Counted Among Rebels

“Then Jesus asked them, “When I sent you out to preach the Good News and you did not have money, a traveler’s bag, or an extra pair of sandals, did you need anything?” “No,” they replied. “But now,” he said, “take your money and a traveler’s bag. And if you don’t have a sword, sell your cloak and buy one! For the time has come for this prophecy about me to be fulfilled: ‘He was counted among the rebels.’ Yes, everything written about me by the prophets will come true.” “Look, Lord,” they replied, “we have two swords among us.” “That’s enough,” he said.”

‭‭- Luke‬ ‭22‬:‭35‬-‭38‬ ‭NLT‬‬

“I will give him the honors of a victorious soldier, because he exposed himself to death. He was counted among the rebels. He bore the sins of many and interceded for rebels.”

‭‭- Isaiah‬ ‭53‬:‭12‬ ‭NLT‬‬

“Then a mighty roar rose from the crowd, and with one voice they shouted, “Kill him, and release Barabbas to us!” (Barabbas was in prison for taking part in an insurrection in Jerusalem against the government, and for murder.) Pilate argued with them, because he wanted to release Jesus. But they kept shouting, “Crucify him! Crucify him!””

- Luke‬ ‭23‬:‭18‬-‭21‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Jesus’s instructions to the disciples to sell their coats and buy in exchange swords has always perplexed me. Was Jesus preparing the disciples for a fight? I don’t think that’s the case as we see in John 18, Jesus rebukes Peter for using his sword to protect Jesus. Was Jesus having second thoughts, maybe becoming hesitant about proceeding forward in the Father’s plan for His life? Again Jesus’s prayer to the Father, “Lord let your will, not my will be done”, also puts this to rest. Not to mention that it would be a hard jump for me to believe the perfect Son of God was struggling with duality of mind about his path forward. So why then, is Jesus directing the disciples to carry a sword now, after previously telling them to carry nothing. If He wasn’t asking them to fight physically for Him and He wasn’t hoping for a backup plan in case He changed His mind about going to the cross, what was the point? 

Of course, like most of Scripture the answer is obvious, but requires we look deeper into the Scriptures past what we think we know. 

If you’ll notice, Jesus tells His disciples, “The time has come for this prophecy about me to be fulfilled”. 

Interesting, what prophecy? 

The prophecy of Isaiah 53:12 that I referenced above. 

Jesus will be given the honor of a victorious soldier, because He was exposed to, not overcome by death. He was counted among the rebels. He bore the sins of many and even interceded or stood in for the rebels (you and I). 

This makes it much easier to understand when you see this in Isaiah, and you piece it together with Luke 23. Jesus was crucified in place of Barabbas, whose name means son of the father, in this case the father of lies. Barabbas, who really was on trial for insurrection or rebellion against Rome. The picture becomes much more clear. Jesus knew He needed to be crucified, He knew crucifixion was reserved as the highest punishment possible given to those who rebelled against Roman authority. Crucifixion served as a form of public execution, a gruesome sign for others that might have thoughts of doing the same. 

Jesus understood that. He understood that in order for the Kingdom of God’s perfect authority to be established on earth, He had to not only overthrow, but go through and endure the highest place of authority on earth. Execution on the cross by Rome. Jesus also knew the only way to be sentenced to crucifixion was to be accused of insurrection. Which is why He arranged to be arrested and lead a group of rebels carrying swords. Two, to be exact. Enough to be considered a group of insurrectionists led by the one and only Jesus of Nazarene. Of course, when the time of His arrest comes, the disciples escape without being harmed. Jesus literally stops Peter from actual insurrection and is the only person of the group taken to trial for insurrection, thus fulfilling the prophecy He interceded or stood in the place for rebels. Our God is a mighty God. Thank you Jesus for taking our place and bearing the penalty we deserve! 

