The Teacher

The Teacher: Part I Unchained, Chapter 6

CHAPTER 6

EVERYONE WAS LATE FOR BOTH breakfast and devotions on Saturday morning. Pastor Ben couldn't wait any longer and began his homily as the half-awake stragglers staggered through the buffet line on their way to a table in a meeting room reserved for our services or any of our group gatherings where some privacy might be best.

In his talk, Pastor tried to tie the challenge of facing a steep slope to the difficulty of turning our backs on sin—a well-intentioned effort, but most of us just weren't in the mood to grapple with any deep spiritual truths over cold scrambled eggs and rubbery bacon, so when Pastor Ben saw the yawns, he changed his tack.

"You know, if Jesus were alive today, he'd probably have a tattoo. Well...agree or disagree?" Pastor tossed out, hoping to wake us up.

"Come on, you don't mean that," someone blurted out from the group.

"Seriously, I know a few of you have tattoos you keep hidden. I don't really see any piercings, probably because those you can't hide so well."

"Don't be so sure of that," one of the girls responded, and soon everyone laughed.

"All right, so I don't know everything. Anyway, my point is that people use markings like tattoos as a form of self expression. High school students want to be unique individuals, right? Tattoos and piercings are becoming more and more common all the time, but they're still hard for some people to accept. For example, it might be hard to get a job if during an interview the boss sees you with a prominent tattoo or piercing. I know...it's hard to put up with overbearing authority figures. I know...you just want to live openly and be yourself. Is conformity is overrated? The establishment is still out there today. So, who can tell me what the establishment was in Jesus' day?" Pastor Ben asked the students, most of whom were now paying rapt attention.

"His elders...the Jewish elders and rabbis," another student responded.

"Right, the Jewish religion was well established and its rules strictly controlled everyone's behavior. There was very little room for individual expression. Now, Jesus wasn't a terrorist; or insurgent, to use a modern term, but when He began His ministry His message was alarming to the establishment. At that point, a particular tattoo image or piercing could have marked Him and His followers as being members of the same group sharing ideas that went against the establishment. For example, today whenever we see a cross, we connect the image to Christ and Christianity. I suppose a modern urban example would be gang symbols often used by members as tattoo graphics. Still with me?"

"You're calling Jesus a subversive?" someone spontaneously responded.

"Absolutely, and you know that's true because what did the Jewish and Roman establishment do to Him? I know you know, He was executed, and the form of state execution common at the time was crucifixion. So, what would you think if you saw Jesus with a tattoo?"

"He must be a bad dude," one of the reformed stoners in the group offered.

"That's right...and He, as we all know, was the baddest dude ever, he was God, and a man, and a teacher who came to enlighten his generation about a better way to relate to God. Before Jesus, what did the Jews have to do to gain God's favor?"

"I know, one of their high priests had to kill a lamb in a certain way," came Blaire's answer.

"That's right, Blaire. Blood sacrifices, special priests, rigid rituals, were all needed as go-betweens so the common person could have a relationship with God. Jesus changed all that and actually became the ultimate sacrifice Himself. He became a threat to the establishment? Everything those in power had built up to control the people was threatened by the simple message that anyone could have a personal relationship with the living God just by reaching out in Faith. The temple, the priests, the blood sacrifices, none of that was needed. Can you see why they killed Him?"