Coming Down to Earth - The Incarnate God - This is a movement

“The purpose of the cross is not to pay a debt which man owes for not making it to heaven, not to assist man in his aspirations toward some kind of religious perfectionism. The purpose of the cross is to create that faith which man has lost, that faith which enables him to live once again as a creature on this earth.” ~Gerhard Forde, Where God Meets Man

If I wish to stay healthy, a moderate routine of exercise and healthy eating will help me accomplish this goal. If I wish to live in my own home and fulfill my vocation as an attentive wife and mother then I must take care of myself and my home, watch my children, and love my husband. Merit-based rewards also follow the law-equals-results kind of thinking. If I work hard, I will be rewarded with a higher salary; if I study and train diligently, I will be recognized as an esteemed student-athlete. This is how our world works, and when we set goals, we benefit from this system of rewards in a lot of ways.

Most likely, we attempt to play along this same law(goals)-equals-results system in our relationship with God.  If I do this right, God will bless me.  In reality, we all have stories of failure.  We actually have more than we care to admit.  Still, there are times when we have seemingly done something right, but the bottom still fell out and we found ourselves in disadvantaged circumstances. God’s faithfulness is not contingent upon our efforts or what we achieve.

The truth of that statement hurts as much as it brings relief and hope. Our human nature is wired for success through the merit of our efforts. Such independence is the trademark of the Fall, when Adam and Eve took it upon themselves to be like God, to know good and evil (Genesis 3:5). Christians believe Christ is the fulfillment of the law and the new self or new creation in Christ, which lives by faith, already has merit by way of Christ’s sacrifice.  This merit is true merit although the lives of Christians may not display it in every action.

Martin Luther, the Protestant Reformer, brought this truth to light when he criticized the Catholic Church’s stance on salvation --  the authority of the Church does not undermine the authority of Scripture. Luther’s reformational recovery of St. Paul’s doctrine on justification — Christ’s atoning death justifies by grace through faith — is an essential element of The Death and Resurrection Doula theology for this training program. Prior to the Reformation, in the second century, Irenaeus of Lyons crafted his theology around the theme of recapitulation, which means that in becoming a human being Jesus Christ is the recapitulation of all of human history in an effort to safeguard the Church from her Gnostic opponents. Luther’s theology of the cross — the theology of the God who meets us in suffering — and Irenaeus’ recapitulation theology together enable us to see our stories in light of the fact that we are yet to be made complete. Our existence on earth, from birth to death is the experience of salvation.  Entering into our stories to see salvation at work can change the experience of dying for individuals, families, and communities.  We can face death knowing it ultimately holds no power over us because we have the promise of resurrection.  God’s death changes death. In Jesus Christ, God has gone before us and entered into death to save us from it.