Culture verses the Bible

Western Society and culture are fixated on status—whether that be a positional authority at work, the head of the house, being financially superior, owning the most material possessions, being the best looking, or being the most intelligent.

Millions of dollars are spent annually on self-help books, new clothing, diet or weight loss supplements and many other products meant to make us better. Yoga, spiritual gurus, there is a new spiritual fad every year. All of it under the premise to help you achieve the best you—all of it perverting what God has called us to do: Die to ourselves. Not pamper ourselves.

As Messianic believers, we often differentiate ourselves from other denominations in Christianity and Judaism. It can be common to hear or read comments that come across as if we are worthier of God’s favor because of our obedience to the commandments or our belief in the Messiah. Yet how we define worth and how God defines worth don’t seem to align.

Are the people we call holy worthier than the ones that we believe are the scums of this life? Are the actions we deem as holy actually what the Bible defines as holy?

Old Testament Examples

In Genesis chapters one through three, we immediately see the story of the fall of man, how they disobey God and turn on one another. They enter into lust, greed, and deception when they had been given only one rule.

Rather than immediately asking for grace or forgiveness they hid.

And they heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden. But the Lord God called to the man and said to him, “Where are you?” And he said, “I heard the sound of you in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked, and I hid myself.” He said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten of the tree of which I commanded you not to eat?” The man said, “The woman whom you gave to be with me, she gave me fruit of the tree, and I ate.” Then the Lord God said to the woman, “What is this that you have done?” The woman said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.” Genesis 3:8-13

In Genesis chapter four we see that Adam and Eve’s children Cain and Abel get caught up in an altercation due to Cain’s jealousy of Abel and Cain kills his brother.

Cain spoke to Abel his brother. And when they were in the field, Cain rose up against his brother Abel and killed him. Then the Lord said to Cain, “Where is Abel your brother?” He said, “I do not know; am I my brother's keeper?” And the Lord said, “What have you done? The voice of your brother's blood is crying to me from the ground.” Genesis 4:8-10

In Genesis chapter six we see that Noah had found favor in the eyes of the Lord. Three chapters later in Genesis chapter nine, we see that Noah became blackout drunk and one of his sons uncovered his nakedness and shame. The man who was used to help save God’s creation immediately sins under the pressure of that position.

Noah began to be a man of the soil, and he planted a vineyard. He drank of the wine and became drunk and lay uncovered in his tent. And Ham, the father of Canaan, saw the nakedness of his father and told his two brothers outside. Then Shem and Japheth took a garment, laid it on both their shoulders, and walked backward and covered the nakedness of their father. Their faces were turned backward, and they did not see their father's nakedness. Genesis 9:20-23

In Genesis chapter twelve we see that God singled out Abraham. God had plans to bless him with children. This implies God favored Abraham. Something about who he was and his character please God. As chapter twelve closes and rolls into chapter thirteen we see that Abraham lied about Sarah being his wife. Could it be that Abraham lacked faith? Potentially the fear of his immediate circumstances weighed higher than his faith in the Lord’s promises?

Now there was a famine in the land. So Abram went down to Egypt to sojourn there, for the famine was severe in the land. When he was about to enter Egypt, he said to Sarai his wife, “I know that you are a woman beautiful in appearance, and when the Egyptians see you, they will say, ‘This is his wife.’ Then they will kill me, but they will let you live. Say you are my sister, that it may go well with me because of you, and that my life may be spared for your sake.” Genesis 12:10-13

In Genesis chapters seventeen and eighteen we see that both Abraham and Sarah laughed at God’s promise. Was this another time where they lacked faith? Or would this have been a normal instinctive laugh to something they didn’t believe could happen? We don’t know.

When we get to the book of Exodus chapter two, we see the story of Moses lashing out in anger at the Egyptian soldier and murdering him. It wasn’t premeditated murder, today we would call it a “crime of passion,” but it was murder nonetheless. Moses struggled from time to time with his temper.

One day, when Moses had grown up, he went out to his people and looked on their burdens, and he saw an Egyptian beating a Hebrew, one of his people. He looked this way and that, and seeing no one, he struck down the Egyptian and hid him in the sand. - Exodus 2:11-12

The book of Numbers chapter twenty shows us another time Moses acts out of anger. Moses strikes a rock in defiance of the Lord’s instruction to speak to the rock for water.

Then Moses and Aaron gathered the assembly together before the rock, and he said to them, “Hear now, you rebels: shall we bring water for you out of this rock?” And Moses lifted up his hand and struck the rock with his staff twice, and water came out abundantly, and the congregation drank, and their livestock. And the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, “Because you did not believe in Me, to uphold Me as holy in the eyes of the people of Israel, therefore you shall not bring this assembly into the land that I have given them.” These are the waters of Meribah, where the people of Israel quarreled with the Lord, and through them He showed Himself holy. Number 20:10-13

Through the first three books of the Bible, we see multiple times where people who had found favor in the eyes of the Lord had engaged in behavior that wouldn’t find favor in the Lord. Through the first three books we have the following types of behavior:

· Murder

· Lust

· Drunkenness

· Lying

· Greed

· Lack of Faith

· Fear

· Anger

· Defiance

The King of the United Monarchy of Israel and Judah

David is the most highly regarded King of Israel.

He founded the Judaean dynasty and united all of the tribes of Israel under a single ruler. David also is accredited with writing 73 of the Psalms in our modern Scriptures. David throughout history has been one of the most important figures to Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.

