Matthew 6:25-33

Matthew 6:25-33

²⁵ ‘Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? ²⁶ Look at the birds of the air; they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? ²⁷ And can any of you by worrying add a single hour to your span of life? ²⁸ And why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they neither toil nor spin, ²⁹ yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not clothed like one of these. ³⁰ But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? ³¹ Therefore do not worry, saying, “What will we eat?” or “What will we drink?” or “What will we wear?” ³² For it is the Gentiles who strive for all these things; and indeed your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. ³³ But strive first for the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.

Matthew 6:25-34 (Luke 12:22-32) is a saying on anxiety. I will note some obvious places where Jesus could come in for some harsh critique. We could dismiss the entire passage by saying that it applies only to the situation of an unmarried Jesus, living with friends in sunny Galilee.^[1]

Matthew structures verses 25-33 to highlight the pointlessness of one’s worry and the provision of God. The construction of every phrase highlights the comparison between people, “you,” and the object of “your” worry.

²⁵ "Therefore (“for this reason” NASB), stressing the connection this verse and the previous one, stressing that the question of which master one has will lead to a life of worry. I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Followers of Jesus are not to consider the necessities of life as identical with the purpose of life. This statement begins to show the re-evaluation of a life serving a different master: not material goods and money, but God (cf. vv. 19-21). When I read this question of Jesus, I hear him telling us to slow down, to not spend so much time worrying about what we possess, or how well our careers are going, and get on with what is genuinely important in life. Carl Jung has said that one third of the people he had as patients had no specific cause of suffering, but rather experienced something more vague: the senselessness and emptiness of their lives.^[2] Is there more to life than eating, sleeping, working, raising families, as important as what these are?  ²⁶ Look at the birds of the air; they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Each starved bird refutes Jesus. If we add to that the famines and wars, Jesus seems soundly refuted.^[3] Yet, is this the way to read Jesus here? The notion of Father is important to Jesus, including here, as God is Father by showing care for the creation, thereby bringing the Father within the realm of goodness as well. Among the attributes of divine love is that the goodness of the Father leads to care for all creatures.^[4] The point of the comparison is simple: If the Father can feed these birds, then the Father can feed “you.” This argument from a minor point to a major point is common in Greco-Roman rhetoric, and this part of the Sermon on the Mount will repeat it (cf. vv. 28, 30, 32). Are you not of more value than they? This may sound presumptuous or simplistic. One should read it as neither. It is a way to reinforce this comparison from the lesser to the greater and to show God’s care for all creatures, humans included. ²⁷ And can any of you by worrying add a single hour to your span of life?^[5] The point is that one can achieve nothing by worrying. Jesus reiterates this question of control in the next three comparisons. First, ²⁸ And why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they neither toil nor spin, ²⁹ yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not clothed like one of these. Thus, God not only provides the minimum for creation, the Father also can provide more than the wealthiest, most glorified monarch can (cf. I Kings 10 for descriptions of Solomon’s wealth). Money cannot compete with the glory of creation, which does not even work (toil or spin) to produce its beauty; beauty is a gift from God. Jesus uses the hyperbole of the situation, adding time or height to a person, to show that the control over life, over food, over clothes and over money that humans think they have is entirely an illusion (cf. the introduction to this passage in Luke 12:13-21). ³⁰ The second comparison of these three is intentionally parallel to the first. However, if God so clothes the grass of the field, which is alive today and tomorrow one throws it into the oven, will God not much more clothe you? Jesus at least seems to suggest that humanity has only ethical problems to face and no economic problems. Yet, is that his point? Not only is nature more beautiful than clothing that money can buy, nature’s beauty is even fleeting. This produces another argument from the lesser to the greater, as humans, fortunately, experience greater longevity than the grass of the field. Therefore, they have no reason to doubt that God will care for them as well. Even so, the accusation at the end of this verse raises doubts for the audience --you of little faith (ὀλιγόπιστοι). The message of Jesus is a summons to faith.[6] Matthew often uses this phrase to describe the actions of the disciples. After he calms a storm, Jesus asked his disciples, “Why are you afraid, you of little faith” (Matthew 8:26) and continues to describe the doubt or questioning of the disciples in this manner (cf. 14:31; 16:8). ὀλιγόπιστοι is where fear and doubt meet faith. The doubts of the disciples and the doubts of those who heard these words of Jesus may register as fear. The words of this passage do not make sense on the surface. How can Jesus compare humans to birds, lilies and grass? If humans did not work, how would they eat, drink or wear clothes? (6:31; cf. 6:25). Faith as trust in God will not call forth necessities of life out of thin air, but it will direct us toward a just vision of life in which we have what we need rather than are being enslaved to needing what others have. How can Jesus compare humans to birds, lilies and grass? If humans did not work, how would they eat, drink or wear clothes? However, throughout the passage, the problem is not with the “property” or “wealth” of having food and drink to nourish the body or clothing to cover it — but with the idea of identifying life itself with the necessities of life. Yet people who mistakenly confuse these necessities of human life with the purposes of life consume themselves with “worry.” Such worry indicates a deficit of trust (“you of little faith,”) that God cares for humanity, just as God cares for the rest of creation — from the “birds of the air” to the “lilies” and “grass of the field.” So, are human beings to adopt the patterns of “the birds of the air” and no longer “sow nor reap nor gather into barns” and let God feed us like animals who survive on what they find within their environment? Are we to “neither toil nor spin” to have clothing and instead adopt the mindlessly natural state of plants in the field? Of course not. Life is about striving, about working toward something. The issue, in the end, is: To what are we devoting our efforts? ³¹ Therefore do not worry, saying, 'What will we eat?' or 'What will we drink?' or 'What will we wear?' ³² For it is the Gentiles who strive for all these things. This statement may have less of a basis in what the Gentiles actually did with their time and more of a function of what boundaries needed to be drawn around the community. In order to “serve God” (v. 24), this community could not seek after the things which would serve Mammon (money) (v.24). 

