When the Christ appears

Readers who have fallen in love with Paul as we studied Romans last month will enjoy reading (or re-reading) Sara Fletcher's wonderful article "Paul's recipe for joy" in the October 13, 2014 issue of the Christian Science Sentinel. Find it at JSH-Online here: http://sentinel.christianscience.com/issues/2014/10/116-41/paul-s-recipe-for-joy

If you have sometimes struggled with some of Paul's terminology, this article may be just the trick to dispelling the fog. Sara helpfully writes: "Paul opened up a whole new world to the first Christians of what it meant to be "in Christ." The phrases "in Christ," "in Christ Jesus," and "in the Lord" are favorites of his." And she goes on to quote from Scottish theologian William Barclay's book "The Mind of St. Paul" -

"Let us remember who and what Paul was. Once he had been a persecutor, pillaging the Church ... Then on the Damascus Road something happened.... It is difficult to describe it any other way than to say that in that moment one man died and another man was born. The old Paul was dead and a new Paul was born. And who had been responsible for this change? None other than the Risen Christ. From that moment Paul felt that between him and Christ there was so real, so close, so indissoluble a union that it could not be expressed in any other way than to say that he lived in Christ, and Christ lived in him" (p. 13).

That transformative journey still evokes such wonder, such joy and promise for us all. The promise is fulfilled as we too yield to the evidence of the Risen Christ.

Recently, when Sydney was under siege, and the reporting of it was filling our air waves, I turned to our book of poems for this month, Boundless Light, and the book opened at page 85: The Christ Appears by Eleanor Henderson Buser. 

What a revelation to read about "the fourth watch...the darkest hour of the night..." and then -

"When all seems turbulent
Is when the Christ appears."

Joy indeed!


Julie Swannell