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Dead Man Walking!

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Revelation 1:17-18 When I saw Him, I fell at His feet as if dead. But He laid His right hand on me and said, Do not be afraid! I am the First and the Last, 18 And the Ever-living One [I am living in the eternity of the eternities]. I died, but see, I am alive forevermore; and I possess the keys of death and Hades (the realm of the dead). AMPC

Candace Osmond, on her website, Grammarist discusses the popular idiom, “dead man walking,” stating: “Dead man walking” is a phrase we’ve all heard thrown around, from conversations to T.V., movies, and even books. But have you ever taken a second to think about where it could have possibly come from? The roots of the phrase “dead man walking” actually originated in the United States in the early 20th century. It was created in prisons to describe a man condemned to death who was being led to his execution. The guards would walk him down the corridor, and others would say, “dead man walking!”

The author of Revelation, the Apostle John, is believed to have been in his nineties when he was exiled by the Emperor Domitian to the Isle of Patmos. Interestingly, tradition states that Domitian attempted to boil John to death in a boiling cauldron of oil but John survived unscathed. As a result the Emperor banished him to exile on Patmos in which many of the prisoners were forced to work in the mines. All of these things taken together in a collective whole become even more interesting against the backdrop of John 21:19-23  He said this to indicate by what kind of death Peter would glorify God. And after this, He said to him, Follow Me! 20 But Peter turned and saw the disciple whom Jesus loved, following—the one who also had leaned back on His breast at the supper and had said, Lord, who is it that is going to betray You? 21 When Peter saw him, he said to Jesus, Lord, what about this man? 22 Jesus said to him, If I want him to stay (survive, live) until I come, what is that to you? [What concern is it of yours?] You follow Me! 23 So word went out among the brethren that this disciple was not going to die; yet Jesus did not say to him that he was not going to die, but, If I want him to stay (survive, live) till I come, what is that to you? AMPC

The Apostle had faced down the possibility of death on numerous occasions simply by choosing to be counted among the followers of Jesus. To follow Jesus was to embrace death. It was guilt by association and none was more intimate with Jesus than John. John was the only disciple courageous enough to stand at the foot of Jesus’ crucifixion and was no stranger to its inevitability. Which makes the events of Revelation 1 almost comical. John wasn’t afraid of death – he is in his nineties – yet when he encountered the Shofar-like Voice of Jesus “on Fire” – he fell at His feet as a dead man. To which Jesus replies to His friend: Do not be afraid! I am the First and the Last, 18 And the Ever-living One [I am living in the eternity of the eternities]. I died, but see, I am alive forevermore; and I possess the keys of death and Hades (the realm of the dead). Jesus had faced down the specter of death, was crucified, and raised from the dead. He wanted to remind John of the fact: I am alive forevermore! (and you will be too).

The Apostle Paul had written years earlier: For we who live are constantly [experiencing] being handed over to death for Jesus’ sake, that the [resurrection] life of Jesus also may be evidenced through our flesh which is liable to death.12 Thus death is actively at work in us, but [it is in order that our] life [may be actively at work] in you. 2 Cor. 4:11-12 AMPC

For all of the Apostles death was no stranger yet they did not “smell” like death. The Resurrection Life of Jesus only grew stronger in them as they repeatedly submitted to Jesus, the Spirit and the Word. Every time they yielded and obeyed; every time they submitted themselves to the will of God – they lived even more and those around them came to life too. Possibly this is the reason John was invited to “Come Up Here!” in Revelation 4:1. John reminds us in Revelation 12:11 that those who live with Jesus in eternity – those permitted to “Come Up Here!” – are those who “did not love and cling to life even when faced with death [holding their lives cheap till they had to die for their witnessing].” Revelation 12:11 AMPC

During this holy season remind yourself to not cling so tightly to this life but to embrace Jesus’ death in order to become His life to those around you. Look up and see the “great cloud of witnesses” in Hebrews 12:1 and listen for their exhortation: “For the reward of the lamb and for His Suffering!” This was the exhortation of Moravian missionaries who sold themselves into slavery, and packed their belongings in a coffin that would be used to bury them on the mission field. Join with the other dead men, women and children walking – into His Light and Love.