Most of us have that moment when we ask a dangerous question: "Is this all that there is?"  Jesus is asking that type of question here. In fact, your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things, showing they were also not to become ascetics. The question is not whether food, drink and clothing are important. The question involves whom we trust to provide these things. Thus, it involves the question of what we will need to form our identity, what we will need to integrate into the self that God wants to form in us. God knows our destiny, and what we need to fulfill that destiny.^[7] We also learn what the knowledge of God means, speaking here of the divine presence and knowledge of the needs of the creatures God has made.^[8] If we think of the theological notion of the preservation of creation, we have here a particularly intensive expression, suggesting that God sees to the special needs of each creature.^[9]

 

The anxiety described here fixes on the self and leads to the concern expressed here. Jesus thus opposes this fixation upon self with concern for the reign of God.[10] For Jesus the goodness of the Creator and the paternal care of God are an answer to the human tendency to be anxious.[11] Based upon these verses, it rules out the possibility of any creature having less significance for God, as if it could be just a means to the higher ends of the divine government of the world. Every creature is an end in the work of creation, and therefore an end for world government as well. The care of God extends to the relations of the parts to each other.[12]

Jesus addresses the saying to those who are preoccupied with day to day existence rather than with political or apocalyptic crises.  Jesus believed that God would provide for human needs.  Jesus depicts the providence of God who cares for all creatures – birds, lilies, grass, and human beings.  Fretting about food and clothing does not produce food and clothing.  Serene confidence that God will provide undergirds Jesus’ lifestyle as an itinerant, without home or bed, without knowing where the next meal will come from.  This complex of sayings is consistent with other sayings on wealth.  Many ancient sages taught that life consisted of more than eating and clothing.

Let us admit that one takes a great risk in preaching from this passage. In reality, how can we help caring for our lives? How can we model ourselves on the birds of the air and the lilies of the field? How can we seek the first the reign of God and divine righteousness in the assurance that food, drink, and clothes will be added to us? How is it all possible?[13] We can realize the absolute quality and seriousness of the divine command if we remember the important place that such statements as we find in verse 25 and 32 hold. We are simply not to be anxious or fearful. The anxiety and fear so strongly forbidden reveal that instead of going forward in confidence and hope, we have allowed ourselves to have the burden that can slow us down, looking upon a threat that confronts us, and by the considerations that one lets this threat obtrude on one. Anxiety is a little fear, while fear is great anxiety. Anxiety deals with the things of this world that we can more or less envision. It focuses upon questions we have our future in this life. The anxious person longs for certainty in a world that will never be such. Anxiety and fear are the opposite of what the New Testament envisions as freedom. Fear and anxiety can determine what we do now, and thus, restricts our freedom of action. What we see in the future means for us that we are free for the present, even while we can only actually live in the present. It means we are not facing the truly essential. We have not advanced to that real love. We have permission to act, rather than hold ourselves in anxiety or fear over future possibilities. We are not a prisoner or slave to what we envision.[14] Further, from one perspective, such as advice as we find in verses 25 and 32 undermine the basis of the economy, without even seeking to replace it with anything else. This advice shakes “the basic pillars of all normal human activity in relation to the clearest necessities of life.”[15] The command for Sabbath rest has its basis here. Followers of Jesus are not to be anxious about life, food, drink, clothing, or the morrow. “Do not be anxious, do not worry” refers to the distress, burden, or tension that humanity accepts as inevitable but which one really inflicts upon oneself arbitrarily by believing that on has to speak the essential and decisive word in this matter by one’s own achievements in affirmation of one’s existence. One assumes responsibility to regulate the future envisioned in one’s own work. Yet, the real Father, by feeding the birds and clothing the lilies of the field, shows how graciously and mightily the Father cares for each person. This type of anxiety must cease. Anything done in anxiety is not done right as such.[16] The Heidelberg Catechism, question 26, says, “In whom I therefore trust, not doubting but He will care for my every need of body and soul, and turn to good all the evil that He sends me in this vale of woe, seeing that He can do this as an  almighty God, and therefore will do it as a faithful Father.”[17] Our anxiety has no basis, and is empty and futile, because our Father indeed knows what we need.[18] This teaching of Jesus is not just a parable or picture of the divine order of creation. God orders the history of created beings in relation to the history of the covenant. We have here the true theme of the Christian doctrine of providence.[19]

