In this short post, I offer some reflections for Christmas. The HSF will take a break next week and begin posting again on January 9, 2023.
Aslan
In C. S. Lewis’s The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, the Narnians live in a world where it is always winter but never Christmas. Although it is bleak, they hold out hope for the fulfillment of the Golden Age Prophecy:
Wrong will be right, when Aslan comes in sight,
At the sound of his roar, sorrows will be no more,
When he bares his teeth, winter meets its death,
And when he shakes his mane, we shall have spring again.
One of the first signs that the White Witch is losing her tyrannical hold occurs when Father Christmas makes his long-anticipated appearance, announcing the imminent arrival of the Great Lion. Christmas signifies the end of the winter and the arrival of spring—the hope of life and the healing of relationships.
Upon first hearing the prophecy from Mr. and Mrs. Beaver, Edmund Pevensie does not react with expectation but rather joins the White Witch, betraying his brother (Peter) and sisters (Susan and Lucy) to her. However, Edmund soon discovers her wickedness, escapes her clutches, and, by the mediation of Aslan, reconciles with his siblings.
That reconciliation comes at great cost, though; it comes at the sacrifice of the Great Lion, Aslan himself. The White Witch murders Aslan, believing she has won, believing she has secured an eternal winter. But, in Aslan, death begins to work backward, and Aslan comes back to life, demonstrating power over death itself and giving hope amid the bowels of despair.
Jesus
The story of Aslan and Narnia is the story of Jesus Christ and the world. The Son of God entered the world as an innocent babe and died as an innocent sacrifice. In Ephesians 2:1–10, Paul considers the alienation that exists between holy God and sinful men and women, brought about by the sin of Adam and Eve. But God, in His great mercy, sought and achieved reconciliation between God and man in the person of Jesus Christ. God has “made us alive together with Christ” (v. 5).
Paul then moves from the vertical dimension to the horizontal dimension: because God in Christ has established reconciliation between God and man, He calls His “saints” (1:1) to seek reconciliation among one another. Specifically, he discusses the relations of Jewish and Gentile Christians (2:11–22). Then, several chapters later, Paul also discusses the relationships between husbands and wives (5:22–33), parents and children (6:1–4), and employers and employees (6:5–9).
Where there is alienation, there can be reconciliation; where there is hostility, there can be peace. But, as Lewis reminds us with Aslan, Paul reminds us with Jesus: true reconciliation comes at great cost: “For He [Jesus] Himself is our peace, who made both groups into one and broke down the barrier of the dividing wall by abolishing in His flesh the hostility . . . so that in Himself He might make the two one new person, in this way establishing peace; and that He might reconcile them both in one body to God through the cross, by it having put to death the hostility” (2:14–16).
The Christmas babe became the Easter lamb, sacrificed for our sins. But death could not keep Him; the grave could not hold Him. He rose from the dead so that resurrection becomes a symbol of life and hope and healing.
You and me
Just as the Pevensies found reconciliation among themselves, we likewise may seek the same with our estranged relations. In our own lives, we sometimes find that certain relationships have assumed the long, cold war of winter. Perhaps we find ourselves in relationships with the Edmunds of the world. Or perhaps we discover that we are Edmund to someone else’s Peter, Susan, or Lucy. Sadly, some of our relationships are always winter but never Christmas.
Yet in Christ we can be reconciled. So, ask for forgiveness, give grace, and seek restoration. Undoubtedly, restoration will not always occur in this life—sometimes because of impossible circumstances, sometimes because of impossible people. But in Christ, who has achieved reconciliation between God and man, we too can seek peace within our relationships. The cold war of winter can end. The genuine hope of Christmas awaits.
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