The Eucatastrophe

J. R. R. Tolkein, in his famous essay of 1947, On Fairy Stories, makes this statement:

"The Birth of Christ is the eucatastrophe of man's history. The Resurrection is the eucatastrophe of the Incarnation. This story begins and ends in joy. There is no tale ever told that men would rather find was true, and none which so many skeptical men have accepted as true on its own merit."

Tolkein coined the term eucatastrophe by adding the Greek prefix, "eu," which means "good," to the word, "catastrophe." It describes the climactic moment in the story when evil seems overwhelmingly likely to conquer, only to suddenly turn around to be utterly defeated. In The Lord of the Rings, the major eucatastrophe happens when Sauron, the Dark Lord, seems about to destroy the armies of the West, only to see the Ring of Power unmade under his nose to the utter destruction and ruination of his kingdom.

In "Letter 89", Tolkein says that the eucatastrophe is "the sudden happy turn in a story which pierces you with a joy that brings tears...It is a sudden glimpse of Truth...the Resurrection was the greatest 'eucatastrophe' possible...and produces that essential emotion: Christian joy which produces tears because it is qualitatively so like sorrow, because it comes from those places where Joy and Sorrow are at one, reconciled..."

In Peter's first epistle, he begins with a discussion of the living hope of the Christian. Our hope is in the living Christ who, through the Resurrection, has turned death itself on its head. And even though we may suffer "grief in all kinds of trials" (1 Pet. 1: 6), yet we "greatly rejoice".

Why? Because we look to the climax of history. The great triumph of God, begun in the Resurrection of Christ; to be completed in His glorious appearing at the end of this evil age.

The sorrows of life are swallowed up in joy as we grasp the reality of what the Resurrection means to us--both in this life and in the glorious age to come.

"In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that your faith--of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire--may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed. Though you have not seen him, you love him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are receiving the goal of your faith, the salvation of your souls" (1 Pet. 1: 6-9).

Are you struggling with life? Turn to the realities of what Christ has done. His Incarnation, His Death and Resurrection--and the promise of the consummation of His Kingdom rule and our eternal redemption. Let the Truth meet you so that the sorrow is swallowed up in "an inexpressible and glorious joy."

Jeremiah and 9/11

Where were you on Tuesday, Sept. 11, 2001?

I'll never forget my wife, Julianne, running up the stairs, interrupting her exercise regimen to tell me that commercial airliners had flown into the two World Trade Center towers in New York. I sat glued to the television as the towers collapsed in a cloud of dust and ash, watching frightened people running away to escape.

Then another plane crashed into the Pentagon. There was a rumor of a bomb at the State Department that proved untrue. Then, another plane brought down by brave passengers in a field in Pennsylvania. We in America were under attack.

Estimates of potential casualties varied wildly up to the 100,000's. Due largely to the heroic efforts of the first responders who ran towards danger as average people were running away, the total number of deaths were under 3,000. Still, a horrific figure, making it the worst civilian casualty number in American history.

The prophet, Jeremiah, wrote a poem in the form of a lament after the destruction of the city of Jerusalem. It is included in the Old Testament as "Lamentations." and is inserted between Jeremiah and Ezekiel. Jeremiah went through a "9/11" experience of horror and grief as he watched the symbols of the glory of Israel reduced to ashes--the razing of the Temple, the burning of all the major buildings including the Royal Palace, and the complete demolition of the walls of Jerusalem.

Yet, in the very center of Lamentations is one of the most beautiful expressions of hope.

"Yet this I call to mind and therefore I have hope: Because of the Lord's great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness" (Lam. 3: 21-23).

A wonderfully rich word stands at the center of this verse--hesed. The NIV here translates it as "great love." It stands in parallel with "compassion or mercy."

God's hesed is his covenant love. That is, his promised devotion to his people that will never fail because it is rooted in his very nature. God's unfailing, faithful devotion to his covenant people transcends our momentary grief, no matter how great nor how intense. God's enduring love is always greater still.

"They are new every morning." In the Jewish worldview, every day is like the beginning of a new creation. God's love is renewed with the rising of every sun. And, as we can depend on the sun rising every morning, so we can rely on God's love.

"Great is your faithfulness." God's love is rock-solid. He is faithful to fulfill what he has promised to us.

As we remember the 10th Anniversary of 9/11, let us call to mind the faithful, covenant love of God. Have you placed your faith in Him today?

Healing and the Kingdom of God

The following entry is a response to a request from a long-time friend who is encountering some "cognitive dissonance" as he and his family attend a Pentecostal/Charismatic church. I make the entry with a lot of humility, but I offer my opinion in hopes it will help people as they seek to "do the stuff" (a John Wimber-ism by which he meant actually doing the works of the Kingdom, rather than simply studying about them). Hopefully this is not so academic that it fails to be practical for you.

