3. The Power, The Sacrifice And The Victory Of The Lio Series

“Discovering Nania – 3. The Power, the Sacrifice and the Victory of the Lion”

Gladstone Baptist Church – 12/2/06 pm

Over the last couple of weeks, we have been looking at the Story of Narnia and discovering that there is a hidden story behind it. CS Lewis himself acknowledges this …

Less than one month before he died in 1963, C. S. Lewis wrote the following letter to a young girl who wanted to know if any other Narnia books were going to be produced. It turned out to be a fond and fitting farewell to all of his devoted readers.

Dear Ruth,

Many thanks for your kind letter, and it was very good of you to write and tell me that you like my books; and what a very good letter you write for your age! If you continue to love Jesus, nothing much can go wrong with you, and I hope that you may always do so. I’m so thankful that you realized the "hidden story" in the Narnia books. It is odd, children nearly always do, grown-ups … hardly ever.

I’m afraid the Narnia series has come to an end, and am sorry to tell you that you can expect no more.

God bless you.

Your sincerely,

C.S. Lewis

C.S. Lewis wrote the Chronicles of Narnia as children’s books, but within them lay an eternal story that for many is not apparent at first glance. Over the last couple of weeks we have looked at some of the aspects of the story. Two weeks ago we looked at the White Witch and the curse that was placed on all of Narnia. We saw that in many ways, Jadis the White Witch represents Satan and the curse represents the curse of Sin in this world.

We said that this world is not how it should be because Satan is active in it and seeking to cause as much death and destruction as possible in this world. We saw that we are all caught up in the curse. In the land of Narnia, Aslan, turns up and defeats Jadis and breaks her curse. We need someone like Aslan to come and rescue us.

Last week we took a closer look at Edmund and his role in the whole drama. Edmund met the White Witch and fell for her lies and false promises. He sold out his brothers and sisters for the price of a bit of Turkish delight and in so doing, became a traitor. We saw that we are not that different to Edmund – we are all guilty of breaking the law and because of that our sentence is death. In "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe" Aslan volunteers to give his life to rescue Edmund. We need someone like Aslan to come and rescue us in a similar way.

It looks as though we need to find an Aslan in our real world who can help us. And luckily it seems as though there is one.

At the end of The Voyage of the “Dawn Trader”, Aslan tells the children that they will never come back to Narnia and the children are devastated. There is then this exchange between the children and Aslan:

“It isn’t Narnia, you know,” sobbed Lucy, “It’s you. We shan’t meet you there. And how can we live, never meeting you?”

“But you shall meet me, dear one,” said Aslan.

“Are—are you there too, Sir?” said Edmund.

“I am,” said Aslan, “But there I have another name. You must learn to know me by that name. This was the very reason why you were brought to Narnia, that by knowing me here for a little, you may know me better there.” (pp. 215-216)

Years ago, after reading that passage, a little girl named Hilla wrote to Lewis, asking him to tell her Aslan’s other name. Lewis replied to her:

Well, I want you to guess. Has there ever been anyone in this world who

1) arrived at the same time as Father Christmas,

2) Said he was the son of the Great Emperor,

3) Gave himself up for someone else’s fault, to be jeered at and killed by wicked people,

4) Came to life again, and

5) Is sometimes spoken of as a lamb (see the end of Dawn Trader)?

Don’t you really know His name in this world? Think it over, and let me know your answer.”

2 weeks ago I told you about that letter and said that there were these little books out in the foyer that show beyond a shadow of a doubt that Aslan’s other name in this world is Jesus Christ. The character of Aslan that the children met in Narnia represents the real person, Jesus Christ that God wants each of us to meet in each of our lives here in this world.