God’s power has broken in on our world. God’s presence is once again in the midst of human beings. God’s new creation has been inaugurated and will one day be consummated in all of its glory.

All of these realities find expression in and are confirmed by the resurrection and enthronement of our man, Jesus.

Jesus was raised from death. He was not merely resuscitated–brought back to mortality, only to die again. He transcends mortality, he has vanquished death, he has removed sin, he has gone before us into God’s new world as the first-fruit of many more to come. He restores all that was lost in the fall of humanity.

For this, and for so much more, Jesus is Lord.

As a glorified human being, the prototype of what all believers will one day be, Jesus is reigning over both heaven and earth. He has once and for all assumed the role that all human beings were supposed to assume in God’s first creation.

From his glorified and empowered position in heaven, his presence is with us on earth. He sustains us through every difficulty.

After his suffering, he showed himself to these men and gave many convincing proofs that he was alive. He appeared to them over a period of forty days and spoke about the kingdom of God. ⁴ On one occasion, while he was eating with them, he gave them this command: “Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about. ⁵ For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.” ⁶ So when they met together, they asked him, “Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?” ⁷ He said to them: “It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority. ⁸ But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

The first disciples learned that the Lord’s power and presence are mediated through God’s Holy Spirit. In order to access that power, that divine presence, human beings must sometimes act in ways that are counter-intuitive:

• Instead of speaking, we must listen.
• Instead of doing, we must wait.
• Instead of planning, we must pray.

When we assume this posture before God—humbly listening, patiently waiting, obediently praying—his Spirit comes to us and fortifies us, strengthens us, empowers us, encourages us. It is then—and only then—that we are ready to engage the mission to which God has assigned his church.

Any action on our part without this preparation will result in human results rather than divine.

Look around and see that this is true. Some churches can attract huge crowds with spectacular events. I have nothing against huge crowds. But, I would rather have a small group of committed disciples who are filled with God’s Spirit than a multitude operating on a secular agenda.

The latter may be able to “get more done” but the former are able to make God smile. Through these who are willing to embrace God’s mission on its terms, God can, is, and will accomplish the mission.

And all the glory will be his.

Christianity had a humble beginning indeed: from 12 to 120 to thousands upon thousands. And now? The largest religion in the world.

But when we take a close look at its beginning we ask, “How did it even get off the ground?” And when we look at its internal problems we ask, “How has it survived and flourished for 2000 years?”

Resurrection power, that’s how. The power of God that was not expected has been unleashed. And it changes everything.

It changed the first followers:

• Prior to their experience of the resurrection, some of them had vague notions of a bodily resurrection someday far off in the future but they had no idea of how a future resurrection and judgment radically alters one’s life here and now.

• Prior to their experience of the resurrection, they may have had a conception of another world “out there” but they did not fully appreciate the implications of another world, a New Creation, breaking in on and radically changing this one.

Once they experienced that in-breaking, once they witnessed the empty tomb, after they had handled the resurrected Lord of Heaven and Earth, their new perspective changed them and they changed the world.

Take Peter and John for example. In Acts 4 we read,

When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus. 14 But since they could see the man who had been healed standing there with them, there was nothing they could say. 15 So they ordered them to withdraw from the Sanhedrin and then conferred together. 16 “What are we going to do with these men?” they asked. “Everybody living in Jerusalem knows they have done an outstanding miracle, and we cannot deny it. 17 But to stop this thing from spreading any further among the people, we must warn these men to speak no longer to anyone in this name.” 18 Then they called them in again and commanded them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus. 19 But Peter and John replied, “Judge for yourselves whether it is right in God’s sight to obey you rather than God. 20 For we cannot help speaking about what we have seen and heard.” (Act 4:13-20, NIV).

Peter and John had been radically changed by their experience. After their brush with the resurrection, when they had seen God’s New Creation in action, they knew that the so-called rulers of this realm are as illegitimate as the leader of the rebellion in that world, Satan.

