The Risen Christ

A black hole is a phenomenon of the universe where matter is so dense that the velocity needed to escape (rocket, etc.) is greater than the speed of light. That means that even light cannot escape its gravitational force, hence the name “black hole”. If light cannot escape then the black hole cannot be seen. Some black holes are the size of a football field but with thousands of times as much mass as our Sun. But even though we can describe such a startling phenomenon, human words are incapable of fully capturing such a stretch of known physics. We understand on our level, but our description is profoundly rudimentary.
And so it is with God. The Scriptures tell us that no one has seen God and lived. That means that any visual representation of God is a gift of grace as well as being necessarily cloaked to some extent. God is a spirit, and a spirit cannot be seen with human eyes. But God does reveal Himself through some things that can be seen. Fire, smoke, light, and a burning bush are some of the manifestations God allows to represent His presence. But, of course, the Lord Jesus is the highest representation of God and is, in fact, God in the flesh.
But somehow we have lost the sacred and lost the awe. Somehow we have presented a caricature of God and the Lord Jesus, and we no longer reverence Him, to say nothing of fear and trembling. The Apostle John laid his head many times on the bosom of Christ, and yet upon seeing the Risen Christ he fell at His feet as though dead. Yes, Jesus is a friend that sticks closer than a brother, and yes He is a loving and intimate shepherd to His sheep. But He is also God, the Eternal Word, and a consuming fire.
The church has significantly redefined the Lord Jesus until all He is good for is helping with your electric bill and getting your auto loan approved. And preachers by the thousands lead their congregations in prayer, asking God to help them garner millions of dollars of secular debt in order to build more buildings. No one can honestly read the scriptures and believe that God is in accruing massive debt.
People speak about Jesus as if He is their great uncle. Some even suggest that He speaks to them audibly because that subliminally suggests God is on your side. This western caricature is nothing like the Christ in Scripture, and in many ways it seems like a doll or teddy bear. There is little conviction of sin, and professing believers by the millions gather to worship God with unclean hands and hearts. Which Jesus are they worshiping?
To be sure there is an intimate side to the Lord Jesus, and anyone who has actually experienced His presence can testify to that. He is a healer and He is the Balm of Gilead. And through the Spirit He comforts us as well. But it is not just unwise to alter His image, it is sacrilege. What would we think of a scientist who confines his definition of a black hole as nothing more than a tightly filled bean bag? That would not only be inaccurate, it would be a gross misrepresentation. And in fact, it would violate any accepted scientific norm.
And so it is with the western church’s representation of the Risen Christ. It is not only inaccurate, it violates the truth of Who Christ is as revealed in Scripture and taught by the Spirit through the illumination of that same Scripture. It is not wrong to often speak with God as a friend, or converse with Him on an intimate basis. Even discussing seemingly mundane things builds up our most holy faith. But we must never strip Him of His majesty and glory. There are no human words to adequately define and completely do justice to the immensity of His Person and the august nature of His eternal divinity. Even the word “God” should stir our hearts and bow our wills.
Without a fresh vision of the Risen Christ, God the Father, and the Holy Spirit we will continue to feast on scraps, and sometimes those scraps are poison. I am one who endorses a vibrant and demonstrative worship before God. I play the piano and have written many worship songs, some to which you can dance. I embrace that kind of unbridled expression of praise and worship. However without a stream of awe and wonder, and deep and compelling reverence, it many times is completely fueled by the power of music and a sophisticated sound system, but not the power of God’s own Spirit.
If we allow the Spirit to reintroduce God to us in all His glory and power, and if we once again are broken before the wonder of the cross, and if we never forget what sinners we were and what sinners we are, then we will experience what true worship is - all about Him and never about our method, never about our music, and least of all, never about us.