| Author | Message | ||
| Jude the Obscure |
WHERE THE ARMOR IS THAT ONCE RULED THE KINGDOM IN THE CENTER OF THE WORLD By Jude the Obscure Once upon a time long ago and far away in the land in the center of the world, there was a vast kingdom that had no king. Instead there was a suit of shining gold Armor. This Armor sat on the royal throne in the center of the royal throne room in the center of the royal palace in the center of the royal capitol city in the center of the kingdom in the center of the world. All important matters of concern to the state were brought before the Armor to be addressed. But since only the prime minister was allowed to speak with the Armor, this official always sat in a nearby chair and listened. Then, after the petitioner, say, had made his appeal, he was escorted from the throne room while the Armor and the prime minister conferred. After the petitioner was escorted back into the throne room, the prime minister would repeat the Armorís decision. Thus was royal business normally conducted at the highest level in the kingdom in the center of the world. The most important matter of concern to the state was a hoary prophecy -- repeated by many successive prophets at sundry times and in diverse manners down through the ages. The prophecy, in brief, was this: That one day the true king ñ a good and powerful young man -- would come, don the Armor, claim the throne, and reign over the kingdom in the center of the world forever. But the Armor must fit the aspirant exactly and precisely. Furthermore, as the prophecy made clear, that once an aspirant failed to fit the Armor, he was never again granted another chance to become king, but must join one of the royal armies. To facilitate fulfillment of this prophecy, once every moon, on the day of new moon festival eve, the prime minister would hold a great Armor-fitting assemblage in the royal coliseum located just across the royal highway from the royal palace. And just so, before every new moon festival, young aspirants would arrive from the six great cities surrounding the royal city and, indeed, from the uttermost-flung parts of the kingdom in the center of the world. All aspirants had to be trained from their motherís knee up in order, hopefully, to fit correctly and exactly into the Armor. And since the Armor boasted a powerful size and shape, all aspirants had to train very arduously. And so it was that -- although no aspirant as yet had ever managed to fill the Armor precisely -- all aspirants had nontheless trained so well that all the armies of all the kingdoms of all the world quaked and prostrated in fear before the advancing armies of the kingdom in the center of the world. And for this reason the kingdom in the center of the world ruled all other kingdoms of the world. One day, of a new moon festival eve, the coliseum was crowded to overflowing, as usual, with the people of the upper classes of the kingdom in the center of the world. That was the day a young aspirant named Modest arrived at the royal coliseum from a little town of no repute at the far-reaches of the kingdom in the center of the world. Because he was from an unknown town, and because he was very poor and wore ragged clothing and thus didnít seem to befit the image of the Armor, not to mention his evident modesty, no one in authority paid the slightest attention to him. And, indeed, the prime minister overlooked and omitted Modest from the official roster of sequence. Seeing this oversight, Modest suddenly cried out with a surprisingly powerful and commanding voice, ìI have studied the sundry times and diverse prophecies concerning the fitting of the Armor. It is I of whom the prophets have foretold. I have trained arduously from my motherís knee up. And stand I shall for the fitting of the Armor!" ìNo!î cried the prime minister. "For your name appears not upon the official roster of sequence!î But some nearby in the crowd overheard the words exchanged between aspirant Modest and the prime minister, and began to chant: ìLet him stand! Let him stand!î ìNever!î bellowed the prime minister. But the chant, ìLet him stand! Let him stand!î began rippling outward throughout the throng, such that soon the entire coliseum was chanting, ìLet him stand! Let him stand!î even though very few chanters knew anything of the reason for the chant. They were just mysteriously moved to take up this particular chant. Thus, seeing that his position was now seriously undermined, the prime minister reluctantly wrote the name Modest at the very end of the roster, and the young aspirant walked with head held high and shoulders back to the center of the coliseum and joined the others in his place at the end of the line. As usual, all aspirants took their turn at trying to fit perfectly into the Armor, except one. And that one, of course, was Modest. For the prime minister, hoping that the throng had forgotten him, had secretly told the royal guards to deny him his turn at the last instant. But lo, the throng was mysteriously moved to remember. When they saw the royal guards begin to take Modest away with the others to the army conscription center, they again took up the chant, ìLet him stand! Let him stand!