In the Bible, Jesus is called the Son of God. This means he was fully divine in nature. Because he was fully divine, Jesus was able to decisively defeat all the powers of evil: Satan, the six gods, and the Flesh. Because he was fully divine, he was able to accomplish this victory on behalf of every single human being. In other words, Jesus defeated all powers of evil and every human being benefits from his victory.
In the Bible, Jesus is also called the Son of Man. This means he was fully human in nature. Because he was fully human, Jesus was able to decisively defeat all the powers of evil where they lived: in our world but in our hearts as well.
Looking back to the beginning of human history, we can say that, with Adam and Eve, we humans ruptured our relationship with God. With the victory of Jesus, that break in relationships was closed. Jesus reconciled you, me, and every human being with God. He reconciled all of us with God whether we know it or not or believe it or not. In reconciling every person with God, he set us right with God, with every other human being, with the rest of creation, and even within ourselves. We now have only to act like it.
Since Jesus closed the gap between us and God, the powers of evil have much less room to work. They can’t dominate and corrupt us so easily. They can no longer simply make us their inescapable victims and unwitting collaborators.
Because of Christ’s decisive victory, we may now move slowly but steadily toward loyalty to God and away from loyalty to the gods. We may now move toward nurturing and protecting every human being and away from remaining indifferent toward most people and hurting others. We may now move toward caring for all creation and away from living in a way that requires its systematic destruction. We may now move toward strengthening our Christian personality and away from indulging in the self-destructive behavior of our Olympian personality.
Today Jesus talks with every person. He speaks to each person the truth that sets one free to live as his radiant witness. Today Jesus calls each one of us to treat others as ends in themselves rather than simply as means. He calls us today to be givers of God’s vitality to others rather than takers of God’s vitality from others.
Today Numa, the Spirit of Jesus, burns brightly in the heart of every person's Christian personality. It is Numa, the dynamic love of God, who enables all people to live as radiant witnesses to the one odd god of truth, freedom, love, and vitality.
Copyright © 2012 by Steven Farsaci.
All rights reserved. Fair use encouraged.
All rights reserved. Fair use encouraged.
