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At a recent fundraiser in California, a heckler called President Obama the antichrist.  Such hateful rhetoric about this President has not been uncommon since his election.  There are Evangelical conservatives who believe that Obama is the antichrist because of his health care legislation, his popularity among world leaders, his “position on Israel,” and on and on.  However, Evangelical conservatives have also labeled other world leaders as the antichrist including popes of the Catholic Church, former President George W. Bush, British Prime Minister Tony Blair and others.  So, what does the Bible say about the antichrist?

The Apostle John uncovers the identity of antichrist when he wrote, “Who is the liar?  It is the man who denies that Jesus is the Christ.  Such a man is the antichrist––he denies the Father and the Son. No one who denies the Son has the Father; whoever acknowledges the Son has the Father also” (1 John 2:22-23 NIV).  In his second epistle, John also writes: “Many deceivers, who do not acknowledge Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh, have gone out into the world. Any such person is the deceiver and the antichrist” (2 John 1:7 NIV).  John taught that anyone who denies the legacy and deity of Jesus is the antichrist.  However, in the book of Revelation, John mentions both an individual and an institution that represents what John describes as “a beast that deceived the inhabitants of the earth.”  (Revelation 13:12-14)

According to Wikipedia, the term or title antichrist, in Christian theology, is a leader who fulfills Biblical prophecies concerning an adversary of Jesus Christ, while resembling him in a deceptive manner.  The antichrist will seemingly provide for the needs of the people but deny them ultimate salvation.  In the second chapter of Second Thessalonians, the Apostle Paul summarizes the nature, work, coming and revelation of the “Man of Sin” – a passage often regarded as referring to the same person that John describes as the antichrist.  (2 Thessalonians 2:3-10).  So basically, the so-called “antichrist” or “beast” is someone or something who doesn’t believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.  Therefore, given this definition, a “Christian” cannot be the “antichrist.”

President Obama is “a Christian by choice,” a conscious decision he made after growing up in a family that didn’t practice its religion, the president told a group of Albuquerque, N.M. residents during a backyard discussion.  When asked about his spiritual beliefs during a question and answer session, the president said the church came “later in life.”  Obama said, “My mother was one of the most spiritual people I knew but she didn’t raise me in the church.  So I came to my Christian faith later in life, and it was because the precepts of Jesus Christ spoke to me in terms of the kind of life I would want to lead.”  Obama went on to say that, “Jesus Christ dying for my sins spoke to the humility we all have to have as human beings — that we’re sinful and we’re flawed and we make mistakes and that we achieve salvation through the grace of God.  But what we can do, as flawed as we are, is still see God in other people and do our best to help them find their own grace.  And so that’s what I strive to do.  That’s what I pray to do every day. I think my public service is part of that effort to express my Christian faith,” President Obama said.

Obama made these comments because of controversies over his religion including comments about the construction of a mosque and Islamic center near Ground Zero.  The Pew Research Center poll released in August 2010, found that one in five Americans believe that Obama is a Muslim and only a third believe he is a Christian.  Forty-three percent of respondents said they had no idea what religion Obama practices.  This shouldn’t be a surprise since this same group of people didn’t believe that he was born in the United States even though he supplied two copies of his birth certificates.  And even now, some still do not believe that he is a US citizen.

Although the President has made it clear that he is a Christian, he also emphasized his appreciation for tolerance of all religious beliefs.  “I’m also somebody who deeply believes that part of the bedrock strength of this country is that it embraces people of many faiths and of no faith,” he said. “This is a country that is still predominantly Christian.  But we have Jews, Muslims, Hindus, atheists, agnostics, Buddhists and that their own path to grace is one that we have to revere and respect as much as our own.”  Remember, Obama is the President of the United States of America who happens to be a Christian and that role must embrace all people.

Apparently, Obama’s organizing days helped clarify his sense of faith and social action as entangled. “It’s hard for me to imagine being true to my faith—and not thinking beyond myself, and not thinking about what’s good for other people, and not acting in a moral and ethical way,” He “felt God’s spirit beckoning me,” he writes in “The Audacity of Hope.”