And this new knowledge organized their new life in Christ. It allowed them to conquer this age, even if that meant being put to death.

Then I heard a loud voice in heaven say: “Now have come the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God, and the authority of his Christ. For the accuser of our brothers, who accuses them before our God day and night, has been hurled down. 11 They overcame [conquered!] him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony; they did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death.”

In Christ we are all “more than conquerors” (Romans 8:37). May God empower us to live as such!

Our world is rapidly approaching a population 7 Billion inhabitants.[1] Of those 7 billion, 2.2 billion claim to be Christians.[2] That makes Christianity the largest religion in the world.

Given its humble beginnings, this raises at least three questions in my mind:

1. How did a small, penniless, powerless, seemingly insignificant movement become the world’s largest religion?
2. How did a failed and arguably false messiah (from a strict Jewish perspective) become the most influential human being to ever live?
3. How has a movement filled with apparent paradoxes and contradictions had such a profound effect on our world?

During Jesus’s earthly ministry, his core of followers numbered 12 men, none of whom appear to have been men of wealth, power, or influence. On the Day of Pentecost, Luke tells us that the followers of Jesus numbered 120 (Acts 1:15). They were scared, confused, and all huddled in an upper room waiting for their next move. From this small, penniless, insignificant beginning Christianity became the world’s largest religion. How do we explain such an unlikely event?

Jesus was a peasant. An itinerant preacher with no political regime, no economic program, no military apparatus, and no means of developing these required resources. At the end of his public life he was crucified as a wretched criminal. He was hung on a tree. By all accounts his claim to be Israel’s messiah had failed. From a Jewish perspective he was more than a failed messiah, he was a false messiah—under God’s curse (Deuteronomy 21:23).

Those closest to Christ claim that he was more than a mere human being—he is God-in-the-flesh (See John 1:1-18). He bridges the gap between humanity and divinity; he merges the spiritual with the material worlds. This paradox—a metaphysical impossibility for many—forms the paradoxical foundation of Christianity. It has been and remains a major stumbling block to belief for much of the world’s population.

No world religion places more of an emphasis on unity than does Christianity. And yet, this movement has been plagued by division and faction from its inception. Today there are some 35,000 sects within Christianity, many of them exclusive and sectarian. Some of them at war with others—killing one another in the name of the Prince of Peace. This contradiction and others like it (e.g., Christianity’s claim to be a religion dedicated to holiness and purity) make Christianity a very unlikely movement to become the world’s largest religion.

And so how do we explain the reality? Christianity, in spite of its unlikely prospects for doing much more than fizzling out in an obscure province of the Roman Empire, is the world’s largest religion. How did that happen? What explains such an improbable event?

The key to Christianity’s success has little to do with what Jesus said or did during his lifetime. The key to understanding Christianity’s massive influence lies in what happened after Jesus’s death.

• You can question the plausibility of his so-called regime for all eternity.
• You can doubt the effectiveness of his so-called movement all you want.
• You can criticize the contradictions in the lives of his followers in every generation.

But one thing you cannot do. You cannot refute an empty tomb! And not simply a resuscitated human being but a resurrected Lord—not merely a new way of looking at this material world but an entirely New Creation inaugurated right smack dab in the middle of the old one.

This is the key experience that changed the world then and it is the same resurrection experience that can change our world today.

Every year about this time, as I prepare for my own celebration of Christmas, I think of December 12. That is the day on which many Catholics remember the appearance of the Virgin of Guadalupe.

Although more common in Mexico, Catholics in the United States also celebrate the day. Here are a few links to news articles that document the phenomenon:

The Las Cruces Sun News

The Georgia Bulletin

The Trib Local Des Plaines

The Las Vegas Sun

It has been a couple of years since I posted this article so I though I’d post it again. I  wrote this when I was a missionary in Cuernavaca, Mexico. It was my attempt to learn more about the local culture and customs of the people among whom I was working.

Introduction.

          Mary – The Virgin Queen.