î with even more vehemence than before. And again, the prime minister was crowd-bullied into letting Modest stand for fitting. Needless to say, dear reader, Modest fit the Armor perfectly ñ the first aspirant to do so in all the annals of all the ages of the kingdom in the center of the world. And all the people shouted: ìThe prophecies are all fulfilled! Long live the king! Long live the king!î At that precise moment, the prime minister, collapsed into a miserable heap at the feet of the Armor-clad Modest. ìO King!î he cried pitifully, ìLive forever! For I am your grateful servant!î ìFear not!î cried Modest in his powerful voice that, it is said, was heard clear to the hindmost coliseum rows of seats. ìBut watch!î Then, as gasps of sheer terror ascended from the throng, Modest flexed his powerful bulging muscles, and so great was the pressure inside the Armor, that it snapped with a loud report and shattered like crystal into a myriad of shards that fell at the feet of King Modest. At that the prime minister leaped to his feet and pointed a long bony finger at the new ruler: You are an impostor! You have not fulfilled the prophecies! Look what you have done to our Armor! The penalty for the treason you have committed is death! Then, turning to the masses in the seats he cried, ìExecute him! Execute him!î And soon the cry rippled around the coliseum: ìExecute him! Execute him!î and ìExecute him! Execute him!î Seeing that the vast throng, which included all of high position in the royal city, as well as the prime minister were all shouting in unison -- ìExecute him! Execute him!î ñ the royal guards drew their swords and ran Modest through and through. Until the young aspirant fell into a bloody heap amid the shiny gold shards of the shattered Armor. The royal coroner ran quickly over and, after a brief examination, pronounced young Modest dead. The friends of Modest -- those who had journeyed to the royal city with him to the new moon festival -- requested and received permission to take his body back with them on a liter to the little town of no repute at the uttermost reaches of the kingdom at the center of the world. But wait! O gentle reader. My story does not end here. For after many moons, Modest returned. Some said he had been resurrected from the dead. Most said the new Modest was an impostor. And, lo, when the prime minister heard that Modest had reached the outskirts of the royal city, the prime minister sent the royal army stationed there out to meet him outside the city wall and to close and bar the gates behind them. Hearing of the commotion, the cityís population ceased their daily labors and assembled on the broad highway that lay on top of the royal wall that circled all the way around the royal city ñ there to see any action that might ensue. At this point an astounding thing happened. As Modest with his friends approached the main city gates, an earthquake suddenly manifested. It rocked the wall tuntil the people standing upon them shrieked in terror. Some were so terrified that they threw themselves over and were killed by the fall. The men of the royal army spontaneously stopped their advance, and, as the ground under them rolled like the waves of the great sea, they all fell and lay like dead men on the heaving ground. Still advancing, Modest and his men seemed unaffected by the quake. And, even more astounding, amid the shaking, the city main gates were ripped from their hinges and collapsed inward, as though inviting Modest to walk into the city over their rough woody backs. This he indeed did, while his men shouted, ìBehold King Modest! Behold your king!î By now the whole city was in panic. Even so, the entire populace, or so it was reported by royal historians, took up the chant, ìBehold King Modest! Behold your king!î As Modest and his men, marching down the royal highway, approached the royal palace, the prime minister emerged and threw himself prostrate at his feet. ìO mighty king Modest,î he cried, ìlive forever!î King Modest did not answer, did not even look at the pleading prime minister, but strode purposefully through the grand palace entrance, and, though he had never before been inside this edifice, he walked without a guide right for the throne room and the throne itself. And there, to the amazement of his men, they all beheld Armor seated on the throne! For the prime ministerís guildsmen had painstakingly glued all the shattered shining gold shards back together, assembling them into their previous form. ìAway with that Armor!î commanded Modest in a mighty voice. ìFor I am and have always been King!î And to this very day, or so it is written in the royal annals, King Modest still rules the kingdom in the center of the world. And the Armor is hanging by itself in a special museum behind thick glass guarded night and day by King Modestís most trusted men. So that is where the Armor is that once ruled the kingdom at the center of the world. ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ The author gives, and encourages, unrestricted permission to reprint this story, provided that no alterations are made anywhere in its title, byline or body and that this sentence, including the phrase ìCopyright 2000 by Jude the Obscure,î is retained and included on all copies, whether electronic or paper. | ||
