The New Testament Model

The New Testament church was born into an environment no different from anywhere in the world today. In the Roman Empire, idolatry, witchcraft, immorality, greed and every kind of wickedness was the order of the day. Added to this was the cult of Caesar worship, punishable by death for those who refused to comply, and the religious fervour of the Jews who had rejected their Messiah and did everything they could to stamp out the infant church, targeting the apostles and persecuting the believers wherever they could, headed up by Saul of Tarsus until his dramatic encounter with the living Christ.

If there was ever a reason to identify and deal with powers and strongholds, it was then.

Jesus sent His disciples into all the world with a commission to make disciples. What were their weapons and what would their strategy be?

1. The gospel.

Paul declared to the Roman church in the heart of the Roman Empire:

“I am not ashamed of the gospel because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile.” Romans 1:18 (NIV).

But Paul, what about the powers of darkness that hold sway over the whole Roman Empire? The power of God lay in the preaching of the gospel, not in intercessory prayers and pulling down strongholds.

1. The truth

Jesus stated categorically, principalities and powers or not, that it is the knowledge of the truth that sets people free.

“To the Jews who believed in Him, Jesus said, ‘If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.’” John 8:31, 32 (NIV).

“Jesus replied, ‘I tell you the truth, everyone who sins is a slave to sin. Now a slave has no permanent place in the family, but a son belongs to it forever. So, if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.’” John 8:34-36 (NIV).

1. The word

How much power does the Word of God have to effect change in the lives of people?

“For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of Him to whom we must give an account.” Hebrews 4:12, 13 (NIV).

“For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God.” 1 Peter 1:23 (NIV).

1. The Holy Spirit

To play down the efficacy of the work of Jesus is to empty the Holy Spirit of His power. According to Jesus, the Holy Spirit has the power to convict the world of sin (without the necessity of dealing with demons or strongholds).

“Unless I go away, the Counsellor will not come to you; but if I go I will send Him to you. When He comes, He will convict the world of guilt in regard to sin…” John 16:7b-8a (NIV).

1. The cross

For the apostle Paul, it was the message of the cross that brought people to faith in Christ.

Jesus said, “But I, when I am lifted up, from the earth, will draw all me to myself. He said this to show what kind of death He was going to die.” John 12:32, 33 (NIV).

And so it was Paul’s passion to proclaim the power of the cross.

“When I came to you, brothers, I did not come with eloquence or superior wisdom as I proclaimed to you the testimony about God. For I resolved to nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified. I came to you in weakness and fear, and with much trembling. My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with demonstration of the Spirit’s power, so that your faith might not rest on men’s wisdom, but on God’s power.” 1 Corinthians 2:1-5 (NIV).

1. The resurrection

The power of the cross stands or falls on the resurrection of Jesus.

“And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins. Then those who have fallen asleep in Christ are lost. If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are to be pitied more than all men. But Christ has indeed been raised, the first fruits of those who have fallen asleep.” 1 Corinthians 15:16-20 (NIV).

“Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle and set apart for the gospel of God – the gospel He promised beforehand through His prophets in the Holy Scriptures regarding His Son, who as to His human nature was a descendant of David, and who, through the Spirit of Holiness was declared with power to be the Son of God by His resurrection from the dead: Jesus Christ our Lord.” Romans 1:1-4 (NIV).

1. Jesus’ yoke

The concept of a yoke in Scripture is an interesting one. The Israelites were an agricultural people and their ancient script (called paleo Hebrew), and language grew out of their originally nomadic lifestyle. Their understanding was based on their senses rather than abstract ideas like love, faith, etc.

The name of God (El) was made up of two pictures, aleph being an ox head and lamech being a staff. An ox head denoted strength and a shepherd’s staff, authority. Hence God was the strong one who had authority, the mighty one.

“The ancient Hebrews considered the yoke as a “staff of the shoulder” (see Isaiah 9:4). When ploughing a field, a farmer would place two oxen in a “staff” – one was the older and more experienced and the other the younger and less experienced. The younger was to learn from the older. Again the two pictographic letter, the ox and the staff, are found in this image of action. This concept of “learning through association” can be found in the Hebrew word, alaph, (H 502) and contains the same pictographs.

“The Hebrews did not perceive God as some might omnipotent entity but as “the mighty one,” the older ox in the yoke who teaches them, the younger ox in the yoke.” (Benner, Jeff, The Living Words – Volume 1, Published 2007 by Virtualbookworm.com Publishing Inc).

This was the thinking which lay behind the association of a rabbi with his disciples, young men whom he selected and called to follow him with the understanding that they would be so closely bonded to him, like two oxen in a yoke, that they would learn to be just like him and imitate him in everything they taught and did.

The implication of Jesus’ yoke

Jesus took His disciples to the “red light district” of Israel – Caesarea Philippi – where two of the most powerful religious cults in the Roman Empire were being practised.

“Caesarea Philippi is a large archaeological site containing elaborate building projects erected by Herod Philip and Agrippas II in the area of Dan, at the foot of Mount Hermon in northern Israel. In addition to magnificent Roman structures, Caesarea Philippi is also known for Banias, a collection of springs and pagan worship sites linked to the cult of Pan. The centrepiece of this ancient worship site is a huge cliff and grotto, which contains the remains of numerous altars, caves, temples, and courtyards. This is the location at Caesarea Philippi where Jesus met with his disciples and finally asked the question, “Who do you say that I am?”

