May 31, 2009: Finding a Metaphor – Michael Hidalgo

So often we want to draw a line between sacred and secular, between the world and the church, between evil and good. The list could go on. Paul wrote about the danger of the hollow and deceptive philosophy that was plaguing the church in Colossae. He reminds them that it is in Christ, that we find the fullness of God … rather than the gaping holes of human tradition. 

 

Then Paul tells the church – “and you can partake in the presence of God in this world.” He is using the picture of embodiment as an alternative to the prevailing deceptive philosophies that are all around. He is telling them that they must live rooted in a biblical vision of life as we attempt to discern a path forward. 

This is easier said than done. We are to live out Christ in our contemporary world in a way that makes sense to our culture. This calls for “double immersion.” Being immersed in our culture and in the text so that we can find analogies and current images and ideas that reflect Christ’s death in a compelling way.