“It wasn’t an epiphany,” Obama says, “A bolt of lightning didn’t strike me and suddenly I said, ‘Aha!’  It was a more gradual process that traced back to those times that I had spent in New York wandering the streets or reading books, where I decided that the meaning I found in my life, the values that were most important to me, the sense of wonder that I had, the sense of tragedy that I had—all these things were captured in the Christian story.”

Obama became a Christian at the controversial Trinity United Church of Christ.  “That community of faith suited me,” Obama says.  “For one thing, Trinity insisted on social activism as a part of Christian life. It was also a family place”.  The Pastor of Trinity, Rev. Jeremiah Wright, “became a friend after he married”, Obama says.  At the point of his decision to accept Christ, Obama says, “what was intellectual and what was emotional joined, and the belief in the redemptive power of Jesus Christ, that he died for our sins, that through Him we could achieve eternal life—but also that, through good works we could find order and meaning here on Earth and transcend our limits and our flaws and our foibles—I found that powerful.”

There should be no question in anyone’s mind that President Obama is a Christian and has accepted Christ as his Lord and Savior.  The “antichrist” would never acknowledge Jesus as the Christ, but that’s my take.

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According to Wikepedia, capital punishment or the death penalty is the sentence of death upon a person by judicial process as a punishment for an offence.  Crimes that can result in a death penalty are known as capital crimes or capital offences.  Capital punishment has in the past been practiced by a number of societies including the United States of America.  Although many nations have abolished capital punishment, over 60% of the world’s population live in countries where executions take place; the People’s Republic of China, India, the United State of America and Indonesia, the four most populated countries, continue to apply the death penalty (although it is rarely used in India and Indonesia).

Michigan was the first state to ban the death penalty on May 18, 1846.  As of March 9, 2011, 16 states and the District of Columbia ban capital punishment, with Illinois the most recent state to ban the practice.  According to a 2010 Gallup poll, 64% of Americans support the death penalty for someone convicted of murder.  Of the states where the death penalty is permitted, California has the largest number of inmates on death row while Texas has been the most active in carrying out executions.  In recent times, approximately one third of all executions take place in Texas.

After a hearing on September 19, 2011, the Georgia Board of Pardons and Paroles denied clemency to Troy Davis that resulted in his execution on September 21, despite presentation of testimony casting doubt on his guilt.  Davis’ claims of innocence received international attention and calls for clemency were made by Pope Benedict XVI, former President Jimmy Carter, former FBI Director William Sessions, former Georgia Supreme Court Chief Justice Norman Fletcher and others.  Doubts about Davis’ guilt were raised when some prosecution witnesses changed their stories after giving testimony against Davis, including accusations pointing to another suspect as the murderer of Mark MacPhail, a police officer in Savannah.  Davis was executed “solely” on the basis of eye witness testimony.  There was no physical or DNA evidence presented and the gun was never located.

The Bible seems to support the church’s affirmance of the right of the civil magistrate in matters of capital justice, but there is significant opposition to the death penalty among those professing Christian faith.  What is interesting to me, however, is that many Republicans seem to support and applaud the death penalty.  This was apparent at a recent Republican Presidential Debate when Rick Perry responded to a question concerning the 235 people who were executed under his watch in Texas.  Perry’s comments drew large applause from the audience as though there were excited about the taking of a life.  Ironically, most Republicans take the opposite view on abortion.  Regardless of the circumstances, both involve the taking of a life yet both are permitted under Supreme Court rulings.  Are some lives more important than others?

