The "Emptiness" of Christianity
When we consider the true nature of Christianity, we come up empty. It begins with heaven being emptied of the Second Person of the Trinity (John 1:1-18) who then proceeded voluntarily to emptyemptied of the baby, who would grow in wisdom (Luke 2:41-52), and lead a quiet, hidden, but perfect life as a blue collar laborer (Mark 6:3) before leaving his comfortable workshop empty, and following the difficult will of his heavenly Father (Matt 3:13-4:10).
himself of his divine prerogative in order to participate in a profoundly obscure life on the very planet that he created (Phil 2:5-7). This, of course, required that he be born as a human into humble circumstances (Luke 2:1-20), but he did not remain a cute, cuddly little baby, as our Christmas cards depict. The manger was Having emptied himself of divine prerogative, he continued to empty himself of any inclination toward worldly fame or fortune by saying truthful, but confrontational and polarizing things to people about their sinfulness, separation from God, and unbelief (John 8:12-59). This resulted in his Twitter following tumbling and his Facebook friends unfriending him. The hits on his website also decreased dramatically, yet he persisted in pursuing this path, often perplexing his closest pals (Mark 8:31-33). In fact, he began to teach them that to be his followers, they too would have to empty themselves in an analogous manner. They would have to deny themselves worldly gain if such pursuits interfered the slightest with their devotion to him and his Father in heaven, even if it meant losing their lives. (Matt 16:21-28; Mark 8:34-38; Luke 9:22-27). But he would not leave them without a model for such a journey.
For it was not long before his circle of closest companions was emptied of his presence as he was snatched away from them in order to meet his destiny in a dark dungeon beneath the very edifice erected for the purpose of worshiping him. Forced to face the fury of pious impostors and the counterfeit rectitude of Rome, "like a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent, so he opened not his mouth" (Isaiah 53:7). He "emptied himself...[and] humbled himself...unto death, even death on a cross" (Phil 2:7-8 RSV). But the emptying continued even after his death, as the instrument of his torture emptied itself of his blood-covered corpse and placed it gently into the hands of his mother, his best friend, and the kind gentleman Joseph who would together tearfully trod to the tomb and tenderly lay him to rest.
But the end turns out to be only the beginning, for three days later the tomb was emptied of the one who had been sealed within it, but not by human hands, for none lived who could move the stone and simply remove him. Besides, the tomb had been heavily guarded. Just as God, with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm, had parted the Red Sea, so did he blast open the grave of his Son who walked out on his own power, fully alive once again. It is the emptiness of the tomb that has made all the difference. It is now by means of this singing sepulcher that we understand the fundamentals of the faith and why we too must have this mind among ourselves, which is ours in Christ Jesus (Phil 2:5), "who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God" (Hebrews 12:2).
And so the analogy between his emptying and our emptying has come full circle, because it is in this very emptiness that we discover the essence of authentic faith, that is, the joy of fulfillment. For, like those early disciples, we too are called to die that we may live and deny all that we may possess even more. "So therefore, any one of you who does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple" (Luke 14:33). This was the punch line of Christ's teaching about counting the cost of following him. Basically he was saying that the cost is too high to count, so stop trying. The cost is everything, and the consequent emptiness is the only entrance into joy. The paradox could not be plainer, truer, or more astounding. For the ultimate emptying is "unto death," but the grave could not hold him, and because this is so, death is now but a moment that empties unto eternal life for all who follow the narrow way. Do not eschew the "emptiness" of Christianity. It is the hub of its power.
Blessings,
Arnie Gentile
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Posted by Arnie Gentile at 10/6/2009 8:34 PM 
Categories: Devotional Reflection
Tags: Christian Apologetics
Categories: Devotional Reflection
Tags: Christian Apologetics
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