Further Up/Further In

“And YHWH will be king over all the earth. On that day YHWH will be one and his name one.”

Zechariah writes these words as one of the most explicit statements of the coming kingdom of G-d upon the earth in the whole Old Testament. Within it’s context this verse speaks of the coming “Day of the LORD,” which can be described in short as when YHWH will come to judge the earth and become its king. The second half of the verse is obviously a reference to the Shema, the call to allegiance of G-d’s covenant people. This sentiment is echoed by Jesus in his ministry and teachings and points to a time in history where G-d will be enthroned as king of the earth; this idea is actually one of the core points of Jesus’ ministry. Followers of Jesus are expected to anticipate this event and take part in heralding it. 

What does this mean for our lives today?

For much of the last two years I have identified myself as a Christian Anarchist. I realize that I cannot by definition call myself an anarchist. I admit to the existence of and submit to authority figures in my life be they social, political, or religious. Hence the modification to the moniker by adding my status as a Christian to it. Authority is not evil, but as Christians we should be aware as to who this authority is in world. This verse from Zechariah speaks of the kingship of YHWH over all the world, of the coming Kingdom of G-d. Jesus speaks of this idea in the Gospels and Paul acts as its herald in his letters. We as Christians should attempt to understand how we are to act out this concept in our everyday life. 

The United States government is not the ultimate authority figure in your life. The Republican or Democratic Party does not tell you what you should do. The Southern Baptist Convention does not get to decide what is right and wrong. Insert whatever authority and power structure you want here and I will once again say that their authority means absolutely NOTHING in the Kingdom of G-d.

Jesus bears the moniker of Christ in the New Testament. Now while many treat this word as a surname it is in fact a title. This title can best be understood in our language as the title of King. Caesar had this title as king of the world in the Roman empire. By calling Jesus the Christ (i.e. the king) we are saying to the powers that be, “no, you are not the ruler of this world and I do not bow to you. Jesus is my king and I owe allegiance and surrender to him.” This explicitly is revolutionary statement! Jesus is king of the world, not the powers that be. By calling Jesus LORD/Christ/King one states that they are not a member of a specific ethnic group, but instead a citizen of the kingdom of G-d. You are NOT an American/English/White/whatever Christian. You are a Christian. Surrendering to Jesus means surrendering your ethnic, national, and social titles. 

So, if Jesus is our king, how do we relate to authority structures in our life? Do we violently oppose them? Do we seek to slowly reform them from within? Do we quietly exist in spite of them? I would say that all of these are in fact the wrong way to go about things. Romans 13:1-7 (the most complicated and frustrating passage to any Christian Anarchist) speaks of authority structures in this world and how they exist under G-d’s allowance. While true in its ideas, this passage must be taken with a grain of salt. When authority structures are acting out justice and compassion; when the powers that be are serving and looking after the needs of the least within society; when the government is properly serving her people, these authority figures are doing the work of G-d. Support the aforementioned systems. But what are we to do when the structures in place begin to oppress and harm the world?

We cry out.

We declare to the powers that be that they are not in fact the ones in control here! We declare that Jesus is king of the world and that our allegiance is to him! We declare to the powers that one day they will be called to account by the true king of the world, Jesus! We make a noise in the streets and cry out maranatha! Our G-d come! We cry for justice and for peace and for mercy! We love the unloved and cherish the hated ones!

We act out as kingdom people.

As Christians, we are to be heralds of the kingdom of G-d. Paul described himself as a slave to King Jesus, we should also call ourselves this. Let’s stop focusing on trying to appease the powers that be and instead focus on being kingdom people.