THE CHRIST OF THE COSMOS

The above article appeared in The Vine and Branches Vol. 24, Issue 4, 2009, published in Ohio. It reminds us that the historical Jesus has become the Christ of faith. Our Jewish carpenter, the lowly Galilean who lived in the first century, has been exalted and glorified by the power of the resurrection to become the Lord of the universe.

If there is life on other planets, in other galaxies; they too have a Savior who offers them eternal life. The One who in the days of his incarnation never left the land of Palestine, never journeyed more than 100 miles from Bethlehem of Judah, his birthplace, is now available to the furthest reaches of space. To infinity and back communion with our cosmic Christ is available to all who remember him in his broken body and his blood, shed for the remission of sins.

I invite you to take that step of faith to believe that the man known in history as Jesus of Nazareth is risen to dimensions of eternity. This is not a small step; it is rather a giant leap in a person’s understanding of the love that drew salvation’s plan, the grace that brought it down to man and the mighty gulf that God did span in the incarnation and glorification of his son.

DIGGING FOR NUGGETS OF TRUTH

Embedded in Scripture and lying just below the surface, one can find nuggets of spiritual truth. With daily diligence, one can dig them out and turn them into the gold of Christian character. This daily devotional guide is intended as a tool to assist in the mining of such treasure. The secret is to dig into the Word of God on a daily basis.

Like the Manna in the Hebrew Scripture, which would spoil if gathered weekly and stored; fresh insights must be gleaned from the Bible every day. This kind of daily discipline can maintain a growing and glowing personal relationship to our Lord and Savior that can not be done in a hit and miss fashion.

During their wilderness wanderings the people of God gathered the Manna every morning before the sun melted it. This devotional guide recommends that we reserve a period of time in the morning to meditate on the daily Scripture reading, ponder the key concept and reflect on the devotional study, closing with a prayer for the day. Because of its flexibility, this exercise can be done in five minutes or extended to a longer period of time. By the time you get through the three hundred and sixty five days, you will have the foundation you need to begin composing your own devotional literature.

There is a river of life flowing through the Scripture. As you pan for gold, you will discover nuggets of truth that will enrich your faith.

The Cross Stands Fast

The Southern California fire fighters that were near to this cross, as it was engulfed by flames, felt sure that it was gone. Gene Blevins, a photographer, returned to the scene the next day to get some more shots. He was surprised and amazed to find that the cross was not incinerated; it was not even scorched by the heat.

Some would say: “Big deal, this often happens in a fire. One building is destroyed and the one next to it escapes damage.” True, but this cross was right in the middle of a conflagration and surrounded on all sides. Nevertheless, those who are so inclined can explain this away as a coincidence that has no special meaning. For those, however, who choose to believe, this kind of phenomenon can have deep symbolic and theological significance.

Around the middle of the 19th century, it is reported that Sir John Bowring was involved in a ship wreck. He was able to cling to some drift wood and the currents carried him to an island. As the fog lifted, he saw a cross standing on a mountain, keeping watch over the bay where he was swept ashore. Reflecting on this, sometime after his rescue, these words came to mind which have found their way into our church hymnals: “In the cross of Christ I glory, towering o’er the wrecks of time; all the light of sacred story gathers round its head sublime.”

The Bible tells us that in the eternal plan of God, Christ was crucified before the foundations of the world. Some of us believe that long after those foundations are shaken to their core, the cross will still be standing over the wrecks of time.
Many of us believe that the cross is history’s clearest revelation of a love which survives the worst that man can do and keeps on loving.