When it comes to Easter, I believe many think that this is only a holiday for religious people. I think people should put all these “Churchy,” “religious” and “Jesus-freak” labels aside and actually explore God’s nature without society’s influence of domesticating it or without compartmentalizing God towards religion. So in a podcast I was listening to, someone said “affirming the trinity in the modern world is like crazy
talk,” and I kind of did that fast exhale, kind of when you see a funny meme on facebook, mostly because that seems to be true. It also mentioned “If we believe in the trinity, then shouldn’t we be called “Godtians” and not just “Christians?” While a bit humorous, it is also thought-provoking because it made me think, why don’t we call ourselves Godtians? Then the lecture brought out a good point though, we aren’t striving to be fully divine like God, we are striving to be fully human as Christ was. Some think Jesus was this perfect person, when in reality he was human just like the rest of us– he probably also clipped his toe nails and had inside jokes with the apostles.
Furthermore, in the podcast I was listening to, I really liked how he defined Omnipotence. When mentioning this word, I’ve always thought of God having all kinds of powers, or perhaps holding a lightning bolt. However, the way he said it made all the more sense to me, “Omnipotence is not a power over people, it is more of an empowerment from God and others.” Through Jesus, I can definitely see Him reflecting God’s omnipotence. Additionally, when he mentioned miracles, I often thought that miracles are only physical, yet he mentioned, “Miracles are God’s intervention in our lives,” meaning they can both be physical and spiritual. All in all, Jesus’ life not only showed what it means to live a meaningful and joyous life, but it also reflected God’s spirit and Omnipotence. Though this is a hard concept to grasp that God is both fully
human and fully divine, the podcast had a great analogy when he said, “Like the strands of a rope that, twisted around each other, provide a strong cord, these two perspectives compose the strands of the theological tightrope of Christology: the affirmation that Jesus is truly God and truly human.”
But, who is this God or Jesus we speak of? Just like many today, I also used to imagine God to be a loving wise elderly man. I’m not sure if that is my original thought, or if I got inspired from movies/media like Bruce Almighty or The Giver. Similarly, when I think of Jesus, I often think that he looked like Mel Gibson from The Passion. It is interesting though, I had found out from one of my college classes that Jesus most likely looked more Mediterranean, (just like in the picture below)
and not so much the European look we have gregariously applied to Jesus. I think it’s safe to say that external influences have distorted the image of Jesus. Nonetheless, perhaps this just goes to show that we should not look to random sources for discovering who or what God is, (His looks are irrelevant to his godly spiritual characteristics and actions anyway) but rather go right to the source and God will reveal Godself.
And now, since today is Easter, I often keep the golden nuggets of insight to myself but I thought I’d share one today. Here is a wonderful quote that beautifully epitomizes the nature of God in today’s world:
“Now yes, yes, creation sometimes screams a confusing message—fear, pain, grief. Fire burns, rivers flood, winds go hurricane, the earth shudders so hard it levels cities. But you must remember—this was not so in Eden. Mankind fell, surrendering this earth to the evil one. St. Paul says that creation groans for the day of its restoration (see Rom. 8:18–22), making it clear that everything is not as it was meant to be. People come to terrible conclusions when they assume this world is exactly as God intended. (An assumption that has wrought havoc in the sciences.) The earth is broken.
Which only makes the beauty that does flow so generously that much more astounding. And reassuring.”
How blessed are we to have a God who still intervenes in our fallen world?! How blessed are we that this God sacrificed himself to give us the perfect example of what it means to be human?! Happy Easter Folks!!
