Retelling the story
From The Mystery of Salvation
The Doctrine Commission of the Church of England
Reflections written by Ted Hutchin
I have chosen three aspects of this picture of Jesus from the chapter. The first is that of Christ in our place – the notion that he took our sin, our tragedy, our death upon himself and set us free. The second is the Christ who justifies. This takes the concept of a broken promise and explains why, in the person of Jesus, the promises of God towards mankind, and the response of mankind are held in the one person of Jesus. The third is Christ the victor. This is a response to the evil nature that we see around us and the fact that Jesus, in the resurrection triumphs over evil. Within each of these aspects there are two key dimensions, the first is how St Mary’s has adopted them into the culture of the church and the second focuses on the dangers that might occur if attention is drawn away.
For the final aspect of this assignment, that of discussing the gospel with a non-church friend I have chosen the section describing “Salvation and a suffering God”.
Christ in our place
The starting point of the chapter is the aspect of Jesus in our place. This is based on a threefold diagnosis of the problems facing people today. They are sin, the meaningless tragedy of life and death itself. To address this diagnosis, Jesus was born, was crucified and raised from the dead. He died in great pain, he was seen as a failure, and he died as one of us. As the writers put it “He died our death, sharing our failure, condemnation, despair and godforsakeness” (p103) This was the mission Jesus was given by God. The key to this aspect is that Jesus took our sin upon himself. He freed the people he met from both their physical pain and their spiritual prison. He experienced the tragedies of life at first hand. Innocent he stood accused and condemned. Not one stood with him, he was truly alone. But after all this, comes the resurrection, he rose from the dead. In one life he dealt with sin, tragedy and death. The answer may not have been as the people of time envisaged it, but it was THE answer! As the section ends the final sentence sums it all up “The light of Jesus’ resurrection dispels the shadow death casts over life”. (p104)
Within St Mary’s this aspect of the life Jesus led and the mission contained within it is a core of the work. The work throughout the parish places the notion Jesus in our place highly and at the core of many of our activities. The whole thrust of the new Samworth centre is to take the message beyond the four walls of the church and make a statement to the community at large. To promote the message of a risen Christ, one who took upon Himself, our sin.
There are within this aspect the opportunity for misunderstandings to occur. If Jesus has done away with sin then why do we have to do anything? If he has taken our place then surely we are free from sin, tragedy and death – so let’s get on with life. These sentiments are not quite what were intended. Equally others might say that if He has done this then why does sin still exist? Why am I experiencing great tragedy? Of course both of these opinions miss the point of what Jesus is about. They represent a misunderstanding that the church ha a duty to address. This is where the people within the church must take a responsibility to make the message clear and unequivocal.
Christ who justifies
This must be a crucial part of our relationship with God. “Broken promises are amongst the most disappointing feature of relationships” (p106). Now all is changed, “Christ keeps the promises of God to us and for us that God neither lets us down nor finds us lacking in keeping our promises” (p106). History shows us that it is human failure that has consistently frustrated what God was seeking to achieve. The article highlights the new covenant with God. Jesus being fully divine, and fully human, is able to bridge the gap. He is able, in His own person to restore the relationship himself. “The result of this is our justification or righteousness, since we are now in a right relationship with God again because of what Jesus Christ has done.” (p107) Now it is down to us to either accept or reject what God has provided in the example of His son.
The focus of the new covenant is the Last Supper. It is no surprise that the church places a high priority to the Eucharist within both theology and practice. It is the point at which we remind ourselves of this covenant. The Prayer of Humble Access starts with the words “We do not presume to come to this thy table, O merciful Lord, trusting in our own righteousness” and for good reason. Without the living example of the risen Christ there is no new relationship, there is no way to repair the damage done by promises broken over the centuries, promises broken by our side of the bargain, not His.
This aspect is a key feature of life within the church, and my church is no exception. There is always an early morning service which places the Eucharist at the centre, and most other services have the same level of importance attached to this. But there is more to being a church than simply focusing all efforts and importance to the activity of the Eucharist. Obtaining the right level of balance is critical and something which is considered often within St Mary’s. Mission goes beyond the simple adherence to a ritual, no matter how key to the life of the church. If attendance at the communion service is the only criteria for a living and growing church then we should not be experiencing the decline that is all too evident. The process of communion has to be set into the wider context of God’s mission on this Earth, central yes, core yes, but it is not the whole picture and should not be presented as such. That is to diminish the message that God encourages us, indeed, commands us to preach.