Without question one of the most significant religious events in Mexico’s history is celebrated every December 12. According to the legend that is the day on which the Holy Virgin Mary appeared to the Nahua Indian, Juan Diego^[1], almost 500 years ago.

For anyone in Mexico on that date, the sounds of fireworks and mariachi bands playing Las Mañaitas are heard long before the sun comes up. These are the sounds of the faithful paying homage to their Virgin Queen: roaring “booms” filling the predawn air, traditional Mexican bands playing their music (for $150.00 United States Dollars per hour) to the stone statue that stands in front of the cathedral. This is how the “chosen” express their faith every December 12.

          The Historical Context

When the Spanish Conquistador Hernando Cortez landed in what is now the Mexican Port City of Vera Cruz, the year was 1519 and the country that was to become Mexico was inhabited by hundreds of Indian tribes. At the time of Cortez’ arrival, the dominant tribe was the Aztecs ruled by Montezuma. Within two years, the superior technology (and the theretofore unknown diseases) of the Europeans had the indigenous peoples of the continent either completely obliterated or subservient to the fair-skinned newcomers.

          The Religious Context.

By 1531, the Spanish had managed to convert a scant number of the dark-skinned natives from their superstitious religion to the European version of Christianity. However, the Spanish invaders understood that if Catholic Spain was ever to truly rule these pagan people, Catholicism would have to become the national religion. Nothing less than an en masse conversion was needed. For that to happen, something had to destroy the main stumbling block to conversion for these indigenous people: the fair‑skinned, blue‑eyed image of the Mother of God which the Europeans had brought with them. The Church knew that it needed a miracle to convert the Indians.

The Five Apparitions of the Holy Virgin Mary of the Immaculate Conception to Juan Diego and Juan Bernardino.

          The First Apparition – Saturday, December 9, 1531, predawn.

Early on, one of the more zealous families to convert to Catholicism was the family of an Indian named Juan Diego, a native of Cuautitlan. According to the legend, on Saturday, Dec. 9, 1531, Juan Diego was on his way to mass^[2] at the Temple of Santa Cruz de Tlatelolco at the northern edge of what is now Mexico City. As he walked along the hill of Tepeyac, he heard a chant^[3] that seemed to come from another world. He stopped to enjoy it and perhaps see what could it mean. Above him, he saw something like a shining sun and in the middle a praying lady. She called to him affectionately and even used the diminutive of his name, calling him “Juanito.”^[4]

This heavenly woman was no European. She was a dark‑skinned Indian like himself. She approached and told him, in his native dialect,

Know for certain, dearest of my sons, that I am the perfect and perpetual Virgin Mary, Mother of the True God, through whom everything lives, the Lord of all things, who is Master of Heaven and Earth. I ardently desire a teocalli (temple) be built here for me where I will show and offer all my love, my compassion, my help and my protection to the people. I am your merciful Mother, the Mother of all who live united in this land, and of all mankind, of all those who love me, of those who cry to me, of those who have confidence in me. Here I will hear their weeping and their sorrows, and will remedy and alleviate their sufferings, necessities and misfortunes. Therefore, in order to realise [sic] my intentions, go to the house of the Bishop of Mexico City [Fray Juan de Zumárraga] and tell him that I sent you and that it is my desire to have a teocalli built here. Tell him all that you have seen and heard. Be assured that I shall be very grateful and will reward you for doing diligently what I have asked of you. Now that you have heard my words, my son, go and do everything as best as you can.^[5]

The humble Indian bowed in reverence, took his leave of the heavenly vision and set off with haste toward Mexico City.

          The Second Apparition – Saturday, December 9, 1531, afternoon.