Christian supporters of capital punishment appear to rely on Old Testament scripture where God first initiated the idea of capital punishment.  For example, Genesis 9:5-6 states: “And surely your blood of your lives will I require; at the hand of every beast will I require it, and at the hand of man; at the hand of every man’s brother will I require the life of man.  Whoso sheddeth man’s blood, by man shall his blood be shed: for in the image of God made he man.”  In addition, Leviticus 24:17-22: “And he that killeth any man shall surely be put to death; And he that killeth a beast shall make it good; beast for beast;.And if a man cause a blemish in his neighbour; as he hath done, so shall it be done to him; Breach for breach, eye for eye, tooth for tooth: as he hath caused a blemish in a man, so shall it be done to him again; And he that killeth a beast, he shall restore it: and he that killeth a man, he shall be put to death; Ye shall have one manner of law, as well for the stranger, as for one of your own country”

The New Testament does not have any specific teachings about capital punishment. However, the Old Testament ideas of punishment became secondary to Jesus’ message of love and redemption.  Jesus said His mission was not to abolish the Law, but to fulfill it (Matthew 5:17-20).  Christians are bound by Jesus’ commands to “Love the Lord your God” and “Love your neighbor as yourself.”  In fact, Jesus flatly rejected the Old Testament principle of taking equal revenge for a wrong done (Matthew 5:38-41, Luke 9:52-56).  He also said that we are all sinners and do not have the right to pass judgment on one another (Matthew 7:1-5).  In the case of a woman caught in adultery, a capital offense, Jesus said to those who wanted to stone her to death, “Let anyone among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.” (John 8:7-11)  The apostle Paul also warned against taking revenge for a wrong done (Romans 12:17-21, 1 Thessalonians 5:15.  The apostle Peter warned us not to repay evil with evil (1 Peter 3-9).

It seems to me that life in prison with no possibility of parole is a better way of punishing capital crime offenders because it reminds them every day why they were there.  Are there situations where capital punishment is indicated?  Perhaps, but it seems to me that to invoke capital punishment, the state should be required to satisfy their burden of proof by presenting specific evidence including DNA.  Remember, all the defense has to do is to create “reasonable doubt.”  From all that I have read, there was “reasonable doubt” in the Troy Davis case and the Georgia Board of Pardons and Paroles should have granted clemency at least to explore the validity of the new evidence, but that’s just my take.

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We previously laid a biblical foundation that male and female were created equal, so now we can deal with those scriptures that appear to ban women from ministry position in the church.  There seem to be only two scriptures that appear to support the ban on women in ministry.

1 Corinthians 14:34 – “Let your women keep silence in the Churches: for it is not permitted unto them to speak; but they are commanded to be under obedience, as also saith the law.”

1 Timothy 2:11-12 – “Let the woman learn in silence with all subjection.  But I suffer not a woman to teach, nor to usurp authority over the man, but to be in silence.”  Literal interpretations of these verses seem to support the view of some pastors that women have no place as ministers, teachers, bishops or pastors except over other women.  Remember the statement I made in Part I that the Bible cannot be read like a novel or storybook and we must view scripture in context and consider – what is being said, by whom, to whom, and in what context?

In 1 Corinthians 14:34 and 1 Timothy 2:11-12, Paul cannot be addressing women who were in ministry, but rather those in the congregation who were out of order.  Why do I conclude this? There is ample evidence in the Bible that supports this conclusion, much of the evidence from Paul himself.  There are many women identified by scripture who were all in influential positions of leadership in the early church.  Let’s take a look at some of this Biblical evidence.

Romans 16:1-7 – “I commend unto you Phoebe our sister, which is a servant of the church which is at Cenchrea:  That ye receive her in the Lord, as becometh saints, and that ye assist her in whatsoever business she hath need of you; for she hath been succourer [one who stands by in case of need] of many, and of myself also.  Greet Priscilla and Aquila my helpers in Christ Jesus: Who have for my life laid down their own necks; unto whom not only I give thanks, but also all the churches of the Gentiles.  Likewise greet the church that is in their house.  Salute my well-beloved Epaenetus, who is the firstfruits of Achaia unto Christ.  Greet Mary, who bestowed much labour on us.  Salute Andronicus and Junia, my kinsmen, and my fellow-prisoners, who are of note among the apostles, who also were in Christ before me.