³³ Nevertheless, strive first for the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. The “giving” of these things is the same word as the potential “adding” of height or time to one’s life. Thus, what is impossible for humans in this discussion can be accomplished by God, who gives “all things.” If we took God as seriously as Jesus suggests, we would have undivided devotion to the rule of God rather than undivided devotion to earthly goods.[20] The type of anxiety about Jesus has concern would see if we took God this seriously. Soren Kierkegaard tells the story of the candidate to the ministry.  He “first” seeks a royal position as a pastor, but to get there he must “first” pass examinations, “first” the candidate’s and then the Seminary, then he must have a wife so he “first” gets engaged and finally, after he “first” bargained for his salary, stands in the pulpit and preaches on the text, “Seek ‘first’ the kingdom of God.”  The bishop was present and was impressed by the sound doctrine he proclaimed.  Kierkegaard’s comment: “But it did not seem to the Bishop that in this instance a correspondence between speech and life would be desirable.”[21]  Jesus is offering a strong challenge to us. The liberation that comes in personal history, regardless of meaningful and powerful, is never the end of the ways of God, for the concern of God is for the rule of God, which should also be the concern of the Christian.[22] The summons to subordinate all concerns to seeking the reign of God implies a conversion to God.[23] The call of Jesus that we should commit ourselves totally to the rule of God was the orientation of his ministry.[24] The uniqueness of the God who comes to rule excludes all competing concerns. If one is open to this rule, God already comes with this divine rule.[25] The issue in the end is: Are we, like those still not reconciled with God (the “Gentiles”), striving for these material things as if they were the sole purpose of life? Or are we striving “for the kingdom of God and his righteousness,” a realm of justice in which not only we ourselves but all of God’s creation is nurtured and sustained? If we take care of all people and all of creation, “all these things will be given to [us] as well.” 

This passage walks a fine line between apathy and perfectionism, and between living in and out of this world. Instead of declaring that material goods do not matter, Jesus proclaims that one should see God, the Master, as the who can provide the “things” that are necessary (for an extension of this idea, see Matthew 25:31-46, where the focus has shifted from receiving “things” to giving these “things” to others). Rather than exhorting people to withdraw from the world as ascetics, God “knows” that these things are essential for survival, but they are only secondary to seeking God’s kingdom and righteousness (cf. Matthew 7:7). In this way, Jesus transforms our vision of both money and God, in order that we, rightly seeing, may rightly serve.

---

[1] (Ulrich Luz, Matthew 1-7, 402-403).

[2] (Modern Man in Search of a Soul)

[3] (Ulrich Luz, Matthew 1-7, 402-403).

[4] (Pannenberg, Systematic Theology, 1998, 1991)Vol. I, 259)

[5] As the NRSV text note says, one can also translate this verse, “Can any of you by worrying add one cubit to your height?”

[6] (Jeremias, New Testament Theology: The Proclamation of Jesus, 1971), 165.

