Conspirator
- Brian
- I went out there in search of experience To taste and to touch and to feel as much As a man can before he repents.
Read
Hear
The Slippery Slope: Tis the Season, 2 of 2
/
2 Comments
In The Challenge of Jesus: Rediscovering Who Jesus Was and Is N.T. Wright attempts to interpret Jesus within his first-century, post-exilic context. Wright determines that a first-century Jew would have still considered himself or herself in a state of exile. Though the geographic exile had ended, the theological state of exile continued. But because of God's redemptive work through Jesus, exile is over and the light of God to the world, which Israel was supposed to be, is now from Messiah Jesus. Israel's punishment for failure to be the light was exile, but Jesus came and took the punishment upon himself. Wright states, "He became the suffering Israel on behalf of the suffering Israel; he went into exile--Israel's exile, the human exile from the garden, the exile of the whole cosmos--to redeem those who were in exile" (165).
Because He was born, creation is blessed. Wright states, "Our task is to announce in deed and word that the exile is over, to enact the symbols that speak of healing and forgiveness, to act boldly in God's world in the power of the Spirit" (185). Because He was born, creation is blessed. What a marvelous story. What a marvelous lesson to teach our children. What a marvelous occasion is Christmas to teach our children (and others) that because He was born, creation is blessed.
I'd like to think that people will read this (and yesterday's post) and agree with me. That they won't engage in the typical Christmas consumerism and that, instead, they'll use their wealth to bless the creation,
rather than give material "non-needs" to each other. I imagine that won't happen. We've made too many excuses for our Christmas behavior for so long that the people who would speak against it just look self-righteous. We've made so many excuses that our consumerism looks like giving...at least in our own eyes. Well, in any event, let me give you an alternative: click here. WorldVision is a four star charity that has done work to provide people of wealth with easy, reliable and specific means to give to the poor. Look at the information on the web page if you want to know what I mean by specific; there are a lot of different ways to give. A lot of different ways for you, because you have been reborn, to bless creation.This year for Christmas, instead of spending money on those "non-needs" to show your love to your friends and family, show your love by buying a goat that can provide a family in a developing country with nourishment. Or a chicken. Or a pig. Or a cow. You can give a gift in someone's name. Buy a fruit tree in the name of each of your kids. Or, buy a pig in the name of all of your kids. Leave the certificate under the tree, and when Christmas day arrives and there are no boxes of toys or stockings of candy, show them the certificate. Tell them the story of how Jesus blessed creation. Tell them how a cow provides nourishment for a poor family, that the gift was bought on their behalf and that's why they don't have toys this year. Just because they were born, we buy them toys. Year after year after year. What if we could wake up on Christmas and tell our kids, parents, or brothers and sisters that, because they were born, creation is blessed. Because you were born, creation is blessed. Man, what a wonderful thing to be able to tell someone. No, I didn't get you a book or a coffee mug or a laptop. I didn't buy you new earrings. Instead I paid for 15 flu shots for children in India. If you hadn't been born, I wouldn't have done that. But I did it. Because you were born, creation is blessed. Tis the season.
About Post Author