Author: Wick

When I was in high school, I worked summers at a camp called Youth Haven Ranch. For one entire summer, I was put in charge of taking care of/running the petting farm at the ranch. It was an interesting summer, for sure.

One thing I remember well, were our turkeys. We had a tom (appropriately named “Tom”), and two hens. Every other area of the petting barn had your normal variety large bars/doors that kids could climb on, reach through and pet the animals. Heck, they could and often did just climb on through to reach the animal they really wanted to pet.

But the poultry cage was different. It had the usual looking bars, but it was also covered from ceiling to floor with chicken wire. This was for obvious reasons…turkeys aren’t generally cuddly animals.

It never failed, no matter the age group, there would be several kids who saw the chicken wire as an invitation for fingers. They would poke and prod, especially close to the turkeys when possible. It was usually accompanied by a yell of some sort. “Hey turkey turkey turkey!” “(turkey noises that neither sounded turkey-ish, or very healthy)”, “come and get it turkey!!”

No matter how regularly these kids poked their fingers through at the turkeys yelling loudly, it would always come as a complete surprise and alarm when one of them pecked with lightning speed at whatever finger, or close standing person they could get.

Then the 8 year old boy, who seconds earlier was master over the turkeys, looks up at you and you can tell he’s trying not to cry. He wants sympathy. He wants you to punish the bad mis-behaving turkey.

And all I could usually come up with was, “What did you expect?”

I’m pretty sure God has a bit more compassion on us when we finally look to him instead of whatever cage we’ve been poking at. But still – why do we so often seem entertained or interested in getting the attention of these things that we know have no desire but to peck our fingers off? 🙂

In my last post, we looked at the phrase “wages of sin” from Romans 6:23: “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”  Today is a bit more encouraging as we look closer at this “free gift of God” that is “eternal life”.

The words used for “eternal life” here are used in many places throughout scripture.  There are times it’s used to talk about a destination, or something that will happen “someday”.  (Matthew 25:46)  But this isn’t necessarily the only way it’s used.  Just as the “wages of sin” doesn’t have to mean eternal punishment…the words here offer so much more than a “someday” understanding.  As NT Wright has written:

“But ‘eternal life’ does not mean’ continuing existence.’ It refers neither to a state of timelessness, nor simply to ‘linear time going on and on.’In its original Jewish context the phrase fairly certainly refers to ‘the life of the age to come.’ The ‘present age/ according to some Jewish thought, would give way to ‘the age to come.’ One of the great beliefs of the early Christians was that God had already kick-started the ‘age to come,’ even though the ‘present age’ was still in some sense continuing. The new world order that God was to bring to birth had, they believed, already begun, and those who were Christ’s had already entered upon it. The life proper to the new age, the new aion in Greek, had already begun. The phrase ‘eternal life’ should not, therefore, be read as though it meant a spaceless, timeless existence. It should refer to a new (age/mode of existence) which God will create in the renewal of all things.”

The “gift of God”, therefore, comes as much more of a readily available opportunity and invitation today, than a “someday we’ll be with Jesus in Heaven” type understanding.  The fact that as we live “in Jesus name (nature)”, we have access to the ability, by His Spirit, to live from the life of the “age to come”!!!  That can be a confusing concept, so let me break it down more simply:

1. Jesus has been physically resurrected (“firstborn from among the dead”- Colossians 1:18) as the first bit of “New Creation”, an actual physical existence we all look forward to someday as God brings together Heaven and Earth and makes all things new. (see Revelation)

2. Even though we cannot yet be swallowed up by this new way of “being” (2 Corinthians 5:4), we can still exist resourced in the same life that is the source of that New Creation (age to come).  This is the gift of God that comes in overwhelming response to the threat of the “wages of sin”.  We not have have to continue paying the wages for sin, because we have been set free, and given a source of overcoming the cycles and identity of those who choose their own way.

Add into all of this, the fact that the word for “gift” is “charisma”…the root word of which is “grace”.  There is nothing we’ve done to deserve this, or earn this, but it comes as a truly free gift of Love from a God who looks at His creation with a desire to bring healing, redemption, and renewal.

May we continue to offer this “gift of God” to our children on a regular basis, as their understanding will change/grow with their age/experience.  May we never offer it as a carrot on a stick to shape their behavior, but rather a source of identity to be claimed TODAY as they live their lives as citizens of the Kingdom that is, and is to come!!!