Stages

I did not fully cover the last set of verses, so I will include verse 30 in this study. Luke 13:30-35 puts several small points under the magnifying glass. There are points like a 'prophet in Jerusalem', 'being perfected', 'time', and the way reality is 'ordered'. I begin with the latter point in verse 30.

First last and last first – that's just how reality rolls. I write, here, in the broader sense. Of course, we recall the parable of the last workers being paid first, and we think in terms of how one might enter the kingdom – indeed, we think of our place among the many who have placed their hopes in Jesus.

First last and last first is what I like to call a USM, that is to say, a Universal Spiritual Mechanic. It is a law that regulates how things work. Here, I would like the reader to picture in his mind the working of a pendulum. Envision the full scope of the pendulum as encompassing all there is. It moves from the one extreme to the opposite extreme and back again.

Let us call the one extreme 'first' and the opposite extreme 'last'. When the pendulum reaches 'last' and begins its return to the other end, it begins with the last. It is in that broader USM context that the last may be the first. Other models which explain the same mechanic are the 'Lemniscate', or the infinity symbol, and the Yin Yang symbol.

Next in our study, Jesus received Pharisees who warned him of Herod's intent to kill him. Jesus already had an audience when the Pharisees came to him. He had been going town to town teaching, and as we know, Jesus always had a crowd around him. When he answered the Pharisees, it seems as though he was also still speaking for the benefit of the multitude that traveled with him. In my mind, I have to picture the Pharisees pressing into the crowd, having to work their way to the center to reach Jesus.

When Jesus says that he must walk today and tomorrow and the third, to be perfected, it sounds to me like an explanation of the concept of 'stages'. One works toward perfection in stages, doing more and more, getting better and better, going higher and higher, until the goal is reached. Higher is a stage of development, better is a one-up within an ongoing process, more is an increased result in a series of actions or steps.

Stages and goals may both be filed under being a prophet in Jerusalem. It is clear from his own words that Jesus viewed, accepted, or at least promoted himself as a prophet in Jerusalem. From his answer to the Pharisees, Jesus went on in an oratory fashion to speak exactly like a prophet. One has to ask, at what stage of spiritual development must a man be in order to speak as a prophet of God?

Jesus mentioned only three stages: today, tomorrow, and the third day. In the first two days, Jesus is walking, or working (as in cures). In the third day he is also working (as in the final stage of the process of perfection). We think of the three days in the belly of the earth. We think of his public ministry, his crucifixion/resurrection and ascension. We must assume that the very fact of Jesus saying there was a 'today' means that he placed himself, not at the end, not in the middle, but at the beginning.

Let us examine the nature of his prophet's oration. If any of you have read extensively in the old testament, you may note a correlation between how Jesus spoke and how the angels spoke. In both cases they spoke as if they were God himself. To any who are unfamiliar with the nature of angelic discourse, return to the old testament and read of the angel speaking to Moses from the burning bush. The fact that Jesus speaks to Jerusalem as if God is speaking should clue us in to the stage of Jesus' spiritual progress.

Finally, some thoughts on the word 'perfected'. What is the common view on the concept of perfection? Not everyone in this world considers that concept to be relevant, but among those that do, Christians seem confused on the point. The Christ they believe in and follow said, “Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.” That is a direct command. One must assume that would only be predicated on an established and verifiable truth – that man can indeed be perfect. Yet most contemporary Christians are fond of the addendum, 'I am not perfect'. They prefer the 'sinner saved by grace' stage of spiritual development.

Neither was it only the son of God who commanded us to be perfect. In Genesis 17:1 God himself told Abraham, “Walk before me, and be thou perfect.” In Leviticus 19:2 God himself told all of Israel, “Ye shall be Holy, for I the Lord your God am Holy.” It must be a consensus around the throne that the perfection of man is totally do-able. Mankind, however, including many Christians, seem not to believe the word of God. Rather, the common view of perfection is a mish-mash of super abilities with an absolutely negative amount of mistakes and ailments.

Therein lies the lament. O Jerusalem, Jerusalem – which is to say, O man! How can man be saved when he stubbornly clings to his own ways? When we take the truth of God and redefine it, what hope is there? We may not do God's way our way. That just doesn't work. Jesus knew what level he was playing on – some of us aren't even in the game. If I asked you, would you know? What stage of spiritual development are you at?