The Meaning of “Is”

Newsletter Article for August 1999

© 1999 Rev. Paul A. Wolff

One of the most bizarre bits of information to come out of the investigation and impeachment of President Clinton was a sound bite of him trying to avoid admitting his sexual relationship with a young woman who was not his wife. He said the following on August 17, 1998 to the grand jury investigating the Jones' harassment case. What Mr. Clinton said was, “That depends on what the meaning of 'is' is.”

As soon as this statement became public Mr. Clinton was (and continues to be) harshly derided for this transparent effort to avoid giving a straight answer to a direct, although poorly worded, question. He was asked, “Is there a relationship?” instead of “Was there a relationship?” Taking advantage of this small mistake, Mr. Clinton focused on the tense of the verb, saying that “is” doesn't mean “was” or “will be.” The verb “to be” is one of the most basic verbs in the English language, or any other language for that matter. To quibble over the meaning of “is” is to be completely ignorant, or desperate, or malicious.

This is not the first time in history that the meaning of “is” has been called into question. A long, long time before our scoundrel President tried to weasel his way out of admitting his sordid affair with a young intern some prominent theologians in the sixteenth century debated the meaning of Jesus' words about the Lord's Supper, “This is my body”. The meaning of “is” which was at issue then compares two equivalent things, or states that one thing is exactly the same as another, or that two things are, in fact, the same thing. This incident is particularly meaningful for Lutherans so I would like take this opportunity to review this historical debate.

The focus of the dispute in 1529 was the Lord's Supper. Specifically, it was the question of the real, physical, bodily presence of Jesus in the bread and wine of the Sacrament. Ulrich Zwingli was a Swiss reformer who could not accept the miraculous nature of the sacrament. Since it is naturally impossible for a body to be physically present in two or more places at once, Zwingli claimed that when Jesus said, “This is my body” He really meant, “This represents my body.” By saying that “is” means “symbolizes” or “represents” Zwingli was saying that the physical body of Jesus is not present in the bread and wine of the Lord's Supper even though Jesus says it is.

Martin Luther, the German reformer, maintained that the words of Jesus are clear and unambiguous. When Jesus said, “This is my body” and “This is my blood” that is exactly what He was giving His disciples in the bread and wine. Luther claimed that Jesus wasn't speaking figuratively or metaphorically, but literally.

Luther didn't try to explain how Jesus could give His body and blood in bread and wine to His disciples, instead Luther simply trusted that because Jesus is both God and man, He has the power to do whatever He says. If Jesus says that the bread is His body and the wine is His blood, then it must be just as He says it is. The words of Jesus are clear about what He was then giving to His disciples, and what He now gives to all who receive the Sacrament to this very day. Even if a billion Christians around the world receive the Lord's Supper each Sunday each receives the body and blood of Jesus for the forgiveness of their sins and the strengthening of their faith.

To try to explain away miracles such as the real, bodily presence of Jesus in the Sacrament is to cast doubt on Jesus, on His power, on His person, and ultimately, it casts doubt on Christ's ability to save us from our sins. After all, if Jesus cannot personally give each communicant His body and blood to eat and drink in the Lord's Supper, as He says He does, then we cannot be sure that He can reach us with His forgiveness, as He also says He does.

If we claim that Jesus isn't really present in the Sacrament, how do we suppose that Jesus will recognize each of us when He returns to judge us? Jesus says in John 10:14, “I know my sheep, and my sheep know me” and we should trust that he is telling the truth there, too, but in the Lord's Supper we have His promise made more sure because He personally gives us His body and blood. We are in Christ because He makes us part of His body as 1 Corinthians 12:27 states, “Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it.” So when Christ returns, He will know His people because He is a part of them, and they are a part of His body.

It is truly a mystery how Jesus can give His true body and blood to each person in the world who receives the Sacrament. Fortunately for us Jesus doesn't ask that we understand it, or be able to explain it, He simply asks us to believe it. And although Jesus doesn't tell us how He does this, He does tell us why. Jesus' body and blood is “for you” (1 Corinthians 11:24 and Luke 22:19-20) and “for the forgiveness of sins.” (Matthew 26:28)

You don't have to be a scholar to understand what “is” means. We all use it every day. I have used a form of the verb “to be” in each paragraph of this essay, and I didn't even try to do this, it came naturally. People's inability to believe God's word doesn't come from a lack of understanding of the grammar of Scripture. Instead unbelief comes from a lack of faith in God and in His power to save us. We may not always understand why God does what He does, but we should trust that God loves us all, and that everything He does, He does because of His love so that we will be saved from our sins and receive eternal life through Jesus Christ our savior.

P.S. I found it interesting when looking up the definition for “be” in my dictionary among several examples of the usage of this verb and its cognates there were two examples from Holy Scripture: “God is love” 1 John 4:16 ; and “Christ is risen from the dead” 1 Corinthians 15:20.

The Theology of Star Wars

Newsletter Article for June 1999

© 1999 Rev. Paul A. Wolff

I suspect that the hottest movie in theaters this summer is very likely to be the new sequel in the Star Wars series, “The Phantom Menace”. As I write this I have seen only a few seconds worth of scenes which might be included in the movie. As you read this I am probably waiting for the price of admission to come down from exorbitant to merely expensive.