[7] (Pannenberg, Systematic Theology, 1998, 1991)Vol. III, 640)

[8] (Pannenberg, Systematic Theology, 1998, 1991)Vol I, 379)

[9] (Pannenberg, Systematic Theology, 1998, 1991)Vol. II, 35)

[10] Pannenberg (Systematic Theology Vol. II, 249)

[11] Pannenberg (Systematic Theology Vol. II, 129)

[12] Pannenberg (Systematic Theology Vol. II, 53)

[13] Barth (Church Dogmatics IV.2 [65.2] 470)

[14] Barth (Church Dogmatics II.2 [37.3] 597-599)

[15] Barth (Church Dogmatics IV.2 [64.3] 178)

[16] Barth (Church Dogmatics III.4 [55.3] 554)

[17] Barth (Church Dogmatics III.1 [40] 39)

[18] Barth (Church Dogmatics IV.2 [65.2] 469)

[19] (Church Dogmatics III.3 [48.3] 40)

[20] (Schweizer, Matthew, 164)

[21] Kierkegaard, Attack Upon Christendom, 208-209

[22] Barth (Church Dogmatics IV.3 [71.6] 654)

[23] Pannenberg (Systematic Theology Vol. II, 311)

[24] Pannenberg (Systematic Theology Vol. II, 329)

[25] Pannenberg (Systematic Theology Vol. II, 330)

I Timothy 2:1-7

I Timothy 2:1-7

First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings should be made for everyone, ² for kings and all who are in high positions, so that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and dignity. ³ This is right and is acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour, ⁴ who desires everyone to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. ⁵ For

there is one God;
    there is also one mediator between God and humankind,
Christ Jesus, himself human,
⁶     who gave himself a ransom for all

—this was attested at the right time. ⁷ For this I was appointed a herald and an apostle (I am telling the truth, I am not lying), a teacher of the Gentiles in faith and truth.

I Timothy 2:1-7 is liturgical or public prayer. The transition between these two sections seems awkward.[1] This portion of the pastoral letter focuses primarily on issues of worship (2:1-3:16). The church faces disruptive personalities ("false teachers") and the hazardous, haphazard upwelling of wrong doctrine -- not to mention its precarious position amidst first-century opposition.    Thus, the body of this letter (2:1-6:19) opens with a deceptively simple command to pray and to make that prayer all-inclusive. In 2:1-7, there are both good social reasons (the desire to live in peace and quiet) and good theological reasons (there is truly only one God and one Redeemer) for this call to universality in prayer.  

¹First of all, then, I urge that supplications (δεήσεις), entreaties for help in personal need. The first type of prayermeans request and often in Pauline literature (I Timothy 5:5; II Timothy 1:3; Romans 10:1; II Corinthians 1:11, 9:14; Ephesians 6:18; Philippians 1:4, 19; 4:6). It is a cry for help, an expression of need and can entail an intense cry of lamentation.  Prayers (προσευχάς) refers to an entreaty for beneficial outcomes. The second type of prayer is more of a general prayer term and can even denote a place of prayer. Intercessions (ἐντεύξεις) refers to petition for others in need, the third type of prayer. Paul uses the verb form in Romans 8:27 to denote the intercessory role of the Holy Spirit and in Romans 8:34 to describe Christ's intercession for believers. He also uses the verb form in Romans 11:2 to describe Elijah's complaints to God against Israel. In secular literature, the term includes the notion of a petition to one's superior, who is often the king. Considering how Paul uses the term in Romans and considering how the term appears in secular literature, here the word probably has the connotation of intercessory petitions made on the behalf of others to a superior, which in this case is not a king, but God. Thanksgivings (εὐχαριστίας) refers to thanksgiving for blessings received, the fourth and final type of prayer, encouraging readers to make thanksgiving for all people. While there is some overlap in these categories of prayers, the above distinctions can be helpful.[2] He wants his readers to make such prayers are for everyone. Prayer is the main activity of a Christian community. The exhortation for Christians to pray in worship seems obvious enough; however, there is a bit of a twist in his urgings. The Christian community's prayers are for everyone. Prayer is the first cause, the vital heartthrob of Christian public worship. Without prayer, the church is empty, no matter how full. With prayer, the church has power, no matter how empty. All prayer should be for all people.[3] Such prayer by congregations is ² for kings and all who are in high positions. The first directive is that the congregation should include everyone in prayer, with "kings" and those in "high positions" just one example from that extensive list. Prayers for political leaders had long been a part of Jewish worship. The author wants to make sure that the practice that is a heritage from Judaism's worship is one that Christian congregations adopt as well. Christians and Jews were both suspect in the larger pagan society because they refused to worship the emperor or to pray to him. However, Christians could and should pray for the emperor and all others in positions of authority.  The concern expressed here is consistent with the discussion of Christian obedience to the secular authorities in Romans 13. The reason is so that we may lead a quiet life.  This call to "quietness" contrasts with the excessive eschatological expectations and excitement that rippled through the faith community. Further, such prayer will lead to a peaceable life. By linking the possibility of peace and quiet to prayers for those in authority, early Christians, for good or ill, directly experienced the whims and temperaments of the civil rulers under which they lived. It reminds us of the importance of the political and economic arrangements in a nation, for they have profound effect upon the everyday lives of citizens. The author wants government leaders to perceive his communities as peaceful religious groups and therefore free from the watchful eye of the secular authority. Hence, he has a very practical concern here: At a time of tension in which Timothy is attempting to maintain churches, it is most important to stay focused on the spiritual matters and out of the spotlight, keeping distant from any political intrigue. The central issue is the attitude of the church toward kings and those in authority.  It may be the question of public prayer for the emperor cult.  The reason for such prayer is that they will have freedom to live on their own and that these people may receive the salvation offered in Christ.  In obeying authorities and praying for them, Christians believed they were rendering to Caesar what belongs to Caesar.  Some scholars would say that the author has a piety that is at home in church and world, while Paul had a tension between two worlds.  Moderation is the keynote.  This desire for "peaceableness" counterbalances the more strident urgings in I Timothy 1:18 to "fight the good fight" for truth. Further, they are to live in all godliness. Godliness is an often-repeated term in the pastorals to denote the essential faith and reverence that defines the Christian life. They are to live with dignity. "Dignity" describes an attitude that demands respect, a quality all Christians are to express. The idyllic life the author describes here, one that is quiet and peaceable, is a life characterized by inner tranquility. He makes this tranquil existence definitively Christian by the additional qualities of "godliness" and "dignity." Practicing inclusive prayer and demonstrating godliness and dignity are particularly right and proper in worship because these attitudes reflect God's own intentions.

