“Rum
thing,” said a committed cynic to a friend one evening in the midst of a
discussion about the historicity of the Gospels. “All that stuff of [James G.] Frazer’s
about the Dying God. Rum thing. It almost looks as if it had really happened
once.”
With
those words the cynic shoved a committed but troubled young atheist toward theism
and, ultimately, to faith in Jesus Christ. The young atheist was C. S. Lewis, and
my reason for the quote is to reintroduce an often overlooked feature of the
Gospels. (C. S. Lewis, Surprised by Joy. Ch. 14)
To
understand that feature it must first be stated that there is no fact-based
reason to doubt that the Gospels are authentic. Of course, that is not the same
as to say there are no denials. There are denials on every side; but they rise
from what can be identified as a dedication to ideology rather than accuracy. Trashing
the Gospels is important to those who long for an animal-driven paganism and to
those who are still trying to prop up a sex-driven intellectualism. To even hint that
the Gospels record eye-witness reports of the events they describe is to open
the door to uncomfortable questions regarding accountable vulnerability to
Someone who is out there.
The
fact that neo-pagans and sensual-intellectuals “overlook” this authentic
mystery is not a surprise; but, do we as Christians overlook it as well? I
would suggest that the Christian community does seem to be without awe when it comes
to the inspired accounts of a mysterious visit to our planet, and it may relate
to the same problem of vulnerability to accountability.
In order to speak to this point devotionally,
I hope to sketch the intentional flow of one of those Gospels (Luke) in its record
of the career of this mysterious Man called “Jesus" – a career which unveiled
his fascinating identity and unpacked his frightening authority.
SERIES INDEX The Mysterious Footprint of Godliness
NEXT: Where to Begin?
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