Mind of Christ: First and Last in God's Order

The Mind of Christ: First & Last
November 23rd, 2005

He is called the Alpha and the Omega: the beginning and the end. He is Life Over Death, He is the first and Last. He is in the Trinity, the Son of God, and yet one with God. Jesus is the Holy One of Israel, unto whom every knee will bow, and He is the One Head of all creation until the mystery (I Corinthians 15 ) of the 'All in All' is made evident.

In the Kingdom, or reign of Christ, He taught more than once about the first and last in the Kingdom of God. The Kingdom of God, like the mind of Christ, is often seen as seditious by worldly Kings, Monarchs and Heads of State, because presents in utter power, a sovereignty greater than any on earth, and commands of its followers allegiance and loyalty which outweighs any patriotism. The careful Christian is the one who knows that we obey God rather than Man, and that the 'children of the Kingdom are free', and yet chooses to be the best citizen of any country he or she is born to, for this is a high command of our King and Sovereign, Jesus Christ. Normally and hopefully our 'sedition' is the same as Christ's before the throne of Rome: one of Love, and a higher hope, a truer Life, and a Kingdom which will outlasts the one before us. The powers of earth sometimes seem not important enough to us, once we have seen the eternal power of Jesus Christ.

Concurrently, our views which seem out of sync with the world are compounded by the teaching of the One who said His ruling and reign, His "Kingdom" is not of this world, although He was born to the only throne which lasts. He seemed when He came, God incarnate, to be the last among men. Here is the next critical principle of the 'Mind of Christ'.

Many try to reinterpret the Gospel to make Jesus into a wealthy man, but the eminent teaching, is that though it was ALL His, He surrendered to the robbery of His place with God, emptied Himself to becoming as Man so that we could see God in the flesh, and follow a way that was divine and anathema to earth, but perfect, peaceful and life-giving. Before He taught that in the Kingdom of God, the Last shall be first and the first Last, He lived it, walked it and made it manifest. Can you picture a King willingly leaving a throne to become the poorest person on earth? to risk starving and pain, servitude and cruelty to gain power? It would never happen. There is the occasional Christmas story of the King who dresses as a beggar to get to know his subjects, but the events last only a day or a few hours. There are a few earthly sovereigns who gave us a chance at a throne, such as England's in order to marry for love and not position. Those are heartwarming stories. But the King called First and Last, the Beginning and End, divested Himself to become the lowest in the order of Israel, at a time when Israel so desperately needed a King that they would perish without one.

How was He made 'last' in Israel? His birth, rather than on fine linen in a Palace cradle was on hay, in a stable, perhaps a manger in a cave, with the poorest of men, outcasts, shepherds attending. His parentage included a foster father of lesser means a carpenter, and a young mother: nothing to claim the throne although continuously, through the most extreme poverty of circumstance from Beth lehem Ephratah, His Kingship and first place in the Kingdom was demonstrated all the way to Golgotha. A poor infant temporarily without a home, and yet Kings in Jerusalem feared Him and sought to kill Him, and Foreign Kings came bearing gifts suited not for poor waifs but for Sovereignty. Instead of candles lit and processions, Angels appeared in a night sky, and a Star, whatever its nature, raised the sceptre of the awaited Meschiach of Y'israel. Before He lays down His life, God will show by His last place in the Kingdom of Israel, His first place in the Kingdom of Israel and Heaven. His inaugural address promises the sweetness of release for captives, good news, utter healing, sight and comfort to the hurting. Life is His Declaration the day He ascends the throne at a podium in a Capernaum synagogue. He chooses His court, walks among His subjects, sets His commandments and the Torah as Law, He shows power not over a local region but over the elements, disease, the mind and even death. First of all, made by becoming last of all: and it didn't sit well with the world: it scared [the Hell*] out of them.

FIRST AND LAST

After seeing the remarkable power of God, the disciples get into a discussion on who shall be first and last in His Kingdom. After Jesus clearly outlines all that will happen to Him, the discussion is not "Will you be able to stand", or bear the pain, or 'how can this be', but who will be the greatest in the Kingdom following Jesus. He replies:

A

nd he sat down, and called the twelve, and saith unto them, If any man desire to be first, [the same] shall be last of all, and servant of all.