| Jude the Obscure |
The above story, "WHERE THE ARMOR IS....," is obviously an allegory. I invite all who may be intgerested to post their interpretations. Remember, there are no "correct" or "incorrect" interpretations per se. For the story has value only as it affects your own heart. God bless you all, Jude | ||
| Steve |
WONDERFUL STORY, Jude. We have all been a part of that kingdom. And although the Armor was destroyed, there are those that still want to piece the Armor together, and stand in awe of the Armor. But we have a King. And that King has destroyed the Armor, and has shown His New Armor to be vastly superior to the old Armor. The New Armor is, of course, King Modest Himself. Praise God! In recent times, there have been those who have not only stood in awe of the old Armor, but have polished that Armor and have said, "Now that the King has come, let us go and fall down at the feet of the Armor to worship it. For the Armor is to stand forever." And, "Now that you have seen the King, come with us and we'll show you the Armor that we have kept. For the Armor is what the King wants you to see. He has allowed us to keep it in the Royal Museum." However, I have seen the King. And, (although some say the King is not here, so we need the Armor to lead us, and we need to consult with the Armor,) I believe the King has left His Word and His Spirit with us to constantly remind us of the fact that he destroyed the Armor. And the King wants to set up His throne, not in the museum, but in our hearts. Let's not go and fall down at the feet of the Armor anymore. The King is here. The King has put to death that which would have been a barrier between us and Himself, the Armor. Praise the King, Praise the King, Praise the King. Jude, I hope I haven't added too much to the story in trying to interpret it. That is how I've interpreted it for myself. The Armor, for me is the Law, with it's commandments and ordinances. The King is Jesus Himself. Jesus destroyed the Armor, which was a barrier between Himself and us. God forgive me for the times I've helped polish that Armor. You destroyed it because it is a barrier. Help me to see King Jesus, my Lord and Savior more clearly. And praise You for having Jude involved in this discussion board, for he is speaking to me in ways that go straight to my heart. In Jesus Name, Amen. | ||
| Steve |
Jude, I've re-read the story. Amazing! I think that a good Biblical exegesis could even be done on this story. The details, the plot, the characters, the allegories, the whole message. Just wonderful. I'm going to take you up on your offer to reprint with the copyright statement on it. I'm going to make 20 copies and give them out at the next FAF meeting near here in Redlands, California. I'm sure there are many there that will benefit from it as much as I have (and will continue to benefit from it). I also have a dinner date with a fellow Sabbath School teacher this Thursday evening. I've shared with him my frustrations with SDAism. He told me, and then taught it this last Sabbath, that he actually had to leave the SDA church for 7 years to learn about Grace from the Baptists. I plan on giving him a copy. I KNOW he'll relate to it. (Hmmmmm, I said "fellow Sabbath School teacher." HA! I don't think they'll have me back!) This story is going to do amazing things. God's anointing is on it. I can tell. Thanks, Steve | ||
| Colleentinker |
Jude, your story made me cry. It is beautiful and powerful. I praise God for the gifts of insight and metaphor that He has given you! Colleen | ||
| Jude the Obscure |
