Echo Spring 2021 - 32

By Anthony Bruno, Assistant Professor & Criminal Justice Program Assistant
hen we think of Christian service,
depending on particular bents,
giftedness and callings, a variety of types
of service may come to mind. We
would all agree, however, that service to others
is a necessary component to the life devoted to
Christ. In fact, we even call our weekly gatherings
" services. " The concept of service, however, is more
than just something we are supposed to do as a
moral obligation or command.
Service is at the very essence of what the gospel
is. Theologian Dr. Thomas Neufeld states the
following regarding the restorative effect of Jesus'
ministry: " Jesus desired to draw outcasts into the
circle of God's care and to reintegrate them into
the community of God's people ... such restoration
of the human community lies at the very core of
his enactment of the kingdom. "
I often wonder about our modern evangelical
understanding of Jesus as Messiah. In my
experience, it is often discussed in terms of Him
being the figure who fulfills a variety of scattered
Old Testament passages. This connecting of
prophetic dots, then, results in a completed code
of Messiah-ship, giving us the evidence we need
to prove that Jesus is divine. The Divinity of Jesus
is surely an important Doctrinal Proposition of
the Christian Faith and continues to be recited in
congregations worldwide via ancient works like
the Apostle's Creed.
This, however, is only part of a much bigger picture
painted in the story of the Scriptures. The term
Messiah most directly references Jesus as a ruler,
in the fashion of a King. Thus, it is in Jesus that
God returns to Israel as King and restores them,
revealing Himself even to the entire world as the
everlasting King. What's just as important, however,
is not simply THAT Jesus is King, but also HOW
He is so.
When the mother of James and John approaches
Jesus in Matthew 20, she makes a request of Him.
Kneeling before him (acknowledging His Messiahship/Lordship/Kingship),
she requests, " Declare that
these two sons of mine will sit, one at your right
hand and one at your left, in your kingdom. "
Simply, yet profoundly, Jesus responds, " You do
not know what you are asking. " If she were asked
the question, 'Do you believe Jesus is Messiah,' her
answer would be a theologically correct, 'Yes.' This
understandably proud mother, however, was
under a mistaken impression, and we can make
the same mistake as this loving, proud mother.
She believed THAT Jesus was Messiah-King, but
she did not understand HOW He was so. Her
impression was that Jesus was the kind of King
that this world was already used to, that we are all
still used to in our world, and she wanted her sons
to be high-ranking in the ruling class of the King.
When the remaining 10 disciples hear of this
request, they get angry, perhaps
because each of them feels as
though they deserve such
ranking. Jesus then takes
the opportunity to firmly
distinguish between this
world's manner of operating
and that of God's kingdom. At
this point he utters the famous words,
" You know that the rulers of the Gentiles
lord it over them, and their great ones
exercise authority over them. It shall not
32 ECHO
Echo Spring 2021

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Echo Spring 2021
