You were made for this

Letter from Exile 8

God’s Word: John 1:14-17

14 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. 15 (John bore witness about him, and cried out, “This was he of whom I said, ‘He who comes after me ranks before me, because he was before me.’”) 16 For from his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace. 17 For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.

Reflection: 

For two thousand years, the minds of theologians have exploded in wonder trying to understand the implications of the “Word” becoming “flesh” and dwelling among us.  How does the infinite God become finite and creaturely? And why would he subject himself to our misery, our sickness, our contagions? What precisely was he hoping to accomplish? 

Perhaps it is not too much of an oversimplification to say that Jesus was born to die.  His death on the cross would be his finest hour.  

Death.  Yup. Jesus condescended (that is the fancy theological term). He did it so that he could die.  You can’t die at the right hand of the Father. But if you forgo the riches and perfections of heaven, and take a body and a reasonable soul, you most certainly can end up dead on a cross.  Jesus knows. He did it. And that was the whole point.  

Perhaps it is not too much of an oversimplification to say that Jesus was born to die.  His death on the cross would be his finest hour.  

Recently I watched the movie, “The Darkest Hour.”  The plot follows the rise of Winston Churchill in parliament during WWII.  Early in the war, the Nazi army quickly took control of France and even trapped the British Expeditionary Forces in Dunkirk in the north against the English channel.  The string of Nazi successes seamed too easy. Stopping them seemed impossible. And worse, it appeared that 300,000 Allied soldiers would be annihilated. This was their darkest hour. 

It is in this precise moment that Churchill feels most alive as if he was made for it.  He is unbreakably confident. He ordered Operation Dynamo which was the largest evacuation of soldiers to date.  The military could not do it alone. Literally, thousands and thousands of civilians sailed their small boats alongside the British Navy to pick up soldiers in Dunkirk.  What was otherwise an awful military defeat in France, lit the resolve of the English people to fight (with everything they had) against the Nazis.  

Ironically, it was their defeat and rescue that turned their darkest hour into their finest hour.  This moment was seared into the imagination of the British people. It gave them resolve to fight at any cost.  Not only was Churchill made for that moment. The British people were too. And you and I know how WWII ends.  

Guess what?  We have the privilege of knowing how Jesus’ life and death ends too.  Death is conquered.  

It was his darkest hour.  It was his finest hour.  Jesus was born to die.  He came for that precise moment.

Jesus sees our defeat. He leaves his health and perfection with the Father in heaven. He runs towards a losing war.  He dwells among us. And Jesus is defeated on the cross. It was his darkest hour. It was his finest hour. Jesus was born to die.  He came for that precise moment.  

What about us?  Listen, Christian, look at the cross! Is it seared into your imagination?  Let it set your resolve on fire! This is our moment! Christians, we were made for this moment in history! The curfew and quarantine are stripping all of our culture’s false gods away.  No more sports. Our portfolios are hurting. Our jobs are unstable. Our vacations are ruined. Our educational goals are derailed. Listen, good health and financial stability are nice things--but they make lousy saviors. 

Everyone is viscerally learning what Christians have always known.  Christians don’t serve those gods; therefore we are more free than ever before.  This can be our finest hour!  It is time to turn back to your first love.  Was your faith lukewarm, casual, or convenient?  Let the Crucified One do business with you and then watch how revival begins.   You were made for this.  

Prayer:  

Father, our Great Rescuer--Forgive me for looking upon the cross merely as a sentimental and generic symbol of love.  Most certainly it is a symbol of love--but it is so much more! You have purchased me by hanging on the cross. Lord, would you enchant my soul with this truth?  I have been seduced by false gods, but you are starting a new day for me. Set me free to truly love you with my whole heart. I have been so half-hearted, I know, but Spirit, set my heart on fire. Do something new.  Don’t let me return to my comfortable religion. I need you. Make this dark hour in our world a bright one with the flames of your gospel. I pray in the name of the Crucified One, Amen.  

 Praying outside of ourselves:

• Pray for protection of all people, young and old, to not become addicted to social media.

• Pray for scientists to quickly find a way to quickly mitigate the symptoms of COVID-19. 

• Pray for churches to find new ways to disciple and care for their people. 

• Pray for families to be surprised by intimacy with one another and with the Lord.

I will cling to His works, not mine.

Letter from Exile 6

God’s Word: Romans 3:19-20

19 Now we know that whatever the law says it speaks to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be stopped, and the whole world may be held accountable to God. 20 For by works of the law no human being will be justified in his sight, since through the law comes knowledge of sin.

 Reflection: 

Have you ever read the famous book by John Bunyan titled, The Pilgrim’s Progress?  If you haven’t, grab an abridged version with pictures and read it to your kids. It is terrific!  It is an allegory about the Christian life.  The main character is a guy named Christian who lives in the City of Destruction, but he begins a journey to the Celestial City.  

His travels lead him to meet all sorts of people.  Some good.  Some bad.  Some just whatever.  But he meets one travel companion named, Faithful.  Faithful is a terrific guy, and he tells Christian a story about his travels.  At one point while traveling, Faithful is jumped by a guy who beats him nearly to death.  Bloodied and nearly unconscious, Faithful starts to wake up again, and the guy starts to beat him so as to kill him.  It seems that Faithful was on the brink of death, until a stranger arrives and intervenes.  He asks the man to stop, and so he relents.  

As Faithful tells Christian this story, Christian asks, “Who is the man?”  He couldn’t tell at first, but he concluded that it was Jesus who saved him because of the holes in his hands.  But Christian isn’t asking about the man who rescued him.  He is asking, who in the world is the man who beat up Faithful and nearly killed him?!

You expect him to say, Sinner or Robber.  But guess what he says?  It was Moses.  Moses beat him up, nearly to death, until Jesus sent him away.  Isn’t this crazy?  Moses represents the law.  Do you understand what this theological fiction means for you? 

The law has a function.  The law teaches us about the beauty of God and it shows us our need for Him.  The law shows you your inadequacy. But it will kill you if you think that perfect obedience is what saves you.  It will make you bloody, and kick you while you are down.  Your good works cannot save you.  Only Jesus can.  

This virus is bidding us to stop “doing” for God, and start “being” with him. Rest in him.

So what does this mean for us while locked in our homes?  

This virus is bidding us to stop “doing” for God, and start “being” with him.  Rest in him.  The world may crumble, as it is quite fragile.  And the law is a hammer to smash it further.  But Christ is the great healer.  In quarantine, there are very few works for you to accomplish.  There are no works to point to and say, “See, God, I do good works for you!”  

Nope, all we can say is, “God, I am locked in. All I have is you.  But all I need is you.”    

 Prayer:  

Heavenly Father, on my journey to the Celestial City, would you protect me from Moses?  Of course, I will obey you.  Of course, I will honor you.  But Lord, do not let me make Moses my Savior.  He will leave me bloody.  He will show me my sin, and then leave me to die.  But not you.  You are a healer.  Make me yours, even in the confines of my home with no works to point to.  I will point to your Son, my Savior.  I will cling to His works, not mine.  I will do this, so that Jesus alone gets all the glory.  In His name I come to you, Amen.  

 Praying outside of ourselves:

• Pray for churches to reach the lonely in a world of social distancing.

• Pray for a revival in San Juan.  

• Pray for the sick who feel alone, because they fear being socially ostracized.  

• Pray for a stranger to stumble upon our streaming service and surrender to Jesus.