After waiting for several hours, and being humiliated by the house officials of the Bishop, Juan Diego was finally able to see the Holy Man of God. Although intrigued by the strange little man’s tale, Zumárraga did not take him seriously and asked him to come back later. The Bishop told Juan Diego, “You must come again, my son, when I can hear you more at my leisure. Meanwhile, I will reflect on what you have told me and I will take careful consideration of the goodwill and the earnest desire that caused you to come to me.”^[6]

Dejected and bitterly disappointed, Juan Diego left the presence of the Bishop and went back to the hill. There the woman appeared to him for the second time and asked him to go back on Sunday and see the Archbishop again. In Moses-like fashion, Juan Diego replied,

Noble Lady, I obeyed your orders. I entered into the Bishop’s audience chamber, although I had difficulty in doing so. I saw His Excellency as you asked of me. He received me kindly and listened with attention, but when he answered me, it seemed as if he did not believe me. . . . So I beg you, noble Lady, entrust this message to someone of importance, someone well-known and respected, so that your wish will be accomplished. For I am only a lowly peasant and you, my Lady, have sent me to a place where I have no standing. Forgive me if I have disappointed you for having failed in my mission.^[7]

The Virgin smiled tenderly on him and said,

Listen to me, my dearest son, and understand that I have many servants and messengers whom I could charge with the delivery of my message. But it is altogether necessary that you should be the one to undertaken [sic] this mission and that it be through your meditation and assistance that my wish should be accomplished. I urge you to go to the Bishop again tomorrow. Tell him in my name and make him fully understand my disposition, that he should undertake the erection of the teocalli for which I ask. And repeat to him that it is I in person, the ever Virgin Mary, the Mother of God, who send you.^[8]

 The faithful Indian obeyed and this time the Bishop, surprised at the tenacity of the humble little man, asked him to bring a proof of the woman’s existence. When asked by Juan Diego, “Señor, just what kind of sign do you ask for? I shall go at once and request it of the Lady of Heaven who sent me?” the Bishop replied that he would leave it to the supposed vision to supply the sign.

          The Third Apparition – Sunday, December 10, 1531, evening.

Upon leaving the audience chamber of the Bishop for the second time, Juan Diego set out for the hill in search of the sign of Heaven that the Bishop required. The Bishop, still skeptical, had Juan Diego followed by several of his trusted house officials. They were able to discreetly track his journey until he got to the hill where he mysteriously disappeared. They searched in vain and finally returned to the Bishop to report what had happened.

In the meantime, Juan Diego was having yet another conversation with the Heavenly Lady. The bright aura surrounding the Lady had enveloped Juan Diego as a mist, concealing his whereabouts from the Bishop’s officials. The Indian messenger told the Lady of the bishop’s request for a sign. The Holy Mother of God replied, “That is very well my son. Return here tomorrow and you will have the sign he requests. Then he will believe and no longer doubt or suspect you.”^[9]

          An Interlude: The Terminal Illness of Juan Diego’s Uncle, Juan Bernardino.^[10]

That evening (Sunday, December 10, 1531) Juan Diego returned to the home of his uncle, Juan Bernardino, with whom he was living. His heart was rejoicing that the Lady was going to give him the sign he needed to accomplish his mission. He intended to eat dinner and go directly to bed. He also fully intended to return to the hill the next day to receive the sign and take it into Mexico City to convince the Bishop of the Lady’s existence.

Juan Diego was horrified, however, upon reaching his uncle’s house. Juan Bernardino was lying in his bed seriously ill with cocolixtle, a dreaded fever that invariably claimed the lives of its victims. All that night and all the next day, instead of resting and returning to the hill as planned,  Juan Diego played nurse to his uncle. As the sun was setting on Monday, December 11, 1531, it was obvious that Juan Bernardino was about to die. He pleaded with his nephew to hurry the next morning to summon the priest to hear his final confession and to administer the last sacraments.

          The Fourth Apparition – Tuesday, December 12, 1531, morning.

At four o’clock in the morning,  Tuesday, December 12, 1531, Juan Diego set out for the city to bring a priest to administer the spiritual aids to his uncle. As he went past the hill, he was embarrassed and ashamed at his disobedience for not having returned the previous day as instructed.  He actually tried to avoid going past the hill. He did not follow his usual path, but, instead, struck off across the rough, grassy ground on the east side where he hoped to slip by unseen.

