the Jesus Creed, Section 5 (2 of 2)

The next 2 chapters deal with the Mount of Transfiguration and the Lords Supper. In both stories Jesus made the Jesus Creed known; in his resemblance before his disciples without the affect of the Fall and his retelling of the Passover with himself as the lamb. When Jesus was transfigured before them James, John and Peter had seen Jesus in true fellowship and worship with the father and in doing so they saw what it meant to be a true follower of God. The Lords Supper table is the place where the Jesus Creed is laid out before them in a language that is familiar to their cultural background. Both invitations to the mount and to the table are necessary ways for Christ followers to invite others to experience the love of Christ. It is the grace of the Lords table, and the transformation of the relationship with the Trinity. 

The final two chapters of the book discuss the crucifixion and the resurrection. The cross, embodied in Jesus, makes him the model of righteous suffering, the model for moral standardization, the model for true submission. Jesus at the cross besides the atonement was the model of true life for all followers of God. The resurrection is the promise that the Fall will not win. The resurrection shows that there is life after tragedy. We are people of the Jesus Creed and we offer this to others. A life modeled after Jesus of immense sacrifice leading to the destruction of the Fall.

The Jesus Creed, Section 5 (1 of 2)

The final section of the Jesus Creed, McKnight discusses the way in which Jesus is the model for our lives. The first chapter points to baptism. Jesus’ baptism marked for us the beginning of Jesus ministry and ultimately the direct work of the Holy Spirit in our lives. McKnight revisits the story of John the Baptist. John was calling for perfect repentance. This repentance recognizes 2 things; we don’t love God perfectly; and we submit to God who does love us perfectly. This is what Jesus does, he identifies with God’s people to the point of taking part in their penitence, living their life and dying their death. So that God’s people will be a part of God’s restoration and be raised in Jesus resurrection.  Jesus from the point of baptism commits to giving the Spirit to His people. Ultimately in we are so fallen our repentance is so dredged in sin that we need Jesus to even repent for us. The words of Jesus “Forgive them for they know not what they do,” reveal to all of God’s creation that Jesus is saying this to the Father for more than just his immediate accusers.

McKnight in his next chapter talks about Jesus going out into the wilderness. The Jesus Creed of loving the Father and your neighbor is God’s intent in the wilderness of seclusion. Jesus went out to the desert to experience the same temptations that the Israelites experienced in the Exodus, this made Jesus capable to come into the Promised Land as an obedient Israelite. McKnight also points to another significance of the wilderness story. We are also called to follow Jesus to the wilderness, where we find trials and suffering only to come out prepared to be called obedient. 

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"To all received him, to those who believe in his name, to those who vote Republican/Democrat, He gave the right to be called children of God"

-John 1:12 (Today's Common Miss-conception Translation) 

As you follow Christ to the Poll's remember your identity is wrapped in Christ alone.

Mike Metzger has a good perspective on how to keep perspective.

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the Jesus Creed, Section 4 (3 of 3)

McKnight moves on in the next chapter to discuss restoration. The goal is a restored follower of Jesus. Though the process is messy. It takes in some sense a rebuke. Peter denied that death was not necessary for Jesus; Peter was rebuked for it. Death is absolutely required for restoration. For us to listen to some micro-level restoration of a part of lives we must listen for Jesus rebuke that calls us to death. McKnight highlights the next step from rebuke is naturally repentance. Repentance as mentioned earlier in the book reveals to us our position in God’s kingdom. Finally a restoration predicated on God’s forgiveness is the root of God subversive plan for the fall.

Forgiveness is the root of the next chapter. In forgiveness from God then offering it to others, do we find that the Jesus Creed begin to take root in our lives. McKnight rehashes several examples of forgiveness to drive his point home.

The final chapter of the section discusses mission. I am glad that McKnight infuses mission and evangelism in this section. He makes the need for evangelism to happen as a personal task, as well as making it a need to know Jesus and the Creed better. Often evangelism is seen as an event that is exciting to partake in but never seen as necessary to your own spiritual walk. McKnight easily makes the case that to understand both parts of the Jesus Creed you must love others enough to make the creed known to them. 

