Wicked star Cynthia Erivo will play Jesus in Jesus Christ Superstar at the Hollywood Bowl this summer. The musical is already offensive to many Christians as it suggests a romantic relationship between Christ and Mary Magdalene and puts Judas in a more sympathetic light than Scripture portrays.
Now our Savior will be played by a woman who came out as “queer” a few years ago. One fan called the decision for a female to play Christ “downright disrespectful,” adding that her opinion “has nothing to do with color, [it] has to do with the fact that the Son of God is a man.” The fan also stated, “If this was another religion, you would not do it out of respect.”
In news closer to home for me, the United Church of Christ Cathedral of Hope in Dallas hosted a service last Sunday dedicated to celebrating drag performers and transgender individuals. A “drag king”—a woman wearing a bedazzled beard and religious garments—was among the performers.
A “drag queen”—a man dressed to appear as a woman—performed at a fundraiser following the service. He proceeded to criticize Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, a paraplegic, for approving conservative laws and recommended stopping him by taking away wheelchair ramps.
If Dallas is “the Buckle of the Bible belt,” the belt seems to be in disrepair.
People want hope from their leaders
One reason such stories are discouraging is that we’re not sure what, if anything, we can do in response. And we instinctually want answers to our questions and solutions for our problems.
This is because our culture rewards those who try harder and work longer, “refusing to take no for an answer” and striving for perfection. There’s even a name for this: the “Nirvana fallacy” assumes that all problems can be solved perfectly.
As a result, when we read frightening stories about a potential bird flu pandemic or asteroid strike, we keep reading to see if authorities have prepared vaccines or taken steps to keep the asteroid from killing us. When we learn that psychological distress among youth globally accelerated during the COVID-19 pandemic, we are not surprised but we want to know what is being done in response.
It is basic human nature to seek hope in hard times. When Gallup asked people what they wanted from their leaders, they ranked “hope” far above all other responses.
So, where do we find the hope our hearts need today? The answer is not where many in our self-reliant culture are looking.
How to build an unshakable house
Jesus said, “A disciple is not above his teacher, but everyone when he is fully trained will be like his teacher” (Luke 6:40). Let’s consider each Greek word in turn:
- Disciple means “pupil, apprentice.”
- Not above means “not superior to.”
- His teacher refers to the master of his school, the instructor guiding the student.
- Everyone allows for no exceptions.
- When he is fully trained could be translated, “when he is thoroughly taught and qualified.”
- Will be like his teacher could be rendered, “will think, act, and live in the same manner as his teacher.”
As a result, our lives produce words and works that glorify God and bless others. Jesus promised: “The good person out of the good treasure of his heart produces good . . . for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks” (v. 45).
In addition, our obedience prepares us to triumph amid the storms of life. Jesus stated that everyone who “hears my words and does them” is “like a man building a house, who dug deep and laid the foundation on the rock. And when a flood arose, the stream broke against the house and could not shake it, because it had been well built” (vv. 47–48).
Conversely, “The one who hears and does not do them is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation. When the stream broke against it, immediately it fell, and the ruin of that house was great” (v. 49).
“You are much stronger than you think you are”
It only makes sense that people who emulate and are empowered by the perfect Son of an omnipotent Father would have the resources necessary to withstand the storms of life.
Paul Powell writes that after Martin Niemöller was imprisoned by the Nazis for three years in solitary confinement in Dachau, an interviewer asked him, “How could you stand it without losing your sanity?” Niemöller answered: “You can stand far more than you think you can. You are much stronger than you think you are . . . if God is dwelling in your life.”
This, in fact, is how we were designed by our Creator.
In Mere Christianity, CS Lewis explained:
God made us: invented us as a man invents an engine. A car is made to run on petrol, and it would not run properly on anything else. Now God designed the human engine to run on himself. He himself is the fuel our spirits were designed to burn, or the food our spirits were designed to feed on. There is no other. That is why it is just no good asking God to make us happy in our own way without bothering about religion. God cannot give us a happiness and peace apart from himself, because it is not there. There is no such thing.
That is the key to history. Terrific energy is expended—civilizations are built up—excellent institutions devised; but each time something goes wrong. Some fatal flaw always brings the selfish and cruel people to the top and it all slides back into misery and ruin. In fact, the machine conks. It seems to start up all right and runs a few yards, and then it breaks down. They are trying to run it on the wrong juice. That is what Satan has done to us humans.
What “fuel” will your spirit “burn” today?
Quote for the day:
“Those who understand God’s sovereignty have joy even in the midst of suffering, a joy reflected on their very faces, for they see that their suffering is not without purpose.” —R. C. Sproul
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