However, the woman appeared again and this time descended from the hill. She was, again, surrounded by a glorious light and was traveling on a course designed to intercept the Indian. He approached her in shame and told her that he was looking for a priest and about his uncle’s illness. He could see love and sympathy flowing from the Lady’s steadfast gaze as she told him,

Listen and let it penetrate your heart, my dear little son. Do not be troubled or weighed down with grief. Do not fear any illness or vexation, anxiety or pain. Am I not here who am your mother?[^[11]] Are you not under my shadow and protection? Am I not your fountain of life? Are you not in the folds of my mantle? In the crossing of my arms? Is there anything else you need? Do not let the illness of your uncle worry you because he is not going to die of his sickness. At this very moment, he is cured.^[12]

           The Miraculous Flowers

The woman then told Juan Diego to climb up the summit of Tepeyac “to the spot where you saw me previously. There you will find many flowers growing. Gather them carefully, assembly [sic] them together, and then bring them back and show me what you have.”^[13]

The faithful Indian climbed the hill and on reaching the crest was amazed to find a brilliant profusion of flowers, including Castilian roses, blooming in the frozen soil. Not only were they in bloom completely out of season, but it would have been quite impossible for any flowers to grow in terrain so stony that it could only yield thistles, cactus and mezquite bushes. He noticed that the flowers glittered with dewdrops and that their delicious fragrance rose like a breath of Paradise.^[14]

Arranging the flowers in his “ayate” or “tilma” (a kind of poncho worn by poor people in that epoch), Juan Diego returned to the Lady who was waiting for him in a blaze of light. The woman, after affectionately rearranging the flowers with her own hand, told Juan Diego to take them to the archbishop, without showing his “ayate” or the flowers to anybody else. She told him, “My little son, these varied flowers are the sign which you are to take to the bishop. Tell him in my name that in them he will recognise [sic] my will and that he must fulfill it.”^[15]

After struggling to get in the temple to see Zumárraga, Juan Diego told the friar that he had the proof of the visions he had had. He opened his tilma in the presence of the archbishop in order to show him the miraculous flowers. As the flowers “cascaded to the floor in a profusion of colour and perfume,”^[16] the image of Our Lady of Guadalupe, the Mother of Christ, appeared imprinted on the tilma of Juan Diego. “For one electrifying moment, the eyes of every person in that hushed room were rivetted on the glowing image as if they were contemplating an apparition. Then slowly they sank to their knees in awe and veneration.”^[17]

Conclusion.

          The Mass Conversion of the Indians.

Once word spread among the Indians that the Mother of God, the Virgin Mary that the Europeans preached, had appeared to one of their own, in a form that they recognized and with which they could identify, speaking their native dialect, the honored natives converted to Catholicism en mass. Since then, virtually all of the Americas have recognized this miracle and have made the Lady of Guadalupe the “Queen of Mexico” and “Empress of the Americas and of the Philippine Islands.” This was the largest en masse conversion to Catholicism in the history of the Catholic Church.

          Modern Day Mexico Still Revers the Virgin of Guadalupe.^[18]

The poncho of Juan Diego, together with the image of the Virgin which appeared on it, can be seen today in the Basilica of the Virgin of Guadalupe in Northern Mexico City. Every year the feast of the Virgin of Guadalupe, which begins at midnight on December 11, attracts millions to the Basilica. In 1999 it was estimated that more than six million people visited the Basilica to pray to their queen, to ask her for favors and to thank the Virgin Morena (the dark‑skinned virgin) for granting their petitions. Many of these faithful Catholics actually begin the pilgrimage to the Basilica during the last days of November and walk for hundreds of miles to be present on December 12. Near the entrance to the Basilica many pilgrims can be seen crawling in the streets paying homage to their Queen. Some actually flagellate themselves as a sign of repentance and dedication to the Holy Virgin.

