favor with God. 21 For you have been called for this purpose, since Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example for you to follow in His steps, 22 who committed no sin, nor was any deceit found in His mouth; 23 and while being reviled, He did not revile in return; while suffering, He uttered no threats, but kept entrusting Himself to Him who judges righteously” (1 Peter 2:20-23, emphasis added).
As C. S. Lewis confessed, on most days we face situations in which we are tempted to “sulk or snap or sneer or snub or storm.”[19] We usually feel self-justified. It was unfair. We were provoked. But at some level we know that we are not living out the pattern of the cross, we are not following the example that Christ left us. Our response to others, especially when we risk looking foolish, reflects our progress in “living out the pattern of the cross.” Resisting the temptation to always win the argument, or not responding with cutting sarcasm or gossip to save our reputation – those are ways we live that pattern, that example that Jesus left us. Last week we discussed the temptation Jesus faced and His sympathy and ability to help us as we face similar issues. Our speech in uncomfortable or embarrassing or humiliating situations is a way we can follow His clear example and look to Him for His very sympathetic help.
The example He left us is more than just trying harder or increasing our will power. He demonstrated a deeper endurance. The letter to the Hebrews described the example we are to “fix our eyes on,” His endurance on the cross. “Who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God” (Hebrews 12:2). Jesus knew that His joy or His satisfaction or His fulfillment was not going to come from avoiding the cross or reviling his accusers or threatening his tormenters. He knew that His joy was with the Father, and the anticipation of that joy was what enabled His endurance. Knowing that “He had come forth from God and was going back to God” (John 13:3) was on His mind as He prepared for His final approach to the cross by washing the feet of the disciples. That confidence that He was returning to the Father, to resume Their eternal fellowship of joy, enabled Him to endure the foolishness, the shame, the horror of the cross. We can “gaze on the beauty of the Lord” (Psalm 27:4) as we find more about Him in Scripture, as we see more of Him in our fellowship with others. The more we see of Him, the more we will grow in our anticipation, and the more we will be able to live out the pattern of the cross. Our anticipation will enable our endurance.
[1] Luke Timothy Johnson, The Creed: What Christians Believe and Why it Matters (New York: Doubleday, 2003), 168.
[2] C. S. Lewis, Miracles: A Preliminary Study (New York: The MacMillan Company, 1968), 117.
[3] Justo L. Gonzalez, The Apostles’ Creed for Today (Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press, 2007), 40.
[4] Alistair McGrath, “I Believe” – Exploring the Apostles’ Creed (Downers Grove, Illinois: IVP Books, 1997), 56.
[5] For example, see http://www.allaboutarchaeology.org/pontius-pilate-faq.htm, accessed February 14, 2017.
[6] C. S. Lewis, Walter Hooper, ed., God in the Dock: Essays on Theology and Ethics (Grand Rapids, Michigan: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1970), 63.
[7] Michael F. Bird, What Christians Ought to Believe (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan, 2016), Kindle Edition location 1350.
[8] Michael F. Bird, What Christians Ought to Believe (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan, 2016), Kindle Edition location 1381.
[9] N.T. Wright, For All the Saints?: Remembering the Christian Departed (New York: Morehouse Publishing, 2003) Kindle Electronic Edition: Location 794.
[10] Michael F. Bird, What Christians Ought to Believe (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan, 2016), Kindle Edition location 1781.
[11] Michael F. Bird, What Christians Ought to Believe (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan, 2016), Kindle Edition location 1786.
[12] Michael F. Bird, What Christians Ought to Believe (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan, 2016), Kindle Edition location 1834.
[13] http://www.challies.com/articles/the-history-of-christianity-in-25-objects-alexamenos-graffito accessed February 9, 2017.
[14] C. S. Lewis, The Four Loves (New York: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company, 2012), 54; Kindle edition location 658.
[15] Michael F. Bird, What Christians Ought to Believe (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan, 2016), Kindle Edition location 1873
[16] Michael F. Bird, What Christians Ought to Believe (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan, 2016), Kindle Edition location 1851.
[17] Quoted in Michael F. Bird, What Christians Ought to Believe (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan, 2016), Kindle Edition location 1860.
[18] Michael F. Bird, What Christians Ought to Believe (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan, 2016), Kindle Edition location 2059, emphasis added.
[19] C. S. Lewis, Mere Christianity (New York: HarperCollins, 2000), 192; Kindle Edition location 2374.