While the topic of this project seems miles removed from concrete pastoral issues, it is one that does have some practical applications. First, there is a doxological application. As we come to understand that in Christ we have received more than we lost in Adam, and as we grow in appreciation of the extent of our salvation and the radical nature of our participation in God’s nature, our first response must be worship. As with Paul, contemplation of the deep mysteries of God should solicit deep praise.
Second, there is practical import to the profound truth articulated by CS Lewis, “It is a serious thing to live in a society of possible gods and goddesses, to remember that the dullest and most uninteresting person you can talk to may one day be a creature which, if you saw it now, you would be strongly tempted to worship…”[1] When we speak of the dignity with which man has been endowed as image bearers, we ought to keep in mind the dignity to which man is called in union with Christ as well. It is a dignity that many will forfeit by refusing Christ, and this ought to add further weight to our evangelistic appeals and further motivation to preach the gospel of reconciliation with courage.
Third, there is peace to be had. The question I was asked and which prompted this project was born out of an angst that was real, though maybe ill defined. I believe it is an anxiety that many feel if few articulate. The Christian life is a hard pilgrimage. Will we truly be able to rest when the race has been won? Will we find true and lasting peace and security? In Christ, the answer is a resounding “Yes, and Amen!”
[1] C.S. Lewis, The Weight of Glory (San Francisco, CA: Harper Collins, 1980), 45.
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