Although the Basilica in Mexico City is the place where most Mexican Catholics want to go to pay their respects to their Holy Virgin on December 12 every year, many of them cannot make the pilgrimage. For that reason, almost every local Catholic Church has festivities of its own to satisfy the needs of its Parishioners. Most have Mass every hour on the hour beginning at midnight and continuing throughout the day.

As one local journalist noted, “The day of the Virgin of Guadalupe offers more than an opportunity to confirm Catholics’  faith, it strengthens national identity and gives a wonderful excuse for a jubilant community to throw a spectacular but overwhelming party.”

          The Imagery of the Virgin.

Apparently much of the symbolism seen on the poncho of Juan Diego comes from Revelation 12:

A great and wondrous sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet and a crown of twelve stars on her head. . . .

The moon under the feet of the Virgin of Guadalupe can be clearly seen in the version of the image which accompanies this paper. She also seems to be “clothed with the sun.” In this particular version of the image there is a crown with twelve stars on her head. Some versions omit that detail but include the many stars on her shawl.

There are several variations as to the identity of the being beneath the Virgin’s feet. The most prominent are: (1) it is an angel (the number one answer); (2) it is the Devil (in fulfillment of the Catholic interpretation of Genesis 3:15); or (3) it is Juan Diego.

          A Modern Contradiction.

From the perspective of a modern-day Christian, the practice of such a strange mixture of Christianity, idolatry, and pagan superstition seems impossible, especially in a “modern” country such as Mexico. But, be assured, it is very real and it is taken very seriously by the vast majority of Mexicans.

Every year it vexes the soul to witness its practice. One wonders less and less how the prophets of old felt as they preached Jehovah to the people and watched with tears as the people worshiped the Baals.

As a person comes to know God more intimately, he or she begins to take on more and more of God’s characteristics. Along with joyful celebration come the qualities of decency, uprightness, goodness, and compassion.

As a community of people begins to be transformed by faith certain things inevitably take place within that community. People who are normally marginalized by secular society participate in God’s community on an equal footing. The so-called powerless sense with boldness the empowerment granted to them by the compassionate community of God’s people. The “privileged” act in ways that promote the well-being of others. The innate worth of every human being is affirmed by all within the community.

This state of existence is described by the Hebrew word hesed. It is variously translated kindness, loving kindness, or loyalty. It speaks of a relationship of care, compassion, and unfailing provision that springs out of a character of impeccable integrity. God is saturated with hesed; He is trying to shape us into that kind of people as well.

At this Holiday Season many of our neighbors are considering Jesus Christ and the meaning of His life. Of course we know that He offers God’s joy (and hesed) to the world every day. We also try to celebrate that joy every day by the way in which we live, love, and interact with others. But at this time of the year, it seems to me, that even though we know His birthday is not December 25, we still have an exceptional opportunity to share His nature with this dying world.

Merry Christmas. May He grant you the opportunity to play your part in bringing Joy to the World in some way this Holiday Season.

After landing in the New World, the Pilgrims experienced nothing but hard times. Starting their new lives from scratch, they had to work hard just to satisfy their basic needs. Simple shelter and food came to these families only after strenuous toil and back-breaking labor. Many men, women, and especially children died of starvation. Their difficulties were real and their losses were many.

Yet, with an abundance of reasons to complain, they gathered together in thanksgiving. In the midst of almost unbearable hardship they maintained the ability to be thankful. That is precisely what God is asking us to do—be thankful. And being thankful is a choice—a choice we make in the midst of our human hardships; a choice we make in spite of the difficulties presented to us by our human experience.

Many of us have been through tough times and painful tragedies in our lives. We’ve lost family members, been wracked with health problems, and faced financial stress. Some of us have allowed these experiences to turn us bitter and resentful. When we speak we reveal the denial that resides in our souls; when we interact with others the resentment within us becomes apparent. As our approach to life is examined our feeble attempts at manipulation become clear.

