Joining the Conspiracy of Life

Colossians 1:13–20 (NIV)

For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy. For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.

CONSIDER THIS

Years ago I experienced a season of confused resentment toward God. I strained to understand what made God so special if the cup of my soul would need constant refilling, whether through sacraments, regular prayer, or reading his Word. Shouldn’t God be ever near? And myself always full; without the bended knee of a servant having to approach his throne on some kind of schedule? I wondered to myself, What makes the King of my heart different from the kings of this world if he insists on some kind of relational dependency? I dared to ask with genuine embarrassment, what makes him different from a run-of-the-mill addiction or emotional crutch?

His holiness came under suspicion. I was convinced of my own depravity, and deep down I knew I needed him. But I wondered, do I want him? I came to this objection earnestly, so I kept him at arms length because I was plagued by this question for which I was convinced no answer existed.

The first half of my consolation came through a process of awakening deeper to the character of God. All things weren’t just created for him. I discovered he isn’t a glory-grabbing God insisting on supremacy from an unseen throne. He is “the firstborn from among the dead”—he reached down as far as down could go. As theologian Peter Leithart put it:

God-for-Israel is God-with-Israel. He doesn’t pull levers and push buttons from a heavenly control room. He’s Emmanuel, the God who dwells among his people. That gives us an inkling of what he might do in the final act. Yahweh is enthroned behind curtains, but we suspect he won’t stay hidden forever. Someday he’ll show himself.

And show himself he did! That is to say, Israel’s longing for its one true king, the Messiah, was fulfilled in the first Advent. Jesus born of a virgin was Yahweh inaugurating his kingdom on earth. He came to console the afflicted, free the captive, and make peace through his life sacrifice. Awakening to the goodness of the one true King, demonstrated by his care-full engagement with his creation, felt liberating.

And yet, I wondered, what makes my relationship with God different from a relationship a person might have with their addiction? This answer came by paying closer attention to prepositions: For in him all things were created and through him and in him all things hold together. Over time I came to appreciate, in a deeper way, the holy relationship the Son of God has with creation. His significance is in the details as much as it is cosmic. Not only are things for him, they exist in him and through him. That means all of creation has as its reference the Word of God, the second person of the Trinity. It all holds together in him.

By understanding Jesus, we come to understand his world better. By increasing my dependency on him, I increase the clarity with which I see the world, which was fashioned with special reference to him and his majesty. That’s not to say I love God for something other than who he is; Christian faith isn’t utilitarian. But loving God does set the whole of us, and his world, in order. We love God for God’s sake, and in the process we get the world thrown in.

Back to my conundrum. Over time, I learned that:

While addictions promise the world, they deliver only death and destruction. But God asks for our souls and delivers life eternal.

While addictions promise a heightened level of awareness and insight, they cloud our eyes to the world around us. But God asks for our souls and gives us eyes that penetrate both the seen and unseen worlds.

While addictions promise unending pleasure, their effects wear off even as their demands on us increase. But God asks for our souls and multiplies his delight to extend even to those around us.

Finally, while addictions promise freedom and escape from reality, they deliver only misery as our innermost being descends into various kinds of chaos and madness. God asks for our souls and brings order and peace to our lives.

The incarnation is a conspiracy of life. Jesus can ask us for our allegiance because he knows all things hold together in him. The mystery of Christmas is that in the person of Jesus of Nazareth—truly God and truly man—God forever bound up to himself our humanity. The immensity of life divine was pleased to wrap itself up in human flesh. In doing so, he transferred our citizenship from darkness to light, from death to life, from sin to holy love.

Our salvation is the invitation for sons and daughters of God to lay claim to their inheritance of this kingdom.

THE PRAYER

THE QUESTION

Do you delight in the presence of God? What serves as a testimony to his good and loving character? How has knowing God as King helped bring the rest of the world into sharp focus? Do you have a testimony of God bringing order to your house?

For the Awakening,
Andrew Dragos

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