“When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?” They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.”

“But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?” Simon Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” Jesus replied, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by man, but by my Father in heaven. (Matthew 16:13-17)

“Caesarea Philippi’s location was especially unique because it stood at the base of a cliff where spring water flowed. At one time, the water ran directly from the mouth of a cave set in the bottom of the cliff.

“The pagans of Jesus’ day commonly believed that their fertility gods lived in the underworld during the winter and returned to earth each spring. They saw water as a symbol of the underworld and thought that their gods travelled to and from that world through caves.

“To the pagan mind, then, the cave and spring water at Caesarea Philippi created a gate to the underworld. They believed that their city was literally at the gates of the underworld – the gates of hell. In order to entice the return of their god, Pan, each year, the people of Caesarea Philippi engaged in horrible deeds, including prostitution and sexual interaction between humans and goats.

“When Jesus brought his disciples to the area, they must have been shocked. Caesarea Philippi was like a red-light district in their world and devout Jews would have avoided any contact with the despicable acts committed there.

“It was a city of people eagerly knocking on the doors of hell.”

Jesus’ Challenge

“Standing near the pagan temples of Caesarea Philippi, Jesus asked his disciples “Who do you say that I am?” Peter boldly replied, “You are the Son of the living God.” The disciples were probably stirred by the contrast between Jesus, the true and living God, and the false hopes of the pagans who trusted in “dead” gods.

“Jesus continued, “You are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it” (see Matt. 16:13 – 20).

“Though Christian traditions debate the theological meaning of those words, it seems clear that Jesus’ words also had symbolic meaning. His church would be built on the “rock” of Caesarea Philippi – a rock literally filled with niches for pagan idols, where ungodly values dominated.

“Gates were defensive structures in the ancient world. By saying that the gates of hell would not overcome, Jesus suggested that those gates were going to be attacked.

“Standing as they were at a literal “gate of Hades,” the disciples may have been overwhelmed by Jesus’ challenge. They had studied under their rabbi for several years, and now he was commissioning them to a huge task: to attack evil by binding His yoke on people held captive by every “yoke of slavery” (Galatians 5:1), and to build the church in the very places that were most filled with moral corruption.

“Jesus presented a clear challenge with his words at Caesarea Philippi: He didn’t want his followers hiding from evil: He wanted them to storm the gates of hell.”

http://www.followtherabbi.com/journey/israel/gates-of-hell/

From this background it is clear that Jesus saw His church as a counter-culture based on the solid rock of His identity as the Son of God and His teaching that presented God as Father and God’s character as gracious, compassionate, slow to anger and full of love and faithfulness (Exodus 34:6).

This was the “yoke” Jesus modelled and taught, in contrast to the strict legalism of the other rabbis of His day. He gave His disciples authority to “bind” His yoke of mercy and compassion on all His followers and to “loose” them from the yoke of pagan idolatry which made them slaves of sin, and the religious legalism which strangled God’s life out of them and made them into slaves of law.

His church would infiltrate the culture of its day and, like yeast in a lump of dough, slowly transform society through the transformed lives of its people, bringing God’s will and the standards of His kingdom to earth, and reflecting Himself in the lives of His people.

Not even the spiritual darkness of paganism and power of hell would be able to withstand the compelling witness of people transformed and filled with the power of the Holy Spirit to live like Jesus (John 2:6),and to do the works that Jesus did (John 14:12), reflecting the nature of God’s loving rule over His people.

This is the vision Jesus had for His church which He imparted to His disciples over the course of three and a half years. He taught them how to do the works of the kingdom by example and by giving them opportunity to practise under His supervision.  He gave them power and authority over disease and demons and sent them out to do the work in preparation for their worldwide mission.

On this occasion Jesus also gave His mandate to His followers – “I will give you the keys of the kingdom.” Before He ascended to heaven, He gave them this instruction, “Go…make disciples of all nations…” He would use the building bricks of the disciples we make, to build His church, blending diverse people into a unity that reflected His intimate unity in the Godhead, an impossible task outside of the power of the Holy Spirit.

Even when Jesus sent His twelve disciples, and later the seventy two, ahead of Him into the towns and villages where He was planning to go, it was not to do spiritual warfare but to preach the gospel and to heal the sick (Luke 9:1, 2; Luke 110:1-16). They were to interact with the people, and show and announce the kingdom by their gracious attitude towards those who gave them hospitality and those who received their message.

The outcome was astonishing.

“The seventy two returned with joy and said, ‘Lord, even the demons submit to us in your name.’”

“He replied, “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you. However, do not rejoice that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.’” Luke 10:17-21(NIV).

If anyone were to teach the disciples how to deal with demonic powers it would have been Jesus. After all, He was the one who bore the brunt of the enemy’s attacks. Yet He did not instruct them on how to deal with the opposition except to cast out demons and to preach the kingdom of God.

He unmasked and dispatched the devil and His minions once for all at the cross.

“And having disarmed the powers and authorities, He made a public spectacle over them, triumphing over them by the cross.” Colossians 2:15.

To be continued…