Others of us exude warmth and love. We laugh often and have kind words to give to anyone willing to receive them. The joy that finds a home deep within our being percolates there and radiates a gentleness, kindness, and depth of character that speaks volumes about our relationship to God.

Every living human being has heart aches about which we can elaborate. The difference between a complainer and a thankful person is one of attitude. Some of us speak of the tragedy of life as if it alone defines who we are. Others of us choose to stay focused on God, His goodness, His beauty, and His gracious nature. These latter saints are those who have learned the secret of being thankful: it is a lifestyle that we choose to pursue rather than a state of being shaped by our circumstances.

What about us? Are we victims or victors? Are we focusing on the difficulties of a fallen life or are we keeping our eyes on the beauty and nature of a gracious God? Choose to rejoice and be thankful!

The complaint is often heard that no one preaches about Hell anymore. I have confessed that my generation (i.e., the Baby Boomers) has a particular aversion to this unpleasant, touchy, and often controversial subject. The truth of the matter, however, is that Jesus spoke of Hell often. Therefore, anyone claiming to be a Gospel Preacher must also spend some time wrestling with this subject.

The idea of Hell, while perhaps not very attractive, is at least fascinating to many human beings. Dante’s Inferno and Milton’s Paradise Lost are concrete evidence of our obsession with the subject. A popular magazine article of a few years ago argues that North Americans are becoming more interested in the subject. (“Hell’s Sober Comeback,” U.S. News and World Report (March 25, 1991) 56-63).

Unfortunately, much of the information about Hell is not very biblical. As would be expected, many modern, liberal theologians wind up watering down the Bible’s presentation of Hell. Here is a short list of what I believe to be excellent resources on the subject of Heaven and Hell.

• Alcorn, Randy. Heaven.Wheaton, Illinois: Tyndale House Publishers, 2004.
• Moo, Douglas. Hell Under Fire: Modern Scholarship Reinvents Eternal Punishment. GrandvRapids, Michigan: Zondervan, 2004.
• Peterson, Robert A. Hell on Trial: The Case for Eternal Punishment. Phillipsburg, New Jersey: P. & R. Publishing, 1995.
• Smith, F. LaGard. After Life: A Glimpse of Eternity Beyond Death’s Door. Memphis, Tennessee: Cotswold Publishing, 2003.
• Tada, Joni Eareckson. Heaven: Your Real Home. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan, 1997.

We need to revive our interest in, and preaching about, Heaven and Hell. The Bible teaches that once a person slips from this life into the next there will be no opportunity for repentance. In other words, the only hope we can offer must be embraced while this life is still transpiring. Once eternity is met the reality of Heaven and Hell will be fully realized by each one of us.

“For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction.” That is what is commonly referred to as Newton’s Third Law of Motion. It appears that this law applies to the area of theology as well!

In the waning years of the 19^th century liberalism argued that Scripture could be reconciled with the intellectual advances of the day if one merely abandoned the need to interpret the biblical text literally. One day did not mean one day, virgin birth did not mean virgin birth, and so on.

Christian fundamentalists reacted to this liberal approach by demanding a literal interpretation of the Sacred Text. Every word was inspired and, therefore, every word was absolutely true in its most literal sense.

This reaction led to the resurrection of millenarianism, a doctrine that has been around since the second century AD; a doctrine that depends upon the literal interpretation of Scripture for its survival. As each side of the discussion pressed its case, the chasm between them became impassible. It was not long before one’s view on the Millennial Reign of Christ became a “test of fellowship.” It was not long before all those who believed in a literal 1,000 year reign were on the outside looking in.

Differences of viewpoint are nothing new. The chasms they create aren’t either. The question is, “Do these gaping holes in our relationships honor the God who created us?” T.B. Larimore (1843-1929) didn’t think so. He refused to involve himself in the wrangling of his day. Although he was deeply influenced by staunch participants in the fray, he refused to state his position on the issues publicly. He did not dabble in issues over which “the wisest and best of men disagreed.”

