**Drama: NARNIA Intro: Are you into that?
Well Good morning. Obviously from that, you know that we are starting our new three week Christmas series today. The Chronicles of Narnia. We want to spend the next three weeks before the Holidays exploring a world that is always winter but never Christmas.
Sounds like an awful place doesn’t it? But that is the world that this Thursday, Disney will bring to life with their movie version of the book written by C.S. Lewis: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. (show picture of the book’s cover p.p.)
For those of you who are have never heard of this book. It was written in the 1950’s and as of this year has sold approximately 86 million copies world wide. Disney has invested around 150 million dollars in making the movie version and has said they are almost sure it will be one of their biggest blockbusters of all time.
The reason we are doing this series however is not just because it will be a great movie. We are doing this series because the story is an allegory of the teachings of the Bible. And so for the next 3 Sundays. We want to take you behind the scenes and show you what C.S. Lewis was trying to say with The Lion the witch and the Wardrobe.
And so this morning I invite you to get out a pen and a piece of paper and take some notes. I invite you to grab a Bible and open to page ________; Matt 1. And now I invite you to go behind the scenes with me and explore the world of Narnia.
But before we start I need to do one more thing. I need to invite God to be the teacher.
Pray
About 6 months ago I went to my wife and said. I got a great idea for a Christmas series. Let’s do the Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe. My wife looked at me and went: “What? What is that and what does it have to do with Christmas?”
And I suddenly realized there are people in this world who have never read the book or seen the terrible BBC movie version of Narnia. And my wife is one of them. So as we start I need to get us all on the same page.
So that means this:
I now get the perverse and satisfying pleasure of ruining part of the movie for you by telling some of the details of the story. (Don’t worry I won’t give it all away.)
The book is about four children (Peter, Edmund, Susan, and Lucy) who encounter an old English wardrobe while playing hide and go seek. **PP
The wardrobe however in no ordinary clothes closet, when the children step through the door they enter a parallel universe. The world of Narnia to be exact.
Now let me tell you a little about Narnia: **PP
It is a strange place where animals talk, and dwarves, werewolves, giants, and other strange creatures roam the forests.
Originally, it was a beautiful and amazing place, ruled by a great king named Aslan the lion. **PP
Aslan however, leaves Narnia and goes on a long journey. And while he is away an evil white witch takes over and casts a spell on everything, turning the land into a permanent winter where it is always freezing but never Christmas. **PP
Any creature that tries to stop her, she turns to stone. So everyone hides cold and afraid and miserable. **PP
There is but one hope for this weird parallel world. And that is that Aslan the king will return, and destroy the witch, and bring warmth and sunshine and life once again to this place.
Pretty strange story huh.
Parallel worlds. Talking animals. Evil witches who wreck place. Kings who are far from their realm, but promise to return and make the world right.
Sounds kind of hard to believe doesn’t it. I mean, who would believe that kind of nonsense?
Except that that is the same kind of stuff you encounter when you open up the Bible. The Bible like the wardrobe is a door to a parallel world. When you walk through its pages you discover a very real supernatural world.
Check it out for a second. Just let me show you what happens when you when you open up the door of scripture and walk into its world.
You encounter a ruler who exists and is good.
Ps 145:8-9 The LORD is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and rich in love. The LORD is good to all; he has compassion on all he has made. NIV
When you walk through the portal of Scripture you suddenly discover there is a God and he is good. The Bible never debates God’s existence instead it just goes: Well Duh. Of Course God exists and he is good!
And truthfully all of us let out a little sigh of relief because there is something in each of us that longs for there to be a God and for him to be good.
Recently, I was reading about Sophia Cavaletti. She is a researcher who has spent her life studying spirituality in young children. She writes some amazing stories from her research that show you just how much we all long for their to be a God and for him to be good.
She writes about a three-year-old girl, who was raised in an atheistic family with no church contact at all, not a Bible in the home. She asked her father one day, “Where did the world come from?” Her dad answered her in strictly naturalistic, scientific terms. And then in the interest of honesty he added, “There are some people who say that all of this comes from a very powerful being, and they call him God.” At this, the little girl started dancing around the room with joy, saying, “I knew what you told me wasn’t true. It’s him! It’s him!”
And when you open this book, that is who you encounter. You encounter him. The one who is good!