Such a statement occurs in the backdrop of peace guaranteed by the Roman Empire. It was an oppressive regime. Of course, if a society became open to the political involvement of Christians, the advice might be different.[4] Moreover, emphasizing the church's peace does not cohere with one of the major themes of this passage: the inclusive nature of salvation.  Statements in this passage show that his primary concern is for the availability of salvation for all and not necessarily for the church's peaceful existence.[5] Therefore, one could read verse 2 as parenthetical. Christian prayers are for all people, including secular rulers, and, because of praying for all people, believers will have peaceful lives. On this reading the emphasis remains on prayer for all people and how engaging in such action results in better lives for Christians. If believers pray for all people and do not become exclusivist in nature, they will live devoid of conflict. Such willingness to include all people in their prayers shows outsiders that believers are not antagonistic to society. This behavior contrasts with the false teachers who bring in dissension and dishonor upon the church (I Timothy 1:3-4, 6-11, 19-20; 4:7; 6:20-21; cf. 3:7). Here the emphasis is that true teachers and true Christian behavior does the opposite.[6]

There is a passive quality to the advice. The author believes that Christians make the best witness to the secular world by remaining dignified and prayerful. This advice is not the social gospel that many activists favor. One can only wonder if the practical exigencies of spreading the gospel in the first century Mediterranean world had not diluted Jesus' original teachings that seem to suggest a more radical social upheaval. However, now that Christ's return (Parousia) was not imminent, it seemed more faithful and safer to alter the strategy. ³ This is right and is acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, ⁴ who desires everyone to receive salvation. Living quiet, peaceful, and prayerful lives would not only protect the fledgling communities, but also bring about the salvation of everyone. No matter how one attempts to clarify the issue, this verse along with Romans 13 raises the continuing theological dilemma of a Christian's responsibility to obey secular authority, even if unjust, or to serve in the military. The author makes the theological assertion that God desires the salvation of everyone. Throughout the Pastoral Epistles, the focus is on the redeeming quality of God made possible by Christ. The explicit inclusivity of the assertion here may have a direct bearing upon the teaching offered by gnostic "false teachers" -- or even against Jewish claims to exclusivity. Thus, if we reflect upon the doctrine of election, we see here the unlimited quality of the divine will in Jesus Christ toward the salvation of humanity in intention and sufficient for the salvation of all people.[7] God desires everyone to come to the knowledge of the truth. The verse is representative of John.  "Truth" is Christian faith.  There may have been a tendency toward exclusiveness. The phrase has a distinctly gnostic ring to it, but here the "saving knowledge" is available to all, not just a select few. It is not enough to have the objective knowledge of the objective revelation of the divine will in Christ. The Holy Spirit brings people to the subjective knowledge of the truth that frees humanity for faithfulness to God.[8] ⁵ For there is one God. The author makes a transition in verses 5-6. Using an earlier creedal formulation (of which there were many in the early Church, as in Mark 10:45, he moves from the subject of behavior to one of doctrinal truth: God is one. God is free in divine unity. Of course, any Jew would affirm this monotheistic statement of divine identity. The high-modern era of systematic theology fixated on God, nervous about talking about the Spirit and ran from talking about Jesus. High-modern theologians only wanted to talk about God, and even then, in abstract terms like "The Ground of Being." However, the significant part of the Gospel is not "Ground." It is Jesus. Jesus is our all in all.[9] Thus, there is also one mediator between God and humankind, Christ Jesus, himself human. Then, the author makes a crucial distinction that separates Christianity from its Jewish roots and from any other religion: God has only one mediator between divinity and humanity. This one mediator is Jesus. As mediator, Jesus stands in the middle of two parties, seeking to make peace between them. To achieve reconciliation, he must have a relationship with the two parties. Jesus of Nazareth is the only one who has this unique relationship with God and humanity. He bridges the gap between the perfection and holiness of God and the imperfection, weakness, and sinfulness of humanity. Jesus is authentically human. He is true humanity, identifying with us. He sympathizes with our weaknesses (Hebrews 4:15). Since the suffering in his life tested him, he can help us in our time of testing (Hebrews 2:18). He is with us in our difficulties. Jesus of Nazareth spent most of his life with family and neighbors in Nazareth. He was simply living with people. In that Jesus sense, Jesus is with us as Immanuel before he was Savior. In being human, he overcomes our isolation.  