Christ The King / Proper 29
Devotional
Water From the Rock
Lectionary Devotional for Cycle C
Object:
... and in him all things hold together.
-- Colossians 1:17b
Here may be the boldest claim in all of scripture. We are not talking about saving the good from the bad or separating the faithful from the wicked. The claim is that through Christ all things on heaven and earth are reconciled. The claim is that Hitler, Mother Teresa, Genghis Khan, Saint Francis, earthquakes, and sunrises find their peace in Christ. Christ becomes the linchpin of history that holds it all together and prevents all creation from flying apart. Here is not the hero of the truth bravely fighting against the odds to give victory to the brave and faithful. Rather here is the answer to all of the "whys" of history that somehow redeems the most wicked of acts so that all now makes sense.
If we accept such a faith then our whole perspective on life changes. The change begins in the church where Christ is recognized as head of the body, but as we recognize Christ as the head of the living body, it flows out from there until we also see Christ as having first place in everything.
This challenges all our prejudices and shatters the boundaries by which we divide the world. We are to view all of the events of life through the spectacles of Christ. Nothing is ultimately lost because in Christ all things hold together. That does not mean tragedies are not tragic or evil deeds are not evil, but rather in and through Christ, we are to search for and proclaim their redemption. It also means that nothing in our life is beyond redemption. That which separates and alienates can only be finally resolved in Christ. We discover our peace as we recognize Christ as sovereign.
-- Colossians 1:17b
Here may be the boldest claim in all of scripture. We are not talking about saving the good from the bad or separating the faithful from the wicked. The claim is that through Christ all things on heaven and earth are reconciled. The claim is that Hitler, Mother Teresa, Genghis Khan, Saint Francis, earthquakes, and sunrises find their peace in Christ. Christ becomes the linchpin of history that holds it all together and prevents all creation from flying apart. Here is not the hero of the truth bravely fighting against the odds to give victory to the brave and faithful. Rather here is the answer to all of the "whys" of history that somehow redeems the most wicked of acts so that all now makes sense.
If we accept such a faith then our whole perspective on life changes. The change begins in the church where Christ is recognized as head of the body, but as we recognize Christ as the head of the living body, it flows out from there until we also see Christ as having first place in everything.
This challenges all our prejudices and shatters the boundaries by which we divide the world. We are to view all of the events of life through the spectacles of Christ. Nothing is ultimately lost because in Christ all things hold together. That does not mean tragedies are not tragic or evil deeds are not evil, but rather in and through Christ, we are to search for and proclaim their redemption. It also means that nothing in our life is beyond redemption. That which separates and alienates can only be finally resolved in Christ. We discover our peace as we recognize Christ as sovereign.
