THERE IS A RUMOR: ASLAN IS ON THE MOVE!
Song of Solomon 2: 11-12; Amos 3:15; Ps. 143:3-4;Rev. 21:1-8; 22:1-5: Isaiah 40:1-6; 35:1-2
INTRODUCTION
There is a rumor going around and I thought you might like to know about it. A rumor can be a dangerous thing. Often rumors are used by one person or groups of persons against another to either gain control over them or to malign them in some way so as to elevate themselves in others’ eyes. However, Merriam Webster offers the following definition: Rumor - talk or opinion widely disseminated with no discernible source. While we want to be cautious about spreading false rumors and it is usually wise to check our sources, Webster’s definition allows for the possibility that NOT all rumors are evil. That said, I heard a rumor the other day that put a little fire in my heart. Would you like to know what it is? Come a little closer! Listen carefully! There are ears listening that we don’t want to hear. It is really exciting news. It may be the most exciting news ever shared. ASLAN IS ON THE MOVE!
For those of you who have had the opportunity to either read the book, The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, or to see the movie playing on the silver screen now, you know what I am referring to. If you haven’t had the opportunity yet, please allow me to give you a sneak peak into one of the most beloved stories ever penned. This book is a part of the series: The Chronicles of Narnia written by one of the greatest minds in history, C. S. Lewis. Lewis was a teacher of Medieval Literature at both Oxford and Cambridge Universities in England, was formerly an avowed atheist, but marvelously converted and became one of the most well-known Christian authors of the 20th Century.
The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe is a fictional story set in England during WWII. Four children(Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy) have been sent to the country to live with the Professor because London is under attack by the Nazi’s. They are sternly warned by the housekeeper not to ever disturb the Professor, so they could not touch many things and they could not be loud. A problem often occurs in England and that is it rains a lot. Being trapped inside and with much time on their hands Lucy, the youngest, suggests they play hide and seek. Peter begins to count and the others scamper to find the best hiding places. Lucy wanders into a room which is empty except for a large Wardrobe. She opens the door, walks in and begins to move through the hanging clothes to the back of the Wardrobe. Suddenly, she finds herself having walked into another kingdom, the Kingdom of Narnia. Narnia is a land, which in C. S. Lewis’ mind, is a picture of life both with and without Christ. When Lucy stumbles into this enchanted land, she and the others discover through the testimony of the creatures who live there that Narnia is under the curse of the White Witch. Narnia has been in a perpetual winter for over 100 years and its inhabitants live in constant fear. They are without hope and are under the control of evil. One of the creatures makes the statement that in Narnia “it is always winter but never Christmas.” While the four are visiting a family of beavers, they are discussing the terrible plight of the land of Narnia. Suddenly, Beaver leans forward and whispers to them a rumor he has heard, ASLAN IS ON THE MOVE. The children discover that Aslan is the rightful king and that he is amassing an army to defeat the White Witch and break the power of winter and they also learn they are important players in this battle.
Of course, those with keen hearts quickly recognize that Narnia is truly a dramatic portrayal of both the lives of men with and without Christ. For all who do not know our Lord it is “always winter and never Christmas”. Hope, promise, future are all a forgotten dream covered over with the ice and snow of years of disobedience. The Rumor that Aslan is on the Move brings a glimmer of hope to a hopeless world.
At Christmas each year multitudes of Christians over the earth celebrate the Joy which Came to the World 2000 years ago and broke the curse of sin for all who would accept the Son of God as their personal Savior. But for numerous others this year it remains “always winter and never Christmas”. You know, you never know who may stumble into your world one day. It could be a Lucy or an Edmond. It might be a stranger or a relative. When it happens we must be ready…ready to share with them a rumor, a rumor that will start a fire in their heart that will melt the ice and snow and warm them from the inside out. What is that rumor? I believe the Bible has something to say about this greatest of all rumors. Let us look for a moment and discover how this rumor can help a lost world.