On of my favorite authors is a woman named Ann Lamont. I heard her talk one time about how when she was growing up, her dad was an alcoholic and an atheist. He made each of the kids make a little contract with him when they were
between two and three years-old that they would never believe in God because he did not believe that God existed, and he was real mad at God for not existing. He was quite bitter about the whole religious deal. Ann Lamont says how even when she was two and three years old she made that contract with her dad because he was her dad. But she writes this: “In my heart I always knew that
when I said hello somebody heard. That when I prayed there was someone who
listened.”
And that someone is who you encounter when you open the Bible. A God who is exists and is good.
You discover that you are primarily a spiritual being not just physical.
Gen 2:7 And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul. KJV
You are a soul, it is not that you have a soul. You are primarily a spiritual being made for the spiritual realm not for this world. You function in the physical world but you are more spiritual than physical. You were made for eternity.
That is why Jesus makes statements like this:
Matt 6:20 Store your treasures in heaven, where they will never become moth-eaten or rusty and where they will be safe from thieves. NLT
He says that because he knows you are not made only for this physical world but you are made for eternity. You are a soul. So don’t waste all your energy and time gathering physical wealth or power here, when this world is just practice for the next. Instead value what the spiritual realm values
But that is not all you discover when you walk through the doors of Scripture. Depressingly enough you also discover this:
You discover that this world was good but has become a cold, terrible and painful place because of the deceit of an evil being.
Rom 8:22 For we know that all creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth…NLT
That verse is saying what you know to be true: This world is screwed up. This is not the way this place is supposed to be. It is obvious, just look around. Read the paper or watch the news. 10 more marines killed yesterday. Wherever you look you are confronted with the cold reality that this world is a mess and all creation is screaming in pain because of the deceit of an evil presence called Satan. Revelation 12 describes him this way:
Rev 12:9 The great dragon was hurled down-that ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, who leads the whole world astray. NIV
This place is screwed up because a real being called Satan deceives the world and leads it to destruction. **We will talk more about that next week when we take a look at evil and Satan.
But that is not the whole story. See you would think at this point. That God would show up in power and strength, and knock everybody down and force them to be good and wreck evil with might. But that is not what you find when you dig into other places in the Bible. Instead you discover deeper magic. (as C.S. Lewis says.)
You learn that a baby was born who is able to save people from their sins.
**You would think he would be all powerful and strong. But instead he shows up as a baby to save the world!! (read it with me)
Matt 1:18-21
This is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be with child through the Holy Spirit. Because Joseph her husband was a righteous man and did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly. But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, "Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins." NIV
And that is what we celebrate every Christmas. That Jesus came as a innocent baby and began to free the world for Satan and sin.
But that is still not the whole story. When you open this book you discover one more reality:
That you have a choice as to what side you will be on.
Jesus said: Anyone who isn’t helping me opposes me, (Matt 12:30)
**See Jesus says you can’t be neutral when it comes to the spiritual world. You can’t be Switzerland. You either choose to join forces with him or by not choosing you side with the enemy.
That is the portal you enter when you open up the Bible. Just like the children open up a wardrobe and walk into a parallel universe and have to deal with all of its reality. When you open up this book, you are transported into a very real parallel world that does exist side by side with this one and you must choose which side you want to be on.
I know what some of you are thinking right now. Really Eric? I just can’t buy it. The story you just told sounds more like Harry Potter or Lord of the Rings than reality. It is a fantastic story but it’s really hard to believe.
If there really is another realm, like what the Bible says exists. Why can’t it be seen more often? I mean, I have never have had an encounter with anything except this physical world. God hasn’t parted any seas for me. I haven’t heard him speak from the clouds. No angels every show up and tell me anything. If there is a spiritual world why is it so hard to find?
And I would answer that question the same way that the Bible answers that question. It is one little three letter word: SIN.
Don’t you hate that word. I think it is one of the most awful words in our English language. But truthfully the Bible says the spiritual world is hard to find because of this word, because of our sin.
Recently I learned of a website called notproud.com. On this site people can anonymously confess their sins. Here is just a sample of what is there.
If I could smack every co-worker and take their responsibilities and salaries, I’d do it. If I could hit you in the face and steal you wallet without looking you in the eye, I would do it.
Sloth: I should be working now but I am doing this instead.