Phoebe, as used by Paul, the designation “sister” implies a spiritual relationship.  In 1 Corinthians 7:15; 9:5, Paul calls the believing husband and wife, “the brother and the sister.”  Young Timothy was Paul’s “son in the faith.”  Phoebe, then, was a member of a spiritual family in which the relationship is based upon the redemption of Christ and the regenerating work of the Holy Spirit.  How or when Phoebe became a Christian and a sister in the Lord, we are not told.  What is evident is the manifestation of her sisterly love and labors among her sisters and brothers in Christ.  “our sister” is a term indicating her Christian status.  Phoebe was not only a member of a spiritual family, but she was also “a ministrant of the Church” In Cenchrea, or by today’s standards, a Deaconess.  In fact, we can safely assume that Phoebe was one of the first, if not the first, deaconess in the Christian Church.  She was beloved of Paul and many other Christians for the help she gave to them and she filled an important position of leadership.  Wouldn’t it be a difficult stretch of the imagination to say that this woman fulfilled her duties as a Deaconess without ever speaking in the church as suggested by the verses noted in 1 Corinthians and 1 Timothy?

Paul often mentions Priscilla and her husband Aquila with great respect, and this was a couple that had it all together.  Together they were pastors of a church in Ephesus, and were responsible for teaching the full gospel to Apollos.  We are informed that they both taught Apollos, and pastured the church together.  In fact, Priscilla is sometimes listed ahead of Aquila when their names come up.  This has led some to speculate that of the two, she was the primary teacher and her husband oversaw the ministry.  One of the most impressive aspects of the spiritual influence of Priscilla and Aquila was their deep knowledge of Christian truth.  The eloquent and fervent Apollos with all of his brilliance and power suffered a sorry limitation as a preacher.  He knows only “the baptism of John” (Acts 18:25).  He knew nothing of salvation through the cross.  The larger truths of the Gospel of Redemption were as yet unknown to him.  Priscilla and Aquila followed the crowds who went to hear this most popular and persuasive preacher.  As they listened, Priscilla and her husband detected the negative defects of the preaching of Apollos.  Apollos knew the truth but not all the truth, and so in their quiet way, with all humility, Priscilla and Aquila set about correcting the apparent deficiency of Apollos.  Inviting him to their home they passed no word of criticism on what they had heard him preach but with consummate tact instructed him Biblically in the truth of the crucified, risen and glorified savior.  Apollos became so mighty in the Gospel that some of the Corinthians put him before Peter and Paul (1 Corinthians 1:12).  If we cannot be great, by God’s grace we may be the means of making others great.  At any rate, we see here a woman in a very prominent position of teaching and pasturing. (Other references to Priscilla and Aquila are Acts 18:2, 18; Romans 16:3, and 1 Corinthians 16:19).

Philippians 4:2-3, I beseech Euodias, and beseech Syntyche, that they be of the same mind in the Lord and I entreat thee also, true yokefellow, help those women which labored with me in the gospel, with Clement also, and with other of my labourers, whose names are in the book of life.  The Scripture is silent on the genealogy and family association of these two women who, after their conversion, became co-laborers with Paul in the Gospel.  Here we see reference to two “true yokefellow” [an associate or companion] and who labored with Paul in the advancement of the gospel.

Romans 16:7 – “Salute Andronicus and Junia, my kinsman, and my fellow-prisoners, who are of note among the apostles, who also were in Christ before me.”  In this verse we see Paul sending greetings to Andronicus and Junia, his “fellow-prisoners” who are of note among the apostles.  Junia is a woman’s name.  In some modern translations, an “s” has been added (Junias) because the translators were so sure a woman could not be an apostle, that they assumed a copyist had accidentally dropped the “s.”  However, the proper male ending would have been “ius” not “ias.”  No church commentator earlier than the Middle Ages questioned that Junia was both a woman and an apostle.

Though there were other women throughout the Bible in positions of leadership, such as prophetesses, evangelists, judges, leaders, etc., the above references should be enough to establish that women were indeed a vital and normal part of church leadership.  Paul expected women to speak in the church or else why would he have given the directive in 1 Corinthians 11:5: – “But every woman that prayeth or prophesieth with her head uncovered: for that is even all one as if she were shaven.” It would have been useless to give directions for women who were speaking in the church, if they were never allowed to do so.  Furthermore, if Paul believed that all women should never teach or speak in church, why does he commend many women who did just that?

FINAL PART IV NEXT SUNDAY

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