The description of Jesus as "mediator" is ambiguous. A mediator implies that at least two parties are estranged. Mediation implies that both parties must compromise to find middle ground. This is not what the author intends for his readers to understand. It is better to see Jesus' role as mediator as more of a defense advocate for his human clients who have, because of the sin of Adam, no legal ground to stand on. God may choose to be gracious, but it is not because anyone or anything forces God to compromise. Of course, this does not mean that Jesus is an intermediate being, a third being between God and humanity.[10] Irenaeus (Adv. Haer. 5.17.1) appealed to this passage to the work of the Mediator in the reconciling of the Father to the offending by humanity of its sin. Augustine would follow this line of thought. He went further in his Confessions (10.68) and City of God (9.15.2) that Christ is Mediator only in accord with his humanity. The notion influenced Latin Scholasticism. The notion is behind the satisfaction theory of Anselm.[11] John Calvin (Institutes 2.12ff) would use this passage in a comparable way, although he emphasized that the divine-human person is the bearer of the office of Mediator. Good Friday makes Jesus the mediator and Easter Day reveals, confirms, and brought it into effect. This means Jesus is the one who represents us, who bears the sin of the world, and reconciles the world with God.[12] Reconciliation cannot come solely from the Father. It must happen on the side of humanity as well. In exemplary fashion, this took place in Jesus of Nazareth. Jesus vicariously reconciles in his own person the independence of all creatures to God. Therefore, he is the Mediator between God and us, as this passage makes clear. He is Mediator by his death because the acceptance of death was the extreme consequence of the self-distinction of the Son from the Father. By this death, Jesus Christ made room for the glory of God and for the existence of others alongside Jesus.[13] Jesus is the one ⁶ who gave himself a ransom for all. Jesus effected the successful mediation by offering himself as a ransom for all. Jesus is not only a mediator; he is also the ransom paid. We are captives to our sinfulness. We can try to change our ways, fix our mistakes, and get ourselves on the right track, but our efforts are always going to fall short. In his letter to the Romans, Paul admits his own frustration when he says, "I am of the flesh, sold into slavery under sin. I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate" (7:14-15). Such words ring terribly true. We are slaves to sin and need rescue. As the ransom, Jesus took personal action to buy us out of slavery. The ransom that Jesus offered was his own life through a crucifixion that was the worst possible way to die. Good Romans did not discuss crucifixion in public. The death of Jesus was a ghastly sight. On the cross, we see Jesus giving up his life, but also his position as Son, suffering something degrading, dehumanizing, and shameful. He did so for our salvation. As he paid the ransom with his life, we can receive rescue, forgiveness, and rightness with God. The notion of ransom has a close connection to the theme of expiation and a relation to the explanatory words of the Lord’s Supper.[14]A ransom implies that someone abducted humanity. Hence, Jesus becomes the mediator between God and Satan who appears willing to release his human bounty if Jesus becomes the payment in kind. Here is an articulation of a "substitution" theory of atonement. This ransom quality (redemption or buying back out of slavery) is the most important component of Christ's qualities for the Pauline argument for inclusivity. Christ as a "ransom for all" makes Christ the Savior for all. Further, God attested this at the right time. The author subtly shifts the focus back from Christ's sacrifice to God's ultimate plan. God determined the time of salvation. There are no divine errors in timekeeping. The cross came at the "right time." Shorter than other creedal statements in Paul (compare Philippians 2), this "Credo" stresses the humanity of Jesus and says nothing of Christ's pre-existence. Furthermore, both here and in Philippians there is no mention of the Holy Spirit; rather, the focus is on the first two persons of the Trinity. Not too much should be read into this. It shows that in the first century of the Church, Paul and others were free from strict and complete doctrinal formulations. 