The Jesus Creed, Section 4 (2 of 3)

The next chapter takes the preceding chapters theme and runs with it. Abiding in Jesus is McKnight’s plea to have the reader of the chapter dive into allowing God to transform you. I was most excited to see the importance of daily reading of the word. As a minister I completely agree that the constant reading of the Word must be a transformative act in every believers life. On top of that McKnight highlights other ways to engage the relationship with Jesus. I would offer that his devotional companion to this book offers a better cross section to this type of discussion. He highlights certain disciplines and ways to engage your relationship with Jesus. He talks about prayer and practicing God’s presence.

The next chapter deals with surrender and I offer that this is also one of the better chapters of the book. The surrender that McKnight discusses is that of the physically, mentally, and personally as it pertains to the manner in which Jesus surrendered. Surrender is to give up ones will to that of the Fathers. The difference must be made here. Surrender is different in that God may cause you to surrender a way of thinking or living or doing for His glory. Submission/ abiding is adhering to the law of the Lord. Surrender maybe a liberty that is manifesting in to sin or a liberty that is causing a block of your growth in the Lord. Surrender of the mind constitutes learning. Surrendering means to have no pretense in which you are surrendering to the Lord. Finally surrendering physically is to surrender what you a false model of who you should be physically while taking care of God’s temple.

The Jesus Creed, Section 4 (1 of 3)

The next section of the Jesus Creed speaks from a perspective of personal interaction with the Jesus Creed. McKnight goes forward in the first chapter of the section to describe the importance of belief. The goal of any disciple is not perfection but relationship. According to McKnight, this requires us to believe Jesus. Believe his grace, believe his promises, and believe everything he says. Let me add something here. The definition of belief that is implied by McKnight is not a belief that seems to be predicated on faith. Like flying on an airplane, you believe going on to the plane that you will be safe, but when the first bump occurs your belief turns into a faltering faith. McKnight recognizes that our belief must be simply that when God says something you believe it without any doubt.

The sidetrack I must add comes when I first learned the difference between this faith and belief. As a boy, I was watching the movie Sudden Death with my father. The scene occurs when the main character says to his son to stay in his seat no matter what happens. The movie continues and the son is saved because he stayed put. He didn’t move and the main character was there to save his son. My dad looked at me and asked would you have stayed seated? I told him yes to deflect questioning but after further thought I realized I wouldn’t have. I would have run with everyone else in the movie. I wouldn’t have believed my father that he would be back. I was not calling my dad a liar but I doubted his ability to do what he said he would do. This is the belief that I didn’t exude as a child in my father that I must take very seriously when I believe my heavenly Father. When He says I don’t need something I don’t. When he says I must do something I must do it. McKnight dances the line between faith and belief as a form of discipline. We don’t have a relationship with a theology or a doctrine but a God in Christ who predicates his relationship on believing Him. In doing so McKnight offers up the best chapter of the book. 

The Jesus Creed, Section 3 (1 of 1)

The next section of the Jesus Creed is how the Church needs to be a society of the Jesus Creed. This section seems to run a bit together so I intend to summarize the section completely.

McKnight starts describing the importance of society in transforming the world to reflect the Jesus Creed. Jesus came to not transform the individual but to transform the community. The community’s task is to transform the world. McKnight discusses how that is so according to the resurrection. The power to overcome the fall is found in the submission to and the devotion of ones life to follow Jesus. According to McKnight fellowship is the way to sustain the society that upholds transformation through the Jesus Creed.

The next several chapters discuss a similar theme of allowing the Jesus Creed to permeate creation. McKnight discusses the importance of imparting the Jesus Creed to others. Your actions and words must reflect the Jesus Creed in forms of justice and restoration to a world who need to hear it. Though the Creed must manifest joy as well as perspective in the kingdom coming.

It seems like McKnight does a good job of just rehashing strong doctrines of the faith in perspective of the community.