David’s life is written about throughout the writings of Samuel and 1 Kings. In those writings, David is painted as a foreshadowing of the coming Messiah.

David was highly favored in the eyes of God. Yet we see David fell victim to his flesh and culture many times. We spend a lot of time talking about all the good David did, but we don’t spend the same time talking about and learning from his sins.

In Second Samuel chapter eleven, we read about David entering into an adulterous affair with Bathsheba. Through that affair, Bathsheba becomes pregnant with David’s child. David then instructs Joab to make sure that Bathsheba’s husband is killed in battle.

After David made sure of her husband’s death, he takes her to be his wife even though David was already married.

David used his power and influence to seduce a married woman, then planned and ordered the killing of her husband.

While engaging in multiple lies and deceit, David’s lust for power, sex, and evil overtook the man who had once found favor in the eyes of the Lord. If David were alive in the 21st century, he would have fallen prey to cancel culture. If he were a pastor or rabbi of a modern church, the Prime Minister of Israel, or a religious social media influencer and engaged in this type of behavior today, he would be canceled and removed. David hasn’t been canceled and his influence and position of status are still held in extremely high regard. Yet David is not the perfect godly example God intended.

Messiah’s Disciples will Be Different

There is a common theology taught today called replacement theology. The basic concept is that the church replaced Israel as the chosen of God because of the failures that happened before the Messiah’s death and resurrection. We do not subscribe to that theology at all.

Were the disciples still human and engaged in behavior similar to their forefathers? Were the ones who sat with Messiah and ate with Messiah different?

Then Satan entered into Judas called Iscariot, who was of the number of the twelve. He went away and conferred with the chief priests and officers how he might betray Him to them. And they were glad, and agreed to give him money. So he consented and sought an opportunity to betray Him to them in the absence of a crowd. - Luke 22:3-6

And likewise, the cup after they had eaten, saying, “This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood. But behold, the hand of him who betrays me is with me on the table. For the Son of Man goes as it has been determined, but woe to that man by whom he is betrayed!” And they began to question one another, which of them it could be who was going to do this.

A dispute also arose among them, as to which of them was to be regarded as the greatest. And he said to them, “The kings of the Gentiles exercise lordship over them, and those in authority over them are called benefactors. But not so with you. Rather, let the greatest among you become as the youngest, and the leader as one who serves. For who is the greater, one who reclines at table or one who serves? Is it not the one who reclines at table? But I am among you as the one who serves.

“You are those who have stayed with me in my trials, and I assign to you, as my Father assigned to me, a kingdom, that you may eat and drink at my table in my kingdom and sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel. Luke 22:20-30

We see in the book of Luke that one of the twelve conspired with the adversary and the Temple leadership to murder Messiah.

Others in the twelve struggled with flesh, pride, and ego arguing who was the greatest disciple.

“Simon, Simon, behold, Satan demanded to have you,] that he might sift you like wheat, but I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned again, strengthen your brothers.” Peter said to him, “Lord, I am ready to go with you both to prison and to death.” Jesus said, “I tell you, Peter, the rooster will not crow this day, until you deny three times that you know me.” Luke 2:31-34

Both the books of Matthew and Luke document Peter’s temptation and denial of the Messiah. Peter allowed betrayal and fear to cause him to lie even to a child.

Paul was a murderer.

“I am a Jew, born in Tarsus in Cilicia, but brought up in this city, educated at the feet of Gamaliel according to the strict manner of the law of our fathers, being zealous for God as all of you are this day. I persecuted this Way to the death, binding and delivering to prison both men and women, as the high priest and the whole council of elders can bear me witness. From them I received letters to the brothers, and I journeyed toward Damascus to take those also who were there and bring them in bonds to Jerusalem to be punished. Acts 22:3-5

He worked through being deceptive and hunting down believers in Messiah. Before the apocalyptic encounter with God, Paul was not a good man, yet he thought he was helping God. Yet after that apocalyptic encounter, Paul is one of the most credited disciples with taking the message of Messiah to the nations.

Every person who found favor in the eyes of God at one time or another also stumbled. The disciples transformed the world yet also struggled. The closest people to the greatest teacher still found themselves wrestling with the flesh.

If we were to take what our culture deems important, what we base the merit of one’s worth, and stack it against what the Bible says, none of us would stand above another on our merit. Which denomination is the holiest? Is the Temple scholar more worthy than the New Testament professor? These questions completely miss the mark. It causes us to judge and analyze based on a modern scale and not a biblical one. Remember the greatest in our culture isn’t the greatest in the kingdom.

“Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. Matthew 18:3-4

When we assign to ourselves an elevated status over another, we assign self-worth rooted in our flawed flesh. The Bible is full of men and women who at one time found favor in the eyes of the Lord, and at another time acted in the same way as the heathens. We have a choice. We can choose to walk in a manner that similar to Paul the Pharisee or Paul the disciple—the same man transformed. David, Joseph, Esther, and many others at one time walked in humility before God.

Your worth is found in the same place ours is.

Through the Master, we are bondservants to God. Our Master showed His love for us while we were yet sinners. If we want true worth or culture, our walk must conform to the biblical scale of worth. Messiah alone is worthy to receive gratitude from His creation, and, as a conclusion to all we have learned from the Scriptures, it is through His sacrifice we have any worth. Culture is not necessarily developed by believers so that worth is not fairly judged or applied. The Creator of the Universe gave us our definition of worth.