Christ the Victor
No matter what might be said by the church, the experience of our lives is that evil appears to dominate. Whether it be individual evil or that of groups, or even nations, the dominant force in our world today appears to be one of unleashed evil. Yet the writer states “The God who creates the world and sees that it is very good is the righteous God who judges and condemns evil, working to liberate His children from the idolatry of false Gods, enslavement to principalities and power of this world and the ultimate denial of meaning in death.” (p117) They go on to argue that “The New Testament writers see the redemption achieved by Jesus as the definitive victory of God over the power of sin and evil.” (p117) Simply put, Jesus is the victor by what happened in the crucifixion and resurrection. Yes he does die, but it is not the end, “ from death he is raised in triumph.” (p118)
Within the church there is a real sense of victory, no false hope but real hope, hope which can only come from a sound foundation in Christ. The resurrection plays a central theme within the church. It is at the core of the gospel that we are commissioned to preach. Within the church we have taken the step to make a commitment to the local community which involves a clear message of salvation, of Christ as King. What could be misunderstood – nothing if the message is kept simple and clear.
Salvation and a suffering God
Our society today is acutely aware of what mankind is capable of doing. In recent memory the brutality of the holocaust, the ethnic cleansing in the Balkans and Africa, and the brutality of the current events in Iraq, are all examples of man’s inhumanity to man. This is not what God intended. Yet at the same time the message that the people hear from the church is that of a distant age. Seeing God as patricial is not what people want to hear. The need of today is to meet the suffering, the tragedies that many people experience in their daily lives. On the cross Jesus suffered, as did God. God indeed allowed suffering to affect him. He has shared suffering in the brutality of Jesus’ crucifixion. He then triumphed in the wonder and mystery of resurrection, what a message!
It seems an odd thought; here is an all-powerful God who permits himself to be affected by grief, by loss, by injustice, by appearing to be, and actually being, vulnerable. “This perception of a God who freely makes himself vulnerable to the suffering of his creation has converged with the strand of atonement theory stemming from Abelard to create a new emerging consensus that has as its central conviction the solidarity of God in Christ with our sin and suffering.” (p112) The relationship we are supposed to have with God has been broken by our wilful departure from His way. He creates the bridge back through the presence of His son Jesus. The only way to achieve this bridge is by the death of Jesus, and His resurrection. To enable this to happen God had to expose Himself to pain, to false accusation, to a sense of lostness, in Jesus.
We live in a world of pain, where self-interest has led to a real sense of lostness. Many people spend a great deal of time searching; searching for meaning, searching for something that makes sense of the life they are living, the world around them. Now that we are all free to choose – we don’t know what to do with this freedom, especially when someone else’s freedom impinges on ours. People are to be found searching in drugs, in the pursuit of money, in attacking what they believe represents evil in their lives. The oft-used phrase that “one man’s terrorist is another’s freedom fighter” has, in the wake of events in both the USA and Iraq taken on a much more sinister meaning. What is irrefutable is that people are searching for, and failing to find, something that satisfies their inner self, something that genuinely satisfies rather than gives illusory, and momentary, pleasure.
But this search will remain fruitless. There is only one answer for the real question they are asking. The answer is Jesus – the risen Christ. The question is, to my mind, “Why am I lost?”, or to put it another way, “Why does nothing satisfy me for long, make me feel as if I belong?” The great news I have for you, whoever you might be, is that God has also experienced the same pain in His separation from His people, and His son. He did so for one simple reason, that you might, if you choose, and yes you do get to choose, to find meaning to life, your life, in the person of Jesus, the risen Christ.
Just consider this, “our creator….is present in the darkest affliction, shares our pain, bears our sorrow, and sustains us through it all, creating good in spite of evil, so revealing the true nature of divine power as showing mercy and pity.” (p113) This says it all.