Obviously I cannot comment directly on this new film or give a review, but I do wish to comment on the theology underlying the three Star Wars movies previously released. As Christians we can certainly enjoy a good secular story, and be awed by the amazing technical effects which are more and more common in films. However, we ought to be aware of false teachings about God which are presented in such films. (See 1 Peter 5:8-9)

The false teachings in Lucas’ films are subtle. Because the main story-line is about good versus evil, and because the films do not feature the mindless, graphic violence, and promiscuous or deviant sexual behavior common to so many films in theaters these days, we may not notice a little idolatry and other false teachings about God which are part of the film’s message. Some people swallow these false teachings whole, not even realizing they were on the dinner plate.

The most basic false teaching in the Star Wars movies is that there is no God. Nowhere in these movies is God given credit for creating, sustaining, nor saving the universe and the people who live here. If God is mentioned at all, it is likely His name is taken in vain in a moment of frustration or exasperation.

In the place of God in Star Wars is this mysterious “force” which no one seems to know anything about except a few ancient religious zealots, whom no one believes. Besides presenting a gross idolatry which denies the existence of God, this also presents gnosticism which says that salvation (or enlightenment) only comes through special knowledge of god given only to a few special people. The true God doesn’t simply offer salvation to only a few people who are deemed “worthy,” instead God offers salvation freely to all who believe in Jesus as the savior from their sins.

The idea of a non-personal “force” which guides our actions can be very attractive, especially as it is presented in the Star Wars movies. It plays upon our deepest sinful desires to be gods ourselves. Just like Adam and Eve disobeyed God because they wanted to be “more like God” so our own sinful nature is susceptible to temptations which promise godlike power. After all, who has not wished that he or she could fly, or read someone’s mind, or move objects with just a thought, or exact retribution on an enemy simply by thinking about it. It may seem fun to think about such possibilities, but such powers belong to God alone. To wish for these things, or to claim to have such powers is a sin against the first commandment.

You may still ask what could possibly be so bad about a movie which promotes good over evil? There certainly is nothing wrong to favor good over evil, but the question is how do you determine what is good? Since the true God is holy, He defines what is good and what is evil. If someone denies the existence of God, or puts God out of the picture, or replaces Him with a god which does not know the difference between good and evil, then that person has no way of recognizing what is good and what is evil. We are sinful and prone to evil behavior, so we must rely on God to direct us to what is truly good.

I don’t believe any perpetrator of any evil act in the history of the world has ever gone out with the intention of doing evil or being evil. Instead everyone who has ever done an evil act has justified it to himself or herself by being convinced that what they are doing is actually good, or at least a necessary evil to reach a goal which is perceived as good, right, and just. This is true for every insult, every murder, every theft, every rape, every war, every genocide, every holocaust, and every evil in all of history, great and small.

Christianity also concerns itself with the fight of good over evil, but remember how the fight over evil was won. It wasn’t won by conquering the “bad guys” by force of arms, or force of will. Jesus won the fight over evil by submitting to God the Father’s punishment for the sins of everyone else but Himself (for He had no sins of his own to punish). By allowing Himself to be conquered by the consequences of our sin, Jesus overcame sin and won salvation for all who believe in Him. There really is such a thing as absolute truth, and God Himself is absolute, and He punishes sin. However, God is merciful and He Himself rescues from punishment all who look to Jesus as their savior from sin.

Another important false teaching of the Star Wars movies concerns how people obtain salvation. Although the movies do seem to allow the existence of a personal soul in each person, they have not yet elaborated about how that soul is saved, or avoids hell (or its rough equivalent). However, it seems that the soul’s salvation is tied into its relation to the “force” of the movie. If one’s soul is connected to the “good” side of the “force” then that seems to suggest salvation. if one’s soul is connected to the “dark” side of the “force” then that seems to relate to servitude to evil, punishment, sorrow, pain, and other things we properly associate with hell.

The trouble with Star Wars is that whether you associate with the good side or the dark side is purely your decision. Make a bad choice and end up like Darth Vader, make a good choice and, well, who knows? Either way salvation is determined by what you do. There is no room there for Jesus Christ. There is no atonement for sin unless you can do it yourself, but who knows if anyone can do it? From the Christian perspective even the good side of the force is evil because it denies God, and his love, compassion and forgiveness and concentrates on one’s own works to attain salvation. Holy Scripture clearly tells us that the only way to be saved is to believe in Jesus Christ. We cannot win salvation on our own, or in cooperation with Jesus.

If you go to see the movie I hope you enjoy it. It should be very entertaining. but be on guard when you go. Don’t fall for the false ideas about God, sin, and salvation. Christ calls for His people to respond to evil with love, just as He did, and not with hatred or violence (physical, mystical, or otherwise).

Sooner or later everyone is going to be talking about this movie, so try to use this as an opportunity to talk to others about Jesus, and our real hope for salvation through Him. Our God and savior is not an impersonal, mysterious force, but He is a kind and loving person who suffered, died, and rose to life again so that we can be saved from our sinfulness.

For further study see: Genesis 2; Isaiah 40:12-31; Job 38-41; Romans 3.

Job 28:28 “The fear of the Lord-that is wisdom, and to shun evil is understanding.”