With all that said, this is not the main point I’d like to write about. From this perspective of Scripture in Luke 22, our relationship with Jesus never stays the same. His Word never changes but He is always doing a new thing (Isaiah 43:19)! Confused? Let me explain. God's Word stands true yesterday, today, and tomorrow. It’s unchanging and unwavering. His application of the Word in each of our lives is always new and often different than what we expected from times prior. For instance, King David’s application of a sword was not the way Jesus was calling Peter to carry a sword. Peter just assumed, based on what God did in prior days, instead of searching God for the application for the day He was in. In this way, it is impossible to follow Jesus depending on yesterday’s revelation. We have to have fresh encounters with Him daily so that we can walk with all that He is calling us to walk with, in context with what He is doing in each of our lives daily. 

This is also why we can’t expect everyone else’s faith walk to look exactly like ours. What He is calling me to, is not always going to look like what He is calling you to do. We cannot expect others to conform to exactly what God has called us to, individually. We never know what and where Jesus is leading another brother or sister into. 

Paul reiterates this in Romans 14. Rather than criticizing and judging one another for differences we should pray for one another to have faith and endure whatever God has called us to in faith. We don’t have the right to make our personal convictions the standard for others, or to belittle others because their personal convictions are not our own. Because if we are honest, following Jesus comes with a cost. Each of us, if we are sincerely committed to following Christ, are fighting a faith-battle right now that is different from someone else. Each in our unique ways as Jesus has called us, are rebelling against the powers of this world to establish the perfect authority of Christ on earth through our individual lives. It’s hard enough, we don’t need the added burden of our brothers and sisters in the Church condemning us because Christ’s way in us doesn't look exactly like Christ’s way in them.

Let me also be explicit and clear, the Word is absolute on what is sin and what violates God’s Word, so I am not talking about overlooking clear and evident sin for the sake of harmony. Not at all. When we see sin become normalized in the Church and outside the Church we are always to take a stand against it.The Word of God is the standard, and gives clear definition for what is moral and what is not. What I am talking about is personal convictions, things that Jesus has commanded of us personally that we try to make a standard with others corporately. I am talking about being divided over things like…

• Holidays (what to call them and which one’s to celebrate)

• Diets (what you can and cannot eat)

• Worship (music preferences)

• Dress (preferences other than being modest)

• Bible (translations)

• Styles of Preaching

• Types of Evangelism (all are good) 

As a pastor of a non-denominational Church where doctrinal traditions are not built by a denomination, I have found that these topics are either personal conviction or preferences that can be different for each person's faith journey or personal battle. There is no clear one-size fits all application provided in the Scripture over these issues. That being said, I have also observed that the enemy can use these topics and convictions to divide and fear-monger God’s people against one another. When someone has personal revelation on how to apply one of these topics from God into their own life, they have to be careful not to dogmatically assume that is the same standard God is calling everyone else to as well. They have to be careful not to allow their personal conviction to become a stumbling block, by expecting everyone else to conform to what God has permitted or restricted for them personally. Doing so is an attempt to rob others of encountering God to receive personal revelation for where Jesus is leading them, and creating a human experience based religion in place of living relationship with the One True God. In many ways, you're stepping in between the work God is doing in someone else’s life with your personal experience. This type of conformity is rebellion to God's Kingdom and submission to patterns of this world. It’s not always easy, and sometimes you’ll have to walk quietly and humbly before your peers, but uniting with others for the sake of Jesus despite our differences of opinion, preferences and personal convictions is the type of harmony that invites the King and His Kingdom. It’s true authority, and it’s what the Lord is doing in His bride. 

If you are a part of First Church, or any other of our affiliates of this church or ministries, you probably have a strong sense of commitment to reaching the people of Appalachia for the sake of the Gospel. I have found that it looks slightly different for everyone. I am not interested in beating up people for not conforming to my personal convictions, preferences or way of doing things. Rather I am confident that God has placed me here as “Pastor” to help people grow confident in their call from God, discipling them in the truth and sending them out into their mission field, gently correcting when necessary, but always saying yes and amen to what is evidently God’s work in someone else’s life. I don’t need you to be like me, I need you to passionately yield to who God has called you to be. I need you to say yes to the Holy Spirit’s process for your life. I need you to boldly commit yourself to Jesus’s call and commission, seeking His leadership daily so we can efficiently build His Kingdom and prepare for His return. Thank you for being a part of this, and thank you for being counted in this world as among Jesus and His rebels…

Love, 

Pastor John