Dear Faith Family,
We are all familiar with "origin stories." Whether President Snows' or a more jolly man with a white beard, whether arriving from a galaxy far, far away, or from the multiverse, focused on Poseidon's son or one of Xavier’s kids, origin stories have been a staple of entertainment production. And while there is always action in these stories, much, if not most, of the story, concentrates on retracing the interactions and events that have birthed the eventual hero or villain. Almost always, these stories, told with an eye to the future, are a set-up for more films to come.
Generally speaking, Deedra hates these types of movies! It's not the fact that they happen to be superhero, sci-fi, or fantasy stories so much, as it is the dragging out of the fanciful details before the short-lived climax. The background, which may be interesting for comic geeks like myself, can’t hold her attention. She doesn’t need to be told that superheroes or evil empires or mutants exist or how they exist; she wants to see what will happen since they exist, what the conflict will be, and how they will overcome it.
But, movies like the X-Men’s Days of Future Past, which assume you already know much of what is happening and jump directly into the action-packed plot, she’s all for. No background, just a few lines of text on the screen for context and then immediate conflict. The story is set, the plot is underway, and she is in!
If you are like Deedra and prefer to jump directly into the action of stories or films, Mark is your gospel!
Mark wastes no time. No detailed lineage, no foreshadowing monologue, no “how’d we get here” details of characters all too quickly forgotten. Instead, one simple introductory sentence to give us a bit of context, “The good news of Jesus Christ—the Message!—begins here…,” then wham: God’s arrival, the action underway!
John the baptizer, in step with the prophets of old, preparing us for the immediate entrance of Jesus into the story of salvation. Jesus baptized and affirmed. Jesus tested and proven. John silenced, Jesus amplified. All in 15 verses!
Mark—via Peter—does what takes Matthew 65 verses and Luke 185 verses to accomplish. In fifteen short verses, God is right here with us, alive and at work in His story, in the story of humanity. The movement of plot in the 39 prequels presumed and culminated in Jesus’ declaration,
“Times up!
God’s kingdom is here.
Change your life
and believe the Message,
the good news.”
(Mark 1:15)
The plot is set, and you and I are drawn into the action instantly! Jesus calling disciples, casting out demons, healing the sick, the lame, the leper, and proclaiming in word to all who will listen that God is here and He is for you! Halfway through chapter two, and already Jesus is doing the things we think of when we think of His work. But that's when the real conflict begins becoming evident.
The conflict isn't with "the enemy" or ills of this world, but Jesus inviting a tax collector to become an apprentice and not having his disciples follow the same procedures as the established insiders. Chapter three clarifies the conflict even as it intensifies. And by the time chapter four begins, the primary conflict is front and center, a conflict of imagination, of perception of life with God and God with us that shapes how we live that life.
In Mark 4, Jesus begins to take a slightly different approach to proclaiming and demonstrating God's Kingdom's arrival. He begins to tell stories, everyday, earthy stories that pack a punch. Stories we call parables.
With many such parables Jesus spoke the word to them,
as they were able to hear it.
Jesus did not speak to them without a parable...
(Mark 4:33-34)
Now, here is the thing about parables: they don’t define, diagram, or systematize; they describe something, usually something more real than the familiar elements of the short stories themselves: things like our souls, our hearts, our relation to the world, how God relates to us, and the kingdom of God. In other words, parables don’t do the work for us; they require us to put in work, imaginative, or meditative if you prefer, work, the work of faith. They train us to hear the voice of the Lord and see with the eyes of the Spirit.
“Parables trust our imaginations, which is to say, our faith.
They don’t herd us paternalistically into a classroom
where we get things explained and diagrammed.
They don’t bully us into regiments where
we find ourselves marching in [moral, unthinking conformity].”
(Eugene Peterson )
Parables invite us into a relationship, a courtship of faith, requiring the use of our hearts, souls, minds, and strength as we mature in Kingdom living. This is why our faith family begins each new year in these enlightening stories, the stories Jesus tells that confront and conform our vision of the days ahead through the vision of God with us and God for us and neighbor and enemy.
If you missed our first parables of the new year, no worries! You can listen and imagine while listening to them here. And better, we've put together a guide to help us mediate our way into our upcoming parables here.
I hope you'll take advantage of this season and Jesus' stories. And I pray we'll experience Kingdom Epiphanies that give shape to our year ahead!
Love you, faith family! God bless.