⁷ For this, God appointed me a herald and an apostle (I am telling the truth, I am not lying), a teacher of the Gentiles in faith and truth. Also, part of God's perfectly timed plan for salvation is the divine choice of a proclaimer. Paul is "herald," "apostle" and "teacher." Again, the author might have some Gnostic disclaimers in mind for he emphasizes his role as "teacher" by more fully explaining his mission as to "the Gentiles in faith and truth." It is a startling and graceful clause. While humans may wonder about the timing of God's revelation, this author is secure that God has revealed this final stage of salvation history in God's own time and in God's own way. This declaration also serves his contention that God has called Paul especially for his mission to the Gentile world. He is not only a herald of the good news, but an apostle. The parenthetical comment that he is telling the truth and not lying suggests two things: (1) that many people in the early church scorned his claim to be an authentic apostle (see Galatians), and (2) that the intent of Paul is that more people than just Timothy read this letter. Given the close relationship that Timothy had with Paul, it is inconceivable that Timothy would doubt his mentor's claim. 

The call to pray for secular leaders, followed by the doctrine of Jesus as mediator, may have a more subtle connection. Religious beliefs do have political and secular implications. For example, the Roman Emperor perceived himself to be a mediator between humans and the gods. Hence, for the author to move abruptly from behavior to belief is more of a radical transition than one might suppose. With a theological perspective that is so implicitly political, it is no wonder that the author urges Timothy to maintain dignity and peacefulness.

In conclusion, the author reminds his readers that the quality of the inner life of prayer effects enormous power in the outer world. 

The church has a distinctive language that is prayer. Is the church losing that language? Are we losing the language of prayer? The interests of the rest of the world can grab our attention. As Christians, we are still human. We are still susceptible to all the misguided attitudes and behaviors of anyone else. We forget the simplicity of why we gather as a people. We need to recover the language of prayer.

Don Henley, in his song, "Heart of the Matter" (from the CD, End of Innocence) suggests at the core of the human condition is the need for forgiveness. The song is about the loss of a friend and Henley wonders: "What are these voices outside love's open door/ make us throw off our contentment and beg for something more?/...Pride and competition cannot fill these empty arms/ and the work I put between us/ doesn't keep us warm." Do you feel unforgiving toward another?

You keep carrying that anger; it’ll eat you up inside, baby

 I’ve been trying to get down 

To the heart of the matter  

But my will gets weak  

And my thought seem to scatter 

But I think its about forgiveness 

Forgiveness

 

At the end, the heart of the matter is God's love and light that come from Jesus the Christ. The heart of the gospel is that Jesus is our all in all. When, in an atmosphere of forgiveness, we can pray and give thanks, we can be free of the bad attitude

In a partisan time, when most of us have chosen political sides, Paul has some challenging counsel. He would have us recover the language of prayer.

First, pray with a bi-partisan, apolitical accent. "For kings and all who are in high positions," he writes. It is as if Paul was saying, "Make sure your prayers retain that unique accent -- you know, the sound of someone not just praying for oneself or those one knows but praying for the entire world and those who are in power. That is our thing. That is our distinctive language. Do not let it get watered down!" 

We spend so much time trying to convince people to vote our way. We seem convinced a Christian could only vote for one person in this election. We need to ask the Lord to bless the President in every way, no matter who the President might be.[15]

Second, let us be honest. The prayers of God's people often take on different emphases, divergent accents, based on a whole host of factors such as geography, political persuasion, or denominational tribe. We have a quite different prayer in our clergy meetings between when the priest prays as over against one of our non-denominational ministers prays. I have been in urban, suburban, and rural settings. The focus and content of prayer can change immensely, given our setting. Such diversity is important. We have our unique voice in prayer, even as we have our unique application of the English language. Yet, underneath the diversity in our prayers is the unity of our prayers to God the Father, through faith in Jesus Christ, and in the power of the Holy Spirit. Praying is not an easy matter. Prayer involves a relationship with God in which you allow God to enter into our very center, to see what we would rather leave in darkness, and to touch there what we would rather leave untouched.[16]

