Now on the first day of the week, very early in the morning, they, and certain other women with them, came to the tomb bringing the spices which they had prepared. (Luke 24:1)
And Nicodemus, who at first came to Jesus by night, also came, bringing a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about a hundred pounds. Then they took the body of Jesus, and bound it in strips of linen with the spices, as the custom of the Jews is to bury. (John 19: 39, 40)
Jesus had died. His body had been laid in a tomb. And there were spices. Two grieving men and several women–they all brought spices to anoint our Savior’s body.
Similar, this, to embalming. Embalming is the injection of chemicals inside of a dead body. The spices of Jesus were laid on top of his body. Same purpose: keep the effects of death at bay, if only for a while—the decomposition and stench of a rotting corpse. Same purpose: to honor the dead beloved one.
Only for Jesus neither embalming nor the bringing of spices was necessary. He was risen! Just as he had said he would. And precisely according to the word of God that Christ’s dead body would rest in the tomb without any decay, without returning to the dust. Because our Lord had offered the perfect sacrifice for sin, just as God had ordained, God would not let his Holy One to see corruption (Psalm 16: 9, 10). Jesus will rise! In the reuniting of soul and body on the third day, he would be glorified!
No one and nothing could keep this good man, this Savior man, God’s own Messiah…down!
The men and women brought their spices according to custom, but not according to the word of God. They loved Jesus. They would honor him. But their love and honor with spices for a dead Jesus was of ignorance and not of faith nor of hope.
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The unbelief of the good men and good women who tried to honor Jesus in his death by their spices is understandable. The Spirit had not yet been poured out, enlightening the eyes of New Covenant believers to the truth of both Christ’s death and his resurrection. They could not think “atonement,” or “satisfaction of the justice of God,” or “risen for our justification” in relation to the death and resurrection of Jesus. They could not think beyond the scourgings and the blood and that man Jesus to God’s plan that Jesus must die for our salvation, and that Jesus must rise and be glorified in just that way, that bloody suffering way. In their little faith and much grief the old covenant spice men and women could not possibly link a Psalmist’s word or a Prophet’s word or even Jesus’ own words to this one, Jesus, so painfully, really, fully just…dead.
But we know. Those in New Testament churches confess the truth, the fact and significance of the death and resurrection of Christ. Pentecost has fully come. The Bible is fully written. And all but the most liberal of churches recite the Creed that Jesus died for our sins and was risen on the third day.
So often today, however, spices are added to the recitation, something mixed in with the otherwise orthodox confession. Confessing Christians today, in fact, often bring “spices” to all things surrounding Jesus’ death and resurrection. They cannot anoint his body, of course. But they would “spice up” the truth of the word of God whenever they approach that word and teach it to others. If the first spice men and women were good, these moderns are spice girls and spice boys in comparison. And not good. Not excusable. At all.
What is meant by this, this “spicing up” of truth?
Elevation Church comes to mind. Based in Charlotte, North Carolina, this megachurch appears orthodox in its confession. A recent interview with a senior staff member reveals, however, that the church is loath to use words like “resurrection,” “Calvary,” or “the blood of Jesus” in its “Easter invitations” because such language would make outsiders feel like…outsiders. This and the music group “Elevation Worship” is part of the plan to make folks feel comfortable in the worship services in the hopes of reaching people far from God. Elevation Church, as well as others who call themselves “emergent churches,” attempt to change the biblical and creedal terms, the traditional worship, and most often the theology of orthodox Christianity to make Christianity “accessible.” Churches should be hospitable, and not so holy. Nothing the preacher says should be offensive. Evangelism, elevation church style, which is precisely the lower of the elevation of the truth, has become the god. Instead of the bare truth and the preaching of the two-edged word revealing to sinners their sin to make them decidedly Uncomfortable and to lead to repentance, the personality of the preacher, the charisma of the wife, the mood music of the band, and the smiling generosity of the people…lead folks to an “elevated experience,” which is hardly the presence of the living, thrice holy God.
But we are all like spice boys and girls. Let us face it. Whether we show the same Athenian fixation on “some new thing” (Acts 17), or are sucked into the popular evangelical whirlpool so baldly evident in an “Elevation” church, we all are prone to add something to the death and resurrection of the Lord, and also to the ordinary Christian life and worship. We show ourselves, sadly, more bored again than born again in our living out of our Christian faith. We live as if Jesus were indeed yet in the grave, needing us to do something for him, instead of living by faith in the living One, the Mountain of our salvation from whom all blessings flow down.
The best of us are not comfortable with this hypocrisy and powerless religion. So we seek something in addition to the risen Christ’s Spirit and so instead of to prayer we would go to a conference; instead of to the cross, we would go to a counsellor for help in our marriage, and to the divorce court if it does not work out; instead of truly believing in the ordinary means of grace we would promote open communion, open baptism, hospitality religion and three day revivals and the pizz-azz of the emotional and the hype of those caught up in the waves and power of some spirit.
Let us remember: the dead body of Christ needed no spices. The risen, living Christ is given all power and authority to rule all things, his way, for the spiritual advancement and God-glorifying triumph of the Church. The truth of Christ and the ordinances he gives need no additions; the offense of the cross and the faithful preaching of it, though it be offensive to unbelieving Jews and foolishness to Greeks, is a sweet-smelling savor to God and the power of God to salvation to all who believe; and the body of Christ, the church, if it be dead, needs far more than the spices of boys and girls playing and perverting Christianity—she needs the wind of the Spirit and the Word of God (cf. Ezekiel 37 and the valley of the dry bones!); and the body of Christ, the church, and her members, if it be alive, if they be alive, need nothing but more grace and more and more of the same old same old, saving, God-glorifying truth in merciful answers to heart-felt prayers of the people of God.
Believe in the crucified and risen Savior, beloved. No spices needed. No spices desired.
The living One. He meets every need. He is all our desire. He is risen. Hallelujah!
-Rev Dick
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