When my father was in the hospital after a suicide attempt, I wouldn’t visit him, in order to get back at him.
I go to college. I used the money I should have spent on housing to buy dope, alcohol entertainment and food. I am bad, I know it, but stopping is soooo hard.
I lie about things I have done to hide the fact that my life has been a meaningless timeline of uninteresting events, characters and experiences. I lie to make up for the fact that I have no soul…
See all of us have stuff we could write at that site. We could all go there and write about our lust or pride or greed. We all have guilty consciousness and regretful pasts about something. And all that stuff is what keeps us from finding the supernatural realm.
Isaiah 59:2 says it like this:
Isa 59:2 But your iniquities have separated you from your God your sins have hidden his face from you, so that he will not hear. NIV
What he is saying here is that the spiritual world exists. God is there but we bar the door to finding him with our sin. Let me give you a visual of what he means.
Every time we do something wrong we put up a barrier to the supernatural. As kids we are fairly innocent. Anger, lying, hate, gossip, meanness, say hurtful thing, As we get older I can still see…: greed, lust, laziness, pride, till pretty before we know it looks like this: and we can no longer find the door.
We end up as adults with all this junk between us and the doorway to God. And then we sit and begin to wonder: Why can’t I find God? Maybe the supernatural realm doesn’t exist. Maybe this is all there is. Maybe life has no point. It must be all an accident.
But in reality it is just that since we were young we have been putting up barriers that push us further and further and further away from the spiritual realm until we know longer can find the door to God.
The spiritual world is there but we have to much of our junk in the way to find it.
**People come to me all the time and ask me why they can’t find God? I want to hear him or know he is real. And nine time out of 10 when I start talking to them we discover, that they have all kinds of junk in the way. Some addiction. Some hidden thing. Some bitterness or anger or guilt in their past that they have never dealt with. And so they never see God, because they barred their own door.
So Eric, if that is true. What do I do? How can I begin to clear this stuff away and get to the door again?
I would offer two suggestions:
1. Deal with the sin that keeps you far from him.
Ps 66:18 If I had not confessed the sin in my heart, my Lord would not have listened. NLT
What he is saying is God will not let you find him till you start with I AM SORRY. I was wrong. Will you forgive me? **say it will me
So I have to ask you an important question:
Have you felt like God is just a long way off in your life? Have you been frustrated and felt like he never talks to you or answers your prayers? And maybe even now you are wondering if he really exists?
If that is you and you want him to be real to you, it starts with saying: I AM SORRY. I was wrong. Will you forgive me?
And here is the cool thing:
The second you do that, God breaks down the barriers, and the door to God is open again and you can sense his presence.
James 4:8 says it like this:
James 4:8
Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. NIV
Basically if God feels far from you, all it takes for God to be near, is you to say: I am sorry. I was wrong. Will you forgive me?
So I have to ask you again.
Would you like God to speak to you this Christmas? Would you like him to be closer than he has ever been before? Would you like to know he is real? Then start with: Asking God to forgive you for your junk. And he will show up.
**I did that again last night. I was at a concert. Suddenly struck me I had some things between me and God. God I am sorry.
And then I think there is a second thing you can do to make the spiritual realm real to you.
2. You can walk through the door.
I want you to notice what Jesus says over and over again about himself in the Bible.
John 14:6-7
Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life.
John 10:7-9
"I tell you the truth, I am the gate for the sheep. All who ever came before me were thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them. I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved. NIV
Jesus wants you to know the only door to God is through him. He is saying. If you want to find God and break into the spiritual realm you must choose to enter through him. When you go through his doorway you will learn that God is real and active and alive in the world.
So How do I do that? How do I enter through Jesus?
Saying something like this:
Jesus, I believe you are the only door to the spiritual realm. I want to know and understand God and so I ask you to lead my life. To become my leader.
And he promises that when you do that. The spiritual realm will begin to break into your world. Look at what he says in Rev 3.
Rev 3:20
Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me. NIV
Or if you will listen to my voice and follow me, the door will come open to the spiritual world and God will come near to you.
That is the truth of the wardrobe.
Whoever deals with their sin by asking forgiveness and invites Jesus to lead their life will discover the spiritual world really does exist and God will come near to you and walk with you.
Will you choose it today?
Let’s pray.
