1. This hits on something that’s irritated me for a long time. Christian culture pressures us to focus everything on Christ (or some element of theology), to the detriment of living an actual, real life. No, not every sacrifice is a picture of Christ. Neither should it be. We don’t need to squeeze theology out of why we like the smell of library books. It’s perfectly good to just enjoy the scent of an old stack of books. Same thing with a good story. God made the world for our enjoyment. He made things beautiful in and of themselves, for us to enjoy that beauty. That’s enough. God made dirt and called it good. He didn’t try to make it what it wasn’t.

    But I can’t help but infer Christian meaning where it’s not explicitly stated or even intended.

  2. There used to be a church that had a monthly series called Film and Theology. They’d watch a popular movie, and the pastor would talk afterwards how it was a faint echo of the Greater Story.
    He took the idea we are creative people because God is creative, and we long to tell stories like God does. It was an interesting way to talk through movies, and use them all to point back to the gospel.
    Did those movies actually have Christ figures? No, pretty much never, but did they point to our longing for someone to rescue us? Yes, which was the part I found intriguing.

  3. Thought-provoking comments, Brennan and Tricia. I appreciate your contributions to the discussion!

    Becky

  4. Kathy says:

    True sacrifice is done in love, and Jesus did command us to love one another in John 15:12; and immediately after stated “Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.” (John 15:13). While it may not be parallel with the impact of receiving eternal life because of believing in the birth, life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, sacrifice in love is definitely a Christ-like action. Whether someone would claim to be a believer or not, the inherent human nature of Love – which is God (1 John 4:8) – is what would make them sacrifice themselves for someone else, and would therefore have the symbolic comparison to Christ.

    Just my thoughts! 🙂

    Kathy

What do you think?