Against the Powers

Charles Campbell's Word Before the Powers challenges all notions of what it means to be a Jesus follower. His conviction is that Jesus is depicted as the God ordained prophet/teacher who did everything to resist, usurp, name, and expose the "principalities and powers" of darkness. Though he is not original with this idea (none of us are by the way) his particular approach of desribing the Christian life is compelling.

In resisting the powers we are truly following Jesus and we serve as foreshadows to the full inbreaking of the Kingdom.

One section in particular really transformed me this week. In resisting the powers of darkness, even if it means marginalization and death, we beging to witness tokens of Christ's resurrection.

In my own life, these glimpses of God's Shalom have often come on the streets of Atlanta among homeless people. Several months ago, for example, I was leading worship in the front yard of the Open Door Community, a Christian community that ministers with homeless people. A group of us were standing in a circle, holding hands, praising God amid the noise of rush-hour traffic...Then, as I looked around the circle, I noticed one homeless man waiving to me and pointing to himself, indicating he wanted to do something. I was surprised when I saw him, for the man can neither hear or speak, and normally he is very reserved. But there he was, urgently waving to me, requesting to provide leadership for the worship.

I nodded to him, and he stepped into the middle of the circle. Then, after bowing his head for a few moments in silence, he began to sign a hymn for us. It was remarkable, beautiful, like a dance. And while the rest of us didn't understand all of the signs, some of them were unmistakable, like the sign for Jesus on the cross. And we all knew the Word the man proclaimed through his dance. (pp. 123-24)

As easy as it is to name the powers at work (indiffernce, nationalism, materialism, and racism) I shudder to think of the ways in which I allow and encourage the powers and prinicipalities of darkness to ravage the ones Jesus identified with.

It is time for those of us doing theology and preaching to do theology that is concerned about the church and her witness in the world and not 3rd Century Ancient Roman bathroom construction, or depicting a God who wants to "increase our territory." Both reduce the Christian Story to a pitifall version of the Jesus on display in the Gosels and throughout the history of his church. Christ means a real and present hope for all people. Christ means change. Christ means ongoing transformation. Christ means the liberation of creation from the grip of death.
That is the music to which we all are invited to dance.