To Be Like Jesus:

PART III

Discipleship and Biblical Spirituality in the 21

In this five-part series, we will be exploring the meaning and method of discipleship and biblical spirituality in ancient times and ask ourselves how we might live better lives as modern disciples of Jesus.

Forgiveness and Healing: There is a Balm in Gilead

In our modern discourse, the concept of divide and conquer is commonplace and widely practiced. Consequently, anti-monopoly laws are pervasive in Western nations because we all know what happens when too much power accrues to one entity, be it a person or organization.

When businesses get too powerful, governments force them to divide into smaller, independent units to allow for a fairer playing field. Militarily, if a force can be divided, it can more easily be overcome by one division at a time. This strategy has come to be known as “divide and conquer” after the ancient Roman tactic of divide et impera (“divide and rule”). Taken in a biblical context, this word “rule” clarifies and amplifies what Adventists understand to be the great controversy between Christ and Satan: a battle for universal rulership.

As Bible students, we can trace the source of this battle to the Garden of Eden. In the same way Satan had so successfully planted strains of discord in one-third of the angelic host (see Rev. 12:3–4), so too did he use deceit to divide and rule Adam and Eve and thereby gain rulership of this world (see Eph. 2:13; Matt. 4:8–9; John 12:31, 14:30). By sowing mistrust, he caused a once-unified and peaceful couple to turn upon themselves when confronted by their sin (see Gen. 3:12–13). He continues to effectively use this tactic against God's kingdom through his people today.

In large part, I would suggest Satan accomplishes this manipulation when Christians consciously or unconsciously refuse to reconcile their personal relationships. When we refuse to humble ourselves, either by confessing our sins to one another or practicing forgiveness with those who have sinned against us, we open entering wedges by which Satan can initiate division and impose his rule. Consequently, we rob God's people of the peace (shalom) of the unity of the kingdom.

When we refuse to humble ourselves, either by confessing our sins to one another or practicing forgiveness with those who have sinned against us, we open entering wedges by which Satan can initiate division and impose his rule. Consequently, we rob God's people of the peace, the shalom, of the unity of the Kingdom.

This was the case in the time of Jeremiah the prophet just before the destruction of the temple and the Jewish people's captivity. In chapter 8, Jeremiah laments the backsliding (see v. 2) and lack of repentance (see v. 6) of the nation, noting that deceitful prophets and priests only superficially dress the wounds of the people by assuring them there was indeed peace (shalom) in the nation (see v. 11) when there was none.

Perhaps Paul had this in mind when looking to the future. He prophesied, “They will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers; and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables” (2 Tim. 4:3–4, NKJV). Consequently, Jeremiah asked a metaphorical question: “Is there no balm in Gilead, Is there no physician there? Why then, is there no recovery for the health of the daughter of my people?” (Jer. 8:22, NKJV).

Is there no balm in Gilead, is there no physician there? Why then, is there no recovery for the health of the daughter of my people? (Jer 8:22 NKJV)

Gilead, the ancestral home of Elijah the prophet (see 1 Kings 17:1) and the location from which the Ishmaelite traders had come before enslaving Joseph, who, like Elijah, was a herald of the Messiah (see Gen. 37:25), was renowned for its healing balm. However, Jeremiah was not calling for a physical balm for physical ailments. He was calling for a spiritual balm for very serious spiritual ailments: wickedness, unrepentance, shamelessness, and, finally, deceitfully proclaiming peace when there was no peace.

One Jewish commentary frames Jeremiah's lament thusly: “Are there no merits or acts of righteousness that can advocate favorably on behalf of my people?” 1

Another says, “Are there no prophets and righteous men among them to heal their spiritual sickness?” 2

Ultimately, in order for there to be enduring kingdom peace among God's people, there must first be a true spirit of repentance and forgiveness. Given our fallen human nature, the only way that can happen is to accept the Holy Spirit's healing, spiritual balm, which comes through believing in the one, righteous Man, the Messiah, Jesus Christ. It is through this empowerment that we can overcome our natural tendency toward self-righteousness and discord and freely practice repentance, forgiveness, and healing:

Remarkably, in one of Jesus' final petitions to God, He prays that His disciples’ unity would be a witness of His Messiahship: “That they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me” (John 17:21, NKJV).

Beloved, Satan knows divisions among us diminish our witness to the world. Therefore, as disciples of the Master, we must fervently pray for the Spirit of unity, that Jesus may be lifted up in the world. This is one attribute of true discipleship: our willingness to let God humble us and make us peacemakers in an increasingly conflicted and divided world. Today, amid the turmoil of our world, let us pray for unity and peace as a witness to the power of the Holy Spirit to bring forgiveness and healing — a spiritual balm of Gilead.

Join me next time for Part 4 of our exploration of biblical discipleship entitled Prayer and Fasting: Petition and Intercession.

Pr. Olaf Clausen, MA is the Alberta Conference Director of Sabbath School, Children’s, and Personal Ministries. He is a specialist in Judeo-Christianity for the Seventh-day Adventist Church in Canada and North American Division Jewish Ministries.

Olaf Clausen | Sabbath School, Children’s, and Personal Ministries Director