Put not your trust in princes, in a son of man, in whom there is no salvation. When his breath departs, he returns to the earth; on that very day his plans perish. (Verses 3-4)
Will Obama save the United States from ruin? Will the GOP? Is government our ultimate redemption? Probably not. Very marginalized people run our countries, states and cities, because, let's face it, we are all pretty imperfect. Putting our lives in the hands of politicians or princes is necessary for our earthly day to day, but to expect them to change our hearts is another thing altogether. They can't make us loves each other; in fact, the opposite is generally true. Government smacks of partisanship and cronyism. If our world ever is going to change, it will be because each individual in it has changed. Great leaders die. Napoleon, Hitler, Churchill, JFK...They are vulnerable to the same things the rest of us are. A man on his way to the gallows can't save me in my cell.
And we need to be saved from more than the Taliban or ISIL. We need to be saved from ourselves. That salvation isn't political. It governs our own microcosm--the interior and exterior world that is our particular sphere. Me. If I can't intentional control my actions and reactions, no one else can. What God knows is that we need a salvation that doesn't die with the One Who brings it. So, He chose a baby boy. The Son of Man and Son of God. Impregnated by the Holy Spirit a teenage girl named Mary. Took her and the man to whom she was betrothed to Bethlehem on a cold winter night so that He could be born the Lamb of God in a manger. God can do that. Step into the world He created. It shouldn't shock us or make us think it mere myth. Kings and princes hadn't dealt with the real issues men and women have: their dark hearts. God knew we needed to be saved from ourselves.
The Jewish people thought from their interpretation of the Old Testament that the Messiah would be a king. An earthly ruler who would deliver them from the government that so enslaved them. That the Chosen One would shepherd them with a scepter and robe. So Who was this homeless prophet wandering the streets of Jerusalem and preaching by the Sea of Galilee? Who was He to forgive sin, to heal the blind and raise the dead? Why was this One touching the unclean and whipping the crooks for overcharging congregants for their sacrifices on the temple steps? They hated him for telling them their hearts were unclean though they looked all white-washed and perfect on the outside. But the people wouldn't give up the idea He was an earthly prince. They met Him at the beginning of Passover with a wreath of crowns and a donkey, praising Him. Hosanna! Hosanna! By the end of the week, they'd cry: "Crucify Him. Crucify Him!" He isn't what we thought.
Of course they didn't know. Know that Messiah was a Lamb, the sacrifice for His own Passover. Too close to the picture to stand back and see the lambs through the ages all pointed to this perfect One. Too short-sighted to remember the King was born in a manger in order to save them from the tyranny of their own sinfulness. This sovereign, though He came by womb to Earth, did not see His plans die with Him. His death was part of the plan. Jesus got up. Up out of the tomb, alive! The only prince to ever plant His seed in the ground and have it reap salvation. This King breathed His last earthly breath only to return and breathe new life into us. There is a kingdom Jesus rules today. It is here and it is there. We who are its citizens have the King's seal on our hearts, the Kings blood in our veins. We are not called to change the politics of this world. We are called to be princes and princesses here, ambassadors of the eternal realm where our Salvation rules and reigns. Our trust not in an earthly prince but in an eternal King.
Will Obama save the United States from ruin? Will the GOP? Is government our ultimate redemption? Probably not. Very marginalized people run our countries, states and cities, because, let's face it, we are all pretty imperfect. Putting our lives in the hands of politicians or princes is necessary for our earthly day to day, but to expect them to change our hearts is another thing altogether. They can't make us loves each other; in fact, the opposite is generally true. Government smacks of partisanship and cronyism. If our world ever is going to change, it will be because each individual in it has changed. Great leaders die. Napoleon, Hitler, Churchill, JFK...They are vulnerable to the same things the rest of us are. A man on his way to the gallows can't save me in my cell.
And we need to be saved from more than the Taliban or ISIL. We need to be saved from ourselves. That salvation isn't political. It governs our own microcosm--the interior and exterior world that is our particular sphere. Me. If I can't intentional control my actions and reactions, no one else can. What God knows is that we need a salvation that doesn't die with the One Who brings it. So, He chose a baby boy. The Son of Man and Son of God. Impregnated by the Holy Spirit a teenage girl named Mary. Took her and the man to whom she was betrothed to Bethlehem on a cold winter night so that He could be born the Lamb of God in a manger. God can do that. Step into the world He created. It shouldn't shock us or make us think it mere myth. Kings and princes hadn't dealt with the real issues men and women have: their dark hearts. God knew we needed to be saved from ourselves.
The Jewish people thought from their interpretation of the Old Testament that the Messiah would be a king. An earthly ruler who would deliver them from the government that so enslaved them. That the Chosen One would shepherd them with a scepter and robe. So Who was this homeless prophet wandering the streets of Jerusalem and preaching by the Sea of Galilee? Who was He to forgive sin, to heal the blind and raise the dead? Why was this One touching the unclean and whipping the crooks for overcharging congregants for their sacrifices on the temple steps? They hated him for telling them their hearts were unclean though they looked all white-washed and perfect on the outside. But the people wouldn't give up the idea He was an earthly prince. They met Him at the beginning of Passover with a wreath of crowns and a donkey, praising Him. Hosanna! Hosanna! By the end of the week, they'd cry: "Crucify Him. Crucify Him!" He isn't what we thought.
Of course they didn't know. Know that Messiah was a Lamb, the sacrifice for His own Passover. Too close to the picture to stand back and see the lambs through the ages all pointed to this perfect One. Too short-sighted to remember the King was born in a manger in order to save them from the tyranny of their own sinfulness. This sovereign, though He came by womb to Earth, did not see His plans die with Him. His death was part of the plan. Jesus got up. Up out of the tomb, alive! The only prince to ever plant His seed in the ground and have it reap salvation. This King breathed His last earthly breath only to return and breathe new life into us. There is a kingdom Jesus rules today. It is here and it is there. We who are its citizens have the King's seal on our hearts, the Kings blood in our veins. We are not called to change the politics of this world. We are called to be princes and princesses here, ambassadors of the eternal realm where our Salvation rules and reigns. Our trust not in an earthly prince but in an eternal King.
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