Choices

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Dear Sir: I am writing in response to your request for additional information in Block #3 of the accident reporting form. I put “Poor Planning” as the cause of my accident. You asked for a fuller explanation and I trust the following details will be sufficient. I am a bricklayer by trade. On the day of the accident, I was working alone on the roof of a new six-story building. When I completed my work, I found I had some bricks left over which when weighed later were found to weigh 240 lbs. Rather than carry the bricks down by hand, I decided to lower them in a barrel by using a pulley which was attached to the side of the building at the sixth floor. Securing the rope at ground level, I went up to the roof, swung the barrel out and loaded the bricks into it. Then I went down and untied the rope, holding it tightly to insure a slow descent of the 240 lbs of bricks. You will note on the accident reporting form that my weight is 135 lbs. Due to my surprise at being jerked off the ground so suddenly, I lost my presence of mind and forgot to let go of the rope. Needless to say, I proceeded at a rapid rate up the side of the building. In the vicinity of the third floor, I met the barrel which was now proceeding downward at an equally impressive speed. This explains the fractured skull, minor abrasions and the broken collarbone, as listed in Section 3, accident reporting form. Slowed only slightly, I continued my rapid ascent, not stopping until the fingers of my right hand were two knuckles deep into the pulley which I mentioned in Paragraph 2 of this correspondence. Fortunately by this time I had regained my presence of mind and was able to hold the rope, in spite of the excruciating pain I was now beginning to experience. At approximately the same time, however, the barrel of bricks hit the ground-and the bottom fell out of the barrel. Now devoid of the weight of the bricks, the barrel weighed approximately 50 lbs. I refer you again to my weight. As you might imagine, I began a rapid descent down the side of the building.In the vicinity of the third floor, I met the barrel coming up. This accounts for the two fractured ankles, broken tooth and severe lacerations of my legs and lower body. Here my luck began to change slightly. The encounter with the barrel seemed to slow me enough to lessen my injuries when I fell into the pile of bricks and fortunately only three vertebrae were cracked. I am sorry to report, however, as I lay there on the pile of bricks, in pain, unable to move and watching the empty barrel six stories above me, I again lost my composure and presence of mind and let go of the rope.

Choices. They determine the outcome of so many things. Some choices are weightier than others. Like who you marry, taking a job, buying a car or a house, etc. Then there are the lighter choices in life like, Do I want a third patty on this cheeseburger, buttressed by extra slabs of bacon? (Did I tell you I chose to do a Daniel Fast?) When you read the Bible you discover people making choices that have eternal consequences. Consider the temptations of Jesus in the Wilderness:

And the tempter came and said to Him, If You are God’s Son, command these stones to be made [loaves of] bread. (Mt. 4:3)

Then the devil took Him into the holy city and placed Him on a turret (pinnacle, gable) of the temple sanctuary. And he said to Him, If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down; for it is written, He will give His angels charge over you, and they will bear you up on their hands, lest you strike your foot against a stone. (Mt. 4:5-6)

Again, the devil took Him up on a very high mountain and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and the glory (the splendor, magnificence, preeminence, and excellence) of them. And he said to Him, These things, all taken together, I will give You, if You will prostrate Yourself before me and do homage and worship me. (Mt. 4:8-9)

3 Temptations, 3 Choices. The first was occupied with life. What do you live for? The second, what would you die for? And the final, and third choice: Who or what do you worship? Jesus made it clear what we should live: You should live for every word that comes out of God’s Mouth. Another way of saying that is to say that we should be living for a relationship with God. The second choice, requires closer inspection to understand what Jesus was referencing. In Exodus 17 the people demanded water to drink. Moses took note that they were trying, tempting or testing God. But then he adds another nuance: Why do you find fault with….? Not only were the people trying God, they were finding fault with Him. Are we willing to die not finding fault with God? The third and final choice rested squarely in Eternity. The modern church understanding of worship is that it is a song or posture. Whereas Scripture’s definition goes much deeper than that. Worship involved who or what you served. It was a lifestyle of sacrifice.

What happens in the wilderness, in the praying, and the seeking? What happens when you choose to search for Jesus outside the camp? You discover what you are living for, what you are willing to die for, and what or who you really worship. What choices have you been making?