Sent-ness - Part Four

By: Paul Novak on: 24.08.08

Another blog on Sentness

“Will this guy every shut up?” I know, I know. You've got the point. I'm a freak about Sentness. But I thought I would just mention one last thing. Truly, this is it. I wont submit another blog on Sentness … unless you ask me to, of course.

What I just want to sneak in is the fact that the resurrection takes Sentness to a whole new level. Actually, the resurrection takes everything to a whole new level, but that is to be expected when the first human receives a body from the creator that is based on a new molecular structure.

Just for a moment do what John Lennon requests in his song of fantasy, Imagine; pretend there is no after-life. Even if that is the case, then the role for humans to represent the creator for the time that they are on earth is still a privilege and, of course, a responsibility. It’s a privilege because when you grasp the magnificence of the creator then representing him in any shape or form makes the image-bearer an important being in the scheme of things, no matter what the duration. And it’s a responsibility because getting it wrong can have disastrous consequences for his ultimate purposes (although we are talking about God here and he can never be thwarted. He can allow the delay, and only because he is gracious, but he can never be thwarted).

And this is often how I interpret the writings in the First Testament; what the people of God said before the resurrection of Christ. Particularly those in the early part of the story. The after-life was a shadowy world – Sheol – from which no one returned. It was not a true human dwelling place. Human life was all based around the surface of this planet. Any other was not what God had intended. To obtain any sort of eternal life in the ancient, male-dominated world, you had to have children – lots of them - and then make sure they had children too, just to be sure. Wives were often seen by men as a means to this end. Heaven help the barren ones, or the ones who happened to be lumbered with a guy who had a low sperm count. Hmmm ... this is probably a thesis in itself: the plight of women suffering under the regime of certain ways of thinking amongst the people of God. Do you mind if I don’t go there for now?

So, back to my other thought. Gaining eternal life meant your name and your genes carried on. This is how I read the book of Job. Suffering the death of all his children is not only an emotional torment, but a life-bound one as well. He has no hope of eternal life! Then, after the trial, God rewards Job with what is regarded at the time as the best possible reward – being able to see his great grand kids. He can be sure his name will not be wiped out and, with the success of his descendants, he will live forever.

In this scenario representing God was still a wonderful thing to have as a physical vocation. Yet it led you to hang on to every scrap of earthly life you could get your hands on. There was no point being a martyr. Long life was what most people were seeking; to be part of YHWH's solution to humanity’s problem for as long as possible. It was when a severe persecution of the people of God came about that so too did the crystallising of resurrection theology. During the Maccabean wars God’s people went through some torturous times. The question was asked: if people were to die for their faith in the Torah, then how was God going to be the true judge? Or have his name made holy? Or be seen as righteous? Or justify his reputation as the only true, living God?

Surely (so their reasoning went, based on the character of their God), surely God would reconcile the situation by bringing back to life those who had been killed in his name. And the thing to note here is the expectation that it was back to life on this planet. Not just a pleasant experience on a cloud somewhere, but back on the planet where human life belonged. Back on the planet where humans could take up the privilege and responsibility of representing God again. And to put those who originally killed them back in their place.

Naturally, as we know from the gospels, some doubted that God would do this “resurrection" thing. But God proved the Sadducees wrong with the resurrection of Jesus! God can do it and will do it. He’ll even do it for you after your own death if you connect with Jesus through faith and its subsequent out-workings.

So, what does this have to do with Sentness? Simply this: that the resurrection of Jesus, and the certainty of the resurrection of own bodies, means God is fully and utterly committed to humans imaging him in this world.

It wasn’t just an idea he had in Genesis that didn’t really work out so that now he has to back-pedal and fix things up by snatching souls from bodies, and putting them on clouds to play harps and worship him in some esoteric level of consciousness. No, God wants humans to be fully and truly human; to represent him in physical bodies on this physical planet he has made. That they prepare for him a place where He can dwell.

This means that the purpose of our faith is not so that we can solely become witnesses and tell others about the forgiveness that can be found in Jesus. No, our belief is that God cannot be thwarted in his beautiful plan of co-operating with humans to build a world together with him. We believe that God has intended and still intends for this to happen. That he will even go to the extent of “resurrecting” human bodies for it. That humans will physically represent him in all they do; from their least to their greatest activities. That they need to start doing this creative planet building work right now, in hope. That they will be doing the same thing in the future when 'heaven' descends on this planet. But at that time there will be no need for hope - for we shall all plainly see that God dwells with humankind, and loves them imaging him in everything they do. Ah yes, for at that time, the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea.

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