It is difficult to comprehend the extent of how wounded our planet really is. It is tempting to only focus on the problems. They are overwhelming when you look at them globally--famine, war, disaster, hunger, poverty, and disease. Where do we begin to bring healing? How do we change our thinking from one of hopelessness to one of hopefulness? I am reminded of the words of Gandhi, “Be the change you want to see in the world.” But can one person really make a difference?
Two thousand years ago God sent one man into the world. One person at a time He healed the sick, restored a soul, and spoke a kind word. He lived the purpose of the Divine. He came to pay the penalty for sin. Did this one life make a difference? Here we are so much further down the road and it seems that things are worse than they’ve ever been. What does it mean to restore the Kingdom of God?
Did that one life change something essential at some level? Where do we go from here? When will it all end? These are ponderous questions. I don’t have the answers, but I continue to search and study and seek to understand where to find answers in a mystifying world. I turn to my Bible and find that something essential did change when Christ came and lived, died, and rose again. I find that He bought back what Adam had lost in the Garden of Eden.
Christ is called the second Adam. Literally, he came in the place of the first Adam to redeem what had been lost. Adam’s choice to go against God’s command of love was in essence giving up control of our planet to the rebel Lucifer. Christ came to defeat this usurper and “buy back” our planet. His life “redeemed” our planet so that we could once again come before God without an intermediary. Christ became our bridge back to God.
Christ returned to Heaven but he told His disciples He would come again. Belief in a second coming of the Christ is a promise of restoration to our planet. Things will not always be the way they see them now. The book of Revelation in the Holy Scripture gives us a picture of the lamb and lion lying down together in peace--it gives us a promise of tears wiped away.
It is hard to believe that this is possible. Anticipating our unbelief, Christ told the disciples that if He had come the first time, He would surely come again. The fact the Christ came the first time has been established. The evidence of the power of His message is still alive even in spite of all of the abuses done in the name of Christianity.
One life does make a difference. Your life makes a difference. My life makes a difference. When we commit to being a source of light to the world, it lights the darkness. We are one candle in the darkness, but together our tiny candles bring the light of hope and healing. Our light grows brighter the more we connect to the Source of Light. “So let your light shine that people may see it and glorify your Father who is in Heaven.” (Matthew 5:16)
Two thousand years ago God sent one man into the world. One person at a time He healed the sick, restored a soul, and spoke a kind word. He lived the purpose of the Divine. He came to pay the penalty for sin. Did this one life make a difference? Here we are so much further down the road and it seems that things are worse than they’ve ever been. What does it mean to restore the Kingdom of God?
Did that one life change something essential at some level? Where do we go from here? When will it all end? These are ponderous questions. I don’t have the answers, but I continue to search and study and seek to understand where to find answers in a mystifying world. I turn to my Bible and find that something essential did change when Christ came and lived, died, and rose again. I find that He bought back what Adam had lost in the Garden of Eden.
Christ is called the second Adam. Literally, he came in the place of the first Adam to redeem what had been lost. Adam’s choice to go against God’s command of love was in essence giving up control of our planet to the rebel Lucifer. Christ came to defeat this usurper and “buy back” our planet. His life “redeemed” our planet so that we could once again come before God without an intermediary. Christ became our bridge back to God.
Christ returned to Heaven but he told His disciples He would come again. Belief in a second coming of the Christ is a promise of restoration to our planet. Things will not always be the way they see them now. The book of Revelation in the Holy Scripture gives us a picture of the lamb and lion lying down together in peace--it gives us a promise of tears wiped away.
It is hard to believe that this is possible. Anticipating our unbelief, Christ told the disciples that if He had come the first time, He would surely come again. The fact the Christ came the first time has been established. The evidence of the power of His message is still alive even in spite of all of the abuses done in the name of Christianity.
One life does make a difference. Your life makes a difference. My life makes a difference. When we commit to being a source of light to the world, it lights the darkness. We are one candle in the darkness, but together our tiny candles bring the light of hope and healing. Our light grows brighter the more we connect to the Source of Light. “So let your light shine that people may see it and glorify your Father who is in Heaven.” (Matthew 5:16)