A few essays ago I tapped into the Punk Rock ethos to describe our current situation in the church and culture. The punks tell us to wake up and quit letting ourselves be led around by influencers who could care less about us other than as a payday. But there’s more to that thought. We are in a season of the strong man in politics. These seasons come around pretty regularly in societies and nations. The strong man seizes upon populist sentiment always bending it to his own ends. But why do Christians end up supporting strong men? I believe that many Christians hold a picture of God as the strong man. For them God is a powerful king who rules with ultimate power. This God vanquishes their enemies and elevates them to glory.
But this is not the God of the Hebrew and Christian scriptures. There is deep weakness in the strong man. By and large the strong man is unable to hear criticism of his ideas. The strong man cannot accept protest, satire, or simply saying no more. It is in the moments that expose the strong man’s thin skin that the lie of that being God is laid bare. When this is pointed out, the proponents of the strong man God like to say God is also jealous, God destroys, God hates. You can make this argument from scripture, but it misses a crucial lens…
Jesus did not embody the strong man. In fact, when asked to do the work of the strong man and place apostles on his right and left, he rebuked them. Our picture of God must be the same as Jesus. It is hard to make a case for a warrior or strong man in the words of Jesus. Appeals to Revelation by American evangelicals rings hollow if you realize that Revelation is about perseverance in the face of the strong man. Ultimately, the ideology of the strong man is defeated by a slaughtered lamb.
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