Can God sin? If not, then how could Jesus have broken the Law? Yesterday morning I awoke with ìKing Modest and the Armorî on my mind and sketched the outlines of the story as quickly as I could. This morning I woke up with the following thoughts ñ having very much to do with ìKing Modest and the Armorî -- on my mind: With zero scriptural support, SDA prophet, Sr. Ellen G. White, says in many places, especially in Desire of Ages, that Jesus Christ could have sinned while on earth. She was wrong. For Jesus Christ is 100% God (as well as 100% human), and ìGod cannot be tempted by evil.î James 1:13 NIV. Therefore, Jesus Christ COULD NOT have sinned while physically on earth. And if that is so, then when we say ñ as I have done many times on this website ñ ìJesus Christ broke the Law (several Sabbath Commandments, for example),î we have to mean that he broke the Law WITHOUT SINNING. And this is exactly what I believe. In breaking the Law without sinning, Jesus re-defined the Law as himself (words and actions) and thus abolished the Law in his flesh, nailed it to the cross, and in an utterly absolute way made the Law of Moses forever obsolete for those who are under grace. Just as King Modest did with the Armor in the allegory. And in the process of redefining and obsoleting the Law, he FULFILLED the law and fulfilled it PERFECTLY. Again, just as King Modest did. How did Jesus break the law? A few examples: (1) He left his place on the Sabbath -- breaking the law stated in Exodus 16:29 NIV, which says, ìEveryone is to stay where he is on the seventh day; no one is to go outî ñ when ìon the Sabbath day he went into the synagogue, as was his custom.î Luke 4:16 NIV. Notice this custom of breaking the Law of Moses has nothing whatever to do with healing or ìpracticing medicineî or nursing on the Sabbath! Nor did it have anything to do ñ as SDAs wrongly insist -- with correcting the FALSE INTERPRETATIONS of the Jewish rabbis, scribes and Pharisees, for IT WAS THEIR CUSTOM ALSO to go into the synagogue on the Sabbath day! BOTH Jesus AND the Jews were breaking the Law of Moses as clearly and unavoidably stated in Exodus 16:29. There are several other cases in which Jesus either broke the Sabbath Law (Fourth Commandment) himself or allowed his disciples to break it or commanded someone else to break it. Examples: (2) Healing many times on the Sabbath when he could have waited ñ without harm to the patients -- till after sundown. (3) Allowing Peterís mother-in-law ìto wait onî people (Luke 4:39 NIV) on the Sabbath (Luke 4:31 NIV), a clear violation of the unambiguously written statement of Godís Fourth Commandment in Exodus 20. (4) Ordering a man to carry his mat on the Sabbath (Luke 5:9-11) in flagrant violation of Nehemiah 13:15-22. (5) Mixing a clay poultice on the Sabbath (John 9:6) in deliberate violation of the Fourth Commandment. Approving and arguing for his disciples (6) reaping and (7) thrashing wheat grain on the Sabbath (Luke 6:1-6) in a particularly striking example of clearly breaking the Fourth Commandment. And so, back to the riddle: How could Jesus FULFILL the Law perfectly while at the same time he was so clearly BREAKING it? My answer: Because he was not breaking the Law of Jesus as stated on the Mount of Blessings. He was only breaking the Law of Moses as stated on the Mount of Sinai (or Horeb). Question: How can one who IS the Law break it? Answer: He cannot, just as he could not sin! To say otherwise is to raise nonsense questions, such as, ìCan the Creator make a universe so vast that he himself cannot travel across it?î Conclusion: Just as the God-Man cannot sin, the God-Man cannot break his own law. He can, and did, break a temporary and imperfect STATEMENT of his own Law, such as the Law of Moses. He can, and did, ABOLISH IN HIS FLESH and NAIL TO THE CROSS the old-covenant (same as Old Testament) Law of Moses. He can REDEFINE, RESEAT, RESTATE, REPLACE and RESHAPE his own statement of Law, as he did on Mt. Blessings. He can even reveal himself AS the Law. But he cannot BREAK his own Law. For that would be like breaking himself! Not long ago a friend of mine e-mailed her friend, a professed Christian who did not attend church, this terse message: ìGo to church!î Within seconds the reply came back: ìI AM church, so how can I go there?î Now, overlooking this young man's somewhat skewed ecclesiology, there is a lesson in that brief e-mail exchange. And it is this: My friends, Jesus IS the Law, so how can he break it? Do not ìkick against the goadsî (Acts 26:14 NIV). LET JESUS CHRIST BE GOD! Wishing you all the peace that passeth understanding, Jude | ||
| Jude the Obscure |
CREED OF JUDE THE OBSCURE Article One: Concerning the Seventh-day Sabbath Jesus Christ is the only perfect, final and eternal statement of the law. He cannot break it because he cannot break himself. For this same reason he could not break it while he was physically on earth as Emanuel. But while he was here he was breaking a particular imperfect and temporary statement of the law. This statement is known as the Law of Moses, which he wrote with his own finger on stone tablets and gave to Moses on Mt. Sinai. These tablets contain the Ten Commandments, including the Fourth Commandment or seventh-day Sabbath commandment. He was breaking this imperfect and temporary statement of the law, the Law of Moses, even as he was fulfilling it. He was fulfilling it according to prophecy of the old covenant or Old Testament. But he was not breaking its perfect, final and eternal statement, which was and remains himself only. This statement constituted all of his earthly teachings and actions, including his life, death, resurrection and ascention. This new statement, which I call the Law of Jesus, included immeasurable improvements on the Ten Commandments, which Jesus Christ spoke with Godís own mouth, God's mouth, on Mt. Blessings. One of these improvements involved the omission of the Fourth Commandment, which he did not mention on Mt. Blessings. | ||
