A Week to a New You: Day Seven

It’s the final day of Cool, Chic and in Christ’s series of the 7 Sayings of Jesus and without sounding too clichéd it has been quite a journey, In fact I’m on one at the moment, en route to Brighton to see Soul By The Sea’s production of The Passion of Jesus at St. Peter’s Church, where my sister Amooti is playing a multitude of roles.  Historically, Passion Plays used to be very common; an occasion where the community gathered to hear and see the story of Jesus as the vast majority of people were illiterate, and even for those who could read, bibles were  prohibitively expensive. I have been to a few Passion Plays before and there is something about seeing the story live that revitalises one’s faith, connecting the familiar verses on the page to actual people and events. It is no wonder that there is a current fashion in Hollywood to tell biblical stories, with Noah currently in cinemas and Son Of God to follow: the bible has epic dramas galore and our last saying of Christ on the cross brings to a conclusion all that has preceded it and gives us an invitation into a role in God’s Sequel which is a life eternal.

“Father, into your hands I commit my spirit.” Luke 23:46

Luke says that Jesus says these words in a ‘loud voice’, or a ‘shout’ in some translations. It seems quite a feat that Jesus should still have strength to shout, but he shouts because it is at this point that the Passion concludes and his spirit, his eternal essence he commits into the Father’s hands. Once again he is united with God. Put like that, I think we’d all be shouting.

One of the great mysteries of faith is that Jesus was both fully man and is also fully God. The resurrection, which Christians around the world are celebrating, has at its centre this, the greatest miracle of all. However, as we see in this verse, Jesus acknowledges his power comes from God, His father. He separates from his father’s power on the cross so that we can gain access once he unites again in His father’s power on the resurrection. The theology around it may seem confusing, but put simply, Jesus’ active committing of his spirit into his father’s hands is crucial to the resurrection and to our being able to access this resurrection power today.

We see the tension of Jesus as both man and God in the Garden of Gethsemane, when Jesus prays to God, perspires blood, and asks that the cup be taken away from him but with the vital caveat of only it being God’s will and not his own. To be fully in Christ, and thus fully in the resurrection living zone, we need to commit the very essence of us into the Father’s hands. This is a contrarian approach to living as modern life places ourselves at the centre of everything and our own personal agency as the source of every decision. We know best. We can totally predict how they will react when we say or do that. We have a diary that is choc-full-of appointments, assignments and deadlines. We know how our industry sector works and the opportunities therein. We have made the financial calculations and the figures won’t add up. We can’t make a difference because the problem is too vast. We don’t have time. We’re not good enough. We’re not sure. We’re tired. If that is you, and I will ‘fess up, it’s often me, then take a leaf out of Jesus’ book in Gethsemane and allow for God’s will to be done in your life. If you are going through it as you bear your cross, commit your spirit, the very essence of the eternal you, into God’s hands and lean on his direction. 

When I look at my own and I will admit it, pretty hands, though today bereft of serious jewellery, I marvel at the things they can do. I hold someone else’s and it shows I love them, move with them to a beat and I’m probably dancing, use a tool and I can prepare a delicious meal , write a book or make a call that will make a difference. Now, let’s consider God’s hands: creator of every human being that ever was, is and will, author of millions of universes, enabler of dreams that have yet been dreamt, lover of all and giver of life everlasting. A new you can only truly commence when you commit the whole lot of you, good and bad into God’s hands and watch the miracles happen. He is Risen and so are we who abide in him. Amen.