BODY
FIRST WE FIND IN THE SCRIPTURE THIS RUMOR IS A…
I. RUMOR OF WAR- Isaiah 40:2-3 The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the LORD, make straight in the desert a highway for our God.
When the Beaver shared his rumor (Aslan is on the Move) you almost anticipate the roar of a Lion, the charging of troupes, the conquering of the hill, the defeat of the enemy. Not many people truly like war. Most men want to live in peace with one another. However, if a tyrant gains control over a people, if people are hard pressed long enough they begin to look for deliverance. They begin to pray to God for him to send a Messiah, a General, and Leader.
As I shared in my most recent message, Israel 2600 years ago was on the verge of being taken away into captivity. Isaiah predicted their capture and bondage for 70 years. He also predicted their deliverance in just the nick of time. After 39 chapters of gloom, doom and judgment Isaiah hears a rumor. He hears the faint sound of a Voice crying in the wilderness. Judgment is over. The time for bondage is past. Payment for sin is accomplished. Aslan is on the Move.
Today, we as both individuals and the Church are faced with the possibility of War. Not many like war. Oftentimes it is difficult to determine the winners from the losers. Most politicians and officials try to avoid war and use it as a last resort. This is good, but there are times when war, especially in the spiritual realm, is just a must.
ILLUSTRATION- In J.R.R. Tolkien’s – The Lord of the Rings- The Return of the King, Arragon challenges those who would fight with him saying, “There may come a day when men’s hearts may fail and they will not fight, but this is not that day.”
There are times when evil has had its hold on our brothers, sisters, mothers, fathers, cousins, and neighbors for too long. There comes a time when we have been under the paw of the devil ourselves. Our life has been “always winter and never Christmas.” There may be a time when we must step back, suck it up and bide our time, BUT this is not that time. There is a voice crying in the wilderness, snow and ice of your tormented, chained life. Your hard warfare is ended. Your sins have been paid for. There is as rumor…Aslan is on the move.
Secondly, WE FIND IN THE SCRIPTURES THAT THIS RUMOR IS A…
II. RUMOR OF HOPE – Isaiah 9:2 The people that walked in darkness have seen a great light: they that dwell in the land of the shadow of death, upon them hath the light shined.
What does your future look like? First, we better look at your track record. How have you done in the past with the opportunities God has given you? Most people never reach their potential because they are covered by layers of snow and ice. Failure has them in its grip and they have settled in to a life of boredom and mediocrity. Such was the case with Narnia and such is the case with all men, women and children caught in the trap of sin. We have tried to do right and have failed. We wanted our lives to be pleasing to God, but…we failed. We wanted to be a good companion to our spouse but…the marriage failed anyway. Therefore, we have just settled in to a “just make it through” mentality. As Christians we are living hopeless lives. Why? How can we expect to bring hope to our Narnia, if we, too, our caught in the spell of the enemy? In Ephesians 2:12 Paul says, “…you were strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world…BUT NOW IN CHRIST JESUS…”
Here is our Rumor of Hope. But now in Christ Jesus…ASLAN IS ON THE MOVE.
We may have once walked in darkness but now a light is shining. It is shining on me and you. How could it be? What have we done to deserve such blessing? My life is a failure; we say…Many of us are like
ILLUSTRATION- CINDERELLA – Deep inside there seems to be a faint memory of what she was supposed to be. There was a ball, a dress, a carriage a slipper but…alas, it seems so far away…until the Prince (ASLAN IS ON THE MOVE)
The nation of Israel had experienced more than one wilderness in their troubled history. Their history of making wrong choices, their following other gods and forgetting the King of glory “days without number” finally caught up with them. Their Temple was destroyed, their young men taken captive, their women violated. They were under the spell of the enemy. They were walking in darkness…year after year…century after century…ice and snow covered their souls and their future…they were the valley of the shadow of death…UNTIL… “the light shined upon them…UNTIL… “The Son of Righteousness arose in their midst with healing in his wings.”
