I am following the Anglican Curmudgeon's series on Adam and Eve, science and revelation. Give it a visit at http://accurmudgeon.blogspot.com/
I will have my own reflections on this at a later time. I do believe in an age of diminished faith and declining belief the Church has an obligation to the Lord to make our witness more effectively. It seems to me that Christians have done a poor job of addressing the issue of science. Perhaps because we live in such a divided and contentious age we prefer to yell and scream. Whatever the psycho-social cause, the underlying issue is spiritual. As St. Paul says we do battle with principalities and powers. As we say today, "there is more going on than meets the eye."
The Old Testament presents human life as conflict from the beginning (Humans are to conquer and subdue the world). In the NT, there is not much change. Jesus is described in terms which indicate that He is doing battle with Satan. He binds up demons and expels illness. Jesus lays down His life to achieve the ultimate victory. For many modern people, it is hard to grasp how the singular death of the man Jesus has any real impact on human beings living now. Obviously, many claim Jesus is a wonderful teacher of peace and love, but a closer reading of Gospels reveal a much broader and deeper picture. In fact, Jesus is combative and strong, brave and unrelenting. He is prophetic and challenging. However, the fundamental challenge He lays before us is this: your response and relationship with Me are indicative of your relationship with the only God of all creation. Theologically, this is explained by the term incarnation which means that God Himself is present fully in Jesus (in a unique and salvific way) and that there is no access to God outside of Jesus.
This is all Christianity 101. The application is the kicker. The Feast of the Ascension is a reminder that the resurrected Jesus is no longer among us in the flesh as He had been during the forty days after Easter. The absence is a real absence (even though He is still present) otherwise His return would not be a return. The absence of Jesus seems to be symbolically alluded to in the story of the storm on the sea. As Jesus sleeps through the storrm, the apostles cry out. One can see how the story evokes images of creation/the flood (wild chaotic waters) and the threats aimed at the church (the apostles/boat). Sleeping is a euphemism for death in the Gospels so it is possible to allegorically see the sleeping Jesus as "absent." Jesus upbraids the apostles for their lack of faith. This is directed more at us (as readers) than them.
The hardest thing for me to remember is that we are in the battle. I know God will win (has won), but right now the battle rages. I grow weary with doubts and worries. I get tired of myself and others. I am sometimes the worse for wear. There are times when I wonder if I have done something wrong. I wonder where the inner peace is that I hear about in the songs. I look for the manifestation of the Holy Spirit and seem to find little of the "signs and wonders" which are the mark of the early church. I wonder if I (and mine) are off the path. Where is the holiness which we are called to manifest?
Yet the perfection which is so absent in my life (and not terribly abundant in those around me) may be a manifestation of the not yet. Jesus will return to complete His work with us, but not yet. The failings of the church and its members is no proof that Jesus is ineffective. The angels said, "Why do you stand looking to heaven? Jesus will return..." The rest of the Acts of the Apostles records the early struggles. Lives were lost as sometimes God intervened to save, but other times the enemies prevailed.
That is our lives now. Sometimes glorious but more often mundane. The work of faith and love take place in the midst of the world. In our homes and at work. It can be times of spiritual dryness, church conflict and personal failure. But Jesus will be back. I think that is how God does things. I think things are unfolding and God is intervening, but I also think some of our choices and decisions are part of the ongoing creation. So what kind of world am I (contributing to) making today?
No comments:
Post a Comment