Reclaiming the Story

Risking More Than the Afterlife

I took a philosophy class my sophomore year of college. As the year progressed, we began to dip our proverbial toes into the waters of metaphysics. The class discussions began to heat up as we discussed the nature of life, death, God… the possibility of miracles, and the nature of reality itself. I remember there was a girl who sat in front of me, who was refreshingly sincere about her struggle with faith and belief. She wasn’t convinced of Christian faith, but she was choosing to hedge her bets anyway…She said something to the effect of, “I would rather believe and find out I’m wrong some day, than not believe and find out I was wrong. I would rather be surprised that nothing exists instead of being surprised that hell exists, and it is awaiting me.”

That seemed reasonable enough to me.

There are untold millions who have wrestled with faith, and decided to hedge their bets over the years. This idea of hedging our bets is rooted in a profound fear of judgement, and the great mystery of what exists beyond the grave. When we close our eyes one final time, what will happen? Infinite dark? Streets of gold? I’m not sure…I guess, I’ll hedge my bets by believing in a God who may or may not exist on the other side of my last breath.

The problem with this way of thinking is that it doesn’t fit with the biblical story. It is a mindset that the biblical authors and earliest Christians didn’t have a mental parking place for. In fact, Paul’s words in 1 Corinthians 15:19 are exactly the opposite of this. He says, “If in Christ we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied.” In other words, if the Gospel isn’t true, and there is no hope of resurrection, then we didn’t hedge our bets– we went all in, and wasted our lives. We of all people should be pitied most!

Being Christian used to be risky. It was bold. It wasn’t an identity marker, held in safety. To follow Jesus was to slide all of one’s chips into the middle of the table. Risking it all on the resurrection.

How did my classmates’ mindset become so popular? When did Christianity become the safe bet?I don’t know for sure, but I’ve got a pretty good idea.

At some point throughout the medieval period the movement of the biblical story began to change. A story that was once about God’s movement down to earth became a story centered around our movement up to heaven. And when the movement of the story changed, we had to rewrite the ending as well… and consequently, we lost the thrust of the story all together. The biblical story is a story about a good creation… fractured, saved, and renewed. When the movement changed, it became a story about a good creation… ruined, abandoned, and started over (in the sky).

That’s a very different story.

To make matters worse, we didn’t just change the story, we redefined what it means to believe in the story. Sometime after the enlightenment, faith turned from allegiance to Jesus, to cognitive agreement to a set of ideas about Jesus.

Here’s why all of that matters…

If the story is about what God is doing here on earth (the renewal of our world– the establishing of His Kingdom, here on earth as it is in heaven), then belief in that story necessarily involves my whole life– my life’s work…and if faith is about allegiance to Jesus then my story becomes hidden in this larger narrative. It encapsulates my whole life…my telos.

On the other hand, if the story is about God’s great do-over, then my life’s work doesn’t need to align with God’s mission (as long as I don’t break any of the major Christian rules along the way). After all, God’s work is being done in heaven, not on earth. Earth is going to hell in a handbag. The story is all about heaven. If that’s true, then I can hedge my bets, through thin belief in a set of ideas that only impact my after. And if I’m wrong… the only thing I’m risking is the great mystery of the sweet by and by. Paul seemed to think there was more at risk than that. And I tend to agree. I think when Jesus invites us to follow him, he invites us to go all in– to risk our lives on the promise of an everlasting Kingdom, here on earth… one that we are able to pray for, and build for. Jesus invites us to risk our lives by following him on the narrow, difficult path that leads to life. He invites us to lose our lives so that we might find them. He invites us to slide our chips into the center of the table and live as if the Spirit’s work in our lives might actually make the world less hellish. And if we’re wrong…then we of all people, should be pitied most.

Why? Because apparently we wasted our entire lives.

So maybe that’s what I’m asking… are you willing to risk your whole life? Or just your afterlife?

Someone might rightly wonder, perhaps this is the invitation of Jesus…this is the actually story of scripture…but why should I risk everything for it? Why should I give up the safe bet, for the risky, all-in invitation of Jesus? Because Christ slid His chips into the center of the table first. He went all in. Christ faced the fractures of our world head on. He risked everything– he spent his life’s work committed to renewing His creation. He refused to abandon the world that he created. He couldn’t help but see its goodness underneath all of its fractures. No matter how twisted His creation became, he never lost sight of its original goodness and the potential of its renewal–our renewal. He refused to give up on us, even if it would cost him everything. And it did. He gave everything, that he might secure an everlasting home for us, here on earth. In His resurrection that hope was inaugurated. The renewal that God promises at the homecoming of Jesus has already been launched in His resurrection. He is the first fruits of a resurrected people and a resurrected world.

And because of the resurrection of Jesus we can be sure, our work is not in vain. The tomb is empty, so push your chips into the center of the table. It may not be a safe bet, but Christ is a sure thing. It will cost you everything, but it’s in losing our lives that we find them.

So when life looks wrecked, don’t grit your teeth and wait for the great do-over. Pray for all that seems wrecked to be renewed. When life hurts like hell, choose to love like heaven. When you feel hopeless, pray for the hope of God’s promised future to break into the present. Don’t give up. God hasn’t. God won’t. God will finish what he’s started. The movement of the story is downward. God is bringing his heavenly home to earth. Sometimes we just need to turn off our devices and find enough stillness to experience his movement. God is here. Heaven is breaking through. God invites each of us to make the world a bit more heavenly, today. And tomorrow. And the day after that.

What a story to live– what an invitation to accept.

Happy Easter.