Servant of all, last of all: that order is not found in the world. The order of worldly power and success is 'servant of none, first of all." No corporate executives or Presidents hire managers who believe in being last of all. It is anathema to the carnal mind. Not to Christ. His followers who get ahold of this emptying of self in becoming servant and last, do not vy for center stage and the loudest microphone on the biggest stage: they teach quietly at home, and are heard nationally; they wait tables instead of teach great crowds, but like Stephen preach a dying sermon which lasts 2000 years, dying in love with Israel turning away like a bride from a bridegroom. They sell nothing of the Gospel, and give away all that they have, yet gain everything. The martyrs losing life at the stake are said to have spoken in loud voices and not whispers. Those who corrupted God's Word died barely able to speak.

When one willingly relinquishes first place: whether in a vocation, a race, an opportunity or nation, in the will of God, one allows the power of God to work through them, in such a way that the only One who deserves first place and has the wisdom and power to use it can work effectively and clearly. When we rebel and choose pushing and shoving and trampling the heads of others to 'win' we may obtain worldly victories for a season, but we are robbed of Holy Spirit Power and will see nothing but trouble from the moment we arrive at our destination. A King of Israel in the Northern Kingdoms, Jehu, ascends to the throne after killing 70 sons of Ahab: while it fulfilled a prophecy, the reign of Jehu begets the same: division, strife, rebellion and eventual slaughter and the ruin of Israel. Out of God's order, taking by force. David on the other hand, before that time, last of all, a child with stones against a giant, is raised to the throne by God through his prophet: that King of Israel had a reign unparalleled save for Jesus.

James talks about accepting the lower seat in the house of God: yet today, if someone prays about a ministry and is given cleaning or gardening, the feel slighted, not honored: they often seek to ruin the work of what they perceive of as a more important ministry: they do not understand that when God offers the 'lowest' in the world's eyes, He may be offering a lesson beyond wisdom, and a work beyond expectation. While this was not in the Church, I had a season once between teaching positions, and to feed my family had to take a week long job as a fill in cleaning a children's museum. While it may have been below my expectations for what I thought I was capable of, and while the week did not go perfectly, it was while I was there that I was made aware of a teaching job I wanted and got. Are you willing to take the smaller part?
We need to be willing though, to take the lesser or seemingly lesser position, even if it leads to nothing, but is in God's will.

The Ambassador Janitor
In WWII, many Jewish people could not get out of countries which were Nazi occupied or about to become occupied. To leave, they had to have passports/visas and paperwork, and few wanted to help the Jews as the Nazis marched end, knowing it spelled the end to their careers or lives. One ambassador in Spain though, in the days before the Nazis took power, stayed awake day and night for several days, signing paper after paper, visa after visa: over 30,000 Jews were able to emigrate before the deadline. True to expectations, this man of means respect and position was 'defrocked' and could not get work. His family for the rest of his life lived on his salary as a janitor, far from embassy doors. He died in poverty, and in disgrace at the loss of his former position. But thousands of souls lived, and were not executed because of this one man willing to make such a sacrifice: Raoul Wallenberg did the same: his fate was imprisonment and most likely death in a Soviet prison, without the world ever knowing what happened, but 10s of thousands LIVED. Could our lives count for that?

Last is a hard thing to receive: sometimes the thing we covet is given back to us, and sometimes, it remains a distant glance back. Becoming last does not mean we purposely degrade ourselves or run to ruin, but carefully in obedience in God's will, learn to relinquish to the lower rung of the ladder for His Will to take place in our lives and in the world.

There is power that comes about in the world from what Neimoller called
"the spirit of force and retailiation". Those who can deliberately stay away from, turn away from that kind of power, even when 'everybody else' does it, find the power of God greater, counting the cost of taking their place as Christ's body and presence in the world. He is first.

Lastly, whether we regard His will and way and order matters little: in the end, when things are made as they should be, the right order of things will be made manifest: we can cooperate or rebel. The passages below denote the 'correcting' of order. We may be surprised to find out that many even in the Church today who are widely known and heard over broadcasts every day, may not even be saved: and if they are, some remain so carnal as to make everyone wonder. Those who will be first and receive the greater abiding with Christ could be the elderly man who rides a bike to church on Sunday, or the quiet woman sitting in the back pew. God will make manifest His First and Last: He is the First and Last.

Mark 10:31 But many [that are] first shall be last; and the last first.
Luke 13:30 And, behold, there are last which shall be first, and there are first which shall be last.

____________
*no cussin' intended