As we are in the midst of excited and reflective expectation during this season of Lent, it is important for us to remember just what is the thing that we are expecting.
The total redemptive story of God, as revealed in Scripture, constantly reminds us that we can place our faith, and joy, in the promise of eternal life in the presence of God, through Jesus, and by the power and presence of the Holy Spirit.
We live in a world that is based on uncertainty. We live in a world of “What if?”s For many of us, even though we have been blessed with much, the question of “What if?” might still dominate our daily lives. What if I don’t receive a good grade on this exam? What if I don’t get into the university that I want to? What if I don’t get a job in the career of my choice? What if I lose my job? What if people do not see, or think of, me the way that I would like for them to? What if people do not care about me? What if people do not love me?
The redemptive story of God reminds us that we do not have to exist in “What if?”, but that we can place our confidence in “What is.” What is true is that in spite of the brokenness of the world, God still loved enough to send his son, Jesus, to die for us. What is true is that through Jesus, we have redemption, forgiveness, and healing. What is true is that through Jesus, we have the promise of eternal life. What is true is that the living God dwells within the hearts of believers with the Holy Spirit. What is true is that in spite of how messed up this world is, we have the promise of an existence where hate, brokenness, self-centeredness, and death will all be a thing of the past.
We see in John 17 that Jesus prays to the Father, not for himself, but for God’s redemptive plan. Jesus first prays that God would be glorified, through the eventual death and resurrection that is going to happen. Jesus then prays for the disciples, that they will be protected and sanctified, so that they will be set apart for God’s mission in the world. Jesus then prays for all of the future believers (us!) who will come to know God through the message of the disciples. This is all part of the grand narrative- that from the very beginning, God had planned to save the world through Jesus.
What is true is that we now have a new reality that we can exist in. As believers in Jesus, we now have access to the unity that is modelled in the three persons of the trinity, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Just as Jesus indicates that he and the Father are one, we are also one with God, and also with each other. What is, is that we now exist as people who represent God to the world. As James Choung so aptly puts it, “In the community of believers…that’s where God’s presence is supposed to be- and where heaven shows up on the planet. The community of believers is Jesus to the world.”
As we reflect on the expectation of what Jesus has done for us on the cross, let us not lose sight of the fact that that was a transformative event. What is, is that we, as believers, are meant to be agents of God’s work in the world. What is our mandate from God, is that we are to go out and make disciples, and to also be a blessing to all peoples. The resurrection assures us of our new reality and what is, for us.
See y’all on Sunday!
William Leung