Third, let us be honest. The prayer life of most Christians has an accent that is intensely self-focused. When we say "thank you" it is usually for the blessings in our life. We ask for help most often for ourselves. Yet, prayer is attention that directs us toward God. The quality of that attention constitutes the quality of our prayers (Simone Weil). Far from simply warming of our hearts, prayer is shifting the focus of attention away from self. Prayer occurs when we forget ourselves (Abraham Heschel). So much of the messages we receive in our culture encourage us to realize ourselves, fulfill ourselves, and even celebrate ourselves. The motto of the people of God needs to become something like, “Gather with us to forget yourself.”[17] Remember, our passage tells us to pray for everyone, and an example is to pray for those who have political authority. God can work through others. Your personal life will expand in peace, godliness, and dignity. Remember that this kind of prayer accent is "right and acceptable." Our prayers become too apathetic and are absent any language that, with hope, calls upon God to right wrongs, overturn injustice and instill peace, not just in the age to come but also in the age that is. When we fail to do this, we are losing part of our distinctly Christian voice, which proclaims that God not only "exists" but that, through the prayers of God's people, God is active, loving, immanent and able. 

Fourth, remember that this God, to whom we pray, has revealed who God is to us through Jesus Christ. Why is this important? This God desires the salvation of everyone. The sacrifice of the life of Jesus paid the price, the ransom, for the salvation of all persons. We are all captives to our sinfulness. We can try to change our ways, fix our mistakes, and get ourselves on the right track, but our efforts are always going to fall short. In his letter to the Romans, Paul admits his own frustration when he says, "I am of the flesh, sold into slavery under sin. I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate" (7:14-15). The Father sent the Son, who enjoyed life within the love of the Trinity, to live among us, to suffer and to die “for us.” He did all this to redeem us. We know God truly because of Jesus, and therefore he is our mediator. A mediator in the legal profession tries to make peace between two warring parties. In this case, in Christ, we know that God is not at war with us, but we have been at war with God. Christ, in the sacrifice of his life, has shown the love of God for us. Through him, we come into the presence of God in prayer.  Jesus is also fully human, showing us that God fully identifies with us and helps us in our struggles.

You may never have thought about it this way, but the privilege of prayer is also the responsibility of prayer. If Christ gives us access to divine mercy and power, then there is a moral responsibility for us to use that access to affect the most change among others and bring the most blessing to others as possible.

This issue was of such importance to Paul that he made it the first pastoral issue on his list of leadership "musts" for Timothy, his young successor. You see, if this particular and distinctive language fades then the world has lost something important. We will have lost the presence of a people inviting the power of God upon a planet and people who desperately need it. We cannot survive without true Christian prayer. 

May our prayers never lose their distinctive Christian grammar. 

May we always be a people whom people can hear from a mile away with a very peculiar accent: the sound of people praying for all persons, including their political leaders, and not just for themselves. 

The simple command is to pray. Pray for all persons, including political leaders, with the objective of living peacefully with all. Pray for all persons because there is one God and one mediator between God and humanity. Prayer is the primary activity of the Christian community. 

Pray for help in the personal needs you have.

Pray for beneficial outcomes.

            Intercede for the needs of others.

            Give thanks for the blessings you have received.

            Pray for political leaders. Even when they are not Christians, their political judgments will affect the Christian community. Even in a hostile environment, Christians need to learn to live quiet, godly, and peaceful lives. 

In other words, place everything and everyone before God in prayer. Do not leave anything out. God is one. Of course, any Jewish person or Muslim would agree with this. However, Christians also believe one mediator, Jesus Christ, bridges the gap between God and humanity. Therefore, every concern we have for the world and for us is also a concern to God.

---

[1] To some scholars, it may suggest the hand of a later editor who had both personal and creedal sources before him.

[2] (William D. Mounce, Pastoral Epistles, Word Biblical Commentary [Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 2000], 79-80)

[3] (Mounce, 79).

[4] (Mounce, 81)

[5] (Mounce, 81)

[6] (Mounce, 81)

[7] Barth, Church Dogmatics II.2 [35.3] 71, 421-2.

[8]  (Barth 2004, 1932-67), IV.4, 29.

[9]  (Barth 2004, 1932-67), II.1 [31.1].

[10]  (Barth 2004, 1932-67), III.1 [41.1] 53.

[11]  (Pannenberg 1998, 1991), Volume 2, 405.

[12]  (Barth 2004, 1932-67), IV.1 [59.3] 313.

[13]  (Pannenberg 1998, 1991), Volume 2, 450.

[14]  (Pannenberg 1998, 1991), Volume 2, 418.

[15] Yes, we want peaceful lives. However, do our prayers include a prayer of peace for those who live far away? In fact, maybe our prayers for others to the Lord, the giver of life, will bring an increasingly peaceful life our way.

[16] --Henri J.M. Nouwen, With Open Hands (Ave Maria Press, 2006).

[17]  --Rabbi David Wolpe, Off the Pulpit e-newsletter for July 14, 2011, sinaitemple.org/learning_with_the_rabbis/writings/index.php.