My friend's church has taught that "you never ask God for what he has already promised or purposed for you...instead, you are to make 'declarations.'" In other words, asking shows a lack of faith; declaration shows a confidence in God's promises.

This particular issue goes to the heart of what distinguishes the Vineyard movement from Pentecostal/Charismatics (and also what tends to confuse our Conservative Evangelical brethren). You could say that the Vineyard is defined by the dynamic tension that exists between these two streams of Evangelicalism.

The titles of two books summarize the Vineyard position between the two. Rich Nathan and Ken Wilson's book, Empowered Evangelicals, says it all. We are a movement that wants to take the best of Pentecostal experience (empowered), leaving behind what we view as its excesses; while we hold on to a solid Evangelical approach to biblical/theological scholarship (evangelicals), but leaving behind the tendency to minimize the present miraculous work of the Spirit.

The other book is Bill Jackson's Quest for the Radical Middle. Once again, the Vineyard has sought to live in a dynamic tension between the fresh work of the Spirit, and a solid commitment to biblical theology. In other words, holding both the Word and Spirit in balance.

This all flows from the influence of George Eldon Ladd, late Fuller Professor, whose Gospel of the Kingdom, and New Testament Theology are foundational for understanding John Wimber's teaching about healing. In Jesus, the Kingdom of God broke into the present evil age. His words and His works were evidence of the reality of the presence of the Kingdom. Jesus passed on to his disciples his Kingdom ministry. And they have passed it on to their disciples. And on and on...all the way to us.

One of the key aspects of the Kingdom is that it has "now come" and is still "yet to come." This"now-and-not-yet" quality of the Kingdom characterizes everything we experience in this present evil age.

Take, for instance, our salvation. We enter the Kingdom and are saved when we place our faith in the King (2 Tim. 1: 9). Yet, we are "being saved" as we go through a process of transformation in this life called sanctification (Php. 2: 12-13). And we "will be saved" when the future promised Kingdom arrives in its glory (1 Pet. 1: 5,9).

Pentecostal theology has tended to argue that physical healing is included in the atoning work of Christ based on Isaiah 53, Matt. 8: 16-17 and 1 Pet. 2: 24 and therefore, we must just claim what is rightfully ours and exhibit unwavering faith in the work of God. There is not enough time to do a thorough exegesis of these passages. Suffice it to say that you must make several hermeneutical leaps to conclude that healing is guaranteed in the atonement.

If we say that healing is guaranteed in the atonement and that faith is the only way to access that healing, we must conclude that people are not healed solely because they lack faith in some way.

Just a quick survey of the New Testament shows that healing did not always occur for Jesus or the apostles. Jesus could not do many miracles (Mark 6: 5). God refused to heal Paul's "thorn in the flesh" (2 Cor. 12: 7-10). Timothy's ailing stomach condition (1 Tim. 5: 23). The Pentecostal explanation is that they lacked faith. The Kingdom explanation is the now-and-not-yet of the Kingdom.

Yes, faith is necessary for healing. But if you analyze the healings in the New Testament, sometimes it is the faith of the pray-er (like Jesus healing the man at the pool Siloam) and sometimes it is the faith of the receiver (like the woman touching the hem of his garment.)

Does this exclude making declarative pronouncements? Not at all. When we are led by the Spirit to command healing, we do it. When we are led by the Spirit to lay hands on someone and pray for them, we do that. Every time that someone is healed, it is evidence of the inbreaking of the Kingdom of God. Every time that someone is not healed, it is evidence that the Kingdom of God is not yet fully consummated. So...we pray again.

"Lord, may your Kingdom come, may your will be done, here on earth as it is being done in heaven (where your Kingdom is fully consummated)."

I welcome comments on this topic.

The Center of It All

Above the town of Jasper in the Canadian Rockies is a gondola that lifts you far above the spectacular scenery of Jasper National Park.

After getting off the ride, you can continue hiking the steep trail above the upper gondola platform through the thin mountain air. If you persevere, you will reach a summit that gives you an even more spectacular vista.

On my recent visit, I continued a few hundred feet beyond that point, crossing a small slushy ice field until I reached the highest point above the gondola. The panorama was a full 360 degrees. Perhaps the most dramatic spot I've ever visited--with stunning peaks, glaciers and river valleys all around.

In fact, I began to have the illusion that I was sitting on the axel of a giant wheel. The rest of the world was mounted on this one point and was spinning around it. I'll never forget that moment.

It reminded me of something Jesus said. "But I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all [people] to myself" (John 12 :32).

The cross was lifted up from the earth on the mount called Calvary, with the Savior of the world upon it. All of the physical world, all of the history of the world, all of humanity--is suspended in some way upon that mountain, like the axle of a wheel, because the cross is the focal point of all history.

Luke's account of the crucifixion brings this into focus. The two thieves who were crucified on Jesus' right and left represent the world, justly condemned but with a chance of redemption because of the Savior between them. One rejected him and the other placed his faith in him.

