An Unknown God Call Mercy

Acts 17:30-31 came up in my readings this week. The NRSV translation puts it this way:

While God has overlooked the times of human ignorance, now he commands all people everywhere to repent, because he has fixed a day on which he will have the world judged in righteousness by a man whom he has appointed, and of this he has given assurance to all by raising him from the dead.’

Here Paul is making the case that the Greeks have an altar to an unknown god. Paul proclaims that the God they do not know is in fact known in Jesus Christ. This is among the great sermons in the Bible since is pulls the logic of the audience to a place where they are more inclined to hear the message. In fact verse 32 says, “When they heard of the resurrection of the dead, some scoffed; but others said, ‘We will hear you again about this.’

What stood out was not the cleverness of Paul’s sermon, but the Good News he shares: the one who will judge the world is the one raised from the dead - Jesus.

If you were to choose what sort of judge you might desire would you desire the one who is harsh and demanding or the one who has been on the relieving end of mercy herself? Paul is saying, that the judge of all people at the end of everything is one who had been raised by God. Meaning, the judge of all life is one who would have remained dead had it not been for the work of God.

Can you imagine how delighted Jesus Christ the judge must be? How thankful? How much he would want to “pay it forward” to the rest of humanity? Can you imagine the mercy that must come from this judge?

While the Greeks knew of gods who judged out of wrath and condemnation; gods who were willing to throw bolts of lightning and tidal waves around because they did not like the offering given by mortals. Paul says that perhaps the reason they do not know of the “unknowing god” is because mercy was unknown to them in the realm of the gods. It may not just be that there is an “unknown god” but that mercy is a god they do not know.

Paul says that mercy is what God uses to judge.

No wonder some scoffed and others desired to hear more. Chances are if you are reading the idea that mercy is the standard Christ uses to judge might make you feel one of those two things as well.

We All Have Bought A $120,000 Banana

If art is anything, it is provocative. For anyone who has ever looked at a bit of art and thought, “My kindergartner can paint that! Why don’t you give her $120,000 for her play-doe sculpture?” you are not alone.

Recently humanity lost our collective mind over a banana duct taped to a wall that sold for $120,000. There are many memes to thought pieces on this bit of art. Some believe it to be brilliant. Some find it crazy, others find it immoral and still others wonder what sort of world do we have when people cannot pay for their medical bills while others buy a $120,000 banana.

It is an easy target to throw stones at. It sounds insane that anyone would buy this much less anyone else call it art. We wonder what rich person could possibly have such a cold hart to waste money in this way. We wonder why the wealthy are putting more money to art than towards social services, charity or the common good. We see this bit of art as a proxy for all that is wrong with the millionaires and billionaires of the world. Then, when we hear the buyer of this banana ate the banana we just melt into madness!

Beyond how you feel about this specific banana and duct tape, the purchase, or the people involved I want to remind us that we all have bought a $120,000 banana.

We all have spent money on fleeting things (fast fashion?). We all have justified our expenses on things over using our money for the common good (don’t we all need three winter coats?). We all have bought into consumerism and purchased things just because everyone is a twitter about them (fidget spinners anyone?) We all have bought things that others disprove of (you have seen the National Inquire, right?). We all feel justified in our decisions and condemn others’ (I am improving the value of my home with these updates, you are wasting your money on buying a boat.).

We may not have signed a check for the same dollar amount, but we all have bought our version of the $120,000 banana.

No matter how we feel about this banana it reveals to us that we are no better or worse than the one “wasting their money” on a banana. We all feel justified with our own actions. We all feel like others are the problem.

I am thankful that we know the name of the couple who bought the banana. At least they are not hiding behind anonymity and are willing to publicly face the very questions we all should be asking ourselves every day.

The Total Population of Hell

Some years ago I read a story about a Christian teacher who was asked, “Who do you think is in Hell?” The teacher responded, “There is only one person in hell. Jesus.”

The teacher’s point, to my recollection, was that since it Jesus came to liberate the oppressed, bring sight to the blind and proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor (Luke 4: 17-21), the last place to do this work would be hell. Additionally, wherever Jesus goes, there is liberation (Mark 5, for one example). There is no where we can go where the liberating love of God cannot find us (Psalm 139: 7-12).

Not even hell.

Therefore, as I recall the teacher making the point, the total population of hell is clear. Hell’s total population is 1. Jesus stands in the depths of hell as the crucified victim of heinous acts of violence sets all captives free.

Good news: If there is a hell, Jesus empties it.