APPLY- And so it is with us. Our world is filled with devils. The Media, Arts, Religion, all are polluted with the best of man’s ideas. The better we try to make ourselves the more we plunge ourselves into the control of one worse than the White Witch. Blackest dark surrounds our every endeavor. We try to make good lives for our families and be a success but the more we try the more despair closes in around us. Someone says, ‘I’ve made a mess of my finances, my boss wants my head on a platter, my ex wants everything’. Someone else says, ‘I’ve been struck down so many times this year that I can’t even count them. Life has beaten me up’. We have a faint remembrance of something we were supposed to be but it is all but lost in our HOPELESS SITUATION…Until…we overhear someone talking about a rumor…Aslan is on the Move. There is as voice crying in the wilderness. What wilderness? Mine…Yours. He is saying, “Prepare ye…Get ready…Suddenly, hope sparks and is fanned into flame. We were in darkness but we have seen the glimmer of a great light. Could it be true? Dare I believe again? Sarah said, “Shall I have hope again, seeing I am past the age of child bearing?” ROAR!!! ASLAN IS ON THE MOVE!
Thirdly, WE FIND IN THE SCRIPTURES THAT THIS RUMOR IS A…
III. RUMOR OF NEW LIFE - Song of Solomon 2:11-12 “For, lo, the winter is past, the rain is over and gone, flowers appear on the earth, the singing of the turtledove is heard in our land.”
Amos 3:15 “And I will smite the winter house with the summer house; and the houses of ivory shall perish, and the great houses shall have an end, saith the LORD.”
ALWAYS WINTER! NEVER CHRISTMAS! That is just something that should never be. In both the movie and the book when Lucy heard this statement, her childlike response was, “No presents for a hundred years?” UNTHINKABLE! Thankfully, God feels the same way about life. Most fairy tales seem to end “Happily Ever After”. While this is an unrealistic view of life, it is very much the Biblical view of the eternity we are promised with God. The Apostle John had a vision of “Happily Ever After” in Revelation he said, “And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea… And he shewed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb… In the midst of the street of it, and on either side of the river, was there the tree of life, which bare twelve manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit every month… And there shall be no more curse.”
“Lo, the Winter is past.” Evil cannot go on forever. The blooming of the flowers in the spring speaks to the fact that “death cannot keep her prey…” Because of the empty tomb there is a way into a new land. Lucy found Narnia in a common wardrobe. Christ found the way to New Life through death on a Roman Cross. Who’s going to believe Lucy? Really! Narnia? A new land…in a closet? A new life…from a Cross? No way! And yet it is true. Paul said in 2 Cor. 5:17 “Therefore, if any man be in Christ he is a new creation. Old things are past away and behold all things are new…”
APPLY- When we live in the frozen tundra of self-centeredness, ever step we make is like struggling in quicksand. The more we struggle the more we sink in despair, but it is in times like this that ASLAN BEGINS TO MOVE. God loves to come just in the nick of time. He loves to give new life when hopelessness seems to reign. Out of the frozen earth, when the Sun first begins to shine, it is the Crocus that first peeks it head through. God promises in his word that the Winter house will be destroyed by the Summer house. There is as new life for you. Just reach out and claim what is yours. Isaiah said, “The wilderness and the dry land shall be glad; the desert shall rejoice and blossom like the Crocus; it shall blossom abundantly and rejoice with joy and singing.”
CONCLUSION
You may find yourself troubled but DO NOT BE DISTRESSED. Life may deal you a terrible blow and you may confused about it but DO NOT BE IN DESPAIR. Your job or your boss may be driving you crazy but DO NOT BE FRUSTRATED. Money may be scarce but DO NOT FRET. Your children or some other family member may have disappointed you. That stand you took for Christ recently seems to be very costly to you on so many levels. You may be persecuted BUT YOU ARE NOT FORSAKEN. You may have been knocked down but you’re not knocked out. How do I know? I heard a rumor recently…Come closer and I will tell you…Be careful there are other ears that can hear….Aslan is on the move. PREPARE YE THE WAY OF THE LORD.