Partisans on both sides of the widening chasm criticized him harshly; each side demanded that he declare his values and decide his loyalty. Instead, he openly fellowshipped with both sides, preached wherever he was invited, was on the list of Preachers for the “opposing party” until 1925, and wrote for religious papers in both groups.

Larimore’s goal was, as was the goal of the first generation within the Stone-Campbell churches, Christian unity. His approach was to “concede to all, and accord to all, the same sincerity and courtesy I claim for myself, as the Golden Rule demands ….”

Chasms in human relationships will always exist. Clearly we must never be the cause of such phenomena. The challenge is to navigate our lives so as to not contribute to their expansion.

The term eschatology comes from two Greek words: (1) eschatos, last, and (2) logos, speech, word, or discussion. Eschatology then is a discussion of the last things or the final age of human history. It is also a mindset, a way of looking at time.

Obviously it is difficult for those of us who have never known anything but time to speak the language of the One who lives beyond time. And yet the Timeless One entered into time to teach us something about time. It behooves us to make a sincere effort to embrace His teaching about time.

Theories abound on how we should properly interpret the New Testament’s presentation of the end of time (the eschaton). C. H. Dodd proposed a useful conceptualization of the end of time that he called Realized Eschatology. According to his proposal, since the end of the world has already been announced by God then the end of time has already been “realized.” Most reject this terminology (if not his idea outright) because it can be misinterpreted to mean that the end of time has already been realized—the end of the world has already occurred.

Oscar Cullman proposed a more useful term for (and a more coherent explanation of) the end of time. He argued that we should see things in terms of Inaugurated Eschatology. God has announced the end of the world; however, we should see that not as the realization of the end of time but the inauguration of the end. In other words, the beginning of the end has arrived but the end of the end has not.

Clearly God has established events and experiences that are to help us experience the “end of time” in the here and now. In the Lord’s Supper, for example, we celebrate our salvation now, we feast now, we experience forgiveness now and yet, simultaneously, we anticipate that Great Banquet at which the full realization of all these things will take place. In-time judgments (e.g., the destruction of Jerusalem) are also in-time events that carry with them end-of-the-world significance.

The importance of this discussion is in how we view our lives in relation to the end of time. Are we living in this present age? Or are we living the future now?

Historically “freedom” has been an emotionally charged word. Many politicians have run their campaigns on its ticket. Many economists have founded their professional reputations on its power. Many men and women have given their lives in its defense. And every July 4 in the United States of America many of us celebrate its abiding presence in our country.

But theologically the concept of human freedom is much more elusive. Are human beings truly free? If your answer is an immediate, “Yes” (which I assume it will be since you are an American and, as I’ve said, freedom is an emotionally charged word) then my next question is, “Free to do or to be what?” Specifically, are we free to not sin?

Think about that one for a minute. Does the Bible teach that human beings are free not to sin? Is all it takes to live a perfectly sin-free life merely the will to do so? Was the British monk Pelagius correct after all? Are we free to be sinless? All that is required is the determined exercise of our wills so as to perfectly conform to God’s commandments? Are we sure about that? Or was Augustine (and the Church) correct in condemning Pelagius as a heretic?

Regardless of where you come out on that age-old debate, doesn’t the Bible (especially Paul) describe Christian discipleship in terms of slavery? I would argue that following the fall human beings are incapable of ever being truly free, as we define freedom. The Bible emphatically teaches that we are either slaves to sin or we are slaves to God (Romans 6:17-18).

And so before we glibly shout our secular mantra, “Let Freedom Ring” let’s remember that freedom to the natural man means, “Leave me alone so that I can do and be anything I want to do and be.” Inevitably this attitude leads us straight into a sinful lifestyle that enslaves us rather than frees us.

Instead, let’s firmly and resolutely shout our God’s command, “Let Jesus Reign.” Paradoxically, it is only as we submit to Him as slaves that we become truly free.