| Steve |
Jude, I've been thinking about your statement about Jesus not breaking the Law, just breaking an imperfect statement of the Law. As I redefine my understanding of the sabbath commandment, I must admit that I am looking at all the commandments as well, especially the Big 10. Did Jesus "break" the commandment on murder by reseating that commandment in Himself? Of course, most of us don't commit physical murder. But we (I) have often experienced hate. Jesus needed to give us a much higher Law than that which was previously stated. He didn't really break the Perfect Law of the Sabbath because He is our Sabbath rest. By entering into Him, as stated in Hebrews 3 and 4, we enter into that Sabbath rest. By learning not to hate, are we fulfilling the more perfect commandment on murder? Did Jesus "break" and "reseat" that commandment in Himself also? I guess I relate it to your story of the Armor. Not only the Sabbath commandment, but all those shadowy commandments were destroyed in Him. Does this line of questioning make sense to you, do you see why I'm asking it? God Bless, Steve | ||
| Jude the Obscure |
Yes, Steve, My thinking has paralleled yours in this. Here's what I've come up with: Question: Did Jesus "break" the commandment on murder by reseating that commandment in Himself? Answer: No, Jesus broke only the STATEMENT IN WORDS of the commandment on murder by reseating that commandment in Himself. Likewise, Jesus broke only the WRITTEN STATEMENT of the perfect law of the Sabbath because he is our Sabbath rest. And he RESTATED it within his own person so that by entering into Him, as stated in Hebrews 3 and 4, we enter into that Sabbath rest. Bless that sanctified mind of yours, Jude | ||
| Colleentinker |
Jude, I think your description of Jesus breaking the imperfect representation of the Lawónot the Law which is Himselfóis wonderful. This discussion of Law (which is really a New Covenant-Old Covenant discussion) brings my mind back to the Calvinism/Arminian discussion which Bill and others have been having. I'm pretty convinced that we can't know, actually, exactly how God balances election and choice. I'm convinced that both are true. God is absolutley sovereign, of that I'm sure. The New Covenant is unconditionalónot dependent upon our decisions or choices. Jesus also commanded us to preach the gospel, and we are asked to believe in Jesus. Our pastor, Gary Inrig, said a few months ago words to this effect: I believe that God elects people to be saved. He chooses us. But believing that, I can't say that God has removed my commission to preach. I don't know how these things work together; I only know I'd be disobeying God if I didn't preach the gospel. I believe we're back to paradoxóthat mysterious reality which encompasses things which appear to be complete opposites within the definition of Truth. We are called to be comfortable with the tension of paradox. Without it, we limit God, and we petrify our understanding. | ||
| Jude the Obscure |
Greetings, Colleen, Thanks for that insight. I'm in total agreement with your theology of paradox. I think paradox is fundamental to the theology of mystery also. It goes something like this: God is mystery, just as God is love. Love, of course, is the greater mystery, for agape love is the method God in his sovereignty has chosen to communicate with us. But God is also mystery. I don't have time to get into all the scriptures right now, but they are legion, such as metaphors of God being clothed in thick darkness, a darkness very different from the darkness of which John says, "in him there is no darkness at all." Another paradox: two different kinds of spiritual darknesses, one good and one bad, but both true. Another aspect of God's mystery: God gave his "chosen nation" a CONDITIONAL covenant, known as "the old," nested among his UNCONDITIONAL covenants ("the new," Abraham's, Noah's and Adam's). Still another: God chose Israel, knowing full well the nation was going to disobey and thus pave the way for his only and eternally begotten son. Then, after Israel's disobedience, God in his sovereign wisdom and will USED Babylon, "the evil empire," to punish his own chosen nation for disobedience! Then, after, so punishing Israel with Babylon, also known as "the rod of his wrath," God punished Babylon for punishing Israel! Mystery -- compounded, complex, unfathomable -- upon mystery! God is mystery! Praising him for that, Jude |