Jesus says to Nicodemus, in John 3:14-15, that He will be like the bronze snake that Moses lifted up on a pole in the wilderness, described in Num. 21: 8-9. Whoever was bitten by the real snake, would just need to look to the bronze snake to live.

The choice could not be presented more clearly: look to Jesus on the cross and live, or reject Jesus on the cross and remain doomed.

Human history and human destiny are all about Jesus. At the cross, he was lifted up and now stands at the center of it all. So for each of us comes the most important question we must answer: "Do you believe?"

The Problem of Pain

Pain is a reality of life. Scott Peck opens his best-seller, The Road Less Traveled, "Life is difficult." Or, as Eliphaz says to Job, "Yet man is born to trouble as surely as sparks fly upward" (Job 5: 7).

So, if God is good, why does he allow pain, especially for his children? When we come to Christ, shouldn't that end all of the pain and begin a life of blissful happiness?

In his classic book, The Problem of Pain, C. S. Lewis says, "God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks in our conscience, but shouts in our pain; it is His megaphone to rouse a deaf world" (pp. 90-91).

Pain is a tool in the hands of our Master, by which he shapes and matures us. But we must cooperate in the process, or we will not enjoy the benefits from it that He intends.

To quote Scott Peck again, "The avoidance of pain is the root of all mental illness." Or to put it in simpler terms, when we try to avoid pain in our lives, we can really screw things up.

Addictions, relational conflicts, procrastination, etc. They all flow from avoidance of pain.

But it is through pain that God gets our attention so that we can learn and grow.

Consider this astonishing scripture:

"During the days of Jesus' life on earth, he offered up prayers and petitions with loud cries and tears to the one who could save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverent submission. Although he was a Son, he learned obedience from what he suffered and, once made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him" (Heb. 5: 7-9).

How could Jesus learn anything or be made perfect? Made perfect means something more like, was completed or made fully mature. Before the incarnation, the Son had no opportunity to walk in submissive obedience. Although he was potentially obedient, He became and learned obedience by the experience of enduring suffering.

This is why, if we are to truly follow Jesus as His disciples and grow into maturity like He did, we must "pick up our crosses daily and follow him" (see Luke 9: 23).

What are you doing with the pain in your life? Pick it up as the cross God has given to you and follow in Jesus' footsteps of reverent submission so that you can mature into all you are called to be in Him.

E Pluribus Unum

On every coin minted in the United States is a Latin phrase, "E Pluribus Unum." The motto means "out of many, one."

Originally, this referred to the joining of 13 colonies into one nation. But in our modern democratically minded country, it has come to be associated with the way that many ethnicities, cultures and people-groups have melded into a greater identity--a melting pot.

Paul, describing the church in 1 Corinthians 12, makes a similar observation. "The body is a unit, though it is made up of many parts; and though all its parts are many, they form one body" (1 Cor. 12: 12). In fact, this is perhaps the most pervasive metaphor for the church--we are the body of Christ.

This brings together two realities that seem contradictory, but are held in tension by the metaphor: 1) as individuals, we are all different in gifting and functioning; and 2) as a group, we function together to serve a unified purpose. Unity through diversity. In other words, when we learn to embrace and nurture our individual and unique gifts and callings, then the overall unified body works as one.

In Ephesians, Paul uses the same metaphor to describe the church. But instead of focusing on the individual gifts, he shows how the "joints and ligaments" bring us all together under the direction of "the head" who is Christ. And the cement that brings us all together is love.

So, this is the vision: Jesus is the Head; we are all members; if we all value each other and listen to the Head, we will grow into the unity that He intends for us. "Speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into him, who is the Head, that is Christ. From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work" (Eph. 4: 15-16).

What's keeping you from loving all the parts of the body? What's keeping you from faithfully doing your part?

True Leadership

Leadership has been a hot topic in the church in the modern era.

And certainly the world needs visionary leadership these days. Case in point: the "debt crisis" that has begun sweeping through Europe and the United States.

There are no easy solutions. And, unfortunately, the first person who puts a proposal out there is the first one to get shot at. Therefore, the safest thing is to lie low and wait for someone else to take a risk.

Jesus was the greatest leader to ever walk the earth. He set a pattern for leadership that Christians are supposed to emulate. "Everyone who is fully trained will be like his teacher" (Luke 6:40).

Jesus specifically told us not to learn about leadership from the world whose pattern is to "lord it over them" (Mark 10: 42). "Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all" (Mark 10: 43-44).

And of course, Jesus was the one to talk. He practiced what He preached. "For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many" (Mark 10: 45).

In Philippians 2, Paul tells us to take on the attitude of Jesus. Although He was God Himself, He did not use His "God-ness" as an opportunity to acquire more, but instead, to pour Himself out for us, actually becoming our servant, doing for us what only He could do--giving Himself up to death on the cross. (see Php. 2: 5-11).

That's someone I can follow. That's true leadership.